Steve Jones & Nicole Scherzinger Part Ways With 'X Factor'; Paula Abdul Out Too? (omg!)

Host Steve Jones and judge Nicole Scherzinger have both parted ways with "The X Factor," Access Hollywood has confirmed.

A rep for FOX, the network behind Simon Cowell's reality singing competition, confirmed the news to Access on Monday evening.

PLAY IT NOW: Steve Jones Talks Hosting His First ?X Factor? Live Show

Steve Jones was first to break the news himself, Tweeting on Monday, "I wont be hosting next seasons XFactor which is a shame but I cant complain as I've had a great time. Good luck to everyone on the show."

A source told E! News, which first reported Nicole's departure, that she wanted to concentrate on her career.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Nicole Scherzinger: This Pussycat Doll?s Got ?The X Factor?!

"She wants to focus on her music career," a source told E! News. "She's spoken to Simon [Cowell] and he's given her his blessing."

Back in December, reports first surfaced in the British tabloids that "The X Factor" would continue its second season without Steve.

Appearing on Access Hollywood Live as the rumors first hit the news, the host said if he did leave - it could open the door to romance with his then co-star, Nicole.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: The Brit Pack: Hot Shots Of Stars From The UK!

"We're colleagues and we're good friends," Steve told Billy Bush and Kit Hoover when asked why he hasn't pursued the single singer, whom he said was, "smokin' hot." "If I ever leave 'X Factor,' Scherzinger's phone will be smoking hot from me ringing it constantly 'cause if we're not colleagues - oh, she's fair game. Oh yeah!"

AH Nation Poll: Who will you miss more from 'The X Factor'? Click HERE to vote.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Primetime Hunks

Copyright 2012 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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State Dept: Americans take refuge at Cairo embassy

FILE - In this Aug. 14, 1998 file photo, the U.S. embassy in downtown Cairo, Egypt. Three U.S. citizens whom Egyptian authorities have barred from leaving the country have sought refuge in the American Embassy in Cairo, U.S. officials said Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Leila Gorchev, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 14, 1998 file photo, the U.S. embassy in downtown Cairo, Egypt. Three U.S. citizens whom Egyptian authorities have barred from leaving the country have sought refuge in the American Embassy in Cairo, U.S. officials said Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Leila Gorchev, File)

FILE - In this Jan. 23, 2009 handout file photo proved by the Transportation Department, Sam Lahood, left, watches as his father Ray is sworn in as Transportation Secretary, at the Transportation Department in Washington. Three U.S. citizens whom Egyptian authorities have barred from leaving the country have sought refuge in the American Embassy in Cairo, U.S. officials said Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Those banned include Sam LaHood, son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, but officials would not say whether he is at the embassy. (AP Photo/ Transportation Department, File)

CAIRO (AP) ? Three American democracy advocates barred by Egyptian authorities from leaving the country have sought refuge at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, officials said Monday, as tensions between the two allied nations sharply escalated over a probe into foreign-funded organizations.

The unusual step comes amid a row over an Egyptian crackdown on U.S.-funded groups promoting democracy and human rights that has jeopardized more than $1 billion of crucial U.S. aid to Egypt, one of its biggest recipients.

The investigation is closely intertwined with Egypt's political turmoil since Hosni Mubarak's fall nearly a year ago. The generals who took power have accused "foreign hands" of being behind protests against their rule and frequently depict the protesters as receiving foreign funds in a plot to destabilize the country.

Egyptian authorities are preventing at least six Americans and four Europeans from leaving the country, citing a probe opened last month when heavily armed security forces raided the offices of 10 international organizations. Egyptian officials have defended the raid as part of legitimate investigation into the groups' work and funding.

Those banned include Sam LaHood, son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, but officials would not say whether he is at the embassy. The younger LaHood, who heads the Egypt office of the Washington-based International Republican Institute, referred queries to a spokeswoman in Washington who did not return calls seeking comment.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Kate Starr told reporters in Washington Monday that the citizens were in the embassy.

"A handful of U.S. citizens have opted to stay in the embassy compound in Cairo while waiting for permission to depart Egypt," she said.

Another official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said three Americans are at the embassy, adding that the move was not because the U.S. feared their imminent arrest.

A former IRI official quoted in The Washington Post Sunday, however, said his colleagues had indicated that they would only move to the embassy if they feared they'd be arrested soon.

U.S. officials have warned that restrictions on civil society groups could hinder aid to Egypt, which would be a major blow to the country as it struggles with economic woes and continued turmoil in the wake of the 18-day popular uprising that led to Mubarak's Feb. 11 ouster. Egypt's military has been locked in a confrontation for months with protesters who demand it immediately hand over power to civilians.

The Egyptian army itself receives more than $1 billion a year from Washington. The December raids brought sharp U.S. criticism, and last week President Barack Obama spoke by telephone with Egyptian military chief Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi about the issue.

Recent U.S. legislation could block annual aid to Egypt unless it takes certain steps. These include abiding by its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, holding free and fair elections and "implementing policies to protect freedom of expression, association and religion and due process of law."

The U.S. is due to give $1.3 billion in military assistance and $250 million in economic aid to Egypt in 2012. Washington has given Egypt an average of $2 billion in economic and military aid a year since 1979, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Sam LaHood of IRI said last week that three other employees of his organization were on the no-fly list, two American and one European.

From the National Democratic Institute, which was also raided in December, three Americans and three Serb employees are on the list, the group's Egypt director, Lisa Hughes, said last week.

Hughes said in a text message Monday that none of NDI's employees are residing at the U.S. Embassy.

A U.S. embassy spokeswoman did not respond Monday to requests for comment.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-30-Egypt-US/id-999ec2e4125d41f59bc3b80c6bdd43b8

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Indy battens down hatches for Super Bowl security

In this Jan. 28, 2012 photo, a pedestrian passes by a manhole cover outside Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Indianapolis Power & Light has spent nearly $200,000 to replace 150 manhole covers in the Super Bowl Village and in other areas expected to draw high pre-game traffic after a series of underground explosions last year turned the covers into dangerous projectiles that damaged cars. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

In this Jan. 28, 2012 photo, a pedestrian passes by a manhole cover outside Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Indianapolis Power & Light has spent nearly $200,000 to replace 150 manhole covers in the Super Bowl Village and in other areas expected to draw high pre-game traffic after a series of underground explosions last year turned the covers into dangerous projectiles that damaged cars. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Officer David Bryant, right, of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police, watches the crowd at the Super Bowl Village in Indianapolis Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. From pickpockets and prostitutes to dirty bombs and exploding manhole covers, authorities are bracing for whatever threat Super Bowl XLVI might bring. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

In this Jan. 28, 2012 photo, a security guard works at a concert in Super Bowl Village in Indianapolis. From pickpockets and prostitutes to dirty bombs and exploding manhole covers, authorities are bracing for whatever threat Super Bowl XLVI might bring. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? From pickpockets and prostitutes to dirty bombs and exploding manhole covers, authorities are bracing for whatever threat the first Super Bowl in downtown Indianapolis might bring.

