Jumbo Squid-Cam Uncovers Secrets of Elusive Creature

To see firsthand how an elusive species of jumbo squid lives, scientists have strapped video cameras to the carnivorous sea creature in the eastern Pacific.

The footage has helped reveal some remarkable secrets of the Humboldt squid: They are capable of amazing bursts of speed, up to nearly 45 mph (72 km/h); they "talk" to each other by changing their body color; and they hunt in big synchronized groups.

Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas) ? which can grow to more than 6 feet (2 meters) in length and 100 pounds (45 kilograms) in weight ? have razor-sharp beaks and toothed suckers. Mass strandings of the species and reports of aggression toward humans have spooked beachgoers for decades, but the jumbo squid are not man-eaters ? they usually feed on small fish and plankton that are no more than a few inches in length, though they sometimes cannibalize each other.

For all the squid's captivating features, scientists still have many questions about the species' behavior, so biologists at Stanford's Hopkins Marine Station turned to the National Geographic Society's Crittercam, which has been used to study animals ranging from penguins to hyenas. [Image Gallery: Humboldt Squid Stranding]

Attaching a quart-sized device with a camera and sensors to a squid presents some technical problems. The trick is to find a big enough squid and fix the Crittercam onto a child's bathing suit so that it can be slipped over the creature's fins like a spandex sleeve, Stanford biologist William Gilly explained in a video.

The resulting video footage and data from echosounding studies showed that Humboldt squid can jet-propel themselves at speeds comparable to the fastest ocean fish. They hunt in tightly coordinated groups, a behavior that's usually associated with fish rather than invertebrates (animals without a backbone) like squid, the researchers found. And smaller squid tend keep their distance from the bigger ones, likely to avoid being cannibalized.

Jumbo squid are known to have pigmented cells, called chromatophores, which allow them to change color in response to neural impulses. The cameras allowed the researchers to watch the squid flashing like a strobe light in their natural habitat. Gilly said the only time the squid seem to make these red-and-white color signals is when they encounter another individual of their species.

"We don't know exactly what those discussions mean," Gilly said in a video from Stanford. For now, interpreting those interactions is like trying to decipher what two people are saying to each other just by watching their mouths move, he added.

Humboldt squid live in the eastern Pacific Ocean from the tip of South America up to Mexico, but have been moving farther north in recent years. Scientists believe the species might be migrating up the coast as warming oceans are creating larger low-oxygen zones deep below the surface, environments where the squid live.

Follow Megan Gannon on Twitter and Google+. Follow us?@OAPlanet, Facebook?or Google+.

Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/jumbo-squid-cam-uncovers-secrets-elusive-creature-012118255.html

lottery winners april fools day pranks ohio state vs kansas daniel von bargen the beach blood diamond 8 bit google maps

Movie review: 'Gatekeepers' gives new face to War on Terror | The ...

Former heads of Shin Bet, Israel's secret service, are interviewed in "The Gatekeepers," a documentary by Dror Moreh. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics

Review ? Former Israeli spymasters talk in riveting doc.

The six men interviewed in director Dror Moreh?s "The Gatekeepers" are not what you would call bleeding-heart liberals.

In fact, the six ? the former directors of Shin Bet, Israel?s secret service, from 1980 to 2011 ? are easily the toughest counterterrorism fighters you?d expect to see in a movie that didn?t have "Expendables" in the title.

?

HHHhj

?The Gatekeepers?

Six former leaders of Israeli?s secret service talk candidly about missions, spycraft and the slippery nature of fighting terror.

Where ? Opens Friday, March 29.

When ? Broadway Centre Cinemas.

Rating ? PG-13 for violent content including disturbing images.

Running time ? 97 minutes; in Hebrew with subtitles.

They were fighting the War on Terror before it had a name. They developed Shin Bet into an intelligence-gathering institution that could intercept attacks. They ordered targeted assassinations against Palestinian terrorist leaders, and in some cases oversaw interrogation programs that some would call torture.

