Wrecked Italian liner will not be moved for months (Reuters)

GIGLIO, Italy (Reuters) ? The wreck of the cruise ship Costa Concordia could remain where it lies near the Italian island of Giglio until the end of the year or longer before it can be broken up or salvaged, the official in charge of the recovery operation said on Sunday.

Divers searching for bodies in the hulk, which lies half submerged a few meters from the shore, suspended work on Sunday after heavy seas and strong winds caused the vessel to shift noticeably, authorities said.

Bad weather had already delayed plans to begin removing the 2,300 tonnes of diesel fuel in the ship's tanks, an operation expected to take from three weeks to a month once it gets under way, probably by the middle of next week.

Civil Protection agency chief Franco Gabrielli, who is in charge of the operation, said removing the massive wreck from its position outside the port could take up to a year.

"We already knew that this was a very long, drawn out case but I think it's important that everyone is very aware that it will have a very significant timeframe," he told reporters.

Salvaging or moving the ship cannot begin until the fuel and lubricating oil is removed and the risk of an environmental disaster is averted. Even after that, other preliminary work must be done before a company is awarded the salvage contract.

"Just for that, we'll need not less than two months. From that date, we'll move to the operational phase, which will last from 7-10 months," Gabrielli said.

The delay could have a dramatic effect on tourism on the island, a popular holiday spot in a marine reserve off the mainland coast of Tuscany.

"I really fear a drastic fall in arrivals next summer, also because of the problems the ferries have getting into port," said local hotel owner Paolo Fanciulli.

The mayor of Giglio, Sergio Ortelli said the island would seek government help of the delay in moving the ship proved significant and he expressed some annoyance at the forecast.

"It would have been better to wait before talking about the timeframe until there is a firm project in place," he said.

VERY UPSET

The disaster struck more than two weeks ago when the 114,500-tonne Costa Concordia hit a rock which gashed its hull after it sailed to within 150 meters of the shore to perform a display manoeuvre known as a "salute."

Its captain, Francesco Schettino, faces charges of multiple manslaughter and abandoning ship before the evacuation of more than 4,200 passengers and crew was complete.

"The captain is well, he's reflecting on what happened and he is profoundly upset," his lawyer Bruno Leporatti said after meeting his client, who is under house arrest near Naples.

Divers found a 17th victim on Saturday, the body of a woman identified as a member of the crew, leaving 15 people still missing after the disaster on January 13.

The search was halted on Sunday after measuring instruments placed on board the 290 metre long ship showed about 3.5 centimetres of movement in six hours, compared with a normal movement of one or two millimetres.

Officials have said it is stable and faces little immediate risk of sliding from its resting place in about 20 meters of water into deeper waters.

But even the slight movements posed a risk to divers exploring the ship's dark interior, which is filled with floating debris, including furniture, bedding, curtains and the personal effects of passengers and crew.

An extended legal battle is now in prospect after lawyers in the United States and Italy launched class action and individual suits against the ship's owner Costa Cruises, a unit of Carnival Corp, the world's biggest cruise operator.

Schettino has said he accepts his share of responsibility for the accident but says he was in constant touch with Costa Cruises during evacuation operations which have been widely criticised as slow and uncoordinated.

"What hurts the most is that there would have been time to save everybody of the order to evacuate had been given more quickly and not an hour and a half after the impact," said Maria Cristina Meduri, a passenger who escaped from the wreck.

She returned with her husband to Giglio on Sunday to thank local people who helped with shelter and warm clothing in the aftermath. However, she was bitterly critical of Costa, which is offering 11,000 euros in compensation - and will reimburse the ticket and other travel costs - in return for an agreement to drop any legal action.

"No, we will not accept it, it's nothing at all," she said. "I left objects with inestimable sentimental value on the ship, like the diamond engagement ring my husband gave me. We're not going to accept this."

(Additional reporting by Laura Viggiano in Naples; Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Alison Williams/David Stamp)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/wl_nm/us_italy_ship

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Cain backs Gingrich's presidential bid (AP)

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. ? Former presidential hopeful Herman Cain threw his support behind Newt Gingrich Saturday night, providing the former House speaker with a late boost just days before Florida's primary.

Cain, a tea party favorite, endorsed his fellow Georgian at a GOP fundraiser Saturday calling him "a patriot."

"Speaker Gingrich is not afraid of bold ideas," Cain said.

The former pizza executive, who left the race before the first nominating contests after facing accusations of unwanted sexual advances, suggested the two have both undergone intense scrutiny.

"I know that Speaker Gingrich is running for president and going through this sausage grinder," Cain said. "I know what this sausage grinder is all about."

Cain is set to campaign with Gingrich on Monday in an 11th hour push for support. Gingrich is in a fierce fight for Tuesday's Florida's GOP primary with Mitt Romney.

Gingrich on Saturday night said that, like Cain, he is running a campaign based on big ideas and bold solutions.

The decision was not unexpected but the announcement comes at a make or break moment. .

"I had it in my heart and mind a long time ago," Cain said.

The timing is similar to a Saturday night surprise four years ago, when then-Florida Gov. Charlie Crist endorsed John McCain's presidential bid.

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry also endorsed Gingrich when he bowed out of the race in South Carolina.

Since exiting the race in December, Cain appeared at a rally in South Carolina with late-night comedian Stephen Colbert.

Cain, the charismatic former head of Godfather's Pizza, briefly led in the polls in the fall. He became known for his signature 9-9-9 tax overhaul plan that would have scrapped the current tax code and replaced it with a 9 percent tax on individual income and corporate taxes as well as a new 9 percent national sales tax.

But his support plummeted after accusations that he sexually harassed women more than a decade ago when he led the National Restaurant Association. An Atlanta-area woman then stepped forward and said she had a lengthy sexual affair with Cain.

He denied the affair and any wrongdoing but withdrew from the race saying the accusations had become distracting and he needed to focus on his family.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120129/ap_on_el_pr/us_cain_gingrich

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Tiger Woods LIVE UPDATES, SCORES From Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship Round 4

Golfweek:

Tiger Woods shot his best round since the 2011 Masters on Saturday, and has put three nearly-pristine rounds together in sharing the 54-hole lead at the HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship with Robert Rock.

Read the whole story: Golfweek

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/29/tiger-woods-live-updates-abu-dhabi-hsbc-golf-round-4_n_1239780.html

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Beijing air pollution soars with fireworks smoke

FILE - In this Monday Jan. 23, 2012 file photo, a man prepares firecrackers on the Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve in Beijing, China. Clouds of smoke from Lunar New Year fireworks sent air pollution in Beijing soaring under a new more sensitive measurement system, reports said Sunday, Jan. 29. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan, File)

FILE - In this Monday Jan. 23, 2012 file photo, a man prepares firecrackers on the Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve in Beijing, China. Clouds of smoke from Lunar New Year fireworks sent air pollution in Beijing soaring under a new more sensitive measurement system, reports said Sunday, Jan. 29. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan, File)

BEIJING (AP) ? Clouds of smoke from Lunar New Year fireworks sent air pollution readings soaring in the more sensitive measurement system Beijing started using a little more than a week ago, reports said Sunday.

Readings of fine particulate matter called PM2.5 reached 1.593 milligrams per cubic meter on the Jan. 22 eve of the holiday, about 100 times worse than the amount considered good for 24-hour exposure, the city's environmental bureau said.

