Foodie Tuesday: How to Cook Everything for iPhone | iPhone ...

After 13 years writing ?The Minimalist? column for the New York Times and hosting a PBS television series, Mark Bittman has established himself as a guru of the American food scene. Home cooks across the country keep a tattered copy of his ubiquitous big red book, How to Cook Everything, close to hand in the kitchen for daily reference. If you?re looking to understand a cooking technique or digging for inspiration to jazz up your weekly roast chicken, you?ll find it in this epic cookbook, containing 2,000 recipes and 400 technique illustrations.

The developers at Culinate have taken this classic cookbook and turned it into a must-have recipe app, How to Cook Everything for iPhone. It?s a companion to the book because it allows users to engage with the content using advanced search features, rate recipes and view the most popular ones, plus create customizable Favorites and Shopping Lists.?Keep reading to learn more about the ultimate cook?s reference for recipes and techniques.

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Getting Started

How to Cook Everything for iPhone is not meant to replace the five-pound hardcover cookbook, but rather, to compliment it. Therefore, it?s easier to use the app if you?re familiar with the cookbook (but not essential). Having a copy of the book on hand is good when you?re in the mood to sit down and read in-depth, exploring technique guides and recipe variations. You?ll reach for the mobile app instead as a quick-reference for searching through the thousands of recipes by ingredient, technique, cuisine and other filters. It?s handy for grocery shopping on the fly or gaining access to your favorite recipes when cooking away from home.

The home screen offers several ways to engage with the cookbook, left. A sophisticated search function makes it easy to comb through the thousands of recipes using filters, right.

The app also brings recipes you may not have noticed to the forefront, encouraging you to try something new. On a regular basis, Mark Bittman selects a dish for the Featured Recipes section and you can see other user?s highly rated recipe pics in the Most Popular section. Quick Dinners is great for those nights when you?re exhausted, short on time and tempted by Chinese take-out ? every dish can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. Everything from the book can be found in the mobile app, split between two sections: Browse Recipes and Kitchen Basics. Being familiar with the layout of the book makes it easier to understand how the vast amount of information is organized.

Browse Recipes

Tap Browse Recipes and you?ll find a list of categories made up of chapter titles from the book: Appetizers, Soups, Beans, Poultry, Bread and Desserts, among several others. Choose a dish category to find the information categorized further by cooking technique, dish type or the different varieties of ingredient. For example, Fish and Shellfish is broken down into sections devoted to soups, cooking whole fish or different types of fish. In the book, these categories correspond to headings within a chapter. Essentials, the building blocks of cooking a particular type of dish or food, is always the first option for every recipe group.

Tap Browse Recipes for a list of 15 recipe categories from the cookbook, consisting of dish type and ingredient, left. Select Fish and Shellfish to find the recipes categorized further, beginning with Essentials, right.

If you know what type of dish you?re interested in cooking (for example, Fish Soups and Stews) tap it to view all the recipes in that category. With such a massive amount of content to sort through, this app is all about drilling down through categories to find the information you?re looking for.

Viewing Recipes

Viewing recipes listed in the app reveals several statistics at a glance: time to cook, popularity amongst other users, as well as whether the recipe is FMV or E (Fast, Make Ahead, Vegetarian or Essential). Choose a recipe to get an Overview, take a look at the Ingredients or review the Steps. One example of how this app goes above and beyond is by including buttons to access related technique lessons at the bottom of the Overview screen. For the Bouillabaisse recipe, these techniques include Removing a Mussel Beard, Shucking Oysters and Peeling Shrimp. It?s all organized in bite-sized pieces that are easy to read on the small iPhone screen.

Recipes in the list are labeled with several stats to help you out (Fast, Make Ahead, Vegetarian and/or Essential), as well as time to cook and popularity amongst other users, left. Select a recipe for a description of the dish and related content, such as instructions for cooking techniques, right.

Mark Bittman?s simple, straightforward cooking style is especially suited to the mobile environment. You?ll notice the Ingredients list is bold and clean, while the recipe Steps are broken down into manageable tasks. Sometimes the Ingredients offers a backup option if you don?t have access to the preferred ingredient. Tap the circle next to the backup ingredient before adding it to your Shopping List to reflect that change. The more you use the app, the more you?ll appreciate all the functionality it offers. The box with an arrow in the top right corner is called an action icon, and selecting it reveals a menu of options, including Save to Favorites, Add to Grocery List, put the recipe on your iPhone calendar, Email or print the recipe and share via Twitter or Facebook.

The bold and clean ingredients list is easy to read, left. Swipe the screen to move through each recipe step, right.

You?ve got two options when it comes to reading through a recipe: vertical orientation or horizontal ?cook mode.? If you turn the phone horizontally the recipe instructions reconfigure slightly to make it easier to read and navigate, and the screen will not go to sleep. Either way, just swipe left to right to go through the steps. You?ll also notice timers throughout the recipe instructions. It?s nice to be able to utilize these timers, which will still run and alarm even if the app is not open.

Kitchen Basics

In the Kitchen Basics section of the app you?ll find detailed explanations and recommendations regarding ingredients, equipment and techniques. This is an area you could easily spend hours reading through in the cookbook, but should be utilized more as a quick reference on the mobile interface. It?s especially helpful if you?re familiar with the book and know what you?re looking for. The Basics of Various Dishes section is a compliment to the recipes section, broken up into the same major categories. It?s useful if you have an ingredient in mind and want to know all the different techniques for preparing it (for example, eggs).

Kitchen Basics is a massive instructional section of the app, with illustrated guides on more than 400 techniques, as well as recommendations for purchasing ingredients and kitchen gadgets.

This area of the app is massive, with access to a ton of information. You?ll find everything from illustrated instructions on how to butcher a chicken to how to sharpen your knives and what kind of pots and pans to buy. It?s great to have access to all the content in the book, but hard to picture users really availing of the information presented in this way. One positive thing to note is that you don?t need an Internet connection to access the content, so reading through the Kitchen Basics section may be a great way to kill time while traveling or waiting in line, dreaming of dinner.

Sophisticated Lists

One of the features users will most appreciate about this app are the customizable lists in the Favorites and Shop sections. We?re all used to adding recipes to favorites and creating shopping lists, but in How to Cook Everything for iPhone you can create multiple Favorites lists with unique titles, categorizing your favorite recipes by season, dish type, family member or whatever else you can think of. You?ll be glad for the option to refer to recipes you?ve recently viewed.

Customize the titles your shopping lists by event or however you like, left. View the list organized by grocery aisle, alphabetically or order added, right.

Grocery lists are easy to manage and present several viewing options: by aisle, alphabetical or in order added. Tapping on the ?i? enclosed in a circle reveals additional information about the ingredient (for example: specifying monkfish or catfish for the ?white fish? on the list). Use the pen and basket icons in the top right corner switch between edit and shop mode, respectively. Shop mode allows you to check off items you?ve put in the cart. Edit mode is for rearranging ingredients (drag), deleting and adding your own ingredients to the list. A lot of recipe apps ignore this area, and it?s nice to see so much attention to the details and user experience in How to Cook Everything for iPhone.

