Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/strange_science/~3/lVti4Hpqy1g/130705212217.htm
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Sunday, July 7, 2013
Jump for your life: Bipedal rodents survive in the desert with a hop, a skip and a jump
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Researchers have found that bipedal desert rodents manage to compete with their quadrupedal counterparts by using a diverse set of jumps, hops and skips. A new study suggests that it is this unpredictable movement that allows the bipedal rodents to coexist in Old World deserts with quadrupedal rodents.
HS Baseball: Iowa City West Defeats Clinton
IOWA CITY, Iowa - It was a scoarching hot day on Saturday in Iowa, but that was fine with the Iowa City West baseball team. That's because their bats caught fire versus Clinton. The Trojans won their 25th game of the season with a 7-3 win.
TV9's Josh Christensen has highlights in the video above.
Source: http://www.kcrg.com/sports/HS-Baseball-Iowa-City-West-Defeats-Clinton-214508251.html
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Saturday, July 6, 2013
Hurricane Erick gathers off coast of Mexico
Erick strengthened to a hurricane off of southern Mexico Saturday, threatening to dump heavy rain as it skirts the country's Pacific coast.
The presence of the Category 1 hurricane forced the closure of the seaport of Manzanillo, Mexico's biggest container port.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Erick became a hurricane as its maximum sustained winds grew to around 110 kph.
The hurricane was centred about 145 kilometres south of Manzanillo and was moving northwest at 15 kph, on a track roughly parallel to the coast for the states of Guerrero, Colima and Jalisco.
A hurricane watch was declared for Punta San Telmo to Cabo Corrientes, and a tropical storm warning was in effect from the resort of Zihuatanejo westward to Cabo Corrientes.
Gabriel Rivas, a meteorologist at the Manzanillo Port Authority, said the port was closed late Friday as a precaution, but no rain or high winds had yet been reported in the area.
In neighbouring Jalisco state, civil defence officer Leonel Hernandez said authorities in coastal communities were meeting to plan preparations for the hurricane, but that skies in the Jalisco coastal community of Cihuatlan were still clear.
Forecasters predict a northwest to west-northwest track over the next few days but say the storm should remain offshore. Rain accumulations from 76 to 127 millimetres are expected. Forecasters warn of flash floods.
Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2013/07/06/erick-storm-hurricane.html?cmp=rss
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As Fortnight for Freedom concludes, Cardinal Wuerl decries threats to Church's freedom, defends college chaplain
CWN - July 05, 2013
Evoking the persecution of Catholics in colonial Maryland, Cardinal Donald Wuerl concluded the US bishops? second Fortnight for Freedom by decrying threats to the Church?s liberty and defending a priest who faced opposition at George Washington University after he called upon homosexual students to lead chaste lives.
In 1634, the Catholic settlers of Maryland ?constructed what would become known as the birthplace of religious freedom in America,? Cardinal Wuerl preached at a Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. ?Unfortunately, in 1704, when those who did not share this foresight and Catholic perspective gained political control, they revoked the freedom of religion in the colony. They found it more convenient to silence the Church ? even with force ? than to live in peace with her and her Gospel message.?
?Closer to our day, we see another tactic,? he continued. ?The Church is denounced as prejudiced, narrow-minded or even un-American simply because her teaching respects human life, upholds marriage and calls for health care for the most needy in our country. In March, just across town, we witnessed an example of the new intolerance, the new form of locking doors. At George Washington University an effort was made to silence the Catholic chaplain and to ?lockout? his ministry to Catholic students and faculty just because he taught those who freely came to Mass what Jesus said about marriage.?
Recalling Pope Benedict?s concern about radical secularism in the United States, Cardinal Wuerl added that
The Holy Father?s answer to this ?radical secularism? and ?denial of rights? is, as he explained, ?an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-?-vis the dominant culture and with the courage to counter a reductive secularism.? And here you are!Your faith is a remedy for what ails our society. The mission of all of us, but particularly of the laity is to engage the culture with the Good News that only comes from Jesus Christ.
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Source: http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=18362
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Ford of Canada Leads Sales in Canada at Mid-year
June Highlights:Ford Fusion sales jumped 18% Ford Escape sales increased 16% Ford F-150 sales rose 15% - best June on record Ford F-150 Super Crew sales up 18% - best June on record
OAKVILLE, ON--July 3, 2013: Ford Motor Company of Canada, Limited, sales are up three per cent year to date, helping to maintain sales leadership. Ford of Canada was also the top-selling automaker for June.
Last month, trucks sales were up one per cent compared to the same month last year and up six per cent year to date. Truck sales gains were driven by the F-150, up 15 per cent, and F-150 Super Crew, up 18 per cent, its best June on record.
June sales were also bolstered by sales increases for the all-new, segment-leading Fusion and Escape, up 18 and 16 per cent respectively.
?We are humbled and very proud that Ford of Canada has maintained sales leadership in the first half of the year,? said Dianne Craig, president and CEO, Ford of Canada. ?Customers are responding to our extensive lineup of hybrid and plug-in hybrid options, as well as continuing to make the F-Series Canada?s best-selling pickup.?
