Saturday, December 31, 2011

Occupy protesters arrested at Paul, Democratic HQ (AP)

DES MOINES, Iowa ? Police arrested more than a dozen Occupy protesters Thursday in Iowa who are targeting Democrats and Republicans just days before the state's closely watched lead-off presidential caucuses.

Five protesters were arrested outside the Iowa campaign headquarters of presidential contender Ron Paul in Ankeny before the group moved on to the Iowa Democratic Party headquarters in Des Moines, where 12 more were taken into custody. All were ticketed for trespassing and released.

The protests are part of an Occupy the Caucuses effort launched this week in Des Moines that has attracted activists from around the country. Many of them have promised to interrupt campaign activities, and organizers promised more confrontations on Friday with campaign offices of Republican presidential hopefuls.

Occupy the Caucuses spokeswoman Danielle Ryun, who was among those arrested at the state Democratic Party headquarters, said the goal is not to be arrested. But since campaign officials won't listen to them, protesters are willing to be arrested to get their message across, she said.

"It would be great if we could show up, issue our concerns and have the candidates acknowledge us and change their platform," she said.

Those arrested in Des Moines included a 14-year-old girl who was released to her father at the scene. On Thursday, seven protesters were arrested outside Republican Mitt Romney's Des Moines headquarters.

Iowa Democratic Party Executive Director Norm Sterzenbach said the protesters were given the opportunity to express their opinions and party officials listened to their concerns, but he said occupying the party offices was unacceptable.

"Not only does it interfere with the important work that our volunteers and staff do to engage Iowans in the political process, by physically blocking our staff from entering or exiting the building sets a very dangerous precedent," Sterzenbach said in a statement.

Protesters at Paul's campaign headquarters were protesting his proposal to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency if elected.

Ryun said the Paul campaign headquarters were locked when protesters arrived. By locking their doors, campaigns "are signaling to us that they have become disengaged," Ryun said.

A telephone message left for a Paul campaign spokesman was not returned.

At the Iowa Democratic Party's offices, protesters targeted President Barack Obama, demanding that he put a stop to home foreclosures, turn down campaign donations from Wall Street, and end indefinite detentions of detainees at Guantanamo Bay.

"They're all going to get equal play on this," Ryun said. "We are very disillusioned with every candidate."

Eight protesters were arrested at the party's offices on Dec. 19.

Police in Des Moines and Ankeny said the protesters were given the option of leaving and told if they refused they would be arrested. Police said the arrests were peaceful and no force was used.

The Occupy movement began in New York and has spread across the country. Activists generally protest the growing gap between rich and poor and corporate influence over government.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/democrats/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111230/ap_on_el_pr/us_occupy_arrests_paul

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Friday, December 30, 2011

Ohio urban mayor to be sworn in for 7th term

Ohio urban mayor to be sworn in for 7th term
December 29, 2011 05:52 EST

Thursday, instead of Tuesday. Will be updated from swearing-in,

scheduled to begin at 12:15 p.m. EST.

AKRON, Ohio (AP) -- The mayor in office since 1987 in one of

northeast Ohio's major cities will be sworn in for his seventh

term.

Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic (pluhs-KWEHL'-ihk) takes his oath of

office early Thursday afternoon in the lobby of the Akron Civic

Theatre.

The Democrat already has served longer than any mayor in the

city's history. He survived a recall vote two years ago and won

re-election in November by a nearly 3-1 ratio.

Plusquellic has said he wants to keep fighting for Akron

residents.

Source: http://www.abc6onyourside.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.oh/2ab8991c-www.abc6onyourside.com.shtml

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Soccer: OU names new men's coach


By Staff and Wire Reports


Matt Potter, who has taken Washington State to the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four years, has been named the fourth head coach for the University of Oklahoma men's team. In nine seasons, Potter's teams were 88-69-26, including five double-digit win seasons.
Other Tulsa World OU Stories


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Source: http://www.tulsaworld.com/site/articlepath.aspx?articleid=20111228_92_B2_Mtotrh997712&rss_lnk=92

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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Longform?s Guide to the Best War Stories of 2011

?A second SEAL stepped into the room and trained the infrared laser of his M4 on bin Laden?s chest. The Al Qaeda chief, who was wearing a tan shalwar kameez and a prayer cap on his head, froze; he was unarmed. ?There was never any question of detaining or capturing him?it wasn?t a split-second decision. No one wanted detainees,? the special-operations officer told me. (The Administration maintains that had bin Laden immediately surrendered he could have been taken alive.) Nine years, seven months, and twenty days after September 11th, an American was a trigger pull from ending bin Laden?s life. The first round, a 5.56-mm. bullet, struck bin Laden in the chest. As he fell backward, the SEAL fired a second round into his head, just above his left eye. On his radio, he reported, ?For God and country?Geronimo, Geronimo, Geronimo.? After a pause, he added, ?Geronimo E.K.I.A.???enemy killed in action.?

?Hearing this at the White House, Obama pursed his lips, and said solemnly, to no one in particular, ?We got him.? ?

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=8e8371257dfc6b971e49372a93ffec7d

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[OOC] Trained 2 Kill

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Hacker builds allegedly pointless data network out of Lego train set

How can we appreciate bullet-quick SSDs and fiber networks without pausing -- at the year's end -- to appreciate where it all came from? We should think back to before the birth of modern computing, even before the telegraph, to a time when bits of data were forced to travel everywhere by train. A hacker named Maximilien has now recreated that locomotive golden era using Lego, Arduino and Linux, and what his system lacks in bandwidth it more than makes up for in historical relevance. A USB flash key is borne by miniature railway carriage from station to station, stopping at each one to unload or pickup information and thus creating its own barebones networking protocol. Click the source link to appreciate the full museum piece.

Hacker builds allegedly pointless data network out of Lego train set originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Dec 2011 09:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceHackaday  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/27/hacker-builds-allegedly-pointless-data-network-out-of-lego-train/

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Greece: Top prosecutor probes Turkey-arson claim (AP)

ATHENS, Greece ? Greece's top prosecutor on Tuesday ordered an emergency inquiry into a Turkish newspaper report that Turkish government-funded agents set forest fires in Greece in the mid-1990s.

The Birgun newspaper quoted former Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz as making the allegations. But Yilmaz said he had been misquoted and that the allegations were untrue.

