Press reports say the Honduran embassy in Colombia was ransacked and looted while partygoers cavorted with prostitutes
We've all been there: the Christmas office party that got a little out of hand, lots of booze, a few high jinks and some embarrassed, hungover faces the next day.
But few Christmas bashes will have matched up to the riotous affair thrown in the Honduran embassy in Bogotá, which according to press reports resulted in the mission being ransacked and looted while diplomats cavorted with prostitutes. Someone even defecated in the ambassador's office.
The Honduran daily El Heraldo splashed details of the party in a front page story titled "Diplomatic scandal: prostitutes and drunkenness in Bogotá".
According to the paper, a personal aide to the ambassador organised the party which ended with the diplomatic mission's offices in shambles, papers scattered and computers and telephones stolen.
The newspaper said there was evidence of an orgy in the building.
Ambassador Carlos Humberto Rodriguez was apparently not present at the party which was held a few days before Christmas.
When employees arrived at work the next day they found the ambassador's aide, Honduran national Jorge Mendoza, sleeping in the laundry area of the embassy and a Colombian man was found in the basement, El Heraldo reported. Employees called police who questioned Mendoza about the party and the missing equipment.
The Honduran embassy in Bogota would not return calls asking for comment about the incident.
Colombian diplomatic officials said the incident was an internal embassy matter but were awaiting the results of the police inquiry. The Honduran government had not responded to the story.
El Heraldo said that sources in Bogotá explained that Mendoza had gone out partying with friends on 20 December and returned to the diplomatic mission at around 11pm. They then went out again and returned with "several prostitutes".
At dawn, Mendoza's friends and the sex workers left the offices, apparently taking with them computers and mobile phones.
El Heraldo said that the "embarrassing incident" had compromised sensitive information on organised crime and drug trafficking. "This means that any drug lord … could have paid a prostitute to seduce the ambassador's friend to gain access to the embassy and steal vital information about investigations," the paper said.
Colombia is the world's principal source of cocaine and Honduras has become an important hub for much of the drug supply headed for the United States.
Friday, 4 January 2013
Paralizan nevadas carretera en Juárez
Cientos de vehículos permanecen varados en la Carretera 45-México, en Ciudad Juárez, tras el cierre de la vía debido a las nevadas.
Rogue Google SSL certificate not used for dishonest purposes, Turktrust says
Turktrust, the Turkish CA (certificate authority) responsible for issuing an intermediate CA certificate that was later used to generate an unauthorized certificate for google.com, claims that the bad Google certificate was not used for dishonest purposes.
High-stakes gambling machines 'suck money from poorest communities'
MPs express alarm about £5bn spent on fixed odds betting terminals in northern cities and London boroughs
£5bn gambled on Britian's poorest high streets: see the data
More than £5bn was gambled on high-speed, high-stakes gambling machines in northern cities and London boroughs with high levels of unemployment last year – four times the amount bet in richer rural areas in southern England where jobless numbers are low, according to an analysis for the Guardian.
The report reveals that in the 50 parliamentary constituencies with the highest numbers of unemployed people, punters visited 1,251 betting shops and put £5.6bn into 4,454 so-called fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs). By comparison, the 50 constituencies with the lowest levels of unemployment had only 287 betting shops and 1,045 terminals, and saw £1.4bn gambled last year.
The figures, produced for Fairer Gambling – a non-profit organisation which campaigns against problem betting, run by a gambling expert who helped bring the casino-style fixed odds machines to the UK high street – appear to show that bookmakers have deliberately targeted the poorest areas with the highest unemployment and poverty. It is a charge the industry vigorously rejects.
In East London's Bethnal Green and Bow the 45 betting shops saw £243m placed in bets on machines, dubbed the "crack cocaine of gambling", which offer quickfire casino games allowing players to stake up to £100 on a 20-second spin of the wheel. Punters can play with cash, or pay with credit or debit cards at the counter. By comparison, in Oxfordshire's Henley not a single licence had been issued for a betting shop.
Lucy Powell, Labour MP for Manchester Central, said she was "shocked" that £190m was being gambled in her local area. "There are mind-numbing numbers of betting shops in places like Moston in my constituency. I think it is a moral question to ask whether it is a good thing that betting companies are targeting the poor and whether government lets them.
"According to these figures there's more being spent on gambling than by the council in my constituency on services."
The profit made by betting shops, known as the gross gambling yield, in the 50 poorest constituencies was just over £173m, according to Fairer Gambling, which gleaned the figures from analysis of industry data.
There appears a distinctive political divide, with the betting shops clustered in Labour MPs' constituencies and almost absent in Tory MPs' backyards. Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, said almost £200m was spent on betting in her constituency last year. "It's a business model which sucks money from the poorest communities," she said, adding that hundreds of public order offences were committed outside betting shops every week, contributing to low-level social disorder.
However, Tories blamed the culture of poor people rather than betting companies for exploiting them. John Redwood, the Conservative MP for Wokingham in Surrey, which has three betting shops, said he had been "surprised" by the spread of bookmakers in poorer areas.
"I put it down to the fact that poor people believe there's one shot to get rich. They put getting rich down to luck and think they can take a gamble.
"They also have time on their hands. My voters are too busy working hard to make a reasonable income."
At the heart of the debate is whether the government should intervene to reshape the nation's high streets. Last July, the culture media and sport select committee called for the lifting of the limited number of high-stakes gambling machines allowed in each betting shop. Currently, bookmakers are limited to four machines per shop. The machines are hugely lucrative, bringing in on average £900 a week in profits, so bookmakers have bypassed the restriction by opening more branches in high streets – "clustering" in poorer areas.
However, Labour said the select committee was wrong, and instead the opposition agreed with Mary Portas, the retail guru, who argued in her government review that "the influx of betting shops, often in more deprived areas, is blighting our high streets". Her analysis was that betting shops were cluttering up Britain because they were listed as "financial services" in planning guidelines.
This meant empty shopfronts that once contained banks and building societies could be converted into betting shops without any planning permission. The Portas retail review urged ministers to remove this anomaly and instead ensure every prospective bookmaker would have to apply for planning permission.
Hilary Benn, the shadow local government spokesman whose Leeds central constituency saw £132m gambled last year, said: "There should be a separate use class order for betting shops under planning rules so that local communities and councils can decide how many shops they wish to have in their area. This will help deal with the problem of clustering. I do not support a relaxation of the current limit on the number of high-value machines."
Adrian Parkinson, who worked for the Tote, was involved with launching fixed-odds betting terminals from 1999 until 2008, and authored the study for Fairer Gambling. He said: "Despite what the bookmakers and their supportive MPs say, the proliferation of betting shops is driven by FOBTs, and is focused on the most deprived areas in the UK."
He argued that the culture secretary already has the power to rein in the bookmakers. "The Gambling Act 2005 gives Maria Miller the power to reduce the maximum stake and increase the time between spins without primary legislation, so there is no excuse for government inaction."
In a statement the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) said: "The idea that bookmakers target vulnerable communities is both false and offensive. Like any other retailer, we locate our shops where footfall is high and rents are affordable. These factors vary, which explains there can be different numbers of shops in different parts of the country.
"At a time of economic uncertainty and record retail vacancies, we are proud to play our part in supporting jobs right across the UK."
Bookmakers claim that Fairer Gambling is motivated by commercial interests. Fairer Gambling was founded by Derek Webb, founder of casino games developer Prime Table Games, which he sold in October last year to the Las Vegas-based Galaxy Gaming for $23m (£15m). Webb and his partner Hannah O'Donnell took the payment as $800,000 in Galaxy shares and the rest in two promissory notes.
The ABB said: "Betting shops have been located on our nation's high streets ever since off-course betting was first made legal in 1961. The betting industry would welcome an evidence-based debate, but the research presented is misleading. Fairer Gambling is an organisation with a commercial interest in running down high street bookies. This inaccurate piece of research discredits their place in this debate."
The government said it was reviewing fixed-odd betting terminals and would respond to the select committee "within weeks". A department for culture, media and sport spokesman said: "We will undertake a review of the evidence around fixed odds betting terminals and problem gambling. An announcement about the scope and timing of the review will be made in due course."
£5bn gambled on Britian's poorest high streets: see the data
More than £5bn was gambled on high-speed, high-stakes gambling machines in northern cities and London boroughs with high levels of unemployment last year – four times the amount bet in richer rural areas in southern England where jobless numbers are low, according to an analysis for the Guardian.
The report reveals that in the 50 parliamentary constituencies with the highest numbers of unemployed people, punters visited 1,251 betting shops and put £5.6bn into 4,454 so-called fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs). By comparison, the 50 constituencies with the lowest levels of unemployment had only 287 betting shops and 1,045 terminals, and saw £1.4bn gambled last year.
The figures, produced for Fairer Gambling – a non-profit organisation which campaigns against problem betting, run by a gambling expert who helped bring the casino-style fixed odds machines to the UK high street – appear to show that bookmakers have deliberately targeted the poorest areas with the highest unemployment and poverty. It is a charge the industry vigorously rejects.
In East London's Bethnal Green and Bow the 45 betting shops saw £243m placed in bets on machines, dubbed the "crack cocaine of gambling", which offer quickfire casino games allowing players to stake up to £100 on a 20-second spin of the wheel. Punters can play with cash, or pay with credit or debit cards at the counter. By comparison, in Oxfordshire's Henley not a single licence had been issued for a betting shop.
Lucy Powell, Labour MP for Manchester Central, said she was "shocked" that £190m was being gambled in her local area. "There are mind-numbing numbers of betting shops in places like Moston in my constituency. I think it is a moral question to ask whether it is a good thing that betting companies are targeting the poor and whether government lets them.
"According to these figures there's more being spent on gambling than by the council in my constituency on services."
The profit made by betting shops, known as the gross gambling yield, in the 50 poorest constituencies was just over £173m, according to Fairer Gambling, which gleaned the figures from analysis of industry data.
There appears a distinctive political divide, with the betting shops clustered in Labour MPs' constituencies and almost absent in Tory MPs' backyards. Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, said almost £200m was spent on betting in her constituency last year. "It's a business model which sucks money from the poorest communities," she said, adding that hundreds of public order offences were committed outside betting shops every week, contributing to low-level social disorder.
However, Tories blamed the culture of poor people rather than betting companies for exploiting them. John Redwood, the Conservative MP for Wokingham in Surrey, which has three betting shops, said he had been "surprised" by the spread of bookmakers in poorer areas.
"I put it down to the fact that poor people believe there's one shot to get rich. They put getting rich down to luck and think they can take a gamble.
"They also have time on their hands. My voters are too busy working hard to make a reasonable income."
At the heart of the debate is whether the government should intervene to reshape the nation's high streets. Last July, the culture media and sport select committee called for the lifting of the limited number of high-stakes gambling machines allowed in each betting shop. Currently, bookmakers are limited to four machines per shop. The machines are hugely lucrative, bringing in on average £900 a week in profits, so bookmakers have bypassed the restriction by opening more branches in high streets – "clustering" in poorer areas.
However, Labour said the select committee was wrong, and instead the opposition agreed with Mary Portas, the retail guru, who argued in her government review that "the influx of betting shops, often in more deprived areas, is blighting our high streets". Her analysis was that betting shops were cluttering up Britain because they were listed as "financial services" in planning guidelines.
