Environmental Extremists + ATF = Total Ammunition Ban

Environmental Extremists? Lead Bullet Ban + ATF?s ?Armor Piercing? Ammo Ban = Total Ammunition Ban.

Ammunition Bans

CalGunLaws.com

San Diego, CA --(Ammoland.com)- There are two more regulatory storm fronts moving in that may make it difficult or impossible to get the ammunition that firearm owners need to defend themselves and their families, and to engage in the shooting sports.

The uncoordinated attacks come separately from neo-enviro groups and from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. But taken together, these two separate proposals from these two separate groups create a perfect storm that could potentially result in an absolute ban on almost all ammunition.

How?
The extremist environmental groups are trying to ban lead ammunition. Federal law already bans the use of lead ammunition to take water fowl, but these groups will not be satisfied until all lead ammunition use is prohibited. They claim that the minuscule levels of lead introduced into the environment by hunters causes harm to persons and wildlife (most notably the California condor). This junk science resulted in the state legislature passing a ban on lead ammunition in central California. Not content with leaving ammunition banned within California borders, the groups have expanded their push to ban lead ammunition into other states and at the federal level.

The groups pushing for bans on lead ammunition argue that there are less toxic substances than lead available to make bullets. In making this push they suggest that ammunition should be made from alternate materials such as tungsten alloys, bismuth, steel, iron, brass, copper or bronze instead of lead.

Meanwhile, the second front against ammunition comes from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and stems from its attempts to determine whether certain types of ammunition are ?armor piercing? under the law.

The problem??Many, if not all of?the alternate metals that the neo-enviros want the bullets to be made from can fall under the ?armor piercing? ammunition definition due to the hardness of the ?green? non-lead metals.

ATF is also reviewing what types of ammunition is ?primarily intended to be used for sporting purposes.? ATF could use that determination to ban any ammunition that isn?t suitable for sporting purposes.

What is suitable for sporting purposes? Lead ammunition, the very ammunition that the neo-enviros want to ban.

Ammunition consumers are caught in the middle between the neo-enviros push to ban lead ammunition, and the ATF?s pending re-characterization of ?armor piercing? ammunition and ammunition not for ?sporing purposes? to mean all non-lead ammunition. If both sides get their way, there could be nothing left.

For a more comprehensive memo on these topics, click here.

About:
CalGunLaws.com is an online research resource designed primarily for use by attorneys and interested firearm owners. CalGunLaws.com strives to provide easy access to and facilitate understanding of the multitude of complex federal, state, and local firearm laws and ordinances, administrative and executive regulations, case law, and past and current litigation that defines the California firearms regulatory scheme in theory and practice. CalGunLaws.com is designed and organized to make it easy to research the law and to locate source materials and related information. All of the articles are cross referenced. Note the two sections on the right: Related Items and Related Law. Related Items will take you to any article related to the one you are currently viewing. Related law takes you to the related law and statutes for the item you are looking at.

Source: http://www.ammoland.com/2013/01/environmental-extremists-atf-total-ammunition-ban/

sopa marg helgenberger censorship wikipedia sopa and pipa bills censoring the internet blackout

Government mistrust deters older adults from HIV testing

Jan. 29, 2013 ? One out of every four people living with HIV/AIDS is 50 or older, yet these older individuals are far more likely to be diagnosed when they are already in the later stages of infection. Such late diagnoses put their health, and the health of others, at greater risk than would have been the case with earlier detection.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 43 percent of HIV-positive people between the ages of 50 and 55, and 51 percent of those 65 or older, develop full-blown AIDS within a year of their diagnosis, and these older adults account for 35 percent of all AIDS-related deaths. And since many of them are not aware that they have HIV, they could be unknowingly infecting others.

Various psychological barriers may be keeping this older at-risk population from getting tested. Among them are a general mistrust of the government -- for example, the belief that the government is run by a few big interests looking out for themselves -- and AIDS-related conspiracy theories, including, for example, the belief that the virus is human-made and was created to kill certain groups of people.

Now, a team of UCLA-led researchers has demonstrated that government mistrust and conspiracy fears are deeply ingrained in this vulnerable group and that these concerns often -- but in one surprising twist, not always -- deter these individuals from getting tested for HIV. The findings are published Jan. 29 in the peer-reviewed journal The Gerontologist.

"Our work suggests that general mistrust of the government may adversely impact peoples' willingness to get tested for HIV/AIDS," said Chandra Ford, an assistant professor of community health sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and the study's primary investigator. "HIV/AIDS is increasing among people 50 and older, but there's not a lot of attention being paid to the HIV-prevention needs of these folks. Older adults are more likely to be diagnosed only after they've been sick, and as a result, they have worse prognoses than younger HIV-positive people do.

"Also, the CDC recommends that anyone who's in a high-risk category should be tested every single year," she said. "These findings mean that the CDC recommendations are not being followed."

The researchers sought to test the association between mistrust of the government, belief in AIDS conspiracy theories and having been tested for HIV in the previous year. For the cross-sectional study, they worked with data from 226 participants ranging in age from 50 to 85. Participants were recruited from three types of public health venues that serve at-risk populations: STD clinics, needle-exchange sites and Latino health clinics.

Of the participants, 46.5 percent were Hispanic, 25.2 percent were non-Hispanic blacks, 18.1 percent were non-Hispanic whites and 10.2 percent were of other races or ethnicities. The data were collected between August 2006 and May 2007.

The researchers found that 72 percent of the participants did not trust the government, 30 percent reported a belief in AIDS conspiracy theories and 45 percent had not taken an HIV test in the prior 12 months. The more strongly participants mistrusted the government, the less likely they were to have been tested for HIV in the prior 12 months.

Several of the findings surprised the researchers -- for example, the fact that HIV testing rates among this population were not higher at the locations where the participants were recruited, given that these locations attract large numbers of people with HIV.

"This finding is concerning because the venues all provide HIV testing and care right there," Ford said.

And there was an even bigger, perhaps counterintuitive surprise. The more strongly participants believed in AIDS conspiracy theories, the more likely they were to have been tested in the previous 12 months.

"We believe they might be proactively testing because they believe it can help them avoid the threats to personal safety that are described in many AIDS conspiracies," Ford said. "For instance, if I hold these conspiracy beliefs and a doctor tells me I tested negative, I might get tested again just to confirm that the result really is negative."

By contrast, individuals who reported mistrusting the government may not have been tested because the venues where they were recruited were, in fact, government entities, Ford said.

The study has some weaknesses. For instance, the study design did not allow the researchers to determine whether the participants held their beliefs before or after being tested; thus, the researchers couldn't tell what prompted their mistrust of the government or conspiracy beliefs. Also, it's possible that the prevalence of these theories is higher in this group than it is in the general public and that some participants may have been afraid to tell the truth.

The next step in the research is to study other groups of older adults to determine if these views are more widely held than just among the at-risk population the researchers studied.

Steven P. Wallace, Sung-Jae Lee and William Cunningham, all of UCLA, and Peter A. Newman of the University of Toronto co-authored the study.

