Monday, December 31, 2012

Senators Trade Proposals Into Night To Avoid 'Fiscal Cliff'

The Washington Post:

Senate negotiators labored late into Saturday over a last-ditch plan to avert the "fiscal cliff," struggling to resolve key differences over how many wealthy households should face higher income taxes in the new year and how to tax inherited estates.

Read the whole story at The Washington Post

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/30/senators-trade-proposals-_n_2384120.html

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Sunday, December 30, 2012

The very purpose of spirituality is self-discipline. Rather than ...


Criticizing others, or criticizing yourself. One will get you results, the other just annoys people.

Criticize others, or criticize yourself. One will get you results, the other just annoys people. Be constructive in your self-criticism, and then do something about it.

What does that mean?
Recently, I was riding in a car when the driver criticized the driver we were following for their driving style. To me, that was exactly what this quote was about.

They were criticising others for something they didn?t even know they did, and did so in their absence. Without them being present, there would be no way of them understanding what had happened, or altering their behavior.

Instead, the quote urges us to evaluate what we could do to better adapt to the situation, and criticize ourselves and our behaviors. It is implied, at least in my mind, that after we criticize ourselves, we then do something about it, and act to remedy our deficiencies.

Why is fixing ourselves first important???
To me, this quote is mostly about developing the self-discipline necessary to be able to improve ourselves. Lacking that level of self-discipline, we cannot push ourselves to do the work necessary to get better at much of anything. And that?s not much of a life, is it?

It is easy enough to criticize others, for some reason, that just comes natural to most of us. However it is usually much more difficult to even notice a defect, much less criticize it, when we are dealing with ourselves. Again, that just doesn?t seem to be the way it works.

However, with some effort, we can turn the focus to ourselves as the first place to examine when something isn?t quite right. As we are the only person whom we can actually make change. If we can remember that fact, we can more easily make the change.

Where can I apply this in my life?
What are some of the things which others do which annoy you to the point of criticizing others? That might be a clue that there is something you could try to change in yourself. Can you take a moment and consider what rule of yours that they are breaking?

Once you know what the rule is that they are breaking (or bending), you can try to determine where that rule comes from, and if it still serves you. Is it something you learned as a child, but isn?t useful anymore? Is it a rule you learned from your parents or a teacher, which is no longer useful?

Is it something unrealistic in this day and age? Is it even proper, given the change in societal standards over the past few decades? Are you tilting at windmills, or otherwise behaving in an anachronistic manner? Perhaps you could change just a little bit, right?

In the case of the driver mentioned above, they have a certain set of habits that the other driver didn?t know, and wasn?t likely to have developed on their own. Without any communication of common ground rules, there was little chance that the other person would do what was expected.

This would be a prime case for changing our rules for just a little while, so as not to get angry or frustrated with the other driver, right? Then everyone can arrive happy and relaxed, not angry and frustrated. How much of a change do you think it would take to accommodate the quirks of the other person?

Grab some paper and write down a few of the things that annoy you. Once you have a couple of them listed, try to figure out what is the rule that people are breaking that causes each of the annoyances. Now write down what some of the reasons why you have those rules.

Pick one of the items on your list where you want to make a change. The first thing to determine is if this is a life-long change, or just a rule you need to relax for a while under certain circumstances. For a life-long change you?ll need to completely dismantle the rule, as well as replacing all the old reasons with new reasons which support the new rule.

If all you have to do is put up with someone?s quirks for the duration of a trip, a holiday gathering, or a weekend away, all you need to do is come up with reasons to temporarily relax your rule until things are more or less back to normal for you.

Either way, you will have to spend some time carefully examining your life and your reasons for being the way you are. ?I?ve always been that way.? may be a good excuse, but it is not a reason. Until you can find the beliefs and examples that support your rules, you will forever be subject to them.

Whether you believe in spirituality or not, I believe the very basis of civilization is self-discipline. Without it, society and even families break down rapidly. When this is combined with the realization that we cannot force others to change, we can come to realize the power of this quote. I hope you chose to live it, as I am trying to do.

From: Twitter,?@DalaiLama
confirmed at : it?s his own feed?
Photo by?korona-pl

Source: http://philosiblog.com/2012/12/30/the-very-purpose-of-spirituality-is-self-discipline-rather-than-criticizing-others-we-should-evaluate-and-criticize-ourselves/

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President Of Sony Online Entertainment Calls Hackers “Scumbags”

Do you rage whenever you're killed by a hacker? Well apparently so does the President of Sony Online Entertainment, John Smedley. Read on for the variety of insults he's thrown at hackers on his Twitter account.

John Smedley is the President of Sony Online Entertainment, the developers of PlanetSide 2, and he recently posted a number of Tweets aimed towards players he feels are ruining his game.

Source: http://www.gamegrep.com/news/61867-president_of_sony_online_entertainment_calls_hackers_scumbags/

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Saturday, December 29, 2012

The ITC's Proposing Some Rough Sanctions Against Patent-Infringing Samsung Phones

The Apple vs. Samsung battle is trucking along, and this time there's more bad news for Samsung. Yesterday, a somewhat censored version of presiding Judge Thomas Pender's suggested sanctions was published by the ITC and it includes not only an import and sales ban on the infringing products, but also the posting of a bond for 88 percent of the value of those phones. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/0IpCJbGI-k8/the-itcs-proposing-some-rough-sanctions-against-patent+infringing-samsung-phones

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How many words to say? The perennial challenge in public speaking

Many speakers can?t work out how many words they can say in the time they?ve got. Whilst there is no substitute for practice, don?t bank on more than 140 words per minute.

An entrepreneur friend of mine was recently on a global trade tour. With a group of his fellow countrymen he was visiting a load of European countries to sell his great new idea. At each event each member of the group was supposed to stand up, give a two minute elevator pitch and sit down. Every single time, one guy would get up and speak for quarter of an hour, dominated the time available and no-one else got a look in. Needless to say he wasn?t the most popular delegate on the trip.

We?ve all been there. A speaker?waffles on for three times as long as anyone anticipates. Sometimes other people miss out on speaking, or they miss their train home. Always it tires the audience.?Over the last few years as an observer of public speaking I?ve seen a lot of speakers overrun. Occasionally a speaker keeps going on?because they like the sound of their own voice. Mostly, it?s borne out of lack of confidence in the speaker themselves.

The greatest fear of any novice public speaker is running out of material. Not having anything to say in front of audience. To be frozen, silent and exposed. As a consequence novice speakers try to pack more into their speeches than they can possibly hope to say in the time available. Experienced speakers do it too, when they?re in front of new audiences that make them nervous.

The answer of course is to plan to say less. But how much less? That?s the tricky part, because it will depend on a wide range of different things, including the density of the content (does the audience have a lot to take in?) and pauses you are inserting for dramatic effect, but here are some helpful tips I?ve picked up along the way.

