Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones Leaving 'X Factor'

Former Pussycat Doll reportedly wants to focus on her music career.
By Kara Warner

Steve Jones and Nicole Scherzinger on "X Factor"
Photo: FOX

"The X Factor" has said goodbye to two of its familiar faces: mentor Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones.

E! News reported that the former Pussycat Doll and "Dancing With the Stars" champ has decided not to return to the show in order to focus on her music career. "She's spoken to Simon [Cowell], and he's given her his blessing," a source told E! Scherzinger often became emotional during elimination episodes, shedding tears and expressing sympathy for ousted contestants.

As for inaugural "X Factor" host Jones, the cheeky Welshman broke the news himself via Twitter on Monday. "I won't be hosting next seasons X Factor which is a shame but I cant complain as I've had a great time," Jones tweeted to his more than 94,000 followers. "Good luck to everyone on the show."

Jones had decidedly big shoes to fill stepping into the gig, with comparisons instantly made to "American Idol" host/ media mogul Ryan Seacrest. Throughout the season, the reviews of Jones' hosting skills were decidedly mixed.

Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly's comments during the TCA panels earlier this month now seem as though a decision was made awhile ago. "I think everyone has come to realize the value of a Ryan Seacrest," he told reporters during the network's press tour panel. "If you dialed the clock back 11 years, I'm not sure everybody in this room would have given him all the credit at that time. Those are very hard jobs to do. So whether Steve's the guy or not, it comes under the heading of 'growth' in general. There will be some tweaks to the show, but I'll tell you, I'm very happy to have it, and it's gonna be part of us for a long time."

The 34-year-old Jones seemed to take the criticism in stride and didn't appear to have high hopes for a return for the second season. "There's been no contract conversations and there won't be until the New Year," Jones told Metro UK in December. "If I'm back, great. If not, I'll do something else. Simple as that."

One thing Jones does have hope for is a possible romantic connection with Scherzinger, who was originally supposed to be his co-host before she replaced Cheryl Cole on the judging panel.

"If I ever leave 'X Factor,' Scherzinger's phone will be smoking hot from me ringing it constantly," Jones joked to Metro. "If we are not colleagues, then she's fair game."

Will you miss Steve Jones on "The X Factor"? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678186/nicole-scherzinger-steve-jones-leaving-x-factor.jhtml

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Why That Fancy Password Isn't Nearly as Safe as You Thought [Humor]

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Obama plays up auto industry success story

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama wears his decision to rescue General Motors and Chrysler three years ago as a badge of honor, a move to save jobs in an industry that helped create the backbone of the middle class more than a half-century ago.

For Obama, the auto bailout is a case study for his efforts to revive the economy and a potential point of contrast with Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney, who opposed Obama's decision to pour billions of dollars into the auto companies. If Romney wins the Republican nomination, expect to hear a lot about the car industry.

"The American auto industry was on the verge of collapse. And some politicians were willing to let it just die. We said no," Obama told college students last week in Ann Arbor, Michigan. "We believe in the workers of this state."

Obama was expected to visit the Washington Auto Show on Tuesday, giving him another forum to talk about GM and Chrysler, along with the administration's attention to manufacturers and efforts to boost fuel efficiency standards. The White House has taken every opportunity to highlight its efforts to rebuild the auto industry, pointing to GM's reemergence as the world's largest automaker and job growth and profitability in the U.S. auto industry.

The president's campaign views the auto storyline as a potent argument against Romney ? who, even though he is the son of a Detroit auto executive, opposed the bailout. As the industry was collapsing in the fall of 2008, the former Massachusetts governor predicted in a New York Times op-ed that if the companies received a federal bailout, "you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye." Romney said the companies should have undergone a "managed bankruptcy" that would have avoided a government bailout.

"Whether it was by President Bush or by President Obama, it was the wrong way to go," Romney said at a Republican presidential debate in Michigan in November. Romney said the nation has "capital markets and bankruptcy ? it works in the U.S. The idea of billions of dollars being wasted initially, then finally they adopted the managed bankruptcy. I was among others that said we ought to do that."

Both the Bush and Obama administrations found themselves in uncharted territory in the fall of 2008 and early 2009. GM and Chrysler were on the verge of collapse when Congress failed to approve emergency loans in late 2008. Bush stepped in and signed off on $17.4 billion in loans, requiring the companies to develop restructuring plans under Obama's watch.

The following spring, Obama pumped billions more into GM and Chrysler but forced concessions from industry stakeholders, enabling the companies to go through swift bankruptcies. Obama aides said billions in aid ? about $85 billion for the industry in total ? was necessary because capital markets were essentially frozen at the time, meaning there was no way for GM and Chrysler to fund their bankruptcies privately.

Without any private financing or government support, they argued, the companies would have been forced to liquidate.

