New device traps particulates, kills airborne pathogens

Jan. 31, 2013 ? A new device called a soft X-ray electrostatic precipitator protected immunocompromised mice from airborne pathogenic bacteria, viruses, ultrafine particles, and allergens, according to a paper published online ahead of print in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. This device, known for short as a SXC ESP, is highly versatile, with multiple potential uses, and Washington University is working on licensing the technology.

"Small particles are difficult to remove, and our device overcomes that barrier," says Pratim Biswas of Washington University, St. Louis. The device not only captures particles with a high level of efficiency that has never before been achieved; it also inactivates them. Even bioterror agents are blocked and completely inactivated, says Biswas.

The range of potential uses includes indoor protection of susceptible populations, such as people with respiratory illness or inhalation-induced allergies, and young children; protection of buildings from bio-terror attack; protection of individuals in hospital surgical theaters, for example, during open organ surgery; protection in clean rooms for semiconductor fabrication; removal of ultrafine particles in power plants; and capture of diesel exhaust particulates, says Biswas.

The device could be used in homes, with a cost similar to that of high efficiency air cleaners, says Biswas. "But it would be much easier to operate, and much more effective," he adds. It could be added into stand-alone indoor air cleaners, or incorporated into HVAC systems in homes, offices, and even in aircraft cabins. In the study, the device exceeded standards for high efficiency articulate air filters, which must be capable of removing particles larger than 0.3 micrometers with 99.97 percent efficiency.

The SXC ESP works by placing a charge on the particles -- "which it does very effectively," says Biswas -- and then using an electrical field to trap the particles. The SXC unit then also completely inactivates biological particles, by irradiating them, and photoionizing them -- as UV light does, only more energetically.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by American Society for Microbiology.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. E. M. Kettleson, J. M. Schriewer, R. M. L. Buller, P. Biswas. Soft X-ray Enhanced Electrostatic Precipitation for Protection against Inhalable Allergens, Ultrafine Particles, and Microbial Infections. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2012; DOI: 10.1128/AEM.02897-12

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

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/NhdIUec9Yf8/130131154414.htm

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7 Lies I Tell My Husband | Black and Married With Kids.com - A ...

Photo Credit: stockmonkeys.com via Flickr

There comes a time every marriage when it?s necessary to tell a tiny little lie. Be it to safeguard?your spouse?s feelings, or to not ?blow a big surprise,? or just keeping the peace, I think we?ve all done it. Although my cover will be COMPLETELY blown when he reads this, I wanted to share a few of the false?statements that I tell my husband, some more often than others. Here are 7 lies I tell my husband:

1. I had a coupon.

Because I actually do use them, let?s say 90% of the time, sometimes this one flies right out of my mouth, without thought. It doesn?t matter whether I have one or not, he still always gives me the same look that asks, ?Do you really need this anyway?? ?I don?t make big purchases without him anyway, so whether he knows the truth or not, I don?t think he really cares.

2. I?m OK.

It doesn?t take a rocket scientist to know that this is a lie when you can see smoke coming from my ears. I?m mumbling under my breath and my nostrils are on permanent flare, but yet I utter those two words, ?I?m OK.? Yes, its an obvious lie, but I tend to think of it as a ?safety measure and ?that it?s in the best interest of everyone that I say it.

3. I?m a big girl, I can take it.

I am the most sensitive soul known to man. When I follow an intricate recipe to make a special gourmet meal, I really want to know the truth, but deep down inside I can?t handle the truth. I also say this when I ask him the dreaded question, ?Does this make me look fat?? I mean really, what is he supposed to say? Whatever he says will probably lead me back to lie #2.

4. Go ahead. I don?t mind. You can have the last piece.

Ugh! This is a hard one. I have so much ?to prove being raised as only child. I?m naturally a selfish and self-indulging person. So, when we?re sharing a decadent dessert after dinner, I really and truly want that last piece, but I choose to take the high road and offer it to seem polite and basically, not-so-greedy.

5. I love your friends.

I am really going to park this one right here, although I do like quite a few of them. Next!

6. I don?t know where it is.

In my opinion, my husband is a hoarder, for a lack of a better term. He is a man of a certain age that still has term papers around our house as well as ?sweaters ?from the same era. I know that by donating a few things of his [to charity] that I am helping the greater good.

7. We?re fine. Don?t worry about us.

Whether he?s out with friends, or missed ?the last leg of his flight home from a business trip, I use this one out of necessity, as well as a courtesy. I don?t want my husband worried about me and the kids while he?s away. I want him to enjoy himself if it?s for pleasure or concentrate on his work if it?s for business.
As you can see, I have been quite transparent by writing this and I?m hoping that this will free my soul and be therapeutic for me. Again, I?m pretty sure that my cover is blown once my husband reads this, but maybe this is what our marriage and other marriages actually need? a chance to just come clean.

BMWK ? Do you ever tell an ?untruth? to your spouse?

About the author

Sheree is a wife and WAHM of three who passionately blogs about marriage, family, health tips and more as Smart & Sassy Mom. Sheree is committed to helping blended families and keeping marriages strong, healthy, fun and SPICY!

Source: http://blackandmarriedwithkids.com/2013/01/7-lies-i-tell-my-husband/

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Vision insurance and medical insurance?huh???? | Uptown Eyes ...

So with a new year, comes new insurance plans, for both?MEDICAL?as well as?VISION. ?Many do not realize these are 2 different kinds of insurance. ?I am going to try to explain what the differences are, how you can be more informed of your own plans, and how to make your exam visits flow more efficiently for you and for the clinics across the board.

Most of us have insurance benefits through our employer or we pay for our plans privately. ?Some employers offer Medical, vision, dental, and other types of insurance. ?They are typically optional plans. ?Here is the general differences of these types of insurances.

Medical Insurance plans

Medical insurance generally covers toward medical care, i.e., you go to the doctor for a problem or emergency. ?So for a general medical visit, this may consist of an ache or pain, rash, infection, or fever, just to name a few. ?Not ALL physicians are on ALL medical insurances. ?You should have been provided information regarding providers in your area, or the insurance website can be very helpful to search for one.?

Vision Insurance plans

Vision insurance generally covers?(or ?provides a benefit?)?towards eye exams and medical devices such as prescription eyewear and prescription contact lenses. ?They usually do NOT cover problem visits like, eye infections, red eyes, or other acute eye issues. ?These types of issues would be more of a medical visit and can usually be filed with your medical plan, if your eye clinic provides insurance?filing and?are providers on your plan. ?There are usually copays for most vision plans?as well as medical plans?that are due upon the time services are rendered.

Also, there are not any vision plans out?there?(that I am aware of) that will cover 100% of your vision care needs. ?Most only pay a very small percentage of your eye exam, glasses or contact lens supplies. ?Please note that most of the time, you will be responsible for overages at the time services are rendered in most eye clinics.

