WASHINGTON ? The United States is selling some military equipment to Bahrain as it walks a fine line between pushing the Sunni monarchy to open talks with the opposition while proceeding cautiously with a strategic ally to counter Iran.
The sale of an undisclosed amount of spare parts and equipment has drawn opposition from some in Congress who argue that it sends the wrong signal about the U.S. commitment to human rights. The State Department said late Friday that the equipment is for Bahrain's external defense and support for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, which is based in the country.
"This isn't a new sale nor are we using a legal loophole," the department said. "The items that we briefed to Congress were notified and cleared by the Hill previously or are not large enough to require congressional notification."
The administration said it is maintaining its "pause on most security assistance for Bahrain pending further progress on reform."
It was almost a year ago that Bahrain's Shiite majority demanded greater rights from the 200-year-old ruling Sunni dynasty. More than 35 people have died in the unrest that Bahrain leaders claim Iran has encouraged.
The United States sees its allies in the Persian Gulf region as particularly crucial after Iran warned it might use military force to close the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the gulf in response to international economic sanctions.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., collected signatures from lawmakers on a letter they plan to send to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton later this week expressing their opposition to the administration's moves. They argue that Bahrain is still violating human rights and using excessive force to crack down on protests.
"Small steps deserve small rewards," the two wrote. "In the case of Bahrain, any military equipment is a big reward and will be viewed as such by other governments and the people of Bahrain. The incentives are simply wrong."
ConocoPhillips and Chevron posted results last week and tomorrow morning investors will hear from ExxonMobil. Bill Featherston, UBS, and Steve Hoedt, Key Private Bank, shed insight on earnings expectations and how the oil companies are managing weak re...
Comodo makes a plethora of products ranging from PC tuneup utilities to antivirus suites, but the free Comodo Programs Manager is one for those who wish to manage their systems' applications. The app is designed to let you enable, disable, and update software?as well as rid your computer of broken installations or failed uninstalls that would muddy the registry or hard drive. Comodo Programs Manager has an intuitive, easy-to-use design, but a few niggles keep it from greatness.
Getting Started Comodo Programs Cleaner scans the hard drive and presents a content summary on the home screen. This home screen consists of a main content area and a dark gray column to the left of it where you'll find four categories: Programs, Drivers and Services, Windows Features, and Windows Updates. In the main content area I saw the number of installed programs (64), drivers and services (423), Windows features and updates (105), and other information. Unfortunately, you can't tweak from this screen, so you have to click one of the categories to the left.
The Comodo Programs Manager Experience Clicking "Programs" opened a listing of all the applications on my test PC. I could see games (Dead Rising 2), utilities (Geekbench), and a variety of other installs. A drop-down box let me view applications by either their names, icons, or other factors, and a search box returns results on the fly as you key in letters. Clicking an application and then clicking "Standard Uninstall" removes the program from the system. Some programs give you the option to "Change" the install (which opened the installer and let me modify the program to add or remove features) or "Repair" the install (which fixed damaged installations with the click of a button). The application occasionally froze, which required that I close out and then reopen. On the up side, you can back up apps that you install, so that you may recover them at a later time should a problem arise.
"Drivers and Services" lets you remove drivers, but most of the names read as description-less techno-babble, so you should tread lightly in removing them unless you know (or research) what they are first. I understood that an Nvidia driver update was for my PC?s graphics card, but when I saw a very vague ?Beep,? I scratched my head and left it in place. After all, a missing driver can cripple an application. There were a few easily recognizable drivers (such as LogMeIn Remote File System Driver) that I uninstalled with ease.
"Windows Features" lets you disable programs individually, or as a batch. The features are listed in a Windows Explorer-like tree that let me enable/disable the "Games" folder (and all games inside), or dig into the sub-folders and enable/disable the individual titles. I liked the flexibility given here.
"Windows Updates" lets you view all of the installed updates, as well as a list of available updates. The PC test bed had nearly 50 installed updates, and 40 available updates. Acquiring the new updates was as simple as checking the appropriate application boxes and clicking the "Install" button in the lower-right hand corner.
Should You Download Comodo Programs Manager? Yes. Comodo Programs Manager lets you manage your applications in updates from a central location?no need to tinker within Windows' separate areas. It could be more stable?it froze a bit too frequently for my taste?but it's an app that you should check out if you frequently dabble in application management, and especially if you (like me) install and uninstall apps frequently.
More Utilities Reviews: ??? Comodo Programs Manager ??? TuneUp Utilities 2012 ??? SafeSync for Home ??? SafeSync for Business ??? SugarSync ?? more
LJUBLJANA (Reuters) ? The Slovenian parliament confirmed conservative Janez Jansa as prime minister on Saturday, almost two months after an inconclusive December 4 election, parliamentary speaker Gregor Virant said.
Jansa has 15 days to put forward a cabinet charged with driving economic growth and introducing reforms to stop the country's credit rating from being cut - but he has a corruption trial hanging over him, which could derail his premiership if he were found guilty.
The cabinet must be confirmed by parliament, in which Jansa's five-party coalition has a solid majority.
Jansa, also prime minister from 2004 to 2008, has promised to cut taxes, red tape and the budget deficit, ease the credit crunch and raise the retirement age in the euro zone member.
"The first steps of this government will be stabilisation of public finances ... decrees to give impetus to economic growth and enable formation of new jobs," Jansa told reporters after the vote, saying he hoped the new government would be voted in by February 10.