Three years later, Obama is trying to turn the tough decision into a political advantage in Ohio and Michigan, which Obama carried in 2008 and where unemployment has fallen of late. During last week's State of the Union address, Obama said the auto industry had hired tens of thousands of workers, and he predicted the Detroit turnaround could take root elsewhere.

Yet Obama's poll numbers in places like Ohio and Michigan remain in dangerous territory, under 50 percent, and the auto industry argument carries some inherent risks.

A Quinnipiac University poll in Ohio released Jan. 18 found Obama locked in a virtual tie with Romney in a hypothetical matchup, with about half the voters disapproving of Obama's performance as president. A poll in Michigan released last week by Lansing-based EPIC-MRA found 48 percent supporting Obama and 40 percent backing Romney in a potential matchup.

Republicans say the bailout still remains unpopular and the government intervention was hardly a cure-all. "The industry was bailed out but a lot of people lost their jobs," said David Doyle, a Michigan-based Republican strategist.

In a nation still soured on bailouts, the government owns more than a quarter of GM. The Treasury Department estimates the government will lose more than $23 billion on the auto bailout: GM is trading at $24 a share, well below the $53-per-share mark needed for the government to recoup its investment in the company.

Romney, facing attacks from Democrats on his work at private equity firm Bain Capital, has tried to use the GM and Chrysler cases to insulate himself against charges his firm gutted companies and fired workers. "How did you do when you were running General Motors as the president?" Romney said in a December debate. "Gee, you closed down factories. You closed down dealerships. And he'll say, well I did that to save the business. Same thing with us, Mr. President."

Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and others say the decision, while unpopular, saved an estimated 1 million jobs throughout the Midwest and say the industry is coming back.

As a result of the restructuring, the companies can make money at far lower U.S. sales volumes than in the past. Industry analysts predict U.S. sales will grow by at least 1 million this year over last year's 12.8 million units as people replace aging cars and trucks. And North American operations at GM, Chrysler and Ford are thriving, boosting their companies' earnings ? all signs that Democrats say will make the difference in the Midwest.

"I don't know how any reasonable person can fail to acknowledge that this rescue plan worked and the country has benefited," said former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat.

___

AP Auto Writer Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-31-Obama-Autos/id-034491f0da734980b6d54dcbf49e1015

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Oil spill brings attention to delicate Gulf coast (AP)

TIVOLI, Texas ? For decades, farmers and fishermen along the Gulf of Mexico watched as their sensitive ecosystem's waters slowly got dirtier and islands eroded, all while the country largely ignored the destruction.

It took BP PLC's well blowing out in the Gulf ? and the resulting environmental catastrophe when millions of gallons of oil spewed into the ocean and washed ashore ? for the nation to turn its attention to the slow, methodical ruin of an ecosystem vital to the U.S. economy. Last month, more than a year and a half after the spill began, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a three-year, $50 million initiative designed to improve water quality along the coast.

"I'm not going to say that it's the silver lining," Will Blackwell, a district conservationist with the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Services, said of the oil spill. Blackwell is one of many regional officials who have long worked with farmers and ranchers to fence cattle, reseed native grasses and take on other seemingly inane projects that go a long way toward preventing pollution and coastal erosion.

"I'm going to say that it will help get recognition down here that we have this vital ecosystem that needs to be taken care of," he said. "This will keep it at the forefront."

NRCS administrators struggled for years to divide a few million dollars among farmers and ranchers in the five Gulf states. Now, they are getting an eleven-fold increase in funding, money that will allow them to build on low-profile programs that already have had modest success in cleaning crucial waterways by working with farmers and ranchers to improve land use practices.

The nation's focus turned sharply to the Gulf when the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig blew up in April 2010. Images of oil-coated birds and wetlands were splashed across newspapers and cable news networks. Coastal wetlands that are habitat to all sorts of wildlife were soiled and oyster beds were wiped out, underscoring the Gulf's ecological and economic importance.

The project is called the Gulf of Mexico Initiative, the first concrete step from a year's worth of meetings, studies and talking by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force, a committee formed by President Barack Obama in the spill's wake.

Sometimes, the money is spent on simple projects, such as building fences and installing troughs to keep cattle away from rivers and creeks that flow into the Gulf. The minerals in cow manure can pollute those upstream waters and then flow into the ocean. Those minerals can deplete oxygen in the Gulf, creating "dead zones" where wildlife can't thrive.

Other times, the program pays for expensive farming equipment that turns soil more effectively and creates straighter rows. That helps keep fertilizers on the farm ? where it helps crops ? and out of the Gulf, where the nutrients choke oxygen from the water. This equipment also decreases erosion, which has eaten up hundreds of miles of Gulf Coast habitat in the past century.

Until now, most counties in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Texas got right around $100,000 apiece to spend annually on these programs. The demand was far greater in many areas, but money was hard to come by, Blackwell said, highlighting the popularity of the program in Refugio County, Texas ? the rural area of Southeast Texas he oversees.

