Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Gigantic Radio Telescope to Search for First Stars and Galaxies

News | Space

The array could be the most complex and versatile radio telescope ever attempted, with the capacity to sweep the entire northern sky in 45 days for low-frequency radio waves


The giant LOFAR radio telescope network will be used, among other things, to take a close look at giant black holes like the one at the heart of active galaxy Cygnus A (shown here), which is about 700 million light-years from Earth. This image from LOFAR shows plasma jets from the black hole that stretch 2,000 light-years from the core of Cygnus A. Image: J. McKean and M. Wise, ASTRON

More than 20,000 radio antennas will soon connect over the Internet to scan largely unexplored radio frequencies, hunting for the first stars and galaxies and potentially signals of extraterrestrial intelligence.

The Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) will consist of banks of antennas in 48 stations in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe, all hooked up by fiber optic cables. Signals from these stations will be combined using a supercomputer, transforming the array into "perhaps the most complex and versatile radio telescope ever attempted," said Heino Falcke, chairman of the board for the International LOFAR Telescope.

Currently 16,000 of LOFAR's antennas and 41 of its stations are up, and the array will be completed by the middle of this year. All told, LOFAR will have a resolution equivalent to a telescope 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) in diameter. In addition, "it's an expandable design ? we can always come along later and add additional stations," said Michael Wise at ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy.

Since LOFAR is so large, it can scan large parts of the heavens ? its first all-sky survey, which started Jan. 9, can sweep across "the entire northern sky twice in just 45 days," said George Heald of ASTRON.

LOFAR is also very fast, capable of measuring events only five-billionths of a second long. In addition, the fact that LOFAR is essentially many different radio telescopes knit together means it can run, say, three different science projects simultaneously, Wise said.

The array is designed to monitor low-frequency radio waves, a largely unexplored part of radiation from the sky. One critical source of these radio emissions are extremely feeble signals from the cold hydrogen gas that dominated the cosmos during the so-called dark ages of the universe. As stars eventually came into being, they would have left scars on this hydrogen, and by analyzing how the radio signals from this gas changed over time, scientists can therefore learn much about how the first galaxies came to be. ?[Infographic Tour: History & Structure of the Universe]

"This is a pivotal phase in the early evolution of the universe, stretching from 400 million to 800 million years after the Big Bang," said Ger de Bruyn of ASTRON. "We'd like to know when exactly it happened, how it happened, how fast it happened."

LOFAR will also scan for artificial radio emissions as part of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). Past SETI missions focused on higher frequency radio waves, but perhaps alien civilizations preferred lower frequencies.

"LOFAR can do interesting SETI experiments," Falcke told SPACE.com. "In the next couple of years, we'll be trying it."

Low-frequency radio waves are also emitted around intensely powerful cosmic objects such as black holes, and investigating these could help scientists better understand the inner workings of these ferocious systems. For instance, when it comes to pulsars ? the highly magnetized and rapidly rotating neutron stars that can form after supernovas ? LOFAR can monitor radio emissions from within about 60 miles (100 kilometers) of the pulsar's surface, said Jason Hessels of ASTRON.

LOFAR will open its capabilities to astronomers internationally starting in May. Scientists at LOFAR detailed their work earlier this month at the 219th annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Austin, Texas.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=425aaf24fdfec051c22c6d6156fd4403

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Obama wants small business tax, investment breaks

(AP) ? Fleshing out a year-old initiative, the Obama administration wants Congress to enact or expand tax breaks for small businesses and remove barriers to startups, seizing on some existing bipartisan proposals that could win support even in the polarized climate of an election year.

White House officials say President Barack Obama will call on Congress Tuesday to pass legislation that, among other measures, would eliminate tax rates on capital gains for investments in small businesses and extend for a year the ability of all businesses to immediately deduct all of the costs of equipment and software purchases.

The legislative package, which will be part of Obama's 2013 budget proposal later this month, also would include a new 10 percent tax credit for small business that add jobs or increase wages in 2012. In addition, the legislation would make it easier for new startup companies to raise money and to go public. It also would expand a government small business investment program from $3 billion to $4 billion.

"The president has made small businesses and particularly start-ups a key aspect of his economic growth agenda because he understands how much the newest and fastest-growing small businesses drive job growth in our economy," said Gene Sperling, director of the White House National Economic Council.

The proposals borrow from past Obama initiatives and from bipartisan legislation that has either already passed in the House or is being proposed in the Senate. Obama's package includes proposals offered in the Senate by Democrat Chris Coons of Delaware and Republican Marco Rubio of Florida and another plan by Republican Jerry Moran of Kansas and Democrat Mark Warner of Virginia.

White House officials would not disclose the total cost of the president's package, but Sperling said it would be more than covered by proposals to reduce tax expenditures and by closed loopholes that the administration will call for in its 2013 budget.

With the presidential election set to become the main political preoccupation of 2012, the White House initiative is designed to take advantage of cooperative attempts by Republicans and Democrats to find modest remedies to spur the economy. Most of those efforts have been overshadowed by congressional bickering and by the Republican presidential primary and Obama's growing attention to his re-election.