This meant empty shopfronts that once contained banks and building societies could be converted into betting shops without any planning permission. The Portas retail review urged ministers to remove this anomaly and instead ensure every prospective bookmaker would have to apply for planning permission.
Hilary Benn, the shadow local government spokesman whose Leeds central constituency saw £132m gambled last year, said: "There should be a separate use class order for betting shops under planning rules so that local communities and councils can decide how many shops they wish to have in their area. This will help deal with the problem of clustering. I do not support a relaxation of the current limit on the number of high-value machines."
Adrian Parkinson, who worked for the Tote, was involved with launching fixed-odds betting terminals from 1999 until 2008, and authored the study for Fairer Gambling. He said: "Despite what the bookmakers and their supportive MPs say, the proliferation of betting shops is driven by FOBTs, and is focused on the most deprived areas in the UK."
He argued that the culture secretary already has the power to rein in the bookmakers. "The Gambling Act 2005 gives Maria Miller the power to reduce the maximum stake and increase the time between spins without primary legislation, so there is no excuse for government inaction."
In a statement the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) said: "The idea that bookmakers target vulnerable communities is both false and offensive. Like any other retailer, we locate our shops where footfall is high and rents are affordable. These factors vary, which explains there can be different numbers of shops in different parts of the country.
"At a time of economic uncertainty and record retail vacancies, we are proud to play our part in supporting jobs right across the UK."
Bookmakers claim that Fairer Gambling is motivated by commercial interests. Fairer Gambling was founded by Derek Webb, founder of casino games developer Prime Table Games, which he sold in October last year to the Las Vegas-based Galaxy Gaming for $23m (£15m). Webb and his partner Hannah O'Donnell took the payment as $800,000 in Galaxy shares and the rest in two promissory notes.
The ABB said: "Betting shops have been located on our nation's high streets ever since off-course betting was first made legal in 1961. The betting industry would welcome an evidence-based debate, but the research presented is misleading. Fairer Gambling is an organisation with a commercial interest in running down high street bookies. This inaccurate piece of research discredits their place in this debate."
The government said it was reviewing fixed-odd betting terminals and would respond to the select committee "within weeks". A department for culture, media and sport spokesman said: "We will undertake a review of the evidence around fixed odds betting terminals and problem gambling. An announcement about the scope and timing of the review will be made in due course."
Vítima de estupro na Índia foi deixada sem roupas na rua, diz testemunha
NOVA DÉLHI - A polícia e pedestres deixaram a estudante indiana vítima de estupro coletivo deitada na rua sem roupas por quase uma hora, disse nesta sexta-feira o namorado que foi atacado com ela, em sua primeira declaração pública sobre o caso que provocou protesto internacional.
- Ficamos gritando para a polícia, por favor nos dêem algumas roupas, mas eles demoraram para decidir em qual delegacia nosso caso deveria ser registrado - disse o sobrevivente à rede Zee News.
Veja também
A estudante de 23 anos morreu no hospital duas semanas após ter sido atacada, em 16 de dezembro, num ônibus privado em Nova Délhi, cidade chamada de “capital do estupro” da Índia.- Ficamos gritando para a polícia, por favor nos dêem algumas roupas, mas eles demoraram para decidir em qual delegacia nosso caso deveria ser registrado - disse o sobrevivente à rede Zee News.
Irã aceita retomar negociações sobre programa nuclear
Governo iraniano sinaliza estar aberto para novas conversas com as potências ocidentais. A última rodada de negociações foi interrompida sem resultados concretos há mais de seis meses.
Minicam movie pirate gets record-breaking five years in prison
IMAGiNE crew shares over 12 years in sentences
A member of the IMAGiNE piracy crew, which specialized in recording and distributing movies filmed in cinemas using camcorders, has received a five-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to copyright infringement.…
A member of the IMAGiNE piracy crew, which specialized in recording and distributing movies filmed in cinemas using camcorders, has received a five-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to copyright infringement.…
Bardot threatens to follow Depardieu to Russia
Former screen siren Brigitte Bardot is threatening to join actor Gerard Depardieu in seeking a Russian passport unless plans to put down two elephants are thrown out. She referred to France as an "animal cemetery."
New laws keep employers out of worker social media accounts
Employers in Illinois and California cannot ask for usernames and passwords to the personal social media accounts of employees and job seekers under laws that took effect on Jan. 1. Illinois Gov. Patrick Quinn in August signed legislation amending the State's 'Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act.'
Crisis of faith over Vatican ATMs
Bank of Italy blocks all electronic payments following Vatican City’s failure to fully comply with international anti-money laundering rules
'Chemical incident' forces guests to evacuate hotel
Firefighters called to Sandbanks hotel in Poole, Dorset, to deal with incident thought to involve chlorine gas
An exclusive hotel has been evacuated following a "chemical incident".
Fire services were called to the four-star Sandbanks hotel in Poole, Dorset, at 10.50am on Friday.
A spokesman said paramedics were attending to one person at the scene.
Around 20 firefighters from Poole and Westbourne were dealing with the incident, which was believed to involve chlorine gas and liquid.
The hazardous materials officer and station manager for Dorset fire and rescue, Louis Minchella, said: "A 60-metre cordon has been put in place around the hotel and all guests have been evacuated.
"We are dealing with a gas leak which can be potentially harmful to people.
"Fire crews will be committed in gas-tight suits to investigate and isolate.
"The beach and road surrounding the hotel have been closed."
The hotel – with 108 guest rooms – is situated in one of England's most exclusive locations, with direct access to Sandbanks's blue flag beach on one side and views of Brownsea Island and the Purbecks on the other.
It boasts seven miles of golden sands with views of Old Harry Rocks, Poole and Bournemouth Bay round to Hengistbury Head and across to the Isle of Wight.
An exclusive hotel has been evacuated following a "chemical incident".
Fire services were called to the four-star Sandbanks hotel in Poole, Dorset, at 10.50am on Friday.
A spokesman said paramedics were attending to one person at the scene.
Around 20 firefighters from Poole and Westbourne were dealing with the incident, which was believed to involve chlorine gas and liquid.
The hazardous materials officer and station manager for Dorset fire and rescue, Louis Minchella, said: "A 60-metre cordon has been put in place around the hotel and all guests have been evacuated.
"We are dealing with a gas leak which can be potentially harmful to people.
"Fire crews will be committed in gas-tight suits to investigate and isolate.
"The beach and road surrounding the hotel have been closed."
The hotel – with 108 guest rooms – is situated in one of England's most exclusive locations, with direct access to Sandbanks's blue flag beach on one side and views of Brownsea Island and the Purbecks on the other.
It boasts seven miles of golden sands with views of Old Harry Rocks, Poole and Bournemouth Bay round to Hengistbury Head and across to the Isle of Wight.
Thousands of shark fins found drying on Hong Kong rooftop - video
Environmentalists are outraged after approximately 18,000 shark fins were discovered drying out on a rooftop in Hong Kong, hidden from public view. The delicacy, often used in soup, is very popular in China. But the practice of fisherman removing the animal's fin and throwing it back into the sea to die, and the over-harvesting of sharks, has begun to change public opinion
China cracks down on global LCD cartel
Beijing fines groups including Samsung SDI and LG over price fixing – the first time Chinese authorities have acted against an international cartel
GM recalls more than 69,000 vehicles that could roll away
(Reuters) - General Motors Co is recalling more than 69,000 full-size trucks and vans globally that could roll away after being parked due to a potential steering column defect, the automaker said on Friday
Australia's Twin Ghost aboriginal trees destroyed by arson
An iconic pair of "ghost gum" trees in Australia made famous by Aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira has been destroyed in a suspected arson attack.
Criminals 'should pay for a night in police cells'
Criminals who are kept overnight in police cells should be charged a "hotel bill" for their stay, one of the new police and crime commissioners has said.
Hungary's top court says voter registration unconstitutional
BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's top court said on Friday that a law proposed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ruling party forcing citizens to sign up in advance to be able to vote in national elections next year was unconstitutional.
Cyber thieves impersonate Google+
Net criminals have exploited a security lapse to pose as part of the Google+ social media service in a bid to steal confidential data.
Thursday, 3 January 2013
How Lead Caused America's Violent Crime Epidemic
In the mid-20th century, America experienced an epidemic of violent crime. The culprit? Lead.
Google agrees to not abuse mobile patents, search ads, or search results
To head off further investigation by the Federal Trade Commission and risk penalties from a negative finding, Google today agreed to change some of its business practices to resolve FTC concerns around practices the commission thought could stifle competition for smartphones, tablets, and gaming consoles, as well as for online search advertising.
Energy drinks: Glorified caffeine delivery systems?
An article in the New York Times today investigates whether there are any more benefits to energy drinks than those provided by a regular cup of coffee. It cites the opinion of various experts who seem to agree that the principal – and in their opinion the only important – ingredient in these concoctions is caffeine. According to these experts, basically what you are paying for is an overpriced bottle of caffeine, more expensive than a NoDoz pill and even a Starbucks coffee.
[More]
[More]
Mauritania bans plastic bag use
Mauritania bans the use of plastic bags to protect the environment and the lives of animals and fish, the environment minister says.
Why Japan's 'Fukushima 50' remain unknown
Why Japan's 'Fukushima 50' remain out of the spotlight
A Japanese parliamentary report published in July makes it clear that the Fukushima reactor meltdowns were not the unavoidable result of an extraordinary natural disaster. They were a man-made catastrophe, the report says.
"Ever since the disaster, I haven't had a day when I felt good about myself," he says.
"Even when I'm out with friends, it's impossible to feel happy. When people talk about Fukushima, I feel that I am responsible."
A Japanese parliamentary report published in July makes it clear that the Fukushima reactor meltdowns were not the unavoidable result of an extraordinary natural disaster. They were a man-made catastrophe, the report says.
"Ever since the disaster, I haven't had a day when I felt good about myself," he says.
"Even when I'm out with friends, it's impossible to feel happy. When people talk about Fukushima, I feel that I am responsible."
Exxon Yellowstone oil spill made worse by delay-report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An Exxon Mobil pipeline spill into the Yellowstone River in 2011 would have been far less severe if the company had not delayed closing valves, a report issued on Wednesday by federal pipeline regulators said.
Mexican troops kill 12 suspects in gun battle
Mexico City (AFP) Jan 3, 2013
Mexican soldiers killed 12 suspected criminals in a running gun battle across the central state of Zacatecas on Wednesday, an official said.
The clash erupted when the two sides ran into each other in the city of Rio Grande, sparking a pursuit along 50 kilometers (31 miles) that ended in the town of Sombrerete, the state official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Mexican soldiers killed 12 suspected criminals in a running gun battle across the central state of Zacatecas on Wednesday, an official said.
The clash erupted when the two sides ran into each other in the city of Rio Grande, sparking a pursuit along 50 kilometers (31 miles) that ended in the town of Sombrerete, the state official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
New Delhi suffers coldest day in 44 years
New Delhi (AFP) Jan 3, 2013
New Delhi has suffered its coldest day in 44 years amid a cold snap across northern India, the local weather office said on Thursday.
The maximum day temperature on Wednesday reached just 9.8 degrees Celsius (49.6 degrees Fahrenheit), the lowest since the winter of 1969 when records first began, an official in the local meteorological department told AFP, with a minimum of 4.8 Celsius.
New Delhi has suffered its coldest day in 44 years amid a cold snap across northern India, the local weather office said on Thursday.
