Oil above $99 in Asia on Europe's austerity move (AP)

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia ? Oil rose above $99 a barrel Tuesday in Asia in sync with gains in regional equity markets after Europe took measures to battle its debt crisis.

Benchmark crude for February delivery was up 59 cents at $99.37 a barrel at midday Kuala Lumpur time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 78 cents to finish at $98.78 on Monday.

European leaders agreed Monday on a new treaty to stop overspending and put an end to the region's crippling debt woes. They also pledged to stimulate growth and employment amid fears of a looming recession. Greece and its bondholders are also inching closer to a deal to significantly cut the country's debt and pave the way for it to receive a much-needed euro130 billion ($170 billion) bailout.

"The announcements in the eurozone helped ease concerns but crude prices are going to be choppy going forward. The market is grappling with a weaker demand scenario and uncertainties in the supply side coming from Iran," said Natalie Robertson, commodities analyst at ANZ Banking Group in Melbourne.

Iran has welcomed international weapons experts into the country in hopes of refuting claims that it is building a nuclear weapon. That eased concerns about possible military action in the region.

Still, Europe plans to embargo Iranian oil this summer to pressure Iran about its nuclear program. If that happens, Iran says it could retaliate by blocking passage through the Persian Gulf, where tankers carry one-sixth of the world's oil exports.

The U.S. is ready to implement sanctions on Iran's central bank that will make it harder for Iran to sell oil. India has however, joined China in saying it will not cut back on crude imports from Iran.

In other energy trading, heating oil rose 2 cents to $3.06 per gallon and gasoline futures were down 0.5 cents to $2.87 per gallon. Natural gas fell 6 cents to $2.65 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120131/ap_on_re_as/oil_prices

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Gazans break(dance)ing boundaries

Camps Breakerz crew made a video in January 2012 called "Breakdance Revolution In Gaza" that shows them making moves across the Gaza Strip.

By Yara Borgal, NBC News

GAZA STRIP ? In Hamas-ruled Gaza, where Islamic fundamentalism controls every aspect of daily life in the city that has been under an Israeli-imposed siege since June 2007, a group of eight young men from the Nuseirat refugee camp are breaking boundaries by break dancing.

The Camps Breakerz took their moves out onto the rundown streets of Gaza for the first time this month, even though members have been practicing together since 2005.

The dancers released a video on YouTube?that shows them doing elaborate dance moves ? from spinning head stands to arms stands and flips in ?I heart Gaza? t-shirts all over Gaza.?

"When I danced in the street I felt free for the first time in my life. I challenged the conservative society and mainly I challenged the Israeli siege," said Mohammed al-Ghrize, otherwise known as ?Funk,? who brought together the Camps Breakerz crew.

---

Challenging strict code
Ghrize, a 25-year-old who works as a nurse, was introduced to the world of break dancing at the age of 16 when he lived with his family in Saudi Arabia. Since returning to his homeland in Gaza, he searched for others who shared his passion for dancing. "It took me two years to persuade seven people to establish a break dancing crew, two of which are my own brothers," he said.

Over the past five years Hamas has imposed a strict code of conduct in Gaza, forcing residents to follow strict Islamic law.? The laws have restricted women from social activities like riding on the backs of motorbikes and smoking traditional shisha pipes in public spaces.?They?have?even restricted men from working in women?s hair salons ? believing that men cutting women?s hair is immodest.

In a new attempt by the fundamentalist militant Muslim group to crack down on behavior it sees as contrary to its conservative interpretation of Islam, Hamas banned Gaza youth from participating in the Palestinian version of "American Idol."? Their reasoning was because Muslims can only sing and dance to the sound of drums ? not any modern instruments.

"Because I know it's very hard for our conservative society to accept our Westernized hobby, we introduced break dancing as a kind of sport," Ghrize explained. ?We even managed to convince Hamas to regard break dancing as a sport by performing in their sports events and dancing only to the beats of the drums.?

The group understands that in a society struggling under the ongoing Israeli blockade, break dancing can be viewed as a waste of time and seen as lacking respect for the Gazan reality. The Nuseirat refugee camp where Ghrize lives is home to 66,000 refugees, even though it was initially built to accommodate 16,000 people. And conditions are grim: According to the U.N. 90 percent of the water there is ?unfit for human consumption.?

So for the members of the group, dancing is a welcome distraction.??

"We regard our activities as another form of resistance against the occupation; all of our sketches are inspired by our people's tragedies, especially children. Break dancing for us is a way of expressing our freedom.?

Ghrize studied nursing and works at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza. ?All members of our crew are very well-educated,? he said.?

At the end of video the crew recently released, the dancers names, nicknames, ages, job and special moves are listed. They range from ?Chino,? a 22-year-old cook whose specialty is ?style break beat,? to ?Dark,? a 26-year-old teacher whose specialty is ?combos,? to ?Fox,? a 15-year-old student who likes ?power moves.?

One of the many obstacles the Camps Breakerz faced was finding a place to train, especially after the Nuseirat refugee camp?s community center was destroyed by an Israeli raid during the war on Gaza in 2008.

"We have a dream," Ghrize said, "that one day we will have our own center where we can teach children to break dance and give them a stage to express their feelings."

The Camps Breakerz hope to go to the U.S., where break dancing originated, to meet other break dancers who will help them grow, excel and become an internationally recognized group. They want to eventually be able to compete internationally among the best break dancers in the world.

"I wish I lived in a free liberal country where I can practice the thing I love most without any political or fundamentalist boundaries."

Related link:?Gaza youths find escape in free running?
?

Source: http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/30/10272998-gazans-breakdanceing-boundaries

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Quest for the golden cross (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? January has turned out to be strong for stocks with just two trading days to go. If you're afraid to miss the ride, there's still time to jump in. You just might want to wear a neck brace.

The new year lured buyers into growth-related sectors, the ones that were more beaten down last year. The economy is getting better, but not dramatically. Earnings are beating expectations, but at a lower rate than in recent quarters. Nothing too bad is coming out of Europe's debt crisis -- and nothing good, either -- at least not yet.

"No one item is a major positive, but collectively, it's been enough to tilt it towards net buying," said John Schlitz, chief market technician at Instinet in New York.

Still, relatively weak volume and a six-month high hit last week make some doubt that the gains are sustainable.

But then there's the golden cross.

Many market skeptics take notice when this technical indicator, a holy grail of sorts for many technicians, shows up on the horizon.

