3 dead in Swiss workplace shooting

Police stand in front of a wood-processing company in Menznau, central Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, where several people were killed in a shooting. Police in Lucerne canton (state) said in a statement that the shooting occurred shortly after 9 a.m. at the premises of Kronospan, a company in the small town west of Lucerne. They said there were ?several dead and several seriously injured people? and that rescue services were deployed and the scene sealed off. (AP Photo/Keystone, Urs Flueeler)

Police stand in front of a wood-processing company in Menznau, central Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, where several people were killed in a shooting. Police in Lucerne canton (state) said in a statement that the shooting occurred shortly after 9 a.m. at the premises of Kronospan, a company in the small town west of Lucerne. They said there were ?several dead and several seriously injured people? and that rescue services were deployed and the scene sealed off. (AP Photo/Keystone, Urs Flueeler)

Police stand in front of a wood-processing company in Menznau, central Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, where several people were killed in a shooting. Police in Lucerne canton (state) said in a statement that the shooting occurred shortly after 9 a.m. at the premises of Kronospan, a company in the small town west of Lucerne. They said there were ?several dead and several seriously injured people? and that rescue services were deployed and the scene sealed off. (AP Photo/Keystone, Urs Flueeler)

Police stand in front of a wood-processing company in Menznau, central Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, where several people were killed in a shooting. Police in Lucerne canton (state) said in a statement that the shooting occurred shortly after 9 a.m. at the premises of Kronospan, a company in the small town west of Lucerne. They said there were ?several dead and several seriously injured people? and that rescue services were deployed and the scene sealed off. (AP Photo/Keystone, Urs Flueeler)

A police stands in front of a wood-processing company in Menznau, central Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, where several people were killed in a shooting. Police in Lucerne canton (state) said in a statement that the shooting occurred shortly after 9 a.m. at the premises of Kronospan, a company in the small town west of Lucerne. They said there were ?several dead and several seriously injured people? and that rescue services were deployed and the scene sealed off. (AP Photo/Keystone, Urs Flueeler)

MENZNAU, Switzerland (AP) ? A longtime employee opened fire at a wood-processing company in central Switzerland on Wednesday, leaving three people dead, including the assailant, in the country's second multiple-fatality shooting in two months, police said.

Seven other people were wounded, six of them seriously, in the shooting at the premises of the company Kronospan, in the small town of Menznau, Lucerne criminal police chief Daniel Bussmann told reporters.

The incident occurred as the Swiss parliament prepares to consider tightening some aspects of the country's famously lax gun legislation.

The assailant, a 42-year-old Swiss male, arrived at the premises shortly after 9 a.m., drew a pistol and started firing. Police spokesman Kurt Graf said the shootings took place in the building's canteen area.

Officials didn't immediately have further details on the weapon or how the assailant acquired it. They also did not know how the assailant was killed.

"A lot of things are unclear at this stage," said Ida Glanzmann-Hunkeler, a Christian Democrat lawmaker who lives near the scene of the shooting.

Glanzmann-Hunkeler said a proposal will be put before parliament in the coming weeks that would require greater exchange of information between the gun registries kept by Switzerland's 26 cantons. Authorities would also record whether a person is considered mentally fit to own a gun, and increase officials' powers to confiscate weapons if they aren't.

But the shooting is unlikely to immediately revive calls for ex-soldiers to store their military-issued firearms in secure army depot. The country has a long-standing tradition for men to keep their military rifles after completing compulsory military service.

This partly accounts for the high rate of gun ownership in the country, where some 2.3 million firearms are owned by a population of about 8 million.

A referendum to tighten the laws was defeated at the ballot box in 2011. At the time, opponents pointed to Switzerland's relatively low rate of gun crime, with just 24 gun killings in 2009, which works out to a rate of about 0.3 per 100,000 inhabitants. The U.S. rate that year was about 11 times higher.

Still, there have been several high-profile incidents over the years, including the killing of 14 people at a city council meeting in Zug, not far from Lucerne, in 2001. And in early January, a 33-year-old man killed three women and wounded two men in a southern Swiss village.

Critics and advocates of gun rights doubted the latest shooting would lead to drastic law changes beyond the proposal now before parliament.

"If we demanded another referendum now, many people would say we already dealt with this two years ago," said Tobias Estermann, a member of the anti-weapons group Switzerland Without an Army.

Peter Schilliger, a Lucerne lawmaker, said the popularity of shooting clubs in Switzerland means there is strong grassroots support for gun ownership.

"And anyway, it will always be possible to come by a weapon somehow," he said.

Kronospan Chief Executive Mauro Capozzo said that the suspected assailant had been "with us for more than 10 years ? a quiet man, no other incidents involving him are known." Graf said the man was still with the company at the time of the shooting.

According to the local town council, Kronospan has some 450 employees. There was no immediate word on a possible motive; Capozzo said the company hasn't laid anyone off recently.

___

Moulson reported from Berlin. Frank Jordans in Berlin also contributed.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-02-27-Switzerland-Shooting/id-51bfaa55371b4331b01f87f53cfa368b

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Insight: Syria rebels bolstered by new arms but divisions remain

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebels have received advanced weapons aimed at narrowing the arms gap with President Bashar al-Assad's forces and reinforcing a new rebel military command which Western countries hope can dilute the strength of Islamist fighters.

Several rebel commanders and fighters told Reuters that a shipment which reached Syria via Turkey last month comprised shoulder-held and other mobile equipment including anti-aircraft and armor-piercing weapons, mortars and rocket launchers.

Rebels told Reuters the weapons, along with money for cash payments for fighters, were being distributed through a new command structure, part of a plan by foreign backers to centralize control over rebel units and check Islamists linked to al-Qaeda. However, in a sign of the difficulty in uniting disparate fighting groups, some rebels said they had turned down the arms and refused to submit to the new command.

While not nearly enough to tip the military balance against Assad, who is able to deploy air power, missiles and artillery to devastating effect against rebel areas, any significant arms shipment is a boost to rebels who have long complained about the lack of international support.

The rebels refused to specify who supplied the new weapons, saying they did not want to embarrass foreign supporters, but said they had arrived openly via Turkey "from donor countries".

"We have received this shipment legally and normally. It was not delivered through smuggling routes but formally through Bab al-Hawa crossing," said a rebel commander in Homs province, referring to a rebel-held crossing with Turkey.

"But it is not enough to help us win," he told Reuters by Skype. "Another shipment has arrived in Turkey but we haven't received it yet," he added, saying he believed foreign donors were waiting for the Syrian opposition to form a transitional government to work with the rebel command.

The political opposition will meet in Istanbul on Saturday to choose a prime minister in the transitional government, which is also supposed to choose a civilian defense minister - creating the basic structure for a future state and army.

The Syrian revolt erupted nearly two years ago, starting with peaceful protests for reform but developing into an armed insurgency and then civil war as Assad responded to the uprising with ever-growing force. The United Nations estimates that 70,000 people have been killed in the relentless violence.

