Star Struck, an Android Market App released by 78x36 Productions for movie celebrity fans located throughout the USA including Miami, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Texas and more. Twilight fans take note, listed amongst the Popular Search, are all the stops in the Portland area where filming took place.
While in LA or NYC, users can immediately locate new and noteworthy Hollywood Celebrity hangouts and upcoming popular new locales by accessing this apps Hot Spot Guide. Following 78x36 Productions release on the App Store for the iPhone, iPod touch, and the iPad, the star map celebrity tour favorite is now available to users of the Android operating system, with over a billion downloads and counting.
Search by entering movie name, actor name, or by location, and users are rewarded with a plethora of information about what scenes were filmed and where. "Users are often surprised how close they are to movie set locations used to film, even in their hometowns." "They have no idea how close they are standing near sacred ground!" Star Struck - Hollywood Celebrity Tour makes it easy to find and actually get to these places.
Star Struck - Hollywood Celebrity Tour can be found at http://itunes.com/apps/starstruckhollywoodcelebritytourusa
78x36 Productions is an independent developer of applications targeting platforms on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and now on Android. Specializing in gaming, reference, lifestyle, entertainment, and travel mobile device applications, our popular titles include- casual gaming MEDINA - WARNING Highly Addictive, tennis reference 10S REF, and entertaining STAR STRUCK Hollywood Celebrity Tour USA.
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Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/12/prweb9069949.htm.
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Door Mark van de Luijtgaarden, vrijdag 30-12-2011 14:28, views: 590, bron: AndroidPlanet
Of het nu een telefoon of een tablet is, daar zijn veel mensen het nog niet over eens. Samsung heeft echter al wel ??n miljoen exemplaren van zijn Galaxy Note?verkocht?in een marktsegment waar Dell het niet lukte. De Dell Streak werd namelijk van de markt gehaald, omdat deze amper verkocht werd.
De verkoopcijfers van Samsungs hybride telefoon/tablet zijn indrukwekkend, want het apparaat is nog niet op de Amerikaanse markt verschenen. Vanwege de andere cellulaire techniek die daar gebruikt wordt (CDMA in plaats van GSM), moet er namelijk een aparte versie van het toestel komen, die waarschijnlijk pas in begin 2012 zal verschijnen.?De meeste apparaten zijn volgens?de Zuid-Koreaanse fabrikant verkocht in Frankrijk, Duitsland, Hongkong en Taiwan.
Kim Kardashian, at the end of the day, is just not that interesting.
She's rich. She has above-average looks and siblings with names also beginning in K. Ray J made love to her and filmed it from numerous angles. She's dated a lot of professional athletes. She got fake married on TV. You know the story.
Despite ridiculous overexposure and a personality rivaling drying paint on the excitement scale, she rakes in monstrous amounts of kash just for being her. Six hundred grand, astonishingly, for showing up Saturday at Tao Las Vegas:
The New York Post konfirms that the former Mrs. Kris Humphries will be at Tao in Sin City "as part of a larger deal worth up to $600,000 for multiple appearances."
Everyone gets a piece of the boring action!
New Year's Eve appearances represent the easiest money around for stars from A-to-Z-list, as clubs and venues across the U.S. look to market extravagant soirees.
Earlier today, we told you how Lindsay Lohan actually passed on similar offers, choosing to avoid temptation and spend a private, low-key NYE with her family.
Kim had no such kwalms, however. This is what she does. It's unklear if Kim even knows the definition of private or low-key. Or marriage for that matter.
Hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, who earlier this year made a play for a stake in the New York Mets, is reportedly in the bidding for one of major league baseball?s most storied ? and troubled ? franchises, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Cohen, 55, who runs the $14 billion SAC Capital Advisors LLC, is believed to be working with at least two others in the effort.
The Dodgers, who have won six World Series championships, filed for bankruptcy on June 27. Last month, Frank McCourt, the team?s owner, agreed to sell. Bids are due on Jan. 13 and could command up to $1 billion.
Guggenheim Partners Chief Executive Officer Mark Walter said this month that he was joining with pro basketball Hall of Fame member Magic Johnson to bid for the team.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand ? A Russian fishing boat that was stuck for 12 days while in danger of sinking in the frigid waters off Antarctica began a trek through 100 miles (160 kilometers) of sea ice to open water on Wednesday, New Zealand officials said.
The Sparta hit underwater ice Dec. 16 that tore a 1-foot (30-centimeter) hole in its hull. Heavy ice in the Ross Sea prevented help from reaching the stricken vessel for 10 days, forcing the Sparta's crew to pump out near-frozen sea water to keep the ship afloat while awaiting rescue. At one point, some of the crew boarded life rafts. The crew has 15 Russians, 16 Indonesians and one Ukrainian.
The South Korean icebreaker Araon finally arrived on Monday, and repairs to the hole were completed by Wednesday morning, New Zealand's Rescue Coordination Center said. The Araon then began escorting the Sparta through the ice and toward the open ocean.
Both ships are expected to clear the ice pack within 12 hours of moving, rescue center spokesman Chris Henshaw said.
"The inside (of the hull hole) has been all fixed up ? they used a cement box to fill it in," Henshaw told New Zealand's National Radio. A cement box provides a temporary fix to the torn steel plating to make the vessel seaworthy.
The crew had not been able to weld a steel plate over the hole because of safety concerns, he said.
The Araon, a polar research ship, will guide the Sparta to ice-free open ocean about 100 miles (160 kilometers) away, where it will be joined by its sister ship for the 2,200-mile (3,700 kilometer) journey to the New Zealand port of Lyttelton. It will dry dock there for permanent repairs, Henshaw said.
Tuileisu Anderson scored eight of her 17 points in a crucial third quarter, then Angelique Williams scored eight of her 18 points in the fourth quarter to secure the victory for the Titans.
Union will face Reynolds of Oregon at the Gresham tournament at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
The two teams were tied at the half, but the Titans got defensive in the third quarter, holding Maple Ridge to six points.
Union connected on seven 3-pointers in the game.
UNION 47, MAPLE RIDGE (B.C.) 38
UNION (5-2) ? Aman Kaur 0, Jessica Chatman 2, Angelique Williams 18, Tuileisu Anderson 17, Nicole Woodside 2, Molly Petrie 4, Hannah O?Donnell 0, Mykaila Forsyth 3, Cassie Anderson 1. Totals 18 (7) 4-8 47.
