IOC meets with success in co-processing non-edible vegetable oil in its refinery

IOC meets with success in co-processing non-edible vegetable oil in its refinery

The Research & Development Center of the state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has good reasons to cheer about. For the first time in India, and possibly the first in the world, Jatropha oil has been successfully used for co-processing in a petroleum refinery. Based on a press statement, 'IOC has successfully developed and commercialised a technology to co-process non-edible vegetable oil in the existing Diesel Hydrotreating (DHDT) units of a petroleum refinery to make bio-diesel'.

The company termed this as a "major technological breakthrough that can be a game changer for advancing use of bio-diesel in the country and ensuring ready acceptance of the fuel by the automobile industry," reported The Hindu.

Highlights on this achievement are as follows :

- During the development of this process technology, IOC also develped a process for de-metallisation and de-gumming of vegetable oils.?

- During the trial, the diesel cetane number improved by 2 units, sulphur content reduced and the inlet temperature of the reactor could also be reduced by 100 degrees Celsius with resultant energy savings.?
- Conventionally, bio diesel is produced by the trans-esterification process which requires separate plant to be set up. Bio diesel thus produced by the trans-esterification process has inferior properties in terms of oxidation stability, lower energy content and results in more deposits in the engine due to which it is not very well accepted by the automobile industry. However, the novel innovative co-processing technology developed by IOC overcomes these disadvantages and produces bio-diesel with higher Cetane number, good oxidation stability and lower density - based on a press release. Let's hope farmers in India do benefit out of the above for improving their earning capability.
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Source: http://www.merinews.com/article/ioc-meets-with-success-in-co-processing-non-edible-vegetable-oil-in-its-refinery/15887358.shtml

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Fed's Stein puts focus on September as time to assess QE3

By Jonathan Spicer and Alister Bull

NEW YORK/WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, West Virginia (Reuters) - September could be an opportune time for the Federal Reserve to consider scaling back its assets purchase, an influential official of the U.S. central bank said on Friday, as he stressed that the Fed must take a long view of economic progress and not be blinded by the most recent data.

The remarks by Fed Governor Jeremy Stein drew the attention of economists and investors after he ticked off several examples of improvement in the labor market since the Fed launched its bond-buying program last September.

Stein's speech, and a separate one on Friday by Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Richmond Fed, had some parallels to efforts by other Fed officials earlier this week to soothe market anxieties about a pullback in the bond purchases.

Nonetheless, Stein and Lacker took a more aggressive tone on when the central bank's unprecedented policy accommodation might be reduced.

Even so, differences within the Fed over the strength of the economy were in view as a third policymaker, John Williams, president of the San Francisco Fed, shelved his earlier view that the Fed could stop buying bonds by late 2013, saying, "It's too early to cut back on our programs right now."

The Fed's purchase of Treasuries and mortgage bonds at a monthly pace of $85 billion has provided a huge flow of liquidity into financial markets, driving up assets from stocks to bonds.

Yields on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose after Stein's remarks, a sharp reversal of stabilization in the market earlier in the day.

Markets had dropped hard in the days after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke last week said the Fed expected to pare back on its bond purchases, known as quantitative easing, later this year and to halt it altogether by mid-2014, as long as the economy progresses as expected. Unemployment will likely have fallen to about 7 percent by then, he said.

But Stein on Friday, in an unusual move, trained investors' attention on the Fed's September policy meeting, though the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee next meets in July.

"The best approach is for the committee to be clear that in making a decision in, say, September, it will give primary weight to the large stock of news that has accumulated since the inception of the program and will not be unduly influenced by whatever data releases arrive in the few weeks before the meeting," said Stein, a voting member of the policy committee.

Data from early September "will remain relevant for future decisions," even if it does not play a primary role in any policy decision in September, he said, in a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

"If the news is bad, and it is confirmed by further bad news in October and November, this would suggest that the 7 percent unemployment goal is likely to be further away, and the remainder of the program would be extended accordingly," he said.

Stein's comments drew a sharp reaction on expectations of the Fed's policy path.

"Stein's remarks cannot be lightly dismissed and raise risks that some on the committee may have already essentially decided on September," said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JP Morgan in New York.

Lacker also put September in focus, saying the Fed meeting that month "is certainly a candidate" for when the Fed could first reduce its pace of buying, though he said that economic data would be key.

Nearly half of the economists polled by Reuters this month expect the Fed to start reducing the pace of asset purchases in September.

Video of Stein's speech: http://reut.rs/14zOITm

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EXPECT MORE VOLATILITY

Williams, who is a voter on Fed policy this year, gave no preferred timeline for reducing bond purchases, saying only that doing so would be appropriate "at some point." If inflation continues to come in below expectations, that could point to the need for more stimulus, not less, he said.

He called the recent rise in Treasury rates a "healthy" development because it suggests markets no longer assume the Fed will keep rates low forever.

Lacker, one of the central bank's most hawkish officials and a persistent critic of the latest round of bond buying, said it was "wise" for Bernanke to clarify the Fed's views on future bond buying, but he stressed policy would still be loose as the Fed reduces "the pace at which it is adding accommodation." Lacker is not a voter on policy this year.

Financial markets should brace for more volatility as they digest news of a reduction in quantitative easing, Lacker told a judicial conference in West Virginia, adding that it "should not interfere with the moderate-growth scenario that I have presented."

Williams said that the sudden rise in rates suggests some investors had become complacent about low rates and that froth had been building in some areas of financial markets.

"It's healthy to get some froth out of the market," he told reporters after his speech.

On the labor market, where unemployment remains high at 7.6 percent, Stein noted the rate was 8.1 percent when the bond purchase program was launched last year. Monthly job growth has jumped dramatically since then, he said, adding Fed forecasts are also more optimistic.

Stein said the Fed can be more specific about its plans for QE3 as it approaches its policy goals. The timeline Bernanke articulated illustrates a "greater willingness to spell out what the committee is looking for, as opposed to a 'we'll know it when we see it' approach," he said.

Still, Stein stressed that reducing the pace of QE3 is highly conditional on the economy. He added it did not mark a change in policy and was meant only to clarify things for investors.

Stein, a relatively new but highly respected member of the powerful Fed board, turned some heads back in February when he warned the massive asset purchases were showing signs of inflating price bubbles in junk bonds and other markets.

But on Friday he said while financial stability should play a roll in monetary policy decisions, the benefits of QE3 have surpassed the costs of the program, including such stability risks.

(Additional reporting by Ann Saphir in Rohnert Park, Calif., and Richard Leong in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/feds-stein-puts-focus-september-time-assess-qe3-161413098.html

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Obama to announce new power initiative for Africa

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) ? President Barack Obama on Sunday will announce a new initiative to double access to electric power in sub-Saharan Africa, part of his effort to build on the legacy of equality and opportunity forged by his personal hero, Nelson Mandela.

Obama, who flew from Johannesburg to Cape Town Sunday, will pay tribute to the ailing 94-year-old Mandela throughout the day. The president and his family will visit Robben Island, where the anti-apartheid leader spent 18 years confined to a tiny cell, then deliver a speech at the University of Cape Town that will be infused with memories of Mandela.

