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Friday, May 31, 2013
Mobile Ad Exchange MoPub Says It Reached A $100M Revenue Run Rate In May
MoPub, a startup that helps mobile app publishers run advertising from multiple sources (such as ad networks, direct sales and cross-promotion), says that it reached a $100 million revenue run rate this month. MoPub is now conducting 2 billion ad auctions each day and reaching more than 550 million unique devices each month, the company says. The MoPub exchange launched 18 months ago, and CEO Jim Payne said that the company hit an "inflection point" in the past four to six months, with "astonishing" growth since the end of last year ? revenue is up 3x compared to the fourth quarter of 2012, he said.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/9R7gf6DY6RI/
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'Bucket list' item leads to women's arrest in Fla.
OCALA, Fla. (AP) ? Two longtime friends ended up in jail in central Florida thanks to a "bucket list" that included stealing from a store.
Police say 36-year-old Andrea Mobley and 38-year-old Jennifer Morrow face petty theft charges after stealing bathing suits and beef jerky during a trip to Wal-Mart on Wednesday.
A loss prevention officer told police Mobley was eating beef jerky in the store and Morrow concealed items inside her purse. They were detained after taking the items from the store without paying.
The Ocala Star-Banner (http://bit.ly/18BR9KR) reports the women told police they hadn't seen each other in years and stealing from a retail store was on the "bucket list."
Mobley told the newspaper they were just "two stupid women" doing something they'd never done before. She added she's ashamed.
___
Information from: Ocala (Fla.) Star-Banner, http://www.starbanner.com/
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Early brain responses to words predict developmental outcomes in children with autism
May 29, 2013 ? The pattern of brain responses to words in 2-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder predicted the youngsters' linguistic, cognitive and adaptive skills at ages 4 and 6, according to a new study.
The findings, to be published May 29 in PLOS ONE, are among the first to demonstrate that a brain marker can predict future abilities in children with autism.
"We've shown that the brain's indicator of word learning in 2-year-olds already diagnosed with autism predicts their eventual skills on a broad set of cognitive and linguistic abilities and adaptive behaviors," said lead author Patricia Kuhl, co-director of the University of Washington's Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences.
"This is true four years after the initial test, and regardless of the type of autism treatment the children received," she said.
In the study, 2-year-olds -- 24 with autism and 20 without -- listened to a mix of familiar and unfamiliar words while wearing an elastic cap that held sensors in place. The sensors measured brain responses to hearing words, known as event-related potentials.
The research team then divided the children with autism into two groups based on the severity of their social impairments and took a closer look at the brain responses. Youngsters with less severe symptoms had brain responses that were similar to the typically developing children, in that both groups exhibited a strong response to known words in a language area located in the temporal parietal region on the left side of the brain.
This suggests that the brains of children with less severe symptoms can process words in ways that are similar to children without the disorder.
In contrast, children with more severe social impairments showed brain responses more broadly over the right hemisphere, which is not seen in typically developing children of any age.
"We think this measure signals that the 2-year-old's brain has reorganized itself to process words. This reorganization depends on the child's ability to learn from social experiences," Kuhl said. She cautioned that identifying a neural marker that predicts future autism diagnoses with assurance is still a ways off.
The researchers also tested the children's language skills, cognitive abilities, and social and emotional development, beginning at age 2, then again at ages 4 and 6.
The children with autism received intensive treatment and, as a group, they improved on the behavioral tests over time. But the outcome for individual children varied widely and the more their brain responses to words at age 2 were like those of typically developing children, the more improvement in skills they showed by age 6.
In other studies, Kuhl has found that social interactions accelerate language learning in babies. Infants use social cues, such as tracking adults' eye movements to learn the names of things, and must be interested in people to learn in this way. Paying attention to people is a way for babies to sort through all that is happening around them and serves as a gate to know what is important.
But with autism, social impairments impede children's interest in, and ability to pick up on, social cues. They find themselves paying attention to many other things, especially objects as opposed to people.
"Social learning is what most humans are about," Kuhl said. "If your brain can learn from other people in a social context you have the capability to learn just about anything."
She hopes that the new findings will lead to brain measures that can be used much earlier in development -- at 12 months or younger -- to help identify children at risk for autism.
"This line of work may lead to new interventions applied early in development, when the brain shows its highest level of neural plasticity," Kuhl said.
Coauthors are Jeffrey Munson and Annette Estes, both at UW; Sharon Coffey-Corina, University of California, Davis; and Geraldine Dawson, Autism Speaks and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The research was funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/X94xdaSnTU4/130529190724.htm
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Lamar Alexander Unveils His Maverick GOP Vision for Energy Future
A Republican senator from a deep-red state gave a high-profile speech Wednesday laying out a GOP vision for America's energy future?a blueprint that includes a direct acknowledgment of the problem of global warming caused by carbon pollution and that calls for more, not less, government spending on clean-energy research.
The senator is Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a moderate with serious energy-policy chops: He is the top Republican on the Senate panel that funds the Energy Department and represents a state that's home to a major Energy Department research lab, Oak Ridge.
The speech, which he delivered at the Oak Ridge facility, is in keeping with views Alexander has long espoused. But it's in stark contrast to the energy and climate positions taken by his party's leaders since 2010. After the tea party helped fuel the Republican takeover of the House, denying the science of climate change went from a fringe to a mainstream Republican view. Super PACs such as Americans for Prosperity, which has ties to the oil conglomerate Koch Industries, targeted Republicans who acknowledged climate change and supported renewable energy. During the 2012 presidential campaign, every Republican candidate but one, Jon Huntsman, questioned or denied the science concluding that carbon pollution causes global warming. And the Republican Party's national platform, unveiled last August at the GOP convention in Tampa, Fla., mentions climate change only once?when it criticizes President Obama for making the issue a matter of national security.
Alexander's speech highlights the widening schism on energy and climate change between moderates like himself and party leaders like Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, often named as a likely 2016 presidential candidate. At a speech in March, Rubio said, "The people who are actually closed-minded in American politics are the people who love to preach about the certainty of science with regards to our climate but ignore the absolute fact that science has proven that life begins at conception." Alexander himself has acknowledged the divide?last year, he stepped down after five years as the chairman of the Republican conference, criticizing the party's increasing ideological partisanship.
Republican strategists are paying attention, and say that Alexander's bold remarks could signal that the party is pulling away from its hard-right positions on energy of recent years.
"Lamar has always been one of the Republican Party's most creative thinkers on energy issues," said Republican pollster Whit Ayres, who has worked for both Alexander and Rubio. "He's never been one to follow somebody else's talking points. He thinks for himself....?Tennnessee has a long record of electing and supporting creative thinkers who tend to become national leaders."
Of the fact that Alexander's energy message differs so profoundly from last year's official party platform on the issues, Ayres said, "That's where the party platform was. It's very important to make a distinction between the party in 2012 and where it will be in 2016. It will not look like the same party."
Michael McKenna, a Republican energy lobbyist and strategist who has worked closely with House Republican leaders to craft their energy and climate messages in recent years, said he'll listen closely to Alexander's message.
"Lamar is a pretty interesting guy. Given his swingy nature, lots of people are going to pay attention to what he is saying," McKenna said.
Since 2010, many formerly moderate Republicans have shifted far to the right on energy and climate positions, in part to avoid attacks from groups such as Americans for Prosperity ahead of reelection campaigns. But although Alexander is up for reelection next year, he is not backing down from his long-held energy positions. The former Tennessee governor is not facing a primary challenger and is expected to maintain a comfortable lead over Democratic challenger Larry Crim.