The reading drew wide publicity in the local media on Sunday. The popular Beijing Youth Daily praised the city government for taking a more critical look at air pollution, while urging residents to consider the environmental effects of setting off fireworks.

The readings moderated under relatively clear skies in recent days. By noon Sunday, before the weeklong holiday ends and people return to work, the level stood at a relatively good 0.039.

Beijing is frequently cloaked in yellow haze that obscures buildings a couple of blocks away. On particularly bad days, schools cancel outdoor activities and hospitals treat more people ? particularly the elderly ? for respiratory complaints.

The city began measuring the small particles in the air and releasing the readings on Jan. 21, as concern has grown over Beijing's air pollution from all sources. PM2.5 ? particles less than 2.5 micrometers in size, or about 1/30th the width of an average human hair ? are believed to be the greatest health risk because their smallness means they can lodge deeply in the lungs.

Beijing previously had only given PM10 measurements of coarser particles, which indicated pollution was "light," leading to accusations the true extent of the problem was hidden.

The U.S. Embassy since last year has released PM2.5 readings from a device on its rooftop and some residents have tested the air in their neighborhoods and posted the results online.

The embassy measured more pollution than the city on Sunday, but the sampling stations are 10 miles apart or more.

Beijing says its PM2.5 measuring station is about 4 miles (7 kilometers) west of central Tiananmen Square.

___

Associated Press researcher Henry Hou contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-29-AS-China-Air-Quality/id-f16c545887524c658edf1db7632dd3e4

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Researchers shed light on magnetic mystery of graphite

Friday, January 27, 2012

The physical property of magnetism has historically been associated with metals such as iron, nickel and cobalt; however, graphite ? an organic mineral made up of stacks of individual carbon sheets ? has baffled researchers in recent years by showing weak signs of magnetism.

The hunt for an explanation has not been without controversy, with several research groups proposing different theories. The most recent suggestion, published today, 27 January, in the journal EPL (Europhysics Letters), has been put forward by a research group from the University of Manchester that includes Nobel prize-winning scientist Professor Sir Andre Geim.

The research group, led by Dr Irina Grigorieva, found that magnetism in many commercially available graphite crystals is down to micron-sized clusters of predominantly iron that would usually be difficult to find unless the right instruments were used in a particular way.

Finding the way to make graphite magnetic could be the first step to utilising it as a bio-compatible magnet for use in medicine and biology as effective biosensors.

To arrive at their conclusions, the researchers firstly cut up a piece of commercially-available graphite into four sections and measured the magnetisation of each piece. Surprisingly, they found significant variations in the magnetism of each sample. It was reasonable for them to conclude that the magnetic response had to be caused by external factors, such as small impurities of another material.

To check this hypothesis, the researchers peered deep into the structure of the samples using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) ? a very powerful microscope that images samples by scanning it with a beam of electrons ? and found that there were unusually heavy particles positioned deep under the surface.

The majority of these particles were confirmed to be iron and titanium, using a technique known as X-ray microanalysis. As oxygen was also present, the particles were likely to be either magnetite or titanomagnetite, both of which are magnetic.

The researchers were also able to deduce how many magnetic particles would be needed, and how far apart they would need to be spaced in order to create the originally observed magnetism. The observations from their experiments agreed with their estimations, meaning the visualised magnetic particles could account for the whole magnetic signal in the sample.

Dr Grigorieva, said: "The excitement around the findings of ferromagnetism in graphite, i.e. pure carbon, is due to the fact that magnetism is not normally found in organic matter. If we can learn to create and control magnetism in carbon-based materials, especially graphene, this will be an important development for sensors and spintronics."

###

The paper can be downloaded from http://iopscience.iop.org/0295-5075/97/4/47001

Institute of Physics: http://www.iop.org

Thanks to Institute of Physics for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/117149/Researchers_shed_light_on_magnetic_mystery_of_graphite

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Friend says on 911 call Demi Moore was convulsing (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? Demi Moore smoked something before she was rushed to the hospital on Monday night and was convulsing and "semi-conscious, barely," according to a caller on a frantic 911 recording released Friday by Los Angeles fire officials.

The woman tells emergency operators that Moore, 49, had been "having issues lately."

"Is she breathing normal?" the operator asks.

"No, not so normal. More kind of shaking, convulsing, burning up," the friend says as she hurries to Moore's side, on the edge of panic.

The recording captures the 10 minutes it took paramedics to arrive as friends gather around the collapsed star and try to comfort her as she trembles and shakes.

Another woman is next to Moore as the dispatcher asks if she's responsive.

"Demi, can you hear me?" she asks. "Yes, she's squeezing hands. ... She can't speak."

When the operator asks what Moore ingested or smoked, the friend replies, but the answer was redacted.

"Some form of ... and then she smoked something. I didn't really see. She's been having some issues lately with some other stuff. So I don't know what she's been taking or not," the friend says.

The city attorney's office advised the fire department to redact details about medical conditions and substances to comply with federal medical privacy rules.

Asked if Moore took the substance intentionally or not, the woman says Moore ingested it on purpose but the reaction was accidental.

"Whatever she took, make sure you have it out for the paramedics," the operator says.

The operator asks the friend if this has happened before.

"I don't know," she says. "There's been some stuff recently that we're all just finding out."

Moore's publicist, Carrie Gordon, said previously that the actress sought professional help to treat her exhaustion and improve her health. She would not comment further on the emergency call or provide details about the nature or location of Moore's treatment.

The past few months have been rocky for Moore.

She released a statement in November announcing she had decided to end her marriage to fellow actor Ashton Kutcher, 33, following news of alleged infidelity. The two were known to publicly share their affection for one another via Twitter.

Moore still has a Twitter account under the name mrskutcher but has not posted any messages since Jan. 7.

During the call, the woman caller says the group of friends had turned Moore's head to the side and were holding her down. The dispatcher tells her not to hold her down but to wipe her mouth and nose and watch her closely until paramedics arrive.

"Make sure that we keep an airway open," the dispatcher says. "Even if she passes out completely, that's OK. Stay right with her."

The phone is passed around by four people, including a woman who gives directions to the gate and another who recounts details about what Moore smoked or ingested. Finally, the phone is given to a man named James, so one of the women can hold Moore's head.

There was some confusion at the beginning of the call. The emergency response was delayed by nearly two minutes as Los Angeles and Beverly Hills dispatchers sorted out which city had jurisdiction over the street where Moore lives.

As the call is transferred to Beverly Hills, the frantic woman at Moore's house raises her voice and said, "Why is an ambulance not on its way right now?"

"Ma'am, instead of arguing with me why an ambulance is not on the way, can you spell (the street name) for me?" the Beverly Hills dispatcher says.

Although the estate is located in the 90210 ZIP code above Benedict Canyon, the response was eventually handled by the Los Angeles Fire Department.

By the end of the call, Moore has improved.

"She seems to have calmed down now. She's speaking," the male caller told the operator.

Moore and Kutcher were wed in September 2005.

Kutcher became a stepfather to Moore's three daughters ? Rumer, Scout and Tallulah Belle ? from her 13-year marriage to actor Bruce Willis. Moore and Willis divorced in 2000 but remained friendly.

Moore and Kutcher created the DNA Foundation, also known as the Demi and Ashton Foundation, in 2010 to combat the organized sexual exploitation of girls around the globe. They later lent their support to the United Nations' efforts to fight human trafficking, a scourge the international organization estimates affects about 2.5 million people worldwide.

