Microsoft?s next-generation ?Gemini? Office update reportedly slated for fall release

By Martyn Herman LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - Whether by design, necessity, self-interest or because of all three, nurturing youngsters has become fashionable for England's elite with no expense spared in the hunt for the new Wayne Rooney or Steven Gerrard. The length and breadth of the country, scouts from top clubs are hoovering up promising footballers barely old enough to tie their bootlaces in a bid to unearth the 30 million pounds ($45.40 million) treasures of the future. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/microsoft-next-generation-gemini-office-reportedly-slated-fall-001327308.html

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Fongo makes a very public bid for control of Wind Mobile

Canadian carrier Wind Mobile has faced no small amount of tumult in recent months, culminating in direct control by Orascom and talk of shopping the provider around to the highest bidder. We didn't entirely anticipate just who would take up the offer, however: Fongo, best known for its former Dell Voice initiative, has made an overt bid for Wind. The VoIP provider wants to extend Wind's network network across the country while moving subscribers over to Fongo within the space of a year, theoretically creating a perfect match between cheap cellular access and free internet calling. Before anyone pops champagne corks, we'd warn that there's heavy amounts of publicity and symbolism involved in the acquisition attempt. Fongo is offering $1 and a 49 percent stake in its own venture -- that draws attention to its service, but might not hold up in a fierce bidding war. There may be more involved, but we'll have to wait before we know just how serious the move could be. Wind's parent Globalive has declined comment, while Fongo tells us it's waiting on a formal response before putting more of its cards on the table.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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And that's the way it was: March 27, 1947 : Columbia Journalism ...

He?s been called ?arguably the most powerful arbiter of consumer tastes? in personal technology. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Marissa Mayer have sought out his opinion. And profiles from the height of his influence in the mid-aughts, linger droolingly on his substantial compensation. But Walt Mossberg, the Wall Street Journal?s lead technology writer, began his career as a journalist in what might be thought of as the anti-capital of the digital age: Detroit.

After graduating from Columbia?s J-school in 1970, Moss was hired as reporter for the Journal, where he?s been ever since. He started off covering the auto industry in Detroit, then moved to Washington, where he reported on labor, energy, and national security. In 1991, he started writing ?Personal Technology,? a weekly WSJ column that he conceived of and created while the personal computer was still in its toddlerdom. In the column, Mossberg reviews new products and analyzes issues that affect the industry?from the perspective of the consumer.

Along with his WSJ colleague Kara Swisher, Mossberg founded and hosts the Journal?s D: All Things Digital conference in Carlsbad, CA. The annual conference brings together technologists, and climaxes with a prominent industry leader or leaders being interviewed by Mossberg and Swisher on stage. (The most famous of these sessions was the joint interview of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.) The two columnists also co-edit the All Things Digital website.

From the now-famous first line of his first column??Personal computers are just too hard to use, and it isn?t your fault??Mossberg has been demanding that companies build with the user in mind. And technologists, by their own testimonials, have listened, sometimes incorporating Mossberg?s criticisms and suggestions into their product designs. When it comes to personal technology of the past two decades, Walt Mossberg has been the most influential journalist writing, and the first consumer among equals.

Sang Ngo is an associate editor at CJR.

Source: http://www.cjr.org/the_kicker/and_thats_the_way_it_was_march_18.php

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Heat start to move on after streak ends

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade reacts as he watches a free throw by Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Chicago on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. The Bulls won 101-97, ending the Heat's 27-game winning streak. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade reacts as he watches a free throw by Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Chicago on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. The Bulls won 101-97, ending the Heat's 27-game winning streak. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat forward Shane Battier grimaces after he was called for a foul during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls in Chicago on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. The Bulls won 101-97, ending the Heat's 27-game winning streak. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Miami Heat forward LeBron James, center, and guard Mario Chalmers, right, listen to guard Ray Allen during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls in Chicago on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. The Bulls won 101-97, ending the Heat's 27-game winning streak. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Their winning streak finally over, the Miami Heat did on Thursday what they had planned to do all along.

They took the day off.

While the circus atmosphere around the team may slow down now ? until the playoffs start, anyway ? the way the reigning NBA champions go about their business over the final 11 games of the regular season probably will not. Miami's epic, historic, sometimes-mindboggling 27-game winning streak ended with a 101-97 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night, and Heat guard Dwyane Wade was among those sounding absolutely relieved afterward.