Five years ago, Alexander gave a similar energy speech at Oak Ridge, laying out seven "grand challenges" on energy, including finding ways to promote plug-in electric vehicles, capture and use carbon emissions, help solar become cost-competitive, safely manage nuclear waste, make biofuels competitive with gasoline, make new buildings green buildings, and create energy from fusion. At the time, those goals were well in line with the views of the GOP's presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
Alexander's speech on Wednesday offered a progress report on those goals?and proposed a plan for a Republican energy future.
Alexander directly acknowledged climate change and the need to reduce carbon pollution. "While the United States has made more gains in reducing the use of carbon than any other industrial country, the National Academies of the U.S. and 12 other countries have warned that human activity has contributed significantly to climate change and global warming," he said.
He presented "four grand principles" to "help the United States end an obsession with taxpayer subsidies and strategies for expensive energy and instead focus on doubling research and allowing marketplace solutions to create an abundance of clean, cheap, reliable energy."
His four principles are: cheaper, not more expensive energy; clean, not just renewable energy; research and development, not government mandates; and a free market, not government, picking winners and losers.
More specifically, he praised the U.S. boom in development of natural gas, a source of electricity that produces half the carbon pollution of coal. While acknowledging the role renewable-energy sources such as solar play in the nation's energy mix, he also pushed for development of low-carbon electricity sources such as nuclear and hydropower. He praised the work done by the Energy Department lab ARPA-E, which researches high-risk, high-reward breakthrough clean-energy technologies?a move that comes on the heels of a GOP campaign railing against President Obama for the bankruptcy of the solar company Solyndra, which took $500 million in an Energy Department loan guarantee.
Alexander's message wasn't all along green lines. He criticized President Obama's effort to pass a cap-and-trade climate-change bill?although his criticisms were of the policy mechanism, not the goal of reducing carbon. He called for an end to government subsidies on wind energy, a policy he's long opposed. The proposals don't line up exactly with President Obama's green agenda, but with their clear focus on low-carbon energy, they are a far cry from the stance of many in the GOP.
"I've been fascinated with the progress we've made on the seven grand challenges I suggested five years ago," Alexander said. "Perhaps by focusing on these four principles, we can capitalize on this progress toward cheap, clean, reliable energy."
Republicans say that a voice like Alexander's will have serious heft as the GOP reckons with its energy and climate future.
"Lamar is a strong and credible voice for Republicans on energy issues," said Republican strategist Mark McKinnon. "He has standing to make the case."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lamar-alexander-unveils-maverick-gop-vision-energy-future-165610841.html
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Spring Camp Day Two?Car Rides, Cabins and Carbohydrates
Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/05/spring-camp-day-2/
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Thursday, May 30, 2013
Organic polymers show sunny potential: Groundwork laid for block copolymer solar cells
May 29, 2013 ? A new version of solar cells created by laboratories at Rice and Pennsylvania State universities could open the door to research on a new class of solar energy devices.
The photovoltaic devices created in a project led by Rice chemical engineer Rafael Verduzco and Penn State chemical engineer Enrique Gomez are based on block copolymers, self-assembling organic materials that arrange themselves into distinct layers. They easily outperform other cells with polymer compounds as active elements.
The discovery is detailed online in the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters.
While commercial, silicon-based solar cells turn about 20 percent of sunlight into electricity and experimental units top 25 percent, there's been an undercurrent of research into polymer-based cells that could greatly reduce the cost of solar energy, Verduzco said. The Rice/Penn State cells reach about 3 percent efficiency, but that's surprisingly better than other labs have achieved using polymer compounds.
"You need two components in a solar cell: one to carry (negative) electrons, the other to carry positive charges," Verduzco said. The imbalance between the two prompted by the input of energy -- sunlight -- creates useful current.
Since the mid-1980s, researchers have experimented with stacking or mixing polymer components with limited success, Verduzco said. Later polymer/fullerene mixtures topped 10 percent efficiency, but the fullerenes -- in this case, enhanced C-60 buckyballs -- are difficult to work with, he said.
The Rice lab discovered a block copolymer -- P3HT-b-PFTBT -- that separates into bands that are about 16 nanometers wide. More interesting to the researchers was the polymers' natural tendency to form bands perpendicular to the glass. The copolymer was created in the presence of a glass/indium tin oxide (ITO) top layer at a modest 165 degrees Celsius.
With a layer of aluminum on the other side of the device constructed by the Penn State team, the polymer bands stretched from the top to bottom electrodes and provided a clear path for electrons to flow.
"On paper, block copolymers are excellent candidates for organic solar cells, but no one has been able to get very good photovoltaic performance using block copolymers," Verduzco said. "We didn't give up on the idea of block copolymers because there's really only been a handful of these types of solar cells previously tested. We thought getting good performance using block copolymers was possible if we designed the right materials and fabricated the solar cells under the right conditions."
Mysteries remain, he said. "It's not clear why the copolymer organizes itself perpendicular to the electrodes," he said. "Our hypothesis is that both polymers want to be in contact with the ITO-coated glass. We think that forces this orientation, though we haven't proven it yet."
He said the researchers want to experiment with other block copolymers and learn to control their structures to increase the solar cell's ability to capture photons and turn them into electricity. Once they have achieved higher performance from the cells, the team will look at long-term use.
"We'll focus on performance first, because if we can't get it high enough, there's no reason to address some of the other challenges like stability," Verduzco said. Encapsulating a solar cell to keep air and water from degrading it is easy, he said, but protecting it from ultraviolet degradation over time is hard. "You have to expose it to sunlight. That you can't avoid."
Co-authors of the paper are Rice graduate students Yen-Hao Lin and Kendall Smith; Penn State graduate student Changhe Guo and undergraduate Matthew Witman; Argonne National Laboratory researcher Joseph Strzalka; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory postdoctoral researcher Cheng Wang and staff scientist Alexander Hexemer; and Enrique Gomez, an assistant professor in the Penn State Department of Chemical Engineering. Verduzco is an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering.
The National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the Welch Foundation, the Shell Center for Sustainability and the Louis and Peaches Owen Family Foundation supported the research.
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House prices post largest rise since 2006
House prices in 20 cities are up 10.9 percent since 2012, according to S&P/Case-Shiller index. Experts say the acceleration in house prices will continue as buyers get back in the market and new home construction lags.?
A home for sale in Mt. Lebanon, Pa., earlier this month The S&P/Case-Shiller index shows US housing prices enjoy biggest annual increase in nearly seven years in March.
Gene J. Puskar/AP/File
EnlargeAlready a bright spot in the economy, the housing market is starting to shine even more. Home prices have notched their largest increase since the housing bubble burst.
Skip to next paragraph Schuyler VelascoStaff writer/editor
Schuyler Velasco is a writer and editor for the Monitor's business desk.? She writes about consumer issues, sports, and the occasional sandwich.
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The S&P/Case-Shiller composite home price index of 20 cities rose 1.1 percent in March, and 10.9 percent since last year, beating analysts? expectations of a 10.2 percent annual gain. That?s the index?s biggest increase since April 2006.
?This update was the strongest in years,? IHS Global Insight US economists Patrick Newport and Stephanie Karol wrote in an e-mailed analysis. ?Seasonally adjusted prices were up in all 20 cities for the fourth straight month; prices were up from a year earlier in all 20 cities for the third straight month; five cities posted their largest month-on-month gain in over seven years; twelve cities saw double-digit increases from a year earlier; and all three major indexes rose at double-digit rates from a year earlier.?
Seasonally adjusted prices rose in all of the index?s 20 cities for the fourth month in a row. Non-seasonally adjusted, only New York and Minneapolis posted monthly declines.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Global money laundering operation busted
By Emily Flitter
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors have indicted the operators of digital currency exchange Liberty Reserve, accusing the Costa Rica-based company of helping criminals around the world launder more than $6 billion in illicit funds linked to everything from child pornography to software for hacking into banks.
