Actors Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan appear at the "Masters of Sex" panel at the Television Critics Association summer press tour.
You might expect a press conference about a new television show called "Masters of Sex" to be dominated by sex.
You wouldn't be wrong.
For example: "I never thought I would get used to having a naked woman in front of me masturbating with a glass [sexual toy]?where I would almost not notice them doing it anymore and that a conversation about dinner that night would actually be more interesting," actor Michael Sheen said at the Television Critics Association summer press tour on Tuesday. "But I actually broke that barrier on this show."
And: "If you put a [sexual toy] in front of Beau Bridges' face, people are going to laugh," said actress Lizzy Caplan, explaining some of the levity in the period drama.
Starring Sheen ("Kingdom of Heaven") and Caplan ("Cloverfield") as William Masters and Virginia Johnson, pioneers of the science of human sexuality, "Masters of Sex" premieres on Showtime on Sept. 29. The show is based on Thomas Maier's book, "Masters of Sex: The Life & Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson," and will track the decades-long professional and personal relationship of Masters and Johnson and the research that touched off the sexual revolution. As much as the show centers on the study of human sexuality, it also explores human vulnerability and relationships, Sheen said. Some of the sex scenes occur in a lab environment; others in more romantic settings.
"What I think we found in doing the show, and what I found in life generally, that the more you try to separate sex from everything else, it?s impossible," Sheen said. "...I found that I started talking about relationships more and the emotions and the difficulties and the challenges. I became far more open about that, which I think is probably an indication about the show itself ? the more you think you?re watching a show about sex, the more you?re ultimately just watching a show about connecting with human beings and being intimate."
Caplan said she is enamored with Johnson, the toughest character she's ever played, because the role reminds the actress of her own mother, who allowed her to be open about sex when she was growing up. Johnson died on July 24 at the age of 88.
"What my mother did for me, being open and not judgmental ? you?re not dirty, you?re not going to hell for asking these questions, Virginia Johnson did this for millions of women, for generations of women," Caplan said. "Sometimes all you need is for somebody to tell you that there?s nothing wrong with you, that you?re normal. And before Masters and Johnson, nobody was telling women ? it was always their fault. And that?s some [expletive]!"
Remember when you were a kid and you'd bug your parents for bigger and bigger marker sets so you could get exactly the shades you wanted? It turns out that's not an issue for today's kids. As long as they can convince their parents to cough up $47 for Crayola's miniature marker factory, they can engineer any shade that science allows.
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Cells from one's own blood could be converted into a treatment for autoimmune diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's disease, thanks to new research.
Maroon 5 frontman and "Voice" judge Adam Levine plans to marry a Victoria's Secret model, People magazine has reported.
"Adam Levine and his girlfriend Behati Prinsloo are excited to announce they are engaged to be married," a representative for the musician told the magazine. "The couple recently reunited and Adam proposed this weekend in Los Angeles."
Levine, 34, and Prinsloo, 24, began dating in May 2012 after Levine broke up with model Anne Vyalitsyna.
Prinsloo, born and raised in Namibia, became the face of Victoria's Secret brand Pink in 2008 and has appeared on "Hawaii Five-O."
Levine and Maroon 5 begin a 31-city tour Aug. 1 in St. Louis.
I?ve been cleaning out my room in the ancestral home, sorting through old clothes and bad books, school reports and chemistry notes, rock collections and hardware odds and ends to determine what?s worth storing and what can make the trip to the great green Goodwill in the sky. In the process, I?ve realized that I?ve made quite the habit of collecting old cookbooks ? complete with yellowed pages, ripped binding, and strange drawings.
And yet, I love to think of all the hands that have held a cookbook before it gets to me. I love the way old recipes reflect the culture in which they were written as much as the taste of the times. Since I?d just been to St. Petersburg, I paused during my cleaning frenzy before the spine of a book covered with torn paper, Cooking the Russian Way by Musia Soper and straight out of 1961. The book opened stiffly, its browned pages smelling like a dusty library.
Inside, I found the kinds of hearty meals to see you through a cold Russian winter, where rich broths, sour cream, potatoes, cream sauces, butter, and fried onions abounded. These aren?t the kinds of recipes that are featured in your newest food magazine, but the basics handed down from mother to daughter for generations. They?re written for housewives who already know how to cook and who are feeding a family of four. The ingredient list rarely tops ten items and more often runs something like that in this recipe for ?Potatoes Stuffed with Meat?: Potatoes, tomatoes, butter, egg, minced meat, sour cream, flour, chopped dill, salt, and pepper.
The book is filled with fascinating recipes, like that for ?Moscow Rassolink,? a salted cucumber soup made with ox kidneys, sorrel, soup vegetables, and sour cream. Or ?Egg And Wine Sauce? made with eggs, white wine, lemon juice, and castor sugar. And then there?s ?Kvass,? a homebrewed, fermented drink made from rye bread, yeast, sugar, and raisins.
