entertainment in florida: March 2013

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Pat Roberts Heads Off Primary Challenge; Schwartz Will Run For PA GOV; Don Young Hit For Slur

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WHAT'S NEWS

Pres. Obama, at the WH, "tried to shame the nation and Congress into action against gun violence," invoking the Newtown shooting (CNN). Later, he signed an executive order forming an election reform commission to "shorten lines at the polls" and increase efficiency (NPR). Today in Miami, Obama will push for investment in infrastructure (AP).
SC-01 Special: In their first one-on-one debate, ex-Charleston Co. Councilor Curtis Bostic (R) characterized ex-Gov. Mark Sanford (R) "as a 'compromised candidate'" and a "'Mr. No' with a record of failing to bring people together to accomplish reforms" (Hilton Head Island Packet).
Boston Mayor '13: "At least a dozen would-be successors" of retiring Mayor Tom Menino (D) "are either running for mayor or strongly considering it, colleagues and strategists said" (Boston Globe).
HI SEN: Sen. Brian Schatz (D) will kick off his special election campaign on Saturday, holding a grassroots organizational meeting as he tries to establish a ground game (Honolulu Civil Beat).
KS SEN: Sen. Pat Roberts (R) ended talk of a potentially competitive primary in announcing his honorary campaign committee, which includes two of his most likely challengers: Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R) and Sec/State Kris Kobach (R) (On Call).
SD SEN: Ex-LG Steve Kirby (R) is not ruling out a bid, but "doesn't have a timeline for his decision" (The Hill).
VA SEN: Sen. Mark Warner (D) confirmed that he will seek reelection, despite his frustration with the chamber (Staunton News Leader).
FL GOV: Gov. Rick Scott (R) has raised $1M over the last month, including a "whopping" $500K check from the William L. Edwards Trust (Miami Herald).
PA GOV: Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D), "emboldened" by a poll commissioned by EMILY's List, has decided to run and will open a "state-level campaign account early next month," according to a source close to her (Politico).
TX GOV: As Gov. Rick Perry (R) "weighs whether to run" for reelection, TX "politicos say it's largely unclear who would steer another reelection campaign -- or a second Perry attempt" at the WH (Politico).

OUR CALL

Hotline editors weigh in on the stories that drive the day

? 2014 will be the first electoral test of whether Democrats supporting gay marriage can win re-election in red states (e.g. Hagan, Begich, Baucus). Almost certainly, their calculation is that, win or lose, their fates will rest far more on other issues come next fall, so they may as well follow their consciences (and campaign pocket books) and align themselves with their blue-state brethren.

? The "Draft Brendan Johnson for Senate" campaign has drawn plenty of skepticism, but the senator's son has nothing on Nina Turner when it comes to fake shows of "organic" support. The new website that sprang up urging the Ohio state senator to run for secretary of state is paid for by her own campaign committee.

? Last night, Curtis Bostic laid out the strongest version yet of his argument against Mark Sanford: that he is a "compromised candidate" who would more easily fall to Elizabeth Colbert Busch -- and the national Dems backing her -- in a general election. While it appears to be true that there are anti-Sanford votes out there, if Bostic can't attract enough to overcome him now it's hard to imagine Colbert Busch accomplishing that feat in an 18-point GOP district in May.

HAIR OF THE DOG

"Eyeballs found in KC gas station trash not human" (AP).

FRESH BREWED BUZZ

"I used to own -- my father had a ranch. We used to hire 50 to 60 wetbacks to pick tomatoes. You know it takes two people to pick the same tomatoes now" -- Rep. Don Young (R-AK), who later said he "meant no disrespect" in using the slur (Anchorage Daily News).
Reps. Jim Matheson (D-UT) and Justin Amash (R-MI) voted against their parties more than any other House members over the first three months of the 113th Congress (National Journal Daily).
"When the Revolutionary War was over, the Founding Fathers said 'Take your assault rifle home with you'" -- Bostic, asked for his position on gun control (Columbia Patch).
Ex-AK Gov. Sarah Palin (R) released a two-minute web video, "Loaded for Bear," that makes it clear "she intends to be involved in the selection of Republican and Tea Party candidates in Congressional and Senate contests across the country" (New York Daily News).
"I'm the assemblyman of sorrow. Why do they hate me so much? Fill in the blank: I'm so angry I could (blank) myself" -- NV Assemb. Steven Brooks (D), after being expelled from the state Assembly for threatening his colleagues (Ralston Reports).
A court has refused to dismiss a FEC lawsuit against ex-Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) for misusing campaign funds in attempting to "overturn his 2007 guilty plea for disorderly conduct in an airport bathroom" (Idaho Statesman).
"Dale Peterson explains 'bizarre' arrest for eating '22 cents worth of peanuts'" (Daily Caller).
Businessman Herman Cain (R) will "cohost a private retreat" for business leaders and GOP "power brokers" in Palm Beach, FL, next month. Ex-FL Gov. Jeb Bush (R) will attend and "is expected to speak on education reform" (National Review).
"Brazil clown will leave big shoes to fill in Congress" (Los Angeles Times).

SWIZZLE CHALLENGE

Ex-SCOTUS Justice Wiley Rutledge is interred in the Green Mountain Cemetery in Boulder, CO, the westernmost burial site for any Justice to date.
That last one stumped the Wake-Up Call! community, so here's a toss-up: "What is the Harlem Globetrotters' theme song?" The 3rd correct e-mailer gets to submit the next question.

NJ'S EARLY BIRD SPECIALS

SHOT...

