Monday, April 29, 2013

AppArchitect Lets Anyone Build iOS Apps, No Coding Or Templates Necessary

2013-04-28 01_09_11-AppArchitectEasy app creation, outside of the land of Ruby and Python, has become a huge phenomenon in the last year. And the latest company to join the fold,AppArchitect, is launching straight from our Disrupt NY stage. AppArchitect lets you build custom iPhone and iPad apps using a simple drag-and-drop interface. That’s right ? you need zero coding experience to build your own iPhone app. It’s a brand new world. Once you log in to the AppArchitect system, you’ll be asked whether you want to make an iPad or iPhone app. From there, you head straight into a dashboard complete with a Screens tab, Library tab with default background and picture options, and a Properties tab where you can handle styling. You can drag and drop backgrounds, images, add text, maps, or links. From there, you can test and review your app before submitting it to the App Store for approval. According to co-founder Ilya Zatulovskiy, AppArchitect is unique within the competitive landscape because there are no templates in the entire system. Of course, the downside here is that n00bs looking to explore app creation will need their own unique idea in mind before trying to build. Still, the template-free model gives aspiring entrepreneurs and creative explorers as much freedom as a true, coding app developer. In fact, one of the few apps you probably couldn’t build within the platform would be a game. “The platform is fully extendable,” said Zatulovskiy. “Since each plugin is written in Objective C, any feature requirements can be implemented via our SDK.” The idea for AppArchitect started at the TechCrunch Disrupt Hackathon in 2011, where the first lines of code were written. Since then, the company went through the DreamIt Ventures accelerator and so far raised a total of $325,000 from Actinic Ventures, BHV, DreamIt Ventures and angel investors, with plans to raise another round soon. The app creation industry has been blowing up lately. Services like Appy Couple and Yapp have been focused on niche use cases, such as weddings or events. On the other side of the spectrum, Kleverbeast is using similar drag and drop tools to build all kinds of personal apps in a snap. However, AppArchitect is one of the first services to offer web-based tools without any of the limitations of a template-based system. The company has been in a private beta for the past 4 months with over 400

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/QJ8oGYv3L18/

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Boston suspects' father postpones trip to US

MAKHACHKALA, Russia (AP) ? The father of the two Boston bombing suspects says he is postponing a trip to the United States because of poor health.

Anzor Tsarnaev told The Associated Press on Sunday that he is "really sick" and his blood pressure had spiked.

Tsarnaev said last week that he planned to travel from Russia to the U.S. with the hope of seeing his younger son, who is under arrest, and burying his elder son, who was killed in a clash with police.

Tsarnaev confirmed that he is staying in Chechnya, a province in southern Russia, but did not specify whether he was hospitalized.

Until Friday, he and the suspects' mother had been living in the neighboring province of Dagestan.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/boston-suspects-father-postpones-trip-us-124041600.html

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FAA says air travel to be normal Sunday night

(Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Saturday it had suspended all employee furloughs and that it expects the U.S. air travel system to return to normal by Sunday evening Eastern Time.

The suspension follows passage on Friday of a bill allowing the agency to shift money within its budget to halt furloughs of air-traffic controllers that started April 21.

The furloughs, prompted by automatic budget cuts, caused thousands of flight delays and hundreds of cancellations throughout the week. The FAA said in a statement on Saturday that it expects staffing to return to normal levels over the next 24 hours.

Airports around the country were reporting that flights were arriving and departing on time at 1 p.m. EDT, with the exception of San Francisco, where arrivals were delayed 44 minutes on average because of construction, the FAA said.

Earlier on Saturday, President Barack Obama chided Republicans in his weekly radio address for approving a plan to ease air-traffic delays while leaving untouched budget cuts that affect children and the elderly.

Congressman Bill Shuster, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and a Republican from Pennsylvania, said the FAA could have complied with the automatic budget cuts, known as sequester, in a way that avoided inconveniencing travelers.

(Reporting by Alwyn Scott; Editing by Sandra Maler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/faa-says-air-travel-system-normal-sunday-night-171531869.html

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Startup Common Application Wants To Make Startup Job Applications More Efficient

commonapplicationStartups still have a hard time finding the right applicants for their jobs. During our Disrupt NY 2013 hackathon, Codecademy engineer Bob Ren wrote a little web app that takes the Common Application for college admission as its inspiration. Just like high school students can use the Common Application to apply to multiple colleges simultaneously, Startup Common Application will take your application and then submit it to multiple startups. Large companies typically have a huge pipeline with job prospects, but startups “naturally suffer from not having the big pipelines that big companies have,” Ren told me – and for a small startup, it’s even harder to find the right applicants. Currently, startups either rely on email, Job Score or Resumator, but the system is still very inefficient, especially for the applicants. You often spend hours getting your applications ready and submitted, but a system like Startup Common Application could just automate all of this for you (and you don’t even have to pretend that you really personalized the system). Common Startup Application runs on top of Heroku and Ren is working on a number of scripts that will take his users’ data and then auto-submit it to more startups. In the spirit of the Hackathon, Ren coded until 6 a.m. and then slept an hour before getting ready for his demo this afternoon. Obviously, this is still a hack, so Ren will surely have to work on the design a bit more, but he’s definitely tackling an interesting problem. Given that he can automate much of it, what he really needs right now, of course, is support for as many startups as possible, but there are some pretty obvious ways he could monetize this service if he decides to continue working on it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Kh3Q2IQrBRg/

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How Earthquakes in Chile Have Permanently Deformed Earth

Earthquakes can permanently crack the Earth, an investigation of quakes that have rocked Chile over the past million years suggests.

Although earthquakes can wreak havoc on the planet's surface, more than a century of research has suggested the Earth actually mostly rebounds after quakes, with blocks of the world's crust elastically springing back, over the course of months to decades, to the way they initially were. Such rebounding was first seen after investigations of the devastating 1906 San Francisco temblor thathelped lead to the destruction of more than 80 percent of the city. The rebound is well-documented nowadays by satellite-based GPS systems that monitor Earth's movements.

However, structural geologist Richard Allmendinger of Cornell University and his colleagues now find major earthquakes of magnitude 7 or greater apparently caused the crust in northern Chile to crack permanently. [The 10 Biggest Earthquakes in History]

"My graduate students and I originally went to northern Chile to study other features," Allmendinger said. "While we were there, our Chilean colleague, Professor Gabriel Gonz?lez of the Universidad Cat?lica del Norte, took us to a region where these cracks were particularly well-exposed."

"I still remember feeling blown away ? never seen anything like them in my 40 years as a geologist ? and also perplexed," Allmendinger told OurAmazingPlanet. "What were these features and how did they form? Scientists hate leaving things like this unexplained, so it kept bouncing around in my mind."

Atacama exposed

In northern Chile, "the driest place on Earth, we have a virtually unique record of great earthquakes going back a million years," Allmendinger said. Whereas most analyses of ancient earthquakes only probe cycles of two to four quakes, "our record of upper plate cracking spans thousands of earthquake cycles," he noted.