Some ? nuclear terrorism, for instance ? are likely to remain just hypothetical. But others, like thieves and wayward manhole covers, are all too real.

Though Indianapolis has ample experience hosting large sporting events ? the Indianapolis 500 attracts more than 200,000 fans each year, and the NCAA's men's Final Four basketball tournament has been held here six times since 1980? the city's first Super Bowl poses some unique challenges.

Unlike the Final Four, which is compressed into a weekend, the Super Bowl offers crowd, travel and other logistical challenges over 10 days leading up to the Feb. 5 game. And unlike the 500, where events are largely concentrated at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway about seven miles from Lucas Oil Stadium, the NFL's showcase event will consume 44 blocks ? about a mile square ? in the heart of the city, closing off streets and forcing an anticipated 150,000 or more NFL fans to jockey with downtown workers for space much of the week.

"This is clearly bigger in terms of the amount of people who will be downtown over an extended period of time," city Public Safety Director Frank Straub said.

Under a security risk rating system used by the federal government, the Super Bowl ranks just below national security events involving the president and the Secret Service, said Indianapolis Chief of Homeland Security Gary Coons. The ratings are based on factors including international attention, media coverage, the number of people the event attracts and visits by celebrities and foreign dignitaries, he said. The Indianapolis 500 ranks two levels below the Super Bowl.

The city has invested millions of dollars and worked with local, state and federal agencies to try to keep all those people safe. Up to 1,000 city police officers will be in the stadium and on the street, carrying smartphones and other electronic hand-held devices that will enable them to feed photos and video to a new state-of-the-art operations center on the city's east side or to cruisers driven by officers providing backup, Straub said. Hundreds of officers from other agencies, including the state police and the FBI, will be scanning the crowd for signs of pickpocketing, prostitution or other trouble.

One concern has been a series of explosions in Indianapolis Power & Light's underground network of utility cables. A dozen underground explosions have occurred since 2005, sending manhole covers flying.

Eight explosions have occurred since 2010. The latest, on Nov. 19, turned a manhole cover into a projectile that heavily damaged a parked car and raised concerns about the safety of Super Bowl visitors walking on streets and soaring above the Super Bowl village on four zip lines installed for the festivities.

Since December, IPL has spent about $180,000 to install 150 new locking manhole covers, primarily in the Super Bowl village and other areas expected to see high pre-game traffic.

IPL officials say the new Swiveloc manhole covers can be locked for security reasons during the Super Bowl. In case of an explosion, the covers lift a couple of inches off the ground ? enough to vent gas out without feeding in oxygen to make an explosion bigger ? before falling back into place.

An Atlanta consultant hired by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission last summer to audit IPL's underground network of cables for a cause of the explosions says the new covers are merely a Band-Aid.

"We've argued it's better to prevent," said Dan O'Neill of O'Neill Management Consulting, which filed its report in December.

O'Neill's team couldn't pinpoint an exact cause for the explosions but said a flawed inspection process contributed, noting that IPL workers missed warning signs such as road salt corroding an old cable or leaks in nearby steam pipes. In a report filed Jan. 19 with Indiana utility regulators, the power company said it had overhauled its inspection process.

IPL will dispatch extra crews to the area around the stadium in case of power-related problems, such as a recent breaker fire that left 10,000 customers in homes south of downtown without power. Spokeswoman Crystal Livers-Powers said the company doesn't anticipate any power issues.

Straub, the public safety director, said he's confident the city is prepared and notes that Indianapolis hosts major events "pretty regularly."

Special teams from the Department of Energy will sweep Lucas Oil Stadium and the surrounding area for nuclear terror threats, and a new $18 million high-tech communications center that opened in time for the lead-up to the game will tie it all together.

"We're using more technology, and state of the art technology, than has been used in any Super Bowl before this one," Straub said.

WBNS-TV

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-30-Super%20Bowl-Security/id-f2f01197fac24ea8989acfba48c95f54

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EU leaders to agree on permanent bailout fund, balanced budget (Reuters)

BRUSSELS (Reuters) ? EU leaders will sign off on a permanent rescue fund for the euro zone at a summit on Monday and are expected to agree on a balanced budget rule in national legislation, with unresolved problems in Greece casting a shadow on the discussions.

The summit - the 17th in two years as the EU battles to resolve its sovereign debt problems - is supposed to focus on creating jobs and growth, with leaders looking to shift the narrative away from politically unpopular budget austerity.

The summit is expected to announce that up to 20 billion euros ($26.4 billion) of unused funds from the EU's 2007-2013 budget will be redirected toward job creation, especially among the young, and will commit to freeing up bank lending to small- and medium-sized companies.

But discussions over the permanent rescue fund, a new 'fiscal treaty' and Greece will dominate the talks.

Negotiations between the Greek government and private bondholders over the restructuring of 200 billion euros of Greek debt made progress over the weekend, but are not expected to conclude before the summit begins at 9:00 a.m. EST.

Until there is a deal between Greece and its private bondholders, EU leaders cannot move forward with a second, 130 billion euro rescue program for Athens, which they originally agreed to at a summit last October.

Instead, they will sign a treaty creating the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), a 500-billion-euro permanent bailout fund that is due to become operational in July, a year earlier than first planned. And they are likely to agree the terms of a 'fiscal treaty' tightening budget rules for those that sign up.

PERMANENT RESCUE FUND

The ESM will replace the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), a temporary fund that has been used to bail out Ireland and Portugal and will help in the second Greek package.

Leaders hope the ESM will boost defenses against the debt crisis, but many - including Italian premier Mario Monti, IMF chief Christine Lagarde and U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner - say it will only do so if its resources are combined with what remains in the EFSF, creating a super-fund of 750 billion euros ($1 trillion).

The International Monetary Fund says an agreement to increase the size of the euro zone 'firewall' will convince others to contribute more resources to the IMF, boosting its crisis-fighting abilities and improving market sentiment.

But Germany is opposed to such a step.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will not discuss the issue of the ESM/EFSF's ceiling until leaders meet for their next summit in March. In the meantime, financial markets will continue to fret that there may not be sufficient rescue funds available to help the likes of Italy and Spain if they run into renewed debt funding problems.

"There are certainly signals that Germany is willing to consider it and it is rather geared toward March from the German side," a senior euro zone official said.

The sticking point is German public opinion which is tired of bailing out the euro zone's financially less prudent. Instead, Merkel wants to see the EU - except Britain, which has rejected any such move - sign up to the fiscal treaty, including a balanced budget rule written into constitutions. Once that is done, the discussion about a bigger rescue fund can take place.

After nearly three years of crisis, some economists believe the combination of tighter budget rules, a bigger bailout fund and a commitment to broader structural reforms to boost EU productivity could help the region weather the storm.

"The fiscal compact and the ESM will shape a better future," said Carsten Brzeski, a euro zone economist at ING.