The influx of money has many farmers and ranchers ? especially those who have reaped the program's benefits in the past ? eager for more opportunities to improve the environment they rely upon for their livelihood.

Now, they are hurriedly filling out applications and waiting for officials to rank the paperwork ? those considered to have the greatest possible impact are the most likely to be approved.

"Fifty million dollars sounds like a lot. But when you consider ? Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida and Texas, it's not going to be enough," said Glen Wiggins, a Florida farmer applying for help buying new farming equipment.

"But it'll help."

Dallas Ford, owner of the 171-acre Smoky Creek Ranch in Tivoli, Texas, first worked with the NRCS to build fences and strategically located troughs. The fences keep cattle in separate fields and allow him to rotate the cows between the fields, a practice that helps keep grass longer and better able to recover when it rains. The troughs ensure the cattle remain in the area and keep away from Stony Creek ? a bountiful tributary of the Gulf's Hynes Bay.

Ford estimates he has between $15,000 and $20,000 worth of additional work to do on his ranch ? all of which will ultimately improve water quality in Stony Creek ? but he will be able to do it only if he can get another contract with NRCS, which would cover about half the costs.

The cash infusion reminded him of a mentor who once said you could cook anything with time and temperature. In this project, Ford said, time is plentiful ? the temperature is money and manpower.

"We might be able to cook something a little faster," Ford said. "Now, maybe I can get you a nice steak."

About 685 miles away, Wiggins has been buying new tilling equipment to use on his 800-acre peanut and cotton farm that straddles the Alabama-Florida line. The high-tech farming equipment helps him better turn the soil and plant straighter rows, which ultimately prevent erosion and keep nutrients in the soil rather than allowing them to flow downstream and into the Gulf.

Wiggins' land sits on three watersheds ? Canoe Creek and Pine Barren Creek that are part of Sandy Hollow Creek, and Little Pine Barren Creek. With the work he's already done, Wiggins estimates he has reduced erosion by at least 50 percent. Now, he wants to further reduce it, mostly through the use of new equipment that will decrease conventional, and more destructive, tillage of his land.

"I'd like to get it down to zero, but if I could get it to 10 percent conventional tillage, I would be tickled to death," Wiggins said.

He estimated the new equipment will cost about $70,000. The only way he can make that purchase is with NRCS' help ? and now it may be within reach.

"The oil spill has been a powerful force to get people's attention," Wiggins said.

___

Ramit Plushnick-Masti can be followed on Twitter at https://twitter.com//RamitMastiAP

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/environment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120129/ap_on_re_us/us_gulf_oil_spill_restoration

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Wage gains offer welcome relief

After lagging the growth in spending, personal income rose solidly in December.

By John W. Schoen, Senior Producer

American consumers caught a break in their paychecks in December ? and the money went right into their saving accounts.

That could help ease the recent squeeze on household finances. But it?s not at all clear whether the trend will continue.

Personal income rose by?0.5 percent in December, after edging up just 0.1 percent in November, according to the Commerce Department. For months, wage gains have been meager, forcing consumers to lean more heavily on their credit cards to pay the bills. The income bump last month could help spur a bigger pickup in consumer spending, which would help keep the economic recovery on track.

?We need worker compensation to pick up if consumption is to rise,? said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors, ?and that may finally be happening.?

Household budgets got some additional relief on prices, which edged up just 0.1 percent in December after holding steady in the prior two months. A decline in gas prices helped offset price rises elsewhere as energy prices fell 1.3 percent. For all of 2011, the Commerce Department?s price gauge?rose 2.4 percent. (The government?s best-known inflation tracker, the Consumer Price Index, rose 3 percent in 2011, double the increase in 2010.)

But even as their spending power increased in December, consumers took the extra wages and stashed them in their savings accounts, leaving?consumer spending?flat for the month. The?savings rate rose to?4 percent, the highest reading since August.

The boost in income was a welcome relief. Sluggish wage gains last year forced households to draw down their savings to pay the bills. Over the past 18 months the savings rate had fallen from 5.8 percent to just 3.5 percent in November. That trend was unsustainable, according to Capital Economics? senior economist Paul Dales.

?Now households are devoting part of their additional income to boosting their savings,? he said. ?That?s still not high enough, suggesting that real consumption probably won?t grow by much more than 1.5 percent this year.?

Continued sluggish consumer spending doesn?t bode well for the U.S. economy, which most economists believe will slow to a growth pace of just 2 percent this year. If income growth remains weak, so will the growth in consumer spending - which accounts for roughly 70 percent of gross domestic product.

?We expect consumer spending adjusted for inflation to increase about 2.2 percent this year,? said Chris Christopher Jr., a senior economist with IHS Global Insight. ?This is nothing to write home about. However, compared to our counterparts in Europe ? the American consumer and economy are looking relatively good.?

