How To Make Green Improvements To Your Home | Green Home ...

In the present day, green home improvements are finding their way to the top of many homeowners? priority lists. While the concept of a green home can be described in various ways depending on who you ask, it all boils down to the basic recipe of environmental friendliness. For instance, granite and wood counter-tops are not the only green updates you can make to your home. You should begin with the factors that affect your utility costs to ensure that you are not using unnecessary energy amounts.

Energy efficiency is fast becoming a recognized standard not only in the construction of new homes, but existing ones as well. Ultimately, all projects geared towards being green around the home should reduce monthly utility bills and be environmentally friendly. Below, therefore, we take a look at 4 ingenious ways of making green improvements to your home that should see you reduce your power bill and achieve environmental friendliness as follows:

Upgrade to a more energy efficient kitchen

Investing in a green kitchen should be at the forefront of any home improvement checklist since the kitchen is at the heart of every home. It is also the room that sets the mood whenever a potential buyer or guest walks in. Additionally, it is where a majority of electrical appliances are located and which are responsible for high utility bills. Therefore, in order to make your home greener, energy rated refrigerators, dishwashers, dryer/washer sets etc. are a must-have.

Maintain constant home temperatures

One of the smartest green home moves is, arguably, upgrading to a programmable thermostat. Not only is it easy to install, but it is also one of the least expensive green home improvements that you will ever make and is today a staple for many homes. Moreover, with advances in technology, remote learning thermostats that can be controlled from your computer or smart phones now exist. This means that you can adjust your home thermostat right from your office before you begin your commute home. Typically, a return on investment on a programmable thermostat may take anywhere between four months and one-and- a-half years.

Improve attic insulation

The attic is synonymous with lots of storage space and it is also where heat seeps out during the summer months and escapes during the winter. And when it comes to greening your home, the best return on investment may be derived from spray foam insulation since attic temperatures can reach as high as 170 degrees during the summer if not properly insulated, or you can rent a sustainability storage space like the one KSS offers in Newcastle. It is thus prudent to take a peek at your attic and see what level and type of insulation you have.
Blown-in insulation or fiberglass are other viable alternatives although they compress over time and lose their efficiency properties. However, spray foam insulation will last an eternity. It will never require replacing nor lose its efficiency. More importantly, you will notice a dramatic reduction of between 30% and 40% in your utility bills. That is definitely going green.

Invest in energy star windows

If you still have single pane windows, then it is about time you considered installing energy star rated windows if you want your home to go green. This is because old windows cause drafts that affect cooling and heating costs not to mention your comfort levels. Therefore, for energy savings and maximum comfort, energy star windows are the way to go. Choose those that are filled with argon gas and are double-paned and you are likely to save up to 25% on your electric bill thus putting some green not only in your pocket, but in your home as well.

Source: http://greenhomeimprovement.com.au/how-to-make-green-improvements-to-your-home/

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Marcel Kittel wins 1st stage of Tour de France

PORTO VECCHIO, Corsica (AP) ? The first stage of the 100th Tour de France ended with a bus stuck under an archway at the finish line until minutes before the first riders arrived.

Shortly after the bus was dislodged, German rider Marcel Kittel was first to arrive, after dodging all sorts of mayhem to win Saturday's stage on Corsica.

Kittel beat Russian sprinter Alexander Kristoff in a dash to the line after a major crash wiped out some other competitors. Organizers considered moving the finish line up to avoid the bus, then changed their minds at the last moment after the bus was freed.

About 20 riders fell close to the end, among them two-time former champion Alberto Contador and sprinter Peter Sagan. They got back up, with Contador's shoulder cut and bruised.

British sprinter Mark Cavendish did not crash but was stuck behind those who fell and could not challenge for his 24th stage win. He was hoping to wear the prestigious yellow jersey for the first time in his career.

"I saw the crash happen to my right," said Kittel, who also finished the day with the best sprinter's green jersey. "I knew it was serious. I knew that Mark and Andre (Greipel) were no longer in contention and it was a good chance for us."

But Cavendish and Sagan were nowhere to be seen as the main bunch turned for home, and Kittel held off Kristoff as they dipped for the line.

"I'm lucky I didn't come down," Cavendish said. "What caused the problems was changing the finish. Like, we heard on the radio with literally 5K to go that the sprint was in 2K and then a K later, they were like 'No, it's at the finish.' It's just carnage."

Francaise Des Jeux team manager Marc Madiot was furious.

"The president of the (race jury) didn't do his job," he said. "When we make a mistake we get a fine. Well, he should get a huge fine."

Race events director Jean-Francois Pescheux says circumstances forced a quick decision.

"We would've preferred a nice finish like the one we'd planned. But in exceptional situations, you have to take exceptional decisions," Pescheux said by telephone. "We're not going to stop the riders, and ask (them) what decision we should take."

Organizers considered shortening the stage by two miles after the bus from the Orica Greenedge team got wedged under the structure at the finish, but the bus got moved just in time.

"When a bus arrives near the finish line the driver must ask the permission to cross it," finish line manager Jean-Louis Pages said. "This bus was late. We deflated the tires so we could move it away as the peloton was fast approaching."

Kittel did not even know about the bus, and was lucky enough to avoid the crash to win the flat, 132-mile trek from Porto Vecchio to Bastia in just under 5 hours. Kristoff and third-place Danny van Poppel clocked the same time.

"It feels like I have gold on my shoulders," Kittel said about wearing the famed yellow jersey. "I didn't know about the bus. I'm glad they were able to move it."

Cavendish's Omega Pharma-Quick Step teammate Tony Martin was caught in the fall and later taken to hospital after losing consciousness.

Contador had a bad day, too.

Returning from a doping ban after testing positive on the 2010 Tour ? a title he has been stripped of ? the Spaniard grimaced in pain as he crossed the line with his clothing torn and his left shoulder grazed.

"I am fine, I'm OK," Contador said through a translator. "Someone didn't brake in front of me and then there was a crash. I will have to rest now."

As the stage drew to an end, former champion Andy Schleck's RadioShack team pushed to the front as a side wind made it harder for riders, then Contador's Saxo-Tinkoff team pushed up as the sinewy roads started to thin out.

