Obama uses tax proposals for his political message (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Aiming tax increases at millionaires and companies that ship jobs abroad may help frame the fairness theme of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign, but it's a plan that stands virtually no chance of passing Congress.

Republicans have enough votes in the GOP-run House, and almost certainly in the Democratic-controlled Senate, to kill Obama's proposals. They say his ideas would discourage investment and job creation and further hurt an already ailing economy.

"He's got to know that none of those things he proposed really have much of a chance of going through both houses of Congress," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee.

"I don't think he's intending on passing any laws this year," said House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis. "He's in a campaign. That was his re-election speech."

The GOP's dismissiveness hardly matters to Obama and his Democratic allies.

After last year's hyper-partisanship bogged down routine business like financing the government and paying its debts, few expect much to move through Congress before November's election anyway ? especially not tax hikes that Republicans solidly reject.

"Even if there is little prospect of getting Republicans to agree with these proposals, they're important reference points for the public in identifying Obama as someone who's on their side," said Democratic pollster Geoffrey Garin.

Obama offered his plans, with scant detail, in Tuesday's State of the Union address. He used the word "fair" seven times to describe tax increases aimed at groups the Occupy movement has branded as the "one percent" of Americans who are doing extremely well while the rest of society struggles.

The president proposed ending tax breaks for U.S. companies moving jobs or profits to foreign countries and creating a minimum tax on their overseas profits. He also suggested new tax breaks for businesses that move jobs back to the U.S., for domestic manufacturing and for companies that invest in towns that have suffered major job losses.

Getting most attention was his plan to tax incomes above $1 million annually at a rate of at least 30 percent. That's a sharp and convenient contrast with the 15 percent tax rate enjoyed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination, who earned about $21 million each of the past two years.

The proposals quickly became fodder for the GOP presidential contenders. Romney said the next day on CNBC's "Kudlow Report" that Obama's plan was "designed to come at me if I'm the nominee," and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said during last Thursday's presidential debate, "His proposal on taxes would make the economy worse."

Democrats immediately made clear that there will be Senate votes this year on the subject.

New York Sen. Charles Schumer, part of the Senate Democratic leadership, said he was relishing a push on "some kind of Romney rule, I mean Buffett rule." Obama has embraced a Buffett rule, named for billionaire Warren Buffett, who has cited the inequity of laws that let him pay a lower tax rate than his secretary.

On Monday, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said he would introduce legislation this week requiring anyone earning over $1 million to pay at least 30 percent of their income in federal income taxes. It would do so by requiring people earning over $1 million to multiply their income by 30 percent and pay at least that amount in taxes, or more if their computations showed their tax liability was greater. He said he has two Senate co-sponsors so far but none in the House.

Such proposals, along with any efforts to deny tax breaks to U.S. companies that outsource jobs and profits, would never get the 60 votes they would need to prevail in the Senate this year, let alone win approval from the GOP-run House.

"If the president has proposals that will help create jobs, we'll take a look," said Michael Steel, spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. "But tax hikes on small businesses will make it even harder for them to invest and grow."

Republicans say boosting taxes on millionaires would hurt many of the people who run small businesses and create jobs, a claim Democrats call exaggerated. The GOP and business groups also marshal their own fairness argument, calling it unjust and impractical to raise taxes on companies that set up operations overseas.

"They locate their facilities to be close to the customer," said Dorothy Coleman, vice president for tax policy for the National Association of Manufacturers. "That's a big concern for us, targeting multinational companies as if there is something wrong with doing business overseas."

Democrats challenge that argument as well, saying many pharmaceutical and high technology companies that set up shop abroad are drawn by lower labor costs and taxes and still sell the bulk of their products in the U.S.

Those disputes underscore a political climate so difficult that neither the House nor Senate seem likely to even try advancing pre-election legislation that each party calls their top tax priority: overhauling and simplifying the tax code.

Even so, Obama's tax proposals can also be read as an opening gambit in what looms as a titanic partisan struggle to be waged after the November elections, perhaps in a lame duck session of Congress in December.

Next January, broad tax cuts will expire that were enacted under President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003 and were temporarily renewed by Obama and Congress in 2010. At the same time, $1.2 trillion in automatic spending cuts will kick in unless lawmakers vote otherwise.

Congress will also need to renew the government's authority to borrow money. And action will be needed on a package of expiring smaller tax cuts, mostly for businesses, and on preventing the alternative minimum tax, originally aimed at the wealthy, from trapping middle- and upper-middle-income families as well.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_congress_taxes

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EARTH: Tracking plastic in the oceans

Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
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Contact: Megan Sever
msever@earthmagazine.org
American Geological Institute

Alexandria, VA Humans produce over 260 million tons of plastic each year. Almost a third of that plastic goes into disposable, one-time-use items, and only about 1% of it is recycled globally. Where does the rest of the plastic go? How does it interact with our environment? And how will it impact us in the future? In this month's issue of EARTH Magazine, follow the fate of many plastics as they make their way from our homes to our planet's oceans.

While no one knows exactly how much plastic is in the ocean, studies over the past few decades have suggested that millions of square kilometers of ocean surface may be covered with floating garbage "patches." Today, at least five such patches are known to exist. The largest, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, floats miles off the coast of Hawaii and is estimated to be roughly the size of Texas. Where did this refuse come from? How is it affecting our oceans? And will we ever be able to remove the trash? Find out at http://www.earthmagazine.org/article/tracking-plastic-oceans.

Plastics not your bag? Read this story and more in this month's issue of EARTH Magazine, available online now at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Also in this month's issue, revisit water on mars as scientists search for clues to see if Mars could support life; learn how radiation is affecting residents in Fukushima, Japan; and, travel to Virunga National Park in the Congo to hike Mount Nyiragongo.

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Keep up to date with the latest happenings in Earth, energy and environment news with EARTH magazine online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Published by the American Geosciences Institute, EARTH is your source for the science behind the headlines.

The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 50 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 250,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.

