3rd grader who loved to sing among tornado victims

This undated handout photo provided by the Hornsby family, shows JaNae Hornsby. JaNae, who was killed when a tornado struck Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Texas on May 20, 2013, is described by her father Joshua Hornsby as a "special baby" who made friends with everyone she met. (AP Photo/Courtesy of the Hornsby Family)

This undated handout photo provided by the Hornsby family, shows JaNae Hornsby. JaNae, who was killed when a tornado struck Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Texas on May 20, 2013, is described by her father Joshua Hornsby as a "special baby" who made friends with everyone she met. (AP Photo/Courtesy of the Hornsby Family)

This undated photo provided by Marvin Dixon shows his grandson Kyle Davis. Davis was killed when a tornado struck Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Texas on May 20, 2013. Nicknamed ?The Wall,? 8-year-old Davis loved soccer and going to the Monster Truck exhibitions at the fairgrounds with his grandfather (AP Photo/Marvin Dixon)

FILE - A Tuesday, May 21, 2013 file photo, an aerial view shows Plaza Towers Elementary School, which was destroyed in Monday's tornado, in Moore, Okla. Unlike several others schools in the Oklahoma City area, Plaza Towers had no ?safe room? in which students and teachers could huddle. The deaths of seven students at Plaza Towers highlights the patchwork of protection that exists at schools in tornado-prone parts of the central U.S. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

Workers continue going through the debris at the Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla., on Tuesday, May 21, 2013. A tornado hit the area on Monday, May 20, 2013. (AP Photo/The Oklahoman, Bryan Terry)

MOORE, Okla. (AP) ? Nicknamed "The Wall," 8-year-old Kyle Davis loved soccer and going to Monster Truck exhibitions at the fairgrounds with his grandfather. JaNae Hornsby, 9, loved to draw, sing, and be a big sister and cousin to her younger relatives.

The two were among the young victims of Monday's monstrous tornado, their small bodies pulled from the rubble of Plaza Towers Elementary School after it was reduced to a massive heap of bricks and twisted metal. Twenty-two others were killed, including five other 9-year-olds at the one-story building.

As the ominous funnel cloud began its 17-mile path, Kyle took shelter in the school's gymnasium with dozens of other students, his grandfather Marvin Dixon said Wednesday.

"He was in the position that the teacher told them to be in ?crouched down with their hands over their heads," Dixon said. "The medical examiner said either some big rock or beam or something fell right on the back of his neck. He said he died instantly."

Dixon counted his grandson among the lucky ones. The medical examiner reported the six other children who died at the school suffocated after being buried under a mass of bricks, steel and other materials as the building collapsed. Dixon said a morgue worker told him some of the children who suffocated were huddled in one of the school's bathrooms.

"He said some of the kids were hurt so bad it was tough to even identify them," Dixon said, his voice cracking with emotion.

Kyle earned his nickname, "The Wall," because of the ferocity with which he played his favorite sport ? soccer.

"He was a pretty big kid," his grandfather said. "Whenever he had the ball, other kids would just bounce off of him. That's why they called him that. ... He was just the kindest, most giving kid you would ever meet. He had a grin from ear to ear."

JaNae's father Joshua rushed toward the Plaza Towers school when he realized the powerful tornado packing speeds up to 200 mph was bearing down on the town. But it took him 30 minutes. The tornado already slammed through the building.

"I was just in panic," Hornsby said, recalling those minutes when he realized the school had been hit and he hadn't made it in time.

"I just kept going until I got to the school and when I got to the school I started to look for JaNae," he said Wednesday, sitting on the small front porch of a relative's home in nearby Oklahoma City.

By then, the third-grader was among those suffocated beneath the debris. The official cause of death was mechanical asphyxia.

Frantic, he combed through the rubble with other students and first responders looking desperately for JaNae. Slowly, more and more children were pulled from the rubble. Some had scratches and bruises. Some were bleeding. But they were alive. And none of them were JaNae.

With each passing minute, "there was still more panic," Hornsby said.

For two days, Hornsby and a small group of parents whose children were not found in the rubble waited at a church in Moore.

"I was still hopeful that maybe she would turn up," Hornsby said, thinking she might be at a friend's house or someplace else.

On Tuesday, he was at the church when he received the news.

His daughter was among the 10 children killed, buried under the rubble of a school that had always been a safe haven for them.

The family's house, just three blocks from the school, also was destroyed. He hasn't gone back to see if he might find a few of JaNae's things to keep.

"JaNae was the life of the party. If JaNae was there you were having a good time. She liked to sing, be a big sister, be a big cousin. She liked to draw," he said smiling as he remembered the small girl.

As family gathered to make funeral arrangements and comfort one another, Hornsby looked behind him into the house.

"If she was here she would just have everybody laughing and she would be in the midst of everything. She loved the spotlight," he said.

The family of 9-year-old Christopher Legg described him as someone who never met a stranger. Christopher, who also suffocated inside the school, played football, baseball and basketball and "loved to roughhouse and wrestle" with his father, older brother and little sister, his family said in a statement. The youngster also faced his diagnosis with skin cancer and joint problems in his knees "with the same strength and enthusiasm that he had for life."

Sydney Angle, another 9-year-old killed at Plaza Towers, was lovingly referred to as "a pickle" by her softball coach Landon McNeill, who was with the girl's parents as they waited at a church for news about their daughter.

"Sydney was real quirky," McNeill said. "She could be anywhere and have fun doing it."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-22-Oklahoma%20Tornado-The%20Children/id-e5d3e6aa07af40cd8ef9af1f7d95f5e6

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U.S. Commerce nominee poised for swift Senate approval

By Doug Palmer

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Chicago billionaire Penny Pritzker on Thursday appeared on her way to becoming U.S. commerce secretary, after a top Republican lawmaker said she had answered most of his questions about her role in the failure of an Illinois bank and her family's use of an offshore tax haven.

"I can't see that there is anything that would keep her from getting through the process in pretty good shape," Senator John Thune of South Dakota, the top Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee, said after a hearing on her nomination.

Pritzker was President Barack Obama's national finance chairwoman in 2008 and his campaign co-chair in 2012. Her personal fortune is estimated at $1.85 billion, putting her at the pinnacle of the top 1 percent of American households.

The 54-year-old Stanford University-trained lawyer and businesswoman is on the board of the Hyatt Hotels Corp, which her uncle Jay Pritzker founded in 1957, two years before she was born. She plans to leave that position if confirmed.

Pritzker told the committee that Obama wants her to be "a bridge between the administration and the business community" in the hope of improving a sometimes strained relationship.

"That's something I look forward to working very hard on," Pritzker said, adding she also would push for free trade and look for ways to streamline department operations.

The panel's chairman, Democratic Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, said he believed Pritzker would restore strong leadership at the department.

"You will certainly have my vote," he said.

The committee is likely to back Pritzker's nomination after it returns in June from the upcoming Memorial Day recess, setting it up for swift approval by the full Senate.

