Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/wsw-ago012712.php
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মঙ্গলবার, ৩১ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
A glass of milk a day could benefit your brain
[unable to retrieve full-text content](Weber Shandwick Worldwide) Pouring at least one glass of milk each day could not only boost your intake of much-needed key nutrients, but it could also positively impact your brain and mental performance, according to a recent study in the International Dairy Journal. Researchers found that adults with higher intakes of milk and milk products scored significantly higher on memory and other brain function tests than those who drank little to no milk...
Smart paint could revolutionize structural safety of bridges, mines and more
ScienceDaily (Jan. 30, 2012) ? An innovative low-cost smart paint that can detect microscopic faults in wind turbines, mines and bridges before structural damage occurs is being developed by researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.?
The environmentally-friendly paint uses nanotechnology to detect movement in large structures, and could shape the future of safety monitoring.
Traditional methods of assessing large structures are complex, time consuming and use expensive instrumentation, with costs spiraling into millions of pounds each year.
However, the smart paint costs just a fraction of the cost and can be simply sprayed onto any surface, with electrodes attached to detect structural damage long before failure occurs.
Dr Mohamed Saafi, of the University's Department of Civil Engineering, said: "The development of this smart paint technology could have far-reaching implications for the way we monitor the safety of large structures all over the world.
"There are no limitations as to where it could be used and the low-cost nature gives it a significant advantage over the current options available in the industry. The process of producing and applying the paint also gives it an advantage as no expertise is required and monitoring itself is straightforward."
The paint is formed using a recycled waste product known as fly ash and highly aligned carbon nanotubes. When mixed it has a cement-like property which makes it particularly useful in harsh environments.
Dr Saafi explained: "The process of monitoring involves in effect a wireless sensor network. The paint is interfaced with wireless communication nodes with power harvesting and warning capability to remotely detect any unseen damage such as micro-cracks in a wind turbine concrete foundation.
"Wind turbine foundations are currently being monitored through visual inspections. The developed paint with the wireless monitoring system would significantly reduce the maintenance costs and improve the safety of these large structures.
"Current technology is restricted to looking at specific areas of a structure at any given time, however, smart paint covers the whole structure which is particularly useful to maximise the opportunity of preventing significant damage."
The research has been carried out at Strathclyde with Dr Saafi working alongside David McGahon, who initiated the work as part of his PhD project. With fly ash being the main material used to make the paint, it costs just one percent of the alternative widely used inspection methods.
A prototype has been developed and tests have shown the paint to be highly effective. It is hoped further tests will be carried out in Glasgow in the near future.
Dr Saafi added: "We are able to carry out the end-to-end process at the University and we are hoping that we can now demonstrate its effectiveness on a large structure.
"The properties of the fly ash give the paint a durability that will allow it to be used in any environment which will be a massive advantage in areas where the weather can make safety monitoring particularly difficult.
"The smart paint represents a significant development and is one that has possibly been overlooked as a viable solution because research tends to focus on high-tech options that look to eliminate human control. Our research shows that by maintaining the human element the costs can be vastly reduced without an impact on effectiveness."?
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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/V0WEXPqvfPg/120130131505.htm
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Police: No evidence to support Maine tot abduction
FILE - This undated file photo obtained from a Facebook page shows missing toddler Alya Reynolds. Investigators say they've found blood inside the Maine home where a toddler was reported missing six weeks ago. State police spokesman Steve McCausland said the blood was found in the basement early in the investigation into Ayla Reynolds' disappearance from her father's home in Waterville. The father, Justin DiPietro, said Ayla was missing from her bed when he checked on her the morning of Dec. 17. (AP Photo/obtained from Facebook, File)
FILE - This undated file photo obtained from a Facebook page shows missing toddler Alya Reynolds. Investigators say they've found blood inside the Maine home where a toddler was reported missing six weeks ago. State police spokesman Steve McCausland said the blood was found in the basement early in the investigation into Ayla Reynolds' disappearance from her father's home in Waterville. The father, Justin DiPietro, said Ayla was missing from her bed when he checked on her the morning of Dec. 17. (AP Photo/obtained from Facebook, File)
The parents of missing toddler Ayla Reynolds, Trista Reynolds, left, and Justin DePietro, right, speak on the steps of Waterville City Hall during a vigil for their missing daughter in Castonguay Square in Waterville, Maine on Saturday January 28, 2012. (AP Photo/The Kennebec Journal, Michael G. Seamans)
WATERVILLE, Maine (AP) ? Police who confirmed the discovery of blood from a missing toddler in the basement of her father's home said Monday they've found no evidence to support an abduction, and they believe adults in the home know more than what they're telling investigators.
Six weeks after Ayla Reynold's disappearance in Waterville, state and local detectives believe the father, Justin DiPietro, and two other adults in the home on the night Ayla was last seen are not giving a full account of what happened, said Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.
The idea that someone sneaked into the small house and took Ayla without awakening any of the adults "doesn't pass the straight-face test," McCausland said.
"We've followed every conceivable piece of evidence that would follow their version of events, and we have found not one piece of evidence that supports an abduction," he said Monday.
Ayla was 20 months old when she disappeared on the night of Dec. 16. She had been staying with her father at the time in the house where DiPietro lives with his mother. Ayla's mother, Trista Reynolds, lives in Portland.
DiPietro reported Ayla missing the following day. He'd put her to bed the night before and said she wasn't there the next morning.
Over the weekend, state police confirmed that blood was found in the basement where the father slept and that some of the blood was Ayla's. Relatives reported on a family-run website that they were told the blood was "more than a small cut would produce" but police declined Monday to say how much blood was discovered.
On the night Ayla was last seen, DiPietro was in the home with his girlfriend, Courtney Roberts, and they slept with Roberts' child in the partially finished basement where the blood was found, McCausland said. DiPietro's sister was sleeping with her young child on the main level of the one-story home, and Ayla was in a bedroom by herself on the main level, McCausland said Monday. DiPietro's mother was not home that night.
Trista Reynolds' father said the family was told late Saturday by McCausland that blood found in the home was determined to be Ayla's.
"It was a surprise," Ronald Reynolds said.
He said police didn't give any indication what the discovery means.
Ronald Reynolds said he is convinced the adults in DiPietro's house have more information than they have shared.
"Every day, it gets hotter and hotter," he said. "I hope they pull them back in, set them down and give them the opportunity to say something."
