salespeople misdealt: April 2013

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Obama: US still not sure who used chem weapons

President Barack Obama answers questions during his new conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2013 in Washington. The president said the US doesn't know how chemical weapons were used in Syria or by whom. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama answers questions during his new conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2013. The president strongly suggested Tuesday he'd consider military action against Syria if it can be confirmed that President Bashar Assad's government used chemical weapons in the two-year-old civil war. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks at a news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington,Tuesday, April 30, 2013. The president said the US doesn't know how or when chemical weapons were used in Syria or who used them. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

President Barack Obama answers questions during his new conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2013 in Washington. The president said he's asked Pentagon for range of options if President Assad has used chemical weapons in Syria. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama arrives for a news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama strongly suggested Tuesday he'd consider military action against Syria if it can be confirmed that President Bashar Assad's government used chemical weapons in the two-year-old civil war.

At a White House news conference, the president also defended the FBI's work in monitoring the activities in recent years of one of the men accused in the deadly bombing at the Boston Marathon two weeks ago.

At a question and answer session that ranged from immigration legislation to recent intelligence cooperation with Russia, the president several times chided, criticized or dismissed his Republican critics. Asked about one senator who recently said national security protections have deteriorated since he became president, Obama said, Sen. Lindsey "Graham is not right on this issue, although I'm sure he generated some headlines."

Asked about Syria, the president said that while there is evidence that chemical weapons were used inside the country, "we don't know when they were used, how they were used. We don't know who used them. We don't have a chain of custody that establishes" exactly what happened.

If it can be established that the Syrian government used chemical weapons, he added, "we would have to rethink the range of options that are available to us."

"Obviously there are options to me that are on the shelf right now that we have not deployed," he said, noting that he had asked Pentagon planners last year for additional possibilities. He declined to provide details.

Obama responded with slight ridicule and humor when he was asked if he still had the political juice to push his agenda through Congress after an early second-term defeat on gun control legislation.

"Golly, I might just as well pack up and go home," he parried his questioner. Paraphrasing Mark Twain, he said, "Rumors of my demise may be a little exaggerated at this point." He expressed confidence that Congress would approve sweeping immigration legislation that he is seeking.

He also renewed his call for lawmakers to replace across-the-board federal spending cuts. The administration favors a comprehensive plan to reduce deficits through targeted spending cuts and higher taxes.

Asked about the FBI's investigation into a possible terrorist threat posed in the past by Tamerlan Tsarnaev, a suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings who died in an escape attempt, the president said, "Based on what I've seen so far, the FBI performed its duties , the Department of Homeland Security did what it was supposed to be doing."

"But this is hard stuff," he said of the work needed to ferret out security threats at home.

He also said that "Russians have been very cooperative with us since the Boston bombing."

The bombing suspects are Russian natives who immigrated to the Boston area. Russian authorities told U.S. officials before the bombings they had concerns about the family, but Moscow has revealed details of wiretapped conversations only since the attack.

Obama had scarcely completed his news conference when Graham, the Republican South Carolina senator, responded to his comment about national security.

"With all due respect, Mr. President, Benghazi and Boston are compelling examples of how our national security systems have deteriorated on your watch." He referred to the attack that killed three Americans at a U.S. diplomatic post in Libya last year, as well as the marathon bombing

Asked about a topic that links terrorism and his Obama's legislative efforts, he said he would "re-engage with Congress" on his goal of closing the prison for detainees at Guantanamo in Cuba. As a candidate for the White House in 2007 and 2008, Obama called for closing the base, which was set up as part of President George W. Bush's response to the terror attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Lawmakers objected and the facility remains open.

Asked about a hunger strike by some detainees, he said, "I don't want these individuals to die," and he said the Pentagon was doing what it could to manage the situation.

Obama also noted that several suspected terrorists have been tried and found in U.S. federal courts, an answer to his congressional critics who maintain that detainees must be tried in special courts if the United States is to maximize its ability to prevent future attacks.

On another contentious issue, the president said a variety of Republicans was working to foil the final implementation of the health care law he pushed through Congress three years ago.

He said GOP lawmakers want to repeal the law and some Republican governors don't want to have their states participate in establishing insurance pools where the uninsured can find coverage. In other cases, Republican legislatures object when governors are willing to go along.

Even so, he said, "we will implement" the law, although he conceded there will be glitches along the way.

"Despite all the hue and cry and sky-is-falling predictions about this stuff, if you've already got health insurance, then the part of Obamacare that affects you is already in place," he added.

The first question to Obama concerned Syria and the reported use of chemical weapons.

Administration officials said recently that intelligence analysts had "varying degrees of confidence" in a conclusion that Assad's government has deployed sarin gas against civilians.

Obama said the administration was using all its resources to determine the facts about a weapon that he has said would be a "game changer" for U.S. policy in the war.

"If we end up rushing to judgment without hard, effective evidence ... we can find ourselves in a position where we can't marshal the international community in support of what we do," he said. "It's important for us to do this in a prudent way."

He did not say so, but one of the enduring controversies from Bush's administration was the assertion ? never proven, but used to justify the invasion of Iraq ? that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction.

The Obama administration long ago called for Assad to step down and pave the way for a new government, but Obama has resisted calls from some Republicans in Congress to send U.S. military aid to the rebels or commit U.S. military resources directly.

The hour-long news conference concluded with a post-script.

Obama had stepped away from the lectern when he heard a shouted question about Jason Collins, the professional basketball player who made a pioneering announcement on Monday that he is gay.

Obama said he had spoken with Collins and "told him I couldn't be prouder of him."

"One of the extraordinary measures of progress that we've seen in this country has been the recognition that the LGBT community deserves full equality, not just partial equality, not just tolerance but a recognition that they're wholly a part of the American family," he said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-04-30-Obama/id-59120a7a153844f4a667c2f8c0a7029d

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Moss hits 2nd HR in 19th, A's outlast Angels 10-8

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) ? Two games in one.

Brandon Moss hit his second home run of the game with two outs in the bottom of the 19th inning to give the Oakland Athletics a 10-8 victory over the Los Angeles Angels early Tuesday in the longest major league game of the season.

The teams were on the field for 6 hours, 32 minutes in a marathon game that ended at 1:41 a.m. on the West Coast. It was the longest game ever played in Oakland by time and the longest in Angels history as well.

Oakland slugger Yoenis Cespedes singled off the left-center wall to drive in the tying run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Los Angeles went ahead 8-7 in the 15th on a bases-loaded walk, but the A's tied it in the bottom half on Adam Rosales' two-out single after a costly error by Angels first baseman Albert Pujols.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/moss-hits-2nd-hr-19th-outlast-angels-10-085237945.html

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Key shift in brain that creates drive to overeat identified

Apr. 29, 2013 ? A team of American and Italian neuroscientists has identified a cellular change in the brain that accompanies obesity. The findings could explain the body's tendency to maintain undesirable weight levels, rather than an ideal weight, and identify possible targets for pharmacological efforts to address obesity.