"It really didn't matter to us," Wade said. "If you get it, it's awesome. If you don't, we still won 27 games in a row. That's pretty awesome. So, we really weren't like, 'We've got to get that record.' Not at all. And now that it's over, I'm glad it's over."

Next up: Friday night at New Orleans, where the Heat will try to return to their winning ways.

Miami's quest for NBA history ended with the Heat six games shy of matching the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers for the league's longest winning streak. The Lakers will keep their record, but the biggest Lakers star of this generation offered the Heat plenty of respect when their run was over.

"I think just as a student of the game, as a fan of the game, you appreciate those kind of streaks and you realize how difficult it is to put together that big of a streak," Lakers star Kobe Bryant said after learning of the Heat loss. "Obviously the Lakers winning 33 in a row was phenomenal, but the Heat's one was just as impressive."

Still, the Heat insist they can get better.

When Indiana beat the Heat on Feb. 1, Miami coach Erik Spoelstra's postgame theme was that his club had to get better. Nearly two months later, when the Heat streak ended in Chicago, much of Spoelstra's postgame remarks had the same theme.

Players understood his point.

"At the end of the day, a win is a win in our league," said reigning MVP LeBron James, who averaged exactly 27 points per game during the 27-game winning streak. "We've gotten better throughout the season. Each and every month we've improved. We've started from behind some games, but for the most part we've played some great basketball. We're not a team that builds bad habits. That's not even who we are so we're not worried about that."

No matter how they did it, no matter how many double-digit deficits they erased or fourth-quarter comebacks they pulled off, the bottom line was Miami enjoyed 7? weeks of dominance.

Entering Thursday, 10 NBA teams hadn't won 27 games yet this season.

"Really proud of the grind of the last few weeks from my guys," Miami forward Shane Battier, who was part of a 32-game win streak at Duke, 22 with the Houston Rockets and now 27 with the Heat, wrote on Twitter early Thursday. "The focus and effort (and luck) was phenomenal."

Battier closed that tweet with two hashtagged words ? onward and upwards.

Whether it was because they were revered or reviled, the Heat probably got more eyeballs on NBA regular-season basketball than any team had in some time, with people watching to root for either the streak continuing or the streak ending.

They were must-see TV, as proven by national networks like ESPN and NBA TV scrambling to pick up Heat games as the streak rolled along. ESPN said the overnight rating for Heat-Bulls was the fifth-best of any regular-season game ever shown on the network.

Media coverage was as intense as any time during the Big Three era in Miami. On Monday in Orlando, the visiting locker room was overwhelmed by reporters. And on Wednesday in Chicago, Wade freely said he was ready for the circus to end.

"I don't know who half you people are," Wade said.

For those who still need streaks to follow, there's plenty of options.

Women's basketball is chock-full of them right now, with Baylor (32), Notre Dame (28) and Delaware (27) all taking streaks that at least match the Heat run into NCAA regional games this weekend. The NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins were seeking for a 14th straight win against Winnipeg on Thursday night. In men's college basketball, Louisville takes a 12-game winning streak into its Midwest Regional semifinal against Oregon on Friday night.

As far as the NBA goes, the longest current winning streak now belongs to the New York Knicks ? a mere six games.

What the Heat did obviously won't be exceeded this season, and probably not for a while. If Miami won every game left on its schedule and swept all four playoff series, they would end the year with another 27-game winning streak.

Don't count on that one happening. Bryant may have tipped his cap to the Heat, but not all the Lakers were exactly heartbroken that their franchise will keep the record.

"We kept the streak," Lakers center Pau Gasol said. "And it's about time that Miami lost."

During the streak ? starting from the moment Miami lost in Indiana on Feb. 1 to the final buzzer in Chicago ? every other NBA team lost at least five times. Nearly two-thirds of the league lost at least 10 games. Orlando lost more than anyone else, falling on 23 occasions. Maybe the biggest sign of Miami's dominance was that 12 teams endured more defeats during the streak than the Heat had lost all season.

Starting Friday, they begin another chapter.

"Now that it's over," Wade said, "let's look back on it as something that was great."

