CSN: 49ers enter playoffs lacking momentum

BOX SCORE

UPDATE: (6:07 p.m.) The NFL has announced the 49ers will host their divisional round playoff game on Saturday, Jan. 12 at 5:00 PST. Their opponent is yet to be determined.

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SAN FRANCISCO -- Candlestick Park disgorged its human contents slowly, which is the only way it ever does. Alex Smith had almost surely closed out his 49ers career with a kneel-down, David Akers remained a conundrum wrapped in an enigma encased in a kicking shoe, Justin Smith?s triceps tendon had not yet healed itself, and Jim Harbaugh was, well, Jim Harbaugh.

Meanwhile, the Green Bay Packers flailed impotently against the tide that is Adrian Peterson, and here we must credit the 100 or so fans who stayed in the stadium to watch the scoreboard as it showed Blair Walsh?s game-winning field goal. The Vikings won 37-34, the 49ers got this weekend off, and host someone next week. They were thrilled with this development, as the locker room roar showed.

And yet the bye is a gift that is delivered with a mailed fist.

The 49ers need the week in hopes that J. Smith (as opposed to A.D. Smith) can make himself fully functional. And that Colin Kaepernick can advance his learning curve. And that David Akers can find the left foot he apparently left behind at the end of last season. Plus, who doesn?t want a break from running into other people repeatedly at great rates of speed?

On the other hand, teams with the bye win almost 54 percent of the time, making the 49ers a coin flip in the divisional round. An 11-4-1 coin flip.

And a coin flip with as many questions as answers. A coin flip without momentum, and as we surely know, December momentum more than any other commodity is what gets teams to the Super Bowl.

The 49ers didn?t get a lot of impetus from beating Arizona, 27-13. The Cardinals are awful as usual, one of the game?s enduring Jell-O punching bags. You hit it repeatedly, you feel good hitting it, but in the end it hasn?t given you the kind of test you need for the next steps.

But other than Michael Crabtree, who made a mockery of whatever passes for the Arizona secondary, no 49er offensive player excelled, and the defense was never challenged by a Cardinal team with no weapons whatsoever. It was a desultory performance made even less settling by Akers? latest field goal misses, giving the 49ers the most worrisome kicking of the postseason combatants.

Indeed, of the teams already in, only Green Bay (Mason Crosby) has a poorer percentage of field goal conversion, but they made up for it by scoring more TDs than any other NFC team. And Crosby is only bad beyond 50 yards, whereas Akers? issues are from 40 out.

In short, unless the 49ers want to concoct an injury to Akers out of his collision with Arizona?s Justin Bethel, they already have a disadvantage to go along with Smith?s questionable status, and the fact that they have only one go-to receiver, Crabtree.

They are not going into this postseason with the same gleeful trouble-free stride with which they entered last year?s playoffs. momentum, remember?

Not only that, the two NFC teams with the bye, San Francisco and Atlanta, are the only ones with two losses in December. Seattle (No. 5) went unbeaten, Minnesota (No. 6) won its last four after losing at Green Bay in Week 12, and Green Bay (No. 3) had won four straight before losing Sunday.

None of this makes them unqualified for Super Bowl status, mind you. In this field, there is no team that doesn?t have that quality to them, because everyone either backed into the postseason or rallied frantically to get there.

But these are not the 49ers of yore, as in last year. Things are coming harder, and the margin for error creates a tighter squeeze. Without Smith, that margin becomes almost prosciutto-thin.

So yes, Blair Walsh did the 49ers a great service on Sunday, and so did Adrian Peterson. But the real truth is that the 49ers are going to have a harder time making an impression this time than they did a year ago, and the key is, as ever, Justin Smith. With him, they are in play. Without him, who knows?

But this much is sure. Last year, the 49ers were playing with the casino?s money all year long. This year is going to be a pure white-knuckler ? starting now.

Source: http://www.csnbayarea.com/blog/ray-ratto/49ers-enter-postseason-lacking-momentum

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Tonight We Saw Why It's Basically Impossible To ... - Business Insider

The sub-sub-plot of the day was the story that the GOP had proposed attaching a Chained CPI requirement to a fiscal cliff deal. Basically, this means that the annual cost-of-living adjustment in Social Security would be lower than it is now.

Liberals hate the idea because it's a benefit cut.

And now as the GOP isn't pushing it anymore either (for now). John McCain went so far as to call it a "losing hand."

Marco Rubio went so far as to say that while the GOP is not pushing for these cuts, Obama is.

The thing is, if there's ever going to be a politically palatable cut to Social Security, this is probably it, since it's pretty technical, and nobody will get what it is, and it doesn't sound like a cut.

As Phil Klein points out, if the GOP can't even get behind this tweak, there's very little hope for anything substantive in the big picture.

There are two big stories with entitlement cuts.

One is that politicians are open to them in theory, but then don't want their fingerprints on the weapon when it's time to do the deed.

The other is that it's usually Republicans that end up killing entitlement tweaks. Every time DC gets close to a "grand bargain" (something which Obama would clearly be willing to sign off on), Boehner or his caucus kills it.

And that makes sense. If you're the party of fighting deficits, then you have a lot of lose politically by taking deficit reduction off the table in the form of actual progress.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-chained-cpi-offer-in-the-fiscal-cliff-shows-why-entitlement-reforms-are-so-hard-2012-12

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Stung Bankia investors look to courts for justice

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish savers and pensioners who have seen their money wiped out by investing in state-rescued lender Bankia are likely to seek redress in court rather than wait for any official inquiry, which looks increasingly unlikely.

About 350,000 stockholders will share the pain of the bank's European bailout, many of them bank clients who were sold the shares through an aggressive marketing campaign for its stock market flotation in 2011.

Shares in the lender, rescued by the state in May in Spain's biggest ever bank bailout, fell to record lows on Friday, tumbling over 40 percent from the start of the week after it emerged losses on bad loans were worse than expected.

"Going to the courts and seeing if a judge can bring us justice is the only path left to us," said Maricarmen Olivares, whose parents lost 600,000 euros ($793,300) they made from selling her father's car workshop by investing in Bankia preference shares.

Neither of the two main political parties want to push for a full investigation into Bankia's demise, which could draw attention to their own role in a debacle that has driven Spain to the brink of an international rescue, commentators say.

"Investigations work when a political party has something to gain over another. In this case, no-one has anything to gain," said Juan Carlos Rodriguez, of consultancy Analistas Socio Politicos.

"I don't see the big parties investigating this because if there have been errors committed, they have been committed by both sides."

The Socialist Party was in power when Bankia was formed in 2010 from an ill-matched combination of seven regional savings banks, a union that concentrated an unsustainable exposure to Spain's collapsed property sector.

Immense political pressure from the then government forced Bankia executives to push ahead with an initial public offering in July 2011 as Spain sought to bring private capital into its banking system and avoid a European bailout.