Dental Insurance plans

Dental plans generally covers various dental procedures. ?I am not as savvy on this particular type of plan, but I know through my personal experience, they are similar to vision plans?only cover?some things?and most expensive procedures are not billable to the dental plans OR medical plans. ?The best way to find out more about your particular dental plan is to contact your dental insurance.

Premiums, Deductibles and Co-pays

Ugh!!! ?Don?t we pay enough to these insurance companies already?! ?Most insurance plans are NOT free!! ?Someone has to pay ? the members and providers. ? Most employers offer various medical, vision, and dental benefits of some kind, at a less expensive premium (supposedly). ?You should be aware of how much is being deducted from your check monthly and know what your coverage and deductibles are. ?It may be more cost effective for you to be on your own independant insurance plan(s)?or put those premiums toward a Health Savings Account. ?These premiums that are deducted from your pay, should be pre-tax funds.

Once your coverage is activated, then you will likely owe the insurance more money before they start paying for your exams or office visits. ?This is called a deductible. ?It varies from one insurance plan to the next and they typically start over year to year. There may be an individual deductible and a family deductible. ?Either way, be aware of what your deductibles are. ?If you are not aware of them, please contact your HR department or your insurance company.

At your office visits, you may ?have a co-pay that may or may not go toward your deductible. ?This is something else you need to be aware of prior to your visits. ?Be prepared to pay your co-pays at the time the services are rendered.

How do I make life easier and my office visits more efficient?

Regardless of how you have insurance coverage, either through an employer or independantly, here are some helpful pointers to note.

- Find out the full name and contact information of the Human Resource Department and keep on file as you may need to call them a few times.
- Have ALL your insurance information available when you call to make your appointments. ?This includes subscriber/member name that is on the insurance (not nicknames), DOB (date of birth) of the member and the patient, subscriber/member ID number and patient ID number if different, Group number, insurance address and phone number.
- Be aware of your benefits. ?This can be a challenge sometimes, but you should have been provided a manual of your benefits, or have access to their website. ?If you do not have this information, it is likely that your doctor?s office does not have it either. ?Please call your HR department or call your insurance company. ?The number for members/subscribers is on the back of the card. ?Please note,?that most medical clinics do NOT have a direct line to any of the insurance companies either, so the wait time is just as long on the phone.
- Be aware if you have met your deductible or not. ?This is something your doctor?s office will definitely NOT know, so please contact your insurance company.
- Be aware of your copays or expect to pay some sort of copay. ?Most range from $10 to $50 depending on the insurance. ?Often times it will be on your card as well. ?Various clinics may be a ?specialty? clinic. ?You can call that clinic to find out what they are considered.
- Be prepared to pay 100% of the services rendered when you go to any of your doctor?s visits unless you prearranged something. ?Meaning, you called prior to your appointment and discussed this with the billing/accounting department at your doctor?s office.

Insurance myths

1. The doctor?s office gets paid by the insurance companies the difference of what I pay.

This is ABSOLUTELY FALSE. ?Most of the time, providers/physicians, take a significant?cut to be a provider listed on an insurance. ?And most of the time they don?t receive payment for 2-6 weeks after the claim is filed?sometimes longer. ?So, as you can likely imagine, the medical offices have bills to pay as well. ?In order to pay them in a timely fashion, they have to see MORE patients?(which can often times equate to less time per patient)?meaning more volume, less time/patient. ?No medical office can really afford to spend more time with patients individually since the insurance companies don?t reimburse very much, these offices have to see more patients. ?It is a sad and vicious cyle. ?This is the reason why Uptown Eyes has decided to be providers for only a few of the most common insurances plans. Our goal is to never allow insurance to dictate our time with the patient, our treatment plan, or our quality of the product we provide.??

Source: http://uptowneyesnwa.com/2013/01/29/vision-insurance-and-medical-insurance-huh/

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15 Totally Bizarre U.S. Taxes

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January 30 marks the official start of the 2013 tax season. And what better way to celebrate tax season than to honor our nation's complex and utterly bizarre tax code?

Check out some of the weirdest U.S. tax laws below:

• Sliced Bagel Tax

  You might want to think twice about getting that schmear. In New York City, bagels that are sliced or prepared are subject to sales tax, whereas whole bagels are not, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704340504575448033463314628.html">according to</a> the Wall Street Journal.

• Pet Tax

  If you live in Durham, North Carolina, you could be <a href="http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2011/01/03/americas-most-bizarre-taxes/">paying a tax on Rover</a>. The state charges a $10 tax for neutered and spayed pets and $75 for pets that are not neutered or spayed, according to Turbo Tax.

• Candy Tax

  In Illinois, all <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/thomson-reuters-reports-2012-quirky-tax-laws-2013-01-28">candies are subject to an extra tax</a>, unless they contain flour, like the Whopper pictured here.

• Elderly Tax Exemption

  By the time you're 100, <a href="http://www.efile.com/unusual-strange-funny-taxes-throughout-the-world-and-history/">you've paid enough in taxes</a>, at least according to the state of New Mexico, where people over 100 years old are tax-exempt.

• Flush Tax

  If it's yellow, let it mellow could be the motto of some Maryland and Virginia residents looking to save money. In these two states there's a <a href="http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/2-minute-tax-tips-weird-taxes/1zyohv7aj?from=gallery_en-us&cpkey=626b3129-89f2-5b5b-1fb7-b9a5bfa67758%257c%257c%257c%257c">tax on flushing the toilet</a>, according to Bing.

• Crack Tax

  Tennessee <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6861075">anonymously collects a tax on illegal drugs</a>, according to NPR. In 2006, the state collected $1.5 million from the tax.

• Diaper Tax

  Adult diapers <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/thomson-reuters-reports-2012-quirky-tax-laws-2013-01-28">are exempt from sales tax in Connecticut</a>, but if you're buying diapers for your kids you'll have to pay taxes on those, according to Thomson Reuters.

• Napkin Tax

  Colorado levies a tax on <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-5-weirdest-sales-taxes-we-could-find-2012-1">"non essential" food packaging</a> items, according to Business Insider. That means you'll pay a tax on paper cup lids and napkins, but not on paper cups themselves.

• Sex Tax

  Businesses in Utah that employ nude or partly nude workers are required to pay a <a href="http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/slideshows/the-10-strangest-state-taxes/11">10 percent sales tax</a>, according to U.S. News and World Report.

• Card Deck Tax

  If you buy cards in Alabama you'll <a href="http://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/General-Tax-Tips/7-Crazy-Taxes-from-the-US-and-Abroad/INF12163.html">pay a 10 cent tax</a> on the deck, according to Turbo Tax. Meanwhile, Nevada gives free decks in exchange for completed returns.

• Holiday Decorations Tax

  In Texas, holiday-themed pictures that are <a href="http://www.efile.com/unusual-strange-funny-taxes-throughout-the-world-and-history/">meant to be placed on walls</a> are taxed, according to efile.com.

