Google Now invades Siri's trurf with free app for iPhone, iPad
Eric Schmidt - Executive Chairman, Google, greets people attending Googles Big Tent event April 26, 2013 at the W Hotel in Washington, DC. Mr. Schmidt spoke on the future of the internet and handheld devices. AFP PHOTO/Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images (PAUL J. RICHARDS, AFP)
SAN FRANCISCO?? Siri may be feeling a little job insecurity. The sometimes droll assistant that answers questions and helps people manage their lives on Apple's iPhone and iPad is facing competition from an up-and-comer made by Google.
The duel began Monday with the release of a free iPhone and iPad app that features Google Now, a technology that performs many of the same functions as Siri.
It's the first time that Google Now has been available on smartphones and tablet computers that aren't running on the latest version of Google's Android software. The technology, which debuted nine months ago, is being included in an upgrade to Google's search application for iOS, the Apple Inc. software that powers iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches. It's up to each user to decide whether to activate Google Now within the redesigned Google Search app, which is available through Apple's app store.
Siri tried to dismiss the competitive threat. When asked for an opinion about Google Now, Siri responded: "If it's all the same to you, I'd rather Google later."
Comparing proteins at a glance: Technique for easy comparisons of proteins in solution
Apr. 29, 2013 ? A revolutionary X-ray analytical technique that enables researchers at a glance to identify structural similarities and differences between multiple proteins under a variety of conditions has been developed by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). As a demonstration, the researchers used this technique to gain valuable new insight into a protein that is a prime target for cancer chemotherapy.
"Proteins and other biological macromolecules are moving machines whose power is often derived from how their structural conformations change in response to their environment," says Greg Hura, a scientist with Berkeley Lab's Physical Biosciences Division. "Knowing what makes a protein change has incredible value, much like knowing that stepping on a gas pedal makes the wheels of a car spin."
Hura led the development of what is being called a structural comparison map for use with small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), an imaging technique for obtaining structural information about proteins and protein complexes in solution. Cynthia McMurray, a biologist with Berkeley Lab's Life Sciences Division, provided the cancer-relevant protein used to test the new SAXS structural comparison map.
Says McMurray, "In biology, the first step in correcting a problem, such as the formation of a cancerous lesion, is understanding the conditions under which the problem arose. With the SAXS structural comparison map, we can compare multiple protein structures en masse and quickly identify areas of interest."
Greg Hura, Helen Budworth and Cynthia McMurray, shown here at the Advanced Light Source, developed a structural comparison map for SAXS imaging and tested it on a chemotherapeutic target protein. (Photo by Roy Kaltschmidt, Berkeley Lab)
Hura is the lead author and McMurray one of two corresponding authors of a paper in the journal Nature Methods that describes this research. The paper is titled "Comprehensive objective maps of macromolecular conformations by quantitative SAXS analysis." Also a corresponding author is John Tainer, who holds joint appointments with Berkeley Lab's Life Sciences Division and the Scripps Research Institute. The other authors are Helen Budworth, Kevin Dyer, Robert Rambo and Michal Hammel.
In perhaps no other area of science does the maxim "function follows form" hold more true than for proteins and protein complexes. The structural conformations created by the folding, twisting and turning of a protein's amino acid chain can allow or prevent the protein from doing what it's supposed to do and this can mean the difference between a healthy and an unhealthy cell. A protein can assume multiple distinct conformational states as it undergoes various chemical processes such as phosphorylation, nucleotide or ligand binding, ATP hydrolysis or the formation of complexes.
The most widely used technique for determining a protein's structure remains crystallography, but many proteins and protein complexes can't be crystalized. Furthermore, though precise, crystallography is a low-throughput process that can only capture one conformational state at a time. Enter SAXS, a high-throughput technique that can image any protein or protein complex in solution under any condition, and provide nanoscale resolution for distinguishing and characterizing the different conformational states that flexible biological macromolecules such as proteins can assume.
"With SAXS, there are relatively few restraints on conditions, construction, concentration or solution chemistry," Hura says. "However, analytical methods have not kept pace with the hardware. While there are many factors that may induce a protein to undergo structural changes, these factors are difficult to predict. Our structural comparison map technique gives us a high-throughput screening capability. The combination of SAXS and our maps allows us to highlight those factors that make the biggest difference in structural conformations. We're also able to track trends and identify intermediate states and other factors that shift equilibrium from one structure to another."
The data in a structural comparison map is presented in the form of a color-coded checkerboard with similarity scores displayed as gradients moving from red, indicating high, to white, indicating low, and various shades of orange and yellow in between.
"With structural comparison maps, I can immediately see which structures under which conditions are the same and which are not," says McMurray. "The maps provide both structural and chemical information and enable us to identify those conformations we should be looking at."
To test the structural conformation map technique, co-author Budworth, a member of McMurray's research group, prepared samples of a protein known as MutS?, an inviting chemotherapeutic target because of its ability to remove problematic DNA that can lead to cancer and other genetic mutations.
"MutS? is a heterodimer whose two macromolecules undergo an ordered series of nucleotide-dependent steps to initiate DNA repair," Budworth says. "Each discrete nucleotide-bound state is a conformational state decision point that primes the next pathway step. A mechanistic understanding of these steps is crucial to learning how cells avoid mutation."
Says McMurray, "Initially this was a very big puzzle because MutS? had no crystal structure, nor could we take a look at any one conformational state and say this is good or this is bad. The structural conformation maps allowed us to characterize the different conformational states individually and then compare them to one another. We discovered that DNA has surprisingly little impact on MutS? conformational structures, a fact that was not evident from biochemical measurements, but obvious when examining the maps."
From the SAXS imaging and structural conformation map analysis, McMurray and her group believe that DNA is sculpted to the protein conformation and that nucleotide-binding drives MutS? conformational changes. This, they say, holds implications for future cancer therapies.
