LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's opposition Labour party is to accuse supermarket giant Tesco and clothing retailer Next of turning away British workers where possible to exploit cheaper migrant labour.
In a speech that will drag the firms into a politically-charged immigration debate ahead of a 2015 election, senior Labour lawmaker and immigration spokesman Chris Bryant will accuse the companies on Monday of deliberately excluding British people.
"It is unfair that unscrupulous employers whose only interest seems to be finding labour as cheaply as possible, will recruit workers in large numbers in low wage countries in the EU, (and) bring them to the UK," Bryant will say, according to advance extracts of his speech.
Polls show immigration is one of the subjects that worries British voters the most and any perception that retailers are deliberately disadvantaging locals could damage Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives as well as the firms themselves.
Cameron is trying to stop an exodus of voters to the anti-immigration UK Independence Party before the 2015 vote.
Bryant will accuse Tesco of favouring workers from Eastern Europe over British ones and of relocating one of its distribution centres in a way that discouraged local employees to continue working for the firm.
He will also accuse Next of bussing in workers from Poland to skirt British labour laws that would make hiring comparable local workers more expensive.
Next said in a statement on Sunday it did hire Polish nationals to work in Britain at busy times, but said it did so because it couldn't find enough Britons to fill vacancies and that it was not doing anything unethical or illegal.
"Mr Bryant wrongly claims that Polish workers are used to save money. This is simply not true," it said. "We are deeply disappointed Mr Bryant did not bother to check his facts with the company before releasing his speech."
Tesco could not be reached, but a Tesco spokesman told The Sunday Telegraph newspaper it was wrong to accuse the supermarket giant and that it tried hard to recruit local people where possible.
Bryant's intervention comes as Labour's opinion poll lead over the Conservatives narrows and its leader Ed Miliband faces criticism from colleagues for what they see as a failure to communicate the party's policies clearly or strongly enough.
"We're not suggesting any law has been broken," a Labour source told Reuters. "Tesco and Next are anecdotal examples," the source added, saying the party wanted to spotlight the problem so it could be solved.
Separately, Labour cited research that showed Britain had seen one of the biggest falls in real wages of any EU country since 2010.
Young or old, song sparrows experience climate change differently from each otherPublic release date: 12-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kristen Dybala kedybala@ucdavis.edu 415-218-9295 University of California - Davis
What's good for adults is not always best for the young, and vice versa. At least that is the case with song sparrows and how they experience the effects of climate change, according to two recent studies by scientists at the University of California, Davis, and Point Blue Conservation Science.
Both studies show the importance of considering the various stages and ages of individuals in a species -- from babies to juveniles to adults -- to best predict not only how climate change could affect a species as a whole, but also why.
"To learn how climate change is expected to affect an individual population, you have to look at demography," said lead author Kristen Dybala, a postdoctoral scholar in the UC Davis Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology. "If you don't break it down by these different stages, you get a different understanding that may be misleading, or worse, that's just wrong."
For example, in the study published in print today in the journal Global Change Biology, climate change had opposite projected effects for adult and juvenile song sparrows in central coastal California. The researchers found, not surprisingly, that adult survival was sensitive to cold winter weather.
"Even though we rarely see freezing temperatures on the coast of California, it was clear that an adult bird's chances of survival were lowest in the coldest winters," said co-author Tom Gardali, Pacific Coast and Central Valley Group director of Point Blue Conservation Science.
They expected a similar response from the young. However, warmer, drier winters translated to less food for the juvenile sparrows during the following summer.
"Before they can get to winter, the juveniles have to survive their first summer, when they're sensitive to how much food is available," said Dybala. "So as winters get warmer, we expect adults and juveniles to respond in opposite directions."
In another recent study of song sparrows published in the journal Ecology, lead author Dybala found that parents provided a buffer against the weather for baby sparrows still dependent on them for food. However, independent juveniles that were newly out on their own were more sensitive to changes in the weather because they lacked the skills and experience of their parents.
While that vulnerability has existed for as long as offspring have been leaving the nest, climate change is expected to exacerbate those already uncertain conditions, Dybala said. This sort of variation in juvenile survival can significantly impact a species' population growth.
Both studies were conducted at Point Blue's Palomarin Field Station in the Point Reyes National Seashore in California. While song sparrows are found throughout North America, the local population is nonmigratory, and Point Blue (formerly PRBO Conservation Science) biologists have collected survivorship data on them for 34 years. Dybala combined that information with weather data collected at the field station to see how different weather factors influenced survival rates over the years.
The scientists said that efforts to understand or project demographic responses to climate change could be used to inform climate change adaptation plans, help prioritize future research, identify where limited conservation resources could be best spent and help soften the impacts of climate change for individual species.
###
The studies were funded by the National Park Service's G.M. Wright Climate Change Fellowship, UC Davis Graduate Group in Ecology, Point Blue Conservation Science, and ARCS Foundation scholarships.
The study in Global Change Biology was co-authored by John Eadie of the UC Davis Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology; Gardali and Nathaniel Seavy of Point Blue Conservation Science; and Mark Herzog of the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center. Read the study at http://bit.ly/17DeA1c.
The Ecology study was co-authored by Eadie and Gardali. Read the study at http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/12-1443.1.
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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.
Young or old, song sparrows experience climate change differently from each otherPublic release date: 12-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Kristen Dybala kedybala@ucdavis.edu 415-218-9295 University of California - Davis
What's good for adults is not always best for the young, and vice versa. At least that is the case with song sparrows and how they experience the effects of climate change, according to two recent studies by scientists at the University of California, Davis, and Point Blue Conservation Science.