The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition this week, identify a switch that occurs in neurons within the hypothalamus. The switch involves receptors that trigger or inhibit the release of the orexin A peptide, which stimulates the appetite, among other behaviors. In normal-weight mice, activation of this receptor decreases orexin A release. In obese mice, activation of this receptor stimulates orexin A release.

"The striking finding is that you have a massive shift of receptors from one set of nerve endings impinging on these neurons to another set," said Ken Mackie, professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences at IU Bloomington. "Before, activating this receptor inhibited the secretion of orexin; now it promotes it. This identifies potential targets where an intervention could influence obesity."

The work is part of a longstanding collaboration between Mackie's team at the Gill Center for Biomolecular Science at IU Bloomington and Vincenzo Di Marzo's team at the Institute of Biomolecular Chemistry in Pozzuoli, Italy. Both teams study the endocannabinoid system, which is composed of receptors and signaling chemicals that occur naturally in the brain and have similarities to the active ingredients in cannabis, or marijuana. This neurochemical system is involved in a variety of physiological processes, including appetite, pain, mood, stress responses and memory.

Food consumption is controlled in part by the hypothalamus, a portion of the brain that regulates many essential behaviors. Like other important body systems, food consumption is regulated by multiple neurochemical systems, including the endocannabinoid system, representing what Mackie describes as a "balance of a very fine web of regulatory networks."

An emerging idea, Mackie said, is that this network is reset during obesity so that food consumption matches maintenance of current weight, not a person's ideal weight. Thus, an obese individual who loses weight finds it difficult to keep the weight off, as the brain signals the body to eat more in an attempt to return to the heavier weight.

Using mice, this study found that in obesity, CB1 cannabinoid receptors become enriched on the nerve terminals that normally inhibit orexin neuron activity, and the orexin neurons produce more of the endocannabinoids to activate these receptors. Activating these CB1 receptors decreases inhibition of the orexin neurons, increasing orexin A release and food consumption.

"This study identifies a mechanism for the body's ongoing tendency to return to the heavier weight," Mackie said.

The researchers conducted several experiments with mice to understand how this change takes place. They uncovered a role of leptin, a key hormone made by fat cells that influences metabolism, hunger and food consumption. Obesity causes leptin levels to be chronically high, making brain cells less sensitive to its actions, which contributes to the molecular switch that leads to the overproduction of orexin.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Indiana University.

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

Journal Reference:

Luigia Cristino, Giuseppe Busetto, Roberta Imperatore, Ida Ferrandino, Letizia Palomba, Cristoforo Silvestri, Stefania Petrosino, Pierangelo Orlando, Marina Bentivoglio, Kenneth Mackie, and Vincenzo Di Marzo. Obesity-driven synaptic remodeling affects endocannabinoid control of orexinergic neurons. PNAS, April 29, 2013 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1219485110

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/living_well/~3/xM2F7rud-Lw/130429154214.htm

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How Siri, Google Now respond to 5 questions

With Google's voice assistant now available on iPhones and iPads, The Associated Press used an iPad Mini to throw five test questions at Google Now and Siri on Monday afternoon in New York. Here's what the two digital assistants had to say for themselves:

___

Question: What is the meaning of life?

Siri: "I can't answer that now, but give me some time to write a very long play in which nothing happens." Siri has more than a dozen prepared responses to that question.

Google Now: The voice assistant was silent. Instead, keywords in that question triggered an ad for the Mormons on the top of the search results page. That was followed by links to a Wikipedia entry for "meaning of life" and other sites.

___

Question: What is the weather like Friday?

Siri: "It should be nice Friday... up to 61 degrees and sunny." Siri also presented a graphic with day-by-day conditions over the next six days, using information from Yahoo.

Google Now: "Friday's forecast for New York, New York, is 64 degrees and clear." Google then presented a box with day-by-day conditions over the next 10 days, as well as current conditions.

___

Question: What movies are showing this weekend?

Siri: "I found five movies playing nearby on Friday." Siri then presented a card with show times, parental ratings and favorability ratings from the Rotten Tomatoes website. Four of the movies were at art-house cinemas, as theater chains hadn't released weekend schedules yet. Links to buy or rent those movies on iTunes were offered when available.

Google Now: "Movies playing in New York on Friday." Google then offered a page with times, descriptions and other information for 13 movies, including six IMAX movies playing at science museums in New York and Jersey City, N.J. As with Siri, most of the rest were at art-house cinemas.

___

Question: How did the Mets do?

Siri: "The Mets lost to the Phillies yesterday. The final score was 5 to 1." An inning-by-inning scoreboard was presented.

Google Now: "The Mets lost to the Phillies 5 to 1." An inning-by-inning scoreboard was offered up.

___

Question: Please set my alarm for seven.

Siri: "I've set an alarm for 7 a.m." Siri assumed 7 the next morning rather than 7 that evening. Siri then showed a digital clock with a lever at "on," which you can switch to "off."

Google Now: The voice assistant was silent. Instead, search results appeared, including an article on "How to Use Siri's Clock - For Dummies."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-04-29-Google-Apple-Five%20Questions/id-e95e51051f4740d98845254c0ce73360

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Wow! Monster Hurricane on Saturn Spied by NASA Spacecraft

Spectacular new images from a NASA spacecraft orbiting Saturn have captured the most detailed views ever of an enormous hurricane churning around the ringed planet's north pole.?

The stunning new images and video of the Saturn hurricane, which?were taken by NASA's Cassini probe, show that the storm's eye is 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers) wide ? about 20 times bigger than typical hurricane eyes on Earth. And the Saturn maelstrom is more powerful than its Earth counterparts, with winds at its outer edge whipping around at 330 mph (530 km/h).

"We did a double take when we saw this vortex because it looks so much like a hurricane on Earth," Cassini imaging team member Andrew Ingersoll, of Caltech in Pasadena, said in a statement. "But there it is at Saturn, on a much larger scale, and it is somehow getting by on the small amounts of water vapor in Saturn's hydrogen atmosphere." [Amazing Views of Saturn's Mysterious Hurricane (Photos)]

Saturn's hurricane swirls inside a mysterious, six-sided vortex. Unlike hurricanes on Earth, which tend to drift northward as our planet rotates, the Saturn storm and its hexagonal vortex have been camped out at the north pole for a while.

"The polar hurricane has nowhere else to go, and that's likely why it's stuck at the pole," Kunio Sayanagi, a Cassini imaging team associate at Hampton University in Hampton, Va., said in a statement.