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

Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Megan Sever
msever@earthmagazine.org
American Geological Institute

Alexandria, VA Humans produce over 260 million tons of plastic each year. Almost a third of that plastic goes into disposable, one-time-use items, and only about 1% of it is recycled globally. Where does the rest of the plastic go? How does it interact with our environment? And how will it impact us in the future? In this month's issue of EARTH Magazine, follow the fate of many plastics as they make their way from our homes to our planet's oceans.

While no one knows exactly how much plastic is in the ocean, studies over the past few decades have suggested that millions of square kilometers of ocean surface may be covered with floating garbage "patches." Today, at least five such patches are known to exist. The largest, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, floats miles off the coast of Hawaii and is estimated to be roughly the size of Texas. Where did this refuse come from? How is it affecting our oceans? And will we ever be able to remove the trash? Find out at http://www.earthmagazine.org/article/tracking-plastic-oceans.

Plastics not your bag? Read this story and more in this month's issue of EARTH Magazine, available online now at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Also in this month's issue, revisit water on mars as scientists search for clues to see if Mars could support life; learn how radiation is affecting residents in Fukushima, Japan; and, travel to Virunga National Park in the Congo to hike Mount Nyiragongo.

###

Keep up to date with the latest happenings in Earth, energy and environment news with EARTH magazine online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Published by the American Geosciences Institute, EARTH is your source for the science behind the headlines.

The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 50 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 250,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.

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

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/agi-etp013012.php

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Former Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush remains neutral in race

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Former Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush, whose endorsement would be a prize for any of the Republican presidential candidates, has remained neutral.

This follows a pattern in early GOP contests: Gov. Terry Branstad in Iowa didn't choose sides. Nor did influential Sen. Jim DeMint in South Carolina.

New Jersey's Gov. Chris Christie threw his support to Romney, but there hasn't been a delegate-selection contest yet in New Jersey.

The New York Times reported in Monday's editions that Romney has sought to win over Jeb Bush, a brother of former President George W. Bush.

Asked about that in a Fox News Channel interview on Monday morning, Romney replied: "Jeb Bush and I haven't spoken. He's a good man. I'd love to get his opinion on any number of issues."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-01-30-Fla-Jeb%20Bush/id-340716520c0541b6a391ea439dd5f669

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Save Money on Car Insurance with a Lump Sum Payment | Cheap ...

When you purchase a car insurance policy, you are given the option of paying one lump sum payment for your insurance coverage or paying monthly payments. Many people decide that they will pay their auto insurance premiums in monthly installments. However, this can be a costly mistake to make each month.

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Many people will say that they cannot afford to pay their insurance premiums up front. Times are tough and many families are struggling. They do not see the added benefit to not paying in monthly installments. One great advantage is that you never have to worry about your auto insurance coverage lapsing or being canceled. If you pay up front then you can make sure that your premiums are never late. This is a great safety net for families. If you suddenly become unemployed, at least you know your auto insurance premiums are paid up to date.

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Many auto insurance companies also charge convenience fees. For example, if you make your premium payments online or by phone, you will typically be charged several dollars. If you use these services every month then the charges really do add up.

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It is a good idea for people to consider budgeting ahead for their insurance premiums. Every six months, a driver will have to have their auto insurance policy renewed. You can set aside money each month in a savings account so that once your policy comes up for renewal, you can pay for it in one payment.

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It is important to remember that saving money needs to be a priority. Always shop around for your car insurance coverage. You do not want to have any regrets if you find an insurance policy with lower insurance premiums somewhere else.

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If people can search hard for low car insurance rates then they will be more likely to be able to make a lump sum payment. People who are in financial dire straits should not have to pay more because they have limited financial means. Everyone should be able to save as much money as possible and make sure that they can pay their insurance premiums on time.

Source: http://www.cheapcarinsurance.net/save-money-on-car-insurance-with-a-lump-sum-payment/

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Scientists probe form, function of mysterious protein

Friday, January 27, 2012

Like a magician employing sleight of hand, the protein mitoNEET -- a mysterious but important player in diabetes, cancer and aging -- draws the eye with a flurry of movement in one location while the subtle, more crucial action takes place somewhere else.

Using a combination of laboratory experiments and computer modeling, scientists from Rice University and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have deciphered part of mitoNEET's movements to get a better understanding of how it handles its potentially toxic payload of iron and sulfur. Their research is described this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"We scrutinize proteins with an unconventional approach," said Jos? Onuchic, Rice's Harry C. and Olga K. Wiess Professor of Physics and Astronomy and co-director of the Center for Theoretical Biological Physics. "We use biophysics to probe biology rather than the other way around. Using computational theory, we find structures that are possible -- regardless of whether they've already been observed experimentally -- and we ask ourselves whether these structures might be biologically significant."

Study co-leader Patricia Jennings, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UCSD, who has collaborated with Onuchic for 15 years, said they save a great deal of time by using structural biophysics to guide their experiments on a wide variety of targets. For example, Jennings' laboratory determined less than five years ago that mitoNEET contained a novel folded structure. Since then, her lab has been using insights gained from static and dynamic snapshots of the protein to guide biological and biochemical studies.

"I think people forget that proteins are machines with moving parts," said study lead author Elizabeth Baxter, a UCSD graduate student who works under the guidance of both Onuchic and Jennings. "We start with the static snapshot and model in the functional motions."

MitoNEET, which binds to the diabetes drug, Actos, immediately caught the attention of researchers when it was discovered. It has a unique ability to bind and store iron-based molecules in an iron-sulfur cluster. Iron is an essential element for all life, but it is also highly toxic, and mitoNEET is the only iron-handling protein that is known to sit on the wall of the mitochondria, one of the key structures inside a cell.

The protein's biological functions are still being unraveled. Interestingly, scientists have shown that mitoNEET sits on the outer mitochondrial wall with its potentially toxic payload of iron-sulfur molecules facing toward the cell's cytoplasm, the gel-like fluid that fills the cell. Discovery of the unique binding mode of the protein's iron-sulfur cluster led the Jennings group to show that the cluster can be delivered into the mitochondria. In addition, its sister protein interacts with proteins that participate in apoptosis -- the process cells use to kill themselves when they are no longer viable.

"I think mitoNEET is a protein that could be your best friend or your worst enemy," Jennings said. "There's some evidence that it may act as a sensor for oxidative stress and that it can lose its toxic iron-sulfur cluster under stress conditions. Depending upon where the iron ends up, that could lead to drastic problems inside the cell."

