Peter Mutharika attacks Malawi govt. for ignoring 'Ndata' University ...

By Nyasa Times Reporter

May 25, 2013 ????? 0 Comments

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President of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Peter Mutharika says he is very disappointed with government?s lack of reference to centers of higher learning and Nsanje inland port in the 2013/14 national budget which finance minister Ken Lipenga presented in parliament?on Friday.

In his preliminary reaction to the budget statement, Mutharika said he was surprised and disappointed that nothing was said about universities which he said showed government?s lack of ?commitment towards institutions of higher learning in the country.

?I am surprised that nothing was said about universities. There was no reference to higher education. No reference to Malawi University of Science and Technology which is sitting there [Ndata Farm in Thyolo]. I was hoping that there would reference on when the university should be opened to our children. We understand that the existing universities have no spaces and I thought there will be a reference to that,? he said.

He emphasized this is another area that needed more attention.

Peter Mutharika: Why abandoning Nsanje port?

?When I was the minister of education, for the first time in the history of Malawi I established the Council for Higher Education to make sure that there is quality control but??nothing has been mentioned about that and I was surprised about that,? said Mutharika a former minister of education and university lecturer in United States.

According to the budget on education, the government is expected to employ 10,500 primary and 1,975 secondary school teachers.

He added: ?Another thing is that I was surprised to that there was no reference to Nsanje port, this is another important project. To me there is a personal commitment to it but I am disappointed that the government decided to ignore that?.

Mutharika however said there are a number of things which he is happy with like government?s commitment to continue with some of social programs that the DPP started , citing the farm input subsidy and school feeding programs, saying ?these are extremely important programs.?

In the budget the government has maintained the fertilizer subsidy program with the allocation of K60.1 billion, at the same subsidized price of K500 per 50kg bag of both basal and top dressing fertilizers.

Lipenga said that it is expected that the fertilizers will have been bought from the suppliers by September 2013 and that distribution will start immediately.

?Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has already worked out the specific details on the distribution modalities and schedule which includes the participation of the private sector to ensure timely distribution and without regularities,? he said.

In the same budget government has totally removed import duty on bicycles and also reduced import duty on motorbikes as a way of providing cheaper and affordable modes of transport to the under-privileged.

?Import duty on motorbikes of engine capacity not exceeding 250cc has been reduced to 15 percent and exercise tax on these motorbikes has also widely been removed considering that this mode of transport is widely used especially in the rural market areas,? said Lipenga.

On taxation of buses, Lipenga said duty on motor vehicles of seating capacity of eleven to 31 persons including the driver had been reduced to 15 percent. This also includes motor vehicles of seating of 32 to 44 people including the driver depending on the year of make.

?Zero percent for new and used motor vehicles not exceeding eight years, 10 percent for used motor vehicles exceeding years but not exceeding 12 years and 25 percent for used motor vehicles exceeding 12 years.?

He then urged operators in the sector to ensure that the benefits trickle down to the consumer through reduced transport fares.

In order to make clean energy affordable to all Malawians, Lipenga said import duty payable on inverters has been removed considering that inverters are critical in the generation of solar power.

He added that exercise tax on products such as matches has been removed considering that it is a basic commodity and has no negative externality that could make it liable for tax.

?In addition, exercise tax in ball point pens has been removed,? said Lipenga.

Leader of Opposition in parliament, John Tembo described the budget as ?creative? as it was just a summary, did not contain full details and that it would not benefit the poor. ?Additional reporting by Malawi News Agency.

Source: http://www.nyasatimes.com/2013/05/25/peter-mutharika-attacks-malawi-govt-for-ignoring-ndata-university-nsanje-port-in-budget/

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Ron Livingston and Rosemarie DeWitt Welcome Daughter Gracie James

The actors are "thrilled to announce the arrival of their daughter, Gracie James Livingston," their reps confirm to PEOPLE exclusively.

Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/tdjJHhAzExE/

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End of Life Plan, Caring for Dying Family, TED Conference, Aging ...

Bulletin Today | Caregiving | Home & Family Print

When the annual Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) conference began in 1984, the Los Angeles Times?called it ?an obscure gathering of engineers, theorists and artists.? But in the nearly three decades since then, TED has morphed into a series of mind-expanding showcases staged in several countries that attract scores of celebrity visionaries, ranging from physicist Steven Hawking and neurologist Oliver Sacks to former President Bill Clinton and rock stars Bono and Peter Gabriel.?Better yet, the nonprofit Sapling Foundation, which stages the conferences, now makes hundreds of ?TED talks available on its website. (If you?re not sure which ones to pick, you can even listen to playlists of TED talks selected by luminaries in various fields.)

A surprising number of the TED talks turn out to be related to aging, such as Stanford Center for Longevity director Laura Carstensen?s 2011 talk, ?Older People are Happier,??and Jane Fonda?s talk from that same year on ?Life?s Third Act.??But a just-posted TED talk gets into another age-related subject, one that many of us probably try to avoid thinking about.

?Prepare for a Good End of Life??is a February 2013 presentation by?Judy MacDonald Johnston, a publisher of learn-to-read materials for children who also has started a side project, Goodendoflife.com. The latter is a set of online worksheets and advice aimed at helping older people to make difficult decisions ? who should speak for you if you cannot speak, and whether you should fill out a do-not-resuscitate form ? before that inevitable day arrives when such instructions may be needed.

Johnston, as she makes clear at the beginning of her talk, isn?t a geriatrician, and her knowledge about end-of-life preparations is based on the experience of two close friends, Sonoma County, Calif., livestock ranchers and wildlife preservationists Jim and Shirley Modini, for whom she served a trustee and advocate when they reached their 80s and found themselves in ill health. ?I became the person who managed their end-of-life experiences,? she explains. ?And we learned a few things about how to have a good end.?