The record of the vast number of earthquakes captured in northern Chilean rocks allowed the researchers to examine their average behavior over a much longer period of time, which makes it easier to pick out any patterns. They discovered that a small but significant 1 to 10 percent of the deformation of the Earth caused by 2,000 to 9,000 major quakes over the past 800,000 to 1 million years was permanent, involving cracks millimeters to meters large in the crust of the Atacama Desert. The crust may behave less elastically than previously thought.

"It is only in a place like the Atacama Desert that these cracks can be observed ? in all other places, surface processes erase them within days or weeks of their formation, but in the Atacama, they are preserved for millions of years," Allmendinger said. "We have every reason to believe that our results would be applicable to other areas, but is simply not preserved for study the way that it is in the Atacama Desert," he added.

Model rethink

This work "calls into question the details of models that geophysicists who study the earthquake cycle use," Allmendinger said. "Their models generally assume that all of the upper-plate deformation related to the earthquake cycle is elastic ? recoverable, like an elastic band ? and not permanent. If some of the deformation is permanent, then the models will have to be rethought and more complicated material behaviors used.

The area the researchers studied, the Iquique Gap, "is one of the few places along western South America that has not had a great earthquake in the last 100 years and thus has a high probability of a major earthquake in the next couple of decades," Allmendinger added. "We may get to test out predictions about earthquakes if the next great earthquake there happens in the next couple of decades."

The scientists detailed their findings online April 28 in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Follow OurAmazingPlanet?@OAPlanet, Facebook?and Google+. Original article at LiveScience's OurAmazingPlanet.

Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/earthquakes-chile-permanently-deformed-earth-170116659.html

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Saturday, April 27, 2013

Woman, 80, swallows diamond at Fla. charity event

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) ? The idea behind the Tampa Women's Club charity event was simple. For $20, you could buy a flute of champagne and a chance to win a one-carat, $5,000 diamond.

Organizers of the Saturday event placed $10 cubic zirconia stones in the bottom of 399 of the 400 champagne glasses. The prized diamond, donated by Continental Wholesale Diamonds, was placed in the last.

The problem? Eighty-year-old Miriam Tucker accidentally swallowed it.

Tucker told local news media that she didn't want to put her finger in the champagne, so she drank a bit. While laughing with women at the table, she realized she swallowed it.

Embarrassed, she had to tell jewelers who were frantically searching for the winner.

Already scheduled for a colonoscopy on Monday, she had a doctor recover the jewel.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/woman-80-swallows-diamond-fla-charity-event-101855519.html

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Missing Brown student's body found in Providence River

By Richard Weizel

BOSTON (Reuters) - A body found floating in the Providence River was that of a 22-year-old Brown University student who had been missing for more than a month, Rhode Island officials confirmed on Thursday.

The body of Sunil Tripathi, who had been missing since March 16, had been found by the university's men's crew team late on Tuesday.

"We have been able to conclusively determine the body is that of Sunil Tripathi, but will not be able to determine the cause of death for several months," said Dara Chadwick, a spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Department of Health.

The case received national media attention after social media websites last week lit up with a false rumor that Tripathi, who was on an approved leave from Brown, was one of the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings.

The actual suspects have been identified as brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

While Tripathi's family blasted those reports last week, they posted a statement of thanks on Thursday on a special website which had been set up to help find the missing student.

"As we carry indescribable grief, we also feel incredible gratitude," the family said. "To each one of you - from your hometown to many distant lands - we extend our thanks for the words of encouragement, for your thoughts, for your prayers and for the love you have generously shared."

Brown University President Christina Paxson said on Thursday: "We extend our deepest condolences to Sunil's family for their loss and for the immeasurable pain they have endured during this period."

The university plans a memorial service for Tripathi on Saturday afternoon.

(Reporting by Richard Weizel in Milford, Connecticut; editing by Scott Malone, G Crosse)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/body-found-providence-river-identified-missing-student-172807069.html

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Friday, April 26, 2013

Transit bus, train crash in Pa.; at least 10 hurt

EVANS CITY, Pa. (AP) ? A freight train and a rural transit bus carrying senior citizens and people with developmental disabilities crashed at an unmarked railroad crossing Friday morning, injuring at least 10 people.

Video from local TV news helicopters suggested that the small bus may have hit the train and then come to rest about 20 feet away. The bus was upright on an embankment and had only front-end damage. Police were investigating whether dense morning fog contributed to the crash.

The crash occurred in Evans City, about 25 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, at about 8:10 a.m. Friday. Eleven people, including the driver, were on the bus, and at least 10 were taken to hospitals, officials said.

Three men and a woman were being treated in the Allegheny General Hospital emergency room in Pittsburgh, said hospital spokesman Dan Laurent. The men were 35, 38 and 75 years old, and the woman's age was not immediately available.

Brian Greenawalt, a Harmony Township paramedic supervisor, said one victim suffered "a pretty significant head injury."

Police said the Butler Area Rural Transit bus was on its way to a program known as Lifesteps.

A woman who identified herself as the granddaughter of a 90-year-old woman on the bus told WPXI-TV that her grandmother was headed to geriatric care program at Lifesteps. The woman said the bus takes adult patients of all ages to the facility for a variety of programs.

A Lifesteps official did not immediately return a call for comment, but the facility's website said it is a nonprofit that has operated since 1923. Lifesteps "services for children, families, adults with special needs and seniors are designed to encourage growth, independence, confidence and dignity," the website said.

The transit agency's website indicates it partners with the Alliance For Nonprofit Resources, a social service agency based in the county seat of Butler, to provide reduced-fee transportation for people with disabilities. Neither agency immediately returned calls Friday.

The transit agency's website said it operates 17 wheelchair-accessible buses that make about 300 trips a day, six days a week.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/transit-bus-train-crash-pa-least-10-hurt-140214687.html

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Thursday, April 25, 2013

Arms makers boost earnings, but revenues weakening

By Andrea Shalal-Esa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top weapons makers reported higher-than-expected profit and improved margins for the first quarter, even as revenue began to taper off after more than a decade of sharp growth in U.S. military spending.

Boeing Co's defense division, Northrop Grumman Corp and General Dynamics Corp on Wednesday followed the lead of top Pentagon supplier Lockheed Martin Corp in reporting higher earnings and lower revenue.

Operating margins remained steady or improved across the sector, ranging from 10.3 percent to 12.4 percent.

"Weaker revenues and strong earnings are typical of this point in the defense spending cycle. However, the erosion in revenues is probably a leading indicator of where earnings are headed," said defense analyst Loren Thompson of the Virginia-based Lexington Institute.

"Earnings eventually will erode as the impact of sequestration is fully felt," he said, referring to across-the-board federal spending cuts.

Northrop Grumman, which builds unmanned planes and a range of other defense equipment, said it was focused on executing programs, cash deployment and tweaking its portfolio as U.S. defense budgets start to feel the bite of the mandatory spending cuts.