Greece's Supreme Court prosecutor Yiannis Tentes launched an emergency inquiry, ordering investigations reopened into mid-1990s wildfires blamed on arson, while the Foreign Ministry said it was seeking an official response from Ankara.

"Information that has been published and attributed to former prime minister of Turkey Mr. Yilmaz by the Turkish press is serious and should be investigated," Greek ministry spokesman Gregory Delavekouras said in a statement. "The Greek side expects to be informed by the authorities of Turkey."

Tensions between traditional rivals Greece and Turkey were running high at the time referred to in the newspaper report, with the two countries coming to the brink of war in 1996 over disputed sovereignty of a tiny island in the Aegean Sea. The two NATO allies have since improved ties.

Yilmaz, who served as Turkey's prime minister three times during the 1990s, was quoted by the newspaper as saying he had not been briefed by his predecessor in office, Tansu Ciller, on covert state-funded operations that included a "forest retaliation against Greece."

He later told reporters he had been misquoted and had been referring to unsubstantiated reports of Greek involvement in Turkish forest fires.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111227/ap_on_re_eu/eu_turkey_greece

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Monday, December 26, 2011

Take a sleigh ride on the space station

Are these the scenes that Santa sees on Christmas Eve? This compilation of NASA clips is based on imagery from the International Space Station.

Alan Boyle writes

One of the most enjoyable parts of Santa's job must be to see the world from on high on Christmas Eve ??but thanks to the astronauts on the International Space Station, we can get a similar view on video. Over the past year, the space station's night flights have produced some fantastic pictures of city lights and auroral displays. This video puts together some of the latest clips posted to NASA's Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth.

You're actually looking at five time-lapse clips, strung together for a west-to-east journey:


? The first five seconds are from a trip heading up the U.S. East Coast on Dec. 11, with bright city lights strung up all the way from Boston to New York to Philadelphia to Washington. You'll notice a green auroral glow in the upper left corner.

? The northern lights are the main attraction in the clip running from 0:05 to 0:25. This was the view looking north on Dec. 11 as the station was heading from Nova Scotia to northern Italy.

? Our virtual sleigh travels over Africa, Europe and Asia from 0:25 to 0:50, with the camera pointed toward the northeast. Among the sights from Dec. 4 are the Iberian Peninsula and north Africa, England and France, the Baltic Sea, Moscow and central Russia,?and atmospheric airglow that gives way?to the beginnings of sunrise in the east. Once again, there's a taste of northern lights in the upper left corner.

? The next clip, from 0:50 to 1:13, chronicles an Oct. 21 pass that begins at the coast of France and heads?right across?Europe. A couple of lightning flashes can be seen over Italy, then the space station makes its way across Turkey and onward to the Arabian Peninsula.

? My favorite part of the trip runs from 1:13 to the end, and takes in a swath of our planet from Central Asia to South Australia. This video was assembled from pictures taken during the space station's night flight on Oct. 29. Here's how the folks at?NASA's Johnson Space Center describe the view:

"The video begins just northwest of the Tibetan Plateau, where the greenish glow is from airglow. The line separating the plateau and the city lights to the right of track are the Himalaya Mountains, with cities like New Delhi, Lahore, and Islamabad standing out. Continuing down track, one can spot the brightly lit city of Calcutta just right of track before flying over Burma and Thailand. Thailand's capital city, Bangkok, is the brightest-lit city in the video. The white lights of the city can be seen nearby the green and purple lights on the Gulf of Thailand, which are fishing boats and oil rigs. Once across the Gulf of Thailand, cities like Kuala Lumpur and Singapore stand out right of track before flying over the island of Java (long, thin island downtrack from Singapore). Near the end of the video the ISS flies southeast over Australia and lightning storms, and the Milky Way can be seen rising in the sky."

There's no soundtrack for the video, but feel free to play Christmas music in the background. You?could fire up some?"Space Age Santa Claus," or take a listen to the first live music broadcast from orbit: "Jingle Bells." Archive.org has the audio recording from?1965's Gemini 7/6 mission. The harmonica and jingling bells come in around 2:10 in the clip.

And now for something completely different: Check out this?sleigh ride over Mars:

Take a virtual sleigh ride over the real landscapes of Mars, courtesy of NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Looking for more night flyovers??Here's a sampling:

And if there's anything you've missed from the Cosmic Log Space Advent Calendar, here's your chance to catch up. We'll present our final image from the calendar on Christmas Day:


Alan Boyle is msnbc.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter and adding the Cosmic Log page to your Google+ presence. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.??

Source: http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/23/9667988-holiday-calendar-sleigh-ride-in-orbit

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Markets edge higher despite lackluster US data (AP)

LONDON ? European markets closed higher Friday ahead of the Christmas break even though a batch of disappointing U.S. economic figures reined in some of the recent optimism over the state of the world's largest economy.

Figures showing that consumer spending and personal income rose by a modest 0.1 percent in November were below market expectations, while the headline 3.8 percent increase in durable goods orders last month masked a decline in a crucial investment measure, benefiting from big orders for Boeing aircraft.

The figures offset some of the optimism in markets about the U.S. economy following a run of largely positive data. Since Thursday, investors have taken heart from figures showing that the number of initial jobless claims in the U.S. unexpectedly fell 4,000 last week to 364,000, the lowest level since April 2008.

Those figures had raised hopes that the U.S. economy got through its soft patch earlier this year and may be poised for stronger-than-anticipated growth in the fourth quarter.

"This doesn't change the overall view too much but it is somewhat deflating," said Jennifer Lee, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets.

That was evident in the markets, where stocks in Europe gave up many of their earlier gains and Wall Street opened lower than predicted in futures markets. Trading activity was muted as the traditional holiday slowdown began in earnest.

In Europe, Germany's DAX closed 0.5 percent higher at 5,878.93 while the CAC-40 in France rose 1 percent to 3,102.09. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares, which only traded for a half day, closed up 1 percent at 5,512.70.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.6 percent at 12,246 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose the same rate to 1,262.

Trading was fairly lackluster in the currency markets too, with the euro down 0.1 percent at $1.3048 and the dollar 0.1 percent lower at 78.09 yen.

While the U.S. economy has been the dominant driver in markets the past couple of days, Europe's debt crisis is likely to remain the key market focus next year.

