Super-rich stash $21 tn in offshore havens

Wealthy tax evaders, aided by private banks have exploited loopholes in tax legislation and stashed over $21 tn in offshore funds, says a report. The capital drained from some developing countries, into tax-free havens such as Switzerland and the Cayman Islands, since 1970 would be enough to pay off national debts.

The findings show the gap between the haves and the have-nots is much larger than previously thought.
The document, entitled The Price of Offshore Revisited, was commissioned by The Tax Justice Network campaign group and leaked to the Guardian. The report provides the most detailed valuation of the offshore economy to date.

"The problem here is that the assets of these countries are held by a small number of wealthy individuals while the debts are shouldered by the ordinary people of these countries through their governments," wrote James Henry, expert on tax havens and former chief economist at consultancy McKinsey in his report.

The wealth of the super-rich is "protected by a highly paid, industrious bevy of professional enablers in the private banking, legal, accounting and investment industries taking advantage of the increasingly borderless, frictionless global economy."

Henry writes that a large part of the trillion dollar hoard belongs to around 92,000 individuals, an elite class of super-rich who make up 0.001 percent of the global population.

"These estimates reveal a staggering failure: inequality is much, much worse than official statistics show, but politicians are still relying on trickle-down to transfer wealth to poorer people," said John Christensen of the Tax Justice Network.

The report records the flow of capital from countries into offshores over the past few decades. Saudi Arabia saw almost $300 billion drained from their economy since the 1970s, while Russia saw almost $800 billion leave its economy in hidden assets since the fall of the Soviet Union. Nigeria issued a loss of $300 billion since the mid-1970s.

Henry points the finger at the world’s top ten private banks, among them UBS and Credit Suisse, for aiding wealthy clients to dodge taxes.

According to Henry’s figures, the top financial leaders processed more than $6 trillion in funds in 2010, more than double the previous year.

Fukushima contractor forced workers to fake radiation readings

A company charged with decontaminating the devastated Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant encouraged its workers to falsely lower their radiation dosimeter readings by covering the devices with lead, according to a leaked tape of an internal meeting.

Nuclear plant workers are not allowed to be exposed to more than 50 millisieverts of radiation a year. But managers at Build-up, a company that provided insulation on the pipes that would pump irradiated water out of the plant, believed that doses experienced inside the plant, which suffered a meltdown, meant workers would quickly reach their limit.

A senior executive gave the team at the site lead boxes that they were told to make into shields.
The workers were then told to place these over the dosimeters. Lead effectively blocks radiation, and produces a significantly lower reading.
When some of them refused, the executive called a meeting.

The executive cajoled the workers by saying, “You can no longer make a living when the dose runs out,” according to a tape that was given by somebody present at the meeting to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper.
"I think this is almost a crime," retorted one of the workers.
An argument broke out, and while the executive said the decision was voluntary, the rhetoric became threatening.
"Perhaps you are not cut out for working at nuclear plants," he said. "Go back to your hometown and do some other job."

Three of the workers resigned immediately, while at least nine agreed to wear the shields.

Build-up worked at the site from November 2011 until March 2012. The company has admitted that workers used the shields on at least one occasion.
The government says it will launch an investigation.

A newly-published Stanford University study says that between 15 and 1,300 people could die as a result of exposure to radiation from Fukushima.

Brian Cox: too few science courses to meet growing demand

Entry requirements for degree courses in science are going "through the roof" because the government is not sponsoring enough places to meet soaring application levels, Brian Cox has said.
The Wonders of the Universe presenter said university budgets were not sufficient to cater for the explosion in popularity in science and engineering courses among young people.

Higher grade targets for A-level pupils applying to read science at University are not a sign of higher standards but of a shortage of places on offer, he added.

Prof Cox, who will teach a first-year undergraduate physics module at Manchester university next year, said: "We seem to have turned a corner in this country. It was the case for years that the number of kids interested in science was going down.

"The problem is that there are so many wanting to do science now that we don’t have university places for them, and you can see that as evidenced by the entry grades they need to do science, which are going up and up.

"That’s not an example of rising standards – what it’s really an example of is the fact that there are too many people chasing too few university places, in an area that we recognise as being nationally important."

The number of teenagers studying science and maths at A-level has risen dramatically in recent years, with entries in physics and chemistry up by a fifth in just five years.

This year universities including Bath and Nottingham made an elite A* grade at A-level a requirement for pupils wishing to study certain science courses for the first time.

Speaking at the launch of a two-day "science summer school" at St Paul's Way Trust School in the east end of London, the physicist called on ministers to raise investment and meet demand for science courses.

He said: "My challenge to government is, you’ve been saying for years you want more scientists and engineers in the economy – what are you going to do about it?

"Although [science] looks expensive, we actually spend sod all on it. The entire science budget, depending on how you define it, is about five to five and a half billion pounds a year, on a government spend of 620 [billion pounds].

"The university sector is very cheap and actually makes money. We’re not talking about [investing] large amounts of money, we’re just talking about a statement of intent."

Prof Cox said the hundreds of local pupils who turned out on the first two days of their school holiday to take part in the programme were evidence of the growing enthusiasm among young people for the subject.

The GCSE and A-level pupils heard talks by Prof Cox and other leading British scientists including Pen Hadow, the Polar explorer, and Prof Jon Butterworth who discussed Cern's search and probable discovery of the Higgs Boson particle.

Lord Andrew Mawson, one of the school's sponsors, said: "Government really needs to understand the significance of what Brian is saying about the future of science education.

"Our economy, in the situation where we are nearly bankrupt, is not going to be built by romanticism or by policy papers in Downing Street – it is going to be built by practical people who get into science and technology at this level."

Original source here

Colorado Shooter said to be a 'Brilliant' Science Student

DENVER — James Eagen Holmes came from a well-tended San Diego enclave of two-story homes with red-tiled roofs, where neighbors recall him as a clean-cut, studious young man of sparing words.

Tall and dark-haired, he stared clear-eyed at the camera in a 2004 high school yearbook snapshot, wearing a white junior varsity soccer uniform – No. 16. The son of a nurse, Arlene, and a software company manager, Robert, James Holmes was a brilliant science scholar in college.

The biggest mystery surrounding the 24-year-old doctoral student was why he would have pulled on a gas mask and shot dozens of people early Friday in a suburban Denver movie theater, as police allege.