The company reported net earnings of $489 million, or $2.03 a share, compared with $506 million, or $1.96 a share a year earlier. Revenue dipped to $6.1 billion from $6.2 billion.

"Looking ahead, we recognize that we are operating in an uncertain and constrained budget environment," said Northrop Chief Executive Wes Bush.

General Dynamics, which builds ships, tanks and Gulfstream business jets, reported slightly higher first-quarter earnings, far exceeding analysts' forecasts, but revenue fell short of expectations.

General Dynamics said net earnings rose to $571 million, or $1.62 per share, from $564 million or $1.57 per share, a year earlier. Revenues dipped to $7.4 billion from $7.58 billion.

Boeing, the second-largest U.S. weapons maker, said its defense earnings rose 12 percent to $832 million, while revenue slipped 1 percent to $8.1 billion.

Boeing's operating margin remained the lowest in the sector, although it rose to 10.3 percent from 9 percent a year earlier.

(Reporting By Andrea Shalal-Esa; editing by John Wallace)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/arms-makers-boost-earnings-revenues-weakening-131329128--finance.html

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Congresswoman Proposes Broadband Internet Subsidies For Low ...

For years, it was essential that every family had a phone line. The U.S. government started the Lifeline program to help impoverished families afford this essential communication tool. Now the Internet has overwhelmingly replaced traditional phone lines, but the Lifeline program hasn?t adapted to this reality. One Congresswoman is hoping to change that.

Ars Technica reports that Rep. Doris Matsui has introduced the Broadband Adoption Act of 2013. The bill would modify the Lifeline program to provide cheaper broadband Internet services to low-income families across the country.

?In today?s digital economy, if you don?t have access to the Internet you are simply at a competitive disadvantage. For example, more than 80 percent of available jobs now require online applications,? said Congresswoman Matsui. ?The Internet is increasingly the economic engine for growth and innovation. The Lifeline program provides a tangible service to lower-income Americans and it is imperative that the Lifeline program be reformed and modernized to account for broadband services. We must ensure lower-income Americans have a greater opportunity to participate in the digital economy, whether it be for workforce training, education, finding a job or creating the next big idea.?

Matsui says that a recent FCC report found that nearly 100 million Americans are without broadband Internet services. She places the blame squarely on the high cost of broadband Internet in America. Many low income families simply can?t afford the high cost of broadband Internet. The bill would help to make faster Internet affordable to all.

Of course, the Broadband Adoption Act of 2013 isn?t just about providing faster Internet to low-income families. Matsui has envisioned a number of reforms to the Lifeline program for the FCC to enact if the bill were to become law:

  • The bill directs the FCC to establish a broadband Lifeline Assistance program that provides low-income Americans living in rural and urban areas with assistance in subscribing to affordable broadband service.
  • The proposal would require the FCC, in calculating the amount of support, to routinely study the prevailing market price for service and the prevailing speed adopted by consumers of broadband service.
  • The bill is technology neutral to promote competition from broadband service providers under the program.
  • The bill allows eligible consumers to choose how they would like their Lifeline support- whether for broadband, mobile, basic telephone services or a bundle of these services. The bill clarifies that eligible households will qualify for only one lifeline support amount for one of those functions, not for multiple purposes.
  • The bill requires the FCC to establish a national database to determine consumer eligibility for Lifeline and to prevent duplication.
  • The bill encourages the FCC to consider providing a preference to participating broadband service providers that include components involving digital literacy programs as part of their offerings.
  • Eligible households must meet federal low-income guidelines or qualify for one of a handful of social service programs including, but not limited to: SNAP, Head Start, WIC, National School Lunch Program, Tribal TANF or Medicaid.
  • It?s hard to see how anybody in the telecom industry would be opposed to this bill. It would net ISPs more subscribers to their expensive broadband plans while receiving plenty of free government money. There?s an argument to be had that we can?t be spending more money on social welfare programs, but the counterargument is that universal Internet access is worth it.

    Source: http://www.webpronews.com/congresswoman-proposes-broadband-internet-subsidies-for-low-income-families-2013-04

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    Facebook Messenger for Android: now with free stickers

    Facebook adds a helping of cheese to Messenger with stickers

    Emojis not giving that missive the right oomph? A Facebook Messenger for Android update has brought stickers into that mix with characters like cats and aliens, lending your chat head conversation just the right dose of nuance. It popped up yesterday as a hidden feature, but now you can download the final version at Google Play (at the source) -- then, just click on the smiley icon in the text input box to start dropping the cute bombs.

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    Via: Phandroid

    Source: Facebook (Google Play)

    Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/TXALB4MIeCA/

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    No Time to Relax, More Significant Correction May Be in the Works

    Wednesday, April 24th, 2013
    By George Leong, B.Comm. for Profit Confidential

    No Time to RelaxThe stock market came off its worst week this year; but even given the minor correction, I don?t think we can relax enough to re-enter the market and buy, based on my stock analysis.

    I think there could be a more significant market correction down the road that could shave another five percent off the current levels.

    Yet even so, the selling over the recent sessions have driven the key stock indices down to levels that are more realistic compared to levels at the end of the first quarter, according to my stock analysis.

    Simply put, the previous rate of the advance was not sustainable.

    My stock analysis shows that with April coming to an end, we could also be seeing the final leg of the current six-month bull cycle from November to April that has historically resulted in the best gains, according to the Stock Trader?s Almanac.

    This doesn?t mean that stocks are not worth a look for the next six months. But if the historical cycles pan out, the best gains may have already been made, so it will come down to stock selection, according to my stock analysis.

    Let?s take a look at the investment climate at this juncture.

    What?s critical right now is the first-quarter earnings season. So far, with about 104 S&P 500 companies having reported, the results have more or less been in line with the previous quarters, with about 67.3% beating earnings-per-share (EPS) estimates, according to Thomson Financial.

    Another 170 S&P 500 companies are reporting this week.

    Of the 20% of the S&P 500 companies that have reported, the results have been largely mixed, but Wall Street expected this.

    We saw encouraging results from several technology giants, including Google Inc. (NASDAQ/GOOG) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ/MSFT). On the other hand, my stock analysis suggests that some key Dow stocks disappointed, including International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE/IBM), McDonalds Corporation (NYSE/MCD), General Electric Company (NYSE/GE), and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE/CAT).

    On the economic front, stocks and commodities got slammed on news that China may again be stalling; there could be an asset bubble forming, based on my stock analysis.

    Goldman Sachs slashed China?s gross domestic product (GDP) to 7.8% for this year. The cut followed on the heels of a softer-than-expected first-quarter GDP growth recently reported.

    As I said, the renewed slowing fears in China means a potential decline in demand for commodities, such as energy, silver, and copper used in industrial applications, and the precious metal gold used for jewelry and as a hedge against risk, based on my stock analysis.

    Gold doesn?t look that good on the chart, despite rallying back above $1,400 an ounce, based on my technical analysis. Looking ahead, I?m not 100% convinced that gold will rally higher.

