We can no longer imagine the internet without video content, and yet it?s still a tricky medium for many. Different formats, large file sizes and the variety of operating systems and devices can make the use of video on the web difficult.
Israeli company Kaltura, which has recently raised $25 million,?provides an open source video code that allows its customers to easily manage their videos, including uploading, streaming and editing, as well as analyze and monetize the content. Some of Kaltura?s many partners include Wikipedia and Google and customers include leading universities and media companies.
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?Our system is built like a butterfly,? Kaltura?s CRO Dr. Shay David tells NoCamels, ?the first wing receives all the different resources of video that go into the system, which we then normalize trough an injection process,? says David. Baiscally, the system identifies which type of video input it?receives?and processes it in a way that enables different types of videos to be displayed through the same?output?method. ?The ?body? of the butterfly is where Kaltura handles the various details involving the use of video online: copyright, information control, Quality Assurance, analytics system, moderation systems, etc.
?The second wing is our distribution capability. The content is now ready for use and could be seen, for example, as a video player on the?customer?website or as a list of? video feeds,? says David. He adds: ?No end user would face a problem running the customer?s videos. We know how to transfer any kind of content, from any kind of device to any kind of device.?
Partnering with Google and Wikipedia
Kaltura, founded in 2006, has an impressive track record, with Wikipedia and Google as partners. ?Wikipedia were pretty strict,? says David, ?we provided our open video source as the infrastructures for the video on their web, while they wanted not only open source code but also an open source video format.?
David explains that providing that format was impossible ? but then Google got in the mix: ?It took few years until Google took part. They bought the company On2 in 2010, which helped them to develop the open video format ?Webm?. Wikipedia was then able to provide both our open video source and Google?s new open video format.?
?Google promised that the video format would stay open forever, making the cooperation between the three of us possible,? says David. ?The cooperation helped us to place Kaltura as a leading player in the world of video content. We don?t charge Wikipedia for using our open code and this is our way to contribute to the global video developer?s community,? he says. ?Thanks to websites like Wikipedia, we have more than a billion streams a month and more than 100 million viewers,? concludes David.
Big in America, eyeing Asia
Kaltura has over 150 customers. Most of the company?s activity (70 percent) is in the North American market and Kaltura?s main markets are spread vertically in three industrial sectors. Some of the biggest organizations in the world use Kaltura?s service, including Walt Disney and Paramount Pictures in the media sector, NYU, Yale and Cornell in the education sector and? Ikea, Groupon and BestBuy in the enterprise sector.
According to David, the system is used by more than 500 universities in the world, including nine out of the top 10 universities in the US. ?The education sector includes universities who want to ?create their own YouTube? and [want to] have the ability to teach their students remotely. We predict there will be great growth in this sector,? says David.
The company?s business model is mainly software licensing and could be divided into two: Software as a Service (SaaS), which includes the open platform and applications for the video management and hosting on Kaltura?s servers, or SaaS without hosting.
In November of 2012, Kaltura raised $25 million in a series D financing round. David says that the funds will be directed towards expansion into the Asian-Pacific region and targeting new markets, such as defense and healthcare.
The company is headed by?Ron Yekutiel (CEO), Dr. Michal Tsur (President & CMO), Dr. Shay David (CRO) and Eran Etam (Deputy R&D General Manager).
A doctor gives a 13-year-old girl an HPV vaccination
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images.
The human papillomavirus has the dubious distinction of being the sexually transmitted disease you are most likely to get. It?s also the leading cause of cervical cancer. January has, somewhat arbitrarily, been dubbed Cervical Health Awareness Month (also National Hobby Month and Hot Tea Month, the last at least for good reason). While cervical cancer is the disease most commonly associated with HPV, a recent report from the American Cancer Society emphasizes that HPV?s threat is not gender-specific or organ-specific. While cervical cancer cases are in decline (as are general cancer rates), cancers linked to HPV are on the rise.
The increasing prevalence of HPV-linked cancers should permanently alter our limited conception of the disease as chiefly a women?s issue. Oropharyngeal (which I?ll be vulgarizing as ?oral?) and anal HPV-related cancers (which particularly afflict men who have sex with men) are becoming more common. Oral malignancies account for 37.3 percent of HPV-related cancers, edging out cervical cancer, which makes up 32.7 percent. For men, oral cancers make up 78.2 percent of total HPV-related cancer incidences, and they account for 11.6 percent of cases among women. The death rate for oral cancer is three times higher than that for cervical cancer. (About 40 percent of penile cancer cases are HPV-related, but rates of the disease have basically remained static.)
Historically, most oral cancer cases were caused by smoking and heavy drinking and tended to manifest later in life. But even though fewer Americans indulge in these vices today, more of them are engaging in oral sex. Oral cancer rates have risen and begun showing up in younger individuals who, sensibly, seem to prefer oral sex to cigarettes. As the Oral Cancer Foundation notes, HPV strain 16 ?is conclusively implicated in the increasing incidence of young non-smoking oral cancer patients.? If the disease is detected, the survival rate for HPV-related oral cancer is higher than for the alcohol- and tobacco-correlated versions. But HPV-related cases are often harder to catch because the disease occurs deeper in the mouth (the base of the tongue is a common location), and the warning signs are not as obvious.
There are, of course, HPV vaccines, which the CDC describes as ?very effective? and ?very safe.? Merck released another study in October that found that Gardasil, the company?s vaccine, may cause fainting and brief skin irritation but ?no link with more serious health problems was found.? The Gardasil vaccine defends against four HPV strains: 6 and 11, which cause 90 percent of genital warts; and 18 and 16, which are linked to cancer. It is FDA-approved and CDC-recommended for males and females. Cervarix defends against the same two cancer-causing strains and a few other lesser culprits. It is not licensed for men. Most insurance companies and public health programs will cover the cost of the HPV shots for those who fall between the FDA-licensed ages of 9 through 26 years old.
But while both vaccines successfully defend against various strains of HPV, only Gardasil has been specifically tested and proven to protect against vulvar, vaginal, and anal cancers as well as cervical cancer. The vaccines? preventive abilities have not been proven for other cancers, which prevents the companies from advertising the vaccines? usefulness against the most prevalent danger: HPV-related oral disease. As the CDC notes: ?It is likely that this vaccine also protects men from other HPV-related cancers, like cancers of the penis and oropharynx (back of throat, including base of tongue and tonsils), but there are no vaccine studies that have evaluated these outcomes.? Last year the National Cancer Institute declined to fund proposed clinical trials on the efficacy of the vaccines for oral cancer, possibly due to budgetary constraints. (NCI officials were not able to respond before publication.)
?The very low rate at which boys are vaccinated is a result of the inability of the manufacturers and doctors to speak openly and with factual evidence about oral cancer in a context that parents will understand,? says Brian Hill, president of the Oral Cancer Foundation, who was present at the National Institute of Health meeting where the aid was requested. He says more data and publicity for the vaccines could improve the vaccination rate in boys, which in 2010 was only 1.4 percent. ?Vaccination is not just about cervical cancers but cancers their sons will potentially get in the future.?
The dangers of HPV may sound pretty disturbing, particularly for those who might have shrugged off the virus?s threat because they believed it wouldn?t imperil them or their children. But there are a few important things to understand about HPV. First, we aren?t all doomed. A lot of scary statistics get batted around about HPV?6 million new infections a year! Half of sexually active people will get it in their lives!?but most of the 130-plus strains appear to do no damage, and most people?s immune systems recognize the handful of dangerous strains as something nasty that should be destroyed.
