Galapagos tortoise: a resurrection from extinction?

Galapagos tortoise became extinct after June death of Lonesome George. But scientists say cross-breeding could bring Galapagos tortoise back.

By Frank Bajak,?Associated Press / November 24, 2012

In this 2008 file photo released by Galapagos National Park, a giant tortoise named 'Lonesome George' is seen in the Galapagos islands, an archipelago off Ecuador's Pacific coast. Lonesome George, the late reptile prince of the Galapagos Islands, may be dead, but scientists now say he may not be the last giant tortoise of his species after all.

Galapagos National Park/AP/File

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Lonesome George, the late reptile prince of the Galapagos Islands, may be dead, but scientists now say he may not be the last giant?tortoise?of his species after all.

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Researchers say they may be able to resurrect the Pinta Island subspecies by launching a cross-breeding program with 17 other?tortoises?found to contain genetic material similar to that of Lonesome George, who died June 24 at the Pacific Ocean archipelago off Ecuador's coast after repeated failed efforts to reproduce.

Edwin Naula, director of the Galapagos National Park, said in a telephone interview on Thursday that the probability is high it can be accomplished.

"It would be the first time that a species was recovered after having been declared extinct," Naula said.

But it won't happen overnight.

"This is going to take about 100 to 150 years," Naula added.

Scientists took DNA samples from 1,600?tortoises?on Wolf volcano, and found the Pinta variety in 17, though their overall genetic makeup varied.

Through cross-breeding, "100 percent pure species" can be achieved, said Naula, a biologist.

He said the 17?tortoises?were being transferred from Isabela island, where the volcano is located, to the park's breeding center at Santa Cruz, the main island on the archipelago whose unique flora and fauna helped inspire Charles Darwin's work on evolution. The results are to be published in the journal Biological Conservation, the park said.

The study on Wolf volcano was conducted by Yale University and the Galapagos park with financial help from the Galapagos Conservancy.

In a news release, the park said scientists speculate that giant?tortoises?from Pinta island might have arrived at Wolf volcano after being taken off by whaling ships for food and later cast overboard.

At least 14 species of giant?tortoise?originally inhabited the islands' 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) off Ecuador's coast and 10 survive.

A visit to Lonesome George became de rigueur for celebrities and common folk alike among the 180,000 people who annually visit the Galapagos.

Before humans arrived, the islands were home to tens of thousands of giant?tortoises. The number fell to about 3,000 in 1974, but the recovery program run by the national park and the Charles Darwin Foundation has succeeded in increasing the overall population to 20,000.

Lonesome George's age at death was not known, but scientists believed he was about 100, not especially old for a giant?tortoise.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/OiTeqdDuBys/Galapagos-tortoise-a-resurrection-from-extinction

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Antivirus startup linked to infamous Chinese hacker

CSO - Anvisoft, a Chinese antivirus startup, has been linked to an infamous hacker suspected of developing sophisticated malware used to siphon sensitive information from Defense Department contractors in 2006.

12 White Hat hackers you should know

Through some high-tech sleuthing on the Web, Brian Krebs, author of the KrebsonSecurity blog, found Anvisoft-connected IP addresses connected Anvisoft to registered to "tandailin" in Gaoxingu, China.

Tan Dailin, a.k.a. Withered Rose, was the subject of Verisign's 2007 iDefense report, which described Dailin as the 20-year-old leader of a state-sponsored hacking team called NCPH, which stood for Network Crack Program Hacker.

In 2006, the group was linked to multiple zero-day attacks against Microsoft Office vulnerabilities. Some of the attacks were aimed at defense contractors, Krebs reported.

Anvisoft did not respond to a request for comment, and has been coy in answering questions on its user forum. Krebs acknowledged that Dailin might not be connected to the company.

"This may all be a strange coincidence or hoax," Krebs said on Wednesday. "Anvisoft may in fact be a legitimate company, with a legitimate product; and for all I know, it is. But until it starts to answer some basic questions about who?s running the company, this firm is going to have a tough time gaining any kind of credibility or market share."

The report was a warning to small businesses and consumers to only use "well-known and trusted branded products in such a sensitive area as malware protection," said?IDC analyst?Al Hilwa.

[In depth from Malware/Cybercime section:?Organized cybercrime revealed]

"It is [also] why consumer technologies are moving to the curated platform app store model that we see today with mobile devices, where the responsibility of screening applications and utilities is handled by well-known and trusted branded companies," Hilwa said.

While not condoning Dailin's past, Himanshu Dwivedi, founder of security consulting firm iSEC Partners, said sophisticated hackers are better equipped to build antivirus products than the average software developer without a background in security.

"When you take a pure security person to write a product, for me personally, and this is my bias, I actually have more confidence that that product is secure, because it's written by someone who knows all the ways to bypass software," Dwivedi said.

Nevertheless, to buy a security product from someone like Dailin would expose the buyer to unnecessary risk, said?Gartner analyst?Peter Firstbrook. "I would rather trust my PC security to a good white hat hacker than a reformed black hat hacker."

China is known as a hotbed for cyberespionage. The U.S. Defense Department recently reported that Chinese hackers aiming malware at U.S. industries and government agencies were a threat to the national economy.?

Source: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/111512-antivirus-startup-linked-to-infamous-264289.html?source=nww_rss

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Israeli military and Hamas exchange threats on Twitter

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VH1 banks on MySpace Music still being cool | PandoDaily

By Richard Nieva
On November 14, 2012

There was a point in the mid-to-late 2000s where, if you told someone to contact you on MySpace, you were met with a polite smile and a ton of judgment (kind of like whipping out a BlackBerry at a cocktail party). By then, Facebook had besieged the other social network, and those still MySpacing were haplessly out of touch. The one exception? MySpace Music.

Even as MySpace descended into the social media abyss, its music profile feature has been a stalwart of the emerging artists scene. Now the company is doubling down on that street cred with a highly anticipated redesign that emphasizes its music leanings. And it?s being fronted, no less, by MySpace part owner Justin Timberlake.

