Sunday, June 30, 2013

Pre-existing insomnia linked to PTSD and other mental disorders after military deployment

June 28, 2013 ? A new study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Naval Health Research Center has shown Military service members who have trouble sleeping prior to deployments may be at greater risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety once they return home. The new study, published in the July 2013 issue of the journal SLEEP, found that pre-existing insomnia symptoms conferred almost as a large of a risk for those mental disorders as combat exposure.

"Understanding environmental and behavioral risk factors associated with the onset of common major mental disorders is of great importance in a military occupational setting," said lead study author Philip Gehrman, PhD, assistant professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, member of the Penn Sleep Center, and the Philadelphia VA Medical Center. "This study is the first prospective investigation of the relationship between sleep disturbance and development of newly identified positive screens for mental disorders in a large military cohort who have been deployed in support of the recent operations in Iraq or Afghanistan."

Using self-reported data from the Millennium Cohort Study, the research team evaluated the association of pre-deployment sleep duration and insomnia symptoms on the development of new-onset mental disorders among deployers. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the odds of developing PTSD, depression, and anxiety, while adjusting for relevant covariates including combat-related trauma.

They analyzed data from 15,204 service members, including only those servicemen and women on the timing of their first deployment across all branches and components of military service. They identified 522 people with new-onset PTSD, 151 with anxiety, and 303 with depression following deployment. In adjusted models, combat-related trauma and pre-deployment insomnia symptoms were significantly associated with higher odds of developing posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety.

"One of the more interesting findings of this study is not only the degree of risk conferred by pre-deployment insomnia symptoms, but also the relative magnitude of this risk compared with combat-related trauma," says Gehrman. "The risk conferred by insomnia symptoms was almost as strong as our measure of combat exposure in adjusted models."

The researchers also found that short sleep duration (less than six hours of sleep per night), separate from general insomnia, was associated with new-onset PTSD symptoms.

"We found that insomnia is both a symptom and a risk factor for mental illness and may present a modifiable target for intervention among military personnel," says Gehrman. "We hope that by early identification of those most vulnerable, the potential exists for the designing and testing of preventive strategies that may reduce the occurrence of PTSD, anxiety, and depression."

The research team says that additional study is needed to investigate whether routine inquiry about insomnia symptoms and application of appropriate early, effective interventions reduces subsequent morbidity from mental disorders. They note that in a military population, assessment of insomnia symptoms could easily be incorporated into routine pre-deployment screening.

The Millennium Cohort Study is funded through the Military Operational Medicine Research Program of the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Fort Detrick, Maryland.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/ViXmrIgljJc/130628160829.htm

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Where to Move Your Google Reader Subscriptions, and How

Where to Move Your Google Reader Subscriptions, and How
The end of Google Reader is near. But your carefully curated RSS feeds don't have to die with it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/uWMg8-U3F8s/

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Lady Gaga Gives Touching Speech, Performs at the Gay Pride Parade's Kick Off Rally

In her first public appearance since undergoing hip surgery, Lady Gaga attended the Gay Pride Parade kick off rally in N.Y.C. on June 28, 2013, giving a moving speech and a cappella rendition of the National Anthem

This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: Lady Gaga Gives Touching Speech, Performs at the Gay Pride Parade's Kick Off Rally

Source: http://www.americansuperstarmag.com/celebrity-news/lady-gaga-gives-touching-speech-performs-at-the-gay-pride-parades-kick-off-rally

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Saturday, June 29, 2013

Trapped in Transit: Orwellian Moscow airport hotel

SHEREMETYEVO AIRPORT (AP) ? "An interesting route, Mr. Phillips," says the airport transit desk employee. "This activity makes for suspicion."

It was the start of an Orwellian adventure in which I deliberately got myself sequestered in the hopes of finding Edward Snowden at Moscow's main airport.

The experience leaves me feeling that if the NSA leaker is indeed in the transit zone of the airport, as President Vladimir Putin claims, he may already have a taste of what it's like to be in prison.

Snowden is possibly holed up in the wing of an airport hotel reserved for travelers in transit who don't have visas to enter Russia. The Novotel's main building, located outside the airport, has a plush lobby with a fountain, a trendy bar and luxury shops. One wing, however, lies within the airport's transit zone ? a kind of international limbo that is not officially Russian territory.

And that's where Snowden, whose U.S. passport has been revoked, may be hiding.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE: Eastern Europe News Director Ian Phillips flew from his home base of Prague in the Czech Republic to Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport with the goal of getting to the bottom of the mystery of fugitive NSA leaker Edward Snowden. What followed was a surreal 21 hours.

___

The woman at the transit desk raises an eyebrow and stares at my flight itinerary, which includes a 21-hour layover in Moscow before a connection to Ukraine. "Why would ANYONE stay here in transit for so long? There are so many earlier connections you could have taken. This is strange behavior."

After a nearly two-hour wait inside the terminal, a bus picks me up ? only me ? from the transit area. We drive slowly across the tarmac, through a barrier, past electronic gates covered in barbed wire and security cameras.

The main part of the Novotel is out of bounds. My allotted wing feels like a lockup: You are obliged to stay in your room, except for brief walks along the corridor. Three cameras track your movements along the hallway and beam the images back to a multiscreen monitor. It's comforting to see a sign instructing me that, in case of an emergency, the locks on heavily fortified doors leading to the elevators will open.

When I try to leave my room, the guard outside springs to his feet. I ask him why room service isn't responding and if there's any other way to get food. He growls: "Extension 70!" I rile him by asking about the Wi-Fi, which isn't working: "Extension 75!" he snarls.

"Don't worry, Mr. Phillips," the transit desk employee had said. "We have all your details and information. We will come and get you from your room at 6 p.m. on Friday, one hour before your connecting flight."

Now it's midnight, and I'm getting edgy. I feel trapped inside my airless room, whose double windows are tightly sealed. And the room is extortionate: It costs $300 a night, with a surcharge of 50 percent slapped on because I will be staying past noon.

("Can't I just wait in the lobby after midday?" I asked the receptionist at check-in. "Of course not," she retorted. "You have no visa. You will stay until you are picked up.")

I look out the window. If Snowden is here and has the same view, he can see the approach to the departures terminal at the airport. A large billboard shows a red 4x4 vehicle driving along an ocean road. A parking lot below is filled with vehicles. A man in green overalls is watering a patch of parched grass. Vehicles whizz in and out of the airport.

A maid has just brought a tea bag. She puts a tick against the room number on the three-page document on her trolley. On it, there are no guest names, only numbers ? and departure dates. A quick look suggests there are perhaps a few dozen people staying here. A couple of rooms on my floor have tell-tale signs of occupancy ? food trays lying outside from the night before.

