Auto Repair Ethics In Bouton ? Mckee Auto and RV Center

We?re going to be talking about the ethics of automotive repair in Bouton. Unfortunately, every profession has some bad actors that hurt the reputation of everyone else. It?s no different in the Bouton area.

In the automotive world, Bouton industry associations and ia professional licensing organizations are very committed to high ethical standards.

Yet some people are still uncomfortable with automotive service and repair in Bouton.

If we understand what?s recommended and the benefits of taking care of the work ? and the pitfalls of putting it off ? we?ll have more trust in the recommendation. So communication is key. It?s like going to the doctor. If she?s using medical jargon and takes a lot of basic medical knowledge for granted, we have a hard time following her train of thought. We understand It can be like that with your service advisor at Mckee Auto and RV Center, too. He?s so familiar with all things automotive, he may forget you don?t know a PCV from an EGT.

If you don?t understand what your doctor?s talking about: ask some questions. If you don?t understand what your Bouton automotive advisor at Mckee Auto and RV Center is talking about: ask some questions.

Let?s go back to those ethical standards. When we hear a repair recommendation, we always ask ourselves, ?Is this really necessary?? Well, here?s the industry standard:

If a Bouton auto technician tells you that a repair or replacement is required, it must meet one of the following criteria:

1. The part no longer performs its intended purpose;
2. The part does not meet a design specification;
3. The part is missing.

For example, it you take your car in for a grinding noise when you step on the brakes, you may just think you need new brake pads. After the inspection, the technician says that you have a cracked rotor and need to replace it. If you tried to get him to just put new pads on, he would say that if you didn?t want to replace the rotor, he would ethically have to refuse the repair. To just put pads on a cracked rotor would have been very wrong. The brakes could?ve failed at anytime: they needed to be repaired ? not just have a band-aid slapped on them.

Now, looking at something not so serious, Mckee Auto and RV Center may suggest repair or replacement if:

1. The part is close to the end of its useful life ? just above discard specifications or likely to fail soon;
2. To address a customer need or request ? like for better ride or increased performance;
3. To comply with maintenance recommended by the vehicle?s manufacturer;
4. Based on the technician?s informed experience.

Of course, Mckee Auto and RV Center has the burden of making ethical recommendations and properly educating their customers. For the customer, if you are uncomfortable with a recommendation, ask some questions. More information is always a good thing.

At Mckee Auto and RV Center in Perry ia (50220) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 515.465.3564. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 27th, 2013 at 10:57 pm and is filed under Safety. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Source: http://mckeeautoandrvcenter.mynapasa.com/2013/02/27/auto-repair-ethics-in-bouton/

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Stretchable batteries are here! Power to the bendy electronics

John Roach , NBC News ? ? ? 14 hrs.

The next frontier in electronics are the flexible, stretchable kind. Yes, that means a rubber, bouncy smartphone (eventually), but it also means heart monitors threaded into cardiac tissue. For devices like that to work, they require flexible, stretchable batteries. And such batteries are here, according to researchers who just published their work.

Yonggang Huang, an engineer at Northwestern University, created the battery with materials wizard John Rogers at the University of Illinois, who received the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize in 2011 for his work on flexible electronics designed for integration with the human body.

How much give and take does the invention allow? ?We can stretch the device a great deal ? up to about 300 percent ? and still have a working battery,? Huang noted. (Please don't try that with your smartphone's battery.)

?Such stretchable batteries enable true integration with stretchable electronics in a small package,? Huang told NBC News in an email.

The background of the research team means that medical applications will be primarily targeted, but there are other applications for bendy batteries such as wearable solar cells and electric-eye cameras that make studio-quality photographs.

The flexible lithium-ion battery reported today in the journal Nature Communications completes the flexible electronics package with a cordless power source. When the battery runs out of juice after about eight hours, it is recharged wirelessly.

To make the battery, the researchers start with tiny, individual, rigid battery storage components arranged next to each other. The bendy and stretchy characteristics stem from tightly packed, wavy wires that connect these components.

?When we stretch the battery, the wavy interconnects unravels, much like yarn unspooling, while the storage components almost keep undeformed, because of their much larger rigidity than the interconnects? Huang explained.

The breakthrough was demonstrated with a light emitting diode that continues to work when stretched, folded and twisted on a human elbow. It continued to work well through 20 recharge cycles.

John Roach is a contributing writer for NBC News. To learn more about him, check out his website. For more of our Future of Technology series, watch the featured video below.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/futureoftech/stretchable-batteries-are-here-power-bendy-electronics-1C8546821

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Video: Feiler: Family dinner not as productive as once thought

A Second Take on Meeting the Press: From an up-close look at Rachel Maddow's sneakers to an in-depth look at Jon Krakauer's latest book ? it's all fair game in our "Meet the Press: Take Two" web extra. Log on Sundays to see David Gregory's post-show conversations with leading newsmakers, authors and roundtable guests. Videos are available on-demand by 12 p.m. ET on Sundays.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3032608/vp/50974043#50974043

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Mbakwe, Minnesota take down No. 1 Indiana 77-73

Indiana's Kevin Ferrell (11) gets off a shot over Minnesota's Andre Hollins, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013, in Minneapolis. Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe is at right. (AP Photo/Tom Olmscheid)

Indiana's Kevin Ferrell (11) gets off a shot over Minnesota's Andre Hollins, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013, in Minneapolis. Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe is at right. (AP Photo/Tom Olmscheid)

Indiana's Kevin Ferrell (11) pressures Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Tom Olmscheid)

Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe, right, and Indiana's Cody Zeller, left, battle for a rebound during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Tom Olmscheid)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) ? Trevor Mbakwe had 21 points and 12 rebounds to help Minnesota take down No. 1 Indiana 77-73 on Tuesday night, the seventh time the top-ranked team in The Associated Press' poll has lost a game this season.

Andre Hollins added 16 points for the Gophers (19-9, 7-8 Big Ten), who outrebounded Cody Zeller and the Hoosiers by a whopping 44-30 and solidified their slipping NCAA tournament case with an emphatic performance against the Big Ten leaders. The fans rushed the court as the last seconds ticked off, the first time that's happened here in years.

Zeller was held to nine points with four turnovers for the Hoosiers (24-4, 12-3), who have held the No. 1 ranking for 10 of 17 polls this season including the last four. Victor Oladipo scored 16 points, but 14 of the 17 points by Jordan Hulls came before halftime.

Mbakwe, a sixth-year senior, posted his conference-leading seventh double-double. At 24 years old, he was a man among boys in many ways in this game, dominating both ends of the court when the Gophers needed him most. Minnesota had 23 offensive rebounds.

Elliott Eliason, who played every bit as well as Zeller, the slender sophomore in the post for the visitors, scored seven straight points for Minnesota to tie the game at 46 shortly after Oladipo's reverse layup had given the Hoosiers a 44-36 lead, their biggest of the game.

Hollins, who missed eight of his first nine shots, scraped off a high screen by Eliason to pull up for a 3-pointer and give the Gophers a 51-48 lead underneath the 9-minute mark. Mbakwe got a rebound to keep a key possession alive then grabbed another board to set up his off-balance bank shot for a 56-53 lead for Minnesota with 7:22 left.

Mbakwe was called for a loudly questioned blocking foul, his fourth, with 4:39 remaining on Zeller's fast-break layup that put the Hoosiers up 59-58. But Austin Hollins answered with a pump-fake layup that drew a foul for a three-point play and a 61-59 lead for the Gophers.

