Earth Streamer........

Another Meteor Flashes Across Bay Area Skies « CBS San Francisco

2013-02-16T10:05:00.001-07:00

Another Meteor Flashes Across Bay Area Skies « CBS San Francisco

International Living: Ecuador!!

2013-02-15T16:00:00.000-07:00

The New "Land of Opportunity"
By Brent Carlson

The moment I arrived in Ecuador I knew my decision to abandon my old life in the U.S. was the right one. With the shrinking economy and very little chance of scratching out a living in the home building business, it was time for change.

But Ecuador gave me more than I ever could have imagined. Within months, I had met my soul mate.

Elsa was my perfect match. After one year together we were engaged, and soon after we got married. We both love the beach and after some exploring and talking with locals we found an area between Bahia and Canoa. It's home to some of the most beautiful stretches of coastline I've ever seen.

For years I'd been looking for some affordable ocean front where I could build my dream home. I searched and searched, but I could never find anything within budget. I thought it was too late, and that the dream would never happen.

That was before I came to Ecuador.

Elsa and I bought our first piece of property in 2009, right next to the ocean. The tract of land we bought was more than enough to build two homes on—one for us and one to sell—and it came in at $80,000.

As it turned out, that was the start.

Since then, I've been building condominiums all along the coast. Right now, we're on project number three. We never thought we would end up in the condominium construction business but sometimes, you just fall into a niche and you go with it.

My wife Elsa, who spent her whole life in Quito and always wanted to live by the beach, is the real driving force behind our business. She has the ambition and skills to make it all come together.

This country just has so much going for it. One is the wonderful weather, particularly on the coast. It has real seasons but summer doesn't get too hot, and it comes minus the humidity you find in other countries around the region. But although the weather changes from season to season, it never gets the kind of cold seen in North America.

Then there's the low cost of living, the friendly locals, the great food...and getting permanent residency is straight forward.

Ecuador is the new "Land of Opportunity," and it seems like life just gets better by the day.

But it's not like this lifestyle is only for a select few. Everyone is welcome here. I would encourage you to come for a visit. Discover for yourself just how beautiful it is here 60 miles south of the equator where the living is good even on a budget.

International Living: The Top Beach Address in Panama

2013-02-15T12:05:00.004-07:00

The Top Beach Address in Panama
By Jessica Ramesch

Great boulders in the distance, half wet, half dry...cobalt-blue waters scrubbing sands of downy gray...white seabirds soaring above, their cries for fish occasionally audible above the sounds of the surf. This is Coronado Beach, Panama’s most popular Pacific coast destination.

If you were to describe Coronado as a lady, she’d be more Elizabeth Bennet than Scarlett O’Hara. While Panama’s Caribbean beaches are garbed in bright turquoise with sparkling white-sand trim, Coronado has a quiet, unassuming beauty—the kind that grows on you, rather than hitting you over the head. It reminds me of East Coast beaches back in the States. The colors evoke, for me, the coast of Maine...or Nantucket Island.

The attitudes do, too. There are a lot of friendly people living here, and they’re prone to smiling and greeting you as they pass... More often than not, people walk or ride golf carts; cars stay in their sheds until it’s time for a trip to the city.

Some are expats who have come here to live, start businesses, or snowbird away the winter months. Some of them are members of the Panamanian upper crust. Their homes are watched over by trusted caretakers (and their families) during the workweek.

The growing community here has become extremely active... in business, social and philanthropic circles alike. Five or more years ago, a ghost-town quiet settled over Coronado after weekends or holiday seasons. No more. Now the restaurants are open every day of the week. You can always find a crowd at Cholo’s Mexican restaurant for lunch. The same goes for Picasso (a bar, restaurant, and something of a community center) during daily happy hours or at dinnertime.

Many of the hundreds of expats living in and around Coronado enjoy the area’s excellent infrastructure...high-speed Internet, banks, shops, and more. But there are other good reasons to choose Coronado over any of its Caribbean counterparts.

Coronado is located in the region known as the Arco Seco, or the "Dry Arc." The region is highly accessible—the Pan-American Highway will take you straight to Coronado’s doorstep, just an hour’s drive from the nation’s capital. None of the popular Caribbean beaches are that close to a major city.

And the Arco Seco gets half the average annual rainfall of the Caribbean Coast... typically about 69 inches (that’s versus nearly 130 inches on the Caribbean).

That means that in Coronado, you tend to see the sun every day. Even during the May-through-November "rainy season," mornings are typically very sunny. Afternoon showers can start anytime between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., but they rarely last over an hour. The locals say: "if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes." There are few days (I mean really few and far between) that are truly gray.

Maybe that’s why everyone here spends so much time smiling...We all know the effect a sunny day can have, and when you string a whole bunch of them together, good feelings abound.

Considering Coronado’s popularity, one might expect property prices here to be positively prohibitive. Not so. Prices are currently very reasonable, and a little digging can reveal true bargains. A savvy researcher will consider property both inside and outside the "gates" (and the pros and cons of being close to the epicenter).

Before heading this way, you should know that Coronado has grown into a town, but it wasn’t always one. When first developed by Panama’s celebrated Eisenmann family, it was little more than a vast gated community. Today, the "gate" is a checkpoint where a guard lazily vets the cars coming in. Residents have stickers on their cars and take the "fast lane." Others must announce where they are going...to a friend’s house, a hotel, or one of the restaurants is the typical answer.

The closer you get to the epicenter (the area inside the gates), the more you can expect to pay for property. The best deal I found listed at time of writing, in Coronado proper, is a four-bedroom duplex with three bathrooms and a terrace. On two levels, construction is about 2,780 square feet and the lot is about 1,620 square feet. Attractive tile and brickwork throughout gives the home a clean, polished look. Asking price: $220,000.

If you’re happy to be a 15- to 20-minute drive from the Coronado gate, you can find even better deals. Look to neighboring Gorgona, where many upper- to middle-class Panamanians have weekend getaways. You can often find more square footage for your buck.

Listed here is a single-family home of about 1,800 square feet, with a large lot about 10 times the size of the home. Built just four years ago, the home has all new tiles, an open kitchen, and large terrace. There’s only one full bathroom but, as is common in these parts, there’s also an outdoor shower for washing off sand from the beach. Still, there’s plenty of room to build another bathroom or add an entire annex. The property is gated and features a well-maintained lawn and fruit-bearing trees. Price: $135,000

I'm surprised You have any Diginity left : Pelosi: Congressional pay cut undermines dignity of the job

2013-02-15T06:39:00.001-07:00

Pelosi: Congressional pay cut undermines dignity of the job

By Mike Lillis - 02/14/13 06:37 PM ET

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that she opposes a cut in congressional pay because it would diminish the dignity of lawmakers' jobs.

"I don't think we should do it; I think we should respect the work we do," Pelosi told reporters in the Capitol. "I think it's necessary for us to have the dignity of the job that we have rewarded."

The comments were made in the context of the looming sequester, which would force across-the-board cuts affecting most federal offices, including Congress. With lawmakers nowhere near a deal to avert those cuts, federal agencies are bracing for ways to absorb them with minimum damage to programs and personnel.
Pelosi, whose husband is a wealthy real-estate developer, was quick to note that a cut in her own pay would be far less significant than that for both staffers and less wealthy members of Congress.

