Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, who were rumored to have split after Amber went back to dating chicks, appear to still be dating after being spotted holding hands at a Rolling Stone show. The rumored couple attended the show at Hollywood?s Echoplex over the weekend, with the actor leading his girlfriend around backstage at the ...
(Reuters) - Authorities were searching on Sunday for a man suspected of stabbing an 8-year-old girl to death at a home in a northern California suburb, officials said.
Residents of Valley Springs, California, 60 miles southeast of Sacramento, were warned to stay inside their homes with their doors locked as investigators fanned out across the region, hunting for the girl's attacker.
Detectives interviewed potential witnesses, family members and collected fingerprints and possible DNA from the home where the girl was killed on Saturday, but had no specific suspect, the Calaveras County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
The sheriff's office identified the girl as Leila Fowler, 8, and said it expected an autopsy to be performed on Monday. They had previously said she was 9 years old.
Authorities said the girl's 12-year-old brother encountered an intruder in his home on Saturday afternoon and the suspect fled, according to KCRA, a local television news station. The boy then went to check on his sister and found her stabbed. She was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, KCRA reported.
The sheriff said the suspect was considered armed and dangerous and described him as a "muscular" white or Hispanic man, about 6-feet (1.83-meters) tall with longish gray hair. They said he was last seen wearing a long-sleeved black shirt and blue pants.
The sheriff's office said it had notified the local school district about the case and planned to have an increased presence at the schools and bus stops on Monday.
(Reporting by Chris Francescani and David Bailey; Editing by Barbara Goldberg, Jackie Frank and Paul Simao)
Sharing examination questions threatens trust in medical professionPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachael Zaleski mcpmedia@elsevier.com 215-239-3658 Elsevier Health Sciences
Experts call for medical leaders to establish guidelines, embed honesty in academic cultures, reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings
Rochester, MN, April 29, 2013 Unethical behavior among physicians-in-training threatens to erode public trust and confidence in the medical profession, say two academic physicians in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Reacting to CNN reports last year about the widespread use of "recalls" and "airplane notes" by radiology and dermatology residents, Gregory W. Ruhnke, MD, MS, MPH, of the Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, and David J. Doukas, MD, of the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, University of Louisville, call on leaders in medical education to establish guidelines and change the culture of medical school and training programs.
Illegal reproduction and transmission of board certification examination questions have received wide public attention recently. In 2010, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) suspended or revoked the certification of 139 physicians found to be disclosing or soliciting examination questions for a board review prep company in New Jersey; the company encouraged physicians to recall questions from memory and convey them to the course director for inclusion in course materials. In early 2012, CNN revealed that doctors training to become dermatologists and radiologists had for years shared exam questions by memorizing them and writing them down after their board certification examinations.
Ruhnke and Doukas say there is a crucial distinction between cheating and guided study, noting that historical test questions are routinely used throughout higher education. They cite the American College of Physicians' Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program, which includes a summary of high-yield information vetted by post-examination residents to choose material likely to appear on future examinations. Some physicians have defended the use of "recalls." Moreover, "the difference between the use of questions reproduced verbatim and a focused study guide based on examinee input lies in the detail and specificity of information transmitted," they say.
The authors review the literature and discuss what drives dishonest behavior. Cheating is surprisingly common among medical students, with estimates ranging widely between five and 88%. Of medical students surveyed, 59% believed that cheating was impossible to eliminate because of its pervasiveness. Perhaps of greatest concern for the public, cheating on examinations by medical students correlates with falsifying information in a patient's medical record.
"Difficult exam content unnecessary for clinical care, the desire to assist friends, and peer behavior are important factors," says Ruhnke. For example, subjects not immediately relevant for clinical care, such as biochemistry and pharmacology, are seen as a "rite of passage." Assignment and test content that medical students view as unnecessary for clinical care makes them more likely to cheat.
The authors consider a number of potential interventions that might reduce the impetus to reproduce questions in verbatim form, such as not reusing test questions and the return of oral examinations, but recognize separate challenges of such solutions. Avoiding the reuse of test questions might threaten the statistical reliability and consistency of passing standards. In addition, harsh punishments are unlikely to be completely effective because their impact on peer behavior is not sufficiently powerful.
The authors urge the American Board of Medical Specialties and the Association of American Medical Colleges to establish guidelines regarding the detail and specificity of information that examinees may ethically disclose, and to be proactive in requiring examinees to acknowledge that reproduction or dissemination of test materials is both illegal and a violation of professional standards.
"Successful certification must demonstrate that physicians are vested with the trust of their peers but also the public. Sponsoring rigorous examinations that cover material critical for patient care will bolster what the profession provides to patients," according to the authors. "The literature suggests that this can best be achieved by embedding academic honesty into institutional cultures. Ultimately, the sanctity of our profession and the faith that patients place in us as physicians demands the highest moral standards."
In an accompanying Editorial, Christine K. Cassel, MD, Eric S. Holmboe, MD, and Lorie B. Slass, MA, of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), Philadelphia, welcome the work of Ruhnke and Doukas as an important "call to action" for academic medicine to actively, and intentionally, strengthen the culture of medical school and training programs to value integrity and to respect the need for examinations to demonstrate competence throughout a professional career.
In its legal actions and information campaign related to the board review prep company transgressions, "ABIM conveyed a clear message to the physician community that ABIM will not tolerate unethical behavior from board candidates, that test takers need to know that this kind of 'brain dumping' is grossly unethical, and that any physician who seeks to compromise the integrity of the ABIM examination process will face swift and serious consequences," explains Cassel.