She would replace acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank, who is leaving to become chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

TAXES AND BANKS

A 184-page financial disclosure form released by the White House provided a detailed view of Pritzker's wealth. It includes $54 million in consulting fees she received from the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Trust Co, which manages an offshore trust for the Pritzker family in the Bahamas.

Some Republicans have said it is hypocritical of Obama to nominate Cabinet members who benefit from offshore tax havens when he criticized 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and others for taking the same step to avoid taxes.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew also had to confront questions about his investment in a Cayman Islands tax haven during his recent confirmation process.

Under questioning by Thune, Pritzker acknowledged being a beneficiary of an offshore trust set up when she was "a little girl" and told the panel she has asked the current trustee to step aside and appoint a U.S. trustee.

Thune also pressed Pritzker to explain her role in the failure of Superior Bank, which in the 1990s was a pioneer in subprime mortgages - the type of loans that were blamed for igniting the 2007-2009 financial crisis.

Regulators closed the bank, which was half-owned by the Pritzkers, in July 2001 after auditors concluded that mortgage-related income had been overstated. Five months later, the Pritzkers agreed to pay the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation $460 million as part of a deal in which the family and the other half-owner admitted no liability.

Pritzker said she was chairwoman of the bank from 1991 to 1994 but never played an active role in its management.

After the bank got into trouble with regulators, "I stepped in on behalf of the 50-percent ownership of my family to try to salvage the situation. Unfortunately those negotiations failed and the bank failed," Pritzker said.

'LIKE SLAVES'

About 30 members of the Unite Here hotel workers' union who attended the hearing painted a different picture of Pritzker.

The union has called Hyatt "the worst hotel employer in America" because of its treatment of workers, failure to reach a new labor contract and opposition to allowing workers at additional Hyatt hotels into the union.

"Today, we send a message to President Barack Obama that Penny Pritzker is not a good choice. She doesn't see people like human beings. (She sees people) like slaves," said Wanda Rosario, one of 100 housekeepers fired by Hyatt in Boston in 2009 as a cost-cutting move.

Under questioning from Senator Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, Pritzker said she does not support the practice of subcontracting hotel jobs to keep down wage costs and said it was important for employers to provide a safe workplace.

"I've been in business for 27 years. The cornerstone of success in business is you have to have a good relationship and a good balance between management and labor ... . The workforce is part of one's business family, if you will," she said.

(Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Jackie Frank and Xavier Briand)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/commerce-nominee-faces-questions-failed-bank-tax-havens-160403279.html

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More signs of imminent doom for ?Facebook phone?: U.K. launch canceled

HTC First UK Release Date

BGR exclusively reported last week that HTC?s First, also known as the ?Facebook phone,? will soon be discontinued at AT&T. Sales during the phone?s first month of availability totaled less than 15,000 units according to our source, and AT&T has given up hope that things might turn around. According to a new report, AT&T isn?t alone.

[More from BGR: Xbox One vs. PlayStation 4: PS4 wins on specs]

Mobile News on Thursday reported that the HTC First?s launch has been canceled in the United Kingdom. Facebook, which is footing the bill for HTC?s new handset, reportedly made the decision and all?preorders will be canceled.

[More from BGR: It?s official: Samsung?s Galaxy S4 is the fastest-selling Android phone ever]

?The HTC First has been pulled and will never go on sale in the UK,? the blog?s unnamed source said. ?Sales in the US were poor and Facebook has taken the decision not to give it a more widespread release.?

Engadget followed up on the report and got the following statement from Facebook:

Following customer feedback, Facebook has decided to focus on adding new customization features to Facebook Home over the coming months. While they are working to make a better Facebook Home experience, they have recommended holding off launching the HTC First in the UK, and so we will shortly be contacting those who registered their interest with us to let them know of this decision. Rest assured, we remain committed to bringing our customers the latest mobile experiences, and we will continue to build on our strong relationship with Facebook so as to offer customers new opportunities in the future.

This article was originally published on BGR.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/more-signs-imminent-doom-facebook-phone-u-k-133545766.html

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Obama pledges urgent aid to Oklahoma town

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama pledged urgent government help for Oklahoma Tuesday in the wake of "one of the most destructive" storms in the nation's history.

"In an instant, neighborhoods were destroyed, dozens of people lost their lives, many more were injured," Obama said from the White House State Dining Room. "Among the victims were young children trying to take shelter in the safest place they knew ? their school."

The president added that the town of Moore, Okla., "needs to get everything it needs right away."

The White House said it had no announcement yet of a presidential trip to Oklahoma, only that Obama wants to make sure any travel he makes to the disaster area doesn't interfere with recovery efforts. Presidential spokesman Jay Carney said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano would travel to the state Wednesday to make sure state officials are getting the federal assistance they need.

Obama spoke on the disaster following a meeting with his disaster response team, including Napolitano and top White House officials. On Monday, he spoke with Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and Republican Rep. Tom Cole, whose home is in the heavily damaged town of Moore, a suburb of Oklahoma City.

The president has also declared a major disaster in Oklahoma, ordering federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts. Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Craig Fugate was due in Oklahoma later Tuesday to ensure that federal resources are being properly deployed.

Carney said FEMA has enough funds at this time to pay for recovery efforts, but did not rule out an additional request for money from Congress in the future.

The state medical examiner's office has revised the death toll from the tornado to 24 people, including seven children. Authorities had said initially that as many as 51 people were dead, including 20 children.

Teams are continuing to search the rubble in Moore, 10 miles south of Oklahoma City, after the Monday afternoon's more than half-mile-wide twister.

The Senate, meanwhile, held a moment of silence Tuesday for the victims of the tornadoes.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-pledges-urgent-aid-oklahoma-175037654.html

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Easier travel ahead for Conn. commuters

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) ? Commuters facing long delays after a train collision disrupted their route along Connecticut's shoreline can look forward to easier traveling.

Normal commuter rail service from Connecticut to New York City, along with Amtrak service between Boston and New York, was scheduled to resume during Wednesday morning's rush hour on one of the nation's oldest and most heavily traveled railways.

On Tuesday, Metro-North was again using busses to shuttle passengers around the affected area.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Aaron Donovan said there were no major problems reported.

"Ridership is up slightly over Monday on the busses," he said. "Other than that it is running as expected."

Connecticut lawmakers plan hearings on the crash on the rail network they say is in need of extensive improvements.

Members of the General Assembly's Transportation Committee said they have been briefed by state transportation officials over the years about the hefty investment Connecticut needs to make to fully upgrade the commuter rail line, including a couple of 100-year-old bridges that need to be replaced.

"It's like anything else, you know," said Rep. Tony Guerrera, co-chairman of the committee. "You can have a brand-new car and it runs great, but if the roads are awful, with potholes going up and down, what good is it?"

The Metro-North crash at rush hour Friday evening injured 72 people, including one who remained in critical condition Monday. It snarled commutes for roughly 30,000 people who normally use the train, forcing travelers to navigate a patchwork of cars, trains and buses.