Johnny Hoogerland, who was sent flying off his bike and sustained cuts to his legs on the 2011 Tour after being hit by a Tour car, was sent tumbling after hitting a crash barrier near the end. He was helped back onto his bike and able to continue.

Last year's Giro d'Italia winner, Ryder Hesjedal, was caught in another crash moments later but continued.

With the finish line in sight, and as the nerves jangled, riders were sent flying from their bikes, throwing the stage into chaos.

"It was just a complete disaster," Greipel said.

It proved to be an eventful day from the outset. Before the stage started, French Sports Minister Valerie Fourneyron met with a delegation of riders unhappy about pre-race media reports that they thought focused too heavily on doping stories.

The day before, Lance Armstrong hogged headlines when he told Le Monde he couldn't have won his seven Tours without doping.

Once the race began, tour favorite Chris Froome stopped to get a new rear wheel early on and stopped for a second time to get a new bike.

Sunday's second stage is shorter but features four climbs along the 97-mile ride from Bastia to Ajaccio.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/marcel-kittel-wins-1st-stage-tour-france-155509924.html

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Local teams eliminated at Dizzy Dean state baseball tournaments

by Scott Herpst Cat Walk Chatt

The weekend was a tough one for local 6-under, 9-under, and 11-under baseball clubs as teams from Catoosa and Walker Counties managed to win just two total games in their respective Dizzy Dean State tournaments.

In the 6-under sanctioned tournament in Gordon County, the Chickamauga Dodgers dropped their opener to the Winston All-Stars on Saturday morning. The Dodgers bounced back to beat Ringgold in their second game, but were eliminated from the tournament with a loss to the Canton Stingers.

Ringgold had lost its initial game to the Acworth Warriors. Boynton lost to the Rome Wolves and the East Cobb Cobras, while LFORA went 0-2, falling to Eastside and Midway.

At the 6-under invitational tournament in Canton, the LaFayette All-Stars ? the area?s lone representative ? was sent home with a pair of losses to Paulding County and Whitfield County.

Back up the road in Rome, LaFayette fared no better in the 9-under sanctioned tournament. The Orange-and-Black dropped their first game to Canton on Friday night before being eliminated by the Winston All-Stars on Saturday.

Ringgold also lost its tournament opener to Alpharetta before rebounding to beat Hobgood. However, Ringgold was also sent packing on Saturday night with a loss to Canton.

And in the 11-under sanctioned tournament at the South Cherokee Recreational Complex in Woodstock, the Rossville Braves quest for a state title was short-lived after back-to-back Saturday losses to the Eastside Hurricanes and the Buckhead Bombers.

Source: http://walkermessenger.com/bookmark/23020724

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Justin Wesley's Page - Musical Family Tree

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Source: http://www.musicalfamilytree.net/profile/JustinWesley?xg_source=activity

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Egypt prepares for worst ahead of Sunday protest

CAIRO (AP) ? As the streets once again fill with protesters eager to oust the president and Islamists determined to keep him in power, Egyptians are preparing for the worst: days or weeks of urban chaos that could turn their neighborhoods into battlegrounds.

Households already beset by power cuts, fuel shortages and rising prices are stocking up on goods in case the demonstrations drag on. Businesses near protest sites are closing until crowds subside. Fences, barricades and walls are going up near homes and key buildings. And local communities are organizing citizen patrols in case security breaks down.

For yet another time since President Mohammed Morsi took office last year, his palace in Cairo's upscale Heliopolis neighborhood is set to become the focus for popular frustration with his rule. Some protests outside the capital have already turned deadly, and weapons ? including firearms ? have been circulating more openly than in the past.

"We're worried like all Egyptians that a huge crowd will come, and it will get bloody," said Magdy Ezz, owner of a menswear shop across from the walled complex, a blend of Middle Eastern and neoclassical architecture. Besides ordinary roll-down storm shutters, storefronts on the street are sealed off with steel panels.

"We just hope it will be peaceful. But it could be a second revolution," he said. "If it lasts, we'll have to keep the store closed. But it's not like business has been booming here anyway, especially since the problems last year."

Last winter, the area saw some of Cairo's deadliest street violence since Egypt's 2011 uprising, with Islamists attacking a sit-in, anarchists throwing gasoline bombs, and police savagely beating protesters.

Morsi's opponents aim to bring out massive crowds starting Sunday, saying the country is fed up with Islamist misrule that has left the economy floundering and security in shambles. They say they have collected 22 million signatures ? compared to around 13 million voters who elected Morsi ? calling for him to step down, and they hope the turnout will push him to do just that.

Morsi's Islamist allies say they will defend the mandate of the country's first freely elected president, some with their "souls and blood" if necessary, while hard-liners have vowed to "smash" the protests.

On Friday, thousands of Morsi supporters launched a counterdemonstration, which some plan to continue as an open-ended sit-in at a mosque near the presidential palace ? the endpoint of the main protest march two days later.

Both camps say they intend to be peaceful, but demonstrations could rapidly descend into violence ? especially if the two sides meet. Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood group has said five of its members were killed in clashes with protesters in Nile Delta provinces over the past days, and Brotherhood offices have been attacked in several cities. A total of eight people, including one American, have been killed in protests this past week. The nation's highest religious authority, Al-Azhar, has warned against "civil war."

At the Brotherhood's national headquarters in Cairo's Muqattam district, workers added a final layer of mortar to a brick wall topped with grating to reinforce the main gate. A bank on the corner was completely boarded up. Some fear protesters could descend on the neighborhood to attack the headquarters, as happened last spring when supporters and opponents of the president fought street battles that left 200 wounded.

"The police have to get this place secured. It's their job and I'm sure they will," said Hadi Saad, a designer who lives around the corner from the headquarters. "The demonstrations will be very big across the country, no matter if (Morsi) stays or goes, so we should be prepared here as well."

Other neighbors said they don't expect a repeat of violence in the area, a hill overlooking the rest of the city. Only a handful of police patrolled the neighborhood ahead of the weekend protests, corralling a 100-car queue to the main avenue's gas station.

Engineer Hasan Farag, also a neighbor, said residents were "hoping for the best." Some have begun to resent the Brotherhood's presence, however, and a petition to force the offices out has been circulating.

"The neighborhood is divided ? some don't mind the headquarters being here, others do," Saad said.

