Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Indigo is a cloud-based, cross-platform personal assistant for Android and Windows Phone 8 (hands-on)

Indigo is a cloud-based, cross-platform personal assistant for Android and Windows Phone 8 (hands-on)

The idea of a personal assistant needs no introduction: you already know Siri, and those of you fortunate to own a Jelly Bean handset (or at least a hacked ICS one) have the privilege of using Google Now. So there's very little we haven't seen here. And yet, we were inclined to take a look at Indigo, a new personal assistant for Android and Windows Phone 8 that launched yesterday, and will be available as a free download in the coming weeks. Meet us past the break to find out why.

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Source: Indigo

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/IzpKyp2K_c8/

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Islamists threaten to kill French kidnapped in Cameroon

DAKAR (Reuters) - Gunmen claiming to be from Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamist group threatened on Monday to kill a kidnapped French family of seven if authorities in Nigeria and Cameroon do not release Muslim militants held there.

French ministers said they believed the three adults and four children seized in Cameroon's far north near the Nigerian border on Tuesday were being held by Boko Haram which has killed hundreds to try to carve out an Islamist state in Nigeria.

The first sign of the family since they were captured came in a video posted on YouTube in which they appeared surrounded by three gunmen wearing turbans and dressed in camouflage.

"We have been taken by Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad," one of the male hostages said in the video, referring to the name in Arabic of Nigeria's Boko Haram militants.

"They want the liberation of their brothers in Cameroon and their women imprisoned in Nigeria," the man added, speaking in French as he sat on the floor beside another man, a veiled woman and four children.

"A video of the French family kidnapped in northern Cameroon last Tuesday has just been posted by Boko Haram," said French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. "These images are terribly shocking and show a cruelty without limits."

The hostage-taking highlighted the risk to French citizens in Africa after Paris sent thousands of troops into Mali last month to oust al Qaeda-linked Islamists operating in the country's vast desert north.

"The president of France has launched a war on Islam and we are fighting it everywhere," said one of the apparent kidnappers, speaking in Arabic and identifying himself as a member of Boko Haram. "Implement our demands. If you leave out even one, we will kill these people."

Boko Haram, a Nigerian militant group, has previously posted videos in Hausa, a language spoken in northern Nigeria. The black and white flag that hung behind the hostages in the released video is more associated with al Qaeda-linked groups.

A spokesman for Boko Haram had denied any connection with the kidnapping at the weekend.

However, security experts in Nigeria, Africa's largest oil exporter, say that Boko Haram is made up of multiple cells, without a defined command structure.

The militant group is known to have had some links to al Qaeda factions in North Africa and Mali, but experts say they appear limited for now.

Cameroon's Communication Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary said he could not comment because his government was not aware of the video.

The governor of Cameroon's Far North Region, Augustine Fonka Awa, said he was not aware of any Boko Haram members being held in the country.

(Additional reporting by Asma Alsharif in Cairo and Joe Brock in Abuja; Writing by David Lewis; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Jon Hemming)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/islamists-threaten-kill-french-kidnapped-cameroon-183340550--finance.html

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Mac Miller Was 'Skeptical' About Doing 'Most Dope' TV Show

'To see my life as an MTV Show is kind of weird, but it's gonna be tight,' Mac says of his reality TV debut Tuesday on MTV2.
By Nadeska Alexis, with reporting by Steven Roberts


Mac Miller
Photo: MTV News

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1702606/mac-miller-most-dope-family-tv-show-mtv2.jhtml

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Republicans and Democrats brace for impact of March 1 cuts (reuters)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

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Sunday, February 24, 2013

From one of our Facebook Friends, Brian White.

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Source: http://www.facebook.com/GreenHeroes.tv/posts/492553690781692

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Ad Week Europe // London Vs New York

London Vs New York - Let battle commence! A short film to showcase the arrival of Ad Week Europe in London.


Ad Week Europe // London Vs New York

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London Vs New York. Let battle commence. A short film to showcase the arrival of?Ad Week Europe?in London following a successful nine years in New York.

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Caswell Coggins at Crossfire Productions directs the launch film for the Advertising Week Europe, the premiere event on the advertising calendar. The spot was written and developed by Greg and Paul Shearer at agency Enter, it looks at the humorous interplay between the New York and London based Ad Week marketing managers and the competitive nature of the American to have the biggest and best event.?

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Credits

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Product: ?Advertising Week Europe

Production Title: ?Ad Week Europe

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Agency: ?Enter

Agency Producer: ?Dave Graham

Art Director: ?Greg and Paul Shearer

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Production Company: ?Crossfire Productions

Director: ?Caswell Coggins

Producer: ?David Graham

Editor: ?Rebecca Luff @ TenThree Editing

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Post Production: ?Rushes

Producer: ?Carl Grinter

Colourist: ?Denny Cooper

VFX: ?Glenn Cone

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Source: http://lbbonline.com/news/ad-week-europe-london-vs-new-york/

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Saturday, February 23, 2013

UFC 157 odds, Daytona 500 betting headline sports calendar

The women get the sports betting spotlight this week as both the Daytona 500 odds menu and UFC 157 betting lines focus on the ladies. Ronda Rousey is a huge favorite in the Octagon Saturday and Danica Patrick has the pole at Daytona.

Ronda Rousey and Danica Patrick are often the hottest tickets in their respective sports, but this weekend they are the hottest betting tickets too.

Rousey is a huge favorite to defeat Liz Carmouche in the main event of UFC 157 in Anaheim, the first womens UFC fight. The former Olympian's meteoric rise has been terrific for the sport and her profile and she is -1200 favorite on most MMA betting menus.

A key battle between Dan Henderson and Lyoto Machida that could decide the next light heavyweight challenger for Jon Jones also goes on the main card. Urijah Faber and Josh Koscheck also grace the card.

Across the continent at Daytona, Danica Patrick will try to become the first woman to win the Great American Race. She earned the pole position but is an 18/1 longshot on Daytona 500 odds menus.

Elsewhere this weekend, the sports betting calendar is full of intriguing basketball and hockey matchups too.

The Georgetown Hoyas are 3-0 ATS and 2-1 SU in their last three road games against the Syracuse Orange, and will be looking for another road upset when they visit the Orange this Saturday.

While the Orange (22-4 SU, 13-8-1 ATS) have been in the Top 10 of the AP Poll all season long, the Hoyas (20-4 SU, 13-7 ATS) entered the season unranked and looked like an afterthought with a 2-3 SU start to conference play in the Big East.