Source: http://www.theautochannel.com/F/news/2013/07/05/086305-ford-canada-leads-sales-canada-mid-year.html
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Friday, July 5, 2013
Princeton researchers create 'bionic ear'
In this Thursday, June 27, 2013 photo, Princeton University graduate student Manu Mannoor holds a bionic ear as another is printed on a 3-D printer in Princeton, N.J. Mannoor is one of the scientists at Princeton University who have created an ear with an off-the-shelf 3-D printer that can "hear" radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability. The researchers used 3-D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by cell culture to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what they term a bionic ear. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)
In this Thursday, June 27, 2013 photo, Princeton University graduate student Manu Mannoor holds a bionic ear as another is printed on a 3-D printer in Princeton, N.J. Mannoor is one of the scientists at Princeton University who have created an ear with an off-the-shelf 3-D printer that can "hear" radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability. The researchers used 3-D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by cell culture to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what they term a bionic ear. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)
In this Thursday, June 27, 2013 photo, a bionic ear rests in a petri dish, in Princeton, N.J. Scientists at Princeton University have created an ear with an off-the-shelf 3-D printer that can "hear" radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability. The researchers used 3-D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by cell culture to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what they term a bionic ear. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)
In this Thursday, June 27, 2013 photo, Princeton University graduate student Manu Mannoor, left, and Ziwen Jiang, a student from Peddie High School in Hightstown, N.J., prepare to use a 3-D printer Thursday, June 27, 2013, in Princeton, N.J. The scientists at Princeton University have created an ear with an off-the-shelf 3-D printer that can "hear" radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability. The researchers used 3-D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by cell culture to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what they term a bionic ear. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)
In this Thursday, June 27, 2013 photo, Princeton University graduate student Manu Mannoor holds up a culture medium, in Princeton, N.J., in which cells grow that will form cartilage tissue after a bionic ear is printed on a 3-D printer. Mannoor is one of the scientists at Princeton University who have created an ear with an off-the-shelf 3-D printer that can "hear" radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability. The researchers used 3-D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by cell culture to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what they term a bionic ear. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)
PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) ? With a 3-D printer, a petri dish and some cells from a cow, Princeton University researchers are growing synthetic ears that can receive ? and transmit ? sound.
The scientists send bovine cells mixed in a liquid gel through the printer, followed by tiny particles of silver. The printer is programmed to shape the material into a "bionic ear," and forms the silver particles into a coiled antenna. Like any antenna, this one can pick up radio signals that the ear will interpret as sound.
The 3-D ear is not designed to replace a human one, though; the research is meant to explore a new method of combining electronics with biological material.
"What we really did here was actually more of a proof of concept of the capabilities of 3-D printing," said Michael McAlpine, the professor who led the project. "Because most people use 3-D printing to print passive objects ? things like figurines and jewelry."
After it's printed, the 3-D ear is soft and translucent. It is cultivated for 10 weeks, letting the cells multiply, creating a flesh color and forming hardened tissue around the antenna.
Manu Mannoor, a graduate student who worked with McAlpine on the project, held up a petri dish in a lab at Princeton last week to show how the process works. The dish was filled with liquid and a partly cultivated ear, and Mannoor said the cells were secreting a matrix, the space between cells that exists in organisms.
"They make their own living space," Mannoor said.
McAlpine and his team demonstrated the antenna's ability to pick up radio signals by attaching electrodes onto the backs of the ears in the printing process. When they broadcast a recording of Beethoven's "Fur Elise" to a pair of fully cultivated ears, the electrodes transmitted the signal along wires to a set of speakers, and the music flowed out clear and without interference.
Although the new research is just one iteration in the field of cybernetics ? an area that looks at combining biology with technology ? McAlpine said the research could lead to synthetic replacements for actual human functions, and to a sort of electronic sixth sense.
"As the world becomes a more digital and electronic place, I think ultimately we're going to care less about our traditional five senses," he said. "And we're going to want these new senses to give us direct electronic communication with our cellphones and our laptop devices."
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Sioux Tribes Plan Large-Scale Wind Energy Project
Eaton reports: "A group of Sioux tribes in South Dakota are hoping to pump some much-needed revenue into their economies with an ambitious wind project."
The Sioux project would generate 1 to 2 gigawatts of power every year. (photo: unknown)
05 July 13
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group of Sioux tribes in South Dakota are hoping to pump some much-needed revenue into their economies with an ambitious wind project, but some wind industry experts question whether the tribes understand the hurdles they face with such a large-scale development.
Leaders from six Sioux tribes announced plans at last month's Clinton Global Initiative to develop a renewable energy project that would generate 1 to 2 gigawatts of power annually. Funding for the up to $3 billion project would come from the sale of bonds by a new multi-tribal power authority as well as donations to a website.
"It gives Native tribes who aren't in populace areas and don't have casino revenue a chance to earn some real money that can then be used to reinvest into the community to diversify the economic base that exists," Clinton said at the event. The Sioux tribes are located in some of the poorest areas in the country.
But wind energy experts said the tribes face many obstacles in making the project a reality.
"When I see plans for a thousand megawatts, I have to give a chuckle," said Steve Wegman, an analyst for the South Dakota Renewable Energy Association, who noted that the project is similar to one proposed years ago. "The goal is good, but it's going to take them a long time to get there."
One of the biggest obstacles to the project is simply what to do with so much energy in a state that doesn't demand a lot.
Wind energy demand in South Dakota sits at less than 800 megawatts currently. Wegman said. Another 100 will be put on line in the next year.
"After that it's going to be slow going," he said.
Ron Rebenitsch, executive director of the South Dakota Wind Energy Association, said all wind developers face three challenges: finding a buyer for the energy, transmitting it and following the environmental and regulatory requirements.