Johnston suggests these five important steps for anyone preparing for the end of life:

1. Make a plan. This involves ?answering straightforward questions about the end you want,? she explains. ?Where do you want to be when you?re no longer independent? What do you want in terms of medical intervention? And who?s going to make sure that your plan is followed??
2. Find multiple advocates for your interests.??Having more than one increases your chance of getting the end you want,? she says. Rather than automatically relying on your spouse or child, think about who has the time and the physical proximity to do the job well and also has the ability to work with the people who may have an important influence on your fate.
3. Be ready for the hospital. Johnston advises preparing a one-page summary of your medical history, medication list and physician?s contact information, and putting it in an envelope with copies of your insurance cards, power-of-attorney form, and do-not-resuscitate order. ?Tape a set to your refrigerator,? she advises.
4. Line up good caregivers. Johnston recommends assessing your personality and financial situation, in order to determine whether moving into a senior community or staying at home is best for you. In either case, though, she says that it?s crucial to find caregivers who?ll not only be attentive and communicative, but willing to put in a little extra effort when needed. In her friends? case, finding a caregiver who was willing to shoot video of their ranch, so that they would see that it was being maintained, provided real peace of mind.
5. Choose your last words. ?What do you want to hear at the very end, and from whom would you like to hear it?? Johnston asks. ?In my experience, you?ll want to hear that whatever you?re worried about is going to be fine.?

?

Also of Interest

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See the?AARP home page?for deals, savings tips, trivia and more

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Tagged: aging, death, dying, end of life, longevity, palliative care, terminal illness??? Share via: Facebook

Source: http://blog.aarp.org/2013/05/22/end-of-life-plan-caring-for-dying-family-ted-conference-aging-well/

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Carol Burnett will receive the 2013 Mark Twain Prize for American Humor

Carol Burnett, best known for her long-running variety show, will be honored this October at the Kennedy Center in Washington.

By Molly Driscoll,?Staff Writer / May 22, 2013

Carol Burnett will be the 2013 recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. ?It?s almost impossible to be funnier than the people in Washington,? says Burnett.

Sam Mircovich/Reuters

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Carol Burnett has been chosen to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor for this year. The award will be given to the comedian in a ceremony this October.

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?I can?t believe I?m getting a humor prize from the Kennedy Center,? Burnett said in a statement. ?It?s almost impossible to be funnier than the people in Washington.?

Kennedy Center Chairman David Rubenstein praised Burnett's ability to make audiences laugh over many decades.

?From her television program and appearances, as well as her performances on Broadway and in film, Carol Burnett has entertained generations of fans with her vibrant wit and hilarious characters,? Rubenstein said in a statement.?

Other recent winners of the prize include Ellen DeGeneres, Will Ferrell, and Tina Fey. The award was first given out in 1998 and is often bestowed on an entertainer who has worked as both an actor and a writer. Fey is currently the youngest honoree ever.

During the ceremony, the winner is generally honored with video segments of his or her past work and ribbings from others in the business. ?

Burnett came to the public?s attention when she starred in the 1959 Broadway production of the musical ?Once Upon a Mattress? and is best-known for her CBS sketch program ?The Carol Burnett Show,? which ran from 1967 to 1978. Her film credits include ?Annie,? ?Noises Off,? and ?Horton Hears a Who!? She is also behind a memoir published this year, "Carrie and Me," as well as two other autobiographical works, "One More Time" and "This Time Together."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/sJ1cui8rjlQ/Carol-Burnett-will-receive-the-2013-Mark-Twain-Prize-for-American-Humor

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Alinta plans $1 bln term loan B debt raising in US - sources

SYDNEY | Wed May 22, 2013 2:46am EDT

SYDNEY May 22 (Reuters) - Private equity-controlled power firm Alinta Energy is planning a $1 billion-plus debt issue in the U.S. term loan B (TLB)institutional market to refinance maturing debt, banking sources familiar with the deal said, joining a growing number of Australian borrowers attracted by the terms and pricing available.

Alinta, controlled by U.S. buyout giant TPG Capital , is carrying A$1.2 billion ($1.17 billion) in senior term loans, an A$400 million super senior loan, as well as interest rate swaps of around A$210 million on a marked-to-market basis, according to the sources.

The sources declined to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the deal. Alinta's spokeswoman declined to comment.

The emergence of the TLB market is causing grief to loan bankers already grappling with low credit growth in Australia.

"Every domestic Australian bank should be worried about leakage to this market. It is business we are missing out on," said John Corrin, Australia & New Zealand Banking Group's global head of loan syndications.

U.S. TLB issuance has skyrocketed, driven by a combination of increased money supply and investors' drive for yield. Total volume year-to-date hit $282 billion, up 57 percent compared to the same period last year according to UBS.

Issuance by Australasian borrowers this year hit $3.74 billion, more than double the $1.48 billion of leveraged loans done in Australia according to Loan Pricing Corp data.

ATTRACTIVE TERMS

The TLB market offers attractive pricing over longer tenors compared to the Australian bank loan market. Currently borrowers can refinance seven-year debt in the TLB market for 300 basis points over Libor, compared with typical three-year leverage loan refinancing starting at 350 basis points over BBSY - Australia's bank bill bid swap rate.

The term loan B market is similar to the sub-investment grade or "junk" bond market in that it offers riskier borrowers long-term funding.

"It maybe attractive for companies going through restructure or a growth change programme to lock in funding on set terms which can take the business through challenging times," said Chris Champion, head of leverage finance at Goldman Sachs in Australia.

Cinema operator Hoyts, owned by Australia's Pacific Equity Partners, and packaging firm Pact Group, owned by New Zealand tycoon Graham Hart, have this week successfully priced debut issues after cutting the margin.

"Market conditions in the U.S. are very strong at the moment, and certain issuers can achieve more aggressive pricing," said Andrew Ashman, director Asia-Pacific loan syndicate at Barclays in Singapore.

The foreign exchange risk is key for borrowers who do not have U.S. dollar revenues to hedge the debt repayment.

"The market is a legitimate alternative for Australian issuers, but you need to be aware of the cost involved in breaking the foreign exchange swaps for operational or company reasons," said Alistair Dick, head of debt advisory and restructuring, Rothschild Australia.