Then chairman, Rodrigo Rato, a former chief of the International Monetary Fund, had strong links to the centre-right Popular Party (PP) and was finance minister in a previous PP administration.

A small political party, UPyD, forced the High Court in July to open an investigation into whether Rato, ousted when the bank was nationalized in May, and 32 other former board members are guilty of fraud, price-fixing or falsifying accounts.

Investigating magistrate Fernando Andreu has so far not brought charges against anyone and could still drop the case.

"WE WON'T SEE OUR MONEY AGAIN"

Rato appeared in a private session before the judge on December 20 where he denied any blame for what happened.

Rato, who cannot legally speak to the press because he is the subject of a court investigation, has kept a low profile since the bank rescue in May. Protesters gathered outside the court on the day of his declaration wearing masks of his face.

The probe centres around Bankia's stock market listing, the formation of the lender from the seven savings banks and the gaping capital shortfall revealed at the bank after the state takeover in May.

Rato and 23 others including bank executives and cabinet ministers were called to testify before a parliamentary committee in July this year where Rato said he had a clear conscience and had done things properly.

"That was just window-dressing by the PP following the outcry over the Bankia disaster," said a Socialist Party source.

The opposition Socialists called for a full parliamentary investigation in May, but the ruling PP blocked it, the Socialist Party source said. A PP spokeswoman said any investigation of Bankia should be carried out through the courts, not the government.

A government source said any investigative process would not fall to the government, but to the courts.

Bankia, alongside other Spanish banks, sold billions of euros of preference shares and subordinated debt to high street clients, many of whom say they were tricked into parting with their savings and are seeking compensation.

The investigating magistrate is not including the mis-selling of preference shares - hybrid instruments that fall between a share and a bond - in the probe.

Holders of preference shares at Bankia will incur losses of up to 46 percent as part of the European bailout, receiving shares rather than cash in exchange.

"We won't see our money again, that's for sure. They'll give us shares, but shares with no value or credibility in a nationalized bank," said Olivares, who said she had heard nothing from the bank as to how much their losses would be.

The losses each investor will have to take has yet to be decided, a Bankia spokesman said, adding that hybrid debtholders at all rescued banks had to take losses, not just at Bankia.

A source close to the court investigation said there would certainly be scope for a separate wider probe into the mis-selling of preference shares, not just at Bankia, but throughout Spain's savings banks.

Olivares, like many other small savers at Spain's state-rescued banks, claims her parents were sold the preference shares as a kind of high-interest savings account and that the bank staff did not explain the risks attached.

The government is in the process of setting up an arbitration process to compensate Bankia clients who can prove that they were duped into buying preference shares, Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said last week.

But many ordinary Spaniards who lost their life savings through the Bankia rescue say this is not enough and they want answers as to what happened to their money.

"We want justice, at least some kind of recognition that we were swindled," said Raimundo Guillen, a 50-year-old electricity station worker who put 30,000 euros in preference shares with Bankia under the impression they were a form of savings account.

"It's as if they've stolen your wallet - blatantly, with their face uncovered."

($1 = 0.7564 euros)

(Reporting By Sonya Dowsett; Editing by Will Waterman)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stung-bankia-investors-look-courts-justice-104945998--sector.html

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13 technologies you won't see in 2013

2 hrs.

Avram Piltch, Laptopmag.com , TechNewsDaily

It seems like only yesterday we were planning for the Maya apocalypse, but like so many other products, the 14th b?ak?tun (next era) has been delayed due to bugs and lack of pre-orders. Yet if you talked to some pundits back in 2011, they?d have told you that the end of days was coming out in Q4 of 2012, along with its competitor, BlackBerry 10.

No doubt, in 2013, several long-rumored products will come to market. However, next year won?t be the year for these 13 gadgets and technologies.

Amazon smartphone

The speculation: After its success selling Amazon-branded Android tablets, the company will launch a smartphone that puts its content front and center and encouraging you to shop wherever you go. Some have even suggested that the company will make it easy to scan prices when you're in a retail store, just so you can see if Amazon sells the item cheaper. Taiwan Economic News recently reported that Foxconn will be manufacturing the handset, which will launch in Q3 or 2013 for $100 to $200.

Why it?won't happen in 2013: Breaking into the U.S. smartphone market with any hope of success is extremely difficult for new players. The four major carriers rule their networks with an iron fist, either forcing phone vendors to go along with their software?strategies or outright rejecting products that don't meet their immediate business goals. Just ask Google, which decided to release the Nexus 4 as an unlocked device rather than deal with AT&T and Verizon. (A subsidized version is available for T-Mobile.)

From a business perspective, playing in the smartphone space makes little sense for Amazon as the company's goal is not to sell phones but to sell media and dry goods through its online store. The company already has its shopping app preloaded as crapware on many Android devices, and the company could leverage these placements in 2013 by finally bringing Amazon Instant Video to Android devices and adding a price-scanning app to the mix. Why spend money building and supporting a smartphone when you can just get users of other phones to buy the all the same products from you?

More: ?Top 10 Smartphones

Windows?Blue

The speculation: Microsoft?will launch the next major version of Windows, codenamed "Windows Blue," as soon as spring 2013. The new OS will get at least annual updates over the air so consumers and businesses with Blue always have the latest verison of the OS.

Why it won't happen in 2013: If the rumors are true, a company that usually releases operating systems on a three-year cadence will suddenly start selling a new mainstream operating system less than a year after Windows 8?launched. And before Microsoft starts selling its next OS, it will no doubt go through months of public and developer previews as it has with Windows 7 and 8.

So, for Windows Blue to launch even as late as Q4 of 2013, Microsoft would have to announce a developer preview or public beta at the beginning of the year. With all the controversy surrounding Windows 8, news of another new Windows OS would convince users who were on the fence about upgrading to delay their purchases. Talk about Osborning yourself.

More:??8 Worst Windows 8 Annoyances and How to Fix Them

Google Nexus 4 with LTE connectivity

The speculation: When Google released its Nexus 4 phone, users were shocked to learn that the device did not support 4G LTE, the fastest type of mobile network.?To avoid dealing with carriers and building carrier-specific versions of its handset, the company decided to go with simple HSPA support, a decision Android head Andy Rubin called a "tactical issue."?Despite Rubin's comments, some believe that Google will eventually offer an LTE version of the Nexus 4, because it provided carrier-specific LTE versions of its prior-gen phone, the Galaxy Nexus. The Nexus 4 even has a disabled LTE radio inside of it, though this radio can only support a handful of bands that most areas of the U.S. don't use.

Why it won't happen: With the Nexus 4, Google is trying to make a point about its independence from carriers. Users who want a nearly-identical phone with LTE can already buy the LG Optimus G. However, not including LTE on phones is a poor long-term strategy. I wouldn't be surprised if Google's next handset, rumored to be the Motorola X, had LTE that worked with at least a couple of the major U.S. carriers' networks.