"The certifying examination is one of the first tests of professionalism for physicians. 'Everyone does it' is never a sufficient answer when faced with an ethical dilemma, and if the profession is to meet its societal obligation to uphold the highest ethical standards, we most certainly cannot accept such an excuse from board certified physicians," she concludes.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Sharing examination questions threatens trust in medical professionPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachael Zaleski mcpmedia@elsevier.com 215-239-3658 Elsevier Health Sciences
Experts call for medical leaders to establish guidelines, embed honesty in academic cultures, reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings
Rochester, MN, April 29, 2013 Unethical behavior among physicians-in-training threatens to erode public trust and confidence in the medical profession, say two academic physicians in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Reacting to CNN reports last year about the widespread use of "recalls" and "airplane notes" by radiology and dermatology residents, Gregory W. Ruhnke, MD, MS, MPH, of the Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, and David J. Doukas, MD, of the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, University of Louisville, call on leaders in medical education to establish guidelines and change the culture of medical school and training programs.
Illegal reproduction and transmission of board certification examination questions have received wide public attention recently. In 2010, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) suspended or revoked the certification of 139 physicians found to be disclosing or soliciting examination questions for a board review prep company in New Jersey; the company encouraged physicians to recall questions from memory and convey them to the course director for inclusion in course materials. In early 2012, CNN revealed that doctors training to become dermatologists and radiologists had for years shared exam questions by memorizing them and writing them down after their board certification examinations.
Ruhnke and Doukas say there is a crucial distinction between cheating and guided study, noting that historical test questions are routinely used throughout higher education. They cite the American College of Physicians' Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program, which includes a summary of high-yield information vetted by post-examination residents to choose material likely to appear on future examinations. Some physicians have defended the use of "recalls." Moreover, "the difference between the use of questions reproduced verbatim and a focused study guide based on examinee input lies in the detail and specificity of information transmitted," they say.
The authors review the literature and discuss what drives dishonest behavior. Cheating is surprisingly common among medical students, with estimates ranging widely between five and 88%. Of medical students surveyed, 59% believed that cheating was impossible to eliminate because of its pervasiveness. Perhaps of greatest concern for the public, cheating on examinations by medical students correlates with falsifying information in a patient's medical record.
"Difficult exam content unnecessary for clinical care, the desire to assist friends, and peer behavior are important factors," says Ruhnke. For example, subjects not immediately relevant for clinical care, such as biochemistry and pharmacology, are seen as a "rite of passage." Assignment and test content that medical students view as unnecessary for clinical care makes them more likely to cheat.
The authors consider a number of potential interventions that might reduce the impetus to reproduce questions in verbatim form, such as not reusing test questions and the return of oral examinations, but recognize separate challenges of such solutions. Avoiding the reuse of test questions might threaten the statistical reliability and consistency of passing standards. In addition, harsh punishments are unlikely to be completely effective because their impact on peer behavior is not sufficiently powerful.
The authors urge the American Board of Medical Specialties and the Association of American Medical Colleges to establish guidelines regarding the detail and specificity of information that examinees may ethically disclose, and to be proactive in requiring examinees to acknowledge that reproduction or dissemination of test materials is both illegal and a violation of professional standards.
"Successful certification must demonstrate that physicians are vested with the trust of their peers but also the public. Sponsoring rigorous examinations that cover material critical for patient care will bolster what the profession provides to patients," according to the authors. "The literature suggests that this can best be achieved by embedding academic honesty into institutional cultures. Ultimately, the sanctity of our profession and the faith that patients place in us as physicians demands the highest moral standards."
In an accompanying Editorial, Christine K. Cassel, MD, Eric S. Holmboe, MD, and Lorie B. Slass, MA, of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), Philadelphia, welcome the work of Ruhnke and Doukas as an important "call to action" for academic medicine to actively, and intentionally, strengthen the culture of medical school and training programs to value integrity and to respect the need for examinations to demonstrate competence throughout a professional career.
In its legal actions and information campaign related to the board review prep company transgressions, "ABIM conveyed a clear message to the physician community that ABIM will not tolerate unethical behavior from board candidates, that test takers need to know that this kind of 'brain dumping' is grossly unethical, and that any physician who seeks to compromise the integrity of the ABIM examination process will face swift and serious consequences," explains Cassel.
"The certifying examination is one of the first tests of professionalism for physicians. 'Everyone does it' is never a sufficient answer when faced with an ethical dilemma, and if the profession is to meet its societal obligation to uphold the highest ethical standards, we most certainly cannot accept such an excuse from board certified physicians," she concludes.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Square's point-of-sale technology and iPad-powered register, Square Register is getting a big update today targeted at better serving restaurants. New features in the release include custom order modifiers and customizable kitchen tickets that allow restaurants to make taking orders and serving food more efficient.
The promise of OpenMobile's Application Compatibility Layer is inticing: seamlessly run Android apps on another operating system as if it was meant to be there. Unfortunately for fans of Palm's last hurrah, the project's webOS port died with the HP Touchpad. That won't stop dedicated fans, however -- Phoenix International Communications plans to resurrect webOS ACL. Taking the project to Kickstarter, the team is showing an early build on an HP Touchpad, seamlessly running Android apps in cards alongside native webOS applications. Phoenix hopes that a functional ACL will reduce Touchpad owner's reliance on dual-booting Android, giving them the freedom to enjoy webOS without sacrificing functionality. The team is promising a relatively short development time, thanks to OpenMobile's early work, and hopes to deliver a consumer ready build in July. But first the Kickstarter campaign will need to meet its $35,000 goal. Interested in pitching in? Check out the Kickstarter link at the source.