With MySpace?s earnest attempt at a comeback, it?s worth asking: What kind of home can musical artists have on the Internet?

Just today, the music network VH1 launched a new artists? profile page, Artists.VH1. It?s a good-looking site with lots of familiar faces from the musical world, like Alicia Keys and Adele. In each artist?s profile, there is content like videos, downloadable tracks, tour dates and tweets.

Not only famous musicians can join the network; any artist can create a page alongside the musical heavyweights. (Though, not surprisingly, the celebrities get the most prominent display on the homepage.) Most intriguing is the fact that VH1 says the site serves as a sort of thermometer for artists to be showcased on the network. Significant traffic on an artist?s page can lead to his video being played on any VH1 or MTV network ? since the two are sister brands ? any digital app, or having his song featured as background music on any of the networks? television shows, says Mark Mezrich, senior director of product development for the Viacom music group, VH1?s parent company. Think about it. Snooki could be taking shots to your record.

(Bonus points to Mezrich for not being deterred by my wholeheartedly non-snarky question: But when does VH1 or MTV play music videos?)

The VH1 artist profile network that the company launched today is actually the second iteration of the company?s musician pages. Artists.MTV launched in March, and MTV pointed to the artist Blackbear as one success story of an artist who?s gotten coverage from the network. ?Previously, to get your video on, you used to need to know someone,? said a VH1 publicist. The company claims over 10,000 artists have pages.

In the coming months, artists will be able to sell merchandise through the page via a partnership with Topspin, says Mezrich. This is no doubt a bigger leg up for the struggling three-piece garage band on the site than it is for someone like Green Day. ?Obviously, these are challenging times for artists and we want to be in a place where we can help,? said Mezrich.

It seems unlikely that being a part of a digital network like this would yield any sustainable lifestyle on its own, but it it?s a start. Perhaps YouTube has been more effective in jumpstarting musicians? careers. But maintaining a profile is more like depositing paychecks into a bank account than waiting to hit the jackpot. The question of where artists belong on the Internet is the same one we began asking in 1999 when Napster blew the doors wide open. Since then ? aside from iTunes and the subscription music services ? sites like Bandcamp, BandPage, MySpace and SoundCloud have come along to nurture wannabe rock stars. The Internet and the music industry haven?t yet fully called a truce, but they?re no longer mortal enemies. Frenemies maybe.

[Illustration by Hallie Bateman]

Richard Nieva

Richard Nieva is a staff writer at PandoDaily, covering technology and startups in Silicon Valley. He?s worked as a reporter for Fortune Magazine, and wants you to follow him on Twitter.

Source: http://pandodaily.com/2012/11/14/vh1-banks-on-myspace-music-still-being-cool/

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PHOTOS: Stars Shine at the 'Breaking Dawn' Premiere!

Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene light up the red carpet! Plus, see more of your favorite celebs on the scene

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/star-snapshots-celebrity-photo-gallery-2012/1-b-450006?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Astar-snapshots-celebrity-photo-gallery-2012-450006

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For Business Owners, the Health Care Details Begin to Emerge ...

Last week, before the election, I received a fat envelope from Independence Blue Cross with our health insurance renewal rates for 2013. This happens about this time each fall, and it is not something I look forward to.

I?ve had a couple of good years ? my rates fell in 2010 and 2011 ? but this was preceded by a long string of years with double-digit increases. Which is discouraging, because the astronomic rise in costs wasn?t accompanied by any apparent rise in the quality of the health care we have been getting. Co-pays have gone up. Drugs have gotten more expensive. At the doctor?s office they still hand me that stupid clipboard with the paper questionnaire to fill out, then they make me wait another 30 minutes to see the doctor. Most problematic, in my opinion: I still can?t find a price list for any of the doctor?s routine services. So I have no way to compare the costs.

I open the envelope, wade through the pages of boilerplate and finally get to the heart of the matter. For the third year in a row, my rates have dropped. It?s not a huge amount, about 5 percent, but it?s better than another increase. The monthly charge for a single person has dropped from $330.89 to $315.23, and the rate for family coverage fell from $971.26 a month to $925.31. To put this in perspective, here are the rates for my cheapest policy options for the last seven years:

Year	Single	Family	% Change
2005	206.54	606.01
2006	224.16	657.67	9%
2007	289.27	848.69	29%
2008	348.73	1023.17	21%
2009	351.46	1031.18	1%
2010	424.83	1246.74	21%
2011	352.64	1035.04	-17%
2012	330.89	971.26	-6%
2013	315.23	925.31	-5%

?

The drop from the peak in 2010 is significant, but I?m still paying 50 percent more for insurance that I was in 2005.

The envelope from Blue Cross was followed by an e-mail from our benefits administrator, with a spreadsheet attached that recapped all of the pricing information and added a whole lot more. Most of it was procedural, laying out the steps required for me to renew the policies for all my workers. But one of the tabs in the sheet was titled ?Health Care Reform? and laid out all of the ways that the Affordable Care Act ? a k a Obamacare ? would be changing the landscape. It?s a long list, sorted by date, and progressing from now until the date of full implementation in 2014. This item in particular caught my eye:

?Effective March 2013: Employers must provide a new notice to all employees explaining the availability of Exchanges and whether or not the employee may be eligible for insurance affordability programs through the Exchange. The notice must be provided to new employees upon date of hire. Guidance is pending.?

Scrolling further down the page, there was more:

?Effective January 1 2014: All U.S. citizens and legal residents must maintain ?minimum essential coverage.? Failure to obtain minimum essential coverage will result in financial penalties for groups with more than 50 employees. Some exceptions apply.?

And effective the same date, this:

?Health insurance will be available for purchase through the exchanges. Private and nonprofit insurers as well as states will offer small employers (up to 100 employees) the ability to purchase health insurance. Large employers (more than 100 employees) may purchase coverage through the exchanges beginning in 2017. Employers will not be required to purchase coverage through an exchange.?