The family-run website issued an appeal for anyone with information about Ayla to come forward.
"Even in light of this evidence we are more determined than ever to find out what has happened to Ayla and we still cling to the hope that she is alive and will be returned to us," the website said. "We urge anyone that has information about Ayla to come forward now and unburden yourself of the truth."
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Declassified US Spy Satellites from Cold War Land in Ohio (SPACE.com)
A trio of once-secret U.S. spy satellites built to look down on the Soviet Union were unveiled in Ohio on Thursday (Jan. 26) in a rare public display by the United States Air Force.
The vintage reconnaissance satellites joined the Cold War Gallery at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, and will eventually be installed in a new wing for space relics and other aircraft. The satellites ? called KH-7 Gambit 1, the KH-8 Gambit 3 and the KH-9 Hexagon ? were officially declassified in September by the National Reconnaissance Office and released for public viewing.
"Last year the NRO celebrated its 50th anniversary, and we announced the declassification of two NRO systems, Gambit and Hexagon, which were America's eyes in space and the most sophisticated satellites of their time," NRO director Air Force Gen. (Ret.) Bruce Carlson said in a statement. "These systems were critical for monitoring key targets in the USSR and around the globe and provided much-needed cartographic information to the DOD to produce accurate, large-scale maps."
The Gambit and Hexagon satellites followed the NRO's iconic Corona spy satellite program, which was declassified in 1995. [Photos of the declassified spy satellites]
The spy satellite Gambit
The Gambit and Hexagon spy satellite systems were among the most prolific U.S. space reconnaissance systems used between the 1960s and 1980s. With a resolution of between 2 to 3 feet (0.6 to nearly 1 meter), the spacecraft used high-resolution cameras to photograph areas of interest, then return the film to Earth in special re-entry capsules.
The capsules plunged through Earth's atmosphere, then deployed a parachute so they could be caught in mid-air by Air Force aircraft, museum officials explained.
The Gambit 1 satellites flew between 1963 and 1967 and served as the first American high-resolution space reconnaissance system. They carried about 3,000 feet (914 meters) of film and were designed for short-term missions of about six and a half days.
Each Gambit 1 satellite was about15 feet (4.5 m) long, 5 feet (1.5 m) wide, and weighed about 1,154 pounds (523 kilograms), according to NRO records. In all, 38 Gambit missions were launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, though 10 flights failed.
Gambit 3 satellites were the same width as the Gambit 1 models,? but also slightly longer ? reaching about 29 feet (9 m) in length. They flew on 54 missions between 1966 and 1984, with four recorded failures. The Gambit 3 series satellites carried 12,241 feet (3,731 meters) of film and were designed for longer missions of up to 31 days, according to NRO records.
Hexagon in space
Like the Gambit satellites, the Hexagon system also launched from Vandenberg and were the last U.S. reconnaissance satellites to use photographic film. They were also the largest ? each Hexagon satellite was the size of a school bus and carried 60 miles of film, earning it the nickname "Big Bird."
The U.S. military launched 20 Hexagon spy satellites between 1971 and 1986, with one mission suffering a launch failure. Each Hexagon satellite mission lasted about 124 days, with each satellite carrying four film re-entry canisters, according to NRO documents. Their onboard camera systems could photograph wide swaths of terrain and capture about 370 nautical miles ? the distance from Cincinnati to Washington ? in each 6-inch frame.
According to Air Force museum officials, the Hexagon satellites photographed about 877 million square miles of the Earth's surface during their tenure.
"Gambit 1, Gambit 3 and Hexagon satellites are significant and rare artifacts, which will enable us to better present the story of Air Force operations in space," said Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Jack Hudson, the Air Force's National Museum director, during the Jan. 26 exhibit dedication. "The Air Force has provided launch, tracking, control and range safety services for reconnaissance satellites throughout the entire Cold War, and it continues these activities today."
The Gambit and Hexagon satellites are currently on display in the museum's Cold War Gallery, but will eventually be moved to a new building that will house a Space Gallery, Presidential Aircraft Gallery and Global Reach Gallery, museum officials said.
You can follow Tariq Malik on Twitter @tariqjmalik. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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সোমবার, ৩০ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Marshall's monster day leads AFC
Dolphins receiver catches 6 passes for 176 yards and 4 TDs in 59-41 win
By JAYMES SONG
updated 1:00 a.m. ET Jan. 30, 2012
HONOLULU - While everyone was playing at half-speed and ready to extend their Hawaiian vacation, Brandon Marshall played as if it was his last game.
The Miami Dolphins wide receiver caught six passes for 176 yards and a Pro Bowl-record four touchdowns, and the AFC used a second-half surge to beat the NFC 59-41 on Sunday.
"You never know when you're going to be back," Marshall said, "and I wanted to go all out today because it could be my last Pro Bowl."
Marshall had a touchdown catch in each quarter, including an early 74-yarder and a 3-yarder in the fourth, in a game filled with highlight-reel grabs.
He was selected the game's MVP, and his name now will join the likes of Walter Payton and Jerry Rice on the MVP banners at Aloha Stadium.
"You know what? I wanted it," he said. "It's a Pro Bowl. Some guys are playing 100 (percent), some guys are playing 90, some guys aren't playing at all, but it means a lot to be up in the rafters with some of these guys."
The 59 points by the AFC set a Pro Bowl mark, and the 100 points scored by the teams combined was the second highest, a touchdown shy of the 107 scored in 2004.
But it was clear from the start it was Marshall's day. He hauled in a deflected, go-ahead 47-yard TD pass from Andy Dalton, while on his back, to give the AFC a 38-35 lead late in the third quarter. It was Marshall's third TD catch of the game, tying Jimmy Smith's Pro Bowl record set in 2004.
"It was the most unathletic highlight I ever had," he said. "Andy put it up there for me to make a play. I saw the ball, got nervous, fell, saw the ball, kicked it up and it just fell in my hands."
Marshall, making his third Pro Bowl appearance, then nabbed a 3-yard TD pass from Dalton that gave the AFC a 52-35 lead with 8:25 left and put the game away.
"People were saying throw to him. I saw the matchup I had and he's a great receiver, so I knew he could make the play," Dalton said.
Hawaii has been kind to Marshall, who also won MVP honors at Aloha Stadium in his final game at Central Florida in the 2005 Hawaii Bowl, where he caught 11 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns.
Marshall noted he had six TDs this season, but four this game.
