news breaking: September 2012

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Ryan rejects need for breakthrough moment

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Mitt Romney's running mate shot down the need for a breakthrough in the first presidential debate Wednesday, trying to allay Republican concerns that the race is slipping away with five weeks to go and momentum on President Barack Obama's side.

Vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan, working to keep debate expectations for Romney in check, praised Obama's debating skills and called the Democratic incumbent "a very gifted speaker" with years of experience on the national stage. He played down signs that Obama is gaining distance in the most competitive states. Polls are tight, Ryan said, and will stay that way until the election Nov. 6.

"We're running against an incumbent president with incredible resources," Ryan said. "More importantly, I don't think one event is going to make or break this campaign."

Yet at the same time, a prominent Romney supporter said he expected Romney's performance in Denver on Wednesday night would shake up the campaign after a "tough couple of weeks." Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., predicted Romney would do "extraordinarily well" in the debate, and that come Thursday morning, "this whole race is going to be turned upside down."

Romney is trying to rebound from a difficult September, and the three October debates offer a chance to help show that the race is winnable. Christie, who passed on a 2012 run for the White House but is a possible contender in 2016, called the domestic policy and economic debate in Denver "the restart of this campaign."

That confidence from a high-profile backer comes even as Americans are growing more optimistic about the economy and Obama's leadership, creating a significant obstacle for Romney.

Polls show Obama with a steady lead in many of the nine states where the candidates are competing most fiercely. If the election were held today, an Associated Press analysis shows Obama would win at least 271 electoral votes, enough for re-election. The analysis is intended to provide a snapshot of a race that until recently has been stubbornly close in the small number of the most contested states.

Obama headed to Las Vegas for an evening rally and planned to stay in Nevada as he prepared for the debate. Accompanying him was a cadre of advisers assisting with debate prep, including chief of staff Jack Lew, top economic adviser Gene Sperling, pollster Joel Benenson and speechwriter Jon Favreau. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., who is playing Romney in debate prep, was traveling to Nevada separately.

Romney remained in Boston on Sunday, going through preparations of his own for Wednesday's event.

Ryan, a Wisconsin congressman, said on "Fox News Sunday" that the debate would mark Romney's debut "on this kind of stage." Romney participated in more than two dozen multicandidate debates during White House runs in 2008 and 2012, and went one-on-one against Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., during a losing 1994 Senate bid.

"They expect to come out of this with the race fundamentally changed. Now, what does that mean?" asked David Plouffe, a senior White House adviser. "If it's going to fundamentally change, that means in seven or 10 days from now you'll see states like Ohio tied, the state of Iowa tied because that's what really matters here. So they have set the bar quite high."

Christie said Romney needs to "tell the truth about what's going on" in the country while laying out "a positive and hopeful vision for the future."

"I think he can do both. Listen, Mitt Romney can walk and chew gum at the same time. I'm not worried," Christie said.

Ryan acknowledged errors by the campaign but urged Republicans who are publicly carping to join him on the trail to witness the forceful case they're making.

"We've had some missteps, but at the end of the day, the choice is really clear," Ryan said, adding that up until now, he and Romney "have not been able to frame that choice as clearly."

The campaign has suffered from the release of a hidden-camera video of Romney calling 47 percent of Americans victims who depend on government help. Almost two weeks after the video's release, the matter continues to dog Romney, featuring prominently in Obama's campaign ads.

Republicans, meanwhile, continued challenging Obama's foreign policy, saying his approach had contributed to unrest across the Middle East. Ryan cited Syria, Iran, Russia and Israel as countries where the "ugly fruits" of Obama's policies are unraveling.

Romney, speaking to voters in a podcast released Saturday, faulted Obama for presiding over a decline in the nation's moral standing and a retreat of American leadership. "President Obama's foreign policy is one of passivity and denial," Romney said. "And that places America and our friends and allies at the mercy of events and those who mean to do us harm."

Ryan, looking ahead to his lone debate on Oct. 11, said he expected Vice President Joe Biden would be highly disciplined despite a reputation for verbal slip-ups,

"He's fast on the cuff. He's a witty guy. He knows who he is and he's been doing this for 40 years," said Ryan. "You're not going to rattle Joe Biden."

Plouffe appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press" and ABC's "This Week." Christie spoke on NBC, ABC and CBS' "Face the Nation."

___

Associated Press writer Julie Pace in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

___

Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ryan-rejects-breakthrough-moment-191532202--election.html

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Saturday, September 29, 2012

AP Exclusive: Brown did service at his old daycare

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Chris Brown has logged more than 1,400 hours of community service for the 2009 beating of former girlfriend Rihanna, basically completing his sentence. The Associated Press has learned one-third of those hours were recorded at a rural Virginia daycare center where the singer spent time as a child and his mother once served as director.

