Mexican ex-governor Mario Villanueva gets 11 years in US prison for money laundering

By Bernard Vaughan, Reuters

NEW YORK -- A former Mexican state governor was sentenced to 11 years in prison in the United States on Friday after pleading guilty to conspiring to launder millions of dollars in bribes from a notorious drug cartel.

With credit for time served and good behavior, Mario Villanueva, 64, could be released from U.S. custody in two to three years, his lawyer, Richard Lind, said after the hearing. He faces another 23 years in prison in Mexico stemming from similar charges, Lind said.

Mexico's drug war is also part of a drug culture with roots in music, movies and even religion

From 1993 to 1999, Villanueva was governor of Quintana Roo, a state on the Yucatan Peninsula that is home to the popular tourist destination Cancun.

While in office he conspired to launder millions of dollars in bribery payments from the Juarez drug cartel through accounts and shell corporations in the United States and elsewhere, prosecutors said.

He was extradited to the United States in 2010 after serving a six-year sentence in Mexico for money laundering.

"This defendant violated the public trust to enrich himself," Assistant U.S. Attorney Glen Kopp told U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero in New York on Friday.

In a plea agreement last year, Villanueva pleaded guilty to one charge of money laundering conspiracy; he faced a maximum of 20 years in prison.

"I ask for your compassion and your clemency," Villanueva told Marrero, as several of his family members, including his wife and son, looked on.

The Juarez cartel transported more than 200 tons of cocaine into the United States in the 1990s, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan.

Prosecutors said Villanueva reached an agreement with the cartel soon after it established operations in Quintana Roo in 1994. He received payments of between $400,000 and $500,000 for each cocaine shipment that went through the state in exchange for ensuring law enforcement would not interfere.

By late 1995, he began transferring the money to bank and brokerage accounts in the United States, Switzerland and elsewhere in an effort to hide the funds, prosecutors said.

Consuelo Marquez, a Lehman Brothers investment broker, helped set up several offshore corporations for Villanueva to shelter the bribe proceeds, according to the indictment against Villanueva. She also established brokerage accounts for him and conducted a series of wire transfers at his direction, according to the indictment.

Marquez was sentenced to three years of probation and fined $10,000 in 2006 after pleading guilty to money laundering charges.

Villanueva, while under investigation in Mexico, disappeared in March 1999, just before his term as governor expired. He was discovered by Mexican authorities in 2001.

While a fugitive, Villanueva tried to transfer funds in the Lehman accounts to third-party accounts with Marquez's help, according to the indictment.

With his sentence, Villanueva "completes his descent from elected government official to corrupted official to incarcerated felon," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

The case is USA v. Mario Ernesto Villanueva Madrid, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, No. 01-cr-021.

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BlueStacks introduces the GamePop Mini, its first subscription-based 'free' game console

In an effort to outdo itself, BlueStacks is announcing the GamePop Mini for the cube-buying averse. The biggest difference between the Mini (seen above on the left) and the cube (the ... uh ... cube above) isn't the form factor, it's in pricing. Where the regular GamePop is $129 (unless you act soon) the Mini is "free" after a 12-month subscription of $7 per-month, or $84 total. At this price, it costs less than an Ouya, but slightly more than a GameStick. "If you keep it more than 12 months, you keep it forever," BlueStacks' Head of Marketing and Business Development John Garguilo told us. Of course, there's not much to do with with the Mini without a subscription. "It'd be like if Netflix did it this way and had hardware - the unit would be useless without the subscription." Additionally, if you return the Mini inside of 12 months, there's a $25 restocking fee.

The subscription gives users access to a plethora of games from 500 "popular mobile game partners." Those partners include the teams behind Jetpack Joyride and Fieldrunners. "Getting the kind of developer support we've gotten, it sets us apart. We saw what happened with the Dreamcast and we saw what happened with the Wii U. You need to have good launch titles; there needs to be games everyone recognizes and wants to play."

To make GamePop more enticing to developers, Bluestacks created Looking Glass -- proprietary tech allowing iOS-only apps to run on its Android-4.2-based console. When an iOS app makes calls to Apple's hardware, Looking Glass interprets those calls and translates them to the GamePop Mini's hardware. Of course, a few changes within the code are necessary. "[Porting is] not easy, but I would submit it's not hard, relatively speaking," Garguilo said.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/28/gamepop-mini/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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U.S. charges Chinese wind company with stealing trade secrets

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chinese wind turbine maker Sinovel Wind Group Co and two of its employees were charged with stealing trade secrets from U.S.-based AMSC by the Department of Justice (DoJ) on Thursday.

A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin returned an indictment leveling theft charges on Sinovel, two of its employees and a former employee of AMSC, a Devens, Massachusetts-based company that provided wind turbine design, engineering services and power electronics and controls to Sinovel. Authorities said the theft allegedly cost AMSC $800 million. (http://r.reuters.com/jud39t)

Sinovel officials were not immediately available for comment.

In 2011, AMSC, which mainly supplies electrical systems used in wind turbines, filed several lawsuits in China against Sinovel alleging the illegal use of AMSC's intellectual property.

AMSC, which was formerly known as American Superconductor Corp, said at the time it wanted to recover more than $1.2 billion in damages.

"The fact that Sinovel has exported stolen American intellectual property from China back into the United States - less than 40 miles from our global headquarters - shows not only a blatant disrespect for intellectual property but a disregard for international trade law," AMSC Chief Executive Officer Daniel McGahn said.

AMSC called on President Barack Obama's administration and Congress to re-evaluate the U.S. trade relationship with China.

AMSC said that, over the past two years, more than 500 staff worldwide have lost their jobs following Sinovel's "egregious and unlawful behavior."

The defendants indicted include Su Liying, the deputy director of Sinovel's Research and Development Department, Zhao Haichun, a technology manager for Sinovel and Dejan Karabasevic, a former AMSC employee.

Sinovel, once AMSC's largest customer, contracted with an AMSC employee in Austria to get the software designed for Sinovel's turbines.

"The Sinovel case is a classic example of the growing insider threat facing our nation's corporations and their intellectual property," said FBI Executive Assistant Director Richard McFeely.

AMSC shares were up as much as 7 percent in extended trading.

(Reporting by Thyagaraju Adinarayan and Nichola Groom; Editing by David Gregorio and Andre Grenon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-charges-chinese-wind-company-stealing-trade-secrets-114343443.html

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Aaron Hernandez Family Members, Friends Defend NFL Star: He's Not a Gang-Banger!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/06/aaron-hernandez-family-members-friends-defend-nfl-star-hes-not-a/

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My name on 2 loans (2 condos), can I still refinance my primary ...

I'm trying to refin the loan (2011, Wells Fargo, 5%/30yrs, exellent income, credit,job, own $216K, condo value $300K) but when they know my name still on the loan of my first condo ($60K left, value $320K, my ex has made payment by himself since 2009) they don't like it. Can somone help me? Or should I call Wells Fargo?