Since South Dakota is a small state that doesn't require a lot of power, the multi-tribal power authority will need to look east to places such as Minneapolis and Chicago, Rebenitsch said. But then the challenge becomes getting it to those locations. New wind generation requires new lines, and a gigawatt or more would require several major lines, which cost about $1 million per mile and take up to a year and a half to build.
The tribes recognize that there isn't much demand locally, which is why they're hoping to sell it to cities such as Anaheim, Calif., or Oklahoma City and connect with a company that already has a transmission system in place, said Paul Valandra, an economic development adviser with the Rosebud Sioux Tribe.
He said building the wind energy project is in the national interest and is "a little bit of social justice" for the tribes, who have felt wronged by the U.S. government in the past.
"We're going slow, but we want to do a first-class job on this project," Valandra said.
One advantage the tribes could have over other entities is building the turbines on reservation land, which may not require gaining approval from individual landowners for the project, Rebenitsch said.
"The tribe have some very good areas...If they can do it all on tribal lands, they can probably move forward in that area," he said.
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Laser system allows determination of atomic binding energy of the rarest element on earth
[unable to retrieve full-text content]The radioactive element astatine, the name of which is derived from the Greek word for 'instability,' is so rare on earth that it has not yet been investigated to any greater extent and, as a consequence, very little is known about it. Using artificially generated astatine, a physicist has now managed for the first time to experimentally explore one of its fundamental parameters, the ionization potential, and thus determine one of the most important properties of the rare element.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/iu4yf2LW0JM/130704111753.htm
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Thursday, July 4, 2013
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Glympse scores saving to Evernote on Android, iOS support coming soon
Sharing your location through Glympse has been a time-sensitive affair, with friends and family receiving links to maps that would plot your position for a few hours at most. Now, however, Glympse has partnered with Evernote to save records of your travels. Simply share your current location broadcast to Evernote and the complete trek will be saved to a "My Glympse Trails" folder. Android users are getting the first crack at the new feature starting today, but folks running the iOS app are set to receive the integration shortly. Check your handset for the update or click the bordering source link to grab ahold of the app.
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Software, Mobile
Source: Glympse (GooglePlay)
Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/YqyysXKCVYE/
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Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Obama calls embattled Egyptian President Morsi
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (AP) ? President Barack Obama is encouraging embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi (MOHR'-see) to respond to concerns being voiced by throngs of protesters seeking his removal from office.
The White House confirmed in a statement Tuesday that Obama called Morsi on Monday while traveling in Africa. The call came as Egypt's military said Morsi must meet the demands of millions of protesters who have taken to the streets.
The statement said Obama told Morsi that the United States is committed to the democratic process in Egypt and does not support any single party or group. The statement also said Obama underscored to Morsi that the current crisis can only be resolved through a political process.
Obama also told Morsi he's particularly concerned about violence in the demonstrations, especially sexual assaults against women.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-calls-embattled-egyptian-president-morsi-062108516.html
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Altitude sickness may hinder ethnic integration in the world's highest places
July 1, 2013 ? Ethnic segregation in nations straddling the world's steepest terrains may be reinforced by the biological tolerance different peoples have to altitude, according to one of the first studies to examine the effect of elevation on ethnic demographics.
Research from Princeton University published in the journal Applied Geography suggests that people native to low-lying areas can be naturally barred from regions such as the Tibetan Plateau, the Andes or the Himalayas by altitude sickness, which is caused by low oxygen concentration in the air and can be life-threatening. As a result, the homogeny of the local population can increase with elevation. In nations shared by people of high- and lowland extractions, this separation can potentially increase ethnic tension.
The researchers studied Tibet and found that elevation has heavily influenced the location of the surrounding region's population of Han Chinese, who make up 92 percent of China's population and originate from the country's eastern plains. Tibet has an average elevation of roughly 14,370 feet (4,380 meters) above sea level. The number of settlements with a large Han Chinese population peaks at around 8,900 feet (2,700 meters), while Tibetan settlements only begin to peter out beyond 17,000 feet (5,200 meters), the researchers found. The researchers attribute the sudden drop in the Han Chinese population to altitude sickness, and cite existing research showing that Han Chinese are indeed susceptible to altitude sickness in areas in which Tibetans thrive.
First author Christopher Paik, who undertook the study as a postdoctoral research scholar in the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project in Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, said that the research adds a new dimension to the study of how terrain influences demographic patterns. The field already explores the role of factors such as soil quality and access to the sea. The biological effects of elevation make altitude a particularly objective and reliable measurement for helping determine and understand how populations around the world's highest areas form, he said.
"There is very little research about the effect of altitude on migration patterns," said Paik, who is now an assistant professor of politics at New York University Abu Dhabi. "One of the nice things about using this geographical indicator as an independent variable is that there isn't any human intervention in determining the altitude of the region because it's established by nature.
"Rather than saying there is merely a correlation between settlement patterns and altitude, our research takes it one step further and suggests that altitude can directly determine the settlement patterns we see today. There's a causal story here," Paik said.
The separation that results from these settlement patterns could result in greater ethnic friction, Paik said. He initiated the current study in the wake of the 2008 unrest in Tibet, a series of protests that lead to imprisonment, detainment and clashes with Chinese security forces. Paik noticed that the most violent outbreaks occurred in areas of Tibet with the lowest relative concentrations of Han Chinese -- regions that also have the highest elevations. (Paik is currently working on a paper that correlates lower levels of violence during the 2008 unrest with lower elevation and greater Tibetan/Han integration.)