Conclusion

How to Cook Everything for iPhone is in a league of its own when compared to other iPhone apps. Mark Bittman?s simple, straightforward recipes are well suited to the compact environment of a mobile phone, and the developers have created an app that?s easy to use. It?s great to be able to jump around between sections of the app and reference different areas without losing your place in the section you?ve left behind. The powerful search tool and customizable shopping lists make for an exceptional user experience. The attention to detail and investment in creating a good user experience is evidenced by an app that operates smoothly ? no bugs or roadblocks. The seamless interaction between user and interface frees you to just get in the kitchen and cook, which is what Mark Bittman is all about.

Source: http://iphone.appstorm.net/reviews/food-drink-reviews/foodie-tuesday-how-to-cook-everything-for-iphone/

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Are there more abortion doctors like Kermit Gosnell? And do we want to know? (Washington Post)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

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Visualized: Space hurricane! NASA's Cassini records super cyclone on Saturn (video)

If the crashing sound of lightning striking Saturn wasn't enough to excite your inner-meteorologist, then perhaps footage of a raging extraterrestrial hurricane will win you over. After orbiting the ringed planet for nine years, NASA's Cassini probe has managed to snag video of a super storm on the celestial body's north pole. Cloaked by the darkness of winter, the hurricane's eye became visible as Saturn's northern hemisphere transitioned into spring. Unlike the tropical cyclones of Earth (see: Hurricane Katrina, Sandy and Irene), this furious typhoon has been spinning for several years and has winds that flow at speeds exceeding 300MPH. Further differentiating itself from our world's whirlwinds, this alien cyclone is locked to its planet's north pole and is fueled by small amounts of water vapor instead of an actual ocean. Completely in a category of its own, the hurricane's eye measures about 1,250 miles wide and is surrounded by fluffy white clouds the size of Texas. To see this Saturnian fury in all its glory, check out the video after the break and feel free to leave your gratuitous hurricane names in the comments below.

Filed under: Science, Alt

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Source: NASA

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/04/29/visualized-nasa-cassini-saturn-hurricane/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Charge two devices at once with the sCharger-12 solar charger

The sCharger-12 USB Solar Charger from SunTactics isn’t like most solar chargers on the market. ?It uses “mono-crystalline solar cells, the most efficient solar cell technology of the 21st century” instead of the plastic panels and weak solar cells used in other chargers. ?It doesn’t charge up a battery, because those will quickly die after [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2013/04/29/charge-two-devices-at-once-with-the-scharger-12-solar-charger/

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Jabra Talk

If you're looking to buy your first Bluetooth headset, you're probably not looking for a pricey, top-of-the-line model with a ton of features you never even knew existed. Chances are you're looking for something more like the $29.99 (list) Jabra Talk. It's easy to set up and use, and you can find it out there for well under its list price, which makes it about as much of an investment as a large pepperoni pizza. But let's make this clear: The Jabra Talk?isn't a great headset. The fit could be better, and noise cancellation is pretty poor. Still, if you're new to Bluetooth, it sounds pretty good and is a reasonably priced entry point.

Design, Fit, and Pairing
The Jabra Talk looks like your run-of-the-mill Bluetooth headset. It measures 0.95 by 2.1 by 0.65 inches (HWD) and weighs 0.35 ounces. It's made mostly of matte black plastic, with a silver plastic line that runs along the outer edge, and a chunky strip that separates the front of the headset's face from the button on the other side. Controls are sparse. There's a power switch on the inside of the headset, right next to the earpiece. Two hidden LED lights indicate Bluetooth connectivity and battery life. Volume control is located on the bottom of the headset, and is easy to toggle while you're on a call. A multifunction Call button is located right next to your ear, and can be used to answer and end calls, redial numbers, and trigger voice dialing.

The headset uses an in-ear design and comes with three different size silicone ear buds and two different plastic hooks. I'm not a fan of the hook, even though they do make the fit more secure. I wasn't thrilled with the fit of any of the ear buds, either, but I found the middle size the most comfortable to wear without needing to hook myself in. Luckily, because the headset is light, once I established the proper fit I practically forgot it was there.

The Talk is automatically set to pairing mode the first time you turn it on. For subsequent pairings, all you have to do is hold down the Call button for a few seconds until the Bluetooth indicator begins to flash. From there, simply follow the instructions on your device for a standard Bluetooth pairing procedure. For this review, I had no trouble pairing the Talk with an Apple iPhone 4S?and a Sony Xperia ZL.

Sound Quality, Noise Cancellation, and Conclusions
Once paired, you can initiate voice dialing by holding down the Call button for a couple of seconds. It will initiate whatever voice control you use, like Google Voice or Siri. I had no trouble making calls, asking Siri to play some music, or having Google Voice open up the calendar app. You can tap the Call button once to answer or end a call, and twice to redial the last number you were connected to.

Call quality is mixed. With the Talk in your ear, voices can sound a little digitized, with some fuzz around the edge, but overall volume goes loud and calls sound clear enough that you won't have trouble understanding anyone. But on the other end, calls made with the Talk have very low volume and sound a bit muffled. Even worse is that it sounds like there is next to no noise cancellation, so it's easy for your voice to get lost if you're calling from a noisy place. Calls made indoors were mostly fine, but this isn't the right headset for you if you plan to use it a lot while on the go.

The Jabra Talk doesn't have many additional features, but it supports A2DP, so you can use it to listen to streaming media like apps, audiobooks, music, and podcasts. The headset gets pretty loud, so volume isn't a problem, but for music, bass is basically nonexistent. Still, it sounds fine for podcasts, and most people don't use mono headsets for music anyway.

Range was fine; I was able to clear the standard 20 feet before sound started to break up. And battery life is okay, at 5 hours and 21 minutes. Jabra claims the headset can last up to eight days on standby.

The Jabra Talk doesn't have a ton of cool features or bar-setting performance. And if you plan to use it outdoors, its lousy noise cancellation means you should probably look for a different headset. But for just over $20, depending on where you buy it, I don't want to knock the Talk too hard. It's still a perfectly decent headset, especially if this is your first time using Bluetooth. It's actually a better choice than the similarly priced Samsung HM1800, since that headset lacks A2DP.

But if you're willing to spend a little more, the Plantronics M55?is our Editors' Choice for budget Bluetooth headsets. It costs nearly twice the price, but it has better call quality and noise cancellation, much longer battery life, and a sleeker design. The Plantronics Marque 2 M165?is another good option, while the Sony SBH20?gets you a unique clip-on design, along with excellent stereo sound quality through a pair of wired earbuds.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/a7ZR-FyjpVM/0,2817,2418224,00.asp

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10 members of Mexican band die in car crash

MONTERREY, Mexico (AP) ? Police say that 10 members of the musical group La Reyna de Monterrey have been killed and five injured in a road accident in northern Mexico.

A police official says the driver of the vehicle that was carrying the band dozed off Saturday morning, causing the vehicle to strike the side of a truck then cross over into the other lane and crash head on with a tractor-trailer. The official spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

The official said the impact was so powerful that many band members were thrown from the vehicle onto the highway connecting Nuevo Laredo and Monterrey.

La Reyna de Monterrey played the musical genre known as Banda music. It had played in a bar in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas on Friday night.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/10-members-mexican-band-die-car-crash-004653717.html

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This Week's Top Downloads

Every week, we share a number of downloads for all platforms to help you get things done. Here were the top downloads from this week.

