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Bethenny Frankel, the founder and CEO of the Skinnygirl franchise, shares her top secrets for success in a competitive market.
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SHANGHAI (AP) John Isner smashed 20 aces to defeat France's Adrian Mannarino 6-1, 6-2 in 45 minutes in his opening match at the Shanghai Masters on Monday. The 13th-seeded American lost only six points on his first serve in the match and saved the only break point he faced in the second set. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the 16th seed from France, also reached the second round, rallying to defeat Spain's Tommy Robredo 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-2. In other matches, Australia's Nick Kyrgios beat Andreas Haider-Maurer 6-3, 6-2, Croatia's Ivo Karlovic had 18 aces in a 6-4, 7-6 (6) win over Jeremy Chardy, and Feliciano Lopez topped qualifier Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4, 7-6 (3).
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On September, 11, 2012, a partially armed group of men stormed a US diplomatic outpost in the Libyan city of Benghazi. At the time, it was not clear who they were or why they'd attacked. But by the time it was over, four Americans, including US Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens, were killed. The attack ended by the early hours of September 12. But it has echoed in Washington ever since. It's prompted nine separate investigations and a series of political controversies so severe they ended Susan Rice's bid to become secretary of state, indirectly led to Hillary Clinton's private email scandal and, in a strange turn, damaged House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican who supported the investigations. What follows is a clear, simple guide to Benghazi from the attack itself to the scandals that followed to the ways it's still shaping American politics today. 1) What is the Benghazi controversy? The controversy has centered on Republican accusations that the Obama administration did not take heed of intelligence warnings before the attack, that during the attack it refused to call in available military support, and that after the attack it deliberately covered up what had happened. Repeated independent investigations have disproven all of these allegations. But Republicans have continued pushing them, insisting that these failures go all the way to the top, personally involving President Obama and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. But the administration did make two mistakes. First, the State Department failed to provide sufficient security at Benghazi, which an internal review blamed on "systemic failures" at the department's "senior levels." Second, Obama administration officials initially mischaracterized how the attack began (more on this below), but investigations found they were honestly relaying the CIA's assessments, not deliberately lying, as Republicans charged. The investigations have had real political ramifications. The House Select Committee on Benghazi, created by Speaker of the House John Boehner in 2014, found the first documented evidence that Hillary Clinton used unauthorized private email servers for State Department business, which became a major scandal. One of the Select Committee's biggest casualties has been a Republican who backed it: Kevin McCarthy. He was running to be the new speaker of the House when, on September 29, he seemed to admit something Republicans had long denied: that the taxpayer-funded investigation was really a partisan exercise to hurt Hillary Clinton's political career. "Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable, right? But we put together a Benghazi special committee, a select committee, what are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping," McCarthy said on Fox News. About a week later, amid controversy over his comments, McCarthy dropped out of the race to be speaker. 2) What actually happened in Benghazi on September 11, 2012? Before September 11, 2012: In 2011, Libya's government is toppled by a popular uprising and Western intervention. The civil war has ended by September 2012, but with the government gone, much of the country was lawless, dominated by militias. Day of September 11, 2012 : US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens visits Benghazi. Elsewhere, demonstrators gather outside US diplomatic buildings in a number of Muslim-majority countries, even climbing the wall surrounding the US Embassy in Cairo , to protest The Innocence of Muslims , an amateur anti-Islam film, clips of which had been recently translated into Arabic by Egyptian media. Between 8:30 and 9 pm, Benghazi time : Members of local Islamist militias in Benghazi decide, somewhat spontaneously, to seize on the day's protests and attack the US diplomatic outpost there, assembling around its gates. 9:42 pm : The attackers breach the mission's gates, easily overpowering the small American and Libyan security detachments. After gaining access to the building, they set fire to it. 10 pm : American security attempts to evacuate Ambassador Stevens and State Department Information Management Officer Sean Smith, but loses them both in the smoke. A diplomatic security agent tries again to locate them, but is forced to retreat to the roof of the building after suffering severe smoke inhalation. 10:10 pm : A CIA support team arrives at the mission to defend the diplomatic staff and assist with the evacuation. 11:15 pm : After a final search for Stevens fails to find him, the combined American forces leave for the CIA Annex (about a mile away) under heavy fire. They arrive 15 minutes later. 11:56 pm : Militants follow them and attack the CIA annex with rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. Around 1 am: Locals find Stevens and rush him to a nearby hospital, where soon after he dies of smoke inhalation. Smith also dies of the same cause. 5:15 am, September 12 : The annex is hit by mortar fire for 11 minutes. Diplomatic security agents Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty are killed attempting to return fire, and another unnamed agent is seriously wounded. The severity of the mortar attack convinces the chief of base that they need to abandon Benghazi altogether. 6 am : Local Libyan forces finally arrive and protect the Americans during their drive to the airport and exit from the city. 3) Who were the attackers, and why did they do it? The attackers were an informal group of Islamist fighters from an assortment of local Libyan militias; a number came from an extremist group called Ansar al-Sharia, and a few had ties to al-Qaeda . But this was no carefully preplanned attack. It was much more spontaneous and in some ways a product of Libya's chaos. In March 2011, Libya was divided by civil war. Rebels held the east, with a de facto capital in Benghazi, and Muammar Qaddafi's forces held the west. When Qaddafi sent tanks to retake Benghazi, the US and its NATO allies intervened with air and missile strikes against him. As the war raged on, NATO provided air support, but the ground war was fought by Libyan rebels, many organized into volunteer militias. When Qaddafi fell, the government collapsed along with him, and what remained of the military was too weak to retake control of the country. Much of Libya fell into chaos, with militias dominating its cities and neighborhoods. Some of those militias were Islamist extremists. By the time Stevens arrived in Benghazi, the city was lousy with militia fighters. According to then-acting CIA Director Michael Morell , some militants in the city heard about how a mob had successfully scaled the walls of the Cairo Embassy earlier on September 11 and, spur of the moment, "decided to make some trouble of their own." "The nature of the attacks suggested they did not involve significant pre-planning," Morell wrote to Sen. Dianne Feinstein in 2013, summing up the consensus among US intel agencies. Instead, it was a haphazard alliance of convenience between individual militiamen a kind of attack made possible by the total chaos that prevailed in Benghazi after Qaddafi was toppled. 4) Could the Obama administration have stopped the attack? The attack was too spontaneous, for the reasons described above, for US intelligence to see this specific incident coming. But what about once it had begun? One of the biggest myths about Benghazi is that the US had military assets in range but refused to deploy them. "Military personnel were ready, willing, and able, and within proximity, but the Pentagon told them they had no authority and to stand down," Rep. Jason Chaffetz said in 2013. This is flatly false. The bipartisan Senate Intelligence report , perhaps the most comprehensive review of the attack, found that "there were no US military resources in position to intervene in short order in Benghazi to help defend the Temporary Mission Facility and its Annex." Still, it was no secret that Benghazi was dangerous. In retrospect, it's clear that the US mission there was too lightly guarded and fortified, and Stevens himself had requested more security. How did this happen? The problem, according to an internal State Department review, was essentially bureaucratic. Two State Department bureaus, Diplomatic Security and Near Eastern Affairs, had nominal authority but no one person or bureau had point on Benghazi security. Both Diplomatic Security and Near Eastern Affairs made piecemeal improvements to security, but neither did enough. The mission also had a confusing legal status. It wasn't an embassy or even an official consulate; it was so off-book that the Libyan government was never officially notified of its existence. This put the mission outside the normal State Department procedures used to allocate security funding and personnel. 5) What's the "talking points" controversy? Did the White House hide the truth about Benghazi? The "talking points" in question are the official administration talking points, from just after the attack, on how to describe what had happened. Susan Rice, then the US ambassador to the UN, used these talking points when she appeared on Sunday talk shows that week. Rice claimed, in her appearances, that the attack had grown out of a spontaneous protest against the anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims . She didn't make this up; it was the CIA's assessment at the time. But this claim turned out to be wrong. While some of the attackers really were incensed by the film, closed circuit footage from the diplomatic building showed that there was no protest. In the subsequent "talking points" controversy, Republicans accused the White House of making up the "spontaneous protest" claim in order to cover up their failure or downplay the role of terrorism. They also accused the administration of inappropriately manipulating the talking points during internal discussions. Congressional Republicans spent countless hours looking into the talking points. Detailed dissections of the talking points , like this one from the Weekly Standard 's Steven Hayes, appeared all over right-wing media. But the CIA did in fact believe, in those first few days, that the attack had grown from a protest against the anti-Islam film. Then-CIA Deputy Director Mike Morrell and not any White House official actually removed a reference to al-Qaeda from an early draft of the talking points. In other words, while the talking points Susan Rice used were incorrect, this was an honest CIA error made in the first days after the incident, and not a deliberate White House cover-up. There is no evidence of inappropriate White House tampering. Former CIA Director David Petraeus said in Senate testimony on November 16, 2012, "They went through the normal process that talking points unclassified public talking points go through." Still, the incident made Rice so controversial that she was forced to withdraw her name from consideration to become secretary of state. Continued Republican interest in the talking points also seems to have played a role in Boehner's decision to create the House Select Committee on Benghazi in May 2014 the body that uncovered, somewhat accidentally, the Clinton email scandal. 6) What have the investigations into Benghazi found? Nine different bodies have investigated Benghazi: the State Department's Accountability Review Board and eight separate congressional committees or staff reports. All of them, aside from the House Select Committee, have completed investigations. Each has identified problems with the way the incident was handled, but none have uncovered real evidence of an administration cover-up or failure to properly respond to the attacks. Three bipartisan investigations the Senate Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs , the House Select Committee on Intelligence , and the Senate Select Committee focused on intelligence and mission security. They concluded that there were ample warnings that Benghazi was a dangerous operating environment, and that the mission was not properly secured. They also found that there was no specific intelligence predicting the attack. The Senate Select Committee's report concluded that the CIA did, in fact, believe the attack was in response to Innocence of Muslims in other words, Rice had accurately described the CIA's assessment. The report faulted the CIA for poor analysis and for relying on bad intelligence. The State Department's Accountability Review Board (ARB) detailed the department's bureaucratic failures to provide the Benghazi mission with proper security. The Majority Staff Report for the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Staff Report for the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform , both written by Republicans, focused on criticizing the ARB. Both argued it should have given more scrutiny to then-Secretary of State Clinton and other more senior State leaders, but neither uncovered compelling evidence that she or other top Obama officials were personally culpable for the failures surrounding the attack. A separate Democratic House Oversight staff report broadly supported the State Department investigation's conclusions. A House Armed Services Committee report , written by Republican Rep. Buck McKeon, found no real evidence that the US military could have responded in time to stop the attacks. One final report, prepared by five House Republican committee chairs for the House Republican Conference , simply restates the Republican conventional wisdom on Benghazi circa 2013, repeating several now-debunked allegations, for example that the talking points had been improperly altered. It is considered a partisan and political document. 7) So many investigations! Can we take a music break? Here's "Cover Up (The Benghazi Song)," a 100 percent real and seemingly earnest protest anthem by the Barry Fasman Experience: This song is pretty ridiculous, but it's emblematic of the way that Benghazi has become a kind of folk obsession among the conservative rank-and-file. You can buy Benghazi T-shirts , throw pillows , and mugs . This now-infamous acrostic tweet may best capture the Benghazi hysteria: B A R A C k E Negligence G H @HillaryClinton A is for ABANDONMENT Z I #BENGHAZI B E N G HELL A Z Incompetence @SpeakerBoehner SpreadButter (@SpreadButter) October 18, 2013 Probably the best encapsulation of liberal exasperation with all this is Chris Hayes's MSNBC segment on the "two Benghazis." Hayes argues that there's "the real Benghazi" the actual city in Libya, a place where things of real concern like the 9/11/12 attack happen and "#Benghazi," which he defines as "the world of online conspiracy theorists, Twitter trolls, and Facebook right-wingers." 8) If there's no evidence of a cover-up or wrongdoing, why are Republicans still looking into this? Republicans' interest in Benghazi isn't just cynical politics (although there is for sure some of that). Conservatives have long seen Obama as a feckless, incompetent liar the idea that he failed to prevent a terrorist attack, then covered it up, fits with their preexisting beliefs. The fact that independent reporting vindicated the administration didn't help, as conservatives see the mainstream media as hopelessly in the tank for the president. So long as conservative leaders argue there's a scandal here, some Republicans will continue believing that more investigations are necessary. Individual Republicans also have incentives to pursue this . Benghazi has become such a huge issue among the conservative base that pushing the issue, at least in theory, should translate into more fundraising dollars and more support from the base in Republicans' reelection bid. Conversely, any Republican who tries to downplay Benghazi risks a conservative backlash. So even skeptical Republicans have an incentive to endorse more investigations into Benghazi. But there is no hiding the fact that this is also about transparent partisan politics. Republicans have ignored repeated investigations debunking their allegations and have consistently tried to tie the incident to Obama and Clinton personally. So long as Benghazi can be used as a cudgel against the Democratic Party's two most important leaders, Republicans won't put it down. Ironically, the Benghazi attack does raise one very big issue that's getting relatively little GOP attention: what it says about the US intervention in Libya, which contributed to the chaos in which Stevens was killed. Was the intervention a mistake? Should the US have never intervened, or only intervened if it also planned to do the necessary work of rebuilding Libya's government? But GOP orthodoxy is that Obama is too cautious in the face of foreign threats making it hard for Republicans to criticize him for being too aggressive in Libya. So instead of talking about the basic wisdom of the Libya war, they focus on "weakness" in the face of terrorism and an alleged cover-up. 9) What does this have to do with the Hillary Clinton email scandal and the House speaker election? In May 2014, House Speaker John Boehner set up the House Select Committee on Benghazi. The committee, for its investigation, asked the State Department to turn over emails Clinton had sent to her aides about the attack. Some of those emails turned out to have been sent from Clinton's private email account which, according to the New York Times , is how Clinton's use of a private email server for official State Department business first came to light. That's become a big campaign scandal for her. Then, in a September 29 appearance on Fox News, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy seemed to admit something that Republicans aren't supposed to say that the real purpose of the Benghazi Select Committee is to hurt Clinton's campaign: Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable, right? But we put together a Benghazi special committee. A select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping. Why? Because she's untrustable. But no one would have known that any of that had happened had we not fought to make that happen. This allowed Clinton to dismiss the email scandal, and the Benghazi issue in general, as a trumped-up partisan sideshow. It's still too early to tell if that will work. But McCarthy's gaffe appears to have really hurt him. McCarthy had been running to replace Boehner as speaker, and was the overwhelming favorite. But the Benghazi gaffe helped fuel an anti-McCarthy rebellion among the House's most conservative members. McCarthy withdrew from the speaker race on October 8, citing the Benghazi comments as a reason for dropping out. Don't expect the Benghazi controversy to go away anytime soon. Clinton is scheduled to testify in front of the select committee on October 22. Unless she's defeated in the Democratic primary, the issue will be around for the rest of the 2016 election and, if she wins, likely for much longer.
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Feel the need to loosen your belt every time you finish eating? Here are our top tips for dodging that pesky post-meal belly bloat! Time for operation anti-bloat No one likes the feeling of leaving the table with a puffed-up stomach or having to unbutton the top of their pants to breathe. And yet, it's more often than not the case. Stop the dreaded belly bloat in its tracks by following these effective tips! Limit fats or consume them raw Adding too many fats to your meals can slow down the stomach emptying process and cause digestive disturbances, aka major bloating. Otherwise, try to consume fats in their raw form by adding them when you're done cooking. This will limit unwanted puffy consequences. Kick the gum habit Need to freshen your breath? Have a mint instead. Chewing air triggers intestinal activity, and because you're inhaling each time, it builds up and creates that unmistakable bloated feeling you're trying to avoid. Choose your bread wisely Many people experience bloating after eating bread at their meals. This could be a sign of gluten intolerance but also just a result of eating processed food. Go for organic, fresh artisan breads when you can, or if you're trying to de-bloat before a big event, skip it altogether. Blanch your veggies Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli these cruciferous vegetables are super healthy for you but are also known for their bloating effects when consumed raw. That said, you can limit these effects by blanching them before cooking. Simply drop in boiling water for 2 minutes to help break down the sulfur and raffinose contained in them that leads to bloating. Eat ripe fruits It's best to eat fruits when they're fully ripe rather than unripe. The more ripe the fruit is, the easier its sugars will be to digest. Wait to have coffee after eating If you like to follow up a big meal with coffee, wait a little bit before having it. It's not directly responsible for bloating, but it can be aggressive on the digestive tube, which means that it has a tendency to favor bloating rather than suppress it. Watch your portion sizes If you're eating too much at mealtime, you're setting yourself up for guaranteed indigestion and bloating. Pay close attention to serving sizes or split your meals up throughout the day to avoid overeating. Don't overdo it on bulbous vegetables If you're a fan of yellow, white or red onion, shallots or garlic, you might want to avoid consuming them to excess. They're also known for causing belly bloat due to the carbon dioxide they release during digestion. Stick to mineral water It shouldn't be too surprising that bubbly drinks will lead to additional air in your stomach. So if you are trying to avoid an inflated tummy, always opt for mineral or tap water over sparkling.
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Philippe Morgese had to teach himself to do his daughter's hair, so now he's helping other single dads learn, too.
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HARARE - Zimbabwe will not charge American dentist Walter Palmer for killing its most prized lion in July because he had obtained legal authority to conduct the hunt, a Cabinet minister said on Monday, angering conservationists. Palmer, a lifelong big-game hunter from Minnesota, touched off a global controversy when he killed Cecil, a rare black-maned lion, with a bow and arrow outside Hwange National Park in Western Zimbabwe. Environment Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said on Monday that Palmer's hunting papers were in order, and therefore he could not be charged. "We approached the police and then the prosecutor general, and it turned out that Palmer came to Zimbabwe because all the papers were in order," Muchinguri-Kashiri told reporters. Muchinguri-Kashiri said Palmer would be free to visit Zimbabwe as a tourist in the future but not as a hunter. The implication was that Palmer would not be issued the permits a hunter needs. The environment minister's comments immediately drew the ire of the animal conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, which maintained that Palmer had committed a crime and said it planned to pursue legal action against him in the United States. Palmer could not be reached for comment on the environment minister's statement to reporters. The 55-year-old dentist had closed his practice in late July after he was publicly identified as the hunter who killed Cecil, drawing widespread criticism on social media and a large demonstration by animal rights advocates at his office in Bloomington, Minnesota, a Minneapolis suburb. The practice reopened in mid-August without him. Palmer returned to work in early September to a handful of protesters and some public support from patients. "The fact is the law was broken," said Johnny Rodrigues, the head of the Zimbabwe task force, which first reported news of Cecil's killing. "We are going to get our advocates in America to actually see what they can do to bring justice to him." The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has said it was investigating the killing of the lion. Two more people still face charges related to Cecil's killing. Both allegedly were involved in using bait to lure the lion out of his habitat in Hwange National Park so he could be killed. Theo Bronkhorst, a professional hunter in Zimbabwe, is charged with breaching hunting rules in connection with the hunt in which Cecil was killed. A game park owner is also charged with allowing an illegal hunt. Both have denied the charges. Bronkhorst is expected to appear on Thursday in a Hwange court where a magistrate will rule on a request by his lawyers that his indictment be quashed. Parks officials said prosecutors would bring Cecil's head, which the hunters took as a trophy, to court as an exhibit if the trial goes ahead. Palmer has previously said that the hunt was legal and no one in the hunting party realized the targeted lion was Cecil, a well-known tourist attraction in the park. Wildlife hunting, which earned $45 million last year, is an important source of money for Zimbabwe, which is still recovering from a catastrophic recession between 1999-2008. Zimbabwe will not charge American dentist Walter Palmer for killing its most prized lion in July because he had obtained legal authority to conduct the hunt, a cabinet minister said on Monday. Palmer, a lifelong big-game hunter from Minnesota, stoked a global controversy when he killed Cecil, a rare black-maned lion, with a bow and arrow outside Hwange National Park in Western Zimbabwe. But Palmer's hunting papers were in order, Environment Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said on Monday. Consequently, he could not be charged. "We approached the police and then the Prosecutor General, and it turned out that Palmer came to Zimbabwe because all the papers were in order," Muchinguri-Kashiri told reporters. Muchinguri Kashiri said Palmer was free to visit Zimbabwe as a tourist but not as a hunter. The implication was he would not be issued the permits a hunter needs. Two more people still face charges related to Cecil's killing. Both allegedly were involved in using bait to lure Cecil out of his habitat in Hwange National Park so he could be killed. Theo Bronkhorst, a professional hunter in Zimbabwe, is charged with breaching hunting rules in connection with the hunt in which Cecil was killed. A game park owner is also charged with allowing an illegal hunt. Both have denied the charges. Bronkhorst is expected to appear in a Hwange court on Thursday where a magistrate will rule on a request by his lawyers that his indictment be quashed. Palmer, 55, has previously said that the hunt was legal and no one in the hunting party realized the targeted lion was Cecil, a well-known tourist attraction in the park. Palmer could not be reached immediately for comment on the environment minister's statement to reporters. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe, additional reporting by David Bailey in Minneapolis; Editing by James Macharia)
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10 Tech-Happy Compacts From Cruze and i3 to Renegade and WRX Tech lovers come in all types. With so many differences among technophiles, no one compact car could please everyone, so we've assembled 10 that cover the bases. Well, assuming you want a compact vehicle. But with fuel economy advantages and the same features found in more premium models, why not go small? Follow MSN Autos on Facebook Honda Fit - The Shopper When your tech-junkie ways lead you to all the best sales, you need packaging versatility. The Honda Fit and its Magic Seats can't be beat on that front. Related Link: Research the Honda Fit Smart Fortwo - The Microelectrician Maybe you're the type of tech person who likes to make really tiny computer chips. If your latest project will fit on your fingernail, shouldn't your car be space-efficient, too? The Smart Fortwo could be your ideal teeny-tiny transportation device, and a redesign for the 2016 model has gone and made it a decent car, too. Related Link: Research the Smart Fortwo Chevrolet Cruze - The Social Networker When it comes to the latest tech (read: smartphones), there are more than a few pieces devoted to keeping people connected to their networks. As the first car with built in 4G LTE Wi-Fi in its class, the Chevrolet Cruze picks up the baton when your cellular provider drops it. The availability of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay means that with the Cruze you'll be on the leading edge of in-car connectivity. Related Link: Research the Chevrolet Cruze Mazda MX-5 Miata - The Minimalist Sometimes you want to simplify. Your smartphone defaults to a single homepage, you've pared down your closet to only the essentials, and you enjoy your tea without sweetener. You ought to consider the new Mazda MX-5 Miata, a no-frills roadster that's refreshingly simple but gobs of fun. Related Link: Research the Mazda MX-5 Miata Kia Soul EV - The Analyst You spent the day writing a script to comb through thousands of pages of data. You might even color code compulsively. The Kia Soul EV will appeal to your inner planner, and with a handy efficiency menu you can fine-tune your energy usage on the fly. Related Link: Research the Kia Soul BMW i3 - The Constructor If you have at least one Arduino controlling the functions of your latest project, then you might want to take a look at the BMW i3. BMW has done more than make an electric car. It's packed to the sills with innovation. And smartwatch integration. Need I say more? Related Link: Research the BMW i3 Mercedes-Benz C-Class - The Interior Designer Can't get enough of smart home tech? Did your thermostat learn your schedule? Can you adjust the color of your lights from your smartphone? You'll feel right at home in the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which takes cues from the flagship S-Class but was on Ward's 10 Best Interiors for 2015. Related Link: Research the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Jeep Renegade - The Adventurous One Can you drop your phone and your laptop from 20 feet up and know with confidence they won't break? If you're into rugged tech, then the Jeep Renegade might be your compact. But not just any Renegade: the Trailhawk. Jeep doesn't just throw around its Trail Rated specification, so you can be assured the Renegade Trailhawk won't break when you throw it around, either. Related Link: Research the Jeep Renegade Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid - The Traveler Want to see if your GPS really works in the middle of nowhere? Going kayaking a little farther up river than the tourist boats? Fishing the pond way back in the boonies? Subaru's XV Crosstrek Hybrid is the vehicle to get you there. We took one through Iceland. Related Link: Research the Subaru XV Crosstrek Subaru WRX - The Auto Enthusiast There's nothing like a turbocharged car for modding. They take well to chips, controllers, and all manner of proper exhaust modifications. In this segment the Subaru WRX has long been a popular choice, and with a slick six-speed it's no mystery why. R elated Link: Research the Subaru WRX
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Frightening video captures the moment a waterspout in Tampa, Florida, overtook motorists and tore into a U.S. postal truck.
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Every Sunday night, GOLF.com conducts an e-mail roundtable with writers from Sports Illustrated and Golf Magazine. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below. 1. The Americans won the Presidents Cup for the sixth straight time but by a narrow margin. Did the closest result in more than a decade give the event more credibility? Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: Oh, for sure, and playing for fewer points made the difference, in addition to the Americans playing such a long-haul road game. I am way more interested in the the event than I used to be in part because there now seems to be a measure of antipathy that had not been there. Joe Passov, senior editor, Golf Magazine ( @joepassov ) : When a competition actually becomes competitive, it's clearly more compelling, and definitely more credible. Credit Nick Price and Tim Finchem for hammering out a compromise format that helped inject some spice and intrigue into this event. Josh Sens, contributing writer, GOLF Magazine : ( @JoshSens ): If it had been the Ryder Cup, Sunday singles would have been riveting. But in this country, at least, it's still an event of tepid interest. American fans only really get worked up about a sporting event when American dominance is threatened. Call it the Olympic basketball rule. Or the Ryder Cup rule, for that matter. Cameron Morfit, senior writer, GOLF Magazine ( @CameronMorfit ): The close result helps the event, no doubt, given where it had been in recent years. It was a blast watching all that crazy 18th-hole drama between Holmes and Hideki, Bubba and Jaidee, Kirk and Lahiri , and finally Haas and Bae, even though it was past my bedtime. Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated ( @MarkGodich ): It was great theater, no doubt about it. I'd go so far as to say it even had a Ryder Cup feel to it. And I can't help but think that the intensity of the matches will serve the Americans well next year at Hazeltine. Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated ( @GaryVanSickle ): It proved the Internationals can win. They coulda-shoulda won this one with Jason Day a nonfactor. No reason not to be a good show every two years. Jeff Ritter, senior editor, SI Golf Group ( @Jeff_Ritter ): The tight finish and intensity on both sides helped bolster this event's status as a serious competition and not a hit-and-chuckle exhibition. It may never match the Ryder Cup, but the Prez had itself a week to build on. 2. Some players stole the show at the Presidents Cup while others fizzled. Who emerged as your MVP? BAMBERGER: Grace! The most underrated player in all of golfdom. Could have won a U.S. Open if he could take back one hole, and maybe someday he will. PASSOV: All credit to (Hawaii) 5-0 Branden Grace, but Man of the Match goes to Phil Mickelson. Not only did the questionable captain's pick post a 3-0-1 record, but he also hit the majority of the week's most memorable shots. Beyond that, however, loomed a larger intangible. I thought the U.S. might come to Korea uninspired, after a long season and being a heavy favorite to win, but the emotion that Lefty displayed regarding the mere honor of being picked to play for his country spread to the rest of the team. That might have been the margin of victory. SENS: Branden Grace played the best golf start to finish, but let's keep the MVP to the winning team and give it to Zach Johnson, who tied with Phil for the most points by an American and didn't commit a rules gaffe along the way. MORFIT: Phil Mickelson emerged as the clear MVP for the Americans with his thumping of Charl Schwartzel in singles. Phil's solid record (3-0-1) was mighty impressive considering he hasn't exactly had the best of years. And when you add in the intangibles like players rubbing his belly for luck , and his ridiculous celebratory handshake with partner Zach Johnson, there was a lot to like. Good for him. Good for the Cup. Good for Jay Haas for picking him. GODICH: Say hello to Branden Grace. The 27-year-old showed he deserves a spot at the young-guns table along with Jordan, Jason, Rory, et al. On the U.S. side, I'm going with Phil Mickelson. Who saw that coming? Now here's the issue: What if Phil doesn't make the Ryder Cup team on points? Would Davis Love III use a captain's pick on him? Based solely on leadership, my best guess would be yes. But you have to wonder what kind of play you're going to get out of a guy who turns 46 next summer. VAN SICKLE: Louis Oosthuizen. He played well and came through in the clutch at the finish. RITTER: Phil went unbeaten and served as the team's heart and soul (and good-luck charm) . Not for nothing, he also delivered the best smack talk of the week. Lots of great performances, but Mickelson singlehandedly elevated the entire event. 3. Amid an otherwise stellar Presidents Cup performance, Phil Mickelson was at the center of a controversial violation of the one-ball rule during the Friday fourballs match. Innocent mistake? Confusing rule? What's your takeaway from this episode? BAMBERGER: Really odd. I don't think I even understand how Phil could not have known that you cannot switch ball types intra-round. Can you ever do that? I don't think so. I don't understand what was going on there. PASSOV: Methinks we need GOLF's The Rules Guy for further review. I'm with the crowd that says, "How can you be even in match play on one hole and two down when you arrive at the next tee?" Sure, I'm mystified that the officials bungled this one so badly, but maybe they were unduly shocked that they would have to rule on something that seemed so far-fetched, that anybody would violate the one-ball rule. I was surprised to learn that the rule is different for Ryder Cups played in the U.S. Why wouldn't there just be one rule for these events? That said, Phil should know better. He's played in 11 of these things. The only explanation is how Gary Van Sickle stated it: That's Phil being Phil. SENS: The rule is straightforward, and it's hard to imagine that Mickelson didn't know it. This one belongs in the "what-was-Phil-thinking?" category. MORFIT: As anyone who has covered Phil over the years knows, Mickelson is a competitor who is forever trying to gain an advantage. The violation of the one-ball rule was just an extension of that, although the penalty--a loss of two holes in one after he was wrongly advised to pick up his ball--was one for the ages. Why stop at two? Can you lose three holes in one? What about four? This one will be hard to forget even among golf's deep reservoir of inane rules quirks. GODICH: That's Phil being Phil, but I'd call it a stupid mistake. (Can you imagine the reaction if Dustin Johnson had been the culprit?) How do you not verse yourself on the rules? How is this not discussed during a team meeting? VAN SICKLE: It was an honest mistake but Phil shouldn't make a blunder like that. No one else did. How do you not know the rules after 10 PCs? That half point nearly cost the team win. RITTER : The rule isn't confusing at all and I'm surprised Phil didn't know it (even though I sure didn't). But again, this led to the week's best trash talk, Phil's post-round presser , so I say we write the whole thing off as a net gain for the event. 4. Adam Scott crushed Rickie Fowler 6&5 during their singles match Sunday. Scott struggled with his transition to the short putter all week but got hot with it on Sunday. What do you predict for him when the anchoring ban takes effect in January? BAMBERGER: He'll be fine. His stroke was never yippy, he just didn't make much and was looking for something--anything--to improve. He's putted very well with a short putter and a long putter and if finds he can't make short putts with the short putter he'll do what they all will do, use the long putter without anchoring it, getting it really close to the chest without holding it there. You don't have to hold it in place to get the desired pendulum action. PASSOV: I'm not optimistic for Scott's chances to challenge for Number 1 again with the short blade in his hands. He was awful with it in the pre-broomstick era and has been spotty to putrid during his occasional experiments with it in 2015. Having said that, he's still a phenomenal ball-striker and once he commits fully to the smaller wand, he'll be OK--just nowhere near as good as he was in his anchoring heyday. SENS: Players don't switch to the anchored stroke because it looks sexy. They do it because they've developed the yips. It's hard to imagine Scott ever getting his putting back to what it was on a consistent basis. There might be streaks, as we saw in singles against Fowler. But the yips are like herpes. They don't go away for good. MORFIT: Adam will be okay once he picks a putting style and sticks with it. I think in 2015 he also fell into the traditional just-had-a-kid funk we've seen time and again on the PGA Tour. GODICH: Let's not get carried away with what we witnessed over 13 holes in a match where Scott's opponent didn't put up much of a fight. For three days, I saw a guy who appeared tentative and uncomfortable on the greens. Scott struck a slew of makeable putts that didn't even scare the hole. I'm afraid it's going to be a mighty struggle. VAN SICKLE: I look for Scott to enjoy a brief good run before the reasons he left the short putter come back to bite him. Then he goes unanchored long or, if I may suggest, face-on. RITTER: Despite a strong win over Rickie, Scott's future without the broomstick seems a little murky. He's never been a superior putter to begin with, and I wonder how hard he's willing to grind if he struggles. 5. It was reported that Tiger Woods placed a call to Fred Couples and later talked to Davis Love III during the Presidents Cup with the message that he would be interested in serving as an assistant captain to Love at the 2016 Ryder Cup. Do you interpret that as Tiger not feeling too optimistic about playing his way on to the team? BAMBERGER: I feel it is Tiger's way of saying he is lonely and bored. PASSOV: As one who's been twice convicted of overly optimistic Tiger hype, I'm puzzled. If Tiger acknowledges that he won't be back until April and won't be able to earn his way onto the team, fine. Two words, however: captain's pick. Tiger had a career's worth of frustrations in 2015, yet his performances at the Masters and at Greensboro told the world there's still some Ryder Cup-worthy golf left in his tank. Why shouldn't he feel that he can improve on that for whatever months he does play in 2016? Until he calls it a day, I find it inconceivable that golf's greatest competitor would settle for a coaching job. SENS: Yes. It's like the opposite of a John Fogerty song: "Put me in as coach, I'm not ready to play." MORFIT: I interpret this to mean Tiger is looking for something to do as he wanders around somewhat aimlessly amid the twilight of his career. It's nice that he's interested. GODICH: In no way is Tiger thinking he can't make the team. One thing he has never lost is his competitiveness. But let's be realistic here. There's absolutely nothing to suggest he's going to play his way on, but he knows what a special event the Ryder Cup is. Good for Tiger. VAN SICKLE: No, I see Tiger noting the new U.S. system and realizing that if he is going to captain a team, he needs to get on board. To me it says TW wants to be a captain. Excellent. RITTER: I interpret the phone call as Tiger being extremely excited about the event that was unfolding on his TV. I like that he's still eager to stay involved at the next Ryder Cup and am certain he's still hopeful to be there as a competitor. 6. The Frys.com Open, the official start of the 2015-16 season, tees off on Thursday with Rory McIlroy in the field. After a forgettable 2014-2015 campaign that included an injury and losing his No. 1 ranking, what's your prediction for McIlroy's coming season? BAMBGERGER: I don't think he'll win the grand slam but he'll have a very good chance of completing it. PASSOV: Sorry, I'm not buying into the statement that Rory's 2014-15 campaign was forgettable. He remained Number 1 in the world for most of that period, he won early at Dubai, then beat everybody in golf at the WGC Accenture Match Play and then won Quail Hollow by a touchdown. In the three majors he did play, he finished fourth, T9 and 17th. It wasn't a great year by Rory standards, but it was hardly forgettable. Newly inspired by the two guys that passed him, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day, I look for Rory to come back huge in 2016. SENS: You know how onions are a biennial crop? Of course you do. Well, Rory will be just like that. Taking a year off to cycle back into peak shape. Assuming that he steers clear of pick-up soccer games, I expect him to put up an impressive showing in 2016. MORFIT: This is a monumentally important season for Rory. If he can't be motivated by what Jordan Spieth and Jason Day did this year, and by losing the No. 1 ranking, and by missing out on a St. Andrews British Open because of a dumb soccer injury, what WILL motivate him? GODICH: Let's see: two wins (one in a WGC event) and seven top 10s in 12 PGA Tour starts. How many players would love to have a "forgettable" season like that? In any event, after all of the hype about Spieth and Day, I believe Rory will be fully motivated in 2016. It'll be fun to watch. VAN SICKLE: Rory returns and starts wracking up wins and contending in majors. Business as usual. A good year ahead. Roars for Rors. RITTER: Health permitting, I like Rory to have a bounce-back season. He and Spieth and Day will battle for No. 1 all year long -- buckle up! The Tour Confidential roundtable continues Monday on our new weekly show hosted by Jessica Marksbury. Tweet her your questions @Jess_Marksbury .
