If a diamond is a girl’s best friend, then maybe women aren’t from Venus after all: Astronomers combing the southern sky have found a diamond planet, reports Space,com . Dubbed the rather unglamorous PSR J1719-1438, the alien planet is the remnant of a dead star and spins 10,000 times…
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Half of U.S. adults will be obese by 2030 if current trends continue, a new report shows.
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Where did the terms retro-nuevo and skronk originate? Or hip-hop? Michaelangelo Matos runs through an exhaustive catalogue of music’s phrasemakers and trendsetters Music comes from everywhere, and so do the names we call it by. There’s a longstanding cliche that only the music business needs genre names – everyone else either likes it or they don’t. That is, of course, bunk, as anyone who’s heard enough people trot out lines such as “I like all music except for rap and country” is aware. Not least because quite a lot of those genre names come from the artists themselves. Gospel, for example, was more or less invented by Rev Thomas A Dorsey . As Georgia Tom , Dorsey played jazz and blues piano before turning to the Bible for inspiration in 1932 and selling songs such as Precious Lord, Take My Hand to churches in Chicago, then across America. His group’s name was the University Gospel Singers. Similarly, bluegrass originates from the name of the country singer-mandolinist Bill Monroe ‘s backing band from 1938 to his 1996 death: the Blue Grass Boys. They were named after Monroe’s native Kentucky, “the Blue Grass State”. Glitter rock – a synonym for glam – comes from Gary Glitter, about which the less said, the better. More often, a genre name will come from a musician’s works. Free jazz comes from Ornette Coleman ‘s 1960 album of the same name; ditto blue-eyed soul, from the Righteous Brothers’ 1963 LP. The mid-60s Jamaican boogie dubbed rocksteady is named for an 1966 Alton Ellis single , while reggae followed it into Jamaican dancehalls on the heels of the Maytals’ Do the Reggay in 1968. Soca is a condensation of Trinidadian artist Lord Shorty ‘s Soul of Calypso, from 1974, while acid house, originally from Phuture’s 1987 single Acid Tracks , has come to mean anything
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Kan, 64, saw his approval ratings tumble amid a perceived lack of leadership after the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis The Japanese prime minister, Naoto Kan, has announced he is resigning after almost 15 months in office amid plunging approval ratings over his government’s handling of the tsunami disaster and nuclear crisis. In a televised speech to the country, Kan said he was stepping down as chief of the ruling Democratic party of Japan, effectively ending his tenure as leader of the country. The decision was widely expected because in June, Kan had promised to quit once lawmakers passed three key pieces of legislation. The final two bills cleared the parliament earlier on Friday. The Democrats will vote on Monday for a new leader, who will almost certainly become Japan’s next prime minister – the sixth since 2006. Former foreign minister Seiji Maehara is viewed as the frontrunner to replace him. Finance minister Yoshihiko Noda and trade minister Banri Kaieda are also viewed as contenders. Looking back on his year and three months in office, Kan said he did all he could given difficulties he faced, including the disasters and a major election defeat in upper house elections last summer that left the parliament in gridlock. “Under the severe circumstances, I feel I’ve done everything that I had to do,” he said. “Now I would like to see you choose someone respectable as a new prime minister.” Kan, 64, has seen his approval ratings tumble amid a perceived lack of leadership after the 11 March earthquake and tsunami, and subsequent nuclear crisis. Survivors complain about slow recovery efforts, and radiation from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant has spread into the air, water and food supply. Political infighting between the ruling and opposition parties also have discouraged the public. Recent polls show that his public support has fallen under 20%. Japan’s new leader will take over a heavy load of tasks: rebuildling the country from the triple disasters, tackling a surging yen that is undermining the export-led economy and mapping out a new energy policy that is less reliant to nuclear power. Kan’s successor will also need to restore confidence in Japan’s alliance with the US – Tokyo recently cancelled Kan’s US visit for talks with President Barack Obama, expected in early September, due to the political uncertainty. Japan Japan disaster guardian.co.uk
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Gunmen burst into a casino in Monterrey, Mexico Thursday and doused the premises with a flammable liquid, starting a fire that killed at least 53 people. (Aug. 26)
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You’d be lying if you were to say that never in your life did you feel like an outcast. Whether only for a few moments or maybe a few years, everyone has felt that they did not belong where they are, that they would be better suited for a different place, a different time or a different life. The characters in these books have felt the pain and loneliness of being an outsider, and their stories are both relatable and wonderful. Here’s a list of the best books about outsiders! Did we miss your favorite book about outsiders? Let us know in the comments!
