Workstation design improvements for drone operators may reduce costs and mishaps, researchers suggest

Feb. 27, 2013 ? The U.S. Department of Defense reports that drone accidents in which personnel or aircraft are damaged or destroyed occur 50 times more often than mishaps involving human-operated aircraft. The U.S. Marines and Army reported 43 mishaps that involved human factors issues associated with drone ground control workstations and technology during 2006?2007.

Human factors/ergonomics (HF/E) researchers Qaisar Waraich, Thomas Mazzuchi, Shahram Sarkani, and David F. Rico suggest that multimillion-dollar drone losses might be prevented if long-established and broadly applied HF/E workstation design standards had been used in designing workstations used by ground controllers.

In their Ergonomics in Design article, "Minimizing Human Factors Mishaps in Unmanned Aircraft Systems," the authors propose applying long-established commercial computer workstation standards, particularly ANSI/HFES 100-2007 Human Factors Engineering of Computer Workstations, in the absence of more specific guidelines for drone ground control workstations or a federal agency that is responsible for setting workstation standards.

Waraich et al. interviewed 20 drone operators about their ground control workstations, finding up to 98% similarity between input/output devices used in ground control workstations and those used for general purposes. Therefore, results, the authors posit that standards that have been used to improve general-purpose workstations could have the same result for drone operators' workstations. The researchers included UAS designers with the U.S. Navy, systems engineering researchers from George Washington University, and engineers from top airframe manufacturers.

Application of design guidelines from ANSI/HFES 2007-100 might have prevented the awkward placement of a landing gear button and the subsequent loss of a $1.5-million drone in 2006. Similarly, had design guidelines been applied for reducing glare from a computer screen, a drone operator might not have mistakenly shut off engines midair, resulting in the loss of a $4.34 million drone.

"The application of this standard could help to ensure that operator workstation equipment and layouts have been designed with human compatibility considerations," says Waraich. "Commercial computer workstation standards provide quantitative parameters based on empirical data and well-established HF/E engineering practices."

Drones have been, and will continue to be, used in a broad range of applications, including police surveillance and natural disaster research, and ground control workstation designers can benefit from incorporating HF/E principles and standards.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/yMTGHkiqGvA/130227162018.htm

lint buenos aires train crash argentina train crash nancy pelosi nancy pelosi gop debate republican debate

Heading a soccer ball may affect cognitive performance

Feb. 27, 2013 ? Sports-related head injuries are a growing concern, and new research suggests that even less forceful actions like 'heading' a soccer ball may cause changes in performance on certain cognitive tasks, according to a paper published February 27 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Anne Sereno and colleagues from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

The researchers tested the effects of non-injurious head-to-ball impacts on cognitive function using a tablet-based app. They found that high school female soccer players were significantly slower than non-players on a task that required pointing away from a target on the screen, but showed no difference in performance when pointing to the on-screen visual target.

According to the study, tasks that involve pointing away from a target require specific voluntary responses, whereas moving toward a target is a more reflexive response. Based on their observations, the authors conclude that sub-concussive blows to the head may cause changes specifically linked to certain cognitive functions.

The authors say that the app used in their research may be a quick and effective way to screen for and track cognitive changes in athletes. They add that a tablet-based application for such quick screens may also have broader applications in the clinic or the field.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Public Library of Science.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. Marsha R. Zhang, Stuart D. Red, Angela H. Lin, Saumil S. Patel, Anne B. Sereno. Evidence of Cognitive Dysfunction after Soccer Playing with Ball Heading Using a Novel Tablet-Based Approach. PLoS ONE, 2013; 8 (2): e57364 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0057364

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/hjbndy797cY/130227183458.htm

George Bush After Christmas Sales 2012 Charles Durning Webster Ny Mcdonalds Restaurants Open on Christmas Day jessica simpson

The World Needs These Star Wars and Indiana Jones Versions of Donkey Kong

Look at these amazing Star Wars and Indiana Jones—and Batman and Sesame Street and Dr- Who...—conversions of Donkey Kong. I want to play them so badly. Unfortunately, they are not real editions of the original Nintendo's arcade, but designs by Baznet. They make for awesome t-shirts, but they would make for even more awesome videogames. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/NKJvksPniKg/the-world-needs-these-star-wars-and-indiana-jones-versions-of-donkey-kong

the lucky one pittsburgh pirates mariners mets shades of grey pittsburgh penguins record store day

Video: Working moms pan Yahoo CEO?s telecommute ban

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3041440/vp/50970692#50970692

newt gingrich wives at last al green gina carano burger king delivery etta james at last john king

A look at the deadliest hot air balloon accidents

Tuesday's crash of a hot air balloon near Egypt's ancient city of Luxor, killing 19 tourists, surpasses what ballooning experts believed to have been the deadliest accident in the sport's 200-year history, a 1989 crash in Australia that left 13 dead.

Some of the worst accidents involving recreational hot air balloons:

? Feb. 26, 2013: A hot air balloon flying over Luxor, in southern Egypt, caught fire and plunged 300 meters (1,000 feet) to the ground, crashing into a sugar cane field and killing at least 19 foreign tourists.

? Aug. 23, 2012: Six people died and 26 were injured when a hot air balloon carrying 32 people, mostly tourists including some children, caught fire and crashed near the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana.

? Jan. 07, 2012: A hot air balloon struck power lines near Carterton, New Zealand and exploded, crashing to the ground and killing all 11 people on board.

? Oct. 14, 2009: Four Dutch tourists were killed in Guangxi, China, after pilots lost control and their hot air balloon burst into flames and crashed.

? Aug. 26, 2001: Six people including a child were killed when their hot air balloon touched a power line at Verrens-Arvey, in southwestern France.

? June 17, 1999: Four passengers were killed when their hot air balloon hit a power line near Ibbenburen, Germany.

? Jan. 31, 1996: Five people died in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland when their hot air balloon crashed into a mountainside at a height of 2,400 meters (8,000 feet).

? Aug. 8, 1993: Six people were killed when their balloon hit a power line near Aspen, Colorado, tearing off the basket and sending it plunging 30 meters (100 feet) to the ground.

? Dec. 11, 1990: Four people died near downtown Columbus, Ohio, after their hot air balloon hit a television tower and deflated.

? Oct. 6, 1990: Four people were killed in a balloon crash at Gaenserndorf, near Vienna.

? Aug. 13, 1989: Thirteen people were killed when their hot air balloon collided with another over the Australian outback near the town of Alice Springs. The two balloons were flying at an altitude of 600 meters (2,000 feet) when one plunged to the ground after the collision.

? Oct. 3, 1982: An explosion on board a hot air balloon carrying 9 people at a festival in Albuquerque, New Mexico killed four people and injured five.

? Aug. 6, 1981: Five people were killed and one seriously injured when a hot air balloon caught fire after touching electrical wires and crashed in a suburb of Chicago.

? 1785: Two Frenchmen attempting to cross the English Channel in a hot-air balloon were killed when their balloon caught fire and crashed, in possibly the first fatal aviation accident.

Sources: AP reporting and news reports. Compiled by AP News Researcher Jennifer Farrar.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/look-deadliest-hot-air-balloon-accidents-174018300.html

tupac hologram tupac back tax deadline death race buffet rule carlos santana dodgers triple play

Considering a New Cell Phone? How About a PR Company? Here ...