The maximum day temperature on Wednesday reached just 9.8 degrees Celsius (49.6 degrees Fahrenheit), the lowest since the winter of 1969 when records first began, an official in the local meteorological department told AFP, with a minimum of 4.8 Celsius.
Chinese trigger Australian baby milk run
Sydney (AFP) Jan 3, 2013
Australian supermarkets and pharmacies were running out of popular baby formula Thursday after unprecedented sales reportedly due to Chinese customers trying to secure supplies.
Nutricia, supplier of top-selling formula brand Karicare, said there had been a sudden surge in demand for its products which had seen stocks plummet and left shelves empty.
Australian supermarkets and pharmacies were running out of popular baby formula Thursday after unprecedented sales reportedly due to Chinese customers trying to secure supplies.
Nutricia, supplier of top-selling formula brand Karicare, said there had been a sudden surge in demand for its products which had seen stocks plummet and left shelves empty.
Chinese trigger Australian baby milk run
Sydney (AFP) Jan 3, 2013
Australian supermarkets and pharmacies were running out of popular baby formula Thursday after unprecedented sales reportedly due to Chinese customers trying to secure supplies.
Nutricia, supplier of top-selling formula brand Karicare, said there had been a sudden surge in demand for its products which had seen stocks plummet and left shelves empty.
Australian supermarkets and pharmacies were running out of popular baby formula Thursday after unprecedented sales reportedly due to Chinese customers trying to secure supplies.
Nutricia, supplier of top-selling formula brand Karicare, said there had been a sudden surge in demand for its products which had seen stocks plummet and left shelves empty.
Poland bans cultivation of GM maize, potatoes
Warsaw (AFP) Jan 02, 2013
Poland on Wednesday imposed new bans on the cultivation of certain genetically modified strains of maize and potatoes, a day after an EU required green light for GM crops took effect.
The centre-right government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk imposed farming bans on German BASF's Amflora strain of potato and US firm Monsanto's MON 810 maize or corn, according to a government statement
Poland on Wednesday imposed new bans on the cultivation of certain genetically modified strains of maize and potatoes, a day after an EU required green light for GM crops took effect.
The centre-right government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk imposed farming bans on German BASF's Amflora strain of potato and US firm Monsanto's MON 810 maize or corn, according to a government statement
Extreme Weather Delays Efforts to Regain Control of Run-aground Oil Rig
On Monday night, an oil drilling rig owned by Dutch Royal Shell ran aground on Sitkalidak Island in southern Alaska, prompting fears of an oil spill. As of yesterday no oil was seen leaking from the rig according to the Coast Guard, but efforts to secure the rig have floundered due to extreme weather. The rig, dubbed Kulluk, contains over 140,000 gallons of diesel fuel. The incident occurred when harsh weather caused the rig to break free from a ship that was towing the Kulluk from the Arctic back to its winter headquarters in Seattle, Washington. Rescuers quickly evacuated.
Coldest weather in decades hits India; group says 107 dead
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The coldest weather in northern India for at least 44 years has killed more than 100 homeless people, an aid group said on Thursday.
Early Predictor for Glaucoma Identified
Glaucoma is an eye disease which involves damage to the optic nerve. It can lead to permanent vision damage and lead to blindness if left untreated. Glaucoma often, but not always, involves increase fluid pressure inside the eye, known as intraocular pressure. A new study has found that certain changes in blood vessels in the retina may be an early warning that an individual has an increased risk of glaucoma. Researchers from the Australian Blue Mountains Eye Study showed that people with abnormally narrow retinal arteries at the beginning of their 10-year study were most likely to develop glaucoma by the end of the study.
Swiss shooter to be questioned over al-Hilli Alps murder
Gunman who murdered three women in Alpine village be questioned about attack in which members of British family were killed.
Swiss shooter to be questioned over al-Hilli Alps murder
Gunman who murdered three women in Alpine village be questioned about attack in which members of British family were killed.
Falklands row: Islanders respond in detail to points raised by Cristina Kirchner
Falkland Islanders have responded in detail to the provocative letter from Argentine president Cristina Kirchner, published by The Guardian today, demanding that Britain hands over the Falklands. The response is below
Rig owner pays $1.4bn to settle over Deepwater
Transocean, owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig, settles over criminal and civil charges
Transocean, owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig at the centre of BP's Gulf of Mexico blowout, has reached a $1.4bn settlement with the Department of Justice to settle criminal and civil charges.
The Swiss-based rig operator has been in the dock since April 2010 saw the worst spill in American history. The $1bn in civil penalties and $400m in criminal ones is in line with what the company was expecting.
A formal statement had not been released last night but sources in the US confirmed the two sides had reached a deal far lower than the $4.5bn agreed by BP, which only covered criminal claims.
Shares in Transocean soared 10% last night as Wall Street investors saw a major cloud being lifted. Transocean had said in a regulatory filing three months ago that it had discussed a $1.5bn settlement with the DoJ but had set aside a $2bn fund for paying claims related to the Macondo disaster, when 11 lives were lost.
Despite the problems BP reported profits of more than $25bn for 2011 but Transocean recorded a loss of about $5.7bn, hit by contingencies for the Deepwater Horizon and other market problems.
In November Transocean reported a $381m quarterly financial loss and unveiled plans to sell off 38 shallow-water rigs to concentrate on the more lucrative deep water drilling end of the market.
The company has been awarded 10-year contracts by Shell for four new drillships which will suck in $7.6bn of revenue from 2015 and the following year, and it has had a ban partially lifted that would have kept it out of the growing Brazilian offshore sector. This followed a 2011 oil spill by operator Chevron.
Transocean, owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig at the centre of BP's Gulf of Mexico blowout, has reached a $1.4bn settlement with the Department of Justice to settle criminal and civil charges.
The Swiss-based rig operator has been in the dock since April 2010 saw the worst spill in American history. The $1bn in civil penalties and $400m in criminal ones is in line with what the company was expecting.
A formal statement had not been released last night but sources in the US confirmed the two sides had reached a deal far lower than the $4.5bn agreed by BP, which only covered criminal claims.
Shares in Transocean soared 10% last night as Wall Street investors saw a major cloud being lifted. Transocean had said in a regulatory filing three months ago that it had discussed a $1.5bn settlement with the DoJ but had set aside a $2bn fund for paying claims related to the Macondo disaster, when 11 lives were lost.
Despite the problems BP reported profits of more than $25bn for 2011 but Transocean recorded a loss of about $5.7bn, hit by contingencies for the Deepwater Horizon and other market problems.
In November Transocean reported a $381m quarterly financial loss and unveiled plans to sell off 38 shallow-water rigs to concentrate on the more lucrative deep water drilling end of the market.
The company has been awarded 10-year contracts by Shell for four new drillships which will suck in $7.6bn of revenue from 2015 and the following year, and it has had a ban partially lifted that would have kept it out of the growing Brazilian offshore sector. This followed a 2011 oil spill by operator Chevron.
Facebook Accounting Exec Sells 60,000 Shares
Facebook chief accounting officer David Spillane disclosed in an SEC filing late Wednesday that he sold 60,000 shares of the company's stock yesterday at an average price of $27.4991, raising $1.65 million. The shares sold represent about a third of his holdings.
Swiss Shooter Had Guns Taken Away Previously
The gunman, who killed three women and wounded two men Wednesday, had been placed in a psychiatric ward in 2005, when guns he then owned were destroyed.
Thousands of migrants held back from entering Swedish society
Sweden’s housing shortage has left thousands of immigrants remaining in temporary accommodation for asylum seekers even after being granted residence permits. This hampers immigrants’ chances of finding work and learning Swedish, the Public Employment Service warns, and a recent government reform is making the problem harder to solve.
Depardieu, in Tax Fight, Gets Russian Citizenship
President Vladimir Putin of Russia awarded citizenship to Gerard Depardieu, the French actor who has been sparring with his native country over taxes.
Gairebé 30.000 persones reclamen la independència de Catalunya en el partit de la selecció catalana contra la nigeriana
L'ambient festiu i reivindicatiu propi dels partits de la selecció catalana s'ha viscut novament aquest dimecres al vespre a l'estadi Cornellà-El Prat en l'encontre amb la selecció de Nigèria. El partit, que ha acabat amb un empat a 1, ha estat el darrer que el seleccionador català, Johan Cruyff, viurà des de la banqueta. L'estadi de l'Espanyol ha acollit més estelades que mai arran que bona part dels més de 27.000 espectadors les han exhibit durant tot el partit al mateix temps que s'han cridat consignes a favor de l'oficialitat de les seleccions esportives catalanes i, sobretot, a favor de la independència de Catalunya. De fet, i en aquest mateix sentit, l'Assemblea Nacional Catalana ja havia demanat que la cita anual servís, en aquesta ocasió més que mai, per reclamar que Catalunya sigui el proper estat d'Europa. A més, i com ja ha passat darrerament en diversos partits, al minut 17 segon 14 s'han sentit els crits d''In-inde-independència'.
Organ donor scandal hits Germany
Prosecutors investigate an organ donor scandal in the east German city of Leipzig in which doctors allegedly manipulated a waiting list for livers.
Argentina rebuffed over Falklands
Prime Minister David Cameron strongly rebuffs a call by Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner for the UK to return the South Atlantic islands.
Nicolas Sarkozy DID take $50 million of Muammar Gaddafi's cash, French judge is told
Documentary proof exists that France’s former President Nicolas Sarkozy took more than €50m from the late Libyan dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, a French judge has been told.
The claim, leaked today, was made just before Christmas by a Lebanese-born businessman, Ziad Takieddine, who has been a fixer for legal - and allegedly illegal - dealings between France and the Middle East for 20 years.
The claim, leaked today, was made just before Christmas by a Lebanese-born businessman, Ziad Takieddine, who has been a fixer for legal - and allegedly illegal - dealings between France and the Middle East for 20 years.
Starbucks to open shop in Vietnam
Starbucks, the world's biggest coffee-shop company, is set to open its first store in Vietnam next month as it continues expanding in Asia.
U.S. drone strike kills important Taliban commander: sources
WANA, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone strike killed a Taliban commander, his deputy and eight others in northwest Pakistan, intelligence sources and tribal leaders said Thursday, weeks after he was wounded in a bomb attack believed to have been launched by Taliban rivals.
Three dead in Swiss village shooting
Gunman who opened fire in Daillon has been taken into custody after being shot and wounded by police
Three people were killed and two wounded late on Wednesday when a gunman opened fire in the Swiss village of Daillon, according to Swiss police.
The suspect threatened police when they tried to arrest him, and officers shot and wounded him before taking him into custody, police in the Swiss canton of Valais said in a statement. No police officers were wounded.
Swiss website 20minutes.ch reported that the gunman was a resident of the village aged about 30 who was armed with an assault rifle and had been drinking heavily.
It quoted a villager as saying one of the dead was a woman in her 80s.
Special police units and local police forces were alerted by a caller who said several people were lying wounded on the ground at about 8:50pm, the police statement said.
It said the incident was being investigated and the site had been closed off. More information would be released later on Thursday at a news conference in the village, which is close to the town of Sion, the capital of the canton – or region – of Valais.
Mass shootings are rare in Switzerland, although possession of guns is widespread – some estimates run to at least one for every three of its 8m inhabitants.
Many are stored in people's attics, a legacy of Switzerland's policy of arming its people to defend its neutrality.