Considering their toughness, and their shared history of dealing with threats against Israelis, the conclusions they reach at the end of Moreh?s absorbing, thought-provoking (and Oscar-nominated) documentary are breathtaking ? until you hear one of the men say, "when you retire [from Shin Bet], you become a bit of a leftist."

Moreh employs a direct interviewing style, reminiscent of Errol Morris? work, to get the men to talk about their days leading Shin Bet. Some are expansive in their answers, others evasive.

Take, for example, the most senior of the group, Avraham Shalom. Seen today, he looks like a kindly grandpa, the sort who hands out butterscotch candies. But when he talks about the missions Shin Bet carried out during his tenure, from 1980 to 1986, his reputation as a hardened spy and a bully (as others describe him) starts to make sense.

Shalom deflects questions about the incident that ended his Shin Bet career, when agents pulled Palestinian suspects off a bus and, while they were in custody, executed them.

"I didn?t want any live terrorists in court," Shalom declares matter-of-factly. When Moreh presses a question about the morality of such actions, Shalom answers back sharply, "In the war on terrorism, forget about morality. Find morals in the terrorists first."

The problem with that kind of thinking, as Yuval Diskin (head of Shin Bet from 2005 to 2011) says, is "to the enemy, by the way, I was also a terrorist."

Through the interviews and well-chosen archival footage, Moreh traces the modern history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The film covers the rise of urban suicide bombings, both Intifadas, peace talks with the PLO, the political acceptance of Hamas and the rise of a far-right Israeli underground that was to Shin Bet as dangerous as the Palestinian terrorists. It was this underground that led to Shin Bet?s greatest security failure: the 1995 assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin by a Jewish extremist.

story continues below

The six Shin Bet leaders sometimes get a little twinkle in their eye discussing spycraft, such as when Carmi Gillon (who resigned as head of Shin Bet after Rabin?s death) talks about an operation that planted plastic explosives in the cellphone of a terrorist mastermind. But to a man, they also talk about the limitations of military tactics in securing peace ? and each advocates a two-state solution, creating a Palestinian nation as Israel?s peaceful neighbor.

"We wanted security, and got more terrorism," says Ami Ayalon, who took over Shin Bet after Gillon resigned. "The Gatekeepers" makes the riveting argument that now is the time for the Israeli government to try another approach.

movies@sltrib.com

Twitter: @moviecricket

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/entertainment2/56058338-223/bet-shin-gatekeepers-israeli.html.csp

Prince Harry Vegas pictures Avril Lavigne Microsoft Tropical Storm Isaac amber portwood Phyllis Diller Darla Moore

Exclusive: Indonesia's CT Corp proposes all-cash deal for Bakrie's media unit

By Janeman Latul and Randy Fabi

TANJUNG BENOA, Indonesia (Reuters) - CT Corp, one of Indonesia's emerging conglomerates, has proposed an all-cash deal for a controlling stake in media firm PT Visi Media Asia , valued at up to $1.8 billion, to strengthen its position in the media business in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

The founder and chairman of CT Corp, Chairul Tanjung, told Reuters that his firm wanted to purchase Visi Media, a unit of Indonesia's powerful Bakrie family, without any partners.

"We are one of the preferred bidders. Our proposal is we want to buy it all ... my pocket is still deep," the 51-year-old billionaire said in his hotel room on the resort island of Bali, shortly after meeting with the president and cabinet ministers in his role as head of the president's economic advisory body.

"(It is) only us that can pay cash one hundred percent ... but the deal is not done yet."

CT Corp is already a major player in the Indonesian media business and controls two local TV stations. Tanjung said he would take out a new loan to buy the Visi Media stake. He declined to say how much the company would borrow for the deal.

This is the first time any bidder has publicly announced that it was offering to buy the company.

Indonesia's politically influential Bakrie family has been in talks to sell its majority interest in Visi Media to help finance a plan to buy back coal assets from London-listed Bumi Plc , sources with direct knowledge have said.

The Bakries are offering around a 51 percent stake in Visi Media, which the family controls via its vehicle CMA Indonesia. The process has been going on for the past three months with local bidders, including CT Corp and MNC Group, the sources said.