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MEET the mad muscleman behind Britain's craziest workout regime. Fitness fanatic Michael Tavernier's gravity-defying routines leave fellow gym goers open-mouthed - and have catapulted him to social media stardom. The 40-year-old Londoner has developed his own unique callisthenics-based training programme, featuring moves inspired by the martial arts movies of his youth like Bruce Lee's Enter The Dragon. His workouts - which have had more than 30 MILLION views on Facebook includes turning himself upside down on the gym equipment to carry out 'handstand pushups'. Videographer / Director: Jon Dean Producer: Mark Hodge, Nick Johnson Editor: Joshua Douglas
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The family of Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, convicted in an Iranian court over the weekend of charges that included espionage, decried his trial and the verdict, as did journalists around the world. [ Iranian TV says Post correspondent Jason Rezaian convicted ] "Today's announcement by the Iranian government that a ruling has been issued regarding the case of my brother, Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, is unfortunately just another sad chapter in his 14-month illegal imprisonment and opaque trial process," Jason's brother, Ali Rezaian, said in a statement . "It follows an unconscionable pattern by Iranian authorities of silence, obfuscation, delay and a total lack of adherence to international law, as well as Iranian law. The Iranian government has never provided any proof of the trumped up espionage and other charges against Jason, so today's vague statement on a purported verdict, while certainly disappointing to our family, is not surprising." Rezaian was arrested along with his wife , Iranian journalist Yeganeh Salehi, when security forces raided their home last year. He went on trial in May. "While the status of any verdict in his case remains unclear, there is much about Jason we know for certain," Ali Rezaian continued. "Jason was simply a journalist doing his job and following all the rules when he was wrongly arrested and imprisoned in Tehran's infamous Evin prison. He is an innocent man that has been kept under harsh conditions to the detriment of his health and well-being for nearly 450 days. There is worldwide condemnation for the Iranian government's unlawful detention of Jason and calls from across the globe for his immediate release. We remain hopeful that Jason will soon be released and reunited with this family." Martin Baron, executive editor of the Post, called the verdict an " outrageous injustice. " Iran has behaved unconscionably throughout this case, but never more so than with this indefensible decision by a Revolutionary Court to convict an innocent journalist of serious crimes after a proceeding that unfolded in secret, with no evidence whatsoever of any wrongdoing. For now, no sentence has been announced. - Marty Baron (@PostBaron) October 12, 2015 John Hughes, president of the National Press Club, called Rezaian's trial a sham and said he "must be set free." Iran has tried to make its point with this conviction that it can do whatever it wants in its legal system. Now he must be released and retuned to his family. He has done nothing wrong. Iran knows this. Shame on them. Journalists, many who tweeted using the hashtag #freejason, condemned the decision. "Convicting Rezaian, testing missiles, troops into Syria," David Rothkopf of Foreign Policy tweeted. "Those who thought deal would change Iran ... well, not so much." "@AP says that an Iranian court has convicted Jason Rezaian," Foreign Policy's Middle East editor David Kenner said . "Farce." [ New statement from Martin Baron on The Post's Jason Rezaian ] Some decried the murkiness of the conviction, about which few details were immediately available. "Not even Jason's family know what the conviction is," Danielle Moylan, former Australian diplomat and a Foreign Policy freelancer, wrote . Related coverage: A timeline of Jason Rezaian's detention Washington Post petitions U.N. to help free journalist held in Iran More coverage on Post correspondent Jason Rezaian
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In California there's no shortage of great outdoor spaces where adrenaline junkies can get their fix. Whether you want to chase 60-foot waves or you're looking for a real "Top Gun" experience, here are 10 of the best spots to feed any adventure-seeker
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PRICE Futures Group's Phil Flynn on the outlook for oil prices.
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MOSCOW Highlighting a new terror threat to Russia raised by its air campaign in Syria, security officials said Monday they have thwarted a planned attack on Moscow public transport system by militants trained by the Islamic State group. Sunday's arrest of several terror suspects some of whom, intelligence officials say, were trained by IS in Syria has brought back memories of the string of deadly bombings that struck the Russian capital just a few years ago. President Vladimir Putin has acknowledged the new danger, but insisted that launching the Russian airstrikes in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad's army was necessary to fight IS and other militant groups before they pose an even bigger security challenge to Russia. "If we just stood by and let Syria get gobbled up, thousands of people running around there now with Kalashnikovs would end up on our territory, and so we are helping President Assad fight this threat before it reaches our borders," Putin said in an interview with Rossiya state television broadcast Sunday. "We must take pre-emptive action," he said. "Of course, there are risks, but let me say that these risks existed anyway, even before we began our operations in Syria." Russian authorities have said that about 2,400 Russians have joined the IS militants and voiced concern that they may pose a threat when they return home. The latest arrests may play into Putin's hands, proving his point that IS pose a major threat to Russia and the air raids are a necessary response to the challenge. A nationwide poll of 1,600 conducted earlier this month by VTsiOM polling agency found that two thirds of respondents supported the Kremlin's decision to launch airstrikes in Syria. The poll had a margin of error of no more than 3.5 percentage points. The Federal Security Service, Russia's main domestic security agency, said in Monday's statement that a device with five kilograms (11 pounds) of explosives was found in a Moscow apartment rented by the suspects. The FSB said some of the suspects had been trained by Islamic State militants and were plotting a terrorist attack on Moscow's public transport. The agency didn't immediately give further details. Authorities did not say how many people were detained but said "between six and 11 people" frequented the apartment. The men had arrived in Moscow "well before" Russia began carrying out airstrikes in Syria on Sept. 30, the FSB said. Moscow and other Russian cities have seen numerous terror attacks linked to Islamic militants from Chechnya and other restive provinces in Russia's volatile North Caucasus. They included the suicide bombing in Moscow's Domodedovo airport in January 2011 that killed 37 people and injured more than 180, and twin suicide bombings on the Moscow subway in March 2010 that killed 40 people and injured more than 120. Doku Umarov, a Chechen warlord who claimed responsibility for those bombings, also threatened but failed to strike the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. Umarov was reported dead in March 2014 by the militant group he led, the Caucasus Emirate, and since then some of its members have sworn loyalty to Islamic State.
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Whether or not it's the beginning of a third intifada in Jerusalem and surrounding territories, the recent spate of violence has everyone on edge. Initially, tensions at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's walled Old City, where Palestinians fear Israel wants to change the status quo, reignited violence.
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In many American cities, Monday marks Indigenous People's Day a counter-celebration to Columbus Day, a chance to celebrate and honor the distinctive cultures and histories of hundreds of Native American tribes across the country. The holiday comes a day after Washington's NFL team took the field with its controversial nickname spattered on its gameday swag an honor, defenders and owner Dan Snyder will say, that covers some all-encompassing "Native American culture," that cannot be removed because traditional racism is immutable. Which is, of course, bollocks. PHOTOS: Protest in Minnesota | MORE: Blackhawks don't deserve pass And the holiday comes a day after a landmark moment in California, where Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill into law that will eradicate the R-word nickname from public schools' sports teams. The chorus of echoes that cries out in defense of Washington's nickname often brings a familiar counterpoint: This debate is the product of political correctness run amok, of a society afraid to offend, of wussified propagators of white person persecution. If we let this name and tradition exist for decades untouched, why target it now? That argument, of course, ignores decades of protests and movements against Native American nicknames and mascots in sports. For 45 years, major sports teams and universities have changed their "traditional" imagery and namesakes offering an olive branch to indigenous peoples who felt mocked, caricatured, misrepresented. And that undercurrent of discontent did not suddenly arrive in D.C. Minnesota often ground zero for protests against using Native American iconography in sports hosted Super Bowl XXVI in 1992, a game between Buffalo and Washington. With Washington in the game, the National Summit on Racism in Sports and the Media group protested in Minneapolis; the New York Times coined it " The Protest That Won't Go Away. " A prescient title. That same year, in a story that should sound familiar , seven native Americans filed a lawsuit against Washington, petitioning the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel federal registrations for "Redskins" and "Redskinettes." It would take seven years for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to rule the word disparaging before an appeals process put the case into court limbo for years. But before and after that case, the issue of using indigenous peoples as sports props has impacted colleges and pro teams, big and small. What follows is a photo-timeline of that progress; from Oklahoma University circa 1970 to Fargo, North Dakota today, more than 40 sports teams have taken a step forward, some more willingly than others. The list is not all-inclusive. Other small colleges have followed suit. And it ignores the hundreds of high schools that have progressed past the idea of Native American as novel mascot figure. From the early trio of prep teams (Napersville Central of Ill., Grand Forks Central of N.D., and Arvada of Colo.) that dropped the R-word in the early 90s to the most recent agents of change in Goshen, Ind. , many high schools have done what Washington won't: They stopped neglecting to move forward for the sake of looking back. Here are more than 40 teams who did the same. A huge tip of the hat to databases from ChangeTheMascot.org and the Annual Mascot Issue , as well as several school newspapers and secondary sources that chronicled the more than four-decade-long pursuit of viewing indigenous people and their descendents as more than mascots. 1. Oklahoma University, 1970 The Sooners retired their "Little Red" mascot a tradition that had endured since the 1940s in 1970. One of the agents of change: a student activist by the name of Jacob Tsotigh. "We've been so browbeaten by white people throughout history that we don't realize when we're being mocked and debased," he wrote in a letter to the editor, according to NewsOK . The decision by Oklahoma president J. Herbert Hollomon was the first domino to fall. 2. Cleveland Indians, 1970 The first recorded protests of the Chief Wahoo mascot occurred in 1970, led by the American Indian Movement. Years of protests have followed, and while the Indians have yet to officially retire the racist logo, his presence has faded in recent years . 3. Marquette University, 1971, 1987 and 1993 Marquette, then the Warriors, rid themselves of mascot " Willie Wampum ," a particularly egregious caricature that had been roaming sidelines for 10 years. Having foregone Willie Wampum, Marquette made amends by having their mascot portrayed by actual Native American students. But when those students no longer wanted to participate and felt less respected, more spectacle, that practice, too, was dropped in 1987. Having deemed two Native American-inspired mascots offensive in a span of two decades, Marquette dropped the Warriors nickname altogether in 1993, eventually becoming the Golden Eagles. This came the same year as a resolution issued by the National Congress of American Indians that denounced "any American Indian name or artifice" being connected to sport. 4. Stanford University, 1972 A petition sent from Native American students to Stanford ombudsman Lois Amsterdam led to the eradication of the "Indians" nickname a culmination of a long-fought battle from students of American Indian descent. 5. Dickinson State, 1972 Following the lead of bigger colleges, Dickinson State transitioned from their "Savages" nickname to a more palatable "Blue Hawks." 6. Dartmouth College, 1974 The Ivy League university illustrated its wisdom, going from an "Indians" mascot to the "Big Green" moniker in '74. David Bonga who would eventually become the first Native American alumnus to direct Dartmouth's Native American program helped spearhead the change. Before that, he said , "I felt the campus atmosphere throughout my freshman year depicted an aloofness … toward most issues of interest to Native students." 7. Syracuse University, 1979 The Orangemen retired the " Saltine Warrior " mascot in 1979. One of the Native students calling for change Doug George-Kanentiio reflected on the era for Syracuse.com , and remembered asking the question, "Why would a university, a place of learning, elect to use such a racist image?" 8. St. Bonaventure, 1979 Now known as the Bonnies, St. Bonaventure once employed "Brown Indians" and "Brown Squaws" as nicknames and mascots for their men's and women's teams, respectively. That ended in 1979. 9. Southern Oregon University, 1980 The Red Raiders became the Raiders, and after 30 years of using Indian chief mascots, the school ceased that tradition . 10. Siena College, 1988 Siena dropped their "Indians" nickname, initially deciding to go without a moniker before they eventually settled on Saints. The move meant retiring their Native American mascot for, of all things, a leprechaun, and renaming the "Tee Pee Rowdies" fan section. 11. University of Illinois, 1989, 1998 and 2007 Before she became a renowned Native American artist , Charlene Teters was a graduate student at Illinois. In 1989, her efforts to condemn the school's "Chief Illiniwek" mascot garnered national attention. Nine years later, upwards of 200 activists descended upon Illinois for a national conference on the topic of eliminating Native American-themed mascots. And once again, the topic of Chief Illiniwek became a source of contention. Wrote Ross Siler in the Daily Northwestern Online : "The protest movement has gained campus-wide attention and commentary from numerous Native American groups across the country." Nine more years passed. The Illini did not have to change their nickname under new NCAA guidelines regarding use of Native American iconography, but the oft-debated, historically controversial Chief Illiniwek mascot finally took his final bow on Feb. 21, 2007. The retirement came in accordance with the NCAA, which otherwise would not allow Illinois to host postseason, NCAA-sanctioned events a lynchpin that for some reason spoke more volumes than the protests and requests of Native students over a period of decades. "This will be a time when we finally honor the people who have been fighting the issue, who have been saying all along to retire the chief in name, in symbol, in performance," Charlotte Wilkenson a grad student and Native American told the Chicago Tribune at the time . The topic still commands contention at Illinois, but as recently as 2013, Chancellor Phyllis Wise doubled down , saying Illiniwek will not return to the sidelines. 12. Eastern Michigan University, 1991 Before changing their name to the Eagles in '91, Eastern Michigan had been known as the "Huron." The move, according to university archives , came as a response to suggestions from the Michigan Department of Civil Rights in 1988, which called for schools to change their Native American-derived mascots. 13. St. John's University, 1991-1994 Then the "Redmen," St. John's first did away with its mascot in 1991 before eventually changing their name to "Red Storm" in 1994. "You can't keep a nickname that increasingly more and more newspapers and radio stations won't allow because it's seen as offensive," St. John's president Rev. Donald Harrington told the student newspaper at the time (via NY Post). "In a lot of ways, the decision was made for us." 14. Simpson College, 1992 The United Methodist Church-affiliated school switched its nickname to "Storm" after having been the "Redmen" and "Lady Reds" for some time. When echoes of restoring the nickname hit Simpson in 2005, decision-makers offered to the campus newspaper this counterpoint: "letters from Native Americans saying, 'Thank God you guys did this, that you had the guts to do this." 15. University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, 1996 On July 3, 1996, UT-Chattanooga terminated the Moccasins nickname and mascot; they'd switch to "Mocs," and give the moniker a mockingbird meaning . The lead up to the decision led to some regrettable newspaper headlines and quotes , including the subtly racist pun, "Chief may be sending final smoke signals." 16. Miami University (OH), 1996 In '96, the Miami of the Midwest rid itself of the "R-word" nickname, switching to Red Hawks. Miami was named after a tribe of the same name, but the nickname, many contended, didn't belong. Among those in contention, according to the Chicago Tribune : members of the Miami tribe itself. 17. Triple-A Syracuse, 1996 Then a Blue Jays affiliate, Triple-A Syracuse dropped the "Chiefs" moniker they'd espoused since 1934 in an effort to distance themselves from charges of disparagement. The replacement nickname, "Skychiefs," was weird. In 2006, the "Chiefs" moniker returned, but with an updated imagery the team now wanted to honor the train industry. "The reason we changed the name in the first place was because political correctness came about," Syracuse general manager John Simone told MLB.com at the time . "But all along we knew the fans didn't want to let go of the Chiefs. Now, we're bridging the gap by bringing back the name, but placing it in an entirely different context." 18. Canton-Akron baseball, 1997 When the Canton-Akron Indians switched their nickname to "Aeros," a funny thing happened: They earned the largest merchandise income of any minor league team , jumping from $60,000 to $1.2 million year-over-year. You like money, don't you Dan Snyder? 19. Yakima Community College, 1998 Yakima retired its "Indians" nickname and mascots in '98; they are now called the Yaks. Which Ace Ventura thinks is awesome . 20. Oklahoma City University, 1998 Another United Methodist-affiliated university parted ways with Native American iconography when OKC's university retired its "Chief" nickname in 1998. The name had been in use since 1944. 21. Southern Nazarene University, 1998 The Bethany, Okla.-based Christian school dropped the 50-year-old "R-word" nickname, going with "Crimson Storm" instead, and bringing the "Native American iconography in sports" debate back to its first battleground. An Oklahoman headline called the name change "an insult." And athletic director Bobby Martin seemed to echo that sentiment. But a General Conference of the United Methodist Church had decried the use of Native American nicknames and one professor, Jim Wilcox, seemed to agree with connecting Christian kindness to the change. "I consider it a racial slur," Wilcox told the Oklahoman at the time. "It is in the same ballpark as what we consider to be more derogatory terms. My belief is that if we're a Christian institution, then we should be most careful of all in the way we treat our brothers." 22. Morningside College, 1998 The Sioux City, Iowa school went from "Maroon Chiefs" to "Mustangs" in 1998. And according to a book by Bruce Stapleton, the athletic department took a donation hit but telethon fundraising remained steady for the school as a hole. 23. NCAA, 1998 In September of 1998, the NCAA sent its first message regarding the eventual eradication of racially insensitive mascots and iconography. Charles Whitcomb, writing on behalf of the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee, didn't mince words: "The committee was established to enhance the NCAA commitment to foster racial equality and diversity in collegiate athletics. Thus, we strongly support the elimination of Indian names and mascots as symbols for our member institutions' sports teams. We also support the elimination of Native American rituals for entertainment purposes. "Member institutions with Indian mascots that promote Indian caricatures and mimic ceremonial rites do not comply with the NCAA's commitment to ethnic student welfare. The use of these symbols and mascots is not respectful to Native American culture and is considered by that culture to be sacrilegious. No other race of people in America is used for mascots or nicknames for sports teams." 24. Seattle University, 2000 Dropping "Chieftans" as a nickname, Seattle took on "Redhawks" instead in 2000. Four years ago, a campus pub popped up with the old "Chieftan" name, causing some consternation in the Emerald City. 25. Cumberland College, 2001 The small Kentucky school switched its nickname from "Indians" to "Patriots" in 2001 after years of discussion on the issue. Cumberland, located in Williamsburg, Ky., once cited its towns' former status as a "living, hunting and burial ground" for Cherokees as reason for the old nickname. But the university changed its tune at the turn of the century, and chose to 'honor' a heritage more consistent with the campus architecture and history. "The Cumberland College Board of Trustees has voted to change our mascot from 'Indians' to the 'Patriots' which is more in keeping with our college's architecture and our city and the name Williamsburg," college president Dr. Jim Taylor said in a news release. "After all, our architecture is in keeping with Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. We can do so much more as 'Patriots' in image enhancement and in exposure of the college." 26. Colgate University, 2001 Colgate was a case of original intentions perverted, and lingering scars from the past. In August of 2001, the school dropped "Red" from its "Red Raiders" nickname. The name, which originally referred to the maroon jerseys of the football team, took on new meaning when Colgate employed Native American mascots and iconography for its sports teams. Years after the school dropped the Native American imagery sometime in the 70s, wounds remained. The word "red" now had ugly, racial connotations. So the school rid themselves of it. In a release , the university explained the three-letter change would help the school "to move away from the racial stereotype, which is indeed not the true origin of the nickname for Colgate but may nonetheless be offensive to the general public in ways that undermine the institution's values and commitments." 27. Quinnipiac University, 2001 Now the Bobcats, Quinnipiac discontinued its "Braves" nickname in December of 2001. The move came on the recommendation of then-President John Lahey after several on-campus discussions. The school, named for a tribe, recognized that intentions do not always match the reality of mascots. "Although fond of the tradition we've had for 50 years, the university community clearly recognized the difficulties of using a name that has the potential to misrepresent and denigrate an entire group of people," Quinnipiac vice president for public affairs Lynn Bushnell said at the time, according to USCHO . "And, despite our clear intention to honor and remember the Native Americans once known as the Quinnipiaks, to do so only through athletics was found to be no longer appropriate." 28. Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, 2002 The Division III school's sports teams, before becoming the "Mohawk" in the 1960s, had in previous years been called the Gremlins and Professors. Having already strayed from the strange to cultural reappropriation, the school made another shift in 2002, becoming the "Trail Blazers" after a subcommittee on their athletic advisory council recommended a move away from Native American mascots and iconography. 29. Martin Methodist College (TN), 2002 The Pulaski, Tenn., college changed its athletic nickname from "Indians" to "Redhawks," following the continued lead of the United Methodist Church. The move would later provide fuel for the Tennessee Commission of Indian Affairs' resolution to eliminate all Native American mascots in the state. 30. Single-A Peoria, 2003 The Chiefs a minor league affiliate of the Cardinals changed its logo in 2003, abandoning a baseball wearing a Native American headdress for a Dalmatian dog, depicted as a fire chief. The move coincided with a transition into the Cubs farm system; but thankfully, when the Chiefs returned to the Cardinals organization, the headdress didn't make a comeback. 31. Alcorn State University, 2005 Alcorn State was one of the 18 colleges or universities cited in the NCAA's 2005 policy that established guidelines for use of Native American nicknames and mascots deemed "hostile and abusive." Ultimately, the school would maintain its "Braves" nickname, but disbanded the use of its mascot. The new mascot, a "bravehawk," didn't appear until 2011 . Florida State (Seminoles), Utah (Utes), Catawba College (Indians), Mississippi College (Choctaws) and Central Michigan (Chippewas) would all maintain their nicknames due to receiving support from their local or namesake tribes. 32. Bradley University, 2005 In a similar vein to Alcorn State, Bradley maintained its "Braves" nickname under the condition that Native American imagery or mascots would not find their way back into the school's sports tradition. The old, racist logo hasn't resurfaced. In fact, their mascot has nothing to do with their nickname; he's a frightening gargoyle , modeled after a defining architectural characteristic on campus. 33. Carthage College, 2005 Also named in the NCAA policy, the "Redmen" of Carthage College made simple changes to meet the demands. They added a space in their nickname, becoming the Red Men, and retired the feather-adorned Native American in their logo. They now represent themselves with a red torch, their mascot a man named Torchie with flames atop his head. 34. Midwestern State University, 2005 Another school with its hand forced by the NCAA, Midwestern State made their move swiftly. Less than three months after the NCAA announced its policy publicly, Midwestern State transitioned from an "Indians" nickname to the "Mustangs." 35. McMurry University, 2006 McMurry appealed the NCAA's request for the Texas school to abandon its Indian mascot; the NCAA didn't budge. As a result, McMurry decided to forego a sports nickname altogether, holding tight to "history." "Going to a mascot that has four legs and fur just didn't fit who we are," said McMurry president John Russell, according to the Associated Press . "To take another mascot would be to turn our back on our 83-year history. We know who we are." The school still had to replace uniforms and scrub Native American imagery and insignias from its sports facilities and merchandise. Eventually, the school changed its nicknameless stance; they are now the War Hawks. 36. University of Louisiana-Monroe, 2006 Another school admonished by the NCAA, Louisiana-Monroe removed its "Indians" nickname, replacing it with "Warhawks" in 2006 an homage to a World War II warplane captained by General Claire Chennault. It was a big change for a campus that had long been referred to as "The Reservation," for an athletic department that had a mascot named "Chief Brave Spirit" roaming the sidelines. In a bit of a Freudian slip that often accompanies these stories, university president James Cofer offered consolation to his campus upon the mascot's removal, and said in as many words that the man behind the mascot never much mattered. "It is with sadness that we will say goodbye to the Indian mascot," he said in a letter for ULM alumni and supporters. "But let us also remember that it is the great university represented by the mascot we feel strongly about, not the mascot itself." 37. Southeastern Oklahoma State, 2006 SE Oklahoma State had one of the most egregious nicknames cited on the NCAA resolution, having coupled a "Savages" moniker with Native American imagery. In compliance with the NCAA, the school made a strange transition in 2006, officially changing their name to this isn't a joke the "Savage Storm." With Native American imagery removed, the school spent several years without a mascot. In 2013, they unveiled Bolt, a bison with shocking stage presence. Vestiges of the old logos still present themselves front-page center on the school's athletic website . 38 West Georgia University, 2006 In compliance with NCAA recommendations, West Georgia became the "Wolves" in Jan. 2006, dropping the "Braves" nickname. The school and mascot Wolfie found the name gained traction and popularity with time. "There are some people who still hold the Braves close at heart and we recognize that and certainly know the nickname Braves has been in our heritage and tradition," West Georgia athletic director Daryl Dickey told Inside Higher Ed in 2013 . "But the university made the decision some time ago to change because of the ethnicity concerns and we've moved on." 39. Newberry College (S.C.), 2006 After losing its appeal to the NCAA, Newberry reached a tentative agreement with the governing body in 2006. In order to host an NCAA Division II football playoff game, the school agreed to retire the "Indians" nickname and all imagery by fall 2008. The eradication happened. But the new name Wolves wouldn't come until two more academic years passed without a nickname at Newberry. Initially, Newberry president Mitchel Zais called the NCAA demands "unjust, coercive and perhaps illegal," according to USA Today . At the time, sophomore Derek Bley offered a melodramatic quote to USA Today: "Quite a tragedy. Here we are in the middle of nowhere, and we have no name." But cited in the same story was a quote from Morning Star Institute president Suzan Shown Harjo, a quote that seemed to more poignantly address the isolation caused by Native American mascots. "This was a time when federal regulations outlawed Indian dancing and religious ceremonies," she told USA Today . "They criminalized traditional Indian behaviors and values. We were seen as a vanquished and vanishing culture. Real Indians could not dance, but fake Indians mascots could, in their cartoon way." 40. Chowan College (N.C.), 2006 Another domino that fell from the NCAA decision, the small Baptist school in North Carolina decided not to fight for its "Braves" nickname. "The college has agreed not to fight the NCAA ruling for several reasons: money, time, the college's transition to Division II, and a battle that could not be won," Chowan President M. Christopher White told the Baptist Press at the time. The school later became the Hawks, acknowledging the switch in a strange, symbolic ceremony. Murf, the new Hawk mascot, was given a game ball by a parachuting Brave mascot , who then ran off into the distance. 41. Indiana University-Pennsylvania, 2007 Aside from the satellite school's geographically confusing moniker, IUP had been named in the NCAA policy change due to their "Indians" nickname. It would take them two years to choose a new namesake; they adopted the "Crimson Hawks" nickname in April of 2007. 42. Arkansas State, 2008 Three years after appearing on the NCAA's list of undesirable Native American nicknames in college sports, Arkansas State made the shift from "Indians" to "Red Wolves." The school officially retired its traditional mascot trio the "Indian family" on Feb. 28 during that basketball season in an emotional ceremony seemingly devoid of any actual Native Americans. Ironically, or perhaps purposefully, they were facing Louisiana-Monroe. 43. University of North Dakota, 2012 A long, contentious battle that began with the NCAA's resolution in 2006 spilled into 2012 in Fargo, N.D., when the "Fighting Sioux" name was, at last, officially dropped . A vote by state residents the greatest voter turnout for a primary in 50 years, according to WBRZ returned a two-thirds vote in favor of dumping the name. This after the nickname had been retired, then unretired, twice due to split feelings among not only citizens, but different factions of local Sioux tribes. As of June, the school had narrowed its list of potential new nicknames to seven. The Grand Forks Herald reported that Fighting Hawks, Green Hawks, Nodaks, North Stars, Roughriders and Sundogs remained possibilities.
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A new Siri-type virtual assistant promises to be as useful as the problem-solving detective Sherlock Holmes (but it's still small enough to fit in your pocket). Developed by researchers at Cardiff University in the United Kingdom and IBM in the United States, the new software program expands on the question-and-answer approach taken by Siri , the virtual assistant that comes with Apple's iPhones and tablets, as well as Cortana, the digital intelligence systemdeveloped by Microsoft. Instead of just searching the Internet (or other databases) for answers to users' questions, the new virtual-assistant software gathers scraps of information from various users, stores this information in a database and then eventually puts all the scraps together to answer queries. It's similar to how a detective collects clues to crack a case. The pocket-size sleuth is aptly named SHERLOCK, short for the Simple Human Experiment Regarding Locally Observed Collective Knowledge. [ Super-Intelligent Machines: 7 Robotic Futures ] To get the information it needs, SHERLOCK uses "controlled natural language," a novel kind of machine-human language that makes communication between the software program and the user easier, according to the researchers who created the dialect. "By using controlled natural language, SHERLOCK builds a knowledge base of things it 'knows' in a form that's understandable to humans and machines," said Alun Preece, a professor of intelligent systems at Cardiff University's School of Computer Science & Informatics. "You can ask it what it knows about, and tell it about things it doesn't know about in natural language." The controlled language makes it easier to fill in gaps in the software's knowledge, Preece told Live Science in an email. For example, if SHERLOCK keeps giving you driving directions to a location that you usually travel to by train, you can correct its behavior by saying, "I always take the train, SHERLOCK." Or, if your house is too cold (and you happen to have a smart thermostat), you don't have to tell SHERLOCK to turn up the heat. All you have to say is, "I'm cold, SHERLOCK." But the software program is actually more useful as a sort of coordinator of information than as a personal assistant . By combining information from multiple users, SHERLOCK creates a local database of facts that are then available to other people using the software. The software could really come in handy in places where large crowds are gathering for instance, at music festivals or designated emergency evacuation sites. "It can also ask people questions, like 'How big is the crowd at your location?' and then work out where are the smallest crowds from the responses," Preece said. And because the program stores much of the information it gathers from users locally, on the users' cell phones, you don't have to be connected to a wireless network to use the software, he added. That makes SHERLOCK really useful in situations in which networks might be down (such as during a storm) or jammed up and slow (such as during huge public gatherings). The controlled natural language used by SHERLOCK is just one way to make communication between machines and humans easier. Earlier this year, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) unveiled Siri-like softwarethat helps humans make more informed decisions by asking them questions about their priorities. For example, the software can calculate the best route to take to the airport depending on whether you're in a hurry or you would like to first stop at a five-star restaurant for dinner. This year, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the experimental arm of the U.S. military, also launched its Communicating with Computers(CwC) program, which aims to break down human-machine language barriers . In February, the agency unveiled a program that promotes the development of new communication methods that could be useful in fields like robotics and medical research. Other researchers, including those at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, are bypassing language altogether by developing interfaces that let humans control technologies using only brainwaves . Follow Elizabeth Palermo @ techEpalermo . Follow Live Science @livescience , Facebook & Google+ . Original article on Live Science . 11 Odd and Intriguing Smart Home Technologies Photo Future: 7 High-Tech Ways to Share Photos 5 Crazy Technologies That Are Revolutionizing Biotech
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On her hit TV show "Jane the Virgin," which kicks off its second season tonight, star Gina Rodriguez weathers no shortage of curveballs: an unplanned pregnancy after being artificially inseminated by mistake. A love triangle, nefarious drug lord and baby-snatching. While perhaps not as, ah, dramatic as the TV cliffhangers, Rodriguez, 31, is opening up about a real-life struggle. When she was 19, she was diagnosed with hypothyroidism which happens when the thyroid gland doesn't produce enough of important hormones, potentially leading to problems such as obesity, joint pain, infertility and heart disease. Years later, while shooting the pilot for "Jane," she grew very ill and was ultimately diagnosed with the autoimmune condition Hashimoto's disease. According to the National Institutes of Health, Hashimoto's disease arises when the immune system attacks the thyroid gland , causing inflammation and the inability to sufficiently produce thyroid hormones. It causes symptoms ranging from fatigue and sluggishness to a puffy face, hoarse voice, muscle aches and tenderness, stiff joints and unexplained weight gain. For some patients, treatment includes thyroid hormone replacement therapy, an often lifelong regimen. Untreated Hashimoto's disease can lead to heart problems, mental health issues like depression, decreased sexual interest and birth defects in babies born to women with the disease. Rodriguez spoke with U.S. News about her diagnosis and the punchy way she keeps stress in check via an email interview. Her responses have been edited. When were you diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease, and what led to the diagnosis? What kind of symptoms were you experiencing? I was diagnosed when I was 19 years old I was attending New York University and got very sick. The doctors thought I had mono, but it turned out to be thyroid disease. Ten years later, I found out I had Hashimoto's and my doctor said I could have had it for many years. The symptoms I was experiencing included extreme fatigue and weakening of the muscles, and it was very hard to stand on my own. I had chills and no appetite. How did you feel when you were diagnosed? Were you surprised? Worried? My mother has had it my whole life, so I think I was expecting it. I used to ask why she complained so much about being tired, and it gave me an opportunity to understand it firsthand. Now I appreciate her strength even more. What's living with this disease like how does it affect your life and well-being? I'm always tired regardless of the amount of sleep I get, but you just pull through. Depression is one of the symptoms, so it's important to stay positive and have good people around you. How do you manage your condition? I take medicine every morning, I try to do 30 minutes of cardio a day, I take naps when my body asks for it and I try to eat as healthy as possible. What made you take up boxing? I grew up in a boxing household my father was a professional referee. It's my favorite sport. It's my favorite form of working out, and I don't have a victims' walk because of it. How does boxing help you manage Hashimoto's disease? Cardio is very important for the thyroid , and boxing is all cardio. Season two of "Jane the Virgin" premiers tonight you clearly have a lot going on. What are your favorite stress-busters? Boxing! What's your advice for others coping with Hashimoto's disease or another diagnosis? Knowing what your body is going through and using your mind to push that growth, that change, that challenge forward is key. When I was diagnosed, I was relieved because then I knew what I was fighting and could find different ways to win. And I have been working on it for years, and will keep working on making myself strong and healthy. You have the strength I'm not saying it will be easy, but you can do it , and you can win. Copyright 2015 U.S. News & World Report
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20 of the Lightest Cars Sold in the U.S. 20 of the Lightest Cars Sold in the US The cars on U.S. roads have continued to gain weight over the years. Your average midsize sedan now checks in at 3,300 pounds, and some compact cars have gotten so heavy that they also weigh more than 3,000 pounds. As cars continue to grow and contain more equipment, they get heavier; however, not all of them have passed the 3,000-pound threshold. Plenty are still under that mark. With the continued push for better fuel economy without sacrificing safety, space, and performance, automakers will be forced to make their vehicles lighter than to meet government requirements. Here is a compilation of cars that have a head start on the rest of the industry when it comes to cutting weight. All of these vehicles weigh less than 3,000 pounds, even in their heaviest and/or range-topping variants. Follow MSN Autos on Facebook 20. Toyota Corolla Weight : 2,800 pounds (2,875 pounds for the LE Eco Premium with CVT) One of the best-selling vehicles worldwide, the Toyota Corolla offers excellent fuel economy and generous interior space wrapped in a compact package. For those who don't want to go the hybrid route but value great fuel economy, the Corolla Eco offers up to 30/42 mpg city/highway with the CVT, which is one of the best in its segment. Related Link: Research the Toyota Corolla 19. Subaru BRZ Weight: 2,764 pounds (2,778 pounds for the manual Limited trim; 2,824 with 6AT) One of a handful of modern sports cars that focus on handling rather than outright brute force, the Subaru BRZ was developed together with the Scion FR-S in a bid to offer enthusiasts an affordable performance machine. Featuring a high-revving 200-hp flat-four and a chassis tuned specifically for the world's best twisty roads, the BRZ is all about making sure you, the driver, have as much fun as possible. Related Link: Research the Subaru BRZ 18. Scion FR-S Weight : 2,758 pounds (2,806 pounds with 6AT) The BRZ's twin, the Scion FR-S, is just as lively as and weighs slightly less due to it not having as many standard features as its Subaru brother. Driving fun remains the FR-S' main goal, and when you opt for the FR-S equipped with the slick six-speed manual gearbox, you'll be rewarded with one of the best driving experiences for the money and plenty of sideways action whenever you please. Related Link: Research the Scion FR-S 17. Kia Soul Weight : 2,714 pounds (2,837 pounds for the Plus and Exclaim trims) Despite its raised ride height, the Kia Soul is a hatchback, not a crossover. Quirkiness remains its forte, and thanks to its boxy shape it's got plenty of space for you, your friends, and some grooving on your night out on the town. The available Infinity by Harman Kardon audio system ensures that the music doesn't stop and the party lasts even when you're on the road. Related Link: Research the Kia Soul 16. Kia Rio Weight: 2,656 pounds (2,729 pounds for the SX trim) Economical and bubbly, the current generation is one of the models that helped Kia move away from its old image as a maker of cheap, boring transportation. Although it's still affordable, the Rio, especially the hatchback, is stylish and spacious and features an interior that can hold up to 49.8 cubic feet with the split-folding rear seats down. The SX trim comes generously equipped with Bluetooth, leather upholstery, heated front seats, a rearview camera, navigation, and a 7-inch touchscreen for the infotainment system. Related Link: Research the Kia Rio 15. Honda CR-Z Weight : 2,639 pounds (2,716 pounds for the EX trim with Navigation and CVT) Touted as a sport hybrid, the Honda CR-Z never really lived up to its promise of affordable performance-minded hybrid due to its lack of power and average-for-a-hybrid fuel economy. However, you can change that by opting for the HPD upgrade kit, which adds a supercharger, a limited-slip differential, a sports exhaust, a more aggressive suspension setup, and bigger brakes for improved performance, plus a generous power boost to 197 hp and 176 lb-ft of torque (from 130 hp and 140 lb-ft). Related Link: Research the Honda CR-Z 14. Mini Hardtop in Cooper Trim Weight : 2,625 pounds (2,930 pounds for the Hardtop 4-Door in Cooper S trim) Although it's grown larger and heavier than before, the Mini Hardtop is thankfully still less than 3,000 pounds and remains a nimble machine that provides plenty of smiles from behind the wheel without sacrificing fuel economy. Should you want something more mind-boggling, the 228-hp JCW Hardtop will keep you grinning from ear to ear. Just be sure to bring a radar detector with you because the car's power and torque will get you over legal speeds quickly. Related Link: Research Mini Models 13. Ford Fiesta Weight : 2,537 pounds (2,742 pounds for the Fiesta ST) One of the best-driving subcompacts available today, the Ford Fiesta offers everything from a fuel economy-minded SFE model good for up to 43 mpg on the highway to the fun-to-drive Fiesta ST hot hatch. Regardless of the model you choose as long as it has a manual gearbox you're guaranteed to have a smile on your face behind the wheel and plenty of money in your pocket from the money you saved during fill ups. R elated Link: Research the Ford Fiesta 12. Honda Fit Weight : 2,513 pounds (2,642 pounds for EX-L trim) The Honda Fit makes sorcery a reality with its spacious cabin and the useful four-position Magic Seats, which give the car its hallmark flexibility. Should twisty roads beckon, there's no need to worry. The Fit remains one of the best subcompacts to drive thanks to its responsive powertrains and well-tuned chassis. Additionally, your bank account will thank you for driving a Fit because of its excellent fuel economy. Related Link: Research the Honda Fit 11. Toyota Prius C Weight : 2,500 pounds With an impressive city fuel economy rating of 53 mpg and tidy dimensions, the Toyota Prius C is an ideal city car for the environmentally conscious. Using a powertrain than combines a 1.5-liter I-4 with an electric motor for a total output of 99 hp, the Prius C is a great choice for the urban jungle. Just make sure you climb up grades slowly because pushing the car's powertrain hard will result in all of its fuel economy benefits going down the drain. Related Link: Research the Toyota Prius C 10. Hyundai Accent Weight : 2,480 pounds (2,635 pounds for the Sport trim with 6AT) The Hyundai Accent shares its underpinnings with the Kia Rio, but it's lighter despite having larger exterior dimensions. Unlike its sibling, the Accent continues to offer a six-speed manual gearbox alongside a six-speed automatic in all trim levels. However, when it comes to tech options, there aren't many available, which is one of the reasons it doesn't weigh much (a loaded hatch is shown here). Related Link: Research the Hyundai Accent 9. Alfa Romeo 4C Weight : 2,465 pounds (2,487 for the 4C Spider) Seductive and very Italian, the Alfa Romeo 4C and 4C Spider offer raw, cutting-edge performance and handling in a lightweight turbocharged package that's sexy and distinctive. Although it doesn't offer much in terms of onboard technology and comforts, it does deliver driving fun in spades, which is what matters most when you're behind the wheel of a sports car such as the 4C. Underpinning that attractive exterior is a carbon-fiber monocoque that keeps weight down and a world-class chassis that makes the car a pleasure to throw into corners. Related Link: Research the Alfa Romeo 4C 8. Nissan Versa Weight : 2,396 pounds (2,523 pounds for the Versa Note SR) Touted as the cheapest vehicle money can buy brand new, the Nissan Versa and Versa Note are also some of the lightest cars available. In terms of practicality, the diminutive sedan and hatch are some of the roomiest subcompacts available today, the latter offering excellent cargo space, flexibility, and midsize sedan-rivaling passenger space. Related Link: Research the Nissan Versa 7. 2016 Scion iA Weight : 2,385 pounds (2,416 pounds with 6AT) Essentially a rebadged Mazda2 sedan, the Scion iA is packed with all of Mazda's Skyactiv technologies, which means it has a rigid but lightweight chassis, body, and suspension; a high compression ratio engine; and slick gearboxes. As a result, the iA is more fun to drive than your average subcompact and returns more than 40 mpg regardless of the gearbox chosen. There's also a standard infotainment system with an available SD card-based navigation add-on that's user-friendly and one of the best in its class. Related Link: Research the Scion iA 6. 2016 Fiat 500 Weight : 2,366 pounds (2,545 pounds for the 500 Abarth Cabrio) Despite being nearly 10 years old, the Fiat 500 remains stylish, bubbly, and full of Italian personality. If you want the wind in your experience as you cruise down the boulevards, there's also a convertible variant with a fabric roof that rolls down. A performance-minded Abarth variant is also available, as is a 1957 Edition for the maximum Italian city car experience with dash of retro-chic flair featuring pastel colors and throwback alloy wheel designs. Related Link: Research the Fiat 500 5.2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata Weight : 2,332 pounds (2,381 pounds with 6AT) For its fourth generation, the Mazda MX-5 Miata continues to be one of the purest driving experiences money can buy and the poster child of obsessive weight reduction. The most impressive aspect of the Miata's weight reduction is that it shed nearly 150 pounds without sacrificing safety or resorting to expensive materials such as carbon fiber. Although the car lost some power for 2016, the lighter curb weight, better balance, and superior power-to-weight ratio has made it the quickest and best-driving MX-5 to date. This is jinbaittai (horse and rider as one) fully realized. Related Link: Research the Mazda MX-5 Miata 4. 2016 Toyota Yaris Weight : 2,315 pounds (2,335 pounds with 4AT) Although it isn't the most interesting car to drive, the Toyota Yaris excels at its primary mission: being basic transportation. Fuel efficiency remains one of its strengths despite its age, and the fact that it's a hatchback means it's also practical and spacious for its size. For 2016, Toyota decided to add a little bit of flair to the Yaris with contrasting two-tone exterior color choices. Related Link: Research the Toyota Yaris 3. 2016 Chevrolet Spark Weight : 2,246 pounds (2,312 lbs with CVT) For its redesign, the 2016 Chevrolet Spark offers unexpected tech such as forward collision warning and lane departure warning to help you stay safe. Like its predecessor, the new Spark is also available in a host of vibrant exterior colors to make your car into a personal styling statement. Should you need to stay connected at all times, the Spark has you covered with available 4G LTE connectivity and a standard MyLink infotainment system that's been revamped with a 7-inch touchscreen and Google Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility. Related Link: Research the Chevrolet Spark 2. 2016 Smart ForTwo Weight : 1,984 pounds (2,053 pounds with 6-speed dual-clutch transmission) A smidge larger but more adorable than ever before, the 2016 Smart Fortwo is full of charm and bubbliness in a small, city-friendly package. Like the previous generation, the new Fortwo lets you customize its design to your heart's content with a range of exterior colors and two-tone interiors. The car's safety cell can also be customized so that it contrasts with the main exterior color, which means you'll have one of the most distinguishable vehicles on the block. Related Link: Research the Smart Fortwo 1. 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Weight : 1,973 pounds (2,051 pounds for the ES trim with CVT) As one of the least expensive new vehicles money can buy, the Mitsubishi Mirage is also the most basic, and it takes the title of being the lightest car available. With a limited options list that includes navigation, Bluetooth connectivity, and keyless entry/start, the Mirage doesn't have a lot of gadgets that add more weight, but you can get it with some bright exterior colors such as purple, yellow, neon green, red, and a bright blue to spice things up a bit and make your little city runabout a bit more interesting to look at. Related Link: Research the Mitsubishi Mirage
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Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are not the only candidates prepping for the debate. Three other Democrats will also share the spotlight.