The proposals come a year after the administration launched a consolidated effort to spur new start-up businesses with a high-profile White House event featuring scores of entrepreneurs, some of whom offered testimonials to the job creation possibilities that new businesses can bring to the economy.

Besides the tax breaks, a central element of the Obama package is to assist new entrepreneurs by making it easier for them to raise money, reduce taxes on their startup expenses, and removing securities barriers for new companies that have gone public.

"Our small business agenda has a specific focus on removing the barriers that have for too long blocked start-ups and entrepreneurs from getting the financing they need to accelerate their growth and hiring." Sperling said.

One of the Obama provisions would increase the amount of money that can be raised through small public offerings that don't require companies to undergo an extensive Securities and Exchange Commission registration process. The limit for such "mini public offerings" would increase from $5 million a year to $50 million.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-30-Obama-Business/id-3929926b922843979a2685e5e43f9f8f

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Monday, January 30, 2012

ClockworkMod touch recovery released as beta

ClockworkMod Touch

Just weeks after we saw our first "unofficial" release of a touch version of the popular ClockworkMod custom recovery, developer Koush has put forth a beta version of his own, available for download now. 

For you new folks, a custom recovery is an indispensable way to back up your device as well as install new custom ROMs and updates, among other little hacky things. Until recently, it's been controlled by using the volume up/down buttons to scroll through the menus, and (usually) the power button to select. 

This touch recovery still has volume select, but now the touchscreen works, and works well. We've got some hands-on video after the break, and you can snag it from the download links below.

Download CWM Touch beta: Galaxy Nexus (GSM and CDMA), Nexus S (GSM)
More: +ClockworkMod

read more



Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/qOEUzIFa5mk/story01.htm

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Hands on with the Jot Touch, a pressure sensitive stylus by Adonit

The folks at Adonit have been working hard on their new product, the Jot Touch, a pressure sensitive stylus with a built-in antenna and a free SDK kit for drawing


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/wwTWPW0bwTA/story01.htm

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Sunday, January 29, 2012

Barrier proposed as Israel border?

Israel is proposing to essentially turn its West Bank separation barrier into the border with a future state of Palestine, two Palestinian officials said Friday, based on their interpretation of principles Israel presented in talks this week.

The officials said Israeli envoy Yitzak Molcho told his Palestinian counterpart that Israel wants to keep east Jerusalem and consolidate Jewish settlements behind the separation barrier, which slices close to 10 percent off the West Bank. They spoke on condition of anonymity, citing strict no-leaks rules by Jordanian mediators.

The proposal would fall short of what the Palestinians seem likely to accept, especially because it would leave Jerusalem on the "Israeli" side of the border.

But it would also mark a significant step for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has spent most of his career as a staunch opponent of Palestinian independence.

And if talks advance in such a direction, it could also spell the end for his nationalist coalition, where key members would consider the abandonment of most of the West Bank ? a strategic highland and biblical heartland ? an unforgivable betrayal.

Israel has confirmed that it presented principles this week for drawing a border with a Palestinian state. But the politically charged nature of the talks ? even though they were held at a relatively low level, below that of Cabinet ministers ? was reflected in the guarded refusal by any top official to discuss details.

An Israeli government official said that as far as he knew, the information was incorrect, but declined to elaborate or go on the record, citing Jordan's demand for discretion.

Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor, one of the closest Cabinet ministers to Netanyahu, said he has been supporting such an offer for months, and that Israel should concentrate on preserving the large West Bank settlement blocs, close to the pre-1967 border. But he could not confirm whether the offer was in fact made.

"I do not know if (Molcho) said these words exactly, but it would be great," Meridor told The Associated Press.

The Palestinian officials ? one a senior member of the leadership ? said Molcho told the Palestinians that Israel wants to live peacefully beside a Palestinian state.

It would be the most detailed offer yet from Netanyahu on how much he wants to keep of the lands Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast War ? the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem.

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The Palestinians want to establish their state in virtually all of these lands ? although they do seem ready to accept minor adjustments, through land swaps in which Israel keeps some of the largest settlements.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is certainly unlikely to consider a proposal that keeps east Jerusalem under Israeli control. The eastern sector of the city is home to key Jewish, Muslim and Christian sites.

And Israel's position, as described by the Palestinians, is less than what was offered by Netanyahu's predecessors, Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert, who were willing to discuss a partition of Jerusalem as well.

About half a million Israelis settled in east Jerusalem and the West Bank after 1967, including tens of thousands east of the barrier.

Israel started building the barrier in 2002, in the midst of a Palestinian uprising that included scores of deadly attacks by Palestinian militants who crossed from the West Bank into Israel and blew themselves up among civilians.

Israelis have generally credited the barrier ? along with other punitive measures ? with stopping the spate of incursions several years ago.