Joe Coleman's fast-break dunk with 2:35 left lifted Minnesota to a 68-61 edge, enough of a cushion to withstand a couple of 3-pointers by Christian Watford and one by Hulls in the closing minutes.

Mbakwe, who played for Indiana coach Tom Crean when they were at Marquette in 2007-08, has had some of his better games against the Hoosiers. This was his best. He gave the Gophers and their home crowd a double-shot of energy early with 10 points in the first 6? minutes, plus a jarring block of Zeller's inside shot that knocked the 7-footer to the court. Coach Tubby Smith took Mbakwe out for a breather, though, and the Hoosiers went on a 10-0 run capped by another behind-the-arc swish from Hulls.

Zeller, Indiana's leading scorer and the second-best shooter in the Big Ten behind Oladipo, was 0 for 4 from the field in the first half with two turnovers, two fouls and two points. Mbakwe picked up his second foul when Oladipo drew contact with 4:02 left before the break and sat until the buzzer. The Gophers scored only three points in the last 7 minutes of the half.

The Hoosiers started the week with a two-game lead in the loss column over Michigan State, Michigan and Wisconsin, poised for their first outright Big Ten regular season championship since going 17-1 in 1993 during Bob Knight's heyday as coach. With home games against Iowa and Ohio State, Indiana has a chance to clinch the title before the finale at Michigan on March 10.

Six weeks ago, this game looked like one of the many marquee matchups that have marked Big Ten play this season, with a conference as strong as it's been in maybe decades. But while the Hoosiers kept winning after their 88-81 hold-on-at-the-end victory on Jan. 12 over then-No. 8 Minnesota, the Gophers sputtered.

Their half-court offense in particular has caused trouble, with an inability to solve zone defenses and a glaring lack of confidence, identity or purpose on so many possessions over the last few weeks. Their struggles were never more pronounced than in their last two games, in defeat by 21 points at Iowa and 26 points at Ohio State. Even on this night, despite the significant improvement, they looked lost at times when Mbakwe wasn't on the court.

So here they were after a much-needed weekend break in the schedule, back on their uniquely raised home court and trying desperately to boost spirits that have sagged under the weight of eight losses in their previous 11 games. Smith even had the team meet with a sports psychologist. Over their last 10 games, they averaged only 57 points and hadn't topped 58 in five games since Feb. 3. After being ranked in 11 straight polls, the Gophers didn't get one vote this week.

___

Follow Dave Campbell on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DaveCampbellAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-02-26-T25-Indiana-Minnesota/id-5763356325a945d88a67a34e97ef2afd

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Ashley Giles eyeing the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 ? Cricket ...

Ashley Giles eyeing the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 ? Cricket News Update

Ashley Giles, England?s former cricketer and current limited-overs coach, has admitted that he will have to take some very strong decisions because of the options that are available to the England side in all departments of the game.

The former left-arm spinner took over the job during the recent tour of India as the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) wanted to release some burden off Andy Flower?s shoulders, who still coaches the Poms in Test cricket.

After losing the series against India, Alastair Cook and company have defeated New Zealand in the One Day International (ODI) series by a margin of 2-1.

England rested Jonathan Trott for the series against the Men in Blue; whereas, Kevin Pietersen was allowed to refresh himself during the limited-overs series against the Black Caps.

With the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2013 at home in mind, Giles understands that there is a fierce competition for places in the 50-overs format, especially with the emergence of Joe Root, the young right-hander, who has done exceedingly well in all formats since making his debut in India.

Ironically, Giles, who represented England between 1997 and 2006, has played alongside many current players as well. Some of the sporting pundits believe that it would be hard for the former left-arm spinner to make some harsh decisions. However, Giles claims to be very firm in his decision-making process.

?I have to be more ruthless as a coach,? Giles said. ?You are not being nasty, but you've got to make strong decisions. When you drop someone, you always look them in the eye. Sometimes it will fall to the captain, sometimes I might do it, but all you can do is to be honest. If your performance isn't good enough, I'm going to tell you.?

The former Warwickshire cricketer is keeping an eye on the forthcoming mega event at home soil and thinks that his side has a chance to make an impression.

?With the Champions Trophy being in English conditions we have the opportunity to do really well. I'll go away and look very closely at Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka, the other teams in our group,? he added.

Source: http://blogs.bettor.com/Ashley-Giles-eyeing-the-ICC-Champions-Trophy-2013-Cricket-News-Update-a213748

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AP Newsbreak: Drop in Taliban attacks incorrect

A security official stands guard the scene of a suicide car bomb attack which killed and injured several people at the National Directorate of Security in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Sunday, Feb 24, 2013. A series of early morning attacks hit eastern Afghanistan Sunday, with three separate suicide bombings in outlying provinces and a shootout between security forces and a would-be attacker in the capital city of Kabul. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

A security official stands guard the scene of a suicide car bomb attack which killed and injured several people at the National Directorate of Security in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Sunday, Feb 24, 2013. A series of early morning attacks hit eastern Afghanistan Sunday, with three separate suicide bombings in outlying provinces and a shootout between security forces and a would-be attacker in the capital city of Kabul. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

A U.S. soldier, right, photographs the scene where an insurgent was shot to death near an Afghan intelligence office in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Feb. 24, 2013. A series of early morning attacks hit eastern Afghanistan Sunday, with three separate suicide bombings in outlying provinces and a shootout between security forces and a would-be attacker in the capital city of Kabul. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq)

A security official stands guard at the scene of a suicide car bomb attack which killed and injured several people at the National Directorate of Security in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Sunday, Feb 24, 2013. A series of early morning attacks hit eastern Afghanistan Sunday, with three separate suicide bombings in outlying provinces and a shootout between security forces and a would-be attacker in the capital city of Kabul. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The U.S.-led military command in Afghanistan incorrectly reported a decline last year in Taliban attacks and is preparing to publish corrected numbers that could undercut its narrative of a Taliban in steep decline.

After finding what they called clerical errors, military officials in Kabul said Tuesday that a 7 percent drop in "enemy initiated attacks" for the period from January through December 2012 reported last month will be corrected to show no change in the number of attacks during that span.

The 7 percent figure had been included in a report posted on the coalition's website until it was removed recently without explanation. After The Associated Press inquired about the missing report, coalition officials said they were correcting the data and would re-publish the report.

"During a quality control check, ISAF recently became aware that some data was incorrectly entered into the database that is used for tracking security-related incidents across Afghanistan," said Jamie Graybeal, a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition known officially as the International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF.

Graybeal said a subsequent audit determined that portions of the data from unilateral Afghan military operations were "not properly reflected" in the trends ISAF had reported in its monthly updates on security and violence.

"After including this unilateral ANSF (Afghan National Security Force) data into our database, we have determined that there was no change in the total number of EIAs (enemy initiated attacks) from 2011 to 2012," Graybeal said.

"This was a record-keeping error that we recognized and have now corrected," he added.

The coalition defines enemy initiated attacks as attacks by small arms, mortars, rockets and improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. But it does not include IEDs that are found and cleared before they explode.

Trends in Taliban attacks are one yardstick used by ISAF to measure war progress. Others include the state of security in populated areas, the number of coalition and Afghan casualties, the degree to which civilians can move about freely, and the performance of Afghan security forces.