{"contentId":"10271191","totalVotes":"1243"}

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Source: http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/30/10271191-wage-gains-offer-welcome-relief-to-workers

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Syrian authorities agree to Moscow talks: Russia (Reuters)

MOSCOW (Reuters) ? Syria has agreed to take part in Moscow-mediated talks on solving the country's crisis, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday, calling on the Syrian opposition to join the planned negotiations.

However, a senior member of the Syrian opposition council said that no invitation had been received from Moscow and that it would be refused anyway.

Moscow, a permanent United Nations Security Council member with veto powers, has offered to host the talks in an effort to end the bloodshed since protests began 10 months ago against President Bashar al-Assad.

"We have received a positive response from the Syrian authorities to our call (to hold talks in Moscow)," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website www.mid.ru.

"We hope ... that the Syrian opposition will agree to that in the next few days, putting the interests of the Syrian people above all other concerns."

Moscow's offer of talks may be an attempt to strengthen its arguments against a Western draft resolution at the Security Council supporting an Arab League call for Assad to cede power.

Russia has said that Assad's resignation must not be a precondition for the Syrian peace process. It has remained one of Assad's few allies and has supplied him with arms and ammunition during the protests.

Moscow has repeatedly said Assad's opponents share the blame for the bloodshed. It fears a Western resolution could be interpreted broadly enough to lead to a Libyan-style military intervention, which Russia says it will not allow.

Russia submitted its own draft resolution in December, but Western diplomats said they could not accept Russian wording assigning blame to government and opposition for the violence, which the United Nations says has killed more than 5,000 people.

(Reporting By Alexei Anishchuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage and David Stamp)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/russia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120130/ts_nm/us_russia_syria_talks

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Super Bowl advertisers seek buzz on social media (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? In the age of Twitter and Facebook, many Super Bowl viewers will use the commercial breaks to go online and see what people are saying about the game. This year, advertisers want them to tweet about their favorite commercials as well.

Having spent record-breaking sums to secure the most valuable television slots in advertising, global brands from Coca-Cola to Volkwagen are looking to leverage social media to extend the buzz and reach of their ads.

According to executives from Comcast Corp's NBC television network, which will broadcast the February 5 football game, a 30-second commercial slot cost $3.5 million on average this year, up from $3 million for last year's Super Bowl, which was on News Corp's Fox station.

"The social media conversation has put more value on a Super Bowl ad, fans will discuss your ads on Twitter and Facebook and then go to YouTube to watch it on demand over and over again," said Brad Adgate, senior vice president of research at Horizon Media.

This year's Super Bowl will take place in Indianapolis, with the New York Giants and New England Patriots battling it out for the National Football League Championship. An expected 100 million people will watch the game, which is among a dwindling number of TV programs that still draw big live audiences.

NFL games are so valuable to advertisers that the league recently secured hefty pay increases that will bring in about $6 billion a year from Walt Disney Co's ESPN, broadcast networks and satellite TV provider DirecTV for rights to air games and sell the advertising time.

The average price of Super Bowl ads have risen more than 50 percent in the last 10 years, defying economic downturns and secular industry issues. NBC sold out all 70 spots around this year's game shortly after Thanksgiving weekend in November and reached a new high with one slot selling for around $4 million.

The game, including lower priced halftime slots, could easily generate over a quarter of a billion dollars in ad sales.

"The overall demand for Super Bowl spots is very high this year," said Tim Calkins, marketing professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. "Prices are high. Demand is high. I think that's a very positive sign for the economy."

Consumer research forecasts that 60 percent of fans watching the Super Bowl will also be tied into a second screen such as a smartphone or tablet.

COKE Vs PEPSI ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Anheuser-Busch, which typically buys exclusivity as the only beer advertiser during recent Super Bowls, is again the biggest spender, according to industry sources.

Not unlike past Super Bowls, Coca Cola Co and PepsiCo Inc will face-off for soda supremacy. Both beverage makers have come up with campaigns that attempt to leverage social media after their commercials air.

Coca-Cola's TV commercials, which will air during the first-and second-quarter breaks, will center around its computer-generated Arctic polar bears watching the game. The bears will then be brought to life on Twitter, Facebook and on a dedicated Website doing such things as responding to fans and commenting on the game. They will even have their own Twitter hashtag --#GameDayPolarBears -- for fans to follow.

"We wanted to interact with consumers in the most simple and organic way so they would have nothing to do other than what they usually do," said Pio Schunker, Coca Cola senior vice president of integrated marketing platforms.

Fans who catch Pepsi's commercial with "X Factor USA" winner Melanie Amaro performing the Otis Redding song "Respect" will be able to download a free video of the performance by using the Shazam app on their phones to capture audio from the commercial.

There are also partnerships with online radio service Pandora Media Inc and social TV specialist GetGlue centered around the game and other free content.

"Our philosophy now is nothing happens in isolation," said Shiv Singh, global head of digital for Pepsico Beverages. "Social TV is a massive phenomenon and a critical element of our Super Bowl campaigns."