Last August as a ?Founder? of Solavei?and Leader of the Presidential Team, before they launched to the general public on September 21, 2012, I purchased a HTC One S ? which I was told was the best Android phone on the market. ?At first I was very happy with it. ?With the Solavei cell service (using the same network at T-Mobile) I could use my new phone in places that I was not previously able to get reception with Verizon using an iPhone 4.

Before long, my HTC One S began failing me. ?I?d go to make a call and it wouldn?t work ? I had to frequently reboot the phone throughout the day just to make calls. ?Many times calls would go directly to voicemail without ringing ? and I would not get the voicemail until I had rebooted the phone. ?I?ve called HTC several times, but they said the only thing I could do is to send it in for repair ? and then I?d be without a phone for 2-3 weeks. ?That obviously won?t do.

Today I was almost forced into sending it in ? or trying to. ?After setting my alarm last night, I woke without one this morning to discover my phone was dead. ?Would not boot up, would not accept a charge. ?Nothing.

The only way I had to contact HTC was a phone number on their website ? but I had no workable phone. ?The only email address I could find was for their PR company Waggener Edstrom Worldwide right here in Bellevue. ?I promptly emailed them asking for help. ?I got the dreaded and useless automatic reply email ? that included a consumer link to contact info that did not exist. ?Later I received an email saying that the email address I had written to was reserved for ?accredited media? ? I?ve never really understood what that statement means, but do know that media has been my business for many years ? and that I have helped WagEd promote many of their clients over the years. ?(But of course, when I need help they turn their back on me).

Then after my 3rd email to them and explaining that I am ?accredited media? ? and their 3rd useless and painful automatic reply, I got the following email (notice there is no real email address or phone number in which to respond)

Hi Joe,

Thanks for reaching out. Unfortunately, this email is reserved for questions not related to customer service. Thanks for letting me know that the link in our reply does not work, have you tried this one?

Please try the above link to reach HTC customer service, and if that doesn?t work please let me know and I will do my best to escalate your request.

Thanks,

Elena

?

Elena Caldwell

Waggener Edstrom Worldwide

225 108th Avenue NE. #600

Bellevue, WA 98004 USA

www.waggeneredstrom.com

?

This email definitely was not helpful and did not make me feel any better about the problems with my HTC cell phone. ?Yes, I am looking for ?special treatment? ? I HAVE to have a working cell phone and am not happy with my HTC phone. ?I want a refund so I can buy a phone that is actually reliable ? like the great cell phone service from Solavei.

Thanks to a fellow Solavei member who answered my call for help on the Solavei dashboard, I finally found a link to call HTC on the web ? and without a phone ? which was good because I didn?t have one. ?Once I went through the waiting process the person from HTC gave me instructions on how to do a hard reboot. ?It didn?t work. ?Then she said the only thing they could do is to have me send it in for repair. ?GREAT ? so I send in the $500+ phone only to not have a phone for 2-3 weeks and then get the same crappy phone back again ? ?Only it wasn?t even that good ? she said that I will have to call back tonight because ?their system was down and they could not create a return ticket?. ?Nice.

The long and the short of it is that both HTC and Waggener Edstrom Worldwide are too big to provide even adequate service. ?This seems to be a very common occurrence these days ? but is no excuse and not acceptable. ?My vote is to avoid HTC cell phones and Waggener Edstrom public relations all together. I know I won?t ever buy another HTC product in my lifetime and won?t be hiring Waggener Edstrom any time soon either. ?You might want to consider the same.

Note: ?I will keep posting about this and letting people know about my crappy experience with HTC until they decide to buy back this really lousy (and expensive) HTC One S cell phone. ?They can email me at Joe(at)BellevueBusinessJournal.com but cannot call me because I do not have a working phone ?.

Source: http://bellevuebusinessjournal.com/2013/02/25/considering-cell-phone-how-about-pr-company-here-two-companies-avoid/

Fall Leaves Jim Lehrer 666 Park Avenue Kara Alongi Sahara Davenport Resident Evil 6 arnold schwarzenegger

Britain's top Catholic cleric resigns, won't elect new pope

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric resigned on Monday following allegations he behaved in an inappropriate way with priests, and said he would not take part in the election of Pope Benedict's replacement.

Cardinal Keith O'Brien said he had tendered his resignation some months ago, ahead of his 75th birthday in March and because he was suffering from "indifferent health".

The Vatican said the pope, who steps down on Thursday, had accepted O'Brien's resignation as archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh.

O'Brien, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage, has been reported to the Vatican over allegations of inappropriate behavior stretching back 30 years, according to Britain's Observer newspaper.

The cardinal, who last week advocated allowing Catholic priests to marry as many found it difficult to cope with celibacy, rejected the allegations and was seeking legal advice, his spokesman said.1

"Looking back over my years of ministry: For any good I have been able to do, I thank God. For any failures, I apologize to all whom I have offended," O'Brien said in a statement, which made no reference to the recent allegations.

He said he would not attend the election next month of a new pope, saying: "I do not wish media attention in Rome to be focused on me - but rather on Pope Benedict XVI and on his successor."

The Observer, which gave little detail on the claims, said three priests and a former priest, from a Scottish diocese, had complained over incidents dating back to 1980.

One said the cardinal formed an "inappropriate relationship" with him while another complained of unwanted behavior by O'Brien after a late-night drinking session.

Last year, O'Brien's comments labeling gay marriage a "grotesque subversion" landed him with a "Bigot of the Year" award from British gay rights group Stonewall.

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Michael Holden; editing by Maria Golovnina and Jon Boyle)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/britains-most-senior-roman-catholic-cleric-resigns-112040627.html

nba all star game 2012 academy awards 2012 nominations independent spirit awards 2012 jan brewer independent spirit awards 2012 oscar predictions jim jones

McCain: Obama should have Camp David budget summit

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Sen. John McCain says President Barack Obama should invite lawmakers to Camp David or the White House to hammer out a last-minute deal to avert deep budget cuts set to start taking effect at week's end.

The Arizona Republican says Obama should be talking with lawmakers instead of demonizing them over the looming across-the-board cuts in domestic and defense spending.

McCain calls the Pentagon cuts "unconscionable" and says military leaders are already warning they would be devastating.

McCain, the 2008 GOP president nominee, says it's time for Obama to show leadership and call lawmakers either to Camp David or to the White House for a budget summit.

McCain appeared on CNN's "State of the Union."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-02-24-US-Budget-Battle-McCain/id-6fefe922ab8f4d4da2b2c87a0896e01a

aaron smith wilt chamberlain joe arpaio cat in the hat green eggs and ham wiz khalifa and amber rose oh the places you ll go

Fire at SC golf course destroys up to 75 carts

Fire at SC golf course destroys up to 75 carts

By: Associated Press | CountOn2.com
Published: February 23, 2013 Updated: February 23, 2013 - 8:35 PM

A fire in a cart shed at a Bluffton golf course has destroyed as many as 75 carts, and authorities say it's the second such blaze in Beaufort County since last November.

The Beaufort Gazette reports?the fire ripped through the shed at Eagle's Pointe Golf Course Friday around 7:30 p.m.