As early as Monday, the rising 50-day moving average of the S&P 500 could tick above its rising 200-day moving average. This occurrence -- known as a golden cross -- means the medium-term momentum is increasingly bullish. You have a good chance of making money in the next six months if you put it to work in large-cap stocks.

In the last 50 years, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates, a golden cross on the S&P 500 has augured further gains six months ahead in eight out of 10 times. The average gain has been 6.6 percent.

That means the benchmark is on solid footing to not only hold onto the 14 percent advance over the last nine weeks, but to flirt with 1,400, a level it has not hit since mid-2008.

The gains, as expected, would not be in a straight line. But any weakness could be used by long-term investors as buying opportunities.

"The cross is an intermediate bullish event," Schlitz said. "You have to interpret it as constructive, but I caution people to take a bullish stance, if they have a short-term horizon."

GREECE, U.S. PAYROLLS AND MOMENTUM

Less than halfway into the earnings season and with Greek debt talks over the weekend, payrolls data this week and the S&P 500 near its highest since July, there is plenty of room for something to go wrong. If that happens, the market could easily give back some of its recent advance.

But the benchmark's recent rally and momentum shift allow for a pullback before the technical picture deteriorates.

"We bounced off 1,325, which is resistance. We're testing 1,310, which should be support. We are stuck in that range," said Ken Polcari, managing director at ICAP Equities in New York.

"If over the weekend, Greece comes out with another big nothing, then you will see further weakness (this) week," he said. "A 1 (percent) or 2 percent pullback isn't out of the question or out of line."

On Friday, the S&P 500 (.INX) and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) closed their fourth consecutive week of gains, while the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) dipped and capped three weeks of gains. For the day, the Dow dropped 74.17 points, or 0.58 percent, to close at 12,660.46. The S&P 500 fell 2.10 points, or 0.16 percent, to 1,316.33. But the Nasdaq gained 11.27 points, or 0.40 percent, to end at 2,816.55.

For the week, the Dow slipped 0.47 percent, while the S&P 500 inched up 0.07 percent and the Nasdaq jumped 1.07 percent.

A DATA-PACKED EARNINGS WEEK

This week is filled with heavy-hitting data on the housing, manufacturing and employment sectors.

Personal income and consumption on Monday will be followed by the S&P/Case-Shiller home prices index, consumer confidence and the Chicago PMI -- all on Tuesday.

Wednesday will bring the Institute for Supply Management index on U.S. manufacturing and the first of three key readings on the labor market -- namely, the ADP private-sector employment report. Jobless claims on Thursday will give way on Friday to the U.S. government's non-farm payrolls report. The forecast calls for a net gain of 150,000 jobs in January, according to economists polled by Reuters.

On the earnings front, it will be another hectic week with almost a fifth of the S&P 500 components posting quarterly results. Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), Amazon (AMZN.O), UPS (UPS.N), Pfizer (PFE.N), Kellogg (K.N) and MasterCard (MA.N) are among the names most likely to grab the headlines.

With almost 200 companies' reports in so far, about 59 percent have beaten earnings expectations -- down from about 70 percent in recent quarters.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak and Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/bs_nm/us_usa_stocks_weekahead

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US, Taliban talks on prisoner swap falter

Reuters TV

A Taliban-affliated website recently posted video of this man who said he was Bowe Bergdahl, the only U.S. soldier held by the Taliban

By NBC News

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Talks between the Afghan Taliban and the United States in Qatar almost failed as the Taliban leadership reportedly refused to accept the U.S. demand?of a?ceasefire before? swapping prisoners.

Sources in the Afghan Taliban said the Taliban had set up an office in Qatar hoping that it?would?help in a?prisoners' swap, especially for their five top commanders held at the?Guantanamo Bay?base since 2002.

The Taliban sources said their talks with the U.S. had been going for the past few years in exchange for an American soldier, Bowe Bergdahl, captured by Taliban militants in Afghanistan's Paktika province in June 2009, bordering Pakistan's South Waziristan.?

Maulvi Sangeen, a senior commander of the powerful Haqqani terror network, had initially claimed responsibility for kidnapping the U.S. soldier.

The Taliban sources said U.S. officials had earlier promised them they would exchange prisoners and later start peace talks.

However, according to the sources, the U.S. demanded that the Taliban announce a ceasefire in Afghanistan before any prisoner swap, which they said their central leadership had turned down.

STORY: Family of captured US soldier hopeful

"Our stance is the same. We will announce a ceasefire when the foreign forces start their withdrawal from Afghanistan,"?a Taliban source said.

The Afghan Taliban leadership is also worried about the reaction from their field commanders and fighters?if a?ceasefire were announced without getting anything to show in exchange.

Some members of the 140-strong Taliban delegation that went?to Qatar had started leaving after no breakthrough was seen in talks with the U.S.

Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/29/10264773-us-taliban-talks-on-prisoner-swap-falter

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Salvage crews suspend work on capsized cruise ship (Reuters)

GIGLIO, Italy (Reuters) ? Salvage crews preparing to pump thousands of tonnes of diesel fuel and oil from the wreck of the Costa Concordia cruise ship off the Italian coast suspended work on Saturday because of bad weather that could last into next week, officials said.

With heavy seas and strong winds set to continue, work on removing more than 2,300 tonnes of diesel may be held up for days, according to a spokesman for SMIT, the Dutch company that is managing the operation.

"Starting operations depends on the weather conditions," Martijn Schuttevaer told reporters. "The forecast is for the bad weather to last until Tuesday and we don't expect to be able to recommence activities until the middle of the week."

A barge carrying pumping equipment that was attached to the capsized ship was withdrawn after strong winds and high waves worsened conditions for the divers working on the huge wreck.

Despite the interruption the search continued for bodies on the half-submerged vessel, which lies in about 20 meters of water on a rock shelf close to the island of Giglio off the Tuscan coast.

Divers found the body of a woman on Saturday, bringing the number of known dead to 17. Authorities also said they had identified the body of a German woman recovered last week.

Two of the bodies found after the shipwreck are unidentified and 15 people are still missing.

With no hope of finding survivors, the focus has switched to preventing an environmental disaster in Giglio, a popular holiday island in a marine nature reserve.

Before the work was suspended, crews were installing valves to help pump out six fuel tanks towards the front of the ship which hold most of the diesel. The pumping operation is expected to take between three weeks and a month.