Paik and co-author Tsering Shawa, who heads the Digital Map and Geospatial Information Center in Princeton's Lewis Library, used 2000 Chinese census data to determine the Han population in settlements within the traditional Tibetan homeland, which includes the Tibetan Autonomous Region as well as portions of the Chinese provinces Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan. They also gauged past Han Chinese presence through maps and a database developed by Shawa that indicate whether the official name of the 1,960 settlements in this area is Han Chinese, Tibetan or both.
The researchers found a similar distribution pattern of towns where at least one-third of the population are Han Chinese and traditional Han settlements (most of which date as far back as the 13th century) -- the bulk are located lower than 8,900 feet above sea level. No towns with a Chinese name exist above 15,000 feet (4,600 meters). Meanwhile, the greatest number of settlements with a Tibetan name stands at an only slightly lower elevation of 14,760 feet (4,500 meters), an area that the census shows has a minimum of Han Chinese inhabitants.
"What the outcome suggests is that there is a direct effect of altitude now as well as in historical settlement patterns," Paik said. "On the one hand there are settlements where Han Chinese came 1,000 years ago and established roots in that region, which makes it easier for migrants to come in. That provides a channel through which more Chinese live there today because their ancestors lived there as well.
"But if historical settlement is the only channel through which altitude influenced current settlement patterns, then there wouldn't be the direct influence of elevation through altitude sickness that we still see," Paik said. "Han Chinese still suffer from altitude sickness and the influence on settlement seems to persist today."
Paik and Shawa reference at least 10 studies that delve into the genetic adaption of Tibetans' blood cells and lung tissue to the low-oxygen conditions of a life on high -- a tolerance research suggests they share with Andes dwellers in countries such as Bolivia.
Han Chinese do not enjoy this predisposition even in modern times. The researchers cite a 2009 paper in the journal Clinica Chimica Acta that explored the genetic susceptibility of Han Chinese laborers to the pulmonary edema -- potentially fatal fluid buildup in the lungs -- they experienced during construction of the Qinghai-Tibet railway completed in 2005.
"The main contribution of this research is to point out geography does matter in ethnic demographic patterns," said Enze Han, an assistant professor of politics and international studies at the University of London. Han, who had no role in the research but is familiar with it, agrees with the researchers when they write that modern technology and transportation makes migration into high-altitude lands easier.
But, Paik said, the population distributions he and Shawa document show that geography -- via altitude sickness -- continues to play a strong role in regional diversity despite modern trappings such as the Qinghai-Tibet railway and government initiatives such as China's Western Development Program.
"Ethnic integration policy seems to work in the long run, but it will be harder to implement in the higher altitude regions," Paik said. "There seems to be a strong enough influence of altitude on settlement patterns such that even if you try to have integration happening there, nature works against those initiatives."
This work was supported by a grant from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) award number FA9550-09-1-0314.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/9ZTFe8CoK9Q/130701151830.htm
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Don't Forget To Export Your Google Reader Data Today
After withering in the dry heat for the last four months, Google Reader will quietly disappear into the horizon later today. It's a sad day, but the sun will rise tomorrow, and the Internet will keep on spinning. Thankfully there are a lot fine Google Reader alternatives to keep feeding your RSS addiction. For the past month, a daily popup has reminded Google Reader users to back up their data. Google is essentially zero'n the drive tomorrow, ridding itself of millions of OMPL files. Stop procrastinating and take 5 minutes to export your data.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/X4EkV4aXFpw/
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Galaxy S4 Goes Auto Mute When Getting Incoming Calls
One user reported that he is having trouble with his Samsung Galaxy S4 ringer going mute automatically. The likely cause of this problem is the motion and gestures function of the phone that automatically performs the action.
Here is a way to disable it:
1. Press the Menu key.
2. Go to Settings.
3. Tap the ?My Device? tab.
4. Scroll down all the way to the ?Input and Control? section and select ?Motions and Gestures?.
5. Choose Motion.
6. Still on Motion, you can move the slider switch the left to disable all the motion activated commands of your device. If you do not want to disable the motion commands of every app in your phone, you can scroll down to the Mute/Pause menu and move its slider to the left so that it will only affect incoming calls.
Other Causes
If you have performed the steps above and you are still getting the same problem, you are probably experiencing a glitch in the system of your Galaxy S4. You can go over it by simply restarting your device. But if the problem still persists, you might have an app causing it. So, just disable or uninstall the app to solve the issue.
A recent software version update can also be the reason of the trouble. However, there have been no known cases with other users with the recent software updates of Samsung yet. Still, it might be worth calling your carrier or Samsung about it, just in case.
As a last resort if all else fails, try resetting your Galaxy S4 to its factory settings. Don?t forget to backup your files before performing this though.
For a hard reset after backing up your data, follow the steps below which were provided by Vodafone:
1. Press and hold the Power, Home and Volume Up keys altogether.
2. Release the buttons once you see the Android logo.
3. Scroll down using the Volume Down key until the ?wipe data/factory reset? is highlighted.
4. Confirm your decision by choosing yes.
5. Again, using the Volume Down key, highlight and select the ?reboot system now? command to finish the process.
Email to Us Your Questions and Suggestions
I hope that the information provided here somehow helped. For more questions, write to us at?[email?protected]?Just be detailed as much as possible in your questions so we can effectively pinpoint your problem and help you find the right solution for it.
Users who have something to contribute on the subject can also share their views and suggestions via?[email?protected]?or on the comment box below.
