Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/288056092?client_source=feed&format=rss
iTunes Alfred Morris weight watchers fandango kobe bryant google play Christmas Story
Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/288056092?client_source=feed&format=rss
iTunes Alfred Morris weight watchers fandango kobe bryant google play Christmas Story
Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/287680214?client_source=feed&format=rss
cause of whitney houston death keanu reeves whitney houston national anthem beverly hills hotel beverly hills hotel the watchmen whitney houston dies
LONDON (AP) ? A new report from the World Health Organization says people exposed to the highest doses of radiation during the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in 2011 may have a slightly higher risk of cancer that is so small it probably won't be detectable.
Experts assessed the risk of various cancers based on estimates of how much radiation people at the epicenter of the nuclear disaster received.
The report released Thursday says experts calculated that for those most hit by the radiation after Fukushima, their chances of cancer would rise by about 1 percent.
Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester, one of the report's authors, comments that "it's more important not to start smoking than having been in Fukushima."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/small-cancer-risk-fukushima-accident-093105593.html
grammys 2012 deadmau5 phoebe snow jennifer hudson tribute to whitney houston nicki minaj grammy jason whitlock beach boys
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/gWzoi-bXa0g/
jim marshall died 2013 toyota avalon the secret life of bees full moon aubrey o day masters live johan santana
Most Americans think both Barack Obama and the Republicans in Congress are mishandling government spending - but, on the brink of across-the-board budget cuts, it's the GOP that receives disproportionately more flak, including from its own partisan and ideological base.
While 52 percent of adults in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll disapprove of Obama's handling of federal spending, that jumps to 67 percent disapproval for the GOP, a substantial 15-point gap in the president's favor.
See PDF with full results, charts and tables here.
Majorities even of Republicans and conservatives rate the Republican Party negatively on its handling of the budget. Obama, by contrast, retains broad support in his partisan corner. And his approval among independents, though weak, is 13 percentage points better than the GOP's.
In tune with previous results on their ongoing budget battles, results of this poll, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates, indicate that both sides face damage if the looming budget sequester takes effect. But the risk to the Republicans continues to look greater.
The president's 43 percent approval rating on spending, weak as it is, outshines the congressional Republicans' paltry 26 percent. That includes single-digit "strong" approval for the GOP, 9 percent, vs. 21 percent for Obama.
But strong disapproval is more closely matched for both sides, indicating that the public overall is not amused by the latest budget standoff, in which $85 billion in automatic spending cuts are to take effect this Friday, the first wave of $1.2 trillion in cuts during the next decade.
ECHO - The results echo previous ABC/Post polls. Obama's approval rating for handling the last budget crisis in January was 21 points better than House Speaker John Boehner's, and the president held a 14-point lead over the Republicans in trust to handle the issue.
In December, more said they'd blame the Republicans than Obama if a deal weren't reached. And nearly two-thirds favored a combination of spending cuts and tax increases to trim the deficit, vs. 29 percent who preferred just spending reductions - an issue that remains the crux of the debate.
GROUPS - While 74 and 68 percent of Democrats and liberals, respectively, approve of the president's handling of the issue, 51 percent of Republicans and 57 percent of conservatives disapprove of the performance of GOP lawmakers.
Even among "very" conservative Americans, 54 percent disapprove of the congressional Republicans' approach. And in terms of intensity, strong approval of the president on spending among Democrats and liberals is more than double that of the GOP among Republicans and conservatives.
Fifty-three percent of independents disapprove of the president's work on spending, and he just breaks even among moderates. But many more in both groups disapprove of congressional Republicans on the issue - 64 percent of independents and 71 percent of moderates.
Broad majorities of whites disapprove of how both sides are handling spending, but even in this group - which Obama lost by 20 points in November - his approval rating is 9 points better than the Republicans'. And the president outpaces congressional Republicans by 17 points among Hispanics and by 64 points among blacks.
Among other groups, while majorities across income brackets and age groups disapprove of the Republicans' performance on spending, Obama breaks even among lower- to middle-income earners and garners majority approval among young adults, two of his core support groups.
METHODOLOGY - This ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by landline and cell phone Feb. 20-24, 2013, among a random national sample of 1,021 adults. Results have a margin of sampling error of 3.5 points. The survey was produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates of New York, N.Y., with sampling, data collection and tabulation by SSRS/Social Science Research Solutions of Media, Pa.
Also ReadSource: http://news.yahoo.com/brink-budget-sequester-more-damage-gop-obama-121007509--abc-news-politics.html
delilah nevis 2012 sports illustrated swimsuit same day flower delivery valentines day cards hallmark grammy winners
William Shatner proposed 'Vulcan' as the name of one of Pluto's recently discovered moons, and more than 100,000 'Star Trek' fans seem to concur.
By Miriam Kramer,?SPACE.com / February 25, 2013
EnlargeFor William Shatner, the actor who portrayed "Star Trek" captain James T. Kirk, naming one of Pluto's moons "Vulcan" is the only logical choice, and more than 100,000 apparent Trek fans agree.?
Skip to next paragraph' +
google_ads[0].line2 + '
' +
google_ads[0].line3 + '
Subscribe Today to the Monitor
Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS of
The Christian Science Monitor
Weekly Digital Edition
Shatner proposed "Vulcan" as a potential?name for one of Pluto's moons, the recently discovered P4 and P5, as part of the Pluto Rocks contest launched by the SETI Institute on Feb. 11. Now, Vulcan?? which on Star Trek is the home planet of Kirk's pointy-eared first officer Spock?? has a commanding lead worthy of Kirk, it seems.
"I think we are over 100k votes for Vulcan on PlutoRocks.com that's wonderful!," Shatner wrote from his Twitter, @WilliamShatner yesterday (Feb. 19).