• Tattoo Tax

  In Arkansas, there's a <a href="http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2011/01/03/americas-most-bizarre-taxes/">6 percent sales tax on tattoos</a>, according to Turbo Tax.

• Litigation Tax

  New York has <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Business/strangest-taxes-50-states/story?id=16089204&page=2">a tax on litigation</a>, according to ABC News.

• Hot Air Balloon Tax

  In Kansas, you have to pay <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Business/strangest-taxes-50-states/story?id=16089204&page=2">taxes on that hot air balloon</a> ride -- or risk flying away. In that state tethered balloons are taxed, but those that roam free are not because they are considered a legitimate form of transportation, according to ABC.

• Fresh Fruit Vending Machine Tax

  Another reason not to buy your fruit from a vending machine. Fresh fruit is exempt from sales tax in California, unless <a href="http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/slideshows/the-10-strangest-state-taxes/5">it's sold from a vending machine</a>, according to U.S. News and World Report.

Also on HuffPost:

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April is fast approaching, which means taxes are on the brain for many Americans. But these bizarre taxes, which are levied on everything from puppies to paper napkins, will likely surprise some. ...

April is fast approaching, which means taxes are on the brain for many Americans. But these bizarre taxes, which are levied on everything from puppies to paper napkins, will likely surprise some. ...

Related News On Huffington Post:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/30/bizarre-taxes_n_2568334.html

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NEC announces virtual switch for Microsoft Hyper-V (virtualization.info)

NEC announces virtual switch for Microsoft Hyper-V

January 30th, 2013

Since the latest release of Hyper-V (version 3) as part of Windows Server 2012, Microsoft supports adding third party virtual switches. Cisco already announced that its Nexus virtual switch would?

Paper: The CPU Scheduler in VMware vSphere 5.1

January 28th, 2013

VMware has released a paper titled: ?The CPU Scheduler in VMware vSphere 5.1?. The paper which contains 26 pages provides detailed explanations of ESXi CPU scheduling policies to help vSphere?

Release: CiRBA 7.2

January 23rd, 2013

CiRBA has announced the release of version 7.2 of its Data Center Intelligence (DCI) solution. Control Console is one of the components of its Data Center Intelligence (DCI) solution, providing?

Release: HotLink SuperVISOR for VMware vCenter 2.0

January 23rd, 2013

HotLink has released version 2.0 of its multi virtualization platform management tool SuperVISOR. This version is the follow up of version 1.5 which was released in April last year. SuperVISOR?

Release: Oracle VM 3.2

January 23rd, 2013

Oracle has released version 3.2 of its enterprise virtualization solution. Oracle has rebranded the until now separate releases of Oracle VM Server for x86 and Oracle VM Server for SPARC?

Cisco invests in Parallels

January 21st, 2013

On January 17 Parallels announced that Cisco has made a not yet quantified equity investment in the company.
Parallels, well known for its desktop virtualization software, said that the investment?

Paper: Project Virtual Reality Check Phase V

January 16th, 2013

Sven Huisman, technical consultant at PQR, Dennis Geerlings, Consultant at Login VSI, Jeroen van de Kamp, Enterprise Architect and CTO at Login Consultants and Ruben Spruijt, Technology Officer at PQR?

Release: Citrix Access Gateway 10.0.71.6014.e

January 15th, 2013

Citrix released CloudGateway 2.5 and together is releasing Citrix Access Gateway 10-0-71.6014 e
Citrix CloudGateway is the Citrix Enterprise Mobility offering and Citrix Access Gateway provides remote access to the?

Release: Dell vOPS Server Explorer 6.3

January 15th, 2013

Dell today released version 6.3 of Dell vOPS Server Explorer. vOPS Server Explorer originally developed by VKernel provided assessment tooling for virtualization administrators. VKernel was acquired by Quest in November?

Release: Stratus ftServer Systems with vSphere 5.1

January 14th, 2013

On January 9, Stratus Technologies announced the availability of the new?Stratus ftServer systems with vSphere 5.1
The fault tolerant system company, founded 1980 and headquartered in Massachusetts, launched, in September?

Release: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.9

January 14th, 2013

Even though the newest version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is currently at version 6.3, and Red Hat is working on version 6.4 it still releases updates for RHEL?

?
Monthly Archive

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Virtualization_info/~3/dOFhXZjmRyA/nec-announces-virtual-switch-for-microsoft-hyper-v.html

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In aftermath of nightclub fire, some Brazilians question 'culture of impunity'

Safety consultants say the lack of sprinklers, adequate illumination, smoke detectors, and fire exits is tragically common in Brazil.?

By Andrew Downie,?Correspondent / January 28, 2013

Police officers stand at the entrance of the Kiss nightclub in southern Brazil, Monday. Some 233 people died after smoke engulfed the nightclub during the early hours of Sunday morning.

Ricardo Moraes/Reuters

Enlarge

Authorities buried the first victims of the Santa Maria nightclub fire this morning, and while Brazil is still in shock over its worst disaster in more than half a century, some are shifting their focus toward the investigation and future prevention.

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There is widespread hope that Brazil can overcome its long-standing culture of impunity and bring those responsible to justice.

Some 233 people died after smoke engulfed the Kiss disco in southern Brazil during the early hours of Sunday morning. More than 100 people are still hospitalized, 80 of them in serious condition, Brazil?s Health Minister Alexandre Padilha said.

Police, based on numerous eyewitness accounts, believe the fire was started on accident by the live band on stage. Over-size sparklers ignited the highly flammable acoustic foam that lined the ceiling and within minutes the club was engulfed in smoke. The vast majority of those who didn?t make it out in time died from asphyxiation.

Those errors, allied to inadequate emergency lighting and insufficient emergency exits inside the club, are similar to those that caused other deadly nightclub fires, including the famous 2003 Station nightclub fire in Rhode Island, which killed 100 people.

Safety consultants say the lack of sprinklers, adequate illumination, smoke detectors, and fire exits is tragically common in Brazil.

?This club got absolutely everything wrong,? says Orlando dos Santos, owner of Abafire, a Brazilian fire security consultancy firm. ?There are laws but they didn?t follow them.?

?That is so common,? Mr. dos Santos says. ?Here in S?o Paulo I?ve seen big companies, multinationals, hotel chains, shopping centers and even hospitals and they don?t have the proper security procedures in place.?

Corruption, dos Santos says, was one of the main reasons, along with a lack of trained personnel to check safety installations and make sure they meet requirements.

Another issue bubbling to the surface today is impunity. Police and judicial authorities will be under pressure to identify those responsible for yesterday?s disaster and bring them to justice, and?not just for the band members accused of lighting flares in an enclosed space (which is illegal in Brazil). Police and local politicians have also said they will investigate whether the club had the proper security certificates and that authorities signed them.

If it was operating without the proper permits, as some news outlets have reported, police will want to know why and how such a popular club was allowed to open its doors without them.
?