MAPLE RIDGE ? Marchard 1, LaMont 3, Orum 22, Severinski 0, Antaya 3, Williams 9. Totals 12 (1) 13-21 38.
Union 10 11 14 12?47
Maple Ridge 11 10 6 11?38
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The "Prometheus" trailer didn't exactly clear up the question of whether or not this is an "Alien" prequel ? no direct sightings of the Xenomorph, no, but the Space Jockey is very clearly involved and the "Alien"-esque arrival of the "Prometheus" logo practically oozes acid for blood. That continued confusion won't be going away anytime [...]
In this July 18, 2011 photo, specialist William Krumm works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. World stock markets climbed Friday, July 22, 2011, as investors signaled their approval of a massive new bailout plan for Greece and broader measures to tackle the continent's debt problems.
NEW YORK -- Europe took the financial world on a stomach-churning ride in 2011.
The rising threat of default by heavily indebted European countries spread fear across financial markets and weighed on economies worldwide. As the year came to a close, banks and investors nervously watched Europe's political and financial leaders scramble to prevent the 17-nation eurozone from breaking apart.
Several of the other biggest business stories of the year highlighted the global economy's linkages: A British phone-hacking scandal shook the foundations of Rupert Murdoch's U.S.-based media empire; a nuclear disaster in Japan stymied auto plants in the U.S. and beyond; and the price of gasoline surged because of unrest in the Middle East and growing demand in Asia and Latin America.
In the U.S., political squabbling led to the first credit downgrade for government debt, the economy suffered its fourth straight disappointing year and Apple founder Steve Jobs died.
The European financial crisis was chosen as the top business story of the year by business editors at The Associated Press. The sluggish U.S. economy came in second, followed by the death of Jobs.
1 EUROPEAN FINANCIAL CRISIS
The government-debt crunch rattled Europe's financial system and weighed on the global economy. Portugal became the third European country, after Greece and Ireland the year before, to require a bailout as its borrowing costs soared. And investors grew worried that countries with much larger debts, such as Spain and Italy, would also need help.
Financial markets were volatile all year as hopes rose and then were dashed that forceful steps would be taken to prevent the financial crisis from becoming Europe's version of the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers, which triggered a global financial panic and deepened the Great Recession.
Banks worried that they or their partners wouldn't be able to cover losses if governments defaulted, so they cut back on lending. European governments, facing ever higher borrowing costs, reined in spending -- a policy response that is expected to stunt much-needed economic growth. Analysts estimate the slowdown in Europe, America's No. 1 trading partner, will cut U.S. economic growth next year.
2 BAD U.S. ECONOMY: YEAR 4
The Great Recession may have ended, but the economic recovery continued to disappoint. For the first six months of the year, the economy grew at an annual rate of just 0.9 percent. Growth improved to a 2 percent rate in the third quarter and a 3 percent growth rate is forecast for the fourth quarter.
Still, 21/2 years after economists say the recession ended, 25 million people remain unemployed or unable to find full-time work. The unemployment rate fell from 9 percent in October to 8.6 percent in November, providing a hopeful sign. Yet the housing market remained burdened by foreclosures and falling prices in many metropolitan areas. How to fix the economy became the top campaign issue for Republican presidential contenders.
3 STEVE JOBS DIES
The college dropout who helped popularize the personal computer and created the iPod, iPhone and iPad, died on Oct. 5. That was two months after Apple Inc., which Jobs started in a Silicon Valley garage in 1976, briefly surpassed Exxon Mobil Corp. as the most valuable publicly traded company in the world.
Jobs cultivated a countercultural sensibility and a minimalist design ethic. He rolled out one sensational product after another, even during the recession and as his health was failing. He first helped change computers from a geeky hobbyist's obsession to a necessity of modern life. In recent years, he upended the music business with the iPod and iTunes, transformed the smart phone market with the iPhone and created the tablet market with the iPad.
4 THE U.S. CREDIT DOWNGRADE
The inability of political leaders to come up with a long-term plan to reduce the federal budget deficit led the credit rating agency Standard & Poor's to take away Uncle Sam's sterling AAA credit rating for the first time. The political bickering enraged voters, spooked investors and led to the lowest consumer confidence level of the year. But the nation's long-term borrowing costs fell after the crisis. The reason: U.S. debt still looks safer to investors than almost everything else, especially European debt.
5 RUPERT MURDOCH AND THE HACKING SCANDAL
The man whose worldwide media empire thrives on covering scandal became the center of a dramatic one. A British tabloid newspaper owned by Murdoch's News Corp., which also owns Fox News and The Wall Street Journal, hacked the phone of a murdered schoolgirl. Murdoch was not charged with a crime, but an investigation by British authorities raised questions about Murdoch's ability to run his worldwide media empire. News Corp. fired several executives and closed the newspaper at the center of the scandal, the News of the World.
6 JAPAN EARTHQUAKE
An earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear reactor, owned by Tokyo Electric Power Co., cut off supplies of crucial Japanese parts and idled factories thousands of miles away. Auto companies, especially Toyota and Honda, were hit hardest. Inventory of certain models, especially hybrids, fell short at dealerships, reducing sales and sending retail prices higher. The worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl led countries around the world to reconsider nuclear power. Germany decided to abandon nuclear by 2022.
7 GASOLINE PRICES HIT ANNUAL RECORD
The retail price of gasoline averaged $3.53 per gallon for the year, eclipsing the 2008 record of $3.24 per gallon. Americans drove less and switched to more fuel- efficient cars, but it wasn't enough to offset the higher prices. A bigger percentage of household income went into the gas tank in 2011 than any year since 1981. Economists say the high prices shaved half a percentage point off U.S. economic growth.
8 SOCIAL MEDIA IPOs TAKE OFF
Shares of the business social networking site LinkedIn more than doubled when it went public in May, recalling the froth of the dot-com boom. Linked- In was followed by large IPOs from online radio company Pandora Media, online discount site Groupon and social gaming site Zynga. But the market is treacherous: shares of Pandora, Groupon and Zynga all traded below their offering prices soon after they were listed. Market anticipation is high for a Facebook IPO in 2012.
9 OCCUPY WALL STREET
On Sept. 17, several hundred protesters gathered at a small plaza about a block from the New York Stock Exchange. They slept in tents, ate donated meals and protested income inequality and the influence of money in politics. The movement inspired protesters around the world who camped in city centers and business hubs to complain about unemployment, CEO pay and a decline in upward social mobility.