Vulcan is currently in the lead, taking more than 100,000 of the 325,800 votes cast. Cerberus and Styx are running in second and third with about 75,000 and 70,000 votes respectively, but officials at SETI will take other factors into consideration when deciding what to name the moons.??[See photos of Pluto and its moons]
Shatner also suggested that SETI add Romulus ? the Roman god of fire and the twin brother of Remus in the Roman foundation myth ? to the list of possibilities, but?SETI officials nixed that name because it was also the name of an asteroid's moon elsewhere in the solar system. In Star Trek lore, Romulus is the home planet of the Romulan alien race.?
Pluto has five moons?that astronomers currently know of. Scientists first caught sight of Pluto's largest moon Charon in 1978, but it was not until 2005 that astronomers discovered two other moons (Nix and Hydra) using the Hubble Space Telescope.
The moon P5 was discovered in 2012, also using the Hubble telescope. The moon P4 was discovered in 2011.
Once?voting on the Pluto Rocks website?closes on Feb. 25, SETI will review the contest and make recommendations for naming P4 and P5. Ultimately, the International Astronomical Union is responsible for naming the moons. While the IAU will take the contest results into consideration, the organization still has final say over what the tiny moons are named.
A new batch of written-in names was also added to the list on Feb. 14, two days after Vulcan was accepted on Feb. 12.
"By the way, if you are a fan of one of our eight most recent additions to the ballot, please don't give up!" Mark Showalter of SETI wrote in a blog on Feb. 18. "They may be way behind in the voting, but we realize that they had a big disadvantage by not appearing till Thursday. A late surge of support is something we would surely notice."
SETI's Pluto moon name voting polls will remain open on?plutorocks.com?until 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) on Feb. 25.
Follow Miriam Kramer on Twitter?@mirikramer?or SPACE.com?@Spacedotcom. We're also on?Facebook?&?Google+.?
Copyright 2013?SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
karen handel hangout todd haley kareem abdul jabbar miramonte elementary school mark jenkins super bowl commercials 2012
Related eBooks
tubtrugeous.com This is the greatest web site ever. Just take it in, now!
Whether it's about saving money, living greener, or treating sensitive skin, The Complete Idiot's Guide(r) to Making Natural Beauty Products has everything the hobbyist will need to create organic, natural beauty products.
?Includes everything from face creams to mineral makeup to shampoo and more
?Each formula is clearly presented in recipe style, with notes on prep time, storage, and uses
?All products are made from natural ingredients which will appeal to people going green as well as to people with sensitive skin
Homemade Beauty Treatments and Skin Care Recipes (All Natural Cosmetics)Everyday average women in Bulgaria impress with their beauty and are usually described as gorgeous and irresistible. They are often pointed among the most beautiful women in the world.What are the quickest homemade face masks that can keep your skin looking and feeling young and silky?
What are the best natural products you can use instead of face creams and moisturizers?
In my "All Natural Cosmetics" series I have collected some of the best skin care recipes, as well as various tips and advice for gorgeous hair. Some of them are well known and yet women still don't dare to try and replace their usual beauty products with simple, natural, homemade and much safer choices.
Banana Joe state of the union fat tuesday ash wednesday nbc news kate upton kate middleton
The online world is full of scams. While this does not sound very promising for someone who is starting up their own business, it is important to be aware of the risks and dangers that are out there. Finding unbiased information is a lot more difficult these days, especially considering the amount of marketing that takes place on the Internet. There will always be people out there who are looking to make a quick buck. The first thing business leaders need to understand is what they have to do in order to avoid getting tricked or scammed. This is especially important for businesses like Pittsburgh Internet Marketing Exact and individuals who are just started to sell their services online.
Avoiding the Scams: Look for Reviews
Internet marketing scams can take a number of different shapes. This is often what can make it difficult to determine what is the truth and what is a scam. Some scammers are very clever and very good at hiding their true motivations from readers. If you receive an offer, it is a good idea to see if others have received it as well. What you can do is simply search online to see if others have had the same experience. By reading through the reviews of a specific company or website, you will begin to get an idea of what the company is like. It is important to remember that some customers may have it out for the company, and may falsely state that it is a scam. The trick here is to look at how many reviews state the company is a scam. Another possibility is that the scammer paid ?customers? to write good reviews of their website. Although this is not a completely accurate way of determining a scam, it is a good indicator that something is not right.
Contact Details
This may seem like a very simple thing to do, but it is vital that every business has contact details available. Normally when you go onto a website, there will be an icon that clearly marks out the company?s contact information. These will normally include a telephone number, an address, an e-mail and sometimes even a fax number. A lot of the time, there will also be a help desk available for customers who have questions. Steer clear of websites that have none of this. If you want to make doubly sure, you can always ask a question. See how long it takes for the company to get back to you. Companies that take themselves seriously and care about their customers needs will always respond to you promptly, even if it is two or three days later.
Look at Their Product Patterns
Scammers generally do not have sustainable products. Since these products generally do not last, they are going to constantly need ?new ones in order to replace them. Take a look at the product history of the company and, again, make sure to look at reviews. Patterns of new products being released only months apart is going to indicate a true scam here.
Keeping safe on the Internet is important, and it is also important to scrutinize anyone that you come across. There is a lot of opportunity out there for unscrupulous people to take advantage of others. By knowing some of the telltale signs, you will be able to avoid the worst companies.
Grow your web presence with Pittsburgh Internet Marketing.?Exact Match Domains are still a good idea. Visit the site ?for further information.
Source: http://blog.smbnow.com/2013/02/26/3-tips-to-avoid-internet-marketing-scams/
msft etan patz obama dog doug hutchison larry brown thomas kinkade pat summit
FILE - In a Feb. 26, 2008 file photo Leonard Riggio, chairman of Barnes & Noble, is seen in New Orleans. Riggio disclosed in a regulatory filing Monday morning Feb. 25, 2013, that he wants to acquire the company's stores and website, but not the business that makes the Nook e-reader or the company's college bookstores. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
FILE - In a Feb. 26, 2008 file photo Leonard Riggio, chairman of Barnes & Noble, is seen in New Orleans. Riggio disclosed in a regulatory filing Monday morning Feb. 25, 2013, that he wants to acquire the company's stores and website, but not the business that makes the Nook e-reader or the company's college bookstores. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Barnes & Noble founder and Chairman Leonard Riggio has told the book seller he is going to try to buy the company's retail business.