Impunity in Brazil

The question of impunity is a sensitive one in Brazil and Latin America, where justice is slow and the rich and well-connected can call on powerful lawyers to work the system.

In one emblematic case, a newspaper editor used appeals and habeas corpus to avoid jail for a decade after being found guilty of murdering his former lover.
?
Only a fraction of crimes are solved here, and Brazilians have a low opinion of their law enforcement. Police are considered the third most corrupt institution in the country after politicians and congress, and 54 percent of Brazilians believe efforts to fight corruption are ineffective, according to the latest transparency international statistics.

There are encouraging signs, however, that might be changing. Some of Brazil?s best-known and most powerful politicians were found guilty of political corruption last year and they face jail time.

The fact that the Supreme Court was willing to sentence such well-known figures up to 40 years behind bars for crimes that ranged from money laundering to tax evasion sent a refreshing signal that no one is above the law.

Often in the past, investigations have petered out and no action was taken after the initial public uproar died down.

?We await judicial decisions leading to the convictions of the guilty parties and compensation of material and moral damages for the families, even from the responsible public agencies, but as always we will be surprised by events like this simply because we haven?t learned to be citizens who demand our rights,? lawyer Isabel Cochlar wrote about the nightclub deaths in Zero Hora, a newspaper based close to Santa Maria.

Brazilian police announced today they have detained two members of the band and two of the club owners for questioning.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/oBn9H95Rfms/In-aftermath-of-nightclub-fire-some-Brazilians-question-culture-of-impunity

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Drill reaches deep Antarctic lake

28 January 2013 Last updated at 06:12 ET

An American attempt to bore down into Lake Whillans, a body of water buried almost 1km under the Antarctic ice, has achieved its aim.

Scientists reported on Sunday that sensors on their drill system had noted a change in pressure, indicating contact had been made with the lake.

A camera was then sent down to verify the breakthrough.

The Whillans project is one of a number of such ventures trying to investigate Antarctica's buried lakes.

In December, a British team abandoned its efforts to get into Lake Ellsworth after encountering technical difficulties.

The Russians have taken samples from Lake Vostok, although they have yet to report their findings.

Lake Whillans is sited in the west of Antarctica, on the southeastern edge of the Ross Sea.

The Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling (Wissard) team has been using a hot-water drill to melt a 30cm-diameter hole through the overlying ice.

Breakthrough to the lake surface was reported on the project's website.

The intention, now that the hole is secure, is to lower various sampling tools and sensors into the lake to study its properties and environment.

Some of the samples will be assessed onsite at the ice surface in temporary labs, and others will be returned to partner universities for more extensive analysis.

The Wissard blog said the thickness of the overlying ice was measured to be 801m, which agreed well with the estimates from seismic imaging.

More than 300 large bodies of water have now been identified under the White Continent.

They are kept liquid by geothermal heat and pressure, and are part of a vast and dynamic hydrological network at play under the ice sheet.

Some of the lakes are connected, and will exchange water. But some may be completely cut off, in which case their water could have been resident in one place for thousands of years, and that means they probably play host to microorganisms unknown to modern science.

Whillans is not as deep as either Vostok (4km) or Ellsworth (3km), and its water is exchanged much more frequently by the under-ice streams.

Scientists are keen to study Antarctica's subglacial hydrological systems because liquid water beneath the ice sheet will influence its movement. Understanding the sheet's long-term stability in a warming world has to take this into account.

These under-ice environments may also provide insight into the habitability of some moons in the Solar System.

Europa, a satellite of Jupiter, and Enceladus, which orbits Saturn, both have large volumes of liquid water buried beneath their icy crusts.

Astrobiologists think such moons are promising places to go look for extra-terrestrial microorganisms.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21231380#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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Wallenda crosses Fla. tightrope 200 feet over road

Aerialist Nick Wallenda walks the high wire 200 feet over U.S. 41 in Sarasota, Fla., without a safety harness on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Mike Lang) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

Aerialist Nick Wallenda walks the high wire 200 feet over U.S. 41 in Sarasota, Fla., without a safety harness on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Mike Lang) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

Aerialist Nick Wallenda walks the high wire 200 feet over U.S. 41 in Sarasota, Fla., without a safety harness on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Dan Wagner) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

Barb Renaud of Bradenton, Fla. center, cheers with other spectators as aerialist Nik Wallenda finishes his skywalk over U.S. 41 in downtown Sarasota on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Dan Wagner) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

Aerialist Nick Wallenda walks a wire suspended 200-feet above the Sarasota Bayfront, crossing over U.S. 41 in Sarasota, Fla., without a safety harness on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Mike Lang) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

Aerialist Nik Wallenda walks the high wire 200 feet over U.S. 41 in Sarasota, Fla., without a safety harness on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. The Sarasota City Commission is allowing him to do the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it. (AP Photo/Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Mike Lang) PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BRADENTON HERALD OUT; TV OUT; ONLINE OUT

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) ? Famed daredevil Nik Wallenda glided 500 feet across a wire suspended 200 feet above the ground on Tuesday, wowing several thousand people below in his hometown of Sarasota.

Without a tether or safety net, Wallenda was the lone figure against a blue sky, aided only by a balancing pole. He made the death-defying stunt look easy, but the performance was anything but simple: it took dozens of circus workers to pull and release the thick black cables that controlled Wallenda's wire as he walked. The morning was windier than expected, and at one point near the end, Wallenda dipped down to one knee on the wire, which led to loud gasps among the crowd.

"I have to get into a zone where I kind of forget about everything else and just focus on what I'm doing," he said shortly before he stepped on the wire. "Fear is a choice but danger is real, and that's very, very true for my line of work."

When Wallenda went to one knee, the drama reached a fever pitch.

"Scary," said Neil Montford, a vacationer from the United Kingdom, while wiping sweat from his brow and looking skyward.

Wallenda, 34, wore a gold cross around his neck and prayed with his wife, children and parents prior to the walk.

"It's my job, it's my career, it's my passion, it's what I love to do," he said.

The Sarasota City Commission allowed the stunt without a tether. Wallenda wore a tether for the first time last summer when he walked across Niagara Falls because the television network that was paying for the performance insisted on it.

Wallenda is a seventh-generation high-wire artist and is part of the famous "Flying Wallendas" circus family. His great-grandfather, Karl Wallenda, fell during a performance in Puerto Rico and died.

But Wallenda wasn't focused on the possibility of tragedy. In the hours before the stunt, Wallenda walked underneath the wire, which was suspended between a crane and a condo in downtown Sarasota. He spoke of his city, of the nearby sparkling bay and how he loved to hear the cheers of the crowd while hundreds of feet up in the air.

___

Follow Tamara Lush on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tamaralush

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-01-29-Wallenda%20Wirewalk/id-080ee442c39a4eac8c117c3b982e7426

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Enbridge No More ? Idle No More | Rowan Family Tree

Friends now that we are big supporters of the Idle No More movement. Not because we have friends and?family members who have indigenous and M?tis heritage, but because we think respecting treaty rights is just and the country?s most powerful tool against industrial environmental?destruction.

