minaraju907: November 2012

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Apple v. Samsung: Judge to Review Whether Jury Foreman Hid Information

Judge Lucy Koh has agreed to consider concerns raised by Samsung over juror misconduct in the landmark U.S. case Apple v. Samsung.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/WuV2UZysQAc/

chariots of fire nbc

Toys R Us 2012 Black Friday Deals and Early Bird ... - Pinay Reviewer

Planning on buying toys for kids (your own, relative?s or a friend?s) for Black Friday? Then, Toys R Us is the place to be! Here are the best Toys R Us 2012 Black Friday deals for you.

Toys R Us Black Friday 2012 Ad deals

Above is the first page of Toys R Us Black Friday 2012 ad -?32 pages, with 16 full pages of Doorbusters with items that are at 50% to 60% off!

Toys R Us Black Friday Early Bird Specials for 2012

Toys R Us stores would be offering early bird discounts as early as 8pm on Thanksgiving. There would be awesome Toys R Us Doorbuster deals that will be offered, with discounts of as much as 50% off! Here are some of the best ones I found:

Apple iPod Touch 16GB 4th Generation w/ $30 iTunes & $20 Gift Card ? $199.99
Toshiba Blu-ray Disc Player w/ WiFi ? $49.99
Acer Aspire 15.6? Celeron Laptop w/ 4GB RAM, WiFi ? $279.99
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1? 16GB Android Tablet ? $299.99
Disney Fairies Ultimate Fairy House ? $29.99

Special Offers:

Bonus $15 iTunes Gift Card when you Buy a $50 iTunes Gift Card

Toys R Us Best Black Friday 2012 Deals

There are hundreds of items offered at huge discounts, with items marked down from 25% to 60% off. There are also buy one, take one deals you can avail of.

Aside from early bird specials, Toys R Us are offering mail-in rebates and cashbacks too.

According to their ad, the sale prices are valid as early as November 22, 2012.

View the complete ad: Toys R Us 2012 Black Friday ad

Enjoy shopping this Black Friday 2012!

Historic Wesley house at Eden Gardens State Park decorated for the ...

One of several decorated trees inside the Wesley House at Eden Gardens State Park. Lori Ceier/Walton Outdoors

Eden Gardens State Park and the Friends of Eden invite you to join them for a tour of the Wesley House through the holidays. All of the rooms of the house have been decorated in Christmas cheer with each decorated in a variety of different themes by local organizations.? Downstairs hall by Destin Woman?s Club, parlor by the Green Thumb Garden Club, dining room by the Point Washington United Methodist Women, downstairs porch designed by Jillian Doyle, Town Planters Society of Freeport the stairs and upstairs landing, children?s bedroom was decorated by Sally Orlosky, Emerald Coast Flowers in Freeport designed the blue bedroom, Birchberry Natural Home Spa owner Tara Stacey, decorated the pink bedroom, Botaniq Floral Studios decorated the red bedroom, the upstairs back porch was decorated by The Custom House.

Tours of the Wesley House are Thursday ? Monday from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m., every hour on the hour. The Christmas decorations will be up through Dec. 31. The rest of the park is open 7 days a week.

On Dec. 15, enjoy the Candlelight Tour, with a traditional walk through the luminaries to the Historic Wesley House to enjoy it?s beautifully seasonally decorated rooms and be greeted by Civil War reenactors in period garb. After the tour is completed, the Friends of Eden will be providing refreshments in the pavilion and the reenactors will welcome you to the small encampment on the North lawn of the house beyond the Reflecting Pool. It?s an evening meant to be enjoyed by all who attend. Donations to the Friends of Eden Gardens are welcome and appreciated. To volunteer or for additional information call the park office. ?Fees: Admission fees to the park and the event are waived.? Contact: (850) 267-8320.

About Eden Gardens State Park

One of the most beautiful parks in Walton County sits along Tucker Bayou in Point Washington in South Walton. Large moss covered live oaks, gardens, walking trails and panoramic views of the bayou provide a visual delight for the visitor to this dynamic and historic State Park.

The focal point of the park is the two-story Wesley house with large white columns and wrap-around porch. Originally owned by the Wesley?s a wealthy Florida timber family, the mansion was purchased in 1963 by Lois Maxon who renovated the home, and created a showplace for family heirlooms and antiques. The collection of Louis XVI furniture is the second largest in the United States. The house is now owned by the State of Florida, and is the centerpiece of the park.

Hours of Operation
The park is open 7 days a week. Guided tours of the Wesley house are available hourly Thursday through Monday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (including holidays)

Directions
Eden Gardens State Park is located in Point Washington, off U.S. 98 on C.R. 395.
For more information, call (850) 267-8320.
181 Eden Garden Road, Point Washington, Fl. 32459

The parks website is http://www.floridastateparks.org/edengardens
Park Fees
$4.00 per vehicle
$2.00 for Bikes and Peds
$4.00 per adult house tour
Children free

Source: http://www.waltonoutdoors.com/historic-wesley-house-at-eden-gardens-state-park-decorated-for-the-holidays-candlelight-tour-dec-15/

james harden breeders cup

Celebrity Rankings | Players Needed!

This is a - hopefully - realistic enough roleplay, and I am looking for one female and five males, though this is just approximate. For more information, to view available characters, to submit a role or anything else for that matter, visit the roleplay by clicking here.