However, it was routed in a way that raised questions about Israel's claim that it was a temporary security measure ? weaving through the West Bank, looping wide around some settlements to leave room for expansion, and looking very much like a border a future Israeli government might argue for. The Palestinians condemned it from the start as a land grab.

Story: Israel senses bluffing in Iran's retaliation threats

The Palestinian officials also said that Molcho portrayed the Jordan Valley, which makes up about one-fourth of the West Bank and borders Jordan, as a strategic Israeli security asset. However, that wording suggests less than a demand for firm territorial control.

Netanyahu has said he wants a continued Israeli presence on the eastern border of a future Palestinian state as part of any peace deal.

Netanyahu has long argued Israel needs the area as a security buffer ? protection against possible attack from the east.

The 1994 peace treaty with Jordan eased this concern ? but the Arab Spring has given it new life: although it is almost never discussed by officials, mindful of riling Jordan, many in Israel ponder a nightmare scenario in which the Jordanian monarchy falls to Israel's enemies, who then pour weapons and militants into the West Bank, reaching within miles (kilometers) from its major cities.

A senior Israeli military official said last week the Israeli army had to consider in its planning the possibility of heightened threats from east of the West Bank.

Israeli officials have said any presence in the Jordan Valley could be reviewed over time.

Abbas, meanwhile, is under growing pressure from the Quartet of Mideast mediators ? the U.S., the U.N., the EU and Russia ? to continue the talks with Israel, which began earlier this month. The Quartet had asked the sides to present detailed proposals on borders and security arrangements.

The Palestinians argue that the period set aside for the contacts ended Thursday, or three months after the Quartet issued its marching orders. Israel says the intention was to have three months of talks, and so wants meetings to continue.

Abbas will consult Monday with senior officials from the Palestine Liberation Organization and his Fatah movement. Later next week, he will also seek advice from the Arab League.

___

Perry reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46166579/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

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Friday, January 27, 2012

Gay actors still worry that coming out will hurt careers (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES, Jan 26 (TheWrap.com) ? There's still a celluloid closet in Hollywood.

Gay actors are far more open about their sexuality with friends and co-workers, than their agents, according to a new survey by the British trade union Equity.

Only 57 percent say that they are openly gay with their agents. Despite the success of gay and lesbian actors like Neil Patrick Harris, Jane Lynch and Ian McKellen, the indication seems to be that actors and actresses fear that their choice of roles will be affected if they come out of the closet publicly.

Rupert Everett, once eager to become the next James Bond, has for years spoken frankly the price he's paid for being openly gay, lambasting Hollywood as "very, very conservative" in a late 2010 interview.

He said that he didn't blame those who chose to remain in the closet, calling it "very sensible."

McKellen, Lynch, Harris and others have made great strides for the gay community and frequently play straight people on television and in movies, but there are no A-list film stars who are openly gay. Rumors have swirled for years about the sexuality of major stars such as Jodie Foster, but so far the actress has avoided any explicit public declarations.

At this year's Golden Globe awards, host Ricky Gervais riffed on the those rumors, and the title of Foster's recent film, "The Beaver."

"I haven't seen it myself," Gervais said. 'I've spoken to a lot of guys -- they haven't seen it either, but that doesn't mean it's not good."

Beyond a reticence to broadcast their sexuality, 35 percent the actors surveyed said they have experienced homophobia in their professional lives.

"I have never felt that being gay has worked against me but the finding in Equity's own survey that just under half of all gay performers are not out to their agent in the U.K. is worrying," Malcolm Sinclair, actor and president of Equity, said in a statement. "But then work is scarce and, whether sexuality is a barrier or not, people may just err on the side of caution. They don't want to test the water to see if it's all right."

The same anxiety does not appear to exist among co-workers. Ninety four percent of those polled said they are honest about their sexuality with their fellow performers and 81 percent were out in their professional lives.

(Editing By Zorianna Kit)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120126/people_nm/us_gayactors

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Senate Democrats promise to push Obama tax agenda (AP)

WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama's Democratic allies in the Senate promised Wednesday to press ahead this year with legislation drawn from his plans to require millionaires to pay at least 30 percent in taxes and curb tax preferences for companies that ship jobs overseas.

Senate Democratic leaders promise votes soon on such tax "fairness" initiatives, which were a key theme of Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night. They include the so-called Buffett rule, named after a recommendation by billionaire financier Warren Buffett ? who benefits from a low 15 percent tax rate on investments ? that he be required to pay a higher rate than his secretary.

The Democratic drive would follow the ongoing push to renew the payroll tax cut, a debate that has broken in Democrats' favor as House-Senate talks began this week. The initiative is laced with politics, coming immediately after GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney revealed that he pays an effective tax rate of less than 15 percent despite income exceeding $20 million a year.

"The president's blueprint for restoring economic fairness for the middle-class will be the basis of our agenda for this year," said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Schumer said the decision by Republicans to embrace the payroll tax cut last year despite widespread reservations within the party bodes well for the upcoming debate.

"Don't underestimate our chances of success," Schumer said.