___

AP Basketball Writer Jon Krawczynski in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-03-28-BKN-Heat-Streak-Over/id-7417fe43e81b43f785e2a9be6957ce0c

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LA schools settle claims over lewd 'tasting games'

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2012 file photo, Mark Berndt, right, a former South Los Angeles-area elementary school teacher at Miramonte Elemenary looks to his attorney, Victor Acevedo during his arraignment in Los Angeles Municipal Court Metropolitan Branch. The Los Angeles school district will pay millions of dollars to settle claims and lawsuits filed by students and families from an elementary school where Berndt was accused of spoon-feeding children semen in what he called "tasting games," lawyers in the cases said Tuesday, March 12, 2013. (AP Photos/Al Seib, Pool, File)

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2012 file photo, Mark Berndt, right, a former South Los Angeles-area elementary school teacher at Miramonte Elemenary looks to his attorney, Victor Acevedo during his arraignment in Los Angeles Municipal Court Metropolitan Branch. The Los Angeles school district will pay millions of dollars to settle claims and lawsuits filed by students and families from an elementary school where Berndt was accused of spoon-feeding children semen in what he called "tasting games," lawyers in the cases said Tuesday, March 12, 2013. (AP Photos/Al Seib, Pool, File)

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? The Los Angeles school district will pay millions of dollars to settle claims and lawsuits filed by students and families from an elementary school where a third-grade teacher was accused of spoon-feeding children semen in what he called "tasting games," lawyers in the cases said Tuesday.

District officials did not reveal the total amount of the settlement, but attorney Raymond Boucher, who represents several Miramonte Elementary School students, said each claimant will receive $470,000.

District General Counsel David Holmquist said the settlement covers 58 of the 191 claims and lawsuits filed by students and parents against the district after the January 2012 arrest of former third-grade teacher Mark Berndt on 23 charges of lewd behavior spanning five years at Miramonte.

A few of the cases involved another Miramonte teacher, Martin Springer, who was charged with lewd acts on a child in a case involving a second-grader that authorities said was fondled in class in 2009.

The accusation surfaced after Berndt's arrest, Holmquist said.

The 58 people involved in the settlement are all students, he said.

Prosecutors said in Berndt's "tasting games" he fed students his semen on cookies and by spoon, sometimes blindfolding and photographing them. Berndt, who taught for 32 years at the South Los Angeles school, has pleaded not guilty in the criminal case.

Springer has also pleaded not guilty.

The allegations against Berndt came to light when a drugstore photo technician noticed dozens of odd photos of blindfolded children and reported them to authorities. Investigators said they discovered a plastic spoon in Berndt's classroom trash bin that was found to contain traces of semen.

Boucher, who represents 13 of the 58 students in the settlement, said proving some of the claims would have been a problem at trial.

Some children did not have photographs of themselves eating the cookies laced with a milky white substance, or of being fed spoonfuls of it, he said.

In addition, there was no way to prove the substance in photos was semen, he added.

Parents also understood that with so many claims, a jury verdict could bankrupt the district, he added.

"We had to do a balancing act and we understood, if you go that second route and you wind up (with the district) in bankruptcy, these clients will never receive compensation for what they've been through," Boucher said.

Frank Perez, an attorney representing eight students, said parents chose to settle rather than put their children through the emotional upheaval of litigation and to put the case behind them.

Other attorneys blasted the settlement amount as paltry and said they would proceed with their cases.

"This is lifelong trauma," lawyer Brian Claypool said.

Attorney John Manly said the district has not yet explained how the alleged incidents went undetected for so long.

"The district got a great deal today," he said. "There's not been a single explanation of who knew what when."

The case led to a wide-ranging overhaul of how the nation's second-largest school district handles allegations of sexual abuse after it was revealed that previous complaints about Berndt's behavior were ignored.

It also shined a light on how slowly state officials act to censure teachers and led to a flurry of allegations of teacher-student sex abuse in the district and in other school systems.

Shortly after Berndt's arrest, the school district temporarily removed all 76 of the school's teachers along with staff and administrators, putting them on leave and having them report to an empty high school nearby.

Six months later, when the new school year began, 43 of them returned to a restructured Miramonte with a new principal. The rest either retired or went to new schools.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-03-13-Los%20Angeles%20School%20Molestation/id-ed2aaf7e97f44649ab88fe3dfa281d31

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96% West of Memphis

All Critics (98) | Top Critics (21) | Fresh (94) | Rotten (4)

A true-crime story that begins with a notorious murder case and grows into a chilling indictment of the American justice system.

And justice for all? Hardly.

It tells the story of a terrible crime compounded by a grave injustice that's been remedied, but only in part, so it's impossible to have a single or simple response to the movie.

What sets this film apart from previous efforts to document the story is that Jackson and Walsh financed a private investigative team with legal and forensic experts who re-examined old evidence, conducted new interviews and found new witnesses.

