Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Amer Sports profits fall in Q4 due to warm winter (AP)

HELSINKI ? Global sports equipment maker Amer Sports Corp., whose brands include Atomic, Salomon and Wilson, saw fourth-quarter net profit fall 18 percent to euro31.1 million ($41 million), partly because of a slow start to the winter season.

Revenue in the period was euro556.9 million ($730 million), down 5 percent a year earlier, the Finnish company said Tuesday.

In the full-year, however, sales grew 8 percent to a new record of euro1.9 billion, with net profit surging more than 30 percent to euro91 million.

Chief executive Heikki Takala warned that although 2011 was a record year, the Finnish company was hit by low demand in November and December because of warm weather in key markets, which also was expected to have an adverse impact on 2012 pre-orders.

"2011 was a record year for Amer Sports. Almost all of our business units and geographic regions are improving and we can see that the strategy announced in 2010 is proving to work," Takala said. "We do see some new challenges ? the winter sports equipment market will be challenging due to the slow start of the season ... Further, the economical environment remains cloudy."

Amer's share price closed up more than 1 percent at euro9.70 ($12.78) on the Helsinki Stock Exchange.

During October through December, Amer's net sales fell 10 percent in the winter and outdoor sector, but were up 22 percent in fitness equipment and 2 percent in ball sports.

Revenue fell in the company's largest market ? Europe, Middle East and Africa ? by 16 percent to euro274 million, but was up 12 percent in the Americas at euro205 million and 6 percent in Asia-Pacific at euro78 million.

The Helsinki-based company has 7,000 workers ? up from 6,500 last year ? with some 2,400 employed at sales and distribution points in 33 countries.

___

Online:

Company site: http://www.amersports.com

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120131/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_finland_earns_amer_sports

san diego chargers j.r. martinez snl lance ball lance ball kansas city chiefs chiefs

Good housing legislation could save the economy

Housing is the one area of policy with the greatest potential to actually move the needle on the economy

I don?t know if the President will say much about housing, but there are some important and potential helpful policy choices percolating in the background.

Skip to next paragraph Jared Bernstein

?

Before joining the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities as a senior fellow, Jared was chief economist to Vice President Joseph Biden and executive director of the White House Task Force on the Middle Class. He is a contributor to MSNBC and CNBC and has written numerous books, including 'Crunch: Why Do I Feel So Squeezed?'

Recent posts

I?ve long held that of all the stuff on the White House?s ?we-can?t-wait? list?things they can do to help the economy and jobs without going through that legislative death trap formerly known as Congress?housing policy is the one with the greatest potential to actually move the needle.

And the most helpful policy in housing is the reduction of mortgage principal for underwater homeowners.?? Research has clearly revealed that owing more than the value on your home is the strongest predictor of foreclosure, and housing finance analysts widely agree that principal reduction is the best medicine to avoid this outcome.

But what does any of this have to do with stuff we could actually do right now?? Good question.? The answer is that the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, could quickly reduce the principal on millions of home loans they own or insure, without going through Congress.

So, why haven?t they done so?? Another fine question.?? First, you need to recall that Fan and Fred are 80% owned by the US gov?t right now, and FHFA, as conservator, wants to protect the taxpayer.? That?s fine?we thank you, FHFA.?

But?and news accounts have been getting this quite wrong?FHFA believes that loan forgiveness (principal reduction) would only save the taxpayers $20 billion while loan forbearance would save $24 billion (the latter modifies the loan, it does not reduce it).??

In other words, the FHFA agrees that both types of loan adjustments would reduce defaults and thus reduce losses to taxpayers, with a slight advantage to forbearance, which, as I?ll argue in a moment, is very likely incorrect.? I think if you did the analysis right, forgiveness would trump forbearance by a long shot.? But given the fact that reduction would clean this mess up a whole lot faster and more reliably than just changing the terms of the loans, and that taxpayers save either way, the path ahead?toward forgiveness, not forbearance?should be clear.

Unfortunately, the FHFA is placing landmines in that path.? Based on a letter reviewing all this by FHFA acting director Ed DeMarco, news accounts like this or this are reporting that if Fan and Fred were to reduce the principal on a subset of the mortgages they own or insure, it would cost?taxpayers $100 billion.

This $100 billion (it?s actually $102bn), however, is a gross number?it is the losses to the agencies, and the taxpayers, from all the mortgage defaults that FHFA expects to occur if they neither forbear nor reduce principal.? The relevant numbers, however, are the difference between the losses under a forbearance program ($78 billion), or a reduction program ($82 billion) and the cost of doing nothing.

The punch line, then, is that by their estimates, forgiveness saves the taxpayer $20 billion; forbearance, $24 billion.

But for a number of reasons, FHFA?s methods make forbearance look better than it really is.? This is some weedy stuff, but it matters:

?they use a state level price index rather than a localized price level.? This approach averages across cities with huge price drops and those with normal price declines, and thus reduces the number of the deeply underwater borrowers.*?? That in turn understates the impact of the policy most helpful to those borrowers: principal reduction.

?they use FICO credit scores and debt-to-income ratios at the time of loan origination rather than where those measures are today.? Obviously, they?re worse today, so this makes the agencies? book look better than it really is, and again, understates the benefits to principal reduction.? In other words, the way they do it artificially lowers their expected default rate, and so the policy that?s most effective against defaults for those with lower FICOs and higher DTIs gets less credit than it should.

?they assume that all of their debt forgiven in their forbearance programs is repaid?100% of it.?? That?s not realistic and it significantly reduces the cost of this option. ? Simply building in a realistic default rate for debt that?s been pushed back to the end of the loan would raise the cost of forbearance relative to principal reduction.