Moore can be seen on screen in the recent films "Margin Call" and "Another Happy Day." Kutcher replaced Charlie Sheen on TV's "Two and a Half Men" and is part of the ensemble film "New Year's Eve."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_en_ot/us_people_demi_moore

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Sharapova, Azarenka into Australian Open final (AP)

MELBOURNE, Australia ? Maria Sharapova overcame Petra Kvitova to set up a women's final against Victoria Azarenka at the Australian Open before the attention quickly shifted to a much anticipated semifinal showdown between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

Sharapova broke Kvitova's serve in the last game to finish off a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 Thursday, and third-seeded Azarenka beat defending champion Kim Clijsters 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 to set up a Saturday night final at Rod Laver Arena that also will decide the No. 1 ranking.

Sharapova lost to second-ranked Kvitova in the Wimbledon final last year, her first major final since returning from an injury layoff following a shoulder operation in 2008. She has won three majors, but none since the Australian four years ago.

"In the third set, I felt she always had the advantage because I was always down on my serve," said Sharapova, who served five double-faults in the third set and 10 in the match. "I just told myself 'You just gotta go for it, don't let her finish off the points like she likes to.'"

Azarenka won the first semifinal after twice recovering from periods when a resurgent Clijsters seemed to have the upper hand, to secure victory in only her second appearance in a major semifinal.

"I felt like my hand is about 200 kilograms and my body is about 1,000 and everything is shaking, but that feeling when you finally win is such a relief. My God I cannot believe it's over. I just want to cry," Azarenka said as she choked back tears, then buried her face in a towel.

"It was just trying to stay in the moment. Kim really took over the second set and I felt there was nothing I could do. I just tried to regroup."

Clijsters is popular in Australia, where she's widely known as "Aussie Kim." She had most of the backing from the crowd on the national holiday in what is likely to be her last Australian Open.

Azarenka held her nerve despite the crowd and the fact she was up against a proven big-match player. Clijsters has won four majors and has defended a Grand Slam title ? winning the U.S. Open in 2009 and '10. To reach the semifinals, the Belgian saved four match points despite a sprained ankle to beat French Open champion Li Na in the fourth round and then beat top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals.

"I guess before you all thought I was a mental case," Azarenka said in a courtside interview. "I was just young and emotional. I'm really glad the way I fight, that's the most thing I'm really proud of. I fight for every ball."

Clijsters credited Azarenka with increasing maturity.

"The match was very close. There were a few deciding moments where I think I maybe had a little bit of an advantage, in the third set, especially that first game where I had break point," Clijsters said. "But she definitely played really well. So she deserved to win at the end."

Wozniacki will vacate top spot in next week's rankings after her quarterfinal loss, leaving either No. 3 Azarenka and No. 4 Sharapova to move to the top.

The top men's ranking won't be at issue Thursday night. Novak Djokovic ? who plays Andy Murray in another semifinal on Friday ? has that locked up regardless of the Australian Open results.

But the Nadal-Federer semifinal will mark the first time since the French Open in 2005 that the pair have met at the next-to-last stage of any Grand Slam. Federer and Nadal were Nos. 1 and 2 for most of five years from 2005 to 2010, meaning they were on opposite sides of the draw and could not meet until the final.

That changed at this tournament when No. 2 Nadal and No. 3 Federer both ended up in the bottom half of the draw. Five matches later, the players with 26 Grand Slam singles titles between them ? Federer 16, Nadal 10 ? will meet.

Nadal has won 17 of their 26 head-to-head matches overall, including a 7-2 lead in Grand Slam matches. Federer won the last meeting, a 60-minute 6-3, 6-0 victory at the season-ending championship in November.

"We have been on opposite sides of the draw many times," Federer said. "I guess it's a nice change-up. OK, it doesn't allow a rematch for the Australian Open final here, you know, but I think it's good for tennis that it changes up a bit."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_sp_te_ga_su/ten_australian_open

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Gingrich promises US moon colony by 2020

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said on Florida's space coast that if he is elected president he will create a moon colony by 2020.

By NBC's Alex Moe

COCOA, Fla. -- Newt Gingrich promised Wednesday on Florida?s space coast to create a moon colony by 2020 if elected president.

"By the end of my second term, we will have the first permanent base on the moon. And it will be American," Gingrich told the crowd of roughly 700, taking them to their feet in applause.

The former House speaker said the current space program in the country is a "tragedy" and believes his "grandiose" ideas can help fix it.

"I am sick of being told we have to be timid and I'm sick of being told we have to be limited to technologies that are 50 years old," he said, noting that by 2020 he wants to be capable to go to Mars.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney seemed to question Gingrich?s desire to put lunar mining colonies on the moon during a debate last month but the speaker says these are bold ideas the governor doesn?t understand.

"I was attacked the other night for being grandiose. I would just want you to note: Lincoln standing at Council Bluffs was grandiose. The Wright Brothers standing at Kitty Hawk were grandiose. John F. Kennedy was grandiose. I accept the charge that I am grandiose and that Americans are instinctively grandiose," Gingrich said.

Stan Honda / AFP - Getty Images

Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, center, speaks at a Space Coast-Space Industry roundtable Wednesday at Brevard Commnunity College in Cocoa, Fla.

Speaking about space is not new for Gingrich. In stump speeches, he often references his ideas to change the struggling American program,?but this was the first event he?completely dedicated to the topic, hoping this is "the second great launch of the adventure John F. Kennedy started."

"At one point early in my career I introduced the northwest ordinance for space and I said when we got -- I think the number is 13,000 -- when we have 13,000 Americans living on the moon they can petition to become a state," Gingrich said, telling the crowd this was the "weirdest" thing he has ever done. "And I will as president encourage the introduction of the northwest ordinance for space to put a marker down that we want Americans to think boldly about the future?"

Gingrich finished off his public schedule for the day with a Space Industry Roundtable at Brevard Community College.

More about space, politics ... and the moon:

Source: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/25/10237875-gingrich-promises-us-moon-colony-by-2020

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Danville Regional Medical Center supports insurance database ...

Danville Regional Medical Center, along with business and physician groups, would like a way to better manage health care costs and want health consumers to get their money?s worth.

They support legislation in the General Assembly that would create a statewide database using health plan or insurance claims information to track population and disease trends, spending and use patterns and service costs in relation to quality. Yet, insurers are wary of how their currently private information will be used and question the true value of the database as proposed.

Analyses using such a database could help Danville Regional make critical improvements in health-care quality and in controlling the growth of costs, said DRMC CEO Eric Deaton.

?By comparing ourselves to others we can determine best practices and reduce costs based on that information,? Deaton said in an email.

House Bill 343 introduced by Delegate Dr. John O?Bannon, R-Henrico, would create an advisory board to help develop regulations for a database, which would expand upon the hospital and patient care data already reported through Virginia Health Information.

The intent is to allow consumers, employers and providers to compare health plans, health insurers and providers as relates to the cost and quality of services, according to the bill language.

Yet, it would only present aggregated information and would protect patient privacy by not revealing identifying information, O?Bannon said.

The system could help the state make decisions on what to fund in Medicaid, identify problems like outbreaks and aims to make health care more affordable, but the primary goal is still getting patients better outcomes, he said.

Such a database would expand transparency in health care, but it?ll take everyone working together to design a useful tool, said Katharine Webb, senior vice president for the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association. Sixteen other states currently have or are implementing ?all-payer claims databases.?