Canadian government loses data of 5,000 people
An employee of the Canadian federal government inadvertently put 5,000 fellow Canadians at risk of fraud and identity theft after misplacing a USB drive containing sensitive, identifiable information.
Unnerving Instagram-Street View smashup built with best intentions
"If you don't want it to be shared or seen by the entire world," Abe Stanway explains, "you shouldn't share it with anyone at all." The 22-year-old engineer is part of a small team that built a site which shows anyone exactly where an Instagram photo was taken.
Refuse to exercise and we could cut your benefits, fat claimants are told
Westminster City Council will issue a report on an initiative today that would see obese people's benefits penalised if they fail to turn up to GP prescribed activity sessions.
Doctors offered £7,500 'bribe' to stop sending their patients with pneumonia or heart problems to hospital
GPs will be offered the financial incentive to try and reduce the number of people they send to accident and emergency.
Under a controversial bonus scheme that will hit the elderly particularly hard, they will be urged not to refer those with pneumonia, severe influenza or heart problems to hospital.
Under a controversial bonus scheme that will hit the elderly particularly hard, they will be urged not to refer those with pneumonia, severe influenza or heart problems to hospital.
Immigration Change Will Ease Family Separations
New rules unveiled on Wednesday will allow many American citizens to avoid long separations from family members who are illegal immigrants as they apply to become legal residents.
Environment Secretary Owen Paterson tells farmers to push GM
Government will promote benefits of GM crops as part of drive to modernise UK farming, Environment Secretary Owen Paterson says.
Confronting neo-Nazis in sports clubs
German sports clubs like to advertise with the idea that "sport is best in a club." Increasingly, neo-Nazis are using sports clubs to propagate their ideology - and many are hard to spot.
Paper adds guards after gun map flap
The newspaper that published an online, interactive map of handgun permit holders in two suburban New York counties hired armed guards to protect its office after negative backlash from the map publication, according to a local police report
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
Dador de esperma processado por pensão de alimentos
Um homem de 46 anos que doou o seu esperma para ajudar um casal de lésbicas a ter um bebé em 2009 está agora a ser processado pelo Estado do Kansas para que pague uma pensão de alimentos à criança.
Mendrisio Journal: In Mendrisio, Switzerland, Gold Can Be Solid and Liquid
Mendrisio, Switzerland, is home to three major gold refiners and a dark red merlot produced in the surrounding hills.
Spain’s Chinese Immigrants Thrive in Tough Economy
Chinese immigrants to Spain have managed not only to survive the economic crisis; they are thriving, buying distressed properties and starting businesses
Presidente da Google anuncia visita à Coreia do Norte
O presidente executivo da Google, Eric Schmidt, vai integrar uma missão humanitária à Coreia do Norte liderada pelo antigo governador norte-americano do Novo México Bill Richardson, revelou hoje a Associated...
Computing Complex Visual Features with Retinal Spike Times
by Robert Gütig, Tim Gollisch, Haim Sompolinsky, Markus Meister
Neurons in sensory systems can represent information not only by their firing rate, but also by the precise timing of individual spikes. For example, certain retinal ganglion cells, first identified in the salamander, encode the spatial structure of a new image by their first-spike latencies. Here we explore how this temporal code can be used by downstream neural circuits for computing complex features of the image that are not available from the signals of individual ganglion cells. To this end, we feed the experimentally observed spike trains from a population of retinal ganglion cells to an integrate-and-fire model of post-synaptic integration. The synaptic weights of this integration are tuned according to the recently introduced tempotron learning rule. We find that this model neuron can perform complex visual detection tasks in a single synaptic stage that would require multiple stages for neurons operating instead on neural spike counts. Furthermore, the model computes rapidly, using only a single spike per afferent, and can signal its decision in turn by just a single spike. Extending these analyses to large ensembles of simulated retinal signals, we show that the model can detect the orientation of a visual pattern independent of its phase, an operation thought to be one of the primitives in early visual processing. We analyze how these computations work and compare the performance of this model to other schemes for reading out spike-timing information. These results demonstrate that the retina formats spatial information into temporal spike sequences in a way that favors computation in the time domain. Moreover, complex image analysis can be achieved already by a simple integrate-and-fire model neuron, emphasizing the power and plausibility of rapid neural computing with spike times.
Neurons in sensory systems can represent information not only by their firing rate, but also by the precise timing of individual spikes. For example, certain retinal ganglion cells, first identified in the salamander, encode the spatial structure of a new image by their first-spike latencies. Here we explore how this temporal code can be used by downstream neural circuits for computing complex features of the image that are not available from the signals of individual ganglion cells. To this end, we feed the experimentally observed spike trains from a population of retinal ganglion cells to an integrate-and-fire model of post-synaptic integration. The synaptic weights of this integration are tuned according to the recently introduced tempotron learning rule. We find that this model neuron can perform complex visual detection tasks in a single synaptic stage that would require multiple stages for neurons operating instead on neural spike counts. Furthermore, the model computes rapidly, using only a single spike per afferent, and can signal its decision in turn by just a single spike. Extending these analyses to large ensembles of simulated retinal signals, we show that the model can detect the orientation of a visual pattern independent of its phase, an operation thought to be one of the primitives in early visual processing. We analyze how these computations work and compare the performance of this model to other schemes for reading out spike-timing information. These results demonstrate that the retina formats spatial information into temporal spike sequences in a way that favors computation in the time domain. Moreover, complex image analysis can be achieved already by a simple integrate-and-fire model neuron, emphasizing the power and plausibility of rapid neural computing with spike times.
Natural Language Metaphors Covertly Influence Reasoning
by Paul H. Thibodeau, Lera Boroditsky
Metaphors pervade discussions of social issues like climate change, the economy, and crime. We ask how natural language metaphors shape the way people reason about such social issues. In previous work, we showed that describing crime metaphorically as a beast or a virus, led people to generate different solutions to a city’s crime problem. In the current series of studies, instead of asking people to generate a solution on their own, we provided them with a selection of possible solutions and asked them to choose the best ones. We found that metaphors influenced people’s reasoning even when they had a set of options available to compare and select among. These findings suggest that metaphors can influence not just what solution comes to mind first, but also which solution people think is best, even when given the opportunity to explicitly compare alternatives. Further, we tested whether participants were aware of the metaphor. We found that very few participants thought the metaphor played an important part in their decision. Further, participants who had no explicit memory of the metaphor were just as much affected by the metaphor as participants who were able to remember the metaphorical frame. These findings suggest that metaphors can act covertly in reasoning. Finally, we examined the role of political affiliation on reasoning about crime. The results confirm our previous findings that Republicans are more likely to generate enforcement and punishment solutions for dealing with crime, and are less swayed by metaphor than are Democrats or Independents.
Metaphors pervade discussions of social issues like climate change, the economy, and crime. We ask how natural language metaphors shape the way people reason about such social issues. In previous work, we showed that describing crime metaphorically as a beast or a virus, led people to generate different solutions to a city’s crime problem. In the current series of studies, instead of asking people to generate a solution on their own, we provided them with a selection of possible solutions and asked them to choose the best ones. We found that metaphors influenced people’s reasoning even when they had a set of options available to compare and select among. These findings suggest that metaphors can influence not just what solution comes to mind first, but also which solution people think is best, even when given the opportunity to explicitly compare alternatives. Further, we tested whether participants were aware of the metaphor. We found that very few participants thought the metaphor played an important part in their decision. Further, participants who had no explicit memory of the metaphor were just as much affected by the metaphor as participants who were able to remember the metaphorical frame. These findings suggest that metaphors can act covertly in reasoning. Finally, we examined the role of political affiliation on reasoning about crime. The results confirm our previous findings that Republicans are more likely to generate enforcement and punishment solutions for dealing with crime, and are less swayed by metaphor than are Democrats or Independents.
Runaway Alaska oil rig dragged two tugs for miles
LONDON (Reuters) - The runaway oil rig that ran aground in Alaska on New Year's Eve dragged the two vessels trying to control it more than 10 miles shorewards in just over an hour before the crews cut it loose to save themselves in "near hurricane" conditions.
Israel taps teens to become 'interceptors' in cyberwarfare
New training program to create youth hacking force
Israel has launched a new nationwide program aimed at training teenagers to carry out cyberwarfare operations.…
Israel has launched a new nationwide program aimed at training teenagers to carry out cyberwarfare operations.…
LG finally selling first large-screen OLED HDTV — for $10,000
Missing a 2012 delivery date, LG announced on Tuesday that it will release the first 55-Inch OLED HDTVs in Korea in early February 2013, after a year of delays due to reported production problems, at a price of just over $10,000. LG will discuss the TV's U.S. availability and retail price in the next few weeks.
Canonical pushes Ubuntu 'superphone' as PC alternative
Canonical today revealed Ubuntu groomed for smartphones, aimed at giving Android some open source competition on the mobile front.
Acacia Research In Settlement With Apple In Patent Case
The patent licensing firm Acacia Research this morning disclosed in a filing with the SEC that its Mobile Enhancement Solutions unit has settled a patent lawsuit it had filed against Apple.
HP says it may sell assets that underperform
Hewlett-Packard will continue to evaluate potential divestitures of underperforming parts of its business, and the process could get messy, the company warned its investors in its annual 10-K document, which was filed in late December. "When we decide to sell assets or a business, we may encounter difficulty in finding buyers or alternative exit strategies on acceptable terms in a timely manner, which could delay the achievement of our strategic objectives," HP added. "We may also dispose of a business at a price or on terms that are less desirable than we had anticipated."
Facebook fixes 'Peeping Tom' webcam bug - AFTER 5 MONTHS
While Zuck's little sister lectures world+dog on privacy
Facebook had a busy time over the holiday period fixing several security flaws, including a webcam-related vulnerability that allowed hackers to record video from a user's web camera and post it on their timeline.
Facebook had a busy time over the holiday period fixing several security flaws, including a webcam-related vulnerability that allowed hackers to record video from a user's web camera and post it on their timeline.
Deep inside glacier, scientists study ... ice
Nearly 700 feet (more than 200 meters) under the Svartisen glacier in northern Norway, researchers are huddled together underground. In the world's only lab located inside one of these giant hunks of ice, they are carrying out some of the best experiments on the movement and composition of glaciers ever done.
First Meteor Shower of 2013 Peaks This Week
The first meteor shower of 2013 will kick off the year's night sky events this week, giving stargazers a chance to ring in the New Year with a celestial fireworks display.
[More]
[More]
Arctic rig salvage effort delayed
Attempts to rescue a Shell drill rig grounded off the Alaskan coast are delayed because of high seas and strong winds.
Climate Change Finally Getting Our Collective Attention
It's that time of year when we look back and reflect on the past year and make silly lists. ENN Affiliate, TriplePundit has assembled a Top Five list of the reasons that Climate Change is finally getting more attention. This list is far from silly – it is quite sobering news for many of us to accept. In 2012, climate change came to the forefront. Here are 5 reasons why:
5) 2012 was the hottest year on record.
A December 2012 report by the independent non profit organization Climate Central states: "There is a 99.99999999 percent chance that 2012 will be the hottest year ever recorded in the continental 48 states, based on our analysis of 118 years of temperature records through Dec. 10, 2012." Not that we won't see more days with below freezing temperatures and chilling winds, but those days are becoming less frequent. While this is good news for those that hate the cold, it is bad news for the planet, as sea levels rise and arctic habitats disappear.