Both Democrats and Republicans embrace the idea of reforming the tax code but they differ over whether it should be done in a way that generates greater overall tax receipts as Democrats demand or whether it should be "revenue neutral" as most Republicans would like.

Among the ideas endorsed by the Democratic leaders Wednesday was Obama's proposal to require millionaires to pay a higher minimum tax rate, deny corporations the ability to completely avoid taxes and reward companies that create jobs in America instead of shipping them overseas.

"Nothing is more important to Congress than reducing income inequality," said Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

On a campaign swing in Florida, Newt Gingrich said Obama's proposal for a 30 percent tax rate for millionaires "would be a disaster of the first order."

Added Gingrich: "It would double the capital gains tax. Doubling the capital gains tax would lead to a dramatic decline in the stock market, which would affect every pension fund in the United States."

___

Associated Press writer Brian Bakst in Doral, Fla., contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_el_pr/us_democrats_taxes

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Thursday, January 26, 2012

Monster to cut 400 jobs (Reuters)

(Reuters) ? Online recruitment firm Monster Worldwide Inc said it will reduce its global workforce by about 7 percent and forecast a first-quarter profit below analysts' estimates amid a weak job market in the United States.

Shares of the company, which also reported fourth-quarter profit that missed expectations by a cent, fell 13 percent in premarket trading on Thursday.

"The progress we saw in the fourth quarter was much slower than what we saw earlier in the year," Monster CEO Sal Iannuzzi told Reuters in an interview.

The uncertainty in Europe and the United States is causing companies to hold back and not commit as much as they would normally, he said.

The staffing sector -- seen as a barometer of economic health -- has been hit by a slowdown in Europe and an uncertain recovery in the United States, where the unemployment rate currently stands at 8.5 percent.

Iannuzzi does not expect a material change to the job market for the time being.

The company will cut about 400 jobs and consolidate some office facilities, and expects to record a pre-tax charge of $30 million to $40 million mostly in the first quarter.

Monster forecast first-quarter profit to be breakeven to 4 cents a share, lower than analysts' estimates of 9 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company, which runs the Monster.com recruiting website, expects revenue to fall 3 to 7 percent in the first quarter and bookings to drop 6 to 10 percent.

Its fourth-quarter profit was 11 cents a share and revenue was $250 million. Analysts were expecting 12 cents a share and $258.9 million.

(Reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi in Bangalore; Editing by Maju Samuel, Supriya Kurane)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/internet/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120126/wr_nm/us_monsterworldwide

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Student Senate Finance Committee will update, clarify Budget Code ...

How student organizations obtain funding for travel expenses will be reviewed this semester, along with several other changes, as the Student Senate Finance Committee updates the 11-year-old Student Senate Budget Code.

Finance Committee chairman Josh Dean said members of the committee are altering the Budget Code, Article VIII of the Student Senate Rules and Regulations, to make its structure and language clearer for the student body. The committee also intends to take record of rules that are currently in practice but have never been written down.

?The last overhaul of the budget code took place in 2000, and people have made lots of amendments, and many rules have been changed,? Dean said. ?Right now, the rules are very confusing for people.?

One such rule is item 8.2.5.6.1, which says, ?No funds from student fees shall be allocated or apportioned to any corporation, organization, or group for travel expenses.? Organizations are able to apply for an exemption to this rule, but requirements for the exemption are not written in the code and currently need to be interpreted by the Finance Committee.

Article 8.2.5.6.1

?No funds from student fees shall be allocated or apportioned to any corporation, organization, or group for travel expenses.?

Source: Student Senate Rules and Regulations, last updated in 2000

Any student organization can apply for the exemption with a bill that must receive two-thirds of the vote in the Finance and Rights committees before going to the Senate for another two-thirds vote.

?The big test we use is, ?Is travel vital to the existence of your group?,?? Dean said about any organization seeking a travel exemption.

If the general answer is yes, the organization may be eligible for an exemption. Another parameter the committee looks at is if the organization is inclusive to all students, Dean said.

While these specifications have been the unofficial benchmarks for a travel exemption for many years, at least one student organization has not agreed with the committee?s answer to that question.

Engineers Without Borders, a student organization that participates in engineering projects around the world, applied for a travel exemption in November. It was denied, because the Finance and Rights committees thought it was an organization that could exist without travel.

Rights Committee chairman Aaron Harris ruled out the proposed exemption for Engineers Without Borders, because he thought the organization wasn?t completely inclusive.

?We can?t fund a group that charges dues to its members,? he said. ?If a group wants funding, it must be open to all students, not those who pay.?

But the leader of Engineers Without Borders contends that the group is still inclusive by being open to all KU students from any major.

?We have other majors besides engineering that travel with us,? said Mary Adams, the president of Engineers Without Borders.

The travel exemption request was brought to a vote in the Finance Committee, but didn?t receive the two-thirds vote to move onto the Senate. Adams said she thought the bill was rejected because Engineers Without Borders doesn?t participate in competitions like some organizations with the exemption, and because it was compared with other organizations that didn?t have the same travel requirements.