During that address, Obama will unveil the "Power Africa" initiative, which includes an initial $7 billion investment from the United States over the next five years. Private companies, including General Electric and Symbion Power, are making an additional $9 billion in commitments with the goal of providing power to millions of Africans crippled by a lack of electricity.

Gayle Smith, Obama's senior director for development and democracy, said more than two-thirds of people living in Sub-Saharan African do not have electricity, including 85 percent of those living in rural areas.

"If you want lights so kids can study at night or you can maintain vaccines in a cold chain, you don't have that, so going the extra mile to reach people is more difficult," Smith said.

Obama will also highlight U.S. efforts to bolster access to food and health programs on the continent. His advisers said the president sees reducing the poverty and illness that plague many parts of Africa as an extension of Mandela's example of how change can happen within countries.

The former South African president has been hospitalized in critical condition for three weeks. Obama met Saturday with members of Mandela's family, but did not visit the anti-apartheid icon in the hospital, a decision the White House said was in keeping with his family's wishes.

Obama's weeklong trip, which opened in Senegal and closes later this week in Tanzania, marks his most significant trip to the continent since taking office. His scant personal engagement has come as a disappointment to some in the region, who had high hopes for a man whose father was from Kenya.

Obama has visited Robben Island before as a U.S. senator. But since being elected as the first black American president, Obama has drawn inevitable comparisons to Mandela, making Sunday's visit particularly poignant.

The president said he's also eager to bring his family with him to the prison to teach them about Mandela's role in overcoming white racist rule, first as an activist and later as a president who forged a unity government with his former captors.

He told reporters Saturday he to "help them to understand not only how those lessons apply to their own lives but also to their responsibilities in the future as citizens of the world, that's a great privilege and a great honor."

Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, said Mandela's vision was always going to feature prominently in the speech. But the former South African leader's deteriorating health "certainly puts a finer point on just how much we can't take for granted what Nelson Mandela did."

Harkening back to a prominent theme from his 2009 speech in Ghana ? his only other trip to Africa as president ? Obama will emphasize that Africans must take much of the responsibility for finishing the work started by Mandela and his contemporaries.

"The progress that Africa has made opens new doors, but frankly, it's up to the leaders in Africa and particularly young people to make sure that they're walking through those doors of opportunity," Rhodes said.

Obama will speak at the University of Cape Town nearly 50 years after Robert F. Kennedy delivered his famous "Ripple of Hope" speech from the school. Kennedy spoke in Cape Town two years after Mandela was sentenced to life in prison.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-announce-power-initiative-africa-085714963.html

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Woman's statement to Jackson jurors prompt inquiry

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? A judge questioned two alternate jurors in the civil trial over Michael Jackson's death after a woman approached them and told them not to award the singer's family any money in the case.

Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos and attorneys on the case questioned the alternates, who said the woman approached them during a break Friday afternoon. Both said the woman told them not to award any money in the case against concert promoter AEG Live LLC.

The alternates said they told the woman she couldn't talk to them, but she persisted for several moments before finally leaving them alone. They described the woman but said they did not see her in the courtroom after testimony concluded Friday.

The alternate jurors said their interaction would not affect their judgment about the case. The judge told them to return to court Monday and report to bailiffs or court staffers if they saw the woman again.

Jackson family attorney Brian Panish said the interaction was jury tampering and is a felony.

Katherine Jackson mother is suing AEG Live over her son's death. The company denies wrongdoing.

The case has five alternate jurors remaining after one had to be dismissed because he is moving out of state.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/womans-statement-jackson-jurors-prompt-inquiry-011326428.html

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For Feline Lovers, An Adorable Parade Of Animated Japanese Cartoon Cats

Here?s something for all you feline lovers out there.

?MitchiriNeko March? is an adorable animated video that features a parade of Japanese cartoon cats marching past your screen.

Described as a ?cat-like creature that likes to crowd together?, they come in various colors and they each play a different instrument to create an uplifting and catchy melody.

If you want more of ?MitchiriNeko?, there is a game for the iOS and Android, which you can download from the iTunes Store and Google Play.

We hope this video will help kick start your awesome weekend.

Click to watch the video below:

[via Laughing Squid]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/designtaxi_news/~3/QWe4mB5xpDc/

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'Shields to maximum, Mr. Scott': Simulating orbital debris impacts on spacecraft and fragment impacts on body armor

June 27, 2013 ? We know it's out there, debris from 50 years of space exploration -- aluminum, steel, nylon, even liquid sodium from Russian satellites -- orbiting around Earth and posing a danger to manned and unmanned spacecraft.

According to NASA, there are more than 21,000 pieces of 'space junk' roughly the size of a baseball (larger than 10 centimeters) in orbit, and about 500,000 pieces that are golf ball-sized (between one to 10 centimeters).

Sure, space is big, but when a piece of space junk strikes a spacecraft, the collision occurs at a velocity of 5 to 15 kilometers per second -- roughly ten times faster than a speeding bullet!

"If a spacecraft is hit by orbital debris it may damage the thermal protection system," said Eric Fahrenthold, professor of mechanical engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, who studies impact dynamics both experimentally and through numerical simulations. "Even if the impact is not on the main heat shield, it may still adversely affect the spacecraft. The thermal researchers take the results of impact research and assess the effect of a certain impact crater depth and volume on the survivability of a spacecraft during reentry," Fahrenthold said.

Only some of the collisions that may occur in low earth orbit can be reproduced in the laboratory. To determine the potential impact of fast-moving orbital debris on spacecraft -- and to assist NASA in the design of shielding that can withstand hypervelocity impacts -- Fahrenthold and his team developed a numerical algorithm that simulates the shock physics of orbital debris particles striking the layers of Kevlar, metal, and fiberglass that makes up a space vehicle's outer defenses.

Supercomputers enable researchers to investigate physical phenomenon that cannot be duplicated in the laboratory, either because they are too large, small, dangerous -- or in this case, too fast -- to reproduce with current testing technology. Running hundreds of simulations on the Ranger, Lonestar and Stampede supercomputers at the Texas Advanced Computing Center, Fahrenthold and his students have assisted NASA in the development of ballistic limit curves that predict whether a shield will be perforated when hit by a projectile of a given size and speed. NASA uses ballistic limit curves in the design and risk analysis of current and future spacecraft.

Results from some of his group's impact dynamics research were presented at the April 2013 American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics' (AIAA) meeting, and have recently been published in the journals Smart Materials and Structures and International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering. In the paper presented at the AIAA conference, they showed in detail how different characteristics of a hypervelocity collision, such as the speed, impact angle, and size of the debris, could affect the depth of the cavity produced in ceramic tile thermal protection systems.

The development of these models is not just a shot in the dark. Fahrenthold's simulations have been tested exhaustively against real-world experiments conducted by NASA, which uses light gas guns to launch 'centimeter' size projectiles at speeds up to 10 kilometers per second. The simulations are evaluated in this speed regime to insure that they accurately capture the dynamics of hypervelocity impacts.

