Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/238522669?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Tuesday, July 31, 2012
New Tampa Fitness ? Kids Obesity, an epidemic? ? Healthy Mind ...
At AAP Fitness we are all about teaching fitness to children from an early age. AAP is and always has been about family. The new knowledge that Mom and Dad learn at AAP contribute to an overall healthier family. AAP Fitness New Tampa owner Chantil has three children with number four on the way? so if anyone knows the importance of creating a healthy balanced family, it is her!
Did you know that currently, 60% of all children in the US are obese?? These are staggering statistics especially considering most of these obese children are between the ages of 6-11. This is key because this age group is one which still heavily relies on the parent or adult guidance. Most of these obese children go on to become obese adolescents.
70% of those adolescents go on to become obese adults! Friends, I don?t know about you but this is a scary statistic!! It shows that these habits are ingrained from an early age and go on to drastically affect the course of a child?s life on into adulthood.
What makes this even more powerful however, is that this can be prevented! There are a multitude of things that are spawned from childhood obesity including low self-esteem, depression, bullying from other children, tremendous health issues including diabetes and heart disease! This is the first time in our history that children are being faced with Diabetes and Heart disease.
You must ask yourself? WHAT is causing this staggering rise? WHAT is causing this childhood obesity epidemic? Is it merely lack of parental guidance? Lack of knowledge? Or are there other factors?
At AAP Fitness, we believe it is SEVERAL factors combined. First and foremost, statistics are also showing a drastic rise in parents seeking careers. Many homes are left with both parents working full-time jobs and things such as ?home cooked meals? and prepared lunches are a thing of the past. Time for creating structure and teaching healthy habits within the household is lost.
In fact, 32% of 2-7 year olds and 70% of 8-18 year olds have a television in the bedroom! This is a huge factor in contributing to obesity. Not only is loss of sleep a MAJOR issue and contributor but so is mindless eating. WHAT are the kids eating you ask? Certainly not organic vegetables or nutritious snacks while munching into the wee hours of the morning.
Most of them are microwaveable nutritionally void foods and highly processed junk foods (see our blog post on ULTRA HIGHLY PROCESSED FOODS) Couple this with the genetically modified foods being put on the market at staggering rates as well as the chemicals and preservatives that are doused on them and the highly addictive additives you have a recipe for disaster literally. The scariest part is that food companies are marketing SPECIFICALLY to our children. They market to the child and once the parents ?give in? that is it. The foods are SO addictive that it becomes a vicious cycle. If you can create an addiction?. YOU can create a lifetime customer? and it ALL starts with a child.
Actually, it starts with infants (and formula) but we will save that for another blog post.
The saddest part of this epidemic is the unavoidable link between physical obesity and emotional scars that this child is left with as a result. Children are becoming more sedentary, less social, more depressed and more diseased than ever!
They are left to fend for themselves in many cases and nosh on foods that continue to cause weight gain yet, don?t fill them up. It is easy for a child to eat 4 microwaveable dinners but try to give them 4 bananas to eat. They are not getting the nutrition and continue to eat and eat and eat to fill a space that will NEVER be filled with DEAD food!
So? what is the solution? The solution is a multi faceted approach. First and foremost, it takes the efforts of the parents and family unit first. This is where a child learns crucial life skills. Did you know that by the age of 12 most children have ingrained in them EVERYTHING they will take with them through life? The first 12 years of teaching are VITAL! Start teaching your child as a toddler. They can?t get addicted to McDonald?s unless you let them? why?? Because they certainly can?t drive themselves there! YOU are control of what you allow.
Involving your children in the process of living a healthy lifestyle is one which can teach them AND bring you closer together as a family! Involve your child in preparing dinners. Get your teen to prepare one or two meals per week.
At AAP Fitness our programs are literally second to NONE! We offer children?s fitness programs and also modify and guide the parents on how to filter their healthy lifestyle over to their children. Kids fitness programs, Kids shopping trips and education are all a part of AAP?s mission. Our future is in our children!
This leads me to the next big thing! Exercise. Get rid of the video games, televisions and any other electronic distractions and set a family time during the week to workout! Go for a walk, bike ride or swim. Not only will you each be getting healthy together but you are establishing guidelines within your family that require activity. You are setting the groundwork for success.
The key is to make it FUN and make it a lesson! Engage your child in conversation about health and seek to learn them and what activities they like. If your child is older or already suffering from obesity? seeking the advice of fitness/nutrition professionals such as those at AAP Fitness is advisable. You want your child to feel positively affirmed and not attacked. The key is to reassure them and use a lot of positive feedback. Do not forget the incredible link between the physical and emotional connection.
Commit to ridding your home of ALL junk foods (chips, sodas, snacks and more!) and replacing them with healthy options and lots of lean veggies, proteins etc.
Tosca Reno has an entire line of books including several geared specifically for kids chuck full of awesome recipes! Try healthier alternatives to the common ?cookie? recipe and more! You will be amazed at what exists!
At AAP we know that you CAN achieve a healthy and balanced lifestyle for your whole family. It takes time and patience but it can be done!
The health of your child depends on you. Don?t rush this vital part of their life.
Remember, KIDS are our future and they deserve the best start possible!
In health,
Team AAP Fitness
FOR MORE INFO ON KIDS FITNESS PROGRAMS AND NUTRITION:
AAP Fitness New Tampa- Chantil McLeod 813-997-2494
AAP Palm Harbor ? Alex & Ashley Poptodorov 727-385-7177
or check us out on the web at www.aapfitness.com
AAP Fitness would LOVE to hear from you! :) Have a happy and healthy day!
Source: http://aapfitness.wordpress.com/2012/07/30/new-tampa-fitness-kids-obesity-an-epidemic/
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Stage 1 Breast Cancer Successfully Treated ? About | Cancer Kick
My surgeon kept saying how young I was (46) and how tiny my tumor was (1 cm) and what a good thing it was that we caught it early. I had just gotten my breast biopsy report, and he could see how scared I felt, so he was being encouraging. My diagnosis was Stage 1 breast cancer, a low-grade, slow-moving tumor that seemed to have stayed all in one place. I didn?t feel so young and at that point any tumor felt huge ? but the thought of having a very early stage of breast cancer did help me calm down. We discussed a lumpectomy, which was to be followed by 6 weeks of radiation, and 5 years of Tamoxifen. I was thinking, ?Cancer in six weeks! Beat that! Let?s just get this done!? That was 10 years ago, and I?m still here. Treatments have changed and improved, as have survival rates. Early stage breast cancer can be survived, and the earlier the better!
Once you?ve been diagnosed with breast cancer, you start learning so much about the world of oncology. New terms get thrown at you ? sometimes with explanations, sometimes not ? and many decisions await you. Staging of your tumor is just one facet of your comprehensive diagnosis, but it?s an important one. The stage of your cancer affects your options for surgery and other treatments. The bottom line on tumor staging is this: the smaller the number, the less rigorous the treatments. That makes it well worth your while to find it early, deal with it promptly, and get the best treatment for your particular case. Often, getting a second opinion is helpful, as different oncologists may suggest different means of treatments, or even a clinical trial. With early stage breast cancer, there may not be a big rush to begin treatments, so weigh your options before you commit to any life-changing plans.