Source: http://www.zillow.com/advice-thread/My-name-on-2-loans-2-condos-can-I-still-refinance-my-primary-house-my-ex-pays-other-houses/499258/

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Vatican monsignor arrested in 20M euro plot

An undated photo of Monsignor Nunzio Scarano in Salerno, Italy. A Vatican official already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank was arrested Friday, June 28, 2013, in a separate operation: Prosecutors allege he tried to bring 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane, his lawyer said. Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in one of the Vatican's main financial departments, is accused of fraud, corruption and slander stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground, attorney Silverio Sica told The Associated Press. He said Scarano was a middleman in the operation: Friends had asked him to intervene with a broker, Giovanni Carenzio, to return 20 million euros they had given him to invest. Sica said Scarano persuaded Carenzio to return the money, and an Italian secret service agent, Giovanni Maria Zito, went to Switzerland to bring the cash back aboard an Italian government aircraft. Such a move would presumably prevent any reporting of the money coming into Italy. The operation failed because Carenzio reneged on the deal, Sica said. (AP Photo/Francesco Pecoraro)

An undated photo of Monsignor Nunzio Scarano in Salerno, Italy. A Vatican official already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank was arrested Friday, June 28, 2013, in a separate operation: Prosecutors allege he tried to bring 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane, his lawyer said. Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in one of the Vatican's main financial departments, is accused of fraud, corruption and slander stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground, attorney Silverio Sica told The Associated Press. He said Scarano was a middleman in the operation: Friends had asked him to intervene with a broker, Giovanni Carenzio, to return 20 million euros they had given him to invest. Sica said Scarano persuaded Carenzio to return the money, and an Italian secret service agent, Giovanni Maria Zito, went to Switzerland to bring the cash back aboard an Italian government aircraft. Such a move would presumably prevent any reporting of the money coming into Italy. The operation failed because Carenzio reneged on the deal, Sica said. (AP Photo/Francesco Pecoraro)

FILE - In this Monday, Feb. 7, 2011 file photo, a building, left, which hosts the Vatican bank, formerly known as the Institute for Religious Operas, IOR, inside the Vatican. A Vatican official has been arrested in a purported plot to bring 20 million euro into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane. Silverio Sica, attorney for Monsignor Nunzio Scarano said his client is accused of fraud, corruption and other charges stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground. Sica told The Associated Press that Scarano was a middleman in the operation: Friends had asked Scarano to intervene with a broker, Giovanni Carenzio, to return 20 million euro they had given him to invest. Sica said Scarano persuaded Carenzio to return the money, and an Italian secret service agent, Mario Zito, went to Switzerland to bring it back aboard an Italian government aircraft. He said the plot failed because Carenzio reneged. Carenzio and Zito also were arrested. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)

An undated photo of Monsignor Nunzio Scarano in Salerno, Italy. A Vatican official already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank was arrested Friday, June 28, 2013, in a separate operation: Prosecutors allege he tried to bring 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane, his lawyer said. Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in one of the Vatican's main financial departments, is accused of fraud, corruption and slander stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground, attorney Silverio Sica told The Associated Press. He said Scarano was a middleman in the operation: Friends had asked him to intervene with a broker, Giovanni Carenzio, to return 20 million euros they had given him to invest. Sica said Scarano persuaded Carenzio to return the money, and an Italian secret service agent, Giovanni Maria Zito, went to Switzerland to bring the cash back aboard an Italian government aircraft. Such a move would presumably prevent any reporting of the money coming into Italy. The operation failed because Carenzio reneged on the deal, Sica said. (AP Photo/Francesco Pecoraro)

A journalist, left, walks with his camera outside Rome's tribunal and prosecutor's office, Friday, June 28, 2013. A Vatican official already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank was arrested Friday in a separate operation: Prosecutors allege he tried to bring 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane, his lawyer said. Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in one of the Vatican's main financial departments, is accused of fraud, corruption and slander stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground, attorney Silverio Sica told The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

A man walks outside Rome's tribunal and prosecutor's office, Friday, June 28, 2013. A Vatican official already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank was arrested Friday in a separate operation: Prosecutors allege he tried to bring 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into Italy from Switzerland aboard an Italian government plane, his lawyer said. Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in one of the Vatican's main financial departments, is accused of fraud, corruption and slander stemming from the plot, which never got off the ground, attorney Silverio Sica told The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

VATICAN CITY (AP) ? A Vatican cleric and two other people were arrested Friday by Italian police for allegedly trying to smuggle 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into the country from Switzerland by private jet. It's the latest scandal to hit the Holy See and broadens an Italian probe into its secretive bank.

Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, already under investigation in a purported money-laundering plot involving the Vatican bank, is accused of corruption and slander and was being held at a Rome prison, prosecutor Nello Rossi told reporters.

Scarano's arrest came just two days after Pope Francis created a commission of inquiry into the Vatican bank to get to the bottom of the problems that have plagued it for decades and contributed to the impression that it's an unregulated, offshore tax haven.

Prosecutor Rossi said the Swiss operation involved three people, all of whom were arrested Friday: Scarano, a recently suspended accountant in the Vatican's main finance office, Italian financier Giovanni Carenzio, and Giovanni Zito, who at the time of the plot was a member of the military police's agency for security and information.

Rossi detailed a remarkable plot ? uncovered by telephone wiretaps ? in which the three allegedly planned to bring into Italy some 20 million euros in cash that financier Carenzio held in his name in a Swiss bank account without paying customs at the airport, as would be required.

Scarano's attorney, Silverio Sica, said his client was something of a middleman: The 20 million euros belonged to friends who had given the money to Carenzio to invest but wanted it back. The plot would presumably enable them to avoid paying customs fees or having any paper trail of such a large amount of money entering Italy.

Rossi identified the friends as members of the Italian shipping family d'Amico and suggested that the money was being held in Switzerland to avoid paying Italian taxes. An email seeking comment from the family's Rome-based company, the d'Amico Societa di Navigazione SpA, wasn't immediately returned.

According to prosecutors, Zito, the agent, called in sick to his job one day in July 2012, rented a private plane and flew with Carenzio to Lucerne, Switzerland. There, Carenzio was supposed to withdraw the cash from his bank account and hand it over to Zito to bring back to Italy. The plan was so detailed there was even to be a car and driver waiting at the airport to bring the money to Scarano's apartment in Rome, Rossi said.

The money could have been transported relatively easily because euros are issued in high denominations. If the cash had been withdrawn in the largest denomination ? 500 euro notes ? it would have weighed 44 kilograms (97 pounds) and fit in a suitcase.

But at a certain point in Lucerne, the deal fell through and Carenzio made excuses that the bank couldn't come up with the money, Rossi said. He declined to identify the bank.

Zito returned to Rome empty-handed but still demanded from Scarano his fee of 600,000 euros for the operation. Scarano cut him one check for 400,000 euros which he deposited. He gave him a second check for 200,000 euros, but in a bid to prevent the check from being deposited, reported it as missing, the prosecutor said.

That put a block on the check and resulted in Scarano being accused of slander for filing a false report knowing that the check was in Zito's hands, Rossi said.

Scarano, as well as the other two, are also accused of corruption. If they are indicted and convicted, they could face up to five or six years in prison, prosecutors said.

Sica, the lawyer, said Scarano had no immediate comment on the charges.

The Vatican bank, known as the Institute for Religious Works, or IOR, is cooperating with Italian authorities and its lay board has launched an internal investigation, spokesman Max Hohenberg said.

Rossi, the Italian prosecutor, described the operation as one branch in a "mosaic" of investigations targeting the IOR, which has long been a source of scandal for the Holy See. That said, the Swiss investigation didn't immediately appear to directly involve the IOR.

The checks Scarano wrote to Zito, for example, came from an Italian bank account, prosecutors said. They declined to say if Scarano received any payment for his role in the plot, or if his IOR account was used at all.