    Oil prices are moving lower, which has resulted in lower gas prices at the pumps. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has come out and said it desires $100.00 a barrel as a lower limit for oil. In the past, the lower limit was $80.00 a barrel. The problem is that OPEC may cut its daily production quota. But given that the U.S. now imports less oil from OPEC, the effect on the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil price may be less, based on my stock analysis.

    I would continue to advise caution. We are seeing some decent buying support following weakness, but my stock analysis indicates that it may be more of a red flag. Stocks will move lower, so be careful.

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    Source: http://www.profitconfidential.com/stock-market/no-time-to-relax-more-significant-correction-may-be-in-the-works/

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    Wednesday, April 24, 2013

    Swype 1.5 drops the beta tag, hits Google Play for 99 cents

    Swype 1.5 drops the beta tag, hits Google Play for 99 cents

    We joke that Gmail holds the record for the most drawn-out test phase, but Swype comes close: the keyboard replacement has been considered a work in progress on various platforms since before Android devices hit the streets, and well after it started shipping with phones. The developers at Nuance are a little braver as of today, as they're launching Swype 1.5 for Android without any kind of beta label attached -- they really, truly consider it done. Mind you, there won't be a huge difference versus recent betas. The 1.5 update adds a quick shortcut to Dragon Mobile Assistant for those who have it installed, expands Living Language to 20 dialects, adds two new themes and refines both Smart Touch and Smart Reselect.

    It's where you can get Swype 1.5 that may be the biggest change. For the first time, Swype is launching as a straightforward Google Play download that should support the same easy installs and upgrades as most Android releases. Unfortunately, that also means a price tag for the store edition. Nuance is charging 99 cents on Google Play for a "limited time" before a price increase, so we'll have to shell out if we want to take the easier path. The beta program remains intact, however -- and when Swype is at least temporarily undercutting SwiftKey on pricing, we'd consider spending some cash.

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    Source: Swype

    Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/MBeE5d3RuJg/

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    Obama administration had advance warning on Fisker

    WASHINGTON (AP) ? Newly released documents show that the Obama administration was warned as early as 2010 that electric car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. was not meeting milestones set up for a half-billion dollar government loan, nearly a year before U.S. officials froze the loan after questions were raised about the company's statements.

    An Energy Department official said in a June 2010 email that Fisker's bid to draw on the federal loan may be jeopardized for failure to meet goals established by the Energy Department.

    Despite that warning, Fisker continued to receive money until June 2011, when the DOE halted further funding. The agency did so after Fisker presented new information that called into question whether key milestones ? including launch of the company's signature, $100,000 Karma hybrid ? had been achieved, according to a credit report prepared by the Energy Department.

    The December 2011 credit report said "DOE staff asked questions about the delays" in the launch of the Karma "and received varied and incomplete explanations," leading to the suspension of the loan. Fisker had received a total of $192 million of the $529 million loan before it was suspended.

    In the June 2010 email, Sandra Claghorn, an official in DOE's loan program office, had written that Fisker "may be in limbo due to a lack of compliance with financial covenants" set up by the Energy Department to protect taxpayers in the event of default. Another document, from April 2010, listed milestones that Fisker had not yet met.

    Aoife McCarthy, a spokeswoman for the Energy Department, said the June 2010 email was taken out of context.

    "The document shows that one person at a meeting discussed the possibility that Fisker might not meet a financial commitment" required by the Energy Department, McCarthy said in an email late Tuesday. DOE received the needed certification five days later and subsequently made the loan payment, she said.

    The Associated Press obtained the Fisker documents ahead of a House hearing scheduled for Wednesday on the federal loan to the troubled car maker, which has laid off three-fourths of its workers amid continuing financial and production problems.

    The potential loss of $171 million would be largest loss of federal loan money since the 2011 failure of solar panel maker Solyndra, which declared bankruptcy and laid off all its workers after receiving a $528 million loan from the Energy Department.

    The Energy Department seized $21 million from Fisker this month as it continued to seek repayment from the car maker for the 2009 loan. A payment from Fisker was due Monday, but was not made, a DOE official said.

    Henrik Fisker, the company's namesake and founder, was scheduled to testify at Wednesday's hearing. Fisker, who was forced out as CEO as the company's troubles mounted, said in prepared testimony that he remained proud of the company's "cutting edge technology," which he said could "pave the way for a new generation of American car manufacturing."

    Fisker disputed claims by some critics that the Anaheim, Calif.-based company needed the federal loan to survive. Fisker said a high-ranking Energy Department official approached him in 2008 and asked him to apply for the loan, which is intended to boost electric cars and other advanced vehicles.

    "At that time, we already had significant financial backing from private investors," Fisker said in the prepared testimony. In all, the company received more than $1 billion in private financing, he said.

    The company met initial milestones set up by the Energy Department before informing the department that it would not meet future goals on time, Fisker said. He denied that any political influence was used to obtain the loan or in negotiations over its terms.

    "I am not aware and do not believe that any improper political influence was used in connection with the company's loan application or subsequent negotiations with the Department of Energy," Fisker said.

    Vice President Joe Biden announced in late 2009 that Fisker would reopen a shuttered former General Motors factory in Wilmington, Del., to produce plug-in, electric hybrid vehicles. The plant was never completed and never produced any cars.

    Fisker said the company was hurt badly by the 2008 recession and by the bankruptcy of A123 Systems, a Massachusetts company hired by Fisker to make batteries for the Karma. A bankruptcy judge granted Fisker $15 million in a claim against A123 for breach of warranty, a fraction of Fisker's initial claim.

    Fisker has not built a vehicle since last summer and has failed to secure a buyer as its cash reserves have dwindled.

    ___

    Follow Matthew Daly on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-administration-had-advance-warning-fisker-062250966--finance.html

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    Netflix Earnings 1Q 2013 - Business Insider

    Reuters/Stephen Chernin

    Actor Kevin Spacey at Netflix's House of Cards premiere.

    ?

    Netflix?announced its first quarter earnings this afternoon.

    Revenue was in line with expectations but EPS killed it, and the stock jumped about 20% after-hours.?

    We're updating this post as we go, so click for updates.

    The big numbers are:

    • Revenue: $1.02 billion versus $1.02 billion estimate
    • EPS: $0.31 versus $0.20
    • Earnings guidance: Sees Q2 EPS $0.23-$0.48 versus expectations of $0.30 EPS

    Here's the full outlook for Q2 2013:

    Netflix added three million subscribers in the first quarter bringing the total to 36 million.

    They say two million of the new subscribers were added to the streaming business in the U.S. alone. This attributed in part to positive reception of the first original series House of Cards. International membership grew by one million.

    In all markets Netflix saw growth and improved profits or reduced losses.

    In regards to exclusive content and deals with other content providers, Netflix says that, "as we continue to focus on exclusive and curated content, our willingness to pay for non-exclusive, bulk content deals declines."