"It says a lot when you're playing with these type of quarterbacks," Marshall said. "They just put it in the right place and I just made the play. Hats off to those guys throwing me the ball."
The game featured 36 first-timers, including rookie quarterbacks Cam Newton of the Carolina Panthers and Dalton of the Cincinnati Bengals, who replaced Super Bowl quarterbacks Eli Manning and Tom Brady. Their selection made this Pro Bowl the first to feature two rookie signal callers.
Dalton and Newton played the entire second half.
While Dalton looked composed, Newton played horribly ? struggling to move the ball, stay in the pocket and find his targets, which drew some boos from the sun-splashed, sellout crowd of 48,423.
"No excuses," Newton said. "When you hang the ball up there, against these kind of players, that's what you get," Newton said. "It's the good and the bad of playing in a Pro Bowl. I learned a lot."
Newton finished 9 of 27 for 186 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Dalton, meanwhile, was 7 of 9 for 99 yards and two TDs.
On his first series, Newton overthrew a wide-open Tony Gonzalez over the middle, with the ball sailing into Eric Weddle's hands. The San Diego Chargers safety popped up to his feet and returned it 63 yards to the NFC 23, leading to a 37-yard FG by Sebastian Janikowski, which gave the AFC its first lead of the game at 31-28.
Newton recovered on the next series, airing out a 55-yard go-ahead touchdown pass to Panthers teammate Steve Smith, making it 34-31. But he was intercepted again on the next series.
Weddle also intercepted another pass by Newton late in the game. After picking off the deep pass, he pitched it to teammate Derrick Johnson, who rumbled 60 yards for the AFC's final score.
"None of us want to go out and lose, so we picked it up and went out and made some plays," Weddle said. "Got the 'W,' that's the main thing."
With the Pro Bowlers unable to get out of third gear ? particularly on the offensive and defensive lines ? and hitting each other as though they were having a pillow fight, the Pro Bowl featured some good, bad and real ugly ? sometimes on the same play. For example, Aaron Rodgers caught a pass from himself. His throw was deflected at the line and he leaped to catch the ball and backpedaled for a 15-yard loss.
Rodgers was 13 of 17 for 141 yards and two TDs, giving him a quarterback rating of 139.6, higher than his NFL record 122.5 rating during the season. But he was watching late in the game as Newton struggled.
Rodgers said it's easier to play in the first quarter when the game isn't as intense.
"It's tough to be the last guy in, when it's the fourth quarter and money becomes an issue," he said. "Guys are playing a little bit harder. They come at you."
The NFC had three players with 100-yard yard receiving: Gonzalez (seven for 114), Larry Fitzgerald (6 for 111) and Smith (5 for 118).
The AFC and NFC traded score after score, and turnover after turnover in the first half.
Rodgers and Fitzgerald connected for a pair of scores on back-to-back plays to put the NFC up 14-0 early in the game.
After stopping the AFC on fourth down at midfield, Rodgers drove the NFC down the field and threw a 10-yard TD toss to Fitzgerald. Six seconds later, Rodgers aired a 44-yard rainbow in the end zone to Fitzgerald for another score after the NFC got the ball back with a surprise onside kick.
The reception was Fitzgerald's sixth career TD catch in the Pro Bowl, tying Gonzalez's record. He would break the record with the game's last touchdown, on a 36-yard pass from Newton.
The AFC came right back and tied it up on two deep TD passes on the right side by Ben Roethlisberger. He threw a 34-yarder to rookie A.J. Green, and then connected with Marshall on a 74-yarder.
But Drew Brees and the NFC kept the scoring going. Just like in the regular season, Brees and Saints teammate Jimmy Graham hooked up to give the NFC a 21-14 lead in the second quarter. On fourth-and-goal, Brees zipped a pass to Graham for a 6-yard score and would later find Greg Jennings for an 11-yard TD. Brees finished 10 of 14 for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
Antonio Gates pulled in a 27-yard TD from Chargers teammate Rivers as time expired in the half to tie it at 28.
Each AFC player earned a record $50,000 for the win, while the NFC players received $25,000.
? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Getty ImagesMarshall's monster day leads AFC
??Brandon Marshall caught six passes for 176 yards and a Pro Bowl-record four touchdowns and the AFC used a second-half surge to beat the NFC 59-41 on Sunday.
Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/46185221/ns/sports-nfl/
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Siemens Enterprise Communications' OpenScape Cloud Services ...
SUNNYVALE, CA, Jan 09, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) ?Fortinet(R) /quotes/zigman/115092/quotes/nls/ftnt FTNT -0.35% ? a leading network security providerand the worldwide leader of unified threat management (UTM) solutions? today announced that Siemens Enterprise Communications, a premierglobal provider of end-to-end enterprise communications, has deployedmultiple FortiGate-1240B network security appliances to help secureits OpenScape Cloud Services. Fortinet?s devices are uniquely meetingthe provider?s stringent requirements in terms of performance,functionality and reliability.
As a provider of voice and communications solutions, SiemensEnterprise Communications offers easy-to-implement, reliable andsecure Unified Communications (UC) solutions to customers of allsizes around the world. When Siemens Enterprise Communicationslaunched its OpenScape Cloud Services to extend its voice and UCservices to customers using a public cloud, the company looked atsetting up secure and reliable IT and communications infrastructuresas well as high-availability data centers in Germany and in the US.
The requirements for Siemens Enterprise Communications? OpenScapeCloud Services were high in terms of security and reliability, aswell as performance and scalability. In parallel, the securitysolution needed to provide rich functionality to supportvoice-over-IP (VoIP), UC and application data.
Thanks to a long track record in successfully securing the dataenvironment of Siemens Enterprise Communications? enterprisecustomers, Fortinet?s FortiGate network appliances were part of themarket solutions subject to the provider?s nine-month evaluation andwere ultimately selected to secure its communications cloud services.
?The decisive factor was Fortinet?s outstanding success in thepreceding tests,? said Andreas Seum, Vice President ConvergedNetworks & Security at Siemens Enterprise Communications. ?Also,Fortinet?s expertise in the provider and carrier sector, in additionto the personal support contributed to our decision. At last, on atechnical level, the FortiGate appliance proved to uniquely functionin compliance with the SIP standard and support all the voice and UCapplication functionalities without impairing the performance orreliability of our communications solutions.?