  • Since we all?speak at different rates, there?s no substitute for practice at home.
  • When performing in front of an audience, I find most speeches take 15% longer than they do with the mirror. That?s a combination of additional pauses for effect, laughter, and allowing the audience to take the content in.
  • If you don?t have time to practice, years of writing my own speeches and reading other people?s suggests most people can say around 140 words?a minute clearly, so that?s about 1,000 words in a seven minute speech. (Having said that, one of my favourite speaking blogs, six minutes, analysed a series of TED talks by leading figures and found the average speaking rate was 163 words per minute, with a range of 133-188. If you ask me, many of them would have been a lot better if they?d slowed down http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/speaking-rate/)
  • Finally, remember that when it comes to speaking, your audience are very unlikely to be more engaged with the subject than you are and the more enthusiastic the speaker the more they want to cram in. If you think it is about the right length, it is probably too long. If you think it is too long, it definitely is. No-one ever condemned a speaker with the words ?that presentation was too short?.

Happy speaking!

George

______________________

Working or living in the London Victoria area? Want to know more about becoming a better public speaker? Visit London Corinthians on the 2nd, 4th and 5th Thursdays @ 7.30pm.

Find out more about us on our website:?http://www.londoncorinthians.co.uk/. Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LondonCorinthians?Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LonCorTM

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Source: http://londoncorinthians.wordpress.com/2012/12/29/how-many-words-to-say-the-perennial-challenge-in-public-speaking/

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Telltale Games to make episode one of The Walking Dead game ...

Telltale Games to make episode one of The Walking Dead game free on Xbox 360

Telltale Games is still holding on to the Christmas spirit, with the company somewhat confirming on Twitter that the first episode of The Walking Dead game will become available for Xbox 360 soon.

The critically acclaimed point-and-click adventure role-playing game (RPG) comprises of five episodes, each of which is equally gripping and entertaining

Xbox 360 owners will surely be glad to hear about Telltale Games? plans to make The Walking Dead ? Episode 1 for free, as it will give them a chance to finally get an opportunity to see for themselves what the hype surrounding the game is all about.

It is important to note though that the free first episode of The Walking Dead offer will remain active for only a limited time and will most likely expire by January 31, 2012.

This would still give an ample time to the gamers to get their hands on the first episode of the game that has been making waves ever since arriving on multiple platforms in April earlier this year.

Making the first episode of The Walking Dead free for a limited time is an excellent strategic move by Telltale Games as by allowing the gamers to taste the game for free, the company is making it easier for gamers to access the game.

With the game comprising for five episodes, there is a very strong chance that the experience offered by the first episode will get the gamers hooked and make them crave for the remaining four episodes.

In order to experience the remaining episodes, the players will become more willing to spend 400 Microsoft Points, thus increasing the sales of the game.

Slated for a release in the final month of 2011, the game was delayed until early 2012 due to production and development of the project.

The first episode of The Walking Dead game arrived for multiplayer platforms in April earlier this year, with the remaining heats arriving during the course of next seven months.

The game walked away with several awards from the latest edition of Spike TV Video Game Award show, including the Game of the Year award.

Source: http://blogs.bettor.com/Telltale-Games-to-make-episode-one-of-The-Walking-Dead-game-free-on-Xbox-360-a211586

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Friday, December 28, 2012

Video: Boehner caught in middle of fiscal cliff negotiations

Why do some men get grouchier as they age?

Some call it ?grumpy old man complex.? Other experts label it: ?irritable male syndrome,? a spike in the outward crankiness of guys of a certain age. As more baby boomers hit 60? be ready for more grouchy outbursts, like a Donald Trump rant set to explode.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/hardball/50307185/

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Video: Going off the cliff as negotiations stall

Will Kate Winslet become Kate Rocknroll?

So everyone knows women don't have to change their names when they get married, but come on, Kate Winslet, don't you want to be "Kate Rocknroll"? Winslet's wedding earlier this month was a surprise, but more surprising to many was the name of her groom: Ned Rocknroll.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/hardball/50307152/

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Prototype: Pest Control in the Sky, Courtesy of a Raptor

[unable to retrieve full-text content]In a twist on the ancient sport of falconry, more companies are employing hawks and falcons to keep birds like sea gulls and pigeons away from areas where they aren?t welcome.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/23/business/pest-control-in-the-sky-courtesy-of-a-raptor.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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NY charity finds shelter for homeless in Hamptons

In this Oct. 11, 2012 photo, Tracey Lutz, left, executive director of the Maureen's Haven homeless outreach program, and Joann Piche, chairwoman of the board of directors, stand outside the Long Island charity's headquarters in Riverhead, N.Y. In one of the richest communities on the tony end of Long Island, a group of churches work together to provide shelter for 50-60 homeless people each night. While many have jobs, they can't afford a place to stay and don't want to leave the area where they were born and bred. (AP Photo/Frank Eltman)

In this Oct. 11, 2012 photo, Tracey Lutz, left, executive director of the Maureen's Haven homeless outreach program, and Joann Piche, chairwoman of the board of directors, stand outside the Long Island charity's headquarters in Riverhead, N.Y. In one of the richest communities on the tony end of Long Island, a group of churches work together to provide shelter for 50-60 homeless people each night. While many have jobs, they can't afford a place to stay and don't want to leave the area where they were born and bred. (AP Photo/Frank Eltman)

(AP) ? It's not so easy to spot the homeless in the Hamptons in the summer, when celebrity A-listers fly in by helicopter and Wall Street whizzes drive out in their Jaguars and Lexuses.

It's not that the homeless don't exist in the string of famously exclusive waterfront communities on the eastern end of Long Island ? they just blend in more easily when it's warm.

Some landscape laborers curl up in barns with the mowers and leaf blowers. Others, who struggle with mental problems or drug and alcohol issues, live in tents deep in the Long Island woods. Then there are those with minimum-wage jobs who simply can't afford prohibitive Hamptons rents and live in their cars.

But when the November winds blow and the mercury plummets faster than falling leaves, several dozen are given refuge by an organization called Maureen's Haven.

"Essentially, in its purest form, we exist to prevent homeless adults from freezing to death during the coldest winter months," said Tracey Lutz, executive director of the privately funded charity founded about a dozen years ago to provide a place to stay and a warm meal for those unwilling or unable to avail themselves of government-run shelters.

The charity works with a network of churches in eastern Long Island to open their basements and auditoriums on a rotating basis throughout the week, staffing the facilities with volunteers. Some churches accommodate several dozen, while others take in just a handful of people nightly. It isn't fancy, but it's a warm meal and a place to sleep.

As many as 50 people each night begin gathering at a modest house in a neighborhood in Riverhead, the nearby seat of Suffolk County, where Maureen's Haven runs the only private homeless shelter on the East End. Lutz says the homeless, including a small percentage of illegal aliens who are barred from seeking county assistance, undergo screening before being permitted to board vans that take them to a designated church for the evening.

Bags are searched daily for drugs or alcohol. Participants also must adhere to a code of conduct, which includes no fighting and no weapons of any sort.