    Netflix shared another interesting fact in its quarterly investor letter relating?to its proprietary series, House of Cards.

    The decision to release all 13 episodes of its first original series House of Cards worked in the company's favor.

    CEO Reed Hastings wrote in the investor letter that the decision created "enormous media and social buzz, reinforcing our brand attribute of giving consumers completely control over how and when they enjoy their entertainment."

    Netflix was widely criticized for its decision to release the entire series at once.?Hastings said, "some investors worried that the House of Cards fans would take advantage of our free?trial, watch the show, and then cancel. However, there was very little free-trial gaming?less than 8,000?people did this? out of millions of free trials in the quarter."

    Here's the full investor letter:

    Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-earnings-1q-2013-4

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    Ralph Lauren to pay $1.6 million to resolve Argentine bribery case

    SYDNEY, April 24 (Reuters) - Australia named the following squad for the Ashes test series against England in July and August. Squad: Michael Clarke (captain), Brad Haddin (vice captain), Ed Cowan, David Warner, Phillip Hughes, Shane Watson, Usman Khawaja, Chris Rogers, Matthew Wade, Nathan Lyon, James Faulkner, Peter Siddle, Ryan Harris, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird (Compiled by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ralph-lauren-pay-1-6-million-resolve-foreign-142545814--finance.html

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    Tuesday, April 23, 2013

    US hospitals send hundreds of immigrants back home

    DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) ? Days after they were badly hurt in a car accident, Jacinto Cruz and Jose Rodriguez-Saldana lay unconscious in an Iowa hospital while the American health care system weighed what to do with the two immigrants from Mexico.

    The men had health insurance from jobs at one of the nation's largest pork producers. But neither had legal permission to live in the U.S., nor was it clear whether their insurance would pay for the long-term rehabilitation they needed.

    So Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines took matters into its own hands: After consulting with the patients' families, it quietly loaded the two comatose men onto a private jet that flew them back to Mexico, effectively deporting them without consulting any court or federal agency.

    When the men awoke, they were more than 1,800 miles away in a hospital in Veracruz, on the Mexican Gulf Coast.

    Hundreds of immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally have taken similar journeys through a little-known removal system run not by the federal government trying to enforce laws but by hospitals seeking to curb high costs. A recent report compiled by immigrant advocacy groups made a rare attempt to determine how many people are sent home, concluding that at least 600 immigrants were removed over a five-year period, though there were likely many more.

    In interviews with immigrants, their families, attorneys and advocates, The Associated Press reviewed the obscure process known formally as "medical repatriation," which allows hospitals to put patients on chartered international flights, often while they are still unconscious. Hospitals typically pay for the flights.

    "The problem is it's all taking place in this unregulated sort of a black hole ... and there is no tracking," said law professor Lori Nessel, director of the Center for Social Justice at Seton Hall Law School, which offers free legal representation to immigrants.

    Now advocates for immigrants are concerned that hospitals could soon begin expanding the practice after full implementation of federal health care reform, which will make deep cuts to the payments hospitals receive for taking care of the uninsured.

    Health care executives say they are caught between a requirement to accept all patients and a political battle over immigration.

    "It really is a Catch-22 for us," said Dr. Mark Purtle, vice president of Medical Affairs for Iowa Health System, which includes Iowa Methodist Medical Center. "This is the area that the federal government, the state, everybody says we're not paying for the undocumented."

    Hospitals are legally mandated to care for all patients who need emergency treatment, regardless of citizenship status or ability to pay. But once a patient is stabilized, that funding ceases, along with the requirement to provide care. Many immigrant workers without citizenship are ineligible for Medicaid, the government's insurance program for the poor and elderly.

    That's why hospitals often try to send those patients to rehabilitation centers and nursing homes back in their home countries.

    Civil rights groups say the practice violates U.S. and international laws and unfairly targets one of the nation's most defenseless populations.

    "They don't have advocates, and they don't have people who will speak on their behalf," said Miami attorney John De Leon, who has been arguing such cases for a decade.

    Estimating the number of cases is difficult since no government agency or organization keeps track.

    The Center for Social Justice and New York Lawyers for the Public Interest have documented at least 600 immigrants who were involuntarily removed in the past five years for medical reasons. The figure is based on data from hospitals, humanitarian organizations, news reports and immigrant advocates who cited specific cases. But the actual number is believed to be significantly higher because many more cases almost certainly go unreported.

    Some patients who were sent home subsequently died in hospitals that weren't equipped to meet their needs. Others suffered lingering medical problems because they never received adequate rehabilitation, the report said.

    Gail Montenegro, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the agency "plays no role in a health care provider's private transfer of a patient to his or her country of origin."

    Such transfers "are not the result of federal authority or action," she said in an email, nor are they considered "removals, deportations or voluntary departures" as defined by the Immigration and Nationality Act.

    The two Mexican workers in Iowa came to the U.S. in search of better jobs and found work at Iowa Select Farms, which provided them with medical insurance even though they had no visas or other immigration documents.

    Cruz had been here for about six months, Rodriguez-Saldana for a little over a year. The men were returning home from a fishing trip in May 2008 when their car was struck by a semitrailer truck. Both were thrown from the vehicle and suffered serious head injuries.

    Insurance paid more than $100,000 for the two men's emergency treatment. But it was unclear whether the policies would pay for long-term rehabilitation. Two rehabilitation centers refused to take them.

    Eleven days after the car crash, the two men were still comatose as they were carried aboard a jet bound for Veracruz, where a hospital had agreed to take them.

    Rodriguez-Saldana, now 39, said the Des Moines hospital told his family that he was unlikely to survive and should be sent home.

    The hospital "doesn't really want Mexicans," he said in a telephone interview with the AP. "They wanted to disconnect me so I could die. They said I couldn't survive, that I wouldn't live."

    Hospital officials said they could not discuss the case because of litigation. The men and their families filed a lawsuit in 2010 claiming they received minimal rehabilitative care in Veracruz.

    A judge dismissed the lawsuit last year ruling that Iowa Methodist was not to blame for the inadequate care in Veracruz. The courts also found that even though the families of the men may not have consented to their transport to Mexico, they also failed to object to it. An appeals court upheld the dismissal.

    Patients are frequently told family members want them to come home. In cases where the patient is unconscious or can't communicate, relatives are told their loved one wants to return, De Leon said.

    Sometimes they're told the situation is dire, and the patient may die, prompting many grief-stricken relatives to agree to a transfer, he said.

    Some hospitals "emotionally extort family members in their home country," De Leon said. "They make family members back home feel guilty so they can simply put them on a plane and drop them off at the airport."

    In court documents, Iowa hospital officials said they had received permission from Saldana's parents and Cruz's long-term partner for the flight to Mexico. Family members deny they gave consent.

    There's no way to know for sure whether the two men would have recovered faster or better in the United States. But the accident left both of them with life-altering disabilities.