The system focuses on costs and wouldn?t release insurers? negotiated payments, or what a certain company pays out, Webb said.

The business lobbyist group National Federation of Independent Business in Virginia supports creating the database. ?From our members? perspective, one of their top frustrations is the rising costs of health care and they don?t understand why the cost is going up so much every year,? NFIB state director Nicole Riley said.

The hope is accessing information to compare costs and outcomes for different hospitals or physicians, she said. It could help employers choose employee benefits.

?I think a lot of it comes down to not just cost, but value, getting a good value,? Riley said.

Any legislation on all-payer claims databases needs to be written carefully and would need to reduce the burden on payers or insurance carriers to submit data, said Executive Director Denise Love of the National Association of Health Data Organizations, who hasn?t yet analyzed the bill. The biggest barrier is paying for it as budgets are being slashed.

Most consumers don?t realize how costs vary for the same procedure between different facilities, and they should demand information about cost and quality of their healthcare, she added.

The Virginia Association of Health Plans, which represents the health plans and insurers in Virginia, questions whether the bill as written would provide a beneficial database compared to the cost of collecting the data, said Executive Director Doug Gray.

Gray questions if the project coordinates both clinical and cost information. If the database won?t identify health plans or providers in relation to specific cost information, Gray isn?t sure the database could really help consumers.

The association would like a more coordinated effort to evaluate the creation of such a database, as he believes the current bill protects providers but gives them insurers? proprietary information for their business plans.

Currently, six state health plans, including Anthem, already allow customers to compare costs of specific services at different facilities online, Gray said. They do it to add value for consumers as insurers compete against one another.

?How is it going to offer them more than what we?re offering them today?? Gray asked.

Source: http://www2.godanriver.com/news/2012/jan/25/danville-regional-supports-insurance-claims-databa-ar-1627805/

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Irishman makes "billion-euro home" of shredded notes (Reuters)

DUBLIN (Reuters) ? An unemployed Irish artist has built a home from the shredded remains of 1.4 billion euros ($1.82 billion), a monument to the "madness" he says has been wrought on Ireland by the single currency, from a spectacular construction boom to a wrenching bust.

Frank Buckley built the apartment in the lobby of a Dublin office building that has lain vacant since its completion four years ago at the peak of an ill-fated construction boom, using bricks of shredded euro notes he borrowed from Ireland's national mint.

"It's a reflection of the whole madness that gripped us," Buckley said of what he calls his "billion-euro home."

"People were pouring billions into buildings now worth nothing," he said. "I wanted to create something from nothing."

A wave of cheap credit flowed into Ireland in the early 2000s after Ireland joined the currency zone fuelling a huge property bubble that transformed the country.

The bubble's collapse since 2007 plunged Ireland into the deepest recession in the industrialized world, forcing the former "Celtic Tiger" to accept a humiliating bailout from the EU and the IMF.

Buckley was given a 100 percent mortgage at the peak of the boom to buy a 365,000 euro home on the far reaches of Dublin's commuter belt, despite the fact he had no steady income.

He has separated from his wife who lives in the home, which has since lost at least one-third of its value.

Living in his "billion euro home" since the start of December, Buckley is working on adding a kitchen to the living room and hall.

The walls and floor are covered in euro shreddings and the house is so warm Buckley sleeps without a blanket.

Pictures made from notes and coins decorate the walls, including one of a house, made from Irish 5 pence pieces.

"There are houses in Ireland worth less than that," Buckley quips.

Buckley said he wants Europe's politicians to solve the eurozone debt crisis without destroying its currency. But if the currency ultimately fails, he will happily use the euro zone's defunct notes as fodder for future projects.

"Whatever you say about the euro, it's a great insulator."

($1 = 0.7704 euros)

(Reporting by Conor Humphries; editing by Carmel Crimmins and Paul Casciato)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/arts/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120125/en_nm/us_ireland_art_euro

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Oil rises above $99 as Iran boycott expands (AP)

BANGKOK ? Oil prices pushed above $99 a barrel Wednesday, a day after Australia announced it was joining a boycott by Western nations against Iran, the world's No. 3 oil exporter, over a suspected nuclear weapons program.

Benchmark crude for March delivery was up 20 cents to $99.15 per barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 63 cents to end at $98.95 in New York on Tuesday.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd announced Tuesday during a trip to London that his government had decided to follow the European Union, which announced Monday it would ban the import of Iranian crude starting in July.

The initiative to use oil to force Iran back to nuclear talks began last month, when the U.S. enacted new sanctions targeting Iran's central bank and its ability to sell petroleum abroad. The U.S. doesn't buy Iranian oil, but the new sanctions make it harder for Iran to sell crude.

Asian countries, already Iran's biggest customers, aren't joining the Europeans in banning Iranian crude. The move has been harshly criticized by oil-ravenous China, which is believed likely to sop up any excess Iranian crude at advantageous prices.

Meanwhile, analysts said that oil prices, amid expectations of tightening supplies, would remain somewhat elevated until the dust settles.

"There are other nations that will be boycotting Iran. That is probably adjusting market expectations of tighter supplies," said Natalie Robertson, a commodities analyst with ANZ Banking Group in Melbourne.

"There is going to be a rebalancing. Iran will have to find new customers for its crude since its usual customers are cutting down imports. During that period, there is going to be some time while the market adjusts to the imbalances, and that is what is keeping prices supported."

In other energy trading, heating oil rose 1.4 cents to $3.03 per gallon and gasoline futures rose 0.7 cents to $2.82 per gallon. Natural gas rose 5.4 cents to $2.61 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices

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Fannie, Freddie writedowns too costly: regulator (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The regulator for Fannie Mae (FNMA.OB) and Freddie Mac (FMCC.OB) told lawmakers that forcing the government-controlled mortgage firms to write down the principal on underwater home loans would require more than $100 billion in fresh taxpayer funds.

In a letter sent on Friday to the Republican and Democratic leaders of a House of Representatives government oversight panel, the Federal Housing Finance Agency explained why it has long opposed principal reductions for borrowers who owe more than their homes are worth. In that situation, the mortgage is deemed "underwater."

About 22 percent of U.S. home mortgages have negative equity totaling about $750 billion, meaning that about one in five U.S. home mortgages is "underwater" with the amount owed exceeding the home's value, according to CoreLogic, a financial information and analytics company based in Santa Ana, California.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency said it had determined that such reductions would be more costly for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac than forbearance, which was the less expensive option by comparison. The two mortgage firms have been using forbearance to help borrowers struggling to make payments.

Forbearance lets the borrow reduce or suspend payments on a loan for a specific amount of time.

The regulator, also known as the FHFA, has been under pressure from Democrats to permit the writedown of principal by the two government-controlled mortgage finance providers as a way to help some of the millions of U.S. homeowners whose mortgages are "underwater."

Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has pushed the housing regulator to explain its thinking in deciding not to offer principal reductions.

PRESERVING ASSETS A CONCERN

The FHFA, however, has maintained that widespread principal forgiveness would undercut the finances of Fannie and Freddie, which have already received about $169 billion in taxpayer aid. Republicans have supported the FHFA's decision.

"FHFA has a statutory responsibility as conservator to preserve and conserve the assets and property of the regulated entities," FHFA's acting director, Edward DeMarco, wrote in the letter to lawmakers dated January 20.