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 University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Health Sciences.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. C. L. Ford, S. P. Wallace, P. A. Newman, S.-J. Lee, W. E. Cunningham. Belief in AIDS-Related Conspiracy Theories and Mistrust in the Government: Relationship with HIV Testing Among At-Risk Older Adults. The Gerontologist, 2013; DOI: 10.1093/geront/gns192

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/5R2fZxkn8Ew/130129171343.htm

draft tracker the pirates band of misfits cleveland browns minnesota twins bobby abreu 2012 draft colt mccoy

Italian, European car markets have not hit bottom: Fiat CEO

GRUGLIASCO, Turin (Reuters) - Italian carmaker Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne said on Wednesday that the Italian and European car markets have perhaps not yet hit bottom and will slump for the sixth year in a row in 2013.

"The Italian and European car markets are in a free fall and perhaps have not yet hit bottom," said Marchionne, who is also the chief executive of Chrysler, at the opening of a new factory outside Turin.

Italian car sales are seen falling about 25 percent in January from the same month a year ago when figures are released on Friday, continuing last year's slump to the lowest level in over 30 years.

(Reporting by Gianni Montani, writing by Jennifer Clark, editing Francesca Landini)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/italian-european-car-markets-not-hit-bottom-fiat-090504842--finance.html

earthquake california earthquake california roy orbison the third man 2012 nfl draft order mohamed sanu chris polk

Yahoo revenue rises on search advertising

(Reuters) - Yahoo Inc posted a 4 percent gain in net revenue to $1.22 billion in the fourth quarter, when an increase in search advertising sales offset weakness in the Web portal's display ad business.

The company forecast net revenue -- which excludes fees shared with partner websites -- of $1.07 billion to $1.1 billion in the current quarter, trailing the $1.1 billion that Wall Street analysts expect on average.

Shares in Yahoo, which is trying to stave off declines across much of its business and revive growth, were up 1.5 percent in after hours trade. They had risen 4.5 percent before the revenue projections were disclosed on an analysts' conference call.

"We got the revenue acceleration we were hoping for. Display was down, but search is doing better" said Sameet Sinha, an analyst at B. Riley Caris.

"As long as in the near-term things are not bad, I think the stock will generally act positively while we wait for Marissa Mayer to deliver," said Sinha.

The company said on Monday its fourth-quarter net income was $272.3 million, or 23 cents per share, versus $295.6 million, or 24 cents per share in the year-ago period.

Excluding certain items, Yahoo said it had earnings per share of 32 cents, versus the average analyst expectation of 28 cents according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Chief Executive Marissa Mayer is moving to revive the company's fortunes after several years of declining revenue. Yahoo's stock has risen roughly 30 percent since she became CEO, reaching its highest levels since 2008.

Yahoo said it repurchased $1.5 billion worth of shares during the fourth quarter. Shares in the company were up 1.5 percent at $20.61 in extended trading from a close of $20.31 on the Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/yahoo-revenue-rises-search-advertising-012515413--sector.html

michele bachmann donald trump Election 2012 map Election Results Map Early voting results BBC Dick Morris

Search Engine Optimization and Website Designing - ArticlesWide ...

See your website on the first page of all top search engines, not with repeated attempts, but proper web optimizing tools, like SEO. There are hundreds and thousands of website owners like you, who make repeated attempts to make their web pages successful but fail. That is because; they just concentrate on the optimization of their site but forget one thing that the designing of the site is also important for the success of the site in the search engines. If you want to make your site come on the top pages, you need to take the assistance of an experienced and SEO professional.

The professional whom you select for working on your site should give due importance to the designing of the webpage. If the designing of the page is not done with completely accuracy, it will not be possible for you to get the webpage get the attention of the viewers. As long as someone is able to navigate through your site freely, he or she will be interested to visit your page. Thus, the number of searches to your site will increase. Not just that, with the increase in the number of searches and the number of organic traffics coming to your webpage increases the value of the site. It eases the work of search engine optimization and your site gets visible among the top pages.

When you are doing the optimization of your site, you should also make sure that the page is getting updated on a regular basis. You should make a regular updating of the content of the site or else you might not be able to get your site on the top pages. Collect all information related to the work carefully and then proceed

When you are doing the optimization of your site, you should also make sure that the page is getting updated on a regular basis. You should make a regular updating of the content of the site or else you might not be able to get your site on the top pages. Collect all information related to the work carefully and then proceed.

For more information on SEOnext, check out the info available online; these will help you learn to find the SEOnext!

Source: http://www.articleswide.com/article/14816-Search_Engine_Optimization_and_Website_Designing.html

oscar nominations C7 Corvette tom brady bradley cooper denver post Beasts of the Southern Wild Scandal

Acne treatment ? The best way to boost your self esteem | Tips on ...

Acne is a common problem that occurs on skin of both men and women. The problem becomes so severe that people sometimes face embarrassment to go out or meet other individuals. Acne is a condition that can become really frustrating. Acne can also take different forms. These appear as the following:

a) Whiteheads

b) Blackheads

c) Blemishes

People are usually advised to go for successful treatment via meeting a professional. Meeting a dermatologist will provide you a clear view of what phase of acne your skin is facing. One may also face low self esteem due to all the problems and meeting with a dermatologist has on the mind.

There are several forms of acne that would explain the treatment and difficulty one needs to face. There are several treatment products available to treat acne. Treating acne is very important to boost one?s self esteem. When your facial skin faces problems, it is the time when your self esteem takes a toll. Fortunately, there are several to treat acne, these days. A ton of products are widely available and many hardworking and talented dermatologists are ready to help you in this regard.

You may try some of these products available on the market that claim to be effective enough to treat acne. Meeting a professional would also be very effective. In addition to using all the items available for treatment on the market place and meeting a professional, you must do the following. The tips mentioned below will help you to treat acne effectively and boost your self esteem.

a) Exercise regularly:
You need to exercise regularly in order to keep your body in a healthy condition. This will also build up your immune system.

b) Diet:
You need to maintain a healthy diet. Try to include at least five servings of fresh fruit and vegetables. You also need to consume at least eight glasses of water. This will keep your system clean and also cleanse your body.

c) Clean:
You need to focus on washing and cleaning your face thoroughly with a medicated soap or mild face wash. Make sure you remove all the cosmetics before, going to bed.

It may be possible to take a long time to notice visible results when undergoing treatment for acne. Hence, you need to exercise patience. Once you start the treatment, you would certainly notice a boost in your self esteem. However, to get desired results, you need to carry out the treatment for the prescribed period and not give up on it at any cost.

Make sure, you stay from any kind of stress. Once you go through acne treatment, you would notice a lift in your self esteem. Make a choice for your acne treatment wisely. All your efforts and hard work is surely going to give you good results.

You may also interested in:

Tags: acne treatment for men, acne treatment for women, acne treatment skin, how to treat acne naturally, skin treatments for acne, treat acne, treating acne, treatment of acne

Source: http://www.foodfitnesslifelove.com/beauty/acne-treatment-the-best-way-to-boost-your-self-esteem/

FedEx Gabriel Aubry halle berry cyber monday deals small business saturday small business saturday best cyber monday deals

BUYING A HOUSE USES KENAI PENINSULA ... - Kenai Real Estate

Kenai Peninsula & Soldotna Real Estate

Buying or selling a home is often an adventurous and complex affair. It can also end up being a time-consuming, costly and even disappointing event if the buyer or seller is not familiar with all aspects of the process or doesn?t possess the best resources and information necessary at hand.

Chris Druesedow of Kenai Peninsula Real Estate offers unparalleled expertise and service to all clients looking to buy or sell Kenai real estate property. Your complete success and satisfaction, along with his representation and service is his number one priority. They service the entire Kenai and Soldotna real estate area and its surrounding communities.