5) 2012 was the hottest year on record.
A December 2012 report by the independent non profit organization Climate Central states: "There is a 99.99999999 percent chance that 2012 will be the hottest year ever recorded in the continental 48 states, based on our analysis of 118 years of temperature records through Dec. 10, 2012." Not that we won't see more days with below freezing temperatures and chilling winds, but those days are becoming less frequent. While this is good news for those that hate the cold, it is bad news for the planet, as sea levels rise and arctic habitats disappear.
Smoking Found to Affect Your Genes
Cigarettes leave you with more than a smoky scent on your clothes and fingernails. A new study has found strong evidence that tobacco use can chemically modify and affect the activity of genes known to increase the risk of developing cancer. The finding may give researchers a new tool to assess cancer risk among people who smoke.
DNA isn't destiny. Chemical compounds that affect the functioning of genes can bind to our genetic material, turning certain genes on or off. These so-called epigenetic modifications can influence a variety of traits, such as obesity and sexual preference. Scientists have even identified specific epigenetic patterns on the genes of people who smoke. None of the modified genes has a direct link to cancer, however, making it unclear whether these chemical alterations increase the risk of developing the disease.
DNA isn't destiny. Chemical compounds that affect the functioning of genes can bind to our genetic material, turning certain genes on or off. These so-called epigenetic modifications can influence a variety of traits, such as obesity and sexual preference. Scientists have even identified specific epigenetic patterns on the genes of people who smoke. None of the modified genes has a direct link to cancer, however, making it unclear whether these chemical alterations increase the risk of developing the disease.
Japan's population logs record drop
Tokyo (AFP) Jan 1, 2013
Japan's population logged a record drop in 2012, health ministry estimates showed Tuesday, highlighting concerns that an ever-dwindling pool of workers is having to pay for a growing number of pensioners.
A record low 1,033,000 babies were born last year, against 1,245,000 deaths, resulting in a net drop of 212,000 in the nation's population of about 126 million, according to figures
Japan's population logged a record drop in 2012, health ministry estimates showed Tuesday, highlighting concerns that an ever-dwindling pool of workers is having to pay for a growing number of pensioners.
A record low 1,033,000 babies were born last year, against 1,245,000 deaths, resulting in a net drop of 212,000 in the nation's population of about 126 million, according to figures
Galapagos pink iguana captured on film
London (AFP) Jan 01, 2013
Veteran British nature broadcaster David Attenborough is to show the first filmed sighting of the rare pink iguana, in a television series on the Galapagos Islands which begins Tuesday.
The 86-year-old filmed the rare Conolophus Marthae iguana in June last year for his new series "Galapagos 3D", which goes out on Britain's Sky television.
Veteran British nature broadcaster David Attenborough is to show the first filmed sighting of the rare pink iguana, in a television series on the Galapagos Islands which begins Tuesday.
The 86-year-old filmed the rare Conolophus Marthae iguana in June last year for his new series "Galapagos 3D", which goes out on Britain's Sky television.
Study faulting anti-virus effectiveness may itself be flawed
Is anti-virus software really woefully ineffective? That's what a report released in late November by digital-security firm Imperva seems to suggest. But Imperva's study is under fire for poor methodology, small sample size and unrealistic testing scenarios.
US has more Internet-connected gadgets than people
There are now more Internet-connected devices, such as smartphones, tablets and gaming consoles, in the U.S. than there are people: 425 million gadgets in homes, according to The NPD Group.
Cost of combating climate change surges as world delays - study
OSLO (Reuters) - An agreement by almost 200 nations to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions from 2020 will be far more costly than taking action now to tackle climate change, according to research published on Wednesday.
Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Wood-burning sets off pollution alarm bells in Athens
Athens (AFP) Dec 28, 2012
Air pollution in Athens has surged in recent days because of people choosing wood over more expensive fuels to heat their homes in the grips of a continuing economic crisis, the environment ministry said Friday.
Particulate matter has been measured at 150 milligrammes per cubic metre, or three times the danger level, especially in the northern and western suburbs of the Greek capital,
Air pollution in Athens has surged in recent days because of people choosing wood over more expensive fuels to heat their homes in the grips of a continuing economic crisis, the environment ministry said Friday.
Particulate matter has been measured at 150 milligrammes per cubic metre, or three times the danger level, especially in the northern and western suburbs of the Greek capital,
Montreal hit by record snow dump
Montreal (AFP) Dec 28, 2012
Residents of Montreal and other cities in Quebec province armed with shovels dug themselves out Friday after parts of Canada witnessed their heaviest snowfalls for at least four decades.
Some towns in the province reported almost two feet (60 centimeters) of snow. Almost 18 inches (45 centimeters) fell in Montreal, surpassing all previous dumps dating back to 1971.
Residents of Montreal and other cities in Quebec province armed with shovels dug themselves out Friday after parts of Canada witnessed their heaviest snowfalls for at least four decades.
Some towns in the province reported almost two feet (60 centimeters) of snow. Almost 18 inches (45 centimeters) fell in Montreal, surpassing all previous dumps dating back to 1971.
Sweet Potatoes Unexpected Reaction to Rising CO2 Levels
Rising levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere caused by human-driven emissions might lead to larger sweet potatoes, a staple food for many African and Asian countries, research reveals.
Sweet potatoes could double in size with the increase in CO2 levels currently forecasted for the end of this century, according to research by a team from the University of Hawaii, United States. The team presented their finding at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union, in San Francisco this month (3-7 December)
Sweet potatoes could double in size with the increase in CO2 levels currently forecasted for the end of this century, according to research by a team from the University of Hawaii, United States. The team presented their finding at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union, in San Francisco this month (3-7 December)
EPA Proposes Ambitious Plan to Clean the Gowanus Canal
The Gowanus is one of the United States' most polluted waterways, bisecting Brooklyn and emptying into Upper New York Harbor. Many years ago, it was a major industrial transportation route, servicing manufactured gas plants, paper mills, tanneries, and chemical plants. At the time stormwater runoff and discharges from these facilities were constantly being absorbed into the canal. The Gowanus was added to the EPA superfund list of sites, and numerous potentially responsible parties have been identified including National Grid and the City of New York. After thorough environmental investigation, EPA has finally proposed a plan to conduct the cleanup, which will include the removal of contaminated sediment, capping dredged areas, and preventing further land-based contaminated outflows. The expected cost of the project is between $467 and $504 million. The EPA will be taking public comments on the plan from now until March 28, 2013.
Even in same vineyard, different microbes may create variations in wine grapes
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 31, 2012
Choosing the perfect wine may soon involve more than just knowing the perfect vintage and chateau. Differences in the microbes present on grapes even in different parts of the same vineyard may contribute to flavor fluctuations in samples of grapes from different tanks, according to research published December 26 in the open access journal PLoS oNE by Mathabatha Setati and colleagues from Stelle
Choosing the perfect wine may soon involve more than just knowing the perfect vintage and chateau. Differences in the microbes present on grapes even in different parts of the same vineyard may contribute to flavor fluctuations in samples of grapes from different tanks, according to research published December 26 in the open access journal PLoS oNE by Mathabatha Setati and colleagues from Stelle
Two Arctic Ice Seals Gain Endangered Species Act Protection - Warming Climate a Key Factor
Responding to a 2008 petition from the Center for Biological Diversity, the federal government today finalized Endangered Species Act protection for two ice-dependent Arctic seals threatened by melting sea ice and snowpack due to climate change. Ringed seals and bearded seals, found in the waters off Alaska, are the first species since polar bears to be protected primarily because of climate change threats.
"Arctic animals face a clear danger of extinction from climate change," said Shaye Wolf, the Center's climate science director. "The Endangered Species Act offers strong protections for these seals, but we can't save the Arctic ecosystem without confronting the broader climate crisis. The Obama administration has to take decisive action, right now, against greenhouse gas pollution to preserve a world filled with ice seals, walruses and polar bears.
"Arctic animals face a clear danger of extinction from climate change," said Shaye Wolf, the Center's climate science director. "The Endangered Species Act offers strong protections for these seals, but we can't save the Arctic ecosystem without confronting the broader climate crisis. The Obama administration has to take decisive action, right now, against greenhouse gas pollution to preserve a world filled with ice seals, walruses and polar bears.
Speeding train kills five elephants in eastern India
Bhubaneshwar, India (AFP) Dec 31, 2012
A speeding passenger train killed five elephants when it ploughed into a herd crossing the track in eastern India, a railway spokesman said Monday.
The train struck the animals on Sunday near the Khallikote forest range in Orissa state's Ganjam district, some 120 kilometres (74 miles) south of the state capital Bhubaneshwar.
"The local forest department had alerted the railway control
A speeding passenger train killed five elephants when it ploughed into a herd crossing the track in eastern India, a railway spokesman said Monday.
The train struck the animals on Sunday near the Khallikote forest range in Orissa state's Ganjam district, some 120 kilometres (74 miles) south of the state capital Bhubaneshwar.
"The local forest department had alerted the railway control
Russia testing Alzheimer's, Parkinson's medicine
Moscow (Voice of Russia) Jan 01, 2013
Russian scientists have been testing a new medicine that is expected to protect the nervous system and hopefully become a cure for the most wide-spread nervous diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, as well as strokes and depression. The medicine is currently undergoing pre-clinical tests. Experts believe that it in the coming years it will give millions of people a hope for recovery.
Russian scientists have been testing a new medicine that is expected to protect the nervous system and hopefully become a cure for the most wide-spread nervous diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, as well as strokes and depression. The medicine is currently undergoing pre-clinical tests. Experts believe that it in the coming years it will give millions of people a hope for recovery.
In Hong Kong, Rival Protests Are Divided Over LeaderIn Hong Kong, Rival Protests Are Divided Over Leader
Critics of Leung Chun-ying, the chief executive, have accused him of misleading the public on a controversial real estate issue, but he has appeared to retain the support of Beijing
David Cameron sets free trade agreement as his G8 priority
PM to push for Europe-US deal despite problems of past muted response in Washington and his vulnerable position in the EU
David Cameron has made the establishment of a free trade agreement between Europe and the US a key priority during the UK's leadership of the G8 group of richest nations this year.
In a letter to fellow national leaders in the group, whose economies make up more than half the world's output, the prime minister said expanding free trade was one of three areas he wanted them to focus on.
As well as making progress with discussions ahead of trade deals with Canada, Japan and Russia, Cameron wants the even bigger prize of an agreement, at least in principle, on a deal with the US. Such a treaty could reduce duties on goods traded between European Union members and the US or at least lower "non tariff" barriers such as harmonising standards for certain goods.
Cameron also wants national and EU leaders to co-operate in a crackdown on tax evasion and insist on more transparency from developing nations which receive aid.
The UK leadership, which hosts the main G8 summit at Lough Erne in Northern Ireland in June, is also making a virtue of prioritising issues which do not necessarily involve expensive commitments from member states at a time when governments are trying to curb spending.
"This G8 will not be the kind of summit where we simply whip out a chequebook at the eleventh hour, pledge some money and call it a success," writes Cameron. "What we are talking about are long-term changes in our countries and the rules that govern the relationships between them. With ambition on this scale, I am convinced that success depends on us starting a debate on these changes now."