Still not sure why we are going?

1. Omnibus bills like the one passed late last year include all sorts of legislation with a budget bill. this means the MPs, even those with the best intentions, can?t vote against the legislation since it?s wrapped up with their party?s budget. So last budget bill, we saw massive changes to immigration laws, criminal law, and most importantly, a shredding of our environmental protection laws. The navigable waters legislation, the environmental review process ? all chopped up, slid into a budget bill. It?s just not right.
2. Not only is the Enbridge project an environmental disaster waiting to happen, and it extends the reach and catalyzing more oilsands development, but the project process has also ignored First NAtion treaty rights, and ignored the protests of vast numbers of British Columbians. It has to be stopped.
3. Worse even than Enbridge is the Canada-China trade agreement that ight be ratified any day. If this agreement goes through, for 31 years we won?t be able to increase environmental protection rules or even stop a Chinese project if we want to, because we?ll have to pay massive fines to the People?s Republic of China. This agreement has massive, long-lasting implications for every sector in Canada, from agriculture to high tech (not just oil and gas) and curbs our rights to manage our own natural resources, putting the needs of the People?s Republic first. A 31 year deal to sign our rights away? It?s can?t happen.

I encourage you all to call your MPs, especially your Conservative MPs. We have a very nice man (Conservative MP) who listens to his constituents? and honestly, the Conservative MP base is the only power to stop the Canada China agreement.

As for Enbridge and Idle No More ? show you?opinions publicly!?Let your voices be heard. Support our First Peoples to help the rest of us.

Posted in: Green, Social JusticeTagged: enbridge, idle no morePermalink2 Comments

Source: http://rowanfamilytree.com/2013/01/28/enbridge-no-more-idle-no-more/

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Green Blog: Market for Bear Bile Threatens Asian Population

European Pressphoto Agency Bears await food on a farm in Fujian Province in China that is run by the pharmaceuticals maker Guizhentang. The company legally makes tonics from bear bile.

The six bears that arrived this month at Animals Asia, an animal rescue center in China, had the grisly symptoms of inhumane ?bile milking.? Greenish bile dripped from open fistulas used to drain gall bladders; teeth were broken and rotted from gnawing on the bars of tiny cages.

Four of the bears have since had surgery to remove gall bladders damaged by years of unhygenic procedures to extract their bile, which is coveted for its purported medicinal properties. One bear?s swollen gall bladder was the size of a watermelon.

The latest batch of bears was rescued from an illegal farm by the Sichuan Forestry Department and joins 145 other bears at the center, near Chengdu in southwestern China.
Over all, 285 bears have been rescued since the center opened in 2000

With luck, the six bears will recover at the sanctuary. But thousands on farms, both legal and illegal, continue to suffer in wretched conditions, and countless others living in the wild across Asia are threatened by poaching and their illegal capture.

Bear bile contains a chemical called ursedeoxycholic acid, long used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat gallstones, liver problems and other ailments. There are an estimated 10,000 farmed bears in China, 3,000 in Vietnam, at least 1,000 in South Korea and others in Laos and Myanmar.

Tigers, rhinos and elephants are notoriously poached to satisfy high demand in Asia for their parts, which are falsely assumed to have medicinal properties. Experts warn that sun bears and Asiatic black bears, known colloquially as ?moon bears,? are on a similar route to endangerment, although their plight draws less media attention. ?No bears are extinct, but all Asian ones are threatened,? said Chris Shepherd, a conservation biologist and deputy regional director of the wildlife trade group Traffic who is based in Malaysia.

To address the threat, the demand for bear bile must be sharply reduced, Dr. Shepherd, a conservation biologist told hundreds of researchers at the International Conference on Bear Research and Management, an annual event held recently in New Delhi.

Reducing demand would require a multi-pronged effort, experts say. That would mean enforcing existing laws, arresting and prosecuting violators, promoting synthetic and herbal alternatives, and closing illegal farms.

Chinese celebrities like the actor Jackie Chan and the athlete Yao Ming have both spoken out against the bear bile industry to raise public awareness about poaching and the inhumane conditions typically found on farms. Bears often live for years in coffin-like cages in which they are unable to stand or turn around.

The bile is extracted through catheters inserted into the abdomen, with needles or by bringing the gall bladder to the skin?s surface, where it will leak bile if prodded.

Legal farming was conceived as a way of increasing the supply of bile to reduce the motivation for poaching wild bears, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. But there is no evidence that it has done so, it noted in a resolution passed last September, and there is concern among conservationists that it ?may be detrimental.?

The resolution also called on countries with legal bear farms to close down the illegal ones, to ensure that no wild bears are added to farms; to conduct research into bear bile substitutes (there are dozens of synthetic and herbal alternatives) and to conduct an independent peer-reviewed scientific analysis on whether farming protects wild bears.

Some groups argue that the increased supply of farmed bile has only exacerbated demand. ?Because a surplus of bear bile is being produced, bile is used in many non-medical products, like bear bile wine, shampoo, toothpaste and face masks,? Animals Asia says. Since bear farming began in China in the early 1980?s, bear bile has been aggressively promoted as a cure-all remedy for problems like hangovers, the group added.

In mainland China and Japan, domestic sales of bear bile are legal and theoretically under strict regulation as prescription products. But such sales are illegal in Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and the international trade is illegal as well.

Yet a 2011 report from Traffic indicated that bear bile products were on sale in traditional medicine outlets in 12 Asian countries and territories.

Nonprescription bear bile products like shampoo or toothpaste are illegal in China yet are readily available for purchase, conservationists say. Tourists from South Korea, a country that has decimated its own wild bear population, are major buyers in China and Vietnam even though taking bear bile products across borders is illegal under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.

?Farms have drawn in bile consumers by creating a huge market ? farmed bile is cheap,? said David Garshelis, a research scientist at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources who is co-chairman of the I.U.C.N.?s bear specialist group.

In Vietnam, a milliliter of bile might sell for $3 to $6; about 100 milliliters can be extracted from a bear each day, according to Annemarie Weegenaar, bear and director of the veterinarian team at Animals Asia?s Vietnam center.

In four years, the I.U.C.N. is to issue a report on whether bear farms threaten wild populations. Meanwhile, demand appears to be spreading further afield in Asia and is now growing in Indonesia, largely as a result of demand from the Chinese and Korean communities there, said Gabriella Fredriksson, a conservation biologist based in Sumatra. A low-level poacher can sell a gall bladder from a bear caught in a simple snare and then killed for about $10.

So far the biggest threat to bears in Indonesia is loss of habitat from forest fires and the conversion of land to palm oil plantations. But in the last few years, poaching has increased, said Dr. Fredriksson, who has been there 15 years.