Category: Mailbag
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Monday, July 1, 2013
New NSA spying allegations rile European allies
A demonstrator protests with a poster against espionage programs in Hanover, Germany, 29 June 2013. A coalition for action consisting of representatives from politcs, unions and Blockupy and Anonymous activists protests against NSA espionage PRISM as well as the surveillance practices of British Secret Service GCHQ. Photo by: Peter Steffen/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
A demonstrator protests with a poster against espionage programs in Hanover, Germany, 29 June 2013. A coalition for action consisting of representatives from politcs, unions and Blockupy and Anonymous activists protests against NSA espionage PRISM as well as the surveillance practices of British Secret Service GCHQ. Photo by: Peter Steffen/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Obama administration faced a breakdown in confidence Sunday from key foreign allies who threatened investigations and sanctions against the U.S. over secret surveillance programs that reportedly installed covert listening devices in European Union offices.
U.S. intelligence officials said they will directly discuss with EU officials the new allegations, reported in Sunday's editions of the German news weekly Der Spiegel. But the former head of the CIA and National Security Agency urged the White House to make the spy programs more transparent to calm public fears about the American government's snooping.
It was the latest backlash in a nearly monthlong global debate over the reach of U.S. surveillance that aims to prevent terror attacks. The two programs, both run by the NSA, pick up millions of telephone and Internet records that are routed through American networks each day. They have raised sharp concerns about whether they violate public privacy rights at home and abroad.
Several European officials ? including in Germany, Italy, France, Luxembourg and the EU government itself ? said the new revelations could scuttle ongoing negotiations on a trans-Atlantic trade treaty that, ultimately, seeks to create jobs and boost commerce by billions annually in what would be the world's largest free trade area.
"Partners do not spy on each other," said EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding. "We cannot negotiate over a big trans-Atlantic market if there is the slightest doubt that our partners are carrying out spying activities on the offices of our negotiators. The American authorities should eliminate any such doubt swiftly."
European Parliament President Martin Schulz said he was "deeply worried and shocked about the allegations of U.S. authorities spying on EU offices." And Luxembourg Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Jean Asselborn said he had no reason to doubt the Der Spiegel report and rejected the notion that security concerns trump the broad U.S. surveillance authorities.
"We have to re-establish immediately confidence on the highest level of the European Union and the United States," Asselborn told The Associated Press.
According to Der Spiegel, the NSA planted bugs in the EU's diplomatic offices in Washington and infiltrated the building's computer network. Similar measures were taken at the EU's mission to the United Nations in New York, the magazine said. It also reported that the NSA used secure facilities at NATO headquarters in Brussels to dial into telephone maintenance systems that would have allowed it to intercept senior officials' calls and Internet traffic at a key EU office nearby.
The Spiegel report cited classified U.S. documents taken by NSA leaker and former contractor Edward Snowden that the magazine said it had partly seen. It did not publish the alleged NSA documents it cited nor say how it obtained access to them. But one of the report's authors is Laura Poitras, an award-winning documentary filmmaker who interviewed Snowden while he was holed up in Hong Kong.
Britain's The Guardian newspaper also published an article Sunday alleging NSA surveillance of the EU offices, citing classified documents provided by Snowden. The Guardian said one document lists 38 NSA "targets," including embassies and missions of U.S. allies like France, Italy, Greece, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, India and Turkey.
In Washington, a statement from the national intelligence director's office said U.S. officials planned to respond to the concerns with their EU counterparts and through diplomatic channels with specific nations.
However, "as a matter of policy, we have made clear that the United States gathers foreign intelligence of the type gathered by all nations," the statement concluded. It did not provide further details.
NSA Director Keith Alexander last week said the government stopped gathering U.S. citizens' Internet data in 2011. But the NSA programs that sweep up foreigners' data through U.S. servers to pin down potential threats to Americans from abroad continue.
Speaking on CBS' "Face the Nation," former NSA and CIA Director Michael Hayden downplayed the European outrage over the programs, saying they "should look first and find out what their own governments are doing." But Hayden said the Obama administration should try to head off public criticism by being more open about the top-secret programs so "people know exactly what it is we are doing in this balance between privacy and security."
"The more they know, the more comfortable they will feel," Hayden said. "Frankly, I think we ought to be doing a bit more to explain what it is we're doing, why, and the very tight safeguards under which we're operating."
Hayden also defended a secretive U.S. court that weighs whether to allow the government to seize Internet and phone records from private companies. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is made up of federal judges but does not consider objections from defense attorneys in considering the government's request for records.
Last year, the government asked the court to approve 1,789 applications to spy on foreign intelligence targets, according to a Justice Department notice to Congress dated April 30. The court approved all but one ? and that was withdrawn by the government.
Critics have derided the court as a rubber-stamp approval for the government, sparking an unusual response last week in The Washington Post by its former chief judge. In a statement to the newspaper, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly refuted a draft NSA inspector general's report that suggested the court collaborated with the executive branch instead of maintaining judicial independence. Kollar-Kotelly was the court's chief judge from 2002 to 2006, when some of the surveillance programs were under way.
Some European counties have much stronger privacy laws than does the U.S. In Germany, where criticism of the NSA's surveillance programs has been particularly vocal, Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger likened the spying outlined in the Der Spiegel report to "methods used by enemies during the Cold War." German federal prosecutors are examining whether the reported U.S. electronic surveillance programs broke German laws.
Green Party leaders in the European Parliament called for an immediate investigation into the claims and called for existing U.S.-EU agreements on the exchange of bank transfer and passenger record information to be canceled. Both programs have been labeled as unwarranted infringements of citizens' privacy by left-wing and libertarian lawmakers in Europe.
