John Brennan, who has worked for the CIA for a quarter of a century, is currently the president’s chief counter-terrorism adviser.
John Brennan, who was considered for the role in 2008, is to be formally nominated later on Monday.
His appointment must be confirmed by the Senate.
Nvidia Project Shield is Android-based and marries a 5 in (12.7 cm) touch-screen with joysticks, buttons and other controls, in a clam-shell design.
It is also designed to link to PCs offering access to more powerful games such as those on the Steam library.
The announcement was a surprise, as the US company has previously focused on selling chips and graphics cards to other manufacturers.
Intel, another chip manufacturer, is also reportedly working on its own device – a television set-top box.
Nvidia’s announcement came at the first major press conference of 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
The company’s chief executive, Jen-Hsun Huang, did not reveal a release date or price for the device, but he did show off a working prototype and outline its specifications.
The console is bigger than an Xbox controller but smaller than the Wii U’s game-pad.
Its screen resolution is 720p, but the machine is capable of playing out games and video in the 4k standard – which offers eight times the detail – on compatible TVs via an HDMI cable.
At its heart is the firm’s new quad-core Tegra 4 chip – which Jen-Hsun Huang described as the fastest mobile processor on the market.
As well as keys representing the standard Android commands, the console also sports a “shield” button that takes users to a curated games store featuring titles selected from the Google Play marketplace. However, it can also be used to run other types of apps – Jen-Hsun Huang gave music players and Facebook as two examples.
Using Wi-Fi it can also be paired with a computer containing one of Nvidia’s GeForce video cards to run PC games. In this case the desktop computer’s processors power the software, offering higher quality graphics than could be rendered by the mobile processor.
Jen-Hsun Huang boasted that “latency was so short it was as if you are connected to the PC” – playing down potential concerns that this kind of set-up might involve a delay between a user pressing a button on the console and the connected PC registering the command.
A demonstration involving titles from Valve’s Steam PC platform appeared to bear this out.
However, to avoid such latency issues, users will only be able to connect the console to a PC on the same home network – although Jen-Hsun Huang said it was an ambition to allow them to go “beyond the house” with future devices.
Nvidia’s move takes advantage of the growing number of games being released for the Android and Windows operating systems without it having to develop its own ecosystem – as is the case with the PlayStation, Wii and Xbox families.
However, it will have to convince consumers that they need a dedicated portable gaming console in addition to their other computing devices.
Earlier this year Sony had to cut sales forecasts for its PlayStation Vita hand-held – analysts linked the news to the growth of gaming on smartphones and tablets.
In addition, one industry watcher suggested Nvidia’s move would prove controversial with hardware makers that currently use its chips.
“It is a bit of a reach for Nvidia as it does not typically involve itself much with the end-user,” said Josh Walrath from the PC Perspective tech site.
“They normally have partners in between. So by doing such a thing you do have to wonder if they’re going to alienate any of their really close partners, and if they have the ability to get consumers to buy into it.”
[youtube CdiOCIVLSds]
[youtube 93L_lo-s5rU]
Le Jardin (The Garden) was taken from the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm during a robbery in the early hours of May 11, 1987.
According to reports at the time, attempts were made to sell it back to the museum for exorbitant sums.
The artwork is to be returned to the Swedish museum in the coming weeks.
The Art Loss Register, (ALR) a database of stolen, missing and looted artwork has been searching the market for the painting for the last 22 years.
A few weeks ago there was a search against its database from a fine art dealer in Essex, Charles Roberts.
He was carrying out due diligence, serving to confirm all material facts in regards to the sale, before handling the Matisse.
Once the match was confirmed, the recovery was handed to ALR director Christopher Marinello, who successfully negotiated the return of the painting.
“Art historians are invaluable on art recovery cases,” said Christopher Marinello.
“The ALR would not have been able to match and recover this painting without the steadfast dedication of ALR staff members, Malavika Baishya, Olivia Tate, and Pauline Geskes.”
Over the past seven years, Christopher Marinello, who is also a lawyer has been responsible for recovering or negotiating settlements in cases involving more than $245 million in stolen and looted artwork.
He said that Lars Nittive, the director of Stockholm’s Museum of Modern Art in 1987, was absolutely correct when he told reporters that the painting was too well known to sell on the open market.
“I commend the museum for not giving in to ransom demands a quarter century ago. Stolen artwork has no real value in the legitimate marketplace and will eventually resurface… it’s just a matter of waiting it out.”
Museum officials congratulated the ALR on the recovery of the work, which is expected to be returned to the museum through the Swedish Ministry of Culture in the coming weeks.
The horror movie, set immediately after the events in Tobe Hooper’s classic 1974 slasher picture, made $23 million in its opening weekend.
It immediately made back its $20 million budget for film company Lionsgate.
Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained held firm at number two, making $20.1 million, while The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey slipped to number three.
Peter Jackson’s return to Middle Earth has so far taken $263.8 million in the US, and about $825 million globally.
Fourth place went to musical adaptation Les Miserables, starring Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway. It has now passed the $100 million mark, the first musical movie to do so in under 14 days.
And fifth position went to Billy Crystal’s big screen comeback Parental Guidance, about an elderly couple left in charge of their grandchildren.
Texas Chainsaw 3D is the seventh film in the horror franchise, featuring an antagonist called Leatherface, who wears a mask made of human skin. The character was reportedly based on serial killer Ed Gein, who also inspired Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.
The original was refused a certificate by the British Board of Film Classification in 1975, which felt its focus on sadistic terror and “abnormal psychology” was unsuitable – although some local councils allowed it to be shown with an X certificate.
It was released on video in 1981, at a time when videos did not have to receive a formal classification, and remained on shelves until the introduction of the Video Recordings Act 1984.
However, the film is now freely available, having been granted at 18 certificate in 1999, and subsequently shown uncut on television.
The audience for the new installment was predominantly under-25, meaning they were too young to have seen the original first time around.
The major draw was said to be singer-songwriter Trey Songz, who stars in the film alongside Alexandra Daddario and Dan Yeager.
Lower down the charts, Matt Damon’s gas-fracking drama Promised Land had a slow start, debuting at number 10 with $4.3 million after opening in limited release a week earlier.