There were reminders Friday of the underlying problems afflicting the 17-nation eurozone.

Figures showed that eurozone banks stashed euro347 billion ($453 billion) overnight with the European Central Bank on Thursday, in another sign that Europe's debt crisis is still putting pressure on the banking system despite massive central bank support. The figure announced Friday is the highest for 2011, topping euro346.4 billion earlier this month.

The large deposits come despite Wednesday's massive central bank credit operation, in which the ECB let banks borrow as much as they wanted for up to 3 years. As a result 523 banks took euro489 billion, the largest ECB loan operation in the 13-year history of the euro.

Earlier in Asia, China's benchmark in Shanghai gained 0.9 percent to 2,204.78 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.4 percent to 18,629.17. Japan's financial markets were closed for a public holiday.

Oil prices tracked equities higher ? benchmark crude for February delivery was up 44 cents to $99.97 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

____

Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111223/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets

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Sunday, December 25, 2011

Todder4News: I just ousted Matthew S. as the mayor of V. Mertz on @foursquare! http://t.co/WK2zVQuq

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Saturday, December 24, 2011

Video: Payroll Tax Deal: Defeat for GOP?

CNBC's Eamon Javers has the details on a two month tax agreement reached in Congress, reaction from the House, with Rep. Rob Andrew, (D-NJ), and Rep. Michael Burgess, (R-TX), and the winners and losers in the standoff, with Jared Bernstein, fmr. chief ...

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/cnbc/45771164/

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El Tribunal Supremo confirma la condena a Jacobo Pi?eiro por el asesinato de dos muchachos gays en Vigo

M?s de un a?o y dos meses despu?s de que la Audiencia de Pontevedra emitiera sentencia, que fue confirmada despu?s por el Tribunal Superior de?Xustiza de Galicia (TSXG), el Tribunal Supremo ha confirmado la pena de 58 a?os?de prisi?n por dos delitos de asesinato y otro de incendio?impuesta a Jacobo Pi?eiro por la muerte de Isaac P?rez y Julio Anderson, dos muchachos gays.

La Sala de lo Penal del Supremo ha desestimado el recurso interpuesto por la defensa de Pi?eiro. El texto de la sentencia,?que?se conocer? en los pr?ximos d?as, confirma la resoluci?n del TSXG, que consider? que el recurso estaba ?completamente hu?rfano de fundamentaci?n?, tanto por?las atenuantes invocadas de ?miedo insuperable, trastorno mental transitorio y superaci?n de una situaci?n l?mite que le hac?a temer por su vida? como porque los motivos formulados ?carecen de amparo procesal?.

El asesinato de Isaac y Julio ocurri? en 2006 en Vigo, pero no fue hasta octubre de 2010 que un?jurado conden? a Jacobo Pi?eiro y consider? probado que este asest? 57 pu?aladas a las v?ctimas con el objetivo de causarles la muerte y que adem?s aument? ?deliberada e inhumanamente? el dolor de ambos. El jurado descart? que Pi?eiro actuara en leg?tima defensa, bajo efecto de las drogas o el alcohol o bajo un miedo insuperable, eximentes que ya entonces ped?a la defensa.

Se trataba, sin embargo, del segundo juicio a Jacobo Pi?eiro. En 2009,?un primer?jurado popular lo hab?a absuelto?al considerar que mat? a los dos j?venes en ?defensa propia? y movido por un ?miedo insuperable?, y s?lo lo encontr? culpable de un delito de incendio. Posteriormente, el TSXG anul? la sentencia y orden? la repetici?n del juicio con un nuevo jurado.

Source: http://www.dosmanzanas.com/2011/12/el-tribunal-supremo-confirma-la-condena-a-jacobo-pineiro-por-el-asesinato-de-dos-muchachos-gays-en-vigo.html

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Friday, December 23, 2011

Bogle: Time for speculators to pay fair tax share (AP)

John C. Bogle counted himself among the 1 percent of wealthiest Americans a couple decades ago. You might not guess that today, when you hear the 82-year-old founder of mutual fund company Vanguard rail against economic inequality.

He can sound almost like an Occupy Wall Street protester: "Our markets have gone crazy, and there is 200 times as much speculation as there is investing," he says.

It has been 15 years since the low-cost investing pioneer stepped down as CEO of Vanguard. It was Bogle who launched the first index mutual fund in 1976. Vanguard Group has since grown into the largest fund company, managing nearly $1.7 trillion in U.S. fund assets.

Bogle remains wealthy, but his income is a fraction of what he earned when he ran Vanguard. He's paid a modest retainer to run Vanguard's Bogle Financial Markets Research Center, a think tank in Valley Forge, Pa.

He resists a label that applies to most people his age: "I'm so far from retired, it's almost an embarrassment. I'm here in the office every day." He's also writing his 10th book, "The Clash of Cultures: Investment vs. Speculation." And he continues to deliver speeches.

Bogle says he's paying close attention to tax policies he considers unfair, including one that's favorable to the fund industry and investors with taxable accounts. The top rate for dividends and long-term capital gains is historically low at 15 percent, as a result of the extension of Bush era tax cuts that Congress and President Barack Obama agreed to a year ago. In contrast, top earners pay 35 percent on regular income. He doesn't like that disparity.

Here are excerpts from a recent interview with Bogle:

Q: What do you think about the ongoing discussion over tax fairness?

A: I believe the rich should pay more, but that's not a good platform for tax policy. What has gone wrong is that we've failed to recognize the difference between earned income and unearned income. Is it really fair for gamblers on Wall Street to pay a 15 percent rate when they make a winning investment, and an honest working person ? a bricklayer for example ? may pay an equal or higher tax on their wages than a gambler? That's absolute absurdity.

Rates may have to be changed, but we also need to look at what is taxed, and how. Dividend income should be taxed at the same rate as ordinary income. As for capital gains, there ought to be some distinction between capital made by people who start businesses, and contribute value to society, and capital made by gamblers on Wall Street, some of whom win. Earned capital income should carry the regular dividend rate, but capital income gains by trading, and particularly short-term trading, should pay a higher tax, even than the present ordinary income rate.

Q: What's your take on the Occupy movement?

A: I'm happy to say that my current income puts me in the 99 percent group. So maybe I'm not so happy, I don't know.

