Consumer spending, income stall; Sandy a factor

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumer spending fell in October for the first time in five months and income growth stalled, leading some economists to cut already weak estimates of fourth-quarter economic growth.

Superstorm Sandy was partly to blame for the pullback in spending as the quarter started, but economists said the data on Friday also underscored the economy's fundamental weakness, stemming from the uncertainty over the course of fiscal policy.

The Commerce Department said consumer spending fell 0.2 percent after a 0.8 percent increase in September. Income growth was flat as wages and salaries dropped 0.2 percent, in part because of work disruptions caused by the storm, which lashed the East Coast in late October.

But even stripping out the $18.2 billion annual rate hit to wages and salaries from the storm, they would have been flat.

"What this is showing is the economy, broadly, is slowing in the fourth quarter and it is concern on the part of businesses and consumers with respect to the fiscal cliff," said David Berson, chief economist at Nationwide Insurance in Columbus, Ohio.

The cliff refers to automatic government spending cuts and tax hikes early next year that could drain about $600 billion from the economy unless lawmakers and the Obama administration agree on a less painful plan to reduce budget deficits.

Fears an impasse could send the economy into a swoon undercut business spending in the third quarter. So far there is little sign of progress in Washington budget talks, which the top Republican in Congress on Friday said were at a "stalemate."

Inflation-adjusted consumer spending fell 0.3 percent in October, the first decline since June, after rising 0.4 percent the prior month.

It was the largest drop in real spending since September 2009 and implied growth in consumer spending this quarter would struggle to exceed the third-quarter's 1.4 percent annual pace, which was the slowest in more than a year.

The data prompted economists to cut fourth-quarter GDP growth estimates, some quite sharply. Estimates now center between a 1.0 percent and 1.8 percent annual pace. The economy expanded at a 2.7 percent rate in the third quarter.

"It's going to be challenging for real spending to grow above the third-quarter's pace. The fundamental drivers of spending are still sluggish," said Sam Bullard, a senior economist at Wells Fargo Securities in Charlotte, North Carolina.

BUDGET TALKS KEY

And the risks to growth are rising. A second report showed that while factory activity in the Midwest rose in November for the first time in three month, new orders tumbled to their lowest level since June 2009.

U.S. financial markets were little moved by the reports as traders kept a wary eye on the budget talks in Washington. Prices for longer-dated U.S. government debt prices were trading down, while the dollar was steady against a basket of currencies. Stocks on Wall Street were little changed.

Major retailers on Thursday reported unexpectedly weak sales in November, which many pinned on Sandy.

Consumer spending is expected to bounce back by December as households replace goods damaged by the storm and income picks up as workers return to work. However, the magnitude could hinge on the outcome of the budget talks.

"If the discussions in Washington linger as they appear they are, then the pick-up in December would be less than it otherwise would be because you still have this level of uncertainty weighing on consumers," said Berson.

The income at the disposal of households after inflation and taxes dipped 0.1 percent last month after being flat in September. Despite weak income growth, the saving rate - the percentage of disposable income households are socking away - rose to 3.4 percent from 3.3 percent the prior month.

Inflation was largely contained, helped by a 29 cent drop in gasoline prices. A price index for consumer spending nudged up 0.1 percent, taking its increase over the past 12 months up to 1.7 percent from 1.6 percent in September.

So-called core prices, which strip out food and energy costs, also edged up 0.1 percent, with the year-on-year gain holding steady at 1.6 percent.

Economists said weak growth and benign inflation could compel the Federal Reserve to keep on an ultra easy monetary policy path.

"We believe the weak tracking of fourth-quarter GDP will reinforce the Fed's case for taking out insurance against downside risks," said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan in New York.

(Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/superstorm-sandy-hits-consumer-spending-income-143401040--business.html

Ed Hochuli Opie modern family george strait how i met your mother sons of anarchy PNC Bank

Algeria says vote had 44 percent turnout, showing stability

ALGIERS (Reuters) - Algeria on Friday declared a 44 percent turnout in municipal elections where the ruling party was victorious, keen to show people remain engaged with the political process despite a lack of the reforms achieved in Arab uprisings elsewhere.

Memories of a vicious 1990s civil war between Islamists and the state that killed around 200,000 people have, analysts say, deterred Algerians from embarking on the mass protests that have swept away rulers in neighboring Tunisia and Libya, as well as in Egypt and Yemen.

But having avoided major unrest the energy-rich North African country of 37 million people still wants to strengthen the credibility of its political system and had aimed for a 40-45 turnout in Thursday's communal elections.

Interior Minister Daho Ould Kablia, reading the results of the vote at a news conference, said the outcome was in line with expectations. "The results were foreseeable," he said.

Kablia said the National Liberation Front (FLN), ruling since independence from France in 1962, was the biggest winner, followed by the National Rally for Democracy (RND), a government coalition partner led by former prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia.

The Green Algeria Alliance, a grouping of Islamist parties, were left far behind, a poor result for official Islamist groups which was similar to their showing in legislative elections last May.

Analysts say Islamist voters are now divided after the authorities allowed many new parties to be created as part of political reforms.

"The increased number of parties with Islamist orientation have weakened their share on the political scene," said Mouloudi Mohamed, an analyst on Islamic issues.

"A lot of Islamists have joined the newly-created moderate Islamist TAJ," he said, referring to a party led by Amar Ghoul, a former senior member of the Green Algeria Alliance.

Ghoul, serving currently as public works minister, did not take part in the municipal election.

Despite Kablia's remarks, many Algerians did not seem enthused about the vote for members of more than 1,500 councils, including their mayors, believing significant change could only come through the next presidential election, due in 2014.

Real local power lies not with the elected municipal councils but with appointed provincial officials, despite government promises to democratize the system.

Algeria, an OPEC member that supplies about a fifth of Europe's imported gas and an important U.S. ally in the fight against al Qaeda, has used its energy revenues to lift living standards with increased social spending.

The country saw some rioting last year over high prices, unemployment and a lack of housing units. But President Abdelaziz Bouteflika responded with a pay rise for public sector employees, free loans for young entrepreneurs and continued subsidies on basic foodstuffs.

Bouteflika, 75, is serving his third five-year term and is not expected to run in the 2014 presidential election.

(Writing by Hamid Ould Ahmed and Andrew Hammond; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Greg Mahlich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/algeria-says-vote-had-44-percent-turnout-showing-160850643.html

knowshon moreno sovereign citizen komen chrome for android hatchet leah messer freedom riders

We're All Techies Now | Social Media Today

The Marine Corps has a saying that, when things get serious, it doesn?t matter if you?re a cook, a truck driver, clerk or radio operator. When the shit hits the fan, everyone?s a rifleman. As a result, every Marine, regardless of military occupational specialty, is trained in basic rifle marksmanship and required to regularly qualify with their primary weapon, currently the M-16A4 rifle.