In the age of widespread social media, no trace of Holmes could be found on Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Twitter or anywhere on the Web. Either he never engaged or he scrubbed his trail.

A longtime neighbor in San Diego, where Holmes grew up, remembers only a "shy guy ... a loner" from a churchgoing family. In addition to playing soccer at Westview High School, he ran cross country.

The bookish demeanor concealed an unspooling life. Holmes struggled to find work after graduating with highest honors in spring 2010 with a neuroscience degree from the University of California, Riverside, said the neighbor, retired electrical engineer Tom Mai.

Holmes enrolled last year in a neuroscience Ph.D. program at the University of Colorado-Denver but was in the process of withdrawing, said school officials, who didn't provide a reason. The school later said in a statement that he left the program in June 2012.

As part of the advanced program in Denver, a James Holmes had been listed as making a presentation in May about Micro DNA Biomarkers in a class named "Biological Basis of Psychiatric and Neurological Disorders."

In academic achievement, "he was at the top of the top," recalled Riverside Chancellor Timothy P. White.

Holmes concentrated his study on "how we all behave," White added. "It's ironic and sad."

From a distance, Holmes' life appears unblemished, a young man with unlimited potential. There are no indications he had problems with police.

Somehow, the acclaimed student and quiet neighbor reached a point where he painted his hair red, called himself "The Joker," the green-haired villain from the Batman movies, according to New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, who said he had been briefed on the matter.

Authorities say Holmes arrived at the theater dressed in black, outfitted in a gas mask, ballistic helmet, vest and leggings, black tactical gloves and protectors on his throat and groin. He was armed with an assault-style rifle, a shotgun and Glock handgun.

Police said he started his attack by tossing at least gas canisters into the theater, where he had bought a ticket for the midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises," the new Batman movie.

A federal law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing probe into the rampage, said Holmes bought four guns from retailers in the last two months.

Holmes bought his first Glock pistol in Aurora, Colo., on May 22. Six days later, he picked up a Remington shotgun in Denver. About two weeks later, he bought a .223 caliber Smith & Wesson rifle in Thornton, Colo., and then a second Glock in Denver on July 6 – 13 days before the shooting, the official said.

A high-volume drum magazine was attached to the rifle, an assault weapon, the official said. Police Chief Dan Oates said that a 100-round drum magazine for the rifle was recovered from the scene.

"I'm told by experts that with that drum magazine, he could have gotten off 50 to 60 rounds, even if it was semiautomatic, within one minute," Oates said at a news conference. "And as far as we know, it was a pretty rapid pace of fire in that theater."

Julie Adams, whose son played junior varsity soccer with Holmes, said her son remembered little about the suspect, which was unusual for the tight-knit team.

"I don't think many of the kids (teammates) knew him. He was kind of a loner," she said.

Jackie Mitchell, a furniture mover who lives several blocks from the suspect's apartment building in Colorado, said he had drinks with Holmes at a bar on Tuesday night, though he showed no sign of distress or violence.

After Holmes approached him, "we just talked about football. He had a backpack and geeky glasses and seemed like a real intelligent guy, and I figured he was one of the college students," Mitchell said.

When Mitchell saw Holmes' photo after the shooting, "the hair stood up on my back," he said. "I know this guy."

Holmes is not talking to police and has asked for a lawyer, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the case. Police found jars of chemicals in Holmes' booby-trapped apartment with wires nearby, the law enforcement official said.

When he surrendered meekly in the movie house parking lot, Holmes told authorities what he'd done at his residence in the Denver suburb of Aurora, the third most populous city in Colorado.

"Our hearts go out to those who were involved in this tragedy and to the families and friends of those involved," Holmes' family said in a statement Friday. "We ask that the media respect our privacy during this difficult time."

San Diego Superior Court spokeswoman Karen Dalton said there were no records found under his name, not even for a traffic ticket. Riverside County prosecutors also have no criminal record for him, said John Hall, a spokesman for the district attorney's office.

On Friday morning, police escorted the suspect's father from the family's San Diego home. The mother stayed inside, receiving visitors who came to offer support.

San Diego police spokeswoman Lt. Andra Brown spoke to reporters in the driveway of the Holmes' home, on behalf of the family.

"As you can understand, the Holmes family is very upset about all of this," she said. "It's a tragic event and it's taken everyone by surprise."



Original source here

Understanding maths 'more important than learning by rote'

Teaching children maths by making them learn times tables by rote could worsen exam results because they risk failing to properly understand the subject, according to an Oxford University study.

It found those who were good at maths reasoning aged eight tended to do better at the subject in future years than classmates who simply knew their numbers.

Professor Peter Bryant, of the university’s education department, said it showed that teaching mathematical reasoning should not be ignored.

Earlier this month Nick Gibb, the schools minister, said primary school children should learn times tables by “rote” to develop “fluency” in maths. Only by doing that would they be comfortable with long division and understand more difficult topics like algebra.

He said the lack of confidence with numbers that many people felt was “having a profound impact on our society and economy”.

A draft maths curriculum, the final version of which is due to be unveiled soon, suggests that nine year-olds should know their times tables up to 12x12 and that pupils should be able to work with numbers up to 10 million by the end of primary school.

Currently, children need to know up to 10x10 and be familiar with numbers below 1,000 by the age of 11.

Speaking to the Times Educational Supplement, Prof Bryant said: “Both arithmetic and maths reasoning are important and necessary, but we think there is a danger of maths reasoning moving out.”

His study showed that strong maths reasoning aged eight was a better predictor of being good at the subject aged 11 and 14 than strong arithmetic skills.

He conceded that “you can’t teach reasoning without children being able to calculate”.

The National Union of Teachers says the emphasis on rote learning will “stultify the learning process”.

Mike Ellicock, chief executive of the campaign group National Numeracy, said he had no objection to an emphasis on times tables, because they were very useful in real life.

But he warned: “Far too many children are going to feel maths is a subject they 'can’t do’ if we over-emphasise the procedural tools like times tables, rather than what we need the tools for; to solve problems.”

He said there was a good chance children would be interested in maths if teachers focused on mathematical reasoning and that the “pinnacle of primary maths should be confidence and competence in thinking mathematically”.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said the emphasis on arithmetic would not come at the expense of mathematical reasoning but would enhance it. “In emphasising fluency, the expectation is that pupils develop methods that are underpinned by mathematical concepts,” she said.

