Calling an initial compensation offer ?insulting,? an attorney representing Costa Concordia passengers announced Tuesday details of a $460 million civil lawsuit against the owner of the wrecked cruise ship.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46195653#46195653
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LOS ANGELES ? Mary Tyler Moore made it after all.
The 75-year-old actress, who as Mary Richards "turned the world on with her smile" in her groundbreaking 1970s sitcom "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," received the lifetime achievement award at Sunday night's 18th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.
"MTM. There's probably not a person in the civilized world who doesn't know what that means," said Dick Van Dyke, her former co-star in the equally appealing 1960s sit-com "The Dick Van Dyke show," as he introduced her.
He noted Moore's achievements as an Oscar-nominated actress, a dancer and a Hollywood executive whose MTM Enterprises has produced several other hit TV shows.
As she accepted her award, Moore revealed how the civilized world almost never did hear of MTM, who was told in the opening theme song of her show each week, "You're gonna make it after all."
When she entered show business at age 18 in 1955, Moore said, there were already six others Mary Moores in the Screen Actors Guild.
Told to change her name, she quickly added Tyler, the middle name of both her and her father, George.
"I was Mary Tyler Moore. I spoke it out loud. Mary Tyler Moore. It sounded right so I wrote it down on the form, and it looked right," she said. "It was right. SAG was happy, my father was happy, and tonight, after having the privilege of working in this business among the most creative and talented people imaginable, I too am happy, after all."
Before the awards show Van Dyke had stopped on the red carpet to remember working with Moore on his show.
"She was 23 and had never done comedy. I never saw somebody pick it up so fast. I still have a crush on her," he said.
The show's audience, including Moore's former co-star Betty White, showered both her and Van Dyke with standing ovations, leading Van Dyke to remind them, "I'm just a presenter."
Van Dyke and Moore were so believable as husband and wife Rob and Laura Petrie on "The Dick Van Dyke Show" that many viewers thought they were married in real life.
As Laura Petrie, Moore also turned Capri pants into a fashion trend during the show's run.
Van Dyke noted they fit her so well, which created such a concern during that more conservative era, that she was limited to wearing them in only one scene per show.
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NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) ? It's not every day that you get to spend time with the President of the United States, but Monday night Barack Obama will log on to Google Plus for the Oval Office's first virtual "Hangout."
To discuss last week's State of the Union address, Obama will participate in a group video chat Monday on the burgeoning social networking site at 5:30 p.m. ET.
In its earnings report earlier this month, Google reported that 90 million people now subscribe to Google Plus, which combines many of the features of Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms.
Obama has leveraged social media to his advantage before, answering questions in Twitter and Facebook "townhalls."
Unlike with the Twitter townhall last July, Obama will answer live questions rather than just a preselected bunch. Google will choose certain questions submitted via YouTube while people can also comment and interact on Google Plus.
Obama's State of the Union drew high approval marks - 91 percent according to CBS News - but the "Hangout" comes a day before the Florida primary, which will give the Republicans the first of many chances to reverse some of the buzz generated by the year's first big national address.
The discussion will be streamed on Google Plus, the White House website and the White House's YouTube channel.
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General Recap of Events leading up to Operation: ?Titan?
Date?
The Second Era?
2380?
The planet of Helios Prime and six other planets in what was once the Gravos Alliance have been at war for roughly 100 years, the exact date that war started is unknown due to covert military operations on all sides, which lead to the start of the official war. As of the year 2380 of the Second Era, The Helios government, a military dominated and controlled system, is holding steady, able to support itself. Its vast fleet of warships in addition to a number of powerful military developed technologies had allowed Helios to withstand numerous attacks with little to no casualties. Still, Helios?s resources did allow them to effectively take on all six of the opposing governments while defending themselves. A sneak attack by the Lenion Empire managed to catch the Helios off guard when a light attack bomber dropped out of a hyperspace window towing a massive meteor behind it. Although the meteor had been destroyed, several large chunks did manage to make it past the defenses of the Helios Fleet, but damage was limited to a single moon base. An unknown element was soon discovered inside the meteor when crews were dispatched to repair the moon base, and the stealthed science vessel ?Felstone? with a small crew was assigned to find out more about this element as soon as its system of origin was located.
2381?
The science vessel Felstone locates mass amounts of the unknown element on PCX-01K from the meteor attack of 2380 now referred to as ?Warp Stone? for its unusual properties in hyperspace environments. Military applications for the element prove less then hopeful according to reports, but the vessel remains to explore other possibilities, including those for a new style of FTL drives which although slower then current day FTL drives, may prove to be easier and faster to produce. A group of powerful traders quickly dive onto the market, funding a massive chunk of the Gravos Alliance?s military operations in exchange for rights to this mineral.
2382?
The science vessel Felstone reports possible find of an alternate element located PCX-10X, which may wield heavy military applications. A month after this report, a new message is sent with warning about the element found, but the transmission is cut off before any details can be given. A long range scouting and bombing vessel was sent out to check up on the Felstone. Neither ship was heard from again. Recent increased attacks from the Lenion and Tekion empires require the use of the entire Helios Fleet to defend the planet, no additional ships can be sent out to search for answers. Of the seven merchant controlled companies that had funded the Helios Government in exchange for rights to the Warp Stone found on PCX-01K, five of them go bankrupt and all assets are seized by Helios government. The remaining two quickly give up on their contracts and begin looking elsewhere to fund their companies.
2397?
Attacks against Helios are getting worse and the government begins looking for new weapons and defensive capabilities hidden away in the data banks, an old file containing minor data about the science vessel Felstone is discovered, and the warning in the last recorded report is ignored. A ship is finally dispatched to find the missing Felstone. The Felstone is found in a matter of weeks and all uncorrupted data is recovered, but the crew of both the Felstone and the original ship sent to find it are missing. Heavy amount of blood stains and internal damage suggest a quick and deadly battle. With no signs of the crew to work on, the Felstone is repaired and is brought back to Helios along with its cargo, a massive collection of two unknown elements for study. One of which was a unique variant of Warp Stone, the other an entirely unknown substance which was growing almost like mold, its pulsing energy proving to be a source of many questions. A new research center is started with the mission of exploiting this unknown substance.
2400?
The Titan Research Center located on GCX-19U is finished and now online. As a military run research outpost, the primary purpose of the outpost was to explore the possibility of super soldiers through the use of a highly mutagenic toxin now known as ?Baulder?, first discovered and recommended for study by one Alex R. Baulder, head scientist onboard the Felstone. The planet of Helios has managed to even the odds in the Gravos war and was now looking for a way to end the war. Early results of using Baulder to alter the human genetic code as well as a few other select species proved unstable, but some results were promising. Despite the high risk level, research is continued.
2403?