This movement has brought to the surface some very serious problems in our country about disparities in opportunity and income. So many young people are having a terrible time getting a job.

Young people have great idealism, and the Occupy movement has been a bit unrealistic at times. So what? I can't imagine a worse America if our younger generation didn't have great idealism. I salute them for their enthusiasm, and their mission.

The negative side is that they just pushed too hard for too long. It's very difficult for any movement without any seeming leadership ? other than a good idea ? to have any sense of taste or judgment. Who's to say, `This is going too far'? In some places, it's just gone on too long, and it's been too disruptive. So I think it's good that we've been cleaning up the plazas where the Occupy movement set up.

Q: What's the focus of the book you're writing?

A: That our financial system has gone off the rails. It's something we think of as providing capital for new businesses, that will enable people to finance new companies or add to the capital of existing companies. We do that to the tune of about $200 billion a year in financing through Wall Street, or through the financial system. And yet we do some $40 trillion worth of trading every year. I'm selling my investment to you, and you're buying it from me, and it creates no value for society. Indeed, it subtracts value, because the guy in the middle gets his piece.

Many mutual funds turn over 100 percent of their portfolios each year. When I got into this business, it was maybe 18 percent a year. It's amazing. This industry is a big part of the problem. What we need is a transfer tax on trading. We need to tame the trading and speculative element in our financial system.

Q: What's your investment outlook heading into 2012?

A: If you're investing in stocks with idea of a one-year outcome, you should not invest. You can lose a lot. If you invest in stocks with a five-year outlook, I would think it is highly debatable if you should do that. You have to think about more than just the probabilities of a market crash. You have to consider the consequences for your savings, and whether you'd be decimated.

As for bonds, with interest rates and yields so low now, you just have to take those for what they are ? a lot lower than what they have been historically.

With the economy, I'm cautious. I don't expect a boom in consumer spending over the next two or three years. People don't have the wherewithal to spend a lot more, and in today's world, they don't have the confidence. Confidence can change overnight, but wherewithal cannot.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111222/ap_on_bi_ge/us_of_mutual_interest_bogle_q_a

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Thursday, December 22, 2011

North Korea mourns Kim Jong Il; son is 'successor' (AP)

PYONGYANG, North Korea ? North Koreans marched by the thousands Monday to their capital's landmarks to mourn Kim Jong Il, many crying uncontrollably and flailing their arms in grief over the death of their "Dear Leader."

North Korean state media proclaimed his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, a "Great Successor," while a vigilant world watched for any signs of a turbulent transition to the untested leader in an unpredictable nation known to be pursuing nuclear weapons.

South Korea's military went on high alert in the face of the North's 1.2 million-strong armed forces following news of Kim's death after 17 years in power. North Korea said Kim died of a heart attack on Saturday while carrying out official duties on a train trip. President Barack Obama agreed by phone with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak to closely monitor developments.

On the streets of the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, people wailed in grief, some kneeling on the ground or bowing repeatedly. Children and adults laid flowers at key memorials.

A tearful Kim Yong Ho said Kim Jong Il had made people's lives happier. "That is what he was doing when he died: working, traveling on a train," he said.

Other North Koreans walked past a giant painting of Kim Jong Il and his late father, national founder Kim Il Sung, standing together on Mount Paektu, Kim Jong Il's official birthplace. Wreaths were neatly placed below the painting.

"How could the heavens be so cruel? Please come back, general. We cannot believe you're gone," Hong Son Ok shouted, her body shaking wildly during an interview with North Korea's official television.

A foreigner who teaches at a university in Pyongyang told The Associated Press that students told about Kim's death looked very serious but didn't show any outward emotion.

"There was a blanket of silence," said the teacher, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of worries about his security. "People were going about their business. Lots of people were lining up to lay flowers at official portraits. People looked a little stunned and very serious, but composed and respectful."

"He passed away too suddenly to our profound regret," said a statement carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. "The heart of Kim Jong Il stopped beating, but his noble and august name and benevolent image will always be remembered by our army and people."

He was 69, according to official records, though some reports indicate he was 70.

North Korean state media fell short of calling Kim Jong Un the country's next leader, but gave clear indications that Kim Jong Il's third son, who is believed to be in his late 20s, would succeed his father.

The North said in a dispatch that the people and the military "have pledged to uphold the leadership of comrade Kim Jong Un" and called him a "Great Successor" of the country's revolutionary philosophy of juche, or self reliance.

The death could set back efforts by the United States and others to get Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions, because the untested successor may seek to avoid any perceived weakness as he moves to consolidate control.

"The situation could become extremely volatile. What the North Korean military does in the next 24-48 hours will be decisive," said Bill Richardson, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who has made several high-profile visits to North Korea.

The death comes at a sensitive time for North Korea as it prepares for next year's 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung. The preparations include massive construction projects throughout the city as part of Kim Jong Il's unfulfilled promise to bring prosperity to his people.

Seoul and Washington will worry that Kim Jong Un "may feel it necessary in the future to precipitate a crisis to prove his mettle to other senior leaders," said Bruce Klingner, an Asia analyst at The Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington.

North Korea conducted at least one short-range missile test Monday, a South Korean official said. South Korea's military sees the firing as part of a scheduled routine drill, instead of a provocation, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of a policy that bans commenting on intelligence matters.

However, Konstantin Makienko of the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies said the test "undoubtedly is connected to the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il."

"Its goal is to show the world that ... the armed forces of this country now are completely battle-ready and will react to any development," he told the Russian news agency RIA-Novosti.

North Korea conducted two nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 and is thought to have enough plutonium for at least a half-dozen weapons. But experts doubt the North has mastered the technology needed to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile.

In Seoul, residents worried about instability in the North. A parliamentary official, Lee Kyu-yun. said he was thinking of stocking up food in case of soaring military tensions.

Lee Byung-joon, 27, feared South Korea might have to fight a war against the North if high-ranking officials challenge the inexperienced Kim Jong Un.

"I definitely think the chance of war breaking out between the South and the North is higher now than before," Lee said.

Some analysts, however, said Kim's death was unlikely to plunge the country into chaos because it already was preparing for a transition. Kim Jong Il indicated a year ago that Kim Jong Un would be his successor, putting him in high-ranking posts.

"There won't be any emergencies in the North, at least in the next few months," said Baek Seung-joo of the state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses in South Korea.