The dispute also has jeopardized diplomatic relations between the U.S. and some of it its most unreliable allies, including China, Russia and Ecuador.
Snowden, who tuned 30 last week, revealed himself as the document leaker in June interviews in Hong Kong, but fled to Russia before China's government could turn him over to U.S. officials. Snowden is now believed to be holed up in a transit zone in Moscow's international airport, where Russian officials say they have no authority to catch him since he technically has not crossed immigration borders.
It's also believed Snowden is seeking political asylum from Ecuador. But Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa signaled in an AP interview Sunday that it's unlikely Snowden will end up there. Correa portrayed Russia as entirely the masters of Snowden's fate, and the Kremlin said it will take public opinion and the views of human rights activists into account when considering his case. That could lay the groundwork for Snowden to seek asylum in Russia.
Outgoing National Security Adviser Tom Donilon said U.S. and Russian law enforcement officials are discussing how to deal with Snowden, who is wanted on espionage charges. "The sooner that this can be resolved, the better," Donilon said in an interview on CNN.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi has a different take on what to do with Snowden. "I think it's pretty good that he's stuck in the Moscow airport," Pelosi, D-Calif., said on NBC's "Meet the Press." ''That's ok with me. He can stay there, that's fine."
___
Jordans reported from Berlin. Associated Press writers Raf Casert in Brussels, Greg Keller in Paris, Frances D'Emilio in Rome, Jovana Gec in Zagreb, Croatia, Lynn Berry in Moscow and Michael Weissenstein in Portoviejo, Ecuador, contributed to this report.
___
Lara Jakes and Frank Jordans can be reached on Twitter at https://twitter.com/larajakesAP and http://www.twitter.com/wirereporter
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Court wins expected to bolster gay pride events
Cynthia Wides, right, and Elizabeth Carey file for a marriage certificate at City Hall in San Francisco, Saturday, June 29, 2013. Dozens of gay couples have lined up outside City Hall in San Francisco as clerks have resumed issuing same-sex marriage licenses one day after a federal appeals court cleared the way for the state of California to immediately lift a 4-year freeze. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Cynthia Wides, right, and Elizabeth Carey file for a marriage certificate at City Hall in San Francisco, Saturday, June 29, 2013. Dozens of gay couples have lined up outside City Hall in San Francisco as clerks have resumed issuing same-sex marriage licenses one day after a federal appeals court cleared the way for the state of California to immediately lift a 4-year freeze. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Peter Madril, left, and Monte Young embrace after getting married at City Hall in San Francisco, Saturday, June 29, 2013. Dozens of gay couples waited excitedly Saturday outside of San Francisco's City Hall as clerks resumed issuing same-sex marriage licenses, one day after a federal appeals court cleared the way for the state of California to immediately lift a 4 ? year freeze. Big crowds were expected from across the state as long lines had already stretched down the lobby shortly after 9 a.m. City officials decided to hold weekend hours and let couples tie the knot as San Francisco is also celebrating its annual Pride weekend expected to draw as many as 1 million people. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Peter Madril, center right, kisses Monte Young after the two were married at City Hall in San Francisco, Saturday, June 29, 2013. Dozens of gay couples waited excitedly Saturday outside of San Francisco's City Hall as clerks resumed issuing same-sex marriage licenses, one day after a federal appeals court cleared the way for the state of California to immediately lift a 4 ? year freeze. Big crowds were expected from across the state as long lines had already stretched down the lobby shortly after 9 a.m. City officials decided to hold weekend hours and let couples tie the knot as San Francisco is also celebrating its annual Pride weekend expected to draw as many as 1 million people. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Kevin Miller, left, and Luca Facchin pose for pictures with their marriage certificate at City Hall in San Francisco, Saturday, June 29, 2013. Dozens of gay couples waited excitedly Saturday outside of San Francisco's City Hall as clerks resumed issuing same-sex marriage licenses, one day after a federal appeals court cleared the way for the state of California to immediately lift a 4 ? year freeze. Big crowds were expected from across the state as long lines had already stretched down the lobby shortly after 9 a.m. City officials decided to hold weekend hours and let couples tie the knot as San Francisco is also celebrating its annual Pride weekend expected to draw as many as 1 million people. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ? Cities across the nation were gearing up Sunday for what were expected to be especially well-attended and exuberant gay pride parades following the U.S. Supreme Court decisions restoring same-sex marriages to California and granting gay couples the federal benefits of marriage they were previously denied.
The gay pride celebrations scheduled in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Seattle and St. Louis are annual, and in most cases decades-old events whose tones and themes have mirrored the gay rights movement's greatest victories and defeats. This year's parades, coming on the heels of the high court's historic decisions, should be no exception.
In San Francisco, the four plaintiffs in the case that led to the end of California's gay marriage ban will be riding in a contingent organized by the city attorney. Newlyweds Kris Perry and Sandy Stier of Berkeley, and Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo of Burbank, were able to marry Friday after a federal appeals court lifted a hold it had put on same-sex marriages while the couples' lawsuit challenging the ban worked its way toward and then through the Supreme Court. City officials decided to keep the clerk's office open throughout the weekend so couples who were in town for the celebration could get married.
On Saturday, defeated backers of the state's gay marriage ban made a last-ditch effort to halt the ceremonies. Lawyers for the Arizona-based Alliance Defending Freedom filed an emergency petition to the high court asking for a halt to the weddings on the grounds that the decision was not yet legally final. The filing came as dozens of couples filled City Hall in San Francisco to obtain marriage licenses.