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The biggest tech deal ever will help Dell diversify away from PCs toward the faster growing market for managing and storing data. Fred Katayama reports.
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A man in Oregon was arrested for car theft while wearing a shirt that was equally honest and unfortunate. Gillian Pensavalle (@GillianWithaG) explains.
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Week 5 in the NFL yielded three overtime games and an array of unexpected developments. Preseason playoff hopefuls such as the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs find themselves with a combined 2-8 record. The Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys, two teams expecting to play deep into January, have losing records. Five teams New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons are all unbeaten in a league defined by parity. As usual, Sunday produced typical knee-jerk reactions and overreactions. Here's five and why they are off-base: 1. Don't believe in Andy Dalton until he proves it in the playoffs. Yes, Dalton needs to improve his 0-4 playoff record, and fast. But he's not the only quarterback dealing with playoff struggles. Let's give him credit for an outstanding start to his fifth NFL season. This isn't a game manager at quarterback. If his success continues, he's a dark horse MVP candidate. Dalton has 11 touchdown passes and just two interceptions. He's on pace to throw for more than 4,500 yards. He is accurate. He makes prudent decisions. And he remains upright. Dalton has a strong offensive line and an arsenal of skill position players as good as almost any team in the league. Tight end Tyler Eifert, who had two touchdowns in the comeback victory over Seattle, has been a major contributor. 2. The Broncos will win big in spite of Peyton Manning. Let's not get carried away with ragging on Manning. Yes, the Broncos remain unbeaten because of their defense. Yes, the velocity on many of Manning's passes leaves a lot to be desired. And yes, it's striking to see that he has more interceptions (seven) than touchdowns (six). The Broncos should be formidable enough to emerge as AFC West champs. But if they are going to be a legitimate threat in the playoffs, Manning will need to play a more productive role, even at 39. He is going to have to become more of a game manager. And he likely will need to become more conservative. It would help if the Broncos find some success in the running game. Let's not finish off what may be the final chapter of Manning's career just yet. But he needs to continue to adjust in the latter stages of his career if the Broncos are to compete with the league's best. 3. Devonta Freeman is a nice little story, but it won't last -- and the 5-0 Falcons are a paper tiger. This is not the season for a lot of notable running backs to shine. But there's enough of a sample size to see that Freeman is for real. In his last three games, Freeman has amassed 539 yards and seven touchdowns. In Sunday's overtime victory over the Washington Redskins, the 5-foot-8 Freeman rushed for 153 yards and caught seven passes for 44 yards. The scariest thing for the rest of the NFC is that we see that Matt Ryan and Julio Jones do not have to have remarkable days for the Falcons to win. First-year coach Dan Quinn has changed the culture and injected a Seattle-like edge into the emerging defense. What's more, other than two games against Carolina, the schedule could not be much softer. Barring something unforeseen, the Falcons should have a gaudy record, and count on Freeman playing a leading role in that success. 4. Matt Cassel will cure the Cowboys' offensive woes. Uh, no. The answers to the Cowboys' offensive struggles are Dez Bryant and Tony Romo. When Dallas plays again following its bye week Oct. 25 at the New York Giants it may be best to replace Brandon Weeden with the veteran Cassel. What do the Cowboys have to lose? The offense can't look much worse than it looked against the Patriots. But to think that the offense will dramatically come to life with Cassel at QB is misguided. Yes, he is a more accomplished quarterback than Weeden. And Weeden is both limited and mistake prone. But this offense just does not have enough playmakers with Bryant and running back Lance Dunbar (knee) sidelined. It has virtually no running game right now. Whether it's Weeden or Cassel at QB, the Cowboys will have a hard time beating almost any team. Jerry Jones must be counting the days until Nov. 22, the earliest Romo can return from his broken left collarbone. 5. The Eagles are who we thought they were, and Chip Kelly is a genius again. Nah, let's pump the brakes on that a bit, even after the 39-17 thrashing of the mostly hapless New Orleans Saints. The key part of that sentence was the following: New Orleans Saints. You can make the case that the Saints (if not the Texans) are the worst team in the league. If beating the Saints meant a whole lot this season, we'd be crowning the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. What Sunday showed was that it's premature to bury the Eagles. Let's not pencil in Kelly for the potential soon-to-be-open USC job just yet. They still have a pulse, especially in a division as middling as the NFC East, where nine wins might give you the outright division title. Sam Bradford still threw two interceptions in the red zone in the first half. At least DeMarco Murray finally had some success on the ground. But unless the Eagles beat the Giants next week, don't get too excited. Follow Eric Prisbell on Twitter @EricPrisbell
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With the onset of winter fast approaching (there must be some Toros in the atmosphere) it's only natural to want to curl up in a ball and get cozy. Whether you're settling in to Netflix and chill with an S.O., or treating yourself to an at-home spa day because brunch is so last season, we've got 29 cute and cheap home buys that are sure to delight. Click through and let us know in the comments: What are your seasonal essentials? Rifle Paper Co.'s gorgeous new collection for Paperless Post, which made its debut last week at the aptly named Bloom Room. Rifle Paper Co. Folk Floral - Orange, $1.59, available at Paperless Post . A clever, nostalgic way to display your favorite Instagrams. Umbra Umbra Picture Frames, Set of 9 Snap, $24.99, available at Macy's . SPONSORED This stacked, mix-and-match teacup set has a minimal footprint, and its plaid design gives your breakfast a classic touch.Target Tea Cup Set, available at Target stores. . Kind of indulgent kind of necessary. A.P.C. Post Poo Drops, $29, available at A.P.C. . If space is at a premium, put your vase on the wall! Bomisch Hanging Clear Glass Wall Pocket, $24, available at Bomisch . These great candleholders come in an assortment of poppy colors. Hem Punched Metal Candle Holder, $29, available at Hem . This super cute jewelry tree is girly and sophisticated. West Elm Prisma Jewelry Tree, $25, available at West Elm . Literally the best thing ever? MoMA Store Alexander Girard Cocktail Napkins, $5, available at MoMA Store . A tiny woven basket that's perfect for your keys. Local and Lejos Akazi Bowl - Small, $22, available at Local and Lejos . These decorative objets are so necessary for A-game tablescaping. One Kings Lane Asst. of 3 Forma Objets, Gold, $25, available at One Kings Lane . Simple, chic, and timeless, this vase is a surefire win. Mikasa Laura Teardrop Vase, 12", $22.99, available at Macy's . Upgrade your desk situation with these copper clips. Anthropologie Copper-Plated Desk Clips, $14, available at Anthropologie . A slim, rectangular tray is great for neatly arranging items bottles of hand lotion, a ceramic bowl full of matchbooks in a straight line. Plum & Bow Plum & Bow Rami Tray, $18, available at Urban Outfitters . Gold-tipped feathers might be the perfect home accessory for the holidays. One Kings Lane S/5 Pheasant Tail Feathers w/ Gold, $19, available at One Kings Lane . In case you light a lot of fires, a jumbo matchbox in malachite is just what the (decor) doctor ordered. One Kings Lane Match Box, Malachite, $15, available at One Kings Lane . Oscar de la Renta napkins set the entertaining bar high. Oscar de la Renta White Ikat Dot Square Napkin, $20, available at Oscar de la Renta . Another tiny tray, great for corralling smaller items. Mochi Things Small Pattern Tray, $11.95, available at Fine Life Co . A puzzle is perfect for days stuck inside. Bryce Wilner Gradient Color Puzzle, $20, available at Poketo . A tiny cork planter brings the outdoors in. Melanie Abrantes Mini Cork Planter, $25, available at Melanie Abrantes . A decorative horseshoe, because good luck never goes out of style. CB2 Delta Horseshoe, $23.95, available at CB2 . These tiny vessels are totally charming as bud vases. Natalie Weinberger Diminutive Vessel, $28, available at The Primary Essentials . Gorgeous copper cups work pretty much anywhere, from your home office to the bathroom. Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co. Copper Cup, $22, available at Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co . These wall pegs are some of our favorites they're an easy and affordable (not to mention fun) way to make a statement at home. Hem Punched Metal Hook Small, $20, available at Hem . This fiddle leaf fig print is perfect for anyone with a troubled history of caring for plants. Fine Life Co Fiddle Leaf Poster, $14, available at Fine Life Co . These grape encyclopedia note cards are an ideal gift for winos and snack aficionados alike. Postalco Grapes Encyclopedia Cards, $10, available at Need Supply Co . This cute corkscrew is another great gift for the vino-minded the author would just like to say, "hint, hint." Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co. Beechwood Corkscrew, $28, available at Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co . Winter is a great time for at-home spa treatments. This deluxe facial steam is a surefire way to relax and recharge from the comfort of your own humble abode. Marble & Milkweed Blossom Facial Steam, $15, available at Marble & Milkweed . Brass plates are great for storing jewelry and other small items. Nickey Kehoe Brass Small Plates and Trays, $13, available at Nickey Kehoe . Incense infuses your space with a cool, calm, and collected atmosphere. JM Dry Goods Copal Incense, $14, available at JM Dry Goods . A small rug that's perfect bedside, or underfoot in the bathroom. Magical Thinking Magical Thinking Triangle Chindi Rag Rug, $24, available at Urban Outfitters .
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The Cubs and Mets are looking to follow the Astros' lead for NLDS Game 3, putting their ace on the mound at home with a chance to put them up 2 1 after splitting the first two games on the road. Dallas Keuchel did the job for Houston on Sunday; Jake Arrieta and Matt Harvey will get their chances on Monday. As for the importance of a tie-breaking Game 3: 78% of teams to win Game 3 after splitting the first two games of a best-of-five series have gone on to win the series. Cardinals at Cubs Series: NLDS Game 3; series tied 1 1 Start Time: 6:00 p.m. ET TV: TBS Starting Pitchers: Michael Wacha (17 7, 3.38 ERA) vs. Jake Arrieta (22 6, 1.77 ERA) • As was the case in the wild-card game, this game is all about Arrieta. His shutout of the Pirates in the wild-card game extended his scoreless streak to 31 innings covering his last four starts, two of which were 11-strikeout shutouts. Since the calendar flipped to August, he has allowed a run in just four of his 13 starts and an earned run in just three of those, posting a 0.37 ERA over that span by giving up just four earned runs in 88 1/3 innings; that's an average of more than 7 1/3 innings pitched per start. The Cubs have won Arrieta's last 14 starts and his last 18 in which they have scored a run (the lone loss in that span coming when Cole Hamels no-hit them on July 30). • The Cardinals got to Arrieta once in May, before he turned into an unstoppable pitching cyborg, scoring five runs in 5 1/3 innings against him in St. Louis. They also won a game started by the Terminator version of Arrieta in late June by holding Chicago to two runs and beating the Cubs' bullpen after Arrieta departed in the eighth (though it took them extra innings to do it). The latter seems like the Cardinals' best hope in this game, which puts significant pressure on Wacha to keep his team within striking distance. Of course, beating the Cubs' bullpen requires getting Arrieta out of the game, which is no given. Two of his last four starts and three of his last eight were shutouts, and he has completed fewer than eight innings in just two of his last eight starts, one of which was a postseason tuneup in which he threw just 72 pitches. • One major concern for the Cardinals is that Wacha, despite his fine regular-season numbers, struggled in September. The righthander posted a 7.88 ERA in five September starts, only one of which was quality, walking 18 men against 19 strikeouts and allowing seven home runs in just 24 innings (a rate of 2.6 HR/9, more than 2 1/2 times the league-average rate). Even more troubling for St. Louis: Two of those starts came against the Cubs, with Wacha allowing 10 runs in nine innings while walking seven and allowing four home runs (to Anthony Rizzo, Starlin Castro, Jorge Soler and Kris Bryant). • Wacha's struggles against the Cubs weren't limited to September. He made four starts against Chicago this season and three of them were poor; add in his third-most recent start against the Cubs, and Wacha has allowed 15 runs in his last 15 innings against the Cubs. Kyle Schwarber has never faced Wacha, but if Joe Maddon starts him and Soler (who is 2-for-2 with a double, a homer and three walks in this series) in his outfield corners in this game, then the Cubs' starting lineup, including Arrieta, will have a combined career line of .337/.491/.616 against Wacha with six home runs in 93 plate appearances. • As for that September swoon, there's a very good chance that Wacha is simply out of gas. His previous career high in innings was the 180 1/3 he threw in a seven-month span between the minors, majors and postseason in 2013, but he threw just 109 1/3 last year due to injury and has now tossed 181 1/3 over a six-month span this season. Wacha will have had 11 days' rest coming into this game, but he had 10 days' rest going into his Sept. 8 start against the Cubs and gave up six runs in four innings in that game, so the time off seems unlikely to help. In fact, he has allowed 11 runs in nine innings in his two starts on more than six days' rest this year. • Bryant and Rizzo, the Nos. 3 and 4 hitters in the Cubs' lineup, are a combined 0-for-21 thus far this postseason, but both have good career numbers against Wacha, especially the lefthanded Rizzo, who is 10-for-22 (.455) career against the Cardinals' righty with a pair of home runs. • The Cardinals hit five home runs in the first two games of this series, scoring six of their seven runs via the long ball. But Arrieta, whose extreme ground-ball rate has been a key part of his success over the last 3 1/2 months, has allowed just two home runs over his last 20 starts. Meanwhile, the eight Cardinals hitters to have drawn a start so far in this series (not counting Stephen Piscotty, who has been St. Louis' best hitter through the first two games but has never faced Arrieta) have combined to hit .188/.275/.248 against Arrieta in his career, and those are numbers that are not limited to his current hot streak. • MORE MLB: Full postseason schedule, start times, TV listings Dodgers at Mets Series: NLDS Game 3; series tied 1 1 Start Time: 8:30 p.m. ET TV: TBS Starting Pitchers: Brett Anderson (10 9, 3.69 ERA) vs. Matt Harvey (13 8, 2.71 ERA) • The atmosphere in what will be Citi Field's first ever postseason game is sure to be charged, and the fans may be bloodthirsty. But the Mets have a game to win here, and they should be focused on that, not retribution for the injury to Ruben Tejada. I suspect that part of Joe Torre's thinking in suspending Utley for Games 3 and 4 of this series, a suspension that Utley is appealing, was a desire to avoid the Colosseum atmosphere of Game 2 of the 2000 World Series, which Torre managed for the Yankees. That featured the first confrontation between Mike Piazza and Roger Clemens after Clemens hit Piazza in the front of the helmet with a pitch earlier that year, giving him a concussion, and the tension in that game boiled over in the bizarre bat-throwing incident . It will be on the Mets and Harvey not to allow things to get ugly in this game, regardless of Utley's presence or lack thereof. • Wilmer Flores will replace Tejada in the lineup and at shortstop; to replace Tejada on the roster, the Mets have called up 24-year-old Triple A shortstop Matt Reynolds, who hit .267/.319/.402 in 115 games for Las Vegas this year but did not appear in the majors this season and thus hasn't played since the end of the minor-league season on Sept. 7. Flores and Tejada combined to start 163 of the Mets' 164 games this season at shortstop; the only other Met to appear at the position this season is veteran utilityman Kelly Johnson, whose start on Sept. 27 remains his only major league appearance there. Dilson Herrera has never played shortstop professionally, and Juan Uribe, who did not make the NLDS roster due to a chest injury, has yet to resume baseball activities. Thus Reynolds, the Triple A starter this season, got the call. • If he appears in a game this postseason, Reynolds will become just the second player in the modern era to make his major league debut in the postseason, joining the Athletics' Mark Kiger, who appeared as a defensive replacement at second base in the final two games of Oakland's loss to the Tigers in the 2006 ALCS. Those remain Kiger's only two major league appearances; now 35, he hasn't played professionally since 2009 and is the only major leaguer ever to appear exclusively in the postseason. • Even if Utley is active for this game, he likely won't be in the starting lineup. Still, it seems worth noting that of all of the players on the Dodgers' NLDS roster, the only one Harvey has hit with a pitch before is Utley, whom he has plunked three times in 21 plate appearances. If Utley is indeed serving his suspension in this game, the Dodgers will be forced to play with a 24-man roster. • For all of the sturm und drang about Harvey's innings limit a month ago, he wound up sailing past the "hard" 180-inning limit his agent, and supposedly his doctor, recommended, finishing the season with 189 1/3 innings pitched, 11 more than his previous career high. He will obviously add to that total tonight. Harvey was roughed up by the Nationals in his first start after the innings limit issue exploded, but in three starts after that, he posted a 1.02 ERA and struck out 24 against one walk in 17 2/3 innings. Even with that poor start in Washington included, Harvey has posted a 2.05 ERA over his last 17 starts, and on the season, he went 8 3 with a 2.23 ERA at Citi Field. • Speaking of innings, Anderson set career highs this year in innings (180 1/3) and starts (31), staying healthy for a full season for the first time since his rookie year in 2009. In part because of all of the time he has missed due to injury, this will be his first career start against the Mets, and only three members of New York's NLDS roster have ever faced him before; one of them, Johnson, has just done so just once. Curtis Granderson, who is 4-for-6 with two walks in this series, has gone 5-for-12 (.417) with a home run and a walk against the lefthanded Anderson. Michael Cuddyer, who started Game 1 against the lefthanded Clayton Kershaw only to go 0-for-3 and play two fly balls to leftfield into hits, has gone 1-for-12 with five strikeouts against Anderson.
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Actor Randy Quaid is due to appear in court over a vandalism case just days after he and his wife were arrested for trying to enter the US from Canada. Quaid and his wife Evi are wanted in Santa Barbara to face felony vandalism charges filed in 2010 after they were found squatting and allegedly causing more than $5,000 in damage to a property they once owned. The pair fled to Canada where Evi was granted dual US-Canadian citizenship. Randy requested for refugee status, claiming his life was in danger for organized crime, but was denied.
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Celebrity news for Oct. 12, 2015 Jennifer Lawrence gives Aziz Ansari a piggyback ride This month's adorability award goes to Jennifer Lawrence and Aziz Ansari. Vanity Fair posted a photo of J. Law giving her comedian pal a piggyback ride outside Wayfarer Restaurant in New York over the weekend, where Celebitchy reports the buddies were spending time with Amy Schumer before and after her appearance on " Saturday Night Live " Oct. 10. Last week, Jen, Aziz and Amy, along with Chris Pratt, reportedly enjoyed a group sleepover in Atlanta, complete with Insta-shenanigans . And yes. We are jealous. Vin Diesel shows off his 'dad bod' After a photo of Vin Diesel looking much less chiseled than usual made rounds on the Interwebs last week, the actor took a moment to clear up any possible misconceptions about what he calls his "dad bod." "It is amazing the response from the journalists who I have been talking to for the last two days in New York," Vin wrote in the Instagram caption of a more typically smokin' hot photo of himself. "Today one wanted to see the dad bod. Haha!" he added. "I am wondering if I should show the picture... Body-shaming is always wrong! What do you think?" In a second pic, he lifted his t-shirt above his abs, showing off said "dad bod." "The pic from yesterday...," he wrote. "For those who wanted the show... For all the angels that love dad bod regardless..." Teresa Giudice 'got shaken down' in prison Teresa Giudice's life as a reality TV star isn't making things any easier for her in prison. In a sneak preview of an upcoming episode of " Watch What Happens Live ," Teresa tells her husband Joe that guards believed she was hiding a cell phone after their daughter, Gia, tweeted out a thank you to fans for supporting her. "I got shaken down," Teresa said, according to People . The " Real Housewives " star is expected to continue serving her sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Conn., until early next year . Katy Perry gives Hillary Clinton a fundraising hand Hillary Clinton is adding some star power to an upcoming fundraiser via Katy Perry. According to Jezebel , Katy's slated to rally folks in support of the presidential hopeful prior to the Iowa Democratic Party's Jefferson-Jackson dinner on Oct. 24. The singer recently offered to pen Hillary's campaign theme song. New York gets its first Will Ferrell theme bar Reached your saturation point on rewatching old Will Ferrell movies? The Big Apple's got your back. At a new Lower East Side bar called Stay Classy, New York, Jezebel reports you can wet your whistle with a variety of Will-inspired cocktails, including the "Did We Just Become Best Friends?," a riff on a line from " Step Brothers, " an " Anchorman "-inspired "Smelly Pirate Hooker," or a "We're Going Streaking," which gets its name from " Old School ." As an old wise man named Ron Burgundy once said, "here it goes down in my belly." Tyga's mug shot is framed and on display in Kylie Jenner's living room How sweet. It seems Kylie Jenner keeps a memento of her man, Tyga, in her living room -- in the form of a framed edition of his mug shot. The rapper was arrested three years ago, according to JustJared, and showed off the not-so-romantic decor accent in a tour on her mobile app. Kids today. John Stamos and the Olsen twins remain friends Uncle Jesse would like you to rest assured there is no drama regarding the Olsen twins' decision not to appear on " Fuller House ." "No, that's not true," he told Andy Cohen recently, according to JustJared . "There was a lot of stuff in the press that wasn't true about that," John said. "I called them up and asked them to do it. They're in a different phase in their life. They haven't acted in a long time, but everything is super sweet with us." St. Vincent spotted waiting tables in Dallas While her model girlfriend Cara Delevingne partied in London with friends, rocker St. Vincent tossed an apron around her waist and got busy helping a relative open a new restaurant in Dallas, according to People . "Hungry? thirsty? when do u ever get to have Annie brings u the best tacos and margaritas to your table!" wrote one fan, sharing a photo of the singer during her foray into table-waiting over the weekend. "Dallas people, go to @residenttaqueria this weekend and let waitress extraordinaire @st_vincent serve you delicious tacos y margaritas!" the fan added. "Seriously, the food is amazing. #shortribtacos #palomastoo." Rooney Mara: 'It's time' for LGBT movies "It's time" for LGBT-centric movies, says Rooney Mara, who stars in " Carol ," a film about a lesbian relationship that recently screened at the New York Film Festival. "There's a lot of people who go through that experience and there aren't a lot of films in the past [that] have dealt with it," she told the New York Post . Sandra Bernhard, who was in the audience for the screening, chimed in as well, noting how pop culture can help open minds. "When people become more comfortable with things shifting, whether its race or sex or religion or gender, they make movies about it, TV shows, music," Sandra said. "That's a good thing. Any time you make a … great piece of art, it opens people up." Emily Blunt: Tom Cruise is my new diet pill Post-baby body courtesy of Tom Cruise. Emily Blunt, who welcomed her daughter Hazel with John Krasinski last year, credits Tom with her rapid return to her pre-baby figure. "I always say Tom Cruise is the reason I bounced back after the pregnancy," she told the Independent (via JustJared ). "He should be credited as the new diet pill because he asked me to do 'Edge of Tomorrow' so I was in such good shape when I got pregnant, so after I had Hazel it was easier to bounce back."
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A Nashville-based college football show lands some of the SEC's most insightful media members every Saturday morning. What the guests don't know is they're talking to a 15-year-old broadcasting from his parents' basement. "He's only 15? Are you serious?" said George Plaster, a longtime Nashville sports talk radio host and guest of the show. "That blows my mind!" Billy Derrick, a sophomore at Father Ryan, along with 14-year-old buddy Charlie Sheridan, host a podcast each Saturday morning called "College Football Kickoff Show," which tackles the sport's hottest topics and previews the day's biggest games. They land good guests, highlight in-state teams and even test the temperature of coaches' hot seats. But there's a catch. Media members rarely know they're talking to two teens who are broadcasting on an iPad given as an eighth-grade graduation present. Or that the show's audio contends with preschool-aged siblings bouncing upstairs. "I had no idea they were that young when I went on their show, but you know I never really asked," said Jimmy Hyams, afternoon host on the popular Knoxville Sports Radio WNML. "Good for them. I give them a thumbs-up for having the gumption to do something like that." Billy starts each week emailing sports talk personalities and media members who cover the SEC to request an appearance on his show. It's done professionally with a call-in number, show logo and preferred topic for the guest's segment. But Billy never actually mentions his age or the fact that much of the show's prep work is done on a Five Star notebook similar to the one he uses for Algebra 2 class. "I chose to do it that way because I want to treat it like I'm a professional, not just a kid," said Billy, who also plays for the Father Ryan basketball and baseball teams. "I'm starting to think now that maybe I should tell them I'm 15, and I'm fine doing that. But I just want to do a professional show with good guests and good preparation." Billy, a lifelong Vanderbilt fan, began doing his show in his basement a year ago with no guests and no sidekick. Then this summer he had a brainstorm. Why not bring in Charlie, a Father Ryan freshman and Vols fan, as "our UT insider," and then attempt to book guests the same as any other radio show or podcast? Billy's mother, Kim Derrick, had no idea how much the show had evolved until Plaster called her son's cell phone after school one day. "I was like, 'Billy, how does George Plaster have your cell number?' " Kim recalls. It just happened that Billy had booked Plaster for his 9:35 a.m. segment and needed to confirm the appearance before following him up with fellow guest Braden Gall, who covers college football for Athlon Sports, Bleacher Report and Sirius XM College Sports Nation. "I had no idea he was getting real people, but that's Billy," Kim said. "He sees this as a big picture thing, not just something he does for fun. I know he didn't mean to deceive anyone. He takes this seriously." Shows take place in the boys' "man cave" on one side of Billy's basement in West Meade. The walls are lined with autographed Vanderbilt posters and Major League Baseball pennants. The windowsill is filled with Notre Dame football cards. Atlanta Braves bobbleheads and an Eddie George action figure sit on the nearby shelf alongside a large-print copy of the book "Casey at the Bat." The makeshift studio is walled off from the rest of the basement by an old floral-pattern couch. A treadmill and storage bins full of outdated toys and old blankets sit just feet away from the set of the "College Football Kickoff Show." "We love it down here," said Billy, sitting down at an old desk and turning on his Bluetooth amplifier just before the show starts. Once Billy confirms the lineup of guests, he writes a script early in the week and begins prepping for his Saturday morning show, which runs about 90 minutes. Charlie, who lives down the street, stays at Billy's house on Friday nights so they can rehearse for the next morning's show. "And we like freak out after every show because it gets better every time," Charlie said. The show usually goes smoothly, but there have been hiccups. Billy once had to leave the basement amid a coughing episode, and Charlie winged it for a couple of minutes. "It was the first week, and I almost froze," Charlie said. Just before the first show started in August, the boys asked themselves, "Should we have told them how old we are?" So as the intro music piped in, a wide-eyed Billy said, "Charlie, make your voice deep when the guests call in." Mitch Light, managing editor of the Nashville-based Athlon Sports college football magazine, is a regular guest on the show. He discovered the boys' ages when it came up at his 11-year-old son's baseball practice. "Another dad mentioned the show to me, and then he said Billy went to school with his kids at Father Ryan," Light recalls. "I just didn't know. I thought they were like two guys right out of college, but Billy has never really said their age. Once I found out, I still go on there when I can. It's two local kids, and they do a good job with it." Billy has had plenty of practice. He first became enamored with broadcasting while carrying his transistor radio with him to toss around the football in the yard. He is a sports talk junkie, listening to local and national shows every day after basketball practice. Because he plays sports, Billy's time is limited in Father Ryan's Behind the Crest sports media club, but director Mike Wilson said his skills are apparent. "Billy has done some (public address announcing) at some JV games and other things, and he's pretty good," Wilson said. "He's kind of quiet, so it's a little surprising to find out all that he's been doing (with the podcast). But it's not surprising that he's good at it because Billy really knows sports." Billy hopes to expand the lineup of guests and advertisers before the end of football season. Current sponsors include businesses owned by family and friends. The boys admit they aren't actually paid for the promotions, but Recycling Dudes, a West Meade glass recycling business, once bought them a pair of microphones to enhance the show. "I want to keep getting better, and my dream is to one day be the voice of the (Vanderbilt) Commodores or the Atlanta Braves or Tennessee Titans or do this for ESPN," Billy said. "Being a sports talk host would be the best job in the world." Plaster grinned widely at learning all the details of the 15-year-old's basement broadcasts. "A lot of people trying to get into this business wait for me or someone else to tell them how to do it," Plaster said. "He didn't wait for that. This kid just did it on his own. "Man, that fires me up." -- Billy Derrick, 15, and Charlie Sheridan, 14, distribute their podcast each Saturday morning via email. To listen to the show, contact them on Twitter @CFKickoffShow or email [email protected].