The indictment unsealed on Tuesday said Liberty Reserve had more than a million users worldwide, including at least 200,000 in the United States, and virtually all of its business was related to suspected criminal activity.
"Liberty Reserve has emerged as one of the principal means by which cyber-criminals around the world distribute, store and launder the proceeds of their illegal activity," according to the indictment filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Officials said authorities in Spain, Costa Rica and New York arrested five people on Friday, including the company's founder, Arthur Budovsky, and seized bank accounts and Internet domains associated with Liberty Reserve.
Digital currency is made up of transferable units that can be exchanged for cash. Over the past decade, its use has expanded, attracting attention from the media and Wall Street. The most widely known digital currency is called Bitcoin. Liberty Reserve's currency was not connected to Bitcoin.
The indictment detailed a system of payments that allowed users to open accounts with little information and move money around with anonymity.
The U.S. Treasury named Liberty Reserve under the USA Patriot Act as a company "specifically designed and frequently used to facilitate money laundering in cyber space."
That designation, the first against a virtual currency exchange, prohibits banks or other payment processors from doing any business with Liberty Reserve, even if it should reopen under a new name.
In addition to pornography and drug trafficking funds, Liberty Reserve's virtual currency was also used to anonymously buy and sell software designed to steal personal information, according to a statement from the U.S. Treasury.
Users could also buy malware programs designed to assault financial institutions, as well as lists of information from thousands of compromised personal accounts, the Treasury said.
In addition to Budovsky, his deputy, Azzedine El Amine was arrested, as was co-founder Vladimir Kats, and two technology designers, Maxim Chukarev and Mark Marmilev.
Two more company employees were still at large in Costa Rica according to officials: Ahmed Yassine Abdelghani and Allan Esteban Hidalgo Jimenez. According to the indictment, almost all of the men used the alias, Eric Paltz.
None of the men could be reached for comment.
According to the indictment, Liberty Reserve's currency unit was called the "LR." Users opened accounts at Liberty Reserve giving only a name, address and date of birth that the company made no attempt to verify.
Once a user had a Liberty Reserve account, he or she could use cash to purchase LRs from third-party exchange merchants, which traded LRs with each other in bulk and charged fees to make the exchanges between LRs and hard cash.
Liberty Reserve users could transfer the digital currency units called LRs to each other, to be redeemed in different parts of the world for cash using the third-party exchange companies.
The third party exchange companies provided the gateway to more conventional payment systems. According to information Liberty Reserve's archived web pages, the company had relationships at one time with at least 35 different exchange companies, some of which transferred cash back and forth to customers using PayPal, Western Union, MoneyGram, credit cards including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and CitiBank Global Money Transfer.
The indictment said Liberty Reserve did not collect any banking or transaction information from the third-party exchange companies. It also let its users hide their Liberty Exchange account numbers when making transactions, which offered another opportunity for the users to mask their true identities.
The company processed around 12 million financial transactions per year. Since it began operating in 2006, the indictment said, Liberty Reserve laundered over $6 billion in criminal proceeds.
On Tuesday, the company's website, www.libertyreserve.com, displayed the message: "This domain name has been seized by the United States Global Illicit Financial Team."
It was not clear whether the people arrested in Spain and Costa Rica would be extradited to the United States or when the two people arrested in Brooklyn, New York, would appear in court.
Regulatory obligations to combat money laundering have emerged as a major challenge to digital currency firms. The U.S. Treasury Department's anti-money laundering unit, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), issued guidance in March that labeled digital currency firms as money transmitters, thereby obliging them to enact anti-money laundering programs and register with FinCEN.
A top Bitcoin exchange, Tokyo-based Mt. Gox, failed to register with FinCEN earlier this month and had its U.S. dollar accounts seized by authorities.
Over the past week, a Bitcoin unit has traded at around $130, according to the website Bitcoincharts.com.
(Reporting by Emily Flitter in New York; Additional reporting by Brett Wolf in St. Louis and Isabella Cota Schwarz in San Jose, Costa Rica and Matthew Goldstein in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe, Tim Dobbyn and Jan Paschal)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-shuts-alleged-cyber-criminal-money-transfer-system-144155238.html
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Precision Nutrition ? Paleo, vegan, intermittent fasting ? what's the ...
The question I?m asked more than any other is which ?nutrition camp? I fall into.?Am I a paleo guy? What about vegan? Low carb? Intermittent fasting?
In this article I?ll explain why those are actually the wrong questions to ask, offer a new question, and reveal what kind of ?nutrition guy? I really am.
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A few weeks back I did a short media blitz in Toronto, appearing on 3 different television networks and speaking with 13 print journalists in a single day.
For a natural introvert like me, it was exhausting. However, I love talking about fitness and nutrition, and I?m always excited to help people get on the right track.
While the journalist?s questions ranged from health and weight loss to sports nutrition, one particular theme kept emerging. They wanted to know which ?nutrition camp? I belong to.
From one award-winning journalist:
?I?ve visited your website and I?m still not sure: do you guys believe in ?paleo?? Or do you believe in the standard ?RD stuff???
From a TV broadcaster (on air no less):
?Your coaching program sounds great. But, if I were to sign up for it, would I have to cut out all my carbs??
From a production assistant on a TV program:
?I have a friend who?s vegan and she?s super healthy. I?m thinking of trying it?what do you think??
In that one day I received at least a dozen questions like this, all of which essentially ask the same thing:
?Which of the currently popular nutrition philosophies do you believe in??
Phrased another way ?
What?s the ?best diet? for people to follow?
Of course, I travel around the world lecturing, teaching, and giving interviews. So I?m well-practiced in answering similar questions over and over again.
However, after a dozen times in a single day, I started to get annoyed. Not at the journalists, mind you. But at?myself.?Because even after years of the same question, I haven?t yet come up with a pithy, one-liner response.
I simply don?t fall into a single ?diet camp?. And that confuses the hell out of people, since the human brain likes easy categorization.
?But ? but ? I?need?to fit you into one of these nice little nutrition boxes.?
If I could help people stick me and Precision Nutrition into the right nutrition box, I would. Believe me, it?d make things a lot easier.
But I just can?t do it.
Here?s why:?I don?t believe there?s a single, absolutely, positively, without-a-doubt best diet for every person to follow, always, and forever.
Spend enough time actually working with clients ? like we do every day ? and you?ll probably start to feel the same way too.
Think about this: In the last 5 years, my team and I have coached over 20,000 clients in 100 different countries through our fat loss and muscle-building coaching programs.
You can imagine the diversity.
- Body type:?Some clients come to us tall and thin. Others come short and stocky.
- Dietary preferences & exclusions:?Some clients come to us eating lots of meat every day. Others come eating no meat at all.
- Budget:?Some clients come to us with an incredibly low budget. Others come with an unlimited budget.
- Organic / conventional: Some clients come to us eating only boxed and packaged foods. Others come eating only natural, organic, whole foods.
- Nutrition knowledge: Some clients come to us as devout followers of a certain dietary practice.?Others come with very little nutrition knowledge whatsoever.
- Time: Some clients come to us with lots of free time for a health and fitness project.?Others come with very little time to devote to health and fitness.
You get the picture.
There?s simply no way we?d be able to help all those folks make incremental improvements in their eating if we were militant about a single nutrition paradigm.
Can you imagine:
?I know you have a super-low budget for food. But if you sell your vehicle, or maybe one of your children, you?ll be able to afford the organic and free-range whole foods we recommend in our program. That?s the only way to get healthy and fit.?