Security has been redoubled at the presidential palace in Heliopolis. Walls set up last year still block some traffic access, and curved concrete slabs designed to prevent climbing now protect the main gates. Shipping containers also line much of the perimeter, and nearby apartment buildings have blocked off their parking lots and side streets with barbed wire. On Friday, authorities built a new wall of concrete blocks to surround the complex.

Peter Soliman, a communications student who lives in the neighborhood, said most residents don't know what to expect.

"Of course, parents are worried about their children going out to demonstrate by the palace, especially if the Brotherhood shows up," he said. "People fear things will turn bloody and divide the country."

Other Heliopolis residents and protest organizers say neighborhood watch groups are already being formed.

In the city center, concrete walls continue to block off the Interior Ministry and southern access routes to Tahrir Square, epicenter of the uprising that overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. At the weekend, protesters gathered by the thousands at the square, saying they plan to dig in for a protracted conflict.

The nearby Semiramis Hotel is taking no chances, even though Tahrir is expected to be a sideshow compared to Sunday's march on the palace. The site of repeated clashes between stone-throwing youths and riot police this past year, the luxury hotel has just finished fortifying itself with a spiked metal fence topped with razor-sharp blades.

To the south, in the leafy Garden City neighborhood ? an area that has sometimes seen spillover violence from Tahrir ? some residents were securing their homes.

Metalworker Sameh Haddad used an arc welder to put the final touches on an apartment building's new wrought iron gate before hurrying to other appointments. "For once, business has been great," he said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-prepares-worst-ahead-sunday-protest-074010870.html

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Film academy invites 276 people to join its ranks

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Jennifer Lopez, Lena Dunham, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Lucy Liu have received one of the most exclusive invitations in Hollywood.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Friday that it has invited them, and 272 others, to join its ranks.

Other invitees include Jason Bateman, Rosario Dawson, "Machete" star Danny Trejo, "Bridesmaids" director Paul Feig and "Before Midnight" writer-star Julie Delpy.

All 16 branches of the film academy extended invitations to new members, from hairstylists and sound engineers to producers and publicists.

Those who accept the invitations will be able to vote on the recipients of the next Academy Awards, set for March 2, 2014.

___

Online:

www.oscars.org

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/film-academy-invites-276-people-join-ranks-190828008.html

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Cameron in thwarted Afghan peace talks push

By Andrew Osborn

KABUL (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron flew into Afghanistan on Saturday to try to inject momentum into stalled peace talks, but left empty-handed after the Afghan president said his country could break up if a deal was done with the Taliban.

Cameron, who hosted President Hamid Karzai for talks in February about Afghanistan's future, has cast himself as an honest broker able to use Britain's relations with Afghanistan's influential neighbour, Pakistan, to get the Taliban to talk peace.

Speaking at a joint news conference in Kabul after a visit to British troops in the southern province of Helmand, he said the moment to pursue peace had come.

"There is a window of opportunity and I would urge all those who renounce violence, who respect the constitution, who want to have a voice in the future prosperity of this country to seize it," he said.

His comments come barely a week after the United States revealed the Taliban were to open a long-anticipated office in Qatar, making a meeting with the Afghan state and the Taliban a possibility. Those talks collapsed within days after Karzai objected to the manner in which the office was opened, however, and Taliban militants later attacked central Kabul.

On Saturday, Karzai said he hoped peace talks could begin as soon as possible. But he complained about foreign peace plans, sounded a defiant note against the United States, and warned of the dangers of doing a deal with the Taliban.

SCEPTICAL OF PAKISTAN

He also made it clear he was sceptical of Pakistan's motives in the peace process.

"Any system that is imposed on us ... the Afghan people will reject," he told a news conference inside his palace. "Delivering a province or two to the Taliban will be seen by the Afghan people as an invasion of Afghanistan, as an effort from outside to weaken and splinter this country."

When a reporter asked Cameron why he was willing to talk to the Taliban at the same time as British soldiers were fighting the insurgents, Karzai praised the question.

A British source told Reuters Karzai remained "furious" about the opening of a Taliban office in Qatar this month replete with its own flag and plaque, symbols that he felt accorded the Taliban a degree of global legitimacy.

The Afghan leader suspended talks on a long-term security deal to keep U.S. troops in Afghanistan after 2014 Washington said it was ready to talk to the Taliban and the Qatar flap. Karzai accused the Americans of duplicity.

On Saturday, he said he had held a video conference with President Barack Obama to discuss the matter, and that the U.S. leader had told him he hoped a deal could be struck by October.

Karzai's response was ambiguous. "I noted and reminded him (Obama) that Afghanistan continues to hold its unchangeable principles. If these conditions are met, the nation of Afghanistan will definitely be ready to agree to a security agreement with the U.S.," he said.

Karzai's stance underlines a dilemma for the West.

As it prepares to pull its troops out next year, it is caught between wanting to safeguard its legacy in Afghanistan - improved women's rights and access to education among other things - and allowing the Karzai government to roll back some changes to pave the way for talks with the insurgents.

SEEKING STABILITY

Britain is trying to magnify its diplomatic clout at the very moment it is reducing its contingent of some 7,000 troops.

Aides said Cameron was keen to boost political stability ahead of next year's presidential election, which he hopes will result in the first peaceful transition of power since 1901.

Karzai is not eligible to stand under the constitution and Cameron said he welcomed Karzai's "commitment to a democratic succession" after his second term expires.

Cameron flew on to Islamabad on Saturday evening for talks about Afghanistan with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari.

Pakistan could play a major role in any peace process. Its security forces backed the Taliban's rise to power in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s and continue to serve as gatekeepers to insurgent commanders living on its territory.

Cameron said he was working to try to persuade both countries they needed to cooperate, but said only "some" progress had been made.

Cameron also used his Afghan visit to reinforce the message that British troops really would be pulling out next year and that only limited financial and other aid would be made available to Afghan forces after that time.

Four hundred and forty-four British troops have been killed in Afghanistan since 2001.

A senior military source had said earlier that Western troops would have to undertake follow-on missions after 2014 that could last up to five years.

But Cameron suggested no British soldiers would be involved.

"There will be no (British) combat troops after the end of 2014. British troops are coming home," he said.