"It's a hard question to ask me because most of my colleagues are the breadwinners in their families," she said. "A pay cut to me doesn't mean as much."
She also emphasized that Congress should do everything it can to preclude such decisions by preventing the sequester cuts from taking effect at all.
"A sequester should be out of the question," she said.
Still, with the clock ticking down to March 1 – and with both chambers of Congress out of town next week – the chances of reaching a deal are growing slimmer. With that in mind, some lawmakers say they're hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.
"We are, in fact, obviously contemplating a sequester," Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said this week. "Obviously we are going to take a cut, like everybody else, and we will have to accommodate that."

Russian meteorite: Moment meteorite exploded as doctors treat 500 people injured | Mail Online

2013-02-15T06:30:00.001-07:00

Russian meteorite: Moment meteorite exploded as doctors treat 500 people injured | Mail Online

NYPD probes mysterious 911 calls from phone line belonging to Katie Couric's late husband

2013-02-14T12:26:00.001-07:00

NYPD probes mysterious 911 calls from phone line belonging to Katie Couric's late husband

After showing up late to a taping of her TV show, Couric revealed to her audience that a phone line that is still listed in her husband's name, had been making 911 calls. Police confirmed the incidents have happened 10 times and that single patrol cars had come to her home. Couric also contacted NYPD chief Ray Kelly to inquire about the matter.

A phone number belonging to Katie Couric's late husband has dialed 911 at least 10 times, according to the TV host. The NYPD suspects she may be a victim of 'spoofing,' in which a device hijacks a line's phone calls.

Katie Couric is being rattled by a bizarre series of early morning 911 calls made from a home phone registered to her dead husband, police sources said.
Every Tuesday at 2 a.m., Jay Monahan’s phone dials 911. And each time, a patrol officer near her Park Ave. home has been forced to respond. The calls, at least 10 since last month, are under investigation, the police sources said.
Couric told her studio audience Tuesday about the mysterious phone calls during a break while filming her daytime talk show, “Katie.” She said she was so worried that she called Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.
“So I called Ray Kelly, who I know just through the years seeing at different things. ‘Ray, this is so weird but can you help me? I don’t know what to do,’” Couric said, according to a member of the audience.
The taping started late and Couric seemed tired, a second audience member, Patricia Edwards, told the Daily News.
“When Katie came out, she apologized and said, ‘I’m very sorry there was a delay.’”
Couric told the audience she had been awakened by a disturbing call. The phone would apparently call 911, sending police to her apartment. She would get an automatic call back to her apartment with an emergency operator on the line.

ROBIN PLATZER/TIME & LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGE

Katie Couric stands arm-in-arm with late husband, attorney Jay Monahan, who died of colon cancer in 1998.

She referred to it as a “SWAT” call, like prank calls that recently sent Los Angeles SWAT teams rushing to the homes of Ashton Kutcher, Tom Cruise and Charlie Sheen. In Couric’s case, cops have simply sent a single patrol car to the scene after each call.

The police had already left Tuesday morning by the time Couric was able to put on a bathrobe and ask her doorman to see what was happening, a witness said.
Most of the calls have come in when Couric has been out of town.
“It’s happened like three times the last three weeks,” Couric told the audience.
“Every day, every time at 2 a.m. on Tuesday morning. I was out of town the last time it happened and apparently it happened before when nobody was home,” she said.
Police are investigating whether someone is using a device to hijack Couric’s phone and call 911, an illegal trick authorities refer to as “spoofing.”

AARON SHOWALTER/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Couric lives in this doorman building on Manhattan's upper East Side. Single patrol cars have been summoned to her house by fraudulent phone calls coming from a home line.

“Katie said it was especially disturbing because it came in on her late husband Jay Monahan’s landline, which she has kept all this time,” Edwards, a retired New York City school teacher, said.
Couric explained to the audience that after the bizarre call, she wasn’t able to fall back to sleep for several hours. She tossed and turned until around 4:30 a.m.
“This is TMI (too much information),” Couric said.

“I don’t know why. I got no sleep, so I am just oversharing,” she continued, getting a big laugh out of the audience.
A friend of Couric’s told The News it wasn’t unusual that the phone was still in Monahan’s name even though he died in 1998 of colon cancer.
“It’s simply their home phone,” the friend said. “There’s no special reason she never changed it out of his name.”

Sam Costanza/Sam Costanza

Couric told members of her show's audience that she reached out to the NYPD, going directly to Ray Kelly, to have the matter investigated.

Edwards said Couric first notified staff in her building.
“Katie said she spoke with the staff in her building, and together they decided she should call the local precinct,” Edwards said.
“But Katie also decided to call Ray Kelly in the morning. She said, ‘That is one of the perks of being well-known, that you can get through to Ray Kelly.’ And she said Ray Kelly told her that you have to respond to these things, and that the NYPD would investigate it,” Edwards recalled.
Couric had a brief conversation with the commissioner, who directed her to one of his colleagues to investigate the situation, a source close to the star said.
“The matter is under investigation. We’re trying to determine if it’s a malfunction or not,” a police source said, confirming that Couric and Kelly spoke.

“Is there a problem with the line or is it someone manipulating the line in some fashion, spoofing, or something of that nature?” the police source said, detailing the scope of the investigation.

Handout/PRN

Celebrities in Los Angeles have also been victims of spoofing, in which a third party hijacks calls to a certain phone number. In those incidents, SWAT teams were rushed to the homes of Ashton Kutcher, Tom Cruise and Charlie Sheen.

Couric’s friend said the TV host feared that all the phony calls might prevent cops from responding to her home in the event of a real emergency and wanted to make sure police understood exactly what was going on.
A representative for Couric declined comment.
If Couric turns out to be a victim of spoofing, she joins a group of A-list celebrities who have found themselves on the wrong end of practical jokes.
Besides Kutcher, Cruise and Sheen, victims include Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber. Those pranks have been limited to Los Angeles.
Last month, after heavily armed police responded to calls of shots fired at the mansion of Bruce and Kris Jenner, Kardashian blasted the scheme as “dangerous” on Twitter and added:
“These prank calls are NOT funny!”
Authorities are looking into making this sort of hoax a felony.