?Carbs? You?re not alone. We all like ?em. But this program is all about cutting way back. Low carb is what works, period. Insulin is the enemy. So say goodbye to pasta. Potatoes too. And rice. And sugar ??
?Sure, I understand the moral and ethical obligation you feel. But eating animal foods ? that?s how we do it. You need the protein and the fat. And it?s how our ancestors ate. So suck it up, throw a steak on the grill, and let?s get this party started.?
While these responses are a little extreme, they?re not that far from what I hear every day in the gym or read on Facebook. And it?s a shame because ?
The best coaches don?t actually have a single nutrition philosophy.
Sure, if a particular nutrition idea ? like Paleo or vegetarianism ? worked for you personally, that?s awesome. You should be happy you found something that helped you reach your goals.
But to suggest that because it worked for you, at one point in your life, under a particular set of circumstances, now everyone else should follow the same program isn?t just narcissistic.?It?s the antithesis of good coaching.
Physiologically, the human body can do well under a host of different nutritional conditions.
This is clearly demonstrated by examining the traditional diets of various tribes and ethnic groups throughout the world.
- For example, the Arctic Inuit and African Masai eat traditional diets that are very high in fat and animal products with very few vegetables.
- Conversely, the Kitavans in the South Pacific eat traditional diets that are low in fat but very high in vegetables and starchy carbs.
- And the Tokelau near New Zealand eat traditional diets that are very high in saturated fats.
Crazy differences here?yet all traditional diet eaters are relatively healthy people with minimal incidences of cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, inflammatory obesity, etc.?And this is only possible because the human body is amazingly adaptable to a host of different dietary conditions.
It?is?possible to be healthy and fit whether you eat mostly meat or mostly veggies, mostly fat or mostly carbs, many times a day or just a few times, and so on.
Which means that, as a nutrition coach, I shouldn?t really belong to any specific nutrition camp at all.
When you work with actual human beings, you must be a nutritional agnostic.
Open to evaluating anything and everything that could work. Willing to test new methods, even if they fly in the face of current beliefs or practices. And the humility to sometimes be wrong, even if you really like being right. (Which I do.)
If I believe too strongly in any particular ?nutritional religion?, I fixate on the food itself. Or my own personal way of looking at food. And I lose focus on what?s most important as a coach: my clients and their individual physiological and psychological needs.
Here?s another example: our Precision Nutrition staff. With more than 50 full time team members, PN is like a nutritional United Nations convention.
- Some eat plant-based diets.?Others eat meat-based diets.
- Some eat high carb diets.?Others eat low carb diets.
- Some eat dairy-free, gluten-free, and all other potential allergen-free diets.?Others ?eat whatever I want as long as I get enough proteins and fats and stay healthy? diets.
The common theme is that we all practice what we preach, we all take health and fitness seriously, and we all monitor the results of our dietary choices closely, adjusting where necessary.
We respect each other?s choices and get along just fine. We?re more interested in exploring what?works?than we are in being right.
But wait ? how can all these different diets actually work?
You?re probably wondering: How can such wildly different nutrition programs all lead to positive results?
My response: They?re not as different as you might think.
Most effective nutrition programs are more similar than different. (Yes, even Paleo and plant-based eating.)
When done properly, Paleo diets, plant-based diets, high carb diets, low carb diets, eating small meals frequently, eating larger meals infrequently, etc. all accomplish the following:
1. They raise nutrition awareness and attention.
I know, everyone wants to talk about the food itself ? the proteins, carbs, and fats. What to eat more of and what to avoid.
But research is now showing that?simply paying better attention to what you eat is a key factor in whether you?ll lose fat, get lean, and improve your health.
Whether your attention is trained on avoiding carbs, eating more vegetables, seeking out organic / free-range food, avoiding animal foods, or avoiding ?non Paleo? food, it?s all good.
Because?what you focus on may not matter as much as simply caring more about what you?re eating in the first place.
2. They focus on food?quality.
Paleo and low carb advocates want you to eat more natural, free-range animal-based foods that are higher in protein, higher in fat, and are minimally processed.
Vegan and high carb advocates want you to eat more natural, plant-based foods that are higher in fiber, antioxidants, and are minimally processed.
Recognize what?s common here?
Indeed, very few nutrition camps recommend you eat?more?processed, chemical-laden ?junk? food. (Thank goodness.)
Instead, pretty much every camp recommends eating whole, minimally processed, nutrient-rich foods. And that may be one of the most important nutrition interventions of all, regardless of the protein, carb, and fat breakdowns.
3. They help eliminate nutrient deficiencies.
In keeping with the last point, the best nutritional advocates help us shift?away from?highly processed foods, which are often low in nutrients because they?ve been stripped out during processing, and?toward?more whole, minimally processed foods, which often have their nutrients intact.
Thus, a properly designed diet of any kind eliminates some of the most common nutrient deficiencies?(water, certain vitamins and minerals, proteins, and essential fatty acids).
This is huge. We often look, feel, and perform terribly when we?re deficient in important nutrients. But within a few weeks of correcting these deficiencies, we feel totally rejuvenated. (And because the transformation is so dramatic, that?s often when we become diet zealots.)
4. They help control appetite and food intake.
When we?re more aware of what we?re eating, choose more satisfying, higher quality foods, and eliminate nutrient deficiencies, we almost always end up eating less total food. We feel more satisfied. We lose fat, gain lean muscle, and perform better.
Notice that you don?t need calorie counting here. Focusing on food awareness and food quality is usually enough for people to tune into their own hunger and appetite. And that means calorie control without the annoying calorie math.
It also means more sustainability since counting calories has a shelf-life. No one does it forever.
5. They promote regular exercise.
When people start paying attention to their eating, they usually start thinking about physical activity too. In fact, many of the diet camps recommend regular exercise. (Which is a good idea, since focusing on diet alone may actually interfere with establishing a consistent exercise routine.)
When a person exercises regularly, with a mix of high and low intensity activity, they dramatically improve their ability to turn the food they eat ? whatever food that is ? into functional tissue (instead of extra fat).
You can now understand how different well-designed dietary philosophies ? even when they seem oppositional and antagonistic on the surface ? can all promote good health, body composition, and longevity.
Which is why ?
Choosing a single diet camp makes no sense.
1. There?s no such thing as one, universal ?best? diet.
There?s no one absolutely, positively, without-a-doubt best diet for everyone. Humans have evolved to do well under all sorts of dietary conditions.
That?s why I?m happy to help people find the best one for them, no matter their dietary preferences.
Of course, this is a big win for my clients: They get in shape doing more of the things they actually like. And a win for me: I get to help more people.
2. Most popular diets actually have a lot in common.
Most popular diets ? when done with care, attention, and a little coaching ? help control appetite, improve food quality, promote exercise, and raise nutritional awareness.
3. Coaches should never lock into a single philosophy.
In the last 5 years alone,?our team has helped 20,000 clients lose over 300,000 pounds of body fat and develop a new relationship with food.
And we?ve done that without forcing a specific diet philosophy on them. Vegans can stay vegan. Paleos can stay Paleo. And they?ve?all?had success.
Coaches: Don?t waste energy bullying people into a particular way of eating.
4. Habit-based coaching is better than diet-based coaching anyway.
Long-term nutrition?habits?trump diet plans and ?rules?. Always.
We prefer a?nutritional progression model?(which builds habits intelligently and sustainably over time) versus asking people to ?follow a diet? (which means doing a full lifestyle overhaul on Day One).
For more on this particular approach, which I call ?habit-based coaching?, check out this short article.
So, the best diet to follow actually is ?
? the one that?s best for you.
If you want to follow a Paleo diet, I can help with that.