I also learned that hors d?oeuvres are an important part of Russian entertaining culture, and that these, served with cold vodka before a meal are often so elaborate that it?s difficult to make a meal grand enough to follow plates piled with piroshky,?bliny?and dishes in aspic. I learned that most fish is salted, since the sea is so far from so much of the ?USSR,? but it is also frequently cooked into pies, salads, and soup, and that game, including woodcock, snipe, teal, quail, venison, partridge, and plover is popular, but it used to be that ?wood pigeons were not shot very often, because there was a belief that they were the guardian of souls.?
So of course, after all this perusal, I had to cook?something?from the book. While I was sorely temped by such delicacies as ?Sucking [sic] Pig in Aspic? or sauerkraut soup, in the end I wanted to recreate those tiny, delicious?pelmeny?we?d eaten in St. Petersburg.
My cousin and her boyfriend are visiting from Germany, so I coerced them into spending the afternoon cooking. Together, we chopped vegetables, rolled out pasta dough, and stuffed dumplings.
There may have been a snafu or two, such as the cauliflower fritters, which were meant to be dunked into a batter and deep fried. ?They really do assume you know what you?re doing ? these florets we?ve just cooked don?t show up again in the recipe!? I exclaimed, and my cousin and I laughed as we mashed the cooked cauliflower and mixed it into the batter. Micha was the one who caught the slip a few minutes later ? ?I think this says you dip the florets in the batter.? ?No, no,? we said, ?Surely not.? But yes, that was indeed, what it said. We just hadn?t been able to imagine fritters any other way than dropped into a pan of hot oil.
Luckily, my cooking companions were just as nonchalant about changing recipes as I am, and we fried up puffs of our cauliflower batter into flat, delicious pancakes that we ate outside just as the sun began to set.
Vegetarian Pelmeny The following recipes are all adapted from Cooking the Russian Way. We modified the recipe for Siberian Pelmeny to make it vegetarian. First, because my cousin is vegetarian and second, because of the following warning paragraph in the book: ?The craze for slimming has hit the Russian woman too, in the big cities anyway; and you may see her heroically refusing helpings of bliny with Smetana [sour cream], potato fritters, pelmeny or sweet dishes. This is quite a contrast to the days of the fat, rich merchants when it was not uncommon to see one of them drop dead from apoplexy at a meal, through constant overeating.? However, if you?d like to make these with meat, substitute the mushrooms and zucchini with equal parts cooked minced beef and pork.
2 eggs 2 cups flour ? tsp. salt 5 tbsp. water (or more) 1 cup finely diced mushrooms 1 cup finely diced zucchini ? cup finely diced onion Olive oil Salt Pepper
Prepare your pasta by adding ? tsp. salt to the flour and shaping the mixture into a volcano. Break the eggs into the hollow and knead with your hands, adding water as necessary, until a stiff dough forms (5-10 minutes). Roll the dough into a ball and leave it in a cool place for 30 minutes.
While your dough is resting, saut? the onion in a little olive oil until translucent, then add mushrooms and zucchini until soft. Season with salt and pepper. Drain and set aside any excess liquid (you?ll want to add it to the onion sauce ? see below).
When you?re ready to begin making pasta, lightly sprinkle flour over a clean work surface. Rip off half of the dough and roll it out with a rolling pin as thinly as you can. Then roll it even thinner. You can get fancy, and cut out circles with the bottom of a glass, or you can do it the lazy way by slicing the dough into approximately 3?3 inch squares. Put a small spoonful of filling into each round, then press the edges of the dough firmly together to prevent the filling from falling out. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
Drop dumplings into boiling water. When they rise to the surface, they?re done. Serve with melted butter, sour cream, and chopped, fresh dill.
Cauliflower Fritters Adapted from Cooking the Russian Way.
1 cauliflower 2 eggs ? cup milk 1 cup flour ? tsp. baking powder ? tsp. salt Vegetable oil
Cut cauliflower into florets and boil in salted water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and coarsely mash the florets, then set aside to cool.
Beat eggs with milk. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. When the cauliflower has cooled, add it to the batter and mix well. Leave in a cool place for 30 minutes.
Cover the bottom of a skillet with vegetable oil, and when it is very hot, drop tablespoon-sized drops of cauliflower batter into the skillet. Flip and cook on the other side until both sides are golden-brown and the fritter is cooked through. Serve with onion sauce and sour cream.
Onion Sauce Adapted from Cooking the Russian Way.
1 onion 1 tbsp. flour ? cup vegetable stock Reserved cooking liquid from pelmeny filling (opt.) 2 tbsp. butter ? tsp. mustard 1 tsp. vinegar ? tsp. salt
Finely chop the onion and saut? in 1 tbsp. of butter until translucent. Set aside.