But since that slow start, Georgetown has gone a perfect 8-0 SU and ATS including outright upsets on the road over Notre Dame and Cincinnati. The Hoyas will get their toughest road test yet Saturday afternoon against Syracuse.

The Orange are 13-5 SU and 11-7 ATS in their last 18 games against Georgetown.

The Ohio State Buckeyes (19-7 SU, 13-11 ATS) are just 1-7 SU and 3-5 ATS against ranked opponents this year, but they'll try to turn things around this Sunday when they host the Michigan State Spartans (22-5 SU, 11-12-1 ATS).

The Spartans are 4-1 ATS and 3-2 SU in their last five games against Ohio State overall. The total has gone UNDER in four of those five games. [ See all college basketball odds Saturday ]

The NBA's marquee matchup of the weekend comes Sunday when the Oklahoma City Thunder (39-15 SU, 30-21-3 ATS) host the Chicago Bulls (31-22 SU, 23-30 ATS). Oklahoma City is 3-1 SU and ATS in its last four games against the Bulls.

The total has gone UNDER in six of the last seven games between these two teams.

Out on the ice, the Chicago Blackhawks (13-0-3) will once again put their streak of games without a regulation loss on the line when they host the San Jose Sharks (8-4-3) on Friday night. San Jose is just 1-4-3 including two regulation losses to Chicago since starting the season off 7-0-0 back in January.

Saturday night the Toronto Maple Leafs (10-7-0) and the Ottawa Senators (9-6-2) will meet in another chapter of the "Battle of Ontario".

Toronto has won each of the last three games in this rivalry in regulation with all three games going UNDER the total.

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Source: http://www.sbnation.com/mma/2013/2/22/4017942/ufc-157-odds-daytona-500-betting-headline-sports-calendar

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Las Vegas seen as dangerous even as crime drops

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2013 file photo, law enforcement personal investigate the scene of a multi-vehicle accident and shooting in Las Vegas. Variously known as an adult playground and Disneyland for grown-ups, Las Vegas has worked to brand itself as a place where tourists can enjoy a sense of edginess with no real danger. But a series of high-profile and seemingly random incidents that have left visitors to the Strip dead or in the hospital is threatening Sin City?s reputation as a padded room of a town where people can cut loose with no fear of consequences. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Review-Journal, Jeff Scheid, File) LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; LAS VEGAS SUN OUT

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2013 file photo, law enforcement personal investigate the scene of a multi-vehicle accident and shooting in Las Vegas. Variously known as an adult playground and Disneyland for grown-ups, Las Vegas has worked to brand itself as a place where tourists can enjoy a sense of edginess with no real danger. But a series of high-profile and seemingly random incidents that have left visitors to the Strip dead or in the hospital is threatening Sin City?s reputation as a padded room of a town where people can cut loose with no fear of consequences. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Review-Journal, Jeff Scheid, File) LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; LAS VEGAS SUN OUT

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2013 file photo, law enforcement personal investigate the scene of a mulit-vehicle accident on Las Vegas Blvd and Flamingo Road. Variously known as an adult playground and Disneyland for grown-ups, Las Vegas has worked to brand itself as a place where tourists can enjoy a sense of edginess with no real danger. But a series of high-profile and seemingly random incidents that have left visitors to the Strip dead or in the hospital is threatening Sin City?s reputation as a padded room of a town where people can cut loose with no fear of consequences. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Review-Journal, Jeff Scheid) LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; LAS VEGAS SUN OUT

LAS VEGAS (AP) ? Variously known as an adult playground and Disneyland for grown-ups, Las Vegas brands itself as a place where tourists can enjoy a sense of edginess with no real danger.

But a series of high-profile episodes of random violence amid the throngs of tourists is threatening Sin City's reputation as a padded room of a town where people can cut loose with no fear of consequences.

A car-to-car shooting and fiery crash that killed two bystanders and an aspiring rapper Thursday followed a bizarre elevator stabbing and a movie theater parking lot shooting.

Though crime has been falling on the glitzy stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard that houses most of the city's major casinos, tourism officials worry that vacationers and convention planners could begin to steer clear of the town because of a perception of mayhem.

"We are concerned because it can create misperceptions about the safety of the city, the safety of the Strip," said Gary Thompson, spokesman for Caesars Entertainment, which owns 10 resorts in the tourist zone, including Caesars Palace and Paris Las Vegas.

Casinos are particularly worried about convention business, which helps fill rooms and gambling tables between weekends. Corporate planners can swing the market with a few decisions, said Gordon Absher, spokesman for MGM Resorts International.

"And that decision will bring thousands of people," he said. MGM operates several major casino-hotels, including CityCenter, where Thursday's convulsion of violence originated.

Violent crime, which includes murder, rape, robbery and assault, in the city's main tourist hub fell 13 percent in 2012, from 256 to 223 incidents, and is down 11 percent for the first part of 2013, with 50 incidents reported. The number of rapes has fallen by more than a third.

There have been two homicides just off the Strip this year, in addition to the three deaths Thursday, compared to none in the area during the first month and a half of 2012.

Had they taken place elsewhere, the incidents that made headlines in recent weeks would never have become national stories, Thompson said. But when the crime happens in a city that welcomes 40 million visitors a year, people tend to care even if they haven't seen the neon lights in years.

"It's like, 'I was there! I stayed in there in Las Vegas! I walked that part of the Strip!'" he said.

The spate of violence started just before the new year, when a man shot and killed his ex-girlfriend, an Excalibur hotel-casino concierge clerk, before fatally shooting himself.

The following week, a blackjack dealer was wrestled to the ground at the Bellagio with razor blades in both hands. She is charged with killing a 10 year-old girl and then slashing her co-worker's face.

On New Year's Eve, a man allegedly fired a gunshot into the floor of the crowded Circus Circus casino during an argument. A Saudi air force sergeant is accused of raping a 13-year-old boy in the rooms above the same night.

A nighttime shooting outside a Strip movie theater left two people critically wounded earlier this month. Last week, two random men allegedly assaulted a visitor in the elevator at the Mandalay Bay property, tackling him and stabbing him in such a frenzy that they also stabbed each other.

During the same period, Las Vegas courts sentenced a Florida teacher for killing a stranger with a single punch after trading words in a casino bathroom, and heard the case of two law students charged with beheading an exotic bird at the Flamingo casino-hotel.

The shoot-'em-up car chase that closed the Strip for 12 hours Thursday was the most public and deadly incident yet.