Happy, sad, inspiring, infuriating, right and terribly wrong, all at the same time.

Berg's film is as much an indictment of the state of Arkansas' legal system as it is the prosecution.

The case is more intriguing than the film about it.

Isn't unnecessary, but it's often superfluous.

The film suggests these powerless, poorly educated young men were scapegoated because they would be missed by nobody of importance -- the justice system equivalent of the cannon fodder recruited from the same socioeconomic straits.

It's nice to have all the twists and turns of the iconic case contained tidily in one well-crafted film, although there are no real revelations here.

"West of Memphis" becomes a greatest-hits concert of prosecutorial misconduct, and you'll agree when the film asserts that prosecutors knew they had the wrong guys.

Incredibly, after three documentaries on the subject, there are still things to reveal about the West Memphis Three.

"West of Memphis" does nothing to displace its predecessor films as masterpieces of investigative filmmaking, but complements them as a riveting capstone to an epic and tragic tale.

West of Memphis is the real vindication - even if it is incomplete.

In the end it won't matter if this is the fourth movie about the same subject; you can never learn its lessons often enough.

West of Memphis caps off the Paradise Lost/West Memphis Three saga with a line up full of perpetrators including the media, the West Memphis PD, the legal establishment and suspect gift wrapped with a smoking gun.

Injustice in West Memphis, Arkansas

Berg lays out her case with the logic of a first-rate prosecutor and the theatricality of a born storyteller.

Good to know these guys are finally free.

West Of Memphis isn't afraid to show us the graphic nature of the crime and more importantly, it isn't afraid to point fingers at those whose actions deserve to be questioned.

It's reasonable to question whether the time and resources poured into this project might have been better spent highlighting a miscarriage of American justice that nobody knows about rather than one that enjoys a celebrity profile.

The most intense, nail-bitingly suspenseful thriller franchise "from the dark side" these days is not the product of a screenwriter's imagination.

The most intriguing and worthy aspect of this accomplished documentary is that it never lets anyone forget the biggest tragedy of the many threaded through this story - the helpless children who never deserved the brutal fate handed to them.

Somewhere along this narrative's mammoth timeline, examining the construction of modern social heroes became more important than the memories of three little boys.

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

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Raiding Your 401(k) to Pay Bills: Weighing the Pros and Cons

Recent statistics on the prevalence of IRA and 401(k) raiding is alarming. It showcases, in a small way, some of the desperation inherent in our economic situation. Certainly tapping one?s 401(k) should be reserved for the most dire of financial circumstances, but where do you draw the line. Before we get into some of the expenses which would require an individual to raid his/her 401(k), let?s give a friendly reminder of the consequences.

Any 401(k) early distribution would require taxes to be paid on the amount withdrawn, according to you individual tax rates. In addition, you will incur a 10% early withdrawal penalty. That means if you have a $100,000 401(k) and are in a 20% tax bracket, you?ll end up paying about $30,000 for withdrawing early ($20,000 in tax and $10,000 in early withdrawal fees). The dark horse of early withdrawals is the amount you lose in investment income. A $100,000 401(k)?even if invested in today?s volatile market?would probably net you at least a semi-decent annual return, plus compounding year over year. Withdrawing early means missed investment income, including the compounding?which is the biggest deal of all.

Extreme caution is certainly needed when even thinking of tapping your retirement funds. With that in mind, here is an interesting list of the average American family budget. I?ve bolded items I would personally even ever consider funding with my retirement account.

• Mortgage/Rent
• Home Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Car Insurance
• Food
• Gas
• Cell Phone
• Electricity
• Water, Sewer, Gas
• Television/Internet
• Entertainment

That?s my personal list. Your list may be longer, but perhaps similar. As you can see, there are some things that, if pressed, I would live without. I would have to be pretty desperate to eat my children today and have nothing saved for my retirement years tomorrow.

Unfortunately, there really aren?t too many positives about having to drain your retirement account to pay daily, life-sustaining bills. The cons of such a decision may outweigh the need to keep the home, feed the children and otherwise survive. At that point, the products we provide become useless. However, there are a great many who likely need their retirement funds for general expenses. Let?s hope things get better before they get worse.

?