You?ll find Kenai real estate smack on the western part of the Kenai Peninsula coast, which also sits on the boundary of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. It?s about a thirty minute plane trip from southwest Anchorage, Alaska. Approximately ninety percent of the area is wilderness, so it is full of breathtaking scenery, superb fishing and abundant wildlife of all that the North has to offer; truly an ideal location for outdoor types and nature-lovers.

Kenai has a rather prolific history and booming real estate market, as it is known worldwide for its oil, natural gas, ever-growing tourism and flourishing fishing industry, both commercial and private. The Borough has forty-four schools, all of which distinguish themselves with high standards and national ratings, with an impressive teacher/student ratio. The University of Alaska also manages the Kenai Peninsula Community College. Fishing and tourism services, as well as civil service, schools and various other city office positions make up the major employment opportunities in the community.

Soldotna real estate is located in the Kenai Peninsula, and is a bit rural, with the Kenai River as its natural emblem that flows right through the center of town, which makes it another must fishing spot for those hoping to snag a record breaking prize. Aside from excellent fishing, there are a slew of other outdoor activity to take part in, such as hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, rafting and skiing. There is also a town golf course, a children?s park, swimming pools and movie theaters.

Located right on the banks of the river, the Soldotna Visitors Center is an excellent facility to gather information about local attractions and events and things to do in the area, such as the Soldotna Sports Center, where various sporting events take place, the Soldotna Historical Museum and the Centennial Park, where campsites are located, as well as nearby rodeos, baseball and softball events, hokey, ice skating and an assortment of other events and activities.

While there are a vast array of properties of many types available throughout Alaska, Chris Druesedow uses his knowledge, expertise and intuition to find his clients the perfect home at the perfect price. Depending on preference and need, the professionals at Kenai Peninsula Real Estate will not only help prospective buyers find both traditional and hard-to-find properties that are desirable and that meet their precise specifications, but help sellers, looking to sell their existing property, find the best value. Just some of the types of real estate property they specialize in include:

? Investment property
? Foreclosure
? Short sales
? Lease to own
? Condos
? Vacation property
? Lakeside property
? Waterfront property

These types of properties are displayed at Chris Druesedow?s site, with some of the best information and tools at his disposal. He will provide detailed information on all types of Kenai and Soldotna real estate and properties for sale. Find the latest news and what?s going on in the current real estate market, with blogs that provide fresh news on market activity.

Whether you?re new to the Kenai Peninsula and considering buying a home on the spectacular Kenai River, a resident buying additional property, a first time buyer or selling property, the professionals at Kenai Peninsula Real Estate have lived here for years and know the area inside and out. They understand and abide by a code of ethics, professionalism and integrity. Call or email Chris Druesedow for more information on your next Soldotna or Kenai real estate property transaction.

Source: http://kenairealestate.com/2013/01/28/buying-a-house-uses-kenai-peninsula-market-awareness/

paul pierce pope joan pope joan strikeforce tate vs rousey strawberry festival knicks the monkees

Blueprints For Special Needs Families ? January 28, 2013 ...

Facebook?s Timelines And Your Special Needs Planning

Rob Wrubel CFP^?, ^AIF?

Facebook has a feature called Timeline. It shows your posting and interaction history of your life on Facebook starting from now and working backward. It is a rear-view mirror of your life as lived on the social media site.

Blueprints ? our financial planning process for families with special needs ? is oriented towards the future ? towards thinking about and making the type of life do you want to see, live and enjoy. Unlike Facebook postings, there are no pictures or funny image or stories to tell yet. There are hopes, dreams and ambitions, stress and worries, possibilities and opportunities. The stories will be written after they are lived and enjoyed.

It is up to us to make these possibilities come out the way we hope and dream. Of course, we cannot control the outcomes or ensure that they happen. We can move ourselves, our families and our behaviors in the right direction to plan and work towards the best outcomes for our families.

One step to take is to map out parts of the future with a timeline. Generally speaking, we know when certain life events will take place. Some of the timeline pieces may have passed for your family so just skip them. Add others that fit your family.

Take out a piece of paper and pencil to get started with key ages or desired life events for your family.

1. First day of kindergarten
2. First day of middle school/high school
3. Age 18 of special needs person
4. Transition programs
5. Age 21
6. Independent living
7. Expected future education needs
8. Expected future medical issues ? if any
9. Purchase of a second home
10. Start a business
11. Retirement
12. Death of one or both parents

Certain events are crucial to helping make the right outcomes take place for your family.

Age 18 is the age when some governmental benefits, such as Supplemental Security Income, can first be used. The cash received can make a big difference for your family even as your special needs family member lives at home.

Age 18 is also the time when most families apply for guardianship if it will be necessary. Guardianship allows for a family member to be the responsible party for medical decisions, living arrangements, social settings, asset protection and for other times where important decisions must be made. Many people with special needs act as their own guardians. The choice of who should be guardian, person with special needs, Mom, Dad or someone else may be a difficult decision for your family. You will want to spend time in advance of the 18^th birthday talking with other people and professionals to determine the need for guardianship and who should fill that role.

Age 21 is the time when transition services through school districts end. Transition programs allow for your family member with special needs to stay in supported programs offered by the school district. These programs are geared towards encouraging independence and may involve working, life training, social and day programs or volunteering. Unfortunately, the time after age 21 means a loss of programs, involvement and opportunities for many people with special needs. Colorado, for instance, has a long waiting list estimated at 14 years for people to be served by comprehensive benefits that open the door to government funded programs. How do you plan to cover the gap in activity and funding from age 21 to the point where benefits are available?

The timelines of special needs planning are geared towards understanding key moments and preparing for them. You will need to be ready financially, emotionally and intellectually. Events on the timeline require forethought and preparation. Take the step of independent living for example. At what age will you aim to have your special needs family live some place other than your home? Will it be in a host home, group home or truly independent? Who will provide supports? You will likely need to research which supported living and supported working non-profits in your community have the best reputations and can provide care in a way that is meaningful and sustainable for your family.

The timeline is one step in the special needs planning process. It is used to get you thinking about important future needs and goals for your family member with special needs. It helps take all those thoughts zooming around and get them down in an organized way. Financial planning, saving and investing cannot be done well without knowing what you wish to have happen. Once those goals are written down, the process of funding them can start.

Facebook?s timeline is fun ? a time to look at your life or a friend?s life and see where they have been and what they have been thinking. Have fun with your Blueprint?s timeline and enjoy thinking about the future you wish to have.

Rob Wrubel CFP^?, ^{AIF?, is a Senior Vice President ? Investments with Cascade Investment Group, member FINRA & SIPC. Rob is also a father of a daughter with Down syndrome. Cascade Investment Group is not a tax or legal advisor. You should always consult with your tax advisor or attorney before taking any actions that may have tax consequences.719-632-0818}

Source: http://blog.ciginc.net/?p=744

mountain lion hanley ramirez Christian Bale visits victims Perez Hilton national weather service kristen stewart Christian Bale

4 Ways to a Lucrative Internet Network Marketing Business

An internet network marketing business isn?t just sitting at a computer all day and raking in money. This is a mistake that a lot of people often think about.

Internet Network Marketing Business

When first starting in internet marketing, you can spend months, possibly a whole year; working six or seven days each week, with interminable hours before you see any return on your investment of time and cash.