And Kathryn Bigelow’s hotly-tipped CIA drama Zero Dark Thirty continued to dominate specialist cinemas, making $2.75 million from a meager 60 screens.
The latest US box office figures come as it was reported that 2012 was a record year for US cinema.
Total ticket sales for the year reached $10.8 billion, with a 6% rise in admissions – the largest in more than a decade – reported film trade newspaper Variety.
[youtube 75TvtJIbbNY]
Tony Lip, born Frank Anthony Vallelonga, made his film debut as a wedding guest in The Godfather and later appeared in successful gangster titles Goodfellas, Raging Bull and Donnie Brasco.
He was best known for playing the role of mob kingpin Carmine Lupertazzi in several episodes of The Sopranos.
Tony Lip lived in Paramus and died at a hospital in Teaneck, New Jersey.
Family members told The Record of Woodland Park that Tony Lip had been in failing health in recent years.
Before he became an actor, Tony Lip worked during the 1960s at the Copacabana nightclub in New York, where he played host to the stars of the era including Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Bobby Darin and met the sort of gangsters he would later portray.
In 2005 Tony Lip co-wrote and released a cookbook titled Shut Up And Eat!, in which he and Italian-American actors James Gandolfini, Danny Aiello, Chazz Palmintieri shared their families’ favorite Italian recipes.
So what’s the secret to long life in Ikaria?
It could be the fresh air and the friendly, easy-going, open-door lifestyle. It could be fresh vegetables and goat’s milk.
It could be the mountainous terrain. Everywhere on Ikaria is up, or down, so getting around keeps you fit.
It could even be the natural radiation in the granite rocks. But Stamatis Moraitis thinks he knows what it is.
“It’s the wine,” he says, over a mid-morning glass at his kitchen table.
“It’s pure, nothing added. The wine they make commercially has preservatives. That’s no good. But this wine we make ourselves is pure.”
Stamatis Moraitis celebrated his 98th birthday on New Year’s Day. He says he’s older, but his documents put his date of birth as 1 January 1915. Outside his whitewashed house are his beloved olive trees, his fruit trees, and his vines. He makes about 700 litres of wine a year, he says.
The wine, and convivial days spent with friends and family, helped make Stamatis Moraitis a poster-boy for the healing effects of Ikaria. Forty-five years ago, living in the US, he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and given nine months to live.
“At the time it was very expensive to have a funeral there,” he remembers.
“So I said to my wife <<I’m going home to Ikaria to be buried with my parents>>.”
By now he has a twinkle in his eye, and is in full flow. It’s a story he has dined out on many times, and he clearly doesn’t tire of telling it.
“I found my friends in the village where I was born, and we started drinking. I thought, at least I’ll die happy.”
“Every day we got together, we drank wine, and I waited. Time passed by and I felt stronger. Nine months came – I felt good. Eleven months came – I felt better. And now, 45 years later, I’m still here!”
“A few years ago I went back to the US and tried to find my doctors. But I couldn’t find them. They were all dead.”
There are lots of stories like this one on Ikaria. Some may well be just stories, but in recent years scientists and doctors have beaten a path to the island not far off the coast of Turkey to find out the real story.
Ikaria got its name from the Greek myth of Icarus who, legend has it, plunged into the sea close to the island when his wax and feather wings melted. For centuries it was known as a health destination because of natural hot springs on the island.
More recently it has been identified as one of a small number of so-called “blue zones” by the author Dan Buettner and National Geographic, where residents enjoy great longevity. Other places include Okinawa in Japan, Sardinia in Italy, and Loma Linda in California.
The most comprehensive work on Ikaria has been done by the University of Athens, whose researchers studied islanders aged over 65. On average, the 8,000 residents live 10 years longer than most Europeans and in much better health to the end.
There are many significant factors about the islanders’ lifestyle which might contribute to their longevity.
Even compared to a typical Mediterranean diet, Ikarians eat a lot of fish and vegetables, and relatively low levels of meat.
Six out of 10 of people aged over 90 are still physically active, compared with about 20% elsewhere. Most food is cooked in olive oil. Large quantities of wild greens and herbs are gathered from the hillsides for both food and medicinal purposes.
Many older people make a daily brew of mountain tea from dried herbs such as sage, thyme, mint, and chamomile, and sweeten it with honey from local bees.
“It cures everything,” claims Stamatis Moraitis.
Many of the wild herbs are used by people all over the world as traditional remedies. They are rich in antioxidants and also contain diuretics which can lower blood pressure.
The researchers believe other elements of lifestyle are also significant.
Rates of smoking are relatively low, mid-day naps are the norm, the pace of life is slow and people socialize frequently with friends and family, drinking moderate amounts of wine.
Extended families give older people an important role in society. Levels of depression and dementia are low.
Dr. Christina Chrysohoou, a cardiologist from the University of Athens who has studied the islanders, says they suffer the same sorts of diseases like cancer and cardiovascular problems as others elsewhere, but later in life.
“Ikaria gives us an opportunity to study why these people enjoy these beneficial effects. We can’t avoid these diseases, but they manage to preserve the quality of their life for many years. The mean age for cardiovascular disease is about 55 to 60. In Ikaria it comes about 10 years later.”
Future lines of enquiry for the university include geological studies into whether naturally occurring radioactive elements such as radium could have an effect on cancers.
There is also genetic research which compares islanders with Ikarians who have emigrated and therefore live a different lifestyle.
Meeting some of the oldest islanders makes you appreciate their span of time.
The dining table is laden with delicious Ikarian delicacies.
“It’s just a little snack,” insists Voula, wife of 102-year-old George Kassiotis, as he pulled out his identity card showing his date of birth in 1910 and talked about his early life.
On his sideboard are photos of him in the Greek cavalry in 1931. He fought the Italians in Albania during World War II and later helped build the first metal led road on the island before retiring in 1970.
“I don’t eat processed food, I don’t smoke and I don’t get stressed,” says George Kassiotis.
“I’m not worried about death. We know that we all are going to go there.”