Melt remaining butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour and gradually dilute with meat or vegetable stock and reserved cooking liquid from pelmeny filling, if available. Add onions, mustard, vinegar, and salt and bring to a boil. As soon as the sauce boils, reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Beyonce is just like you and me. Only with more money and talent. After arriving in Houston yesterday, the hometown girl had dinner with the family?before heading over to Target for a spot of shopping. Yes, Target. It looks like Bey needed a new (sensibly priced) outfit because she was spotted by fans pushing a trolley through womenswear. Yes, a trolley.
When news of Mrs. Carter?s discount shopping spree hit Twitter, the Hive was quick to defend her choice of retailer but took a tough love approach to the state of her weave. See highlights of this important debate after the jump.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google's second-quarter earnings are likely to determine whether Internet search leader's stock extends a recent surge that has its price headed toward $1,000.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR: The report, due out after the stock market closes Thursday, comes as positive sentiment about Google is running high while Wall Street has grown disenchanted with rivals such as Apple Inc. and Facebook Inc. Google's stock touched a record high of $928 Monday, and has gained about 30 percent so far this year. The Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed by about 18 percent during the same stretch.
Google Inc. has been making more money by maintaining its dominance of Internet search and online advertising while plumbing promising new opportunities in the rapidly growing mobile-device market through the distribution of its Android software.
Although Google gives away Android to device makers, the operating system features the company's search engine and other services. Those tie-ins have ensured Google's products, including email, maps and YouTube video, remain deeply ingrained in people's lives even as they spend more time on smartphones and tablets instead of personal computers.
Android powers more than 900 million devices worldwide, making it the mobile market leader.
Even so, the transition to mobile computing hasn't been entirely smooth for Google. That's because mobile ads aren't as lucrative as the marketing messages peddled on PCs, largely because the smaller screens of phones and tablets leave less space to get the messages across.
The phenomenon has caused Google's average ad price to decline from the previous year in six consecutive quarters, a trend that held down the company's stock for much of 2012. The worries about a persisting downturn in Google's ad rates, known as "cost per click," have eased as the magnitude of the decreases has lessened. In the first three months of this year, Google's average ad price fell 4 percent, the smallest drop during the six-quarter slump.
That raised hopes that it won't be much longer before Google's ad rates are rising again. Google is trying to make that happen more quickly by changing the way it sells ads to prod more marketers into buying spots on mobile devices at the same time they plan campaigns aimed at PCs. Some advertisers have already switched to Google's new pricing system. All marketers will be forced to adopt the new approach, known as "enhanced campaigns," on July 22.
Google's stock also has gotten a lift from the early enthusiasm for a new device called Glass that works like an Internet-connected computer worn on a user's head. The device looks like a pair of glasses and features a small display screen above the right eye that features information and imagery retrieved from the Internet. Glass can also be used to take video and pictures without tying up a user's hands. About 10,000 people who paid $1,500 apiece for an early version of Glass are currently testing the product. Glass isn't expected to be released to the mass market until next year.
The quarterly report also will update investors on Google's efforts to pare its losses at Motorola Mobility, a cellphone maker purchased for $12.5 billion 14 months ago.
Since Google assumed ownership, Motorola Mobility has posted losses totaling nearly $1.4 billion. Google has been laying off Motorola Mobility workers and cutting other costs to narrow its losses. Motorola Mobility also has been working on a new line-up of phones, including an upcoming model called "Moto X," in an attempt to boost its fortunes and recover some of the market share that it has lost since Apple released its trend-setting iPhone six years ago.
The window for Google's stock to break the $1,000 barrier might not be open for much longer. That's because the Mountain View, Calif., company reached a legal settlement to split its stock for the first time later this year. The split calls for a new class of "C'' stock with no voting power to be issued for each share of an existing category of Google's "A'' voting stock. The structure is designed to ensure that Google CEO Larry Page and his longtime colleague, company co-founder Sergey Brin, retain control over the business, even though they only currently own about 15 percent of Google's outstanding stock, combined.
The split is expected to cut the trading price of Google's stock roughly in half because it will nearly double the number of outstanding shares. Google hasn't set a precise timetable for completing the split, but it's expected to be done by the end of the year. Page and other Google executives may be asked for a status report on the stock split during Thursday's conference call discussing the second-quarter earnings.
WHY IT MATTERS: Google is a good way to monitor the health of digital commerce because it runs the Internet's largest advertising network and is now a major player in the mobile computing market. It's also one of the world's most powerful companies, so what happens to it can affect millions of people and businesses.
WHAT'S EXPECTED: Analysts, on average, expect earnings of $10.81 per share on revenue of $11.4 billion, according to FactSet. The earnings projection excludes the costs of employee stock compensation and the revenue figure excludes Google's advertising commissions.