But an unlucky 1 percent of the population will not produce the antibodies necessary to defeat the invaders. And it is basically impossible to know whether you or one of your partners is part of that 1 percent. There isn?t a reliable blood test to tell whether your body is making antibodies against the virus and is thus protected naturally and you don?t need the vaccine.
The vaccines work best in those who have never had sex and therefore have never been exposed to any strain of the virus. That means the safety and efficacy of the vaccines are of limited comfort to those who were sexually active prior to 2006, when the vaccine first became available to females (in 2009 males were officially given the OK).
After a certain age, 26 in the United States, it is assumed most people have had enough sexual partners that they have been exposed to HPV and their bodies have produced the antibodies necessary to defeat it on their own. In the case of women who have been exposed and developed an infection, it is thought that cervical abnormalities will have been detected and dealt with. Vaccinating people after a long sexual history simply isn?t worth the cost, from a public health perspective.
LOS ANGELES -- With six former city officials lined up in chairs behind him, a Los Angeles County prosecutor portrayed them Thursday as thieves who bilked their small town treasury for over $1.3 million, paying themselves for work they did not do.
In one instance, the defendants stole more than $300,000 during a two-minute meeting in which they voted themselves salary raises for sham positions on commissions that did nothing, said Deputy district Attorney Edward Miller.
"The evidence will show the defendants stole over $1.3 million," he said.
Running through the list of meetings that lasted a few minutes each, Miller said, "They worked less hours than my opening statement will take this morning."
Legally, he said, the officials could have paid themselves $673 a month for what was a part-time job since they did not actually run the city. The blue collar suburb of Los Angeles was managed by Robert Rizzo, who stands trial later in the year with his assistant city manager on allegations he misappropriated millions.
In addition to their council salaries of upward of $80,000 a year, the officials collected payment for sitting on the boards of four sham commissions that did no work, Miller said.
He alleged a pattern of scams in which the defendants appointed each other to the commissions that did nothing, held meetings that sometimes lasted only two minutes, and often met yearly just to increase their salaries.
The most blatant, he said, was creation of the Solid Waste and Recycling Authority, which he called "a fiction" designed to line the officials' pockets.
"They gave themselves raises which were not even drafted by a lawyer. Somebody just made this up out of the blue," Miller said.
The former mayor, vice mayor and four City Council members are charged with misappropriation of public funds. All but one of the defendants served as mayor at some point.
Prosecutors said the city treasury was looted to the tune of $5.5 million and the modest city of Bell was driven to the brink of bankruptcy.
Miller said the yearslong scam thrived because few people every attended City Council meetings to keep watch on their elected leaders. At one meeting, 12 people were in the audience and most were relatives of the council members, he said.
Those now on trial are former Mayor Oscar Hernandez, former vice mayor Teresa Jacobo and former council members George Mirabal, George Cole, Victor Bello and Luis Artiga.
Their lawyers were to speak later in the day and were expected to argue that they were upstanding citizens who worked hard for the city.
The six are charged in a 20-count felony complaint accusing them of paying themselves exorbitant salaries and setting up sham commissions.
Miller said the alleged wrongdoing was discovered in 2008 when Roger Ramirez, a citizen who attended council meetings regularly, heard that Rizzo was being paid $400,000 a year and council members were being paid $80,000. He asked for an accounting and despite efforts by Rizzo to avoid the revelations, they became public.
Outraged residents who had seen their taxes and fees go up turned out by the thousands to protest when the scandal broke. They held a successful recall election and threw out the entire council.
Returns Sunday, January 6 at 9 p.m. EST and moves to regular timeslot on Monday, January 7 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Jillian Michaels! She's back to help whip contestants into shape. Plus, for the first time, kids (ages 13-16) will be on the show along with 15 adult contestants.
"Downton Abbey"
Returns Sunday, January 6 at 9 p.m. EST on PBS <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Bates was left to rot in jail, Matthew and Mary finally got together and the Dowager Countess was sassy. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Americans! Shirley MacLaine guest stars as Martha, Cora's mother. She's very rich. Season 3 has already aired in the UK and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/26/downton-abbey-season-4-dan-stevens_n_2364574.html">one prominent character is saying goodbye to "Downton Abbey."</a>
"The Bachelor"
Returns Monday, January 7 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Sean Lowe <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Jilted "Bachelorette" contestant Sean returns to TV as "The Bachelor" and seeks to find love.
"Deception"
Monday, January 7 at 10 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>Starring</strong>: Meagan Good, Laz Alonso, Tate Donovan and Victor Garber <strong>What's It About</strong>: A wealthy socialite and party girl is found dead of an overdose, but something's fishy about her death. Enter FBI Agent Will Moreno (Alonso), who recruits his former partner Joanna Padget (Good), the deceased's former best friend. Joanna hides her true occupation and infiltrates the family she grew up around to find the truth about her friend's death.
"Betty White's Off Their Rockers"
Returns Tuesday, January 8 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Betty White will entertain a ton of guest stars while introducing the elderly pranksters. Kim Kardashian, the ladies of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," Ed Asner and NeNe Leakes are among the names who will appear on the prank show.
"Pretty Little Liars"
Returns Tuesday, January 8 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC Family. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Toby is on the A Team, Garrett's dead, Aria's dad has some strange connection to Ali, Paige saved the day and Ezra's a dad ... and Alex Mack is his baby mama. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Mona is released from Radley and is back at Rosewood High. Clearly, she'll be working with Toby, who the liars are still in the dark about. It's only a matter of time before Spencer learns the truth ... and starts to lose it. Dr. Sullivan will return, hopefully to prevent any breakdowns. Plus, we'll see more about what the hell Byron was doing with Ali the night she died.
"Cougar Town"
Returns Tuesday, January 8 at 10 p.m. EST on TBS. <strong>Where We Left Off: </strong>Jules and Grayson had a quickie beachfront wedding and rode off into the distance on horseback. <strong>What's Ahead: </strong>For starters, it's on TBS! Everybody's favorite wine-guzzlin' crew will be joined by guest stars Alexndra Wentworth, Shirley Jones, Gillian Vigman, Tippi Herden and more.
"Justified"
Returns Tuesday, January 8 at 10 p.m. EST on FX. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: In Season 3, Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) prevented carpetbagger/gangster Robert Quarles from establishing a criminal network in Harlan, but a pregnant Winona left the US Marshal and he found out his father shot a good man. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins) will no doubt continue to be a thorn in Raylan's side.
"Stars In Danger: The High Dive"
Wednesday January, 9 at 8 p.m. EST on Fox <strong>Starring</strong>: JWoww, Bethany Hamilton, Alexandra Paul, Kim Richards, Kyle Richards, David Chokachi, Terrell Owens, Antonio Sabato Jr. <strong>What's It About:</strong> C-list celebrities learn to dive like the pros with the help of Olympian Troy Dumais.
"1600 Penn"
Thursday, January 10 at 9:30 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>Starring</strong>: Josh Gad, Bill Pullman, Jenna Elfman <strong>What's It About</strong>: The Gilchrists are your typical American family ... they just so happen to be the first family of the United States. Gad stars as the hapless son of President Dale Gilchrist (Pullman) and stepson of Emily (Elfman).
"Girls"
Returns Sunday, January 13 at 9 p.m. EST on HBO. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Jessa bizarrely got married, Shoshanna slept with Ray, Hannah and Adam broke up and Marnie still misses Charlie. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: After months of criticism, Hannah makes a black friend (or more than a friend) -- and it's Donald Glover. Patrick Wilson will also play a love interest for Hannah later in the season and Shiri Appleby joins Season 2 as Adam's new girlfriend, much to Hannah's dismay. Elijah moves in with Hannah -- and starts to question his sexuality. Shoshanna is dealing with her post-sex relationship with Ray. Plus, Rita Wilson will stop by to play Marnie's mom and to help her shape up.