President Danilo Turk said earlier this week that Jansa lacked legitimacy for the post because of a trial, which began in September, in which he and four co-defendants are charged with bribery over a 2006 deal for Finnish armoured vehicles worth 278 million euros ($365 million). Jansa denied all charges.
Earlier this month parliament rejected Turk's candidate as prime minister, centre-left Zoran Jankovic. Jankovic's Positive Slovenia party won most votes at the election but was unable to form a coalition that would have a majority in parliament.
Jansa's centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) signed a coalition pact this week with the centre-right People's Party and New Slovenia, the centrist Civic List of Gregor Virant and the pensioners' party Desus. The five parties hold 50 out of 90 seats in parliament.
On Friday credit rating agency Fitch cut Slovenia's sovereign debt rating by two notches to A because of a deterioration in the economic outlook.
All major credit agencies have cut Slovenia's rating since September because of the political crisis, lack of reforms and the deepening euro zone debt crisis, and put it on negative watch. Slovenia is rated A+ by Standard&Poor's and A1 by Moody's.
The political crisis started in September when parliament ousted the centre-left government of Prime Minister Borut Pahor amid internal coalition squabbles and an inability to implement reforms that would speed economic growth.
"The new government will have a hard time because of the need for big budget savings ... and because it is made of five parties which are very different," Meta Roglic, an analyst at the daily Dnevnik, told Reuters.
"Even so it might succeed in staying in power for the full four-year mandate, particularly since it can expect that the opposition will support some of the main economic reforms," she added.
Slovenia's budget deficit soared to some 5.5 percent of GDP in 2011 from a balanced budget in 2007 because of lower tax income and high government spending.
On Thursday, the government's macroeconomic institute said Slovenia's economic growth would slow to 0.2 percent this year from 0.5 percent in 2011 because of lower export demand and low domestic spending.
Slovenia was the fastest-growing euro zone member in 2007 but its export-oriented economy was badly hit by the global crisis and shrank by 8 percent in 2009. Recent data showed another recession was possible as the economy shrank by 0.5 percent in the third quarter of 2011.
NEW YORK (Reuters) ? January has turned out to be strong for stocks with just two trading days to go. If you're afraid to miss the ride, there's still time to jump in. You just might want to wear a neck brace.
The new year lured buyers into growth-related sectors, the ones that were more beaten down last year. The economy is getting better, but not dramatically. Earnings are beating expectations, but at a lower rate than in recent quarters. Nothing too bad is coming out of Europe's debt crisis -- and nothing good, either -- at least not yet.
"No one item is a major positive, but collectively, it's been enough to tilt it towards net buying," said John Schlitz, chief market technician at Instinet in New York.
Still, relatively weak volume and a six-month high hit last week make some doubt that the gains are sustainable.
But then there's the golden cross.
Many market skeptics take notice when this technical indicator, a holy grail of sorts for many technicians, shows up on the horizon.
As early as Monday, the rising 50-day moving average of the S&P 500 could tick above its rising 200-day moving average. This occurrence -- known as a golden cross -- means the medium-term momentum is increasingly bullish. You have a good chance of making money in the next six months if you put it to work in large-cap stocks.
In the last 50 years, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates, a golden cross on the S&P 500 has augured further gains six months ahead in eight out of 10 times. The average gain has been 6.6 percent.
That means the benchmark is on solid footing to not only hold onto the 14 percent advance over the last nine weeks, but to flirt with 1,400, a level it has not hit since mid-2008.
The gains, as expected, would not be in a straight line. But any weakness could be used by long-term investors as buying opportunities.
"The cross is an intermediate bullish event," Schlitz said. "You have to interpret it as constructive, but I caution people to take a bullish stance, if they have a short-term horizon."
GREECE, U.S. PAYROLLS AND MOMENTUM
Less than halfway into the earnings season and with Greek debt talks over the weekend, payrolls data this week and the S&P 500 near its highest since July, there is plenty of room for something to go wrong. If that happens, the market could easily give back some of its recent advance.
But the benchmark's recent rally and momentum shift allow for a pullback before the technical picture deteriorates.
"We bounced off 1,325, which is resistance. We're testing 1,310, which should be support. We are stuck in that range," said Ken Polcari, managing director at ICAP Equities in New York.
"If over the weekend, Greece comes out with another big nothing, then you will see further weakness (this) week," he said. "A 1 (percent) or 2 percent pullback isn't out of the question or out of line."
On Friday, the S&P 500 (.INX) and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) closed their fourth consecutive week of gains, while the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) dipped and capped three weeks of gains. For the day, the Dow dropped 74.17 points, or 0.58 percent, to close at 12,660.46. The S&P 500 fell 2.10 points, or 0.16 percent, to 1,316.33. But the Nasdaq gained 11.27 points, or 0.40 percent, to end at 2,816.55.
For the week, the Dow slipped 0.47 percent, while the S&P 500 inched up 0.07 percent and the Nasdaq jumped 1.07 percent.
A DATA-PACKED EARNINGS WEEK
This week is filled with heavy-hitting data on the housing, manufacturing and employment sectors.
Personal income and consumption on Monday will be followed by the S&P/Case-Shiller home prices index, consumer confidence and the Chicago PMI -- all on Tuesday.
Wednesday will bring the Institute for Supply Management index on U.S. manufacturing and the first of three key readings on the labor market -- namely, the ADP private-sector employment report. Jobless claims on Thursday will give way on Friday to the U.S. government's non-farm payrolls report. The forecast calls for a net gain of 150,000 jobs in January, according to economists polled by Reuters.