A person in a luxury SUV opened fire on an aspiring rapper in a Maserati near one of the busiest intersections on the iconic corridor. As the bullets flew, the Maserati ran a red light and crashed into a taxi, which burst into flames. The taxi driver, a passenger and the rapper were killed, and six people were injured.

Casino executives say they do all they can to keep visitors safe, with armies of guards, networks of high-definition surveillance cameras and undercover security workers scattered throughout nearly every major attraction.

"Unless you are a complete idiot, you're not going to want to commit many crimes in or around a casino because you're going to get caught," Thompson said.

But catching a criminal isn't the same as stopping the crime.

Commissioners in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located, are weighing steps to increase safety, including installing additional cameras in public spaces and broadening the sidewalks. In October, they banned potentially dangerous objects including fireworks, knives and toy guns from the Strip.

But real guns remain permissible. Nevada's relaxed gun laws, including the ability to carry them openly, have made Las Vegas an attractive spot for shooting ranges and gun shows.

Some observers think police should step up their presence on the Strip, just as they did after three slayings in 2011.

"Clearly they should be looking into this because they have had a string of incidents now, and while they've all been random incidents, they all did happen," said David Schwartz, the Director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

On Thursday, police spokesman Jose Hernandez said the department had no plans to send additional officers to the Strip, noting that crime remains relatively low for a town that accommodates so many visitors each day.

But with violent crime, as with so much else in Vegas, perception may outweigh reality. As a place built on the promise of letting loose, the city must work extra hard to banish all fear of danger, said Tony Henthorne, a marketing professor at the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration in Las Vegas.

"It's important for any destination that relies on tourism for a major percentage of its income to appear safe," he said, "and also actually to be safe."

___

Hannah Dreier can be reached at http://twitter.com/hannahdreier

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-02-23-US-Vegas-Safety-Fears/id-0ac883f255704945926a8b218125626e

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Friday, February 22, 2013

Iran maneuvers for upper hand ahead of nuclear talks

Expectations for a breakthrough at the talks are low. The P5+1 appears to be offering little new and an IAEA report shows Iran has made steady nuclear progress since talks stalled last spring.

By Scott Peterson,?Staff writer / February 22, 2013

An anti-aircraft gun position is seen at Iran's nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz, Iran, in 2007. Iran will sit down next week with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (known as the P5+1) to find ways to cap Iran?s nuclear progress.

Hasan Sarbakhshian/AP/File

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Iran is continuing to advance its nuclear program, according to a new report by United Nations inspectors, gaining bargaining chips on the eve of a new round of talks with six world powers in Kazakhstan.

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After an eight-month hiatus, Iran will sit down on Feb. 26 with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (known as the P5+1) to find ways to cap Iran?s nuclear progress.

After three failed rounds of talks last spring, P5+1 diplomats now say they will make a ?substantial and serious offer? to Iran in an effort to convince it to give up sensitive nuclear work that could lead to a bomb.

Yet expectations are low for a breakthrough in the Kazakh city of Almaty.

News reports indicate only slight changes to the last P5+1 offer Iran rejected, which required Iran to take key irreversible steps before any possibility of significant sanctions relief. Iran?s June presidential election also makes any deal unlikely now.

Toeing the 'red line'

The report yesterday by the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) shows that Iran is moving forward deliberately, yet carefully: Making advances while nuclear talks have been stalled, but not so much progress that it triggers the military strikes threatened by Israel and the US.

The IAEA report details an expansion of Iran?s ability to enrich uranium ? the process that produces nuclear fuel and?at a higher level serves as the raw material for nuclear weapons ? and the first-time installation of a new generation of centrifuge for more efficient enrichment.

Yet the IAEA also reports that Iran?s stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium ? the material that most concerns Israel and the West, because it is a few technical steps from bomb-grade ? grew slower than expected.

That stockpile now stands at 167kg, below the 240kg declared by Israel as its ?red line? because that amount ??by Israel?s count, at least ??is enough to make a single weapon if enriched further.

The stockpile grew slowly because Iran converted nearly two-thirds of its newly made 20 percent enriched uranium to a form for fuel use, rendering it unsuitable for use in weapons.

All of Iran?s declared nuclear facilities are under IAEA surveillance and frequent inspection. But the IAEA scolded Iran for lack of cooperation and failure to agree on a ?structured? plan to clarify unresolved issues and for access to the military site at Parchin, which is not a declared nuclear facility but is suspected of being a site of implosion experiments a decade ago.

The IAEA stated that it is therefore ?unable?to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities.?

A softening of stance?

In Kazakhstan, the P5+1 will reiterate demands that Iran stop all 20 percent enrichment, shut its deeply buried facility at Fordow, and ship out of the country all its 20-percent enriched uranium stockpile, as well as accept measures that will make it forever impossible for Iran to go for a bomb, if it chose to do so. Though being touted as a "serious" new and updated offer, "the next proposal is remarkably close to the old one," and is "a way to test whether they are serious or not," one P5+1 official told Reuters.?

Iran says it rejects nuclear weapons as un-Islamic, but demands recognition of its right to peaceful nuclear technology ? as a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty ? and wants sanctions lifted that have helped cripple its economy.

?The mood is shifting?. We?ve heard about an ?upgraded and credible offer,?? says Shashank Joshi, a research fellow at Britain?s Royal United Services Institute.

?When you talk to [P5+1 officials and diplomats], you clearly see the movement in the direction of, ?We need to put some sanctions relief on the table, for a meaningful stop-shut-and-ship-style deal,?? says Mr. Joshi. ?They?re not saying it, but they are saying, ?We made a mistake,? even though none of them will admit to that.?

Past incentives such as airplane parts for Iran?s aging fleet were ?pathetic,? though they did technically qualify as ?sanctions relief,? says Joshi, author of ?The Permanent Crisis: Iran?s Nuclear Trajectory.?

?Are we on the same page [as the Iranians] to what ?upgraded? means, and to what ?meaningful? means?? adds Joshi. ?The challenge for the Europeans and the Americans is this: How do you craft a form of sanctions relief that is sufficient to elicit Iranian cooperation, without so easing the pressure on Iran that it sees no need to cooperate in other areas of dispute??

Stated White House policy toward Iran has had two tracks: applying pressure while pursuing diplomacy.

According to Vali Nasr, a Pakistan and Iran expert who worked inside the Obama administration for two years, in reality the strategy on Iran was ?not even dual. It relied on one track, and that was pressure,? he writes in a new book due out in April, as quoted by Roger Cohen in The New York Times this week.

?Engagement was a cover for a coercive campaign of sabotage, economic pressure and cyberwarfare,? writes Mr. Nasr. ?Pressure has become an end in itself.?