A fifth of pupils leave primary school without reaching the expected level in maths. The new National Curriculum for England will raise the requirement of what children are expected to know at each age, which could lead to that proportion rising, at least in the short term.

Five and six year-olds will be expected to count to 100, recognise basic fractions and memorise simple sums. In Year Two they will be expected to know their two, five and 10 times tables, add and subtract two-digit numbers in their heads and begin to use graphs.

Original source here

Court: School Must Identify Students Who Complains About Teachers

A Florida appellate court on Thursday ruled that the identities of students who submit complaints about teachers to public schools -- including colleges and universities -- are a matter of public record, and must be disclosed to citizens, the Associated Press reports
Former Santa Fe College math instructor Darnell Rhea believes the school didn't his semester-to-semester contract for part-time teaching at two campuses because a student complaint email alleged that Rhea made humiliating remarks in class, and that his teaching methods were unorthodox. Rhea said he believed the email was sent by a student who had only attended one class.

The 70-year-old retired public school teacher successfully argued in front of a three-judge panel that the student’s name is not covered by state and federal laws granting confidentiality to education records because such complaints don’t directly relate to students.

The panel sided with Rhea, ruling that Santa Fe College must release the name of the student who sent the email.

Barbara Petersen, president of the Tallahassee-based First Amendment Foundation, said the ruling is significant because courts in some states have interpreted the federal Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act differently.

FERPA does not prohibit the disclosure of education records, but it withholds federal funding from schools that have a policy or practice of permitting the disclosure of records "directly related to a student,” the AP reports.

According to District Judge Stephanie Ray, such complaints relate to teachers, but only tangentially to the students who submit them.

The opinion reversed a decision by Circuit Judge Victor Hulsander, who, according to the appellate panel, had erroneously ruled that the student’s identity was a confidential education record, CBS12 News reports. The college had released the email in question to Rhea, but the student’s name was withheld.

The case will return to Hulsander for further action, but Rhea has said he is not interested in getting his job back or any damages.

Matt Williams, vice president of the New Faculty Majority, a group that represents those off the tenure track, told Inside Higher Ed he was pleased to hear Rhea had won the case. "If your employment is on the line, you have to be able to defend yourself," he said, adding that he has heard from many non-tenure-track faculty members that their contracts weren't renewed after a student or two sent in an anonymous complaint.

Santa Fe College has denied the complaint was the reason Rhea’s contract was not renewed.



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Moorhead Primary School blames council for academy delay

A Derby primary school has accused the city council of getting in the way of its plan to become an academy.

Moorhead Primary School says its scheduled switch on 1 September is under threat because of the authority's refusal to sign a key document.

The contract asks Derby City Council to accept liability for any staff legal claims relating to its time in charge of the school.

The authority says it is not prepared to take on additional financial risk.


'Issues need resolving'

Schools which opt to become academies leave council control and receive their funding directly from the government.

When Labour assumed control of the council in May, one of its first decisions was to withdraw the extra support offered by the council for schools following this route.

It said it had fully co-operated with Moorhead ahead of its changeover but felt unable to accept the extra liability as it would no longer receive government funding for the school.

In a statement the authority said its refusal to sign the document would "in no way" prevent the school becoming an academy on 1 September.

The change will see staff members who previously worked for the council transferred to the school's new sponsors, the Landau Forte Charitable Trust.

But Adey Greaves, chairman of Moorhead's governors, said the school needed to resolve the legal issue with the council before proceeding with the transfer.

He said: "We're stuck between a rock and a hard place. We've got angry parents... who were expecting us to become an academy as of September and presently we're stuck in limbo.

"But we will become an academy - whether it's on the first of September, October, November, December or even another year. It will happen, but we need to get some issues resolved before we do."


Original source here

MY BRAIN KNOWS MY PASSWORD

Some people keep passwords in books or on sticky notes, but what would you do if you never had to remember another password? A new technology claims to be able to prompt your brain directly for a password without your interaction. according to Popular Science it's, "based on an idea known as implicit learning, in which the brain subconsciously learns a pattern without consciously recognizing it."

subjects were implicitly taught a pattern by playing a video game. Weeks later their behaviors indicated they could recall the pattern, but their conscious mind could not. "The idea could form a security scheme in which an authorized person is embedded with a sequence in an initial session. Previous studies have shown that sequences learned implicitly simply can’t be recalled or understood by the brain, so there’s no way the person could willingly or unwillingly give up their authenticating password (in the future)." via Popular Science

CLASSIC MUSIC BOX PROTOTYPE MEETS IPAD

Sometimes an iPad is more or less an overpriced toy, what with all of the apps, games and different capabilities. But what if the nostalgic gizmos of fun times past were updated to make the tablet device a beautiful and interactive toy -- no gaming experience required?

Joelie Aeschlima, a design student at the School of Art and Design in Lausanne, Switzerland, created three wooden music boxes, aptly named ‘Little Boxes’ that play music when cranked on an iPad.

When one of the boxes is set on the iPad screen, the tablet recognizes it and plays music when the box is cranked. Each box is a different side and plays different sounds, on top of that, they each create visuals when interacting with iPad. The graphics are somewhere between interactive screen-saver and old school kaleidoscope. The boxes are just prototypes and will probably stay that way. However, for a cool peek at the prototype with a full demo, check out the video below.

FIRM Can Double The Success Rate To Cure Atrial Fibrillation

As posted on:http://www.etechmag.com/2012/07/19/firm-double-success-rate-cure-atrial-fibrillation.html

A kind of heart arrhythmias, Atrial Fibrillation (AF) which causes irregularities in the human heart beat, is treated in a conventional way of Catheter Ablation therapy, taking several hours to complete with lesser success percentage.

A team of scientists from Indiana University, UC San Diego, and UCLA, have devised a new technique that, for the first time, has found the core reason causing AF. The electrical spinning tops present in the human heart function in a way that leads to the faster heart beat, so called eye of the storm.

By using the FIRM (Focal Impulse and Rotor Modulation) technique scientists were not only able to slow down the Atrial Fibrillation, they could terminate it as well. The success rate of FIRM, as compared to the previous cure, is double and it took the doctors only 2.5 minutes to complete the process.