"Shameless"
Returns Sunday, January 13 at 9 p.m. EST on Showtime. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Karen had her and Lip's baby and fled, prompting Lip to move back home and go back to school. Estefania and Marco were on the verge of breaking up and in happier news, Fiona passed her GED. ("Teen Mom's" Amber: Take note.) <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: It's 137 days since we?ve last seen the Gallagher's. Jimmy has moved into the house with them and Fiona uses the family's money in desperation and the others aren't too pleased. Oh and (shocker) Frank's missing.
"Enlightened"
Returns Sunday, January 13 at 9:30 p.m. EST <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Following her very public breakdown, Amy (Laura Dern) returned to work with a positive outlook ... only to start down the path of revenge after being laughed at by her coworkers. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Will Amy return to the path of enlightenment?
"House of Lies"
Returns Sunday, January 13 at 10 p.m. EST on Showtime. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Did they or didn't they? Marty (Don Cheadle) and Jeannie (Kristen Bell) ended the season with a romp in the sheets ... maybe. They've gotten rid of the Rainmaker and stand triumphant. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Galweather Stearn brings in a new CEO who's all about female power. Adam Brody returns to TV with a guest role.
"Californication"
Returns Sunday, January 13 at 10:30 p.m. EST on Showtime. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: After Bates left Karen, Hank sees an opportunity. But when his ex Carrie returns and offers him an anti-depressant-laced drink, Hank loses consciousness just after seeing a vision of Karen, to whom he says, "I love you." <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Hank is penning a rock opera "about love conquering all" with Atticus Fetch (Tim Minchin), a coked up rock star. Maggie Grace has a nine-episode arc as infamous rock groupie Faith, who becomes involved with Hank, and in one episode, Grace's former "Lost" co-star Jorge Garcia will appear as an old contact from Faith's past. Season 6 will also see a guest appearance from Marilyn Manson.
"The Carrie Diaries"
Monday, January 14 at 8 p.m. EST on The CW <strong>Starring:</strong> AnnaSophia Robb, Freema Agyeman, Chloe Bridges, Austin Butler and more. <strong>What's It About:</strong> A prequel to "Sex and the City," the new CW series follows Carrie Bradshaw as a high schooler in the '80s. She's discovering her style, dating, dealing with the death of her mother and falling in love for the first time ... with Manhattan.
"Lost Girl"
Returns Monday, January 14 at 10 p.m. EST on Syfy <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Victory! But the darkness continues to grow in Bo (Anna Silk). <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Bo must make a deadly decision. Plus, tune in for guest star Linda Hamilton and recurring guest star Rachel Skarsten.
"American Idol"
Returns Wednesday, January 16 at 8 p.m. EST on Fox <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Feuds! Divas! Dawgs! Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban join the judging panel alongside veteran Randy Jackson for Season 12.
"Anger Management"
Returns Thursday, January 17 at 9 p.m. EST on FX. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: After Charlie and Kate slept together, they were in a weird place with their relationship. And when Charlie's daughter Sam kissed a girl at school, a photo wound up on Facebook and Charlie and Jennifer questioned their daughter's sexual orientation. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: 70+ more episodes. And in Season 2, Charlie will blow up at his sister's baby shower and will question if his father Martin is developing Alzheimer's. Cee Lo Green will stop by as a version of himself, seeking Charlie's assistance under Hollywood pressure.
"Archer"
Returns Thursday, January 17 at 10 p.m. EST on FX. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: The ISIS crew -- including Archer -- were held captive on the Space Station Horizon <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: A "Bob's Burgers" crossover! H. Jon Benjamin provides the voice of both Archer and Bob.
"The Following"
Monday, January 21 at 9 p.m. EST on Fox <strong>Starring</strong>: Kevin Bacon, James Purefoy, Shawn Ashmore, Natalie Zea, Annie Parisse <strong>What's It About</strong>: Ryan Hardy's (Bacon) been out of the FBI game for a while, that is until his biggest catch, serial killer Joe Carroll (Purefoy) resurfaces ... along with a cult-like following ready to carry out his bidding.
"The Taste"
Tuesday, January 22 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Anthony Bourdain, Nigella Lawson, Ludo Lefebvre, Brian Malarkey <strong>What's It About</strong>: Think "The Voice" (there are teams and coaches), plus "Top Chef" (culinary competition) and you've got ABC's "The Taste."
"White Collar"
Returns Tuesday, January 22 at 10 p.m. EST on USA <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Peter (Tim DeKay) and Neal (Matt Bomer) stepped into the boxing ring to infiltrate a white collar boxing club. Neal discovered his father was still alive (and played by Treat Williams!) <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Peter and Neal search for the truth about Neal's dad and his crimes and Neal goes undercover with the Irish mob ... And hopefully, more boxing.
"Dallas"
Returns Wednesday, January 28 at 9 p.m. EST on TNT. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Slaps, sex and secrets filled the first season of the new "Dallas." The season ended with John Ross (Josh Henderson) teaming up with J.R. (Larry Hagman) to destroy Christopher (Jesse Metcalfe) and Elena (Jordana Brewster). <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Familiar faces return and the Ewings say goodbye to J.R. after series star Larry Hagman passed away about half way into filming Season 2. Producers will incorporate his death into the story.
"The Americans"
Wednesday, January 30 at 10 p.m. EST on FX. <strong>Starring</strong>: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Noah Emmerich <strong>What's It About</strong>: Elizabeth (Russell) and Phillip (Rhys) Jennings are the perfect couple: They've got two kids and are living the life of every American in the '80s ... but they just so happen to be KGB spies posing as regular ol' US citizens.
"Do No Harm"
Thursday, January 31at 10 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>Starring:</strong> Steven Pasquale, Alana de la Garza, Phylicia Rash?d, John Carroll Lynch <strong>What's It About: </strong>A brilliant neurosurgeon (Pasquale) has a big secret: a very villainous dual personality. It's a modern-day Jekyll and Hyde story mixed with a medical drama.
"Rules of Engagement"
Returns Monday, February 4 at 8:30 p.m. EST on CBS <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Audrey (Megyn Price) was upstaged at her own baby shower by Brenda (Sara Rue). Meanwhile, Russell (David Spade) started to display creative talents after taking a break from women. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Sitcom hijinks!
"Smash"
Returns Tuesday, February 5 at 9 p.m. EST on NBC and moves to its normal Tuesdays at 10 p.m. EST timeslot on February 12 on NBC <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Karen (Katharine McPhee) wowed the crowd as Marilyn Monroe in previews of "Bombshell" in Boston. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: More Broadway drama! There's a new musical in town that could rival "Bombshell" for all the buzz. Plus guest stars Jennifer Hudson, Liza Minnelli, Sean Hayes, Jesse L. Martin and more.
"Body of Proof"
Returns Tuesday, February 5 at 10 p.m. EST on ABC <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Peter (Nicholas Bishop) saved Megan (Dana Delany) from a serial killer, but was stabbed in the process. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: New blood! Bishop, John Carroll Lynch and Sonja Sohn are out and Mark Valley is in.