The Bakries had been looking for a valuation of $1.2 billion to $2 billion for the unit, although Visi Media's current market capitalization is only around $800 million, the sources said.

Visi Media has two national TV stations and a news website.

The sources said the stake would be worth up to $1.8 billion.

Tanjung, who trained as a dentist before becoming a businessman, also plans to build a $3 billion theme park on Indonesia's Java island and make it one of the biggest theme parks in Southeast Asia when it opens in 2016.

"We will build a city, not only a theme park, as I want to make many Indonesians feel happy," Tanjung said, adding that the land for the park would be around 200 hectares and the construction would start by the end of this year.

The group, which was founded by Tanjung, currently operates two theme parks and has plans to add another 20 theme parks across Indonesia over the next few years.

Tanjung is Indonesia's fifth-richest man with a net worth around $3.4 billion as of march, according to Forbes.

(Editing by Jonathan Thatcher and Chris Gallagher)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-indonesias-ct-corp-proposes-cash-deal-bakries-041447140--finance.html

secret service prostitution 4 20 george zimmerman sheree whitfield weather dallas pat summitt real housewives of atlanta

Mobile Home Is An Easy Way To Turn Siri Into Your Very Own Personal KITT From Knight Rider

My recently-purchased car has Bluetooth built-in to let me use my phone hands-free from the steering wheel, as do most cars coming off the line new these days. The one issue is that there's no way to activate Siri using the car's default controls, which is another unfortunately common thing for modern cars and aftermarket Bluetooth stereo kits. But Plano, Texas-based Beanco Technology offers a really simple solution called the Mobile Home, which offers a fix in the most minimalist way possible.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/bSBmHol1c1I/

roger federer Olga Korbut Usain Bolt 2012 Olympics Katie Ledecky Aaron Ross Sikh temple Nastia Liukin

The justice who will decide gay marriage

Supreme Court Associate Justices Anthony Kennedy (R) and Stephen Breyer await the start of a hearing on Capitol??

Few things were certain after the Supreme Court's first foray into the issue of gay marriage earlier this week?except that conservative-leaning swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy will control the outcome.

The four liberal and the four conservative justices appeared to split right down the middle on how (and whether) to decide the constitutionality of both Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act. Kennedy?who in the past authored the court's two most important opinions affirming gay rights?seemed to be on the fence in both cases.

The most likely scenario: Kennedy will form a coalition with the liberals to strike down Proposition 8 and DOMA without substantially addressing the plaintiffs' claims that gays and lesbians should be allowed to marry and have those marriages treated equally to opposite-sex marriages by the law.

The hope for a "nation-wide ruling on same-sex marriage was clearly dashed on Tuesday," said Doug NeJaime, a professor at Loyola Law School.

Gay rights advocates had pinned their hopes on the 76-year-old Sacramento native and Ronald Reagan appointee, based on his striking down of a state anti-sodomy laws in Lawrence v. Texas (2003) and a Colorado statute that prohibited local governments from passing anti-discrimination laws protecting gay people in Romer v Evans (1996).

But in both cases, Kennedy appeared unsympathetic to the argument that same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marriage. He repeatedly noted that same-sex unions are historically new and that there's not much "sociological" evidence about them and their offspring. He did, however, express sympathy for the children of same-sex couples, saying he believed their voices were "important" and that they were harmed because their parents were not allowed to wed.

Kennedy did seem far more open to striking down both anti-gay marriage laws on procedural grounds. While this would have a much more limited effect than a broader decision, it would still be a victory for the gay rights movement.

In the Proposition 8 case about California's 2008 voter-approved gay marriage ban, Kennedy dropped a bombshell early into oral arguments when he wondered aloud whether the Supreme Court should have ever agreed to hear the case in the first place. (At least four justices must vote to take on a case, which happens privately in the judges' chambers.)

"I just wonder if?if the case was properly granted," Kennedy said to attorney Ted Olson, who was arguing for the ban to be struck down. Kennedy later asked attorney Charles Cooper, who was arguing on behalf of Proposition 8, why the Supreme Court should hear the case at all.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor took up Kennedy's line of argument, asking Cooper why they couldn't let the issue of same-sex marriage "percolate" longer before making such a major decision.