Any one of these changes will sop up the $4 billion difference in an NY minute, showing forgiveness to dominate forbearance.? But even if the FHFA wants to stick with their numbers, reductions will go to work much more quickly and effectively to prevent defaults.?

If they keep coming up with reasons not to do the right thing, the White House should do the right thing and replace DeMarco?a perfect good guy who believes he?s doing the right thing here but isn?t?with someone who gets the urgency of the situation.

*Imagine a) that anyone with a home price decline of 30% is underwater and needs a loan mod, and b) a state has two homeowners in two different cities.? Homeowner A?s price went up 30%, homeowner B?s price went down 30%. Average them together across the state and no one needs a mod; use the local price index, and B should get one.

The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on jaredbernsteinblog.com.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/REkhgMN9CWg/Good-housing-legislation-could-save-the-economy

marine corps veterans day 2011 veterans day 2011 cnbc debate family circus spanier walmart black friday ad

Monday, January 30, 2012

Life Out There | Starry Dreams and Financial Woes: SETI Research Is Revived - Life Out There

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Operating on money and equipment scrounged from the public and from Silicon Valley millionaires, a band of astronomers recently restarted the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=53798e171a274bb93be016758fe96374

the hobbit movie trailer tcu xfactor frankincense cloudy with a chance of meatballs the hobbit movie orcl

House mice serenade mates with 'bird' song

Most people are familiar with the telltale squeak of a mouse scurrying out of their pantry, but scientists have long known that these aren?t the only noises house mice make. During courtship, the rodents also communicate in the ultrasonic frequency range, which sits beyond human hearing. Now, new research shows that these mating vocalizations are more than just your typical squeaks ? they?re songs, not unlike those you?d expect to hear from courting birds.

?It seems as though house mice might provide a new model organism for the study of song in animals," lead researcher Dustin Penn, an evolutionary biologist at the Veterinary University of Vienna in Austria, said in a statement. "Who would have thought that?"

Over the last few years, Penn and his colleagues conducted a series of studies on the courtship vocalizations of house mice. In their initial research, published in the journal Animal Behavior in 2010, they caught wild male and female house mice and looked at the vocal nature of their courtship routines.

  1. More science news from msnbc.com

    1. Library?putting the 3-D back into century-old photos

      In a cool new undertaking, the ever-forward-thinking New York Public Library has pulled together a vast collection of roughly 100-year-old archival images for a very clever proto-3-D project.

    2. Deep-sea fish recordings reveal grunts and quacks
    3. Mesopotamian riddles of sex, beer and politics
    4. Camera-nabbing leopards caught on video

They found that most of the male mice would start their ultrasonic calls the moment they caught the urine scent of a sexually mature female. When the researchers played these calls back to the females, they learned that the females could somehow tell the difference between the calls of their siblings and the calls of unrelated males ? the females showed little interest in the squeaks of their brothers.

More recently, the researchers began analyzing several audio parameters, including duration, pitch and frequency, of the mating calls of wild-caught house mice. To their surprise, they found that the squeaks are quite complex and contain several features seen in bird songs, such as variations in duration and frequency of call syllables (units of sounds separated by silence).

When they compared the songs with one another, they saw that the vocalizations contained signatures of individuality and kinship. They also found that the songs of siblings were more similar to one anther than the songs of unrelated males.

The researchers now plan to look at how song quality affects mate choice ? in some bird species, males with the most complex songs win all the females. Future studies will also focus on figuring out how related mice have such similar songs.

"The familial effects we found might be explained by imprinting (social learning), as with bird song, genetic differences, or both," they write in their most recent study, published in the January issue of the journal Physiology & Behavior.

? 2012 LiveScience.com. All rights reserved.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46184222/ns/technology_and_science-science/

brooklyn bridge lady antebellum marques colston listeria listeria kendall hunter 50 50

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Actress' claim to be gay by choice riles activists (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO ? Cynthia Nixon learned the hard way this week that when it comes to gay civil rights, the personal is always political. Very political.

The actress best known for portraying fiery lawyer Miranda Hobbes on "Sex and the City" is up to her perfectly arched eyebrows in controversy since The New York Times Magazine published a profile in which she was quoted as saying that for her, being gay was a conscious choice. Nixon is engaged to a woman with whom she has been in a relationship for eight years. Before that, she spent 15 years and had two children with a man.

"I understand that for many people it's not, but for me it's a choice, and you don't get to define my gayness for me," Nixon said while recounting some of the flak gay rights activists previously had given her for treading in similar territory. "A certain section of our community is very concerned that it not be seen as a choice, because if it's a choice, then we could opt out. I say it doesn't matter if we flew here or we swam here, it matters that we are here and we are one group and let us stop trying to make a litmus test for who is considered gay and who is not."

To say that a certain segment of the gay community "is very concerned that it not be seen as a choice" is an understatement. Gay rights activists have worked hard to combat the idea that people decide to be physically attracted to same-sex partners any more than they choose to be attracted to opposite-sex ones because the question, so far unanswered by science, is often used by religious conservatives, including GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum and former candidate Michelle Bachman, to argue that homosexuality is immoral behavior, not an inherent trait.

Among the activists most horrified by Nixon's comments was Truth Wins Out founder Wayne Besen, whose organization monitors and tries to debunk programs that claim to cure people of same-sex attractions with therapy. Besen said he found the actress' analysis irresponsible and flippant, despite her ample caveats.

"Cynthia did not put adequate thought into the ramifications of her words, and it is going to be used when some kid comes out and their parents force them into some ex-gay camp while she's off drinking cocktails at fancy parties," Besen said. "When people say it's a choice, they are green-lighting an enormous amount of abuse because if it's a choice, people will try to influence and guide young people to what they perceive as the right choice."

Nixon's publicist did not respond to an e-mail asking if the actress wished to comment on the criticism.