AUTOS SPEND BIG AGAIN

The biggest spender by category is the autos industry, which made a big comeback last year and was noted for one of the most memorable spots -- Volkswagen AG's ad with a young child dressed in a Darth Vader outfit believing he can control the Passat car's lights.

This year, Volkswagen's Audi is hoping to win more creative kudos with a spot that taps into the "Twilight" teen vampire pop culture phenomenon. The 60-second spot, which will air during the first break in the game, will highlight the new 2013 Audi S7 and its LED headlight technology, which has unfortunate consequences for a party of young vampires.

Audi hopes to continue the conversation about the ad via the Twitter hashtag #SoLongVampires.

NBC executives say the auto makers are leading a trend toward long-form campaigns of 60 seconds or more, allowing high-end creative concepts to be fleshed out in the commercial's narrative rather than just going for a quick gag and punchline.

Chrysler Group LLC, Toyota Motor Co, Honda Motor Co Ltd, Hyundai Motor Co, and other automakers will also be advertising during the game.

General Motors Co's mainstream Chevy brand will run seven TV commercials before, during and after the game, for instance. It will also center its overall campaign heavily around Web-based partnerships with NBC, Twitter and Facebook.

SOCIAL MEDIA HELPS SELL

With the conventional wisdom being that consumers are more likely to make a purchase if recommended by a friend or family member, chief marketing officers are keen to insert themselves in a Facebook or Twitter conversation about the products and services they sell.

Bluefin Labs, a start-up company that aggregates and analyzes TV viewer data and comments on Twitter and Facebook, has been hired by several advertising agencies with Super Bowl campaigns to help understand how football fans react to the commercials during the game.

"Advertisers don't think about the TV campaign alone anymore but as a way to reach eyeballs and then stimulate conversations about their brands," said Bluefin executive Tom Thai.

While advertisers are eager to experiment with social media during a big-ticket event like the Super Bowl, there are still questions on how they measure its impact with a consistent, industry-accepted method, said Alex Iskold, founder of GetGlue, which lets TV fans share their viewing experiences by 'checking-in' in exchange for online rewards.

"Social TV engagement hasn't been fully priced yet," Iskold said. "We are collectively working to figure out the value to the advertisers. "It took years for the traditional display ad model to solidify; I don't think it will take us that long to price social TV."

(Reporting By Yinka Adegoke in New York,; additional reporting by Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles,; editing by Peter Lauria)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/sp_nm/us_superbowl_advertising

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Mitt Riffs Hard on Newt (TIME)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

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Bayern Munich apologizes for hoax player signing

Associated Press Sports

updated 3:01 p.m. ET Jan. 27, 2012

MUNICH (AP) -Bayern Munich apologized Friday for tricking fans over a "spectacular new signing" after supporters reacted angrily to a publicity stunt in which the Bundesliga leaders sought to increase their fanbase on Facebook.

Bayern said on its website that it had taken fans' numerous comments into account to determine that many were "very angry" with the club.

"We're sorry. But it wasn't our intention to disappoint you with the new FC Bayern app," Bayern said. "Rather, we wanted to put the focus on you with this action, to show how important each fan is for Bayern Munich."

Fans had been directed to Facebook to watch the announcement of a new striker Thursday, and were made to "like" Bayern's page in order to view the proceedings.

Instead of learning the identity of striker Mario Gomez's backup, fans were then presented with an app called "The New FCB Star."

"Dear fans, you probably already noticed that we did not sign a new player. This app is for our fans to show the importance of you for our club," the club had said. "Each Bayern fan is the 'spectacular new signing,' our 12th man!"

Thousands of fans reacted negatively, leaving uncomplimentary comments on the club's Facebook page - even though Bayern described the whole thing as "a bit of fun for our fans."

Bayern's own goal was compounded when Munich's TZ newspaper reported that the club had warned its players about publishing photos or sharing information on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, with an outright ban coming into effect within 90 minutes of a game.

The warning came after Bayern defender Breno complained on Twitter of being forced to play in the reserve team, and midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk posted footage of Uli Hoeness' 60th birthday party on YouTube and a picture of the Bayern dressing room before a game.

"The players know that they need to cut it down," Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes told Bild on Thursday - the day of Bayern's "spectacular new signing."

"It's not on that you take photos or allow photos be taken before a game - like Tymoshchuk - and put them on the internet. It's tomfoolery, it's unprofessional."

Heynckes said Friday that the timing and manner of Bayern's publicity stunt "weren't quite so fortunate," especially after the 3-1 loss at Borussia Moenchengladbach last weekend.

"If we had won 4-0 in Moenchengladbach and it had been presented in a different manner, then it would have been somewhat more successful," Heynckes said.