The rationale being that, since modern warfare is marked by fluid, often unpredictable battle lines and that even rear echelon support troops may find themselves in armed combat at a moment?s notice, every Marine must be proficient in basic marksmanship. As we have seen in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are no more ?front lines? in today?s battlefield.

The Internet ? The Primary Weapon for Modern Business

A similar case can be made for a basic understanding of technology, in particular Internet technology, in the context of modern business. Whether you?re an accountant, supply chain manager, banker, salesperson, or marketer, the Internet is an integral part of your job.

Technology is everywhere, and the Web continues to upend and disrupt nearly every aspect of business. Organizations at the forefront of this trend are integrating processes and systems all along the value chain and one is hard-pressed to find roles not dramatically affected by this. ?GE is now employing social computing to improve their industrial manufacturing processes and is integrating sensors that use TCP/IP and wireless protocols to optimize the efficiency of wind turbines. From procurement to logistics, over sales planning, POS, accounting, billing, payments and customer service, formerly disparate systems are increasingly integrated via networks built on Internet standards. And, in most cases, these systems are being accessed primarily via the Web (or Web-based technologies), often through a multitude of channels, including smart phones and other mobile devices. This not only streamlines business processes, reduces errors and cuts cost, but also increases speed and transparency.

Marketing in the Digital Age

One area that has been affected dramatically by the Internet is marketing. Today?s marketer works in an environment that is fundamentally different in just about every aspect from what he may have encountered as recently as a decade ago. With the rise of digital platforms, marketing has become far more complex, more fluid, and, importantly, more measurable. And yet many of today?s marketers have failed to evolve and often lack the technical skills and fundamental understanding of the Internet needed to most effectively employ the tools at their disposal.

It used to be that IT was a separate department that other functional areas called upon when they needed their PC connected to the printer or a piece of software installed. Accountants, sales people, supply chain managers, and, yes, marketers would go about their daily business blissfully unaware of what made the network run or how exactly their e-mail got to where it needed. Information technology was considered a cost center, not a source of competitive advantage or differentiation. All that has changed and many companies now ? from retailers, to publishers, financial services companies, and consulting firms ? derive a significant portion of their revenue from online activities. Digital technology is now so pervasive, affecting so many aspects of business in such fundamental ways, that many experts question if it even makes sense anymore to have IT as a separate department. Instead, technical expertise and digital fluency are now such an integral component of just about any business function, that these skills need to permeate each and every part of the org chart.

A Series of Tubes

When the late Alaska Senator Ted Stevens described the Internet as ?a series of tubes? back in 2006, he was roundly ridiculed by pundits and members of the digerati. Ironically, he was? charged with oversight and regulation of the Internet at the time. But ask a random sample of marketing folks to explain the basic building blocks of the Internet ? things like HTTP, TCP/IP, HTML and similar ? and you just might find that the late Senator had a better grasp of things back then than many marketers can muster now. And, while many eagerly employ industry buzzwords like Big Data, real-time analytics, business intelligence, cross-media publishing and more, few can describe what they actually mean and even less could write an SQL query or build and launch a simple Website.

Now many of you may interject that there is no need to understand the technical underpinnings of these tools and concepts in order to use them. And, if your job is merely to write content for your Website or place media buys, you may be right. To a point at least. But if your role goes even just a little beyond that ? and, let?s face it, most do ? you?d be dead wrong. For even those simple tasks require at least a basic understanding of SEO, a grasp of how your content management system works, or how media buys are priced dynamically based on variable CPM rates, how to identify or avoid click-fraud, and a multitude of other factors that affect success.

If you?re in an only slightly more responsible role, you may be called upon to research and identify new marketing automation software, or help assess the cost, time, and effort to integrate your CRM platform with the new e-mail marketing system. Without a basic grasp of how these work, all you have to go on is the information provided by vendors or consultants. How would you know if an estimate is too high or, as often happens, unreasonably low? There are common reasons why most IT projects come in over budget, are completed late or fail altogether and, next to poor planning and project management (and I would argue that both of these are related to technology as well), a lack of technical understanding by key decision makers is often a root cause.

Trust ? But Verify

For how can you or your team evaluate a proposal or tool without understanding both the business requirements and the technical criteria needed for it to work, especially when the two are so closely intertwined? If I had a dollar for every time I?ve heard a vendor tell me their system is ?basically plug-and-play? and offers all you could ever want or need ?out-of-the-box? with only some ?minimal configuration?, I?d be a wealthy man. The fact is, IT is complex. And it has to be in order to solve the complex business problems that need to be addressed. Sure, the CRM system your company is considering looked easy and worked flawlessly during the vendor demo, but how much time and effort was put into preparing that slick presentation? And just because your consultant ? who, let?s remember, is paid by the hour ? says that adapting the system to your processes and integrating it into your environment is ?straightforward?, doesn?t make it so.

Reality Bites

But bad IT purchase decisions and failed projects are but one symptom of inadequate technical knowledge within many organizations, albeit a very visible one. Much more prevalent ? and insidious ? are persistent under-performance and missed opportunity, which can often go undetected for years. The effects can be corrosive and will often lead to a vicious circle that feeds on itself and becomes self-reinforcing as more tech-savvy team members become frustrated and seek opportunities with organizations that ?get it? and value their expertise.

Survival is Optional

The fact is, technical competence is increasingly important, regardless if you?re a project manager, analyst, or even a sales or account director. The days when a fellow like Tom Smykowski could get by on just ?people skills? are over, today?s interconnected business calls for more. Much more. But, worry not, your company will most likely adapt and survive. The question many marketing professionals should ask though is whether they will. Younger, more tech-savvy employees are coming up quick. I was reminded of this just the other day by my 12-yo daughter. Previously, I had learned of her holiday wish-list from a letter to Santa written in crayon. This year?s list, which included a request for an iPad and a new smart phone, came to me via e-mail containing a link to Google Docs. And, just to be sure ?Santa? ? not always known for his technical prowess ? got it right, she had included links to the exact products on retail Websites and photos of the desired items on Pinterest and Instagram.

Online collaboration via Google Docs, integrated with social media and delivered using the Internet. All this by a 12-yo child in seventh grade. I work with senior digital marketing leaders at Fortune-500 companies nearly every day and many of them would not be able to pull this off without help.

Would you?

Source: http://socialmediatoday.com/daniel-backhaus/1038206/we-re-all-techies-now

south carolina primary squirrel appreciation day billy beane kathy griffin road conditions newt gingrich wives weather

Download the Windows Phone 8 Training Kit

","loadingHtml":"

Loading...