Rossi's team of prosecutors in 2010 placed the top two Vatican bank officials under investigation for allegedly violating anti-money laundering norms during a routine transaction involving an IOR account at an Italian bank. They ordered the 23 million euros in the transaction seized. The money was eventually unfrozen but the two men remain under investigation.

Rossi's team is also working with prosecutors in Salerno on a separate money-laundering investigation involving Scarano and his IOR account.

According to Sica, the lawyer, Scarano took 560,000 euros ($729,000) in cash out of his IOR bank account in 2009 and carried it out of the Vatican and into Italy to help pay off a mortgage on his Salerno home.

The money had come into Scarano's IOR account from donors who gave it to the prelate thinking they were funding a home for the terminally ill in Salerno, Sica said.

To deposit the money into an Italian bank account ? and to prevent family members from finding out he had such a large chunk of cash ? he asked 56 close friends to accept 10,000 euros apiece in cash in exchange for a check or money transfer in the same amount. Scarano was then able to deposit the amounts in his Italian account.

The lawyer said Scarano had given the names of the donors to prosecutors and insisted the origin of the money was clean, that the transactions didn't constitute money-laundering, and that he only took the money "temporarily" for his personal use.

The home for terminally ill was never built, though the property has been identified, Sica said.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Scarano was suspended last month and that the Vatican was taking the appropriate measures to deal with his case.

Francis has made clear he has no tolerance for corruption or for Vatican officials who use their jobs for personal ambition or gain. He has said he wants a "poor" church and a church that is for the poor, one that goes out to the "peripheries" to minister to those most needy. He has also noted, tongue in cheek, that "St. Peter didn't have a bank account."

On Wednesday, he named five people to head a commission of inquiry into the Vatican bank's activities and legal status "to allow for a better harmonization with the universal mission of the Apostolic See."

___

Follow Nicole Winfield at www.twitter.com/nwinfield

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-06-28-Vatican-Bank/id-816decacd42d46e388cabff50ff23cb7

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Pitch-Perfect: Why Our Shoulders Are Key To Throwing

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Pitch-Perfect: Why Our Shoulders Are Key To Throwing
Being able to throw stones with power and precision must have been fun for humans' early ancestors. It was essential, too, since we lack the the fangs and claws of other predators. A recent study suggests the ability to fire rocket fastballs depends on shoulder anatomy that chimps don't share.

Source: NPR
Posted on: Thursday, Jun 27, 2013, 8:51am
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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/128809/Pitch_Perfect__Why_Our_Shoulders_Are_Key_To_Throwing

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NASA's Voyager 1 craft enters unfamiliar space

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? New research pinpoints the current location of NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft: It's still in our solar system.

Since last summer, the long-running spacecraft has been exploring uncharted territory where the effects of interstellar space, or the space between stars, can be felt. Scientists don't know how thick this newfound region in the solar system is or how much farther Voyager 1 has to travel to break to the other side.

"It could actually be anytime or it could be several more years," said chief scientist Ed Stone of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission.

Stone first described this unexpected zone at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union last year. A trio of papers published online Thursday in the journal Science confirmed just how strange this new layer is.

Soon after Voyager 1 crossed into this region last August, low-energy charged particles that had been plentiful suddenly zipped outside while high-energy cosmic rays from interstellar space streamed inward. Readings by one of Voyager 1's instruments showed an abrupt increase in the magnetic field strength, but there was no change in the direction of the magnetic field lines ? a sign that Voyager 1 has not yet exited the solar system.

Voyager 1 and its twin, Voyager 2, were launched in 1977 to visit the giant gas planets, beaming back dazzling postcards of Jupiter, Saturn and their moons. Voyager 2 went on to tour Uranus and Neptune. After planet-hopping, they were sent on a trajectory toward interstellar space.

Voyager 1 is about 11 ? billion miles from the sun. Voyager 2 is about 9? billion miles from the sun. The nuclear-powered spacecraft have enough fuel to operate their instruments until around 2020.

In the meantime, scientists are looking for any clues of a departure. Given the time it takes to process the data, mission scientist Leonard Burlaga said there will be a lag between when Voyager 1 finally sails into interstellar space and when the team can confirm the act. Then there's always the possibility of surprises beyond the solar system.

"Crossing may not be an instantaneous thing," Burlaga said. "It may be complicated."

___

Follow Alicia Chang at http://twitter.com/SciWriAlicia

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/b2f0ca3a594644ee9e50a8ec4ce2d6de/Article_2013-06-27-NASA-Voyager/id-2b26bb17925c4bb9a5ad020e08511fdd

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E. D. Hirsch, Jr.: A Game-Changing Education Book from England

A British schoolteacher, Daisy Christodoulou, has just published a short, pungent e- book called Seven Myths about Education. It's a must-read for anyone in a position to influence our low-performing public school system. The book's focus is on British education, but it deserves to be nominated as a "best book of 2013" on American education, because there's not a farthing's worth of difference in how the British and American educational systems are being hindered by a slogan-monopoly of high-sounding ideas -- brilliantly deconstructed in this book.

Ms. Christodoulou has unusual credentials. She's an experienced classroom teacher. She currently directs a non-profit educational foundation in London, and she is a scholar of impressive powers who has mastered the relevant research literature in educational history and cognitive psychology. Her writing is clear and effective. Speaking as a teacher to teachers, she may be able to change their minds. As an expert scholar and writer, she also has a good chance of enlightening administrators, legislators, and concerned citizens.

Ms. Christodoulou believes that such enlightenment is the great practical need these days, because the chief barriers to effective school reform are not the usual accused: bad teacher unions, low teacher quality, burdensome government dictates. Many a charter school in the US has been able to bypass those barriers without being able to produce better results than the regular public schools they were meant to replace. No wonder. Many of these failed charter schools were conceived under the very myths that Ms. Christodoulou exposes. It wasn't the teacher unions after all! Ms. Christodoulou argues convincingly that what has chiefly held back school achievement and equity in the English-speaking world for the past half century is a set of seductive but mistaken ideas.

She's right straight down the line. Take the issue of teacher quality. The author gives evidence from her own experience of the ways in which potentially effective teachers have been made ineffective because they are dutifully following the ideas instilled in them by their training institutes. These colleges of education have not only perpetuated wrong ideas about skills and knowledge, but in their scorn for "mere facts" have also deprived these potentially good teachers of the knowledge they need to be effective teachers of subject matter. Teachers who are only moderately talented teacher can be highly effective if they follow sound teaching principles and a sound curriculum within a school environment where knowledge builds cumulatively from year to year.

Here are Ms Christodoulou's seven myths:

1 - Facts prevent understanding
2 - Teacher-led instruction is passive
3 - The 21st century fundamentally changes everything
4 - You can always just look it up
5 - We should teach transferable skills
6 - Projects and activities are the best way to learn
7 - Teaching knowledge is indoctrination

Each chapter follows the following straightforward and highly effective pattern. The "myth" is set forth through full, direct quotations from recognized authorities. There's no slanting of the evidence or the rhetoric. Then, the author describes concretely from direct experience how the idea has actually worked out in practice. And finally, she presents a clear account of the relevant research in cognitive psychology which overwhelmingly debunks the myth. Ms. Christodoulou writes: "For every myth I have identified, I have found concrete and robust examples of how this myth has influenced classroom practice across England. Only then do I go on to show why it is a myth and why it is so damaging."