For Gary Maddin, the drive from his home in Milford, Conn., to the Bridgeport train station normally takes 20 minutes. On Monday, it took an hour. Then he had a shuttle bus and a train ride before he got to his destination, Grand Central Terminal in New York.

"It's a lot," he said. "It's a nightmare just to get into the city today."

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said resumption of rail service is "tremendously good news."

Some commuters used the jury-rigged alternative that continued Tuesday: A shuttle train ran between New Haven and Bridgeport, where a bus connection to Stamford circumvented the accident scene, and finally customers boarded a train for New York.

Others drove themselves, and state officials nervously watched heavy traffic on two major arteries in southwest Connecticut, Interstate 95 and the Merritt Parkway.

But transportation officials were pleased that area highways were not as choked as they feared, Malloy said. He said commuters heeded his warning over the weekend about the prospect of highways becoming parking lots if all 30,000 of the usual train riders drove instead.

"Today went exceedingly well," the governor said. "People listened to us. Many people stayed home or worked from home."

Backups on the Merritt Parkway, a secondary route through Connecticut, were less than on an average Monday, and I-95 was only slightly more jammed than usual because of fog, he said.

Some delays were reported Tuesday.

Crews have worked around the clock since Saturday, and track rebuilding has progressed quickly, officials with the Metro-North railroad said.

Federal investigators arrived Saturday and were expected to be on site for seven to 10 days. They are looking at a broken section of rail to see if it is connected to the derailment and collision. Officials said it wasn't clear whether the rail was broken in the crash or earlier.

The last major collision involving Metro-North occurred in 1988 when a train engineer was killed in Mount Vernon, N.Y., when one train empty of passengers rear-ended another, railroad officials said.

____

Associated Press writers Susan Haigh and Stephen Singer in Hartford contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/easier-travel-ahead-conn-commuters-062509060.html

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Still want an iCEO plushy? Throwboy gives you one last chance on Kickstarter!

Remember that iCEO plush toy that was all the geek rage awhile back? Turns out there are a few hundred of the little jobbies left, but the only way you can get one is by backing Throwboy's new Chat Pillows on Kickstarter.

Supporting us doesn?t come without geeky perks. From a handwritten note direct from Roberto to our insanely great iCEOs out of our secret stash(!), you?re in for amazing rewards as a Throwboy backer. Check em? out below!

iCEO comes in at the $100 mark, and, of course, I just backed exactly that. But there's a wide range of options and price points, and some fairly awesome pillows to be had, so check them all out and then tell me which one, if any, you went for.

Source: Kickstarter

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/M-MXSDd5r2I/story01.htm

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Weight Loss and Fat Loss | Quick Weight Loss Diet

The diet industry is saturated with literally thousands of pills, plans and procedures that all claim to do the exact same thing: make you lose weight. While it is common for people to notice some results early on, most cases ultimately leave the frustrated dieter back where they started -disappointed, discouraged, and sometimes even heavier than before!

This struggle is indicative of one of the most prominent misunderstandings about achieving life-changing health and fitness. This article will explain the important difference between weight loss and fat loss.

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What is Weight Loss?

If you have ever gone on a flash diet, lost weight only to gain it right back, or starved yourself to get results you are one of the many frustrated dieters in the weight loss category. The first important thing to understand about weight loss is a break down of the words. Weight really refers to the mass of your entire body; your bones, your organs and your fluids all count as weight that your body is carrying. Knowing this, it is pretty easy to deduce how diet programs make you lose weight.

Most diets operate by significantly reducing or eliminating your intake of carbohydrates, which, by design, are used by your body to store and hold water. Remember, roughly 60% of your body weight is just water. So, when your water-storage is depleted, the water has nowhere to go but out of your body and you lose weight. That doesn't sound like a very reliable weight loss plan does it? It raises too many questions about dehydration and other potentially harmful symptoms. And most of the time the water weight you lose isn't all that significant; maybe 10-15 pounds maximum and it's only a matter of time before it comes right back.

What is Fat Loss?

Now we know what weight is, and most of us have a pretty good idea of what fat is already, so let's elaborate on what we know. Excess fat, whether it's on our bellies, legs or arms is a nuisance and can be a significant threat to our health. In other words, it's fat that overweight people want to lose more than just any kind of weight.

The best way to gauge our fat is through determining our body fat percentage. For women, a healthy range is between 20-35% and for men it's between 8-22% depending on age. It's a valuable tool because it helps you understand where you are and where you need to go to achieve real and lasting fat loss. Losing fat mass is what makes you leaner and more athletic. Further, losing fat improves virtually all aspects of your general health, especially your metabolism, which makes it harder for the weight you've lost to return!

Let's conclude with a revision of the key points

- Weight Loss and Fat Loss are two different things

- Losing water weight actually makes your weight problem worse in the long and short term. It leaves you hungrier and more likely to go back to poor eating habits that make you gain weight.

- Reducing your body fat percentage will yield the physical improvements you seek and improve your overall health.

Source: http://justaddfour.blogspot.com/2013/05/weight-loss-and-fat-loss.html

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Medical examiner: 24 dead in Oklahoma twister

This aerial photo shows the remains of homes hit by a massive tornado in Moore, Okla., Monday May 20, 2013. A tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods, setting buildings on fire and landing a direct blow on an elementary school. (AP Photo/Steve Gooch)

This aerial photo shows the remains of homes hit by a massive tornado in Moore, Okla., Monday May 20, 2013. A tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods, setting buildings on fire and landing a direct blow on an elementary school. (AP Photo/Steve Gooch)

This aerial photo shows damage to Plaza Towers Elementary School after it was hit by a massive tornado in Moore, Okla., Monday May 20, 2013. A tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods, setting buildings on fire and landing a direct blow on an elementary school. (AP Photo/Steve Gooch)

Teachers carry children away from Briarwood Elementary school after a tornado destroyed the school in south Oklahoma City, Okla, Monday, May 20, 2013. Near SW 149th and Hudson. (AP Photo/ The Oklahoman, Paul Hellstern)

Searchers rest outside the Briarwood Elementary School after the tornado destroyed the school , Monday, May 20, 2013. (AP Photo/ The Oklahoman, David McDaniel)

MOORE, Okla. (AP) ? Emergency crews combed the sticks and rubble remains of an Oklahoma City suburb Tuesday morning less than a day after a massive tornado slammed through the community, flattening homes and demolishing an elementary school. At least 24 people were killed, including at least seven children, and those numbers were expected to climb.

As the sun rose over the shattered community of Moore, the state medical examiner's office cut the estimated death toll by more than half.

Spokeswoman Amy Elliot said she believes some victims were counted twice in the early chaos of the storm that struck Monday afternoon. Downed communication lines and problems sharing information with officers exacerbated the problem, she said.

"It was a very eventful night," Elliot said. "I truly expect that they'll find more today."

