Sunday, March 31, 2013

South African official: Mandela better from pneumonia

JOHANNESBURG (AP) ? A South African official says Nelson Mandela is breathing "without difficulty" after having a procedure to clear fluid in his lung area that was caused by pneumonia.

South African presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj said Saturday that 94-year-old Mandela that the fluid had been "tapped," allowing the former president to breathe more easily.

Maharaj described the fluid problem as a "pleural effusion."

He said Mandela is suffering from pneumonia, using a different term for his ailment. Officials have previously said Mandela, who was taken to a hospital on Wednesday night, has a recurring lung infection.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/safrican-official-mandela-better-pneumonia-122925761.html

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Payson school district needs $2 million computer upgrade | Payson ...

?Our Windows XP is at the end of its life,? said de Szendeffy. ?Support for that software will end in 2014.? Not everything is doom and gloom in the technology department, de Szendeffy and her team have worked some miracles to keep PUSD students moving forward with technology. Photo by Andy Towle. |

Payson Unified School District (PUSD) needs between $2 million to $3 million to rebuild its technology infrastructure, Joni de Szendeffy, director of technology, told the school board at its meeting on Monday, March 25.

?If we don?t do something soon with our infrastructure, it?s not going to be of any use to anybody,? said de Szendeffy.

Most people prefer to see any money they donate to school technology go toward equipment they can see in the classroom said de Szendeffy, rather than behind-the-scenes equipment they do not see.

But if students and staff cannot get access to the Internet or move data around, all that technology is pointless, said de Szendeffy.

The district needs new software to run operating systems, servers and switches to allow increased data flow and a non-DOS based telephone system, she said.

?Our Windows XP is at the end of its life,? said de Szendeffy. ?Support for that software will end in 2014.?

Not everything is doom and gloom in the technology department, de Szendeffy and her team have worked some miracles to keep PUSD students moving forward with technology.

She found a way to replace the main router.

?I purchased the new router using some contingency capital,? said de Szendeffy. ?I felt it was too important and needed to be done ? a 20-year-old piece of equipment that critical was pretty much on borrowed time.?

The job of a router is to send and receive ?packets? of information over the Internet. Numerous desktop computers can hook into a router, which then hooks into a server that accesses the Internet. A router can also connect individual devices to a wireless network.

In fact, this year de Szendeffy and her department have expanded the wireless network, so students and staff with their own devices can access the Internet wirelessly, which lightens the load on the routers and servers.

?We have increased users in limited BYOD (bring your own device) and by adding 150 iPads to the district,? said de Szendeffy.

The incoming Common Core Standards plan focuses on both making students comfortable with technology and replacing paper and pencil tests with online exams. School districts around the country have started to allow for students to use their personal devices.

However, PUSD needs increased bandwidth and Internet speed to make those changes, said de Szendeffy. She hopes to do that next year.

The good news, de Szendeffy reported, is that the PUSD technology department, with monies from a grant written by the Mogollon Health Alliance and matching funds from the Fiesta Bowl Charities, will now have the equipment to connect to the National LambdaRail and the Internet2 through the University of Arizona.

The National LambdaRail is a high-speed network of fiber-optics available in 21 states owned by the U.S. research and education community that bypasses expensive commercial networks. The grants will allow students to access and download research, classes and information from public and private organizations, such as NASA, universities and research hospitals.

Internet2 mimics the abilities of LambdaRail. The network allows Payson students to access media libraries, scientific instruments like undersea sensors, videoconferencing for things like virtual classes, music lessons, or observations of everything from surgery to nature studies.

Yet de Szendeffy has grave doubts she will be able to keep pulling rabbits out of her hat to keep the school?s technology functioning.

?Spending money on technology needs to be a priority,? she said. ?If we get any unrestricted funds, apply them to technology.?

Source: http://www.paysonroundup.com/news/2013/mar/29/payson-school-district-needs-2-million-computer-up/

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Obama Sends Easter and Passover Message (ABC News)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/295598220?client_source=feed&format=rss

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?Harry Potter? Star Richard Griffiths Dead At 65

“Harry Potter” Star Richard Griffiths Dead At 65

Richard Griffiths photosRichard Griffiths, who played the part of Vernon Dursley in the Harry Potter films, passed away on Thursday from complications following heart surgery in England. The British actor has starred in plays as well as movie blockbusters, but is most remembered as Harry Potter’s mean uncle. Griffiths attended drama college after dropping out of school ...

“Harry Potter” Star Richard Griffiths Dead At 65 Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2013/03/harry-potter-star-richard-griffiths-dead-at-65/

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Saturday, March 30, 2013

Personal Computer Just Got Way More Literal With ... - Geekosystem

Do you know what the Singularity is? It?s that apocryphal-unless-it-happens sci-fi-like event, championed by Ray Kurzweil, in which humans and machines merge and we as a species are forever transformed. None can say whether the the artificial mind and the real mind will become as one, but we?re making advances in that direction every day. Now bioengineers at Stanford University have made transistors from genetic materials in lieu of the semiconducting materials normally used. A nice big step toward Singularity.?Biological computers!

It starts with the transistor, the primary building block of the digital world and the reason we have cars, phones, and video games.

Published in Science, this new development?is the work of postdoctoral scholar of bioengineering?Jerome Bonnet and his team. They?re calling their bio-transistors ?transcriptors,? and they?re made from DNA and RNA. ?Transcriptors are the key component behind amplifying genetic logic,? says Bonnet.

This means engineers can compute inside living cells, giving them the ability to monitor what goes on around them or even toggle on and off cell reproduction. Transcriptors determine the flow of a specific protein or RNA polymerase (RNA-producing enzymes) in a strand of DNA, like electrons through a wire.

In electrical engineering, there is something called a logic-gate, another of the building blocks of a computer, which uses Boolean logic ? a system of 1s and 0s which represent on or off, open, or closed. Bonnet?s paper says their transcriptors have their own biological version, which they?re calling ?Boolean Integrase Logic? (?BIL gates? for short), and these are the third and final component of a complete biological computer.

So what?s the use of logic? Bonnet said the possibilities for logic are as endless in a biological setting as in electronics:

?You could test whether a given cell had been exposed to any number of external stimuli ? the presence of glucose and caffeine, for instance. BIL gates would allow you to make that determination and to store that information so you could easily identify those which had been exposed and which had not.?

The team used very specific enzyme combinations to control the flow of enzymes through DNA. ?The choice of enzymes is important,? he went on to say. ?We have been careful to select enzymes that function in bacteria, fungi, plants and animals, so that bio-computers can be engineered within a variety of organisms.?

As a fan of fungi, that?s intriguing to me! Computer toadstools are hopefully the future. Maybe.