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/privateequityNews/~3/IB9ykSRMM7U/story01.htm

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Paolo Soleri and the Cities of the Future

Paolo Soleri, who died last month at 93, transformed the way people imagine cities of the future. You've probably seen some of his concepts without realizing it. He even built an experimental city in Arizona, called Arcosanti. We've got a gallery of his drawings and designs, some of which have never been online before.

With his Arcosanti workshops and classes, Soleri popularized the idea of "arcology," a cross between architecture and ecology. The idea was that cities should reflect both human aspirations as well as the shape and needs of the Earth's environment. Often, like the image you see above, he imagined arcologies would be partly underground, or built into natural geological features of the landscape.

His designs are intended to be flexible, sustainable and beautiful; they've influenced many urban planners, as well as artists and concept designers. If some of these images look familiar to you, it's because Soleri's visions became synonymous with "futuristic cities" ? you see references to his work a lot in 1970s science fiction movies.

According to a release from Arcosanti:

Soleri?s exhibition in 1970 at the Corcoran Museum in Washington DC ? and the concurrent publication of his landmark book, City in the Image of Man ? changed forever the global conversation about urban planning on our living planet. His term, ?Arcology? joining the words architecture and ecology to represent one whole system of understanding human life on the earth is meant to serve as the basis for that conversation.

Paolo Soleri?s ideas are embodied on the ground in the flowing forms of his architectural workshop Cosanti in Paradise Valley, (now an Arizona Historic Landmark) and in the continuing construction at Arcosanti, the urban laboratory on the high desert in central Arizona. There, to date over 7,000 students have participated in its construction. More than 50,000 architecture enthusiasts visit the site each year.

Soleri continued questioning and creating until his death. The theme of his last project, a series of collages entitled ?Then and Now?, juxtaposed his own signature forms with illustrations of life from antiquity. In this project Paolo Soleri attempted to capture the critical notion that we are constantly building on the past, on the work of countless generations that have preceded us on the earth. Our own work - and Soleri?s work especially - put into this context, might be a seed that takes many more generations to mature and complete.

In Soleri's visions below, you can see his ideas taking shape and flowering into Arcosanti. He tries to reflect the history of how humans have built cities in the Americas, but always looks to the future. One day, our carbon-negative cities may look like arcologies. Or maybe they will be radically different ? a transformation which is exactly the kind of thing Soleri would have loved.

Learn more about Soleri's work by visiting the Arcosanti website ? or by visiting Arcosanti itself, which is just 100 km north of Phoenix, Arizona.

MESA CITY - Higher Learning Complex.
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation - Ivan Pintar

MESA CITY - GROUND VILLAGES.
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation

MACRO COSANTI.
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation

HEXAHEADRON Arcology
Image Credit: Cosanti Foundation

NOVANOAH I Arcology
Image Credit: Cosanti Foundation

BABEL IID Arcology
Photo credit: Cosanti Foundation

ARCOSANTI.
Photo credit: Cosanti Foundation

?3-D JERSEY?
Photo Credit: Ivan Pintar

INDIA VILLAGE. 2 Suns Arcology
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation

Original sketch of the ?HYPERBUILDING?
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation

Original sketch of the ?HYPERBUILDING?
Photo Credit: Cosanti Foundation

NUDGING SPACE
Photo Credit: Tomiaki Tamura

SOLARE
3D rendering - Youngsoo Kim

LEAN LINEAR CITY connected to the larger node of NUDGING SPACE Arcology.
3D rendering: Youngsoo Kim

LEAN LINEAR CITY - ARTERIAL ARCOLOGY
3D Rendering: YoungSoo Kim

LEAN LINEAR CITY - ARTERIAL ARCOLOGY
3D Rendering: Tomiaki Tamura

ARCOSANTI 5000 model
Photo Credit: Michael E. Brown

ARCOSANTI 5000 Section
Photo Credit: Jeff Manta

Source: http://io9.com/paolo-soleri-and-the-cities-of-the-future-509049258

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Since When Did It Get So Easy to Pass Immigration Reform?

A teenager from?Saratoga, California took home one of the top prizes at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair?late last week after showing off her invention, which can fully charge a cell phone in 30 seconds or less.?Eesha Khare was given the?Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award and a $50,000 prize for being runner-up in the competition, which was won by a 19-year-old who unveiled a new spin on?self-driving car technology.?Khare?s battery technology requires a new component to be installed inside the phone battery itself, and Intel notes that it also has potential applications for car batteries.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/since-did-easy-pass-immigration-reform-235453344.html

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EMBO announces 52 new members for 2013

Public release date: 21-May-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Barry Whyte
communications@embo.org
49-622-188-91108
European Molecular Biology Organization

Heidelberg, 21 May 2013 EMBO announced today that 52 outstanding researchers in the life sciences were newly elected to its membership. Forty-three of the researchers reside in Europe and neighboring countries and are accompanied by the election of nine Associate Members from Canada, China, India, Japan and the United States. The EMBO membership currently comprises around 1600 life scientists.

"Our members are the basis for the international reputation of our organisation," EMBO Director Maria Leptin said. "We have been building our network of members for almost 50 years and the EMBO membership is the foundation for our future growth and achievements. I look forward to the fresh input and ideas that the new EMBO members will bring to the organisation."

The most recent scientists to join the EMBO membership come from 15 different countries and include 16 female scientists.

EMBO Members make invaluable contributions to the organization by providing suggestions and feedback on the activities of EMBO. They serve on selection committees for EMBO programmes and mentor young scientists. Their input has helped to promote excellence in life sciences since 1964.