Although the fire was under control by 8:15, firefighters had to continue spraying the ruins with flame-retardant foam because of battery acid from the carts No injuries were reported.

General manager Brent Carlson declined to comment because he hadn't spoken with authorities at Textron Financial Corp., which owns Eagle's Pointe.

Authorities said a fire in a cart shed at Bear Creek Golf Club in Hilton Head Plantation on Nov. 26 was intentionally set and destroyed 52 golf carts.

Source: http://www2.counton2.com/news/2013/feb/23/fire-sc-golf-course-destroys-75-carts-ar-5665010/

zurich classic selena lamichael james lamichael james derrick rose acl earthquake los angeles

With Kyocera, Sprint Faces None of Apple's Quality Control

Sprint will soon begin selling the rugged Kyocera Torque. A new Kyocera ad suggests there will be none of the fussiness Sprint faces from Apple.

Sprint has enlisted Bear Grylis, a chisel-cheekboned extreme adventurer, former British Special Forces agent and star of the television show "Man vs. Wild," to help promote the Kyocera Torque, a rugged Android smartphone it will begin selling March 8. The "live more, fear less" handset," as Sprint has taken to calling it, is 4G Long-Term Evolution- (LTE-) enabled, supports next-generation push-to-talk (PTT) technology, has an impact-resistant 4-inch In-Plane Switching (IPS) touch-screen and what Kyocera calls a "smart sonic receiver" that helps to make calls clear in even super-noisy environments. It can also be submerged in 3 feet of water for 30 minutes and meets military standards for surviving in temperature extremes, blowing rain, low pressure, high humidity and vibration, shock and dust. Kind of like Grylis.? It's a good phone for outdoorsy-types who subject their phones to raging rapids or muddy mountainsides, and indoorsy-types who are subjected to incredibly energetic children?again like Grylis, who is the father of three boys. What might have been a marketing home run, however, instead started a reporter remembering a comment that Sprint CEO Dan Hesse made during Sprint's Feb. 7 earnings call. "We got the iPad for the first time pretty late in the year, and of course Apple?to their credit, they protect their brand very well?but it takes some time to get advertising in the market that meets Apple's approval," said Hesse. "So we really didn't have much of a marketing quarter in the fourth quarter, with respect to tablets. We hope that will improve; we need to increase awareness out there in the marketplace that Sprint carries the iPad, and we intend to work on that in 2013," Hesse said. Translation: Apple thinks our ads stink, so we haven't been able to run anyway. One has to imagine that between Sprint and Kyocera, the green light is always on. In a video Kyocera posted to YouTube, Grylis, in an opening shot, appears to be in a dark, dripping cave. But no, time reveals that he's at an awful indoor water park with his kids?or rather, a lot of people's kids?and a lot of splashing and phone-drenching ensues. (Even the potential perk, for the over-12-year-old crowd, of Grylis in bathing trunks was undone by the wardrobe person who gave Grylis a shirt to wear in the pool.) The point, of course, is that while Grylis and the Torque can cross the Artic and scale peaks, these aren't life's only adventures. "Torque, the rugged 4G Android for your extreme and every day," said Grylis, in his appealing British accent?truly all that's appealing about the ad. There's a reason that Apple is Apple and the iPhone is the world's top-selling smartphone. Sprint and Kyocera may want to take notes. ?

Source: http://www.eweek.com/mobile/with-kyocera-sprint-faces-none-of-apples-quality-control/

instagram for android dallas news dallas fort worth dfw 1930 census nike new nfl uniforms nfl uniforms

Radioactive waste leaking from six tanks at Washington state nuclear site

SEATTLE (Reuters) ? Six underground storage tanks at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation along the Columbia River in Washington state were recently found to be leaking radioactive waste, but there is no immediate risk to human health, state and federal officials said on Friday.

Read More

Source: http://yesbuthowever.com/radioactive-waste-leaking-from-six-tanks-at-washington-state-nuclear-site/

Kenny Clutch Edward Gorey jessica chastain jessica chastain drew peterson amber rose seth macfarlane

'Parade's End' keeps British TV invasion going

This publicity image released by HBO shows Benedict Cumberbatch is shown in the five-part miniseries "Parade's End," debuting Feb. 26 on HBO. (AP Photo/HBO, Nick Briggs)

This publicity image released by HBO shows Benedict Cumberbatch is shown in the five-part miniseries "Parade's End," debuting Feb. 26 on HBO. (AP Photo/HBO, Nick Briggs)

This publicity image released by HBO shows Benedict Cumberbatch, left and Rebecca Hall are shown in the five-part miniseries "Parade's End," debuting Feb. 26 on HBO. (AP Photo/HBO, Nick Briggs)

FILE - This Sept. 4, 2012 file photo shows British playwright Tom Stoppard at the world premiere of "Anna Karenina" in London. Stoppard's latest project is a five-part miniseries, "Parade's End," premiering Tuesday, Feb. 26, on HBO. (AP Photo/Sang Tan, file)

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Tom Stoppard is sitting on the patio of a Sunset Boulevard hotel, bathed in California winter sunshine, framed by bamboo landscaping and looking very much out of his element in Hollywood.

The acclaimed British playwright professes to feeling that way as well, despite having pocketed a Writers Guild of America lifetime achievement award the night before for his screenplays, including the Oscar-winning "Shakespeare in Love."

"I was always nervous coming here. The first time I was terrified," he said. "I'm trying not to sound nauseatingly self-deprecating, but I don't think of myself as being a terrific screenwriter or even a natural screenwriter."

Combine that, he said, with the local entertainment industry's perception that "I'm some different kind of animal," a high-minded artist to whom the words "intellectual" and "philosophy" are freely applied.

But if Hollywood can be forgiven anything, it should be that. Stoppard has created a remarkable wealth of two dozen-plus plays, including "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead," ''Travesties" and "The Real Thing," and he's counting on more.

He looks like a proper man of letters, with unkempt gray hair, a comfortably unstylish cardigan and a delicately shaped mouth that hesitates, slightly, before dispensing exacting thoughts on the art of writing (without pretension: he relishes a snippet of "Ghostbusters" dialogue.)

Stoppard also is the master behind "Parade's End," a five-part HBO miniseries (airing Tuesday through Thursday, 9 p.m. EST) that was lauded by U.K. critics as "the thinking man's 'Downton Abbey'" after its BBC airing.

Adapted by Stoppard from a series of novels by British writer Ford Madox Ford, "Parade's End" features rising stars Benedict Cumberbatch ("Sherlock Holmes" and the upcoming "Star Trek" movie) and Rebecca Hall ("Vicky Cristina Barcelona") in the juiciest of roles.

Like PBS' "Downton Abbey," it's set in the early 20th century among aristocrats and encompasses World War I's shattering effect on the social order. Romance is provided by the triangle of Cumberbatch's tradition-bound Christopher, his unfaithful wife, Sylvia (Hall), and a suffragette (Australian newcomer Adelaide Clemens). The uniformly impressive cast includes Janet McTeer, Miranda Richardson, Roger Allam and Rupert Everett.

Stoppard rejects the oft-made comparison to PBS' "Downton" as unfair to it and its writer-creator, Julian Fellowes: "I was embarrassed by it because it's so condescending of Julian's work. He's a good writer and he's done a superlative job," he said. It's also a misguided comparison because "Downton" is heading toward season four and "Parade's End" is "five episodes and that's it, forever."