Information Welcome To Cashew Hotel

Situated in sunny California, is a large and extravagant hotel, only the extremely famous able to afford to enter. From the gardens to the bathrooms, everything is beautiful. Almost every star that makes it big spends some time in Cashew Hotel, whether it be a day or a week, and most want to come to visit a second time.

You're staying at Cashew Hotel. Whether it's your first or twenty-first time here, whether staying for a day or a month, you all have one thing in common; You're famous, very famous, with paparazzi following you every minute. Cashew Hotel has top notch security, making it impossible for any paparazzi to get past it's gates. It seems you've arrived in heaven!

Until someone starts up a website, www.thecelebrityrankings.com. Only minutes after it's been released, and it's the most visited website worldwide. Why? This website shows all the gossip on all the biggest celebrities out there, all who seem to be staying at Cashew Hotel. A side tab in the blog is a list, stating the names of all celebrities staying at the hotel, ranking them on how good, popular etc. they are, the best going at the top.

On the Page Wall, there is a notes section, where the creator of the site sometimes posts little things tipping celebrities off about what they have to do to get a higher rank. These will sometimes be accompanied by a note slipped under the celebrity's door.

Will you chicken out and leave? Try and find the culprit? Or try and get to the top of the ranks?

Visit the roleplay for more information and rules, link at top of page.

Some OOC Tabs concerning the roleplay:
General Chat (OOC Topic)
Questions & Suggestions (OOC Topic)
Reservations (OOC Topic)
Celebrity Rankings Website (OOC Topic)

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/G6yJikjZM04/viewtopic.php

blue ivy carter whitney houston death

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Preschoolers' counting abilities relate to future math performance, researcher says

Friday, November 9, 2012

Along with reciting the days of the week and the alphabet, adults often practice reciting numbers with young children. Now, new research from the University of Missouri suggests reciting numbers is not enough to prepare children for math success in elementary school. The research indicates that counting, which requires assigning numerical values to objects in chronological order, is more important for helping preschoolers acquire math skills.

"Reciting means saying the numbers from memory in chronological order, whereas counting involves understanding that each item in the set is counted once and that the last number stated is the amount for the entire set," said Louis Manfra, an assistant professor in MU's Department of Human Development and Family Studies. "When children are just reciting, they're basically repeating what seems like a memorized sentence. When they're counting, they're performing a more cognitive activity in which they're associating a one-to-one correspondence with the object and the number to represent a quantity."

Manfra analyzed data from more than 3,000 children from low-income households in order to determine if the children's reciting and counting abilities in preschool affected their first-grade math scores. He found that students who could recite and count to 20 in preschool had the highest math scores in first grade; however, less than 10 percent of the children in the study could count and recite to 20.

"Counting gives children stronger foundations when they start school," Manfra said. "The skills children have when they start kindergarten affect their trajectories through early elementary school; therefore, it's important that children start with as many skills as possible."

Previous research has shown that, in low-income families, parents often think children's educations are the responsibility of teachers, while teachers expect parents to teach some essential skills at home, Manfra said.

"These low-income children aren't learning math skills anywhere because parents think the children are learning them at school, and teachers think they're learning them at home," Manfra said. "This is a problem because it gives parents and teachers the idea that it's not their responsibility to educate the children, when it's everyone's responsibility. This is problematic because, when the children enter kindergarten and are at lower math levels, they don't have the foundational skills needed to set them on paths for future success."

Parents and teachers should integrate counting into all aspects of children's daily activities so they can master the skill, Manfra said.

"You can learn anything anywhere, and this is very true for counting," Manfra said. "When adults read books with children, they can count the ducks on the page. They might count the leaves that fall to the ground outside or the number of carrots at lunchtime."

###

University of Missouri-Columbia: http://www.missouri.edu

Thanks to University of Missouri-Columbia for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 40 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/125193/Preschoolers__counting_abilities_relate_to_future_math_performance__researcher_says

courtney robertson ben flajnik

China: Tibetans are 'very happy' despite deaths

By Ed Flanagan, NBC News

BEIJING -- China?s ruling Communist Party on Friday declared Tibetans were ?very happy? even as six Tibetans reportedly self-immolated over two days this week to protest Chinese rule.

The reported incidents made this week the deadliest since human rights groups began tracking self-immolations in March 2011. More than 60 Tibetans have now taken their own lives in protest of Chinese rule since then, according to Tibetan activists.

The reports came the day after China opened the 18th Communist Party Congress, during which a once-a-decade leadership change was slated to occur.

"Ordinary people and monks in Tibet are not willing to set themselves on fire, and they also oppose self-immolation, they are very satisfied with the society,? Qiangba Puncog, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the People?s Congress of the Tibet Autonomous Region, told foreign and Chinese journalists.

?Happiness is comparative. They feel very happy,? Puncog said as members of the delegation from the Tibet Autonomous Region met with foreign and Chinese journalists.

At the same event, the deputy governor of Tibet blamed outside Tibetan exile groups and Nobel Peace Prize winner, the Dalai Lama, for any bad press and trouble in Tibet.

"The overseas Tibetan separatist forces and the Dalai clique do not spare sacrificing people's lives in order to achieve their shady political goals, we believe this goes against human nature and morals,? Lobsang Gyaltsen said. ?They will not succeed in achieving their evil goals, and they will certainly be severely condemned."