"Combined with ongoing austerity measures and structural reforms in peripheral countries, and, of course, with a lot of ECB action, the euro zone could master this stage of the crisis."

Economists say the pivotal act in recent months was the European Central Bank's flooding of the banking sector with cheap three-year money, a measure it will repeat next month.

GREEK DEAL?

While EU leaders are managing to put together pieces of legislation and financial barriers that might help them stave off a repeat of the debt crisis, immediate concerns - especially over Greece and potentially Portugal - remain.

By far the most pressing worry is the seven-month-long negotiation over private sector involvement in the second Greek rescue package. A deal in the coming days may help restore investor confidence, although Greece will still struggle to reduce its debts to 120 percent of GDP by 2020 as planned.

"If there is a deal, the heads of state and government can endorse it, welcome it and say that now it is up to Greece to agree to and deliver on reforms to get the second financing package," the euro zone official said.

Negotiators believe they have until mid-February to strike a deal. Failure to do so by then would likely force Greece to miss a 14.5 billion euro repayment on its debt due in mid-March.

Even if Athens can strike a deal with private bondholders to accept a 50 percent writedown on the nominal value of their bonds, it may still not be enough to close Greece's funding gap.

The IMF has suggested it may be necessary for public sector holders of Greek bonds - including the ECB and national central banks in the euro zone - to write off some of their holdings in order to close the gap.

Such a move would not necessarily involve the ECB or national central banks incurring losses, they would just be expected to forego any profit on the bonds they have bought.

But German ECB board member Joerg Asmussen told Reuters there was no possibility of the ECB taking part in the private-sector restructuring of Greece's debt.

(Reporting By Jan Strupczewski, editing by Mike Peacock)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/bs_nm/us_eu_summit

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"War" reduced to PG-13 after Fox trims sexual content (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES, Jan 27 (TheWrap.com) ? When "This Means War" hits theaters on Valentine's Day, the Reese Witherspoon action comedy will arrive with a PG-13 rating, TheWrap has confirmed.

Fox, the studio behind the McG film, has trimmed sexual content in the film, and in return the Motion Picture Association of America has removed the R-rating, a spokeswoman for the ratings board said.

In addition to Witherspoon, "This Means War" stars Tom Hardy and Chris Pine. It centers on two CIA agents who compete for the same woman.

Fox lost its appeal on Thursday of the MPAA's rating.

After hearing statements from Ted Gagliano, president of feature post production for Twentieth Century Fox and from Joan Graves, who chairs the Classification and Rating Administration, the board upheld the R rating due to sexual content.

"This Means War" will now apparently arrive in theaters with a little less steam heat -- or at least with the sensuality and sex jokes dialed down a notch or two.

For an appeal to be successful, two-thirds of the board must vote that the rating is "clearly erroneous."

The board reviews between 800 and 900 movies each year. Usually, fewer than 12 are appealed.

(Editing By Zorianna Kit)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/movies/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120128/film_nm/us_thismeanswar_rating

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Palin's Swipe at Republican Establishment 'Cannibals' Part of a Strategy (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | The pile on Newt Gingrich by the Republican establishment, as well as some conservative writers, has drawn the ire of Sarah Palin, who decried the attacks of "Cannibals in GOP Establishment" in a recent Facebook post.

Palin has not formally endorsed Gingrich, though she did offer him support in the South Carolina primary. Palin's rebuke is not so much a defense of Gingrich than it is an assertion of tea party power and ideas, which she believes should be the driving force in the effort to replace President Barack Obama. Right now, Gingrich represents the best expression of the tea party approach.

Palin is also continuing her strategy of making sure the primary contest does not end too soon, on the theory that whoever comes out the nominee, Mitt Romney or Gingrich, will be the stronger for having competed.

Palin's expression of support might be too late to save Gingrich in Florida. The Real Clear Politics average has Romney ahead comfortably. But Gingrich is still ahead in the national polls, according to RCP.

Palin has again shown a certain adroitness that most of her critics cannot credit. If she can single handedly keep the Republican primary process going, she will have solidified her status as a Republican "gray eminence," albeit not a member of holy orders. If Gingrich is the nominee, he will be beholden to her. If Romney is the nominee, then he will be obliged to appease her to gain the support of tea party conservatives he will need to win the general election.

How that influence will redound to Palin's benefit is unknown. Gingrich has hinted she might be in line for the vice presidency or a Cabinet post in his potential administration. Romney would be advised to keep her in mind for some office of trust as well. He will also have to have her blessing where it concerns his positions and his future plans as president.

A lot of people were disappointed when Palin chose not to run. But it looks like she knew what she was doing. As a presidential candidate, she would have been just one among many. As Sarah Palin, private citizen, she is the Mama Grizzly, to be courted and appeased and to be crossed at ones peril.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120128/pl_ac/10896339_palins_swipe_at_republican_establishment_cannibals_part_of_a_strategy

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GOP Clown Car Arrives in Florida, Rinse, Repeat, Thread 2 (Little green footballs)

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Ecologists capture first deep-sea fish noises

ScienceDaily (Jan. 26, 2012) ? University of Massachusetts Amherst fish biologists have published one of the first studies of deep-sea fish sounds in more than 50 years, collected from the sea floor about 2,237 feet (682 meters) below the North Atlantic. With recording technology now more affordable, Rodney Rountree, Francis Juanes and colleagues are exploring the idea that many fish make sounds to communicate with each other, especially those that live in the perpetual dark of the deep ocean.

Though little is known at present about the significance of sounds made by deep-sea fishes, Rountree and Juanes say that if, as their pilot study suggests, these tend to be low-amplitude, then man-made noise in the oceans may turn out to be a particular problem for some important species.

Their paper appears in the new book, "Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life," from Springer Science+Business Media in its "Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology" series. It compiles papers from an international workshop in Ireland in 2010.

Using hydrophones deployed by fishermen during normal fishing operations, Rountree, Juanes and colleagues obtained a 24-hour recording in Welkers Canyon south of Georges Bank that yielded "a wealth of biological sounds" including sounds of fin, humpback and pilot whales, dolphins and examples of at least 12 other unique and unidentified sounds they attribute to other whales or fish.

Their new paper includes graphics showing the number of these grunts, drumming and duck-like calls recorded per minute by time of day, plus peak volume and frequencies of various noises. Some of the sounds exhibited strong temporal patterns, for example fin whale and dolphin sounds dominated the recording and peaked at night.

Rountree, who makes a collection of fish sounds available on his popular website to engage and educate the public, explains, "We think work to describe underwater sounds is extremely valuable. The importance of sound in the ecology of both freshwater and marine systems is poorly understood. At this point, in fact, most of our work consists of making careful observations, which of course is the first step in the scientific process."

He adds, "If sound is important to these deep sea fishes, it's a whole area of ecology we need to know about. One reason is that fishermen are exploring deeper and deeper water to make their catch, and we need to know such things as the baseline populations of food fish, their requirements for spawning, their essential habitat and other key aspects of their lives. We believe passive acoustic monitoring is an important tool in this study. And, it doesn't harm the fish or their habitat."