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BitTorrent Sync Keeps Your Files In Sync, Skips the Insecure Cloud

If you've ever wanted a security-focused, Dropbox-like file and folder syncing option, BitTorrent decided to answer your wishes with BitTorrent Sync. Previously in private alpha, BitTorrent Sync is now available to the public for Windows, OS X, and Linux appliances.More ?

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What's New In Ubuntu Linux 13.04 ?Raring Ringtail?

Ubuntu 13.04 is here, and it's packed with new features to improve the Unity desktop including more social media integration, some new lenses in the Dash, and a significant speed boost. More ?

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eXperience Offers Some Useful Tweaking Tools to Rooted Android Phones

Android (Rooted, 4.0+): One of the best things about having a rooted phone is that you can really get your hands dirty tweaking it, and eXperience is a new app that lets you do just that. A few taps will overclock your phone's CPU, give you independent volume controls, control music with the volume buttons, and more. More ?

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Barry Takes Full-Length Webpage Screenshots on iOS

iOS: Sometimes you want to take a screenshot of a webpage on your iPhone or iPad's browser, but the content doesn't quite fit. Barry solves this problem by generating a screenshot of the entire page. More ?

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CamFind Is a More Accurate Google Goggles

iOS: Google Googles is a great way to search for objects in the real world based on an image, but it's not exactly the most accurate app out there. CamFind does the same basic trick, but it's a little more accurate and provides a wealth of information. More ?

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Swype Launches on Google Play, Adds Dragon Dictation for Voice-to-Text

Android: Swype, one of our favorite Android keyboards, finally shed its long-held beta tag this morning and made its way over to Google Play, where it's available for $1. The official version comes bundled with Dragon Dictation for enhanced voice-to-text, and adds a few new features for the typo-prone. More ?

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Wunderlist Unveils an Overhauled UI, New Premium Tools for Groups

Wunderlist, one of our favorite to-do apps, took the wraps off of Wunderlist Pro today, aimed at helping groups stay organized. The new premium version is packed with collaboration tools, but if you're an individual, free user, there's a lot to love in today's update as well. More ?

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OpenSignal Finds the Best Mobile Data and Wi-Fi Connections on iOS

iOS: OpenSignal is a do-it-all toolkit for improving your mobile data and Wi-Fi connectivity. Previously only available for Android, iPhone users can now use this handy utility for maximizing their connection on the go. More ?

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Play+ Puts a Better YouTube Experience on Your Mac

OS X: Mobile devices have plenty of better ways to watch YouTube, allowing you to have a more immersive experience. Play+ brings easy browsing and simple full screen viewing to your Mac desktop. More ?

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Hopscotch HD Introduces Kids to Programming

iPad: Teaching kids programming is a bit of a daunting task, but Hopscotch HD is a new app for the iPad that hopes to eliminate the frustration by using kid-friendly syntax and brightly colored blocks. More ?

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Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/z_z4-0lcuBc/this-weeks-top-downloads-483774747

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James leads Heat over Bucks and into next round

Miami Heat's LeBron James (6) dunks against the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half of Game 4 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April. 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. Giving chase are Bucks' Brandon Jennings (3), Ersan Ilyasova (7), of Turkey, and Heat's Shane Battier. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Miami Heat's LeBron James (6) dunks against the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half of Game 4 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April. 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. Giving chase are Bucks' Brandon Jennings (3), Ersan Ilyasova (7), of Turkey, and Heat's Shane Battier. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Miami Heat's LeBron James (6) drives against Milwaukee Bucks' Ersan Ilyasova, left, and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute during the first half of Game 4 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April. 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Milwaukee Bucks' John Henson fouls Miami Heat's Norris Cole, left, during the second quarter of Game 4 in their first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/The Miami Herald, Al Diaz) MAGS OUT.

Miami Heat's LeBron James (6) drives against Milwaukee Bucks' Ersan Ilyasova during the first half of Game 4 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April. 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Miami Heat's LeBron James dunks against the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half of Game 4 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Sunday, April. 28, 2013, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

MILWAUKEE (AP) ? LeBron James can cross another item off his to-do list.

James scored 30 points, Ray Allen had another big game against his old team and the Miami Heat got their first playoff sweep in the Big Three era, advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals with an 88-77 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday.

"It was our next big step as far as our growth," James said. "It's so hard to win on the road in the playoffs, in someone's building ? especially when someone is playing for their last life. It's a big step for us."

And now the Heat have some much-needed time to rest. Dwyane Wade sat out Sunday's game, only the second postseason game he's missed in his career, because of his aching right knee. But with Miami not playing until next Saturday, at the earliest, he'll have plenty of time to treat the three bone bruises that caused him to miss six games near the end of the regular season.

Miami plays the winner of the Brooklyn-Chicago series. The Bulls lead that series 3-1, with Game 5 on Monday night in New York.

"It's big," Wade said of the time off. "Obviously, we're one of the oldest teams in the league, maybe the oldest team in terms of rotation players. Guys have some bumps and bruises coming out of this series, so it's going to be great to get some rest. But also we have to take this time to continue to stay sharp, to continue to stay in shape as well."

Judging by the clinical way in which the Heat dissected the Bucks in this series, that isn't likely to be a problem.

The defending NBA champions won each game by double digits, getting contributions from their stars and subs alike. Allen finished with 16 points, the third time in the series he scored in double figures, and was 4 of 7 from 3-point range.

Udonis Haslem added 13 points and five rebounds, and Mario Chalmers kicked in eight rebounds and six assists for Miami, which never trailed Sunday.

"They had the whole package," Bucks coach Jim Boylan said. "When you can afford to sit guy like Dwyane Wade and perform at the level they performed at, that's a championship-caliber team."

Monta Ellis led the Bucks with 21 points, and Larry Sanders had 11 rebounds to go with seven points.

But Milwaukee got almost nothing again from Brandon Jennings, who didn't even play in the fourth quarter. Jennings, who had guaranteed the Bucks would win the series in six games, finished with three points on 1-of-7 shooting.

After scoring 26 points in Game 1, Jennings had 27 total in the final three.

"Frustrated, a little down because I came into this season with so much confidence," he said. "I thought we had a chance to steal a game in Game 1, Game 2. We let that slip away from us. Game 3, we came back home. Had a 10-point lead, lost that. I mean it's frustration all around."

The Heat had chances to sweep their first-round series in each of the last two seasons, taking 3-0 leads on Philadelphia (2011) and New York (2012). But they couldn't close it out, losing Game 4 each year.

That wasn't going to happen against the Bucks. Even with Wade reduced to a spectator.

Wade got treatment "around the clock" the last two days in hopes of playing Sunday, and he tested his knee before the game. But he and the Heat decided it wasn't worth risking aggravating the injury further, and he spent the entire game on the bench in his warmups.

"He gave me the nod saying he wasn't going to go, so I knew had to pick it up a little more and try to bring us home, bring this win home for us," James said.

That he did, adding eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals to his 30 points.

"We just space the floor and see if they can stop him. If not, he knows where we are," Allen said. "We just give him that room to operate."

The Heat led by as many as 11 in the first half, only to see the Bucks steadily chip away at the lead. When Mike Dunleavy drained a 3 and Ellis scored on a floater, it cut Miami's lead to 69-67 with 9:34 to play.