Source: http://www.silverstone.net/tapping-your-401k-to-pay-bills/

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GE's Barista Bots are exactly what SXSW needs: coffee printing robotic arms

The best way to get the attention of a bunch of sleep-deprived, possibly hungover SXSW Interactive attendees? Coffee-slinging robotic arms, naturally. GE's fully embracing Austin's caffeinated food trick culture with a pair of Barista Bots, arms that operate similarly to your standard 3D printer, moving along the X, Y, Z axes to extrude coffee through a syringe, atop of a latte's foam. The process starts when one of the robot's human barista counterparts takes a shot of an image with a webcam, digitizing it on a nearby computer. Then the arm goes to work.

It's an imperfect science, of course. For one thing, foam is a really difficult canvas to work on, what with all the unevenness of constantly popping bubbles. There's also an awful lot of wind in Austin today, and with all those people inside, the van did a little bit of rocking. We saw some more complex images that didn't come out particularly well (facial scans, for one thing), so we decided to throw something a simpler at the 'bot, drawing our "e" logo on a sheet of paper.

Gallery: GE Barista Bot hands-on

Filed under: Household

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Google Doodle celebrates Douglas Adams' 61st birthday

Here's to a hoopy frood who really knew where his towel was.

Filed under: Internet, Alt

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Via: The Guardian

Source: Google

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/11/google-doodle-douglas-adams/

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The World's Smallest Umbrella: Drench Protection That Fits in Your Pocket

The Weather Channel reporters, with all their talk of doppler radars and satellites and fear mongering weather graphics, are, in the end, just a bunch of liars. They may say you're in for sunny skies, but just hours later you'll find yourself beneath a torrential downpour, umbrella-less and unprepared. Hammacher Schlemmer has finally found a solution to the unreliable virus that is The Weather Channel in the form of the pocketable, keep-it-with-you-at-all-times World's Smallest Automatic Umbrella. More »

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Emma Watson Breaks Bad In 'Bling Ring' Teaser

Former "Harry Potter" starlet takes on the darkest role yet in the new Sofia Coppola film.
By Kevin P. Sullivan

Emma Watson in "The Bling Ring"
Photo: A24

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1703266/emma-watson-blind-ring-teaser.jhtml

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Former sociology chair dies at 77 | Student Life

The memorial service for longtime Washington University sociology and political science professor Marvin Cummins, who died last week at age 77, took place Tuesday at Congregation Shaare Emeth. Cummins was diagnosed with a rare blood disease in December, according to his obituary in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Cummins established the Law and Society freshman FOCUS program and taught it through the 2010-11 school year.

?There are people to this day who say they go to law school because of him,? colleague David Konig, a professor of history and law, said.

Cummins served as the last chairman of the University?s sociology department, which was disbanded in 1991 amidst conflict with the administration and dwindling faculty ranks. He joined the department in 1970 after three years as a postdoctoral fellow in the Community Mental Health Research Training Program. After serving as acting chair from 1970-1976, he regained the position in 1985.

Following the controversial closure of his department, Cummins assumed a position in the political science department, teaching courses such as Sociology of Law and Controversies in Contemporary Homicide Law.

Junior Matt Lauer, a student in Cummins? final Law and Society program, remembered him as a challenging professor, requiring students to write six-to-10-page papers every three weeks.

?He was asking a lot, but every single time I went into class, I was excited to talk about the cases?excited to hear about what his opinions were on them, which was very hard to come by,? Lauer said. ?He wouldn?t really show his hand in what he believed.?

Lauer also took a course with Cummins in the fall of his sophomore year, called The Legal Landscape in a Changing American Society.

Both Lauer and Konig remembered Cummins as a dynamic presence in and out of the classroom.

?Marvin wore these half-glasses, and he would look up at you over these half-glasses and pause for a moment and then come up with the perfect response?understated but chuckling, combining this profundity with humor,? Konig said.

?He was the best professor I?ve had so far at Wash. U.,? Lauer said.

Cummins is survived by his wife, Mary Boeger, a son, Fredrick, a stepdaughter, two stepsons and five grandchildren.

Source: http://www.studlife.com/news/faculty-news/2013/03/07/former-sociology-chair-dies-at-77/

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Brennan Action Delayed by Filibuster (WSJ)

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Oscar Pistorius murder case detective quits police

EPA, file

Hilton Botha at the bail hearing of paralympian Oscar Pistorius in Pretoria, South Africa, Feb. 20.

By Peroshni Govender, Reuters

JOHANNESBURG - Hilton Botha, the South African detective ridiculed for his slipshod handling of the initial investigation into the killing of Olympic track star Oscar Pistorius' girlfriend has resigned from the force, police said on Thursday.