10 THE DOWNFALL OF MF GLOBAL AND JON CORZINE
The former governor, senator and co-chairman of Goldman Sachs lost control of a small brokerage firm he agreed to run in 2010. Saddled with huge debt and risky bets on European bonds, MF Global was forced to file for bankruptcy protection on Halloween after trading partners and investors got spooked. It was soon discovered that $1.2 billion in customer money was missing. Corzine told Congress he had no idea where the money went.
Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, who heads the state's judicial branch and its highest court, said in an interview that the death penalty is no longer effective in California and suggested she would welcome a public debate on its merits and costs.
During an interview in her chambers, as she prepared to close up shop for the holidays, the Republican appointee and former prosecutor made her first public statements about capital punishment a year after she took the helm of the state's judiciary and at a time when petitions are being gathered for an initiative to abolish the death penalty.
"I don't think it is working," said Cantil-Sakauye, elevated from the Court of Appeal in Sacramento to the California Supreme Court by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "It's not effective. We know that."
California's death penalty requires "structural change, and we don't have the money to create the kind of change that is needed," she said. "Everyone is laboring under a staggering load."
In response to a question, she said she supported capital punishment "only in the sense I apply the law and I believe the system is fair.... In that sense, yes."
But the chief justice quickly reframed the question.
"I don't know if the question is whether you believe in it anymore. I think the greater question is its effectiveness and given the choices we face in California, should we have a merit-based discussion on its effectiveness and costs?"
Cantil-Sakauye's comments suggest a growing frustration with capital punishment even among conservatives and a resignation that the system cannot be fixed as long as California's huge financial problems persist.
Her predecessor, retired Chief Justice Ronald M. George, was similarly disheartened. A former prosecutor who defended the state's death penalty before the U.S. Supreme Court, George concluded in his later years on the California Supreme Court that the system was "dysfunctional."
Cantil-Sakauye, 53, alluded to the proposed ballot measure to replace the death penalty with life without possibility of parole but declined to say whether she supported that plan.
"That really is up to the voters or to the Legislature," she said, asking whether the criminal justice system can "make better use of our resources."
In her first year on the state high court, Cantil-Sakauye has more often sided with its conservative justices than its more moderate jurists, said Santa Clara University law professor Gerald Uelmen, an expert on the court. He said her early track record shows her as more conservative than George, who was a key swing vote on the seven-member court.
Uelmen called the chief justice's comments on the death penalty "powerful" and said they confirmed what he has been hearing privately ? that even the conservatives on the California Supreme Court have grown disillusioned with the state's capital punishment system.
Men and women on death row are far more likely to die of old age than by the executioner's needle. Litigation has brought executions to a halt, and there is a shortage of lawyers willing to take capital cases. Inmates must wait an average of five years before getting lawyers to bring their first appeal.
Cantil-Sakauye has written a ruling affirming a death sentence and joined other justices' decisions upholding capital sentences since her elevation to the high court last January. Her biggest ruling came in a Proposition 8 case in which she said initiative sponsors have the right to defend their ballot measures in court when state officials refuse to do so.
The chief justice indicated during the interview that she is probably still too new on the court for outsiders to assess her judicial philosophy. Most of her first year was dominated by administrative matters, particularly budget cuts, she said.
She spends more time with Justice Marvin R. Baxter than any other member of the court because he serves with her on the Judicial Council, the policymaking body for the judiciary, she said. Baxter is considered the court's most conservative member.
Cantil-Sakauye took the reins of the court system in the midst of crisis. She was in office only a few days when a state audit was released blasting the administrative office of the courts for mismanaging a costly computer system, casting the organization she presides over as financially reckless, secretive and bloated.
Citing the audit, two legislators publicly called on her to fire William Vickrey, then head of the Administrative Office of the Courts, which runs the court system. She bristled at the interference, calling the demand "a serious attempt to interfere with judicial branch governance and my ability to evaluate the AOC's management team."
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VIDEO: Lil Wayne?s Sports Corner (Chris Paul Reacts To Signing With L.A. Clippers): @LilTunechi has introduced y... bit.ly/rtPWTAIl y a environ 2 heuresvia twitterfeed
?The border battle between Illinois and Missouri will take place again tonight. Illinois had dominated this series for years, but the Tigers have won the last two meetings.
What are you waiting for? Click Here NOW to use our insider knowledge today to BET on all the NFL Football Future Odds in the?Best sportsbooks today.
9:00 PM EST College Basketball Gambling Odds from Bookmaker NCAA Basketball Betting Favorite: Missouri -7 Over/Under: 139.5
Both teams come into this game ranked in the top 25. Illinois is 11-1 and ranked number 24. Missouri is unbeaten and in the eighth spot in this week?s polls. Expect a hard fought game here.
Bruce Weber?s Fighting Illini have struggled to find consistency on the offensive end this year. Illinois is shooting just 44.5% from the floor. The three-point line has been a real thorn in this team?s side. The Fighting Illini try quite a few three?s, but they are knocking down just 32.5%. D.J. Richardson is the team?s leading scorer this year at 14.4 points per game. Sophomore Meyers Leonard is the most improved player on the team, and his presence inside has helped this team a ton this season. He averages 13 points and eight boards per game, and he also has 29 blocks on the year. The Fighting Illini allow just 57 points per contest.??
Many people thought Missouri would be down this year after Mike Anderson left the school, but Frank Haith is doing a great job with this team. They are still pressing and making life miserable for the opponent, but they are also playing great half court defense this year. Missouri is first in the nation in field goal percentage at 52.6%. They are second in all of basketball in points per game at 87.9 points per contest. The Tigers have four players averaging at least 12.6 points per game this year. Marcus Denmon and Kim English are the team?s best shooters, but Michael Dixon is a great slasher.
Missouri is a better team than Illinois at this point because of all their options offensively. Look for the Tigers to win a third straight game in this rivalry.
Prediction: Missouri 74 Illinois 65
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PORTLAND, Maine ? State Rep. Meredith Strang Burgess led the successful push for breast cancer specialty license plates for cars and trucks in Maine.
Now she?s hoping to do the same thing for motorcycles.
The proposal for pink ribbon motorcycle license plates calls for proceeds to be split between the Maine Cancer Foundation?s Women?s Cancer Fund, Maine Breast Cancer Coalition?s Support Service Fund, and the Maine Breast and Cervical Health Program?s mammogram fund.