But seriously, the application of this technology is wide open and Bonnet is happy to share his team?s work with the public:

?Most biotechnology has not yet been imagined. Let alone made true. By freely sharing important basic tools everyone can work better together.?

All right, so there won?t be any synthetic people walking around anytime soon, but it may not be too long before bio-computers can keep an eye on our insides and make sure we?re doing all right. How thoughtful!

(Stanford University via?Science Daily, images courtesy of imgfave.com, and ?DS on Flickr)

Relevant to your interests

Source: http://www.geekosystem.com/bio-computers-transcriptors/

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US consumer spending, income jump in February

WASHINGTON (AP) ? U.S. consumers stepped up spending in February after their income jumped, aided by a stronger job market that offset some of the drag from higher taxes. The gains led economists to predict stronger economic growth at the start of the year.

Consumer spending rose 0.7 percent in February from January, the Commerce Department said Friday. It was the biggest gain in five months and followed a revised 0.4 percent rise in January, which was double the initial estimate.

Americans were able to spend more because their income rose 1.1 percent last month. That followed huge swings in the previous two months, which reflected a rush to pay bonuses and dividends in December before taxes increased.

After-tax income also increased 1.1 percent last month, allowing consumers to put a little more away. The saving rate increased to 2.6 percent of after-tax income, up from 2.2 percent in January.

The gains in spending and income follow other signs of an economy gathering momentum. Hiring is up, businesses are spending more, the stock market is hitting record levels and the housing recovery is strengthening.

More spending by consumers should boost economic growth in the January-March quarter after a lull at the end of last year. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.

After seeing Friday's report on consumer spending, Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics, raised his growth forecast for the first quarter by a full percentage point. Ashworth now expects growth in the January-march quarter increase to an annual rate of 3 percent.

Growth at that pace would be a vast improvement from the 0.4 percent rate in the October-December quarter, which was held back by slower company stockpiling and the sharpest defense cuts in 40 years.

Ashworth called the boost in spending "impressive," noting that consumers spent more while having to adjust to the higher Social Security taxes and a spike in gasoline prices.

"We're now likely to see the fastest quarterly gain in real consumption in two years," he said.

Jennifer Lee, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, said the increases suggest consumer spending could be growing in the first quarter at an annual rate of more than 3 percent. That would be the fastest gain in more than three years and more than double the 1.3 percent rate in the fourth quarter.

Inflation, as measured by a gauge tied to consumer spending, increased 1.3 percent in February compared with a year ago. That's well below the Federal Reserve's 2 percent target, giving the central bank room to keep stimulating the economy without having to worry about price pressures.

Consumers spent more at the start of the year even after paying higher taxes. An increase in Social Security taxes has reduced take-home pay for nearly all Americans receiving a paycheck. And income taxes have risen on the highest earners. The tax increases both took effect on Jan. 1.

One reason the tax increases haven't slowed the economy is companies have accelerated hiring and are slowly but steadily increasing wages.

Employers have added an average of 200,000 jobs a month since November. That helped lowered the unemployment rate in February to a four-year low of 7.7 percent. Economists expect similar strong job gains in March.

Businesses are also investing more in equipment and machinery, which has given factories a lift after a disappointing 2012.

And the housing recovery that began last year appears to be sustainable. In February, sales of previously occupied homes rose to the highest level in more than three years. The gains have helped lift home prices, which have made Americans feel wealthier.

Stock prices have also surged. On Thursday, the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at a record high of 1,569. That surpassed the previous record of 1,565 set in October 2007, a year before the peak of the financial crisis.

Three weeks ago, the Dow Jones industrial average beat its 2007 record.

Markets are closed Friday for the Good Friday holiday.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-consumer-spending-income-jump-february-123455179--finance.html

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Google launching same-day delivery service for online shoppers ...

Internet search leader Google is taking another step beyond information retrieval into grocery delivery.

The new service, called Google Shopping Express, will initially provide same-day delivery of food and other products bought online by a small group of consumers in San Francisco and suburbs located south of the city. The company, based in Mountain View, Calif., didn't say how many people will be part of the test.

If the pilot program goes well, Google plans to expand delivery service to other markets.

"We hope this will help users explore the benefits of a local, same-day delivery service, and help us kick the tires on the new service," Google said in a Thursday statement.

The delivery service is part of Google's effort to increase consumer reliance on the Internet, so it will have more opportunities to show online ads, which generate most of its revenue.

Google has learned that the more time people spend online, the more likely they are to use its dominant search engine or one of its other popular services, like its YouTube video site or Gmail, that include advertising.

The delivery service also could spur merchants to buy more online ads if Google's same-day delivery service encourages consumers to do more of their shopping online. Having to wait days or, in some cases, more than a week for the delivery of online orders ranks among the biggest drawbacks to Internet shopping.

It's a problem that Amazon.com and eBay, which operate the largest e-commerce sites, already have been trying to solve by offering same-day service in some U.S. markets. Wal-Mart Stores, the world's largest retailer, also offers same-day delivery in five markets.

A mix of national, regional and neighborhood merchants are enlisting in Google Shopping Express. The best-known names on the list include Target and Walgreen. All the merchants in the Google program will sell certain items through a central website. Google has hired courier services to pick up the orders at the merchant stores and then deliver them to the customer's home or office.

Although the couriers will be working on a contract basis, they will be driving Google-branded vehicles and wearing company-issued uniforms.

It remains unclear whether Internet shopping and same-day delivery can be profitable. Online grocer Webvan collapsed in 2001, largely because it couldn't devise a pricing plan that would pay for the costs of same-day delivery without alienating shoppers unwilling to pay too much extra for the added convenience.

Google is still trying to figure out how much to charge for its same-day delivery service. For the six-month test period in the San Francisco area, consumers won't have to pay a surcharge. Google instead will receive a commission from participating merchants.

The expansion into same-day delivery comes at the same time that Google is preparing to close some of its older online services so it can devote more attention and money to other projects.

The realignment has irked some Google users. The biggest complaints have centered on Google Reader, which allows people to automatically receive headlines and links from their favorite sites, and iGoogle, which allows Web surfers to design a page consisting of the Google search engine surrounded set up other online features, such as local weather reports and stock market quotes.

Google Reader is scheduled to close in July and iGoogle will shut down in November.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/google-launching-same-day-delivery-service-online-shoppers-1C9143458

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Children with sleep apnea have higher risk of behavioral, adaptive and learning problems

Mar. 29, 2013 ? A new study found that obstructive sleep apnea, a common form of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), is associated with increased rates of ADHD-like behavioral problems in children as well as other adaptive and learning problems.