Newly elected members and associate members are:

NEW EMBO MEMBERS 2013

Andrew P. Jackson, United Kingdom

Anne Bertolotti, United Kingdom

Anne Eichmann, France

Anne Houdusse, France

Anu Suomalainen, Finland

Asifa Akhtar, Germany

Buzz Baum, United Kingdom

Christoph Dehio, Switzerland

Daniel Metzger, France

Deborah Fass, Israel

Eileen Furlong, Germany

Elena Cattaneo, Italy

Fiona Powrie, United Kingdom

Franoise Stutz, Switzerland

Frank Bradke, Germany

Grard Eberl, France

Gioacchino Natoli, Italy

Herwig Baier, Germany

Iris Salecker, United Kingdom

Isabel Farias Gmez, Spain

John van der Oost, the Netherlands

Kaspar Locher, Switzerland

Ketan Patel, United Kingdom

Kostas Tokatlidis, United Kingdom

Lars Steinmetz, Germany

Luciano Di Croce, Spain

Luis Aragn, United Kingdom

Marileen Dogterom, the Netherlands

Matthias Merkenschlager, United Kingdom

Michael Boutros, Germany

Nicholas Luscombe, United Kingdom

Nicholas Talbot, United Kingdom

Paloma Ms, Spain

Peter Scheiffele, Switzerland

Peter ebo, Czech Republic

Petra Schwille, Germany

Piet Gros, the Netherlands

Ramanujan Hegde, United Kingdom

Roger Goody, Germany

Roland Lill, Germany

Rosario Rizzuto, Italy

Shahragim Tajbakhsh, France

Wolfgang Zachariae, Germany

NEW ASSOCIATE MEMBERS

Bonnie L. Bassler, United States

Eugene V. Koonin, United States

Jyayang Li, China

Satyajit (Jitu) Mayor, India

Ruslan M. Medzhitov, United States

Andre Nussenzweig, United States

Yoshinori Ohsumi, Japan

Yigong Shi, China

Nahum Sonenberg, Canada

###

About EMBO

EMBO stands for excellence in the life sciences. The organization enables the best science by supporting talented researchers, stimulating scientific exchange and advancing policies for a world-class European research environment.

EMBO is an organization of almost 1600 leading life scientist members that fosters new generations of researchers to produce world-class scientific results. EMBO helps young scientists to advance their research, promote their international reputations and ensure their mobility. Courses, workshops, conferences and scientific journals disseminate the latest research and offer training in cutting-edge techniques to maintain high standards of excellence in research practice. EMBO helps to shape science and research policy by seeking input and feedback from our community and by following closely the trends in science in Europe.

Media contacts

Barry Whyte
Head, EMBO Public Relations & Communications
Yvonne Kaul
Communications Officer
P: +49 6221 8891 108/111
communications@embo.org

For more information: http://www.embo.org

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 21-May-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Barry Whyte
communications@embo.org
49-622-188-91108
European Molecular Biology Organization

Heidelberg, 21 May 2013 EMBO announced today that 52 outstanding researchers in the life sciences were newly elected to its membership. Forty-three of the researchers reside in Europe and neighboring countries and are accompanied by the election of nine Associate Members from Canada, China, India, Japan and the United States. The EMBO membership currently comprises around 1600 life scientists.

"Our members are the basis for the international reputation of our organisation," EMBO Director Maria Leptin said. "We have been building our network of members for almost 50 years and the EMBO membership is the foundation for our future growth and achievements. I look forward to the fresh input and ideas that the new EMBO members will bring to the organisation."

The most recent scientists to join the EMBO membership come from 15 different countries and include 16 female scientists.

EMBO Members make invaluable contributions to the organization by providing suggestions and feedback on the activities of EMBO. They serve on selection committees for EMBO programmes and mentor young scientists. Their input has helped to promote excellence in life sciences since 1964.

Newly elected members and associate members are:

NEW EMBO MEMBERS 2013

Andrew P. Jackson, United Kingdom

Anne Bertolotti, United Kingdom

Anne Eichmann, France

Anne Houdusse, France

Anu Suomalainen, Finland

Asifa Akhtar, Germany

Buzz Baum, United Kingdom

Christoph Dehio, Switzerland

Daniel Metzger, France

Deborah Fass, Israel

Eileen Furlong, Germany

Elena Cattaneo, Italy

Fiona Powrie, United Kingdom

Franoise Stutz, Switzerland

Frank Bradke, Germany

Grard Eberl, France

Gioacchino Natoli, Italy

Herwig Baier, Germany

Iris Salecker, United Kingdom

Isabel Farias Gmez, Spain

John van der Oost, the Netherlands

Kaspar Locher, Switzerland

Ketan Patel, United Kingdom

Kostas Tokatlidis, United Kingdom

Lars Steinmetz, Germany

Luciano Di Croce, Spain

Luis Aragn, United Kingdom

Marileen Dogterom, the Netherlands

Matthias Merkenschlager, United Kingdom

Michael Boutros, Germany

Nicholas Luscombe, United Kingdom

Nicholas Talbot, United Kingdom

Paloma Ms, Spain

Peter Scheiffele, Switzerland

Peter ebo, Czech Republic

Petra Schwille, Germany

Piet Gros, the Netherlands

Ramanujan Hegde, United Kingdom

Roger Goody, Germany

Roland Lill, Germany

Rosario Rizzuto, Italy

Shahragim Tajbakhsh, France

Wolfgang Zachariae, Germany

NEW ASSOCIATE MEMBERS

Bonnie L. Bassler, United States

Eugene V. Koonin, United States

Jyayang Li, China

Satyajit (Jitu) Mayor, India

Ruslan M. Medzhitov, United States

Andre Nussenzweig, United States

Yoshinori Ohsumi, Japan

Yigong Shi, China

Nahum Sonenberg, Canada

###

About EMBO

EMBO stands for excellence in the life sciences. The organization enables the best science by supporting talented researchers, stimulating scientific exchange and advancing policies for a world-class European research environment.

EMBO is an organization of almost 1600 leading life scientist members that fosters new generations of researchers to produce world-class scientific results. EMBO helps young scientists to advance their research, promote their international reputations and ensure their mobility. Courses, workshops, conferences and scientific journals disseminate the latest research and offer training in cutting-edge techniques to maintain high standards of excellence in research practice. EMBO helps to shape science and research policy by seeking input and feedback from our community and by following closely the trends in science in Europe.

