Molina Wins GIBBY For Defensive Player Of The Year | FOX2now ...

Posted on: 5:30 pm, December 4, 2012, by Staff Writer, updated on: 05:27pm, December 4, 2012

(KTVI)- Yadier Molina can add another defensive honor to his list. He?s been awarded a 2012 Greatness in Baseball Yearly Award (GIBBY) as the Majors? Defensive Player of the Year.

GIBBY Awards are presented annually by MLB.com and are chosen through votes by media, front-office personnel, MLB alumni, fans at MLB.com, and the Society of American Baseball Research.

Molina was one of 15 finalists from both leagues for the top defensive honor.

This year Molina has also won a fifth straight Gold Glove, his second National League Platinum Glove Award, a Fielding Bible Award, and the Wilson Sporting Goods defensive award.

Molina has been named St. Louis? Baseball Man of the Year. He finished fourth in the voting for the NL?s MVP Award.

This year?s GIBBY Awards featured nominees in 21 categories. Individual honors went to the MLB MVP, in addition to the year?s best starting pitcher, hitter, closer, setup man, rookie, breakout hitter, breakout pitcher, comeback player, manager, executive and postseason performer.

Cardinals? general manager John Mozeliak and manager Mike Matheny were among GIBBY finalists this year.

Source: http://fox2now.com/2012/12/04/molina-wins-gibby-for-defensive-player-of-the-year/

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NATO warns Syria not to use chemical weapons

BRUSSELS/BEIRUT (Reuters) - NATO told Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday that any use of chemical weapons in his fight against encroaching rebel forces would be met by an immediate international response.

The warning from NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen came as U.S. government sources said Washington had information that Syria was making what could be seen as preparations to use its chemical arsenal.

Syrian forces meanwhile bombarded rebel districts near Damascus in a sustained counter-attack to stem rebel gains around Assad's power base as the insurgency may be entering a decisive phase.

International concern over Syria's intentions has been heightened by reports that its chemical weapons have been moved and could be prepared for use.

"The possible use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable for the whole international community and if anybody resorts to these terrible weapons I would expect an immediate reaction from the international community," Rasmussen told reporters at the start of a meeting of alliance foreign ministers in Brussels.

The chemical threat made it urgent for the alliance to send Patriot anti-missile missiles to Turkey, Rasmussen said.

The French Foreign Ministry referred to "possible movements on military bases storing chemical weapons in Syria" and said the international community would react if they were used.

Britain has told the Syrian government that any use of chemical weapons would have "serious consequences", Foreign Secretary William Hague said.

U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday told Assad not to use chemical weapons, without saying how the United States might respond. The Foreign Ministry in Damascus said it would never use such weapons against Syrians.

CLASSIFIED INTELLIGENCE

The U.S. has collected what has been described as highly classified intelligence information demonstrating that Syria is making what could be construed as preparations to use elements of its extensive chemical weapons arsenal, two U.S. government sources briefed on the issue said.

One of the sources said that there was no question that the US "Intelligence community" had received information pointing to "preparations" under way in Syria related to chemical weapons. The source declined to specify what kind of preparations had been reported, or how close the intelligence indicated the Syrians were to deploying or even using the weapons.

Western military experts say Syria has four suspected chemical weapons sites, and it can produce chemical weapons agents including mustard gas and sarin, and possibly also VX nerve agent. The CIA has estimated that Syria possesses several hundred liters of chemical weapons and produces hundreds of tonnes of agents annually.

The fighting around Damascus has led foreign airlines to suspend flights and prompted the United Nations and European Union to reduce their presence in the capital, adding to a sense that the fight is closing in.

The army fightback came a day after the Syrian foreign ministry spokesman was reported to have defected in a potentially embarrassing blow to the government.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 200 people were killed across Syria on Monday, more than 60 of them around Damascus. Assad's forces bombarded districts to the south-east of the capital on Tuesday, near to the international airport, and in the rebel bastion of Daraya to the south-west.

Opposition footage posted on the Internet showed a multiple rocket launcher fire 20 rockets, which activists said was filmed at the Mezze military airport in Damascus.

Reuters could not independently verify the footage due to the government's severe reporting restrictions.

In central Damascus, shielded for many months from the full force of a civil war in which 40,000 people have been killed, one resident reported hearing several loud explosions.

"I have heard four or five thunderous blows. It could be barrel bombs," she said, referring to makeshift bombs which activists say Assad's forces have dropped from helicopters on rebel-dominated areas.

MORTAR ATTACK

The state news agency said that 28 students and a teacher were killed near the capital when rebels fired a mortar bomb on a school. Rebels have targeted government-held residential districts of the capital.

The mainly Sunni Muslim rebel forces have made advances in recent weeks, seizing military bases, including some close to Damascus, from forces loyal to Assad, who is from Syria's Alawite minority linked to Shi'ite Islam.

Faced with creeping rebel gains across the north and east of the country, and the growing challenge around the capital, Assad has increasingly resorted to air strikes against the insurgents.

A diplomat in the Middle East said Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi had left the country and defected, while the British-based Observatory said it had information that he flew from Beirut on Monday afternoon heading for London.

In Beirut, a diplomat said Lebanese officials had confirmed that Makdissi spent several days in Beirut before leaving on Monday, but could not confirm his destination.

"We're aware of reports that he has defected and may be coming to the UK. We're seeking clarification," a Foreign Office spokeswoman in London said.

Makdissi was the public face to the outside world of Assad's government as it battled the 20-month-old uprising. But he had barely appeared in public for several weeks before Monday's report of his defection.

He had little influence in a system largely run by the security apparatus and the military. But Assad's opponents will see the loss of such a high profile figure, if confirmed, as further evidence of a system crumbling from within.

The United Nations and European Union both said they were reducing their presence in Syria in response to the escalated violence around the capital.

A spokesman for U.N. humanitarian operations said the move would not stop aid deliveries to areas which remained accessible to relief convoys.

"U.N.-funded aid supplies delivered through SARC (Syrian Arab Red Crescent) and other charities are still moving daily where the roads are open," Jens Laerke told Reuters in Geneva.

"We have not suspended our operation, we are reducing the non-essential international staff."

Three remaining international staff at the European Union delegation, who stayed on in Damascus after the departure of most Western envoys, crossed the border into Lebanon on Tuesday after pulling out of the Syrian capital.

(Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Brussels, Khaled Yacoub Oweis in Cairo, Erika Solomon, Oliver Holmes and Ayat Basma in Beirut, Mark Hosenball, Mohammed Abbas and David Cutler in London, and Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Giles Elgood)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-spokesman-flees-country-diplomat-says-105734071.html

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And the most overpaid actor award goes to: Eddie Murphy

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Eddie Murphy was once among Hollywood's top box office draws, but he now has the dubious honor of being crowned its most overpaid actor, according to Forbes magazine.

In its annual list, determined by the misalignment between star salaries and their films' box office take, Murphy, once a one-man gold mine with 1980s hits such as "Trading Places" and "Beverly Hills Cop", displaced Drew Barrymore for the top spot.