Kennedy appears to be weighing dismissing the case altogether, and Sotomayor's questioning suggests he may be able to get the four liberal justices to join him. If they dismiss the case, the lower-court decision stands allowing gay marriage in California, but no other state would be affected. If that's the route the court goes, it's possible Kennedy would write the opinion without substantially addressing the plaintiffs' claims that they have the same right to marry as people of another sexual orientation.

Interestingly, Kennedy's comments in Wednesday's DOMA oral arguments also suggest he may take a way out that doesn't require him to rule on the substance of whether the law discriminates against gay couples. DOMA defines marriage at the federal level as only between opposite-sex couples, denying federal benefits and obligations to same-sex married couples in the nine states that allow it. Kennedy appeared very intrigued by the argument that DOMA improperly intrudes into the states' domain of marriage, characterizing the law as potentially in "conflict" with states' rights.

Chief Justice John Roberts also pursued this line of questioning, repeatedly asking the attorneys arguing against DOMA if they believed it was a violation of federalism. Neither attorney would take the bait, however, instead sticking with the reasoning that DOMA discriminates against same-sex couples.

"The chief justice got both parties to the case to admit that they don't think there's a federalism issue here," said Chapman University law professor John Eastman. Eastman is the chairman of the anti-gay marriage group the National Organization for Marriage. "I don't know whether that persuaded Justice Kennedy that he was going down the wrong line."

NeJaime said it's possible Kennedy could write an opinion striking down DOMA on federalist grounds, while the four liberal justices joined in a concurring opinion that struck it down as discriminatory. (If Kennedy sides with the liberals, he could assign the opinion to himself since he is the most senior justice of that group.) If so, Kennedy's decision could say nothing substantial about gay rights, merely sticking to the argument that it's an overreach of federal power.

"You could end up with two decisions from Kennedy that basically allow same sex marriage in some ways but do nothing on the substance," NeJaime said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/kennedy-decide-gay-marriage-cases-201558362--election.html

wiz khalifa taylor allderdice mixtape reggie wayne taylor allderdice vincent jackson vicki gunvalson pierre garcon brown recluse spider

Create your small business budget and reports in GnuCash ...

Takeaway: If your small business needs a budgeting solution but doesn?t have much or any money to spend on one, you should try the open source, multi-platform solution GnuCash.

Small business budgets tend to get relegated to spreadsheets, word processor documents, or even old-school ledger books. This does not have to be the case. As of version 2.4, GnuCash offers an incredibly helpful budget tool. GnuCash is available for Windows, Linux, and Mac.

Before you create your budget in GnuCash, you need to consider what you?ll be budgeting for, what accounts you?ll use, the budget?s date range, the budget period (monthly, quarterly, etc.), and more depending on what you want to track and report on in your budget.

Setting up your accounts in GnuCash

After installing GnuCash, one of the most important steps is selecting the types of accounts to set up for your company. (The instructions for this section are from my 2011 post about using GnuCash to do accounting on a shoestring budget.) Instead of just setting up a standard checking account, you should add Business Accounts from the Categories table (Figure A).

Figure A

Click the image to enlarge it.

When you select Business Accounts, the setup wizard will display all of the accounts and sub-accounts that will be created.

During the setup wizard, you can add as many accounts as you need. Depending on your business, the following accounts might be necessary:

• Common Accounts
• Fixed Assets
• Investment Accounts
• Other loans

GnuCash has a tab-based interface and is quite simple to use. Although there are no user-configurable home screen buttons, GnuCash has user-friendly drop-down menus and expandable navigation trees (Figure B).

Figure B

Click the image to enlarge.

Figure B shows a New Budget. You can create budgets based on any accounts included in the data file.

Creating a budget in GnuCash

In GnuCash, select the account with which you want to associate the budget. I?ll demonstrate this with a dummy account I created and associate the budget with the National City account (Figure C).