Unlike active acoustic studies that bounce sound waves out and back, passive acoustic studies involve just listening. Rountree and Juanes have been promoting underwater passive acoustic studies for more than a decade. They hope to create a census of sounds and behavior observed concomitant with sounds from many different aquatic and marine habitats.

Juanes says some fish use special "sonic muscles" to produce some sounds, and different sounds have different meanings or functions. Many are believed to be related to reproductive behavior. Some fish use a "sound map" for orientation in their immediate environment and may even use sound waves returning from distant beaches to help them navigate over longer distances. "There is a fascinating acoustic soundscape out there just waiting to be explored."

Rountree adds, "It's not only that some fish make sounds, but we think the overall soundscape is interesting and important." This study was supported by MIT Sea Grant.

In addition to their deep-sea recording project, the researchers are conducting pioneering passive acoustic surveys of sound in many different habitats, such as freshwater ponds, rivers and streams and coastal estuaries of New England, as well as on the commercial fishing grounds in the Gulf of Maine.

Publication site: www.springer.com/biomed/neuroscience/book/978-1-4419-7310-8

More at: www.fishecology.org/

And: www.fishecology.org/soniferous/Deep%20Sea%20Sounds/DeepSea.htm

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Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126142908.htm

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Viruses con bacteria into working for them

Thursday, January 26, 2012

MIT researchers have discovered that certain photosynthetic ocean bacteria need to beware of viruses bearing gifts: These viruses are really con artists carrying genetic material taken from their previous bacterial hosts that tricks the new host into using its own machinery to activate the genes, a process never before documented in any virus-bacteria relationship.

The con occurs when a grifter virus injects its DNA into a bacterium living in a phosphorus-starved region of the ocean. Such bacteria, stressed by the lack of phosphorus (which they use as a nutrient), have their phosphorus-gathering machinery in high gear. The virus senses the host's stress and offers what seems like a helping hand: bacterial genes nearly identical to the host's own that enable the host to gather more phosphorus. The host uses those genes,? but the additional phosphorus goes primarily toward supporting the virus' replication of its own DNA.

Once that process is complete (about 10 hours after infection), the virus explodes its host, releasing progeny viruses back into the ocean where they can invade other bacteria and repeat this process. The additional phosphorus-gathering genes provided by the virus keep its reproduction cycle on schedule.

In essence, the virus (or phage) is co-opting a very sophisticated component of the host's regulatory machinery to enhance its own reproduction ? something never before documented in a virus-bacteria relationship.

"This is the first demonstration of a virus of any kind ? even those heavily studied in biomedical research ? exploiting this kind of regulatory machinery in a host cell, and it has evolved in response to the extreme selection pressures of phosphorus limitation in many parts of the global oceans," says Sallie (Penny) W. Chisholm, a professor of civil and environmental engineering (CEE) and biology at MIT, who is principal investigator of the research and co-author of a paper published in the Jan. 24 issue of Current Biology. "The phage have evolved the capability to sense the degree of phosphorus stress in the host they're infecting and have captured, over evolutionary time, some components of the bacteria's machinery to overcome the limitation."

Chisholm and co-author Qinglu Zeng, a CEE postdoc, performed this research using the bacterium Prochlorococcus and its close relative, Synechococcus, which together produce about a sixth of the oxygen in Earth's atmosphere. Prochlorococcus is about one micron in diameter and can reach densities of up to 100 million per liter of seawater; Synechococcus is only slightly larger and a bit less abundant. The viruses that attack both bacteria, called cyanophages, are even more populous.

The bacterial mechanism in play is called a two-component regulatory system, which refers to the microbe's ability to sense and respond to external environmental conditions. This system prompts the bacteria to produce extra proteins that bind to phosphorus and bring it into the cell. The gene carried by the virus encodes this same protein.

"Both the phage and bacterial host have the genes that produce the phosphorus-binding proteins, and we found they can both be up-regulated by the host's two-component regulatory system," says Zeng. "The positive side of infection for bacteria is that they will obtain more phosphorus binders from the phage and maybe more phosphorus, although the bacteria are dying and the phage is actually using the phosphorus for its own ends."

In 2010, Chisholm and Maureen Coleman, now an assistant professor at the University of Chicago, demonstrated that the populations of Prochlorococcus living in the Atlantic Ocean had adapted to the phosphorus limitations of that environment by developing more genes specifically related to the scavenging of phosphorus. This proved to be the sole difference between those populations and their counterparts living in the Pacific Ocean, which is richer in phosphorus, indicating that the variation is the result of evolutionary adaptation to the environment.

The new research indicates that the phage that infect these bacteria have evolved right along with their hosts.

"These viruses ? the most abundant class of viruses that infect Prochlorococcus ? have acquired genes for a metabolic pathway from their host cells," says Professor David Shub a biologist at the State University of New York at Albany. "These sorts of genes are usually tightly regulated in bacteria, that is they are turned into RNA and protein only when needed by the cell. However, genes of these kinds in viruses tend to be used in a strictly programmed manner, unresponsive to changes in the environment. Now Zeng and Chisholm have shown that these particular viral genes are regulated by the amount of phosphate in their environment, and also that they use the regulatory proteins already present in their host cells at the time of infection. The significance of this paper is the revelation of a very close evolutionary interrelationship between this particular bacterium and the viruses that seek to destroy it."

"We've come to think of this whole system as another bit of evidence for the incredible intimacy of the relationship of phage and host," says Chisholm, whose next steps are to explore the functions of all of the genes these marine phage have acquired from host cells to learn more about the selective pressures that are unique to the phage-host interactions in the open oceans. "Most of what we understand about phage and bacteria has come from model microorganisms used in biomedical research," says Chisholm. "The environment of the human body is dramatically different from that of the open oceans, and these oceanic phage have much to teach us about fundamental biological processes."

###

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: http://cee.mit.edu/

Thanks to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering for this article.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/117095/Viruses_con_bacteria_into_working_for_them

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Just Show Me: How to clear your browser history in Chrome (Yahoo! News)

Welcome to?Just Show Me on?Tecca TV, where we show you tips and tricks for getting the most out of the?gadgets in your life. In today's episode we'll show you how to clear your history in?Google's Chrome web browser.

Clearing your history is a good idea if you're ever on a public computer or use a system that could be viewed by someone else. Your browser history tells people a lot, perhaps more then you'd like them to know! Clearing it is easy, and we'll walk you through the steps in our video.

Take a look at these other episodes of Just Show Me that'll help you use your Chrome web browser to the full potential:

For even more episodes of Just Show Me,?subscribe to Tecca TV's YouTube channel and?check out all our Just Show Me episodes. If you have any topics you'd like to see us cover, just drop us a line in the comments.