While the Saturn hurricane is larger and more powerful than Earth hurricanes, storms on the two planets are alike in some ways. For example, both have central eyes containing very low clouds or no clouds at all, researchers said. Other shared traits are high clouds forming the eye wall, and a counterclockwise spin in the northern hemisphere.

So scientists plan to study how the Saturn storm feeds off atmospheric water vapor, in the hopes of gaining insight into hurricanes here on Earth (which gain their strength from warm ocean water).

Cassini's instruments detected the Saturn storm shortly after the probe arrived in orbit around the ringed planet in 2004. The hurricane was in darkness at the time, however, because it was the middle of the northern Saturn winter.

So Cassini had to wait for the onset of the northern spring in August 2009 to get a good look at the hurricane in visible light. The detailed new views required a shift in the spacecraft's orbit as well, achieved using flybys of Saturn's huge moon Titan, researchers said.

"Such a stunning and mesmerizing view of the hurricane-like storm at the north pole is only possible because Cassini is on a sportier course, with orbits tilted to loop the spacecraft above and below Saturn's equatorial plane," said Scott Edgington, Cassini deputy project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

"You cannot see the polar regions very well from an equatorial orbit," Edgington added. "Observing the planet from different vantage points reveals more about the cloud layers that cover the entirety of the planet."

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter?@michaeldwall?and?Google+.?Follow us?@Spacedotcom,?Facebook?or?Google+. Originally published on?SPACE.com.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/wow-monster-hurricane-saturn-spied-nasa-spacecraft-220410980.html

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Monday, April 29, 2013

Christie: Obama 'kept every promise' on storm aid

HIGHLANDS, N.J. (AP) ? New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Monday that President Barack Obama "has kept every promise he's made" about helping the state recover from Superstorm Sandy.

Speaking on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program on the 6-month anniversary of the deadly storm, the Republican governor said presidential politics were the last thing on his mind as he toured storm-devastated areas with Obama last fall.

"The president has kept every promise he's made," said Christie, widely considered a potential candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. "I think he's done a good job. He kept his word."

Christie's warm embrace of Obama after the storm angered some Republicans, who said it helped tip a close presidential election to the Democrat and away from Mitt Romney, who Christie endorsed and for whom he campaigned last fall.

Christie says he and Obama have fundamentally different views on governing. But he said the two men did what needed to be done for a devastated region.

"I've got a job to do," he said. "You wake up and 7 million of your 8.8 million citizens are out of power, you're not thinking about presidential politics."

Christie challenged his critics to put themselves in his shoes while dealing with the massive storm, predicting none of them would have done anything differently.

"I have a 95 percent level of disagreement with Barack Obama," Christie said. But that did not come into play while dealing with the storm.

"We saw suffering together," Christie said. "Everything the president promised me they'd do, they've done. I don't have any complaint this morning on the issue of disaster relief."

Sandy destroyed about 360,000 homes or apartment units in New Jersey, and some areas along the shore are still devastated.

Later Monday, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan is to appear with Christie at a press conference, where it is expected the secretary will announce federal approval of New Jersey's plans to spend more than $1.8 billion in federal grants on storm rebuilding and recovery.

"We'll start to see that aid start flowing this week," Christie said on the show. "We still have tens of thousands of families who aren't back in their homes. Job One is to get the grant program going."

Congress approved more than $60 billion in Sandy relief funds, most of it for New Jersey and New York, despite opposition from many Congressional Republicans who wanted to spend less.

___

Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/christie-obama-kept-every-promise-storm-aid-115719276.html

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NEC Terrain for AT&T spied in leaked press photos, packs a QWERTY keyboard

Memory of a time where an NEC phone graced US shores escapes us, but the prolific -- and often accurate -- @evleaks has tweeted a press shot that signals a handset from the Japanese firm might soon arrive stateside. Emblazoned with AT&T's logo and reportedly dubbed the NEC Terrain, the Android-toting smartphone shares its front real estate with a screen, a camera and a QWERTY keyboard. No other details were spilled with the image, but with a name like Terrain and what looks like a rubberized border, we wouldn't be surprised if it could withstand a fair amount of rough and tumble.

Filed under: Cellphones, AT&T

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Source: @evleaks (Twitter)

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/ijjfSX4lwEE/

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Boston bomb suspect in small cell with steel door

AYER, Mass. (AP) ? The Boston Marathon bombing suspect is being held in a small cell with a steel door at a federal medical detention center about 40 miles outside the city, a federal official said Saturday.

Federal Medical Center Devens spokesman John Collauti described the conditions under which 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was being held in the Ayer facility after being moved there from a hospital Friday.

Tsarnaev was injured during a police chase Thursday in which his brother, also a suspect in the bombing, was fatally wounded.

Collauti said in a telephone interview that Tsarnaev is in secure housing where authorities can monitor him. His cell has a solid steel door with an observation window and a slot for passing food and medication.

Collauti wouldn't discuss specific details related to Tsarnaev, but said that typically medical workers making rounds each shift monitor the inmates. He said guards also keep an eye on some cells with video cameras.

Also, inmates in the more restrictive section do not have access to TVs or radios, but can read books and other materials, he said.

"Really this type of facility is fully capable of handling him and it's not that much of an inconvenience because it's more or less business as usual," Collauti said.

Tsarnaev's mother said the bombing allegations against her son are lies.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/boston-bomb-suspect-small-cell-steel-door-023441943.html

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The Party Of Morning Joe (Atlantic Politics Channel)

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Jurors set to get roadmap of Jackson civil trial

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? The most complete account of Michael Jackson's final months is about to unfold in a cramped Los Angeles courtroom nearly four years after the pop superstar's death.

Lawyers for Jackson's mother will attempt to convince a jury that the company promoting the pop superstar's 2009 comeback concerts is responsible for his untimely death. The attorneys will try to prove that AEG Live hired and controlled the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter over Jackson's demise.

AEG Live denies any wrongdoing and contests that they hired the physician who for months was giving Jackson doses of a powerful anesthetic in the singer's bedroom to help him sleep.

Opening statements on Monday will provide a roadmap for a case that will delve into Jackson's addiction struggles and issues previously unexplored in court. Many of those in the singer's orbit ? family, famous friends, doctors and his teenage children ? may testify during the months-long trial.

Some of the stars listed on the witness list include Quincy Jones, Diana Ross, Lou Ferrigno and Spike Lee. Both of Jackson's ex-wives, Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe, are also listed as potential witnesses.

Katherine Jackson sued in September 2010, claiming AEG failed to properly investigate her son's doctor, Conrad Murray. All but one of her claims has been dismissed, but millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake. The trial pits the family of a global superstar against AEG Live, a private company that as part of the Anschutz Entertainment Group has helped spark the revitalization of downtown Los Angeles with its venue, the Staples Center.