Chances of a step-by-step process seemed to fade and Washington?s lack of interest would have been clear to Iran, because ?the sum total of three major rounds of diplomatic negotiation was that America would give some bits and bobs of old aircraft in exchange for Iran?s nuclear program,? Nasr writes.

Technological problems

Senior Iranian officials have dismissed that carrot-and-stick approach as suitable only for donkeys. Iran?s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Feb. 7 also nixed direct US-Iran talks for the time being, blaming sanctions ? which the US Congress has tightened further in recent weeks ? and clandestine actions against Iran.

?You [Americans] are pointing the gun at Iran and say either negotiate or we will shoot,? Khamenei said, adding that Iran ?will not be frightened by the threats.?

The IAEA reported that in the past three months, Iran installed 2,255 more of its 1970s model IR-1 centrifuge, making the total 12,669 at its primary Natanz facility. Only about two-thirds are currently working.

The IAEA also said that Iran had started installation of 180 centrifuges of a new IR-2 model, which can enrich five times faster. Yet there has been no change in the past nine months of the number of centrifuges enriching to 20 percent at both Fordow and Natanz.?

The manufacture of so many new centrifuges and the steady upward trend of Iran?s enrichment over the years indicate that sanctions, sabotage, and computer viruses have had little strategic impact on Iran?s nuclear progress.

But centrifuges continue to produce less today and throughout 2012 at Natanz, after peaking in 2010.

?This consistently lower enrichment output likely indicates that Iran is continuing to have trouble with the IR-1 centrifuges,? notes an analysis of the IAEA report by the Institute for Science and International Security in Washington.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland called the IR-2 installation "yet another provocative step" by Iran, and a "further escalation." UN Security Council resolutions require that Iran halt all enrichment activities until it clears up remaining questions about alleged past weapons-related work.

One of Iran's goals in continuing to enrich to 20 percent could be "its usefulness as a bargaining chip," writes Yousaf Butt, a nuclear physicist at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, in the National Interest.

"What are perceived in the West as being provocative steps towards a nuclear weapons capability may just be negotiating strategy to get the draconian sanctions removed," Mr. Butt writes.

The P5+1 should put ?serious sanctions relief on the table,? says Butt, though such a step is unlikely next week in Kazakhstan.

"There appears to be a striking cognitive dissonance between the pronouncements of the alleged mortal threat posed by Iran's nuclear program and the foot-dragging approach to doing something about it in negotiations," adds Butt.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/-bsP_upK-S0/Iran-maneuvers-for-upper-hand-ahead-of-nuclear-talks

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Vatican denies sinister motives behind diplomat's transfer

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican denied on Friday that Pope Benedict's decision to send a senior official to a new post in Latin America was linked to a secret report about leaked papal papers.

Since Benedict announced his resignation on February 11, Italian newspapers have been full of rumors about conspiracies, secret reports and lobbies in the Vatican that they say pushed the pope to abdicate.

Some reports hinted there were sinister motives behind the pope's decision to promote Monsignor Ettore Balestrero, an Italian who holds a post roughly equivalent to deputy foreign minister, to be the Vatican's new ambassador to Colombia.

The Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said the suggestion that the pope had made the appointment to get Balestrero out of the Vatican was "absurd, totally without foundation".

Lombardi said the appointment had been decided weeks ago and that the Vatican had waited for the Colombian government's official agreement before announcing it.

The pope has announced that he will step down on February 28, becoming the first pontiff to abdicate in some six centuries.

The 85-year-old Benedict said his failing health no longer enabled him to run the 1.2 billion-member Roman Catholic Church as he would like.

Italy's Repubblica newspaper has run a series of unsourced stories about the alleged contents of a secret report prepared for the pope by a commission of three cardinals who investigated the so-called Vatileaks scandal last year.

In that scandal, Paolo Gabriele, the pope's butler, was convicted of stealing personal papal documents and leaking them to the media.

The documents alleged corruption in the Vatican and infighting over the running of its bank, which has been at the heart of a series of scandals in past decades.

The Italian media stories suggested Balestrero was mentioned in the cardinals' report, which was handed to the pope and is still secret.

Balestrero was head of the Vatican's delegation to Moneyval, the Council of Europe's committee that evaluates how countries are applying international standards on financial transparency.

The Vatican, a sovereign city-state surrounded by Rome, subjected itself to Moneyval's investigations in an attempt to achieve full financial transparency and put its scandal-tinged financial past behind it.

The Moneyval report, issued last July, gave the Vatican an overall passing grade but said it had to made improvements in several areas, including the management at its bank, the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR).

The Vatican has said it is willing to adhere to all of Moneyval's recommendations.

Bogota is one of the most prestigious posts in Latin America for a Vatican diplomat because it is the headquarters of CELAM, the umbrella group for all of the continent's bishops conferences.

(Reporting By Philip Pullella; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/vatican-denies-sinister-motives-behind-diplomats-transfer-170232832.html

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PlayStation 4 will not have native PS3 backwards compatibility

PlayStation 4 will not have native PS3 backwards compatibility

During today's PlayStation event Gaikai's Dave Perry revealed that the PlayStation 4 will not natively support PlayStation 3 games, and that Sony's next-gen console will instead stream PS1, PS2 and PS3 games from the cloud -- something that the company has already confirmed on Twitter.

Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens.

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Source: Sony (Twitter)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/playstation-4-will-not-have-native-ps3-backwards-compatibility/

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Sony's new DualShock 4 controller official: all-new design, touchpad, share button and more

Sony's new DualShock 4 controller official allnew design, touchpad and share button

We had a hint or two about its imminent arrival, but Sony's now made its next-generation DualShock 4 controller official at tonight's PlayStation 4 event in NYC. The company's Lead System Architect Mark Cerny took to the stage to reveal the all-new companion, which has been redesigned and now features a more rounded form factor as well as what appears to be a slightly rubberized grip with "enhanced rumble capabilities." There's also a touchpad now (clearly taking a cue from the Vita), a headphone jack, the long-rumored share button, a light bar that, according to Cerny, will be utilized as a "more friendly way to identify players" and a stereo camera which is used to track the 3D position of the Move-compatible controller.

Not surprisingly, Sony's touting the addition of the "Share" button as one of the biggest features of the DualShock 4, allowing players to easily send tidbits like video clips and screenshots to places such as Ustream, Facebook and, naturally, the firm's own PlayStation Network. That's all we know thus far, but we''re sure to hear more about the DualShock 4 in the coming future -- for now, head on past the break and enjoy the gallery from Sony's presentation.

Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens!

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/playstation-4-dualshock-controller/

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Chromebook Pixel vs. other Chromebooks: fight!

Chromebook Pixel vs other Chromebooks fight!

Google raised the bar considerably for Chrome OS computers with the Chromebook Pixel -- but just how badly does it bruise other mainstream Chromebooks in the ring? We won't lie: for the most part, it's an outright thrashing. While it doesn't have as big a screen as HP's Pavilion 14 Chromebook or last as long on battery as Samsung's ARM-based Chromebook, the Pixel is technically superior in most every other way. That 2,560 x 1,700 display resolution, 1.8GHz Core i5 and support for LTE put Google's PC in a different class altogether, and that's when excluding freebies like the 1TB of Google Drive storage. It's even slimmer than some of its peers. The one clear obstacle is the price -- at $1,299, you're paying six times more than you would for an Acer C7 that manages a bigger (if much slower) hard drive. As you'll see in the chart, though, being part of the premium club has its perks.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/21/chromebook-pixel-vs-other-chromebooks-fight/

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New injectable hydrogel encourages regeneration and improves functionality after a heart attack

Feb. 20, 2013 ? University of California, San Diego bioengineers have demonstrated in a study in pigs that a new injectable hydrogel can repair damage from heart attacks, help the heart grow new tissue and blood vessels, and get the heart moving closer to how a healthy heart should. The results of the study were published Feb. 20 in Science Translational Medicine and clear the way for clinical trials to begin this year in Europe. The gel is injected through a catheter without requiring surgery or general anesthesia -- a less invasive procedure for patients.?

There are an estimated 785,000 new heart attack cases in the United States each year, with no established treatment for repairing the resulting damage to cardiac tissue. Lead researcher Karen Christman, a professor in the Department of Bioengineering at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, said the gel forms a scaffold in damaged areas of the heart, encouraging new cell growth and repair. Because the gel is made from heart tissue taken from pigs, the damaged heart responds positively, creating a harmonious environment for rebuilding, rather than setting off a chain of adverse immune system defenses.

"While more people today are initially surviving heart attacks, many will eventually go into heart failure," said Christman. "Our data show that this hydrogel can increase cardiac muscle and reduce scar tissue in the region damaged by the heart attack, which prevents heart failure. These results suggest this may be a novel minimally invasive therapy to prevent heart failure after a heart attack in humans."

The hydrogel is made from cardiac connective tissue that is stripped of heart muscle cells through a cleansing process, freeze-dried and milled into powder form, and then liquefied into a fluid that can be easily injected into the heart. Once it hits body temperature, the liquid turns into a semi-solid, porous gel that encourages cells to repopulate areas of damaged cardiac tissue and to improve heart function, according to Christman. The material is also biocompatible; animals treated with the hydrogel suffered no adverse affects such as inflammation, lesions or arrhythmic heart beating, according to safety experiments conducted as part of the study. Further tests with human blood samples showed that the gel had no affect on the blood's clotting ability, which underscores the biocompatibility of the treatment for use in humans.

San Diego-based startup, Ventrix, Inc., which Christman co-founded, has licensed the technology for development and commercialization. Christman also serves on the company's board. "We are excited and encouraged by the results of the study leading to a novel regenerative medicine solution for cardiac repair. The technology offers the potential for a longer and better quality of life for millions of heart attack sufferers," said Adam Kinsey, the CEO of Ventrix.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California - San Diego.

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


Journal Reference:

  1. S. B. Seif-Naraghi, J. M. Singelyn, M. A. Salvatore, K. G. Osborn, J. J. Wang, U. Sampat, O. L. Kwan, G. M. Strachan, J. Wong, P. J. Schup-Magoffin, R. L. Braden, K. Bartels, J. A. DeQuach, M. Preul, A. M. Kinsey, A. N. DeMaria, N. Dib, K. L. Christman. Safety and Efficacy of an Injectable Extracellular Matrix Hydrogel for Treating Myocardial Infarction. Science Translational Medicine, 2013; 5 (173): 173ra25 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3005503

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/DRu8rtKe_yc/130220153705.htm

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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: Major Cast Changes to Come?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/02/the-real-housewives-of-beverly-hills-major-cast-changes-to-come/

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TurboTax for iPad


This is the second year that Intuit has produced an iPad-optimized version of TurboTax. While you can still access TurboTax Online through your iPad browser, there's no reason not to go with the versions that were built specifically for Apple's tablet computer?unless you want to be able to access the return on another computing device, a desktop, or laptop. You can only work on your return on your iPad if you intend to complete it there. H&R Block lets you switch back and forth.

The other deficits I noted in the 2011 version are now absent. You can "bookmark" pages you want to revisit with a "Flag," and it's much more convenient to correct problems or omissions in the Error Check section.

TurboTax for iPad was very good last year, considering that it was Intuit's first tablet app effort. This year, it's better.

Much the Same
TurboTax Deluxe for the iPad, which I reviewed this year, has changed little internally. It still supports the most common tax situations as well as some obscure ones through forms and schedules like Schedule A, B, C, D, 1040-ES, 1098, 1099s, etc. If you live in a state that charges income tax, your relevant data can move automatically into your state's version.

Intuit pioneered a more user-friendly process for getting data onto IRS forms and schedules nearly 20 years ago, and all tax software and websites work the same way now. They recreate the experience of visiting a tax preparer's office by asking a lengthy series of questions in a wizard-like framework, performing the calculations required and entering your answers in the correct fields on actual tax returns. You don't see the forms until your return is completed; all you see are windows containing questions and ways for you to answer (blank fields, lists, Yes or No boxes, etc.).

When you've gone through all of the topics that you think apply to you, TurboTax analyzes your information, looking for deductions you might have missed and identifying errors and omissions. This year, it's much easier to fix mistakes, since the app provides a way for you to correct them right on the screen where they're identified. No going back into earlier screens and finding your way back out. H&R Block's approach is not as simple.

Commendable Support
All of the major tax preparation sites that compete for Editors' Choice do a commendable job of providing help for users (H&R Block was the weakest in my review of its online solution). TurboTax is consistently the best, and Intuit has carried that success over to the iPad version.

Unless a particular question is clear, like What is your name?, there's usually some text explaining the question succinctly right on the page with it. You can click on hyperlinked words and phrases?or "Learn More"?on the interview screens, and a smaller window containing a more thorough explanation appears. There's a link here to Intuit's Live Community, where taxpayers and experts meet to ask and answer questions.