Travel: When Your Plane Drops 20,000 Feet and the Oxygen Masks Come Down

2013-02-14T07:03:00.001-07:00

When Your Plane Drops 20,000 Feet and the Oxygen Masks Come Down

By Nomadic Matt |

Last week, I woke up at 4 a.m. to begin a long journey to Eleuthera, Bahamas for a quick 4 day trip. It was going to be a long day on very little sleep. First, Boston to New York, then to Fort Lauderdale before taking my final flight to the Bahamas. I was flying United, my least favorite carrier, but the ticket was free so I had little choice in the matter.
Shortly after I boarded my plane in New York, the safety briefing began to play. “When the seat belt sign illuminates, you must fasten your seat belt. Insert the metal fittings one into the other, and tighten by pulling on the loose end of the strap… there are several emergency exits on this aircraft… in the event of a decompression, an oxygen mask will automatically appear in front of you. To start the flow of oxygen, pull the mask towards you. Place it firmly over your nose and mouth… although the bag does not inflate…” and so on. I’ve heard the safety briefing thousands of times, now I tuned it out and tried to sleep.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
I woke up to the sound of my ear drums popping. “What’s going on?” I said to myself, shifting in my seat, trying to fall back asleep.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
As my ear drums begin to sound like popcorn in a microwave I couldn’t fall back asleep. They were small, frequent pops and in my zombie-like state, I couldn’t really place why this was happening.
I opened my eyes in a haze when it happened.
All of a sudden, the oxygen masks deployed from above. I looked confusingly at the people next to me. And then in the seats around me. There had been no turbulence. Was this a mistake? Half asleep, I didn’t know what to make of it.
All of a sudden, a voice boomed over the PA system; “Put on your masks,” we were told.
Holy crap! This is no mistake.

I reached for my mask. How did that safety briefing go again? “In the event of an emergency, oxygen masks will deploy…” I tried to remember in my sleepy state. After all those safety briefings, you realize you become so numb to them, you tune them out, and when an emergency happens, you think what the heck do you do again?
I put on the mask and fumbled to tighten the strings, taking unnecessarily deep breathes, worried that if I didn’t I’d suffocate. I looked around. The business traveler next me kept reading the paper. The woman sitting diagonally from me and the couple to my right all looked petrified. In front of me, I could hear a woman telling her kids “Mommy loves you, mommy loves you” over and over again.
As the situation unfolded, I thought to myself that we had probably just lost cabin pressure and it was nothing to worry about. We hadn’t taken a dive; we didn’t hit turbulence.
But minutes passed. And then more and more. There were no announcements about what was going on. Of course I want the pilots solving problems, not chatting to me, but the dearth of information made those minutes last forever.
Then, suddenly, we dropped, and we dropped fast. My heart leapt out of my chest. “Maybe there is something really wrong with the plane!” All those fears I have about heights and flying were suddenly realized.
There is nothing scarier than having your plane drop 20,000 feet in seconds. It is a feeling I never want to experience again in my life.
We soon leveled out, and I later learned that when you lose cabin pressure, you have to drop below 10,000 feet to prevent a loss of consciousness.
Soon, the flight attendants walked casually down the aisle while wearing their masks. If you ask any frequent flier, they will always tell you that if the flight attendants aren’t scared, you don’t need to be either.
Finally, the captain came on the radio and explained that yes, the cabin had lost pressure and no, there was nothing to worry about, but yes, we would be making an emergency landing.
You always wonder how you would react in a situation like this. When those masks fall and your plane descends rapidly, will your life flash before your eyes? Will everyone be screaming? Will it be chaos? Will you know what to do?
Surprisingly, none of that happens. My life didn’t flash before my eyes. Everyone stayed calm. We were more in a state of confusion than anything else.

After we landed, my friends and I laughed and talked about it as we sat in Charleston’s airport, drinking beer while waiting for a new flight. “Here’s to our first emergency landing!” we cheered.
Yet as I thought about what had happened, I realized just how helpless we are when that plane door closes. Your life is in the hands of two men you will never see nor ever meet. Anything can happen, and you have no control over it. You simply have to trust that they know what they are doing.
Events like this smack you with the realization that no matter how well you plan your life, all the control you think you have is an illusion. Life happens without you and you’re really just along for the ride. It’s moments like this that make you relax and live a little. It’s taken a few days for that notion to settle in but when you realize you have no control, life gets put in perspective.
Go where life takes you and enjoy the adventure. Have fun. Do what you love. Be with who you love.
Because one day, you’re 35,000 feet above the Atlantic, the masks come down, and the only thing you can do is say to yourself “If this is it, I regret nothing.”
P.S. – These photos were taken after I realized I wasn’t going to die. Additionally, I don’t blame United completely. This could have happened on any airline but when I overheard the captain say this is the second time it’s happened to him in a week, I got uneasy about the standard of United maintenance.

International Living..

2013-02-13T20:52:00.001-07:00

Dear International Living Reader,

In Ecuador, you can have it all...but it doesn't come without sacrifice.

At times, International Living is accused of seeing the world through rose-colored glasses... of overlooking the bad and omitting the blemishes. If you've been here in Quito the past few days, you surely would not agree with that.

Because the expats who live here have come out into the open and are telling it like it is. No holds barred. The unvarnished truth and then some...

I'm Suzan Haskins and I've been reporting to you these past three days from Quito.

To say it's been eye-opening is an understatement. I live in Ecuador and have been doing so on-and-off for the last 12 years. But even I learned so mucho mas from the speakers at this event about Ecuador that I didn't know before.

This is one of the most hospitable countries on the planet where, we learned, everyone from the president and the government on down are welcoming foreign retirees and expat families with open arms. But there are some surprises beyond the welcome mat...

The final panel discussion was particularly telling, with the audience throwing random questions at the panel. They were asking about the challenges to living in Ecuador, the up-and-coming destinations no one talks about, personal safety issues, importation rules, and more—like...can you drink the water... can you bring or own firearms... what will be the effect of any possible future inflation rates on retirement nest eggs... what if you have asthma or allergies... is Ecuador for you?

In another session, we even learned about how to import your household goods. Like when to start the process and how long it takes. (And importantly, how much it costs.) What can you bring? What must you leave at home?

You can learn what we've learned. Should you want to listen in to any and all of the presentations, introductions, or panel discussions from this conference, you can. I've sent you details about how to do just that and I'll do that again here, at the end of this report.

How Patrick Found his Paradise...

But first... I want to tell you about one of the most inspiring speakers on the roster today...

Patrick Robinson has a Burl Ives countenance, down to the deep, distinctive voice. (The problem is, he says, "I’m starting to look like him!")

Living on the island of Maui in Hawaii (the most expensive and overtaxed state in the union, according to Patrick) he made a snapshot list of what the perfect society might look like: Plenty of water, good weather, mostly agrarian, enough exports to support the population, but not to be dependent on those exports, a stable non-dictatorial political environment, and sweet-natured people that were welcoming of foreign immigrants.

The more research he did, the more convinced he became that that place was Ecuador. One part of Ecuador in particular jumped out at him. But still, he wasn't sure he should go off on this adventure. After all, he was more than 80 years old at the time. And that was six years ago!

"Did you ever wonder why people are so afraid of change?" he asked. He weighed the risks versus the rewards, the challenges against the benefits... At his age, could he do it? Uproot and start fresh?

He struggled with the idea, he admits, but he knew he had to make a change. Hawaii was just too expensive...and Patrick plans to live for many, many more years.

After a gentle push from a young friend, he found himself in Ecuador's lush, green Vilcabamba, also known as the Valley of Longevity.

"And I knew I had found my home," he said. "Most importantly, my expenses are now one-fourth what they were in the U.S."

Today, Patrick Robinson is living happily in Vilcabamba where he writes about the secrets to healthy, happy living. ("Vilcabamba has the best water in the world," Patrick says, "Just Google it and see if I’m not right.")

