Assistant police inspector arrested for drunk driving

(Japan) - Police in Taragi, Kumamoto Prefecture, said Monday that a 55-year-old assistant police inspector was arrested on Sunday at around 8 a.m. while driving drunk to work.

The man, who has been named as Hiroshi Sakata, was arrested after his vehicle ran into the rear of a taxi waiting at a stop light, Fuji TV reported. Sakata was asked to take a breathalyzer test, which registered 0.63 milligrams of alcohol per liter. The legal limit in Japan is 0.03 mg/ml.

During questioning, Sakata was quoted by investigators as saying that he had been drinking from midday until 9 p.m. Saturday, Fuji reported.

Kumamoto Prefectural Police released a statement in which it said that Sakata would be disciplined for his behavior and that the force would do its utmost to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Japan Today

How tiny insects survive the rain

A mosquito's tiny, low-weight body is the key to its ability to survive flying in the rain, according to scientists.

A team from the Georgia Institute of Technology filmed the insects as they collided with raindrops showing that their bodies put up so little resistance that, rather than the drop of water stopping in a sudden, catastrophic splash, the mosquito simply combined with the drop and the two continued to fall together.

The team report their findings in PNAS.

As well as helping explain how the insects thrive in damp, humid environments, the research could ultimately help researchers to design tiny, flying robots that are just as impervious to the elements.

"I hope this will make people think a little bit differently about rain," said lead researcher David Hu.

"If you're small, it can be very dangerous. But it seems that these mosquitoes are so small that they're safe."

After repeated attempts at what he described as the most difficult game of darts ever, he and his colleagues managed to hit flying mosquitoes with drops of water and capture footage of the result.

Each droplet was between two and 50 times the weight of a mosquito, so what they saw surprised them.

Describing the the results, Dr Hu cited the Chinese martial art of Tai chi.

"There is a philosophy that if you don't resist the force of your opponent, you won't feel it," he explained.

"That's why they don't feel the force; they simply join the drop, become one item and travel together."

When a moving object crashes into another, it is the sudden halt that produces a damage-causing force. For example, when a car hits a wall at 30mph, the stationary wall and the car have to absorb all of the energy carried by that moving car, causing a great deal of damage.

The trick for a mosquito is that it hardly slows the raindrop down at all, and absorbs very little of its energy.

Surviving the collision though, is not the end of the drama for a tiny insect. It has to escape from its watery cocoon before the droplet smashes the insect into the ground at more than 20mph.

This is where the insect's body, which is covered in water-repellent hairs, seems to give it another crucial survival technique.

Every mosquito studied in this experiment managed to separate itself from the water drop before it hit the ground.      (bbc.co.uk)

Excess exercise 'hurts the heart' and cause dangerous long-term harm, say scientists

Extreme exercise such as marathons may permanently damage the heart and trigger rhythm abnormalities, warn researchers.
They say the safe ‘upper limit’ for heart health is a maximum of an hour a day - after which there is little benefit to the individual.
A review of research evidence by US physicians says intensive training schedules and extreme endurance competitions can cause long-term harm to people’s hearts.

Activities such as marathons, iron man distance triathlons, and very long distance bicycle races may cause structural changes to the heart and large arteries, leading to lasting injury.
Lead author Dr James O’Keefe, of Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City, said exercise was generally beneficial for health but could tip into becoming harmful when taken to excessive lengths.

He said ‘Physical exercise, though not a drug, possesses many traits of a powerful pharmacologic agent.
A routine of daily physical activity can be highly effective for prevention and treatment of many diseases, including coronary heart disease, hypertension, heart failure, and obesity.

However, as with any pharmacologic agent, a safe upper dose limit potentially exists, beyond which the adverse effects of physical exercise, such as musculoskeletal trauma and cardiovascular stress, may outweigh its benefits.’

Read complete news here

Qantas Profits to fall by 80%

Qantas said it expects its profits to fall by as much as 90% amid growing losses at its international operations and its "highest ever fuel bill".

It has forecast a profit before tax of between A$50m ($48.6m; £31.6m) and A$100m for the year ending 30 June.

That's down from a profit before tax of A$552m during the same period a year earlier.

The firm's shares dropped as much as 18% on the Australian Securities Exchange after the profit warning.

"The forecast result reflects the recent deterioration in global aviation operating conditions driven by the European economic crisis, the Group's highest ever jet fuel bill, and substantial capacity increases in the domestic market that have reduced yields," Qantas said in a statement.

The airline said that fuel costs for the period are expected to rise to A$4.4bn, an increase of approximately A$700m from the same period a year earlier.

Facebook Ads, Comments Don't Sway Most Users: Poll

Four out of five Facebook Inc users have never bought a product or service as a result of advertising or comments on the social network site, a Reuters/Ipsos poll shows, the latest sign that much more needs to be done to turn its 900 million customer base into advertising dollars.

The online poll also found that 34 percent of Facebook users surveyed were spending less time on the website than six months ago, whereas only 20 percent were spending more.

The findings underscore investors' worries about Facebook's money-making abilities that have pushed the stock down 29 percent since its initial public offering last month, reducing its market value by $30 billion to roughly $74 billion.