The MutS? samples were subjected to SAXS at the SIBYLS beamline of Berkeley Lab's Advanced Light Source, a synchrotron that generates premier beams of X-ray and ultraviolet light for scientific research. The acronym SIBYLS stands for Structurally Integrated Biology for Life Sciences. The beamline is maintained by Berkeley Lab's Life Sciences Division under the direction of corresponding author Tainer.
Says Tainer, "The structural comparison map technique is a big step forward in the development of tools that will help biologists use the full potential of the awesome throughput we expect to achieve with the next generation of light sources."
This research was supported by funds from the DOE Office of Science and from the National Institutes of Health.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
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Journal Reference:
Greg L Hura, Helen Budworth, Kevin N Dyer, Robert P Rambo, Michal Hammel, Cynthia T McMurray, John A Tainer. Comprehensive macromolecular conformations mapped by quantitative SAXS analyses. Nature Methods, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/nmeth.2453
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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Bomb suspect Instagram account was deleted recently ? unlike Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's other social media accounts. The bomb suspect also 'liked' an Instagram photo linked to Chechen terrorism.? ?
By Mark Sappenfield,?Staff writer / April 28, 2013
This photo added on April 18, 2013, to the VK page of Dias Kadyrbayev shows (from l.) Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, from Kazakhstan, with Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in Times Square in New York. Tsarnaev used VK to stay connected to the global Chechen community.
VK/AP
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So far the social media trail left behind by Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has offered only the barest hints that could connect him to a terrible act of terror. Indeed, his Twitter account ? which he continued using after the bombings ? is mostly notable for how ordinary it is.
Skip to next paragraph Mark Sappenfield
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Mark is deputy national news editor for the Monitor.
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But authorities have now located an Instagram account connected to Mr. Tsarnaev that was deleted only recently, according to a CNN report.
Under the user name "jmaster1," Tsarnaev "liked" a photo of Shamil Basayev, a warlord in Chechnya who claimed to be the mastermind behind the 2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis, in which 40 terrorists and 130 civilians were killed when Russian special forces pumped an unknown chemical agent into the building.
He also "liked" another pro-Chechnya image that included a string of hashtags: #FreeChechenia #Jihad #Jannah #ALLAH #Jesus and #God.
"If I were an investigator right now, obviously the platform he deleted matters the most," said Juliette Kayyem, a CNN terrorism analyst.
On one hand, such online activity is hardly damning. "Likes" don't make a terrorist.
Yet the deleted Instagram account adds to the impression that Tsarnaev used certain corners of the Internet to carve out a more Chechen persona for himself online than he did in daily life.
His Twitter account, @J_tsar, appeared to mirror his outward life most closely, with Tsarnaev engaging in the stream of random banter that drives the microblogging site. Though he did quote from an Islamic cleric and obliquely reference the Boston bombing on his Twitter feed, most tweets talk about homework, hip-hop music, or his favorite TV shows.?
It is on the Russian social networking site VKontakte that a slightly different Tsarnaev begins to emerge. For the most part, the portrait is still benign, with Tsarnaev spending the most time discussing his favorite soccer club, Chechnya's FC Terek Grozny. He even wrote some posts in the Chechen language and included a joke: ? 'A car goes by with a Chechen, a Dagestani and an Ingush inside. Question: who is driving?' Answer: 'The police.' ?
But through VK, Tsarnaev might have gained a somewhat warped view of Chechnya ? a place he had never been, writes Slate's Mike Walker.
"Whatever Chechnya Dzhokhar came to know through VK was not wholly representative of the region. The majority of ethnic Chechen youth of Dzhokhar?s generation will probably harbor anti-Russian views and have especially negative thoughts about United Russia, Vladimir Putin?s ruling party, which has taken a hard stance against Chechen independence.... However, Chechnya is a decently stable place today: Regular airline flights come and go, soccer matches are held, new construction is undertaken."
"Part of the anti-Russian views on the part of young Chechens are probably a combination of the legacy of war and simply being young and angry," he adds. "Those who grew up outside of the region, though, may be captivated by a romanticized extremism and maybe more inclined to actually carry something out."
Given what is already known about Tsarnaev's online habits, it seems unlikely that authorities will find a smoking gun on Instagram ? Tsarnaev's older brother, Tamerlan, who is also a suspect in the bombing case, posted much more radical content than did Dzhokhar.
Moreover, the Instagram website's terms of use suggest that it might not have much old content to share with authorities. "Given the volume of real-time content on Instagram, some information may only be stored for a short period of time."
But with Dzhokhar reportedly talking to authorities less now that he has been read his rights, and with Tamerlan dead, authorities will surely look everywhere for possible clues.
Apr. 29, 2013 ? Can lasers perform welds precisely and reliably in the midst of thundering machinery? The prototype of a new laser welder developed by an international team of researchers has now withstood the worst. At INTEGASA and ENSA, two companies in Spain that produce heat exchangers for heavy industry, the prototype proved itself precise and reliable under the difficult conditions of routine daily use.
"Manufacturers of heat exchangers were skeptical of laser anything until now," confirms Patrick Herwig from the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden. TIG-welding guns have traditionally been employed in assembly operations for welding thousands of tubes to the perforated tube sheets. This process, which is based on arc-welding technology, is very time-intensive however. The gun must be manually inserted into every hole and removed again after welding. As a result, the fabrication process is tedious, prolonged, and expensive. European manufacturers can hardly hold their ground today against competition from countries with low labor costs. Materials researchers, software specialists, production engineers and numerous users joined forces in the EU ORBITAL Project to jointly search for a cost-effective alternative. And found one.
Engineering that meets the most demanding requirements Instead of conventional TIG-welding guns, a laser does the job -- tube sheets and tubes are welded to one another rapidly, precisely and accurately. In seconds, the tube is circumferentially welded in place and the robotic arm transporting the welding head can move on to the next hole. The welding head is designed so it anchors itself in the holes and is seated there so firmly than not even vibrations of the shop floor can disrupt the welding process. Precise guidance of the optical beam is handled by software-controlled mirrors that continuously direct it to the right location. Engineers and users from Italy, Spain, France, and Germany have been fine-tuning the process for two years. "The prototype we are exhibiting now at LASER 2013 facilitates the production of heat exchangers, and not just through its speed, but through its flexibility as well. It can even melt materials together that were considered difficult to weld until now," according to Herwig, who was responsible for designing and testing the welding head during the EU project.