Media contacts

Barry Whyte
Head, EMBO Public Relations & Communications
Yvonne Kaul
Communications Officer
P: +49 6221 8891 108/111
communications@embo.org

For more information: http://www.embo.org

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/embo-ea5052113.php

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Does France have right plan to revive its economy?

PARIS (AP) ? The man charged with reviving France's shrinking economy and attracting businesses to invest here is gaining a reputation for doing the opposite.

As the country's first-ever minister for industrial renewal, Arnaud Montebourg has told the world's largest steelmaker it is not welcome in France; exchanged angry letters with the head of an American tire company he was supposedly wooing; and scuttled Yahoo's offer to buy the majority of a video-sharing website.

Montebourg, a 50-year-old lawyer from Burgundy, is the public face of President Francois Hollande's plan to revitalize Europe's second-largest economy, which is in recession and grappling with 11 percent unemployment. The plan is to make the French economy more competitive globally ? especially for manufacturers ? by making it easier to fire workers, offering a payroll tax credit and investing in small businesses.

Economists have praised the labor reforms as a step in the right direction. But mostly they say France's economic plan is all wrong: It is too complicated; it favors a top-down approach to innovation; and it ignores some of the most serious problems plaguing France's economy, such as high labor costs.

And then there is Montebourg, whose public spats with international companies and efforts to block layoffs are making France look like an unappealing place to do business.

In fairness to Montebourg, he's not so much the problem as he is the symbol of it, analysts say. Even if Hollande were to replace him ? and that's looking increasingly likely ? it's unclear whether the substance of the industrial renewal strategy would change.

The sheer size of France's economy has cushioned it somewhat from the worst of Europe's debt crisis, which has brought depression-level unemployment to countries like Spain and Greece. It is home to many huge industrial companies, like EADS, parent company to plane-maker Airbus; Total, the world's fifth-largest investor-owned oil company; and Sanofi, the world's fourth-largest pharmaceutical company. France is also a cradle for design, high fashion and fine wine, embodied by world leaders like LVMH and L'Oreal.

But make no mistake, analysts warn: The French economy, which had no growth in 2012 and shrank at an annualized rate of 0.8 percent in the first three months of 2013, is in slow-motion free fall.

Profit margins at French companies are the lowest they have been in 30 years. In the past decade, one in six industrial jobs has been lost. And economists forecast unemployment will rise to 11.6 percent next year.

Hollande says the decline in French manufacturing ? from 16 percent of gross domestic product in 1999 to 10.7 percent a decade later ? is at the heart of his country's stagnation. Many European economies have seen a similar trend, but France's slide has been more pronounced than most. Reverse the decline, Hollande believes, and you reverse the stagnation.

"The goal of reindustrialization is a perfectly legitimate goal. The only question to ask for France is ... whether it's too late," says Elie Cohen, an economist at Sciences Po university in Paris. "It's probably too late."

Serge Lelard, who started a plastics company called Microplast in 1984, feels the same way. Montebourg, who buzzes around France touring businesses on a near-weekly basis, recently visited Microplast's factory outside Paris. He held it up as an example of the kind of small manufacturing businesses that France needs to keep and attract.

But Lelard is dismissive of the government's reindustrialization plan. He says there is too much talk and not enough action that addresses the competitive disadvantages French companies face in the global marketplace.

Microplast, which sells plastic bits that connect the wires in cars, has struggled along with the French auto industry. Lelard is pessimistic about the company's chances of survival.

France's economic challenges are rooted in government policies that protect workers at the expense of their employers. It has the highest payroll taxes in the European Union to fund generous health and retirement benefits. It has the highest tax on capital, which discourages investment. It aggressively fights companies that try to outsource jobs. And it makes firing an employee expensive and difficult.

These problems have existed for decades, but a growing global economy and France's control over its own currency and spending policies masked them. Slowly, however, those masks have been removed.

First, the euro was introduced at the turn of the millennium. Europe's strongest economies, like Germany, gained a competitive advantage: The value of the euro, held down by the weaker nations that used it, made German exports more affordable overseas. By contrast, countries like France suffered because the euro was valued more highly than their own currency, making French exports more expensive for buyers outside the eurozone.

Then the global recession dried up demand for French products at home and around the world. Finally, Europe's debt crisis prompted the government to cut spending and raise some taxes to reduce its budget deficit.

With these crutches pulled away, France's industry was pushed to its breaking point.

But Hollande, a Socialist, came to power last year by promising more of the same: He vowed to spark growth without cutting generous benefits.

There are three main planks to Hollande's reindustrialization plan: up to a 6 percent rebate for companies on some payroll taxes, labor reforms that make it easier to fire employees or cut their salaries during hard times, and a public investment bank with 42 billion euros ($55 billion) to invest in small businesses.

But new programs are announced frequently. Millions in grants and other incentives have been promised for everything from spurring the construction of electric cars to bringing robots to factory floors.

"That's exactly what you should not do. They're ... complicating instead of simplifying," says Anders Aslund, an economist with the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington. Aslund says the government should avoid giving grants for specific industries and instead help all industries ? with permanent tax breaks, for example.

Last year, Montebourg unveiled a plan to give several hundred million euros in grants and tax credits to car companies and subcontractors in an effort to encourage the development of electric cars and batteries.

But economists say the French government should not try to invent successful sectors. Never mind that France is an unlikely place to incubate an auto revolution. Its car industry can't compete with global rivals like Volkswagen and Hyundai that have lower labor costs and stronger cultures of innovation. For example, French research institutions lack the strong links to industry that allow entrepreneurs in other countries to quickly convert lab discoveries into products.

The flip side of France's efforts to create booming new industries is its aversion to letting struggling ones die out.

"A saved job is always a victory," Montebourg, who is on the far left of the Socialist party, said at a recent lunch with journalists. He declined to be interviewed for this story.

But that's not how many economists see it. Part of Germany's success is its willingness to let some lower-level manufacturing jobs move to other countries, says Christian Ketels, a researcher at Harvard Business School. That allows German companies to stay competitive and keep high-skilled, higher-paid jobs at home.