ROME (Reuters) - Two Italian police officers were shot and wounded on Sunday outside the prime minister's office in Rome just as new premier Enrico Letta's government was being sworn in just a kilometer (mile) away.
It was not clear whether the attack by a man police said was unemployed was linked to the launch of the new government at a time of deep political divisions and social tensions exacerbated by a long slump in the euro zone's third largest economy.
Newly installed Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said the attack appeared to be an "isolated act" that did not suggest any wider security threat. But there were immediate calls for politicians to try to calm a volatile public mood.
"All political forces have to work together to lower the level of tension that the economic, social and institutional climate has already created," said center-left parliamentarian Emanuele Fiano.
Letta, 46, the moderate deputy head of the center-left Democratic Party (PD), on Saturday ended two months of political stalemate after February's inconclusive election when he united former political rivals in a broad coalition government.
The mix of center-right and center-left politicians and unaffiliated technocrats was largely welcomed in Italy's mainstream press on Sunday, especially for the record of seven female ministers and the relatively young average age.
However, the political risks that Letta faces were spelled out on Sunday by a close ally of center-right leader Silvio Berlusconi who is a core stakeholder in the government.
Renato Brunetta, lower house leader of Berlusconi's People of Freedom party (PDL), said the government would fall unless Letta promised in his maiden speech to swiftly abolish an unpopular housing tax and repay the 2012 levy to taxpayers.
Letta is expected to set out his government's plans in parliament on Monday and will then need to win a vote of confidence in both houses to be fully empowered.
"If the prime minister doesn't make this precise commitment we will not give him our support in the vote of confidence," Brunetta told daily Il Messaggero.
Brunetta, who was himself a candidate for the post of economy minister, said that during negotiations for the formation of the government Letta had "given his word" on the abolition and repayment of the tax, which would leave an 8-billion-euro hole in public accounts.
New Economy Minister Fabrizio Saccomanni, formerly deputy governor of Italy's central bank, said he wanted to cut public spending and reduce taxes to revive an economy languishing in a recession set to be the longest since World War Two.
He made no reference to the housing tax. Attention on Sunday, however was focused on the dramatic shooting outside Palazzo Chigi, the prime minister's official residence.
"SHOOT ME"
Police identified the gunman as Luigi Preiti, in his forties, from Calabria, the southern region which has long suffered from high unemployment and organized crime.
Having fired several shots at the two police on duty outside the prime minister's office, he shouted "shoot me, shoot me" to other police officers nearby, police said.
One of the two officers was shot in the neck and was in a serious though not life-threatening condition, while the other was shot in the leg and less seriously hurt.
In a surreal scene, outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti received the official trumpet salute in the courtyard of the renaissance Chigi palace before walking across the cordoned-off square past police crouching over the scene of the shooting.
Preiti was unemployed and separated from his wife, but had never suffered from mental illness, his brother told Italian news agency ANSA.
In the election Italians vented their anger at a discredited political class by giving 25 percent of votes to the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement led by former Comic Beppe Grillo.
Since the vote, divisions have deepened with millions of center-left voters furious to see the PD split and then agree to govern with arch-enemy Berlusconi after its leadership, including Letta, had repeatedly ruled out the possibility.
PD parliamentarians have been subjected to abuse in the streets and Grillo rubs salt in the party's wounds with daily comments on his blog decrying what he sees as an indecent alliance to preserve the power and privileges of the status quo.
Berlusconi, who had been widely written off after being forced from office in 2011 at the height of a debt crisis, has emerged as the big winner. He is now a vital part of the ruling majority and has placed several ministers in the cabinet, including the PDL's national secretary Alfano as deputy prime minister and interior minister.
Recent polls give him a lead of between five and eight percentage points over the center-left, and many commentators believe he may bring down the government as soon as he is fully confident of winning an election.
(Reporting by Gavin Jones, James Mackenzi, Antonella Cinelli, Roberto Landucci; Editing by James Mackenzie and Mark Heinrich)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Jordan Zimmermann watched Gio Gonzalez pitch a gem for Washington, and just followed his lead.
Zimmermann was terrific in his first career shutout and the Nationals limited the Cincinnati Reds to one hit for the second straight game in a 1-0 victory on Friday night.
Zimmermann (4-1) struck out four and walked one while improving to 3-0 with a 1.36 ERA in five career games against Cincinnati. The right-hander needed only 91 pitches to record his second complete game of the season and No. 3 for his career.
Washington won Thursday night when Gonzalez pitched eight crisp innings in an 8-1 victory. Joey Votto homered for Cincinnati's only hit in the series opener.
"They were swinging early just like tonight," Zimmermann said. "I just saw that, and I figured if I did the same, I'd get the same results."
It was the first time the Reds managed just one hit in consecutive games since July 5-6, 1900, against Brooklyn, according to research by the Elias Sports Bureau that the team provided. The Houston Astros from Sept. 14-15, 2008, were the previous major league team with such a streak.
"My guys, if they attack hitters like the last two days, it's going to be a problem," Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. "I don't care, good-hitting team, bad-hitting team."
Xavier Paul led off the third with a single to center for Cincinnati's only hit off Zimmermann. The other baserunners came when Todd Frazier reached on an error by first baseman Adam LaRoche in the fifth and Corky Miller walked in the eighth.
"We had quite a few pitches to hit," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "We just didn't find any holes. We've just got to keep swinging. We didn't do a bunch of striking out, we put the ball in play. He was good tonight, but we didn't find any holes."