Unlike the 2011 trial that ended with Murray's conviction, the civil trial will explore the troubled finances of both men ? a situation that Katherine Jackson's attorneys say created a conflict of interest for Murray that AEG should have been aware of.

The Houston-based cardiologist was deeply in debt when he agreed to serve as Jackson's personal doctor for a series of 50 concerts in London dubbed "This Is It." The doctor had liens and owed back child support when he began working with Jackson, expecting a $150,000 a month salary. Jackson died of acute propofol intoxication before the contract was fully signed.

The trial is expected to include detailed testimony about other doctors' treatment of Jackson, a subject that was largely off-limits in the criminal case. Unlike Murray's trial, which was broadcast live, the civil case will play out without cameras in a courtroom with only 45 public seats.

AEG denies they hired Murray, and have contended he should be considered an independent contractor, a designation many hospitals deem surgeons and other physicians.

Katherine Jackson's attorneys, Brian Panish and Kevin Boyle, have repeatedly cited emails sent by top AEG executives referencing Murray's pay and his obligations to get Jackson to perform.

Marvin S. Putnam, an attorney for AEG who was not available to comment, has said the company could not have foreseen the circumstances that led to Murray's administration of propofol to Jackson as a sleep aide.

AEG has said in court filings that Jackson's family is seeking $40 billion in damages, but Panish denies that's the figure he's seeking.

"We've never asked for $40 billion," he said. "The jury is going to decide what the loss is."

The high figure, Panish said, is the company's attempt to "prejudice everybody against the Jacksons." He says the case isn't about money.

"It's about getting the truth," he said. "We'd like to get out all the evidence. The evidence is going to speak for itself that AEG had a lot of involvement and they completely deny responsibility."

Jackson's three children, Prince, Paris and Blanket are also listed as plaintiffs on the case.

Asked whether he and the Jacksons are concerned about the image of the "Thriller" singer that will emerge in court, Panish said the trial will show a different side of the superstar. "Mrs. Jackson and her grandchildren suffered a tremendous loss and AEG has never recognized that and continues to deny responsibility," he said. "The other side of the story hasn't been told."

A jury of six men and six women has been selected to decide the case.

Monday's remarks by Panish and Putnam will provide the jurors' their first true insight into the evidence they will likely hear, and once again pull back the veil of Michael Jackson's private life.

___

Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/jurors-set-roadmap-jackson-civil-trial-160010550.html

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Sunday, April 28, 2013

Claire McCaskill Refuses To Rule Out Deploying U.S. Troops To Syria

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) on Sunday refused to rule out the possibility of deploying American troops to Syria, while top Republican lawmakers called for increased U.S. intervention in the civil war there. The comments, made on various Sunday television programs, reflect an increased sense of urgency this week about the potential use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime.

"I don't think you want to ever rule it out," McCaskill said of U.S. troop involvement in the Syrian conflict, which has claimed more than 70,000 lives over two years. Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation," McCaskill, who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said, "We don't want to [deploy U.S. troops] unless it's absolutely necessary, [but] I don't think you ever want to say absolutely not."

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) took a more cautionary tack on NBC's "Meet the Press."

"The worst thing the United States could do right now is put boots on the ground in Syria," said McCain, who is a longtime advocate of greater American intervention in the Syrian conflict. He instead called on the U.S. to help establish "a safe zone," and to begin arming the Syrian rebels, to whom the U.S. has so far provided only nonlethal aid.

McCain also called for increased aid from Washington to assist with the growing refugee crisis in the region, and said the U.S. should help prepare an "international force" capable of securing Syria's stockpile of chemical weapons in the event Syrian President Bashar Assad is removed from power.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), appearing alongside McCaskill on "Face the Nation," said monitoring those chemical weapons was a top priority for the United States and the international community. "The greatest risk [to the U.S.] is a failed state with chemical weapons falling in the hands of radical Islamists," Graham said. "The longer [the conflict] goes, the more likely it is that you have a failed state, and all hell's going to break loose in the region."

Senators learned this week that American intelligence agencies have evidence that Assad's regime has deployed chemical weapons, but White House officials cautioned that this evidence is still being evaluated.

McCaskill, too, said the United States should be "ready if we need to take some kind of military action," but did not explicitly endorse sending weapons to the Syrian rebels, nor did she mention the creation of a "safe zone," as McCain advocated.

Graham appeared to go further than McCain or McCaskill in proposing direct U.S. action in Syria, saying, "One way you can stop the Syrian Air Force from flying is to bomb Syrian air bases with missiles. You don't need to go deep into Syria to do that." He said Assad's forces' aerial capabilities play a major role in the conflict, and "if you could neutralize the air advantage the Syrian government has over the rebels, I think you could turn the tide of battle pretty quickly."

President Obama said last year that the use of chemical weapons by Assad's regime was a "red line" for the U.S. and would have "enormous consequences." But late this week, White House officials sounded a cautious note, telling reporters on a background call, "If we reach a definitive determination that this red line has been crossed [we will be] consulting with our friends and allies and the international community more broadly, as well as the Syrian opposition, to determine what the best course of action is."

For House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), the currently available evidence is conclusive, he said on ABC's "This Week."

"We have classified evidence, [which] strengthens the case [that] some amount of chemical weapons have been used over the last two years," he said, while acknowledging that "the options aren't huge, but some action needs to be taken."

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/28/claire-mccaskill-syria_n_3174673.html

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Will newly found 9/11 debris be tested for human remains?

>>> late today in lower manhattan we learned of a stunning discovery. what investigators believe to be pieces of one of the commercial jets that brought down the world trade center found wedged between two buildings near ground zero 11 years after the terrorist attack. this discovery is being treated as a crime scene by the nypd tonight. nbc's stephanie gosk is there.

>> reporter: good evening, brian. it's hard to imagine after all this time someone could essentially stumble across a piece of wreckage. especially this big. we are about a quarter or mile from ground zero . that piece was found wedged between these buildings behind me. there were construction workers doing solo inspections. they called police who turned it into a crime scene . they said they will move the piece in a couple of days but they might have to do some demolition. it's wedged in so deeply. they may test for human remains . what people don't realize is scores of victims from 9/11 have never been positively identified. this may be an opportunity to bring closure for families that are waiting. finally, if this building looks familiar, it's because it's the site of a controversy over whether or not to build an islamic cultural center here so close to ground zero . brian?