In Germany and in the US, Siemens Enterprise Communications deployedmultiple clusters of FortiGate-1240B network security appliances forhigh availability, ensuring the reliable protection and controlledaccessibility of its data centers. The FortiGate clusters act ascentral firewalls for the OpenScape Cloud Services and primarilyprovide firewall, VPN, IPS, and SIP VoIP security.
The FortiGate appliances? high performance allows Siemens EnterpriseCommunications to meet all operations requirements, including highloads during peak periods and possible disruptions, withoutnoticeable constraints. With a very low latency, Fortinet?sappliances are ideal for the provider?s new voice services, since nodelay is incurred during voice traffic.
?Siemens Enterprise Communications is a long-standing customer ofours, and we are very pleased to now secure their latest cloudcomputing service,? said Patrice Perche, senior vice president ofInternational Sales & Support at Fortinet. ?Our technology integrateskey high-performance functionalities, such as VoIP security andvirtualization, which uniquely help carriers and service providerssecure cloud infrastructures and deliver cloud security services.?
About Fortinet ( fortinet.com ) Fortinet /quotes/zigman/115092/quotes/nls/ftnt FTNT -0.35% is aworldwide provider of network security appliances and the marketleader in unified threat management (UTM). Our products andsubscription services provide broad, integrated and high-performanceprotection against dynamic security threats while simplifying the ITsecurity infrastructure. Our customers include enterprises, serviceproviders and government entities worldwide, including the majorityof the 2010 Fortune Global 100. Fortinet?s flagship FortiGate productdelivers ASIC-accelerated performance and integrates multiple layersof security designed to help protect against application and networkthreats. Fortinet?s broad product line goes beyond UTM to help securethe extended enterprise ? from endpoints, to the perimeter and thecore, including databases and applications. Fortinet is headquarteredin Sunnyvale, Calif., with offices around the world.
Copyright Copyright 2012 Fortinet, Inc. All rights reserved. Thesymbols (R) and (TM) denote respectively federally registeredtrademarks and unregistered trademarks of Fortinet, Inc., itssubsidiaries and affiliates. Fortinet?s trademarks include, but arenot limited to, the following: Fortinet, FortiGate, FortiGuard,FortiManager, FortiMail, FortiClient, FortiCare, FortiAnalyzer,FortiReporter, FortiOS, FortiASIC, FortiWiFi, FortiSwitch, FortiVoIP,FortiBIOS, FortiLog, FortiResponse, FortiCarrier, FortiScan, FortiAP,FortiDB and FortiWeb. Other trademarks belong to their respectiveowners. Fortinet has not independently verified statements orcertifications herein attributed to third parties, and Fortinet doesnot independently endorse such statements. Nothing in the newsrelease constitutes a warranty, guaranty, or contractually bindingcommitment. This news release may contain forward-looking statementsthat involve uncertainties and assumptions. If the uncertaintiesmaterialize or the assumptions prove incorrect, results may differmaterially from those expressed or implied by such forward-lookingstatements and assumptions. All statements other than statements ofhistorical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-lookingstatements. Fortinet assumes no obligation to update anyforward-looking statements, and does not intend to update theseforward-looking statements.
Media Contacts: Rick Popko Fortinet, Inc. 408-486-7853 mailto:
Copyright 2012 Marketwire, Inc., All rights reserved.
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Germany wants Greece to give up budget control (Reuters)
BERLIN (Reuters) ? Germany is pushing for Greece to relinquish control over its budget policy to European institutions as part of discussions over a second rescue package, a European source told Reuters on Friday.
"There are internal discussions within the Euro group and proposals, one of which comes from Germany, on how to constructively treat country aid programs that are continuously off track, whether this can simply be ignored or whether we say that's enough," the source said.
The source added that under the proposals European institutions already operating in Greece should be given "certain decision-making powers" over fiscal policy.
"This could be carried out even more stringently through external expertise," the source said.
The Financial Times said it had obtained a copy of the proposal showing Germany wants a new euro zone "budget commissioner" to have the power to veto budget decisions taken by the Greek government if they are not in line with targets set by international lenders.
"Given the disappointing compliance so far, Greece has to accept shifting budgetary sovereignty to the European level for a certain period of time," the document said.
Under the German plan, Athens would only be allowed to carry out normal state spending after servicing its debt, the FT said.
"If a future (bail-out) tranche is not disbursed, Greece cannot threaten its lenders with a default, but will instead have to accept further cuts in primary expenditures as the only possible consequence of any non-disbursement," the FT quoted the document as saying.
The German demands for greater control over Greek budget policy come amid intense talks to finalize a second 130 billion-euro rescue package for Greece, which has repeatedly failed to meet the fiscal targets set out for it by its international lenders.
CHAOTIC DEFAULT THREAT
Greece needs to strike a deal with creditors in the next couple of days to unlock its next aid package in order to avoid a chaotic default.
"No country has put forward such a proposal at the Eurogroup," a Greek finance ministry official said on condition of anonymity, adding that the government would not formally comment on reports based on unnamed sources.
The German demands are likely to prompt a strong reaction in Athens ahead of elections expected to take place in April.
"One of the ideas being discussed is to set up a clearly defined priorities on reducing deficits through legally binding guidelines," the European source said.
He added that in Greece the problem is that a lot of the budget-making process is done in a decentralized manner.
"Clearly defined, legally binding guidelines on that could lead to more coherence and make it easier to take decisions - and that would contribute to give a whole new dynamic to efforts to implement the program," the source said.
"It is clear that talks on how to help Greece get back on the right track are continuing," the source said. "We're all striving to achieve a lasting stabilization of Greece," he said. "That's the focus of what all of us in Europe are working on right now."
(Reporting By Noah Barking; Additional reporting by George Georgiopoulos in Athens and; Adrian Croft in London; writing by Erik Kirschbaum; editing by Andrew Roche)
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রবিবার, ২৯ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Obama administration bolsters homeowner lifeline (Reuters)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The Obama administration, in an election-year bid to help distressed homeowners, on Friday expanded its main foreclosure prevention program, and pushed for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forgive mortgage debt.
The administration said it would extend the life of the Home Affordable Mortgage Program by a year through 2013 and widen it to reach more heavily indebted homeowners.
It also said it would provide incentives to encourage Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-controlled mortgage finance providers, to write down loans, an idea which their regulator has worried would unnecessarily add to the cost of taxpayer bailouts for the two firms.
The regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, withheld final judgment on the proposal, saying it would study it further.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac own or guarantee about half of all U.S. home loans, and their participation in principal reduction under HAMP could greatly expand the reach of the $29.9 billion program.
Nearly 11 million Americans are underwater on their mortgages - meaning they owe more than their homes are worth. With some key electoral swing states among the hardest hit by the housing crisis, the sector's health could become an important factor in November's elections.
President Barack Obama made clear in his State of the Union address on Tuesday that he would continue to press for aggressive action to help homeowners, and Friday's announcement was just the first of several on housing initiatives that are expected in coming weeks.
Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives last year sought to shut down HAMP, arguing it was ineffective, but the bill died in the Democratic-led Senate.
The HAMP program, which draws from the Treasury Department's financial bailout fund, pays mortgage servicers to rewrite loan terms to reduce monthly payments.
When the administration launched the program in 2009, it expected as many as 4 million loans would be modified. So far, only about 900,000 households have permanently won new loan terms.
As of the end of last year, only about $3 billion had been spent of the $29 billion set aside for HAMP.
EXPANDING ITS REACH
As part of its effort to reach more Americans, both the Treasury Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development said they would seek to aid homeowners pinched by other types of debt, including credit cards and medical bills.
In addition, the administration said it was tripling the incentives paid to investors when they reduce loan balances. Investors who rent out properties would also be able to access mortgage aid under the revamped program.
FHFA's acting director, Edward DeMarco, has argued that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could provide equal relief to homeowners through loan forbearance at less cost to taxpayers than slashing mortgage debt.
Treasury has notified the FHFA that it "will pay principal reduction incentives to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac if they allow servicers to forgive principal in conjunction with a HAMP modification," Treasury Assistant Secretary Timothy Massad said.
By offering taxpayer money to cover the costs of write-downs at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Obama administration is seeking to overcome DeMarco's objections.
"DeMarco said he is willing to reconsider principal reduction for mortgages backed by Fannie and Freddie, if, in his words, 'a source of funds outside the enterprises emerge to cover some portion of the costs associated with reducing principal,'" Senator Jack Reed, a member of the Senate Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs Committee, said in a statement.
"The administration has now made those funds available," Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, said. "I expect FHFA to promptly reconsider their analysis and help more Americans avoid foreclosures."
Reed has been urging the administration to tap HAMP for principal reductions on loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The administration did not specify how much it would pay Fannie and Freddie to participate in HAMP.
(Reporting By Margaret Chadbourn; Editing by Andrea Ricci, Tim Ahmann, Andrew Hay, Leslie Adler)
Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120128/us_nm/us_usa_housing
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North claims 23-13 Senior Bowl victory (AP)
MOBILE, Ala. ? Michigan State's Kirk Cousins and Wisconsin's Russell Wilson threw touchdown passes to lead the North to a 23-13 victory over the South in the Senior Bowl on Saturday.
Purdue kicker Carson Wiggs put it away with his third short field goal, a 28-yarder with 4:11 left in the showcase for senior NFL prospects.
Boise State's Kellen Moore led that clinching 13-play drive that consumed 8:36 with the help of a running clock.
It snuffed out a spark provided by South quarterback Nick Foles of Arizona, who started his career with Cousins at Michigan State.
Foles had gotten the South into the end zone by firing a 20-yard touchdown pass to Arizona teammate Juron Criner with 12:55 left in the game.
It was an up-and-down day for a crew of quarterbacks with sparkling college credentials, with a combined five interceptions.
Cincinnati running back Isaiah Pead had a big day for the North. He set a Senior Bowl record in the first half with 98 yards on two late punt returns, and was named the MVP. Pead also rushed for a team-high 31 yards on eight carries.
Cousins completed 5 of 11 passes for 115 yards but threw an interception. Moore, who won an college-record 50 games as a starting quarterback, was 6-of-12 passing for 50 yards, and had a 23-yarder to set up the final field goal that put the North up two scores.
Wilson completed 4 of 7 passes for 45 yards with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Jones in the second quarter. He also threw an interception.
Arkansas receiver Joe Adams, the South's Most Outstanding Player, had six catches for 116 yards after losing a fumble on the opening drive. He had a 36-yarder and a 29-yarder in the third quarter.
Criner gained 77 yards on six catches.
Linebacker Bobby Wagner of Utah State had seven tackles and an interception and was the North's Most Outstanding Player.
Wiggs made kicks of 27, 32 and 28 yards while missing a 37-yarder in the final minutes.
Foles almost got the South back in it earlier, but his fourth-down pass from the 13 was incomplete with 3:59 left in the third quarter.
He had the best stat line of the six quarterbacks. Foles was 11-of-15 passing for 136 yards and the TD, and was the only South quarterback who wasn't picked off.
San Diego State's Ryan Lindley was 10 of 21 for 103 yards and also was intercepted once. Oklahoma State's 28-year-old Brandon Weeden started for the South but was picked off twice on nine attempts, completing five passes for 56 yards.
Cousins put the North ahead 20-6 early in the second half with a 41-yard touchdown pass to Arizona State's Gerell Robinson. The 6-foot-3, 223-pound Robinson caught it coming across the middle and raced down the right sideline.
It was the second time on the drive Cousins had thrown for a nice gain on third down, hitting T.J. Graham (North Carolina State) for 22 yards earlier.
The North's Kendall Reyes of Connecticut had two sacks.
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Army chief lays out Army cuts in Europe
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The general who leads the U.S. says the Pentagon will take two heavy armor brigades out of Europe in 2013 and 2014 and eliminate them.
Gen. Raymond Odierno says the military is working hard to mitigate the impact on European allies and will rotate other Army units into the region to train with NATO partners.
The units will be eliminated, rather than moved back to the United States. Odierno says removing two of four brigades now in Europe will not necessarily make NATO allies shoulder more of the load if ground forces are needed for a large-scale operation in the region.
The units to be dismantled are based in Germany ? the 172nd Infantry Brigade, currently in Grafenwoehr, and the 170th Infantry Brigade in Baumholder.
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শনিবার, ২৮ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Ala. attorney questions death penalty in new book
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) ? After defending more than 60 people charged with capital murder and getting three men off Alabama's death row, attorney Richard Jaffe wants to get people talking about the death penalty and what he believes are its flaws.
The longtime Alabama defense lawyer, who once represented Olympic park bomber Eric Rudolph, has written a book detailing many of the cases in his long career and explaining problems he has experienced with the capital justice system.