Johnson said Zimmermann earned the right to finish the game.
"Low pitch count, really went after them," Johnson said. "Never had any qualms at all about letting him (finish)."
Zimmermann admitted that he glanced at the scoreboard to see how many pitches he had thrown. He noticed he was at 60 after six, so he thought he could go on.
"I don't care about strikeouts. I don't want to walk anyone," Zimmermann said.
Homer Bailey (1-2) was nearly as good as Zimmermann, pitching seven crisp innings for the Reds. He allowed one run and six hits, struck out six and walked none.
The Nationals' only run came in the third. Bryce Harper tripled to right and scored on Jayson Werth's single to right.
Harper was able to enjoy two excellent pitching performances.
"It was incredible. That's what we expect from our pitchers. We're used to that," Harper said.
Zimmermann improved to 8-0 with a 3.02 ERA in his last 14 regular-season home starts.
The Reds have scored just four runs in the last four games.
"Things go in streaks and sometimes there's no explaining why," Baker said. "We went through this last year. There was a streak when you couldn't buy a run and another streak when you get all the runs you need or want, or even more than you want. Right now we're in that can't buy a run phase."
NOTES: The Reds placed LHP Manny Parra on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left pectoral muscle and activated LHP Sean Marshall from the DL. ... LaRoche was hitless in three at-bats. He's mired in an 0-for-19 slump. ... Baker said RHP Johnny Cueto, on the disabled list with a pulled muscle in his back, is not close to returning. ... Johnson said he hopes 3B Ryan Zimmerman, on the DL with a hamstring strain, will soon be able to go on a rehab assignment. He could be reactivated next weekend. Rookie Anthony Rendon, who was called up to play third while Zimmerman was out, was on the bench for the second straight games. He's just 2 for 15. ... Cincinnati OF Shin-Soo Choo did not reach base for the first time this season after reaching safely in his first 22 games with the Reds.
A United Airlines jet departs in view of the air traffic control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Tuesday, April 23, 2013, in Seattle. A day after flight delays plagued much of the U.S., air travel is smoother Tuesday. But the government is warning passengers that the situation can change by the hour as it runs the nation's air traffic control system with a smaller staff. Airlines and members of Congress urged the Federal Aviation Administration to find other ways to make mandatory budget cuts besides furloughing controllers. While delays haven't been terrible yet, the airlines are worried about the long-term impact late flights will have on their budgets and on fliers. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
A United Airlines jet departs in view of the air traffic control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Tuesday, April 23, 2013, in Seattle. A day after flight delays plagued much of the U.S., air travel is smoother Tuesday. But the government is warning passengers that the situation can change by the hour as it runs the nation's air traffic control system with a smaller staff. Airlines and members of Congress urged the Federal Aviation Administration to find other ways to make mandatory budget cuts besides furloughing controllers. While delays haven't been terrible yet, the airlines are worried about the long-term impact late flights will have on their budgets and on fliers. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
The control tower stands in the background as a passenger lays on the pavement outside the international terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson airport, Friday, April 26, 2013, in Atlanta. Congress easily approved legislation Friday ending furloughs of air traffic controllers that have delayed hundreds of flights daily, infuriating travelers and causing political headaches for lawmakers.(AP Photo/David Goldman)
A passenger sits at right in the international terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson airport, Friday, April 26, 2013, in Atlanta. Congress easily approved legislation Friday ending furloughs of air traffic controllers that have delayed hundreds of flights daily, infuriating travelers and causing political headaches for lawmakers.(AP Photo/David Goldman)
The control tower stands in the background as a passenger paces while on the phone outside the international terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson airport, Friday, April 26, 2013, in Atlanta. Congress easily approved legislation Friday ending furloughs of air traffic controllers that have delayed hundreds of flights daily, infuriating travelers and causing political headaches for lawmakers.(AP Photo/David Goldman)
NEW YORK (AP) ? The Federal Aviation Administration said that the U.S. air traffic system will resume normal operations by Sunday evening after lawmakers rushed a bill through Congress allowing the agency to withdraw furloughs of air traffic controllers and other workers.
The FAA said Saturday that it has suspended all employee furloughs and that traffic facilities will begin returning to regular staffing levels over the next 24 hours. The furloughs were fallout from the $85 billion in automatic-across-the-board spending cuts this spring. The bill, passed on Friday, allows the FAA to move as much as $253 million within its budget to areas that will allow it to prevent reduced operations and staffing.
The furloughs started to hit air traffic controllers this past week, causing flight delays that left thousands of travelers frustrated and furious. Planes were forced to take off and land less frequently, so as not to overload the remaining controllers on duty.
The FAA had no choice but to cut $637 million as its share of $85 billion in automatic, government-wide spending cuts that must be achieved by the end of the federal budget year on Sept. 30.
Flight delays piled up across the country Sunday and Monday of this week as the FAA kept planes on the ground because there weren't enough controllers to monitor busy air corridors. Cascading delays held up flights at some of nation's busiest airports, including New York, Baltimore and Washington. Delta Air Lines canceled about 90 flights Monday because of worries about delays. Just about every passenger was rebooked on another Delta flight within a couple of hours. Air travel was smoother Tuesday.
Things could have been worse. A lot of people who had planned to fly this week changed their plans when they heard that air travel might be difficult, according to longtime aviation consultant Daniel Kasper of Compass Lexicon.