The younger generation seems to be keeping traditions going. We ate another meal at the home of Nikos Karoutsos, a hotel owner in his 50s, and witnessed the sight of many friends and family, popping in for a drink and something to eat.
“We don’t have nightclubs or discos,” he says, as people chinked glasses filled with red wine poured from large plastic flagons.
“The door is always open, there’s no need to call and ask to come.”
Meanwhile, the teenage children drifted between the table and the computer in the corner to chat on Facebook.
Stamatis Moraitis:
Other long life spots:
[youtube OqCPFN_3TIM]
[youtube E3oh9wyf36Y]
Speaking in Beijing before flying to Pyongyang, Bill Richardson said the visit was “a private humanitarian mission”.
He said he planned to raise the case of a US citizen detained in North Korea.
Bill Richardson has visited North Korea several times in the past, most recently in December 2010.
On two occasions he helped secure the release of detained US nationals. After his most recent visit he said Pyongyang had agreed to re-open its nuclear facilities to UN inspectors, but this did not transpire.
The detained US national is Korean-American Kenneth Bae, who was arrested in November in circumstances that are not clear. North Korea has in the past released detained Americans after high-profile US visits.
Google, meanwhile, has not commented on Eric Schmidt’s trip.
“This is not a Google trip, but I’m sure he’s interested in some of the economic issues there, the social media aspect. So this is why we are teamed up on this,” Bill Richardson said.
“We’ll meet with North Korean political leaders. We’ll meet with North Korean economic leaders, military. We’ll visit some universities. We don’t control the visit. They will let us know what the schedule is when we get there,” he said.
Internet use is highly restricted in North Korea, where few people have access to a computer and most users can only access a national intranet rather than the world wide web.
The visit comes less than a month after North Korea put a satellite into orbit using a three-stage rocket – a move condemned by the US as a banned test of long-range missile technology.
“We don’t think the timing of this is particularly helpful,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said late last week.
Bill Richardson said the delegation was expecting to be in Pyongyang for two and a half days.
[youtube Kmpu45pT7Hw]
The row was sparked last week when the paper’s New Year message calling for reform was changed by propaganda officials.
Southern Weekly’s staff wrote two letters calling for the provincial propaganda chief to step down. Another row then erupted over control of the paper’s microblog.
Supporters of the paper have gathered outside its office, reports say.
Some of the protesters carried banners that read: “We want press freedom, constitutionalism and democracy.”
Chinese media are supervised by so-called propaganda departments that often change content to align it with party thinking.
Southern Weekly is one of the country’s most respected newspapers, known for its hard-hitting investigations and for testing the limits of freedom of speech.
The row erupted after a New Year message which had called for guaranteed constitutional rights was changed by censors into a piece that praised the Communist Party.
In response, the newspaper’s journalists called for the Guangdong propaganda chief’s resignation, accusing him of being “dictatorial” in an era of “growing openness”.
In two open letters 35 prominent former staff and 50 interns at the paper demanded Tuo Zhen step down, saying the move amounted to “crude” interference.
On Sunday night, a message on the newspaper’s official microblog denied that the editorial was changed because of censorship, saying that the “online rumors were false”.
The microblog updates, said to have been issued by senior editors, sparked the strike among members of the editorial team who disagreed with the move, reports say.
Almost 100 editorial staff members have gone on strike, saying the newspaper is under pressure from authorities.
It is thought that this is the first time that there has been a direct showdown between newspaper staff and party officials.
How the case is handled is seen as a key test for Chinese officials, installed just two months ago in a once-in-a-decade leadership transition, observers say.
[youtube m0fI_cpFaJk]
The case has been temporarily adjourned after chaotic scenes in the courtroom. The judge has ordered a closed hearing.
The case is expected to be transferred to a new fast-track court for trial.
It comes as four Delhi policemen have been suspended over the handling of another suspected rape and murder case.
The father of a 21-year-old woman whose body was found on Saturday has said she was gang-raped.
He said police initially failed to react when he reported her disappearance, suggesting instead that she had gone off with someone.
The case has triggered protests in the Delhi suburb of Noida, where the woman was employed in a factory.
Two men have been arrested and a third suspect is reported to have fled.
The hearing in the case of the five men accused of gang rape and murder has now been adjourned after chaotic scenes in court.
The room was filled with arguing lawyers, police and watching journalists – but there was no sign of the accused, although they were believed to be still in the building.
The magistrate has ordered a closed hearing to be held later on Monday.
The suspects were kept away from cameras as they arrived in a police van.
A sixth suspect, who is 17, will be tried separately in a youth court.
Lawyers have said they will refuse to defend the accused, because of the outcry the crime has provoked.
If convicted, the suspects could face the death penalty. Prosecutors have said they have extensive forensic evidence.
The five accused have been named as Ram Singh, his brother Mukesh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma and Akshay Thakur.
Two of the suspects have offered to give evidence, possibly in return for a lighter sentence, Reuters news agency reports.
The victim and a male friend were attacked on a bus in south Delhi on December 16. She died two weeks later in a hospital in Singapore.
Campaigners are calling for tougher rape laws and reforms to the police, who – critics say – often fail to file charges against accused attackers.
The victim’s father has denied weekend reports in a British newspaper that he wanted his daughter’s name published.
He said that he would have no problem with her name being used on a new law against rape.
[youtube qqBg9RaDUCA]
Amber Rose, 29, is expecting her first child with rapper Wiz Khalifa and her close friends – including singer Christina Milian – made sure it was a baby shower to remember.
The vibe of the party was the color blue and the group enjoyed blue snacks, had blue decorations – and her make-up artist best friend Priscilla Ono even had blue hair.
Known for her outlandish and daring maternity wear Amber Rose didn’t let the side down and wore a stretchy rainbow colored block patterned maxi dress with long sleeves.
Her trademark shorn and bleached hair was as sleek as always and Amber Rose finished it off with red lips, orange nails and a bit of bling.
There was no sign of her 25-year-old fiancé suggesting the shower was a girl’s only affair.
The pair announced her pregnancy at the 2012 MTV Music Awards and later caused controversy by stating that Wiz Khalifa refused to give up smoking once the baby – a boy – was born.