Another analyst said an internal power struggle could break out between Kim Jong Un and his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, who was elevated in the government last year and likely will be given a caretaker role in the new administration

"Tension will arise between Jang and Kim Jong Un, because Kim will have no choice but to share some power with Jang," said Ryoo Kihl-jae, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, which is in South Korea.

The North said it would place Kim's body in the Kumsusan memorial palace in Pyongyang and that his funeral would be Dec. 28. No entertainment will be allowed during an 11-day mourning period, and the country will accept no "foreign delegations hoping to express condolences," it said.

South Korea's President Lee urged his people to remain calm while his Cabinet and the parliament convened emergency meetings. The Defense Ministry said the South Korean military and the 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea bolstered reconnaissance and were sharing intelligence on North Korea. Lee also talked with the leaders of Japan and Russia.

The Obama administration called Monday for a peaceful and stable leadership transition in North Korea.

The United States is still looking for better relations with the North Korean people despite the "evolving situation" there, said U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. "We both share a common interest in a peaceful and stable transition in North Korea as well as ensuring regional peace and stability," she said.

However, U.S. officials said Kim's passing and assumption of power of his son, Kim Jong Un, will likely delay anticipated developments on resuming nuclear disarmament talks with the North and supplying the nation with food aid.

The administration had been expected to decide on both issues this week. The officials said the U.S. was particularly concerned about any changes that Kim's death might spark in the military postures of North and South Korea, but were hopeful that calm would prevail.

In a special broadcast Monday from the North Korean capital, state media said Kim died on a train due to a "great mental and physical strain" during a "high intensity field inspection." It said an autopsy was done Sunday and "fully confirmed" the diagnosis. Kim suffered a stroke in 2008.

___

Associated Press writers Jean H. Lee in Pyongyang, Foster Klug, Hyung-jin Kim, Sam Kim and Jiyoung Won in Seoul and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111220/ap_on_re_as/as_nkorea_kim_s_death

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Monday, December 19, 2011

SEC Charges Fannie, Freddie Executives With Fraud Over Risky Mortgages

NEW YORK - Securities regulators sued former top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Friday, saying they misled investors over exposure to risky mortgages.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued three former executives at Fannie Mae and three at Freddie Mac, including former chief executives of both companies. The civil charges were filed in two separate lawsuits.

The SEC said both firms have agreed to cooperate with the agency and have entered into non-prosecution agreements.

Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have been propped up by about $169 billion in federal aid since they were rescued by the government in 2008.

(Reporting by Basil Katz, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/16/fannie-freddie-sec_n_1153603.html

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Sunday, December 18, 2011

Russia investing in victory at home Olympics ? RT

The Russian Olympic Committee has invested more than $12 million in 2011 alone into the national sport federations as the country hopes to win big at their first-ever Winter Games, in Sochi 2014.

?According to top officials, the ultimate goal for Russia is to finish first in terms of gold medals at the Black Sea resort.

?We?ve invested around $12 million into various sports federations so far,? Akhmed Bilalov, Russia?s Olympic Committee vice-president, said. ?This money was allocated, in the first place, to financing foreign specialists, cutting-edge technology and scientific research. And we?ll keep up our support in the future so that athletes have access to top level trainers and equipment."

"But the most important thing for us is not just to invest money but to get a result in the end,? he added.?? ?

Canada have provided a shining example and a tough act to follow after the North American nation prevailed at their home Olympics last year.

The Vancouver Games also witnessed the sharp decline of perennial powerhouse, Russia, who could manage only 11th in the overall table.

Source: http://rt.com/sport/olympic-939/

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Saturday, December 17, 2011

Why Hitchens Became an American

I asked Christopher not long ago if he had felt, at the time that he made his decision to move to America, that in England there was always something holding him back. He had indeed felt something like this, although I cannot say I always felt it was for good reasons. Christopher, from the time that I knew him at Oxford, was always a brilliant speaker and debater, and in conversation incomparably interesting and engaging. I regularly turned to him before writing on any political subject, for that jumpstart he could administer so well. Anyway, we were meeting and talking all the time, when we were both in England.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=ad51a82b3422f582d66eaac4c8f0d98c

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Friday, December 16, 2011

RolePlayGateway?

Statistical Elements in Roleplaying

When you are playing in a text-based roleplay, there are very few persistent measures used to track progress. Even the simplest implementation of a health system can greatly affect the way players will approach a situation, especially if it could result in a serious injury or fatality for the team. Adding levels of proficiency for tools or weapons could greatly affect the way characters will be utilised in combat, rather than rushing in and fighting simply with a whirl of words, or perhaps a way of having only certain characters, or item strengths, being able to use/break key objectives.

Of the many people I have spoken to, the vast majority do not support the idea of widespread implementation of such systems, believing that this would restrict play, and be too time consuming for all.
If handled in reasonable sized groups by a regularly active GM, this shouldn't be too much of a problem - having a reliable second GM popping in wouldn't do any harm, as long as they conduct themselves in the same way as the first. By "reasonable sized", I mean a handful of players, five or six at most.
GMs would take a narrator's role/DM role, describing the features of the landscape, and key objects of interest. It would also be their job to control the "spawning" of NPC/Enemies, as any GM/DM would. Once your world has been built to your satisfaction, this is no different to how you would normally go about it, unless you normally allow the players to create the environment....

So let's take a looksie at some possible arrangements to add simple statistics to your RP.

MAKING A CHARACTER SHEET
First thing's first - health. You might not want to put this in, but I see it as a basic tool for character progression. It will change often, and GMs need to be active to keep it up to date with the action.
So, if you are on RoleplayGateway, and you are using your standard Roleplay Tab RP, go into the characters tab, and quickly assign each character a number. (doing this now may save you time later)
Now, let's go to OOC, and open a new thread. Give it a name, such as "Character Sheets" or "Character Stats" or something similar, and list all active characters in the RP, preceded by their number on your list - be sure to leave at least 2 lines between characters, ie,

1. Jonah Barrie

2. Michelle Evans

3. .... etc.

That's not too difficult, is it? You now have the start of a usable character sheet. Congrats!
If you want, you could make the name of the character a hyperlink to the character?s profile, but that?s just an option.