And in the last seven months, an AP analysis of the work records indicates Brown's labor credits increased by four times from what they had been during the previous two years. Yet through it all, Brown hasn't stopped being an R&B superstar, performing worldwide, releasing an album and even getting injured in a nightclub brawl.

Brown's service records have come under scrutiny by a prosecutor and a judge, who are trying to ascertain their accuracy. At a Monday hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg called the accounting of Brown's community service by Richmond, Va., Police Chief Bryan T. Norwood "somewhat cryptic."

No specific concerns were detailed by the court, yet the AP analysis of Brown's service shows that in the past seven months, the artist has been credited for working 701 hours ? a feat that previously took him 28 months to achieve, clocking sporadic, shorter shifts mostly at Richmond police and fire stations.

In recent months, the logs show Brown has essentially been working three jobs ? performing cleanup duty in Richmond police precincts by day, janitorial chores at the daycare 45 miles east by night, and hit songs for global audiences in between.

Ida Minter, the administrator of the Tappahannock Children's Center, said Brown attended the nonprofit facility "off and on" for more than 12 years and his mother was employed there for 24 years, including as director.

Brown's community service at the center began in January 2010, but work entries dramatically increased in March of this year. Most of his shifts were logged between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m. and were typically listed as "general cleaning," with some entries describing him painting or stripping and waxing floors. It is unclear who supervised him.

Brown's attorney Mark Geragos said Monday that he welcomed inquiries from Los Angeles probation officials and said he urged Brown to work double shifts so the lawyer wouldn't have to keep coming back to court.

Minter described Brown's work at the daycare center favorably.

"I think Chris always goes beyond because he always wants to give back to where he grew up," she told the AP. "And this was a part of his home because his mom worked here full-time."

"If you've ever been involved in stripping and waxing, it's hard," she said. "It's a lot of work."

Minter said Brown was always accompanied by someone while working at the center, but she said she couldn't discuss who it was.

The singer, who pleaded guilty to felony assault in June 2009, only worked at night and on weekends when no children were present, Minter said. That is supported by the logs, which also showed that Brown only worked one other weekend shift that wasn't at the daycare center.

Brown has been undeniably busy in recent months, releasing his new album "Fortune," traveling to France for a video shoot, winning a Grammy Award, performing at other award shows and resuming his friendship and music collaboration with Rihanna.

He has also drawn negative attention for being present at a bottle-throwing brawl at a New York City nightclub that left him with a cut chin. And in February, a woman in Miami accused him of taking her cellphone to prevent her from snapping pictures of him.

It was after that incident that Brown, 23, accelerated his work schedule, completing the 701 hours in seven months, according to the records filed Monday.

Meanwhile, the singer has remained an active promoter of his work on Twitter, where he sends out almost daily links to his music and clothing line, and also interacts with fans.

His international travel, which must be approved by Schnegg, has somehow been squeezed around his marathon community service sessions.

In July, for instance, Brown is listed as working 42 hours in four days before leaving for France. Upon his return, he worked 12 consecutive days, logging 164 hours, 100 of which were at the daycare described in Norwood's log as "Tappa Day Care."

March was similarly busy, with Brown being credited for work on 20 of the month's 30 days; he was approved to travel to Cancun, Mexico, for five of the remaining days.

Before this week, Brown had received praise from Schnegg and had never been in danger of violating his probation. But that could change if the inquiry the judge ordered turns up irregularities with the singer's service.

Schnegg allowed Brown to perform his work in his home state of Virginia under the supervision of Norwood, but on Monday noted there are discrepancies in the chief's accounting.

For one, Brown's work log shows he has put in 1,402 hours, but a couple of errors in the data may push the total up to 1,404. And although Brown was sentenced to perform 1,440 hours of labor, the chief wrote in a letter dated Sept. 14 that Brown had completed all his service hours.

Norwood's spokesman declined to respond to questions from the AP on the discrepancies. "Chief Norwood has reported directly to the judge, providing periodic updates regarding the progress of Chris Brown's community service," spokesman Gene Lepley said.

Prosecutors "are not happy with the quality of the report," Schnegg said Monday. "They don't know if it's reliable, yes or no."

District Attorney's spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said the office would make all its comments on the case in court.

The judge and prosecution aren't the only ones concerned about the administration of Brown's sentence. In August, Virginia probation authorities recommended that Richmond police stop supervising Brown after the singer tested positive for marijuana and what they believed was unapproved travel to France. However, they made no critical comments about his community service.

Geragos, Brown's attorney, declined comment for this story, but he said at Monday's court hearing that he believes his client has completed all his community service.