Ellis was fouled by Allen on the play, but he missed the free throw and James grabbed the rebound. He fed Allen, who knocked down ? what else, a 3. J.J. Redick missed a long 3 and James found an open Chalmers for another 3 that gave the Heat a 75-67 lead with 8:27 left.

The 3 was Chalmers' 80th in the postseason, tying Tim Hardaway's franchise record.

After Luc Richard Mbah a Moute made the second of two free throws, James scored on a layup. Redick made a jumper, but Shane Battier and Allen closed out the Bucks with a pair of 3s. James then converted a three-point play and added a layup to complete the 19-5 run ? a spurt in which he had a hand in every single Miami score.

"At some point during that stretch right there, he decided he was going to put his imprint on the game and he did. In a big way," Boylan said. "When you're a superstar player like he is, that's what superstar players do."

NOTES: The Heat have won eight straight postseason games dating to last season. That matches the franchise record. ... NBA Commissioner David Stern was in attendance. ... James scored 30 or more for the 54th time in the postseason, second only to Kobe Bryant among active players. ... Milwaukee had seven of its 16 turnovers in the first quarter. ... The Bucks are now 20-26 in elimination games. ... Packers LB Clay Matthews was at the game.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-04-28-BKN-Heat-Bucks/id-1fbef1d8185643859130b6f6b8438a50

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Can a SmartPhone Do What Your Doctor Does?

Apr 27, 2013 7:00am

Dr. Meera Dalal tests a smartphone app that measures blood pressure at TEDMED. (Image courtesy Meera Dalal)

By Meera Dalal, M.D.

During our medical training, we?re taught to gather and use information from three sources: a patient history, a physical exam and lab tests. By far the most difficult to master is the physical exam. A good exam requires knowledge of anatomy and physiology and awareness of normal variations that allow a doctor to recognize abnormalities.

Technology can help, and at TEDMED 2013, the SmartPhone Physical exhibit by MedGadget/Nurture showcased some of the latest advances. The goal was to bring complex tests that are?pricey?to perform with traditional equipment into primary care clinics.

The result: accessible, affordable $200 phone accessories, most of them approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as ?equivalency standards,? or equal to the industry standard. This technology could improve access to these tests, cut down on referrals, and provide overall better care.

?It?s great for primary care physicians, new doctors with less experience, teaching and even some patients,? said Shiv Gaglani, a medical student at Johns Hopkins and curator of the exhibit. ?Some physicians can go through their entire training without really learning to look into an eye.?

But I was skeptical. In medicine, we learn to question everything. If my own mother came to me saying hugs were good for a cold, I would take the hug then ask to see the evidence.?So I decided to try it out. Gaglani would be my ?doctor? for this 10-minute exam using the following gadgets:

Blood Pressure Monitor by Withings and Blood Oxygen Monitor by iSp02

We started off, like in all physical exams, by taking the vital signs: blood pressure; heart rate; and oxygenation. The screen buzzed with colorful readings and real-time measurement, and then uploaded my information into an iPad, where I could get it through an app.? It was a start, but I?wasn?t?that impressed. The technology for ?automated vital signs? had been around for a while, and a few years ago I taught my 7-year-old cousin how to use the machine on my grandmother.

ECG Cellphone Case by AliveCor

By squeezing my thumbs onto the metal plates of this iPhone cover, I was able to get a partial ECG that was uploaded and emailed to me. Interesting! One of the problems physicians have is that patients with heart symptoms often improve and the ECG normalizes by the time they see the doctor. This device was simple enough that patients with?symptoms?could get this cell phone case and be taught how to use it. So the next time it happened, we could get an ECG from during the cardiac event. One of the women who tried it earlier had palpitations during her exam and was diagnosed with a rhythm abnormality.

iExaminer by Welch Allyn

The eye exam, or ?fundoscopy,? is the only way we can look directly at blood vessels inside the body without having to cut anything open. It can tell us a lot about diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes. Unfortunately, it takes a lot of practice, so many of us end up referred to an ophthalmologist. The iExaminer was able to take an impressive visual photo of the inside of my eye and turn it into a .pdf.

SpiroSmart

This SmartPhone looked at lung function, which usually is done at a special lab during an uncomfortable exam. Guidelines for chronic lung diseases such as asthma, cystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ?suggest these tests should be done regularly, but because it is often inconvenient to make a separate trip, they?re ?underused. It would be great if this was more accessible.

?Unlike the lab machine, which uses pressure, this device uses sound and has been shown to be almost as accurate,? said SpiroSmart co-creator?Mayank Goel. ?This opens up so many doors; imagine even being able to do this test over the phone!?

Other devices included ThinkLabs? ds32A digital stethoscope that records body sounds (like heart murmurs), the MobiUS SP1 handheld ultrasound machine that looked at the carotid arteries in the neck and was surprisingly accurate compared to the full ultrasound machines, and an otoscope that looked at my ear drum and took a picture.

Overall, I was grudgingly impressed. The devices seemed to combine the best parts of human experience and technology; using technology to gather reliable information, especially for those with less experience, and the physician to interpret the results.

Studies looking at ?inter-rater reliability,? the concept of how likely is it that different people interpreting the same physical exam sign will get the same diagnosis, show that technology is often better for gathering consistently objective information.

The long lineup at the SmartPhone Physical Booth at TedMed included the surgeon general and Dr. Daniel Kraft, faculty chair of medicine at Singularity University in San Diego, who was impressed by the? potential for improving access to care, whether in remote areas or overseas.

?It can enable primary care anywhere. And even though we need to do more testing to ensure accuracy, the potential is great,? Kraft said.

One of the problems, however, is that each device has to be attached to the phone in a separate way, and data is uploaded to different apps, creating a huge amount of information to sift through.

?Our ability to gather data is overtaking our ability to pare it down and use it to improve our health,? said?TEDMED editor-in-chief?John Benditt.

And it?s true. The creation of complex devices and technology is surpassing our ability to learn it and use it to its full potential before the ?next big thing? comes out. What I?d really like to see is an ECG machine and BP machine that combines data with the lung machine and uploads it to the same profile. Arguably, the next big challenge in medicine may not be the creation of new technology, but finding a way to integrate existing ones.

Source: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2013/04/27/can-a-smartphone-do-what-your-doctor-does/

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Kodak i2900

A big step up in Kodak's scanner line in both price and capability from the Editors' Choice Kodak i2600 that I reviewed in late 2011, the Kodak i2900 rotary scanner offers a slightly faster rated speed, at 60 pages per minute (ppm) and 120 images per minute (ipm) with one image on each side of the page; a letter-size flatbed to supplement the automatic document feeder (ADF); and a book scan feature, with the flatbed platen right at the edge of the scan bed. The result is an impressively capable scanner suitable for a large workgroup or office with relatively heavy-duty scan needs.

At a quick glance, the i2900 looks more like a mono laser printer than a scanner. Black, with gray and silver highlights, it has the right proportions for a laser, at 9.4 by 17.0 by 14.6 inches (HWD) with the front input tray closed, and it weights a substantial 35 pounds. The resemblance is also enhanced by the output bin molded into the top and the 250-sheet input tray that pivots down in front to add another roughly 6 inches to the depth.