LAST YEAR'S QUARTER: Google earned $2.8 billion, or $8.42 per share, in the same quarter of 2012. If not for expenses covering employee stock compensation and severance for Motorola Mobility workers, Google would have earned $10.12 per share. Revenue excluding ad commissions totaled $9.6 billion. Google owned Motorola Mobility for less than half of last year's quarter.
The research was announced before the CSR Asia Summit 2013 in Bangkok on September 17-18 at the Centara Grand at Central Plaza Ladprao.
The research involved a selection of 80 companies among the largest listed on four prominent Asian stock markets - Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Indonesia Stock Exchange, Malaysian Stock exchange, and Singapore Stock Exchange.
The companies selected were those with the largest stock volumes on April 25, (Malaysia), April 29 (Hong Kong and Singapore) and May 2 (Indonesia).
In order for a company to qualify for the research, it must also have had publicly available information in the form of a webpage, CSR/sustainability report and/or annual report, in English or with an English translation.
It allowed for comparison between the four diverse industries represented in the survey, including banking and finance, ITC, pharmaceuticals, and property and real estate.
The research found that the companies surveyed had invested their priorities among children and education for about 73 per cent of the total and the delivery of CCI projects through local non-profit organisations. The CCI disclosure was activity, output based - listing trips and projects.
The research showed a high percentage, 75 per cent of the forty companies, CCI focused on children. Initiatives ranging from working with primary schools, after school clubs and providing healthcare. Senior citizens were the least represented demographic, only 10 per cent of companies had a CCI activity focusing on the elderly.
There was very limited discussion around the goals of community investment or defining what positive impact a company was trying to achieve.
According to the survey the Malaysian stock exchange was the most represented with 13 out of 20 companies reporting on CCI.
There was no formal or consistent way companies disclosed CCI information.
From the forty companies that reported on CCI, only 50 per cent provided information which was clearly labeled and easy to locate.
The remaining companies dispersed information through CSR/ sustainability webpages, reports and annual reports. Identifying and extracting CCI information was not straight forward or uniform.
Twenty companies included a distinct section in a report covering CCI. There were many variations in how companies grouped and named their CCI information.
Headings included 'Supporting Public Welfare', 'Corporation & Society', 'Social Programmes', 'Empowering Communities', and 'Community Development'.
Banking & finance and property & real estate had the highest number of companies reporting on CCI efforts. ITC companies performed poorly with only five out of the twenty companies surveyed providing any CCI information.
Across all stock exchanges, 23 companies clearly outlined and explained why they undertook CCI.
Among those with a CCI strategy, there was an overarching theme that being actively involved in the community and 'giving back' meant companies could state that they were a socially responsible business.
A total of nineteen companies had at least one initiative linked to core business practices - for pharmaceuticals this involved the provision of healthcare and medicine, for banking and finance, training in finance and for property and real estate the building of schools.
Out of the forty companies who reported on CCI, 82 per cent clearly stated that they donated money, however only 43 per cent of those companies disclosed the amount invested. Some companies revealed the amounts for specific programmes, but not all of their CCI.
There is limited evidence that companies are donating time and resources to communities. Disclosure on the involvement of employee-volunteering in CCI was relatively low, with only seventeen companies clearly stating that employees were a part of the community initiatives.
Only four companies provided further details on employee volunteering in terms of number of hours and frequency.
Although the companies reviewed were able to tell good 'stories' about CCI, unfortunately there was no evidence to suggest that any company was measuring and reporting the real value, impact and success.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) ? As a state with a large number of outdoor workers, Kansas has a problem with skin cancer.
The Hutchinson News (http://is.gd/towt3j) reports that a 2009 study by the Center for Disease Control shows that more than a million people in the United States have been diagnosed with skin cancer. That makes it the most common cancer.
Kansas has 9 percent more new melanoma cases than the national average. About 80 Kansans die from skin cancer every year.
Bill Heer has had several suspicious spots removed from his arms, including a few that were pre-melanoma skin cancer. The former head agronomist at Kansas State?s South-Central Kansas Research Field recalls burning often while growing up on a farm in the 1950s and 1960s.
CHICAGO (AP) ? A 6-year-old boy who spent more than three hours underground after being swallowed by a massive Indiana sand dune was able to respond to "simple commands" when he arrived at a Chicago hospital, a spokesperson said.
The boy, whose survival was described as a "miracle" by a local coroner, remained in critical condition Saturday at Comer Children's Hospital and has responded well to being on a ventilator, hospital spokeswoman Lorna Wong said in a statement.
The hospital did not detail what commands the boy responded to after he arrived. Wong later told The Associated Press she could not say if the responses were an indication that he had regained consciousness. The boy's name and hometown have not been released at the request of the family, she said.
Michigan City, Ind., Fire Chief Ronnie Martin told WSBT-TV on Saturday that an air pocket saved the boy's life.