Proteins are strands of amino acids that are produced from DNA blueprints, but their shapes can provide important clues about their function. To find out how mitoNEET's control and release of its iron-sulfur payload might be related to its shape, Baxter used computer simulations to study how the protein folds, as well as the functional motions of two similar shapes that could be biologically important. In one of these shapes, there is a slight intertwining of two arms that extend away from the iron-cluster pocket. In the other, the arms also extend but are not intertwined.

Baxter found that both conformations were physically possible. She also found the protein could switch between the "strand-swapped" and "strand-unswapped" conformations without entirely unfolding. Moreover, this change in the twining of the arms was shown to alter the shape of the critical pocket that holds the iron-sulfur cluster; this makes the cluster more likely to be inserted or released in situations where the arms are untwined.

Like the magician using misdirection, the loosening of the grip on the cluster is subtle and happens in a different location than the flurry of arm motions. Jennings said it's the kind of thing that could easily be missed if the focus of the study were the cluster itself.

Onuchic said, "One of the advantages to our approach is that it allows us to look for relevant biophysical properties that control distant functional regions -- like mitoNEET's strand-swapping -- that can easily be missed with a more conventional approach."

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Rice University: http://media.rice.edu

Thanks to Rice University for this article.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/117151/Scientists_probe_form__function_of_mysterious_protein

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Evelyne Politanoff: California Dreaming... (Huffington post)

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GOP seeks limits on new Colo. child-care rules (AP)

DENVER ? Talk about red tape: Colorado's Department of Human Services last year proposed regulating child care businesses down to the number of crayons per box and the color of dolls kids can play with.

Also included: How many books child care centers should have, limits on computer and TV time, and bans on "googly eyes" and cotton balls, considered potential choking hazards.

Republicans in the Legislature say it highlights out-of-control government ? and they are introducing a bill Friday limiting how far the state can go when it comes to regulating child care.

"This one is at the top of my list because it seems so contrary to what the governor has been saying he wants the state agencies to do," said GOP Sen. Kevin Lundberg. "I expected the governor, when he found about it, to say, `Whoa, hold on a minute ? this isn't what I had in mind ? and to pull the plug. But he hasn't.'"

The state says it's backing off some of the more controversial proposals but is still in the process of drafting dozens of pages of new rules for more than 1,300 licensed child care centers and more than 800 licensed preschools.

"We continue to support the Department of Human Services as it works through a public process on the proposed regulations," Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper's office said in a statement.

Some child-care providers say they worry excessive rules will put them out of business. And Lundberg, who is sponsoring the legislation, said he wants to ensure that the state only regulates health and safety matters.

Department spokeswoman Liz McDonough said new rules are needed because child-care has evolved and is not just about putting kids in front of the television for eight hours.

Reggie Bicha, the executive director for Human Services, told a committee of lawmakers this week that quality child care helps children's long-term success.

"I don't think that we need to trade lowering standards to keep mediocre child care providers in business," he said, according to The Pueblo Chieftain.

Julie Krow, director of the Office of Children, Youth and Families, said businesses are contributing to the rules being crafted. At the earliest, it's possible a draft will be completed late this year, she said.

"We know that investing in early quality childhood education is an investment that saves money later," Krow said.

McDonough said guidelines on the "race" of dolls and classroom materials, such as having a minimum of 10 crayons per box, have been dropped. Officials said the proposal for crayons was based on national quality suggestions for a rich educational experience.

Sandy Bright, who directs three child-care centers in Weld County, is taking a wait and see attitude.

Bright said existing regulations have compelled her to pull her college transcripts from the early `70s as part of her child-care recertification. Employees are required to take classes with titles like "infant-toddler theory."

"Which is kind of interesting because if you don't take infants or toddlers, you're still required to take that course," Bright said.

Bright recently sought assurances from Hickenlooper at a luncheon for the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry during which the governor reiterated his commitment to eliminating red tape.

"If these go through ? four colors of dolls per classroom, numbers of crayons and numbers of everything. I've been in business for 40 years. I'm very concerned about where this is headed," she said.

Hickenlooper responded that his administration is aware of the child-care industry's concerns.

"I guarantee you no one's going to tell you how many crayons you have to have in your crayon box," he said.

___

Follow Ivan Moreno on Twitter: http://twitter.com/IvanJournalist

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_on_re_us/us_day_care_too_much_oversight

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Russian probe crash sparks conspiracy theories, confusion

Russia's Phobos-Grunt space probesuffered a debilitating malfunction shortly after its November 2011 launch, which stranded it in low-Earth orbit for more than two months before it succumbed to gravitational forces and plummeted through the atmosphere on Jan. 15.

When an ill-fated Russian Mars probe fell to Earth over the weekend, the spacecraft's untimely demise set off a flurry of conflicting media reports and conspiracy theories.

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Russia's?Phobos-Grunt space probe?suffered a debilitating malfunction shortly after its November 2011 launch, which stranded it in low-Earth orbit for more than two months before it succumbed to gravitational forces and plummeted through the atmosphere on Jan. 15.

The $165 million spacecraft reportedly broke apart over the Pacific Ocean, but inconsistent reports soon surfaced, which sparked different theories about?where the probe had landed, and what had caused it to malfunction in the first place.

The Russian Federal Space Agency is notorious for closely controlling any information released, but part of the issue is the tricky nature of calculating re-entry predictions for dead satellites and other?pieces of orbital debris.

"Predicting an impact point is problematic because it involves fundamental factors that cannot be noted in advance and cannot be measured in real time, such as atmospheric density," space consultant James Oberg, a former NASA space shuttle mission control engineer, told SPACE.com. "These can only be averaged or guessed, sometimes even after re-entry. These known unknowns are more than enough to throw off any kind of prediction by thousands of kilometers." [Photos: Russia's Phobos-Grunt Mission to Mars Moon]

A curious case

Still, the Phobos-Grunt saga was shrouded in mystery long before it crashed back to Earth. The cause of the spacecraft's malfunction has not yet been determined, and claims ranging from accidental radar interference to outright sabotage have been reported by Russian news outlets.?