Although many countries backed Assad's opponents, few have actively supported arming the rebels, fearing that weapons might end up in the hands of hardline Sunni Muslim militants and lead to a repeat of Western conflicts, such as the wars against the Taliban in Afghanistan and al Qaeda-affiliated groups in Iraq.

So far rebels have relied mainly on light weapons smuggled from neighboring countries, many of them financed or sent from sympathizers in Gulf states, and from supplies seized from captured army bases inside Syria.

But video footage and pictures from across the country appear to support assertions that advanced weapons - with origins as varied as the former Yugoslavia and China - have ended up in rebel hands.

A Reuters photographer in Damascus over the last month saw several Western-built rebel firearms- including U.S. pattern M4 and Austrian Steyr assault rifles - that almost certainly came from outside the country.

STRENGTHENING REBEL COMMAND

Assad's strongest regional supporter has been Shi'ite Muslim Iran, while the leading campaigners for arming the rebels are the Sunni Muslim Gulf Arab powers Qatar and Saudi Arabia, reflecting the strong sectarian currents of the Syrian uprising.

Although Saudi Arabia and Qatar do not discuss specific weapons shipments to the rebels, both countries have been open about their support for arming them in principle.

Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal bluntly told a news conference in Riyadh on February 12: "My country believes that the brutality of the Syrian regime against its own people requires empowering the people to defend itself."

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani said last week: "As there is no clear international opinion to end the crisis in Syria...we are supporting the opposition with whatever it needs, even if it takes up arms for self-defense."

Western countries have been more cautious, and have so far committed publicly to sending only "non-lethal" aid, like radios and body armor.

International powers are alarmed by the growing influence of Islamist hardliners in a country which lies at the crossroads of the Middle East between Iraq, Israel, Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. They have made efforts to unite Syrian rebels under a clear leadership. A body was formed in December to bring the rebel units, or brigades, together under a unified command.

"One of the reasons for the change in the donors' minds is that they want to empower the new military command. They want to help it organize the weapons and the fighters," said an aide to a rebel commander in a province which has seen some of the heaviest fighting.

"If the brigades join then they get their share of these weapons and also monthly payment for the fighters."

The new military command divides Syria into five fronts - southern, western, eastern, northern and central.

"Each front has received its share. All equally distributed," the rebel said, adding that 'payment' for the weapons would come in the form of post-conflict reconstruction contracts in Syria awarded to countries that helped.

"So basically it's like we have paid in advance. It is funded by the countries that will be involved in reconstruction of Syria," he said.

But in a sign of the continued divisions among Assad's foes, some rebels complain that the "military councils" who received the weapons - and are seen by the West as more likely allies than the hardline Islamists - were the wrong groups to arm.

"There is a dispute in Damascus. The people who received these weapons are not the real fighters. They gave it to the military council which is not fighting," said a rebel commander operating around the Syrian capital. "We are the ones that are on the frontline and we are the fighters."

He said his fighters had rejected an offer of weapons in return for their allegiance to the military councils.

"There was a meeting and they asked for our brigade to join so they will give us between 10 to 20 rockets and armor-piercing ammunition and other stuff," he said. "They wanted everything to be under their supervision, but we refused."

"They are giving these weapons to people to allow them to create a (fighting) presence on the ground. Why don't they give it to people who already have a presence?"

Another commander said he would have no qualms about seizing weapons destined for rebels nominally fighting on the same side as him, if he knew they were passing through his territory.

REBELS NEED "ARMS, NOT MEN"

Several fighters from across the country who spoke to Reuters in February said they feared the ultimate plan of outside powers was to push the rebel Free Syrian Army and other "moderate" Islamist fighters into confrontation with radicals.

Fighters from hardline groups such as Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham have waged some of the deadliest attacks in Syria, including car bombings in Damascus, Aleppo and elsewhere. Their ranks have been swollen by jihadi fighters from around the Muslim world.

The chief of staff of the rebel military command, Brigadier Selim Idris, said the presence of foreign fighters was hindering international support for the battle against Assad.

"We call all brothers from all the countries. Please, my brothers: we do not need men. Stay in your own countries and do something good inside your own countries," he told Reuters.

"If you want to help us just send us weapons or funding - or even pray for us. But you do not have to come to Syria. We have enough Syrian men fighting."

Idris denied receiving weapons from donors and said that weapons are still entering Syria through the black market - apparently reluctant to put foreign powers in the spotlight.

"We are not receiving weapons from the Europeans, we do not want to embarrass them, we do not want to embarrass anyone with the weapons issue," he said.

Previous attempts to unify Syria's divided rebels have foundered on local rivalries and competition for money and influence. Some have grown rich and powerful by smuggling weapons, medical supplies, food and diesel, while the lack of civil administration in rebel controlled areas has also encouraged the proliferation of autonomous rebel groups.

Seeking to address those divisions, the military councils hope to pay fighters a symbolic monthly salary of $100, funded in part by donations from the Gulf. The Homs commander said one Gulf state had recently paid $15 million towards their wages.

"They want to organize the rebels and have them all under one command - who joins will be eligible to receive the money and the weapons," he said. "This is all for organization purposes."

"If a brigade joins then it will take its share, if it doesn't, then no weapons. We want to be organized," he said.

(Editing by Dominic Evans and Peter Graff)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/insight-syria-rebels-bolstered-arms-divisions-remain-175254030.html

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Syrian clashes reach 12th century Aleppo mosque

BEIRUT (AP) ? Syrian rebels clashed Thursday with government forces around a historic 12th century mosque inside the walled old city of Aleppo, activists said.

The rebels won new support from the Obama administration. The U.S. pledged an additional $60 million in assistance and ? in a significant policy shift ? will for the first time provide nonlethal aid like food and medical supplies.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry announced the new support and the decision to back the rebel fighters on the sidelines of an international conference on Syria in Rome, where European nations were also expected to signal their intention to provide fresh assistance to the opposition, possibly including defensive military hardware.

The rebels have made a number of strategic gains in northern Syria in recent weeks, including the capture of a hydroelectric Dam and some military bases. They have also launched attacks deep in the heart of Damascus, President Bashar Assad's seat of power.

But at the same time, the opposition has grown more critical of the international community, accusing it of not providing adequate support.

In Aleppo, a key battleground in the civil war, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were clashes around the 12th century Umayyad Mosque in the walled old city with rebels controlling part of it and government troops holding another part.

The Observatory, which relies on reports from activists on the ground, also said rebels continue to battle troops for control of a police academy west of Aleppo.

Rebels launched an offensive on Aleppo, Syria's largest urban center and its commercial capital, in July 2012.

In months of street fighting, opposition fighters have slowly expanded the turf under their control. The fighting has left much of the city in ruins, and caused damage to its rich archaeological and cultural heritage.

The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Aleppo, sits near a medieval covered market in the Old City, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The mosque was heavily damaged in October 2012 just weeks after a fire gutted the old city's famed market. Clashes at the historic site have raged for days.

Fighting also intensified in the outskirts of Aleppo around a police academy that has recently emerged as a new front in the battle for the city.

The police complex includes educational facilities for recruits and several army outposts to protect it. Anti-regime activists say the government has turned the facility into a military base, using it to shell opposition areas in Aleppo's countryside as well as rebel-held neighborhoods inside the city.