The news sent shares up nearly 9 percent in midday trading.
Riggio disclosed in a regulatory filing Monday that he wants to acquire the company's stores and website, but not the business that makes the Nook e-reader or the company's college bookstores. No price was disclosed.
It's the latest attempt by a company founder to take back control of all or part of a company he founded. Best Buy's co-founder Richard Schulze is mulling a bid for the electronics retailer, and Michael Dell earlier this month announced a $24.4 billion deal to take the namesake computer company he founded private. The deals are a way executives can have more control over companies without the need to run everything by shareholders.
"When you've got control outside public eye or public market, you can invest and translate your strategy at your own pace," said Morningstar analyst Peter Wahlstrom.
Riggio, who founded Barnes & Noble in the 1970s and helped it expand its "big box" presence, is Barnes & Noble's largest shareholder, with nearly 30 percent of the company's shares. (While Riggio didn't found the original Barnes & Noble store in New York, which opened in 1917, he bought the store and brand name in the 1970s to create the current-day company.)
Barnes & Noble said the offer will be considered by a committee of three independent directors. But there is no set timetable for the process.
The New York-based bookseller has been struggling to find its place in the retail landscape as more readers have shifted to electronic books and competition has grown from discount stores and online competitors.
It has invested heavily in its Nook e-book readers and digital library and struck a deal with Microsoft last April to create a Nook subsidiary.
But the Nook faces tough competition from other devices like Apple's iPad Mini, Amazon's Kindle and Google's Nexus tablet.
Earlier this month, the company said it expects Nook media revenue of less than $3 billion. It also anticipates a loss for the unit before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to exceed the $262 million loss recorded in its 2012 fiscal year.
This follows a report from the retailer in January that its Nook unit revenue fell 12.6 percent to $311 million during the critical holiday period. Overall sales during the holiday period fell 10.9 percent at bookstores and online compared with a year ago. Barnes & Noble is scheduled to report third-quarter results Thursday.
The filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Riggio will seek to negotiate a price with Barnes & Noble's board and pay for the deal with cash and debt.
Riggio is making the offer in order to facilitate the company's review of its strategic options for separating its Nook business, according to the filing.
Morningstar's Wahlstrom said the deal makes sense considering the retail side of the business has been overshadowed by investments needed for the Nook business.
"The retail business for Barnes & Noble is mature-slash-declining, but it's profitable," he said. "The company has done a good job executing amid a pretty challenging environment."
Wahlstrom added that the move by Riggio was not unexpected and has been a possibility for years. His large stake in the company and history would likely make finding any extra needed financing not much of a problem, he said.
"Riggio feels like he can run it better than just about anyone else, and with four decades of operating history there's not much reason to believe that he can't," he said.
Barnes & Noble operates 689 bookstores in 50 states and 674 college bookstores.
Shares rose $1.18, or 8.8 percent, to $14.69. Its shares have traded in a 52-week range of $10.45 in mid-April to $26 later that same month.
Associated Pressgreystone sidney crosby at the drive in alternative minimum tax modeselektor gran torino gloria steinem
MTV News' eyes on the inside share best behind-the-scenes moments.
By Brett White
Bradley Cooper at the 2013 Oscars
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images
Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1702534/backstage-oscars-academy-awards-2013.jhtml
Jason Terry IFE Fireworks 2012 4th Of July independence day BET Awards 2012 declaration of independence 4th Of July 2012
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) ? Not long after a horrific crash caused carnage in the main grandstand of Daytona International Speedway, workers swept in to hurriedly make repairs.
Rest assured, NASCAR's biggest race will go on.
The green flag is set to drop Sunday for the Daytona 500 less than 24 hours after a last-lap crash injured at least 30 spectators and ripped apart a chunk of fencing that protects the mammoth seating areas at stock car racing's most famous track.
Large chunks of debris, including a tire, landed in the stands after Kyle Larson's car launched into the fence about 200 feet from the finish line during a race in the second-tier Nationwide series.
Speedway President Joie Chitwood declared the track will "be ready to go racing," and there were no plans to move fans who have those same seats where the wounded were strewn about Saturday.
This was the third time in four years the track has needed major repairs on Daytona 500 weekend. The 2010 race was interrupted for more than two hours because of a pothole in the track. Juan Pablo Montoya slammed into a jet dryer in last year's race, igniting a raging inferno that caused another two-hour delay.
"We're very confident that we'll be ready," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's senior vice president of racing operations. "As with any of these incidents, we'll conduct a thorough review and work closely with the tracks as we do with all our events, learn what we can and see what we can apply in the future."
Chitwood said there where wasn't enough time to replace a gate in the damaged section of fencing, which allows fans to walk from the grandstands to the infield. Otherwise, it might be difficult to find any evidence of where the wreck occurred.
The speedway president stressed that all safety protocols were met, perhaps preventing a more tragic result.
"Our security maintained a buffer that separates the fans from the fencing area," he said.
NASCAR and track officials didn't know how much fencing would need to replaced or repaired. Sections of the impact-absorbing soft walls had to be fixed, too.
But the track's recent history with expediting repairs was expected to speed along the process.
"You try to prepare for as much as you can," NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said. "You also take away and learn from every incident."
The horror in the stands marred what had been a week of celebration that kicked off with Danica Patrick becoming the first woman to win a pole in the premier series.
Wreckage flew into both the upper and lower decks, and emergency crews treated fans on both levels. There were five stretchers that appeared to be carrying fans out.
A forklift was used to pluck Larson's engine out of the fence. There was a tire in the stands.
Across the track, fans pressed against a fence and used binoculars trying to watch. Reporters were ordered to leave the area.
Hours after the wreck, the fence was down and soft walls were being repaired as TV news helicopters hovered above the track.