Russian space officials suggested that strong?emissions from an American radar station?on an island in the Pacific Ocean could have accidentally interfered with Phobos-Grunt, reported the Russian news agency Ria Novosti.

But, these claims were later dismissed by a Russian scientist who was involved with the development of Phobos-Grunt. Alexander Zakharov, a scientist at the Russian Academy of Science Space Research Institute, told Ria Novosti that the radar theory is "far-fetched," and suggested instead that issues with the spacecraft itself were likely to blame.

American experts were also quick to write off the idea that a U.S. radar station could have been the source of the spacecraft's demise ? accidental or otherwise.

"I do not see any evidence that supports the suggestion that the United States somehow played a role in the failure of Phobos-Grunt," Brian Weeden, an orbital debris expert at the Secure World Foundation in Washington, D.C., told SPACE.com in an email. "I have examined the claims made about the U.S. tracking radar on the South Pacific potentially interfering with Phobos-Grunt and they are without any credibility whatsoever."

Following?Phobos-Grunt's fall from space, the Russian Federal Space Agency released an official statement confirming that the spacecraft had landed in the Pacific Ocean. But, the agency admitted this impact zone was based on orbital predictions, and they lacked tracking or visual?data.

This fueled speculation that the spacecraft had overshot its predicted landing zone and broke apart elsewhere along its orbital track, such as over Argentina or Brazil. [6 Biggest Spacecraft to Fall Uncontrolled From Space]

"You're never quite sure," said Emmet Fletcher, Space Surveillance and Tracking Manager at the European Space Agency (ESA). "Eyewitness accounts are good, so if someone sees it coming in and takes a picture, that can tell you about where it lands. But, if you're fortunate and it lands in the ocean, which is where we like things to go, there shouldn't be anyone there. So, if something lands in the South Pacific, you won't have anyone there to observe it."

Tracking a falling spacecraft

Fletcher is part of ESA's?Space Situational Awareness?team which monitors space junk and operates a network of tracking stations. Fletcher could not comment specifically on Phobos-Grunt, but he has worked on coordinated international efforts to deal with spacecraft and orbital debris that has re-entered the atmosphere.

"It's all a learning experience," Fletcher said. "There are lessons learned and conclusions about what we can do better. A lot of work is being done to standardize data."

Right now, different agencies and organizations have different methods for calculating re-entry predictions. This has advantages and disadvantages, Fletcher said, but ultimately, a more standardized approach could help foster more efficient cooperation between entities.

But the story of Phobos-Grunt doesn't end there.

In a recent development, the U.S. military appeared to have?removed links to Phobos-Grunt tracking dataon a public website that ordinarily details such events.

Information about the doomed Russian probe's re-entry was removed from Space Track, a website operated by U.S. Strategic Command. The military also did not publish any confirmation of the probe's fall, which breaks with standard protocol.

This handling of the data seemed unusual, said Weeden, a former U.S. Air Force officer, who once also directed the Joint Space Operations Center's orbital analyst?training?program.

"[T]he final re-entry prediction data is still missing from the U.S. military's website where they normally publish the information," Weeden said. "I do not really have any idea why they would withhold this information for Phobos-Grunt. They have published the full?re-entry prediction data?on three other space objects so far this year, and they are continuing to publish re-entry predictions as normal for the next object, Cosmos 2176, which is a Russian Kompass-2 satellite that is due to re-enter in the next several days. "

Falling spacecraft and human error

But Friday evening (Jan. 20), a spokesperson from U.S. Strategic Command told SPACE.com that data was not, in fact, removed from the Space Track website. Rather, a human error had accidentally misfiled the information.

"All actions taken during the Phobos-Grunt re-entry were designed to improve international data sharing on this event," Julie Ziegenhorn, Deputy Chief of Public Affairs at U.S. Strategic Command, said in an email statement. "Unfortunately, shortly after the re-entry event, there was human error that led to all Phobos-Grunt entries on spacetrack.org being misfiled into the year 2011 data, which made it difficult for customers to access the information. Shortly after the error was discovered, the information was re-posted to the site and is accessible at this time."

Still, experts are hoping that more precise information about Phobos-Grunt's impact zone will be released, but it's unclear which agencies will make their reports available to the public. ESA plans to release a final report on Phobos-Grunt, but officials are currently still waiting for "additional data from non-ESA sources," agency spokesperson Andreas Schepers said in an email.

The Phobos-Grunt spacecraft was?designed to collect soil samples?from the Mars moon Phobos and return them to Earth in 2014. The botched mission is one of several space failures that plagued the Russian Federal Space Agency over the past year.

"It was one of the boldest cavalry charges, and they said it was a cavalry charge to restore Russia's honor in space," Oberg said. "But, cavalry charges can also wind up disastrously, so the use of that metaphor was particularly apt."

You can follow SPACE.com staff writer Denise Chow on Twitter?@denisechow. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter?@Spacedotcom?and on?Facebook.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/VriRWoZoLG8/Russian-probe-crash-sparks-conspiracy-theories-confusion

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The Number That Scares Team Mitt (talking-points-memo)

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U.S. Science Degrees Are Up

Private firms may be experiencing a shortage of graduates in science, technology, engineering and math disciplines, but it?s not for a lack of students. For many STEM disciplines, more undergraduate degrees are being awarded now than 10 or 20 years ago. More women are entering college, which in turn is changing the relative popularity of disciplines.

Some specific trends worth noting:

• Women undergraduates, growing in number faster than men, tend to take psychology and biology over physics or math.
• Women generally account for strong numbers in the arts.
• Foreign students, who often seek the physical sciences, temporarily decreased after the 9/11 attacks because of changes in visa rules.
• The dot-com boom in the late 1990s caused a run-up in computer and electrical engineering enrollment (with degrees four years later), but interest fell after the dot-com bust.
• Students view business degrees as the surest bet for finding a job and paying off college loans.

So what?s behind the worker shortfall? Although the number of graduates and job openings match up fairly well, people with STEM degrees often choose jobs in other fields that pay more or have higher perceived status. ?Biology students become doctors; math majors go into finance,? says Nicole Smith, senior economist at the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. Others get M.B.A.s so they can take higher-salaried management positions, which makes it easier to pay off ever rising student debt.