The Obama administration wants to secure widespread principal reductions in a legal settlement between the government and some of the biggest mortgage servicers. The settlement is aimed at cleaning up alleged foreclosure abuses.

"Given that any money spent on this endeavor would ultimately come from taxpayers and given that our analysis does not indicate a preservation of assets for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac substantial enough to offset costs, an expenditure of this nature at this time would, in my judgment, require congressional action," DeMarco said in the letter.

In 2008, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were taken over by the government as mortgage losses mounted. Millions of loans issued during the housing bubble, many of them made to subprime borrowers with spotty credit histories, soured after the housing bust -- yet they remain on Fannie's and Freddie's books. Delinquencies on those loans continue to rise.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac own or guarantee roughly half of all outstanding mortgages in the United States. Of the approximately 30 million mortgages guaranteed by the two firms, close to 3 million of those loans were held by underwater borrowers as of last summer, according to an analysis provided in the letter.

Another barrier to principal writedowns, aside from pushing losses at the two firms even higher, DeMarco said, was the cost associated with new technology and training to servicers that would be needed to launch a program that offers principal forgiveness.

The FHFA told lawmakers that forbearance is a less costly option. Principal forbearance limits accounting losses and allows Fannie and Freddie to recoup the principal at some later point, according to the regulatory agency's letter.

"The net result of the analysis is that forbearance achieves marginally lower losses for the taxpayer than forgiveness, although both forgiveness and forbearance reduce the borrower's payment to the same affordable level," the FHFA's letter said.

The housing regulator also assured lawmakers that the FHFA remains committed to helping borrowers stay in their homes and will continue to work on such principal forbearance plans and government initiatives to modify or refinance loans.

The Federal Reserve, in a white paper to Congress earlier this month, said writedowns "had the potential to decrease the probability of default" and "improve migration between labor markets."

However, the Fed stopped short of endorsing such an initiative and noted concern that writing down loan balances would create a moral hazard - the concept that rescue efforts breed further behavior that exacerbates the existing problem - and could prompt other borrowers to stop making timely loan payments.

(Reporting By Margaret Chadbourn; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120124/bs_nm/us_usa_housing_fhfa

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Giffords' decision to resign sets up Ariz. race

Laura Segall / Reuters

Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who suffered a head wound in the Tuscon shooting, smiles after reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at a memorial service marking the anniversary of the shooting, at the University of Arizona campus January 8, 2012.

By The Associated Press

Updated at 10:05a.m. ET:?

The race to replace Rep. Gabrielle Giffords begins in earnest Monday as the Arizona congresswoman's planned resignation sets up a free-for-all in a competitive district.

The three-term Democrat announced Sunday that she intends to resign from Congress this week to concentrate on recovering from a gunshot wound to the head just over a year ago in an assassination attempt that shook the country.

Giffords could have stayed in office for another year even without seeking re-election, but her decision to resign scrambles the political landscape. Arizona must hold a special primary and general election to find someone to finish out her term, as well as hold the regular primary and general election later this year.

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, gravely wounded in a shooting a year ago, will resign from Congress. NBC's Kelly O'Donnell reports.

Giffords would have been heavily favored to win re-election, since she gained immense public support as she recovered from the shooting. She was elected to her third term just two months before she was shot, winning by only about 1 percent over a tea party Republican.

Several Republicans and Democrats have been mentioned as possible candidates for her seat, with some in the GOP already forming official exploratory committees. Republicans who have expressed interest include state Sen. Frank Antenori and sports broadcaster Dave Sitton, among others.

Democratic state lawmakers have been mentioned as possible candidates, as has the name of Giffords' husband, Mark Kelly, although he has publically quashed such speculation.

"That's the great 'mentioner' out there, and there are going to be a lot of people mentioned," said Arizona Democratic Party chairman Andrei Cherny. "I think the best rule in situations like this is, 'The folks who are talking don't know, and the folks who know aren't talking.'"

Giffords' office said she will complete the meet-and-greet political event in Tucson on Monday that erupted in the shooting last year. Among those attending the private event will be some of the wounded, those who helped them and those who subdued the gunman. She will also visit a food bank set up after she was shot, and event billed as her final act as a congresswoman in her district.

"I don't remember much from that horrible day, but I will never forget the trust you placed in me to be your voice," she said on a video announcing her decision.

Interspersed with photos, the video showed a close-up of Giffords gazing directly at the camera and speaking in a voice that is both firm and halting.

"I have more work to do on my recovery," the congresswoman said at the end of the two-minute-long "A Message from Gabby," appearing to strain with all of her will to communicate. "So to do what's best for Arizona, I will step down this week."

Giffords was shot in the head in January 2011 as she was meeting with constituents outside a supermarket in Tucson, Ariz. Six people died and Giffords and 12 others were injured. Her progress had seemed remarkable, to the point that she was able to walk into the House chamber last August to cast a vote.

Gov. Jan Brewer will call the special primary election for the 8th Congressional District likely in April, followed by a general election in June. Before the cycle begins for the regular election, the district will be remapped and renumbered as the 2nd Congressional District.

The regular primary for the new district, which will cover most of the current district's territory, was scheduled for August.

The Republican governor acknowledged that the twin election cycles were going to create a mess, especially for potential candidates.

"I think that it's putting a lot of pressure on a lot of people awfully quick, given the fact that they're going to be filling that continuing seat that expires this year, and then we have elections coming (along) new congressional lines," Brewer said. "So there's going to be a lot of confusion in that congressional district."

Those who decide to throw their hat into the ring will face yet another quirk in the race: the deadline to turn in nominating signatures for the general election comes before the special general election.

"I'm sure both parties and candidates of all stripes will in the days to come be thinking wide and hard about this district, and I'm sure there's going to be a very vigorous contest," Arizona Democratic Party chairman Andrei Cherny said Sunday. "But today's about thinking about a member of Congress who's going to be irreplaceable no matter who wins that seat."

Giffords planned to attend President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. And her political career may not be over, said a state Democratic party official who was among a group that met with her Sunday.

Jim Woodbrey, a senior vice chairman of the state party, said at the meeting, Giffords strongly implied she would run again for office someday. He said the decision to resign came after much thought.

"It was Gabby's individual decision, and she was not in any condition to make that decision five months ago," he said. "So I think waiting so that she could make an informed decision on her own was the right thing to do."?
?

? 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://nbcpolitics.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/23/10215648-giffords-decision-to-resign-sets-up-ariz-race

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Quality of life for younger breast cancer patients more adversely affected than older women

Quality of life for younger breast cancer patients more adversely affected than older women

Monday, January 23, 2012

Quality of life in younger patients treated for breast cancer is seriously compromised and these women suffer from severe psychological distress, infertility, premature menopause, a decrease in physical activity and weight gain, according to a study by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The study, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the National Cancer Institute, found that the mental issues faced by younger breast cancer survivors were more serious than the physical impacts compared to a general age-matched population of women who didn't have cancer and those more than 50 years old who did.

The study points to the need for oncologists to let these younger patients know from the beginning of their therapy what may happen to them after it's finished, said study lead author Dr. Patricia Ganz, director of cancer prevention and control research at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

"We know that educating and providing younger breast cancer patients with information about what they might experience once their treatment ends is very helpful," said Ganz, who has been conducting research on quality of life after cancer treatment for 25 years. "If they know what to expect, their anxiety level will be greatly reduced. Up to now, oncologists have not done a good job of preparing these women for what will come."