On the earnings front, it will be another hectic week with almost a fifth of the S&P 500 components posting quarterly results. Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), Amazon (AMZN.O), UPS (UPS.N), Pfizer (PFE.N), Kellogg (K.N) and MasterCard (MA.N) are among the names most likely to grab the headlines.
With almost 200 companies' reports in so far, about 59 percent have beaten earnings expectations -- down from about 70 percent in recent quarters.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak and Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Jan Paschal)
New York ? Egypt clamps down on U.S. groups promoting democratic reforms ? potentially endangering the $1.3 billion in U.S. aid the Egyptian army gets each year?
Egyptian authorities have put six Americans ? including Sam Lahood, the son of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood ? on a no-fly list, preventing them from leaving the country. The move is part of a crackdown by Egyptian security forces on Washington-backed groups that promote democracy and human rights. Egypt's military leaders, who took over after protesters pushed aside longtime leader Hosni Mubarak last February, say they want to lead a transition to democracy and hand over power to an elected president this summer. What do they hope to accomplish by provoking the U.S. so overtly? Here, a brief guide:
Who are the Americans being targeted by Egypt? They work for nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that promote human rights and civil institutions needed to build a democracy. The groups also helped monitor the country's recent parliamentary elections. Egyptian security forces last month raided the offices of 17 such NGOs, including the Washington-based International Republican Institute (IRI), National Democratic Institute, and Freedom House. Sam LaHood is the IRI's director in Egypt. He tells The New Yorker that when police barged into his office, they confiscated computers, documents, and "every stick of furniture, even book shelves."
SEE MORE: Egypt's vote: A mandate for Islamists?
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Why are Egypt's leaders singling them out? The government has given no official reason, although the travel ban appears to be linked to an investigation stemming from the raids. But clearly,?says John Bresnahan and David Rogers at?Politico, this is part of a?"power struggle between the United States and Egyptian governments over the country's future direction."?The generals, perhaps hoping to rekindle resentment against the U.S. for its ties to Mubarak, have accused "foreign hands" of stirring up protests against their rule. The NGOs "are being targeted because they revealed a lot of crimes and flawed interactions that have been carried out in the transitional phase," Hesham Genene, head of the Cairo Appeals Court, tells TIME, "and their voices keep getting louder and louder."
Is that the only reason? Probably not. The U.S. government spends hundreds of millions of dollars on the civil-society programs these NGOs work on, along with more direct aid projects like sanitation and health. Before protesters drove out Mubarak, the U.S. aid was funneled through the government. Now the money goes directly to the NGOs. That, LaHood says, might have made some Egyptian officials mad. "It didn't really matter what the money went for," he tells The New Yorker. "It just wasn't going through their bank accounts."
SEE MORE: 4 reasons to view Egypt's Islamists without fear
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Will provoking the U.S. backfire? It certainly could. The Egyptian Army gets $1.3 billion a year in U.S. aid, and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who has a hand on the purse strings as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, also happens to be chairman of the IRI.?"The amplified pressure on NGOs could be a gamble,"?says Abigail Hauslohner at?TIME. "The move may well anger members of Congress more than it sways them to the military's side."
Sources: Associated Press, New Yorker, Politico, TIME
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Steven Gerrard has urged Liverpool supporters to be "responsible" ahead of Saturday's FA Cup fourth-round clash at Anfield.
The Liverpool captain's sober remarks are in stark contrast to Wednesday's jubilation at reaching the Carling Cup final and demonstrate the club's concern over the upcoming visit of fierce rivals Manchester United.
Saturday's lunchtime kick-off will be the first meeting of the two sides since the race row between Patrice Evra and Luis Suarez erupted in October. Suarez remains suspended after the Football Association upheld Evra's allegations. The Uruguayan will serve the seventh game of his eight-match suspension after being found guilty of racially abusing the Manchester United defender.
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Up to 6,000 Manchester United fans are expected at Anfield on Saturday and Gerrard has called on the home support make the occasion a day to remember, for the right reasons.
"We all have a responsibility on Saturday to ensure that this game is remembered for the football," Gerrard told the official Liverpool Web site.?
"Liverpool and Manchester United is a massive rivalry and of course there is going to be stuff in the papers and banter between fans, but it would be fantastic if after the weekend it is remembered for being a top game and obviously, from our point of view, a Liverpool win.
"We don't want any front page stories from this game or any stories besides a football match between two top sides."
Meanwhile, Stewart Downing insists he is starting to find his best form in a Liverpool shirt, after Dalglish singled the winger out for praise last weekend.
"It was very nice to hear. The manager has been really good to me from the first day I came," Downing said."He's given me lots of confidence - and it's the same with every other player.
"He's great to play for. That's all you want as a player - a manager who is honest with you, who gives you the confidence to go out and play.
"I started quite brightly, then was in and out, and now I'm starting to pick up form again.
"I want to play all the time but the only way I can do that is to play well. I've got to keep my head down and work hard, and the last couple of weeks I'm pleased with how it's gone personally."
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People gather at the scene of a car bomb attack in Zafaraniyah, Baghdad, on Friday.
By msnbc.com staff and news services
Updated at 4:46 a.m.: The blast outside a hospital struck a funeral procession for Mohammed al-Maliki, a real estate agent who was killed with his wife and son on Thursday, a doctor and interior ministry official tells AFP news agency. Both speak on condition of anonymity.
Published at 4:17 a.m.: BAGHDAD -- Twenty-six people were killed on Friday when a suicide bomber detonated an explosives-packed car in southeastern Baghdad, Iraqi officials said.