The Concordia, a 290-metre long floating resort carrying more than 4,200 passengers and crew, sank more than two weeks ago after it ran into a rock close to the shore which tore a long gash in its hull.

The accident, expected to trigger the most expensive maritime insurance claim ever, has set off a legal battle in which U.S. and Italian lawyers are preparing class action and individual suits against the operator, Costa Cruises.

In a bid to limit the fallout, Costa, a unit of Carnival Corp, the world's largest cruise ship operator, has offered the more than 3,000 passengers $14,500 each in compensation on condition they drop any legal action.

The Concordia's captain, Francesco Schettino, is under house arrest, suspected of causing the accident by steering too close to shore, and faces charges of multiple manslaughter and abandoning ship before the evacuation was complete.

The ship's first officer, Ciro Ambrosio, has also been questioned by prosecutors but the company itself has not been implicated in the investigation at this stage.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120128/wl_nm/us_italy_ship

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Toshiba announces color e-reader in Japan, hopes people buy more e-books from its store

If you're gonna be late to a party, you should at least be fashionably late. That's the mindset behind Toshiba's entry into the dedicated e-reader space with its new 7-inch BookPlace DB50. Toshiba hopes adding an e-reader alongside its existing AT200 and Thrive tablets will push more eyeballs towards the 100,000 or so titles in its BookPlace online bookstore. The ¥22,000 ($284) BookPlace DB50 sports a TFT-LCD screen with an LED backlight, a 1GHz Freescale i.MX535 processor, 8GB of internal flash memory and a microSD slot. The device also measures 120mm wide, 190mm tall, 11mm thick and weighs 330 grams (11.6 ounces), with battery life rated at up to 7.5 hours. Toshiba did not mention the operating system in its release though the hubbub in the Interwebs is that it will use customized versions of Linux and Android Gingerbread. The Japanese debut is pegged for February 10th and the company is apparently considering a release outside the country, too.

Toshiba announces color e-reader in Japan, hopes people buy more e-books from its store originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 11:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/zK6zPLejDoc/

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Paterno's son: 'Dad, you won. You can go home now' (AP)

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. ? Jay Paterno leaned over his dying father, gave him a kiss, and whispered in his ear.

"Dad, you won," he said. "You did all you could do. You've done enough. We all love you. We won. You can go home now."

Joe Paterno died Sunday of lung cancer at age 85.

At a memorial service Thursday that drew some 12,000 people to the Penn State basketball arena, Jay Paterno reflected on what he called the "magnificent daylight" of his legendary father's life. It was primarily a glowing tribute to Paterno and his accomplishments during 46 years as Penn State's football coach ? but also an opportunity to defend his legacy against criticism that he failed to do more when told about an alleged child sexual assault involving one of his former assistants.

Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight won a thunderous standing ovation when he defended Paterno's handling of the 2002 allegations against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Paterno, he hinted, had been made a scapegoat.

"If there is a villain in this tragedy, it lies in that investigation and not in Joe Paterno's response," Knight said. Paterno's widow, Sue, was among those rising to their feet.

Capping three days of mourning on campus, the 2 1/2-hour ceremony was filled with lavish praise for the man called "JoePa." Paterno racked up more wins ? 409 ? than any other major-college football coach, led his team to two national championships, and preached "success with honor" while insisting his athletes focus on academics. The Paternos donated millions to Penn State.

Though the campus and surrounding community have been torn with anger over the Sandusky scandal and Paterno's summary dismissal by the board of trustees two months before his death, Jay Paterno said his father didn't hold a grudge.

"Despite all that had happened to him, he never wavered in his belief, in his dream, of Penn State. He told me he wanted to use his remaining time on earth to see Penn State continue to thrive. He never spoke ill and never wanted anyone to feel badly for him," Paterno said.

Players from each decade of Paterno's career as the Nittany Lions' coach spoke in loving terms about their mentor, saying he rode them hard, but always had their best interests at heart and encouraged them to complete their educations and become productive members of their communities.

Among the speakers were Michael Robinson, who played for Paterno from 2002 to 2005 and flew in from Hawaii, where he was practicing for his first Pro Bowl; star quarterback Todd Blackledge from the 1980s; and Jimmy Cefalo, a star in the 1970s. Like Robinson, Blackledge and Cefalo went on to play in the NFL.

Former NFL player Charles V. Pittman, speaking for players from the 1960s, called Paterno a lifelong influence and inspiration.

Pittman said Paterno challenged his young players, once bringing Pittman to tears in his sophomore year. He said he realized later that the coach was molding him into the man he would become.

"What I now know is that Joe wasn't trying to build perfection. That doesn't exist and he knew it. He was, bit by bit, building a habit of excellence," said Pittman, now a media executive on the board of The Associated Press.

Paterno was fired Nov. 9 after he was criticized for not going to police in 2002 when he was told that Sandusky had been seen sexually assaulting a boy in the showers. Sandusky was arrested in November and is awaiting trial on charges that he molested 10 boys over a 15-year span.

As the scandal erupted, Pennsylvania's state police commissioner said Paterno may have met his legal duty but not his moral one. Penn State president Graham Spanier was also fired in the fallout.

Knight, appearing about midway through the memorial, became the first speaker to explicitly address the scandal. He said the coach "gave full disclosure to his superiors, information that went up the chains to the head of the campus police and the president of the school. The matter was in the hands of a world-class university, and by a president with an outstanding national reputation."

Lanny J. Davis, an attorney for the board, responded after the service by saying: "All the reasons for the board's difficult and anguished decision ? made unanimously, including former football players and everyone who still loves Coach Paterno and his memory ? reached a decision which was heartfelt. All 32."

"The facts speak for themselves" and include the grand jury testimony, he said.

Chris Marrone, another former player who eulogized Paterno, said Knight was his "new hero" for expressing the "pent-up frustration" of Paterno's supporters.

"I think the response that he got is indicative of how folks feel," Marrone said.

Only one member of the university administration ? the dean of the college of liberal arts ? and no one from the board of trustees spoke at the memorial, which was arranged primarily by the Paterno family.

People said it felt good to remember and celebrate the good times.

Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak, who played for Paterno, said he attended the service "because I'm a part of his legacy."

"It was not only about football," Munchak said. "It was about life and how he affected all of us as men."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_on_sp_co_ne/fbc_penn_state_paterno

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Altria 4Q profit falls 9 pct, CEO to retire (AP)

RICHMOND, Va. ? Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc. said Friday that its fourth-quarter profit fell about 9 percent on lease, legal and restructuring charges even as higher prices and gains from its smokeless tobacco products helped bolster its sales.