Reducing anxiety is crucial, Ganz said, as pre-clinical studies have shown that stress can promote cancer growth and spread in animal models. A study by Jonsson Cancer Center researchers published in 2010 in Cancer Research showed that chronic stress acted as a sort of fertilizer that fed breast cancer progression, significantly accelerating the spread of disease.

The need to prepare younger breast cancer survivors for any adverse effects they may experience and seek ways to address those problems is vital as more and more younger women are surviving their cancer diagnosis due to improvements in early detection and treatment, Ganz said.

"A cancer diagnosis can challenge younger women with issues that don't impact older patients," she said. "A younger breast cancer patient may have young children and may be worried about living to raise them to adulthood. A younger breast cancer patient may not have had children yet and may be faced with infertility following her treatment or may return to the dating scene following treatment. We need to find ways to reduce the stress and anxiety that dealing with these issues may create."

Ganz recently received a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that will fund a leading-edge program that seeks to enhance outcomes for young breast cancer survivors in the Los Angeles region. The program is being done in collaboration with the Jonsson Cancer Center, the UCLA-LIVESTRONG Survivorship Center of Excellence and the Simms/Mann ? UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology.

The three-year, $700,00 grant will focus on making life after breast cancer better for women aged 21 to 45 in Los Angeles County by funding a program designed to meet their unique needs, Ganz said. UCLA is one of seven organizations nationwide to receive funding for this focus on young breast cancer survivors. The resources and strategies developed in this diverse and populous region will serve as a model for other organizations across the country.

Services will be offered to these women through the UCLA Health System and with collaborators at Torrance Memorial Medical Center and the South Bay Cancer Survivorship Consortium, as well as the Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, a public hospital in northern Los Angeles County which treats mostly minority women who are underinsured or who have no insurance.

"These three health systems provide breast cancer services for a substantial number of ethnically diverse, newly-diagnosed women with breast cancer under 45 years old. They see about 225 new cases annually," Ganz said Ganz. "We estimate that there are hundreds of young breast cancer survivors who are being followed in these institutions, who will directly benefit from the programs that we will develop."

Ganz anticipates such services might include a regional resource with information and assistance in obtaining fertility preservation services, a website that hosts specialized information about community and hospital resources for younger women with breast cancer, as well as specialized programs to meet the unique psychosocial needs and concerns of this population.

Ganz also has received a grant from the Susan G. Komen foundation that is testing the practice of mindful awareness, a form of meditation, as a way to combat stress and anxiety in younger breast cancer patients.

For the Journal of the National Cancer Institute study, Ganz and her team did a review of studies that focused on overall quality of life, psychosocial effects, menopause and fertility-related concerns and behavioral outcomes related to weight gain and physical activity. The 28 studies reviewed were published between January 1990 and July 2010.

Ganz said that weighing therapies with the thought of quality of life after treatment in mind may help reduce some of the issues these younger women face.

"By tailoring adjuvant therapy regimens and giving cytotoxic therapy only to those who may benefit, we can mitigate some of these side effects, but the long life expectancy for these young women also provides a window of opportunity for cancer prevention and health promotion activities," the study states.

###

University of California - Los Angeles Health Sciences: http://www.uclahealth.org/

Thanks to University of California - Los Angeles Health Sciences for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/116940/Quality_of_life_for_younger_breast_cancer_patients_more_adversely_affected_than_older_women

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Hamas: Leader Khaled Mashaal won't seek new term (AP)

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip ? The Islamic militant group Hamas says in a statement that their chief, Khaled Mashaal, won't seek re-election.

The Palestinian group urges him to reconsider his decision, saying the issue of who leads the decades-old militant movement should be left to Hamas institutions. Hamas says the decision shouldn't be made by one person ? even its leader.

The group issued the statement Saturday to reporters via e-mail.

Mashaal, who is based in Damascus, was not immediately available for comment.

It is not clear when Hamas would conduct new, internal elections. The militant group elects leaders through a body it calls the Shura Council.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_palestinians

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PFT: Ravens botch set up for Cundiff's missed kick

Reuters

Shortly before Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff did his best Gary Anderson impersonation (to the chagrin of Matt Birk), Ravens receiver Lee Evans had the ball in his hands, in the end zone.? But Patriots defensive back Sterling Moore knocked the ball out of Evans? hands, and the ruling on the field was that the would-be touchdown pass was incomplete.

Though it wasn?t a scoring play, fewer than two minutes remained in the game.? Thus, the decision (or not) to review the play was to be initiated by the replay assistant in the booth.? Even though the slow-motion angle shown by CBS seemed to suggest that it may have been a catch, the replay assistant didn?t instruct referee Alberto Riveron to take a look via the on-field portable TV on wheels.

As to whether a catch was made, the standard is simple.? From Rule 8, Section 1, Article 3, Item 3:? ?If a player controls the ball while in the end zone, both feet, or any part of his body other than his hands, must be completely on the ground before losing control, or the pass is incomplete.?

There?s no Calvin Johnson component.? No requirement of a football move.? Possession plus two feet down equals a catch, and a touchdown.

So why didn?t the replay assistant direct Riveron to take another look?? Absent indisputable visual evidence that the call on the field was correct, the replay assistant must tell the referee to look for indisputable visual evidence to overturn it.

The league disagrees.? ?The ruling on the field of an incomplete pass was confirmed by the Instant Replay assistant, correctly, and as a result, there was no need to stop the game,? the league said in a statement forwarded to PFT by spokesman Michael Signora.? ?The receiver did not get his second foot down in the end zone with possession, and as a result, it was an incomplete pass.?

Former V.P. of officiating and current FOX rules analyst Mike Pereira expressed a similar sentiment via text message to PFT.? ?Clearly not a catch,? Pereira said.? ?Ball coming out before second foot clearly down. . . .? No need to review it because it was clearly incomplete.?

But where?s the harm in taking a look at the play?? The left foot may have been down a nanosecond before the ball was dislodged.? Why not have Riveron decide whether or not that was the case?? Moreover, a different camera angle may have shown that Evans had the ball before his left foot previously left the ground.? (There?s no doubt that the right foot was down while Evans had the ball.)

It could be that the replay assistant erred on the side of not giving Riveron a chance to make what could have been another Bill Leavy-style error.? Either way, under the league?s standard for initiating a booth review, we think a booth review should have been initiated.? And if it had been initiated, Riveron would have been faced with a decision that wouldn?t have been quite as easy as the league seems to think it would have been.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/01/22/ravens-take-a-timeout-back-to-baltimore/related

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Video: The Goldfinger Mystery, Part 2

Dateline NBC

'Dateline NBC,' the signature broadcast for NBC News in primetime, premiered in 1992. Since then, it has been pioneering a new approach to primetime news programming. The multi-night franchise, supplemented by frequent specials, allows NBC to consistently and comprehensively present the highest-quality reporting, investigative features, breaking news coverage and newsmaker profiles.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032600/vp/46079384#46079384

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At NY civil trial, Mets hope to shed Madoff taint (AP)

NEW YORK ? With spring training just weeks away, nobody's working harder to prepare for the New York Mets' future than their lawyers.

A March trial may decide how much the team owners' disastrous investment in the fraudulent business of imprisoned financier Bernard Madoff will cost the club.

"It's going to garner tons of attention and comes at a horrible time for the Mets. It's not a great way to start the season," said Neal H. Levin, who heads the fraud team at the Chicago law firm Freeborn & Peters and is not involved in the case.

