Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has unveiled plans for a new airport near Cusco which he says will boost tourism to the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu and the surrounding region.
The current airport, which is only able to handle limited daytime flights, was not sufficient, Ollanta Humala said.
The government will invest $460 million in the project, he said.
Machu Picchu is Peru’s top tourist attraction but there are concerns over the impact of high visitor numbers.
Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has unveiled plans for a new airport near Cusco which he says will boost tourism to the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu and the surrounding region
“This new airport will not only mean more tourists will be able to come, but it will generate more jobs… and help surrounding communities,” President Ollanta Humala said.
At a ceremony on Wednesday, he enacted a law that allows the expropriation of land in the town of Chinchero where the new international airport would be built.
The investment would help the government to tackle poverty, he said, “while always respecting ancient culture”.
Tourism is the main source of income in the region.
Machu Picchu is a world heritage site and the UN’s cultural agency, UNESCO, has previously warned about uncontrolled access and urged the authorities to make conservation a priority.
Currently, entrance to Machu Picchu is limited to some 2,500 visitors a day, amid concerns about the impact on the environment and citadel.
Cusco is the main starting point for visitors wishing to visit the site, who can make the 112 km (70 mile) journey either on foot or via bus and train.
The citadel of Machu Picchu, located 2,500 m (8,200 ft) above sea level, was built in the 15th Century by the Incas.
It was rediscovered in 1911 by US historian Hiram Bingham.
Three members of the Jordanian Paralympian squad facing sex charges have been pulled out of this year’s Paralympic Games.
Faisal Hammash, Omar Sami Qaradhi and Motaz Al-Junadi are charged with sex offences in Antrim.
LOCOG said they had been told by the Jordanian National Paralympic Committee that they would not be entering the athletes into the games.
They said the athletes had returned to Jordan.
On Wednesday, a court in Coleraine, County Londonderry, heard that The King of Jordan has taken a personal interest in the case.
A Jordanian embassy official offered bail sureties at the hearing.
Bail of £500 ($793) was granted with a surety of £5,000 ($7,937) from the Jordanian government for each defendant.
Faisal Hammash, Omar Sami Qaradhi and Motaz Al-Junadi are charged with sex offences in Antrim
The case had been adjourned while the judge considered the bail applications.
The squad is one of several international teams using the Antrim Forum sports complex as a training base in advance of the Games which begin in London next week.
The three men, two of whom compete in wheelchairs, are all members of the Jordanian Paralympics power-lifting team.
Faisal Hammash, 35, faces two counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.
Omar Sami Qaradhi, 31, is charged with three counts of sexual assault and one of voyeurism. At least two of the assaults were against children.
Motaz Al-Junadi, 45, faces one charge of sexual assault. All the offences took place between 16 and 20 August.
King Abdullah’s interest in the case was reported by one of his government officials who promised to return the accused men to Coleraine Court following the games if bail was granted.
The Jordanian Embassy in London released a statement saying it regretted the incidents that had led to the charges of the three members of the paralympic team.
“In line with its duties towards its citizens, the embassy provided direct consular support to the three members of the team charged with the offences,” it said.
“A senior diplomat from the embassy attended the hearings this morning at the Magistrates Court in Antrim, and posted bail for the three sportsmen pending their reappearance in Belfast for their trial in October.
“The embassy wishes to further express its appreciation to the courts for promptly appointing a defence lawyer for the three men and facilitating its Consular services to its citizens.
“The embassy in London wishes to reassure the courts of its continued cooperation and maintains utmost respect for the due process of the law.”
Japanese researchers have discovered that lar gibbons use the same techniques as human soprano singers to make their melodic but piercing calls.
When the apes made calls while in an atmosphere rich in helium, the team analyzed the calls’ frequencies.
As the team report, the apes were able to control the natural frequencies of their “vocal tracts”.
Such control, exemplified by sopranos, was thought to be unique to humans.
Humans share a great deal of the biological equipment of sound production with apes. That includes first of all the “source” – the vocal folds that humans and many animals share.
There is also the “vocal tract” – the oesophagus and trachea and the mouth, which are well known in humans to shape sung notes and subtle vowel sounds.
Japanese researchers have discovered that lar gibbons use the same techniques as human soprano singers to make their melodic but piercing calls
In humans the vocal tract acts as a filter on the sound from the source, and the “source-filter theory” held that the separate, fine control of the vocal tract to be the product of a long evolution in the development of the subtleties of speech.
Singing too has evolved, and soprano singers reach their piercing high notes by precisely controlling the shape of their vocal tract to match its natural, resonant frequency with multiples of the one being produced by their vocal folds.
Now Takeshi Nishimura of Kyoto University’s Primate Research Institute and his colleagues have tested whether lar gibbons (also known as white-handed gibbons, Hylobates lar) have this same separate control – by using helium.
As anyone who has breathed helium knows, its presence raises the pitch of the voice. It increases the natural resonant frequency in the vocal tract because the speed of sound in helium is very different from that in air.
That shift allowed the team to record calls in helium and examine separately the sounds of gibbons’ “pure-tone” vocalizations from the vocal folds as well as how they were modified in the vocal tract.
Detailed analyses of the frequencies produced showed that the gibbons modified their vocal tracts to match multiples of the vocal folds’ frequencies – just like soprano singers.
Dr. Takeshi Nishimura said the findings were significant – not only that the “source-filter theory” was not the preserve of human physiology, but also that the gibbons had mastered techniques that in humans were only found in professional singers.
He explained that it upended a long history of research suggesting the control humans enjoy is the product of a long line of physiological and anatomical changes under the influence of evolution.
“The present study challenges that concept and throws new insight into the studies on biological foundations producing the diversifications in primate vocalizations, including human speech,” he said.
“It is hoped that this study will encourage researchers in various research fields to conduct further investigations of primate vocalizations and that such empirical evidence will lead to a deeper understanding of the evolution of speech and language.”
The UK has decided to join the US in warning Syria that the use or threat of chemical weapons would force them “to revisit their approach”.
The warning came after a telephone call between Prime Minister David Cameron and US President Barack Obama.
David Cameron also spoke to French President Francois Hollande. The three discussed building support for the opposition.
Earlier, Chinese state media accused Barack Obama of using the chemical arms issue as an excuse for military intervention.
Also on Wednesday, fierce fighting raged in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo and in Damascus, which residents said had witnessed the heaviest attack by government forces since the army re-asserted its control of the capital last month.
A Downing Street spokesman said the “appalling situation that continues in Syria” was the main focus of David Cameron’s conversations with Francois Hollande and Barack Obama.
The UK has decided to join the US in warning Syria that the use or threat of chemical weapons would force them "to revisit their approach"
David Cameron and Barack Obama both agreed “that the use – or threat – of chemical weapons was completely unacceptable and would force them to revisit their approach so far”, said the spokesman.