>> stephanie gosk in lower manhattan . stephanie , thanks.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653381/s/2b39cad7/l/0Lvideo0Bmsnbc0Bmsn0N0Cid0C51681870A/story01.htm

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Battery of tests on cancer cells shows them as 'squishy,' yet tactically strong

Apr. 26, 2013 ? A team of student researchers and their professors from 20 laboratories around the country have gotten a new view of cancer cells. The work could shed light on the transforming physical properties of these cells as they metastasize, said Jack R. Staunton, a Ph.D. candidate at Arizona State University in the lab of Prof. Robert Ros, and the lead author of a paper reporting on the topic.

Metastasis is a critical step in the progression of cancer. It is when the cancer spreads from one organ or part to another. While much is known about metastasis, it remains an incomplete understanding of the physical biology of the transition.

To get a better understanding of metastasis, more than 95 graduate students, post docs and professors in a variety of laboratories across the U.S. subjected two cell lines to a battery of high-tech tests and measurements. Their results were published April 26, 2013 in Scientific Reports.

The researchers performed coordinated molecular and biophysical studies of non-malignant and metastatic breast cell lines to learn more about what happens to a cell when it transitions to a metastatic state.

Each laboratory is part of the National Cancer Institute's Physical Sciences Oncology Center (PSOC), a network of 12 centers devoted to understanding the physical sciences of cancer. ASU's center, the Center for the Convergence of Physical Science and Cancer Biology, is led by Prof. Paul Davies.

Each PS-OC was supplied with identical cell lines and common reagents, and considerable effort was made to ensure that all the conditions were standardized and documented at regular intervals. Staunton said the ASU group made three contributions to the study.

Other ASU researchers involved in the project and co-authors on the paper are: Alexander Fuhrmann, Vivek Nandakumar, Laimonas Kelbauskas, Patti Senechal, Courtney Hemphill, Roger H. Johnson and Deirdre Meldrum.

"We compared the stiffness of normal breast cells and highly metastatic breast cancer cells, and found the cancer cells to be significantly more 'squishy' or deformable," Staunton said. "This makes sense because in order for a cell to metastasize, it has to squeeze through tight passages in the lymphatics and microvasculature, so being squishy helps cancer cells spread through the body."

"We also looked at the morphology of their nuclei," he added. "The cancer cell nuclei were found to have a characteristic 'crushed beach-ball' shape that might correspond to the abnormal chromosomal rearrangements associated with cancer."

"Finally, we took individual cells, put each one in an airtight chamber, and measured how much oxygen they consumed," Staunton said. "This tells us about their metabolism. We found the cancer cells use less oxygen, relying more on glycolysis, kind of like what bacteria and yeast do."

Taken together, researchers at the 12 PSOC's used some 20 distinct techniques, including atomic force microscopy, ballistic intracellular nano-rheology, cell surface receptor expression levels, differential interference contrast microscopy, micro-patterning and extracellular matrix secretion, and traction force microscopy.

The work has enabled a comprehensive cataloging and comparison of the physical characteristics of non-malignant and metastatic cells, and the molecular signatures associated with those characteristics. This made it possible to identify unique relationships between observations, Staunton said.

"We were surprised that even though the cancer cells are softer, they are able to exert more contractile forces on the fibers surrounding them -- which was determined at the Cornell University PSOC by a method called traction force microscopy. This pair of characteristics is somewhat contradictory from a purely physical perspective, but it makes sense for a cancer cell, since both traits improve their chances of metastasizing. Understanding why is still an active area of research," explained Staunton, who is working towards his doctorate in physics.

"Another interesting finding was that a protein called CD44, which doubles as a cancer stem cell marker and as a molecule that helps the cell stick to certain fibers in the extracellular matrix, is equally abundant in the normal and cancer cells. But in the cancer cells the proteins don't make it to the cell surface," he added.

"For some reason they stay inside the cytoplasm, so the cancer cells are not as sticky," added Staunton whose hometown is Buffalo, N.Y. "This is another trait that contributes to their ability to spread through the body."

The PSOC network went to great lengths to have all of the studies performed under comparable conditions. While the cell lines studied are well understood, part of the effort for the network was to prove they could consistently coordinate the research.

Staunton, who has been involved in ASU's center since its inception, says the experience has helped his growth as a researcher.

"It is the perfect habitat for budding scientists and for transdisciplinary collaborations," he said.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Arizona State University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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

Journal Reference:

David B. Agus, Jenolyn F. Alexander, Wadih Arap, Shashanka Ashili, Joseph E. Aslan, Robert H. Austin, Vadim Backman, Kelly J. Bethel, Richard Bonneau, Wei-Chiang Chen, Chira Chen-Tanyolac, Nathan C. Choi, Steven A. Curley, Matthew Dallas, Dhwanil Damania, Paul C. W. Davies, Paolo Decuzzi, Laura Dickinson, Luis Estevez-Salmeron, Veronica Estrella, Mauro Ferrari, Claudia Fischbach, Jasmine Foo, Stephanie I. Fraley, Christian Frantz, Alexander Fuhrmann, Philippe Gascard, Robert A. Gatenby, Yue Geng, Sharon Gerecht, Robert J. Gillies, Biana Godin, William M. Grady, Alex Greenfield, Courtney Hemphill, Barbara L. Hempstead, Abigail Hielscher, W. Daniel Hillis, Eric C. Holland, Arig Ibrahim-Hashim, Tyler Jacks, Roger H. Johnson, Ahyoung Joo, Jonathan E. Katz, Laimonas Kelbauskas, Carl Kesselman, Michael R. King, Konstantinos Konstantopoulos, Casey M. Kraning-Rush, Peter Kuhn, Kevin Kung, Brian Kwee, Johnathon N. Lakins, Guillaume Lambert, David Liao, Jonathan D. Licht, Jan T. Liphardt, Liyu Liu, Mark C. Lloyd, Anna Lyubimova, Parag Mallick, John Marko, Owen J. T. McCarty, Deirdre R. Meldrum, Franziska Michor, Shannon M. Mumenthaler, Vivek Nandakumar, Thomas V. O?Halloran, Steve Oh, Renata Pasqualini, Matthew J. Paszek, Kevin G. Philips, Christopher S. Poultney, Kuldeepsinh Rana, Cynthia A. Reinhart-King, Robert Ros, Gregg L. Semenza, Patti Senechal, Michael L. Shuler, Srimeenakshi Srinivasan, Jack R. Staunton, Yolanda Stypula, Hariharan Subramanian, Thea D. Tlsty, Garth W. Tormoen, Yiider Tseng, Alexander van Oudenaarden, Scott S. Verbridge, Jenny C. Wan, Valerie M. Weaver, Jonathan Widom, Christine Will, Denis Wirtz, Jonathan Wojtkowiak, Pei-Hsun Wu. A physical sciences network characterization of non-tumorigenic and metastatic cells. Scientific Reports, 2013; 3 DOI: 10.1038/srep01449