A court-appointed trustee is trying to recover money for investors in the massive Ponzi scheme in which 4,900 investors were told their $20 billion investment had grown to $68 billion by November 2008. But when investigators finally reached him, only a few hundred million dollars actually remained in Madoff's accounts. Madoff admitted the fraud and is serving a 150-year sentence.

To the trustee, Irving Picard, the Mets owners were winners in Madoff's multi-decade fiasco, pocketing hundreds of millions of dollars in fictitious profits.

Picard has demanded more than $1 billion for investors, saying Mets co-owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz either knew or should have known Madoff was up to no good. The two men have steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, saying they were victims themselves.

After the lawsuit was filed, the Mets announced they were considering selling up to 25 percent of the franchise because of "uncertainty" caused by the lawsuit. Now, the need for such a sizable infusion of cash might be diminishing. The Mets have shrunk their payroll and the legal prospects seem to have improved, as two decisions by the presiding judge may have limited the chances that Madoff's downfall will doom the team's finances.

In the first, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff limited what the team's owners might have to pay to other Madoff investors to $386 million. He also made it possible the payout won't top more than $83.3 million, saying that the potential penalty would be limited to that amount unless Picard can prove at the trial that the Mets owners "willfully blinded" themselves to Madoff's fraud.

In a second ruling Tuesday, Rakoff blocked Picard from appealing the earlier ruling until after the trial, despite claims that the judge's reasoning will affect the calculation for the entire recovery effort, possibly costing jilted Madoff investors billions of dollars.

The Mets declined to comment Friday about the coming trial. A spokeswoman for Picard said his lawyers also would not comment because the litigation was ongoing.

This week, lawyers will submit written arguments to Rakoff on their pretrial requests. Rulings will define the perimeters of the trial, set to start March 19, and perhaps clear the way for former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo to step to the plate in his role as mediator to try to broker a settlement.

The likelihood of a deal seemed to diminish, though, when Picard and his lawyers concluded that Rakoff's reasoning might be applied to other cases, costing billions of dollars for investors.

So far, about $325 million has been distributed to the holders of 1,230 investor accounts, in addition to $798 million disbursed as a result of an industry fund that reimburses victims of fraud up to $500,000. Agreements so far resulted in the recovery of about $8.6 billion and the recoveries exceed prior restitution efforts related to Ponzi schemes in both dollar value and percentage of stolen funds recovered, Picard's office reported. Legal appeals were delaying disbursement of the rest of the money to investors.

Levin said there is a trend in courts that could work against the Mets, with the legal term "willful blindness" being loosely defined as having a level of knowledge that exists somewhere between actual knowledge and something that should have been known.

"As a baseball fan, I'm disappointed that one of baseball's prize franchises is under such a cloud," said Robert Berliner, an attorney who runs the Berliner Group mediation service in Chicago and is not involved in the case. "The Wilpons dealt with their childhood friend and he turned out to be a crook. It's hard for me to see that that makes them accessories."

He said it was too early to rule out a settlement.

"After the narrowing of the issues by the judge, I thought they ought to be in a position to settle it. I was a little surprised that it hasn't happened yet," he added. "There are a lot of cases that settle on the courthouse steps on the day of trial and this could be one of them."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_sp_ba_ne/bbn_madoff_mets

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Police witnesses called in fake 'Rockefeller' case

FILE - In this July 8 2011 file photo, Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, a German man who masqueraded as a member of the famous Rockefeller family, appears in an Alhambra, Calif. court. Gerhartsreiter faces a preliminary hearing Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012 in the cold case murder of John Sohus, 27, who disappeared from San Marino, Calif. in 1985. (AP Photo/Sarah Reingewirtz, Pool, File)

FILE - In this July 8 2011 file photo, Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, a German man who masqueraded as a member of the famous Rockefeller family, appears in an Alhambra, Calif. court. Gerhartsreiter faces a preliminary hearing Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012 in the cold case murder of John Sohus, 27, who disappeared from San Marino, Calif. in 1985. (AP Photo/Sarah Reingewirtz, Pool, File)

Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, center, a German immigrant who masqueraded as a member of the famous Rockefeller family, appears during a preliminary court hearing in Alhambra, Calif. Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. Gerhartsreiter a convicted kidnapper faces a charge of murdering the son of his former landlady a quarter century ago, when he lived in California under one of his many pseudonyms. (AP Photo/Pasadena Star News, Walt Mancini, Pool)

Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, a German immigrant who masqueraded as a member of the famous Rockefeller family, appears as he in handcuffed during a preliminary court hearing in Alhambra, Calif. Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. Gerhartsreiter a convicted kidnapper facing a charge of murdering the son of his former landlady a quarter century ago, when he lived in California under one of his many pseudonyms. (AP Photo/Pasadena Star News, Walt Mancini, Pool)

Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, a German immigrant who masqueraded as a member of the famous Rockefeller family, walks into to a preliminary court hearing in Alhambra, Calif. Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. Gerhartsreiter a convicted kidnapper facing a charge of murdering the son of his former landlady a quarter century ago, when he lived in California under one of his many pseudonyms, is faced with the murder of John Sohus, 27, who disappeared from San Marino, Calif. in 1985. (AP Photo/Walt Mancini, Pool)

ALHAMBRA, Calif. (AP) ? When a newlywed couple disappeared in 1985, their families were initially unconcerned because they believed John and Linda Sohus were on a secret mission for the government, testimony showed Thursday at a preliminary hearing in the murder case against a man alleged to be the guesthouse tenant who also vanished.

The hearing for Christian Gerhartsreiter, who has a kidnapping conviction in Massachusetts where he posed as an heir to the Rockefeller fortune, will determine whether there is enough evidence to put him on trial for the apparent bludgeoning that only came to light when the husband's bones were dug up at the Sohuses' former home in 1994.

Gerhartsreiter is charged only with killing 27-year-old John Sohus; no sign of Linda Sohus has been found.

Witnesses called Thursday included former San Marino police officers who took reports about the disappearance at a time when it was uncertain whether a crime had occurred.

Thomas LeVeque said he interviewed John Sohus' mother, Ruth, and Linda Sohus' sister, Catherine Mayfield, and thought the disappearance "was rather unusual."

Ruth Sohus claimed to have a secret source that she could not reveal because it would endanger the couple, he said.

"She said that she had written to them and she could make contact with them," LeVeque said.

But as time went on and the couple did not reappear, Ruth Sohus repeatedly called police to ask for help, he said.

Lili Hadsell, now police chief of Baldwin Park, said she had many contacts with Ruth Sohus as a patrol officer in San Marino.

"Every time I went out there it escalated and escalated," she said. "It started out that she reported they were gone but wasn't super concerned. She believed they were working."

At one point, Hadsell said, Ruth Sohus stated that the couple was working for the parents of a man living in their guesthouse who was known as Christopher Chichester.

When bills arrived, she gave them to Chichester and he said he was forwarding them, the witness testified.

But then Chichester disappeared as well.

"She had become nervous and scared that something had happened to John and Linda," Hadsell testified.

The witnesses said the mother had problems with alcohol and was under the influence a few times during interviews.

Hadsell said she also interviewed Linda Sohus' mother, Susan Mayfield, who reported receiving postcards from her daughter from Paris. But the witness said later handwriting analysis suggested they were not written by Linda Sohus.