The majority of people enter into the world of internet network marketing business with a completely bad attitude and concept, hence failing within a quarter of starting one.

They meander around online like chickens pecking up small pieces of info hoping to pull them together into some kind of internet network marketing business system.

So how you do you make sure that you?re on the right track to creating a lucrative business online?

1. Avoid distractionsMost internet network marketing businesses are run from home, and many people lack the discipline that they need to concentrate on their business and avoid distraction. If you have worked in any sort of business before, particularly in an office, there may have been music playing but certainly not a television that is turned on all the time. No one would ever be able to concentrate, so don?t try and do that when you work at home.
2. Plan your day aheadGo from the bedroom to the kitchen and get some breakfast. Plan your breaks and what to do at lunchtime. In most cases, it?s going to be a sandwich made in the same kitchen then back to work until you reach the time that you have set for yourself to finish. Keep in mind that it is simple to burn out from home working as the work is always there calling to you.
3. Make a listBreak down the term ?internet network marketing business?, each of these words is important. It?s your business which involves networking and marketing. Join the 2 words ?network? and ?marketing? and understand the term ?network marketing.? This doesn?t simply mean building a website and hoping it will suddenly generate traffic by itself. The internet does not work like that.

   You will not only have to build a site, but you will have to find a way to build up a list and capture qualified leads from that list. There are a number of techniques of going about that, but make a mistake and you are setting yourself up for failure. You may also require someone who will help you, probably in the form of a network marketing coach. Building lists is actually network marketing, and from those lists you get qualified leads which are where you?ll make your commissions ? no list, no leads, no money.

4. Look to the experts of internet network marketing business!

   Ask an Internet Network Marketing Business Expert

   If you looked for courses and information online about network marketing, most likely, you either gave up or got extraordinarily confused. It is only logical if you want to find out more about something that you need to learn from people who are successful at earning significant income from network marketing. Why not find a bunch of pros who would pool their ideas for the benefit of teaching those who are inexperienced in the niche? Sounds like a sensible idea, right?

A system that is continuously updated and added to that brings the newest ideas and methodologies in internet network marketing business will surely go a long way. Does something like that exist? What is it? Where can I get additional info? Let me tell you this system is one of the most respected systems in today?s market, and it has helped thousands of newbies and struggling internet marketers to achieve success. You can find out more about it here.

P.S. Please feel free to like this post and share it with your friends!

scrolling=?no? frameborder=?0? style=?border:none; overflow:hidden; width:70px; height:62px;? allowTransparency=?true?>

data-text=?4 Ways to a Lucrative Internet Network Marketing Businessvia @kevinklau.com? data-url=?http://kevinklau.com/internet-network-marketing-business/?
data-via=?" >

Source: http://kevinklau.com/internet-network-marketing-business/

dick cheney hcg drops reason rally mad hatter azerbaijan ryan howard ps i love you

Trial of China's Bo not being held Monday - court official

GUIYANG, China (Reuters) - The trial of disgraced senior Chinese leader Bo Xilai, the central figure in the country's biggest political scandal in decades, will not be held on Monday as some media had reported, a court official in the southern Chinese city of Guiyang said.

"To date, the People's Intermediate Court of Guiyang has received no information whatsoever about the trial of Bo Xilai taking place in Guiyang," said Jiang Hao, a court official in the city, the capital of Guizhou province.

"If the next step is to hold the Bo Xilai trial in Guiyang's court, then, as according to rules, we will inform our media friends promptly," Jiang told reporters at the court.

A report last week by Hong Kong's Ta Kung Pao newspaper said Bo, the charismatic former Communist Party chief of the southwestern city of Chongqing, would be tried in Guiyang from Monday. The Beijing-backed newspaper has accurately reported issues close to the Chinese leadership in the past.

Asked if prosecutors had sent the case to the court, Jiang said: "According to information I have received, they have not."

It is still not clear where Bo's trial will take place. He has not been formally charged although he was expelled from the Communist Party in September and made the subject of a list of sordid allegations: bending the law to hush up a murder, taking huge bribes, and engaging in "improper sexual relations with multiple women".

Once a contender for China's top leadership, Bo, 63, was ousted from his post as Chongqing party chief last year following the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, for which his wife Gu Kailai has been convicted.

Bo was widely tipped to be promoted to the party's elite inner core before his career unravelled. The downfall came after his former police chief, Wang Lijun, fled briefly to a U.S. consulate in February 2012 and alleged that Gu had poisoned Heywood. Wang and Gu are both serving prison sentences over the scandal.

The Bo issue is the most sensational case of domestic political turmoil in China since the fall of the "Gang of Four" after Mao Zedong's death in 1976, and is being closely watched for signs of openness in China's new leadership and how much of the party's inner workings they will allow to be revealed.

The trial will likely not be held until after China's national parliament holds its annual session in March, according to a report on Monday on the website of the Global Times, an influential tabloid published by the Communist Party's official People's Daily.

"The information in terms of the date and location for the trial will certainly be made public in advance, and it's unnecessary to make speculations", the paper quoted a source close to China's top judicial body as saying.

The paper did not further identify the source.

(Reporting by John Ruwitch in Guiyang and Beijing newsroom; Writing by Terril Yue Jones; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bo-xilai-trial-not-guiyang-today-court-official-013603729.html

aspergers Richard Engel Daniel Inouye steelers scarlett johansson tim tebow survivor

5 Indian sailors held hostage in Nigeria are freed

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) ? Five Indian sailors kidnapped off Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta and held captive for more than a month have been released by their abductors, a spokesman said Saturday.

The sailors had been seized Dec. 17 as their ship, the SP Brussels, sat about 40 miles (64 kilometers) off the coast of the Niger Delta.

The men were in good health after their release and received medical checkups before being flown back to India, said a statement released Saturday on behalf of the ship's operator, Medallion Marine.

"Medallion Marine wishes to express their admiration for the crew and their families who have shown great courage and fortitude throughout this very difficult situation," the statement read.

Martin Baxendale, a spokesman for Medallion Marine, declined to comment Saturday on the exact circumstances of the sailors' release. Typically, most foreign hostages are held for days or weeks until a ransom amount is negotiated. Foreigners can attract ransoms into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Foreign oil companies have pumped oil out of the Niger Delta, a region of mangroves and swamps the size of Portugal, for more than 50 years. Despite the billions of dollars flowing into Nigeria's government, many in the delta remain desperately poor, living in polluted waters without access to proper medical care, education or work. The poor conditions sparked an uprising in 2006 by militants and opportunistic criminals who blew up oil pipelines and kidnapped foreign workers.

That violence ebbed in 2009 with a government-sponsored amnesty program that offered ex-fighters monthly payments and job training. However, few in the delta have seen the promised benefits and sporadic kidnappings and attacks continue. The end of the year in Nigeria usually sees an increase in criminal activity, as criminal gangs target the wealthy returning to the country to celebrate the holidays.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/5-indian-sailors-held-hostage-nigeria-freed-121515324--finance.html

Olympic medal count Medal Count 2012 London 2012 Fencing olympics chariots of fire nbc Medal Count

Deal signed to clear Myanmar debt, allow new loans

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) ? The World Bank announced a long-awaited deal to allow Myanmar to clear part of its huge decades-old foreign debt, opening the door for new much-needed lending to jumpstart its lagging economy.