About 44 percent of respondents said the market debut, seen by investors as troubled, has made them less favorable toward Facebook, according to the survey. In the May 31-June 4 poll of 1,032 Americans, 21 percent said they had no Facebook account.

Facebook's 900 million users make it among the most popular online destinations, challenging entrenched Internet players such as Google Inc and Yahoo Inc. Not everyone is convinced the company has figured out how to translate that popularity into a business that can justify its lofty valuation.

Shares of Facebook closed Monday's regular trading session down 3 percent at $26.90.

While the survey did not ask how other forms of advertising affected purchasing behavior, a February study by research firm eMarketer suggested Facebook fared worse than email or direct-mail marketing in terms of influencing consumers' decisions.

"It shows that Facebook has work to do in terms of making its advertising more effective and more relevant to people," eMarketer analyst Debra Williamson said.     (Reuters)

China bars stock index web search

China has blocked access to the term "Shanghai Composite Index" on some of the country's most popular microblogging sites and has also censored other terms relating to the unrest. 

A search for "Shanghai Composite Index" on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter resulted in the message: "According to the relevant laws, regulations and policies, the results for this search term cannot be displayed". 

This was after the index dropped by 64.89 points on Monday.

The numbers correspond to 4 June 1989, the date of the crackdown against protesters at Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

The market opened at 2,346.98 points, with many bloggers deciphering the 23 as referring to the 23rd anniversary of the crackdown and the rest of the numbers, 46.98, again forming the date of the crackdown, when rearranged.

"Whoa, these figures are too freaky! Very cool," one of the bloggers was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency. It quoted another blogger as saying that "the opening figure and the drop are both too creepy".

The army shot dead hundreds of civilians rallying for democracy during the crackdown.

'Anti-education' cuts slammed

(New Zealand) The education sector has banded together to urge the government against increasing class sizes.

Speaking today after a joint meeting between seven different sector assocations, the group said the Budget announcements to increase class sizes resulting in teaching cuts of one to two teachers per school  were philosophically anti-education.

Under moves announced in the Budget about 245 schools stood to lose between one and seven teachers, although the Government pulled back from the most extreme impact saying no more than two full-time teaching staff would be lost at any school in the next three years.

NZ Educational Institute president Ian Leckie said they would invite education minister Hekia Parata to meet with the group immediately to discuss alternative options.

While discussions of industrial action were premature, if Ms Parata was unwilling to discuss the sector's concerns then principals and parents would support any unions that opted to strike, Mr Leckie said.

"While everybody is jumping to the question of whether we'll go out on strike with this, that's premature. Let's start with the dialogue and look for the solutions, rather than having people walk the streets.

"But there's no doubt that the public of New Zealand are outraged at the moment, there is a lot of anger out there."
Read complete news here

Headline June 6th, 2012 / A Tale Of Two Worlds!

A Tale 
Of 
Two Worlds!

Special Dedication to the 'haves' and the 'have nots'

All too often, unfortunately, you heard the following argument: ''The system was: if we pay you 2 million for a job, it's because you helped us make 20 million.'' But what no one says to us all is that those profits were of short term sort, generated by risky securities, now turned to ashes and dust. Bonus bagging bankers may loathe to admit it, but the answer is obvious: tie bonuses to long term profitability. Have them vest in two years, maybe three. Meanwhile, keep them in escrow. The question is: will the bankers stand for it? Peter Singer, a prominent bioethics Professor at Princeton and author of the newly published 'The Life You Can Save': Acting now to end World Poverty, suggests that bonus deprived take a hard look at themselves. ''How much happier does it make them to have 10million rather than 200,000?? .......So have they got enough from that salary to provide them and their families with the basics of what they need to live? And by that I don't mean a six bed room apartment on Park Avenue.'' For a lot of them apparently not. But the game is over, at least in Manhattan. ''The market for them is Mumbai, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai. We've been moving them out there for a year.'' High-fliers who traded the riskiest of securities, face a grimmer prospect. In his memo to staff, John Mack declared a new Morgan Stanley clawback policy starting with cash bonuses for 2008.

The policy is ominously broad: awards could be clawedback not just for risky trading that result in long-term losses but also for 'reputational harm to the firm'. At least the Morgan Stanley guys have cash bonuses, provisional though they maybe, for now. And Credit Suisse, though not a TARP recipient, had bonuses one year as the same as toxic securities its bankers and traders had sold their customers. However, since the securities had already been market down to 65cents on the dollar, the value could only move up. But from the very recent past, 2010, A.I.G's Ed Liddy, got eligible for a ''special bonus'' for extraordinary performance. What was that to mean?? Nobody even TARP officials had a clue!? But then,......but then, Alan Johnson, executive compensation consultant, broke the din, with obvious truth: ''if the government says you can't pay people who are successful, then game over!!'' Haha! Many thanks to !WOW! Many thanks to Sam founders for every effort, and many thanks to the ever growing world, led by none other than, YOU HEROES!! Good Night And God bless!

SAM Daily Times - The Voice Of The Voiceless

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Russian Base jumper sets new jump record on Himalayas

Russian Base jumper Valery Rozov has set a new world record with a leap from the top of Shiving, a 6,543m mountain in the Indian Himalayas.