This straightforward organization turns out to be highly absorbing and engaging. Ms. Christodoulou is a strong writer, and for all her scientific punctilio, a passionate one. She is learned in educational history, showing how "21st-century" ideas that invoke Google and the internet are actually re-bottled versions of the late 19th-century ideas which came to dominate British and American schools by the mid-20th century. What educators purvey as brave such as "critical-thinking skills" and "you can always look it up" are actually shopworn and discredited by cognitive science. That's the characteristic turn of her chapters, done especially effectively in her conclusion when she discusses the high-sounding education-school theme of hegemony:

I discussed the way that many educational theorists used the concept of hegemony to explain the way that certain ideas and practices become accepted by people within an institution. Hegemony is a useful concept. I would argue that the myths I have discussed here are hegemonic within the education system. It is hard to have a discussion about education without sooner or later hitting one of these myths. As theorists of hegemony realise, the most powerful thing about hegemonic ideas is that they seem to be natural common sense. They are just a normal part of everyday life. This makes them exceptionally difficult to challenge, because it does not seem as if there is anything there to challenge. However, as the theorists of hegemony also realised, hegemonic ideas depend on certain unseen processes. One tactic is the suppression of all evidence that contradicts them. I trained as a teacher, taught for three years, attended numerous in-service training days, wrote several essays about education and followed educational policy closely without ever even encountering any of the evidence about knowledge I speak of here, let alone actually hearing anyone advocate it. ... For three years I struggled to improve my pupils' education without ever knowing that I could be using hugely more effective methods. I would spend entire lessons quietly observing my pupils chatting away in groups about complete misconceptions and I would think that the problem in the lesson was that I had been too prescriptive. We need to reform the main teacher training and inspection agencies so that they stop promoting completely discredited ideas and give more space to theories with much greater scientific backing.

The book has great relevance to our current moment, when a majority of states have signed up to follow new "Common Core Standards," comparable in scope to the recent experiment named "No Child Left Behind," which is widely deemed a failure. If we wish to avoid another one, we will need to heed this book's message. The failure of NCLB wasn't in the law's key provisions that adequate yearly progress in math and reading should occur among all groups, including low-performing ones. The result has been some improvement in math, especially in the early grades, but stasis in most reading scores. In addition, the emphasis on reading tests has caused a neglect of history, civics, science, and the arts.

Ms. Christodoulou's book indirectly explains these tragic, unintended consequences of NCLB, especially the poor results in reading. It was primarily the way that educators responded to the accountability provisions of NCLB that induced the failure. American educators, dutifully following the seven myths, regard reading as a skill that could be employed without relevant knowledge; in preparation for the tests, they spent many wasted school days on ad hoc content and instruction in "strategies." If educators had been less captivated by anti-knowledge myths, they could have met the requirements of NCLB, and made adequate yearly progress for all groups. The failure was not in the law but in the myths.

Our educators now stand ready to commit the same mistakes with the Common Core State Standards. Distressed teachers are saying that they are being compelled to engage in the same superficial, content-indifferent activities, given new labels like "text complexity" and "reading strategies." In short, educators are preparing to apply the same skills-based notions about reading that have failed for several decades.

Of course! They are boxed in by what Ms. Christodoulou calls a "hegemonic" thought system. If our hardworking teachers and principals had known what to do for NCLB -- if they had been uninfected by the seven myths -- they would have long ago done what is necessary to raise the competencies of all students, and there would not have been a need for NCLB. If the Common Core standards fail as NCLB did, it will not be because the standards themselves are defective. It will be because our schools are completely dominated by the seven myths analyzed by Daisy Christodoulou. This splendid, disinfecting book needs to be distributed gratis to every teacher, administrator, and college of education professor in the U.S. It's available at Amazon for $9.99 or for free if you have Amazon Prime.

?

Follow E. D. Hirsch, Jr. on Twitter: www.twitter.com/edhk9

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/e-d-hirsch-jr/a-gamechanging-education-_b_3511679.html

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Getting the carbon out of emissions

June 26, 2013 ? Proposed method could be more efficient than previous systems and easier to retrofit in existing power plants.

Many researchers around the world are seeking ways to "scrub" carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the emissions of fossil-fuel power plants as a way of curbing the gas that is considered most responsible for global climate change. But most such systems rely on complex plumbing to divert the steam used to drive the turbines that generate power in these plants, and such systems are not practical as retrofits to existing plants.

Now, researchers at MIT have come up with a scrubbing system that requires no steam connection, can operate at lower temperatures, and would essentially be a "plug-and-play" solution that could be added relatively easily to any existing power plant.

The new electrochemical system is described in a paper just published online in the journal Energy and Environmental Science, and written by doctoral student Michael Stern, chemical engineering professor T. Alan Hatton and two others.

The system is a variation on a well-studied technology that uses chemical compounds called amines, which bind with CO₂ in the plant's emission stream and can then release the gas when heated in a separate chamber. But the conventional process requires that almost half of the power plant's low-pressure steam be diverted to provide the heat needed to force the amines to release the gas. That massive diversion would require such extensive changes to existing power plants that it is not considered economically feasible as a retrofit.

In the new system, an electrochemical process replaces the steam-based separation of amines and CO₂. This system only requires electricity, so it can easily be added to an existing plant.

The system uses a solution of amines, injected at the top of an absorption column in which the effluent gases are rising from below. The amines bind with CO₂ in the emissions stream and are collected in liquid form at the bottom of the column. Then, they are processed electrochemically, using a metal electrode to force the release of the CO₂; the original amine molecules are then regenerated and reused.

As with the conventional thermal-amine scrubber systems, this technology should be capable of removing 90 percent of CO₂ from a plant's emissions, the researchers say. But while the conventional CO₂-capture process uses about 40 percent of a plant's power output, the new system would consume only about 25 percent of the power, making it more attractive.

In addition, while steam-based systems must operate continuously, the all-electric system can be dialed back during peak demand, providing greater operational flexibility, Stern says. "Our system is something you just plug in, so you can quickly turn it down when you have a high cost or high need for electricity," he says.

Another advantage is that this process produces CO₂ under pressure, which is required to inject the gas into underground reservoirs for long-term disposal. Other systems require a separate compressor to pressurize the gas, creating further complexity and inefficiency.

The chemicals themselves -- mostly small polyamines -- are widely used and easily available industrial materials, says Hatton, the Ralph Landau Professor of Chemical Engineering Practice. Further research will examine which of several such compounds works best in the proposed system.

So far, the research team, which also includes former MIT research scientist Fritz Simeon and Howard Herzog, a senior research engineer at the MIT Energy Initiative, has done mathematical modeling and a small-scale laboratory test of the system. Next, they hope to move on to larger-scale tests to prove the system's performance. They say it could take five to 10 years for the system to be developed to the point of widespread commercialization.

Because it does not rely on steam from a boiler, this system could also be used for other applications that do not involve steam -- such as cement factories, which are among the leading producers of CO₂ emissions, Stern says. It could also be used to curb emissions from steel or aluminum plants.

It could also be useful in other CO₂ removal, Hatton says, such as in submarines or spacecraft, where carbon dioxide can accumulate to levels that could endanger human health, and must be continually removed.

The work was supported by Siemens AG and by the U.S. Department of Energy through the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/matter_energy/electricity/~3/8uT9pW8An2g/130626143110.htm

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Rock out like it's 1972! Black Sabbath tops charts

Music

Gael Fashingbauer Cooper TODAY

9 hours ago

Chelsea Lauren / WireImage

Black Sabbath, shown with original drummer Bill Ward at left, in 2011. Ward does not play on the band's new album, but Ozzy Osbourne says he has hopes the original lineup will return for the next one.