For additional commentary read:
How to Make Science and Tech Jobs More Enticing to Undergrads

Graphic by Nathan Yau

This article was published in print as "How Science Degrees Stack Up."

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=fa27d124c71c331dfbc845ecf325dabf

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Eyes-on the innards of Fujitsu's K supercomputer

Fujitsu's K supercomputer was on our radar before it was even completed, and naturally, we let you know when it smoked the competition and became the supercomputing speed king. So, when we had the opportunity to see a piece of K at Fujitsu's North America Technology Forum today, we couldn't pass it up. In case you forgot, K is a massive machine powered by 864 racks with 24 boards per rack housing SPARC64 CPUs. We got to see one of those boards, and Yuichiro Ajima -- who designed the inter-connection chips (ICC) on them -- was gracious enough to give us some more info on this most super of supercomputers.

Gallery: Eyes-on the innards of Fujitsu's K supercomputer

As you can see in the gallery above, each board has extensive plumbing to keep the SPARC silicon running at a manageable 32 - 35 degrees Celsius (90 - 95 Fahrenheit) under load. Underneath that copper cooling system lies four processors interspersed between 32 memory modules (with 2GB per module) and four ICCs lined up next to the board's rack interconnect ports. Currently, the system takes 30 megawatts to do its thing, though Ajima informed us that K's theoretical max electricity consumption is about double that -- for perspective, that means K could consume the entire output of some nuclear power plants. When asked if there were plans to add more racks should Fujitsu's supercomputer lose its crown, Ajima-san said that while possible, there are no plans to do so -- we'll see if that changes should a worthy opponent present itself.

Eyes-on the innards of Fujitsu's K supercomputer originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/25/eyes-on-the-innards-of-fujitsus-k-supercomputer/

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Tebow sings with Paisley at concert (video)

Just in case you were wondering what Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow has been doing with his free time, it appears that he?s been attending Brad Paisley concerts.

Tebow was recently at the country star?s concert in Denver over the weekend and Mr. Paisley decided to invite Tim on stage (not Courtney Cox-like) to help him sing.

Due to the insane amounts of screaming, it?s tough to tell what Tim says but I?ll assume that he?s a good singer from previous reference:

***

Tim Tebow Sings On Stage With Brad Paisley [Throw The Flag]

Source: http://offthebench.nbcsports.com/2012/01/22/tim-tebow-sings-with-brad-paisley-at-denver-concert-video/related/

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Libya could fall into 'bottomless pit', leader warns

By msnbc.com staff and news services

Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, the head of Libya's ruling National Transitional Council, warned on Sunday the country could be heading towards a "bottomless pit" after protesters stormed a government office in Benghazi when he was inside.

A crowd demanding the resignation of the Libyan government smashed windows and forced their way into the NTC's local headquarters late on Saturday, in the most serious show of anger at the new authorities since Moammar Gadhafi was ousted.

---

The NTC has the support of the Western powers that?helped force out Gadhafi in a nine-month conflict, but it is unelected, has been slow to restore basic public services, and some Libyans say too many of its members are tarnished by ties to Gadhafi.

Abdul-Jalil later?suspended the six representatives to the NTC?from Benghazi, the main city in eastern Libya. They can continue to serve only if approved by the local city council.?

He also?said he appointed a council of religious leaders to investigate corruption charges and identify people with links to the Gadhafi regime.

The body's deputy head, Abdel-Hafiz Ghoga, resigned in protest over the suspensions. Ghoga, known for his polished language and expensive suits, was a prominent spokesman during the eight-month civil war that ended with Gadhafi's capture and killing in October.

Another delegate, Fathi Baja, called the move "illegitimate" and said he would stand down only if the people of Benghazi asked him to. Baja, a well known critic of Gadhafi even before the uprising, also criticized the appointment of religious leaders, saying that when he was criticizing Gadhafi, "they were calling on people to obey the leader."

Also Sunday, the head of the committee tasked with preparing the country's election law said its release would be delayed for one week. The final law, which was set to be announced Sunday, will be made public on Jan. 28, said Othman al-Mugherhi.

The committee published a draft law earlier this month and said it would solicit comments from Libyans. Al-Mugherhi said the delay will allow the committee to consider these comments while drafting the final law.

The law will spell out how Libyans will elect the 200-members national congress, which will oversee the drafting of a constitution. The body is supposed to be elected before June 23.

Al-Mugherhi also announced the formation of a 17-member electoral commission to oversee the vote. The body contains professors, judges, lawyers and men and women representing non-governmental organizations, he said.

Under Gadhafi's rule, Libya had no working parliament for four decades.

Abdul-Jalil warned the protests risked undermining the country's already fragile stability.

"We are going through a political movement that can take the country to a bottomless pit," he said. "There is something behind these protests that is not for the good of the country."

"The people have not given the government enough time and the government does not have enough money. Maybe there are delays, but the government has only been working for two months. Give them a chance, at least two months."

More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Reuters, The Associated Press?and msnbc.com staff contributed to this report.

Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/22/10210037-libya-could-fall-into-bottomless-pit-leader-warns

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Communications Degree Admission and Course Requirements ...

Get to know the different admission requirements for a communications degree including the course requirements for various concentration areas.

Do you know what you can do with a communications degree?
A communications degree can put you in various career paths connected to communications such as journalism, teaching, journalism and more.
Both the admission and course requirements for this degree vary, and this depends on the focus of the program and the school you are attending.

Communications degree students with a journalism concentration are often required to undergo a few writing and editing classes.
Those with a focus on advertising should take more classes about public relations.
In general, communication degrees require several classes that every student will have to take, irrespective of the areas of concentration.

Before enrollment, most communication program departments often require interested applicants to take an entrance exam.
The purpose of the test is to know each student?s level of proficiency in grammar and writing.
Besides assessing each applicant, the placement test may also serve as a screening tool to determine which classes are necessary before taking up the core curriculum that make up the requirements of communications degree.