From his office window he enjoys a bucolic view of sleek stallions grazing an emerald-green pasture, a quintessential babbling brook and wildflower-strewn mountains in the background.

"The rewards far outweighed any possible risks," said Patrick. If he can do it at 80+, so can you...

Nothing to Fear (and Much to Gain), But Proceed with Eyes Open...

Some of the presentations over the last three days have been about real estate. And nope, no one is trying to sell anything. Local experts (attorneys, real estate analysts and more) have explained how to go about properly and safely buying property in Ecuador.

(By the way, everyone noted that real estate prices in Ecuador have been rising in the past year or two, but they’re still among the lowest in the world—especially for beachfront property.)

International Living correspondents and expats from all around the country have profiled their favorite places in Ecuador (Cuenca, Cotatcachi, Vilcabamba, Loja, Quito, Salinas and many coastal locations, in case you're wondering) where living is carefree and costs are low.

They’ve shared some extraordinary property picks, too—like a popular beach town where you can buy a seven-bedroom home for little more than $100,000. Bed-and-breakfast, anyone? Or a pretty three-bedroom/ three-bath home across the street from the ocean on a huge lot with room for expansion of land...with a Jacuzzi...for just $179,000.

You can easily build a home in Ecuador for $30 to $50 per square foot. And of course, you can spend more—it totally depends on your tastes, needs, and the level of style you’re after.

If beach living is more your style and you prefer to rent instead of buy, you're in luck. Amy Pinoargote offered an in-depth tutorial on renting in Ecuador: How to find rental properties, how to determine the amenities included, what renters typically pay for and what they don't (utilities, homeowners fees, etc.).

Step-by-step, she and others explained your obligations, responsibilities, carrying costs, fiscal benefits, and more...as either a purchaser or renter of real estate in Ecuador. Thinking of buying a property you can rent when you're not there? We learned all the pros, cons, and details of that, too.

Funding Your Dream:

2013-02-13T16:47:00.002-07:00

Better Than California
By Jason Holland

It just was a regular day for Jeremy. The 38-year-old worked in sales but because he was able to do his job online, he was clocked in from his California home.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a thought struck him: "I could do this from anywhere in the world."

The only things Jeremy needed to make his living were a reliable high-speed Internet connection and a comfortable home for his family. Plus, he already had plenty of overseas experience. He had lived briefly in Peru, Argentina, and Costa Rica and had traveled throughout Central America.

But he'd never been to Nicaragua—and that's where he set his sights.

In particular, Jeremy had his eye on the colonial city of Granada: "We had friends living here, so we thought that would make it easier," he explains. "We didn't take a scouting trip, but we had good people on the ground."

Still, Jeremy admits that it was a leap of faith. Moving with his entire family to a country he had never visited took guts.

That was three years ago...and he hasn't looked back.
There has even been a new addition to the family—a baby girl born a few months ago in a hospital in Managua, the country's capital. Jeremy reports that both mother and baby received top-notch medical care.

Life for the family is just better in Nicaragua.

Jeremy continues to work in sales remotely. He's an independent contractor for a Stateside manufacturer of drug testing products. His office is his laptop and business is done exclusively online through email and Skype.

But although he does the same job as he did in the States, Jeremy is more relaxed. The tranquilo vibe of Nicaragua has rubbed off on him. He can be found working in a local cafe in the courtyard of a restored colonial house as often as at home. Wireless is widespread in Granada so there are dozens of potential "offices" all over the city.

And his flexible schedule means plenty of time for hanging out with his growing family.

"Living abroad has allowed us to travel easily and cheaply," says Jeremy. "We spend a lot of time at the beach in San Juan del Sur or at beautiful locations near Granada like Laguna de Apoyo or Aguas Agrias. We could never travel within the States in the same way we do here."

For Jeremy and family, the move to Nicaragua came at the right time: "I just knew there was another way of living. The fast-paced life of North America really got to me," says Jeremy. "The amount of time you spend working and in transit...and there's no real community. Everybody's driving around in a bubble."

These days, Jeremy and his family are able to live comfortably on $2,000 a month, which includes $700 in rent for their restored colonial home and $200 in bills like utilities and Internet.

"We make enough to rent a nice home and put the girls in a good private school. It would've been a lot harder in California," says Jeremy. "My wife was working in the States. But the difference in the cost of living here means now, she doesn't have to."

What Are Dogs Saying When They Bark?

2013-02-13T06:47:00.000-07:00

What Are Dogs Saying When They Bark? [Excerpt]

In this excerpt from a new book, two canine intelligence researchers explain how dogs use barks to communicate

By Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods

Image: Dutton, a Member of Penguin Group

Excerpt from The Genius of Dogs: How Dogs Are Smarter Than You Think, by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods. Published by Dutton, a Member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc. © 2013 Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods. Excerpted with permission from the publisher. All Rights Reserved.
Mystique is a dog who lives at Lola ya Bonobo, [the wildlife sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of the Congo] where Vanessa and I study bonobos. During the day, she is sweet and demure, but at night she becomes a different animal. She guards our house, barking ferociously every time someone comes within earshot. Usually in Congo, a little extra security is appreciated. The only problem is that our house is on the main trail where the night staff walk back and forth after dark. Mystique dutifully barks at all passersby whether she has known them for a day or all her life. Eventually, we just learned to sleep through it. But if there was really a cause for concern, like a strange man with a gun, I wonder if Mystique would bark in a way that would alert me that there was something dangerous and different about the person approaching the house.
Dog vocalizations may not sound very sophisticated. Raymond Coppinger pointed out that most dog vocalizations consist of barking, and that barking seems to occur indiscriminately. Coppinger reported on a dog whose duty was to guard free- ranging livestock. The dog barked continuously for seven hours, even though no other dogs were within miles. If barking is communicative, dogs would not bark when no one could hear them. It seemed to Coppinger that the dog was simply relieving some inner state of arousal. The arousal model is that dogs do not have much control over their barking. They are not taking into account their audience, and their barks carry little information other than the emotional state of the barking dog.
Perhaps barking is another by-product of domestication. Unlike dogs, wolves rarely bark. Barks make up as little as 3 percent of wolf vocalizations. Meanwhile, the experimental foxes in Russia [that have been bred to be docile] bark when they see people, while the control foxes do not. Frequent barking when aroused is probably another consequence of selecting against aggression.
However, more recent research indicates that there might be more to barking than we first thought. Dogs have fairly plastic vocal cords, or a “modifiable vocal tract.” Dogs might be able to subtly alter their voices to produce a wide variety of different sounds that could have different meanings. Dogs might even be altering their voices in ways that are clear to other dogs but not to humans. When scientists have taken spectrograms, or pictures, of dog barks, it turns out that not all barks are the same—even from the same dog. Depending on the context, a dog’s barks can vary in timing, pitch, and amplitude. Perhaps they have different meanings.
I know two Australian dogs, Chocolate and Cina, who love to play fetch on the beach. Each throw sends them plunging through the waves, racing for that magic orb of rubber. When Chocolate retrieves the ball, inevitably Cina wrestles the ball from Chocolate’s mouth, even while Chocolate growls loudly. The girls also eat together, but when Cina tries the same trick with Chocolate’s food, the result is very different. A quiet growl from Chocolate warns Cina away.
It is difficult to see how Cina knows when it is okay to take something from Chocolate’s mouth, since both growls are made when Chocolate is aggravated and unwilling to share. If anything, Chocolate’s growl seems louder and scarier when she is playing than when she is eating.
Experiments have now shown that dogs use different barks and growls to communicate different things. In one experiment, researchers recorded a “food growl” where a dog was growling over food, and a “stranger growl” where a dog was growling at the approach of a stranger. The researchers played these different growls to a dog who was approaching a juicy bone. The dogs were more hesitant to approach if they heard the food growl rather than the stranger growl.