"To my knowledge, France is really the only country in Europe that is upset about outsourcing," says Aslund.

One of the most glaring examples of this no-job-left-behind policy has been France's campaign to block steelmaker ArcelorMittal from shuttering the two blast furnaces at its processing plant in Lorraine, eastern France ? in spite of the fact that local mines are used up, it's far from ports and its furnaces are out of date.

That plant is "a perfect example of what you should close down," says Aslund.

Instead, Montebourg took up the cause, threatening to nationalize the plant and declaring that the company wasn't welcome in France. It's unclear how much of this rhetoric was in line with government policy ? the suggestions of nationalization were quickly struck down by the prime minister ? but the affair deeply bruised France's reputation as a serious place for business. In the end, the company will close the furnaces but other steel-processing operations at the plant will continue.

Montebourg also tried to save a Goodyear plant in northern France by asking American tire manufacturer Titan if it was willing to invest. The answer from Titan's CEO mocked France's work practices in an embarrassing public letter ? and Montebourg took the bait, shooting back an equally chest-thumping missive.

There looks to be little hope of saving the Goodyear plant, but litigation could drag on for months if not years.

Just this month, Montebourg vetoed Yahoo's attempt to take a 75 percent stake in video-sharing website, Dailymotion. Citing concerns about Yahoo's health as a company, Montebourg said the government, which owns a stake in Dailymotion's owner, France Telecom, would only approve a 50-50 deal. Yahoo walked away.

Business owners say that the government remains more of a hindrance than a help. There are too many regulations and too much paperwork even for mundane tasks.

But the fundamental problem French manufacturers face is simple: Workers get paid too much to make products that cost too little.

The French government argues that its hourly labor costs are not much higher than Germany's ? 34.20 euros per hour on average in 2012 versus 30.40 euros per hour, according to Eurostat. But France's range of products ? with some notable exceptions, like Chanel handbags or Moet & Chandon champagne ? is generally of a lower quality than Germany's.

In other words, if it costs the same to make a Peugeot as it does a BMW, guess which company is going to have more left over to reinvest in innovation? And investing in innovation is how you make a Peugeot more like a BMW.

And it's not even that France pays top dollar to attract the best workers. Its wages are above average, though not spectacularly so. But its payroll taxes are the highest in Europe.

The government's new "competitiveness tax credit," which will eventually give companies up to 6 percent back on some workers' salaries, is a step toward lessening this burden for a time. Early surveys, however, show few companies are taking advantage of it, according to study by consultancy Lowendalmasai.

How come? The paperwork is too complex.

___

Follow Sarah DiLorenzo at http://twitter.com/sdilorenzo.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-05-21-France-Sinking%20Economy/id-d49b4d1851ab4b4a8ee8a0a9716f4e3c

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White House says more farm subsidy cuts needed

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The White House says it would like to see more cuts to agriculture subsidies in a massive farm bill moving through the Senate this week.

The bill would cost almost $100 billion a year over five years and would set policy for farm programs and food aid. The legislation would cut about $2.4 billion annually from overall farm spending and would eliminate a controversial subsidy that is paid to farmers whether they farm or not. But it would still expand federally subsidized crop insurance and raise subsidies for rice and peanut farmers.

The Obama administration said Monday that it supports the legislation but would like to see more savings in the crop insurance and farm subsidy programs.

The Senate began debating the bill Monday.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/white-house-says-more-farm-subsidy-cuts-needed-214251928.html

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Mullets and more: Worst 'DWTS' costumes

TV

Anna Chan TODAY

2 hours ago

Few ballroom outfits will top the atrocities that were Marie Osmond's doll outfit or Bristol Palin's gorilla suit, but nevertheless, it seems the costume department at "Dancing With the Stars" tries each season.

We get that it's a tough gig -- the designers and seamstresses have to whip out multiple outfits a week, practically at the pace of "Project Runway's" challenges. They can't all look awesome! But can't they look a little bit better?

Here's a look at some of the more questionable costumes from the season. (Note: Kudos to whoever is dressing co-host Brooke Burke this season! She's never looked better!)

Which outfit do you think was the worst?

Source: http://www.today.com/entertainment/mullets-mustaches-more-worst-dancing-stars-costumes-1C9975047

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PFT: Bucs' Schiano 'not against' starting Glennon

AP

On Monday, the Broncos will practice for the first time as a team since capping a stellar regular season with an epic postseason collapse, thanks to a 70-yard touchdown pass that allowed the Ravens to force overtime.

The throw from Joe Flacco landed in the hands of Jacoby Jones because Denver safety Rahim Moore jumped too soon and flailed clumsily at the ball.? After, of course, Moore allowed Jones to run right past the safety.

But the Broncos are still sticking with Moore.? From coaches to players, Moore has been absolved of responsibility.

?I think he?s over it; I think we?re all over it, you know,? Denver defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio told the Associated Press.? ?I think we all look back and see things that we could have done better.?

Linebacker Von Miller take responsibility for not getting to Flacco before he could launch the desperation pass.

?Rahim made a few key tackles that day. He was all over the place. It was just a football folly,? Miller said. ?I don?t blame Rahim.? I blame me and Elvis [Dumervil]: 70 yards to go, we know they?re going to pass the ball.? That?s why they bring me and Elvis to close the game out and neither of us got to the quarterback.? I took it hard.?

Coach John Fox and executive V.P. of football operations John Elway both believe that Moore?s better days are in front of him.

?Rahim?s focus is on getting better from a year ago,? Fox said. ?And there wasn?t one play.? It was a whole season.? He made great, great progress a year ago from his rookie year and we anticipate him to do that again.? He?s a very talented young man.?

?[H]e made tremendous strides from Year One to Year Two,? executive V.P. of football operations John Elway said.? ?And I think hopefully he makes those same strides.? He really had a good year last year and we want to watch him to continue to grow.? Safety-wise, we feel pretty good.?

But not good enough to resist kicking the tires of Charles Woodson.