More: ??10 Most Stylish Smartphones

Wireless charging pads hit public places

The speculation: If you've been following the news lately you might expect to see wireless charging stations?appear at all your favorite haunts in 2013. This past fall, Nokia, HTC and others released phones with Qi-standard wireless charging support built-in while. At the same time, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf announced its plan to install compatible charging pads in its tables and Virgin Atlantic said it will offer the same in its airport lounges. Jay Z also announced a partnership with Duracell to bring that company's charging mats to several New York hotspots, including his own 40/40 club. Could Starbucks, McDonald's, 7-11 and Chucky Cheese be next? Not in 2013.

Why it won't happen in 2013: While many new phones this fall support the Qi wireless charging standard, Samsung and Qualcomm have loaned their support to the competing Alliance for Wireless Power (AW4P) standard. There's nothing like a standards war to make restaurant chains invest millions in upgrading their infrastructure to support half a dozen phones, none of which is an iPhone. Don't expect to see many more public places with wireless charging until Apple picks a standard and builds support into its products.

More:??Top 6 Smartphones with Wireless Charging

Nokia's Windows tablet

The speculation:?Two years have passed since Nokia has jumped off the "burning platform" of developing its own phone OS and fully embraced Windows Phone.?So what does former Microsoft exec Stephen Elop do for a follow-up? How about releasing a tablet.

After all, Elop said the following when speaking with analysts: "From an ecosystem perspective, there are benefits and synergies that exist between Windows and Windows Phone. We see that opportunity. We'll certainly consider those opportunities going forward." According to one popular rumor, the company plans to release a Windows RT slate with a battery-powered keyboard cover early in 2013. The tablet will allegedly come with wireless 4G service from carriers such as AT&T.

Why it won't happen in 2013: Nokia has had enough difficulty gaining market share in the smartphone space and, though things seem to be looking up for the Finnish company, its Devices and Services division lost 683 million Euros in Q3. Windows RT devices like the Microsoft?Surface are by no means a proven commodity, so Nokia would be jumping onto a whole new burning platform at a time when it needs to show stability and success. I think they'll pass.

More: ?10 Best Tablets of 2012

Mobile payments become common

The speculation: If you have certain Sprint phones, today you can use Google Wallet to tap and pay at a handful of stores. On AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, you will soon be able to use a competing service called ISIS to turn your phone?into a credit card. With all this activity, you might expect that, in 2013, all the major stores would support mobile payments. Not so fast there, Ms. Kardashian.

Why it won't happen in 2013: You may see a few more stores add support for one or both payment standards, but many phones, including the iPhone, don't have the NFC chip necessary to support them. Even worse, consumers have few incentives to switch from old fashioned credit and debit cards. Forrester Research Analyst Denee Carrington recently told us that mobile payments won't catch on until at least 2015.

More:??How to Fix Mobile Payments

An Apple TV set

The speculation: Rumors of an Apple large-screen TV (aka the iTV) have been floating around for years. In late 2011, these rumors gained more credibility when Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs mentioned that the late Apple founder had plans for a TV set. In 2012, Apple CEO Tim Cook told NBC's Brian Williams that TV is "an area of intense interest" for his company. Now, many believe 2013 will be the year that Apple stops dropping hints and finally drop ships a product.

Why it won't happen in 2013: There's nothing stopping Apple from manufacturing an ordinary HDTV with iTunes and maybe some additional smart TV functions built-in. However, the company won't be content to ship that. It needs to partner with cable providers and TV networks, two very conservative groups, to offer a complete end-to-end service. It must also provide a better display than its competitors, perhaps an OLED screen that would push the price way up.

With the cable and display markets unlikely to change in the next 12 months, Apple will decide that it's better off pushing its services through an improved Apple TV set-top box, rather than getting into the TV business in 2013.

More:??Best Smart TVs of 2012

Self-driving cars

The speculation: Google has been working on a self-driving car for a couple of years now but it's not alone. Big automakers such as Ford, Cadillac and Volvo are developing their own autonomous vehicles. In the past two years, both Nevada and California have made the self-drivers street legal. Will we finally see someone selling them to the public in 2013? No.

Why it won't happen in 2013: Google's self-driving car technology is probably the closest to being ready, but the company is not an automaker and isn't likely to sell autos directly to the public. Even if one of the automakers felt it had a finished product, there are only a couple of states where drivers could use the car in its autonomous mode. With so much potential liability???just imagine the lawsuit if one of these cars caused an accident???we'll be reading about new testing and legal certifications for years before the first model hits a dealership.

More:??High-Tech Cars Go Mainstream

Motorola Droid 5

The speculation: Motorola is the king of the keyboard slider, having launched the original Droid with keyboard and then releasing three different sequels. The company's most recent entry, the Droid 4, came out last February on Verizon and launched on Sprint as the Photon 4G this past summer. If Motorola plans to continue offering keyboarded phones, it will need to release a Droid 5 some time in early 2013.

Why it won't happen: The other leading phone vendors have moved?away from QWERTY phones in recent years, either giving up on them altogether or releasing them as under-featured budget phones such as the Samsung Stratosphere. Motorola's new owner Google hasn't put keyboards on its phones and, when the company launched its flagship devices this fall, it didn't even mention physical keyboards. Sadly, it looks like Motorola won't come out with another high-end keyboard slider.

More:??The 7 Worst Smartphone Injustices and How to Fight Them

BlackBerry PlayBook 2

The speculation: BlackBerry's PlayBook was first released in 2011, an eternity in tablet years. With the company's new BlackBerry 10 OS coming in January, some speculate that RIM will update its slate. Though the old PlayBook is still for sale, it has ancient specs like a 1024-by-600 screen and a dated design.?If RIM wants to stay in this space, it needs to release a new model. A leaked roadmap even mentions a 10-inch PlayBook code named "Blackforest."

Why it won't happen in 2013: Though the company shipped a surprisingly-high 255,000 Playbooks in Q3 of 2012, the tablet?has never been a considered a success by anyone's standards. Meanwhile, RIM is losing market share in he smartphone space and needs to buckle down and focus on its core audience: smartphone users. If the company turns its fortunes around with BlackBerry 10 phones, we may see another tablet, but not in 2013.

More:??10 Most Anticipated Features of BlackBerry 10

A Facebook phone

The speculation: For years, we've been hearing that Facebook would release a phone of its very own.?In 2011, HTC even released the super-lame Status, a budget phone with the Facebook logo on it and some added Facebook integration. Could Facebook be planning to enter the market with a truly revolutionary handset in 2013?

Why it won't happen?in 2013:??Back in July, Mark Zuckerberg himself said that creating a phone "wouldn't make sense." To be fair, companies sometimes deny working on products that later turn out to be very real. However, in this case, you should take Zuck at his word. There's no real selling point to a Facebook phone when every phone on the market has Facebook integration. By making its own phone, Facebook might even alienate some of its partners.