The comments echoed those by Barack Obama earlier in the week, when he said he would change his thinking on intervention if Syria used chemical weapons.
The two leaders, along with Francois Hollande, discussed “how to build on the support already given to the opposition” and “help a potential transitional Syrian government after the inevitable fall of [President Bashar al-] Assad”.
Barack Obama and David Cameron called for a “credible opposition” that would “show real unity of purpose and coherence in working towards transition”.
The three leaders also discussed the plight of Syrian refugees.
The spokesman said: “The prime minister emphasized the need to work with the UN and… that more should be done by the international community to channel humanitarian aid through the UN appeal.”
Earlier, the Chinese state news agency Xinhua accused Western powers of “digging deep for excuses to intervene militarily”.
In its commentary, Xinhua criticized Barack Obama’s earlier remarks as “dangerously irresponsible” and said they would aggravate the conflict, reducing the chances of a political settlement.
China insists a ceasefire and UN-led mediation remain the best ways to end Syria’s woes.
China and Russia have both blocked attempts to impose UN sanctions on Syria.
A Russian foreign ministry source told the Kommersant newspaper on Wednesday that Moscow believed Syria had no intention of using its chemical weapons and was able to safeguard them.
Fierce fighting continued across Syria on Wednesday.
An aerial bombardment preceded an assault by tanks on several areas of Damascus.
Activists said at least 37 people had been killed in the capital, in the areas of Kafar Soussa and Nahr Eishah.
A journalist working for the state-run Tishreen newspaper, Mosaab al-Odallah, was killed by the military during house-to-house searches in Nahr Eishah, activists and friends said.
Mosaab al-Odallah was said to be sympathetic to the opposition.
Reuters reporters said they had heard shells and gunfire every minute in the northern city of Aleppo.
Elsewhere, rebels and troops fought for control of a military base and airfield near the eastern town of Albu Kamal.
Activists said at least three people were killed in a helicopter bombardment of Qastoun, in Hama province.
Shelling was also reported in Deraa, and heavy fighting was reported in Deir Ezzor in the east.
The opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 115 people, including 71 civilians, were killed across the country on Wednesday.
The figures cannot be independently verified.
Opposition activists say more than 20,000 people – mostly civilians – have died since the uprising against Bashar al-Assad began last year.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande are set to hold talks in Berlin on whether to give Greece more time to make the cuts required by its debt bailout.
Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande will also meet Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras later this week.
Meeting Antonis Samaras yesterday, eurozone chief Jean-Claude Juncker kept the door open for a change to the bailout terms.
Heavily-indebted Greece is in its fifth year of recession and austerity.
Greece is currently trying to finalize a package of 11.5 billion euros ($14.4 billion) of spending cuts over the next two years.
It is also being asked to put in place economic and structural reforms, including changes to the labor market and a renewed privatization drive.
The measures are needed to qualify for the next 33.5 billion-euro installment of its second 130bn-euro bailout.
Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande are set to hold talks in Berlin on whether to give Greece more time to make the cuts required by its debt bailout
The “troika” of donor bodies monitoring the bailout – the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission – are due in Athens next month to report on whether Greece has made enough progress.
Greece needs the funds to make repayments on its debt burden. A default could result in the country leaving the euro.
Antonis Samaras is seeking an extension of up to two years for the painful steps, in order to provide Greece with the growth needed to improve its public finances.
In an interview published on Wednesday, he told Germany’s biggest daily, Bild, that his country needed “a little breathing space” in order to kick-start growth and reduce its deficit.
After meeting Antonis Samaras on Wednesday, Eurogroup head Jean-Claude Juncker said a decision on an extension would depend on the troika’s report.
“We have to discuss the length of the period and other dimensions,” Jean-Claude Juncker told a news conference, while sitting alongside Antonis Samaras.
He said Greece was facing its “last chance” to make the necessary changes, but praised the “tremendous efforts” it has made so far to cut its deficit. He also stressed he was “totally opposed” to Greece leaving the euro.
Antonis Samaras called the discussions “fruitful”.
At least publicly, many EU leaders remain resolutely opposed to any moves to change the terms of Greece’s bailout.
But Jean-Claude Juncker’s remarks suggest there is room for manoeuvre and that an extension has not been ruled out.
Angel Merkel has said that she and Antonis Samaras will not make any decisions on the issue in their talks on Friday. Antonis Samaras goes on to meet Francois Hollande on Saturday.
On Wednesday, Francois Hollande also discussed Greece with British Prime Minister David Cameron in a telephone call.
“Both welcomed the recent actions of the ECB and agreed that this did not negate the need for Greece to stabilize their own economy and prevent any further detrimental effects to the wider eurozone,” David Cameron’s office said in a statement, without specifying which ECB actions they were referring to.
The talks come amid reports that due to the worsening state of the economy, which affects tax receipts and welfare spending levels, Greece may now need to find savings of up to 13.5 billion euros – 2 billion more than thought.
A new genetic study in Iceland has added to evidence that the increase in some mental disorders may be due to men having children later in life.
An Icelandic company found the number of genetic mutations in children was directly related to the age of their father when they were conceived.
One prominent researcher suggested young men should consider freezing their sperm if they wanted to have a family in later life.
The research is published in Nature.
According to Dr. Kari Stefansson, of Decode Genetics, who led the research, the results show it is the age of men, rather than women, that is likely to have an effect on the health of the child.
“Society has been very focused on the age of the mother. But apart from [Down’s Syndrome] it seems that disorders such as schizophrenia and autism are influenced by the age of the father and not the mother.”
The increase in some mental disorders may be due to men having children later in life
Dr. Kari Stefansson’s team sequenced the DNA of 78 parents and their children.
This revealed a direct correlation between the number of mutations or slight alterations to the DNA, of the child and the age of their father.
The results indicate that a father aged 20 passes, on average, approximately 25 mutations, while a 40-year-old father passes on about 65. The study suggests that for every year a man delays fatherhood, they risk passing two more mutations on to their child.
What this means in terms of the impact on the health of the child is unclear. But it does back studies that also show fathers are responsible for mutations and that these mutations increase with age.
And, for the first time, these results have been quantified and they show that 97% of all mutations passed on to children are from older fathers.
“No other factor is involved which for those of us working in the field is very surprising,” said Dr Stefansson.
He added that the work backed other studies that have found links between older fathers and some mental disorders.
“The average age of fathers has been steeply rising [in industrialized countries] since 1970. Over the same period there has been an increase in autism and it is very likely that part of that rise is accounted for by the increasing age of the father,” he said.
The findings should not alarm older fathers. The occurrence of many of these disorders in the population is very low and so the possible doubling in risk by having a child later in life will still be a very low risk.