The owner of the nation's biggest cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, also announced that CEO Michael E. Szymanczyk will retire in May following the company's annual shareholder meeting. Altria's board has selected Martin J. Barrington to replace him as CEO and chairman, and David R. Beran will serve as president and chief operating officer.

The company also disclosed that it has entered into an agreement with an affiliate of Fertin Pharma A/S to develop non-combustible nicotine-containing products. Several other tobacco companies have announced similar initiatives to seek cigarette alternatives as demand declines.

"Altria continues to focus on lower-risk products that appeal to adult tobacco consumers," Szymanczyk said in a conference call with investors.

Richmond, Va.-based Altria reported net income of $836 million, or 41 cents per share, for the three-month period ended Dec. 31, down from $919 million, or 44 cents a share, last year. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 50 cents per share, a penny above Wall Street expectations.

Revenue, excluding excise taxes, increased 5 percent to $4.34 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting $4.23 billion.

Its shares fell 52 cents to close at $28.14 Friday. Its shares have recovered from a 52-week low of $23.20 in early August and are 7.4 percent below their high for the past year of $30.40 set in mid-December.

Cigarettes volumes were flat at 33.7 billion cigarettes compared with a year ago as an increase of nearly 20 percent in its discount cigarette brands offset declines in its premium brands like Marlboro. Cigarette revenue excluding excise taxes rose 4 percent to $3.63 billion during the quarter on higher prices.

Altria said its top-selling Marlboro brand lost 0.7 points of market share to end up with 41.6 percent of the U.S. market. Marlboro volumes declined less than 1 percent. Its other brands, including Virginia Slims, Parliament and Basic, also lost market share.

The company has introduced several new products with the Marlboro brand, often with lower promotional pricing. They include special blends of both menthol and non-menthol cigarettes to try to keep the brand growing and steal smokers from its competitors.

Altria still faces pressure in the current economy from less-expensive brands such as like Pall Mall from Reynolds American Inc. and Maverick from Lorillard Inc. Marlboro sold for an average of $5.73 per pack during the fourth quarter, compared with an average of $4.24 per pack for the cheapest brand.

Despite changes in market share driven by short-term increases in promotional activity, "Marlboro's underlying brand equity remains strong," Szymanczyk said.

Like other tobacco companies, Altria is focusing on cigarette alternatives ? such as cigars, snuff and chewing tobacco ? for future sales growth because the decline in cigarette smoking is expected to continue.

Volumes of its smokeless tobacco brands such as Copenhagen and Skoal increased about 10 percent. Excluding excise taxes, revenue from its smokeless tobacco business grew nearly 7 percent to $391 million on higher prices.

For the quarter, the company's smokeless tobacco brands had 55.5 percent of the market, which is tiny compared with cigarettes.

Volume for its Black & Mild cigars fell about 6 percent during the period. But revenue excluding excise taxes rose 26 percent to $90 million as it raised prices and spent less money promoting the brand.

Altria also owns a wine business and holds a voting stake in brewer SABMiller.

Altria has been forced to cut costs as tax hikes, smoking bans, health concerns and social stigma make the cigarette business tougher. During the third quarter, the company said it completed a multi-year cost savings program, exceeding its goal of reducing costs by $1.5 billion between 2007 and 2011 compared with 2006.

Last quarter the company rolled out a plan to cut $400 million in "cigarette-related infrastructure costs" by the end of 2013 in advance of anticipated cigarette volume declines. Altria said the restructuring charges in connection with the program totaled 7 cents per share in the fourth quarter.

For the full year, the company said it earned $3.39 billion, or $1.64 per share, in 2011 compared with $3.9 billion, or $1.87 per share, in the previous year. It said its adjusted earnings for the year were $2.05 per share.

Cigarette volumes for the year fell about 4 percent to 135.1 billion cigarettes, largely on declines from Altria's premium brands. Marlboro ended the year with a 42 percent share of the U.S. retail market, down 0.6 points from a year ago. Overall the company lost 0.8 points of market share to end up with 49 percent of the retail market.

Full-year smokeless tobacco volumes increased more than 1 percent to 734.6 million cans or packs, and cigar volumes were stable at 1.25 billion units.

Altria also said it forecast 2012 full-year adjusted earnings between $2.17 and $2.23 per share.

___

Michael Felberbaum can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/MLFelberbaum.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/earnings/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_on_bi_ge/us_earns_altria_group

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Gerard Butler on Alleged Hookup: "Who's Brandi Glanville?"

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Nintendo sees first annual loss, cuts 3DS forecast (Reuters)

(Reuters) ? Nintendo Co Ltd posted a sharp drop in quarterly profit and forecast a bigger-than-expected full-year loss, its first at an operating level, as it battles a strong yen and its games devices lose ground to gadgets such as Apple's iPhone.

The creator of the Super Mario franchise dominated the video games industry for years with its DS handheld players and Wii home consoles, but is now struggling to keep up as more versatile smartphone and tablet sales boom.

"To say that (the days of consoles) are over is likely an overstatement, but social network and Internet delivered games are growing and structurally changing the future of the industry, which is a strong wind against Nintendo," said Shigeo Sugawara, senior investment manager at Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Asset Management.

Nintendo now expects an annual operating loss of 45 billion yen ($575 million), dwarfing expectations of a 4.2 billion yen loss, based on the average of 21 analyst forecasts.

"Their time of growth (from consoles) is over, and, while I don't think the company will cease to exist, if they don't move into new categories, they will no doubt lose the great scale they've amassed," said Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management in Tokyo.

Nintendo cut its forecast for annual sales of its ageing Wii console to 10 million devices from 12 million, and for the 3DS handheld games device to 14 million from 16 million.

"We had higher expectations for the year-end season, but failed to meet them," President Satoru Iwata told reporters in Osaka.

Poor sales forced Nintendo to slash the price of its much-anticipated 3DS handheld games device in August, just six months after its launch.

The move halted its record of making profits on games hardware as well as software, a business model that took operating income to a high of 555 billion yen in 2008/09.

Nintendo also faces tougher competition in the home console market from Sony Corp's Move and Microsoft Corp's Kinect, and Iwata said consumers were more eager than ever to seek out bargains in the harsh economic environment.

The company plans to launch the Wii's successor, the Wii U, in Japan, the United States, Europe and Australia in the year-end season, Iwata told reporters.