The attack occurred at 11:00 a.m. (3:00 a.m. ET) in the Iraqi capital's predominantly Shiite neighborhood of Zafaraniyah, police said. They said 53 people were wounded in the attack.
Hospital officials confirmed the death toll to The Associated Press.
All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.
Insurgents have stepped up violence in Iraq since the U.S. military withdrawal last month. More than 200 people have been killed since the beginning of the year.
Msnbc.com staff and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
European Geosciences Union General Assembly, April 22-27, 2012, Vienna, AustriaPublic release date: 26-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Barbara T. Ferreira media@egu.eu 49-892-180-6703 European Geosciences Union
Media registration now open
Journalists, science writers, and public information officers can now register online to the 2012 General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The meeting brings together over 10,000 scientists from all over the world and covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences.
EGU's General Assembly is an opportunity for journalists and science writers to learn about recent developments in topics as diverse as shale gas and fracking, exoplanets, climate change, rare earth metals, natural disasters, energy and natural resources, among others. The preliminary programme for the meeting, the largest event of its kind in Europe, includes over 700 scientific sessions, described in detail at http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/egu2012/sessionprogramme.
The event will be held on 22-27 April 2012 at the Austria Center Vienna at Bruno-Kreisky-Platz 1, Vienna, Austria. Members of the media and public information officers are now invited to register online (free of charge) at http://media.egu2012.eu/registration.
Further information about media services at the General Assembly is available from http://media.egu2012.eu/. Closer to the date, this website will feature a full programme of press conferences, which will also be announced in later media advisories.
Online (pre-)registration will be available until Friday 16 March. The advance registration assures that your badge will be waiting for you on your arrival to the Austria Center Vienna, giving you access to the press centre and other meeting rooms. You may also register onsite during the meeting.
For information on accommodation and travel, please refer to http://www.egu2012.eu/accommodation.html and http://www.egu2012.eu/venue.html, respectively.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
European Geosciences Union General Assembly, April 22-27, 2012, Vienna, AustriaPublic release date: 26-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Barbara T. Ferreira media@egu.eu 49-892-180-6703 European Geosciences Union
Media registration now open
Journalists, science writers, and public information officers can now register online to the 2012 General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The meeting brings together over 10,000 scientists from all over the world and covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences.
EGU's General Assembly is an opportunity for journalists and science writers to learn about recent developments in topics as diverse as shale gas and fracking, exoplanets, climate change, rare earth metals, natural disasters, energy and natural resources, among others. The preliminary programme for the meeting, the largest event of its kind in Europe, includes over 700 scientific sessions, described in detail at http://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/egu2012/sessionprogramme.
The event will be held on 22-27 April 2012 at the Austria Center Vienna at Bruno-Kreisky-Platz 1, Vienna, Austria. Members of the media and public information officers are now invited to register online (free of charge) at http://media.egu2012.eu/registration.
Further information about media services at the General Assembly is available from http://media.egu2012.eu/. Closer to the date, this website will feature a full programme of press conferences, which will also be announced in later media advisories.
Online (pre-)registration will be available until Friday 16 March. The advance registration assures that your badge will be waiting for you on your arrival to the Austria Center Vienna, giving you access to the press centre and other meeting rooms. You may also register onsite during the meeting.
For information on accommodation and travel, please refer to http://www.egu2012.eu/accommodation.html and http://www.egu2012.eu/venue.html, respectively.
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard, second from left, is escorted out for safety by body guards and police through a crowd of rowdy protesters following a ceremony to mark Australia's national day in Canberra, Australia, Thursday Jan. 26, 2012. Some 200 supporters of indigenous rights surrounded a Canberra restaurant and banged its windows on Thursday while Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were inside officiating at an award ceremony. (AP Photo/Lukas Coch) AUSTRALIA OUT
Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard, second from left, is escorted out for safety by body guards and police through a crowd of rowdy protesters following a ceremony to mark Australia's national day in Canberra, Australia, Thursday Jan. 26, 2012. Some 200 supporters of indigenous rights surrounded a Canberra restaurant and banged its windows on Thursday while Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were inside officiating at an award ceremony. (AP Photo/Lukas Coch) AUSTRALIA OUT
Prime Minister Julia Gillard is escorted out for safety by body guards and police through a crowd of rowdy protesters following a ceremony to mark Australia's national day in Canberra, Australia, Thursday Jan. 26, 2012. Some 200 supporters of indigenous rights surrounded a Canberra restaurant and banged its windows on Thursday while Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were inside officiating at an award ceremony. (AP Photo/Lukas Coch) AUSTRALIA OUT
Prime Minister Julia Gillard, second from left, is escorted out for safety by body guards and police through a crowd of rowdy protesters following a ceremony to mark Australia's national day in Canberra, Australia, Thursday Jan. 26, 2012. Some 200 supporters of indigenous rights surrounded a Canberra restaurant and banged its windows on Thursday while Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were inside officiating at an award ceremony. (AP Photo/Lukas Coch) AUSTRALIA OUT
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) ? Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard stumbled and was caught by a security guard as riot police helped her force a path through a crowd of rowdy protesters following a ceremony to mark Australia's national day Thursday.
She appeared distressed as she was pulled away from the protesters but was unharmed. She later remarked that she was made of "pretty tough stuff" and commended police for their actions.
Some 200 supporters of indigenous rights had surrounded a Canberra restaurant and banged its windows while Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were inside officiating at an award ceremony.
Around 50 police escorted the political leaders from a side door to a car. Gillard stumbled, losing a shoe. Her personal security guard wrapped his arms around her and supported her to the waiting car, shielding her from the angry crowd.