In the central city of Homs, state media reported a car bombing with some casualties and extensive material damage.

State-run SANA news agency said the car bomb was detonated by terrorists, a term the regime uses for rebels. It did not say how many people were killed in the blast.

An official in the Homs governor's office told The Associated Press that the city was hit by two explosions, killing four people and injuring at least six. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

He said some of the injured are in critical condition.

In Rome, Kerry is meeting Syrian opposition leaders and their Western backers in a bid to bolster Assad's political opponents and speed up his ouster.

The U.S. and its European allies have been reluctant to arm the opposition fighters on the ground for fear the weapons could end up in the hands of Islamic militants, battling Assad's troops among the rebels.

So far, the U.S. has largely limited its assistance to the Syrian opposition to funding for communications and other logistical equipment.

___

Associated Press writer Albert Aji contributed to this report from Damascus, Syria.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-clashes-reach-12th-century-aleppo-mosque-105910552.html

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Bed Bath & Beyond's Towel Display - Business Insider

Bed Bath & Beyond is famous for its immaculate towel displays that reach the ceiling.?

But the website Neatorama revealed what's really under the towel facade.?

Foam.?

"We've been sold a bill of goods!" Neatorama exclaimed on its Facebook page.?

Here's the photo:?

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Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/bed-bath-and-beyonds-towel-display-2013-2

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Two NYC men arrested after woman killed, cut up with power saw

By Shimon Prokupecz, NBCNewYork.com

A 23-year-old man and his friend have been arrested in connection with the gruesome killing of his mother, whose body was cut up with a power saw and scattered in bags throughout their Bronx neighborhood, law enforcement officials tell NBC 4 New York.

Both men have admitted to chopping up the body and using a shopping cart to dump the parts along the curb in Morrisania, but each is pointing the finger at the other for killing the mother, 45-year-old Tania Byrd, law enforcement officials said Wednesday.

The initial charges do not include murder. Bahsid McLean, 23, and William Harris, 26, are both charged with unlawful dissection of a human body, among other charges. They were in custody and lawyer information was not immediately available.

Read more at NBCNewYork.com

Law enforcement officials tell NBC 4 New York that the two men tell different stories. The son says he left the apartment he shared with his mother at about 3 a.m. Monday to go to the ATM. When he returned, he has told investigators, his friend had stabbed Byrd to death and threatened to kill him and his 6-year-old brother if he didn't help get rid of the body.

His friend, meanwhile, has told investigators that the son told him he killed his mother, and showed him a photograph of her, dead, asking for his friend's help in disposing of her corpse.

The two suspects agree that they went to a Bronx hardware store to purchase supplies for the job, including a power saw and gloves. Investigators say there are bloodstains at the apartment, and that it appears someone tried to clean up the mess with bleach.

An empty power saw box was also found there. The saw was found at the apartment of the friend's girlfriend, officials said.

Law enforcement officials say the pair cut up the body on Monday night and dumped it around 9:30 p.m. Surveillance camera video shows the son in the apartment building lobby, leaving the elevator with numerous bags, and then video outside the building shows two men wheeling away a shopping cart.

Officials say a man walking his dog along 158th Street in Morrisania early Tuesday morning came upon a plastic bag of what he thought were books. As he moved to open the bag, he noticed a vehicle circling the block and became nervous, so he took the bag around the corner and looked inside, finding two hands and a shoulder.

He sent his son to call police and continued walking the dog. About two blocks away on Eagle Avenue he and the dog came upon a suitcase, and the dog sat down next to it. The man opened the suitcase and found a woman's torso, wearing a bra, according to law enforcement officials.

Responding police found a plastic bag further down Eagle Avenue that contained a leg and a foot, and then nearby on Cauldwell Avenue, they found a black suitcase with a leg and the woman's head.

People who knew Byrd were stunned about the grisly killing.

"Every time you see her, she would have a smile on her face," said neighbor Chastity Agosto. "How could a son do that to his mother?

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/27/17119992-two-nyc-men-arrested-after-woman-killed-cut-up-with-power-saw?lite

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Kim Kardashian Cashes in on Pregnancy, Blogs About "Amazing" Mommy Jeans

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GOP's Pat Anderson: I support gay marriage; Republicans should, too (Star Tribune)

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Talking back: Coping with back pain ? Fit for fashion - Fitness and ...

The fact that a majority of Americans experience back pain at some point in their lives is small consolation when the statistic with back pain is you. Back pain typically begins with a movement in your torso that doesn?t go quite right: lifting a child into the car seat, bending over to pick something up, twisting to deliver a powerful forehand during tennis play. For some reason, your back protests, and there you are, lying on the ground in pain.

Should you see a doctor?
Consult a physician about your back pain if:

1) It is accompanied by high fever, which may indicate an infection;

2) You have numbness in your pelvis, extreme weakness in your leg, or problems controlling your bladder or bowel-signs of a severely pinched nerve;

3) You are experiencing rapid weight loss ? a sign of a tumor; and/or

4) Back pain persists for more than four weeks.

Treat yourself
For most cases of acute back pain that is probably due to muscle spasm, health professionals advise the following:

1) Ice the affected area five to 10 minutes several times a day for the first few days. After that, use either ice or heat, whatever seems to help.

2) Take over-the-counter pain medication. Try to avoid any muscle relaxants you may have hanging around the medicine cabinet, as these have unpleasant side effects and can lead to further injury by helping you ignore the pain.

3) Rest as little as possible, and resume daily activities as much as you can, allowing the pain to serve as a guideline for what you should ask your back to do. That means if it hurts, don?t do it. Especially hard on your back is sitting for extended periods, or moving heavy objects.

When to exercise
The most common cause of back pain is muscle strain. The most common cause of muscle strain is weak back muscles which lack the strength to support the torso, especially when extra force is required, such as during bending or twisting. When back muscles are not strong enough to do their job, they may stretch and then contract in painful spasm.

Since exercise is so good for so many ills, many people mistakenly believe that exercise is good for everything. Not so for muscle spasms. Trying to stretch a spasming muscle may only add insult to injury. Exercise is more important for preventing future recurrences of back pain, rather than fixing an acute back pain episode.

Once acute pain has subsided, exercise to stretch and strengthen postural muscles is recommended. Regular aerobic exercise such as walking, swimming (use a variety of strokes) and cycling improves general fitness, as well as back health. Education about correct body mechanics is essential. Learning to maintain good posture can greatly reduce back stress.

Coping with chronic pain
Some people find that back pain continues to return despite their best efforts to exercise regularly and practice good body mechanics. Most of these folks succeed in finding ways to eliminate or at least significantly reduce their back pain, but their paths to success require perseverance, self-observation, positive thinking and a willingness to try a variety of treatment options. Treatment options that have helped many back pain patients include stress management and relaxation techniques, chiropractic manipulation, physical therapy, acupuncture and acupressure, and yoga. Back care programs, videos and books can be beneficial.

Perseverance can be hard to come by. Persistent pain wears you down, but giving up is not an option; giving up only leads to more pain.