The self-effacing Stoppard leaves it at that. But there's a wider gap between the two: "Downton" is an easy-to-digest soap opera, while "Parade's End" is a challenging, nuanced view of a slice of British society and a set of singular characters, all dressed to the nines in the heady language of literature.

"There's a wonderful richness to the language and a beauty, which I think is the brilliance of Tom Stoppard, and also this very beautiful language of Ford Madox Ford," said director Susanna White.

The heedless, acid-tongued Sylvia has dialogue to relish, something Stoppard cannot resist.

"The line I like best comes straight from Ford: (the public) likes 'a whiff of sex coming off our crowd, like the steam on the water in the crocodile house at the zoo,'" he said, adding gleefully, "What a line!"

Although careful to credit the novelist with that particular zinger, Stoppard said "Parade's End" is the first adaptation in which his dialogue and that from the original text have become intertwined in his memory.

He attributes that to the year he spent forming Ford's intricate novels into a screenplay, often crafting original scenes, and the several more years he spent helping bring the series to fruition with the producers and White ("Generation Kill").

"It's the closest thing to writing a play which isn't a play that I have ever been involved with," he said.

The stage has been the Czech-born Stoppard's chief occupation since leaving journalism in his 20s. But he's made a number of detours into film, either as a screenwriter or a behind-the-scenes script doctor. His latest big-screen project is the adaptation of "Anna Karenina" with Keira Knightley.

Stoppard's insistence that he isn't an outstanding scriptwriter stems, in part, from his reticence. Then there's what he calls the differing "schools of eloquence" represented by film and plays.

"I envy and admire movies which are eloquent without recourse to long speeches," he said, citing several lines to illustrate his point. One comes from "The Fugitive" ("I don't care," Tommy Lee Jones says after Harrison Ford insists he didn't kill his wife), another from "Ghostbusters."

Bill Murray is confronted by "this kind of Amazonian ghost goddess, spooky thing, and he goes, 'This chick is toast,'" Stoppard said, with a delighted smile.

"It's the sense that precisely the right words have been uttered," he explained.

That's how fellow scribes feel about him. One L.A. film and TV writer said she regularly rereads the famed cricket-bat speech from "The Real Thing," about the challenge of writing, for joy and inspiration: "If you get it right," the character Henry says, "the cricket ball will travel two hundred yards in four seconds, and all you've done is give it a knock like knocking the top off a bottle of stout, and it makes a noise like a trout taking a fly. What we're trying to do is to write cricket bats, so that when we throw up an idea and give it a little knock, it might travel."

For now, the right words for Stoppard would be those of a new play, the first since "Rock 'n' Roll" from seven years ago. He has no regrets about immersing himself in "Parade's End," but is ready for the solitude needed to find the right story for the stage.

He used to steal away to a house in France until the air travel became too much. Now he makes do with a "small, shabby cottage an hour-and-a-half from London, which in theory is supposed to be my French house. But it's not far enough away" to evade commitments, social and otherwise. ("I'm Mr. Available," he laments.)

It's welcome assurance to hear the guild lifetime award he received Feb. 17 doesn't signal a halt for Stoppard. It did pull him up short, at least briefly.

"I was quite surprised. Though I am 75, so I shouldn't be surprised. But I haven't thought of stopping yet."

___

Online:

http://www.hbo.com

___

Lynn Elber is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. She can be reached at lelber(at)ap.org and on Twitter (at)lynnelber.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-02-22-TV-Parade's%20End-Stoppard/id-75524a682eb24d8b98c5b3c00f753e00

The Americans bank of america online banking Adairsville Ga ashley judd Alois Bell Donna Savattere deer antler spray

Boehner Idle as GOP Calls for Select Committees on Benghazi

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have suggested the formation of select committees since November 2012, one month after the assault which killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other State Department employees. Such select committees could provide a channel for Benghazi survivors to come forward and tell their stories to Congress?without legal repercussions from the federal government.

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told USA Today on Wednesday, "I want to know who the survivors are and for the appropriate committees to interview them." He explained further, "We know it was clear from the beginning it was a terrorist attack. I want to know what kind of help they asked for."

Graham, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Senator John McCain (R-AZ), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), a member of the armed services committee, all called for a joint select committee to investigate Benghazi in November. The South Carolina Senator is threatening to hold up the nomination of CIA pick John Brennan if the White House will not release more information on the attack.

Both Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), along with other Democrats,?rebuffed the idea of a joint select committee to investigate the Benghazi attack.

?At this point, I think that the standing committees of the House, whether they be the (State Department) oversight committee or the intelligence committee, are working diligently on these issues,? Boehner said shortly after his Senate colleagues floated the idea in November.

The GOP senators were not the only ones blown off by Republican leadership on the House side to create a select committee to study the deadly Benghazi attack. In November, Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA), a member of the House Appropriations Committee, called for a select committee to investigate the attack.

According to Wolf?s November press release, the congressman ?reminded Speaker Boehner of a September 25 letter to President Obama signed by eight House members requesting more information about the attack and the administration?s response.?

Speaker Boehner did not heed Wolf?s call for a select committee in the last Congress. In late January, Wolf refiled the resolution to establish a House Select Committee to investigate the Benghazi attack. Boehner has yet to comment or act upon the resolution.

Breitbart News sent an inquiry to Speaker Boehner's office on Thursday afternoon that has gone unanswered.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BreitbartFeed/~3/K3BR0rpbelg/Boehner-Ignores-Republican-Lawmakers-Call-For-Select-Committees-on-Benghazi

elizabeth banks battle royale key largo arnold palmer invitational ryan madson louisiana primary syracuse basketball

COLLEGES: Brockton?s Naomi Woodcock headed back to NCAA swimming championships

In the first meet of her college swimming career, Naomi Woodcock was part of two winning relay teams.

The Brockton resident was a freshman at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, N.Y., on Oct. 17, 2009 when she helped the Golden Knights win the 300 and 850 races at the Hartwick Relays.

That performance marked the start of a successful career put together by Woodcock, now a senior who will conclude her run by competing at the NCAA Div. 2 Championships for a second consecutive year.

Woodcock, a 2009 Brockton High School graduate, was a consistent point producer and a record-setting swimmer at Saint Rose, and now she is wrapping it all up at the national meet.

?I think it?ll be bittersweet,?? said Woodcock as the end of her days as a competitive swimmer nears. ?I had just a great career, so I can walk away satisfied and happy.

?But I?ll be sad, too, because it was such a big part of my life. It?s not going to be there anymore.??

Woodcock will be taking part in the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke races at the NCAA Championships, to be held in Birmingham, Ala., March 6-9, after winning both of those events at the Northeast-10 Conference Championships.

She is ranked 10th in the nation in the 100 with a school-record time of 1:04.17 and 24th in the country in the 200 (2:21.32).

A year ago, Woodcock traveled to Mansfield, Texas, where she placed 17th in the 100 (in what was a school record 1:04.79) and 27th in the 200 (2:24.67). Woodcock was just the second female swimmer at Saint Rose to qualify for the NCAAs.

?When I was there, I was overwhelmed at first, but I didn?t let it get to my head because I knew I belonged there,?? said Woodcock. ?But when I originally walked in there, I was like, ?Wow, this is really amazing.?