Pepco Customers Claim Smart Meters Make Them Sick | wusa9.com

2013-02-12T12:55:00.001-07:00

Pepco Customers Claim Smart Meters Make Them Sick | wusa9.com

Passengers describe harsh conditions on Carnival ship

2013-02-11T16:37:00.001-07:00

Passengers describe harsh conditions on Carnival ship

The Federal Trade Commission warned 22 hotel operators that the practice of adding resort fees might violate the law

2013-02-11T06:10:00.001-07:00

FTC warns hotels about 'drip pricing,' but is it enough?

The Federal Trade Commission warned 22 hotel operators that the practice of adding resort fees might violate the law. The commission, however, did not disclose which hotels were warned.

By Catharine Hamm

February 10, 2013, 8:00 a.m.

Consumers continue to get dinged and, worse, surprised by "resort" fees that often aren't quoted upfront in the hotel booking process. This one lump-sum fee often covers such items as phone calls, bottled water, Internet access, access to the pool or spa or other services that guests may or may not use. In September, two On the Spot columns dealt with those fees. When I contacted three consumer advocates who were active about the issue, they had just received a reply to a letter of complaint that they had sent to the Federal Trade Commission. In November, the FTC took more action, which is good news for consumers. But does it solve the problem?
In May, the FTC hosted a conference on what it calls "drip pricing," which it described as "a technique in which firms advertise only part of a product's price and reveal other charges later as the customer goes through the buying process. The additional charges can be mandatory charges, such as hotel resort fees or fees for optional upgrades and add-ons."
Sound familiar? Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition; Charlie Leocha, executive director of the Consumer Travel Alliance; and Ed Perkins, a longtime consumer advocate, think it does. In an August letter to the FTC, the three wrote: "Mandatory artificial fees … can make a hotel's posted rate appear to be below the true price by as much as $30 a night — more than enough to drive consumer choices in the travel marketplace." They noted that the practice makes it difficult to determine how much your final bill will be, which hurts leisure and business travelers who must be attentive to the bottom line.

The next month, the three received what appeared to be a form letter response that said, in part, "The commission does not resolve individual complaints. The commission can, however, act when it sees a pattern of possible violations developing."
Apparently it did see that pattern. In late November, the FTC warned 22 hotels that the practice of adding resort fees might violate the law.
The commission "conducted its own independent investigation," said Annette Soberats, the lead attorney for this investigation who works in advertising practices at the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "The warning letters were sent to 22 hotels and copies of the letters were sent to corporate headquarters of hotels," she said.
"We wanted to give the hotels and the travel industry a chance to clean up their act and thought a warning was the most appropriate way to do that."
But is it enough? The FTC did not disclose which hotels, so there's no way to know whether it's one independent hotel or one that's affiliated with a larger group that would feel the ripple effect. The American Hotel & Lodging Assn. says there were 52,214 properties in this $137-billion-a-year industry in 2011. By my calculation, 22 hotels is .042% of the whole, which is actually worse than the Lakers' winning percentage.
"I think the warning was a smart initial step," Mitchell said. "It would be useful to now provide detailed guidance to the hotel industry and if it is not followed, then FTC should strongly consider taking regulatory action based on its Section 5 authority to police unfair and deceptive practices."
Leocha said, "It may be enough, but I haven't seen any changes in practices yet."
Transparency can't come too soon for consumers. Until then, if you have a complaint, call (877) FTC-HELP (382-4357) or go to https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov. (If using the Internet form, note a slight deviation in the URL: Be sure to add the S on the end of http to go directly to the page.)
Living wage follow-up: Thomas Bliss, of Sherman Oaks, responding to a Jan. 27 "Spot" column ("Tipping Points") on how to tip a food service worker who is paid a living wage, wrote a letter to the editor last week but says his message was muddled in the editing. His point: Tip as you usually tip, he said in a follow-up note. Few food service workers are getting rich, whether they're getting paid the $8 minimum that California decrees or the $11.37 that a Massachusetts Institute of Technology chart calculates is a living wage in Los Angeles. To see that living wage calculator, go to livingwage.mit.edu.

TRAVEL: 10 reasons why you should visit the Caribbean

2013-02-10T16:51:00.003-07:00

10 reasons why you should visit the Caribbean

The Caribbean is one of those places that should be on everyone’s bucket list. The blue seas, the white sand beaches and alluring winter sun makes pretty much everywhere else seem very drab. It also doesn’t have to cost the earth if you don’t want it too, and I should know I spent six months hopping from one island to another. From lively festivals to peaceful sunsets here are 10 reasons why I think you should visit the Caribbean…

The beaches

The blissfully pale shimmery stretches of sand and the sparkling crystal clear waters are obvious pulls when it come to visiting the Caribbean. Throw in the glorious weather and you have one idyllic holiday location. The weather remains pretty good all year round, only breaking for the occasional storm or hurricane.

The diving and snorkelling

The Caribbean is brimming with beautiful marine life including bottle nose dolphins, coral, rays, turtles and rainbow coloured tropical fish. Hiring the equipment is easy and reasonable and there are also plenty of places offering tuition. The Caribbean Sea is warm and blissfully clear, making discovering reefs, tropical fish and turtles a pleasurable pastime.

The accommodation

As well as the beautiful scenery, the Caribbean offers a huge range of accommodation types ensuring you’ll find something that is tailor made for your needs. Whether you want a family friendly place, an uber luxury Caribbean property located in an UNESCO world heritage site or an all inclusive adult’s only resort you’ll find it in the Caribbean. On a budget? Head for Tayrona National Natural Park (in the Colombian northern Caribbean region) on the beach at San Juan del Cabo you’ll find huts renting hammocks for around £1 a night.

The festivals

Festivals are very important in the Caribbean and they reflect the rich cultural diversity and history of the region. If you love colour, costume and carnival then you’ll revel in the Trinidad and Tobago festivals. With the steel drum bands and all night partying and dancing you’ll have a whale of a time. The revellery at Noo Saro-Wiwajoin being the forefathers to Notting Hill Carnival. The brilliant sunshine and sandy beaches just add to the festival ambience.
Want to find more festivals? Try music festivals like the St. Lucia and Barbados Jazz and Jamaica Reggae Festivals to the lesser known Mashramani in Guyana, Surifesta in Suriname and Gimistory in Cayman Islands and the more religious based festivals like Hindu celebrated Phagwa and Diwali and Muslim Id-Ul-Fitr in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Suriname.