'The happiest place in China'
Beijing has long tried to paint the restive region as one of the more content, peaceful areas of China. A survey this year by China?s state media, Xinhua, called the capital of Tibet, Lhasa, ?The happiest place in China."

That point was apparently hammered home again Friday, as Barbara Demick of the Los Angeles Times tweeted a conversation she had with one delegate who again claimed Lhasa was the happiest place in China.

Twenty-four hours after President Barack Obama was re-elected to the White House, the world's other major power, China, began the very different process of choosing its new leader. It happens once every ten years, and lasts just a week. And in case there was any doubt, the ruling Communist Party began by pledging never to have Western democracy. NBC's Angus Walker reports.

Despite the lofty title and plans to pour $47 billion into the region by 2015, resistance to what many ethnic Tibetans view as the ?Sinicization? of their culture has been strong, prompting much speculation that opponents within China would use the closer media attention on China during the Party Congress to protest.

That speculation has proven true.

Besides the self-immolations earlier this week, unconfirmed reports on Tibetan exile group websites began to surface about mass demonstrations that had broken out against the government Thursday and Friday in Tongren, a town in China?s southwestern province of Qinghai.

Complete China coverage on NBCNews.com's Behind the Wall

According to the Tibetan news service, Phayul, as many as 10,000 Tibetans participated in protests in this quiet monastery town to protest the strict security measures in place since ethnic unrest began in the region.

The?protesters?were said to be reciting ancient Tibetan prayers and calling for the return of the Dalai Lama to Tibet.

CNBC's Michelle Caruso-Cabrera reports on China's selection of new leaders to meet public calls for better government and give the economy a boost.

A significant test
NBC News could not independently confirm the protests. If true, they would represent a significant test to Chinese rule on the eve of the critical leadership change.

China asks Ore. city to scrub mural for Tibetan, Taiwanese independence

Any challenge would surely not go unpunished by local officials.

An officer reached by phone at the Tongren County Police station told NBC News he was new to the force, but had ?never heard of self-immolations or protests in the area.? He also did not know if police had been sent elsewhere in the county to quell protests.

NBC News? Yanzhou Liu contributed to this report.

More world stories from NBC News:

Follow World News from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook

Source: http://behindthewall.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/09/15047849-despite-deadly-week-communist-party-says-tibetans-feel-very-happy?lite

Opening ceremony London 2012 Google Fiber

Seventeen Turkish soldiers killed in helicopter crash

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/17-turkish-soldiers-killed-helicopter-crash-080404585.htmlwhat time is the super bowl 2012 nfl mvp

Pope: organized crime is a grave threat to society

Newly named Interpol president Mireille Balestrazzi attends the closing session of the 81st Interpol General Assembly, in Rome, Thursday, Nov. 8, 2012. The 81st session of the general assembly of the Interpol closed with the election of its first female president, the French Mireille Ballestrazzi. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Newly named Interpol president Mireille Balestrazzi smiles to photographers during the closing session of the 81st Interpol General Assembly, in Rome, Thursday, Nov. 8, 2012. The 81st session of the general assembly of the Interpol closed with the election of its first female president, the French Mireille Ballestrazzi. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

VATICAN CITY (AP) ? Pope Benedict XVI denounced organized crime as a "gravely destabilizing threat" to society during an audience Friday with members of Interpol, and called for greater international cooperation to fight it.

Benedict called the trafficking in organs as one of the more "barbarian" activities carried out by organized crime groups, saying the victims "undergo physical and moral humiliation which we had hoped were over after the tragedies of the 20th century but which, unfortunately, have again surfaced."

"These crimes transgress the moral barriers which were progressively built up by civilization and they reintroduce a form of barbarism which denies man and his dignity," he said.

Italy, which is battling organized crime groups including the Sicilian Mafia, the Calabrian 'ndrangheta and the Neapolitan Camorra, hosted the weeklong Interpol meeting in Rome.

On Thursday, Interpol elected its first female president, Mireille Ballestrazzi, the inspector general of France's national police.

In an interview with The Associated Press after her election, Ballestrazzi said she was proud about what her election meant for women, but stressed that she represented all police forces in the common fight against crime.

"We need to face new threats like cybercrime," she said. "It is all about being across all fronts that are a real threat like organized crime, human trafficking, obviously terrorism."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-11-09-Vatican-Interpol/id-9d91cfe39a354e6c88087ea14f89b8b9

nbc news Heather Clem

Pre-drinking is a risky way to begin an evening out

ScienceDaily (Nov. 8, 2012) ? Previous research from the U.S. and the U.K. has shown that "pre-drinking" or "frontloading" often leads to heavy drinking by young people in public settings and can lead to greater harm. Pre-drinking typically occurs in locations where low-cost alcohol that is usually bought off-premise is consumed, rapidly and in large quantities. A study using Swiss data has found that pre-drinking, when combined with on-premise drinking, leads to almost twice as much drinking and negative outcomes.

Results will be published in the February 2013 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.

"At first glance, it might seem that pre-drinking is not so prevalent in Switzerland," said Florian Labhart, a researcher at Addiction Switzerland as well as corresponding author for the study. "However, pre-drinking has been found in about one third of all on-premise drinking, which is a very high rate. Considering that pre-drinking leads people to consume nearly twice the normal amount of alcohol on a given night, its prevalence should not be underestimated from a public-health perspective."