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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CARPE DIEM: Modern Automotive Manufacturing

Name: Mark J. Perry

Location: Washington, D.C., United States

Dr. Mark J. Perry is a professor of economics and finance in the School of Management at the Flint campus of the University of Michigan. Perry holds two graduate degrees in economics (M.A. and Ph.D.) from George Mason University near Washington, D.C. In addition, he holds an MBA degree in finance from the Curtis L. Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. In addition to a faculty appointment at the University of Michigan-Flint, Perry is also a visiting scholar at The American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C.

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Source: http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2012/01/modern-automotive-manufacturing.html

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'Barefoot Bandit' sentenced to 6 1/2 years

FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2011 file photo, Colton Harris-Moore, also known as the "Barefoot Bandit," glances at the courtroom gallery as he walks to the defense table, in Island County Superior Court, in Coupeville, Wash. Harris-Moore is scheduled to be sentenced Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, in a U.S. federal court for his two-year international crime spree of break-ins and boat and plane thefts. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2011 file photo, Colton Harris-Moore, also known as the "Barefoot Bandit," glances at the courtroom gallery as he walks to the defense table, in Island County Superior Court, in Coupeville, Wash. Harris-Moore is scheduled to be sentenced Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, in a U.S. federal court for his two-year international crime spree of break-ins and boat and plane thefts. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

John Henry Browne, the attorney for Colton Harris-Moore, talks to reporters outside the Federal Courthouse in Seattle, Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, following the federal sentencing hearing for Harris-Moore, who is also known as the "Barefoot Bandit." (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

John Henry Browne, the attorney for Colton Harris-Moore, talks to reporters outside the Federal Courthouse in Seattle, Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, following the federal sentencing hearing for Harris-Moore, who is also known as the "Barefoot Bandit." (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

SEATTLE (AP) ? A federal judge on Friday sentenced "Barefoot Bandit" Colton Harris-Moore to 6 1/2 years in prison for his infamous two-year, international crime spree of break-ins, and boat and plane thefts that ended in 2010.

Harris-Moore hopscotched his way across the United States, authorities said. He flew a plane stolen in northwestern Washington to the San Juan Islands, stole a pistol in British Columbia and took a plane from Idaho to Washington state, stole a boat in southwestern Washington to go to Oregon, and took a plane in Indiana and flew to the Bahamas, where was arrested.

The 20-year-old earned his nickname because he committed several of the crimes without wearing shoes and attracted fans across the nation for his ability to evade police.

But on Friday, Harris-Moore apologized to his victims shortly before U.S. Judge Richard Jones imposed the sentence, which will be served concurrently with state prison time.

"I now know a crime that took place overnight will take years to recover from," the 20-year-old said in court.

He particularly apologized for stealing planes, saying his arrogance led him to keep alive his dream of flying.

"What I did could be called daring, but it is no stretch of the imagination to say that am lucky to be alive ... absolutely lucky," he said. "I should have died years ago."

Defense attorney John Henry Browne said he expects Harris-Moore to be out of prison in about 4 1/2 years, accounting for the 18 months he's already been in custody. Federal prosecutors declined to comment on how much time he might serve, saying that will be up to the Bureau of Prisons.

Outside the courthouse, Harris-Moore's mother, Pam Kohler of Camano Island, said her son gave her a letter in court but declined to comment further.

Before Friday's sentencing, defense attorneys said federal prosecutors released cherry-picked excerpts from emails in an effort to make Harris-Moore appear callous and self-aggrandizing.

He called the Island County sheriff "king swine," called prosecutors "fools," and referred to reporters as "vermin." He also described his feats ? stealing and flying planes with no formal training ? "amazing" and said they were unmatched by anyone except the Wright brothers.

But Harris-Moore's lawyers claim the full emails show that he is sorry for what he did and thankful for the treatment he received from a state judge who called his case a "triumph of the human spirit." The state judge sentenced him last month to seven years, at the low end of the sentencing range.

The attorneys acknowledged that in certain instances he bragged, but they said those writings were simply the product of an impulsive adolescent and don't reflect his true remorse.

Harris-Moore apologized for those emails in court Friday.

The judge asked Harris-Moore to speak to young people who may look up to him because of his exploits.

"I would say to younger people they should focus on their education, which is what I am doing right now," he said. "I want to start a company. I want to make a difference in this world, legally."

Federal prosecutors had asked for Jones to impose a 6 1/2 year sentence to be served while Harris-Moore serves his state time. His attorneys had asked for a federal sentence of just under six years.

The judge acknowledged that Harris-Moore had a difficult childhood, one with "complete lack of parental guidance" and alcohol abuse. But he said he was concerned that that his previous court appearances didn't have an impact on him.

Jones acknowledged that Harris-Moore committed his early crimes to survive after fleeing from home. But he said "most of the federal offenses were committed for one reason: to fulfill your passion for flying at all costs and consequences."

The judge encouraged Harris-Moore to get treatment in prison.

"The most important day in your life is what you do when you are released. It will be up to you to create a new flight plan," Jones said.

Harris-Moore's defense lawyers said treatment was already under way.