It is exactly these exotic combinations of materials that are needed by manufacturers of heat exchangers. They have to withstand extreme conditions in actual use. Heat exchangers are used in the chemical industry, ship engines, and power plants to remove heat from high-temperature, aggressive solutions of liquids. The tubing these liquids are passed through must therefore be corrosion-resistant. However, the liquid in the tank outside the tubing that absorbs the heat is chemically inert. Cost-effective materials can be employed here. Where tank and tubing meet, differing materials must be joined. "Traditional welding techniques hit their limits here, whereas the job can be handled with the laser," says Herwig. The researchers are confident that laser welding can be implemented so effectively in production that European companies remain competitive internationally.
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'Super-resolution' microscope possible for nanostructures
'Super-resolution' microscope possible for nanostructuresPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emil Venere venere@purdue.edu 765-494-4709 Purdue University
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Researchers have found a way to see synthetic nanostructures and molecules using a new type of super-resolution optical microscopy that does not require fluorescent dyes, representing a practical tool for biomedical and nanotechnology research.
"Super-resolution optical microscopy has opened a new window into the nanoscopic world," said Ji-Xin Cheng, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and chemistry at Purdue University.
Conventional optical microscopes can resolve objects no smaller than about 300 nanometers, or billionths of a meter, a restriction known as the "diffraction limit," which is defined as half the width of the wavelength of light being used to view the specimen. However, researchers want to view molecules such as proteins and lipids, as well as synthetic nanostructures like nanotubes, which are a few nanometers in diameter.
Such a capability could bring advances in a diverse range of disciplines, from medicine to nanoelectronics, Cheng said.
"The diffraction limit represents the fundamental limit of optical imaging resolution," Cheng said. "Stefan Hell at the Max Planck Institute and others have developed super-resolution imaging methods that require fluorescent labels. Here, we demonstrate a new scheme for breaking the diffraction limit in optical imaging of non-fluorescent species. Because it is label-free, the signal is directly from the object so that we can learn more about the nanostructure."
Findings are detailed in a research paper that appeared online Sunday (April 28) in the journal Nature Photonics.
The imaging system, called saturated transient absorption microscopy, or STAM, uses a trio of laser beams, including a doughnut-shaped laser beam that selectively illuminates some molecules but not others. Electrons in the atoms of illuminated molecules are kicked temporarily into a higher energy level and are said to be excited, while the others remain in their "ground state." Images are generated using a laser called a probe to compare the contrast between the excited and ground-state molecules.
The researchers demonstrated the technique, taking images of graphite "nanoplatelets" about 100 nanometers wide.
"It's a proof of concept and has great potential for the study of nanomaterials, both natural and synthetic," Cheng said.
The doughnut-shaped laser excitation technique, invented by researcher Stefan Hell, makes it possible to focus on yet smaller objects. Researchers hope to improve the imaging system to see objects about 10 nanometers in diameter, or about 30 times smaller than possible using conventional optical microscopes.
"We are not there yet, but a few schemes can be applied to further increase the resolution of our system," Cheng said.
The paper was co-authored by biomedical engineering doctoral student Pu Wang; research scientist Mikhail N. Slipchenko; mechanical engineering doctoral student James Mitchell; Chen Yang, an assistant professor of physical chemistry at Purdue; Eric O. Potma, an associate professor of chemistry at the University of California, Irvine; Xianfan Xu, Purdue's James J. and Carol L. Shuttleworth Professor of Mechanical Engineering; and Cheng.
Future research may include work to use lasers with shorter wavelengths of light. Because the wavelengths are shorter, the doughnut hole is smaller, possibly allowing researchers to focus on smaller objects.
The work will be discussed during the third annual Spectroscopic Imaging: A New Window into the Unseen World workshop on May 23 and 24 at Purdue. The workshop is hosted by the university's Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. More workshop information is available at http://www.conf.purdue.edu/cheng
###
The research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Writer: Emil Venere, 765-494-4709, venere@purdue.edu
Related websites:
Ji-Xin Cheng: https://engineering.purdue.edu/BME/Research/Labs/Cheng
Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering: http://www.purdue.edu/bme
Department of Chemistry: http://www.chem.purdue.edu/
Chen Yang: http://www.chem.purdue.edu/people/faculty/faculty.asp?itemID=81
IMAGE CAPTION:
A new type of super-resolution optical microscopy takes a high-resolution image (at right) of graphite "nanoplatelets" about 100 nanometers wide. The imaging system, called saturated transient absorption microscopy, or STAM, uses a trio of laser beams and represents a practical tool for biomedical and nanotechnology research. (Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University)
A publication-quality photo is available at https://news.uns.purdue.edu/images/2013/cheng-super.jpg
ABSTRACT
Far-Field Imaging of Non-Fluorescent Species with Sub-Diffraction Resolution
Pu Wang1, #, Mikhail N. Slipchenko1, #, James Mitchell2, Chen Yang3, Eric O. Potma4, Xianfan Xu2, Ji-Xin Cheng1,3 *4
1 Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
2 School of Mechanical Engineering and Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University
3 Department of Chemistry, Purdue University
4 Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine
Super-resolution optical microscopy is opening a new window to unveil the unseen details on the nanoscopic scale. Current far-field super-resolution techniques rely on fluorescence as the read-out. Here, we demonstrate a scheme for breaking the diffraction limit in far-field imaging of non-fluorescent species by using spatially controlled saturation of electronic absorption. Our method is based on a pump-probe process where a modulated pump field perturbs the charge-carrier density in a sample, thus modulating the transmission of a probe field. A doughnut shape laser beam is then added to transiently saturate the electronic transition in the periphery of the focal volume, thus the induced modulation in the sequential probe pulse only occurs at the focal center. By raster scanning the three collinearly aligned beams, high-speed sub-diffraction-limited imaging of graphite nano-platelets was performed. This technique potentially enables super-resolution imaging of nano-materials and non-fluorescent chromophores, which may remain out of reach for fluorescence-based methods.