Nearly all children born to older fathers will be healthy. But across the population the number of children born with disorders is likely to increase if this theory holds true.
Older fathers and therefore genetic mutations have been linked with neurological conditions because the brain depends on more genes for its development and regulation.
So mutations in genes are more likely to show up as problems in the brain than in any other organ. But it is unclear whether the age of fathers has an effect on any other organ or system. The research has not yet been done.
The reason that men rather than women drive the mutation rate is that women are born with all their eggs whereas men produce new sperm throughout their adult life. It is during sperm production that genetic errors creep in, especially as men get older.
Writing a commentary in the Journal Nature, Prof. Alexey Kondrashov, of University of Michigan, said young men might wish to consider freezing their sperm if future studies showed there were other negative effects on a child’s health.
“Collecting the sperm of young adult men and cold storing it for later use could be a wise individual decision. It might also be a valuable for public health, as such action could reduce the deterioration of the gene pool of human populations,” he said.
Dr. Kari Stefansson, however, said that from a long-term perspective the decision by some men to have children later in life might well be speeding up the evolution of our species.
“The high rate of mutations is dangerous for the next generation but is generating diversity from which nature can select and further refine this product we call man,” he said.
“So what is bad for the next generation may be good for our species in general.”
Peninsula Félsziget Festival 2012, Romania’s largest festival, is held in the city of Targu Mures between August 23rd and August 26th.
The unique blend of international stars, local flavors, a beach and non-stop fun makes it the ultimate festival experience, but its greatest asset is and always have been the festivalgoers, because they are the ones that make this event an island of freedom, fun and friendships.
In previous years the festival, now at its 10th edition, has brought to Romania international acts like Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, Korn, Iggy and the Stooges, Kasabian, Tiesto, Guano Apes, Tricky, Dub FX, Chase and Status, Andy C, Ska-P, Apocalyptica, Nero and The Rasmus, just to name a few. After having 73,000 visitors in 2011, Peninsula is back in 2012 with a fabulous line-up on four stages.
Between August the 23th-26th, Tinie Tempah, The Straits (Dire Straits’ former members with the band’s greatest hits), Children of Bodom, ATB, Netsky, Sister Bliss (Faithless DJ Set), Timo Maas, New Model Army, Babylon Circus, Rotfront, N.O.H.A., Dirtyphonics, Emalkay, Josh Gallahan, Ákos, Zdob si Zdub and dozens of international, Romanian and Hungarian acts are waiting for you in the beautiful city of Targu Mures for four days of wild concerts and crazy parties at the riverbank of Mures.
Peninsula Félsziget Festival 2012, Romania's largest festival, is held in the city of Targu Mures between August 23rd and August 26th
23 August: The Straits * Sister Bliss (Faithless Dj Set) * Zdob şi Zdub * Republic * Defender * De la Funk & Tóth Kati * Byron * DJ Bully * D-Laid * Dubase * Delision B2B QRY
24 August: Tinie Tempah * Emalkay * Rotfront * Timo Maas * Vita de vie * Kistehén * Ladánybene 27 * Heaven Street Seven * Balázs Fecó Band * Mystery Gang * Mike Godoroja & Blue Spirit * Travka * Electric Fence * Val LAVILLE * Subotage * Horace Dan D * Detour * Alex Chronic * Booha Allstars (Goranga, Missile, Alex Chronic, Pop Killers) * B2B Session (Just D’Light, Detour, Pop Killers)
25 August: Ákos * New Model Army * Netsky * Vama * N.O.H.A. * Şuie Paparude * Irie Maffia * Facem Records Crew * Alvin és a Mókusok * Besh o droM * Sarmalele Reci * Gojira & Planet H * Karányi * Beatman & Ludmilla * Rehab Nation * Disco Bears * Bread & Butter * Goranga & Missile * Just D’light
26 August: Children of Bodom * ATB * Josh Gallahan * Babylon Circus * Dirtyphonics DJ Set * Subscribe * Compact Disco * colorStar * Firkin * Trooper * Marcian Petrescu & Trenul de Noapte * Shukar Collective * Bárány Attila * DJ Optick * VotSka * Kub Beat * Dj Sauce * Punnany Massif Sound System * Dj Barna
Supermarket bananas could soon be coated with a substance derived from seafood to keep them fresh for longer.
Scientists have created a special film that stops bananas breathing and also kills bacteria found on their surface, which otherwise causes them to over-ripen and rot.
But in a twist that might horrify vegetarians, the superabsorbent covering is made from chitosan, a substance derived from shrimp and crab shells
“We found that by spraying green bananas with a chitosan aerogel we can keep bananas fresh for up to 12 days,” said study leader Dr. Xihong Li from Tianjin University of Science and Technology in China.
Supermarket bananas could soon be coated with a substance derived from seafood to keep them fresh for longer
“Once bananas begin to mature, they quickly become yellow and soft, and then they rot.
“We have developed a way to keep bananas green for a longer time and inhibit the rapid ripening that occurs.
“Such a coating could be used at home by consumers, in supermarkets or during shipment of bananas.”
All fruit and vegetables are alive and breathe through their skin but, unlike other varieties, bananas keep breathing once they are picked and actually release a chemical that allows them to take in more oxygen.
This process of respiration speeds up over time, causing bananas to become mushy.
These conditions allow surface bacteria to thrive, which ultimately makes them rot.
But the scientists showed that covering the bananas with chitosan kept them fresh for longer, by slowing down respiration and killing the bacteria that causes rotting.
Chitosan is also being investigated for use on other fruits and vegetables, and growers hope it will be a low-cost solution to food going to waste.
But first the team need to tinker with the recipe before the product can be rolled out, as one of the current ingredients cannot currently be used commercially.
The research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia.
NASA’s Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars two weeks ago, turned its six wheels briefly on Wednesday to satisfy engineers that its locomotion system was in full working order.
Curiosity is a sophisticated mobile science laboratory.
It has been built to drive at least 20 km across the Martian landscape to investigate whether the planet ever had the conditions necessary for life.
Wednesday’s drive saw the rover roll forward 4.5 m, turn clockwise on the spot, and then reverse up 2.5 m. It took about five minutes to complete the manoeuvre.
NASA’s Curiosity rover turned its six wheels briefly on Wednesday to satisfy engineers that its locomotion system was in full working order
It is now pointing south in the general direction of Mount Sharp, the big mountain at the centre of Mars’ equatorial Gale Crater.
Scientists expect to find rocks at the base of the peak that were laid down billions of years ago in the presence of abundant water.
Curiosity – also known as the Mars Science Laboratory, MSL – will not journey to Mount Sharp immediately, however.
The mission team first wants to visit a piece of ground some 400 m to the east; a location researchers have dubbed Glenelg.
Satellite pictures have shown this place to be an intersection of three distinct types of rock terrain.