The earlier tests were carried out on 92 subjects which is clearly not enough to authenticate the procedure but the researchers hope to increase the level of its authenticity by involving more patients in to this practice which, if becomes practical, will be a landmark in the medical industry.

World’s Youngest Computer Prodigy, An 8 Years Old Pakistani

Earlier this year Pakistan lost the Arifa Karim, who was the youngest computer prodigy in the world before the moment she passed away.

To follow her footsteps another youngster from Pakistan has recently been named as the youngest Microsoft Certified professional at the age of 8 years and 24 days.

Shafay Thobani, who appeared in Prometric test in April this year and passed the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist test with 91 percent to become the world’s youngest MCTS. After 13 months of training he passed Microsoft Windows 7 Configuration and Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2.

It is very unusual for a boy of his age to master the concepts of DNS and IP. I wish him very good luck for his future believing that we may have an innovator moving into the time.

Source:etechmag

Google shares rise as strong ad business eases macro fears

Shares of Google Inc rose 3 percent in premarket trade on Friday after the company posted a healthy gain at its online advertising business, reassuring the Wall Street that it was performing well despite a slow economy.

A slew of analysts reiterated their ratings and price targets on Google's stock, saying there were no real surprises and that the positives had offset the negatives in the quarter.

"There is still material return on investment upside available to advertisers from search advertising, and that such upside will continue to fuel ongoing demand for search ads and revenue growth," Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Carlos Kirjner said in a note.

Google's advertising rates have been pressured as consumers increasingly use smartphones to access mobile versions of the Web, but the concern was alleviated as overall clicks on Google's search ads jumped 42 percent in the second quarter.

"While the quarterly results were somewhat unremarkable, we believe shares may form a base at or near $600, in part because investors will soon shift attention to back-to-school and holiday shopping seasonality," Stifel Nicolaus said.

The brokerage has a "hold" rating on Google's stock.

The success of Google's web browser, Chrome, will offset rising traffic acquisition costs (TAC), Barclays Capital analyst Anthony DiClemente said in a client note.

TAC is the money paid by internet search companies to online firms that direct traffic to their websites.

DiClemente is a five star-rated analyst for the accuracy of his earnings estimates on Google, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine data.

Chrome users nearly doubled by the second quarter to 310 million.

Benchmark Co, which has a "hold" rating on Google's stock, raised its price target by $10 to $625.

NO WORD ON MOTOROLA

The world's No.1 search engine, however, evaded questions about its plans for Motorola Mobility, which it recently bought for $12.5 billion, saying Google was yet to complete its homework on the various businesses.

"Results were somewhat difficult to decipher with the consolidation of the Motorola Mobility acquisition," RBC Capital Markets analysts said.

"Management did not outline a specific plan for the future of MMI as a part of Google, and so we anticipate that Street estimates for the combination could vary quite widely."

Motorola reported an operating loss of $233 million in the second quarter on revenue of $1.25 billion.

Barclays' DiClemente said Google had the ability to instill fiscal discipline for Motorola to limit the spending investors fear.

Google also did not provide much details about its hardware business where margins are low and competition from the likes of Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is fierce.

Benchmark said it expects aggressive development of mobile devices, which could push expenses higher in the near-term, while J.P. Morgan Securities said it continues to expect Motorola product portfolio to be pared back and headcount to be reduced.

Shares of the company, which closed at $593.06 on the Nasdaq on Thursday, rose to $610 in trading before the bell. The stock has dropped 11.5 percent since its touched a four-year high of $670.25 in January.

Users report Nexus 7 screen glitches

Buyers of Google’s new Nexus 7 tablet have taken to the web to report problems with the device’s screen.

Issues raised on forums online include dead pixels and screens that are loose in their housings.

A number of fixes have emerged online, too, however, with users identifying a misaligned clip and being able to secure the screen by squeezing the housing tightly together. Other users have said that tightening up loose screws has fixed the problem.

Manufactured by Asus, the device is also apparently suffering some dead pixels in a small number of cases reported by users online. These are covered under the Nexus 7 guarantee, from either Google or retailers depending on where the device was purchased.

Some users, however, have reported that their attempts to fix their own devices have cracked the Nexus 7’s screen, potentially leaving them without redress.

Asus have not yet responded to requests for comment, and the scale of the problem is not clear.

The Nexus 7, which has been selling well in both America and the UK, has received positive reviews and largely been praised for its build quality. Online commentators have suggested that the faulty units could come from a single batch.

Starting at £160 for the 8GB version – less than half the price of the cheapest iPad 2 – the Nexus 7 has an Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor, WiFi (not 3G) and a 1.2-megapixel camera.

The device is the first tablet to be manufactured in direct association with Google, and is largely seen as a competitor to Amazon's Kindle Fire, which the online retailer uses as a platform to promote the purchase of its online film and books offerings.

Mozilla's Firefox Mobile OS to battle an Android monopoly

The corporate chiefs of Apple, Google and Microsoft betting billions of dollars and thousands of highly-paid engineers on their competing mobile operating systems. Despite these high stakes, Mozilla, the non-profit organisation behind the open source Firefox web browser, is planning to take a seat at the table with its own smartphone software.

The first pictures of the underdog emerged this week and enthusiasts can now download early versions to test. At first glance, it looks every bit the modern smartphone operating system, with an interface that recalls elements of iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

The question is whether Mozilla, with 2011 revenues of $121m, can really compete with the big three, who between them enjoyed sales of more than $200bn last year.

Mozilla’s reason for taking on the task is clear. Its share of the desktop market is falling, thanks mainly to its biggest benefactor (via the deal that makes Google the default search engine for Firefox users), Google, and its rival software Chrome, which has enjoyed a rapid rise to become the world’s most popular web browser.

Meanwhile, as Mozilla loses ground on PCs, its corporate rivals are carving up the mobile market. Smartphones and tablets are now widely viewed as the most important computing platforms.

“A lot of the innovation, or even most of it, that we’re seeing now is happening in smartphones and tablets,” said Ian Fogg, a mobile analysts at IHS Screen Digest.

Mozilla’s mission is to popularise web standards and open source software, but just creating alternative browser apps for iOS, Android and Windows Phone is not going to do it.