Validated simulation methods can then be used to estimate impact damage at velocities outside the experimental range, and also to investigate detailed physics that may be difficult to capture using flash x-ray images of experiments.

The simulation framework that Fahrenthold and his team developed employs a hybrid modeling approach that captures both the fragmentation of the projectiles -- their tendency to break into small shards that need to be caught -- and the shock response of the target, which is subjected to severe thermal and mechanical loads.

"We validate our method in the velocity regime where experiments can be performed, then we run simulations at higher velocities, to estimate what we think will happen at higher velocities," Fahrenthold explained. "There are certain things you can do in simulation and certain things you can do in experiment. When they work together, that's a big advantage for the design engineer."

Back on land, Fahrenthold and graduate student Moss Shimek extended this hybrid method in order to study the impact of projectiles on body armor materials in research supported by the Office of Naval Research. The numerical technique originally developed to study impacts on spacecraft worked well for a completely different application at lower velocities, in part because some of the same materials used on spacecraft for orbital debris protection, such as Kevlar, are also used in body armor.

According to Fahrenthold, this method offers a fundamentally new way of simulating fabric impacts, which have been modeled with conventional finite element methods for more than 20 years. The model parameters used in the simulation, such as the material's strength, flexibility, and thermal properties, are provided by experimentalists. The supercomputer simulations then replicate the physics of projectile impact and yarn fracture, and capture the complex interaction of the multiple layers of a fabric protection system -- some fragments getting caught in the mesh of yarns, others breaking through the layers and perforating the barrier.

"Using a hybrid technique for fabric modeling works well," Fahrenthold said. "When the fabric barrier is hit at very high velocities, as in spacecraft shielding, it's a shock-type impact and the thermal properties are important as well as the mechanical ones."

Moss Shimek's dissertation research added a new wrinkle to the fabric model by representing the various weaves used in the manufacture of Kevlar and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (another leading protective material) barriers, including harness-satin, basket, and twill weaves. Each weave type has advantages and disadvantages when used in body armor designed to protect military and police personnel. Layering the different weaves, many believe, can provide improved protection.

Fahrenthold and Shimek (currently a post-doctoral research associate at Los Alamos National Laboratory) explored the performance of various weave types using both experiments and simulations. In the November 2012 issue of the AIAA Journal, Shimek and Fahrenthold showed that in some cases the weave type of the fabric material can greatly influence fabric barrier performance.

"Currently body armor normally uses the plain weave, but research has shown that different weaves that are more flexible might be better, for example in extremity protection," Shimek said.

Shimek and Fahrenthold used the same numerical method employed for the NASA simulations to model a series of experiments on layered Kevlar materials, showing that their simulation results were within 15 percent of the experimental outcomes.

"Future body armor designs may vary the weave type through a Kevlar stack," Shimek said. "Maybe one weave type is better at dealing with small fragments, while others perform better for larger fragments. Our results suggest that you can use simulation to assist the designer in developing a fragment barrier which can capitalize on those differences."

What can researchers learn about the layer-to-layer impact response of a fabric barrier through simulation? Can body armor be improved by varying the weave type of the many layers in a typical fabric barrier? Can simulation assist the design engineer in developing orbital debris shields that better protect spacecraft? The range of engineering design questions is endless, and computer simulations can play an important role in the 'faster, better, cheaper' development of improved impact protection systems.

"We are trying to make fundamental improvements in numerical algorithms, and validate those algorithms against experiment," Fahrenthold concluded. "This can provide improved tools for engineering design, and allow simulation-based research to contribute in areas where experiments are very difficult to do or very expensive."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/space_time/nasa/~3/gqW_eYMJFc8/130627131829.htm

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Macy's fined over treatment of immigrant workers

Retail

Reuters

7 hours ago

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP

Pedestrians pass Macy's department store Friday Jan. 14, 2005 in New York.

Macy's Inc has agreed to pay a $175,000 civil fine and improve its practices to resolve a U.S. government probe that found the retailer had discriminated against immigrant employees when verifying their eligibility to continue to work.

The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday said Macy's had engaged in "unfair documentary practices" against some immigrant employees who had previously been authorized to work.

It said this resulted in some affected workers being suspended, terminated, or losing seniority. Macy's agreed to set up a $100,000 fund to compensate these workers.

The settlement covers Macy's Retail Holdings Inc, as well as divisions that contain department store locations in western and southwestern U.S. states, Florida and Puerto Rico.

It also requires Macy's to improve training and employment reverification policies, including the use of the government's "E-Verify" platform that lets employers check workers' legal status, and subjects the retailer to two years of monitoring by the Justice Department.

"Employers must ensure that they follow correct procedures during the reverification of employment authorization of non-U.S. citizens," Gregory Friel, deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's civil rights division, said in a statement.

The department said its probe began in April 2012, based on several calls to a worker hotline regarding Macy's practices. It did not immediately provide details about the specific violations.

Macy's spokesman Jim Sluzewski declined to comment.

According to the settlement agreement, Macy's denied committing immigration-related discrimination or engaging in unfair documentary practices in violation of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.

That law bars employers from demanding more or different documents, or changing documentation rules, based on people's immigration status or national origin.

Macy's had about 175,700 full- and part-time employees as of Feb. 2, according to its annual report, and operated roughly 840 stores under the Macy's and Bloomingdale's names. The company has offices in Cincinnati and New York.

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663286/s/2de37701/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Cbusiness0Cmacys0Efined0Eover0Etreatment0Eimmigrant0Eworkers0E6C10A467561/story01.htm

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LinkedIn Celebrates 3 Million Company Pages ... - Marketing Pilgrim

LinkedIn started out as a place for career-minded individuals to network with other individuals but over the years it?s turned into the world?s biggest social network for everything business. They?ve added forums, mentor blogs, the ability to share videos and presentations. They also moved from the individual to the company with Company Pages.

According to their celebratory infographic, LinkedIn now has more than 3 million Company Pages, 500,000 of which were created in the past 12 months. Those pages represent 148 different industries and they range from think tanks to railroad companies and everything in between, beside, above and below. Dig around on LinkedIn and you can find The League of Paranormal Investigators, Inc, The Flipside Circus, and Tiny Paper Cranes ? a non-profit that makes origami birds for charity.

When LinkedIn says they have something for everyone, they?re not kidding.

Here?s my favorite slice from the infographic ? Ninja Style!

This slice makes me wonder about how much a company name effects business. Are you more likely to hire a company with the word Ninja or Samurai in the name or less likely? What about Pirate? How do you feel about weird names or unpronounceable names? You can say it?s all about results, but come on. . . when you?re scanning LinkedIn or Google you can?t help but be drawn in or put off by a company name.

Let?s look at one more slice:

I?m going to go out on a limb and say that you?re not using LinkedIn Company Pages to their fullest extent. Why am I saying this? Because there aren?t enough hours in the day to keep up every social media account you own. I get that. So here?s where you need to make a decision. If you?re a business to business company, spend more time on LinkedIn this week and less on Facebook. Post an interview with someone in your company. Add a video. Add a slide presentation.