?To exist as a chapter we have to travel in this case, but to exist as a member in the chapter, you don?t have to travel,? she said.

Dean said the committee discussed that the organization doesn?t participate in competitions and that most group members don?t travel when the committee made its decision.

Engineers Without Borders was hoping to take about eight people to Bolivia to build latrines for underdeveloped areas, but are now taking fewer people, Adams said. The organization has applied for funding in previous years, but was also denied then.

?The fact that they?ve been around without (student fee) funding shows they can exist,? Harris said.

Clarification of the rules and regulations about funding may help organizations better determine if they should put resources into providing exemption requests.

?I think it would be very beneficial to be more clear about that,? Adams said about the Finance Committee?s review of the Budget Code.

According to Dean, members of the Finance Committee are currently reviewing the student-fee portion of the Budget Code, but he estimated the committee will start reviewing the part related to travel exemptions in March.

? Edited by Corinne Westeman

Source: http://www.kansan.com/news/2012/jan/24/finance-committee/

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Hollywood mourns loss of Indie film visionary (omg!)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The film community is mourning the death of Indie veteran Bingham Ray on Monday following a stroke.

Ray was only 57 when he died after suffering a stroke at the Sundance Film Festival.

Head of the San Francisco Film Festival when he died, Ray had been a co-founder of October Films, and later headed United Artists.

October was folded into USA Films, which later became Focus Features. And on Monday, James Schamus, CEO of Focus Features, mourned the loss of his fellow indie veteran.

"All of us at Focus are blessed to know that Bingham -- the very definition of an independent spirit -- is part our DNA," Schamus said in a statement to TheWrap. "If anyone could claim paternity of us, it would be he.

"I wish, on behalf of all my colleagues here, I had something meaningful and resonant to say, but the loss is too sudden and too great -- I simply refuse, at least for this one day, to speak of Bingham in the past tense."

"It's a tremendous loss," Joe Pichirallo, a former producer who is now undergraduate chair of the Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film & Television at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, told TheWrap. "He will be remembered for his charm, wicked humor and his passion for films. No one was more passionate about films than Bingham."

One of the first things Pichirallo did upon joining NYU was ask Bingham to teach strategies for independent film producing.

"I knew he'd be a great teacher because he has been a great mentor, and I'm so glad he had that opportunity," Pichirallo said.

Eddie Schmidt, the Academy Award-nominated producer of the 2006 "This Film Is Not Yet Rated," remembered Ray as "a protector and defender of artists and their visions."

He said that Ray was "tenacious and adaptable to the times as things change in the industry, and those are qualities that are rare."

Ray appeared in "This Film Is Not Yet Rated," in which he said, describing the MPAA ratings board, "I'm going to use the F-word. It's a fascist system. I believe it's a fascist organization."

Schmidt recalled the movie's premiere at, in fact, the Sundance Film Festival.

"He was there," Schmidt said, "and he slapped me on the back and said, 'Way to go,' and that was actually very meaningful."

In an email to TheWrap, the critic Roger Ebert said that "at every festival I attended, Bingham was always there, always friendly, never rushed, always curious, always searching for good films. He had good taste, and sometimes was more optimistic about a film's box office prospects than its makers were. Outside the business, people like Bingham Ray are below the radar, but any movie lover checking his credits at IMDb would realize they had many reasons to be thankful to him."

"I am shocked and heartbroken by his passing," said Chris McGurk, who knew Ray for 20 years. "He was a brilliant, supportive voice for independent film and we will all miss him dearly," he told TheWrap. "His passion, fire and spirit will live on inside all of us who knew him and whose lives he touched. My heart goes out to his wife, Nancy, and his family.

McGurk, now the CEO of Cinedigm Corp., is the former vice chair and COO of MGM and the former president and COO of Universal Pictures. While at MGM, he brought Ray on as president of United Artists. When he was at Universal, that company bought October Films.

Rick Allen, the CEO of SnagFilms and Indiewire -- where Ray was a consultant -- said in a statement that "the film world knew him as a fierce champion of artists, always looking for new ways to spotlight their work and increasing their freedom to create it. At SnagFilms and Indiewire, we knew this track record when we asked Bingham to join us and help chart the next phase of our growth."

He added, "What I did not know until we had the chance to work together was how brilliant, honorable and hysterically funny Bingham Ray was."

Allen said that Ray "taught all of us the context for our efforts -- the history of independent film in and before our time. ... He infused everything with his unquenchable passion for film, filmmakers and the audiences who love them. And he made us laugh very, very hard and often."