When E! News asked Wiz Khalifa if he was planning to stop smoking, he said: “I think it’s all about how you’re raised with it.
“Before there was a much more negative outtake on it. You know, pot and what it can do, and the effects of it.
“Of course, I’m not going to be smoking right there over the baby, because smoke in general and being high is not good for a kid. None of that.
“But definitely he’s going to know what it is – and he’ll know the difference between being a child and not being able to use it and being an adult and knowing how to use it.”
Amber Rose concurred: “It’s just like alcohol, basically. That’s how I feel about it, you know. When you’re a kid, you know that you’re not supposed to drink alcohol, that it’s for adults and that’s it.”
She added: “Our son is just going to know that daddy likes to smoke.”
Raspberry ketones are fragrant compounds that occur naturally in raspberries and a number of other fruits.
Raspberries are normally used to give a fruity smell to cosmetics and foodstuffs but, because you only get between 1 and 4 milligrams from every kilo of fresh fruit, a synthetic version is often used to get the same result. And now these ketones are being sold online, in supplement form, as a slimming aid.
The key lies in the fact that raspberry ketones appear to boost levels of a hormone called adiponectin, which regulates metabolism. Higher levels of this hormone are associated with fewer fat stores.
Millions of Americans have become convinced of their powers to “melt” away fat after they were recommended by Dr. Mehmet Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
Dr. Mehmet Oz says raspberry ketones are “the number-one miracle in a bottle to burn your fat”.
So do they really work? Ann Ashworth, a spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association, urges caution, pointing out the only published research into the effects of raspberry ketones on weight loss is small studies on mice.
“Although this sounds very exciting, this evidence cannot be transferred to humans without further clinical trials,” she says.
“We need to know if it’s safe, if there are side-effects, or if it interacts with other medicines.”
Consultant nutritionist Helen Bond agrees: “People want a quick fix, especially at this time of the year, but when it comes to weight loss, no supplement can take the place of a healthy diet and exercise.”
“It is not very glamorous but it will save you quite a few pennies along the way and will help you keep the weight off in the long term.”
What Are Raspberry Ketones?
Raspberry ketones are what actually gives a raspberry its smell. Raspberry ketones have been used as a chemical additive in perfumes and cosmetics for quite some time as a fragrance agent. Its official chemical name is 4(-4-Hydroxyphenyl)butan-2-one and more commonly known as Frambinone, Oxyphenylon, Rheosmin and Rasketone. It’s sweet fruity aroma make it an attractive to use in products. Raspberry ketones are really only found in trace amounts in raspberries (less than 0.1%), which makes the natural version of the ketone too costly to use in supplements which means any raspberry ketone that is actually used in a supplement would rarely come from the actual raspberry and more-than-likely come from a product synthesized in the lab.
Synthesized raspberry ketone is really cheap – costing only a few bucks per pound. Ironically, this does not drive the price of the supplement down eventhough a large bottle contains just pennies of actual, pure raspberry ketone. This should raise a red flag as it implies that the supplement companies are raking in a huge profit by creating a cheap clone of the raspberry ketone compound.
Do Raspberry Ketones Work? And Are Raspberry Ketones Safe?
According to the May 2012 issue of The Pharmacist’s Letter, raspberry ketones are purported to help weight loss by increasing lipid metabolism. However, this has been shown in lab animals…not humans! The Pharmacists Letter also goes on to state that safety is also a concern because the higher dosages of raspberry ketones have not even been tested in humans and reports are coming in of palpitations and reduced warfarin effects in patients who were taking raspberry ketone products. The Pharmacists Letter advises all pharmacists to advise patients to steer clear of raspberry ketone supplements.
Raspberry ketones have a chemical structure similar to synephrine (which is a weight-loss drug and used as an alternative to ephedrine – which has been taken off the market due to harmful side effects). According to Wikipedia: “Many diet products such as “Stacker 2″, “Xenadrine-EFX”, etc. contain a “stack” of synephrine along with caffeine, sometimes with an NSAID. Some reports have indicated that such diet pills cause numerous harmful effects. The Mayo Clinic published a report that suggested a link between Stacker 2 pills and increased risk of ischemic stroke, increased blood pressure, and myocardial infarction (heart attack). Synephrine can also cause arrhythmias. It is similar to ephedrine and can therefore show similar symptoms.”
Synephrine can also be found in supplements such as Bitter Orange. Bitter Orange can cause high blood pressure and increased heart rate. There has been no evidence to show that Bitter Orange is any safer than ephedrine.
Due to the nature of this supplement, it does not require FDA approval nor scientific backing to support the fat-loss claims. And as stated above, all of the studies had a serious shortcoming: They involved rodents or cells in test tubes, not people! To me this is a definite deal-breaker! Many weight-loss supplements look great in the lab, but don’t actually work in the real-world – mainly due to poor nutrition and lack of exercise!
The Dr. Oz television segment featured before-and-after pictures of women who said they lost significant weight while taking raspberry ketone supplements. But Dr. Oz noted that the women had also dieted and worked out. The Dr. Oz website says that raspberry ketones work best “when paired with regular exercise and a well-balanced diet.”
In summary, I would steer clear of raspberry ketones as recommended in The Pharmacists Letter. There have been no trials done on humans to support the claims and the only way they’ve been shown to work is when paired with diet and exercise. So, if you’re considering raspberry ketones, it is probably best to start with diet and exercise first and see where that gets you – odds are you’ll lose weight and save some cash by not purchasing the next “miracle” fat burner.
Kim Kardashian, 32, wore oversized glasses and went make-up free as she arrived at the airport.
Her oversized pink shirt skimmed what appeared to be the start of a baby bump, with Kim teaming it with a white blazer, loose brown pants and nude heels.
Earlier on Saturday, Kim Kardashian tweeted that she was enjoying a bit of sweets, something which her celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson may not approve of.
“Apple pie caramel apple from the Rockie Mountain Chocolate Factory. Oldie but gooooooodie!!!!” she wrote.
The slip in healthy eating as a big departure for Kim Kardashian, who hired Tracy Anderson based on her latest workout venture, the Pregnancy Project, and her expertise with helping women stay on track.