(Additional reporting by Mirwais Harooni; Writing by Andrew Osborn and Dylan Welch; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cameron-afghanistan-push-peace-talks-112953721.html

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Gay Nuptials Resume in California (WSJ)

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Italian astrophysicist Margherita Hack dies at 91

ROME (AP) ? Margherita Hack, an astrophysicist who explained her research on the stars in plain language for the public and who championed civil rights in her native Italy, died on Saturday in the Adriatic Sea town of Trieste, where she had headed an astronomical observatory. She was 91.

President Giorgio Napolitano's condolence message hailed her as a "high-level personality in the world of scientific culture."

"At the same time, she represented a strong example of civil passion, leaving a noble fingerprint in public debate and in the dialogue with citizens," Napolitano said.

The Italian news agency ANSA quoted family friend Marinella Chirico as saying Hack died in a hospital after being treated for heart problems.

Hack headed the observatory in Trieste, the first woman to hold that post, from 1964 to 1987, and was a popular and frequent commentator in Italian media about discoveries in astronomy and physics.

The current director of the observatory, Stefano Borgani, told Sky TG24 TV that Hack was one of the first astronomers to "have the intuition" that the future of astronomical observation lay in using space satellites.

An atheist who decried Vatican influence on Italian politicians, Hack helped fight a successful battle to legalize abortion in Italy. She unsuccessfully lobbied for the right to euthanasia and also championed gay rights. Among her victories was a campaign against construction of nuclear reactors in Italy.

A vegetarian since childhood, she also was an advocate for animal protection and lived with eight cats and a dog.

Hack, an optimist with a cheerful disposition, studied the heavens in the firm belief there was no after-life.

"I have no fear of death," Hack once said in a TV interview. "While we are here, death isn't" with us.

"When there is death, I won't be here," she said.

Among the many Twitter comments about her passing was one from an admirer who wrote that Hack was "so great and nice that God will pretend not to exist so as not to upset her," the Italian news agency LaPresse noted.

She liked to joke that the "first and last" time she was in a church was for her marriage to fellow native Fiorentine Aldo De Rosa, in 1944. She agreed to a church ceremony only because the groom's parents were very religious. Hack dressed simply in life, including for her own wedding, when she wore an overcoat-turned-inside out for a bridal gown. She and her widower, 93, had no children.

Hack enrolled at the University of Florence as a student of literature, but after one class, switched to physics. By the early 1950s, she was an astronomer at the Tuscan city's astronomical observatory.

She was also an athlete, excelling in track. Specializing in the long jump and high jump from 1939 to 1943, she won national university championships and placed high in national championships.

Hack was active in left-wing politics, including most recently supporting the governor of southern Puglia, Nicki Vendola, one of Italy's few openly gay politicians.

"With Margherita Hack's passing, we lose an authoritative voice in favor of civil rights and equality," said Fabrizio Marrazzo, a spokesman for a gay advocacy group, Gay Center. "More than once, Hack came out in favor of gay rights, civil unions and the dignity of gay families."

Italy's foreign minister, Emma Bonino, who as a leader of the tiny Radical Party helped wage battles to legalize divorce and abortion in Italy, said Hack was "an extraordinary figure."

"With her vanishes not only a great scientist but a free spirit, deeply intellectually honest," ANSA quoted Bonino as saying.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/italian-astrophysicist-margherita-hack-dies-91-144510808.html

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Gillmor Gang: Interdependence Day

The Gillmor Gang ? John Borthwick, Robert Scoble, Kevin Marks, Keith Teare, and Steve Gillmor ? marvel at the mutually assured creation of a partnership between Larry Ellison's Oracle and Marc Benioff's Salesforce.com. Few would have predicted such a stunning partnership just a few years ago, but the crescendoing intersection of cloud, social, and mobile has borne sudden fruit. The only constant:

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/NOi2A6gwimU/

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'No one wants this fight:' Ecuadoreans divided over Snowden asylum

Dolores Ochoa / AP

A vendor who sells roasted corn pushes her cart past a flower shop in Quito, Ecuador, on Wednesday. Unlike with China, Russia or Cuba, the Obama administration could swiftly hit Ecuador in the pocketbook by denying reduced tariffs on cut flowers, artichokes and broccoli if it grants Snowden's request for asylum.

By Mary Murray and Miguel Almaguer, NBC News

QUITO, Ecuador -- Ecuador, the South American country known for the Middle of the World -- a park honoring the Equator that boasts a yellow line painted on the ground said to be precisely at Earth?s midpoint -- is now becoming the center of an international chase for National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden.

Public opinion in Ecuador runs hot and cold on whether the country should extend political asylum to Snowden. While some admire their president for trying to stick it to the United States, others fear economic fallout if Snowden settles in Ecuador.

One Ecuadorean newspaper this week called the leaker a ?hot potato,? while another labeled him ?a spy.?

Luis Ortega, who makes his living working in tourism, believes political fighting of any kind is bad for business. His big question: ?Will Americans stop coming here??

The 25-year-old, who had just finished showing a tour group from Chicago around Quito?s World Heritage landmarks, said he was worried about his livelihood.

?I just got married and I can?t afford for my business to suffer,? he said.

Ecuador?s tourism industry generates more than $1 billion a year and is growing.

Jose Jacome / EPA file

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa smiles at the crowd during a military act at the presidential palace in Quito, Ecuador, on Wednesday. Correa announced that his government will decide with 'absolute sovereignty' on political asylum for Edward Snowden.

?Americans come here because we?re friends,? Ortega said. ?No one wants this fight.?

Rodrigo Espinosa shared that same point of view. He?s employed by a private security firm that caters to American business executives.

?Snowden is not our problem, so why are we sticking our nose into this business?? he said.

The concerns are not unfounded. On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-NJ, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, vowed to eliminate the preferential trade agreements in place under the Andean Trade Preference Act should Snowden, 29, gain asylum in Ecuador.

"Our government will not reward countries for bad behavior," Menendez said in a written statement. At the end of July, Congress must vote to renew the trade accord.

That message angered Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, an economist educated in the United States. In a tweet, Correa denounced the U.S. view as ?unjust? and ?immoral."

Heightening tensions further, Correa's representative on Thursday renounced the trade benefits and called the lower tariffs ?blackmail,? sarcastically suggesting that Washington instead use Ecuador?s share of $23 million for human rights training inside the United States.