Tired of the war, a number of the civilians grow tired of the military rule of Helios. A rebellion that unites all of the various ?gangs? as the Helios government calls them is formed and in a joint operation with the nations at war with Helios, the Helios government is overthrown at last with minimal civilian casualties. The remainder of the Helios military groups knowing that Helios has fallen scatter and the empires that had once been at war with Helios now work with the people to rebuild.
2405?
The new Helios government is finally properly established as its own galactic power and is readily forming alliances with all bordering planets. As a new democracy based planet, the people are now in charge with all military factions tightly controlled to ensure a repeat of the old government does not take place.
2407?
A number of old Helios Military factions resurface intent on the destruction of the new Helios government. A faction of the new Helios military is tasked with the job of rounding up the factions of the old Helios military with help from the six planets that were at war with the old Helios government. A private military faction consisting of bounty hunters was formed under the new alliance with the sole mission of hunting down the remains of the old Helios military personal and as such, they were called Hunters.
2409?
A raid on the old Helios military outpost known as the Kalic station is a decisive blow. Several weapons, munitions, and other supplies were taken from the site as well as a number of documents and military communications logs. This information was forwarded to Hunter command. Days later, an attack was made against the Hunter Command. A small number of humanoids were shipped by bio-transit container to the cargo center of the Hunter Command. Upon being found, the containers were opened up immediately after checking the container with a bio-scan, which indicated serious health risks to the people inside. Upon the opening of the crate, the six humanoids inside went mad and attacked anyone they found. The six humanoids were quickly dealt with, total property damage was limited, but they had managed to kill nine hunters and twelve civilians before they were stopped. All six of the targets in question were mutants, each with slightly different mutations, but all of them were blood crazed. It was quickly found that these mutants were connected to the Titan Research Center. Deeming this a direct attack against the Hunter Command, a call for the specialists was sent out.
Planets / Groups / Key Locations / Dominant Race, Terms, and other important information?
Planets / Groups?
Helios Prime?
A mostly jungle planet filled with large rain forests and mountainous regions, Helios Prime is a planet mostly dominated by humans. The majority of cities are either built on top of the forest, using the larger trees that usually stand around 1,200 feet tall as supports to hold up the city. These treetop communities are mostly peaceful places and make wonderful vacations spots with the new government now in charge. Several cities are mostly self governed, with a city counsel in charge of keeping the city in working order. All treetop cities are still equipped with a smaller space port, capable of handling a good number of smaller personal ships, but most cities are still able to handle a single cargo ship at any one time. There are larger treetop cities known as capitals however. These capital cities are much larger and equipped with full sized spaceports as well as newly formed Hunter outposts. Each capital city is tasked with anywhere from seven to twenty of the smaller cities, providing them with resources and other needed assistance when necessary. In addition to treetop cities, there are a smaller number of bunkers. These bunkers are built into the planets various mountains and before the rise of the new government, served as military bases that ruled over the planet. Several of these bunkers have active mines in them as well as proper spaceports and factories used to construct warships. One of the first orders of the new government was the refitting of these bunkers for civilian purposes in addition to allowing the planet?s new allies to dock and repair their ships when needed. The planet is still undergoing several projects to make the planet a more friendly place, but there are still massive chunks of the planet that were designated ?military only? sites and have yet to be explored. In addition, Helios Prime has three moons, two of them habitable to a degree while the third one has no atmosphere, but still has a few moon bases on it. All three moons serve as a combination of defense outposts, trading hubs, and repair bays for the planet.
Helios Prime Governments?
Knights of Gravos (Old Military controlled Government)
The Knights of Gravos, formerly the true military presence in the Gravos Alliance before it fell apart and the Gravos War began. As a Military run government, The Knights of Gravos directly controlled many aspects of civilian life on Helios Prime as well as nearly all forms of trade and science. In the early years long since forgotten by the people, this was an okay way of life for them. The military was kind and made sure that peace was well known as well as fair trade and rights. It is unknown at what point the military shifted from this gentle peacekeeper to the tyrants that they became. When the war officially began, The Knights were quick to seize nearly all assets planet wide and quickly began rapid construction of new warships. In addition, it seized control over all science departments, spaceports, and other sites deemed needed by the government. Using force and fear as their weapons, they quickly separated most of the cities from each other as a way to keep them under control. They would scatter families as well making threats against other members of a person?s family to keep them in check. The planet remained under this kind of rule for over 100 years until a group of Lenion and Tekion spies finally managed to infiltrate the planet successfully. With their help, the people were finally able to start fighting back and years later, form a proper rebellion that lead to the governments downfall. As soon as the government knew that they has lost control and would lose the war, the majority of them packed up and made a rather successful retreat to a wormhole near the planet and vanished from early in the 2403 until late in the 2407.
Helios Alliance (New Civilian controlled Government)
The Helios Alliance is the new and current government in charge of Helios Prime. Run in a standard democracy based system adopted from the Lenion Empire, Helios Prime is now rebuilding itself to its former glory, but under new rules and laws. People are free to move and set up homes as they see fit, start a business and even pick their own jobs for once. Crime rates are still thankfully very low and many of the police forces of Helios?s new allies still help patrol the cities helping the government set up their own police force. These visitors are also very eager to help get Helios back on its feet, offering suggestions in all forms. At this current time however, most police officers are doubling as community helpers, helping to set up shops and other such tasks as they are not needed to handle crime as much. Although in the very early stages of reform, the people are once again free and many are eager to help continue on this new path. The biggest change in this new government though is of course the military. All military branches are now tightly controlled. Higher ranking Generals from Helios?s allies are helping them rebuild and make several changes to the way the military is run. There is one branch however that is considered separate from the rest of the government.
Hunter Command (Separate unique military branch on Helios Prime)
Hunter Command is a rather large force of bounty hunters as it is commonly referred to. This group is charged with a single purpose, to hunt down and catch all remnants of The Knights of Gravos. A self governed group with individuals from all seven planets in this new alliance, but it is primarily run by humans from Helios Prime. This group gets it funding from the actual military presence under the control of Helios Alliance in the form of bounties, as well as however the hunters choose to work. A mostly free range gun for hire, all hunters abide by Helios law and work with the single goal of wiping out all remains of the old military government. This does not stop them from catching other bounties though for any of the planets they are allied with. They often work with the police force of any planet they are on, but for the most part are still free agents. Surprisingly, this group is often given several gifts, in the forms of discounts by the majority of traders in the area, as well as being sent large amounts of extra goods that many groups on Helios Prime feel they could use.
Helios Prime Key Locations?
Nexus Mountain Range?
Bunker?