In my case, my lumpectomy revealed a larger tumor with invasive cells in the surgical margins, so back I went for a mastectomy. Breast-conserving surgery didn?t work in my case, but I did find a good plastic surgeon who did my reconstruction. I was finally diagnosed with Stage 2 ? the tumor was larger than we thought and the invasive cells pushed me into a higher stage. My daydream of having just 6 weeks of cancer did not materialize, and I went on to take almost a full year of surgeries and chemo. That?s how much difference there can be between stages of breast cancer. So when I say, ?Don?t skip your breast self exam!? I really mean it. Catch it early and get it over with, if at all possible.
Sign up for my Free 8-day E-course for Newly Diagnosed.
Article source: http://breastcancer.about.com/b/2012/07/30/stage-1.htm
Source: http://cancerkick.com/2012/07/31/stage-1-breast-cancer-successfully-treated-about/
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Monday, July 30, 2012
Metallica burns it up at start of Mexico tour
MEXICO CITY (AP) ? Metallica vocalist James Hetfield had warned things could get perilous at the start of the band's fifth tour of Mexico, saying "We're very focused on how dangerous this show is."
The audience of more than 22,000 believed it too. Many of the fans were visibly terrified Saturday night as the band re-enacted its burn-down-the-stage performance from 1998's "Cunning Stunts" video album.
At one point a technician fled across the stage like a human torch in a Mexico City show that featured explosions, pyrotechnics, laser lights and the odd giant coffin.
Hours earlier Hetfield said the tour would cover the band's 31 years of performing.
Metallica has scheduled seven more shows at Mexico City's Sports Palace before heading to dates in San Francisco and Edmonton, Canada.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/metallica-burns-start-mexico-tour-211323833.html
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Colorado theater gunman charged with 24 counts of murder
[Updated at 3:30 p.m. ET]
Prosecutors on Monday charged James Holmes with two dozen counts of first-degree murder and more than 100 other violent offenses related to the recent deadly rampage at a Colorado movie theater.
Holmes, who appeared in court with the same cartoonish orange-red hair he had at the time of the shooting, said only one word during Monday's hearing.
"Yes," he answered when asked by the judge if he waived his right to a preliminary hearing within 35 days.
Police say Holmes, 24, blasted his way through a packed movie house during a premiere showing of Batman "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora.
Twelve victims died in the attack, 58 others were wounded. The melee is among the worst mass shootings in modern-day American history. Prosecutors filed a total of 142 criminal charges against him, including 116 counts of attempted murder. The 24 murder counts reflect dual charges (premeditated and without remorse) by the prosecutors.
In the lengthy list of charges, the Arapahoe County District Attorney's Office accuses Holmes of, "evidencing an attitude of universal malice manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life."
During Monday's hearing, Judge William Sylvester carefully explained to Holmes that the charges carry a minimum sentence of life in prison and a maximum of death. The district attorney near Denver has not announced if she will seek the death penalty against the alleged gunman.
Half of the 110-seat courtroom was filled with victims or their families. One survivor entered the courtroom in a wheelchair with a bandage on her left leg. Blood from a wound could be seen through the bandage. Some stared intently at Holmes, who sat at the defense table to the right of his two attorneys, throughout the 50-minute hearing. Others focused on Judge Sylvester and attorneys as they discussed procedural issues and hearing dates.
Ashley Moser lost her 6-year-old daughter in the attack and was also paralyzed in the shooting. Her aunt, MaryEllen Hensen, was in court on Monday and said the suspect looked more alert in today's hearing. In his first court appearance, Holmes was described by many as being dazed and groggy.
"When we'd seen him before, he looked kind of spaced out or out of touch," Hensen said. "He looked very alert today and very lucid."
Still, she said, "he had an expression and persona of evilness to him."
Some in the court's gallery wore sunglasses. One woman cried openly. Three people, including a woman with a bandaged arm, wore Batman T-shirts.
"It saddens our family that there is a man that has so much hate and evil in his heart," the family of Gordon Cowden said in a statement after Monday's hearing. "We feel confident that our judicial system, as will God and the public, see to it that this evil man receives the punishment he deserves and our hope and prayers are that one day, he will face God with remorse and tremendous sorrow for his actions."
Cowden, 51, had taken his two teenagers to see the midnight premiere. His children escaped the shooting spree without injury.
"Gordon was a man, working with their mom, to raise four children, to build a solid foundation for each; teaching them to love life, love themselves, love others and to love God," his family said. "And though this evil man has caused our family so much hurt and pain he cannot, nor can anyone ever take away or ever permanently damage this foundation of love for each other, for others, for life and for God."
Hensen, who lost a great niece, said she fears sending Holmes to death row will prolong the time it takes for victims to heal.
"As far as the death penalty goes, I am a Christian and I do believe he should just be probably locked away and live with what he did every day of his life," she said.
[COMPLETE COVERAGE: Colorado theater shooting]
Holmes was clad in tactical gear and possessed four guns and a stockpile of ammo when he surrendered to officers behind the cinema shortly after the July 20 shooting spree. He did not resist arrest, but investigators have since described the former neuroscience doctoral student as uncooperative.
Victims arrive at Monday?s hearing for suspected theater shooter James Holmes. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)
Police say Holmes legally purchased the guns in May and June but allegedly began stockpiling ammo and other gear four months ago.
"This is not a whodunit. ... The only possible defense is insanity," Craig Silverman, a former chief deputy district attorney in Denver, told the Associated Press.
At Monday's hearing, attorneys also discussed a package the former grad student allegedly sent to his psychiatrist at the University of Colorado Denver.
Authorities seized the package July 23, three days after the shooting, after finding it in the mail room of the medical campus where Holmes studied. Several media outlets reported that it contained a notebook with descriptions of an attack, but Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers said in court papers that the parcel hadn't been opened by the time the "inaccurate" news reports appeared.
On Friday, court papers revealed that Holmes was seeing a psychiatrist at the university. But they did not say how long he was seeing Dr. Lynne Fenton and if it was for a mental illness or another problem.
The University of Colorado's website identified Fenton as the medical director of the school's Student Mental Health Services. An online resume listed schizophrenia as one of her research interests and stated that she sees 10 to 15 graduate students a week for medication and psychotherapy, as well as 5 to 10 patients in her general practice as a psychiatrist, the Associated Press reported.
Under Colorado law, defendants are not legally liable for their acts if their minds are so "diseased" that they cannot distinguish between right and wrong. However, the law warns that "care should be taken not to confuse such mental disease or defect with moral obliquity, mental depravity, or passion growing out of anger, revenge, hatred, or other motives, and kindred evil conditions."
[RELATED: Should the movie theater reopen?]
Experts say there are two levels of insanity defenses. Holmes' public defenders could argue he is not mentally competent to stand trial, like Jared Loughner, who killed six people when he shot Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson in 2011. Loughner has pleaded not guilty to charges in the shooting. He has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and is undergoing treatment at a Missouri prison facility in a bid to make him mentally fit to stand trial.