","groupNavigationContentWrapperHtmlBlock":"

{GroupNavigationContent}

","groupNavigationListHtmlBlock":"\n

{Columns}

\n","columnWrapperHtmlBlock":"

{T1GroupsData}

","t1GroupHtmlBlock":"\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t

{Name}

\r\n\t\t

\r\n\t\t\t{Groups}\r\n\t\t

\r\n\t\t\r\n\t","t2GroupHtmlBlock":"

{Item}

","viewAllHtmlBlock":"{Text}","linkHtmlBlock":"{Name}","searchResultItemHtmlBlock":"

{Name}

","viewMoreText":"and {MoreText} more..."}}; $(document).ready(function() { Core_GroupNavigation_SetMenuItems("#ctl00_header_fragment_247403541__b83dbd_ctl00_ctl00_ParentGroupListContainer", true, "ParentMoreListheader-fragment-247403541"); Core_GroupNavigation_SetMenuItems("#ctl00_header_fragment_247403541__b83dbd_ctl00_ctl00_ChildGroupListContainer", false, "ChildMoreListheader-fragment-247403541"); }); $(window).resize(function() { Core_GroupNavigation_SetMenuItems("#ctl00_header_fragment_247403541__b83dbd_ctl00_ctl00_ParentGroupListContainer", true, "ParentMoreListheader-fragment-247403541"); Core_GroupNavigation_SetMenuItems("#ctl00_header_fragment_247403541__b83dbd_ctl00_ctl00_ChildGroupListContainer", false, "ChildMoreListheader-fragment-247403541"); }); // ]]>

Source: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/robmar/archive/2012/11/28/download-the-windows-phone-8-training-kit.aspx

southland sopa blackout protect ip act jim caldwell internet blackout jessica capshaw seattle times

Obama says debt-cutting deal can be reached soon

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama said Wednesday he believes that members of both parties can reach a "framework" on a debt-cutting deal before Christmas, making his case with a mix of optimism and pressure on congressional Republicans to keep tax rates from rising on the middle class.

Obama, pushing ahead with his campaign to increase revenue by hiking taxes on wealthier Americans, was joined by about a dozen middle-class Americans at a White House event in the midst of negotiation on how to avoid a so-called fiscal cliff at year's end when across-the-board tax hikes and steep spending cuts kick in.

"I am ready and able and willing and excited to go ahead and get this issue resolved in bipartisan fashion so that American families, American businesses have some certainty going into next year," Obama said.

He took special note of reports that some Republicans have expressed a willingness to extend the current expiring tax rates for households earning less than $250,000. Conservative Oklahoma GOP Rep. Tom Cole told GOP colleagues in a private meeting on Tuesday that it's better to extend tax cuts for 98 percent of taxpayers than engage in a prolonged fight that risks increasing taxes on everyone. Cole is a longtime GOP loyalist and a confidant of House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.

"I'm glad to see, if you've been reading the papers lately, that more and more Republicans in Congress seem to be agreeing with this idea that we should have a balanced approach," Obama said, noting that the Senate has already passed legislation to extend current rates to those middle class taxpayers.

"The Democrats in the House are ready to vote for that same bill today," he said. "If we can get a few House Republicans to agree as well, I'll sign this bill as soon as Congress sends it my way. I've got to repeat: I've got a pen. I'm ready to sign it."

He made an appeal to the public to pressure Congress, arguing that similar efforts late last year to extend a payroll tax cut resulted in congressional passage.

"When the American people speak loudly enough, lo and behold, Congress listens," he said.

While expressing confidence that he and Congress could strike a bargain for a "framework in the coming weeks,"

Obama says we need to "approach this problem with the middle-class in mind."

The president is urging the public to pressure Congress through social media, pointing to (hashtag)My2K on Twitter ? a reference to the estimated $2,200 tax increase a typical middle-class family of four would see if the Bush tax cuts expire.

The president is also meeting with corporate executives at the White House on Wednesday and then traveling to Pennsylvania on Friday to push for upper income bracket earners to pay higher tax rates. It's part of a campaign to pressure Republicans in Congress to support raising taxes on the wealthy.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-says-debt-cutting-deal-reached-soon-171317055--finance.html

Dana Vollmer phillies phillies Ryan Dempster Phelps NBC Olympics Live Olympic medal count

Galapagos tortoises are a migrating species

ScienceDaily (Nov. 27, 2012) ? The Galapagos giant tortoise, one of the most fascinating species of the Galapagos archipelago, treks slowly and untiringly across the volcanic slopes. Scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Radolfzell, together with the Charles Darwin Foundation, have used GPS technology and modern 3D acceleration measurements to find out that especially the dominant male tortoise wanders up to 10 kilometres into the highlands of the island. Only the fully grown animals migrate, the young tortoises stay year round in the lowlands. The reason for this and the question of why the animals don't rest during the dry season are not known yet.

The large, dominant male Galapagos giant tortoises usually start their annual migration at the beginning of the dry season.

Even Charles Darwin anticipated that the giant tortoises wandered large distances. In the cool dry season, the highlands of Santa Cruz are engulfed in fog which allows the vegetation to grow despite the lack of rain. In the lowlands, however, there is no thick layer of clouds and the tortoises' vegetation is not available year round. Adults, which can weigh up to 250 kilogram, spend the dry season in the higher regions at an elevation of 400 meters above sea level. However, since the food is not as nutritious there, they trek back to the lower zones where there is succulent vegetation in abundance as soon as the rainy season begins.

In order to study the migratory pattern more closely, Stephen Blake from the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology and his colleague Washington Tapia from the Galapagos National Park secured GPS loggers with 3D acceleration monitors onto 17 adult tortoises. This allowed the scientists to determine the animals' exact position and behaviour over a period of two years. In order to gather information on the entire population, the researchers noted the size, sex and location of each tortoise they met on their monthly hikes along the volcanic hillsides. They combined the GPS data with the temperature data and information about availability of vegetation.

The results show that the tortoises have a partial migration system, where not every individual migrates. Only the adult animals wander and only the larger specimens are more likely to move. In June they start their slow, tedious march which can be up to ten kilometres long into the highlands. Adult females remain in the lowlands until they lay their eggs and then they also make their way to the highlands. In contrast, the smaller tortoises stay in the lower elevated areas all year round.

Although giant tortoises are able to survive for up to one year without nourishment, which made them a popular staple for seamen, they nevertheless wander for large distances searching for food as this study shows for the first time. Why don't they just look for a shelter? The question of why the younger animals don't migrate hasn't been answered by the scientists yet. "Either the energy expenditure of this strenuous hike is too high, or there is still enough food available for the smaller animals." Stephen Blake suspects, "perhaps the younger animals can't tolerate the wet cold climate of the higher regions."

In other species, the largest and the most dominant individual does not migrate because it can best defend itself against its competitors. It doesn't have to leave to survive. However, among the Galapagos tortoises, it's usually the largest and most dominant individual which takes on this arduous journey.

Future studies on giant tortoise species of the other Galapagos Islands with varying ecological conditions will show how environment influences the migration scheme of these closely related reptiles. The scientists also want to include factors such as age, size, sex and morphology in their studies to see why the behaviour changes in different lifetime stages and what the trigger of migration is.