Instead of celebrating the holiday of Armenian Christmas with her family, Kim Kardashian has been visiting friends in the beach city, including Real Housewives of Miami star Larsa Pippen.
Next on the travel agenda for Kim Kardashian is a trip to the volatile Ivory Coast city of Abidjan for a series of paid events.
“I will be in Abidjan on Jan 19 for two special events. Get your #malife card now!” the she posted on Sunday.
She has been tweeting quite a bit about the trip in the past week, especially regarding the news that 61 people were killed in a stampede in the streets after a New Year’s fireworks celebration.
Kim Kardashian wrote: “Reading about the terrible tragedy in Abidjan. So sad! I’m heading there in a few weeks… my prayers are with you all! #drameplateau.”
The expectant mother should also be careful of a travel advisory issued by the U.S. government, which warns visitors to the Ivory Coast of the dangers of high crime in the area.
According to the advisory, which was posted on the Department of State’s website in November, cautions that “crimes, such as muggings, robbery, burglary, and carjacking, pose risks for foreign visitors in Abidjan and around the country”.
“You should take precautions when stopped in heavy traffic or at road blocks due to the threat of assault and/or robbery, and avoid travel outside Abidjan after dark to minimize risk,” the advisory continues.
The agreement, by the body that oversees the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, is an attempt to make banks less vulnerable to runs.
The new “liquidity coverage ratio” will be phased in from 2015 and take full effect four years later.
Analysts say the rules just announced are more flexible than a draft version.
The new rules are part of efforts to prevent financial shocks such as those prompted by the 2007 run on Northern Rock in the UK, or by the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers in the US.
Banks will have to hold enough cash and easily sellable assets, to tide them over during an acute 30-day crisis.
The final version of the rules updates a draft version put forward more than two years ago.
Analysts had warned that over-stringent standards could reduce lending and stifle economic growth.
The new version allows banks to hold a broader range of eligible assets, including some shares, corporate bonds, and high-quality residential mortgage backed securities.
It also gives them more time to comply with the new standards.
The head of oversight body’s head, Mervyn King, said the timeframe ensures the rules “will in no way hinder the ability of the global banking system to finance the recovery”.
The oddity is that most banks currently hold considerably more than the new minimum requirement – because leading central banks have injected massive amounts of liquidity into the financial system through “quantitative easing”.
But this simply reflects the depressed times we live in.
The new rules would force banks to hold vastly more liquid assets than they did in 2007 when big banks barely had enough cash to meet demands for repayment from relatively small numbers of depositors and creditors.
They are part of the broader “Basel III” package of reforms, which will require lenders to set aside more capital to absorb losses.
The Basel Committee brings together representatives regulators from 27 nations.
Blue Ivy is apparently put in the suite at the Brooklyn Nets ground in New York whenever her father performs on stage or is watching a game.
Jay-Z did eight shows to open the stadium last year as he grew up nearby and is a fan of the team.
He and Beyonce’s decision to rent the suite comes after they already showered their one-year-old daughter with more gifts than most children can dream of.
When she was just five days old the couple bought her a $21,000 “fantasy crib” made of solid cedar and birch.
Then there’s the $16,000 high chair lined with Swarovski crystals designed by Carla Monchen from which she can eat her food when she is old enough.
And let’s not forget the clothes: Blue Ivy has already been bought a $290 Jean Paul Gaultier silk dress to get her wardrobe started.
According to US Weekly, the suite at the Brooklyn Nets stadium is ‘filled with toys’ to keep the toddler entertained.
The decor is said to be mostly glass and there is a TV screen so she can also watch him perform.
Beyonce, 31, and Jay-Z are amongst the highest earning and most successful celebrities on Earth – she is worth around $300 million due to her singing with Destiny’s Child and her solo career, her clothing line and numerous investments.
Jay-Z, 43, is said to be worth $450 million on the back of his incredibly successful recording career and investments.
They have not been the only ones pampering their daughter and the child has reportedly be inundated with gifts from the likes of Sean Combs, Kanye West, Rihanna, Mary J Blige and Mariah Carey.
Among the more extravagant gifts already sent by their celebrity friends was a $4,700 Swarovski crystal-studded baby bath from Beyonce’s former Destiny’s Child bandmate Kelly Rowland.
The 3,000lb porcelain tub is studded with 44,928 crystals that Californian interior designer Lori Gardner spent more than two months applying by hand.
Kelly Rowland also bought a green Bob Marley one-piece and several cashmere baby blankets at a cost of $300 each.
Oprah Winfrey even sent a case of her favorite children’s books to get Blue Ivy off to a good start with her reading.
The outpouring has not stopped Beyonce herself splashing out herself, including the crib from high end baby firm Posh Tots, which has in the past sold items to Julia Roberts, Donald and Vanessa Trump and Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin.
After the birth she and Jay-Z also ensured their newborn travelled home in style in a luxury van with blacked out windows and a pimped-up interior.
The leather seats, satellite TV, minibar and car stereo of the $125,000 Mercedes Sprinter Van Grand Edition made it look like it had come straight out of one of her father’s hip hop videos.
Beyonce’s baby was born in January last year weighing 7 lbs amid a $125,000 security operation which saw a bulletproof door temporarily installed at the entrance to Beyonce’s room at the Lenox Hill Hospital in New York.
The happy couple said at that the “birth was emotional and extremely peaceful; we are in heaven”.
Instead the self-proclaimed “redneck” has divided the estimated $15,000 to $20,000 episode fee into equal trust funds for her four daughters and granddaughter.
“I want my kids to look back and say, <<Mama played it smart. Not like those other reality TV people>>,” she told website TMZ.
And Mama June, as she is known, has ensured she won’t be tempted to take the money for herself by asking TLC to pay it straight into the trust funds.
“TLC puts the money into the girls’ trust accounts for me and then I get an email telling me how much everyone gets,” she explained.
“You’re never gonna see me drive a Range Rover or a Mercedes. I’ll drive one if someone else pays for it. Never gonna live above my means.”
