Saturday, December 31, 2011

Alexandra Katehakis, M.F.T.: The Year in Good Sex: 20 Defining Moments

In parallel storylines, two of Glee's teenage power couples -- Rachel and Finn, Kurt and Blaine -- experience their first time "going all the way." For both Kurt and Rachel, this is a major decision resulting in the loss of their virginity. This controversial episode explores their positive and negative motives and expectations, as well as out-of-control moments of heightened arousal. In the end, these heterosexual and homosexual pairings are intercut in a sweet and sexy montage as the two couples consummate their love, showing both sexual orientations as equally natural expressions.
How did/do you imagine your first time to feel? The exact moment is not always clear for everyone. Traditionally, going all the way refers to penile-vaginal penetration. But certain sexual partners, like lesbians and gay men, may consider losing virginity to be frottage to climax, oral sex, or penetrative vaginal or anal sex, active or receptive. Survivors of sexual abuse may decide to define their first time as consensual sex with the partner of their choice. How much do any of us really make consciously driven choices rather than submitting to the circumstances? It's possible that any and every sexual activity steers our individual psychological patterns toward definite habitual expression and resulting experience. After all, the first impression of any new event sets the standard, and while this will certainly change over time, the very first impression might still overshadow subsequent experiences. I wonder what kind of sexual footprint we are making on our paths.
--By Alexandra Katehakis, M.F.T., C.S.T., C.S.A.T., Clinical Director of Center for Healthy Sex

In parallel storylines, two of Glee's teenage power couples -- Rachel and Finn, Kurt and Blaine -- experience their first time "going all the way." For both Kurt and Rachel, this is a major decision resulting in the loss of their virginity. This controversial episode explores their positive and negative motives and expectations, as well as out-of-control moments of heightened arousal. In the end, these heterosexual and homosexual pairings are intercut in a sweet and sexy montage as the two couples consummate their love, showing both sexual orientations as equally natural expressions.

How did/do you imagine your first time to feel? The exact moment is not always clear for everyone. Traditionally, going all the way refers to penile-vaginal penetration. But certain sexual partners, like lesbians and gay men, may consider losing virginity to be frottage to climax, oral sex, or penetrative vaginal or anal sex, active or receptive. Survivors of sexual abuse may decide to define their first time as consensual sex with the partner of their choice. How much do any of us really make consciously driven choices rather than submitting to the circumstances? It's possible that any and every sexual activity steers our individual psychological patterns toward definite habitual expression and resulting experience. After all, the first impression of any new event sets the standard, and while this will certainly change over time, the very first impression might still overshadow subsequent experiences. I wonder what kind of sexual footprint we are making on our paths.

--By Alexandra Katehakis, M.F.T., C.S.T., C.S.A.T., Clinical Director of Center for Healthy Sex

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alexandra-katehakis-mft/the-year-in-good-sex_b_1170240.html

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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Apple Fined $1.2 Million in Italy for Misleading Consumers

Apple logo

Apple has incurred a 900,000 Euro ($1.2 million) fine from the Italian Antitrust Authority for allegedly misleading consumers when it comes to warranties, the BBC is reporting.

Italians officials said in a statement that Apple failed to adequately inform customers that they were legally guaranteed two years of tech support under EU regulations, instead pointing them to Apple's own one-year warranty. Officials alleged that this led many people to pay extra for the company's AppleCare support program.

Apple provided "unclear information on payments for additional assistance offered to consumers" and had not "fully implemented the two-year guarantee by the producer."

Outside the EU, Apple's standard warranty on products generally lasts one year. AppleCare extends this guarantee for a year or two, which means the coverage overlaps with the legal warranty.

The penalties break down to 400,000 Euros for neglecting to point out the length of the EU guarantee, in both Apple's online and brick-and-mortar stores, and 500,000 Euros because it continued to offer AppleCare on top of the legal warranty.

The Authority said it is penalizing Apple's three Italian divisions, which includes Apple Italia, Apple Sales International, and Apple Retail Italia. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In addition to the fine, the Authority said Apple must publish an excerpt of the ruling on its Web site to inform consumers. It is also required to amend AppleCare to indicate that customers are entitled to two years free support. Apple must act on these requirements within 90 days.

For more from the iPhone maker, check out PCMag's year-end review of Apple.

For more from Leslie, follow her on Twitter @LesHorn.

For the top stories in tech, follow us on Twitter at @PCMag.

Source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2398075,00.asp?kc=PCRSS05039TX1K0000762

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Monday, December 26, 2011

Video: A royal Christmastime

For Queen Elizabeth, Christmas is all about tradition. But this year her thoughts and those of her family were with one who was not there ? her husband, Prince Philip, hospitalized for a heart ailment at age 90. NBC?s Duncan Golestani reports.

Related Links:

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Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/45788052/

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Raiders stay alive with 16-13 OT win over Chiefs

Sebastian Janikowski,  Jared Veldheer,  Cooper Carlisle

By DAVE SKRETTA

updated 7:09 p.m. ET Dec. 24, 2011

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Carson Palmer knew that Darrius Heyward-Bey, perhaps the Oakland Raiders' fastest wide receiver, could beat the Kansas City Chiefs defense if he went deep down the field.