Graybeal said that even though the number of 2012 Taliban attacks was unchanged from 2011, "our assessment of the fundamentals of campaign progress has not changed. The enemy is increasingly separated from the population and the ANSF are currently in the lead for the vast majority of partnered operations."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-02-26-US-Insurgent-Attacks-Error/id-4212db88a38d40f384b35f197ce89bc7

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Time to step in? U.S. weighs direct aid to Syrian rebels

PARIS (AP) ? The Obama administration, in coordination with some European allies, is for the first time considering supplying direct assistance to elements of the Free Syrian Army as they seek to ramp up pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down and end nearly two years of brutal and increasingly deadly violence.

Officials in the United States and Europe said Tuesday the administration is nearing a decision on whether to provide non-lethal assistance to carefully vetted fighters opposed to the Assad regime in addition to what it is already supplying to the political opposition. A decision is expected by Thursday when U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will attend an international conference on Syria in Rome that leaders of the opposition Syrian National Coalition have been persuaded to attend, the officials said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the shift in strategy has not yet been finalized and still needs to be coordinated with European nations, notably Britain. They are eager to vastly increase the size and scope of assistance for Assad's foes.

Kerry, who was a cautious proponent of supplying arms to the rebels while he was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has been consulting with European leaders on how to step up pressure on Assad to leave power. The effort has been as a major focus of his first official trip abroad as America's top diplomat. On the first two stops on his hectic nine-nation tour of Europe and the Middle East, in London and Berlin, he has sought to assure the Syrian opposition that more help is on the way.

In London on Monday, he made a public appeal to opposition coalition leader Mouaz al-Khatib not to boycott the Rome meeting as had been threatened and to attend the conference despite concerns among Assad foes that international community is not doing enough. Kerry and Vice President Joe Biden made private telephone calls to al-Khatib to make the same case.

"We are determined that the Syrian opposition is not going to be dangling in the wind, wondering where the support is, if it is coming," Kerry told reporters after meeting British Prime Minister David Cameron and Foreign Secretary William Hague.

Hague said that the deteriorating conditions in Syria, especially recent scud missile attacks on the city of Aleppo, were unacceptable and that the West's current position could not be sustained while an "appalling injustice" is being done to Syrian citizens.

"In the face of such murder and threat of instability, our policy cannot stay static as the weeks go by," Hague told reporters, standing beside Kerry. "We must significantly increase support for the Syrian opposition. We are preparing to do just that."

The officials in Washington and European capitals said the British are pushing proposals to provide military training, body armor and other technical support to members of the Free Syrian Army who have been determined not to have links to extremists. The officials said, however, that the U.S. was not yet ready to consider such action although Washington would not object if the Europeans moved ahead with the plans.

The Obama administration has been deeply concerned about military equipment falling into the hands of radical Islamists who have become a significant factor in the Syrian conflict and could then use that materiel for terrorist attacks or strikes on Israel.

The Italian government, which is hosting Thursday's conference, said on Monday that the Europeans would use the meeting "to urge the United States' greater flexibility on measures in favor of the opposition to the Assad regime."

"They will be asking, in particular, that 'non-lethal' aid be extended to include technical assistance and training so as to consolidate the coalition's efforts in the light of what emerged at the latest meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council," the foreign ministry said in a statement. In a recent meeting, European Union foreign ministers agreed that support to the rebels needed to be boosted.

Officials in Washington said the United States was leaning toward providing tens of millions of dollars more in non-lethal assistance to the opposition, including vetted members of the Free Syrian Army who had not been receiving direct U.S. assistance. So far, assistance has been limited to funding for communications and other logistical equipment, a formalized liaison office and an invitation to al-Khatib to visit the United States in the coming weeks.

The officials stressed, however, that the administration did not envision American military training for the rebels nor U.S. provision of combat items such as body armor that the British are advocating.

The officials said the U.S. is also looking at stepping up its civilian technical assistance devoted to rule of law, civil society and good governance, in order to prepare an eventual transition government to run the country once Assad leaves.

In Europe, meanwhile, Kerry on Tuesday visited Berlin where he met his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, for the first time in his new post, spending more than an hour discussing the Syria conflict. Russia has been a strong supporter of Assad and has, along with China, repeatedly blocked efforts at the United Nations to impose global sanctions against the regime unless it stops the violence that has killed nearly 70,000 people.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the two met for an hour and 45 minutes, spending more than half that time on Syria in what she called a "really serious and hardworking session."

Kerry and Lavrov discussed how they could implement the so-called Geneva Agreement, which is designed to get the Syrian government and rebels to plan a transitional government for the time after Assad leaves office, Nuland said.

Lavrov told Russian news agencies that his talks with Kerry were "quite constructive." On Syria, he said the two reaffirmed their "intention to do all Russia and the U.S. can do. It's not that everything depends on us, but we shall do all we can to create conditions for the soonest start of a dialogue between the government and the opposition."

Syria's foreign minister was in Moscow on Monday and while there expressed a willingness to meet with opposition leaders.

The Syrian National Coalition is skeptical about outside help from the West and threatened to boycott the Rome meeting until a series of phone calls and meetings between Kerry and his ambassadors and Syrian opposition leaders repaired the schism. The council now says it will attend the meeting, but is hoping for more concrete offers of help, including military assistance.

___

Klapper contributed to this report from Washington.

A decision is expected by Thursday when U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will attend an international conference on Syria in Rome that leaders of the opposition Syrian National Coalition have been persuaded to attend, the officials said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the shift in strategy has not yet been finalized and still needs to be coordinated with European nations, notably Britain. They are eager to vastly increase the size and scope of assistance for Assad's foes.

Kerry, who was a cautious proponent of supplying arms to the rebels while he was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has been consulting with European leaders on how to step up pressure on Assad to leave power. The effort has been as a major focus of his first official trip abroad as America's top diplomat. On the first two stops on his hectic nine-nation tour of Europe and the Middle East, in London and Berlin, he has sought to assure the Syrian opposition that more help is on the way.

In London on Monday, he made a public appeal to opposition coalition leader Mouaz al-Khatib not to boycott the Rome meeting as had been threatened and to attend the conference despite concerns among Assad foes that international community is not doing enough. Kerry and Vice President Joe Biden made private telephone calls to al-Khatib to make the same case.

"We are determined that the Syrian opposition is not going to be dangling in the wind, wondering where the support is, if it is coming," Kerry told reporters after meeting British Prime Minister David Cameron and Foreign Secretary William Hague.

Hague said that the deteriorating conditions in Syria, especially recent scud missile attacks on the city of Aleppo, were unacceptable and that the West's current position could not be sustained while an "appalling injustice" is being done to Syrian citizens.

"In the face of such murder and threat of instability, our policy cannot stay static as the weeks go by," Hague told reporters, standing beside Kerry. "We must significantly increase support for the Syrian opposition. We are preparing to do just that."

The officials in Washington and European capitals said the British are pushing proposals to provide military training, body armor and other technical support to members of the Free Syrian Army who have been determined not to have links to extremists. The officials said, however, that the U.S. was not yet ready to consider such action although Washington would not object if the Europeans moved ahead with the plans.

The Obama administration has been deeply concerned about military equipment falling into the hands of radical Islamists who have become a significant factor in the Syrian conflict and could then use that materiel for terrorist attacks or strikes on Israel.

The Italian government, which is hosting Thursday's conference, said on Monday that the Europeans would use the meeting "to urge the United States' greater flexibility on measures in favor of the opposition to the Assad regime."