    Nearly five years later, the 49-year-old Cruz is paralyzed on his left side, the result of damage to his hip and spine. He has difficulty speaking and can't work.

    "I can't even walk," he said in a telephone interview, breaking into tears several times. His long-term partner, Belem, said he's more emotional since the accident.

    "He feels bad because he went over there and came back like this," she said. "Now he can't work at all. ... He cries a lot."

    She works selling food and cleaning houses. Their oldest son, 22, sometimes contributes to the family income.

    Rodriguez-Saldana said he has to pay for intensive therapy for his swollen feet and bad circulation. He also said he walks poorly and has difficulty working. He sells home supplies such as kitchen and bath towels and dishes, a business that requires a lot of walking and visiting houses. He often forgets where he lives, but people recognize him on the street and take him home because he's confused.

    The American Hospital Association said it does not have a specific policy governing immigrant removals, and it does not track how many hospitals encounter the issue.

    Nessel expects medical removals to increase with implementation of health care reform, which makes many more patients eligible for Medicaid. As a result, the government plans to cut payments to hospitals that care for the uninsured.

    Some hospitals call immigration authorities when they receive patients without immigration documentation, but the government rarely responds, Nessel said. Taking custody of the patient would also require the government to assume financial responsibility for care.

    Jan Stipe runs the Iowa Methodist department that finds hospitals in patients' native countries that are willing to take them. The hospital's goal, she said, is to "get patients back to where their support systems are, their loved ones who will provide the care and the concern that each patient needs."

    The American Medical Association's Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs issued a strongly worded directive to doctors in 2009, urging them not to "allow hospital administrators to use their significant power and the current lack of regulations" to send patients to other countries.

    Doctors cannot expect hospitals to provide costly uncompensated care to patients indefinitely, the statement said. "But neither should physicians allow hospitals to arbitrarily determine the fate of an uninsured noncitizen immigrant patient."

    Arturo Morales, a Monterrey, Mexico, lawyer who helps Cruz and Rodriguez-Saldana with legal issues, is convinced the men would have been better off staying in Iowa.

    "I have no doubt," he said. "You have a patient who doesn't have money to pay you. You can't let them die."

    ___

    Associated Press Writer Barbara Rodriguez in Des Moines contributed to this report.

    ___

    Follow David Pitt on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/davepitt .

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-hospitals-send-hundreds-immigrants-back-home-070535748.html

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    David Ortiz forgiven by FCC for expletive Boston will never forget (+video)

    David Ortiz used an expletive in his defiant (and televised) speech Saturday before the first Red Sox home game since the Boston Marathon bombing. The FCC has already weighed in. ?

    By Mark Sappenfield,?Staff writer / April 21, 2013

    Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz pumps his fist in front of an American flag and a line of Boston Marathon volunteers after addressing the crowd before a baseball game between the Red Sox and the Kansas City Royals in Boston Saturday.

    Michael Dwyer/AP

    Enlarge

    On a day when the city of Boston came to Fenway Park for its collective exhale, honoring the governor and mayor and law enforcement officials who have served with such distinction during the past week of terror, it was the one indelible moment. The crowd roared louder than it had all afternoon. People on the Internet are already making T-shirts.

    Skip to next paragraph Mark Sappenfield

    Staff writer

    Mark is deputy national news editor for the Monitor.

    Recent posts

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    It was, in five words, the encapsulation of a city's defiance ? bowed, but never broken. Not even close.

    It also happened to be NSFW (not safe for work). Or children. Or anyone in Mr. Rogers' neighborhood.?

    It was the declaration by legendary Red Sox slugger David Ortiz in pregame ceremonies Saturday, which were broadcast nationwide.

    "This is our f------ city, and nobody's going to dictate our freedom."

    In recent years, the Federal Communications Commission has taken to calling such incidents "fleeting expletives," and has grown increasingly grumpy about them. For years, the major television networks behaved themselves, pushing any potentially objectionable content past 10 p.m., when kids who might ask "Mommy, what is cow s---?" had already gone to bed.

    Then came reality TV star Nicole Richie, who said live during the December 2003 Billboard awards show on Fox, "Have you ever tried to get cow s--- out of a Prada purse? It's not so f------ simple."

    Or U2 singer Bono, who said during NBC's broadcast of the Golden Globes awards show earlier that year: "f------ brilliant."

    For these incidents and others, the FCC responded by fining networks more than $1 million. Though the fines were later overturned by the Supreme Court, the point was made. There was a new sheriff in town. The networks have responded, running awards shows on several-second delays so they can beep out any offenders.

    But on Saturday, no one beeped out Mr. Ortiz ? known to Bostonians as "Big Papi." And within the hour, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski had taken to Twitter to say that was just fine.

    "David Ortiz spoke from the heart at today's Red Sox game. I stand with Big Papi and the people of Boston - Julius," the tweet read.

    Mark Townsend of Yahoo's Big League Stew blog added his 2 cents: "There's a right time, and there's a wrong time to be too emotional. Today was definitely the right time (and yes, I know there were children in the building)."

    Commenters largely agreed. One, named Hawk, summed up the sentiment this way: "I'm gonna go ahead and vote Papi for MVP. Most Valuable Phrasing!" Another, named Ted, added: "When Papi said that, I got goosebumps."

    On a joyous day to end a tragic week that Boston ? and the world ? will not soon forget, Ortiz's expletive was anything but fleeting, it seems.

    Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/GMMhaV6s3rE/David-Ortiz-forgiven-by-FCC-for-expletive-Boston-will-never-forget-video

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    Monday, April 22, 2013

    CBS Twitter feeds are compromised

    This screen grab shows a tweet from the compromised "60 Minutes" Twitter account, Saturday, April 20, 2013. The Twitter accounts for two national CBS programs have been compromised and suspended. A CBS News spokeswoman confirms Saturday that tweets sent earlier in the afternoon from the "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours" Twitter handles saying their accounts were compromised are correct. (AP Photo)

    This screen grab shows a tweet from the compromised "60 Minutes" Twitter account, Saturday, April 20, 2013. The Twitter accounts for two national CBS programs have been compromised and suspended. A CBS News spokeswoman confirms Saturday that tweets sent earlier in the afternoon from the "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours" Twitter handles saying their accounts were compromised are correct. (AP Photo)

    (AP) ? The Twitter accounts for two national CBS programs have been compromised and suspended.

    A CBS News spokeswoman confirms Saturday that tweets sent earlier in the afternoon from the "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours" Twitter handles saying their accounts were compromised are correct.

    The tweets said the network is working with Twitter to investigate. On Saturday night both accounts were suspended and inaccessible.

    Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The CBS spokeswoman didn't comment further.

    Earlier in the day tweets coming from the 60 Minutes account seemed farfetched, including one that claimed the US government was "hiding the real culprit of the Boston bombing."