Only Android rules allow Mozilla to offer a full mobile version of its browser anyway; Apple and Microsoft exercise stricter control over what capabilities third party apps can have. What’s more, although data is hard to come by, it’s clear only a small minority of smartphone owners ever switch from their default browser app.

So to stay relevant, Mozilla is creating its own mobile OS.

Like Android, Firefox Mobile OS, is based on Linux, the operating system that anyone can contribute to or adapt because the source code is free. Unlike Google’s leading mobile operating system, however, Firefox Mobile OS will not play host to “native apps” that are specially developed for it.

Instead, it will use the new web coding standard, HTML5, to allow developers to create apps that, in theory, could work on any operating system. Other smartphone operating systems can run web apps already, but they are typically less capable than native apps as they are unable to plug into the advanced software and hardware features. Mozilla says Firefox Mobile OS will be different.

“[It] unlocks many of the current limitations of web development on mobile, allowing HTML5 applications to access the underlying capabilities of a phone, previously only available to native applications,” it said.

That may make app creation simpler and so appeal to developers, although the crucial question of how they will get paid for their work remains open.

Mozilla has already won support for Firefox OS from another key constituency: mobile networks. This month it announced big names such as Deutsche Telekom, Etisalat, Sprint, and Telefónica were on board.

“The operators want there to be competition in smartphones,” explained Ian Fogg. “They don’t want a world where Apple and Google dominate everything.”

In the West, that is already the case, and given the financial mismatch, there is little chance of Mozilla matching the established players. But opportunities abound in the developing world, where cheap Android handsets are only now reaching the market, and Apple and Microsoft devices are attainable for only the very richest.

Mozilla is overt in its focus on this relatively untapped seam, boasting of the ability of its technology to “deliver compelling smartphone experiences at attainable prices”.

“As billions of users are expected to come online for the first time in the coming years, it is important to deliver a compelling smartphone experience that anyone can use,” said Gary Kovacs, Mozilla’s chief executive.

So while it might seem there is no space for yet another smartphone competitor here, industry watchers are keenly interested in Mozilla’s progress.

“There’s a risk Android could become a monopolistic player in these developing markets,” said Ian Fogg. “RIM is still popular there but it has real problems.”

“Mozilla have decided they aren’t going to go head to head with iOS and Android here. They’ve decided the way they can compete in mobile is to jump to the next big thing which is these developing markets.”

“They might find the Firefox Mobile OS is really good enough to match the established players down the line, and then they’ll have the innovator’s dilemma.”

But that is some years away. The first Firefox Mobile OS handsets are due out in Brazil early next year.

Japan’s spirited third city

Every trip does not have to be about ticking off a sightseeing list. Some of the best destinations are seen by getting under its skin to experience it like a local -- and a visit to Osaka, Japanese’s third largest city after Tokyo and Yokohama, is a prime example.

While it does have a national art museum, acastle and an aquarium, really discovering this city is a lesson in experiential travel. Chowing down on local dishes and enjoying a beer with boisterous, good-humoured Osakans at the baseball will teach you more about Japanese culture than any museum or temple.

The locals
People who live in Osaka tend to shed the conservatism that is found elsewhere in Japan -- perhaps owing to its prosperity as an arts, theatre and cultural hub at one time -- and the first place you will notice this is on the subway. Elderly ladies laugh together sweetly, teenagers stand in groups and poke fun at each other while businessman bark angrily on cell phones in animated discussion. Bucking the Japanese train etiquette seen elsewhere in the country, passengers do not speak in hushed tones while staring at the ground and the no-cell phone sign is rarely adhered to. Osakans are full of life and down-to-earth, so whether you are dining out, grabbing a beer or just asking for directions, you will find that it is easy to strike up a conversation with the city’s friendly and forward locals.

Eat and be merry
Osaka is known as the food capital of Japan with fresh seafood from Osaka Bay and produce from the surrounding mountains, and was referred to as “Japan's kitchen” during the Edo Period (1601-1867) as essential goods were sent here from all over the country to be shipped worldwide from its busy port.

Osakans are passionate about feasting and even have their own expression to describe it, kuidaore: “to eat oneself bankrupt”.  There are plenty of places to gorge yourself in the city, and while Osaka does have an abundance of high-end international and Japanese dining options, most will not have you filing for bankruptcy just yet. The city is known for its traditional cheap eats and any trip to Osaka would not be complete without sampling what’s on offer.

Takoyaki (dumplings filled with octopus) is a delicacy that originated in Osaka, and you will find little takeaway shopfronts throughout the city, with the best in the Dotombori district in minami (the south of the city). Order yourself half-a-dozen takoyaki topped with mayonnaise and a thick sauce similar to Worcestershire, stab one with your toothpick and shovel it into your mouth. Chomping into one of these piping hot dumplings will inevitably have you scalding the roof of your mouth, but it is all part of the experience.
Okonomiyaki, a savoury-style pancake that translates roughly to “as you like it”, is another Osakan favourite. It can be made with a variety of ingredients which, when done Osaka-style, are all scrambled together with batter and cabbage before hitting the grill. Choose your own ingredients from tender squid, plump prawns or juicy pork, topped off withbonito (fish) flakes, a thick brown okonomiyaki sauce and mayonnaise. The best spots to try okonomiyaki are the tiny “mom and pop” operations that are full of history and authentic atmosphere, where you will feel as though you are dining in someone’s home. Try popular Tengu (Toyosaki 3-15-19; 06-6372-7676) near Nakatsu station. Or jump off at Dobutsuen Mae station on the Midosuji and Sakaisuji lines, head into the covered arcade and ask around for one of the best okonomiyaki spots in the city 

Dotombori
Tokyo may be known for its neon and nightlife but Osaka has its own slice of madness -- and it is called Dotombori. All the action in this southern district concentrates around the Dotombori canal, Dotombori street and on the Ebisubashi bridge. It is best explored on a weekend once the sun goes down, when it takes on a B-grade horror movie atmosphere with giant mechanical moving crabs, oversized hot dogs, puffer fish and cows hanging overhead from buildings among flashing neon and coloured billboards. On ground level, crowds wander the strip taking snaps of convincing plastic food models in front of restaurants, hawkers squeal about meal deals and spiky bleached-blonde Japanese men in suits attempt to woo young women to the “host” bars nearby (male versions of the hostess bar). Come here to take it all in, grab a cheap ramen (noodle dish in broth) from the open-air 24-hour Kinryu Ramen street stall (Dotombori 1-7-26; 06-6211-3999; you can’t miss the giant dragons on the roof) and people-watch for hours.