Helios Prime?s largest mountain complex, originally the Knights of Gravos?s base of operations is now the planets leading city. The base itself spread through all seven of the mountains that make up the Nexus Mountain Range. Several times bigger than any other bunker or even capital city, it was the original space port and factory on all of Helios Prime. It has been refitted for many different uses over the past thousand years it has been active, the most recent of course is the change from military base of operations, to the civilian friendly capital that is still under work today. It is easy to see where several orbital weapon platforms are being deconstructed as well as several weapons storage centers that are still being dealt with. Half of the base itself makes up the primary space factory for the planet and it still being used. Parts of the factory are being used to refit old warships for civilian use by removing some of the weapon bays and adding new larger living quarters and other things to them. Additionally, the site is also being used to construct brand new ships, three of the six other planets in the alliance actually have bartered to construct ships of their own there as well. The rest of the base is being refitted with new city centers, which include proper living quarters, market places, and recreational facilities. At this current time however, it is still very easy to see how the bunker was used by the Knight of Gavos.
Hunter Command?
C3 Ship?
Hunter Command is in fact a refitted warship commonly referred to as C3 ship, a Communications and Command Cruiser. C3 ships were often used as command bases for ground based attacks, often after orbital defenses had been dealt with. Fully equipped to lead and command several platoons of infantry, armored vehicles, as well as fighter / orbital support, and even act as its own communications outpost for most of the planet alone, it was easy to see how this cruiser earned its nick name of the C3. Already equipped with everything hunter command would need, it was an obvious choice of ship for the job rather then commission a new ship to be built or take up one of the planet?s bunkers. Hunter Command has everything a would be bounty hunter needs, from training facility, to living quarters, to weapons and armor, including its own science lab and department. The bridge for the ship serves as the overall operations center for the ship, as well as mission briefing and information centers. The brig is the bounty collection center and temporarily holds all bounties until they can be transported to a more secure and isolated prison center to await their trials. This area of the ship has been expanded and refitted to a much larger degree then the rest of the ship, even being extended to an auxiliary launch bay where ships with live bounties can dock to make a prisoner transfer easy. This location also serves as the payment center where a bounty hunter can collect his fee for the job. This includes all jobs, even those commissioned by trade ships who want a bit of extra muscle that are concerned about space pirate attacks. Most bounty hunters also happen to live on the ship, and while very few have families, they are still welcome to live onboard the vessel as long as one member remains an active bounty hunter. The ship is currently located docked at smaller bunker city just a few hundred miles from the Nexus Mountain Complex. The ship is fully space worthy however and is ready to be deployed at any time, whether in defense of a planet, or to attack one should the location of the planet where the Knights of Gravos have taken refuge be revealed.
Mythica?
Capital Treetop City?
Mythica is Helios Prime?s largest civilian capital city, second largest city on the planet, just shy of being larger then the Nexus Mountain Complex. Equipped with two full sized space capable of handling twelve full sized cargo ships each and seven smaller space ports, it is the main city for incoming and outgoing trade ships. As a fully equipped civilian city, as soon as the Knights of Gravos were gone, the city quickly began to expand. Technically the planet?s actual capital, the place is brimming with all kinds of people, both native humans and alien visitors. Shops of all kind are set up here for almost any need and the people are more then happy to greet newcomers. A heavy police force still finds themselves a bit strained a time, but overall it is a nice place. As with all the treetop cities, the city is built both above the main support platforms often called the upper city, and below them, often referred to as under city. Both sides are very good and often share many things, but the under city is just a bit darker, more bars and exotic goods found there. Many of the cities factories and production plants are found in the under city as well.
Newyouth?
A planet dominated by water with very very few landmasses, Newyouth is dominated by an amphibious race. Most of the planet?s cities can be separated into one of two classes. Underwater domes are by far the most popular style of city on Newyouth. The domes vary in size, but are mostly the same in design. A single major spire acts as the central hub of the cities, with the top of the spire supported the very top of the dome. Several other small spires are spread out through the city, acting as other major points in the city as well as supporting the rest of the dome. The larger the dome, the more spires that are needed to help support it. Even with this dome keeping most of the water out though, the bottom levels of the dome are very much flooded intentionally. All ships coming in to dock at these cities must do so near the ocean floor, the only place were the dome can be accessed. For those ships not seaworthy, all of the port cities are equipped with various submersible transports that travel frequently between the various domes and port cities. In the last weeks of the war though, the Knights of Gravos still managed to get a few ships past the planet?s defense satellites, a few ships docking and attempting to take over a few port cities. These ships and their crews cared nothing for the planet and as such, didn?t bother trying to clean up after themselves, dumping large amounts of toxic materials in the ocean. This dumping has led to several problems that are persistent to this day and the Helios Alliance has a base on Newyouth leading the clean up efforts themselves.
Newyouth Government?
Coral Counsel
Newyouth is governed by a group of ruling families who together form a group known only as the Coral Counsel. Located in a bio-dome around the planet?s largest coral reef, the Coral Counsel consists of seven various families. It is not uncommon for the counsel to change on a yearly basis as it is the seven largest ruling families who make up this counsel. Each family has a total of 5 members on the counsel, starting with the Head of the Family. These seven individuals are the most powerful on the counsel, and may deny the others in their family a vote, but must be done with good reason. Additionally, these seven also pick the other four members that represent their families, which tend to change from meeting to meeting. If for some reason, a family is short a member at the meeting, the head of that family will get their vote. For the most part, these ruling families have control over the planet, but they are very much open minded and make a serious point to listen to their fellow people. Additionally, these seven families combine their resources to fund their planet, paying for any government based projects. These includes large scale things such as building new domes or port cities, all the way down to paying for food used in the palace. The ruling families, while powerful, are still at the mercy of their people though, any other family pack can start a petition of sorts to call for a vote, removing any of the head families. This has only happened twice in the entire recorded history of the Coral Counsel and in both cases, the families were forced to forfeit their entire estate and fortunes to the Coral Counsel.
Key Locations?
Coral Palace (Coral building)
The Coral Palace is the place were the Coral Counsel is located. Built into the coral reef located in the capital city, the Coral Palace is a large place. The majority is the palace is located under the water, aside from the top few floors that are dry and open to visitors of the planet. Being flooded as it is, the passageways are larger and more circular in design, allowing the inhabitants to swim from point to point within the palace. Designed primarily to avoid hurting the reef, the palace has a bit of an odd layout, with the larger open areas acting as rooms. The Junos do however have ways to influence the growth and decay of the reefs, and as such, the palace layout does change from time to time.
The Ghost Ship (Knight of Gravos War Sub)
The Ghost Ship is supposedly a myth, but does have some considerable truth behind it. In short, the Knights of Gravos had managed to build a spaceship that would easily convert to a submersible warship when it made it landfall on Newyouth. This vessel has powerful stealth generators on it and quickly became a serious problem for Newyouth. It took a few months to finally track the vessel down and sink it. This was thought to be the end of the ship, but a year later, when the Coral Counsel finally had time to deal with removing the ship, it was gone and group of superstitious sailors quickly started to spread the myth around. From there, it slowly grew into a common myth. Recently however, there have been odd reports of some large ship occasionally being sighted by the squid hunters and other such fishers. More notably however, is the strange increase in unknown pollutants in Newyouth?s ocean. Two small research subs have been deployed already to try and find the source of these pollutants, but both have been destroyed. Both subs did manage to send partial reports back to their designated ports before they were destroyed, sending word that they had found some sort of ship, the second ship managing to send a very poor image of some unknown object in the depths. A third sub was recently sent out as well, but there has been no contact with the third sub ever since it hit the area where this ?ship? had been seen last. This has sparked worry among the Coral Counsel who have placed a call in to Hunter Command on Helios Prime.