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/most_popular/~3/bVQjS3PQ97M/130426135034.htm

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Bangladesh Factory Owners Arrested After Building Collapse

Relatives mourn a victim at the site where an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. The building collapsed near Bangladesh's capital Wednesday morning, killing dozens of people and trapping many more in the rubble, officials said. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

People and rescuers gather after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescuers assist an injured woman after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers carry a victim's body after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers look for survivors after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

A man who was trapped in an collapsed eight-story building housing several garment factories is reccued in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers pull a woman out from the rubbles after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers and people look for survivors after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Relatives mourn a victim at the site after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescuers carry a woman after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers carry a young victim's body after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Dozens were killed and many more are feared trapped in the rubble. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers use pieces of clothes to bring down a survivor after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. The building collapsed near Bangladesh's capital Wednesday morning, killing dozens of people and trapping many more in the rubble, officials said. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

A man who was trapped in an eight-story building housing several garment factories is rescued after the structure collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. The building collapsed near Bangladesh's capital Wednesday morning, killing dozens of people and trapping many more in the rubble, officials said. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Rescue workers use clothes to bring down survivors and bodies after an eight-story building housing several garment factories collapsed in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. The building collapsed near Bangladesh's capital Wednesday morning, killing dozens of people and trapping many more in the rubble, officials said. (AP Photo/ A.M. Ahad)

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/26/bangladesh-factory-owners-arrested_n_3167287.html

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Stocks stall on tepid US economic growth

NEW YORK (AP) ? The stock market stalled Friday after the U.S. economy didn't grow as much as hoped and earnings from a handful of big companies failed to rev up investors.

Economic growth accelerated to a 2.5 percent annual rate in the first three months of the year, the government said. But it was below the 3.1 percent forecast by economists.

The shortfall reinforced the perception that the economy is grinding, rather than charging, ahead. Investors have also been troubled by reports in the last month of weaker hiring, slower manufacturing and a drop in factory orders. Many economists see growth slowing to an annual rate of around 2 percent a year for the rest of the year.

The dollar dropped and U.S. Treasuries, where investors seek safety, rose after the report.

"There are some concerns as we head into the summer," said JJ Kinahan, chief derivatives strategist for TD Ameritrade. "In the last three weeks, we've have seen numbers that weren't exactly what you'd love to see."

Corporate earnings this week have also contained worrisome signs. Many companies missed revenue forecasts from financial analysts, even as they reported higher quarterly profits. For example, Goodyear Tire slipped 3 percent to $12.55 Friday after revenue fell short of analysts' estimates, hurt by lower global tire sales.

Of the companies that have reported earnings so far, 70 percent have exceeded Wall Street's expectations, compared with a 10-year average of 62 percent, according to S&P Capital IQ. However, 43 percent have missed analysts' revenue estimates.

The S&P 500 index was little changed at 1,585, as of 3:35 p.m. having spent most of the day lower.

The Dow was up, gaining 31 points, or 0.1 percent, at 14,717. The index got a big lift from Chevron's stock. Profit for the U.S. oil company beat expectations of financial analysts in the first quarter, pushing shares up $1.29, or 1 percent, to $119.80 on Friday.

Both indexes were up for week and remain slightly below their all-time highs from April 11. The Dow index was 1.2 percent higher this week while the S&P gained 1.9 percent.

The market has been bolstered by the Federal Reserve's easy money policy. And the disappointing growth figure for the economy will ensure that the Fed sticks with its stimulus policy, providing a support for stocks, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital.

"The economic data that we've been getting points to no early exit for the Fed's stimulus," Cardillo said.

The Nasdaq composite was down 4 points at 3,289, a decline of 0.6 percent. The index is still 2 percent higher this week.

The tech-heavy index has lagged both the Dow and the S&P 500 this year, but led the way higher this week, boosted by Microsoft. The software giant, which makes up 5.3 percent of the Nasdaq, is on track to record its biggest weekly gain since January last year, after reporting earnings April 19 that beat Wall Street expectations and revealing an aggressive push into the computer tablet market.

Even Apple, the largest stock in the Nasdaq, had a good week, advancing 5.8 percent to $413.20, despite posting a decline in quarterly profit Tuesday. Apple accounts for 7.6 percent of the index's value and the weekly gain was its biggest since November.

Among big names that investors were focusing on Friday, Amazon.com fell 7 percent to $255.20 after the company warned of a possible loss in the current quarter. And in the first quarter, the online retailer reported lower income fell as it continued to spend heavily on the rights to digital content. Expedia fell 11 percent to $58.15 after the online travel company's reported a quarterly loss.

Homebuilder D.R. Horton surged 8 percent to $26.48 its income nearly tripled thanks to a continuing recovery the housing market. The results were handily beat the forecasts of financial analysts who follow the company.

J.C. Penney jumped 8.5 percent to $16.52 after the billionaire financier George Soros disclosed that he had taken a 7.9 percent stake in the struggling company.

In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to its lowest rate of the year ? to 1.67 percent from 1.71 percent. The yield has fallen from 2.06 percent six weeks ago.

The dollar weakened 0.2 percent against the euro.

The European currency bought 1.3025 dollars per euro at the end of day, compared with 1.3004 at the start of trading. The dollar index, which measures the strength of the U.S. currency against a group of other world currencies including the Japanese yen and the euro, dropped 0.3 percent, to 82.52 from 82.74.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stocks-stall-tepid-us-economic-growth-195845422.html

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Saturday, April 27, 2013

Focusrite Forte

The Focusrite Forte ($749.99 list) is one of a host of portable, higher-end audio interfaces that have appeared in the wake of Apogee's now-iconic original Duet. It one-ups the Apogee lineup in that it works with PCs as well as Macs?helping not just PC users, but also musicians and engineers, like myself, who use both Macs and PCs on a regular basis, and don't want to be restricted to a specific platform for a particular piece of gear. That said, there are a few limitations with the Forte you should be aware of before purchase, such as its AC power requirement when using phantom power, and sound quality that, while very good, doesn't quite catch Apogee. But overall, it's a top-quality piece of audio gear that's easily worth its high entry price.

Design, Display, and Connectivity
The Forte gets its name from the company's original recording console, which was based on famed engineer Rupert Neve's designs for George Martin's AIR studios. At least physically, if an audio interface can be beautiful, the Forte certainly is, with its solid aluminum enclosure, colorful OLED display, and oversized volume and control knob. The small display shows individual track levels with fat meters that turn green, yellow, and red depending on signal level.