But no sign of Snowden.

The guard allows me to stretch my legs in the corridor. The signs on the wall rub things in. Under a pretty picture of the Moscow skyline and Red Square, a message reads: "Should you wish to see the full range of facilities offered by our hotel during your next stay, we strongly recommend you to get a visa before flying to Moscow."

A fleeting glimpse of a possible change of scene: a set of guidelines posted on the wall say I can go out for a smoke!

Rule No. 6: "It is possible to go and smoke one time per hour for 5 minutes in the beginning of each hour escorted by security service."

I don't smoke, but this would be a way to escape this floor. But when I ask him to take me down, the security guard scoffs. "No!" he says flatly.

I call the front desk. "You need a visa to go outside and smoke, Mr. Phillips" the receptionist says.

If he's here, Snowden has access to a few international TV stations. He also has a fair amount of options with room service ? the only source of food in this wing. But after almost a week, he might be getting bored. And he'd need a credit card or a lot of Russian cash. A selection:

Buffalo mozzarella and pesto dressing starter? 720 rubles (about $20).

Ribeye steak: 1,500 rubles (about $50).

Bottle of Brunello di Montalcino red wine: 5,280 rubles ($165).

A miniature bottle of Hennessy XO cognac: 2,420 rubles ($80).

I've called all the 37 rooms on my floor in hopes of reaching Snowden. No reply except for when I get my security guard.

The floor above? A similarly futile attempt.

I only reach a handful of tired and irritated Russians who growl "Da? Da? Da?" ? "Yes? Yes? Yes?"

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/trapped-transit-orwellian-moscow-airport-hotel-152338275.html

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All the Hidden Chemicals That Are Lurking In Your Coffee

Caffeine. For most of us, that's the only chemical compound in coffee that's worth a damn. But that's far from the only thing that's hiding in that simmering cup of black (or light brownish) glory that you suck down every morning. Cockroach pheromones? Rotting meat-smell? Check and check. Drink up! [Wired via Neatorama]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/all-the-hidden-chemicals-that-are-lurking-in-your-coffe-619055523

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Pirates' Cole wins 4th straight to start career

PITTSBURGH (AP) ? Look who has the best record in the major leagues.

Gerrit Cole overcame a rocky start to become the first Pirates pitcher to win his first four career starts in more than a century and the Pirates won their seventh straight, 10-3 over the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Pirates moved a game up in the NL Central when the St. Louis Cardinals lost later at Oakland. At 49-30, Pittsburgh has the best record in baseball.

Cole (4-0) gave up three runs in the first inning but no more as he made it through six innings, allowing eight hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Nick Maddox started 4-0 in his first four starts in 1907.

"It's really a team effort," Cole said. "I've pitched pretty well but I've gotten a lot of support defensively and our offense has been very opportunistic. It feels good to say I'm 4-0 but it feels even better because the team is playing well."

The Pirates are on their longest winning streak since running off 10 in a row in 2004.

The Pirates haven't had a winning season since 1992 and the 20-year stretch of futility is the longest in major North American professional team sports history. However, they are not getting caught up in being in the rarified air of being 19 games over .500 in June.

"We're just focused on winning that day," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "Our guys our very focused on taking it pitch to pitch."

Johnny Hellweg (0-1) failed to get out of the second inning in his major league debut, giving up seven runs ? five earned ? in 1 2-3 innings.

"He didn't come out with very good stuff," Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke said. "He was trying to aim the ball instead of throw it. That happens a lot of times when it's a guy's first time out."

Starling Marte had a double and triple among his three hits, and just missed a homer in the eighth when he flied out to deep center field.

McCutchen had three hits, including his ninth home run, and three RBIs for Pittsburgh. Pedro Alvarez added two hits and Neil Walker hit a two-run double to start a seven-run second inning in which the Pirates sent 12 batters to the plate.

Alvarez extended his hitting streak to 11 games

Ryan Reid pitched three scoreless innings for his first career save. He was called up from Triple-A Indianapolis on June 3 after spending seven seasons in the minor leagues.

"It's really nice to get a save but it's even better to help the team win," said Reid, who has a 1.00 ERA in six games. "I feel good about being able to come up here and help the team keep winning."

Carlos Gomez, who missed the previous three games with a sprained right shoulder, had two hits for the Brewers. Jean Segura and Juan Francisco also had two hits apiece. Rickie Weeks ran his hitting streak to 13 games.

Walker's double got the Pirates to 3-2, scoring Garrett Jones and Alvarez, who led off with singles.

The Pirates then loaded the bases as Hellweg walked Travis Snider and Cole around a groundout by Jordy Mercer. Marte then singled home Walker with the tying run.

The Pirates went ahead when Russell Martin followed by hitting a grounder up the middle that Segura, the shortstop, misplayed for an error, allowing Snider and Cole to score. McCutchen and Alvarez followed with RBI singles to knock the 6-foot-9 Hellweg from the game.

"We had some trouble with (Hellweg) in the first inning," McCutchen said. "He's so big and he was throwing sinkers from a downhill angle at a time when there still were shadows on the field. Then we got adjusted to him."

Milwaukee acquired Hellweg and Segura, who leads the National League with 104 hits, last July from the Los Angeles Angles in a trade for ace pitcher Zack Greinke. Hellweg was 7-4 with a 2.82 ERA in 14 starts with Triple-A Nashville this season.

"I wanted to have a good pace, I thought that was important in my first game, but I really started rushing things, especially in that second inning," Hellweg said.

The Brewers jumped on Cole for three quick runs.

A walk to Norichika Aoki and singles by Segura and Gomez loaded the bases and Aramis Ramirez walked to force in a run. A second run scored when Jonathan Lucroy grounded into a double play and Francisco capped the inning with an RBI single.

However, the 3-0 lead held up only for one inning, and the Pirates added on runs following their seven-run second. Marte hit an RBI double in the third and tripled in the sixth and scored on McCutchen's double. McCutchen homered off Michael Gonzalez in the eighth.

"I was on the ropes and the pitch count was getting up there in that first inning but I got some groundballs in the second, guys made some really good plays behind and that settled me down," Cole said.