[ | 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.
'Super-resolution' microscope possible for nanostructuresPublic release date: 29-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emil Venere venere@purdue.edu 765-494-4709 Purdue University
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Researchers have found a way to see synthetic nanostructures and molecules using a new type of super-resolution optical microscopy that does not require fluorescent dyes, representing a practical tool for biomedical and nanotechnology research.
"Super-resolution optical microscopy has opened a new window into the nanoscopic world," said Ji-Xin Cheng, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and chemistry at Purdue University.
Conventional optical microscopes can resolve objects no smaller than about 300 nanometers, or billionths of a meter, a restriction known as the "diffraction limit," which is defined as half the width of the wavelength of light being used to view the specimen. However, researchers want to view molecules such as proteins and lipids, as well as synthetic nanostructures like nanotubes, which are a few nanometers in diameter.
Such a capability could bring advances in a diverse range of disciplines, from medicine to nanoelectronics, Cheng said.
"The diffraction limit represents the fundamental limit of optical imaging resolution," Cheng said. "Stefan Hell at the Max Planck Institute and others have developed super-resolution imaging methods that require fluorescent labels. Here, we demonstrate a new scheme for breaking the diffraction limit in optical imaging of non-fluorescent species. Because it is label-free, the signal is directly from the object so that we can learn more about the nanostructure."
Findings are detailed in a research paper that appeared online Sunday (April 28) in the journal Nature Photonics.
The imaging system, called saturated transient absorption microscopy, or STAM, uses a trio of laser beams, including a doughnut-shaped laser beam that selectively illuminates some molecules but not others. Electrons in the atoms of illuminated molecules are kicked temporarily into a higher energy level and are said to be excited, while the others remain in their "ground state." Images are generated using a laser called a probe to compare the contrast between the excited and ground-state molecules.
The researchers demonstrated the technique, taking images of graphite "nanoplatelets" about 100 nanometers wide.
"It's a proof of concept and has great potential for the study of nanomaterials, both natural and synthetic," Cheng said.
The doughnut-shaped laser excitation technique, invented by researcher Stefan Hell, makes it possible to focus on yet smaller objects. Researchers hope to improve the imaging system to see objects about 10 nanometers in diameter, or about 30 times smaller than possible using conventional optical microscopes.
"We are not there yet, but a few schemes can be applied to further increase the resolution of our system," Cheng said.
The paper was co-authored by biomedical engineering doctoral student Pu Wang; research scientist Mikhail N. Slipchenko; mechanical engineering doctoral student James Mitchell; Chen Yang, an assistant professor of physical chemistry at Purdue; Eric O. Potma, an associate professor of chemistry at the University of California, Irvine; Xianfan Xu, Purdue's James J. and Carol L. Shuttleworth Professor of Mechanical Engineering; and Cheng.
Future research may include work to use lasers with shorter wavelengths of light. Because the wavelengths are shorter, the doughnut hole is smaller, possibly allowing researchers to focus on smaller objects.
The work will be discussed during the third annual Spectroscopic Imaging: A New Window into the Unseen World workshop on May 23 and 24 at Purdue. The workshop is hosted by the university's Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. More workshop information is available at http://www.conf.purdue.edu/cheng
###
The research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Writer: Emil Venere, 765-494-4709, venere@purdue.edu
Related websites:
Ji-Xin Cheng: https://engineering.purdue.edu/BME/Research/Labs/Cheng
Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering: http://www.purdue.edu/bme
Department of Chemistry: http://www.chem.purdue.edu/
Chen Yang: http://www.chem.purdue.edu/people/faculty/faculty.asp?itemID=81
IMAGE CAPTION:
A new type of super-resolution optical microscopy takes a high-resolution image (at right) of graphite "nanoplatelets" about 100 nanometers wide. The imaging system, called saturated transient absorption microscopy, or STAM, uses a trio of laser beams and represents a practical tool for biomedical and nanotechnology research. (Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University)
A publication-quality photo is available at https://news.uns.purdue.edu/images/2013/cheng-super.jpg
ABSTRACT
Far-Field Imaging of Non-Fluorescent Species with Sub-Diffraction Resolution
Pu Wang1, #, Mikhail N. Slipchenko1, #, James Mitchell2, Chen Yang3, Eric O. Potma4, Xianfan Xu2, Ji-Xin Cheng1,3 *4
1 Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
2 School of Mechanical Engineering and Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University
3 Department of Chemistry, Purdue University
4 Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine
Super-resolution optical microscopy is opening a new window to unveil the unseen details on the nanoscopic scale. Current far-field super-resolution techniques rely on fluorescence as the read-out. Here, we demonstrate a scheme for breaking the diffraction limit in far-field imaging of non-fluorescent species by using spatially controlled saturation of electronic absorption. Our method is based on a pump-probe process where a modulated pump field perturbs the charge-carrier density in a sample, thus modulating the transmission of a probe field. A doughnut shape laser beam is then added to transiently saturate the electronic transition in the periphery of the focal volume, thus the induced modulation in the sequential probe pulse only occurs at the focal center. By raster scanning the three collinearly aligned beams, high-speed sub-diffraction-limited imaging of graphite nano-platelets was performed. This technique potentially enables super-resolution imaging of nano-materials and non-fluorescent chromophores, which may remain out of reach for fluorescence-based methods.
[ | 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.