After a 30-day expedition, including a six-day ascent, Mr Rozov, 47, took off from a cliffside. Within seconds he hit speeds of 125mph. The Russian landed 2,200m further down on the glacier, just 90 seconds later. The other expedition members took three days to complete the descent.

"This was my first project in the Himalayas," said the two-time skydiving world champion after his record-breaking flight. "We had a few difficulties along the way, so I am really pleased that we were able to complete the jump successfully."

Mr Rosov is a superstar in Base jumping, an extreme sport which involves jumping from cliffs, bridges, buildings and towers. The Russian's breathtaking feats, such as jumping into an active volcano in Kamchatka, Eastern Russia in 2009 and from Ulvetanna Peak in the Antarctic in 2010, have made him internationally famous.

Scottish Universities Under Fire on Fair Access

Student leaders have described as "truly awful" the record of Scottish universities on admitting students from poorer backgrounds. Figures were obtained by the National Union of Students (NUS) in Scotland using a Freedom of Information request. They said older universities each typically recruit fewer than 100 students from deprived backgrounds.

The universities have defended their efforts to recruit a wider range of undergraduates. The figures were compiled using the government's Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD). Students were classed as coming from a poorer background if they grew up in one of the least affluent 20% of postcode districts.

St Andrews University admitted 13 students from these areas. It teaches a total of 7,370 undergraduates. Edinburgh and Aberdeen also recruited fewer than 100 students from these "SIMD 20" districts. NUS Scotland said both Dundee and Glasgow "do much better".

Robin Parker of NUS Scotland said: "University places should be given to those that have the most talent and potential. "Unless institutions do more to widen access, they're missing out on some of those with the most potential, that could get the best degrees, and quite frankly, not doing their job properly.

"Making access fairer is incredibly important, but that doesn't mean it's difficult to do." St Andrews University said it was making efforts to attract a wider range of students.

A statement from the university said: "The top universities in this country are open and accessible to all - but we need much more support from society at large to engender the belief in young people that the brightest can come here, and succeed.

"Like other universities, we are conducting lots of outreach work, a range of innovative programmes and running summer schools to encourage bright young people from deprived areas to choose a university education.

"For as long as we do that in isolation however, our progress will be limited." Aberdeen University said it recruited many of its students from north-east Scotland, which has fewer districts which fall into the SIMD 20 category.

Original source here.

Care/ Sadd Survey Investigates Risky Behaviour by Teens on College Visits

High school juniors and seniors sometimes get more than a campus tour on college visits, suggests a new national survey by the Center for Adolescent Research and Education (CARE) at Susquehanna University and SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions).

Roughly one in six surveyed teens (16 percent) who had been on an overnight college admissions visit reported drinking alcohol during the visit. Teens also reported engaging in sex or other intimate sexual behavior (17 percent), using drugs other than alcohol (5 percent) or driving while impaired (2 percent) during their overnight college visit.

The study, conducted for CARE and SADD by ORC International Inc. surveyed 1,070 U.S. teens from age 16 to 19, 270 of whom indicated they’d been on an overnight college admissions visit. It includes high school students currently making college visits and current college students reflecting on previous visits. Data was collected online between April 17 and 20, 2012.

“This information offers a cautionary tale to parents and college administrators,” said Stephen Gray Wallace, director of CARE and an associate research professor at Susquehanna University. “One in six teens who have been on an overnight college admissions visit, some as young as 16, are making poor and potentially tragic choices on campus. Colleges and universities should examine their policies on campus visits to ensure the safety of young visitors and their hosts.”

For some teens, the college visit was the first time they engaged in some of these behaviors. For example, 51 percent of teens who reported drinking during the overnight visit said they had done so for the first time. Fifty-two percent of respondents who reported engaging in some type of sexual activity during their visit indicated that they participated in behaviors in which they had not previously engaged.

The study is a follow-up to one conducted by SADD in 2003, which found higher instances of teens engaging in alcohol use (26 percent), sex (28 percent) or drug use (22 percent) during college visits. That study, however, included all types of overnight college visits (such as visiting a friend or sibling), not just those made during the college selection process.

"These results speak to parents about the importance of communicating about risks and setting expectations for their teens in advance of new and potentially challenging experiences," said Penny Wells, SADD’s president and CEO. "The temptations are waiting for these young people as soon as they go off to the next phase of their lives at college. Parents should open a strong communication channel with their teens to guide them in the right direction."
What Families and Colleges Can Do

Risks aside, college visits remain an important staple of the higher education selection process. But parents, teens and colleges must share responsibility for keeping young people safe during the sampling process. Some practical measures might include:


Parents

• Accompany your teens on college visits and find accommodations at an off-campus hotel.
• Discuss with your teens the choices they may have to make and role-play how they might best respond. Teens with parents who regularly engage them in open, honest dialogue about such important issues are much less likely to make poor choices.
• Explain your expectations. Parents who provide a strong level of guidance to their teens are more likely to have children who avoid destructive behaviors.

Teens

• Understand the risk behaviors you might encounter during a college visit.
• Explore possible dangerous "scenarios" with your parents and ask about their expectations for your behavior. Knowing what those expectations are will make it more likely you will to try to meet them.
• Decide ahead of time (i.e., "in the event of") what choices you feel comfortable with. This will make it easier to do the right thing when a moment of decision arrives.