"Steve King Blasts Obama Daughters For Going On Spring Break" (Huffington Post).

...CHASER

"Oh my God, Malia. He did not say that! Let's text him now" -- Devon Banks ("30 Rock").

Sarah Mimms, Editor

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pat-roberts-heads-off-primary-challenge-schwartz-run-085659216--politics.html

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93% No

All Critics (83) | Top Critics (29) | Fresh (77) | Rotten (6)

A cunning and richly enjoyable combination of high-stakes drama and media satire from Chilean director Pablo Larrain.

A mesmerizing, realistic and often hilarious look at the politics of power and the power of ideas ...

A political drama, a personal drama, a sharp-eyed study of how the media manipulate us from all sides, No reels and ricochets with emotional force.

It's a funny look at the way the media warp public opinion, and a curiously hopeful one.

On every level, "No" leaves one with bittersweet feelings about democracy, love and the cost of compromise.

If you can shake off the inherent grossness of mining the Pinochet years for yet another Mad Man-style deification of zeitgeist-grasping salesmen, this is moderately interesting stuff.

"No" is filmmaking of the first order.

Old technology plus the packaging of a revolution add up to a Yes

Freshens up a decades-old story with vibrant humor and a good sense of storytelling.

No continually impresses for its slyness and savvy -- rarely has such an eyesore been so worth watching.

Larrain fashions an unlikely crowd-pleaser from a historical episode that has its share of tragedy as well as triumph.

Stirring as a celebration of voter empowerment, No may also inspire pangs of wistful nostalgia.

Fascinating work from director Pablo Larrain and screenwriter Pedro Peirano, who manage to slip into the skin of a beleaguered country and detail the urgency of a revolution, sold one jingle at a time.

Swims upstream against high-definition with a defiantly lo-fi approach that's also ingeniously evocative of the historical period.

Wildly colorful strokes, full of bitter humor.

It's a fascinating and surprisingly fun look behind the scenes of politics and media.

An Oscar-nominated win for more than just political junkies.

No quotes approved yet for No. Logged in users can submit quotes.

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/no_2012/

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Friday, March 29, 2013

NYPD to cops: Keep your Facebook posts professional

By Dave Warner (Reuters) - The winner of one of the biggest Powerball jackpots of all time owes $29,000 in overdue child support payments, the Passaic County, New Jersey, sheriff's office said on Thursday. Pedro Quezada, 44, a county resident who is married and the father of five children ages 5 to 23, was the sole winner of a $338 million jackpot on Saturday. Because he chose the lump sum option, instead of annual payments over 30 years, he will actually receive $211 million, lottery officials said on Thursday. Officials said that is the third-largest lump sum payment in Powerball history. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nypd-tells-officers-keep-social-media-clean-172939178.html

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France's Hollande hits companies with 75 percent wealth tax

By Catherine Bremer and Nicholas Vinocur

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande declared on Thursday that companies would have to pay a 75 percent tax on salaries over a million euros after his plan for a "super-tax" on individuals was knocked down by the constitutional court.

Hollande, battling to win back support as his economic goals fall away within a year of his election, said shifting the millionaires' tax onto companies would be a way of getting the wealthiest French to contribute to ending the crisis.

"I am sticking by my pledge," Hollande said, during an hour-long interview on primetime television where he urged a disillusioned nation to trust that he was doing all he could to get the stalled economy back on its feet.

On the defensive, with his approval ratings in tatters, Hollande acknowledged he had failed to anticipate the crisis dragging on for so long, but all the tools were being put in place to restore growth and bring down unemployment.

Anxious to get left-wingers back behind him, the Socialist leader said that despite his effort to reduce the public deficit in a climate of stalled growth, no new taxes or tax hikes would be imposed on households this year or next.

He warned, however, that the French would have to work longer under a pension overhaul being worked on for next year in order to reduce a gaping deficit in the retirement system.

"My first objective is to reverse the unemployment rate," Hollande said, explaining that he was gunning for the relentless rise of past years to come to a stop at the end of the year and for the 10.6 percent jobless rate to start falling from then.

He said measures in place to trim companies' labour costs via tax rebates, a plan to loosen hiring and firing rules and his intention to simplify regulations that strangle small businesses provided all the tools for a recovery.

"This is not a wish, nor is it a forecast. It's a commitment and a battle," he said, adding: "I am the chief of this battle."

The TV interview is part of a new public relations push that has included a two-day, hand-shaking tour in southeast France. The trip backfired when hecklers asked what had become of campaign pledges and one protester was carted off by police.

Hollande's ratings have slid faster than those of any other French president as he has irked left-wingers with pro-market measures to foster growth, angered business leaders with high taxes and failed to stem the rise in unemployment.

His government has backtracked on its growth and deficit targets, and few believe the job market is close to recovering.

Thursday's resurrection of the 75 percent tax saved Hollande some face after the Constitutional Court crushed what had been his most high-profile campaign promise to his left-wing base.

APPROVAL AT 25 PERCENT

The carefully stage-managed interview looked set to be upset by news a few hours earlier that actress Julie Gayet had filed a legal complaint for breach of privacy over rumors on the Internet alleging a romantic liaison with the president.

However no reference was made to a complaint the Paris prosecutor's office said it received from Gayet on March 18 against "persons unknown" over rumors circulating online for some weeks. A lawyer for Gayet, cited in French media as saying the rumors were baseless, did not respond to phone calls and Hollande's office declined to comment.

Hollande, 58, has already suffered media speculation over his relationship with first lady Valerie Trierweiler. The pair are unmarried but have been together for several years.