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NEW YORK — The parent company of Payless and Stride Rite shoe stores, Collective Brands Inc., said Wednesday that it plans to close 475 stores and has engaged a firm to help it explore its options. The company posted a second-quarter loss of $35 million Wednesday, including $83.6 million in one-time charges that mainly reflect the declining value of its stores and of Stride Rite’s trade name. The company’s shares soared more than 40 percent in after-hours trading after the announcement. Its board adopted a short-duration shareholder rights plan, a common tool for fending off unsolicited or hostile offers while such a review is under way. The so-called “poison pill” will kick in if any person or group buys more than 15 percent of Collective Brands’ outstanding common stock. Its largest shareholder is PrimeCap Management Co., with just over 10 percent of outstanding shares, according to FactSet. The company said its board and executives are conducting “a review of strategic and financial alternatives to further enhance shareholder value” and it hired Perella Weinberg Partners and Kurt Salmon as advisors. The language is typical for companies looking to put themselves up for sale, but the company said it couldn’t predict the move’s consequences. Collective Brands plans to close stores with low sales volume in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. More than 300 will be shuttered by the end of the year, including about 275 Payless and 75 Stride Ride children’s stores. The company currently operates 4,844 stores, of which 4,461 are Payless stores. During the second quarter, it opened 18 new stores, closed 20 stores and moved 14 stores. It expects to record charges of $19 million related to stores closures in the current quarter. Future charges for the closings could add up to $25 million to $35 million. Collective Brands’ loss for the three months that ended July 30 amounted to 58 cents per share. That’s compared with a profit of $21.1 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding the $83.6 million in charges, the company said it earned $9.9 million, or 16 cents per share. Analysts were expecting adjusted earnings of 21 cents per share, according to FactSet. Revenue rose 5 percent to $882.4 million, from $841.3 million a year ago and beating analysts’ forecast for $872.9 million, according to FactSet. As of July 30, Collective Brands said, the company had $234.8 million in cash on hand and about $657 million in long-term debt. After hours, the company’s shares settled at $13.70, up $3.42, or 33.3 percent from Wednesday’s close. They had ended regular trading at $10.28, up 26 cents, and they have traded between $9.11 and $23.96 the past year.
Continue reading …Panasonic Lumix FX90 point-and-shoot packs built-in WiFi, Android / iPhone app compatibility
August 25, 2011 No Comment
For many photographers, in-camera WiFi may be an attractive feature before you leave the store, but confusing setup and limited functionality reduce its appeal once you actually go and try to use it. Panasonic sets out to better take advantage of wireless connectivity with its Lumix FX90, adding Android and iPhone app support for transferring pictures and video directly to a mobile device, then uploading them to Lumix Club — a cloud-based photo-sharing service — and on to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. You can also share photos directly from the camera — a dedicated WiFi button launches a menu prompting you to select a sharing service — but app support brings the added benefit of your phone’s data connection. Beyond those new wireless features, the FX90 includes a 12 megapixel CCD sensor, 5x, 24-120mm optical zoom lens, 3-inch touchscreen, and 1080i AVCHD video capture. The FX90 will ship this fall with pricing yet to be announced, but jump past the break for the full rundown from Panasonic in the meantime. Gallery: Panasonic Lumix FX90 Continue reading Panasonic Lumix FX90 point-and-shoot packs built-in WiFi, Android / iPhone app compatibility Panasonic Lumix FX90 point-and-shoot packs built-in WiFi, Android / iPhone app compatibility originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Aug 2011 01:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Cigarette prank call At sams club part 2 Choices Neemsay_yo says: Shoppin @ sams club (: EVERYBODY is here tht I know lol
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`Apple chief Steve Job’s appears to be suffering a recurrence of his islet cell neuroendocrine cancer. WebMD answers frequently asked questions about this uncommon form of pancreatic cancer.
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