The sunsets

If you think the carnival is colourful then you should see the sunsets, displaying every colour imaginable over shimmering reflective waters. Basking in the sunset makes for a very relaxing end to a beautiful day. Make sure you have a tropical juice cocktail to hand and notch up the indulgence points.

The food

There are a huge range of restaurants in the Caribbean with ranges suitable for all tastes. This is especially helpful for children and fussy eaters. If you fancy indulging in some traditional Caribbean delicacies then you certainly have a treat in store. The sea food is especially fresh and delicious. Traditional Caribbean food is a fusion between African, Amerindian, European, East Indian and Chinese cuisine. As you can imagine the spices and the fusion of tastes are delectable, though a lot of the food may be too hot for some palates. Make sure you try some plantain, fresh fish, spicy rice or how about some jerk chicken?

Island hopping

The cluster of Caribbean islands and islets amounts to around 7000! They all vary greatly and if you really want to experience Caribbean culture then it is essential that you explore. Think of the socialism of Cuba, just a stones thrown from the financially centred Cayman Islands. St Kitts is bustling with Brits and tourism and is a hive of activity, whereas across the channel sits Sint Eustatius the sleepy serene Dutch-affiliated island.
The region is well set up for a spot of DIY island hopping with ferry routes running between islands and car hire rentals on the more developed islands.

The people

Visitors to the Caribbean always comment on the people when they return. No matter which of the islands you visit, you’ll find that the majority of people are exceptionally friendly, happy-go-lucky and amazingly laid back. Being surrounded by chilled out people all day certainly helps with the holiday relaxation, but that doesn’t mean they don’t know how to party though.

To find centuries-old culture

The Caribbean is steeped in colonial history which adds an extra depth to any Caribbean holiday. Barbados is brimming with historical, archaeological and ecological sites that reflect the beautifully rich cultural heritage of the island country. Some of the Jacobian and Georgian buildings are even built from white and pink coral. The Dominican Republic, Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica and San Juan are all particular places of interest for those who love to sniff out a bit of history.

Its beauty

Stacked with natural beauty and some of the most paradise-esque scenery in the world wherever you chose to go in the Caribbean you can’t go wrong. It is the mixture of white sandy beaches and azure waters, stunning sunsets as well as the colonial buildings and Dutch heritage buildings that will make you fall in love with the Caribbean just like I did.

2013-02-10T16:46:00.002-07:00

Ranch Chicken Sliders #RSC

By FOODFROMMYHEART on February 10, 2013

Photo by DADCOOKS2

1 Reviews

Prep Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
Serves: 4, Yield: 8 Sliders

About This Recipe

"Ready, Set, Cook! Hidden Valley Contest Entry. Succulent grilled ranch chicken sliders kissed with an avocado-ranch sauce and crumbled bacon"

Ingredients

extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
6 slices bacon, chopped
1 1/2 lbs ground chicken breast
3 shallots
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
salt and pepper
1 avocados, peeled and pitted
1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt
1 lemons, juice of
1 (1 ounce) packet Hidden Valley Original Ranch Seasoning Mix
8 small slider buns or 8 small hawaiian rolls
butter, for buns
lettuce leaves, for serving
2 plum tomatoes or 2 vine-ripened tomatoes, thinly sliced

Directions

Heat an outdoor grill or griddle pan to medium high. Place a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of Olive oil and the bacon to the pan and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels to cool, then dice.
While the bacon cooks, place the chicken in a large bowl. Grate the shallots on top of the chicken . Add the hot sauce, poultry seasoning, salt and lots of pepper. Stir in the cooked bacon, mix and form 8 slider patties, about 2- 1/2 to 3 inches wide. Drizzle with Olive Oil to coat lightly.
Cook on the grill or griddle, turning once, until cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes.
While the sliders cook, heat the broiler.
Place the avocado in a food processor. Add the yogurt, lemon juice, Ranch Seasoning Mix and process into a smooth, thick sauce.

Directions

Butter the buns and place on a baking sheet and toast under the broiler. Serve the Ranch Slider with the lettuce, tomatoes and avocado-ranch sauce between the toasted buns.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 (382 g)
Servings Per Recipe: 4

Amount Per Serving: % Daily Value
Calories 595.6
Calories from Fat 190: 32%

Amount Per Serving: % Daily Value
Total Fat 21.1g: 32%
Saturated Fat 4.8g: 24%
Cholesterol 117.1mg: 39%
Sugars 6.9 g
Sodium 810.1mg: 33%
Total Carbohydrate 52.9g: 17%
Dietary Fiber 5.8g: 23%
Sugars 6.9 g: 27%
Protein 47.6g: 95%

2013-02-10T10:23:00.001-07:00

'They're out of this world!': Mysterious purple spheres found in the desert spark speculation

By Daily Mail Reporter
PUBLISHED: 21:24 EST, 1 February 2013 | UPDATED: 06:46 EST, 2 February 2013

Tuscon locals are baffled by the appearance of thousands of tiny, purple sphere that have appeared in the middle of a desert.
Geradine Vargas and her husband discovered the strange collection Sunday while on a walk.
'We were taking photos around the area and we just.... I mean, how could you miss this?' Geradine said. 'It was just like glittering in the sun.'

Scroll down for video

Mystery: No one seems to what these purple spheres in the desert are where they came from

'It's just one of those things that you've never seen before.'
Some of the spheres were watery and others translucent.

They were completed isolated from the rest of the desert terrain.

Possibilities: Some have speculated that the spheres could be a slime mold or jelly fungus or a man-made product for plant hydration

'We did email a friend of ours who's a zoologist, but she didn't know,' Gerardine told reporters at KGUN-9. 'I mean, she didn't seem to recognize what it was.'
The news station checked out the spheres, reporting that they were like 'gooey marbles that ooze out a water substance when squished.'

Isolated: Everyone from botanists to tv crews has speculated on the sphere's origin

Darlene Buhrow, director of marketing for Tucson Botanical Gardens said that after speaking to a botanist learned that, if the spheres are naturally occurring, they could be a slime mold or jelly fungus.
Other suggest they are a product, like Deco Beads which are small, colored, water-filled balls designed to keep plants hydrated. Though that does little to explain why thousands of them would have been put in the desert.

VIDEO What do YOU think they are? KGUN9 reports from Arizona

Strange 'purple alien eggs' found in the middle of the desert

Raining Spiders In Brazil? Video Appears To Show Numerous Arachnids Dangling

2013-02-10T09:14:00.001-07:00

Raining Spiders In Brazil? Video Appears To Show Numerous Arachnids Dangling

2013-02-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

Small Town Ecuadorian Life (in the Big City)
By Zo Fifield

The clouds hang, obscuring the top of the extinct Imbabura volcano’s 15,000-foot-high peak. Lago del San Pablo, a lake created when an ancient lava flow blocked the river Jatunyacu, glistens serenely to the south.

On the other side of the valley, the rocky volcán Cotacachi rests solemnly in the distance, sun dancing in bright patches along her green slopes. Local legend tells that the two volcanoes are lovers, and when there is snow on Cotacachi’s peak, it means that Imbabura has visited her in the night. The valley between them cradles Otavalo, a city about 34 miles north of Quito,
Ecuador.