Ah, the crux of the matter. Within a year I?ll have some idea of what it will save me (and cost my employees) to stop providing health insurance. I?ll have the option to let my workers get their own coverage, just the same way they get car and house insurance. I have not made up my mind whether this is a good idea or not, but soon I?ll have some real numbers to think about.

With President Obama?s re-election, the Affordable Care Act will be fully implemented. I voted for him, twice, partially in hope that something would be done about the health care mess. So this is what I get.

How about you? What has happened to your rates? What are you finding in your renewal packages? What do the health care changes mean for your company?

Paul Downs founded Paul Downs Cabinetmakers in 1986. It is based outside Philadelphia.

Source: http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/for-business-owners-the-health-care-details-begin-to-emerge/

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Marketing syandiedtoday: Emerald Essentials Review - Home ...

A certified newcomer in the home business and network marketing industry, Emerald Essentials vision is to improve peoples lives with healthy products and also helping distributors gain financial independence.
Adrian Goad is CEO and President of Emerald Essentials, Inc. He has over 15 years experience in health sciences, product development, and nutrition research.
Emerald Essentials offers the opportunity for distrhbutors to earn 25% monthly commission on everyone personally sponsored, to infinity! Plus, Emerald Essentials has a 3 x 10 forced matrix compensation structure. Despite the huge competition, Emerald Essentials distributors have experienced remarkable progress in just a few months.
What makes this home business extraordinary? The online business industry has been known to stretch the truth a bit about the opportunities it provides, especially when these opportunities don't really have to offer anything but pure unadulterated hype. Emerald Essentials has shown it is an exception to the majority because it is among the few and rare online programs which have delivered on its promises to their members. They offer a variety of whole-food nutritional supplements made with the finest all-natural and organic ingredients. The supplements are designed to support the immune system, maintain healthy blood pressure and blood sugar, support bone and joint health, and support a healthy digestive system. The companies 100% organic skin care products will help improve wrinkles, correct acne, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, rashes and large pores with continuous use. They contain NO chemicals or toxic preservatives and are hypoallergenic.
In the short few months since the company was launched, it has proven itself to be a safe and profitable venture. One of the biggest attractions is that it is free to become a distributor. New distributors can sign up online and receive free retail websites to market their products. And while some may have their doubts about it, having a stress free experience with an online income opportunity that is free to join is a big plus for any online entrepreneur to have. The online home business environment has taught us to become guarded with our online business transactions at all time, this free MLM business opportunity is a big sigh of relief.
Aside from the reliability, distributors earn 30% commission on all of their personal retail website sales volume and 10% commission on the total retail website sales volume generated by their personally sponsored distributors, plus a 25% monthly commission on the personal sales volume of all of their personally sponsored distributors. There is a great potential for a sizeable amount of revenue that can be produced. Your earnings is all up to you.

Source: http://syandiedtoday.blogspot.com/2012/11/emerald-essentials-review-home-business.html

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Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. leaves Mayo Clinic

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'DWTS' pro is glad to get low score from Len

ABC

Shawn Johnson, Derek Hough and Mark Ballas react to Len Goodman's tough talk on "Dancing With the Stars: All-Stars."

By Michael Maloney, TODAY contributor

"Dancing With the Stars" judge Len Goodman has often scored Shawn Johnson and her pro partner Derek Hough lower than judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli have, but even he reached a new low Monday night. The often-cranky Brit gave Hough and Johnson (and Mark Ballas, who joined them for a trio samba) a 7.

Goodman took on a grandfatherly scolding tone as he informed Johnson that if her dancing days were over this week, then she should blame her partners for dancing too far outside the box with their tribal-themed samba -- and not him. (Ouch!)

Hough?s not panicking, however. In fact, he pointed out that earning low scores from Goodman has worked well for them so far.

?The lower score we get from Len, the better we?re doing,? Hough told The Clicker. ?I?d say we?re doing something right.?

The couple goes into Tuesday night?s double-elimination show in second place. They have a combined score 93.5 (out of 100), which includes two weeks? worth of dances. ?

The three-time mirror-ball trophy winner said that he?s courting fans -- not the show?s trio of judges.?

?This season has been a dedication to all of the loyal fans of ?Dancing With the Stars,? who have seen 100,000 sambas and cha chas," Hough explained. "It?s my responsibility as a choreographer to keep the audience entertained. To be honest, I just wanted to see (Shawn) get tribal!?

There?s a 20 point gap between frontrunner Melissa Rycroft and bottom-scoring Kirstie Alley, but Hough suggested even a margin that large may not ultimately mean that much in the grand scheme of things (especially if you factor in that Alley likely has a much larger fan base than Rycroft does.)

?I have the utmost respect for the judges,? Hough hastened to add. ?It?s why I don?t talk back. But this season is the audience?s season. When the season finishes, it?s the scores that disappear. The dances live on.?

And if Johnson makes it to the finals, it?ll definitely be Hough who takes her there. Despite reports that he might have to sit out the rest of the season due to an injury, Hough said, ?I feel amazing -- knock on wood. I?ve really been taking care of myself.?

Related content:

More in The Clicker:

Source: http://theclicker.today.com/_news/2012/11/13/15138296-dancing-with-the-stars-pro-derek-hough-a-low-score-from-len-is-good-for-us?lite

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New Syria opposition seeks recognition; Israel fires from Golan

DOHA/CAIRO (Reuters) - Syria's newly named opposition leader, a soft-spoken cleric backed by Washington and the Gulf Arab states, launched his quest on Monday for international recognition of a government-in-waiting to topple President Bashar al-Assad.

In a sign of the danger that the 20-month civil war could spread across Syria's borders, Israeli forces said they fired "direct hits" on Syrian artillery in response to a mortar strike into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Western and Arab enemies of Assad hope the creation of a new Syrian National Coalition for Opposition and Revolutionary Forces can finally unify a fractious and ineffective opposition.