And if you click on the question mark in the upper right corner, the TurboTax Help Center opens. Here, you can search through voluminous help files to learn more about a topic. Paid users of TurboTax can also email, chat online or actually talk on the phone to one of Intuit's tax professionals?as often as needed. No one else offers this for the iPad.

Almost a Carbon Copy
TurboTax for the iPad looks and works much like the online application. It follows the same interview process through the same topics, so you don't have to worry that you'll be missing a form or schedule. Anything you can download online (like W-2 data) is available for import on the iPad version.

As far as the user interface goes, it's practically identical. The only things missing are the excerpts from Live Community at the bottom of the screen and the Tools icon (gives you access to the topic search, topic list and fee informational utilities in the online version). There's no help query box, but you can get to the Help Center (and Live Community) by clicking the question mark in the upper right corner.

Navigation works similarly, too. You can jump back and forth among the site's primary sections by clicking on the outline in the left vertical pane (topic search is now located here). But you'll primarily move through the app by clicking buttons at the bottom of the screen, like Back/Continue and Yes/No, just like online.

Close, but TurboTax for the iPad Prevails
Both TurboTax for the iPad and H&R Block for the iPad are thorough, competent, comprehensive tax preparation apps. They don't support absolutely every personal tax situation, and neither is a good choice if you know little about taxes, are apprehensive about using an unfamiliar application and/or your financial situation in 2012 was quite complicated. In those situations, a visit to a tax professional may be in order.

But if you had a reasonably uncomplicated year with no major changes and you like the idea of preparing and filing your taxes using your iPad, TurboTax for the iPad is your best option. It offers more kinds of help at no cost, and you won't face what you can face when you've completed your return using H&R Block for the iPad: an expert solution telling you that you've done something wrong, but which makes it difficult to fix.

There's no Editor's Choice for the category of mobile tax preparation apps this year?just the recommendation that you go with Intuit's iPad and smartphone applications.

More Accounting and Tax Software Reviews:
??? TurboTax for iPad
??? H&R Block for iPad
??? TaxACT Deluxe Tablet App (for iPad)
??? TurboTax SnapTax (for iPhone)
??? eSmart Tax Premium
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/bxkBn4NY86E/0,2817,2415658,00.asp

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NVIDIA intros Tegra 4i with built-in LTE, details Chimera camera tech with HDR

NVIDIA unveils Tegra 4i with builtin LTE, details Chimera camera tech with alwayson HDR

Did NVIDIA say it would stick to one new mobile processor design per year? If so, it's not worried about its own rules: meet the Tegra 4i. The 4-plus-1 chip formerly known as Project Grey is a Tegra 4 mostly in name, and goes for integration rather than raw power. It sheds the newer Cortex-A15 architecture of the Tegra 4 for a spruced-up 2.3GHz Cortex-A9 with the i500 LTE modem built directly into the chip die -- a move that cuts the surface area in half and simplifies the hardware, even as it supposedly outruns equivalent competition. The design is more than just an overclocked Tegra 3 with 4G inside, though. The 4i touts 60 graphics cores versus the 12 of its ancestor, and inherits the high dynamic range photography and video engine of the Tegra 4. NVIDIA is demonstrating the 4i's chops through the Phoenix (pictured above), a 5-inch, 1080p reference Android smartphone that builders can use as a starting point. There's no immediate customers mentioned for the CPU, although we suspect those are coming soon.

Speaking of that camera technology, NVIDIA has also given it a name. Chimera, as it's now called, isn't just about making HDR available for every photo and video. The mix of CPU and GPU processing can capture HDR panorama shots without requiring a single-direction sweep, letting a would-be Ansel Adams 'paint' the panorama out of order. The autofocusing engine is also smart enough to include subject tracking with an exposure lock. Both 8-megapixel Aptina and 13-megapixel Sony camera sensors can already support Chimera, which gives us a clue as to just what imaging we can expect with the first batch of Tegra 4 and 4i devices.

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Source: NVIDIA

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/19/nvidia-unveils-tegra-4i-with-lte/

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11-year-old cancer survivor catches fire in hospital room | The Raw ...

By Arturo Garcia
Tuesday, February 19, 2013 15:27 EST

?

Officials at a children?s hospital in Oregon are struggling to figure out how an 11-year-old cancer survivor suffered third-degree burns inside her room.

KATU-TV reported on Monday that Doernbecher Children?s Hospital staff is investigating whether the hand sanitizer in Ireland Lane?s room is to blame for her shirt catching fire while she was recovering from an unrelated head injury at the facility on Feb. 2.

?I?ve been in medicine going back 30 years now and never heard anything like this,? said the hospital?s assistant chief, Dr. Stacy Nicholson. ?And hopefully I never will again.?

According to KPTV-TV, hospital officials said Ireland?s father, Stephen Lane, told them he was asleep in the room while she was painting something for Doernbecher?s nursing staff when the shirt caught fire. He was able to smother the flames after she ran out of the room screaming, and Ireland was transferred to a burn unit for recovery.

The Oregonian reported on Tuesday that Ireland is listed in serious condition and is scheduled to undergo a skin graft on Thursday, her 12th birthday.

?She?s quite a tough one,? Stephen Lane told the newspaper. ?She?s been through more than any child I?ve ever heard of, and to still walk around with a smile on her face and enjoy the things of the day that are going on, and be a kid is to me pretty amazing.?

Watch KATU?s report on the freak accident that happened to Ireland, aired Monday, below.

[h/t ABC News]

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Source: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/02/19/11-year-old-cancer-survivor-catches-fire-in-hospital-room/

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2013 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M

Texas A&M offensive tackle Luke Joeckel headlines the 2013 NFL Draft class at his position and is widely considered the top prospect of all.

He has plenty of experience blocking for high-profile quarterbacks, such as 2012 first-round pick Ryan Tannehill (Miami Dolphins) and the latest Heisman Trophy winner, Johnny Manziel.

Strengths

  • Extremely durable and experienced for a junior - 37 career starts

  • Ideal build for the position (6-foot-6, 310 pounds)

  • Impressive ability to recover if he is initially beaten off the line

  • Quick feet and laterally agile

  • Great knee bend for his size

  • Heady blocker - recognizes defensive schemes and responds accordingly

  • Technically sound

  • Efficient blocker at the second level and downfield

  • Good character and well-respected teammate

Weaknesses

  • Occasional sloppy hand work

  • Could be a little more aggressive at times

  • May have benefitted from defensive ends having to play containment against the Aggies' mobile passers

  • While experienced and ready for the NFL, perhaps one more year in college could have taken him to a new level

Expected draft placement

An elite player at a premium position garners a lot of attention in the NFL Draft, and Joeckel will be no different as a prospect. He has all of the makings of a decade-long All-Pro in the NFL.