According to Bruce Rowe, a ranger at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore park along Lake Michigan, the boy's family said he was playing on the dune Friday when he dropped partially into it. While they were trying to dig him out, the dune collapsed, burying the boy under 11 feet of sand, he said.
The family called 911, and emergency responders were on the scene within 15 minutes and began digging by hand, Rowe said. Crews with excavating equipment were brought in to aid the rescue effort.
Martin told the South Bend, Ind.-area TV station that firefighters located the boy while prodding the dune, right after they detected the air pocket that enabled him to survive for so long underground. They pulled him out and the boy was rushed to a Michigan City hospital, then later flown to Comer.
LaPorte County Deputy Coroner Mark Huffman told The News-Dispatch of Michigan City that the boy's survival was a "miracle."
"It is totally amazing," he said.
Authorities were puzzled about the cause of the collapse, which Rowe called "unprecedented." The section of the dune, which is more than 125 feet high and is known as Mount Baldy, had been cordoned off for restoration work. It will remain closed at least through the weekend and until authorities can determine if it's still a danger.
Wong, the Comer spokeswoman, said the boy's family wanted to express gratitude to the emergency responders and everyone else who helped in his rescue.
"They also ask that people include this little boy in their prayers," she said.
By CHRIS TOMLINSON Associated Press on Jul 13, 2013, at 2:31 AM??Updated on 7/13/13 at 2:33 AM
AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas Senate passed sweeping new abortion restrictions late Friday, sending them to Republican Gov. Rick Perry to sign into law after weeks of protests and rallies that drew thousands of people to the Capitol and made the state the focus of the national abortion debate.
Republicans used their large majority in the Texas Legislature to pass the bill nearly three weeks after a filibuster by Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis and an outburst by abortion-rights activists in the Senate gallery disrupted a deadline vote June 25.
Called back for a new special session by Perry, lawmakers took up the bill again as thousands of supporters and opponents held rallies and jammed the Capitol to testify at public hearings. As the Senate took its final vote, protesters in the hallway outside the chamber chanted, "Shame! Shame! Shame!"
Democrats have called the GOP proposal unnecessary and unconstitutional. Republicans said the measure was about protecting women and unborn children.
House Bill 2 would require doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, allow abortions only in surgical centers, limit where and when women may take abortion-inducing pills and ban abortions after 20 weeks.
Abortion-rights supporters say the bill will close all but five abortion clinics in Texas, leaving large areas of the vast state without abortion services. Only five out of 42 existing abortion clinics meet the requirements to be a surgical center, and clinic owners say they can't afford to upgrade or relocate.
The circus-like atmosphere in the Texas Capitol marked the culmination of weeks of protests, the most dramatic of which came June 25 in the final minutes of the last special legislative session, Davis' filibuster and subsequent protest prevented the bill from becoming law.
The Senate's debate took place between a packed gallery of demonstrators, with anti-abortion activists wearing blue and abortion-rights supporters wearing orange. Security was tight, and state troopers reported confiscating bottles of urine and feces as they worked to prevent another attempt to stop the Republican majority from passing the proposal.
Those arrested or removed from the chamber included four women who tried to chain themselves to a railing in the gallery. One of the women was successful in chaining herself, prompting a 10-minute recess.
When debate resumed, protesters began loudly singing, "Give choice a chance. All we are saying is give choice a chance." The Senate's leader, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, told officers to remove them.
Sen. Glen Hegar of Katy, the bill's Republican author, argued that all abortions, including those induced with medications, should take place in an ambulatory surgical center in case of complications.
Democrats pointed out that childbirth is more dangerous than an abortion and there have been no serious problems with women taking abortion drugs at home. They introduced amendments to add exceptions for cases of rape and incest and to remove some of the more restrictive clauses, but Republicans dismissed all of the proposed changes.
Sen. Royce West, a Dallas Democrat, asked why Hegar was pushing restrictions that federal courts in other states had suspended as possibly unconstitutional.
"There will be a lawsuit. I promise you," West said, raising his right hand as if taking an oath.
The bill mirrors restrictions passed in Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kansas, Wisconsin and Arizona.
Original Print Headline: Texas Senate backs abortion restrictions
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New research shows how human activity deep underground combines with natural earthquakes far away to set off potent local temblors
By David Biello
INJECTION RISK: Wells for pumping water or CO2 underground may cause earthquakes.Image: Courtesy of USGS
The middle of Oklahoma has become an earthquake hotspot because of the oil and gas industry?and also from powerful temblors around the world. In the area near Prague, Okla., where wastewater from oil and gas production has been injected down disposal wells for decades, a series of earthquakes broke out following the massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake off the coast of the Maule region of Chile in 2010. For months the grounds in Oklahoma periodically shook, culminating in a destructive 5.7 magnitude quake in November 2011.