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Three people, including a 17-year-old, were killed and at least 17 others were wounded in separate shootings in Chicago between late afternoon Friday and early Monday morning, police said. The 17-year-old male teen and a man were killed and three people were wounded in shootings between Friday at 3 p.m. and Saturday morning. Ten more people were shot, one fatally, during overnight shootings between Saturday evening and Sunday morning. Another five people were wounded in shootings between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning. The most recent fatal shooting occurred at 4:20 a.m. Sunday in the Washington Park neighborhood on the South Side. Three men were in a parked car in the 5400 block of South Prairie Avenue when another vehicle drove up and someone inside fired shots, said Officer Hector Alfaro, a Chicago police spokesman. A 35-year-old man was shot in the head and taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A 40-year-old man was shot in the back and listed in serious condition, and a 24-year-old man was grazed in the head. His condition was stabilized. Both men were being treated at Stroger Hospital. Another fatal shooting happened at 4:10 a.m. Saturday in the East Garfield Park neighborhood on the West Side, according to Chicago police spokeswoman Officer Janel Sedevic. A 17-year-old boy was riding in a vehicle in the 3900 block of West Ferdinand Street when someone walked up and began firing shots. He was hit in the neck and the face and taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. At 3:20 a.m. Saturday, a 33-year-old man was killed in an apartment in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side. He was attending a party in the 1100 block of North Lawler Avenue when someone shot him in the head, Sedevic said. He was taken to Stroger Hospital and pronounced dead. None of the three people killed have been officially identified as of Monday morning. In the most recent nonfatal shooting, a 28-year-old man showed up at Rush University Medical Center with a gunshot wound to his abdomen around 3:05 a.m. Monday, said Chicago Police Department spokesman Officer Hector Alfaro. Someone dropped off the man at the hospital and left, police said. The man was transferred to Stroger Hospital, and he is listed in critical condition. It was not immediately clear how or where the man was shot, police said. The three homicide victims over the weekend raised the total for 2015 to at least 398 according to data compiled and analyzed by the Tribune. The total number of shooting victims has risen to at least 2,399, the data shows. Both of those numbers are higher than either 2013 or 2014, the data shows.
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Donald Trump, the GOP frontrunner known for insulting his rivals and eschewing political correctness, came to New Hampshire on Monday to talk about the need to get along. At an event sponsored by No Labels, the bipartisan group founded by Democrat-turned-independent Joe Lieberman and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, Trump lamented a gridlocked Washington where "people aren't getting together." He praised the days of Tip O'Neill and Ronald Reagan, where leaders "got things done." And he said the term "compromise" doesn't have to be a dirty word if winning is involved. The real estate mogul predicted that many of his rivals will soon drop out of the presidential race, "and when it becomes a different kind of situation, you'll see I'm going to be much less divisive." Trump has a made a name for himself in this campaign by hurling insults at his GOP competitors-calling Jeb Bush "low energy"; Marco Rubio "a baby"; and harshly referencing Carly Fiorina's "face"-and using inflammatory language to talk about key complicated issues such as immigration. He was, therefore, a peculiar fit for the No Labels event. But he also isn't exactly a man of his party-he's held widely varying views over the years, and his conservative credentials are considered suspect. Still, Trump came to New Hampshire knowing the audience, which was markedly different from the ones that typically attend his campaign appearances. He spoke at length about rebuilding Central Park's Wollman ice rink in the 1980s after working with then-Mayor Ed Koch, a Democrat. "I got everybody together, and we got it done," he said. "You can do that with this country." "People are fed up with incompetent politicians who don't get things done," Trump said, pledging not to take a salary as president. "This is going to be an election largely based on competence." His appearance at the "Problem Solver Convention" in Manchester wasn't all kumbaya, however. When asked by an audience member if his divisive rhetoric on the campaign trail would make it difficult to ultimately get things done,Trump said, "I don't want to be politically correct all the way down the line." "I'm going to have to be who I am," he added. When a woman in the audience told Trump she didn't think he is "a friend to women," the GOP candidate went to his traditional line, without getting specific: "I respect women. I love women. I cherish women." His questioner then asked whether Trump would support pay equity and a woman's right to choose "what to do with her body." He responded that "you're going to make the same if you do as good a job" and that he is pro-life. Trump also defended the Tea Party and the Freedom Caucus in the House, which has thrown a monkey wrench into efforts to elect a new speaker. "I love the Tea Party," he said when asked. "These are people that love this country." He also talked about his continuing lead in the polls, a staple of his stump speech: "People ask, 'Why do you talk about the polls?' Because I'm winning. If [the other candidates] were doing well, they'd be talking about the polls." He also said President Obama "bombed" his interview with "60 Minutes" that aired on Sunday.
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In your first month of marriage , you might be so focused on what you can and should do that you haven't given much thought to the things you might want to avoid. So while you're soaking up time with your new spouse and having amazing married sex , here are four talks and activities best tabled until at least month two. 1. Avoid throwing parties or family get-togethers. "It can be tempting to start entertaining all the time now that you're married," says Esther Boykin , Virginia-based licensed marriage and family therapist and relationship coach, "but it's important for couples to figure out the boundaries of their marriage and where friends and family fit into it before throwing parties." While it's important to build a support system of family and friends who will protect and champion your marriage, try to "nurture your partnership first," Boykin says. "Figure out how to be alone together and navigate your new life. You'll have plenty of time for family dinners and couples game nights at your place in the years to come." 2. Avoid packing up and moving. Saying moving is stressful might be the understatement of the year. By postponing your first big move together , you can "savor the relaxation that usually follows a wedding and honeymoon," says Sari Cooper , New York City-based licensed couples and sex therapist. "Each step of uniting one's lives can be exciting if they're taken one at a time. Hold off on signing new leases or buying a new home for several months to a year." 3. Avoid making any major life decisions. "You're coming off one of the biggest decisions of your life and hopefully feeling very optimistic for your future together," describes Boykin. "That often feels like the perfect time to start planning your next big career move or to buy your dream house , but it's not." Not only could your rose-colored glasses color your decision, but "you don't want to commit to another major lifestyle change until you have time to settle into this one," she explains. "Slow down and give yourselves time to see the pros and cons of any major change." 4. Avoid having the baby talk. "Hopefully before you got married you already had several conversations on the topic of children and are on the same page," says Cooper. You've got a plan, so avoid revisiting that particular topic this month. "It can create a lot of pressure on both members of a couple and create a goal-oriented feel to your life that robs you of the excitement and adventure of getting to know one another better, have new experiences as a couple, and settle into your new family," Cooper explains.
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A 13-mile stretch of southbound Interstate 95 in South Carolina reopened Monday as the state continued its slow but steady recovery from devastating floods that paralyzed the Palmetto State. Most schools and businesses have reopened, and the National Guard is no longer roaming local streets. But in many areas heaps of debris provide a soggy reminder of the storm that rolled into South Carolina on Oct. 1 and stalled over the state for several days, swamping some areas with up to 2 feet of rain. "Thankfully, it has gotten better here," Charleston resident Chris Morris said Monday. Preliminary estimates have placed the total damage at more than $1 billion, although state officials have been unwilling to place a dollar sign on the wreckage. Crop damage alone has been estimated at more than $300 million. Repairs are continuing on hundreds of roads and bridges including northbound I-95. Transportation officials hoped to reopen it later Monday or Tuesday. Officials repaired 18 bridges weakened or damaged by floodwaters along the 13-mile stretch that had broken the vital highway link from Maine to South Florida. The closure, combined with detours on local roads, forced some travelers to drive 100 miles out of their way. State contractors on Monday began hauling away debris for some residents whose insurance won't cover the cleanup. In Charleston, most businesses and government offices are functioning. Schools are back in session and weekend youth soccer games are being held. Morris's family home was built on a raised slab that kept the floodwaters from encroaching, so his biggest property problem is a backyard still too wet to mow. Many of his neighbors were not so lucky. Some were forced to evacuate. They returned to waterlogged homes, saturated furniture. And in some cases mold. South bound I-95 re-opened today at 8:00 a.m. . @SCDOT hopes to have North bound lanes open tomorrow morning and... http://t.co/3eH98rzEQ0 SCEMD (@SCEMD) October 12, 2015 "You can drive anywhere in my neighborhood and see people's belongings sitting outside," Morris told USA TODAY. "They aren't getting rid of it, they are just trying to dry it out." But the floodwaters that had swamped his neighborhood have receded. The golf course is no longer underwater, and most local roads closed during and after the storm have reopened. "We are in recovery mode," Morris said. "But normal is still a good way down the road." Jonathan Jefferson and Sergeant Sheriece Zimmerman
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There are certain guys on the field who are just too good for the opposition. Yes, we mean you, D'Onta Foreman, Dalvin Cook, and Leonard Fournette. In this "Greenworks Pro: Blowing Away The Competition," we've compiled the best moments from Week 6 of players who outplayed everyone else on the field.
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Sam Brakeley and Steph Reighart run away with the championship title. Rough cut (no reporter narration)
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Phil Kessel is on pace to score 41 goals this season. So is his team. Now, having Kessel get a goal in one of his first two games has to be encouraging for the Penguins, but the hard truth is that they acquired him to enhance their offense, not constitute it. And as good as goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was during the Penguins' season-opening losses at Dallas and Arizona "[Fleury] has been unbelievable for us," right winger Patric Hornqvist said even he can only stretch a half-goal per game so far. "It's definitely disappointing knowing that we come on a road trip and score one goal," left winger Chris Kunitz said. "We don't really give our goaltender any help." Goalies Antti Niemi of Dallas and Mike Smith of Arizona are at least partly responsible for the Penguins' inability to manufacture goals Smith was particularly outstanding in the third period of the Coyotes' 2-1 victory Saturday at Gila River Arena but with Montreal's Carey Price, last season's Vezina Trophy winner, awaiting them when Montreal visits at 7:08 p.m. Tuesday, it doesn't figure to get any easier. "We have played some good goalies, but every goalie is good in this league," center Sidney Crosby said. "You still have to find ways or adjust or find rebounds or bury the chances we do [get]." Coach Mike Johnston reconfigured some of his lines and reunited Crosby and Evgeni Malkin on the No. 1 power play during the Coyotes game, and did not rule out additional adjustments before facing the Canadiens. "We have to look at everything to try to get more in that category," said Johnston, noting that left winger Sergei Plotnikov was more effective when shifted from the second line to the third. The power play has been producing far below expectations for nearly a year, and is 0 for 7 so far in 2015-16. It has created scoring opportunities at times, but often has had trouble simply entering, and getting set up in, the attacking zone. "It's generated some good things," Kunitz said. "We have to put more pucks through, have to find rebounds and have guys go to the net. It doesn't matter how much skill you have." Although the Penguins have launched 65 shots on goal through two games, Crosby doesn't have any of them. The lone shot attempt with which he has been credited was blocked, and even if he's focused on setting up his linemates, Kunitz and Kessel, Crosby knows he has to get off more shots. "I haven't had a ton of opportunities to shoot it," he said. "I have to do a better job of getting there and getting pucks to the net. "It's not good. It's hard to score when you're not getting a shot on net. It's definitely an area I have to get better in." An underlying theme in the first two games was that the Stars and Coyotes outworked the Penguins, at least at times. "We lost too many loose puck battles," Johnston said after the Arizona game. "The competitive work ethic, they edged us in that category, probably up until late in the second period. After that, we started to push." The offensive miseries figure to end at some point there simply is too much top-end talent in the lineup for it drag on indefinitely but the lack of a consistent sweat-for-success ethic has to be troubling for the coaching staff and management. "Skill's not always going to win in the end," Kunitz said. "You have to make sure you have those details down, make sure you're doing the right things." And doing it soon. The season is only five days old, and the Penguins already trail the first-place New York Rangers by six points in the Metropolitan Division. "We have to be ready from the first shift to the last," Hornqvist said. "That's something we have to correct. If not, it's going to be a long year for us." Dave Molinari: [email protected] and Twitter @MolinariPG
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Sri Lanka and the West Indies will look to offload past baggage and begin a new era with fresh young talent when a two-Test series starts in Galle on Wednesday. Sri Lanka are rebuilding following the retirement of their batting greats, Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara, within the space of a year. The West Indies, already hit by the reluctance of senior pros like Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo to play Test cricket, faced further turmoil when coach Phil Simmons was stood down for the tour for speaking out against his board's selection policies. Former fast bowler and selector Eldine Baptiste, who will serve as interim coach for the tour, will try to ease newly-appointed Test captain Jason Holder into the role. Holder, a 23-year-old all-rounder who has played just eight Tests, was a surprise choice to replace the seasoned Denesh Ramdin as captain. "We have a very young team and a young captain," Baptiste said. "My job is to keep the team focused for the Test matches." The West Indies are searching for their maiden Test win on Sri Lankan soil, where they have played nine matches since 1993 -- losing five and drawing the other four. Both teams will look to bounce back after a lacklustre year. The West Indians lost to South Africa and Australia, while the home series against England was drawn 1-1. Angelo Mathews' Sri Lanka crashed to a 2-0 series defeat in New Zealand and lost home series to Pakistan and India by identical 2-1 margins. - New rival coaches - Like their rivals, Sri Lanka too have an interim coach in Jerome Jayaratne, who was given charge of the team after Marvan Atapattu resigned in the wake of the defeat against India. Jayaratne, who did not play international cricket but made his mark as head of the Sri Lankan board's coaching department, has already described Mathews' boys as the "worst fielding side in Asia". He refused to take victory for granted against the young touring side. "I would like to believe that we have a better chance of getting back to winning ways, but I definitely won't underestimate them," he said. Only two players from either side have played more than 50 Tests -- Mathews and Rangana Herath for Sri Lanka and batsman Marlon Samuels and Ramdin for the West Indies. Herath, the 37-year-old left-arm spinner, could prove to be the difference when the first Test starts at the picturesque Galle International Stadium, a venue that traditionally favours spin. Herath took seven for 48 against India in August, helping Sri Lanka bounce back to win that Test by 63 runs. In June Pakistani spin twins Yasir Shar and Zulfiqar Babar combined to grab 13 wickets between them as Sri Lanka suffered a 10-wicket defeat at the same venue. In the absence of star spinner Sunil Narine, who was not picked for the Tests, the West Indies will rely on leg-break bowler Devendra Bishoo, who has claimed 50 wickets in 13 Tests so far. Sri Lanka's batting in the absence of Jayawardene and Sangakkara will revolve around skipper Mathews, who hit three centuries in the home Tests against Pakistan and India. Sri Lanka (from) - Angelo Mathews (capt), Lahiru Thirmanne, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Dinesh Chandimal, Rangana Herath, Dhammika Prasad, Kusal Perera, Dushmantha Chameera, Nuwan Pradeep, Tharindu Kaushal, Suranga Lakmal, Dilruwan Perera, Milinda Siriwardena, Kusal Mendis. West Indies (from) - Jason Holder (capt), Kraig Brathwaite, Jermaine Blackwood, Carlos Brathwaite, Devendra Bishoo, Darren Bravo, Rajendra Chandrika, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Denesh Ramdin, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Jerome Taylor, Jomel Warrican.
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Any air traveler knows there's always room for improvement in the friendly skies, and while we're all for forward-thinking innovations, these recent seat ideas might be better left at the patent office. 1. STACKED SEATING Earlier this month, Airbus filed a patent for a style of airplane seating best described as stackable though they also like to (euphemistically) call it "mezzanine seating." The reaction was, well, not great . In the patent filing, Airbus said it's "important from an economic point of view to make optimum use of the available space in a passenger cabin." We say we hope it never happens. The company files about 600 patents a year so thankfully, it probably won't. 2. "GLORIFIED BIKE SEATS" Airbus is a repeat offender in the arena of strange seat patents. This one has only a small seat and backrest, and narrow armrests basically creating more room in the cabin for more passengers by scaling down the size of the seats. Fast Company gets the credit for the apt dubbing. 3. THE HEXAGONAL GRID Here's another one that did not thrill the frequent-flying masses. Zodiac Seats France recently patented a setup called " Economy Class Cabin Hexagon " which flips the middle seat to face backward. 4. THE FORWARD-LEANING SLEEPER For most, falling asleep on a plane ranges from tough to impossible, but Boeing might have a way to fix that. They patented an "upright sleep support system" that looks sort of like a massage chair. It's supposedly a more natural approach than the airplane neck pillow, though it does seem susceptible to public drooling issues. 5. "FLYING DOUGHNUTS" Airbus does more than dream big about seating they've also patented ideas on how to transform the airplane itself. What The Financial Times called a "flying doughnut" is actually an aircraft with amphitheater-style seating as part of a design to help distribute cabin pressure in a more efficient way.
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In the last of his special series of reports from inside North Korea, BBC correspondent Stephen Evans spent a day relaxing with the residents of Pyongyang.
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) California officials are considering allowing inmates with violent backgrounds to work outside prison walls fighting wildfires, and the idea is generating concerns about public safety. The state has the nation's largest and oldest inmate firefighting unit, with about 3,800 members who provide critical assistance to professional firefighters. That's down from about 4,400 in previous years, however, and so prison officials are looking for ways to add inmates. Now, only minimum-security inmates with no history of violent crimes can participate. Starting next year, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is proposing adding inmates convicted of violent offenses such as assaults and robberies, if their security classification level has been reduced after years of good behavior. Officials also are seeking to allow inmates who have up to seven years left on their sentences instead of the current five. Arsonists, kidnappers, sex offenders, gang affiliates and those serving life sentences for murder and other crimes would still be excluded. "All it does is enlarge the pool of inmates we look at, but it doesn't change the nature of the inmate that we put in camp," Corrections spokesman Bill Sessa told The Associated Press. "We still are not going to put an inmate in camp that has a violent attitude." The changes are pending final approval within the Corrections Department. They still have not been sent to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, which says it also must sign off. The proposal comes at a time when the overall prison population is smaller and drought has created the potential for explosive wildfires like the ones that recently roared through the Sierra foothills and communities north of Napa, in northern California. Mike Lopez, president of the union representing state firefighters who oversee inmates at fire scenes, supports a robust inmate program but worries about what the proposed changes could bring. "Any acceptance of criminals with a violent background calls into question the security of our membership," he said, adding, "at what risk is CalFire willing to go to get those inmates?" CalFire spokeswoman Janet Upton said her agency and corrections officials formed a committee this summer to consider how best to keep the firefighter program adequately staffed. She wouldn't comment on the proposed changes other than to say "nobody is interested in seeing this program go away." The inmate firefighting program started during the civilian manpower shortage of World War II and now includes a small number of women and juvenile offenders. Volunteers must be healthy and pass a two-week physical fitness training program before they complete two weeks of classes on fighting fires. Even using only nonviolent inmates has resulted in hundreds of assaults and batteries, along with weapons possessions, indecent exposures and other crimes among inmate firefighters in the last 10 years, according to data compiled by corrections officials and provided at the AP's request. Officials said the rate is much lower than in higher-security prisons. State Sen. Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber, a former parole commissioner, said it is "unconscionable" to add to the risk by using inmates with a history of violence. "They're weighing this minor good against a major bad of compromising justice and the safety of our citizens," Nielsen said. Harriet Salarno, founder of Crime Victims United of California, said she is also concerned but fears the state has no choice. "This is very, very dangerous, but when you have a forest fire, what can you do?" she said Monday. "You need manpower to fight the fires, so we're now putting dangerous criminals out there." Inmate firefighters are housed in 43 unfenced, minimum-security camps scattered across the state. They are guarded by a few correctional officers but while fighting fires are overseen only by unarmed CalFire captains who direct the inmates as they use hand tools to chew through brush and timberland to create firebreaks to stop advancing flames. An average of nine inmates escape from the camps each year but since 2011 all but one has been recaptured. The inmates often are used in rough, remote or environmentally sensitive terrain that is inaccessible to bulldozers. They accounted for nearly one of every five state, federal and local firefighters battling the recent Lake County and Sierra foothills fires. The program makes inmates eligible for earlier parole, has higher pay and more relative freedom than other inmate jobs, and provides skills they can use once they are freed. Officials are proposing loosening the rules because the number of available inmates has been shrinking since late 2011. That's when, under court order to reduce overcrowding, California began keeping thousands of lower-level offenders in county jails, leaving a higher proportion of violent and serious criminals in state prisons. Since then, other initiatives have further reduced the number of potential firefighters.
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Whenever a prolific player is playing in his prime, the sport of golf usually grows in popularity. Thanks to Tiger Woods, the golfing world is well aware of the impact one individual can have on the perception and financial prosperity of the sport as a whole. Now that it is safe to say that Tiger is out of the picture, a superstar is needed to energize a game that is unfairly associated with the elite . The world's top-ranked golfer, Jordan Spieth, thrived this season and may be the one to fill the void. The talented 22-year-old Texan won the two most touted majors this year at Augusta and the U.S. Open, not to mention his top-five finishes at the season's last two majors and the 2015 Tour Championship title. With Spieth at the helm, the PGA tour is doing well; viewership has increased for the season's premier events. This year's Masters saw a 26 percent uptick in ratings while Spieth was holding a lead down the stretch. And Spieth is far from the only golfer on tour providing compelling performances. Close behind Spieth is the world's third-ranked golfer and four-time major winner, Rory McIlroy, who has proven that he can dominate on golf's biggest stage. PGA champion and world number-two Jason Day, along with long-bombing Bubba Watson, are also playing some of their best golf to date. With the competition being better than it ever has been, the PGA tour is enjoying a renaissance of sorts. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the rest of the golf industry in the United States. To understand the current state of the golfing industry, a little context is necessary. When the Tiger bubble burst in 2009, golf lost its most marketable major winner, and a large chunk of viewers started to tune out. The ripples from that fateful day in November 2009 haven't stopped there. Woods' decline in both on-course success and popularity, along with a number of other important financial factors, have led to a huge drop-off in the American golfing economy. When Tiger was in his heyday, the surge in popularity for the sport made it easy for golf to reach a wide audience. What resulted was large-scale golf course construction in America during the late 1990s and early 2000s, giving newcomers to the game a chance to participate at a wide array of public and private facilities. But the golfing landscape shifted dramatically after the country's financial crisis in late 2007. Golf became a luxury that simply was not worth paying for. Compounded by Tiger's misdeeds in 2009, the sport took a huge hit , unbeknownst to the casual fan. If Tiger could invigorate a sport that had previously been known for its homogeneity and exclusionary practices, let's hope that the vastly different Spieth can, too. But despite their wunderkind tendencies, they are both vastly different people, and the similarities between the two really end at the golf course. For one, Tiger has generally appeared stoic and at times combative with media members and fans alike. Spieth, while not without his own idiosyncrasies , elects to inundate the press with minute details and charismatic reviews of his rounds at press conferences. Furthermore, Spieth may lack the type of background that attracts non-golfers to the game, but his happy-to-be-here attitude is catching on quickly with golf's loyal followers. With the young man barely old enough to enjoy the post-victory champagne, fans of the PGA Tour are already starting to prepare themselves for a whole lot of the Texan in the coming decades. But even if Spieth follows up his historic year with 20 years of great golf, it is hard to say if the sport will ever truly recover. In 2014 , 14 new courses were built in the United States, while over 150 closed their doors and stopped cutting the grass. It was the ninth straight year the amount of golf courses closing their doors exceeded the amount that were opening them. Other factors, such as dwindling water supplies in states like California , have been a major contributor, but golfer attrition is at the root of the industry's slow collapse. In 2013, over 3.7 million took up the game, while over four million decided to abandon it. The most troubling statistic may be the drop off from golfers ages 18 to 34. Over 200,000 decided to quit, pointing to a possible generational shift. The instant gratification that golf fails to provide hurts its chances of catching on with millennials, and many elect to take up cheaper and less time-consuming activities instead of golf. In an episode of Real Sports on HBO, Taylormade's former CEO Mark King told Bryant Gumbel, "I think the issue we have in our sport is when you go out to a course, the environment around the game is not very fun and inviting." There are two different perceptions of golf in America. The game is thriving on the professional level but severely struggling as a sector of the competitive American economy. Hopefully, the widespread success of Jordan Spieth will be enough to bring golf back to par.
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October is typically the time of year when people break out the popcorn and settle in for a few scary movies ones usually involving a scream queen and a bloodthirsty killer on the loose. But the more frightening movie genre is one that hardly gets any play around Halloween: documentaries. Featuring serial killers, brutal maulings, and unsolved mysteries, documentaries can be far creepier than anything George Romero has ever imagined because they depict things that really happened. These 10 films are impossibly disturbing, based on true events, and guaranteed to stick with you long after the end credits have rolled. 1. GRIZZLY MAN (2005) Grizzly Man is a nature documentary like none you've ever seen: Struggling actor and alcoholic Timothy Treadwell was always an eccentric who felt more comfortable among animals than he did people. One summer, Treadwell sold everything and moved up to Alaska to live in the wilderness among the grizzly bears, filming them and closely interacting with them. Directed by Werner Herzog, Grizzly Man takes Treadwell's astonishing footage and pieces together his life during the 13 summers that Treadwell spent in exile. Until Treadwell and his girlfriend, Amie Huguenard, were attacked and killed by one of the animals he loved, while one of Treadwell's cameras caught the audio of the attack. Why it's so creepy: Herzog chooses not to include the audio of Treadwell's death in the final film, but the attack and what's on the tape is discussed in graphic (and unsettling) detail. EHerzog surmises that the bear who ultimately killed Treadwell was likely one of the animals that he filmed, and loved. This puts the viewer in an uncomfortable position: Watching Treadwell film and play alongside the bears, knowing that he's likely engaging with his future killer. 2. THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH AUNT DIANE (2011) From the movie's offset, we know that something terrible has happened. The documentary opens with several harried calls to 911, describing a horrific crash off the Taconic State Parkway. The crash, which occurred in 2009, would later become known as the worst Westchester County traffic fatality in 30 years, killing eight people including the driver, Diane Schuler, her two-year-old daughter, and her three young nieces. The film documents the Schuler family and their quest to piece together Diane's final moments: Why did Schuler, a responsible and devoted mom on her way home from a family camping trip, drive the wrong way down the Taconic Parkway? Why it's so creepy: There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane profiles a woman who seems to have everything under control. At the time of her death, Schuler had two adorable kids, a happy marriage, and a successful career with a six-figure income. So when the film reveals why Schuler drove nearly two miles down the Taconic Parkway in the wrong direction with five young children in tow, the reason is almost too terrible to believe. Aunt Diane compels viewers and, at the same time, mystifies us with the eternal question: How well can you really know another person? 3. BOY INTERRUPTED (2009) When filmmaker Dana Perry's son Evan turned five years old, she noticed that he had a strange preoccupation with death and dying. Perry immediately took Evan to a therapist, and she and her filmmaker husband Hart flipped on the camera to record his increasingly bizarre behavior. As Evan grows, the Perrys document Evan's tumultuous struggle with depression and bipolar disorder, culminating in his suicide in 2005 at the age of 15. Boy Interrupted becomes the Perry's loving tribute to a son who both mystified and terrified them. Why it's so creepy: Boy Interrupted shows that mental illness and suicide doesn't discriminate. Filmmakers Hart and Dana Perry are obviously attentive, caring parents, and many times they literally uproot their lives to support Evan through his struggle. But bipolar disorder has a suicide rate of nearly 17 percent and that's an uncomfortable fact that the Perrys put in the forefront of their film. Watching their story unfold, and knowing that nothing can stop the slow decline into Evan's suicide, will send shivers down your spine. 4. THE JINX (2015) HBO's The Jinx tells the story of Robert Durst, heir to one of the oldest real estate companies in New York City and the prime suspect in series of bizarre crimes, including the disappearance of his wife, Kathleen, in 1982. The Jinx is a documentary miniseries, one that takes six episodes to detail every bizarre crime in which Durst is involved. After his wife's disappearance, Durst's close friend Susan Berman is found murdered in 2000 when Kathleen's case is reopened. Durst maintains his innocence in both crimes and flees to Galveston, Texas. But when police catch up to him one year later, Durst has been implicated in yet another murder (Durst is charged and pleads self-defense, by the way). Director Andrew Jarecki (who directed 2010's All Good Things, a feature based on Durst) examines Durst's alleged crimes, documents the trial for his most recent murder, and speculates whether Durst is actually guilty of all three crimes or just one of the unluckiest men on the planet. Why it's so creepy: Bob Durst is like that weird uncle you only see at Christmas: He's quiet, mild-mannered, and even a little likeable at times. Watching him recount his friends' deaths, completely emotionless, is chilling. And knowing that he likely could have killed several people in cold blood? Unsettling. (Also unsettling? His beady, black eyes.) 5. BLACKFISH (2013) Have you ever seen those SeaWorld commercials where the dolphin trainers are talking about how much they love whales? Blackfish is the reason those commercials exist in the first place. It's a riveting documentary that covers the story of Tilikum, a captive killer whale that mauled a SeaWorld trainer in 2010. What begins as an expose of Tilikum (who apparently has killed before) gradually turns into an indictment of SeaWorld as a whole. Why it's so creepy: If you have any childhood memories of SeaWorld, prepare to have them forever ruined. The whales appear happy when performing in front of a crowd but according to Blackfish, that's almost certainly a ruse. Seeing footage of Tilikum playing around with trainer Dawn Brancheau before her death, and knowing what will eventually happen between them, is eerie. 6. DEAR ZACHARY (2008) Don't Google this film. It's best to go into Dear Zachary knowing as little about what happens as possible. Without giving too much away, the gist is this: Dear Zachary is director Kurt Kuenne's attempt to immortalize his best friend Andrew Bagby, a physician killed in cold blood by his estranged girlfriend, Shirley Turner. Kuenne seeks out friends and family to sing their praises of his late friend and then the film takes a shocking turn. Turner, Bagby's killer, announces while in police custody that she's four months pregnant with Bagby's child. And Kuenne's film becomes something entirely different: A critique of the Newfoundland legal system, an exposé of the custody case between Turner and Bagby's parents, and a letter to Zachary, Bagby's son, about the man his father once was. Why it's so creepy: Not only is the viewer subjected to graphic details about Bagby's murder, Kuenne also uses archival footage of Turner and Bagby during their brief relationship. Watching Turner interact on camera with Bagby, hearing about what she did in the hours after Bagby's death, and seeing footage of her eventually mothering Bagby's child will leave you with chills whenever she's onscreen. 7. THE BRIDGE (2006) San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge is one of the world's most popular tourist sites and according to this film, it's the most popular spot to commit suicide. Over the course of one year, filmmaker Eric Steel and his crew spent hundreds of hours filming footage of the Golden Gate Bridge, and managed to capture the deaths of nearly two dozen jumpers. Steel then interviews the families of some of the individuals and sets out to discover what draws so many people to the Golden Gate Bridge and what compels some to end their lives there. Why it's so creepy: Several suicides are caught on film. Enough said. 8. PARADISE LOST (1996) In 1993, the bodies of three mutilated children were discovered in a wooded area of West Memphis, Arkansas. Quickly, after one teen admits to being an accomplice, a trio of teenagers is arrested in connection with the crime, tried in a court of law, and found guilty. An open-and-shut case, right? Wrong. The film, which follows the families of the victims and the accused throughout the trial and its aftermath, is equal parts true crime documentary and an indictment of a small-town criminal justice system. Was the teenager's confession coerced? Were the murderers ever really caught? Why it's so creepy: If the opening footage of three mutilated kids isn't creepy enough for you, the entire movie is replete with graphic retellings of the crime. But the more frightening part of watching the film is the growing realization that the three teenagers accused of the crime Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin might possibly be innocent. The Emmy-winning documentary was followed up two sequels, in 2000 and 2011 with the final film detailing the West Memphis Three's release from prison. 9. THE IMPOSTER (2012) When 13-year-old Nicholas Barclay goes missing in 1994, his family gradually accepts that he may not be coming home. But three years later, in 1997, Barclay's family gets a phone call that Nicholas has been found alone and terrified in Spain, thousands of miles from his Texas hometown. Stunned, his family joyfully welcomes him home. But it soon becomes clear that the boy who went missing three years prior is not the same person literally as the one who comes home. Why it's so creepy: Since the name of the documentary is The Imposter, it's pretty obvious from the start that the person claiming to be Nicholas Barclay isn't actually Nicholas Barclay. But what kind of person would impersonate a missing child? Director Bart Layton manages to snag one-on-one interviews with the man who pretended to be Barclay, and hearing him retell how he manipulated the Barclay family (often smiling and laughing good-naturedly while he recounts the story) will give you goosebumps. 10. ALBERT FISH: IN SIN HE FOUND SALVATION (2007) Albert Fish was one of the country's most depraved serial killers and considering that serial killers are pretty depraved to begin with, that's saying something. Fish suffered from extreme mental illness from an early age and began experimenting with extreme taboos as a young adult, eventually moving on to prostitution, child molestation, and murder. This documentary goes into graphic detail about the hundreds of murders Fish was linked to and the hideous way he disposed of the bodies afterward. Why it's so creepy: Fish was extremely candid about his crimes, and kept detailed, first-person accounts of them which are read throughout the documentary. At one point, Fish actually details the murder of one young girl in a letter and then mails the letter to her mother. It's almost impossible to listen to what Fish did or see reenactments of Fish walking hand-in-hand with his victims and not feel chills.
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Here we go again with the New York Giants. Eli Manning is back to his fourth-quarter heroics with help from amazing catches, and the Giants are back in first place in the NFC East. After Sunday night's 30-27 late comeback win over the 49ers, the Giants are 3-2 and looking like a playoff team for the first time in four years. That doesn't mean they're headed to the same result as 2011, or four years before that, in 2007. MORE: Ranking the unbeatens | Eli Manning's late TD ices it | Eli's expression after an INT That's of course the two times they won the Super Bowl with Manning and coach Tom Coughlin, despite not looking like close to a Super Bowl favorite until after their surprise playoff runs. The biggest obstacles in both of those runs were first, the Packers in Lambeau Field and second, the Patriots in the Super Bowl. It didn't matter that Green Bay had lost only one game, like it did in '11, or New England had lost none, like it did in '07. The Giants, with the best of an unflappable Manning, got the better of both Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady, twice. While Rodgers' Packers (5-0) and Brady's Patriots (4-0) have been perfect to start this season, the Giants are pretty close to being there themselves. They should have finished off Dallas and Atlanta in Weeks 1 and 2, just as they got past Washington, Buffalo and San Francisco the past three weeks. But before you think that history is headed toward repeating itself in the same way, this isn't the same Giants team. Steve Spagnuolo is their defensive coordinator, but this isn't a defensive team. This isn't the one that will solve either the Rodgers or Brady offensive juggernaut with a great front-four pass rush, even with the potential of Jason Pierre-Paul returning in December . Like some other of the upstart contenders behind Green Bay and New England this season, such as Arizona, Atlanta and Cincinnati, the Giants' new best way of fighting firepower is with more firepower. At some point, when they are healthy at quarterback, teams such as Pittsburgh and Indianapolis will be back in that club, too. The Giants are getting dismantled by passing offenses so far in '15. Case in point was letting Colin Kaepernick break out of a slump in a big way on Sunday. On the bright side, in Year 2 of a Packers-like passing offense with Ben McAdoo, Manning is playing at his highest level since '11, and arguably, the best of his career. It doesn't matter that Victor Cruz is out , because they have proved to have a lot of pop, and not always through Odell Beckham Jr. and Rueben Randle. This year, the Giants borrowed from the Patriots' offense, bringing in versatile, dangerous running back Shane Vereen. Quiet before Sunday, they finally unleashed him as a tough open-field matchup against the 49ers. From the big body mismatch standpoint, it was tight end Larry Donnell who finished the game-winning drive Vereen jump-started against the 49ers. When they're all healthy, the diversity and talent of Manning's weapons can stack up to what all those other teams have. The quick-release nature of McAdoo's system has made Manning a lot more efficient, without making him less effective in throwing deep with his big arm. Brady has consistently trumped Roethlisberger and Luck. It's well known he has the number of that other Manning who plays for 5-0 Denver. Rodgers is unrivaled in the NFC. But the one guy who's gotten them both badly at the biggest times is Eli. The Giants can still put a scare in Patriots, Packers and other Super Bowl hopefuls down the line. It just won't be with their defense. It will be all their quarterback this time.