Need inspiration? Mashable has the most engaged company page on LinkedIn. They?re a content site, so it?s easier for them to upload articles on a regular basis but I?d bet you have content on your hard-drive that you can use, too.? Look through your files and pick out two pieces of content that would be of interest to someone in your industry and post them.

With social media, what you get out of it is only as good as what you put in so make it a point to put in more on LinkedIn this week. It might help you find that one connection you need to take your business to the next level.

?

Source: http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2013/06/linkedin-celebrates-3-million-company-pages-infographic.html

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Stock markets perky after US data

LONDON (AP) ? A round of solid U.S. economic data prompted a further bout of stock buying Thursday in another sign that the mood in financial markets has improved this week.

For much of June, investors have fretted about the possibility of the U.S. Federal Reserve reducing its monetary stimulus as the economy improves. Fed chief Ben Bernanke's confirmation last week that the central bank may start winding down its bond-buying program this year prompted turmoil across financial markets.

The fears of a change in Fed policy have led to stock markets falling on strong economic data and rising on weak indicators. That trend seems to have changed this week, however.

While Wednesday's downgrade of U.S. economic growth in the first quarter was cheered, at least by stock investors, Thursday's run of strong data on consumer spending, jobless claims and pending homes sales prompted the same sort of response.

That's a sign that investors think the recent sell-off in stock markets may have been overdone.

"There is a growing consensus that market participants overreacted to the proposed stimulus withdrawals with most traders of the view that shares can now be snapped up for bargain prices," said Max Cohen, a trader at Spreadex.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 1.4 percent at 6,251 while Germany's DAX rose 1 percent to 7,992. The CAC-40 was 1.2 percent higher at 3,768.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.9 percent at 15,040 while the broader S&P 500 index rose 0.8 percent to 1,616.

Trading may increasingly be driven by calendar effects over the rest of the week as some investors look to make their portfolios look healthier for the end of the half-year. Even after the volatility over the past few weeks, stocks have had a pretty strong first half to the year.

"Traders may also be inclined to start undertaking a degree of position keeping in the near term ? tomorrow marks the end of the month, quarter and mid-point of the year," said Fawad Razaqzada, market strategist at GFT Markets.

Earlier in Asia, markets were also buoyed as interbank lending rates in China continued to ease after a pledge earlier in the week by authorities to shore up banks facing cash shortfalls.

The central bank had allowed rates that banks pay to borrow from each other to soar last week, part of an attempt by Beijing to clamp down on massive credit in the informal lending industry.

Fears of a credit crisis in the world's second-biggest economy had contributed to a rout in global markets that ended when policymakers in China softened their stance with the promise to provide "liquidity support" if needed.

Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 3 percent to close at 13,213.55 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.5 percent to 20,440.08. South Korea's Kospi surged 2.9 percent to 1,834.70. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 1.7 percent to 4,811.30, a day after Julia Gillard was ousted as Prime Minister to be replaced by Kevin Rudd.

"He will be the person who will try to rescue Labour's election campaign, three months before Australians head to the polls, a move that appears to have received the approval of the markets," said Craig Erlam, market analyst at Alpari.

Trading in the currency markets was steady, though the dollar pushed higher after figures showed U.S. pending home sales rose 6.7 percent in May, the strongest rate in six years. The euro, which had been 0.3 percent higher, was flat at $1.3015, while the dollar was 0.7 percent higher at 98.39 yen.

In the commodity markets, the mood was also calmer, notably with regard to gold, which slumped Wednesday to a near three-year low. It was up around $3 at $1,233 an ounce. The benchmark New York crude oil contract was up 59 cents at $96.09 a barrel.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-markets-perky-us-data-145525625.html

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A Garbage-Crushing Trash Can You Control With Your Bare Hands

Who likes taking out the trash? Nobody, that's who. We'll do anything we can to avoid trips to the curb, or the garbage chute, including letting it pile up for weeks on end. But a giant mountain of stinking trash in your kitchen isn't the only solution. This stainless steel trash can includes a manual compressor letting you squeeze roughly twice the amount of trash into its 10 gallon capacity.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/TUfLkUAdbH0/a-garbage-crushing-trash-can-you-control-with-your-bare-584924314

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Black Bear Roams In D.C., Days After Red Panda's Jaunt

First there was Rusty, the red panda. Now there are reports that a bear was captured after roaming around in Washington, D.C., Wednesday, prompting (mostly unserious) concerns of a possible siege on the nation's capital.

The bear is described as being about a year old, weighing nearly 100 pounds. It was spotted by a resident Wednesday morning, who called the city's help hotline. Here's how that went, according to local news radio WTOP:

"'It was like, alright, this is Marlon Perkins, yes it is, right here, D.C.," she says.

"She says when she called 311, the city's information center, the response on the other end was ""What?! A bear?"

"'I said, 'Yes, B-E-A-R. A bear!'"

The news also provoked a response from the National Zoo, which had alerted D.C. residents earlier this week that Rusty, a red panda, had escaped. The zoo used its Twitter feed to keep people up to date on the panda-hunt, as the animal was eventually captured and returned to the facility.

The black bear was in the Spring Valley neighborhood near American University, about 3.5 miles northwest of the Adams Morgan neighborhood where Rusty was captured Monday.

And today, the zoo took the opportunity to emphasize that this bear isn't their bear ? and to disabuse any notions that this black bear might possibly hang out with Rusty someday.

"The black bear sighted in NW DC is not our bear, nor will it be coming to the Zoo," the National Zoo tweeted.

After a block-by-block search, the bear was located in a stand of bamboo. After being tranquilized, it was wrapped in a tarp and carried to a Washington Humane Society van. According to WTOP, it was released "into the wilderness in Maryland" this afternoon.

"It's not common, but it's not unexpected," the Washington Humane Society's Scott Giacoppo tells WTOP. "We are in a wooded area, near Rock Creek Park, that's a thoroughfare for a lot of different wild animals. And, this time of year, they're looking to find their own territory and resources to survive."

"Bear sightings have been reported all over our viewing area recently," reports WUSA TV News. "The Glen Echo Heights Citizens Association said in an email on Tuesday night that a woman spotted a bear on her back deck."

In case you're wondering if everyone is conflating bears with red pandas, we should note that the classification of the red panda is a "known issue" among people who study such things. From National Geographic:

"The red panda has given scientists taxonomic fits. It has been classified as a relative of the giant panda, and also of the raccoon, with which it shares a ringed tail. Currently, red pandas are considered members of their own unique family?the Ailuridae."

We can only presume red pandas would prefer that name to their other, more pejorative, title: "lesser pandas."