I can also help out if you?re vegan, prefer to eat more carbs (or less), are on a tight budget, or only eat organic / free range artisan foods.
But, really, what I?d like you to follow is what I call ?precision nutrition?.
Let me listen to your needs. What you want to accomplish. How you live. What?s really important to you. Then let me help you create the right dietary approach for you; one that?s specific to your goals and your lifestyle.
Because that?s what coaching really is.
Diet gurus are in this game to get attention, make a scene, and get on TV. That?s why they try to force people into following strict and largely unnecessary nutrition rules ? demonizing some foods, deifying others.
Sure, it sells books. It gives good TV. But we all know how things turn out when real people try to follow these rules in real life.
The best coaches, on the other hand, are actually responsible for (and accountable to) their clients.?They?re paid to get results.?This totally changes the game.
That?s why I don?t really have a diet philosophy. Instead, I have a personal coaching?process.
One that helps clients find the best diet for them. One that takes into account their small (but still important) physical and biochemical differences. And one that takes into account their lifestyle differences, including:
- family
- life demands
- stress level
- work situation
- income level
- climate
- environmental pollutants
- food availability
- cooking experience and knowledge
- time availability for fitness
- physical activity
- and so on ?
No, it?s not as clean and clear as ?avoid meat? or ?eat like a caveman?.
But I believe it?s the only sane and rational approach.
It also happens to be the only approach that actually works in the long run.
+++
Want help finding the right diet for you?
If you?d like some help and support in finding the right diet for your goals and your lifestyle, we?d be happy to help. In fact, we?ll soon be taking a group of new clients looking for the same thing, all as part of our Lean Eating Coaching Program.
You see, we accept a very small number of new clients every 6 months, and the spots in the program typically sell out in hours. However, those motivated enough to put themselves on the presale list get to register 24 hours before everyone else. Plus, you?ll receive a big discount at registration.
So put your name on the list below ? because, as always, spots are first come, first served, and when they?re gone, they?re gone.
Don't miss out! Get on the Lean Eating Coaching presale list today!
On Wednesday, July 17th, 2013, we?re taking a small group of new clients and getting them in the best shape of their lives. Spots are first-come, first-served and typically sell out in minutes.
Get on the presale list to register at a discount 24 hours before spots open to the general public.
Source: http://www.precisionnutrition.com/best-diet
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PFT: Texans' Foster strains calf muscle at OTA
Getty ImagesOnce, voluntary offseason workouts actually were voluntary.? At some point, however, these practices became ?voluntary? in name only.
But the NFL and its 32 teams still use the label.? Which makes it refreshing when a player chooses to take advantage of that outdated description.
In Philadelphia, newly-signed cornerback Cary Williams has opted not to show up for optional practices, arriving only recently.? And when he showed up, Williams ended up not in the starting lineup.
?That?s what Coach [Chip Kelly] wants, that?s what he?s doing, and that?s fine with me,? Williams said, via Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer.? ?It?s just one of those things where I missed a couple of weeks, guys have been here, and Coach has given them an opportunity.? And that?s fine.? OTAs are OTAs. ?When we get the pads on, it?s a different thing.?
Per Berman, Kelly attributed Williams? absence from the first week of OTAs to his wedding and honeymoon.? Williams, however, said he had other issues to deal with, including building a house and dental work.
?Just because it was OTAs doesn?t mean I need to derail my plans for a situation like that,? Williams said. ?Not being disrespectful.? Everybody has their own personal life and things to take care of.? And in my life, I have something to take care of, and I felt that was important. . . . As far as I?m concerned, I did what was more important to me at the time, and family is the most important thing.?
The problem for Williams and anyone else who misses offseason practice ? for whatever reason ? comes from the possible creation of a gap that may never be bridged.? Last year, for example, Rams second-round running back Isaiah Pead fell behind due to the outdated rule that prevents players from joining offseason workouts until their colleges complete final exams.? Pead landed behind seventh-rounder Daryl Richardson on the depth chart, and Pead never was able to pass him.
While Williams is confident that ?the cream will rise to the top? once padded practices begin in training camp, there are now fewer opportunities for that to happen, because there are fewer padded practices.? It can happen for Williams or anyone else who misses offseason workouts, but he?s taking a calculated risk that he won?t be able to unseat someone who chose to show up for voluntary practices.
That?s Williams? prerogative.? And as long as the NFL continues to try to call these practices ?voluntary,? we support anyone who chooses to stay home ? as long as he realizes that it could in some cases mean staying on the sidelines come September.
Information Technology|Certification Intelligence | Career ...
Information technology news and technical data pertaining to certification intelligence for exam education will be the primary purpose of this report. Many people don?t know the distinction between computer training and certification exam training. I would like to see every one what the differences are. Computer training is class room knowledge with scheduled programs or on line training concerning the job field regarding information technology. I want to explain! You might want to become Server Administrator. To start with you will need some knowledge somewhere to be able to be proficient in the topic and probably purchase a 2 or 4-year level or receive some online education with a professional teacher. You may just want to have a few programs and receive a certificate in this field. This would be considered computer education.
It certification intelligence on exam education is the thing you need in order to be fully prepared to go your certification exam. After computer training you may have a degree or a document but you still don?t have a certification that is recognized by Microsoft, CIW and CompTia or another. If you?ve computer education that qualifies you to be a Server Administrator then you?ll need to get licensed in Microsoft, CIW or CISCO. Certification exam education specializes in preparing you to go your certification exam. An IT Certification exam is unlike any other exam that you have had in school or school. There are two extremely important points to consider when planning for a certification exam. They?re the proper study strategy and having relevant material that concerns the real test that is up to date with all the economy.
You will find just a couple of sites on the web offering Certification examination instruction. The reason why I wrote this article is to give information and details about the most effective resources on certification examination instruction. There are several students of information technology looking this information simply because they are seriously interested in driving their accreditation test on the 1st take to. This article isn?t about marketing but about helping those who find themselves not informed about Certification assessment instruction.
Still another reason for this short article is education concerning information technology certification. There are several universities and on line training about information technology that?ll prepare you for a particular subject or area but there are but a number of areas where you can find information technology accreditation intelligence on exam training.
Say you desire to become a Technician and you study at a school or receive online instruction so that you?re proficient in that area and receive a degree or certificate in that area but you still are not certified until you have a certification test. Despite graduation you will have to plan an certification exam with prometric or pearsonvue as a way to be certified in the field that you wish.
How many places do you know where you can get training on how to complete your information technology certification test. Assessment training is not exactly like computer training. You will need knowledge of how to study on your certification exam and to understand the proper study methods because an IT exam is not the same as the tests in college. You will also need to find out where to get updated material about your certification exam because if you?re learning material that is outdated then you will not pass your certification exam. Certification exam training is essential if you intend on passing your certification exam the first time so you can avoid 2nd and 3rd exam fees.
Some people may already be focusing on the job in the profession they wish, such as a Server Administrator, Desktop Support Technician or a PC Repair Technician. They may have had prior training before work but have never acquired a certification. They probably know their work and are very proficient in their work and field but need a certification because their employer requires it. They do not need any computer instruction. They only need Certification exam education so they can pass their certification exam. I hope you get the picture now. Looking for a great source then visit: billnaugle.com
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Source: http://www.bestcareer-4you.com/information-technologycertification-intelligence.php
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Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Rumor has it that Yahoo is willing to stump up $800 million to take over Hulu.
Rumor has it that Yahoo is willing to stump up $800 million to take over Hulu. Marissa Mayer is one big spender right now.