Authorities initially said as many as 51 people were dead, including 20 children.

New search-and-rescue teams moved in as dawn broke Tuesday, taking over from the 200 or so emergency responders who scoured the neighborhood all night with a helicopter shining a spotlight from above to aid their search.

Fire Chief Gary Bird said the fresh teams would search the whole community at least two more times to ensure that no survivors ? or victims ? were missed. They were painting an 'X' on each structure to note it had been checked.

"That is to confirm we have done our due diligence for this city, for our citizens," Bird said.

By early Tuesday, the community of 41,000 people, 10 miles south of Oklahoma City, braced for another long, harrowing day.

"As long as we are here ... we are going to hold out hope that we will find survivors," said Trooper Betsy Randolph, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

More than 120 people were being treated at hospitals, including about 50 children.

Search and rescue teams continued their desperate efforts at Plaza Towers Elementary, where the storm ripped off the school's roof, knocked down walls and turned the playground into a mass of twisted plastic and metal as students and teachers huddled in hallways and bathrooms.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said she watched up close late Monday as rescuers tried to find people in the wreckage of the school.

"It was massive destruction last night," Fallin said in an AP interview Tuesday. "It was an incredible sight to see how big the debris field was and how much destruction there was. It would be remarkable for anyone to survive."

Children from the school were among the dead, but several students were pulled out alive from under a collapsed wall and other heaps of mangled debris. Rescue workers passed the survivors down a human chain of parents and neighborhood volunteers. Parents carried children in their arms to a triage center in the parking lot. Some students looked dazed, others terrified.

Officials were still trying to account for a handful of children not found at the school who may have gone home early with their parents, Bird said Tuesday.

President Barack Obama declared a major disaster and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts.

The National Weather Service issued an initial finding that the tornado was an EF-4 on the enhanced Fujita scale, the second most powerful type of twister. It estimated that the twister was at least half a mile wide.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., forecast more stormy weather Tuesday, predicting golf ball-sized hail, powerful winds and isolated, strong tornadoes in parts of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. The area at risk does not include Moore.

In video of the storm, the dark funnel cloud could be seen marching slowly across the green landscape. As it churned through the community, the twister scattered shards of wood, awnings and glass all over the streets.

Monday's powerful tornado loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the region with 300 mph winds in May 1999. It was the fourth tornado to hit Moore since 1998. It also came almost exactly two years after an enormous twister ripped through the city of Joplin, Mo., killing 158 people and injuring hundreds more.

That May 22, 2011, tornado was the deadliest in the United States since modern tornado record keeping began in 1950, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Before Joplin, the deadliest modern tornado was June 1953 in Flint, Mich., when 116 people died.

___

Associated Press writers Sean Murphy and Ramit Plushnik Masti; and Associated Press photographer Sue Ogrocki contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-05-21-Oklahoma%20Tornado/id-b9d2ccb5c4cb48b2bf036eb117eb4fc7

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Video: Engineers create on-wetting fabric drains sweat

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Waterproof fabrics that whisk away sweat could be the latest application of microfluidic technology developed by bioengineers at the University of California, Davis.

The new fabric works like human skin, forming excess sweat into droplets that drain away by themselves, said inventor Tingrui Pan, professor of biomedical engineering. One area of research in Pan's Micro-Nano Innovations Laboratory at UC Davis is a field known as microfluidics, which focuses on making "lab on a chip" devices that use tiny channels to manipulate fluids. Pan and his colleagues are developing such systems for applications like medical diagnostic tests.

Graduate students Siyuan Xing and Jia Jiang developed a new textile microfluidic platform using hydrophilic (water-attracting) threads stitched into a highly water-repellent fabric. They were able to create patterns of threads that suck droplets of water from one side of the fabric, propel them along the threads and expel them from the other side.

"We intentionally did not use any fancy microfabrication techniques so it is compatible with the textile manufacturing process and very easy to scale up," said Xing, lead graduate student on the project.

It's not just that the threads conduct water through capillary action. The water-repellent properties of the surrounding fabric also help drive water down the channels. Unlike conventional fabrics, the water-pumping effect keeps working even when the water-conducting fibers are completely saturated, because of the sustaining pressure gradient generated by the surface tension of droplets.

The rest of the fabric stays completely dry and breathable. By adjusting the pattern of water-conducting fibers and how they are stitched on each side of the fabric, the researchers can control where sweat is collected and where it drains away on the outside.

Workout enthusiasts, athletes and clothing manufacturers are all interested in fabrics that remove sweat and let the skin breathe. Cotton fibers, for example, wick away sweat ? but during heavy exercise, cotton can get soaked, making it clingy and uncomfortable.

A paper describing the research was published recently in the journal Lab on a Chip. The work was funded in part by the National Science Foundation.

###

University of California - Davis: http://www.ucdavis.edu

Thanks to University of California - Davis 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 24 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/128326/Video__Engineers_create_on_wetting_fabric_drains_sweat

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Internet Marketing Promotion For Small Business, Website, Events ...

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.rangrage.com/internet-marketing-promotion-for-small-business-website-events-social-media/

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Archaeological genetics: It's not all as old as it at first seems

May 20, 2013 ? Genomic analyses suggest that patterns of genetic diversity which indicate population movement may not be as ancient as previously believed, but may be attributable to recent events. This study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Investigative Genetics, based in the Netherlands, is able to genetically characterize geographically separated subpopulations within the country and map them to population movement within the last 2000 years.

Looking at more than 400,000 SNPs (genetic variations) of almost 1000 people across the Netherlands, this study found that the genomic diversity across the Netherlands follows a southeast to northwest gradient and that the Dutch population could be separated out genetically into four geographic groups (south, north, central-west and central-north).

These results could be explained by invoking movement of ancient, Paleolithic-Neolithic humans, similar to that proposed to explain the genetic diversity across central entire Europe. However the data also fits a model involving movement of people within the last 70 generations of modern Dutch, for which there is a wealth of archaeological evidence.

Prof Manfred Kayser from the Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, who led the study, commented, "Because of the overwhelming geological and archaeological records for strong genetic discontinuities we explain our findings by recent rather than ancient events in Dutch population history. Our results not only are of epidemiological and forensic relevance but additionally highlight that future population history studies need to take into account recent demography before assuming all genetic variation observed is due to ancient events."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by BioMed Central Limited.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Oscar Lao, Eveline Altena, Christian Becker, Silke Brauer, Thirsa Kraaijenbrink, Mannis van Oven, Peter N?rnberg, Peter de Knijff, Manfred Kayser. Clinal distribution of human genomic diversity across the Netherlands despite archaeological evidence for genetic discontinuities in Dutch population history. Investigative Genetics, 2013; 4 (1): 9 DOI: 10.1186/2041-2223-4-9

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/QA6Vac7ybQ0/130520095106.htm

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How to subscribe to an iTunes U course on your iPhone and iPad

iTunes U offers a wealth of knowledge and for the most part, a lot of it is free. This means you can download courses and lectures on a vast array of topics and subjects without ever having to actually step foot in a classroom. Whether you want to brush up on a topic you've already studied or would like to learn something new, there's something for everyone.