This article originally appeared on Tecca

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Native dog breeds risk extinction

24 January 2012 Last updated at 20:33 ET By Paul Rincon Science editor, BBC News website

Native dog breeds such as the English Setter are being pushed towards extinction by the growing popularity of more exotic dogs such as huskies and chihuahuas, new figures suggest.

The setter, once a popular working dog, is one of the country's oldest breeds.

But statistics from the Kennel Club show a two thirds decline in puppy registrations over the last 10 years.

The chihuahua, popularised by celebrity owners like Paris Hilton, saw a 25% increase in registrations last year.

Caroline Kisko, secretary of the Kennel Club said: "Celebrities, popular culture and fashion play a big part in today's society and unfortunately, dogs are not immune from our fickle tastes.

"The latest victim is the English Setter, a wonderful and loyal breed, while the number of Siberian Huskies has more than trebled in this country in the last 10 years."

Fran Grimsdell from Norfolk, who breeds English Setters, told BBC News: "The thing that saddens me is that we're getting people buying puppies, but they're nearly all people who have already owned English Setters.

"In the last two or three litters we've had - I've probably only sold one puppy out of about 15 to people who have never had the breed before.

"English Setters have got a fantastic nature... I would say that they are sensitive, terribly affectionate, loyal and wonderfully elegant in appearance. They are good with children. They can be a bit wilful... but I love that."

The history of the English Setter stretches back hundreds of years to dogs used for hunting upland game birds. The medium-sized breed - with its characteristic flecked coat - is regarded as a good family pet, but also requires a large home and lots of exercise.

It joins 24 other dogs considered to be at risk of extinction on the club's list of Native Vulnerable Breeds. Breeds are added to the list when puppy registrations drop below 300 in a year.

Last year, some 3,000 dogs were registered across the 25 vulnerable breeds. Chihuahuas, meanwhile, saw more than 6,000 registrations in 2011.

Genetic concerns

The most endangered breed of all is the Otterhound, a large rough-coated dog with a loud, baying call. There were just 38 Otterhound registrations last year (a decline of 33% on 2010).

Continue reading the main story

Vulnerable native breeds in 2011

• Otterhound: 38 registrations; down 33%*
• Skye Terrier: 44 registrations; up 19%
• Field Spaniel: 46 registrations; down 16%
• Sussex Spaniel: 52 registrations; down 23%
• Curly Coated Retriever: 62 registrations; down 14%
• Sealyham Terrier: 63 registrations; up 29%
• Glen of Imaal Terrier: 67 registrations; up 10%
• Smooth Collie: 75 registrations; up 39%
• English Toy Terrier (Black): 95 registrations; down 30%
• Dandie Dinmont Terrier: 98 registrations; down 38%
• Lancashire Heeler: 98 registrations; down 26%

*Percentage change on 2010

Pam Marston-Pollock, chair of the UK Otterhound Club, said there were now just three breeders in the UK. An estimated 600 of the dogs remain worldwide, but only a fraction are suitable for breeding.

"As far as the show world is concerned, we don't have many younger people [involved with] the breed. The established breeders who have been around for 30 years are either dying off or aren't keeping as many hounds," Ms Marston-Pollock told BBC News.

"It's a sign of the times generally that keeping substantially sized hounds is quite expensive."

She added: "We're obviously conscious that we've got a narrow gene pool... we've had a meeting to discuss the possibility of bringing in an outcross with [another breed] to broaden our gene pool."

Such approaches have been successful in the case of Dalmatians, which can be prone to kidney or bladder stones. By outbreeding with a German Pointer, one Dalmatian breeder was able to remove the trait responsible for this health problem.

Breed needs

Other vulnerable native dogs include the Dandie Dinmont terrier (98 registrations, down 35% on 2010) and the Skye terrier (44 registrations in 2011, up 19% on the previous year). The Skye Terrier was immortalised in the story of Greyfriars Bobby, the 19th Century Edinburgh dog that guarded the grave of its former owner for 14 years.

Ms Kisko said the needs of exotic breeds were poorly understood by many owners. As a result, she said, the Kennel Club had seen an increase in the number of exotic dogs coming in to breed rescue societies when owners realise they are unable to give them the exercise, grooming or other care that they need.

One example is the Afghan Hound, which requires about two hours exercise per day and daily grooming. In 2009-2010, 43% of all Afghan Hounds registered with the Kennel Club ended up in breed rescue centres.

The impact of celebrity may have had a positive effect on at least one native vulnerable breed, the Cardigan Welsh Corgi. Registrations shot up by 134% in 2011. This has been put down to the "Royal Wedding effect" and the breed's close relationship with the Pembroke Welsh Corgi, owned by the Queen.

Harvey Locke, a former president of the British Veterinary Association (BVA) told BBC News: "There are more than 200 pedigree dogs... we want to do everything we can to encourage responsible dog breeding.

"We are obviously against unscrupulous ones who breed [only] for profit. Everybody suffers there: the people who buy the puppies suffer and the dogs suffer.

He urged some breeders to move away from selecting for extreme features and called on prospective dog owners to seek advice from veterinary surgeons.

Paul.Rincon-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk

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Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/science-environment-16665702

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The American Museum of Natural History hosts Beyond Planet Earth Tweetup with Scientific American

By Erica Angiolillo?| January 25, 2012 |??

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I knew it was going to be a wonderful night when I magically found street parking on Central Park West directly across from the American Museum of Natural History. Camera in hand I entered the planetarium where I enjoyed a presentation of vintage films and movies depicting space travel and life on other planets.

I was soon flying towards the ?dark side of the moon? and out into the Milky Way during a 3D presentation of the planets that was out of this world. I then eagerly entered the reception at The Hall of Reptiles and Amphibians where finally the opportunity to shoot presented itself and I took full advantage of capturing the guests, listening to speakers and meeting the editors and bloggers at Scientific American magazine in this magnificent setting.

The Beyond Planet Earth exhibit itself was also an excellent and fun place to shoot and I highly recommend checking out the exhibit yourself in person as there are many interactive apps and ways to explore! I have never had an opportunity like this before and I found the museum, discussions and science exhilarating! Perhaps, if there?s a next time, I can roller skate around the deserted museum taking photos and really bring ?a night at the museum? to life!

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Scientific American Tweet-Up at the American Museum of Natural History
Getting Ready for Scientific American Tweet-Up at the American Museum of Natural History

About the Author: Erica Angiolillo is a freelance photographer who lives on Long Island with her husband & two children. She is the in house photographer for Manhattan Athletics & NYC Titans/Spartans baseball teams. You can enjoy her love of photography on Facebook at Gotcha! By Erica. Follow on Twitter @eangiolillo.

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The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

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South Sudan to shut oil production over thefts (AP)

JUBA, South Sudan ? A South Sudan official says the country is shutting down its oil production because Sudan is stealing its oil.

South Sudan Minister of Information Barnaba Marial Benjamin said Monday that oil companies operating in the country were instructed to begin shutting down operations in the country's oil fields as of Sunday.