    Associated Press

    Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-04-21-CBS-Twitter%20Accounts%20Suspended/id-ae7adc59283d43f1beb1fc86b1cd694b

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    Napolitano re-elected Italy's president

    ROME (AP) ? Italy's Parliament on Saturday re-elected Giorgio Napolitano to an unprecedented second term as president, after party leaders persuaded the 87-year-old to serve again in hopes of easing the hostility that has thwarted formation of a new government.

    Napolitano easily surpassed the simple majority required to be elected Saturday afternoon. He garnered 738 votes, far more than the 504 needed for victory for another seven-year mandate.

    Parliament had a much harder time. It took it three days of balloting to choose a president, reflecting the legislature's deep polarization following inconclusive nationwide elections in February.

    After the weeks of stalemate, Napolitano can formally begin one of the head of state's most important tasks once he takes a new oath of office. He must figure out who has the best prospects of putting together a new government, with enough support to successfully work with Parliament and survive a mandatory vote of confidence.

    That won't be easy. Italy's main political parties ? essentially three distinct ideological blocs in Parliament and their often shifting allies ? are heavily polarized, and antagonism only grew sharper during the gridlock.

    Napolitano, a former Communist, will have to quickly start sounding out parties about a potential premier. The next government faces pressure to bring urgently needed economic and electoral reforms to the recession-mired nation.

    Italy has had a caretaker government for months, led by economist Mario Monti, a Napolitano appointee whose harsh austerity measures of higher taxes, pension reform and slashed spending helped keep Italy from succumbing to the debt crisis.

    Napolitano, citing his advanced age, had repeatedly refused to be a candidate for another term that would see him turn nearly 95 when it runs out. But he yielded to the appeals out of a sense of responsibility toward the nation, he said.

    "We must all look, as I tried to do in these hours, at the difficult situation of the country, at the problems of Italy and Italians, and the international image and role of our nation," Napolitano said in brief remarks from the presidential palace after his re-election. He said he would elaborate on how he planned to carry out his mandate in a speech Monday.

    Monti, whose own election bid to stay on as premier was soundly rejected by angry voters, telephoned Napolitano to thank him for having agreed "with great spirit of sacrifice" to continue.

    Pope Francis in a telegram hailed Napolitano's wisdom and prayed that the president receive "constant divine assistance" on the job. Saying he blessed both Napolitano and the Italian nation, he encouraged the country to "build a future of harmony, solidarity and hope."

    The White House welcomed the decision in a statement, saying Napolitano's continued leadership "will ensure that we move forward together in facing the challenges of our times." Secretary of State John Kerry in a separate statement commended Napolitano for "the admirable sense of duty that compelled him to continue in office in the service of the Italian people."

    While Napolitano's election received a standing ovation from lawmakers and plaudits from abroad, several thousand people protested noisily outside Parliament, disappointed that Italy's old political guard hadn't changed.

    Lawmakers from Parliament's third-largest bloc, the anti-establishment 5 Star Movement led by comic-turned-political agitator Beppe Grillo, galvanized supporters for the protest. Grillo had backed a left-leaning constitutional law expert for president.

    Grillo and his fast-growing movement are bitterly opposed to the incumbent, who in late 2011 appointed Monti and a Cabinet of technocrats to replace an elected premier as the eurozone debt crisis threatened to engulf Italy.

    Hours earlier, Parliament held a fifth ? and yet again unsuccessful ? ballot to choose a head of state. Even as senators, deputies and regional electors put their folded paper ballots into urns in the Chamber of Deputies, leaders ranging from Monti to ex-Premier Silvio Berlusconi, were paying calls on Napolitano at the presidential palace to beg him to consider serving again.

    Napolitano's office said the leaders had made a "fervent appeal to reconsider his oft-given reasons to be unwilling to have a second term."

    Italy's presidents traditionally serve only one term, but there is no prohibition against a second mandate.

    Napolitano could serve part of the term, long enough to encourage agreement over the leader and makeup of the next government and shepherd the electoral reforms.

    Among those beaming and applauding Napolitano's re-election was Berlusconi. The billionaire businessman fell short in a comeback attempt in February elections for a fourth term as premier.

    The conservative leader is eager to have a government that might rein in Italian prosecutors whom he contends sides with the left and is responsible for his judicial woes, including a trial in Milan for allegedly paying an underage teenage woman for sex. Berlusconi has proclaimed his innocence.

    Also lobbying the president was Democratic Party leader Pier Luigi Bersani, whose lawmakers cast blank ballots Saturday morning in a stalling tactic as he struggled to find a candidate supported by a wide consensus.

    The Democratic Party has been imploding under a leadership crisis since disappointing results in parliamentary elections. Bersani's forces control the Chamber of Deputies, but not the Senate. Tapped by Napolitano to see if he could pull together a government before the presidential election, Bersani failed, after refusing an offer by Berlusconi to join their bitterly opposed forces in a reform-focused coalition.

    Bersani's hours as party leader were numbered after the latest humiliation from his own ranks, when party defectors Friday in the secret balloting for president sabotaged his high-profile choice of candidate, former Premier Romano Prodi, an economist who is widely respected at home and abroad.

    A top party official, Enrico Letta, confirmed that Bersani and the rest of Democratic Party leadership, including himself, had resigned after the vote for Napolitano.

    Meanwhile, rallying to the side of citizens feeling neglected by their political class were leaders of Italy's politically influential Catholic church.

    "Too many people are living in misery," Naples Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe said in an appeal for action that he wrote for a local diocesan weekly.

    ___

    AP reporter Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/napolitano-elected-italys-president-163443429.html

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    Justin Bieber-Selena Gomez Photo: Posted! Deleted! Hot!

    Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/04/justin-bieber-selena-gomez-photo-posted-deleted-hot/

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    Sunday, April 21, 2013

    Suspect on Twitter after Boston bombing: 'Stay safe' - U.S. News

    By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer, NBC News

    Two hours after the Boston Marathon bombing, suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev tweeted, ?Ain't no love in the heart of the city, stay safe people? ? and a day later said he was ?stress-free.?

    The Twitter account (handle: @J_tsar), which borrowed heavily from song lyrics by the likes of Eminem and Jay-Z, ?has not been active since Wednesday, when Tsarnaev?retweeted a post by a Muslim scholar: ?Attitude can take away your beauty no matter how good looking you are or it could enhance your beauty, making you adorable.?

    Tsarnaev?s Twitter feed is full of typical teenage banter, pop culture quotes and jokes, but the tweets he made in the days before and after the bombing are now being parsed for extra meaning.

    His ?stay safe? tweet -- which drew from the Jay-Z song title "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)" -- came at 5:34 p.m. on Monday. A few hours later, he followed up with: ?There are people that know the truth but stay silent & there are people that speak the truth but we don't hear them cuz they're the minority.?

    On Monday and Tuesday he replied to tweets from other accounts that were protected, so it was unclear what was being discussed.

    But Tsarnaev?did make one direct reference to the marathon tragedy, replying to a tweet of a widely-circulated photo that showed a bombing victim on the ground, her boyfriend crouched over her.

    ?Fake story? he wrote, without further comment.