Races of Newyouth?
Newyouth?s primary race is a race of half fish, half men people known as Junos, although other races simply refer to them as mermen, and this term is commonly accepted by most of the Junos population, with the exception of those in higher families. Averaging about five to six feet in height, similar to humans as well as having a mostly humanoid figure. Their hands and feet are webbed however, and tipped with small claws. Their palms are also rather rough, good from gripping things in the water, the same going for their feet. In order to swim effectively through their watery home, junos have various fins along their body. Their knees and elbows have large fins in a large variety of colors, but these fins are mostly used to turn and glide in the water. They also have a sort of tail, a rather large fan like tail that they use to propel themselves through the water. Since this is an aquatic race, they do have gills, but instead of just one set, they have two. The first set is on their neck, these are nice and small, able to close up nice and tight when on dry land. Their second set is along their back just above their tail fin. Overall, they have smooth bodies that allow them to swim very quickly and unrestrained, their scaled hides even acting as a sort of natural protection. While it is easy to mistake the female for males, there are a few differences between the two. Females are just a bit smaller then their male counterparts, often with smaller jaws. Their biggest difference compared to the males is that have something of a natural wrist spike on top of their hands. Since the females take it upon themselves to defend their young and eggs, they have a natural talent for martial arts, both underwater and on dry land, with these wrist spikes playing a major part in it. The males of the species do not possess these natural wrist spikes, but do possess powerful jaws with very vicious fangs. Surviving on dry land can be a challenge for the junos at times, but overall, it is just a matter of keeping themselves hydrated.
GCX-19U?
GCX-19U is an uncolonized, uncharted planet on the deep space reaches of Helios Prime, commonly referred to as ?Planet Hell? by most of the scientists on Helios Prime. While on most star maps, the planet?s unique conditions left it unexplored. The recent raid on a Knights of Gravos Kalic Station provided confirmed reports of a research station on the planet. Little is known about the planet or what to expect around it. What information there is on the planet simply details that it has a unique atmosphere, a dense fog covering out 90 percent of the planet at any one time. This fog is deadly to organ material however and full air tight suits must be worn in it to protect against its somewhat acidic properties. This is due to the planet?s volcanic nature, what few clear shots of the ground there are always showing a scorched, barren wasteland. It also lists that the planet would appear to generate its own electromagnetic field that is proving very difficult to penetrate with any kind of scan. Overall, the planet has mostly been plainly ignored, but with confirmed reports of the Titan Research station located on the planet, several satellites have been put into orbit. In addition, a number of probes have been sent to make land fall to get a better feel for the planet. What reports have come back are not promising. The entire planet is very unstable, constantly shifting and tearing itself apart according to what little data has been sent. It is currently unknown how this planet has survived so long, but there is definitely something holding it together. The best that scientists are able to come up with however is that the Knights of Gravos must have several gravity wells in place around the planet, which may explain the unusual electromagnetic fields that surround the planet.
Key locations?
Titan Research Facility?
The Titan Research Facility was constructed in the year 2400 of the Second Ear. Built by the Knights of Gravos when they were still in charge of Helios Prime, the primary purpose of this station was to research the mutational properties of ?Baulder? on a genetic level of various humanoid test subjects, as well as a few select feral beasts. A very corrupted set of blue prints have been collected from the Kalic Station have revealed some good information regarding the Titan Station, but only a partial set of the blue-prints have been recovered.
Constructed following a basic ?Spire City? designed. A central massive spire makes up the center frame of the station, with a large sphere topping the spire. This sphere topping the station is the stations primary anti-orbital defense, equipped with one hundred small quad cannons to defend against fighters, and a twenty heavy ion cannon turrets to take on larger targets. Build strictly for use on this planet, it suffers minimal interference from the planets electromagnetic fields. In combination with the dense fog and the planet?s electromagnetic field, the station already starts off with a heavy defensive position, as it can?t be tracked entirely. Additonally, the ship has several other turrets on nearly all sides to ensure that it does not have any blind spots. The Knights of Gravos were not keen on leaving high value targets open to sneak attacks and often took extra measures to ensure their safety, which was what allowed them to hold out so long in the Gravos War. As a final measure to defend attack however, the ship is equipped with series of shields when combined with the planets electromagnetic fields, holds up against nearly all weapons. This fact will actually play both for and against the Titan Research Station. Hunter commands intends to use a series of heavy weapons bombardment to attack the station, this weapons fire actually providing a distraction for several ?dummy? warheads to be launched at the station. Many of these dummy warheads are just that, dummies, however, a few will contain hidden sheath fighters which will allow the Hunter Command to send its team in. The plan is to make it appear that Hunter has every intention of destroying the station rather then boarding it, using the heavy weapons fire to provide enough cover to allow these stealth fighters to find a way to board the Titan Research Station.
Just below this sphere are a set of six ?piers?. These ?piers? are massive in size, extending outward from the central spire, each capped with its own bio-dome used mostly for testing the mutants created in the station?s science labs. While these areas are the least defended part of the ship, they could also be considered the worst part of the ship to be. Each of them are filled with various ?failed? mutants that were let free within domes, mostly to serve as training dummies for any mutant that has potential weapons use. With their lack of defenses centered and would prove easy access points into the station, all six of these domes can not vital to the stations operations and can be ejected from the ship at any time. This is a major concern for Hunter Command and deemed these six domes too dangerous try and plant a team onto the station.
Below the six bio-domes are a series of additional piers. Unlike the upper six piers, the next four sets of piers are supports, holding a group of four outer rings to the central spire, with each ring decreasing in size the further down the central spire they are. These rings, unlike the bio-domes are heavily defended as well, with turrets located on the top and bottom of each one. The upper two rings do have landing platforms on them, and while they are guarded, it is one possible way to breach the station, however, highly unrecommended, as with the bio-domes.
The third ring from the top is currently Hunter Command?s best hope of breaching the station. If the plans are correct, this ring of the station is a mix of housing, medical labs, storage, and weapons lockers. This odd mix of things all in this one ring lead Hunter Command to suspect that it may be incorrect and the data is too corrupted to provide a direct answer. However, Hunter Command has been able to confirm that there is a weak spot on this level. They are a number of turrets on this level that are currently off line for unknown reasons, and combined with confirmed reports of four smaller docking ports on this level, it presents the best possible chance of gaining entry into the station.