Both studies show the importance of considering the various stages and ages of individuals in a species -- from babies to juveniles to adults -- to best predict not only how climate change could affect a species as a whole, but also why.
"To learn how climate change is expected to affect an individual population, you have to look at demography," said lead author Kristen Dybala, a postdoctoral scholar in the UC Davis Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology. "If you don't break it down by these different stages, you get a different understanding that may be misleading, or worse, that's just wrong."
For example, in the study published in print today in the journal Global Change Biology, climate change had opposite projected effects for adult and juvenile song sparrows in central coastal California. The researchers found, not surprisingly, that adult survival was sensitive to cold winter weather.
"Even though we rarely see freezing temperatures on the coast of California, it was clear that an adult bird's chances of survival were lowest in the coldest winters," said co-author Tom Gardali, Pacific Coast and Central Valley Group director of Point Blue Conservation Science.
They expected a similar response from the young. However, warmer, drier winters translated to less food for the juvenile sparrows during the following summer.
"Before they can get to winter, the juveniles have to survive their first summer, when they're sensitive to how much food is available," said Dybala. "So as winters get warmer, we expect adults and juveniles to respond in opposite directions."
In another recent study of song sparrows published in the journal Ecology, lead author Dybala found that parents provided a buffer against the weather for baby sparrows still dependent on them for food. However, independent juveniles that were newly out on their own were more sensitive to changes in the weather because they lacked the skills and experience of their parents.
While that vulnerability has existed for as long as offspring have been leaving the nest, climate change is expected to exacerbate those already uncertain conditions, Dybala said. This sort of variation in juvenile survival can significantly impact a species' population growth.
Both studies were conducted at Point Blue's Palomarin Field Station in the Point Reyes National Seashore in California. While song sparrows are found throughout North America, the local population is nonmigratory, and Point Blue (formerly PRBO Conservation Science) biologists have collected survivorship data on them for 34 years. Dybala combined that information with weather data collected at the field station to see how different weather factors influenced survival rates over the years.
The scientists said that efforts to understand or project demographic responses to climate change could be used to inform climate change adaptation plans, help prioritize future research, identify where limited conservation resources could be best spent and help soften the impacts of climate change for individual species.
###
The studies were funded by the National Park Service's G.M. Wright Climate Change Fellowship, UC Davis Graduate Group in Ecology, Point Blue Conservation Science, and ARCS Foundation scholarships.
The study in Global Change Biology was co-authored by John Eadie of the UC Davis Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology; Gardali and Nathaniel Seavy of Point Blue Conservation Science; and Mark Herzog of the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center. Read the study at http://bit.ly/17DeA1c.
The Ecology study was co-authored by Eadie and Gardali. Read the study at http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/12-1443.1.
[ | 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.
hola buenas el motivo de la pregunta es el siguiente , trabajo en un despacho de lunes a viernes y los fines de semana de camarero en un restaurante ambos trabajos dado de alta en la seguridad social, este pasado finde he tenido un accidente laboral en el restaurante, por lo cual tuve que acudir a urgencias y me diagnosticaron rotura del 5 metacarpiano de la mano derecha, con el respectivo informe de baja laboral, el lunes acud? a la mutua a entregar el parte de urgencias, y les comente que tengo otro trabajo entre semana, me dijeron que tenia que pedir la baja tambi?n, por lo que mande la misma documentaci?n a la gestor?a del trabajo y me dijeron que ellos se hac?an cargo de mandarlo a su mutua y que les comunicara que me ivan a hacer las revisiones en la mutua del trabajo donde tuve el accidente, la pregunta es, a la hora que cobrar sab?is como funciona? no me an tenido que operar pero estar? de baja un mes aprox. Un saludo y muchas gracias.
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Eydie Gorme, a popular nightclub and television singer as a solo act and as a team with her husband, Steve Lawrence, has died. She was 84.
Gorme, who also had a huge solo hit in 1963 with "Blame it on the Bossa Nova," died Saturday at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas following a brief, undisclosed illness, said her publicist, Howard Bragman.
Gorme was a successful band singer and nightclub entertainer when she was invited to join the cast of Steve Allen's local New York television show in 1953.
She sang solos and also did duets and comedy skits with Lawrence, a rising young singer who had joined the show a year earlier. When the program became NBC's "Tonight Show" in 1954, the young couple went with it.
They married in Las Vegas in 1957 and later performed for audiences there. Lawrence, the couple's son David and other loved ones were by her side when she died, Bragman said.
"Eydie has been my partner on stage and in life for more than 55 years," Lawrence said in a statement. "I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and even more the first time I heard her sing. While my personal loss is unimaginable, the world has lost one of the greatest pop vocalists of all time."
Although usually recognized for her musical partnership with Lawrence, Gorme broke through on her own with the Grammy-nominated "Blame it on the Bossa Nova." The bouncy tune about a dance craze of the time was written by the Tin Pan Alley songwriting team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil.
Her husband had had an equally huge solo hit in 1962 with "Go Away Little Girl," written by the songwriting team of Gerry Goffin and Carole King.
Gorme would score another solo hit in 1964, but this time for a Spanish-language recording.
Gorme, who was born in New York City to Sephardic Jewish parents, grew up speaking both English and Spanish. When she and her husband were at the height of their career as a team in 1964, Columbia Records President Goddard Lieberson suggested she put that Spanish to use in the recording studio.
The result was "Amor," recorded with the Mexican combo Trio Los Panchos.