While there?s no reason for the Broncos to bail on a second-round pick in the 2011 draft, Moore?s ability to forget after having months to stew will be critical to whether he can continue to play at a high level ? and to keep getting better.

If he does, last year?s gaffe will become a distant memory.? A very bad, awful memory, but distant nonetheless.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/05/19/schiano-says-hes-not-against-starting-glennon/related/

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Very Fine Art: 6 Stunningly Beautiful Nanoscale Sculptures [Slide Show]

Researchers coax self-assembling materials into flowers, corals and other complex shapes

By Luciana Gravotta

Image: Wim L. Noorduin, Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

• 

  Showcasing more than fifty of the most provocative, original, and significant online essays from 2011, The Best Science Writing Online 2012 will change the way...

  Read More??

Artists and material scientists alike bend, melt and mold materials into useful and aesthetically pleasing forms. But nothing human hands have made can match the intricacy of convoluted corals or the delicate and unique geometry of a snowflake. In a study published yesterday in Science researchers exploited nature?s sculpting methods to create visually stunning 3-D structures that may change the way nano- and micro-materials are made.

Organisms alter their growth patterns in response to changes in their environments. For example, a seashell may switch from a spotted to a striped pattern if there is a change in the temperature, acidity or carbon dioxide level of the water. Wim L. Noorduin, a materials science engineer at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), used the same concept to coax self-assembling materials to ripple, spiral and bend into structures that resemble leaves, stems, flowers, vases and corals.

The fantastic micro-bouquets showcased in this slide show are not sculpted, but rather grown by design. Noorduin and his colleagues built these crystal structures in a stepwise fashion: first grow the vase, then the stems and finally the petals. The original images are black and white but the researchers false-colored each structure according to the sequence in which it was formed.

? View the Nanosculptured Flora Slide Show

Many nanostructures such as silicon memory cells are etched using lithography, a precise but expensive and labor-intensive technique that can only be used on flat surfaces. ?There is nothing now to create 3-D structures,? says professor of material science at SEAS, Joanna Aizenberg, who is principal investigator of the study and a pioneer in biomimetics (the use of biological systems as templates for creating materials or designing machines). The new technique is the first that can design and build 3-D structures. It is simple, cheap and efficient, as a whole forest of micro-flowers can assemble themselves simultaneously.

Although the structures created in this study are just for show, the technique has potential for future applications. The folds of these 3-D microstructures pack a large amount of surface area into a tiny space?an important consideration for the production of chemicals that depend on catalysts, substances that speed up chemical reactions. The more surface area available, the more catalysts you can add?and the more efficient the reaction.

The process can also be used to make nonsymmetrical (chiral) structures that may be useful for microcircuits, because chirality plays a role in conductivity.

? View the Nanosculptured Flora Slide Show

The technique still needs to be refined before it can be used in these types of applications. The team has developed a mathematical model that maps how the structures evolve, which is important for designing new shapes. Noorduin says they are now working on devices that will allow them to very precisely control the environmental conditions in order to standardize shapes and sizes. They will also need to figure out how to maintain the same level of control for other materials such as carbon, which is used for nanotubes.

Three years after having initiated the project, Noorduin says he still goes back to admire some of his favorite samples. He sits in front of the scanning electron microscope and peers through the lens: ?It feels like diving into a strange coral reef,? Noorduin says. ?You can spend hours looking at them.?

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=a901b72df7e56c42c557e243b80ee50e

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Opinion: Scandal about donors, not tax (CNN)

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

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/306594407?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Axio returns as Melon, an EEG headband that'll help you learn to focus

The quantified self movement's gaining steam, with companies creating all sorts of gadgets to track our activity levels, sleeping habits and even what's going on inside our heads. Melon's an EEG headband that taps into your brain's inner workings to show you how well you maintain mental focus. We actually saw Melon's prototype predecessor last year when it was called Axio, and while this new band packs largely the same components, the design's been refined to a much thinner profile. As before, its got a trio of electrodes for sensing brainwaves, a NeuroSky chip for filtering out extraneous electrical noise and Bluetooth 4.0 for offloading data wirelessly. It sends data to iPhones (Android's in development) running the Melon app, which translates that info into a focus graph -- generally speaking, the higher the neural activity in your pre-frontal cortex, the higher your level of focus. Users then input contextual data tags like time of day, type of activity and the surrounding environmental conditions to allow them to track variables that may affect their focus.

Filed under: Wearables

Comments

Source: Kickstarter

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/18/axio-melon-eeg-headband/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Distinkt Tattoos & Piercings : Entertainment Swindon

We promise to provide a clean,?friendly and professional place to get your new tattoo in comfortable surroundings.

We welcome you to come in and discuss your design ideas with one of our artists, or even if you are unsure of what you want,?we can create some ideas which might fit the bill

Due to lower running costs, We are happy to set our rates at ?50.00 per hour!

Neil is a tattoo artist and owner of Distinkt Tattoos. He has many years experience and has a great passion for the art of tattooing. He enjoys all styles of tattooing but favours old school/new school work as well as working on custom designs. ?I have created a professional and customer friendly studio which puts our clients first. We attract people of all ages over 18 and work with them to get the tattoo that they want. Making the whole experience professional, fun and exceeding our client?s expectations is the most important thing.?

James has loved all forms of art from an early age. He finished his apprenticeship 3 years ago and has enjoyed every minute since. His favourite style of work is out of the ordinary ideas that are more individual. Designing custom designs is also a passion whether through tattooing or other art forms.

Gavin is a fully trained professional body piercer, he is also a member of the A.M.P.P (association of modern professional piercers). He carries out a full range of body piercings and micro dermals in the studio.

Contact Details:

Tel: 01793 977151

Email: info@distinkttattoos.co.uk

Web: http://www.distinkttattoos.co.uk/?