Follow along and we'll walk you through how to subscribe to an iTunes U course directly from your iPhone or iPad.

If you haven't already, you'll need to download the iTunes U app to your iPhone or iPad from the App Store.

• Free - Download Now

1. Launch the iTunes U app from the Home screen of your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the Catalog button in the upper right hand corner.
3. Here you can browse through all the courses and offerings available as well as search for specific ones. Once you find the one you'd like, tap on its name.
4. Now tap on the Subscribe button.
5. To confirm your download, tap on the Get Course button that has now replaced the Subscribe button.
6. The bookshelf will turn back over to reveal your library and start to download your selected course. Once it's done downloading, you can begin using it.

Since you've subscribed to the course, new sections will download to that course for you to use as soon as they become available.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/jNe44vMJzmE/story01.htm

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Mom in New Mexico chases down child abductor; man arrested

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) ? A mother whose 4-year-old was being abducted chased the suspect down and crashed her vehicle into his car, triggering a manhunt and the arrest of the suspect, Albuquerque police said Thursday.

The young girl was playing in her yard at St. Anthony's Plaza Apartments in Albuquerque's North Valley about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday when a group of teenagers saw the kidnapping and ran to alert the girl's mother, police said.

The family called 911 and the mother jumped into her vehicle and gave chase for about seven miles, unaware the man had pushed the girl out of the silver Buick before fleeing the apartment complex, authorities said. The girl was found wandering nearby, uninjured, police said.

According to police, the mother, who has not been identified, followed the suspect and finally rammed into his car near an intersection. The suspect fled on foot, police said.

The attempted kidnapping sparked a massive manhunt Wednesday as more than two dozen officers went door-to-door in the area looking for the suspect. A helicopter with heat-sensor cameras also was sent in for the search, authorities said.

Police arrested David Hernandez, 31, on Thursday afternoon in Rio Rancho after he saw his picture on television and called police. After being interviewed, he was charged with kidnapping, police spokeswoman Tasia Martinez said.

As he was being taken to jail, Hernandez told reporters that he was innocent. It was not known if Hernandez had an attorney.

Kevin Abar, assistant special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations, confirmed to The Associated Press that federal agents also helped Albuquerque police with the investigation.

In February, HSI and local enforcement agencies launched the Sexual Predator and Exploitation Enforcement Detail, or SPEED ? a task force aimed at finding missing and abducted children.

Police were also investigating a possible connection to the abduction and sexual assault of a 6-year-old from the same apartment complex last week. The suspect in that case was described as a male in a silver or gray vehicle.

Gilbert Hernandez, 25, a resident at the St. Anthony's, said he found the 6-year-old last week and was the one who contacted police. "This place isn't safe. People always let their kids run around here," Hernandez said. "We are all on the lookout now."

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Follow Russell Contreras on Twitter at http://twitter.com/russcontreras.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/mom-nm-chases-down-child-abductor-man-arrested-211553701.html

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I?m a bad, bad man (Unqualified Offerings)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/305260027?client_source=feed&format=rss

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It?s Official: Microsoft?s Windows Blue Is Coming Later This Year

Microsoft just confirmed that the successor to Windows 8 will roll out later this year, that it’s sold a whole lot more Windows 8 licenses than when we last checked in, and that the largely empty Windows Stores are finally ...

Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/05/its-official-microsoft-says-windows-blue-is-coming-later-this-year/

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Top 10 Michigan with kids- Family Travel Guide for Michigan

While many know Michigan as the birthplace of the auto industry in the U.S., both locals and visitors appreciate its other claim to fame as a water wonderland. Michigan borders four of the five Great Lakes providing the longest freshwater coastline in the nation, and boasts over 11,000 inland lakes which means that anywhere you go in Michigan, you are never more than six miles away from a body of water. That makes it easy for families to get out and appreciate the natural beauty of the state as well as the friendly, welcoming personalities of Michiganders. From cozy towns like Marquette in the Upper Peninsula, nestled on the edge of Lake Superior, down to the bustling metropolitan area of Detroit, Michigan is packed with adventure and exploration for all ages. Come see our top 10 Michigan for?family travel and fun!

10. Get a bright idea?visit a lighthouse!

The Great Lakes?are full of boating and shipping activity which means that you?ll be able to visit something you might only otherwise see at the ocean coasts: lighthouses! There are?115 lighthouses in Michigan, ranging from simple metal structures on a shore to historical museums with visitor centers, such as the Grand Traverse Lighthouse. Climb the tallest lighthouse on the Great Lakes open to the public at the?New Presque Isle Lighthouse!

?Is your family crazy about lighthouses? Check out these lighthouses around the U.S. our Trekaroo families enjoy!

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9. Visit a big city with heart!

While most Americans associate Detroit with the heart of the auto industry, we?re here to tell you that Detroit has a big heart of its own and stands ready to share its history and fun with your family! Set on 125 acres with tons of hands-on activities and interactive animal displays, the?Detroit Zoo is one of Michigan?s top visitor attractions. To get a glimpse of a different sort of Tiger, take your family to?Comerica Park where Sundays are ?Kids Days;? enjoy a this baseball park that?also boasts a?theme park and baseball museum! Not far away, the Michigan Science Center is a top attraction for hands-on science activities and fun.

Check out more Detroit attractions.

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8. Explore family-friendly towns with big personality

Michigan?s diverse, fun atmosphere is best expressed in its mid-sized towns with BIG personality, such as Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo. Ann Arbor is noted worldwide for its art and ?foodie? culture. It hosts a variety of events throughout the year: the Summer Festival, Ann Arbor Art Fair, Film Festival, Restaurant Week, and more! It also boasts one of the state?s most popular children?s museums, and a beautiful, walkable downtown where you?ll find some fantastic art fairs and enchanting sights for kids of all ages, such as the two dozen fairy doors liberally sprinkled through town, the Dexter Cider Mill, and the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, to name a few. Grand Rapids exudes family togetherness with outdoor activities at the Frederik Meijer Gardens, the John Ball Zoo, and the Rosa Parks Circle Ice Rink. Kalamazoo?is the proud?hometown?of the Air Zoo aviation museum and indoor amusement park, voted ?best place to take out-of-towners? and ?best place to spend a day with your family? three years in a row! Towns like these cultivate family-friendly parks and host festivals year-round to celebrate seasons, local history, and unique interests.

If you?re planning to visit these towns, check out our Trekaroo families? favorite hotels: Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo.