"Community"
Returns Thursday, February 7 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Evil Abed, "lawsuits" and sandwich shops filled the "Community" Season 3 finale that aired what feels like 30 years ago. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Six seasons and a movie. Just kidding, although that'd be cool (cool cool cool). Malcolm McDowell, Tricia Helfer, Jason Alexander and more will drop by for some Human Beings antics. Plus, Chevy Chase will depart the show.
"Touch"
Returns Friday, February 8 at 8 p.m. EST on Fox <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) and Jake (David Mazouz) fled to California and met up with Lucy (Maria Bello). <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Martin (Sutherland) and Jake (David Mazouz) soak up the Los Angeles sun ... and find themselves in the middle of a "global conspiracy."
"Survivor"
Returns Wednesday, February 13 at 8 p.m. EST on CBS <strong>Starring</strong>: Jeff Probst, unnamed contestants <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Fans vs. Favorites, Round 2
"Southland"
Returns Wednesday, February 13 at 10 p.m. EST on TNT. <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Cooper saved Tang, and then Tang got a big promotion becoming sergeant and watch commander. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: "One Tree Hill" star Chad Michael Murray joins the cast as goofball Officer Dave Mendoza.
"Zero Hour"
Thursday, February 14 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Anthony Edwards, Carmen Ejogo, Scott Michael Foster, Addison Timlin, Jacinda Barrett and Michael Nyqvist <strong>What's It About</strong>: Think "National Treasure" and "Da Vinci's Code," but on TV and starring Dr. Greene from "ER." Edwards plays Hank Galliston, the publisher of Modern Skeptic Magazine. When his wife is abducted, Hank and his pals are joined by the FBI as they attempt to crack various conspiracies and get his wife back.
"The Amazing Race"
Returns Sunday, February 17 at 8:00 p.m. EST on CBS <strong>Starring</strong>: Phil Keoghan, unnamed contestants <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Globetrotting adventure.
"Cult"
Tuesday, February 19 at 9 p.m. EST on The CW <strong>Starring:</strong> Matt Davis, Alona Tal, Jessica Lucas, Robert Knepper <strong>What's It About</strong>: Matt Davis stars as Jeff, a journalist who investigates his brother's disappearance and his involvement with a group of obsessive fans who have formed a pseudo-cult around a TV series ... about a cult.
"Golden Boy"
Premieres Tuesday, February 26 at 10 p.m. EST. Special showing on Tuesday, March 5 at 10 p.m. EST before moving to its regular Fridays at 9 p.m. EST time period on March 8 on CBS <strong>Starring</strong>: Theo James, Chi McBride, Kevin Alejandro, Bonnie Somerville <strong>What's It About</strong>: The series charts the rise of Walter William Clark Jr. (James), a beat cop who quickly moves up the ranks of the NYPD before becoming commissioner.
"Psych"
Returns Wednesday, February 27 at 10 p.m. EST <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: Henry (Corbin Bernsen) got back into the detective game with the help of Shawn (James Roday) and Gus (Dule Hill). But the case ended with a bang as Henry was shot by a former friend. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Parminder Nagra joins the cast as a love interest of Gus. Plus, the long-awaited musical episode airs! Look for episodes inspired by "Clue" and "The Blair Witch Project" and for guest stars Jeffrey Tambor and Anthony Michael Hall, as well.
"All-Star Celebrity Apprentice"
Sunday, March 3 at 9 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>Starring</strong>: Trace Adkins, Stephen Baldwin, Gary Busey, Penn Jillette, Lil Jon, Bret Michaels, Dennis Rodman, Dee Snider, Marilu Henner, La Toya Jackson, Claudia Jordan, Omarosa, Lisa Rinna, Brande Roderick <strong>What's It About</strong>: It's "Celebrity Apprentice," but with contestants who have already been to the boardroom with Donald Trump.
"Red Widow"
Sunday, March 3, 9:00 p.m. EST and moves to its regular timeslot on Sunday, March 10, 10:00 p.m. EST on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Radha Mitchell, Goran Visnjic, Clifton Collins, Jr., Sterling Beaumon <strong>What's It About</strong>: Marta Walraven (Mitchell)'s husband Evan supports the family by exporting weed and is involved in the world of organized crime with Bratva, Russian gangsters. After Evan's murder, Marta seeks to protect her kids, but gets tangled in the seedy underworld.
"Fashion Star"
Returns Friday, March 8 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Mentors Jessica Simpson, Nicole Richie and John Varvatos return to the show with new host Louise Roe as 13 new contestants compete for the chance to launch their own clothing line.
"Dancing With the Stars"
Returns Monday, March 18 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Tom Bergeron, Brooke Burke Charvet, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, Len Goodman and unnamed celebrity contestants. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Celebrities dancing.
"The Voice"
Returns Monday, March 25 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. <strong>Starring</strong>: Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, Usher and Shakira <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Presumably, a lot less ridiculously outfits without Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green.
"Game of Thrones"
Returns Sunday, March 31 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO <strong>Where We Left Off</strong>: War came. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maureen-ryan/game-of-thrones-finale-recap_b_1566867.html">Read Maureen Ryan's recap for more</a>. <strong>What's Ahead</strong>: Tons of new cast members played by the likes of Diana Rigg, Iwan Rheon, Mackenzie Crook, Clive Russell and many more. Season 3 will be about half of George R.R. Martin's "A Storm of Swords," one of the series' most beloved books.
"How To Live With Your Parents (For The Rest Of Your Life)"
Wednesday, April 3 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Sarah Chalke, Elizabeth Perkins, Brad Garrett <strong>What's It About</strong>: Polly (Chalke) is a recently divorced single mom. Since the divorce, Polly's been having some struggles and decides to move back in with her eccentric parents, Elaine (Perkins) and Max (Garrett). Hijinks ensue.
"Family Tools"
Wednesday, May 1 at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC <strong>Starring</strong>: Kyle Bornheimer, J.K. Simmons, Leah Remini <strong>What's It About</strong>: After Tony (Simmons) suffers a heart attack, he's forced to hand over the family handyman business to his bumbling son Jack (Bornheimer).
"The Goodwin Games"
TBA on Fox <strong>Starring</strong>: Becki Newton, Scott Foley, T.J. Miller <strong>What's It About</strong>: Three estranged siblings reunite after the death of their father and unexpectedly find themselves heirs to a $20 million fortune ... if they adhere to their dad's wishes.
"Save Me"
TBA on NBC <strong>Starring:</strong> Anne Heche, Michael Landes and Alexandra Breckenridge. <strong>What's It About: </strong>Anne Heche stars as Beth, a woman whose life -- and marriage -- is falling apart. However, after a new-death experience, Beth claims God starts speaking to her and sets her on a new life path.
The family of Junior Seau has sued the NFL, claiming the former linebacker's suicide was the result of brain disease caused by violent hits he sustained while playing football.
The wrongful death lawsuit, filed Wednesday in California Superior Court in San Diego, blames the NFL for its ''acts or omissions'' that hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head. It says Seau developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) from those hits, and accuses the NFL of deliberately ignoring and concealing evidence of the risks associated with traumatic brain injuries.
Seau died at age 43 of a self-inflicted gunshot in May. He was diagnosed with CTE, based on posthumous tests, earlier this month.
An Associated Press review in November found that more than 3,800 players have sued the NFL over head injuries in at least 175 cases as the concussion issue has gained attention in recent years. More than 100 of the concussion lawsuits have been brought together before U.S. District Judge Anita B. Brody in Philadelphia.
''Our attorneys will review it and respond to the claims appropriately through the court,'' the NFL said in a statement Wednesday.