Even the front-panel LCD and control buttons add to the laser-printer look, at least until you turn the scanner on and read the LCD, which happens to be one of the scanner's nicer touches. The LCD is backlit so it's easy to read. It also has room for three rows of 18 characters, which lets it show descriptive profile names when you scroll through the choices with the front panel buttons.

Descriptive names are a big improvement on the more typical arbitrary numbers from 1 to 9. They make it far easier to take advantage of one-button scanning, because it's easier to find the right profile before you press the Scan button. The only quibble I have with the feature is that Kodak's software limits you to the usual maximum of 9 profiles. That's a reasonable limit when you identify profiles by number. With descriptive text, however, you should have the option to define more.

More Basics and Setup
Another departure from the laser-printer look is the flatbed hidden underneath the output tray. Lifting the lid reveals a letter-size platen with the edge of the glass right at the front edge of the platform. The flatbed not only lets you scan originals that you don't want to risk damaging with the ADF, it lets you position open books with the spine at the edge of the platen, the facing page hanging over the side, and the page you want to scan flat against the glass, so you can get a good-quality scan without risking damage to the book.

Not so incidentally, if you need a larger than letter-size flatbed, Kodak says it will soon offer an optional A3-size (11.69 by 17 inch) flatbed accessory. (The price hasn't been determined at this writing.) Although the accessory flatbed will connect directly to your computer by USB cable, it won't operate unless you also have the i2900 or another supported scanner also installed on that computer.

Setting up the i2900 is absolutely standard for a document scanner. Simply install the software from the supplied disc and then connect the scanner by USB cable. As is typical for scanners in this price range, Kodak doesn't supply any application software, like a separate document management or optical character recognition program, on the grounds that most offices will likely already have the software they need. However the scanner comes with Twain, ISIS, and WIA drivers, and at least one of them will work with virtually any Windows program that includes a scan command.

Kodak also supplies two scan utilities, which will be familiar to anyone who has used the i2600. The one I used for all of my tests installs along with the drivers. The other is on a separate disc. Choosing between the two depends on which one fits your particular scan needs, with the disc sleeve offering some information that can help you choose between them.

Performance
Kodak rates the i2900 at 60 ppm and 120 ipm in both black and white and color modes at both 200 and 300 pixels per inch (ppi). And although it wasn't quite that fast in my tests, it was fast enough for speed to count as a strong point.

For my tests, I used the default settings for documents of 200 ppi and black and white mode. Using our standard 25-sheet test document, the i2900 came in at 42.9 ppm for simplex scanning to a PDF image file, and just a touch slower, at 41.7 ppm, or 83.3 ipm, for duplex scans. That makes it a bit faster in both cases than the Editors' Choice Xerox DocuMate 5445, at 38.5 ppm and 75 ipm, but a bit slower than the Editors' ChoiceXerox DocuMate 5460, at 46.9 ppm and 92.3 ipm.

Keep in mind that as with the Xerox scanners the total time for the scan includes a few seconds of overhead, both between giving the scan command and the scan actually starting, and between the scan finishing and the file being written to disk. Subtract that extra time, and the scan speed in ppm is much closer to the rated speed. More significantly, if you scan documents with more pages, the overhead works out to less time per page, so the overall speed in ppm will be faster.

Very much on the plus side, the Kodak scanner adds less time for optical character recognition (OCR) than the Xerox scanners. Scanning our standard test document to a searchable PDF file, which is generally the more useful format for document management applications, the i2900 took just 1 minute 9 seconds, making it a touch faster than either Xerox scanner.

The i2900 also handled our OCR tests reasonably well, reading both our Times New Roman and Arial test pages at sizes as small as 10 points without a mistake.

Other Issues
The only real complaint I have about the i2900 is the same one I had with the i2600, which is that too many options in the driver aren't self explanatory. The example I gave for the i2600 was the option for skipping blank pages, which will let you scan both one- and two-sided documents without having to change settings and without winding up with blank pages when you scan a one-sided original.

In the version of software that came with the i2600, the option was labeled Blank Image, which I called unnecessarily obscure when I reviewed the scanner. In the version that comes with the i2900, it's been changed to Blank Image Detection, which is a little better, I suppose, but still not as clear as Skip Blank Pages would be. The good news is that once you get familiar with the driver choices, the options let you control just about anything you need to.

As should be obvious, the Kodak i2900 is a highly capable beast. It delivers fast speed, good OCR accuracy, and the potential for heavy-duty scanning, with a 250-sheet ADF tray and a maximum 10,000 page-per-day duty cycle. Its natural home is in a large workgroup or office, but no matter what size office you're in, if you need relatively heavy-duty ADF-based document scanning, letter-size flatbed scanning, and book scanning, the Kodak i2900 can do it all and do all of it well.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/9S4BqM6I3iM/0,2817,2418165,00.asp

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China finds new bird flu case in eastern Fujian province: Xinhua

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese authorities discovered on Friday the first case of a new strain of bird flu in the eastern province of Fujian, signaling the spread of the virus which has killed 23 people in China, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

The flu was first detected in March. This week, the World Health Organisation called the virus, known as H7N9, "one of the most lethal", and said it is more easily transmitted than an earlier strain that has killed hundreds around the world since 2003.

Fujian's health authority said a 65-year-old man surnamed Luo had tested positive for the virus, Xinhua reported. Thirty-seven people who had been in close contact with the man had not shown symptoms of the flu.

Chinese scientists confirmed on Thursday that chickens had transmitted the flu to humans.

This week, a man in Taiwan become the first case of the flu outside mainland China. He caught the flu while travelling in China.

(Reporting By Megha Rajagopalan; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/china-finds-bird-flu-case-eastern-fujian-province-114628822.html

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Samsung Galaxy Mega hits FCC (again), this time with LTE

Better start working on those powerball exercises. At least if Samsung's Galaxy Mega was the thing you thought your life was missing, as it's just landed at the FCC. Yeah, we know this isn't the first time, but on second time around it's the LTE-sporting AT&T-friendly GT-i9205 model. The usual lab tests show little that we didn't know already -- unless you didn't know it had LTE Band 5, dual band WiFi, NFC or GSM 850 / 1900. As the 5.8-inch isn't 4G-enabled, this means we're looking at the bigger 6.3-inch version, but still no word on if, when or how this might land on US shores. Still no harm in limbering up though, is there?

Update: Upon further inspection, this variant only uses LTE band 5 (850mhz), which no us carrier currently uses. It's very unlikely this I9205 will hit the US.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung

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Source: FCC

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/i4cWNOR_8YM/

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Toll in Bangladesh building collapse passes 300

SAVAR, Bangladesh (AP) ? More than two days after their factory collapsed on them, at least some garment workers were still alive in the corpse-littered debris Friday, pinned beneath tons of mangled metal and concrete. Rescue crews struggled to save them, knowing they probably had just a few hours left to live, as desperate relatives clashed with police in their anger and grief.

Amid the chaos, the cries for help and the smell of decaying bodies at the eight-story building where more than 300 died, what happened to 18-year-old Mussamat Anna passes as luck. Rescue workers cut off the garment worker's mangled right hand to pull her free from the debris Thursday night.

"First a machine fell over my hand and I was crushed under the debris. ... Then the roof collapsed over me," she told an Associated Press cameraman from a hospital bed Friday.