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This series of GWODs was designed exclusively for Greatist by Bodeefit . For more information about the exercises in this workout, or to see video demos of each movement, follow the links below the graphic. Be sure to note the results of your workout so you can track your progress as you go. Before you tackle this workout, try this quick and effective full-body warm-up . It's just five simple moves but hits every major muscle group and gets your heart pumping. Sit, Sit-Up, Crawl! Complete 5 rounds of the following as fast as safely possible. 1-minute Wall Sit 25 Sit-Ups 100 ft. Bear Crawl Want to kick up the intensity? Hold a light kettlebell or dumbbell in front of your chest on the wall sits. And don't forget to check back tomorrow for a totally new (but equally awesome) GWOD!
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Sam Smith Sam Smith's second album will be out "in the next year or so". The 'Writing's On The Wall' singer has rubbished claims he's planning to follow in the footsteps of fellow James Bond theme-song writer Adele by taking a break from the music industry and insisted he's already working on the follow up to his debut album 'In The Lonely Hour'. He shared: "I'm not going away for a very long time. I've heard some people say that I'm not making an album for a long while but that is false. "I'm already writing my album. I've got the title and I've got two songs I'm absolutely in love with. I'm a songwriter and an artist and I think and breathe my second record every day of my life. "I will bring my album out in the next year or so, but it's not going to be immediate because I think people are going to get sick of me if I brought an album out next week." The 23-year-old star - who also admitted he's currently "very single" following his split from US dancer Jonathan Zeizel earlier this year - admitted he is worried about people getting bored of him and his music, however. He told The Sun newspaper: "It's important to take little breaks. But if you go back in the day The Beatles used to release so many albums a year. They were released quicker. "But it is important that I go away for a few months. People will get sick of me. Even I'll get sick of me." Sam's confession comes after 'Shake It Off' hitmaker Taylor Swift announced that she thinks she should "take some time off" because "people might need a break" from her.
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Results at Tesco (LSE: TSCO) may have beaten analyst expectations last week, but that says more about low City expectations than the grocer's improving prospects, given that operating profits halved from £779m to £354m. Like so many companies on today's flailing FTSE 100 , Tesco has resorted to cost-cutting in a bid to keep the numbers looking good, trimming around £400m of fat from group restructuring and more than 50 store closures. Chief executive "drastic" Dave Lewis knows his honeymoon period is over but investors are still cutting him some slack. Given the string of disasters that have afflicted Tesco lately, the lack of further bad news such as a profit warning was seen as a plus. It helped investors swallow the news that UK and Ireland operating margins are now a wafer thin 0.8%. Tesco's Share Price Soars! The real shock was to find Tesco's share price has leapt 15% over the last week. A combination of not-quite-as-bad-as-expected results and the wider surge in market sentiment lifting the stock. Sales volumes are rising, which suggests customers may be creeping back, in the hope that Tesco has learned some hard lessons. Further recovery will not be easy. Tesco can't rely on endless cost-cutting to boost cash flow but boosting margins won't be easy in today's deflationary world. The glory days will never return, whatever Tesco does, because we live in a different retail world, thanks to changing family shopping habits, online grocery competition, and the rise of Aldi and Lidl. It will also take a long time to restore the dividend, now forecast to be just 1% in early 2017. Lewis has done a good job but there is only so much he can do, with sectoral winds against him. Trading at a forecast 23.7 times earnings, he has to work hard to justify Tesco's current pricey valuation. A Different Taste? I always felt that J Sainsbury (LSE: SBRY) was unfairly punished by wider market forces. In January last year it was celebrating 36 consecutive quarters of sales growth, an astonishing run that did less for its share price the longer it lasted, only to be hit hard when the record came to an end. But the last 12 months have been kinder, with the share price up a healthy 20% in 12 months, and 7.7% in the last week alone. The recent second quarter trading statement was heralded as the first outright positive news from a big four supermarket in years. Again, that reflects low expectations, with a rise in total Q2 retail sales of just 0.3%. Match That! Sainsbury's relatively upmarket positioning has been a blessing rather than the curse it could have been, while the recent Price Match campaign has preserved its position among cash-strapped shoppers. Its decision to reduce promotions and move towards lower everyday prices seems to have chimed with the public mood. Consumers seem content to pay a little more at Sainsbury's, whereas they aren't in Tesco. Investors even get a dividend, although the yield is expected to dip to 3.8%. Trading at a forecast 12 times earnings, Sainsbury's looks better value than Tesco too. I remain suspicious of the grocery sector, but if the trend towards rising personal incomes continues, Sainsbury's could still be worth a place in your portfolio. I remain unconvinced about Tesco, though. If the supermarkets no longer tickle your fancy don't despair, there are still plenty of stocks only FTSE 100 that offer great income and growth potential. Our latest wealth creation report picks out 5 top FTSE 100 stocks that could help you retire in comfort . These companies offer you some of the best income and growth prospects available in the UK today. The Motley Fool's 5 Shares To Retire On boast dominant market positions and global exposure to some of the fastest regions of the world. To find out the identity of these five top companies simply click here now . Harvey Jones has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) More cities are recognizing Native Americans on Columbus Day this year as they revive a movement to change the name of the holiday to celebrate the history and contributions of indigenous cultures around the country. As the U.S. observes Columbus Day on Monday, it will also be Indigenous Peoples Day in at least nine cities for the first time this year, including Albuquerque; Portland, Oregon; St. Paul, Minnesota; and Olympia, Washington. Encouraged by city council votes in Minneapolis and Seattle last year, Native American activists made a push in dozens of cities in recent months to get local leaders to officially recognize the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples Day. Their success was mixed. The campaigns say the federal holiday honoring Christopher Columbus and the parades and pageantry accompanying it overlook a painful history of colonialism, enslavement, discrimination and land grabs that followed the Italian explorer's 1492 arrival in the Americas. The indigenous holiday takes into account the history and contributions of Native Americans for a more accurate historical record, activists have argued. Columbus Day supporters say the holiday celebrates centuries of cultural exchange between America and Europe, commemorates an iconic explorer and honors Italian-Americans, a group that has endured its own share of discrimination. "For the Native community here, Indigenous Peoples Day means a lot. We actually have something," said Nick Estes of Albuquerque, who is coordinating a celebration Monday after the City Council recently issued a proclamation. "We understand it's just a proclamation, but at the same time, we also understand this is the beginning of something greater." Native Americans are the nation's smallest demographic, making up about 2 percent of the U.S. population. In recent decades, a significant number of tribal members have moved from reservations to urban areas, where a large majority live today. The shift makes the cities' resolutions and proclamations more meaningful, Estes said. Congress set aside the second Monday of October as a federal holiday honoring Columbus in 1934. Over the years, Native Americans have slowly begun winning more recognition around the day. South Dakota renamed Columbus Day to Native American Day in 1990, and it has been an official state holiday ever since. Berkeley, California, has observed Indigenous Peoples Day since 1992. Parades and festivals that developed around Columbus Day have faced protests that are known for being confrontational, especially in Denver. Anna Vann, a longtime member of the Sons of Italy's Denver Lodge, recalls protests during the 1992 parade, which marked the 500th anniversary of Columbus' voyage, as the most unnerving and pivotal. That year, protesters blocked the parade route for several hours, she said. After that, the parade wasn't held again until 2000, and it has been difficult to make it the draw it once was, she said. "It's been a struggle to even get people to come and attend the parades as spectators," Vann said. "It's a celebration of when the Europeans came over and started their lives here. We wouldn't be where we are today if it weren't for this history." The renewed push for Indigenous Peoples Day carries the sentiment of past decades' protests against Columbus, but it has proven less confrontational, with advocates instead finding traction at City Hall. "They really didn't prove anything," Rey Garduno, an Albuquerque city councilman and longtime community organizer, said of the confrontational protests. "Whatever victory people took from them, you still ended up at the end of the day in the same place or even worse."
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The performance of resources companies this year has been horrific, with investor sentiment declining, share prices collapsing and the financial performance of industry participants being almost entirely disappointing. Looking ahead, many investors can see no reason to cheer when it comes to resources companies, with the risk of losses seemingly outweighing the potential returns at the present time. One stock which has fared badly even for a resources company is Glencore (LSE: GLEN). Its $30bn debt levels have been a major source of concern for the market, with Glencore responding by undertaking a series of measures to try and shore up investor confidence in its balance sheet. These included raising additional capital and cutting dividends, which have seemingly served to make investors even more concerned about the company's long term future. As such, its shares fell from 300p at the start of the year to just 74p by the end of September: a decline of 77% in just nine months. Since then, though, Glencore's share price has almost doubled, with it rising on the back of a soaring wider mining sector. Clearly, it is likely to remain volatile in the short run and, to a large extent, its future remains highly dependent upon the price of commodities. And, while its shares are undoubtedly exceptionally cheap, the same can be said for a number of commodity stocks which, in many cases, have less debt, simpler business models and, as a result, may be better buys than Glencore at the present time. Premier Oil (LSE: PMO), meanwhile, has also posted major losses in recent months, with its shares being down 42% since the turn of the year. It has suffered from doubts surrounding its North Sea operations, with costs in that region often being less competitive than in other parts of the world. And, with there being a much greater focus on efficiencies and costs while the oil price is low, Premier Oil may be forced to make further write downs to its asset base moving forward. This, though, seems to be adequately priced in to its current valuation. For example, Premier Oil trades on a price to book value (P/B) ratio of just 0.29. This indicates that it has a relatively wide margin of safety and, with it due to return to profitability as soon as next year, investor sentiment could pick up in the coming months which makes it a risky but relatively appealing buy at the present time. Similarly, Amur Minerals (LSE: AMUR) also has considerable long term growth potential. While there are numerous question marks surrounding how it will turn its Kun-Manie prospect into a fully functioning mine, with logistics and financing being two key considerations, it seems to be in a healthy position ahead of the launch of its Detailed Study Phase of project development. A key reason for this is the equity swap agreement which was agreed with Lanstead Capital and which came to an end recently. This provided Amur Minerals with the necessary capital to progress through to the award of its production licence in June and, with such huge long term potential to become a highly profitable nickel producer owing to the 830,000 nickel equivalent tonnes at its main prospect, it could prove to be a sound, albeit speculative, investment at the present time. Of course, there are a number of other stocks that could be worth buying right now and, with that in mind, the analysts at The Motley Fool have written a free and without obligation guide called 1 Top Small-Cap Stock From The Motley Fool. The company in question may have flown under your investment radar until now, but could help you to build a great income from your investments and retire early, pay off the mortgage, or simply enjoy a more abundant lifestyle. Click here to find out all about it - it's completely free and comes without any obligation. Peter Stephens has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.
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Gold futures posted their highest close in more than three months on Monday, as the yellow metal extended its gains from the prior week amid bets for a further delay in U.S. interest-rate hikes. Gold for December delivery settled $8.60, or 0.7%, higher at $1,164.50 an ounce on Comex for its highest settlement since July 6, when the precious metal finished at $1,173.20. Meanwhile, December silver tacked on 4 cents, or 0.2%, to finish at $15.86 an ounce. Last week, gold gained about 1.7% and scored its highest settlement since Aug. 21. Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco, said he believed gold gains have partially been fueled by haven buying amid Russia's bombardment on opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime. "The Russian military action in Syria [helped foster some] bullish safe-haven buying and it probably caused some already nervous shorts to close some positions," Wyckoff said. He also noted that precious metals and raw commodities might be seeing some signs of a rebound. "It is too early to say with any conviction but there are some green shoots out there," he said. Investors believe that if gold can break ahead of $1,169 an ounce, that it could make a run at $1,200 an ounce a level gold hasn't seen since March. Against the backdrop of low rates and an uncertain political environment, gold has enjoyed a rebound because it doesn't yield interest and competes more easily against assets that do, like Treasurys, when rates are pinned near zero. Investors have interpreted Federal Reserve minutes that were released on Thursday as providing further proof that U.S. interest rates may remain on hold for the rest of 2015. Weakness in the dollar which was wavering in Monday trade, has helped give gold a lift. A stronger greenback can weigh on dollar-denominated commodities like gold because it makes them pricier for holders of other currencies. Elsewhere on the Comex, December high-grade copper picked up a penny, or 0.4%, to settle at $2.42 a pound. January platinum advanced $14.50, or 1.5%, to $995.90 an ounce, while December palladium closed $13.50, or 1.9%, lower at 694.65 an ounce.
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Meteorologist Domenica Davis looks at spectacular video of a whale pod swimming below the Aurora Borealis in Norway.
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Pepsi is officially working on its very own smartphone. That's right. The company confirmed to Reuters that it plans to launch a line of phones and accessories in China over the next few months. The soft drink giant's Chinese arm is expected to announce a the smartphone, called the P1, as early as October 20th, Mobipicker reports. According to Mobipicker's Chinese sources, the P1 will cost around 1,299 yuan (£133, $205), and will be running Android 5.1. The rest of the specs for the P1 have already apparently been revealed in a listing on TEENA (the Chinese version of the FCC), which was picked up by tech.sina.com : a 5.5-inch, 1080p display 16GB of internal storage 3000mAh battery 2GB of RAM 13-megapixel rear camera 5-megapixel front-facing camera Thanks to that listing, we've also got a fuzzy idea of what a Pepsi smartphone might look like. But a Pepsi spokesperson told Reuters that the company has no intention of getting into the mobile phone manufacturing game. That means that it has licensed its name and logo to a Chinese manufacturer, rather than designing and building the phone itself. "Available in China only, this effort is similar to recent globally licensed Pepsi products which include apparel and accessories," the spokesperson told Reuters. NOW WATCH: How to supercharge your iPhone in 5 minutes
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There's been a lot of turmoil in the cellphone industry recently. Industry maverick T-Mobile has been cutting prices and rethinking longstanding industry practices, forcing other carriers to follow suit. The result: Consumers can get better deals than ever before, but they also face more and more complicated options than ever before. We're here to help. Read on to learn how the market has changed, the best options for getting a new smartphone, and how the nation's four major wireless networks compare on network quality. How T-Mobile blew up the two-year contract and started a price war Two-year contracts used to be standard across the cellphone industry. In exchange for a two-year commitment, customers got a heavily discounted sometimes even free phone. Rolling the costs of a new cellphone into a customer's monthly bill avoided sticker shock and helped boost the growth of wireless service. But this arrangement also had some downsides. It encouraged customers to buy a new phone every two years, whether they needed one or not. And a lot of customers hated being locked into long-term contracts and facing steep early termination fees if they broke them. So in 2013, T-Mobile declared war on two-year contracts . Under T-Mobile's new pricing structure, customers could cancel their service anytime they wanted, without paying an early termination fee. The flip side was that T-Mobile stopped subsidizing customers' handsets. Customers had to either bring their own phones, pay the full retail price for a new one, or pay for a phone in monthly installments. Because it was no longer subsidizing customers' handsets, T-Mobile could offer monthly rates dramatically lower than what its major competitors were charging. T-Mobile's strategy has proven so successful this summer it passed Sprint as the No. 3 wireless carrier that other companies have been forced to follow suit. Verizon announced it was phasing out contracts in August of this year, and Sprint announced it was following suit a few days later. AT&T is still offering two-year contracts, but its CEO has predicted that they are "going to go away slowly." T-Mobile's moves also touched off an industrywide price war. The result is that you can get more service and, especially, bigger data plans for less money. This has all been good for consumers, who can get more bang for their buck. If you've had the same cellphone plan for more than two years, you're probably getting a bad deal; it's worth checking out today's packages to see if you can get a better one. The three ways you can get a new cellphone Wireless companies used to sell voice, data, and a cellphone in one bundle for a single monthly fee. T-Mobile forced the rest of the industry to unbundle these things from one another, making things more complicated. There are more options, and you can mix and match them in more ways. If you're in the market for wireless service, you have three basic options, in order from least to most convenient: Bring your own device. This could be the phone you used with your previous wireless plan, or it could be a new or used device you bought yourself. Pay cash for a new device. All four carriers offer zero percent financing plans to customers with good credit. If you qualify, you should probably take advantage. Choose a leasing or early upgrade plan, like T-Mobile Jump , AT&T Next , or Sprint Lease . The most frugal option and the one that involves the most hassle is to buy a used phone and then bring it with you when you sign up for wireless service. If you buy a phone that's a year or two old, you can get a significant discount compared with a new phone. And you may also be able to sell your old phone, saving still more money. There are a number of sites , including Amazon, Craigslist, and Glyde, that help people buy and sell used devices. But this approach has one big potential pitfall: You have to make sure the phone you choose will work with the network of the wireless network you choose. The details here are beyond the scope of this article, but if you buy a relatively new phone that was previously used on the same network you want to use, you should generally be okay. At the opposite end of the cost and convenience spectrum are the leasing and early-upgrade plans. These allow you to pay a somewhat higher monthly rate in exchange for being able to upgrade your phone more quickly than the standard two-year cycle. They generally require you to trade in your old phone to get a new one, saving you the hassle of disposing of old phones. However, for most people the best option will be to buy a phone using a two-year financing option and then hold on to it for more than two years. After two years, your phone will be paid off, so your monthly bill will drop. If you can hold on to your phone for more than two years, you can save a significant amount of money. The best wireless carrier might depend on where you live Which carrier should you choose? The national wireless market is divided into two tiers. AT&T and Verizon are the two largest carriers in the country, with more than two-thirds of the market between them. T-Mobile and Sprint are each about half as large. Generally speaking, the larger carriers tend to have better network coverage . Verizon is widely viewed as having the most extensive network, followed by AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. On the other hand, Verizon and AT&T tend to charge more than their smaller rivals. However, you don't care how these companies' networks perform in general you only care how they work in the cities and neighborhoods where you're going to spend time. If Sprint or T-Mobile's network works well near your home and office, you might be totally satisfied with them even if they offer poor coverage in other areas. The Verizon and AT&T networks are superior in two specific ways. One is service in rural areas. The larger networks can afford to spend more on cellphone towers, so they're able to cover more remote areas than the smaller carriers can. So if you live in a small town, you'll probably want to go with one of them. However, if you spend all your time in urban areas, this might not matter. The larger carriers' other big advantage is that they have more low-frequency spectrum. This kind of spectrum is a lot better at passing through thick walls and other obstructions. That means that if you happen to live in a huge apartment complex, or you work in a big office tower surrounded by other office towers, you might find T-Mobile and Sprint's coverage frustratingly spotty. In urban areas where T-Mobile and Sprint do have coverage, on the other hand, the smaller carriers have an advantage of their own. Because they have fewer customers, wireless connections are often faster. If you're not sure which carrier is best for you, you might want to take advantage of carriers' return policies. All four wireless providers allow customers to return their phones and cancel their wireless plans within 14 days though note that some charge restocking fees of around $50. So you can sign up with the cheapest provider that seems to meet your needs and see how it performs. If connectivity is disappointing, you can return the device and sign up with someone else.
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Spain's Garbine Muguruza rose to a career-high fourth in the WTA tennis rankings published on Monday, following her victory at the China Open on Sunday. Muguruza, 22, beat Switzerland's Timea Bacsinszky 7-5, 6-4 in Beijing to collect her second career title, a week after retiring from the Wuhan Open final due to exhaustion. The Spaniard is just one point behind world number three Maria Sharapova, who withdrew from the China Open with a left forearm injury. Bacsinszky also cracked the top 10 for the first time as she jumped up seven places from 17th, while Agnieszka Radwanska climbed two spots to sixth following her run to the last four in the Chinese capital. AFP
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Zayn Malik Zayn Malik reportedly wants One Direction songwriter Jamie Scott to pen songs for his solo LP. The 22-year-old singer - who left the boy band in March - is believed to have attempted to contact Scott, who wrote 1D's number one hit 'What Makes You Beautiful', to help him create his debut record. However, Jamie is hesitant to get involved with Zayn's project in case it affects his relationship with the other boys - Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles - in the future. A source told the Sunday Mirror newspaper: "Zayn knows Jamie is a ticket to a hit and has been sending messages to him trying to get the songwriter on board. But Jamie feels that working with Zayn could cause problems because of his history with the band." Zayn is said to be planning to release his first solo effort as soon as One Direction finish promotion for their upcoming new album 'Made in the A.M.' and take their announced hiatus. The source added: "In any case Zayn won't be releasing his single until 1D is out the way and a couple of other 1D singles are out." Zayn has spoken with music manager Sarah Stennett, who helped stars including Rita Ora and Ellie Goulding hit the big time, to help him launch himself as a solo star.
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Find out if you live in one of the 10 states with the best money habits. 10 Most Money-Savvy States Where you live can reveal a lot about your finances. If you live in one of the 10 most money-savvy states as ranked in GOBankingRates' Money-Savvy-States survey, for instance, it's more likely that you make smart use of financial services like retirement accounts and bank products, and you're less likely to have debts in delinquency or collection. To find the most financially savvy states, GOBankingRates collected state data in three categories: use of banking services, strong saving and investing behavior, and strong financial education policies. Each state was scored and ranked based on these three financial health indicators. Click through to see if you live in one of the 10 most money-savvy states. 10. Wisconsin Wisconsin residents are smart about banking, with 80.7 percent of households fully banked and 91.1 percent having at least a checking account. The state scores for its high percentage of households enrolled in a retirement plan (83 percent) and low debt delinquency. When it comes to saving and investing, however, Wisconsin is just average. While Wisconsin falls below average on financial education , the state's residents demonstrate enough fiscal responsibility to put this state at No. 10 on the list of the most money-savvy states. 9. Michigan Michigan lands in the top 10 due in part to strong financial education policies. Michigan requires that all high school students take an economics course and tests students on both personal finance and economics. Michigan also scores better than average in the use of banking services, as close to nine in 10 (87.9 percent) of Michigan residents have at least a checking account. Michigan falls a bit behind in saving and investing. A high 19 percent of the state's households spend more than they make each month, and 60 percent report having no emergency fund. Despite its residents' less-than-ideal saving and investing habits, however, Michigan's strong financial education and use of banking accounts and put it at No. 9 on this list. 8. Idaho Idaho scores better than average in all three ranking categories, which helps put it at No. 8 among the most money-savvy states. Idaho's 24.4 percent of unbanked and underbanked households falls around the median (25.8 percent), and the number of residents with a savings account is higher than average. Idaho also pulls ahead of most states in the saving and investing category due to lower-than-average debt delinquency (32.7 percent) and a lower rate of residents who spend more than they earn (18 percent). Idaho also requires its high school students to take both an economics and a personal finance course, which gives it a strong score in the financial education category. 7. New Jersey Lower rates of debts in collections or delinquency (33.1 percent) and the fourth-highest rate of households with an emergency fund (45 percent) help give New Jersey a favorable ranking in the saving and investing category. At No. 7 overall, New Jersey also has the fourth-highest rate of enrollment in retirement plans (86 percent) and the third-highest portion of households with investments in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds (44 percent). With stronger financial education policies than most states, New Jersey requires high school students to take both an economics and a personal finance course. However, only about two-thirds (67.9 percent) of New Jersey households are fully banked, putting this state below average in the use of banking services. 6. South Dakota South Dakota's big strength is its residents' solid saving and investing habits, which helps it rank at No. 6 in this survey. As the third-best state in the saving and investing category, South Dakota has one of the lowest rates of debt delinquency (25.1 percent) and overspending 17 percent). South Dakota also has a higher portion of households investing in stocks , bonds and mutual funds (38 percent), as well as a bankruptcy rate in the bottom 10. South Dakota's score for use of banking services is better than average, with a rate of unbanked and underbanked households 24.1 percent) below the national median. South Dakota's financial education requirements are average, requiring only that both economics and personal finance courses be offered in the state's high schools but not requiring students to take them and not requiring testing. 5. Virginia Virginia's financial education policies are the strongest of any state in the Money-Savvy States top 10 rankings. Virginia requires that its high school students take both a personal finance and economics course as well as complete testing on the subject of economics. Virginia also scores better than most states in the saving and investing category due to higher-than-average rates of emergency savings (40 percent), retirement account ownership (80 percent), and residents who live within their means (78 percent). Virginia's score for use of banking services is about average. Overall, these factors put Virginia at No. 5. 4. Minnesota Minnesota ranks third for best use of banking services and fifth in saving and investing, which puts the state at No. 4 overall among the most money-savvy states. Minnesota has the highest rate of fully banked households, at 81.9 percent, and one of the lowest numbers of households that used alternative financial services(14.9 percent). In the category of saving and investing, Minnesota boasts the lowest rate of debt delinquency of any state (23.9 percent) and a high rate of enrollment in retirement savings plans. Minnesota lacks strong policies on financial education, but its residents' strong banking, saving and investing behaviors make it one of the top states for smart money management. 3. Utah Utah is a standout in the use of banking services, with the top ranking in this category. Utah has the second-highest portion of households that are fully banked(81.5 percent), the third-lowest rate of using alternative financial services (15 percent) and the second-highest rate of savings account ownership (84.7 percent). This strong use of banking services is supported by the state's financial education policies, which require Utah high school students to take a course in personal finance. Utah scores close to the median for saving and investing, though it has some better-than-average scores within this category, like lower debt delinquency (32.4 percent) and higher enrollment in retirement savings plans (80 percent). Altogether, these scores put Utah at No. 3 on this list. 2. New Hampshire New Hampshire ranks among the top five states in the use of banking services, with a high portion of fully banked households (78.1 percent) and low use of alternative financial services (15.9 percent). The state also has a strong ranking in the saving and investing category due largely to its high rate of enrollment in retirement plans (84 percent) and a larger portion of households who live within their means (81 percent). New Hampshire also boasts better-than-average financial education policies, requiring high school students to take both an economics and a personal finance course. The state's high rankings across all three categories in this survey make New Hampshire the second-most financially savvy state. 1. North Dakota North Dakota ranks as the No. 1 most money-savvy state in the U.S. by scoring in the top of all three categories considered in this study. It is the top state for saving and investing due to several factors, like low rates of personal bankruptcy (0.86 per 1,000) and debt delinquency (24.2 percent), as well as a higher-than-average number of households with emergency funds (46 percent). North Dakota also scores better than average in the use of banking services, with fewer underbanked households (22.8 percent) than most states and a higher portion of households with a savings account (74.7 percent). North Dakota's financial education measures also beat out most other states by requiring high school students to complete both an economics course and a personal finance course. The smart saving and investing behaviors of North Dakotans along with their use of banking services and strong financial education standards make it the state with the nation's most money-savvy residents. Methodology : GOBankingRates scored all 50 states and D.C. in three categories: (1) use of banking services, (2) saving and investing behaviors, and (3) financial education policies within the state, which was given half the weight of the first two categories. GOBankingRates sourced the most recent data, reports and surveys currently available. For the use of banking services category, GOBankingRates sourced state-level data from the FDIC's 2013 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households and evaluated states on three factors: (1) the portion of fully banked households versus unbanked or underbanked households, (2) the portion of households that reported using alternative financial services, and (3) the portion of households that reported owning a savings account. These factors contributed equally to each state's score in this category. For the saving and investing behaviors category, GOBankingRates considered six factors, which were weighted equally, to evaluate the financial habits of residents in each state. The first factor considered was (1) data from the 2014 Urban Institutes' Delinquent Debt in America report, which measured rates of delinquent debt and debt in collection for each state. GOBankingRates used data from FINRA's 2012 National Financial Capability Study to evaluate states on several factors: (2) households reporting on spending below, at, or above their earnings; (3) portion of households that reported owning a retirement savings account; (4) portion of households that reported investments in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds; and (5) portion of households that reported having an emergency fund versus those that did not. Lastly, GOBankingRates looked at (6) the rate of personal bankruptcies in each state in the second quarter of 2015, as reported by the FDIC , favoring states with lower bankruptcy rates. For the financial education category, states were evaluated based on scores provided in the Council for Economic Education's 2014 Survey of the States , favoring those with stronger financial education policies.
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Find out if your state is among the 10 that are the worst at managing money. 10 Least Money-Savvy States If you constantly struggle with your finances, maybe you should blame the state you live in. A new GOBankingRates survey found that if you live in one of the 10 least money-savvy states, you're less likely to have a bank account or retirement plan, you probably didn't take a personal finance course in grade school, and you are more likely to have delinquent debts. For its Money-Savvy States survey, GOBankingRates analyzed state-level data in three categories important to financial health: use of banking services, saving and investing behavior, and financial education policies. All 50 states and the District of Columbia were scored and ranked to find the 10 states whose residents are the worst with their money. Click through to see if you live in one of the 10 least money-savvy states. 10. Ohio Ohio is below average in all three categories considered in this survey, and out of the three, its worst score is in the financial education category. The state has no mandated standards for the subject of personal finance and doesn't require schools to offer the subject. The saving and investing behaviors of Ohio residents also rank worse than most states due to a higher-than-average bankruptcy rate and higher-than-average number of debt delinquencies. Ohio residents also underuse important bank services like savings accounts and have a higher portion of underbanked and unbanked households than most states (27.2 percent). All of these factors put Ohio among the 10 states that are the worst at managing money. 9. South Carolina South Carolina's overall ranking is hurt most by its residents' weak use of bank services. It is among the 10 worst states for its high rate of unbanked and underbanked households (36.1 percent), its high portion of households using alternative financial services (32.3 percent), and its low percentage of households with a savings account (58.2 percent). The lower-than-average saving and investing habits of South Carolinians also dragged the state down in the overall ranking. South Carolina has the No. 1 highest rates of debt in collections (46.2 percent) and debt delinquency (6.5 percent), as well as the lowest percentage of households with a retirement plan (55 percent) of any state. South Carolina did score well for financial education because it requires high school students to take an economics course, but it still ranks No. 9 among the least money-savvy states. 8. District of Columbia The District of Columbia lands at No. 8 among the least money-savvy states due to having some of the worst financial education guidelines in the U.S. The District only has standards for economics courses, not personal finance, and high schools are not required to offer courses in either subject. The underuse of financial services in the District also puts it among the worst states for money savviness. Over a third (36.6 percent) of the District's residents are unbanked or underbanked, and the District also has a high rate of households that used alternative financial services. Even with a nearly average saving and investing score due to high rates of enrollment in retirement plans and investments in stocks and bonds the District's residents still rank as having some of the worst money management practices in the U.S. Read: How Much the Unbanked Spend on Alternative Financial Services 7. Alabama Alabama has the third-worst score of any state in the saving and investing category due to Alabamans' poor financial behaviors like an underuse of retirement plans (59 percent) and investment vehicles like stocks, bonds, and mutual funds (29 percent). Alabama also has the second-highest rate of bankruptcy in the nation at 5.13 per 1,000 people in the second quarter of 2015. For the use of banking services, Alabama was fourth worst, with high rates of unbanked and underbanked households and use of alternative financial services. With laws that require high school students to take both an economics course and a personal finance course, Alabama might be able to create more financially educated future generations. For now, however, Alabama residents' poor saving and investing habits and underuse of important banking services make it No. 7 overall among the least money-savvy states. 6. Kansas Kansas has some of the worst financial education policies. The state lacks any standards or requirements for public schools to offer curriculum or courses related to economics or personal finance. The state also ranks poorly for its underuse of banking services. Kansas has more unbanked and underbanked households than most states, as well as higher rates of using alternative financial services. Kansas also underperformed in the saving and investing category, particularly with its high portion of households that spend more than they earn (21 percent). Overall, Kansas ranks No. 6 among states with the worst money habits. 5. Oklahoma Oklahoma ranks low in all three categories of the survey. For banking, Oklahoma ranks in the bottom 10 states for ownership of savings accounts, with just 56.9 percent of its residents reporting owning one. Oklahoma's scores for investing and saving behaviors are closer to average but still put it behind most other states. Although Oklahoma has a standard personal finance curriculum that students are required to take, high schools are not required to offer an economics course. These factors push Oklahoma to No. 5 among the states whose residents are the least financially savvy. 4. Kentucky Like Oklahoma, Kentucky scores poorly across the board, which makes it the fourth-least money-savvy state. Kentucky's worst score is in the saving and investing category because it is among the 10 worst states for high debt delinquency, lack of retirement savings plans and fewer residents with investments. Kentucky residents' lack of emergency funds is the state's worst score, with nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of households reporting no emergency savings. Kentucky also lands in the 10 worst states for all factors considered in the use of bank services category, which includes factors such as savings account ownership. Only a little more than half (53.5 percent) of Kentucky households have savings accounts. Kentucky's weak financial education requirements don't help; while the state sets standards for both personal finance and economics courses, it doesn't require schools to offer courses in either subject. 3. Nevada Nevada has the second-worst score for saving and investing. It has the highest portion of households that spend more than they earn (23 percent), tied with Hawaii, which means nearly a quarter of Nevada residents are dipping into savings or going into debt just to make ends meet. This tendency is reflected in Nevada residents' high rates of debt over half (52.3 percent) of the state's households have delinquent debt or debt in collection, resulting in the third-worst score in the nation. Nevadans also have the highest average balances of debt in collections, at $7,198. Because it ranks worse than most states in the use of banking services and financial education categories, Nevada is the third-worst state for money management. 2. Arkansas Banking services are underutilized in Arkansas, which is the biggest factor making it No. 2 among the least money-savvy states. Arkansas has the third-highest portion of underbanked and unbanked households in the U.S., with 38 percent lacking financial services vital to healthy money management. Over a third (34.4 percent) of Arkansas households have turned to alternative financial services, and the state has the lowest number of residents with savings accounts (45.6 percent). Arkansas residents' saving and investing habits are also worse than those of most other states, due in large part to more Arkansans living beyond their means (20 percent) and a smaller share of households with retirement plans (63 percent). Arkansas has financial education standards close to the national average because it requires high school students to take an economics course but it lacks any policies requiring schools to offer a personal finance course as well. 1. Mississippi Mississippi takes the spot as the worst state for money savviness, and the ranking reflects the state's broader economic issues. The state also ranked as the poorest in America in a 2015 24/7 Wall St. survey because of its high rates of unemployment and poverty. With less money to live off of than other Americans, Mississippians appear to be struggling the most with saving and investing. Households in this state have the lowest rate of investments such as stocks and bonds and the highest percentage of households with no emergency fund (64 percent). Close to half (47.3 percent) of Mississippi households are underbanked and unbanked, the highest percentage in any state. Mississippi households also have the highest rate of using alternative financial services (40.5 percent) and the second-lowest rate of savings account ownership (46.9 percent). Mississippi's financial education score is actually better than many other states, but that isn't enough to help its overall ranking in this survey. Mississippians' current poor money habits make Mississippi the least money-savvy state in America. Methodology : GOBankingRates scored all 50 states and D.C. in three categories: (1) use of banking services, (2) saving and investing behaviors, and (3) financial education policies within the state, which was given half the weight of the first two categories. GOBankingRates sourced the most recent data, reports and surveys currently available. For the use of banking services category, GOBankingRates sourced state-level data from the FDIC's 2013 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households and evaluated states on three factors: (1) the portion of fully banked households versus unbanked or underbanked households, (2) the portion of households that reported using alternative financial services, and (3) the portion of households that reported owning a savings account. These factors contributed equally to each state's score in this category. For the saving and investing behaviors category, GOBankingRates considered six factors, which were weighted equally, to evaluate the financial habits of residents in each state. The first factor considered was (1) data from the 2014 Urban Institutes' Delinquent Debt in America report, which measured rates of delinquent debt and debt in collection for each state. GOBanking Rates used data from FINRA's 2012 National Financial Capability Study to evaluate states on several factors: (2) households reporting on spending below, at, or above their earnings; (3) portion of households that reported owning a retirement savings account; (4) portion of households that reported investments in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds; and (5) portion of households that reported having an emergency fund versus those that did not. Lastly, GOBankingRates looked at (6) the rate of personal bankruptcies in each state in the second quarter of 2015, as reported by the FDIC , favoring states with lower bankruptcy rates. For the financial education category, states were evaluated based on scores provided in the Council for Economic Education's 2014 Survey of the States , favoring those with stronger financial education policies.