She cautioned that bears in Indonesia could also become highly threatened. ?Fifty years ago, bears were doing well in Cambodia and Laos,? she said. ?Now there?s hardly any left.?

Source: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/28/market-for-bear-bile-threatens-asian-population/?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Gravity-Controlled Pac-Man Is Now Available for iOS and Android?and It Looks Quite Fun

I thought Not Pacman—a version of Pac-Man that uses gravity to control the yellow hungry monster—was awesome and needed to be ported to iOS and Android ASAP. Gizmodo reader Pierre-Yves Gatouillat agreed with that opinion and he did just that. He sent this via email: More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/I0TXX0FhkHA/gravity+controlled-pac+man-is-now-available-for-ios-and-android++and-it-looks-like-fun

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Solar System (for iPad)

Solar System ($13.99), an iPad app, lets you explore the Sun and its retinue of planets.

It has the same excellence in design and content as two Editors' Choice iPad apps made by Touch Press, The Elements: A 3D Exploration and Pyramids 3D, including similar virtual reality rotatable 3D figures. Its image galleries, featuring pictures from NASA missions and elsewhere as well as artist's impressions, are exquisite. The app is a good choice for students up to high school students and interested laymen alike.

Solar System in a Nutshell
The home screen displays a grid of icons; across the top are the Sun, Earth, and planets, as well as the asteroid belt, Kuiper Belt, and Oort cloud. Displayed under each world are icons for its moons (if any) or other relevant objects; Ceres, Vesta, and other asteroids appear under Asteroid Belt, Comets under Oort Cloud; and Pluto, Eris, and other icy so-called dwarf planets under Kuiper Belt.

At the screen's upper left is an icon labeled Solar System, which takes you to a series of slides describing our solar system, or evolving knowledge about it, and how it compares with other recently discovered planetary systems. The Orrery button at upper right takes you to a digital depiction of our solar system, showing the planets, as well as orbits that you can toggle on and off. A slider at the bottom lets you speed up or slow down their motion. An information button shows a physical orrery, a brass, clockwork miniature model of the solar system; they were popular starting in the 18th century.

Pressing on Song takes you to a slideshow of space images set to an instrumental version of Biophilia, by Bj?rk. The About button describes the app, a collaboration between Touch Press and British publisher Faber and Faber, with the imagery processed by Planetary Vision Ltd., and includes a Credits button.

Exploring the Planets
Each orb accessible through a home-page icon has at least one page devoted to it, and some (the Moon and Mars) have as many as nine pages, each page covering an important aspect of that world. In addition to Wegener's jigsaw and the introductory page, Earth pages include one called Water World; one called Earth's aura, about the atmosphere; Living planet details the development and nature of life on our planet; Earth's umbrella, about the protective effect of greenhouse gases and the Earth's magnetic field; and lastly, How do we know the Earth is round?

As planets and most of the moons depicted are spheres (more or less), the 3D functionality consists of the ability to rotate these worlds to see their entire surface area (or cloud belts, as the case may be.) Irregularly shaped asteroids look more dramatic when rotating. My favorite 3D depiction is one of our own world, titled Wegener's Jigsaw, after Alfred Wegener, who came up with the theory of continental drift after noticing that the coastlines of Africa and South America.? Swiping on the image of the globe takes you through an animation showing 400 million years of shifting land masses.

The opening page for each planet or moon contains the rotatable image, plus a brief description of that world. Pressing the Orrery button now takes you to the object. For instance, clicking on the orrery from the page for Io takes you to Jupiter, where its four largest moons, including Io, are in motion; their speed can be controlled through the slider. Clicking on Done takes you back to the Io opening page.

The spinning red crystal icon at the page's lower left is WolframAlpha; clicking on it takes you to information on the planet or moon from that search engine, including physical properties, orbit, and current position in the sky.

To the right of the WolframAlpha button is an icon that takes you to an image gallery. Solar System includes a gallery for each planet, moon, or class of objects (asteroid belt, Kuiper belt, Oort Cloud, etc.). Clicking on a gallery thumbnail gives you a full-screen version of the image. Nearly all of the photos and illustrations are exquisite. The app's author, Marcus Chown, quips in the About section, "No expense has been spared in the production of Solar System. The location filming budget alone has approached a trillion dollars. That, of course, is NASA's expenditure, not ours!" Gallery images include ones from some non-NASA missions as well.

The rest of the icons and buttons at the bottom of the screen are concerned with navigation. A line of tiny images, starting with the Sun and including each planet and its moons in increasing distance from the Sun as you move to the right, lets you navigate to these object's pages, a tiny Space Shuttle pointer sits under the icon for the orb whose page you're currently viewing. To the right of this line of icons, Home and Back buttons are bracketed by left and right arrows. The arrows proved to be the easiest way to navigate within a section (for instance, among the 7 pages for Jupiter).

A row of white dots at the top of the screen?such as you find on the iPad's home screen with its grid of apps?shows you where you are within the section. It can be used to navigate: tap one of the dots, and you're at another page. It is awkward, though: While I was using the app while seated in a moving subway, navigating with the dots was hit or miss, mostly miss. The arrow buttons are much better, though I would have liked to have been able to advance through the pages by swiping them as well. (The presence of touch-sensitive 3D illustrations on part of the page may preclude that.)

Alternate App
Solar Walk (for iPad) is a similar app. Its 3D graphics aren't as dazzling as Solar System and its navigation isn't as intuitive, but it adds a few videos, a search function for geographic and planetary features, and the ability to email or tweet screen shots, or post them to Facebook, and sells at a much lower price. I can recommend both of these apps.

As an interactive e-book, Solar System provides a useful and engaging overview of the Sun, planets, moons, and other solar system bodies. The illustrations are gorgeous, and the 3D rotatable spheres are skillfully designed. The text provides a solid if somewhat succinct introduction to each world, covering important aspects of the object. It doesn't include any outside links, but should nonetheless inspire students to do their own research.

More iPad App Reviews:

??? Solar System (for iPad)
??? Solar Walk (for iPad)
??? iHeartRadio (for iPad)
??? Temple Run 2 (for iPad)
??? 3D Brain (for iPad)
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/6OjSaxoc6bY/0,2817,2414734,00.asp

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Luxury homes in Japan with Sotheby&#39;s International Realty ? Real ...

The name Sotheby?s is well known as an auction house that dates back 270 years, but many people may not be aware that it is also a high-end real estate brokerage company. Established in 1976, Sotheby?s International Realty began by offering its auction clientele real estate services. It currently has over 600 offices located in 45 countries and territories, giving clients unprecedented access to properties that span the globe.

In 2010, Sotheby?s International Realty opened its Tokyo office in order to make a full-scale entry into the rapidly expanding Asian market. Its 15-strong team provides a full range of real estate services in Japanese, English, and Chinese.

Japan Today meets with Chief Operating Officer Yutaka Takeda at the company?s new office in Hiroo Plaza to hear more about the business.

What is your background?