Mouaz Alkhatib, a former imam of a Damascus mosque, flew to Cairo to seek the Arab League's blessing for the new assembly, the day after he was unanimously elected to lead it. He made a concerted effort to address the sectarian and ethnic acrimony underlying 20 months of civil war that has killed 38,000 people.

"We demand freedom for every Sunni, Alawi, Ismaili, Christian, Druze, Assyrian ... and rights for all parts of the harmonious Syrian people," he said, calling on Syrian soldiers to desert and all sects to unite.

His assembly was recognised by the six Sunni Muslim-ruled kingdoms of the Gulf Cooperation Council as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people". Washington said it would back it "as it charts a course toward the end of Assad's bloody rule and the start of the peaceful, just, democratic future".

Shooting across the line that divides Syria from the Israeli-occupied Golan was just the latest spillover of violence that has alarmed neighbors including Turkey and Lebanon.

Israeli military sources said Israel hit Syrian army mobile artillery on Monday, the second straight day it fired back in retaliation for what it said were stray mortars hitting Golan.

"We will not allow our borders to be breached or our citizens to be fired at," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967. Although the two countries have not fought over the territory since 1973, they are still officially at war.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon called on Israel and Syria to halt firing.

In the north, where fighting has sent thousands of Syrian refugees fleeing into Turkey, a Reuters correspondent saw Syrian jets and helicopters bomb Ras al-Ain, a border town taken by rebels last week. Bombs landed just meters from the frontier, sending up plumes of black smoke.

Opposition groups said 12-16 people died in the air strikes. Turkey said it did not appear that the planes had entered its air space. It is discussing with NATO allies deploying Patriot air defense missiles on the border.

WRANGLING

Rebels and opposition politicians formed Alkhatib's new opposition coalition after days of wrangling in Qatar under intense U.S. and Qatari pressure.

Backers hope the new body will give rebels inside Syria more clout and reassure religious and ethnic minorities, after a Syrian National Council (SNC) made up mainly of exiled Islamists proved ineffective as the main opposition voice.

Western and Arab opponents of Assad want the coalition to attract support from minority sects who had been alienated from the opposition by the prominence of well-organized Sunnis from the Muslim Brotherhood. They also hope to rein in Islamist fighters, some of whom they believe are linked to al Qaeda.

"Alkhatib is a dynamic, progressive Islamist, popular in Damascus and the rest of Syria," said Mazen Adi, a prominent Syrian human rights defender who worked with Alkhatib before the revolt. "He is not a trigger-happy Jihadist, and he can play a role in containing the extremist groups."

Alkhatib met Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby before the gathering of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo. European foreign ministers are due to join them on Tuesday.

"The most important thing that could come out from (Monday's) meeting is a form of recognition for the new Syrian council alliance that was established in Doha," said one Arab diplomat, speaking before the talks on condition of anonymity.

A League official said any recognition of the opposition would probably avoid describing it as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people, because some Arab states were still reluctant to jettison Assad.

"There are still Arab states like Iraq and Lebanon that are not fully supportive of the Syrian revolt," the official said, also on condition he not be identified.

Alkhatib, in his early 50s, was jailed several times for criticizing Assad before fleeing into exile this year. He has long promoted a liberal Islam tolerant of Syria's Christian, Alawite and other minorities, activists say.

Hassan Hassan, a Syrian commentator based in the United Arab Emirates, said Alkhatib, as an independent cleric, would be a counterweight to growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood.

"He's been active for a long time, campaigning against the idea of retribution and extremism. He talks about liberty and freedom for the masses. So he is perceived as a credible figure," Hassan said.

Russia, which with China has foiled U.N. action on Syria and views Assad's opponents as pawns of the West, urged the new body to negotiate and to reject outside meddling.

Asked if China recognised the new coalition, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei called on all parties to initiate "a political transition process guided by the Syrian people".

It remains to be seen whether the Coalition can succeed where the exiled SNC failed in overcoming mutual suspicion and in-fighting that weakened the opposition.

"This is a significant step forward, because they finally seem to be forging a more broadly-based platform that includes the SNC but without the SNC taking the lion's share," said Salman Shaikh, director of the Doha Brookings Center think tank.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Hammond in Doha, Khaled Yacoub Oweis in Amman, Jonathon Burch in Ceylanpinar, Crispian Balmer in Jerusalem, Arshad Mohammed in Washington, Michael Martina in Beijing, Steve Gutterman in Moscow, Regan Doherty in Doha and Ayman Samir in Cairo; Writing by Peter Graff; Editing by Giles Elgood and Philippa Fletcher)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrias-opposition-coalition-seeks-recognition-123653817.html

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Hathaway says 'Les Mis' made her feel deprived

This cover image provided by Vogue shows actress Anne Hathaway on the cover of the December issue of "Vogue." (AP Photo/Vogue)

This cover image provided by Vogue shows actress Anne Hathaway on the cover of the December issue of "Vogue." (AP Photo/Vogue)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Anne Hathaway credits her new husband Adam Schulman for helping her get through the grueling filming of the screen adaptation of "Les Miserables."

In "Les Mis," the 30-year-old actress plays Fantine, a struggling, sickly mother forced into prostitution in 1800s Paris.

Hathaway lost 25 pounds and cut her hair for the role. She tells the December issue of Vogue, the part left her in a "state of deprivation, physical and emotional." She felt easily overwhelmed and says Shulman was understanding and supportive.

The couple wed in September in Big Sur, Calif. Hathaway wore a custom gown by Valentino whom she collaborated with on the design. Working with the designer is a memory she says she will "treasure forever."

The December issue of Vogue hits stores Nov. 20.

___

Online:

http://www.vogue.com/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-11-12-People-Anne%20Hathaway/id-a399441571e4426f84b2c5c81b151961

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Latin American women: better educated, but still underpaid

A recent report found that men earn 17 percent more than women in Latin America. It's an improvement over data from 10 years ago, but the pace of gains remains slow.