Negative publicity would hurt Hollande today, with just 22 percent of respondents in a survey by pollster CSA on Thursday rating him a "good" president and 51 percent rating him "bad".

Separately, an LH2 poll for Le Nouvel Observateur weekly gave him a 27 percent approval rating and found 81 percent of people were unhappy with his efforts on jobs.

Data this week showed households' purchasing power fell in late 2012 for the first time since 1984 and that jobless claims rose for a 22nd straight month in February to reach the highest level since June 1997, amid a stream of industrial layoffs.

National statistics institute INSEE sees unemployment rising to 11 percent by mid-year, making Hollande's insistence that he can reverse the trend by year-end sound hollow.

(Additional reporting by Chine Labbe, Elizabeth Pineau and Ingrid Melander, edited by Michael Roddy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/frances-hollande-hits-companies-75-percent-wealth-tax-222850692--business.html

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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Do intellectual property rights on existing technologies hinder subsequent innovation?

Mar. 27, 2013 ? A recent study published in the Journal of Political Economy suggests that some types of intellectual property rights discourage subsequent scientific research.

"The goal of intellectual property rights -- such as the patent system -- is to provide incentives for the development of new technologies.However, in recent years many have expressed concerns that patents may be impeding innovation if patents on existing technologies hinder subsequent innovation," said Heidi Williams, author of the study."We currently have very little empirical evidence on whether this is a problem in practice."

Williams investigated the sequencing of the human genome by the public Human Genome Project and the private firm Celera. Genes sequenced first by Celera were covered by a contract law-based form of intellectual property, whereas genes sequenced first by the Human Genome Project were placed in the public domain. Although Celera's intellectual property lasted a maximum of two years, it enabled Celera to sell its data for substantial fees and required firms to negotiate licensing agreements with Celera for any resulting commercial discoveries.

By linking a number of different datasets that had not previously been used by researchers, Williams was able to measure when genes were sequenced, which genes were held by Celera's intellectual property, and what subsequent investments were made in scientific research and product development on each gene. Williams' conclusion points to a persistent 20-30 percent reduction in subsequent scientific research and product development for those genes held by Celera's intellectual property.

"My take-away from this evidence is that -- at least in some contexts -- intellectual property can have substantial costs in terms of hindering subsequent innovation," said Williams."The fact that these costs were -- in this context -- 'large enough to care about' motivates wanting to better understand whether alternative policy tools could be used to achieve a better outcome.It isn't clear that they can, although economists such as Michael Kremer have proposed some ideas on how they might.I think this is an exciting area for future work."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Chicago Press Journals.

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

Journal Reference:

Heidi L. Williams. Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation: Evidence from the Human Genome. Journal of Political Economy, 121:1; February 2013

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/health_medicine/genes/~3/VcN79F2j5Kw/130327144133.htm

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BlackBerry's Not Selling Enough New Phones Yet

The first earnings report from BlackBerry since its new phone launched is mostly good news?the company reported $94 million in profit and $1.2 billion in revenue?but there is one alarming figure: the 3 million customers the company has lost over the last three months. Even with a million Z10 devices sold, the company "lost about a million more subscribers" than analysts were expecting,?according to analyst?Jefferies analyst Peter Misek.?Now that they see the numbers, their theory is that loyal BlackBerry?subscribers?with old devices didn't upgrade to new BlackBerry ones, instead ditching the Canadian phone company for competitors?even though BlackBerry launched a new gadget just for those people this quarter. In other words, the phone that was supposed to save BlackBerry, the Z10, hasn't done so yet.

RELATED: The Future of BlackBerry 10 Sales Looks Hazy

To be fair, the catch-up gadget was only announced at the end of January, and there's been a slow roll out since then, debuting first in the United Kingdom around February 4. So, this quarter's earnings, which ended March 2, only represent about a month of phone sales. But even so, a reported 1 million Z10 devices sold in one month doesn't look too promising for the wannabe comeback story?especially since the former keyboarded phone king launched in some of its strongest markets first. Say the phone maker kept up those sales for three months in a row, it would only break even, adding as many customers as it lost, which is better than shrinking and dying forever, but not quite good enough.?

RELATED: The Nerd Who Is Supposed to Make BlackBerry Cool Again

Though, some analysts are more optimistic that the new device additions could counterbalance the losses. "The numbers suggest that they're on a recovery path," Misek added. "Obviously the bigger issue is BlackBerry 10 sales going forward, but if you do look back at the February quarter, I think you had more positives than negatives," said another analyst.?The Z10 just launched in some markets and because of its very different operating system could take some getting used to. This report does not include U.S. sales, for example. (Though, it saw a "tepid" U.S. launch, if store lines are any metric.) Also, BlackBerry hasn't released its other?new phone: The Q10. It's possible that people haven't lined up for the keyboardless iPhone-ish clone because they're holding out for a more familiar looking device. The Q10, which doesn't come out until April or May, looks more like BlackBerry best-sellers of yore with its physical keys. So, there's still hope.?

RELATED: BlackBerry's Rumored Music Service Sounds Underwhelming

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blackberrys-not-selling-enough-phones-yet-133740949.html

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It's not just a marriage issue; it's the insurance - Kyle Cheney ...

The Supreme Court?s Obamacare decision might have been its highest-profile foray into health policy in a generation, but the court?s action on gay marriage could have a pretty big impact of its own.