According to a new paper published in Science on July 12, that makes the Prague earthquake not only the largest earthquake associated with wastewater injection but also the largest linked to another seemingly natural quake as an initiating trigger, despite the distances involved. And that suggests that such relatively small, remotely triggered earthquakes might serve as a warning sign of bigger shocks to come, according to geologist Nicholas van der Elst of the Lamont?Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University, who led the research.
Oklahoma is not alone. The Cogdell oil field near Snyder, Texas, had a similar reaction to the March 2011 massive magnitude 9.0 Tohoku earthquake in Japan, which caused a tsunami that resulted in more than 15,000 deaths and multiple nuclear meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant. And the same Maule earthquake also set off a similar swarm of small quakes near the border of Colorado and New Mexico, where water was also being reinjected. "We were somewhat surprised, though, to find that the triggering actually foreshadowed the occurrence of moderate to large earthquakes at these sites, showing the buildup of underground fluid pressure," van der Elst notes.
The key is all that wastewater?pumped back down under pressure as part of oil and gas production, which is on the rise in the U.S. again. As van der Elst describes it, slow-moving seismic waves from the distant earthquakes squeeze that fluid in and out of the deep rock, setting off local rumbling. The same thing happens in natural underground water-filled formations, too, like the magnitude 7.9 earthquake near Denali, Alaska in 2002, which set off temblors in the Yellowstone Caldera and changed the timing of geyser eruptions.
Such man-made earthquakes are not rare at all, and some come quickly after injection of wastewater, as in quiescent Youngstown, Ohio, which endured a magnitude 4.0 quake after wastewater injection started at a nearby disposal well. The shaking has not recurred since pumping stopped.
That such wastewater injection triggers quakes comes as no surprise. Evidence for them began in the 1960s, when the weapon?making Rocky Mountain Arsenal near Denver attempted to dispose of hazardous chemicals by pumping the liquid underground. During four years of such disposal, the pumping triggered 16 earthquakes, even after the injection stopped. And the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) deliberately triggered quakes in the Rangely oil field in northwestern Colorado to determine what types of underground pressures might set off temblors.
AUSTIN, Texas -- Republicans in the Texas Legislature passed an omnibus abortion bill that is one of the most restrictive in the nation, but Democrats vowed Saturday to fight both in the courts and the ballot box as they used the measure to rally their supporters.
More than 2,000 demonstrators filled the Capitol building in Austin to oppose the bill, and state troopers drug six out of the Senate chamber for trying to disrupt the debate. The Republican majority ultimately passed the bill unchanged just before midnight, with all but one Democrat voting against it.
"Today the Texas Legislature took its final step in our historic effort to protect life," said Gov. Rick Perry who will sign the bill into law in the next few days. "This legislation builds on the strong and unwavering commitment we have made to defend life and protect women's health."
Democrats, though, promised a fight in the courts.
"There will be a lawsuit. I promise you," Dallas Sen. Royce West said on the Senate floor, raising his right hand as if taking an oath.
Democrats offered 20 amendments to the bill, which will ban abortions after 20 weeks, require abortion doctors to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital and require all abortions take place in surgical centers. They ranged from exceptions for rape and incest to allowing doctors more leeway in prescribing abortion-inducing drugs. But Republicans would have none of it.
The bill is just one of many across the nation championed by anti-abortion groups set on a constitutional challenge to Roe vs Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision guaranteeing a woman's right to decide on an abortion before the fetus is viable outside the womb.
Texas falls under the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has shown a willingness to accept more stringent limits on abortions. Passing the law also pleases Christian conservatives who make up the majority of Republican primary voters.
But the measure has also sparked protests in Texas not seen in least 20 years, with thousands of abortion rights supporters flooding the Capitol to draw out normally boring committee hearings and disrupting key votes. Protesters finished a filibuster started by Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis of Fort Worth by jeering for the last 15 minutes of the first special session, effectively killing the bill.
That's when Perry called lawmakers back for round two. But opponents said the fight is far from over and used the popular anger to register and organize Democratic voters.
"Let's make sure that tonight is not an ending point, it's a beginning point for our future, our collective futures, as we work to take this state back." Davis told 2,000 adoring supporters after the bill passed.
The Texas Republican Party, meanwhile, celebrated what they considered a major victory that makes Texas "a nationwide leader in pro-life legislation."
"As Democrats continue to talk about their dreams of turning Texas blue, passage of HB2 is proof that Texans are conservative and organized and we look forward to working with our amazing Republican leadership in the Texas Legislature as they finish the special session strong," a party statement said.
Friday's debate took place between a packed gallery of demonstrators, with anti-abortion activists wearing blue and abortion-rights supporters wearing orange. Security was tight, and state troopers reported confiscating bottles of urine and feces as they worked to prevent another attempt to stop the Republican majority from passing the proposal.
Those arrested or removed from the chamber included four women who tried to chain themselves to a railing in the gallery while singing, "All we are saying is give choice a chance." One of the women was successful in chaining herself, prompting a 10-minute recess.