More than $400,000 for breast cancer research and support has been raised through the sale of more than 15,000 specialty plates for cars and trucks since 2008.
Burgess hopes to have the motorcycle plate process completed by this spring, assuming at least 500 riders pay $25 to reserve one of the plates.
How do you shop on your iPhone or iPad? Do you browse websites in Safari on your device the same way you would on your desktop? Or do you use dedicated apps? From Apple’s own Apple Store app to Best Buy to Walmart to Bloomingdales,...
UK invests 75 million in European research infrastructure to support knowledge-based economyPublic release date: 5-Dec-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Mary Todd Bergman contactpress@ebi.ac.uk 44-122-349-4665 European Molecular Biology Laboratory - European Bioinformatics Institute
Heidelberg/Hinxton, 5 December 2011 - The European Molecular Biology Laboratory's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) warmly welcome today's announcement from the UK Government of a 75 million commitment from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills' Large Facilities Capital Fund (LFCF) for the ELIXIR research infrastructure.
ELIXIR is a pan-European effort to safeguard and foster data generated in life-science experiments. Its core objective is to ensure that Europe can continue to handle a rapidly growing volume and variety of data from high-throughput experiments such as DNA sequencing. Proper management of this information promotes knowledge-based economic growth, and facilitates the translation of research into innovations that meet global challenges in food security, energy and health.
EMBL-EBI and BBSRC have jointly welcomed the funding announcement on behalf of the life science community. The project is also supported by the Medical Research Council, Natural Environment Research Council and The Wellcome Trust. EMBL-EBI will host the future central hub of ELIXIR and BBSRC is the leading funding body for its construction.
The new funding will allow the construction of ELIXIR's central hub at EMBL-EBI on the Wellcome Trust Genome campus in Hinxton, Cambridge. The hub will be the nerve centre for bioinformatics in Europe, coordinating the delivery of services and user training from several centres of excellence Europe-wide. The hub will also establish a robust computing infrastructure that can handle the rising tide of life science data.
"This commitment from the UK Government to ELIXIR emphasises the growing importance of biological information to every citizen," said Professor Janet Thornton, Director of EMBL-EBI and coordinator of the preparatory phase of ELIXIR, which is funded under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme. "This funding puts Europe in a uniquely strong position to solve some of society's most pressing problems, with the UK right in the middle of the action. In the future we expect similar commitments from ELIXIR's members around Europe to build their nodes."
Professor Sren Brunak of the Technical University of Denmark and Chair of the Interim ELIXIR Board said: "In the organisation of the ELIXIR bioinformatics infrastructure the hub is essential. In order for the whole to be greater than the sum of its parts we need strong coordination of activities across the different nodes in Europe. The decision to fund the construction of ELIXIR's central hub is therefore a very important milestone in the development of the distributed infrastructure and we hope that ELIXIR members will in future contribute to its operation."
Professor Douglas Kell, Chief Executive of BBSRC, said: "Modern life science research has the potential to touch every one of our lives. But in order to support economic growth, new jobs and to improve our standards of living we need better ways to handle the unimaginable amount of data modern approaches generate. The collaborative and centrally accessible approach represented by ELIXIR is the most effective and efficient way for life scientists to store, manage, share and interpret information. Through ELIXIR, we are ensuring our researchers have access to the best infrastructure and services now and in the future. ELIXIR will help us maximise the outputs and impact of the UK's world-leading life science research base."
Louise Leong, Head of Research and Development at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, commented: "The rapid advent of new science and technologies means that pharmaceutical research and development is increasingly complex, multi-disciplinary and interdependent. R&D therefore relies on effective coordination and curation of life science data. Without good access to such data, time and resources are wasted duplicating effort, which could be spent creating innovative new medicines. ELIXIR will ensure that public data resources are sufficiently diverse and forward-looking enough to remain relevant to business needs."
ELIXIR has the potential to enhance the development of Europe-based R&D business in fields ranging from pharmaceuticals to agriculture. Significant financial contributions towards the construction of ELIXIR nodes throughout Europe have already been made by Denmark, Finland, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. The operational costs of the hub will be met by shared contributions from participating countries.
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For more information about ELIXIR, please visit http://www.elixir-europe.org
NOTES TO EDITORS
BBSRC has already funded the ELIXIR programme with a 10M investment. As of November 2011, ten countries and EMBL have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) stating their commitment to making ELIXIR a reality: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK have all formally lent their support to the project. Several other countries are expected to join in the near future; all European countries are invited to engage with ELIXIR.
About EMBL-EBI
The European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) is part of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and is located on the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus in Hinxton near Cambridge (UK). The EBI grew out of EMBL's pioneering work in providing public biological databases to the research community. It hosts some of the world's most important collections of biological data, including DNA sequences (EMBL-Bank), protein sequences (UniProt), animal genomes (Ensembl), three-dimensional structures (the Protein Databank in Europe), data from gene expression experiments (ArrayExpress), protein-protein interactions (IntAct) and pathway information (Reactome). The EBI hosts several research groups and its scientists continually develop new tools for the biocomputing community.
About EMBL
The European Molecular Biology Laboratory is a basic research institute funded by public research monies from 20 member states (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) and associate member state Australia. Research at EMBL is conducted by approximately 85 independent groups covering the spectrum of molecular biology. The Laboratory has five units: the main Laboratory in Heidelberg, and Outstations in Hinxton, Grenoble, Hamburg, and Monterotondo near Rome. The cornerstones of EMBL's mission are: to perform basic research in molecular biology; to train scientists, students and visitors at all levels; to offer vital services to scientists in the member states; to develop new instruments and methods in the life sciences and to actively engage in technology transfer activities. Around 190 students are enrolled in EMBL's International PhD programme. Additionally, the Laboratory offers a platform for dialogue with the general public through various science communication activities such as lecture series, visitor programmes and the dissemination of scientific achievements.