Scientists think Glenelg will be a good place to start to characterize the geology of Gale Crater.
On its way to the intersection, Curiosity will “sniff” the atmosphere and analyze the composition of its gases.
It will likely also scoop a soil sample to examine in its onboard laboratories.
Tony Nicklinson, a British man with locked-in syndrome who fought for the right to legally end his life, has died aged 58.
Tony Nicklinson was paralyzed from the neck down after suffering a stroke in 2005 and described his life as a “living nightmare”.
Last week Tony Nicklinson, from Melksham, Wiltshire, lost his High Court case to allow doctors to end his life.
Tony Nicklinson’s family solicitor said that he had refused food from last week.
Lawyers for another man, 47, who lost his High Court case alongside Tony Nickinson, are to appeal against the decision.
They said it denied their client “the opportunity to take the necessary steps to end his own life”.
Tony Nicklinson was paralyzed from the neck down after suffering a stroke in 2005 and described his life as a "living nightmare"
Tony Nicklinson’s family solicitor Saimo Chahal said he died at home at about 10:00 BST accompanied by his wife, Jane, and two daughters, Lauren and Beth.
Saimo Chahal said: “Jane told me that Tony went rapidly downhill over last weekend, having contracted pneumonia.”
She added: “Jane said that, after Tony received the draft judgment on 12 August refusing his claim, the fight seemed to go out of him.
“He said that he was heartbroken by the High Court decision that he could not end his life at a time of his choosing with the help of a new doctor.
“He could not understand how the legal argument on his behalf could not succeed.”
She said Tony Nicklinson had told her two days after the ruling he was “crestfallen, totally devastated and very frightened”.
Tony Nicklinson had added: “I fear for the future and the misery it is bound to bring.
“I suppose it was wrong of me to invest so much hope and expectation into the judgment but I really believed in the veracity of the argument and quite simply could not understand how anybody could disagree with the logic.
“I guess I forgot the emotional component.”
Saimo Chahal said Tony Nicklinson had made an advanced directive in 2004 refusing any life-sustaining treatment.
His family had earlier updated his personal Twitter account.
The messages said: “You may already know, my Dad died peacefully this morning of natural causes. He was 58.
“Before he died, he asked us to tweet: <<Goodbye world the time has come, I had some fun>>.”
Gezz Higgins, a friend and former rugby club team-mate in Kent, said before his stroke he was a “happy-go-lucky” man.
“He was an exceptionally good and sociable guy,” he said.
“The sort of fella who, when he walked into a room, you knew things would liven up a bit.”
Wiltshire Police said the force was not investigating Tony Nicklinson’s death.
Tony Nicklinson had been paralyzed since suffering a stroke while on a business trip to Athens.
He had campaigned for the law to be changed to allow doctors to assist his suicide without fear of prosecution.
Prior to last week’s case, he had described his life as “a living nightmare”.
Tony Nicklinson said: “What I find impossible to live with is the knowledge that… I have no way out – suicide – when this life gets too much to bear.”
He added: “It cannot be acceptable in 21st Century Britain that I am denied the right to take my own life just because I am physically handicapped.”
However, three High Court judges rejected his plea for the law to be changed, saying the issue should be left to Parliament.
Tony Nicklinson said he would appeal against the decision but his lawyer said this would not end unless “someone steps forward in similar circumstances to pursue the action”.
Professor Penney Lewis, professor of law at the Centre of Medical Law and Ethics at King’s College London, said that Tony Nicklinson’s plight would continue to raise questions about a change in the law.
LG Electronics has released what is described as the world’s biggest ultra-definition (UD) TV.
LG UD TV sports an 84 in (213 cm) screen, smaller than a 90 in model made by Sharp, but LG boasts support for 4K, a more advanced picture format.
The screen offers 8 million pixels per frame, four times the resolution of 1080p high-definition displays.
The firm sees this technology as a key marketing tool to help challenge market leader Samsung.
LG Electronics has released what is described as the world's biggest ultra-definition (UD) TV
Toshiba already offers a smaller 55 in 4K screen, and Panasonic a 20 in model. Sony and Samsung are also developing their own devices.
However, LG’s 25 million-won ($22,010) price tag is likely to dissuade many from investing in its technology at present.
“The 4K display market is still in its infancy but it was important for LG to claim a stake in this space,” said the chief executive of LG Electronics Home Entertainment, Havis Kwon.
The South Korean company is the second-largest seller of flatscreen television screens, and is known to compete with its domestic rival, Samsung, for bragging rights.
Earlier this year it sought to upstage its rival by showing off the world’s largest OLED (organic light-emitting diode) at the Consumer Electronics Show trade show in Las Vegas. But when Samsung heard about the news it shipped an identically sized model to the event.
One analyst said that sales of the latest release were likely to be limited, but it provided an indication of where the industry was pointed.
“4K is a technology that is an evolutionary step that – maybe a long way down the line – will be the successor to today’s HD televisions,” said Daniel Simmons from IHS Screen Digest.
“It’s a step up in image quality, offering the opportunity to have cinema-quality resolution in the home and is a noticeable improvement.
“But it is worth recognizing that many people only upgraded their televisions from CRT [cathode ray tube] models in order to have a larger flatscreen model – the high-definition feature was not the primary motivator.
“4K allows people to have even bigger screens in their homes and it may be the screen size, rather than the resolution itself, that makes it attractive.”
LG’s 84 in model has initially been released in South Korea ahead of its launch elsewhere in the world in September. It will also show off the device at the IFA tech trade show in Berlin at the end of August.
At least 48 people have been killed in ethnic clashes in Coast Province, south-eastern Kenya, police say.
The clashes in Tana River district, Coast Province, took place late on Tuesday between the Orma and Pokomo groups, the region’s police chief said.
Most of the dead were women and children, many of whom were hacked to death with machetes, he said.
The clash is the worst single incident since violence rocked the country after disputed polls four years ago.
The clashes in Tana River district, Coast Province, took place late on Tuesday between the Orma and Pokomo groups
Regional deputy police chief Joseph Kitur told AFP news agency that those killed were either hacked to death or burned alive when their huts were set alight.
The attack is believed to have escalated from a dispute over grazing rights for cattle.
The victims included 31 women, 11 children and six men, Joseph Kitur said. It is unclear whether any of the perpetrators have been arrested.
Joseph Kitur said that, according to investigations, the attack had been carried out by the Pokomo on the Orma.
Danson Mungatana, the lawmaker for the area, said the killings were the latest in a string of attacks and cattle raids and had been taken in retaliation for a previous incident.
“There have been problems simmering for a while,” he told AFP.
Violence between the two communities is often reported, but not on such a huge scale.
There is long-standing enmity between the communities, who get caught up in a cycle of revenge killings over the theft of cattle and grazing and water rights.