Elsewhere, it was business as usual as the track underwent its makeover for "The Great American Race." The stages for driver introductions and the pre-race concert were already in place, as were the generators on pit road. The Daytona 500 logo was being painted on the grass and other track signage got a touch up. If not for the steady buzz from the welding done on the fence, it would have looked like any other late Saturday night before the 500.
Fans seated in the area of the wreck uploaded videos on YouTube that showed fans fleeing in horror and covering their heads as tires and an engine hurled their way. Most of the videos were soon removed from the video-sharing site.
NASCAR chief marketing officer Steve Phelps said the removal was ordered "out of respect for those injured. Information on the status of those fans was unclear and the decision was made to err on the side of caution with this very serious incident."
The scene was similar to a 2009 race at Talladega Superspeedway ? Daytona's sister track in Alabama ? when Carl Edwards' car went sailing into the fence on a last-lap accident.
O'Donnell said NASCAR and track officials would continue to strengthen safety standards as needed.
"We'll evaluate the fencing and see if there's anything we can learn from where gates are," he said. "I think we need to take the time to really study it and see what we can improve on, if we can. Certainly, the safety of our fans is first and foremost and we'll make that happen."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/daytona-put-again-accident-track-001743456--spt.html
attwireless taylor swift zac efron the scream stephen colbert new madrid fault rihanna and chris brown affirmative action
If the Ravens want to make Joe Flacco the highest paid quarterback in the NFL, and if Flacco is satisfied to barely clear the bar set last year by Saints quarterback Drew Brees, there?s a quick and easy way to get this contract done.
Using Brees? 2012 contract as the starting point, Flacco would get a $40 million signing bonus, a fully-guaranteed base salary of $5 million in 2013, and base salaries of $10 million in 2014, $13 million in 2015, $15 million in 2016, and $18 million in 2017.
Under the rules of signing-bonus proration, $8 million would be applied to each year?s salary cap.? That would result in a cap number of $13 million in 2013, $18 million in 2014, $21 million in 2015, $23 million in 2016, and $26 million in 2017.
It equates to a five-year payout of $101 million ? $1 million better than Brees and, for now, making Flacco the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL.
The two sides would have to decide whether and to what extent the money due beyond 2013 would be guaranteed, for injury only or fully.? Last year, Brees received $40 million in the first year, with $20 million guaranteed for injury only in future years.? (The injury guarantees eventually convert to full guarantees.)
The cap number in the final year would be a potential problem for the Ravens, since Flacco presumably would have one more long-term contract left before retirement.? Specifically, the $26 million cap number in 2017 would translate to a franchise tag of $31.2 million in 2018.? Thus, it would make more sense for the Ravens to tack on a sixth year at a base salary of, say, $21 million.
This would keep the average north of $20 million per year and it would give the Ravens a more manageable franchise number of $25.2 million for 2019.
Is it really that simple?? Yes, it is.? Which means that it likely won?t happen this way.
Even though it could be worked out in a matter of hours.? Or, if both sides are truly motivated, a matter of minutes.
beltane capitals john edwards conocophillips octomom dan savage new world trade center
Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/287023973?client_source=feed&format=rss
case mccoy UFC 155 Jack Klugman merry Christmas a christmas story twas the night before christmas santa
Feb. 22, 2013 ? The islands Reunion and Mauritius, both well-known tourist destinations, are hiding a micro-continent, which has now been discovered. The continent fragment known as Mauritia detached about 60 million years ago while Madagascar and India drifted apart, and had been hidden under huge masses of lava.
Such micro-continents in the oceans seem to occur more frequently than previously thought, says a study in the latest issue of Nature Geoscience.
The break-up of continents is often associated with mantle plumes: These giant bubbles of hot rock rise from the deep mantle and soften the tectonic plates from below, until the plates break apart at the hotspots. This is how Eastern Gondwana broke apart about 170 million years ago. At first, one part was separated, which in turn fragmented into Madagascar, India, Australia and Antarctica, which then migrated to their present position.
Plumes currently situated underneath the islands Marion and Reunion appear to have played a role in the emergence of the Indian Ocean. If the zone of the rupture lies at the edge of a land mass (in this case Madagascar / India), fragments of this land mass may be separated off. The Seychelles are a well-known example of such a continental fragment.
A group of geoscientists from Norway, South Africa, Britain and Germany have now published a study that suggests, based on the study of lava sand grains from the beach of Mauritius, the existence of further fragments. The sand grains contain semi-precious zircons aged between 660 and 1970 million years, which is explained by the fact that the zircons were carried by the lava as it pushed through subjacent continental crust of this age.
This dating method was supplemented by a recalculation of plate tectonics, which explains exactly how and where the fragments ended up in the Indian Ocean. Dr. Bernhard Steinberger of the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences and Dr. Pavel Doubrovine of Oslo University calculated the hotspot trail: "On the one hand, it shows the position of the plates relative to the two hotspots at the time of the rupture, which points towards a causal relation," says Steinberger. "On the other hand, we were able to show that the continent fragments continued to wander almost exactly over the Reunion plume, which explains how they were covered by volcanic rock." So what was previously interpreted only as the trail of the Reunion hotspot, are continental fragments which were previously not recognized as such because they were covered by the volcanic rocks of the Reunion plume. It therefore appears that such micro-continents in the ocean occur more frequently than previously thought.
Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:
Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Helmholtz Centre Potsdam - GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
all star weekend undercover boss barbara walters tupelo honey limp bizkit stations of the cross nike foamposite galaxy
Paul A. Eisenstein , The Detroit Bureau ? ? ? 6 hrs.
What is today one of the most popular sporting events in America has some humble roots, NASCAR tracing back to the days when moonshiners would tune up their cars to outrun the ?revenuers? and then give each a challenge to see who was fastest.
But the days when the familiar sporting event could claim to field ?stock cars? is long past. When NASCAR organizers began ordering the switch to the so-called ?Car of the Future,? a few years back, the design may have been safer and better on track, but about the only thing it had in common with the cars of today were decals designed to make it look, sort of, like the Fords, Chevrolets and Toyotas you?d find in a showroom.