Applicants that scored too low may have to attend the introductory language classes.
However, those that get exceptionally high scores may not be required to get prerequisite courses.
During the first to second years, course requirements will focus on the basics of communications program.

Every student will be required to attend classes on writing compositions and speech communications, regardless of the degree program.
These two classes are important since they provide foundation for the rest of the classes in the communication curriculum.
Other basic classes include psychology and sociology.

During the third and fourth years of the program, the course requirement for communications will start to focus on the student?s chosen concentration.
Students going to print journalism field will likely be required to take basic classes on feature writing, news writing and copy-editing.
Those who want to be an advertising specialist will concentrate on public relations and marketing classes.

The head or director of the communications department may assist students in determining the best classes that are needed for their chosen specialty.
Just to add to the classroom communications requirements, students are usually expected to take an internship related to their respective specialty.
For instance, print journalism students will practice at a local magazine or newspaper while radio journalism may do duties at a local radio station.

An internship usually consists of between four to 12 credits towards this degree.
Apart from completing internships, many degree programs encourage students to join extracurricular activities that matches with the curriculum.
Debate teams, film festivals, college newspapers, TV stations and radio stations are great choices for extracurricular activities.

For those interested in taking up a masters in communication, most schools require a bachelor?s degree from an accredited university or college.
Of course, an official transcript should be submitted with at least 2.75 cumulative GPA and a professional resume.
In addition, applicants are requested to write an application essay, more or less a 500-word essay about the things you expect to gain by completing the degree; the essay will also demonstrate your writing skills.

However, for applicants with less than 2.75 GPA, some schools may accept applications provided you have an above average score on GRE (Graduate Record Exam) or MAT (Miller Analogies Test).
Applicants are subjected for review of potential as a communications degree graduate student.
To add, applicants whose bachelor?s degrees are not related to communication may have to take up prerequisite courses in addition to the core curriculum of the masters degree.

Source: http://www.podcampfoundation.com/2012/01/communications-degree-admission-and-course-requirements/

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Jim Reeves' music royalties at issue in trial

FILE - In this in 1958 file photo Country singer Jim Reeves poses with his Gibson J-200 guitar on the "Country Music Jubilee." A trial over how music royalties of the late country singer "Gentleman" Jim Reeves should be split is set to begin this week. Reeves was a country music sensation when he died nearly 50 years ago in a plane crash at the age of 39. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this in 1958 file photo Country singer Jim Reeves poses with his Gibson J-200 guitar on the "Country Music Jubilee." A trial over how music royalties of the late country singer "Gentleman" Jim Reeves should be split is set to begin this week. Reeves was a country music sensation when he died nearly 50 years ago in a plane crash at the age of 39. (AP Photo, File)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) ? A trial over how music royalties of the late country singer "Gentleman" Jim Reeves should be split is set to begin this week.

Reeves was a country music sensation when he died nearly 50 years ago in a plane crash at the age of 39.

The two-day trial that begins Monday will focus on how much Terry Davis, who married Reeves' widow, should receive from royalties of up to $400,000 a year, The Tennessean reported (http://tnne.ws/w4mgtF ).

Reeves is best known for the lyric "Put your sweet lips a little closer to the phone" but he stayed on the charts from 1970 through 1984 because of how his widow, Mary Reeves Davis, managed his posthumous career. His most popular songs included "He'll Have To Go" and "Welcome To My World."

Terry Davis has been locked in a battle with Reeves' nephew and niece since Mary Reeves Davis died in 1999.

The case will determine if Terry Davis should receive more than the $100,000 and some land that Mary Reeves Davis left to him. Terry Davis, who was married to Mary Reeves Davis for 30 years, has cited a provision of law allowing spouses an "elective share" of an estate based on how long the marriage lasted..

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-01-22-Jim%20Reeves-Royalties%20Trial/id-d6b649ae15944121a8955db22d198463

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Romney immigration stance is magnified in Florida

MIAMI (AP) ? Mitt Romney's promise to veto a measure that would create a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants threatens to turn off Hispanic voters, whose support could be critical in a general election match-up against President Barack Obama.

The issue is gaining prominence as the Republican front-runner heads toward the Jan. 31 primary in Florida, even though most of the state's Hispanics are Puerto Rican or Cuban-American and, thus, aren't affected by U.S. immigration law, nor view it as a priority. Still, it's a state where 13 percent of registered voters are Hispanic, where the nation's largest Spanish-language TV networks are based, and where the nation's third-largest number of illegal immigrants live ? intensifying the focus on Romney's position.

"Latino voters, like all voters in this country, are interested in America being an opportunity nation," Romney said Monday night during a debate in South Carolina, when asked if his promise to veto the so-called Dream Act was alienating voters. "In my view, as long as we communicate to the people of all backgrounds in this country that it can be better, and that America is a land of opportunity, we will get those votes."

Maybe not.

His veto promise ? first made in the days before the Iowa caucuses ? has hit a nerve with prominent Hispanics, and some Republicans worry that the position will turn off the growing number of Latino voters in swing-voting states, particularly in the west, who are now on the fence after backing Obama in 2008. These Republicans suggest that Romney was trying to curry favor with hardline Republican primary voters at the expense of Hispanics whose support he would need come the fall.

"If Romney's the nominee, he's going to have to come to the center and make some decisions about how to resolve that issue," said Republican Herman Echevarria, a Cuban-American who is the CEO of a Miami-based bilingual advertising agency and a longtime local political player. "He's trying to be a conservative candidate. And if you don't become a conservative candidate, you cannot be the candidate of the Republicans. But you cannot be elected president just as a conservative candidate."

Already, there are signs of backlash.

For Colombia native Ana Rodriguez, a Miami-based graphic designer who received political asylum and will become a U.S. citizen this year, Romney's comments are precisely what motivated her to vote ? against him. "Because of what I went through," Rodriguez said, "I want more people (elected) who are interested in supporting immigrants and want a more equal and fair system of immigration."

Florida Dream Act activists, who have been among the most visible in the nation, also are promising to keep the heat on Romney as his campaign comes to the state.