Figure C

My dummy Chart of Accounts is ready for action. (Click the image to enlarge it.)

With GnuCash open, select Actions | Budget | New Budget. This will open a tab with your accounts open in an empty budget format (Figure D). Now you have to set up the budget.

Figure D

A Budget tab has been created. (Click the image to enlarge.)

Right-click anywhere in the Budget tab and select Budget Options. In this new window (Figure E), you need to configure the necessary options for the budget you want to set up. The options include: Budget Name, Notes, Budget Period, Number Of Periods. The Budget Period section of the options is important. Not only are you setting up the budget?s start date? (you can backdate it), you are also defining the interval for a period and how far out you want to track the budget.

Figure E

Name the budget appropriately, so it?s easier to find later. (Click the image to enlarge it.)

With your options set, click OK, and you?re ready to populate the budget with data. There are two ways you can do this: input data manually or use the GnuCash Budget Estimator. To manually enter data, double-click a cell and enter the data. To use the Estimator, do the following:

1. Select the account you want to use (within the Budget tab you created).
2. Click the Estimator icon in the toolbar (it?s the second icon from the right).
3. In the resulting popup, enter the start date and the significant digit.
4. Click OK.

After you click OK, GnuCash will use transactions from that account (based on the dates) to auto-populate the budget data (Figure F).

Figure F

Estimating budgets based on numerous accounts. (Click the image to enlarge.)

Creating a budget report in GnuCash

You can run a budget report by selecting Reports | Budget | Budget Report. When the report generates, you need to set some options. From the Budget Report tab, click the Edit Report Options button in the main toolbar and, in the General tab (Figure G), select the budget you created from the Budget drop-down. Then you can configure the report to better match your specific needs from the other options.

Figure G

There are plenty of options to define for your budget report. (Click the image to enlarge it.)

These budget reports aren?t the prettiest you will ever see, but you can customize the reports if you?re willing to do a bit of hacking.

Note: GnuCash doesn?t offer multi-user mode features.

Automatically sign up for TechRepublic's SMB Tech newsletter!

Source: http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/smbit/create-your-small-business-budget-and-reports-in-gnucash/994

opm revolution Florida Gulf Coast University Phil Spector nascar tiger woods passover

Hitting The Jackpot In Laughlin - Leisure Group Travel

This fun-filled oasis in the Nevada desert is lush with group-friendly options

Enjoy the waterfront on a stroll along the Laughlin Riverwalk.

As a tour operator, it?s not every day you have the opportunity to write about a destination that means so much to you. Laughlin is such a place for me as my first tour was to Laughlin in 1981 when it was a sleepy little town with two casinos. It?s grown by leaps and bounds ever since and is a perfect destination for groups looking for value, outdoor adventure, gaming, dining and just plain fun. Combine the following features for a winning itinerary and happy guests:

Laughlin?s compact hotel corridor lines the banks of one of the most pristine segments of the Colorado River. For a nominal fee, water taxis travel from one hotel dock to another on what some call Laughlin?s ?main street? ? the Colorado River.

One of the most popular group activities is riverboat cruising with two different paddlewheel-style boats offering narrated cruises. The Celebration and USS Riverside are double-deck vessels with climate-controlled lower levels and open-air top decks. In addition to scheduled cruises, charters are available for groups of up to 80.

London Jet Boat Tours depart Laughlin and travel to Lake Havasu, home of the London Bridge. The full-day tour allows time for sightseeing, shopping and lunch on your own in Lake Havasu before returning to Laughlin. Groups that like a little more soft adventure can canoe and kayak on the river with Desert River Outfitters.

Laughlin on the Water

Laughlin is located at the crossroads of three states ? Nevada, California and Arizona. Rugged mountain ranges that change colors with the sunset, majestic desert landscapes and the mighty Colorado River set the stage for year-round outdoor adventure.