Below the display are four touch-sensitive mode buttons for selecting input level (which alternates between input 1 and input 2 when you press it again), speaker volume, headphone volume, and DAW mode for controlling a software transport. The multi-function encoder knob spins around smoothly, but with a lightweight feeling to it, unlike the Apogee Duet for iPad & Mac's knob, which clicks ever so slightly as you turn it. As with the Duet, to make selections, you push the Forte's knob down.

A ?-inch headphone socket sits on the front edge; two would have been better at this price, as many engineers and musicians tend to work with another person simultaneously. (The MOTU Track16, which we haven't tested yet, is the only similar unit on the market with two headphone outputs, although one is 1/4-inch sized and the other is a consumer-level 3.5mm jack.)

Around back, you get a power input, a USB 2.0 port, an input socket for the breakout cable, and a pair of TRS line outputs?meaning that if you're not recording, you don't need to attach the breakout cable even when listening over speakers, unlike the Duet. The "loom connector," as Focusrite calls the breakout cable, contains a pair of XLR microphone inputs and a pair of TRS line/instrument-level inputs, so you can connect two mics and two instruments at the same time and leave them all hooked up; the Duet, by comparison, combines the inputs together, which is fine in most cases but could become inconvenient if you do a lot of stereo miking.

However, chances are that if you're attaching the Forte's breakout cable to record, you'll also need to plug in the AC adapter, as it's required whenever you record microphones that require phantom power. For most people recording at home or on the go, that's pretty much all of the time, since both small- and large-diaphragm condenser mics need phantom power. In addition, when running without the AC adapter, the speaker and headphone outputs are limited to -18dB?not as big a deal, but something to note if you're monitoring over headphones with a high impedance and you're recording at a noisy venue; I certainly noticed it with several different pairs of closed-back headphones, all of which could have gone a little louder than the -18dB point without discomfort.

Setup, Performance, and Conclusions
Setting up the Forte is a snap; you register on the company site, download the drivers and bundled Midnight Plug-in Suite software, install everything, and then connect the Forte via USB. A reboot is required after installing the software, even on a Mac, which isn't true of the Apogee Duet. The bundled Forte Control software (pictured above) offers low-latency monitoring and level control.

I?tested the Focusrite Forte with an Apple MacBook Pro running OS X 10.8.3 (Mountain Lion), a quad-core Xeon-based Mac Pro running OS X 10.7.5 (Lion), and a Lenovo ThinkPad L420 running Windows 7 Professional 64-bit. In all three cases, I tested recording and playback using Avid Pro Tools 10, which worked perfectly, and at acceptably low latencies. The Focusrite Forte records at 24-bit and 192kHz, thanks to its built-in D/A converters. The two mic preamps are the same ones from the company's RedNet range of pro audio interfaces, and offer 75dB of gain range.

As I expected from a higher-end Focusrite interface, sound quality was sublime for both recording and playback. I didn't hear quite as much detail in the upper midrange to high-end as I did on the Duet; recordings made through a Rode NT-1A mic sounded a little more present, with less of a thin veil over the result, with the Duet, although the Forte sounded just as warm and full otherwise. ?The Forte's preamp also sounded a bit cleaner than the Avid Mbox Mini's, although I'd argue you could make excellent recordings with any of these interfaces. Still, the differences are there.

The same goes for playback; listening to Dave Matthews Band's "Funny the Way It Is," I heard a clean, smooth, and well-separated presentation through the Forte, although the Duet lent a little more presence and clarity to specific details in the recording that didn't jump out at me quite as much with the Forte.?Both exhibited exceptionally tight and extended bass response.

All told, the Focusrite Forte sets out what it's designed to do, and unlike some of the competition, it works on both PCs and Macs. You can also leave the cable loom detached except when you're recording. That said, it's not exactly equivalent to the Apogee Duet, as it sounds a bit different, and requires the AC adapter to be attached most of the time. The Apogee Duet is probably a better choice if you're exclusively on the Mac platform, as it integrates a bit better, and its iPad connectivity is second to none in its simplicity.

Other options: Propellerhead Reason fans can save a bit of cash by looking at the clean-sounding Propellerhead Balance interface, which integrates better with that company' software, while the Editors' Choice Focusrite iTrack Solo brings clear recording to PCs, Macs, and iPads at a budget price.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/-fqBYLe5JMY/0,2817,2417991,00.asp

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Rare 1913 nickel fetches over $3.1M at auction

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (AP) ? A rare century-old U.S. nickel that was once mistakenly declared a fake and forgotten about for decades has sold at auction for more than $3.1 million.

The 1913 Liberty Head nickel is one of only five known to exist. But it's all the more prized because of its unusual back story: It was surreptitiously and illegally cast, discovered in a car wreck that killed its owner, declared a fake, forgotten in a closet for decades and then declared the real deal.

It was offered up for sale Thursday by four Virginia siblings at a rare coin and currency auction in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg where it sold for well over the expected $2.5 million.

The winning bidders were two men from Lexington, Ky., and Panama City, Fla., who bought the coin in partnership, according to Heritage Auctions.

"Not only is it just one of only five known, genuine 1913-dated Liberty Head design nickels, this particular one was off the radar for decades until it literally came out of the closet after a nationwide search," said Heritage Auctions Vice President Todd Imhof.

The coin was struck at the Philadelphia mint in late 1912, the final year of its issue, but with the year 1913 cast on its face ? the same year the beloved Buffalo Head nickel was introduced.

A mint worker named Samuel W. Brown is suspected of producing the coin and altering the die to add the bogus date, according to Douglas Mudd, curator of the American Numismatic Association Money Museum in Colorado Springs, Col., which has held the coin for most of the past 10 years.

The coins' existence wasn't known until Brown offered them for sale at the American Numismatic Association Convention in Chicago in 1920, beyond the statute of limitations. The five remained together as a set under various owners until 1942.

A North Carolina collector, George O. Walton, purchased one of the coins in the mid-1940s for a reported $3,750. The coin was with him when he was killed in a car crash on March 9, 1962, and it was found among hundreds of coins scattered at the crash site.

One of Walton's heirs, his sister, Melva Givens of Salem, Va., was given the 1913 Liberty nickel after experts declared the coin a fake because of suspicions the date had been altered. The flaw probably happened because of Brown's imprecise work casting the planchet ? the copper and nickel blank disc used to create the coin.

"She kept the nickel in a box with family items in the closet, and it stayed there for four decades," said Givens' son, Ryan Givens of Salem.

After his mother's death, the siblings brought the coin to the 2003 American Numismatic Association World's Fair of Money in Baltimore, where the four surviving 1913 Liberty nickels were being exhibited. A team of rare coin experts concluded it was the long-missing fifth coin. Each shared a small imperfection under the date.

Since its authentication, the Walton nickel has been on loan to the Colorado Springs museum and has been publicly exhibited nationwide.