That triggered a backlash from fans, something that was measurable in both race attendance and TV viewership, and it has forced NASCAR and its teams to do a little soul-searching ? as Ford is demonstrating with its latest stock car entry which actual shares at least a few body panels with an actual Fusion sedan.
The Detroit Bureau: Spy Shots: Prepping the Next Ford Mustang
?This is a day so many of us at Ford and Ford fans have been waiting for,? said Jamie Allison, director, Ford Racing. ?When we first unveiled the 2013 NASCAR Fusion in Charlotte in January 2012, we said we wanted to help return the ?stock car back to NASCAR.? Without question, with this car, we have.?
The high-dollar motorsports league isn?t totally returning to its roots. You won?t see bootleggers out on the track, and under the skin the new cars are still what NASCAR refers to as the ?Gen 6? race car. But manufacturers now can customize 13 individual exterior surfaces to bring the look and shape of their entries a bit closer to their production models ? without having to resort to lame tricks like decaled headlamps.
Ford experimented with the idea of going back to stock car design in the secondary Nationwide racing series several years ago and ?saw the exciting reaction from the fans, and even from people who didn?t follow NASCAR,? said Allison, adding that it showed the maker that ?We were on the right track,? quite literally.
The Detroit Bureau: 200 mph, $200,000 Bentley Flying Spur
Ford has spent about two years developing the new NASCAR Fusion, revealing it to NASCAR and its team members in June 2011 and then giving the new design a public preview in January 2012 at the Detroit Auto Show. It has continued tinkering with the car, focusing especially on aerodynamics as that can make or break the chances of a race car moving at 200 mph.
The Fusion will make a high-profile racing debut at this coming weekend?s opening NASCAR race at the Daytona International Speedway. It will face a tough challenge from Chevrolet, notably from the GoDaddy.com team led by Danica Patrick who has become the first woman ever to land the pole position in the historic race.
But Ford is confident it won?t be embarrassed, the new NASCAR Fusion being used by such prestige tames as Roush Fenway Racing, Penske Racing, Wood Brothers Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Germain Racing and Front Row Motorsports.
The Detroit Bureau: Chinese May Take Over Plug-in Hybrid Maker Fisker
Ford cars have taken the checkered flag at three of the last four Daytona races.
The decision to go with the new design isn?t altruistic. While Ford officials may appreciate NASCAR heritage they also want to maintain the popularity of the sport ? and hope that this spills over to their brand. In recent years, it?s become less clear that the old adage, ?Win on Sunday, sell on Monday,? still holds true.
Nonetheless, ?We know nearly 40 percent of new car intenders are race fans, and of those, almost 84 percent follow NASCAR,? said Allison. ?Racing helps drive our business. We know Ford race fans consider, shop and buy more Fords than the general public. So bringing back this kind of relevancy to NASCAR is the X factor.?
Incidentally, while cars like the Gen 6 Fusion may look more like street models then they have in some years, don?t expect to find one at the showroom. Under the skin they use an entirely different sort of construction ? as you?d expect of vehicles that often tangle with one another at well into triple-digit speeds. Even the engines are unique. NASCAR only last year began using a version of fuel injection, for example, a technology that the last U.S. street vehicle abandoned in the early 1990s. But the Sprint Cup cars still feature live rear axles and four-speed gearboxes, technologies generally considered way out of date.
Copyright ? 2009-2012, The Detroit Bureau
Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/ford-putting-stock-back-stock-car-racing-1C8452388
ben gazzara nfl hall of fame 2012 ufc diaz vs condit super bowl start time target jason wu
NASA's Curiosity rover has successfully drilled into bedrock and scooped the sample ? a first for Mars exploration. It was the rover's last systems test, meaning the training wheels are off.
By Pete Spotts / February 20, 2013
EnlargeIn drilling a small hole into bedrock on the floor of Gale Crater and tucking the sample into a scoop, NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has made space-exploration history and passed a significant mission milestone.
Skip to next paragraph' +
google_ads[0].line2 + '
' +
google_ads[0].line3 + '
Subscribe Today to the Monitor
Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS of
The Christian Science Monitor
Weekly Digital Edition
It's the first time any rover has done more than scratch the surface of rocks on the red planet. And it's the first time a robotic craft has drilled on any planet other than Earth since the then-Soviet Union put two landers on the surface of Venus in 1981, each of which drilled into soils and returned data during their brief operation on the planet's harsh surface.
The test represented the final step in the rover's commissioning period, which began shortly after landing last August. As Curiosity slowly exercised its robotic arm and each of the other nine science packages it carries, researchers grew increasingly excited by the results ? not just as confirmation that the experiments and tools were working, but that the evidence these tests gathered pointed to a landing zone where water once flowed.
The drilling "is a real big turning point for us," says John Grotzinger, a planetary geologist at the California Institute of Technology and the mission's lead scientist.
Like a teenager eager to slip behind the wheel of her first car, the scientists received the figurative keys to the rover last week from controllers overseeing these initial months of systems tests. Unless problems arise, destinations will now be picked more for their scientific interest than their value as a spot to test hardware.
"We're excited because from here on out what we're going to do is a repeat of something we've done before," Dr. Grotzinger says. "With that comes more confidence, a chance for fewer surprises, and increased efficiency."
Yet even the tests were a bit like movie trailers, giving researchers hints of discoveries to come ? yielding evidence for an ancient stream bed and rock types paving parts of the crater floor that appear to have formed in the presence of water.
Geological models of the surface, based on data from Mars orbiters, pointed to Gale Crater's floor as a once-watery site.
"But we had no idea that we were going to find the rest of this stuff," he says, referring to the types of rocks and their flagstone-path-type layout at Curiosity's current location ? a zone on the crater floor the team has dubbed Yellowknife.
If Curiosity had "gone long" and landed on the flank of Mt. Sharp instead of its planned landing site, "and we would have found stuff like this, we could have considered it to be very much the stuff we chose the landing site to go find," Grotzinger says.