"Murphy's career has just collapsed," Forbes said, citing such recent box office bombs as "Imagine That", "A Thousand Words" and "Meet Dave".

Weighing box office receipts against paychecks, Forbes calculated that for every dollar Murphy was paid for his last three films, they returned an average of just $2.30 at the box office. Murphy placed second on the list a year ago.

Popular actresses such as Katherine Heigl, and Oscar winners Reese Witherspoon and Sandra Bullock, made the top five, with "returns" ranging from $3.40 to $5.

Forbes took issue with Witherspoon's "questionable" choices such as the star-laden, James L. Brooks romantic comedy "How Do You Know", which was one of 2010's worst-performing films. It cost $120 million, much of which went toward star salaries, but grossed a paltry $49 million.

The cast included two-time Oscar winner Denzel Washington, as well as actors generally considered solid at the box office such as Adam Sandler and Ben Stiller.

"Washington's films do fine at the box office but he can demand an outsized paycheck on those movies," Forbes noted. His current hit "Flight" was not included for this year's list.

Washington's return was the same $6.30 calculated for Sandler, whose comedies Forbes said were consistent performers -- except when they're not, such as the disappointing "Jack and Jill".

It was the same with Stiller, whom Forbes said "earns so much money per film that one miss can make him seem overpaid. That's what happened with "Tower Heist", in which the actor co-starred with -- Eddie Murphy.

Will Ferrell, who topped the list for two of the last four years and came in third a year ago, didn't place.

The full list can be found at www.forbes.com/overpaidactors.

(Reporting by Chris Michaud; editing by Patricia Reaney and Andrew Hay)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/most-overpaid-actor-award-goes-eddie-murphy-190408800.html

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Citigroup cutting 11,000 jobs, taking $1 billion in charges

(Reuters) - Citigroup Inc, which has lagged behind its peers in recovering from the financial crisis, said it is cutting 11,000 jobs worldwide, about 4 percent of its staff, to save as much as $1.1 billion a year in expenses.

The move will initially result in pre-tax charges of $1 billion against fourth-quarter earnings, the No. 3 U.S. bank by assets said on Wednesday.

The cuts are Chief Executive Michael Corbat's first major steps to reorganize the company since he took the reins in October after directors pushed out his predecessor, Vikram Pandit.

Investors welcomed the news. Citigroup shares were up 5.3 percent to $36.11 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

"We have identified areas and products where our scale does not provide for meaningful returns," Corbat said in a statement issued by the company. "We will further increase our operating efficiency by reducing excess capacity and expenses."

The job cuts are part of a reorganization that will reduce annual revenues by "less than $300 million," the bank said.

The bank has been in a long slog to recover from financial crisis losses, which prompted multiple government bailouts. While it has shed hundreds of billions of dollars of troubled assets, analysts have long been impatient with its failure to scale back costs enough to match reduced demand for its services.

Analysts have been expecting dramatic steps since Corbat was brought in as CEO by Citigroup Chairman Michael O'Neill. O'Neill is known in the banking industry for shrinking companies to eliminate businesses that are not earning satisfactory returns.

"Corbat has a limited window of opportunity here in which he can make his new CEO moves," said Nancy Bush, a long-time bank analyst and a contributing editor at SNL Financial. Given the mandate he has to act, she said, "you might as well get the shocking numbers out first."

Still, Bush expects Corbat will continue reorganizing and cutting jobs for two years. "I look at this as the first cut," she said. "Corbat will be forever digging and looking for places to cut, and inevitably personnel will be the biggest part of that."

The job cuts announcement came a few hours before Citigroup Chief Financial Officer John Gerspach was scheduled to speak at midday at a major conference of institutional investors in New York.

CONSUMER BANKING CUTS

About 35 percent of the fourth-quarter restructuring charges will be taken in the global consumer banking unit, where 6,200 jobs will be cut, the bank said. About 40 percent of those layoffs will be in technology and operations support areas.

The bank expects to sell or scale back consumer operations in Pakistan, Paraguay, Romania and Uruguay. As it continues to focus on 150 high-growth markets, it plans to shed 84 branches in five countries, more than half of them in the United States.

After the restructuring, the bank will have 4,000 branches around the world.

Bush said the bank had a "silly strategy" in the mid-2000s, when it was adding branches in areas such as Boston and the New York suburbs. "They now need to go back and rethink their whole domestic branch strategy, and international as well," she said.

When Citigroup changed CEOs in October, O'Neill said executives would continue the bank's strategy of paring back to operate core businesses more efficiently. The strategy has included emphasizing business in rapidly growing urban areas.

Of the announced restructuring charges, about 25 percent will be taken in the bank's investment and corporate banking businesses, and 10 percent in transaction services. Some 1,900 jobs are to be cut from those areas, with more than half coming from operations and technology functions that support the businesses.

One goal of the cuts is to eliminate redundant coverage of relationships with corporate clients, long a source of inefficiency at Citigroup, where sometimes multiple bankers handle relationships with companies and pitch them loans, deal advice, securities underwriting and other services.

The moves will "streamline our client coverage model," the bank said.

Another 25 percent of the charges are for reworking corporate and miscellaneous other functions. About 2,600 jobs are being eliminated from corporate support services, global functions, real estate and the Citi Holdings portfolio of troubled assets that the company is shedding.

The announcement did not say how Corbat intends to organize his executive team or whether he will fill the position of chief operating officer, which was left open when John Havens departed with Pandit.

Even before the Citigroup move, major banks had announced some 160,000 job cuts since early last year, according to a Reuters analysis in November. [ID:nL5E8MDASH] Among the largest: Bank of America in September 2011 announced 30,000 layoffs as part of a plan to reduce annual expenses by $8 billion. That bank is also closing or selling 750 branches.

In October, Swiss bank UBS unveiled plans to fire 10,000 staff and wind down its fixed income business.

Citigroup has been announcing job cuts and expense reductions for years. In April 2007 it announced 17,000 job cuts, meant to help save $4.6 billion of annual expenses by 2009.

In November 2008, as the financial crisis was in full flush, Pandit announced plans to cut more than 50,000 jobs. In December 2011, Pandit said the bank was cutting 4,500 positions, and said he aimed to cut costs by 3 percent to 5 percent annually.

(Reporting by David Henry and Dan Wilchins in New York and Rick Rothacker in Charlotte, North Carolina; Editing by John Wallace)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/citigroup-cut-11-000-jobs-worldwide-4-percent-141035171--sector.html

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Taylor Swift Please Make This Relationship With Harry Styles Work ...

If Taylor Swift had a theme song, it would probably be?Tupac's?"I Get Around."?

Less than one month after breaking up with Connor Kennedy -?the 18-year-old whom she dated and purchased a $4 million dollar mansion next door to - Taylor is now dating Harry Styles, also 18! ?