Anyone who fails to pass muster at Maureen's Haven, which also bans registered sex offenders, are referred to the Suffolk County Department of Social Services, which provides emergency shelter for as many as 500 families and several hundred individuals nightly at dozens of locations.

Many of those who turn to Maureen's Haven say they are native "East Enders" reluctant to travel as far as 50 miles across the vast island from their home turf for a warm bed, Lutz said. They "prefer to remain in their community rather than be placed wherever the county has a bed," she said.

Jennifer Sulzer, a 37-year-old mother of four teenage sons who currently live with relatives, said medical problems have prevented her from working. She said she has been using Maureen's Haven on and off for the past four years.

"You're around people who are loving and have compassion," said Sulzer, who once had an apartment in Riverhead.

Michael Kline, 43, says he spent more than three years living in the woods after his career as a carpenter building store interiors fell apart because of drug problems. He is currently unemployed.

"I went from Park Avenue to park bench," said Kline, who said he attends an outpatient drug treatment program for three hours a day. "This place has given me the ability to go to treatment every day. If I was out there tonight in the rain, the last thing I would want to do is get up tomorrow morning and go sit in group for three hours."

Lutz said the Great Recession changed the face of homelessness across the country, including the Hamptons.

"We might want to believe that people are homeless because they're drug addicts and they're mentally ill and they're criminals and all these other things and therefore it's their own fault," she said. "We can't necessarily hold onto that for much longer. Because it's a fantasy."

She said she sees clients who work in local drugstores and restaurants but just can't make ends meet, especially in a region where an omelet in some restaurants can cost as much as $30.

Forbes magazine this year named the village of Sagaponack in Southampton as the fourth-richest ZIP code in America, with a median home price of $4.1 million and a median income of $103,000, according to census figures.

Many of those who have vacation homes in the Hamptons, however, do not necessarily identify themselves as local residents for the purposes of the census and other data.

Suffolk County officials said this month that 20 Southampton families were being provided emergency shelter in one of its group homes, but noted the figures are constantly in flux. Suffolk listed 55 families in the town of Riverhead being housed in shelters.

"They're working at Rite Aid and they're working at Friendly's; they're not making enough money to put a roof over their head,' Lutz said. 'They're making enough money to sort of buy some of the things that they need, so they come here so that they have a safe place to sleep.'

Maureen's Haven operates on an annual budget of $340,000, much of which comes from private donations. Its offices feature several tables with computers where homeless clients can look for employment and available housing during the day.

Joann Piche, chairwoman of the Maureen's Haven board of directors, said she understands it may be difficult for some to think of the Hamptons as a place where the homeless need help.

"The privet hedges, the beaches, the resort community, the gigantic homes that are used 12 weekends out of the year," she said. "Every time I drive past one of these homes that for the most part are empty, I'm thinking, wow, how many people could we house in this place?"

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-12-27-Homeless%20in%20the%20Hamptons/id-a0e501611e4e4aeea0c1c27d9afb0893

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Thursday, December 27, 2012

TechCrunch Giveaway: Nexus 4 And Nexus 10 #TechCrunch

n4-product-heroThe presents are piling, the fire is crackling, the drinks are flowing and in some parts of the world the snow is falling. From all of us at TechCrunch, we hope everyone is having a merry Christmas. For this week's giveaway, we wanted to do something extra special, because well, it's Christmas! The lucky winner of this giveaway will win a Nexus 4 and a Nexus 10. Want them both? Details to enter are below.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/EOh_YLVYJd0/

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Friday, December 21, 2012

TV deal will shine spotlight on college golf

It was almost like a guarantee. If you build it, they will come.

The if, in this instance, being a more exciting format for the NCAA Division I men?s golf championship ? specifically, match play. The they refers to television.

Match play stole the headlines when the format debuted in the 2009 NCAA Championship at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. That historic event, won by Texas A&M, was four championships ago. As recently as last week at the annual coaches convention in Las Vegas, the possibility of the NCAA Championship being televised seemed remote. In fact, much of the discussion concerned a diminished emphasis on the individual championship in hopes of landing a TV deal for the tournament. Coaches wanted to reverse that trend.

There was no talk among the coaches that change was in the works. The big topic: Find a way to play 72 holes to determine the individual champion.

That backdrop made the news Dec. 17, less than one week after the convention, a shock to virtually all of the college golf world. A news release announced that Golf Channel will televise the NCAA Division I men?s tournament in 2014 and then the men's and women's events in 2015.

The cost and who would be paying the bills were not disclosed, though nobody in college golf seemed concerned about those details. It was time to celebrate for coaches and players as they happily tweeted the news.

The 2014 men?s championship will be played at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kan. A bigger shock might have been the site of the 2015 men's and women's tournaments: Both will be played at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla.

Lower production costs ? TV will have to set up shop once, not twice ? are certain to help, but the logistics of hosting major events back to back otherwise will be daunting. Yet, the U.S. Golf Association will do it on an even larger scale in 2014, when the men's and women's U.S. Opens visit Pinehurst (N.C.) Resort's storied No. 2 course.

There's a likely downside to this euphoria, however. Venues such as Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., host to the 2012 NCAA Men's Championship, could be out of the mix in the future. Many observers regard Riviera as the best site ever for the national championship. However, it's a lot to ask of club members to give up their course for two consecutive weeks.

Other questions remain unanswered. Will this force the men's individual championship to revert to a 72-hole format? If so, and only three days of coverage are scheduled for TV, will the final day of stroke play be televised? If not, would we see only the match play covered?

For the women, this news is a huge bonus. Unlike the men, the women have done nothing to lure television. They kept a 72-hole, stroke-play format. It?s sort of like finding a $20 bill in the parking lot. However, it could be odd for casual sports fans to tune in and see the women play their championship one way and then the men in a different format the next week. Will this prompt the women to change?

Many unanswered questions remain, and the logistics will be challenging. Regardless, the details are secondary to the big picture: The NCAA championships will be on TV. That's a victory for everybody in college golf.

Source: http://golfweek.com/news/2012/dec/19/tv-deal-will-shine-spotlight-college-golf/

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Thursday, December 20, 2012

Is 'Christmas Shoes' worst holiday song ever?

By Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, TODAY

Sure, some Christmas songs are worth a listen -- check out our list of 10 that aren't completely lame. But others .. hoo boy, hear them once and you're diving for the extra-strength candy-cane-striped holiday Advil. Which doesn't exist, but should.

According to Jennifer Rutherford, a California collector of terrible holiday songs (she owns more than 600), bad Christmas tunes should be divided into two piles. Call them naughty and nice, or perhaps "good tacky" and "bad tacky."

"I consider 'Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer' to be good tacky because it's a joke," she told TODAY. "'Christmas Shoes' (however) is meant in all terrible sincerity and yet everyone hates and makes fun of it. Bad tacky."

"Christmas Shoes" is a song released in 2000 by the band NewSong and later covered by country group 3 of Hearts. It's based on an urban legend about a boy who lacks the money to buy a pair of new shoes for his dying mother. The song's narrator supplies the extra money so the boy's mother can wear the shoes, "if Mama meets Jesus tonight." A book and a TV movie both based on the song came out in 2002.