In 2001, a series of clashes between the Orma and Pokomo left at least 130 dead in the same region.
The semi-arid region is one of the poorest in Kenya, with very little infrastructure or industry.
The government recently created a ministry to promote development in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid areas, but there has been little improvement in peoples’ lives, our reporter adds.
The violence comes as Kenya prepares for elections early next year. More than a 1,200 people were killed and 600,000 displaced in the months following the last election in 2007.
Bobbi Kristina Brown and her brother-turned-boyfriend Nick Gordon have once again been inked.
The couple showed off their new body art in a series of new Twitter pictures.
Cuddling up on the bed together, Bobbi Kristina Brown, dressed in a revealing blue lace crop top and grey tracksuit bottoms, displayed a music note design on the side of her stomach.
Nick Gordon, 22, meanwhile, has revealed a lion design on his right bicep.
Bobbi Kristina Brown and her brother-turned-boyfriend Nick Gordon have once again been inked
The pair, who lived together as brother and sister for more than a decade before their mother’s death, is seen looking extremely intimate in the snaps.
With their arms wrapped around one another, they appeared to be posing on the bed.
The new images come as Nick Gordon’s grandmother has said that she approves of the pair’s controversial romance and insisted that Bobbi Kristina Brown is doing well following her mother’s death.
“Bobbi Kristina is on the right path,” Maxine Gordon told website Celebuzz.
“If it wasn’t for my grandson, I think it would have been a different outcome for her.”
“They are doing fine together as a couple,” she added.
“It was very difficult for Nick after Whitney’s death because he was one of the people who saw her in the hotel bathroom.”
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, and Nick Gordon lived together as brother and sister for more than a decade before their mother’s death.
Whitney Houston took Nick Gordon into her home at the age of 12 when his father went to prison and his mother was unable to take care of him.
Nick Gordon was the singing superstar’s unofficially adopted son, and she treated him like family up until her death at the age of 48 due to an accidental drowning complicated by heart disease and cocaine use.
Whitney Houston, a prestigious six-time Grammy award winning singer, was found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel room on February 11, 2012.
Two German tourists and two Kenyan pilots have been killed in a plane crash in Maasai Mara national park, Kenyan police said.
The aircraft was carrying 11 passengers, including five Germans, four Americans and two Czechs, the AFP news agency said.
Three other passengers were seriously injured, police said.
Two German tourists and two Kenyan pilots have been killed in a plane crash in Maasai Mara national park
Propeller planes are often used to take tourists to the Maasai Mara, one of Africa’s most popular attractions.
The plane, a light aircraft owned by Mombasa air, and was preparing to land at the Ngerede Airstrip near the Mara Safari Club, according to the Daily Nation newspaper.
A team from the Flying Doctors Service had been sent to the site, the AFP news agency said.
An elderly parishioner has stunned Spanish cultural officials with an alarming and unauthorized attempt to restore a prized Jesus Christ fresco.
Ecce Homo (Behold the Man) by Elias Garcia Martinez has held pride of place in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza for more than 100 years.
The woman took her brush to it after years of deterioration due to moisture.
Cultural officials said she had the best intentions and hoped it could be properly restored.
The woman, in her 80s, was reportedly upset at the way the fresco had deteriorated and took it on herself to “restore” the image.
Ecce Homo (Behold the Man) by Elias Garcia Martinez has held pride of place in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza for more than 100 years
The delicate brush strokes of Elias Garcia Martinez have been buried under a haphazard splattering of paint.
The once-dignified portrait now resembles a crayon sketch of a very hairy monkey in an ill-fitting tunic.
The woman appears to have realized she was out of her depth and contacted Juan Maria Ojeda, the city councilor in charge of cultural affairs.
Art historians are expected to meet at the church soon to discuss how to proceed.
Juan Maria Ojeda said: “I think she had good intentions. Next week she will meet with a repairer and explain what kind of materials she used.
“If we can’t fix it, we will probably cover the wall with a photo of the painting.”
The fresco is not thought to be very valuable, but has a high sentimental value for local people.
To make matters worse, the local centre that works to preserve artworks had just received a donation from the painter’s granddaughter which they had planned to use to restore the original fresco.
Coolpix S800c, the first mainstream digital camera to be powered by Google’s Android system, has been released by Nikon.
Nikon’s point-and-shoot Coolpix S800c model is being marketed as a “social imaging device”.
Demand for compact cameras has suffered because of the rise of smartphones.
However, Nikon says its latest model offers superior picture quality thanks to the size of its lens, as well as the opportunity to install photo-editing apps and other software.
A statement from Nikon said the combination of the camera’s wi-fi connectivity and new software would make it easier for users to upload their shots to social networks.
Coolpix S800c, the first mainstream digital camera to be powered by Google's Android system, has been released by Nikon
“Just like a smartphone or tablet device, the camera has the opportunity to run camera-specific photo and video applications, yet enables the various benefits of shooting with a camera,” it added.
“The S800c provides access to a vast world of applications for games, productivity and personal communication/email, including Nikon’s photo storage and sharing site.”
The device is being marketed for $350, making it about half the price of top-end Android smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy S3 and the HTC One X – but one analyst said Nikon might struggle to take advantage of the fact.
“The challenge for the camera manufacturers at the lower end is that smartphones have become so capable, so a product like this may just be too late to the market,” said Martin Gill, principal analyst at Forrester Research.
“In most developed countries mobile phones are now ubiquitous and smartphone use is rapidly becoming mainstream as well.
“People carry them wherever they go, so a point-and-shoot camera will only ever be an add-on product they would also have to take with them.”
Statistics from Yahoo’s Flickr photo support the idea that many social-network users are opting for either smartphones or high-end devices.
Its list of the five most popular devices includes two Apple iPhones, two single-lens reflex (SLR) models from Canon, and one SLR from Nikon.
Tech site Engadget reported in March that Samsung was also considering installing an “open” third-party operating system on some of its cameras, but had yet to make a decision.
Google does not charge third-parties to use its software.
However, Microsoft does demand a licence fee for patents it owns, which it says are involved in Android technology.
Neither Microsoft nor Nikon were able to say at this time whether they had struck an agreement.
British children’s author Nina Bawden, who was best known for writing the book Carrie’s War, has died aged 87.
Publisher Virago said Nina Bawden died at her London home on Wednesday morning surrounded by her family.
Published in 1973, Carrie’s War was based on Nina Bawden’s childhood evacuation to Wales during World War II.
The writer of some 50 books, the author was also badly injured in the 2002 Potters Bar train crash, which left her husband dead.
Author Nina Bawden, who was best known for writing the book Carrie's War, has died aged 87
Nina Bawden was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1987 for Circles of Deceit, one of her novels for adult readers, but lost out to Penelope Lively’s Moon Tiger.