In "Quest for Justice: Defending the Damned," Jaffe details what he sees as recurring problems with death penalty litigation: Unqualified lawyers handling complex capital issues; a system that doesn't provide enough money for the defense to investigate cases and hire experts; and the arbitrary nature of death sentences.
"I'm not trying to change anyone's mind," Jaffe said during an interview in his office. "I wrote the book to invite people to question the death penalty system."
Jaffe spent years on the book partly because of his heavy case load. He tried a murder case just last week in Birmingham, winning an acquittal of his client after jurors deliberated only about 20 minutes.
Randal Padgett hasn't yet read "Quest for Justice," but he plans to soon: He's among the three Alabama people Jaffe helped free from death row. The three are among almost 140 people who have been freed from death sentences nationwide after initially being convicted and condemned to die.
Once confined to a 40-square-foot cell near the electric chair, Padgett, 51, now runs a small store in the north Alabama city of Guntersville. Of his one-time attorney he said simply: "I love Richard."
Padgett spent more than three years on death row after being convicted of capital murder in the slaying of wife Cathy Padgett, found dead in their north Alabama home in 1990 with dozens of stab wounds. A court ruled that prosecutors didn't give the defense an adequate opportunity to review forensic evidence and ordered a retrial, resulting in Padgett's acquittal and release from death row with Jaffe serving as his lawyer.
"If that hadn't happened, I'd probably be dead by now," Padgett said. "I used to think that in the United States of America you didn't go to prison if you were innocent, but I found out that's not the way it works."
Clay Crenshaw, an assistant attorney general who specializes in handling death penalty cases for the state, said only two of three people Jaffe helped free from death row were acquitted at retrials; the third, James "Bo" Cochran, was convicted on a lesser charge and freed from prison on time served. And, he said, police never charged anyone else in the slayings first blamed on Padgett and Jaffe's other exonerated death row client, Gary Drinkard.
"I am not aware of the district attorney in those counties conducting any investigation to search for the 'real murderer,'" Crenshaw said. "While Jaffe might celebrate these three cases, they all involved individuals who were convicted of capital murder and are now walking the streets."
Jaffe, who almost accidentally became a capital defense specialist after being appointed to a death penalty case three decades ago, uses Padgett's case and others to write that the system is badly flawed. The book will be released Feb. 1 by New Horizon Press of Far Hills, N.J.
While Alabama's system is particularly troubled, he writes, dozens of people have been wrongly convicted and executed nationwide.
"I always keep in mind the maxim that history will judge a society by the way it treats its weakest and most vulnerable," he writes. "Although most would assume that applies to the poor and the elderly, all one has to do is look at those who end up on death row: an overwhelming number are poor, disenfranchised and suffer from some mental defect or even brain damage."
Rudolph is the most famous of Jaffe's clients. Jaffe represented him for more than a year after his capture, withdrawing from the case before the loner pleaded guilty to bombing a Birmingham abortion clinic in 1998 and setting off bombs at the Olympics and elsewhere in Atlanta earlier. The deal allowed Rudolph to avoid a possible death sentence.
Jaffe got along with Rudolph, who admitted to planting the abortion clinic bomb in what he said was a bid to save the lives of unborn children. But Rudolph didn't express remorse for the death of a Birmingham police officer killed by the blast, and Jaffe said Rudolph's actions highlighted a big difference between them.
"In every case, my fervent stance against the death penalty precludes a person or the government from taking any life, for any reason," he writes. "Only the God I believe in should do that, without human intervention."
___
Online:
Jaffe's book site: http://www.questforjusticethebook.com/
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Test Might Predict Risk of Lung Cancer's Return (HealthDay)
THURSDAY, Jan. 26 (HealthDay News) -- A new industry-funded study suggests that a molecular test can provide insight into whether patients are at high risk of a relapse after surgical treatment for a form of lung cancer.
The test, which is currently available, could help doctors decide whether the patients should undergo chemotherapy to prevent the cancer from returning.
There are caveats: The test is expensive, and researchers don't yet know whether patients determined to be at high risk will live longer if they undergo chemotherapy.
Still, "this may be one of the very first examples of where we understood enough about the molecular biology of a cancer to truly personalize the treatment of patients and actually improve the cure rate for that cancer," said study co-author Dr. Michael Mann, an associate professor of surgery at the University of California, San Francisco.
At issue is non-small-cell lung cancer, by far the most common kind of lung cancer. Even if tumors are diagnosed early and removed, the cancer will spread and kill 35 percent to 50 percent of patients.
In these cases, "even when the tumor is small and they got it all, microscopic disease has spread around the body," said Dr. John Minna, co-author of a commentary accompanying the study. He is a cancer researcher and professor of medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
Scientists are trying to find a way to predict what will happen to patients after surgery so they can figure out if chemotherapy treatment is a good idea.
In the new study, researchers gave the molecular test to 433 lung cancer patients in California and 1,006 patients in China. The researchers found that the test helped them to predict the likelihood that patients would survive for five years.
Conceivably, physicians could adjust the treatment of patients after surgery to coincide with the risk of a recurrence of their cancer. For now, though, that's not proven. The research "doesn't tell you that if you had a bad prognosis and you were treated with chemotherapy, then you'd do better," Minna said.
Still, information about the risks faced by a patient could help doctors make choices about treatments, said Minna, who called the test "promising."
Study co-author Mann agreed: "There may be an important conversation that you can have with your oncologist about potential benefit from additional therapy to reduce the likelihood of the cancer coming back."
Mann said the test -- which is currently available -- could cost several thousand dollars. Minna, the commentary co-author, said any cost over a few hundred dollars could be an issue for insurors.
The research was funded by the firm that developed the molecular test, and several of the study authors serve as consultants to the firm.
The study appears in the Jan. 27 online issue of The Lancet.
More information
For more about lung cancer, try the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
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শুক্রবার, ২৭ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Baby on the Way for Simon Helberg
Simon Helberg, who plays Howard Wolowitz on the hit sitcom, and wife Jocelyn Towne are expecting their first child this spring, their rep confirms to PEOPLE.
Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/Kaw6jT_pvEw/
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Video: Mystery deepens over Tourette-like illness at school
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Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/46145757#46145757
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2nd day of mourning for Paterno to end with burial (AP)
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. ? Penn State security had to turn away mourners as viewing hours for the late Joe Paterno ended Wednesday after thousands of students, alumni and admirers had filed past the football coach's closed casket to pay their respects.