About ELIXIR
The purpose of ELIXIR is to develop the plan for a sustainable infrastructure for biological information in Europe. This plan focuses on generating stable funding for Europe's most important publicly accessible databases of molecular biological information, and the development of a compute infrastructure that can cope with the biological data deluge. ELIXIR is one of 44 research infrastructures recommended by the European Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI, http://cordis.europa.eu/esfri/) as being of key strategic importance to Europe's future. ELIXIR holds a special place among these because it will provide infrastructure for the other biological, medical and environmental research infrastructures being developed. ELIXIR will provide: data resources; bio-compute centres; an infrastructure for integration of biological data, software tools and services throughout and beyond Europe; support for other European infrastructures in biomedical and environmental research; and services for the research community, including training and standards development. This will enable ELIXIR's users to meet the European Grand Challenges, which are almost all biological, namely: healthcare for an aging population, a sustainable food supply, competitive pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries and protection of the environment. http://www.elixir-europe.org
About LFCF
The Large Facilities Capital Fund (LFCF) is administered by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and used for providing additional capital to Research Councils for priority projects.
About BBSRC
BBSRC invests in world-class bioscience research and training on behalf of the UK public. Our aim is to further scientific knowledge, to promote economic growth, wealth and job creation and to improve quality of life in the UK and beyond. Funded by Government, and with an annual budget of around 445M, we support research and training in universities and strategically funded institutes. BBSRC research and the people we fund are helping society to meet major challenges, including food security, green energy and healthier, longer lives. Our investments underpin important UK economic sectors, such as farming, food, industrial biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk and http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/institutes
About the Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health. It supports the brightest minds in biomedical research and the medical humanities. The Trust's breadth of support includes public engagement, education and the application of research to improve health. It is independent of both political and commercial interests. http://www.wellcome.ac.uk
Mike Davies, Tel: 44-1793-414-694 or 44-7785-710536; mike.davies@bbsrc.ac.uk
Matt Goode, Tel: 44-1793-413-299; matt.goode@bbsrc.ac.uk
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UK invests 75 million in European research infrastructure to support knowledge-based economyPublic release date: 5-Dec-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Mary Todd Bergman contactpress@ebi.ac.uk 44-122-349-4665 European Molecular Biology Laboratory - European Bioinformatics Institute
Heidelberg/Hinxton, 5 December 2011 - The European Molecular Biology Laboratory's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) warmly welcome today's announcement from the UK Government of a 75 million commitment from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills' Large Facilities Capital Fund (LFCF) for the ELIXIR research infrastructure.
ELIXIR is a pan-European effort to safeguard and foster data generated in life-science experiments. Its core objective is to ensure that Europe can continue to handle a rapidly growing volume and variety of data from high-throughput experiments such as DNA sequencing. Proper management of this information promotes knowledge-based economic growth, and facilitates the translation of research into innovations that meet global challenges in food security, energy and health.
EMBL-EBI and BBSRC have jointly welcomed the funding announcement on behalf of the life science community. The project is also supported by the Medical Research Council, Natural Environment Research Council and The Wellcome Trust. EMBL-EBI will host the future central hub of ELIXIR and BBSRC is the leading funding body for its construction.
The new funding will allow the construction of ELIXIR's central hub at EMBL-EBI on the Wellcome Trust Genome campus in Hinxton, Cambridge. The hub will be the nerve centre for bioinformatics in Europe, coordinating the delivery of services and user training from several centres of excellence Europe-wide. The hub will also establish a robust computing infrastructure that can handle the rising tide of life science data.
"This commitment from the UK Government to ELIXIR emphasises the growing importance of biological information to every citizen," said Professor Janet Thornton, Director of EMBL-EBI and coordinator of the preparatory phase of ELIXIR, which is funded under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme. "This funding puts Europe in a uniquely strong position to solve some of society's most pressing problems, with the UK right in the middle of the action. In the future we expect similar commitments from ELIXIR's members around Europe to build their nodes."
Professor Sren Brunak of the Technical University of Denmark and Chair of the Interim ELIXIR Board said: "In the organisation of the ELIXIR bioinformatics infrastructure the hub is essential. In order for the whole to be greater than the sum of its parts we need strong coordination of activities across the different nodes in Europe. The decision to fund the construction of ELIXIR's central hub is therefore a very important milestone in the development of the distributed infrastructure and we hope that ELIXIR members will in future contribute to its operation."
Professor Douglas Kell, Chief Executive of BBSRC, said: "Modern life science research has the potential to touch every one of our lives. But in order to support economic growth, new jobs and to improve our standards of living we need better ways to handle the unimaginable amount of data modern approaches generate. The collaborative and centrally accessible approach represented by ELIXIR is the most effective and efficient way for life scientists to store, manage, share and interpret information. Through ELIXIR, we are ensuring our researchers have access to the best infrastructure and services now and in the future. ELIXIR will help us maximise the outputs and impact of the UK's world-leading life science research base."
Louise Leong, Head of Research and Development at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, commented: "The rapid advent of new science and technologies means that pharmaceutical research and development is increasingly complex, multi-disciplinary and interdependent. R&D therefore relies on effective coordination and curation of life science data. Without good access to such data, time and resources are wasted duplicating effort, which could be spent creating innovative new medicines. ELIXIR will ensure that public data resources are sufficiently diverse and forward-looking enough to remain relevant to business needs."
ELIXIR has the potential to enhance the development of Europe-based R&D business in fields ranging from pharmaceuticals to agriculture. Significant financial contributions towards the construction of ELIXIR nodes throughout Europe have already been made by Denmark, Finland, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. The operational costs of the hub will be met by shared contributions from participating countries.
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For more information about ELIXIR, please visit http://www.elixir-europe.org
NOTES TO EDITORS
BBSRC has already funded the ELIXIR programme with a 10M investment. As of November 2011, ten countries and EMBL have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) stating their commitment to making ELIXIR a reality: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK have all formally lent their support to the project. Several other countries are expected to join in the near future; all European countries are invited to engage with ELIXIR.
About EMBL-EBI
The European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) is part of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and is located on the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus in Hinxton near Cambridge (UK). The EBI grew out of EMBL's pioneering work in providing public biological databases to the research community. It hosts some of the world's most important collections of biological data, including DNA sequences (EMBL-Bank), protein sequences (UniProt), animal genomes (Ensembl), three-dimensional structures (the Protein Databank in Europe), data from gene expression experiments (ArrayExpress), protein-protein interactions (IntAct) and pathway information (Reactome). The EBI hosts several research groups and its scientists continually develop new tools for the biocomputing community.