The Raiders just had to wait for the right moment.

It came on the first play of overtime.

Heyward-Bey beat safety Kendrick Lewis down the left side and Palmer hit him for a 53-yard gain, setting up Sebastian Janikowski's 36-yard field goal 2:13 into overtime Saturday for a 16-13 win that kept the Raiders' playoff hopes alive and eliminated Kansas City from contention.

"It was the right time to call it," Palmer said. "I wanted it earlier, but we saved it for the right time. The protection was flawless and the route was great."

It was just about the only thing that was flawless.

The Raiders committed 15 penalties for 92 yards, one of them ? a delay of game ? wiping out an audacious fake field goal that would have gone for a 36-yard touchdown pass. Palmer also threw a pair of interceptions and the Raiders converted only 3 of 11 third-down opportunities.

"An ugly win is better than a pretty loss," Palmer said.

Especially given the stakes.

Oakland (8-7) can win the AFC West by beating San Diego next week and getting some help from ? of all teams ? the Chiefs, who travel to Denver for a game that's become meaningless to them.

"The man told me, 'Hue, we'll win it in the end.' I believe that," said Raiders coach Hue Jackson, reflecting on a conversation he had with Al Davis before the Raiders owner died in October. "I don't know how it's going to happen. I don't care how it's going to happen."

Oakland led 13-6 late in the fourth quarter when Kyle Orton connected with Dexter McCluster for a 49-yard gain, setting up a short TD toss to Dwayne Bowe with 1:02 remaining in regulation.

The Raiders went three-and-out in short order, giving Kansas City the ball back with only enough time to get into field-goal range. Orton hit Bowe for 25 yards and Terrance Copper for 11 more to set up Ryan Succop, whose 49-yard try was blocked as time ran out.

It was the second field goal that Succop had blocked.

"We had an opportunity to win the game. Those guys came up big," Chiefs linebacker Tamba Hali said. "I mean, blocking two field goals ? what's the odds of blocking two field goals in a big game like this? More credit to those guys."

The Raiders, who blew a 13-point lead in the final five minutes to Detroit last week, have won five straight games at Kansas City. Perhaps none was important as this one, with all four teams in the division beginning the day with a chance of squeaking into the playoffs.

The Chiefs (6-9) struggled to take advantage of drives one week after piling up a season-best 438 yards of offense in a 19-14 victory over previously unbeaten Green Bay. That was their first game with Orton under center and interim coach Romeo Crennel calling the shots from the sideline.

Orton threw a pair of interceptions against Oakland, one of them in the end zone in the second quarter and the other as the Chiefs were driving in the fourth quarter.

"I commend everybody for fighting hard and giving us a chance at the end," Orton said.

The first half amounted to a cacophony of errors that ended in a 3-3 tie.

The Raiders, the most penalized team in the NFL and on pace to set a single-season record, were flagged 10 times for 57 yards, while the Chiefs were flagged eight times for 53 yards.

It wasn't just the quantity of penalties, either. It was the quality.

Javier Arenas had an interception of Palmer wiped out by defensive holding in the first quarter, a turnover that would have given Kansas City prime field position.

The Raiders returned the favor on their next possession. Facing fourth-and-2 at the Chiefs 36, they pulled off fake field goal in which punter Shane Lechler, the holder on the play, threw a shovel pass to tight end Brandon Myers, and he ran untouched around end for the touchdown.

It was called back by a delay of game penalty, and Janikowski's 58-yard try hit the crossbar.

Bowe dropped an easy touchdown catch on the Chiefs' ensuing possession, and Orton was picked off by Matt Giordano in the end zone. Palmer gave it right back when Arenas intercepted him.

The Chiefs promptly wasted another scoring opportunity with a staggering string of penalties: intentional grounding, a delay of game and a false start, all in succession. Succop ultimately had his long field attempt blocked by Richard Seymour, his first miss since Sept. 25 at Buffalo.

It wound up being all the more important by the end of regulation.

"Our guys fought and they hung in there, went into overtime, and it took some guts to do that," Crennel said. "We had a couple of field goals blocked, we got a couple balls thrown over our head, we turned the ball over a couple times. In the NFL, it's hard to win when you do those kinds of things."

Notes: The Raiders have been penalized 155 times for 1,293 yards this season. Kansas City has the NFL record with 158 for 1,304, set in 1998. ... Oakland played without RB Darren McFadden (mid-foot sprain) for the eighth straight game. Michael Bush ran 23 times for 70 yards in his place. ... Chiefs S Jon McGraw (ankle) did not play. ... Kansas City C Casey Wiegmann started his 174th consecutive game despite a minor calf injury. ... Succop's first field goal was his 22nd straight, matching Pete Stoyanovich's franchise record.

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


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'It's time to shut up, fat boy'

PFT: The Jets-Giants trash talk didn?t end after the Giants win on Saturday. According to multiple reports, Brandon Jacobs and Rex Ryan got into a yelling match after the game.