Brown's labors have left a lasting mark at the Tappahannock Children's Center: a colorful wall mural featuring a huge clown face and splashes of purple, orange, green and yellow. The words "Big Room" ? the informal name of the large space amid a warren of smaller classrooms ? is painted in fat letters along a wall where jackets are hung on hooks.

Brown approached Minter, who has known Brown since his birth, to ask if he could use his art skills on the walls of the big room, she said.

The singer is not the only celebrity to perform community service with an entity to which they have close ties. Mel Gibson and Sean Penn had similar arrangements.

Both actors had received permission in advance for the assignments in misdemeanor cases. Before Monday's filings, there had been no mention of Brown working at his boyhood daycare center in probation reports.

___

Steve Szkotak reported from Richmond, Va.

___

Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP .

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ap-exclusive-brown-did-old-daycare-151502349.html

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Mars Curiosity rover snaps crescent moon Phobos in pale, Martian sky

The Curiosity rover's latest Mars photo captured the planet's largest Martian moon, Phobos, during a Martian evening, revealing the satellite as a faint crescent moon.

By Tariq Malik,?SPACE.com / September 27, 2012

This close up from a photo by NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows the Martian moon Phobos as a faint crescent in the Martian evening sky. The black blemish is the result of a bad pixel in the image data. Image released Sept. 26.

NASA/JPL

Enlarge

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has been doing more than just driving around the Red Planet and taking pictures of rocks. It's been doing a bit of Martian moon-gazing too.

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The?Curiosity rover's latest Mars photo?captured the planet's largest Martian moon, Phobos, during a Martian evening, revealing the satellite as a faint crescent moon.

"Moon Over Mars: I snapped a pic of one of Mars' moons, Phobos, in the twilight sky over Gale crater," NASA's Curiosity team announced on the mission's Twitter page @MarsCuriosity, writing as the rover itself, on Wednesday (Sept. 26) ? the same day Curiosity made its longest drive yet.

The photo shows Phobos as a faint white crescent that almost blends in with the Martian sky. A black blemish also appears in the image, but is merely the result of a bad pixel in the image data, rover officials said.

"When you send images from 179 million miles away, stuff happens," they added via Twitter.?

The new photo of Phobos is Curiosity's latest view of Martian moons from the surface of the Red Planet. Earlier this month, Curiosity snapped photos of Phobos as it crossed part of the sun, creating a partial?solar eclipse on Mars.

Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos, both of which are much smaller than Earth's moon. Phobos is about 14 miles wide (22 kilometers), making it the largest Martian satellite. Deimos is about 9.3 miles across (15 km) at its largest point and is farther from Mars than Phobos.?

The Curiosity rover's Phobos photos are just part of the science work the car-size robot has been performing on Mars. The rover landed inside the planet's vast Gale Crater on Aug. 5 and is currently driving toward its first science destination, a location called Glenelg.

On Wednesday, Curiosity drove 160 feet (48.9 meters) closer to Glenelg, marking its longest single drive of its mission so far. To date, the rover has covered about a quarter-mile (416 meters) on Mars.

NASA's?Mars rover Curiosity?is expected to spend at least two years exploring Gale Crater to determine if the region could have ever supported microbial life. Mission scientists plan to drive the rover up a 3-mile (5-km) mountain ? Mount Sharp ?that rises from the crater's center.

NASA will hold a press conference today at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT) today to update the media and public on Curiosity's progress on Mars. You can watch the press conference?live on SPACE.com here.

You can follow SPACE.com Managing Editor Tariq Malik on Twitter?@tariqjmalik?and?SPACE.com on Twitter?@Spacedotcom. We're also on?Facebook?&?Google+.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/Nye7evNhNBk/Mars-Curiosity-rover-snaps-crescent-moon-Phobos-in-pale-Martian-sky

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Friday, September 28, 2012

Regime sends text message to Syrian rebels: 'Game over'

BEIRUT (AP) ? Syrian authorities on Thursday sent text messages over cell phones nationwide with a message for rebels fighting President Bashar Assad's regime: "Game over."

The messages signed by the Syrian Arab Army also urged the rebels to surrender their weapons and warned the countdown to evict foreign fighters has begun. The texts appear to be part of the regime's psychological battle against the rebels, but are highly unlikely to have any effect on fighters intent on toppling Assad.

Syrians say they began receiving the messages a day after rebels bombed a military command center in Damascus ? a major security breach of the heavily guarded capital that highlighted the regime's growing vulnerability in the face of a rebellion growing in confidence and capabilities.

People with cellular subscriptions received the messages while those with prepaid phones did not, residents in the Syrian capital said.

Despite the high-profile attack, the two sides have been locked in a stalemate after 18 months of conflict. Activists say the death toll since the conflict began in March last year has recently topped 30,000, with nearly two-thirds of the casualties reported in the past six months.

In August, Syrian army helicopters dropped leaflets warning rebels in Damascus to hand over their arms and seek amnesty.