The protesters had been demonstrating for indigenous rights nearby at the so-called Aboriginal Tent Embassy, a ramshackle collection of tents and temporary shelters in the national capital that is a center point of protests against Australia Day.
Australia Day marks the arrival of the first fleet of British colonists in Sydney on Jan. 26, 1788. Many Aborigines call it Invasion Day because the land was settled without a treaty with traditional owners.
Abbott appeared to be the target of protesters, who chanted "shame" and "racist" outside the restaurant.
The Tent Embassy celebrated its 40th anniversary on Thursday. Abbott had earlier angered indigenous activists by saying it was time the embassy "moved on."
Gillard was unharmed and later hosted another Australia Day function for foreign ambassadors at her official residence.
"The only thing that angers me is that it distracted from such a wonderful event," Gillard told reporters.
"I am made of pretty tough stuff and the police did a great job," she added.
Reaction from protesters afterward was mixed, with some saying police assaulted them and that Gillard and Abbott were never in danger. They also made conflicting claims over who had Gillard's shoe ? a Midas high-heeled blue suede ? and if it would be returned.
Now that its famed light field camera has finally become official, Lytro is looking to the future, with an eye, apparently, toward the cellphone market. During a recent interview with PC World, Lytro executive chairman Charles Chi described his company's new sensor in greater detail, and talked at length about its purportedly superior battery life. He also divulged a few hints about Lytro's roadmap. When asked whether the firm would ever license its technology to a smartphone manufacturer, Chi confirmed that Lytro has "the capital to do that, the capability in the company to do that, and... the vision to execute," before launching into an explanation of what it would take for such an initiative to succeed:
If we were to apply the technology in smartphones, that ecosystem is, of course, very complex, with some very large players there. It's an industry that's very different and driven based on operational excellence. For us to compete in there, we'd have to be a very different kind of company. So if we were to enter that space, it would definitely be through a partnership and a codevelopment of the technology, and ultimately some kind of licensing with the appropriate partner.
Far from a confirmation, to be sure, but it seems like the handset market is at least on Lytro's radar. Read the full Q&A at the link below.
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, ?Through Monstrous Eyes?. 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.
Thanks for your interest and remember there are no bad questions. Except for: What kind of underwear are you wearing? Seriously, why would you ask me that... jeez what a freak.
Last edited by Scumbag_Brain on Wed Jan 25, 2012 7:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Scumbag_Brain
Member for 1 years
Hi there, just came across this and it sounds like it'd be a lot of fun, though I'd thought I'd check on the OOC first.
Would you say a wererat would come under stereotypical high fantasy monsters? Ive seen them a few times in fantasy settings, but they're a bit underrepresented. I have a wererat character that I'd rather like to develop if they'd suit the setting.
VitaminHeart
Member for 2 years
This is actually pretty interesting and refreshing roleplay premise. I hope you find much support in your indeavors.
I'm a dreamcatcher but only nightmares I caught.
ZeroTolerance
Member for 1 years
@Vitaminheart Yes wererats are fine, though, if you are the first lycanthrope to apply you would need to cover the basics of lycanthropy as well. Likewise if someone playing a werewolf beat you to the punch you would have to abide by the rules for lycanthropy created by them.
@Zerotolerance Thanks, dude. I am crossing my fingers. This is my third try on this site so perhaps it will be the charm.
Scumbag_Brain
Member for 1 years
I would be fine with that. I have a rough therianthropy mythos in mind anyway, so it shouldn't to be too tough, thanks.
VitaminHeart
Member for 2 years
If you would allow, I'd love to write up a gnoll character.
Vio-Lance
Member for 2 years
@Vio Gnolls are classic and therefore fine. There are really only two types of monsters I'd refuse, one are the random fellows like weresheep, animate furniture, and carnivorous broccoli. The other are out of genre creatures like tanuki, chupacabra and xenomorphs.
@Vitamin Sounds good and don't assume from my use of the word 'lycanthropy' that it has to be a disease. They need to be shapeshifters, of course, because that's at the core of the mythos, but how you explain the shapeshifting whether curse, disease, inherited gift or animal soul, is your call.
Scumbag_Brain
Member for 1 years
Interresting idea, just a couple questions one is their a cs? as i didn't notice one and two can i make a ghost char?
Iced Fire
Member for 4 years
I must say, I'm very interested in taking part in this. I'd like to do a background for Orcs if you'll allow.
AgelasticBoy9
Member for 0 years
If I need to edit my character in any way, just tell me, okay? ^-^
Cerberus1616
Member for 1 years
Post a reply
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Two years after a controversial Supreme Court ruling lifted many restrictions on political spending, America's campaign finance laws have officially become a joke.
Stephen Colbert, a comedian who says he wants to be the "president of the United States of South Carolina," has used the "Definitely Not Coordinating With Stephen Colbert Super PAC" to highlight the weak separation between candidates and the outside spending groups that support them.
But the new power corporations, unions, and wealthy individuals have to sway elections in the wake of the Citizens United decision is not a laughing matter to many Americans. People organized protests over the weekend to draw attention to the lack of disclosure and accountability in the U.S. campaign finance system.
Citizens United and a lower-court ruling in 2010 allowed corporations, labor unions and wealthy individuals to give money to "super PACs," political organizations that can receive unlimited corporate, union, and individual contributions. The groups can use these funds to make unlimited expenditures on advertisements in support of or opposition to candidates.
Move to Amend, one of the groups that protested Citizens United Friday, is pushing to change the Constitution. The organization's amendment would limit rights protected by the Constitution to "natural persons only" -- not corporations -- and force the courts to "not construe the spending of money to influence elections to be speech."