"Ecuador does not accept pressure or threats from anyone, nor does it trade with its principles," said Fernando Alvarado, the communications secretary.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman told reporters in Washington that despite Alvarado's comments, Ecuador was still eligible for benefits under two different programs, Reuters reported.

Although China invests heavily in the region, the U.S. remains Ecuador's main trading partner, accounting for some 40 percent or about $9 billion of all exports.

Ecuador benefits heavily from its Andean trade program with the United States. An oil-rich country, Ecuador exported an estimated $5.4 billion worth of oil, as well as $166 million from its flower industry, $122 million of fruits and vegetables and $80 million of tuna to the United States in 2012.

In a country that battles a high poverty rate, the flower industry alone employs more than 100,000 workers, many of them women.?

Ecuadoreans like Dr. Catalina Nuncios applaud Alvarado's view and stand ready to welcome Snowden with open arms.

?We are Christians and cannot turn our back on this young man who needs our help,? said Nuncios, a pediatrician who voted for Correa twice. She said she felt offended by Menendez's statement.

President Obama remarks on the situation with admitted NSA leaker Edward Snowden, saying he has no plans to disrupt relations with Russia and China, nor to scramble jets to capture the "29-year-old hacker."

?No one can threaten us to toe their line," Nuncios said.

Engineering student Jesus Lombardi, who was born in Ecuador but raised in southern California, said he feels torn.

?The American part of me understands national security, but my Ecuadorean side is proud that Correa is putting my country on the map.?

As tensions escalate, Snowden remains in legal limbo somewhere in the Moscow airport.

Ecuadorean law is, in fact, hindering his case. Under the constitution, Snowden must make his asylum request in person either in the country or at an Ecuadorean embassy or consulate. And, according to local press reports, Snowden still does not possess a legal travel document that would allow him to board a flight to Quito.

NBC's Carlos Rigau and?Reuters contributed to this report.?

Related:

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AdTech Star Nanigans Scoops Up Facebook's Retargeted Ads Director Antonio Garcia-Martinez

Facebook's just lost some critical business talent. Today, ads product director Gokul Rajaram was poached by Square, and now Facebook Exchange director Antonio Garcia-Martinez, who left in April, has signed on with one of Facebook's top ad partners, Nanigans. Garcia-Martinez's formal title is "Advisor" and he could help Nanigans keep adapting to Facebook's ever-changing ad platform.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Utsnak3X5pU/

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Twitter Sees a Surge in Government Information Requests

NO KIDDING: Twitter CEO Costolo, a former improvisational comedian, believes his company is obligated to ?reach everyone on the planet.? Image: Courtesy of Joi Ito, via WikiMedia Commons

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Twitter sees itself as the digital incarnation of the town square, eliminating time and distance as barriers to unfiltered communication among citizens. In this role as the world?s unofficial open idea exchange (in 140 characters or less, of course), the company is finding that governments, law enforcement agencies and even its own Twitterverse are increasingly holding it accountable for how people use its microblogging service.

The social network appears to be taking this newfound responsibility seriously. During a Webcast conversation on Wednesday with Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Jonathan Rauch, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo discussed how his company responds to this growing scrutiny. He also talked about Twitter?s attempts to help users filter the fire hose of information they face each day as well as the pros and cons of pseudonymous tweeters.

Although he declined to comment specifically on the U.S. National Security Agency?s PRISM digital surveillance program, Costolo articulated Twitter?s stance on cooperating with government and law enforcement requests. ?When we receive a valid, specific request in the countries [where] we operate, we will honor it,? he said. ?Those that are not legal and valid, we will push back on.? Twitter is conspicuously absent from the list of tech companies?including Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo?accused of complying with the NSA?s requests for user data.

Twitter?s computer servers?like those of many Web sites?automatically record information generated by users. This may include a user?s IP address, location, mobile carrier and the device used to access the Twitter account. The company says it deletes this data or removes any common account identifiers?such as username, full IP address or e-mail address?after 18 months.

In the past year Twitter has begun to publish a biannual transparency report highlighting trends in government requests it has received for user information and content removal. (Google publishes a similar report). ?We would like more companies to do this,? Costolo said. ?Our users have a right to know when their information has been requested so they can fight the request if they wish.?

The Twitter report also indicates how the company responded to those government requests, which have increased steadily in the past year. Twitter received 849 such requests during the first half of 2012 and 1,009 during the second half?the lion?s share coming from the U.S. government. The latest report will be published in a few weeks. ?When you don?t have any idea what information is being requested, you can only imagine what the government wants,? Costolo said. ?More organizations should participate in these transparency reports because they help people understand exactly what is going on. Then you can disagree or agree with the specifics rather than assumptions.?

Mobile devices offer people a means of ubiquitous online communication?they also give companies a way to track those people using the devices? geolocation capabilities. This raises questions about privacy that have been little more than an afterthought to this point, Costolo noted. Still, he pointed out that there?s no need to be fatalistic about the future of privacy, given that Twitter and many other social networking sites require users to opt in for features such as geolocation that broadcast a user?s whereabouts whenever they log on.

One of Twitter?s main goals, not surprisingly, is improving its ability to curate important events so the most relevant information is easy to find. ?Right now you get the reverse chronological order of the tweets, but it would be nice to see a graphic of spikes in the conversation,? Costolo said. ?It would be nice to be able to scroll back to [a] particular moment.? He likened this capability to a digital video recorder for social media that would help Twitter users more quickly get to the substance of a conversation.

Twitter has experimented with ways to filter out some of the background noise that obscures more relevant reporting and reactions to important events. ?We tried a couple of things during the [London 2012] Olympics, such as curating tweets from the more important sources [such as broadcasters and analysts], but it felt like you were in a very quiet studio,? he said. ?You lost that roar of the crowd that makes [Twitter] the public town square. We became more of an aggregator.?

Twitter is also looking at ways to preserve user anonymity without facilitating troll-like behavior where pseudonymous account-holders use their tweets to harass other users. Anonymity is especially important when Twitter is used as a tool for social change, with protests in Turkey being the latest example, said Costolo, who did not comment further on the situation in that country. The ability to use a pseudonym is crucial to enabling open political discourse, he added. ?You can use our platform to say what you believe.? Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned Twitter as a way to spread lies about his government, which has asked Twitter to reveal the identities of users who posted ?messages deemed insulting to the government or prime minister or which flouted people's personal rights,? according to Reuters.