Colleges

• Assess the current risk behaviors of your students and visitors to campus.
• Respond with clear, firm policies that protect students, visitors and hosts.
• Communicate and enforce campus rules. Students, underage guests and their parents need to know that your college is serious about keeping young people safe.
• Invite prospective students for shorter visits.
• Train hosts and have them sign social contracts about acceptable behaviors on their part and the part of their visitors.

Read original source here.

Board of Trustees at Allegheny College Offers New Contract to Its President

Allegheny College President James H. Mullen Jr. – who has brought increasing national recognition to the almost-200-year-old liberal arts college in northwestern Pennsylvania – has accepted a new five-year contract offered by the college’s Board of Trustees.

Mullen has another year left on his original contract, but he and the Allegheny College Board of Trustees unanimously agreed on the terms of the new contract, effective through 2017.

Allegheny president James H. Mullen Jr.

“To serve as Allegheny’s president as the college approaches its bicentennial is one of the great privileges in American higher education,” Mullen said in announcing that he would remain at the college’s helm. “I am very excited to continue to work with our board, faculty, staff, administration, students and alumni as we shape Allegheny’s third century of national leadership in liberal arts education.”

Eddie Taylor Jr., chairperson of Allegheny’s board of trustees and owner/president of the Taylor Oswald insurance and risk management firm in Cleveland, lauded Mullen’s work. He pointed to Mullen’s achievements in three areas: the successful start and execution of a strategic plan for the college, the launch of a major capital campaign, and Allegheny’s increasing national visibility, particularly in the area of civility in public discourse.

“Jim has been a great steward,” Taylor said. “His style is exceedingly collaborative. It’s important to him to hear and evaluate many perspectives before making difficult decisions.”

Since becoming Allegheny’s 21st president in August 2008, Mullen—like college presidents throughout the country—has managed the college through uncertain economic times. “The college weathered and continues to weather uncertain financial times,” Taylor said, “but Jim has handled it in an exceptional way.”

Mullen currently serves on numerous national education boards, including the American Council on Education, The Arc, the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania, the Council of Independent Colleges, the Meadville Medical Center, Project Pericles and Pennsylvania Campus Compact.

In February 2012, Mullen presented the inaugural Allegheny College Prize for Civility in Public Life to New York Times columnist David Brooks and syndicated columnist Mark Shields. At the podium at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Mullen called on higher education and the national press corps to recognize civility in politics and in society as a whole.

He was instrumental in securing four renowned leaders for Allegheny’s 193rd commencement in May: E.J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post columnist and political commentator; Carol Glazer, president of the National Organization on Disability; golf legend Arnold Palmer; and Tom Ridge, former Pennsylvania governor and secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Each was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters.

Mullen graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., and holds a master of public policy degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He holds a doctorate in higher education from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

He and his wife Mari live in Meadville with their two children, Franki and James.

Original source here.

Wales Care Case Delays 'Damage' Children

BBC Radio Wales' Eye on Wales programme said it found in some areas it takes more than double the 26 weeks recommended in a government review. Children's Commissioner for Wales Keith Towler said the delays damage children. The Welsh government said the delays were "unacceptable".

Figures seen by Radio Wales' Eye on Wales show that some family courts in Wales conclude proceedings to remove children from families in 21 weeks, while others take up to 60 weeks. The average duration for courts in Wales in 58 weeks, according to figures from the Ministry of Justice.

Concern over the length of time taken in such cases led to the Family Justice Review, which reported back earlier this year. Mr Towler, who was on the review panel, said they found a system that was "failing to function" and losing sight of children's best interests.

"There's considerable variation in waiting times," he said. "What we really need to understand is why that's the case, and what are the outcomes for those families. "Why are some of our courts able to work within that six-month deadline comfortably, whilst others aren't?"

Read details here.

Alumni Weekend: A Summer Blockbuster Hit

Every year, hundreds of alumni return to Hiram College in June to reconnect with classmates and their alma mater. This year, Alumni Weekend will take place June 15-17, with activities planned for alumni and their families of any age. This year’s theme is “A Summer Blockbuster Hit.”

Over the three-day weekend event, planned activities range from nature excursions, to dinner and dancing, to intellectual conversations and lectures. There’s sure to be something for everyone.

Register online now.

Friday, June 15th

9 a.m. – 10 p.m.: Registration; Kennedy Center. Locations for all events will be shared at registration.

A Day with Hiram Golf Outing; Sugar Bush Golf Club. Join alumni, friends and community members for the 52nd annual Day with Hiram benefiting Hiram College athletics. For more information, click here to view the entire schedule and registration options. If you have further questions, contact Connie Skingel at 330.569.5279 or skingelcm@hiram.edu.

Read more details about event here.

Google buys Meebo to bolster Google+

It looks like the rumors were true: Google has picked up Web IM company Meebo.

Meebo announced the news in a blog post today (which was brought to attention by TechCrunch):

We are happy to announce that Meebo has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Google!