In Geneva on Thursday, the United Nations' refugee agency said the U.N. and its partners are launching a revised appeal for $487.9 million to help support Syrian refugees. It said 2,000 to 3,000 refugees are crossing into neighboring countries each day.

The UNHCR said 294,000 Syrian refugees are registered or awaiting registration in neighboring countries.

Earlier Thursday, a Lebanese TV station broadcast footage showing Syrian government troops driving rebels from a building they had briefly occupied a day earlier after a double car bomb attack struck army headquarters in Damascus.

The images from Lebanon's Al Manar TV station further demonstrated the scale of the security breach of the heavily guarded capital by rebels determined to topple the Assad regime.

The fighters detonated car bombs that engulfed the army headquarters in flames, followed by three hours of gunbattles in and around the compound Wednesday.

The government said four army guards were killed and 14 people were wounded, including civilians and military personnel.

The carefully orchestrated attacks were the most dramatic security breach in the center of the capital Damascus since July, when rebels detonated explosives inside a high-level crisis meeting in Damascus that killed four top regime officials, including Assad's brother-in-law and the defense minister.

They highlighted the regime's growing vulnerability, even as the 18-month battle to bring down Assad is locked in a stalemate.

Al Manar's correspondent Youssef Shaeito said he accompanied Syrian troops on Wednesday as they stormed the compound after the explosions. In an interview with the station, he said he saw the bodies of three gunmen inside, suggesting clashes between government forces and rebels inside the building.

The station is owned by the Lebanese Hezbollah militant group, a strong ally of Assad's regime. Syrian state-run media, however, reported only on the car bombs, omitting any mention of clashes inside the building.

Exclusive Al Manar footage showed a group of soldiers surrounding a building at the compound and shooting at targets inside. Shortly afterward, a pickup truck with a heavy machine gun mounted on it joins the battle.

Eventually, dozens of troops are seen storming the building and going up the stairs from one room to the other amid smoke. The bodies of three gunmen are seen on the floor, one of them with an apparent suicide belt tied around his waist.

Shaeito said that in the mayhem following the explosions, gunmen had infiltrated the army command headquarters, taken up positions and begun shooting at soldiers. He said the gunmen "moved from floor to floor and room to room" and tossed grenades at soldiers outside.

He said it took soldiers about 45 minutes before they were able to storm the building.

International diplomacy has failed to stop the bloodshed in Syria. Syrian activists said more than 305 people were killed across Syria on Wednesday, making it one of the deadliest days since the conflict began.

They included at least 40 people whose bodies were discovered in a suburb of Damascus, some of whom appeared to have been killed execution-style. The exact circumstances in which the victims were killed remain unclear because of strict restrictions on the media.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syria-tells-rebels-mobile-phones-game-over-132140584.html

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Obama blocks Chinese wind farms in Oregon over security

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama blocked on Friday a privately owned Chinese company from building wind turbines close to a Navy military site in Oregon due to national security concerns, and the company said it would challenge the action in court.

The rare presidential order to divest interests in the wind farms comes as Obama campaigns for a second term against Republican Mitt Romney, who has accused him of being soft on China.

Ralls Corp, which had been installing wind turbine generators made in China by Sany Group, has four wind farm projects that are within or in the vicinity of restricted air space at a naval weapons systems training facility, according to the Obama administration.

"There is credible evidence that leads me to believe" that Ralls Corp, Sany Group and the two Sany Group executives who own Ralls "might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States," Obama said in issuing his decision.

Ralls Corp had filed a lawsuit against the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) for ordering it to stop all construction and operations at its projects while the government panel completed its investigation and finalized its recommendation to Obama.

After the decision was announced on Friday, the company said it was confident that the courts would vindicate Ralls Corp's rights under the law and the Constitution.

Although CFIUS reviews dozens of foreign investment deals for potential national security concerns every year, the president is rarely called upon to issue a formal order as companies usually abandon their deals or divest assets when the panel takes issue with their transaction.

The last time a president formally blocked a deal on national security grounds was in 1990 when then President George H.W. Bush stopped a Chinese aero-technology company from acquiring a U.S. manufacturing firm.

"This is a big deal because it is the first time since 1990 that the president of the United States has either blocked a transaction from occurring or divested a transaction that has occurred," said Clay Lowery, a former assistant secretary at Treasury who oversaw the CFIUS process and now is with Rock Creek Global Advisors.

DIVEST

Ralls Corp had hired the George W. Bush administration's top lawyer Paul Clement to help represent the company as well as a former U.S. assistant attorney general, Viet Dinh, who helped the Republican administration develop the Patriot Act. But that appeared to do little to convince the current administration to allow the company to resume operations.