Common Cause, another advocacy group seeking to overturn Citizens United, has also launched a?pro-amendment project, Amend2012. The effort is being led by Clinton administration Labor Secretary Robert Reich. "Our goal is to have as many states as possible pass ballot resolutions calling on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment," the group's website explains.
Decisions by the high court invalidate conflicting state laws. But the?Montana Supreme Court?in December stuck to its guns.
The state supreme court?upheld a?law barring campaign corporate spending?on the grounds that the Citizens United ruling only applies to national elections. Attorney James Bopp Jr., an opponent of campaign finance restrictions who successfully argued?Citizens United, is expected to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
One of the arguments?made in the?5-4 decision?was that shareholders would monitor corporations' political contributions. But those donations are not so easy to find thanks to weak disclosure rules.
Now the Corporate Reform Coalition, a group?mainly composed of institutional investors, is petitioning the Securities and Exchange Commission to increase corporations' disclosure of political spending.
Supporters of increased corporate disclosure point to studies that show companies with higher levels of political activity -- lobbying and political action committee expenditures -- tend to be less valuable and?correlate with weaker shareholder governance and more corporate jet use by CEOs.
CAIRO ? Arab League officials say the 22-member organization's observers mission in Syria has been extended for an extra month.
Sunday's decision has been made by Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to the media, say the number of observers will be increased and they will receive training by the U.N.
Iran's currency nosedived today as the EU approved an oil embargo to take effect in July. The rial has lost half its value since October.
Iran reacted angrily today to a new European Union ban on oil imports and other sanctions that are the latest measures aimed at forcing Iran to curb its nuclear program.
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While Iranian generals and politicians alike have put a brave face on the impact of the long-expected sanctions ??with some renewing vows today that Iran would cut off strategic oil shipping channels through the Strait of Hormuz ? Iran's currency continued its nosedive against the dollar on expectations of deepening crisis.
"The most telling sign is panic at the gold and foreign exchange markets," says an Iranian analyst in Tehran who closely follows the economy and asked not to be named.
The rial reached an all-time low today at 21,000 rials to the dollar; it has lost half its value in just under three months. Many Iranians are hoarding gold.
A US aircraft carrier group, joined by British and French warships, entered the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, defying a recent Iranian warning to keep out of the narrow waterway through which one-third of the global seaborne oil supply is shipped.
Iran shocked by EU unity
Iranian officials have been shocked by the display of European unity, considering that Iran accounts for 20 percent of oil imports to Europe. The oil measure will only fully take effect on July 1, to give key buyers ? especially Greece and Italy, which are facing debt crises ? time to find alternative sources.
The unprecedented EU measures are the latest to be imposed upon Iran, in addition to four rounds of sanctions from the United Nations Security Council and a raft of American measures.
Iran says it will not slow or suspend any part of its nuclear program when under pressure. Few expect sanctions alone to prompt Iran to capitulate on its nuclear program, which Tehran says is for producing nuclear energy, not bombs.
"There is a genuine fear here that once the West senses weakness, it won't stop at the nuclear dossier," says the Iranian analyst. "The threat of regime change is also increasing.... I think the Iranians think: 'Well, if I was in their [Western] shoes, why stop here?'"
Iranian official: Stop oil exports immediately
American and Israeli intelligence, along with inspectors of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency, conclude that Iran has conducted weapons-related work in the past, but say they have no evidence that Iran has decided to make a nuclear device.
Iran and world powers are considering resuming nuclear talks that broke off a year ago in Istanbul, but neither an agenda nor dates have been agreed.
"I want the pressure of these sanctions to result in negotiations," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said. "I want to see Iran come back to the table and either pick up all the ideas that we left on the table ... last year ... or to come forward with its own ideas."
A senior Iranian politician said today that Iran should fight EU pressure by immediately closing off its oil taps to Europe, to disrupt European efforts to find alternatives.
"The best way is to stop exporting oil ourselves before the end of this six months and before the implementation of the plan," Ali Fallahian, a member of Iran's Assembly of Experts and former intelligence minister, was quoted as saying by Fars news.
BEIJING ? Caving to public pressure, Beijing environmental authorities started releasing more detailed air quality data Saturday that may better reflect how bad the Chinese capital's air pollution is. But one expert says measurements from the first day were low compared with data U.S. officials have been collecting for years.
The initial measurements were low on a day where you could see blue sky. After a week of smothering smog, the skies over the city were being cleared by a north wind.
The readings of PM2.5 ? particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in size or about 1/30th the average width of a human hair ? were being posted on Beijing's environmental monitoring center's website. Such small particulates can penetrate deep into the lungs, so measuring them is considered a more accurate reflection of air quality than other methods.
It is the first time Beijing has publicly revealed PM2.5 data and follows a clamor of calls by citizens on social networking sites tired of breathing in gray and yellow air. The U.S. Embassy measures PM2.5 from a device on its rooftop and releases the results, and some residents have even tested the air around their neighborhoods and posted the results online.
Beijing is releasing hourly readings of PM2.5 that are taken from one monitoring site about 4 miles (7 kilometers) west of Tiananmen Square, the monitoring center's website said Saturday. It said the data was for research purposes and the public should only use it as a reference.
The reading at noon Saturday was 0.015 milligrams per cubic meter, which would be classed as "good" for a 24-hour exposure at that level, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards. The U.S. Embassy reading taken from its site on the eastern edge of downtown Beijing said its noon reading was "moderate." Its readings are posted on Twitter.