NOTES: Brewers 1B Corey Hart will miss the season. He is scheduled to have surgery to repair cartilage damage in his left knee July 26. Hart has been on the disabled list all season after having right knee surgery in January. ... Snider left the game after six innings with a bruised right foot. ... Milwaukee activated RHP Hiram Burgos from the 15-day disabled list and optioned him to Triple-A Nashville. ... The Pirates recalled INF/OF Josh Harrison from Triple-A Indianapolis and optioned C Tony Sanchez to the same club. ... Milwaukee RHP Donovan Hand (0-0, 2.37) faces Pittsburgh LHP Francisco Liriano (6-3, 2.30) on Saturday night.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pirates-cole-wins-4th-straight-start-career-054010285.html

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Outfit of the baby shower! | XL as life!

Last weekend I attended the baby shower of a family friend. Well, basically an adopted family member. It was great to catch up with her and her family, even if it did make me feel old. I remember going to meet her at the hospital just after she was born, and now she?s having a baby. Oh and it certainly didn?t help with the cluckyness I?ve been feeling lately!

I didn?t purposely dress in blue & pink, but it did kind of suit a baby shower theme! They are waiting to be surprised of the sex, but in one of the baby shower games I guessed it?d be a boy. I guess time will only tell!

The weather turned during the day and by the time I got home my feet were freezing. While I love winter, sometimes I miss being able to wear my sandals without feeling like i?m going to lose my toes!

Dress ? ASOS | Cardigan ? City Chic | Shoes & Belt ? ASOS | Necklace ? Colette | Bangles ? Lou & Chow

Source: http://extralargeaslife.com/2013/outfit-of-the-baby-shower/

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'Corkscrew' Light Could Turbocharge Internet

Different-shaped beams could be used to increase fiber-optic capacity, thereby easing online congestion


twisting, sprialing light beams

Twisting light could create a new lane of traffic on the information superhighway. Image: Wikimedia Commons/?berraschungsbilder

  • Showcasing more than fifty of the most provocative, original, and significant online essays from 2011, The Best Science Writing Online 2012 will change the way...

    Read More??

Twisty beams of light could boost the traffic-carrying capacity of the Internet, effectively adding new levels to the information superhighway, suggests research published today in Science.

Internet traffic is growing exponentially and researchers have sought ways to squeeze ever more information into the fiber-optic cables that carry it. One successful method used over the last 20 years essentially added more traffic lanes, using different colors, or wavelengths, for different signals. But to compensate for the added lanes, each one had to be made narrower. So, just as in a real highway, the spacing could get only so tight before the streams of data began to jumble together.

In the last few years, different groups of researchers have tried to encode information in the shape of light beams to ease congestion, using a property of light called orbital angular momentum. Currently, a straight beam of light is used to transmit Internet signals, but certain filters can twist it so that it corkscrews around with varying degrees of curliness as it travels.

Previous experiments using this effect have found that differently shaped light beams tend to jumble together after less than a meter.

Now, a team of researchers from Boston University in Massachusetts and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles has found a way to keep the different light beam shapes separated for a record 1.1 kilometers.

The researchers designed and built a 1.1-kilometer-long glass cable, the cross section of which had a varying index of refraction ? a measure that describes how fast light can travel in a particular medium. They then sent both twisty and straight beams of light down the cable.

The team found that the light output matched the input ? light beams of each shape were not getting muddled together. The varying index of refraction apparently affected each light shape uniquely, so that different shapes moved at different speeds down the cable. "That meant that I could keep them separated," says Siddharth Ramachandran, an electrical engineer and leader of the Boston University team.

Improving infrastructure
The work published today used clockwise and anticlockwise versions of twisted light with a specific curliness, but Ramachandran says that the team has since done other research that suggests that about ten different beam shapes can be used to convey information.

That is exciting because each shape could potentially act as an entirely new level of traffic on the information superhighway. On each level, streams of data could be further divided into narrow lanes of color, maximizing flow. "We showed a new degree of freedom in which we could transmit information," says Ramachandran.

Translating the work from the lab to the real world will take time, however, in part because current Internet cables carry only straight beams of light. A more immediate goal, says Ramachandran, might be to install cables that are capable of carrying twisty light on the short distances between servers on giant 'server farms', used by large Web companies such as Facebook.

Miles Padgett, an optical physicist at the University of Glasgow, UK, is impressed with the work and is optimistic about its potential. "One day, more bandwidth will mean we can all Skype at the same time," he says.

This article is reproduced with permission from the magazine Nature. The article was first published on June 27, 2013.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/~r/ScientificAmerican-News/~3/VqOC7e7qJXk/article.cfm

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Sceptre releases an Android TV sound bar

Sceptre TV Soundbar

Sceptre's new SB301524W sound bar brings Android and a pre-packaged sound system to your existing HDTV

There's plenty of ways to bring Android to your big screen television, but until now they have all been stand alone appliances designed to work with your existing equipment. But maybe you want an inexpensive way to marry Android to that spare TV in your house, and don't want to fool with A/V receivers or other "premium" methods to provide something that sounds a little better than the tinny speakers built into the TV itself. That's where something like Spectre's new Android-powered smart TV sound bar comes in.

At $299 it offers a plug and play solution to get Android and Google Play on your TV, with zero set-up or hassle. Complete with touch-sensitive controls and a LED screen to display all your settings, you'll be able to access content like games, music and movies from Google Play without any wires or assembly.

The Spectre sound bar features Android 4.0 running on a 1GHz ARM processor, with 1GB of RAM, with two USB ports and an SD card slot for expansion and accessories. The unit itself features SRS WOW HD audio technology, delivered through two front-facing speakers and a 35 watt subwoofer. Designed for 42-inch or larger televisions, it looks like an easy way to turn that old TV into something smarter and more fun. Look for it at retailers like Newegg, Amazon, Walmart, Tiger Direct, Sears and K-Mart. Hit the break for the press release.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/mdR0gEDWzRM/story01.htm

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TGI Fridays, Irish pubs and free Wi-Fi: Welcome to Edward Snowden's airport hideaway

Inside the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport are shops, restaurants and a hotel that could make the possibility of an extended stay for NSA leaker Edward Snowden not so bad. NBC's Ghazi Balkiz reports.

By Ghazi Balkiz and Marian Smith, NBC News

MOSCOW ? If self-proclaimed NSA leaker Edward Snowden has the means, he might just be able to survive indefinitely in the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport.

Dozens of journalists have been looking for Snowden at the vast complex, but he hasn't been spotted since arriving in Russia from Hong Kong last weekend. Russian authorities say that he is in the airport's transit area -- the zone between the departure gate and formal entry into the country.

So what is his apparent new home like?

Ghazi Balkiz / NBC News

A TGI Fridays restaurant in the transit area of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport.

As it turns out, the old Soviet international terminal about 20 miles northwest of central Moscow is quite comfortable.