An EU-US trade agreement has been mooted for some time but has not made much progress in the US, especially on Capitol Hill. Cameron faces the problem that the deal is not strictly a G8 issue, and the PM's position and influence in the EU is also vulnerable while debate rages at home about the UK's membership of the organisation.
Development groups are also likely to warn that more G8 deals which exclude developing nations from expanding trade or tie them to unaffordable commitments could harm those nations' growth.
However, Whitehall sources point to existing EU support, including a speech by the trade commissioner, Karel De Gucht, in November, and say the aim is to end the year discussing details of how, not if such an agreement can be implemented. Benefits to EU members of an "ambitious" deal are estimated at around €65bn (£53bn).
"With Europe and America together accounting for a third of global trade, perhaps the single biggest prize of all would be the beginning of negotiations on an EU-US trade agreement," writes Cameron.
"These are vital opportunities for global growth, and I hope that we in the G8 can offer leadership – in particular by working with businesses in every sector of our economies to mobilise support for these deals and by using the openness of our direct engagement as leaders to address the sticking points frankly and to fix them."
Nick Dearden, a spokesman for the Jubilee Debt Campaign, said he was concerned Cameron's focus on trade deals would harm developing nations in three ways: by excluding them from the benefits of such deals or by tying them to unaffordable commitments such as buying British arms, and by strengthening the international power of the financial sector – likely to be one of the major beneficiaries.
"Given the financial crisis we have seen, given the role of the City of London in creating that crisis, and the ongoing trade system, what Cameron should be doing is trying to rein in the financial and new-liberal free trade agenda, not go full steam ahead with extending it," said Dearden.
In the US there is substantial opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico, despite it being in force for nearly 20 years, especially from Republicans and trade unionists who blame it for the loss of jobs.
There is not the same hostility towards an agreement with Europe: some groups representing agriculture have expressed unease but overall the response has been muted.
On tax, the PM wrote to fellow leaders: "No one country can, on its own, effectively tackle tax evasion and aggressive avoidance. But as a group of eight major economies together we have an opportunity to galvanise collective international action.
"We can lead the way in sharing the information to tackle abuses of the system, including in developing countries, so that governments can collect the taxes due to them. We can work together to sign more countries up to the international standards. And we can examine the case for strengthening those standards themselves – whether by improving existing standards or looking at new ones."
The UK presidency, which rotates with the other seven core G8 members Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the US, will last one year, and as well as the headline meeting in June includes a number of preparatory summits
Hugo Chávez estará em coma induzido
O jornal espanhol ABC avança que o o presidente venezuelano se encontra em coma induzido e que as máquinas poderão ser desligadas, o que poderá resultar na sua morte.
Armed robbers steal from Apple store in Paris
Masked and armed robbers used the New Year's Eve revelry as cover to rob the flagship Apple store in Paris.
Shell drill ship grounded off Alaska
The Kulluk, which was being towed south to Seattle after drilling in the Beaufort Sea, ran aground on Sitkalidak Island in the Gulf of Alaska
Two years if your dog bites a burglar
Dog owners in Wales could be jailed for up to two years if their pets bite people - including burglars - under plans being considered by the Welsh Government.
Israel will cease to exist within a decade, says Muslim Brotherhood official
A senior Muslim Brotherhood official has said that Israel will cease to exist within a decade, the latest in a series of inflammatory comments by figures close to Egypt's Mohammed Morsi
Antibiotics or Oregano to Keep Chickens Healthy?
It’s za'atar season in the Middle East and though we don't really need it, there's another reason to love this versatile spice: it could be useful as an alternative to antibiotics. Both a perennial herb and a spice mixed with other ingredients, za’atar livens up a host of dishes throughout the Gulf, Levant and Mediterranean.
Now a small handful of farmers in the United States are feeding their poultry and livestock an oregano oil mixture in lieu of increasingly ineffective antibiotics, The New York Times reports. And they insist it keeps the animals disease free. Though the numbers are compelling, scientists caution there is insufficient data to substantiate their claims.
Now a small handful of farmers in the United States are feeding their poultry and livestock an oregano oil mixture in lieu of increasingly ineffective antibiotics, The New York Times reports. And they insist it keeps the animals disease free. Though the numbers are compelling, scientists caution there is insufficient data to substantiate their claims.
Alcohol guidelines 'too high' say doctors
Government alcohol guidelines that were "plucked out of the air" wrongly suggest that we can drink almost daily with no ill-effects, say doctors.
Iran warns off foreign planes during naval drill: report
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran has warned off foreign surveillance planes that have tried to approach its forces during naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz, an Iranian military spokesman said on Tuesday
Japan's nationalist prime minister wants to revise war apology
Japan's landmark apology to the people of Asia for the Second World War could be revised, the country's new nationalist prime minister has warned.
'Tsunami bomb' tested off New Zealand coast
The United States and New Zealand conducted secret tests of a "tsunami bomb" designed to destroy coastal cities by using underwater blasts to trigger massive tidal waves.
KFC faces food-safety investigation in China
Kentucky Fried Chicken, which has become a staple food for young Chinese, is under investigation in Shanghai for containing high levels of antibiotics.
Pope hits out at unbridled captialism
The Pope has hit out at unbridled capitalism in his New Year's message, saying he hoped 2013 would be a year of peace.
Indian bus rape: Delhi sees rush for guns
Hundreds of women inquire about gun licences following woman's murder, showing the lack of faith in law enforcement
Hundreds of women in Delhi have applied for gun licences following the gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old woman by six men in a bus in the city last month.
The news underlines the widespread sense of insecurity in the city, deep before the incident and deeper now, and the lack of faith in law enforcement agencies.
The ashes of the victim of the attack – who died on Friday after 13 days in hospitals in India and Singapore and was cremated in Delhi in a secret ceremony under heavy security on Sunday – were scattered on the surface of the Ganges River, sacred to Hindus, in northern India on Tuesday.
The case has provoked an unprecedented debate about endemic sexual harassment and violence in India. Tens of thousands have protested across the country, calling for harsher laws, better policing and a change in culture.
Politicians, initially caught off-guard, have now promised new legislation to bring in fast-track courts and harsher punishments for sexual assault. The six men accused of the attack are to be formally charged with murder later this week and potentially face execution.
Indian media are currently reporting incidents of sexual violence that would rarely gain attention previously. In the last 24 hours these have included a teenager fleeing repeated abuse by her brother, who was allegedly assaulted on a bus by a conductor, a 15-year-old held for 15 days by three men in a village in Uttar Pradesh and repeatedly assaulted, an 11-year-old allegedly raped by three teenagers in the northeastern city of Guwahati and two cases of rape in the city of Amritsar.
One case reported on Tuesday involved a woman, also in a village in Uttar Pradesh, who suffered 90% burns after being doused in kerosene, allegedly by a man who had been stalking her for months.
There were signs that a further taboo was about to be broken when one of India's best-known English-language television presenters asked viewers who had experienced abuse from a family member to contact her.
The rush for firearms will cause concern however. Police in Delhi have received 274 requests for licences and 1,200 inquiries from women since 18 December, two days after the woman and a male friend were attacked in a bus cruising on busy roads between 9pm and 10pm.
"Lots of women have been contacting us asking for information about how to obtain licences Any woman has a threat against her. It's not surprising. There are fearless predators out there," said Abhijeet Singh of the campaign group Guns For India.
Delhi police received around 500 applications for the whole of 2011, up from 320 the previous year.
Hundreds of women had come in person to the police licensing department in the city, the Times of India reported.
"We had to patiently tell them that one needs to have a clear danger to one's life to be given a licence. However some … said that with even public transport no longer safe in the city they just cannot take chances," an unnamed official told the newspaper.
There are estimated to be 40m guns in India, the second highest number in the world after the US. Licences are hard to obtain and most are illegal weapons, many manufactured in backstreet workshops. Official ownership levels remain low – three guns for every 100 people – but in recent years, the number of women holding arms has risen. Most are wealthy and worried about theft or assault.
There are fears the attack will lead to further restrictions on women in India, who already suffer significant constraints.
Elders in Matapa, in the poverty-stricken Indian state of Bihar, banned the use of mobile phones for teenage girls and warned them against wearing "sexy" clothes. They claim the move will check rape cases and restore "social order". Other villages nearby are planning similar bans, locals said.
One member of parliament in Rajasthan, the northwestern state, also called for a ban on skirts for schoolgirls to keep them away from "men's lustful gazes''. Banwari Lal Singhal said private schools allowing students to wear skirts explained increased sexual harassment locally.
Matapa is in southern Bihar's Aurangabad district – the region from where one of the Delhi gang-rape accused, Akshay Thakur, comes from. The order was issued after a formal meeting with villagers, council officials and school teachers on Sunday. "Almost every villager pressed us to ban the mobile phones use by the schoolgirls saying they are proving quite dangerous for the society and corrupting traditional values," the local village council head Sushma Singh told the Guardian on Tuesday.
Protesters were angered by the news. "Our sister will have died in vain if all that is happening after is our fear is greater and ladies are more unfree," said Deepti Anand, a 21-year-old student in Delhi who has attended demonstrations most days in recent weeks
Avaria técnica leva avião da EasyJet a aterragem urgente
Um avião da EasyJet que transportava 151 pessoas e fazia a ligação entre Genebra e Edimburgo foi obrigado a aterrar de emergência n o aeroporto de Luton (Londres)após uma avaria técnica.
France's 75% 'supertax' could be revived in Hollande's new year message
President expected to resurrect flagship measure, which was declared unconstitutional at the weekend
François Hollande is expected to use his televised new year message to vow that his flagship 75% "supertax" on the mega-rich will go ahead despite being rejected by France's highest constitutional court.
Preparations for the Socialist French president's first new year address, at 8pm French time [7pm GMT] on Monday, have been tense as France faces a grim year of deepening economic gloom in 2013.
Hollande's unpopularity in the polls is at record levels, unemployment is soaring and his totemic measure – intended to make the mega-rich bow to the crisis-hit times by taxing income over €1m at 75% – was thrown out as unconstitutional by France's top court on Saturday.
The traditional (and pre-recorded) new year address, in which the president sits behind a desk and talks straight to camera amid the finery of the Élysée Palace, has become a set piece of French politics, intensely scrutinised for its ability to set the nation's mind at ease over the difficulties of the coming year.
Hollande's already difficult task of preparing France for what commentators predict will be an annus horribilis has been complicated by the ruling on the 75% tax, which came as a personal blow and saw the government attacked for amateurism by political opponents on Hollande's right and left.
The tax was rejected on the basis of a technical point, leaving France surprised that the government could have overlooked the finer details.
The government has promised that the 75% tax will still eventually be introduced, and Hollande's entourage said he was "serene". But the measure has suffered a setback of at least a year, if not a mortal blow.
The Socialists have not revealed any detail about how they will revise the tax and are not expected to propose a new, tweaked measure until the autumn of 2013 at the earliest. This has prompted opponents to claim victory, including the head of the French professional football league, Frédéric Thiriez, who called the tax a "grave threat" to the football league's competitiveness.
The calmness with which the government has publicly greeted the decision, and its lack of haste to force through a revised measure, has underlined how the 75% tax, which would have brought in only €200m out of the €20bn of new taxes next year, was more symbolic than effective in bringing in revenue.
The tax, as conceived by Hollande, was aimed at all individuals earning more than €1m a year – only income above that benchmark would be taxed at 75%. Hollande, who surprised his own unsuspecting campaign team when he suddenly announced the measure live on a TV show early in the election campaign, had called it a question of morality and patriotism for the rich.