Warrant Officer Botha, a detective with 24 years experience, was the first officer on the scene after the Valentine's Day shooting of law graduate and model Reeva Steenkamp.

However, he was pulled off the case after it emerged he was being investigated for seven counts of attempted murder. He was also criticized for mixing up key facts about the investigation at Pistorius' bail hearing.

He handed in his resignation yesterday and it was accepted with immediate effect," police spokesman Brigadier Neville Malila told Reuters. "We are not going into the details."

Botha, a detective with 24 years experience, is accused of firing on a minibus taxi full of passengers in 2011 while pursuing a man accused of murdering a woman and disposing of her dismembered body down a drain, local media said.

The charges were withdrawn but reinstated on February 4, 10 days before Steenkamp was shot.

The incident has embarrassed the South African police who regularly come under fire for failing to reduce one of the highest crimes rates in the world and dispel perceptions of a force that is poorly trained.

Last week, eight policemen were arrested for tying a Mozambican taxi driver to the back of a vehicle and dragging him to the station. The video-recorded treatment of the man who later died shocked audiences around the world.

Related:

Pistorius bail hearing in chaos as lead detective is axed from case

Lead detective in Pistorius case faces attempted murder charges

Pistorius: I felt 'sense of terror' on night I mistakenly shot girlfriend

?

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/07/17224973-oscar-pistorius-murder-case-detective-quits-south-african-police?lite

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Regardless of what the wedding planner told you, you won't save money by combini...

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Yankees' Ichiro Suzuki OK after traffic accident

New York Yankees' Ichiro Suzuki, of Japan, hits a single off Toronto Blue Jays' Brandon Morrow during the first inning of a spring training exhibition baseball game, Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013, in Tampa, Fla.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

New York Yankees' Ichiro Suzuki, of Japan, hits a single off Toronto Blue Jays' Brandon Morrow during the first inning of a spring training exhibition baseball game, Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013, in Tampa, Fla.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

New York Yankees' Ichiro Suzuki, of Japan, smiles while talking with a teammate before taking batting practice during a workout at baseball spring training, Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) ? Yankees outfielder Ichiro Suzuki said he had no soreness Sunday, one day after being involved in a traffic accident.

Suzuki was on his way home after Saturday's spring training game against Detroit when the accident occurred a few miles from Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

"Not at all," Suzuki said through a translator when asked whether he felt any discomfort. "My body just didn't react, I guess."

Suzuki said his SUV was totaled in the accident. He had a green light when he was hit by another vehicle in an intersection. The driver of the second vehicle was cited by police.

"The car was turning left and turned into me," Suzuki said. "I slammed on the brakes, but couldn't do anything about it."

Suzuki said his vehicle was struck almost directly in front toward the driver's side.

New York manager Joe Girardi expects Suzuki to play in Tuesday night's exhibition against Atlanta. The Yankees are off on Monday.

No one was injured in the accident.

"I'm very thankful that everybody was OK," Suzuki said. "I feel grateful that there were no big injuries."

Suzuki worked out with teammates who didn't make the trip to Fort Myers for Sunday's exhibition game with Boston and hit in an indoor cage

Left-hander Andy Pettitte threw 34 pitches, including 20 in the first, over two innings during his first simulated game.

"Everything feels really good," Pettitte said. "All my pitches are right where I want them.

Pettitte expects to throw in another simulated game before making his first exhibition appearance.

Closer Mariano Rivera, coming back from knee surgery, made 21 pitches in one inning during his second simulated game. He said his preference would be to next pitch in an exhibition.

"I think we're ready to do that," Rivera said.

Phil Hughes made 37 throws, including 25 from 60 feet, during his initial throwing session since being sidelined two week ago by a bulging disk in his upper back. There is a possibility the right-hander will not be ready for opening day.

"Obviously, I can't have any setbacks," Hughes said. "I just have to take it a day at a time. I know I have to get four or five starts. It's not the worse thing in the world to miss a little time now than have this be an issue going forward."

NOTES: SS Derek Jeter (ankle surgery) said he still has to run the bases full speed before making his exhibition debut. GM Brian Cashman has said Jeter should play in his first game around March 10. ... LHP Boone Logan (tender elbow) hopes to resume throwing Tuesday or Wednesday. ... Minor league OF Slade Heathcott (sprained right thumb) expects to swing a bat Tuesday.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-03-03-BBA-Yankees-Suzuki/id-fc6cbdc528244aa0a4d4ae0c2bf99930

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Improved synchronicity: Preventive care for the power grid

Mar. 1, 2013 ? President Obama in this year's State of the Union address talked about the future of energy and mentioned "self-healing power grids" -- a grid that is able to keep itself stable during normal conditions and also to self-recover in the event of a disturbance caused, for example, by severe weather.