While the broader gay rights movement recognizes that human sexuality exists on a spectrum, and has found common cause with transgender and bisexual people, Nixon may have unwittingly given aid and comfort to those who want to deny same-sex couples the right to marry, adopt children and secure equal spousal benefits, said Jennifer Pizer, legal director of the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and the Law, a pro-gay think tank based at the University of California, Los Angeles.

One of the factors courts consider in determining if a law is unconstitutional is whether members of the minority group it targets share an unchangeable or "immutable" trait, Pizer noted. Although the definition of how fixed a characteristic has to be to qualify as immutable still is evolving ? religious affiliation, for example, is recognized as grounds for equal protection ? the U.S. Supreme Court still has not included sexual orientation among the traits "so integral to personhood it's not something the government should require people to change," she said.

"If gay people in this country had more confidence that their individual freedom was going to be respected, then the temperature would lower a bit on the immutability question because the idea of it being a choice wouldn't seem to stack the deck against their rights," Pizer said.

Nixon stirred the identity politics pot further when she explained in a follow-up interview with The Daily Beast this week that she purposefully rejected identifying herself as bisexual even though her history suggested it was an accurate term.

"I don't pull out the "bisexual" word because nobody likes the bisexuals. Everybody likes to dump on the bisexuals," she said. "But I do completely feel that when I was in relationships with men, I was in love and in lust with those men. And then I met (her fiance) Christine and I fell in love and lust with her. I am completely the same person and I was not walking around in some kind of fog. I just responded to the people in front of me the way I truly felt."

Although science has not identified either a purely biological or sociological basis for sexual orientation, University of California, Davis psychologist Gregory Herek, an expert on anti-gay prejudice, said Nixon's experience is consistent with research showing that women have an easier time moving between opposite and same-sex partners.

A survey Herek conducted of gay men, lesbians and bisexuals of both genders bore this out. Sixteen percent of the lesbians surveyed reported they felt they had had a fair amount of choice in their sexual orientations, while only five percent of the gay men did. Among bisexuals, the figures were 40 percent for men and 45 percent for women.

What remains to be teased out, Herek said, is how a representative national sample of heterosexuals would answer the same question, and what people mean when their sexual orientation was a choice or not. Are they talking about their sexual desires? Acting on those desires? Or simply the identity they choose to show to the world?

"The nature vs. nurture debate really is passe," he said. "The debate is not really an either/or debate in the vast majority of cases, but how much of each. We don't know how big a role biology plays and how big a role culture plays. A possibility not often discussed is it's not the same for everybody."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_en_tv/us_cynthia_nixon_gay_by_choice

sandra dee nfl draft 2012 december 21 2012 mayan calendar jenny mccarthy rose bowl 2012 nfl playoff picture

Mivizu Sense Leather iPad 2 Case

The Sense Apple iPad 2 Leather Case from Mivizu completely covers your iPad 2 in leather.? The iPad 2 slides into a geniune grain leather frame with a padded back for extra protection.? The interior is lined with microfiber fabric to help keep the screen cleaned.? The folding cover wakes/sleeps your device and protects your [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/01/27/mivizu-sense-leather-ipad-2-case/

ny knicks sound of music ihop green bean casserole the temptations prime rib recipe norad santa tracker

Saturday, January 28, 2012

NY art dealer charged in $4M fraud (AP)

NEW YORK ? A New York art dealer has been charged in a $4 million fraud for selling works by Picasso, Matisse and others without informing the owner or giving him the proceeds.

The charges in a criminal complaint in Manhattan accuse Robert Scott Cook of selling 16 works of art without the owner/collector's knowledge. The artwork included watercolors, drawings, photographs, and other works by artists including Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, among others.

Lawyers in court papers filed in a civil case against him say Cook is likely living abroad because he travels frequently around the world. A lawyer for the 62-year-old Cook did not immediately return a phone message for comment.

From 2005 to 2011, Cook owned Cook Fine Art, LLC.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/arts/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_on_en_ot/us_art_dealer_charged

bill buckner dancing with the stars 2011 christmas island antonio gates antonio gates challah oxford comma

The Love Box is an analog video mixer, house of mirrors for your iPhone (video)

There's something romantic about hacking the iPhone, especially when it means finding ways to personalize the massively popular handset. Apps like Instagram may help you realize artistic talent, but software just doesn't get those creative juices flowing like an old-fashioned piece of hardware can. Despite its taboo-sounding name, The Love Box isn't an adult toy in the traditional sense, instead serving as an analog video (and stills) mixer for your iPhone 4 or 4S. Consisting of a wooden box and an angled sliding mirror, the homegrown contraption lets you simultaneously capture the action in front of and behind you in a single image. It was originally designed in Barcelona to capture two people conversing for a documentary called "The Love Box Conversations," hence the name. The "lowest-tech accessory for the highest-tech phone" is available now as part of a very limited initial run of 100 units, and can be yours for €57.63 (about $77.50) if you hit up the source link below.

Continue reading The Love Box is an analog video mixer, house of mirrors for your iPhone (video)

The Love Box is an analog video mixer, house of mirrors for your iPhone (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink MAKE  |  sourceEtsy  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/27/the-love-box-is-an-analog-video-mixer-house-of-mirrors-for-your/

javascript history channel est maze scholarships vanity fair boo

Friday, January 27, 2012

Khmer Rouge tribunal halts salaries for Cambodians (AP)

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia ? About 300 Cambodians working at the U.N.-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal will not be paid this month ? and some have worked without pay since October ? because funds from donor countries have dried up, a tribunal spokesman said Thursday.

International staff are paid by the United Nations and will continue to receive salaries. The salaries of local staff, however, are funded by contributions from donor countries, said Huy Vannak, a tribunal spokesman.