Giants stay alive, put Jets on ropes ?|? Kings of NY

Victor Cruz set two franchise receiving records, and Ahmad Bradshaw ran for two touchdowns as the Giants kept their playoff hopes alive by winning the New York-area bragging rights with a 29-14 victory over the Jets on Saturday.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45784574/ns/sports-nfl/

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Sunday, December 25, 2011

HTC DROID INCREDIBLE Android Phone Black (Verizon Wireless)

HTC DROID INCREDIBLE Android Phone Black (Verizon Wireless)

  • Slick, thin smartphone with 3.7-inch SLCD screen
  • 8-megapixel camera with flash. 720p Video Recording.
  • Android 2.2 OS with Google and multitasking
  • 1 GHz Snapdragon processor for outstanding performance
  • Clear ESN , Ready To Activate, No Contract Required
The Droid Incredible by HTC, at it's time, is the future of computing in the palm of your hand. The super-sleek phone is less than a half-inch thick, yet it packs powerful components such as a 1 GHz processor, 8-megapixel camera, and a large high-resolution screen. Featuring the Android OS with Google, the Droid Incredible provides easy access to all your social networks, websites, and thousands of applications, including Google Navigation with turn-by-turn directions. Price: $ 249.99

Find More Htc Products

Source: http://cellnetonline.com/phone-reviews/htc-droid-incredible-android-phone-black-verizon-wireless/

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mattbaines: If I were a Jew,tonight I could be dining on Chinese food. Instead, long drive to mom's for nervous laughter at stepdad's "jokes."#merryxmas

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If I were a Jew,tonight I could be dining on Chinese food. Instead, long drive to mom's for nervous laughter at stepdad's "jokes."#merryxmas mattbaines

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Source: http://twitter.com/mattbaines/statuses/150677862188462080

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Saturday, December 24, 2011

Google Panda Update During Holidays? Panda 3.2

Google Panda HolidayThere is discussion and chatter at WebmasterWorld around a possible Panda update that started on December 19th.

There is discussion around shifting of the search results and a top SEO at WebmasterWorld said "I wonder whether there has been a "Minor Panda update" since Dec 19, 2011." Many agree with him.

Why an emphasis on "minor"? Google said last week there would be no major Panda updates until the new year.

Like I said, several SEOs at WebmasterWorld strongly believe there was an update on December 19th. If that is the case, I believe we are up to version 3.2 of the Panda updates.

Panda Updates:

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Image credit to ShutterStock for holiday panda.

Update: Matt Cutts replied to questions on this on Twitter, without confirming or denying an update. He did make sure to repeat that there would be no "large" or "major" Panda updates. Here is the tweet:

Source: http://feeds.seroundtable.com/~r/SearchEngineRoundtable1/~3/TUj9mL6K3vA/google-panda-32-14493.html

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Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Heisman finalists named for 2011 college football award

Heisman finalists include two quarterbacks, a pair of running backs and a defensive player. The Heisman finalists will find out who won Saturday night.

Stanford's Andrew Luck is returning to New York as a Heisman?Trophy finalist, just not as the favorite.

Skip to next paragraph

That distinction belongs to Baylor's Robert Griffin III.

The two star quarterbacks will join fellow finalists Trent Richardson, Tyrann Mathieu and Montee Ball at the Heisman presentation Saturday night in Manhattan.

Luck is the only repeat finalist this season, while Griffin is the first Baylor player to get an invite to the ceremony. The school that never has had a player finish better than fourth in the Heisman voting now seems to have the front-runner.

"I'm sure it will be a really close vote," Griffin told reporters in Waco, Texas, after watching the announcement with teammates and coaches on Monday.

Richardson is the second Alabama running back to be a finalist in the past three years. Former teammate Mark Ingram won the Heisman in 2009.

Ball has scored 38 touchdowns for Wisconsin and needs one more to match Barry Sanders' NCAA record.

Mathieu, the LSU defensive back nicknamed "Honey Badger," has made numerous game-changing plays for the top-ranked Tigers.

The field was deep this season and several deserving players didn't make the cut. Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore, a finalist last season; Southern California quarterback Matt Barkley; and record-breaking passer Case Keenum of Houston did not receive enough votes to be among the final five.

Ballots from the 926 voters, mostly media members and former winners, were due Monday evening.

Luck was the Heisman runner-up to Auburn's Cam Newton last year and passed up a chance to be the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft to return to Stanford for his junior season. From the moment he made the decision to stay in school in January, he became the odds-on favorite to win the big bronze statue.

Luck is looking to become Stanford's second Heisman winner, joining quarterback Jim Plunkett, who won in 1970.

"It would mean a lot," Luck said in an interview on ESPN. "I would mean a great deal for the university. Mean a lot to me and a great deal to the football program, as well."

He had another stellar season, passing for 3,170 yards with 35 touchdowns while leading the Cardinal to an 11-1 record and a second straight BCS bid. But the competition has been fierce and numerous contenders emerged.

The prognosticators now have Griffin as the most likely winner.