Now we've made a start, let's get some figures. If you are using character "classes", you may want to implement pre-defined starting health as suits the type of character, ie, a strong warrior-type will likely have more health than a physically-weaker mage, and so forth. How you set up classes is up to you, if you set them at all.
Example of class health differences. Standard warrior class could start with 100hp. A mage would have lower health at maybe 80hp, and a berserker/brute type could have 120/130/140/..... who knows? It's all up to you.
If you want players to free-build their character, you may have their values calculated manually, whether it's using dice, or a generator, or whatever. It all depends on what you want as a standard base reference for health.
Example of health calculation for a character is to roll two dice, and add 12 to the total. Character's minimum 'initial' stat would be 14, but a possible maximum of 24.
It is up to you how you wish to set them - I'm not forcing any idea upon you.

So now you've got those numbers, be sure to add them into our "Character Sheet" thread, preferably on the line below the name. Remember to label it consistently - if you put HP: in front of the stat for one character, do so for all.
Also, if you've gone with the class system, you may want to note the character's class on the same line as their name and number.

Example:

1. Jonah Barrie (Warrior)
HP: 100/100

2. Michelle Evans (Mage)
HP: 100/100

3. ... etc.

MANA
A common accompaniment to a health system is Mana (magic) or MP - you are more likely to be familiar with the latter, especially if you've played any MMORPGs. Mana is used to cast magic or use magic weapons - useful for preventing Mages powerplaying.
This could be integrated in a very similar way, with a more dominant level given to mages/spellcasters/druids on this one (this stat is very much theme based, and really only applicable to those in fitting with the fantasy genre). How you set this is up to you. Remember, the stat you provide as the maximum initial character value for a stat will determine the stats for enemies - would you have your character's first battle be against a 75HP Goblin, when you only have maybe 20HP at max?
My own preference for Mana stats is to make the most basic spell cost 1 point to use, and work up from there. If you don't want to spend all the time making spell lists and the like, I may make up a template one for public use, which you can edit or add to as required. As a base level, I'd recommend giving mages 20MP, and the melee classes lesser. Classes that lend themselves to range should be somewhere in between, by the traditions I know of. Again, what you think is right for you is what you should roll with. You may have no MP at all for non-mage types if you wanted.
Once (if) you've calculated/assigned MP stats, you can add them on a new line under the HP stat for that character.

SKILL
Next up, is a variable for determining how likely you are to win a round of combat. Some sources refer to this as a skill level, or power level. In D&D, it's similar to AC in a way. This variable which I will refer to as SKILL, is an integer that will help us with the combat system. How you wish to calculate it is up to you. For most situations, I've found that rolling a single die and adding 6, or rolling 2 die and adding 6 will give a close range of decent starting values for new characters, but again, it all comes down to what sort of maximum skill you want. In my experience, lower values work better depending on how you wish to calculate battle results. Again, how you perceive the difference between physical combat and magical combat is up to you, and it's up to you if you show any bias towards either skill.

DAMAGE
Lastly for our basic character stats, a Damage variable. Ideally, this should be the damage caused by the weapon - you can add modifiers (detailed later!) in addition, but this should show the base damage of the current weapon. It also will help greatly if you put down the name of the current weapon as well. Like everything so far, try to keep it in context with the HP stat - giving a starting character a weapon that does 100 damage per strike in a world populated with enemies no higher than 50hp would make that character overpowered by a long shot. From here, it is also a possible next step to add a critical strike chance (a percentage) - the likelihood of doing more damage with a weapon than normal - this is perhaps a little complex for some, but you could easily use a random number generator to decide.
Note: If the weapon will use Mana, be sure to note the cost of it so you don't forget it.
Example of MP, Skill and Damage in our character sheets):

1. Jonah Barrie (Warrior)
HP: 100/100
MP: 10/10
SKILL: 10
DMG: 8 (Rusty Iron Longsword)

(continued...)

2. Michelle Evans (Mage)
HP: 80/80
MP: 20/20
SKILL: 10
DMG: 14 (Staff of Wind - Costs 2MP)

3. ... etc.

ENEMIES
Now, the thing about these stats is, they aren't very useful without any input from the GM. Just like you designed the world and all its features, it is up to you to design the enemies, including their health, the damage they will do, some variable affecting their chance of winning a round of combat (skill?), and chances of landing critical strikes (if added to player characters as well). You can do this per individual enemy, or set generic data for any instance of that creature, ie, you could have every Goblin in your world with the same stats.

This will take time to create a deadly library of creatures to throw at your players, so don't panic. You may want to go with a more relaxed approach, and create creatures as you progress, if the time to sit down and make a list is not at hand. Remember, your players are an asset - don't throw them straight in with high-damage or high-health creatures - ease them in, and even then keep major enemies toned down, so that they are actually beatable - hope and a fair chance to beat an enemy is what will keep your players interested in battling.

If you want to allow players to see the stats of enemies, you could make a new thread in OOC, titled "Enemy Stats" or similar, and write up details. A template is shown below (very weak creature, or very weak instance of this creature):

1. Goblin
HP: 10/10
SKILL: 3
DMG: 5 (Claws)
CRIT: 5%

If you don't, you could save the stats to a word document, lay them out in a database file, or, if you have a Co-GM (or two), you may want to put it on a pad of some sort for collaborative additions/editions.

COMBAT
So, now we have our character stats and our enemy's stats sorted. Now, it?s time for battling. My examples are set with my own preference in mind - it?s up to you how you go about this.

Let?s imagine a battle between my character ?Jonah Barrie? and one of our generic goblins.

1. Jonah Barrie----------1. Goblin
HP: 100/100--------------HP: 10/10
MP: 10/10 ----------------MP: -
SKILL: 10-----------------SKILL: 3
DMG: 8 (R.I. Longsword)--DMG: 5 (Claws)

For the purposes of this style of combat I?ve chosen, we are going to calculate the stats simultaneously, and I will add that combat situations should be either be forewarned by the GM or initiated by a player character. It?s best if you and your players agree on a manner of posting, that indicates what the character intends to do in any given round of combat.

The system this example revolves around is simple. Two dice are rolled for each player. Each player?s dice roll is added to their Skill variable, forming one final attack strength. This way, a higher skill will make you more likely to win, but not guaranteed unless you are at least 12 skill points higher than your opponent.

For example:

Jonah rolls a 4 and a 6 (making 10). This is added to his Skill, giving him a final attack strength of 20.