"Essentially what happened from an airline's perspective is that people who were going to travel didn't travel," he said. But canceled flights likely led to lost revenue for airlines. Even if they didn't have to incur some of costs of fueling up planes and getting them off the ground, crews that were already scheduled to work still had to paid.
"One week isn't going to kill them, but had it gone on much longer, it would have been a significant hit on their revenues and profits," Kasper said.
It's also a toll on travelers. At New York's LaGuardia airport on Friday, traveler Roger Bentley said "getting on a flight and being delayed really puts people on the spot. It puts people on the edge and makes people edgy and that's not something I want."
The challenges this week probably cost airlines less than disruptions from a typical winter storm, said John F. Thomas, an aviation consultant with L.E.K. Consulting.
"I think the fact that it got resolved this week has minimized the cost as it was more the inconvenience factor," Thomas said.
The budget cuts at the FAA were required under a law enacted two years ago as the government was approaching its debt limit. Democrats were in favor of raising the debt limit without strings attached so as not to provoke an economic crisis, but Republicans insisted on substantial cuts in exchange. The compromise was to require that every government "program, project and activity" ? with some exceptions, like Medicare ? be cut equally.
The FAA had reduced the work schedules of nearly all of its 47,000 employees by one day every two weeks, including 15,000 air traffic controllers, as well as thousands of air traffic supervisors, managers and technicians who keep airport towers and radar facility equipment working. That amounted to a 10 percent cut in hours and pay.
Republicans accused the Obama administration of forcing the furloughs to raise public pressure on Congress to roll back the budget cuts. Critics of the FAA insist the agency could have reduce its budget in other ways that would not have inconvenience travelers including diverting money from other accounts, such as those devoted to research, commercial space transportation and modernization of the air traffic control computers.
President Barack Obama chided lawmakers Saturday over their fix for widespread flight delays, deeming it an irresponsible way to govern, dubbing it a "Band-Aid" and a quick fix, rather than a lasting solution to the spending cuts known as the sequester.
"Republicans claimed victory when the sequester first took effect, and now they've decided it was a bad idea all along," Obama said, singling out the GOP even though the bill passed with overwhelming Democratic support in both chambers.
He scolded lawmakers for helping the Federal Aviation Administration while doing nothing to replace other cuts that he said harm federal employees, unemployed workers and preschoolers in Head Start.
All Critics (88) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (81) | Rotten (7)
The film and its talking head participants paint the picture in both broad strokes and fine detail.
Whatever one's political stripe regarding Israel, it's hard to dispute the impressions and perspective of the film's six eyewitnesses.
The level of candor here may not satisfy hard-liners of either stripe, but it can help viewers begin to formulate new questions about the philosophical, strategic and moral challenges of conflict, in particular "wars on terror."
Ultimately the movie feels evasive, and its flashy, digitally animated re-creations of military surveillance footage unpleasantly evoke the Call of Duty video games.
It offers startlingly honest insight into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from some of those who called the shots.
As a political testament, the result is revealing and important.
[Moreh] asks just the right questions, never prodding these understandably private men too far but getting what he needs.
A riveting but depressing history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
It's a depressing movie, yet there is encouragement to be found in the manifest decency and reasonableness of these six honest, articulate men ...
The former heads of Israel's military anti-terrorism agency Shin Bet break their silence in this unnerving, eye-opening documentary.
The film, though based on the exploits of Shin Bet, gives us reason to think about the drones that take out more than just terrorists.
Makes for truly bracing viewing.
A fascinating film offering a startling look inside one of the most tightlipped intelligence agencies on the planet, and providing powerful resonances with the US and UK's "war on terror".
A compelling overview of a modern security agency - bred in a moral grey area, organising state-sanctioned violence, but uncertain of the strength of its political safety net.
While memorable in sometimes unexpected ways (1980 head Avraham Shalom's long unwashed nails), there is always the nagging feeling that any revelations are being pushed or sold a little too hard.
Dror Moreh's Oscar-nominated documentary is riveting, haunting and depressing in equal measure, offering a sobering assessment of the Israel-Palestine conflict from a unique perspective.
[T]he Oscar-nominated documentary in which the six living former heads of Shin Bet, the ultrasecretive Israeli domestic security agency, talk about their antiterrorism work...
Although The Gatekeepers may not be quite theatrical nor dramatic enough for it to be highly recommended as a cinematic experience, this does feel like a film that really should be seen.
Many secrets are revealed and examined in director Dror Moreh's mind-blowingly fine film. If I have a quibble, it's that he never reveals the most tantalizing secret of all: how the hell he pulled it off.
[An] absorbing documentary, which charts the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the Six Day War to the presentday.
Insightful, revelatory and profound, Moreh's Oscar-nominated documentary combines riveting interviews, archive footage and - yes - state-of-the-art photographic effects to offer a unique perspective on the Israel-Palestine issue.
Both journalistic coup and unsettling confirmation of the idea that 'you can't make peace using military means.'
Much like Errol Morris' "The Fog of War," Dror Moreh's film is a sobering inside look inside history, at mistakes made and opportunities missed.
Moreh employs a direct interviewing style, reminiscent of Errol Morris' work, to get the men to talk about their days leading Shin Bet.
Moreh gets some startling confessions and insights from each man but also misses the opportunity to truly challenge his subjects on their regard for democracy, basic human rights and their own accountability.
LONDON (Reuters) - Chinese scientists have confirmed for the first time that a new strain of bird flu that has killed 23 people in China has been transmitted to humans from chickens.
In a study published online in the Lancet medical journal, the scientists echoed previous statements from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Chinese officials that there is as yet no evidence of human-to-human transmission of this virus.