Benjamin said oil production cannot be easily stopped, so companies have been given two weeks to carry out the order.

South Sudan's oil flows through pipelines in Sudan. South Sudan has accused Sudan of stealing its oil.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_bi_ge/af_south_sudan_oil

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Josh Hamilton feels good in offseason workouts

/

updated 9:09 p.m. ET Jan. 23, 2012

FORT WORTH, Texas - Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton says he's feeling good during offseason workouts following sports hernia surgery and expects to be right on schedule for the start of spring training next month.

Hamilton, who had surgery in November, was hurt throughout the postseason for the AL champion Rangers. He had a torn abdominal muscle and torn adductor muscles in his left leg.

During a stop with the Rangers winter caravan Monday night, Hamilton said everything feels good while running, swinging the bat and throwing. He's also been squatting weight and doing agility exercises.

Hamilton is going into the final year of his contract. The 2010 AL MVP says he'd like any talks with the Rangers about a new deal done before spring training starts.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Fielder saga nearing end?

CSN: Amidst a constant flow of unsubstantiated rumors, it's unclear which team Prince Fielder will decide to sign with. But it's likely that he's not going to make us wait much longer.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/46108961/ns/sports-baseball/

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Lifelong brain-stimulating habits linked to lower Alzheimer's protein levels

ScienceDaily (Jan. 23, 2012) ? A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, provides even more reason for people to read a book or do a puzzle, and to make such activities a lifetime habit.

Brain scans revealed that people with no symptoms of Alzheimer's who engaged in cognitively stimulating activities throughout their lives had fewer deposits of beta-amyloid, a destructive protein that is the hallmark of the disease.

While previous research has suggested that engaging in mentally stimulating activities -- such as reading, writing and playing games -- may help stave off Alzheimer's later in life, this new study identifies the biological target at play. This discovery could guide future research into effective prevention strategies.

"These findings point to a new way of thinking about how cognitive engagement throughout life affects the brain," said study principal investigator Dr. William Jagust, a professor with joint appointments at UC Berkeley's Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, the School of Public Health and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "Rather than simply providing resistance to Alzheimer's, brain-stimulating activities may affect a primary pathological process in the disease. This suggests that cognitive therapies could have significant disease-modifying treatment benefits if applied early enough, before symptoms appear."

An estimated 5.4 million Americans live with Alzheimer's disease, but the numbers are growing as baby boomers age. Between 2000 and 2008, deaths from Alzheimer's increased 66 percent, making it the sixth-leading killer in the country. There is currently no cure, but a draft of the first-ever National Alzheimer's Plan, released this week, revealed that the U.S. government is aiming for effective Alzheimer's treatments by 2025.

The new study, published Jan. 23 in the Archives of Neurology, puts the spotlight on amyloid -- protein fibers folded into tangled plaques that accumulate in the brain. Beta-amyloid is considered the top suspect in the pathology of Alzheimer's disease, so finding a way to reduce its development has become a major new direction of research.

The researchers note that the buildup of amyloid can also be influenced by genes and aging -- one-third of people age 60 and over have some amyloid deposits in their brain -- but how much reading and writing one does is under each individual's control.

"This is the first time cognitive activity level has been related to amyloid buildup in the brain," said study lead author Susan Landau, research scientist at the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute and the Berkeley Lab. "Amyloid probably starts accumulating many years before symptoms appear. So it's possible that by the time you have symptoms of Alzheimer's, like memory problems, there is little that can be done to stop disease progression. The time for intervention may be much sooner, which is why we're trying to identify whether lifestyle factors might be related to the earliest possible changes."

The researchers asked 65 healthy, cognitively normal adults aged 60 and over (average age was 76) to rate how frequently they participated in such mentally engaging activities as going to the library, reading books or newspapers, and writing letters or email. The questions focused on various points in life from age 6 to the present.

The participants took part in extensive neuropsychological testing to assess memory and other cognitive functions, and received positron emission tomography (PET) scans at the Berkeley Lab using a new tracer called Pittsburgh Compound B that was developed to visualize amyloid. The results of the brain scans of healthy older individuals with various levels of lifetime cognitive activity were compared with those of 10 patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and 11 healthy people in their 20s.

The researchers found a significant association between higher levels of cognitive activity over a lifetime and lower levels of beta-amyloid in the PET scans. They analyzed the impact of other factors such as memory function, physical activity, self-rated memory ability, level of education and gender, and found that lifelong cognitive engagement was independently linked to amyloid deposition.

Notably, the researchers did not find a strong connection between amyloid deposition and levels of current cognitive activity alone.

"What our data suggests is that a whole lifetime of engaging in these activities has a bigger effect than being cognitively active just in older age," said Landau.

The researchers are careful to point out that the study does not negate the benefits of kicking up brain activity in later years.

"There is no downside to cognitive activity. It can only be beneficial, even if for reasons other than reducing amyloid in the brain, including social stimulation and empowerment," said Jagust. "And actually, cognitive activity late in life may well turn out to be beneficial for reducing amyloid. We just haven't found that connection yet."

Other study authors include researchers from UC San Francisco's Memory and Aging Center and Department of Neurology, and Rush University Medical Center's Alzheimer's Disease Center in Chicago.

The National Institutes of Health and the Alzheimer's Association helped support this research.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California - Berkeley. The original article was written by Sarah Yang.

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. Susan M. Landau; Shawn M. Marks; Elizabeth C. Mormino; Gil D. Rabinovici; Hwamee Oh; James P. O?Neil; Robert S. Wilson; William J. Jagust. Association of Lifetime Cognitive Engagement and Low ?-Amyloid Deposition. Archives of Neurology, 2012; DOI: 10.1001/archneurol.2011.2748

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

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

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123163348.htm

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Paterno's death met with grief in State College (AP)

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. ? Joe Paterno's death from lung cancer Sunday just two months after his firing left many Penn State students, alumni and community members numb with grief and a sense that the legendary coach deserved better from the university after such a distinguished career.

"His legacy is without question as far as I'm concerned," said 65-year-old Ed Hill of Altoona, a football season ticket-holder for 35 years. "The Board of Trustees threw him to the wolves. I think Joe was a scapegoat nationally. ... I'm heartbroken."

On Sunday night, thousands of people, nearly all of them students, gathered outside Penn State's administration building in a solemn candlelight vigil. Former players were among those who spoke, including Oakland Raiders offensive lineman Stefen Wisniewski.

"When I think back on Joe Paterno's legacy, the events of the last two months won't even cross my mind," Wisniewski said.

The 45-minute vigil concluded with students singing the alma mater, and many were walking from the center of campus to pay additional tribute to Paterno at his statue outside of Beaver Stadium, which served as the site of another vigil the night before as news spread of his failing health.

In death, Paterno received the praise that under normal circumstances might have been reserved for the retirement dinner he never received.

Gov. Tom Corbett said he had secured his place in Pennsylvania history and noted that "as both man and coach," Paterno had "confronted adversities, both past and present, with grace and forbearance."