But with cloud-based gaming emerging as a potential threat, Nintendo may have trouble generating excitement about its new product, some analysts say. Google is taking steps into gaming with Google TV, while Apple is thought to be preparing a new iPad and possibly a smart TV that could be game-changers for the industry.

"We think we need to consider the possibility that home consoles could become a thing of the past," Citigroup analyst Soichiro Fukuda wrote in a recent report.

"We think the direction taken by marketing trendsetter Apple will be very important and we will be watching the company's announcements at future events with interest."

PROFIT FALLS

Nintendo's profit slumped to 40.9 billion yen for the traditionally strong October-December period, compared with a consensus estimate for 52 billion yen, based on a survey of three analysts by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The results came a day after Apple blew away Wall Street's expectations with its own quarterly earnings.

Shares in Nintendo have halved to below 11,000 yen since the beginning of the financial year in April, hit by weak 3DS sales and market disappointment with the Wii U next-generation home console, unveiled at the E3 games show in June and set to go on sale late this year. At their peak, in late 2007, the shares traded at 73,200 yen.

Last week, the stock dipped to 10,020 yen, the lowest since April 2004, before either the DS or Wii were launched.

($1 = 77.58)

(Reporting by Yoshiyuki Osada in OSAKA and Isabel Reynolds in TOKYO; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Ian Geoghegan)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120126/tc_nm/us_nintendo_results

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[OOC] Synopsis

Forum rules
This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.

Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!

This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?The Misguided?. Anything posted here will also show up there.

Topic Tags:

Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.

So, now we have a co-DM(although I can't figure out a way to officially add one), Beta Type Jakuri. She's going to help me out a little bit around here(THANK YOU!). She's going to be writing a synopsis below so that if anyone feels behind to a point it will be hard to keep up, he/she can read below. I definitely recommend reading the actual posts when you get the chance though, because they are more in-depth and also have important information.

Alpha Type Shurelia

Member for 1 years

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Yahoo delivers another listless performance in 4Q (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO ? Yahoo slipped further behind in the online advertising race during the fourth quarter as the Internet company entered the fourth year of a revenue slump.

The results announced Tuesday marked the latest in a succession of disappointing performances. The persisting malaise led to the firing of Carol Bartz as CEO four months ago.

Yahoo Inc. recently replaced Bartz with PayPal executive Scott Thompson, anointing him as the fourth CEO in less than five years to try to snap the company out of a funk that has depressed its stock. Thompson, who was hired just three weeks ago, promised to move quickly to fix the problems.

"There is no question we need to do better and we will," Thompson assured analysts in a Tuesday conference call.

The company earned $296 million, or 24 cents per share, in the October-to-December period. That is down 5 percent from $312 million, or 24 cents per share, a year earlier.

The earnings matched analysts' estimates, but the company missed Wall Street's revenue target.

Fourth-quarter revenue dropped 13 percent from the previous year to $1.32 billion. After subtracting advertising commissions, Yahoo's revenue totaled $1.17 billion, or $20 million below analyst projections. It's the 13th straight quarter that Yahoo's net revenue has declined from the prior year.

Although Thompson said it was still too early to share precise details about his turnaround strategy, he said he will close some Yahoo services. That could mean layoffs. Yahoo added 400 employees in the fourth quarter to end the year with 14,100 workers. It lost one of its co-founders last week when Jerry Yang resigned from the company's board and gave up his role as "Chief Yahoo."

Bartz had also closed or sold some of Yahoo's less popular services while jettisoning jobs to cut costs and sharpen the company's focus. Those moves, though, didn't increase Yahoo's revenue or stock price, leading the company's board to fire her in September with more than 15 months remaining on her contract.

"This company has been through such a rotating cast of characters that it's reached the point where it needs action, not words," BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis said.

Besides closing services, Thompson said Yahoo will expand into some fields where he sees opportunities to make money. He didn't elaborate on that or on which services to close.

Thompson also pledged to develop more innovative products to keep Yahoo's audience of 700 million users on its websites for longer periods. Accomplishing that could make Yahoo more attractive to online advertisers. Thompson said he hopes to harness the data that Yahoo collects about its audience to help advertisers do a better job of putting their marketing messages in front of the people most likely to buy their products.

"I'll always ask a lot of questions and I'll immerse myself in the details but when it comes to making decisions, I make them quickly and then push to move fast, fast, fast," Thompson said.

But Yahoo isn't promising a quick start under Thompson's leadership. Yahoo predicted its net revenue in the current quarter will range from $1.02 billion to $1.1 billion. The mid-point of that target works out to $1.06 billion, unchanged from last year's first quarter.

Investors appear to be taking a wait-and-see attitude with Thompson. Yahoo's stock shed 14 cents to $15.55 in extended trading after the report came out. The stock price has fallen by about 40 percent from five years ago.

Yahoo's downturn in revenue has occurred as advertisers are shifting more of their budgets to the Internet as people spend more of their time on the Web. The biggest beneficiaries of this boom so far have been Internet search leader Google Inc. and Facebook, the owner of the largest online social network.

While Yahoo continued to struggle during the final three months of last year, Google's revenue rose 25 percent from the same period in 2010. As a privately held company, Facebook doesn't disclose its financial results, but data compiled by independent research firms show that its website has been luring advertisers away from Yahoo.

Google has become so dominant in Internet search that Yahoo teamed up with another rival, Microsoft Corp., in an effort to become more competitive and save money. Yahoo's search engine now relies on Microsoft's technology to handle most requests. The alliance, forged in mid-2009, hasn't generated as much revenue so far as Yahoo had hoped, although there were signs of progress in the fourth quarter.

Net revenue from search totaled $376 million in the fourth quarter, a 3 percent decrease from a year earlier. The company, which is based in Sunnyvale, Calif., had been suffering year-over-year declines of more than 10 percent in previous quarters.

As it tries to boost its revenue and lift its stock price, Yahoo is considering selling its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan. Yahoo is pursuing those negotiations with "great enthusiasm," according to Tim Morse, the company's chief financial officer. Neither Morse nor Thompson elaborated on when a deal might be reached.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_hi_te/us_earns_yahoo

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Sen. Rand Paul has run-in with TSA

The Kentucky senator was detained by TSA officials at the Nashville airport after setting off the alarm on a full body metal detector, then refusing to be patted down. NBC's Kelly O'Donnell reports.