The parade in New York City, where the first pride march was held 44 years ago to mark the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Inn riots that kicked off the modern gay rights movement, also will become a sort of victory lap for Edith Windsor, the 84-year-old widow who challenged the federal Defense of Marriage Act after she was forced to pay $363,053 on the estate of her late wife. Windsor was picked as a grand marshal for the New York parade months ago, before the Supreme Court used her lawsuit to strike down the provision of the act that defined marriage as only between a man and a woman.
"We're very lucky, sometimes I like to think that when the decisions are made, they keep us in mind," joked NYC Pride media director Tish Flynn.
In an average year, an estimated 2 million people show up for what is one of the world's oldest and largest gay pride parades. But Flynn expects a surge in attendance like the one New York experienced two years ago, when the march was held days after Gov. Andrew Cuomo won legislative passage of a measure to legalize same-sex marriage in his state.
In Seattle, organizers of the city's annual Gay Pride parade were already planning on a larger gathering because Washington voters approved same-sex marriage last November. Voters upheld a law that the Legislature passed earlier in 2012. Since the measure took effect in December, more than 2,400 gay and lesbian couples have gotten married in the state.
Adam McRoberts, spokesman for Seattle Out & Proud, said it is expected that Sunday's parade will draw record crowds. Tens of thousands of people typically line the route through Seattle's Downtown and Belltown neighborhoods. McRoberts said the parade would have nearly 200 contingents participating.
In St. Petersburg, Fla., where Florida's largest gay pride event took place on Saturday, officials also made plans for a record turnout. It normally draws between 80,000-100,000 people, but Eric Skains, executive director of the St. Pete Pride Parade, said about 125,000 participants were expected, largely due to the Supreme Court ruling.
Although Florida is one of a few dozen states that does not recognize same-sex marriage, Skains said now is the time for the local LGBT community to work to change the laws locally and that the defeat of the Defense of Marriage Act "is an opportunity for us to be truly equal under the law."
This was the 11th year that parade was held in St. Petersburg. The mayor of Tampa, Bob Buckhorn, became the highest-ranking Florida official ever to participate when he walked the parade route on Saturday.
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Sunday, June 30, 2013
Gov.'s office asks that SF transit talks continue
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) ? California Gov. Jerry Brown's office has asked that two of San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit's largest unions and management return to the bargaining table as a possible strike looms.
Marty Morgenstern, Brown's secretary of the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, requested that talks continue between Service Employees International Union Local 1021, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 and BART representatives, Brown spokesman Evan Westrup said Sunday.
Westrup added that the governor will not call for a "cooling off period" and state mediators will continue assisting the negotiating parties as the unions' contracts are set to expire at midnight.
"BART and its labor unions owe the public a swift resolution of their differences," Westrup said. "All parties should be at the table doing their best to find common ground."
Both unions were scheduled to meet at noon Sunday to discuss their next steps, an SEIU spokeswoman said, one day after union negotiators said they would likely strike, which would cripple the region's Monday morning commute.
BART spokesman Rick Rice said the transit agency had scheduled a 1 p.m. Sunday meeting with the unions with hopes talks will continue.
"We're certainly expecting to have conversations today," Rice said. "We'll be there."
As the deadline nears, both sides said Sunday they were far apart on key sticking points including salary, pensions, health care and safety as anticipated around-the-clock negotiations fell apart as the unions packed up and left after talks stalled Saturday afternoon.
The unions want a 5 percent annual raise over the next three years. BART said Saturday that train operators and station agents in the unions average about $71,000 in base salary and $11,000 in overtime annually. The workers also pay a flat $92 monthly fee for health insurance.
Rice said BART's latest proposal offered an 8 percent salary raise over the next four years, instead of its original offer of 4 percent. The proposed salary increase is on top of a 1 percent raise employees were scheduled to receive Monday, Rice added.
The transit agency also said it offered to reduce the contribution employees would have to make to their pensions, and lower the costs of health care premiums they would have to pay.
But ATU Local President Antonette Bryant said Sunday that BART's latest proposal is not an actual pay increase, calling it "surface bargaining."
"They are not straight across-the-board raises. They haven't provided us with the information that we need, numbers on the budget are bouncing all over the place, they change almost daily," Bryant said. "We can't bargain with incorrect or misinformation."
Josie Mooney, an SEIU chief negotiator, said Saturday after talks stalled that there was "a 95 percent chance" that her union and the ATU would strike.
"I'm afraid I don't see a way we will avoid a strike," Mooney said, claiming that the unions have met with BART's management for only 10 minutes in the past 36 hours.
The two unions, which represent nearly 2,400 train operators, station agents, mechanics, maintenance workers and professional staff, had no plans to meet with BART on Sunday.
But, with a walkout that could derail the more than 400,000 riders who use the nation's fifth-largest rail system and affect every mode of transportation, clogging highways and bridges throughout the Bay Area, the governor's office request may salvage talks.
Rice said Sunday that BART's latest proposal may not be its best last offer.
"We need to have some substantial discussions," Rice said. "I hope we can make some progress."
BART's last strike lasted six days in 1997. On Friday, other area transit agencies urged commuters to consider carpooling, taking buses or ferries, working from home and, if they must drive to work, to leave earlier or even later than usual.
A strike would be "an absolute nightmare," said Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, a business advocacy organization.