The bank's Washington headquarters said in a statement Sunday that the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, the country's overseas development bank, will provide a bridge loan to Myanmar to cover outstanding debt to the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, which totals about $900 million.

Myanmar stopped payments on its old loans about 1987, making it ineligible for new development lending.

The deal is a major breakthrough for Myanmar, with loans likely to go to upgrading its dilapidated infrastructure, including electricity and ports. The knock-on effect would be to bring in more foreign direct investment, already attracted by the country's relatively low-cost economy.

"We have not been allowed financial assistance for more than 20 years and the clearing of foreign debts will help bring fresh new loans for Myanmar," said Maung Aung, a researcher and economist at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry. "We welcome the deal because the country's infrastructure development can be carried out only with the financial assistance from the big financial institutions like the World Bank and ADB."

The debt deal clears the way for Japan to push ahead with plans for a $12.3 billion plan to build a special economic zone near the capital which is being developed by a consortium including Japanese trading firms Mitsubishi Corp., Marubeni Corp. and Sumitomo Corp.

The deal is also likely to draw criticism, because it comes as Myanmar's army is pushing hard against ethnic Kachin rebels in the country's north, in an echo of the notorious counterinsurgency campaigns of previous military regimes.

A former general, Thein Sein, became the country's elected president in 2011 and began reversing almost five decades of military repression by instituting political and economic reforms.

He won the substantial easing of economic and political sanctions imposed against the junta by the United States and other nations. But some pro-democracy activists say his administration has been rewarded too much, too fast, allowing some abuses to continue, such as repression of ethnic minorities.

The World Bank had already made some exceptions to providing new aid.

In November, it approved an $80 million project to provide $25,000 grants to villages in 15 townships across the country, where community councils will identify the kind of help they want, such as roads, bridges, irrigation systems, schools, health clinics or rural markets. The bank reopened its office in Myanmar in August last year.

The bank was able to act because President Barack Obama lifted a long-standing U.S. restriction on international financial institutions, such as the World Bank, lending to Myanmar after Congress passed legislation enabling that step. It was one in a series of steps by Washington to reward the Southeast Asian country for its democratic reforms.

The World Bank statement did not detail the mechanics of the new deal to clear the debt arrears.

It did say the bank's board on Jan. 22 approved a $440 million "Reengagement and Reform Support Credit to Myanmar."

It said the credit would support "critical reforms being implemented by the Government to strengthen macroeconomic stability, improve public financial management and improve the investment climate."

It added that its proceeds would "also help the Government meet its foreign exchange needs, including repaying (the) bridge loan" and that there are currently discussions with the government to identify priority needs.

Separately, the Manila-based Asian Development Bank announced it would extend a $512 million loan to Myanmar under the same sort of arrangement with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation ,

"Myanmar has come a long way in its economic transformation, undertaking unprecedented reforms to improve people's lives, especially the poor and vulnerable," the statement quoted the World Bank's Myanmar Country Director Annette Dixon as saying.

"Much work remains to be done. We are committed to helping the government accelerate poverty reduction and build shared prosperity. The Bank's engagement, together with the ADB, the Government of Japan and other partners, will help attract investment, spur growth and create jobs."

Myanmar ran up $8.4 billion in debt during the socialist regime of the late Gen. Ne Win between 1962 and 1988, and $2.61 billion of debt after a new military junta took over in 1988, making for a total of just more than $11 billion.

The largest creditor before 1988 was Japan, with loans of $6.39 billion, and the biggest post-1988 creditor was China, with $2.13 billion.

According to the Japan External Trade Organization, Myanmar's exports to Japan totaled 1.73 billion kyat ($2 million) in 2011, while its imports from Japan were 2.7 billion kyat ($3.1 million).

___

Associated Press writer Grant Peck in Bangkok and AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach in Tokyo contributed.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-01-27-Myanmar-World%20Bank/id-db45fab5962349f39fdbb7f166cee9c4

san francisco 49ers stan musial Mega 49ers Colin Kaepernick ufc Earl Weaver

TechBrew+Ed | Seattle Greendrinks

Event Date:?

Thursday, March 21, 2013 - 5:00pm - 9:00pm

Event Location:?

Denali Slab & Tile

16120 Woodinville Redmond Road Northeast #15

Woodinville, WA 98072

United States

TechBrew+Ed
Come learn something useful for your business while networking and enjoying amazing local food/beer/wine/spirits/cigars

March Madness Event
Attend TechBrew+Ed ? March Event

Date: March 21st, 2013

Time: 5:00-6:00pm ? Technology Training, 6:00-9:00pm ? Mixer

Location: Denali Slab Studio - 16120 Woodinville Redmond Road Northeast #15, Woodinville, WA 98072
Join in a new kind of March Madness, TechBrew+Ed, an educational, business networking event coupled with amazing local food, beer, wine, spirits and cigars. Come meet Awesome people and have fun March 21, 5-9 p.m. at Denali Slab Studio!
TechBrew+Ed invites technology specialists, executives and directors in IT to join in an educational evening on the latest technologies and services ? specifically servers, storage, IT management and professional services ? on the market today.

Following the training, TechBrew+Ed will showcase local chefs, wineries, breweries, and distilleries to educate on culinary pairings and fine dining. Guests will also have access to an outdoor cigar bar to tastefully finish the night.

Proceeds from TechBrew+Ed will be donated to a variety of local nonprofits that benefit STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education and GROW which was setup to maximize the entrepreneurial spirit of small businesses in Washington State, create an economically viable and sustainable environment for small business owners and generate social awareness through promotion, marketing and education.

Purchase Tickets @

http://techbrewed.eventbrite.com

Denali Slab & Tile

16120 Woodinville Redmond Road Northeast #15

Woodinville, WA 98072

United States

Bookmark/Search this post with

Source: http://www.seattlegreendrinks.org/events/2013/mar/techbrewed

best picture 2012 oscar winners channel 3 news j lo j lo sacha baron cohen ryan seacrest octavia spencer

How trained literacy coaches can improve student reading comprehension

Jan. 25, 2013 ? The language and reading comprehension skills of low-income upper elementary-school students -- especially English-language learners -- can improve markedly if trained literacy coaches engage teachers in conducting interactive text discussions with students, according to a three-year University of Pittsburgh study.

The Pitt researchers report in the journal Learning and Instruction that language and reading comprehension showed measurable improvement for young students when their teachers had worked "at-elbow" with content-specific literacy coaches to foster a more interactive learning environment during class reading assignments.

In the study -- one of the first of its kind -- the coaches were trained using a professional development system designed at Pitt's Institute for Learning called the Content-Focused Coaching Model? that has coaches provide teachers with the tools they need to implement rigorous, standards-based lessons. Teachers can then use the knowledge they've gained to train other teachers in their schools.

"Our goal was to create a method for closing the literacy gap between more privileged and low-income students," said study principal investigator Lindsay Clare Matsumura, a research scientists in Pitt's Learning Research and Development Center and an associate professor in Pitt's School of Education. "We found that a well-structured and content-specific approach to literacy coaching shows strong evidence of being able to really make an impact on classroom text discussion and reading achievement in these upper elementary grades -- a critical time for students to develop their higher-level reading skills."

This content-specific method, developed at Pitt's Institute for Learning within the University's Learning Research and Development Center, also lends itself to adherence of the Common Core State Standards, a national campaign aiming to increase the quality of the country's education system.