The second of three days of events for Paterno was to culminate with a private funeral service and his burial in the afternoon. Penn State will host a public memorial on Thursday at its basketball arena.
The outpouring of support for the Hall of Fame coach was huge, with hundreds of people lined up outside a campus spiritual center throughout the morning in temperatures around freezing. Members of Penn State's rugby team handed out hot chocolate and took donations for the Special Olympics and the student run dance marathon fundraiser ? the two organizations Paterno's family requested receive donations in lieu of flowers.
Paterno served as head coach for 46 years and won two national titles before being fired last November in the wake of child sex-abuse scandal involving a former assistant.
The last few months have been emotionally wrenching for the school's students and alumni, but mourners over the past two days have focused on the inspiration Paterno provided to them, his accomplishments both on and off the field and his philanthropy.
First in line Wednesday was David Brown, who left his home in Greensburg at midnight and drove more than two hours to State College then prepared to wait a few hours outside until the doors opened.
"I wouldn't have been surprised if there were 1,000 people here," he said.
Behind him was John Myers, 70, who drove more than two hours from Tamaqua to arrive at 5 a.m. ? three hours before the viewing was scheduled to begin.
"It's worth it," Myers said. "Joe was one of the best, if not the best, football coaches ever."
The 85-year-old Paterno died Sunday of lung cancer. He had been ousted just days before learning of his diagnosis. Paterno's son, Scott, has said his father was not bitter and remained upbeat until the end of his life.
Jerry Sandusky, the former defensive coordinator at the center of the abuse scandal, has been charged with molesting 10 boys over a period of 15 years. He has pleaded not guilty and is on bail, awaiting trial. Paterno was criticized in the days after Sandusky's arrest for not going to authorities outside campus when he was told of an allegation against the retired assistant in 2002.
Admirers put the case aside.
Tom Haack, a small business owner from Camp Hill, took off work to pay his respects to Paterno. The 59-year-old Haack said he chose Penn State to get his master's degree in business in the late 1980s, partly due to his admiration for the coach.
"His ethics, doing things the right way, excellence in everything you do, all of that attracted me and attracted many others to Penn State," he said. "I think his influence made it a better school and helped make it what it is today."
Thousands waited in line Tuesday on an overcast winter afternoon for the first day of visitation at the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center, where Paterno family members regularly attend services.
Inside the hall, the coach's body lay in a brown hardwood casket topped by a spray of white roses. About six feet away sat a stylized black-and-white picture of the man who became lovingly known on campus as "JoePa," smiling and peering out through his trademark thick-rimmed glasses.
Paterno's casket had an "honor guard" of two Penn State players ? one past and one present. Some mourners stopped for a moment of reflection, or to genuflect in the interfaith hall.
Others fought back tears and sniffles. The only other sounds were the occasional clicks of news photographers taking pictures.
Paterno won 409 ? a record for major college football ? in a career admired by peers as much for its longevity as its success. Paterno also took as much pride in the program's graduation rates, often at or close to the top of the Big Ten.
"The passion, the love that he gave almost gave you a sense that you wanted to give it back to him," Penn State men's basketball coach Patrick Chambers said after escorting his team to the worship hall Tuesday evening. "We're forever indebted to him and we will continue to work as hard as we can."
Four friends got in line at 6:30 a.m. to pay their respects, going up to the casket as a group to say goodbye.
"It's hard to say goodbye to somebody that you feel you've known all along," said John Whitney, a 21-year-old junior from Sparta, N.J. "A lot of us have never met him, but he's had such a big influence on everybody's life around here."
Heather Hoffman, a 19-year-old sophomore from Marlton, N.J., cited Paterno's contributions to academics along with athletics.
"It was time for all of us to pay tribute to him and give thanks because we're all here in part because of him," Hoffman said.
Karen Gilchrist, a Penn State fan from Scranton, brought three of her five children to the viewing. Seven-year-old Tiffany and 8-year-old Johnny both wore rolled-up khaki pants and black sneakers in honor of Paterno.
"There's going to be no one like him in my lifetime or theirs," said Gilchrist, cradling the third child, 6-month-old Valentina. "I wanted them to be part of a historic day. I felt compelled."
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বৃহস্পতিবার, ২৬ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Obama turns attention to energy in key states
President Barack Obama exits Air Force One after arriving in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/John Gurzinski)
President Barack Obama exits Air Force One after arriving in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/John Gurzinski)
LAS VEGAS (AP) ? President Barack Obama was returning Thursday to two states key to his re-election, Nevada and Colorado, promoting his energy agenda while grabbing some of the political spotlight ahead of his Republican rivals.
Both states hold their presidential caucuses within the next two weeks ? events that have grown in importance as the Republican contest for the White House appears to narrow to a choice between former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
Obama's energy pitch also comes just days after he drew Republican criticism for rejecting a cross-country oil pipeline that would have delivered Canadian tar sands oil to refineries in Texas.
Obama will speak at a UPS center in Las Vegas and at Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado, drawing attention to proposals for clean energy and greater domestic oil and gas production.
Obama won both Nevada and Colorado in 2008. He visited both states in late October, using that trip to launch a phase of his campaign to jump-start the economy. With economic indicators improving, he now visits on a higher note.
Obama is drawing attention to two aspects of his energy policy ? greater domestic energy production and investment in cleaner energy sources.
The nearly 38-million-acre (153,780 square kilometer) parcel the Obama administration is putting up for lease is part of an offshore drilling plan for 2007-12 put in place by former President George W. Bush. But after the massive BP oil spill of 2010 led to an overhaul of the government's oversight of offshore exploration and production, some areas had to be re-evaluated for the environmental risks associated with drilling.
The White House is portraying Obama as willing to seek the middle ground on energy after Republicans and the industry criticized him for the moratorium put in place after the Gulf disaster, the rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada, and other policies they say have hampered production, jobs and national energy security.
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Video: Does the right-wing disrespect Obama?