Depending on what the Kansas City Chiefs do with Branden Albert as a free agent, Joeckel could go as high as No. 1 overall. It is highly unlikely that he falls past the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 4.

About Cory J. Bonini

Cory is KFFL's General Manager. In late 2002, he joined the KFFL staff as a research analyst and has been involved in fantasy sports since 1996. A member of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, as well as Fantasy Sports Writers Association, Bonini has been featured in print, on radio and on scores of websites. Bonini co-hosted Big Lead Sports on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio from 2011 to 2012.

Bonini was recognized with the 2010 Best Article in Print Award from the FSWA and was a finalist for the same award in 2011. In '11, he finished first overall in the FSWA NFL experts challenge that featured 60 of the industry's best competitors.

Don't miss these great reports....

What do you think? Sound off!

Source: http://www.kffl.com/a.php/132963/nfl-draft/2013-NFL-Draft-Scouting-Report--Luke-Joeckel--OT--Texas-A&M?source=campaign-rss

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Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Ohio college student's online parody goes viral

CINCINNATI (AP) - An Ohio college student's online parody of the Korean pop hit "Gangnam Style" has gone viral.

The parody by Brian Schwing, who grew up in Cincinnati, has nearly 4.5 million views on YouTube and counting.

The 22-year-old is working as an intern at NASA in Houston and is a senior at Ohio State University.

His video, "NASA Johnson Style," shows his fellow interns at Johnson Space Center dancing like "Gangnam Style" singer PSY and singing altered lyrics.

Schwing tells the Cincinnati Enquirer (http://cin.ci/159g0lQ) that it took him about 200 hours to produce the video, with 15 hours of footage that had to be edited down to four minutes.

Schwing says he hopes the video gets more people interested in science and spaceflight.

Information from: The Cincinnati Enquirer, http://www.enquirer.com

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.fox19.com/story/21232307/ohio-college-students-online-parody-goes-viral

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Shedding new light on infant brain development

Feb. 18, 2013 ? A new study by Columbia Engineering researchers finds that the infant brain does not control its blood flow in the same way as the adult brain. The paper, which the scientists say could change the way researchers study brain development in infants and children, is published in the February 18 Early Online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

"The control of blood flow in the brain is very important" says Elizabeth Hillman, associate professor of Biomedical Engineering and of Radiology, who led the research study in her Laboratory for Functional Optical Imaging at Columbia. "Not only are regionally specific increases in blood flow necessary for normal brain function, but these blood-flow increases form the basis of signals measured in fMRI, a critical imaging tool used widely in adults and children to assess brain function. Many prior fMRI studies have overlooked the possibility that the infant brain controls blood flow differently."

"Our results are fascinating" says Mariel Kozberg, a neurobiology MD-PhD candidate who works under Hillman and is the lead author of the PNAS paper. "We found that the immature brain does not generate localized blood-flow increases in response to stimuli. By tracking changes in blood-flow control with increasing age, we observed the brain gradually developing its ability to increase local blood flow and, by adulthood, generate a large blood-flow response."

The study results suggest that fMRI experiments in infants and children should be carefully designed to ensure that maturation of blood-flow control can be delineated from changes in neuronal development. "On the other hand," says Hillman, "our findings also suggest that vascular development may be an important new factor to consider in normal and abnormal brain development, so our findings could represent new markers of normal and abnormal brain development that could potentially be related to a range of neurological or even psychological conditions."

Functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, is one of several brain-imaging methods that measure changes in blood flow to detect the presence and location of neuronal activity. In adults, blood-flow increases occur in specific regions of the brain during a particular task like moving your hand or reacting to a stimulus. FMRI relies upon measuring decreases in deoxygenated hemoglobin resulting from this blood-flow increase to understand which parts of the brain are responsible for different actions and emotions. FMRI and other brain-imaging methods are currently being widely used to explore brain development, and to understand disorders in infants and children including autism and ADHD.

"Until now, we had been studying blood flow in the adult brain," Hillman notes, "but we became interested in several studies that reported odd, sometimes negative, blood-flow responses in newborn and premature infants and decided to carefully explore what was different about the immature brain compared to the adult. Initially, I saw these studies as a way to watch how the adult system assembled itself during development. Then we realized how important our findings were to those using brain imaging to study child development and developmental disorders."

The team used a unique multispectral optical intrinsic signal imaging system (MS-OISI) built in Hillman's lab to perform the research. MS-OISI is a high-speed, high-resolution imaging approach that takes advantage of the different absorption spectra of deoxygenated and oxygenated hemoglobin in order to determine changes in the concentrations of each. The researchers found that, with increasing age, there was a gradual development of a localized increase in blood flow, while a strong, delayed decrease in flow was consistently present. Only by adulthood was the positive increase able to balance the decrease in flow.

"Our results suggest that the infant brain might not be able to generate localized blood- flow increases, even if there is neuronal activity occurring, and that the development of blood- flow control occurs in parallel with early neuronal development," says Kozberg. "This could suggest that fMRI studies of infants and children may be detecting changes in both vascular and neuronal development -- in fact, vascular development may be an important new factor to consider in normal and abnormal brain development."

The team also found that the younger age groups were highly sensitive to blood pressure increases in response to stimulation and that these increases can cause large increases in blood flow across the brain. "This finding indicates that the newborn brain is also unable to regulate its overall blood-flow levels," Kozberg explains. "This could explain earlier fMRI results in infants and children that were sometimes positive and sometimes negative, because it is difficult to tell whether blood pressure increases are occurring in infants and children. This result suggests that great care should be taken in setting stimulus thresholds in young subjects."

The researchers add that, since the newborn brain appears to be able to sustain itself without tightly controlled blood flow, their findings suggest that the infant brain may be intrinsically more resistant to damage due to a lack of oxygen than the adult brain. "This could be an important property to understand, both in terms of understanding how best to treat blood-flow problems in the newborn infant brain, which can cause lifelong problems such as cerebral palsy, and to potentially better understand how to treat the adult brain in conditions such as stroke," Hillman observes.

"Our lab operates at the intersection of neuroscience and engineering," continues Hillman." Not only do we develop the imaging systems that let us investigate the living brain in new ways, but like all engineers, we're fascinated with figuring out 'how things work,' and the brain is no exception."

