New video footage has been released by the operators of Japan’s crippled nuclear power plant, which shows the scale of destruction and workers inside buildings. (May 18)
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New video footage has been released by the operators of Japan’s crippled nuclear power plant, which shows the scale of destruction and workers inside buildings. (May 18)
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Good news for those left less than satisfied by their auditory experience after the recent Boxee Box 1.1 update , the company has completed work on a fix and released the v1.1.1 update earlier today. Owners of the box can now matrix stereo audio sources through their surround sound setup again and if you prefer volume control to be on, it’s just a click of a settings checkbox away. One change that is remains is that it still no longer decodes Dolby TrueHD to 5.1 channel PCM internally, which appears to be the change originally intended due to the licensing between Dolby and D-Link. The update should be downloaded automatically shortly while those who are more impatient can go the manual update route, all the necessary instructions can be found at the source link below. [Thanks, Neil] Boxee Box patch fixes surround sound problems, brings back volume control originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 May 2011 15:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s alleged attack on a hotel maid has had a “cataclysmic effect” on the 32-year-old immigrant’s life, her lawyer tells the AP , and she’s now in hiding from the media. And signs point to a life that hadn’t been easy before she crossed paths with Strauss-Kahn: The woman was…
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Taking a leaf out of the James Frey fabrication book, that headline may not strictly speaking be true but, as we’ve said a million times before, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of exaggeration. During a teary eyed, farewell double-episode taping of The Oprah Winfrey Show that will precede her actual finale, some of the
Continue reading …The first 24 hours of the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi were more chaotic and dangerous than the outside world ever dreamed. When the tsunami hit and knocked out the plant’s backup generators, workers turned into scavengers, searching nearby homes for flashlights and ripping the batteries out of cars…
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Via ThinkProgress , this is priceless: I want to make sure every House Republican is protected from some kind of dishonest Democratic ad. So let me say on the record, any ad which quotes what I said on Sunday is a falsehood. Because I have said publicly those words were inaccurate and unfortunate and I’m prepared to stand up… When I make a mistake — and I’m going to on occassion — I want to share… Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Daily Kos Discovery Date : 18/05/2011 14:50 Number of articles : 4
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• Hit F5 for the latest or select the auto-refresh button below • Email your thoughts to paul.doyle@guardian.co.uk 22 min: Custodio tries to nick a ball through to Lima, but Helton hurtles off his line to clutch it like a birthday present. Five’s commentator comes up with the stat of the day: Custodio is the 10th player to play in a European final on his birthday. Brian Kidd and Francis Lee also did so, apparently. 20 min: Braga break. But not in numbers. Unless two is a number, which it obviously is … but not a very useful one when they’re up against six Porto players. So nothing comes of the attack. 18 min: Falcao makes his presence felt for the first time … by venturing offside to meet Hulk’s freekick. His header went over anyway. 17 min: Braga have got more of a grip on this game now, and they’re strangling it. And Porto aren’t putting up much resistance. It’s gone all dull. “Re: that betting money burning a hole in your pocket, I’d suggest keeping your powder dry and maxing it out going overs on goals and cards come Sunday,” counsel Gary Naylor. “Half the players are desperate to avoid relegation, get a new contract, settle a score prove the manager wrong etc etc etc and the other half have a cigar on. Cue 6-3 with three red cards and 2-5 with twelve yellows.” 15 min: Nifty play by Vandinho in midfield to make space. Alan then tries to pick out Lima with a long, curling cross, but he overhit it. “You want a tip, yeah?” chirps Paul Taylor. “Portugal is famous, of course, for Port, that wonderful fortified wine that isn’t just for breakfast any more. Put your tenner on a bottle of decent stuff and you will definitely enjoy the result.” 13 min: Scrappy. 11 min: Corner to Porto, who continue to dominate, which is bad news for my betting: I keep trying to back them in-running but because the odds are tumbling so fast my wager can’t get through. Nor did that corner, as Artur surged from goal to clasp it. 9 min: Braga are looking nervous and careless at the back. Hulk and Varela are rampaging down the wings but so far their shooting has been inaccurate. 6 min: Hulk takes advantage of more slack defending, barging his way past Silvio and then scampering into the box and unleashing a fine shot from an acute angle. It flashed inches wide. “I’m supporting Braga as I saw Denmark v Bulgaria in Euro 2004 at their rock face of a stadium,” announces mark Judd. The local people were so friendly, showing us the best place to get high up photos, and giving us bottles of water as it was so hot. Also saw a match in Porto but can’t remember much about that.” Anywhere that has local people showing you a place to get high sounds alright … 4 min: Chance for Braga! A long throw-in was only partially cleared, allowing Vandinho to have a crack from the edge of the area. it was charged down but Braga lofted the ball back into the box and suddenly Custodio finds himself unmarked 18 yards out. He lets fly first time but fails to hit the target. Shoddy defending, shoddy finishing. 3 min: Already the game has settled into the expected pattern, with Porto monopolising the ball and Braga sitting in deep clusters to bar their path to goal. Pace is quite pedestrian so far. 1 min: Porto get the game going, to a tremendous din. Portugal may be broke right now, but not so much that their citizens can’t afford flights to Dublin (which were probably cheaper than the tickets to the match). 