"They will be asking, in particular, that 'non-lethal' aid be extended to include technical assistance and training so as to consolidate the coalition's efforts in the light of what emerged at the latest meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council," the foreign ministry said in a statement. In a recent meeting, European Union foreign ministers agreed that support to the rebels needed to be boosted.

Officials in Washington said the United States was leaning toward providing tens of millions of dollars more in non-lethal assistance to the opposition, including vetted members of the Free Syrian Army who had not been receiving direct U.S. assistance. So far, assistance has been limited to funding for communications and other logistical equipment, a formalized liaison office and an invitation to al-Khatib to visit the United States in the coming weeks.

The officials stressed, however, that the administration did not envision American military training for the rebels nor U.S. provision of combat items such as body armor that the British are advocating.

The officials said the U.S. is also looking at stepping up its civilian technical assistance devoted to rule of law, civil society and good governance, in order to prepare an eventual transition government to run the country once Assad leaves.

In Europe, meanwhile, Kerry on Tuesday visited Berlin where he met his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, for the first time in his new post, spending more than an hour discussing the Syria conflict. Russia has been a strong supporter of Assad and has, along with China, repeatedly blocked efforts at the United Nations to impose global sanctions against the regime unless it stops the violence that has killed nearly 70,000 people.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the two met for an hour and 45 minutes, spending more than half that time on Syria in what she called a "really serious and hardworking session."

Kerry and Lavrov discussed how they could implement the so-called Geneva Agreement, which is designed to get the Syrian government and rebels to plan a transitional government for the time after Assad leaves office, Nuland said.

Lavrov told Russian news agencies that his talks with Kerry were "quite constructive." On Syria, he said the two reaffirmed their "intention to do all Russia and the U.S. can do. It's not that everything depends on us, but we shall do all we can to create conditions for the soonest start of a dialogue between the government and the opposition."

Syria's foreign minister was in Moscow on Monday and while there expressed a willingness to meet with opposition leaders.

The Syrian National Coalition is skeptical about outside help from the West and threatened to boycott the Rome meeting until a series of phone calls and meetings between Kerry and his ambassadors and Syrian opposition leaders repaired the schism. The council now says it will attend the meeting, but is hoping for more concrete offers of help, including military assistance.

___

Klapper contributed to this report from Washington.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ap-sources-us-weighs-direct-aid-syrian-rebels-014311467--politics.html

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Bernanke says sequester would create 'headwind'

Reuters ? ? ? 4 hrs.

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke strongly defended the U.S. central bank's bond-buying stimulus before Congress on Tuesday, easing worries that monetary policymakers might be getting cold feet.

The Fed chairman also urged lawmakers to avoid sharp spending cuts set to go into effect on Friday, which he warned could combine with earlier tax increases to create a "significant headwind" for the economic recovery.

Bernanke said Fed policymakers are cognizant of potential risks from their extraordinary support for the economy, including the possibility the public loses confidence in the central bank's ability to unwind its stimulus smoothly or the potentially destabilizing effect of low rates on key markets.

But, in testimony on the central bank's semi-annual report on monetary policy, he said the risks did not seem material at the moment, adding the central bank has all the tools it needs to retreat from its monetary support in a timely fashion.

"To this point, we do not see the potential costs of the increased risk-taking in some financial markets as outweighing the benefits of promoting a stronger economic recovery and more rapid job creation," Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee.

In response to the financial crisis and deep recession of 2007-2009, the Fed not only slashed official interest rates to effectively zero but also bought more than $2.5 trillion in mortgage and Treasury debt in an effort to push down long-term interest rates and spur hiring.

The Fed is currently buying $85 billion in bonds each month and has said it plans to keep purchasing assets until it sees a substantial improvement in the outlook for the labor market.

Minutes of the Fed's Jan. 29-30 policy meeting, released last week, showed a number of officials felt the potential risks posed by the bond purchases could warrant tapering or ending them before hiring picks up. However, several others argued there was a danger in halting them prematurely.

Bernanke appeared to be in the latter camp, citing improvements in the housing and auto sectors and tracing them in part to the Fed's stimulus.

"There is no risk free approach to this situation," he said. "The risk of not doing anything is severe as well. So, we are trying to balance these things as best we can."

No shift in policy
The testimony helped offset jitters in U.S. stock markets over Europe's debt crisis, with major indexes mixed at midday. It also gave a lift to the dollar. Prices for U.S. government debt fell, but reversed course as stocks came under pressure.

"What Bernanke is saying, bottom line, indicates that there will not be a reversal anytime soon in the stimulus program," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.

When asked pointedly by Republican Senator Bob Corker about whether the Fed's easy monetary policy was contributing to competitive currency devaluations globally and laying the groundwork for inflation, Bernanke was unequivocal.

"My inflation record is the best of any Federal Reserve chairman in the post-war period," he retorted. "We are not engaged in a currency war."

Democrats, for their part, seized on Bernanke's remarks to fuel their argument that looming budget cuts could have a dire economic impact, as they sought to gain political advantage over Republicans, who would rather see spending cuts than higher taxes.

A plea on budget cuts
In unusually direct remarks on fiscal policy, Bernanke warned the near-term spending cuts known as the sequester, which are set to take hold later this week, would threaten an already challenged economic expansion.

"The Congress and the administration should consider replacing the sharp, frontloaded spending cuts required by the sequestration, with policies that reduce the federal deficit more gradually in the near term but more substantially in the longer run," Bernanke said.

The U.S. economy braked sharply in the fourth quarter, but is forecast to grow around 2 percent or more this year. The unemployment rate has remained elevated, and registered 7.9 percent in January.

Bernanke said persistent joblessness was a scourge with potentially long-lasting effects.

"High unemployment has substantial costs, including not only the hardship faced by the unemployed and their families, but also the harm done to the vitality and productive potential of our economy as a whole," Bernanke said.

The central bank's semi-annual report also downplayed the possibility the Fed's bond-buying might be stoking asset bubbles in certain markets.

"There has been limited evidence so far of excessive buildups of duration, credit risk, or leverage, but the Federal Reserve will continue both its careful oversight and its implementation of financial regulatory reforms designed to reduce systemic risk," it said.

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/fed-chief-bernanke-says-budget-cuts-would-create-headwind-economy-1C8546822

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Linking insulin to learning: Insulin-like molecules play critical role in learning and memory

Feb. 26, 2013 ? Though it's most often associated with disorders like diabetes, Harvard researchers have shown how the signaling pathway of insulin and insulin-like peptides plays another critical role in the body -- helping to regulate learning and memory.

In addition to showing that the insulin-like peptides play a critical role in regulating the activity of neurons involved in learning and memory, a team of researchers led by Yun Zhang, Associate Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, show that the interaction between the molecules can fine-tune how, or even if, learning takes place. Their work is described in a February 6 paper in Neuron.

"People think of insulin and diabetes, but many metabolic syndromes are associated with some types of cognitive defects and behavioral disorders, like depression or dementia," Zhang said. "That suggests that insulin and insulin-like peptides may play an important role in neural function, but it's been very difficult to nail down the underlying mechanism, because these peptides do not have to function through synapses that connect different neurons in the brain"

To get at that mechanism, Zhang and colleagues turned to an organism whose genome and nervous system are well described and highly accessible by genetics -- C. elegans.

Using genetic tools, researchers altered the small, transparent worms by removing their ability to create individual insulin-like compounds. These new "mutant" worms were then tested to see whether they would learn to avoid eating a particular type of bacteria that is known to infect the worms. Tests showed that while some worms did learn to steer clear of the bacteria, others didn't -- suggesting that removing a specific insulin-like compound halted the worms' ability to learn.