More:??26 Ultimate Facebook Tips

Flexible display phones or tablets

The speculation: CNET recently reported that Samsung Electronics will be showing off bendable displays at CES 2013. With the rumored Galaxy S IV phone expected to launch this spring and the inevitable Galaxy Note III, some believe we'll see the first phones to deploy this technology.

Why it won't happen in 2013: If Samsung's electronics division is first demoing the screen at CES 2013, it won't hit commercial products for at least another year. Also, in order for the phone itself to be flexible, the entire body must bend, something that may never happen. Samsung may use the flexible displays to create phones with slightly curved screens, but that won't happen in 2013.

More:??5 Things You Need to Know About the Samsung Galaxy S IV

Google Project Glass for consumers

The speculation: Google's Project Glass augmented reality goggles will be available as a developers kit in early 2013. If developers get their hands on the product in January or February, a full-fledged product release can't be too far behind, right?

Why it won't happen in 2013: Google co-founder Sergey Brin told Bloomberg in June that he would like to have a consumer version of Project Glass "within a year" after releasing the kit to developers. While it's always possible that the kit will come out in January and the product will ship in December, it seems unlikely that such a unique product will make its way from prototype to final that quickly. Don't expect to get your headset until 2014.

More:??Will Google Glasses Make Us Cyborgs?

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/gadgetbox/13-technologies-you-wont-see-2013-1C7753186

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Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills ...

Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Shakara123(m): 3:11pm On Dec 29In our present society, there seem to be an increased awareness and crave for smart phones by all (infants, youths and adults alike).

These devices no doubt help in easy and fast communication but have we considered the effects they have on our written and spoken communication skills, especially our students??

Today, words are abbreviated in chat platforms to the extent that most students find it difficult to spell some words correctly, place punctuations appropriately, or even differentiate tenses. Examples; I don?t know becomes ?dunno?, okay becomes ?kk?, what is going on becomes ?sup?, don?t becomes ?dnt?, bother becomes ?boda? and the list goes on and on. It is at such moments that I praise some universities that ban the use of smart phones on campus.

Secondly, have we observed that some persons who are able to use these abbreviated words so much and type so fast with their phones during chats find it quite difficult to speak as effectively when physically present before their chat mates?

These are only my thoughts anyway. I will appreciate your comments as well.

Compliments.

3 Likes

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by 2legit2qwt: 3:52pm On Dec 29Yes, we're definitely letting it affect the written aspect of the language. I once had the opportunity to review some applicants cover letter during a job application process and it's pathetic that simple errors such as replacing '4' with 'for' were common.

A lot of people on Nairaland would rather write in 'text' language than the actual language thereby making it difficult to read/understand. Once you start writing that way consistently, you get used to it and it becomes the norm for you.

I can understand the need for 'text' words based on the number of characters you're restricted to in SMS

I'd rather read a sentence constructed in broken/pidgin English than in 'text' language outside of actual mobile texting, it does my head in

11 Likes

This post has been hiddenRe: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Clefcentfelix: 3:53pm On Dec 29

it depends on the individual

This post has been hiddenRe: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Chuckeey (m): 3:54pm On Dec 29

really affecting us badly

1 Like

This post has been hiddenThis post has been hiddenRe: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by vanstanzy(m): 3:56pm On Dec 29Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Cori_corde(f): 3:56pm On Dec 29

Exactly. I don't remember reading a text with the words written in full. Eveybody talks lyk dis noe. What is this nonsense?

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by messiah(m): 3:56pm On Dec 29

"you're" becomes "your"

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Sunymoore(m): 3:58pm On Dec 29

Quite tru cox i rembrd whn i was wrtng englsh dis yea, instd of schools i wrote .skulls. Its truli quite unfotunt. But as frm nw, i will tri as much as i can to wrte a complt wrd even in a forum o chat rum.

6 Likes

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by kunletiwoo(m): 3:58pm On Dec 29

Clefcentfelix: it depends on the individual

seconded! Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by afam4eva(m): 4:00pm On Dec 29

God punish spoken English. How about spoken Igbo and Yoruba. Why's no one worried about them?

7 Likes

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by egift(m): 4:01pm On Dec 29I will not say badly. If the user is lazy it will help him more. But if the person really cares for the quality of spoken and written words, phones and PCs could be really helpful.

For me the use of computer makes me spell words correctly, even the ones I can not easily put together (I just keep right-clicking till it suggest the right spelling).

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by SamConquer(m): 4:02pm On Dec 29

MTCHEWWWW MU.MU TOPIC AGAIN

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Yomieluv(m): 4:02pm On Dec 29

I dnt knw of som1 else,but its not affectin me at all,dats y I wrote dis in gud english

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by caesaraba(m): 4:04pm On Dec 29It does. But I wouldn't say smartphones only. I'd say social media and all its shorthand has really reduced the quality of written English we see (among youths) these days.

E.g, A lot of people now replace the letter 's' with 'x' when they spell words.

There are many more examples but the crux of the matter is that social media has really affected the quality of written English among youths. Go through the comments on NL and see for yourself.

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Goldenheart(m): 4:05pm On Dec 29

place reserved.

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Shaw007(m): 4:05pm On Dec 29I thinK it actuaLLy depends On the individuaL. . .if ur(you're) someone who cannot pLace a distinctIOn on ur(your) "chat/texting" Life and the normaL,formaL Life u'LL(you will) reaLLY find it hard

and one other thing is the consciousness,most fOLks when writing tend to forget they are not messaging their friends or updating some status But writing a note ,an exam,or maybe an application. . .most ppl(people) can actually write normally,but when this behaviour starts to eat deep,i'm afraid the person is Lost

and of course on occasions,he intentionally tries to break that jinx

yes,it definitelY affects the writing aspect,but i dnt(don't) think it affects anyone speaking. . .at Least to my knowledge

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Koolking(m): 4:06pm On Dec 29

It irritates me, in fact, I don't even waste my resource (time) reading short-worded comments and documents. What stops people from typing words the way they were taught, even when they have enough space to accommodate what they have to pass across to their listeners/readers. Personally, I see people who form such habits as unintelligent, docile and boring. It has nothing to do with Smart phones.

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by ebucha: 4:06pm On Dec 29

Queens English does not improve the economy of a nation, ask the Chinese prime minister (fastest growin economy), Germans or maybe Japanese. The English currency and Economy overtook ours years back cos they made us slave to their language. Gramma good oh,but e no go giv us light,water and road. SEEK FOR DEVELOPMENTAL KNOWLEDGE!!

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by ebucha: 4:09pm On Dec 29

Chuckeey :
really affecting us badly

how? Ok, it increased the price of fuel and damaged our roads.Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Troll: 4:10pm On Dec 29@OP Is English My Language Or Are You A Learner!?