Beer and baseball
Two things close to many Osakans’ hearts, and essential pursuits for any stopover in this town, are beer and baseball. The summer season from June to September sees beer gardens popping up all over the city, typically located on rooftops of hotel buildings like the Ramada and department stores like Hanshin.  Usually the offer is all you can drink (nomihodai) (beer and spirits, but most opt for large frothy lagers) and eat (tabehodai) for about 3,500 yen – guaranteeing a rowdy night out.

Another good spot for experiencing the city’s spirit is at a baseball game during the March to October season where locals are at the height of their boisterousness. The majority of Osakans are Hanshin Tiger fans and are known as the country’s most dedicated and fanatical fans. Catch baseball fever at a game at Koshien stadium, a 20-minute train ride from Osaka on the Kobe line, and hang out with fans amid of barrage of chants, trumpets, Tigers flags waving in the air and thousands of balloons being released at the seventh inning.

US shooting keeps "Dark Knight" box office at low end of range

LOS ANGELES: Opening day ticket sales for Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises" reached the low end of box office projections as some moviegoers appeared to steer clear of theaters on Friday after a fatal gun rampage at one of its early screenings.

The film grossed $74 million on Friday in the United States and Canada and is seen generating $173 million by the end of the weekend, people with knowledge of industry figures said on Saturday.

Official figures were not released by the distributor, Warner Bros., and for the first time box office watchers could remember, Hollywood's other major film studios also decided to forego giving out ticket sales figures on Saturday.

A Warner Brothers spokeswoman did not return calls seeking comment on the Friday night numbers.

"Dark Knight Rises" was one of the most-anticipated films of the year before a gunman opened fire on moviegoers at a midnight screening in Aurora, Colorado, early Friday, killing 12 people and wounding 58 more.

Ahead of the debut, box office forecasters predicted opening weekend sales in a range of $170 million to $198 million from Friday through Sunday, just shy of the record $207 million set by superhero movie "The Avengers" in May.

"The cable news networks were wall-to-wall with the shooting, so it had some shock value that will keep people away," former Columbia Pictures marketing chief Peter Sealey said. "But it will be short term. This movie will play for five or six weeks and still do great business."

Paul Dergarabedian, head of Hollywood.com Box Office, said the movie benefited from pre-sold tickets, leading to people being determined to see the film, despite any possible fears.

After the shooting, theaters tightened security, and Warner Bros. scaled back promotional plans, canceling a Paris premiere and appearances by the cast and crew in Mexico and Japan.

Ronn Torossian, chief executive of New York-based 5W Public Relations which is not involved with the movie's release, said it was smart for the studios to stay quiet in the early days after such a horrific event and he expected the marketing for upcoming, violent films like "The Expendables" to tweak their advertising. But by September, if not earlier, that will change.

"This will affect marketing movies in the short term," he said. "(But) the media has a very short memory, and it's something that in the long run will not affect" film promotion.

LONE KILLER, NO COPYCAT

Outside theaters across the country, where police maintained tight security on Saturday, ticket lines were mostly filled and fans seemed little concerned about a copycat shooting.

"I doesn't make me nervous. It's an isolated incident," said Charles Song, 31, at the Arclight cinema in Hollywood. "I don't think it's going to spur any copycats. It's just one crazy lunatic that went off."

But the event does seem to have changed the thinking of some moviegoers, perhaps families, who might have planned to attend, and other films may be feeling the impact.

Animated family film "Ice Age: Continental Drift," which grossed $44.6 million last week and was the top-selling film, had a larger-than-anticipated 51 percent drop for its second week. It sold $6.5 million on Friday and is projected to collect $23 million for the weekend, box office sources said.

"The Amazing Spider-Man," which opened with near record sales on July 3, sold $6.5 million worth of tickets and is estimated to hit $11.5 million this weekend. The film, produced by Sony Pictures Entertainment, has passed $217 million in domestic sales on Thursday, according to Box Office Mojo.

A representative for 20th Century Fox, which released "Ice Age," was not available for comment, and a spokesman for Sony Pictures, which is behind "Spider-Man," declined comment.

"Dark Knight Rises" is the third and final film in a popular Batman series starring Christian Bale as the crime-fighting hero and directed by Christopher Nolan. Warner Bros. spent $250 million to produce it plus tens of millions more on marketing.

On Friday, the studio said showings just after midnight had grossed $30.6 million in the North American (U.S. and Canadian) market. Warner Bros. later said it would not release any updated sales figures until Monday.

"The Dark Knight" took in $158 million domestically over its debut weekend in July 2008, a record at the time. It went on to ring up sales of more than $1 billion around the world. (Reuters)

Headline July 23rd, 2012 / The 'Sad -Tragic' Sum Of History!

"The 'Sad -Tragic' Sum Of History!"

Nothing is more despised in America than the twenty six volume report of the Warren Commission, ''a dead whale decomposing on a beach.'' Mailer takes hundreds and hundreds to present the fact, a twice - hundred - times told tale: Oswald's wildly resentful mother, Marguerite; his time in New York City, at the Bronx Zoo and with truant officer; his mouthy years in the marines, learning Russian and spouting a lending Library Marxism. 

Then - after the Russian years -his return to America with Marina; the grubby jobs he felt were beneath him; the even grubbier apartments; the purchase of the rifle and the bragging photos with it; the attempt to kill the right wing General Walker, the summer months of 1963, at the edges of New Orlean's scummy ''Bermuda Triangle'' of mobsters, anti Castro Cuban exiles and poetic freaks like the eyebrow less David Ferrie. 

Finally, the failed attempt to get to Cuba by way of Mexico city; a return to Dallas, where Marina had taken shelter with the kindly Quaker Ruth Paine; one last job at the Texas School Book Depository, and one last alias O.H. Lee. Despite the herculean effort, the bad news is that Mailer, fails. 

The Russian lenses, when he even wears them, disappoint like the first pair fitted to the Hubble telescope. For whole chapters, he displays the KGB's faith in endless accretion. The whale, albeit white, remains beached, and onto the huge blubbery slices of Warren Commission transcript that the author serves up, along with great cuts from books by Priscilla Johnson and Edward Epstein. 