"Only recently has pre-drinking -- also referred to as pre-partying, pre-gaming, pre-loading, or pre-funking -- been identified and introduced into the empirical alcohol literature," said Shannon R. Kenney, visiting assistant research professor and associate director of the Heads Up Research Lab in the Psychology Department at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. "Although pre-drinking has not received the attention it deserves thus far, it appears that researchers are beginning to recognize the importance of gaining a better understanding of this risky and prevalent drinking context."

Kenney added that existing studies of pre-drinking/pre-partying have revealed similar prevalence rates in the United States and Europe. "In fact, due to U.S. legal drinking age requirements, pre-drinking may be most prevalent among underage drinkers in the U.S.," she said. "Research shows that underage drinkers may be motivated to pre-drink to achieve a 'buzz' or become intoxicated before going to a licensed premise where they cannot legally consume alcohol, such as a bar, club, concert, or sporting event."

Researchers examined the drinking practices of 183 young adults (97 women, 86 men) with a mean age of 23 years from three higher-education institutions in Switzerland, using the recently developed Internet-based Cell phone optimized Assessment Technique (ICAT) to assess alcohol consumption and drinking location at six time points (from 5 p.m. to the next morning) on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays during five consecutive weeks by means of the participants' cell phones. A total of 7,828 assessments were provided for analysis for 1,441 evenings. The study authors examined the association between pre-drinking, overnight drinking levels, and adverse outcomes.

"Pre-drinking is a pernicious drinking pattern that is likely to lead people to cumulate two normal drinking occasions -- one off-premise followed by one on-premise -- and generally results in excessive alcohol consumption," said Labhart. "Excessive consumption and adverse consequences are not simply related to the type of people who pre-drink, but rather to the practice of pre-drinking itself."

"Moreover," said Kenney, "pre-drinking tended to involve further drinking throughout the evening. That is to say that pre-drinking did not reduce or replace the amount of post pre-drinking consumption, but enhanced risk through increased consumption."

"In terms of specific adverse or risky outcomes from drinking," said Labhart, "47.5 percent of the men and women in the study reported the following outcomes: hangover (40.7% men, 36.1% women), unplanned substance use (20.9% and 12.4%), blackouts (11.6% and 7.2%), unintended or unprotected sexual intercourse (8.1% and 5.2%), injured self or someone else (5.8% and 3.1%), and property damage or vandalism (3.5% and 0.0%). Logically, given the large amounts of alcohol consumed, blackouts and hangover were especially prevalent on pre-drinking evenings."

"These findings hold important implications for prevention practices by highlighting the advantages of event-level intra-individual assessment," said Kenney. "The authors utilized a cell-phone based method that allowed for the assessment of participant's alcohol consumption and drinking locations throughout the evening. This type of novel data collection technique appears to offer much promise for research of young adult and adolescent drinking, both with respect to pre-drinking and more generally."

"Changing the location during a night increases the overall amount of alcohol consumption," added Labhart. "It's important that young people count the number of drinks they have during a night and to remember how many drinks they had already when they reach a new drinking location." The study authors also recommend prevention practices that incorporate educational interventions as well as structural measures such as reduced late-night off-sale opening hours, and more staff training regarding responsible beverage-service practices.

"Social drinkers can also use protective behavioral strategies," said Kenney, "such as being mindful of internal bodily sensations, pacing drinks, or avoiding chugging or drinking games, which may enable drinkers to more fully enjoy safer drinking experiences and avoid negative consequences."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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

Journal Reference:

Florian Labhart, Kathryn Graham, Samantha Wells, Emmanuel Kuntsche. Drinking Before Going to Licensed Premises: An Event-Level Analysis of Predrinking, Alcohol Consumption, and Adverse Outcomes. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2012.01872.x

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/most_popular/~3/cjGHgpihO4w/121108181905.htm

george strait how i met your mother

Asian shares ease on US fiscal worries, European uncertainty

TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares extended losses on Friday, weighed down by worries over the risk of a recession in the world's largest economy as the United States faces a looming fiscal crisis and by uncertainty over a bailout for Greece, which kept sovereign bonds firmly bid.

Pressured by further losses on Wall Street, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.2 percent, after sliding 1.3 percent on Thursday for its biggest one-day percentage drop in two months.

South Korean shares led the declines with a 0.7 percent drop, with blue-chips mostly down, while Shanghai shares were nearly flat.

Global stocks fell overnight on worries about Washington's ability to resolve the "fiscal cliff" in a timely manner before nearly $600 billion worth of spending cuts and tax increases kicks in early 2013 unless a compromise is reached to cut the deficit. There is also the issue of a debt ceiling, which needs to be raised to avoid a government shutdown.

A recession in the United States, which had recently defied a general trend in other parts of the world by showing signs of a modest recovery, could drag the global economy down further.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped for a second day and closed below its 200-day moving average for the first time in five months on Thursday, signalling a weaker trend. It closed down more than 1 percent at its lowest since August 2.

Against the general bearish sentiment, China reports several pieces of data for October this session, including fixed-asset investment and industrial output, which will likely show the country recovering from its slowest period of growth since early 2009.