Michael McCaul: Boston Bombings Device 'Leads Me To Believe' There Was A Trainer Involved
In this photo provided by The Daily Free Press and Kenshin Okubo, people react to an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Daily Free Press, Kenshin Okubo) MANDATORY CREDIT
Medical workers aid injured people at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion Monday, April 15, 2013 in Boston. Two bombs exploded near the finish line of the marathon on Monday, killing at least two people, injuring at least 22 others and sending authorities rushing to aid wounded spectators. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston police clear an area following an explosion near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Medical personnel work outside the medical tent in the aftermath of two blasts which exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
An unidentified Boston Marathon runner, center, is reunited with loved ones near Copley Square following an explosion in Boston Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Medical workers aid an injured woman at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following two explosions there, Monday, April 15, 2013 in Boston. Two bombs exploded near the finish of the Boston Marathon on Monday, killing at least two people, injuring at least 23 others and sending authorities rushing to aid wounded spectators. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Workers aid injured people at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Herald, Stuart Cahill) MANDATORY CREDIT
In this photo provided by The Daily Free Press and Kenshin Okubo, people react to an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Daily Free Press, Kenshin Okubo) MANDATORY CREDIT
In this photo provided by The Daily Free Press and Kenshin Okubo, people react to an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Daily Free Press, Kenshin Okubo) MANDATORY CREDIT
In this photo provided by The Daily Free Press and Kenshin Okubo, people assist an injured after an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Daily Free Press, Kenshin Okubo) MANDATORY CREDIT
Medical workers aid an injured woman at the scene of a bomb blast near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring at scores of others (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Medical workers aid injured people at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring dozens of others (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Runners who were diverted from the race course walk on the Commonwealth Mall two blocks from the site of an explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring at least 23 others. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Una mujer llora afectada por una explosi?n mientras caminan cerca de la l?nea de meta de la Marat?n de Boston el lunes 15 de abril de 2013. Dos bombas estallaron el lunes causando la muerte de dos personas y heridas a otras 50, inform? la Polic?a de Boston. (AP Foto/Josh Reynolds)
An armed FBI agent passes a Boston police officer following an explosion at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)
A firefighter tends to an injured man following an explosion near the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
One of the blast sites on Boylston Street near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon is investigated by a person in a protective suit in the wake of two blasts in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Firefighters tend to a man following an explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two bombs exploded at the Boston Marathon finish line Monday killing at least two people injuring dozens. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
In this photo provided by The Daily Free Press and Kenshin Okubo, people react to an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Daily Free Press, Kenshin Okubo) MANDATORY CREDIT
Two people walk down the sidewalk as Boston police clear the area in Copley Square in the aftermath of two blasts which exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston Monday, April 15, 2013. The explosions Monday killed at least two people and injured dozens. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
This photo provided by Bruce Mendelsohn shows the scene after two explosions occurred during the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/ Bruce Mendelsohn) MANDATORY CREDIT
Medical workers respond following an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Globe, David L Ryan) MANDATORY CREDIT
Boston police direct runners who were diverted from the race course following an explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Medical workers aid injured people at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Globe, David L Ryan) MANDATORY CREDIT
Medical workers aid injured people at the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Globe, David L Ryan) MANDATORY CREDIT
Blood from victims covers the sidewalk on Boylston Street, at the site of an explosion during the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. At the right foreground is a folding chair with the design of an American flag on the cover. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Chris Darmody, right, holds his wife Sue in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Chris says he was waiting for Sue when an explosion detonated near his location at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. The couple were later reunited after all runners were diverted from the course. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Emergency responders comfort a woman on a stretcher who was injured in a bomb blast near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, 2013 in Boston. Two bombs exploded in the packed streets near the finish line of the marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring more than 80, authorities said. (AP Photo/Jeremy Pavia)
Emergency responders aid a woman on a stretcher who was injured in a bomb blast near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, 2013 in Boston. Two bombs exploded in the packed streets near the finish line of the marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring more than 80, authorities said. (AP Photo/Jeremy Pavia)
Emergency responders comfort a woman on a stretcher who was injured in a bomb blast near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, 2013 in Boston. Two bombs exploded in the packed streets near the finish line of the marathon on Monday, killing at least two people and injuring more than 80, authorities said. (AP Photo/Jeremy Pavia)
Rescue personnel aid injured people near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following explosions in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Herald, Stuart Cahill)
Rescue personnel aid injured people near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon following explosions in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Herald, Stuart Cahill)
Injured people and debris lie on the sidewalk near the Boston Marathon finish line following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/MetroWest Daily News, Ken McGagh) MANDATORY CREDIT
As Boston Marathon runners walk by, SWAT team members stand guard near the finish line in Boston Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. ( (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
People react to an explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Herald, Stuart Cahill) BOSTON GLOBE OUT; METRO BOSTON OUT; MAGS OUT;
Investigators shine flashlights at one of the blast sites on Boylston Street near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon in the wake of two blasts in Boston Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
In this image from video provided by Ryan Hoyme, the second explosion can be seen in the distance as smoke from the first explosion surrounds spectators exiting the stands during the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Ryan Hoyme)
knocked down runner
Bill Iffrig, 78, lies on the ground as police officers react to a second explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Iffrig, of Lake Stevens, Wash., was running his third Boston Marathon and near the finish line when he was knocked down by one of two bomb blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Globe, John Tlumacki)
A Boston Marathon runner leaves the course crying near Copley Square following an explosion at the finish line in Boston on Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
People react as an explosion goes off near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions went off at the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/The Boston Globe, David L Ryan) MANDATORY CREDIT
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A runner embraces another woman on the marathon route near Kenmore Square after two bombs exploded during the 117th Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A runner reacts near Kenmore Square after two bombs exploded during the 117th Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A runner embraces another woman near Kenmore Square after two bombs exploded during the 117th Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A woman is loaded into an ambulance after he was injured by one of two bombs exploded during the 117th Boston Marathon near Copley Square on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A woman is loaded into an ambulance after he was injured by one of two bombs exploded during the 117th Boston Marathon near Copley Square on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A woman, with blood on fingers, is loaded into an ambulance after being injured after two bombs exploded on the marathon route on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: A woman looks at the blood on her hands as she is loaded into an ambulance after being injured after two bombs exploded on the marathon route on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
Multiple People Injured After Explosions Near Finish Line at Boston Marathon
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: Two blood stained feet of a man hang outside an ambulance outside a medical tent located near the finish of the 117th Boston Marathon after two bombs exploded on the marathon route on April 15, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. Two people are confirmed dead and at least 23 injured after two explosions went off near the finish line to the marathon. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
Boston police ask people to leave the area in Copley Plaza in the aftermath of two blasts which exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon in Boston Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Param?dicos asisten a un hombre herido despu?s de una explosi?n en Boston el Lunes 15 de Abril de 2013. Dos bombas estallaron cerca de la l?nea de meta del marat?n de Boston, causaron dos muertos y 22 heridos, dijeron la polic?a y los organizadores de la competici?n. (AP Foto/The Boston Globe, David L. Ryan)
Uniformed Division Secret Service officers stand watch on the sidewalk in front of the White House looking north from Pennsylvania Avenue during heightened security following the explosions in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013 in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
How They Filmed Return Of The Jedi's Absurdly Great Speeder Chase
This year marks the 30th anniversary of Return Of The Jedi, the Ewok-filled amazingness that spelled the end of the original Star Wars trilogy. That film contained one of the most amazing high-speed chases ever seen on film. This is how they brought that death-defying chase to life.