Researchers were surprised to find, however, that it wasn't just removing the molecules that could make the animals lose the ability to learn -- some peptide was found to inhibit learning.

"We hadn't predicted that we would find both positive and negative regulators from these peptides," Zhang said. "Why does the animal need this bidirectional regulation of learning? One possibility is that learning depends on context. There are certain things you want to learn -- for example, the worms in these experiments wanted to learn that they shouldn't eat this type of infectious bacteria. That's a positive regulation of the learning. But if they needed to eat, even if it is a bad food, to survive, they would need a way to suppress this type of learning."

Even more surprising for Zhang and her colleagues was evidence that the various insulin-like molecules could regulate each other.

"Many animals, including the humans, have multiple insulin-like molecules and it appears that these molecules can act like a network," she said. "Each of them may play a slightly different role in the nervous system, and they function together to coordinate the signaling related to learning and memory. By changing the way the molecules interact, the brain can fine tune learning in a host of different ways."

Going forward, Zhang said she hopes to characterize more of the insulin-like peptides as a way of better understanding how the various molecules interact, and how they act on the neural circuits for learning and memory.

Understanding how such pathways work could one day help in the development of treatment for a host of cognitive disorders, including dementia.

"The signaling pathways for insulin and insulin-like peptides are highly conserved in mammals, including the humans," Zhang said. "There is even some preliminary evidence that insulin treatment, in some cases, can improve cognitive function. That's one reason we believe that if we understand this mechanism, it will help us better understand how insulin pathways are working in the human brain."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Harvard University.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. Zhunan Chen, Michael Hendricks, Astrid Cornils, Wolfgang Maier, Joy Alcedo, Yun Zhang. Two Insulin-like Peptides Antagonistically Regulate Aversive Olfactory Learning in C.?elegans. Neuron, 2013; 77 (3): 572 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2012.11.025

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/most_popular/~3/HFukdteMQE0/130226162837.htm

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Shapes of Things

Sure, there's a second screen these days. But it's not the one you might think. The second screen is the TV, where the decaying rules remain in force as network comedies atrophy and the fall season is rife with cancellation. The first screen is the mini, managing the push notification appointment calendar and relationships of the binge viewers as they kibitz, joke, and narrate the stream economy.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/BNbTpkGatvs/

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Second SpaceX space station resupply flight ready to go

Feb. 25, 2013 ? The second International Space Station Commercial Resupply Services flight by Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) is set for liftoff at 10:10 a.m. EST on March 1 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Carried by a Falcon 9 rocket, the Dragon spacecraft will ferry 1,268 pounds of supplies for the space station crew and for experiments being conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory.

The Falcon 9 and Dragon were manufactured at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif., and arrived at the Florida launch site by truck. The rocket, topped with the spacecraft, stands 157-feet tall.

The two-stage rocket uses nine engines to power the first stage, generating 855,000 pounds of thrust at sea level, rising to nearly 1,000,000 pounds of thrust as Falcon 9 climbs out of Earth's atmosphere. One engine powers the second stage to complete the climb to space. The 14.4-foot-tall Dragon spacecraft is capable of carrying more than 7,000 pounds of cargo split between pressurized and unpressurized sections.

On March 2, Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford and Flight Engineer Tom Marshburn of NASA are scheduled use the station's robot arm to grapple Dragon following its rendezvous with the orbiting outpost. Ground commands will be sent to attach the spacecraft to the Earth-facing port of the station's Harmony module where it will remain for a few weeks while astronauts unload cargo. The crew then will load more than 2,600 pounds of experiment samples and equipment for return to Earth.

Dragon is scheduled for a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California on March 25.

This SpaceX flight is the second of at least 12 missions to the space station that the company will fly for NASA under the Commercial Resupply Services contract.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/u7TQ2ssxu5Y/130225185751.htm

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Skeptical Syrian opposition to attend Rome talks

US Secretary of State John Kerry reacts after listening a reporter's question during a joint news conference with Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague, not seen, following their meeting in central London, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. This is the first overseas trip for the US Secretary of State in his new role. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, pool)

US Secretary of State John Kerry reacts after listening a reporter's question during a joint news conference with Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague, not seen, following their meeting in central London, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. This is the first overseas trip for the US Secretary of State in his new role. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, pool)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, right, is greeted by US Ambassador to Germany Philip Murphy on arrival at Tegel International Airport in Berlin, with James Melville, Jr., Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy Berlin, on Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Berlin is the second stop in Kerry?s first official trip overseas as secretary. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague, right, watches as US Secretary of State John Kerry, left, answers a reporter's question during a joint news conference following their meeting in central London, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. This is the first overseas trip for the US Secretary of State in his new role. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, pool)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, accompanies British Foreign Secretary William Hague as they leave Downing Street in London, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Kerry kicked off his first official overseas trip by meeting with British leaders in London on the first leg of a hectic nine-day dash through Europe and the Middle East. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, second from left, speaks alongside U.S. Ambassador Louis Susman, third from left, during a visit to the U.S. Embassy, London, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Kerry was in London for the first leg of his debut overseas trip ? a hectic nine-country dash through Europe and the Middle East. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

BERLIN (AP) ? Skeptical Syrian opposition leaders agreed Monday to attend an international conference in Rome after first threatening to boycott the session that was to be the centerpiece of Secretary of State John Kerry's first overseas mission in his new job.

Opposition leaders had protested what they see as inaction by other nations in the face of violence from Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.

Kerry not only made a public plea at a joint news conference Monday with British Foreign Secretary William Hague, he also called Moaz Khatib, leader of the Syrian Opposition Council, "to encourage him to come to Rome," a senior U.S. official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak publicly on the matter, described the conversation as "good" but declined to offer more detail.

Spokesman Walid al-Bunni said the council had decided to send a delegation to Rome after all.

Al-Bunni told Al-Arabiya TV the decision was made based on guarantees al-Khatib heard from western diplomats that the conference would be different and that the opposition would receive real commitments this time. "We will go and we will see if the promises are different this time," he said.

After speaking with Khatib, Kerry flew to Berlin from London, the first stop of his first trip as secretary of state ? a hectic nine-country dash through Europe and the Middle East.

Kerry had also dispatched his top Syrian envoy to Cairo in hopes of convincing opposition leaders that their participation is critical to addressing questions from potential donors and securing additional aid from the United States and Europe.

"We are determined that the Syrian opposition is not going to be dangling in the wind, wondering where the support is, if it is coming," Kerry told reporters in London after meeting British Prime Minister David Cameron and Hague. "We are not going to let the Syrian opposition not have its ability to have its voice properly heard in this process."

Vice President Joe Biden also reached out Monday in a phone call to Khatib. Biden commended him and other members of the Syrian Opposition Coalition for their courage. He also emphasized President Barack Obama's commitment to a post-Assad government that protects the rights of all its citizens, according to a description of the call provided by the White House.

For his part, Hague said the violence in Syria, especially recent scud missile attacks on the city of Aleppo, was unacceptable and that the west's current position could not be sustained while an "appalling injustice" is being done to Syrian citizens.

"In the face of such murder and threat of instability, our policy cannot stay static as the weeks go by," Hague told reporters, standing beside Kerry. "We must significantly increase support for the Syrian opposition. We are preparing to do just that."

Kerry agreed.