"(The)?audience (for 'Christmas Shoes') is intended to actually like it and find it touching," says Rutherford, "However, in most people it provokes a divine rage, gasps of horror, and a brilliant rant by Patton Oswalt. Bad tacky is like finding syrupy angel statues in a country store. You're supposed to find it cute and enjoyable, but all you feel is nausea."

On the "good tacky" side, Rutherford likes parody and humor songs of the type you might hear on Dr. Demento's (now online-only) radio show. She says she thinks of "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" as the start of the "good tacky" movement in holiday songs.

Sony

"Grandma" is a 1979 novelty song sung by then-husband-and-wife duo Elmo and Patsy, and the title perfectly summarizes the plot. ("You can say there's no such thing as Santa, but as for me and Grandpa, we believe," run part of the lyrics.)

"'Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer' is supposed to be a joke, you are supposed to be amused by it. It's silly and tacky, but in a fun way," Rutherford says. "It's like buying products at stores like Spencer's Gifts -- you know it's supposed to be amusing kitsch."

Here are some of Rutherford's other nominations, for both the good and bad tacky lists.

Good tacky:
1. "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer"

2, "Christmas Is All Around," performed by the character Billy Mack in the movie "Love Actually."
Says Rutherford: "Billy Mack is incredible at making a putrid product that makes you laugh, because he's in on the joke."

3. "Teach Me How to Understand Christmas," performed by the character Annie Edison on "Community." ?
Rutherford calls this one an "amazing horror of a song," explaining that it "takes the concept behind the song 'Santa Baby' to its hellish logical conclusion."

4. "Dang It, I'm Vixen," performed by Hometown on the album "Truckers Christmas."
The whole album is a treat, says Rutherford, noting that other song titles include "Christmas Comes on Eighteen Wheels" and "Santa, Bring Me a Brand New Dream Machine." In this song, she says, reindeer Vixen "thinks Rudolph has become a suckup and a snob, and he's looking to kick some reindeer booty."

Bad tacky:
1. "Christmas Shoes"

2. ?"Little Drummer Boy," by numerous artists.
Yes, a classic to many, but as Rutherford notes, it's ruined by three things. "What brand new mother wants you playing a drum around the baby?" she asks. "(Also), in almost all recordings I've ever heard of this song, THERE ARE NO DRUMS." She also points out that "Pa-rum-pa-pum-pum is a funeral dirge-y chorus that drags through your head like Marley's chains."

3. "A Walking Talking Christmas Tree," by Gene London.
Rutherford calls this lesser-known gem "so twinkly and treacle-y that you want to vomit at its cuteness within the first few seconds. " The topic of the song also bothers her. ?"The writer of this song never thought about is how horrible it would be to be a sentient tree," she says. "That tree has been CUT DOWN, folks. It lives in your house for a few weeks and then you kick it to the curb in January. You really want that poor tree to be walking and talking around your house? You think that tree is gonna be happy about that?"

4. "Baby It's Cold Outside."
"This is a song covered by many people in many different ways," Rutherford says. "Depending on who's doing it, it can come out sweet to tacky to OH DEAR GOD HE'S PUTTING ROOFIES IN HER DRINK."?Although there are many versions, Rutherford especially is creeped out by one sung by John Lithgow and Bebe Neuwirth.

What do you think is the worst Christmas song? Is it good tacky, or bad tacky? Tell us on Facebook.

Related content:

Source: http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2012/12/17/15973881-is-christmas-shoes-the-worst-holiday-song-ever?lite

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rascal-flatts-holiday-special-encourages-adoption-from-foster-care ...

Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

The 14th Annual ?A Home For The Holidays With Rascal Flatts?, special will air tonight (Wednesday) on CBS at 7 p.m. (CT)? It will include performances by Rascal Flatts, Rachel Crow, whose performance accompanies her personal story about foster care adoption, Melissa Etheridge, Matchbox Twenty and last season American Idol winner Phillip Phillips. Wayne Brady, Kevin Frazier and Jillian Michaels are also set to present.

This special continues to tell touching stories about adoption from foster care to raise awareness for this important social issue. The inspirational stories of these American families are enhanced with performances by some of today?s most popular artists.

Here?s the video ?Come Wake Me Up? from YouTube/Vevo.

Check out this holiday favorite from Rascal Flatts.

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Source: http://kkyr.com/rascal-flatts-holiday-special-encourages-adoption-from-foster-care-video/

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The NBA has filed for 4 trademarks ( sucks to be on New Orleans)

The NBA has filed for 4 trademarks ( sucks to be on New Orleans)

Posted by: Eric Ostler on December 18th, 2012

The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.

The NBA has filed trademarks for the New Orleans Pelicans, amongst four other potential nicknames on behalf of the New Orleans Hornets NBA Limited Partnership.

The Rougarou, Mosquitos, Swamp Dogs and Bullsharks are the other nicknames that have been filed for trademark.

A swamp dog is a Cajun nickname for an alligator, while Rougarou refers to a beast from Louisiana folklore.

New Orleans will likely adopt a red, blue and gold color scheme.

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Source: http://www.utahjazz360.com/ericost/the-nba-has-filed-for-4-trademarks-sucks-to-be-on-new-orleans/

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Texas Teachers With Guns? Rick Perry Expresses Support in CT Shooting Aftermath

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/12/texas-teachers-with-guns-rick-perry-expresses-support-in-ct-shoo/

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New York State Ski News: $10 Lift Passes! - Carry ... - Travel + Leisure

12.18.12

201212-b-plattekilljpg

If you thought 12-12-12 was a big deal, think again. The Ski Areas of New York (SANY) have announced the 10-10-10 promotion, offering 10,000 ski lift passes for $10 each on January 10, 2013. That's an incredible savings, given that day passes for adults generally run from $45-70 at most New York mountains.

It?s a little-known fact that New York has more ski areas than any other state in the U.S. And with over 20 of them participating, such as?Whiteface Mountain?in the Adirondacks and?Belleayre Mountain?in the Catskills, 10-10-10 offers loads of wintry-fun options. January 10th is a Thursday, so why not make a long weekend out of it?

To take part in 10-10-10, buy your passes now through January 9, 2013 at Skiandrideny.com, and then hit the slopes on the 10th.

Peter Schlesinger is an editorial intern at Travel + Leisure.

Photo courtesy of Plattekill Mountain Resort

Source: http://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-blog/carry-on/2012/12/18/new-york-state-ski-news-$10-lift-passes

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Report to socialist French president recommends legalizing ?accelerated deaths?

France should allow doctors to ?accelerate the coming of death? for terminally ill patients, a report to President Francois Hollande recommended Tuesday.

Hollande referred the report to a national council on medical ethics which will examine the precise circumstances under which such steps could be authorised with a view to producing draft legislation by June 2013.

?The existing legislation does not meet the legitimate concerns expressed by people who are gravely and incurably ill,? Hollande said.