The presidential order gives the Chinese company 90 days to divest all its interests in the projects. However, sources close to Ralls Corp said the company was still evaluating the order and had no immediate plan to unwind its activities.

Only one of the four wind farms was in restricted airspace and CFIUS never came up with a plan that would require the company to only divest interests in that particular project, the sources said.

In addition, the sources said there are other wind farms in the same area that are also operated by foreigners, albeit one company is from Denmark and the other from Germany.

NOT A PRECEDENT

Obama's decision comes as two other Chinese companies are vying for CFIUS approval.

The Treasury Department stressed that Obama's decision was not a precedent for other investments from China or any other country. Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank said the United States generally welcomed investment from China but not in every case.

"Particularly when you're talking about China, but there's other countries where this is true too, one has to be worried about national security concerns," Blank said in remarks at the Council on Foreign Relations earlier on Friday.

China's state-owned oil company CNOOC Ltd is trying to buy Canada's Nexen in a $15.1 billion deal and Chinese auto parts company Wanxiang Group Corp is about to takeover U.S. battery maker A123 Systems Inc. Both Chinese firms are waiting for the government panel's decision and CFIUS experts see the Ralls case as a one-off decision.

"There have been many Chinese investments in the U.S. that have gone through without trouble," said Benjamin Powell, a former general counsel to the director of national intelligence who is now a partner at Wilmer Hale.

(Additional reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Vicki Allen and Claudia Parsons)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-blocks-chinese-wind-farm-due-national-security-183008159--finance.html

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Altidore scores for AZ in Cup win

By The Associated Press

Associated Press Sports

updated 7:40 p.m. ET Sept. 27, 2012

ALKMAAR, Netherlands (AP) - Jozy Altidore scored a 76th-minute penalty in AZ Alkmaar's 4-1 win over SC Veendam in Dutch Cup play on Thursday.

Altidore already had seven goals for his club in

Viktor Elm had a hat trick for Alkmaar, which advanced to the third round. PSV Eindhoven also advanced, beating Achilles 29 3-2, and EHC Norad beat De Zouaven 1-0.

---

SIENA, Italy (AP) - Having started the season with a six-point penalty due to a betting scandal, Siena finally moved into positive territory with a 1-0 win over Bologna on Thursday in the final match of Serie A's fifth round.

Forward Emanuele Calaio scored in the 61st minute with a shot from outside the area that was deflected in off the foot of a defender.

Siena now has two points. Bologna remained with four points, nine behind co-leaders Juventus and Napoli.

Siena goalkeeper Gianluca Pegolo had a solid night at Siena's Artemio Franchi stadium, negating efforts from Alberto Gilardino and Marco Motta, among others.

Calaio nearly added another goal in added time.

Barca invites 3 Palestinians after Hamas boycott

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -Barcelona has invited three Palestinians to attend the Oct. 7 match against Real Madrid in response to Hamas calling for a media boycott of the club after it gave a complimentary ticket to an Israeli soldier.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/44676751/ns/sports-soccer/

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Nature's misfits: Reclassifying protists helps us understand how many species remain undiscovered

ScienceDaily (Sep. 27, 2012) ? Since the Victorian era, categorizing the natural world has challenged scientists. No group has presented a challenge as tricky as the protists, the tiny, complex life forms that are neither plants nor animals. A new reclassification of eukaryotic life forms, published in the Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, draws together the latest research to clarify the current state of protist diversity and categorization, as well as the many species that remain to be discovered.

"Protists include species traditionally referred to as protozoa and algae, some fungal-like organisms, and many other life forms that do not fit into the old worldview that divided species between plants and animals," said Professor Sina Adl, from the University of Saskatchewan. "By the 1960's it had become clear that these species could no longer fit within such a narrow system, yet the first community-wide attempt to rationally categorize all the protists in the natural evolutionary groups was only made in 2005."

The 2005 classification, led by Professor Adl and published by the Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, gave scientists a structure for understanding these species; however, it was limited to the technology available at the time and recent advances have prompted the need for a reclassification.

"With environmental genomics we are experiencing a renaissance of new protist discoveries," said Adl. "These new species allow us to better appreciate how little we know about the biodiversity around us and how they contribute to maintaining the planet's chemical balance."

The most significant changes are the introduction and recognition of new super groups, larger than traditional biological kingdoms. This reflects a greater understanding of the most ancient relationships between protists, their shared ancestry and their connections to animals and plants.

This includes recognition of the Amorphea, a group that links animals, fungi and their protist relatives, including the marine choanoflagellates, to a diverse group of protists largely dominated by various amoeboid cells. This includes macroscopic slime molds, shell-dwelling amoebae, small flagellated amoebae and large voracious amoeboid predators of bacteria, algae and even small crustaceans.