There will be another hearing in a month to decide how much restitution Harris-Moore will be required to pay.

Federal prosecutor Darwin Roberts said a deal has been signed with 20th Century Fox for a movie based on Harris-Moore for a deal worth around $1.3 million. But he said he doesn't expect that to be enough money to cover restitution.

Entertainment lawyer Lance Rosen said outside the courtroom that Academy Award winner Dustin Lance Black ? who wrote "Milk" and the recent "J. Edgar" ? has met with Harris-Moore several times and has turned in a draft of the script.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-27-Barefoot%20Bandit/id-25d307ed33af4ce590e3bc918316bcda

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Shakil Afridi, Pakistani Doctor, Provided Key Information To U.S. In Advance Of Bin Laden Raid: Defense Secretary

In this Jan. 5, 2012 file photo, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta speaks at the Pentagon. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-27-EU-Greece-Financial-Crisis/id-e6c0d22439db414c927256a1fc80b7d3

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Kenny Chesney leads ACM Awards nominations with 9 (AP)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? Kenny Chesney's steamy duet, "You and Tequila" with Grace Potter, continues to radiate heat.

The song helped Chesney to nine Academy of Country Music Awards nominations Thursday morning, including the top honor of entertainer of the year. Jason Aldean, next with six nominations, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton and 2011 winner Taylor Swift round out the fan-voted category.

Lady Antebellum had five nominations, Paisley had four and several were deadlocked at three, including Swift.

Nominees were announced via social media with the help of stars like Reba McEntire and Lionel Richie. Fans were chosen to announce the entertainer of the year candidates. They'll have a chance to pick the winner in that category and new artist of the year for the 47th annual ACM Awards, which will air live April 1 from Las Vegas on CBS with McEntire and Shelton hosting.

Chesney is a four-time entertainer of the year winner and was the first victor under the academy's current fan-voted format. He's nominated for a 10th time in the male vocalist category and received double nominations as artist and producer for album of the year for "Hemingway's Whiskey" and single record of the year and vocal event of the year for "You and Tequila." He also receives a song of the year nomination as performer on "You and Tequila," written by Matraca Berg and Deana Carter.

Potter, best known as an indie rock performer with her band The Nocturnals, received three nominations for the collaboration.

Aldean also is up for male vocalist, album of the year for "My Kinda Party," single record and vocal event of the year for the duet "Don't You Wanna Stay" with Kelly Clarkson, and video of the year for "Tattoos on This Town."

Lady Antebellum will compete for its third straight vocal group of the year win. The trio of Hillary Scott, Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley also is up for album of the year for "Own the Night" as artist and producer, and both song and video of the year for "Just a Kiss."

Along with his fifth straight entertainer nomination, Paisley will be going for another win in the male vocalist category. He's won it five times in a row. He also scored a double nomination in the vocal event category for "Old Alabama" with Alabama and "Remind Me" with Carrie Underwood.

Eric Church's "CHIEF" and Miranda Lambert's "Four the Record" round out the album of the year category. Lady A won last year for its breakthrough "Need You Now."

Nominees for the new artist of the year will be announced after the close of online voting Jan. 30. Fans are currently picking the nominees in that category from a list of eight semifinalists.

Fans can begin voting at the ACM website for entertainer and new artist nominees on March 19. The other award winners are picked by the academy's membership.

It's Shelton's first nomination for the academy's top award. The news comes the week after Shelton's father, Dick, passed away.

"The support I have felt this week is overwhelming," Shelton said in a statement. "Thank you everyone for this honor."

___

Online:

http://www.acmcountry.com

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_en_mu/us_music_acm_awards_nominations

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With new game, Zynga spells B-I-N-G-O

Zynga, the San Francisco-based developer behind FarmVille, has released a range of popular parlor games in recent years, including Zynga Poker, Chess with Friends, and Words With Friends (the Scrabble-based game that it acquired from a smaller developer). The latest addition to the company roster is Zynga Bingo ? a game which has already been described by one blogger as a "visually beautiful" experience.?

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Zynga reps said Bingo would go live this week, on a limited beta basis, with a complete version available sometime in the next couple of months. "Right now, we're only letting a limited number of people into the game to make sure our players are getting a primo, Zynga Bingo experience, before officially open the floodgates," Zynga reps wrote on the company blog.?

According to Zynga, gamers will be able to choose from a variety of rooms, as in a casino ? there's a Vegas-themed room, a pirates-themed room, and (inevitably) a FarmVille-themed room, which will probably be full of Zynga-style cows and pitchforks and rows of pixelated corn. Meanwhile, as in Words With Friends, you'll be able to invite Facebook friends to a friendly Bingo match.?

The main difference between old-school Bingo and its Zynga counterpart is the?"social aspect," Leena Rao writes at TechCrunch. "When you start the game, you?ll be promoted to enter themed bingo rooms and compete against friends or other random players on Facebook simultaneously, challenging buddies in a race to get B-I-N-G-O faster. Similar to Zynga Poker, players can chat and see which rooms their friends are in."