NEW COUPLE ALERT: Taylor Swift and Harry Styles Date In NYC

Real estate agents in England are just drooling at the chance to make Taylor a client. In all seriousness though, Taylor hasn't had much luck when it comes to relationships, although she's had luck avoiding being called any nasty names.?

Names that plague others like Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, and Wilmer Valderrama.

Since she's had luck avoiding the promiscuous name-calling, I really hope that she can make this relationship with the One Direction singer be more of a romance than a quick fling.?

Taylor deserves love; she's starting to know that she's been around the block a few times. She joked with Ellen:

"Stop it, this makes me feel so bad about myself. Every time I come up here, you put a picture of me with a different dude on the screen. And it makes me question what I stand for as a human being. There have never been two guys up there two visits in a row. It's sad."

Is it finally time for Taylor to have a change of heart? She's already struck out with so many quote-unquote good men.

Joe Jonas inspired her song, "Forever and Always," and he lasted about 3 months.?There was Taylor Lautner, whom she met on the set of Valentine's Day. Their romance didn't make to Valentine's Day. She shagged international man of leisure, John Mayer, and when that ended, she made a song called "Dear John."?

Add in Cory Monteith, Jake Gyllenhaal ("We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,") Conor Kennedy, and a few others whom we can't confirm but assume she dated, and it all starts to add up.?

While Taylor's failed relationships lead to some good music, it's time for her to find love. She really does make a good couple with pop heartthrob Harry, so let's hope they make a true love connection. Pop music needs this!

~?Blog Xilla Follow Me On Twitter

Xilla is the Sr. Entertainment Editor for GlobalGrind.com as well as CEO of the number 1 relationship blog?BlogXilla.com/M2TB.com. He has been featured in XXL, The Source, Essence, LA Times and is considered one of the premiere bloggers in the industry. Follow him on twitter?@BlogXilla

Source: http://globalgrind.com/entertainment/taylor-swift-please-make-relationship-harry-styles-work-out-blog-blogxilla

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Amnesty details 'horrific' abuses in south Yemen

SANAA, Yemen (AP) ? Al-Qaida committed "horrific" rights abuses during its 16 months in power in southern Yemen, Amnesty International charged in a report released Tuesday, documenting the beheading of an alleged sorcerer, crucifixion of a man accused spying and amputation of a man's hand for stealing.

The rights abuses between February 2011 and June 2012, when al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula's (AQAP) affiliate Ansar al-Shariah took over parts of southern Yemen, resulted in "a human rights catastrophe," according to the London-based rights group.

The report also accuses Yemen's government of abuses.

"We believe that horrific human rights abuses took place and violations of international humanitarian law by both sides," according to author of the report, Celina Nasser.

Al-Qaida's takeover of large swaths of territory in southern Yemen was the first time the group has governed entire towns and cities.

The 57-page report, titled "Conflict in Yemen: Abyan's Darkest Hour," documents some of the violations during the conflict between Yemeni government forces and Ansar al-Shariah. It also sheds light on how al-Qaida militants ran government affairs.

Al-Qaida militants seized Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan province on the Arabian Sea coast, while Yemen was mired in the turmoil of a popular uprising against then-President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The militants also took control of several nearby towns. Saleh, once a U.S. ally, stepped down in February under a Gulf-mediated, U.S.-backed deal.

Al-Qaida set up committees to rule southern Yemen. Their rulings and punishments were documented in videos released by al-Qaida in Yemen's media arm. Amnesty compiled some in a nearly 10-minute video released with the report.

The video shows a man in front of a crowd holding the severed head of a woman accused of sorcery. Other scenes show amputation of a man's left hand in a public square in the town of Jaar in southern Yemen. He was accused of stealing electronic wires. Without a trial or prior knowledge of the punishment, he wakes up to find his hand was cut off.

"They gave me an injection, and I slept ... when I woke up, my hand was not there," the man told Amnesty.

Another scene shows the bloated body of a man who was killed and crucified in a public square.

Stores were forcibly closed during the five daily Muslim prayers. A woman tells Amnesty that an Ansar al-Shariah militant banned men from entering her store.

"I would keep the door open, so he hung a curtain to make sure that no one could see me," she said.

The group also forced women to not only cover their faces, as is tradition in Yemen, but also to cover their eyes.

In May, the group destroyed tombs and shrines that they regarded as idolatrous in three villages in the governorate of Abyan.

Around a quarter-million people were displaced due to the conflict. The World Food Program says that more than 10 million Yemenis - 44.5 percent of the population - are food insecure, many of them internally displaced.

Amnesty researcher, Nasser, said there were few checkpoints between the large southern city of Aden and the town of Jaar, which was the first to fall to al-Qaida and served as the group's base in the absence of government forces.

"In Jaar, I didn't see any military presence. I think those who are running the show now are the Popular Committees," she said a phone interview with The Associated Press.

The governor of Abyan province told the AP that the government has yet to rebuild schools, hospitals, roads, sewage systems or even secure the area. He said food aid is also needed.

"The Interior Ministry has not until now taken any positive steps on the ground," Jamal al-Aqil said.

Amnesty's report also points to the killing of civilians, including children, as a result of air strikes and artillery and mortar attacks by government forces trying to force out al-Qaida militants from residential areas.

Amnesty said that Yemeni government forces used inappropriate battlefield weapons such as artillery in civilian areas. In other attacks, government forces appeared to fail to take necessary precautions to spare civilians, the report said.

"We cannot rule out that some of these airstrikes were carried out by U.S. drones," Nasser told the AP. "We call on the United States to also investigate what weapons were used in these airstrikes where civilians were killed."

Washington considers the AQAP to be the network's most dangerous offshoot. The group has been blamed for directing a string of unsuccessful bomb plots on U.S. soil.

This summer, a Yemeni military campaign against AQAP in southern Yemen was orchestrated by U.S. military advisers and financially assisted by neighboring Saudi Arabia. The U.S. helped Yemenis from a command center manned by dozens of U.S. troops in the southern desert outside of the main battle zones. They coordinated assaults and airstrikes, and have carried out drone strikes.

"It's not only the Yemeni government. Any state that was supporting it, including the U.S., should bear responsibility for the killing of civilians," Nasser said.

Since the offensive drove al-Qaida from the towns, the militants have sought refuge in nearby mountain areas and retaliated with assassinations of security and military officials and suicide bombings.

Nasser warned that the conflict could renew, with both sides "committing the same violations."

___

Batrawy reported from Cairo.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/amnesty-details-horrific-abuses-south-yemen-003012110.html

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BlackBerry 10 said to show promise, but it can?t dent iPhone or Android

Research In Motion (RIMM) shares have surged recently following a series of positive reports suggesting RIM still has money to make ahead of its upcoming BlackBerry 10 launch, and that BlackBerry 10 itself may find success despite being written off by a number of industry watchers. Bears rushed to cast doubt on a RIM comeback, however, and now a new report on Monday morning suggests any potential success RIM sees with BlackBerry 10 will likely be short-lived.

Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley on Monday issued a note to clients covering RIM?s recent run. He believes BlackBerry 10 could offer RIM some brief aid but in the long term, he doesn?t see the new platform gaining momentum against market leaders.

?Over the past month, RIM shares have markedly increased ahead of the January 30 launch of long-awaited high-tier BlackBerry 10 smartphones,? Walkley wrote.??While initial sales of higher-ASP BlackBerry 10 smartphones should improve RIM?s January and May quarter device sales and ASP mix, our checks and analysis of the global competitive landscape suggest a very low probability BlackBerry 10 sales can turn around RIM?s long-term business trends.?

The analyst continued, ?Our checks indicate high-ARPU consumers continue to switch from BlackBerry to sticky iPhone and Android ecosystems in droves, BYOD (bring your own device) trends continue to lower RIM?s higher-ARPU enterprise base, and sub-$200 3G Android smartphones in emerging markets threaten RIM?s global sales and subscriber base. While we believe BB10 is a dramatically improved user experience versus BB7 and RIM?s new hardware is more competitive with higher-end smartphones, our checks do not indicate the consumer pull, carrier push, or developer excitement necessary for BlackBerry 10 to reverse the challenging trends faced by RIM in order to return the company to sustained profitability.?

Walkley has downgraded RIM shares to Sell, noting that BlackBerry 10 will likely not return RIM to sustained?profitability.

Get more from BGR.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blackberry-10-said-show-promise-t-dent-iphone-141544490.html

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Childhood trauma leaves mark on DNA of some victims: Gene ...

Abused children are at high risk of anxiety and mood disorders, as traumatic experience induces lasting changes to their gene regulation. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich have now documented for the first time that genetic variants of the FKBP5 gene can influence epigenetic alterations in this gene induced by early trauma.

In individuals with a genetic predisposition, trauma causes long-term changes in DNA methylation leading to a lasting dysregulation of the stress hormone system. As a result, those affected find themselves less able to cope with stressful situations throughout their lives, frequently leading to depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or anxiety disorders in adulthood. Doctors and scientists hope these discoveries will yield new treatment strategies tailored to individual patients, as well as increased public awareness of the importance of protecting children from trauma and its consequences.

Many human illnesses arise from the interaction of individual genes and environmental influences. Traumatic events, especially in childhood, constitute high risk factors for the emergence of psychiatric illnesses in later life. However, whether early stress actually leads to a psychiatric disorder depends largely on his or her genetic predisposition.

Research Group Leader Elisabeth Binder of the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry examined the DNA of almost 2000 Afro-Americans who had been repeatedly and severely traumatised as adults or in childhood. One-third of trauma victims had become ill and was now suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. The risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder rose with increasing severity of abuse only in the carriers of a specific genetic variant in the FKBP5 gene. FKPB5 determines how effectively the organism can react to stress, and by this regulates the entire stress hormone system. The scientists hoped to cast light on the mechanisms of this gene-environment interaction by comparing modifications of the DNA sequence of victims who had not become ill with that of those who had.

The Munich-based Max Planck scientists were then able to demonstrate that the genetic FKBP5 variant does make a physiological difference to those affected, also in nerve cells. Extreme stress and the associated high concentrations of stress hormones bring about what is called an epigenetic change. A methyl group is broken off the DNA at this point, causing a marked increase in FKBP5 activity. This lasting epigenetic change is generated primarily through childhood traumatisation. Consequently, no disease-related demethylation of the FKBP5 gene was detected in participants who were traumatised in adulthood only.

Torsten Klengel, a scientist at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, explains the findings of the study as follows: ?Depending on genetic predisposition, childhood trauma can leave permanent epigenetic marks on the DNA, further de-repressing FKBP5 transcription. The consequence is a permanent dysregulation of the victim?s stress hormone system, which can ultimately lead to psychiatric illness. Decisive for victims of childhood abuse, however, is that the stress-induced epigenetic changes can only occur if their DNA has a specific sequence.?

This recent study improves our understanding of psychiatric illnesses which arise from the interaction of environmental and genetic factors. The results will help tailor treatment particularly for patients who were exposed to trauma in early childhood, thereby greatly increasing their risk of illness.

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Max-Planck-Gesellschaft.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Torsten Klengel, Divya Mehta, Christoph Anacker, Monika Rex-Haffner, Jens C Pruessner, Carmine M Pariante, Thaddeus W W Pace, Kristina B Mercer, Helen S Mayberg, Bekh Bradley, Charles B Nemeroff, Florian Holsboer, Christine M Heim, Kerry J Ressler, Theo Rein, Elisabeth B Binder. Allele-specific FKBP5 DNA demethylation mediates gene?childhood trauma interactions. Nature Neuroscience, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/nn.3275

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.

Article source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/mind_brain/mental_health/~3/A6x4bs8YQOQ/121202164057.htm

Source: http://www.mhhub.com/archives/26369

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What am I thankful for??

By: Amber Ludwig, Website Development ? Social Media Branding ? Internet Marketing Coaching

My family is the kind of family that supports me no matter what, believes in me, is always there and reminds me what?s most important in this world ? count one blessing.

My boyfriend of over two years is the kind of man who I respect and love so deeply, would do anything for, and who makes me want to be a better person each and every day. He?s a shining example, helping tons of people along the way ? count another blessing.

My yellow lab Bailey is one of my greatest friends. He?s been by my side through so much in the past seven years and I can?t imagine a deeper love ? count another blessing.

My company is changing people?s lives in a positive way every day and brings steady income to seven families and growing. It is one of my greatest loves and my passion only increases each day ? count another blessing.

Safety and security is high on my list this year. In a time when many lost their homes with Sandy, families who are experiencing cancer or health issues of a loved one, the economy and job market in jeopardy ? count many blessings.

And all the things that mean so much to me each day: music, coffee, working out, sun rays, movies, laughter, good food, books, and KIND WORDS ? count many more blessings.

If you?re still reading you must care about me and for that, I am so unbelievably grateful. Thank you for your love, friendship and support. Wow it means the world to me.

A very Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family this year. Make it count!

Be sure to tag me (add @Amber Ludwig) in the post so I see it and can respond.

Source: http://insightfuldevelopment.com/what-am-i-thankful-for/

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Holiday online spending has early, strong start: comScore

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Holiday season online spending got off to an early and strong start, spurred by rising consumer confidence and retailer promotions ahead of the traditional big shopping days, comScore Inc said on Wednesday.

From November 1 through November 18, $10.1 billion was spent online, a 16 percent increase versus the corresponding days last year, comScore reported. So far, November 8 has been the heaviest online spending day of the season so far at $829 million, it added.

"Recent 5-year highs in consumer confidence and early retailer promotions appear to be serving as wind in the sails for the beginning portion of the holiday season, with consumers opening up their wallets early and often," comScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni said in a statement.

E-commerce accounts for 5 percent to 10 percent of total consumer spending in the United States. However, it is growing much faster than bricks-and-mortar retail as shoppers are lured by low prices, convenience, faster shipping and wide selection.