Her other novels included The Peppermint Pig, The Birds on the Trees and Granny the Pag.
But it was Carrie’s War for which Nina Bawden became best known, often read in schools.
It was adapted twice for television by the BBC, while a stage production also ran in the West End in 2009.
The book won the 1993 Phoenix Award from the Children’s Literature Association in the US – awarded to the best children’s book published 20 years earlier that did not win a major award.
South Korean researchers have developed a technology that could lead to the creation of glasses-free 3D films at cinemas.
It uses a barrier with slats so that when a viewer looks at the screen each of their eyes sees the image differently.
As a result their brain creates an illusion of depth.
TV makers have tried to use a similar approach, but require viewers to be in a particular spot to see a 3D image.
This would not be possible in a cinema where the audience needs to be able to watch the screen from a wide variety of angles.
The study was carried out at Seoul National University and appears in the journal Optics Express.
South Korean researchers have developed a technology that could lead to the creation of glasses-free 3D films at cinemas
“This new method seems to be a viable one for providing glasses-free 3D environment with front-projection technology – instead of using multiple projectors, it only uses one,” said Prof. John Koshel from the College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona, who edited the study for publication.
He explained that the standard way to create 3D-images on a movie screen was to use stereoscopy: the technique involves projecting two 2D-images through a special filter.
To the naked eye the two offset versions of the footage appear to be superimposed over each other. But if the viewer wears polarized glasses the left lens only lets in one of the images, and the right lens the other, creating a sense of depth.
To go glasses-free TV makers have used a different technique involving what is known as a “parallax barrier”.
This involves placing a barrier in front of the image source which has slats in it similar to those of Venetian blind.
These slats are angled so that light from one set of the TV screen’s pixels shines through and is directed to one of the viewer’s eye, and light from another set is shown to the other eye – with no overlap.
But this only provides a 3D-effect if the watcher is sitting in a specific spot.
Manufacturers have created televisions showing several pairs of images – allowing a single screen to support several family members sitting in specific positions. But they cannot support the dozens – or even hundreds – of people sitting in a cinema at the same time.
The South Korean team mimicked this technique, but adapted it to support a much wider variety of viewing angles.
They did this by creating the slat-effect using polarizers – similar to those used in the lenses of 3D cinema glasses.
Their screen was also covered with a special coating, and this combined with their adapted barrier produced many pairs of images – enough in theory to accommodate a cinema audience.
The lead scientist Byoungho Lee, professor at Seoul National University, said that more research was necessary, but the technology “might constitute a simple, compact, and cost-effective approach to producing widely available 3D cinema, while also eliminating the need for wearing polarizing glasses”.
NASA has reported its first setback in its Curiosity rover mission to Mars.
A sensor on the robot’s weather station that takes wind readings has sustained damage.
The mission team stresses this is not a major problem and will merely degrade some measurements – not prevent them.
It is not certain how the damage occurred but engineers suspect surface stones thrown up during Curiosity’s rocket-powered landing may have struck sensor circuits and broken the wiring.
NASA is describing the news as an isolated “disappointment” in what has otherwise been a spectacular start to the mission.
Javier Gomez-Elvira, the principal investigator on the broken instrumentation – the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) – said he was hopeful of finding a good way to get past the issue.
NASA has reported its first setback in its Curiosity rover mission to Mars
“We are working to recover as much functionality as possible,” he told reporters.
Curiosity – also known as the Mars Science Laboratory, MSL – touched down in the equatorial Gale Crater two weeks ago.
It will operate on Mars for at least two Earth years, looking for evidence that the planet may once have had the conditions suitable to host microbial life.
Engineers are close to completing their programme of post-landing check-outs on Curiosity.
This has involved powering up all of the machine’s instruments, and it was during this testing that the problem was found on REMS.
The weather station is a Spanish contribution to the rover project.
It records air and ground temperature, air pressure and humidity, wind speed and direction, as well the amount of ultraviolet radiation falling on the surface.
These parameters are measured from sensors distributed around the rover, but a number are held on two finger-like mini-booms positioned halfway up the vehicle’s camera mast. This is where the wind sensors are located.
The REMS team first noticed there was something wrong when readings from the side-facing boom were being returned saturated at high and low values.
Further investigation suggested small wires exposed on the sensor circuits were open, probably severed. It is permanent damage.
No-one can say for sure how this happened, but engineers are working on the theory that grit thrown on to the rover by the descent crane’s exhaust plume cut the small wires.
The wind sensor on the forward-facing mini-boom is unaffected. With just the one sensor, it makes it difficult to fully understand wind behavior.
“It degrades our ability to detect wind speed and direction when the wind is blowing from a particular direction, but we think we can work around that,” said Curiosity’s deputy project scientist, Ashwin Vasavada.
All the other REMS measurements look good.
Air temperatures in Gale Crater have been up to about minus 2C in the Martian afternoon, and down to minus 75C in the middle of the Martian night.
In general, the rover is in rude health. On Monday, it wiggled its front and back wheels to check its steering capability.
Commands will now be sent up to initiate the first drive.
“We’re going to drive forward a few metres, turn in place about 90 degrees and then back up,” said mission manager Mike Watkins.
“We should make tracks.”
Another major engineering milestone passed this week has been the unpacking of Curiosity’s robotic arm.
It was flexed to exercise its joints. The arm holds a 30 kg tool turret on its end that includes a drill to take powered samples from rocks.
Natalie Wood’s death certificate has been amended to reflect some of the lingering questions surrounding the star’s death in 1981.
Actress Natalie Wood drowned during a boat trip with her husband, TV star Robert Wagner, and actor Christopher Walken. At the time it was ruled to have been an accident.
But police reopened their inquiry last year after receiving new evidence.
The death certificate now says she died as a result of “drowning and other undetermined factors”.
The amended document, obtained by the Associated Press news agency, also says the circumstances of how she ended up in the water are “not clearly established”. The certificate was altered earlier this month.
Natalie Wood's death certificate has been amended to reflect some of the lingering questions surrounding the star's death in 1981
Chief of detectives William McSweeney said the decision was made by the coroner’s office. He added that detectives still had work to do on the case, but that did not necessarily mean a major development was coming.
“We don’t close these cases,” he said.
“These cases have active periods and more passive periods. We’re moving toward the end of an active period.”
Conflicting versions of what happened on the yacht have contributed to the mystery of how the actress died in November 1981.
Natalie Wood had been partying the night before her death, and the coroner’s investigation ruled she had been drinking and may have slipped trying to board the dinghy.
Resuming the investigation last November, the sheriff’s office said: “Recently sheriff’s homicide investigators were contacted by persons who stated they had additional information about the Natalie Wood Wagner drowning.”