Heismanpundit.com, which has successfully predicted the past four winners with a straw poll of 13 voters, had Griffin as its top vote-getter on Monday. Luck was second and Richardson third.

Stiffarmtrophy.com, which compiles ballots from voters who make their choices public and has predicted the past nine winners, had Griffin winning by a comfortable margin over Luck, with Richardson third.

Griffin leads the nation in passer rating (192.3), with 3,998 yards and 36 touchdowns. He has also run for 644 yards and nine touchdowns. And much like Luck, Griffin has led a long-struggling program to its greatest success in decades. Baylor is 9-3 this season, its first nine-win season since 1986, including its first victory against Oklahoma.

"Baylor nation we're in there," Griffin said. "Now we just got to try to snatch it. Hopefully the vote turns out our way.

"Being invited is an honor. It's not all that we want, but it's a starting spot."

The best showing a Baylor player has had in the Heisman voting was quarterback Don Trull's fourth-place finish in 1963.

Richardson has been the unquestioned offensive engine for No. 2 Alabama. He's fifth in the nation in rushing at 131.9 yards per game and tied for fifth in touchdowns with 23. Richardson and the Crimson Tide will meet Mathieu and LSU in the BCS championship game on Jan. 9 in New Orleans.

The sophomore cornerback is the second defensive player to be a Heisman finalist in the past three years. Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska finished fourth in 2009.

Mathieu, though, is more like Charles Woodson, the do-it-all defensive back who won the 1997 Heisman for Michigan.

Mathieu has forced five fumbles, intercepted two passes and scored four touchdowns, including two long punt returns in LSU's past two games against Arkansas and Georgia.

He also was suspended for a game this season for violating the team's drug policy.

Ball has been a touchdown machine for Wisconsin and ranks fourth in rushing at 135.3 yards per game. He has 12 more touchdowns than the next best player in the nation and if he can tack on two more in the Rose Bowl against Oregon, he'll break Sanders' record.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/Mpr7K-1rcZY/Heisman-finalists-named-for-2011-college-football-award

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Tuesday, December 6, 2011

'Universal access' playgrounds planned in Twin Cities - Finance ...

Posted: 3:12 pm Mon, December 5, 2011
By ?MARISA HELMS
Tags: Andrea Weber, Chris DesRoches, construction costs, Falls 4 All, Flagship Recreation, Madison?s Place, Minneapolis Parks & Recreation Board, Peggy Halvorson

Peggy Halvorson, a nurse and Edina resident, started fundraising about a year ago for the future Falls 4 All park at the Wabun Picnic Area (above) in Minnehaha Falls Park in Minneapolis. (Staff photo: Bill Klotz)

A couple of nearly million-dollar playgrounds are planned for the Twin Cities metro area.

In Woodbury, a small group of residents is raising funds to build Madison?s Place, and in Minneapolis, volunteers are working with the city to construct Falls 4 All at the Wabun Picnic Area in Minnehaha Falls Park.

Each playground will be between 15,000 and 20,000 square feet in size. When built later next summer, Madison?s Place and Falls 4 All would give children and families with disabilities a much needed option.

In Minnesota, about 31,000 children, or 3 percent of children ages 0 to 14 years old, have at least one disability. But there are currently just three ?universal access? playgrounds in the entire state: in Rochester, Red Wing and St. Cloud.

?Universal access? is defined as a play space where children or parents with physical, developmental or sensory disabilities can use 70 percent to 100 percent of the equipment. Inclusive playgrounds go beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines, which require that 50 percent of the equipment be accessible.

These play areas must have good integrative design, lots of land and many ramps and platforms so that users with mobility devices, including wheelchairs and walkers, can have access to a variety of experiences, including sliding, swinging, spinning, bouncing and balancing.

?It allows kids more freedom,? said Minneapolis Parks & Recreation Board planner Andrea Weber. ?It?s really fun, but it costs a lot more.?

Weber said the Parks & Recreation Board is kicking in $300,000 toward construction of the Falls 4 All playground. The money is coming from a grant from the state?s Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment (the 2008 voter-approved amendment that increased state sales tax by 3/8 of 1 percent to fund environmental and arts programs).

The rest of the budget, a whopping $700,000, will be raised by a fundraising committee of the nonprofit People for Parks.

?I do get overwhelmed sometimes,? said Peggy Halvorson, a nurse and Edina resident who started fundraising for Falls 4 All about a year ago. To date, the project has raised $100,000.

?We?re not trying to build a handicapped playground,? said Halvorson. ?We?re trying to build a playground where everyone can play together. Inclusiveness in society is so important, and having a playground where all children can come together regardless of ability is so important. We learn to accept each other when we play together.?

Halvorson said that while many people think the playground is a good idea, raising money for it has been a hard sell given the poor economy. Most of what her group has raised so far has been small $20 to $50 contributions from individuals, she said.

?A lot of the foundations that had a lot of money to give away four or five years ago are feeling pinched,? said Halvorson. ?The amount they have available to give away has dropped quite a bit. They already have groups and programs that rely on them, so to take on something new is a real challenge.?

CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE. St. Louis Park-based Flagship Recreation designed a playground for Cornelia Elementary School in Edina that has universal access options. (Submitted rendering: Flagship Recreation)

Raising funds for Madison?s Place in Woodbury also has been difficult.

The city of Woodbury is contributing land for the playground at Bielenberg Sports Center, as well as donating $125,000 to the site?s preparation.

According to Dana Millington, the Woodbury resident behind the project, the initial fundraising goal was $1 million when she started in 2006. But, she has since adjusted expectations because she just hasn?t been able to raise that kind of money. She now thinks the project will come off for a total cost of about $700,000. She?s still trying to raise about $250,000.

The biggest budget eater in these projects is required rubber surfacing, which installs for about $20 per square foot (compared to $3 per square foot for sand).

?It?s crushed rubber with a concrete base,? explained Chris DesRoches of Flagship Recreation, a St. Louis Park-based playground design and installation company. ?It?s not cheap. And the actual installation is just like concrete, but it?s very labor intensive. It requires a binder,? he said, ?so, you pour it in, mix it up; pour it again, mix it again,? and so on.

Though expensive, rubber surfacing is durable and is considered an integral safety and mobility element for inclusive playground design.

DesRoches said that aside from the rubber surfacing, constructing a universal access playground is not at all complex.

?It?s very similar to building a fence,? said DesRoches. ?You dig a hole in the ground, put a post in it and pour in the concrete. Then you just attach all the components ? the climbers and ramps ? to those posts. It goes together easily.?

Other construction costs include site excavation and preparation, labor and building accessible walkways to access the play structure.

Ultimately, the size and level of accessibility of the new playgrounds in Minneapolis and Woodbury will be determined by the amount of money the volunteers are able to raise by next summer when construction is scheduled to begin for both projects.

Source: http://finance-commerce.com/2011/12/universal-access-playgrounds-planned-in-twin-cities/

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Monday, December 5, 2011

Syracuse coach Boeheim apologizes for abuse reaction (Reuters)

SYRACUSE, New York (Reuters) ? Syracuse University head basketball coach Jim Boeheim, who two weeks ago lashed out at those accusing a former assistant of sexually molesting ball boys, apologized on Friday for what he called insensitive remarks and said he "misspoke very badly."

At a press conference after a home basketball game, Boeheim made his most contrite statement since longtime assistant coach Bernie Fine was fired on Sunday following mounting allegations of improper behavior with juveniles, two of them ball boys working with the team.

Three men have accused Fine of sexually molesting them as juveniles during basketball team trips and at other times. A grand jury is investigating the allegations, which Fine has said were "patently false."

"I believe that I misspoke very badly in my response the allegations that have been made," an emotional Boeheim said. "I shouldn't have questioned what the accusers expressed or their motives. I am really sorry that I did that and I regret any harm that I caused."

Boeheim, a Hall of Fame coach who has one of the best winning records in college basketball, said that when the allegations erupted he reacted out of loyalty to Fine, with whom he had worked for more than 40 years.

"I reacted without thinking. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I am trying to learn from my mistake," he said.

Two former ball boys, Bobby Davis and Mike Lang, and a third man, Zach Tomaselli, all accused Fine of molesting them repeatedly when they were boys.

Tomaselli, now 23, told Reuters on Thursday that Fine invited him to an away basketball game in Pittsburgh in 2002 and molested him while the boy was staying with Fine in a hotel room. Tomaselli's father said his son was lying, and Tomaselli himself has been charged with abusing a 13-year-old boy.

INITIALLY SUPPORTED FINE

When the latest allegations emerged two weeks ago, Fine was put on leave by the university. Boeheim told reporters then that he fully supported Fine and that the accusers were lying.

"It is a bunch of a thousand lies that he has told," Boeheim was quoted by ESPN then as saying of accuser Davis.

Fine was fired by the university on Sunday after ESPN aired what it said was the audio of a telephone call between Fine's wife Laurie and Davis in which she suggests that she was aware her husband had behaved inappropriately.

On Sunday, Boeheim reversed himself and supported the firing, but did not apologize for his earlier comments.

Child abuse groups have accused Boeheim of being insensitive and said he should resign for supporting Fine.

On Tuesday at his first postgame press conference since Fine's firing, Boeheim said he was not worried about losing his job and would wait until the completion of the investigation to "find out what happened on my watch."

But his tone on Friday was different. Boeheim said he had spent part of Thursday at a Syracuse facility that cares for abused children and their families, and would get more involved in raising awareness of the problem.

Boeheim said his initial attack on the accusers was "insensitive to the individuals involved and especially to the overall issue of child abuse."

The Syracuse situation has been compared to Penn State University, where a once-respected assistant football coach was charged last month with abusing eight boys over a 15-year period.

That scandal forced out legendary head football coach Joe Paterno and the university president for not telling police. The former assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky, could face life in prison if convicted.

But Syracuse assistant Fine has not been charged with any crime, and a grand jury investigation of the allegations against him is in its early stages.