ComScore expects online retail spending to rise 17 percent to $43.4 billion this holiday season. That is above the 15 percent increase last season and ahead of the retail industry's expectation for a 4.1 percent increase in overall spending this holiday.

Black Friday, the day following Thanksgiving, has traditionally been the busiest shopping day in the United States. However, some big retailers have been trying to grab market share by running holiday promotions earlier.

This year, Amazon.com Inc, the world's largest Internet retailer, launched its Black Friday deals on November 19, five days before Black Friday.

ChannelAdvisor, which helps merchants sell via eBay, Amazon.com and other websites, reported that client same-store sales on Amazon jumped 41.5 percent during the first 19 days of November, versus the same period a year earlier.

Client sales on eBay rose 24.5 percent in the same period, ChannelAdvisor also said.

"The eBay and Amazon marketplaces are looking the strongest heading into the holiday," Scot Wingo, chief executive of ChannelAdvisor, wrote in a blog on Wednesday.

(Reporting By Alistair Barr; Editing by Gunna Dickson, Bernard Orr)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/holiday-season-online-spending-early-strong-start-comscore-180150437--sector.html

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LUCID by LinenSpa 12? Plush Triple-Layer Memory Foam Mattress ...

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Source: http://www.cornthai.com/lucid-by-linenspa-12-plush-triple-layer-memory-foam-mattress-25-year-warranty-bamboo-cover/

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3 Reasons to Drink Green Tea This Winter - Health News and Views ...

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Coffee may have its place as a healthy beverage, but green tea is often touted as the miracle drink for your mug. That?s especially true with busy holiday schedules; here?s why you should drink the green stuff regularly this holiday season.

Weight-loss wonder: For many, the holiday season is the worst time for maintaining diet goals. During the season of indulgences, then, every little bit helps. Drinking green tea regularly has been shown to help suppress appetite and increase your metabolism ??both of which can help you save or burn a few calories while you celebrate this season.

Sickness prevention: Nonstop shopping, traveling, and socializing can mean the combination of cold-inducing pathogens and a weakened immune system, so give yours a boost with green tea. Several studies have shown that green tea has antiviral properties; one study found that taking green tea catechin capsules helped prevent health-care workers from catching the flu, and another found that Japanese schoolchildren who drank green tea for six days a week or more were less likely to catch the flu.

Stress relief: Curling up with a warm beverage can be relaxing, especially when the rest of your day is hectic, but drinking too much caffeine has its downsides. Too much caffeine can lead to anxiety, stress, and trouble sleeping, so if you find yourself running out for a coffee break or having friends over for a cup several times a day, switch to green tea. Not only does green tea contain only half the amount of caffeine than a normal cup of coffee, but many people also say green tea?s fresh, grassy flavor helps them relax.

Source: http://news.health.com/2012/11/20/reasons-to-drink-green-tea/

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Egypt: A Year of Abuses Against Detained Children | Human Rights ...

(Beirut) ? Egyptian police and military officers have arrested and detained over 300 children during protests in Cairo over the past year, in some cases beating or torturing them, Human Rights Watch said today. Frequently, these children were illegally jailed with adult prisoners, tried in adult courts, and denied their rights to counsel and notification of their families.

Human Rights Watch found strong evidence that police and military officers beat many of the children and in some cases subjected them to treatment amounting to torture. Children told Human Rights Watch, their parents and lawyers that police and military officers kicked them, beat them with rifle butts, hit them with batons, and subjected them to electric shocks.

?President Morsy?s government has promised an end to the practices we?ve seen over the past year, with police and military beating up and even torturing children,? said Priyanka Motaparthy, children?s rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. ?If the government wants a real break with the past, it should make it a top priority to investigate the abuse of children at security officials? hands and prosecute the officials responsible.?

The arrests and treatment of detained children violated Egyptian and international law.

President Mohamed Morsy took a positive step when he issued a decree on October 9, 2012, granting amnesty for ?crimes linked to the January 25 revolution,? which should end prosecutions of many children arrested in these incidents. The pardon extends only to the end of June, however, and does not include those arrested at the September protests.The next step should be to investigate abuse of protesters in state custody, making abuse cases involving children a priority, and prosecuting officers found responsible.

During demonstrations from September 11 to16 in front of the US embassy in Cairo in response to an online film considered offensive to Islam, police and central security officers arrested at least 136 children from various areas in central Cairo, according to arrest data collected by civil society organizations. It was the largest number of arrests of children linked to a specific protest in the past year.

Police or Central Security Force officers beat many of the children during the arrests, witnesses and victims told Human Rights Watch. Officials sent most of the children to adult prisons and adult courts, even though Egypt?s child protection law requires authorities to refer juvenile offenders to child courts and separate them from adult detainees.

The beatings of children arrested during the September embassy protests reflect a repeated police practice over the last year of abusing child protesters, Human Rights Watch found. Through interviews with children released from detention, lawyers, and activists, Human Rights Watch documented rights violations during arrests and detention linked to five major protests over a 10-month period: anti-government protests in November 2011 on Mohammed Mahmoud street in downtown Cairo, in December near the cabinet building, in February 2012 in front of the Interior Ministry, in May at the Defense Ministry in the Abbasiya neighborhood, and then at protests against the US government in September at the US Embassy.

Human Rights Watch conducted detailed interviews with parents or relatives of 12 children arrested by police, military police, and central security officers in February or September. Human Rights Watch also interviewed seven lawyers associated with five civil society groups defending children arrested in connection with the five protests, one social worker, and three children released from detention, in addition to reviewing media articles and consulting child rights and juvenile justice activists.

The evidence gathered by Human Rights Watch from interviews with lawyers and relatives of the arrested children suggest that police consistently carried out widespread arrests in response to large civil disturbances. According to local civil society groups, authorities arrested at least 311 children in connection with these protests.

Lawyers from the Egyptian Foundation for the Advancement of Childhood Conditions, a child protection nongovernmental organization, told Human Rights Watch that they interviewed children arrested in connection with the December 2011 protests against the cabinet, who told them that men in civilian clothing and military police arrested and detained them in Egypt?s parliament building and kicked, punched, and beat them there with batons and metal pipes. Several of the children told lawyers and family members that police arrested them on downtown streets although they had not participated in protests.

The mother of Ahmed Mohsen, a 16-year-old boy detained during February protests in front of the Interior Ministry, said that her son was arrested as he worked shining shoes in downtown Cairo. When she visited him at the Abdeen prosecution unit, he told her that the police had abused him in custody.

?His face was wounded and his hand was electrocuted,? she told Human Rights Watch. ?There were very noticeable marks of something on [Ahmed?s] wrists, and when I asked him about it, he said that they [the police] electrocuted him. His body was blue because they beat them up in the police van.?

Lawyers and other parents whom Human Rights Watch interviewed said that several children arrested in February faced similar types of abuse.