Annual October consumer inflation released earlier in the day eased to its slowest pace in nearly three years, giving policymakers scope to further looser monetary policy if needed.

"The focus has turned back to the economy after the U.S. election, with concerns over euro zone risk resurfacing while the fiscal cliff worries weigh on the local index," said Kim Soon-young, an analyst at IBK Securities, adding that Seoul shares could pare losses if China economic data is positive.

Japan's Nikkei average slipped 0.9 percent.

As investors reduced exposure to risk assets, safe-haven government bonds remained firm, with 10-year Japanese government bond yields hitting a fresh three-month low of 0.73 percent. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield steadied around 1.635 percent, after touching a low of 1.618 percent on Thursday.

EURO OFF LOWS

The dollar was down 0.1 percent but hovered near a two-month high against a basket of major currencies of 81.001 hit on Thursday, benefiting from rising demand for Treasuries on the back of the looming U.S. fiscal crisis.

Gold rose to a three-week high of $1,735.05 an ounce and looked set for its biggest weekly rise since the end of August, supported by expectations for a continuation of ultra-easy U.S. monetary policy under President Barack Obama's second term, and on demand for safety due to concerns about the U.S. fiscal woes.

The euro recovered, up 0.2 percent to $1.2768, having fallen to a two-month low of $1.2717 on Thursday.

The euro was undermined after the European Central Bank kept rates on hold on Thursday, as expected, and its president, Mario Draghi, sounded downbeat on the euro zone economy and said he was ready to start new purchases of bonds.

"The euro zone policymakers are just trying to buy time, which is what they have been doing all along. So the euro faces downside risks. I think it could test $1.25," said a trader at a European bank.

More worrying signs about the European economy emerged after data showed German exports slid at their fastest pace since late last year, adding to evidence that the euro zone's debt crisis has begun to inflict a heavy toll on Europe's largest economy.

After winning parliamentary approval for a severe austerity package crucial to get an international aid, a coalition government in heavily indebted Greece still needs to pass the 2013 budget in a vote expected on Sunday.

Spain, on the other hand, on Thursday successfully sold long-term debt to complete its 2012 issuance programme, giving the government breathing room to hold out before requesting international aid.

U.S. crude rose 0.4 percent to $85.41 a barrel and Brent rose 0.3 percent to $107.58.

Sluggish equities kept sentiment weak in Asian credit markets, widening the spread on the iTraxx Asia ex-Japan investment-grade index by 5 basis points.

(Additional reporting by Joyce Lee in Seoul and Hideyuki Saon in Tokyo; Editing by Chris Gallagher & Kim Coghill)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/asian-shares-fall-u-fiscal-worries-european-uncertainty-002423136--finance.html

ufc Amanda Todd

Rights groups: 5 Tibetans self-immolate in 2 days

BEIJING (AP) ? Tibetan protests against Chinese rule intensified around the opening of a pivotal Communist Party congress as three teenage monks and two other Tibetans set themselves on fire over two days, activists reported Thursday.

Four of the self-immolations took place on Wednesday and were followed by a fifth involving a nomad in western Qinghai on Thursday. Since March 2011, dozens of ethnic Tibetans have self-immolated in ethnically Tibetan areas to protest what activists say is China's heavy-handed rule over the region. Such protests have become more frequent in recent weeks, apparently aimed at the party's weeklong conference to unveil the country's new leadership that opened Thursday.

"These protests are aimed at sending the next generation of China's unelected regime a clear signal that Tibetans will continue to fight for their freedom despite China's efforts to suppress and intimidate them," Free Tibet director Stephanie Brigden said in a statement.

Free Tibet also said that the three monks, at ages 15 and 16, were the youngest to self-immolate. They set fire to themselves Wednesday afternoon outside a police office in southwest Sichuan province calling for freedom for Tibet and the return of their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, the group said, adding it was the first documented case of a triple self-immolation.

The youngest monk, identified as 15-year-old Dorjee, died at the scene and his companions, Samdup and Dorjee Kyab, both 16, were taken to a hospital by security forces and their conditions were unknown, Free Tibet said.

Then in the evening a 23-year-old Tibetan nomadic woman, Tamdin Tso, died after self-immolating in another ethnically Tibetan area in western Qinghai province, it said. She took petrol from a motorbike and set fire to herself in the family's winter pasture near Tongren, a monastery town, and her body was taken back to her family's home whether people gathered to pray, it said. She had a 5-year-old son.

Tibetan nomad Jinpa Gyatso, who was from the same area, became the fifth in two days to set himself on fire, said Kate Saunders, spokeswoman for the Washington-based International Campaign for Tibet. His death Thursday outside a monastery, as well as the woman's, prompted hundreds of Tibetans to gather and mourn, Saunders wrote in an email.

The pro-Tibet groups' accounts could not immediately be confirmed. The self-declared Tibetan government-in-exile reported one other self-immolation on Wednesday but provided few details.

A man at Qinghai provincial government's news office said he didn't know about the case and hung up. The Aba prefecture's communist party propaganda department referred queries to prefectural and provincial authorities, where calls rang unanswered.

Chinese authorities routinely deny Tibetan claims of repression and have accused supporters of the Dalai Lama of encouraging the self-immolations. The Dalai Lama and representatives of the self-declared Tibetan government-in-exile in India say they oppose all violence.