But as the national power-grid network becomes larger and more complex achieving reliability across the network is increasingly difficult. Now Northwestern University scientists have identified conditions and properties that power companies can consider using to keep power generators in the desired synchronized state and help make a self-healing power grid a reality.

The Northwestern team's design for a better power grid could help reduce both the frequency of blackouts and the cost of electricity as well as offer an improved plan for handling the intermittent power sources of renewable energy, such as solar and wind power, which can destabilize the network.

"We will be looking at a completely different power grid in the future," said Adilson E. Motter, who led the research. "The use of renewable energy is growing. More people will be driving electric cars, and the power grid will be delivering this energy, not gas stations. We need a power grid that is more capable and more reliable. This requires a better understanding of the current power grid as well as new ways to stabilize it."

Motter is the Harold H. and Virginia Anderson Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.

The crux of the challenge is that for the U.S. power grid to function the power generators in each of its three interconnections (Eastern, Western and Texas) must be synchronized, all operating at the frequency of 60 hertz. Out-of-synch power generators can lead to blackouts that affect millions of people and cost billions of dollars -- losses similar to those of the Northeast blackout of 2003.

Having a network that can synchronize spontaneously and recover from failures in real time -- in other words, a self-healing power grid -- could prevent such blackouts. To help achieve this, power companies could apply the Northwestern guidelines as they add power generators to the network or tweak existing generators.

A paper describing the researchers' mathematical model, titled "Spontaneous synchrony in power-grid networks," is published in the March 2013 issue of the journal Nature Physics.

When a problem develops in the power-grid network, control devices are used to return power generators to a synchronized state. Motter likens this to using medicine to treat someone who is ill. He and his colleagues are suggesting conditions to keep synchronicity in good shape so interventions are kept to a minimum.

"Our approach is preventive care -- preventing failures instead of mitigating them," said Motter, an author of the paper and an executive committee member of the Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO). "The guidelines we offer could be very useful as the power grid expands."

The researchers derived a condition under which the desired synchronous state of a power grid is stable. They then used this condition to identify tunable parameters of the power generators that result in spontaneous synchronization. This synchronization can be autonomous, not guided by control devices.

"The blackout at this year's Super Bowl was caused by a device that was installed specifically to prevent blackouts," said Takashi Nishikawa, an author of the paper and a research associate professor of physics and astronomy at Northwestern. "A large fraction of blackouts have human and equipment errors among the causes.

"Reduced dependence on conventional control devices can improve the reliability of the grid," he said. "Our analysis also suggests ways to design control strategies that potentially can improve the existing ones."

Power generators are very different from each other; some are large and others small. Motter and his colleagues identified a "body mass index" for power generators, which they suggest should be kept approximately the same (making, in essence, all generators look the same to the network) in order to strengthen spontaneous synchronicity in the system. If the body mass indices change, they should be changed in a coordinated way.

The researchers demonstrated their model using real power grids of hundreds of power generators, similar to the size of the Texas portion of the U.S. power grid.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Northwestern University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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. Adilson E. Motter, Seth A. Myers, Marian Anghel, Takashi Nishikawa. Spontaneous synchrony in power-grid networks. Nature Physics, 2013; 9 (3): 191 DOI: 10.1038/nphys2535

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

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/66bNJO0KLNg/130302125404.htm

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Tinnitus: Causes, Treatments and Home Remedies | Home ...

Tinnitus is a medical term that describes phantom noise in the ears or head. This annoying sensation involves hearing sounds when no actual, external sounds are present. Patients usually describe the noise as ringing, buzzing, hissing, clicking or roaring in the ears.

Tinnitus is a relatively common problem, affecting about one in five adults. It is not a disease or condition; rather, it is a symptom of an underlying health condition. The presence of tinnitus usually indicates an ear injury, hearing loss or blood vessel problems.

Although tinnitus is troublesome and annoying, it usually does not signify a serious problem. For some people, tinnitus worsens with age; for others, it improves with treatment. In fact, treating an underlying cause may eliminate tinnitus symptoms. Other remedies can reduce or mask the noise.