There are restaurants ? from your relatively formal establishments to TGI Fridays and your run-of-the-mill fast-food joints like Burger King (although this one conveniently sells beer).

Local Russian cuisine and salads are available at the more traditional cafes. And there are plenty of coffee shops should the ever-elusive fugitive want to fuel up on caffeine before a flight to Havana, Cuba, or Quito, Ecuador on Russia's international airline Aeroflot.

There are even a couple of Irish pubs, a medical center and of course, free Wi-Fi ? no doubt essential for the digital desperado.

If Snowden is looking to buy some clothes, options are limited but they do exist. He could splash out on expensive designer shirts or go budget and browse for souvenirs. He might even blend in as a tourist with a trusty Russian flag T-shirt.

Rooms at the Capsule Hotel in the transit area are available to rent for short stretches ? a minimum of 4 hours for $70 ? or for longer layovers. Obviously the longer you stay, the more you pay, so it could get rather pricey for someone seeking sanctuary. But at the very least Snowden could take a shower and nap for a few hours.

Ghazi Balkiz / NBC News

Journalists gather in the transit area of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport.

Bathrooms in the terminal building are clean but the facilities are downright luxurious in business class lounges. In addition to eating and drinking for free, Snowden might help himself to shampoo, conditioner, body lotions, flip flops and a towel on his way to the shower.

Although the airport is vast, there are actually very few places to hide in Sheremetyevo's wide-open spaces.

However, there is believed to be a VIP area that may have direct access to the tarmac for high-profile personalities and government officials.

While Snowden?s whereabouts remain unknown-- he wouldn?t be the first person to log in some serious time in an airport terminal. Mehran Karimi Nasseri, an Iranian refugee, spent 17 years living in Charles de Gaulle airport when he was denied entry to France, but couldn?t go back to Iran. His story made the big screen when it was dramatized in the 2004 Steven Spielberg movie ?The Terminal? starring Tom Hanks.

Snowden's diplomatic options would definitely have to dry up to top that.?

In an NBC News exclusive, Lonnie Snowden, father of NSA leaker Edward Snowden, said he is "concerned about those who surround" his son, alleging that the focus of WikiLeaks is not "necessarily the Constitution" but rather "to release as much information as possible." NBC's Michael Isikoff reports.

Related:

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Gay Nuptials Resume in California (WSJ)

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94% Room 237

All Critics (119) | Top Critics (32) | Fresh (112) | Rotten (7) | DVD (1)

A curious and entertaining documentary.

The human brain is a marvellously suggestible organ.

[A] strange, frustrating, occasionally fascinating doc ...

"Room 237" evolves from an ode to movie love at its most delirious to a wry examination of the crackpot mind at work.

There's enough real evidence supporting the theory that Kubrick was a genius, and that's pretty entertaining all by itself.

It's about the human need for stuff to make sense - especially overpowering emotional experiences - and the tendency for some people to take that sense-making to extremes.

An intellectual exercise, and an entertaining one, especially for those who don't want to label The Shining as just a ghost story.

It has the same entertainment value as listening to a late-night radio host indulge his listeners on Roswell, Area 51 and 9/11. Everything sounds completely crackers, until it all makes crazy sense.

What emerges from Room 237 is not a denigration of conspiracies, but a kind of celebration of our ability to create patterns where (perhaps) none exist.

"Room 237" could become an essential companion piece to "The Shining" from now on. For those who see both, it will be impossible to think about one without the other.

...all about the work of criticism - finding fresh avenues of delight.

Watching it makes you feel like you're attending a really entertaining film class where your classmates confidently let their freak flags fly.

It's an essay about the human need to reject the notion of a random universe and find order and meaning in existence. These people are developing their own creation myths, with Kubrick the mastermind responsible for the Intelligent Design.

Termitic film nerds could chow down for years on the wood chips.

You know when "Room 237? starts getting really scary? When the people in the film start making sense.

Kubrick fans and movie geeks will want to check this film out as soon as possible

Kubrick fans will take 'Shining' to 'Room 237.'

The credibility of these theories ranges from faintly plausible to frankly ridiculous, but Ascher isn't interested in judging them; his movie is more about the joys of deconstruction and the special kind of obsession that movies can inspire.

Some of the interpretations seem more of a stretch than others but all are entertainingly presented by director Rodney Ascher. (The movie) serves as a testament to Stanley Kubrick's cinematic mastery.

As fascinating as it is frustrating

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/room_237_2012/

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Gmail app for Android returns quick-access delete button following user feedback

Confused by where that delete button went when you updated to the latest version of Android's Gmail app? You weren't the only one. The delete button has now reappeared alongside the archive option for quick access, while the update also improves settings for showing both buttons, accessed through the menu icon on the far right corner. Touching sender images will now let you choose multiple emails in a thread and Google's bundled in a handful of bug fixes too, just weeks since the last refresh.

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Source: Android (Google+), Gmail (Google Play)

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/l7USxoWzv7k/

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Advance in battle against wheat pest

Scientists have engineered wheat that is resistant to stem rust, a fungal disease that has ruined crops in Africa, Yemen and Iran.

The genetic advance raises the possibility of breeding wheat that is resistant to the fungus, researchers report in the journal Science.

Stem rust is regarded as a major threat to wheat, one of the world's most important cereal crops.

It is a fungal disease that appears as reddish blisters on wheat.

The blisters contain millions of spores, which infect the plant tissues, and disrupt the crop's ability to produce grain.

Ug99, which was discovered in Uganda in 1999, is a form of black stem rust that can wipe out whole harvests.

Continue reading the main story

?Start Quote

The identification of these two genes from the wild relatives of wheat offers new possibilities to slow the spread of the Ug99 fungus and to deploy more sustainable resistance in farmers' fields?

End Quote Dr Cristobal Uauy John Innes Centre

About 90% of wheat grown around the world is susceptible to Ug99 and similar strains of the pest.

Experts predict it could spread rapidly through Africa and the Middle East, and possibly further afield, potentially causing an agricultural disaster that would affect global food security.?

In the latest research, two international groups of scientists, led by Dr Cyrille Saintenac of Kansas State University, US, and Dr Sambasivam Periyannan of CSIRO Plant Industry, Canberra, Australia, investigated two previously identified genes associated with stem rust resistance.

They cloned parts of the gene of an ancient wheat crop (Sr33) that was common until the Bronze Age but is now rarely cultivated, and inserted it into modern wheat varieties.

They found wheat with this gene did not show susceptibility to stem rust.

A similar study on a second gene (Sr35), found in a wild plant related to wheat, showed that this gene also conferred limited resistance to the fungal disease, as well as related pests.