One of the highlights of Return Of The Jedi is the speeder chase between the Rebels and the Empire. The Rebels need to distract the Scout Troopers in order to deactivate the shield generator, which would let the Rebel fleet penetrate the Death Star and defeat the Galactic Empire.
But you knew that already.
In the scene, Luke and Leia jump on their speeders and then race through the forest at seriously crazy high speeds. There are tons of narrow misses and there was obviously no way to safely or realistically do this at those high speeds.
That's because it wasn't close to real. The natural assumption is the chase was filmed on a dirtbike and then the footage was sped up, but there's a problem with that: Dirtbikes aren't exactly the smoothest riding vehicles in the world. The speeders float on the air, which means they need to appear smoother than a motorcycle could ever be.
Just 100 more yards. My left hand is slippery with sweat. Legs tired. Brain hurts most of all. I wonder if really intense concentration produces any lingering harmful effects...look at Bobby Fisher! (At a camera speed of only 3/4 frame per second, a thousand feet of precise walking gets you just 16 feet of VistaVision in the can, and every take you forget a few more important phone numbers, or a family birthday.) Is it worth it? At this rate I will be illiterate in a week and a vegetable in two.
Not only was cameraman Garrett Brown wearing the steadicam, he also had two gyroscopes attached to it for extra stabilization, although a slight amount of wobble was still wanted to make it semi-realistic. He also had to concentrate on the target like a sniper. One misstep would mean a ruined take and another slow trudge through the forest. At 3/4 speed, Brown says that 1,000 feet of walking got him 16 usable feet of footage.
Brown was personally skeptical of the idea when it was presented to him. But instead of saying no, he decided to go for it. What resulted was a cameraman walking slowly through the forest with a ton of equipment, where any slight error would cause him to start over again.
The 3/4 speed footage was sped up 30 times in order to make the film the standard 24 frames per seconds. That also made the speed appear to be a mind-boggling 120 MPH through the forest. Brown had to repeatedly walk through the forest in order to get the right shots. Filming at a slow speed like that also didn't let them calculate for exposure, but it seems that their guesswork was spot on and the corrections done in post production made for a great looking scene.
Was the agony of walking through the forest super slowly and making hundreds of cuts to get a three minute chase worth it? Damn right it was.
Reminder from Boston Marathon bombings: A need to integrate immigrant children
As soon as Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the alleged perpetrators of the Boston Marathon bombings, were identified as Chechen immigrants, and then as refugees, questions were raised about where the system had gone wrong to admit them to the United States. But careful examination of the known facts reveals no flaws in the asylum system; it worked as it should have.
The tragedy in Boston could not have been foreseen in the case files of an 8-year-old asylum seeker and his 15-year-old brother. What can ? and has ? been questioned is whether authorities at all levels in the US do enough to integrate immigrant children into mainstream American life. (The same question could, of course, be asked about other disadvantaged children in the country?s underclass or those who suffer from undiagnosed or inadequately treated mental illness.)
OPINION: Boston bombings and a Muslim identity crisis
To immigrants in general, the US offers a bootstraps approach: a generous admissions policy compared to most other developed countries and very little help for those who take up the offer. A condition for legal immigration is that the immigrant is not likely to become a ?public charge.?
An exception is made for refugees and asylum seekers, in recognition of the fact that they were compelled to leave their home countries for fear of persecution. But even for them, assistance is very limited ? about seven months of cash assistance and help in connecting to a job, housing, and most of the public benefits available to US citizens.
The Tsarnaevs? family origins in Chechnya gave them a solid claim to a ?well-founded fear of being persecuted,? in the language of US and international refugee law. When the Tsarnaev family briefly moved to Chechnya from Kyrgyzstan after the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991, things may have looked promising for the region.
But life in Chechnya became a nightmare after Russia invaded in 1994 to end Chechnya?s bid for independence. The subsequent turmoil tossed the family back to Kyrgyzstan, then to Dagestan, Mrs. Tsarnaev?s family homeland, and on to the US in 2002. Tamerlan would follow his parents and younger brother Dzhokhar to the US a year later.
Chechens as a group were always subject to discrimination throughout the Soviet Union, and from 1999 on, they were also tainted with the terrorist attacks that Chechen militants visited on Moscow and other Russian cities. Chechens, even those like the Tsarnaevs who had nothing to do with the insurgency, were subject not only to discrimination but attack, including by the police. By 2003, Chechens were by far the largest group of asylum seekers in Europe.
Tens of thousands of Chechens were granted asylum in the European Union, but many were pushed back to the borders of the EU, returned to countries that offered no effective protection, or even sent back to Russia. It was a logical move for a man like Aznor Tsarnaev, looking for a decent prospect for his family, to seek asylum in the US, especially since he had family already settled there. In 2003, the US had the second highest recognition rate for asylum seekers from Russia of any country, second only to Austria (which had given asylum status to 17,000 Chechens by 2005).