When to rest
Bed rest, once the most popular treatment for back pain, is now discouraged. While sometimes back pain is so incapacitating that you have no other option, you will be urged to get up as soon as you can. Bed rest further weakens those muscle, joints and bones whose weaknesses may be causing pain in the first place.

Source: http://fitforfashionblog.com/talking-back-coping-with-back-pain/

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Two California police officers killed in line of duty

KNBC

By Erika Conner and Lisa Fernandez, NBCLosAngeles.com

The Santa Cruz, Calif., County Sheriff's Department says two Santa Cruz police officers were shot to death Tuesday afternoon ? the first time?in city history that officers were killed in the line of duty.

One suspect was also killed.

Authorities believe there are no more outstanding suspects or any danger to the community, but they are going door-to-door in the perimeter they've established as a precaution.?

A resident, who declined to give his name, said he was sitting in his house in the 800 block of North Branciforte Avenue when he heard gunfire across the street around 3:30 p.m. Police arrived soon, he said. That's when a suspect fired at police, hitting the two officers.

A while later, he heard a "multitude of gunfire" coming from an area nearby. He said police told residents to stay inside and not to leave.?

Following the incident, schools in the immediate area were placed on lockdown.?

Santa Cruz Police Chief Kevin Vogel said at news conference,?"Our department is in mourning. This is a horrific day in my career as the police chief and for our community and for our police department. We lost two exceptionally fine officers today."

"We need to figure out a way to bring our department together and get through this," Vogel added.?"It's a horrible, horrible day for the Santa Cruz Police Department and the community of Santa Cruz."?

After the police were killed, a second shooting occurred a half-hour later while police were in pursuit of at least one suspect, maybe two on Doyle Street. A barrage of gunfire erupted that apparently left a suspect dead on Doyle Street, according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

Police were on a citywide manhunt for several hours after the initial shooting. The FBI joined the investigation just after 4 p.m. as well as law enforcement from the sheriff's office, Capitola, Watsonville and Scotts Valley police departments and the California Highway Patrol.

NBC Bay Area's George Kiriyama and Bay City News contributed to this report.

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/26/17108764-two-california-police-officers-killed-in-line-of-duty?lite

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Channeling The Same Frequencies; Police Get $168K Grant for ...

J.P. Ellery, Correspondent, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE (Massachusetts)

For decades, police and firefighters in area towns have lived with radio communication inadequacies.

Some of those irritating problems will be resolved with the award of a $167,899 federal grant recently announced by the Central Region Homeland Security Advisory Council in Worcester.

The grant will enable seven local police departments to enhance radio communications with local public safety departments by purchasing 30 portable two-way digital radios. Each town will get four units and the state police dispatch center in New Braintree will receive two radios to retain for use by the other towns in case of a major regional emergency. ?

Cpl. Kevin M. Landine, a veteran of the Hardwick Police Department, came up with the idea to apply for the grant, which

will benefit police departments in Brookfield, East Brookfield, Hardwick, New Braintree, North Brookfield, Petersham and West Brookfield.

In a news release, Edward McNamara, chairman of the advisory council, said he was grateful to New Braintree Police Chief Bert DuVernay, Petersham Police Chief Dana Cooley and Cpl. Landine for their efforts in securing this grant.

Cpl. Landine said he was tipped off by a radio serviceman who maintains radios for his department that the new digital radios were coming out and that they would significantly help out local towns.

The immediate problem is that area police and fire departments are on different frequencies, making it tough to communicate.

?The Fire Department can talk with us, but they have to carry two radios or we have to carry two,? Cpl. Landine said.

He said the new Motorola APX 7000 digital portable radios will eliminate that nuisance.

West Brookfield Police Chief C. Thomas O?Donnell said these units will make a big difference in his town and

surrounding communities.

?They?re dual-use radios,? he said. ?They have not only the 800 megahertz (frequencies), which all the police departments have, but they also have the high band that all the fire departments are on; so in one radio, you have access to all of those frequencies.? He said that has never been the case before.

Cpl. Landine said this solves a serious glitch in his town. The new portables will enable the Hardwick Department, for example, to talk with neighboring Ware police on the portables.

?Currently we have mobile radios in our cars that can talk to Ware, but if we get out on a scene with them we can?t talk with them,? he said.

?It helps inter-operability beyond the scope of anything,? the corporal said. ?It?s huge. That?s why I?d love to get more of these radios for each town. They?re going benefit us with officer safety beyond belief.?

He said he originally asked for 15 radios for each town in the grant request, but the agency could not fund that. Each radio is worth nearly $6,000.

He said that over the years there have been many instances in area towns in which cruisers from nearby communities, either traveling toward each other or jointly responding to an emergency, were unable to communicate with each other. They had to relay messages through a dispatch facility capable of contacting each department.

Cpl. Landine wondered aloud why there isn?t a statewide system to predetermine the best regional frequencies that multiple neighboring towns could use and requiring public safety departments in those towns to purchase the applicable radios.

He said that despite these new portable radios, Hardwick will not be able to communicate with neighboring Barre, because that town recently bought radios using a different frequency.

?They went to 400 (megahertz.) That?s a whole other separate radio that we can?t even talk to them on now. That?s the problem with this,? he said, noting that ?everyone ? has their own system.?

He said a lot of the towns in the immediate area are fortunate to have a regional dispatch center provided by state police, which does provide an alternative way of communicating with other departments.

There also is a regional frequency for Worcester County that enables Hardwick to contact Barre though the Rutland dispatch center, but the whole system makes for an array of arrangements for police officers, especially new ones, to have to remember.

At the time of this interview, Chief O?Donnell of the West Brookfield department was still waiting for delivery of the four radios for his town.

?The radios have been purchased,? he said. ?They?re in. They are just waiting to get programmed.?

?It?s an excellent idea and a good use of the (grant) money,? Chief O?Donnell said.?

Copyright ? 2013 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All Rights Reserved.?

Source: http://psc.apcointl.org/2013/02/26/channeling-the-same-frequencies-police-get-168k-grant-for-radios/

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Mu Alpha Theta honor society expands to Middlesex Community ...

By Press Staff

Middlesex Community College is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Middletown Press. Brad M. Horrigan. 04.23.07.

MIDDLETOWN >> An honors society celebrating excellence in mathematics in high school and two-year-college students has expanded to Middlesex Community College.

Mu Alpha Theta will welcome seven new members from the school, representing the first chapter at a two-year college in all of New England.

There are currently chapters at 18 high schools throughout Connecticut, as well as chapters at high schools and two-year colleges throughout the country. Mu Alpha Theta gives the $2,500 Kalin Award, named for a former society president, to outstanding students each year at its society?s national convention.

Students who are passionate about math now have an opportunity to join the new Middlesex Community College math honor society, according to a statement from the college.?

To be eligible for induction, students must have at least one mathematics course at or above the college levels in algebra or pre-calculus, as well as an overall GPA of 3.0.? High school students who are in Mu Alpha Theta can transfer their memberships to Middlesex Community College, the school said.