The scientists, from research teams in the US, China and Australia, say using biotechnology to develop wheat with both genes could slow the progression of Ug99 and avoid global wheat shortages.

Commenting on the study, Dr Cristobal Uauy of the department of crop genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich, said the identification of the two genes provided a clear path to deploy resistance to the Ug99 fungus in the field, either through conventional means or biotechnological applications.

"The identification of these two genes from the wild relatives of wheat offers new possibilities to slow the spread of the Ug99 fungus and to deploy more sustainable resistance in farmers' fields," he said.

"This will lead to a deeper understanding of how plants fight back against the pathogen and allow scientist and breeders to establish new and more sustainable ways to defeat one of wheat's worst enemies."

Dr Brande Wulff of The Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich added: "Resistance genes are typically overcome by the pathogen when deployed one at a time. However, the cloning of stem rust resistance genes allows the scientist to easily combine them.

"A stack of resistance genes with multiple resistance specificities should provide a more durable resistance to this devastating disease."

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23084782#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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Friday, June 28, 2013

Former Warner Music Intern Files a Second Lawsuit

By Tim Kenneally

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - A former Warner Music Group intern who's suing the music company has filed a second suit, this time against a New York City recording studio.

In a class-action complaint filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Wednesday, Justin Henry says that he worked for Chung King studios from October 2008 until August 2010. During that time, Henry says, he wasn't paid minimum wage and didn't receive overtime compensation. The class-action suit claims that he wasn't the only one to endure such alleged treatment.

The suit claims that Henry and other members of the class worked "in various positions related to the maintenance and operations of the music studio." Henry claims to have "typically worked from Thursday through Sunday, consistently from 10 p.m. until 10 a.m." From October 2008 to December 2009, the suit alleges, Henry was given no compensation at all, and that from January 2009 to August 2010, he was paid a flat rate of $200 per week, "regardless of the amount of hours worked."

The suit contends that Henry and others in his situation are owed minimum wage plus overtime under federal and U.S. law.

Henry's suit against Warner Bros. Music Group, filed earlier this month, claims that WMG subsidiary Atlantic Music Group withheld wages from Henry and other employees beginning in or around June 2007. Henry's suit claims that he worked as an unpaid intern for the company, answering phones, making copies and performing other tasks, regularly working from 10 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m.

A number of lawsuits from interns seeking compensation for their labor have been filed recently. Earlier this month, two interns who worked on the film "Black Swan" won a partial summary judgment from a judge who found that interns Alexander Footman and Eric Glatt are entitled to pay for their work on the film under the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York labor law.

A lawsuit was also recently filed against publisher Conde Nast by two former interns for the company.

(Pamela Chelin contributed to this report)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/former-warner-music-intern-files-second-lawsuit-004415379.html

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Detroit EM to strip council president's pay, title

DETROIT (AP) ? State-appointed emergency manager Kevyn Orr has ordered his legal staff to prepare an order that will strip the pay and authority from AWOL Detroit City Council President Charles Pugh.

Pugh has been a no-show at recent council meetings and failed to acknowledge by a 5 p.m. Wednesday deadline that he would be returning to work, Orr spokesman Bill Nowling said.

Orr will review the completed order and could sign it Thursday, Nowling said.

Orr is operating under Michigan's emergency manager law. He can't fire Detroit elected leaders, but does control their pay and responsibilities. Pugh earns about $76,000 per year.

His request for a three- to four-week medical leave was denied earlier this week by Orr.

The City Council's powers have been reduced since Orr was hired in March to fix a budget deficit barreling toward $380 million and about $17 billion in city debt. He has control over all matters involving money.

The Associated Press left messages Wednesday seeking comment from Pugh, who also is the subject of a complaint the Detroit Public Schools received from the parent of a recent graduate.

The mother, whose name was not released by the district, came forward earlier this month with concerns involving the 41-year-old Pugh and a mentoring program at Douglass Academy for Young Men, according to district spokesman Steve Wasko.

The complaint involved cash and gifts the teenager received while part of the program.

"At the time, the school reached out to the parent who stated that she would prefer to handle the matter personally," Wasko said Wednesday in a statement. "The school has since contacted the parent again in writing seeking to resolve the concerns, and is awaiting a response."

The district will review the leadership mentoring program at Douglass Academy, he added.

Detroit area attorney Ivan Land said he represents the teen's mother and told The Detroit News that the gifts included a $350 cellphone and prom clothing. The teen also received $160 in cash from Pugh, Land said.

Pugh, a former TV anchor, resigned in 2009 from Detroit's Fox Network affiliate and a local radio station to run for council. He became council president after receiving the most votes in that year's general election.

"I have a mandate from the people of Detroit," Pugh said after the election. "The people say they trust me and believe in me, and are looking forward to what new things I bring to the table. We need some new leadership, better collaboration and better cooperation."

Earlier this year, Pugh said he would not seek re-election.

If Pugh steps down, only six council members will remain to conduct city business. Kwame Kenyatta resigned last week and City Council President Pro Tem Gary Brown moves July 1 to Orr's staff.

Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey said the council can continue to operate as long as there are enough members to make a quorum, but the loss of members will make it difficult for the smaller council committees to meet.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/detroit-em-strip-council-presidents-pay-title-230940265.html

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Ryan Murphy HBO Pilot 'Open' Casts 'Felicity' Alum Scott Speedman

By Tim Kenneally

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Scott Speedman is "Open" to a relationship with Ryan Murphy and HBO.

The "Felicity" alum has been cast in "Glee" and "American Horror Story" boss Ryan Murphy's HBO pilot "Open," an individual familiar with the production has told TheWrap.

Speedman, who recently starred in ABC's short-lived submarine drama "Last Resort," will play what's described as a handsome sports-marketing executive.

The cast also includes "The Hunger Games" actor Wes Bentley, who'll play an arrogant but charismatic blowhard who enjoys spouting his theories on human sexuality.

The pilot, written by Murphy and Lauren Gussis ("Dexter"), is described as a "modern, provocative exploration of human sexuality and relationships."

Dante Di Loreto ("Glee," "American Horror Story") is executive producing for Ryan Murphy Television and Fox 21.

Deadline first reported the news of Speedman's casting.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ryan-murphy-hbo-pilot-open-casts-felicity-alum-204540045.html

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Egypt's opposition criticizes president's speech

CAIRO (AP) ? Egypt's main opposition coalition on Thursday rejected the Islamist president's offer for dialogue on reconciliation and said it insists on holding early elections, ratcheting up pressure on Mohammed Morsi just days ahead of planned mass protests seeking his ouster.