For more than seven years we've been helping publishers find deeper relationships with their users and to make their sites more social and engaging. Together with Google, we're super jazzed to roll up our sleeves and get cracking on even bigger and better ways to help users and Web site owners alike.

We've had a blast building Meebo so far, and we're really excited to start the next leg of our journey.

Thank you all for coming along for the ride!
Meebo Team

Specifics of the deal -- mainly how much Google paid -- were not disclosed, and a Google spokesperson declined to comment on that aspect of the deal. In a statement, the company said the Meebo team would be working on its Google+ product:

We are always looking for better ways to help users share content and connect with others across the Web, just as they do in real life. With the Meebo team's expertise in social publisher tools, we believe they will be a great fit with the Google+ team. We look forward to closing the transaction and working with the Meebo team to create more ways for users to engage online.

A report from All Things D last month was the first to suggest Google was in talks to pick up the company, with a purchase price of around $100 million. In a follow-up post, TechCrunch said that number is accurate, adding that Meebo had raised about $70 million across four rounds of funding ahead of the sale, and has laid off some of its staff as part of the deal.

Meebo launched as a Web-based instant messaging client in 2005, letting users log in to multiple IM networks at once, and in their browser, at a time when that kind of functionality was limited to standalone software apps. The service later launched multiuser chat rooms, APIs for developers to build tools, and mobile apps that replicated these features.

More recently, Meebo turned its focus toward ways to add extra social and advertising features to Web sites, and toward its technology's potential usefulness as a personal content aggregation tool.

Source: cnet

Sony pumps up PlayStation Plus

Later this week, PlayStation Plus members can download 12 games free, including major titles such as Infamous 2, LittleBigPlanet 2, and Saints Row 2. The company expects to start bringing more free games to the table each month, suggested PlayStation President and CEO Jack Tretton at Sony's E3 press conference.

Launched in June 2012 (and announced at E3 2010), the PlayStation Plus premium subscription service currently offers users discounted games, full game trials, access to betas and demos, and other services for the PlayStation 3. It never truly caught on with consumers the way Microsoft's Xbox Live online service did, but Plus still added much needed value to the PS3 online experience.

Will bolstering the games available through the PlayStation Plus subscription service be enough to entice gamers to open their wallets? We'll see.

Source: cnet

Netflix Rolls Out Its Own CDN: Open Connect

Netflix announced that it is rolling out a new content delivery network of its own, called Open Connect, which will reduce its costs of delivery and could improve delivery of its content. But Open Connect isn’t just about reducing its reliance on third-party CDNs like Akamai, Limelight, and Level 3 — by connecting directly with ISPs, Netflix could improve the relationships it has network operators.

Through Open Connect, ISPs can choose to peer directly with Netflix at one of eight settlement-free peering exchanges. Or, if they want to, they can install one of Netflix’s Open Connect appliances into their own network. That would allow them to cache the content locally so that it doesn’t have to be transferred over the network whenever it’s requested. Either way, doing so could reduce the strain of Netflix traffic going over their networks.

For Netflix, that potentially means a lower cost of delivery, and a better overall user experience. And the pitch to carriers is that Open Connect could reduce network overhead, particularly as Netflix becomes an ever-bigger percentage of traffic delivered to end users.

In recent research, network optimization vendor Sandvine estimates that approximately one-third of all peak network traffic comes from broadband users streaming Netflix. Providing more efficient delivery of that traffic could mean less capex required to upgrade networks, which could also reduce some of the strain with ISPs whose end customers are streaming large amounts of Netflix video content.

Of course, not everyone will want to be part of the program. A few years ago, Comcast and Level 3 got into a spat over a peering exchange. At issue in that debate was the large amount of Netflix traffic that Level 3 was delivering into the Comcast network and the costs associated with supporting it.

While Open Connect is good news for Netflix and (potentially) good news for ISPs, the big losers will be the third-party CDNs that Netflix today employs to deliver the bulk of its traffic. They could each see sizable amounts of revenue depleted as Netflix transfers large file delivery off their networks.

But it remains to be seen how many ISPs will sign up for Open Connect, but it’s already having some effect on Netflix’s data traffic. Today, about 5 percent of traffic is delivered through Open Connect, but over the coming years, Netflix hopes to shift a majority of traffic to its own CDN.

Source: techcrunch

China tells US to stop reporting Beijing's bad air

BEIJING (AP) — China told foreign embassies Tuesday to stop publishing their own reports on air quality in the country, escalating its objections to a popular U.S. Embassy Twitter feed that tracks pollution in smoggy Beijing.

Only the Chinese government is authorized to monitor and publishair quality information and data from other sources may not be standardized or rigorous, Wu Xiaoqing, a vice environmental minister, told reporters.

China has long taken issue with the U.S. Embassy's postings of hourly readings of Beijing's air quality on a Twitter feed with more than 19,000 followers since 2008. But its past objections were raised quietly.

U.S. Embassy officials did not immediately comment Tuesday, but the Twitter feed was operating normally. Its readings are based on a single monitoring station within embassy grounds, and pollution levels are rated according to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standard that is more stringent than the one used by the Chinese government.

For instance, the U.S. Embassy on Tuesday reported 47 micrograms of fine particulate matter — particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in size, or about 1/30th the width of an average human hair — in the air and said the level was "unhealthy for sensitive groups." Readings from Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau's 27 monitoring stations ranged between 51 to 79 micrograms but categorized all those levels as "good."