The report said physicians should be allowed to authorise interventions that ensure quicker deaths for terminal patients in three specific sets of circumstances.

Full story: Report recommends France legalize ?accelerated deaths?

Source: http://dailycaller.com/2012/12/19/report-to-socialist-french-president-recommends-legalizing-accelerated-deaths/

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Wednesday, December 19, 2012

iBall Slide i6516 and HCL MyEdu X1 tablets launched in India

iBall and HCL has launched new Android running Tablets in India in which HCL tablets are targeted toward the students.?iBall Slide i6516 tab is an Android OS v4.0 running tablet which comes with?7 inch IPS HD display of unknown resolution and powered by 1.2 GHz processor along with 1 GB RAM. It features 2 MP rear camera, front VGA camera Wi-Fi, HDMI, Bluetooth, 3G via dongle?and 4,000 mAh battery. It has been priced at Rs.7,990.iBall Slide i6516
HCL has launched?MyEdu Tab X1 tablet which runs on Android v2.3 Gingerbread OS and powered by?1 GHz Processor. It will be featuring 7 inch?800 x 480 pixels resolution and features 2 MP Front Camera, 512 MB RAM, 4 GB internal memory with microSD card slot, 3G via dongle, mini USB port and?3500 mAh battery. Based upon the educational content, the MyEdu Tab has been priced at Rs.8,999, Rs.9,999, Rs.10,999 and Rs.12,999.

[Via]

Source: http://mynewmachine.com/iball-slide-i6516-and-hcl-myedu-x1-tablets-launched-in-india/

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School shootings: What we know and what we can do

Dec. 19, 2012 ? A new article explores what we have learned about these tragic incidents, and what can be done to prevent them.

Since the early 1970s school shootings at American elementary, secondary and higher education institutions have been a painful reality for American society. After each incident -- like the recent attack in Newtown, CT -- there is voluminous dialogue about what can be done to prevent the next, such tragedy. But can anything realistically be done to prevent these horrific crimes? A new article? by Dr. Daniel J. Flannery at Case Western Reserve University, and colleagues, scheduled to appear in the January issue of Springer's Current Psychiatry Reports, attempts to parse out what we have learned from past events, and what we can do about stopping the next attack.

The article conducts a thorough examination of past studies on the topic, focusing primarily on "targeted" and "rampage," or "spree," shootings. Targeted shootings are those where there is a specific target, individual group or institution, and rampage or spree shootings are those that involve multiple victims, either known or unknown to the assailant. What the article finds is that, while there are some characteristics shared by past shooters -- narcissism, depression, low self esteem and a fascination with violence -- there are not enough similarities to develop any distinctive profile of a potential shooter.

The authors conclude that the most effective way of trying to prevent these tragedies is through threat assessment, which requires fundamental testing of such traits as: suicide risk, homicide risk, thought processes, reality testing, mood and behavior as well as relevant social and developmental histories. Also helpful is to pay particular attention to any obsession with firearms or violence, and the presence of writings or drawings with violent themes. While this may seem obvious, unfortunately, the resources available to mental health workers in schools do not sufficiently provide for these assessments. The authors also conclude that mental health workers and adults must be socialized to take threats of interpersonal violence seriously, as they have been with threats of suicide.

Finally, Flannery and colleagues urge for a renewed focus on treatment for the victims of such crimes. Usually most of the focus in the aftermath of such events lies in trying to come up with a reason why someone would perpetrate such a crime, or in other words, trying to make some sort of sense out of these tragedies. While this is understandable, considerable care must be given to ensure that the victims of these crimes receive the mental health treatment they require.

"School shootings are not all the same and may require different approaches to prevention and treatment, especially with respect to identifying risk factors at the individual, school or community levels, and particularly with regard to examining the role that mental health issues may play to increase risk for perpetration," the authors conclude. "Community mental health providers and professionals, particularly psychiatrists, are essential partners and must continue to seek avenues for working with schools to conduct thorough threat assessments, to identify young persons with significant mental health needs and to develop protocols for identification, prevention, and treatment that will effectively support the social and emotional needs of our most vulnerable youth and communities."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Springer.

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


Journal Reference:

  1. Flannery D et al. Violence and School Shootings. Current Psychiatry Reports, 2013; DOI: 10.1007/s11920-012-0331-6

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/nCEmIMWiTns/121219152705.htm

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When the ice melts, the Earth spews fire

Dec. 19, 2012 ? It has long been known that volcanic activity can cause short-term variations in climate. Now, researchers at the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany), together with colleagues from Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA) have found evidence that the reverse process also occurs: Climate affects volcanic activity.

Their study is now online in the international journal Geology.

In 1991, it was a disaster for the villages nearby the erupting Philippine volcano Pinatubo. But the effects were felt even as far away as Europe. The volcano threw up many tons of ash and other particles into the atmosphere causing less sunlight than usual to reach Earth's surface. For the first few years after the eruption, global temperatures dropped by half a degree. In general, volcanic eruptions can have a strong short-term impact on climate. Conversely, the idea that climate may also affect volcanic eruptions on a global scale and over long periods of time is completely new. Researchers at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany) and Harvard University in Massachusetts (USA) have now found strong evidence for this relationship from major volcanic eruptions around the Pacific Ocean over the past 1 million years. They have presented their results in the latest issue of the international journal "Geology."

The basic evidence for the discovery came from the work of the Collaborative Research Centre "Fluids and Volatiles in Subduction Zones (SFB 574). For more than ten years the project has been extensively exploring volcanoes of Central America. "Among others pieces of evidence, we have observations of ash layers in the seabed and have reconstructed the history of volcanic eruptions for the past 460,000 years," says GEOMAR volcanologist Dr Steffen Kutterolf, who has been with SFB 574 since its founding. Particular patterns started to appear. "There were periods when we found significantly more large eruptions than in others" says Kutterolf, the lead author of the Geology article.After comparing these patterns with the climate history, there was an amazing match. The periods of high volcanic activity followed fast, global temperature increases and associated rapid ice melting.

To expand the scope of the discoveries, Dr Kutterolf and his colleagues studied other cores from the entire Pacific region. These cores had been collected as part of the International Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) and its predecessor programmes. They record more than a million years of Earth's history. "In fact, we found the same pattern from these cores as in Central America" says geophysicist Dr Marion Jegen from GEOMAR, who also participated in the recent study.Together with colleagues at Harvard University, the geologists and geophysicists searched for a possible explanation. They found it with the help of geological computer models. "In times of global warming, the glaciers are melting on the continents relatively quickly. At the same time the sea level rises. The weight on the continents decreases, while the weight on the oceanic tectonic plates increases. Thus, the stress changes within in the Earth to open more routes for ascending magma" says Dr Jegen.

The rate of global cooling at the end of the warm phases is much slower, so there are less dramatic stress changes during these times. "If you follow the natural climate cycles, we are currently at the end of a really warm phase. Therefore, things are volcanically quieter now. The impact from human-made warming is still unclear based on our current understanding" says Dr Kutterolf. The next step is to investigate shorter-term historical variations to better understand implications for the present day.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (GEOMAR).