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Monday, May 27, 2013
Britain: EU ends arms embargo on Syrian opposition
BRUSSELS (AP) ? The European Union said its member states within days will be able to send weapons to help Syria's outgunned rebels, seeking to pressure President Bashar Assad's regime ahead of planned peace talks mediated by the United States and Russia.
Though no EU country has any such plans now to send arms, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the decision "sends a very strong message from Europe to the Assad regime." He spoke after an all-day meeting of foreign ministers Monday that laid bare EU hesitation on feeding arms in a foreign conflict only months after the 27-member bloc won the Nobel Peace Prize.
"It is extremely important not to do anything to rock the boat. Start delivering weapons now would rock the boat. No one is intending to do that," Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said.
But in a bid to force Syria to participate in good faith at the prospective "Geneva II" talks next month, the meeting in Brussels dangled the option of sending in weapons and military equipment as soon as Saturday, when the current sanctions regime ends.
The prospect of EU weapons for the rebels, while maintaining stiff economic sanctions against Assad's regime, also sends a message to Russia. Moscow has unabashedly sent weapons to Assad's regime ? and EU arms deliveries could partially re-balance the civil war when it comes to firepower.
Several EU ministers said arming the opposition would create a more level playing field that could force Assad into a negotiated settlement.
Britain and France ? the EU's biggest military powers ? had been pushing the bloc to lift its embargo on delivery of weapons into Syria to help the embattled opposition. But Austria, which has sent peacekeepers to the Golan Heights between Syria and Israel, was vocally opposed ? one of several EU countries that argued that the region is already awash in weapons.
EU countries will individually examine their export license applications one by one and will not proceed "at this stage" with deliveries of military equipment, the joint declaration said, though it did not specify when that might change.
EU ministers agreed to revisit the issue before Aug. 1, but countries, based on previous EU guidelines, can now decide for themselves whether they want to arm the rebels.
The EU nations also agreed everything possible should be done to control any exports and make sure they do not fall into the hands of extremists or terrorists ? one of the thorniest issues for France and Britain in their calls to arm the rebels. Each country will require "adequate safeguards against misuse of authorizations (for export) granted," the EU text said.
Hague said Britain would only send in weapons "in company with other nations, in carefully controlled circumstances, and in compliance with international law."
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius left the talks earlier Monday to return to Paris to meet with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who are leading the effort to bring the two warring Syrian sides to the negotiating table.
Assad's government has agreed in principle to participate in peace talks in Geneva, but the exact date, agenda and participants still remain unclear.
In Paris, officials traveling with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had no comment on the EU arms decision.
A State Department official also said the department was aware of Sen. John McCain, a proponent of arming Syrian rebels, crossing into Syrian territory on Monday. Further questions were referred to McCain's office, which confirmed the unannounced trip but gave no details.
McCain met with anti-government fighters in Syria. The fierce critic of Obama administration policy in Syria has stopped short of backing U.S. ground troops there.
France added urgency to the EU arms debate Monday, with Fabius pointing to increasing signs that chemical weapons were being used in the conflict.
The EU nations have been steadfast opponents of Assad in the war and have steadily increased restrictive measures against his regime, including visa restrictions and economic sanctions. In February, the bloc amended the arms embargo to allow for non-lethal equipment and medicine to protect Syrian civilians. All those measures had been set to expire on May 31, but nearly all of the sanctions, including restrictions on exports and imports, visas, and funding for some Syrian companies, were extended for a year.
Washington has been reluctant to provide rebels with more sophisticated weapons for fear they might end up in the hands of the radical Islamic factions, including the al-Qaida-affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra, a group that has been the most effective fighting force on the opposition side.
___
Associated Press writer Bradley Klapper in Paris contributed to this report.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/britain-eu-ends-arms-embargo-syrian-opposition-224817694.html
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Kenya: UK soldier killing suspect arrested in 2010
Lyn Rigby, mother of Drummer Lee Rigby, holding a teddy bear joins other family members as they look at floral tributes outside Woolwich Barracks left by well wishers as they visited the scene of the 25-year-old soldier's murder in Woolwich, south-east London, Sunday May 26, 2013. (AP Photo/John Stillwell, PA). UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Lyn Rigby, mother of Drummer Lee Rigby, holding a teddy bear joins other family members as they look at floral tributes outside Woolwich Barracks left by well wishers as they visited the scene of the 25-year-old soldier's murder in Woolwich, south-east London, Sunday May 26, 2013. (AP Photo/John Stillwell, PA). UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
FILE - Michael Adebolajo, front, shouts slogans as Muslims march in London in a protest against the arrest of 6 people in anti-terror raids, in this Friday April 27, 2007 file photo. Adebolajo has been identified as one of the two men who attacked and killed a British soldier on a street in south London on Wednesday May 22 2013. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, file) MAGAZINES OUT
The mother of killed Drummer Lee Rigby, Lyn Rigby, centre, holds onto a teddy bear as she joins his stepfather Ian, and other family members looking at floral tributes outside Woolwich Barracks as they visited the scene of his murder in Woolwich, south-east London, Sunday May 26, 2013. Family members laid flowers at the Woolwich Barracks where the 25-year-old soldier of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers Lee Rigby who was attacked and killed by two men in broad daylight Wednesday May 22, and where hundreds of floral tributes have been left by public well wishers. (AP Photo / John Stillwell, PA) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES
Police search team leave the scene of a terror attack in Woolwich, southeast London, Thursday, May 23, 2013. A member of armed forces was attacked and killed by two men on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Sang Tan)
In this undated image released Thursday May 23, 2013, by the British Ministry of Defence, showing Lee Rigby known as ?Riggers? to his friends, who is identified by the MOD as the serving member of the armed forces who was attacked and killed by two men in the Woolwich area of London on Wednesday. The Ministry web site included the statement "It is with great sadness that the Ministry of Defence must announce that the soldier killed in yesterday's incident in Woolwich, South East London, is believed to be Drummer Lee Rigby of 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers." (AP Photo / MOD)
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) ? A suspect in last week's savage killing of a British soldier on a London street was arrested in Kenya in 2010 while apparently preparing to train and fight with al-Qaida-linked Somali militants, an anti-terrorism police official said Sunday.
Michael Adebolajo was then handed over to British authorities in the East African country, another Kenyan official said.
The information surfaced as London's Metropolitan Police said specialist firearms officers arrested another man suspected of conspiring to murder 25-year-old soldier Lee Rigby. Police did not provide details about the suspect, only saying he is 22 years old.
The latest arrest followed the detainment in London late Saturday of three others, aged 21 to 28, also suspected in the case.
Rigby, who has served in Afghanistan, was run over and stabbed with knives in the Woolwich area in southeast London on Wednesday afternoon as he was walking near his barracks.
Adebolajo, 28, and Michael Adebowale, 22, are the main suspects in the killing and remained under armed guard in separate London hospitals after police shot them at the scene.
In 2010, Adebolajo was arrested with five others near Kenya's border with Somalia, Kenya's anti-terrorism police unit head Boniface Mwaniki told The Associated Press. Police believed Adebolajo was going to work with Somali militant group al-Shabab.
Mwaniki said that Adebolajo was deported after his arrest in 2010. Kenya's government spokesman said he was arrested under a different name, and taken to court before being handed to British authorities.
"Kenya's government arrested Michael Olemindis Ndemolajo. We handed him to British security agents in Kenya and he seems to have found his way to London and mutated to Michael Adebolajo," spokesman Muthui Kariuki said. "The Kenyan government cannot be held responsible for what happened to him after we handed him to British authorities."
Kariuki said Adebolajo was traveling on a British passport, but he could not confirm if it was authentic.