Steven Andrews, an environmental consultant who has studied Beijing's pollution data since 2006, said he was "already a bit suspicious" of Beijing's PM2.5 data. Within the 24-hour period to noon Saturday, Beijing reported seven hourly figures "at the very low level" of 0.003 milligrams per cubic meter.
"In all of 2010 and 2011, the U.S. Embassy reported values at or below that level only 18 times out of over 15,000 hourly values or about 0.1 percent of the time," said Andrews. "PM2.5 concentrations vary by area so a direct comparison between sites isn't possible, but the numbers being reported during some hours seem surpisingly low."
The Beijing center had promised to release PM2.5 data by the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year on Monday. It has six sites that can test for PM2.5 and 27 that can test for the larger, coarser PM10 particles that are considered less hazardous. The center is expected to buy equipment and build more monitoring sites to enable PM2.5 testing.
Beijing wasn't expected to include PM2.5 in its daily roundups of the air quality anytime soon. Those disclosures, for example "light" or "serious," are based on the amount of PM10, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide in the air.
Beijing interprets air quality using less stringent standards than the U.S. Embassy, so often when the government says pollution is "light," the embassy terms it "hazardous."
"There has been tremendous amounts of attention in the Chinese media ? whichever newspaper you pick up, whichever radio station you listen to, channel you watch ? they are all talking about PM2.5 and how levels are so high," said Andrews.
"What has been so powerful is that people are skeptical, and I think rightly skeptical," about the government's descriptions of data, he said.
___
Online:
Beijing center's readings (in Chinese): http://zx.bjmemc.com.cn/
The U.S. Embassy's Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/beijingair
"To this day, I do not know what we saw, but it is clear that it was under intelligent control and coincided, as to time and place, with what was seen by 70 people on the ground, and neither of us new that the other had seen this stuff for 40 odd years" says retired Pan American World Airways Pilot, Captain Ralph Loewinger. When I asked him if he believed in different levels and forms of The Supernatural and why he responded, "I am not sure at this point in my life. I will NOT discount it however." On October 3rd, 1967, Ralph was the copilot of PAA Flight 160, a Boeing 707 cargo ship out of New York headed to London.
This is a FIRST hand, eyewitness account from the pilot himself who today feels that "no other pilots care, many strange things have been reported across the bar." Today, there are a bountiful rising amount of informal looks into UFO and ET Phenomenon not just in Canada but other global spots as well.
They were approaching Yarmouth, Nova Scotia at approximately 33,000 feet when the strange occurrence had hit. The night was described by Ralph as "clear, moonless and the lights of the south coast were plainly in view." He was the first to observe a formation of lights that sat at eleven o'clock position and a bit high.
"It appeared to be another large transport, showing all lights, heading straight for us in a left bank which would take it across our bow. I announced to Captain Curt Olsen and flight engineer Mike Littlepage to 'watch this guy!'" All eyes were on deck watching what became known as and referred to as 'The Lights'. Both pilots went onto the control yokes to avoid collision. The lights hung at a 45 degree angle downslope left to right.
The pilots did not file a UFO report when asked if they had wanted to when talking with the Boston air traffic control center. Even-though it was confirmed by the control center that there was no traffic near the plane the pilots decided to let this go to avoid filing out paperwork.
Ralph says that they should have "been closing in on this strange target if it was standing still, and Mike remembers the lights getting closer." He also recalls bringing the Navigator and Third Pilot up from the gallery to point this out. Over the past forty plus years, details become grained and blurred but one thing remains a constant which is that night over Nova Scotia, many people in flight and on ground witnessed 'The Lights.'
Days later upon returning from his flight, Ralph was listening to a Canadian radio station while driving and the news announcer stated that "the RCMP had discontinued search operations for 'strange light formations reported falling into the sea near Yarmouth'". What was certain was that this crew saw the light formation similarly reported at the same time on the ground at Shag Harbour.
I asked Ralph what he was doing these days and he told me, "I am retired living in the world's largest fly-in community near Daytona. I have a small airplane and ponder the heavens often -- and yes, I still wonder about what I saw. Incidentally, the History Channel did a one hour show on this some years ago and I guess one could find it still."'Deep Sea UFOs' aired on The History Channel January 23, 2006.
Did 'The Lights' AKA UFO dive into the Harbour disappearing on that cold, confusing night back in October of 1967? Dives also have occurred to check the ocean floor bedding to see if anything was out of sorts. Unusual "Depressions on the Seabed" as if someone came in and swept up the floor neatly and smoothly at the Shag Harbor UFO Site, was revealed. This leaves us with somewhat of our own 'impressions' that either we can believe, sit on that fence or completely disbelieve.
The Shag Harbour Museum was created in which you can visit each year from June until September and is being upgraded as funding provides. It is supported by a group of dedicated volunteer workers of the Shag Harbour UFO Incident Society. Besides promoting the Shag Harbour Incident, the Society is hoping to increase tourism in this area to help ally the problems with a declining fishery. For more information on the area and history, please go here.
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Follow Alexandra Holzer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AlexandraHolzer
Multiple partners not the only way for corals to stay cool Public release date: 20-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emily Howells em.howells@gmail.com 61-747-534-203 ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies
Recent experiments conducted at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) produced striking results, showing for the first time that corals hosting a single type of "zooxanthellae" can have different levels of thermal tolerance a feature that was only known previously for corals with a mix of zooxanthellae.