...Typing From My Nokia 3310 With GPS, 3G, WIFI & Bluetooth

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Blackteeth(m): 4:10pm On Dec 29

I dont know. But ever since I started texting and chatting, I always write in full like its official. My friends I chat with always ask me why I write in full letters and I tell them its because I dont want to get used to those shorthand styles. Maybe its paying off for me.

5 Likes

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Sunymoore(m): 4:12pm On Dec 29

For those of u who have nt see the text under ''dis has affect us badly'' because its hidden, the text is
Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our
Written And Spoken English Skills?
by Clefcentfelix: 3:55pm
first to comment. placeholladele:
reserved
u're high on rice n stew.
(Quote) (Report) (Like)
Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our
Written And Spoken English Skills?
by Clefcentfelix: 3:55pm
holladele: first to comment. place
reserved
first?

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Richfella(m): 4:12pm On Dec 29

Some posts here, written in text-speak, make me want to hit my head on the wall. Yikes!

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by A-ZeD(m): 4:13pm On Dec 29

You don't blame smart phones for the laziness of humans. No smart phone/phone comes with "text speak".

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by A-ZeD(m): 4:16pm On Dec 29

Richfella: Some posts here, written in text-speak, make me want to hit my head on the wall. Yikes!

Its truly annoying when adults resort to writing "text speak" on a public forum. I can tolerate bad grammar but "text speak" just makes me write you off as un intelligent and not worth responding to.

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by Prodigee(m): 4:18pm On Dec 29

@OP: Welcome to the jet age...no time for time.

1 Like

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by omodapson(m): 4:19pm On Dec 29

I would have to support this assertion. We now have a new form of written language, (no language is exempted) which is destructive to the way we communicate. Before long, abnormalities may become the norm and we may not have answers to right the wrong.

Re: Are Smartphones Affecting Our Written And Spoken English Skills? by bara pistis(m): 4:23pm On Dec 29

the thing they affect person die....
me don go back to school lol, as i don forget the spelling of most common words

Source: http://www.nairaland.com/1145632/smartphones-affecting-written-spoken-english

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Deal Would Do Little To Shrink Deficit (WSJ)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/273791217?client_source=feed&format=rss

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How To Find A High Quality Commercial Real Estate ... - Maynas Eric

Investing in commercial properties is not the same game as home buying. Keep reading to discover strategies on how to come out ahead in the commercial real estate buying market.

You need to do this to ensure that your profits match up to the previous owner?s figures. If you fail to check out the terms, you might find something that is at odds with the rent roll and make the pro forma unreliable.

Use detailed photos to create this documentation. In the ?before? photos, especially, make sure that the pictures clearly show defects such as stains on the carpet, discolorations in the tub and sink, and holes in the walls.

TIP! Before you start, find the right financing for your needs. Loans for commercial properties are not the same as home loans.

Learn how the firm you?re thinking about hiring measures their results. Learn how they determine how much space is needed, the property selection criteria, the negotiation methods, and other details that can affect you. You can benefit a lot if you know things like this.

You will probably have to put a lot of effort into your new investment at the beginning. Finding a good opportunity, going through the transaction and making any necessary repairs to the property takes time. Do not give up because this process takes too much of your time. You will be rewarded later.

Regarding commercial loans, it is the borrower?s responsibility to obtain an appraisal. The bank won?t let you make use of it later. Be properly prepared by ordering the appraisal directly.

TIP! Use your blog to establish an expert reputation. You will then have a better chance of locating people who want to purchase your properties or lease space from you.

Be aware that not all commercial brokers are alike. Choose the real estate broker who will best help you meet your needs. Real estate agents will work with landlords and tenants, but there are also some that only work with tenants. If you are a tenant, you may be much better off by using a broker who only works with tenants as they have a lot more experience with successful tenant representation.

Try to keep your properties occupied. If no one is paying you rent, you?ll be the one footing the bills. If you have multiple properties open, figure out why, and try to correct the issue that could be causing a loss of tenants.

TIP! Just focus on one specific investment and narrow your time to that if you?re new to investing. Select one type of property that appeals to you, and devote your undivided attention to it.

Create a real estate newsletter or blog that is regularly updated, and stay active on relevant social networking sites. Keep your online presence updated and active, as it will often be a good source of referrals, connections and updates from important sources.

Ensure that the amount of money you want for your commercial property makes sense, given local market conditions. The value of your property is determined by an entire series of different factors.

Always stay on the lookout for sellers who are motivated to sell. Locate the ones with eager ambitions, who could possibly let a property go beneath the current value on the open market. You will achieve nothing in commercial real estate unless you get your hands on a good deal, and that most often will happen as a result of an offer made by an eager seller.

TIP! Find out more about net operating income. Success is about staying in the green.

If you have the intention of offering your commercial real estate for rent, look for buildings that are simple and solid in construction. Tenants are more likely to move in when they know the property is well taken care of. These properties are also more cost effective for you and your tenants due to the fact that they only require minimal upkeep and repairs.

Now you have learned the basics of commercial real estate investment and a few helpful tips. Keep this advice in mind so that you may get better deals when searching for the location of your business.

Source: http://www.maynaseric.com/how-to-find-a-high-quality-commercial-real-estate-agent-4

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Texas to Mexico Daily Livestock Exports

AL_LS600???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Las?Cruces,?NM????Fri?Dec?28,?2012????USDA?Market?News?????????????????????????
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Texas?to?Mexico?Daily?Livestock?Exports????????????????????????????????????????
Species????????????????????Exports??????Current???Current???Previous???????????
??????????????????????????12/27/2012???Week-T-D????Y-T-D??????Y-T-D????????????
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Dairy?totals?include?292?head?of?Canadian?Dairy.???????????????????????????????
Hog?totals?include?1257?head?of?Canadian?Hogs.?????????????????????????????????

Beef?Cattle????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Slaughter?????????????????????0???????????0????????0???????????0????????????
???Breeding?Males????????????????0???????????0??????330?????????364????????????
???Breeding?Females??????????????0???????????0??????864?????????471????????????
???Total?Beef?Cattle?????????????0???????????0????1,194?????????835????????????

Hogs???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Slaughter?????????????????????0???????????0????????0???????????0????????????
???Breeding?Males????????????????0???????????0????1,225???????1,277????????????
???Breeding?Females??????????????0???????????0????7,808???????5,287????????????
???Total?Hogs????????????????????0???????????0????9,033???????6,564????????????

Sheep??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Slaughter?Lambs???????????????0???????????0????????0???????????0????????????
???Slaughter?Ewes????????????????0???????????0????????0??????13,004????????????
???Breeding?Males????????????????0???????????0????????0??????????23????????????
???Breeding?Females??????????????0???????????0????????6??????????15????????????
???Total?Sheep???????????????????0???????????0????????6??????13,042????????????

Dairy?Cattle???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Breeding?Males????????????????0???????????0???????23??????????20????????????
???Breeding?Females??????????????0???????????0????5,942???????8,610????????????
???Total?Dairy?Cattle????????????0???????????0????5,965???????8,630????????????