Adding to an already explosive political atmosphere in Egypt, authorities issued a travel ban on a media tycoon and an arrest warrant for a popular TV presenter ? a sharp critic of Morsi ? in what appears to be an escalation against private media accused by the president of instigating violence and being funded by those loyal to the former regime.

A statement by the National Salvation Front read by reform leader Mohamed ElBaradei said Morsi's 2 ?-hour speech late Wednesday reflected a "clear inability to acknowledge the difficult conditions in Egypt because of his failure in running the country since he took office a year ago."

In the speech, Morsi told his opponents to use elections not protests to try to change the government, and counseled the military, which has warned it would intervene if violence breaks out, to focus on improving its capabilities and defending the nation.

He defended his performance in his first year in office, admitting some mistakes but also claiming achievements. At one point he apologized for fuel shortages which have partially paralyzed the nation, increasing frustration and anger at his government.

But the president offered no compromises in the confrontation with his opponents. Those organizing the protests for Sunday ? the anniversary of Morsi's inauguration ? say he must go because he has mismanaged the country, given a monopoly on decision-making to the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist allies, and encroached on the judiciary.

"The president ... did not take responsibility for the polarization he has caused among the sons of one nation since taking office," ElBaradei said.

The Nobel Peace Laureate and a former head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog added: "nothing will change our determination to go out on June 30 everywhere in Egypt. We are confident that the Egyptian masses will go out in their millions in peaceful protests that fill the streets and squares of Egypt on Sunday June 30."

"Our strength is in our numbers and our nonviolence and we must not forget that. No one can stand in the way of the will of Egyptian people," he said in response to a reporter's question.

ElBardei spoke after a senior opposition leader and a fellow member of the Front, former foreign minister Amr Moussa, criticized Morsi for not offering a detailed road map for national reconciliation and accused him of not taking the opposition seriously.

In a statement, Moussa also criticized Morsi for not offering a "clear" economic recovery plan and for blaming the nation's woes on street protests and strikes. He later told The Associated Press that Morsi and his Islamist backers "don't want to recognize there is anger. They are missing the point, a major point. They are in a state of denial."

Another key opposition leader and member of the Front, Hamdeen Sabahi, said Morsi's speech did not rise to the occasion.

"He talked a lot but did not say anything," he told a television interviewer late on Wednesday. Sabahi also called on Morsi to step down, saying he was "bearing what (he) cannot handle."

Moussa said the opposition, like the military, wanted a genuine reconciliation, something he said was not mentioned in the president's speech.

"We didn't hear anything about this reconciliation having a plan, a rational direction or a detailed proposal worthy of study and discussion. What we heard was a routine call for dialogue and the creation of committees like those that were promised before but never materialized," he said.

He said economic reforms introduced by Morsi so far were inconsequential and the economy is going from bad to worse. "Furthermore, what does a strike by certain group, a gathering in a square, have to do with repairing hospitals or reforming the railways?"

The opposition leaders and Morsi before them spoke as tension built up in Egypt ahead of Sunday's protests with the army reinforcing its positions outside major cities in anticipation of possible violence.

Moussa, also a former Arab league chief, said it was unbecoming of the president to mention by name and accuse of corruption a serving judge along with the owners of two TV networks that have been critical of his policies for their alleged difficulties in settling outstanding tax or debts.

In his speech, Morsi also railed against judges who have acquitted officials accused of corruption or police commanders who faced charges of killing protesters during and after the 2011 uprising that ousted Egypt's longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. The president also repeated assurances that he respects the judiciary.

"When he accuses people by name, he must at least present the evidence," said judge Amir Ramzy. "It was obvious from the president's words and gestures that he has a grudge against judges."

The president also criticized the country's minority Christians of what he called fear of all things Islamic and complained that church leaders greet him with insincere smiles that conceal that fear.

Less than 24 hours after Morsi's speech, Prosecutor General Talaat Abdullah ?a Morsi appointee ? issued a travel ban against media tycoon Mohammed el-Ameen, owner of the popular TV network CBC, official news agency MENA said.

The agency said el-Ameen is being investigated for nearly 427 million Egyptian pounds ($61 million dollars) of alleged tax evasion. The ban came hours after Morsi named el-Ameen as one of several Mubarak loyalists who aim to thwart his rule.

The prosecutor general then issued an arrest warrant for another Morsi critic, Tawfiq Okasha, while the government ordered the shutdown of his popular "Al-Fareen" TV station. Okasha stands accused of spreading false news and causing panic among the population.

Okasha, whose station has been shut down before and is still fighting similar charges that include insulting the president and the Brotherhood, has emerged as one of the most popular TV personalities of post-Mubarak Egypt.

Meanwhile, the Brotherhood said two of its members were killed, one by gunfire, in the Nile Delta province of Sharqiya, where it accused "thugs" of storming the headquarters of its political wing. In another Delta province, security officials said riot police fired tear gas to disperse anti-Morsi demonstrators and Brotherhood members fighting after protesters torched the group's local office and houses believed to be owned by its members.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

The prosecutor, Abdullah, also referred Mubarak and his two sons to a criminal court over alleged squandering of public funds. The three are already being tried on other corruption charges, and Mubarak himself over his role in the killings of protesters during the 2011 uprising.

Protesters are hoping to bring out massive crowds Sunday, saying they have tapped into widespread discontent over economic woes, rising prices and unemployment, power cuts and lack of security. The June 30 protests are rooted in a campaign by young activists called "Tamarod," or rebel. They claim to have collected about 15 million signatures of Egyptians who want Morsi to step down.

Morsi's Islamist allies are planning a counter-demonstration on Friday in support of his "legitimacy." Some say they are planning an open-ended sit-in at a mosque near the presidential palace ? the planned destination of the main anti-Morsi protest two days later ? raising fears of street violence.

____

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael and Mariam Rizk contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/egypts-opposition-criticizes-presidents-speech-122752576.html

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These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

Game of Thrones' and Lego fans rejoice: the Warden of the North, Arya, the Mother of Dragons?sadly with only one baby dragon?John Snow and Tyrion Lannister can be all yours in precious minifig form for $70, a price that will feel something between the Red Wedding and Theon Greyjoy's torture to your credit card.

According to the manufacturer on Etsy, "they are being made in very limited numbers and won't be available long!" They say that all these minifigs have been designed by their house artist and custom pad printed?which means they are high quality. Pad printing is the same printing method Lego uses.