The H7N9 strain has infected 109 people in China since it was first detected in March. The WHO warned on Wednesday that this strain is "one of the most lethal" flu viruses and is transmitted more easily than the H5N1 strain of bird flu, which has killed hundreds around the world since 2003.
Kwok-Yung Yuen of the University of Hong Kong, who led the study, said its findings that chickens in poultry markets were a source of human infections meant that controlling the disease in these places and in these birds should be a priority.
"Aggressive intervention to block further animal-to-person transmission in live poultry markets, as has previously been done in Hong Kong, should be considered," he told the Lancet.
He added that temporary closure of live bird markets and comprehensive programs of surveillance, culling, biosecurity and segregation of different poultry species may also be needed "to halt evolution of the virus into a pandemic agent".
"The evidence ... suggests it is a pure poultry-to-human transmission and that controlling (infections in people) will therefore depend on controlling the epidemic in poultry," he said.
Yuen's findings do not mean all cases of human H7N9 infection come from chickens, or from poultry, but they do confirm chickens as one source.
The WHO has said 40 percent of people infected with H7N9 appear to have had no contact with poultry.
Other so called "reservoirs" of the flu virus may be circulating in other types of birds or mammals, and investigators in China are working hard to try find out.
CASE STUDIES
Yuen's team conducted detailed cases studies on four H7N9 flu patients from Zhejiang, an eastern coastal province south of the commercial hub Shanghai.
All four patients had been exposed to poultry, either through their work or through visiting poultry markets.
To find out whether there was transmission of the virus from poultry to humans, the researchers took swabs from 20 chickens, four quails, five pigeons and 57 ducks, all from six markets likely to have been visited by the patients.
Two of the five pigeons and four of the 20 chickens tested positive for H7N9, but none of the ducks or quails.
After analyzing the genetic makeup of H7N9 virus in a sample isolated from one patient and comparing it to a sample from one of the chickens, the researchers said similarities suggest the virus is being transmitted directly to humans from poultry.
The team also checked more than 300 people who had had close contact with the four patients and found that none showed any symptoms of H7N9 infection within 14 days from the beginning of surveillance. This suggests the virus is not currently able to transmit between people, they said.
But they noted that previous genetic analysis shows H7N9 has already acquired some gene mutations that adapt it specifically to being more able to infect mammals - raising the risk that it could one day cause a human pandemic.
"Further adaptation of the virus could lead to infections with less severe symptoms and more efficient person-to-person transmission," the scientists wrote.
Suppose you went to cash during the 2008 market meltdown.
Or you just inherited a bundle from your rich uncle.
What now?
Should you put the whole kitty back to work in stocks and stock funds all at once? Or should you ease back in a little at a time?
The conventional wisdom says that dollar-cost averaging ? which is the Wall Street name for investing fixed amounts at set intervals ? is better than lump-sum investing.
But your results will depend on how the market behaves during your investment period.
Dollar-cost averaging tends to work best in periods that include declines from the starting point.
Bear in mind that this strategy choice between lump sum and dollar-cost averaging basically applies to mutual funds or other portfolios over time. Investors using a proven individual stock strategy should base trades on the rules of their investment blueprint.
At its best, dollar-cost averaging has powerful benefits. One is that it lowers your average cost. Your fixed investment buys more shares when prices are lower and fewer shares when prices are higher.
Another benefit is that dollar-cost averaging provides a routine that keeps you invested. That's what investors do when they invest a percentage of their paycheck each month in a 401(k) plan.
A third benefit is it prevents novices from trying to time the market.
"Investors tend to lag," said T. Rowe Price senior financial planner Judith Ward. "Once they get out, they wait for things to get better, so they miss a lot of the rebound."
Volatile Market
Sam Stovall, Standard & Poor's chief equity strategist, looked at how the S&P 500 fared over various stretches of the tumultuous market after 2000.
Bottom line: Dollar-cost averaging outperformed if an investor started at or near a market high. Lump-sum investing outperformed off lows.
A lump-sum tack benefits from price gains off a trough. It has a low price that dollar-cost averaging can't beat. It also benefits from owning a lot of dividend-paying stocks from the get-go.
And dollar-cost averaging diversifies your investments over time. If you start near a market high, with dollar-cost averaging you lose less in the ensuing decline.
"If you lose less, you have to make up less to get back to break-even," Stovall said.
When you lose 20%, you need a 25% gain to recoup.
When you lose 40%, you need a 67% rally to break even.
"Also, dollar-cost averaging's psychological benefit is often critical," Stovall said. That's because many investors are choosing between it and staying out of the market, not a lump-sum option.
"Dollar-cost averaging feels safer, so it gets people to invest ? which is good," Ward said.
Which approach should investors use in our current market?
Odds are the market will pull back 5% or more some time this year, Stovall says, since that's happened every year since World War II. That means we're probably near a short-term high.
"So if you're trying to decide how to invest a large amount at this point, chances are dollar-cost averaging will be a better way to go," Stovall said.
You've had a day to renew your membership, book plane tickets and beg, borrow or steal $1,600 from your neighbors. Now it's time to sit on the WWDC homepage and find out if you'll actually be able to attend Apple's annual software shindig. The tickets go on sale in just an hour, so here's a friendly heads-up that you should get a cup of coffee, charge that battery pack and practice hitting F5, just in case.