"This study provides some helpful information for medical professionals consulting with parents about treatment options for children with SDB that, although it may remit, there are considerable behavioral risks associated with continued SDB," said Michelle Perfect, PhD, the study's lead author and assistant professor in the school psychology program in the department of disability and psychoeducational studies at the University of Arizona in Tucson. "School personnel should also consider the possibility that SDB contributes to difficulties with hyperactivity, learning and behavioral and emotional dysregulation in the classroom."

The five-year study, which appears in the April issue of the journal SLEEP, utilized data from a longitudinal cohort, the Tucson Children's Assessment of Sleep Apnea Study (TuCASA). The TuCASA study prospectively examined Hispanic and Caucasian children between 6 and 11 years of age to determine the prevalence and incidence of SDB and its effects on neurobehavioral functioning. The study involved 263 children who completed an overnight sleep study and a neurobehavioral battery of assessments that included parent and youth reported rating scales.

Results show that 23 children had incident sleep apnea that developed during the study period, and 21 children had persistent sleep apnea throughout the entire study. Another 41 children who initially had sleep apnea no longer had breathing problems during sleep at the five-year follow-up.

The odds of having behavioral problems were four to five times higher in children with incident sleep apnea and six times higher in children who had persistent sleep apnea. Compared to youth who never had SDB, children with sleep apnea were more likely to have parent-reported problems in the areas of hyperactivity, attention, disruptive behaviors, communication, social competency and self-care. Children with persistent sleep apnea also were seven times more likely to have parent-reported learning problems and three times more likely to have school grades of C or lower.

The authors report that this is the first sleep-related study to use a standardized questionnaire to assess adaptive functioning in typically developing youth with and without SDB.

"Even though SDB appears to decline into adolescence, taking a wait and see approach is risky and families and clinicians alike should identify potential treatments," said Perfect.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Michelle M. Perfect, Kristen Archbold, James L. Goodwin, Deborah Levine-Donnerstein, Stuart F. Quan. Risk of Behavioral and Adaptive Functioning Difficulties in Youth with Previous and Current Sleep Disordered Breathing. SLEEP, 2013; DOI: 10.5665/sleep.2536

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/ixobQhrv17k/130329161243.htm

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Pre-College Parental Chat May Reduce Freshman Drinking - Health ...

motherandchild Pre College Parental Chat May Reduce Freshman Drinking

By Mary Brophy Marcus
HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, March 29 (HealthDay News) ? Parents who want to help their teens better navigate the world of college drinking might consider a pre-college chat on the topic. New research suggests it will help douse their desire to imbibe when they hit campus.

?The research shows parents do influence a teen?s decisions about drinking, even at this age,? said study co-author Michael Cleveland, a research assistant professor at the Prevention Research Center at Pennsylvania State University.

The scientists recruited 1,900 soon-to-be college freshmen to participate in questionnaires about their drinking habits. The teens, who were planning to attend a large northeastern university, were asked about their high school drinking habits and were then categorized as either nondrinkers, weekend light drinkers, weekend heavy drinkers and heavy drinkers (which included drinking on weekdays and weekends).

Their parents were mailed a 22-page handbook that included general information about college student drinking, how to communicate effectively, advice on how to help teens be assertive and resist peer pressure, and detailed information on the physical effects of alcoholic beverages on the body.

Parents were asked to read the handbook and then talk with their teen about the contents at one of three randomly assigned times, either during the summer before college, during the fall semester of the first year of college, or during the summer before college and again during the fall semester freshman year.

The handbook was created by study author Robert Turrisi, a professor of biobehavioral health at Penn State. He and his colleagues hoped their research would help identify the best time to talk with a teen about college drinking, and whether chatting more than once is more effective than a one-time talk.

The findings, reported in a recent issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, show that teens who talked with their parents about anti-drinking strategies before they began their first year of college were more likely to fall into a non-drinking or light-drinking category, or to transition out of a heavy-drinking group if they were already heavy drinkers.

Talking with their child in the fall of freshman year was less effective or had no additional impact on drinking behaviors, Cleveland said.

He said some of the key points in the parent handbook include communicating to their kids that they will be faced with choices about drinking when they?re off at college and they need to be prepared to make smart choices.

?One section covers how alcohol works in the body ? what it?s doing, its physiological and psychological effects. There is also information on motives teens give for why they drink, and how to respond to peer pressure,? Cleveland said.

Reinforcing that drinking is an illegal behavior and can have serious fallout is discussed in the handbook, too. ?There?s a constellation of risk behaviors linked to underage and binge drinking: car accidents, suicides and sexual assault,? he added.

For example, car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens, and about one-third of those are alcohol related, according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. What?s more, each year about 12 percent of college students are assaulted by other students who have been drinking, according to the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Cleveland said a lot of parents have the idea that they help their teens by letting them drink at home, that it?s safe because at least they know where their child is drinking. ?But we know that when teens are asked about their parents permissibility, those students who had parents who were more permissive were more likely to be heavier drinkers later on,? he said.

An expert praised the new research.

?It?s a very good study,? said Dr. Joanne Sotelo, division director of psychiatry at Scott & White Healthcare in Round Rock, Texas. ?It gives some information we already knew about the type of intervention that?s needed, but it?s interesting to see the difference in timing.?

Talking with your teen about sensitive topics like drinking can be challenging and parental ?tone? is important, she pointed out. ?It?s such a tough age between high school and college. You?re still kind of figuring out who you are and what you want to be, but you still need your parents? support, you are not fully matured.?

She said, ideally, parents won?t wait until just before college, but will have been ?planting seeds,? having small conversations, all along.

Sotelo recommended keeping the talks open-ended, not just lecturing. ?If you come across as defensive, that?s how they?ll respond. Instead, you can say, ?I know you?re not supposed to drink, but have you already tried it with your friends??? Sotelo said then you can voice your expectations that you hope they will not get into problems with alcohol.

Football tailgates, fraternity parties ? she said there?s no doubt teens will be exposed to alcohol at college and ?it?s going to be 100 percent their decision to drink or not to drink.?

Some universities are beginning to become more aware of the need to work with parents on drinking issues by offering alcohol-free dorms and events, study author Cleveland said. But he said the best place to begin is at home. ?It?s challenging for parents to face these questions from an 18-, 19-, 20-year-old, but just having the conversation is a good thing,? he said.

The U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism supported this research.

More information

For more facts on college drinking, visit the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

HEALTHDAY Web XSmall Pre College Parental Chat May Reduce Freshman Drinking

Source: http://news.health.com/2013/03/29/pre-college-parental-chat-may-reduce-freshman-drinking/

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Pope washes feet of young detainees in ritual

ROME (AP) ? Pope Francis washed and kissed the feet of a dozen inmates, including two young women, at a juvenile detention center in a surprising departure from church rules that restrict the Holy Thursday ritual to men.