Goats??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Angora????????????????????????0???????????0????????0???????????0????????????
???Spanish???????????????????????0???????????0????????0?????????325????????????
???Other?????????????????????????0???????????0????????0???????????0????????????
???Total?Goats???????????????????0???????????0????????0?????????325????????????

Horses?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???Slaughter???????????????????300?????????300??100,634??????56,549????????????
???Breeding?Males????????????????0???????????0????1,812???????1,698????????????
???Breeding?Females??????????????0???????????0????2,471???????2,670????????????
???Geldings??????????????????????0???????????0??????530?????????428????????????
???Burro/Mule/Pony???????????????0???????????0??????536?????????266????????????
???Total?Horses????????????????300?????????300??105,983??????61,611????????????

Exotics??????????????????????????0???????????0??????226?????????287????????????

Grand?Total?All?Species????????300?????????300??122,407??????91,294????????????

Source:???USDA?Market?News?Service,?Las?Cruces,?NM???????????????????
??????????John?Langenegger?(575)527-6861?FAX(575)527-6868????????????
??????????LasCruces.LGMN@ams.usda.gov????????????????????????????????
??????????www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/AL_LS600.txt
0835m?jdl
????????????????????

Source: http://www.cattlenetwork.com/cattle-news/markets/feeder-cattle/Texas-to-Mexico-Daily-Livestock-Exports-184626-185074801.html

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GOP Weekly Address: Senator Roy Blunt Discusses Progress on Avoiding the Fiscal Cliff

United States Senate(WASHINGTON) -- In this week?s Republican address, Missouri Senator Roy Blunt highlighted the need for Republicans and Democrats to solve the fiscal cliff.

?Divided government is a good time to solve hard problems?and in the next few days, leaders in Washington have an important responsibility to work together and do just that,? Blunt states.

The fiscal cliff could possibly ?lead to devastating job losses at a time when American families and small business owners are still struggling to get back on their feet,? according to Blunt.

Yet, Republicans in the House have specifically worked to pass ?bills to protect all Americans from burdensome tax increases? and ?passed legislation to replace damaging across-the-board spending cuts with responsible targeted ones, and to bring our nation?s record debt under control.?

It is now the Senate?s turn to move legislation forward.

Blunt concludes, ?We still can avoid going over the fiscal cliff if the President and the Democrat-controlled Senate step forward this week and work with Republicans to solve this problem and solve it now.?

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/abcnewsradio/politicsnews/~3/MOyHS2v43Mw/gop-weekly-address-senator-roy-blunt-discusses-progress-on-a.html

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Senate leaders work to avoid New Year's "fiscal cliff"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional negotiators burrowed into their Capitol offices on Saturday to see if they can stop the economy from falling off of a "fiscal cliff" in just three days when the biggest tax increases ever to hit Americans in one shot are scheduled to begin.

Aides to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell were expected to work through the day on a possible compromise that would set aside $600 billion in tax increases and across-the-board government spending cuts that are set to kick in next week.

A variety of lower taxes are scheduled to expire on December 31. If allowed to rise, the approximately $500 billion value of the revenue increases would represent a historic hike when taken together.

The combined punch of the tax increases and spending cuts would likely put the U.S. economy into a downward spiral, according to economists' forecasts.

"We're now at the point where, in just a couple days, the law says that every American's tax rates are going up. Every American's paycheck will get a lot smaller. And that would be the wrong thing to do for our economy," President Barack Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address, which was broadcast on Saturday.

At midday, McConnell walked into his office on the second floor of the Capitol. Asked by waiting journalists if he thought his efforts would be successful, McConnell responded: "I hope so."

A Senate Republican leadership aide said that it might not be known until sometime on Sunday whether these talks bear fruit. That is when leaders are expected to brief their rank-and-file members.

The Senate is scheduled to hold a rare Sunday session beginning at 1 p.m. EST (1800 GMT), but it was not clear whether the chamber would have fiscal cliff legislation to act upon.

Reid and McConnell and their staffs held last-ditch negotiations Friday night and resumed on Saturday with no guarantees that their efforts would pay off. Republicans remained opposed to Obama's demand that households making above $250,000 a year see their income tax rate rise to 39.6 percent, from the current 35 percent, in order to help tame budget deficits.

In recent days, some aides have said that a $400,000 threshold, instead of $250,000, has been discussed as a possible compromise.

PESSIMISTIC OUTLOOK

Democrats and Republicans also are jousting over what to do about inheritance taxes on estates.

Unless Congress acts, the tax is set to jump on January 1 to 55 percent with the first $1 million exempted for individuals. Currently, there is a 35 percent tax and a $5 million exemption.

One Democratic aide was pessimistic that McConnell would come up with a counteroffer that Reid would find acceptable. Such a counteroffer would have to be calibrated in a way that also could attract votes from conservative House Republicans, many of whom have balked at any tax rate increases.

Similarly, a senior House Republican aide on Saturday voiced pessimism about prospects for a deal.

"It's hard to see Reid agreeing to anything that can get the votes of the majority of the majority in the House, thereby allowing a bipartisan accomplishment," the aide said. A "majority of the majority" refers to the 241 Republicans who are in the 435-member House.

The Republican aide placed the blame squarely on Democrats, as many Republican members have done publicly, saying that going off the fiscal cliff is a "policy upside" for them. "Higher taxes, devastating defense cuts. The polls tell them they can win the PR war in January. From their perspective, why stop the cliff dive?"

Democrats, in turn, have publicly accused Republican House Speaker John Boehner of preferring to put off any tough fiscal cliff votes until after a January 3 House election in which he is expected to win another two-year term as speaker.

If McConnell and Reid can manage to reach a deal on inheritance taxes and raising income tax rates on the wealthiest, they likely would throw into the compromise some other fiscal cliff solutions.

Those could include extending an array of other expiring tax breaks, such as one that encourages companies to conduct research and development. Also, Congress wants to prevent a steep pay-cut in January for doctors who treat elderly Medicare patients.

Lawmakers also want to prevent middle-class taxpayers from inadvertently creeping into a higher tax bracket, known as the alternative minimum tax, intended for the wealthiest.

If the Reid-McConnell effort fails, Obama has asked the Senate to hold a vote on Monday on a "basic package" that would stop taxes from going up on the middle class and would extend long-term unemployment benefits that are about to expire. If it passed the Senate, its fate would be in the hands of the Republican-controlled House.

(Additional reporting by Thomas Ferraro and Jeff Mason; Editing by Fred Barbash and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-leaders-last-ditch-fiscal-cliff-effort-012150621--business.html

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Passengers on Queen Mary 2 sickened; norovirus suspected

8 hrs.