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7. Learn about the ?motors? of our country

No visit to the Detroit area is complete without taking in over nine acres of ?America?s Greatest History Destination? at The Henry Ford complex, consisting of?The Henry Ford Museum, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge factory tour, and IMAX theater. The impressive museum and historical site highlight the achievements of not only Henry Ford, but also the hard work of ordinary Americans who built this country. The displays at these sites are widely varied and impressive, including Wilbur and Orville Wright?s bicycle shop, Thomas Edison?s laboratory, the Rosa Parks bus, a presidential limousine, and dozens of other amazing American historical artifacts, famous homes, and machinery.

?Has this piqued your curiosity???Explore our Top 10 Living History Museums.

?

6. Traverse City

The ?Cherry Capital of the World,? has been voted a ?Top Ten Tourist Town? by Parents Magazine and one of ?America?s 10 Best Small Towns? by Fodor?s. In the northwest part of the lower peninsula, cozily nestled between the arms of Grand Traverse Bay, it has a unique character all its own with activities, ?foodie?-pleasing restaurants, and scenery sure to wow the entire family. The unique geography of the area leaves the waters protected,?offering long stretches of beaches for water play including?swimming, fishing, sailing, and paddling. Every year in early July, Traverse City pulls out all the stops to celebrate all things cherry at the National Cherry Festival in East Bay Park. Head north of Traverse City out on Mission Point to view sprawling orchards, visit roadside fruit stands, sample local juices, and find the state?s best wineries. Visit the village of Old Mission, founded in 1839, the eclectic Old Mission General Store, the village schoolhouse, Old Mission Inn, and Old Mission Lighthouse at the very end of Mission Point.

?Craving all things cherry? Check out the Cherry Republic in downtown Traverse City. Cherried out? Still plenty of food options for the family.

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5. Visit another country!

Michigan has a rich history of immigrant settlements. As a result, it also has quite a few small towns steeped in culture from places such as Holland, Germany, and Finland, to name a few. The Old Dutch attractions found in Holland, Michigan are always fun and family-friendly. Explore Nelis? Dutch Village for hands-on learning and the Windmill Island Gardens to climb to the top of DeZwaan, the only authentic Dutch windmill operating in the U.S. The highlight of Holland?s Dutch celebration begins in early May at the Tulip Time Festival, where you?ll find parades, concerts, Dutch food, dancing, and tons of cultural displays through town. Frankenmuth is Michigan?s ?Little Bavaria? and is the most popular place to visit in the state, despite its small size. Celebrate Bavarian culture at one of the several festivals held in the town throughout the year or discover delicious German foods at one of their many restaurants.

?Getting hungry? Here are more restaurants in Frankenmuth.

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4. Just dune it!

With all the water in Michigan, you?ll find a beautiful assortment of beaches and dunes in which to bury your toes and build sand castles while you admire your view of the lake. Voted the ?Most Beautiful Place in America? by Good Morning America, the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore includes a breathtaking 64-mile curve of beaches, coves, islands, and dunes worthy of exploration. Visit Michigan?s #1 state park, Grand Haven State Park, to take in the beach that was voted one of the ?best secret beaches on earth? by Travel & Leisure Magazine in 2012. While you?re there, be sure to visit the unique Musical Fountain. Near Sawyer, Michigan, Warren Dunes State Park provides another beautiful stretch of sand dunes that rise 260 feet above the lake for hiking or settling in to relax at the water?s edge.

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3. Go wild in the Upper Peninsula!

Many Americans don?t realize that the state of Michigan is divided into two parts where the Mackinac Bridge connects the Lower Peninsula to the Upper Peninsula (U.P.). Though the U.P. has nearly 1/3 of the land of Michigan, just 3% of the population lives here. What that means for locals and visitors is mile after mile of unspoiled natural beauty! Wilderness, secluded beaches, amazing rock formations, animal encounters, and over 324 waterfalls make the U.P. a natural playground for bikers, hikers, snowmobilers, geocachers, bird-watchers, and other lovers of the outdoors. The U.P. is also one of the few places in the lower 49 states where you have a good chance of viewing the Aurora Borealis (?Northern Lights?) if you don?t mind staying up late! The hub of the U.P. resides in the family-friendly town of Marquette, which is not only a beautiful port town on Lake Superior with numerous summer festivals, parks, restaurants, and the U.P.?s only children?s museum, it is the perfect launching point for exploration of the ?wild side? of Michigan!

Discover more family friendly activities in Marquette.

?

2. Go back in time!

Mackinac Island is one of those ?must see? unique locations that should be on every family?s bucket list for Michigan. Take a 30-minute ferry to the island from either Mackinac City on the south side of the Mackinac Bridge or St. Ignace in the U.P. and prepare to travel back in time as you explore the island by horse-drawn carriage, bicycle, or on foot, as there are no cars allowed on the island!? Historic Fort Mackinac allows visitors to experience the uniquely austere conditions the fort?s soldiers and families experienced in the 1800?s, all from an amazing hillside vista that peers out over Lakes Michigan and Huron. Of course, no trip to Mackinac Island is complete without enjoying their iconic, freshly-made fudge! Make it a day trip or, better yet, overnight at one of the island?s historic hotels or B&B?s to fully experience its rich history.

Convinced Mackinac Island?s for you? Read tips on how to have fun in Mackinac Island with kids.

?

1. Jump in a lake!

There?s a good reason why Michigan is called the ?Great Lakes State? ? lakes are unavoidable with shoreline on four of the Great Lakes (Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior) and thousands of other inland lakes scattered throughout the state. So, do as the locals and dive right in!

Take a glass-bottom boat tour to discover the shipwrecks in Lake Superior near Munising, and view the breathtaking rock formations at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Grand Island. Not too far away, you can learn more about lost vessels and other Great Lakes shipwrecks, such as the Edmund Fitzgerald, at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum on Whitefish Point. A bit further to the east, the Soo Locks are a fascinating mechanical wonder that can be explored from boat or from land in Sault Ste. Marie. How about a submarine? The U.S.S. Silversides, moored near Muskegon, is a place where kids and families can learn about World War II and submarine life through hands-on experience. Visit the Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven and plan a pirate adventure on the sloop Friends Good Will, a replica of the only Tall Ship to sail the Great Lakes. It is a state-of-the-art, interactive, floating classroom! Similarly, the Appledore Tall Ships provide public sails and dinner cruises from Bay City, near Saginaw, and the Tall Ship Manitou does the same from Traverse City. As you can see, there is no limit to the adventure, learning, and family fun to be had on and around Michigan?s lakes!

We?re dying to know ? what?s your favorite way to spend time on the water? Share the scoop.

?

Many thanks to the Marquette County CVB for sponsoring this Top Ten Article!

Located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Marquette is the ideal stomping grounds for those looking for adventure or for those looking for a tamer experience. No matter what your idea of fun is, Marquette is the perfect year-round destination. From kid-friendly winter activities of tubing, downhill and cross-country skiing, to classic summer fun of pristine beach-going, biking, and hiking, Marquette is an ideal first stop and launching-point to the greater U.P!

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Need more inspiration? Watch this!

Now, what are you waiting for? Plan your next family-friendly adventure in Marquette!

What state do you want to visit next?