About EMBL
The European Molecular Biology Laboratory is a basic research institute funded by public research monies from 20 member states (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) and associate member state Australia. Research at EMBL is conducted by approximately 85 independent groups covering the spectrum of molecular biology. The Laboratory has five units: the main Laboratory in Heidelberg, and Outstations in Hinxton, Grenoble, Hamburg, and Monterotondo near Rome. The cornerstones of EMBL's mission are: to perform basic research in molecular biology; to train scientists, students and visitors at all levels; to offer vital services to scientists in the member states; to develop new instruments and methods in the life sciences and to actively engage in technology transfer activities. Around 190 students are enrolled in EMBL's International PhD programme. Additionally, the Laboratory offers a platform for dialogue with the general public through various science communication activities such as lecture series, visitor programmes and the dissemination of scientific achievements.
About ELIXIR
The purpose of ELIXIR is to develop the plan for a sustainable infrastructure for biological information in Europe. This plan focuses on generating stable funding for Europe's most important publicly accessible databases of molecular biological information, and the development of a compute infrastructure that can cope with the biological data deluge. ELIXIR is one of 44 research infrastructures recommended by the European Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI, http://cordis.europa.eu/esfri/) as being of key strategic importance to Europe's future. ELIXIR holds a special place among these because it will provide infrastructure for the other biological, medical and environmental research infrastructures being developed. ELIXIR will provide: data resources; bio-compute centres; an infrastructure for integration of biological data, software tools and services throughout and beyond Europe; support for other European infrastructures in biomedical and environmental research; and services for the research community, including training and standards development. This will enable ELIXIR's users to meet the European Grand Challenges, which are almost all biological, namely: healthcare for an aging population, a sustainable food supply, competitive pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries and protection of the environment. http://www.elixir-europe.org
About LFCF
The Large Facilities Capital Fund (LFCF) is administered by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and used for providing additional capital to Research Councils for priority projects.
About BBSRC
BBSRC invests in world-class bioscience research and training on behalf of the UK public. Our aim is to further scientific knowledge, to promote economic growth, wealth and job creation and to improve quality of life in the UK and beyond. Funded by Government, and with an annual budget of around 445M, we support research and training in universities and strategically funded institutes. BBSRC research and the people we fund are helping society to meet major challenges, including food security, green energy and healthier, longer lives. Our investments underpin important UK economic sectors, such as farming, food, industrial biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk and http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/institutes
About the Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health. It supports the brightest minds in biomedical research and the medical humanities. The Trust's breadth of support includes public engagement, education and the application of research to improve health. It is independent of both political and commercial interests. http://www.wellcome.ac.uk
Mike Davies, Tel: 44-1793-414-694 or 44-7785-710536; mike.davies@bbsrc.ac.uk
Matt Goode, Tel: 44-1793-413-299; matt.goode@bbsrc.ac.uk
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BRUSSELS (Reuters) ? The storming of the British embassy compound in Tehran provides extra ammunition to European governments pushing for stronger sanctions against Iran, in particular a contentious embargo on Iranian oil, diplomats said on Wednesday.
EU foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Thursday to map out Europe's response to a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency in recent weeks that suggested Iran has worked on designing an atom bomb.
Much has already been agreed -- the EU will add some 180 names to a list of people and entities targeted by pan-European sanctions -- but a number of EU capitals have yet to decide exactly how much economic pressure the EU should apply on Iran over its nuclear program, which it says is peaceful.
Tuesday's attack on the British embassy by dozens of students and protesters angry over Britain's unilateral sanctions could go some way towards convincing them stronger action is needed, diplomats said.
"From a political point of view this (attack) cannot, I think, work in the direction of EU member states wanting to ease pressure on Iran," one senior EU diplomat said. "On the contrary."
"The whole question is do we go further and add a new set of sanctions apart from those adopted in the past."
French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said that following the embassy attack, Paris would push foreign ministers in Brussels to look at sanctions beyond what had already been agreed, especially proposals made by President Nicolas Sarkozy to freeze the central bank's assets and to ban oil imports.
French sources say that Paris feels the attack has added to the already long list of factors playing against Tehran and those that have wavered will be more inclined to listen to the French proposals.
Britain plans to back the idea of banning Iranian oil imports to Europe, diplomats have said, but resistance elsewhere in the EU remains.
In the past week, some EU capitals have insisted it is too early to adopt the embargo and ban European companies from doing business with the central bank, concerned about the economic consequences of tighter restrictions on a big OPEC oil producer.
Experts say a European embargo could boost global crude prices at a time when Europe is teetering on the brink of recession and struggling with a mounting debt crisis.
Greece, in particular, has expressed reluctance, EU diplomats say. Traders say debt-strapped Athens has been relying on Iranian oil, which comes with an attractive financing offer at a time when banks are increasingly denying it credit.
COMMON MESSAGE
Diplomats said foreign ministers might not be able to reach an agreement on any oil embargo yet, but discussions could be finalized next week, when EU heads of state meet for a summit on December 8 and 9.
In addition to discussing sanctions, EU governments are expected to issue a stern warning to Tehran on Thursday over the attack on Britain's interests, expressing their "outrage," EU officials said, using a word seldom used in diplomat communiques.
The next step could be a concerted move to recall EU envoys from Tehran in a show of solidarity with London that, combined with sanctions, would be a strong signal to Tehran that Europe is serious about pushing for change, experts say.
"The takeover of the UK embassy changes the perspective," said Bruno Tertrais, a senior research fellow at France's Strategic Research Foundation think tank.
"It will be increasingly harder for those in the EU who argue for a softer approach to push ... Their voices will be increasingly difficult to be heard," he said. "It will show Iran that it cannot divide the EU."
Britain has shut the Iranian embassy in London and closed its own embassy in Tehran, in a move followed by France and Germany which recalled their own envoys from Tehran on Wednesday.
Tehran has denied its nuclear work is aimed at building bombs and says it needs it to generate extra power to feed a growing demand for energy and for medical research purposes.
But the IAEA report appeared to offer evidence backing up Western concerns, prompting a wave of unilateral sanctions from the United States, Canada and Britain, announced this month.
The United States has taken steps designed to dissuade non-U.S. banks from dealing with Iran. Washington blacklisted 11 entities suspected of aiding Iran's nuclear programs, and expanded sanctions to target companies that aid its oil industry.
Britain banned all its financial institutions from doing business with Iran, including the Iranian central bank, and Canada said it would ban the export of all goods used in Iran's petrochemical, oil and gas industries and "block virtually all transactions with Iran," also including with the central bank.