If Holmes' attorneys cannot convince the court that he is mentally incompetent, and he is convicted, they can try to stave off a possible death penalty by arguing he is mentally ill.
Sam Kamin, a law professor at the University of Denver, said there is "pronounced" evidence that the attack was premeditated, which would seem to make an insanity defense difficult. "But," he told the Associated Press, "the things that we don't know are what this case is going to hinge on, and that's his mental state."
(The Associated Press and Yahoo! staffer Tim Skillern in Centennial, Colo., contributed to this report.)
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Peppa Pig's Sports Day tops UK iPad chart
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Source: http://article.wn.com/view/2012/07/30/Peppa_Pigs_Sports_Day_tops_UK_iPad_chart/
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Sunday, July 29, 2012
Decorating the Interiors of New Homes | Power Tools Reviews
Decorating the Interiors of New Homes
When you get inside the interiors of new homes for the first time, you will suddenly be amazed at the thousands of design ideas that will strike your mind. It?s normal that you would want to implement each design idea but you have to be thorough in your selection. Learn to examine the space and determine the best design that will be suitable to it.
Check the Different Rooms and Areas of the New Homes
You should check the various areas that compose the interiors of the new homes. Make sure that you look into the living room, dining area and kitchen of the houses. Try to assess the proximity of each area and how they relate to each other. Do you think that they need to have the same design theme so that they will look cohesive? If the dining area and the kitchen area separated by a divider or wall, then you can have a different theme for each area as long as the overall design is still followed. For the bedrooms, you can certainly experiment with various design themes.
Figure Out the Best Design Scheme for the Homes
You should determine the best design scheme for the new homes so that you can maximize all the areas in the house. If the dining room is wide and there is a huge fireplace at the corner then you can make that the focal point of the design. You can be inspired by the material used for the fireplace. If it has wood detailing then you can go for a country style theme or a traditional theme. It really depends on what look would be best for the homes.
Find Materials for the Interior Design of the Homes
Figuring out the design scheme of the homes is only half of the journey. You still have a long way to go. It?s important that you go look for materials for the construction of interior structures. You may have to add an accent wall and you will need to buy tiles or wood panels for that. If you have to install dividers so that the space will look more organized, then you have to decide on the type of materials to use for the dividers.
Source for Furniture Pieces Suitable for the Rooms
One of the most important tasks that you will need to do for the decoration of new homes is to find the perfect furniture pieces. You have to bear in mind that these furniture items have specific functions. You can think about their aesthetic appeal afterwards.
Add some Decorations and Accessories for the Interiors
You also need to add some accessories as finishing touches to the homes. It?s important that these accessories are also similar in design to the rest of the furniture pieces and interior decorations. You have to be keen on each detail so that the interiors of the homes will look elegant and tasteful.
Make sure that the new homes get the right interior design treatment so that they will be perfect to live in.
Brandon Jones is a blogger who enjoys writing about real estate.? For real estate ideas click here.
Source: http://menbuy.net/home-improvement-2/decorating-the-interiors-of-new-homes/
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Golden Rules For the Use of Autoresponders
Autoresponders have been an preferred proceed to urge visitors for your web site. They?re equates to to save multiform profitable hours by automatically responding emails per continually asked questions about a operate or product or by promulgation a acquire minute to latest members of one?s system. There have been multiform ways which autoresponders can support your business. A singular of a many critical is their intensity to lane a efficacy of your promotions. Since autoresponders have been a singular sold in a many usual promotion as good as selling collection offering currently, they?re being in operate by lots of assorted kinds of classification as good as sites. Some of those have a many of a module to have operate of a autoresponders in an adverse manner. You ought to be unwavering of many of a Golden Rules? when creation operate of autoresponders.
Thou Shalt Not Use an Autoresponder Address When Submitting to Search engines similar to google.
Due to a actuality we will many expected contention your web-site to poke engines such as Google or Yahoo!, directories, classifieds, as good as no price for all sites, we should be constructed wakeful with a being which these web sites customarily an autoresponder also. In box we had been to work with your autoresponder to verbalise to these businesses, their autoresponder will reply to yours as good as so upon as good as so on. Therefore formulating a cycle of autoresponses which could inundate your e mail box as good as theirs as well.
Thou Shalt Not Use an Autoresponder to Subscribe to Ezines or Discussion Forums.
Given which a infancy of a time an Ezine will send we updates as good as latest report upon a unchanging basis, your vehicle responder will send them a summary any singular time. Within a contention forum, any chairman in a contention forum will acquire your vehicle response. This is mostly vitriolic as good as many of a time we will be unsubscribed. It?s often formidable for a administrators from a forum or ezine to discern who?s regulating a autoresponse as good as for which reason it is essentially fundamentally standard pleasantness to by no equates to operate an autoresponer in this manner.
Thou Shalt Not Use an Autoresponder to Make a many of Unsuspecting Individuals.
Some utterly unsuited providers will operate autoresponders to reply to an programmed summary when this can be finished a residence in a from margin will be
automatically subscribed to their mailing list. This can be an intensely un reliable operate of autoresponders as good as those who do it have been in danger of producing a unequivocally disastrous picture of themselves as good as their business. As an pick to foster their operate or tiny business, this in all leads to persons apropos intensely dissapoint as good as swelling an adverse word about your commercial operation as against to a good a single.
The internet can be a illusory place to do classification as good as autoresponders might be a good plan to save time, even so when practical in an unsuited way, they can lead to disappointment as good as worsening for alternative people. Your organisation will humour a detriment of almost association if we confirm to take partial in these violent practices. The befitting operate of vehicle responders can furnish a
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Source: http://www.europeanbracelets.org/golden-rules-for-the-use-of-autoresponders-3/
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Free Alternatives to Dallas Texas Attractions: 10 Tips For Family Fun in
Free Alternatives to Dallas Texas Attractions: 10 Tips For Family Fun in McCurtain County
Article by Marcia Drewitz
Gas prices and higher grocery bills don?t have to mean the end of the Dallas/Fort Worth (the Metroplex) family road trip. Where can you find an alternative to the Metroplex area family vacation spots? Where can your budget-conscious family go during the fall months for a weekend getaway? The answer: Beavers Bend Resort Park area in Southeast Oklahoma?s McCurtain County, a mere three-hour drive ? less than a gas tank away from Dallas. The area was voted by LIFE magazine as one of the ?100 Places to See in Your Lifetime? and by The Dallas Observer as the ?Best Getaway from Dallas.?
Once you arrive, make the Beavers Bend Resort Park area your home base. There is lodging and cabins to fit every budget. Then explore the region?s many low-cost or free offerings. Most anything your heart desires is either in the park itself or nearby in the towns of Idabel, Hochatown, Valliant and Broken Bow. The kids will have a blast and your bank account will thank you profusely.