It took 45 years, but they did it: Black Sabbath's new album, "13," topped the Billboard 200 album chart, selling 155,000 copies in its first week. It also topped the UK albums chart.

"Thanks for allowing Sabbath into your homes for the past 43 years," the band tweeted.

The group's Twitter account also sent out a photo of a page in Billboard showing Sabbath topping the list, beating out albums by Daft Punk and Justin Timberlake.

Fans responded quickly to Sabbath's thank you.

"no Thank YOU for the best Music made!!!!!" wrote Dan McFeely.

"THANK YOU BLACK SABBATH FOR YOU!! EVEN WHEN WE HAD TO ARGUE WITH OUR CATHOLIC MOTHERS THAT U WERE NOT DEVIL MUSIC!" wrote another fan.

"13" features the return of lead singer Ozzy Osbourne, who joins original Sabbath members Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi and Rage Against the Machine drummer Brad Wilk. Original Sabbath drummer Bill Ward does not play on the album due to a contract dispute. But Osbourne says the band is working on another new album and wants Ward back for it.

"We would have loved to have Bill on this album," Osbourne reportedly told The Pulse of Radio.com. "Maybe we can work things out by the next one."

Osbourne did suggest that Ward may need some help on the drums. "Bill Ward has got the most physically demanding job of the lot of us, 'cause he's the timekeeper," he said. "I don't think personally he had the chops to pull it off, you know. The saddest thing is that he needed to own up to that, and we could have worked around it, whether we had a drummer on the side with him or something."

But Ward had better work things out with Sabbath quickly. Osbourne said a new album will be quick. "It won't take another 35 years. I'm 65 now. There's no (expletive) recording studios in the afterlife."

Reviews of "13" have generally been positive. Rolling Stone compared the album to early Sabbath, writing that "13" "revisits, and to an extent recaptures, the crushing, awesomely doomy spectacle of their first few records." And AllMusic.com says, "the results are unexpectedly brilliant, apocalyptic, and essential for any die-hard metal fan."

Black Sabbath plans a 20-city North American tour, beginning July 25 in Houston.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/entertainment/black-sabbath-thanks-fans-first-chart-topping-album-6C10441573

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ATLANTA: Coding camps for kids rise in popularity | Technology ...

In this Wednesday, June 19, 2013 photo, instructor Thaddeus Owings, left, helps camper Nicholas Sanchez work on creating a video game while at an iD Tech Camp at the Emory University campus, in Atlanta. So-called coding camps for kids are becoming more popular amid a growing effort to expand access to computer programming and inspire more youths to seek computer science degrees and later careers in technology.

JAIME HENRY-WHITE ? AP Photo

By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY ? Associated Press

ATLANTA ? The video game Jacob Asofsky is creating is simple: "Someone who is trying to take over the world and you try to stop them."

The 12-year-old from Florida is spending two weeks at a summer camp in a program that teaches programming skills to young people.

"It's about having fun, but it also gives them the tools to be able to do this at home because they don't have this in school," said Taylor Jones, director of the iD Tech Camp at Atlanta's Emory University.

So-called coding camps for children are becoming more popular amid a growing effort to expand access to computer programming and inspire more youths to seek computer science degrees and careers in technology. Their rise underscores a seeming mismatch in the U.S. economy: people like Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Tumblr founder David Karp illustrate the opportunities programming skills can create, yet universities are not graduating enough code-savvy students to meet employers' demands.

The iD Tech Camps, which have grown from 200 students in 1999 to 28,000 enrolled this year in courses at dozens of locations nationwide, use interest in gaming to build bridges to computer programming and hopefully careers in Web developing, film animation and app creation for smart phones. Courses start at $829 for a one-week course during the day with overnight students paying $1,348.

On a recent weekday, Asofsky was attending an iD Tech Camp on the campus with some 95 other youths under the age of 17. He was using the gaming software RPG Maker to create a video game in which the main character travels around the world, buys animals and armor and interacts with others along the way.

"I have to say the interface of actually making a game is just as fun as playing a game," Asofsky said. "It's a lot like playing a game inside a game."

Early courses for children starting at age 7 use the photo and illustration software Adobe Photoshop and the gaming software Multimedia Fusion to create a simple arcade-style game.

"We sit down and talk about what makes games fun," said instructor Melissa Andrews, who was working with the youngest group of campers. "We get it down to the basics so they can make their own game."

Courses for older children include designing apps, creating sophisticated, 3-D, first-person shooter games using the Unreal Developer's Kit - also known as UDK - and learning programming languages like Java and C++. The idea is to build self-confidence and spark interest in learning how computers work, all to perhaps plant the seed of a future career in programming.

There will be 1.4 million computing jobs by 2020 but only 400,000 computer science students by that time, according to Code.org, a nonprofit with a list of who's who in the tech world on its advisory board including Twitter creator Jack Dorsey and Dropbox CEO Drew Houston.

And the jobs pay well. The median annual wage for a computer programmer, for instance, was $71,380 in 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, jobs for network and computer systems administrators are growing at double the national average, with a median annual salary of $69,160.

Yet high schools and universities seem to be out of step with the job market. Nine out of 10 high schools don't offer computer programming classes and the number of students graduating from college with a computer science degree is down from a decade ago, according to Code.org.

Earlier this year, President Barack Obama said programming should be a required course in high school, similar to foreign languages.

"Given how pervasive computers and the Internet is now and how integral it is into our economy and how fascinated kids are with it, I want to make sure they know how to actually produce stuff using computers and not just simply consume stuff," Obama said during a Google+ Hangout.

Yale Oseroff's high school back in Virginia doesn't offer programming classes. The 17-year-old is spending his fourth year at an iD Tech Camp working through C++, a popular programming language used for systems and application software, for drivers to communicate between an operating system and devices like printers and to create some video games.

"I'm learning (computer) networking, which is what I want to do in college," he said, as he worked on developing a program to capture usernames and passwords and store them in a database.

On the Georgia Tech campus, the Institute for Computing Education offers a variety of camps clustered into elementary, middle and high school groups. Courses include making apps with App Inventor, creating moving sculptures with the WeDo Robotics systems that uses rotational motion and creating animations using Alice software.

Barbara Ericson, director of computer outreach at the Institute for Computing Education at Georgia Tech, said people sometimes ask: why not wait until children are older to start teaching them how to program?

"Anything over the age of 7 is capable, they are capable of learning reasoning," she said.

During a presentation earlier this month at a technology conference in Washington, D.C., Code.org founder Hadi Partovi said less than 5 percent of U.S. high school students spend class time learning computer science while it's a graduation requirement in China. He noted that many "software" jobs are outside the tech industry such as banking, retail, government and entertainment, which makes programming skills particularly versatile.

"It could mean starting your own company," he said. "But it could mean you're a doctor and you're tired of entering the same data into a chart using paper and you want to write an app that does it for you."

---

Associated Press videographers Johnny Clark in Atlanta and Bill Gorman in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

Follow Christina Almeida Cassidy on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AP-Christina.