Helmet manufacturer Riddell Inc., also is being sued by the Seaus, who say Riddell was ''negligent in their design, testing, assembly, manufacture, marketing, and engineering of the helmets'' used by NFL players. The suit says the helmets were unreasonably dangerous and unsafe.
Seau was one of the best linebackers during his 20 seasons in the NFL. He retired in 2009.
''We were saddened to learn that Junior, a loving father and teammate, suffered from CTE,'' the family said in a statement released to the AP. ''While Junior always expected to have aches and pains from his playing days, none of us ever fathomed that he would suffer a debilitating brain disease that would cause him to leave us too soon.
''We know this lawsuit will not bring back Junior. But it will send a message that the NFL needs to care for its former players, acknowledge its decades of deception on the issue of head injuries and player safety, and make the game safer for future generations.''
Plaintiffs are listed as Gina Seau, Junior's ex-wife; Junior's children Tyler, Sydney, Jake and Hunter, and Bette Hoffman, trustee of Seau's estate.
The lawsuit accuses the league of glorifying the violence in pro football, and creating the impression that delivering big hits ''is a badge of courage which does not seriously threaten one's health.''
It singles out NFL Films and some of its videos for promoting the brutality of the game.
''In 1993's 'NFL Rocks,' Junior Seau offered his opinion on the measure of a punishing hit: 'If I can feel some dizziness, I know that guy is feeling double (that),'' the suit says.
The NFL consistently has denied allegations similar to those in the lawsuit.
''The NFL, both directly and in partnership with the NIH, Centers for Disease Control and other leading organizations, is committed to supporting a wide range of independent medical and scientific research that will both address CTE and promote the long-term health and safety of athletes at all levels,'' the league told the AP after it was revealed Seau had CTE.
The lawsuit claims money was behind the NFL's actions.
''The NFL knew or suspected that any rule changes that sought to recognize that link (to brain disease) and the health risk to NFL players would impose an economic cost that would significantly and adversely change the profit margins enjoyed by the NFL and its teams,'' the Seaus said in the suit.
The National Institutes of Health, based in Bethesda, Md., studied three unidentified brains, one of which was Seau's, and said the findings on Seau were similar to autopsies of people ''with exposure to repetitive head injuries.''
''It was important to us to get to the bottom of this, the truth,'' Gina Seau told the AP then. ''And now that it has been conclusively determined from every expert that he had obviously had CTE, we just hope it is taken more seriously. You can't deny it exists, and it is hard to deny there is a link between head trauma and CTE. There's such strong evidence correlating head trauma and collisions and CTE.''
In the final years of his life, Seau went through wild behavior swings, according to Gina and to 23-year-old son, Tyler. There also were signs of irrationality, forgetfulness, insomnia and depression.
''He emotionally detached himself and would kind of 'go away' for a little bit,'' Tyler Seau said. ''And then the depression and things like that. It started to progressively get worse.''
UT Dallas researchers awarded $4.3 million to create next-generation technologiesPublic release date: 22-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lakisha Ladson LaKisha.Ladson@UTDallas.edu 972-883-4183 University of Texas at Dallas
Teams studying alternatives to silicon in integrated circuits and robust new computer networks
Two teams of researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas have been chosen to help a $194 million national network create the technologies of the next generation.
One UT Dallas team will evaluate materials to replace silicon in integrated circuits, with the goal of creating faster electronics that use dramatically less power. The other team will help design a computer architecture that allows the many types of computers used in everyday life to seamlessly communicate with one another, making it possible to build systems to avoid traffic accidents or to lock down an area in the case of an emergency.
The Semiconductor Technology Advanced Research Network, known as STARnet, is administered by the Semiconductor Research Corporation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency . STARnet is made up of six centers with professors and graduate students from nearly 40 universities, including researchers in UT Dallas' Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.
"The top programs in the nation want to partner with us in two different areas of technology to help our country continue to lead in microelectronics," said Dr. Mark W. Spong, dean of the Jonsson School. "Our researchers are on par with top-tier research universities, and our participation shows that other academicians recognize this and seek us out."
Dr. Kyeongjae "K.J." Cho, Dr. Moon Kim, and Dr. Robert "Bob" Wallace, all professors of materials science and engineering at UT Dallas, are participating in STARnet's Center for Low Energy Systems Technology (LEAST) to solve the problem of finding a replacement for silicon in integrated circuits. Dr. Roozbeh Jafari, assistant professor of electrical engineering and Dr. Carl Sechen, professor of electrical engineering at UT Dallas, are involved in STARnet's TerraSwarm Research Center to create the architecture for seamlessly integrated computer systems.
LEAST: Reinventing Electronics
As the physical limits of integrated circuits currently made of silicon transistors are reached, LEAST researchers are looking to replace conventional 3-D silicon with nanoscale substances that increase the speed of computing done in electronics while also using less energy. Integrated circuits are used in nearly all modern electronics, such as computers, cellphones and tablets.
The UT Dallas LEAST team, which will receive about $3.4 million over five years, will explore a 2-D class of materials known as dichalcogenides, which are atomically thin but allow electrical current to be controlled as it moves through the material.
"The key for future transistor applications will be combining these 2-D materials with other types of materials such as insulators and metals used in integrated circuits to find the most powerful and efficient combination," Wallace said.
The UT Dallas team is conducting research on the interfaces of these materials.
"The ability to control the surfaces and interfaces in these types of material systems is the most important aspect of future device operations."
Besides conducting research in LEAST, Wallace, holder of the Erik Jonsson Distinguished Chair, is also a center coordinator. His previous discovery that hafnium silicates and oxides could be used in transistors to enable smaller nanoscale devices revolutionized the computer industry. Hafnium-based transistors are now used in processor chips in desktop and laptop computers, iPads and cellphones.
Cho is an expert in multiscale computer modeling related to new materials, and Kim is an expert in nanoscale electron microscopy advanced techniques that allow atom-to-atom modeling and chemical mapping of materials. The team will use this expertise in the surface and interface studies.
The world-class facilities housed in the $85 million Natural Science and Engineering Research Laboratory (NSERL) are an important factor in what enabled the UT Dallas team to be part of LEAST, Wallace said.
"UT Dallas has the state-of-the art equipment needed to contribute to LEAST and determine which materials will be used for the next generation of electronics," he said.
TerraSwarm: Linking Cyber-Worlds to the Physical World
The other UT Dallas team is developing revolutionary technology as part of STARnet's TerraSwarm Research Center.
Sensors and computers can be found in nearly all aspects of modern life, from pacemakers to air conditioners to sensors in vehicles that can tell when a driver is distracted.
TerraSwarm researchers are working toward shared data collected from the millions of individual smart sensors and other types of computers used in energy, health, environmental and personal applications.
The potential of sensor-based systems in monitoring applications goes far beyond what has been accomplished so far, Jafari said. When realized in full, these technologies can seamlessly integrate the cyber world, centered today in the cloud, with the physical/biological world, effectively blurring the gap between the two. The emerging global cyber-physical network is called the TerraSwarm, meaning that it encompasses many billions of sensors and actuators deployed across the earth.
"The possibilities of this type of shared sensing platform will revolutionize society," said Jafari, lead investigator for the UT Dallas TerraSwarm team, which will receive more than $900,000 over five years. "A fully integrated cyber-physical world presents limitless opportunities."
The key to enabling this type of technology is creating self-powered sensors and computers, and creating a networked architecture for thousands of smart sensing devices - similar to the World Wide Web - that is accessible from multiple types of electronic devices available to users.
Jafari, director of the Embedded Systems and Signal Processing Lab and a member of the Texas Analog Center of Excellence (TxACE), has experience creating wearable computers and wireless systems that monitor different aspects of human, health, behavior and thought.