"Despite the fact that no key donor countries have pledged any new financial assistance, the court pursues its work as normal," he said.

The tribunal is seeking justice for an estimated 1.7 million people who died from torture, starvation, exhaustion or lack of medical care during the Khmer Rouge's 1970s rule. It opened in 2006 after years of wrangling between Cambodia and the United Nations, and just one trial has been completed.

The lengthy delays have been costly and raised fears justice will not be achieved due to the shaky health of the aging defendants. Its latest hurdle is a disagreement between the United Nations and Cambodia over the appointment of a new judge.

About two-thirds of the tribunal's 480 employees are Cambodian. Cambodian judges and prosecutors stopped receiving salaries in October, while the remainder who do mostly administrative work will not be paid this month, Huy Vannak said.

David Scheffer, the U.N. special expert to the tribunal who concluded a four-day visit Wednesday, said it was repeatedly brought to his attention that "certain Cambodian staff had not received their salary since October."

"This is great concern for the Cambodian staff," Scheffer told reporters. "I made this point very directly in my meeting with government officials."

The United Nations has accused the Cambodian government of violating an agreement that established the tribunal to prosecute Khmer Rouge war crimes suspects by refusing to appoint a Swiss jurist as a co-investigating judge.

Laurent Kasper-Ansermet was chosen to replace German Judge Siegfried Blunk, who resigned in October. Human rights groups had criticized Blunk for failing to fully investigate new suspects, but Blunk defended his record and blamed government pressure for the lack of new cases.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has openly opposed expanding the trials by adding indictments of other former Khmer Rouge figures, some of whom have become his political allies.

The tribunal's first verdict came last year when former prison chief Kaing Guek Eav was sentenced to 35 years in prison for war crimes, crimes against humanity and other offenses.

Three top Khmer Rouge leaders accused of orchestrating Cambodia's "killing fields" went on trial in late November.

The tribunal was originally set to end its work in 2009 and its original budget was about $50 million. The total expenditure from 2006-2011 has been estimated at $150 million, the court said.

(This version CORRECTS that the Cambodians' salaries are paid by donor countries, not Cambodia.)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_re_as/as_cambodia_khmer_rouge

christopher walken ok state ok state kurt budke regis philbin regis and kelly reno fire

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Lytro open to partnering with smartphone makers, executive suggests

Now that its famed light field camera has finally become official, Lytro is looking to the future, with an eye, apparently, toward the cellphone market. During a recent interview with PC World, Lytro executive chairman Charles Chi described his company's new sensor in greater detail, and talked at length about its purportedly superior battery life. He also divulged a few hints about Lytro's roadmap. When asked whether the firm would ever license its technology to a smartphone manufacturer, Chi confirmed that Lytro has "the capital to do that, the capability in the company to do that, and... the vision to execute," before launching into an explanation of what it would take for such an initiative to succeed:

If we were to apply the technology in smartphones, that ecosystem is, of course, very complex, with some very large players there. It's an industry that's very different and driven based on operational excellence. For us to compete in there, we'd have to be a very different kind of company. So if we were to enter that space, it would definitely be through a partnership and a codevelopment of the technology, and ultimately some kind of licensing with the appropriate partner.

Far from a confirmation, to be sure, but it seems like the handset market is at least on Lytro's radar. Read the full Q&A at the link below.

Lytro open to partnering with smartphone makers, executive suggests originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourcePC World  | Email this | Comments


Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/25Of9w88fZQ/

osiris 9 11 memorial 9 11 memorial chuck explosion plaxico burress kenya

?Teen Mom 2? Star Leah Messer Suffers Miscarriage

“Teen Mom 2″ Star Leah Messer Suffers Miscarriage

Leah Messer, who stars as the young mom of twins on reality show “Teen Mom 2″, has suffered a miscarriage. Just weeks ago, Leah announced [...]

“Teen Mom 2″ Star Leah Messer Suffers Miscarriage Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/stupidcelebrities/~3/cXGzQlI-Lcw/

halloween movies halloween movies new york snow new york snow braxton miller braxton miller noreaster

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

If Dooce Can?t Make an Egalitarian Marriage Work, Who Can?

So this endeavor supported her family in luxurious style, but it still allowed them to have a wonderfully flexible life; they could get all the fulfilling, lucrative work done and still pick their kids up from school every day. Many of her readers want and appreciate what she appeared to have?a thriving home business with a ?[l]over, business partner, best friend,? which is how Armstrong described Jon three years ago. Her marriage seemed aspirational, yet attainable?particularly because their lives weren?t entirely perfect, given Armstrong?s depression and anxiety, and her husband?s own mental health issues.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=ebe54ed3e43f340210fcd969d4de95e5

omarion gabby gabby marcel the shell with shoes on ecu john wooden mirror mirror

Bonobos' unusual success story

Bonobos' unusual success story [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 23-Jan-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Dr. Tobias Deschner
deschner@eva.mpg.de
49-341-355-0207
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft

Max Planck researchers reveal the structure of the cellular protein degradation machinery

This release is available in German.

Mate competition by males over females is common in many animal species. During mating season male testosterone levels rise, resulting in an increase in aggressive behavior and masculine features. Male bonobos, however, invest much more into friendly relationships with females. Elevated testosterone and aggression levels would collide with this increased tendency towards forming pair-relationships.

Bonobos are among the closest living relatives of humans. Like other great apes they live in groups made up of several males and females. Contrary to other ape species however, male bonobos do not, in general, outrank female individuals and do not dominate them in mating contexts. This constellation suggests that the selection for typically masculine behavioral patterns like aggression, dominance and intrasexual competition are met with antagonistic forces: On one hand it is advantageous if a male outcompetes a fellow male. This, however, implies that there is increased aggression and an elevated level of testosterone in high-ranking males. On the other hand as dominance relations between the sexes are rather balanced in bonobos it is likely that males benefit from having friendly pair-relationships with female individuals. Studies with birds and rodents show that a tendency towards forming pair-relationships correlates with lower male aggression rates and testosterone levels.