Source: http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2013/06/25/3555175/coding-camps-for-kids-rise-in.html

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James says he's not thinking about 2014 yet

Miami Heat forward LeBron James reacts as he is introduced, Monday, June 24, 2013, during a celebration for season ticket holders at the American Airlines Arena in Miami. The Heat defeated the San Antonio Spurs 95-88 in Game 7 to win their second straight NBA championship. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Heat forward LeBron James reacts as he is introduced, Monday, June 24, 2013, during a celebration for season ticket holders at the American Airlines Arena in Miami. The Heat defeated the San Antonio Spurs 95-88 in Game 7 to win their second straight NBA championship. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Heat players laugh as they watch highlights of center Chris Bosh, right, Monday, June 24, 2013, during a celebration for season ticket holders at the American Airlines Arena in Miami. Other players from left are: Shane Battier, Juwan Howard, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Rashard Lewis. The Heat defeated the San Antonio Spurs 95-88 in Game 7 to win their second straight NBA championship. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

NBA champion Miami Heat's LeBron James, left, motions to the fans during a parade honoring the team as Juwan Howard, right, looks on in Miami, Monday, June 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Javier Galeano)

Miami Heat LeBron James, left and Dwyane Wade celebrate after defeating the San Antonio Spurs 95-88 to win their second straight NBA championship.(AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

MIAMI (AP) ? LeBron James says he is not thinking about the possibility of becoming a free agent in 2014 yet, though he does think that the opportunity to compete for several more championships with the Miami Heat is "the ultimate."

James can opt out of his contract next summer, as can Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. There's still a second straight NBA title to defend this coming season, along with a chance at making the Heat just the fourth franchise to win three consecutive championships. He also has a wedding looming this summer to his longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson.

Asked Tuesday about continuing to play with Wade and Bosh for years to come, James says "that's the goal. That's the ultimate finish. And we all hope that can happen."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-06-25-BKN-Heat-Wrapup/id-aff9467ff3cc448ca9ecfca585399897

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Meatless Monday: Portobello and cumin spiced eggplant burgers

Mushrooms instead of bread as a 'bun' for your burger? It may sound crazy, but mushrooms work great as a gluten-free alternative, and the possibilities for fillings and topping are endless.

By France Morissette and Joshua Sprague,?Beyond the Peel / June 24, 2013

Maybe you've heard of using mushrooms instead of meat as a 'burger,' but what about using mushrooms as the bun? Try filling your 'bun' with eggplant, another grilled veggie, or even a beef or lamb patty.

Beyond the Peel

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How does a person make up for a week of mac and cheese, popcorn for dinner, and brownies??With veggies of course. Lots and lots of veggies.

Skip to next paragraph France Morissette and Joshua Sprague

Beyond The Peel

Cookbook author, France Morissette, and her husband Joshua Sprague believe that healthy food should be uncompromising when it comes to flavor. They creatively explore the world of natural, whole foods, leaving no stone unturned in their quest to create mouth watering, flavor packed, whole food meals. Through stories, photos, recipes and their online show Beyond The Peel TV, they're on a mission to help you eat healthy and enjoy every last bite in the process.

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A year ago I saw this idea to use portobello mushrooms as a burger bun as a gluten free way to enjoy a good ol? beef burger. So I decided to try it. I was amazed at how well it actually works. It was super juicy and surprisingly satisfying. I also recently saw a great idea in a?Denis?Cotter?cookbook?to use thick slices of eggplant as an interesting burger bun option. So I decide to mash those two ideas together. As it turns out it ? it's great!

I love this whole ?thinking outside the box??thing. Mushrooms as bread? Crazy right??Until you?ve tried it of course!

Everything goes in the oven at 450 degrees F. on one cookie sheet. Twenty minutes later the burgers are quickly assembled and dinner is ready. Serve it with your favorite salad and voil?, a healthy alternative to typical barbecue night. And if you?re not an eggplant fan, no big deal. You can still use this concept with whatever filling you like.

Now I?m thinking about eggs benedict with a portobello mushroom instead of that tired old English muffin. I?ve also seen these bad boys of the mushroom world used as the base for a pizza. Such a fabulous idea. Really there are so many possibilities. Fried egg sandwich, tuna melt sandwich ? the list goes on.

Just so we?re clear, I?m talking about a grilled or cooked portobello mushroom. I don?t want you trying this with a raw mushroom. That wouldn?t be as tasty.

Try this idea with:

• Roasted peppers and brie
• Grilled zucchini, feta and olive tapenade
• Your favorite burger patty: veggie, fish, beef, or lamb
• Mashed avocado, cilantro, and sliced tomato
• Gooey melted buffalo mozzarella, tomato, and fresh basil

Note: In the photos I used one baby eggplant. Use three mini slices of roasted eggplant per person. One baby eggplant?serves two?people. Cut eggplant spice recipe in half if only roasting one baby eggplant.

Portobello and cumin spiced eggplant burgers

Makes 4 burgers

8 portobello mushroom caps

1 large eggplant

Olive oil

Eggplant spice (see below)

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce?or a very flavorful sauce of your choice like roasted tomato jam or chutney

1. Set the oven to 450 degrees F. Using a paper towel, wipe clean the mushroom caps. Remove the stem.?Brush?the mushroom caps on both sides with olive oil and season the underside with salt and pepper. Set them on a baking sheet with tops facing down.

2. Slice the eggplant into 3/4-inch to 1-inch slices.?Brush?the eggplant slices with olive oil and toss them with the spice mixture and place them on a cookie sheet.

3. Bake the mushrooms and eggplant for 20 minutes, flipping the eggplant halfway through.

4. To assemble, top 4 portobello mushroom caps with 1 to 2 slices of roasted eggplant, roasted red pepper jam, and fresh cilantro. Cover with second mushroom cap and serve. Bring a big napkin. These are juicy.

*Alternately, this can be done on the grill. The mushroom caps only take about 8 minutes per side. Eggplant will be approximately the same.

Eggplant spice

For each large eggplant:

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix the 3 seasonings together and toss with eggplant before roasting.

Additional topping suggestions:

• Guacamole or Avocado Aioli
• Salsa and cheddar
• Grilled Haloumi and Mint Pesto
• A whole roasted pepper (seeds and skin removed) and feta

The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of food bloggers. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by The Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own and they are responsible for the content of their blogs and their recipes. All readers are free to make ingredient substitutions to satisfy their dietary preferences, including not using wine (or substituting cooking wine) when a recipe calls for it. To contact us about a blogger, click here.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/WOWJP46Nejg/Meatless-Monday-Portobello-and-cumin-spiced-eggplant-burgers

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Illinois' bad credit costing taxpayers millions

CHICAGO (AP) ? Like your cousin who doesn't pay his bills on time and squanders money he doesn't have, Illinois is paying the price ? in both cash and reputation ? for years of ignored warnings about its pension crisis, the worst in the nation.

Largely because of its unfunded retirement plans, Illinois has replaced longtime bottom-dweller California as having the lowest credit rating of any state. So when Illinois tries to borrow money, it faces the same problem as the spendthrift cousin: far higher interest rates.

The state's financial failings are so well-known, they have inspired a name on Wall Street ? the "Illinois effect," a reference to the fact that cities, universities and other bond-issuing entities here must pay more in interest, even if they are responsible spenders.

"There are investors who won't buy Illinois or bonds with Illinois labels at any price. They just see it as toxic," said Brian Battle, director at Performance Trust Capital Partners, a Chicago-based investment firm. That means the state pays "the biggest penalty by a long, long shot."

Battle compared the Illinois situation to someone who has a good job and plenty of revenue. But "we just spend like crazy, don't pay our credit cards and haven't saved for retirement," he said.