The Beijing government only began reporting PM2.5 earlier this year after long-standing public and international criticism that Chinese standards were insufficient.

The government appears frustrated that there are now dueling readings for air quality and that the U.S. readings underscore the fact that pollution levels considered unhealthy in the U.S. are classified as good by China.

Wu said it isn't fair to judge Chinese air by American standards because China is a developing country and noted that U.S. environmental guidelines have become more stringent over time.

The standard China uses "takes into account the level of our current stage of development," Wu said.

Wu also said that air quality monitoring by foreign diplomats was inconsistent with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and urged diplomats to abide by China's laws and regulations.

Later, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin echoed Wu's remarks, saying at a regular press briefing that China objected to the publicity rather than the gathering of the environmental data.

"Of course, if the foreign embassies want to collect air quality information for their own staff or diplomats, I think that is their own matter, but we believe that this type of information should not released to the public," Liu said.

The top environmental official in Shanghai over the weekend also spoke out on the issue, telling local media that an air quality feed launched last month by the U.S. consulate in Shanghai was illegal.

China requires concentrations of PM2.5 to be kept below daily averages of 75 micrograms per cubic meter — more than twice as lenient as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's standard of 35 micrograms.

PM2.5 are believed to be a health risk because they can lodge deeply in the lungs, and have been linked to increased cardiovascular and respiratory diseases as well as lung cancer.(yahoo)

Venus transit app lets users track the planet's rare voyage

For the last time in 105 years, viewers around the world can see Venus transverse the sun. A new app called VenusTransit helps viewers record this "last such opportunity in our lifetimes."

One of the rarest celestial events viewable from Earth will occur tomorrow -- the planet Venus will make a trek across the sun. Having only been observed six previous times in history and without another occurrence until 2117, some space buffs are gearing up for the big show.

One way to stay tuned and also help scientists record Venus' voyage is by using an app calledVenusTransit. With this app, which is available onAndroid and iOS, amateur astronomers can join the ranks of former explorers like Capt. James Cook along with current NASA scientists.

"In centuries past, explorers traveled around the globe to time the transit of Venus to determine the size of the solar system," Steven van Roode, who helped conceive of the app, wrote in thedescription of VenusTransit. "The phone app will allow citizens around the world to witness this rare phenomenon and to contribute their observation to a collective experiment to measure the sun's distance. This will literally be the last such opportunity in your lifetime."

The app comes with a built-in timer to calculate how long Venus takes to cross the Sun, beginning with "ingress" -- just as the little black dot starts its trek -- and ending with "egress" at the tail end of the crossing. It also has simulation and visibility sections to tell users when the transit will begin based on their GPS coordinates.

Venus' ramble across the sun will be viewable starting at sunset on the East Coast of North America and earlier for other parts of the U.S. According to NASA Science News, observers on all seven continents will be in a position to see it.

"The timing favors observers in the mid-Pacific where the sun is high overhead during the crossing," NASA Science's Tony Phillips wrote in a blog post. "In the USA, the transit will at its best around sunset. That's good, too. Creative photographers will have a field day imaging the swollen red sun 'punctured' by the circular disk of Venus."

The importance of Venus' transit has been a topic of discussion for astronomers for centuries, because it has helped them estimate the distance between the Earth and the Sun, while also allowing them to figure out the relative size of the solar system.

Once Venus has made its trek tomorrow, all of the data from users tracking it with the VenusTransit app will be sent to central servers to be compiled. An interactive map with this information will be posted the Astronomers Without Borders Web site.

Oracle faces HP in court over Itanium chip lawsuit

Oracle violated its contract with Hewlett-Packard (HP) after it decided that future versions of its database software would not support a line of HP servers, HP's lawyer has said in court.

The trial in San Jose, California, centres on a lawsuit that HP filed against Oracle last year.

The dispute concerns Oracle's decision to end support for Intel's Itanium chip that the firm says is being phased out.

HP is seeking up to $4bn (£2.6bn) in damages.

The trial comes days after the software developer lost its case against Google over Oracle's Java programming language.

When HP, the world's largest PC maker, filed the lawsuit in June last year, it said Oracle's decision would hurt its clients.

It said there was mutual agreement between the firms that the support for Itanium, a component of high-end HP servers, would continue.

In 2011, Oracle decided to stop developing versions of its database software supporting HP servers that use Itanium.

It asserted that the chip's manufacturer, Intel, was going to phase out the product - something Intel has denied.

Intel's chief executive, Paul Otellini, is expected to testify at the trial, although the company is not a party in the lawsuit.

Besides damages, HP is now seeking a court order that would require Oracle to continue developing software for its servers.

'Like a divorce'

Continue reading the main story

“Start Quote

HP is trying to force Oracle to support a technology, Itanium, that Oracle does not believe in”

Dan WallOracle attorney

The relationship between HP and Oracle has deteriorated in the past year.

After HP's former chief executive Mark Hurd became Oracle's co-president in 2010, HP threatened court action.

It claimed that Oracle would "exploit the knowledge of HP's strengths and weaknesses" as a result of hiring Mr Hurd.