Here are 10 tips for finding free or low-cost alternatives to Dallas Texas attractions:
Tip #1: Watch the eagles fly: Witness the eagles while hiking along the Mountain Fork River and on Broken Bow Lake. Guided hikes start at the park?s nature center at 9 a.m. on Saturdays throughout the fall months. The experience is fun and educational! You?ll learn that thousands of eagles migrate south and take up residence wherever they encounter open water and plentiful food. Because of the abundance of lakes and rivers and mild winter temperatures, Oklahoma?s McCurtain County is especially attractive to these magnificent birds.
Tip #2: Visit a nature center: The Beaver Bend Resort Park?s nature center offers hayrides and storytelling by the campfire on Friday and Saturday nights.
Tip #3: Try your hand at arts and crafts: Also at the nature center, which is open all day on weekends, kids will love making arts and crafts (supplies provided). Take your handmade souvenir home with you when you leave.
Tip #4: Learn about native forests: At the park?s Forest Heritage Museum, you and the kids will learn about the area?s native forests from the time of the dinosaurs to the present day.
Tip #5: Go green: Steep yourself in wildlife conservation practices at the park?s wildlife museum.
Tip #6: Visit an arts and crafts show: The Beavers Bend Folk Festival and Craft Show held in November showcases old timey arts and crafts. More than 70 exhibitors show off their crafts, skills and food at the three-day event.
Tip #7: Experience a fair: The McCurtain County Free Fair is held in nearby downtown Idabel in October. The five-day festival includes lots of chances to let out your inner ?American Idol? at the show?s talent contest, which features all manner of acts, singers, dancers, etc. The fair features baked-goods cook-offs, a tractor driving contest, beauty pageant, carnival and of course, a livestock show.
Tip #8: Rub elbows (sort of) with famous singing cowboys: While in Idabel, be sure to visit the Roy Rogers and Gene Autry Museum. But call first: it is the personal project of an Idabel resident who runs the attraction out of his home.
Tip #9: Become an expert on eating eggplant: Just outside Idabel, a short drive away is the Honey Bear Ranch, which sells organic meat and produce and offers cooking classes such as ?Everything you could possibly do with eggplant.? It even has a petting zoo for the kids.
Tip #10: Learn about the region?s native populations: Don?t leave Idabel until you?ve seen the Museum of the Red River, where you can find out about the Indians who once populated Southeast Oklahoma?s McCurtain County.
With Dallas, Texas attractions often costing an arm and a leg, why not jump in the car and visit your neighbors just across the river in nearby McCurtain County? With all of the low-cost and free attractions available, you will end up saving money while visiting one of the most naturally beautiful, historically-rich areas of the country.
About the Author
Find out more about McCurtain County Oklahoma for your next family trip by visiting: www.mcfamilyfun.com
Use and distribution of this article is subject to our Publisher Guidelines
whereby the original author?s information and copyright must be included.
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Saturday, July 28, 2012
It's Official - Adventure Travel News
World?s largest online customer satisfaction survey, Skytrax, lauds SAA at Farnborough Air Show
Farnborough, UK???South African Airways?(SAA) scored a notable double success at the 2012?World Airline Awards, with air travellers voting SAA as the Best Airline in Africa, and winner of the title for Best Airline Staff Service in Africa.
The Best Airline in Africa award is the tenth in a row for SAA whilst the Best Staff Service in Africa award is the third in succession for the airline.
The awards, by?SKYTRAX, a global aviation research organisation were announced today at the?Farnborough International Airshow?currently underway in the UK and received by the chairperson of the SAA Board, Ms Cheryl Carolus and the CEO, Ms Siza Mzimela.
?SKYTRAX has again confirmed that SAA, with our excellent service and very convenient connections to 26 African destinations via our Johannesburg hub, ranks with the best in the world,? said Mzimela. ?We are immensely proud of our staff, because it is their consistent, professional and dedicated approach combined with our reliable fleet, our hospitable and advanced onboard product and the convenient connectivity we offer through our global route network that led passengers to again rate SAA number one in Africa?.
The SKYTRAX awards?are based on customer responses to a survey which is run over a period of 10 months. This year, over 18 million businesses and leisure air travellers from 100 countries were polled by telephone, questionnaires and online. The survey covered over 200 airlines, from the largest international airlines to the smallest domestic airlines.
The survey measured passenger satisfaction across nearly 40 key performance and service indicators including the airport and on-board environments; from check-in to boarding, onboard seat comfort, cabin cleanliness, food and beverages as well as staff behaviour and service standards and consistency.
?This represents another great success for SAA. To pick up these two major awards is a clear indication of the esteem that passengers have for the airline, and with this being the 10th?consecutive year that SAA has emerged winner of the Best Airline in Africa title; it underlines their dominance of this market. Also named winner of the Best Airline Staff Service in Africa award is recognition of the hard work across all front-line staff at SAA,? said Edward Plaisted Chairman of SKYTRAX.
The World Airline Awards are the global benchmarks of airline excellence. Other accolades that SAA has received this year include a four star rating in February by Skytrax; the World Travel Awards as the Leading Airline in Africa 2011 voted by the travel trade, the Public Sector Award (a Service Excellence Gold award for the transport sector), and the Generation X Coolest Domestic Airline for the fourth year in a row at the Sunday Times Generation Next Survey Awards.
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Friday, July 27, 2012
Wall Street jumps on Draghi comments
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street rose more than 1 percent on Thursday, putting the S&P 500 on track to snap a four-day losing streak, after the European Central Bank chief pledged to save the euro zone from collapse.
ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday the ECB would do what was necessary to protect the euro zone, including fighting high bond yields, a measure ECB officials had not previously suggested.
"Draghi's comments were quite exciting because this is something people always thought the ECB would not do," said Stephen Massocca, managing director at Wedbush Morgan in San Francisco.
Policy makers have made similar statements about saving the euro before, but if these remarks result in decisive intervention in European bond markets, it could spur a sizable rally in stocks.
Shares in sectors more sensitive to risks in Europe and economic demand, such as energy-related stocks and financials, led the market. The PHLX oil service index <.osx> was up 3.4 percent, led by a 7.3 percent jump in National Oilwell Varco Inc
In a reassuring sign for the economy, the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week to near a four-year low, although the figures have been volatile of late due to summer factory shutdowns.
Zynga
Shares in Sprint Nextel Corp
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was up 177.78 points, or 1.40 percent, at 12,853.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 17.05 points, or 1.27 percent, at 1,354.94. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 39.54 points, or 1.39 percent, at 2,893.78.
Hopes that the Federal Reserve will boost efforts to stimulate a flagging economy, maybe with a decision to do so as early as at its rate-setting meeting next week, soothed concerns about the economy and offset the impact of what investors describe as a "mixed" corporate earnings season.
Of the 260 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings to date for Q2 2012, 66.5 percent have reported earnings above analyst expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data.
If the move higher by the market is sustained through the trading day it will lift the S&P 500 away from a technically important level around 1,333. The level marks a convergence of several technical factors, including the index's 50-day moving average, and has served as support for stocks.