By NBC News and msnbc.com news services

Senator Rand Paul, R-Ky., has reportedly clashed with the Transportation Security Administration at a Nashville airport, according to tweets from his press aide and father, Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.

At about 10 a.m. ET, Paul's press aide, Moira Bagley wrote: Just got a call from @senrandpaul. He's currently being detained by TSA in Nashville.

Soon after, Ron Paul wrote: My son?@SenRandPaul being detained by TSA for refusing full body pat-down after anomaly in body scanner in Nashville. More details coming.

NBC News' Kelly O'Donnell reports that aides to Sen. Paul say he set off a full-body scanning machine while going through airport security Monday morning.

Paul reportedly raised his right pant leg, which may have set off the scanner. Paul, according to aides, said it was ?clearly a glitch? and asked to proceed through the machine a second time. The TSA demanded a full-body pat-down, which Paul refused.

NBC News' Tom Costello reports that, according to sources at the TSA, Paul was not detained, but was escorted by police out of the checkpoint.

In a statement to NBC News, TSA spokesman Greg Soule said, ?When an irregularity is found during the TSA screening process, it must be resolved prior to allowing a passenger to proceed to the secure area of the airport. Passengers who refuse to complete the screening process cannot be granted access to the secure area in order to ensure the safety of others traveling.?

Paul was eventually permitted through airport security, according to Soule. ?The passenger has since rebooked on another flight and was rescreened without incident,? he said in a statement at about noon on Monday.

Paul has been a vocal critic of the TSA. At a Congressional hearing on TSA practices and policies last summer, Paul criticized the agency for its controversial searches of children.

?You?ve gone overboard and you?re missing the boat on terrorism because you?re doing these invasive searches on six-year-old girls,? he said. ?I think you oughta get rid of the random pat-downs. The American public is unhappy with them. They're unhappy with the invasiveness of them.?

Related stories:

Source: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/23/10216573-sen-rand-paul-has-run-in-with-tsa

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Here's The 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

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Magnitude-6.3 quake hits Pacific; no tsunami alert (AP)

SUVA, Fiji ? A magnitude-6.3 earthquake has shaken the Pacific region south of the Fiji islands.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue any alerts or warnings after the quake.

The United States Geological Survey reported the earthquake struck Tuesday afternoon 472 miles (759 kilometers) south of Fiji, at a depth of 362 miles (583 kilometers).

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/weather/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120124/ap_on_re_as/as_fiji_earthquake

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Elusive Z- DNA found on nucleosomes

Friday, January 20, 2012

New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Cell & Bioscience is the first to show that left-handed Z-DNA, normally only found at sites where DNA is being copied, can also form on nucleosomes.

The structure of DNA which provides the blueprint for life has famously been described as a double helix. To save space inside the nucleus, DNA is tightly wound around proteins to form nucleosomes which are then further wound and compacted into chromatin, which is further compacted into chromosomes.

But this familiar image of a right handed coil (also called B-DNA) is not the only form of DNA. At sites where DNA is being copied into RNA (the messenger which is used as the instruction to make proteins) the DNA needs to unwind, and, in a process of negative supercoiling, can form a left-handed variety of the DNA double helix (Z-DNA).

It was originally thought that Z-DNA could only be formed in the presence of active RNA polymerase (the enzyme which assembles RNA). However more recently it has been discovered that SWI/SNF, a protein involved in remodeling nucleosomes and allowing RNA polymerase access to DNA, can convert certain sequences of B to Z-DNA.

The team of researchers led by Dr Keji Zhao discovered that they could convert B-DNA to Z-DNA on nucleosomes by the addition of SWI/SNF and ATP (the cell's energy source) and that the Z-nucleosome formed was a novel structure.

Dr Zhao, from the NIH, explained, "The fact that we have found Z-DNA on nucleosomes is a new step in understanding the roles of chromosome remodeling and Z-DNA in regulating gene expression. While the Z-nucleosome is likely to be a transient structure it nevertheless provides a window of opportunity for the placement of DNA binding proteins which may recruit, regulate, or block the transcription machinery and hence protein expression."

###

BioMed Central: http://www.biomedcentral.com

Thanks to BioMed Central for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/116908/Elusive_Z__DNA_found_on_nucleosomes

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Should couples share passwords?

Live Poll

Should couples share passwords?

• 173871

  ABSOLUTELY. Those that have nothing to hide, hide nothing.

  51%

• 173872

  NO. We're still individuals entitled to privacy and we trust each other.

  49%

VoteTotal Votes: 532

By Athima Chansanchai

Just how much do you trust your spouse or partner? Enough to share passwords? For some, passwords are the final frontier of privacy not only in financial matters, but in social media and email correspondence. But for others, there are no secrets when you're in a relationship?? even risking the potential payback should a break-up sever the happy union.

The New York Times tells us about an "intimate custom" writer Matt Ritchel says is happening between teens in love: "sharing their passwords to email,?Facebook?and other accounts." The desire to be one even extends, the article claims, to couples creating identical passwords and letting each other read private emails and texts.?

For some, it takes a court order to share so much.

But for others, it's imperative to know each other's passwords as part of an open, healthy and fully functioning relationship. Sometimes this comes after a loss of trust, as when one partner has cheated on the other. On the Surviving Infidelity website, where more than 34,000 members have exchanged stories of betrayal and support one another in the forums, there is a saying that becomes a mantra for many of them: "Those who have nothing to hide, hide nothing." To that end, nothing is private anymore in order to facilitate healing for the offended party.?

In this philosophy, those who have been unfaithful should share (or make open and available) not only passwords to their email accounts and Facebook, but also the contents of their text messages, phone logs, work and travel itineraries "without qualms."

Many in those forums mention how finding secret Facebook and email correspondences led to the big reveal of infidelity in their marriages and relationships, and we've seen surveys that attribute at least some fault in Facebook, though an informal poll we took at the end of year showed that nearly half of the 876 votes attributed the demise of their marriages with other factors. But 34 percent did blame Facebook.

Some of the teens in the New York Times article who opened themselves up were dealt a nasty lesson in human nature when their not-so-better halves decided to use the passwords in retaliation for perceived wrongs. The Times listed some examples:

The stories of fallout include a spurned boyfriend in junior high who tries to humiliate his ex-girlfriend by spreading her e-mail secrets; tensions between significant others over scouring each other?s private messages for clues of disloyalty or infidelity; or grabbing a cellphone from a former best friend, unlocking it with a password and sending threatening texts to someone else.