And last week, at El Tropical restaurant in Miami, Florida Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, who has endorsed Romney, told a group of mostly Cuban-American Republican primary voters that the former Massachusetts governor was the only candidate who could fix the economy and protect U.S. security interests. Then, a young Colombian immigrant stepped forward and asked Diaz-Balart, who has championed immigrants' rights including the Dream Act, how the congressman could support Romney.

"You have been such a friend to us, I just don't understand," said Juan Rodriguez, a student at Florida International University who was among a half-dozen students who walked from Miami to Washington in the winter to raise awareness of the legislation.

The exchange was caught on tape by several Spanish-language media outlets that reach viewers around the world.

Romney has arguably the toughest immigration position of any of the Republican candidates. Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House of Representatives, would give legal status to illegal immigrants who have deep roots in the U.S. and lived otherwise lawfully.

Conversely, Romney has been adamantly opposed to any type of amnesty for illegal immigrants since his first White House run in 2008. Previously, he called reasonable a bipartisan proposal to allow immigrants to seek green cards granting permanent residency status in exchange for certain penalties, though he says he never officially supported such legislation.

Last year, Romney objected to the Dream Act. But he went further in the days before the Iowa caucuses when asked if he would veto the measure that would allow illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to earn legal status if they went to college or joined the military.

"The answer is yes," Romney told voters then.

While he said he does not oppose creating a path for those who serve in the U.S. military to become permanent residents, he also said he doesn't believe such individuals should be able to adjust their status by attending school, nor should they receive lower in-state tuition rates.

Since narrowly winning the Iowa caucuses, Romney has been sending Hispanics mixed messages.

He's working to woo Hispanics and convince them he's sincere in fighting for their causes, recently launching TV commercials in Florida featuring Cuban-Americans Diaz-Balart and fellow U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, as well as his son Craig speaking in Spanish.

But, in South Carolina, he's also been campaigning with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the leading architect behind two of the strongest immigration crackdown laws enacted by state governments and being challenged by the federal government. Even many Latinos who support tougher immigration laws worry such measures will lead to racial profiling because they give broad leeway to law enforcement to stop anyone whom they suspect of being in the country illegally.

Jennifer Korn of the center-right group the Hispanic Leadership Network, which is co-hosting a Republican primary debate and Latino conference this month in Florida, said Romney took a risk in alienating Hispanic voters. But, she added, he's also made clear he wants to fix the broader immigration system.

"If he explains it correctly, he definitely has a chance to have the Hispanic community listen to what he has to say," she said.

He seemed to try to do just that during recent debates, saying: "I love legal immigration," but that "to protect our legal immigration system we have got to protect our borders and stop the flood of illegal immigration."

That appeared to be enough for Peter Gonzalez, a Cuban-American commercial attorney and fiscally conservative Democrat.

"It's nice to hear a guy who the media has said is taking a harsh turn to the right on immigration say they love legal immigration," he said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-01-21-Romney-Hispanics/id-69b5dcfbb7bb44598dcbd510fa15caee

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Recent attacks by radical Islamist sect in Nigeria (AP)

A look at recent major attacks in Nigeria attributed to the radical Islamist sect known as Boko Haram:

? Jan. 20: Boko Haram claims responsibility for a series of coordinated bombings and gun battles around the city of Kano that kill at least 143 people.

? Dec. 25, 2011: Boko Haram claims responsibility for an attack on a Catholic church in Madalla near Nigeria's capital and assaults elsewhere in the country that kill at least 42 people.

? Dec. 22-24, 2011: Sect members fight with police and military forces around the city of Damaturu, leaving at least 61 people dead.

? Nov. 4, 2011: Sect members bomb government buildings and shoot their way through the city of Damaturu, killing more than 100 people, while bombs and a suicide attack in Maiduguri leave 4 dead.

? Aug. 26, 2011: A sect member detonates a car loaded with explosives at the United Nations headquarters in Nigeria's capital Abuja, killing 25 people and wounding more than 100 others.

? June 16, 2011: A car loaded with explosives detonates at the federal police headquarters in Abuja, killing at least two people. Police first call the attack a suicide bombing, but later deny it.

? April 9, 2011: Gunmen from the sect set fire to the Maiduguri International Hotel and kill a politician ahead of local elections.

? April 8, 2011: A bomb allegedly planted by the sect explodes at an election office in Suleja in Niger state, killing 16 people.

? Jan. 28, 2011: Gunmen with the sect shoot and kill the leading candidate for governor in Borno state along with six others in his entourage.

? Dec. 31, 2010: A bomb allegedly planted by the sect explodes at a crowded and popular outdoor beer garden at a military barracks in Abuja, killing at least four people.

? Dec. 24, 2010: A series of bombs allegedly planted by the group explode in the central Nigerian city of Jos, killing as many as 80 people.

? Sept. 7, 2010: Gunmen with the sect free about 700 inmates from a Bauchi federal prison.

? July 2009: About 700 people die after sect members riot and a security crackdown hits Maiduguri, the sect's spiritual home.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_re_af/af_nigeria_violence_glance

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Popular file-sharing website Megaupload shut down (AP)

McLEAN, Va. ? One of the world's most popular file-sharing sites was shut down Thursday, and its founder and several company officials were accused of facilitating millions of illegal downloads of films, music and other content.

A federal indictment accused Megaupload.com of costing copyright holders at least $500 million in lost revenue. The indictment was unsealed one day after websites including Wikipedia and Craigslist shut down in protest of two congressional proposals intended to make it easier for authorities to go after sites with pirated material, especially those with overseas headquarters and servers.

The news of the shutdown seemed to bring retaliation from hackers who claimed credit for attacking the Justice Department's website. Federal officials confirmed it was down Thursday evening and that the disruption was being "treated as a malicious act."

A loose affiliation of hackers known as "Anonymous" claimed credit for the attack. Also hacked was the site for the Motion Picture Association of America and perhaps others.

Megaupload is based in Hong Kong, but some of the alleged pirated content was hosted on leased servers in Ashburn, Va., which gave federal authorities jurisdiction, the indictment said.

The Justice Department said in a statement said that Kim Dotcom, 37, and three other employees were arrested Thursday in New Zealand at the request of U.S. officials. Three other defendants are at large.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, which defends free speech and digital rights online, said in a statement that, "This kind of application of international criminal procedures to Internet policy issues sets a terrifying precedent. If the United States can seize a Dutch citizen in New Zealand over a copyright claim, what is next?"