Diversified manufacturer 3M
(Reporting by Anna Louie Sussman; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Dave Zimmerman)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-index-futures-dip-raft-earnings-due-092215108--finance.html
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Capello signs 2-year contract as Russia coach
Associated Press Sports
updated 8:54 a.m. ET July 26, 2012
MOSCOW (AP) - Former England coach Fabio Capello signed a two-year contract on Thursday to guide Russia's national soccer team through to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Capello announced the move at a news conference in which he acknowledged his inability to speak Russian but said he would work to overcome it.
He replaces Dick Advocaat, who resigned after Russia failed to make it past the group stage at the European Championship last month.
Capello had been unemployed since stepping down as England coach in February after four years in charge to protest against the country's soccer association stripping John Terry of the captaincy.
The 66-year-old Italian has won the league title with every club he has managed, including Real Madrid, AC Milan, Roma and Juventus.
The appointment comes amid turmoil in Russian soccer.
The Russian Football Union still hasn't found a replacement for chairman Sergei Fursenko, who resigned after Euro 2012.
Among other things, Capello will be charged with boosting morale after the disappointing performance at Euro 2012.
Along with a barrage of criticism from Russian soccer analysts, the Russian team also faced the ire of the media and fans who accused the players of a lack of enthusiasm and laziness.
Capello played 32 internationals for Italy as a midfielder.
? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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More newsGetty ImagesMLS All-Stars top Chelsea
Eddie Johnson scored in the 91st minute to give the Major League Soccer All-Stars a 3-2 victory over Chelsea on Wednesday night.
Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/48197585/ns/sports-soccer/
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Thursday, July 26, 2012
WOW! Women On Writing Blog: She Writes Press: A New Publishing ...
The new publishing opportunities available to writers in today's market are phenomenal. The gatekeepers, aka agents and editors, no longer have the final say on whether or not a project will find readers. Writers are being published traditionally, and this is great. But they are also finding ways to publish their books with subsidy companies and by self-publishing!
We are excited to welcome Brooke Warner with She Writes Press. Some of you may recognize her name if you have been a member of the She Writes community or taken advantage of her coaching services. She Writes Press is a new company she has started with Kamy Wicoff, the founder of SheWrites.com. Brooke took some time to answer questions about the services and opportunities She Writes Press, a subsidy press, will give to authors. So, take it away, Brooke!?
WOW: Welcome, Brooke! There's a lot of buzz going on about your new independent publishing company, She Writes Press. All the interviews and comments I've read about it have writers excited and enthusiastic about the opportunities you are going to provide women writers! So, tell me, how is She Writes Press different than some of the other subsidy publishing companies like Outskirts Press, Inc?
Brooke: There are many self-publishing options in the world today, and they vary quite a bit. We consider ourselves to be a hybrid press. MJ Rose of Author Buzz recently told me she considers presses like ours to be co-op publishers. We are offering something unique in the marketplace because we are vetting our books. In order to publish on She Writes Press, your manuscript has to be up to industry standard, and we have editors and agents vetting our projects. Some writers will qualify to publish with SWP right out of the gate. For those authors who need either developmental editing or copyediting, we present a way to move forward with us for the end goal of publishing with SWP. The other primary thing that sets us apart from other self-publishing companies is our community of writers at SheWrites.com. She Writes Press serves the She Writes community, though you don't have to be a She Writer to publish with us. She Writes Press is mirroring a traditional publishing model. We are offering custom covers and interior design, not templates. We're also giving our authors a team, support, and an opportunity to be part of something bigger. Self-publishing can be a lonely endeavor, and we believe authors will be more successful as a result of having community, resources, and support.
WOW: That is DEFINITELY true--authors need community, resources, and support! It's great to hear that She Writes Press is thinking outside the box and offering writers new opportunities. What type of projects are you looking for to be some of your first books?
Brooke: We are accepting submissions across all genres, and we're not trying to specify what can and can't be considered. Our only stipulation is that the authors be female. Other than that, we are doing almost any genre. The only thing we're not doing at the moment are children's books and other high-production art books. Our sweet spot is going to be commercial fiction and memoir just because this is what we see most in our community; but I think we'll also do a lot of literary fiction and prescriptive books as well.
WOW: Sounds like we (WOW! and SWP) have a lot in common--supporting women writers! (smiles) So just to clarify, what type of manuscripts are you accepting? Fiction and nonfiction?Brooke: Yes, fiction and nonfiction. We've received nineteen submissions since our launch one month ago. This has included mostly fiction, four memoirs, two anthologies, and two prescriptive books. We haven't seen any genre fiction at this point, but we're open to it.
WOW: Nineteen submissions in your first month! That just goes to show you how there's a need out there for what you are offering. How does an author submit a manuscript to She Writes Press, and what's the submission process like once you receive it?
Brooke: Authors submit on our site at www.shewritespress.com/submit. It costs $25, and authors receive an assessment for that price. Our readers read the submission materials and give the manuscript a recommendation for either Track 1 (ready to be published); Track 2 (needs copyediting); or Track 3 (needs developmental work). When authors get their assessments back from us, they can decide to move forward regardless of what track they're on. We have developmental editors and copyeditors ready to take the manuscript to the next level and prepare the authors for publication. Only Track 1 authors, however, qualify to go straight to publication without any outside editorial support. Once a Track 2 or 3 author has been edited, however, our editors will give us the approval that they're ready to be published. So in fact, all submissions are on track to be published if that's what the author ultimately decides and works toward.
WOW: What type of services are you offering to authors once they get a manuscript selected? Are there certain services they must purchase?
Brooke: It's just one single package, the She Publishes package, that's priced at $3900. The list of services is quite comprehensive. It includes custom interior design for up to 120,000 words; custom cover design; print-on-demand setup with Lightning Source (LSI); e-book file preparation and upload to Amazon, B & N, and iBookstore; a marketing plan that's detailed on our site; distribution to the trade; proofreading of the final laid-out manuscript; copyright filing and obtaining your Library of Congress control number; warehousing of short-run printed books; fulfillment of all orders on short-run printed books; telephone and e-mail support from a She Writes Press project manager. What's not included is the cost of the print run should an author opt for that service. POD and e-books do not cost anything beyond the cost of the package.
WOW: Thanks, Brooke, for telling us all about the She Publishes package. Once a book is published, where will readers be able to buy it? Will there be hard copies and e-copies? How will you help with marketing?
Brooke: Readers will be able to buy anywhere?at Amazon, B& N, and other online retailers as a print book or e-book. If a reader walks into a bookstore, it's more than likely that the bookstore will not be carrying the book, but they can order it. We have a distributor, and books will be easy to get. That doesn't mean we can ensure a buy-in from Barnes & Noble, however. Authors who host events or do speaking engagements can have local bookstores order their books just like they would for a traditional publisher. We will encourage authors who have a following to do a print run because the money they earn back on those books eclipses what they can make on POD and e-books. We offer fulfillment services for any customer who orders directly from an author's website at no extra cost to the author.