Surprising 30 percent rise in home births
A small, but growing trend of women in the US are choosing home births, a new government report finds. These mostly over 35, non-Hispanic white women are "consciously rejecting the system" of hospital deliveries, says the researcher.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46155020#46155020
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Mathematical Proof That Your Senator Is Miserable [Politics]
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Boxee Box Live TV starts shipping, Boxee 1.5 software update now rolling out
Boxee Box Live TV starts shipping, Boxee 1.5 software update now rolling out originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Boxee Blog, Boxee Support | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/24/boxee-box-live-tv-starts-shipping-boxee-1-5-software-update-now/
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বুধবার, ২৫ জানুয়ারী, ২০১২
Analysis: Wall Street puzzles over Google's new direction (Reuters)
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) ? Google Inc, which revolutionized Internet searches with an easy-to-use website, has itself become an increasingly tricky business to grasp.
That issue leapt to the fore last week when the company stunned Wall Street by missing financial expectations for the fourth quarter -- sending its stock into a tailspin and triggering a flurry of questions over what went askew.
Analysts say Google is simply putting its fingers in too many pies. Forays into television, Android mobile phones and music sales in the past two to three years have left the investment community straining to recognize the company.
A surprise drop in Google's search advertising rates in the fourth quarter raised questions about how its rapidly expanding mobile business was affecting its main money-making machine.
With investors still uneasy about Google's proposed $12.5 billion acquisition of smartphone maker Motorola, the earnings disappointment underscored a big challenge facing Chief Executive Larry Page as he positions the company for new growth opportunities.
Some are wondering if Google has a clear strategy for generating revenue and growth out of a plethora of fledgling initiatives, from Android to its Facebook wannabe, Google+, especially since Page and management refuse to offer guidance.
"Right now people are skeptical about those bets paying off," said Walter Price, a portfolio manager at RCM Capital Management, referring to Google's efforts outside its flagship search business.
Google's managers "get on a conference call and they're super enthusiastic about their future, and yet you look at the (stock's) multiple and the way the stock is treated, and people don't share that enthusiasm," said Price, whose firm owns Google shares.
Google's stock closed at $569.49 on Wednesday, down from a four-year high of $670.25 earlier this month. The stock trades at 13.6 times forward earnings, compared to the 12.3 average multiple for companies on the S&P 500.
The limited insight Google provides on the details of its non-search businesses has not helped matters, as investors struggle to connect the company's ambitious strategic vision with its income statement.
In that sense, Google is very like Amazon.com Inc, which warned in October it could lose money in the fourth quarter as the online retailer spends heavily on the Kindle Fire tablet and other projects. Amazon is due to report results on January 31.
"Google is very much in the midst of a transformation," said BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis.
Page has "taken some aggressive big bets here, stuff that's going to be hard to undo," said Gillis, citing the Motorola deal, which he estimated will lop 600 basis points off of Google's profit margin when the acquisition is completed.
THICKER ARROWS
If Page's bets pay off, search could represent just one of several large and thriving businesses as Google recasts itself as a full-fledged "media and services" company.
Since replacing Eric Schmidt last April as CEO, the Google co-founder has aggressively tossed out underperforming and non-essential projects and products. The idea is to put "more wood" behind the company's most important arrows, he has said.
Among those arrows are Google+, the eight-month old social network; Android, the smartphone operating system; and YouTube, the video Website it bought six years ago for $1.65 billion.
Clearly, these have been very successful ventures. Android has become the world's No. 1 smarpthone operating system, surging past Apple Inc's iOS, the software that powers the popular iPhone. YouTube is delivering 4 billion video views per day. And 90 million users have signed up for Google+.
What is less clear is how much money Google can eventually generate from these largely free services, such as from advertising sales.
For Google to keep growing, it needs access to a wider range of content on which it can place ads and make money, particularly as the tech landscape shifts and consumers' Internet habits evolve.
"Any walled-off content is the enemy of Google, so they're trying to pry it open. They did it well with Android, they're trying it with social media and they're trying it with television," said MIT Sloan School of Management Professor Michael Cusumano.
The strategy is not cheap, requiring significant investments for Google to build or buy platforms to reach new content -- adding pressure on the bottom line. And many of the new markets may not be as profitable as the search ad business where Google rules the roost, said Cusumano.
Google does not disclose how much money it has spent on Google+. But analysts believe much of Google's aggressive hiring during the past year -- its headcount swelled to more than 8,000 employees in 2011 alone -- was to feed its social efforts as it seeks to challenge Facebook's 800 million user network.
Microsoft's ongoing efforts to displace Google in search provide a stark reminder of the steep price involved in going head-to-head with an entrenched Web company: in the last eight quarters, Microsoft's online services unit has lost roughly $4.9 billion.
Google+, which does not currently feature ads, is still in its infancy and the company has yet to outline its monetization plans for the service. But Macquarie Research analyst Ben Schachter said the benefits of some of Google's other non-search initiatives, such as the vast amount of online video it now streams across the Web on YouTube, are coming into focus.
"The goal at the end of the rainbow is TV advertising," he said. "For years Google has been eating the lunch of print and radio, but TV has held up incredibly well."
That will start to change by the second half of this year and into 2013, when Schachter expects that TV advertising dollars will flow to online video providers like Google.
TIME FOR A REPORT CARD?
In October, Google said that its mobile business was generating revenue at a $2.5 billion annualized run rate, up from $1 billion a year earlier.
But while the figures provide evidence that Google's mobile efforts are bearing fruit, they leave plenty of questions unanswered, including what portion of the revenue is mobile search ads versus mobile display ads, and how much money is generated from users of Android devices versus Apple iPhones on which Google presumably has to share some of the revenue.
Google's $5 billion run rate for its graphical display ads is similarly murky. And Google's updates on the business are unpredictable: The company has only provided a display ad run-rate figure two times, with five quarters elapsing between the updates.
With mobile and display representing greater portions of Google's business, some say the time has come for the company to be more forthcoming to push its price/earnings multiple higher.
"If they want multiple expansion they need to provide more clarity," said National Alliance Capital Markets analyst Mike Hickey. "If someone asks them how's an aspect of the business 'terrific' just doesn't cut it anymore."
It is, however, unlikely that Google will go so far as to provide financial forecasts -- a practice the company has shunned since its earliest days.
But more consistent and detailed reporting of some of its key businesses could bolster Wall Street's faith in the company's prospects outside search, and quell some of the persistent anxiety about its spending.
"We need a report card," said RCM Capital Management's Price, noting that he believes Google's current search business is only the "tip of the iceberg" when it comes to the company's longer term money-making prospects.
(Editing by Peter Lauria, Edwin Chan and Bernard Orr)
Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/search/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120125/wr_nm/us_google
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