When asked whether British security agents and embassy officials handled Adebolajo in Kenya, a Foreign Office spokeswoman declined to comment, only saying in a statement: "We can confirm a British national was arrested in Kenya in 2010. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provided consular assistance as normal for British nationals."
Rigby's grieving family visited the scene of his murder on Sunday, pausing for a few moments in reflection and laying flowers to join the hundreds of floral tributes already left at the nearby Woolwich Barracks by wellwishers.
The soldier's gruesome murder has horrified Britain, partly because it was captured by witnesses' cellphones. A video picked up by British media showed one of the suspects, with bloodied hands, making political statements and warning of more violence as the soldier lay on the ground behind him.
Hardline Muslim leaders have identified the man in the video as Adebolajo, an Islam convert who allegedly used to take part in London demonstrations organized by British radical group al-Muhajiroun. The group catapulted to notoriety after the Sept. 11 attacks by organizing an event to celebrate the airplane hijackers, and was banned in Britain in 2010.
More than 20 supporters of the group have been arrested over terrorism offenses, including a foiled plot to blow up central London nightclub Ministry of Sound and a bomb attack on London's Territorial Army base.
Abu Nusaybah, a friend of Adebolajo's, has asserted in a BBC interview that Adebolajo became withdrawn after he allegedly suffered abuse by Kenyan security forces during interrogation in prison there.
Anti-terrorism head Mwaniki on Sunday rejected those allegations. He said at the time there were no indications of torture or abuse, but that the unit would further investigate.
Mwaniki said dozens of foreign youth are arrested every year attempting to cross the Kenyan border to join al-Shabab, which claims to be fighting a jihad or holy war against the Somali government and African Union forces.
Al-Shabab controlled Mogadishu from roughly 2007 to 2011. The group still dominates most of south central Somalia but has seen its territory reduced after military pushes by African Union and Somali forces.
According to an August U.S. State Department report on terrorism, al-Shabab continues to maintain training camps in southern Somalia for young recruits, including Americans who have traveled there from Somali communities in the United States.
The camps have churned out dozens of bombers who've launched attacks in and outside Somalia.
Al-Shabab boasts several hundred foreign fighters, mostly East African nationals and veterans from the Iraqi and Afghanistan wars.
British officials have been on the lookout for security threats originating from Somalia for some years.
In a speech in 2010, Jonathan Evans, then head of Britain's MI5 domestic security service, warned that "a significant number" of British residents were training in al-Shabab camps to fight in the insurgency there.
"I am concerned that it is only a matter of time before we see terrorism on our streets inspired by those who are today fighting alongside al-Shabab," he said.
London police said another man in his 20s was stabbed Sunday in Woolwich close to where Rigby was killed, momentarily rattling people in the area. But Scotland Yard said early indications were that the stabbing was not related to terrorism or to Wednesday's killing. A spokesman said the victim was not a soldier, and that his injuries did not appear to be life threatening.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Osborne, head of Scotland Yard's counterterrorism command, said officers are pursuing CCTV, social media, forensic and intelligence leads in the investigation. He appealed for anyone who knew the two attackers to contact police with information.
British officials said Sunday they are also setting up a new terrorism task force to tackle radical preachers and extremism. Home Secretary Theresa May said the group will look at whether new powers and laws are needed to clamp down on religious leaders and organizations who promote extremist messages and who target potential recruits in British jails, schools and mosques.
___
Hui reported from London.
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Sunday, May 26, 2013
Rare 3-Planet Sight Tonight: See Jupiter, Mercury and Venus Together
Three planets will perform a rare celestial dance in the sunset sky tonight (May 26), a cosmic show that stars Jupiter, Venus and Mercury.
Weather permitting, the?three planets will shine together in a triangle formation low in the western sky in a planetary meet-up known as a conjunction. But there is more to the night sky sight than meets the eye.
"Triple conjunctions of planets are fairly rare," astronomer Tony Phillips explained in a NASA observing guide. "The last time it happened was in May 2011 and it won't happen again until October 2015."
What sets tonight's planetary show apart from other conjunctions is that it includes the three brightest planets visible in the May night sky. Venus is the brightest of the trio, with Jupiter a close second and Mercury coming in third.
The three planets will appear within a 3-degree field of the night sky and should fit inside the field of view of a typical set of binoculars. For comparison, your closed fist held out at arm's length covers about 10 degrees of the sky.
The best time to look for Jupiter, Venus and Mercury together is between 30 and 60 minutes after sunset. If you have clear weather, the planets will appear low on the western horizon, so an unobstructed view is vital.
The three planets have been closing in on one another for tonight's sky show over the last week, but if you miss them tonight don't fret. The planet trio will still be visible on Memorial Day Monday (May 27) as their triangle pattern begins to separate, Phillips wrote.
On Tuesday (May 27), Venus and Jupiter will appear extremely close together, separated by just 1 degree, in what could be a "truly spectacular pair," Phillips added.
Editor's note:?If you snap an amazing picture of the three planets or any other night sky view that you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, send photos, comments and your name and location to Managing Editor Tariq Malik at?spacephotos@space.com.
Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik?and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook?and Google+. Original article on SPACE.com.
Copyright 2013 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rare-3-planet-sight-tonight-see-jupiter-mercury-143621071.html
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Egypt court rejects religious slogans in election law
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's highest court ruled on Saturday that parts of a revised election law setting out terms for a parliamentary vote were unconstitutional, casting fresh doubt over a poll that has already been delayed.
The Islamist-dominated upper house of parliament had approved the law last month and sent it to the Supreme Constitutional Court to check the legality of the voting procedures for a new lower house.
Opposition politicians had denounced the text of the revised election law approved by parliament and repeated threats to boycott the vote.
The court ruled that four provisions of the bill were unconstitutional, a judicial source said.
In its decision, the court took issue with parliament's removal of a long-standing ban on religious slogans in electoral campaigning.
The ruling said that failing to include a specific clause in the law banning religious slogans could "undermine national unity." The bill will now be sent back to parliament for review.
The ruling is the latest sign of friction between the judiciary, which Islamist lawmakers accuse of being loyal to deposed leader Hosni Mubarak and obstructing elections and legislation, and President Mohamed Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood.
Mursi, an Islamist elected last year, originally called elections for April but postponed them when the court annulled the decree setting the dates.
Mursi has said elections could now begin in October, completing the democratic transition from Mubarak's rule.
A separate court ruling last year dissolved the Muslim Brotherhood-led lower chamber elected in 2011-12.
Egypt has been plagued by political instability since Mubarak's ouster, scaring away investors and tourists who are needed to keep the economy afloat.
Outside parliament, baton-wielding police pushed back activists who were protesting against a controversial judicial reform law that was being discussed inside the chamber.
Parliament voted to continue discussions of the law, angering secular MPs who wore black sashes condemning it.
Islamist lawmakers allied to the Brotherhood are pushing the bill, which would force out more than 3,000 judges by lowering the retirement age.
The bill has also angered liberal, leftist and ultra-conservative Islamist opposition groups which accuse the Brotherhood of trying to control state institutions rather than pressing genuine reforms. The Brotherhood denies this.
Mursi has faced a revolt against Islamist attempts to force out thousands of judges and he has alienated some of his aides.
Earlier this month, senior Egyptian judges halted talks with Mursi on judicial reforms after parliament decided to discuss the proposed laws despite presidential promises to seek consensus first.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-court-rejects-religious-slogans-election-law-073238960.html
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Finfacts v Irish Status Quo: Corporate tax and property bubble taboos
| Last Updated: May 26, 2013 - 6:49 AM |
Finfacts v Irish Status Quo: The escalation of corporate tax avoidance in Ireland in the past decade coincided with the growth of the property bubble. Each operated in Ireland's parallel economies but they were underpinned by an establishment and its claques that successfully protected the status quo by treating dissenting views as taboos.