This cover image released by People shows actress Gwyneth Paltrow on the cover of a special double issue. The 40-year-old actress tops the magazine's annual list of the "World's Most Beautiful," announced Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Paltrow stars in the upcoming film, "Iron Man 3," out on May 3. The issue is available on newsstands on Friday, April 26. (AP Photo/People Magazine)
This cover image released by People shows actress Gwyneth Paltrow on the cover of a special double issue. The 40-year-old actress tops the magazine's annual list of the "World's Most Beautiful," announced Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Paltrow stars in the upcoming film, "Iron Man 3," out on May 3. The issue is available on newsstands on Friday, April 26. (AP Photo/People Magazine)
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Gwyneth Paltrow says she's thrilled to be picked by People magazine as "World's Most Beautiful Woman" for 2013 but it's "obviously not true."
Paltrow questioned her own selection as she walked the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere of "Iron Man 3" Wednesday night.
"It's funny, these things, because it's like obviously not true. But it's very sweet to be named that," Paltrow told The Associated Press. "Because I mean you can't say that, you know! But it's been wonderful. It's been very wonderful. And as my friend said, it's so nice that someone who has kids and is a mom and is not like 21 is named that. It's really an honor."
Paltrow said her two children weren't aware of the news in this week's edition of the magazine, but she'd been getting plenty of congratulatory emails from friends and family.
The 40-year-old actress stars as Pepper Potts, Tony Stark's love interest and assistant-turned-business partner in the "Iron Man" trilogy. Her co-stars in "Iron Man 3" praised People's proclamation.
"Completely justified. Completely justified. She's gorgeous," said Guy Pearce.
"Let me tell you: She is as gracious and beautiful inside as she is outside. She's got a good heart. She's got a good heart. A lovely girl," said Ben Kingsley.
Apr. 24, 2013 ? The stem cell transplant regimen that was commonly used in the United States to treat advanced neuroblastoma in children appears to be more toxic than the equally effective regimen employed in Europe and Egypt, according to a new study to be presented at the 26th annual meeting of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology Oncology in Miami April 24-27. The U.S. regimen was associated with more acute toxicity to the kidneys and liver.
This and other research informed the recent decision of the Children's Oncology Group (COG) to switch to the busulfan-based regimen used for years in Europe and Egypt, said senior author Leslie E. Lehmann, MD, clinical director of pediatric stem cell transplantation at Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center (DF/CHCC) in Boston.
Both approaches to high-risk neuroblastoma employ high doses of chemotherapy to eradicate cancer cells followed by infusion of the patient's previously collected stem cells to allow the patient to recover more quickly and safely. Since 2007, physicians at DF/CHCC and others in the Children's Oncology Group had been using a combination of high-dose carboplatin, etoposide, and melphalan to prepare patients for transplant, said Lehmann. European centers have preferred busulfan and melphalan over the platinum-based regimen.
"We have had a long-standing collaboration with Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt in Cairo, which is under the leadership of senior author Dr. Alaa Elhaddad," Lehmann said. "We decided to compare the toxicities in patients who received care that was very similar except for the drugs used in the preparative regimen.
"We found there was no difference in survival, but our regimen was associated with more liver and kidney toxicity and more bloodstream infections," she noted. "This was very useful information as COG contemplated switching to the European approach."
In addition to the idea of using toxicity data to choose between approaches of similar efficacy, Lehmann noted, "This study demonstrates you can have true collaboration between transplant centers located in very different parts of the world."
First author of the study is Yasser Elborai, MD, of the Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt.
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 Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, via Newswise. The original article was written by Richard Saltus.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: 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.
Environmental activists are turning up the heat on President Obama as he faces what could be the trickiest decision of his second term: whether or not to approve the controversial proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which could reach his desk this summer.
The project, which would transport oil from the tar sands of Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico, promises jobs and energy. But critics say it will ravage the environment and send oil overseas.
?We put him in the White House because we thought he was the best chance of really making progress on the issue of climate,? the Sierrra Club?s Courtney Hight told ?Power Players.?
?He?s strongly said that he wants to do something?and this is one of his best opportunities to actually follow through,? she said.
Hight is no ordinary environmentalist. She was one of the first foot soldiers for Obama in New Hampshire in 2007 and later led his campaign?s outreach to youth voters in swing-state Florida.
In 2008, she joined the administration as a member of the president?s Council on Environmental Quality, but later quit her post disillusioned by what she saw as Obama?s weak commitment to cleaning up the earth.
?I worked for the president because I believed that he would change the way Washington fundamentally worked,? Hight said. ?It?s still important to me, and I think part of governing is that you need people to push.?
And push she has. Hight has helped to mobilized hundreds of young people to boycott the pipeline in Washington. During one protest, she was arrested in front of the White House fence.
With Obama no longer under pressure of re-election, it?s unclear what leverage Hight and fellow activists may have. Polls show a strong majority of Americans favor of approving the pipeline. It?s also backed by labor unions and business groups.
?It?s not just about denying this pipeline,? Hight said. ?It?s about, you know, making good on his investment or his promise to invest in clean energy and put that money into that, into clean energy opportunities verses into oil.?
The State Department, which is reviewing the pipeline plan, has released a favorable environmental review. However, the Environmental Protection Agency this week raised objections over the potential for harmful impacts.
What does Hight predict President Obama will do, and what are the potential consequences of his decision? Check out this episode of ?Power Players.?
ABC's Eric Wray, Alexandra Dukakis, Freda Kahen Kashi, Dick Norling, and Shari Thomas contributed to this episode.
All Critics (46) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (2)
Canadian writer-director Kim Nguyen spent nearly a decade researching this docudrama about child soldiers in Africa, and the film feels as authoritative as a first-hand account.