The addition of Mu Alpha Theta to Middlesex Community College coincides with the college moving towards a focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

?This new chapter of Mu Alpha Theta plays a key role in encouraging our students to tap their dormant skills in math by participating in profound math discussions and fun contests,? said Mary Rayappan, assistant professor of mathematics, who oversaw the process to bring Mu Alpha Theta to the college with the help of students from the Math Club. ?This will cultivate a sense of community bonding where students can come together to appreciate math. Students will also donate their time in the community through different outreach activities and several fun group events this semester.?

The Middlesex Community College Mu Alpha Theta members are Andrew Kenyon, Max MacNaught, Florian Orleanu, Luis Serazo, Ritu Mehra, Vincent Marotta and Liron Rogof. Students will be formally inducted into the honor society on Pi Day, which is celebrated on March 14 around the world.

Mu Alpha Theta has 93,300 student members in more than 1,950 schools. The organization is dedicated to inspiring a keen interest in mathematics, developing strong scholarship in the subject, and promoting the enjoyment of mathematics in high school and two-year-college students. For more information, visit www.mualphatheta.org.

Source: http://www.middletownpress.com/articles/2013/02/26/news/doc512c015b5e3d4472488865.txt

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Is Social Media Worthwhile For Local Businesses? - Search Engine ...

In the past few weeks, I?ve been confronted multiple times by the question of whether social media is truly worthwhile for local businesses. The question comes from companies feeling the pinch of costs while also desiring to promote themselves adequately. The ROI may not be clear in many cases, so let?s examine it.

First of all, businesses have been propelled toward being involved in social media because marketers are attracted to any channels or arenas that large swaths of consumers gravitate to. As the usership of various social media services has grown, the rule-of-thumb is that their worth as a promotional vehicle has grown as well. Advertisers want eyeballs.

Where Are The Eyeballs?

According to Experian Hitwise, Google and Facebook are both the top websites in terms of number of visits:

And, according to comScore, users have been spending a lot more time in Facebook, too:

Does Social Media Have Value?

No one particularly questions the value of Google as a source for customer referrals to businesses; (although, some debate the ROI of PPC advertising for some companies/industries), however, almost everyone wants to be found in the organic search results to one degree or another. And, Facebook is clearly right up there in its volume of visitors.

Of course, just the fact that a service has a huge audience doesn?t automatically equate to worth in business promotions. For instance, a video game service isn?t going to be as worthwhile as a search engine where people are trying to research products and services, selecting the companies that provide them.

So, there?s a valid criticism that some social media services and the activities taking place on them will not lend themselves to some types of business promotions as readily as for others.

What Are The Gripes?

Most of the conversations I?ve had with those questioning the value for small businesses center on criticisms around a few common gripes:

• No sales. They don?t see direct sales arising from social media activities. Most people are not using Facebook or Twitter to find products or services, so there?s no purchase intent involved.
• No traffic. Their analytics are not showing much direct referral traffic from social media services.
• Work invested in social media is like ?sharecropping.? You can put all that time and effort into some services, and the content is ?owned? by them, and the value can evaporate at the whim of the social media companies. For instance, quite a number of companies developed large audiences on Facebook only to recently have those audiences ?held hostage? when Facebook last year began demanding advertising payments in return for exposing new status updates to followers of business pages.

Are The Gripes Valid?

From my perspective, these criticisms are sometimes skewed and are not showing a complete picture.

First, the ?sharecropping? metaphor seems like a straw man argument to me. Quite a lot of promotion work is ephemeral in nature, providing benefit for only a limited period of time. Just because it could evaporate tomorrow doesn?t negate its worth today. For that matter, you could build your shop in a particularly popular neighborhood only to have highways change and traffic directed away from your district. Point is, there are risks involved with business and promotion channels, but we don?t close down and go home because of it.

It is valid to consider that your business might not see sales and website traffic directly from your activities on social platforms. Although, this is by no means a foregone conclusion. I had a client in an esoteric service industry just a few weeks ago who thanked me profusely for recommending Twitter to him, because he immediately gained a new customer who found him due to his Tweeting activities.

While my client?s target demographic is well within that of Twitter users (he caters to technologists), all sorts of businesses can gain clients from their social network promotions to some degree, if they know what they?re doing. Merely spewing self-referencing mentions or a barrage of ads is probably going to result in irritation for the social audiences and frustration for the business owner who sees no ROI arising from the effort.

Those complaining of lack of sales and site traffic might not be doing effective social promotion work to begin with. As Derek Edmond points out in his article on How B2B Marketers Can Develop A Better Social Media Plan,?it can take a while for a company to learn how to use a social channel properly and to promote through it ? over 50% require from seven months to four years to ?get it?!

So, if you?ve experimented around with a social platform for only a few months and throw in the towel, it?s possible you haven?t given yourself a chance to master the medium.

Indirect Benefits Of Social Media

But, even if a particular social platform doesn?t lend itself to your business through sending traffic or sales prospects, there may be substantial indirect benefits that should be taken into account. Here are the main ones:

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Social media activities provide signals that can help sites rank better. Google and Bing have both acknowledged that they?re now using social activity signals in the mix. While we don?t know the exact methods they use, it doesn?t stop us from integrating social media work in order to extract ranking value.

With 200+ ranking signals in an algorithm, it?s difficult to isolate the influence of any one factor, but I?ve seen enough anecdotal evidence to believe good social media development over time does, indeed, provide some ranking benefit. Particularly if your competitors are not doing it.

There are only a handful of ?prominence? signals that we?re certain of ? external links, citations, business listing interactions (clicks on maps, driving directions, clicks to website), frequency and volume of user ratings and reviews, and ? social media interactions. Do you think you can afford to throw away one of those?

Proactive Online Reputation Management (ORM)

Being involved with a few of the more popular social media services provides a level of insulation from attacks on your reputation. The profiles of social media sites and status updates or other activities on them can rank in Google search results, making it harder for any negative webpages to appear when your name is Googled.

Without enough content ranking on your name, any dissatisfied customer, competitor, disgruntled former employee, or random crazy can say something bad about you, and it could appear prominently in search results. So, social media work carries a benefit that?s similar to insurance ? if you get hit by a false claim or exaggerated criticism, your bottom line could take a substantial blow.

Availability

It?s possible that making your business available through some of the higher ranking social media platforms could be a sign of your relative stature. Not that it?s a status symbol, so much as a subtle signal to consumers that your business is important enough to merit having a presence in places where they ?live? online.

Facebook?s rollout of Graph Search for instance, could push users into searching for businesses more. (If you?ve opted into Graph Search, try searching for ?restaurants my friends like.? This sort of search capability is ultra-strong for many types of business where endorsements from a consumer?s social circle can heavily influence decisions!)

Being available for this type of search is likely to become more important over time, and signaling that people can communicate with you through the platforms they?re comfortable with is likely beneficial as well.

Social Media Can Be Worthwhile

So, while it?s true that many businesses may not see as direct of a return on social media development work, there are a number of significant indirect benefits that make it worthwhile. This does not mean that a company needs to be involved with every large and small social media platform, and it doesn?t mean that large quantities of time must be spent on social media activities.