The Mass was held in the Casal del Marmo facility in Rome, where 46 young men and women currently are detained. Many of them are Gypsies or North African migrants, and the 12 selected for the foot-washing rite reportedly included Orthodox and Muslim detainees.

Because the inmates were mostly minors ? the facility houses inmates aged 14-to-21 ? the Vatican and Italian Justice Ministry limited media access inside. But Vatican Radio carried the Mass live, and in his homily Francis told the detainees that Jesus washed the feet of his disciples on the eve of his crucifixion in a gesture of love and service.

"This is a symbol, it is a sign ? washing your feet means I am at your service," Francis told the youngsters. "Help one another. This is what Jesus teaches us. This is what I do. And I do it with my heart. I do this with my heart because it is my duty, as a priest and bishop I must be at your service."

Later, the Vatican released a limited video of the ritual, showing Francis washing black feet, white feet, male feet, female feet and even a foot with tattoos. Kneeling on the stone floor as the 12 youngsters sat above him, the 76-year-old Francis poured water from a silver chalice over each foot, dried it with a simple cotton towel and then bent over to kiss each one.

Previous popes carried out the foot-washing ritual on Holy Thursday in Rome's grand St. John Lateran basilica. The 12 people chosen for the ritual were always priests to represent the 12 apostles whose feet Christ washed during the Last Supper before his crucifixion.

As archbishop of Buenos Aires, the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio would celebrate the ritual foot-washing in jails, hospitals or hospices ? part of his ministry to the poorest and most marginalized of society. He would often involve women: photographs from his days in Buenos Aires show him washing the feet of a woman holding her newborn child in her arms.

That Francis would include women in his inaugural Holy Thursday Mass as pope, however, was remarkable given current liturgical rules restrict the ritual to men.

Canon lawyer Edward Peters, who is an adviser to the Holy See's top court, noted in a blog that the Congregation for Divine Worship in 1988 sent a letter to bishops making clear that "The washing of the feet of chosen men ... represents the service and charity of Christ who came 'not to be served, but to serve.'"

Peters noted that bishops over the years have successfully petitioned Rome for an exemption to allow women to participate, but that the law on the issue is clear.

"By disregarding his own law in this matter, Francis violates, of course, no divine directive," Peters wrote Thursday. "What he does do, I fear, is set a questionable example," particularly as it regards adherence to liturgical rules.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said he didn't want to enter into a canonical dispute over the matter. He said in a "grand solemn celebration" of the rite, it would make sense to only involve men because during the Last Supper, Christ washed the feet of the 12 apostles, all of whom were male.

"Here, the rite was for a small, unique community made up also of women," Lombardi said in an email to The Associated Press. "It was a specific situation in which excluding the girls would have been inopportune in light of the simple aim of communicating a message of love to all in a group that certainly didn't include refined experts in liturgical rules."

Others on the more liberal side of the liturgical spectrum welcomed the novel example Francis set.

"The pope's washing the feet of women is hugely significant because including women in this part of the Holy Thursday Mass has been frowned on ? and even banned ? in some dioceses," said the Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest and author of "The Jesuit Guide."

"It shows the all-embracing love of Christ, who ministered to all he met: man or woman, slave or free, Jew or Gentile," he said.

After the Mass, Francis greeted each of the inmates and gave each one an Easter egg. In exchange, he was given a wooden cross and kneeler that the inmates made in their workshop.

"Don't lose hope," Francis said. "Understand? With hope you can always go on."

One of the inmates then asked him why he had come to visit them. Francis said it was to "help me to be humble, as a bishop should be." He said he wanted to come "from my heart. Things from the heart don't have an explanation."

Italian Justice Minister Paola Severino, who has made easing Italy's woefully overcrowded prisons a priority, also attended the Mass.

___

Follow Nicole Winfield at www.twitter.com/nwinfield

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pope-washes-feet-young-detainees-ritual-173757747.html

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Friday, March 29, 2013

Marital conflict causes stress in children, may affect cognitive development

Mar. 28, 2013 ? Marital conflict is a significant source of environmental stress for children, and witnessing such conflict may harm children's stress response systems which, in turn, may affect their mental and intellectual development.

These conclusions come from a new study by researchers at Auburn University and the Catholic University of America. The study appears in the journal Child Development.

Researchers looked at 251 children from a variety of backgrounds who lived in two-parent homes. The children reported on their exposure to marital conflict when they were 8, providing information on the frequency, intensity, and lack of resolution of conflicts between their parents. The study gauged how children's stress response system functioned by measuring respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an index of activity in the parasympathetic branch of the body's stress response system. RSA has been linked to the ability to regulate attention and emotion. Children's ability to rapidly solve problems and quickly see patterns in new information also was measured at ages 8, 9, and 10.

Children who witnessed more marital conflict at age 8 showed less adaptive RSA reactivity at 9, but this was true only for children who had lower resting RSA. In addition, children with lower baseline RSA whose stress response systems were also less adaptive developed mental and intellectual ability more slowly.

"The findings provide further evidence that stress affects the development of the body's stress response systems that help regulate attention, and that how these systems work is tied to the development of cognitive ability," explains J. Benjamin Hinnant, assistant professor of psychology at the Catholic University of America and one of the researchers.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Society for Research in Child Development, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. J. Benjamin Hinnant, Mona El-Sheikh, Margaret Keiley, Joseph A. Buckhalt. Marital Conflict, Allostatic Load, and the Development of Children's Fluid Cognitive Performance. Child Development, 2013; DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12103

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/mind_brain/mental_health/~3/a7w-l5GLmP4/130328080225.htm

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Steps which help to create Internet Marketing Plan | DreamGrow ...

ID 10043297 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanIf you have a business then it is impossible to stay out of internet marketing. An amalgamation of internet marketing plan with the business plan and its vision can make wonders in promoting and making the business a success. But to make the business grow and prosper you need to have an effective and proper internet marketing plan. This plan should also be good enough and focused to drive internet traffic to your website. To achieve that, the following tips or steps might help to create a good and effective internet marketing plan.

1.?The Vision

Before starting the most important step set the goal or vision. This will act as the starting point and also set goals for your internet marketing strategy. The clearly written vision is not only for you but it should be clearly and concisely communicated to the whole team that will be working for it. With time there can be changes in the goal or vision and necessary changes can be undertaken. This also needs to be effectively communicated with the team for them to understand clearly also. Every activity that is proposed or comes to the mind should be weighted for and against before implementation.

The goal or vision also should include a budget for the marketing activities, as it should not fizzle out after some time.