The song became a hit throughout Latin America, which resulted in more recordings for the Latino market, and Lawrence and Gorme performed as a duo throughout Latin America.
"Our Spanish stuff outsells our English recordings," Lawrence said in 2004. "She's like a diva to the Spanish world."
Gorme and Lawrence, meanwhile, had an impressive, long-lasting career in English-language music as well, encompassing recordings and appearances on TV, in nightclubs and in concert halls.
Throughout it, they stuck for the most part with the music of classic composers like Berlin, Kern, Gershwin, Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hammerstein, and other giants of Broadway and Hollywood musicals. They eschewed rock 'n' roll and made no apologies for it. As they like to put it: "no punk, no funk, no rock, no schlock."
"People come with a general idea of what they're going to get," Lawrence said of their show in a 1989 interview. "They buy a certain cereal, and they know what to expect from that package."
Soon after their marriage, the pair had landed their own TV program, "The Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme Show," which was a summer replacement for Allen.
Not long after that, however, Lawrence entered the Army, and Gorme went on the nightclub circuit as a soloist until his return to civilian life two years later.
After his discharge, Lawrence and Gorme quickly reteamed, and their careers took off.
They appeared at leading nightclubs in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Las Vegas, combining music with the comedy bits they had learned during their apprenticeship on Allen's show. In Las Vegas, the showroom sweethearts played the Sands, the Desert Inn and headlined for 10 years at Caesars Palace.
"Oh God, it was the best," Gorme told The Associated Press in 2003 about that period. "After the shows, we would all get together and hang out. If it got later, we would all get together for breakfast."
With nightclubs dwindling in popularity in the 1980s, they moved their act to large theaters and auditoriums, drawing not only older audiences but also the Baby Boomers who had grown up on rock 'n' roll.
Gorme, who was born Edith Gormezano on Aug. 16, 1928, began to seriously consider a music career while still a student at William Taft High School in New York City's borough of the Bronx, where she had been voted the "Prettiest, Peppiest Cheerleader." The daughter of Turkish and Spanish parents, she grew up speaking Spanish at home.
After graduation, she worked as a Spanish interpreter for a time but also sang on weekends with the band of Ken Greenglass, who encouraged her and eventually became her manager.
Her first big break came when she landed a tour with the Tommy Tucker band, and she followed that up with gigs with Tex Beneke, Ray Eberle and on radio and television. Among her radio appearances was one on a Spanish language show, "Cita Con Eydie (A Date with Eydie)," which was beamed to Latin America by Voice of America.
Early in her career, Gorme considered changing her name, but her mother protested.
"It's bad enough that you're in show business. How will the neighbors know if you're ever a success?" she told her, so Gorme decided to keep the family name but changed her given name from Edith to Edie.
Later, having grown tired of people mistaking it for Eddie, she changed the spelling to Eydie.
She is survived by Lawrence, her son David and a granddaughter. Her other son with Lawrence, Michael, died of heart failure in 1986 at age 23.
The developing world has fallen big time for all-American exports like Footlongs, Big Macs and Extra Crispy Chicken Tenders and seems less concerned about the health risks of the high-fat, high-sodium fare that many Americans now seek to avoid.
By John W. Schoen,?CNBC Economics reporter / August 11, 2013
Labourers clean the external wall of a KFC restaurant in Huaibei, Anhui province in June. The emerging global middle class has developed an appetite for American fast food.
Stringer/Reuters/File
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Along the upward journey to middle-class status, a growing number of people around the world are working up quite a voracious appetite. The developing world has fallen big time for all-American exports like Footlongs, Big Macs and Extra Crispy Chicken Tenders.
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Despite early signs that a fast-food diet is no healthier in Beijing than it is in Boston, consumers who are new to middle-class dining seem less concerned about the health risks of the high-fat, high-sodium fare that many Americans now seek to avoid.
As the U.S. economy slogs along at a tepid pace, household incomes in much of the developing world are leaping ahead. Over the next two decades, those gains are expected to introduce billions of new consumers to menus from fast-food chains that are among some of the most iconic American brands.
And as many chains have saturated the U.S. market (and American tastes have shifted) the fast-food industry is finding a hungry market in far-flung locations?from Malawi to Mongolia.
"A lot of domestic chains are completely refocusing their business on the international market," said IBISWorld Industry analyst Andy Brennan. "And most of them have been quite successful at it."
IBISWorld pegs global fast-food sales at $190 billion but does not break out non-U.S. sales.
That is because for most fast-food chains, the formula that worked at home?low-cost menu items, prepared consistently and served quickly?seems to translate well for foreign consumers with newfound disposable income
These companies are also riding a wave of global brand awareness, thanks to increased international travel and the powerful reach of the Web.
For many new arrivals to middle-class life, a meal at an iconic American fast-food outlet also bestows a level of prestige, according to Brennan.
"It's a real status symbol to be eating in an American restaurant in Asia," he said.
Yum Brands?the parent company of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell?generated more than 70 percent of its profits, or $1.1 billion, outside the U.S. last year, up from just 20 percent 15 years earlier.
BPA Gallery First Fridays Art Walk: "Doors, Windows and Walls", featuring photography and mixed media by Marilynn Gottlieb, is set for Friday, September 6, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Bainbridge Performing Arts (BPA).
Stop by the BPA Gallery in September for "Doors, Windows and Walls," a photography and mixed-media exhibit by Marilynn Gottlieb. Marilynn Gottlieb's pieces are the result of collecting images of doors, windows or walls in specific locations. Each piece invites a comparison of the individual pictures as well as creating an abstract collection. The mixed media artwork combines photography with re-purposed materials such as slide frames or surplus circuit boards. Visit Marilynn online at www.marilynngottlieb.com.