"We are not coming to Rome simply to talk, we are coming to Rome to talk about next steps," Kerry said, adding that he was sympathetic to opposition complaints that they were not getting the support they need to defend themselves against the Assad regime or oust him from power.

"I am very sensitive to that frustration," recalling that as a U.S. senator he was one of several who pushed the administration to consider military aid to the Syrian opposition.

"But I am the new secretary of state ... and the president of the United States has sent me here and sent me to this series of meetings and in Rome because he is concerned about the course of events.

"This moment is ripe for us to be considering what more we can do," he said, adding that if the opposition wants results, "join us" in Rome.

Meanwhile, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Monday the Assad regime was ready to hold talks with opposition leaders, the first time that a high-ranking Syrian official has stated publicly that the government would meet with the opposition. Al-Moallem made his comments after meeting in Moscow with Russian officials.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said Moallem's remarks appeared positive but expressed caution about the seriousness of the offer.

"I don't know their motivations, other than to say they continue to rain down horrific attacks on their own people," Ventrell told reporters. "So that speaks pretty loudly and clearly."

If the Assad regime is serious, he said, it should inform the U.N. peace envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi of its readiness for talks. Ventrell said the Assad regime hasn't yet done that.

Obama administration officials have debated whether the U.S. should arm the rebels, with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey having said they urged such a course of action. The White House has been unwilling to do so for fears the weapons could end up in the wrong hands. Currently, the U.S. provides only non-lethal support and humanitarian aid.

The United Nations says at least 70,000 people have been killed in Syria's 2-year civil war, which began as an uprising against Assad's regime.

Kerry said the Syrian people "deserve better" than the violence currently gripping their country as he stood alongside Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague.

___

Associated Press writers Cassandra Vinograd in London and Bradley Klapper in Washington contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-02-25-Kerry/id-74ec51f991454668a6c40e3ba688ff8b

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Hotter, wetter climate slashes labor capacity

Mark Webb / The Herald Dispatch / AP, file

In this Thursday, July 21, 2011 photo, Patrick Nelson wipes the sweat from his face while working on a project for Huntington Community Gardens as temperatures reach over 90 degrees in Huntington, W. Va.

By Deborah Zabarenko, Reuters

WASHINGTON ? Earth's increasingly hot, wet climate has cut the amount of work people can do in the worst heat by about 10 percent in the past six decades, and that loss in labor capacity could double by mid-century, U.S. government scientists reported on Sunday.

Because warmer air can hold more moisture than cooler air, there's more absolute humidity in the atmosphere now than there used to be. And as anyone who has sweltered through a hot, muggy summer knows, it's more stressful to work through hot months when the humidity is high.

To figure out the stress of working in hotter, wetter conditions, experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration looked at military and industrial guidelines already in place for heat stress, and set those guidelines against climate projections for how hot and humid it's likely to get over the next century.

Their findings were stark: "We project that heat stress-related labor capacity losses will double globally by 2050 with a warming climate," said lead author John Dunne of NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory in Princeton.

Work capability is already down to 90 percent during the most hot and humid periods, Dunne and his co-authors wrote in the journal Nature Climate Change. Using a middle-of-the-road projection of future temperature and humidity, they estimate that could drop to 80 percent by 2050.

A more extreme scenario of future global warming, which estimated a temperature rise of 10.8 degrees F, would make it difficult to work in the hottest months in many parts of the world, Dunne said at a telephone briefing.

Labor capacity would be all but eliminated in the lower Mississippi Valley and most of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains would be exposed to heat stress "beyond anything experienced in the world today," he said.

Bahrain-on-the-Hudson?

Under this scenario, heat stress in New York City would exceed that of present-day Bahrain, while in Bahrain, the heat and humidity could cause hyperthermia - potentially dangerous overheating - even in sleeping people who were not working at all.

Humans are endothermic creatures, which means they give off heat. If they can't get rid of it faster than they create it, they go into hyperthermia. Typically, humans cool off by doing less heat-producing activity, but it may get so hot and humid that even a sleeping person wouldn't be able to dissipate heat fast enough.

"This planet will start experiencing heat stress that's unlike anything experienced today," said Ronald Stouffer, a co-author of the study.

The only way to retain labor capacity, Dunne said, is to limit global warming to less than 5 degrees F.

Global average temperature has risen by about 1.2 degrees F compared to pre-industrial times. It is likely to rise another 1.8 degrees F by mid-century, Dunne said.

The way some workers already adapt to heat stress - taking a siesta during the hottest hours of the day, working outdoor jobs like construction at night when temperatures drop or ceasing work entirely during periods of peak heat and humidity ? could migrate to places where heat stress is increasing.

The U.S. West Coast and Northern Europe are likely to be two of the regions that will be affected last by the trend toward more hot and humid climate, the scientists said.

Part of the issue is how well-adapted certain regions are to extreme heat stress, Dunne said.

As an example, he noted that some 70,000 people were killed during a disastrous 2003 heat wave in Europe, where heat stress was highly unusual. However, the same kind of stress was normal for a place like India, where a similar heat wave killed 3,000.

"It's very regionally dependent and highly determined by adaptation," Dunne said.

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/24/17076691-hotter-wetter-climate-slashes-labor-capacity-by-10-percent-study?lite

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Military draft registration: Goodbye to the draft board?

A new proposal would eliminate military draft registration, doubling down on the military's commitment to an all-volunteer army. Men ages 18 to 25 would no longer need to register for the draft.

By Associated Press / February 25, 2013

Then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta hands the memorandum he has just signed, ending the 1994 ban on women serving in combat, to Army Lt. Col. Tamatha Patterson of Huntingdon, Tenn., during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013.

Cliff Owen/AP/File

Enlarge

In the wake of the Pentagon's recent announcement that women will serve in combat roles and combat zones, the question arose: Will women need to register for the draft? That may become moot: Two lawmakers are waging a little-noticed campaign to abolish the Selective Service System, the independent federal agency that manages?draft?registration.

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If the proposed law moves forward, no one would have to register for the draft anymore, male or female.

Reps. Peter DeFazio (D) of Oregon and Rep. Mike Coffman (R) of Colorado say the millions of dollars the agency spends each year preparing for the possibility of a?military?draft?is a waste of money. They say the Pentagon has no interest in returning to conscription due to the success of the all-volunteer force.

Here's a quick look at the Selective Service System:

? The Selective Service has a budget of $24 million and a full-time staff of 130. It maintains a database of about 17 million potential male draftees. In the event of a?draft, the agency would mobilize as many as 11,000 volunteers to serve on local?draft?boards that would decide if exemptions or deferments to?military?service were warranted.

The Selective Service is an "inexpensive insurance policy," said Lawrence Romo, the agency's director. "We are the true backup for the true emergency."

? Men between the ages of 18 and 25 are required to register and can do so online or by mail. Those who fail to register with the Selective Service can be charged with a felony. The Justice Department hasn't prosecuted anyone for that offense since 1986.

? There can be other consequences, though. Failing to register can mean the loss of financial aid for college, being refused employment with the federal government, and denied U.S. citizenship.

DeFazio says it makes no sense to threaten to penalize men who don't register when the odds of a?draft?are so remote.

Past attempts to get rid of the agency have failed, DeFazio says, because too many of his colleagues on Capitol Hill worry that closing Selective Service down will make them look weak on national security.