In a current study, Martin Surbeck, Gottfried Hohmann, Tobias Deschner and colleagues of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, found that in wild bonobos high-ranking males were more aggressive and their mating success was higher when compared to lower-ranking males. Contrary to other species in which males compete fiercely over access to females, there was no correlation between dominance status or aggression with testosterone levels. In addition, the researchers found that high-ranking males invested more often than lower-ranking group members into friendly relationships with females. This suggests that these friendly relationships between the sexes are associated with lower male testosterone levels.

"Our study suggests that in bonobos as in in humans intersexual friendships result in hormonal patterns that we know from species in which male individuals are actively participating in raising their young and in which the two sexes enter lasting pair-relationships", says Martin Surbeck.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share 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.


Bonobos' unusual success story [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 23-Jan-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Dr. Tobias Deschner
deschner@eva.mpg.de
49-341-355-0207
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft

Max Planck researchers reveal the structure of the cellular protein degradation machinery

This release is available in German.

Mate competition by males over females is common in many animal species. During mating season male testosterone levels rise, resulting in an increase in aggressive behavior and masculine features. Male bonobos, however, invest much more into friendly relationships with females. Elevated testosterone and aggression levels would collide with this increased tendency towards forming pair-relationships.

Bonobos are among the closest living relatives of humans. Like other great apes they live in groups made up of several males and females. Contrary to other ape species however, male bonobos do not, in general, outrank female individuals and do not dominate them in mating contexts. This constellation suggests that the selection for typically masculine behavioral patterns like aggression, dominance and intrasexual competition are met with antagonistic forces: On one hand it is advantageous if a male outcompetes a fellow male. This, however, implies that there is increased aggression and an elevated level of testosterone in high-ranking males. On the other hand as dominance relations between the sexes are rather balanced in bonobos it is likely that males benefit from having friendly pair-relationships with female individuals. Studies with birds and rodents show that a tendency towards forming pair-relationships correlates with lower male aggression rates and testosterone levels.

In a current study, Martin Surbeck, Gottfried Hohmann, Tobias Deschner and colleagues of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, found that in wild bonobos high-ranking males were more aggressive and their mating success was higher when compared to lower-ranking males. Contrary to other species in which males compete fiercely over access to females, there was no correlation between dominance status or aggression with testosterone levels. In addition, the researchers found that high-ranking males invested more often than lower-ranking group members into friendly relationships with females. This suggests that these friendly relationships between the sexes are associated with lower male testosterone levels.

"Our study suggests that in bonobos as in in humans intersexual friendships result in hormonal patterns that we know from species in which male individuals are actively participating in raising their young and in which the two sexes enter lasting pair-relationships", says Martin Surbeck.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share 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/2012-01/m-bus012312.php

the unit seabiscuit bob weston david wilson reggie mckenzie bill obrien exorcism

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Here's a List Of Google's Biggest Advertisers - Business Insider

Google's revenues were $37.9 billion last year and 96 percent of that came from advertising. It's less clear, however, who Google's biggest advertisers are.

Search engine marketing company Wordstream has compiled a database of information on Google's advertisers based on its trillion-keyword database and its Google Keyword Tool. It determined the top 10 million search queries of 2011, as well as their average cost-per-click prices as paid by advertisers who bought space next to those results.

The company then, naturally, made an infographic to display its results.

Google's biggest advertiser is Lowe's, the home improvement chain, which spent $59.1 million on ads with the search engine last year.

Its second biggest is Amazon, which spent $55.2 million.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/googles-biggest-advertisers-are-also-its-enemies-2012-1

jeremy maclin nascar news emmys 2011 emmys 2011 emmy nominations 2011 knowshon moreno knowshon moreno

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Spokesman: Paterno in serious condition

People gather at a statue of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in State College, Pa, on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Joe Paterno's doctors say the former coach's condition has become "serious" after he experienced complications from lung cancer in recent days. (AP Photo/John Beale)

People gather at a statue of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in State College, Pa, on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Joe Paterno's doctors say the former coach's condition has become "serious" after he experienced complications from lung cancer in recent days. (AP Photo/John Beale)

FILE - In this Nov. 7, 2009, file photo, Penn State Coach Joe Paterno stands with his players before taking the field for an NCAA college football game against Ohio State in State College, Pa. A family spokesman says the former Penn State coach, who is battling lung cancer, is in serious condition after experiencing health complications. The 85-year-old Paterno has been in the hospital since Jan. 13 for observation for what his family had called minor complications from cancer treatments. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

People gather at a statue of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in State College, Pa., on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Paterno's doctors say the former coach's condition has become "serious" after he experienced complications from lung cancer in recent days. (AP Photo/John Beale)

FILE - In this Oct. 13, 2007, file photo, Penn State head coach Joe Paterno stands with his team before they take the field to play for an NCAA college football game against Wisconsin in State College, Pa. A family spokesman says the former Penn State coach, who is battling lung cancer, is in serious condition after experiencing health complications. The 85-year-old Paterno has been in the hospital since Jan. 13 for observation for what his family had called minor complications from cancer treatments. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Candles, flowers, notes and other mementos are placed at a statue of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in State College, Pa., on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Paterno's doctors say the former coach's condition has become "serious" after he experienced complications from lung cancer in recent days. (AP Photo/John Beale)

(AP) ? Joe Paterno's doctors said Saturday that the former Penn State coach's condition had become "serious," following complications from lung cancer in recent days.