Despite the threat of hunting, invasive species such as goats and rats, and the loss of habitat due to man, the Galapagos Tortoise still shows its original migrating behaviour. This and future studies will help to maintain this behaviour with the help of effective measures such as establishing corridors, preserving key habitats, keeping tortoise-friendly roads and maintaining less urban development. Based on its importance to the Galapagos Archipelago ecosystem as an herbivore and seed disperser, the annual migration of the tortoise must be preserved.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Max-Planck-Gesellschaft.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Stephen Blake, Charles B. Yackulic, Fredy Cabrera, Washington Tapia, James P. Gibbs, Franz K?mmeth, Martin Wikelski. Vegetation dynamics drive segregation by body size in Galapagos tortoises migrating across altitudinal gradients. Journal of Animal Ecology, 2012; DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12020

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/0TKwPXr0jtQ/121127094105.htm

reason rally mad hatter azerbaijan ryan howard ps i love you ray charles cheney heart transplant

Launch of Sunday Art Salon: South east London's latest art adventure

?Portrait of a Young Woman? by Picasso. A 1946 signed lithograph of a 1938 work

In times like these where interest rates are next to nought, it is a thankless task trying to accrue interest from money sat in bank accounts.?

Art, like property, has always been highly regarded as a far greater prospect to invest your money in.?Time and again this has been proven in the London Art Market and it is always an eye opener to see which art is going to be suddenly reassessed to become the next big thing.

I can remember when I visited Sotheby?s in 1995 during the last recession, Modern British art was going through the doldrums and the work of several big name artists could be picked up very reasonably at auction. John Bratby (1928-1992) one time Blackheath resident is a case in point. A prolific ?kitchen sink? artist, noted for depicting such humble domestic subjects as well as lavatories, he courted the press in his day and was as notorious a figure in the 50?s as Damien Hirst or Tracey Emin is today. I saw paintings by him sell under the hammer for a few hundred pounds, including a cracking self portrait I wish in hindsight I had bought when I had the opportunity.

Alex C. Koolman, RP, RBA, (1907 ? 1998). Portrait George Harrison 1970

Charles Saatchi then surprised the art world by buying three very large works from the late 50?s by Bratby from a London dealer in 2003 to display in a dedicated room in his then new County Hall Gallery. This caused something of a ripple effect in the revision of Bratby?s reputation and prices, which had taken a knock since the 1960?s invasion of the American Abstract Expressionists and the new wave of British Pop Art.?Now his work can sell for anywhere between five to fifty thousand pounds plus from London dealers.

My experience in dealing in fine art and antiques for over twenty years has led me to some wonderful finds. On leaving school I went into the family business, The Mount Antiques in Whitby, Yorkshire, where I learnt the art of buying from my mother as I accompanied her to auctions and house calls.?She trained as a textile designer and had a great eye for decorative art and antiques, building an international reputation over twenty years for her emporium on the north east coast.?I then went to college to study both art practice and the history of art.

a view from my studio of Hilly Fields, Brockley

When I came to London I joined Harrods Antiques and Fine Art Department for several years and went on to work as an art consultant in contemporary art to GX Gallery in Camberwell. I have continued to exhibit my own work in London and open my studio each year in Brockley since moving there.

Sunday Art Salon is the latest idea in urban leisure art consumption. It places the emphasis on real social networking, as a platform for meeting like minded professionals and collectors looking for unique stylish statement pieces to enhance their living space and for long term investment.

It creates a stimulating, friendly environment for the public and creatives to meet and engage with a wide range of artist practitioners. Guests have the opportunity of purchasing and talking about artwork with the artists and curator in the setting of a private studio with extensive views across Hilly Fields in Brockley.

Following the opening up of south London in 2010 by the extension of the Overground tube, affectionally nicknamed the ?Ginger line?, places like Brockley and Forest Hill are now on the map as areas of artistic enterprises, with Deptford and Peckham as neighbours, it creates part of a new trend of artistic networks where small galleries and open studios are tailoring themselves to a resurgence in community spirit and awareness.

Whilst the artist?s of the Brockley Open Studios have been quietly opening their doors in their leafy Conservation Area one weekend per summer for twenty years, new initiatives like the South London Art Map have a strong online presence which operates as a listings site, promoting exhibitions in art spaces open late on the last Friday of each month. Undoubtedly as part of the recession and in line with the growing number of markets, both farmers food and craft based, the public are enjoying and demanding something of a renaissance in rediscovering small local trade and commercial premises.

Charles Saatchi and Nigella Lawson visit Canvas and Cream

The Canvas & Cream Cafe and Gallery in Forest Hill is a family-run social enterprise where locals got together with friends and family from their neighbourhood to develop this collaborative project. It comprises artists studios, an artists-designed up cycled restaurant/cafe and a dedicated gallery/project space with art workshop.

It was here where artist Raf Zawistowski?s solo debut show was bought outright by Charles Saatchi before the show even opened in April this year. Proving that once Saatchi has dared to brave this far into London?s south east hinterland, sealing his approval by purchasing art, it can truly be said to have ?arrived?.

Raf Zawistowski?s solo debut show was bought outright by Saatchi

The Misty Moon Gallery in Ladywell, previously the Tank Gallery, originally an 17th?century coaching house behind the Ladywell Tavern, is operated by another artists collective and now caters as an accessible platform for the work of local and international artists, as does Cue B Gallery at the rear of the Brockley Mess cafe on Brockley Road.

The White Room SE4, is the new home of modern women?s wear label, NC23 by a local designer keen to encourage networking and collaboration in the boutique/studio/workshop also on Brockley Road. They plan to offer workshops in sewing, pattern cutting, tailoring and drawing, the first of which is Make a Swing Skirt in 3 hours. This couldn?t be more fitting flanked as it is by a resurgence of vintage style coffee shops selling cupcakes in the area.

Not to mention the unique Grade II Listed Rivoli Ballroom next door, regular home of hipster jivers, where Florence + the Machine just played live in her?BBC Radio 2 concert,?while the White Room held its late night opening party.

Sunday Art Salon

Sunday Art Salon launches its first exclusive Winter Collection on Sunday 2nd December 11am ? 3pm with a wonderful array of bold contemporary art and a unique collection of vintage art and collectables, including important portraits of Charles I, George Harrison and a signed portrait print by Picasso. We hope there will be something for everyone. Artwork can be viewed by appointment at other times to suit busy lifestyles.