Take our poll and let us know if couples should share passwords.

More stories:

Check out Technolog on?Facebook, and on Twitter, follow?Athima Chansanchai, who is also trying to keep her head above water in the?Google+?stream.

Source: http://digitallife.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10199414-should-couples-share-passwords

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Junk food in schools gets weighty reprieve

On-site sale of sugary snacks may not feed obesity

Web edition : 5:05 pm

Controversial sales of candy, soda and other junk food in middle schools don?t weigh heavily on students? waistlines. This surprising finding ? based on a study that followed almost 20,000 kids through middle school ? suggests that obesity prevention programs should target children in their homes and communities during the preschool years, when eating habits form, researchers say.

Some scientists who study childhood obesity caution that the new investigation may underestimate a tendency for students to gain weight in middle schools that offer high-calorie alternatives to standard lunches.

Boys and girls, kids from rich families and poor ones, and students of different races displayed no greater tendency to get heavier or to become obese in middle schools stocked with sugary and fatty goodies, as opposed to schools free of junk food, say sociologists Jennifer Van Hook and Claire Altman, both of Pennsylvania State University in University Park.

Their report appears in the January Sociology of Education.

?Children may face greater risks for obesity at home than at school, even if their schools sell junk food,? Van Hook says.

Kids? eating patterns may take root well before middle school, she proposes. Also, middle school students? structured schedules may leave little opportunity to scarf junk food during the day.

The researchers? findings don?t exclude the possibility that some individuals find ways to eat enough junk food at school to gain weight, Van Hook adds.

She and Altman analyzed height and weight data for a nationally representative sample of 19,450 children who were fifth-graders from 2003 to 2004 and eighth-graders from 2006 to 2007, attending both grades in the same county. School principals provided information about foods available for purchase at their schools.

But principals usually don?t know what foods are available in their own schools? vending machines and lunch lines, raising doubts about the new study?s accuracy, says nutrition scientist Mary Story of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Van Hook and Altman lacked ?absolutely essential? data on individual kids? eating habits at school, which would directly show whether junk food availability led to weight gains, Story adds.

A more comprehensive national study conducted in 2004 and 2005 linked junk food sold in vending machines in or near school lunch areas with increased student body weight, Story says. She estimates that 40 percent of elementary and secondary school students in that study obtained enough daily calories, on average, from food other than school lunches to gain weight.

About 59 percent of fifth-graders and 86 percent of eighth-graders in the new analysis attended schools that sold junk food. Yet the overall percentage of overweight or obese students in the study sample decreased slightly from fifth to eighth grade, from approximately 39 percent to 35 percent. In 2008, an estimated 35.5 percent of 6- to 11-year-olds in the United States were either overweight or obese.

Even if further research confirms the new finding, epidemiologist Daniel Taber of the University of Illinois at Chicago argues, junk food sales in schools should be curtailed. Kids can adapt to anti-obesity programs that target junk food in their homes and neighborhoods by eating more of the stuff at school, he explains.

?If schools are not part of the solution to childhood obesity,? he says, ?they will be part of the problem.?

Found in: Behavior and Humans

Source: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337789/title/Junk_food_in_schools_gets_weighty_reprieve

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Gingrich wins SC primary, upsets Romney (AP)

Newt Gingrich has stormed to an upset victory over Mitt Romney in the South Carolina GOP primary with a pair of strong debate performances that most voters said was important to their choice.

Within minutes, the former speaker of the House was looking ahead to the next contest Jan. 31.

"Thank you South Carolina!," he tweeted. "Help me deliver the knockout punch in Florida."

In exit polls, most voters said they made up their minds in the last few days of the campaign. Two-thirds said the debates were an important factor in their vote.

Gingrich led among the state's conservatives, tea party supporters and born-again Christians. Romney held a small advantage among moderate and liberal voters, and those who are not born-again Christians.

.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120122/ap_on_el_pr/us_gop_campaign_vote_returns

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One in five Americans mentally ill in past year (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? One in five adults in the United States, or nearly 50 million people, suffered mental illnesses in the past year with women and young adults suffering disproportionately, a government report released on Thursday found.

The survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found women were more likely than men (23 percent to 16.8 percent) to have experienced a mental illness, while the rate of mental illness among people aged 18 to 25 was twice that of those aged 50 and older.

The administration defined mental illness among adults as diagnosable mental, behavioral or emotional disorders, excluding developmental disorders and substance use.

The survey found that 5 percent of American adults, or 11.4 million people, had suffered a serious mental illness in the past year that substantially interfered with their lives.

According to the report, about 8.7 million American adults had serious thoughts of suicide in the past year, with 2.5 million making suicide plans and 1.1 million attempting to take their own lives.

Americans suffering mental illnesses were three times more likely to have developed substance dependence or substance abuse disorders than adults who had not experienced mental illness.

Among youths aged 12 to 17, 8 percent -- or 1.9 million teenagers -- experienced a major depressive episode in the past year, defined as a period of at least 2 weeks when a person experienced a depressed mood or loss of interest.

Those teenagers who experienced a depressive episode also had twice the rate of illicit drug use than teenagers who had not experienced depression.

The administration surveyed 67,500 people aged 12 and older in person around the United States.

The report is available here: http://1.usa.gov/zUrdpz.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/diseases/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120119/hl_nm/us_usa_health_mental

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Jensen to be introduced as new OBU football coach

MOORE ? Chris Jensen must be used to building football programs. Four years after becoming the first head coach for Southmoore High School, he is leaving to take the same position with Oklahoma Baptist University, according to several of his former players.

?It was a big shock when I heard about it,? junior Tre Edwards said. ?I was in baseball and I kind of stopped practicing the whole time. I didn?t believe it. I thought someone was just playing with me.?

OBU has scheduled a press conference for 10 a.m. today to introduce its first head football coach since 1940. Jensen will not talk publicly about his new position until the press conference, but he told his players that he was leaving during a meeting Tuesday.

?We went to our locker room to get ready to work out in the gym,? junior Jackson Stallings said. ?The coaches told us to stay. He walked in and said this was one of the hardest decisions of his life and the opportunity he was presented was what was best for his family, and he was going to be the head coach at OBU. And he was going to be named that tomorrow.?

Before becoming the head coach at Southmoore, Jensen was the defensive coordinator at Westmoore.