Teri Schwartz, dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, called Ray "a true visionary" who was "universally respected by the entire filmmaking community. He was a friend, supporter and mentor to so many filmmakers. His remarkable intellect, generous spirit and passion for films will be sorely missed."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/omg_rss/rss_omg_en/news_hollywood_mourns_loss_indie_film_visionary015716558/44280088/*http%3A//omg.yahoo.com/news/hollywood-mourns-loss-indie-film-visionary-015716558.html

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The Note's Must-Reads for Wednesday, January 25, 2012 (ABC News)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/191241990?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Tuesday, January 24, 2012

The NAO Headlamp Is Just as Bright as You Need It [Video]

Conventional headlights never seem to be the right brightness—you're either high-beaming oncoming traffic or peering into murky darkness. This new headlight from Petzl is designed to give you just enough bright for the ambient amount of light. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/OrjDr1I_-so/the-nao-headlamp-is-just-as-bright-as-you-need-it

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Rap group 2 Live Crew to reunite, tour this summer (AP)

PARK CITY, Utah ? The rap group that inspired controversy in the early 1990s with songs like "Me So Horny" is reuniting and hitting the road.

Luther Campbell says 2 Live Crew is back together and will tour this summer.

The rapper and producer made the announcement Saturday at the Sundance Film Festival, where he is promoting his appearance in the short film "The Life and Freaky Times of Uncle Luke."

Campbell describes the film as "an art piece" that he did to help young filmmakers who were inspired by his hip-hop work.

Campbell says he "just can't wait to just start practicing" with his old crew. But don't expect them to be "As Nasty As They Wanna Be."

Campbell says the group will "perform the songs and everybody's going to be excited."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_en_ot/us_film_sundance2_live_crew

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Monday, January 23, 2012

RolePlayGateway?

THE DETAILS

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Recruiting: Up to 8 roleplayers

PPD(Post Per Day): 1 PPD

Characters Per RPer: 2

________________________________


Plot
In this roleplay, a small group of angels, and a small group of demons are sent down to Earth for 4 days in human form to prove themselves, and the ranks that they possess. They are to complete their own tasks, given to them specifically. Most angels are sent to save a life, or guide another human back to goodness. While most demons are sent to do the exact opposite. But when each of the chosen ones begin to cross paths(Angels and Demons), sparks begin to form, and everyone ends up with the wrong one. As the four days pass, they eventually learn their new "lovers" are supposedly their enemy, they begin to worry, while hiding their relationships become hard and harder to do. If the Absolute, or the Seraphim were ever to learn of this, a violent war could break out, and things will being to "fall".

Scenarios are found below.

Scenarios

Scenario 1:

The demon is sent down to take an innocent person's life, already knowing his victim, he immediately goes after her. The victim ends up coincidently being the highest rank sent down of the angels, while the angel knows she's supposed to save a life, she never gets a feeling of who. In the end, it was her own life she was to save. As the demon begins to fall in love with the angel, he finds it harder and harder to complete his task. Will he kill her? Or will his love for her take over?

Characters Needed:

Female Angel of higher rank: Taken
Male Demon of higher rank:

Scenario 2:

A demon is sent into the Between Realm to find the Demon Prince a new slave. As he found a girl/boy and thought that he/she is suitable for the position he reported back to the prince and was told to collect that girl/boy in 4 days. When he comes back to the Between Real to collect he/she, he begins to fall for her/him? Will he disobey the Demon Prince or will he take the girl/boy he loves back to the Demon Realm to become a slave?

Characters Needed:

Female Human: Taken
Male Demon: Taken

Scenario 3:

Involving an angel taking the life of an innocent rather than saving it, while the victim had supposedly been the demon's to kill. This draw's the two together.

Characters needed:

Male Angel: Taken
Female Demon: Taken

Scenario 4:

He is sent to do the impossible - to redeem a demon. He has 4 days to do it. Unfortunately or fortunately, in those 4 days, he helplessly falls in love with the demon he is supposed to redeem... Will he, an angel, turn his back to his kind and go with his mate or will she/he, a demon, be successfully redeemed by an Angel's love?

Characters Needed:

Male Angel: Taken
Female Demon: Taken

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Sunday, January 22, 2012

[OOC] Supplement

Forum rules
This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.

Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!

This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?Supplement?. Anything posted here will also show up there.

Topic Tags:

Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.
This is the auto-generated OOC topic for the roleplay "Supplement"

You may edit this first post as you see fit.

User avatar
Lost Socks
Member for 0 years



Hello, hello. Your friendly neighbor Nabu here, to express interest in this rather interesting Roleplay of yours... It's a pleasure to meet you, Lost Socks. I think your nickname will be Socksy. Because I like it like that. Or Socksi. Or iSocks. Yeah, haha. I love it, this sounds good. I'd like to join this a lot. But, I wanted to ask, whether I'd have to create a big character profile, because... I feel like this Roleplay would work really well if we let our characters develop within the Roleplay!

Anyway, just wanted to say, I want in.

EDIT: When I say big character sheet, I mean really descriptive.

User avatar
Nabu
Member for 0 years


Well that depends on what you would call really descriptive. I don't call for a lot of information, if that's what you're wondering. As long as you aren't incredibly vague then we shouldn't have any problems. :D And I like Socksy. ^^

User avatar
Lost Socks
Member for 0 years


Great, then we'll have no problems! And, good, I'm glad you like it.