However, the matter was subsequently settled.

HP lawyer Jeffrey Thomas argued on Monday that the settlement was a clear sign of Oracle's commitment to continue supporting Itanium, binding the firm to continue offering its "best products" to HP.

"It is impossible to offer best products going forward without porting new versions of those products," Mr Thomas said.

The firm has insisted in court filings that Oracle breached its obligation, outlined in the settlement over Mr Hurd's job switch, "to continue to offer its product suite on Hewlett-Packard's server platforms".

But Oracle attorney Dan Wall disagreed, stressing that Itanium was a declining product.

"HP is trying to force Oracle to support a technology, Itanium, that Oracle does not believe in," Mr Wall said.

It is now up to the judge to decide whether there is a contract between the two technology giants, and if so, on what terms.

If the judge rules in HP's favour, a jury will decide whether Oracle violated the contract and will consider damages.

Earlier, the judge compared the dispute to a divorce, saying that "this case appears to be the end of a marriage" between the two firms.

LONDON TOURISM TO SKYROCKET DURING THE OLYMPICS

Travelers will be flocking to London this summer to watch and participate in the Olympics related activities. London is expected to see a sharp rise in the number of foreign related travel and tourism as well as an increase in the number of Londoners who will remain at home for the Olympic games.

The city is expected to see up to a fifteen percent increase in the number of visitors it received as compared to the previous summer season. About twenty five percent of those tourists will be travelling from the U.S. and Canada. Additionally, Britons will decrease the amount of their travel abroad approximately five percent as compared to the same season last year. This though, does not mean that Britons will completely forego their vacation travel. It seems as though they will simply postpone travel until after the summer Olympics have ended. In the three weeks following the end of the summer games, about ten percent more Britons will be leaving London than at the same time last year. In all, there will be about a two percent decrease in the amount of Londoners travelling during the summer.

While it was previously thought that Londoners would run away from the city to escape the enormous amounts of hustle and bustle the games will bring; this no longer seems to be the case. The previous prediction was based on flight bookings information taken from travel agencies. Though, these figures did not include information on direct bookings, which are more than half of all travel bookings.

This is certainly welcome news for the city's travel and tourism industries. Many companies feared that no real increase in earnings would be seen if the usual travelers were not making their yearly trips. Things are looking up for the city. Comparatively, last year, the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) predicted that there would be a ninety percent decrease in the number of total tourism bookings in Britain from other European countries during the summer Olympics.

TOP 10 Source Countries: Expected Source Markets for the Olympics Period

Country                              Market share	Country                            % Change on 2011
1 USA                                      19.0%	1 Netherlands                            +221%
2 Germany                                8.2%	2 Brazil                                       +83%
3 Australia                                6.0%	3 France                                     +35%
4 Italy                                       4.3%	4 Russia                                      +34%
5 Canada                                  3.7%	5 USA                                          +12%
6 Russia                                    3.4%	6 United Kingdom                        +8%
7 France                                    2.9%	7 Germany                                   +7%
8 Netherlands                           2.9%	8 Canada                                     -2%
9 United Kingdom                     2.6%	9 Australia                                   -25%
10 Brazil                                   2.4%	10 Italy                                        -25%

Stars rock the palace for Britain's jubilee concert

LONDON: Queen Elizabeth II smiled as she took her place for a star-studded diamond jubilee concert on Monday in front of Buckingham Palace, despite her husband's sudden hospitalisation.

The 86-year-old sovereign, wearing a black cape with gold buttons, drew a huge cheer as she arrived for the second half of the concert.

She was escorted into the royal box by her son and heir Prince Charles as her consort Prince Philip was earlier taken to hospital as a precautionary measure with a bladder infection.

He is to miss the rest of the jubilee celebrations marking her 60 years on the throne.

The monarch waved to the crowds as she took her seat.

The concert, in warm evening sunshine, kicked off with fireworks and an energetic performance from Robbie Williams that got the crowds rocking.

After an opening salvo of pyrotechnics and music from a military band, resplendent in their scarlet tunics and bearskin hats, Williams jumped out from behind to join them for a high-octane rendition of his song "Let Me Entertain You".

The concert, put together by Take That star Gary Barlow and staged on the Queen Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace, was being watched by more than 10,000 lucky ticket holders in temporary stands, and tens of thousands more on The Mall.

The ceremonial route to the palace was a sea of Union Jack flags, with people enjoying the gig on giant screens.

Senior members of the royal family were in the stands, including Prince William, his wife Catherine and brother Prince Harry. Prime Minister David Cameron and Anglican leader Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, were also in the royal box.

Brian May, who kicked off the 2002 Golden Jubilee pop concert by performing "God Save the Queen" on the palace roof, was also in the stands.

After Williams returned to open the second half, the next performance was "Sing" - specially written by Barlow and Andrew Lloyd Webber and featuring artists from across the Commonwealth.

Following a crowd wave from the back of The Mall to the front, Welsh diva Shirley Bassey performed "Diamonds are Forever", before Australian star Kylie Minogue took to the stage.

Elton John appeared in a sparkling pink jacket to perform "I'm Still Standing", "Your Song" and "Crocodile Rock".