Anonymity does create headaches for Twitter beyond governments demanding user identities, Costolo acknowledged. Pseudonymous tweeters are a problem when they engage in cyber bullying and can be particularly vicious in what they say about celebrities and other public figures. He added, ?We have to do a better job of filtering out egregious and repeated harassment.?

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/~r/sciam/basic-science/~3/fxFVofqfZ1E/article.cfm

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Russia criticizes groups setting conditions for Syria talks

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia is committed to arranging a peace conference on the Syria conflict but other countries and groups are complicating matters by trying to set preconditions, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday.

Lavrov, who will meet U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry next week to discuss the planned conference, also said shipments of weapons to rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "contradict the concept of the conference".

Russia, which has backed Assad by sending Damascus arms and protecting him from U.N. Security Council resolutions, agreed with Washington in May to help try to bring the warring sides to a peace conference. But preparatory talks this week in Geneva between Russian, U.S. and U.N. officials made no headway.

"The opposition, which is supported by the West, and other countries in the region announced they are not going to the conference as long as the regime doesn't agree to capitulate," Lavrov said after talks with Morocco's foreign minister.

He underlined that when the joint Russian-American initiative was rolled out, it was agreed that the participants would not be allowed to set any preconditions.

No date has been set for the conference. Russia, which opposes external intervention in the crisis, says it is not defending Assad but says his removal from power cannot be a condition for the talks to take place.

(Reporting by Thomas Grove, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/russia-criticizes-groups-setting-conditions-syria-talks-092802203.html

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Perry, filibuster star clash over Texas abortions

Gov. Rick Perry responds to questions from reporters during a news conference after delivering a speech at the National Right To Life Convention, Thursday, June 27, 2013, in Grapevine, Texas. The Republican has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled statehouse another crack at passing restrictions opponents say could shutter nearly all the abortion clinics across the country's second-largest state. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Gov. Rick Perry responds to questions from reporters during a news conference after delivering a speech at the National Right To Life Convention, Thursday, June 27, 2013, in Grapevine, Texas. The Republican has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled statehouse another crack at passing restrictions opponents say could shutter nearly all the abortion clinics across the country's second-largest state. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Carol Tobias, president of National Right To Life, left, watches as Gov. Rick Perry delivers a speech to a large audience in attendance at the national convention, Thursday, June 27, 2013, in Grapevine, Texas. The Republican has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled statehouse another crack at passing restrictions opponents say could shutter nearly all the abortion clinics across the country's second-largest state. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

In this Tuesday, June 25, 2013 photo, Texas state Senators Wendy Davis, left, and Sylvia R. Garcia cast their votes against Senate Bill 5 amidst the cheers of the Senate Gallery, in Austin, Texas. As she spoke late into the night, railing against proposed abortion restrictions, Davis, a former Texas teen mom, catapulted from little-known junior state senator to national political superstar in pink tennis shoes. (AP Photo/The Daily Texan, Emily Ng)

Gov. Rick Perry responds to questions from reporters during a news conference after delivering a speech at the National Right To Life Convention, Thursday, June 27, 2013, in Grapevine, Texas. The Republican has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled statehouse another crack at passing restrictions opponents say could shutter nearly all the abortion clinics across the country's second-largest state. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, center, holds up two fingers to signal a "No" vote as the session where they tried to filibuster an abortion bill draws to a close, Tuesday, June 25, 2013, in Austin, Texas. Despite barely beating a midnight deadline, hundreds of jeering protesters helped stop Texas lawmakers from passing the abortion bill. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) ? Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday admonished the star of a Democratic filibuster that helped kill new Texas abortion restrictions, saying state Sen. Wendy Davis' rise from a tough upbringing to Harvard Law graduate should have taught her the value of each human life.

The Republican governor expanded on those remarks later, publicly wondering what might have happened if Davis' own mother had undergone an abortion rather than carry her child to term.

Davis, a Fort Worth Democrat, shot back that Perry's statement "tarnishes the high office he holds."

Before the white-hot battle over abortion in the nation's second-largest state turned personal, Davis staged a marathon filibuster Tuesday helping to defeat an omnibus bill that would have further limited abortions in a place where it's already difficult to undergo them. But Perry called lawmakers back for a second special session next week to try and finish the job.

"Who are we to say that children born in the worst of circumstances can't lead successful lives?" Perry said in a speech to nearly 1,000 delegates at the National Right to Life Conference in suburban Dallas. "Even the woman who filibustered the Senate the other day was born into difficult circumstances."

Davis, 50, has rocketed to sudden, national political stardom thanks to donning pink running shoes and delivering the marathon speech on the floor of the state Senate.

She started working at age 14 to help support a household of her single mother and three siblings. By 19, she was already married and divorced with a child of her own, but she eventually graduated with honors from Harvard Law School and won her Senate seat in an upset.

Davis' surge in popularity came as no surprise to Texas Democrats, who chose her as the face of the battle to block the bill. Since arriving at the Texas Capitol, she has earned derision and respect for her ability to dissect a complex bill and make her opponents squirm under tough questioning.

Perry pointed out Davis' personal history in his speech, adding "it's just unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example that every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters."

In comments to reporters afterward, he went even further.

"I'm proud that she's been able to take advantage of her intellect and her hard work, but she didn't come from particularly good circumstances," the governor said. "What if her mom had said, 'I just can't do this. I don't want to do this.' At that particular point in time I think it becomes very personal."

Davis quickly fired off an email blasting Perry's comments.

"They are small words that reflect a dark and negative point of view," she said. "Our governor should reflect our Texas values. Sadly, Gov. Perry fails that test."

Davis' supporters argued Perry never would have made such suggestions to a male politician.

"Rick Perry's remarks are incredibly condescending and insulting to women," Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement. "This is exactly why the vast majority of Texans believe that politicians shouldn't be involved in a woman's personal health care decisions."

The Texas Legislature adjourned May 27, but Perry called legislators into a first 30-day special session to pass stricter limits on abortion, including banning the procedure after 20 weeks of pregnancy. But with the extra session set to end at midnight on Tuesday, Davis was on her feet for more than 12 hours ? speaking most of that time ? as Senate Democrats attempted a filibuster.