As a campaign promise, it was designed to embarrass the right, who were seen as defenders of the rich, and appeal to the left at a time when the hard-leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon was rising in the polls.
It remains a hugely popular measure in France, with over 60% of people approving it. Crucially, it had become a deeply symbolic political marker to show Hollande was anchored on the left, while those on the left of his own party and leftists in other parties accused him of selling out with recent tax measures in favour of business leaders to boost France's competitive edge.
France's constitutional council ruled that the 75% "supertax" was unfair because it flouted the law in France that taxes are decided by household, not by individual. For example, if someone earned €1.2m and their spouse earned nothing, they would face the 75% tax on €200,000. But a couple that earned €900,000 each, €1.8m between them, would not be taxed at that rate.
Another even thornier issue to dominate the short new year's message will be what Hollande has called his "great battle for employment". He has promised to stem France's relentless rise in unemployment and ensure the number of jobless people starts to drop by the end of 2013. This now looks unlikely after France saw its 19th month of rising unemployment. Early 2013 could see France breaking its own 1997 record of 3.2 million unemployed.
Another tough challenge will be France's promise – with Brussels breathing down its neck – to reduce its deficit to 3% of gross domestic product by the end of 2013. With growth predictions down, this looks increasingly difficult.
The Élysée said the message of the new year's address would be "hope"
Hillary Clinton tem coágulo entre cérebro e crânio
A secretária de Estado norte-americana, Hillary Clinton, hospitalizada em Nova Iorque devido a uma trombose, tem um coágulo de sangue entre o cérebro e o crânio, mas os médicos afirmaram hoje confiarem...
Israeli held for sneaking into Egypt
Israeli held for sneaking into Egypt: CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt on Monday said it had detained an Israeli army officer in the Taba region of the Sinai peninsula for sneaking through the border, but his mother and Israeli media said he was a civilian pro-Palestinian activist.
Protestan ahora policías en Atizapán
Protestan ahora policías en Atizapán: Sesenta policías de Atizapán protestan en la Vía López Mateos para exigir que les paguen aguinaldos; presuntos agentes golpearon a dos conductores.
US to go over fiscal cliff as Congress misses deadline
US to go over fiscal cliff as Congress misses deadline: The United States is on course to topple over the "fiscal cliff" as Democrats and Republicans reached the broad outlines of a deal but failed to pass the required legislation in time.
Farmers urge minister to provide extreme weather insurance
Farmers urge minister to provide extreme weather insurance:
National Farmers Union estimates rains in 2012 cost the industry £1.3bn from poor harvests and higher food bills for cattle
Record rainfall in 2012 has cost British farmers £1.3bn, prompting calls for government to provide insurance against extreme weather if it wants to preserve national food security.
The National Farmers Union (NFU) estimates the extreme levels of rainfall in 2012 has cost the industry £600m in lost output, especially from poor wheat and potato harvests, and another £700m in extra costs such as feed for cattle, which could not graze in water-logged fields.
The figures are being published on Tuesday, ahead of the first major speech to the industry by Owen Paterson, environment secretary, on Thursday at the Oxford Farming Conference. The NFU president, Peter Kendall, said they would be used to press Paterson to soften his expressed desire to axe European "Pillar 1" subsidies, which pay farmers a set amount for owning land in production. The UK gets about €3.65bn (£2.97bn) a year under the EU scheme.
The NFU supported ending the subsidy, but only if it was done across Europe and ideally elsewhere in the world, so farmers in other countries did not have an advantage. It needed to be replaced by a form of extreme weather payment or insurance to protect farmers from going out of business during the most difficult years, said Kendall.
"All we seem to get out of the Treasury and Defra [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] these days is 'Pillar 1 is worthless'," Kendall said. "If they are determined to move away from Pillar 1, we need a debate about income insurance or protection when we have got years like 2012. It's not the same as producing nuts and bolts in a factory – we can't farm under water or when we don't get any rain."
The EU is locked in negotiations over dramatic cuts to farm subsidies but they are expected to take years because of strong resistance, especially from France.
Farmers are likely to face scepticism about calls for financial support after decades of headlines about fat subsidy payments, and – before they were replaced by the acreage payments – food "mountains" and milk "lakes" caused by paying farmers to produce food regardless of demand.
The global decline in production of wheat, maize, dairy products and many other foodstuffs in 2012 caused steep rises in prices, with the UN warning in October that wheat prices had already risen by 25%, with the prospect of more to come.
In the longer term, analysts expect farming to enjoy a global boom as expanding populations and rising wealth and consumption continue to outpace supply.
The investment guru Jim Rogers, who co-founded the Quantum Fund with George Soros, urged business students to learn to drive a tractor instead. "There are many things happening in agriculture, which mean agriculture is going to be fabulous for another 10 to 30 years," Rogers said in a video blog .
Paterson, who was moved to Defra in the September reshuffle, will try to capitalise on that optimism to launch the Future Farming Group on Thursday, a campaign to attract more people to consider farming as a career.
The NFU says the 2012 "black hole" in farmers' finances is the worst situation for 10-15 years, not part of the normal ups and downs of the industry.
Kendall argues that governments have been supporting agriculture for centuries, and today most, if not all, countries have some form of insurance, even states which are proudly subsidy-free.
He said the renewed focus on national food security – as climate change is prediccted to bring more extreme weather and disrupt agriculture and transport around the world – made the issue more urgent.
"In years like 2012 it is very clear to see that the support farming receives from the CAP [EU common agricultural policy] is an absolute lifeline to many farmers," said Kendall in a statement accompanying the new financial estimate.
"Recently, we have heard government representatives refer to these support payments as 'worthless', arguing that payments should only go to environmental goals. With the possible exception of Sweden, the UK government is the only one out of 27 member-state countries in the EU arguing in this way.
"I firmly believe the only likely outcome of this strategy is further discrimination against English farmers. What is more, this ideologically driven approach is outdated given the increasing volatility in global prices and the challenging global climate," he said.
Defra told the Guardian that it had responded to the tough conditions by relaxing regulations such as restrictions on when slurry can be spread on fields and deadlines for applications for funds.
"We recognise the impact the wet weather has had on farmers and that is why we have relaxed some of our restrictions to help them," said an official.
"We have also made it clear that direct payments under CAP should not be phased out in the next financial period, but that businesses should have time to adjust."
Record rainfall in 2012 has cost British farmers £1.3bn, prompting calls for government to provide insurance against extreme weather if it wants to preserve national food security.
The National Farmers Union (NFU) estimates the extreme levels of rainfall in 2012 has cost the industry £600m in lost output, especially from poor wheat and potato harvests, and another £700m in extra costs such as feed for cattle, which could not graze in water-logged fields.
The figures are being published on Tuesday, ahead of the first major speech to the industry by Owen Paterson, environment secretary, on Thursday at the Oxford Farming Conference. The NFU president, Peter Kendall, said they would be used to press Paterson to soften his expressed desire to axe European "Pillar 1" subsidies, which pay farmers a set amount for owning land in production. The UK gets about €3.65bn (£2.97bn) a year under the EU scheme.
The NFU supported ending the subsidy, but only if it was done across Europe and ideally elsewhere in the world, so farmers in other countries did not have an advantage. It needed to be replaced by a form of extreme weather payment or insurance to protect farmers from going out of business during the most difficult years, said Kendall.
"All we seem to get out of the Treasury and Defra [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] these days is 'Pillar 1 is worthless'," Kendall said. "If they are determined to move away from Pillar 1, we need a debate about income insurance or protection when we have got years like 2012. It's not the same as producing nuts and bolts in a factory – we can't farm under water or when we don't get any rain."
The EU is locked in negotiations over dramatic cuts to farm subsidies but they are expected to take years because of strong resistance, especially from France.
Farmers are likely to face scepticism about calls for financial support after decades of headlines about fat subsidy payments, and – before they were replaced by the acreage payments – food "mountains" and milk "lakes" caused by paying farmers to produce food regardless of demand.
The global decline in production of wheat, maize, dairy products and many other foodstuffs in 2012 caused steep rises in prices, with the UN warning in October that wheat prices had already risen by 25%, with the prospect of more to come.
In the longer term, analysts expect farming to enjoy a global boom as expanding populations and rising wealth and consumption continue to outpace supply.
The investment guru Jim Rogers, who co-founded the Quantum Fund with George Soros, urged business students to learn to drive a tractor instead. "There are many things happening in agriculture, which mean agriculture is going to be fabulous for another 10 to 30 years," Rogers said in a video blog .
Paterson, who was moved to Defra in the September reshuffle, will try to capitalise on that optimism to launch the Future Farming Group on Thursday, a campaign to attract more people to consider farming as a career.
The NFU says the 2012 "black hole" in farmers' finances is the worst situation for 10-15 years, not part of the normal ups and downs of the industry.
Kendall argues that governments have been supporting agriculture for centuries, and today most, if not all, countries have some form of insurance, even states which are proudly subsidy-free.
He said the renewed focus on national food security – as climate change is prediccted to bring more extreme weather and disrupt agriculture and transport around the world – made the issue more urgent.
"In years like 2012 it is very clear to see that the support farming receives from the CAP [EU common agricultural policy] is an absolute lifeline to many farmers," said Kendall in a statement accompanying the new financial estimate.
"Recently, we have heard government representatives refer to these support payments as 'worthless', arguing that payments should only go to environmental goals. With the possible exception of Sweden, the UK government is the only one out of 27 member-state countries in the EU arguing in this way.
"I firmly believe the only likely outcome of this strategy is further discrimination against English farmers. What is more, this ideologically driven approach is outdated given the increasing volatility in global prices and the challenging global climate," he said.
Defra told the Guardian that it had responded to the tough conditions by relaxing regulations such as restrictions on when slurry can be spread on fields and deadlines for applications for funds.
"We recognise the impact the wet weather has had on farmers and that is why we have relaxed some of our restrictions to help them," said an official.
"We have also made it clear that direct payments under CAP should not be phased out in the next financial period, but that businesses should have time to adjust."
When fracking came to suburban Texas
When fracking came to suburban Texas:
Residents of Gardendale, a suburb near the hub of the west Texas oil industry, face having up to 300 wells in their backyards
The corner of Goldenrod and Western streets, with its grid of modest homes, could be almost any suburb that went up in a hurry – except of course for the giant screeching oil rig tearing up the earth and making the pavement shudder underfoot.
Fracking, the technology that opened up America's vast deposits of unconventional oil and gas, has moved beyond remote locations and landed at the front door, with oil operations now planned or under way in suburbs, mid-sized towns and large metropolitan areas.
Some cities have moved to limit fracking or ban it outright – even in the heart of oil and gas country. Tulsa, Oklahoma, which once billed itself as the oil capital of the world, banned fracking inside city limits. The authorities in Dallas last week blocked what would have been the first natural gas well in town. The town of Longmont, just outside Denver, meanwhile, is fighting off attempts by industry groups to overturn a fracking ban.
But Gardendale, a suburb of 1,500 people near the hub of the west Texas oil industry, exists in a legal and political environment in which there are seemingly few restrictions on fracking, even inside city limits. For residents here, fracking is part of daily life.
"You can hear it, you can smell it, and you are always breathing it. It's just like being behind a car exhaust," said Debbie Leverett, during a tour of the area last October organised by the Society of Environmental Journalists. "All of your senses change."