The move came hours after the captain of the boat, Dennis Davern, told NBC News that he lied to police during the initial investigation and that a fight between Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner had led to her death.
In his book Pieces of My Heart, Robert Wagner acknowledged that there had been a fight with Natalie Wood before she had disappeared, but authorities have said Wagner is not a suspect in his wife’s death.
Natalie Wood’s body was found floating in a Catalina Island cove off the coast of California. Police reports said she was found wearing a long nightgown, socks, and a jacket.
The post-mortem report said Natalie Wood had bruises on her body and arms as well as a facial abrasion on her left cheek.
Robert Wagner’s family said they supported the reopening of the inquiry and trusted the detectives would “evaluate whether any new information relating to the death of Natalie Wood Wagner is valid, and that it comes from a credible source or sources other than those simply trying to profit from the 30-year anniversary of her tragic death”.
As a child, Natalie Wood featured in films like Miracle on 34th Street and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.
Natalie Wood was nominated for a best supporting actress Oscar for her role in Rebel Without a Cause, and for best actress for Splendor in the Grass and Love with the Proper Stranger.
Greek Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, has called for more time to implement tough spending cuts and reforms, ahead of talks on its bailout.
Antonis Samaras told German daily Bild that Greece needed “breathing space”.
He will meet Jean-Claude Juncker, the head of the Eurogroup of finance ministers later, and the French and German leaders later this week.
At issue is whether Greece has done enough to receive its next 31.5 billion-euro bailout payment.
Failure to unlock the funds could lead to Greece defaulting on its vast public debt and possibly leaving the euro.
Greek Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, has called for more time to implement tough spending cuts and reforms, ahead of talks on its bailout
Antonis Samaras is under pressure to show Greece can fulfill its commitment of 11.5 billion euros in public spending cuts within two years in order to qualify for the money.
At the talks with Jean-Claude Juncker, he is expected to float the idea of Greece being given a two-year extension to the deadline.
He will argue that Greece has lost time because of elections this year, and that it should be allowed to move more gradually in order to ease the economic pain felt by the Greek people.
“Let me be very explicit: we demand no additional money. We stand by our commitments,” Antonis Samaras told German tabloid Bild in an interview published on Wednesday.
“But we have to kick-start growth in order to cut our deficit. All that we want is a little <<breathing space>> to revive the economy quickly and raise state income.”
However, a government source says Antonis Samaras will not press the issue too hard, fearing it might cause bad blood with the group of lenders that monitors Greece’s bailout.
Yannis Varoufakis, professor of economics at the University of Athens, said Antonis Samaras was “profoundly, deeply and sadly wrong. Greece does not need more breathing space. It is not breathing at all.”
He said the solution Europe had implemented to tackle Greece’s insolvency crisis was a “very silly one” – providing gigantic loans “on condition of austerity measures that would shrink the national income from which that huge loan would have to be repaid”, requiring yet more loans and more austerity.
Antonis Samaras goes on to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday, and French President Francois Hollande on Saturday.
The “troika” – the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) – is expected to report on Greece’s progress next month.
Eurozone leaders have so far resisted any move to soften the bailout conditions.
Especially in Germany, the eurozone’s richest country, the government is under pressure not to make any more concessions.
On Monday, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle insisted Athens must press ahead with the terms already agreed.
The heavily-indebted country has received two massive EU and IMF bailouts – one for 130 billion euros this March and one for 100 billion euros in May 2010 – to allow it to continue payments on its vast public debt and stay in the eurozone.
Cuts in public spending, benefits, pensions and public sector salaries imposed as a result of both loans have led to severe economic hardship, and Greece remains mired in recession.
Matt Damon’s latest role will see him playing Liberace’s gay lover Scott Thorson in an HBO TV movie of the pianist’s life.
Matt Damon stars alongside Michael Douglas, 67, in the title role, and the pair were spotted getting into character on the set of the project, entitled Behind the Candelabra, in Palm Springs on Monday.
Michael Douglas, 67, looked the spitting image of Liberace on the set, sporting a brown wig, lilac shirt and beige trousers as he headed to his trailer in between takes.
The actor’s brown wig was slicked back into a Seventies style which left the veteran actor bearing a striking resemblance to the musician.
Matt Damon and Michael Douglas get into character as gay lovers on set of new Liberace biopic
Scott Thorson was 17 when he first met Liberace in 1976.
Liberace had promised Scott Thorson, who was raised in foster homes, that he would adopt and care for him and eventually the performer incorporated his live-in lover into his lavish Las Vegas stage performances.
The Ave Maria singer was famed for being the world’s highest-paid entertainer at one point, and enjoyed his fortune with an extravagant lifestyle.
But the romance ended due to the pianist’s sexual promiscuity and Scott Thorson’s drug addiction, which led him to contract Hepatitis C.
In 1982, Scott Thorson filed a $113 million lawsuit against Liberace, with the palimony suit being the more famous part. But in 1986, the pair reportedly settled out of court for $95,000, two cars, and two pet dogs.
Scott Thorson reconciled with Liberace on his death bed, and a year later published the book Behind the Candelabra: My Life With Liberace on which the film is based.
Also joining the cast are Dan Aykroyd as Liberace’s long-time manager who disapproved of his relationship with Thorson, Rob Lowe as the plastic surgeon tasked with making Scott Thorson’s face resemble Liberace’s, and Debbie Reynolds will play Liberace’s mother Frances, according to Total Film.
Republican Mitt Romney has called on embattled congressman Todd Akin to withdraw from the race for a Senate seat in Missouri.
Todd Akin has sparked uproar by claiming women’s bodies could prevent pregnancy in cases of “legitimate rape”.
He is defying intense pressure from his own party to leave the race, accusing people of over-reacting.
Correspondents say Republicans fear the backlash could sink their bid to win control of the US Senate in November.
Mitt Romney said on Monday Todd Akin’s remarks were “offensive and wrong”, but he had stopped short of urging him to drop out at that point.
But on Tuesday, Mitt Romney said: “Today, his fellow Missourians urged him to step aside, and I think he should accept their counsel and exit the Senate race.”
Todd Akin has sparked uproar by claiming women's bodies could prevent pregnancy in cases of "legitimate rape"
Senator Roy Blunt and four former senators from Missouri said earlier in a joint statement that Todd Akin’s candidacy did not serve the national interest.
On conservative radio host Mike Huckabee’s show, Todd Akin again refused to quit the race.
He described the response to his comments as a “little bit of an over-reaction”, saying he had mistaken “one word in one sentence on one day”.
“By taking this stand, this is going to strengthen our country,” the sixth-term lawmaker said.
“I hadn’t done anything morally or ethically wrong, as sometimes people in politics do.”
Last week Todd Akin had a comfortable lead in opinion polls over incumbent Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill in the Midwestern state of Missouri, which has leaned increasingly conservative in recent years.