"Changing discussion patterns in classrooms is a big undertaking," said Donna DiPrima Bickel, a fellow in Pitt's Institute for Learning and codeveloper and leader of the Content-Focused Coaching Model?. "The Common Core State Standards require a broader and deeper level of comprehension from students at all grade levels beyond first grade. It's imperative that teachers learn ways of supporting students to interact effectively with a range of different types of texts. Teachers engaged with coaches trained in the Content-Focused Coaching Model? valued the support they received in helping them learn to facilitate text discussion on rigorous texts."

In a group-randomized trial, Matsumura -- along with Helen Garnier, a consultant with Pitt's Learning Research and Development Center, and Jessaca Spybrook of Western Michigan University -- investigated the effects of the Content-Focused Coaching Model?, zeroing in on the quality of text discussions in the classroom.

The researchers worked with 29 schools in a Texas school district that serves a high percentage of low-income and English-language-learning students. Half of the schools adopted the Content-Focused Coaching Model?, which entailed highly trained coaches entering schools and providing professional development training to upper elementary school teachers. The other half continued in their previously assigned literacy plan, which included the involvement of literacy coaches untrained in the coaching model.

"Many literacy coaches don't receive a lot of training on how to work effectively with teachers," said Matsumura. "So our goal was to work intensively with these coaches by teaching them how to model instructional strategies and work with teachers to better plan reading lessons. We provided them with effective strategies to share with teachers so they could boost their engagement with students."

During the study's first year, Pitt researchers collected baseline data on the quality of classroom discussions, teachers' participation in professional development, and students' reading achievement. Soon after, the coaches were placed in schools and began working with teachers on "Questioning the Author," one approach to the Content-Focused Coaching Model? in which students answer critical questions about the author and text. "Questioning the Author" was developed at Pitt's Learning Research and Development Center by Emeritus Professor Isabel Beck and Research Scientist Margaret McKeown.

Under this literacy approach, students are asked to stop throughout the reading of a book and answer thought-provoking questions. If a text is written unclearly, said Matsumura, the teacher will pause to make sure students understand what is happening and also review any unknown vocabulary. The approach is meant to result in more interactive discussions leading to better comprehension and retention, and it entails "quite a bit of planning" on the part of teachers for it to be effective, Matsumura said.

In the Pitt study, the coaches began by leading a classroom discussion while teachers observed. After several months of observation, the teachers adopted the technique into their classroom for the rest of the study. Students' reading scores were evaluated through a series of tests throughout the three years.

The team found that schools participating in the coaching intervention had a positive effect on students' reading achievement -- specifically for English-language learners, who made up 40 percent of the study's sample. English-language learners with trained teachers scored .48 of a standard deviation higher on the state reading rest than those in the comparison schools. A standard deviation is the average distance between any score in a distribution and the mean of the distribution.

"One of our suppositions is that in having these kinds of interactive discussions, you're really getting kids to talk and learn to use new vocabulary actively," said Matsumura. "Nevertheless, our study highlights the need for usage of literacy-coaching programs -- like the Content-Focused Coaching Model? -- to promote student reading achievement."

In addition to improving students' literacy at an individual level, the study had a larger, across-the-board success.

"Anyone can provide you with an anecdote about how one coach has helped one teacher but the real story here is in the systematic results," said Bickel. "Lindsay and her team retrieved data that clearly show that schools with coaches trained in the Content-Focused Coaching Model? improved literacy skills far beyond those where teachers worked with coaches who were not trained in this method. And, as a result of this study, we are able to better describe the components of an effective coaching program."

As is the case with most large-scale projects, widespread implementation of these interventions may prove to be a challenge. Therefore, Matsumura and her colleagues are now working towards delivering this coaching online.

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 University of Pittsburgh.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. Lindsay Clare Matsumura, Helen E. Garnier, Jessaca Spybrook. Literacy coaching to improve student reading achievement: A multi-level mediation model. Learning and Instruction, 2013; 25: 35 DOI: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2012.11.001

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/Z4sMaIksWqE/130125111335.htm

curacao home run derby kourtney kardashian kourtney kardashian DNS Changer ernest borgnine ESPYs 2012

Lisa Arends: Planning a Marriage

I visited my local Starbucks the other day to enjoy some coffee and free Wi-Fi. I was engaged in relatively simple research, so I let my ears wander to the conversations around me. One in particular caught my attention, as it pertained to my current status as a bride-to-be. There was a large group at the table across from me -- a young engaged couple, parents, wedding planners (yes, plural) and a priest. The plans they were making were as detailed and complex as those made for a presidential inauguration.

We hear so much about wedding planning. There are entire industries built around helping the couple carry out their "perfect day." It's easy to get carried away in the romance and the idea that a single ceremony represents the entirety of a relationship. It's easy to confuse the ability to control the details of a day with the potential for controlling an entire life. It may be easy, but like the eyes of the audience at a magic show, it is attention focused in the wrong direction. Wedding days should be special; it is a time to celebrate your bond and make a public declaration of your relationship. However, don't be so busy planning your wedding that you neglect to plan your marriage. Here are a few things to keep in mind for your Big Day, and the days (and years) after you say "I do."

Compromise
Weddings begin with compromise. Perhaps she wants to elope and he wants a large, family-filled church ceremony. Hopefully, a middle ground is agreed upon where each partner feels listened to and has his or her critical needs met. Compromise only begins with the wedding day. As two lives become entwined, differing views and priorities are inevitable. Make sure you know how to navigate these differences in a balanced way.

Influence
Have you ever been to a wedding where you couldn't tell if it was a day for the bride or the bride's mom? Just as your wedding is your day and should be created in your image, your marriage is yours and yours alone. By all means, listen to the advice of those around you but remember that you make the ultimate decision of what your relationship will look like.

Invitations
Most people are very deliberate about the friends they invite to be a part of their wedding. They want to surround themselves with others who will be supportive, realistic, and share in their joy. Be just as deliberate in choosing the friends that surround your marriage. We are influenced by those we spend our time with; choose wisely.

Beauty
Much time and money is put into creating the d?cor and ambiance of a wedding day. Just because the day is over and the budget is back to reality does not mean that you have to forgo beauty. Find ways to incorporate items that make you smile into your daily life. Any table is brightened by even the simplest centerpiece.

Words
The focus of a wedding is on the words spoken between the spouses-to-be -- the promises and declarations to love, honor, and cherish. Even after the walk down the aisle, words, whether spoken or written, are still an important part of a marriage. Never assume that your spouse knows how you feel and never underestimate the power of a positive word or two. The best part? When you say how much you love or appreciate your partner, it fuels those positive feelings in you as well.

Balance
Many wedding traditions have a deliberate balance between the time spent as a couple and the time spent apart. Even when you married, it is important to spend time away from your partner, either alone or with other friends or family. Make sure you have discussed your needs and expectations for your balance of time; it's important to reach an agreement between the two of you so that no one feels smothered and no one feels abandoned.

Tradition
Some of the meaning in a wedding comes from tradition -- elements handed down through generations that create a sense of unity and belonging. Just because the ceremony has ended does not mean that there is not room for traditions in your marriage. Look to your families of origin for rituals that you can implement in your new union or seek to create your own traditions. These conventions will serve to strengthen the bond between you and your spouse and give you a foundation upon which to build lasting memories.