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/06/26/195933759/black-bear-roams-in-d-c-days-after-red-pandas-jaunt?ft=1&f=1007

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Obama: Court ruling doesn't change way religious institutions define marriage

NEW YORK (AP) ? Paula Deen dissolved into tears during a "Today" show interview Wednesday about her admission that she used a racial slur in the past, saying anyone in the audience who's never said anything they've regretted should pick up a rock and throw it at her head.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-court-ruling-doesnt-change-way-religious-institutions-154714808.html

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Microsoft follows Google's lead, files request to reveal more data about FISA orders

The Wall Street Journal reports that in a move similar to Google's request last week, Microsoft has submitted a motion to the secret FISA court to authorize the release of "aggregate data" about the requests it has received. Microsoft published the information it has so far been authorized to reveal a couple of weeks ago, lumping in national security related requests with stats for other criminal warrants and subpoenas. Google and Twitter have been among the loudest requesting the ability to separate national security-related requests like those at the center of the PRISM controversy, however it's been reported that several companies are negotiating for the ability to be more specific.

Filed under: Internet, Microsoft

Comments

Source: Microsoft Motion (PDF), Wall Street Journal

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/26/microsoft-files-request-to-reveal-fisa-prism-data/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Juwah lists gains of approved broadband policy - Vanguard News

BY EMEKA AGINAM

NIGERIAN Communication Commission, NCC, boss, Engr Juwah also revealed that the national broadband plans has been submitted by the presidential committee on broadband, even as the document has also received the approval of the President for implementation.

According to him, part of the objectives of the Nigerian National broadband plans were to promote pervasive broadband deployment, increase broadband adoption, and usage and ensure availability of broadband services at affordable prices.

He added that these were aimed at maximizing the socio political and economic benefits of broadband to the people.

?It is intended over the period of these plans to see more than a five-fold increase in the internet and broadband penetration figures. It is also intended that all state capitals and urban cities have metro fiber infrastructure installed.

?Certain estates and business districts within major cities shall have fiber to the home or premises ??whereas on a national scale, it is the intention of government to facilitate full roll out ?by operating companies of 3G networks with ?the potential for immediate transition to 4G/LTE as spectrum becomes available? he explained.

He said that as the industry regulator, NCC was prepared to play major role in the broadband plan and ensure that through regulatory responsibilities and interventions, the plans is speedily and adequately delivered for use in the country.

A peep into policy document revealed that operators in the Nigerian ICT sector have identified challenges common to them as high cost of rights of way, resulting in the high cost of lease and transmission, long delays in obtaining permits, backhaul capacity constraints, multiple regulation and taxation at federal, state and local government levels, damage to fibre infrastructure during road works, lack of reliable, clean public electricity supply, lack of major green energy initiatives and supports.

Source: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/06/juwah-lists-gains-of-approved-broadband-policy/

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Analysis: Big poll win for Japan PM Abe's party could defeat bold economic reform

By Linda Sieg

TOKYO (Reuters) - Will the real Shinzo Abe please stand up?

Abe, back as Japan's premier in a rare second term, is expected to lead his ruling bloc to victory in a July upper house election, but what he will do with the mandate is a puzzle.

Pessimists fear too decisive a win will weaken commitment to reforms needed to end the stagnation that has long plagued the economy.

The risks are twofold.

First, a massive victory by Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) could generate complacency even as swollen ranks of conservative lawmakers strengthen the hand of the vested interests that have long been the LDP's core constituencies.

Second, Abe may use his mandate to push a conservative agenda centered on revising the pacifist constitution - recognizing Japan's right to maintain a military - and recasting its wartime history with a less apologetic tone, distracting from difficult economic reforms.

"If they win, the government will be very stable, but stability creates laxness," said former Economics Minister Hiroko Ota, a member of an advisory panel on deregulation - touted by Abe as a key component of his "Third Arrow" growth strategy.

The first two "arrows" in the "Abenomics" policy prescription were hyper-easy monetary policy and fiscal spending, neither of which faced much political opposition.

"The issues that remain face strong opposition and that is why they were not possible so far," Ota told Reuters. "That is why we need to remain intensely on guard."

Pledging to revive growth in the world's third-biggest economy, bolster its defense posture and alter the constitution, Abe took office after the LDP's general election win last December. That was just over five years after he abruptly resigned from the country's top job due to ill health and a humiliating loss in an election for parliament's upper chamber.

But the LDP and its junior partner, the New Komeito, still lack a majority in the upper house, which can block legislation. Abe and his allies need a win there both to end the "twisted parliament" that has foiled policy implementation since 2007 and to wipe away the bitter memory of his earlier defeat.

THIRD ARROW DOUBTS

Buoyed by a stellar win in Sunday's Tokyo local election, the LDP and New Komeito look on track for a solid majority in the upper house contest. Some political sources say Abe's party may win a majority on its own.

Pessimists fear that too big a win for the LDP would bolster the opposition to regulatory reforms from lawmakers with close ties to industries and sectors that would suffer from change.

"Winning the upper house election is not the key to pushing through the structural reforms that Japan needs because the vested interests are only going to get stronger," said Jeffrey Kingston, director of Asian studies at Temple University's Japan campus.

Others, such as LDP lawmaker Kozo Watanabe, said a big win would give Abe the clout to push unpopular economic reforms such as steps to make it easier to fire unproductive employees and downsize away from unprofitable sectors.

"We can't do it now, but if the LDP and New Komeito win a majority, we can do it," Watanabe said.

The party and Abe's advisers are divided between those who favor old-fashioned industrial policies with the government targeting winners, and a pro-deregulation camp that wants the government to get out of the way to spur innovation.

Financial markets disappointed by the "Third Arrow" measures want to see signs the latter group is gaining the upper hand. "What markets will be looking for is a very clear commitment to specific medium-term, growth boosting structural reforms," said Alastair Newton, senior political analyst at Nomura Securities.

"There has to be more substantive delivery in the reform agenda once the election is out of the way to sustain the more positive sentiment about Japan."

REFORM AGENDA - BUT WHICH REFORM?

Abe aides say he has learned a harsh lesson from his troubled 2006-2007 term, when his focus on revising the U.S.-drafted constitution, promoting traditional values and fostering patriotism in education instead of pocket-book policies close to voters' hearts was a key reason for his early exit.

Few believe, however, that the priorities of the 58-year-old grandson of a prime minister have fundamentally altered. Some still fear he will be tempted to spend political capital on contentious policies such as lowering the legislative hurdle to constitutional revision as a prelude to revising Article 9 to loosen limits on the military.

Observers also wonder whether Abe will visit Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine on the August 15 anniversary of Japan's World War Two defeat, a pilgrimage he avoided as premier the first time. A visit to the shrine, where Japanese wartime leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied tribunal are honored with war dead, would inflame tensions with China and South Korea, which suffered under Japan's past militarism.

"Structural reform would be easier to promote (if the ruling bloc wins big) but the question is, what is his agenda?" Junji Annen, a Chuo University Law School professor who sits on the same deregulation panel as Ota, told Reuters. "Is it economic revitalization or constitutional reform? Only Abe knows."

The two, however, may not be mutually exclusive. Abe's agenda also aims to boost Japan's regional and global security clout but exercising influence - especially in the face of a rising China - requires a strong economy.

"A country that has lost economic power cannot maintain its national power," Abe told a news conference on Wednesday, adding he would focus on reviving the economy after winning the poll.

"To ensure national power and pride, we need to regain a strong economy."