?It?s such a great experience. I got to do it last year and I want to finish strong. One last time (is going) to be great.??

Woodcock arrived at Saint Rose following four solid seasons at Brockton High where she set the 100 breaststroke record and competed in the state championships.

As a college freshman, Woodcock was in the top five 15 times and won three events, then had 18 top-five finishes and five victories as a sophomore.

Woodcock made significant improvement in her junior year, getting 10 wins and 23 top-five finishes, and was second in the 100 and 200 at the NE-10 meet.

?Every year she?s improved to above and beyond what I thought she could do,?? said Golden Knights coach Keith Murray. ?At the time she came here, she was a decent swimmer. She was going to be one of the top point scorers.

?I knew she?d be one of our best swimmers, but I didn?t think she?d bring it to the next level like that. She had some experience with swimming, but not a lot like the others who swim for years and years in clubs. She was still fresh to the sport.??

Woodcock, who began swimming at the age of 9 at the Brockton YMCA, kept improving this season, finishing first or second in breaststroke events 11 times.

?I definitely wasn?t expecting be a national swimmer,?? she said. ?I?ve dropped so much time. I really wasn?t expecting it. I put my time in, worked really hard and it paid off.??

Said Murray: ?After her first two years, you could see something was there. Athletes have this certain drive when it comes to racing and competition and there?s nothing I can do as a coach to teach that. Some people just have that innate will to race, to win. Naomi, by far, has that. She loves to race.??

In addition to her success in the pool, Woodcock is a top student majoring in biology. She begins a three-year stay at Sage College in Troy, N.Y., in May to pursue a postgraduate degree in physical therapy.

?It can be demanding, but you need time management and keeping calm about it, not getting crazy about it,?? she said of combining academics and athletics. ?Everything in balance can work out.??

Source: http://www.tauntongazette.com/sports/x694775435/Brockton-s-Naomi-Woodcock-headed-back-to-NCAA-swimming-championships?rssfeed=true

lent la times nerlens noel Mark Balelo Real Madrid Vs Manchester United Anne Stringfield KTLA

LaBeouf launches Twitter rant after exit from ?Orphans?

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

LaBeouf arrives at the ?Lawless? premiere last August.

First you leave, then you tweet.

Hours after Shia LaBeouf's sudden exit from the Broadway production of the play "Orphans" was announced, the hot-headed "Transformers" star started a Twitter rant revealing his short tenure at the show was even more troubled than originally rumored.

Posting personal emails from co-stars Alec Baldwin and Tom Sturridge along with playwright Lyle Kessler and director Daniel Sullivan, the 26-year-old actor outed a production in turmoil -- as well as his own inner demons.

"A man can tell you he?s wrong...he can apologize, even if sometimes its just to put an end to the bickering,? wrote LaBeouf in one email to his director. ?Alec, I?m sorry for my part of a disagreeable situation.?

It turned out whole swathes of his email were taken verbatIm and uncredited from a 2009 Esquire essay by Tom Chiarella, Gawker reported.

In response to the email from his resigning star, Sullivan fired back, ?I'm too old for disagreeable situations. you're one hell of a great actor. Alec is who he is. you are who you are. you two are incompatible. I should have known it. this one will haunt me. you tried to warn me. you said you were a different breed. I didn't get it. Dan?

LaBeouf went on to post a series of bizarre tweets about the nature of acting:

LaBeouf quit his role as a wayward older brother from North Philly in ?Orphans? less than a month before it was to open. Less than 24 hours after the official word came that he was out of the show, producers announced that Ben Foster, who had auditioned for ?Orphans? but passed over for LaBeouf, was in. The role marks Foster?s Broadway debut.

Producers cited ?creative differences? as the reason for LaBeouf?s departure, but a source told the News it was really caused by his difficult behavior and refusal to take direction.

LaBeouf has a long track record of bad behavior: he was arrested for trespassing in 2007, lost his driver?s license for a year in 2008 and had been in two bar fights and punched a photographer.

?It was just not working out,? a show insider said. ?It is a disaster. This is a massive disaster. They just lost a third of the cast. This was the best solution for what went down.?

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/nydnrss/gossip/~3/V8Wok5urvB8/story01.htm

dexter ny times paul mccartney Sandy Hook Victims new york times columbine breaking news

Storm promises messy, dangerous commute in Midwest

Trucker Ray Jersey of St. Louis exercises his dog Samson at a truck stop as snow falls in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. Ray Jersey opted to wait the snow storm out as much of the nation's heartland is experiencing heavy snow, treacherous roads and a day off from work or school as a large, potentially dangerous winter storm pushed eastward out of the Rockies. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Trucker Ray Jersey of St. Louis exercises his dog Samson at a truck stop as snow falls in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. Ray Jersey opted to wait the snow storm out as much of the nation's heartland is experiencing heavy snow, treacherous roads and a day off from work or school as a large, potentially dangerous winter storm pushed eastward out of the Rockies. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Kamika Ralstin,left, Sarah Blakley, back, and Claudia Huerta sled down the slope of the South Van Buren overpass Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013, in Enid, Okla. Temperatures dropped into the upper 20s, as an upper level winter storm produced lightning, heavy rain, freezing rain, snow and thunder sleet, closing schools and colleges across Enid and most of Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Enid News and Eagle, Bonnie Vculek)

Two men help push a car down a snow-covered street Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013, in St. Louis. Blinding snow bombarded much of the nation's midsection Thursday, causing whiteout conditions, making major roadways all but impassable and shutting down schools and state legislatures. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Emergency crews work to get a van out from the snow packed shoulder of I-70, Thursday afternoon Feb. 21, 2013 in Topeka, Kan. Kansas was the epicenter of the winter storm, with parts of the state buried under 14 inches of powdery snow, but winter storm warnings stretched from eastern Colorado through Illinois.(AP Photo/The Topeka Capital Journal, Chris Neal)

Braden Center jumps his sled over a mound of snow on Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013 in Wichita. Kan. Parts of Kansas have received over a foot of snow since a strong winter storm moved through the area. (AP Photo/The Wichita Eagle, Travis Heying)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) ? A major snowstorm that shuttered airports in Missouri, stranded truckers in Illinois and buried parts of Kansas in knee-deep powder was promising a messy and possibly dangerous commute Friday morning as it crawled northeast.

Wind gusts of 30 mph were expected to churn-up snow that fell overnight in southern Wisconsin, where forecasters were warning Milwaukee-area residents of slick roads and reduced visibility. The same was expected in northeast Iowa, where residents could wake up to as much as 7 inches of new snow, while nearly 200 snowplows were deployed overnight in Chicago.

At a Travel Centers of America truck stop in the central Illinois city of Effingham, all of the 137 parking spaces were filled by truckers unwilling to drive through the storm overnight.

"When it gets really bad, they like to camp out," cashier Tia Schneider said Thursday night, noting that some drivers called ahead. "They can make reservations from 500 miles away to make sure a space is available."

The storm system swirled to the north and east late Thursday, its snow, sleet and freezing rain prompting winter storm across the region ? and leaving some impressive snow accumulations.