2.?Target market

ID 10040272 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanWithout a complete understanding of the target market any marketing plan is like building castles in thin air. Understanding the consumers, their behavior and the target audience or target market will help you device plans to drive traffic to your site, and thereby greater conversion rate. This knowledge will also help in developing proper goals and plans to achieve them.

3.?The Competitors

Understanding the market competition and knowing them provides additional knowledge that helps sustaining competition in the market. Reports on the competitor?s business, marketing plans and relevant information will give you an extra edge over them. This will also ensure you to avoid the loopholes or problems they have.

4.?The Solutions

ID 100143752 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanThere may be numerous businesses in the same niche, and providing customers and consumers with the same service or products. There is a huge possibility that they all provide them at almost the same price. So to stand out in the rest, the best way is to provide solutions to their problems also. Make sure that you provide solutions to their problems and have a dedicated page to address their problems. Establish yourself as an expert in that field. Also make sure that instead of bragging about your product or company, the content speaks what the company will do for its clients and how the clients will benefit from their product or service. Most consumers tend to look for information regarding their benefit.

5.?The Funnel

Using a funnel or an inverted pyramid to filter clients is a proven and an excellent strategy. The wide top of the pyramid or cone opens with low cost or freebie for the clients and the narrower segments slowly makes way for the costlier offers or products. Depending on the response, the strategies can be further developed, modified and planned.

6.?The Brand

ID 100112639 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanThe brand name for your trade or service is very important. This will also play an important role in using the domain for your website. Another important need is a perfect tagline that will be your identity in a line. Both these combined together makes your identity in the market and tells about your service and product to the customers.

7.?The Website

The website needs to be visually appealing to customers and consumers. It should have all the things to attract the customer?s attention, and it should also be graphic enough for the customer to understand what you have to offer. Moreover the page should be light in weight so that it does not take infinite time to load. Ensure that the pages also open fast on mobile or handheld devices.

Remember that content still holds the key, and make sure to describe the offers, services and products properly. Keep in mind that the content is more into informing clients about the offers and benefits and not tall tales about yourself.

Add pages for customer feedback and helpline pages for prompt customer interaction. Also ask for reviews and comments from customers or visitors. Ask them to subscribe for free services like upcoming offers, newsletters and so on.

8.?Business Managing Mechanism for online trades

ID 10065739 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanEnsure that the site is safe and have required certificates on display to gain customer confidence. Also use best possible technology for safer internet buying and selling from your website. This is very important and also use best possible softwares for generating receipts and responses for buyers.

9.?Other marketing options & cost and Resources

Check out other marketing plans that can be implemented. Using pay-per-click or affiliate plans. Using social media and social bookmarking to plan an efficient internet marketing needs to be considered. Proper and good SEO needs to come into play as well. Look for every possible opportunity and option that might actually help you market on the internet effectively.

Once all these are done identifying the cost is very important. The in-house human capital and monetary strength needs to be ascertained. Calculate and budget for every step needs to be efficiently distributed. Outsourcing some work at cheaper options can be a good idea.

10.?To-Do list

Finalize the to-do list with all the nitty gritty details. It is best to use software to keep all the detailed data, and update it regularly. Divide the work to teams and take regular updates from each team to keep track of progress.

Final Word

ID 100108221 Steps which help to create Internet Marketing PlanThe most important thing for success in internet marketing strategy involves the continuous monitoring of the data available and redesigning or strengthening areas that are working fine or not working. Measuring marketing plans and adjusting accordingly is also one of the better ways. Stay clear of any black hat SEO techniques of scam that might guarantee you instant results. Make your team co-operative and let them have a clean understanding of the goals and plans. Also they should be clear about their responsibilities.

But the best step is to put you in the consumer?s shoes and imagining what benefits and deals would attract them and design steps and plans accordingly.

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About The Author: Kelly is a writer/blogger. She loves writing, travelling and reading books. She contributes in KEL Attorneys. Check here for more on KEL Attorneys

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Posted on: March 28, 2013

Source: http://www.dreamgrow.com/steps-which-help-to-create-internet-marketing-plan/

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Abs, Smiles & More: Ryan Gosling's Hottest Moments

In honor of his latest film The Place Beyond the Pines (in theaters March 29), we're looking at the Baby Goose's most swoon-worthy pics!

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/ryan-gosling-hot-photos/1-b-368399?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Aryan-gosling-hot-photos-368399

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Happy 27th Birthday, Lady Gaga!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/03/happy-27th-birthday-lady-gaga/

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Gartner slightly cuts 2013 IT spending outlook

(Reuters) - Industry research firm Gartner trimmed its tech spending outlook for 2013 because concerns about the U.S. budget and Cyprus' debt burden are expected to temporarily weigh on financial plans.

It now expects spending on information technology ranging from smartphones to data storage to grow 4.1 percent or $3.8 trillion this year instead of the previously forecast 4.2 percent, Gartner said on Thursday.

By comparison in 2012, IT spending rose 2.1 percent.

The research firm said it had changed its forecast because federal budget cuts in the United States and Cyprus' debt issues had "netted out any benefit" from positive developments such as the U.S. avoiding the so-called fiscal cliff of tax hikes and deep spending reductions at the end of last year.

However, Gartner said, the concerns are expected to be short-lived.

"The market is already in a pessimistic state," said Gartner analyst John Lovelock. "This hasn't changed the dial much but there will likely be a pause in some spending."

That could mean delaying the purchase of new mobile devices for example but it would not impact strategic initiatives such multi-year contracts or basic functions such as software and hardware maintenance.

In enterprise software Gartner expects spending to reach $297 billion, up 6.4 percent this year compared with 3.5 percent growth in 2012.

"There's a big jump in certain base functionalities around data," Lovelock said.

IT services, which can include outsourcing, maintenance or consulting, will see growth of 4.5 percent to $918 million versus 1.5 percent in 2012.

Worldwide devices spending -- including PCs, tablets, mobile phones and printers -- is forecast to reach $718 billion in 2013, up 7.9 percent from 2012

"Despite flat spending on PCs and a modest decline in spending on printers, a short-term boost to spending on premium mobile phones has driven an upward revision in the devices sector growth for 2013 from Gartner's previous forecast of 6.3 percent," the firm said.