(Additional reporting by Kaori Kaneko, Tetsushi Kajimoto and Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Ron Popeski)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-big-poll-win-japan-pm-abes-party-210221433.html

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Celebrity chef Paula Deen denies she is a racist, dropped by Walmart

(Editor's Note: please be advised that paragraphs 8, 11 contain language that may be offensive)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. celebrity chef Paula Deen, under fire after she admitted using a racial slur, said in a tearful TV interview on Wednesday that she is not a racist, as retailer Walmart said it was cutting ties with the chef.

In an interview on NBC's "Today" show, the Southern food doyenne said she never intentionally hurt anyone and that it was important for her to tell "everyone out there what I believe and how I live my life."

When asked if she felt she had racist tendencies she replied, "No."

It was her first TV interview since The Food Network said Friday it would drop her show after she was sued for discrimination and admitted in a legal deposition that she had used a racial slur in the past.

Deen, who has built a business empire that includes cookbooks, restaurants and kitchen supplies, was also dropped by pork giant Smithfield Foods Inc last week. On Wednesday, Walmart was the latest company to sever ties.

"We are ending our relationship with Paula Deen Enterprises," Walmart spokeswoman Danit Marquardt told Reuters.

Marquardt said Walmart, the biggest division of Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, will not place new orders beyond those already committed with Deen's company for branded products including groceries, cookware and candles.

The controversy surrounding Deen erupted last week when a deposition was released in transcript form in which Deen, who is white, was asked if she had used the "N-word," and responded, "Yes, of course."

The "N-word" is a euphemism for "nigger," an epithet for black people.

The deposition related to a racial and sexual discrimination lawsuit filed by a former employee, Lisa Jackson, who worked for Paula Deen Enterprises.

The lawsuit alleges that, while discussing with Jackson plans for Hiers' 2007 wedding, Deen said she wanted a "true Southern plantation-style wedding."

"Well, what I would really like is a bunch of little niggers to wear long-sleeve white shirts, black shorts and black bow ties, you know in the Shirley Temple days, they used to tap dance around," Deen said, according to the lawsuit.

Asked about the epithet in the deposition on Wednesday, Deen said she had used the slur when describing, probably to her husband, how a black man robbed a bank where she was working in the 1980s. She said she had used the word since, "but it's been a very long time."

Deen recalled the bank robbery and said: "I had had a gun put to my head, a shakin' gun." She did not give a full description of that incident.

DEEN SAYS SHE IS "HEARTBROKEN"

On "Today," Deen said she was thankful for the support she has received, and also heartbroken because she has had to comfort friends who were distressed about things being said about her that she said were untrue.

"If there's anyone out there that has never said something that they wish they could take back, if you're out there, please pick up that stone and throw it so hard at my head that it kills me. Please, I want to meet you. I want to meet you," she said, sobbing.

The 66-year-old celebrity chef had called off a scheduled interview with NBC on Friday to discuss the situation and instead released a video defending herself.

The Food Network, which is owned by Scripps Network Interactive Inc, later said it would not renew her contract when it expired at the end of June.

Deen's fans have taken to voicing their support for the chef online, expressing anger on the Facebook pages for the Food Network and Walmart, with many saying they'll boycott both companies for severing ties with Deen.

(Reporting by Patricia Reaney and Jessica Wohl; Editing by David Storey, Piya Sinha-Roy and Stacey Joyce)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/celebrity-chef-paula-deen-denies-she-racist-sobs-151206035.html

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Novartis skin drug helps patients with chronic hives

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis said its drug omalizumab significantly improved itch in patients with a severe form of hives, according to a late-stage study.

The second of three late-stage studies found that more than one third of patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) who were treated with the drug were completely itch and hive-free after 12 weeks compared to 5 percent of patients on placebo.

Omalizumab, which is also known as Xolair, is already approved for treating severe asthma. Novartis said it was on track to submit omalizumab for regulatory approval in patients with CSU later this year.

(Reporting by Caroline Copley)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/novartis-skin-drug-helps-patients-chronic-hives-053557216.html

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Watch Obama's Climate Change Speech ? Turns Out He's Talking Keystone

President Obama's much anticipated speech on climate change is underway at Georgetown University. Watch it below, and read our preview/overview if you haven't. Even before it begins, though, a bit of new news: among his proposals, the president will reportedly set a critical emissions measure for approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.

RELATED: How Obama Could Nix the Keystone Pipeline (and Why He Won't)

That news comes from Sam Stein at the Huffington Post, by way of an unnamed administration official.

"As the executive order on Keystone contemplates, the environmental impacts will be important criteria used in the determination of whether the Keystone pipeline application will ultimately be approved at the completion of the State Department decision process," said the senior administration official. "In today?s speech, the president will make clear that the State Department should approve the pipeline only if it will not lead to a net increase in overall greenhouse gas emissions."

For opponents of the pipeline, this will be surprising ? and very welcome ??news. For months, skeptics suggested that the president was likely to approve the pipeline; some saw today's announced crackdown on carbon dioxide as a potential point of leverage with environmental groups for the political space to approve the pipeline. But moreover, multiple recent studies, including one described by Scientific American in April have shown that the Keystone pipeline would indeed yield a net increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The pipeline will funnel a product called dilbit, diluted bitumen, from tar sands in Alberta to the Gulf Coast. The sludgy fossil fuel product uses more energy for extraction and processing than more conventional fuels, which could result in 181 million metric tons of greenhouse gas annually.

RELATED: Gore: Obama Has 'Failed to Stand Up' on Global Warming

A draft environmental analysis released by the State Department in March downplayed that volume of emissions, primarily by assuming that the tar sands would be developed regardless of the existence of the Keystone XL pipeline ??which is itself a debatable assumption. Regardless, the president could make a rhetorical point on Keystone today and then point to the draft State analysis as justification for approving the pipeline.

RELATED: The White House Convenes Scientists to Discuss the World's New Ocean

We shall see. Watch the president's speech below.

RELATED: Critics of Keystone Pipeline Deal Surround The White House

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/watch-obamas-climate-change-speech-turns-hes-talking-174716170.html

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How fish swim: Researchers examine mechanical bases for the emergence of undulatory swimmers

June 24, 2013 ? How do fish swim? It is a simple question, but there is no simple answer.

Researchers at Northwestern University have revealed some of the mechanical properties that allow fish to perform their complex movements. Their findings, published on June 13 in the journal PLOS Computational Biology, could provide insights in evolutionary biology and lead to an understanding of the neural control of movement and development of bio-inspired underwater vehicles.

"If we could play God and create an undulatory swimmer, how stiff should its body be? At what wave frequency should its body undulate so it moves at its top speed? How does its brain control those movements?" said Neelesh Patankar, professor of mechanical engineering at Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. "Millennia ago, undulatory swimmers like eels that had the right mechanical properties are the ones that would have survived."

The researchers used computational methods to test assumptions about the preferred evolutionary characteristics. For example, species with low muscle activation frequency and high body stiffness are the most successful; the researchers found the optimal values for each property.