Different businesses are going to be more or less relevant to audiences at particular social networks. But, assess the bigger ones carefully: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Google+, Tumblr and LinkedIn.

In terms of the amount of time spent, there?s usually some amount of time savings if you?re engaging with multiple social platforms, if you?re using good management tools to do it, and if you understand how to go about it.

Just because you may not see direct or immediate benefits fresh out-of-the-box when you begin using social media does not mean that you are not getting some benefit. Over time, the slow accrual of SEO benefit alone may make it a necessity for you, while proactive reputation management and consumer engagement may also be compelling reasons to be present and active.

Opinions expressed in the article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land.

Related Topics: Local Search

Source: http://searchengineland.com/is-social-media-worthwhile-for-local-businesses-149092

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Student volunteer auditors wanted | UoP News

The Environmental Team are looking for student volunteers to?audit?departments at the University who are taking part in the?Green Impact?scheme.

Green Impact?is an environmental accreditation scheme, designed to encourage, support and celebrate University departments in making environmental improvements. Staff volunteered to participate in the scheme and received a workbook outlining achievable environmental changes.

All departments participating in Green Impact will need an audit to verify their level of achievement? and this is where you come in.

Auditing

We are looking for volunteer auditors to visit departments and conduct audits on 14 March 2013. Each volunteer auditor will be fully trained on the criteria and what they need to audit through a?half-day of training.

A half-day training session will take place in the morning, there?s a break for lunch and then you go off in pairs and?audit departments.?An audit should take between one and two hours to complete depending on the size of the department.

Refreshments and lunch are provided.

What skills do I need?

No technical knowledge is needed and full training will be provided. All you need is an interest in environmental issues.

If you?re eager to get involved or if you have any further questions, please get in touch by emailing?Greenportsmouth@port.ac.uk.

?

Source: http://www.port.ac.uk/uopnews/2013/02/25/student-volunteer-auditors-wanted/

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Is Homeschooling An Effective Educational Option? Look At These ...

Lots of people don't have the funds for for his or her children to visit individual colleges, nevertheless they would like them to get the best schooling possible. For them, home schooling is a great alternative. When you know the very best property-education strategies, you will see on it your children have the education they are entitled to. Please read on for some guidance which will help.

Routine is extremely important when you are home schooling. This can retain the family prepared and you will be able to ensure that you get every thing completed. Locate a schedule that really works for all. It might really just indicate targets to accomplish issues prior to establish periods.

While you are looking to teach your young ones, repetition is key. Because of this , countless teachers and training ideas recommend vocabularly lists, spelling exams, and descriptions worksheets. You can do this via rhymes, tracks and other resources, for example flash greeting cards.

Artwork needs to be used in studying record, British and even math concepts. Have your children do an art form project about every thing you find out about. Permit them to use their imagination to the full. They can sing, work, develop and much more! By pushing them to contemplate a topic in new methods, you may make sure that they are finding out how to the max magnitude probable.

Home schooling has a sizeable part of your time and efforts and might leave you feeling emphasized about other house work. The whole family must be responsible for maintaining the housework done, but you may also want to hire a maid assistance as needed.

Think about strategies to give your youngster the opportunity to make friends. You require to create different methods of doing points because they do not check out a standard school. Take a discipline getaway with other homeschool families. The kids can enjoy on the crew within the geographic area. Becoming a boy look or lady search is another technique for here your kids to get odds to make friends when studying beneficial skills.

List all the pros and cons you can think of about public institution, and then develop a list about home schooling. Utilize your list to draft your plans for home schooling, making sure that your kids receives the very best education achievable. It can become a useful listing of things you can do and steer clear of. Put this collection apart and reference it when building a fresh lesson.

Will not be shy concerning your commitment to homeschooling. A lot of people may possibly appear on you for homeschooling your young ones. Hear them, but don't be injured by what they say. Create a list of reasons why you picked homeschooling, and go over this list if judgments manufactured you are feeling poor about your determination. You can not be successful in home schooling should you enable you to ultimately be impacted by what other individuals say regarding this.

Since you have gained much more information about home schooling, you most likely know that it's something that you can do also. Furnished with good information, it is much more achievable than you might have thought. Just placed all you discovered using this post to good use so that you can give your kids the best trainer possible: oneself!

Source: http://colnotion.com/index.php?do=/blog/150004/is-homeschooling-an-effective-educational-option-look-at-these-guidelines/

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Scientists first to grow liver stem cells in culture, demonstrate therapeutic benefit

Scientists first to grow liver stem cells in culture, demonstrate therapeutic benefit

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

For decades scientists around the world have attempted to regenerate primary liver cells known as hepatocytes because of their numerous biomedical applications, including hepatitis research, drug metabolism and toxicity studies, as well as transplantation for cirrhosis and other chronic liver conditions. But no lab in the world has been successful in identifying and growing liver stem cells in culture -- using any available technique ? until now.

In the journal Nature, physician-scientists in the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at Oregon Health & Science University Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Portland, Ore., along with investigators at the Hubrecht Institute for Developmental Biology and Stem Cell Research, Utrecht, Netherlands, describe a new method through which they were able to infinitely expand liver stem cells from a mouse in a dish.

"This study raises the hope that the human equivalent of these mouse liver stem cells can be grown in a similar way and efficiently converted into functional liver cells," said Markus Grompe, M.D., study co-author, director of the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital; and professor of pediatrics, and molecular and medical genetics in the OHSU School of Medicine.

In a previous Nature study, investigators at the Hubrecht Institute, led by Hans Clever, M.D, Ph.D., were the first to identify stem cells in the small intestine and colon by observing the expression of the adult stem cell marker Lgr5 and growth in response to a growth factor called Wnt. They also hypothesized that the unique expression pattern of Lgr5 could mark stem cells in other adult tissues, including the liver, an organ for which stem cell identification remained elusive.

In the current Nature study, Grompe and colleagues in the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at OHSU Doernbecher used a modified version of the Clever method and discovered that Wnt-induced Lgr5 expression not only marks stem cell production in the liver, but it also defines a class of stem cells that become active when the liver is damaged.

The scientists were able to grow these liver stem cells exponentially in a dish ? an accomplishment never before achieved ? and then transplant them in a specially designed mouse model of liver disease, where they continued to grow and show a modest therapeutic effect.

"We were able to massively expand the liver cells and subsequently convert them to hepatocytes at a modest percentage. Going forward, we will enlist other growth factors and conditions to improve that percentage. Liver stem cell therapy for chronic liver disease in humans is coming," said Grompe.

###

Oregon Health & Science University: http://www.ohsu.edu

Thanks to Oregon Health & Science University for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 29 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127009/Scientists_first_to_grow_liver_stem_cells_in_culture__demonstrate_therapeutic_benefit

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Obama warns of risks over budget cut uncertainty

President Barack Obama addresses the National Governors Association in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

President Barack Obama addresses the National Governors Association in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal listens as National Governors Association Chairman, Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, speaks with reporters outside the White House in Washington, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013, following their meeting with President Barack Obama. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, accompanied by White House press secretary Jay Carney, briefs reporters on the sequester, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013, at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama on Monday said looming automatic spending cuts are already affecting the economy, while a top administration official warned that the nation's borders would be less secure if billions of dollars are yanked from the budget Friday.