Over the last few years oil companies have drilled 51 wells in Gardendale, an area that covers about 11 square miles – and that's just the start.
Berry Petroleum, the main oil developer, plans to drill as many as 300 wells in Gardendale. "Berry's current plan is to drill approximately 140 wells on 40-acre spacing in and around the Gardendale area," Jeff Coyle, a company spokesman, wrote in an email. "Additionally, we are preparing to conduct a pilot study on 20-acre spacing and, if those test results are encouraging and economic conditions warrant, we may drill up to 160 additional wells."
Some of those wells will be drilled within 150ft of residents' front doors – far closer than in other towns in Texas.
In the nearby city of Midland, the oil industry hub and childhood home of George W Bush, the city council capped the number of wells inside city limits at 30. The town requires oil companies to stay 500ft away from buildings and homes. In some circumstances oil companies may be required to landscape around a well.
"People are still not really happy when an oil well turns up in the backyard," said Wes Perry, Midland's mayor and an oil man himself. But he added: "We are an oil town. We can't be hypocrites."
However, Gardendale lacks the legal authority to keep fracking at a distance. The suburb, just outside Midland and Odessa, is unincorporated, so it does not have the legal authority to impose zoning restrictions. Residents voted down an attempt to incorporate last year, fearing it would lead to higher taxes.
Berry argues the close proximity serves to encourage industry and residents to co-exist. "What we have here is a situation where we have to find the best way to work together, where mineral rights owners and surface rights owners can co-exist," Coyle said.
But co-existence does not work for Shane Leverett, Debbie's husband. Leverett has worked in the oil industry, but he said the drilling plan for Gardendale was excessive. "This is a fantastic opportunity for oil and gas development, but it is coming at the expense of all of us," he said.
The couple are suing the oil company to try to block drilling on their 130 acres on the edge of town. The land is staked with bright plastic strips marking potential oil wells.
Current plans call for seven wells on the property. "They're talking about a well every 600 feet and a pad every 300 feet," Shane Leverett said. "Do the math. There's not much room left over for us."
The suit seeks to challenge a pillar of Texas law: that property owners have no control over the extraction of the oil that lies beneath their land, unless they also own mineral rights. The Leveretts only own the surface rights to their land. The mineral rights were sold off decades ago – a fact the Leveretts were aware of when they bought their property, but they did not think there was a real prospect of drilling at the time.
Fracking changed that, however, making it profitable to drill on the Leveretts' land.
"This case is of historic importance," said Steve Hershberger, the Leveretts' lawyer. "Now that the oil companies have found oil and gas through fracking and horizontal drilling they are going into residential areas and urban areas. This case is going to define the relationship between mineral owners and surface owners in a big way."
The oil company argues the Leveretts got what they paid for. "Essentially, each Gardendale surface owner bought his or her surface property (at a discounted price without the minerals) betting, wrongfully as it turned out, on the proposition that oil and gas development would not occur in the area," Coyle said.
Other residents complain the oil company dictates what property owners can do above ground, even without definitive drilling plans.
Hector Rodriguez said he was barred from expanding his trailer home or putting in a bigger dog house on his six acres because the oil company insisted on protecting access.
"They told me they might not ever drill there, but they put the stake there just in case," he said. "They told me I could not do anything there. I have no rights."
Coyle said the company believes the Rodriguez property sits atop a potential oil well – although it is not currently scheduled for drilling.
Rodriguez, back at home, is unimpressed. "We're just talking about a dog house," he said. "I should be able to decide about that."
The corner of Goldenrod and Western streets, with its grid of modest homes, could be almost any suburb that went up in a hurry – except of course for the giant screeching oil rig tearing up the earth and making the pavement shudder underfoot.
Fracking, the technology that opened up America's vast deposits of unconventional oil and gas, has moved beyond remote locations and landed at the front door, with oil operations now planned or under way in suburbs, mid-sized towns and large metropolitan areas.
Some cities have moved to limit fracking or ban it outright – even in the heart of oil and gas country. Tulsa, Oklahoma, which once billed itself as the oil capital of the world, banned fracking inside city limits. The authorities in Dallas last week blocked what would have been the first natural gas well in town. The town of Longmont, just outside Denver, meanwhile, is fighting off attempts by industry groups to overturn a fracking ban.
But Gardendale, a suburb of 1,500 people near the hub of the west Texas oil industry, exists in a legal and political environment in which there are seemingly few restrictions on fracking, even inside city limits. For residents here, fracking is part of daily life.
"You can hear it, you can smell it, and you are always breathing it. It's just like being behind a car exhaust," said Debbie Leverett, during a tour of the area last October organised by the Society of Environmental Journalists. "All of your senses change."
Over the last few years oil companies have drilled 51 wells in Gardendale, an area that covers about 11 square miles – and that's just the start.
Berry Petroleum, the main oil developer, plans to drill as many as 300 wells in Gardendale. "Berry's current plan is to drill approximately 140 wells on 40-acre spacing in and around the Gardendale area," Jeff Coyle, a company spokesman, wrote in an email. "Additionally, we are preparing to conduct a pilot study on 20-acre spacing and, if those test results are encouraging and economic conditions warrant, we may drill up to 160 additional wells."
Some of those wells will be drilled within 150ft of residents' front doors – far closer than in other towns in Texas.
In the nearby city of Midland, the oil industry hub and childhood home of George W Bush, the city council capped the number of wells inside city limits at 30. The town requires oil companies to stay 500ft away from buildings and homes. In some circumstances oil companies may be required to landscape around a well.
"People are still not really happy when an oil well turns up in the backyard," said Wes Perry, Midland's mayor and an oil man himself. But he added: "We are an oil town. We can't be hypocrites."
However, Gardendale lacks the legal authority to keep fracking at a distance. The suburb, just outside Midland and Odessa, is unincorporated, so it does not have the legal authority to impose zoning restrictions. Residents voted down an attempt to incorporate last year, fearing it would lead to higher taxes.
Berry argues the close proximity serves to encourage industry and residents to co-exist. "What we have here is a situation where we have to find the best way to work together, where mineral rights owners and surface rights owners can co-exist," Coyle said.
But co-existence does not work for Shane Leverett, Debbie's husband. Leverett has worked in the oil industry, but he said the drilling plan for Gardendale was excessive. "This is a fantastic opportunity for oil and gas development, but it is coming at the expense of all of us," he said.
The couple are suing the oil company to try to block drilling on their 130 acres on the edge of town. The land is staked with bright plastic strips marking potential oil wells.
Current plans call for seven wells on the property. "They're talking about a well every 600 feet and a pad every 300 feet," Shane Leverett said. "Do the math. There's not much room left over for us."
The suit seeks to challenge a pillar of Texas law: that property owners have no control over the extraction of the oil that lies beneath their land, unless they also own mineral rights. The Leveretts only own the surface rights to their land. The mineral rights were sold off decades ago – a fact the Leveretts were aware of when they bought their property, but they did not think there was a real prospect of drilling at the time.
Fracking changed that, however, making it profitable to drill on the Leveretts' land.
"This case is of historic importance," said Steve Hershberger, the Leveretts' lawyer. "Now that the oil companies have found oil and gas through fracking and horizontal drilling they are going into residential areas and urban areas. This case is going to define the relationship between mineral owners and surface owners in a big way."
The oil company argues the Leveretts got what they paid for. "Essentially, each Gardendale surface owner bought his or her surface property (at a discounted price without the minerals) betting, wrongfully as it turned out, on the proposition that oil and gas development would not occur in the area," Coyle said.
Other residents complain the oil company dictates what property owners can do above ground, even without definitive drilling plans.
Hector Rodriguez said he was barred from expanding his trailer home or putting in a bigger dog house on his six acres because the oil company insisted on protecting access.
"They told me they might not ever drill there, but they put the stake there just in case," he said. "They told me I could not do anything there. I have no rights."
Coyle said the company believes the Rodriguez property sits atop a potential oil well – although it is not currently scheduled for drilling.
Rodriguez, back at home, is unimpressed. "We're just talking about a dog house," he said. "I should be able to decide about that."
Phage-Driven Loss of Virulence in a Fish Pathogenic Bacterium
Phage-Driven Loss of Virulence in a Fish Pathogenic Bacterium:
by Elina Laanto, Jaana K. H. Bamford, Jouni Laakso, Lotta-Riina Sundberg
Parasites provide a selective pressure during the evolution of their hosts, and mediate a range of effects on ecological communities. Due to their short generation time, host-parasite interactions may also drive the virulence of opportunistic bacteria. This is especially relevant in systems where high densities of hosts and parasites on different trophic levels (e.g. vertebrate hosts, their bacterial pathogens, and virus parasitizing bacteria) co-exist. In farmed salmonid fingerlings, Flavobacterium columnare is an emerging pathogen, and phage that infect F. columnare have been isolated. However, the impact of these phage on their host bacterium is not well understood. To study this, four strains of F. columnare were exposed to three isolates of lytic phage and the development of phage resistance and changes in colony morphology were monitored. Using zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system, the ancestral rhizoid morphotypes were associated with a 25–100% mortality rate, whereas phage-resistant rough morphotypes that lost their virulence and gliding motility (which are key characteristics of the ancestral types), did not affect zebrafish survival. Both morphotypes maintained their colony morphologies over ten serial passages in liquid culture, except for the low-virulence strain, Os06, which changed morphology with each passage. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effects of phage-host interactions in a commercially important fish pathogen where phage resistance directly correlates with a decline in bacterial virulence. These results suggest that phage can cause phenotypic changes in F. columnare outside the fish host, and antagonistic interactions between bacterial pathogens and their parasitic phage can favor low bacterial virulence under natural conditions. Furthermore, these results suggest that phage-based therapies can provide a disease management strategy for columnaris disease in aquaculture.
by Elina Laanto, Jaana K. H. Bamford, Jouni Laakso, Lotta-Riina Sundberg
Parasites provide a selective pressure during the evolution of their hosts, and mediate a range of effects on ecological communities. Due to their short generation time, host-parasite interactions may also drive the virulence of opportunistic bacteria. This is especially relevant in systems where high densities of hosts and parasites on different trophic levels (e.g. vertebrate hosts, their bacterial pathogens, and virus parasitizing bacteria) co-exist. In farmed salmonid fingerlings, Flavobacterium columnare is an emerging pathogen, and phage that infect F. columnare have been isolated. However, the impact of these phage on their host bacterium is not well understood. To study this, four strains of F. columnare were exposed to three isolates of lytic phage and the development of phage resistance and changes in colony morphology were monitored. Using zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system, the ancestral rhizoid morphotypes were associated with a 25–100% mortality rate, whereas phage-resistant rough morphotypes that lost their virulence and gliding motility (which are key characteristics of the ancestral types), did not affect zebrafish survival. Both morphotypes maintained their colony morphologies over ten serial passages in liquid culture, except for the low-virulence strain, Os06, which changed morphology with each passage. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effects of phage-host interactions in a commercially important fish pathogen where phage resistance directly correlates with a decline in bacterial virulence. These results suggest that phage can cause phenotypic changes in F. columnare outside the fish host, and antagonistic interactions between bacterial pathogens and their parasitic phage can favor low bacterial virulence under natural conditions. Furthermore, these results suggest that phage-based therapies can provide a disease management strategy for columnaris disease in aquaculture.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)