(Writing by Greg McCune; Editing by Cynthia Johnston)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111203/us_nm/us_syracuse_coach_boeheim

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Airbnb To Partner With Vayable To Upsell Travel Experiences To Renters

airbnbBack when we first wrote about Vayable (the site that lets just about anyone offer to host paid tours/activities for travelers) Alexia said it was "like an Airbnb for Travel Experiences." Airbnb would agree, it seems. We've learned tonight that Airbnb is prepping to launch a partnership to upsell travelers with Vayable's tour experiences.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/UDHSEYx1kQQ/

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Sunday, December 4, 2011

Why do some people never forget a face?

ScienceDaily (Dec. 2, 2011) ? "Face recognition is an important social skill, but not all of us are equally good at it," says Beijing Normal University cognitive psychologist Jia Liu. But what accounts for the difference? A new study by Liu and colleagues Ruosi Wang, Jingguang Li, Huizhen Fang, and Moqian Tian provides the first experimental evidence that the inequality of abilities is rooted in the unique way in which the mind perceives faces. "Individuals who process faces more holistically" -- that is, as an integrated whole -- "are better at face recognition," says Liu.

The findings will appear in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal published by the Association for Psychological Science.

In daily life, we recognize faces both holistically and also "analytically" -- that is, picking out individual parts, such as eyes or nose. But while the brain uses analytical processing for all kinds of objects -- cars, houses, animals -- "holistic processing is thought to be especially critical to face recognition," says Liu.

To isolate holistic processing as the key to face recognition, the researchers first measured the ability of study participants -- 337 male and female students -- to remember whole faces, using a task in which they had to select studied faces and flowers from among unfamiliar ones.

The next two tasks measured performance in tasks that mark holistic processing. The composite-face effect (CFE) shows up when two faces are split horizontally and stuck together. It's easier to identify the top half-face when it's misaligned with the bottom one than when the two halves are fitted smoothly together. "That's because our brain automatically combines them to form a new" -- and unfamiliar -- "face," says Liu: evidence of holistic processing. The other marker of holistic processing is the whole-part effect (WPE). In this one, people are shown a face, then asked to recognize a part of it -- say, the nose. They do better when the feature is presented within the whole face than when it stands on its own among other noses: again, we remember the nose integrated into the whole face. The researchers also assessed participants' general intelligence.

The results: Those participants who scored higher on CFE and WPE -- that is, who did well in holistic processing -- also performed better at the first task of recognizing faces. But there was no link between facial recognition and general intelligence, which is made up of various cognitive processes -- a suggestion that face processing is unique.

"Our findings partly explains why some never forget faces, while others misrecognize their friends and relatives frequently," says Liu. That's why the research holds promise for therapies for that second category of people, who may suffer disorders such as prosopagnosia (face blindness) and autism. Knowing that the mind receives a face as one whole thing and not as a collection of individual parts, "we may train people on holistic processing to improve their ability in recognizing faces," Liu says.

The article is entitled, "Individual Differences in Holistic Processing Predict Face-recognition Ability."

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/E4Th_lawA0U/111202155755.htm

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Saturday, December 3, 2011

Calif. residents grapple with windstorm cleanup (AP)

TEMPLE CITY, Calif. ? As the hurricane-force winds that pummeled the West eased Friday, Diane Johnson stood knee high in leaves and branches, surveying a fallen tree trunk at eye level and trying to decide just how to begin the big cleanup.

A near century-old eucalyptus tree toppled over in the middle of the night, crushing all three of the family's cars, landing at the doorstep of their Southern California home and blocking any view from their windows.

Trapped inside for hours, they were able to get out when the fire department cut them a small pathway.

"I have no idea what to do," she said. "I don't know. I don't know."

Like hundreds of thousands of people in Southern California on Friday, Johnson was without electricity. And just like Johnson, residents and crews struggled to clean up smashed trees, toppled power lines and debris-strewn roadways.

Several cities in the region, the hardest hit from Wednesday night's windstorms, were still in a state of emergency.

Schools in Pasadena and more than a dozen others in the Los Angeles Unified School District remained closed Friday.

California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said in a statement Friday that schools closed because of wind damage would still receive state funding.

"I want to assure school districts that they will not lose funding if their facilities are closed or used as emergency shelters during this disaster," Torlakson said.

In Temple City, the Los Angeles suburb where Johnson lives, a row of toppled power poles with wires attached blocked a street. The city's main street remained a shuttered ghost town as cars inched past darkened stop lights and shop signs in Chinese.

Seventy-five percent of the city remained without power. As residents in some parts were being advised to boil water or use bottled water, others began tossing out the food in their increasingly pungent refrigerators. As many as 200 trees fell in the storms.

As the night loomed, police increased patrols and the city handed out free flashlights.

During the day, residents began cleaning up, filling trash bags with leaves and branches. Streets with older, larger trees suffered the worst damage as top-heavy trunks fell over. But many homes were spared, including that of Johnson's next-door neighbor, Margaret Mushinskie.

The trimmed lawn at Mushinskie's house was pristine because her husband won a years-long battle with the city to cut down the two eucalyptus trees in front of their home.