The federal Defense of Marriage Act, under review by the high court this week, allows states to ignore gay marriages or unions sanctioned outside their borders, and it excludes legally married gay couples from the same protections offered to heterosexual couples under federal health programs, like Medicare, Medicaid and the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act.

The result is thousands of same-sex couples facing more limited access to health insurance and steeper costs for coverage than their heterosexual counterparts.

(Also on POLITICO: Lawyers unpack Prop 8 arguments)

Research suggests that private-sector companies are increasingly providing health insurance to same-sex partners, but those couples, even when legally married, are stuck with higher tax bills. That?s because DOMA prevents the federal government from treating their marriages under the same tax rules as heterosexual ones ? which means their spouses? insurance gets treated like taxable income.

?On one level, the disparities are shrinking as more employers offer health care benefits to same-sex domestic partners,? said M.V. Lee Badgett, director of the Center for Public Policy and Administration at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. ?On another big level though, ? that extra taxation probably discourages some couples from signing up a partner for financial reasons, leaving them uninsured and vulnerable.?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics determined in 2011 that one-third of state and municipal workers and 29 percent of private-sector workers had access to health benefits for an unmarried same-sex partner. That number spiked to 50 percent for employees of large businesses.

But advocates fear that unless the court strikes down DOMA altogether, thousands of gay families will be forced to choose more expensive coverage options ? or no coverage at all.

A paper published by UCLA researchers in 2010 that examined ?unequal access to health insurance? faced by California?s unmarried same-sex partners found that they were more than twice as likely to be uninsured as married heterosexual couples. And that means a more significant health spending burden on the individuals ? and the public ? according to the paper, which was published in Health Affairs.

Source: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/its-not-just-a-marriage-issue-its-the-insurance-89355.html

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NJ police: 'Emaciated' boy found with dead mother (Providence Journal)

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Boeing 787 takes to sky in first flight check

Alwyn Scott and Andrea Shalal-Esa , Reuters ? ? ? 20 min.

NEW YORK - Boeing said on Monday that the first flight test of its reworked battery system for the 787 Dreamliner went "according to plan," enabling it to move on to formal testing.

The successful mission means Boeing can conduct a second flight test that will gather data for the Federal Aviation Administration, which must approve the new system before the 787 can be used for commercial service.

Regulators grounded the global fleet of 50 Dreamliners in January after a battery burned aboard a jet on the ground in Boston, and a second battery overheated on a flight in Japan.

"During the functional check flight (on Monday), crews cycled the landing gear and operated all the backup systems, in addition to performing electrical system checks from the flight profile," Boeing spokesman Marc Birtel said in a statement.

The flight carried six crew members: two Boeing pilots, two instrumentation engineers, a systems operator and a flight analyst, Boeing said.

"More than 600 of these functional check flights were completed in 2012 across Boeing commercial airplane programs."

Resuming flights would be a huge boost for Boeing, which is losing an estimated $50 million a week while the 787 is grounded, and for airlines, which are barred from flying the 787. Boeing also is prevented from delivering the planes to customers during the grounding, though it continues to build them.

Some Boeing officials have said the jet could be back in service by May 1. But some experts cautioned it could take longer.

Oliver McGee, an aerospace and mechanical engineer who was a deputy assistant secretary of transportation under President Bill Clinton, said he was skeptical that federal regulators would allow the 787 to resume flights as early as May 1.

"Take whatever date is agreed upon and add three to six months to it," McGee told Reuters. "I don't think that you're going to see any type of quick fix or compromising on the FAA side."

Once data from the flight has been analyzed, Boeing said it would prepare for a ground and flight demonstration aimed at certifying the company's proposed changes to the battery system, a key step toward getting permission from the FAA to resume flights of the grounded plane.

Birtel said it wasn't clear if the demonstration test for the FAA would conclude Boeing's testing of the new battery system, which was unveiled in Tokyo on March 15. The tests are being conducted in the laboratory, in planes on the ground, and in flight.

"Obviously, progress is being made on all three fronts," Birtel said.

The battery system is made by Thales SA of France, while the battery itself is made by Japan's GS Yuasa Corp.

Boeing plans to conduct one certification demonstration flight using the same LOT plane, Line number 86, to show that the new battery system performs as intended during flight conditions.

Separately, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board on Monday said it would hold a two-day forum April 11-12 to examine the design and performance of lithium-ion batteries in transportation -- a comprehensive review sparked by the battery failures on the two Boeing 787 Dreamliners in January.

The public forum will examine the design and development of various lithium-ion batteries, how their use and manufacturing are regulated, and the use and safety of such batteries in various modes of transportation.

The FAA grounded all 50 Boeing 787s in use worldwide in January after failures of two batteries on two separate aircraft - one parked at the Boston airport, and the other forced to make an emergency landing in Japan.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653351/s/29faf194/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Cbusiness0Cboeing0E7870Etakes0Esky0Efirst0Eflight0Echeck0E1B90A66242/story01.htm

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New Finnish Passport Is A Flip Book - Business Insider

A YouTube video of the most recent Finnish passport is circulating, and it shows that the new design doubles as a flip book of a walking moose.

The passports were originally released back in 2012, but are now just hitting the spotlight thanks to the short clip of the drawing of a moose walking across the embellished blue background.

It was first pointed out on the blog arbroath.blogspot.com and then circulated on Daily of the Day.

Check it out below.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/new-finnish-passport-is-a-flip-book-2013-3

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Data lifts Dow to a record, S&P near record close

By Angela Moon

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rallied on Tuesday, with the Dow climbing more than 100 points to another record close and the S&P 500 coming within striking distance of its all-time closing high, as strong data on home prices and manufacturing fed optimism about the economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average initially surpassed its 2007 record closing high on March 5. Since then, the Dow has reached a series of subsequent nominal record highs.