Sen. Glen Hegar of Katy, the bill's Republican author, argued that all abortions, including those induced with medications, should take place in an ambulatory surgical center in case of complications.
Democrats pointed out that childbirth is more dangerous than an abortion and there have been no serious problems with women taking abortion drugs at home.
Cecile Richards, the daughter of former Gov. Anne Richards and president of Planned Parenthood, said Texas Republicans and abortion opponents won this political round -- but it could cost them down the road.
"All they have done is built a committed group of people across this state who are outraged about the treatment of women and the lengths to which this Legislature will go to take women's health care away," she said.
The dedication of those activists will be tested during the 2014 elections. Democrats have not won a statewide seat in Texas since 1994, the longest such losing streak in the nation.
Associated Press reporters Chris Tomlinson and Will Weissert wrote this report.
Originally published: July 11, 2013 7:51 PM
Updated: July 11, 2013 9:42 PM
By AISHA AL-MUSLIM
?aisha.al-muslim@newsday.com
Photo credit: Tara Conry | Long Beach City Hall located at 1 West Chester St., Long Beach. (March 28, 2013)
Poor budgeting by the City of Long Beach's former Republican-led administration created an $18-million, multiyear deficit and exhausted $21 million in rainy day funds, according to a state comptroller's audit report.
Auditors found the prior administration enacted budgets for fiscal years 2008 to 2012 with "unrealistic" estimates of revenues and expenditures, and relied on inter-fund advances, budget notes and long-term financing to fund operations, according to the report released Thursday. The audit was requested by city officials and conducted prior to the damage done by superstorm Sandy.
"As Long Beach continues to recover from the devastation caused by Superstorm Sandy, city officials must also battle to undo the long-term damage done to their budget," state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a statement.
From 2008 to 2012, revenues were overestimated by more than $12 million and actual expenditures exceeded budgeted appropriations by $2.8 million. Also, the total unexpended surplus decreased by almost $21 million.
Long Beach City Manager Jack Schnirman, who was hired by the Democrat-controlled government that came into office in January 2012, said the audit "validates and illuminates the areas of concerns we identified in the first few months of this administration. . . . Clearly, the prior administration did not properly budget revenues and expenses."
The audit also found that the city did not plan for $4.2 million in separation payments for retiring employees, resulting in the State Legislature authorizing the city in July 2012 to issue bonds payable over five years to finance the costs. City officials also underestimated overtime salaries by a total of $3.4 million.
Jim Hennessy, a former city council president and now spokesman for Long Beach Republicans, said the difficult economy forced officials to make tough choices.
"We used the rainy day fund so that we didn't have to raise taxes on people during the recession," he said. "I find it very ironic that the comptroller who recommends using surplus to offset tax increases would criticize what we did."
A International Travel Insurance Quote to Fit your Budget
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The internet has revolutionized how people purchase insurancepolicies nowadays. You don?t have to leave your home or you can do it in your office as long as there is an internet connection; and in just one sitting, you can get several quotes that you can compare with each other. Try to conduct your search now while you still have time and find the appropriate and suitable internationaltravelinsurance quote online, so that when you?re already on vacation you can enjoy every minute of it.
It will feature nearly 100 independent, international and Maine-made films and provide audiences a chance to talk with directors, writers, producers and others working behind the scenes.
6:36 AM
Local Dispatches
Dayton woman dies when truck rolls over onto minivan / Osprey chicks doing well after falling from nest / Southport man arrested, held on burglary charge . . . and more news from around the state.
The Bulls have famously scrimped on the free-agent market because they employ four very expensive players?Boozer, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng and Derrick Rose?and no desire to be significant tax payers. Of those four, Rose and Noah are not going anywhere, but Deng has been discussed in trade scenarios. Despite a good year from Boozer (16.2 points, 9.8 rebounds), there hasn?t been much trade interest for him, which means an amnesty waiver is possible, however unlikely.?
LONDON (Reuters) - The Indonesian Bakrie family, the major shareholder in Bumi Plc, is in talks to sell its stake in the coal mining group to its chairman Samin Tan, Bumi Plc said on Wednesday.
The proposed deal would increase Samin Tan's existing holding in Bumi Plc to around 47 percent from about 30 percent. He became a major shareholder in Bumi last year.
London-listed Bumi Plc was co-founded by financier Nat Rothschild and the influential Bakrie family. But Bumi Plc and the Bakries have been seeking to part ways after two years of boardroom battles and a probe into financial irregularities.
The latest separation plan would also involve the Bakrie family buying Bumi Plc's stake in Jakarta-listed Bumi Resources for over $500 million in cash.
Bumi said that independent shareholders would have to approve Samin Tan's acquisition of the Bakries' stake in Bumi Plc.