Similar tributes were issued by politicians, university officials, former players and alumni. Some expressed hope that Paterno would be remembered more for his accomplishments than for his downfall. And some wondered whether his heartbreaking firing somehow hastened his death.

Paterno, who died at 85, was fired Nov. 9 by the Penn State trustees after he was criticized for not going to the police in 2002 when he was told that former assistant Jerry Sandusky had been seen molesting a boy in the showers at the football complex.

Paterno reported the allegations to university higher-ups, but it would be nearly a decade before Sandusky was arrested, and Paterno said he regretted having not done more. Pennsylvania's state police commissioner said the football coach may have met his legal duty but not his moral one.

On Sunday, Sandusky expressed sympathy to Paterno's family in a statement released by his lawyer as he awaits trial on charges of sexually abusing 10 boys over a 15-year period.

Sandusky said that no one did more for the university's academic reputation than Paterno, and that his former boss "had the courage to practice what he preached" about toughness, hard work and clean competition.

At an Iowa-Penn State wrestling match Sunday afternoon, a crowd of some 6,500 people gave a 30-second standing ovation as an image of Paterno appeared on two video boards. The screen flashed the words "Joseph Vincent Paterno 1926-2012" and a picture of a smiling Paterno in a blue tie and blue sweater vest.

At the university's Berkey Creamery, Ginger Colon, of Fairfax, Va., was picking up two half-gallons of Peachy Paterno ice cream when she heard the news. Colon, whose daughter attends Penn State, said it was sad that the scandal would be part of Paterno's legacy.

"But from a personal note, it makes you re-think when things are reported to you by employees: Have I taken enough steps?" Colon said.

Andrea Mastro, an immunology professor who lives in the same neighborhood where Paterno lived and raised a family ? with his address and number, famously, listed in the phone book ? said the rapid spread of the cancer and the shadow of the Sandusky investigation made "the whole situation very sad."

"I can't help but thinking that his death is somehow related" to the stress of the scandal, she said after Mass on Sunday at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, where Paterno sometimes attended services. "I think everybody is going to be extremely sad, and they're going to be sad in particular because he didn't get his say."

Mickey Shuler, who played for Penn State under Paterno in the mid-'70s, said the coach had been a father figure and expressed his disappointment about how he was fired.

"It's just sad, because I think he died from other things than lung cancer," Shuler said. "I don't think that the Penn State that he helped us to become and all the principles and values and things that he taught were carried out in the handling of his situation."

The trustees and school President Rodney Erickson issued a statement saying the university plans to honor Paterno but is still working on what form that will take, and when it will happen.

In recent weeks, the board has come under withering criticism for how it handled Paterno's dismissal, and there is a movement by alumni to change the board's composition.

At a women's basketball game Sunday, Penn State players wore a black strap on their shoulders in memory of Paterno.

"It's been the first time I've ever seen a man guilty and have to be proven innocent," said Jamie Bloom, a 1992 graduate from Williamsport. "I think they caved to the media pressure to do something."

Ed Peetz, 87, a Class of '49 alumnus whose daughter-in-law Karen Peetz was just elected president of the trustees, said the board had to dismiss Paterno.

"But then, and now, is a very sad day," Peetz said. "What does Paterno mean to me? He means Penn State. But I think he was too powerful."

Steve Wrath, a 1984 graduate, became emotional as he spoke outside the football stadium, in front of Paterno's statue, which was adorned with lit candles, flowers, T-shirts and blue-and-white pom-poms.

"The Sandusky situation is obviously horrible for the victims, and I don't want to little that situation, but Joe Paterno's legacy will overcome all of that," Wrath said.

___

AP writer Genaro Armas and freelancer Emily Kaplan in State College, and AP college football writer Ralph Russo in New York, contributed to this story.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_sp_co_ne/fbc_paterno_state_college

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Women in Malawi protest attacks over skirts, pants (AP)

BLANTYRE, Malawi ? It's been 18 years since the late dictator Hastings Kamuzu Banda's "indecency in dress" laws were repealed in Malawi, but mobs of men and boys in the largely conservative southern African country have recently been publicly stripping women of their miniskirts and pants.

Friday, hundreds of outraged girls and women, among them prominent politicians, protested the attacks while wearing pants or miniskirts and T-shirts emblazoned with such slogans as: "Real men don't harass women." A recording of Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry" got a loud cheer when it was played during the protest. Men also took part.

"Some of us have spent our entire life fighting for the freedom of women," Vice President Joyce Banda told the protesters. "It's shocking some men want to take us back to bondage."

During Banda's 1963-1994 dictatorship, women in Malawi were banned from wearing pants and short skirts. Banda lost power in the country's first multiparty election in 1994 and died three years later.

"Life President" Banda led the nation to independence from Britain, only to impose an oppressive rule. Whims that reflected a puritanical streak were law. The U.S.-trained physician and former Presbyterian church elder, himself always attired in a dark suit and Homburg hat, also banned long hair on men.

"We fought for a repeal of these laws," Ngeyi Kanyongolo, a law professor, said at Friday's protests. "Women dressed in trousers or miniskirts is a display of the freedom of expression."

While Banda is gone, strains of conservatism remain in the impoverished, largely rural nation. Some of the street vendors who have attacked women in recent days claimed it was un-Malawian to dress in miniskirts and pants. Some said it was a sign of loose morals or prostitution.

The attacks took on such importance, President Bingu wa Mutharika went on state television and radio on the eve of the protest to assure women they were free to wear what they want.

Other African nations, including South Africa, have seen similar attacks and harassment of women. Last year, women and men held "SlutWalks" in South Africa, joining an international campaign against the notion that a woman's appearance can excuse attacks. "SlutWalks" originated in Toronto, Canada, where they were sparked by a police officer's remark that women could avoid being raped by not dressing like "sluts."

In Malawi Friday, protesters also wore T-shirts with the slogan: "Vendor: Today, I bought from you, tomorrow, you undress me?" Street children and vendors have been accused of carrying out the attacks.

The president ordered police to arrest anyone who attacks women wearing pants or miniskirts. Police had already made 15 arrests.

"Women who want to wear trousers should do so as you will be protected from thugs, vendors and terrorists," the president said in a local language, Chichewa. "I will not allow anyone to wake up and go on the streets and start undressing women and girls wearing trousers because that is criminal."

Vice President Banda has speculated the attacks were the result of economic woes in a country that is currently racked by shortages of fuel and foreign currency.

"There is so much suffering that people have decided to vent their frustrations on each other," she told reporters.

A vendors' representative at Friday's protest, Innocent Mussa, was booed off the stage. Mussa insisted those who were harassing women were not true vendors.

"I'm ashamed to be associated with the stripping naked of innocent women," he said. "Those were acts of thugs because a true vendor would want to sell his wares to women, he can't be harassing potential customers."

Mussa blamed the harassment on unemployed young people.