A second new super group, SAR, brings together many of the most common and successful algae, microbial predators, and parasites on earth. Members of this group range from giant kelp and other brown seaweeds, to the forams (living sand grains), and the parasite that causes malaria in humans. Large scale DNA and RNA sequencing studies conducted since 2005 have shown that these profoundly dissimilar forms are all actually related to each other.

"This new classification, that better reflects how species are related, improves our ability to predict the number of species that remain to be discovered," concluded Professor Adl. "There is a huge unknown diversity in the deep sea, but probably even more in the soil we walk on."

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Journal Reference:

Felicity V. Crotty, Sina M. Adl, Rod P. Blackshaw, Philip J. Murray. Using Stable Isotopes to Differentiate Trophic Feeding Channels within Soil Food Webs. Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.1550-7408.2011.00608.x

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/imxk5jAti-Y/120927124202.htm

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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Jimmy Fallon Gives America What It Wants: Theme Songs

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[VIDEO] 'Mrs. Bieber' Dies Of Brain Cancer ? Avalanna Routh Dead ...

The six-year-old girl who had a pretend wedding with Justin Bieber has sadly passed away. Our thoughts go out to her family.

Avalanna Routh ? also known as ?Mrs. Bieber? ? died of brain cancer on September 26. The little girl was famous for her love of Justin Bieber which prompted hospital workers to conduct a pretend wedding with a paper cut-out of the teen heartthrob.?She eventually met and became good friends with her ?husband.?
Avalanna?s family took to Twitter to announce the devastating news.

?Our darling Avalanna went to Heaven this morning. Oh Avalanna, the brightest star ? you took our hearts with you, our greatest Love;(,? @Avalanna tweeted.

According to the Associated Press, she died of an atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor. In her sadly brief life, Avalanna?s dreams were come true when she met Justin Bieber after ?marrying? him in February 2012. She even went on The Today Show with the 18-year-old singer to talk about what great friends they ?d become!

?We iChat and we Facetime,? Justin said on Today in June 2012.

Justin would always tweet about the little girl, ?referring to her as his ?wifey.? He also took to Twitter to express his sadness about the devastating news.

?Just got the worst news ever. one of the greatest spirits i have ever known is gone. please pray for her family and for her,? Justin tweeted on Sept. 26. ?RIP Avalanna. I love you.?Please show respect to her and her family. Say a prayer for her and for them. I miss her.?

A close friend of Justin?s tells HollywoodLife.com exclusively, ?Justin is really sad about his little friend Mrs. Bieber losing her battle [with her terrible illness.] He got the phone call yesterday and is not happy. His heart and prayers really go out to her family.?

We are so sad to hear about this devastating news. Our thoughts and prayers are with Avalanna?s family today.

What do you think, HollywoodLifers?

? Reporting by Sandra Clark

More Avalanna ?Mrs. Bieber? Routh News:

Justin Bieber ?All Around The World? ? JB Checks In With Mrs. Bieber
Justin Bieber Kisses Biggest Fan, Mrs. Bieber ? Cancer Patient?s Dream Comes True

Source: http://hollywoodlife.com/2012/09/26/mrs-bieber-avalanna-routh-dead/

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Rare Disease Science Challenge ? your call to action!

If you or a loved one is unlucky enough to be affected by a rare disease then it can be a continued uphill struggle. Your doctor will likely never have seen a case before which means you suffer with symptoms while awaiting diagnosis, and this can sometimes take years. Even when an accurate diagnosis is reached there may be few treatment options; the pharmaceutical companies just aren?t interested in developing drugs to treat such a small market. For the majority (>95%) of the 7000 rare diseases there is no FDA approved therapy. Perhaps the cruelest twist of rare diseases, however, is that so many of the patients are young children.? The NIH estimates that 50% of rare diseases affect children, and 30% of pediatric cases die before they reach their 5^th birthday!

Collectively rare diseases are not rare. The fact is that while a disease might be labeled as ?rare?, the number of persons suffering from one of the thousands of rare diseases is estimated at 10% of the population [1], or approx. 30 million people in the United States and 350 million people globally. Mainstream pharmaceutical companies have long ignored rare diseases. With the increasing de-centralization of scientific research, and the growth of the citizen science movement, however, there has never been a better time to tackle this problem head on. That?s exactly what Assay Depot is doing by teaming up with the Rare Genomics Institute ? to bring awareness to the current broken system for diagnosing, treating and curing rare diseases.

The Rare Genomics Institute provides hope to children suffering with a rare disease. Most rare diseases are genetic in nature, caused by a mutation somewhere in the 3.2 billion bases of human DNA. The Rare Genomics Institute uses crowdfunding to pay for sequencing of the sick child?s genome and then assembles a network of academic specialists who work together to identify the child?s genetic mutation. Now Assay Depot has teamed up with The Rare Genomics Institute to take the process one-step farther, and go on the offensive with the Rare Disease Science Challenge.