Free Tibet said the three boys came from a village in Aba county, a region of high-altitude valleys grazed by yaks on the Tibetan plateau, and belonged to Ngoshul Monastery, which houses around 130 monks and is approximately 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Ngaba town where other self-immolations have taken place. Free Tibet said security forces had been deployed to the monastery and the nearby town of Gomang, and already heavy restrictions in Ngaba county had been intensified, with people unable to leave or enter Ngaba town.

Free Tibet says over two thirds of those who have self-immolated are younger than 25 and have grown up under Chinese rule. "Their protests belie China's propaganda that Tibetans are happy and thriving. Tibetans young and old, men and women from all walks of life across a vast area of Tibet are setting fire to themselves in protest at China's occupation," it said in a statement.

The Chinese government has poured money into the region for years to spur development and helping to raise living standards. But many Tibetans say China's tight control, including on religious observance, is draining them of their culture and identity.

___

Associated Press writer Gillian Wong contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rights-groups-5-tibetans-self-immolate-2-days-161517753.html

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Cosmetic Surgery Patients Of The Greying Population ...

The Baby Boomer population is defined as the children born after WWII from the years 1946 to 1964. As the Baby Boomers get older many they are trying to retain their youthful looks more than ever. Older men and women are actually helping to increase the number of cosmetic surgeries performed every year. The population of the US is getting older but unlike previous generations, this population has placed a much more serious value on physical beauty.

In fact, some reports have shown that more attractive people actually make more money than their less attractive co-workers. Lots of people are saying in the work force longer than they used to and those more mature people want to look as good as their more youthful office mates and co-workers. There are many of different factors behind the increase in the popularity of plastic surgery. Reality plastic surgeon television shows compete with dramatic shows featuring good-looking plastic surgeons helping all sorts of equally sexy people. Cosmetic surgery is more accepted now.

People from this older generation have a healthy eating regimen, they exercise regularly and they want to look as youthful as they still feel. They are the first group of people to grow up with a real emphasis on healthy living. Cosmetic surgery can make a person?s external body look as good as they may feel on the inside. While some young people turn to cosmetic surgery to attract a love interest some older people use cosmetic surgery to simply look younger by a few years and improve their self-esteem.

The most popular cosmetic surgery request by far is the injection of Botox to smooth out wrinkly skin. Many of the more frequently performed procedures are meant to improve the skin, especially after decades of growing up without sun block. Skin and surface procedures such as microlaser facial peels, Botox injections, and wrinkle filling gels are often the first cosmetic surgical procedures tried.

Men usually opt for cosmetic procedures such as eyelid tucks, face tightening and other operations that make them look more youthful at the office. It is not only women who are visiting the local cosmetic surgeon. Most people think of plastic surgery as something that is more attractive to women, but that?s not always the situation. It?s true that many older women are having so-called ?mommy make-overs? which usually is composed of breast augmentation, a breast raising and a tummy tuck.

The expanding Baby Boomer population is more youth oriented and more interested hanging on to their natural health for as long as possible. As more and more mature men and women continue to search for ways to look younger there will be more cosmetic surgeons there to serve them. Plastic surgery is not just for the young anymore ? it is now a valid way for Baby Boomers to feel good about themselves.

The WF bikini body blog: Week 2

We?ve made it to week two of the WF body blitz, hurrah! This week we?re continuing our quest to look sizzling hot this summer. We?ve been honing our way slim with gruelling Power Plate sessions and complementing our fitness routine with fat-blasting meals from the nutrition experts at My Zenergy. We?ve road-tested beautifying treatments from [...]

Anne Hathaway Workout for Batman The Dark Night Rises

Anne Hathaway was born on November 12, 1982 in Brooklyn, New York. The American actress started her acting career on stage until she landed her first appearance in the 1999 television series, Get Real. Two years later she played Mia Thermopolis in the movie The Princess Diaries. Anne followed up that performance with a role [...]

To walk the talk and unlock your true potentiala

For some this just might be the most important article you ever read. For me it was satisfying because it will possibly be as no bullshit as it gets. Those that liked and could relate to ?The Marshmallow Test? will find a few similarities here. ? Friends always come to me for nutrition and training [...]

Part 1- fat and carbohydrate controversies

In this article, I want to look at carbohydrate and fat intake in terms of the various arguments and debates that tend to surround them. ? The main controversy here revolves around what amounts of carbohydrates and/or fat are ideal, healthy, recommended, etc. and that?s what I?ll focus on. I?m not going to deal with [...]

Adele losing weight for the summer: 2 dress sizes

Adele wants to lose weight and is reportedly on a fitness routine to drop two dress sizes before summer. Having shed several pounds after undergoing surgery on her vocal chords last year, the Someone Like You hit maker has also quit smoking and is said to been keen to continue her good work. ?Adele has [...]

Source: http://stek.org/health-fitness/cosmetic-surgery-patients-of-the-greying-population/

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Video Games Interactive: Review: Skylanders Giants

Expensive cash in or family co-op at its best? Wesley Copeland gives us his thoughts on Skylanders: Giants.

Skylanders isn't just a game. Skylanders is everything adults remember from their childhoods. It's collecting your favourite figurines. It's taking them round a mate's house to show off. It's swapping with your friends. It's discussing characters in the playground. Skylanders isn't just a game, it's a kid's craze; a craze that can be shared with adults.