I was actually born in Hiroo, not too far from this office. I went to Seikei University?the same university as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. His elder brother was my classmate. My major was economics. After graduating, I worked for JAL for 30 years, in sales, marketing, as well as the group?s hotel and resort business. I joined Sotheby?s in June 2010.

What is Sotheby?s International Realty?s history?

Many clients of the auction house are interested in high-end real estate, so Sotheby?s International Realty was founded in New York in 1976 to look after their needs. At first, the focus was mainly in Europe and the United States. In the 2000s, the company started pushing expansion in Asia and as a result, branches opened in Hong Kong and Japan three years ago, and Taiwan opened last year.

We have a very strong alliance with the auction house and one of our strengths is our reputable brand name and access to the world?s wealthy individuals. While some clients are auction clients, we do have our own client base, as well.

How were the last two years?

2011 was a very difficult year because of the earthquake and fear of radiation. Inbound business dropped off. However, after the March 11 disaster, some Japanese felt, probably for the first time in their life, that maybe they need a place to escape to if there is another disaster. That fuelled demand for real estate overseas. As a result, we saw good growth in the latter half of 2012.

Where are your Japanese clients looking to buy?

Hawaii is definitely No. 1. Singapore is very popular, also. For high-end Japanese clients, Europe is in demand ? Monaco, Switzerland, Paris. There is also interest in the Gold Coast in Australia and New Zealand. Our sales outside of Japan are heavily connected to whether there are direct flights to those destinations from Japan. But even if there isn?t a direct flight, our strength is our international network ? 600 offices in 45 countries. So we can help you with your real estate needs very quickly.

Who are your typical Japanese clients?

All ages, really, ranging from retirees to people in their 30s. Many of our clients buy real estate overseas for investment or they might go to stay there once or twice a year. Time share is a very big market for Japan. I would say that there are nearly 40,000 Japanese owners who have purchased Hilton and Marriot time-shares in Hawaii. That gives you some idea of how important a market Hawaii is.

What about your inbound business?

Many of our clients come from Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore. There are some Americans or Europeans married to Japanese, who are interested in buying property in Tokyo. While the demand is mainly for Tokyo, we do receive some inquiries for residences in ski areas such as Hakone, Karuizawa and ski areas such as Hakuba and Niseko.

Where do you see growth potential?

We wish to boost our business of selling more to foreigners in Japan. That?s why we have recently moved to this new office in Hiroo. Many foreigners recognize the brand name and often drop in. Our office is open seven days a week and we want to be more in touch with the foreign community. We are like a concierge and our experienced staff speak Japanese, English and Chinese.

We have a close relationship with our clients. When they are in Tokyo, they often drop in and have lunch and talk about the market, real estate. I think that is one of our unique points.

How do you market the brand?

Our head office issues a publication called Reside twice a year. The auction house has a publication eight times a year and they have a real estate section. Hong Kong has a publication six times a year and does direct mail to 20,000 wealthy individuals. Japan?s properties are included in all those publications. Besides that, we have editorial tie-ups with a number of Japanese publications. We use YouTube and Facebook, as well as our website.

More proactively, we started holding Hawaiian real estate seminars in December 2011. It turned out to be a very big success and we have since held seminars in Osaka and Nagoya, usually once every six months. The last one, which was a collaboration with CNBC/Nikkei, drew 160 people. Most were serious clients.

How do you find properties?

We have a strong relationship with developers and construction companies, so we keep up to date on the market. We also have a team who specialize in looking for available properties. There is a saying in this business that many properties become available due to the 3 Ds ? death, divorce and debt.

What is a typical day for you?

I show up around 9 a.m. After tending to emails, we have meetings. I am more involved in cross-border transactions because I have good connections all over the world from my JAL days. I often have lunches and dinners with clients. That is an important part of the job. Sometimes I work on weekends, if I meet foreign visitors and show them properties.

Search Sotheby`s International Reality Japan properties here.

Tokyo Apartments For Sale | Tokyo Apartments For Rent | Real Estate Japan

Source: http://www.realestate.co.jp/2013/01/28/luxury-homes-in-japan-with-sothebys-international-realty/

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Star Wars VII: The force is strong in J.J. Abrams

Disney confirmed that J.J. Abrams, of 'Lost' and the new 'Star Trek' movies, will direct the newest 'Star Wars' movie, set to be released in 2015. Abrams will consult with one of the writers from the original trilogy.

By Associated Press / January 26, 2013

J.J. Abrams arrives at the Winter TCA Fox All-Star Party at the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena, Calif., Jan. 8. Abrams is set to direct the next installment of 'Star Wars,' which Disney has said will be 'Episode 7' and due out in 2015.

Matt Sayles/Invision/AP/File

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It's official. The force is with J.J. Abrams.

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The Walt Disney Co. issued a statement Friday night confirming reports that had been circulating for two days that Abrams, Emmy-award-winning creator of TV's "Lost" and director of 2009's "Star Trek" movie, has been pegged to direct the seventh installment of the "Star Wars" franchise.

"J.J. is the perfect director to helm this," said Kathleen Kennedy, the movie's producer and president of Lucasfilm, which was acquired by Disney last month for $4.06 billion.

"Beyond having such great instincts as a filmmaker, he has an intuitive understanding of this franchise. He understands the essence of the Star Wars experience," Kennedy said in the statement.

The movie will have a script from "Toy Story 3" writer Michael Arndt and a 2015 release.

Lawrence Kasdan, who wrote "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" in the original trilogy, will work as a consultant on the new project.

Abrams has already headed the reboot of another storied space franchise, "Star Trek," for rival studio Paramount Pictures. The next installment in that series, "Star Trek: Into Darkness," is set to hit theaters May 17.

But he has long been known as a "Star Wars" devotee. Abrams spoke about the plot of the original "Star Wars" in the lecture series "TED Talks" in March 2007, and reportedly became enamored of "Lost" co-creator Damon Lindelof partly because Lindelof was wearing a "Star Wars" T-shirt when they first met.

In 2009, Abrams told the Los Angeles Times: "As a kid, 'Star Wars' was much more my thing than 'Star Trek' was."

In Friday night's statement he called it an "absolute honor" to get the job.

"I may be even more grateful to George Lucas now than I was as a kid," Abrams said.

Lucas himself said in the statement that "I've consistently been impressed with J.J. as a filmmaker and storyteller. He's an ideal choice to direct the new Star Wars film and the legacy couldn't be in better hands."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/CN1MzvGONDk/Star-Wars-VII-The-force-is-strong-in-J.J.-Abrams

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Israelis offer a 'Yom Huledet Sameach' to Ben Yehuda, resurrector of Hebrew language

Eliezer Ben Yehuda, who transformed Hebrew from the rusty language of ancient Israel and the Bible into the dynamic, dominant language of modern-day Israel, would be 155 years old today.