"The stiffness that we predict for good swimming characteristics is, in fact, the same as the experimentally determined stiffness of undulatory swimmers with a backbone," said Amneet Bhalla, graduate student in mechanical engineering at McCormick and one of the paper's authors.

"Thus, our results suggest that precursors of a backbone would have given rise to animals with the appropriate body stiffness," added Patankar. "We hypothesize that this would have been mechanically beneficial to the evolutionary emergence of swimming vertebrates."

In addition, species must be resilient to small changes in physical characteristics from one generation to the next. The researchers confirmed that the ability to swim, while dependent upon mechanical parameters, is not sensitive to minor generational changes; as long as the body stiffness is above a certain value, the ability to swim quickly is insensitive to the value of the stiffness, the researchers found.

Finally, making a connection to the neural control of movement, the researchers analyzed the curvature of its undulations to determine if it was the result of a single bending torque, or if precise bending torques were necessary at every point along its body. They learned that a simple movement pattern gives rise to the complicated-looking deformation.

"This suggests that the animal does not need precise control of its movements," Patankar said.

To make these determinations, the researchers applied a common physics concept known as "spring mass damper" -- a model, applied to everything from car suspension to Slinkies, that determines movement in systems that are losing energy -- to the body of the fish.

This novel approach for the first time unified the concepts of active and passive swimming -- swimming in which forcing comes from within the fish (active) or from the surrounding water (passive) -- by calculating the conditions necessary for the fish to swim both actively and passively.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/D8e-ngzQywE/130624133129.htm

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If Game of Thrones Characters Were on Online Dating Websites

Seeing Game of Thrones play out on Facebook was the comic relief necessary for the oft depressing show. Seeing Game of Thrones characters pretend to have online dating profiles? Just as good, well, if only for Hodor's.

Seriously, if Westeros had online dating, the whole world would have been a lot peaceful. At the very least, the end of Season 3 would have been a bit more pleasant. Team Pwnicorn created these profiles for each character and they go along with what we know of them and how online dating works. It's a cute little thing that'll probably make you miss the show more now that it's over.

For more Game of Thrones online dating profile looks, head over here. [Team Pwnicorn via Nerd Approved]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/if-game-of-thrones-characters-were-on-online-dating-web-581481406

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Vietnam vets with PTSD more than twice as likely to have heart disease

June 25, 2013 ? Male twin Vietnam veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were more than twice as likely as those without PTSD to develop heart disease during a 13-year period, according to a study supported by the National Institutes of Health.

This is the first long-term study to measure the association between PTSD and heart disease using objective clinical diagnoses combined with cardiac imaging techniques.

"This study provides further evidence that PTSD may affect physical health," said Gary H. Gibbons, M.D., director of the NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), which partially funded the study. "Future research to clarify the mechanisms underlying the link between PTSD and heart disease in Vietnam veterans and other groups will help to guide the development of effective prevention and treatment strategies for people with these serious conditions."

The findings appear online today in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and in the September 10 print issue.

Researchers from the Emory University Rollins School of Public Health in Atlanta, along with colleagues from other institutions, assessed the presence of heart disease in 562 middle-aged twins (340 identical and 222 fraternal) from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry. The incidence of heart disease was 22.6 percent in twins with PTSD (177 individuals) and 8.9 percent in those without PTSD (425 individuals). Heart disease was defined as having a heart attack, having an overnight hospitalization for heart-related symptoms, or having undergone a heart procedure. Nuclear scans, used to photograph blood flow to the heart, showed that individuals with PTSD had almost twice as many areas of reduced blood flow to the heart as individuals without PTSD.

The use of twins, identical and fraternal, allowed researchers to control for the influences of genes and environment on the development of heart disease and PTSD.

"This study suggests a link between PTSD and cardiovascular health," said lead researcher Viola Vaccarino, M.D., Ph.D., professor in the department of medicine at Emory University and chair of the department of epidemiology at the Rollins School of Public Health. "For example, repeated emotional triggers during everyday life in persons with PTSD could affect the heart by causing frequent increases in blood pressure, heart rate, and heartbeat rhythm abnormalities that in susceptible individuals could lead to a heart attack."

When researchers compared the 234 twins where one brother had PTSD and the other did not, the incidence of heart disease was almost double in those with PTSD compared to those without PTSD (22.2 percent vs. 12.8 percent).

The effects of PTSD on heart disease remained strong even after researchers accounted for lifestyle factors such as smoking, physical activity level, and drinking; and major depression and other psychiatric diagnoses. Researchers found no link between PTSD and well-documented heart disease risk factors such as a history of hypertension, diabetes or obesity, suggesting that the disease may be due to physiologic changes, not lifestyle factors.

Affecting nearly 7.7 million U.S. adults, PTSD is an anxiety disorder that develops in a minority of people after exposure to a severe psychological trauma such as a life-threatening and terrifying event. People with PTSD may have persistent frightening thoughts and memories of their trauma, may experience sleep problems, often feel detached or numb, and may be easily startled. According to a 2006 analysis of military records from the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study, between 15 and 19 percent of Vietnam veterans experienced PTSD at some point after the war.

The study used state-of-the-art imaging scans with positron emission tomography, which measures blood flow to the heart muscle and identifies areas of reduced blood flow, at rest and following stress.

The study was supported by grants from NHLBI (K24HL077506), (R01 HL68630), and (R21HL093665), the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG026255), the National Institute of Mental Health (K24 MH076955), and by the American Heart Association. Support also was provided by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (UL1TR000454) and the National Center for Research Resources (MO1-RR00039).

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/5eQ77U24Akc/130625162233.htm

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'Nerdy' mold needs breaking to recruit women into computer science

June 24, 2013 ? The 'computer nerd' is a well-known stereotype in our modern society. While this stereotype is inaccurate, it still has a chilling effect on women pursuing a qualification in computer science, according to a new paper by Sapna Cheryan from the University of Washington in the US, and colleagues. However, when this image is downplayed in the print media, women express more interest in further education in computer science. The work is published online in Springer's journal, Sex Roles.

Despite years of effort, it has proven difficult to recruit women into many fields that are perceived to be masculine and male-dominated, including computer science. The image of a lone computer scientist, concerned only with technology, is in stark contrast to a more people-oriented or traditionally feminine image. Understanding what prevents women from entering computer science is key to achieving gender parity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Cheryan and team sought to prove that the shortage of women in computer science and other scientific fields is not only due to a lack of interest in the subject matter on the part of women. In a first study, 293 college students from two US West Coast universities were asked to provide descriptions of computer science majors. The authors wanted to discover what the stereotypical computer scientist looks like in students' minds.

Both women and men spontaneously offered an image of computer scientists as technology-oriented, intensely focused on computers, intelligent and socially unskilled. These characteristics contrast with the female gender role, and are inconsistent with how many women see themselves.

The way a social group is represented in the media also influences how people think about that group and their relation to it. In a second study, the researchers manipulated the students' images of a computer scientist, using fabricated newspaper articles, to examine the influence of these media on women's interest in entering the field. A total of 54 students read articles about computer science majors that described these students as either fitting, or not fitting, the current stereotype. Students were then asked to rate their interest in computer science.