Take the $1.3 billion in bonds Illinois is expected to sell this week to improve highways, rebuild a 40-year-old elevated train line in Chicago and buy land for an airport. Battle estimates the state will pay more than $18 million in extra interest each year than states such as Virginia or Maryland, which have high credit ratings.

That's an additional $450 million over the 25-year life of a bond issue. In personal terms, it's $36 taken directly from the pockets of each of Illinois' nearly 13 million residents. And that's for just one bond sale.

For decades, legislators skipped or shorted payments to state retirement funds, creating a $97 billion pension shortfall and making investors nervous year after year. Yet lawmakers in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly adjourned the spring legislative session last month without a deal. It was the fifth time in 12 months that they left town without solving the crisis.

Within days, two major credit-rating agencies downgraded the state to an all-time low for Illinois. Gov. Pat Quinn called lawmakers back for a special session last week, but they could agree only to form a bipartisan committee to keep working on the problem.

Contributing to the inaction are the state's strong constitutional protections for pension benefits and a powerful union lobby that has opposed across-the-board cuts.

Still, the seeming lack of urgency dumbfounds some onlookers. Among them is Bill Daley, a former White House chief of staff and U.S. commerce secretary from the famous Chicago mayoral clan. He has focused on the pension debacle as he explores a challenge to Quinn in next year's Democratic primary.

"You can't have 13 downgrades in four years ... and think people are going to come here and create jobs," Daley said, questioning the need for repeated legislative sessions that yield no progress. "This is Groundhog Day."

State leaders insist they are trying to deal with the crisis. But in a place known for backroom deals, compromise can be hard to find, even after years of trying.

House Speaker Michael Madigan, who has overseen a Democratic majority in the Illinois House for 28 of the last 30 years, acknowledges that fixing the pension mess is "extremely important for the future of the state."

"This is the time to step up and help the state of Illinois," he said. But the speaker has urged the governor to support Madigan's own solution, which would save the most money, rather than a rival proposal in the Senate that could stand a better chance of surviving a legal challenge.

In the past 50 years, just three states ? California, Louisiana and Massachusetts ? have had investment ratings as low as Illinois, but all have taken steps to correct it. Quinn's office has begged lawmakers do the same, even as the governor endures criticism that he hasn't done enough to broker a deal.

Abdon Pallasch, Quinn's assistant budget director, said the additional dollars spent to cover interest and the annual pension payment ? $6 billion this year, or almost 20 percent of the state's general-fund budget ? represent money that could be spent to achieve smaller class sizes, hire more police or ease prison overcrowding.

"No more alibis. No more excuses. No more delay. (Lawmakers have) had plenty of time," the governor said Monday. "Running in place is not a way to go when it comes to the pension crisis."

Illinois' interest rates are the result of simple supply and demand: Because fewer investors want to take the risk of buying the state's bonds, the ones who are willing to do so are able to charge more.

Several factors are behind the reluctance. Some investment funds and trusts have rules that prevent them from buying bonds that are approaching "junk" bond status, as Illinois is, Battle said. Many investors don't want any names in their portfolio that have made headlines for negative reasons, like Illinois.

The state has a constitutional provision that guarantees it will make its debt payments, but investors also see cities like Detroit reneging on debts or considering filing for bankruptcy and get jittery, said Richard Ciccarone, managing director and chief research officer at McDonnell Investment Management in Oak Brook, Ill.

Illinois' reputation also hits taxpayers on the local level, even in communities with sound budgets.

Suburban Chicago's DuPage County, a wealthy, conservative-leaning area, is among the 1 percent of counties nationwide with the highest-possible credit rating from all three major ratings agencies. But officials there estimate taxpayers will pay $4 million more in interest over the life of a recent $67 million bond issue than if Illinois had its financial house in order.

In March, Moody's downgraded credit ratings for four public universities, noting that the schools rely heavily on state money for operating expenses. The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which constructs and renovates sports stadiums such as Chicago's Soldier Field and U.S. Cellular Field ? home of the Chicago White Sox ? has been downgraded twice since January. Chicago also has seen its rating on million in bonds lowered.

Last year, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel travelled to the state Capitol to testify in favor of reform, only to see his efforts ? like all the others ? fall flat.

Kathleen Strand, a spokeswoman for Emanuel, said he continues to stress the urgency of the problem, in hopes a solution can be found.

"The truth is," she said, "we have run out of time."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/illinois-bad-credit-costing-taxpayers-millions-071545200.html

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For Sharpest Views, Scope The Sky With Quick-Change Mirrors

Before And After: These near-infrared images of Uranus show the planet as seen without adaptive optics (left) and with the technology turned on (right).

Courtesy of Heidi B. Hammel and Imke de Pater

Before And After: These near-infrared images of Uranus show the planet as seen without adaptive optics (left) and with the technology turned on (right).

Courtesy of Heidi B. Hammel and Imke de Pater

It used to be that if astronomers wanted to get rid of the blurring effects of the atmosphere, they had to put their telescopes in space. But a technology called adaptive optics has changed all that.

Adaptive optics systems use computers to analyze the light coming from a star, and then compensate for changes wrought by the atmosphere, using mirrors that can change their shapes up to a thousand times per second. The result: To anyone on Earth peering through the telescope, the star looks like the single point of light it really is.

The reason the atmosphere blurs light is that there are tiny changes in temperature as you go from the Earth's surface up into space. The degree to which air bends light depends on the air's temperature.

With adaptive optics systems, telescopes on Earth can see nearly as clearly as those in space. What's more, you can build bigger telescopes on Earth than can be sent into orbit. The bigger the telescope, the smaller and fainter the objects it can see.

"Adaptive optics has really revolutionized so many fields of astronomy," says Andrea Ghez, an astronomer at the University of California, Los Angeles. But such systems did not start out as tools for astronomers. "It was part of the strategic defense thinking of the nation, of what we could do to get better images of what was out in space," says Robert Duffner, author of The Adaptive Optics Revolution: A History.

During the Cold War the United States became concerned that the Soviet Union might be developing weapons that would be put into orbit. "The Air Force was interested in using telescopes on the ground to look up through the atmosphere to get clearer images of space objects ? mainly satellites and missiles," says Duffner.

Adaptive optics technology sharpens images by changing the shape of telescope mirrors up to 1,000 times per second. Here, the planet Uranus is seen without (left) and with adaptive optics.

Courtesy of Heidi B. Hammel and Imke de Pater

Adaptive optics technology sharpens images by changing the shape of telescope mirrors up to 1,000 times per second. Here, the planet Uranus is seen without (left) and with adaptive optics.

Courtesy of Heidi B. Hammel and Imke de Pater

The Air Force had other ideas for adaptive optics besides looking at satellites. One of them involved shooting down missiles.

The notion was to aim a laser beam from the ground toward a relay mirror in space. "The mirror could then deflect the laser beam and send it to an incoming missile," says Robert Fugate, a scientist with the Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, N.M.

The hitch with such a plan, Fugate says, was that the atmosphere would smear out the laser, diluting its destructive power. Adaptive optics offered a solution. You can think of it as the reverse of compensating for the atmosphere in a way that makes starlight appear to be a single point. In this case, instead, the scientists would smear out the laser light so the countering distortions in the atmosphere would then bring it back to a narrow beam. That was the theory. In practice, the system was never built.

In 1991, the military agreed to declassify most of the work it had been doing with adaptive optics, so astronomers could take advantage of what the Air Force had learned. In the last two decades, the technology has brought some remarkable achievements.