From coast to coast, we?re determining the Top 10 Things to do with Kids in each state of our great nation.?? Head here to see what tops the list in your favorite state.

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You might also like:

Source: http://blog.trekaroo.com/top-10-michigan/

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Analysis: Mexico aims to overhaul tax system, raise revenue

By Krista Hughes

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Tax breaks for attending "civic values" courses, tax-free sales of second-hand furniture, special treatment for call centers and an informal economy employing six out of 10 workers are all in the line of fire as Mexico prepares a long-awaited tax overhaul.

An analysis of budget data shows Mexico's extensive network of tax breaks and stimulus programs generate costs equal to about half the taxes actually collected.

Mexico has the lowest tax revenue in the 34-nation Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, crimping its ability to spend on health, infrastructure and social programs vital to boost living standards and growth in what is Latin America's second-largest economy.

Finance Minister Luis Videgaray has given few details of the overhaul, due to be presented in the autumn session of Congress, but has promised it will be "large," reviewing both direct and indirect taxes and making those who earn more, pay more.

Currently, the world's richest man, Carlos Slim, is in the same tax bracket as a worker earning $2,700 a month, paying 30 percent income tax - low compared to top rates of 39.6 percent in the United States, 45 percent in Germany and 50 percent in Japan.

No data is available on revenue by tax bracket, but most of the poor live and work in a shadow economy that accounts for one-third of gross domestic product (GDP) and pay little tax.

That leaves a high burden on middle-income earners.

The narrow tax base, along with a complicated tax code and rampant evasion, capped gross tax revenues at just 9.7 percent of GDP in 2012.

The reform will aim to boost that and ease the country's reliance on oil revenues, which account for nearly 40 percent of government income and make it vulnerable to market swings.

OECD head Angel Gurria, a former Mexican finance minister, still shudders at the memory of the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and 1998, when benchmark oil prices fell as low as $8 per barrel, half the level the government had budgeted for.

"One day when I was finance minister I came into the office at 9 a.m. and the budget deficit was at 0.5 (percent of GDP) and by the time the day was over it was at 3 percent," he told Reuters in January.

Although Mexico has a balanced budget and optimism about the government's reform agenda is drawing a surge in foreign investment, ratings agencies say the skimpy tax base and oil dependence have been hurdles to a sought-after upgrade, especially as oil output has dropped by a quarter since 2004.

Standard & Poor's changed its outlook on Mexico's BBB-rating to positive in March, suggesting an upgrade is possible within 18 months, but S&P credit analyst Joydeep Mukherji said the scope of the fiscal reform would be key.

"If it's basically a relatively small impact and kind of gets washed out among other things, it won't have a big impact and we may not upgrade," he said. "You can't rely forever on that much money from the oil sector and such high oil prices."

LAPSES AND LOOPHOLES

Mexico's net tax income, taking the negative impact of fuel subsidies into account, was worth just 8.5 percent of GDP last year.

Total government revenue, including oil, averaged 18 percent of GDP in the last decade, compared to 26 percent in the United States, 32 percent in Brazil and more than 40 percent in some European countries, OECD data show.

Experts estimate Mexico must boost its tax intake by 6-8 percentage points of GDP, or about $100 billion a year to reduce its reliance on oil revenues and fund increased government spending, although the reform could start out netting half that amount and be ramped up progressively over coming years.

Measures to bridge the gap could include increased efforts to tackle tax evasion, worth 2.57 pct of GDP in 2007 according to the Monterrey Institute of Advanced Technological Studies.

Other options are raising top personal tax rates for the rich; making state governments levy more tax; imposing taxes on capital gains, inheritances and property transfers; and scrapping an entrenched zero rate of value-added tax (VAT) on basic food and medicine.

This last exemption is the biggest single contributor to tax breaks worth 4.8 percent of GDP in 2012, equivalent to about half of tax revenues. Mexico's ratio of tax breaks to revenue is similar to the United States but more than in Germany, Spain and South Korea, a sign of the complexity of its tax code.

One tax break the government has vowed to end is consolidated reporting for firms, which allows companies to set losses in one business against gains elsewhere - a practice critics say is easily abused.

Total discounts and deductions, listed in a 117-page budget document, include special tax regimes which mean many family firms and self-employed workers pay no income tax or VAT, and allow individual deductions for medical expenses, school fees, some share purchases and courses which promote "civic values," while VAT discounts and exemptions span items from gold ingots to lottery tickets, medical services and table water.

The governing Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) has taken a step towards breaking the taboo of no VAT on food and medicines by removing a ban on such a move from its statutes, although insiders say staples such as tortillas and beans may remain exempt, or be charged at a low rate, such as 3 percent.

Many Mexicans shop for groceries at canvas-covered farmers' markets and buy anything from chewing gum to calendars from roving street vendors, none of whom pay or charge tax.

"You have to revise the zero rate," said Ernst & Young partner Herbert Bettinger, who has advised the PRI on past tax reforms. "You can leave it on food, but everything else should be removed."

However, extending VAT to products currently exempt is a sensitive political issue and the government may struggle to win support from opposition parties and even some lawmakers inside the PRI.

The Mexican Institute of Chartered Public Accountants (IMCP) says tackling the informal economy must be one of the priorities of the new regime, which the government hopes will be passed together with the 2014 federal budget and take effect next year.

The IMCP, which would also like to scrap a 'flat tax' option for firms and lower the corporate tax rate from the current 30 percent, estimates that taxing all informal workers would boost the tax take by 3 percentage points of GDP.

"The 10 percent (of GDP) tax that Mexico does raise, it raises from 40 percent of the economy because 60 percent of workers are informal and don't pay tax," said IMCP president Carlos Cardenas. "We can't do a fiscal reform just for that 40 percent."

($1 = 12.0933 Mexican pesos)

(Additional reporting by Thomson Reuters' service Dofiscal and Pablo Garibian; Editing by Kieran Murray and David Brunnstrom)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-mexico-aims-overhaul-tax-system-raise-revenue-110722774.html

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Report: Early humans dined on antelope brains

By Alasdair Fotheringham ISCHIA, Italy, May 5 (Reuters) - Team Sky took a morale-boosting victory in the Giro d'Italia team time trial as overall contender Bradley Wiggins moved up to second overall and gained time on his rivals on Sunday. Second in the short, hilly and very technical second stage were Spanish squad Movistar, nine seconds back, with Astana, led by Wiggins's key rival Vincenzo Nibali, third at 14 seconds. The first Team Sky rider to cross the line in Saturday's first stage, Italian Salvatore Puccio, took the overall leader's pink jersey. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/report-early-humans-dined-antelope-brains-182618370.html

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Experts: Feds pressure widow, pals in bomb case

This Friday, April 19, 2013 photo shows the home of Katherine Russell's parents in North Kingstown, R.I. Russell, widow of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, has been staying there. FBI agents visited the home Monday, April 29, 2013, and carried away several bags. (AP Photo/Joe Giblin)