Sunday Art Salon -?Hilly Fields Studio, 12 Montague Avenue, London SE4 1YP.
Sunday 2nd?December 11am ? 3pm. Coffee station and edible art.
Further information visit:?www.sundayartsalon.co.uk? or email info@sundayartsalon.co.uk
(stairs so with regret no disabled/pushchair access and no stilettos as wooden floors)

Source: http://dulwichonview.org.uk/2012/11/27/launch-of-sunday-art-salon-south-east-londons-latest-art-adventure/

cruise ship martin luther king jr. zappos john elway john elway i have a dream speech fox news debate

Analysts: Tibet Self-Immolations Hit New Phase (Voice Of America)

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

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/266663100?client_source=feed&format=rss

mt rainier caucus stanford vs oklahoma state occupy rose parade vesta williams stanford stanford

What is Real Estate Fraud? | Law Office of Peter Cameron, APC

Posted by Mary on Nov 26, 2012 in Civil Law | Comments Off

Real Estate Property Crimes can take many forms. ?Most often these crimes involve grand theft and forgery. ???Common ?fraudulent real estate investment schemes have typically involved the sale of trust deeds, ?the use of forged escrow instructions to steal escrow deposits, purchasing homes with straw buyers for those with poor?credit and?forgery of grant deeds or other recorded documents. ?Other fraudulent schemes can involve trusts. ?This happens when vulnerable ?owners are told to deed their property to a trust. ?They are told the trust ?will make the mortgage payments until the owner recovers financially. These kind of ?scammers steal the equity and get loans with even larger payments so the original homeowner never stands a chance to get his or her property back.

Recently, Identify Theft ?has become more common in real estate fraud. ???Identity Theft is a newer criminal activity aided by computer hackers ?and is becoming more widespread and dangerous to all consumers.
California Penal Code (CPC) section 530.5 defines Using Personal Information of Another:

CPC 530.5. ?(a) Every person who willfully obtains personal identifying
information, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 530.55, of
another person, and uses that information for any unlawful purpose,
including to obtain, or attempt to obtain, credit, goods, services,
real property, or medical information without the consent of that
person, is guilty of a public offense, and upon conviction therefor,
shall be punished by a fine, by imprisonment in a county jail not to
exceed one year, or by both a fine and imprisonment, or by
imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

By assuming the identity of the true owner, or claiming to represent the true owner, the thief fraudulently obtains title to a property. This kind of scammer may ?then borrow against the property, or sell the property, stealing the equity. The typical target of such a scheme is a property with a large amount of equity, most likely an elderly owner. Protect your identity by?securing?your personal information as much as possible on and off line. ?Especially on the computer, make sure any information you give out is?guaranteed?to be secure.

The housing market continues to be in a very unstable market, and ?criminals are taking advantage of struggling homeowners by committing fraud. Many appear to be legitimate brokers or ?consultants, but their activities and?illegal? schemes are aimed at stealing your money or property. If you believe that you have ?been a victim of real estate fraud, call ?the Law?Office?of Peter S. Cameron ?at 877-603-8473 or submit your ?questions online with our?guaranteed?secure case review form. ?We are here to help you explore the legal solutions available to this kind of consumer fraud.

This?article?is for educational and?marketing?purposes only. ?It does not?create?an attorney-client relationship.

?

Source: http://sandiegolegaloffice.com/2012/11/what-is-real-estate-fraud/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=what-is-real-estate-fraud

Espn College Football Eddie Murphy died Suzanne Barr Clint Eastwood speech Maria Montessori clint eastwood Julian Castro

Microbial 'missing link' discovered after man impales hand on tree branch

ScienceDaily (Nov. 26, 2012) ? It all started with a crab apple tree. Two years ago, a 71-year-old Indiana man impaled his hand on a branch after cutting down a dead tree. The wound caused an infection that led scientists to discover a new bacterium and solve a mystery about how bacteria came to live inside insects.

On Oct. 15, 2010, Thomas Fritz, a retired inventor, engineer and volunteer firefighter, cut down a dead, 10-foot-tall crab apple tree outside his home near Evansville, Ind.

As he dragged away the debris, he got tangled in it and fell. A small branch impaled his right hand in the fleshy web between the thumb and index finger.

A former emergency medical technician, Fritz dressed the wound, which became swollen. Then he waited for a scheduled visit with his doctor a few days later. By then, a cyst formed at the wound site. The doctor put Fritz on an antibiotic after sending a sample of the cyst to a lab.

The pain and swelling persisted and the wound became abscessed.

About five weeks after the accident, an orthopedic surgeon removed several pieces of bark from the wound, which finally healed without further incident.

Only later did Fritz find out that his infected wound contained a previously unknown bacterium that scientists say could be used to block disease transmission by insects and prevent crop damage.

Scientists call the new strain human Sodalis or HS; it's related to Sodalis, a genus of bacteria that lives symbiotically inside insects' guts.

The journal PLOS Genetics published a paper detailing the discovery November 26.

"Symbiotic interactions between microorganisms and insects are common, and biologists suspect that they're an important driver of biological diversification," says Matt Kane, program director in the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research.

"But how such symbioses came to be is often a mystery," Kane says. "This particular story has a happy ending, but also an interesting one, because researchers used it to gain insight into how insects and microbes can form symbiotic partnerships in the first place."

As in the case of the crab apple tree, "there are bacteria in the environment that form symbiotic relationships with insects," says University of Utah biologist Kelly Oakeson, the study's lead co-author. "This is the first time such a bacterium has been found and studied."

Identifying a New Strain of Bacteria

The lab that first received the sample from Fritz's infected wound couldn't identify the bacterium once it was isolated. So the organism was shipped to ARUP Laboratories, a national pathology reference library operated by the University of Utah.

An automated analysis at ARUP found that the bacterium from Fritz was E. coli, but scientists doubted the results.

"We had close matches for it, but none were validly described species," says Mark Fisher of the ARUP Institute for Clinical and Experimental Pathology and a co-author of the paper. "It caught my eye because I knew Colin Dale worked on Sodalis."

Dale is the researcher who discovered and named Sodalis in 1999. He is a biologist at the University of Utah and is the study's senior author.

He says that genetic sequencing showed that the HS bacterium is related to bacteria that live symbiotically in 17 insect species, including tsetse flies, weevils, bird lice and stinkbugs, and is most closely related to bacteria in the chestnut weevil and a stinkbug species.

The study compared HS with genomes of the strain Sodalis glossinidius that lives in tsetse fliesand another Sodalis-likebacterium that lives in grain weevils.

Compared with HS, the other two bacterial species have lost or deactivated about half their genes.

A Missing Link

According to Dale, the findings provide "a missing link in our understanding of how beneficial insect-bacteria relationships originate.

"They show that these relationships arise independently in each insect. The insect picks up a pathogen that is widespread in the environment and then domesticates it. This happens independently in each insect."

A competing theory is that parasitic wasps and mites spread symbiotic bacteria from one insect to another.

Dale says that theory cannot explain why such similar types of Sodalis bacteria are found in insects that differ widely in location and diet, including insects that feed either on plants or animals.

The new results support the theory that insects are infected by pathogenic bacteria from plants or animals in their environment, and that the bacteria evolve to become less virulent and to provide benefits to the insect.

Then, instead of spreading from one insect to another, the bacteria spread from mother insects to their offspring.

Taming Invading Bacteria

Various bacteria live symbiotically in blood or fat cells or in special structures attached to the guts of as many as 10 percent of all insects.