User avatar
Nabu
Member for 0 years



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Experts see tough road for Kodak to reinvent self

An unidentified person enters Kodak Headquarters in Rochester, N.Y., Thursday, Jan. 5, 2012. Eastman Kodak Co. said early Thursday Jan. 19, 2012 it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as it seeks to boost its cash position and stay in business. (AP Photo/David Duprey)

An unidentified person enters Kodak Headquarters in Rochester, N.Y., Thursday, Jan. 5, 2012. Eastman Kodak Co. said early Thursday Jan. 19, 2012 it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as it seeks to boost its cash position and stay in business. (AP Photo/David Duprey)

(AP) ? Even in bankruptcy, Kodak boasts some enviable strengths: a golden brand, technology firepower that includes a rich collection of photo patents, and more than $4 billion in annual sales of digital cameras, printers, and inks.

But all that may not be enough to revive its declining fortunes in a Chapter 11 overhaul. Kodak is at a crossroads: It could go the way of fallen Montgomery Ward and Circuit City, two corporate names that never recovered from long declines. Or Kodak could prosper after bankruptcy like General Motors.

Of the many restructuring experts interviewed by The Associated Press on Thursday, none are optimistic that Kodak can make a strong comeback.

Selling select business lines and patents and making the right bets on a limited number of new technology products could allow the Eastman Kodak Co. to survive, several experts said. But none see a path back to anything close to the glory days of the former photography titan.

"You can pick your metaphor: 'Stick a fork in them,' 'They're over the cliff' -- they're done," said Bill Brandt, chief executive of turnaround consultant Development Specialists Inc. in Chicago. "The Kodak as we know it is done, unequivocally."

The company's only hope, Brandt said, is to reinvent itself as an intellectual property company. But first it will have to put its patent portfolio up for sale and determine whether it wants to sell them based on what's offered, he said, or retain them and try to remake the company over a period of years.

Kodak said only that it has appointed a chief restructuring officer to head the effort: Dominic DiNapoli, vice president of FTI Consulting. It expects to complete its U.S.-based restructuring next year.

Whatever the company does now is likely to be too little, too late, said Gary Adelson, managing director of turnaround firm NHB Advisors in Los Angeles.

"I can't imagine a big future for Kodak," said Adelson, who thinks the company should just sell its assets. "I think it's going to be another one of those companies that didn't make the transition to the future."

Some experts think the company can get by once it cuts debt by reducing pension and employee benefit costs in bankruptcy, then disposes of its least valuable products.

Only a much leaner, more focused Kodak can survive, said Haresh Sapra, an accounting professor and bankruptcy specialist at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. "They probably should go back to basics and focus on one or two of those business lines that are self-sustaining," he said.

The primary hope lies in digital businesses that generated some $4.5 billion in revenue last year, an amount Kodak said accounted for about 75 percent of total sales. That includes consumer devices such as self-service photo kiosks, printers and high-volume document scanners.

"If they can take their existing products and improve them and make them much cheaper, I see no reason why the company can't emerge with a healthier balance sheet," said Edward Neiger, a partner at New York bankruptcy law firm Neiger LLP. "It's going to be a shell of what the old company was, but I don't think they need to liquidate."

In a statement accompanying the Chapter 11 filing on Thursday, the company touted its "pioneering investments in digital and materials deposition technologies" in recent years.

The best-case scenario for Kodak in the long run may be to end up like Polaroid, suggested Eli Lehrer, who heads the nonprofit Heartland Institute's Center on Finance, Insurance and Real Estate in Washington. The company long known for its instant-film cameras stopped making them and filed for bankruptcy in 2008. The Polaroid name, however, lives on under private ownership, albeit as a much smaller firm.

Kodak has a better brand name, Lehrer said, although "That doesn't necessarily translate to people keeping their jobs, or stockholders keeping anything."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2012-01-19-Kodak-How%20to%20Fix/id-5e56f30adb12480f94fa07a0c4cc141d

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Saturday, January 21, 2012

Christy Turlington Burns: All People Are People (Tout Moun Se Moun)

This blog is part 1 of a 5 part series on Partners in Health (PIH) and their work in Haiti.

Erin and I flew down to Haiti late last week to visit our friends at Partners in Health (PIH) and their local affiliate Zanmi Lasante. One week ago today marked the 2nd anniversary of the devastating earthquake that tragically took over 300,000 lives and left one million others displaced. January 12th is now a national day of remembrance, marked by widely held memorials and heavily attended church services honoring those whom did not survive. Having arrived in this near, yet still distant, country for the first time during a period of such significant reflection had only naturally revealed our own feelings of apprehension about how we'd find the people of Haiti in the aftermath of such an event.