Money
It is the rare couple who marries without a budget. Just because the presents are unwrapped and put away and you have begun to get used to married life does not mean that the budget goes out the window. Make sure you and your new spouse continue to talk about money. Agree on common financial goals. Separate needs from wants. Don't let nickels and dimes create a wall between you and your betrothed.

Publicity
A wedding is a public vow, whether it be made in a private ceremony or in front of thousands, it is still declaring your commitment to the world. After the wedding, life settles down and it's easy to confine your marriage to your private life. Or, even worse, expose your frustrations with your spouse but keep mum about the joys. Even after the wedding, make a habit of speaking positively about your spouse and your marriage. Sharing this commitment publicly helps to keep it alive.

Fun
The best weddings are fun. They have a sense of levity and humor. Any mishaps are laughed about and the challenges are kept in perspective. That's pretty good advice for a marriage, as well. Not every day will be a party but you can strive to find humor and laughter in every situation. Find ways to bring excitement and fun into your marriage. The associated smiles are priceless.

I'm sure that the couple I overheard at Starbucks will have a lovely wedding. I just hope they have planned as thoroughly to have a lovely marriage.

?

?

?

Follow Lisa Arends on Twitter: www.twitter.com/stilllearning2b

"; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-arends/planning-a-marriage_b_2520879.html

peeps nhl playoffs masters 2012 masters the borgias shroud of turin warren sapp

Hypersonic 'SpaceLiner' aims for Europe to Australia in 90 minutes

A hypersonic "SpaceLiner" would whisk up to 50 passengers from Europe to Australia in 90 minutes. The futuristic vehicle would do so by riding a rocket into Earth's upper atmosphere, reaching 24 times the speed of sound before gliding in for a landing.

Many challenges still remain, including finding the right shape for the vehicle, said Martin Sippel, project coordinator for SpaceLiner at the German Aerospace Center. But he suggested the project could make enough progress to begin attracting private funding in another 10 years and aim for full operations by 2050.

The current concept includes a rocket booster stage for launch and a separate orbiter stage to carry passengers halfway around the world without ever making it to space. Flight times between the U.S. and Europe could fall to just over an hour if the SpaceLiner takes off ? that is, if passengers don't mind paying the equivalent of space tourism prices around several hundred thousand dollars.

"Maybe we can best characterize the SpaceLiner by saying it's a kind of second-generation space shuttle, but with a completely different task," Sippel said.

SpaceLiner passengers would have eight minutes to experience the rocket launch before they reached an altitude of about 47 to 50 miles (75 to 80 kilometers). That falls short of the 62-mile (100-km) boundary considered the edge of space, but even a suborbital flight would allow SpaceLiner to glide back to Earth at hypersonic speeds of more than 15,000 mph (25,200 kph).

Relying on rocket power

The rocket-powered design stands out compared with other proposed hypersonic jets, which feature new air-breathing engine concepts. European aerospace giant EADS previously unveiled a hypersonic jet concept that would rely mainly upon air-breathing ramjets to reach cruising speeds of Mach 4 ? faster than the supersonic Concorde's Mach 2 performances but far slower than the SpaceLiner's Mach 24 goal.

SpaceLiner's European project planners say their reliance upon proven rocket technology could allow their vehicle to fly sooner rather than later. They plan to use liquid oxygen and hydrogen rocket propellants so that the rocket engines leave only water vapor and hydrogen in the atmosphere. [Video: How DARPA's HTV-2 Hypersonic Bomber Test Works]

"We will not try to improve the performance of the engine but would like to have it more reusable," Sippel told TechNewsDaily.

The empty rocket stage from SpaceLiner would return to Earth immediately after launch in preparation for reuse. An aircraft could grab the rocket stage in midair, tow it toward an airfield and release it for an autonomous gliding landing.

Chances of survival

But big challenges remain before SpaceLiner can take off. Researchers first must finalize a design shape capable of surviving the intense heat created by gliding at hypersonic speeds through the upper atmosphere. New cooling technologies and improved heat shielding for SpaceLiner's wing "leading edge" could help in that case.

Launching like a rocket rather than taking off like an aircraft means SpaceLiner would remain restricted to suitable launch sites with uninhabited areas down range. The SpaceLiner also would need a careful flight path during its final landing approach ? the "sonic boom" shock that accompanies aircraft traveling faster than the speed of sound can damage buildings on the ground at low altitudes.

"The profile of the vehicle is very similar to a rocket-propelled vehicle," Sippel explained. "We only have a small corridor in which we can fly safely and economically."

SpaceLiner's design will make use of study results from a FAST20XX (Future High-Altitude High-Speed Transport 20XX) project funded by the European Union and backed by researchers from Germany, Austria, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Sweden. It can also draw lessons from upcoming efforts such as Project ALPHA by Aerospace Innovation GmbH ? a space plane that aims to launch in midair from an Airbus A330 aircraft.

But future success ultimately depends upon the success of space tourism efforts by companies such as Virgin Galactic. If enough people prove willing to pay top dollar for suborbital flights as part of their travels around the world, Sippel envisions a fleet of SpaceLiners eventually making 10 to 15 flights per day.

This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, sister site to SPACE.com. You can follow TechNewsDaily Senior Writer Jeremy Hsu on Twitter @jeremyhsu. Follow TechNewsDaily on Twitter @TechNewsDaily. 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.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/hypersonic-spaceliner-aims-fly-passengers-2050-180537395.html

ufc145 chimpanzee chimpanzee the lucky one pittsburgh pirates mariners mets

Real Estate: Investing in your future | Washington Blade - America's ...

(Photo courtesy iStock)

Early last year I began to see the investors tiptoe back into the real estate market. Like tap dancers, they started slowly and then finished the year with a grand finale. Now, they are clogging, Bristol stomping and performing Riverdance all over the city.

Don?t believe me?? Just try to buy a fixer-upper in Petworth or in the northern and eastern sections of Columbia Heights.

Now that potential profit margins are nearing obscene levels again, lots of people are anxious to invest in the D.C. market. Not all are seasoned investors. Some may want to buy a property to rent out, some may want a distressed property to fix and resell and others may simply want a home to live in that they can put their personal imprint on over time.

The challenge in helping the small-scale investors is that they may be unprepared for the competition they face and the money required to add real estate to their portfolios. As with any other transaction, having a real estate agent by and on your side is extremely important, but even we have no crystal ball to say for sure whether a particular investment will be profitable.

To illustrate the market competition, here is some information taken from the Metropolitan Regional Information System (MRIS), our area?s multiple listing database, for properties sold in 2012.

A three-bedroom, 1.5-bath row house on New Hampshire Avenue near the Georgia/Petworth Metro generated a lot of interest. The home had been foreclosed upon and was in reasonably good shape, with a large footprint and a basement ready to be finished. The bank listed it for $345,000 in June. The final sales price 37 days later?? $515,000!

Want to start a bit lower to allow for multiple offers and still stay within your budget? Of the eight homes listed for $250,000 or less in eastern Columbia Heights, 25 percent sold at the list price and 75 percent sold above the list price. Two stood out from among the rest, one in the 600 block of Harvard Street, which sold for 20 percent over list and the clear winner, one on the same block of Newton Place that sold for more than 36 percent above its list price.