Finally, the last ring on this station is possibly the most guarded ring of them all. This station is still space worthy, and even has several orbit to surface cannons along the underside of this ring. In addition, this ring also appears to have the station?s secondary and auxiliary engines.
The stations primary engine is located at the bottom of this spire.
There is no other confirmed data on this station at this time.
xXx
And that concludes what I have written so far for this roleplay. The first of the major factions is Hunter Command with its army of bounty hunters. I expect this group along with its allies will make up a major part of the group who wish to join. Secondly, we have the Knights of Gravos, the former group in charge of Helios Prime who have just resurfaced to cause trouble for everyone. Finally, there is the group of ?mutants? which I can use some help with, who will mostly be wild cards in this RP, but I image there will be a few being played none the less. As stated before hand, I am looking for some help. Hopefully after reading this, people will have a general idea of what is going on and should be able to provide some good ideas for the universe I already have started. Mostly, I am looking for a few planets, some more playable races to choose from, and possibly even bios for any of big bads, so to speak. If your interested in playing, let me know, I can start forming some ideas based around how many people would like to join. Additionally, if you just want to help, I?m pretty open to most ideas and think that there is enough information that people have a good idea on what kind of things to add. I?m pretty open at this point to what all can be added, so if you have a nice idea, let me know by posting it if you think it would work with I have written already.
Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/RolePlayGateway
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Occupy Oakland protests turned violent Saturday as?demonstrators broke into a historic building and burned an American flag, and officers fired tear gas to disperse people throwing rocks and tearing down fencing at a convention center.
Dozens of police maintained a late-night guard around City Hall in Oakland, California, following daylong protests that resulted in 300 arrests. Earlier, Occupy Oakland demonstrators broke into the historic building and burned a U.S. flag, and officers earlier fired tear gas to disperse people throwing rocks and tearing down fencing at a convention center.
Skip to next paragraphSaturday's protests ? the most turbulent since Oakland police forcefully dismantled an Occupy encampment in November ? came just days after the group said it planned to use a vacant building as a social center and political hub and threatened to try to shut down the port, occupy the airport and take over City Hall.
An exasperated Mayor Jean Quan, who faced heavy criticism for the police action last fall, called on the Occupy movement to "stop using Oakland as its playground."
"People in the community and people in the Occupy movement have to stop making excuses for this behavior," Quan said.
IN PICTURES: Occupy LA and other Occupy protests
Protesters clashed with police throughout the day, at times throwing rocks, bottles and other objects at officers. Police responded by deploying smoke, tear gas and bean bag rounds, City Administrator Deanna Santanta said.
Interim Police Chief Howard Jordan said about 300 arrests were made.
"These demonstrators stated their intention was to provoke officers and engage in illegal activity and that's exactly what has occurred today," Santana said.
The group assembled outside City Hall late Saturday morning and marched through the streets, disrupting traffic as they threatened to take over the vacant Henry Kaiser Convention Center.
The protesters walked to the vacant convention center, where some started tearing down perimeter fencing and "destroying construction equipment" shortly before 3 p.m., police said.
Police said they issued a dispersal order and used smoke and tear gas after some protesters pelted them with bottles, rocks, burning flares and other objects.
The number of demonstrators swelled as the day wore on, with afternoon estimates ranging from about 1,000 to 2,000 people.
A majority of the arrests came after police took scores of protesters into custody as they marched through the city's downtown, with some entering a YMCA building, said Sgt. Jeff Thomason, a police spokesman.
Quan said that at one point, many protesters forced their way into City Hall, where they burned flags, broke an electrical box and damaged several art structures, including a recycled art exhibit created by children.
She blamed the destruction on a small "very radical, violent" splinter group within Occupy Oakland.
"This is not a situation where we had 1,000 peaceful people and a few violent people. If you look at what's happening today in terms of destructing property, throwing at and charging the police, it's almost like they are begging for attention and hoping that the police will make an error."
Dozens of officers surrounded City Hall, while others swept the inside of the building looking for protesters who had broken into the building, then ran out of the building with American flags before officers arrived.
The protest group issued an email criticizing police, saying "Occupy Oakland's building occupation, an act of constitutionally protected civil disobedience was disrupted by a brutal police response today."
Michael Davis, 32, who is originally from Ohio and was in the Occupy movement in Cincinnati, said Saturday was a very hectic day that originally started off calm but escalated when police began using "flash bangs, tear gas, smoke grenades and bean bags."
"What could've been handled differently is the way the Oakland police came at us," Davis said. "We were peaceful."
The national Occupy Wall Street movement, which denounces corporate excess and economic inequality, began in New York City in the fall but has been largely dormant lately.
Oakland, New York and Los Angeles were among the cities with the largest and most vocal Occupy protests early on. The demonstrations ebbed after those cities used force to move out hundreds of demonstrators who had set up tent cities.
In Oakland, the police department received heavy criticism for using force to break up earlier protests. Quan was among the critics, but on Saturday, she seemed to have changed her tune.
"Our officers have been very measured," Quan said. "Were there some mistakes made? There may be. I would say the Oakland police and our allies, so far a small percentage of mistakes. But quite frankly, a majority of protesters who were charging the police were clearly not being peaceful.?
IN PICTURES: Occupy LA and other Occupy protests
Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/d2cxQrdpvnY/Occupy-Oakland-protests-bring-300-arrests
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Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/01/27/bubba-nosferatu-roswell-paul-giamatti-don-coscarelli/
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Public release date: 27-Jan-2012
Share ] Contact: Wang Shengdian
sdwang@moon.ibp.ac.cn
0086-106-488-8493
Science in China Press
Cancer is one of the most common causes of death in humans. The conventional cancer therapies include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeting therapies, which are intended to directly destroy and eliminate tumor cells. These treatments often fail, resulting in tumor metastasis and recurrence. Therefore, there is a critical need for novel cancer therapies. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have revealed that immune responses play a critical role in conventional cancer therapies. Replication-selective oncolytic viruses are a rapidly expanding therapeutic platform for cancer. Professor Wang Shengdian and his group from the Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, have studied tumor immunity for several years, with a team focusing on oncolytic adenovirus. In this work, entitled "CD8+ T cell response mediates the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus in an immunocompetent mouse model", published in Chinese Science Bulletin 2012, Vol. 57(1), this team has demonstrated that the host anti-tumor immune responses, especially the CD8+ T cell responses, play a critical role in the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus. These studies might shed light on novel cancer therapies.