"There is no one who wants this except 'chicken hawk' members of Congress," DeFazio says, using a term to describe a person who pushes for the use of?military?power but never served in the armed forces.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/-yvOpVjaMQI/Military-draft-registration-Goodbye-to-the-draft-board

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Coast Guard searching for four missing in sailboat off California

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The Coast Guard was searching the rough waters off Northern California on Monday for two adults and two young children believed missing after they sent a distress call that their sailboat was in trouble.

The 29-foot craft was in frigid waters south of San Francisco, roughly 68 miles off the coast, when a crew member first radioed late on Sunday afternoon that the vessel was taking on water and sinking, the Coast Guard said.

"He sounded relatively calm considering the fact that they were taking on water and they had the children on board. Panic hadn't set in. He had contacted the Coast Guard several times and each time we learned a little bit more about the situation," Coast Guard spokeswoman Petty Officer Pamela Boehland told CNN.

A little more than an hour after the first call, the vessel operator reported that the four people aboard the boat were abandoning the craft, and the Coast Guard lost radio communications with them.

"The weather was pretty rough yesterday as it most always is in the Pacific. It's always rough and always cold. And they started taking on water," Boehland said. "Eventually, the water became too much for them and their electronics failed, their GPS failed, and they decided it was best to abandon ship."

The Coast Guard said in a statement late on Sunday that the four people from the missing vessel, possibly named the Charmblow, might have made it into a makeshift life raft. But their fate remained uncertain.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the boat operator told the Coast Guard the sailors planned to use a makeshift life raft fashioned out of a cooler and a life-preserver ring as a flotation device until they could be rescued from the water.

The Chronicle identified those believed to be on board the boat as a man, woman, their 4-year-old son and his cousin under age 8. The boat had no life raft or electronic-positioning beacon, and it was unclear whether the passengers were wearing life vests, according to the Chronicle.

The Coast Guard initially said the vessel was sinking off Pillar Point, at the northern end of Half Moon Bay south of San Francisco, but later reassessed the location south to near Monterey, the Chronicle said.

Coast Guard officials did not immediately respond to queries about the status of the search on Monday morning. As of Sunday night, aircraft and sea vessels had already conducted several searches of the area without success, and additional Coast Guard resources were to join in the operation, the agency had said.

(Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Pravin Char, Cynthia Johnston and Richard Chang)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/coast-guard-searching-four-missing-sailboat-off-california-185145940.html

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Spotify Inks Its First In-Car Deal, Will Stream Music To Ford Via SYNC AppLink

Smartphones have long been an important distribution platform for music streaming service Spotify, and today it is taking that to the next level of mobility: today it is announcing a deal with Ford to provide in-car streaming music services, via Ford's new SYNC AppLink service in Europe and North America. The deal will initially cover one car model, the EcoSport.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/wDzd38gycIw/

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McCarthy's 'Identity Thief' tops box office again

NEW YORK (AP) ? Hollywood's latest films performed tepidly at the box office on Oscar weekend, with Melissa McCarthy's "Identity Thief" returning to the top spot in its third week of release.

According to studio estimates Sunday, the Universal comedy earned $14.1 million over the weekend, enough to regain the box-office title after losing it last week to Fox's "A Good Day to Die Hard."

With a cumulative total of $93.7 million, "Identity Thief" is the biggest hit so far in 2013.

For the fifth week in a row, the box office was down as compared to last year's business. That was unlikely to dampen Sunday night's Academy Awards, though. The nine best picture nominees have largely fared well at the box office. This weekend, eight of them are in the top 21 films.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-02-24-Box%20Office/id-236fef06c2ed4b79977092ebceee2abc

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SHOW BITS: Avengers goof around backstage

Presenters Robert Downey Jr., left, and Jeremy Renner pose during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Presenters Robert Downey Jr., left, and Jeremy Renner pose during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Actress Kristen Stewart arrives with crutches at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Singer Adele, left, and musician/producer Paul Epworth accept the award for best original song for "Skyfall" from "Skyfall" during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Actress Anne Hathaway arrives at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Invision/AP)

Singer Shirley Bassey performs during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Show Bits brings you the 85th annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles through the eyes of Associated Press journalists. Follow them on Twitter where available with the handles listed after each item.

___

THE AVENGERS REUNITE

Just like the superheroes they played in the movie, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson huddled together backstage to get a plan together and of course joke around.

Downey suggested the stars of "The Avengers" bow as they headed onstage to make Oscar presentations. Or perhaps curtsy.

When a show worker asked Jackson to stand still so he could be wired with a microphone, the actor faced a backstage wall and pretended he was being frisked by police.

To pass the time, the superheroes watched Melissa McCarthy and Paul Rudd from a backstage monitor.

Suddenly Ruffalo asked, "Did we miss our cue?"

"You want to go out there with them?" asked Jackson.

After presenting two awards, the actors returned backstage, where Downey quipped, "Avengers disassemble."

? Sandy Cohen ? http://www.twitter.com/apsandy

___

QUICKQUOTE: JENNIFER LAWRENCE

"You guys are just standing up because you feel bad that I fell." ? Jennifer Lawrence acknowledging her standing ovation after being named winner of the lead actress Oscar.

? Christina Hoag.

___

KRISTEN STEWART HOBBLED

Kristen Stewart ditched her crutches to hobble onstage as an Oscar presenter, appearing bored and disheveled in the process.

She and Daniel Radcliffe handled one of the less glamorous awards for production design. Stewart read her lines with a slouchy insouciance.

Just before going on, Stewart left a pair of crutches in the wings and apparently the backstage hairstylists didn't get ahold of her for a brushing. Her long brunette hair looked stringy.

The reaction on Twitter was swift and severe.

"Kristen stewart are you ok? And by that I mean where were the hash brownies before u got hit by bus (hash)bruise (hash)limp," tweeted comedian-actor David Spade.

Actor Joel Hale tweeted, "Kristen Stewart is limping because she sprained her ankle from being excessively disinterested."

Backstage, Stewart ran into supporting actress winner Anne Hathaway, who noted her crutches.

"I know, I'm an idiot," Stewart replied. "But congratulations!"

"Please tell me you're going on stage with those," Hathaway said, pointing to the crutches.

"Nope. I'm gonna hobble," said Stewart, explaining that she had stepped on glass.

? Beth Harris ? http://www.twitter.com/bethharrisap

___

TONYS OR OSCARS?

Did the Oscars intentionally turn into the Tonys?

All those song-and-dance numbers weren't lost on Twitter.

"Sucks for the actors at the Oscars who can't sing ... (hash)TONYS? (hash)HollywoodGoesBroadway," Nylon magazine tweeted after a tribute to the musical "Chicago."

"Am I watching the (hash)Oscars or the (hash)Tonys? Either way I'm happy:) lol," tweeted a belter herself, Lea Michele.

? Leanne Italie ? Twitter http://twitter.com/litalie

___

NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON

Just as soon as Adele stepped off the stage after singing the Oscar-winning theme from "Skyfall," she kicked off her sparkly Louboutin platforms.

"I'm sorry. (Forget) that," she said, flinging the shoes onto the floor. A stagehand quickly swooped them up.

"I'd pick them up but I can't bend over," she said, motioning toward her tight beaded dress.

? Sandy Cohen ? http://www.twitter.com/APSandy .

___

QUICKQUOTE: SALMA HAYEK

"It's the night of the gold." ? Salma Hayek to Barbra Streisand, who both wore black-and-gold Oscar gowns.

? Sandy Cohen ? http://www.twitter.com/apsandy.

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CELEBRITY SCHMOOZING

It was maybe the next best thing to being there.