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


Journal Reference:

  1. S. Kutterolf, M. Jegen, J. X. Mitrovica, T. Kwasnitschka, A. Freundt, P. J. Huybers. A detection of Milankovitch frequencies in global volcanic activity. Geology, 2012; DOI: 10.1130/G33419.1

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/bUpzsMGS-Xw/121219133551.htm

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Install CyanogenMod 10 (CM10) on Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 for that JellyBean 4.1 Experience [Quick Guide]

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

Source: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/416574/20121219/install-cyanogenmod-10-cm10-samsung-galaxy-tab.htm

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UK names slice of Antarctica "Queen Elizabeth Land"

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain named a vast swathe of its Antarctic territory after Queen Elizabeth on Tuesday, capping a year of Diamond Jubilee celebrations marking the queen's 60th year on the throne.

Newly christened "Queen Elizabeth Land," the 169,000 square mile (437,000 sq km) slice of Antarctica is almost twice the size of Britain and populated almost exclusively by penguins, seals and various bird species.

British presence is maintained via three research stations operated by the British Antarctic Survey.

"To be able to recognise the UK's commitment to Antarctica with a permanent association with Her Majesty is a great honour," Foreign Minister William Hague said in a statement.

In 1908, Britain became the first country to claim Antarctic territory and since then New Zealand, France, Norway, Australia, Chile and Argentina have also lodged official claims although most countries do not recognise them.

Hague made the announcement as the queen toured London's Foreign Office in the last official engagement of her Diamond Jubilee, a year marked by nationwide street parties, a spectacular flotilla on the River Thames and a star-studded concert outside Buckingham Palace.

(Reporting By Alessandra Prentice, editing by Paul Casciato)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uk-names-slice-antarctica-queen-elizabeth-land-160309649.html

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OFS Energy, investors create holding company, pool about $50M for buyout

Regulatory filings this week showed that a Houston private equity firm and other investors have formed an intermediate holding company, Houston-based RDT Holdco LLC, and pooled $49.7 million in connection with buying 80 percent of a Texas drilling tools company.

Regulatory filings this week showed that a Houston private equity firm and other investors have formed an intermediate holding company, Houston-based RDT Holdco LLC, and pooled $49.7 million in connection with buying 80 percent of a Texas drilling tools company.

Houston-based private equity firm OFS Energy Fund II and other investors earlier this month acquired Beasley, Texas-based Rotary Drilling Tools USA LP, which manufactures downhole drilling tools such as casing and tubing, from a Connecticut private equity fund, Wexford Capital LP.

In September, OFS Energy closed its second fund at $90 million. The $49.7 million equity pool was driven by five investors, including OFS Energy and two other private equity firms, to facilitate the Rotary Drilling Tools buyout, said Jared McMayon, a partner at OFS Energy.

McMayon said of the $90 million OFS Energy raised, the firm has invested about $40 million in four companies ? Rotary Drilling Tools was the most recent.

The firm since September has also made investments in Houston-based KW International LLC, Denver-based Buckhorn Energy Services LLC and Rock Springs, Wyo.-based Vision Oil Tools LLC.

?It?s kind of interesting that we had to fill out a Form D for that holding company ? it?s not a fund raise,? McMayon said. ?It?s how we legally put the deal together.?

Collin Eaton covers banking, finance and securities.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vertical_30/~3/H1wemm-dGdM/ofs-energy-investors-create-holding.html

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War crimes court acquits Congolese warlord

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Congolese warlord Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui was acquitted of all charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday, a blow for victims of Congo wars a decade ago.

The verdict - only the second in the war crimes court's 10-year history, and its first acquittal - is a setback for the ICC's prosecutors who judges said had failed to link Ngudjolo to atrocities in northeastern Congo in 2003.

The acquittal also raises doubts about the case against Ngudjolo's better-known co-accused, warlord Germain Katanga who is charged with similar crimes. Judges prolonged Katanga's trial last month, a move that some academics say could make it easier to get a conviction.

The violence in northeastern Ituri district was a localized ethnic clash over land and resources, one of the myriad of conflicts which spun out of Congo's wider 1998-2003 war that sucked in multiple neighboring states.

The conflict was not directly related to the current insurgency by M23 rebels in neighboring North Kivu province, but some of the fighters involved in this latest east Congo rebellion, notably M23 leader Bosco Ntaganda, were directly involved in the Ituri fighting.

Ntaganda is also wanted by the ICC for war crimes relating to the 2003 Ituri events.

Prosecutors said Ngudjolo directed fighters to block roads to and from the village of Bogoro in February 2003 in order to kill civilians attempting to flee and that civilians, including women and small children were burned alive inside their homes.

Two hundred people were killed during and after the attack on the village when ethnic Lendu and Ngiti fighters allegedly destroyed the homes of the village's mainly Hema inhabitants.

"It was a very concise incident," Nick Kaufmann, an international criminal lawyer, said.

"The prosecution failed to investigate the chain of command adequately as far as the attack in Bogoro is concerned."

The ICC judges stressed that atrocities had been committed during the conflict, but said the witnesses prosecutors had chosen to testify to Ngudjolo's involvement were not credible.

"This does not in any way throw into question what befell the people of that area on that day," presiding judge Bruno Cotte said.

Fatou Bensouda, who took over as the ICC's chief prosecutor this year, asked that judges keep Ngudjolo in detention pending an appeal.

UNLIKELY TO BE OVERTURNED

But legal experts said it was unlikely the acquittal would be overturned because new evidence cannot be introduced at appeal, and appeals courts rarely reassess the credibility of witnesses.

"The acquittal of Ngudjolo leaves the victims of Bogoro and other massacres by his forces without justice for their suffering," said G?raldine Mattioli-Zeltner, international justice advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.

"The ICC prosecutor needs to strengthen its investigations of those responsible for grave crimes in Ituri, including high-ranking officials in Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda who supported the armed groups fighting there."

Judges last month split the cases against Katanga and Ndgujolo, postponing the verdict in the case against the better-known warlord until next year and giving prosecutors time to build a case centered around the claim that Katanga was part of a criminal plan to commit war crimes.

That decision, which would allow Katanga to be convicted even if he had not committed or ordered war crimes, has been appealed by the defense and criticized by scholars and by dissenting judge Christine van den Wyngaert, who said the decision would cause Katanga "irreparable prejudice".

Thomas Lubanga, the court's first convict, was sentenced to 14 years earlier this year for his role on another side that participated in the same conflict.

"Lubanga was a Hema leader, and the acquittal of a Ngudjolo, a Lendu, just after the conviction of a Hema could exacerbate tension between the two ethnicities in Ituri," Jennifer Easterday of the Open Society Justice Initiative said.

Judges will later today decide if Ngudjolo must be held in detention pending his appeal.

(This story has been corrected to add Ngudjolo's first name in paragraph one)

(Reporting By Thomas Escritt; Editing by Michael Roddy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/international-war-crimes-court-acquits-congolese-warlord-092203584.html

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New report shows progress and emerging trends in Canada's ...