(This version CORRECTS Retransmitting, deletes incorrect reference to South Africa "neighboring" Malawi.)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_re_af/af_malawi_women_s_dress

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Greenpois0n Absinthe untethered jailbreak tool for iPhone 4S and iPad 2 released

(http://www.imore.com/jailbreak)! They stated earlier today the jailbreak was almost complete and ready for release. It didn't take very long as the tool is already available.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/-pqr1rSSuwY/story01.htm

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Johnny Depp As Barnabas Collins In Dark Shadows

Well look who’s at it again! Johnny Depp and Tim Burton have teamed up for Dark Shadows, which looks like an awesome vampire movie! Johnny Depp and Tim Burton are coming together once more to work on a new gothic vampire flick, Dark Shadows, which will hit theaters on May 11 2012 . The movie, which is based off of an ABC soap that aired from 1966 to 1971, is going to be a big bag of paranormal, with the show featuring witches, werewolves, zombies, vampires and a whole bunch of other things that you wouldn’t want as your roommate. Depp is going to be taking on the role of Barnubus Collins, the one that made the show the cult classic that it is. It is also the character who Johnny Depp has said to have been obsessed with as a child. Creepy. In contrast to our most beloved vampires at the moment (Yes, I’m talking to you Twi-hards), Depp?s character has dark circles around his eyes, hands with claw-like finger nailsclaws, and overall features that make you compare him to a bat. Looks aside, I’m sure the immortal love child of Burton and Depp with give the Cullen?s a [...]

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Video: Catching a comet death on camera

Friday, January 20, 2012

On July 6, 2011, a comet was caught doing something never seen before: die a scorching death as it flew too close to the sun. That the comet met its fate this way was no surprise ? but the chance to watch it first-hand amazed even the most seasoned comet watchers.

"Comets are usually too dim to be seen in the glare of the sun's light," says Dean Pesnell at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., who is the project scientist for NASA's Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO), which snapped images of the comet. "We've been telling people we'd never see one in SDO data."

But an ultra bright comet, from a group known as the Kreutz comets, overturned all preconceived notions. The comet can clearly be viewed moving in over the right side of the sun, disappearing 20 minutes later as it evaporates in the searing heat. The movie is more than just a novelty. As detailed in a paper in Science magazine appearing January 20, 2012, watching the comet's death provides a new way to estimate the comet's size and mass. The comet turns out to be somewhere between 150 to 300 feet long and have about as much mass as an aircraft carrier.

"Of course, it's doing something very different than what aircraft carriers do," says Karel Schrijver, a solar scientist at Lockheed Martin in Palo Alto, Calif., who is the first author on the Science paper and is the principal investigator of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly instrument on SDO, which recorded the movie. "It was moving along at almost 400 miles per second through the intense heat of the sun ? and was literally being evaporated away."

Typically, comet-watchers see the Kreutz-group comets only through images taken by coronagraphs, a specialized telescope that views the Sun's fainter out atmosphere, or corona, by blocking the direct blinding sunlight with a solid occulting disk. On average a new member of the Kreutz family is discovered every three days, with some of the larger members being observed for some 48 hours or more before disappearing behind the occulting disk, never to be seen again. Such "sun-grazer" comets obviously destruct when they get close to the sun, but the event had never been witnessed.

The journey to categorizing this comet began on July 6, 2011 after Schrijver spotted a bright comet in a coronagraph produced by the SOlar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). He looked for it in the SDO images and much to his surprise he found it. Soon a movie of the comet circulated to comet and solar scientists, eventually making a huge splash on the Internet as well.

Karl Battams, a scientist with the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC, who has extensively observed comets with SOHO and is also an author on the paper, was skeptical when he first received the movie. "But as soon as I watched it, there was zero doubt," he says. "I am so used to seeing comets simply disappearing in the SOHO images. It was breathtaking to see one truly evaporating in the corona like that."

SDO's AIA instrument captured the first ever video of a comet passing directly in front of the sun in the early morning of July 6, 2011. The comet comes in from the right and is very faint. Credit: NASA/SDO

After the excitement, the scientists got down to work. Humans have been watching and recording comets for thousands of years, but finding their dimensions has typically required a direct visit from a probe flying nearby. This movie offered the first chance to measure such things from afar. The very fact that the comet evaporated in a certain amount of time over a certain amount of space means one can work backward to determine how big it must have been before hitting the sun's atmosphere.

The Science paper describes the comet and its last moments as follows: It was traveling some 400 miles per second and made it to within 62,000 miles of the sun's surface before evaporating. Before its final death throes, in the last 20 minutes of its existence when it was visible to SDO, the comet was some 100 million pounds, had broken up into a dozen or so large chunks with sizes between 30 to 150 feet, embedded in a "coma" -- that is the fuzzy cloud surrounding the comet -- of approximately 800 miles across, and followed by a glowing tail of about 10,000 miles in length.

It is actually the coma and tail of the comet being seen in the video, not the comet's core. And close examination shows that the light in the tail pulses, getting dimmer and brighter over time. The team speculates that the pulsing variations are caused by successive breakups of each of the individual chunks that made up the comet material as it fell apart in the Sun's intense heat.

"I think this is one of the most interesting things we can see here," says Lockheed's Schrijver. "The comet's tail gets brighter by as much as four times every minute or two. The comet seems first to put a lot of material into that tail, then less, and then the pattern repeats." Figuring out the exact details of why this happens is but one of the mysteries remaining about this comet movie. High on the list is to answer the not-so-simple question of why we can see the comet at all. Certainly, there are a few basic characteristics of this situation that help. For one, this comet was big enough to survive long enough to be seen, and its orbit took it right across the face of the Sun. It was also, says Battams, probably one of the top 15 brightest comets seen by SOHO, which has observed over 2,100 sun-grazing comets to date. The SDO cameras, in of themselves, also contributed a great deal: despite being far away and relatively small compared to the sun, the comet showed up clearly on SDO's high definition imager. This imager, called the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) takes a picture every 12 seconds so the movement of the comet across the face of the sun could be continuously watched. Most other similar instruments capture images every few minutes, which makes it hard to track the movement of an object that's only visible for 20 minutes.

But ultimately, the fact that one can see this comet against the background of the sun means there is some physical process not yet understood. "Normally," says Goddard's Pesnell, "a comet passing in front of the sun absorbs the light from the sun. We would have expected a black spot against the sun, not a bright one. And there's not enough stuff in the corona to make it glow, the way a meteor does when it goes into Earth's atmosphere. So one of the really big questions is why do we see it at all?"

Figuring out this question should offer information not only about material in the comet, but also about the sun's atmosphere ? and so this opens up the door to a new niche of study. Assuming, of course, that one can spot some more comets. So far SDO has only seen the one passing in front of the sun, though SDO did spot Comet Lovejoy traveling through the corona, as it went behind the sun and reappeared.

Stay tuned, as new sun-grazing comets appear every few days . . .

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NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center: http://www.nasa.gov/goddard

Thanks to NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center for this article.

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