(Additional reporting by John Irish in Paris Editing by Maria Golovnina)
BRUSSELS/LONDON (Reuters) ? The world's major central banks acted jointly on Wednesday to provide cheaper dollar liquidity to starved European banks facing a credit crunch as the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis threatened to bring financial disaster.
The surprise emergency move by the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan and the central banks of Britain, Canada and Switzerland recalled coordinated action to steady global markets in the 2008 financial crisis.
The euro and European shares surged on the news, which came after euro zone finance ministers agreed to ramp up the firepower of their bailout fund but acknowledged they may have to turn to the International Monetary Fund for more help.
In a related move, Italy's central bank started emergency cash tenders for banks which have been squeezed particularly hard in recent weeks as Rome's borrowing costs have soared towards 8 percent, a level seen as unaffordable in the long term.
"We are now entering the critical period of 10 days to complete and conclude the crisis response of the European Union," Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said as EU finance ministers met.
Two years into Europe's debt crisis, investors are fleeing the euro zone bond market, European banks are dumping government debt, south European banks are bleeding deposits and a recession looms, fuelling doubts about the survival of the single currency.
Euro zone leaders have agreed belatedly on one half-measure after another but have failed to restore confidence and now face a crunch moment at a December 9 Brussels summit seen by some analysts as a make-or-break moment for the euro.
Finance ministers agreed on Tuesday night on detailed plans to leverage the European Financial Stability Mechanism (EFSF), but could not say by how much because of rapidly worsening market conditions, prompting them to look to the IMF.
"We are now looking at a true financial crisis -- that is a broad-based disruption in financial markets," Christian Noyer, France's central bank governor and a governing council member of the European Central Bank, told a conference in Singapore.
Italian and Spanish bond yields resumed their inexorable climb towards unsustainable levels on Wednesday, as markets assessed the rescue fund boost as inadequate.
"It must also be remembered that the EFSF is already funding at very wide (borrowing) levels over Germany, struggled in its last auction to raise the required funds and would have its rating put under severe pressure by any rating downgrade of France," Rabobank strategists said in a note.
"This must call into question any plans related to the EFSF. It is yesterday's solution and the market has simply moved on."
IMF TO MATCH?
The 17-nation Eurogroup adopted detailed plans to insure the first 20-30 percent of new bond issues for countries having funding difficulties and to create co-investment funds to attract foreign investors to buy euro zone government bonds.
Both schemes would be operational by January with about 250 billion euros from the euro zone's EFSF bailout fund available to leverage after funding a second rescue program for Greece, Eurogroup chairman Jean-Claude Juncker said.
The aim was for the IMF to match and support the new firepower of the EFSF, Juncker told a news conference.
But with China and other major sovereign funds cautious about investing more in euro zone debt, EFSF chief Klaus Regling said he did not expect investors to commit major amounts to the leveraging options in the next days or weeks, and he could not put a figure on the final size of the leveraged fund.
"It is really not possible to give one number for leveraging because it is a process. We will not give out a hundred billion next month, we will need money as we go along," Regling said.
Most analysts agree that only more radical measures such as massive intervention by the ECB to buy government bonds directly or indirectly can staunch the crisis.
The prospects of drawing the IMF more deeply into supporting the euro zone are uncertain. Several big economies are skeptical of European calls for more resources for the global lender.
The United States, Japan and other Asian states are hesitant to chip in unless Europe commits to first use its own resources to fix the problem and peripheral euro zone states map out more concrete steps on fiscal and economic reforms.
"Nobody wants to spend money on something they doubt would work," a G20 official said.
"That goes not only for Europe but for any other country outside Europe. The threshold for seeking IMF help is quite high. Those seeking help need to be willing to give up some of their jurisdiction on fiscal policy and willing to undergo painful reform. Mere pledges and speeches won't do."
MONTI DENIES IMF BID
New Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said he had received a very positive reaction from the euro zone ministers to his fiscal plans, although he was told to take extra deficit cutting measures beyond an austerity plan already adopted to meet its balanced budget promise in 2013.
He said he had met the head of the International Monetary Fund's European department on Wednesday but Italy had not considered taking help from the IMF.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that Italian and IMF officials have held preliminary discussions on some form of financial support for Rome, although no decision has been taken, according to sources familiar with the talks.
Italian bond yields are now above the levels at which Greece, Ireland and Portugal were forced to apply for EU/IMF bailouts, and Rome has a wall of issuance due from late January to roll over maturing debt.
The Eurogroup ministers agreed to release their portion of an 8 billion euro aid payment to Greece, the sixth installment of 110 billion euros of EU/IMF loans agreed last year and necessary to help Athens stave off the immediate threat of default.
Juncker said the money would be released by mid-December, once the IMF signs off on its portion early next month.
G20 leaders promised this month to boost the global lender's warchest. However, another G20 source said policymakers had made no progress since then in efforts to boost IMF resources, which at current levels may not be sufficient to overcome the crisis.
EU sources said one option being explored is for euro system central banks to lend to the IMF so it can in turn lend to Italy and Spain while applying IMF borrowing conditions.
With Germany opposed to the idea of the ECB providing liquidity to the EFSF or acting as a lender of last resort, the euro zone needs a way of calming markets and fast.
The ECB shows no sign yet of responding to widespread calls to massively increase its bond-buying although EU officials said it may have to shift, even if the EFSF gained IMF help.
A Reuters poll of economists showed a 40 percent chance of the ECB stepping up purchases with freshly printed money within six months, something it has opposed so far.
The poll forecast a 60 percent chance of an ECB rate cut to 1.0 percent next week and a big majority of economists said they expect the central bank to announce new long-term liquidity tenders to help keep banks afloat at its next meeting on Dec 8.
EU powerhouse Germany has pinned its efforts on a drive for closer fiscal integration among euro zone members with coercive powers to veto euro zone members' budgets that breach EU rules.
Chancellor Angela Merkel told lawmakers she would not make a deal at a December 9 European Union summit to drop resistance to joint euro zone bonds in exchange for progress on strengthening fiscal rules, MPs quoted her as saying.
(Additional reporting by Marius Zaharia in London, Erik Kirschbaum in Berlin, Robin Emmott and John O'Donnell in Brussels, Saeed Azhar and Kevin Lim in Singapore; Writing by Paul Taylor/Mike Peacock; Editing by Janet McBride)
ScienceDaily (Nov. 30, 2011) ? Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have found that an inflammatory mechanism known as inflammasome may lead to more damage in the heart following injury such as a heart attack, pointing researchers toward developing more targeted strategies to block the inflammatory mechanisms involved.