In Tuesday's session, the S&P 500 made yet another attempt at a record, but failed to break above the all-time closing high for the second day this week.

At Tuesday's close, the S&P 500 was only 1.38 points below its lifetime closing high. On Monday, the benchmark index traded just a quarter point below its record closing high, which stands at 1,565.15 set on October 9, 2007, and then retreated as investors sold some equities to cash in on gains in the wake of the news out of Europe.

Data showed U.S. single-family home prices rose in January at the fastest pace in more than six years, while long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods, also known as durable goods orders, shot up in February.

"I think the batch of data was enough to convince investors that the U.S. economy is on the right track," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Co, in New York.

"At this point, it's hard to argue that anything will derail the U.S. economy, and that is boosting investors' confidence as they continue to load up on equities."

Still, investors may look for reasons to take profits, with the S&P 500 up nearly 10 percent so far this year. The rally has lifted the benchmark index near its all-time closing high, which it nearly reached on Monday.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 111.90 points, or 0.77 percent, to end at 14,559.65, a record closing high. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> gained 12.08 points, or 0.78 percent, to finish at 1,563.77. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> advanced 17.18 points, or 0.53 percent, to close at 3,252.48.

The semiconductor index <.sox> climbed 0.9 percent, buoyed by Intel Corp shares, up 2.9 percent at $21.77.

The CBOE Volatility Index <.vix> or VIX, Wall Street's favorite barometer of investor anxiety, fell 7.1 percent to close at 12.77.

In a sign that growth continues to be slow, sales of new U.S. single-family homes fell more than expected in February, and the latest reading on consumer confidence was weaker than expected.

Shares of homebuilding stocks were mixed. Lennar Corp stock rose 0.4 percent to $41.72, but Hovnanian Enterprises shares slid 3.1 percent to $5.87.

But investors remained concerned about the negative implications of a financial rescue plan for Cyprus. They worried that it would serve as a template for other euro-zone economies requiring bailouts.

Banks in Cyprus will remain closed until Thursday and will then be subject to capital controls to prevent a run on deposits. President Nicos Anastasiades said late on Monday that a 10-billion-euro ($13 billion) rescue plan approved over the weekend was "painful" but essential to avoid economic meltdown.

"If there's a run on deposits, there may be a selloff (in U.S. stocks), but that could pose an excellent entry point to get into the market and take advantage of this rally," said Todd Schoenberger, managing partner at LandColt Capital, in New York.

In U.S. corporate news, Monsanto Co and DuPont Co settled a legal battle over rights to technology for genetically modified seeds. The companies agreed to drop antitrust and patent lawsuits against each other in U.S. federal court. Monsanto shares rose 4.4 percent to $103.79. DuPont, a Dow component, shed 0.3 percent to $48.97.

Netflix Inc was the S&P 500's top percentage gainer, jumping 5.4 percent to $190.61 after Pacific Crest raised its price target on the stock to $225 from $160, citing prospects for international subscriber growth.

Michael Dell's $24.4 billion buyout bid for Dell Inc could be derailed after billionaire Carl Icahn opened the door to an alliance with Blackstone Group LP to take control of the computer maker from its founder. Dell dipped 0.1 percent to $14.50.

In Tuesday's session, volume was lighter than usual with some market participants absent for the observance of the Jewish holiday of Passover.

Volume was roughly 5.2 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and the NYSE MKT, compared with the 2012 average daily closing volume of about 6.45 billion.

Advancers outnumbered decliners on the New York Stock Exchange by a ratio of about 7 to 3. On the Nasdaq, seven stocks rose for every five that fell.

(Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-index-futures-signal-higher-wall-st-open-083212656--finance.html

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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Data stolen from AnnualCreditReport.com: Equifax

By Bob Sullivan, Columnist, NBC News

The Equifax credit bureau confirmed Tuesday that criminals have stolen credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com, the website designed to allow consumers free access to their own credit reports.

The theft ?suggests?criminals have outfoxed AnnualCreditReport.com?s defenses, potentially giving them access to potentially 200 million Americans? credit reports. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 16 million consumers use AnnualCreditReport.com annually.

The nation's three largest credit bureaus -- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion -- were required by federal legislation passed in 2003 to offer consumers one free credit report every year. The three jointly operate AnnualCreditReport.com to fulfill that obligation.

Entertainment news website TMZ first reported Monday that highly detailed personal information on international celebrities and political figures ? including Jay-Z, Beyonce, Attorney General Eric Holder and Hillary Clinton ? had been published on a website, and that the FBI was investigating. The same website identified in that report published additional data on Tuesday, including details about first lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, leading to a flurry of interest in the source of the data.? Later Tuesday, Equifax confirmed that some of the data associated with those identity thefts had been stolen from AnnualCreditReport.com.

"Equifax can confirm that fraudulent and unauthorized access to four consumer credit reports has occurred through the AnnualCreditReport.com channel, a free public service that allows all consumers to get annual access to their credit report," the company said in a statement.? "Our initial investigation shows the perpetrators had the (personal information) of the individuals whose files were accessed and were therefore able to pass the required authentication measures in place. We have launched a full investigation into this matter and we are also working closely with law enforcement authorities on this matter."

The statement did not identify which credit reports had been accessed through the website or explain why more than four reports had been published on the website.?

TransUnion and Experian also confirmed unauthorized persons had managed to access the credit report data.