Just before the final gavel, Republican lawmakers silenced her for addressing a topic other than the bill she was opposing ? only to have hundreds of abortion rights activists cheer so loudly from the public gallery that all business in the chamber halted until it was too late.

Perry, a conservative and devout Christian, has put the abortion measure at the top of the agenda for the second special session, which begins Monday. It would force many clinics that perform abortions to upgrade their facilities to be classified as ambulatory surgical centers. Doctors also would be required to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles.

Opponents say such improvements are so expensive that only five of Texas' 42 abortion clinics would remain in operation.

Abortion rights groups have promised to respond with more protests, including one scheduled Monday for the state Capitol. Perry, meanwhile, called those who oppose abortion to action, telling the conference, "the world has seen images of pro-abortion activists screaming, cheering. Going forward, we have to match their intensity."

Adding intrigue to his grudge match with Davis is the fact that Perry had been expected to announce this week if he will seek a fourth full term as governor next year. But he said Thursday that announcement will now be delayed until lawmakers can finish the extra work he's given them.

Davis is up for re-election too next year, but had been urged by Democratic operatives even before her filibuster to consider running for governor.

She has acknowledged mulling a run for statewide office but says she wants to wait for the right time. A Democrat hasn't won such a post in Texas since 1994, and the state Democratic Party would face a major challenge establishing the organization or infrastructure necessary to deliver enough votes.

Asked what he thought of Davis as a possible gubernatorial candidate, Perry shrugged and said: "I don't have a clue."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-06-27-Abortion%20Restrictions-Texas/id-462e1b9595444570a47e12b3d0726acd

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Fallon 'fully behind' National Grid

28 June 2013 Last updated at 07:51 ET

Michael Fallon: "I can assure you, the lights are not going to go out"

The government says energy minister Michael Fallon is "fully behind" a National Grid consultation that could see big businesses paid to cut their energy usage in times of shortage.

Last night Mr Fallon appeared to dismiss the proposal in an interview on the BBC's Newsnight programme.

It followed a warning from energy regulator Ofgem that the risk of power cuts has increased in the UK.

Despite that the government has emphasised "the lights won't go out".

Electricity network owner National Grid has suggested large consumers, such as big shops and factories, could be asked to lower use between 16:00 and 20:00 on weekdays in the winter.

Ofgem also suggested keeping some mothballed power plants in reserve in case of emergencies.

"This does not mean that disruption is imminent or likely, but Ofgem, [the Department of Energy and Climate Change] and ourselves believe it appropriate to consider what measures could be taken in case margins deteriorate further," National Grid said.

In a statement, DECC said Mr Fallon "is fully behind Ofgem and National Grid's consultations which are about whether they should take the prudent step of extending their existing services in the context of possible tightening in the supply margin in the middle of the decade".

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

John Moylan Industry correspondent, BBC News

---

Can it be right to ask businesses to close to keep the lights on for the rest of us? That's what is being proposed by National Grid.

There is no compulsion. No rationing. Instead medium and large firms will be paid to reduce their electricity demand.

The National Grid says this would be a last resort to be used on winter evenings when temperatures plunge and demand soars.

It is also proposing to pay some electricity generators to keep mothballed plants ready to provide power. The Grid accepts that these new provisions sit outside its "usual system operator role" and are likely to modestly increase household bills.

But some industrial users may reflect that if the only way to keep the lights on is to shut down factories and businesses then government energy policy can't be working.

'Lights stay on'

"One option, if the need arose, would be for companies to voluntarily enter into agreements to fire up currently mothballed power stations or for large users to reduce their demand, in return for which they would receive payment," it said.

"This is an extension of what already happens in the power market. There is no compulsion and it is not rationing.

"We are confident that, with Ofgem and Grid having all the tools at their disposal, the lights will stay on."

In an interview on Newsnight, Mr Fallon appeared to dismiss the idea of paying big users to cut back.

When asked if there was any truth to reports that big factories and businesses would be asked to cut their energy use in 2015, Mr Fallon replied: "No".

"The latest [Ofgem] assessment has shown that the position is slightly worse than the previous assessment last year.

"The regulator Ofgem has got to make sure, with all the tools at its disposal - bringing some mothball plant back in action and back on line - that the lights stay on and they will."

In an assessment released on Thursday, Ofgem said spare electricity production capacity in the UK could fall to 2% by 2015, increasing the risk of blackouts.

The watchdog said more investment in power generation was needed to protect consumers.

It said: "Ofgem's analysis indicates a faster than anticipated tightening of electricity margins toward the middle of this decade."

The global financial crisis, tough emissions targets, the UK's increasing dependency on gas imports and the closure of ageing power stations were all contributing to the heightened risk of shortages, Ofgem said.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23093581#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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McDonald's refuses to operate in Jewish settlement

JERUSALEM (AP) ? The McDonald's restaurant chain refused to open a branch in a West Bank Jewish settlement, the company said Thursday, adding a prominent name to an international movement to boycott Israel's settlements.

Irina Shalmor, spokeswoman for McDonald's Israel, said the owners of a planned mall in the Ariel settlement asked McDonald's to open a branch there about six months ago. Shalmor said the chain refused because the owner of McDonald's Israel has a policy of staying out of the occupied territories. The decision was not coordinated with McDonald's headquarters in the U.S., she said. In an email, the headquarters said "our partner in Israel has determined that this particular location is not part of his growth plan."

The Israeli branch's owner and franchisee, Omri Padan, is a founder of the dovish group Peace Now, which opposes all settlements and views them as obstacles to peace. The group said Padan is no longer a member.

The decision by such a well-known multinational company to boycott the West Bank deals settlers an unwelcome blow.

It also adds the name of an important international brand to a movement that has urged businesses to stay out of the West Bank. International companies like Caterpillar, France's Veolia and others have faced pressure from a global network of pro-Palestinian activists to sever links with the settlements.

The activists have also pushed consumers to shun products made in settlements. Israeli academics and unions have also been boycotted because of Israel's settlement policies and European countries are considering stepping up efforts to label settlement-made products sold in Europe.

The Palestinians want the West Bank, along with the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, as part of their future state. Israel captured those areas, along with the Golan Heights, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians and most of the international community consider Israel's West Bank settlements illegal or illegitimate.