Tinnitus Causes

Many health conditions can cause tinnitus or make it worse. Inner ear damage is the most common one. Delicate hairs in the inner ear move in relation to sound waves, triggering an electrical signal to the brain. If the hairs bend or break, their random impulses can cause tinnitus noise.

Ear injuries and chronic health conditions are other common tinnitus causes. They often affect the nerves in the ear or in the brain?s hearing center. Noise exposure, earwax blockage and age-related hearing loss can also cause tinnitus.

Inner ear problems, temperomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, head or neck injuries and benign tumors are some of the less common causes of tinnitus. In very rare cases, the condition may stem from blood vessel disorders or head and neck cancers.

Tinnitus Treatment

Depending on the cause, tinnitus treatment may include earwax removal, vascular surgery or something as simple as changing medications. Aspirin, antibiotics, antidepressants, diuretics and other drugs can worsen the condition.

Some devices can reduce the tinnitus noise or make it more bearable. Hearing aids, white noise machines and masking devices are among the most popular noise suppression devices.

Home Remedies?

Some?tinnitus sufferers?may benefit from natural cures and home remedies. For example, a few drops of warmed olive oil can soften earwax and make it easier to remove. Natural remedy enthusiasts recommend ginkgo biloba supplements for improved hearing.

Low-sodium diets can lower blood pressure, and blood circulation benefits from less alcohol, caffeine and tobacco. As patients address these problems, their tinnitus symptoms often diminish. Finally, a nutrient-rich diet that improves overall health strengthens the immune system and guards against infections that can aggravate tinnitus.

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Source: http://remediesforhealth.wordpress.com/2013/03/03/tinnitus-causes-treatments-and-home-remedies/

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College Sexual Assault Victim Advocates Hail VAWA Passage

Federal legislation that will reform how colleges treat sexual violence and stalking on campus is on its way to President Barack Obama's desk after the House passed the Violence Against Women Act on Thursday.

The Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, included in the Senate version of VAWA, is the most significant legislation to address college rape in 20 years. The law will require colleges to include reports of dating violence, sexual assault and stalking in their annual crime statistics. Schools also will have to provide awareness programs for new students and employees, and must offer students or employees who are victims of abuse a change in housing or work environment.

The goal of the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, also called SaVE, "is to change the cultures on campus that tolerate sexual violence," said S. Daniel Carter of the VTV Family Outreach Foundation, a campus safety group formed after the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre and a primary player in drafting Campus SaVE. "This is akin to vaccinating against a disease rather than treating the symptoms of it after a patient is infected."

Laura Dunn, a sexual assault survivor-turned-victim advocate who worked on the bill, said she had been prepared for congressional gridlock to leave the bill in limbo even longer. Campus SaVE was first introduced in 2010, and was included in VAWA in the previous session of Congress. When VAWA was last reauthorized in 2005, it passed easily, , but met significant Republican opposition this time.

"I remember thinking when Campus SaVE was incorporated into VAWA, I thought we actually won because VAWA always passes," Dunn told The Huffington Post.

Dunn, now a second-year law student at the University of Maryland, said she was raped in 2004 as an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin. Dunn said she became outspoken on her campus after her assault, pushing for local policy improvements. She was asked by Carter to help him and Security On Campus Inc. push for federal legislation, and she spent the past couple of years going to Capitol Hill advocating for Campus SaVE.

Aides of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), accused Dunn of being a Democrat, she said. "They assumed I was there for a political agenda," she said. "I had to make it very clear I'm talking as a rape victim; this is not about politics," Dunn said.

The House version of VAWA did not include mention of sexual assaults on college campuses. Earlier this week, the White House Office of Management and Budget put out a statement opposing the House bill, in part, because it did not include Campus SaVE.

?For over 500 days, women have been waiting and praying for this day to come,? Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) said in a statement. Moore pushed for the Campus SaVE Act and spoke about her own sexual assault on the House floor.

The law will take effect one year after the president signs it, according to the Center for Public Integrity, meaning it'll be in full force for the 2014-15 school year.

"As we look at the statistics, we know that too many people are impacted by sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking," Abigail Boyer, communications director for the Clery Center for Security On Campus, said in a statement. "Campus SaVE calls for transparency and accountability and offers campus victims the critical support they deserve. Furthermore, it recognizes the need for effective education to work to prevent these crimes from happening and create a campus culture that is conducive to reporting. We are thrilled that both the House and the Senate recognize the importance of this legislation."

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/01/college-sexual-assault-vawa_n_2786838.html

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