The competition is open to researchers, foundations, or everyday people. Families with a child afflicted with a rare disease will have the opportunity to work with a network of academic researchers and use donated research services to develop research proposals tailored to their child?s needs. An expert panel of scientists will evaluate the research proposals with the final winner(s) selected by Facebook voting.

If we can improve the standard of care for just one rare disease we will bring relief to thousands of people, very likely children, who currently suffer. We think that is a dream worth fighting for. I am sure Chris and Hugh Hempel would agree. Their identical twin daughters, Addison and Cassidy, have been diagnosed with Niemann-Pick Type C, a rare, incurable and fatal genetic disease that causes progressive neurological deterioration. This week Global Genes, the leading rare and genetic disease patient advocacy organizations in the world, with the Kauffman Foundation is screening the Hempels? story in Hollywood and revealing the grim truth; that diagnosing, treating and curing rare disease is moving at a tedious pace, and leaving heart-rending personal accounts in its path.

How can you help?

If you work for a company that offers research services or makes lab consumables, reagents or instruments ask them to get involved. The great thing about sponsorship is that it will cost your company very little, we?re not asking for money, just a donation of time or resources. Does your company make antibodies? How about donating some production capacity? Do you sell DNA sequencers, or mass spec instruments? Could you run some samples in your lab for us?

If you put your mind to it there are a multitude of ways your company could get involved for very little cost, and in return get some great publicity, and help a very worthy cause.

For the rest of you please help publicize the Rare Disease Science Challenge, post it, blog it, tweet it, let?s do everything we can to get the word out, and be a part of the solution.

References:

[1]? NIH Rare Disease information site:? http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/RareDiseaseList.aspx

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=fc338e4fccb21918e1f48ce18ec63006

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Reese Witherspoon welcomes 3rd baby to the world

FILE - This May 26, 2012 file photo shows actress Reese Witherspoon posing during a photo call for Mud at the 65th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France. Witherspoon has given birth to her third child, naming him after a place close to her heart. Meredith O'Sullivan Wasson, Witherspoon's publicist, said Thursday that ?Witherspoon and husband Jim Toth welcomed Tennessee James into their family today. Both mom and baby are healthy and the entire family is thrilled." (AP Photo/Joel Ryan, file)

FILE - This May 26, 2012 file photo shows actress Reese Witherspoon listens to questions during a press conference for Mud at the 65th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France. Witherspoon has given birth to her third child, naming him after a place close to her heart. Meredith O'Sullivan Wasson, Witherspoon's publicist, said Thursday that ?Witherspoon and husband Jim Toth welcomed Tennessee James into their family today. Both mom and baby are healthy and the entire family is thrilled." (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau, file)

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Reese Witherspoon has given birth to her third child, naming him after a place close to her heart.

Meredith O'Sullivan Wasson, Witherspoon's publicist, said Thursday that "Witherspoon and husband Jim Toth welcomed Tennessee James into their family today. Both mom and baby are healthy and the entire family is thrilled."

The 36-year-old "Legally Blonde" and "Walk the Line" star lived in Tennessee when she was young.

Witherspoon is already a mom to Ava, 13, and Deacon, 8, from her prior marriage to Ryan Phillippe. Toth is an agent for Creative Artists Agency.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-09-27-People-Reese%20Witherspoon/id-255c09dbc80d449f80497c4c20cdeb47

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Quotations of the day

"There are so many people in our country who are hurting right now. I want to help them. I know what it takes. ... I care about the people of America, and the difference between me and Barack Obama is I know what to do." ? Mitt Romney told a crowd in Westerville, Ohio.

___

"We understand that America is not about what can be done for us. It's about what can be done by us together, as one nation, as one people. ... You can't make it happen if you write off half the nation before you take office." ? President Barack Obama in Ohio, where he made stops at Bowling Green State University and Kent State University.

___

"The big difference is that 100 million people can see football on TV, so the mistakes are glaring. The mistakes that the scabs are making in the factories are behind closed doors." ? Mark Froemeke, who's been locked out of his job as a loader-operator at an American Crystal Sugar Co. plant in East Grand Forks, Minn., for 14 months.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/quotations-day-070627283.html

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FDA: Bully Sticks Recalled | Babble Pets

BootsandBarkleyBullySticks 176x300 Dried Bull Penis Pet Treats Recalled, Has Nothing to Do With Inherent Skeeve Factor The company that manufacturers ?Boots and Barkley Beef Bully Sticks? is issuing a voluntary recall of the pet treats due to a risk of salmonella, says the US Food and Drug Administration.