(Reporting By Nicola Leske; editing by Andrew Hay)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gartner-slightly-cuts-2013-spending-outlook-180607096.html

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'G.I. Joe: Retaliation' Heroes Get 'Grittier,' Stars Reveal

Director Jon M. Chu, Dwayne Johnson, Adrianne Palicki and D.J. Cotrona tell MTV News about returning series to its roots.
By By Brett White


Dwayne Johnson in "G.I. Joe: Retaliation"
Photo: Paramount

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1704471/gi-joe-retaliation-heroes.jhtml

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Thursday, March 28, 2013

ZigBee IP spec goes public, offers open IPv6 mesh networking

ZigBee IP spec goes public, offers open IPv6 mesh networking

While ZigBee hasn't become as ubiquitous in wireless as the likes of Bluetooth or WiFi, it has carved out niches in home automation and low-power gear. The format is about to expand its world a little further now that a more network-savvy spec, ZigBee IP, is officially available for everyone. The upgrade adds IPv6 and tougher security to the open mesh networking formula, letting it more easily join an internet of things where there's potentially billions of connected devices. The ZigBee Alliance isn't naming customers at this stage, although it's quick to note that ZigBee IP was built for smart grid use: don't be surprised if you first see it behind the scenes, keeping energy use in check.

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Source: ZigBee Alliance

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

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Worker denies drinking old whiskey at Pa. mansion

SCOTTDALE, Pa. (AP) ? A former mansion caretaker denied that he drank four dozen bottles of well-aged whiskey worth $100,000, claiming it would have been unsafe to drink and saying the booze had "evaporated" instead.

"Yuck! That stuff had floaters in it and all kind of stuff inside the bottles," John Saunders, 63, of Irwin, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (http://bit.ly/16jQrhx) outside a district judge's courtroom on Wednesday. "I don't think it would even be safe to drink."

Saunders' comments came after his preliminary hearing on theft and receiving stolen property charges was postponed until May 15 so he could apply for a public defender.

Patricia Hill found the Old Farm Pure Rye Whiskey hidden in the walls and stairwells of her century-old Georgian mansion, which was built by coal and coke industrialist J.P. Brennan. She converted the mansion into a bed and breakfast and hired Saunders as a live-in caretaker, only to discover the bottles had been emptied and replaced back into slots in their original wooden cases.

Scottdale police charged Saunders with stealing the whiskey ? by drinking it ? after his DNA was found on the lips of some empty bottles, Chief Barry Pritts said.

Saunders downplayed that evidence and denied drinking the booze which, police said, Saunders claimed must have "evaporated" over time.

"I moved those cases three times for Hill. ... I can't believe she would accuse me of doing that. I have nothing to hide," Saunders said, noting he's been friends with Hill and her family for 40 years.

Hill told police she stored the 52 bottles of whiskey in the original cases, which contained 12 bottles each. After Saunders moved out, Hill said she discovered last March that the bottles in four cases were empty.

Police had Bonhams, a New York City auction house, appraise four remaining bottles and concluded the value of all 52 bottles ? had 48 of them not been emptied ? would have been $102,400. Bonhams' whiskey specialist said the liquor would have remained valuable as long as the corks remained sealed and the whiskey untouched.

Saunders disputed that appraisal saying he believed Hill was "looking for money. I'd say that whiskey's real value is about $10 a bottle and she hired someone to inflate the price."

___

Information from: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, http://pghtrib.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/worker-denies-drinking-old-whiskey-pa-mansion-132227763.html

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Officials: Arms shipments rise to Syrian rebels

FILE - In this Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012 file photo, Syrian rebel fighter Tawfiq Hassan, 23, a former butcher, poses for a picture, after returning from fighting against Syrian army forces in Aleppo, at a rebel headquarters in Marea on the outskirts of Aleppo city, Syria. America's Arab allies have dramatically stepped up weapon supplies to Syrian rebels in preparation for a push on the capital Damascus, the main stronghold of President Bashar Assad, officials and Western military experts say, with one official saying airlifts to neighboring Jordan and Turkey have doubled the past month. The U.S. and other Western governments are involved to channel the flow toward more secular fighters, they say. The influx appears to be boosting a rebel drive to seize supply routes from the border with Jordan to Damascus. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

FILE - In this Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012 file photo, Syrian rebel fighter Tawfiq Hassan, 23, a former butcher, poses for a picture, after returning from fighting against Syrian army forces in Aleppo, at a rebel headquarters in Marea on the outskirts of Aleppo city, Syria. America's Arab allies have dramatically stepped up weapon supplies to Syrian rebels in preparation for a push on the capital Damascus, the main stronghold of President Bashar Assad, officials and Western military experts say, with one official saying airlifts to neighboring Jordan and Turkey have doubled the past month. The U.S. and other Western governments are involved to channel the flow toward more secular fighters, they say. The influx appears to be boosting a rebel drive to seize supply routes from the border with Jordan to Damascus. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

FILE - In this Monday, Dec. 17, 2012 file photo, Syrian rebels listen to their trainer on how to use a rocket propelled grenade in Maaret Ikhwan, near Idlib, Syria. America's Arab allies have dramatically stepped up weapon supplies to Syrian rebels in preparation for a push on the capital Damascus, the main stronghold of President Bashar Assad, officials and Western military experts say, with one official saying airlifts to neighboring Jordan and Turkey have doubled the past month. The U.S. and other Western governments are involved to channel the flow toward more secular fighters, they say. The influx appears to be boosting a rebel drive to seize supply routes from the border with Jordan to Damascus. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

FILE - In this Tuesday Feb. 26, 2013 file photo, Free Syrian Army fighters take their positions as they observe the Syrian army forces base of Wadi al-Deif, at the front line of Maaret al-Numan town, in Idlib province, Syria. America's Arab allies have dramatically stepped up weapon supplies to Syrian rebels in preparation for a push on the capital Damascus, the main stronghold of President Bashar Assad, officials and Western military experts say, with one official saying airlifts to neighboring Jordan and Turkey have doubled the past month. The U.S. and other Western governments are involved to channel the flow toward more secular fighters, they say. The influx appears to be boosting a rebel drive to seize supply routes from the border with Jordan to Damascus. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

FILE - In this Friday, Dec. 14, 2012 file photo, a Syrian rebel checks an anti-aircraft weapon, in Maaret Misreen, near Idlib, Syria. America's Arab allies have dramatically stepped up weapon supplies to Syrian rebels in preparation for a push on the capital Damascus, the main stronghold of President Bashar Assad, officials and Western military experts say, with one official saying airlifts to neighboring Jordan and Turkey have doubled the past month. The U.S. and other Western governments are involved to channel the flow toward more secular fighters, they say. The influx appears to be boosting a rebel drive to seize supply routes from the border with Jordan to Damascus. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

(AP) ? Mideast powers opposed to President Bashar Assad have dramatically stepped up weapons supplies to Syrian rebels in coordination with the U.S. in preparation for a push on the capital of Damascus, officials and Western military experts said Wednesday.