Down the road from the Academy Awards, musicians and models found common schmoozing ground at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's Oscar viewing dinner in West Hollywood.

Lithe supermodel Naomi Campbell sat next to music mogul Quincy Jones then gripped hands and chatted with Steven Tyler and the party host himself, Elton John.

Bono, wearing his customary tinted shades, gleefully kissed Jones on the top of his head, then hugged statuesque model Petra Nemcova.

"Elton's a warrior on the HIV, AIDS scourge, since before anyone can remember," Bono told The Associated Press. "Like Bruce Springsteen is 'the Boss', Quincy is 'the President.' He is so unique. And Elton is both 'the king' AND 'the queen.'"

? Solvej Schou ? Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Solvej_Schou

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QUICKQUOTE: JIM CARREY

"They symbolize my awkward spiritual struggle." ? Jim Carrey, joking about why he wore enormous prosthetic bare feet and had feathered wings stitched onto his jacket at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's Oscar viewing dinner.

? Solvej Schou ? Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Solvej_Schou

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DAVID ARQUETTE CRASHES OSCAR PRESS ROOM

Things got even more surreal for folks coming off the high of winning an Academy Award when they found a high-spirited David Arquette waiting backstage to interview them.

Nestled amid the rows of working press, the actor asked a series of non sequitur questions. He said he was covering the event for Sirius XM radio, which carries Howard Stern's show.

"Django Unchained" supporting actor Christoph Waltz was asked about the possibility of a black man being chosen pope.

Director John Kahrs, whose film "Paperman," won for animated short film, was asked what he thought of receiving condoms in his gift bag. Arquette told him he'd take them if Kahrs didn't want them.

Academy officials said they didn't hand out any gift bags.

"I guess I have a lot to learn," Arquette said when told that.

The actor says he decided to cover the event so he could get a view of entertainment reporting from the other side.

He also took the opportunity to make a pitch to Kahrs.

"I do lots of voices," he told the director, "so if you're ever looking ... "

? Hannah Dreier ? Twitter http://twitter.com/hannahdreier

___

BASSEY HITS IT OUTTA THE PARK

For all the sparkling young starlets and the edgy new host, it was none other than Dame Shirley Bassey who truly set the joint on fire early in the Oscar telecast.

The 76-year-old singer's rendition of the theme from "Goldfinger" ? or, as she sang so memorably, "GoldfinGAH" ? was a feel-good moment that won what was at the time the biggest ovation of the night.

Bassey, who recorded the song in the '60s to great acclaim, reprised it as part of the Academy's 50th anniversary tribute to the James Bond franchise.

On social networks, as people were debating vigorously how the telecast was going, there was no question as to how Bassey did: She was an unqualified hit.

Minutes after the performance, the singer and her song were trending on Twitter.

Adele, who was to perform her "Skyfall" theme later in the show, had her work cut out for her.

? Jocelyn Noveck ? Twitter http://twitter.com/JocelynNoveckAP

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QUICKQUOTE: CHRISTOPH WALTZ

"Quentin writes poetry and I like poetry." ? Supporting actor winner Christoph Waltz of "Django Unchained" about working with writer-director Quentin Tarantino.

? Beth Harris ? http://www.twitter.com/bethharrisap

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MAYBE IT LOOKED EASY ...

Charlize Theron, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe and Joseph Gordon-Levitt were one big bundle of nerves before they took the stage for their opening song-and-dance numbers.

Radcliffe danced by himself. Theron dabbed at her eyes and Gordon-Levitt stood silently as Oscar host Seth MacFarlane delivered the Oscar show's opening monologue.

Then it was time to hit the stage.

"Thank God!" Theron said afterward as she let out a sigh of relief.

"You stepped on my dress," she told Tatum.

Radcliffe and Gordon-Levitt bear-hugged after their dance routine.

"We did all right! We did all right," they told each other.

"It felt good! How did it look?" Gordon-Levitt asked.

"Well done," Radcliffe told him. "See you later!"

? Sandy Cohen ? http://www.twittermcom/APSandy

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QUICKQUOTE: BEN AFFLECK

"We don't expect to depart with anything but our integrity." ? Ben Affleck, shunning the nominations his film "Argo" received.

? Beth Harris ? http://www.twitter.com/bethharrisap

___

AND THE FANS SAY ... 'ARGO'

The clear fan favorite among fans in the Oscar bleachers was "Argo."

The bleacher crowd forced actor-director Ben Affleck to stop an interview with their loud chants of "Ben! Ben! Ben!"

They gave the film's producer, George Clooney, similar treatment and lavished applause on supporting actor nominee Alan Arkin.

Perhaps the strongest sign of fans' love for the CIA thriller was when the group was polled for its choice for best picture before any actors hit the red carpet.

While the chanting was spirited for "Les Miserables" and some other films, it was clearly loudest for "Argo."

? Anthony McCartney ? Twitter http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

___

JENNIFER BLEEPED

It's always fun to hear what Jennifer Lawrence has to say ? even if you have to lip read because she's being bleeped.

The bleeping started early for the charmingly blunt Lawrence, a best actress nominee for "Silver Linings Playbook," as ABC silenced her cheeky red carpet response to actress Kristin Chenoweth.

The two were bonding over "Dance Moms," the Lifetime reality series, when Lawrence asked Chenoweth if she liked it too.

Chenoweth: "Is the pope Catholic?"

Lawrence: "... ?" (We can't print her reply here, but the reference was to something a bear does in the woods.)

And the night, as they say, was still very young.

? Jocelyn Noveck ? Twitter http://twitter.com/JocelynNoveckAP

___

AMY ADAMS SITTING PRETTY

To slide, plop or shimmy?

That's the dilemma that faced Amy Adams in her flowing Oscar de la Renta gown when she approached her front-row seat inside the Dolby Theatre before the Oscars began.

After greeting fellow nominee Phillip Seymour Hoffman in the row behind her with a big hug, "The Master" co-star tilted to her right side and sort of shimmied down into her seat.

While Jennifer Aniston and Samuel L. Jackson mingled with attendees nearby, Adams held court in her fluffy dove grey fabric cloud.

Across the aisle, Bradley Cooper rushed his mother to meet Jean Dujardin, who took home the best actor Oscar last year.

? Derrik J. Lang ? Twitter http://twitter.com/derrikjlang

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JOAQUIN PHOENIX: THE GUY CAN MOVE

Joaquin Phoenix didn't waste any time getting into the Dolby Theatre, and the Oscar-nominated actor's dash across the red carpet didn't go unnoticed.

Red carpet host Chris Connelly heckled Phoenix, who has criticized the awards show, as he rushed by, saying he was setting new speed records.

Connelly then added, "You should be at the (NFL) combine," a reference to the athletic tests NFL recruits go through.

? Anthony McCartney ? Twitter http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

___

SHOWING OSCAR FANS LOVE

Oscar bleacher fans got a wave from some stars such as Jane Fonda, and a peace sign from others, including Channing Tatum.

Then there were those who pulled out all the stops.

Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter paused on the red carpet to pose for pictures for star-struck fans.

Melissa McCarthy stopped to beam and wave at every section of the bleachers, all but ignoring the professional photographers surrounding her.

Jessica Chastain blew the crowd a kiss.

And Joseph Gordon-Levitt topped it all off with an appreciative bow to his audience.

? Anthony McCartney ? Twitter http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-02-25-Oscars-Show%20Bits-Package/id-aca0e6aafdac4d6ba57b6924d0fcde78

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