Join us in the BPA Gallery for the First Fridays Art Walk July 5 from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. for a special artist reception and a fun evening of art, food, and friends. Gallery hours througout the month are 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Tuesday - Friday plus one hour prior to each performance.Admission is free at BPA, 200 Madison Avenue North, Bainbridge Island.
The BPA Gallery showcases regional artists in monthly rotating exhibits in the C. Keith Birkenfeld Lobby and participates in the First Fridays Art Walk nearly all year. Contact Dominique Cantwell at 206.842.4560 with gallery inquiries.
Check us out on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BPAonline, or find out more about BPA at www.bainbridgeperformingarts.org. Check online for the latest on theatre and symphony auditions, complete theatre school and adult class offerings, performance listings, tickets, promos, and more. Click on "About BPA/Get Our Newsletter" to receive electronic performance announcements and behind-the-scenes news.
August 10, 2013 10:00 AMText Size: A . A . A Summertime, and with surf fishing the dining can be as easy as tossing hooks and a sinker into the saltwater a few feet from your towel. "Chunk a hunk of shrimp into the waves and you never know what's going to bite?that's what people love about it," says Ryan White, owner of fishing outfitter Hatteras Jack in Rodanthe, N.C. "Kick back on the beach and catch a few rays while you catch dinner. Now, that's living."
You don't have to fish deep to fill a cooler. Flounder, redfish, and blues feed in three key spots: next to sandbar breaks, where wave action scoops out the beach profile, and in ?channels bordering sandbars. But having the right rig is important. Here's how to put together three: a pair that target brawny fish such as striped bass and blues, plus the basic double-drop bottom rig that catches nearly every pan-size fish found under the breakers.
1. Fishfinder Rig
The bait line slides up and down the main line, allowing live bait to swim freely. That's crucial for fish that carry their prize some distance before swallowing. Use a circle hook?a hook with the barb bent back toward the shank?and the fish will hook themselves. An added bonus: Fish rarely swallow circle hooks, making it easier to release fish and let them live to fight another day. Targets: Redfish, striped bass
2. Fireball Rig
Brightly colored floats on the dropper lines lift the bait off the sea bottom so it can't be picked apart by tiny fish and marauding crabs. The fireball rig attracts fish that hunt by sight. Targets: Bluefish, striped bass
3. Double-Drop Bottom Rig
Extend two dropper lines, each tipped with a hook, from the main line. A sinker anchors the rig in place. Some bottom rigs use colored beads, which make them more visible in rough, roily waters. Bait with fresh shrimp or live mole crabs. This is the go-to rig, White says, "if you just want to catch whatever's out there." Targets: Atlantic croaker, flounder, spot, whiting, speckled trout
Every week, editors Adam Bryant and Natalie Abrams satisfy your need for TV scoop. Please send all questions?to mega_scoop@tvguide.com or tweet them to @adam_bryant or @NatalieAbrams.
How will Callie and Arizona deal with Arizona's infidelity when Grey's Anatomy returns? ?Jane NATALIE: Season 10 picks up right where we left off: with Callie and Arizona in a very bad place. "[Callie is] reeling, so there's a lot of reactive emotional outbursts and acting out. She doesn't hide it from the hospital how she feels," Sara Ramirez says. "They wind up in the same place they were at in the beginning of the season. There's the extra element of infidelity, but they're back in the darkness of it and they're shining a light on it." Get more scoop on the fallout here.
I'd love some Bones scoop. Do you have any idea when the wedding will actually happen? ? Jessica ADAM: I can certainly tell you when it won't happen. "We're moving fast this year. We're not going to tease that out another entire season," creator Hart Hanson tells us. "I think people assume that it would be a season-ender, but we try not to live up to people's assumptions." But given the wounds that need to be healed, don't necessarily expect it to happen too soon. (November sounds likely.) In fact, when Brennan turns to her colleagues for advice about her relationship, a returning Daisy suggests that Brennan should move on. Fortunately, she doesn't listen to her. "These are two people who love each other," Hanson says. "At the end of the first episode, it's less divisive. There's hope."
Got any scoop on New Girl? ? Sarah NATALIE: Emily Deschanel is coming to New Girl! OK, not really, but wouldn't it be awesome if Zooey's real-life sibling played Jess' sister? It's possible! We'll meet that character later this year, according to executive producer Liz Meriwether, and boy, is she trouble! "I have a feeling that Emily has a pretty busy schedule with Bones, [but] I'm excited to cast the sister; I think it'll be really fun." Send your casting suggestions below!
Any new spoilers on NCIS: Los Angeles? ? Marc ADAM: Executive producer (and hyperbolic quote-giver) Shane Brennan insists that the conclusion of last year's cliff-hanger in the Season 5 premiere "will have the greatest consequence of any story we've told." So what does that mean exactly? Although it's safe to assume that Sam and Deeks will escape torture, their emotional scars won't heal instantly. In fact, the post-traumatic stress will be too much for somebody to bear. "This season, someone will leave the team," Brennan reports. Guesses?
Do you have more details on Regina's love interest on Once Upon a Time? ? Micah NATALIE: We'll meet her love interest very early on in the season, which presumably means that he or she hails from Neverland. "It's a side of the character of Regina we've only touched upon in the first two seasons," executive producer Adam Horowitz says. "We're excited to see more of that and more importantly to explore her capacity for love." Does anyone else think she could be paired with him?