By Christa Case Bryant,?Staff Writer / January 8, 2013

This December, 2012 photo shows visitors at the Mahane Yehuda market, one of Jerusalem's free tourist attractions. Beyond its earthly past, Jerusalem has an impossible beauty with broad appeal. For residents and tourists, secular and religious souls, city slickers or nature lovers, there is always an unexplored alleyway, street corner or vista that will show you the city as you?ve never seen it before.

Ariel Schalit/AP

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If it weren?t for Eliezer Ben Yehuda, I wouldn?t be able to order ice cream, ask directions to the local furniture store, or discuss Gaza bombings in Hebrew.

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Since I?m a new journalist in Israel who happens to love ice cream and arrived here with only one piece of furniture to my name, that would be grave indeed.

So I for one am grateful for Mr. Ben Yehuda, who was born 155 years ago today in the Russian empire.

Legend has it that the man was not only brilliant, but a little crazy. And you would have to be, if you were planning to try to resurrect an ancient language after roughly 2,000 years and expect it to become the primary spoken language of a country that didn't even exist yet.

But the Sorbonne-educated Ben Yehuda did just that ??well before the state of Israel was founded in 1948, and even before Lord Balfour of Britain made his famous promise to the Zionists in 1917 to help establish a Jewish homeland.

Of course, Hebrew was the language of the Torah ? the biblical books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy ? as well as other religious writings. So many Jews were familiar with it. But they didn?t use it to talk about things like grocery shopping or even politics.

Where to start? With your family, of course. When Ben Yehuda arrived in Israel with his family, he banned his wife and children from speaking any other language. According to tradition, his family was the first to speak exclusively Hebrew in the home.

He also helped start schools and Hebrew-language newspapers, and published the first dictionary of modern Hebrew, often drawing on biblical words to coin modern terms. Ultra-Orthodox Jews pushed back hard, arguing that Hebrew is a holy language and not to be used to discuss the mundane. Many of them still prefer to speak in Yiddish when discussing daily affairs.

But Hebrew is nevertheless the dominant language in Israel today, although Arabic is an official language as well.

But I digress.

You were wondering about how to order ice cream, right?

G'lida. That?s your ticket.

Todah (thank you), Ben Yehuda.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/8b6aRSWoayI/Israelis-offer-a-Yom-Huledet-Sameach-to-Ben-Yehuda-resurrector-of-Hebrew-language

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MBAs play poker in Vegas to win job at Caesars

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, Mark Peters of Santa Clara University plays poker during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, Mark Peters of Santa Clara University plays poker during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, Jared Lerner of New York University plays poker during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.(AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, A player uses bullets as his good luck charm during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.(AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, Recruits play poker during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.(AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, Roderick Head, a graduate of the University of Memphis, plays poker during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.(AP Photo/Las Vegas Sun, Leila Navidi)

LAS VEGAS (AP) ? Forget the firm handshake and networking chit chat. Business students who want a job at Caesars Entertainment need to work on their poker faces.

Nearly 300 Master of Business Administration students and alumni anted up for a three-day Texas Hold 'em poker contest last weekend in hopes of hauling in a corner office. Hiring managers and corporate executives schmoozed with candidates during breaks in the action.

The annual MBA tournament on the Las Vegas Strip was little more than a marketing gimmick until last year, when Caesars decided to add cocktail hours and high-level interviews, said Tijuana Plant, who works in the company's human resources department.

Now, the event is a serious recruitment tool. The festive atmosphere and real-money stakes help the company screen for the critical thinking ability and social aptitude needed in the gambling industry, where business is often mixed with pleasure, Plant said.

"We like to see analytical people," she said. "Poker players are analytical and are willing to take strategic risk, and that is what we're looking for."

Caesars held a networking reception Friday and a two-hour presentation about its corporate culture Saturday. On Sunday, 20 lucky MBAs were invited to formally interview with casino bigwigs for a spot in the company's 10-week management trainee program, which pays $16,000.

Apprentices perform a variety of high-level jobs, including masterminding marketing strategies and working with general managers to troubleshoot on properties, Plant said. Last year, four of the 12 people accepted into the trainee program played in the tournament.

Students flew in from prestigious programs including Harvard Business School, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and the MIT Sloan School of Management. But executives were on the alert for nerds.

"We're not selling insurance. This is a fun industry, and we're selling a lifestyle," Plant said. "We're watching for whether they're not having a good time at all and just focusing on the job, or if they're having fun and looking for a job at the same time. It's kind of our test."

Caesars Entertainment Corp. operates more than 40 casinos around the world, including the Flamingo in Las Vegas, the Emerald Casino Resort in South Africa and Harrah's casinos around the country.

Ashish Gupta was among the students who interviewed Sunday. He said he lasted a few hours in Friday's tournament but spent most of the weekend making friends and learning about the casino industry.

"I just made my bid and had a good time," said Gupta, who is in his second year at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business. "I was not really stressed out about losing my buy-in. It was cool just meeting people in an environment where you wouldn't normally have that interaction."

Some aspiring business moguls who did not land interviews still walked away from the tournament at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino with cash prizes approaching $8,000. Candidates had to ante from $85 to $225 to enter the eighth annual tournament, depending on how much they hoped to win.

Caesars appears to be the only casino to pit potential hires against each other around a card table. But more companies are turning to this kind of "event recruiting" to compete for top candidates, though job seekers are not usually required to pay to play, said Emily Taylor, who teaches career management at UCLA's Anderson School of Management.

"I think it's a great strategy by Caesars," she said. "The economy is improving and we're starting to see firms trying to distinguish themselves in different ways."

Creative gambits also allow recruiters to establish a cultural match more quickly, said Lisa Feldman, executive director of MBA career management at the University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

Last fall, a division of Amazon.com Inc. sponsored a Friday-night party for Hass students, she said. Neutrogena Corp. invites students to write essays about skin care to win admission to a cocktail party. And one real estate investment management firm in Newport Beach, Calif., flies standout students to a golf tournament.

These events are designed to tell a story about the company, Feldman said, and the Caesars tournament told one, too.

"The gesture of having a buy-in kind of says, 'We're about real money," she said.

John Unwin, CEO of the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, which competes with Caesars, said his hiring managers also like to observe candidates interacting with one other, but they create those situations without a mound of chips.

He said poker fit more directly in Caesars' wheelhouse.

"They love poker. They own the World Series of Poker," he said.

The game also seems to have taken hold in MBA programs, with schools such as Wharton and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business setting up their own regular card games.

Plant said poker may one day eclipse golf as the preferred pastime of the business elite.

"It's becoming more of a way for people to interact with each other and discuss business in a casual setting," she said.

The MBA tournament candidates who end up landing casino jobs may not play again for a while, though. Caesars executives are banned from playing cards on company property.

___

Hannah Dreier can be reached at http://twitter.com/hannahdreier .

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-25-Recruitment%20Poker%20Tournament/id-f729f42e0dbc46bf94fcc290c2d5d742

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