We will help with marketing to the extent that we will be marketing our whole list. We are currently in the process of expanding our DIY options for authors. We will be providing a lot of education. When I say that we will promote our list, by that I mean we will promote multiple books through a variety of online marketing and advertising opportunities, but we will not be focusing those campaigns and strategies on any single author. However, all authors will benefit as a result of our general drive to get visibility for She Writes Press and our books. We'll be interviewing authors on She Writes, a community of women twenty thousand strong. We will also sell books on a She Writes Press bookstore on our site, and we will be sending out a bi-annual catalog to retailers, book buyers, reviewers, and other industry people.
WOW: All of those ideas sound wonderful, and She Writes Press authors can probably help each other with marketing ideas, too, since it sounds like you will be a close-knit community. Please explain to us a bit about the She Writes Passion Project.
Brooke: The She Writes Passion Project is a carry-over from something that Kamy did every year on She Writes, which is to select an author every year whose book really needed to be published. This is Kamy's baby; and while we'll gather collectively as a staff to choose a book each year, Kamy is reviewing all the submissions, looking for that book that touches her heart and carries with it a certain spirit. The whole concept of a passion project comes from an in-house term that editors use for books they absolutely can't NOT take on. And we imagine that these kinds of books will come our way, but the criteria is a "we'll know it when we see it" type of thing. The primary motivation here is to continue to give back to the She Writes community, which has always been a core value of Kamy's. She's all about community and supporting writers, so it's been incredibly inspiring to work with her and to get to see her in action.WOW: What an absolutely wonderful idea! Kamy sounds like a great person to work with. Is there anything else you'd like to share with our writers today?
Brooke: I just want to thank you for the opportunity. I feel that there's real synergy between your readers and She Writes (and by extension She Writes Press). We are currently in a pilot program, in a soft launch space with the press, because we are interested in gauging people's response, ideas, and experiences. As the months go on, we're anticipating adding more offerings and more creative marketing solutions. We're excited to be offering a new publishing solution to women writers out there who want to publish, but who don't want to publish in a bubble.
WOW: Thank you, Brooke, for your time and for sharing with us all about She Writes Press. For anyone interested in checking out more about She Writes Press, please go to www.shewritespress.com.
Muffin readers, do you have any questions for Brooke? Now is your chance to pick the brain of a seasoned professional about publishing, submitting your manuscript, marketing, the new She Writes Press, and more. Did she say something in this interview you didn't understand? Did she give an answer that you'd like to ask more about? Please ask away in the comments! Brooke will check back a couple times today for questions.
interview by Margo L. Dill?
Labels: Brooke Warner, marketing, publishing companies, self-publishing, She Writes Press, subsidy publishing
Source: http://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/2012/07/she-writes-press-new-publishing.html
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Spain bailout? Market worries eased by ECB comments.
Spain bailout concerns have rattled markets in recent days. But stock markets rose after the European Central Bank hinted that it could intervene to lower the nation's borrowing costs, reducing the potential for a full-blown Spain bailout.
European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi looks on before testifying before the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee in Brussels earlier this month. Stock market jitters about the need for a Spain bailout eased Thursday after Mr. Draghi hinted the ECB could intervene to lower a nation's borrowing costs.
Francois Lenoir/Reuters/File
EnlargeEuropean stocks recovered Thursday as hopes for central bank action to ease the financial crisis tempered worries that the economic downturn is hurting corporate earnings.
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Markets have been rattled over the past few days by fears that?Spain, the fourth-largest economy among the 17 states that use the euro, could need a?bailout?along the lines of Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
Markets recovered somewhat on Thursday on reports that European Central Bank President Mario Draghi told a conference of investors in London the bank could intervene in markets to bring down the government borrowing rates.
After trading lower, Germany's DAX was up 0.1 percent at 6,410.25 while France's CAC 40 was 1 percent higher at 3,112.45. Britain's FTSE rose 0.5 percent to 5,523.28. The euro rallied to trade 0.5 percent higher at $1.2214.
Wall Street was expected to open higher, with both the Dow and the S&P 500 futures up 0.4 percent.
Borrowing rates for?Spain?and Italy fell following the ECB President's remarks. The yield on Italy's 10-year bond dropped to 6.35 percent. Madrid's main interest rate, however, remains unsustainably high at 7.21 percent.
Marc Ostwald, an analyst at Monument Securities, welcomed Draghi's comments that high borrowing rates could hurt the bank's efforts to control inflation. Market-watchers took that as a signal that the ECB could be more willing to intervene in markets to lower those borrowing rates ? which the bank has in recent months said is not part of its mandate.
"They hint at a possible attempt to circumvent the restrictions on outright government bond purchases," said Ostwald.
Market sentiment had also been given a boost already on Wednesday, when ECB policymaker Ewald Nowotny suggested that Europe's?bailout?fund could be given a banking license. That would give it the ability to borrow money from the ECB. Such a move would be of particular significant for?Spain?and Italy as the current?bailoutfund does not have enough money to rescue them both.
Draghi's comments helped offset mostly gloomy news from corporate earnings. Major companies like engineering group Siemens and carmaker Volkswagen warned that the economic slowdown in Europe would hurt profits in coming quarters. That hurt stocks in the industrial and automotive sectors.
Siemens shares were down almost 4 percent while Volkswagen fell 2.3 percent. Telecommunications maker Alcatel-Lucent suffered an 8.6 percent drop. Oil company Shell, which reported lower profits, saw its shares fall 3.1 percent.
Consumer goods maker Unilever was a bright spot, gaining 4.7 percent after reporting a strong rise in profits. But its improvement in business was due to growth outside of Europe, where sales in fact fell.
Earlier in Asia, indexes mostly rose, though gains were kept in check by more evidence of the toll that Europe's prolonged debt crisis is taking on the region. South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, said economic growth slowed to a two-year low in the second quarter as weakness in Europe crimped demand from South Korea's biggest market China.
Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average climbed 0.9 percent to 8,443.10 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.1 percent to 18,892.79. South Korea's Kospi gained 0.7 percent to 1,782.47. Australia's benchmark rose 0.6 percent to 4,147.70 while the Shanghai Composite shed 0.4 percent to 2,126.
In energy trading, benchmark crude for September delivery was down 12 cents at $88.85 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 47 cents on Wednesday in New York to end at $88.97.
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That?s Joe Biden on the line, pushing for middle-class tax cuts
In a final push ahead of a Senate vote on extending middle-class tax cuts, the White House sends Vice President Joe Biden out to make Democrats? case.
Vice President Joe Biden, shown here at speaking at the recent convention of the National Association of Police Organizations,
Lynne Sladky/AP
EnlargeOne day ahead of a key Senate vote, the White House made a final lobbying effort to extend middle-class tax cuts Tuesday with Vice President Biden accusing Republicans of holding the measure hostage for larger tax relief for the rich.
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Wednesday?s vote is fraught with election-year politics, with Republicans arguing for extending all the tax cuts, saying that with the fragile economic recovery, it?s not the time to raise anyone?s taxes.
Republicans also point to an estimate by Congress?s nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation that says 940,000 small businesses would be affected by allowing tax cuts for the top 2 percent to expire.