The death toll topped 300 on Friday and it remained unclear what the final grim number would be. Military spokesman Shahin Islam told reporters that 304 bodies had been recovered.

Brig. Gen. Mohammed Siddiqul Alam Shikder, who is overseeing rescue operations, said 2,200 people have been rescued. The garment manufacturers' group said the factories in the building employed 3,122 workers, but it was not clear how many were inside it when it collapsed Wednesday in Savar, a suburb of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka.

An army rescue worker, Maj. Abdul Latif, said Friday that he found one survivor still trapped under concrete slabs, surrounded by several bodies. At another place in the building, four survivors were found pinned under the debris, a fire official said. An Associated Press cameraman who accompanied a rescue crew heard two men's anguished cries for help; it was unknown Friday whether they were still alive.

Rescue workers said they were proceeding very cautiously inside the crumbling building, using their hands, hammers and shovels, to avoid more injuries and collapses. But they said the trapped workers were so badly hurt and weakened that they would need to be extricated within a few hours if they are to survive. Facing high humidity and temperatures as high as 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), and dropping to about 24 C (75 F) at night, many survivors could also be badly dehydrated.

A military official, Maj. Gen. Chowdhury Hasan Suhrawardy, told reporters that search and rescue operations would continue until at least Saturday.

"We know a human being can survive for up to 72 hours in this situation. So our efforts will continue nonstop," he said.

Hundreds of rescuers, some crawling through the maze of rubble, spent a third day working amid the cries of the trapped and the wails of workers' relatives gathered outside the building, which housed numerous garment factories and a handful of other companies.

Police cordoned off the building site, pushing back thousands of bystanders and relatives, after rescue workers said the crowds were hampering their work.

Clashes later erupted between relatives of those still trapped and police officers, who used batons to disperse the mobs. Police said 50 people were injured in the clashes.

"We want to go inside the building and find our people now. They will die if we don't find them soon," said Shahinur Rahman, whose mother was missing.

Elsewhere, many thousands of workers from the hundreds of garment factories across the Savar industrial zone and other nearby industrial areas took to the streets to protest the collapse and poor safety standards.

Local news reports said protesters smashed dozens of vehicles at one strike Friday. Most of the other protests were largely peaceful.

Dozens of people have been rescued from the wreckage well after Wednesday morning's collapse.

Forty people had been trapped on the fourth floor of the Rana Plaza building until rescuers reached them Thursday evening. Twelve were soon freed, and crews worked to get the others out safely, said Brig. Gen. Shikder. Crowds at the scene burst into applause as survivors were brought out.

Police say cracks in the building had led them to order an evacuation Tuesday, but the factories ignored the order and were operating when it collapsed Wednesday. Video shot before the collapse shows cracks in the walls, with apparent attempts at repair. It also shows columns missing chunks of concrete and police talking to building operators.

Officials said soon after the collapse that numerous construction regulations had been violated.

Abdul Halim, an official with Savar's engineering department, said the owner of Rana Plaza was originally allowed to construct a five-story building but added another three stories illegally.

Mahbubul Haque Shakil, a spokesman for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said she had ordered police to arrest the owner of the building as well as the owners of the garment factories in "the shortest possible time."

Local police chief Mohammed Asaduzzaman said police and the government's Capital Development Authority have filed separate cases of negligence against the building owner.

Habibur Rahman, police superintendent of Dhaka district, identified the owner of the building as Mohammed Sohel Rana, a local leader of ruling Awami League's youth front. Rahman said police were also looking for the owners of the garment factories.

Police on Friday detained two of Rana's relatives for questioning, police officer Mohammad Kawser said.

The disaster is the worst ever for Bangladesh's booming and powerful garment industry, surpassing a fire five months ago that killed 112 people and brought widespread pledges to improve the country's worker-safety standards.

Instead, very little has changed in Bangladesh, where wages, among the lowest in the world, have made it a magnet for numerous global brands.

Bangladesh's garment industry was the third-largest in the world in 2011, after China and Italy. It has grown rapidly in the past decade, a boom fueled by Bangladesh's exceptionally low labor costs. The country's minimum wage is now the equivalent of about $38 a month.

Among the garment makers in the building were Phantom Apparels, Phantom Tac, Ether Tex, New Wave Style and New Wave Bottoms. Altogether, they produced several million shirts, pants and other garments a year.

The New Wave companies, according to their website, make clothing for several major North American and European retailers.

Britain's Primark acknowledged it was using a factory in Rana Plaza, but many other retailers distanced themselves from the disaster, saying they were not involved with the factories at the time of the collapse or had not recently ordered garments from them.

Wal-Mart said none of its clothing had been authorized to be made in the facility, but it is investigating whether there was any unauthorized production.

U.S. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said the collapse underscored the "urgent need" for Bangladesh's government, as well as the factory owners, buyers and labor groups, to improve working conditions in the country.

Human Rights Watch says Bangladesh's Ministry of Labor has only 18 inspectors to monitor thousands of garment factories in the sprawling Dhaka district, where much of the nation's garment industry is located.

John Sifton, the group's Asia advocacy director, also noted that none of the factories in the Rana Plaza were unionized, and that had they been, workers would have been in a better position to refuse to enter the building on Wednesday.

___

AP writers Muneeza Naqvi and Tim Sullivan in New Delhi, Stephen Wright in Bangkok, Kay Johnson in Mumbai, Matthew Pennington in Washington and AP Retail Writer Anne D'Innocenzio in New York contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/toll-bangladesh-building-collapse-passes-300-105550277.html

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How To Lose The Sequestration Fight (talking-points-memo)

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See Saturn at Its Best In the Weekend Night Sky

In the early hours of Sunday morning (April 28), the planet Saturn reaches opposition. This places it exactly opposite the sun in our sky.

Opposition has several effects on Saturn. Most important, it marks its arrival in the evening sky. It is now visible all night long, a treat for the many people who consider this the most beautiful object in the sky. On Saturday and Sunday night, Saturn can be found in the southeastern sky, weather permitting.

Saturn's opposition also marks the planet's maximum brightness for the year, and the brightest it has been for a number of years. At magnitude 0.2, the ringed planet now outshines the first magnitude star Spica in the constellation Virgo. Astronomers measure the brightness of night sky in terms of magnitude, with lower numbers denoting exceptional brightness. [Photos of Saturn's Dazzling Rings]

You can easily spot Saturn and Spica by following the old rule: "Arc to Arcturus, then speed on to Spica." Start by following the arc formed by the handle of the Big Dipper away from the Dipper's bowl in a broad arc across the sky, first reaching Arcturus in kite-shaped Bo?tes, and then on to Spica and Saturn in Virgo. Sparkling Spica is on the right, steady Saturn on the left. Starlight, coming from a distant point, is deflected by the Earth's atmosphere and twinkles. A planet like Saturn is larger than a star in apparent size, and so is less affected by atmospheric turbulence, so shines with a steady light.

Saturn is most famous for its magnificent set of rings. All the outer planets have rings, but Saturn's are the brightest and most easily seen. Composed of small pieces of rock and ice, these rings are thin and transparent. When the rings pass in front of a star, the star's light shines through undiminished.