The winningest major college football coach, Paterno was diagnosed shortly after Penn State's Board of Trustees ousted him Nov. 9 in the aftermath of the child sex abuse charges against former assistant Jerry Sandusky. While undergoing treatment, his health problems worsened when he broke his pelvis ? the same injury he sustained during preseason practice last year.

"Over the last few days Joe Paterno has experienced further health complications," family spokesman Dan McGinn said in a brief statement to The Associated Press. "His doctors have now characterized his status as serious. His family will have no comment on the situation and asks that their privacy be respected during this difficult time."

Paterno's sons Scott and Jay each took to Twitter on Saturday night to refute reports that their father had died.

Wrote Jay Paterno: "I appreciate the support & prayers. Joe is continuing to fight."

Quoting individuals close to the family, The Washington Post reported on its website that Paterno remained connected to a ventilator, but had communicated his wishes not to be kept alive through any extreme artificial means. The paper said his family was weighing whether to take him off the ventilator on Sunday.

The 85-year-old Paterno has been in the hospital since Jan. 13 for observation for what his family called minor complications from his cancer treatments. Not long before that, he conducted his only interview since losing his job, with the Post. Paterno was described as frail and wearing a wig. The second half of the two-day interview was conducted from his bedside.

Roughly 200 students and townspeople gathered Saturday night at a statue of Paterno just outside a gate at Beaver Stadium. Some brought candles, while others held up their smart phones to take photos of the scene. The mood was somber, with no chanting or shouting.

"Drove by students at the Joe statue," Jay Paterno tweeted. "Just told my Dad about all the love & support--inspiring him."

Penn State student David Marselles held a candle in his right hand and posed next to a life-sized cardboard cutout of Paterno that he keeps at his apartment. A friend took a photo on the frigid night.

"I came to Penn State because of Joe Paterno. Since I was a little kid, I've been watching the games ... screaming 'We Are ... Penn State' because of him. ... He inspired me to go to college," Marselles said. "With such a tragic event like this, I just thought it was necessary to show my support."

The final days of Paterno's Penn State career were easily the toughest in his 61 years with the university and 46 seasons as head football coach.

Sandusky, a longtime defensive coordinator who was on Paterno's staff during two national title seasons, was arrested Nov. 5 and ultimately charged with sexually abusing a total of 10 boys over 15 years. His arrest sparked outrage not just locally but across the nation and there were widespread calls for Paterno to quit.

Paterno announced late on Nov. 9 that he would retire at the end of the season, but hours later he received a call from board vice chairman John Surma, telling him he had been terminated. By that point, a crowd of students and media were outside the Paterno home. When news spread that Paterno had been dumped, there was rioting in State College.

Police on Saturday evening barricaded the block where Paterno lives, and a police car was stationed about 50 yards from his home. Several people had gathered in the living room of the house. No one was outside, other than reporters and photographers.

Trustees said this week they pushed Paterno out in part because he failed a moral responsibility to report an allegation made in 2002 against Sandusky to authorities outside the university. They also felt he had challenged their authority and that, as a practical matter, with all the media in town and attention to the Sandusky case, he could no longer run the team.

Paterno testified before the grand jury investigating Sandusky that he had relayed to his bosses an accusation that came from graduate assistant Mike McQueary, who said he saw Sandusky abusing a boy in the showers of the Penn State football building.

Paterno told the Post that he didn't know how to handle the charge, but a day after McQueary visited him, he spoke to the athletic director and the administrator with oversight over the campus police.

Wick Sollers, Paterno's lawyer, called the board's comments this week self-serving and unsupported by the facts. Paterno fully reported what he knew to the people responsible for campus investigations, Sollers said.

"He did what he thought was right with the information he had at the time," Sollers said.

Sandusky says he is innocent and is out on bail, awaiting trial.

The back and forth between Paterno's representative and the board reflects a trend in recent weeks, during which Penn State alumni ? and especially former players, including Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris ? have questioned the trustees' actions and accused them of failing to give Paterno a chance to defend himself.

Three town halls, in Pittsburgh, suburban Philadelphia and New York City, seemed to do little to calm the situation and dozens of candidates have now expressed interest in running for the board, a volunteer position that typically attracts much less interest.

While everyone involved has said the focus should be on Sandusky's accusers and their ordeals, the abuse scandal brought a tarnished ending to Paterno's sterling career. Paterno won 409 games and took the Nittany Lions to 37 bowl games and those two national championships, the last in the 1986 season. More than 250 of the players he coached went on to the NFL.

Throughout his coaching years, Paterno maintained that, yes, winning was important, but even more important was winning with honor.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-22-Penn%20State-Paterno/id-65e609a0835648bbba01c7b4b0aa3736

freetown freetown nicole scherzinger modern family troy davis troy davis cough

Jennifer Garner: Violet and Seraphina?s Baby Name Choices ?Definitely Disney?

Garner knows the sex of the baby, but declined to reveal it on the show. Asked if her husband wants a boy, Garner - who has said she wants a third girl - said she actually didn't know.

Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/b_Z9SxkMWhM/

van jones van jones dark energy dark energy sherri shepherd sherri shepherd sean avery

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Video: Race sets GOP debate on fire

Silva: Breaking down AFC, NFC championship games

Silva: The NFL's crucial weekend has arrived. Four teams, two title games and the winners advance to Super Bowl XLVI. Here's breakdown of the divisional games this weekend, which focuses on each team's strengths, weaknesses, X-factors and the keys to winning.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46046698#46046698

once upon a time demarco murray teresa giudice red ribbon week much ado about nothing sean hayes caroline manzo

Jackson doc won't be asked to pay restitution (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? Prosecutors will not seek restitution against the doctor convicted of killing Michael Jackson after conferring with the singer's parents and attorneys for his estate and children.