Researchers have identified several oncolytic viruses such as poliovirus, adenovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus, reovirus, and vaccinia virus, which can selectively infect or replicate in cancer cells, but spare normal cells. Among these, adenovirus has been the most commonly used oncolytic virus in the last decade, because of its efficacy, safety, and ease of manipulation. When administered to tumors, oncolytic adenovirus infects and kills cancer cells as a result of the normal viral life cycle, by replicating in cells and releasing progeny viruses. However, adenoviral infection is immunogenic and can induce strong anti-viral immune responses, which accelerate the clearance of virus and limit the therapeutic effects on cancer. Some studies have shown that suppressing the immune system could enhance the efficacy of oncolytic vectors. On the other hand, recent preclinical and clinical studies have suggested that the immune response plays an important role in mediating the antitumor efficacy. Therefore, the influence of immune responses on oncolytic therapy is complex. Because of the species specificity of adenoviral replication, it was widely assumed that adenoviral replication would not occur in mouse tumors. Consequently, oncolytic adenoviral vectors have been commonly evaluated in immunodeficient mouse-human tumor xenograft models, which do not accurately reflect what happens in humans treated with oncolytic adenovirus. A team led by Professor Yaohe Wang from the Center for Molecular Oncology, Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary University of London, previously screened a panel of mouse tumor cell lines and identified two cell linesCMT 93 (a murine rectal cancer cell line) and CMT64 (a murine non-small-cell lung cancer cell line) with significant permissibility for adenoviral gene expression, cytopathic effects, and/or replication.
In this work, the team lead by Professor Wang Shengdian evaluated the roles of immune components in oncolytic adenoviral therapy with a murine tumor by subcutaneously inoculating CMT 93 cells into syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. They found that CD8+ T cells, but not CD4+ T cells or natural killer cells, are critical mediators of the antitumor efficacy of oncolytic adenovirus by deletion of the corresponding cell subsets with specific antibodies. Intratumoral injection of adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) could induce intensive infiltration of CD8+ T cells into the tumor, and increase tumor-specific interferon-? production and cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity. The anti-tumor T cell responses induced by Ad5 therapy produced long-term tumor-specific memory immune responses that protected the cured mice well from tumor rechallenge. This anti-tumor immune memory is thought to play a major role in preventing tumor relapse. For larger tumors, Ad5 therapy alone controls tumor growth only transiently. However, Ad5 therapy followed by treatment with agonistic anti-4-1BB (cluster differentiation 137, CD137) antibody, a potent enhancer of the specific CD8+ T cell response, resulted in complete rejection of all transplanted tumors, demonstrating that promotion of T cell responses against tumors could enhance the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus.
In summary, this study provides insight into the antitumor mechanisms of oncolytic adenovirus, in addition to their direct oncolytic effect. Meanwhile, this study proposes a new and more effective therapeutic regime for cancer treatment using a combination therapy of oncolytic adenovirus and immunotherapy.
###
See the article: YANG Y J, LI X Z, WANG Y H, WANG S D. CD8+ T cell response mediates the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus in an immunocompetent mouse model. Chinese Science Bulletin 2012 Vol. 57(1): 48-53.
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 27-Jan-2012 Share ] Contact: Wang Shengdian
sdwang@moon.ibp.ac.cn
0086-106-488-8493
Science in China Press
Cancer is one of the most common causes of death in humans. The conventional cancer therapies include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeting therapies, which are intended to directly destroy and eliminate tumor cells. These treatments often fail, resulting in tumor metastasis and recurrence. Therefore, there is a critical need for novel cancer therapies. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have revealed that immune responses play a critical role in conventional cancer therapies. Replication-selective oncolytic viruses are a rapidly expanding therapeutic platform for cancer. Professor Wang Shengdian and his group from the Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, have studied tumor immunity for several years, with a team focusing on oncolytic adenovirus. In this work, entitled "CD8+ T cell response mediates the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus in an immunocompetent mouse model", published in Chinese Science Bulletin 2012, Vol. 57(1), this team has demonstrated that the host anti-tumor immune responses, especially the CD8+ T cell responses, play a critical role in the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus. These studies might shed light on novel cancer therapies.
Researchers have identified several oncolytic viruses such as poliovirus, adenovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus, reovirus, and vaccinia virus, which can selectively infect or replicate in cancer cells, but spare normal cells. Among these, adenovirus has been the most commonly used oncolytic virus in the last decade, because of its efficacy, safety, and ease of manipulation. When administered to tumors, oncolytic adenovirus infects and kills cancer cells as a result of the normal viral life cycle, by replicating in cells and releasing progeny viruses. However, adenoviral infection is immunogenic and can induce strong anti-viral immune responses, which accelerate the clearance of virus and limit the therapeutic effects on cancer. Some studies have shown that suppressing the immune system could enhance the efficacy of oncolytic vectors. On the other hand, recent preclinical and clinical studies have suggested that the immune response plays an important role in mediating the antitumor efficacy. Therefore, the influence of immune responses on oncolytic therapy is complex. Because of the species specificity of adenoviral replication, it was widely assumed that adenoviral replication would not occur in mouse tumors. Consequently, oncolytic adenoviral vectors have been commonly evaluated in immunodeficient mouse-human tumor xenograft models, which do not accurately reflect what happens in humans treated with oncolytic adenovirus. A team led by Professor Yaohe Wang from the Center for Molecular Oncology, Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary University of London, previously screened a panel of mouse tumor cell lines and identified two cell linesCMT 93 (a murine rectal cancer cell line) and CMT64 (a murine non-small-cell lung cancer cell line) with significant permissibility for adenoviral gene expression, cytopathic effects, and/or replication.
In this work, the team lead by Professor Wang Shengdian evaluated the roles of immune components in oncolytic adenoviral therapy with a murine tumor by subcutaneously inoculating CMT 93 cells into syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. They found that CD8+ T cells, but not CD4+ T cells or natural killer cells, are critical mediators of the antitumor efficacy of oncolytic adenovirus by deletion of the corresponding cell subsets with specific antibodies. Intratumoral injection of adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) could induce intensive infiltration of CD8+ T cells into the tumor, and increase tumor-specific interferon-? production and cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity. The anti-tumor T cell responses induced by Ad5 therapy produced long-term tumor-specific memory immune responses that protected the cured mice well from tumor rechallenge. This anti-tumor immune memory is thought to play a major role in preventing tumor relapse. For larger tumors, Ad5 therapy alone controls tumor growth only transiently. However, Ad5 therapy followed by treatment with agonistic anti-4-1BB (cluster differentiation 137, CD137) antibody, a potent enhancer of the specific CD8+ T cell response, resulted in complete rejection of all transplanted tumors, demonstrating that promotion of T cell responses against tumors could enhance the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus.
In summary, this study provides insight into the antitumor mechanisms of oncolytic adenovirus, in addition to their direct oncolytic effect. Meanwhile, this study proposes a new and more effective therapeutic regime for cancer treatment using a combination therapy of oncolytic adenovirus and immunotherapy.
###
See the article: YANG Y J, LI X Z, WANG Y H, WANG S D. CD8+ T cell response mediates the therapeutic effects of oncolytic adenovirus in an immunocompetent mouse model. Chinese Science Bulletin 2012 Vol. 57(1): 48-53.