How much magnification do you need to see Saturn's rings? Although some people claim to have seen them with their unaided eyes, most people need a magnification of about 25 power to see that Saturn is an oval rather than a disk. For a really good view, 100 power is much better. Even so, Saturn appears much smaller in a telescope than most people expect. Although tiny, Saturn's perfection astounds all first-time viewers.

Besides its rings, Saturn has an amazing collection of moons, 62 in all. Its brightest moons are mostly in orbits in the same plane as the rings, as you can see in the chart. Its largest moon, Titan, is one of the two largest moons in the solar system; Jupiter's Ganymede is the other. These are the only two moons large enough to have extensive atmospheres. Titan is also the farthest object from Earth on which a spacecraft has landed, the unmanned Huygens probe in 2005.

Titan can be seen easily in almost any telescope. Rhea, Tethys, and Dione can be seen with a 90mm telescope. The innermost moons, Mimas and Enceladus, are more challenging because the lie so close to the bright rings.

Iapetus is Saturn's most interesting moon. Its orbit is not in the plane of the rings, but is tilted at a steep angle. Like all large moons in the solar system, it always keeps one face turned towards its planet, but one side of Iapetus is coated with a dark sooty material. This results in Iapetus being much brighter when west of the planet that when it is to the east.

Because Saturn's moons can appear at any angle from the planet, you will need to use a planetarium software program to identify the individual moons and to distinguish them from background stars. Watching them change positions from night to night is fascinating.

Saturn holds something for every skywatcher. Everyone can enjoy spotting it in the sky, and those with telescopes can admire its rings and track the dance of its many moons.

Editor's Note: If you snap an amazing photo of Saturn and its rings and would like to share it with SPACE.com for a story or image gallery, please send comments and images to managing editor Tariq Malik at spacephotos@space.com.

This article was provided to SPACE.com by Starry Night Education, the leader in space science curriculum solutions. Follow Starry Night on Twitter @StarryNightEdu. Original article at SPACE.com.

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

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/see-saturn-best-weekend-night-sky-161250439.html

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Saturn Moon Titan's Methane May Dry Up

Today, methane sloshes around in pools on the surface of Titan, but the hydrocarbon may eventually vanish from Saturn's giant moon, according to a new study.

Images and data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft show that the compound doesn't seem to be getting replenished fast enough on Titan's surface to keep the methane cycle sustainable, scientists say.

Besides Earth, Titan is the only known place in our solar system to have stable liquids on its surface. The huge moon's clouds, lakes and rain are made up of hydrocarbons, or molecules composed of hydrogen and carbon, such as methane and ethane. [Amazing Photos: Titan, Saturn's Largest Moon]

Cassini images have revealed that Titan's hydrocarbon lakes stay remarkably consistent in size and shape over time. This means that either the lakes evaporate at a crawling pace, or there are enough downpours to offset the evaporation. Since scientists have observed only occasional bursts of rain on Titan, they believe that the lakes must have quite stable, slowly evaporating contents, and may be dominated by ethane, which doesn't vanish as quickly as methane.

When methane floats high into Titan's soupy atmosphere, the compound is broken apart by sunlight. Many of its hydrogen atoms keep rising and disappear into space, while the remaining elements go on to make carbon-rich products like ethane. Scientists say this process should eventually diminish the overall amount of methane in Titan's environment, as compounds pieced together out of methane's leftovers continue to get dumped on the moon's surface.

"We are seeing an active Titan whose active chemistry may come to an end in some tens of million years," said Christophe Sotin, a scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., who has been analyzing Cassini measurements of Titan's lakes and seas. That might sound like a long time away, but it could mean that Titan's "methane era" is somewhat short-lived, at least on a geological timescale.

Researchers look to Titan's methane cycle for answers about what Earth looked like before life evolved; the moon's chemistry could produce prebiotic molecules, complex organic compounds that are believed to have marked an early step in the emergence of life on Earth.

"The discoveries made by Cassini have revolutionized our understanding of Titan," Sotin said in a statement from NASA. "They open new avenues for seeking habitable worlds around exoplanets. They also trigger new questions about the exchange processes between the interior and the atmosphere ? and about the composition of these organic particles ? that only future missions to Titan will be able to answer."

The research was detailed in the journal Icarus in December, alongside other findings based on new observations in a previously unexplored part of Titan's northern hemisphere. The researchers said they discovered two knee-deep lakes and another three new, mirror-smooth lakes in the area. They also found a swampy area or a cluster of small rivers connecting two of Titan's seas, Ligeia Mare and Kraken Mare, a lake bigger than the Caspian Sea.

New observations at optical wavelengths of Titan's northern realm have been possible since the seven-year seasons started changing on the moon. An icy cloud has been disappearing over Titan's north pole, and the region entered spring in August 2009.

Meanwhile, researchers recently confirmed that it's fall in Titan's southern hemisphere. An icy haze like the one that dissipated up north has been forming over the moon's south pole, meaning that winter is coming for the southern realm.

The Cassini probe launched in 1997 and has been studying Saturn and its rings and moons since it arrived in orbit around the planet in 2004. Cassini's mission has been extended through 2017.

Follow Megan Gannon on Twitter and Google+.?Follow us?@Spacedotcom,?Facebook?or?Google+. Originally published on?SPACE.com.

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

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/saturn-moon-titans-methane-may-dry-102259796.html

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Baboons invade home, guys videotape the chaos

Something we've long suspected has proved to be true: Baboons are horrible houseguests.

Howard James Fyvie and some friends saw a group of baboons climbing into a house in Betty's Bay, South Africa, whose occupants were gone. It was locked except for an open top-floor window. According to the clip's YouTube description, the guys called the police and the owner of the house, and then hurried over on their own to try to help. They climbed inside via a ladder and found the wild animals?plus a giant mess.

The baboons, as you can see in the video above, were everywhere?in the kitchen, where they raided the refrigerator, in the bathroom, hanging out on furniture, you name it. They had ripped stuff up, defecated in various spots, and were all around enjoying themselves. Undaunted, Fyvie and company chased them out of the house. (No word on whether the guys went the extra mile and cleaned up after the animals.)

[Related: It really is monkey-see, monkey-do, research shows]

While things worked out OK, yelling and swinging brooms at territorial primates isn't something we'd recommend. Of course, neither is leaving a window open with baboons within raiding distance.

In an interview with "Right This Minute," Fyvie noted that when he returned to his apartment and told his roommate about the misadventure, he was told it was a stupid thing to do because "one baboon is equal to seven grown men."

Fyvie said he responded with, "Never tell me the odds."

Very Han Solo.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/baboon-invade-home-man-videotapes-chaos-194010152.html

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4 Steps to Help with Baby's Transition to a New Caregiver ...

By Tracy G. Cassels

One of the hardest things a parent can do is leave their baby in the hands of another.? Even when that other is a family member.? Passing off your baby for any reason can be difficult, and when that time frame has to be extended (like for work), it can be even harder.? Part of that comes from the fact that it is quite common to hear of parents telling awful stories of their babies screaming for them as they left.? The return at the end to find out their baby screamed for hours until finally stopping.? Caregivers will reassure them that it will pass, but for many, we worry about what is happening to the trust between our children and ourselves.? Some children will adapt quite readily with little to no problems, but some struggle and often we get a sense of this (as parents) well before we?re about to leave our children for extended periods.? This can cause a lot of stress for us and for our children.