7:44pm: Right, I’ve got some money in my online bookie account and I want to invest it wisely: not having seen much of these sides this season, I need tips for this match. Anyone? 7:43pm: Out trot the teams … to kitsch music that sounds strangely like the old Lassie theme tune. Preamble: These teams are from the same country and tonight they seek the same prize – but that’s about all they have in common. On one hand we have Porto, long one of the top clubs in Europe, a side who have just finished their domestic league unbeaten and 21 points clear of their nearest pursuers, and who have a fearsome forward line in the form of Falcao and Hulk as well as the most acclaimed young manager in the continent, 33-year-old André Villa Boas. And on the other hand we have Braga, a humble club whose only major is the 1966 Portuguese Cup (what it about 1966 and minnows winning cups?), who finished fourth in their domestic league this season, and in the process suffered two defeats by Porto. Indeed, that tends to be how their meetings go: Porto have won 92 of the 131 previous encounters between these clubs, Braga have triumphed in just 17. It would be a minor revolution if the underdogs were to prevail tonight. Facts or varying relevance: 1) If Braga win tonight, Domingos Pacienca will become the first manager in Uefa Cup/Europa League history to win in the final against a team he used to play for. He was Porto’s top scorer in the 1995/96 season 2) Porto goalkeeper Helton is 33 today. So is Ricardo Carvahlo. Lady Gaga is not, but I thought I’d mention her just to boost Google click-throughs. 3) Free porn. Oh, and here are the teams: Porto: Helton; Sapunaru, Rolando, Otamendi, Alvaro Pereira; Guarin, Fernando, Moutinho; Hulk, Falcao, Varela Subs: Beto, Maicon, Belluschi, Walter, Rodriguez, Souza, Ruben Michel Braga: Artur; Miguel Garcia, Paulao, Alberto Rodriguez, Silvio; Custodio, Hugo Viana, Vandinho; Alan, Lima, Paulo Cesar Subs: Cristiano, Kaka, Mossoro, Barbos, Meyong, Elderson, Salino Ref: C V Carballo (Spain) Europa League FC Porto Sporting Braga Paul Doyle guardian.co.uk
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Up to 750,000 workers could walk out in June, while action in autumn would bring parts of UK to standstill Civil servants have voted to ballot on strike action in protest against job cuts and changes to their pensions, paving the way for a 750,000-strong walkout from schools, universities, courts and Whitehall on 30 June. The decision at the PCS civil service union’s annual conference in Brighton on Wednesday comes as talks set up to avoid strikes spreading across the public sector are threatening to grind to a halt. Ministers and unions have failed to agree on even the basic starting point for negotiations. Sources close to the discussions – between public-sector unions, the chief secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, and the Cabinet Office minister, Francis Maude – said they still disagreed on the starting principles of the talks after the government announced that an increase in contributions and a change in the way pensions are measured was introduced as a fait accompli. If the talks fail, strikes will hit the public sector in the autumn, with co-ordinated action potentially bringing large parts of the country to a standstill. On Wednesday the PCS union, representing 250,000 civil servants, voted to ballot for strike action. It means that a breakaway group of unions representing up to 750,000 public servants are now balloting for strike action to move towards a strike on 30 June affecting schools, courts, ports and job centres if the talks have not succeeded. The National Union of Teachers and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers launched ballots this week. The University and College Union already has a mandate for rolling strike action. Whitehall civil servants in the FDA union are also voting on Thursday, further raising the stakes for government. Jonathan Baume, the general secretary of FDA, will tell his conference that the negotiations with ministers are “serious and united”. But he will warn: “The government can impose change. But ministers also know that they will pay a heavy price if they do. Those affected would include everyone from the Jobcentre Plus worker in Rotherham to a high-court judge in the Strand. “There would inevitably be widespread industrial action, and damage to morale and motivation for millions of key public sector workers, with a potentially significant electoral price to pay in 2015.” Leaked details suggest the negotiators are struggling to agree the basics. Unions are opposing plans to increase pension contributions by an average of three percentage points from next year – reducing workers’ monthly take-home pay. Protecting the lowest paid will mean that the higher paid will have to pay more than the average increase, presenting a potential rift in the talks. Unions are particularly incensed that the Treasury has set a target of reducing public sector payments by £2.8bn, which they say amounts to an extra tax. Some unions flatly oppose the proposed method of calculating the new career average scheme, set out in the most recent meeting last week, which would replace the more generous final salary schemes some public sector workers receive. Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the PCS, said: “Frankly, I think the talks are a charade. When the government insists on increasing contributions without negotiation we can’t see scope for any change. The government’s starting position is drastic and severe. We are all agreed we should carry on talking, but their proposals are truly shocking.” The government will make a formal offer on pensions in June. A source said: “Both sides are doing what they can to head off industrial action. Government can’t concede on getting the schemes on to a sustainable basis. We don’t want to be in the position in five to 10 years’ time, like Ireland, where you have to cut existing pensions. Contributions have got to rise, we’ve been sure of that from the beginning.” Trade unions Public sector pensions Public sector cuts Public services policy Civil service Polly Curtis guardian.co.uk
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A new fashion has swept northeastern Mexico where men are hitting dance floors wearing sequined cowboy boots with pointy toes so long they curl up toward the knees. (May 18)
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