These are not Lego or Game of Thrones' official products. They are not the first Game of Thrones' minifigs either?Lego expert Sam Beattie made his own characters last year. Sam's minifigs are not as faithful as these ones, but they are are really good, as you can see here:

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

The Starks

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

The Lannisters

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

The Baratheon Brothers

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

The Small Council

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

The Clegane Brothers

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

Jorah, Daenerys and Drogo

These Great Lego Game of Thrones Minifigs Are Now for Sale

Sansa, Bran, Hodor (Hodor!) and Rickon Stark

If you have Game of Thrones' withdrawal syndrome you can go to this Lego site fully dedicated to Game of Thrones. Or just do like me and read the Wikipedia entries to know everything that's going to happen because you are too impatient to wait or read the books.

Source: http://lego.gizmodo.com/these-great-lego-game-of-thrones-minifigs-are-now-for-s-605042215

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Who are the likely Emmy snubs in the crowded drama category?

By Steve Pond

(Reuters) - Does the Television Academy need to follow the lead of its colleagues at the Oscars and expand its top category to a full 10 nominees?

That's a question that is being asked with increasing frequency these days, with the Emmy race in the Outstanding Drama Series category proving to be its most competitive in years, maybe even its toughest ever.

At least eight to 10 of the series currently in the running would be shoo-ins for a nomination in a normal year. But with only six slots up for grabs in the category, shows left on the sidelines could be as formidable as "Boardwalk Empire," "The Americans" or Netflix's potentially game-changing "House of Cards."

"I'm not saying anything that other people haven't been saying for a while, but it really is a golden age of television," Mark Johnson, executive producer of "Breaking Bad," told TheWrap. "It is remarkable how many great shows there are."

The buzz, he added, is constantly shifting. "One day I hear everybody talking about 'Game of Thrones,' the next day they're talking about 'The Americans,' the next day they're back to talking about 'Homeland.'

"I can't worry about where 'Breaking Bad' stands, or I'd end up driving myself crazy."

Gareth Neame, the executive producer of "Downton Abbey," agreed that the field was unusually strong in a recent conversation with TheWrap. "The bar is so high now that a lot of people are saying the number of nominees isn't enough," he said.

"But where do you have the cutoff? You're only going to have one winner - do you really want to have a lot of nominees?"

The problem for Emmy voters is that if you don't have a lot of nominees, you'll leave out either acclaimed veteran shows or fresh newcomers. The top contenders, in alphabetical order:

"The Americans"

FX's Cold War drama may have the best shot of series to do what "Homeland" did last year - not only land a nomination, but win the drama-series Emmy in its first season. Its four nominations at both the Critics' Choice Television Awards and the TCA Awards are double the number scored by the other hot freshman series, Netflix's "House of Cards."

"Boardwalk Empire" TheWrap's Tim Molloy has called Season 3 of the HBO drama its best one, and named the show the best series of the 2012-2013 season. With 18 nominations and eight wins in its first season and 12 noms and four wins in its second (including drama-series nods both years), Terence Winter's period drama is a proven favorite with voters.

"Breaking Bad"

The only time in the last four years that Vince Gilligan's show didn't get a drama-series nomination was 2011, the year it wasn't eligible; before that year off, star Bryan Cranston won three consecutive Emmys as lead actor in a drama series.

This time around, voters will be considering the first half of the series' final season, which was split into eight episodes that aired in 2012 and eight more that will begin airing this August - right when Emmy voters will be casting their final ballots.

The Critics' Choice Television Awards, which correctly predicted the Emmy winners in 2011 and 2012, recently named it the year's best drama (in a tie with "Game of Thrones").

"Downton Abbey"

The most-nominated non-American series of all time (it qualifies because it's a co-production with WGBH in Boston), "Downton Abbey" made mincemeat of the Emmys' miniseries or movie categories after its first season, then shifted to the tougher drama-series categories in its second season and scored 14 nominations and three wins.

Its third season gained lots of attention by killing off a couple of main characters whose actors wouldn't renew their contracts.

"Game of Thrones"

Speaking of killing off main characters, HBO's "Game of Thrones" had what might have been the most talked-about hour of TV all season with its brutal "Red Wedding" episode. And Emmy voters already loved the show for its scale and scope: In its first two seasons it scored 25 nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series noms both years, and eight wins.

"The Good Wife"

Is there room for a broadcast network in the drama-series category? For years, "The Good Wife" has been fighting the good fight on behalf of the networks, giving CBS the one non-cable spot in the slate of nominees.

It still has enough strength with actors to be a formidable competitor in the category - but after being the sole broadcast-network nominee in its first two seasons, it couldn't land a series nomination last year, which produced the first all-cable lineup in the category's history.

"Homeland" Showtime's series scored an upset victory in the category last year, and Emmy voters are such creatures of habit that it's hard to believe they won't at least nominate the show that won the previous year. (The last time the reigning champ failed to get a nomination was 2007, with "24.") Between its second Golden Globe win and its Critics' Choice nomination, it does not appear to have suffered a sophomore slump.

"House of Cards"

The biggest wild card on the ballot is Beau Willimon's political drama, whose entire season of 13 episodes was made available in February by Netflix. It would be unconventional for Emmy voters to look so far outside traditional television for a nominee, but "House of Cards" may have been the year's most buzz-worthy show, and one that turned binge viewing into a national pastime.

"I think it'll get in because of sheer talkability, and because it's breaking new ground," said Gareth Neame.

"Mad Men"

Emmy voters have always loved Matthew Weiner's Madison Avenue drama, which has already won four drama-series Emmys and will break the record it shares with "Hill Street Blues," "L.A. Law" and "The West Wing" if it wins another.

The past season - its second-to-last ever - may have been the show's weirdest, but it's impossible to envision voters not nominating it. Plus, to improve his chances this year, Weiner hired the publicist who landed "Argo" its Oscar Best Picture.

The six nominees will most likely come from those nine shows, but FX's "Justified" is always in the mix, and HBO's "The Newsroom" has a real shot as well. Then there are the buzziest new shows on broadcast TV, "Scandal" and "Nashville"; the final season of Showtime's four-time drama-series nominee "Dexter"; the genre gems "The Walking Dead" and "Bates Motel" ...

So who'll be snubbed?

Critics' Choice voters went with "Breaking Bad," "Game of Thrones," "The Americans," "Downton Abbey," "The Good Wife" and "Homeland" (right), leaving out "Boardwalk Empire," "House of Cards" (!) and "Mad Men" (!!).

Golden Globe voters opted for "Boardwalk," "Downton," "Homeland," "Breaking Bad" and "The Newsroom," but not "Game of Thrones," "Mad Men" or "The Good Wife." ("House of Cards" and "The Americans" hadn't yet debuted, and they were voting on the previous season of "Mad Men.")