Her far-sightedness means that when 7-year-old Honey Boo Boo, aka Alana Thompson, and her sisters Lauryn, 12, Jessica, 15, Anna, 18, and Anna’s daughter Kaitlyn turn 21 they will receive a sizeable amount of money.
Only if they need money for their education, or healthcare, can the girls access the money before then.
Full time mother June Shannon, who is known for her love of extreme couponing, explained that she and her partner live off his salary as a contractor.
The family has made one large purchase since their new found fame – a second hand, 7-year-old Ford Expedition.
Madonna, 54, has been celebrating the new year on the slopes with her children and her Brazilian boyfriend Brahim Zaibat and has been getting quite a bit of action on her skis.
But she started off her week on a bad foot, spending the majority of time on her bum as she lost balance while skiing with her 25-year-old boyfriend.
On Saturday Madonna’s skiing skills appear to have improved as she’s been taking lessons and was joined by a male companion who could have been her instructor.
Madonna kept a low profile in an all black ensemble, matching her male companion.
And aside from keeping her upright, his duties also included helping Madonna in and out of her snow equipment.
Brahim Zaibat and Madonna’s 12-year-old son Rocco took a break from the skis, opting instead to slip on snowboards with their friends.
Madonna’s daughter Lourdes, 16, was also out on the mountain on Friday cutting a much more confident figure as she rode her snowboard, but wasn’t spotted on the slopes on Saturday.
Madonna’s younger children, David and Mercy, also took a break from the cold after spending the week taking private lessons.
The young brood have been naturals, excelling at both snowboarding and skiing on their holiday jaunt.
It seems the family are fans of the resort and spent time in the town last January.
And health officials say the numbers haven’t even peaked yet.
“I think we’re still accelerating,” Tom Skinner, a Center for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman, told reporters.
The latest figures from the CDC show 29 states and New York City reporting high levels of flu activity, up from 16 states and New York City just one week prior.
Overall, 41 states reported cases.
“It’s about five weeks ahead of the average flu season,” said Lyn Finelli, lead of the surveillance and response team that monitors influenza for the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
“We haven’t seen such an early season since 2003 to 2004.”
During that flu season, Joe Lastinger’s daughter Emily, 3, died only five days after coming down with the flu in late January.
“That was the first really bad season for children in a while,” said Joe Lastinger, 40.
“For whatever reason that’s not well understood, it affected her and it killed her.”
In that season, illnesses peaked in early to mid-December, with flu-related pneumonia and deaths peaking in early January.
That season was considered a “moderately severe” season for flu, and ended in mid-February.
It’s still too early to tell how bad this year’s flu season will get.
While the CDC is waiting for more time to pass before classifying the season, Google Flu Trends has already listed it as “intense” by monitoring flu activity around the world based on internet search terms.
And roughly 4% of users on Flu Near You, a real-time tracking tool gaining about 100 new participants per week, say they’re experiencing symptoms.
“That’s huge,” John Brownstein, an epidemiologist and assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Children’s Hospital Boston, told NBC News.
“Last year, we never got near this.”
John Brownstein is one of the founders of Flu Near You, a project, coordinated by Children’s Hospital Boston, the Skoll Global Threats Fund and the American Public Health Association.
The project has been a great tool for generating immediate data about the ongoing flu season.
“It’s what we call <<nowcasting>>,” John Brownstein said.
“It’s a more up-to-date view.”
CDC data can be as much as two weeks behind real-time reports.
John Brownstein’s data shows cough is this year’s most frequently reported symptom at 19%, ahead of sore throat at 16%, fatigue at 15%, headache at 14%, body ache at 10%, and fever at 7%.
Three out of four people reporting flu symptoms had not been vaccinated.
While John Brownstein’s data is more immediate, he cautioned against using it as an accurate measure of vaccine’s effectiveness because of variables in reporting.
During the 2010-2011 flu season, the CDC reports vaccine’s were effective for about 60% for all age groups combined.
While there were then reports of vaccinated people developing laboratory-confirmed flu strains, CDC officials said it’s not yet possible to know if this year’s trends match up though they are “watching the situation closely”.
Those officials also noted that this year’s vaccines seem to be a good match for the two strains of influenza A and one of influenza B circulating.
The H3N2 strain is dominant this year, and it can cause more serious illnesses.
Flu seasons vary widely in severity with some year’s totaling up to 200,000 hospitalized and between 3,000 to 49,000 dead.
About 127 million doses of flu vaccine have been distributed this year from the 15 million doses produced for this season.
Do you have the flu? These are the symptoms to watch for:
According to data being gathered by Flu Near You, flu cases have increased dramatically over the last few weeks. Here are the season’s most-reported symptoms:
1. Cough – 19%
2. Sore throat – 16%
3. Fatigue – 15%
4. Headache – 14%
5. Body Ache – 10%
6. Fever – 7%
“We are very happy to include a special sequence on our show saluting the Bond films on their 50th birthday,” said the producers of this February’s Oscars show, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.
They described the films about the British spy as “the longest-running motion picture franchise in history, and a beloved global phenomenon”.
Current Bond film Skyfall has made more than $1 billion globally so far.
This makes it the most successful Bond film in the series’ 23-film franchise. It stars Daniel Craig in his third outing as Bond, and was directed by Sam Mendes.
The inclusion of Bond at the Oscars show is likely to fuel speculation that Skyfall will feature in the nominations on January 10 – two weeks earlier than usual.
The film also became the first Bond film to be nominated for the top prize at the Producers Guild of America (PGA) Awards.
The PGA awards are seen as a good indicator of which film could win best picture at the Oscars, the most coveted film prize of the year and highlight of the movie calendar.
Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson were also among nominees for the PGA.
Historically, 007 films have only been Oscar-nominated for technical or musical categories, so the PGA nods have marked a departure from this.
The Oscars ceremony on February 24 will be hosted from Hollywood by Seth MacFarlane, the creator of hit TV comedy animation series Family Guy.
[youtube MsG_UYAqt8w]
Bashar al-Assad lamented the suffering of the people in the civil war, saying a “black cloud” of pain engulfed every corner.
He also set out a plan involving a national dialogue conference and a referendum on a national charter.