Mt. Sharp is a towering summit inside Gale Crater. Its strikingly layered slopes hold the promise of revealing much about the early history of Mars's climate and the geological forces that built the mountain. Near the base, Curiosity will be hunting for signs that the crater might have been a suitable place for life to emerge shortly after Mars formed and its climate ? it is believed ? was warmer and much wetter.
nba dunk contest 2012 act of valor woody guthrie benson henderson 2012 dunk contest edgar vs henderson berkshire hathaway
DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) ? The Roman Catholic church in Philadelphia doesn't need another public relations headache after years of priest-abuse and school-closure headlines, but it's got one in the form of a pony-tailed, 11-year-old athlete.
Sixth-grader Caroline Pla is fighting the archdiocese for the right to keep playing church-sponsored youth football.
The soft-spoken twin has been battling boys on the gridiron since she was 5. She's played the last two seasons in a Catholic Youth Organization league, where the 5-foot-3, 110-pound offensive tackle and defensive end made the all-star team.
But the archdiocese may put the kibosh on her Catholic youth league career. While at least a few U.S. dioceses let girls play football, and about 1,600 girls play on U.S. high school teams, the Philadelphia league is open only to boys.
"First they said it was a boys sport. Then they said it was a safety issue. Then they said it was inappropriate touching. I think they are just constantly looking for excuses to not change it," Caroline said Thursday at her home in Buckingham Township, Bucks County.
She first played in a public Pop Warner league, then moved along with her teammates to the Catholic Youth Organization league in fifth grade. After one season without a hitch, she learned last fall that an overlooked boys-only rule would be enforced. The archdiocese, though, agreed to let her finish the season.
Archbishop Charles J. Chaput is now reviewing the ban, with a decision expected next month after a panel of coaches, parents and doctors weigh in.
"Traditionally football is a boys-only sport due to its full contact nature," the church said in a statement. "Most parents and players have preferred this; some now disagree."
Caroline sent Chaput an email in January, explaining that her Catholic youth league team had been the best chapter in her burgeoning, three-season sports career.
By then, she and her parents, George and Marycecelia Pla, had taken to the airwaves to lobby for a rule change. An online petition has attracted more than 100,000 signatures, and Caroline recently appeared on Ellen DeGeneris' show as well as newscasts.
"I'm perplexed that you would contact me last, after publicizing your situation in both the national and regional media," Chaput wrote in a January email shared by the family. "That kind of approach has no effect on my decision-making. CYO rules exist for good reason."
The Women's Sports Foundation believes there are instead good reasons to reverse the rule ? and not just for the sake of girls.
"What the diocese is missing is all the wonderful things that come out of co-ed sports. The mutual respect that lasts a lifetime between girls and boys," said lawyer Nancy Hogshead-Makar, a 1984 Olympic gold medalist in swimming who now is senior director of advocacy for the Women's Sports Foundation.
From a safety perspective, pre-pubescent girls and boys are often the same size. And legally, private or religious groups that receive any type of federal funding ? through low-income lunch programs or other aid ? must abide by Title IX, the 1972 law that guarantees girls equal access to sports, she said. There are exceptions for contact sports, but they cannot be invoked once girls have been allowed to play in a program, she said.
Hogshead-Makar advises colleges to make sports activities co-ed whenever possible ? in the weight room, on the team bus, on the court. She believes the mutual contact fosters respect and reduces rates of violence against women.
No matter how Chaput rules, Caroline could still play football next season for Pop Warner or her school team. And she has no plans to play in high school, because she doesn't think she'll be big enough to play her position at that level.
Her brother plays on the high school freshman team, while her twin sister and an older sister have been cheerleaders.
"Right now, I'm one of the biggest, because I've hit my growth spurt and a lot of them haven't," said Caroline, who scored her first touchdown this past season on a 15-yard run. "It's just really fun."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/girl-fights-play-catholic-football-league-215943741.html
jerry yang stop sopa justified southland sopa blackout protect ip act jim caldwell
By LARRY VAUGHT
Beating Missouri could be a NCAA Tournament resume-building win for Kentucky Saturday. However, Missouri coach Frank Haith says UK?is not the only team battling to try and get into the tourney.
?I think we need the same thing, too. I think we?re all trying to improve our resume,? said Haith Thursday. ?I?m not looking at it in terms of what we need to do to build our resume, but we?ve got to try to continue to fight like we?re not in, either, and we need a great quality road win, and we haven?t had that yet. We?re right in the same boat with those guys, too.?
Missouri is coming off a signature win over Florida, but still is 19-7 overall and 8-5 in Southeastern Conference play ? or one game behind UK?in the conference. The Tigers have lost at Mississippi, Florida, LSU, Texas A&M and Arkansas in conference play.
?I think most teams do play better at home. LSU, Texas A&M and Arkansas we could easily have won, and didn?t. Hopefully we will get some road wins,? Haith said. ?We are more aggressive at home and need to be the same way on the road.?
Haith said he is ?hopeful? that momentum from the win over Florida, which beat Missouri by 31 points on Jan. 19, will carry over to Saturday?s ESPN GameDay contest.
?It?s great that we won that game, because we?ve been playing pretty good. We just want to stay humble and stay hungry,? Haith said.
Haith admitted he has not really looked at how Kentucky was playing before center Nerlens Noel went down with a season-ending knee injury. Instead, he?s concentrating on what UK did at Tennessee and then in Wednesday?s win over Vanderbilt.
?I?ve just focused on the last two in terms of executing the things they?ve done earlier. They look different in their lineup in terms of how they play, and I?ve just focused on that a little bit,??Haith said. ?They?re really athletic.
?(Julius) Mays and (Kyle) Wiltjer can shoot the ball, but they?re going to put the ball on us, they?re going to get out in transition, and we?ve go to get back and set our defense. Especially in that building, they?re going to run the ball. Our transition defense hasn?t been great (and) that?s been my biggest concern, is our ability to get back and set our defense.?
Missouri?s balanced offense has six players averaging in double figures ? the Tigers average 76 points per game. Guard Jabari Brown, who hit a key 3-pointer late in the win over Florida, is a 37 percent shooter from 3-point range. Forward Laurence Bowers seems back at full strength after missing five games with an injury. He?s second on the team with 23 blocked shots.