Mailer dabs only smidgens of his own tangy mustard. He abandons Oswald at the most crucial moment in his tale to give us some pointless paragraphs of recollection from Lady Bird Johnson, one car behind the Kennedy's in the motorcade.

A reader wants to take a bellows to the sparks and hints of the old, impossible Mailer that are scattered around: the big ideas. So, when the frontier was finally closed the imagination inevitably turned to paranoia. But still the whale won't breathe. Even now, decades after this tragedy, there now remains more than 200 undocumented hours of Oswald's life between 1962 and April 63. 

And yet, after 600 pages, Mailer must still admit the possibility that the 'sad-tragic sum' of history of Oswald was never more than ''over-ambitious yet much henpecked husband, with an evil and unbalanced psyche....'' But to be sure Mailer accomplishes much, and it was never unusual for him to achieve. 

Mailer compellingly ponders Oswald's connection with George De Mohrenschildt and the chance that this Dallas adventurer was sent to debrief him for the CIA or even run him as a client!! Mailer's pursuit of Jack Ruby and his killing of Oswald on impulse is dazzling! 

So as I wind up this painful post and reflect here and now, I can only marvel at how an angry little man found himself in the right place and time to change the world and its history because a month before, in applying for a warehouse job, he pleased the boss by calling him ''sir.'' 

Many many thanks to !WOW! Oh, all this is turning into something of exquisite International beauty. The Samdailytimes you see on the screen before you is becoming the most honoured work of the entire World! Your World!

Good night & God bless!

SAM Daily Times - The Voice of The Voiceless

Would you wear a giant animal tail in the name of fashion?

By Wajiha Malik

Correspondent, SAM Daily Times

If you happen to spot a giant squirrel tail coming out of someone's jeans in the near future, fear not. She isn't a mutant. She's a trendsetter.
Japanese street wear retailer “Kigu” is bringing life-sized animal and dinosaur tails to the masses. TellTails are a new line of wearable animal tails sold in the U.K. and by Kigu.
Adventurous dressers can choose from a variety of hyper-realistic tails in models such as Lizard, Squirrel, Dinosaur, Lion, Lemur and Fox. Or rather, they could, before many of the models sold out.
"We believe that everyone has a tail in them just waiting to be wagged, a residual longing not quite expelled from the evolutionary process," referencing the theories of Charles Darwin in their explanation” and become purveyors of the finest handmade tails for Bipeds."

Illuminate (Gilded Wings, #1) by Aimee Agresti

Haven Terra is a brainy, shy high school outcast. But everything begins to change when she turns sixteen. Along with her best friend Dante and their quiet and brilliant classmate Lance, she is awarded a prestigious internship in the big city— Chicago—and is sent to live and work at a swanky and stylish hotel under the watchful eyes of a group of gorgeous and shockingly young-looking strangers: powerful and alluring hotel owner Aurelia Brown; her second-in-command, the dashing Lucian Grove; and their stunning but aloof staff of glamazons called The Outfit.

As Haven begins falling for Lucian, she discovers that these beautiful people are not quite what they seem. With the help of a mysterious book, she uncovers a network of secret passageways from the hotel’s jazz-age past that leads her to the heart of the evil agenda of Aurelia and company: they’re in the business of buying souls. Will they succeed in wooing Haven to join them in their recruitment efforts, or will she be able to thwart this devilish set’s plans to take the souls of her classmates on prom night at the hotel?

Illuminate is an exciting saga of a teen’s first taste of independence, her experience in the lap of luxury, and her discovery she may possess strength greater than she ever knew.

The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption

The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption is a direct-to-video film that was released on January 17, 2012. It is the third installment in the Scorpion King series; the sixth film in Universal Studios' The Mummy franchise, and stars Selina Lo as an original character, Tsukai. This film continues the story of Mathayus, after he becomes the Scorpion King at the end of the first film and focuses on Mathayus battling Tsukai while trying to stop a war in three kingdoms of Egypt.

Plot: A handful of years after giving Mathayus the prophecy that his peaceful kingdom wouldn't last forever, Cassandra dies. Mathayus allows his kingdom to fall apart in the aftermath to the deadly plague which claimed his wife's life and he believes his reign of nobility to be over. Mathayus then becomes a mercenary once more, just as he was after his battle with Sargon and prior to his war with Memnon. Egypt is then divided into three kingdoms, one belonging to Talus, one to Horus and one to Ramusan. Talus' army grows to such an extent that he wishes to conquer Horus' Kingdom and to do so, he wishes to steal the Book of the Dead from Ramusan. To stop Talus, Horus hires Mathayus. In turn, Talus kidnaps Ramusan' daughter, Silda. Ramusan then tells Mathayus that if he can save his daughter, he will have the right to wed her and once again raise a kingdom in Egypt.

Mathayus manages to rescue Silda, but the two wind up in an exiles camp. Talus then arrives at Ramusan's palace and takes the Book of the Dead. Using the Book of the Dead, Talus reanimates the dead warrior Tsukai. Tsukai is a deadly yet beautiful warrior who is not only extremely skilled with the blade, but also magical prowess. In a test to see her strength, Talus orders her to kill his best men, which she does easily. Tsukai then attacks the Exile's Camp. Tsukai manages to defeat Mathayus in battle through not only the use of magic, but also pure skill. However, Mathayus manages to escape.

Colorado Suspect Planned Movie Theater Massacre for Months

Law enforcement officers prepare to disarm the
booby-trapped apartment of suspect James Holmes

The man suspected of going on a shooting rampage during the premiere of the new Batman film in a Denver suburb on Friday morning appears to have planned the attack with “calculation and deliberation” for months, reports Reuters. James Holmes, 24, received several deliveries over the last four months and seems to have bought lots of his supplies online, police said Saturday. And he didn’t just buy guns and ammo, but also explosive material and incendiary devices to turn his apartment into an elaborate booby trap that would injure or even kill anyone who entered.

After a painstaking process, all the hazardous material, including an explosive device and multiple containers of accelerants was removed from the apartment Saturday afternoon. The Washington Post has the details, saying there were a total of around 60 “incendiary and chemical devices,” including what one official called “improvised grenades” and “improvised napalm.” It’s not clear why Holmes would tell police about his booby trapped apartment so quickly after he was apprehended Friday morning.