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Suspect faces first degree murder charge
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YAZOO CITY, Miss. Stephanie Douglas signed up for health insurance in January with the best intentions. She had suffered a stroke and needed help paying for her medicines and care. The plan she chose from the federal insurance exchange sounded affordable $58.17 a month after the subsidy she received under the Affordable Care Act. But Ms. Douglas, 50, who was working about 30 hours a week as a dollar store cashier and a services coordinator at an apartment complex for older adults, soon realized that her insurance did not fit in her tight monthly budget. She stopped paying her premiums in April and lost her coverage a few months later. "When you owe on your house, on your truck, when you're a single parent of a college student and you have other bills," she said, "it just doesn't work." On Nov. 1, a new sign-up period for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act will begin, and insurers, health care providers and enrollment groups are ramping up campaigns to encourage 10.5 million eligible uninsured people to buy policies. But even as those efforts begin, the public insurance exchanges, also known as marketplaces, created by the law are facing another challenge: keeping the customers they already have. About 9.9 million people were enrolled in the federal and state marketplaces at the end of June, a drop of about 15 percent from the 11.7 million who the Obama administration said selected plans during the open enrollment period that ended in February. Sign up for The New York Times' Your Money newsletter Though there is no comprehensive data on why people drop or lose their marketplace coverage, enrollment counselors, health care providers and consumers say cost is a factor. In some cases, people lost jobs or their income dropped after they enrolled. Other people signed up for coverage only to decide later that they could not afford it. Still others dropped their insurance after their federal subsidies intended to help pay premiums were reduced or eliminated because the government could not verify their incomes or concluded that they were earning more than they had reported on their applications. The cost of marketplace coverage may be particularly challenging for some in Mississippi and 19 other states that have not expanded Medicaid to provide largely free health care for people earning up to 138 percent of the poverty line. Many of these people can receive federal subsidies to help pay for private plans. But the subsidies do not always help enough. In Mississippi, even though 95 percent of those who enrolled more than in any other state received subsidies, the state still has had among the highest rates of attrition from marketplace plans this year. From March 31 to June 30, the number of enrollees dropped by 8 percent, to 73,223 from 80,011, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Experts also point to another factor behind dropping or losing coverage: confusion. Some who signed up for coverage this year lost it within months because they did not understand what information they had to supply or even that they were required to make monthly payments, according to counselors who help people enroll in marketplace plans. In many cases they may have simply failed to provide a Social Security number on the application and did not respond to follow-up requests for it. Mikel Rogers, an enrollment worker at Brooklyn Family Health Center outside Hattiesburg, Miss., said letters from the marketplace asking for additional documents were hard to understand, especially for people who had never had health insurance before. "I've looked at these letters and said, 'O.K., I have a bachelor's degree and I wouldn't understand this, either,' " Ms. Rogers said. "It's just not worded clearly." Monica Gonzalez, navigator program manager at the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida, which has a federal grant to enroll people in marketplace plans, said that, for many who lost coverage this spring, the problem began when the marketplace could not verify the annual income they listed on their application, or their citizenship status. About 423,000 people in the 37 states that use the federal marketplace lost their 2015 coverage by June 30 because they had not provided sufficient documentation of their citizenship or immigration status, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. And for about 967,000 households in those states, their premium subsidies and for some, a separate category of subsidies that helps cover their co-payments and deductibles were recalculated because of "income inconsistencies." Although some people's subsidies could have increased under that scenario, others abruptly began receiving smaller subsidies or lost them completely, according to enrollment counselors and consumers in half a dozen states. In some cases, these people did not realize their subsidy had shrunk or disappeared until they started getting higher bills from the marketplace or their health care providers. Walter Whitlow, 56, a remodeling contractor in Volente, Tex., said he had never seen the emails the federal marketplace sent him asking for additional proof of income after he signed up for a Humana plan in January. Doctors diagnosed throat cancer in February, and in June he learned from his oncologist's office that his monthly premium had gone to $439 from $103 and his deductible to $4,600 from $900. Mr. Whitlow was able to keep his plan, but only because his sister, Ali Knight, had taken over his premium payments after his cancer diagnosis and could afford to cover the higher price. Mr. Whitlow's subsidy and lower deductible have been reinstated with Ms. Knight's help, he provided the necessary proof of income after she helped him find the emails requesting it but he now owes thousands of dollars in medical bills accumulated during the two months that his deductible was higher. Ms. Knight said there were probably a lot of people who had experienced similar problems but lost their coverage because they had no help. When her brother signed up, she said, he asked the marketplace to correspond with him only by regular mail because he was not used to email. "I don't know how you wrap your head around trying to fix something like this," Ms. Knight said. Ben Wakana, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, said that when the federal marketplace needs additional information from customers, it notifies them about the steps they need to take "as many as 14 times through phone calls, emails and letters." He added that the marketplace has simplified the language it uses when asking for more documentation. Some people say they lost coverage because they never received, or perhaps never read through, information from the marketplace or their insurer. George Dixon, 23, of Hattiesburg, said the plan he signed up for in 2014 was automatically renewed for 2015, and he kept paying the same premium he had paid last year: $34.35 per month. He did not realize his rate had increased slightly until he received a letter from Magnolia Health in April saying his policy had been canceled because he had not paid the full amount for three months. Mr. Dixon said that if the marketplace or his insurer had tried to inform him of the price change before it took effect, he had never seen the letter. "It just popped up on me," he said. Sometimes people leave marketplace plans for good reasons, such as getting a job that provides health insurance. "This market is always going to be a temporary way station for some people until they get a job with health benefits," said Larry Levitt, a senior vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health research organization. "Where I would get worried is if there starts to be evidence that people are dropping out because their insurance is becoming unaffordable, or they just don't feel it offers them good value." Mike Chaney, the insurance commissioner in Mississippi, said some of the attrition in his state could be due to unhappiness with the provider networks offered by Magnolia Health, the insurer that offered some of the least expensive plans here for 2015. "We are trying to work with them to be certain they are handling customer complaints, number one, and number two, that their networks are sufficient," Mr. Chaney said. A spokeswoman for Magnolia declined to comment. In the 20 states that have not expanded Medicaid, many people whose incomes are above the poverty level can qualify for subsidized private coverage. But like Ms. Douglas, who said she earned about $19,000 last year, many may struggle to pay for the coverage month after month even with substantial subsidies. Ms. Douglas, who said she was unaware of the debate over expanding Medicaid, said she was returning to school and hoped to get a degree that would help her find full-time work. For now, she is taking aspirin instead of a prescription blood thinner to prevent another stroke and stretching the statins she takes to lower her cholesterol. "My prayer is that God will show favor for my employment status to move from part time to full time," she said. "I don't want to keep trying to get something I can't pay for."
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While in a few decades virtuallyall of our jobs could be gone, replaced by incredibly sophisticated machines , humans might not be obsolete just yet. And that's not because of talents we've acquired and honed through millennia. Essentially, we still excel at basic, innate skills such as listening. In a study conducted by Julien Plante-Hébert from the Université de Montreal , people were tested against sound recognition machines to figure out who was able to recognize the speaker more quickly. To measure the accuracy of responses, the researcher created several "voice lineups" small variations of the same acoustic track. These were not unlike the lineups police use to have a witness identify the suspect of a crime by placing the suspect in a row with other similar looking people. Plante-Hébert exposed 44 subjects, aged 18 to 65, to the study starting from one syllable all the way to 18. He found that it was enough for 99.9% humans to hear four or more syllables ( merci beaucoup , in this case) to correctly identify the speaker, if he or she was a close friend or family. By comparison, only 92% of machines got it right. While machines are better than humans at recording the information contained in longer pieces of audio, says Plante-Hébert, humans are unbeatable when it comes to recognizing a voice. Human's capacity to filter out background noises helps, he adds. "At birth, babies can already recognize the voice of their mothers and distinguish the sounds of foreign languages," the researcher said, as he gave scientific weight to the fact that no one listens to you better than those who love you. Not even machines.
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When my plane touched down at Incheon International Airport in the spring of 2009, I thought my long journey to freedom was over. My heart was beating out of my chest with excitement as my mother and I and our small band of North Korean defectors were met by South Korean agents and ushered through the impossibly shiny and modern arrivals gate. Finally I could do and say what I wanted without being arrested. But I hadn't been in South Korea for more than a few weeks when I realized that freedom was not so simple, and in many ways my mind was still locked behind the sealed borders of North Korea. I was 15 years old with the equivalent of a second grade education, and I didn't even possess the language to express concepts such as liberty, individuality, or love for anything other than the Leader. I had to learn how to think before I could learn to be free. Two years earlier I had first escaped from my homeland by scrambling across the frozen river that divides North Korea and China. All I knew was that if I stayed behind I would die from starvation, from disease or from being worked to death in a forced labor camp because my father was a smuggler and our whole family had been marked as criminals. My hunger was unbearable, and I hoped to find food and work in China. Instead I was sold as a child bride to a human trafficker and spent two harrowing years hiding from Chinese police who would send me back to North Korea. Finally I made another dangerous escape, this time across the Gobi Desert into Mongolia, which had been quietly offering refuge to North Korean defectors. From there, diplomats arranged passage to South Korea, which recognizes us as citizens. Even though North and South Koreans have the same ethnic background and speak the same basic language, after nearly seventy years of isolation and indoctrination, we North Korean defectors often feel like visitors from another planet. At the Hanawon resettlement center, where we spent three months being taught the basics of South Korean society, I realized how hard it would be to transition into this strange new world of subtlety and choices. For me the most difficult part of the resettlement program was learning to introduce myself in class. The teachers taught us that the first thing you say is your name, age, and hometown. Then you can tell people about your hobbies, your favorite recording artist or movie star, and finally you can talk about "what you want to be in the future." When I was called on, I froze. I had no idea what a "hobby" was. When it was explained that it was something I did that made me happy, I couldn't conceive of such a thing. My only goal was supposed to be making the regime happy. And why would anyone care about what "I" wanted to be when I grew up? There was no "I" in North Korea only "we." This whole exercise was so stressful I just stared in panic. When the teacher saw this she said, "If that's too hard, then tell us your favorite color." Again, I went blank. The teacher told me, "This isn't so hard, I'll go first: My favorite color is pink. Now what's yours?" "Pink!" I said, relieved that I was finally given the "right" answer. In North Korea the regime decides everything for you: where you live, where you go to school, where you work, what books you read, what clothes you wear. You can be punished for dying your hair or wearing jeans; you can be executed for making an unauthorized international phone call or watching a Hollywood movie. North Korean schools are designed to indoctrinate rather than to educate. We are trained to think with one mind and to accept what we are told without question. But once I got to South Korea, I had to think for myself all the time and it was exhausting. If you are not brought up with choices, constantly having to make decisions can feel like torture. So many things I learned at Hanawon didn't make sense at all. But there was one simple phrase I heard over and over that really struck me: "In a democracy, if you work hard, you will be rewarded." I didn't believe it at first. That was not the way things happened in North Korea, where working hard was rewarded only if you had a good songbun or social caste and the right connections. But I knew that I could work hard, and it made me excited to think that I might be rewarded for my effort. There is a word for justice in Korean ( 정의 jeong-ui) but I never heard it as a child in North Korea, so I didn't understand the concept. But this was an idea that felt right to me. I had to begin working toward my goals immediately; there was not a moment to waste. After three months at Hanawon my mother and I settled in a tiny apartment south of Seoul. I crammed twelve years of education into the next eighteen months of my life. I inhaled books like other people breathe oxygen, starting with Korean language picture books about the countries of the world. Then I moved on to books about famous people. I was interested in America, and I particularly loved biographies of Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama because they had to overcome obstacles and prejudices to get ahead. I found that as my vocabulary became richer my thoughts were getting deeper, my vision wider, and my emotions less shallow. I could literally feel my brain coming to life, as if new pathways were firing up in places that had been dark and barren. I read translations of literary classics like Catcher in the Rye , Lord of the Flies , and Tolstoy's short stories. I fell in love with Shakespeare. But it was borrowing a translation George Orwell's Animal Farm at school that marked a real turning point for me. It was like finding a diamond in a mountain of sand. I felt like Orwell knew where I was from and what I had been through. The animal farm was really North Korea, and he was describing my life. I saw my family in the animals my grandmother, mother, father, and me, too: I was like one of the new generation of pigs at the end of the book who have no idea of their history. Reducing the horror of North Korea into a simple allegory erased its power over me. It helped set me free. After six years of practicing freedom, my hard work has been rewarded: I know now that my favorite color is spring green and my hobby is reading books and watching documentaries. I'm not copying other people's answers anymore; I have learned to think for myself. I am free.
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Dubai-based developer Buroj Property Development said on Saturday it plans to invest $4.8 billion to build a luxury tourist resort near Sarajevo, in what could be the biggest foreign investment of its kind in the Balkan country.
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If you find yourself reaching for a $39.99 sweater or loading up on $11.99 albums on iTunes, you're not alone. The strategy of ending prices with 99 cents has been around for decades and has worked its magic on almost all of us. But it's certainly not the only trick retailers use when pricing products. Merchants use a variety of strategies to get us to spend more from labeling prices without dollar signs to setting a per-customer limit. And this takes place at all ends of the spectrum from buying food and toys to cars and houses. Whether you're shopping for the holidays or for everyday items, even you could be susceptible to simple pricing tricks, warns Money Talks News money expert Stacy Johnson. "While you probably don't stop to consider the pennies on a price tag, let me assure you, your friendly merchant does," Johnson says. 1. Prices ending in 9, 99 or 95 Known as "charm prices," prices ending in 9, 99 or 95 make items appear cheaper than they really are. Since people read from left to right, they are more likely to register the first number and make an immediate conclusion as to whether the price is reasonable. When professor Robert Schindler of the Rutgers Business School studied prices at a women's clothing store, he found the 1 cent difference between prices ending in .99 and .00 had "a considerable effect on sales," with prices ending with .99 far outselling those ending with .00. While this works right down to the last digit on a product as small as a $1.29 iTunes download, it's also effective on anything from a pair of jeans to a car or house. Homes selling for $299,000 often sell faster than those costing $300,000. The reason? It's under, rather than at, the upper limit of those shopping for houses in the $250,000 $300,000 price range. Pricing that doesn't end in 9 also tells our minds a story. If a price ends in 4 or 7, for example, it's likely to stand out because it doesn't end in 9. And it subliminally suggests the seller has seriously considered the price. 2. Dollars without cents If you see prices with no change, the retailer or restaurateur is sending the message that you're in a high-end place. The implication is that if you're concerned about pocket change, you should move on. 3. Prices without dollar signs In Tricks of the Trade: Restaurants , we explained the rationale behind restaurants intentionally leaving dollar signs off menus: It makes customers spend more. In a Cornell study, guests given a menu with only numbers and no dollar signs spent significantly more than those who received a menu with either prices showing dollar signs or prices written out in words. The same tactic translates to retail stores. When items are marked, say, "20" without the dollar sign, retailers are hoping customers won't associate the amount with money and thus be less likely to keep a running tally of how much they're spending as they shop. 4. 10 for $10 trick Stores push deals like "10 for $10," aiming to get shoppers to buy items like soup, cereal, etc., in bulk. But here's something stores don't advertise: You don't always have to buy in bulk to get the deal. In many cases, you could just as easily buy 1 for $1. It's something worth asking your retailer about before loading up your cart. 5. Per-customer limits When stores add limits to products, like "limit 4 per customer," it tricks shoppers into thinking the product is scarce, the price low, or both. It also gives the impression of big demand. You find yourself buying several when you would normally buy just one, to avoid missing out. 6. "Free" promotion Retailers know "free" is the magic word. So they roll out deals like buy-one-get-one-free sometimes persuading us to buy things we wouldn't normally purchase. Free shipping incentives requiring us to spend a certain amount of money also draw us in. 7. Simple prices Simple prices, especially on products susceptible to future markdowns, allow shoppers to quickly compare how much they're saving. It's easy to compute the discount on a product originally priced at $50 that now costs $35, as opposed to an item originally priced at $49.97, now on sale for $34.97. The bottom line These tricks are so simple, it's easy to believe you're too sophisticated to fall for them. Odds are, however, you do, and so do millions of other people. Otherwise, they wouldn't be used. The psychology of shopping affects virtually everything you buy from toys to houses and food to Ferraris. But being aware they exist and work may help you overcome them and make you a smarter shopper.
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Turkish authorities said they were close to identifying one of two suicide bombers responsible for an attack in the capital Ankara which killed at least 97 people over the weekend. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that DNA tests were being carried out on the remains. A daily newspaper close to the government, "Yeni Safak," reported that authorities were trying to identify the perpetrator by comparing DNA samples of the suspected bombers with those obtained from families of extremists they suspect could have carried out the attacks. "Looking at how the incident took place, we are probing Daesh as our first priority," Davutoglu said in an interview on Monday, using an alternative Arabic acronym for the self-styled "Islamic State" ("IS"). Investigations continue No one has claimed responsibility, but the attack showed similarities to a suicide bombing which the government had blamed on Islamic State earlier this year that killed 33 Turkish and Kurdish peace activists near the town of Suruc bordering Syria. The daily "Hurriyet" newspaper said the type of device and explosives used in Ankara were the same as those used in the Suruc attack. Speaking on Turkish broadcaster NTV in a live interview, Prime Minister Davutoglu said Saturday's attack had been an attempt to influence the outcome of parliamentary elections due on November 1 and that necessary steps would be taken if security failures were found to have contributed to the bombing. He also vowed that the elections would continue to take place as intended. The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which said it was targeted in the attack during a peace rally outside Ankara's main train station, has put the death toll at 128. Meanwhile the HDP announced that it was considering cancelling all of its rallies ahead of the November 1 election over security fears. Further divisions as Turkey mourns the dead The government had originally said that Kurdish rebels or Islamic State militants were likely responsible, while mourners have accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of fomenting violence to gain votes for the ruling party ahead of the elections. From Germany, Cem Özdemir - co-chairman of Germany's Greens Party - has also accused Erdogan of deliberately plunging Turkey into chaos "in a bid to avoid another defeat at the polls and the subsequent prospect of being held accountable for his actions." German Chancellor Angela Merkel meanwhile announced that she would meet with President Erdogan and Prime Minister Davutoglu to discuss how the civil war in Syria had affected neighboring Turkey's stability. Özdemir, for his part, urged German politicians to distance themselves from the Turkish government until the elections. Security measures and arrests On Sunday, police detained four more suspected Islamic State militants in a raid in the southern city of Adana, the region's governor's office said Monday. The detentions raised the number of suspected IS militants taken into custody in sweeps in four cities to around 40. It was not clear however, if any of the arrests were linked to the peace rally bombings. The attack, the worst of its kind in Turkish history, fuelled security concerns surrounding the election, as the interior minister was reported as saying that extra security precautions would be taken after the bombing.
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China's top foreign policymaker will visit Japan Tuesday for a high-level political dialogue, in the latest possible thaw between the Asian rivals despite territorial disputes and tensions. State Councillor Yang Jiechi, whose visit was announced Monday by Beijing's foreign ministry, will be the highest-ranking Chinese diplomat to make an official trip to Japan for several years. Yang is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday, Japan's foreign ministry said in Tokyo. It will be his first trip to Japan since he became State Councillor in 2013, a year after relations plunged following Tokyo's nationalisation of disputed islands in the East China Sea. Despite close trade links between the world's second- and third-largest economies, relations are also clouded by rows over wartime history. Beijing last month held a huge military parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Japan's World War II defeat. When Chinese President Xi Jinping and Abe met on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit last year, their handshake was marred by expressions of barely concealed distaste. During his three-day trip Yang will meet the head of Japan's National Security Council Shotaro Yachi as part of an ongoing series of meetings between the two countries, following the first in Beijing in July, foreign minstry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular briefing. The visit comes as Japanese media reported as many as four citizens have been detained in the past month on accusations of spying in China, the first such cases since 2010.
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Herve Falciani, a former IT employee at HSBC bank's Swiss operation who leaked information on tax evading accounts, failed to show up to trial on Monday to face charges of data theft, industrial espionage and violating Swiss banking secrecy laws. The 43-year-old French-Italian leaked the information of more than 100,000 HSBC clients who had hidden away some 180 billion euros ($205 billion) from tax authorities. The prosecutor in the case asked for an adjournment, which was granted by the court. The next hearing is scheduled for November 2, though Falciani may still be tried in absentia. Falciani, who lives in France, had previously said he would not come to the trial. France has said it would not extradite the whistleblower, who has helped French authorities go after tax evaders. Falciani started working at the British bank HSBC in 2000 at its Swiss subsidiary. As an IT professional he had access to troves of data, which he took in 2007 and tried unsuccessfully to sell in Lebanon. Swiss authorities have accused Falciani of trying to cash in on the clients' information, but Falciani maintains he was trying to expose tax cheaters and money laundering. After his failed attempt to sell the data in Lebanon, Falciani handed over the information to European fiscal authorities, who have used it to go after tax cheats and money laundering. He is widely regarded as a whistleblower. In June, HSBC agreed to pay millions of euros in fines for alleged violations, while Swiss prosecutors closed their investigation. France, Belgium, Austria and Argentina have also launched investigations into the bank.
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If you're not rich enough to afford a private jet, or even to fly business class, taking a plane can be a very unpleasant experience. Squeezed into a big metal tube, shoulder to shoulder with a stranger, flying isn't most people's cup of tea. But airplane manufacturers are always trying to make things better and are constantly creating patents for potential new innovations. Airbus for example, one of the biggest aerospace companies, recently told the Daily Mail that it files more than 600 patents per year. Some will go into production, but most will never see the light of day. Many are completely wacky, and we decided to have a look. So here are some of the craziest, most off the wall patents ever designed for use on aircraft. If you're not rich enough to afford a private jet, or even to fly business class, taking a plane can be a very unpleasant experience. Squeezed into a big metal tube, shoulder to shoulder with a stranger, flying isn't most people's cup of tea. But airplane manufacturers are always trying to make things better and are constantly creating patents for potential new innovations. Airbus for example, one of the biggest aerospace companies, recently told the Daily Mail that it files more than 600 patents per year. Some will go into production, but most will never see the light of day. Many are completely wacky, and we decided to have a look. So here are some of the craziest, most off the wall patents ever designed for use on aircraft. This jet that can cross the Atlantic in less than an hour This patent, approved in August 2015, would allow passengers to travel from London to New York in around an hour, smashing the previous record held by Concorde, which could do the trip in around 3 1/2 hours. Airbus's patent describes the plane "an air vehicle including a fuselage, a gothic delta wing distributed on either side of the fuselage, and a system of motors able to propel the air vehicle." The jet would use three different types of engines which would launch the craft vertically, before powering it up to speeds in excess of 3,000 mph. Pretty speedy! This cockpit without any windows This patent, filed by Airbus in 2014 , would completely redesign what the modern airplane cockpit looks like. Pilots would use a digital display to see their surroundings, removing any need for windows. While the images included with the patent show a cockpit in the nose of the plane, it is possible that it could be moved to the back of the plane, or under the cockpit, which in turn would allow plane noses to be longer and more aerodynamic. This doughnut shaped airplane cabin Ever dreamt of flying in a round plane? Well this design, filed with the European patent office , would allow you to do just that. if the plane ever came to production, Airbus would be fundamentally changing the way we fly. The ring shape is said to be able to accommodate more passengers than a traditional plane, and the plane's 'flying wing' design, believed by designers to be the best shape for aircraft, would allow more speed and better fuel efficiency. It does have its drawbacks though, and getting passengers on and off the 'flying doughnut', as well as refuelling, could prove tricky. These sleeping pods in the style of a Japanese hotel Not being able to lay down is a frequent complaint for long distance travellers who cannot afford to fly business class, but t his patent from September 2015 could get rid of that problem. The sleeping pods for economy passengers would allow you to lie down and get a good flight's sleep, although sitting up could be a bit of a problem. The patent filing states that passengers would still be required to buckle up at take-off and landing, and more importantly, still be served meals. This trapdoor designed to keep terrorists at bay In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, ensuring planes could not be hijacked was at the forefront of aircraft designers minds. This patent, f iled by Airbus in 2002 , introduced a trapdoor just outside the entrance to the cockpit. The trapdoor could be opened by the pilots if they saw imminent danger, and would lead into a security cell below where the terrorist or attacker could be held until the plane reached safety. This backpack designed to let you get a good flight's sleep Created by Boeing, this patent for what the company calls a Transport Vehicle Upright Sleep Support System, is essentially a backpack attached to a standard airplane seat. The idea behind the system is to let passengers get some sleep by leaning forwards and sleep on their face and chest, and is said to be far superior to using a neck pillow in order to sleep. Not quite as ingenious as Airbus' solution to sleeping in economy, but this one could work. These really uncomfortable looking seats Probably one of the least fun patents on this list, these bicycle style seats were patented by Airbus in 2013 , and look like they would be incredibly uncomfortable. There are no backrests or tray tables, and very little legroom. Airbus seems to acknowledge that the seats would be awful to sit in, but argues that the reduced cost of a short flight would make the pain worth it, saying in the filing "this reduced comfort is tolerable for passengers in as much as the flight lasts one or a few hours." These seats that look like bunk beds These seats, featured by Business Insider earlier this week , would create a two tiered seating system in business class, allowing airlines to achieve maximum use of space. The seats were just one of a number of new layouts featured in a patent created by Airbus at the start of October. Seats on the upper level would have to be accessed by steps and would allow passengers to enjoy what is essentially a flying bunk bed. Business travellers, who tend to enjoy having their own space, might not necessarily approve of this new design, but for fitting lots of people into the plane, this one could have legs. These virtual reality helmets to stop people getting bored We've all been bored on a plane, but another patent from Airbus could solve that problem. Virtual reality helmets at every seat would, according to the patent, give passengers "sensorial isolation with regard to the external environment." The helmets feature headphones and an "opto-electronic" screen to let passengers watch movies and listen to music. These seats which make you face your neighbour This is a design by French firm Zodiac for a more efficient and space saving seating plan on planes. The HD31 is said to offer four more inches of legroom, and 15% more space between seats. That might not be worth it given how awkward staring at your neighbour for hours could be. These smart windows with touchscreens Boeing's 787 may already have windows that can be dimmed or brightened , but this Airbus patent goes a step further and creates an interactive window, described as a "method for interactive visualization of information in an aircraft cabin". The patent doesn't specify exactly what the windows would be capable of doing, but according to the Skift they might allow passengers to learn all about landmarks you are flying over, and play music, all with a few taps on the window.
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Steve Sarkisian's strange behavior in the days surrounding high-pressure, high-profile college football games isn't unique to his time at USC. Some regarded the coach's conduct, specifically the use of alcohol, as an issue during his five seasons leading the University of Washington's program. Sarkisian's lone court record in Washington state is a routine speeding ticket and he wasn't publicly disciplined by the university. But his actions raised concern among some of his players and others closely associated with Washington's program. One former Huskies player said he smelled alcohol on Sarkisian at team meetings, an allegation that bears some resemblance to reports by USC players that their coach "didn't seem right" during a meeting Sunday morning, and statements by others close to the Trojans football program that he seemed unstable during a recent game at Arizona State. After Sarkisian's outburst in August at USC's "Salute to Troy" event where he slurred his words, insulted opponents and added an expletive to the university's "Fight on!" rallying cry, The Times interviewed more than two dozen people knowledgeable about Sarkisian's time at Washington, and reviewed hundreds of pages of documents. What emerged is a portrait of a man who favored Patron Silver tequila or Coors Light and frequented a handful of Seattle-area bars, typically accompanied by staff members, and didn't hesitate to drink - early - while traveling. During a stop at a rib joint in Nashville in January 2013, for example, Sarkisian and three assistants ordered four shots of Patron Silver, four shots of an unspecified liquor and five beers. The coach cashed out at 11:53 a.m. Some associated with Washington's football program remain unabashed supporters. But Sarkisian's use of alcohol became a running joke among some Washington players, some of whom spoke about the topic on the condition they not be named because of the personal nature of the issue. One ex-player said that in 2009, Sarkisian's first season with the Huskies, the coach sometimes arrived at morning team meetings "smelling like booze and [with] eyes all red, like he's been on a bender." Another former player said he smelled alcohol on Sarkisian during team meetings on "one or two" occasions and, other times, noted that the coach's eyes appeared to be bloodshot and glazed while he seemed unusually confrontational. Two other former players said Sarkisian and other coaches regularly consumed alcohol in offices - one said the coach typically kept an 18-pack of Coors Light stashed near his desk - and that he appeared uncharacteristically loud and unsteady on some team flights. After the August incident at USC, which Sarkisian blamed on inadvertently mixing alcohol and unspecified medication, some former Washington players didn't sound surprised. "Coach Sark is still having fun at USC!" former Huskies tight end Michael Hartvigson wrote on Twitter at the time. He added the hashtag #ThingsHaventChanged. Two of Sarkisian's highest-profile players at Washington, defensive lineman Danny Shelton and linebacker Shaq Thompson, both high NFL draft picks this year, joined in the social media quips. Shelton tweeted a sarcastic #shocked hashtag in reference to the incident. Thompson responded with an emoji laughing and shedding tears. "I would've made him run the stadium carrying a 6 pack since he wanna drink so much lol," Shelton tweeted. The former players didn't respond to messages seeking further comment. See the most-read stories in Sports this hour >> Despite several requests in September, USC didn't make Sarkisian available to speak with The Times about his alcohol use at Washington. Athletic Director Pat Haden said the university vetted Sarkisian extensively before hiring him as coach in December 2013. Seattle sports radio host Dave Mahler, whose involvement in Washington's football program included hosting recruiting banquets and pregame and postgame shows, saw the August incident as part of a pattern. "The idea that this was the first time that something like this happened for Steve Sarkisian ... it's not," Mahler said in August during his show on 950 KJR. "It's not the first time." However, the host did not specifically say what he was referring to on air and declined to elaborate on the record to a reporter. At least one incident during Sarkisian's time at Washington bore some similarity to what happened in August at USC. At the Duchess Tavern in Seattle, Sarkisian jumped up on the bar, drink in hand, for a speech to dozens of former players at their annual alumni gathering the night before Washington's spring football game in 2012. "[He] looked adrenalized, hollering what football coaches do to get their guys going," said Bill Resler, a longtime university professor who witnessed the event. The gesture seemed to fit the moment at the neighborhood bar less than a mile from campus, but some people in the room wondered whether something more than the coach's usual enthusiasm fueled the display. "You could tell he was in the moment, but he wouldn't have done that if he wasn't drinking," said a former player in attendance. One of the event's organizers said Sarkisian didn't appear to be under the influence, but Resler wasn't so sure. "When he got off the bar, he was unsteady, looked like he had been over-served, and sat down, looked a little embarrassed that he was in that state," Resler said. When Sarkisian arrived at Washington after seven years as a USC assistant, he inherited a moribund program that was 0-12 in 2008 under straightlaced coach Tyrone Willingham. Sarkisian assembled a young, energetic staff that frequently implored the players to have fun. More than 800 pages of receipts, hotel folios and expense reports obtained by The Times from Sarkisian's tenure at Washington show alcohol was a constant presence. In 2011, for example, Sarkisian picked up a bill at Suncadia Resort in Cle Elum, Wash., that included 83 beers and 12 shots of Grey Goose vodka. Twenty Washington coaches and their spouses are listed as attending. During a one-night stay at the JW Marriott at L.A. Live in May 2011 for a speaking engagement, Sarkisian's hotel folio shows room service delivered a $90 bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne and a chocolate amenity, then six beers. At the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix for a Pac-12 Conference head coach meetings, Sarkisian ran up $106 in minibar charges in one day in May 2012 and spent more than $1,600 over two days at the Renaissance Indian Wells Resort and Spa's pool bar in 2013. Two receipts from Washington retreats in Indian Wells in 2012 and 2013 showed Sarkisian expensed $1,023 worth of alcohol at a restaurant. That included 91 shots of tequila, much of it Patron Silver. At least 16 people attended one of the gatherings; the attendance for the other wasn't clear. Even some routine trips resulted in steep bar tabs, like a one-night recruiting visit by Sarkisian to Long Beach in 2010 that included $125.01 worth of unspecified beverages in one visit to the lobby bar and $104.01 in beverages at the same establishment a few months later. Another stay, this one at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel in July 2011, resulted in a one-day beverage tab of $170.47. Patrons and staff recognized Sarkisian at Seattle-area establishments such as The Ram near campus, Edgewater Hotel, 520 Bar and Grill, Roanoke Inn, Joey Bellevue as well as the Duchess. He was also said to be a frequent presence at two establishments that are now closed: Citrus and Joey Lake Union. Two former Washington players said they encountered Sarkisian at the Edgewater on Seattle's waterfront during a 2011 concert by local musician Tess Henley. One of the players, who worked as a bartender at another establishment, said they bumped into Sarkisian and a team staffer in the packed bar. The player described the coach as "clearly ... wasted." The other player said Sarkisian hugged him, offered to buy him a drink and was "definitely drunk." The same player said Sarkisian drank "copious amounts of Patron" amounting to "between eight and 10 shots" over several hours during weekly visits to Citrus on Lake Union. Others around the Washington program say they saw Sarkisian drink, but never in excess or in a setting they considered inappropriate. Erik Wilson, a former reserve quarterback, described a father-son relationship with a coach he viewed as a role model. "He was always in complete control," Wilson said, "and I have never seen nor heard him getting out of control." A former director of Washington's club for letter winners, John Otness, traveled to public appearances and events with Sarkisian and never noticed any concerning conduct. "We all knew he was a Trojan at heart, but he became a Husky and made our program tick when we didn't have a lot going on," Otness said. "I never felt he was doing something another coach wouldn't do. There is one exception. Chris Petersen, who replaced Sarkisian as Washington's coach, won't do events that involve drinking, Otness said. Resler, who thought Sarkisian was unsteady at the 2012 event, has taught at Washington for more than 35 years. He described Sarkisian as "a perfectly nice guy" and said he became a season-ticket holder because of the coach's commitment to young people and to revitalizing the Husky football program. Still, Resler "wasn't surprised" by Sarkisian's incident in August. "Someone who could get over-served [here]," Resler said, "could get over-served at any function." MORE SPORTS COVERAGE Dodgers' Chase Utley is suspended two games for slide; plans to appeal Lakers draw comparisons to Grizzlies after rout over non-NBA team
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France coach Philippe Saint Andre urged the Television Match Officials to do their job after Ireland flanker Sean O'Brien allegedly punched lock Pascal Pape in their Pool D decider at the Rugby World Cup on Sunday. Television footage showed O'Brien punch Pape in the stomach after a few seconds at the Millennium Stadium, but the Irishman escaped unpunished as his team romped to a 24-9 victory. "It was an attack after 23 seconds I hope the TMO will do their job next time," Saint-Andre told a news conference on Monday. "Usually you go back to the footage. I have the feeling they did not do that this time." Ireland coach Joe Schmidt on Sunday said he was hopeful O'Brien would escape disciplinary action. "I think he's being held and he swung. It's not a closed fist, but it's not a decision for me. I'd be hopeful," he said. France face holders New Zealand in the quarter-finals on Saturday and Ireland take on Argentina the following day.