Do you have any scoop on the final season of How I Met Your Mother? ? Evan ADAM: The third episode, "The Broken Code," will address Ted's reawakened feelings for Robin after their moment in the rain. But don't get excited. "Ultimately, this is the story of Ted letting go of the wrong girl so he can be with the right girl," executive producer Carter Bays says. (Well, duh.) "There's a few secrets floating out there that we know of and there may be more that we don't know of. The fun thing about a wedding is that it's just not the time or place to air your dirty laundry. And yet there's a lot of dirty laundry, and it's about to come exploding out."
So excited that Jessica Lange and Sarah Paulson are playing mother and daughter on American Horror Story: Coven! ? Rachel NATALIE: "Who doesn't want to be Jessica Lange's daughter?" jokes Paulson, who also played Laura Wingfield to Lange's Amanda in Broadway's Glass Menagerie. Unfortunately, this mother-daughter relationship is fraught with contention. "Our characters are very different kind of women and that's where the conflict comes, but I'm her child, so there's some question as to why I'm different," she says. And just wait until you meet Lange's new character Fiona. "She's not Constance from Season 1, actually," executive producer Tim Minear says. "She's much, much worse."
Got any Castle scoop that doesn't involve the proposal? What about Ryan's impending fatherhood? ? Gina ADAM: The prospect of becoming a daddy will definitely affect Ryan's work this season. "You're going to see a lot of choices that Ryan is going to make [about] how he feels about being a cop at this point," Seamus Dever tells us. "We're going to see him be a little uncomfortable with being in the line of fire and being in danger's way. It's also going to affect his relationship with Esposito." Does this mean that the bromance could be over? "They're no longer single dudes," Dever says. "Ryan is like, 'I have to go home and see the wife. That's the way it is.'"
Any scoop on Revenge? ? Harold NATALIE: Get ready for people to switch teams! After losing Emily to Daniel, Aiden seeks other allies. "That's what's interesting about Aiden this year; he's sleeping with the enemy a little bit!" Barry Sloane spilled to us. So who is he working with? "I've been working a lot with Madeleine [Stowe]," he teases. Ruh-roh.
Any new hints you can give us about the new season of Hawaii Five-0? ? Whitney ADAM: ?Although executive producer Peter Lenkov hints that we won't see Mama McGarrett in the early part of the season, he insists that we will get answers regarding her mysterious past with Wo Fat. Doris' absence also won't stop us from meeting more McGarretts: Recently announced guest star Carol Burnett will play McGarrett's aunt, who comes to Oahu with a secret plan to reunite the entire clan for Thanksgiving. As for the rest of Five-0 family, Danny's relationship with Autumn Reeser's Gabrielle may once again be over before it starts. "I can tell you that their relationship will hit a bump," Lenkov says. "And in a way, Danny's daughter Grace will be that bump."
Thanks for the Scandal scoop. What else can you tease? ? Jessie NATALIE: While Olivia and her associates are dealing with the fallout of Mistress-gate, a flashback within the first two episodes will likely shed light on those illicit, pre-election days, Darby Stanchfield says. "We find out answers to things we thought we already knew, but they're totally not like you think," she says.
I'd love some spoilers for the CSI premiere. ? Shawn ADAM: You might want to grab some hankies. Although this year's first episode once again deals with the team searching for a kidnapped loved one, executive producer Don McGill warns fans to prepare for a less rosy outcome than a year ago. "A person close to the CSI family will die," he reports. "The first image of the premiere is a memorial service. If fans look closely, they will notice some faces missing. So the question is: Who's in the casket?" Although McGill says that everyone on the team is touched by the loss, look for D.B. Russell to take it particularly hard. "He's in crisis by the end; he feels responsible," McGill says. "The decisions he made, he really will have to pay for. We'll see as the season progresses that there may be some questioning of his purpose."
How will Leslie Knope deal with Ann leaving on Parks and Recreation? ? Jonah NATALIE: Not well! "It doesn't take long for the news to get to Leslie," executive producer Mike Schur says. "When Ann makes the decision, the first thing she does is tell Leslie because she knows it's going to be a thing. Leslie is in the middle of trying to manage a very large thing and she basically spirals super-hard and ends up taking out her feelings ? instead of talking to Ann about the issue ? on a bunch of people for no good reason."
What can you tell me about the upcoming season of Sons of Anarchy? ? Frank ADAM: This season's major antagonist, Donal Logue's former U.S. Marshal Lee Toric, proves how formidable he can be in the premiere when he attempts to turn an incarcerated Clay against the club. (Unfortunately for Jax & Co., Clay finds Toric's offer to be plenty tempting.) Meanwhile, Tara will take a very "hands-on," do-it-yourself approach to surviving her time in the Big House. And if you think Tara being in jail is the biggest threat to her relationship with Jax, think again.
Natalie's Mega Rave: It's awesome to see Sookie take control of her destiny on True Blood, but it's even better to see her not take sh-- from anyone, especially Billith.
Adam's Mini Rant: I know Grace Gummer is cute and all, but does The Newsroom really expect us to believe Jim would give her his long-sought-after interview with Romney?
Crave scoop on your favorite TV shows??E-mail Adam and Natalie at mega_scoop@tvguide.com?or drop us a line at?Twitter.com/TVGuide
New 'smart' wind turbines combine improved blade designs with batteries that can store electricity when the wind isn't blowing.?
By Charles Kennedy,?Guest blogger / August 7, 2013
A wind turbine is shown near Arlington, Ore. 'Smart' wind turbines use improved blade designs that allow an increase of 20-24 percent in power.