The streets are paved with gray bricks, laid like wide crosses in an interlocking pattern. Almost every building in town and the surrounding hillsides is painted some shade of off-white or soft yellow. The brownish-red tile roofs are the result of lingering Spanish architectural influence from the colonial era.

Lamps along the Calle Sucre are adorned with stained-glass birds and colorful metalwork sculptures. At night, you’ll often see lovers walking hand-in-hand beneath the hanging blankets of lights or embracing affectionately next to the illuminated palm trees in the Plaza Bolivar.

On Saturdays, the massive market overflows from the Plaza de Ponchos and colorful textiles and crafts fill tents along streets in a third of the city. Otavaleños are famous for their weavings, everything from blankets and bags to sweaters and gloves.

Still, escape feels just a block or two away—mostly because it is. Otavalo provides a unique living opportunity, combining the best of both worlds.

The true marvel here is the high-Andean farmland—a patchwork quilt of fields that tucks itself into every nook and cranny of the valley. The city life is present, but feels toned down because of the rich indigenous culture and easy lifestyle.

There’s no sense of overwhelming metropolis here.

If you dream of moving overseas and starting a farm but are not ready to give up the convenient amenities of city-living... or if you long to live a city life without the stress and noise of the hustle and bustle... the compromise exists here.

Fresh fruit and vegetables of all shapes, sizes, and colors can be found at the Mercado Copacabana in the eastern part of town. Spend $10 and you could easily find you have too much to carry, especially around the holidays when mangoes and oranges can run 15 for $1.

And, being that it’s close to the equator, the weather is fairly consistent year round. Daytime highs average in the mid-70s F with lows at night sometimes dipping in the 40s F.

Property prices vary depending on size and location. A comfortably-sized two-bedroom house in the city sells for around $35,000. Homes on the surrounding hillsides tend to be more expensive, usually around $50,000, but they are also bigger with up to a half acre of land.

There are many larger houses perched in the foothills between Otavalo and Cotacachi that have additional guest housing on the property. Many of these buildings were converted to B&Bs in response to the increase in tourism to the area. These properties have an asking price of around $100,000.

Excellent: Lance Bass Slams Chris Brown For F-Word Comments! Claims It's JUST Like Using The N-Word!

2013-02-09T10:12:00.001-07:00

Lance Bass Slams Chris Brown For F-Word Comments! Claims It's JUST Like Using The N-Word!

2/09/2013 11:37 AM ET |

Lance Bass — an openly gay man — is calling Chris Brown OUT for his consistent hate-filled comments concerning homosexuals.
Breezy recently got into a fight with gay singer Frank Ocean over a parking situation and reportedly called him the f-word.
Chris has also used the word in his lyrics AND allegedly spat it at the papz back in 2011.
SO ignorant. Such a lazy and cruel use of language.
The former *NSYNC member recently expressed his opinion on Chris' use of the contentious word, expressing:

"Calling people faggot and that stuff, I mean, he may not even mean what he means, but it’s a derogatory term that people throw out there and without even knowing why they are saying it. But when it comes to Frank Ocean and knowing that he’s … very out … it was definitely meant to hurt him. It’s never good to throw those words out there that mean so much.”
[Brown] should understand that being a black man himself. He should know that the F word is just like calling you the N word in a very derogatory way. When you come from a minority like that, being gay or black or whatever, it’s like there should be an understanding, like we all get each other. But you don’t see that a lot, which is really sad."

Preach it Lance!
It IS upsetting when someone who is part of a group that has been — and continues to be — notoriously marginalized because of something obscenely superficial, turns around and treats OTHER marginalized groups in the same fashion!
LAME.
But we tend to feel that the ease at which Chris Brown uses the f-word is simply indicative of MUCH deeper issues (isn't is always?!).
Sort your manz our Rihanna! We can't imagine you CONDONE this type of behavior…
Although judging by her recent show of support at Breezy's community service hearing, it seems Rihanna will accept and celebrate WHATEVER Chris chooses to do!
Siiiiiigghhhhhhh.

Amazing Mars Rover Curiosity's Latest Photos | Space.com

2013-02-08T18:37:00.001-07:00

Amazing Mars Rover Curiosity's Latest Photos | Space.com

2013-02-08T12:39:00.001-07:00

Another Weird Shiny Thing on Mars

by Nancy Atkinson on February 5, 2013

Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on Twitter

Green lines point to a shiny protuberance on rock imaged by the Curiosity rover on Mars. Credit: NASA/JPL/CaltechMalin Space Science Systems. Image processing 2di7 & titanio44 on Flickr.

The Curiosity Mars rover has found some strange-looking little things on Mars – you’ve likely heard of the Mars ‘flower,’ the piece of benign plastic from the rover itself, and other bright flecks of granules in the Martian soil. Now the rover has imaged a small metallic-looking protuberance on a rock. Visible in the image above (the green lines point to it), the protuberance appears to have a high albedo and even projects a shadow on the rock below. The image was taken with the right Mastcam on Curiosity on Sol 173 — January 30, 2013 here on Earth — (see the original raw image here), and was pointed out to us by Elisabetta Bonora, an image editing enthusiast from Italy.

“The corresponding image from the left Mastcam is not there,” said Bonora via email, “which is a real shame because this would allow us to make an anaglyph.”
UPDATE: Since yesterday when we posted this, the left Mastcam image is now available, and so Bonora has put a 3-D view of this little metal-looking thingy. After seeing this anaglyph, it is even more perplexing! Make sure you view it with the red/green 3-D glasses:
See below:

3-D anaglyph from the right and left Mastcam from Curiosity showing the metal-looking protuberance. Credit: NASA/JPL/Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems. Anaglyph by 2di7 & titanio44 on Flickr.

As Bonora pointed out, the protuberance seems different than the rock on which it sits – it could be composed of material more resistant to erosion than the rest and similar material could be within the rock, or it could be something that is “grown” on the rock.
However, it looks fairly smooth, and in fact it is not covered by dust as is the case for metal surfaces that tend to clean easily.
But “small” is the operative word here, as the little protuberance is probably about 0.5 cm tall, or even smaller.

A closeup of the shiny protuberance. Credit: NASA/JPL/Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems. Image editing by 2di7 & titanio44 on Flickr.

Another zoomed-in view of the shiny protuberance. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems. Image via 2di7 & titanio44 on Flickr.

Here’s a full panorama of the area:

Panorama of the area, from Sol 173. Credit: NASA/JPL/Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems. Image editing by 2di7 & titanio44 on Flickr.

I'm sure glad they aren't worried,,,,Jesus!!!!!!!