The newest Laughlin attraction, the Colorado River Heritage Greenway Park and Trails project, has been named one of the nation?s most promising projects designed to protect special places and reconnect Americans to the outdoors. The project consists of nine miles of trails for bicyclists, pedestrians and equestrians, and includes expansion of the Laughlin Riverwalk. It enhances the area as a destination for eco-tourism and outdoor adventure, and helps preserve some unique vistas and historic sites related to the construction of Davis Dam. Highlights include:

• Three trail loops that extend south from Davis Dam for approximately two miles along the Colorado River and an additional three-mile Desert Trail.
• The Riverwalk Exploration Trail Loop, an extension of the Laughlin Riverwalk, running two miles adjacent to the Colorado River from the hotel resorts up to the new Pyramid Canyon day-use area at the base of Davis Dam.
• The Equestrian Trailhead, offering access to two multi-use dirt trails, the 2.75-mile Horseshoe Trail Loop and three-mile Desert Trail.

Laughlin?s ?Rockets over the River? is one of the most spectacular July Fourth fireworks displays in the West. The fireworks, choreographed to patriotic music, are launched above the river directly across from the hotels. There can be one or two shows depending on where the holiday falls. The viewing is ideal from the riverwalk.

Laughlin?s International Film Festival in October showcases the talents of independent filmmakers from around the world. The festival includes Q&A with the filmmakers and workshops for aspiring filmmakers. And it wouldn?t be a film festival without a red carpet gala.

Laughlin has hosted many military reunions over the years, and in November, Veteran?s Day weekend is celebrated with a party to honor veterans. The weekend includes live music, vendors, interactive displays and a guard ceremony. Laughlin resorts host their own special events to complement the weekend?s festivities.

Laughlin at Night

There is something for every taste in Laughlin, ranging from elegant gourmet dining to ethnic cuisine to national fast-food chains to extravagant buffets, 24-hour cafes and decadent Sunday champagne brunches. The Range Steakhouse at Harrah?s Laughlin has the perfect balance of a classic steakhouse menu, extensive wine list, warm ambience and beautiful river views. Another favorite gourmet dining?experience with spectacular views of the river is the Riveside Resort?s Gourmet Room. The French cuisine is served tableside in a cozy, elegant setting.

Pints Microbrewery at the Colorado Belle is not your typical sports bar. In addition to the usual fare like wood-fired pizzas, burgers and wings, you can build your own omelet or order flapjacks because they?re open 24 hours. For those wanting a comfortable favorite, Outback Steakhouse and Joe?s Crab Shack bring their nationally recognized eateries to Laughlin. Outback is tucked inside the Aquarius Resort, and Joe?s at the Golden Nugget Laughlin has both indoor dining and an extended outdoor deck along the river.

All nine Laughlin casino resorts offer 24-hour gaming and the latest in video and slot machines, table games, keno and bingo. Special tournaments and players club promotions are offered regularly by each resort.

Laughlin is home to some terrific entertainment that you don?t have to spend an arm and a leg to see. Big-name artists perform in casino showrooms or outdoor arenas each weekend, and lounge acts feature local musicians, dance floors and drink specials. Laughlin also has two classic car museums, a 34-lane, state-of-the-art bowling center with Cosmic Bowling, 15 screens in two movie theaters and resort boutique shops.

Within a couple hours drive is Oatman, an old Arizona mining town on Route 66; an exotic animal sanctuary; Grand Canyon Caverns; the West Rim of the Grand Canyon; and a local winery and distillery. For the golf enthusiast, there are four 18-hole championship courses within minutes of the Laughlin resorts.

Laughlin is a remarkable value for groups. Comfortable accommodations at unbelievable group rates, reasonably priced food options, spa salons, fitness centers, free parking and no resort fees are but a few of the drawing cards. And saving money on room rates and food? means more to spend on activities and entertainment.

Overall, Laughlin is a relaxed, friendly, value-packed destination with something for everyone. For tour planners, it?s a sure bet.

For more information, contact the Laughlin Visitor Information Center, 800-452-8445; visitlaughlin.com.

By Sue Arko

Source: http://leisuregrouptravel.com/hitting-the-jackpot-in-laughlin/

adele lyrics best new artist 2012 grammys foo fighters nikki minaj album of the year grammy red carpet