The UN estimates that more than 60,000 people have been killed in the uprising, which began in March 2011.
The speech was Bashar al-Assad’s first public address since June 2012.
He rejected the Syrian opposition movement as puppets fabricated by the West, and said that Syria wanted to negotiate with the “master not the servants”.
Bashar al-Assad said Syria had not rejected diplomatic moves but insisted it would not negotiate with people with “terrorist” ideas.
He said: “There are those who seek to partition Syria and weaken it. But Syria is stronger… and will remain sovereign… and this is what upsets the West.”
His speech was interspersed with applause and chants from defiant supporters in the opera house in central Damascus, and at the end he was mobbed on the stage.
Bashar al-Assad accused the rebels of stealing wheat from the people, depriving children of school and cutting off electricity and medical supplies.
He called on every citizen to defend the country according to their means.
“We are now in a state of war in every sense of the word. This war targets Syria using a handful of Syrians and many foreigners. Thus, this is a war to defend the nation,” he said.
Bashar al-Assad set out a series of steps he said would provide a solution to the crisis:
The president’s latest words are unlikely to persuade any in the opposition that he is ready to discuss a viable transition.
The opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) quickly dismissed Bashar al-Assad’s proposals.
Spokesman Walid Bunni told Reuters his group would accept nothing less than the departure of Bashar al-Assad and his government.
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague accused President Assad of hypocrisy, saying “the empty promises of reform fool no-one”.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton’s office said the union would consider “if there is anything new in the speech”, but added: “We maintain our position that Assad has to step aside and allow for a political transition.”
The foreign minister of neighboring Turkey, Ahmet Davutoglu, dismissed Bashar al-Assad’s remarks as “repetitions of what he’s said all along”.
Bashar al-Assad’s last public comments were in November, when he told Russian TV he would “live and die in Syria”.
Since then opposition forces have gained control of swathes of territory in northern Syria and have formed the SNC, a more inclusive leadership that has been recognized by the US and the EU.
But rebel efforts to gain ground in and around major cities including Damascus have been met by stiff resistance and increasingly destructive air strikes.
The UK-based activist group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported fresh violence overnight into Sunday, saying that troops had bombarded rebel positions on the outskirts of Damascus, including in Beit Saham, near the airport road.
[youtube JGeGHVAjG5c]
The father told UK’s Sunday People newspaper: “We want the world to know her real name.”
Indian law protects sex crime victims by prohibiting identification.
One minister, Shashi Tharoor, has urged authorities to reveal the name so it can be used for a new anti-rape law.
The 23-year-old woman died last weekend in a hospital in Singapore from injuries suffered during last month’s attack.
The father told the Sunday People: “My daughter didn’t do anything wrong, she died while protecting herself.
“I am proud of her. Revealing her name will give courage to other women who have survived these attacks. They will find strength from my daughter.”
The laws on identification were introduced to protect victims from the social stigma associated with rape, and apply even after the death of the victim.
Although the system has not always been watertight, the high-profile case has brought a tough stance from the authorities.
Police filed a case against broadcaster Zee News after it carried an interview with the friend who was with the victim during the attack.
The victim’s friend was not named but his face was shown and police are investigating whether Zee News broke broadcasting laws relating to disclosure of the victim’s identity.
However, it remains unclear what could be done if the father chose to publicly name his daughter.
Last week, Shashi Tharoor, the junior education minister, called on the authorities to reveal the name of the gang-rape victim so that the new anti-rape law could be named after her.
He wrote: “Unless her parents object, she should be honored and the revised anti-rape law named after her. She was a human being with a name, not just a symbol.”
The Sunday People said the father had given it permission to name him and his daughter.
It carried a photograph of the father but said the family had requested no photograph of the victim be used.
In the interview, the father also renewed his calls for the men who carried out the attack to be hanged.
“Death for all six of them. These men are beasts. They should be made an example of and that society will not allow such things to happen,” he said.
Five men have been charged with abduction, rape and murder. A sixth suspect is expected to be tried as a juvenile.
A pre-court hearing for the five was held in the Saket area of the Indian capital on Saturday and the men have been summoned to appear in court on Monday.
In his interview with Zee News, the friend said he and the rape victim had boarded a bus after a trip to the cinema and after failing to flag down an auto-rickshaw.
He said the bus had tinted windows, and that he believed the group of men had laid a trap for them.
He confirmed that the assailants had later thrown them off the bus and tried to run them over.
The case has caused a national outcry, and there have been frequent protests calling for greater protection for women.
[youtube 6xo4N2I2ADU]
The team in Oxford said their studies closely resemble the treatments that would be needed in people with degenerative eye disease.
Similar results have already been achieved with night-blind mice.
Experts said the field was advancing rapidly, but there were still questions about the quality of vision restored.
Patients with retinitis pigmentosa gradually lose light-sensing cells from the retina and can become blind.
The research team, at the University of Oxford, used mice with a complete lack of light-sensing photoreceptor cells in their retinas. The mice were unable to tell the difference between light and dark.
They injected “precursor” cells which will develop into the building blocks of a retina once inside the eye. Two weeks after the injections a retina had formed, according to the findings presented in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.
Prof. Robert MacLaren said: “We have recreated the whole structure, basically it’s the first proof that you can take a completely blind mouse, put the cells in and reconstruct the entire light-sensitive layer.”
Previous studies have achieved similar results with mice that had a partially degenerated retina. Prof. Robert MacLaren said this was like “restoring a whole computer screen rather than repairing individual pixels”.
The mice were tested to see if they fled being in a bright area, if their pupils constricted in response to light and had their brain scanned to see if visual information was being processed by the mind.
Prof Pete Coffee, from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London, said the findings were important as they looked at the “most clinically relevant and severe case” of blindness.
“This is probably what you would need to do to restore sight in a patient that has lost their vision,” he said.
However, he said this and similar studies needed to show how good the recovered vision was as brain scans and tests of light sensitivity were not enough.
He said: “Can they tell the difference between a nasty animal and something to eat?”
Prof. Robin Ali published research in the journal Nature showing that transplanting cells could restore vision in night-blind mice and then showed the same technique worked in a range of mice with degenerated retinas.