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/sicp-imo011712.php
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The nation?s gross domestic product went up 2.8 percent in the final three months of 2011, falling slightly short of the 3 percent increase expected by many analysts. NBC?s Brian Williams reports.
>>> we learned today the u.s. economy continuing to grow now, though it's a slower pace than expected. gross domestic product bumped up 2.8% in the final three months of 2011 . that's disappointing some economis economists who have been looking for 3% growth. when companies have large inventories, they produce less in the feature, which could mean slower growth and fewer american jobs .
Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/46170025/
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ScienceDaily (Jan. 25, 2012) ? Though generally thought to be quite dry, roughly half of the giant asteroid Vesta is expected to be so cold and to receive so little sunlight that water ice could have survived there for billions of years, according to the first published models of Vesta's average global temperatures and illumination by the sun.
"Near the north and south poles, the conditions appear to be favorable for water ice to exist beneath the surface," says Timothy Stubbs of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Stubbs and Yongli Wang of the Goddard Planetary Heliophysics Institute at the University of Maryland published the models in the January 2012 issue of the journal Icarus. The models are based on information from telescopes including NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.
Vesta, the second-most massive object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, probably does not have any significant permanently shadowed craters where water ice could stay frozen on the surface all the time, not even in the roughly 300-mile-diameter (480-kilometer-diameter) crater near the south pole, the authors note. The asteroid isn't a good candidate for permanent shadowing because it is tilted on its axis at about 27 degrees, which is even greater than Earth's tilt of roughly 23 degrees. In contrast, the moon, which does have permanently shadowed craters, is tilted at only about 1.5 degrees. As a result of its large tilt, Vesta has seasons, and every part of the surface is expected to see the sun at some point during Vesta's year.
The presence or absence of water ice on Vesta tells scientists something about the tiny world's formation and evolution, its history of bombardment by comets and other objects, and its interaction with the space environment. Because similar processes are common to many other planetary bodies, including the moon, Mercury and other asteroids, learning more about these processes has fundamental implications for our understanding of the solar system as a whole. This kind of water ice is also potentially valuable as a resource for further exploration of the solar system.
Though temperatures on Vesta fluctuate during the year, the model predicts that the average annual temperature near Vesta's north and south poles is less than roughly minus 200 degrees Fahrenheit (145 kelvins). That is the critical average temperature below which water ice is thought to be able to survive in the top 10 feet or so (few meters) of the soil, which is called regolith.
Near Vesta's equator, however, the average yearly temperature is roughly minus 190 degrees Fahrenheit (150 kelvins), according to the new results. Based on previous modeling, that is expected to be high enough to prevent water from remaining within a few meters of the surface. This band of relatively warm temperatures extends from the equator to about 27 degrees north and south in latitude.
"On average, it's colder at Vesta's poles than near its equator, so in that sense, they are good places to sustain water ice," says Stubbs. "But they also see sunlight for long periods of time during the summer seasons, which isn't so good for sustaining ice. So if water ice exists in those regions, it may be buried beneath a relatively deep layer of dry regolith."
The modeling also indicates that relatively small surface features, such as craters measuring around 6 miles (10 kilometers) in diameter, could significantly affect the survival of water ice. "The bottoms of some craters could be cold enough on average -- about 100 kelvins -- for water to be able to survive on the surface for much of the Vestan year [about 3.6 years on Earth]," Stubbs explains. "Although, at some point during the summer, enough sunlight would shine in to make the water leave the surface and either be lost or perhaps redeposit somewhere else."
So far, Earth-based observations suggest that the surface of Vesta is quite dry. However, the Dawn spacecraft is getting a much closer view. Dawn is investigating the role of water in the evolution of planets by studying Vesta and Ceres, two bodies in the asteroid belt that are considered remnant protoplanets -- baby planets whose growth was interrupted when Jupiter formed.
Dawn is looking for water using the gamma ray and neutron detector (GRaND) spectrometer, which can identify hydrogen-rich deposits that could be associated with water ice. The spacecraft recently entered a low orbit that is well suited to collecting gamma ray and neutron data.
"Our perceptions of Vesta have been transformed in a few months as the Dawn spacecraft has entered orbit and spiraled closer to its surface," says Lucy McFadden, a planetary scientist at NASA Goddard and a Dawn mission co-investigator. "More importantly, our new views of Vesta tell us about the early processes of solar system formation. If we can detect evidence for water beneath the surface, the next question will be is it very old or very young, and that would be exciting to ponder."
The modeling done by Stubbs and Wang, for example, relies on information about Vesta's shape. Before Dawn, the best source of that information was a set of images taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1994 and 1996. But now, Dawn and its camera are getting a much closer view of Vesta.
"The Dawn mission gives researchers a rare opportunity to observe Vesta for an extended period of time, the equivalent of about one season on Vesta," says Stubbs. "Hopefully, we'll know in the next few months whether the GRaND spectrometer sees evidence for water ice in Vesta's regolith. This is an important and exciting time in planetary exploration."
Dawn's mission to Vesta and Ceres is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Dawn is a project of the directorate's Discovery Program, managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. UCLA is responsible for overall Dawn mission science. Orbital Sciences Corp. in Dulles, Va., designed and built the spacecraft. The German Aerospace Center, the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, the Italian Space Agency and the Italian National Astrophysical Institute are international partners on the mission team. The asteroid modeling by Stubbs and Wang is an extension of analysis originally applied to the moon and partially funded by the NASA Lunar Science Institute.
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Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120125160531.htm
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Roseanne Barr is mourning the death of music legend Etta James in an odd way: by talking $hit about President Obama and Beyonce.
Basing a round of criticism on Obama asking Beyonce to cover the James classic "At Last" during a 2009 inauguration ball, Roseanne Tweeted yesterday: "I lost ALL respect for Obama when he dissed Etta James in favor of Beyonce," later adding:
"I have not listened to anything Beyonce or Jay z has said or recorded since they did that to Etta. Their arrogance was disgusting."
Roseanne, who actually just had a pilot picked up by NBC, then focused her rage on those who dare to support the new mother of Blue Ivy, writing: "Beyonce’s fans are really ignorant-she should not be proud of entertaining drooling mutants!"
Soon after Beyonce serenaded the Obamas with "At Last," James herself also called her and the President out - but both she and Roseanne appear to be missing a crucial point: James did not originally record the song, either. Her version was a cover of a cover.
[Photos: WENN.com]
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NEW YORK ? The dollar turned lower against the euro Wednesday, erasing gains it made earlier in the day, after the Federal Reserve said that it is unlikely to raise interest rates before late 2014.
Lower interest rates tend to weigh on a currency by reducing the returns investors get from holding it. The central bank has kept interest rates near zero since cutting them during the financial crisis in December 2008. Keeping rates low is a sign that the Fed thinks the economy still needs help in order to recover.