This Friday, April 19, 2013 photo shows the home of Katherine Russell's parents in North Kingstown, R.I. Russell, widow of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, has been staying there. FBI agents visited the home Monday, April 29, 2013, and carried away several bags. (AP Photo/Joe Giblin)

Katherine Russell, right, wife of Boston Marathon bomber suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, leaves the law office of DeLuca and Weizenbaum with Amato DeLuca, left, Monday, April 29, 2013, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Stew Milne)

Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Boston Field Office Richard DesLauriers departs after the arraignment of three college friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev at the Moakley Federal Courthouse in Boston, Mass., Wednesday, May 1, 2013. Dias Kadyrbayev, Azamat Tazhayakov and Robel Phillipos were arrested and charged with removing a backpack containing hollowed-out fireworks from Tsarnaev's dorm room. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

This courtroom sketch signed by artist Jane Flavell Collins shows defendants Dias Kadyrbayev, left, and Azamat Tazhayakov appearing in front of Federal Magistrate Marianne Bowler at the Moakley Federal Courthouse in Boston, Mass., Wednesday, May 1, 2013. The two college friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and another man, were arrested and charged with removing a backpack containing hollowed-out fireworks from Tsarnaev's dorm room. (AP Photo/Jane Flavell Collins)

A van carrying three college friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev drives away from the Moakley Federal Courthouse in Boston, Mass., Wednesday, May 1, 2013. Dias Kadyrbayev, Azamat Tazhayakov and Robel Phillipos were arrested and charged with removing a backpack containing hollowed-out fireworks from Tsarnaev's dorm room. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

BOSTON (AP) ? Every time the widow of suspected Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev leaves her parents' house, federal agents watching the residence follow her in unmarked vehicles.

Federal authorities are placing intense pressure on what they know to be the inner circle of the two bombing suspects, arresting three college buddies of surviving brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and keeping Tamerlan's 24-year-old widow, Katherine Russell, in the public eye with their open surveillance and leaks to media about investigators' focus on her.

Legal experts say it's part of their quest not just to determine whether Russell and the friends are culpable but also to push for as much information as possible regarding whether the bombing suspects had ties to a terrorism network or accomplices working domestically or abroad. A primary goal is to push the widow and friends to give their full cooperation, according to the experts.

David Zlotnick, a professor of law at Roger Williams University and former federal prosecutor in the District of Columbia, said authorities may be tracking Russell closely because they feel she's not being completely honest about all she knows.

"It seems to me they don't believe her yet," he said.

Dzhokhar is in a prison hospital, facing a potential death sentence if convicted of the terrorism plot that authorities allege the 19-year-old and his late 26-year-old brother carried out April 15. Twin pressure cooker bombs detonated near the race's finish line, leaving three people dead and injuring more than 260 others. Tamerlan died in a gunfight with authorities April 19, a day after authorities released photos of the suspects.

Tamerlan's widow has been ensconced at her parents' North Kingstown, R.I., home since then. Much about her remains a mystery, including what she knew or witnessed in the weeks, months and years before the bombings, and what she saw and did in the days after.

It's unclear when Russell last communicated with her husband, but her lawyer, Amato DeLuca, told The Associated Press in an interview last month that the last time she saw him was before she went to work April 18. DeLuca said Tuesday that Russell had met with law enforcement "for many hours over the past week," and would continue to do so in the coming days. He previously told the AP that Russell didn't suspect her husband of anything before the bombings, and nothing seemed amiss in the days after.

Zlotnick said the fact that charges have been brought against the younger brother's three friends from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth over allegations they covered up for Dzhokhar indicates authorities are willing to go after the widow for similar actions. That puts pressure on Russell to cooperate.

Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov, students from Kazakhstan, were charged this week with conspiring to obstruct justice by taking a backpack with fireworks and a laptop from Dzhokhar's dorm room, while Robel Phillipos was charged with lying to investigators about the visit to the dorm room. All three are 19 years old and face the possibility of five or more years in federal prison.

The lawyers for the Kazakh students said their clients had nothing to do with the bombing and were shocked by the crime. Phillipos' attorney, Derege Demissie, said he was accused only of a "misrepresentation."

Nancy Gertner, a former federal judge in Massachusetts and a professor at Harvard Law School, said she believes authorities will try to use the conspiracy charges against the friends to turn them into cooperating witnesses against Dzhokhar. They will also see if the defendants can help them determine if there's a wider plot and a continuing danger for citizens.

"I think it's to find out ... are there other tentacles here?" Gertner said.

A grand jury is likely already hearing testimony against Dzhokhar, said Michael Sullivan, a former U.S. attorney for Massachusetts who also once headed the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. He said investigators will be looking into whether the brothers tested bombs before the attack and asking questions about whom Tamerlan had contact with when he traveled to Russia last year.

Those are some of the things they would also want to know from Russell.

One of investigators' goals right now is "to figure out if she has knowledge of how he became radicalized, who he spoke to, how he may have learned to make the bomb and whether there are others out there who share his views," said Ron Sullivan, a professor and director of Harvard's Criminal Justice Institute.

In addition to threatening her with criminal charges and a potential prison sentence to get what they want from her, Ron Sullivan said authorities can bring social pressure to bear, including leaking information that suggests she isn't being helpful.

"She's the mother of a young daughter. I imagine she does not want to be deemed as a pariah or ostracized by the whole country," he said.

One question that swirls around Russell is what she saw inside the cramped Cambridge apartment she shared with Tamerlan, whom she married in 2010, and their toddler. Two U.S. officials have told the AP that Dzhokhar told investigators the bombs were assembled in that apartment. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the details of the ongoing investigation.

Robert Clark Corrente, a former U.S. attorney for Rhode Island, said it is unlikely Russell could be prosecuted if she saw a pressure cooker in the home. But if she saw a dozen pressure cookers and several bags of fireworks, that could be a different story.

Her culpability for her actions after the bombings is also a matter of degrees. She could be in trouble if authorities determine she harbored someone or destroyed evidence. But even if Russell communicated with her husband after the release of his photo as the bombing suspect, Corrente said she may not be charged because of the public way it happened.

"I think anybody would be expected to call his or her spouse and say, 'You won't believe what I just saw on TV,'" Corrente said.

The arrests of Dzhokhar's friends and scrutiny of Russell may also have a deterrent effect by demonstrating what happens to people who don't alert authorities if someone close to them is involved in a terror plot, Zlotnick said.

Eugene O'Donnell, a John Jay College of Criminal Justice lecturer and former police officer and assistant district attorney in New York City, said the message from federal authorities is clear: "No stone will be unturned" in their probe.

"I think after 9/11 there's really a kitchen sink approach to national security," he said.

___

Smith reported from Providence, R.I. Associated Press writers Pete Yost and Eileen Sullivan contributed to this report from Washington.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-04-Boston%20Marathon-Investigation/id-43b779cdcdf448baab4b12745fec4d23

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