"TransUnion?s systems were not hacked or compromised in any way,"?the firm said in a statement to CNBC.?"The sophisticated perpetrators of these fraudulent activities had considerable amounts of information about the victims, including Social Security numbers and other sensitive, personal identifying information that enabled them to successfully impersonate the victims over the Internet in order to illegally and fraudulently access their credit reports.?TransUnion is taking steps to assist the individuals affected to help minimize any potential impact. We are conducting our own internal investigation and working closely with law enforcement."

Experian also said its systems weren't hacked, adding that "this looks to be an isolated situation."

Consumers who attempt to obtain their credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com must answer a series of authentication questions. Many of these are what's known as "out-of-wallet" questions -- questions that a criminal who had stolen a wallet couldn't answer -- such as, "which bank holds your mortgage" or "which of these former addresses are valid."

That means the criminals who stole the credit reports probably had access to a host of personal information about their targets, allowing them to successfully answer the authentication questions. Some of that data can be purchased from other online data brokers, culled from web pages or even determined through guesswork and the process of elimination.

The Federal Trade Commission regulated the creation of AnnualCreditReport.com and its security procedures.?

FTC spokesman Jay Mayfield said the data theft serves as another reminder to consumers that they should protect their personal information, but said the agency still recommends that consumers visit AnnualCreditReport.com or call the credit bureaus to get a free copy of their credit report every year. He would not comment specifically about the theft of the celebrity credit reports, or about the security of AnnualCreditReport.com

Consumers who hear that AnnualCreditReport.com has been compromised might be dissuaded from using the site in the future, and perhaps paying another third-party firm for their credit reports. Doing so would not enhance their security, however.? The data available at AnnualCreditReport.com could be accessed by criminals, even if the consumer never asks for it.

Issues with the authentication procedures at credit report websites have been raised in the past. Last year, security analyst Dan Clements of CloudEyez.com gave NBCNews.com a tour of websites that sell stolen credit reports. Several of the stolen credit reports viewed at the time indicated they'd been taken from AnnualCreditReport.com or other third-party websites that charge a fee for access to credit reports.

"I'm selling super prime credit reports and scores which include all three bureaus and other information," bragged one advertisement on a credit reports for-sale site.

Most of the websites were hosted in the .su domain, assigned to the former Soviet Union. The recently celebrity credit reports are also hosted on a .su web site.

In one how-to posted on a hacker bulletin board, a hacker describes one brute-force attack used to gain access to credit report websites. Most sites are protected by "challenge" questions such as, "Which bank holds the mortgage on your home?"? But there's a critical flaw, the hacker said:

"Normally all ... of them will ask you the same question," the hacker wrote.

Because the sites use the multiple choice format, it's easy to use the process of elimination and determine the correct answers, he claims.

The hacker explained that the trick is to open several credit report sites and keep trying random answers until one set works.

The recipe is highly detailed, including helpful tips such as, "Take a shot of screen to remember what answers you gave. After that click the submit button and see what it says."

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Source: http://redtape.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/12/17286101-celebrity-hackers-stole-data-from-annualcreditreportcom-equifax-says?lite

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88% A Place at the Table

All Critics (48) | Top Critics (19) | Fresh (42) | Rotten (6)

You don't have to be a fan of info-graphics in social-justice docs to be troubled by one showing that the price of processed food has decreased in almost exact proportion to the rise in cost of fresh fruits and vegetables.

"A Place at the Table" presents a shameful truth that should leave viewers dismayed and angry: This nation has more than enough food for all its people, yet millions of them are hungry.

One thing is clear from "A Place at the Table": You cannot answer the question "Why are people hungry?," without also asking "Why are people poor?"

It specifically addresses our country's hunger crisis. But it also speaks to larger hungers. Hungers for independence, a dignified life, a better chance for ones children-in short, the American dream. See it and weep.

As rich as we are as a nation - still - many of our citizens are, at best, malnourished. One in six says they regularly don't have enough to eat.

It deserves to be seen, along with "Food, Inc.," "King Corn" and other muckraking food docs of recent years.

A documentary about the shocking extent of hunger in America, affecting 1 in 4 children.

Provides plenty of moving case studies...[but] it's most useful for its prismatic look at the problem of American hunger, examining the problem's recent history, its root causes...and its inextricability from other national crises...

Hunger in America, seen through the eyes of its victims, with an emphasis on children. Sobering documentary addresses a shameful problem.

As moving as the real lives are, for a film clearly intending to be a call for action, hunger cries out for more journalism and not just depressing stories and statistics.

A Place at the Table makes a strong case that hunger for one is a problem for all.

Directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush explore the surprisingly difficult obstacles to ending a situation where about 1 child out of 4 faces insecurity over where to get a meal.

A Place at the Table may bring to light a hunger epidemic the entire United States faces, but it also casts an even darker shadow on an already tainted world.

Powerful docu explores the problem of hunger in America.

An explosive investigative documentary about the injustices emanating from agricultural capitalism, how it's more about who gets to define what food is, and exactly who hugely profits from it.

...joined by an eclectic array of advocates and advisors to hit home the fact that, daily, millions of Americans go hungry.

Fine but conventional documentary on the problem of hunger in contemporary America.

A Moving Look at Hunger in the U.S.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_place_at_the_table_2013/

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Senate panel approves gun background check

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Democrats gave a boost Tuesday to the pillar of President Barack Obama's plans for reducing gun violence, pushing a bill requiring nearly universal federal background checks for firearms buyers through the Senate Judiciary Committee over solid Republican opposition.