"One strength we have is that we not only build the theories, but also implement them," he said.
Sechen, the other member of the UT
Dallas TerraSwarm team, is an expert in building ultra-low power digital circuits.
Jafari said TerraSwarm research includes funding to create this new architecture while also protecting individual privacy.
###
The LEAST Center is led by the University of Notre Dame, and the TerraSwarm Research Center is led by the University of California, Berkeley.
Industry partners of STARnet include Applied Materials, GLOBALFOUNDRIES Inc., IBM, Intel Corp., Micron Technology Inc., Raytheon Co., Texas Instruments Inc. and United Technologies Corp.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
UT Dallas researchers awarded $4.3 million to create next-generation technologiesPublic release date: 22-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lakisha Ladson LaKisha.Ladson@UTDallas.edu 972-883-4183 University of Texas at Dallas
Teams studying alternatives to silicon in integrated circuits and robust new computer networks
Two teams of researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas have been chosen to help a $194 million national network create the technologies of the next generation.
One UT Dallas team will evaluate materials to replace silicon in integrated circuits, with the goal of creating faster electronics that use dramatically less power. The other team will help design a computer architecture that allows the many types of computers used in everyday life to seamlessly communicate with one another, making it possible to build systems to avoid traffic accidents or to lock down an area in the case of an emergency.
The Semiconductor Technology Advanced Research Network, known as STARnet, is administered by the Semiconductor Research Corporation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency . STARnet is made up of six centers with professors and graduate students from nearly 40 universities, including researchers in UT Dallas' Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.
"The top programs in the nation want to partner with us in two different areas of technology to help our country continue to lead in microelectronics," said Dr. Mark W. Spong, dean of the Jonsson School. "Our researchers are on par with top-tier research universities, and our participation shows that other academicians recognize this and seek us out."
Dr. Kyeongjae "K.J." Cho, Dr. Moon Kim, and Dr. Robert "Bob" Wallace, all professors of materials science and engineering at UT Dallas, are participating in STARnet's Center for Low Energy Systems Technology (LEAST) to solve the problem of finding a replacement for silicon in integrated circuits. Dr. Roozbeh Jafari, assistant professor of electrical engineering and Dr. Carl Sechen, professor of electrical engineering at UT Dallas, are involved in STARnet's TerraSwarm Research Center to create the architecture for seamlessly integrated computer systems.
LEAST: Reinventing Electronics
As the physical limits of integrated circuits currently made of silicon transistors are reached, LEAST researchers are looking to replace conventional 3-D silicon with nanoscale substances that increase the speed of computing done in electronics while also using less energy. Integrated circuits are used in nearly all modern electronics, such as computers, cellphones and tablets.
The UT Dallas LEAST team, which will receive about $3.4 million over five years, will explore a 2-D class of materials known as dichalcogenides, which are atomically thin but allow electrical current to be controlled as it moves through the material.
"The key for future transistor applications will be combining these 2-D materials with other types of materials such as insulators and metals used in integrated circuits to find the most powerful and efficient combination," Wallace said.
The UT Dallas team is conducting research on the interfaces of these materials.
"The ability to control the surfaces and interfaces in these types of material systems is the most important aspect of future device operations."
Besides conducting research in LEAST, Wallace, holder of the Erik Jonsson Distinguished Chair, is also a center coordinator. His previous discovery that hafnium silicates and oxides could be used in transistors to enable smaller nanoscale devices revolutionized the computer industry. Hafnium-based transistors are now used in processor chips in desktop and laptop computers, iPads and cellphones.
Cho is an expert in multiscale computer modeling related to new materials, and Kim is an expert in nanoscale electron microscopy advanced techniques that allow atom-to-atom modeling and chemical mapping of materials. The team will use this expertise in the surface and interface studies.
The world-class facilities housed in the $85 million Natural Science and Engineering Research Laboratory (NSERL) are an important factor in what enabled the UT Dallas team to be part of LEAST, Wallace said.
"UT Dallas has the state-of-the art equipment needed to contribute to LEAST and determine which materials will be used for the next generation of electronics," he said.
TerraSwarm: Linking Cyber-Worlds to the Physical World
The other UT Dallas team is developing revolutionary technology as part of STARnet's TerraSwarm Research Center.
Sensors and computers can be found in nearly all aspects of modern life, from pacemakers to air conditioners to sensors in vehicles that can tell when a driver is distracted.
TerraSwarm researchers are working toward shared data collected from the millions of individual smart sensors and other types of computers used in energy, health, environmental and personal applications.
The potential of sensor-based systems in monitoring applications goes far beyond what has been accomplished so far, Jafari said. When realized in full, these technologies can seamlessly integrate the cyber world, centered today in the cloud, with the physical/biological world, effectively blurring the gap between the two. The emerging global cyber-physical network is called the TerraSwarm, meaning that it encompasses many billions of sensors and actuators deployed across the earth.
"The possibilities of this type of shared sensing platform will revolutionize society," said Jafari, lead investigator for the UT Dallas TerraSwarm team, which will receive more than $900,000 over five years. "A fully integrated cyber-physical world presents limitless opportunities."
The key to enabling this type of technology is creating self-powered sensors and computers, and creating a networked architecture for thousands of smart sensing devices - similar to the World Wide Web - that is accessible from multiple types of electronic devices available to users.
Jafari, director of the Embedded Systems and Signal Processing Lab and a member of the Texas Analog Center of Excellence (TxACE), has experience creating wearable computers and wireless systems that monitor different aspects of human, health, behavior and thought.
"One strength we have is that we not only build the theories, but also implement them," he said.
Sechen, the other member of the UT
Dallas TerraSwarm team, is an expert in building ultra-low power digital circuits.
Jafari said TerraSwarm research includes funding to create this new architecture while also protecting individual privacy.
###
The LEAST Center is led by the University of Notre Dame, and the TerraSwarm Research Center is led by the University of California, Berkeley.
Industry partners of STARnet include Applied Materials, GLOBALFOUNDRIES Inc., IBM, Intel Corp., Micron Technology Inc., Raytheon Co., Texas Instruments Inc. and United Technologies Corp.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Apple has pulled two popular photography apps from the iOS app store, reportedly because the company found it too easy to find nude images ? though, notably, not pornographic ones. 500px, whose apps were removed, is resubmitting them with adjustments, but Apple is already being criticized for this seemingly arbitrary policy.
The apps were taken down Tuesday morning, following discussions between 500px and Apple relating to a new version of the app. With nearly a million downloads at the time of the takedown, 500px's main app was a popular way to share photos online ? and not not a new one, either. The version Apple removed was functionally much the same as the one approved back?in October of 2011.
500px cofounder Evgeny Tchebotarev told TechCrunch that an Apple reviewer rejected their proposed update on the grounds that it let users search for nude photos. In fact, the app defaults to a safe search mode that can only be disabled via the main website.
Furthermore, the nude photos that one might search for are of the art variety, not porn. "We don?t allow pornographic images. If something is purely pornographic, it?s against our terms and it?s deleted," Tchebotarev?said.
On Twitter and at various blogs and news websites, Apple came under fire almost immediately. Among others, the company's?own Safari Web browser app can be used to find explicit images extremely easily.
It's not the first time Apple has been attacked for what people view as its Puritanical restrictions on apps. Web browsers in the app store are age-restricted because they could be used to find adult material, and the company has also removed what it feels are adult titles from its bookstore, prompting widespread criticism.