"This is one of the greatest coins at that price range," said one of the successful bidders, Jeff Garrett of Lexington, Ky.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rare-1913-nickel-fetches-over-3-1m-auction-132137444.html

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NYC officials seek human remains amid plane debris

NEW YORK (AP) ? The New York City medical examiner's office plans to resume searching for human remains two blocks from the World Trade Center after the sudden discovery of an airplane's landing gear.

Medical examiner's spokeswoman Ellen Borakove told The Associated Press on Saturday that the alley behind a mosque site will first be tested as part of a standard health and safety evaluation.

Borakove says sifting for human remains will begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The New York Police Department has declared the alley a crime scene, documenting it with photos and restricting access.

Authorities say the rusted landing gear is believed to be from a Sept. 11 hijacked plane. Police were guarding the area as a crime scene Saturday.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nyc-officials-seek-human-remains-amid-plane-debris-171255347.html

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Top Business Blogs | Content for Reprint

Author: Martie McCabe | Total views: 167 Comments: 0
Word Count: 975 Date: Fri, 26 Apr 2013 1:31 PM

You can enjoy nearly unlimited success when you apply effective Internet marketing principles. There are lots of different ways one can interact and communicate customers today that was never possible in the past. This article will help you develop a better understanding of the basics behind this form of advertising.

Hold events and promotions to attract traffic. Perhaps you could run a two day sale on an e-book, with loss-leader price of a dollar or two. They will come for the sale, but they will often see other things that they like. They may even make another purchase while they are there picking up their cheap e-book.

Have a section of your site dedicated to customer feedback about your products. Your visitors will enjoy reading others' opinions of your product and your service. Comments show that your site is honest and trustworthy and makes your customers feel comfortable purchasing from you.

If you want to get a large number of visitors at your site, viral videos can accomplish this. However, it can take some real creativity and determination to develop a video that catches on with thousands and thousands, if not millions, of viewers. If done the right way, it will have a big impact on your sales as opposed to any other kind of campaign.

Contribute to a charitable organization on behalf of top business blogs. Select a cause that will most likely reflect your customers interests and agendas, and inform them that some of your profits are donated to that charity. This charity will advertise for you, and it will also make your company look better. You could support several charities and allow your customers to choose their favorite.

You can use organic methods to increase the visibility of your business and you can pay to advertise online. This can easily be accomplished by using a company such as Google AdSense. This allows you to get the most exposure and variety for your advertising dollar.

Try offering special discounts for buying the same product regularly. Offer them a plan where if they agree to sign up for a subscription to receive additional supplies periodically, they will receive a small amount off the normal single unit price.

Consider advertising your business online to increase its visibility. You will be glad you spend the money over time because it will pay for itself. It's a great way to attract clients who might not have found you otherwise.

Your customers are going to have a lot of questions, and you need to be ready to answer them. People visit your website in a quest for further information. If you do not provide prompt and accurate responses, they will move on. If you give them info that will answer their inquiries, they will be more likely to purchase your products.

Put relevant and useful information on your page. A simple digital billboard featuring your hours of operation, address and toll free number is simply not going to garner you much business. Try adding articles and things like reviews to gain interest in potential customers. This helps them know that you're informed about your products and services.

Create a website that has informative content and is easy to navigate. Your main focus should be educating your customers quickly so they have an idea what they are buying. Don't pad your descriptions or provide irrelevant information that will just bore your customers.

Direct marketing for a home based business blog, should not be overlooked as a complement to the marketing system for your Internet site. Contact your customers via email, phone or fax to let them know about any upcoming specials you may have. The yellow pages or Internet phone books will be of great use.

Affiliate marketing is similar to other markets, but it can also be drastically different in some distinct areas. Maybe search engines won't focus as much on title tags in the future. If the search engines do implement a major change, you need to be ready to alter your campaigns to include techniques such as video marketing.

Make use of emphasis coding on your website. Draw focus to words or phrases that you want to highlight by using bold text, underlining the phrases or italicizing the words. This can help you determine how you wish your customers to receive a specific type of message. This also makes the message more clear.

Getting Google to list your website is essential for your internet promotion success. Google is utilized by millions of people daily, and you need your business there in case they are searching a term related to you. You can list your business on directories such as Yahoo Maps, Google Places or Yelp, for instance.

You must determine the composition of your audience and decide what sort of information will draw them to the website. When you have a target audience in mind, deciding on content becomes much simpler.

Nothing sells quite like a product that the customer feels an attachment to, so it's up to you to propagate that attachment. Ask the user to think about how their life would benefit from using the product you are offering. The customer should be able to imagine the benefits just by reading about the product.

We have already seen how marketing through the Internet offers a way to contact new customers. It is also an excellent way to retain the customers you already have. The Internet has opened up a whole panoply of new ways for customers and businesses to connect with each other. Implement what you've learned from this article, and start a rewarding Affiliate marketing journey.

Martie McCabe writes articles on internet marketing and strategies to help you set up a blog. Learn more about blogging tips on how to create an internet business blog by visiting my blog at http://www.empowernetwork.com/10k/top-business-blogs/.

1: Article Marketing Strategy: Putting Together a "Class Schedule" For Your Article Topics

Businesses go to so much trouble when there is one sure-fire, simple, very inexpensive way to attract new clients to a business: Teach a free class. That is what article marketing is like. Your articles are just like free classes. You teach your target readers something helpful in your article. Your resource box then says, "If you enjoyed this article you can visit my website and apply what you have learned."

2: Why You Need To Build Multiple Streams of Income For Yourself

Being an entrepreneur and earning multiple streams of income is a dream that many have, but in reality it does take some initial hard work to achieve this. Earning multiple streams of income is the wave of the future, and here are some tips and advice for you when you are looking for ways in which to do this for yourself.

3: Understanding Online Business Success

Starting a home based business to earn income online takes a significant amount of time and energy upfront to get things going. Not seeing results immediately can be discouraging and cause people to give up too early. In this article, we look at the process of starting a home based business and working through the frustrations to be there when the sales come flowing in.

4: What is Cyber Marketing And Why It Is So Important For The Success Of Your Website

Cyber marketing has now become an indispensable segment of e-commerce as well as the internet and World Wide Web related topics. Cyber marketing simply refers to a technique of attracting potential customers by advertising your products or services through such means as websites, emails, and banners.

5: The Best Way To Optimise Your Website SEO For Google Panda

If you want your SEO to work you now need to concentrate on appeasing Google Panda, and to do this you need to know what Google Panda's spiders/bots will be looking for. Find out here how to search engine optimise your website for the latest Google Panda algorithm, and achieve the success you deserve.

Source: http://www.content4reprint.com/internet-marketing/top-business-blogs.htm

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