LeVeque said the missing woman's sister, Catherine Mayfield, also initially believed the couple was doing some secret work but was the first to report them as missing.

Earlier in the preliminary hearing, a construction worker described discovering the skull and bones in bags stuffed in a box while excavating a swimming pool.

A medical examiner testified that the skull had multiple fractures inflicted by a blunt object, possibly a baseball bat.

Gerhartsreiter has previously been exposed as a veteran impostor. On the East Coast he claimed to be "Clark Rockefeller," a member of the famous family, and married a woman with whom he had a daughter. She divorced him when she found out he had duped her.

Last year he was convicted of kidnapping his daughter in Boston during a custody dispute. Gerhartsreiter is serving a four- to five-year prison sentence for that crime. He would be eligible for parole this year if he was not facing the California charge, which could bring him 26 years to life in prison if he is convicted.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-19-Rockefeller%20Mystery/id-a5623bf7e8304fe2861bef7a4c941a95

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Golf4Beginners: Rosie O'Donnell Trumps up Scots documentary http://t.co/RhfMEoJy #golf

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Source: http://twitter.com/Golf4Beginners/statuses/159621690903638017

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Ratings king 'American Idol' ready for 11th season (AP)

LAS VEGAS ? "American Idol" is having a bit of a Goldilocks moment.

When the nation's favorite TV addiction debuted 10 years ago, critics complained the judges were too mean to the hordes of would-be singers seeking celebrity.

But after pop icons Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler became judges last year, some fans complained the show had lost its bite. "American Idol," critics complained, had become too nice.

Now in its 11th season, the Fox show that spawned a dozen pop stars and copycat talent competitions is hoping to get it just right.

With the second post-Simon Cowell season under way, Lopez and Tyler said they are striking a balance between showing compassion and respect for their fellow artists, while also not mincing their words.

"Last year was kind of our first year and we were kind of finding our way and figuring out how we were going to do things," Lopez said during a press conference in between filming the show in Las Vegas on Wednesday, hours before the Season 11 premiere. "But I just think we are more to the point now. We understand how to do it."

Tyler joked that he was peppering his encouragement with "well-rounded, slanderous attacks."

Tyler and Lopez's still-evolving shtick will likely determine whether "Idol" can match its previous successes. In an era of social networking, where YouTube videos result in record contracts, does America still want pop stars invented by a TV show?

All signs say yes.

It's been a decade since Texas native Kelly Clarkson was plucked from obscurity and turned into the nation's first American Idol in 2002 and by all accounts the show has retained its dominance over the nation's TV viewers.

Lopez and Tyler's debut year saw the show maintain its spot as the nation's most-watched TV show, making it No. 1 for the eighth-straight season. Scotty McCreery, last season's winner, became the first "Idol" to start his post-show career with a No. 1 album since Ruben Studdard in 2003.

No major changes have been announced for the show's 11th season. The season is opening with taped audition episodes before it shifts to live shows in Los Angeles that include audience voting. The show's season premier Wednesday was to focus on Savannah, Ga., before continuing in Pittsburgh on Thursday.

Veteran music producer Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope-Geffen-A&M, is returning as the in-house mentor for the contestants. Finalists will once again compete midway through the competition on the Las Vegas Strip, where 42 contestants practiced singing Wednesday morning.

Tyler said soul music has emerged has this season's genre of choice, with many of the contestants looking to channel chart-topper and British soul diva Adele.

The season could mark Ryan Seacrest's last year hosting the show. He has said he would like to stay on as the show's host past 2012, but his contract ends this year. There have been several reports that Seacrest could replace Matt Lauer, should he decide to leave the "Today" show on NBC.

Season 11 opens in a different era from when the show launched in 2002. Then, former judge Cowell helped turn the competition into a national phenomenon with his harsh feedback for the show's less-than-stellar contestants. It was the only singing competition of its kind at the time.

But last year Lopez, Tyler and lone original judge Randy Jackson seemed reluctant to point out contestants' shortcomings in the same blunt manner that helped make "Idol" must-see entertainment.

The TV landscape has also changed. "Idol" now faces challenges from NBC's competition "The Voice," and Fox's "The X Factor," which stars Cowell.

The show has helped launched the careers of pop stars Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry and Carrie Underwood.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120119/ap_en_mu/us_american_idol

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Interpol chief says countries not using databases

LONDON (AP) ? Interpol's chief sounded an alarm Thursday that countries are still failing to check identity documents against its database ? a warning that comes just months ahead of the 2012 Olympics.

Ron Noble, secretary-general of the international police agency based in France, said out of the 1.1 billion travelers last year, ID documents of some 500 million people were not checked against Interpol's database, which is one of the world's most detailed.

"It will take a tragedy ? a specific kind of tragedy ? for behavior to change," Noble told The Associated Press after speaking to foreign correspondents in London.

Noble has said Britain is the only EU country to systematically check passports against those registered with Interpol as missing worldwide. Britain carried out 140 million checks last year against the database ? more than the rest of Europe combined.

Last year, he said more than 11,000 people were caught trying to enter the U.K. using lost or stolen passports.

France carried out the second-highest number of checks at 10 million.

"The only problem the U.K. appears to have is the number of people at immigration posts," Noble said. He was not voicing concerns over the Olympics.

A special Interpol team will be sent specifically for the Olympics, helping British authorities determine whether anyone trying to enter the U.K. is wanted, whether their documents have been listed as lost or stolen and whether they are considered a threat.

"We know terrorists use fraudulent ID documents," Noble said.

The U.K. Border Agency faced intense criticism last year after passport checks were relaxed during the height of the summer tourist season to lessen lines at London's Heathrow Airport, Europe's busiest. A government report on Thursday blamed poor communications, a lack of supervision and other shortcomings for the problems.

Olympics security has been a primary concern since 1972, when 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were killed at the Munich Games.

Noble said while there was no specific intelligence that the games would be targeted, such events provide an array of opportunities for criminals, including pickpocketing, forced prostitution, illegal Internet betting rings and hoaxes.

And then there is still the threat of terrorism. Noble said while al-Qaida's ranks had been depleted, affiliates were actively recruiting in places like Somalia.

Another fear that Noble said "keeps him up at night" is the threat of a nuclear or biological attack. Interpol has been alerted to some 2,715 instances where there were questions of whether there had been illicit trafficking of nuclear material.

Noble stressed, however, that didn't mean there were more 2,000 cases of trafficked nuclear material.

While most of the cases involved non-nuclear radioactive material cases ? 2,535 ? there were 200 cases involving nuclear material. Only four cases involved the attempted sale of highly enriched uranium, Noble said.

The United States, he said, had the most cases in the database ? mostly because of its reporting through the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Council. After that, Eastern Europe has had the most and some of the most significant cases of concern in terms of criminality, Noble said.

As for whether terror groups were becoming more capable of unleashing biological attacks, Noble pointed to advances in both technology and biotechnology. He said the risk was increasing ? partially because technology can be misused ? but that did not mean there was an increased likelihood of a bio-terrorist attack.

"It's so easy to think about how an attack can be carried out because the screening of passengers doesn't focus on that at all," Noble said. "That's why it's important to identify people who are engaged in conduct that is suspicious or illegal."

Noble is American and a former head of the U.S. Secret Service. Interpol is based in Lyon, France.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-19-EU-Britain-Interpol/id-b5a3ff1596e945a3b88bd93a6f15e557

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