?Bowers back just adds an additional challenge,? LSU coach Johnny Jones said. ?He is just a force. He is obviously very physical and is capable of playing inside and outside. He gives them a different dimension and obviously is one of their leaders. They are a totally different team with him.?
Haith said Bowers is still not playing as well as he was before he was injured and the Tigers need him to focus on more than scoring.
?Be a good passer, defender and rebounder. Scoring will take care of itself,? Haith said.
Center Alex Oriakhi, a transfer from Connecticut who considered coming to UK, is a 58.2 percent shooter from the field and has a team-high 41 blocked shots. He also leads the Tigers in rebounding.
?He has been great. He did not get enough touches in some games,??Haith said.
The Missouri coach also said Oriakhi has been in foul trouble, especially on the road, and that has limited his aggressiveness.
?But he has been terrific. He?s become a more consistent scorer, rebounds at a high level. We can throw to him in the paint and positive things happen,? Haith said.
Haith?s major issue Thursday was dealing with the snow storm hitting the area. He had his director of basketball operations out picking up players for practice and hoped to have most of the players in the gym. He was also still hopeful the team could fly to Lexington Friday.
?We?re looking forward to another great opportunity for our young men. I?ve got a lot of respect for coach Cal and what he?s accomplished and who he is as a coach,? Haith said.
donald trump Election 2012 map Election Results Map Early voting results BBC Dick Morris Daily Show
The only trade involving Dwight Howard came last summer. The potent scorers that moved did so long ago.
There was no eye-catching activity left for deadline day, resulting in minor deals Thursday to the disappointment of those hoping for a frenzy.
Josh Smith stayed put and the Boston Celtics' core stayed together, leaving J.J. Redick, dealt to Milwaukee, as the biggest name to be traded.
There were a dozen moves over two days, nothing approaching a blockbuster and none to jump-start the Lakers.
Players such as James Harden and Rudy Gay were traded far before the deadline, but with teams perhaps fearful of new penalties for the biggest spenders, Thursday was mostly quiet.
"I don't think I've seen fewer trade deadline deals, ever," said Houston general manager Daryl Morey, who completed two trades Wednesday. "But I think it's a one-year blip."
The Atlanta Hawks held onto Smith, and Utah kept both Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson on a day when much attention was focused on both situations, since those players have value and could leave their teams this summer as free agents.
The long-shot deals never materialized. Howard remained in Los Angeles, just what Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak repeatedly said would happen. Howard's unhappiness and struggles since he was acquired from Orlando last summer fueled speculation that the Lakers might move him before possibly losing him for nothing as a free agent.
"It took a while for league to understand our position was exactly what we stated," Kupchak told reporters. "I think they finally got it."
Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce will continue wearing Celtic green, as will Rajon Rondo when he's healthy enough to put on a uniform again.
The Celtics did make one deal, acquiring guard Jordan Crawford from the Washington Wizards for center Jason Collins and injured guard Leandro Barbosa.
Those were the types of trades that were left after the big names that were available had already been moved. Oklahoma City sent All-Star Harden to Houston the preseason, fearing it couldn't pay what last season's top sixth man would want after already giving lucrative long-term deals to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
The Memphis Grizzlies broke up their frontcourt when they sent Gay to Toronto in a three-team deal with Detroit
"I think normally a point was made, normally you would see big deals being made. We cannot forget, Andre Iguodala, that deal was made in the summer. That could have potentially been a trade deadline move," said Denver Nuggets president Masai Ujiri, referring to the player he acquired in the four-team Howard trade in August.
"Harden was traded right before the season started. That could have been a potential trade deadline move. Rudy Gay was started a couple weeks ago. There was some cleanup before this date. Apart from a couple guys who were out there all the time in terms of big names, it just went by. I can't explain it."
Finances certainly played into it. The collective bargaining agreement that went into effect in 2011 came with much more punitive penalties for teams that repeatedly exceed the luxury tax and limits the options of those over the salary cap, and decisions Thursday were made with that in mind.
Golden State sent forward Jeremy Tyler to Atlanta and guard Charles Jenkins to Philadelphia in separate deals, slicing more than $1.5 million off its payroll after beginning the day about $1.2 million over the league's $70,307,000 luxury tax.
Rebuilding after trading Howard, the Magic decided Redick wasn't in their plans while averaging career highs in points (15.1) and field goal percentage (45.0). He was traded along with center Gustavo Ayon and reserve point guard Ish Smith to the Bucks in exchange for guards Doron Lamb and Beno Udrih, and forward Tobias Harris.
The New York Knicks traded Ronnie Brewer to Oklahoma City to open a roster spot that will be used to give Kenyon Martin a 10-day contract. The Hawks couldn't find a good enough deal for Smith, who had largely been considered the biggest name that would move, and settled for sending Anthony Morrow to Dallas for Dahntay Jones.
With so little happening, Morey may have pulled off the most intriguing move this week when he acquired Thomas Robinson, the No. 5 pick in last year's draft, from Sacramento in one of his two deals.
"I thought the main thing that was different at this trade deadline was there was a big premium on cap space and draft picks," Morey said. "Usually, that's the currency that moves markets. They were at such a premium that every deal was very difficult. It became like a barter economy instead of a cash economy. That made deals harder.
"I do think you could say that maybe the CBA might be contributing to that. But I also think a lot of it is just the phase teams are in. There are a lot of good teams trying to maybe rebuild, for lack of a better word.
---
AP Sports Writers Chris Duncan in Houston and Pat Graham in Denver contributed to this report.
Source: http://seattletimes.com/html/sports/2020407034_apbkntradedeadline.html?syndication=rss
marquette university marquette city creek center hilary duff michigan state michigan state andrew luck pro day
MULTAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani police accused the country's ambassador to the United States on Thursday of blasphemy, a crime that carries the death penalty, in connection with a 2010 TV talk show, they said.