2013-02-07T16:36:00.003-07:00

Asteroid to Traverse Earth’s Satellite Zone, NASA Says

By Jim Snyder - Feb 7, 2013 2:43 PM MT

An asteroid half the size of a U.S. football field will dart between Earth and orbiting satellites next week, sparing the human race and putting on a show for sky gazers in Eastern Europe, Asia and Australia, NASA said.
The 150-foot diameter asteroid, named 2012 DA14, will pass about 17,000 miles above Earth on Feb. 15 -- lower than the orbits of some satellites -- in the closest known approach of an object of its size. It will travel at 7.8 kilometers a second (17,400 miles an hour), or about eight times the speed of a rifle shot, NASA scientists said today.
“No Earth impact is possible,” Donald Yeomans, who manages the Near-Earth-Object office at Pasadena, California- based Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said today in a press conference.
The NASA unit monitors relatively small space objects such as DA14 to measure the risks they present to the Earth. Researchers said the asteroid’s close trajectory will help NASA in preparing for an eventual encounter with a near-Earth object later this decade. DA14 was discovered in February last year.
While a strike by an asteroid DA14’s size would do “a lot of regional destruction,” it wouldn’t be catastrophic to the planet’s population, said Lindley Johnson, program executive for NASA’s Near-Earth Object observations program in Washington.
Yeomans said the damage from DA14 if it were to hit would rival an impact event in Russia in 1908 that leveled trees over an 820-square-mile territory. The asteroid that is thought to have wiped out the dinosaurs was about 10-kilometers in diameter.

Space Station Safe

The NASA scientists said the asteroid would still pass above the orbits of most of the communications satellites circling Earth, and doesn’t pose a threat to the International Space Station, which moves above the planet at about 250 miles.
Amateur astronomers will need a small telescope to see the asteroid, which would appear as a moving pinpoint in the night sky, said Timothy Spahr, the director of the Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The best viewing location for DA14’s closest approach is Indonesia, with sky gazers in Eastern Europe, Australia and Asia also getting good looks at the asteroid.
The NEO program office said that an object of similar size gets this close to Earth once every 40 years, and that an actual collision can be expected only once in 1,200 years.
Some companies and entrepreneurs are eying asteroids as possible sources for trillions of dollars in precious metals.

Revealed: The shocking invisible damage done to a woman's face after 14 years of sunbed use

2013-02-07T12:29:00.002-07:00

Revealed: The shocking invisible damage done to a woman's face after 14 years of sunbed use

Scan taken by pioneering UV scanner which shows damage in stark detail
Shows face of Kelly Hughes, 30, who has used sunbeds since she was 16
Experts hope campaign will highlight long-term risks of sunbeds
Using sunbed just once a month increases risk of skin cancer by 50%

By Anna Hodgekiss

This shocking image shows the cosmetic damage done to a woman's face after 14 years of using sunbeds.
The in-depth picture shows clusters of unsightly damage under 30-year old Kelly Hughes' features which can lead to cancer.
It was taken by a pioneering UV skin scanner which shows up in stark detail the extreme damage caused beneath the surface when people lay under the machines.

Experts hope that their campaign will help highlight the dangers of sunbeds to youngsters, who are often inspired by shows such as The Only Way Is Essex to get a permatan.

This UV scan shows that after 14 years of using sunbeds, 30-year-old Kelly Hughes has clusters of unsightly pockmarks which can lead to cancer

Kelly started using sunbeds at the local gym when she was 16 to maintain a holiday glow. She said the results of the scan were shocking

UV rays from sunbeds or over-exposure to the sun can damage the skin's DNA and, over time, this damage can build up and lead to skin cancer
Kelly, an account manager from Beaconsfield, Bucks, said: 'I started using sunbeds at the local gym when I was 16 to maintain that holiday feel
'I would have more sessions in the winter as I did not want to look pale - my skin is freckly and moley so I knew I could be at risk of skin cancer but did not really want to think about that.

'When I look back at my university years I was tanned pretty much all the time. The results of the scan were a shocker. I was the oldest girl there and the UV damage was much worse than the others.
'It really made me think. It was scary. I have not had any sunbeds since - not for Christmas parties and not for New Year. I have been looking online for a bronzer.'
Skin cancer expert Dr Askari Townshend, who reviewed the X-rays, said: 'Kelly has easily the greatest degree of damage.

Clusters of speckled areas are seen right across the face. Her top lip has escaped but the cheeks, bridge of nose, sides of face and forehead have not.

It's hoped the campaign will highlight the dangers of sunbeds to youngsters often wanting to emulate the tans of The Only Way Is Essex stars, such as Sam Faiers (left) and Mark Wright and Lauren Goodger

This month Cancer Research UK is raising awareness of the danger of sunbed use with a campaign entitled 'R UV UGLY', backed by leading skin specialists sk:n clinics.

HOW TO SPOT SKIN DAMAGE

Fine and coarse wrinkles are seen on sun damaged skin. It may also become
patchy, or mottled darker patches of increased pigmentation may appear.

Sometimes these patches become irregular and produce what are known as lentigos.

In areas around the back of the neck, a leathery texture and coarseness with deep lines is frequently seen, the skin may feel dry and scaly.

Chronic sun exposure will also produce a thickened layer in the upper dermis known as solar elastosis, which gives a yellowish chicken skin look.

The initiative aims to stave off the temptation to hit the sunbeds this winter by showing the ugly truth beneath the tan.
Figures show using a sunbed just once or more a month could increase the chance of developing skin cancer by 50 per cent.
Malignant melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer, is the second most common cancer amongst 15 to 34 year olds.
The campaign will see experts touring shopping centres with the machines, which offer in depth images of faces, to let people see first-hand how damaged their skin might be.
It calls on people across the nation to face the damage, often invisible to the naked eye, being inflicted on their skin in pursuit of a tan, by offering free skin assessments at sk:n clinics across England.
The skin scan highlights such things as pigmentation and premature wrinkles, caused by overexposure to UV rays from sunbeds, a turn off for all young women worried about their appearance.

Cancer Research UK's senior health campaigns manager Caroline Cerny said: 'We are glad to be bringing R UV UGLY back to England this February.

The initiative aims to stave off the temptation to hit the sunbeds this winter by exposing the often unnoticed, long-term skin damage sunbeds can cause

'We have seen many young people know about the risks of sunbed use, but still believe they make them look and feel better.
'Working with sk:n, this initiative will allow people to see the cosmetic damage from sunbed use, showing every time someone uses a sunbed they are damaging their skin, making it look worse in the long run and making skin coarse, leathery and wrinkled.
'No one wants to look older before their time, so we hope the skin scan will really help to change people's minds about using sunbeds.
Spokesman David Djukic said: 'You may look perfectly fine on the surface but what the scanner does is show up what is going on underneath.
'Our model in the picture is just a member of the public who had been using sunbeds not even that much. Obviously, she was horrified, and is not using them any more.
'I think the message is getting home - the number of people using sunbeds is dropping year on year thanks to campaigns like this one that raise awareness about how dangerous they are.'

As well as the public being able to visit sk:n clinics, Cancer Research UK will be taking R UV UGLY on tour this month at major shopping centres in Sheffield, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds and Essex.

20 Optical Illusions That Might Break Your Mind

2013-02-07T06:55:00.001-07:00

20 Optical Illusions That Might Break Your Mind

Reality Stars Who Should Have Stayed Away From Plastic Surgery and "Cosmetic" Procedures | StyleBlazer

2013-02-06T11:57:00.001-07:00

Reality Stars Who Should Have Stayed Away From Plastic Surgery and "Cosmetic" Procedures | StyleBlazer