Sharon Begley , Reuters

NEW YORK --?An unknown illness, suspected of being a norovirus, has sickened 194 passengers and 11 crew members aboard the luxury cruise ship Queen Mary 2, causing vomiting and diarrhea, federal health officials said on Friday.

Earlier in the week, 189 passengers and 31 crew members on the Emerald Princess came down with the same symptoms.

The symptoms are those of norovirus, a contagious microorganism that can be acquired from an infected person, contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Norovirus causes an inflammation of the stomach or intestines called acute gastroenteritis, producing stomach pain, nausea and diarrhea, and is the most common cause of acute gastroenteritis in the United States.

Each year, norovirus causes some 21 million illnesses, of which 70,000 require hospitalization. It kills about 800 people a year, the CDC says.

The Queen Mary 2, with 2,613 passengers and 1,255 crew members, is now docked in Saint Lucia in the Caribbean, according to ship owner Cunard Line, which is owned by Carnival Corp. The cruise left Brooklyn, New York, last Saturday and is due to return there next Thursday.

The CDC learned of the illnesses on the QM2 on Christmas Day on Tuesday, and of those on the Emerald Princess last Saturday. Vessels are required to notify the agency when 2 percent of those on board develop a gastrointestinal illness.

Although the microbial culprit remains unclear In both cases, another reason to suspect norovirus is that the pathogen "has affected a number of schools, hospitals, nursing homes and children's day care centers this winter" in the United Kingdom, Cunard said in a statement.

The UK's Health Protection Agency reports that norovirus activity in the country is 83 per cent higher than last year.

The QM2 sails regularly scheduled crossings between New York and Southampton, England, between April and late November, Cunard spokeswoman Jackie Chase said in an email. "In addition, many of our guests come from the UK."

The QM2's captain is advising passengers with gastrointestinal symptoms to report to the medical center, Chase said. Those sickened are asked to "isolate themselves in their cabin until non-contagious. They are also asked not to proceed ashore, and any shore excursion costs will be refunded. Room service is provided to affected passengers and every effort is made to make them as comfortable as possible."

Of the 194 QM2 passengers who had fallen sick, said Chase, all but 12 had recovered as of Friday.

'Norovirus?active on board'
In a post on the message board cruisecritic.com on Wednesday, a woman who said her daughter was on the QM2 said she "just received a message from her indicating that the Norovirus is active on board."

On Thursday, someone reporting being on the ship posted that "the restaurants are still full. The Captain last night recommended that people take all of their meals in the full-service restaurants rather than the buffet, but the buffet remains open as of this morning. We've been kept informed daily of the persistent cases."

Another post said: "The crew are working like crazy to service all the guests. At lunch today I noticed the hand rails on the promenade deck were wiped three times in about 1 hour."

In response to the outbreak, the QM2 crew has increased cleaning and disinfection procedures, the CDC said, and is asking passengers and crew to report cases of illness and "encourage hand hygiene."

Medical personnel are also collecting stool specimens from ill passengers and crew, which a CDC lab will analyze to make a definitive diagnosis.

When the QM2 docks in Brooklyn, an officer from the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program and an epidemiologist will board, conduct an environmental health assessment "and evaluate the outbreak and response activities," the CDC said.

Two officers boarded the Emerald Princess, also owned by Carnival, when it arrived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Thursday and are conducting an environmental assessment.

The Vessel Sanitation Program has authority to inspect cruise ships that carry 13 or more passengers and call at U.S. ports. It gave the Queen Mary 2 a perfect 100 on its most recent inspection this past summer, but found a few minor infractions, including a lack of serving utensils with breakfast pastries at a buffet.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/travel/passengers-queen-mary-2-sickened-unidentified-pathogen-1C7753032

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Megan Fox Gushes Over Brian Austin Green, Reveals Weight Loss Secret

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/12/megan-fox-gushes-over-brian-austin-green-reveals-weight-loss-sec/

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Rob Kardashian: Botox Injected?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/12/rob-kardashian-botox-injected/

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How to Help an Addict during the Holidays

The holidays are a time to celebrate, but they can also be extremely stressful for addicts. Family problems and lack of money around this time of year cause many people to increase their drug or alcohol abuse or return to an old addiction. For these reasons, the holidays present a challenge to people who want to help friends or family members kick the habit. Here are some tips for approaching this situation.

1. Listen without judgment
Let the addict tell you what they?re experiencing with their addiction. Don?t dismiss their feelings or give them a self-righteous speech about their behavior, as this will only create feelings of guilt and make the addict want to continue abusing drugs and alcohol. Be empathetic and let them know that you understand.

2. Encourage the addict?s efforts at quitting
If the addict is improving in any way, let them know that you recognize their achievements and are proud of them. Recent progress in abstinence should be praised because it?s difficult at any time of year. Be sure to give genuine encouragement; avoid patronizing.

3. Stand your ground concerning addiction
It?s important for you to empathize with the addict, but always be clear on where you stand regarding their addiction. Don?t condone any form of drug or alcohol abuse, period. At the same time, don?t try to actively control any adult addict?s behavior. Let them learn their own lessons unless their actions put themselves or others at risk.

4. Keep stress to a minimum
Let go of the addict?s past failures and transgressions. Bringing up past events they are ashamed of will only feed their addiction. Do what you can to help the addict feel like part of the group, and avoid bringing up serious issues that might ruin the moment and drive the addict away, physically or emotionally.

5. Treat the addict lovingly
No treatment will be as effective as giving the addict your trust and love. Open you heart to the addict, making sure to let them know that you support their efforts to quit and want them to be happy.

6. Don?t humiliate the addict
Addicts are all different, but none are proud of being addicted. There?s no need to tell other people about the addict?s struggles or bring up private matters around others.

These are only general guidelines for helping an addict around the holidays. Always remember that rather than being bad people, addicts are simply struggling with something very challenging. With your support, the addict may have an easier time breaking free of addiction.

This post was written by Jeanie on behalf of Oklahoma drug rehab. In her spare time Jeanie loves to spend time with her two boys and bake.

Photo: xavitalleda

Source: http://www.everydayhowto.net/health-and-wellbeing/how-to-help-an-addict-during-the-holidays/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-help-an-addict-during-the-holidays

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More serious earthquakes predicted in the Himalayas

Dec. 28, 2012 ? A research team led by scientists from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has discovered that massive earthquakes in the range of 8 to 8.5 magnitudes on the Richter scale have left clear ground scars in the central Himalayas.

This ground-breaking discovery has huge implications for the area along the front of the Himalayan Mountains, given that the region has a population density similar to that of New York City.

NTU Professor Paul Tapponnier, who is recognised as a leading scientist in the field of neotectonics, said that the existence of such devastating quakes in the past means that quakes of the same magnitude could happen again in the region in future, especially in areas which have yet to have their surface broken by a temblor.

Published recently in Nature Geosciences, the study by NTU's Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS) in Singapore and colleagues in Nepal and France, showed that in 1255 and 1934, two great earthquakes ruptured the surface of the earth in the Himalayas. This runs contrary to what scientists have previously thought.