"Your Majesty, congratulations on an incredible achievement," he said.

Comedian Jimmy Carr told the crowd: "She's been working tirelessly for 60 years. Even now her work schedule would put any of us to shame.

"I think there's a lesson here for all of us: you've got to plan for your retirement.

"She's 86 and she's had to rent out her front drive to Gary Barlow to put on a concert."

Earlier, after Williams got the party started, Grace Jones, 64, performed "Slave to the Rhythm" in a sultry plastic outfit and kept a hula hoop going throughout.

She ended her performance by bellowing: "We love you! Happy birthday, our queen."

Cliff Richard, 71, who has had hits throughout the queen's reign, performed a medley of his songs, while Tom Jones rounded off the first half with a Latin-themed version of "Delilah".

Annie Lennox wore a big pair of white angel wings.

Beatles star Paul McCartney, who is on the concert bill, paid tribute to the queen's years of service.

"Sixty years of Her Majesty's reign, and we're all here having a party and people all over Britain and all over the world are celebrating this woman," the knight told the BBC.

"She's only one woman after all, but what a great woman, what a fantastic job she's done."

Out on The Mall, Pauline Copus and a group of 20 family members were having a miniature street party, complete with a table, tablecloth, jugs of Pimm's and "coronation cakes".

They had attended all the weekend's celebrations, including the Epsom Derby races on Saturday and Sunday's river pageant.

"We love the royal family," Copus told AFP. (AFP)

Schweinsteiger's brain key to German success

 Germany will seek to end a 16-year title drought at the Euro 2012 finals where much will depend on the performance of the team's brain: Bastian Schweinsteiger.

The experienced 27-year-old Bayern Munich midfielder, nicknamed the 'brain' by Germany coach Joachim Loew, is the team's natural leader and its barometer.

If he plays well the team usually wins. A slump in form, or injury, takes the shine off the young German team.

The three-time European champions are chasing a first title since 1996 and Schweinsteiger, whose formidable holding midfield partnership with Sami Khedira helped Germany to third place at the 2010 World Cup, is aware of the expectations.

"This is the best national team I have ever played for," Schweinsteiger, capped 90 times for Germany and going into his fifth major tournament, told reporters. "Everyone expects us to win the title and naturally it is something that we also desire."

The midfielder has also combined well with skilled Real Madrid playmaker Mesut Ozil and attack-minded teenager Mario Goetze in the German midfield, leading them to a flawless qualification with 10 wins in 10 games.

LETHAL SHOT

Strong, skilled, clever and in possession of a lethal right-foot shot, Schweinsteiger can be equally dangerous orchestrating breaks for the lightning-quick Germans or slicing open defences with pin-point passing.

The only thing missing now is a major title, for either club or country.

"He is the head of the team," said Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes, who recently compared him with Barcelona and Spain midfielders Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

"He gives the tempo, he steers our game and is very hard to replace. When he is not there then both our offensive and defensive game is affected."

Bayern already felt his absence, when the he missed two months since November with a broken collar bone and then picked up a ligament problem as well as a knee injury, as a three-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga going into the new year became a five-point deficit.

Germany also paid a price when he missed their friendly against France in February. They lost 2-1 after a lacklustre performance in Bremen.    (Reuters)

Quake survivor becomes first Turkish gymnast in Olympic Games

So excited was Goksu Uctas at the thought of becoming Turkey's first Olympic gymnast, she wanted the five Olympic rings tattooed on her arm.

For now, though, the London-bound athlete has settled for a silver necklace of the famous symbol, which she twirls excitedly in her fingers.

While Turkey excels at wrestling and weightlifting -- the nation's men and women have won 67 Olympic medals in the sports -- never before has a gymnast participated at the Games in Turkey's red and white national colours.

"All you really need is faith in yourself," the 22-year-old gymnast told Reuters in her dormitory room.  (Reuters)
Source

Tsonga stands in Djokovic's way at French Open

(Reuters) - Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will have a sold-out crowd behind him but that is all he will be able to rely on when he tries to stop Novak Djokovic in his tracks on Tuesday as the Serb tries to take a step closer to holding all four grand slam titles.

The fifth-seeded Frenchman, playing in his first French Open quarter-final, has pledged to fight against the Djokovic but he is well aware that the world number one is not the same player with whom he shares a 5-5 win-loss record.


"If you look at the last matches, I did not win that much. I used to beat him because he was not as strong as today. He has improved a lot in the past two years," said Tsonga.

Serbian Djokovic is looking to become only the third man to hold all four grand slam titles simultaneously, and the first since 1969.

Swiss third seed Roger Federer, who takes on Argentine ninth seed Juan Martin del Potro, is chasing another kind of achievement as he chases a record 17th major title.

If he wins, Federer will reach his 31st major semi-final and equal Jimmy Connors's record for the most last-four appearances.

In the women's draw, Samantha Stosur, the Australian sixth seed, will take on Slovakian 15th seed Dominika Cibulkova, who knocked out world number one Victoria Azarenka in the previous round.

Italian 21st seed Sara Errani will be looking to reach her first grand slam semi-final when she entertains German 10th seed Angelique Kerber in Court Suzanne Lenglen's curtain-raiser.