Zooxanthellae are algal cells that live within the tissue of living coral and provide the coral host with energy; the relationship is crucial for the coral's survival. Rising ocean temperatures can lead to the loss of zooxanthellae from the coral host, as a consequence the coral loses its tissue colour and its primary source of energy, a process known as 'coral bleaching'. Globally, coral bleaching has led to significant loss of coral, and with rising ocean temperatures, poses a major threat to coral reefs.
It was previously known that corals hosting more than one type of zooxanthellae could better cope with temperature changes by favouring types of zooxanthellae that have greater thermal tolerance. However, until now it was not known if corals hosting a single type of zooxanthellae could have different levels of thermal tolerance.
Results recently published in the prestigious scientific journal, Nature Climate Change, showed corals that only host a single type of zooxanthellae may in fact differ in their thermal tolerance. This finding is important because many species of coral are dominated by a single type of zooxanthellae.
PhD student, Ms Emily Howells from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) at James Cook University, Townsville, together with scientists from AIMS and CoECRS, collected two populations of a single type of zooxanthellae (known as C1) from two locations on the Great Barrier Reef. The population collected from Magnetic Island near Townsville experiences average ocean temperatures 2C higher than the population collected from the Whitsunday Islands. In experiments at AIMS, young corals were treated with one or other of the two different populations of zooxanthellae, and exposed to elevated water temperatures, as might occur during bleaching events.
The results were striking. Corals with zooxanthellae from the warmer region coped well with higher temperatures, staying healthy and growing rapidly, whilst corals with zooxanthellae from the cooler region suffered severe bleaching (loss of the zooxanthellae) and actually reduced in size as they partly died off.
Madeleine van Oppen, ARC Future Fellow at AIMS, says the research results will likely have a major impact on the field, as until now corals associating with the same type of zooxanthellae have been viewed as physiologically similar, irrespective of their geographical location.
"Our research suggests that populations of a single type of zooxanthellae have adapted to local conditions as can be seen from the remarkably different results of the two populations used in this study. If zooxanthellae populations are able to further adapt to increases in temperature at the pace at which oceans warm, they may assist corals to increase their thermal tolerance and survive into the future." says Emily Howells.
"However, we do not yet know how fast zooxanthellae can adapt, highlighting an important area of future research", says Bette Willis, Professor from the CoECRS at James Cook University.
Research at AIMS is therefore currently assessing whether zooxanthellae can continue to adapt to increasing temperatures and at what rate. This work in progress will provide insights into the capacity of zooxanthellae to adapt to future climate change.
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies are proud sponsors of the 12th International Coral Reef Symposium, Cairns: 9-13 July 2012.
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Multiple partners not the only way for corals to stay cool Public release date: 20-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emily Howells em.howells@gmail.com 61-747-534-203 ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies
Recent experiments conducted at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) produced striking results, showing for the first time that corals hosting a single type of "zooxanthellae" can have different levels of thermal tolerance a feature that was only known previously for corals with a mix of zooxanthellae.
Zooxanthellae are algal cells that live within the tissue of living coral and provide the coral host with energy; the relationship is crucial for the coral's survival. Rising ocean temperatures can lead to the loss of zooxanthellae from the coral host, as a consequence the coral loses its tissue colour and its primary source of energy, a process known as 'coral bleaching'. Globally, coral bleaching has led to significant loss of coral, and with rising ocean temperatures, poses a major threat to coral reefs.
It was previously known that corals hosting more than one type of zooxanthellae could better cope with temperature changes by favouring types of zooxanthellae that have greater thermal tolerance. However, until now it was not known if corals hosting a single type of zooxanthellae could have different levels of thermal tolerance.
Results recently published in the prestigious scientific journal, Nature Climate Change, showed corals that only host a single type of zooxanthellae may in fact differ in their thermal tolerance. This finding is important because many species of coral are dominated by a single type of zooxanthellae.
PhD student, Ms Emily Howells from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) at James Cook University, Townsville, together with scientists from AIMS and CoECRS, collected two populations of a single type of zooxanthellae (known as C1) from two locations on the Great Barrier Reef. The population collected from Magnetic Island near Townsville experiences average ocean temperatures 2C higher than the population collected from the Whitsunday Islands. In experiments at AIMS, young corals were treated with one or other of the two different populations of zooxanthellae, and exposed to elevated water temperatures, as might occur during bleaching events.
The results were striking. Corals with zooxanthellae from the warmer region coped well with higher temperatures, staying healthy and growing rapidly, whilst corals with zooxanthellae from the cooler region suffered severe bleaching (loss of the zooxanthellae) and actually reduced in size as they partly died off.
Madeleine van Oppen, ARC Future Fellow at AIMS, says the research results will likely have a major impact on the field, as until now corals associating with the same type of zooxanthellae have been viewed as physiologically similar, irrespective of their geographical location.
"Our research suggests that populations of a single type of zooxanthellae have adapted to local conditions as can be seen from the remarkably different results of the two populations used in this study. If zooxanthellae populations are able to further adapt to increases in temperature at the pace at which oceans warm, they may assist corals to increase their thermal tolerance and survive into the future." says Emily Howells.
"However, we do not yet know how fast zooxanthellae can adapt, highlighting an important area of future research", says Bette Willis, Professor from the CoECRS at James Cook University.
Research at AIMS is therefore currently assessing whether zooxanthellae can continue to adapt to increasing temperatures and at what rate. This work in progress will provide insights into the capacity of zooxanthellae to adapt to future climate change.
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies are proud sponsors of the 12th International Coral Reef Symposium, Cairns: 9-13 July 2012.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
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Public release date: 26-Jan-2012
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