The request for payments from Conrad Murray was withdrawn Wednesday during a brief court hearing, just days before a judge was scheduled to consider how much the former cardiologist should pay to members of Jackson's family or his estate.

Deputy District Attorney David Walgren told the judge handling the case that he was withdrawing the restitution request after speaking with Jackson's mother, Katherine, and attorney for his father, Joseph. Walgren also consulted with an attorney for the singer's estate and a court-appointed attorney representing the interests of Jackson's three children, a transcript of the proceedings shows.

Murray remains in jail after being convicted in November of involuntary manslaughter. He was sentenced to serve four years in jail, but his incarceration will be cut in half due to overcrowding and California's budget crunch.

Jackson's estate estimated the singer would have earned at least $100 million if he had performed his "This Is It" concerts planned for London's O2 arena. Murray might have also been found liable for Jackson's funeral expenses, which totaled more than $1.8 million. Murray's attorneys said he had nowhere near the money to pay either amount, and he filed paperwork last month indicating he is indigent.

Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor ruled that the family was waiving its right to restitution permanently, although two separate cases pending in a Los Angeles civil court seek damages for the King of Pop's June 2009 death. Katherine Jackson is suing concert giant AEG Live, which was promoting Jackson's planned series of comeback concerts, claiming they failed to properly supervise Murray.

Joseph Jackson is suing AEG Live, alleging negligence by the entertainment promoter in his son's death, and he is suing Murray for wrongful death in the case.

Murray's attorney, J. Michael Flanagan, said he was pleased to have the restitution issue resolved. Flanagan said during Wednesday's hearing that he intends to seek bail for Murray while he appeals his conviction, according to the transcript, but he was told to put the request in writing.

The fate of Joseph Jackson's civil case remains unclear. A California bar court in Los Angeles recommended Friday that the Jackson family patriarch's attorney, Brian Oxman, be barred from practicing law because of conduct on other, unrelated cases. Oxman filed Joseph Jackson's lawsuit in federal court on the one-year anniversary of the singer's death, but a judge later ruled it should be heard in state court. Oxman is the only attorney who has been listed on the case so far and has been a vocal antagonist against Murray and AEG Live.

Reached by phone, Oxman declined to comment on the recommendation, which still must be approved by the California Supreme Court.

The disciplinary court found that Oxman and his wife, who is also his law partner, mixed clients' and personal funds in an effort to evade creditors and sanctions imposed against Oxman. He had been disciplined previously, which the court cited among its reasons for seeking the revocation of his law license.

___

Follow Anthony McCartney at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120119/ap_en_mu/us_michael_jackson_doctor

hcm loretta lynn gene kelly zoe saldana zooey deschanel and joseph gordon levitt andrew bailey debra messing

Friday, January 20, 2012

Understanding Greece's bond swap deal (AP)

The Greek government has resumed talks with its private creditors in Athens in the hope of sealing a debt relief deal needed to avoid a disastrous default.

The country's government in Athens needs to clinch the agreement quickly to qualify for more bailout loans before it faces a massive debt repayment. Without the bond swap deal, Greece will be cut off from its rescue loans.

Here are some questions and answers about the current round of talks:

Q: What are the main points of the potential deal?

A: Private creditors would accept a 50 percent cut to the face value of the Greek bonds they hold. That would be achieved by swapping their existing bonds with new ones with a longer maturity period and possibly lower interest rates.

Q: Why is this deal so important?

A: Greece's debt obligations are so large that it cannot afford to pay them, even if it gets a promised second package of bailout loans. On March 20 it faces a euro14.5 billion bond repayment, which it cannot afford without help. The private creditors' deal will reduce Greece's privately held debt by euro100 billion ($128 billion) and extend the repayment times, giving it vital breathing space.

Q: What happens if it fails?

A: Greece would almost certainly default on its debts, probably on March 20. Greece's rescue creditors ? fellow eurozone countries, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund ? have said they would give Athens no more support if the PSI deal is not reached.

The PSI deal is essential if Greece is to get a second, euro130 billion bailout from its fellow eurozone countries, the ECB and IMF. A Greek default would threaten the country's position in the 17-nation euro, spread the crisis rapidly to other eurozone countries by making it harder for them to borrow money on international markets. That would endanger the joint currency itself.

Q: Why would private bondholders agree to take such a big loss?

A: Because it is clear Greece can't repay the full amount, and if the country defaults they risk getting nothing. Many might also hold debt from other eurozone countries, which they do not want to be affected.

Q: Must the deal be voluntary?

A: The success of the deal relies on the vast majority of private creditors agreeing voluntarily. If the deal is imposed against their will, it could trigger the payment of credit default swaps (CDS), essentially insurance against a default. Those payouts could be huge and destabilize global markets.

Q: What if there are some bondholders who don't want to sign up?

A: Greece could chose to include collective action clauses, or CACs, into their old bond contracts. Those would stipulate that if the majority of bondholders agree to a debt relief, the deal becomes binding for all and so prevents a minority of creditors from derailing an agreement. The inclusion of such clauses in the bonds will not necessarily trigger the payment of CDS, though using them could.

Q: Why would someone want to derail the deal?

A: Some hedge funds and other private creditors have invested in credit default swaps and so would stand to make large profits if Greece defaults. The decision to trigger CDSs is made by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, based in New York.

Q: How much money does Greece owe?

A: Greece's national debt, which is two-thirds owned by private creditors, has reached some euro350 billion, or more than 160 percent of annual economic output. That's not sustainable without an agreement with banks and other debt holders.

Q: Aren't the austerity measures helping?