The recalled five-inch, six-count packages of American Beef Bully Sticks were sold at Target from April to September of 2012.?The FDA?s press release left out a really important factoid, though. Boots and Barkley?s ?Bully Sticks? are, in fact, dried bull penises.

So the real news story here (to me) is that not only do dried bull penis pet treats exist, they?re sold at Target, which seems like a pretty mainstream place to just have dried bull penises laying around. Another angle to this story is that people apparently give their dogs dried bull penises to gnaw on, and don?t even pass out from the incredibly high skeeve factor.

According to the?FDA, animals that eat the recalled ?bully sticks? and humans who handle the product are at risk for contracting salmonella.

Pets with salmonella?infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has any of these signs, please contact your veterinarian.

People who may have handled the products should monitor themselves for symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever, advises the FDA. Rarely,?Salmonella?can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. If you?ve had any of these symptoms after handling the recalled bully sticks, please contact your healthcare provider.

I haven?t come in contact with salmonella-tainted dried bull penises, but I am close to vomiting right now. However, I?m probably not infected with anything. I?m just completely skeeved from learning that dogs gnawing on dried bull penises is a thing. In this case, there?s no need to contact my healthcare provider. Instead, I?ll just go look at pictures of animals doing ?jazz hands? and/or wash my brain with bleach.

The product comes in a clear plastic bag containing 6 bully sticks marked with bar code number 647263899189. Kasel Industries is recalling all lot numbers because the following lot codes tested positive through analysis by the State of Colorado Department of Agriculture: BESTBY20APR2014DEN, BESTBY01JUN2014DEN, BESTBY23JUN2014DEN, and BESTBY23SEP2014DEN.

No illnesses have been reported to date in animals or humans in connection with this problem, reports the FDA, which clearly does not care that their press release made me almost vomit.

(Photo Credit: US Food and Drug Administration)

Read more from Joslyn at?Strollerderby?and at her blog,?stark. raving. mad. mommy. You can also follow her on?Facebook?and?Twitter.

Recent Posts by Joslyn:
Daily Dose of Cute: Baby Pandas Around the World
Study: Dogs Really Do Feel Your Pain (12 Photos of Service Dogs in Action!)
Pup?s New Boots Lead to Awesome Dance Moves
Things That Will Brighten Up Your Day: 12 Animals Doing ?Jazz Hands? (Photos)

Source: http://blogs.babble.com/pets/2012/09/26/dried-bull-penis-pet-treats-recalled-has-nothing-to-do-with-inherent-skeeve-factor/

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Robotic surgery through the mouth safe for removing tumors of the voice box, study shows

ScienceDaily (Sep. 25, 2012) ? Robotic surgery though the mouth is a safe and effective way to remove tumors of the throat and voice box, according to a study by head and neck cancer surgeons at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center -- Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC -- James).

This is the first report in the world literature illustrating the safety and efficacy of transoral robotic surgery for supraglottic laryngectomy, the researchers say.

The preliminary study examined the outcomes of 13 head and neck cancer patients with tumors located in the region of the throat between the base of the tongue and just above the vocal cords, an area known as the supraglottic region.

The study found that the use of robot-assisted surgery to remove these tumors through the mouth took about 25 minutes on average, and that blood loss was minimal -- a little more than three teaspoons, or 15.4 milliliters, on average, per patient. No surgical complications were encountered and 11 of the 13 patients could accept an oral diet within 24 hours.

If, on the other hand, these tumors are removed by performing open surgery on the neck, the operation can take around 4 hours to perform, require 7 to 10 days of hospitalization on average and require a tracheostomy tube and a stomach tube, the researchers say.

The findings were published recently in the journal Head and Neck.

"The transoral robotic technique means shorter surgery, less time under anesthesia, a lower risk of complications and shorter hospital stays for these patients," says first author Dr. Enver Ozer, clinical associate professor of otolaryngology at the OSUCCC -- James.

"It also means no external surgical incisions for the patient and better 3-D visualization of the tumor for the surgeon," says Ozer, a head and neck surgeon who specializes in robot-assisted techniques.

The cases examined in this study were part of a larger prospective study of 126 patients undergoing transoral robotic surgery between 2008 and 2011.

Other Ohio State researchers involved in this study were Bianca Alvarez, Kiran Kakarala, Kasim Durmus, Ted N. Teknos and Ricardo L. Carrau.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Ohio State University Medical Center.

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

Journal Reference:

Enver Ozer, Bianca Alvarez, Kiran Kakarala, Kasim Durmus, Theodoros N. Teknos, Ricardo L. Carrau. Clinical outcomes of transoral robotic supraglottic laryngectomy. Head & Neck, 2012; DOI: 10.1002/hed.23101

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/G-tdWy11-t4/120926094548.htm

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Duane 'Dog' Chapman lands new reality show with CMT

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