The Goblin rolls the same, 4 and 6 (10). This is added to its skill of 3, giving it a final attack strength of 13.

The result is that Jonah wins the round, and deals damage equal to his DMG stat, in this case, 8.

The Goblin, although it has lost 8HP, is still able to fight (it still has 2HP left), and so we move on to the next round. The system repeats in the same way until one party flees or is defeated. GMs may have some enemies retreat before reaching 0HP - especially if it is a persistent boss that pops up every now and again, growing stronger every battle (kinda like ??? in the Pokemon series xD).

Make sure you record damage to players as it happens - keeping on top of it will keep everything up to date and keep the game going strong. A very well organised GM will keep a complete log of every stat change as it happens if they don?t have time to edit their OOC post straightaway. It is good practice to ?timestamp? major events, such as battles, unlocking of areas, stat changes outwith battle, etc. This will help when looking for specific changes.

Example:

14/12/2011 - 21:47
Jonah entered battle with Goblin.
Jonah hit goblin for 8 damage (2)
Goblin hit Jonah for 5 damage (95)
Jonah hit Goblin for 8 damage (0)
Jonah defeated Goblin.
Jonah HP: 95/100
14/12/2011 - 22:20
Jonah ate an apple to restore 5HP (100)
Jonah HP: 100/100
-----

This log doesn?t even need to be published for your players to see - just open it up and add to it as you need to. This way, if players think there are discrepancies, you can quote from the log to disprove it.

MODIFIERS
This is where things become a lot more personalised. Modifiers are almost identical to buffs you might find in WoW or other such MMOs. They are essentially bonuses or minuses to your character?s stats, and most often in a text-based world, an accompaniment to items and upgrades, such as armour, weapons, tools, etc.
Asides from how much damage a weapon will do, modifiers applied to items can effect the user?s skill with that item (perhaps it is easier to wield, which would increase the user?s skill?), or it could even have an effect on the enemy - maybe lower the damage they do per strike? Maybe lower their attack strength?.... and that?s just for starters. The possibilities for modifiers are limited only by your imagination and the number of variables you allow in your RP. With any items you can imagine at your disposal, combinations of modifiers are limitless.
Just remember to use them to aid progress - don?t give them out to players willy nilly, or just hand them out near the start.

It would be wise to make a rough item list (first, organise categories - melee weapons, ranged weapons, armour, etc - then deal with the individual items in each.). Just like making the library of enemies, this could take a while, but at the end, it will add even more depth to your world, seeming less improvised and more professionally done. Then, once that?s done, you can work on things like potions and consumables - players will need a way to regain health.
A rough template item list for a fantasy setting will be attached later. Feel free to base your own on it, or not, as you please.

INVENTORY
If these stats are not enough for you, or you just want a proper system for carrying items, it?s time to implement an inventory. The best way to do this now is to create an OOC thread for each character in the game/party, titled ?[character name here] - Character Sheet? and copy their relevant sheet details into it.
Once you?ve done that, put a new section below it, titled ?Inventory?, ?Items?, or similar. Done that? Excellent. Now list the items that player has - remembering to add DMG stats, modifiers they provide, quantity (if necessary) and noting whether the player has that item equipped to use)
Example:

1. Jonah Barrie (Warrior)
HP: 100/100
MP: 10/10
SKILL: 10
DMG: 8 (Rusty Iron Longsword)
-----
Inventory:
Rusty Iron Longsword (DMG: 8) - Equipped
Leather Armour (+0HP) - Equipped
Apple x1 (+5HP when consumed)
Silver Coin x45

You are of course free to set a limit on the number of slots a player may have to carry items, and perhaps exclude items such as currency or equipped gear from counting as a slot. It?s up to you! xD

In theory, this is everything you could possibly need to get a manageable RP with integrated character stats, up and running with few problems. It?s all a case of choosing what aspects fit in with your RP, and how much you want the stats to play a part in it. Some may only opt for the inventory idea, which is understandable.

So, in summary, yes, making an RP with statistics is time consuming. It could take as much time as it took to build the world the system will be a part of. It?s entirely up to you whether you feel you can add that extra edge for players. It?s also something you would have to put time into regularly, whether you are a GM or a player - GMs should probably be looking at the player?s stats from other RPs to determine whether they are reliable enough to post regularly and keep up.
A well designed world with a well designed plot, will go hand in hand with a sturdy basis for stats. If you feel that the stats aren?t working for your RP, you can simply remove them without any fuss at all.

FINAL TIPS
Just some final pointers and reminders for prospective GMs:

  • Make sure you are active regularly.
  • If you are feeling swamped, try taking on a trustworthy second GM, and split the players into parties - makes the stat updating very manageable if you only have half what you had before.
  • Don?t overcomplicate the statistics - it can be tempting to have all the bells and whistles going, but all it will do is frustrate you as a GM. Use only what you feel you will be able to manage, then add or take away as you feel is right.
  • Focus on building the world first. Don?t build the world with statistics in mind, because they are not going to be what attracts players - immersive detail beats flawless stats, any day of the week. Suggested priorities order: World -> Plot -> NPCs/Creatures -> Items/Objectives -> Statistics
  • Handpick players - Don?t approve everyone who applies just to get it started. Make sure they seem reliable, active, and have put some level of thought into their character profile.

And with that, I think we are done. I hope you find this guide useful when making your own RP with Stats.

Lots of Love,
Whiskey

PS. An RP with stats will only work if you make it work - I can only suggest factors to consider and ways in which they could work - the nitty gritty, as they say, is all down to you.

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/RolePlayGateway

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Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Android Market hits 10 billion downloads, cheap apps offered (Digital Trends)

Google announced on Tuesday that 10 billion apps have now been downloaded from Android Market and to celebrate hitting what it considers to be a milestone (yes, it is a rather large number) it?s hooked up with some Android developers to offer a selection of apps at the dirt cheap price of 10 cents. The offer will last 10 days.

?One billion is a pretty big number by any measurement. However, when it?s describing the speed at which something is growing, it?s simply amazing,? Eric Chu, director of the Android Developer Ecosystem, wrote in a post on the Android Developers blog.

He added, ?This past weekend, thanks to Android users around the world, Android Market exceeded 10 billion app downloads ? with a growth rate of one billion app downloads per month. We can?t wait to see where this accelerating growth takes us in 2012.?