Then on Sunday, he was asked by a local news station if he would support abortions for women who have been raped.
The 65-year-old lawmaker replied: “It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that is really rare.
“If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.”
The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has said Todd Akin’s claim “contradicts basic biological truths”.
But even as top conservatives were lambasting the congressman, the Republican Party was reportedly ratifying a call for a constitutional ban on abortion, without any exception for rape or incest.
The position was to be the subject of a vote at the Republican national convention in Tampa, Florida, next week.
In a new campaign advertisement released early on Tuesday, Todd Akin said: “Rape is an evil act. I used the wrong words in the wrong way, and for that I apologize.”
But the US Senate’s top Republican, Mitch McConnell, said the apology was insufficient.
He said Todd Akin had “made a deeply offensive error at a time when his candidacy carries great consequence for the future of our country”.
The National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee has reportedly told Todd Akin that $5 million in advertising set aside for Missouri would now be spent elsewhere.
The Karl Rove-backed Crossroads organization also pulled its ads from Missouri.
But Sen McCaskill, whose campaign appears reinvigorated by her Republican challenger’s slip-up, wants Todd Akin to stay in the race.
She said Republicans were trying to “kick sand in the face” of their party’s voters in Missouri who selected Todd Akin this month as their candidate.
On Monday evening, CNN television host Piers Morgan labelled Todd Akin a “gutless little twerp” for pulling out of an appearance on his show.
Nike is launching their most expensive shoes ever this fall but put a halt to their famous midnight launches.
At $315 the LeBron X’s will be Nike’s priciest sneakers to date after the Oregon based firm hiked their costs by five to ten percent to reflect increased production costs and a decline in profits.
And on top of the financial demand made to their devotees, Nike will no longer sanction midnight launches for their new line after recent outbreaks of violence at malls and Nike stores amongst those who have camped for days at a time to get their hands on the sneakers first.
Known for their superstar endorsed products such as Air Jordan’s, the new LeBron X’s will come complete with motion sensors to measure exactly how high the wearer jumps.
The sneakers were unveiled by NBA superstar LeBron James during the 2012 gold medal basketball game between the United States and Spain at the London Olympics.
However, Nike have said that they are not pushing up prices in an effort to squeeze consumers.
“We are constantly looking at ways to enhance the product line with the new innovation and product attributes,” said Nike spokesman Mary Remuzzi to the Wall Street Journal.
Nike is launching their most expensive shoes ever LeBron X this fall but put a halt to their famous midnight launches
Some though, have reacted with outrage to the price hike at a time of economic uncertainty in the United States.
“As unemployment ravages the working class, our lower and higher education systems shudder in crisis, and murder decimates our forgotten urban poverty zones, Nike is rolling out it first $300+ sneaker,” said Hamilton Nolan on Gawker.
“But mom, you don’t understand – it’s worth it.”
Indeed, the president of the National Urban League to drop the price for the new sneakers, saying that he has taken “incessant phone calls and emails” from angry consumers who can’t afford the new shows.
Marc Morial, who is president of the civil-rights group and the former mayor of New Orleans, responded to the reports on Tuesday from the Wall Street Journal about the apparent price hike.
“It’s the consumer’s choice after all, but it’s insensitive to market a $300 shoe to kids and teenagers as people are going back to school and struggling to buy school supplies,” said Marc Morial to the Wall Street Journal.
“This is not food, this is not rent, it’s a single pair of sneakers.”
Outrage against the pricing has quickly spread, with members of the public openly wondering why Nike are starting the line at such a high price.
“Prices are getting crazy excessive and as long as we continue to buy sneakers, Nike is going to keep increasing the prices,” said Donell Brown, 30, who owns a cleaning services company in Dearborn, Mich.
“Mr. Brown said he and his friends have been posting messages on Twitter and YouTube, urging other longtime sneaker fans not to buy the pricier LeBron shoes and to forgo waiting in line for new sneaker releases.
“Nike’s price increases are also being felt at the lower end: The venerable Converse Chuck Taylor All-Star sneaker now costs $50 compared with $45 a year ago.”
The LeBron 9 retailed for $170 when it was launched, but the latest shoe endorsed by the Miami Heat superstar is almost twice as much.
However, Nike have responded to the Journal’s story calling the price “inaccurate”, stating that the shoe is available without the motion detector embedded in the sneaker.
“The LeBron X will be launched in the fall at a suggested retail price of $180,” said Brian Strong in a statement to ESPN.
“The initial introduction of the LeBron X will be the red, white and blue Nike+ enabled version and that price is still being set, but will be at a higher price to reflect the Nike+ technology embedded in the shoes.”
At the same time as Nike are facing a backlash for the LeBron X price, they are issuing a memo to all official Nike retailers to no loner pre-sell or take reservations for shoes and to ban midnight openings.
“If a retailer offers Nike products for sale under circumstances where the retailer knows or should know that consumer response is likely to be exceptionally high, it must do so in a prudent and responsible way,” said an official memo seen by the Wall Street Journal.
“Retailers should assess what measure are necessary to secure the store and ensure the safety of personnel and consumers.”
In February, Foot Locker canceled the release of the $220 Nike Air Foamposite shoe when 100 Orlando police in riot gear arrived to break up fights that had started among customers camping out for the 4:00 a.m. release of the sneaker.
This week it has emerged Bobby Brown is “doing well” in rehab, after entering a facility as part of a plea deal following DUI arrest.
Bobby Brown, 43, entered the undisclosed treatment centre last week, with his lawyer admitting he agreed to seek help as part of the agreement made following the March arrest in Los Angeles.
In a statement, attorney Christopher Brown said: “Mr. Brown takes his agreement very seriously and admitted himself three weeks after concluding his honeymoon in Mexico during a break from the New Edition tour.
“Bobby is doing well and receiving services that comply with his agreement with the State of California.”
Bobby Brown is “doing well” in rehab, after entering a facility as part of a plea deal following DUI arrest
His new wife Alicia Etheridge said she and the father-of-five’s offspring, including three-year-old Cassius from their relationship and Bobbi Kristina with late ex-wife Whitney Houston, are “proud” of him for seeking help.
Alicia Etheridge said: “Bobby’s children and loved ones are very proud of him.
“We appreciate his fans prayers and well wishes. Bobby is mentally in a good place.”
However, it seems Bobbi Kristina Brown was not aware of the words being spoken on her behalf.
Asked by TMZ if he is “rising above” his problems, Bobbi Kristina Brown said: “Rise above is not the word you should use. Not at all.”
The pair’s relationship has been unstable for some years now, and deteriorated further following Whitney Houston’s death in February.
Bobbi Kristina Brown even snubbed her father’s wedding in June, instead opting to shoot for her Lifetime reality show, which has been dubbed The Houston Family Chronicles.