The Tsarnaev family showed no signs of anything more sinister than homesickness in most of their time in the US. The brothers? journey to disaffection, violence (in the case of the elder brother), and finally terrorism has yet to be fully traced. But to say that they should not have been given asylum in 2002 is to deny an honorable tradition of the United States as well as the facts of the Tsarnaevs? history.
They had every reason to claim ? and be granted ? asylum. If US authorities had made a blanket decision that children from Russia were potential terrorists, they would have turned away 6-year-old Sergey Brin, the computer genius who co-founded Google, along with 8-year-old Dzhokar Tsarnaev.
The laissez-faire immigration system of the US permits catastrophic failures as well as off-the-charts successes, though the reality for most newcomers to the United States lies well between those two extremes. One way to guard against failures is to pay more attention to the integration of children who come to the US, especially those who may be troubled by the legacies of war-torn areas, and to be alert to signs of disaffection.
A little help getting settled in the first few months after arrival does not constitute sufficient support for refugee families. A longer and deeper engagement both by government agencies and communities is needed to heed warning signs like a fall-off in school performance, a turning away from friends and activities, gang involvement or previously unheard-of aggressiveness.
OPINION: Motive in Boston bombings: Look to tribal code of honor
Such developments should prompt teachers, coaches, friends, and religious figures to ask questions and let kids know that someone notices them and cares what happens. If their families and ethnic communities feel themselves fully part of this country, they will be part of that effort as well.
Kathleen Newland directs the Migration Policy Institute?s refugee protection program. She serves on the boards of the International Rescue Committee, USA for UNHCR, Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), and the Stimson Center. She is a chair emerita of the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children.
Okay, so maybe not exactly. But in the world of crazy teenie-bopper news this is absolutely HUGE. The word has it that Pattinson gave her a promise ring for her birthday. All you have to do is review the last year or so with these two to understand. Things have been rocky…REALLY rocky. It all began when K-Stew was working on Snow White & The Huntsman and totally hooked up with the director. There were pictures and everything. Some crazed fans made up conspiracies that they planned the cheating scandal so that they would break up right before the release of Breaking Dawn. It makes sense because the fervor over the Twilight “saga” was really dying down at that point. People were starting to get a little bit tired of it, and started to realize that the plot was full of holes, the production quality was cheap, and the actors were terrible. At that point it was all but over anyway. But that doesn’t mean it was a conspiracy. Anyway, they finally got back together and the world was at peace. As crazy as it may sound, it was a relief. It seems like they fit together very well, and [...]
Home Improvement Suggestions Initially Residence Buyer | Articles ...
There are actually several reasons why people spend profit residence projects. These enhancements can be tiny things which get just one hour or large and call for months and even months. No matter whether you have the project on your self or work with specialists, you have to know what things to consider when commencing a brand new redesigning task. This article has tips to help you throughout the whole process.
This will allow you begin to see the total home and see what demands particular focus. This can also tends to make your house that looks wonderful and much more secure.
Use a damp sponge to help you your drywall rather than sanding. Work with a sponge instead of sandpaper.A wet sponge could be as well as sanding. The benefit is that sponging doesn?t kick up each of the dirt that you receive with sanding.
Be flexible with regards to home remodeling strategies. You could have a time under consideration, but sometimes it may take longer. You really should devote some dollars, nonetheless there are occasions where by fees will surpass your objectives.
Make sure you set basic safety merchandise a true top priority prior to taking in your up coming redesigning process. Safety devices should include safety sunglasses, durable gloves and stainlesss steel-toed shoes are merely the beginning.
Houses that happen to be current sell more rapidly compared to those which can be ignored. This is a great approach to earning back again your house.
Be conscious of which product you select to tackle stubborn clogs.Some kinds of options are quite severe and risky. Crystallized varieties of strain cleaners can stick to the piping and rust them.Be sure you use drain cleaning up goods meant for use with the particular septic reservoir you might have.
A very important thing to do is work towards the undertaking when no one?s about. This will lessen the quantity of stress brought on by the undertaking.
Ziploc baggies can be a great support if you want to take a rest but prevent obtaining your fresh paint brushes and also other gear from drying out out throughout smashes or even right away. Location your entire brushes and rollers into covered luggage once you decide to take a rest. This prevents color from drying till you make use of it again.
Always bear in mind the key of a good quality front door. Your friends and relatives will probably be finding your door each time they key in and get out of by means of it. You are able to lose significant amounts of the heat by way of a front door that is not insulated. A ratty front door may also be a genuine stability worry in the event the framework or jiggly fasten compromises security alarms.
These issues can be frequent in more mature properties and will develop easily into critical concerns. Taking on them when they?re small is simple and easy. Holding out until they?re significant concerns can be time-rigorous and time intense. A little bit of chlorine bleach can also work rather well on mildew troubles. You may usually beach sand away a little rust.
Utilizing the recommendations using this part, congratulations, you better learn how to make renovations. Take advantage of this expertise when you start a home development task. You won?t be sorry!
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FARGO, N.D. (AP) ? Officials in Fargo, N.D., say they may scale back flood protection efforts as the National Weather Service has lowered the Red River crest prediction.
The National Weather Service's updated forecast showed Wednesday that the river is likely to crest late next week between 38 and 40 feet, down a couple of feet from earlier predictions.
Forecasters say an ideal melt cycle and lack of significant precipitation lead to the improved forecast.
The river overflows its banks at 18 feet, but most structures in Fargo are protected without additional measures to about 38 feet. If it reaches 38 feet, Fargo would need to build dikes for 117 homes.
Fargo officials say there's still work to be done, but the number of sandbags needed could drop from 1.8 million to about 400,000.
Twitter reportedly working on location-based discovery tool
The next big Twitter feature? Finding out what your neighbor's talking about, 140 characters at a time, of course. According to All Things D, the service is working on exactly that, a location-based feature that was reportedly developed at a hack week held by the company earlier this month. Twitter, predictably, isn't commenting on the reportedly upcoming feature, but D has says that this information is coming from "multiple sources." No word on how close they all are to one another.