December 17th, 2012

Care improving for colorectal and other cancer patients ? but still room for improvement

Archie McCulloch, a retired scientist and cancer survivor, is encouraged to see improvements in colorectal cancer screening rates.

Archie McCulloch, a retired scientist and cancer survivor, is encouraged to see improvements in colorectal cancer screening rates.

December 17, 2012 ? A comprehensive report released today by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer provides a snapshot of how Canada?s cancer system is performing in key areas from prevention through to patient experience and outcomes. Produced in collaboration with cancer programs in each province and territory, the 2012 Cancer System Performance Report is intended to inform cancer control planning and delivery across the country by enabling the identification of best practices and areas for improvement. For example, while the report shows that Canada has shown steady improvements in screening people for colorectal cancer and treating people with the disease, it also suggests where health system planners and clinicians might focus their efforts to make further advances.

?Having high-quality data on the performance of the cancer system and using it to plan and make decisions is critical to reducing the impact of cancer on Canadians,? said the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, federal Minister of Health. ?This report and the actions that will be taken as a result of it highlight the value of our government?s investment in the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer as part of a coordinated approach to overcoming this complex set of diseases.?

Rates for colorectal cancer screening up, yet variations in treatment remain

The report shows that the percentage of average risk Canadians who are up-to-date with their colorectal cancer screening tests has improved over time in the vast majority of provinces and territories, with the national average rising from 38 per cent in 2009 to 43 per cent in 2011. While colorectal cancer screening rates are not as high as participation in screening for breast or cervical cancer, which have existed for a longer period of time, the progress made since 2009 so far suggests that recent provincial efforts to develop and implement organized screening programs have been successful.

?As a colorectal cancer survivor who received excellent care, I encourage anyone over 50 to be screened ? early detection is important, when the disease is usually easier to treat,? said Archie McCulloch, a retired scientist from Fall River, Nova Scotia. ?I?m encouraged that more Canadians are now being screened; these programs can literally save lives.?

In the area of colorectal cancer treatment, the report shows a steady increase in the percentage of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer receiving radiation prior to surgery: the average rate for this recommended standard of care rose from 40 per cent in 2007 to 49 per cent in 2009. However, analysis suggests that not all patients are being treated according to the recommended guidelines with almost a quarter of patients receiving post-operative radiation instead of the preferred pre-operative radiation. An additional sixth of patients are not seen by a radiation oncologist at all. The report also reveals some differences in treatment rates among provinces, and also between patient age groups, with older patients less likely to be treated according to the recommended guidelines for chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

?Overall, the report points to positive trends in key areas of colorectal cancer screening and treatment, including the fact that many patients are indeed receiving the standard of care, which is important because it can lead to better outcomes,? said Dr. Heather Bryant, Vice-President, Cancer Control at the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer. ?The opportunity with this report is for people involved in planning and delivering care to identify how to build on successes and improve areas that require attention, and taking the necessary action to optimize patient care.?

Trends in emerging cancers: pancreatic and liver

New in this year?s report is an overview of cancers that have a significant disease burden or that data suggest are on the rise. Pancreatic cancer, for example, is the 12th most-diagnosed cancer in Canada, and has overtaken prostate as the fourth-leading cause of cancer death. Despite the huge impact of this disease, there have been no encouraging changes in incidence, mortality, or survival over the past 15 years, in contrast to the advances in breast, colorectal and lung cancers. Liver cancer is also explored in the report, and while incidence is generally low in more developed countries, it has been increasing in Canada and elsewhere. The increase coincides with higher rates of chronic infection with hepatitis B or hepatitis C, though the extent of correlation is not yet known.

Hospitals most common place of death for cancer patients

More than 75,000 Canadians will die of cancer in 2012, making it the leading cause of death in the country, as well as the leading cause of premature death. While many indicators in the report are intended to drive system-level change that will help to reduce the number of Canadians who die from cancer, the report also provides data on end-of-life care, an emerging area of research and interest that has generally been under-measured. Although results from several surveys suggest that patients who know they are dying of cancer would prefer to die at home or in a home-like setting, data from 2005 to 2009 show that 70 per cent of people who died of cancer in Canada died in a hospital and only 11 per cent were known to have died at home.

About the 2012 Cancer System Performance Report

The 2012 Cancer System Performance ReportThe 2012 Cancer System Performance Report is part of a series produced by the Partnership since 2009 that include indicators providing the most comprehensive overview of how Canada?s cancer system is performing. Also produced are special focus reports on specific disease sites and technical reports with more specialized information and analysis. Results are compared by province, by patient/population age group and/or gender, and over time, as appropriate. A special focus report due out later in 2013 will examine access and outcome issues specific to people living in rural, remote, and northern communities across Canada as well as examining cancer control in new immigrants, and comparing results across income and education groups.

About the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer

The Canadian Partnership Against Cancer is an organization funded by the federal government to accelerate action on cancer control for all Canadians. We bring together cancer experts, government representatives, the Canadian Cancer Society and cancer patients, survivors and their families through the Canadian Cancer Action Network to implement the first pan-Canadian cancer control strategy. We aim to be a driving force to achieve a focused approach that will help prevent cancer, enhance the quality of life of those affected by cancer, lessen the likelihood of dying from cancer and increase the efficiency of cancer control in Canada.

Source: http://www.partnershipagainstcancer.ca/2012/12/17/new-report-shows-progress-and-emerging-trends-in-canadas-cancer-system/

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Various Benefits of Online Auctions | Business and Sport - imytse's ...

The increasing popularity of the Internet has made online shopping an attractive proposition for millions of people, as most of them find it to be a convenient experience that also saves them money. Companies are now discovering that online route helps them in selling to their worldwide customers which helps in increasing their profits. Online auction Singapore has also become quite popular among millions of users because people can now easily bid on virtually anything right from the comforts of their home without any need for traveling to the auction site.?

Let?s have a close look at some of the benefits of online auctions from both bidder?s and best deals in singapore point of view:

Benefits for a Bidder

* No Time Barrier- You can bid anytime on 24/7 basis without any kind of time constraint as is the case in case of live auctions. You can enter auction Singapore anytime during the day or night, hence it?s pretty easy to bid on any item right from the comforts of your home or office.?

* No Geographical Constraints-Now you cannot miss out any auction just because you are too far from your bidding venue. With auction Singapore, you can bid and buy all your items from any country across the globe. By paying the requisite shipping expenses, you can get the item right on your door.?

* Buy Products Not Available In Your Area-Many people love bidding online because this gives them a chance to buy products that are not available locally, or are expensive. In any online auction Singapore they can browse through hundreds of products on sale and choose the items to bid on.?

Benefits for a Seller

* Increased Promotion of Online Auctions-Most of the auctioneers use social media to lure customers to their online auctions. It?s easy and the fastest way to promote and offers better ROI. You can reach out to millions without spending too many of your marketing dollars.