Northern Oklahoma got more than 13 inches of snow, while up to 10 inches fell in the Kansas City, Mo., area. In Kansas, 17 inches of snow fell in Hays and several other cities got nearly that amount. Farther east in Topeka, 3 inches of snow fell in only 30 minutes, leaving medical center worker Jennifer Carlock dreading her drive home from work.

"It came on fast," Carlock said as she shoveled around her car late Thursday. "We're going to test out traction control on the way home."

Numerous accidents and two deaths were being blamed on the icy, slushy roadways.

State legislatures shut down in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Most schools were closed in Kansas and Missouri, and many in neighboring states.

That included the University of Missouri, where classes were canceled for one of the few times in its 174-year history. At a nearby WalMart, students made a beeline for the aisles containing sleds and alcohol.

"This isn't our usual Thursday noon routine," Lauren Ottenger, a senior economics major from Denver, said as she stockpiled supplies.

All flights at Kansas City International Airport were canceled for Thursday night, and officials said they'd prepare to reopen Friday morning. On the other side of the state in St. Louis, more than 320 flights at Lambert Airport were canceled.

Transportation officials in the affected states urged people to stay home.

"If you don't have to get out, just really, please, don't do it," Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback said. Interstate 70 through Kansas was snow-packed, and a 200-mile stretch between Salina and Colby was closed. The Kansas National Guard had 12 teams patrolling three state highways in Humvees to rescue motorists stranded by the storm.

For those who needed to drive, it's wasn't a fun commute.

Richard Monroe, a technology manager and marketing representative for the Missouri State University bookstore, said he arrived with eight of his colleagues in Kansas City, Mo., on Wednesday for a conference. He said a shuttle bus taking them on what should have been a five-minute trip got stuck in the snow, then ran into a truck. The vehicle was incapacitated for nearly two hours.

"We saw today that Kansas City is just shut down. I've never seen a big city like this where nothing is moving," the 27-year-old said.

Others people came down with cabin fever, including Jennifer McCoy of Wichita, Kan. She loaded her nine children ? ages 6 months to 16 years ? into a van for lunch at Applebee's.

"I was going crazy, they were so whiny," McCoy said.

Heavy, blowing snow caused scores of businesses in Iowa and Nebraska to close early, including two malls in Omaha, Neb. Mardi Miller, manager of Dillard's department store in Oakview Mall, said most employees were gone by 4 p.m., with "only two customers are in the entire store."

The storm brought some relief to a region that has been dealing with its worst drought in decades.

Vance Ehmke, a wheat farmer near Healy, Kan., said the nearly foot of snow was "what we have been praying for." Climatologists say 12 inches of snow is equivalent to about 1 inch of rain, depending on the density of the snow.

Near Edwardsville in Illinois, farmer Mike Campbell called the precipitation a blessing after a bone-dry growing season in 2012. He hopes it is a good omen for the spring, noting that last year, "the corn was just a disaster."

Areas in the Texas Panhandle also had up to 8 inches of snow, and in south central Nebraska, Grand Island reported 10 inches of snow. Arkansas saw a mix of precipitation ? a combination of hail, sleet and freezing rain in some place, 6 inches of snow in others.

___

Associated Press writers Alan Scher Zagier in Columbia, Mo.; Bill Draper and Margaret Stafford in Kansas City, Mo.; Margery Beck in Omaha, Neb.; John Hanna in Topeka, Kan.; Roxana Hegeman in Wichita, Kan.; Catherine Lucey in Des Moines, Iowa; Tim Talley in Oklahoma City; Chuck Bartels in Little Rock, Ark.; Jim Suhr and Jim Salter in St. Louis; and Erin Gartner and Herbert G. McCann in Chicago contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-02-22-US-Winter-Storm/id-466c2700d58949b6b3d12a7c2068bd46

solar storms uganda the parent trap invisible children kony 2012 space weather sunspots pac 12 tournament

NBA trade deadline; Twitter comma fail and a table tennis trick shot

NBA trade deadline; Twitter comma fail and a table tennis trick shot

By Josh Furlong

February 21st, 2013 @ 12:16pm

SALT LAKE CITY ? Will they or won't they? That's all Utah Jazz fans will be wondering for most of Thursday.

Every season, it seems talking about the rumors are more fun than them actually taking place (or not for that matter). However, in Jazz history, when has there ever been a major trade that means something to the average fan?

Two trades immediately come to my mind. In recent memory, the Jazz trading their all-star point guard Deron Williams (you may have heard of him) to the New Jersey Nets sent shock waves through the state. The initial take was that then-General Manager Kevin O'Connor was throwing away the team. Who really trades away an all-star point guard anyway?

However, the trade netted then-rookie Derrick Favors and the draft rights to Enes Kanter and Alec Burks. All three have the potential to be the future for the Jazz. Not a bad trade in hindsight.

The second trade came in the mid-90s when the Jazz traded Jeff Malone for shooting guard Jeff Hornacek. The trade is arguably one of the biggest moves the Jazz have made because he was instrumental in helping the Jazz reach the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998 against the Chicago Bulls. And while we're at it, Michael Jordan did push off, but that's a moot point now.

The Jazz need a point guard, but is now the time to make that move? Trade rumors have been reported on ksl.com and other sites saying the Jazz are in discussion with the Los Angeles Clippers to trade Paul Millsap for Eric Bledsoe, but how likely is the rumor to be true? I'm sure the Jazz have talked about it, but I doubt the Jazz will actually pull the trigger and make the trade.

Do you break up team chemistry and hope to get the No. 4 spot in the playoffs, or wait until the offseason to make some moves and stay in the lower end of the playoff picture? I'm guessing the Jazz will take the latter option, but we'll know soon enough.

#Commasforclicks

Undoubtedly, Wisconsin Badgers head coach Gary Andersen is gearing up for the start of spring practice; however, I don't think his plans involve hurting any Badgers fans ? at least not on purpose.

On Wednesday, someone from the Badgers' staff tweeted out what was meant to be a harmless tweet about spring practices coming up. "If you've got some time to kill #Badgers fans, check out our updated Football video playlist on YouTube."

As was quickly pointed out to the staff, the tweet failed to include a comma and completely changed the meaning of the tweet. Fortunately, the individual who sent out the initial tweet could have fun with it, tweeting later, "And please, if you're going to RT our #CommaFail, have the decency to include the YouTube link. #commasforclicks."

Table tennis trick shot

Yes, I'm writing to show you a table tennis trick shot. Honestly, it wouldn't take a lot to be a trick shot when playing against me, but for a professional, it's hard to be stunned by an opponent's shot.

At last weekend's Kuwait Open, France's Quentin Robinot pulled off an impressive shot that left Belarus's Kiryl Barabanov stunned. Barabanov stood there for a while dazed, but then congratulated Robinot on the shot.

Many could easily react differently in that situation, but at least Barabanov recognized the great shot and gave credit where credit was due.

Josh Furlong, ksl.com Managing Editor

Josh Furlong is the Managing Editor for ksl.com, writer and manager of the Statecraft: Government & Politics section on ksl.com.

?