The proposal still faces a difficult path through Congress, where GOP lawmakers say it would have little impact on crime and warn that it is a precursor to a federal registry of gun owners. Such a listing is forbidden by federal law and is anathema to conservatives and the National Rifle Association.

The committee approved the bill 10-8, supported by every Democrat and opposed by all Republicans. It would require background checks for transactions between private individuals ? they are now mandatory only for sales by licensed gun dealers ? and expand a system designed to keep firearms from criminals, those with major mental problems and others.

"This isn't going to be a perfect bill," said its sponsor, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., acknowledging that it wouldn't end gun violence. "But it will sure reduce crimes."

The panel also voted 14-4 for a measure providing an additional $40 million annually for school safety improvements like classroom locks and training for teachers. Four Republicans joined Democrats in backing that measure, which initially called for a higher figure that was reduced in bargaining between Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and Susan Collins, R-Maine.

Awaiting a committee vote Thursday is a proposal by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to ban assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines. That bill is expected to win panel approval but die in the full Senate when the chamber considers gun legislation, probably in April.

Tuesday's session came as lawmakers wrestle over responding to December's carnage at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., that took the lives of 20 students and six educators. It also underscored the hurdles faced by expanded background checks, which has been seen as the most potent step lawmakers could take that has a fighting chance of passing Congress.

"Mass shootings would continue to occur despite universal background checks," said Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley, the committee's top Republican. "Criminals will continue to steal guns and buy them illegally to circumvent the requirements. When that happens, we will be back here debating whether gun registration is needed. And when registration fails, then the next step is gun confiscation."

Schumer responded that that assertion "demeans the argument."

Schumer said he is continuing to negotiate with Republicans in hopes of crafting a compromise background-check bill. Talks failed with conservative Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla.

Schumer also faces potential defections from a half-dozen moderate Democrats from Republican-leaning states in the South and West who face re-election next year.

There are 53 Democrats in the 100-member Senate and two independents who usually side with them. Republicans are likely to force Democrats to get the 60 votes needed to advance legislation.

Leaders in the GOP-dominated House have expressed little support for extending background checks to private transactions.

At one point during Tuesday's debate, Schumer sounded almost wistful about the proposal's prospects.

"It's sad," he said. "Right after Newtown, there was a view that maybe the right place that we could all come together on was background checks."

According to the Justice Department, the government has conducted 118 million background checks since the system began in 1998 and rejected 2.1 million applicants because of them. Supporters of expanding the system say this shows how many dangerous people have been denied firearms, while opponents argue that the requirement simply drives criminals to get their weapons elsewhere.

Schumer's bill would exempt some transactions, like those between close relatives.

It would also delay currently mandated cuts in federal aid to states that don't improve the number of mental health records they report to the federal background check system, but reimpose the cuts in coming years. The penalty is designed to prod states to do a better job of reporting the information to the national system, following shootings by people whose information had not been sent to Washington.

Obama had lunch Tuesday with Senate Democrats. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., a moderate who worked with Schumer toward a bipartisan background check deal, said Obama told them that guns and background checks were "a very important topic and he'd like to see what could be practically done."

Before Tuesday's committee action, the NRA emailed a fundraising solicitation to supporters accusing the Obama administration of "exploiting a terrible tragedy to pursue the political agenda they've been after for years ? eliminating your constitutional right to keep and bear arms."

The panel's votes drew praise from Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a coalition of more than 900 mayors headed by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. Also expressing support was Mark Kelly, the retired astronaut who with his wife, the severely wounded former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., has formed a committee pushing gun control.

A poll released Tuesday by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center found that around 8 in 10 of both gun owners and people without guns favor extending background checks to private gun sales. Majorities of gun owners oppose banning assault weapons, while most without firearms favor the prohibition.

About 3 in 10 Republicans said they own guns, about double the rate of Democrats. It also found that two-thirds of NRA members support expanded background checks.

NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam contested that, saying Pew had no access to NRA membership files and pointing to a survey by the group stating that 9 in 10 members oppose "banning the sale of firearms between private citizens."

___

Associated Press writers Alicia A. Caldwell and Julie Pace contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-panel-approves-gun-background-check-210302020--politics.html

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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

UT News ? Blog Archive ? Archaeologist/curator to discuss cultural ...

Museums provide an invaluable service to educate the public on the arts and cultures of the world, yet the artifacts collected and exhibited may have been removed illicitly from their native countries.

Leventhal

?Stealing the Past? Collectors and Museums in the 21st Century? will be presented Friday, March 15, at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for the Visual Arts Haigh Auditorium on UT?s Toledo Museum of Art Campus.

The lecture will be by Dr. Richard M. Leventhal, director of the Penn Cultural Heritage Center, professor of anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania, and curator in the American section at the Penn Museum.

In the free, public lecture, Leventhal will talk about the need to prevent the looting of global heritage resources and the acquisition policies of museums ? two of the main focuses of his professional activities.

Leventhal, who also focuses on the preservation of cultural heritage and cultural sites, has worked with law enforcement agencies internationally to stop the illegal movement of antiquities.

He will illustrate his talk with examples from his own work and several recent cases covered in the media. For more than 30 years, the archaeologist conducted field research in Central America and Mexico, and has written about the ancient Maya.

The event is sponsored by the Toledo Society of the Archaeological Institute of America, with financial support from the Kurt T. Luckner Lecture Fund and the UT Department of Sociology and Anthropology.