* Profitable Option-In an online auction, millions around the world can bid on their items. This not only increases traffic to the auction websites but also leads to quick sale sg of items.

* Instant Transactions-Sellers get the price of their items instantly via online electronic payment methods. Most of the customers pay through PayPal, or credit cards. Therefore, online auction is the safest and the fastest way to earn profits by selling you products.?

Source: http://www.citizensmith2010.com/2012/12/various-benefits-of-online-auctions/

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Source: http://imytse.posterous.com/various-benefits-of-online-auctions-business

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Three burning questions loom as RIM gets ready to report

RIM Earnings Preview Q3 2013RIM

Some people say that the November quarter that Research In Motion (RIMM) will report this week is not important. They are wrong. Even though the new BlackBerry model range debuting in 2013 is the key for RIM?s long-term survival, there are three issues that are vitally important for the company right now. RIM must keep certain aspects of its performance from caving in before the new phones begin trickling to the market early next year, and here are three things to watch for as RIM reports its fiscal third-quarter results on Thursday.

[More from BGR: How to turn an old Kindle Fire into a Nexus 7 with Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean [video]]

  • Global subscriber base. RIM surprised the market when it reported its summer quarter by showing continuing global subscriber growth despite its U.S. collapse and European trouble. Blackberry?s growth has continued in Africa, Middle Wast and South-East Asia, giving RIM surprising longevity considering its share of new smartphone sales in America may have caved below 3% by now. However, a recent Kantar Worldpanel study showed that in the three months ending in October, BlackBerry market share slipped badly in markets like Brazil and Spain. Until last summer, RIM had maintained a decent grip on Latin America and Mediterranean countries via its cheap Curve devices. They may have finally started eroding even in those countries where BlackBerry had retained some vigor as a low-end youth brand. After its surprisingly robust 80 million subscriber base number from the summer quarter, RIM can afford to show a bit of erosion in November and February quarters. But steep drops would be deeply worrisome ? RIM may not get aggressively priced low-end models based on the new OS out before next summer or even autumn.
  • ASP level. RIM has experienced?steep average sales price decline over the past year. Nevertheless, another major plunge is still possible. In the UK market, BlackBerry Christmas promotions are almost entirely built around the cheap Curve 932o?? and its price as a pre-paid model has plunged to unprecedented 99 pounds. This is exceptionally low for a model that debuted just last spring. European operators have effectively abandoned RIM?s more expensive business-focused models like the Bold. BlackBerry phones are now being marketed as some of the cheapest smartphones anyone can buy. How deep will this cut into RIM?s ASPs? If the plunge is bad enough, reversing the damage with new high-end models next summer may be extremely difficult. The core customer base for RIM?s high-end devices was built on the U.S. and the UK markets, but RIM has wiped out in America nearly completely and the UK carriers have switched to marketing BlackBerry handsets as bargain bin specials on par with Huawei or ZTE models. If BlackBerry ASP level dives too low during November and February quarters, undoing the damage will be a herculean task.
  • BlackBerry Messenger popularity. Business News reported last January that BlackBerry Messenger was growing at 140% pace in Nigeria, one of the key African mobile phone markets. BBM?s user base growth last winter was also torrid in South Africa. However, stand-alone messaging apps like WhatsApp and 2go have delivered scorching growth in Africa and Asia during 2012. 2go has soared ahead of Blackberry Messenger in popularity in Nigeria and is spreading rapidly in South Africa. WhatsApp became a top-three iPhone app in more than 100 countries last winter and offers cross-platform support that is a big draw in the South-East Asian markets that remain RIM?s lifeline: Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia. Globally, WhatsApp has grown from relaying 1 billion daily messages in the fall of 2011 to 10 billion by fall 2012. By now, that rampant growth may have started encroaching on BBM popularity. RIM does not report on Messenger user numbers every quarter, so visibility on this front could remain limited in coming months. But any erosion in the Messenger user base is likely to have an impact on RIM?s overall subscriber base.

This article was originally published by BGR

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/three-burning-questions-loom-rim-gets-ready-report-140506669.html

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Monday, December 17, 2012

Toward a new model of the cell: Everything you always wanted to know about genes

Dec. 16, 2012 ? Turning vast amounts of genomic data into meaningful information about the cell is the great challenge of bioinformatics, with major implications for human biology and medicine. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and colleagues have proposed a new method that creates a computational model of the cell from large networks of gene and protein interactions, discovering how genes and proteins connect to form higher-level cellular machinery.

The findings are published in the December 16 advance online publication of Nature Biotechnology.

"Our method creates ontology, or a specification of all the major players in the cell and the relationships between them," said first author Janusz Dutkowski, PhD, postdoctoral researcher in the UC San Diego Department of Medicine. It uses knowledge about how genes and proteins interact with each other and automatically organizes this information to form a comprehensive catalog of gene functions, cellular components, and processes.

"What's new about our ontology is that it is created automatically from large datasets. In this way, we see not only what is already known, but also potentially new biological components and processes -- the bases for new hypotheses," said Dutkowski.

Originally devised by philosophers attempting to explain the nature of existence, ontologies are now broadly used to encapsulate everything known about a subject in a hierarchy of terms and relationships. Intelligent information systems, such as iPhone's Siri, are built on ontologies to enable reasoning about the real world. Ontologies are also used by scientists to structure knowledge about subjects like taxonomy, anatomy and development, bioactive compounds, disease and clinical diagnosis.

A Gene Ontology (GO) exists as well, constructed over the last decade through a joint effort of hundreds of scientists. It is considered the gold standard for understanding cell structure and gene function, containing 34,765 terms and 64,635 hierarchical relations annotating genes from more than 80 species.

"GO is very influential in biology and bioinformatics, but it is also incomplete and hard to update based on new data," said senior author Trey Ideker, PhD, chief of the Division of Genetics in the School of Medicine and professor of bioengineering in UC San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering.

"This is expert knowledge based upon the work of many people over many, many years," said Ideker, who is also principal investigator of the National Resource for Network Biology, based at UC San Diego. "A fundamental problem is consistency. People do things in different ways, and that impacts what findings are incorporated into GO and how they relate to other findings. The approach we have proposed is a more objective way to determine what's known and uncover what's new."

In their paper, Dutkowski, Ideker and colleagues capitalized upon the growing power and utility of new technologies like high-throughput assays and bioinformatics to create elaborately detailed datasets describing complex biological networks. To test the approach, the scientists pulled together multiple such datasets, applied their method, and then compared the resulting "network-extracted ontology" to the existing GO.

They found that their ontology captured the majority of known cellular components, plus many additional terms and relationships, which subsequently triggered updates of the existing GO.

Neither Ideker nor Dutkowski say the new approach is intended to replace the current GO. Rather, they envision it as complementary high-tech model that identifies both known and uncharacterized biological components derived directly from data, something the current GO does not do well. Moreover, they note a network-extracted ontology can be continuously updated and refined with every new dataset, moving scientists closer to the complete model of the cell.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/j6nvh78QoZ4/121216132515.htm

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