"One of the most exciting recent ones is the study of planets outside our own solar system," says UCLA's Ghez. "Just 15 years ago, we didn't know about any planets around stars outside our sun. Now, not only do we know about them, but we can take a picture of them with this technology."

The technology is also valuable for looking at objects closer to Earth. "It's really interesting to look at planets within our own solar system. We send satellites out to study these planets in detail. And yet if we can point a telescope from the ground at these planets, like Saturn, or the moons of Jupiter, we can study them in equal detail to what the satellites might be doing," says Ghez.

She doesn't study planets. Ghez studies the giant black holes that exist in the center of galaxies. Adaptive optics has blown that field wide open, too. "You can actually see the stars that reside right around the black hole, and you can see matter falling into the black hole thanks to this technology," she says.

This pair of images of the Galactic Center, the rotational center of the Milky Way galaxy, shows how adaptive optics technology can sharpen a telescope's view.

Courtesy of the Keck Observatory

There's just one problem. For adaptive optics to work, you need a bright enough star to make the corrections on. So, until recently, if you wanted to explore a patch of sky with no bright star, you were out of luck. But scientists have figured out a work-around ? they create artificial stars using a laser. "We shine a laser up into the atmosphere, and there's conveniently a very thin layer of sodium atoms up at 90 kilometers," Ghez says. "And this laser can stimulate those atoms to shine like a star. And then we can look at that star ? that artificial star ? and make the corrections."

The use of adaptive optics is also transforming vision research. Austin Roorda is at the optometry school at the University of California, Berkeley, and says that the cornea, lens and fluid inside the eye distort light, just as the atmosphere does. By analyzing that distortion, he says, scientists can use optics to "un-distort" the light, so the cells at the back of the eye no longer appear blurry during eye exams.

Adaptive optics could let a doctor see individual damaged cells at the back of the eye, Roorda says, and offer an important new tool for diagnosing and treating eye diseases like macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. And there's more, he says. "We may have a tool that will allow us to measure the efficacy of a treatment, [and] that may slow the degeneration of those cells, and even restore those cells' function."

Source: http://www.npr.org/2013/06/24/190986008/for-sharpest-views-scope-the-sky-with-quick-change-mirrors?ft=1&f=1007

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Milan fashion designers have travel on their mind

MILAN (AP) ? Milan fashion designers have travel on their minds for next summer.

Designs shown on the second day of menswear previews during Milan Fashion Week had an exotic flare -- even if Miuccia Prada in particular says she was rejecting the label.

African references were predominant. There were geometric patterns, ethnic shades, baggy pants, Kaftans, shell-detailing and sandals.

The tropics also got their due, with floral and animal prints, the colors of sunsets and stormy seas and Hawaiian girl motifs.

Bermudas remain a mainstay for season -- and often make up a suit paired with a narrow jacket, and are always worn with ankle socks.

Often the exotic shared the runway with more classic looks, fitted trousers, summer slacks and button-down shirts. Jackets more often than not are worn with the sleeves pushed or rolled up.

Shoes run the gamut from thick rubber-soles to fine leather booties and loafers.

MIUCCIA PRADA

Miuccia Prada questions the very meaning of summer and the exotic in her latest menswear designs.

Prada has delivered satin floral prints that are clearly associated with the Pacific, and pairs them not with the classic linen gin-and-tonic suit, but with a traditional double-breasted pin stripe.

Her reference point in the collection is clearly the 1940s. The designer has returned to the old-fashioned carry-on luggage ? no trollies, please ? with bold designs, including tropical florals and Hawaiian girls. The period references on the luggage were also backdrops to the runway: graphic prints of palm trees, postcard sunsets and images of water.

The looks were classics ? with Prada updates. She seemed to have sports on her mind: There were satiny boxer shorts, light-weight shirts based on a baseball jacket and a retro bowling ball bag. The designer also layered short-sleeved knitwear over shirts, often with clashing patterns.

The color palette recalled stormy sea colors ? gray to teal to black ? and sunsets ? yellow to terracotta to earthy brown and black.

BOTTEGA VENETA

For next summer Tomas Maier, the acclaimed creative director of luxury goods brand Bottega Veneta, is inviting customers to walk in his shoes.

Maier used the traditional Bottega leather weave for loafers, lace-ups and even sidewalk slippers. Usually, it's reserved for women's handbags.

According to his fashion notes, "contrast" was the theme of Maier's 2014 preview collection.

The show opened with a series of suits with a soft shouldered, wide sleeved jacket and narrow pants. Contrast came in the white lines stitched into the classic look referencing the chalk marks used for fittings in bespoke tailoring, creating imaginary lapels and pockets.

MISSONI

Angela Missoni looked to West Africa for inspiration for her menswear collection for next summer: its colors, its weaves and its accents.

The mood of the collection was encapsulated in an intricate sand-colored crewneck sweater with pieces of red and milky shell embroidered into decorative panels. A small leather talisman sack, for a good luck charm or precious object, was worn around the neck on strands of beads.

The designer for the family label referenced the colors of the continent: indigo textile dyes from Benin, clay tones from Mali and dark olive from the rain forests of Ivory Coast.

The classically cut suits, some in bold indigo plaids and others in khaki shades with the hint of desert reds woven in, were more fitting of an adventurer than a businessman, more likely seen in a colonial hotel than a metropolitan meeting room.

CALVIN KLEIN

The Calvin Klein man for next summer keeps men in their comfort zone, with a solid focus on basics in reassuring blues. There are bomber jackets, suits with cuffed pants and classic shirts.

Designer Italo Zucchelli offers up monochromatic looks predominantly in blues: wake-up royal, soothing sky and down-to-business navy. Classic double-pocket snap-close shirts are paired with same-color pants that cuff at the ankle. They in turn are worn with a shoe of the matching color and same-color socks ? none of the black socks seen on other runways.

Bomber jackets come in white with classic blue vertical stripes, perfect for a day at the ballpark.

On the more daring end of the spectrum, sweatshirts are made of a funky mix of fabrics: One had a neoprene effect, another was chunky knit and finally there were cotton panels. Together, they create a harmonious clash fitting of the heavy metal riffs that resounded down along the runway.

FERRAGAMO

The Ferragamo summer promises to be young and carefree, with Bermuda shorts, leather sandals and a large backpack the only musts for the warm weather traveler.

To set the mood, Massimiliano Giornetti, the label's creative director, created a suitably atmospheric backdrop ? a long, white runway was set off by a big blue sky projected on a mega screen.

Giornetti at times took the summer suit trend of Bermuda shorts and a matching jacket a step further by cutting the sleeves off the jacket, or using unconventional colors such as pea green and lobster red.

The designer also favored large geometric patterns, a recurring theme in this round of preview collections, and light and billowy overcoats, which are also popular for next summer.

VIVIENNE WESTWOOD

Vivienne Westwood, the British designer known for her eccentric fashion, dedicated her latest menswear collection to Bradley Manning, an American soldier currently on trial in the U.S. for leaking classified material to the website WikiLeaks. He was arrested in May 2010 in Iraq.

Models walked down the runway wearing a large badge with a picture of the soldier on it, and the word "TRUTH" written at the bottom in bold white letters on a red background.

The collection was casual chic with African references, from the striped linen used for a long Kaftan shirt or a summer suit, to baggy pants and breeches, to geometric prints, to toe sandals and flip flops.

The show opened with a series of summer khaki slacks worn over classic shirts, perfect for a toney summer evening.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/milan-fashion-designers-travel-mind-210044030.html

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