The bacteria gain shelter and nutrition from their insect hosts, and they produce nutrients--B vitamins and amino acids--to help feed the insects.

Sometimes they also produce toxins to kill invaders, such as fungi or the eggs laid in an insect by a parasitic wasp.

Sodalis is only one of several types of bacteria that live in insects.

Symbiotic bacteria are known for having the smallest genetic blueprints, or genomes, of any cellular organism because as they evolve inside an insect, they lose genes that would be needed for survival outside the insect.

But when biologists sequenced the new bacterium's genome, they found that HS has a relatively large genetic blueprint and is closely related to Sodalis-like bacteria that have smaller genomes and live in many species of insects, implying that Sodalis-like bacteria all descended from a bacterium like HS.

A Way to Block Some Insect-Spread Diseases?

The researchers believe the discovery could have important implications. They say it may be possible to genetically alter the new bacterium to block disease transmission by insects like tsetse flies and prevent crop damage by insect-borne viruses.

"If we can genetically modify a bacterium that could be put back into insects, it could be used as a way to combat diseases transmitted by those insects," says Adam Clayton, a University of Utah biologist and lead author of the paper unveiling the new bacterium and its genome.

Tsetse flies and aphids both carry symbiotic Sodalis bacteria related to strain HS. Sodalis doesn't grow well outside insects, but HS grows well in the lab.

So it may be possible to insert genes in HS, and then place the bacteria in tsetse flies to kill the protozoan parasites that live in the flies and cause sleeping sickness in people and domestic animals in Africa.

Aphids transmit many plant viruses that attack soybeans, alfalfa, beets, beans and peanuts.

Replacing their normal symbiotic bacteria with a genetically engineered strain of HS could interfere with disease transmission.

The researchers speculate that in addition to the HS bacterium, there are likely many other undiscovered bacteria in the environment that could form symbiotic relationships with insects.

"We have identified very few of the bacteria that exist in nature," says Dale, "and new species and strains like HS are often only discovered when they infect humans."

Additional co-authors of the paper are Maria Gutin, Arthur Pontes, Diane Dunn, Andrew von Niederhausern and Robert Weiss, all of the University of Utah.

The National Institutes of Health also funded the research.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by National Science Foundation.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Adam L. Clayton, Kelly F. Oakeson, Maria Gutin, Arthur Pontes, Diane M. Dunn, Andrew C. von Niederhausern, Robert B. Weiss, Mark Fisher, Colin Dale. A Novel Human-Infection-Derived Bacterium Provides Insights into the Evolutionary Origins of Mutualistic Insect?Bacterial Symbioses. PLoS Genetics, 2012; 8 (11): e1002990 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002990

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/strange_science/~3/IAJFAFXUyoM/121126110737.htm

daytona artie lange nascar daytona 2012 kasey kahne angelina jolie right leg saving face academy award winners

2 men sentenced in Fast and Furious gun case (The Arizona Republic)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/266509409?client_source=feed&format=rss

lottery ticket megga millions what is autism the giver march 30 rimm george h w bush

Despite talk of compromise, fiscal deal elusive

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Talk of compromise on a broad budget deal greeted returning lawmakers Monday, but agreement still seemed distant as the White House and congressional Republicans ceded little ground on a key sticking point: whether to raise revenue through higher tax rates or by limiting tax breaks and deductions.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, pressed his case for revenue derived by reducing tax loopholes rather than raising tax rates on wealthy taxpayers, as President Barack Obama insists.

Boehner, voicing the Republican stance, said: "The American people support an approach that involves both major spending cuts and additional revenue via tax reform with lower tax rates."

At the White House, Obama spokesman Jay Carney reiterated the president's pledge not to sign legislation that extends current tax rates to the top 2 percent of income earners. "That is a firm position," Carney said.

Congress and Obama have until the end of the year to avoid across-the-board tax increases that would do away with rates set during the administration of President George W. Bush and restore higher tax rates in place during President Bill Clinton's administration when the economy was robust and the federal government had a budget surplus.

White House and congressional leadership aides said Obama spoke separately with House Speaker John Boehner and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid over the weekend. The aides would not reveal details of the conversations. Obama last met with the bipartisan congressional leadership to discuss the fiscal cliff on Nov. 16. No new meetings have been announced.

Boehner and other GOP leaders planned to meet Wednesday with members of a bipartisan coalition of former members of Congress and business leaders that has advocated cuts in spending in major health care programs as well as changes in the tax code to raise more money but also to lower rates.

Obama met with some members of that same coalition earlier this month. Top officials from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and from the Business Roundtable met with senior White House aides on Monday.

In addition to looming tax hikes, the new year could also result in steep spending cuts in defense and domestic programs. Lawmakers and the White House fear that such a combined "fiscal cliff" would undercut the military and set back an economic recovery. Republicans say that while they are open to revenue increases, Obama also has to agree to reductions in entitlement spending, particularly in massive health care programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

Carney on Monday said Obama was open to changes in those programs, but said Obama does not want to address Social Security as part of the fiscal cliff discussions.

"The president has long made clear that he is open to discussions about strengthening Social Security as part of a separate track," Carney said, adding that Social Security is not contributing to the deficit.

Looking to buttress their case on taxes, White House economists warned Monday that the uncertainty of a potential hike in taxes next year for middle class taxpayers could hurt consumer confidence during the crucial holiday shopping season.

In a new report, President Barack Obama's National Economic Council and his Council of Economic Advisers said that if lawmakers don't halt the automatic increase in taxes for households earning less than $250,000, consumers might even curtail their shopping during the current holiday season.

Alan Krueger, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, said it was important for Congress to extend the current rates for middle class taxpayers "without delay, without drama" to avoid a drop in consumer confidence.

"As we approach the holiday season, which accounts for close to one-fifth of industry sales, retailers can't afford the threat of tax increases on middle-class families," the report said.

Meanwhile, the stock market edged lower in the morning as the outcome of the budget talks remained inconclusive.

Retailers such as Macy's, Target and Saks were down, amid fears that consumers might cut back this season. But the National Retail Federation reported earlier that 247 million shoppers visited stores and shopping websites during the long Thanksgiving weekend, up 9 percent from a year ago. They spent an average of $423, up 6 percent.

The White House report also said a sudden increase in taxes for middle-income taxpayers would reduce consumer spending in 2013 by nearly $200 billion, significantly slowing the economic recovery.

The figures echo estimates by private forecasters and by the Congressional Budget Office.

Many middle income taxpayers also would be exposed to automatic tax increases under the Alternative Minimum Tax, which is designed to guarantee a certain level of tax payment by wealthier taxpayers.

According to the report, a married couple earning between $50,000 and $85,000 with two children would see a $2,200 increase in their taxes.

Obama wants the Bush-era tax rates to remain at their current level for households earning less than $250,000. He is calling on Congress to increase taxes for families earning more than that threshold.