Yet after the apartment was deemed safe, investigators immediately got to work at the scene. In the evening, police seemed to have a retrieved a laptop and a hard drive from the apartment, reports the Associated Press.

Also on Saturday, the list of victims was officially released and the most striking aspect is how young the victims were. Only one of those killed was older than 32. Among the dead were a six-year-old who had just learned how to swim, a 24-year-old aspiring sportscaster, a 27-year-old who was celebrating his birthday, and two young men, one 27 and the other 26, who apparently were killed while trying to shield their girlfriends. The Denver Post has a full list and points out that the mother of the six-year-old is still in critical condition and has not been informed of her daughter’s death.   (slate.com)

Wiggins wins 19th stage of Tour de France

British cyclist Bradley Wiggins retained his overall Tour de France lead with an individual time trial in the nineteenth stage on Saturday, a day ahead of the tournament's grande finale on the Champs-Elysées avenue in Paris.

The Briton punched the air as he crossed the line, clocking a fastest time of one hour four minutes and 13 seconds on the flat 53.5-km course from Bonneval.

As in the first long time trial of the Tour in Besancon last week, Wiggins’s team mate and compatriot Chris Froome was second, 1:16 adrift. Third place went to Spain’s Luis Leon Sanchez, 1:50 behind.

The Kenyan-born Froome will trail his Team Sky leader by 3:21 overall heading into Sunday’s 20th and final stage to Paris.

Italian climber Vincenzo Nibali finished a good 16th in the stage, to consolidate his third place overall, 6:19 behind Wiggins.

Last year’s Tour champion Cadel Evans finished nearly six minutes behind Wiggins and the Australian suffered the humiliation of being overtaken by his American team mate Tejay Van Garderen, who started three minutes behind him.

Van Garderen will take the best young rider’s white jersey to Paris in fifth place overall, two better than Evans.

The final 120-km 20th stage between Rambouillet and Paris should be a lap of honour for Wiggins, while his team mate and world champion Mark Cavendish will want to win the Paris bunch sprint for the fourth time in succession.

Blistering 160km/h (99mph) fastball pitched by high school student

The baseball world in Japan has been shaken to its core by a pitch so fast it stands among the fastest in the world – and it was done during a high school game.

The pitch, thrown during a televised semifinal match last week between Ichinoseki Gakuin and Hanamaki Higashi, has focused all the attention of professional baseball onto young Shohei Otani, the pitcher for Hanamaki Higashi High School.

Otani’s throw, although exceptional, was hardly a fluke as he was already producing amazingly high speed fastballs starting with a fifth inning 156km/h (97mph) pitch. He managed to top that in the sixth inning with a 159km/h (98mph) scorcher only to surpass himself again immediately afterwards with his 160km/h (99mph) pitch.

For comparison, the fastest recorded pitch in MLB belongs to Aroldis Chapman of the Cincinnati Reds. His fastball measures between 167 and 170km/h (103-105mph)

He may have gone further except the game was called after Hanamaki Higashi had a 9-1 lead in the 7th inning. One thing is for certain, Shohei Otani has a bright future in pro-baseball if he chooses. The teenager’s throwing arm isn’t even fully developed yet.

Source: Draft Kaigi

Nigeria's low-cost tablet computer

Nigeria's Saheed Adepoju is a young man with big dreams. He is the inventor of the Inye, a tablet computer designed for the African market.

According to the 29-year-old entrepreneur, his machine's key selling point is its price - $350 (£225) opposed to around $700 for an iPad.

He believes that, because of this, there is a big market for it in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa, particularly amongst students.

He is also hoping to sell his tablet - which runs on the Google Android operating system - to the Nigerian government and plans to have at least one computer in each local government area.



"The Inye is a mobile internet device. It gives you access to the internet; it allows you to play media files and watch movies. What we have is an 8-inch device, a device that is half-way between a laptop and a mobile phone," he told the BBC's series African Dream.

"You have the standard software applications that come pre-installed and then you have the ones that we are working with various local developers to bundle on," he added.

Among those local apps there is one designed to raise awareness about HIV and others related to water and sanitation.

"We work with local developers that have expertise in particular areas so that we don't end up doing so much work and we just have a collaborative way of doing things together," he said.   (BBC.co.uk)

Bangladesh beat Ireland by two wickets to complete whitewash

Bangladesh secured a thrilling last-ball victory over Ireland to complete a 3-0 whitewash in the Twenty20 series between the sides at Stormont.

Batting first, Ireland set a target of 140-8, with William Porterfield scoring 28 and Trent Johnston 24.
Tamim Iqbal (39) and Mohammad Ashraful (24) put on an opening partnership of 62 to provide the platform for Bangladesh's score of 141-8.

A flurry of wickets, as Paul Stirling took three for 21 and Ziaur Rehman was run out without facing, made the match tense with the Tigers struggling on 87 for six.

Mashrafe Mortaza was the hero for Bangldesh rescuing through his 30 from only 13 balls. 


Earlier he claimed 4 wickets of just 19 runs to restrict the hosts after they had made a strong start blasting 11 of the first over. But Stirling could only make 17 and Porterfield, having hit a six into the media tent, tried to repeat the stroke two overs later but holed out off Mortaza for 28.


Niall O'Brien followed for 22, brother Kevin was dismissed for a duck and the wicket of Andrew Poynter (one) gave Mortaza figures of four for eight at that stage and left Ireland 84 for five.

John Mooney made 12 and Gary Wilson and Trent Johnston both cleared the ropes before the former fell for 22, Johnston remaining on 24 not out to see his side to 140 for eight.

Russian banks fear customers' financial literacy

More than 50% of the Russian people are convinced of their right to financial matters are not protected adequately.  Experts say that the banks fear the Russians - from a low financial literacy.

The vast majority of respondents (91%) said they do not know which organizations in Russia are engaged in consumer protection in financial services. This is evidenced by the results of nationwide survey of the National Agency for Financial Studies (NAFI). The study was conducted in June 2012, surveyed 1,600 people in 140 villages in 42 regions of Russia.

Thus, according to the NAFI, secure in the financial markets feel a little more than a third of Russians (38%). Of these, only 4% say that is fully protected. And the most optimistic - young people aged 18 to 24 years. It is noteworthy that one in ten could not determine how protected his rights as a consumer financial services.