Rick Bowmer/AP/File
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Renewable energy is slowly catching up to fossil fuels and becoming more competitive, but it still faces the same challenges as ever. The fact that the sun doesn?t always shine, the wind doesn?t always blow, and few systems can efficiently cope with the fluctuating energy demand placed upon them.
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Critics view these points as proof that renewable energy has no future, whereas advocates view them as challenges that must be overcome.
Many different techniques have been tested to try and smooth out the varying generating levels that clean energy sources produce, mainly some form of energy storage system, but none has yet managed to provide an adequate solution. (Related article:?Airborne Wind Turbines Continue to Advance)
An exciting, new wind turbine produced by GE, shows hope as a potential solution to the constant problems that afflict the wind energy sector. The?1.6-100 and 1.7-100 wind turbines?boast the ability of generating far more electricity when wind speeds are minimal, store excess energy for use in the future, and has a smart system that can analyse when more energy will be needed, and when the wind should blow.?
ATLANTA (AP) ? First it was bars, restaurants and office buildings. Now the front lines of the "No Smoking" battle have moved outdoors.
City parks, public beaches, college campuses and other outdoor venues across the country are putting up signs telling smokers they can't light up. Outdoor smoking bans have nearly doubled in the last five years, with the tally now at nearly 2,600 and more are in the works.
But some experts question the main rationale for the bans, saying there's not good medical evidence that cigarette smoke outdoors can harm the health of children and other passers-by.
Whether it is a long-term health issue for a lot of people "is still up in the air," said Neil Klepeis, a Stanford University researcher whose work is cited by advocates of outdoor bans.
Ronald Bayer, a Columbia University professor, put it in even starker terms.
"The evidence of a risk to people in open-air settings is flimsy," he said.
There are hundreds of studies linking indoor secondhand smoke to health problems like heart disease. That research has bolstered city laws and workplace rules that now impose smoking bans in nearly half of the nation's bars, restaurants and workplaces.
In contrast, there's been little study of the potential dangers of whiffing secondhand smoke while in the open air. But that hasn't stopped outdoor bans from taking off in the last five years. The rules can apply to playgrounds, zoos, beaches and ball fields, as well as outdoor dining patios, bus stops and building doorways.
"Secondhand smoke is harmful. It's particularly harmful to children," said Councilwoman Mary Cheh of the District of Columbia, one of more than 90 U.S. municipalities or counties considering an outdoor smoking law.
But is it really dangerous outdoors?
Federal health officials say yes. Studies have clearly established that even a brief exposure indoors to cigarette smoke can cause blood to become sticky and more prone to clotting. How long that lasts after just one dose isn't clear, officials say. The best-known studies so far have measured only up to about a day afterward.
Repeated exposures are more dangerous, and can worsen your cholesterol, increase the odds of plaque building in arteries, and raise the risk of chest pain, weakness, or heart attack.
Health officials say there's no reason to think that can't happen from breathing in smoke outdoors.
"There's no risk-free level of secondhand smoke," said Brian King, an expert on secondhand smoke with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, it's hard to pin down the health effects of outdoor smoke. There have been some studies ? fewer than a dozen ? that tried to measure how much secondhand smoke can be found outdoors. Some have found levels that rival what people may breathe indoors, depending on which way the wind is blowing or whether there's an overhang or sheltered area that can trap smoke. One study detected significant fumes as far as 44 feet away from a smoker.
"If you can smell it, it's obviously there," said James Repace, a Maryland-based scientist-consultant who's done some of the outdoor studies.
Two small studies tested about two dozen nonsmokers at a smoky outdoor dining area in Athens, Ga. The saliva tests detected significant jumps in cotinine, a substance produced when the body metabolizes nicotine.
That doesn't mean it's causing chronic illness, though. Repace thinks only two kinds of people may face a serious health risk outdoors ? those with severe asthma and staff at outdoor cafes where smoking is allowed.
Indeed, health advocates in some places have focused on sites like sidewalk cafes, feeling they can't make the case for beaches or open-air parks.
"We only get involved where there's a real health risk," said Flory Doucas, co-director of Canada's Quebec Coalition for Tobacco Control.
Still, cigarette smoke in a place like a park can be a nuisance to some, just like loud music or dog waste.
That's how Roger Montiel of Atlanta views it.
"I don't really like the smell and I don't like it blowing in my face. If I'm enjoying a day at the park, I'd rather it not be part of that experience," he said while walking through a downtown park recently.
That's good enough reason for outdoor bans, Repace said. "People don't have to be dropping dead for you to regulate something," he said.
Well, not so fast, said Simon Chapman, an Australian researcher. He once won a prestigious American Cancer Society award for his anti-smoking efforts and formerly was editor of a medical journal focused on smoking's dangers. But in recent years he's become a vocal opponent to wide-ranging outdoor smoking bans.
He and Bayer worry such bans are really motivated by desires to make smoking seem like an unusual, socially unacceptable behavior. Ban proponents see that as a worthy goal; Chapman thinks it's a bad precedent.
"Next you might say 'Let's not just stop there. Let's not have people smoke anywhere they might be seen'" he said. "And then is it legitimate to say that any behavior that people don't like should be disapproved of because people might see it."
In Atlanta, a city council member decided to act after an encounter with a smoker in a park. A ban on smoking in the city's parks went into effect last summer. Technically, a violation could result in a fine of as much as $1,000. But ? as in other cities ? Atlanta officials have not arrested anyone.