By Sibylla Brodzinsky,?Correspondent / November 12, 2012

Nurse Brenin Lopez uses her finger to simulate the mouth of Adriana del Rosario, during the "Kangaroo Mothers" program in the maternity ward of the Roosevelt hospital in Guatemala City October 29. Though Latin American women are better educated than ever before, they continue to earn far less than their male counterparts.

Jorge Dan Lopez/Reuters

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Latin American women are better educated than ever before. So why do they continue to earn far less than their male counterparts?

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A new study from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) highlights the apparent paradox and tries to explain the reasons behind it.

Challenging the notion that parents tend to favor investing in boys? education, the study found that Latin America has achieved gender parity ? and in much of the region, the balance tips in favor of girls ? in terms of schooling.

However, even with an educational advantage, women are still mostly employed in lower-paid occupations in Latin America such as teaching, healthcare, or the service sector, like restaurants. Comparing men and women of the same age and educational level, the study found that men earn 17 percent more than women do in Latin America. That number is actually down from 25 percent in 1992, but the pace at which the gap is narrowing remains slow.

Part of the problem is that the majority of the better-paying jobs available for high-school graduates in the region are culturally associated with men, says Isabel Londo?o, an education and gender issues specialist in Bogota, Colombia. These include positions such as bus and truck drivers, security personnel, military service, miners, and oil workers, Ms. Londo?o says.

?There are sectors of the economy that culturally are reserved for men and those are the ones that generate most jobs,? says Londo?o.

Progress, but...

And when it comes to the higher-paying fields such as law, architecture, and engineering ? where women hold just a third of the jobs ? the gender gap widens to 58 percent.

?There has been progress in recent decades, but the wage gap between men and women still prevails,? notes the study?s author, Hugo ?opo.

Londo?o, who is also a life coach, says one of her clients works as a high-level executive at a multinational food company in Colombia. When she demanded her salary be raised to equal that of her male colleagues, she was initially rebuffed, Londo?o recounts. The executive told Londo?o that her company?s CEO had asked why she wanted so much money, highlighting the cultural assumptions that can surround gender-based pay in the workplace. In the end, her yearly salary was increased by 55 percent.

Architect Anamaria Velasquez, says she worked for 15 years at a firm where she earned 20 percent less than her male colleagues. ?My whole career, I have earned less than men, even when I had more years experience,? Ms. Velasquez says. ?I would bring it up from time to time, but nothing ever changed.?

Cultural attitudes

Mr. ?opo found that the disparity in income is partly due to the fact that women in Latin America tend to work part-time, and are often involved in informal jobs, such as selling homemade food on the street. According to the data collected, one in every ten men works part-time in Latin America, whereas for women it?s one in every four.

While the job flexibility of part-time or self-employed workers allows women to earn wages while at the same time taking care of family obligations, this translates into lower total income. Along those same lines, women generally enter the labor market at a later stage and participate in it irregularly, often taking time off to raise children. So while men continue to accrue experience and professional development, women often start and stop their careers.

The study says that in order to close the gender income gap in Latin America, there is a need for more equitable distribution of household chores between men and women, and wider availability of day care facilities. Equal parental leave for men and women would help level the playing field with respect to decisions of hiring women and men, as well.

But Londo?o adds that cultural attitudes toward hiring women must also change. ?There continues to be a perception that women generate higher labor costs because of maternity leave and time off for family care, but there are studies that show that alcohol consumption and fighting among men create similar levels of costs and inefficiency because of days taken off,? she says.

Income for women is perceived as being complimentary to a family?s finances, Londo?o adds. ?So employers still believe it?s better to hire a man who has to support a family, even though in Colombia for example 40 percent of households are headed by women.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/ZjahCqNhpr4/Latin-American-women-better-educated-but-still-underpaid

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LongTail Video Secures $5 Million In Series B Funding Led By ...

New Round Will Accelerate Product Development, Expand Sales and Marketing Efforts

NEW YORK -?LongTail Video (www.longtailvideo.com), the leading provider of affordable, self-serve video solutions for web publishers including the popular JW Player, announced that it has completed a $5 million Series B funding round. The financing, LongTail?s first institutional round, was led by Greycroft Partners and included participation from Cue Ball Capital. The company will use the funding to drive new product development and to expand its sales and marketing efforts.

?We are delighted to be working with the LongTail Video team,? said Ian Sigalow of Greycroft Partners. ?LongTail Video has established a fantastic track record of building great products, including the JW Player, that are used by millions of publishers today to deliver video to mobile devices and desktop browsers. What is most impressive is they have accomplished all of this organically, with very little capital invested to date. With this new financing, LongTail will be able to accelerate its product development efforts and further expand its leadership position in online video.?

Since its founding, LongTail Video has focused on providing simple, affordable video solutions so that websites of all sizes can publish and distribute video with ease. As a result of this strategy, the company has established one of the largest global footprints in online video, delivering over three billion streams across over two million sites each month. Led by the popular JW Player, LongTail?s products are used by a diverse group of publishers, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to design agencies to individual developers and bloggers. LongTail augments the JW Player offering with hosted services that include ad delivery, video management, transcoding, streaming, and hosting. The company has been profitable since 2010.

?Video continues to be an incredibly effective way for publishers to engage with their audiences, but it is also a technically complicated medium. Our mission has always been to provide publishers with a solution that eliminates the technology hurdles so they can create high-quality video viewing experiences for their audiences at an affordable price,? said Dave Otten, CEO of LongTail Video. ?By partnering with Greycroft, we now have the opportunity to work closely with a proven investor who can help us expand our product offering, develop our technology, and further build on our leadership role in the online video space.?