After protests in September in front of the US Embassy, Human Rights Watch interviewed two mothers who said that police arrested their sons, sixteen- and seventeen-year-old cousins, and two of their friends around the same age while they were on their way to a birthday gathering. They face the same charges as the other child defendants charged in connection with the protest: assaulting public officials in the course of their duty, attacking facilities, disrupting traffic, unlawful public gathering, and use of violence.
?Officers at demonstrations have arrested vulnerable children ? street children, working children ? and in some cases severely beaten them,? Motaparthy said. ?There?s no reason police should be using any force on people who are already in handcuffs and in their custody, let alone the severe assaults several children say they suffered.?

Nearly 20 percent of those arrested in connection with the 5 protests were under 18, based on arrest data collected by lawyers working on these cases, although it is unclear what percentage of the total number of protesters were under 18. Authorities sent the arrested children before adult prosecutors, tried them before adult courts, and held them alongside adult prisoners, instead of referring them to the juvenile justice system, the lawyers, parents, and children told Human Rights Watch.

While police and security officers recorded the ages of children arrested in these incidents, according to lawyers and children interviewed, they did not separate children from adults in detention, nor did they refer their cases to child courts.
?Karim,? a 15-year-old student detained from September 14 to 17, told Human Rights Watch that, ?When I told [the police] that I?m 15, they just wrote down my name, they said nothing.?

Authorities have detained children in the same cells as adults at local police stations, including the Abdeen, Qasr al-Nil, Sayyida Zeinab, al-Wayli, and al-Gala?a stations, Human Rights Watch found. They have routinely failed to inform families of the children?s whereabouts, and in several cases have given families looking for their children incorrect information about their child?s location or their rights to visit.

In many cases, police interrogated children before they had access to a lawyer, according to interrogation records viewed by Human Rights Watch and interviews with lawyers representing children in these cases.

Article 37 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child provides that: ?The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.? Egypt?s Child Law states that children under 12 should not be held criminally responsible, that children under 15 should not be placed in custody, including temporary custody, and that authorities should ?avoid depriving [a child] from the family environment except as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.?

Egypt?s Child Law (Law No.12 of 1996 as amended by Law No.126 of 2008) requires issues concerning children who are accused of a crime to be handled exclusively by the Child Court, and sets criminal penalties for police or public officers who detain children with adult prisoners.

?It?s not clear why prosecutors and judges have disregarded the law requiring them to send juveniles to child court,? Motaparthy said. ?Judges aren?t supposed to pick and choose what protections to offer children, but it seems that that?s exactly what they?re doing.?

Source: http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/11/19/egypt-year-abuses-against-detained-children

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mango pr asia ? open for business in hong kong and singapore

Mango PR has just returned from Asia having launched its Hong Kong office and also marked its first anniversary in Singapore.

First to Singapore where we celebrated with drinks at the rooftop Breeze bar at The Scarlet Hotel and then onto Hong Kong where we had drinks at Wyndham The 4^th,? a jewel of a bar hidden away on Wyndham Road that has just opened to a chorus of approval from the Hong Kong media.

Internationally we?ve run numerous PR campaigns over the years. Beyond the UK market we?ve established a strong network of specialist regional agencies.? Over the past couple of years, mainly due to client demand, we have realised that there is an opportunity for us in Asia.

So we quietly set up our office in Singapore in September last year. The office is run by Romilly King who had already been living in Singapore and working in travel PR in Asia for over a year.?? Romilly and her team, Robyn Lee and Kamsin Kanwar, are already working with Intercontinental Hotels Group, Aqua Expeditions (launching their cruise on the Mekong in early 2014), Dorsett Hospitality International, Sukosol Hotels and Park Royal Pickering in Singapore.

Romilly King, Director Mango PR Asia

Our new Hong Kong office is headed up by Katie Harel, former Director of Communications for The Langham Hotel in Hong Kong and her number two, Vivian Woo, who was formerly at Langham Hospitality International.? Both of them are familiar faces on the hospitality scene and have a great deal of experience with the Hong Kong and China media.

Katie Harel, Account Director Hong Kong

Our founders Sarah and Lucinda set up Mango PR in 2004 with just a couple of accounts and on the way to Singapore worked out that since starting we have run campaigns for over 60 companies, including national tourism boards, travel companies, hotel groups,? travel guides, cruise companies and even the odd super yacht.? So it is safe to say that in the luxury travel and leisure market Mango PR is firmly established, with a proven track record.? More important of course is how many of those accounts have stayed with us since the early days ? for us, testament to the good service we are providing. ?Furthermore, by continuing to focus consistently on the travel and leisure markets, Mango PR brings to its clients a thorough understanding of the industry, and how to fulfill each client?s PR needs. But unlike other niche players, the wide experience and creativity of the Mango PR team allows us to develop highly innovative PR campaigns, often in conjunction with other consumer brands.

Now, with our offices in Singapore and Hong Kong in place, our headquarters in London, as well as our network of carefully chosen affiliates across Asia Pacific and Europe, Mango PR can guarantee the highest level of service to clients targeting the fast growing travel and lifestyle market across Asia, and to Asian clients wanting to grow their presence in Europe.

To find out more about Mango PR in Asia please contact:

Romilly King, Director (Asia)
T:? +65 6536 6527 | E: Romilly.king@mangopr.com

Sarah Curra, CEO
T: +44 (0)20 7421 2500 | E: sarah.curra@mangopr.com

?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 21st, 2012 at 2:30 pm and is filed under Mango PR. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

Source: http://www.mangopr.co.uk/blog/2012/11/mango-pr-asia-open-for-business-in-hong-kong-and-singapore/

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Professional Search engine optimization Companies Can Increase ...

But just for the reason that they service companies develop cost-helpful providers, high good quality isn?t jeopardized. Generally, these services are presented in the form of a system as very well as package deal that are very affordable. When this is in no way an exhaustive checklist of all the why you ought to select a good Search engine optimisation Corporation, pay out awareness to these information and you?ll be a single stage closer to making the right preference.

If they either do not have references or they are unwilling to give these to you, it ought to be a warning sign. For instance, if your webpage specials with offering footwear, the correct keywords and phrases to use to attract visitors ought to be associated to shoes. If the service that you choose is a fantastic illustration for the world?s most reputed Website positioning Businesses, then it is possibly excellent sufficient for the small business too.

Make use of Just about all Search engine optimisation Tools: On-page optimization functions like meta information description, name tag, meta label key phrases, keyword density, Net handle structure have to be employed patiently and cautiously whenever off webpage functions like write-up submission, directory submission, social bookmarking, hyperlink setting up must also be applied so as that target internet pages should attain desired webpage ranks in search engine. Acquiring expert Search engine optimisation Optimization firms handling this element of your very own promotions will yield in purchase to additional targeted targeted visitors, quicker as effectively as finally could preserve you a terrific deal of funds and time. Affordability: Companies are frightened in producing pricey investments without the need of any promise of returns.