"They need to come down," she said, expressing concern for Johnson's son who worked two jobs for his red sports car that now sat crushed under a pile of leaves. "Those poor people. He was so proud of his car. Bless his heart."

In the adjacent city of Arcadia, Aubreann Loving stood in the front yard of her home, watching one car after another turn onto her tiny cul-de-sac, unable to continue down a major cross street that had been blocked by a gigantic fallen tree.

Another tree crashed into her backyard, demolishing the yard's back wall.

The 15-year-old high school sophomore was at home with her family in a house with no heat or light and a refrigerator filled with spoiling food after the city's school district canceled classes at all 10 of its campuses for a second day.

Loving, who passed time Friday watching videos on a portable DVD player she had recharged at a friend's home, is no stranger to school furloughs, having taken her share of snow days off in her native Iowa.

But this, she complained, was far more monotonous.

"If the power would go off, it would come back on within a few hours," she said of elementary school days in Iowa. "But the power isn't coming back on right away here, so it's like there's nothing to do."

About 200,000 people in Southern California, more than 18,000 along California's Central Coast and thousands more in Utah ? where Thursday winds topped 100 mph ? remained without electricity. Authorities said some areas might not have power restored until Sunday.

In Pasadena, among the hardest hit cities in the region, inspectors were checking more than 100 damaged buildings to see if they should be red-tagged as being too dangerous to inhabit.

One 42-unit apartment building and other structures were red-tagged Thursday and two dozen more were yellow-tagged, allowing only limited access, said Lisa Derderian, the city's emergency management coordinator.

"Every street in Pasadena was impacted in one way or another," she said, adding that the city's cleanup would be expeditious. "We have the (Tournament of Roses) parade every year here so we are experts in cleanup and debris removal."

In Northern California, authorities said a wildlife biologist working in a Big Sur redwood forest was killed when a tree fell in heavy winds. Monterey County Coroner Detective Diana Schumacher told KSBW-TV that California condor biologist Michael Tyner died after the tree fell on him Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, crews Friday battled wildfires that were sparked by power lines blown down by the wind. The winds were blamed for the destruction of at least four homes.

Aiding firefighters and those involved in the cleanup was the fact that the high winds, which had been expected to return Thursday night, never materialized. Around the state, the 60- to 80-mph gusts of the previous day had become mere breezes.

The low-pressure system that had spawned the winds was moving eastward so quickly that the National Weather Service canceled red flag warnings that predicted extreme fire danger from the gusty, dry weather.

A new system was expected to move into Arizona on Friday night, bringing a chance of more winds over the weekend, but the gusts will not be as strong, weather service meteorologist Eric Boldt said.

Nevada could get 35-mph sustained winds with gusts to 70 mph, while Wyoming and Utah could see light snow, and New Mexico was warned to expect heavier snow and freezing drizzle.

___

Associated Press writers John Rogers and Alicia Chang in Los Angeles, Jennifer Dobner in Salt Lake City, Sudhin Thanawala in San Francisco and Oskar Garcia in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111203/ap_on_re_us/us_western_winds

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Friday, December 2, 2011

American Airlines bankruptcy to have little impact for fliers

For most of the 240,000 passengers who fly American Airlines each day, the airline's bankruptcy filing should have little noticeable impact.

American continues to operate flights, honor tickets and take reservations. It says its frequent-flier program will be unaffected.

American Airlines files for bankruptcy reorganization

Some travelers may eventually see fewer American flights at their airport. The incoming CEO said American would probably reduce its flight schedule "modestly" while restructuring in bankruptcy court. But that would continue a strategy in place at American and other airlines in response to high jet fuel prices.

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The real risk to American's passengers is if the restructuring fails, the airline ultimately liquidates and ceases to fly. Even then, many travelers are protected if they bought tickets with a credit card.

Delta, United, Continental and US Airways have all gone through Chapter 11. Travelers continued to book tickets. Planes still took off and landed and frequent flier miles were still earned and redeemed. In fact, the bankruptcy process is usually more taxing on the airline's shareholders, who tend to get wiped out. Or on workers, who can lose pay and benefits, and even their job.

Still, some American travelers were nervous on Tuesday.

"I would definitely be less likely to book with them. I would be afraid they'd be less likely to keep their flights," Corina Fallbacher said after landing home in Chicago on an American flight from Orlando.

American is the nation's third-largest airline behind United Continental Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. It operates out of five major hubs in New York, Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago, and Miami. It has major international partnerships with British Airways and Japan Airlines.

American bankruptcy long overdue, travel experts say

Steve Varraso, 39, an event planner who had flown from Boston to Chicago's O'Hare, said he was slightly concerned about his frequent-flier miles on American. But Varraso and other frequent fliers shouldn't worry. Eastern Airlines, Pan Am and Trans World Airlines all ceased flying but miles in their programs were transferred over to other airlines that bought some of their assets. TWA miles actually went into American Airlines' frequent flier program, AAdvantage.

"Miles are safe," said Gary Leff, co-founder of frequent flier site MilePoint. He said the bankruptcies of past airlines "are instructive." He even suggested there might be some promotions to keep loyal travelers.