The story first appeared on the Wall Street Journal?s AllThingsD:?http://allthingsd.com/20121102/longtail-raises-5-million-to-take-on-web-video-heavyweights/

About LongTail Video

LongTail Video has been a pioneer in the online video market. The company?s flagship product, the?JW Player, is active on over 2 million sites and streams billions of videos each month across smartphones, tablets, and desktop browsers. The JW Player is used by a?diverse group of publishers, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to individual bloggers. LongTail Video?s other services include AdSolution, a stand-alone, self-serve video ad network, and Bits on the Run, an online video platform, which together serve over 15,000 customers. LongTail Video is headquartered in New York City with an office in the Netherlands. For more information, please visit:?www.longtailvideo.com.

Source: http://www.adoperationsonline.com/2012/11/12/longtail-video-secures-5-million-in-series-b-funding-led-by-greycroft/

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Facts To Consider Before You Purchase Grand Pianos

Grand pianos are complex musical instruments are used not only for good music but also as an element that adds to the beauty of your home. Choosing the perfect grand piano highly depends on your reason of its purchase and your budget. In addition to that if you are a regular piano player then you will need to take the key range and size of piano into consideration.

First, decide the reason for purchasing the grand piano. If you are learning to play the piano or are already a professional in it then you might want to consider the sound, size, keys and the instrument functionality overall. One good rule to consider is that pianos that are less than five feet should not be bought for professional playing purposes. If the piano's purpose is to act as a d?cor then you should also consider style, color and if the piano will match the home's overall interior design.

Grand pianos usually cost around thousands of dollars. The range varies with the brand and size of the grand piano. A grand piano from a good brand measuring up to nine feet might cost around $40,000. Lesser known brands and smaller sizes can be around $8,000. Grand pianos in concerts cost up to $80,000. Some stores have an option of financing a piano so it is good to buy a piano from one that offers this service. Through this you may be able to get the best grand piano in your budget.

A grand piano takes up a lot of space. Take the space available at your home into consideration when you are purchasing a grand piano. An instrument like this will usually need space up to seven feet with 9.5 feet of space in length. It should be away from sources of cold and heat and direct sunlight. Some people prefer to put it near the window which could fade its paint and finishing on the wood.

Get the piano inspected by a piano technician before buying it. Professionals with experience in fixing and maintaining grand pianos will be able to tell you whether the piano has the right tuning, pitch and response. Having it inspected beforehand lets you be sure that the instrument you are buying is in proper working condition and avoids flaws that may prevent you from playing it in the future. After you have decided all these factors then you can go ahead and buy the grand piano to make wonderful music.

Source: http://www.artipot.com/articles/1429084/facts-to-consider-before-you-purchase-grand-pianos.htm

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Seminar announcement: Dr. Ana Paula Correia on ...

This week we are hosting Dr. Ana Paula Correia at METU. I am particularly excited to host my advisor here at METU, to show her around, introduce her to our graduate students and faculty, as well? share some experiences on research and teaching. Her METU visit is hosted by the Social Sciences Institute with the university?s recent efforts on the new trends and approaches in graduate education. I believe Dr. Correia?s talk that will cover some aspects of Learning Design Solutions (an enterprise which we initiated together with other graduate students under her mentorship) and will generate some great conversation on this topic at METU. Hope to see you there.

Here is more information on the talk:

Intersections of Entrepreneurship with Graduate Education: The Rise of the Edupreneur?

Ana-Paula Correia, PhD
Associate Professor
Iowa State University, USA

Abstract:?This talk introduces the concept of edupreneur (=entrepreneur in education) and the emergence of entrepreneurship in education. It uses the case of Learning Design Solutions to demonstrate the link between entrepreneurship and graduate education. Learning Design Solutions is a self-sustained organization within Iowa State University that aims at providing services in educational technology. The nature and characteristics of Learning Design Solutions as a research and development organization are examined as well as critical success factors and lessons learned.

Time and Place:?16th November 2012, Friday 10.00 am.?Middle East Technical University,?MM Building, Room: 25

Bio:?Dr. Ana-Paula Correia (PhD in Instructional Systems Technology, Indiana University, 2005) is an Associate Professor in the School of Education and a faculty member with the Human-Computer Interaction program at Iowa State University. Correia has been involved in the field of education for more than 20 years. Her current research program encompasses three interrelated foci: collaborative learning, online learning and teaching, and curriculum development in educational technology. These overlap significantly because they are connected to a common and underlying theme in her research: Instructional Design.

Correia?s work has been published in top-tier journals, such as, Teachers College Record, the British Journal of Educational Technology, and Distance Education. She served as Program Chair of American Educational Research Association Special Interest Group in Design and Technology for two years. And she is the current Past President of Association for Educational Communications and Technology Research and Theory Division. Correia created Learning Design Solutions in the School of Education at Iowa State University, which operates as an educational consulting center and represents an alternative for educational technology education. Before pursuing her PhD, she taught science in several middle and high schools in Portugal. For more info check: anapaulacorreia.com

Posted by admin on November 10, 2012

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Qatar calls for new Syria opposition body to be recognized

DEAR ABBY: A friend's daughter was married several years ago. I attended the shower and her wedding, and gave gifts for both.Two months after the wedding, I received a thank-you note in which a form letter was enclosed that read, "By the way, we are now separated and getting a divorce"! I was shocked not only by the news, but even more that my gifts were not returned with the divorce announcement.This young lady is now being married again to a different man. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/qatar-calls-syria-opposition-body-recognized-212654546.html

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NYC rationing gas for first time since '70s fuel crisis

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/northeast-digs-snow-gas-rationing-expands-004951341.html

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Logo Re-creations of Giant Brands | Business 2 Community

What does your logo say about you?? Your logo is your company encapsulated into an image.? It becomes the identification mark with which the marketplace associates your company.

Tim Gray?s article in Young Entrepreneur states, ?Your logo is the most powerful and immediately identifiable part of your brand. Properly done, a logo instantly communicates and reflects your company?s personality. It also connects with your consumers. Done poorly, a logo can turn people off to your business and damage your reputation before you?ve had a chance to make your pitch.?