The mall's owners, settlers and politicians who back them chided McDonald's for its decision.

"McDonald's has gone from being a for-profit company to an organization with an anti-Israeli political agenda," said Yigal Dilmoni, a leader of the Yesha Council, a settler umbrella group. He urged Israelis to think twice before they buy a meal at McDonald's following its decision. Pro-settler lawmaker Ayelet Shaked said she would boycott the fast food chain.

Tzahi Nehimias, a co-owner of the Ariel mall, said an Israeli burger chain, Burger Ranch, had offered to take McDonald's spot. He also said Burger King had shown interest, but Miguel Piedra, a spokesman for Burger King Worldwide Inc. said the company had no plans to re-enter Israel. The company closed its restaurants in Israel in 2010 and turned them over to Burger Ranch.

Nehimias said other international companies who were asked to open a branch at the mall also declined, but none cited the mall's location in a settlement as a reason. He declined to identify the other companies. Some 19,000 Jewish settlers live in Ariel and it has a large student population.

Peace Now welcomed McDonald's decision.

"We totally understand and support people who think settlements are bad for Israel's interests," said Yariv Oppenheimer, who heads Peace Now. "They don't want to take an active role by opening a business there and helping to expand and to contribute to the settlement idea."

Rafeef Ziadah of the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement said McDonald's move "will encourage other corporations to end their complicity in Israel's occupation."

This is not the first time McDonald's has stirred controversy in Israel. The company didn't open a branch in Israel until 1993 due to the Arab League boycott of the country.

A year later, McDonalds built a branch near a memorial to Israel's Golani military brigade, and Israelis objected to the large double arches sign there, saying it desecrated the site. The sign was later made smaller. In 2004, McDonalds was criticized for telling its Arabic and Russian speaking staff not to speak those languages at work.

___

Associated Press writers Daniel Estrin in Jerusalem and Candice Choi in New York contributed reporting.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/mcdonalds-refuses-operate-jewish-settlement-142845377.html

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This Nesting Storage Beats Any Set of Russian Dolls

Moving house has never been easier than with this amazing set of nesting storage units. Designed by Sasa Mitrovic of TwentyTree, an amazing six pieces fit together seamlessly?and look great, too.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/czjrVia7tn8/this-nesting-storage-beats-any-set-of-russian-dolls-583798487

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As Snapchat Grows Up, It Must Hold On To Its Youth

It has been quite a week for Snapchat. Now, the founders will try to keep their heads down and out of the spotlight as they work to grow the product and company. Snapchat is all about discovery and quickly and intimately sharing brief moments with friends. Everything the company does moving forward will have to hold true to its mission. But this could evolve from simply one-on-one sharing.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/SXGi03dPDY4/

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'A Night With Janis Joplin' heads to Broadway

NEW YORK (AP) ? The boozy, bluesy, hot-mama howl of Janis Joplin is heading to Broadway.

Producers said Wednesday that the musical "A Night With Janis Joplin" starring Mary Bridget Davies as the iconic singer will start previews at the Lyceum Theatre on Sept. 20.

The show, written and directed by Randy Johnson, has a live onstage band and features Joplin hits and classic songs such as "Piece of My Heart," ''Mercedes Benz," ''Me and Bobby McGee," ''Ball and Chain" and "Summertime."

The show has already been staged at Portland Center Stage in Oregon; the Cleveland Play House; Arena Stage in Washington, D.C.; the Pasadena Playhouse in California; and the Milwaukee Repertory Theater.

Davies, who was raised in Cleveland, first won the role in 2005 after beating 150 actresses. She has appeared in the musical revue "It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues" and another Joplin musical, "Love, Janis." She has toured with Joplin's band, Big Brother & the Holding Company and has released the album "Wanna Feel Somethin.'"

Joplin rose to fame during San Francisco's 1967 "Summer of Love," gaining acclaim when she performed her version of blues singer Big Mama Thornton's "Ball and Chain" at the Monterey International Pop Festival. She died of a heroin overdose in Hollywood in 1970.

___

Online: http://www.anightwithjanisjoplin.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/night-janis-joplin-heads-broadway-190252900.html

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GOHMERT! Gay Marriage Means the End of Civilization (Little green footballs)

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Why plants are smarter than us

Scientists have found that plants must do complex arithmetic to avoid starvation.?

By Elizabeth Barber,?Contributor / June 24, 2013

Droplets of rain water hang on the leaves of a spiderwort plant in the morning sun.

John Nordell / The Christian Science Monitor

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Comparing someone?s intellect to that of a potted plant is no longer such an insult.

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Scientists at the John Innes Centre, a British research institute that focuses on plants and microbiology, found that plants must do complex arithmetic to calculate the amount of food needed to get them through the long, dark night.

"This is the first concrete example in a fundamental biological process of such a sophisticated arithmetic calculation," said a JIC mathematical modeler,?Martin Howard.

The new research, published in eLife, reports that mechanisms in plants? leaves estimate the size of the plant?s starch store and the length of time before the sun rises and energy again becomes available. In daylight, plants use the sun?s energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugars and starches. Based on that information, the plant?s leaves appropriately adjust their rate of starch consumption to avoid starving before the sun comes up, but without being wasteful and harboring too much starch. At the end of the night, the plants project to have used 95 percent of their starch.

The precise calculations account for variations in daylight and accumulated starch stores.

?The calculations are precise so that plants prevent starvation but also make the most efficient use of their food,? said JIC metabolic biologist Alison Smith. ?If the starch store is used too fast, plants will starve and stop growing during the night. If the store is used too slowly, some of it will be wasted.?

Scientists proposed that information about the size of the starch store and nighttime-length is encoded in the concentrations of two kinds of molecules in the plant. The scientists have called those molecules S for starch and T for time. The S molecules stimulate starch consumption, and the T molecules inhibit that consumption, so the rate of starch consumption comes out to the ratio of S molecules to T molecules ? or S/T.

Scientists believe that further study of how plants regulate their starch consumption could give insights into more productive farming techniques.

"The capacity to perform arithmetic calculation is vital for plant growth and productivity," said Smith. "Understanding how plants continue to grow in the dark could help unlock new ways to boost crop yield."

So when faced with a tricky math problem, go ahead: vegetate.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/krA_fR8Jl1k/Why-plants-are-smarter-than-us

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