As Rao points out, in December, Zynga launched its long-awaited IPO, only to see shares fall hard. Since then, Zynga has introduced a handful of new titles, which Rao argues could help boost the company's bottom line.?

For more tech news, follow us on?Twitter @venturenaut. And don?t forget to sign up for the weekly?BizTech newsletter.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/iX1SIs8qSMo/With-new-game-Zynga-spells-B-I-N-G-O

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Venezuela leaving World Bank's arbitration body

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) ? Venezuela has formally begun its withdrawal from a World Bank-affiliated arbitration body, the government announced Wednesday, in a decision made by President Hugo Chavez as cases have accumulated against the country's seizures of companies and their assets.

Chavez and his allies say that disagreements with foreign companies operating in Venezuela should be settled with local authorities and within its judicial system.

The Foreign Ministry announced Venezuela's withdrawal from the Washington-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, known by its initials as ICSID, in a statement, calling the government's decision "irreversible." It suggested the arbitration center unfairly favors foreign companies.

The Centre's website lists 17 pending cases against Venezuela, including claims by the Houston-based oil company ConocoPhillips Co., U.S. glass manufacturer Owens-Illinois Inc. and Canadian mining company Crystallex International Corp.

Diego Moya-Ocampos, an analyst with the IHS Global Insight consulting firm in London, said Venezuela's withdrawal from the center would not affect pending cases.

But he said the move could scare off foreign investors, particularly oil companies with potential interest in forming joint ventures with the state-run oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela in the Orinoco Oil Belt, which holds vast deposits of extra-heavy crude.

Studies confirming those deposits in a swath flanking the Orinoco River have allowed Venezuela to surpass Saudi Arabia as the nation with the world's biggest proven reserves, according to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

But Venezuela urgently needs cash to develop its industry in the Belt.

Leaving the ICSID "could seriously affect foreign investment, especially in the Orinoco region," Moya-Ocampos said in a telephone interview. "It could also affect Venezuela's credibility in international market and increase the cost of borrowing."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-25-LT-Venezuela-Arbitration/id-34b307804240489592723ab6923ff6a0

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Limiting protein or certain amino acids before surgery may reduce risk of surgical complications

Limiting protein or certain amino acids before surgery may reduce risk of surgical complications

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Limiting certain essential nutrients for several days before surgery?either protein or amino acids?may reduce the risk of serious surgical complications such as heart attack or stroke, according to a new Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) study.

The study appears in the January 25, 2012 issue of Science Translational Medicine.

"Food restriction as a way to increase stress resistance may seem counterintuitive, but in fact our data indicate that the well-fed state is the one more susceptible to this kind of injury," said James Mitchell, assistant professor of genetics and complex diseases at HSPH.

The researchers, led by Mitchell and Wei Peng, a former HSPH postdoctoral fellow, analyzed two groups of mice. One group was allowed to eat normally for 6 to 14 days; the other group was given a diet free of protein or lacking a single amino acid (amino acids are the building blocks of proteins). Both groups were then subjected to surgical stress that could potentially harm the kidneys or liver. In the mice that were allowed to eat as usual, about 40 percent died. The protein- and amino acid-free mice all survived.

The researchers also found that removing the gene that senses levels of any type of amino acid eliminated the protective effect. This suggests that the pathway activated by amino acid deficiency?rather than the absence of any particular amino acid?is responsible for the observed benefits, and opens up the potential for targeting drugs toward that pathway.

The results are significant because they pinpoint protein as an important substance to eliminate from the diet before surgery to avoid complications. Stroke risk related to cardiovascular surgery ranges from 0.8% to 9.7%, depending on the procedure. Heart attack risk is 3% to 4%.

In numerous animal studies over the past few decades, scientists have found that long-term dietary restriction can improve health and lengthen life. Benefits include increased stress resistance, reduced inflammation, improved blood sugar regulation, and better cardiovascular health?and many of these benefits extend to humans. There is debate, however, about whether the benefits stem from the source of the calories (fat, sugar, or protein) or simply the total calories. Recent research on fruit flies demonstrated the benefits of restricting protein. The HSPH study aimed to provide further clarity by determining the benefits of protein or amino acid restriction in rodents.

As a next step, Mitchell and his colleagues will try to determine whether dietary preconditioning works as well lowering surgery-related risk in humans as it did in mice. They have taken early planning steps with colleagues at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston on a clinical trial of patients on protein-free diets before surgery. If the benefits are confirmed in humans, it may be possible to perform surgeries with significantly reduced risk of complications.

###

Harvard School of Public Health: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu

Thanks to Harvard School of Public Health for this article.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/117090/Limiting_protein_or_certain_amino_acids_before_surgery_may_reduce_risk_of_surgical_complications

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