Next steps for Hillman and her team include further defining the cellular mechanisms underlying the developing hemodynamic response at a cellular and microvascular level, using methods such as high-speed and multi-plane in-vivo two-photon microscopy, another technique developed in the lab. They're particularly interested in tracking changes in neuronal activity, microvascular architecture and connectivity, and the distribution and activity of other cellular populations thought to be associated with neurovascular coupling as a function of development.

"This will help us understand how the neonatal brain is different, and better understand how mature blood-flow control mechanisms in the adult brain work," says Kozberg. Adds Hillman, "We are also keen to take this research into the clinic and explore whether our findings could improve diagnosis and monitoring of newborn infants. Our findings so far feel like just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more for us to do now to understand why the infant brain is so different, and how we can use our findings to improve understanding of a wealth of devastating childhood and developmental conditions."

This research was supported by grants and student fellowships from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Eye Institute, the National Science Foundation, the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship, the Medical Scientist Training Program, and the Human Frontier Science Program. Hillman is also a member of the Columbia University graduate program in Neurobiology and Behavior and the Kavli Institute for Brain Sciences.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science. The original article was written by Holly Evarts.

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


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/mind_brain/child_development/~3/B4IRQuFo-wI/130218164126.htm

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Taichung mayor feeling OK despite reports of heart problem

  • Taiwan Headlines - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The U.S. dollar fell against the Taiwan dollar Monday, losing NT$0.041 to close at NT$29.709. Turnover totaled US$795 million during the trading session. The greenback opened ...

  • Cabinet to set up framework for better communication on major issues

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) New Premier Jiang Yi-huah said Monday that he will establish framework to ensure better communication between his Cabinet and the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) on major government ...

  • Acers tablet shipments expected to surge in 2013

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Taiwanese computer maker Acer Inc. expects tablet computer shipments to surge in 2013 from a year earlier, helped by the successful introduction of lower-priced products and ...

  • Taiwan shares close higher on economic optimism

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The Taiwan stock market's benchmark index rose above 8,000 for the first time in 11 months Monday and finished higher on a promising economic outlook for 2013. The ...

  • AUO says price-fixing lawsuit fully settled with ATT

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Taiwan-based AU Optronics Corp. (AUO) said Monday it has fully settled its price-fixing lawsuit with AT&T Inc. and has accounted for the settlement in its 2012 fourth ...

  • Taiwans new cabinet takes office

    General Sources - Monday 18th February, 2013

    TAIPEI: Taiwan's new cabinet took office on Monday amid high expectations.It's hoped the new team will shore up President Ma Ying Jeou's record low popularity. But analysts say it ...

  • MARKET COMMENT Taiwan Shares End +0.5 8000 Resistance Eyed Tuesday

    General Sources - Monday 18th February, 2013

    0547 GMT [Dow Jones] Taiwan shares end up 0.5% at 7943.53, tracking stock gains across Asia after Japan avoided criticism over the weakening yen at the latest Group of Twenty meeting, says Hua Nan ...

  • Taiwan set to begin exports of new civet coffee brand

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Japan in early March, marking a successful step in its efforts to produce high-end "civet coffee" by non-traditional means, an exporter said Monday. Using in vitro fermentation technology ...

  • Foxconn to expand investment in Taiwan says chairman

    Digitimes - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry) chairman Terry Guo, at a company event on February 18, said the company will focus on expanding its investments in Taiwan including New Taipei City, ...

  • Students From Taiwan?s NCKU Service Learning in Singapore

    General Sources - Monday 18th February, 2013

    TAINAN, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ten student volunteers for service learning from National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan, traveled to Singapore, Jan. 21, to carry out elderly ...

  • Thuraya and Chunghwa telecom announce historic service launch for Taiwan

    WAM - Monday 18th February, 2013

    WAM Dubai, Feb 18th, 2013 (WAM) -- Thuraya Telecommunications, and Chunghwa Telecom today announced the historic milestone of receiving licensing approval from the NCC, Taiwan's national ...

  • Taiwan shares close up 0.46

    Taiwan Headlines - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Taiwan share prices closed up 36.88 points, or 0.46 percent, at 7,943.53 Monday on turnover of NT$95.52 billion (US$3.22 billion). (By Jamie ...

  • Microbloggers in China gagged after speaking out

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Chinese authorities have clamped down on two prominent microbloggers who criticized a senior Communist party official and government policies, despite promises by top leader Xi ...

  • Number of Lunar New Year travelers increases sharply

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The number of people traveling to and from Taiwan during the Lunar New Year holiday showed a significant increase this year, the National Immigration Agency said Monday. Over ...

  • President vows to boost intra-governmental communication

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Ma Ying-jeou pledged Monday to improve communication this year among the different branches of government to better facilitate implementation of government policies. The issue was discussed in a ...

  • New premier says he expects innovation from his team

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) New Premier Jiang Yi-huah said Monday upon taking office that he hopes the members of his Cabinet will be innovative and dedicated to speeding up government reform. At the ...

  • Taiwan aiming to export jujubes to Japan from next year

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Japan will be our first market that conducts quarantine procedures for the tropical fruit," said Chiou Chu-ying, a researcher at the Kaohsiung District Agricultural Research and Extension ...

  • Acer forecasts first-quarter drop in PC shipments

    Taiwan Headlines - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Taiwan's Acer Inc. forecast Monday that its personal computer shipments for the first quarter of the year will drop by 10 percent to 15 percent sequentially due to ...

  • Colder weather expected from Tuesday

    Taiwan News Online - Monday 18th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) An approaching cold air mass is expected to send temperatures across the island plunging Tuesday, especially in northern Taiwan, the Central Weather Bureau said Monday. ...

  • New Cabinet sworn in urged to produce concrete results

    Taiwan Headlines - Sunday 17th February, 2013

    Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Premier Jiang Yi-huah and members of his Cabinet were sworn in Monday, with President Ma Ying-jeou expressing high hopes for the new executive team. The swearing-in ceremony on ...

  • China Times Luxury tax must be retained

    Taiwan News Online - Sunday 17th February, 2013

    Some legislators recently called for the abolition of the luxury tax in light of the scant revenue it has yielded. Such a move is very unadvisable, and the reason cited is extremely absurd. The main ...

  • Taiwanese fish products purchased by Chinese hospital

    Taiwan Headlines - Sunday 17th February, 2013

    Taiwanese fish products have been purchased by a maternity hospital in Beijing, China, to be served as postpartum-care meals.The groupers, bred in Pingtung County, have been certified both by the ...

  • Source: http://www.taipeinews.net/index.php/sid/212651332/scat/0dd057261bcc461b

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