Obama's plan is part of an overall deficit reduction package that would increase tax revenue by about $1.5 trillion and reduce spending by a similar amount over 10 years.

Congressional Republicans, led by Boehner, have said they are open to including discussions about additional revenue but have balked at any plan that raises tax rates on the wealthy. They argue that the higher rates would also hit some small businesses, stifling economic growth.

Instead, they have advocated changes in the tax code that would eliminate tax breaks and loopholes that primarily benefit the wealthy. Several key Republican lawmakers have also said they would not be bound by a no-tax-increase pledge that they have adhered to in the past.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said Monday that the rapidly approaching deadline accounts for the more serious tone to the debate, but also reaffirmed the GOP's opposition to raising tax rates for the wealthy. "We've got to have the president step up and say, here's my position on how we reform these entitlements and start managing down the deficits," he said.

__

Associated Press writer Andrew Taylor contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/despite-talk-compromise-fiscal-deal-elusive-231140091--finance.html

dick clark death yom hashoah yolo liquidmetal gsa scandal kelis dick clark dies

Car Hire For Safer Travel | travel and leisure article updates

Boston is the capital of Massachusetts as well as its largest city and also is among the earliest towns in the United States. The Town of Boston arrays over 12 million annual site visitors from across the nation as well as around the globe. This vivid, successful town is renowned for its cultural establishments, world-class educational institutions, chief games business, as well as its spot at the remarkably center of the American past.

For the entire visitors and also visitors Boston car hire serves at their finest. With Boston car hire service anyone are able to conveniently discover many of the areas and also major landmarks in the city. A couple of which are Chinatown, Beacon Hillside, Hyde Park, Mission Hill, Fine Arts Galerie, Boston National Historic Park, Art gallery of Fine Arts, etc.

Boston car hire offers a choice of standard rental cars, luxury autos, minivans, and SUVs to meet nearly every need. Whether it is a short term or long term car rental, with Boston car hire you get reliable and excellent services without any compromise.

Boston car hire delivers a choice of common rental automobiles, luxurious cars, minivans, and SUVs to meet close to every requirement. Whether it is a short term or long term car rent, with Boston car hire you receive trustworthy and also impressive services without any concession. Whether you're visiting Boston, Massachusetts for a company vacation, to tour the colleges in the region, or merely to see the fall foliage, Boston car hire has covered anything. Include a GPS navigation system with real-time traffic reports to your Boston car hire and also you will not be stuck waiting in traffic. You may likewise enjoy your beloved tunes as you cruise down the road with an MP3 player or XM radio. They will certainly provide all the things that you will demand, it is promising.

Whether you're going to Boston, Massachusetts for a company trip, to tour the colleges in the region, or simply to view the fall foliage, Boston car hire has dealt with every little thing.

Source: http://travel-leisure-updates.blogspot.com/2012/11/car-hire-for-safer-travel.html

Sweetest Day optimal Samantha Steele Espn goog Sylvia Kristel st louis cardinals Steelers Schedule

Source: http://acidophiles-lumen.blogspot.com/2012/11/car-hire-for-safer-travel-travel-and.html

When Is Veterans Day 2012 brooke burke jennifer lawrence Alexa Vega Bram Stoker books Paula Broadwell Photos Veterans Day 2012

My Move Better Than Competitive Apps | TechnoTropis.com

If you?re planning to relocate in the near future, you may be on the lookout for a few good apps to help make the moving process a little easier. In that regard you?ve probably found several likely options that deliver a slew of tools set to help you organize your inventory (as in household items to be packed), create various checklists, and make sure everything gets where it?s going in one piece. What you may have noticed, however, is that many of the mobile applications designed for the purposes of reducing your stress during a major move are more than a little underwhelming. The freebies are either inundated with ad support or they simply don?t do what they promise, and even those that require payment are lacking seemingly obvious functionality. But there is one app that, while not entirely comprehensive, at least offers basic features and ease of use to get you through the process of relocating.

My Move is designed to help you get organized and find the professional services you need to ensure smooth sailing along every step of your move, whether you?re relocating within your city or setting up shop across state lines. You have enough to deal with as is; the last thing you want is for important details to slip through the cracks. So My Move not only helps you to make note of every thought that crosses your mind ? it also hooks you up with resources that can take on some of the burden for you. Likely you?ll want to get started several weeks before the move occurs, and the app provides you with a moving checklist for this purpose.

All you have to do to add new tasks is select your time frame and type in the specifics, whether you want to call real estate agents weeks beforehand, you need to put in your change of address just days prior to relocating, or you have to get your landline set up once you?ve pulled all the boxes off the truck in your new location. In addition, the app will soon feature an inventory checklist that allows you to track every item that leaves your home (this addition is under development and will be added to the next version). You can also add notes about everything from the best places to live in your new area to the information about setting up utilities once you get there. And the handy tips section will clue you in to potential issues you may not have even anticipated (like measuring large furniture to make sure it will fit in your new place before you try to squeeze it through the door).

In addition, My Move provides users with a great way to get their household from here to there. The app allows you to seek out moving companies on a state-by-state basis, see which movers operate in multiple states (if necessary), and read reviews (from users as well as consumer reports) that will help you to find the vendor that best suits your needs. Even better, a simple tap can net you quotes from the companies you?re considering. Having a checklist on your phone that helps you to stay organized during your move is a great boon, but finding the perfect moving company to take the contents of your household to your new home is practically priceless.

Source: http://technotropis.com/my-move-better-than-competitive-apps/

huntsville al channel 2 news adrienne bailon yelp stock honda classic news channel 5 nashville weather

Humanity's last invention and our uncertain future - Research ...

With so much at stake, we need to do a better job of understanding the risks of potentially catastrophic technologies."

---

?Huw Price

In 1965, Irving John ?Jack? Good sat down and wrote a paper for New Scientist called Speculations concerning the first ultra-intelligent machine. Good, a Cambridge-trained mathematician, Bletchley Park cryptographer, pioneering computer scientist and friend of Alan Turing, wrote that in the near future an ultra-intelligent machine would be built.

This machine, he continued, would be the ?last invention? that mankind will ever make, leading to an ?intelligence explosion? ? an exponential increase in self-generating machine intelligence. For Good, who went on to advise Stanley Kubrick on 2001: a Space Odyssey, the ?survival of man? depended on the construction of this ultra-intelligent machine.

Fast forward almost 50 years and the world looks very different. Computers dominate modern life across vast swathes of the planet, underpinning key functions of global governance and economics, increasing precision in healthcare, monitoring identity and facilitating most forms of communication ? from the paradigm shifting to the most personally intimate. Technology advances for the most part unchecked and unabated.

While few would deny the benefits humanity has received as a result of its engineering genius ? from longer life to global networks ? some are starting to question whether the acceleration of human technologies will result in the survival of man, as Good contended, or if in fact this is the very thing that will end us.