Many webpage owners nevertheless wonder about the dependability of research engine optimization. You also want to know how promptly they presume finishing the specific venture. The simplest Seo bundle ought to cope with both on-web page and off-webpage optimization.

With the building organization necessity, all organizations require to build themselves virtually. We commence along with Phase one wherever all of us conduct internet site examination and technical audits to assess the present placement of the site along with a thorough competitor evaluation for obtaining the ideal market place see of competition. The major deal however, is to make positive that your website manages to endure the very demanding competitors on the Planet Broad World wide web and ends up currently being successful.

There are quite a few Website positioning Services that optimize their clients? websites to assist them to get larger targeted visitors. The amount of search engine optimization businesses in excess of the networks all around the globe wide web is uncountable as substantially as their neighborhood and their solutions occasionally restored upon that old ones, are staying multiplied every single day. Ideal now, in this element of the short article, I ought to impart the data that I have how you are ready to calculate your Search engine optimization corporation?s usefulness on your campaign.

Research Engine Optimization is critical for attaining enhanced ranking in the research engines and other research engines. They ensure that the internet site has a distinctive setting that draws in Web consumers. A capable Seo Enterprise can enable enterprises save on the unique promoting charges and provide the same outcomes at a less pricey price.

For these who have just cranked up a website and you are seeking to increase your ranking on a few of the additional preferred research engines, beginning with the principles in Search engine marketing Services is the very best way to go. You?ve certainly tried employing research engines by yourself and can attest to the reality that on-line end users do not normally think about the web sites at the bottom of the results page allow alone the ones that are on the unique succeeding net pages. They can be easily found with a basic Internet search, but be cautious about the absolutely free variations.

You can obtain a lot more information and facts about Web Design

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4. Looking for an Search engine optimization Company
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Source: http://www.28seo.com/professional-search-engine-optimization-companies-can-increase-your-company.html

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Women Peace Activists Demand an End to Attacks in Gaza and Israel

WASHINGTON--(ENEWSPF)--November 16 - MADRE, an international women?s human rights organization, condemns the growing violence that has killed at least 18 people in the past days: 15 in Gaza and three in Israel. We assert that all attacks against civilians must end immediately.

Yesterday, Israel carried out a targeted killing of Hamas leader Ahmed Al-Jaabari, in violation of international legal prohibitions on extrajudicial assassinations. Subsequent attacks brought the death toll in Gaza to 15. Reports from Gaza indicate that at least 130 people are wounded. Three Israelis have been killed in a rocket attack that collapsed part of a building.

These latest assaults come after a period of escalating attacks and tension. In the week leading up to the assassination of Jaabari, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights documented the deaths of six civilians in Gaza due to Israel?s military activity. That same week saw repeated rockets attacks from Gaza into Israel, also in violation of international law.

In January, Israel will be holding elections, and some have suggested that the assassination and airstrikes are a bid by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to galvanize his far right base. Now that a ground offensive may be imminent, many more lives are at risk.

The people of Gaza already live under a US-supported Israeli military siege that denies them basic rights, like access to clean water and medical care. The current airstrikes not only risk civilian lives, they destroy essential infrastructure in Gaza still not rebuilt from the last Israeli offensive four years ago.

Today, MADRE Executive Director Yifat Susskind said, ?By assassinating a man who has played a central role in past ceasefire negotiations, Israel?s leaders are further foreclosing the possibility of peace. That, in fact, is the essence of Netanyahu?s election strategy. And families in Gaza are paying with their lives for his political manipulations. The Palestinian and Israeli women we work with are committed to breaking the cycle of violence and ending Israel?s occupation and siege of Gaza.?

MADRE is an international women's human rights organization that works in partnership with community-based women's organizations worldwide to address issues of health and reproductive rights, economic development, education, and other human rights. MADRE provides resources, training, and support to enable our sister organizations to meet concrete needs in their communities while working to shift the balance of power to promote long-term development and social justice. Since we began in 1983, MADRE has delivered nearly 25 million dollars worth of support to community-based women's organizations in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, the Balkans, and the United States. For more information about MADRE, visit our website at www.madre.org.

Source: http://www.enewspf.com/opinion/38406-women-peace-activists-demand-an-end-to-attacks-in-gaza-and-israel.html

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Israel, Hamas Fight Gaza Conflict Online (Voice Of America)

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Vodafone Red Hot rents you a phone, offers upgrades every 12 months

While American carriers are lengthening upgrade cycles and pushing people off unlimited data plans if they want a subsidized device, companies across the pond are actually looking to get customers to trade up more often. Vodafone's Red Hot isn't quite as flighty as JUMP, but the basic premise is the same. Rather than buy the latest high-end smartphone, you rent it. Then when the time comes, you simply trade it in for the new latest and greatest. While Phones4u lets you switch handsets impulsively every six months, Vodafone goes with a more reasonable yearly upgrade cycle. With the Red Hot plan Vodafone customers get a new smartphone, unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and "loads of internet," though we'd argue 2GB hardly qualifies as "loads." Pricing will vary based on handset, but we can tell you a Galaxy S III will currently set you back £47 a month. If you've still got some lingering questions hit up the source links.

Filed under: Mobile

Vodafone Red Hot rents you a phone, offers upgrades every 12 months originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 16:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/11/15/vodafone-red-hot-rents-you-a-phone/

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UK: European nations to debate Syria arms embargo

LONDON (AP) ? European nations are discussing whether to overturn an arms embargo on Syria and seeking to press Arab countries and the United States for a new impetus to end the deadly 20-month conflict, Britain's foreign policy chief said Friday.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague met in London with Mouaz al-Khatib, head of the new Syrian National Coalition for Opposition and Revolutionary Forces, but said the U.K. would not yet join France in officially recognizing the opposition group as the representative of Syria's people.

Officials from the U.S., France, Germany, Qatar, Turkey and other nations were attending meetings in London with the new opposition group, aimed at determining how better to support opponents of Syrian President Bashar Assad and to stress the need for the opposition fighters to respect human rights.

"We cannot stand still, we cannot just say we will leave things as they are in Syria, because it is a gravely deteriorating situation," Hague told reporters. "How we respond has to be well judged, well thought through."

Though Britain has insisted so far that it will not supply weapons to Syria's rebels, Hague confirmed that its National Security Council had discussed whether a European Union arms embargo could be lifted. The issue is likely to be discussed at a meeting of European foreign ministers on Monday.

Since May 2011, the EU has imposed a ban on the export of weapons and equipment to Syria which could be used for "internal repression." In July, the 27-nation bloc asked members to stop and inspect any ships or aircraft bound for Syria that they suspect could be carrying arms.

France has already raised the possibility of sending "defensive weapons" to Syria's rebels ? although Russia, which has backed Assad's regime by vetoing action at the United Nations Security Council, has warned that such a move would violate international law.

"We must not militarize the conflict ... but it's obviously unacceptable that there are liberated zones and they're bombed" by Assad's regime, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Thursday in an interview with RTL radio.