"Our transportation system simply does not have the capacity to absorb the more than 400,000 BART riders who will be left at the station," Wunderman said Saturday. "There will be serious pain."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gov-office-asks-sf-transit-talks-continue-185720411.html
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Supreme Court petitioned to reimpose California gay marriage ban (reuters)
Culture wars: Why gay marriage and abortion have been ?decoupled?
Public opinion on abortion has held constant for 30 years. But on gay marriage, acceptance has grown dramatically in just 10 years ? most notably among young evangelical Protestants.
Governor Rick Perry addresses a large audience in attendance at the National Right To Life Convention, Thursday in Grapevine, Texas. The Republican has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled statehouse another crack at passing restrictions opponents say could shutter nearly all the abortion clinics across the state.
Tony Gutierrez/AP
EnlargeThe contrasting images on the news this week could not have been more stark: On the steps of the Supreme Court, supporters of gay marriage celebrated two victories ? and a new sense of momentum.
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But in Texas, abortion rights were under siege in the state legislature, as Gov. Rick Perry (R) sought to join the wave of states imposing sweeping restrictions on the procedure. The effort failed, with a dramatic filibuster, but he?ll try again Monday.
What?s going on?
The ?values? issues that used to move in lock step in American opinion have been ?decoupled,? say experts on public attitudes. Public opinion on abortion has held remarkably constant in the last 30 years. But on gay marriage, acceptance has grown dramatically in just 10 years ? most notably among young evangelical Protestants.
?Gay rights and abortion were the heart of the culture war debate for years, and we talked about them synonymously,? says Daniel Cox, research director at the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) in Washington. ?That?s changing.?
For now, there?s little overlap between states that have legalized gay marriage or may get there in the next few years (all of them Democratic or battleground states) and states that are cracking down on abortion (most of them solidly Republican). These divergent social trends are producing a nation that is, more than ever, a cultural patchwork.
But that could change, at least on gay marriage, given the generational differences in opinion. A March poll by PRRI shows nearly a 40-point generation gap between Millennials (age 18 to 29) and seniors (65 and older) on the issue of same-sex marriage. Seventy-two percent of Millennials favor it, compared with 36 percent of seniors.
Even among white Millennial evangelical Protestants, a majority ? 52 percent -- support gay marriage. Among all white evangelicals, 24 percent favor the right to same-sex marriage. So on this issue, Mr. Cox points out, young white evangelical Protestants more closely resemble those in their age cohort than their coreligionists.
?It often comes down to personal experience,? says Cox. ?Young people are more likely to have friends or family who are gay or lesbian, and that has a profound impact on attitudes about that issue ? it trumps ideology and theology.?
Of course, Americans of all ages have grown more comfortable with homosexuality, as gays and lesbians have become more open about their identity, and about pressing for the same rights as heterosexual couples and families.
It?s no accident that conservatives with gay family members have been among the first prominent Republicans to endorse the right to same-sex marriage, such as former Vice President Dick Cheney and Sen. Rob Portman (R) of Ohio.
Societal experience with gay marriage in the 10 years since Massachusetts became the first state to legalize it has also helped build support.
?There was a traditional argument that the law had to defend marriage or terrible things would happen,? says John Green, director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron. ?Apparently, really terrible things haven?t happened.?
Hollywood has also helped, with sympathetic depictions of gay relationships and families that are now commonplace.
Defenders of traditional marriage say that gay relationships are unnatural ? or sinful, in the eyes of some ? and should not be granted societal sanction. Children need a mother and father, they say.
Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council in Washington, suggests it?s too soon to conclude that same-sex marriage won?t be harmful to society.
?As the American people are given time to experience the actual consequences of redefining marriage, the public debate and opposition to the redefinition of natural marriage will undoubtedly intensify,? Mr. Perkins says.
Time will tell. But there?s no doubt that it?s easier to argue the downside to abortion, which sets up a ?clash of absolutes,? as legal scholar Laurence Tribe puts it ? the woman?s rights versus the rights of the fetus, which grow as a pregnancy progresses.
?With abortion, there seems to be evident harm,? says Mr. Green. ?Even people who are prochoice and don?t believe life begins at conception recognize there?s a consequence to abortion.?
And so while it?s possible to foresee a day when gay marriage is largely uncontroversial, the same can?t be said for abortion. That element of the culture war appears to be here to stay.
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Saturday, June 29, 2013
Video: End of the Year Dow Forecast
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Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/cnbc/52344855/
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Berlin police shoot naked man wielding knife
BERLIN (AP) ? Police have shot a naked man who brandished a knife at officers in a landmark Berlin fountain.
The man later died.
Police spokesman Stefan Redlich said passers-by reported early Friday that a man was behaving strangely and carrying a long knife in the Neptune fountain, near Berlin's city hall.
Officers tried to persuade the man to put the knife away, but instead he started cutting himself. A policeman climbed into the water to try to stop him, whereupon the man advanced on the officer with the knife.
Another officer shot the man after he ignored calls to back off. He died at the scene.
Police say an autopsy was being conducted to determine whether the man, apparently aged around 20, died from the shot or his self-inflicted injuries.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/berlin-police-shoot-naked-man-wielding-knife-120515156.html
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This New Contact Lens Basically Turns Your Eye Into a Telescope
Contact lenses are great if your only issue is near or farsightedness, but for those struggling with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness among older adults, those flimsy little lenses ain't going to cut it?or at least not the kind of contact lenses you're used to. But soon, AMD-sufferers could see their vision vastly improving thanks to a slim, adjustable telescope that sits right in the middle of their eye.
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