"The uncertainty is already having an effect," Obama said. "Companies are preparing layoff notices. Families are preparing to cut back on expenses. The longer these cuts are in place, the bigger the impact will become."

Despite the urgent rhetoric, there was no indication the White House and congressional Republicans were actively negotiating a deal to avoid the so-called sequester ahead of the end of the week deadline. The last known conversation between Obama and GOP leaders was last week and there have been no in-person meetings between the parties this year.

With Congress back from a weeklong recess, House Speaker John Boehner showed little willingness to move off his long-held position that the sequester be offset through targeted spending cuts, not the package of cuts and tax increases Obama supports.

"Mr. President, you got your tax increase," Boehner said, referring to the tax rate increases that took effect on Jan. 1. "It's time to cut spending here in Washington."

The $85 billion budget-cutting mechanism could affect everything from commercial flights to classrooms to meat inspections. Domestic and defense spending alike would be trimmed, leading to furloughs for hundreds of thousands of government workers and contractors.

The White House continued laying out in stark terms what the cuts would mean for government services, dispatching Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to warn of the implications for critical security functions.

"I don't think we can maintain the same level of security at all places around the country with sequester as without sequester," said Napolitano, adding that the impact would be "'like a rolling ball. It will keep growing."

Napolitano focused in particular on the impact to the border, saying her agency would be forced to furlough 5,000 patrol agents. She tamped down the notion that budget cuts would make the nation more vulnerable to terrorism, but said the sequester would make it "awfully, awfully tough" to minimize that risk.

Also Monday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said visiting hours would be cut at all 398 national parks, just as they prepare for an influx of spring and summer visitors.

Elsewhere in the government, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said the cuts would harm the readiness of U.S. fighting forces. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said travelers could see delayed flights. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said 70,000 fewer children from low-income families would have access to Head Start programs. And furloughed meat inspectors could leave plants idled.

Obama will seek to build public support for his call to offset the sequester with a combination of targeted cuts and tax revenues Tuesday when he travels to Newport News, Va., a community that would be impacted by the defense cuts.

The sequester was designed as an unpalatable fallback, meant to take effect only if a congressional super-committee failed to come up with at least $1 trillion in savings from benefit programs.

Many of the nation's governors, who are gathered in Washington for their annual meeting, voiced frustration over the impending cuts, saying Washington's inability to strike a deal had created widespread uncertainty in the economy and hampered economic recovery in their states.

"The president needs to show leadership," said Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican considered a potential 2016 presidential contender, following a meeting with Obama. "The reality is it can be done. This administration has an insatiable appetite for new revenue."

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, a favorite of her party's conservative wing, pointed her anger at both Democrats and Republicans.

"No one should be playing golf. No one should be taking vacations," Haley said, taking a shot at Obama's recent golf outing and Congress' latest recess. "What they need to do is do what these governors do every day. We stay until we get it done."

Democratic Gov. Dannel Malloy of Connecticut concurred.

"They need to get out of that box that sits under the dome and understand that this has real implications in people's lives," he said. "Work with the president, find a way to get it done ? or if you want, just turn it over to us governors, and we'll negotiate."

The governors, emerging from a closed-door meeting with Obama Monday, said the president had assured them the administration is pursuing solutions, but offered no assurances that officials would find a way ahead out ahead of the deadline.

___

Associated Press writers Ken Thomas, Steve Peoples and Josh Lederman contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-02-25-Budget%20Battle/id-d603e25d1a1f49acac8b0bf294b02d2d

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Jennifer Lawrence stumbles on way to Best Actress Oscar (+video)

Jennifer Lawrence was tripped up by her Christian Dior gown at the Academy Awards. But Jennifer Lawrence was endearing her acceptance of the Best Actress award for her performance in 'Silver Linings Playbook.'

By Lynn Elbe,?Associated Press / February 25, 2013

Jennifer Lawrence wins the 2013 Oscar for Best Actress, stumbles, and then endearingly recovers.

Jennifer Lawrence's performance in "Silver Linings Playbook" was flawless enough to capture the best actress Oscar. She wasn't so adroit in claiming the trophy.

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Lawrence stumbled as she took the steps to the Oscar stage, falling to her knees in her flowing Christian Dior gown. That drew a sympathetic ovation from the auditorium.

She remained endearingly flustered during her acceptance speech, thanking her family, those who worked with her on the film and wishing a "Happy Birthday" to a fellow nominee, Emmanuelle Riva of "Amour," who turned 86.

"Look at this dress. I tried to walk up stairs in this dress," Lawrence said of her white, floor-length gown. "I think I stepped on the fabric and they wax the stairs."

Lawrence said she thought of a "bad word" to say when she tumbled but kept it to herself.

She had already been bleeped by ABC when she let loose with a four-letter word while joking with Kristin Chenoweth on the red carpet.

The Christian Science Monitor's film critic Peter Ranier wasn't a big fan of the film but he wrote that Jennifer Lawrence 'salvaged' it.

"Fortunately, both for Pat and for the movie, Jennifer Lawrence?s tough-talking neighbor Tiffany, a recent widow with her own share of mental baggage, is on hand to salvage the situation. She dragoons Pat into rehearsing as her partner for an upcoming local dance competition. We can see what he can?t: Tiffany, and not his wife, is his true soul mate.

Russell directs the movie almost as if Pat were behind the camera; the visual rhythms are manic and short-fused. In every other way, this neo-?David and Lisa? sugarcoats the sufferings of these people in order to boost a sentimental wrap-up that?s right out of ?Dancing With the Stars.? It?s slick stuff, but Lawrence, in her most high-low, sad-comic turn yet, is remarkable."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/BizjLHcRpa8/Jennifer-Lawrence-stumbles-on-way-to-Best-Actress-Oscar-video

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Edwards' miserable month continues at Daytona

No one will be more eager than Carl Edwards to get out of Daytona.

The No. 99 team had a brutal month leading up to the NASCAR season opener, wrecking four times.

Make it five.

Edwards was caught up in a crash heading into turn one at the Daytona 500, another case of simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Trevor Bayne bumped Brad Keselowski from behind, which sent the No. 21 car sliding sideways.

With nowhere to go, Edwards was sent into the outside wall.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

SMOKE STEAMS: Tony Stewart has returned to the track at the Daytona 500.

But he's pretty much assured of going 0-for-15 in NASCAR's biggest race.

Stewart was 82 laps behind the leaders when he rolled out of the garage after an early crash. His frustration was never more evident than when he joined in the repair effort, banging on his No. 14 car with a hammer during the long stint in the paddock.

"To hell with the season," Stewart said. "I wanted to win the Daytona 500. We had a car that we could pass with today. We were passing cars by ourselves. I was so happy with our car, was just waiting for it to all get sorted out again. I don't know what started it, but we just got caught up in another wreck."

Stewart's misfortune came a day after he won the lower-division Nationwide race ? his 19th career triumph at Daytona.