A: After two years of punishing austerity, Greece's government is still running at a net loss. It has promised the EU and IMF it will achieve a so-called primary surplus ? a budget surplus when not counting interest payments on loans ? in 2012. But that requires a successful PSI deal being reached.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120118/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_greece_financial_crisis_q_a

john beck mariska hargitay gmcr ohio news caracal beef wellington beef wellington

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Jesse Lee posted an update: Singapore magazine annual Chinese characters "North face store" Singapore Singapore United Morning Post" Chinese characters" [...]

Singapore magazine annual Chinese characters ?North face store?

Singapore Singapore United Morning Post? Chinese characters? sponsored an
annual award in December 31, 2011 announced,? high? nearly North face store four of the vote, was
rated as the most representative of readers over the past year felt most of
Chinese characters.North face store
? Singapore United Morning Post? say, inflation, prices rise, make people feel
purse shrink,? high? was the reason.
This is the? Singapore United Morning Post? was held for the first time? the
year? activity of appraise through comparison of North face store annual Chinese characters. The
newspaper editorial office chose 10 representative Chinese characters for
readers to choose, are new, earthquake, people, water, rose, housing, debt,
flat, cold, rail, from the middle of December began to introduce each Chinese
characters general news and events.North face outlet
Poll received nearly 4000 votes,? high? in the North face store mobile phone short message,
social networking sites and mailing form three votes ahead of. In second and
third are? shock? and? water?. Young readers will have a lot of people choose
to? people? and? water?.
Some readers said, price, price, price, transportation, utilities, what are up,
so? high? can best represent the last 2011.Cheap north face
? Singapore United Morning Post? North face store editor in chief Wu Di said,? Singapore United
Morning Post? hoping to find a Singaporeans think that can be summed up the past
year experience of Chinese characters, reflecting the social concern. Later
holds an annual selection of Chinese characters.
Exxon Mobil in 2007 at the world bank?s International Centre for settlement of
investment disputes complaints, seeking at North face store least $7000000000 in compensation.
This energy enterprises released January 1, 2012, dispute resolution center
determination results.North face jackets on sale
Reuters quoted a number of Venezuelan sources report, the arbitration result
appears to be beneficial to the government of venezuela.
Exxon Mobil said in 2007, previously in North face store Venezuela Cerro Negro heavy oil field
project invests 750000000 dollar, and the Venezuelan government nationalized the
project.

Source: http://blogs.darkness.com/activity/p/20443/

straight no chaser bcs standings bcs standings douglas fir jim boeheim jim boeheim bill of rights

sumyunguy: @Ashong Obama 2012! Now with 4x the debt and nothing to show for it!

  • Passer la navigation
  • Twitter sur votre mobile ? Cliquez ici m.twitter.com!
  • Passer cette ?tape
  • Connexion
Loader Twitter.com
  • Connexion
@Ashong Obama 2012! Now with 4x the debt and nothing to show for it! sumyunguy

Pied de page

Source: http://twitter.com/sumyunguy/statuses/154280328519880706

do a barrelroll bérénice marlohe bérénice marlohe google offers tim gunn tim gunn death clock

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Thousands protest over new Hungarian constitution (AP)

BUDAPEST, Hungary ? Tens of thousands of protesters on Monday jeered Hungarian leaders outside a glitzy gala to mark the country's brand new constitution, accusing the government of exerting control over everything from the media, to the economy and religion.

A diverse crowd chanted, whistled and hoisted placards outside the State Opera as Prime Minister Viktor Orban and guests celebrated inside. Many protesters called the premier the "Viktator."

"The prime minister took an oath to defend the constitution, but instead he overthrew it," Laszlo Majtenyi, a former head of the media authority, told the crowd on Andrassy Avenue. "Tonight the Opera is the home of hypocrisy and the street the home of constitutional virtues."

Opposition activists and civil rights groups say Orban and his center-right Fidesz party, which has a two-thirds parliamentary majority, have passed laws eroding the democratic system of checks and balances by increasing political control over the judiciary, the central bank, religious groups and the media.

President Pal Schmitt insisted Hungarians could be proud of their new constitution, which he said was long overdue and should have been adopted after the fall of communism.

"This constitution was born of a wide consultation, building on national and European values," Schmitt said during the celebration. "Our Basic Law defines the family, order, the home, work and health as the most important, shared scale of values."

The European Union, the United States and international watchdogs have criticized many of the government's recent moves.

Protesters repeatedly shouted "bovli" ? "junk" in Hungarian ? mocking Hungary's recent credit rating downgrades.

Hungary is facing a possible recession in 2012 and has turned to the International Monetary Fund and the European Union for financial aid. But preliminary talks ended prematurely in December after the government went ahead with a new central bank law, despite criticism from the EU that it will diminish the independence of the National Bank of Hungary.

Hungary's constitution was approved in April by Fidesz during an opposition boycott, and went into effect on New Year's Day. While the government said the new basic law completes the transition from communism to democracy that began in 1989, opponents say it entrenches the current government's power and forces a conservative view on the whole country.

Human rights groups have expressed concerns about lifetime prison sentences without the possibility for parole for violent crimes and a ban on discrimination that does not specifically mention age or sexual orientation.

The law's protection of the life of a fetus from the moment of conception was also seen as clearing the way for a possible future ban or restrictions on abortions.

A group of former anti-communist dissidents said the country's constitutional system is in a "critical situation."

"Never since the regime change of 1989, when the communist dictatorship was crushed, has there been such an intense concentration of power in the region as in present-day Hungary," said a statement signed by, among others, writer Gyorgy Konrad, former Budapest Mayor Gabor Demszky and Miklos Haraszti, a former media freedom representative at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

The protest was peaceful except for a brief scuffle between a few dozen right-wing extremists holding a counter-protest and a group of Socialist Party politicians attending the street rally.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120102/ap_on_re_eu/eu_hungary_protests

selena daylight savings bobolink bobolink breeders cup hamilton park brian wilson