American has prided itself on having avoided the bankruptcy process. But that left American with higher labor costs than its rivals, a major reason it continues to lose money while they are again earning profits. American spends $3,008 on salary and benefits for every hour each of its 600 planes is in the air, according to Vaughn Cordle, chief analyst with AirlineForecasts. United spends $2,801, Delta $2,587 and US Airways $1,991.

Those labor costs, along with a 40 percent jump in fuel expense, contributed to AMR's $162 million loss in the third quarter despite higher airfares. Delta and United, meanwhile, had a combined profit of $1.2 billion.

Bob Boyd was briefly a pilot for American after getting out of the military. At Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on Tuesday morning, Boyd was surprised to hear that American hadn't already solved its financial problems.

"I thought the union issues were behind the company. I had heard fares would go up to compensate for lost revenue, so this is extremely surprising," he said.

One way that American and other airlines have controlled costs is by reducing passenger-carrying capacity. That's done by cutting flights or using smaller planes on some routers. Thomas W. Horton, who was named the new CEO of American's parent company, AMR Corp., said fliers can expect some modest capacity cuts in the future. Passengers whose flight is canceled or moved because of a schedule change will be rebooked.

Many travelers are aware that American was in financial difficulty and that bankruptcy court provides a way to for it to get back on its feet.

Bob Rowberry, 59, of Salt Lake City, flew American to Chicago for business Tuesday morning. Waiting for his luggage, he said the bankruptcy filing will help American keep from going under.

"Until they do (go out of business) I'll continue to fly with them."

Carla K. Johnson in Chicago and Danny Robbins in Dallas contributed to this report.

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

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45475613/ns/travel-news/

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Monday, November 28, 2011

Alberta study disputes oil sands corrosion claims (Reuters)

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) ? An Alberta study has found that crude from the province's oil sands is no more corrosive to pipelines than conventional oil, but it points out there is no definitive peer-reviewed research on the issue, which has played a role in Keystone XL pipeline controversy.

A 29-page review of available data by Alberta Innovates, a government-owned research corporation, addressed warnings by environmental groups that crude from the northern Alberta oil sands was more damaging to pipeline walls in several different ways, increasing risks of oil spills.

The study found there are differences in the chemical makeup of the types of oil, but not necessarily in corrosive qualities.

The paper made several recommendations, including urging Alberta's regulator, the Energy Resources Conservation Board, to start separating safety and operating statistics for pipelines that carry oil sands crude from those that ship conventional oil to allow better information gathering.

The paper, published this month, was written by Jenny Been, a specialist in Alberta Innovates' corrosion-engineering and advanced materials section. It was prepared for John Zhou of the agency's energy and environment solutions division.

It is not clear what weight the research carries and what the next steps are. Zhou and other officials at his division were not available for comment.

Corrosion fears were part of the controversy surrounding TransCanada Corp's $7 billion plan to build the Keystone XL pipeline to Texas from the Alberta oil sands. The plan is now on hold after the U.S. State Department pushed back a go-ahead decision by more than a year. The issue has arisen with other projects aimed at shipping crude from the tar sands, the world's third-largest oil deposit.

Despite a push by Canada and its oil industry to boost exports and staunch opposition from environmental groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), there is little, if any, dedicated research on the impact of the oil in question, bitumen mixed with lighter diluting hydrocarbons, called "dilbit".

New York-based NRDC released a study early this year that spelled out the concerns and called for the U.S. pipeline safety authority to commission research. The Alberta paper said the NRDC did an "excellent job" summarizing the issues and also points out the lack of a formal peer-reviewed study.

There is no indication that releasing the Alberta Innovates paper to regulators or media would have swayed the State Department in favor of greenlighting Keystone XL. But it may have helped calm some fears over risks of oil spills in environmentally sensitive areas, such Nebraska's Sand Hills.

In the paper, Been reviewed information from several sources and found dilbit crudes had acid, sulfur and chloride salt concentrations comparable to many conventional crudes.

The one exception is a variation called "dilsynbit", which is bitumen mixed with light synthetic crude. It has higher concentrations of solids but still well below the limits set by regulators and pipeline operators, she wrote.

Been pointed out that those ingredients can cause corrosion at temperatures above 200 C (392 F) at refineries, but are too stable at lower pipeline temperatures to cause such damage.

The research highlighted one risk, however - the impact of the buildup of sludge, made up of clay particles, water and oil, in pipelines. "The corrosivity of these sludges varies, but seems to be linked to water content, which can exceed 10 percent, and large bacterial populations," she said.

Sludge is not unique to pipelines carrying dilbit. However, the paper recommended that the compatibility of diluent and bitumen should be studied to find out if that plays any role in the formation of sludge.

The paper also urged support for a "downstream quality database" being developed by Crude Quality Inc and its industry partners. Crude Quality is an Edmonton, Alberta-based company that compiles data on Canadian oil types.

"It will be a valuable resource for the evaluation of sludge deposition and underdeposit corrosion during transportation," Been said.

(Editing by Peter Galloway)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111125/wl_canada_nm/canada_us_oilsands_corrosion

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