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Earlier this month, the El Faro cargo ship mysteriously disappeared as it approached the Bahamas, where it collided with the 125-mph winds and 50-foot seas of Hurricane Joaquin. The US Coast Guard believes the ship sank after taking on water and seeing its engines fail, though a clearer picture likely won't emerge until authorities recover its voyage recorder. On Wednesday, six days after losing contact with El Faro, authorities called off the search for the 33 people that were aboard. It's not unheard of for cargo ships to sink 49 sank or were submerged in 2014 but as The Atlantic reports , it's very rare for a ship of El Faro's size to simply disappear, without sufficient warning to evacuate crew members. And in cases where accidents do occur at sea, human error is usually to blame . That has spurred some groups to develop more autonomous technologies that would all but remove humans from the equation. Such "drone ships" would be remotely piloted by onshore captains, but all the onboard operations that crew members currently carry out, like navigation and power management, would be handled by computer systems. Advocates of the technology say it would make shipping safer, less expensive, and more environmentally friendly. But the proposals have been met with skepticism from shipping labor unions, and there are major regulatory hurdles that still need to be cleared. "We see the industry having oceangoing, big unmanned ships in the future, but the development will not happen overnight," says Oskar Levander, head of innovation at the marine division of Rolls-Royce Holdings. Rolls-Royce began developing unmanned ship technology in 2013, and last year completed a virtual reality command center that serves as a prototype for its vision. The company believes captains will eventually be able to remotely control hundreds of ships from similar centers onshore, in the same way that military drones are piloted today. The idea is that within the coming decades, nearly all of a ship's functions would be carried out automatically. Vessels would be able to navigate their way across oceans, and would automatically manage and optimize the power they use. Humans would still need to conduct maintenance and repairs when the ship comes into port, but Levander says some of the more basic operations could be handled by robots. Today, the "technological building blocks are all in place," Levander says, though he estimates that Rolls-Royce is still 10 to 15 years away from deploying a large drone vessel in international waters. The company is still working to determine how best to combine and display the data gathered by a ship's sensors including lidar, radar, and infrared and is honing its automatic object detection systems. There's also the question of whether the crewless ships of the future would be safeguarded against hackers and other cyberattacks. But Levander says the biggest obstacle is regulatory, rather than technical a reality shared by road-going autonomous vehicles . International regulations currently require all ships to have a crew aboard, and autonomous systems would have to meet strict rules on safety and collision avoidance. But there is growing interest in the area. The European Union has funded a $4 million study to develop autonomous ship concepts, and the shipping research firm DNG VL last year revealed its own designs for a crewless cargo ferry. Rolls-Royce believes the technology's benefits will eventually push the industry forward. Shipowners would spend less to maintain their crews, and the lower weight resulting from the elimination of crew bunks, latrines, and kitchens would bring down fuel costs. Advocates also say the technology would put fewer people in danger; in 2012, an estimated 75 to 96 percent of all marine casualties were attributed to human error, according to a study from the insurance group Allianz. Workers wouldn't be at risk of attacks from pirates, and instead of spending months at sea, they could live at home and commute to port to service incoming ships. Until regulations are changed to allow for uncrewed ships, Rolls-Royce is focusing on smaller trials outside of international waters. The company hopes to demonstrate its technology on a small coastal ship by the end of this decade. Levander also stresses that the transition to fully autonomous ships won't be automatic. Instead, he envisions crew sizes gradually diminishing (as they have for several decades already) until the technology proves safe and viable. Not surprisingly, the proposals have been met with opposition from some shipping unions. "It cannot and will never replace the eyes, ears, and thought processes of professional seafarers," Dave Heindel, of the 600,000-member International Transport Workers' Federation, told Bloomberg in February 2014. But others have adopted a more circumspect stance. "We're not, and shouldn't be thought of as Luddites," says Andrew Linington, director of campaigns and communications for Nautilus International, a trade union representing more than 22,000 maritime professionals in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK. "Seafarers have always been very good at adapting to technological change." Linington says many seafarers are concerned about what autonomous technology will mean for their jobs, and are worried that they won't receive adequate training to adapt to it. But others acknowledge that the change could improve safety and bring opportunities for new high-skilled jobs. "The reality is, we all know technology marches in an inexorable way, and it's hard to swim against the tide," Linington says. "We'd much prefer to try and work with it." (His union isn't alone; on the highway, freight drivers face similar disruption from the advent of self-driving semi trucks .) Levander points out that humans will likely never be completely divorced from shipping operations. Companies would still need highly skilled captains to helm the control room, and cruise ships or vessels carrying dangerous cargo would likely keep a small crew onboard. And there are always unforeseen circumstances that will require humans to make quick decisions. But he's confident that the transition is inevitable. "If you look at society, every single industry is trying to become more efficient, to do more with less," Levander says. "Why would shipping not try to do the same thing?"
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At the BFI London Film Festival premiere of 'Black Mass,' star Johnny Depp says his portrayal of mob boss James 'Whitey' Bulger was so accurate it 'freaked out' some of the gangster's former associates. (Oct. 12)
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Martin Winterkorn, the former boss of Volkswagen who quit last month, will step down from his remaining posts related to the company, the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper and TV stations NDR and WDR reported on Monday, without citing sources. The resignations are expected in the coming days, as soon as a few remaining formalities have been dealt with, they said. Winterkorn resigned as CEO of Volkswagen after Europe's largest carmaker admitted cheating in diesel emissions tests in the United States, triggering the company's biggest business scandal in its 78-year history, but he retained a number of key positions within the Volkswagen group. He is chief executive of Porsche SE (PSHG_p.DE), the family-owned holding company that controls a majority stake in Volkswagen, as well as chairman of VW's flagship luxury brand Audi, trucks division Scania and the group's newly-created Truck & Bus holding. Labour leaders have been putting pressure on Winterkorn to resign from his remaining posts within the group, one person familiar with the matter told Reuters. The former CEO did not attend a supervisory board meeting at Audi last week, where deputy board head Berthold Huber stood in for him as chairman, the person said. A person close to the German state of Lower Saxony, VW's second-biggest shareholder, said he could not imagine that Winterkorn could stay in his various positions at Volkswagen. Porsche SE said it was unaware of any decisions on the matter. Volkswagen declined to comment. It has previously said it was up to the supervisory boards of the businesses in question to take any decision about Winterkorn's future involvement.
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Two-year-old Zeexhie Garcia from the Philippines performs cheerleader stunts, and her videos have gone viral. Michaela Cabrera reports.
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Dell announced a deal Monday with MSD Partners and Silver Lake to buy cloud computing company EMC (EMC) for roughly $67 billion in cash and stock. "We're creating an unbelievable powerhouse of an enterprise company," Dell Chairman and CEO Michael Dell told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "This is really all about bringing together complementary technologies and helping our customers address the challenges and opportunities that this digital future is creating." EMC stockholders will receive about $33.15 per share in cash and a type of stock that is linked to "a portion of EMC's economic interest" in its VMware business, which will remain an independent, publicly traded company, the companies said in a statement Monday. The transaction marks the largest technology sector deal on record, topping U.S. chipmaker Avago Technologies $37 billion offer for rival Broadcom. That deal is still in process. The acquisition of EMC is seen helping Dell diversify from the stagnant personal computer market and give it the scale to attack the faster-growing and more lucrative market for managing and storing data for businesses. EMC will have a "go-shop" provision that will allow the data storage company to seek out other buyers and give EMC a discounted breakup fee if it finds a more desirable deal, EMC Chairman and CEO Joe Tucci said on "Squawk Box." "We will do our duty to make sure we get the best deal for our shareholders and time will show," he said. CNBC's Peter Schacknow and Reuters contributed to this story.
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Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro's new thriller "Crimson Peak" subverts the gothic romance genre, where the women take the centre stage. Rough Cut - no reporter narration.
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The secret to Dustin Johnson's trademark swing? It's all in the wrists. Hank Haney explains.
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Retailers spend a lot of time crafting ways to get us to buy things, including clever ways of pricing.
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The attack was the latest in a wave of Palestinian knife attacks on Israeli security forces and citizens over the past 10 days that have complicated efforts to prevent what are largely unorganized and random acts, leaving five Israelis dead. The cycle of violence started with the shooting of a settler couple on October 1 in the Occupied West Bank, which prompted retaliatory attacks by Jewish settlers on Palestinian villages. On October 3, a Palestinian killed two Israelis in Jerusalem in the first of a series of knife attacks. Israel has responded with a crackdown, provoking a spiral of violence and unrest that has prompted fears of a third Palestinian uprising, or intifada. On Sunday, the Israeli cabinet called up 16 reserve border police units to bolster forces in Jerusalem and around the country. Israeli forces have killed at least 25 Palestinians, including 9 attackers, and wounded more than 100 in clashes in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem. Palestinians continued protesting over the weekend, burning tires, throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at security forces. Israeli forces have responded with live fire, rubber bullets, tear gas stun grenades and "skunk," a foul smelling non-lethal spray. Human Rights Watch on Sunday condemned the escalation of violence and the "indiscriminate or deliberate firing on observers and demonstrators who pose no imminent threat." The rights group condemned Israeli forces for shooting and wounding one of its observers during a demonstration last week. On Sunday, Israeli forces conducted an airstrike in Gaza in response to two rockets fired by Hamas at Israel. The airstrikes on what Israel said targeted a Hamas arms manufacturing facility killed a pregnant Palestinian woman and her two-year-old toddler. Federica Mogherini, the EU foreign policy chief, in a phone call with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday, urged for an end to violence and the proportionate use of force. cw/kms (AFP, AP)
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Stocks traded in a narrow range Monday after a solid week of gains as investors continued to eye commodity prices and readied for earnings season. The major averages turned lower to hold just below the flatline after attempting slight gains in the open. "There's really not much going on today. It's really the calm before the earnings storm," said Peter Boockvar, chief market analyst at The Lindsey Group. "I've got my eye on commodity prices." "The market's extremely overbought. I expect a big pause here," he said. On Friday, the S&P 500 closed up 3.26 percent for the week, its best week for 2015. The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 3.7 percent for the week, its second-best week of the year so far. Oil traded mildly lower as of 9:27 a.m., ET, with crude near $49.50 a barrel and brent above $52 a barrel. "You've got a relatively catalyst-free (session) and I think we'll take our cues from the commodity market," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities. JPMorgan Chase is scheduled to report after the close Tuesday, beginning a heavy week of earnings reports from financials, which includes Bank of America and Wells Fargo on Wednesday, and Citigroup and Goldman Sachs on Thursday. Earnings estimates for the financial sector are down to growth of 3.0 percent versus expectations of 6.1 percent growth two weeks ago, according to S&P Capital IQ. Investors will also eye more comments from Federal Reserve speakers on Monday. No major economic data is expected. Over the weekend, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers are still likely to raise interest rates this year but that is "an expectation, not a commitment," and could change if the global economy pushes the U.S. economy further off course. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans is scheduled to speak again Monday, as is Fed board member Lael Brainard. On Tuesday, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is due to present remarks, while the New York Fed's William Dudley speaks Thursday. "I think typically what people are looking for are some hints on when they might raise rates. They keep saying they want to raise this year. I think December is still certainly a possibility," said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab. The Fed's September meeting minutes released this past Thursday indicated policymakers were further from raising rates last month than many thought, as Federal Open Market Committee members were concerned about reaching their inflation target and the impact of a global economic slowdown. Fed speakers have generally maintained the central bank could still raise rates this year. The U.S. bond market was closed Monday for Columbus Day. European stocks turned mostly lower after some attempt at gains. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite surged more than 3 percent and the Hang Seng closed up 1.2 percent. Japanese stock markets were closed for a holiday. In morning trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 10 points, or 0.06 percent, at 17,072, with Merck the greatest decliner and UnitedHealth and Goldman Sachs leading advancers. The S&P 500 traded down 2 points, or 0.09 percent, at 2,013, with materials leading seven sectors lower and utilities the greatest advancer. The Nasdaq traded down 3 points, or 0.06 percent, at 4,827. Advancers were a touch ahead of decliners on the New York Stock Exchange, with an exchange volume of 42 million and a composite volume of 100 million as of 9:34 a.m. Crude oil futures for November delivery fell 5 cents to $48.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures gained $10.00 to $1,166.90 an ounce in morning trade.
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For developing India, dangerous and potholed roads have long been a way of life and one highway running through a village in the southern state of Telangana has gained a dire reputation, blamed for the deaths of scores of people trying to cross it.
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Michigan fans have been saying it since December. Now it appears to be more than an overzealous expression of optimism. Jim Harbaugh is a genius. No, really. It's not just that the Wolverines' anointed savior has turned a team that went 5-7 a year ago into a bona fide Top 10 squad ( at least in my rankings ) that's considered a touchdown favorite this week against 6-0 Michigan State. Or that Michigan on Saturday became the first FBS team in 20 years to pitch three straight shutouts (38-0 over then-5-0 Northwestern). According to Big Ten Network analyst Gerry DiNardo, Harbaugh is installing wrinkles to his pro-style offense that DiNardo never saw in 30 years of coaching. "It seems these days if you wear a visor and run the spread, you're a genius," said the former Vanderbilt, LSU and Indiana coach. "Jim's gone just the opposite. This is his genius." While competitive in their 24-17 opening week loss at Utah, the Wolverines appeared to have much the same Achilles Heel that night as they did in Brady Hoke's latter years -- a dreadful offensive line. Michigan could manage just 2.6 yards per carry on the ground, forcing quarterback Jake Rudock to attempt a very un-Harbaugh-like 43 passes. They included three costly interceptions. Shortly after that game, though, DiNardo noticed Michigan making some unusual but effective adjustments. Harbaugh might play a tailback, a fullback and two tight ends, with all but one of them lined up in the backfield. Or send all but one up to the line of scrimmage to pass-protect. Extra blockers between the tackles create extra angles for the running backs and extra double-teams to fend off an opponent's blitz. Not to mention the defense isn't expecting that lead-blocking fullback to suddenly take the belly dive and dash 34 yards . "He's being very creative, and yet to the naked eye it appears old-fashioned. It's not," said DiNardo. "It's fascinating. It's the most exciting X's and O's thing I've seen in a long time." Certainly Michigan would not be where it is without a dominant defense that's allowing just 3.06 yards per play, second-best nationally, and has allowed just 14 points total in its last five games. But the Wolverines were pretty good defensively before, and that was with acclaimed coordinator Greg Mattison -- who's now a position coach under renowned Will Muschamp-Florida coordinator D.J. Durkin. That's a lot of wattage. Harbaugh's imprint is on an offense that controlled the clock for 37:05 against the Wildcats and scored 24 points on a defense that came in allowing 7.0 points per game. (Michigan also scored on a kick return and a pick-six.) It's allowed Rudock to play a controlled game most weeks and for tailback De'Veon Smith to average 7.7 yards per carry in his last two outings. But now comes the Wolverines' stiffest test since that Utah opener. (As it turns out, the Utes are pretty darn good themselves.) Mark Dantonio's Spartans -- ranked No. 2 in the country only a couple of weeks ago -- have beaten their in-state nemesis six of the past seven seasons. Michigan State's Connor Cook is obviously a far more heralded quarterback than Rudock. Defensive end Shilique Calhoun is more accomplished than anyone on the Wolverines' defense. Yet while Michigan has looked so dominant of late, Michigan State has struggled to put away the likes of Purdue and Rutgers. Key injuries are piling up on the Spartans' offensive line (tackle Jack Conklin and center Jack Allen are banged up) and defense (cornerback Darian Hicks went out against Rutgers). Suddenly a Wolverines team that DiNardo, when he saw them in preseason practice, deemed the conference's third-best team but far behind Ohio State and Michigan State is widely expected to win the game. "The fact that it's [at] Michigan, Jim has this incredible momentum, he can play the 'they've kicked our butts' card -- all of the emotions are on his side," said DiNardo. We're probably getting ahead of ourselves, but then many have been doing that since before Michigan even formally hired Harbaugh. But whatever happens Saturday, Harbaugh's much-anticipated impact on the Big Ten is already coming to fruition. For the first time in years, Michigan's games against both the Spartans and Buckeyes should hold national consequences. Meanwhile, Saturday night, James Franklin takes 5-1 Penn State to the Horseshoe where it'll admittedly be considerable underdogs -- but so were NIU and Indiana. By night's end we'll know whether the Big Ten playoff chase will ultimately include more than two contenders -- and which ones they'll be. PATTERSON BACKS TREVONE BOYKIN'S HEISMAN CASE Gary Patterson paused before speaking. I'd just asked him a question about his star quarterback's Heisman prospects. I figured he was about to deflect or downplay the story. Instead ... he went there. "The team has to win for a guy to win the Heisman, but what does that guy mean to their team?" the TCU coach told FOX Sports on Sunday. "I don't think anyone means more to their team than Trevone [Boykin] means to us. Two times now he's put us on his back and come from behind on the road, which is a hard thing to do." Indeed, for the second time in three weeks, TCU on Saturday found itself in a shootout on the road against a conference foe, this time even falling behind by 18 points at Kansas State. Once again, Boykin, who racked up 527 total yards in an earlier 55-52 win at Texas Tech, came to the rescue. His 425 yards included a go-ahead 69-yard touchdown run and game-winning 55-yard touchdown pass to star receiver Josh Doctson for a hard-earned 52-45 win. With fans and media busily dissecting every potential playoff contender's flaws, many are questioning whether the third-ranked Horned Frogs (6-0) and their injury-stricken defense are living on borrowed time. Patterson does not seem nearly as concerned. "I knew this schedule of four games [culminating with this week's trip to Iowa State] was going to be tough with three of the four on the road," he said. "Especially right now, everyone's going to take their shot because we're not playing as well as we have defensively in the past. Coach [Bill] Snyder said this was the first game he had seen his team play with that much passion. "... I'd rather be [scrutinized] than no one paying any attention to us." The road might not get easier for the Horned Frogs, now winners of 14 straight. The Big 12 is proving to be far deeper than most expected. Oklahoma State, which hosts TCU on Nov. 7, improved to 6-0 with an overtime win at West Virginia. The Cowboys have been impressive defensively. Patterson's team closes the season at Oklahoma and, on Nov. 27, faces a certain undefeated team in Waco that's currently averaging 64.2 points per game. But it also means TCU has time for its inexperienced defense to gel. Asked about the unit's struggles, Patterson pointed to two positives. For one, it's a week removed from shutting down Texas (which turned around and beat Oklahoma) in a 50-7 rout, and on Saturday, it held K-State to 134 yards in the second half and returned a pick-six. "One thing they've done in both the Texas Tech game and Kansas State game, they got stops when they need to," Patterson said. "As a young defense, you've just got to learn to do that all the time." If not, Boykin will just have to keep playing Superman. THIS SAD SARK STORY CAN END ONLY ONE WAY Contrary to what some might think, sportswriters (or at least this sportswriter) take no glee in calling for someone's job. When a coach gets fired, so do his assistants and support staff, and a whole bunch of families get uprooted. It's not fun. So I play that card only when a situation is clearly untenable, as was the case last Thursday as I watched Steve Sarkisian -- a guy I've known for 10 years and have always enjoyed interacting with -- seemingly sow his USC fate. And that was before Sunday's sad news that Sarkisian's alcohol problem has reared its head again. He showed up at the office "in no condition to work," as my colleague Bruce Feldman reported , and this was apparently not the first time. Forget losing to Washington. Hopefully Sark, whom AD Pat Haden put on an indefinite leave of absence, will finally get the professional help he needs. There seems little chance Sarkisian will coach another game at USC. But school leaders need to take a serious look at why he was even allowed to do so in the first place this season. Seemingly the entire college football media and coaching industries had heard the stories of Sarkisian's behavior, dating even to his time at Washington . Either Haden himself was oblivious to them or did not take them seriously enough when he opted to let Sarkisian keep coaching following his Salute to Troy incident in August. Neither reflects responsible decision-making on the part of an athletic director of a major football-playing school. I wrote in August that Haden's and Sarkisian's futures at USC were intertwined . In the wake of Sunday's news, calls for Haden's head had already intensified. As bad as the 2010 NCAA sanctions were, this week has been a new recent low point for USC football. The only solution is going to be an eventual complete break from USC's past -- and that starts with the athletic director. THIS WEEK'S BOWL FORECAST Each week, I'll update my predicted lineup for the New Year's Six bowls based on the latest week's games. Peach: LSU vs. Houston (Group of 5) Fiesta: Notre Dame (at-large) vs. Utah (at-large) Sugar: Alabama (SEC) vs. Baylor (Big 12) Rose: Iowa (Big Ten) vs. Stanford (Pac-12 champ) Orange (semifinal): No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Clemson Cotton (semifinal): No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 3 TCU Well, this is the week where we may find out whether my contrarian preseason SEC championship prediction could actually come to fruition. Texas A&M, 3-5 in the SEC last year and unranked to start the season, has begun 5-0 and risen into the Top 10 in the polls, but Saturday's Alabama game always figured to be the Aggies' litmus test. The Tide appear more beatable than at any time in the last seven years, but they did win last year's meeting 59-0. For now, A&M remains my SEC playoff representative, and in fact this lineup saw only one change from last week -- moving 5-0 Houston into the Group of 5 spot. For those keeping track, that's three different AAC teams (Temple, Memphis and Houston) to have made an appearance. But the Cougars may be the most complete squad of the bunch. I'LL BE KEEPING AN EYE ON ... Alabama WR Calvin Ridley . The freshman is emerging as the big-play threat that Tide coaches envisioned, grabbing an 81-yard touchdown against Arkansas a week after scoring from 45 yards out on Georgia. QB Jake Coker is benefitting from it. Washington RB Myles Gaskin . The freshman is emerging as the explosive back U-Dub has been missing since Bishop Sankey's departure two years ago. Gaskin torched USC for 134 yards, including all 50 on a four-play touchdown drive. Maryland interim coach Mike Locksley . A guy who went 2-26 in a disastrous stint at New Mexico (which included a suspension for a physical altercation with an assistant) will steer the 2-4 Terps following Randy Edsall's midseason dismissal. North Texas interim coach Mike Canales . A guy who went 2-3 as the Mean Green's interim coach in 2010 (following Todd Dodge's dismissal) gets another shot leading 0-5 North Texas following Dan McCarney's midseason dismissal. Boston College . Steve Addazzio's Eagles are strangely mesmerizing. They've allowed one offensive touchdown total in three ACC games -- and are 0-3. Botching end-game management in astonishing fashion clearly doesn't help. THIS WEEK'S COACH OF THE YEAR Texas' Charlie Strong . In a week's time, the 'Horns went from losing a game 50-7 and bickering with each other on social media to beating their Top 10-ranked rival and hoisting their coach in the air . "I guess they didn't want to see me get fired," he joked afterward. THIS WEEK'S COACH ON THE HOT SEAT Oklahoma's Bob Stoops . Three times in three years now, a Top-20 Sooners team has lost inexplicably to an unranked rival (2013 Texas, 2014 Oklahoma State, 2015 Texas). Simply put, that didn't used to happen. DON'T GO TO SLEEP ON CAL, PAC-12 The same unfortunate preseason Media Day poll that picked the Trojans to win the Pac-12 also had the conference's only remaining Top-10 team, Utah (5-0), picked to finish fifth in the South. Equally regrettable, there's Oregon picked atop the North. The Ducks and Trojans now sit a combined 2-4 in conference play following USC's Thursday night debacle against Washington and Oregon's double-overtime home loss to Washington State. And the Trojans seemingly have a better chance of righting the ship under interim coach Clay Helton than the Ducks do with their inadequate quarterback play and atrocious defense. That's why Thursday night's UCLA-Stanford game suddenly takes on added importance. The Bruins may be the one team left capable of taking down the Utes in the South (though Arizona State has risen to start 2-1 in league play), while the Cardinal are now undisputed frontrunners in the North. But don't rule out upstart Cal. Despite five interceptions from star quarterback Jared Goff, the 5-1 Bears still had a chance to win in the final minute of their 30-24 loss in Salt Lake City. That speaks to the marked improvement of Sonny Dykes' defense, which itself forced three turnovers and now leads the nation with 21 on the season. "They're playing with some confidence," Dykes said of a defense that ranked 107 th nationally last season. "If somebody makes a play on us they just play the next play. They keep playing our game, keep playing hard and make people earn what they get." Goff is not generally interception-prone. He had a bad night (and obviously Utah's defense had a lot to do with that.) If the Bears can get continued improvement from the defense, they may find themselves playing more meaningful games later this year. ON TO NEXT WEEKEND Three games we're most excited for: Michigan State at Michigan (Saturday, 3:30 ET) . Michigan State's Connor Cook is an incredible 29-3 as starter but has been up and down this senior season. He'll need to make quick throws under duress against Michigan. Florida at LSU (Saturday, 7 ET) . Leonard Fournette, still averaging 200-plus yards per game, goes up against a Florida defense allowing fewer than 100 per contest (12 th nationally). This is going to be epic. Alabama at Texas A&M (Saturday, 3:30 ET) . After shutting down Georgia and Arkansas in consecutive weeks, it's like Alabama's Ole Miss loss never happened. "I think we are the best defense in the country, honestly," said CB Eddie Jackson. Three games you shouldn't miss: USC at Notre Dame (Saturday, 7:30 ET) . It would be very USC-esque to turn around and win in South Bend off a bad loss to Washington and with an interim coach. The Irish D often struggle the week after facing Navy. UCLA at Stanford (Thursday, 10:30 ET) . Bruins QB Josh Rosen returns to the school that declined to offer him following an alienating camp visit. UCLA's struggling D braces for Kevin Hogan and Christian McCaffrey. Penn State at Ohio State (Saturday, 8 ET) . Will Urban Meyer continue his Cardale Jones/J.T. Barrett situational rotation against Penn State's salty D? National sack leader Carl Nassib (10) leads another Top-10 unit. One under-the-radar gem: Ole Miss at Memphis (Saturday, Noon ET) . How fun is this? NFL-bound QB Paxton Lynch and the 5-0 Tigers' 13 th -ranked offense goes up against Robert Nkemdiche, Trae Elston and the rest of Ole Miss' star-studded D. Stewart Mandel is a senior college sports columnist for FOXSports.com. He covered college football and basketball for 15 years at Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter @slmandel and Facebook . Send emails and Mailbag questions to [email protected] .
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The Pretty Little Liars cast stunned as they arrived for a question and answer session in New York. Lucy Hale wore a purple hued mini dress. She opted for a smokey eye with a nude lip and styled her short brown hair loose and wavey. Ashley Benson went for a more vampy look for the Playfest event. She smoothed back her blonde hair and wore a bold lip that was intensified by subtle brown eye make up. Her dress featured an asymmetrical neckline making it conservative yet stylish. Troian Bellisario flattered her tall frame in a lacey midi dress while Sasha Pieterse added a pop of colour to her black outfit with some blue shoes. She cinched in her waist with a belt and went for a glamourous bold eye.
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Stocks closed slightly higher Monday in low-volume trade as investors readied for the first major earnings reports due Tuesday. "I think the fact the market is holding up today is pretty impressive," said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at RW Baird. "I'm a little concerned that the energy stocks, material stocks, got a little ahead of themselves," Bittles said. He's watching to see if the S&P 500 can close above 2,040 in the coming days and add further support to the idea the stock market has bottomed. The Nasdaq composite closed above its 50-day moving average for the first time since Aug. 17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 closed above their 50-day moving averages last week and have remained above. The major U.S. averages struggled to hold higher during the trading session, with the three indexes dipping in and out of negative territory in early trade. Utilities rose nearly 1 percent as the greatest advancer in the S&P, while energy fell more than 1 percent as the greatest declining sector. "There's really not much going on today. It's really the calm before the earnings storm," said Peter Boockvar, chief market analyst at The Lindsey Group. "I've got my eye on commodity prices." "The market's extremely overbought. I expect a big pause here," he said. On Friday, the S&P 500 closed up 3.26 percent for the week, its best week for 2015. The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 3.7 percent for the week, its second-best week of the year so far. Oil settled down $2.53, or 5.10 percent, at $47.10 a barrel, giving back more than half of last week's rally of nearly 9 percent. Monday's decline was the worst daily decline since Sept. 1. Brent also declined to hold just above $50 a barrel. Chevron and IBM were the greatest weights on the Dow Jones industrial average. "You've got a relatively catalyst-free (session) and I think we'll take our cues from the commodity market," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities. Analysts noted lighter trade volume due to Columbus Day. The U.S. bond market was closed Monday for the holiday. The U.S. dollar traded a touch lower against major world currencies, with the euro above $1.13 and the yen at 119.98 yen against the greenback. "I think what we're seeing is a continuation of some of the trends from last week," said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Funds. "A sense of calm with China a little more stable." In Asia, the Shanghai Composite surged more than 3 percent and the Hang Seng closed up 1.2 percent. Japanese stock markets were closed for a holiday. European stocks closed mixed, under some pressure from declines in oil prices. "I wouldn't put too much into this (trading session) because it's holiday mode trading," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital. "It's all about earnings tomorrow." JPMorgan Chase is scheduled to report after the close Tuesday, beginning a heavy week of earnings reports from financials, which includes Bank of America and Wells Fargo on Wednesday, and Citigroup and Goldman Sachs on Thursday. Earnings estimates for the financial sector are down to growth of 3.0 percent versus expectations of 6.1 percent growth two weeks ago, according to S&P Capital IQ. "It's been super slow for us. Real quiet," said Phil Quartuccio, CEO of Illustro Trading. "I think the bigger news today was Dell, which should rattle the tech industry a little bit. I think Dell's making a really bold move with the number they're paying." Dell announced a $67 billion cash and stock deal with MSD Partners and Silver Lake to buy cloud computing firm EMC. Eli Lilly fell about 8 percent on news the firm stopped a late-stage trial of its closely watched cholesterol treatment after the drug proved ineffective. Shares of Merck, which is developing a similar medicine, also declined. Investors also eyed more comments from Federal Reserve speakers. No major economic data was expected. "I think typically what people are looking for are some hints on when they might raise rates. They keep saying they want to raise this year. I think December is still certainly a possibility," said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab. Over the weekend, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers are still likely to raise interest rates this year but that is "an expectation, not a commitment," and could change if the global economy pushes the U.S. economy further off course. On Monday, the Atlanta Fed's Dennis Lockhart said in a Reuters report there could be sufficient economic data for the Fed to consider a rate hike at their meeting later in October but there will be a lot more data on hand in time for the December meeting. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans reiterated in prepared remarks his view that rate increases should be much more gradual than what most U.S. central bankers anticipate. Fed board member Lael Brainard is scheduled to speak later on Monday. On Tuesday, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is due to present remarks, while the New York Fed's William Dudley speaks Thursday. The Fed's September meeting minutes released this past Thursday indicated policymakers were further from raising rates last month than many thought, as Federal Open Market Committee members were concerned about reaching their inflation target and the impact of a global economic slowdown. Fed speakers have generally maintained the central bank could still raise rates this year. Advancers were a step ahead of decliners on the New York Stock Exchange, with an exchange volume of 493 million and a composite volume of 2.3 billion as of 3:33 p.m. Gold futures settled up $8.60 at $1,164.50 an ounce. Reuters contributed to this report. More from CNBC.com: Evaluating the value of using active management Does the Fed want stocks to rise or fall? These stocks almost always beat earnings estimates
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1. Baby walkers Babies in Canada have to learn to walk the old-fashioned way. The country banned once-popular baby walkers in 2004, after they were found to endanger babies and delay motor and mental development. Possession or selling of a baby walker can result in fines of up to $100,000 or six months in jail. 2. Ketchup in school cafeterias A school cafeteria without ketchup? It's un-American! In 2011, France banned the tomato condiment from school cafeterias in order to preserve French cuisine. The one ironic exception: Students can still eat ketchup on French fries. 3. Incandescent light bulbs Phasing out incandescent light bulbs isn't as easy as flipping a switch. But other countries are ahead of the U.S. on this one. Cuba was the first to the finish line when it brought in CFLs and banned the sale and import of the old-school bulbs in 2005. Argentina followed suit in 2010, and EU member countries reached the final stage of a three-year phase-out in 2012. Follow us on Facebook. 4. Mullets In America, it's your right to have whatever terrible hairstyle you want. Not so in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In 2010, the Ministry of Culture banned several "decadent" Western men's hairstyles, including the mullet, spikes, and ponytails. Hairdon'ts are punishable by fine. 5. Plastic bags Bangladesh started a trend in 2002 when it became the first country to ban plastic bags. Bag bans have caught on all over the world, from France to Tanzania to Mexico City. ( Here's a map.) San Francisco was the first U.S. city to ban plastic bags in 2007, and Los Angeles followed suit in in 2013. This July, the entire state of California will begin phasing out the shopping bags, thanks to a bill signed into law in September by Governor Jerry Brown. 6. Spanking School corporal punishment is still allowed in 19 U.S. states. But in some countries, parents can't even spank their kids. Sweden was the first to ban the belt and paddle in 1979. Now moms and dads in 46 countries rely solely on the time-out. Follow us on Facebook. 7. BHA and BHT preservatives Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) aren't just hard to pronounce. They're carcinogenic ... and found in almost all packaged foods in the U.S. Human consumption of BHA and BHT is banned in more than 160 countries. 8. Chewing gum While the actual act of chewing gum was never illegal, Singapore burst gum lovers' bubbles when it outlawed the importation and sale of Bazooka Joe and the like in 1992. The ban stuck, but was slightly changed in 2004. Singaporans interested in the oral health benefits of sugar-free gum can now get a prescription but still face stiff penalties if they're caught littering with it. 9. Weird baby names What's in a baby name? Legislation in Denmark, New Zealand, Sweden, and many other countries. If Danish parents don't choose one of the 7000 government-approved names for their bundle of joy, they're required to get church approval. New Zealand and Sweden add to their lists of banned baby names each year. The names "V8" and "Superman," respectively, weren't allowed, but "Violence" and "Google" were. 10. Tobacco A 2006 Business Week survey named Bhutan not only the happiest country in Asia, but also the eighth happiest country in the world. Four years later, the Tobacco Control Act of Bhutan aimed to increase Gross National Happiness by banning the cultivation, harvesting, production, and sale of harmful tobacco products. But here's a happy loophole for smokers: Tobacco consumption is still legal. Follow us on Facebook.