Tinkerbella nana: A new representative from the world of fairyflies
Apr. 24, 2013 ? Mymaridae, commonly known as fairyflies, are one of about 18 families of chalcid wasps. Fairyflies occur worldwide, except in Antarctica. They include the world's smallest known winged insect -- Kikiki huna, the body length of which is only 155 ?m, and the smallest known adult insect -- the wingless male of Dicopomorpha echmepterygis which is only 130 ?m. Although fairyflies are among the most common chalcid wasps, they are seldomly noticed by humans because of their minute size. Their apparent invisibility, gracile bodies and delicate wings with long fringes resembling the mythical fairies have earned them their common name.
All but two known fairyfly species are parasitoids of eggs of other insects. These eggs are commonly laid in concealed locations, such as in plant tissues or in leaf litter or soil and are difficult to find, so for the most part the host insects of fairyflies are unknown. Specimens of the new species Tinkerbella nana were collected at the La Selva Biological Station, a lowland rainforest research and education facility owned and managed by the Organization for Tropical Studies, located in the province of Heredia, Costa Rica. They were collected by sweeping in fairly young (no more than 20 years old) secondary forest mixed with a primary forest. All the specimens collected were below 250 ?m in length. The reduced wing surface and relatively long setae of fairyflies and many other minute flying insects likely have an aerodynamic function, perhaps to reduce turbulence and hence drag on a wing flapping at several hundred beats per second. The study of the new species was published in the open access journal Journal of Hymenoptera Research.
Almost 2000 years ago, Pliny the Elder (ca. 23 A.D.) stated "Rerum natura nusquam magis quam in minimis tota est" loosely translated as "Nature is nowhere as great as in its smallest." Lacking any means of magnification, he could not possibly have seen the intricate structure and beauty of fairyflies or other minute organisms. But his statement certainly holds true.
"If something is physically possible in living things, some individuals of at least one species, extinct or extant, will likely have achieved it. So the lower size limit, by whatever measure of size is chosen, was almost certainly already evolved -- somewhere, sometime. If we have not already found them, we must surely be close to discovering the smallest insects and other arthropods," says the lead author, John Huber from Natural Resources Canada.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Pensoft Publishers. The original story is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
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Journal Reference:
John Huber, John Noyes. A new genus and species of fairyfly, Tinkerbella nana (Hymenoptera, Mymaridae), with comments on its sister genus Kikiki, and discussion on small size limits in arthropods. Journal of Hymenoptera Research, 2013; 32 (0): 17 DOI: 10.3897/JHR.32.4663
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Einstein's gravity theory passes toughest test yet
Apr. 25, 2013 ? A strange stellar pair nearly 7,000 light-years from Earth has provided physicists with a unique cosmic laboratory for studying the nature of gravity. The extremely strong gravity of a massive neutron star in orbit with a companion white dwarf star puts competing theories of gravity to a test more stringent than any available before.
Once again, Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, published in 1915, comes out on top.
At some point, however, scientists expect Einstein's model to be invalid under extreme conditions. General Relativity, for example, is incompatible with quantum theory. Physicists hope to find an alternate description of gravity that would eliminate that incompatibility.
A newly-discovered pulsar -- a spinning neutron star with twice the mass of the Sun -- and its white-dwarf companion, orbiting each other once every two and a half hours, has put gravitational theories to the most extreme test yet. Observations of the system, dubbed PSR J0348+0432, produced results consistent with the predictions of General Relativity.
The tightly-orbiting pair was discovered with the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope (GBT), and subsequently studied in visible light with the Apache Point telescope in New Mexico, the Very Large Telescope in Chile, and the William Herschel Telescope in the Canary Islands. Extensive radio observations with the Arecibo telescope in Puerto Rico and the Effelsberg telescope in Germany yielded vital data on subtle changes in the pair's orbit.
In such a system, the orbits decay and gravitational waves are emitted, carrying energy from the system. By very precisely measuring the time of arrival of the pulsar's radio pulses over a long period of time, astronomers can determine the rate of decay and the amount of gravitational radiation emitted. The large mass of the neutron star in PSR J0348+0432, the closeness of its orbit with its companion, and the fact that the companion white dwarf is compact but not another neutron star, all make the system an unprecedented opportunity for testing alternative theories of gravity.
Under the extreme conditions of this system, some scientists thought that the equations of General Relativity might not accurately predict the amount of gravitational radiation emitted, and thus change the rate of orbital decay. Competing gravitational theories, they thought, might prove more accurate in this system.
"We thought this system might be extreme enough to show a breakdown in General Relativity, but instead, Einstein's predictions held up quite well," said Paulo Freire, of the Max Planck Institute for Radioastronomy in Germany.
That's good news, the scientists say, for researchers hoping to make the first direct detection of gravitational waves with advanced instruments. Researchers using such instruments hope to detect the gravitational waves emitted as such dense pairs as neutron stars and black holes spiral inward toward violent collisions.
Gravitational waves are extremely difficult to detect and even with the best instruments, physicists expect they will need to know the characteristics of the waves they seek, which will be buried in "noise" from their detectors. Knowing the characteristics of the waves they seek will allow them to extract the signal they seek from that noise.
"Our results indicate that the filtering techniques planned for these advanced instruments remain valid," said Ryan Lynch, of McGill University.
Freire and Lynch worked with a large international team of researchers. They reported their results in the journal Science.
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation, operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by National Radio Astronomy Observatory.
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Journal Reference:
J. Antoniadis, P. C. C. Freire, N. Wex, T. M. Tauris, R. S. Lynch, M. H. van Kerkwijk, M. Kramer, C. Bassa, V. S. Dhillon, T. Driebe, J. W. T. Hessels, V. M. Kaspi, V. I. Kondratiev, N. Langer, T. R. Marsh, M. A. McLaughlin, T. T. Pennucci, S. M. Ransom, I. H. Stairs, J. van Leeuwen, J. P. W. Verbiest, D. G. Whelan. A Massive Pulsar in a Compact Relativistic Binary. Science, 2013; 340 (6131): 1233232 DOI: 10.1126/science.1233232
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