What can we do?? Here I?m going to provide four steps that parents can take to help babies transition into someone else?s care for any extended period.? [These suggestions may not work for all, especially if a baby is experiencing strong separation anxiety and at that point, each family has to decide what is best for them while considering their needs and the needs of their baby.]? These steps assume that either you have a caregiver in home or a considerate daycare which will allow you to spend the better part of possibly up to a few weeks helping your child to transition.? Not all daycares will allow this (sadly).? If you have a child that struggles with separation, you?ll want to consider this when looking for a daycare when possible.

Step #1: Shared Exposure

One of the most important steps to making your child comfortable is ensuring there is shared exposure between the caregiver, yourself, and your infant.? As this person becomes a stable presence in your child?s life, s/he is more likely to feel comfortable with them when you aren?t around.? Of course, the time it can take for this to happen varies by child, so the sooner you can start with that, the better.? Feedings are one of the ways in which you can help this transition, especially if the caregiver will be feeding your child.? If you are nursing but will be expressing, while you are there you can see how your child takes to the other caregiver actually doing a feed (by cup or bottle), even if you need to start with you holding your child and the caregiver doing the feeding (or vice versa).? Other things that help: having the caregiver there while you change your child and eventually having them do the change while you?re present, having the caregiver hold your baby while you?re there for as long as your child will allow, and letting the caregiver try to soothe your infant for a minute before returning your child to you while you?re there offering vocal support.

Step #2: Short Leaves Within Earshot

The next step is to try to transition away for short periods where you remain in earshot of your baby while explaining to your child that you are just going to the other room and you?ll be right back.? You want to gradually build this time up, but remain responsive to your child?s cries for you.? Start with as little as five minutes (and working in shorter intervals if needed) and try to leave the caregiver (who your child is hopefully comfortable with by now) and your baby together while you leave the room.? If at any point your child cries for you, return and comfort your child and wait a while (at least half an hour) before attempting to separate again.? You can increase the intervals in times that feel comfortable for you and your child, but I would recommend going up no more than 5 minutes at any given day.

Additionally, you?ll want to build up the time it takes for you to come back if your child gets upset.? At first you should return immediately.? Your child needs to build up the knowledge that you will return and you are there for him/her.? However, as you?re extending your time away, you can start to wait one minute to see if the new caregiver can offer comfort during this time away.? You don?t, however, want to leave more than a few minutes before returning as the negative experience with the caregiver can make the process of bonding between them much harder.? One recommendation is to chart the times and keep track of how long you can take away in the house.? Note that you may see some ups and downs in this as your child adapts ? don?t fret.? Just because your child was fine for 10 minutes one day and then 5 the next doesn?t mean you aren?t making progress, it?s a bump in the road, that?s all.

Step #3: Short Leaves Outside

Once you can go 30 minutes without your child calling for you inside, you should start to take leaves (or have your child and caregiver takes leaves if it?s a nanny/family member at home situation) outside.? This means you may not be able to return immediately if your child is upset.? Explain this to him/her.? It doesn?t matter how young, if you get in the habit of explaining these things early, it will help serve you later on, and if your child is old enough to understand even partially, you?re helping.? Some children will do better being in a different environment with a new caregiver while some will prefer the same environment (i.e., home).? You?ll have to see how your child does and make arrangements that fit with his/her needs in that regard if that is a possibility.

Once again you want to build up with this, but starting at 30 minutes (where you left off in the inside case) and going up.? This allows the caregiver time to work towards calming your child if s/he becomes slightly upset.? I would strongly recommend that you have a phone on your or way to reach you.? If your child becomes hysterical, it?s best to head to him/her straightaway ? let the new caregiver put you on the phone with baby to explain you?re coming right away.? If this happens, don?t go out again that day, save it for the next day, but remain with the caregiver for an extended period after, letting your child calm down and become reassured in the caregiver?s presence.? Again, you may have periods of up and down, but the best thing you can do for your child?s sense of security and anxiety is respond when they need you.? You?ll want to build this up to around half the time you?ll be gone for work before moving on to Step 4.

Step #4: Long Leaves But Ability to Return Quickly

Once you can go half the day with few problems, you can try to double that for the full day.? However, the caveat here is that you return quickly if something goes wrong.? Make sure you aren?t an hour away, but rather 10 minutes away (or so) so that the caregiver can reach you should your child become upset.? The key at this stage is to make sure you can be responsively quickly to your child during these long absences.? Eventually you won?t be able to regularly do this so you need to build up that sense of security in your child at this stage.? Additionally, your child will learn that the caregiver is willing and able to get mom or dad when absolutely necessary which can help build trust between the two of them.? But at the end of this stage (which may not take long or may take a week or so), your child should feel secure and confident with their new caregiver and secure and confident that you as a parent are still there for them and can be there when they absolutely need you.

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The main point during this transition is to follow your child?s lead with respect to offering comfort and to avoid stepping them too far out of their comfort zone.? They will already be forced to take a step away from what is most comforting for them, which is normal (after all, that?s what developing any skill involves), but going too far out of that zone too quickly can be traumatic.? Allowing the child to take the steps needed towards being comfortable in a different environment can go a long way towards making the caregiving situation optimal for everyone.

I will reiterate here that I realize this isn?t possible all the time.? Or even necessary.? Some children simply adapt much faster than others and will take a few days to get used to someone new.? Great!? This is for those children that aren?t there.? However, the problem of it being possible is the larger issue.? Daycares often don?t want parents hanging out and many have the erroneous belief that children will settle quickly are fine, but we know that?s not actually the case with many children showing increased stress responses in daycare environments for extended periods, even after they have stopped crying[1][2].? Notably children with secure attachments don?t show these stress responses when a parent is present during the transition periods, but does show them once the parent has to leave (in these studies it was 3 days of transition).? This is why the longer transition period can help.? If you can, search for a daycare that can provide this or a nanny who can offer this type of transition if needed.

The other problem is that many families simply don?t have the time to employ these four steps as they do take an extended period of time.? This is predominantly an issue in the US where leaves can be as short as 6 weeks (or shorter).? There?s just no time to bond and then transition.? In some ways, children this young will adapt to other caregivers very quickly and the impetus thus becomes finding a great caregiver.? The vast majority of daycares in the US are not good, sadly, and will not provide the type of one-on-one attention young infants need.? The other side to this is to fight for longer leaves, something you can read more about here.

Regardless of your situation, the most important thing is to find a caregiver you trust and who treats your child with love and respect.? That will most likely mean having to call you during the early stages, but that is part of what transition is and helping your child to know you are there when needed.? There are excellent caregivers out there, they just may take a bit of looking!? Good luck!

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[1] Ahnert L, Gunnar MR, Lamb ME, Barthel M.? Transition to child care: associations with infant-mother attachment, infant negative emotion, and cortisol elevations.? Child Development 2004; 75: 639-650.

[2] Watamura SE, Donzella B, Alwin J, Gunnar MR.? Morning-to-afternoon increases in cortisol concentrations for infants and toddlers at child care: age differences and behavioral correlates.? Child Development 2003; 74: 1006-1020.

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Source: http://evolutionaryparenting.com/transition-to-a-new-caregiver/

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