For more information, contact Dr. Lea McChesney of the UT Department of Sociology and Anthropology at lea.mcchesney@utoledo.edu.

This entry was posted ?on? Tuesday, March 12th, 2013?at? 4:44 am?and is filed under? Arts, Events, Languages, Literature and Social Sciences, UToday, Visual and Performing Arts.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.? You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.?

Source: http://utnews.utoledo.edu/index.php/03_12_2013/archaeologistcurator-to-discuss-cultural-preservation-march-15?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=archaeologistcurator-to-discuss-cultural-preservation-march-15

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DNA barcoding alone sufficient to detect fraudulent deer products

Public release date: 11-Mar-2013
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Contact: Maria Hrynkiewicz
maria@versita.com
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Versita

Scientists from Hong Kong offer a robust, solid and viable molecular tools to identify deer DNA even in highly processed products

Many Europeans are fretting these days over what they eat, and whether horse meat might have adulterated their pork chops. Food fraud has been dominating headlines globally - calling for new policies in law enforcement and more robust methods for successful food identification and authentication. As companies and manufacturers resort to fraudulent practices to extract more cash from the gullible public, it is estimated that up to 7% of the consumer supply chain contains hidden ingredients (i.e. not disclosed on the label). And while all too often policymakers seem oblivious to the problem, the growing awareness of plain criminal activity in food supply has stimulated an increase in published research on animal DNA testing, either for the identification of species or for the genetic linkage of a sample to a particular organism.

The conventional methodologies employed for the determination of species origin in meat products have predominantly applied molecular methods of immunochemical, electrophoretic and chromatographic analysis of proteins. For those cases where reliance on morphological characteristics is impractical or impossible, scientists offer now novel techniques allowing the identification of species specific DNA sequences. Among these is a technique that relies on the much debated DNA barcoding - developed by researchers from the Government Laboratory in Hong Kong who have come up with a method that permits DNA detection of the fraudulent substitution of commercial deer products, regardless of their physical state, so that identification by morphology (form) is not required.

Deer meat has come a long way as an alternative to pork and beef. But it has continued to catch up with consumers steadily if slowly over the last decade, mainly due to its nutritive and therapeutic values but also versatile serving methods. And while venison is low in fat and high in protein, iron, zinc, selenium, vitamin E and omega-3 fatty acids - adding up to one healthy meal in view of recent scams, it has become vital to provide tenable methods of effective deer meat verification.

The article published recently in DNA Barcodes (http://www.versita.com/dnabra), an open access journal by Versita, describes the protocol set up by Dr. W.M. Sin and Dr. Y.K. Tam - to examine whether DNA methods alone suffice to detect fraudulent substitution of commercial deer products or, whether any additional protocols are necessary to detect fraudulent substitution of cattle and water buffalo tendons (HK$50-80) for deer tendons (HK$280-640). The research confirmed that no other method proves as efficient and straightforward as the use of DNA barcodes, which are sufficient on their own to detect such substitution for deer in all tendon products, except for glue. Furthermore, the research findings permit DNA detection of fraudulent substitution of commercial deer products, regardless of their physical condition.

The attractiveness of this method lies in its utility. Commenting on the research, Prof. Jan Pawlowski, from the Department of Genetics & Evolution at University of Geneva, Switzerland, says: "The authors did an excellent work, offering a robust, solid and viable molecular tools to identify deer DNA even in highly processed products. This is a new example showing the importance of DNA barcoding for traceability of commercial products".

The method may well be embraced by law enforcement authorities and forensic scientists as an inexpensive alternative that only requires standard laboratory techniques for handling DNA. The move helps to combat the widespread mislabeling of deer, which results in cheaper meat being sold as a more expensive deer variety. It also opens a prospect for more in-depth research into other food supplies, and the roll-out of new technology that would allow a systematic use of barcoding. With the new food scandals unraveling on a daily basis, DNA barcodes have a great potential to prevent and combat wildlife crime.

###

Full text available: http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/dna.2012.1.issue/dna-2013-0001/dna-2013-0001.xml?format=INT

Media Contacts:

Maria Hrynkiewicz
Versita

About DNA Barcodes:

DNA Barcodes is a peer-reviewed, open access journal that publishes cutting-edge research on barcodes. The journal acts as a hub for barcode researchers working across all disciplines to present their findings. It furthermore serves as a forum for the discussion of important and emerging issues in the field. These include, among others: biosecurity, molecular forensics, conservation, medical diagnosis and education.

About Versita:

Versita is one of the world's leading publishers of open access scientific content. Today Versita publishes about 350 own and third-party scholarly journals across all major disciplines. The company was established in 2001 and is now part of the De Gruyter publishing group. Since 2006 Versita has been a member of Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers and International Association of Scientific, Technical & Medical Publishers. Versita's book and journal programs have been endorsed by the international research community and some of the world's top scientists - Nobel Prize Winners included. The company is on the constant mission to make best scientific content freely available to all scholars and readers alike.

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

DNA barcoding alone sufficient to detect fraudulent deer products

Public release date: 11-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail |

Share ]

Contact: Maria Hrynkiewicz
maria@versita.com
48-660-476-421
Versita

Scientists from Hong Kong offer a robust, solid and viable molecular tools to identify deer DNA even in highly processed products

###

Full text available: http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/dna.2012.1.issue/dna-2013-0001/dna-2013-0001.xml?format=INT

Media Contacts:

Maria Hrynkiewicz
Versita

About DNA Barcodes:

About Versita:

[ | E-mail |

Share ]

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/v-dba031113.php

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