The accusation against Ambassador Sherry Rehman is the latest in a string of controversial blasphemy cases in Pakistan, a largely Muslim nation whose name translates as Land of the Pure.
According to Pakistan's blasphemy laws, anyone found to have uttered words derogatory to the Prophet Muhammad can be put to death. Those who are accused are sometimes lynched by mobs even before they reach court.
Rehman has already faced death threats from militants after calling for reforms to the country's anti-blasphemy law, according to court documents. Two politicians who suggested reforming the law were assassinated.
The case against Rehman was brought by businessman Muhammad Faheem Gill, 31, who said that the comments Rehman made about the law on the Pakistani talk show in 2010 were blasphemous.
"I've been trying to get this case registered for the last three years, ever since I saw that TV show," Gill told Reuters. "I've even gone to the highest court. I'm glad that action will finally be taken now."
Gill went to the Supreme Court with his complaint after police refused to register it. The court ordered police in the central Pakistani city of Multan to investigate.
Blasphemy accusations are on the rise, according to a report released by the Islamabad-based think tank, Center for Security Studies. At least 52 people accused of blasphemy have been killed since 1990.
The charge is difficult to defend since blasphemy is not defined and courts often hesitate to hear evidence, fearful that reproducing it will also be blasphemy.
Recent cases have included a teacher who made a mistake setting homework, a man who threw away a business card belonging to a man name Mohammed, and a Pakistani Christian girl, Rimsha Masih, who was accused of burning pages of Muslim holy texts last year.
The teenager was cleared by a court after it emerged that she may have been framed by a cleric trying to evict Christians from his area. She and her family are now in hiding.
Rehman, a prominent member of the ruling Pakistan People's Party, was appointed as ambassador to the United States in November 2011.
(Writing By Mehreen Zahra-Malik; Editing by Katharine Houreld)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pakistan-accuses-ambassador-u-blasphemy-124213305.html
Kaepernick Tattoos superbowl time what time is the super bowl world war z groundhog day Ed Koch Groundhog Day 2013
Though patents often never amount to anything, we sincerely hope this wacky one from Samsung does. It's an approved idea for a portable music player that also contains keys and motion detectors to let it function as a "musical instrument," too. While listening to that epic jam, you could play along by pressing keys on the side of the device as if you were fingering a guitar's fretboard. You'd be able to change position on the "guitar neck" by moving the player back and forth, and a motion detector on the side would sense the fingers on your other hand as you strum chords or pluck out a solo. Your GarageBand-style noodling, along with the original music would all blare through a speaker and amp combo on the device, to the amusement / horror of your friends. That's assuming Samsung ever builds one, of course -- but if not, our John Q. Engadget will be the first name on a petition to get it to market.
Filed under: Misc, Handhelds, Samsung
Source: USPTO
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/samsung-music-player-patent-own-riffs/
David Boudia David Rakoff Bourne Legacy Chad Johnson London 2012 Soccer dwight howard Olympics closing ceremony
If you aren't hip-deep in the world of web design and content management, you may not have heard of Reston-based Siteworx LLC. I spoke with Tim McLaughlin, president and founder of the company, about the company's plans.
Late last year, Siteworx took an infusion of private equity cash from RLH Equity Partners that promises to increase its visibility in Greater Washington's tech community.
On the nature of the RLH deal:
"It is an investment, it was not a buyout. Basically all the management at Siteworx, including myself, is staying in place, and we all still own shares in the company. It?s basically money that was put into the company to help support continued aggressive growth."
On why they brought in private equity:
"That was the challenge, as we continue to grow at the pace that we are ? which is 45 percent year-over-year growth - there was increasingly larger and larger investments around opening new offices, bringing in new groups of people. We are hiring 10 people a week at this point now. And so that risk was increasing. We looked at outside investors who are interested in supporting that growth from a financial perspective, and also to potentially do some small acquisitions.?
On why management sold shares in the deal:
"You're not getting out of the game, but you're taking some chips off the table so you don?t have to lose sleep at night about everything. You can still lose sleep about some things, but the fact is that it spreads out your risk. And so as an entrepreneur, you pretty much have all your eggs in one basket, which is fine to a point, but once you got some success, you want to at least know that you are not going to go in 150 percent on everything that you?re doing all the time. This way you can put a little money aside for the family and keep on going with what your doing without having the stress of increasingly large bets.?
Bill Flook covers technology, biotech and venture capital.
Source: http://feeds.bizjournals.com/~r/vertical_47/~3/9hpRfcoUyEw/qa-siteworx-president-tim-mclaughlin.html
elizabeth warren puerto rico diane sawyer Cnn.com Colorado Marijuana Washington Election Results drudge report
When Lindy Ruff was hired as Sabres coach in the summer of 1997, Nail Yakupov was three years old, Mario Lemieux was the reigning Art Ross winner, and Teemu Selanne was already a veteran. Now, in the middle of his 15th season, Ruff has been fired.
He was the NHL's longest-tenured coach, and behind Gregg Popovich, the second-longest tenured coach in North American sports. Unlike Popovich, he never really won anything. He inherited a great team, featuring Dominik Hasek at the top of his game, and but the best they could do was a finals loss in 1999. After a fallow period before the lockout, Sabres Mark II emerged as one of the peskiest franchises in the league, making two Eastern Conference finals in a row. But after losing Chris Drury and Danny Briere, Buffalo never quite competed again.
They're near the bottom of the league right now, and a lifeless 2-1 loss to the Jets, with fans booing nearly the entire game, was the final straw. Winnipeg can break you like that.
What's the problem with the Sabres? "Talent," says one league source. Which is why it's fascinating that Ruff's firing was announced by GM Darcy Regier, who was hired the same time as Ruff. It was always sort of assumed that the two were a package, and would go in the housecleaning. But while it's hard to argue Ruff was getting the most out of this roster, it's still a mess?and that's Regier's doing. If the rebuild doesn't start in earnest, the housecleaning's probably not done in Buffalo.
homeland Miss America 2013 Aaron Swartz Java Gangster Squad school shooting Oscar Nominations 2013