It was not long ago when we stood by in utter shock, praying for the well being of the Haitian people from afar not knowing how best to give more through the many organizations who were on the ground. And while the once ensuing whirlwind of daily media attention and public interest has died down to a near halt, the earthquake itself will continue to confront the future of Haitian life, forever remaining a persistent memory of a nation. Conditions were difficult long before the earthquake hit, which brought with it nothing more than an exacerbated state of disruption and unfamiliar affront to existing challenges. But the undying strength we observed within the Haitian people as they fight back was all but discouraging. And as we learned more about the hard work of Haiti's many committed partners who are helping them to do just that, we too became equally inspired. Among those supporting partners is an organization called Partners in Health, also known as Zanmi Lasantein, of which started its work in Canges, Haiti 25 years ago. Zanmi Lasante was established as a community-based health project created to deliver health care to the people living in the country's mountainous Central Plateau region.

2012-01-19-CentralPlataeu.jpg


Dr. Paul Farmer, a current professor at Harvard Medical School, is one of the founding partners of Zanmi Lasante. Last year I was invited to join HMS's Global Health Council, and it was in this capacity that I was offered an opportunity to visit Haiti -- the place where the PIH model was first put into action. Today their work spans across ten countries, including the U.S.

2012-01-19-DSC_0246.jpg


The following is only but a portion of what PIH sets out to accomplish in their mission.

Our mission is a preferential option for the poor in health care. By establishing long-term relationships with sister organizations based in settings of poverty, Partners In Health strives to achieve two overarching goals: to bring benefits of modern medical science to those most in need of them and to serve as an antidote to despair. We draw on the resources of the world's leading medical and academic institutions and on the lived experience of the world's poorest and sickest communities. For more info, click here.

After spending four days on the campus in Canges, we were given the chance to see many of the organization's regional activities and to grasp a more in-depth vision of what they do on a global scale. And we were fortunate to be there at a time when Dr. Farmer and some of the best and brightest from his core team were also present in the country. Over the next few days we'll be posting a series to share more about what we learned, so stay tuned...

Christy Turlington Burns, Founder, Every Mother Counts

Erin Thornton, Executive Director, Every Mother Counts

Every Mother Counts on Facebook

Christy In Bangladesh

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Follow Christy Turlington Burns on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@CTurlington

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christy-turlington/haiti-earthquake-recovery_b_1214697.html

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US moves up 1 spot to 33rd in FIFA rankings

updated 12:20 p.m. ET Jan. 18, 2012

ZURICH - World and European champion Spain retained the top spot in the FIFA rankings for the fifth straight month, and the United States moved up one place to 33rd.

The Americans' ranking is its highest since it was 31st in September. The U.S. had been 11th in September-October 2009 and reached a high of fourth in April 2006.

The top 10 places were unchanged from December after just 11 international matches were played last month. The Netherlands is second, followed by Germany, South American champion Uruguay, England. Brazil, Portugal, Croatia, Italy and Argentina.

Mexico, at 21st, has the top ranking in North and Central America and the Caribbean.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Police say a man was shot and killed at the hotel hosting the U.S. women's soccer team during the Olympic qualifying tournament.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/46042169/ns/sports-soccer/

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Friday, January 20, 2012

Explore The advantages Of Automotive Repair service Shop ...

With no automotive restore shop software package,scores of restore centers will identify it difficult to try and do their work for the reason that car devices and functions happen to be computerized,thereby doing it challenging for your previous methodology of making use of manuals and charts to keep up together with the servicing and restore desires from the modern day vehicles.

A number of car restore centers right now are experiencing the benefits of automotive restore shop software package and doing far more plus much more earnings. The benefits are several and functions are carried out at a a lot of swifter price.

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Automotive Repair service Store Software package Choosing Tips and hints

Previously you?re taking the move of purchasing automotive restore shop software package,you?d probably must appear all over for your preferred one which will go well with the kind of work you are engaging in. A person factor is a number of,whatever you are engaging in,and every last component of one?s actions is often automated and manufactured improved and swifter.

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Will not be deceived by acquiring high priced softwares with characteristics that you?d not desire,it really is mere squandering of resources,you?d probably must make price comparison over the a number of styles on the net to acquire a suitable 1.

Some softwares can come with demos for your test and evaluation,take advantage of this,it will eventually assistance to learn how it is operating,that which you are making use of could very well be a lite edition,but you then may have the proper facts must know. This evaluation copy can instantly fill the gap during this area.

Try to test the demo edition from the software package,it really is crucial in your case to learn beforehand regardless if it could definitely complement the work you are engaging in with your car center. When you are income strap and you also is unable to manage to pay for the 1 you have a preference for,you could consider to lease it,it will give sufficient time for you to test operate the complete edition and identify regardless if you certainly will go forward to order.

Look and feel for vendor with sturdy right after choose purchaser services,as site you might not be capable of get it operating suitable for the starting,and most likely your workers may possibly should be educated well before they might deal with it,all of these you must ascertain well before you buy.

If you?re able to identify and site install the proper automotive restore shop software package you could make certain of moving to a greater ground with your car restore enterprise.

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Source: http://pentesters.org/explore-the-advantages-of-automotive-repair-service-shop-computer-software/1422/

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