The Fed also forecasted slightly lower growth in 2012 but said the unemployment rate could fall.
The euro rose to $1.3084 in late trading Wednesday from $1.3021 late Tuesday.
The dollar was also lower against most other currencies around the world.
The British pound rose to $1.5643 from $1.5603. The dollar fell to 0.9231 Swiss franc from 0.9286 Swiss franc and to 1.0074 Canadian dollar from 1.0101 Canadian dollar.
But the dollar rose to 77.81 Japanese yen from 77.73 Japanese yen after Japan posted its first annual trade deficit since 1982
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CARACAS, Venezuela ? Venezuela's justice minister says that the attorney general has died of a heart attack.
Tareck El Aissami says the death of Carlos Escarra occurred on Wednesday.
Lawmakers allied with President Hugo Chavez chose Escarra as attorney general in August 2011.
While Escarra was a Chavez loyalist, his brother, Herman, is closely sided with Venezuela's opposition.
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BEIJING ? A hugely popular Chinese Lunar New Year variety show has a special guest star playing the ukulele: American billionaire Warren Buffett.
Buffett is shown wearing a dark sweat shirt and singing the folk song "I've Been Working On The Railroad" in the video posted on state broadcaster CCTV's "Spring Festival Gala" website Sunday.
There are no details on the website about where the 45-second clip was shot, but Buffett appears to be sitting in a small room with an elaborate model railroad set up in the background.
The video's simplicity contrasts with other performances posted on the website of the gala, which is usually a flashy extravaganza that draws 800 million viewers.
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You don't always want to have to choose between an easy snap-on cover and all-over protection for your phone. Sometimes it's more convenient to have the option to switch things up as and when you need, and that's one of the main strengths of Qmadix's snap-on cover with holster for the Galaxy Nexus.
Firstly, you've got a basic snap-on cover that's finished in soft-touch plastic, with a grooved pattern on the back for easy gripping. This can then slide into the holster component, which is equipped with a rotatable clip for attaching the entire package to clothes, pockets or bags. The inside of the holster faces the screen, and is so it's lined with a soft material to avoid scratches. And the cover, holster and phone all lock together securely, meaning you shouldn't need to worry about working its way free or falling out of the case while you're out and about.
The case's best feature by far is its ability to clip onto clothing, and offer multiple levels of protection based on what you're doing. If your phone is in your pocket, simply use the snap-on cover alone. If you need to clip it onto a belt or throw it in a bag without risking screen damage, just attach the holster and you're good to go.
The Qmadix Snap-on Cover with Holster is designed for both the international GSM Galaxy Nexus, as well as the Verizon LTE version, so whichever model you have, the case will fit snugly.
We've got more pictures for you after the jump.
 |  |
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/qs3Kmtm9M3o/story01.htm
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Oh, come on. The source code is not going to tell you a whole lot, it would be only comprehensible to experts and it says nothing about the little hardware bits. Does Mr. Lawyer want Medtronics to go over the schematics with him? Explain the physics?
Sometimes you just have to settle down and let things go. Yes, regulatory agencies should review operations of medical devices closely. No, they don't need to peek inside.
I don't even think the FAA looks at the code for the flight control computers on airli
By Tom Pfeiffer and Ayman Samir
CAIRO, Jan 22 (Reuters) - An Arab League committee on Syria will ask Arab foreign ministers on Sunday to extend a peace mission in the country by one month, an Arab government source said.
Hundreds of Syrians have been killed since the monitoring mission began its work in late December and political opponents of President Bashar al-Assad are demanding the League refer Syria to the United Nations Security Council.
"The committee will recommend an expansion of the monitoring mission for an extra month," said the source, who was attending the committee's meeting in Cairo and asked not to be named.
The foreign ministers are due to meet later on Sunday to debate the findings of the month-long monitoring mission, whose mandate expired on Thursday, and must decide whether to extend, withdraw or strengthen it.
Arab states are divided over how to handle the crisis in Syria and critics say the monitoring mission is handing Assad more time to kill opponents of his rule.
Some want to crank up pressure on Assad to end a 10-month-old crackdown on a popular revolt in which, according to the United Nations, more than 5,000 people have died.
Others worry that weakening Assad could tip Syria, with its potent mix of religious and ethnic allegiances, into a deeper conflict that would destabilise the entire region, and some may fear the threat from their own populations if he were toppled.
The opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) says the observers lack the resources and clout to truly judge Assad's compliance with an Arab peace plan that Syria signed up to in November and has called upon the Arab League to refer the Syrian crisis to the United Nations Security Council.
But Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia told the head of the Arab League, Nabil Elaraby, that they would oppose such a move, a League source said on Sunday.
"The three states support solving the Syrian crisis inside the Arab League," the source told Reuters.
The head of the monitoring effort, Sudanese General Mohammed al-Dabi, was presenting his findings to the League's Syria committee and the foreign ministers of the 22-member regional body will decide their response later on Sunday.
Syrian opposition activists said Assad's forces killed 35 civilians on Saturday and 30 unidentified corpses were found at a hospital in Idlib. The state news agency SANA said bombs killed at least 14 prisoners and two security personnel in a security vehicle in Idlib province.
STRONGER MISSION?
Maintaining the 165 monitors, and perhaps giving them a broader remit, could give Arab states more time to find a way out of the crisis.
The Qatar-based news channel Al Jazeera, citing an unnamed source, said Dabi planned to tell ministers that the Syrian government had not done enough to respect the peace protocol and to request that the mission be extended.
Elaraby met several Arab officials on Saturday and another source close to the League said the ministers could decide both to extend the mission and to offer it additional support in the form of U.N. or military experts.
Qatar and Saudi Arabia, regional rivals of Syria and its ally Iran, are impatient for decisive action against Assad and Qatar has suggested sending Arab troops to Syria.
The League is due to discuss the idea but military action against Assad would need unanimous backing and several countries still believe in a negotiated solution, League sources say.
The Security Council is also split on how to address the crisis, with Western powers demanding tougher sanctions and a weapons embargo and Assad's ally Russia preferring to leave the Arabs to negotiate a peaceful outcome.
Suggestions to send in U.N. experts to support the Arab observers made little headway at the last meeting earlier this month and Damascus has said it would accept an extension of the observer mission but not an expansion in its scope.
Syria, keen to avoid tougher foreign action, has tried to show it is complying with the Arab peace plan, which demanded a halt to killings, a military pullout from the streets, the release of detainees, access for the monitors and the media, and a political dialogue with opposition groups.
This month the Syrian authorities have freed hundreds of detainees, announced an amnesty, struck a ceasefire deal with armed rebels in one town, allowed the Arab observers into some troublespots and admitted some foreign journalists.
Assad also promised political reforms, while vowing iron-fisted treatment of the "terrorists" trying to topple him. (Reporting by Ayman Samir, Yasmine Saleh and Lin Noueihed; editing by Diana Abdallah)
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