A carefully prepared covert operation is arming rebels, involving Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, with the United States and other Western governments consulting, and all parties hold veto power over where the shipments are directed, according to a senior Arab official whose government is participating. His account was corroborated by a diplomat and two military experts.

The Arab official said the number of arms airlifts into Jordan and Turkey has doubled in the past four weeks. He did not provide exact figures on the flights or the size of the cargo. Jordan opened up as a new route for the weapons late last year, amid U.S. worries that arms from Turkey were going to Islamic militants, all four told The Associated Press in separate interviews. Jordan denies helping funnel weapons to the rebels.

The two military experts, who closely follow the traffic, said the weapons include more powerful, Croatian-made anti-tank guns and rockets than the rebels have had before.

The Arab official said there was a "master plan" for the rebels to seize Damascus. He and the diplomat spoke to the AP on condition that their identities and their nationalities not be disclosed because the operation was covert.

"The idea is that the rebels now have the necessary means to advance from different fronts ? north from Turkey and south from Jordan ? to close in on Damascus to unseat Assad," the Arab official said. He declined to provide details, but said the plan is being prepared in stages and will take "days or weeks" for results.

Rebels have captured suburbs around Damascus but have been largely unable to break into the heavily guarded capital. Instead, they have hit central neighborhoods of the city with increasingly heavy mortar volleys from their positions to the northeast and south.

But rebels in the south are fighting to secure supply lines from the border with Jordan to the capital, and the new influx of weapons from Jordan has fueled the drive, a rebel commander in a southwestern suburb of the capital said. The consensus among the multiple rebel groups was that Damascus is the next objective, he added.

"There is an attempt to secure towns and villages along the international line linking Amman and Damascus. Significant progress is being made. The new weapons come in that context," said the commander, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of Syrian government reprisal. He said his own fighters on the capital's outskirts had not received any arms from the influx but that he had heard about the new weapons from comrades in the south.

Syria's rebels, who are divided into numerous independent brigades, have long complained that the international community is not providing them with the weaponry needed to oust Assad, drawing out a civil war that in the past two years has killed more than 70,000 people and displaced 3.5 million Syrians, nearly a third of them fleeing into neighboring countries.

But the United States in particular has been wary of arming the rebellion, fearing weapons will go to Islamic extremists who have taken a prominent role in the uprising. Washington says it is only providing non-lethal aid to the rebels. The U.S. involvement in the arms channels opened up by its regional allies is aimed at ensuring the weapons are not going to militants.

The Arab official, the diplomat and the military experts said the material was destined for "secular" fighters not necessarily linked to the Free Syrian Army, the nominal umbrella group for the rebels. Jordan and other Arabs have been critical of the FSA, which they accuse of having failed as an effective or credible force because its elements lack the fighting skills and military prowess.

The four described a system in which Saudi Arabia and Qatar provide the funding for the weapons, while Jordan and Turkey provide the land channels for the shipments to reach the rebels, while all coordinate with the U.S. and other Western governments on the shipments' destinations. All must agree for a shipment to go through. The Arab official said some of the arms are being purchased from Croatia, or from U.S. drawdowns in unspecified European countries. He said other sources were black market arms dealers across Europe and the Mideast.

Jordanian Information Minister Sameeh Maayatah insisted the kingdom was not helping funnel weapons. "Jordan is neither assisting the Assad regime, nor its opponents," he told the AP. Instead, he argued, Jordan wants a "quick political solution" to the Syrian crisis.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry would not confirm weapons transfer through Turkey, saying, "We have no official information to confirm such reports or claims."

Initially, Turkey was the main route for arms smuggled to the rebels when the flow began in early 2012, but Washington was unhappy that some weapons ended up in the hands of militants, the four said in separate interviews with the AP.

Subsequently, Jordan became an additional route, with the first airlift landing there Dec. 13, they said. Jordan insisted that its role remain clandestine so that it would not be at risk of reprisal by Assad's forces or rockets, they said. Jordan borders Syria to the south, and its frontier is within a two-hour drive of Damascus.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on the sidelines of a Syrian opposition meeting in Italy last month that the weapons are ending up in the hands of secular groups. "I will tell you this: There is a very clear ability now in the Syrian opposition to make certain that what goes to the moderate, legitimate opposition is in fact getting to them, and the indication is that they are increasing their pressure as a result of that," he said, without elaborating.

Wrapping up a summit in Qatar on Tuesday, Arab states underlined their right to arm the Syrian rebels, noting the growing frustration with Assad's regime and with what is believed to be a supply of weapons flowing to his regime from his main ally, Iran. Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are headed by Sunni Muslim governments seeking the fall of Assad's regime, which is dominated by Syria's Alawite minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam. The Arab powers in particular are hoping Assad's departure would break the influence in the region of predominantly Shiite Iran and its Hezbollah allies in Lebanon.

In an interview with the AP last week, Jordan's King Abdullah II said Assad's days were numbered, but warned of the risk that Syria might use chemical weapons against its neighbors, including Jordan. Traditionally, Damascus has been suspicious of its smaller southern neighbor, whom it accuses of being a U.S. puppet and a spy for Israel since the 1994 Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty. Despite the tensions, their common border has remained relatively quiet and open.

The opening of the weapons pipeline through Jordan "provides a fresh approach" to Syrian rebels, said Shashank Joshi, a military expert who has been monitoring the arms flow for two years for Britain's Royal United Services Institute think tank.

"This way opens a new front in southern Syria. It breaks free from connections with Saudi and Lebanese middlemen (in Turkey), while ensuring the weapons get to those rebels with secular, or nationalist ties, rather than the jihadists," he said.

Sweden-based arms trafficking expert Hugh Griffiths, who has been monitoring the arms flow and collecting independent data, said some 3,500 tons of military equipment have been shipped to the rebels since the traffic began in early 2012. He said there were at least 160 airlifts of weapons deliveries from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and later Jordan, with the most recent being a shipment of unspecified material from Qatar to Turkey on Sunday.

"Nothing compares in terms of the intensity of these flights over months-long periods at a time," said Griffiths, of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Two prominent independent researchers monitoring weapons traffic ? Eliot Higgins in Britain and Nic Jenzen-Jones in Australia ? said Croatian arms began appearing only recently in Syria. They include M60 recoilless guns, M79 Osa rocket launchers, and RBG-6 grenade launchers, which all are powerful anti-tank weapons.

Griffiths said the Croatian arms are a "major game changer." He said they are "portable, but pack a much bigger explosive punch."

The question will be whether the arms influx will tip the balance if rebels do launch an offensive for Damascus ? and whether the attempt to boost more moderate rebels over Islamists will be effective.