Source: http://www.ksl.com/?sid=24151817&nid=294&s_cid=rss-extlink

Jessica Ennis Aliya Mustafina Kirk Urso London 2012 Javelin roger federer Olga Korbut Usain Bolt 2012 Olympics

Lindsay Lohan Borrows $1,700 Dress, Returns it in Tatters

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/02/lindsay-lohan-borrows-$1-700-dress-returns-it-in-tatters/

happy holidays Stores Open On Christmas Day Santa Claus Feliz Navidad Netflix down Ryan Freel Melissa Nelson

Two realtors for two different areas? - Zillow Real Estate Advice

I think you are ok. I'd tell both you are looking at other areas to decide where you wish to be and that you will use one for their area and the other for the other. If ones gives you the "I can do both" and whines about it, then find another. I have had the same thing happen when someone is looking at two different towns and deciding which to buy into. If they are not in the same MLS system it makes it easier, if they are the same system it's harder. Where the problem comes in is when I showed you a house on this side of the street and the other agent showed you one on that side of the street and you use them to buy the one I showed you.

Source: http://www.zillow.com/advice-thread/Two-realtors-for-two-different-areas/479460/

baylor april 9 albatross louis oosthuizen phil mickelson 10 year old gives birth c. difficile

Save the Date: Youth Villages Soup Sunday is This Weekend

This Sunday, more than 50 restaurants will circle the FedExForum concourse and serve little containers of their signature soups, breads and desserts as part of the annual Youth Villages Soup Sunday.

It takes more than 300 volunteers to pull of the Soup Sunday, which benefits Youth Villages. On average, each participating restaurant will serve 30 gallons of soup to more than 2,500 people during the three hour event.

Here are a few tips for making the most of this year's Soup Sunday:

- After your load up on soup, go outside to the new Food Truck Tent to try samples from Rock'n'Dough Pizza, Yolo, Memphis Munchies and Central Barbecue.

- Purchase tickets to the VIP Souper Party, which is held upstairs in the Forum's swanky Opus lounge. For $75 (or $60 in advance online), you get access to specialty items from some of Memphis' finest restaurants (Andrew Michael, Sweet Grass, Felicia Suzannes, etc.) and adult beverages.

- If you really want to go all out, get the Suites in the Suite ticket. It's $100 per person in advance (or $125 at the door), and it gets you into the regular Soup Sunday festivities, into the Souper Party, and a special cocktail and chocolates tasting.

Phillip Rix (owner of Phillip Ashley chocolates) is bringing samples of his Pritchard's Distillery Collection, a set of pretty hand-painted chocolates made with Tennessee bourbon and rum. Mixologist Michael Hughes (from Joe's Liquor) will serve custom cocktails to complement the chocolates. While you sample, Rix and Hughes will tell you about their crafts and how to pair chocolates with alcohol. If you're interested, go ahead and buy your ticket today ? the tastings are almost sold out.

- Your Soup Sunday ticket also gets you free basketball tickets. At 2 p.m., head into the arena to watch the University of Memphis women's basketabll team put the hurt on the Lady Miners of UTEP.

- Don't limit yourself. When you get into Soup Sunday, you'll be given a fast food-style carboard drink holder to carry your soups. If you're serious, you'll follow the example of one guy at last year's event and bring your own muffin tin.?

- To avoid crazy lines, figure out which way traffic is moving around the building and go the opposite direction. I know that if everybody does this, it won't work, but hey, you can try it.

Go there:

What: Youth Villages Soup Sunday

Where: FedExForum

When: Sunday, Feb. 23, 11 a.m. ? 2 p.m.

How much?: $10 kids, $25 adults for Soup Sunday, $60 (advance) / $75 (door) for the VIP Souper Party and Soup Sunday, and $125 for Sweets in the Suite, the VIP Party and Soup Sunday. Buy tickets online.

For more info: Youth Villages Soup Sunday

Source: http://ilovememphisblog.com/2013/02/save-the-date-youth-villages-soup-sunday-is-this-weekend/

Felix Baumgartner Little Nemo gawker earthquake today earthquake today Romney Bosses Day 2012

Believe It or Not, The PlayStation 2 Is Getting More Expensive in Japan

Something is only worth what people will pay for it. And these days, they'll pay more for a PlayStation 2 in Japan. Capitalism!

The SCPH-90000 is the final edition of the PlayStation 2. It's the super slim console that Sony launched in 2007 in Japan for ?16,000 (US$170 in today's money) .

This past December, however, Sony stopped shipping the PlayStation 2 domestically in Japan. Last month, it was confirmed that Sony ceased PS2 production worldwide, ending an impressive run that began on March 4, 2000 when the console launched in Japan. Sony sold over 150 million units globally, making it the biggest-selling home game console ever.

Anyhoo, Japanese site IT Media points out that the PS2's market value has been increasing over the past few months. This doesn't mean Sony has raised the price (it hasn't). Rather, it means that retailers are charging more for whatever remaining PS2 consoles they have in stock.

Market value site Kakaku.com tracks the PS2 as spiking from an average price of ?20,000 ($213) late last year. For most of this year, the PS2 has been priced on average at around ?30,000, which is $320. (Keep in mind, the manufacturer's suggested retail price is still ?16,000!) On January 11, it even spiked to nearly ?40,000 ($426), before dropping back down to the ?30,000 ($320) neighborhood. Around that same time, Sony confirmed that it was ceasing PS2 production worldwide.

If you have a new SCPH-90000 series PS2, keep it in its box. Don't open it. Don't play it. That console is now a collector's item.

PS2?????????????? [IT Media]

---

Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

Source: http://kotaku.com/5985252/believe-it-or-not-the-playstation-2-is-getting-more-expensive-in-japan

jon jones chuck colson death meteor showers 2012 ufc 145 jones vs evans marian hossa philip humber

Video: Sideshow: Alan Simpson wants you to read his damn report

>>> back to "hardball" now to the "sideshow." first david letterman brought on washington's birthday or president's day as a lot of people call it by showing us what happens when you send an abe lincoln look houst-alike to the streets of new york city. what you don't want to hear from a guy dressed like lincoln .

>> number ten.

>> how about you and i form a more perfect union?

>> number eight?

>> daniel day -lewis wishes he looked this good.

>> that's right. number seven.

>> is it true bloomberg outlawed hats over 16 ounces?

>> number five?

>> does the $5 bill make me look fat?

>> number four.

>> wow, i thought my clothing was outdated.

>> number two.

>> hey, where is my idiot son, abraham wmpl lincoln ?

>> and the number one thing you don't want to hear from a guy dressed as abraham lincoln .

>> hey, jackass, are you going to thank me for the day off?

>> i say number two takes the cake. where is w.?

>>> as we talked about earlier we're down to the wire when it comes to avoiding big chops in government spending so alan simpson wants to know why the deficit reduction plan he put together with erskine bowles wasn't carried out.

>> i say to people before you, you know, begin to drool at the mouth and go crazy and scratch our eyeballs out, read the damn report. people say, what are you doing to the vulnerable? i say read it. we don't do anything to people on ssi. we don't do anything with food stamp . we don't do anything with people on unemployment. get your -- use your bean instead of listening to crap all day long from the right and the left.

>> that's actually pretty tame compared to some other things he said about the folks involved in deficit reduction talks.

>> if you have -- if you're a politician and get up and say i know we're going to get this done, get rid of all earmarks, all waste fraud and abuse, all foreign aid , air force one, all kngsal pensions, that's a sparrow belch in the midst of a typhoon. quit the phoniness, a lot of blood hair and eyeballs have to lay on the floor. quit the hypocrisy. quit the disgust. quit embarrassing america. this is a suicide mission . we'll get it from all sides, the right, the left. everybody knows you don't like each other and you're trying to pretend you do. give up the pettiness. go see the movie lincoln .