A haunting take on unspeakably grim subject matter, shot on location in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
A powerful and upsetting portrait of a young girl compelled into unimaginably horrific circumstances.
Nguyen, astonishingly, manages to wring something vaguely like a happy ending from this tragic story.
War Witch is most effective not when we are looking in on Komona but when we are inside her head.
The powerful things we expect from "War Witch" are as advertised, but what we don't expect is even better.
You're likely to ponder its images, its insights into a very foreign (for most of us) location and the tragic situation of Komona (and others like her) for a long time to come.
Is it accurate depiction of Africa's child soldiers? I don't know, thank God. But it feels authentic to its very core, and that makes it as hard to forget as it is to ignore.
Brutal without turning exploitative, the result is harrowing and heartbreaking.
Nguyen creates a mesmerizing tone through his camerawork, editing, sound and the infusion of African folk imagery and ritual, but it's Mwanza's performance as Komona that makes "War Witch" feel so miraculous.
Nguyen reportedly worked on "War Witch" for a decade, and it shows in both the immediacy and authenticity of his tale, and the meticulous craft with which it's told.
Made with extremely clear-eyed restraint from harangues, sentiment, message-mongering, or anything else that would cheapen its central character's suffering and fight.
War Witch features a standout performance by Rachel Mwanza, but the supernatural visions don't really suit the film's tone and mood.
Nguyen's compassion and commitment to the issue is admirable, and at its best, War Witch is devastating.
War Witch is remarkable for the fact that it never strays into sentimentality or sensationalism.
...a love story between youngsters who are forced to become adults all too early in their lives.
This is a straight ahead essay on warfare at its worst and the survival of the human spirit at its best.
An astonishing drama set in Africa that vividly depicts the courage and resiliency of a 12-year-old girl whose spiritual gifts enable her to survive.
It is astonishing that film that contains such violence can have such a serene tone. The source of the serenity is the measured, calm narration by Komona (voice of Diane Umawahoro) that is the telling of her story to her unborn child
An exquisitely made film in direct contrast to the ugliness of its subject matter
The portrait of a girl who retains her dignity and strength, her faith in the future, in the face of unimaginable horrors. It's inspirational in a very real way.
No quotes approved yet for War Witch. Logged in users can submit quotes.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) ? Governments are more serious and the impact of climate change is more dramatic, improving chances of a groundbreaking global warming pact in 2015 in contrast with the failure of such an effort in 2009, the U.N. climate chief said Tuesday.
The climate change talks in Copenhagen were a resounding failure, setting back the movement to control global warming. Even so, the U.N. official, Christiana Figueres, is optimistic, though she admits the world needs to step up its efforts to meet its goals.
A conference is set for Bonn next week, one of a series of meetings leading up to the next major climate convention in 2015.
Briefing reporters by teleconference from Washington Tuesday, Figueres complained that no country is doing enough now, and the "scale and speed" of efforts must be intensified to ensure the world can keep temperatures from rising more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius), compared to pre-industrial times. Experts believe that meeting that target would help ensure that the worst effects of climate change can be averted.
"What is very different is that we all went to 2009 having made our own decision that governments had to come to an agreement. But there was actually no commitment of governments to come to an agreement," said Figueres, who was appointed in 2010 after serving as member of Costa Rica's negotiating team.
"It was everybody else except the governments," she said. "Now, we have commitment of countries, of governments. They have said we are going to come to agreement in 2015. They have reiterated and reemphasized that, and it is very much on track."
Noting the devastation of Hurricane Sandy and the droughts that hit the midsection of the United States last year, Figueres also said it was hard to ignore the damage caused by warming of the planet.
"Unfortunately, we have much more evidence of climate change than we did way back in 2009, and that is actually a frightening thing," she said. "It does prove negative effects of climate are accelerating, both in impact and frequency. Across the world, we have every single country being affected in some way."
Figueres also said negotiators learned from 2009 not to leave important components of the agreement to the last minute and to ensure there is "transparency (and) inclusiveness" in the talks.
Climate negotiations over the years have dogged by suspicion, with rich and poor nations accusing one another of failing to do enough to move the talks along.
"There has to be a very clear process with which we get to this agreement. We will not be going to France with 300 pages of text," she said. "The governments have decided they will engage in a very serious exercise which leads up to draft of agreement, or at least the elements of a draft agreement, by 2014."
As for the United States, Figueres said she would like to see a "high level person in the White House orchestrating" the various American efforts to combat global warming.
She said she understood the preference of the Obama administration was not to push climate change legislation through Congress, but to implement a range of executive orders to tackle climate change instead. The Obama administration has already taken such measures to set fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks and is working on regulations for new power plants. Figueres said she hoped the U.S. would look at regulations for existing power plants as well.
A study last year from Climate Analytics, Ecofys and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research said U.S. policies won't be enough to meet its stated goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent by 2020, compared to 2005 levels.
Figueres said the worldwide effort was more important than the record of a single country, even the U.S.
"Of course, the ideal scenario would be for every single of the 191 countries to come with legislation in 2015. Is that realistic? No, that is not realistic" she said. "What is important here is to very quickly for each country (to do the) maximum they can do. There is no country doing its maximum."
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, who were rumored to have split after Amber went back to dating chicks, appear to still be dating after being spotted holding hands at a Rolling Stone show. The rumored couple attended the show at Hollywood?s Echoplex over the weekend, with the actor leading his girlfriend around backstage at the ...
![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
Share ] 
Square's point-of-sale technology and 