Exposure to a newspaper article claiming that computer science majors no longer fit current preconceived notions increased women's interest in majoring in computer science. These results were in comparison to those of exposure to a newspaper article claiming that computer science majors do indeed reflect the stereotype. Men, however, were unaffected by how computer science majors were represented.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Springer Science+Business Media.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. Sapna Cheryan, Victoria C. Plaut, Caitlin Handron, Lauren Hudson. The Stereotypical Computer Scientist: Gendered Media Representations as a Barrier to Inclusion for Women. Sex Roles, 2013; DOI: 10.1007/s11199-013-0296-x

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/qI0OhTpgkEc/130624141414.htm

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Wanted US leaker Snowden believed to be in Moscow

MOSCOW (AP) ? A former National Security Agency contractor wanted by the United States for revealing highly classified surveillance programs was believed to have landed in Russia on Sunday ? possibly as a stopover before traveling elsewhere ? after being allowed to leave Hong Kong.

Edward Snowden was on an Aeroflot flight from Hong Kong that arrived in Moscow shortly after 5 p.m. (1300gmt) Sunday and was booked on a flight to fly to Cuba on Monday, the Russian news agencies ITAR-Tass and Interfax reported, citing unnamed airline officials. The reports said he intended to travel from Cuba to Caracas, Venezuela. There was also speculation that he might try to reach Ecuador.

The WikiLeaks anti-secrecy group said it was working with him and that he was bound for an unnamed "democratic nation via a safe route for the purpose of asylum."

Snowden did not leave Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport with the other passengers and was not seen by a crowd of journalists waiting in the arrivals lounge. Interfax reported that he was spending the night in the transit zone of the airport because he did not have a visa to enter Russia and had rented a room in a capsule hotel.

The car of Ecuador's ambassador to Russia was parked outside the airport, spurring the speculation that Snowden intended to seek asylum in the Latin American country. But in Ecuador, a high-ranking source at the presidency said there was no information about whether Snowden would seek asylum there. The source spoke on condition of anonymity for lack of authorization to speak on the issue.

Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said last week that if Snowden asked for asylum, Ecuador would study the request.

Snowden had been in hiding in Hong Kong for several weeks after he revealed information on the highly classified spy programs. WikiLeaks said it was providing legal help to Snowden at his request and that he was being escorted by diplomats and legal advisers from the group.

WikiLeaks' founder, Julian Assange, who has spent a year inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning about sex crime allegations, told the Sydney Morning Herald that his organization is in a position to help because it has expertise in international asylum and extradition law.

The White House said President Barack Obama has been briefed on Sunday's developments by his national security advisers.

Snowden's departure came a day after the United States made a formal request for his extradition and gave a pointed warning to Hong Kong against delaying the process of returning him to face trial in the U.S.

The Department of Justice said only that it would "continue to discuss this matter with Hong Kong and pursue relevant law enforcement cooperation with other countries where Mr. Snowden may be attempting to travel."

The Hong Kong government said in a statement that Snowden left "on his own accord for a third country through a lawful and normal channel."

It acknowledged the U.S. extradition request, but said U.S. documentation did not "fully comply with the legal requirements under Hong Kong law." It said additional information was requested from Washington, but since the Hong Kong government "has yet to have sufficient information to process the request for provisional warrant of arrest, there is no legal basis to restrict Mr. Snowden from leaving Hong Kong."

The statement said Hong Kong had informed the U.S. of Snowden's departure. It added that it wanted more information about alleged hacking of computer systems in Hong Kong by U.S. government agencies which Snowden had revealed.

Hong Kong's decision to let Snowden go on a technicality appears to be a pragmatic move aimed at avoiding a drawn out extradition battle. The action swiftly eliminates a geopolitical headache that could have left Hong Kong facing pressure from both Washington and Beijing.

Hong Kong, a former British colony, has a high degree of autonomy and is granted rights and freedoms not seen on mainland China, but under the city's mini constitution Beijing is allowed to intervene in matters involving defense and diplomatic affairs.

Hong Kong has an extradition treaty with the U.S., but the document has some exceptions, including for crimes deemed political.

Russian officials have given no indication that they have any interest in detaining Snowden or any grounds to do so. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that Russia would be willing to consider granting asylum if Snowden were to make such a request.

Russia and the United States have no extradition treaty that would oblige Russia to hand over a U.S. citizen at Washington's request.

The Cuban government had no comment on Snowden's movements or reports he might use Havana as a transit point.

The Obama administration on Saturday warned Hong Kong against delaying Snowden's extradition, with White House national security adviser Tom Donilon saying in an interview with CBS News, "Hong Kong has been a historically good partner of the United States in law enforcement matters, and we expect them to comply with the treaty in this case."

Michael Ratner, Assange's lawyer, said he didn't know Snowden's final destination, but that his options were not numerous. "You have to have a country that's going to stand up to the United States," Ratner said. "You're not talking about a huge range of countries here."

Ratner added that a country's extradition treaty with the U.S. is "not going to be relevant" because the country he ends up going to will likely be one willing to give him a political exemption.

Snowden's departure came as the South China Morning Post released new allegations from the former NSA contractor that U.S. hacking targets in China included the nation's cellphone companies and two universities hosting extensive Internet traffic hubs.

He told the newspaper that "the NSA does all kinds of things like hack Chinese cellphone companies to steal all of your SMS data." It added that Snowden said he had documents to support the hacking allegations, but the report did not identify the documents. It said he spoke to the newspaper in a June 12 interview.

With a population of more than 1.3 billion, China has massive cellphone companies. China Mobile is the world's largest mobile network carrier with 735 million subscribers, followed by China Unicom with 258 million users and China Telecom with 172 million users.

Snowden said Tsinghua University in Beijing and Chinese University in Hong Kong, home of some of the country's major Internet traffic hubs, were targets of extensive hacking by U.S. spies this year. He said the NSA was focusing on so-called "network backbones" in China, through which enormous amounts of Internet data passes.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said it was aware of the reports of Snowden's departure from Hong Kong to Moscow but did not know the specifics. It said the Chinese central government "always respects" Hong Kong's "handling of affairs in accordance with law." The Foreign Ministry also noted that it is "gravely concerned about the recently disclosed cyberattacks by relevant U.S. government agencies against China."

China's state-run media have used Snowden's allegations to poke back at Washington after the U.S. had spent the past several months pressuring China on its international spying operations.

A commentary published Sunday by the official Xinhua News Agency said Snowden's disclosures of U.S. spying activities in China have "put Washington in a really awkward situation."

"Washington should come clean about its record first. It owes ... an explanation to China and other countries it has allegedly spied on," it said. "It has to share with the world the range, extent and intent of its clandestine hacking programs."

____

Chan reported from Hong Kong. Sylvia Hui in London, Paul Haven in Havana, Gonzalo Solano in Quito, Ecuador, and Anne Flaherty and Julie Pace in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/wanted-us-leaker-snowden-believed-moscow-161850018.html

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