None of them have come in the race he really wants.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

FAMILIAR SPOT: Matt Kenseth is back in a familiar spot.

Leading the Daytona 500.

Kenseth was running out front at the 100-lap mark, halfway through the biggest NASCAR race of the season.

While there's nothing unusual about Kenseth leading at Daytona, where he's won two of the last three years, it's a bit jarring to see him doing it in the No. 20 car.

Kenseth had spent his entire Cup career driving the No. 17 machine for Roush Fenway Racing, but he switched to Joe Gibbs Racing this season. He's got a new car, a new number, a new sponsor and a new team.

But he still knows how to run strong at Daytona.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

DANICAMANIA: Danica Patrick keeps making history.

The first woman to start from the pole at the Daytona 500 has become the first female to lead a lap in a NASCAR Cup race.

Patrick sent the huge crowd into a frenzy when she snatched the lead from Michael Waltrip on lap 90 after a series of pit stops under yellow. She led two laps before Denny Hamlin surged to the front.

But Patrick has shown her qualifying run was no fluke. She's got a strong car and has been in the top 10 all day as the 200-lap race approaches the midway point.

Patrick switched to NASCAR last year after becoming the first woman to lead laps at the Indianapolis 500, as well as being the first to win an IndyCar race.

Now, she's looking for a win in NASCAR's biggest event.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

AWKWARD: Rapper 50 Cent wasn't content just chatting up Erin Andrews.

He went in for a kiss.

Rebuffed.

In the strangest part of the buildup to the Daytona 500, Mr. Cent brought back memories of Joe Namath's awkward attempt to plant one on Suzy Kolber when he tried the same move with Andrews on pit road.

She turned her head one way, then the other, only allowing the "Candy Shop" rapper to get a peck on the cheek.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

BIG CRASH: We've had the first big wreck of the Daytona 500.

And a bunch of top contenders have seen their chances go up in smoke.

Former 500 winners Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart and Jamie McMurray were caught up in the crash on lap 33. So was defending Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski.

The melee began coming through the tri-oval when Kasey Kahne's car began to slide across the track after appearing to get bumped from behind by Kyle Busch.

At least two other drivers also got caught up in the mess: Juan Pablo Montoya and Casey Mears. Joey Logano made a great move to dodge the spinning cars.

Pole sitter Danica Patrick made it through unscathed and remains near the front of the pack.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

___

HANG ON TIGHT: From one defending champion to another, Brad Keselowski had a piece of advice for Daytona 500 starter Ray Lewis:

Don't drop the flag.

The retired Baltimore Ravens star served as honorary starter for the Daytona 500. Lewis waved the green flag without incident Sunday to start the "Great American Race."

Lewis, who said he was nervous, got a quick tip from Keselowski.

"Brad texted me on the way in, the one rule is, don't drop the flag," Lewis said before the race. "I'm going to squeeze the flag very hard. I want to watch this and be a part of it. To be here is an awesome experience."

Lewis was one of several stars at Daytona International Speedway. Rappers T.I. and 50 Cent attended NASCAR's season opener, which has Danica Patrick starting on the pole.

Oscar-nominated actor James Franco was the grand marshall and said, "Drivers and Danica, start your engines!" The Zac Brown Band played a pre-race concert in the Daytona International Speedway infield. Band member Clay Cook performed the national anthem.

Retired baseball pitcher Tom Gordon, comedian Drew Carey, and Wes Welker and Steve Spurrier also were in attendance.

Lewis called Keselowski on the eve of the 2012 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway and left him an inspirational voice message. Keselowski also often listens to Lewis' motivational speeches before races.

"I caught a glimpse of how he always watched my videos and it really inspired him," Lewis said. "That's when me and him really started having conversations with each other, and from there it just turned into a friendship. I send him motivational things, and heads-up on what I am doing, that's where the relationship has gone."

? Dan Gelston ? http://twitter.com/APgelston

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DANICA DROPS BACK: Danica Patrick made history by becoming the first woman to start from the pole in a NASCAR Cup race.

But in the beginning of the Daytona 500, she failed to pull off another landmark.

Choosing the outside spot on the front row, Patrick gave up the lead to Jeff Gordon on the very first lap, missing out on an early chance to become the first female to lead a Cup lap.

Over the first 10 laps, she settled in behind Gordon and held on to the second spot in the 43-car field.

Patrick went on the radio before the race to thank her crew for giving her such a strong car. "I'll do the best job I can to do my end of the deal today," she said. "All in all, thank you for everything. You guys are awesome."

Later, Patrick sent the huge crowd into a frenzy when she snatched the lead from Michael Waltrip on lap 90 after a series of pit stops under yellow. She led two laps before Denny Hamlin surged to the front.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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FRANCO'S AUDIBLE: "Drivers ... and Danica!!! ... start your engines."

With that unique command, actor James Franco has ordered the 43 cars to fire up for the Daytona 500.

The duty is normally carried out with the most famous words in racing: "Gentlemen, start your engines."

Of course, this year is different. Danica Patrick is the first woman to start from the pole in a Cup race, and Franco hinted beforehand that he was planning an audible. As unpredictable as ever, he passed on a chance to copy the command that was used when Patrick raced in the Indianapolis 500, "Lady and gentlemen, start your engines."

Now, it's time to go racing at Daytona.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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A HEARTY BUNCH: NASCAR FANS RETURN TO DANGER ZONE: Say this about NASCAR fans: They don't frighten easily.

One day after a harrowing crash injured dozens of fans in the stands, those same seats are filling up for the Daytona 500.

No one seems too concerned.

"These should be good seats," said Rick Barasso, as he settled into a spot that was right in the danger zone when Kyle Larson's car slammed into the catch fencing on the final lap of a Nationwide Series race Saturday. "I mean, what are the chances of it happening again?"

That seems to be the attitude of the fans heading into the Daytona 500, the season-opening Cup race and biggest event on the NASCAR schedule. Most people say it's worth the risk to sit next to the ear-rattling action ? no more than 20 feet away for those in the first row. They love to hear the engines, smell the exhaust, and feel the wind whipping in their face as 43 cars go by at nearly 200 mph.

Still, there are a few fans fretting about the location of their seats.

Raymond Gober returned to the same location where he was nearly struck by a bolt from Larson's car. He scooped up the debris as a souvenir, though he acknowledged being a little nervous about his seat on the back row of the lower level. He even considered wearing his motorcycle helmet to the 500, but figured "everybody would start laughing at me." Next year, he plans to buy an upper-level seat in the main grandstand.

"My dad called and said, 'You're sitting in the same seats? "' Gober said. "He couldn't believe it."

There are grim reminders of what happened Saturday: a bloody spot that had been washed down (not entirely, though), a tire mark on a seat, another seat that was partially bent from getting struck by that same tire.

? Paul Newberry ? http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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EDITOR'S NOTE ? "Daytona 500 Watch" shows you the Daytona 500 and events surrounding the race through the eyes of Associated Press journalists. Follow them on Twitter.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/edwards-miserable-month-continues-daytona-205035187--spt.html

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