Once you create a logo, is it set in stone forever?? No, many major brands have recreated their logo as the company evolved.? Apple, Starbucks, Pepsi Cola and Nike have continued to adjust their image.? IBM made a dramatic logo and name change; however, their current logo has been in place for nearly forty years.

Creating the company logo is as significant a part of the business image as the company name. Even though you make the best decision possible at the time, ?everybody makes branding mistakes. Early missteps in retrospect often are as big as the eventual names of some of the companies who made them ? Google was originally called Back Rub, Pepsi-Cola was known as Brad?s Drink, and IBM started out as Computing Tabulating Recording Corporation, to name just a few? states Gray in his ?Logo Mishaps of Giant Brands? article.

Apple started with an intricate, confusing and uninteresting design in comparison to the clear, crisp and definitive current apple design.? They not only took a bite out of the apple, they have now taken a significant bite out of the entire technology industry.? Note the new logo is more in keeping with the clarity and simplicity of the Apple product line.? Co-founder Ronald Wayne?s 1976 original design was replaced within a year.? Apple icon Steve Jobs demanded a logo redesign which would be easier to stamp on computers.

Starbucks is another giant who simplified their original design.? The modern green logo is not only less complicated but also the siren?s attributes are less obvious than the 1970s version.? Note also that the original logo displayed coffee, tea and spices where the new logo does not mention any products.? The new logo portrays a more conservative, contemporary and environmentally green image.

The Logo Design Workbook by Adams Morioka provides a hands-on guide to creating logos.? Not only does it detail the types of logos but also the ten rules of logo design.

1. Who, what, why
2. Identify, not explain
3. Understand limitations
4. Be seductive
5. Make mnemonic value
6. Pose a question
7. Design for longevity
8. Make the logo the foundation of a system
9. Design for a variety of media
10. Be strong

Logo design should move easily from one media to another.? Color choices are significant.? Your printed media marketing allows you to be precise about your color representation; however, various online browsers may unintentionally distort your logo color.? Even though testing your logo on various browsers helps, the color is never as pure and accurate as in your printed marketing media.? And when it comes to maximizing the effect of print, there is nothing else that can be more comprehensive, stay durable and portable and yet still possess aesthetic charm than printing your own postcards.? You do not need a marketing or business degree to know that your logo needs to be clear and consistent in all of your marketing media.? After all, it?s what binds your brand identity kit together.

Rebranding, changing your identifying image, can not only be expensive, it also carries a risk factor.? ?A company?s brand is a succinct but comprehensive embodiment of everything the company stands for. The best logos are recognizable, memorable and let you know what the company is about with just a glance.?

What if the new logo is not well received in the marketplace?? A few of the industry giants have completed multiple logo redesigns.

Pepsi Cola echoes the trend toward simplicity through multiple logo changes.? Pepsi?s original flourishing name resembled their competition Coca Cola?s design.? The most recent version of the logo required over five months of research and an approximate cost of $100 million to complete the changeover.

The Nike swoosh logo is universally known.? It may surprise you to know that it was created in 1971 by a graphic design student; she was paid $35 for her work.? Though the logo has transformed over the decades, Nike has not retired the original logos.? Nike is one of the few giants who have retained the availability of ?vintage? gear.

IBM not only changed their logo but also their name.? Wikipedia records the history of IBM?s name change ?The company was founded in 1911 as the?Computing Tabulating Recording Company?(CTR) through a merger of three companies: the?Tabulating Machine Company, the?International Time Recording Company, and the Computing Scale Company.^[4][5]?CTR adopted the name International Business Machines in 1924,?? The company was affectionately nicknamed Big Blue.

How do you want your company to be identified?? Select a logo which represents your culture as Apple did by designing a simple identifiable and name associated image.? Starbucks, Pepsi Cola and Nike have also chosen an image without any company name on their current logo.? IBM has selected the simple letters to identify themselves.

The company logo is a powerful and immediately identifiable representative of your company.? The logo is a significant segment of your brand.? Choose it carefully but be flexible enough to adjust with marketplace trends.

Author: Elaine Love???? Elaine Love on the Web Elaine Love on Facebook Elaine Love on LinkedIn

Elaine Love?s specialty is empowering you to reach your maximum productivity, profitability and peace of mind.? Elaine is an award winning professional speaker, coach, mentor, real estate broker, business owner and telemark skier.

Her trophy shelf contains numerous sales, leadership, speaking and academic awards from Toastmasters, Wealth Masters,UniversityofDenver, Juliana, and? View?full?profile

Source: http://www.business2community.com/branding/logo-re-creations-of-giant-brands-0329104

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Official: Harassing emails led to FBI probe

FILE - In this June 29, 2012 file photo, Gen. David Petraeus testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. Petraeus, the retired four-star general who led the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, resigned Friday, Nov. 9, 2012 as director of the CIA after admitting he had an extramarital affair. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

FILE - In this June 29, 2012 file photo, Gen. David Petraeus testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. Petraeus, the retired four-star general who led the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, resigned Friday, Nov. 9, 2012 as director of the CIA after admitting he had an extramarital affair. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

In this Jan. 15, 2012 photo, Paula Broadwell, author of the David Petraeus biography "All In," poses for photos in Charlotte, N.C. Petraeus, the retired four-star general renowned for taking charge of the military campaigns in Iraq and then Afghanistan, abruptly resigned Friday, Nov. 9, 2012 as director of the CIA, admitting to an extramarital affair. Petraeus carried on the affair with Broadwell, according to several U.S. officials with knowledge of the situation. (AP Photo/The Charlotte Observer, T. Ortega Gaines) LOCAL TV OUT (WSOC, WBTV, WCNC, WCCB); LOCAL PRINT OUT (CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL, CREATIVE LOAFLING, CHARLOTTE WEEKLY, MECHLENBURG TIMES, CHARLOTTE MAGAZINE, CHARLOTTE PARENTS) LOCAL RADIO OUT (WBT)

FILE - In this Feb. 1, 2009 file photo, Gen. David Petraeus, commander U.S. Central Command, left, stands with his wife Holly before the NFL Super Bowl XLIII football game between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers in Tampa, Fla. Gen. Petraeus, the retired four-star general who led the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, resigned Friday, Nov. 9, 2012 as director of the CIA after admitting he had an extramarital affair. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

FILE - This Sept. 6, 2011 file photo shows Holly Knowlton Petraeus holding the family bible as her husband David Petraeus is sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden as CIA Director, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. Petraeus has resigned as director of the CIA after admitting he had an extramarital affair. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The FBI investigation that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus started with a complaint several months ago that Paula Broadwell, his biographer and paramour, was sending harassing emails to a third person, a U.S. official told The Associated Press.