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Tags: body art, faringdon road, ink swindon ink, piercing, swindon, swindon tattoo, tattoo, tattoo studio, tattoos

Category: Tattoo & Piercing Studios

Source: http://www.entertainmentswindon.co.uk/distinkt-tattoos-piercings/

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Roadside bomb kills 19 in west Baghdad: police, medics

This coming?weekend is a big one for?Saturday Night Live. It marks the end of Bill Hader's tenure on the show and Ben Affleck's fifth time hosting. But perhaps the most significant reason to tune in is the fact that Kanye West is the musical guest, and he's making it seem like he really, really doesn't want to be. With West's apparent frustration with the show and his penchant for, shall we say ... off-the-cuff remarks, producers should be worried and we should be excited. Is there a better combo than that?

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/roadside-bomb-kills-19-west-baghdad-police-medics-184649695.html

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Agriculture in China predates domesticated rice: Discovery of ancient diet shatters conventional ideas of how agriculture emerged

May 17, 2013 ? Archaeologists have made a discovery in southern subtropical China which could revolutionise thinking about how ancient humans lived in the region. They have uncovered evidence for the first time that people living in Xincun 5,000 years ago may have practised agriculture -- before the arrival of domesticated rice in the region.

Current archaeological thinking is that it was the advent of rice cultivation along the Lower Yangtze River that marked the beginning of agriculture in southern China. Poor organic preservation in the study region, as in many others, means that traditional archaeobotany techniques are not possible.

Now, thanks to a new method of analysis on ancient grinding stones, the archaeologists have uncovered evidence that agriculture could predate the advent of rice in the region.

The research was the result of a two-year collaboration between Dr Huw Barton, from the School of Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Leicester, and Dr Xiaoyan Yang, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in Beijing.

Funded by a Royal Society UK-China NSFC International Joint Project, and other grants held by Yang in China, the research is published in PLOS ONE.

Dr Barton, Senior Lecturer in Bioarchaeology at the University of Leicester, described the find as 'hitting the jackpot': "Our discovery is totally unexpected and very exciting.

"We have used a relatively new method known as ancient starch analysis to analyse ancient human diet. This technique can tell us things about human diet in the past that no other method can.

"From a sample of grinding stones we extracted very small quantities of adhering sediment trapped in pits and cracks on the tool surface. From this material, preserved starch granules were extracted with our Chinese colleagues in the starch laboratory in Beijing. These samples were analysed in China and also here at Leicester in the Starch and Residue Laboratory, School of Archaeology and Ancient History.

"Our research shows us that there was something much more interesting going on in the subtropical south of China 5,000 years ago than we had first thought. The survival of organic material is really dependent on the particular chemical properties of the soil, so you never know what you will get until you sample. At Xincun we really hit the jackpot. Starch was well-preserved and there was plenty of it. While some of the starch granules we found were species we might expect to find on grinding and pounding stones, ie. some seeds and tuberous plants such as freshwater chestnuts, lotus root and the fern root, the addition of starch from palms was totally unexpected and very exciting."

Several types of tropical palms store prodigious quantities of starch. This starch can be literally bashed and washed out of the trunk pith, dried as flour, and of course eaten. It is non-toxic, not particularly tasty, but it is reliable and can be processed all year round. Many communities in the tropics today, particularly in Borneo and Indonesia, but also in eastern India, still rely on flour derived from palms.

Dr Barton said: "The presence of at least two, possibly three species of starch producing palms, bananas, and various roots, raises the intriguing possibility that these plants may have been planted nearby the settlement.

"Today groups that rely on palms growing in the wild are highly mobile, moving from one palm stand to another as they exhaust the clump. Sedentary groups that utilise palms for their starch today, plant suckers nearby the village, thus maintaining continuous supply. If they were planted at Xincun, this implies that 'agriculture' did not arrive here with the arrival of domesticated rice, as archaeologists currently think, but that an indigenous system of plant cultivation may have been in place by the mid Holocene.

"The adoption of domesticated rice was slow and gradual in this region; it was not a rapid transformation as in other places. Our findings may indicate why this was the case. People may have been busy with other types of cultivation, ignoring rice, which may have been in the landscape, but as a minor plant for a long time before it too became a food staple.

"Future work will focus on grinding stones from nearby sites to see if this pattern is repeated along the coast."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/ehlHNvNJaR8/130517085734.htm

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Obama focusing on job creation in Baltimore visit

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is leaving behind scandal-focused Washington to focus on the country's slowly improving jobs picture.

Obama is to fly by helicopter Friday about 40 miles north to Baltimore, which has had its share of tough times in the move from an industrial to service economy. But Maryland has experienced steady job growth so far this year as part of a nationwide economic recovery.

The White House said the trip is designed to focus on three areas of needed investment to grow the middle class ? jobs, skills and opportunity.

The president plans to highlight one of the manufacturing companies still thriving in the city by speaking at Ellicott Dredges. It makes equipment for excavation under water and on beachfronts around the world.

Obama also plans to visit a community center that provides job training to parents and an elementary school that provides early childhood education. Obama has proposed that public preschool be available for all 4-year-olds from low-income families.

At Ellicott Dredges, Obama was to announce that he signed a memorandum to cut timelines in half for the permit process for major federal infrastructure projects. The White House said it's an important step in his goal of creating jobs by making urgent repairs to roads, bridges and railways.

The focus on Obama's economic agenda comes at the end of a week that has been consumed by a trio of controversies. They include the targeting of conservative political groups by the Internal Revenue Service, the administration's response to last year's deadly attack on a U.S. diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya, and the seizure of Associated Press phone records by the Justice Department as part of a leak investigation.

Obama's turn to the economy comes in a state that added 4,700 jobs in March, according to preliminary data released last month by the U.S. Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. That marked Maryland's fourth consecutive month of job growth. The Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation says the state has recovered nearly 97 percent of the jobs lost in the recession. Maryland's unemployment rate held at 6.6 percent in March.

"Last year, we had the best-rated job creation of any state in our region and we have very nearly recovered 100 percent of the jobs that we lost during the recession," Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley said at a bill-signing ceremony on Thursday.

___

Associated Press writer Brian Witte in Annapolis, Md., contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-focusing-job-creation-baltimore-080926794.html

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