Syrian opposition activists estimate there are 15-20 different brigades fighting in and around Damascus now, each with up to 150 fighters. Many of them have Islamic tendencies and bear black-and-white Islamic flags or al-Qaida-style flags on their Facebook pages. There is also a presence of Jabhat al-Nusra, one of the strongest Islamic militant groups fighting alongside the rebels. In the Damascus area, the al-Nusra fighters are active mostly in the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp, but the presence is not as strong as it is in the north and east.

Capt. Islam Alloush, a spokesman for Liwaa al-Islam, a prominent rebel brigade with an Islamist ideology that is operating outside Damascus, denied any arms were being smuggled into southern Syria. "If there are any weapons being brought in, it would be from the north," he said.

Still, he said rebels were gearing up for the battle for Damascus. "We have been preparing for it for a long time. We have our own strategy," he said. "God willing, the battle for Damascus will begin soon."

___

Associated Press writers Zeina Karam and Bassem Mroue contributed reporting from Beirut.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-03-27-Syria-Arming%20Rebels/id-3c341d3a9b7e407286e2e69ee8c74e62

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

In blow to Assad, opposition takes Syria's Arab summit seat

By Sami Aboudi and Yara Bayoumy

DOHA (Reuters) - To applause from Arab heads of state, a foe of Bashar al-Assad took Syria's vacant seat at an Arab summit on Tuesday, deepening the Syrian president's diplomatic isolation and diverting attention from opposition rifts.

Speaking at an annual gathering of Arab leaders in the Gulf state of Qatar, Moaz Alkhatib said he had asked U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for American forces to help defend rebel-controlled northern parts of Syria with Patriot surface-to-air missiles now based in Turkey. NATO swiftly rebuffed the idea.

The insurgents complain that they have few weapons to counter Assad's helicopter gunships and warplanes.

"It was a historic meeting. You could feel the grandiose nature of the meeting," said opposition spokesman Yaser Tabbara.

"It's a first step towards acquiring full legal legitimacy."

Alkhatib said the United States, which has given non-military aid to Syrian rebels, should play a bigger role in helping end the two-year-old conflict in Syria, blaming Assad's government for what he called its refusal to solve the crisis.

"I have asked Mr. Kerry to extend the umbrella of the Patriot missiles to cover the Syrian north and he promised to study the subject," he said, referring to NATO Patriot missile batteries sent to Turkey last year to protect Turkish airspace.

"We are still waiting for a decision from NATO to protect people's lives, not to fight but to protect lives," he added, addressing a body that barred Assad's government in late 2011.

Responding to Alkhatib's remarks, an official of the Western military alliance at its headquarters in Brussels said: "NATO has no intention to intervene militarily in Syria."

Turkey said it would be up to the rest of NATO to decide if members wanted to expand the remit of the Patriot batteries.

Michael Stephens, a researcher based in Qatar for Britain's Royal United Services Institute, said acceding to Alkhatib's request would effectively put NATO at war with Damascus.

DEFENSIVE DEPLOYMENT

NATO's current deployment of three Patriot missile batteries in southern Turkey is intended to be purely defensive, shielding Turkey from possible attack from Syria. The Patriots are designed to shoot down hostile missiles in mid-air.

Alkhatib, a Sunni Muslim cleric, took Syria's seat at the summit for the first time despite announcing on Sunday that he would step down as leader of the Syrian National Coalition.

Behind him sat Ghassan Hitto, the prime minister of a provisional opposition government that plans to run rebel-held area, and fellow senior opposition official George Sabra.

Alkhatib made a blunt call on other Arab leaders to "fear God in dealing with your people" and free political prisoners - a departure from anodyne tradition at the League.

But he also criticized what he called Western failure to bring an end to the conflict, and said an influx of foreign Islamist fighters should not be used by the West as a pretext to deny the Syrian people meaningful help.

"I don't know if the real issue has to do with whether he's a foreigner or he has a beard," he remarked, referring to trademark beards worn by Islamist fighters.

Alkhatib denounced the presence in Syria of Iranians and Russians he said were backing the government.

OPPOSITION, REPRESSION

In his opening speech as host, Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani urged the U.N. Security Council to stop the "oppression and repression of the people" in Syria, halt the bloodshed and "present those responsible for these crimes against their people to international justice".

The United Nations says about 70,000 people have been killed in a conflict that began with peaceful anti-Assad protests and turned into an increasingly sectarian armed insurrection.

The war in Syria has divided world powers, paralyzing action at the Security Council. The Arab world is also split, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar the most fervent foes of Assad, and Iraq, Algeria and Lebanon the most resistant to calls for his removal.

The conflict echoes sectarian strains between Sunni Muslims, notably in the Gulf, and Shi'ites, mainly in Iraq, Lebanon and non-Arab Iran, whose faith is close to Assad's Alawite minority.

Syrian rebels again fired mortar rounds into central Damascus on Tuesday. State television said several people had been wounded by "terrorist" mortar bombs that landed in the Syrian Arab News Agency SANA compound in the Baramkeh district.

State television said a suicide car bomber killed and wounded several people in northeastern Damascus, although opposition activists said the blast could have been a mortar.

Syrian state TV did not cover the Arab League meeting in Qatar, airing a program on makeup for women instead.

A group of pro-Assad hackers signing themselves the Syrian Electronic Army claimed an attack on an Arab League website that directed readers to a picture of Assad and derided the League's Egyptian secretary-general for his "loyalty to the sheikhs".

INTERNAL DISARRAY

Alkhatib's decision to quit, which he blamed on the world's failure to back the armed revolt against Assad also appeared to be motivated by internal disputes in the alliance. It undermined the alliance's claim to provide a coherent alternative to Assad.

Liberals saw it as a protest against what they view as the rising influence of hardline Islamists in the Qatari-backed umbrella group set up in Doha in November to replace the ineffectual Syrian National Council.

Syria's Muslim Brotherhood, criticized for its grip on the Syrian National Council, appears to be wield as much sway on its successor coalition, which has won wide international backing, but has failed to shake an image as consisting mostly of foreign-backed exiles immersed in political in-fighting.

Jane Kinninmont, of Britain's Chatham House think-tank, said Qatar and the other Gulf states had been frustrated that the United States in particular and also European powers had not done more to help the Syrian opposition.

"The Gulf countries contrast this to the Iraq war which many of them were quite dubious about, and they see a U.S. that's far less interventionist today, even though there's a much greater case for an immediate humanitarian need."

(Additional reporting by Mirna Sleiman and William Maclean, Omar Fahmy in Cairo, Oliver Holmes and Erika Solomon in Beirut, Gulsen Solker in Ankara and Adrian Croft in Brussels; Writing by Alistair Lyon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syria-opposition-expected-syria-seat-arab-summit-080255252.html

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