Now a philosopher, a scientist and a software engineer have come together to propose a new centre at Cambridge, the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER), to address these cases ? from developments in bio and nanotechnology to extreme climate change and even artificial intelligence ? in which technology might pose ?extinction-level? risks to our species.

?At some point, this century or next, we may well be facing one of the major shifts in human history ? perhaps even cosmic history ? when intelligence escapes the constraints of biology,? says Huw Price, the Bertrand Russell Professor of Philosophy and one of CSER?s three founders, speaking about the possible impact of Good?s ultra-intelligent machine, or artificial general intelligence (AGI) as we call it today.

?Nature didn?t anticipate us, and we in our turn shouldn?t take AGI for granted. We need to take seriously the possibility that there might be a ?Pandora?s box? moment with AGI that, if missed, could be disastrous. I don?t mean that we can predict this with certainty, no one is presently in a position to do that, but that?s the point! With so much at stake, we need to do a better job of understanding the risks of potentially catastrophic technologies.?

Price?s interest in AGI risk stems from a chance meeting with Jaan Tallinn, a former software engineer who was one of the founders of Skype, which ? like Google and Facebook ? has become a digital cornerstone. In recent years Tallinn has become an evangelist for the serious discussion of ethical and safety aspects of AI and AGI, and Price was intrigued by his view:

?He (Tallinn) said that in his pessimistic moments he felt he was more likely to die from an AI accident than from cancer or heart disease. I was intrigued that someone with his feet so firmly on the ground in the industry should see it as such a serious issue, and impressed by his commitment to do something about it.?

We Homo sapiens have, for Tallinn, become optimised ? in the sense that we now control the future, having grabbed the reins from 4 billion years of natural evolution. Our technological progress has by and large replaced evolution as the dominant, future-shaping force.

We move faster, live longer, and can destroy at a ferocious rate. And we use our technology to do it. AI geared to specific tasks continues its rapid development ? from financial trading to face recognition ? and the power of computing chips doubles every two years in accordance with Moore?s law, as set out by Intel founder Gordon Moore in the same year that Good predicted the ultra-intelligence machine.

We know that ?dumb matter? can think, say Price and Tallinn ? biology has already solved that problem, in a container the size of our skulls. That?s a fixed cap to the level of complexity required, and it seems irresponsible, they argue, to assume that the rising curve of computing complexity will not reach and even exceed that bar in the future. The critical point might come if computers reach human capacity to write computer programs and develop their own technologies. This, Good?s ?intelligence explosion?, might be the point we are left behind ? permanently ? to a future-defining AGI.

?Think how it might be to compete for resources with the dominant species,? says Price. ?Take gorillas for example ? the reason they are going extinct is not because humans are actively hostile towards them, but because we control the environments in ways that suit us, but are detrimental to their survival.?

Price and Tallinn stress the uncertainties in these projections, but point out that this simply underlines the need to know more about AGI and other kinds of technological risk.

In Cambridge, Price introduced Tallinn to Lord Martin Rees, former Master of Trinity College and President of the Royal Society, whose own work on catastrophic risk includes his?books Our Final Century (2003) and From Here to Infinity: Scientific Horizons (2011). The three formed an alliance, aiming to establish CSER.

With luminaries in science, policy, law, risk and computing from across the University and beyond signing up to become advisors, the project is, even in its earliest days, gathering momentum. ?The basic philosophy is that we should be taking seriously the fact that we are getting to the point where our technologies have the potential to threaten our own existence ? in a way that they simply haven?t up to now, in human history,? says Price. ?We should be investing a little of our intellectual resources in shifting some probability from bad outcomes to good ones.?

Price acknowledges that some of these ideas can seem far-fetched, the stuff of science fiction, but insists that that?s part of the point. ?To the extent ? presently poorly understood ? that there are significant risks, it?s an additional danger if they remain for these sociological reasons outside the scope of ?serious? investigation.?

?What better place than Cambridge, one of the oldest of the world?s great scientific universities, to give these issues the prominence and academic respectability that they deserve?? he adds. ?We hope that CSER will be a place where world class minds from a variety of disciplines can collaborate in exploring technological risks in both the near and far future.

?Cambridge recently celebrated its 800th anniversary ? our aim is to reduce the risk that we might not be around to celebrate its millennium.?

For more information on the Centre for Study of Existential Risk, visit http://cser.org/ ??

For more information on this story, please contact Fred Lewsey (fred.lewsey@admin.cam.ac.uk) at the University of Cambridge Office of External Affairs and Communications.

---

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence. If you use this content on your site please link back to this page.

---

In order to use our commenting system you have to accept cookies.

Source: http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/humanitys-last-invention-and-our-uncertain-future/

the lorax lorax fisker karma super tuesday states shepard fairey is snooki pregnant snooki pregnant

Pass road test video help, car & motorcycle road secrets, DMV ...

You are here: Home / College University / Pass road test video help, car & motorcycle road secrets, DMV testing exam, g2 m2 exit license guide

Pass my road test video! How to pass your driving test. Passing your driver or motorcycle G2 road test study guide.

Hey New Driver! Getting ready to take your road test to get your license? Nervous? Oh yeah, we understand that feeling. Your hands are clammy, your heart is pounding and you?re crossing your fingers that you don?t pass out from fright when the tester climbs into your car and tells you to start your engine. Guess what? You have every right to be nervous because almost 50% of new drivers fail their first road test. Yep, I said HALF of the new drivers fail. What if I told you that I could help you pass your road test on the very first try, better than learning from a handbook or a driver?s ed class? Would you be interested? Of course you would! You?re no dummy and you WANT to pass that test the VERY FIRST TIME!

How Important Is It For You And Your Family To Stay Alive On The Road? I Will Teach You Common Mistakes That Most Motorists Make, How To Avoid Them And How To Protect Yourself And Your Family With Complete Risk Management Scenarios. Best Of All, Take A Virtual Walk Right Through The Road Test For Both Cars And Motorcycles! This Video Is Your Interactive Driving Instructor And Covers the FULL Scope Of What Will Happen During Your Road Test, As Well As Teach You How To Be An All-Round Confident Driver! GET READY TO PASS Is Designed To Make You Pass Your Test AND Stay Safe! You CAN DO THIS!

We?ve combined a team of experts totaling well over 20 years of experience among them to put together THEE MOST comprehensive driver educatoin program for YOU on the?

Read more?

Posted by Dan on Saturday, November 24, 2012 at 10:34 am?
Filed under College University, Financial Aid, Home Schooling, Languages, Online Education, Psychology, Science, Vocational Trade Schools ? Tagged with drivers education, drivers license videos, Driving Test, exit exam, g2 exit, get my license, getreadytopass.com, nysdmv, road test, roadtestsecrets.net

Source: http://www.theyellowads.com/reference_education/pass-road-test-video-help-car-motorcycle-road-secrets-dmv-testing-exam-g2-m2-exit-license-guide

mary poppins john derbyshire kinkade thomas kinkade paintings easter bunny navy jet crash virginia beach isiah thomas