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The Bengals and Falcons needed overtime. The Broncos won without an offensive touchdown and the Packers beat the Rams despite three Aaron Rodgers turnovers. It wasn't easy, but all five undefeated teams to play Sunday won to remain perfect on the season. The Panthers, who are 4-0, were on a bye week. The Patriots were the only unbeaten team to breeze to victory, blowing past the Cowboys with a 30-6 win at AT&T Stadium to improve to 4-0. MORE: Best Week 5 performances | Worst performances | Ranking NFL's undefeated Green Bay won by 14 points, but Rodgers was picked off at home for the first time in three years. The Packers defense also surrendered 159 rushing yards to Rams rookie Todd Gurley, who appears to be the real deal. Green Bay's 24-10 victory was marred by several injuries to both teams. Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was intercepted twice by fellow 1998 draft pick Charles Woodson, but Chris Harris had a pick-six of Raiders quarterback Derek Carr to lead the Broncos to a 16-10 road victory. The Bengals scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to force overtime, then Mike Nugent doinked in a 42-yard field goal to cap the second-biggest comeback in franchise history . Kirk Cousins was great for the Redskins late, leading a game-tying drive against the Falcons. But then he threw a pick-six in overtime as Robert Alford kept the Falcons perfect through five games with a 59-yard touchdown return. The Falcons are 5-0 for the first time since starting 8-0 in 2012. Injury report Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles left Sunday's game against the Bears in the third quarter with a right knee injury, and the team fears it's a torn ACL. Charles will have an MRI on Monday. Ravens outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil suffered a groin injury late in the first half against the Browns. Speaking of the Browns, cornerback Joe Haden left in the second half and was evaluated for a concussion. Broncos outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware was carted off the field in Oakland with a back injury and did not return. The Rams lost defensive end Chris Long with a knee injury on Trumaine Johnson's interception the second of the day thrown by Aaron Rodgers. Falcons wide receiver Leonard Hankerson left Sunday's game against Washington with a rib injury. While he did return, Hankerson finished with just one catch for 13 yards. Eagles receiver Nelson Agholor injured his left ankle, but later returned to the sideline. He caught just one pass for 5 yards. Jaguars cornerback Davon House left Sunday with a hip injury and was later seen using a cane to assist his walking. Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner left Sunday's overtime loss to the Bengals with a strained pectoral muscle and will be monitored this week in practice. Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy aggravated the hip injury that kept him out the first four games in the first half of Sunday's game against the Cardinals and did not return for the second half. Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. missed a good chunk of the fourth quarter Sunday night after tweaking his hamstring, but he returned for the final drive and drew a key penalty that led to the game-winning touchdown. Highlight reel Rams running back Benny Cunningham flew in from nowhere to make a diving catch off a deflection against the Packers. Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis intercepted Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers to snap Rodgers' record interception-free streak at Lambeau Field. Seahawks safety Earl Thomas got the first interception of the season for the "Legion of Boom" in the team's fifth game. #LOB Earl Thomas with the INTERCEPTION!!! #GoHawks #SEAvsCIN pic.twitter.com/A17gKsDui0 Bender (@TheBenderNation) October 11, 2015 Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford was picked off twice against the Saints, the first of which was a gorgeous diving grab by Delvin Breaux. Full-body extension. Diving interception in the end zone. This Delvin Breaux pick is too nice. #NOvsPHI http://t.co/DUduyB0vr6 NFL (@NFL) October 11, 2015 If you can't catch it with your hands, catch it with your feet like Browns tight end Gary Barnidge . Bears quarterback Jay Cutler tried to give the game away, but instead delivered a game-winning pass to running back Matt Forte at Arrowhead Stadium. Game on the line? Fumble the snap? Don't worry. Just throw it to Matt Forte for the TD! #CHIvsKC http://t.co/7lvLE56mt3 NFL (@NFL) October 11, 2015 Patriots running back Dion Lewis showed a lot of determination to get into the end zone following a one-handed grab. Giants tight end Larry Donnell goes way up high over two defenders to pull down a game-winning Eli Manning touchdown pass with 21 seconds to spare. Sunday's scores Falcons 25, Redskins 19 Browns 33, Ravens 30, OT Packers 24, Rams 10 Buccaneers 38, Jaguars 31 Bills 14, Titans 13 Bengals 27, Seahawks 24, OT Bears 18, Chiefs 17 Eagles 39, Saints 17 Cardinals 42, Lions 17 Patriots 30, Cowboys 6 Broncos 16, Raiders 10 Giants 30, 49ers 27 Monday's game Steelers at Chargers, 8:30 p.m. ET
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sports
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A court in Egypt has ordered the release of the two sons of ousted former President Hosni Mubarak. The Cairo Criminal Court found the time Alaa and Gamal Mubarak had spent in temporary detention exceeded the legal limit, state-owned Nile News TV said. The two men, who were arrested after the 2011 uprising, were sentenced alongside their father to three years in prison in May for embezzlement. They are appealing, but also face trial on the charge of insider trading. Some of the anger that led to Hosni Mubarak's overthrow was fuelled by the widespread belief that he and his sons had illegally amassed vast amounts of wealth. Gamal, 51, was a leading member of the former ruling National Democratic Party and was widely seen as his father's heir apparent. Alaa, 54, was a leader among the business elite. The brothers were acquitted of the corruption charge, but last year they were sentenced to four years in prison - and their father to three years - after being found guilty of embezzling millions of dollars of state funds. Prosecutors accused them of using money meant to pay for renovating and maintaining presidential palaces to upgrade their private residences. But the convictions were overturned in January by the Court of Cassation, which found that legal procedures had not been followed properly and ordered a retrial. In May, the three men were convicted at retrial and each sentenced to three years. They were also ordered to pay a fine of 125m Egyptian pounds ($15.9m; £10.4m) and repay the 21m Egyptian pounds ($2.7m; £1.7m) they allegedly embezzled. Hosni Mubarak is currently residing at a military hospital in the southern Cairo suburb of Maadi. It is not clear when the ailing 87 year old will be released. Charges of conspiring in the killing of hundreds of protesters during the uprising that ended his rule in 2011 were dropped in November 2014.
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news
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There will undoubtedly be tension between the Mets and Dodgers on Monday as the NLDS heads to New York in the wake of Chase Utley's controversial slide in Game 2, but how that tension affects the game predominantly lies in the hands of those who will take the mound in Game 3. The Mets' starter for Game 3, Matt Harvey, strongly suggested, without mentioning any specifics, that he will seek revenge for Utley's slide, which cost shortstop Ruben Tejada the remainder of the postseason due to a broken leg he sustained from the blow. "Doing what's right is exactly what I'm going to do," Harvey said Sunday as he prepared for his start on Monday. Harvey elaborated on his reaction to the incident, which has drawn oodles of attention since it occurred in the seventh inning of Saturday's Game 2, which the Mets lost by a score of 5-2. "I think history's shown that he's been in situations like that before. I know, personally, after watching in 2010, and hearing about it with Ruben as well, there's some situations that need to be taken care of," Harvey said, making reference to a similar aggressive take-out slide Utley unleashed on Flores in 2010. " … Where we were, it was kind of hard to see at first where exactly the slide started but after obviously the replay, everybody saw that it's more of a tackle than anything," the righty added. "We're all feeling for Ruben. We're gonna pick him up, and we're excited to be back at home." Utley received a two-game suspension for the incident on Sunday; however, he plans to appeal the suspension on Monday, so there remains a chance he could play in Game 3. Regardless, Harvey hopes that the umpires aren't overly sensitive to him throwing inside during the game. "It's unfair," Harvey said of the umpires potentially warning both teams prior to the game. "If certain situations come up where I need to throw that pitch, I'm definitely not going to be afraid to go inside."
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sports
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The Knowledge: 12 Tech Tidbits on the First-Ever Turbocharged Porsche 911 Carreras The Knowledge: 12 Tech Tidbits on the First-Ever Turbocharged Porsche 911 Carreras The Porsche 911 Carrera and Carrera S are adopting turbocharging previously the province of the eponymous Turbo model for the first time for the 2017 model year. We've already covered these so-called 991.2 cars when they debuted, and we also went really deep into the tech-heavy new engine, a 3.0-liter flat-six strapped with two turbochargers and good for 370 horsepower in the Carrera and 420 horsepower in the Carrera S. Here we present some additional factoids we've learned since the car's introduction, straight from the engineers to your eyeballs. Follow MSN Autos on Facebook 1) It has one of the only active grilles Active cooling flaps are hardly uncommon these days. They cut the airflow to the radiator to reduce aerodynamic drag when the engine doesn't need much cooling. However, these shutterlike devices are usually fitted between a car's grille and its radiator. On the new 911, the shutters are in full view because they essentially are the grilles on the two radiators at either corner of the front fascia. 2) The cooling fans run at high vehicle speeds Most cooling fans are designed to draw air through a radiator when a car is standing still or driving slowly. They usually shut off at higher speeds, when natural airflow takes over. But most cars have much larger openings than are possible on a 911, with its low-slung front end. As a result, when you're hard on the accelerator, the Carrera's radiators are starved for air, even at high speeds. The solution is to turn on some fans powerful fans. On the new Carrera, each fan uses 400 watts. The S, with its greater cooling needs, uses 600-watt fans. The naturally aspirated outgoing models used 300-watt fans on both versions. To keep with these, and other, increased electrical loads, the new Carrera S gets a 2450-watt alternator, while the S has a 2940-watt unit both up from 2100 watts on the previous versions. 3) The rear spoiler has an additional function The new Carrera's air-to-air intercoolers are fitted behind the tires in each rear fender. Air to cool the intercoolers enters from the rear edge of the grille on top of the engine cover. It's ducted through the intercoolers and exhausts via vents at the lower back of each fender. Although the inlet is not in a very high-pressure area, the exhausts are in a low-pressure zone, ensuring steady airflow through the system. However, if the intake air sensors detect too much temperature, the rear spoiler will deploy to create an air dam just behind the intercooler air intake to force more air through the system. This can happen even at low speed, so if you see a 911 with the spoiler deployed in town, there's a good chance that the driver has been caning it. 4) Sport mode reduces turbo lag Even with the most sophisticated turbocharger installations, turbo lag still exists at low and moderate rpm. But when you select the new Carrera's Sport mode, among the changes are different engine parameters designed to maximize exhaust flow through the turbochargers. This means retarding the ignition timing and altering the camshaft phasing, which operates the engine in a less efficient mode. But less efficiency means more air and fuel being used to generate the same amount of power, and that means higher exhaust flow to spool those turbos more energetically. 5) The PDK has "virtual gears" The PDK automatic transmission has seven gears, but there are times for example, when crawling through a city at moderate speed that none of those gears are just right for best efficiency. This is particularly true in the lower three gears, which are spread further apart. Porsche's solution is radical: engage two gears at once, partially. Each of the output shafts are coupled to the engine via their own multiplate wet clutch. By engaging both clutches very lightly to allow plenty of slippage, the transmission operates at a ratio that essentially splits the difference between the two gears engaged. Of course, as soon as you step into it, the transmission picks one gear or the other to avoid frying the slipping clutches with lots of power. The Turbo's PDK already had this function, but it's a first for the 911 Carrera. 6) The 7-speed manual has new ratios Although the Carrera's manual transmission and PDK automatic share many common elements, including having seven forward speeds, the ratios were different in the 991.1. First and second were the same, third was almost the same, fourth through sixth were the same, but seventh was shorter on the manual. Porsche felt that with kickdowns available, the automatic could employ taller ratios without compromising responsiveness. However, with the 991.2 and its considerably greater low-rpm torque, Porsche concluded that even the manual could tolerate the taller gears. The ratios now are identical between the two gearboxes. 7) The PDK automatic has a proper, racing-style manual shift pattern The PDK transmission fitted to the new 911 has a number of upgrades to match the new engine. It has been reinforced to cope with the increased torque. It has a dual-mass flywheel with a centrifugal pendulum, which damps vibration and allows the engine to run smoothly at lower rpm. Porsche also has switched the shift pattern in manual mode so that you pull the shift lever back to upshift and push it forward to downshift, as you do in the GT3 and most racing cars. And in manual mode, the transmission neither downshifts nor upshifts of its own accord selecting manual mode means you do all the shifting. 8) There's a "push to pass" button mounted to the steering wheel When you order the Sport Chrono package on the new Carrera, the mode selector moves to the steering wheel and takes the form of a small rotary knob mounted on its own pod. As you rotate the knob you can select among the usual Normal, Sport, Sport Plus, and Individual modes. There also is a "Sport Response" button in the middle of the knob. When you press this, all of the systems shift to their maximum performance mode the optimum gear for the speed, the engine settings for best response, and the stiffest suspension. It stays in this mode for about 20 seconds, plenty long enough to complete a decisive pass, for example. There's even a circular graphic on the dash that counts down how much longer this mode will be engaged. 9) The 911 Carrera now offers a system to lift the front end Even though 911s aren't as low-slung as Lamborghinis, the Porsches have plenty of front overhang and scrape their noses on steep driveways and ramps. Porsche has solved this problem on the new model with the optional nose-hiking Compact Lift System. The setup uses a pair of remarkably compact annular hydraulic cylinders that sit below the lower spring perches on the front struts. When activated, an electric hydraulic pump pressurizes these cylinders and takes about five seconds to lift the front suspension by 1.2 inches, which translates into 1.6 inches of additional clearance at the nose. The entire system weighs only nine pounds and automatically drops to normal ride height if you exceed about 20 mph. 10) The new 911 engine went through a drop test In order to help offset the weight added by the turbos, intercoolers, and their associated plumbing, Porsche's engineers looked to save weight elsewhere in the engine. One of the biggest chunks came from a new plastic oil sump that saved 4.4 pounds. The sump is comprehensively baffled to ensure a supply of oil near the pickup of the oil pump no matter how aggressively you're driving, but the idea of an oil pan molded from even the most modern polymers doesn't inspire confidence among those who expect robustness from their Porsches. To prove the pan's durability, the engineers tested it by dropping an engine onto a concrete floor from a height of 39 inches. Thomas Brandl, one of those engineers, said the pan developed no leaks. 11) The brakes always match the engine power Porsche has long believed that a car's brakes should be stronger than its engine. So when engine power rises, so does braking performance. The 2017 Carrera gets new front brake calipers still with four pistons but with 17 percent more pad area. And the 13.0-inch brake rotor increases in thickness from 1.1 to 1.3 inches (28 to 34 millimeters). The Carrera S gets new six-piston calipers with 18 percent larger pads, squeezing 1.3-inch thick rotors that go up from 13.4 to 13.8 inches (340 to 350 mm) in diameter. Furthermore, these larger S rotors now get pin-mounted aluminum hat sections, which reduce their weight by about one pound each. 12) The car can be fitted with as many as three (!) steering racks The rear-wheel-steering system already standard on the Turbo and GT3 is available as an option on the 991.2. The system can turn the rear wheels up to two degrees in each direction. Below 30 mph, the rear wheels turn opposite the front ones to increase agility. Above 50 mph, they turn in the same direction to enhance stability. In between those speeds, the direction they turn depends on the circumstances. The ratio of the front steering rack is also faster to increase agility even more a change made possible only because of the extra stability imparted by the rear steering. But what we found fascinating was the mechanism that causes the rear wheels to steer. Each of the two toe-control links is replaced by a miniature electric power-steering rack that looks like a shrunken version of the big one steering the front wheels. Each side has a small electric motor that uses a tiny cog belt to spin a nut to move a screw that traverses the wheels.
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autos
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Both England and Pakistan have injury concerns ahead of first test match in the United Arab Emirates
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video
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Sizzling filets and red wine. An outdoor table above the ship's fantail. A hot sun tempers the cool breezes of early evening and turns the ship's wake into a molten silver stream touching the pink-and-red sunset. Dark waters ripple as far as the eye can see. The Caribbean? The Mediterranean? Not exactly. We were on Lake Erie, believe it or not, midway through Haimark Travel's luxury Great Lakes cruise aboard the Saint Laurent. The 210-passenger, small-ship cruiser offers summer trips with boarding and disembarkation points in Chicago, Toronto and Montreal. There is much that's unexpected on a cruise of the Great Lakes (in our case, some of it unexpectedly frustrating, but we'll get to that). Millions of people, after all, live near the shores of these massive inland oceans but typically get only a glimpse from a beach or a waterfront, if that. And as maritime historian Fred Stonehouse says, "The Great Lakes are among the best and most unexplored cruising grounds in the world." Our cruise on the Saint Laurent was to sail from Chicago on an evening in mid-July. But a few weeks before, sailing another itinerary, the ship hit a concrete abutment in the St. Lawrence Seaway, injuring more than 20 passengers and crew and requiring several days of repairs. Haimark canceled one subsequent sailing and informed us a few days before we were to depart that we would be bused from Chicago to Mackinac Island, at the northern tip of Michigan, to meet with the boat. As it turned out, the Saint Laurent didn't make that connection either. There was another night in a hotel and one more buffet dinner, at which Haimark announced it was chartering a plane to fly us to connect with the ship in Detroit. About a dozen people opted to drop out and fly home from Detroit. For those who stayed, there were partial cash refunds, generous discounts for future cruises, and money to spend on board and six days of living it up on the Saint Laurent. Before setting sail from Detroit, we visited the nearby Henry Ford Museum, an immense trove of American artifacts with a focus on history and technology. Then, finally cruising, we settled into a routine of eating, drinking and shore excursions while traveling from Lake Huron through the Georgian Bay (sometimes considered the sixth Great Lake), on to Lakes Erie and Ontario and finally the St. Lawrence Seaway and Montreal. A brief stop at Manitoulin Island, in Lake Huron, was a highlight at a First Nations settlement, enthusiastic young people in tribal costume gave a spirited dance performance, and we toured a gallery of Native art. Niagara Falls was a "wow" moment, particularly for first-timers, and was paired with a winery tour in nearby Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. (Rest assured that our ship itself bypassed Niagara Falls in favor of the nearby Welland Canal!) We disembarked at Montreal, near the historic old city. Aboard ship, the open top deck offered a panorama of lakes and shore and the cool lake breezes that are familiar to those of us who live nearby. Non-Midwesterners were surprised at the deep blue of the water, likening it to the Caribbean. Our cabin was tight but comfortable and functional with a full bathroom, large closet and much-appreciated under-bed storage. Small ships like this don't offer the extravagantly large rooms found (for a price) aboard the mega-ships that host thousands. But that also means you're not elbow to elbow with that cast of thousands for every meal and activity. Our favorite onboard dining spot was the Cliff Rock Bar & Grille. At first we were drawn by the open-air seating but soon "warmed" to its unusual tabletop grilling scheme. Diners select from beef or fish options that are brought to the table raw, atop a small square of rock heated to 860 degrees. Use that hot rock to grill your food, and every forkful can be done just as you like it. Some of my favorite times, though, were spent on deck, sipping coffee in the morning or a gin-and-tonic in the afternoon as we sailed Lakes Huron and Erie, then passed through the Thousand Islands archipelago at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, at the east end of Lake Ontario. Watching birds slowly cross the emerging brilliance of sunset was an active meditation, calming and energizing at the same time. I'm a Midwesterner and a Great Lakes lover, but this experience gave me a new pride at the beauty and legacy of this immense natural resource. There were few Midwesterners aboard. Instead, passengers came from California, Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, New York, Texas and Washington state, among other places. Haimark managing partner Tom Markwell says the Great Lakes cruises have been popular with French and German tourists as well. Cruising the Great Lakes was popular in the early 1900s, when passenger ships sailed all five lakes. The Depression put a halt to that, and occasional attempts to revive the industry were unsuccessful until recent years. Now four companies offer cruises with embarkation points in the U.S. and Canada, attracting tourists from the U.S. and Europe. "These routes sail in the wake of great explorers and missionaries across vistas of unspoiled natural beauty, offering travelers a way to experience native culture in a very personal manner and calling at ports nearly forgotten by time," said Stonehouse, who was an expert lecturer aboard our cruise. "The most overwhelming aspect to many is the sheer size of the lakes themselves. ... They are truly inland seas, and many people say, "I had no idea this even existed.'" If you go For summer 2016, Hairmark Travel, offers two 10-day sailings for the Chicago-Montreal route, one from each city, and starting at $4,499 per person, as well as two 10-day sailings from Toronto to Chicago, at similar prices. Air travel is not included. The company also offers pre- and post-cruise tours (855-424-6275, http://www.haimarkline.com). Three other companies plying the lakes are Blount Small Ships Adventures, Pearl River Cruises and Plantours (of Hamburg, Germany). Hairmark's Tom Markwell said he expects his 2016 Great Lakes cruises to be booked up by January. Regarding the sidetracked trip, Markwell said post-cruise surveys from passengers who finished the cruise were overwhelmingly positive.
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travel
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Tapping into your 401(k) plan for a loan or a distribution should be considered only as a last resort for consumers who are short on cash. Faced with long-term unemployment or an emergency, some consumers turn to taking out a loan or a distribution from their 401(k) if they lack enough savings. A 401(k) loan can appear to be a good option because the interest rates are relatively low, but the ramifications can put you in a jam: if you leave your job for any reason, the loan must be repaid back quickly -- within 60 days. If you are under 59.5 years old and miss that mark, you'll typically be on the hook for a 10% early withdrawal penalty on the outstanding loan amount, plus federal and state income tax on the distribution. When 401(k) Loans Are a Good Option The lower interest rates make these loan an attractive option, especially for people planning to pay down their credit cards, which typically carry rates into the teens. "For those really serious about paying off credit card debt, by all means, take the 401(k) loan, pay off credit card debt and repay yourself," said Bill DeShurko, a portfolio manager at Covestor, the online investing marketplace and President of 401 Advisor, a registered investment advisor in Centerville, Ohio. While the terms for each plan varies, the rate on a 401(k) loan is "usually a few percentage points above the prime rate, which is currently 3.25% ," said Canon Hickman, a regional director at Equity Concepts, a Richmond, Va.-based investment and financial services company. One benefit is that the interest payments "will go back" to the individual once the entire loan is repaid. "It's also helpful for short-term needs if you can't qualify for a traditional loan," he said. "Since there's no underwriting process, getting the money you need isn't limited by your credit score." 401(k) Loans Are Risky The duration on 401(k) loans has a much shorter span, and they must be repaid within five years. These loans are not a good alternative to pay for large ticket items, because your monthly payments will still remain high. "For big expense items, that is typically too short of an amortization period to keep payments low enough to consider a 401(k) loan as an option," DeShurko said. In this current environment of stagnant job growth, these loans should be avoided if "there is any chance of wanting to change jobs or being laid off," he advised. Borrowing money from your retirement plan for a personal loan is not a good strategy, because if you not have paid off the entire loan when you quit or are laid off, the remaining balance is taxable as income. "Even if things seem solid, I would eliminate personal loans as a valid use for this reason," DeShurko said. 401(k) Distributions All employer-sponsored 401(k) plans have their own rules. Some of them may not allow employees to take loans. In that case, some employees opt to take out an in-service distribution during a hardship or even to pay for their child's college tuition. "All plans do not allow for in-service withdrawals, but if they do, its often for financial hardships, which can be college education, first-time homebuying or medical expenses," said Jamie Hopkins, a retirement professor at the American College of Financial Services in Bryn Mawr, Pa. Withdrawals from your 401(k) plan are frowned upon, because of the 10% early withdrawal penalty, plus federal and state income tax for investors younger than 59.5 years old. There are some exemptions for the 10% penalty tax, and they include people who become disabled or to help pay for reimbursed medical expenses over 10% of your adjusted gross income, he said. "It is important to remember that access is different than taxation," Hopkins said. "While you might have access to your 401(k) funds through the hardship provision, a withdrawal for college education expenses before you are 59.5, you will not be exempt for the additional 10% penalty tax for early withdrawals." Another huge catch is that the money you withdraw from your 401(k) cannot be replaced, so you can not simply catch up on your retirement savings later on when you get raise or a bonus. "Withdrawals are permanent," he said. "Once you take the money out of your 401(k) and use it, you will no longer be able to get that money back into the 401(k) or into an IRA." Why Loans Are Better than Withdrawals For consumers who are strapped for cash, getting a loan is a better bet, because there are no limitations on what the purpose of the funds and does not get taxed as income. "Usually the best way to get access to your 401(k) while you are still working is to take a loan from the plan," Hopkins said. "Loans give you much needed access to funds today without excessive taxes and penalty fees. Remember that the loan will need to be paid back into your account, usually through payroll deductions over a five year period." Withdrawing Money From Your IRA Instead Although you cannot take out a loan from an IRA, you have greater flexibility in accessing funds from it . You are allowed to withdraw money from it any time. "In some cases, you just won't have access to the funds in your 401(k) immediately while an IRA is a much more liquid account, so for fast or short-term use it can be the best way to go," Hopkins said. IRAs are less restrictive than 401(k)s, because you are allowed to use money from it for a down payment if you are first-time homebuyer or for education and avoid the 10% penalty. These exceptions do not exist in 401(k) plans. Another benefit of IRAs is that if you borrow the money for less than 60 days, you can withdraw money from it and pay it back within that time period without being subject to the 10% penalty tax. The catch is that the IRS only allows you to do this once a year and if you fail to repay all the money, it will be treated as a taxable distribution.
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finance
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New York Giants tight end Daniel Fells is in a battle to save his foot and possibly his life as NFL.com reports that Fells has had five surgeries to stop a serious staph infection reportedly contracted from a cortisone injection received after a toe injury. The website reports that Fells is battling Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection which has had the 32-year-old hospitalized for over a week. As of Friday, several news sites noted that Fells condition looked to be improving since he had been moved from the Intensive Care Unit to a private room. On Saturday, a source with knowledge of Fells condition told NFL.com that tight end was in serious danger of losing his foot, a move doctor's were considering given the nature of the infection. According to the news site Fells has already undergone five surgeries and has more planned. Fells was reportedly given a cortisone shot after a toe injury. On Oct. 2, Fells wife took him to the emergency room as he was suffering from a 104-degree temperature. "There, they found his ankle was infected with MRSA, a dangerous staph infection that is resistant to many antibiotics," NFL.com reports. Doctors don't want to amputate Fells foot but are concerned that the infection has spread to the bone and possible his blood, which could prove fatal. "This is a serious situation that has been taken seriously from the beginning," Giants spokesman Pat Hanlon told NFL.com. "We're all fighting for Daniel." Because the infection is highly contagious, Giants have had the locker room, training rooms and meetings rooms scrubbed and sanitized according to protocol from the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network. "We are working with infectious disease specialists, and we have defined protocols that we are following in consultation with the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network and local infectious disease specialists," Hanlon told ESPN . "Those protocols are being followed carefully." Fells posted a message to his Twitter account Sunday evening before the Giants took on the San Francisco 49ers on: My heart is with my brothers tonight. Get that W G-men. I love every one of you #thiswillnotdefeatme https://t.co/lJ01kL3DCR Daniel Fells (@danielfells85) October 11, 2015 Read more at NFL.com and ESPN . Like The Root on Facebook . Follow us on Twitter .
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sports
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The US government is deporting undocumented immigrants back to Central America to face the imminent threat of violence, with several individuals being murdered just days or months after their return, a Guardian investigation has found. The Guardian has confirmed three separate cases of Honduran men who have been gunned down shortly after being deported by the US government. Each was murdered in their hometowns, soon after their return one just a few days after he was expelled from the US. Immigration experts believe that the Guardian's findings represent just the tip of the iceberg. A forthcoming academic study based on local newspaper reports has identified as many as 83 US deportees who have been murdered on their return to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras since January 2014. Related: The migrants who fled violence for the US only to be sent back to their deaths Human rights groups warn that deterrent measures taken by the Obama administration after last year's "surge" in arrivals at the border of unaccompanied children from Central America have triggered a series of powerful unintended consequences across the region. The number of migrants crossing the US border with Mexico unlawfully has declined sharply this year. But the increasingly militarized surveillance and patrol of the southern frontier has forced migrants to take ever greater risks in the routes they choose. And although fewer people are attempting to enter from Mexico, the death rate among those trying has gone up, activists say. Side effects of the crackdown can also be seen in Mexico, where authorities have also stepped up security across the across the south of the country. This has caused migrants to make lengthy detours, making journeys to ever more remote and perilous routes where they face a heightened risk of robbery, rape, abduction and death. Human rights experts warn that in its haste to expel or deter undocumented immigrants, the US government is scrimping on its obligation to provide asylum to those genuinely in peril in violation of international law. The collateral damage of America's increasingly unforgiving deportation process is that people are being returned to extremely dangerous situations in Central America, which has some of the highest murder rates in the world . Based on reporting from northern Honduras and freedom of information requests in the US, the Guardian has compiled the stories of three young Honduran men who were all killed soon after deportation. Two of them had originally fled to the US after their brothers were violently attacked by gangs, one of them fatally. José Marvin Martínez was 16 when he fled from the town of San Manuel in the north of Honduras to the US. A few months earlier his brother Rigoberto had been shot and killed by suspected gang members, relatives said. Deportation papers obtained under freedom of information rules show that Martínez was apprehended in Laredo, Texas in May 2013 having worked for a while as a masons' assistant in Houston. A border patrol agent had come across him in a Dairy Ranch store. In April 2014 he was ordered to appear before an immigration review court but failed to show. He was then issued with a deportation notice and was eventually tracked down and sent back to Honduras in August of that year. On 14 December four months after he was deported Martínez, who was known locally as El Chele or "Blondie", was sitting outside a corner shop back in San Manuel when a gunman opened fire from a drive-by truck, killing him. "If a deportee can't find a place to feel safe, surely he'll be killed," said Jaime Coto, a Honduran detective. Another of the cases tracked down by the Guardian was that of Ángel Díaz, 26, who was sent away to the US by his father after his brother was kidnapped by a Honduran gang and beaten almost to death. In April this year Díaz was arrested by police following a domestic dispute and with no visa papers to show was sent directly to a detention center for deportees. He was removed to Honduras in July. Days later was shot dead on a local bus, it is assumed by local gang members. In the third case, Juan Francisco Díaz was deported back to his hometown Choloma in Honduras in March, having lived under the radar in the US for three years. Four months after deportation he was found lying dead in an alleyway in his parents' neighborhood. Elizabeth Kennedy, a social scientist at San Diego state university, has compiled a comprehensive estimate of US deportees who have been murdered on their return to Central America since January 2014 based on local newspaper reports. Her forthcoming research identified 45 such cases in El Salvador, three in Guatemala and 35 in Honduras. "These figures tell us that the US is returning people to their deaths in violation of national and international law. Most of the individuals reported to have been murdered lived in some of the most violent towns in some of the most violent countries in the world suggesting strongly that is why they fled," Kennedy said. Government officials told the Guardian that they could not comment on individual cases. But a Department of Homeland Security spokesman, SY Lee, said that the US offers protection for those who fear harm in their home countries through a variety of channels. "Each year, thousands are admitted to this country as part of the overseas refugee program or granted asylum by the DHS or by the Department of Justice." Lee pointed out that criminal activity back home was not sufficient grounds to claim asylum, unless it were connected to five specific grounds for fear of harm - race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. Those facing deportation including expedited removal "are permitted the opportunity to seek asylum and/or other forms of protection". The reality that undocumented immigrants are being returned to danger in Central America stands in stark contrast to the heightened rhetoric around migration in the US stoked in part by Republican presidential hopefuls. Led by Donald Trump, the contestants have focused almost exclusively on the need to evict more "illegal immigrants" Trump wants to deport all 11 million of them or to build a wall all along the Mexican border. But the statistics paint a very different picture. According to the latest figures from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) the number of unaccompanied children apprehended at the Southwest border so far this year is steeply down from the high of 66,000 in last summer's surge. Clara Long, an immigration researcher for Human Rights Watch, said that in the wake of the 2014 surge there had been a "generalized crackdown" across the immigration service. "Detention has been expanded and people are increasingly being put into fast-track deportation procedures in which their claims for asylum are not being properly considered." A recent Human Rights Watch report concluded that the increasing use of so-called "expedited removals" of people picked up by US officials along the Mexican border was returning many to potential danger even though they had expressed fears of returning home. "This comes down to our regard for the dignity and lives of others," Long said. "Part of the identity of the US is that we adhere to international law, and that says that when people flee for their lives, states are obligated to provide them with protection. We are putting people through an increasingly criminalized detention-based system that risks returning people to their deaths." Mexican authorities are also returning migrants in immediate danger, the Guardian has found. Gredis Alexander Hernández fled Honduras with his sister after witnessing the murder of her boyfriend. Fearing for their own lives, the two siblings crossed into Guatemala heading for the US, but were apprehended as they tried to enter Mexico. Two days after they were returned to their home town, Hernández was shot twice in the head while he lay in his bed. He was 14 years old. Human rights groups contest that, as architects of the crackdown, the US government must share some of the responsibility for such tragedies. As Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office of Latin America put it: "The Obama administration has found a way to hide the so-called crisis of Central American migrants at the border. But at what cost?" Additional reporting by Jo Tuckman in Ixtepec and Rory Carroll in Altar. On Tuesday: How mexico's crackdown has forced migrants into danger.
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Scottish economist Angus Deaton, who works at Princeton University, won the Nobel memorial prize in economic sciences for "his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare," the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said on Monday. (Oct. 12)
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CNN's Dana Bash, Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper and John King on their rituals during the big day.
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CNN's Dana Bash, Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper and John King talk about what makes a good debate question.
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Michigan's early-season resurgence under Jim Harbaugh has a lot of subplots. The Detroit Free Press might have found the most unique one with a report on who is helping make sure the anchor of the Wolverines offensive line is staying in line this fall. That would be Graham Glasgow, the Michigan center who has put a couple of off-field issues behind him as he shares his Ann Arbor apartment with his 81-year-old grandmother. "I'm an 81-year-old co-ed," she told the paper. "I'm the only old lady on the elevator in the building, but this is a win-win for everybody. You know what I'm getting out of this? I see a lot of kids trying to find their way. They don't know how they fit in yet. These are kids and, really, do we all know how we fit in yet?" The two make sure each other are maintaining their workout regimens, and she said she has gotten her grandson into "Dancing With The Stars." He credited Harbaugh with coming up with the plan along with Glasgow's father, Steve. "It's good for her and good for me to have someone cook for me and wash my stuff and watch after me in some ways," Glasgow said. "She gets to cruise the streets, walk around and do whatever she wants. But she's the nosiest person I've ever known. She has to know everything. She'll say, 'You're back a little later, why is that? Were you being smart, Graham?' Oh, Grandma."
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Charlie Sheen was removed from a bar in a headlock on Saturday (10.10.15). The 'Anger Management' actor paid a visit to Hennessey's Tavern in Dana Point, California, following a day's fishing at the weekend and though he was happy to pose for pictures with fans, the evening took a sour turn when a woman tried to film him on her cellphone. According to TMZ, Charlie slapped the device out of her hand, damaging it so was removed from the bar by security staff. However, the 50-year-old actor took his ejection in good spirits, shaking hands with the bouncer before being driven home. Charlie is known for his love of a good night out and earlier this year, he showed his generous side when he left a $1,400 tip on a $629 restaurant bill while dining out with his dentist, Dr. Kevin Sands, and pals Jon Lovitz and Darius McCrary at Café Roma in Beverly Hills An eyewitness said: "Charlie was in such a good mood and all smiles. "He kept telling everyone that it was all because of the great work Dr. Sands has done on his teeth over the years." Charlie's bill already had a $115 tip written on it but the former 'Two and a Half Men' star left the waiter "shocked" with his generosity. An eyewitness explained: "[The waiter was] shocked upon reading the receipt, as the total read $2,000. "Charlie said it was no mistake ... even though a tip was already included." It's not the first time the star has given a huge tip to a waiter as in September 2014 he pledged $1,000 to a server at a burger restaurant in Philadelphia after American footballer LeSean McCoy had left him a tip of just 20 cents, which led the establishment to post the receipt on its Facebook page. Charlie tweeted: "dear Tommy Up at PYT in Philly. Please tell Rob K I'm pledging 1000 dollars to him for the tip debacle just wanna help. c #NoJudgement (sic)"
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entertainment
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Lord Rose says the UK's decision on whether or not to stay in the EU should be based on "pragmatism", not patriotism.
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The Los Angeles Kings haven't had a great start to the season. They lost their two first games to the San Jose Sharks and Arizona Coyotes by a combined score of 9-2. Now, matters have gotten worse with the latest news on Dwight King: He'll be out for eight to 10 weeks following surgery to fix a broken bone in his foot. The 26-year-old, who finished with 13 goals and 13 assists in 81 games last year, injured his foot in the preseason after blocking a shot. At 6-foot-4, King provides the Kings with a scoring option among the bottom-six forwards. The power forward also provides a lot of physicality, which helps in the big Pacific Division. Over the last three seasons, King has been a staple in the Kings' lineup. King has been out of the lineup for just six total games in the last two years. King is signed through the 2016-17 season at a $1.95 cap hit. Los Angeles continue their season against the Vancouver Canucks Tuesday night.
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Texas Governor Greg Abott appeared to be good luck for his Texas Longhorns against the Sooner this past week. This week, he appears have committed a cardinal sin for sports fan -- tweeting out congratulations for before the game is over. The governor of Texas is entirely to blame for that Royals comeback (via @c4ssielogan ): http://t.co/GximPIiLKr pic.twitter.com/SrNin5tcVX SB Nation (@SBNation) October 12, 2015 Abbott, or whoever was running the account, quickly deleted the tweet -- thus the need for a screencap. Abbott tweet came after the Astros led 3-2 and played add-on. Carlos Correa hit a two-run home run and Colby Ramsus smacked his fourth home run of the playoffs to make the Astros' lead 6-2. The Royals would answer with five runs in the bottom of the seventh to take a 7-6 and eventually win 9-7 to force a game five in the ALDS in Kansas City. Abbott has two accounts, @GregAbbott_TX and @GovAbott. @GregAbbott_TX is listed as Abbott's personal account.
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The Kardashian family breaks down when they confront Scott Disick in the Keeping Up With The Kardashians season 11 promo. Even Scott is in tears!
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