Tchebotarev took to Twitter to say that his company is hoping to get its?iOS app back online soon, presumably after some Apple-suggested adjustments have been made.
UPDATE 5:21PM: An Apple representative tells GigaOM that there were complaints of child pornography, although the CEO denies this was mentioned to them:
"The app was removed from the App Store for featuring pornographic images and material, a clear violation of our guidelines. We also received customer complaints about possible child pornography."
Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBCNews Digital. His personal website is?coldewey.cc.
DALLAS (AP) ? AT&T said Tuesday that it has reached a deal to buy the Alltel U.S. wireless operations for about $780 million to boost its spectrum in rural areas.
The Dallas telecommunications company is buying the licenses, retail stores and network assets, along with about 585,000 subscribers, from Atlantic Tele-Network Inc. The news sent the Beverly, Mass.-based company's shares up 9 percent to $42.74 in premarket trading.
Alltel's network covers about 4.6 million people in mainly rural areas across six states ? Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio and South Carolina. It generated revenue of about $350 million for the first nine months of 2012.
AT&T said it expects that as it upgrades the network, mobile Internet service will improve for both Alltel customers and AT&T customers who roam in those areas.
The deal remains subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission and Department of Justice. The companies said they expect the deal to close in the second half of the year.
AT&T said it doesn't expect integration costs related to the acquisition to significantly affect its earnings or cash flow.
AT&T Inc. shares were unchanged before the opening bell.
Now that President Obama is entering his second term, the planning for his presidential library is sure to gather steam, and maybe generate some heat, too. A decision must be made about whether to place it in Honolulu, the place of his birth, or Chicago, where he cut his political teeth.
Perhaps he'd consider a division, such as President Ford did in putting his museum in Grand Rapids, Mich., his hometown, but his library in Ann Arbor so that it could be readily available to the academic community and researchers drawn to the University of Michigan, his alma mater.
Wherever the Obama presidential records and artifacts wind up, the building is sure to call heavily on Mr. Obama's fundraising skills. President Clinton's library in Little Rock, Ark., cost $165 million and George W. Bush's in Dallas, which opens in May, carries a $300 price tag. It's basically up to the president and his supporters to build these library/museums, which are then handed over to the federal government's National Archives and Records Administration to oversee and maintain (an approach introduced by Franklin D. Roosevelt).
There are officially 13 presidential libraries, beginning chronologically with Herbert Hoover's (FDR's predecessor), that are in the federal network first established by the 1955 Presidential Libraries Act. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, opened in 2005, is not actually among them, but it is among the most popular of such venues.
Take our quickie "tour" of these repositories of presidential history:
- Ross Atkin,?Staff writer
President Herbert Hoover poses in this undated photo. (Hoover Library/AP)
1. Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
Website: www.hoover.archives.gov/
Location: West Branch, Iowa (also Hoover's birthplace in 1874)
Opened: 1962
Attendance: 44,549
Admission: $6 adults; $3 seniors
Bestselling gift shop biography: ?Herbert Hoover: A Public Life? by David Burner
Hot-selling souvenir item: ruler with pictures of all the presidents
Lesser-known fact: From 1978 to 1997, the Hoover Library had a cat, named Herbie, who lived on the front porch in a custom made replica of President Hoover's birthplace cottage.
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In the past, retail businesses may have survived on foot traffic and word-of-mouth referrals. Now, as online retailers compete with brick-and-mortar stores, consumers are inundated with shopping options. In today?s market, it is crucial that retailers implement specific marketing ideas to stand out from the crowd and convert potential customers. The following are a few simple yet innovative ways in which retailers can improve their marketing strategies:
1. Target market segments with custom vinyl banners. Does your target customer have school-age children? Sponsor a local Little League team or elementary school, and in return, ask to display a custom vinyl banner that indicates your business has helped out. Parents will subconsciously associate your brand with philanthropy and community involvement ? clearly, a win-win deal if you?re targeting parents.
2. Partner with another local business in an adjacent market to offer a cross-promotion. Many grocery chains offer rewards cards that can accrue points for discounts at gas stations. This idea gets customers to think of the two businesses at once; while spending money at the grocery store, the customer is reminded of the gas discount and vice versa. This is not limited to corporate partnerships; local businesses can join up and offer each customer a coupon for another type of business. For example, a cosmetics company could supply samples to lunch patrons at a cafe on Mother?s Day. The restaurant gets free gifts for their diners, and the cosmetics company reaches their target demographic in a personal and unique way.
3. Distribute coupons and promotional flyers to capture specific segments of your market. Make sure to include an irresistible deal and an example of your best selling product or service on the flyer.
4. Does your business sell products that tend to have wasteful packaging? Give customers a discount for bringing back a certain number of empty packages. No packaging involved in your products? Put out a recycling bin for batteries or other unwieldy items to dispose. Customers will stop by for the convenient disposal option and stay to shop.
5. Reach out over Instagram and Twitter. These two social networks are heavily dependent on spur-of-the-moment content. Set up accounts to advertise your business for free, and take advantage of your customers? own networks by offering a discount for a retweet or comment. Increase the discount if the retweet or comment is sent while the customer is in your store.
About The Author:
Madyson Grant is a small business owner who loves to blog about helpful tips to others in the business.
Authorities say a United Express plane from western New York blew four tires as it landed at Newark Liberty International Airport and veered off a runway.
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey spokesman Ron Marsico says Flight 4480 from Rochester was landing Sunday night in New Jersey when several rear tires blew. He tells the Star-Ledger that the plane veered onto a taxiway and didn't strike anything.
The plane was carrying eight passengers and five crew members. No one was hurt.
More news from NBCNewYork.com
It wasn't the only mishap at the Newark airport on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, a United Airlines employee became pinned between a luggage cart and a food service truck. Marsico tells The Record that the worker was seriously hurt. It's unclear how the accident happened.
Taking a deep breath may do more than put your mind at ease ? it may ease inflammation.
In a new study published in the January 2013 issue of Brain, Behavior and Immunity, neuroscientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison report that mindfulness meditation techniques, defined as a constant focus on breathing, bodily sensations, and mental relaxation, relieved inflammatory symptoms brought on by stress.
More from Everyday Health: 9 Things You Should Know About COPD Should You Go Crazy for Coconut? 10 Meatless Monday Meal Ideas
The researchers used different health regimens aimed at reducing stress on two separate groups of subjects. One group participated in the campus Health Enhancement Program, which combined nutritional education with exercise and music therapy. The other group participated in a health-boosting program with a mindfulness meditation approach. Both programs required the same amount of training, instructor expertise, and home practice.
Psychological stress was then induced on both groups using a tool called the Trier Social Stress Test, with capsaicin cream used to induce inflammation on the skin. The scientists then collected immune and endocrine measures. They found that the health program with the mindfulness meditation-based approach was more effective in lowering stress-induced inflammation.
?This is not a cure-all, but our study does show that there are specific ways that mindfulness can be beneficial, and that there are specific people who may be more likely to benefit from this approach than other interventions,? said Melissa Rosenkranz, PhD, assistant scientist at the center and lead author on the paper, in a press release.
Despite the fact that mindfulness mediation is a staple of alternative health, particularly with conditions involving chronic pain, little scientific evidence supports direct medical benefits of meditation and mindfulness. By including mindfulness meditation with an existing health regimen that already included social support and interaction, the UW scientists were able to show specific benefits of mindfulness meditation, according to the release.
Psychological stress is a common trigger for inflammation associated with chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. A continuous cycle of stress and flares can make living with RA a challenge. And while doctors often prescribe medication and lifestyle changes such as a healthy diet to help manage rheumatoid arthritis, mindfulness meditation may enhance the benefits.