Perhaps a one-bedroom, one-bath condo to rent to others is your desire: less maintenance, fewer headaches, easy to obtain a tenant if it?s located near a Metro, right? In Dupont Circle, expect to pay the list price, an average of $345,000 for 750 square feet or less. In Capitol Hill, not as condo-oriented as other parts of the city, you may get a bargain at 99.5 percent of list prices averaging about $327,000 for a similar size unit.

Whatever your preference, buying property as an investor can be a bit tricky nowadays given the tightening of the mortgage market. This is one area where cash truly is king, not to get a bargain as much as to beat the competition, leaving our hopeful homeowner with his pre-approved FHA 203K renovation loan in the dust.

Without a surplus of cash, financing your purchase can be tricky too.? A down payment of 10-25 percent will get you most any condo, but what about those of you who are looking to purchase and renovate a row house? Depending on its condition, it may not be eligible for traditional financing, so you may need to look to alternative, ?hard money? lenders, friends and family, or personal loans, not only for the purchase, but for the renovation and holding costs as well.

Still game? Then consult with your agent about current rents and sales in the area you are interested in before you buy. Allow for cost overruns, vacancy rates and more time than you think you will need for each task on your to-do list. If you do your homework, understand the requirements and pitfalls and surround yourself with trusted advisers, you may soon be boot scootin? gleefully down 14th Street.

Valerie M. Blake is with Prudential PenFed Realty, an independently owned and operated broker member of BRER Affiliates, Inc. Reach her at 202-246-8602 or Valerie@DCHomeQuest.com. Prudential, the Prudential logo and the Rock symbol are registered service marks of Prudential Financial, Inc. and its related entities, registered in many jurisdictions worldwide.? Used under license with no other affiliation with Prudential.? Equal Housing Opportunity.

Source: http://www.washingtonblade.com/2013/01/24/investing-in-your-future/

Olga Korbut Usain Bolt 2012 Olympics Katie Ledecky Aaron Ross Sikh temple lollapalooza Nastia Liukin

Just Two More Days To Unlock Your Phone, Then You'll Be ...

from the ridiculous dept

We've always had our concerns about the ridiculous DMCA "exemptions" process concerning circumvention of digital locks. If you don't know, the DMCA has a strict anti-circumvention rule that says breaking digital locks, such as DRM, is itself a violation of copyright law, even if the purpose of the lock-breaking does not infringe on anyone's copyright. As a sort of "pressure valve" every three years, people can "apply" to the Librarian of Congress for exemptions to that rule. This, of course, is completely ridiculous and backwards. We need to apply, once every three years, to use legally purchased products the way we want to without it being considered illegal? That's crazy. But it's the way things are set up, and it can lead to some bizarre scenarios. As we explained last year when the latest round of exemptions was announced, the Librarian of Congress took away the exemption for unlocking your phone... but provided a 90 day window.

That window ends on Sunday. In other words, unlocking your phone on Saturday: legal. Unlocking your phone on Sunday: you probably just broke the law. As the EFF properly notes, this is not what copyright law is supposed to be about:

"Arguably, locking phone users into one carrier is not at all what the DMCA was meant to do. It's up to the courts to decide."

I don't even think there's anything "arguable" about it. Copyright law has no business being involved in deciding whether or not my phone can be unlocked. It's silly that this is an issue. It's silly that there needed to be an exemption in the first place. And it's silly that this exemption is being taken away. It's for things like this that people lose respect for copyright law.

62 Comments | Leave a Comment..

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Source: http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130124/07015421777/just-two-more-days-to-unlock-your-phone-then-youll-be-breaking-law.shtml

London 2012 Slalom Canoe Alex Morgan Misty May Treanor Lolo Jones Aly Raisman Marvin Hamlisch Megan Rossee

UK urges Britons to leave Libya's Benghazi over threat

TRIPOLI/LONDON (Reuters) - Britain urged its nationals to leave the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Thursday, citing a "specific and imminent" threat to Westerners days after a deadly attack by Islamist militants in neighboring Algeria.

Britain's Foreign Office declined to give details of the nature of the threat, but has warned in the past of the long reach of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the North African wing of al Qaeda.

At least 38 hostages were killed in an attack on the remote In Amenas gas complex in Algeria, about 100 kms (60 miles) from the Libyan border. French forces are also fighting Islamist rebels in Mali.

"We are now aware of a specific and imminent threat to Westerners in Benghazi, and urge any British nationals who remain there against our advice to leave immediately," the Foreign Office said in a statement.

Few Westerners are believed to be in Benghazi, which has experienced a wave of violence targeting foreign diplomats, military and police officers, including an attack in September that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans.

A spokeswoman for the British embassy in Tripoli said the number of British nationals in Benghazi was small, but could not comment on specific numbers.

Last week Italy suspended activity at its Benghazi consulate and withdrew staff after a gun attack on its consul.

Coupled with the Algeria hostage crisis - a plan believed to have been conceived in Mali - Western governments are now on high alert.

"The situation in Cyrenaica (eastern Libya) is not just worrying, it is incredibly worrying. Everybody is on alert," a Western diplomat said. "But in light of the events recently (in Algeria and Mali), this could be a precautionary measure."

Saad al-Saitim, deputy head of the Benghazi Local Council, said the warning was a setback, inciting "more fear at a time when people need to stand with us".

"Following the Mali events, foreigners are worried and are taking precautionary steps. Benghazi hardly has any foreigners at the moment and few foreign consulates," he said.

British Airways said it would continue operating flights to the Libyan capital Tripoli. The airline operates three flights a week between London's Heathrow airport and Tripoli. Its next flight to Libya is scheduled for Sunday.

The eastern city of Benghazi was the cradle of the 2011 revolution that toppled former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, and Libya has been awash with weapons since then, its shaky nascent institutions struggling to rein in armed groups.

Benghazi in particular has been the scene of power struggles between various armed Islamist factions. U.S. intelligence officials say Islamist militants with ties to al Qaeda affiliates were most likely involved in the deadly September 11 assault on the U.S. mission in the city, Libya's second biggest.

While Britain's move may be only precautionary, it is unlikely to inspire confidence in a country keen to attract foreign cash and developers for its oil fields and other sectors after years of chronic under-investment and war.

The bulk of Libya's oil wealth, around 80 percent, is located in the east of the country but the oil installations are far from Benghazi and oil is not piped through there.

Giuma Attaigha, deputy leader of the ruling general national congress, told Reuters Libya must make foreigners feel safe.

"This statement is a cause of concern and we hope it is just precautionary because it is the right of any country to take care of its people when it feels that they are in danger," he said.

"This forces all of us, starting with the security forces in the interior ministry, to take all necessary steps and quickly to make the foreigners feel safe and to protect citizens in Benghazi against terrorism."

(Additional reporting by Rhys Jones, Ali Shuaib in Tripoli and Ghaith Shennib in Benghazi; Writing by Mohammed Abbas; Editing by Myra MacDonald)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/britain-urges-nationals-leave-libyas-benghazi-citing-threat-124722482.html

Ledecky Nadia Comaneci Rebecca Soni Snoop Lion London 2012 Table Tennis badminton Dominique Dawes

A$AP Rocky On #1 Billboard Debut: 'The Proof Is In The Pudding'

Rapper tops album chart with sales of 139,000.
By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by Rob Markman

A$AP Rocky's Long.Live.A$AP
Photo: Sony

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1700653/asap-rocky-long-live-asap-album-billboard.jhtml

solar storms uganda the parent trap invisible children kony 2012 space weather sunspots pac 12 tournament