In the aftermath of this week's US Senate report on Apple's extensive use of Ireland as a tax haven, Michael Noonan, finance minister, has been reported as telling the Oireachtas finance committee: ?We would want to be very careful that we don?t join in to this claque of criticism when in actual fact the Irish taxation system is totally transparent.?
The extensive ministerial parroting of the term 'transparent' this week, doesn't make a fiction a fact (see related links below), and Noonan also warned TDs not to jeopardise jobs in their constituencies by joining in unwarranted criticism of Ireland?s tax regime.
This warning has echoes of the stifling of dissent during the bubble years, which is vividly illustrated in the comment?in 2007 by Bertie Ahern, then taoiseach, when he wondered why "cribbers" about the economy didn't commit suicide.
The property crash had to happen for the delusionists to return from their slumber in Rip Van Winkle's Land and now after ministers taking credit for surging services exports in recent years, that are the result of massive international tax avoidance schemes, the Government finds itself protesting that Ireland isn't a tax haven when it's too late.
Noonan himself has claimed that the services exports surge reflected increased competitiveness - - it is another example of ministerial fiction.
The services surge should be distinguished from traditional profit shifting in manufacturing.
In Ireland, there are a lot fewer jobs in multinational services compared with manufacturing while the phenomenon of giant US companies as market leaders in big European countries, paying little or no corporate taxes, is new. There is an exception in manufacturing, in respect of Dell, which on paper is Ireland's biggest manufacturer with a turnover of ?10bn in the latest Irish Times Top 1,000 Companies. It books the output of its Polish plant in Ireland.
The Obama administration had proposed measures to curb corporate tax avoidance in early 2009 and the Irish Government authorised IDA Ireland, the public inward investment agency, to hire US tax lobbyists.
President Obama in his State of the Union message in early 2012, proposed creating an international minimum tax that companies with overseas profits would have to pay.
The good news for a time was that?Republican gridlock in Washington DC killed the prospect of reform.
However, the extent of the use of Ireland as a tax haven - - Google diverting almost half its global revenues to Ireland; Facebook in a pre-IPO (initial public offering) filing last year saying the "material jurisdictions" in respect of its taxes are the United States and Ireland - - even before this week's revelations about Apple, was bound to become an international issue of controversy.
On Wednesday, Joe Nocera, New York Times columnist wrote:
Stifling dissent in Ireland
While there have been advances on the social side in recent decades, Ireland remains a conservative society that is resistant to change.
The people who run Ireland are older men from the same generation that was shocked when the economy collapsed.
We wrote last week about the small mainstream media and in particular about the timidity of Irish Times editors in this time of crisis.
Coupled to that, the network of vested interests remains intact and business lobby groups such as IBEC and the Irish Exporters Association have been part of the fiction that the surge in services exports reflects real economic activity.
Crucially also, the national parliament is mainly populated by Lilliputians and since the crash, it's hard to think who could be termed a Gulliver who has been prepared to challenge conventional wisdom and look beyond the crisis fire-fighting to present a credible vision of a future sustainable economy.
From our own experience during the bubble and in recent times, despite the rise of the Internet, those who prosper from conventional wisdom, continue to hold the trump cards.
Invoking patriotism has also been a regular ploy, used by defenders of the status quo.
There is also a hypocrisy that is likely common among Irish people: expect solidarity from Europe but Microsoft for example booking a sale made in Athens, in Dublin, depriving Greece of tax on corporate profits - - that's surely an inconvenient truth to be ignored?
Emergence of Ireland as a tax haven
Aggressive tax avoidance became a common feature of US multinationals from the late 1990s.
We reported in 2004: "Ireland is the world's most profitable country for US corporations, according to analysis by US tax journal Tax Notes. In a study by the journal's Martin Sullivan, it was found that profits made by US companies in Ireland doubled between 1999 and 2002 from $13.4 billion to $26.8 billion, while profits in most of the rest of Europe fell. In his analysis Sullivan termed Ireland a 'semi-tax haven' for US firms, because firms are involved in real productivity in contrast with locations such as Bermuda.
Between 1999 to 2002, US multinational corporations increased profits in countries with no taxes or low rates by 68% while sharply reducing profits recorded in countries where they engage in substantial business activity, a study published in the journal Tax Notes shows.
According to the New York Times, Commerce Department data, not referred to in the study, suggest that US companies took 17 cents of each dollar of worldwide profits in tax havens in 2002, up from 10 cents in 1999.
Tax Notes shows that for each dollar of profit taken in Luxembourg in 1999, US corporations took $4.56 of profit in 2002. The result for Bermuda was $2.96; for Ireland $2.01; and for Singapore $1.72. These countries are viewed as tax havens or partial tax havens. For UK, each dollar of profit taken in 1999 was equal to 67 cents in 2002; for Germany, it was 46 cents."
In 2005, The Wall Street Journal brought attention to Microsoft's efforts to route for example profits on sales in Germany to Dublin on which they paid Ireland at the low headline tax rate of 12.5%.?The Journal said a subsidiary, Round Island One Ltd., operated from the offices of a Dublin law firm and was one of the country's biggest companies, with gross profits of nearly $9bn in 2004 but it had no direct staff. Now Google and Facebook are following on Microsoft's trail.???
The Journal said much of Round Island's income is licensing fees came from copyrighted software code that originated in the US. Some of the rights to these lucrative assets end up in Ireland via complex accounting rules on intellectual property
Through a key holding, dubbed Flat Island Co., Round Island licenses rights to Microsoft software throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Thus, Microsoft routes the license sales through Ireland and Round Island pays a total of just under $17m in taxes to about 20 other governments that represent more than 300m people and $300 million in taxes to a country of just over 4m.
Microsoft's effective world-wide tax rate plunged to 26% in its 2005 fiscal year from 33% the year before. Nearly half of the drop was due to "foreign earnings taxed at lower rates,"
The Wall Street Journal said Microsoft's Irish venture is part of a historic emigration of US intellectual capital, a cornerstone of the modern American economy, to an island that once sent millions of famine-wracked migrants to America. Companies built on knowledge and innovations are an ever-larger portion of the US corporate tax base, displacing the old industrial concerns. But the newer firms' principal assets -- ideas, codes and formulas -- are intangible, and thus easily exported to places where the huge royalties they produce can be shielded from American taxation.
Accountants and lawyers now avidly market such relocations. Round Island's legal address is in the headquarters of a Dublin law firm, Matheson Ormsby Prentice, that advertises its expertise in helping multinational companies use Ireland to shelter income from taxes. It represents other US technology companies including Google.
Round Island was founded in 2001 and was converted to an unlimited Irish company in 2006 after The Wall Street Journal's reporting. The move closed off access to the financial data.
Microsoft told the SEC in 2011 that lower taxes in its fiscal fourth quarter to June 30, 2011, were ?primarily due to a higher mix of earnings taxed at lower rates in foreign jurisdictions resulting from producing and distributing our products and services through our foreign regional operations centers in Ireland, Singapore and Puerto Rico, which are subject to lower income tax rates.?
Microsoft?s pre-tax profits booked overseas nearly tripled over the past five years, to $19.2bn in the fiscal year to June 30, 2011, from $6.8bn in the year ended in June 2006, according to company filings. By contrast, its US earnings have dropped, to $8.9bn from $11.4bn in the same period. Foreign earnings now make up 68% of overall income.
WSJ report [pdf; free]
The value added as percentage of GDP of US firms overseas was highest in Ireland in 2005 according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
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Source: http://www.finfacts.ie/irishfinancenews/article_1026037.shtml
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