    In another Tuesday tweet, he used the lyrics of the Eminem rap "Forgot About Dre" to complain: ?Nowadays everybody wanna talk like they got somethin to say but nothin comes out when they move their lips; just a bunch of gibberish?

    A few hours later came this declaration: ?I'm a stress free kind of guy.?

    The final post came on Wednesday, when he retweeted Mufti Ismail Menk, who describes himself a Muslim scholar who studied in Saudi Arabia but who appeared to be based in Zimbabwe.

    Related:

    ?

    ?

    Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/19/17827894-suspect-on-twitter-after-boston-bombing-stay-safe

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    Waiting Game :( Ombudsman vs. Insurance Carrier - Workers ...


    I don't think therer is anyone regulating or policing the adjuster. The adjusters usually take their sweet time on things like this.

    Even if the law says the adjuster or carrier has "x" days to make a decision, unless you have some way of enforcing that law, it simply does not matter.

    Source: http://www.workerscompensationinsurance.com/forum/showthread.php?49622-Waiting-Game-(-Ombudsman-vs-Insurance-Carrier

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    Newlyweds injured in Boston bombings receive outpouring of support

    Patrick and Jessica Downes (photo via GiveForward)Patrick and Jessica Downes (photo via GiveForward)

    Patrick and Jessica Downes were two of the people to suffer severe injuries at the Boston Marathon on Monday. The newlyweds, who were married last August, each lost a leg below the knee in the explosions.

    In the aftermath, friends and relatives set up a GiveForward site for people to donate money to help with the couple's rehabilitation and medical expenses. In just a few days, over $430,000 has been donated. Also pouring in: messages of support from both friends and strangers.

    One anonymous well-wisher posted the following:

    Dear Patrick and Jess, My daughter graduated from BC in 2004. The beautiful picture of you two reminds me of her and her husband. My heart breaks for you and all the others affected by this tragedy, but your faith and love for each other will sustain you and make you stronger than ever. Please know that there are countless people who are thinking of you and sending healing thoughts your way. Sincerely, A California BC mom

    The couple's GiveForward site received so many hits that it crashed on Thursday, according to NBC News. Jessica, a nurse at Massachusetts General, is described as funny, selfless and introspective. Patrick is a Boston native who, according to the GiveForward page, cried tears of joy when the Red Sox won the World Series in 2004. He was nicknamed "Jesus" in high school "for his goodness," according to the site.

    "She has the spirit of a lion, and combined with Patrick's good (the most good!) heart and interminable support for his wife," the site says, "I have no doubt in my mind that they will persevere through this horrific time and will soon enough lead happy, normal, fulfilling lives."

    The families of Jessica and Patrick posted an update thanking all those who have already donated:

    Friends-

    Your support in just 24 hours is overwhelming, there are no words to describe what your outpouring of kindness and generosity means to our family as Patrick and Jess start their long road to recovery.

    At this point, we do not know what all the costs associated with Patrick and Jess's full recovery will be (between prosthetics and home modifications, etc.), but we want them to have enough to not worry about the financial implications of what has happened. We've increased the fundraising goal and if we raise more money than Patrick and Jess need, we have no doubt that they will be conscious of the other people affected by all of this.

    For many of us, Monday's events shook our faith in humanity. But a quick look at the outpouring of support from friends and strangers -- both in the immediate aftermath and now here on this site -- restores it.

    Thank you,

    The Downes and Kensky Family

    Watch the most recent video on the manhunt related to the Boston Bombings:

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/newlyweds-injured-bombing-receive-outpouring-support-202013823.html

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    Saturday, April 20, 2013

    VIDEO: Our CBS Sports Network analysts give their picks for which NFL rookie wil...

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

    Source: http://www.facebook.com/cbssportsnetwork/posts/10151304936252574

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    Mobile Accelerator Tandem Doubles Partner Team With Rohit ...

    Doug Renert told me yesterday that his firm Tandem, which backs early-stage mobile startups, is about to expand in a big way. The first step is bringing in more people, starting with two new partners that Tandem is announcing today ? Rohit Bhagat, formerly chairman of Asia Pacific for investment firm BlackRock, and John Ellis, co-founder and executive vice president of product and technology at ad tech company Turn.

    Tandem is currently investing in three startups a quarter, but Renert said he?s hoping to do much more. At the same time, he doesn?t want to change the firm?s hands-on approach. He describes it as an accelerator with ?muscle capital.? Like other startup incubators, it mentors batches of startups and offers them office space. However, it makes a bigger investment than most ? $200,000 to start, and follow-on investments if the company is successful.

    Bhagat has experience scaling companies globally, Renert said, so he not only helps Tandem?s startups grow, but also does the same for the accelerator itself. Meanwhile, Ellis? technical background means that he can help companies with product and infrastructure. Together, they effectively double the Tandem team, which until now consisted of Renert and Sunil Bhargava.

    I asked Bhagat over email why he?s jumping from a giant firm to a (relatively) tiny one, and he responded:

    I moved to Tandem because it is ideally positioned at the confluence of the rising tides of mobile, social media and cloud computing. Relative to large firms, I felt confident that Tandem?s model of ?hands on? seed stage investing would spur more disruptive innovation, create stronger investment returns, and allow me to work more directly with smart people working on truly ground-breaking ideas.

    There will be more expansion news in the near future, Renert said. And yes, that will probably include more funding (Tandem announced a $32 million fund last year), although he said it?s too early to talk about specifics.

    As for the companies that he wants to invest in, Renert said Tandem?s strategy is to target startups before they would normally raise money ? when they?ve built a product but don?t yet have traction. He said many of the current opportunities lie in emerging markets ? not just copying successful American products, but figuring out what makes them work and how to transfer that to other geographies.

    Renert actually wrote a guest post for us in February outlining the areas in mobile that he thinks have become too crowded (location-based social networking, photosharing, workplace collaboration), are still too nascent for successful companies (in-car apps and services, mobile wallets, integrated TV apps), and are just right for launching now (everyday apps, mobile developer platforms, rich messaging/SMS marketing).

    ?At the same time, we want to make sure that we?re not just trying to build companies around our ideas,? Renert said. ?We?re very open to entrepreneurs? ideas. We want to back their ideas.?

    Tandem is also announcing the three latest startups that it?s backing:

    Tile?? Tandem?s first hardware company, which helps users find and track lost items

    Swoopt?? mobile fantasy sports tournaments

    HomeTapper?? real estate browsing for tablets

    The deadline to apply for Tandem?s next class is May 1.


    Tandem is made up of a few entrepreneurs who have founded companies and taken them to liquidity. They now invest their time and money in others??? early stage software and Internet startups through Tandem. The Tandem team does not consider itself a VC firm. They refer to three primary types of capital that are required to make a startup successful ??? Financial Capital (money), Human Capital (sweat) and Social Capital (friends). Tandem explains that VCs bring mainly financial capital, some...

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    Source: http://techcrunch.com/2013/04/19/tandem-new-partners/

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