FBI agents discovered exchanges between Broadwell, a West Point graduate and Army Reserve officer, and Petraeus, the retired four-star general who commanded troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, that revealed they were having an affair, according to the official.

Investigators said the emails raised the possibility of security breaches that needed to be addressed directly with Petraeus because his emails in the matter were in most instances from a personal account, rather than his CIA one.

Details about the third person were not immediately available.

The official was not authorized to publicly discuss about the investigation and spoke about the probe only on condition of anonymity.

The sudden and unexpected end of a career that many thought might culminate in a run for the presidency came on Friday. Petraeus admitted to an extramarital affair in tendering his resignation, which President Barack Obama accepted.

Petraeus' deputy, Michael Morell, will serve as acting director, Obama said. Morell was the key CIA aide in the White House to President George W. Bush during the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The change in leadership is taking place as the administration and the CIA struggle to defend security and intelligence lapses before the Sept. 11 attack that killed the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three others Americans. It was an issue during the presidential campaign that ended with Obama's re-election Tuesday.

Petraeus, who turned 60 on Wednesday, has been married for 38 years to Holly Petraeus; they met when he was a cadet at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. She was the daughter of the academy superintendent. They have two children, and their son led an infantry platoon in Afghanistan.

The retired general told CIA employees in a statement that he was guilty of "extremely poor judgment" in engaging in the affair. "Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours." He said he had offered his resignation to Obama on Thursday and the president accepted it Friday.

Administration officials said the White House was first notified about the Petraeus affair on Wednesday, the day after the election. Obama, who returned to the White House that evening after spending Election Day in Chicago, wasn't informed until Thursday morning.

For the director of the CIA, being engaged in an extramarital affair is considered a serious breach of security and a counterintelligence threat. If a foreign government had learned of the affair, the reasoning goes, Petraeus or Broadwell could have been blackmailed or otherwise compromised. Military justice considers conduct such as an extramarital affair to be possible grounds for court-martial.

Failure to resign also could create the perception for the rank and file that such behavior is acceptable.

Petraeus, who became CIA director in September 2011, was known as a shrewd thinker and hard-charging competitor.

In the preface to "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus," published by Penguin in January, Broadwell said she first met Petraeus in the spring of 2006. She was a graduate student at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, and he was visiting the university to discuss his experiences in Iraq and a new counterinsurgency manual he was working on.

In 2008, she wrote, she was pursuing a Ph.D. in public policy and embarking on a case study of Petraeus' leadership. After Obama put Petraeus in charge in Afghanistan in 2010, Broadwell decided to expand her research into an authorized biography.

Broadwell made many trips to Afghanistan, with unprecedented access to Petraeus, and also spent time with his commanders across the country. When Petraeus took the job at the CIA, she remained in close contact with him, sometimes invited to his office for events like his meeting with Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie.

With the book done, she told friends she had been concentrating on turning part of her research on Petraeus into a dissertation, to complete her doctorate.

Petraeus, in his email, told his CIA employees that he treasured his work with them "and I will always regret the circumstances that brought that work with you to an end."

Other CIA directors have resigned under unflattering circumstances. CIA Director Jim Woolsey left over the discovery of a KGB mole, and John Deutch left after the revelation that he had kept classified information on his home computer.

Before Obama brought Petraeus to the CIA, Petraeus was credited with salvaging the U.S. war in Iraq.

President George W. Bush sent Petraeus to Iraq in February 2007, at the peak of sectarian violence, to turn things around as head of U.S. forces. He oversaw an influx of 30,000 U.S. troops and moved troops out of big bases so they could work more closely with Iraqi forces scattered throughout Baghdad.

Petraeus' success was credited with paving the way for the eventual U.S. withdrawal.

After Iraq, Bush made Petraeus commander of U.S. Central Command, overseeing all U.S. military operations in the greater Middle East, including Afghanistan and Pakistan.

When the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, was relieved of duty in June 2010 for comments in a magazine story, Obama asked Petraeus to take over in Kabul and the general quickly agreed.

In the months that followed, Petraeus helped lead the push to add more U.S. troops to that war and dramatically boost the effort to train Afghan soldiers and police.

Morell had served as deputy director since May 2010, after holding a number of top roles, including director for the agency's analytical arm, which helps feed intelligence into the president's daily brief. He also worked as an aide to former CIA Director George Tenet.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-11-10-Petraeus%20Resigns/id-82fbf4ba8f5d4ab8bd058cb5a9b34c38

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Sudan's Bashir denounces Israel as enemy

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) ? Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir says his country is seeking the capability to defend itself against Israeli strikes, and will never normalize relations with the Jewish state.

His remarks carried by the official Sudan news agency SUNA on Friday also repeated Khartoum's claim that an explosion at a military factory in the capital last month was from an Israeli attack.

In the transcript from an appearance on the semi-official Blue Nile TV this week, Bashir calls Israel the "Zionist enemy" that "will remain the enemy" and rejects the possibility of normalized relations between the two states.

Israel has not commented on the explosion, which killed four. A U.S.-based monitoring group has said satellite imagery suggests a strike.

In 2009, Sudan also blamed Israel for an attack on an arms convoy there.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-11-09-Sudan/id-5bd38940ced74289a5fc771ec1df4fc5

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