However, a senior EU official said if an arms embargo against Syria was restructured to allow arms to go to rebels but not to the regime, it would be very difficult to police. For that reason, the EU is unlikely to change the embargo, the official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of standing EU rules.

The U.N. Security Council hasn't imposed any arms embargo on Syria, amid Russia's and China's refusal to back tough measures against Assad.

In London, Hague insisted that Syria "needs a diplomatic and political solution ? a military victory of one side over the other would be a long, expensive process in terms of human life."

According to anti-government activists, Syria's civil war has seen more than 36,000 Syrians killed since March 2011, when an uprising began against Assad's regime. The fighting and a flood of refugees seeking safety have also spilled over into several of Syria's neighbors, including Israel, Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan.

A group of 53 people, including a Syrian general, five colonels, other officers and their families, arrived in the Turkish border province of Hatay, Turkey's state-run Anadolu agency reported Friday. They were taken to a special camp sheltering Syrian military defectors, who include dozens of other generals.

The number of Syrian refugees in Turkish camps has risen to just over 120,000.

Suheir Atassi and Riad Seif, vice presidents of the Syrian National Coalition for Opposition and Revolutionary Forces, also attended Friday's meeting between Al-Khatib and Hague.

The three Syrians will travel to Paris on Saturday for talks with French President Francois Hollande.

"I hope this meeting today will mark a turning point for the Syrian people, that it will begin the major steps towards a political transition in Syria," Hague said.

____

Associated Press writers Don Melvin in Brussels and Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey contributed to this report

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uk-european-nations-debate-syria-arms-embargo-092703731.html

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NFL Preview - Cleveland (2-7) at Dallas (4-5) (ET)

The schedule makers were very kind to the Dallas Cowboys, giving them three straight and five of six home games from Nov. 18 through Dec. 23.

Whether Dallas takes advantage or not remains to be seen.

The Cowboys have a full head of steam entering Sunday's matchup with the Cleveland Browns, and will try to build on an upcoming soft schedule. They got themselves back into the playoff mix with last week's 38-23 win at Philadelphia and heated up the NFC East race.

Big plays on defense and special teams resuscitated the Cowboys back to life in a game that meant so much for both teams. The Eagles also entered the game at 3-5, but quarterback Michael Vick was knocked out of the game with a concussion and Dallas turned up the defense on rookie QB Nick Foles. Brandon Carr returned a tipped pass for a touchdown and both DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer each had a crucial sack to seal the win.

Jason Hatcher recovered a fumble in the end zone on a big sack deep in Eagles territory to finish the scoring and cap a 21-point fourth quarter. Along with Carr's pick six and Hatcher's gift in the end zone, Dwayne Harris had a 78- yard punt return for a score.

"We talk about 'all three phases,' really, on a daily basis," Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. "Everybody has a role in what we're doing, and everybody has to pick each other up. ... Everybody understands it's a team game."

Garrett, though, wasn't too pleased that the Cowboys were penalized 13 times for 75 yards, and thought the defensive infractions hurt tremendously. It seemed Dallas wanted to give the game away and amazingly improved to 3-1 this season when committing at least 13 penalties. Ten of the 13 penalties on Sunday were against the defense, six of which gave the Eagles a first down. Rookie cornerback Morris Claiborne was flagged five times on the afternoon.

But perseverance and patience paid off for Dallas, which sits right behind the struggling 6-4 New York Giants for first place in the division. The Giants have been known for their November breakdowns and things could get interesting over the next few weeks.

Dallas ended a two-game losing streak and won for just the second time in six games. It will have to come out firing on all cylinders against Browns rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden. Weeden is tied for second in the NFL with 12 interceptions, but guess who leads the league in that category? That would be Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo with 13. Romo has had two games with four or more picks and hasn't thrown one in two straight and three of four games.

"The ball is the most important thing ... we've got to protect the football," Romo said. "We talk about it all the time. And when you can do that. You have a chance to have some success and be a pretty good football team."

Right now the Browns are not a good football team and had their bye week to reflect on that. They entered the break with losses in two of three games and are just 2-7 on the season.

Cleveland, which was 3-6 at this point a season ago, dropped a 25-15 decision versus Baltimore on Nov. 4. It played well defensively, holding the rival Ravens under 300 yards (282) of offense and keeping Ray Rice from rushing for more than 100 yards (98). But at the end of the day, a pair of interceptions by Weeden proved to be costly.

Browns head coach Pat Shurmur discussed what went on during the bye.

"As coaches, we got a chance to sit down and evaluate what went right early in the year and what didn't go well and what we want to try to focus on. That part was good," Shurmur said. "I think the players got a chance to get away a little bit and take advantage of some much-needed rest."

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/11/15/3098742/nfl-preview-cleveland-2-7-at-dallas.html

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Teaching robots new tricks without programming

Don't believe what the sci-fi movies tell you. When it comes to understanding our world, robots are stupid. Like computers, robots only do what we program them to do. And that's a big problem if we're ever going to realize the dream of practical robot helpers for the masses. Wouldn't it be great if anyone could teach a robot to perform a task, like they would a child? Well, that's precisely what Maya Cakmak has been working on at Willow Garage.

Cakmak, a researcher from Georgia Tech, spent the summer creating a user-friendly system that teaches the PR2 robot simple tasks. The kicker is that it doesn't require any traditional programming skills whatsoever ? it works by physically guiding the robot's arms while giving it verbal commands.

After inviting regular people to give it a try, she found that with few instructions they were able to teach the PR2 how to retrieve medicine from a cabinet and fold a t-shirt. Such tasks may be easy for us, but for a robot they are very difficult. That's why most scientists don't take the threat of a robopocalypse very seriously just yet ? they know how difficult it is to get a robot to do anything even remotely useful.

Test subjects were provided instructions on how to teach the robot similar to what you'd expect when buying a sophisticated appliance

Teaching by demonstration isn't going to replace traditional programming, because robots will still require some degree of common sense to function properly in our uncertain world.

For example, Rethink Robotics' new industrial robot, Baxter, uses a combination of the two. This allows anyone to quickly and easily program the robot to perform manipulation tasks on a production line, like picking up an object over here and moving it over there. This is made possible in part because Baxter uses its own artificial intelligence too, like image processing software, to pinpoint the exact positions of widgets placed randomly in front of it.

The potential for Cakmak's system would multiply as data is shared across a network of robots. In theory, you could eventually have software routines capable of folding any type of clothing, or loading any type of cookware into a dishwasher. However, some local instruction would still be required as each household is unique and no amount of advance programming can account for all the little differences in layout (the precise location of a sock drawer, for example).

But while we wait for robots to gain the artificial intelligence to carry out various household chores by themselves with nothing more than a verbal command, Cakmak's approach could help robots become truly flexible household helpers.

Check out version 1.0 of Cakmak's system in the video below.

Source: Willow Garage

Source: http://www.gizmag.com/teach-robots-demonstration/25029/

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