But the White House decided that no one says middle class like Mr. Biden, and countered the Republican arguments with a conference call with reporters.
If the Bush-era tax cuts aren?t extended for all but the 2 percent of taxpayers before the end of the year, ?a typical middle-class family making 50 grand, a family of four, is going to pay $2,200 extra,? Biden said. ??And if you're a firefighter and a teacher, and you have an income of $100,000, you're going to see it go up over $4,000.?
Biden also spoke of the Republicans? concern about ?decoupling? ? that is, separating the bulk of the tax cuts from those that benefit the wealthiest taxpayers. ?
?They know that if there's a separate vote and the middle-class tax cut is in, they don't have the popular support for extending the tax cuts beyond that,? he said. ?But the Republicans have fixated on extending all the cuts and what they're doing is very simple, and you can understand it from their perspective. They're holding the middle- class tax cuts hostage.?
On the same conference call, a White House economist Jason Furman portrayed the 940,000 figure put forth by Republicans as misleading.
?Ninety-seven percent of small businesses would get to continue their full tax cut. The other 3 percent of small businesses would get to continue part of their tax cut. That number you just cited includes, for example, if you have a law firm with 500 partners... that would count as 500 different small businesses,? said Jason Furman, principal deputy director of the National Economic Council.
Earlier on Tuesday, the White House put out a 20-page report laying out the president?s proposal: extend all the income-tax cuts that benefit families making less than $250,000 a year, while allowing the cuts for the top 2 percent of earners to expire.
??Allowing these tax cuts to expire is an essential component of the president?s overall plan for balanced deficit reduction,? the report says.
Biden acknowledged ?procedural challenges? in getting the tax cut issue to a vote.
?As usual, we'll probably have [a] 60-vote threshold even to be able to get to it, but that's being worked on now in the Senate,? the vice president said.
If the measure fails, President Obama and his surrogates will be able to maintain their mantra that they?re all about helping the middle class and the Republicans are all about helping the rich.
?I would argue that we've always done well in this country when we built from the middle out,? Biden said. ?The reason for that is the poor have a way up, a way out, and the wealthy do very, very well, thank you.?
On Tuesday, House Republicans unveiled their plan, which extends current rates on income, capital gains, dividend, and estate taxes. The House is expected to vote on the plan next week.
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A Far-Out Solar System That Looks Like Ours
From far enough away,, our solar system looks 2-D. All eight planets still orbit on nearly the same horizontal plane, which matches up with the plane of the sun's equator. It?s what makes our home system look like a flat, spinning disc, and also a sign that our system hasn?t experienced anything too chaotic since its formation more than 4 billion years ago.
The birth of a solar system can be a messy process. The forming star?s gravitational pull attracts dust, gas, and rock that form a ring around the newborn. After billions of years, the chaotic ring eventually starts to differentiate itself into the component parts of what we recognize as a solar system.
Sanchis-Ojeda and his team were on a mission to find solar systems shaped like ours. The researchers used Kepler data to pick out certain star systems that fit within their parameters. Specifically, they wanted to study close young active stars with plenty of starspots (the equivalent of sunspots but on another star). These cooler areas on the surfaces of a star can act as markers for where a star is in its rotation; if you see the same starspot twice, you know the star has completed a revolution. Even though these spots fade with time, they stick around long enough to get a good read on the spin of a young star.
Drake Deming, a professor of astronomy at the University of Maryland and author of a commentary accompanying the new study, says the researcher?s methods for tracking planetary orbits could eventually become a new standard for planet hunters, especially those looking for more solar systems like ours in the Universe.
Until now, many astronomers thought that comparatively few star systems end up looking like ours. The planet-hunting Kepler telescope has spotted many systems in which the arrangement of worlds is askew rather than orderly. But now, thanks to new research being published in the journal Nature this week, scientists say there might be many more star systems that look like ours.
The three planets of a star now called Kepler-30 all appear to be in orbit around their star on the same horizontal plane, according to Roberto Sanchis-Ojeda, the lead author on the study and a Ph.D. candidate at MIT. "The physical conditions of the new system are such that it looks pretty much like our system."
Bumpy Beginnings
The birth of a solar system can be a messy process. The forming star?s gravitational pull attracts dust, gas, and rock that form a ring around the newborn. After billions of years, the chaotic ring eventually starts to differentiate itself into the component parts of what we recognize as a solar system.
Round planets and oddly shaped asteroids carve out their own orbits in the newly formed planetary neighborhood. But usually, Sanchis-Ojeda says, the results aren?t perfectly clean. Maybe a few planets scatter to one side or fall into a different orbit. Sometimes, if two planets form close together, the larger world?s gravitational forces can push the weaker out of orbit or off track. A rogue asteroid or comet could quite literally knock a planet out of whack.
Turbulence rocked our own solar system in its early days. For instance, the most likely explanation for the moon?s origin is that a Mars-size world struck the forming Earth, expelling the material that coalesced into our satellite. Nevertheless, the forces that wreaked havoc on solar systems around the galaxy early in their lives seem to have left ours relatively unscathed?despite the dangers, we wound up with eight planets on a horizontal plane.
Looks Like Home
Sanchis-Ojeda and his team were on a mission to find solar systems shaped like ours. The researchers used Kepler data to pick out certain star systems that fit within their parameters. Specifically, they wanted to study close young active stars with plenty of starspots (the equivalent of sunspots but on another star). These cooler areas on the surfaces of a star can act as markers for where a star is in its rotation; if you see the same starspot twice, you know the star has completed a revolution. Even though these spots fade with time, they stick around long enough to get a good read on the spin of a young star.
Sanchis-Ojeda saw three planets in the Kepler-30 system cross in front of, or transit, the same starspot?one right after the other. This meant that either the planets just happened to line up at that lucky moment before continuing their orbits on different geometric planes, or they were formed like our solar system?from a horizontal ring of gas and space dust. Sanchis-Ojeda hoped for the latter.
His confirmation came when the planet closest to the star transited the same starspot twice in the time Kepler had its eye on the system. The second transit all but affirms that the three planets didn?t just align by chance during their dissimilar orbits, he says?they must be on the same plane.
Kepler-30 is particularly important because its planets spin at an angle we can see from Earth. Our perspective and the placement of the relatively close solar system match up, making it easier to observe the transits. Kepler-30 is also quite close to the sun in mass and radius.
More Out There
Drake Deming, a professor of astronomy at the University of Maryland and author of a commentary accompanying the new study, says the researcher?s methods for tracking planetary orbits could eventually become a new standard for planet hunters, especially those looking for more solar systems like ours in the Universe.
Before Kepler, most of the exoplanets discovered were hot Jupiters?huge gaseous planets that were usually orbiting their stars in wildly oblique patterns. Astrophysicists know a lot about these "hot Jupiter" systems because they were relatively easy to study without space-based telescopes like Kepler.
But now researchers are finding more evidence that multiplanet systems such as ours are far more common than the solitary gas giants. "New studies have shown that indeed only one out of every 100 stars have a hot Jupiter," Sanchis-Ojeda says. "There are many more small planets close to a host star."