"Enforcement generally has been someone says 'put that out,' and they put it out," said George Dusenbury, Atlanta's parks and recreation commissioner.
At Woodruff Park, a 6-acre downtown hangout, nearly a dozen smokers could be spotted in the park on a recent, sunny Friday morning. The regulars said they knew about the rules, but found ways to get around them.
"Smoke rises. I don't see a reason why it should bother other people out here," said Tommy Jackson, 55, lighting up with a friend at the edge of a paved footpath through the park.
Park worker Rufus Copeland said he's seen only a small drop in smoking since the green and white "Smoking Prohibited" signs went up last year. He steers smokers to the sidewalk rimming the park. But people still smoke. "It's hard," he said.
Brianna Mills, a 26-year-old nursing student from suburban Marietta, sat down for a quiet moment in the park with her Newports, unaware of the ban.
"It's supposed to be a free country," said Mills, who developed her habit 10 years ago. "It's like: 'Where can you smoke?'"
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Researchers have developed a technique to help treat fatal diseases more effectively. They are using gold nanoprobes to identify different types of cells, so that they can use the right ones in stem cell therapies.
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To give you an idea of how micro this video is, those dots you see moving diagonally toward the top of the screen are individual white blood cells. What you're looking at is a microchip that sorts out white blood cells from a blood sample. It makes a great visual, but more importantly, it could seriously improve the way we diagnose disease.
The uncle of two boys believed to have been killed by a python said they had a "super" last day as Canadian police revealed the snake was being kept in a second-floor flat, not the pet shop below.
A criminal investigation is under way after a 45kg African rock python escaped from its cage, went through a ventilation shaft and fell into the room where Noah Barthe, four, and his brother Connor, six, were sleeping.
In an emotional statement, their uncle David Rose said: "They were two typical children and enjoyed life to the maximum."
The boys with their mother. Pic: Facebook/ Mandy Trecartin
They had spent their last day playing with their friends, he said.
It was initially reported that the snake was being kept by family friend and owner Jean-Claude Savoie on the ground floor of the Reptile Ocean pet shop in the town of Campbellton, New Brunswick.
But police said it was kept in a second-floor flat in a specially built enclosure which stretched to the ceiling.
Pic: Facebook/ Mandy Trecartin
Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokesman Sergeant Alain Tremblay said: "The snake was confined in an enclosed area, a glass cage of pretty large size given the size of the snake and the way the investigators believe the snake escaped was through the ceiling.
"Just above the cage where the snake was being kept, the snake apparently slithered through a hole or vent in the ceiling allowing it to escape into the ventilation shaft.
"Once the snake was at the height of the living room, apparently a pipe broke and the snake fell into the living room where the children were sleeping."
Pic: Facebook/ Mandy Trecartin
The children were at a sleepover at their best friend?s flat when they were apparently attacked by the snake early on Monday morning.
At a news conference, Mr Rose said Connor was due to celebrate his birthday this month.
"Connor would have entered the second grade this year and Noah was extremely excited to join his big brother by joining kindergarten and both would have been in the same Lord Beaverbrook School," he said.
An African rock python
"Their last day was spent playing with their friends in the backyard - they had a little pool, had a barbecue and later in the afternoon Jean-Claude Savoie took all the children shopping.
"Each had their own little carts, they filled their carts with treats and after the shopping trip the two families Jean-Claude?s family went to Jean-Claude?s family?s farm - there they played with llamas and goats and horses.
Google Street View of python attack scene
"They played with dogs and cats in the hayloft and went for a ride in the farm tractor with Jean-Claude who even let them steer their tractors so it was a super day.
"And after a long day late into night they got home, home for the sleepover at Jean-Claude?s house and the two families stayed together until midnight and that?s the type of the life they had and that?s what we are going to try and remember."
The python, which Mr Savoie has had for at least 10 years, had been kept alone in its enclosure and was not handled by anyone else, he added.
Police said the snake has been killed by a veterinarian.
World No.1 Tiger Woods shot a blistering career best-tying nine-under-par 61 in the second round of the World Golf Championships Bridgestone Invitational to take control and lead by seven at Firestone Country Club.
The 14-time major winner flirted with a rare 59 after opening the back nine with four straight birdies but parred the final five holes to settle for 61, equalling his own career and course record mark.
Woods is odds-on to claim a record eighth title at the event despite still having 36 holes to play.
He has already claimed four victories this season and also has 17 WGC wins in 41 starts in the lucrative tournaments but last won at Firestone in 2009.
With 78 career wins so far, he is also closing in on Sam Snead's all-time US PGA tour win record of 82.
Defending champion Keegan Bradley (68) and Englishman Chris Wood (68) share second at six-under, seven off the pace, while Bill Haas (68) and Henrik Stenson (70) are tied fourth at five-under.
Adam Scott is the best of the Australians after following up his opening-round 73 with a more-precise 68 to be one-over, a monumental 14 shots off the pace.
"I had a lot of control today from tee to green and obviously the way I putted," Woods said.
"I felt I was in total control of my game. Obviously things like that don't happen every day, and it's fun when it all comes together and I was able to take advantage of it."
Woods started his second round two shots in arrears but had wiped out the deficit and stolen the lead within two holes.
He birdied the first, eagled the second and birdied the third to get the party started.
Another birdie on the seventh secured a 30 on the opening nine before he rattled off four in a row to start the back nine, well and truly bringing 59 into play.
Missed chances at 15 and 17 left him short of being just the sixth player to break 60 in US Tour history.
Woods claimed nerves weren't a factor, especially since Firestone is a par-70.