Following a heart attack, an inflammatory process occurs in the heart due to the lack of oxygen and nutrients. This process helps the heart to heal, but may also promote further damage to the heart. The mechanisms by which the heart responds to injury are not fully understood, so researchers have been examining the cellular pathways involved to gain further insight.
In a study published online the week of Nov. 21 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers addressed the role of a specific inflammatory mechanism, called inflammasome, during the process of healing in the heart. Using an animal model, the team found that inflammasome amplifies the response by generating the production of a key inflammatory mediator known as Interleukin-1?. Further, they described that pharmacologic inhibition of the formation of inflammasome prevents heart enlargement and dysfunction.
"Defining the role of the inflammasome in the response to injury in the heart and the possibility to intervene opens a new area of investigation for the prevention and treatment of heart failure following a heart attack," said Antonio Abbate, M.D., assistant professor of medicine in the VCU Department of Internal Medicine and Division of Cardiology.
According to Abbate, who serves as the interim director for the cardiac intensive care unit at the VCU Pauley Heart Center, this study supports the team's previous findings that showed that Interleukin-1? affects the heart, and blocking Interleukin-1? benefits patients of heart attack and heart failure.
"Based on the findings of the current study we are even more convinced that blocking Interleukin-1? may be safe and beneficial, and we are now exploring novel ways to do so," he said.
Abbate said there are four ongoing clinical trials at the VCU Pauley Heart Center in patients with various heart conditions treated with a drug called anakinra which blocks Interleukin-1?.
Abbate and his team continue to examine the molecular mechanisms of inflammasome formation and heart injury, and hope to determine new ways to intervene with potentially more targeted strategies in the future.
The study was conducted in the Victoria W. Johnson Center for Research at VCU, which is directed by Norbert Voelkel, M.D, professor of medicine in the Pulmonary and Critical Care Division.
Abbate led with a multidisciplinary team of VCU researchers biologists, physicians, and pharmacists including Eleonora Mezzaroma, Ph.D., and Stefano Toldo, Ph.D., post-doctoral associates in the VCU Pauley Heart Center; Daniela Farkas, B.S., research specialist in the Victoria Johnson Research Laboratory; Benjamin Van Tassell, Pharm.D., assistant professor of pharmacology and outcome sciences; and Fadi Salloum, Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine and physiology in the VCU Pauley Heart Center.
This study was supported by a grant from the American Heart Association.
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Journal Reference:
E. Mezzaroma, S. Toldo, D. Farkas, I. M. Seropian, B. W. Van Tassell, F. N. Salloum, H. R. Kannan, A. C. Menna, N. F. Voelkel, A. Abbate. The inflammasome promotes adverse cardiac remodeling following acute myocardial infarction in the mouse. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2011; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1108586108
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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
This has been a long time coming ? it was first reported a couple of weeks ago ? but the Rays have finally signed Jose Molina. It?s a one-year deal for $1.8 million with a club option.
Of course, when this was first reported, Molina was supposed to be John Jaso?s backup. ?Jaso was traded to Seattle last night. ?If they?re interested in defense-first, Molina is a great option. But he has only caught 100 games in a season once in his career, so the Rays are still likely to snag another catcher. Ramon Hernandez? Go all-in with?Robinson Chirinos?
Hard to say, but now that there?s a Molina there, there is some semblance of stability. I mean, that?s what Molinas do.
SEOUL, South Korea ? North Korea said Wednesday that it is making rapid progress on work to enrich uranium and build a light-water nuclear power plant, increasing worries that the country is developing another way to make atomic weapons.
An unidentified spokesman at Pyongyang's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the construction of an experimental light-water reactor and low enriched uranium are "progressing apace."
The statement, carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, said that North Korea has a sovereign right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and that "neither concession nor compromise should be allowed."
Concerns about North Korea's atomic capability took on renewed urgency in November 2010 when the country disclosed a uranium enrichment facility that could give it a second route to manufacture nuclear weapons, in addition to its existing plutonium-based program.
North Korea has been building a light-water reactor at its main Yongbyon nuclear complex since last year. Such a reactor is ostensibly for civilian energy purposes, but it would give the North a reason to enrich uranium. At low levels, uranium can be used in power reactors, but at higher levels it can be used in nuclear bombs.
Earlier this month, North Korean state media said "the day is near at hand" when the reactor will come into operation. Washington worries about reported progress on the reactor construction, saying it would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, speaking to reporters Wednesday at an international aid forum in the South Korean port city of Busan, didn't address the North's statement on uranium. She called the U.S.-South Korean alliance strong and mentioned the recent one-year anniversary of North Korea's artillery attack on a front-line South Korean island that killed four people.
"Let me reaffirm that the United States stands with our ally, and we look to North Korea to take concrete steps that promote peace and stability and denuclearization," Clinton said.
Five countries, including the United States, have been in on-again, off-again talks with North Korea to provide Pyongyang with aid in exchange for disarmament. North Korea pulled out of the nuclear disarmament talks in early 2009 to protest international condemnation of its prohibited long-range rocket test.
In recent months, North Korea has repeatedly expressed its willingness to return to the talks, and tensions between the Koreas have eased. Diplomats from the Koreas and the United States have had separate nuclear talks, and cultural and religious visits by South Koreans to the North have resumed.
South Korean and U.S. officials, however, have demanded the North halt its uranium-enrichment program, freeze nuclear and missile tests and allow international nuclear inspectors back into the country before resuming negotiations.
The North Korean statement Wednesday accused the United States and its allies of "groundlessly" taking issue with the North's peaceful nuclear activities. They are "deliberately laying a stumbling block in the way of settling the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula through dialogue and negotiations," the statement said.
Kim Yong-hyun, a professor at Seoul's Dongguk University, said the North's statement appeared aimed at applying pressure on Washington and the international community to rejoin the nuclear disarmament talks quickly. "North Korea is expected to step up its rhetoric," he said.
Also on Wednesday, Seoul's Unification Ministry said a South Korean official who recently traveled to the North to help monitor the distribution of flour by a civic group confirmed that the aid has reached North Korean children. There have been concerns as to whether North Korea diverts outside food aid to its military.
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Associated Press writer Foster Klug contributed to this report from Busan, South Korea.
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Public release date: 5-Dec-2011
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