Ten billion is pretty good going seeing that the platform was only launched in 2008, but as Chu says, the growth rate is what really catches your eye. The bar chart says it all ? launched in October 2008, things got off to a slow start with it taking 21 months to reach a billion downloads. But increased sales of Android-operated phones, as well as an increase in the number of apps being added to the market, was only ever going to mean one thing.

By July this year, things were really moving for Android Market as it hit the six billion mark. In the last four months alone, four billion apps have been downloaded to mobile devices using Google?s operating system.

As a comparison, while it?s taken Android Market a shade over three years to hit 10 billion downloads, it took Apple?s App Store, which launched in July 2008, two-and-a-half years to hit the same figure.

Android Market was overhauled in May this year, making it easier for users to find and discover new apps. The revamp also addressed the concerns of developers who had been complaining that the vast majority of apps were buried deep within the store, making them hard to find.

As for the special celebration sale, apps being offered in Android Market on Tuesday include Asphalt 6 HD, Color & Draw for Kids, Endomondo Sports Tracker Pro, Fieldrunners HD, Great Little War Game, Minecraft, Paper Camera, Sketchbook Mobile, Soundhound Infinity and Swiftkey X.

?Of course, none of these apps would have existed if it weren?t for the developers who created them,? Chu wrote in his blog post. ?Every day, these developers continue to push the limits on what?s possible and delight us in the process. For that, we thank them. Please join us in this 10-day celebration and check in every day to see what new apps our developer partners are making available on Android Market ? for only a dime.?

[via Cnet]

This article was originally posted on Digital Trends

More from Digital Trends

This week in apps: Thanksgiving edition

First look: The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime

Ubuntu?s going mobile: Will it survive?

HTC profits jump 68-percent, shipments 93-percent over the last year

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/digitaltrends/20111206/tc_digitaltrends/androidmarkethits10billiondownloadscheapappsoffered

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Tuesday, December 6, 2011

T.I. Calls Taylor Swift Duet 'Phenomenal Opportunity'

'I was pleasantly surprised and confused,' Tip tells MTV News of invitation from Swift days after his prison release.
By Nadeska Alexis


T.I.
Photo: MTV News

Just a few days after completing an 11-month prison sentence in September, T.I. received a phone call directly from Taylor Swift, requesting that he join her on the Atlanta stop of her Speak Now Tour.

Tip graciously accepted Swift's offer to duet on his single "Live Your Life," and the October performance — T.I.'s first post-release — made plenty of headlines. While promoting his new VH1 reality series, "T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle," which premieres Monday night (December 5) at 9 p.m. ET/PT, the Atlanta MC told MTV News that he was just as shocked as his fans were about the collabo.

"I was pleasantly surprised and confused," T.I. said of receiving the phone call from Swift. "I was confused because I know it's a phenomenal opportunity, but being T.I. — the Rubberband Man — and Taylor Swift being America's Sweetheart, I had just gotten out of prison like two days [earlier] and all of a sudden my phone rings."

Tip says that on episode three of "The Family Hustle," fans will see how the show came together, but he gave us a brief summary of his experience.

"There were significant differences in a Taylor Swift show from a T.I. show," he said, clearly amused at the thought. "You could take the biggest of the biggest hip-hop artists — even a Kanye West or Jay-Z show — and their concerts or tours, they gon' be just a world away from a [Taylor Swift] show."

According to T.I., the most notable difference was having a drama-free experience. "Everything is so calm and cool and arranged and on time, and everything is so neat and people are quiet and polite," T.I. said of the concert, still in disbelief. "Everything just flows smoothly, not a hitch, not a wrinkle, not a hiccup. Whereas hip-hop shows, no matter how big the production, no matter how elaborate it is, it's always friction and ups and downs. With her, everything was smooth; nobody raised their voice."

When MTV News caught up with Taylor back in October, the pop star told her side of the story, explaining that she was just grateful T.I. had even fielded her request.

"Well, I called T.I. the night before the show, so I felt like it's such short notice that [he wouldn't do it with me], and he's just like, 'Hey, yeah, sure,' " she recalled. "And it was just amazing. I was so excited 'cause I'm such a fan and I thought, 'This is such short notice, this is so ridiculous that I'm asking him to do this the night before.' And he's like, 'I'll be there.' And he showed up for soundcheck and we were all just so starstruck."

"T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle" premieres tonight at 9 p.m. ET/PT on VH1.

Related Videos Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675362/ti-taylor-swift-duet.jhtml

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Monday, December 5, 2011

Confidence is key to women's spatial skills

ScienceDaily (Dec. 5, 2011) ? Boosting a woman's confidence makes her better at spatial tasks, University of Warwick scientists have found, suggesting skills such as parking and map-reading could come more easily if a woman is feeling good about herself.

Previous studies have established that women are slower and less accurate than men on a range of spatial tasks.

But new research carried out at the University of Warwick reveals that confidence levels play a key role in women's ability to perform spatial tasks.

University of Warwick psychology researcher Dr Zachary Estes, working with Dr Sydney Felker from the University of Georgia Health Center, looked at women's ability to perform a standard 3D mental rotation task, while at the same time manipulating their confidence levels.

They found that when they made women feel more confident about themselves, their ability to perform the task improved.

The research paper, Confidence Mediates the Sex Difference in Mental Rotation Performance, is published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Dr Zachary Estes said: "Prior research shows that women tend to do poorly on tasks that require spatial awareness.

"That's borne out in the common jokes we always hear about men being better at parking and map reading than women.

"But we wanted to see why that was so we manipulated people's confidence in our experiments with spatial tasks, and it does seem that confidence is a key factor in how well women perform at this kind of task.

"Our research suggests that by making a woman feel better about herself, she'll become better at spatial tasks -- which in the real world means tasks such as parking the car or reading a map.

"So a little bit of confidence-boosting may go a long way when it comes to reversing the car into a tight parking spot."

The researchers tested spatial ability through a series of four computer-based experiments on a total of 545 students at a university in the US.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Warwick.

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Journal Reference:

  1. Zachary Estes, Sydney Felker. Confidence Mediates the Sex Difference in Mental Rotation Performance. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 2011; DOI: 10.1007/s10508-011-9875-5

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://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205102315.htm

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