"The funny thing is I didn't feel uncomfortable at all about being there," he said of the magic number.
"The good news is I have shot it before at home back in '97 and, to do that at the time at my course, you had to be 13 deep.
"I was only nine today at that point and I've been 10, 11-under par before out here, so to be nine is nothing that was uncomfortable or unusual.
"It certainly was an opportunity but, when you're playing a par-70, it's certainly a lot easier."
Scott was happy to have turned the corner with his swing after a poor opening round but has all but conceded victory to Woods.
"I'd like to have a really hot weekend and maybe finish second," he said.
"I played good today. I worked on a few things yesterday on the range and sorted it out and now I'm feeling good.
"I'll work some more this afternoon and hopefully get it more locked in for the weekend and next week.
"There are obviously low scores out there. You have to hit fairways and get a hot putter. Tiger's done it heaps - I've had some low ones here a few times. It's all right there in front of you. You just have to do it."
Jason Day (72) is tied 59th in the 73-man field at six-over while Brett Rumford (74) is 71st at 10-over.
Australian PGA Championship winner Daniel Popovic continued to struggle, shooting 77 to be 16-over in last place.
Today brings another victory for transparency as the US government has just declassified three documents pursuant to the collection of telephonic metadata authorized by section 215 of the PATRIOT Act. The documents, released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, include the 2009 and 2011 reports concerning the reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act as well as the order for business record collection. During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the subject, NSA Deputy Director John Inglis made public for the first time the mechanism for accessing the metadata at the government's disposal. According to Inglis, telephonic information -- which does not include names, addresses, or social security numbers -- exists in databases but cannot be accessed without reasonable suspicion of association with terrorists. Deputy Attorney General James Cole went on to say, "Nobody is listening to anybody's conversations." This revelation might be cold comfort to those concerned about the government's ownership of this data to begin with, but it does pull back the curtain somewhat on the NSA's policies and procedures. To read these declassified -- and heavily redacted -- documents in full, head on over to the source link below.
? as S?South PDP c?ttee condemns crisis PORT HARCOURT?SOME rights groups in Rivers State have said that the crisis rocking Peoples? Democratic Party, PDP, in the state was the result of selfish politics of all the parties involved.
They, therefore, dissociated themselves from today?s planned mass rally in Port Harcourt by civil society organisations calling for the removal of the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Joseph Mbu, over the crisis.
In a statement, yesterday, the organisations noted that the protest was needless because it would not benefit the ordinary Rivers people, but rather tends to glorify the factions of the party, none of which they perceive as being involved in the crisis for public good.
The civil organisations include Rivers chapters of Civil Liberties Organistion, CLO; Social Action, Oil Watch Africa; Centre for Environment and Human Rights and Development, CEHRD, Students Environmental Assembly and Social Workers Movement, among others.
The statement said: ?The political actors fighting among themselves, no matter the camp they belong, have never had the interest of the toiling masses at heart.
?They oppress the masses whenever they deem it profitable for their class interests and fight themselves when their fractional interest clashes.?
S?South PDP c?ttee condemns crisis
South-South Zonal Working Committee, ZWC, of Peoples? Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, called on the warring factions in the rivers crisis to put the interest of state above other considerations.
A statement at the end of its meeting in Asaba, Delta State, condemned the breakdown of law and order perpetrated by the state lawmakers.
Dr. Steven Oru, PDP South-South Chairman said no effort would be spared in the resolution of the crisis rocking Rivers House of Assembly, adding that the zonal committee would soon embark on consultation with stakeholders for the restoration of peace in Rivers.
Oru said the stakeholders would visits top PDP functionaries from the zone and PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Chief Edwin Clark, among others.
It passed a vote of confidence on President Goodluck Jonathan for his transformation agenda, stabilisation of the national economy, enhanced security of lives and property.
CHICAGO ? Stan Bowman wanted to keep Joel Quenneville in Chicago, and the coach had no desire to leave.
After two Stanley Cup titles in four seasons, this was a no-brainer.
The Blackhawks announced a three-year contract extension for Quenneville on Friday, kicking off their sixth annual fan convention with a crowd-pleasing move.
"There's no one we'd want coaching this team more than Joel," said Bowman, who was promoted to general manager about nine months after Quenneville was hired in 2008. "He's done a fantastic job over the years. I think the record speaks for itself."
The 54-year-old Quenneville is 222-106 in five seasons in Chicago. He led the Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup in 2010, ending a 49-year drought, and then coached them to another title this year.
With captain Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and several other players standing off to the side, Quenneville said he was privileged to coach the best group in the league.
"I know we don't get to see all the other teams, but as far as the character, the quality, the experience, the leadership, we have all the intangibles that can make a team successful," he said.
Quenneville's deal was set to expire next year, but it now runs through the 2016-17 season. The announcement was no surprise, since Bowman had said since the end of the season that an extension was a priority and the coach talked all along about how much he enjoyed being part of the organization.
It's likely the last major offseason move for the Blackhawks, who return largely intact as they try to become the first team to win consecutive NHL titles since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998.
"It's a great start to the weekend with the Hawks announcing the contract for Q," Toews said. "It's much deserved. I mean he's done a lot of great things for his team since he's been here in Chicago."
This is Quenneville's third stop as a head coach in the NHL. The former defenseman is 660-389-77 in 16 seasons with St. Louis, Colorado and Chicago. He won the Jack Adams Award, which is given to the head coach who has contributed most to his team's success, in 2000 with the Blues and was a nominee for the award again this year.
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Public release date: 12-Aug-2013
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