The new separation deal differs from one originally proposed last year. In that scenario, the Bakries had agreed to exchange cash and their shares in London-listed Bumi for the group's minority holding in Bumi Resources.
Rothschild, who owns a 14.8 percent stake in Bumi Plc, criticized the latest proposal.
"The new deal which was proposed today optically looks the same but in reality is very, very different," he said. "Samin Tan would own 47 percent of the company. He would be in control of a company for which he has not made a takeover offer for minority shareholders."
Rothschild's relationship with Bumi's board and the Bakries has soured and earlier in July he asked Britain's financial watchdog to look into whether Bumi had made statements which have misled the market.
A source close to the company said that if the new deal went ahead, it was likely that the majority of the $500 million cash proceeds would be returned to shareholders.
Trading in Bumi's shares has been suspended since April after irregularities found in the accounts of a key subsidiary forced it to delay its full-year results.
(Reporting by Sarah Young. Editing by Jane Merriman)
When a house is cluttered it shows the potential buyers that your home doesn?t have enough storage. No buyer wants to purchase a home with a lack of storage! One way to increase space and reduce the chaos would be by removing some of the furniture in the room. Once the furniture is out of the space the room appears larger, giving the impression of more storage. Another way to get rid of the mess is by removing all old items in the room, reducing the crowdedness and leaving behind only the modern or newer objects.
Ehow.com
Lighting
Most people have their homes improperly lit. With the appropriate lighting you can completely change the mood of any room. One way to create the best lighting in your home would be to increase the wattage from whatever it is now to 100 watts for every 50 feet. Another way to create the best atmosphere for your home is by utilizing the three different types of in-home lighting; there is ambient lighting, task lighting, and accent lighting. Ambient lighting is usually overhead or general light fixtures. Task lighting would include small desk or reading lamps. Accent lighting includes decorative light sources on the wall or larger lamps on tabletops.
voltainnovations.com
Wall hangings
Often people utilize the same areas to hang pictures or wall art, in the middle of the wall all at the same level perfectly lined up. When art or pictures are hung in this way they become invisible due to the fact that they are all on the same level of eye sight. Try switching it up a bit by shifting around the groupings. Place the works on different levels to keep the eyes interested and want to inspect the works more.
hgtv.com
Bedroom
This is the room that you want to make look as comforting and inviting as possible. Use soft colors like light purples, blues, greens, or neutrals to create an alluring atmosphere. Coupled with the use of soft linens the bedroom will give off an essence of comfort and the buyer should be able to see themselves relaxing in that space. Going back to the topic of clutter, you want to make sure all closets are organized. You want the buyer to look in your closet and see all the storage potential.
activehealthcareinc.com
Accessories
The use of accessories, utilized in the correct way, can make any space more intriguing. Odd numbers are most popular when organizing decorations; it?s something different and the fact that it isn?t symmetrical catches the eye of any potential buyer. The use of triangles when grouping accessories is most common because you can place the largest object in the back and the smallest in the front, once again creating something unique that catches the eye of the buyer. Also you want to vary the height so there is more of a distinction between the objects.
homemu.com
Overall the importance of staging can make or break a property. You want to set out with your best foot forward when trying to attract the perfect buyer, the simple act of decluttering, changing lighting, rearranging hanging art, making a more inviting bed room, and regrouping accessories can attract that perfect person. You can get more information about home staging at HGTV.
For more information about real estate listing in Richmond Virginia visit The 20/20 Team?s website. Both our listing specialist Tyler Rackley and buyers specialist Sean Pierce have superior knowledge of the market and the sales process to ensure that you next real estate transaction goes smoothly. Contact us today and find out how we can help you.
Samsung at an event in Mumbai announced two new additions to its Galaxy S4 family. As the name suggests, the Galaxy S4 mini is a smaller version of the original Galaxy S4 with lower specs while Galaxy S4 zoom brings in optical zoom to an Android smartphone.
The Galaxy S4 mini features a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED qHD (960?540) display with 1.7GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor and 1.5GB RAM. The phone also comes with an 8MP camera (back) and 1.9MP camera at the front, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, 8GB internal memory, microSD card slot, 1900mAh battery, Sound & Shot, Story Album, S Translator, WatchON, S Health.
The Galaxy S4 mini will sell for Rs. 27,900 and will come with 2GB of 3G data for three months from Reliance.
The Galaxy S4 zoom on the other hand is the first Android smartphone to boast a 10X optical zoom. The phone features a 16MP camera sensor with Xenon flash and an innovative Zoom Ring that allows to zoom in or out of the picture and even activate the camera. Apart from that, the phone has Android 4.2 OS, 1.5GHz dual-core processor with 1.5GB RAM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, microSD card slot and 2330mAh battery.
The Galaxy S4 zoom is priced at Rs. 29,900 and will also bundle a flip cover and free 2GB 3G data from Reliance for three months.