>> go see the movie lincoln . that last bit of advice makes sense. before you can do something grand you need to know what grand looks like. i think simpson is playing an important part in pointing to what's possible in dealing with the debt crisis.

>>> up next, former south carolina governor mark sanford is back. he fell hard after being caught having an extramarital affair. now he's seeking the daddy of all political comebacks. he's running for the congress, and that's ahead, and you're watching "hardball," the place for politics.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/hardball/50862214/

Paula Broadwell Photos Veterans Day 2012 Nate Silver stock market stock market Obama Acceptance Speech 2012 dow jones

Light and Lean: Low Calorie Steak Stacks

?

I am posting from a very beautiful and sunny Cape Town today!? You Capetonians are just so very lucky as your evenings are lovely and cool offering one a welcome respite from hot days!? So far, my days have been spent sorting out Daniele?s flat.? My goodness, six black bags of old clothes and counting!? We have been working out in the gym EVERY morning and feeling rather proud of ourselves.? Meals have been light and lean and I have only exceeded my daily Calorie allowance once, by a tiny margin.? Mexican food is lethal, and I paid for my indulgence with buckets of sweat ???..

Today?s post is a steak stack.? It?s really important to vary your diet when trying to lose kilo?s as it prevents your body from getting into a routine.? Our bodies are really clever; cut out carbs completely and eventually your body will munch away on your muscle in order to feed itself, so variety and a balanced diet, not excluding any food group (except chocolate) is vital.

I haven?t weighed myself in Cape Town and I don?t intend doing so!? I can?t take the chance that the scale at Virgin Active here is not the same as my scale at home in Durban!? What if it tells me I have put on weight!? Na-ahhhhhh ???. Not taking any chances!

I am really beginning to enjoy going to the gym and have started to up the resistance levels on all three machines.? I cycle, row and walk on the treadmill.? I am currently doing 20 minutes on the treadmill and bicycle and 10 minutes on that infernal rowing machine.? Apart from the obvious fitness that this is giving me, I get extra calories for each activity!? There is method to my madness!? I get 287 calories for the treadmill, 223 calories for the bicycle and 111 calories for the rowing; add this to my 1738 calories for the day and BINGO I have a total of 2259 calories a day.? I am sticking to the 1738 so I hope to reach my target earlier!

We were invited to lunch last Sunday at the iconic Brass Bell in Vis Hoek!? This gave me an opportunity to have a look around the book shops in Kalk Bay and I struck gold!? As I entered the shop, ding a little bell on the door peeled a little happy ?welcome jingle? and my mind flushed with excitement and anticipation.? The promise of all that information standing to attention in each and every book just waiting to be read never fails to quicken my pulse.? A deep breath to drink in the smell of a thousand years and I was off.

The shop keeper or perhaps one should call him a ?librarian? could have jumped straight off the pages of a Dickensian novel.? Kind eyes with gold frames, kind face sitting on a bow tie plinth; he led me to the cookery book section with an apology that most of their cookery books were at a market in Kirstenbosch that day.? Such information never deters me as I always believe that fate will provide; and provide she did.

I will go for most antique cookery books if they pique my interest, but one that has a South African reference I simply cannot resist.? To find two of Hildagonda Duckitt?s books in one fell swoop rivals Napoleon?s victory at Waterloo in my world.? I am not going to expand on the life and times of one of South Africa?s first kitchen doyenne today.? This lady is worthy of an entire week of blog posts if not more and at the very least a visit to Groote Poste, the beloved homestead where she spent her formative years in South Africa.

Ok ? so I am not in Cape Town anymore so I am actually posting this from my study in Durban.?? I flew back to Durban early as I couldn?t get accommodation in any timeshare spots for the week during which our flat was to be decorated.? So I ran back home to be with TrickyRicky on Valentines Day, who drove all the way home to Durban from a business trip to Mozambique, walked through the door and collapsed in an exhausted heap!? Oh well!? Poor Daniele will have to live in the flat during the renovations, moving into the lounge for a week while they sort his bedroom out and then moving into his bedroom while they sort the loung out!

C?est la vie!

BUT ? drum roll please!? I lost 2kg?s during my stay in Cape Town ?. I think I left them at Virgin Active in Sea Point!

Yeeeeeeeeeeee-haaaaaaaaaa!!!!

Light & Lean Steak Stacks

I found one of these stacks with a cup of steamed broccoli and butternut enough for me for a dinner.? TrickyRicky had two and was happy.

Ingredients

1 x 150g fillet medallions (251 calories)

Large mushrooms approx. 60g each (15 calories)

Large red onions halved (50 calories per half)

Large beef tomatoes (17 calories per half)

30ml olive oil (240 calories)

2tsp finely chopped garlic (8 calories)

Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper

10ml dried oregano

1 sprig of fresh rosemary

Method

Preheat your oven to 180degrees.

Peel the onions and cut in half; wash the tomatoes and cut in half.? Place the onion and tomato halves on a baking tray.? Spray with a little olive oil, season with salt and pepper and top with garlic and a sprinkle of oregano on the tomatoes and a few leaves of rosemary on top of the onion.? Roast for 30 ? 40 minutes at 180d.

Dust off the mushrooms and remove the woody stalk from the centre of each mushroom, place on a baking tray and season well with salt and pepper.? Sprinkle each mushroom with some chopped garlic and a tiny little drizzle of olive oil or a spritz of olive oil.? I have an olive oil in a spray bottle ? which is totally fantastic as it allows you to just spritz the mushrooms with olive oil which saves on carbs!

Place into the oven and bake for 10 ? 15 minutes.? Don?t cook the living bijeevers out of your mushrooms.? Ten minutes is enough time to cook the garlic but still have juicy mushrooms.? Remove from the oven and set aside.

Pat your pieces of beef fillet dry with some paper towel, rub or spray a little olive oil on both sides of each piece.

Heat your griller pan to smoking hot and place your steaks in the pan.? Fillet should only be turned once in the pan, as soon as the meat lets go of the pan turn it over.? I like my steak rare so once the other side has sealed and let go of the pan I remove it and let it rest, TrickyRicky likes his steak medium rare, so I let his cook for another 2 ? 3 minutes.? ALWAYS allow your meat to rest before eating it.? Resting meat allows the juices to even out in the steak and the fibres relax resulting in a nice tender piece of meat.

I served these stacks with 150g of steamed broccoli dressed with a squeeze of lemon juice and seasoned with salt and freshly cracked black pepper.? (44 calories)

My dinner ? one mushroom & tomato Stack 325 calories + 1 cup brocolli 44 calories = 369 calories

TrickyRicky?s dinner ? one mushroom & tomato stack 325 calories + one mushroom & onion stack 356 calories + 1 cup brocolli = 769 calories

Next post:

Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder Seeded Wraps ? Light and Lean again!

As always

Buon Appetito

xxx

jan

Source: http://blogs.food24.com/janicetripepi/2013/02/19/light-lean-low-calorie-steak-stacks-happy-hip-food/

joseph kony joseph kony ipad 3 release date apple store down apple live blog ohio primary cell phone jammer