He said: “These papers demonstrate that it is possible to transplant photoreceptor cells into a range of mice even with a severe level of degeneration.
“I think it’s great that another group is showing the utility of photoreceptor transplantation.”
Researchers are already trialing human embryonic stem cells, at Moorfields Eye Hospital, in patients with Stargardt’s disease. Early results suggest the technique is safe but reliable results will take several years.
Retinal chips or bionic eyes are also being trailed in patients with retinitis pigmentosa.
The assembly re-elected the incumbent Diosdado Cabello, a leading ally of Hugo Chavez.
Opposition leaders are calling for new elections if the president cannot be sworn in for his new term on Thursday.
In such a situation, Diosdado Cabello would become caretaker president pending the outcome of the vote.
Vice-President Nicolas Maduro has dismissed the opposition’s calls, saying the Supreme Court can swear in Hugo Chavez at a later date.
Diosdado Cabello’s re-election was expected in the National Assembly, which is dominated by Hugo Chavez’s governing United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV).
“The president will continue being president beyond January 10, nobody should have any doubt about that,” Diosdado Cabello said after his election, adding: “We will never defraud the people.”
Nicolas Maduro watched the vote and debate from the balcony of the chamber.
Diosdado Cabello finds himself in a position of great power and influence.
Analysts say he is seen as a political rival to Nicolas Maduro, whom Hugo Chavez has named as his preferred successor.
However, both men have vowed to maintain unity in the PSUV. They both visited Hugo Chavez in Cuba earlier in the week, along with several other dignitaries.
Hundreds of Chavez supporters rallied outside parliament on Saturday following an appeal by Diosdado Cabello.
Information Minister Ernesto Villegas, who was among the first government officials to arrive for the vote, said: “There is a clear leadership here by Comandante Chavez who is so responsible that he has even studied the worst case scenarios.
“We have a president who has been elected from 2013 to 2019… and that will be perfectly fulfilled. Chavez is the president of Venezuela. There is no other.”
Experts have different interpretations of what it would mean if Hugo Chavez misses his inauguration.
Some in the opposition say that if Hugo Chavez is still in Cuba, power should pass to the head of the National Assembly and new elections should be held within 30 days.
But Nicolas Maduro has insisted that Thursday is not a fixed deadline and that there was no reason to declare Hugo Chavez’s “absolute absence” from office.
“The formality of his swearing-in can be resolved in the Supreme Court,” he said.
“The president right now is president.”
Hugo Chavez – who was re-elected for a fourth term in October – has not been seen in public since his latest round of surgery more than three weeks ago.
Ernesto Villegas said on Thursday that the president had suffered complications due to a lung infection and had a “respiratory insufficiency”.
[youtube W2p-F3wgHI4]
The address will cover “the latest developments in Syria and the region”, according to the Sana news agency.
It comes amid fierce fighting close to the capital, Damascus.
The UN estimates that more than 60,000 people have been killed in the uprising against President Assad, which began in March 2011.
The speech will be Bashar al-Assad’s first public address since June.
In an interview with Russian TV in November – his last public comments – he said he would “live and die in Syria”.
Since then opposition rebels have gained control of swathes of territory in northern Syria, and have formed a more inclusive leadership council which has been recognized by the US and the EU.
But opposition efforts to gain ground in and around major cities including Damascus have been met by stiff resistance and increasingly destructive air strikes.
On Saturday the activist Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported fierce fighting in Harasta and Daraya, suburbs of Damascus.
Diplomatic attempts to end the conflict in Syria have so far failed.
UN and Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi has been pushing a plan approved at an international conference in June that would create a transitional government.
But the plan leaves President Assad’s role unclear. The Syrian opposition has insisted that Bashar al-Assad must step down for the conflict to end.
Lakhdar Brahimi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said a week ago that a negotiated solution was the only option.
[youtube ooZ73ph7lfQ]
Pakistan said Indian troops had raided a military post in the Haji Pir sector of Pakistani-administered Kashmir, killing a soldier and injuring another.
An Indian army spokesman said Pakistan had “initiated unprovoked firing” at Indian military posts.
Kashmir is claimed by both nations in its entirety and has been a flashpoint between them for more than 60 years.
Exchanges are not uncommon but rarely result in fatalities.
The Pakistani military’s public relations office said the two sides were still exchanging fire in the area.
It said Indian troops had “physically raided a checkpost named Sawan Patra”.
The Haji Pir Pass is just south of the main road from Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir to Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir.
“Pakistan army troops effectively responded to the attack,” it said, adding that Indian troops had left behind weapons as they retreated.
Colonel Brijesh Pandey, a spokesman for the Indian army in Kashmir, told the Associated Press news agency that Pakistani troops had “initiated unprovoked firing” with mortar shells and automatic weapons at Indian military posts. One civilian home was destroyed, he said.
“We retaliated only using small arms. We believe it was clearly an attempt on their part to facilitate infiltration of militants,” Col. Brijesh Pandey said.
There has been a ceasefire in Kashmir since late 2003.
India suspended a peace process with Pakistan following attacks by Pakistan-based militants in Mumbai in 2008. Negotiations resumed in February last year.
Last month, the nations signed an agreement to ease visa restrictions on travel for some citizens.
Ambassador Carlos Rodriguez has been told to resign “to safeguard relations with Colombia”, the Honduran Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
An investigation has begun into reports that two prostitutes had been invited to the party on December 20.
The two women have been accused of stealing laptop computers and mobile phones from the embassy.
An inquiry committee has been set up in Honduras, while in Colombia the authorities are trying to identify the two sex workers.
An employee close to Carlos Rodriguez has been accused of organizing the party and hiring the prostitutes.
An embassy vehicle was reportedly used to bring them into the building.
It is not clear whether the ambassador was present.
US secret service agents were involved in a similar scandal last year, ahead of an official visit by President Barack Obama to Colombia.
They were sent home and disciplined in April 2012 after being accused of taking prostitutes to their hotel rooms on the eve of the Summit of the Americas in the city of Cartagena.
[youtube qOA5pFr2Nd8]