Before Megaupload was taken down, it posted a statement saying allegations that it facilitated massive breaches of copyright laws were "grotesquely overblown."

"The fact is that the vast majority of Mega's Internet traffic is legitimate, and we are here to stay. If the content industry would like to take advantage of our popularity, we are happy to enter into a dialogue. We have some good ideas. Please get in touch," the statement said.

Meanwhile, the DOJ said its web server for justice.gov was "experiencing a significant increase in activity, resulting in a degradation in service." It was working to fix it and "investigate the origins of this activity, which is being treated as a malicious act until we can fully identify the root cause of the disruption," the agency's statement said.

A spokesman for the Motion Picture Association of America said in an emailed statement that the group's site had been hacked, although it appeared to be working later in the evening.

"The motion picture and television industry has always been a strong supporter of free speech," the spokesman said. "We strongly condemn any attempts to silence any groups or individuals."

Megaupload was unique not only because of its massive size and the volume of downloaded content, but also because it had high-profile support from celebrities, musicians and other content producers who are most often the victims of copyright infringement and piracy. Before the website was taken down, it contained endorsements from Kim Kardashian, Alicia Keys and Kanye West, among others.

The company listed Swizz Beatz, a musician who married Keys in 2010, as its CEO. He was not named in the indictment and declined to comment through a representative.

According to the indictment, Megaupload was estimated at one point to be the 13th most frequently visited website on the Internet. Current estimates by companies that monitor Web traffic place it in the top 100.

The five-count indictment, which alleges copyright infringement as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering and racketeering, described a site designed specifically to reward users who uploaded pirated content for sharing, and turned a blind eye to requests from copyright holders to remove copyright-protected files.

For instance, users received cash bonuses if they uploaded content popular enough to generate massive numbers of downloads, according to the indictment. Such content was almost always copyright protected.

The site boasted 150 million registered users and about 50 million hits daily. The Justice Department said it was illegal for anyone to download pirated content, but their investigation focused on the leaders of the company, not end users who may have downloaded a few movies for personal viewing.

A lawyer who represented the company in a lawsuit last year declined comment Thursday. Efforts to reach an attorney representing Dotcom were unsuccessful.

Megaupload is considered a "cyberlocker," in which users can upload and transfer files that are too large to send by email. Such sites can have perfectly legitimate uses. But the Motion Picture Association of America, which has campaigned for a crackdown on piracy, estimated that the vast majority of content being shared on Megaupload was in violation of copyright laws.

The website allowed users to download some content for free, but made money by charging subscriptions to people who wanted access to faster download speeds or extra content. The website also sold advertising.

The indictment was returned in the Eastern District of Virginia, which claimed jurisdiction in part because some of the alleged pirated materials were hosted on leased servers in Ashburn, Va. Prosecutors there have pursued multiple piracy investigations.

Steven T. Shelton, a copyright lawyer at the Cozen O'Connor firm in New York, said opponents of the legislation are worried the proposals lessen the burden for the government to target a wide variety of websites. Shelton said he expects to see the government engage in more enforcement in the future, as technology makes it easier to catch and target suspected pirates.

"I think we'll be seeing more of this," he said. "This is just the beginning."

Dotcom, a resident of both Hong Kong and New Zealand, and a dual citizen of Finland and Germany, made more than $42 million from the site in 2010 alone, according to the indictment.

Dotcom had his name legally changed. He was previously known as Kim Schmitz and Kim Tim Jim Vestor. He is founder, former CEO and current chief innovation officer of Megaupload.

Officials estimated it could be a year or more before Dotcom and the others arrested in New Zealand are formally extradited.

The others arrested were Finn Batato, 38, a citizen and resident of Germany, the company's chief marketing officer; Mathias Ortmann, 40, a citizen of Germany and resident of both Germany and Hong Kong, who is the chief technical officer, co-founder and director; and Bram van der Kolk, aka Bramos, 29, a Dutch citizen and resident of both the Netherlands and New Zealand, who oversees programming.

Still at large are Julius Bencko, 35, a citizen and resident of Slovakia, the site's graphic designer; Sven Echternach, 39, a citizen and resident of Germany, head of business development; and Andrus Nomm, 32, a citizen of Estonia and resident of both Turkey and Estonia, head of the development software division.

Several sister sites were also shut down, including one dedicated to sharing pornography files.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120120/ap_on_hi_te/us_internet_piracy_indictment

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PFT: Eli leaves practice early with illness

Getty Images

Exactly 30 years ago, coach Bill Walsh transformed a perennially mediocre-at-best 49ers franchise into a juggernaut that would capture five Super Bowl titles in 14 seasons.

After 17 years without a return to the NFL title game, one of the key members of Walsh?s 49ers predicts a return to glory under coach Jim Harbaugh.

?I see these guys doing some wonderful things this decade ? I think Jim will do great job of creating another dynasty and winning some Super Bowls,? Craig recently told the San Francisco Chronicle, via NFL.com.? ?I foresee us winning some Super Bowls in the next decade, if not this year then in the years ahead.? Wherever he goes, he wins.? He has the secret sauce, and I?m loving his flavor.?

(Look, it would be way too easy to make a juvenile remark at this point, including but not limited to ?that?s what she said.?? Instead, I?ll just sit here and wonder how close Craig came to calling back Eric Branch of the Chronicle and begging him to pull that last sentence.)

?Jim Harbaugh is an amazing guy, an innovator, amazing coach, a leader,? Craig added.? ?When you get players to buy into your system the way he has, you?re going to have success.?

Amen to that.? We thought Harbaugh would make enough of a difference to win the NFC West, but we never dreamed he?d take the team to a 14-3 record and a berth in the NFC title game, especially since he had only seven weeks to get his team ready.

Some think that Jeff Fisher avoided the Dolphins for fear of competing directly with Bill Belichick and the Patriots.? In the end, Fisher may have wished he picked Belichick as his arch-rival instead of Harbaugh and the 49ers.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/01/18/eli-leaves-practice-early-herzlich-back-for-giants/related/

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