Although the Kepler-30 planets probably don?t hold life?all three are too close to their home star?they represent another step closer to finding a solar system that might, Deming says. The next step could be a new NASA program that, if funded in the fall, would take Sanchis-Ojeda?s methods even further. The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is a Kepler-like satellite, but instead of focusing on a small sliver of the sky, TESS would survey the entire sky for nearby solar systems that could be similar to ours. "TESS would be an all-sky version of Kepler," Deming says. "We?ll have a better chance of finding nearby stars. It might be the future of exoplanetary science."
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US new-home sales fall to 350K, 5-month low
FILE-This June 13, 2012, file photo, shows a house for sale in San Diego. Americans bought fewer homes in June than May, indicating the weak economy could make a modest housing recovery choppy. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday, July 19, 2012, that sales of previously occupied homes fell 5.4 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.37 million homes. That's the fewest since October. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE-This June 13, 2012, file photo, shows a house for sale in San Diego. Americans bought fewer homes in June than May, indicating the weak economy could make a modest housing recovery choppy. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday, July 19, 2012, that sales of previously occupied homes fell 5.4 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.37 million homes. That's the fewest since October. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Americans bought fewer new homes in June after sales jumped to a two-year high in May. The steep decline suggests a weaker job market and slower growth could make the housing recovery uneven.
The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales of new homes fell 8.4 percent last month from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 350,000. That's the biggest drop since February 2011.
Sales in the Northeast plunged 60 percent in June to the lowest level since November.'
Nationwide, sales in May and April were revised much higher. June's sales pace is 15.1 percent higher than the same month last year. But sales remain well below the 700,000 annual rate that economists equate with healthy markets.
"While a housing recovery is under way ... fits and starts are to be expected and clearly this summer is one of the 'fits,'" Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at BTIG LLC, said in a note to clients.
Home builder stocks fell sharply after the report came out. Hovnanian Enterprises fell 5 cents to $2.41, Beazer Homes fell 10 cents to $2.38 and Toll Brothers fell 60 cents to $29.84.
The housing market has started to show signs of recovery this year.
Builders are more confident and breaking ground on more homes. Mortgage rates are at record lows. And home prices nationwide have stabilized after losing a third of their value in the past six years. Sales of new and previously occupied homes have risen, although the increases have been choppy.
Sales of previously occupied homes fell in June to their lowest level since October. But sales were up 4.5 percent from a year ago, evidence that a modest recovery is still under way.
One trend that is holding back sales has been low inventories. There were 144,000 new homes for sale in June, just above May's 143,000 ? the lowest on records dating back to 1963. At the current sales pace, it would take 4.9 months to exhaust the June supply. A six-month supply is generally considered healthy by economists.
The reduced inventory is pushing up overall home prices, which have turned up in recent months. The median price of a new home, however, fell 1.9 percent in June from May to $232,600.
"With no excess inventory of unsold new homes, any sustained recovery in new home sales should quickly translate into firmer prices," Steven Wood, chief economist at Insight Economics, said.
Low inventories are also spurring more building. Builders broke ground last month on the most new homes and apartments in nearly four years. And permits to build single-family homes rose to the highest level since March 2010. Surveys also show that builders are more confident in the market, partly because they are seeing more interest from potential buyers.
However, many people are still having difficulty qualifying for home loans or can't afford the larger down payments that are being required by banks. That's likely holding back sales.
Though new homes represent less than 20 percent of the housing market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to statistics compiled by the National Association of Home Builders.
Economists expect housing will add to economic growth this year for the first time since 2005. But home construction and remodeling have become such a small part of the economy that the increase will likely have only a modest impact.
Other than housing, the economy has been weakening. Americans have cut their spending at retail stores for three straight months, the longest stretch of cutbacks since the recession. A survey earlier this month found that manufacturing activity contracted in June for the first time in nearly three years.
And hiring is slowing. Employers added an average of only 75,000 jobs a month from April through June. That's much lower than the average of 226,000 a month added in the first three months of this year.
On Friday, the government will issue its first estimate for economic growth in the April-June quarter. Economists have cut back on their forecasts in recent weeks, and now expect growth at an annual rate of only 1.5 percent. That's below the 1.9 percent pace in the first three months of the year.
Associated PressNetflix's 2Q earnings fall 91 pct as? | Advanced E-Commerce,E ...
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ? Netflix?s second-quarter earnings plunged 91 percent amid a slowdown in its subscriber growth.
The financial deterioration reported Tuesday follows a rare loss for the video subscription service during the opening three months of the year.
Although earnings were better than analysts anticipated, the disappointing subscriber growth and a muddied outlook for the rest of the year unnerved investors, who already have become skeptical about Netflix?s prospects amid intensifying competition. Netflix?s stock plummeted 14 percent after the results came out.
Netflix Inc. has been struggling to recover from a customer backlash following a dramatic price increase imposed last year. It also faces higher fees to license TV shows and movies for a service that shows an unlimited amount of video over the Internet for $8 a month.
In the latest quarter, Netflix added 1.1 million subscribers to the Internet streaming service worldwide. The increase left Netflix with 27.6 million Internet video subscribers through June, including nearly 24 million in the U.S.
The second-quarter subscriber gains were in line with management prediction, but analysts had hoped for more after Netflix CEO Reed Hastings disclosed that usage of the streaming service had been steadily increasing.
The subscriber growth in this year?s second quarter also was well below the nearly 2 million customers picked up at the same time last year.
Netflix cautioned it also may be tougher to get more people to sign up during the current quarter as the upcoming broadcast of the Summer Olympics fills the entertainment needs of many households for two weeks of the 12-week period. The Olympics start Friday.
The company, which is based in Los Gatos, Calif., also reiterated earlier warnings that it?s likely to sustain another loss at the end of the year as it pays for the expansion of its streaming service into its fourth market outside the U.S. Netflix hasn?t said where that will be. It already serves Canada, Latin America and the United Kingdom.
?We have enormous challenges ahead, and no doubt will have further ups and downs as we pioneer Internet television,? Hastings wrote in a letter accompanying the results.
While Netflix focuses on online video these days, it still hangs onto a DVD-by-mail rental service that initially made the company a household name. The DVD business shed another 850,000 customers during the second quarter, leaving 9.2 million subscribers still paying to receive the discs. The company expects to lose as many as 900,000 more DVD customers during the current quarter ending in September.
Netflix now has 30.1 million subscribers worldwide on streaming, DVD or combined plans. That includes 26.5 million in the U.S.
Netflix earned $6.2 million, or 11 cents per share, in the latest quarter. That compared with $68 million, or $1.26 per share, a year ago.
The earnings topped the average estimate of 4 cents per share among analyst surveyed by FactSet.
Revenue for the period rose 13 percent from last year to $889 million, matching analyst projections.
Netflix?s stock lost $11.28 to $69.11 in extended trading. During the regular session, it gained 45 cents to close at $80.39.
Source: http://www.cybersharq.com/netflixs-2q-earnings-fall-91-pct-as-3.html
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