?The mindfulness-based approach to stress reduction may offer a lower-cost alternative or complement to standard treatment, and it can be practiced easily by patients in their own homes, whenever they need,? Rosenkranz said in the release.
"Mindfulness Meditation May Soothe Inflammation" originally appeared on Everyday Health.
Political daughter, actress and many others turn out to show support for the National Day of Service. By James Montgomery
Eva Longoria speaks during the opening ceremony for the National Day of Service as part of the 57th Presidential Inauguration festivities Photo: Steve Helber/Getty Images
?It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.? Ralph Waldo Emerson
This post is part 2 in a series of posts dedicated to the committed stakeholders I?ve worked with over the past year, who continue to inspire me to follow their example of helping others. This post continues where we left off from my previous post on tips to build relationships with stakeholders, inspired by lessons learned and a recent fundraising letter I received from my alma mater.
Share a vision
Remain positive and communicate a central idea?a vision that will take your program
onward and upward.?? The fundraising letter gradually built up to this vision: ?everyone deserves
a chance.?? Build relationships and talk to participants and staff to help build a mutual vision
that resonates and revitalizes.
Encourage participation in the evaluation, regardless of amount or type.
Every bit counts.? Key stakeholders can participate in different ways.
Encourage stakeholders to give the gift of time.? Seek new ways to involve them. Invite them to share their responses to evaluation-related drafts such as surveys, evaluation plans and especially evaluation reports.? Offer evaluation-related training to increase your organization?s capacity.? I have found our community partners and volunteers to be incredibly valuable allies in planning evaluations.? They have experienced the needs that the programs address.? They are experts in their own rights.? I am so thankful for their heartfelt advice and the gift of their time.
Time it right.
Isn?t timing everything?? The letter arrived in my mailbox during the holiday season, when some may be more inclined to give.? Consider signs of readiness to participate in evaluation-related ?? activities.? What is the energy level of the group?1 How enthusiastic are people?
Be willing to listen.
The fundraising letter related a firsthand account of a student?s story.? Do your best to hear from program participants directly.? Evaluation offers a more objective and systematic way of collecting this information.? I appreciate the value of gathering evaluation data from interviews and focus groups, that is, qualitative data:? such methods offer a glimpse into participants? lives and can lead to insights that a survey cannot.? This is what I enjoy most about the work I do?getting to know the real people whom we serve.
?Stop, look and listen.?
I?ve been learning recently the need to:
Stop! ?Stop myself??my own preconceived notions, plans and ideas1.
Look! Observe body language and context of people?s comments1.
Listen! Stopping and looking helps me to listen to what is really being said and to what is not being said.
Sharing the stories of people we?ve listened to has the potential to impact program decision-making.
These are 7 ways that a fundraising letter?s message stayed with me.? I hope these seven tips also help us strengthen our relationships with our own evaluation stakeholders.
Many of us desire to give back to our communities in some way.? We desire to reach out and touch the future?to play a part in bringing about tangible outcomes that make the world better place.? Let?s nurture that desire to give in the stakeholders of all our evaluations.
1 Krueger, R.? (1988). Focus Groups: A Practical Guide to Applied Research.
Priya Small has extensive experience in collaborative evaluation planning, instrument design, data collection, grant writing and facilitation.? Contact her at?priyasusansmall@gmail.com. ?See her profile at?http://www.linkedin.com/in/priyasmall/
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Sixteen presidents before Barack Obama got a second chance at giving an inaugural address for the ages. Most didn't make much of it.
George Washington's remarks the second time around were admirably succinct ? only 135 words ? but hardly qualify as an address.
Thomas Jefferson, who laid out a masterful brief on democracy at his first oath-taking, spent much of his second complaining that the press was telling lies about him. Ulysses S. Grant also began his second term by grousing that he'd been slandered, although it's unlikely those who had heard his first inaugural were expecting much better.
Abraham Lincoln is the grand exception.
Just matching his first offering, with its lyric appeal to the "better angels of our nature," would have been a feat. On his second try, Lincoln brought forth the most-acclaimed inaugural address ever, one of the great American speeches. Four years of civil war at last coming to a close, he summoned his countrymen to bind up the nation's wounds, "with malice toward none, with charity for all."
Such poetic lightning is unlikely to strike again.
Indeed, expectations for inaugural eloquence are low these days, giving Obama some breathing room as he prepares for Monday.
"Most inaugural addresses are just pedestrian," said Martin J. Medhurst, a professor of politics and rhetoric at Baylor University. Their function is ceremonial; they lack emotion and urgency.
After reading all 56 inaugural addresses to date, presidential historian Charles O. Jones found: "A lot of them, frankly, are highly forgettable."
And second inaugurals? Even worse.
"Reality has set in," Medhurst said. "You don't have these grand visions for change you had when you were first coming into office."
Lincoln's brilliance aside, the phrasings that gleam brightest in American memory came from newly minted presidents: Franklin Roosevelt's "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." John F. Kennedy's "ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." Ronald Reagan's "government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem."
After four years of familiarity in the White House, does Obama stand any chance of speaking inaugural words that will long endure?
There are a couple of factors in his favor.
His gifts as an orator, for one. Obama is renowned for his 2004 Democratic Convention keynote, his Philadelphia meditation on race, his victory speeches in the 2008 primaries, his Nobel Prize acceptance.
Nonetheless, his first inaugural address seemed overwhelmed by the historic impact of the moment ? an event that drew nearly 2 million people to the National Mall and seemed to transcend political ideology. Perhaps the speech's most powerful line was Obama's noting that "a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served in a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath."
"The only thing anyone remembers about that one is that the first African-American president was inaugurated," said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center.
The soaring rhetoric so many Americans expect from Obama was missing that day. Jamieson said the speech lacked what an inaugural address needs to make history's short list: a clearly communicated, overarching theme and a memorable line that encapsulates it.
His "new era of responsibility" didn't grab the popular imagination.
Medhurst says that speech, though little remembered, was actually better than most inaugural efforts because it worked as a unified whole to lay out Obama's vision. Yet he doesn't have high hopes for Jan. 21.
"If his second inaugural ends up being a speech he's remembered for I will be astounded, because that just almost never happens," Medhurst said.
Lowered expectations and muted excitement may ease the pressure on the president and his speechwriters this time around.
Another break for them, ironically: Four years after the first swearing-in, the United States is still mired in serious troubles that need talking about.
Bad times make better speeches, said Jones, because they give a returning president something to say beyond "here I am, I got re-elected, let's push on."
He points to FDR's second inaugural during the Great Depression ("I see one-third of a nation ill-housed, ill-clad, ill-nourished") and Woodrow Wilson's address preparing Americans to enter World War I ("There can be no turning back").
Today's worries ? anxiety about joblessness, a sense of political disarray, fear that the nation is in chronic decline ? are less dire than what Roosevelt and Wilson faced. Yet they could create a backdrop for resolve and yes-we-can inspiration.
"This is a moment in which the country is looking to the president to assure us that we remain a great nation, that our future is going to be better than our past, and here are the principles that will enable us to do this," Jamieson said.
"You have the pieces on the table to deliver a great speech," she said. "The question is will he do it?"
And if Obama does, the next question becomes: Can he live up to it? A great inaugural address is also measured by how well its promise is fulfilled.
No matter how eloquent the wording, there was no chance history would remember Richard Nixon for his second inaugural pledge: "to make these next four years the best four years in America's history."
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Public release date: 22-Jan-2013
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