Given the stiff competition, and the fact that current Emmy rules call for just six nominees (though a tie produced seven in 2009), it's hardly embarrassing to be left out. But that will be small consolation to whichever topnotch shows find themselves overlooked when nominations are announced on July 18.

"It's tough, because we are just surrounded by really great storytelling," said Mark Johnson, who has few illusions that his other show, the acclaimed Sundance series "Rectify," can find a spot in a year this competitive.

"As somebody said to me recently, 'The movie studios should be ashamed that they've given storytelling over to television.'"

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/likely-emmy-snubs-crowded-drama-category-004703691.html

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'Recycled' Aussie PM gives party jolt of optimism

Governor-General Quentin Bryce, left, poses with newly commissioned Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, second from left, his wife Therese Rein, right, and his granddaughter Josephine Tse, at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Rudd was sworn in as prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Governor-General Quentin Bryce, left, poses with newly commissioned Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, second from left, his wife Therese Rein, right, and his granddaughter Josephine Tse, at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Rudd was sworn in as prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, right, with her former deputy Wayne Swan, arrive in chambers at parliament for question time for what is likely to be its last day before elections, in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Gillard was dumped in a party ballot and Kevin Rudd was sworn in as Australian prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Governor-General Quentin Bryce, right, commissions Kevin Rudd with in half an hour of Parliament resuming for what is likely to be its last day before elections, in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Rudd is sworn in as Australian prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Kevin Rudd signs his commission at Government House within half an hour of Parliament resuming for what is likely to be its last day before elections, in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Rudd is sworn in as Australian prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, second from left, is congratulated by opposition leader Tony Abbott, left, deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop, right, and shadow treasurer Joe Hockey just before Rudd addresses Parliament for what is likely to be its last day before elections, in Canberra, Australia, Thursday, June 27, 2013. Rudd was sworn in as Australian prime minister three years and three days after he was ousted from the same job in an internal government showdown. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) ? Dubbed "Recycled Rudd" in newspaper headlines, Kevin Rudd returned as Australia's prime minister Thursday, reviving his party's hopes of avoiding an election massacre but giving voters few clues where he plans to take the country.

Rudd was sworn in a day after wrenching the job back from Julia Gillard, his former deputy, who took over through her own internal coup three years ago but had a strained relationship with Australian voters from the start.

He is seen as more charismatic than Gillard, though his abrasiveness toward his fellow lawmakers helped lead to his 2010 downfall. In Parliament on Thursday, he urged lawmakers to be "a little kinder and gentler" toward each other following Gillard's ouster.

With Gillard as leader, the ruling center-left Labor Party had appeared headed for an overwhelming election defeat at the hands of the conservative coalition opposition, but Rudd's supporters said they now have a chance to win.

"What this fundamentally does is put us in a position where we can win the next election, and no one would have been talking about that even at the beginning of this week," said Richard Marles, a Rudd supporter who quit as a junior minister in March after an aborted leadership challenge by Rudd.

"We were looking at a very bad defeat. We were not in the contest," he added.

Gillard had set elections for Sept. 14, though Rudd can now decide to hold them as early as Aug. 3. Rudd on Thursday refused to commit to a date but said "there's not going to be a huge variation" from Sept. 14.

Rudd has said he will perform with renewed "energy and purpose," but has yet to spell out what will be different under his leadership. His government remains in a state of confusion, with a Cabinet yet to be named.

Marles said he expects Rudd will "reset some policies" in the next two weeks, including on the unpopular carbon tax levied on Australia's largest polluters and on how Australia deals with a growing number of asylum seekers reaching the country by boat.

"He's the best communicator that exists in Australian politics today," Marles said. "People just love him; they really relate to him and react to him and there is part of that I think is an intangible."

Successive opinion polls have suggested that the government would be more popular with Rudd, a Mandarin-speaking former diplomat, at the helm than Gillard, a former lawyer and political staffer who was Australia's first female prime minister.

A poll by market researcher Nielsen published last week in Fairfax Media newspapers found that Labor under Rudd would be on equal pegging with the opposition at 50 percent voter support. Under Gillard, Labor trailed with only 43 percent of voter support, compared to 57 percent support for the opposition.

The poll was based on a random nationwide telephone survey of 1,400 voters on June 13-15 and had a 2.6 percent margin of error.

Nielsen director John Stirton was skeptical that the poll would translate to an election victory for Labor, saying that would assume a smooth leadership transition to Rudd, the party uniting behind him and his public popularity enduring until the election.

Under Gillard, polls had suggested that Labor could lose between 30 and 35 of their 71 lawmakers in the 150-seat House of Representatives, where parties form government.

Rudd forced Gillard out in nearly the same way she ousted him in 2010. Each faced a party leadership vote in the face of a revolt from Labor lawmakers, but while Rudd did not contest Gillard's earlier challenge, she went ahead with a vote that she lost 57-45.

Gillard tendered her resignation Wednesday night, and Governor-General Quentin Bryce commissioned Rudd as prime minister on Thursday.

Anthony Albanese was sworn in as deputy prime minister and Chris Bowen was sworn in as treasurer during the same ceremony. Rudd has yet to say when he will announce his complete Cabinet after seven ministers resigned following Gillard's ouster.

Since it holds fewer than half of the seats in Parliament, the Labor Party has required support from independent lawmakers and the minor Greens party to hang on to power. Those lawmakers were not obliged to support Rudd, though at least some of them did.

The opposition could have challenged Rudd's control of the government with a no-confidence motion, but it did not. Parliament was adjourned Thursday and it will not reconvene until after the elections.

The bitter rivalry and infighting between the Gillard and Rudd camps has damaged Labor's image. Rudd had tried twice previously to oust Gillard, last year and in February. Many took the fact that he never posed for a Parliament House portrait, as other former prime ministers had done, as a sign that he never gave up on returning.

"As we all know in this place, political life is a very hard life; a very hard life indeed," Rudd told Parliament before it adjourned. "Let us try ? just try ? to be a little kinder and gentler with each other in the further deliberations of this Parliament."

Opposition leader Tony Abbott demanded an explanation from Rudd of why Gillard was deposed with elections looming. Abbott also called for an election date to be confirmed.

"Politics is a tough business and sometimes it is far more brutal than it needs to be," Abbott said.

"This is a fraught moment in the life of our nation. A prime minister has been dragged down; her replacement owes the Australian people and the Australian Parliament an explanation," he added.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-06-27-Australia-Politics/id-992611dab7204ec894ec5ce2d00b82fc

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