As a parent, gaming with the kids can often become troublesome. I want to play Gears of War; my kids can't. My kids want to play Ben 10; I'd rather stab myself in the eye with a fork. We live in a world where if a game isn't shipped with the prefix 'LEGO', then chances are, co-op gaming between parent and child goes straight out the window.

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure solved this issue. I want to play Diablo; my kids want to play Spyro ? So let's do both at once!

One year on, we learn that Skylanders is back with Skylanders: Giants; a sequel to one of the greatest kid's games ever conceived. Is it a cash-in? Is it an excuse to ship more plastic into the homes of gamers? Can a full-sequel be made within such a short period of time?

To save you having to scroll down to the bottom, let's get this cleared up. Skylanders: Giants is ten times that game Spyro's Adventure was, and showcases the level of skill, dedication, and straight-up creativity that Toys for Bob house.

At its heart, Skylanders: Giants is a dungeon crawler for kids. It's a top-down isometric game with colourful characters and blinding tech to match. My first memory forged in Giants, and one that still stays with me a week later, is of the giant included in the starter pack, Tree-rex on the Poertal of Power. Upon connecting the new portal (a usb portal that Skylanders are placed on), I sit my new giant on top, ready to boot the game for the first time. When Tree-rex comes into to contact with the PoP, his eyes, plant-gun-hand, and base all illuminate like star in the night sky.

To the sceptics, this isn't anything special. To a parent, this is the moment you begin to anticipate how your kid is going to flip their lid when they get home form school.

The tech behind Skylanders: Giants still, even now, holds an element of magic ? or witchcraft, if I'm being honest. As kids, we took toys and brought them to life ourselves. We invent funny stories in our head. We take them on adventures. But at the end of the day, they're just lifeless plastic that our imagination brings to life. In Skylanders, you take the toy, place it on the portal of power, and it comes to life before your very eyes via the TV, ready for portal-masters to pick up a controller and take them out on a mission to save the world.

Being able to play with a toy outside the game and also inside the game, is why Skylanders was one of the largest grossing kid's toy-ranges of 2011.

There's an obvious similarity between Skylanders and Pokemon. Pokemon allows players to catch their favourite little monsters, raise them and care for them. For Pokemon though, you only had Pikachu in-game. To take Pikachu on an adventure in the real world, you'd need to shell-out for the plushie. In Skylanders however, the toy you buy from the toyshop is both.

That's where the real magic lies. Kids aren't playing as an avatar, as is the case for most other videogames. The hook here, is that they're portal masters. The toys they get, are theirs to control. They are armed with the portal of power and their Skylander toys, and it's up to them to save the world of Skylands form the evil Kaos. They bring them to life, and they use them to save a virtual world.

If that's not the staple of immersion, then I don't know what is.

One of the big questions raised when discussing Skylanders, when you remove all outside factors like immersion or the tech or the marketing, has to be: Is the game any good? If the game falls short, then no amount of outside factors could possibly compensate.

Once again, Skylanders has surprised me. This iteration improves and evolves the formula we saw a year ago in Spyro's Adventure.

Returning is the basic premise: Take a Skylander, level it up, buy upgrades, before choosing a specific path to take with regard to its attacks. This, like everything, has had a huge makeover. The new user interface is easier to understand and much more visually appealing. The little touches like extra flicks of light in graphics, or the stunningly-dynamic new portal transport movie takes Skylanders: Giants from being 'just another kids game' to a triple A videogame.

The most obvious new addition to the series comes in the form of Giants; over-sized Skylanders that only recently came back to life. Tree-rex specifically, leaves you with a godly-feeling; a feeling that you truly are a giant. His attacks are split in three: A charge attack, a ground-pound, and a laser barrage. He's slow, he's clunky, but his strength is unmeasurable. Interestingly, Tree-rex is exactly how I'd imagine playing as a Ent form Lord of the Rings would be.

Giants are super-powered. But despite this, they are indeed balanced. Yes, my Ent will destroy anything that gets in his way. Yes, instead of killing smaller enemies, he'll just punt or stamp on them. But he's slow, if he misses his move, he's open to mob attacks, and if you're playing on the newly-introduced 'nightmare mode', you're going to need to start thinking smart instead of Hulk-smashing everything in sight.

Joining the fray this time round, is a host of new features; my favourite of which being Skystones. The world is littered with folks looking to throw down some rocks in the name of victory. This mini-game works by each player taking it in turns to place down a stone on a six-by-six board. Each stone has between zero and four spikes on each of its four sides. The goal is to place a stone with spikes facing the opponent's stone. If you have more spikes that your opponent's stone, you take their stone. Those with the most stones when the board is full, wins.

It's simple. It's very straight-forwards. But once you start gaining new stones, it becomes more poker than snap. Just yesterday I was perusing the Skylanders in-game shop (located in the hub), when suddenly spot a stone with four spikes on ALL FOUR SIDES! Of course I do what any portal master should; I convince me eldest to buy it for me with no intention of paying him back...