Massive earthquakes are not unknown in the Himalayas, as quakes in 1897, 1905, 1934 and 1950 all had magnitudes between 7.8 and 8.9, each causing tremendous damage. But they were previously thought not to have broken the earth's surface -- classified as blind quakes -- which are much more difficult to track.

However, Prof Tapponnier said that by combining new high resolution imagery and state of the art dating techniques, they could show that the 1934 earthquake did indeed rupture the surface, breaking the ground over a length of more than 150 kilometres, essentially south of the part of the range that harbours Mt Everest.

This break formed along the main fault in Nepal that currently marks the boundary between the Indian and Asian tectonic plates -- also known as the Main Frontal Thrust (MFT) fault.

Using radiocarbon dating of offset river sediments and collapsed hill-slope deposits, the research team managed to separate several episodes of tectonic movement on this major fault and pin the dates of the two quakes, about 7 centuries apart.

"The significance of this finding is that earthquakes of magnitude 8 to 8.5 may return at most twice per millennium on this stretch of the fault, which allows for a better assessment of the risk they pose to the surrounding communities," said Prof Tapponnier.

Prof Tapponnier warns that the long interval between the two recently discovered earthquake ruptures does not mean people should be complacent, thinking that there is still time before the next major earthquake happens in the region.

"This does not imply that the next mega-earthquake in the Himalayas will occur many centuries from now because we still do not know enough about adjacent segments of the MFT Mega-thrust," Prof Tapponier explains.

"But it does suggest that areas west or east of the 1934 Nepal ground rupture are now at greater risk of a major earthquake, since there are little or no records of when last earth shattering temblor happened in those two areas."

The next step for Prof Tapponnier and his EOS scientists is to uncover the full extent of such fault ruptures, which will then allow them to build a more comprehensive model of earthquake hazard along the Himalayan front.

About the NTU's Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS)

EOS is a premier research institute at NTU, Singapore, which conducts fundamental research on earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunami and climate change in and around Southeast Asia, towards safer and more sustainable societies.

Funded by the National Research Foundation's Research Centres of Excellence programme, EOS and its field of research contributes greatly to NTU's research strengths in Sustainability, which is one of the university's Five Peaks of Excellence.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Nanyang Technological University, via AlphaGalileo.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. S. N. Sapkota, L. Bollinger, Y. Klinger, P. Tapponnier, Y. Gaudemer, D. Tiwari. Primary surface ruptures of the great Himalayan earthquakes in 1934 and 1255. Nature Geoscience, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/ngeo1669

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

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/7KtztRF8tFs/121228084026.htm

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Founder of Epic Games: PC Will Be a Growing Part of the New ...

As non-core gamers flee from video game consoles to smartphones and tablets, hardcore gamers not only continue to use consoles, but pay more attention to personal computers due to simplicity of getting titles via online distribution services. As a result, the PC will not only remain a popular gaming platform, but will actually gain importance, says the founder of Epic Games, Tim Sweeney.

?There is no question of whether gamers are going away; the question is, do they move to different platforms? There is some plausibility in that, but the console is a very immersive way to play games. They are more immersive than sitting in a chair in front of your computer with a mouse in a bright room. I have a hard time seeing that experience going away, but I think a lot of these games that are being developed now exclusively for console are going to become more important also on the PC,? said Tim Sweeney in an interview with Gamasutra web-site.

^{Screenshots from Unreal Engine 4 demo}

Several years ago many game developers complained about piracy on the market of PC video games. The majority started to design titles primarily for consoles and then port them to PCs, which greatly slow downed the evolution of PC games, some even completely ceased to make PC releases. However, in the recent years numerous AAA-class free-to-play PC titles with in-game purchases options emerged and demonstrated viability of the business model. Moreover, thanks to convenient online game distribution services like Steam, Origin or Uplay, PCs finally gained usability edge over consoles.

?Most of the companies shipping games on console are also shipping them on the PC ? and doing extraordinarily well, especially through services like Steam, where it is all online and there is no hassle of going into a retail store. So certainly the PC will be a growing part of the new ecosystem,? said the legendary game programmer.

^{Screenshots from Unreal Engine 4 demo}

Due to rising popularity of ultra-portables, gaining importance of PCs and increasing cost of game development, it really becomes unclear what will happen to exclusive titles that are developed specifically for one platform. Considering all the factors, such titles are going to either become extremely rare, or will cease to exist.

Tags: Epic, Epic Games, Xbox, Playstation, Wii U, Wii, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Windows, Mac OS, Apple

Comments currently: 1
Discussion started: 12/29/12 12:14:45 AM
Latest comment: 12/29/12 12:14:45 AM

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1.?

Those are good words to repeat but PC gaming market is reducing not increasing. Many titles are now completely console exclusive.

PC/laptop sales are falling, not everyone is a gamer in the world. World wide sales matter to chipmakers not a small market of gamers. They can always build workstations and have a gaming system in the near future, but that means more cost than what it is today.

Bad but the reality.

Those are the trends. These sweet words are not going to change the reality.

As long as console gaming exists in a big way, PC gaming will be just overwhelmingly majority console ports.

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Source: http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/multimedia/display/20121228140415_Founder_of_Epic_Games_PC_Will_Be_a_Growing_Part_of_the_New_Video_Game_Ecosystem.html

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World's longest fast train line opens in China

BEIJING (AP) ? China has opened the world's longest high-speed rail line, which more than halves the time required to travel from the country's capital in the north to Guangzhou, an economic hub in southern China.

Wednesday's opening of the 2,298 kilometer (1,428 mile)-line was commemorated by the 9 a.m. departure of a train from Beijing for Guangzhou. Another train left Guangzhou for Beijing an hour later.

China has massive resources and considerable prestige invested in its showcase high-speed railways program.

But it has in recent months faced high-profile problems: part of a line collapsed in central China after heavy rains in March, while a bullet train crash in the summer of 2011 killed 40 people. The former railway minister, who spearheaded the bullet train's construction, and the ministry's chief engineer, were detained in an unrelated corruption investigation months before the crash.

Trains on the latest high-speed line will initially run at 300 kph (186 mph) with a total travel time of about eight hours. Before, the fastest time between the two cities by train was more than 20 hours.

The line also makes stops in major cities along the way, including provincial capitals Shijiazhuang, Wuhan and Changsha.

More than 150 pairs of high-speed trains will run on the new line every day, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing the Ministry of Railways.

Rail is an essential part in China's transportation system, and the government plans to build a grid of high-speed railways with four east-west lines and four north-south lines by 2020.

The opening of the new line brings the total distance covered by China's high-speed railway system to more than 9,300 km (5,800 miles) ? about half its 2015 target of 18,000 km.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/worlds-longest-fast-train-line-opens-china-121838743--finance.html

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