In his first season with the SaberCats, he led the team to a 2-8 record in 2008. The Cats bounced back the next year to go 11-1 before losing to Jenks in the state semifinal round.

In Jensen?s final season at SHS the team went 5-6 and lost to Tulsa Union in the first round of the postseason. Overall, he amassed a 24-20 record in his four years.

Jensen?s replacement has not been named yet. But the players would like someone in their former coach?s mold.

?I hope it doesn?t change,? Edwards said. ?I hope we still have the faith and pride going on through Southmoore. He has left a pretty good legacy here the last four years. Hopefully, we just keep it and take off like we were trying to do this year. I hope we get a coach just like him.?

Source: http://normantranscript.com/x87191135/Jensen-to-be-introduced-as-OBU-football-coach

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Final plea in NY drug ring case on Columbia campus (AP)

NEW YORK ? A student accused of selling LSD at Columbia University pleaded guilty Tuesday to attempted drug possession, resolving the last case in a takedown of a drug ring on the Ivy League campus.

Adam Klein was the last of five students to plead guilty in the case, which authorities called the biggest move in recent memory against drug dealing at a New York City college. The case, unveiled in December 2010, spurred discussion of student drug use and how to weigh questions of promise, privilege and punishment in places from the New York Post's editorial page to an essay on Time magazine's website.

Klein, 21, is expected to get five years' probation at sentencing, which is scheduled for Feb. 28.

The students formed a loose-knit network that sold drugs ranging from marijuana to Ecstasy to cocaine out of dorm rooms and fraternity houses, with each student specializing in certain drugs, according to city Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan's office. An undercover officer bought more than $11,000 worth of drugs from the group over five months, prosecutors said.

Lawyers for several of the students, including Klein, portrayed them as talented young men who got derailed by drug problems in college. Klein became addicted to marijuana and other drugs that took a severe toll on him academically, according to his lawyer, Alan Abramson. Klein is currently in drug treatment, Abramson said.

Klein and three of the other students asked a court for a chance at wiping their records clean by completing court-supervised rehabilitation, a legal option granted to more than 1,000 people statewide each year. The fifth student wasn't eligible because he faced more serious charges related to cocaine sales.

A court turned down all but one of the students, Christopher Coles, 21, who began treatment earlier this month after admitting he sold more than a pound of marijuana to an undercover officer. His lawyer said the sales were an attempt to finance the anthropology major's own $70-to-$100-a-day pot habit.

For the rest of the students, the outcomes have ranged from probation and community service to jail time.

The engineering student who faced the cocaine charges and was the investigation's initial target, Harrison David, 21, served a six-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to a cocaine-selling charge.

Jose Stephan Perez, a published poet who won the prestigious Gates Millennium scholarship, pleaded guilty to a felony attempted drug possession charge. Perez, 21, also known as Stephan Vincenzo, had been accused mainly of selling the prescription stimulant Adderall. But Perez, whose lawyer said the student struggled with social pressures in college and began smoking marijuana as many as five times a day, will be allowed to withdraw his plea and plead guilty instead to a drug misdemeanor in a year if he meets conditions including 300 hours of community service.

Michael Wymbs, an engineering major initially charged with selling LSD and Ecstasy, was sentenced last week to five years' probation after pleading guilty to attempted drug possession. Wymbs, 23, was treated for depression in college and grappled with drug use and heavy drinking, his lawyer said in court papers.

Wymbs is now studying at the City University of New York, his lawyer, Michael Bachner, told a judge last week.

Columbia has declined to comment on the students' current status, citing educational privacy laws.

Three off-campus suppliers charged in the case also have pleaded guilty.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/education/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120117/ap_on_re_us/us_campus_drug_ring

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Apple to announce new digital textbook service?

Apple

At 10 a.m. ET on Thursday, Apple will kick off an "invitation-only education event" at the Guggenheim Museum?in New York City. Naturally there's plenty of gossip regarding what might be announced during the event. Just what will Apple show off in the Big Apple?

One thing's for certain ??mainly because Apple itself revealed it ??and that's the main topic of the event: Education. Any information beyond that appears to rely on tips from anonymous sources who might be familiar with the matter and educated guesswork. (Sorry about that pun.)

Generally speaking though, this particular Apple event doesn't seem to have the usual cloud of leaks and speculation surrounding it. AllThingsD's Peter Kafka?points out that part of the reason for this lack of information?? and apparent interest???is likely connected to the main topic's lack of appeal. Education, while obviously an important aspect of life, is about as interesting to discuss as plain low-fat yogurt.

But that unfortunate reality is not the only reason for the disinterest, Kafka explains:

People who know things about Apple have made a point of tamping down expectations. For starters, note that it?s in New York, not Apple?s Bay Area backyard, where it puts on its really big shows. Also note that Apple media boss Eddy Cue is supposed to be front and center, not CEO Tim Cook.

Daring Fireball's John Gruber?? who is frequently, and affectionately, considered an Apple know-it-all?? probably chuckled as he pointed out that a spoiler for this Apple event may have been in front of our noses all along anyway. Deep within the pages of the Steve Jobs biography penned by Walter Isaacson, he explains, is a paragraph which tells us that Jobs "had his sights set on textbooks as the next business he wanted to transform."?

His idea was to hire great textbook writers to create digital versions, and make them a feature of the iPad. In addition, he held meetings with the major publishers, such as Pearson Education, about partnering with Apple. ?The process by which states certify textbooks is corrupt,? he said. ?But if we can make the textbooks free, and they come with the iPad, then they don?t have to be certified. The crappy economy at the state level will last for a decade, and we can give them an opportunity to circumvent that whole process and save money.?

A report by the?Wall Street Journal's?Jessica E. Vascellaro?suggests?that this observation is right on the dot. "According to people familiar with the matter, Mr. Rosner ? Apple's vice president for productivity applications, in charge of its iWork document, spreadsheet and presentation software ? is closely involved in developing the new digital textbook service,"?explains Vascellaro:

The announcement isn't expected to focus on textbooks that exist today, but rather around tools for building digital textbooks, according to these people. That service is expected to be a way for a broad range of schools, publishers and others to develop learning material in a digital format, these people said.

That's what's known?? and speculated?? about Apple's upcoming education event. Be sure to tune in around 10 a.m. ET as we discover whether the guesswork pans out and how ? if at all???Apple adds a dash of flavor to a seemingly plain topic.

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Source: http://gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/19/10188912-apple-to-announce-new-digital-textbook-service

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