One of the other new features that really exemplifies the brilliance of Giants is the arena 'Horde' mode. One of my biggest gripes with Spyro's Adventure is that there was more talking than action. To play a mission, you had to sit through cut-scene, upon cut-scene, upon cut-scene. It became tiresome real fast. This time round there's still lots of talking, but it's skipable and those of us who want to blast and smash everything to pieces, can. The arenas are a fun little sideshow where you can just aimlessly beat things to a pulp. Best of all, of course, is that the payout for completing said arenas, is massive.

Instead of having to spam that one level, or farm that one area for cash; arenas offer vast money for just beating-down wave after wave of enemies.

Sometimes when you're a giant, you just want to cause mass destruction and wreck stuff, and make money in the process. Whether it's measly chompers or boss fights, wrecking stuff (and hurtling boulders) never gets old.

Another area Toys for Bob have greatly improved is in the boss encounters. Remember those boring fights where something slides down the screen at you and you dodge it? They're still here, but not all the often. Instead, Toys for Bob have opted for unique boss battles, some of which leave you in tears of laughter. Most noticeably, one battle sees a boss rapping karaoke-style to one of the Spyro's Adventure theme tunes. It's even complete with a bit of dub-step thrown in for good measure.

What could be better than a dub-step/karaoke/rap robot?

In Closing

Skylanders: Giants is how it's done. Sequels should improve and never stagnate. Giants moves the series forwards while taking it to new heights. Toys for Bob demonstrate an understanding of what kids want and what adults with kids want. We don't want something with a name slapped on it, churned out in a few months. Why is it okay for some to lower standards when designing a game for children? Kid games deserve the same quality seen in adult titles. Toys for Bob 'get it'. Give kids and adults a great game, with cool characters, and futuristic tech, and you're on to a winner.

It's vivid, it's fun, and it doesn't even have LEGO in the title.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Position:?Editor-in-chief

Born in Cyrodiil but raised in Ferelden, more commonly know as England. Wesley Copeland is a passionate writer with more opinions than an ostrich.
Source: http://www.videogamesinteractive.com/2012/11/review-skylanders-giants.html
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Expanded Gambling Opens Up New Possibilities For Baltimore's ...

BALTIMORE (WJZ) ? Maryland voters have spoken! There will be expanded gambling in Maryland?including a new casino in Baltimore.

Now Caesars Entertainment is talking about its plans. Derek Valcourt explains?a change is in the works.

The backers of Baltimore?s casino originally planned for an all-slots Harrah?s Casino, but not anymore. Now they are changing the name. Soon, a Horseshoe Casino will ride into town.

Horseshoe brand casinos are focused around table games and now that voters have approved Question 7, the operators of Baltimore?s first casino plan to take full advantage.

?This changes the project significantly,? said John Payne, Caesars Entertainment.

The owners of Caesars Casino in Las Vegas will also own Baltimore?s Horseshoe Casino, and promise legendary service along with style and elegance. They showed WJZ interior photos of other Horseshoe Casinos for a glimpse of what?s to come. The casino promises to keep some video slot machines, but now they?ll add as many as 80-110 table games.

?The extra restaurants that we?re going to now add? The increased facility capacity that we?ll have in our multipurpose area? We?re going to? build a World Series of Poker room, which started under the Horseshoe name. And all of that together, we believe, is a perfect fit for our location,? Payne said.

While the square footage and the exterior of the building won?t change, they are now scrambling to redesign the layout of their floorspace, and planning to spend roughly an extra $25-million on the project.

And the backers of Baltimore?s casino say because table games were approved, they now need to hire an additional 500 full-time employees. Most of those jobs will be table game dealers and supervisors.

Groundbreaking for the new casino is set for sometime in the first half of 2013, with the planned opening sometime in mid 2014.

Source: http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2012/11/08/expanded-gambling-opens-up-new-possibilities-for-baltimores-casino/

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Benjamin Norris, Australia's 'Big Brother' Winner, Proposes To Boyfriend

As if being a reality show champion wasn't enough, Australia's "Big Brother" winner Benjamin Norris surprised his longtime boyfriend by popping the question.

In true old fashioned tradition, the 32-year-old Norris got down on one knee and proposed to his boyfriend, also named Ben, with an heirloom ring.

?This was a diamond that my great grandfather bought for my great grandmother and it was worn by my parents on their wedding day so it?s something that is a part of my family,? Norris gushed. ?Since I?ve met Ben all I have wanted is for him to be a part of my family."

Norris, an accounts manager from Victoria, is the first openly gay winner of the show.

Also on HuffPost:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/benjamin-norris-australia-big-brother-proposal_n_2101640.html

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Friday, November 9, 2012

MDA hosting business development trip | WashingtonExaminer.com

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) ? The Mississippi Development is hosting a building/construction exposition and business development mission to the Caribbean.

The trip will be from March 1-7 with stops in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Officials say the trip will connect Mississippi firms in the building and construction industry with business opportunities in those three Caribbean markets.

Rose Boxx, MDA's Latin America trade specialist, says U.S. exports to the Caribbean have increased substantially over the past few years. She says the trip is an opportunity for Mississippi businesses whose products and services are used for construction projects to get into the market.

Source: http://washingtonexaminer.com/mda-hosting-business-development-trip/article/feed/2046726?custom_click=rss

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Call me JackSUN, says singer Jermaine

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Sunday, November 11, 2012

Toys R Us Black Friday Early Bird Specials for 2012

Toys R Us Best Black Friday 2012 Deals

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Saturday, November 10, 2012