Upton headed to Braves; Pettitte returns to Yanks

B.J. Upton is on his way to Atlanta, while Andy Pettitte is staying in pinstripes.

With the winter meetings only days away, baseball's offseason began to heat up Wednesday with a pair of moves involving potential closers: Ryan Madson joined the Angels and Jonathan Broxton remained with the Reds.

Hours later, the Braves made big news.

Looking for a new center fielder and some right-handed pop, Atlanta found both in Upton, who had 28 homers and 31 steals for Tampa Bay last season. The fleet-footed free agent agreed to a $75.25 million, five-year contract, a person familiar with the deal said Wednesday night.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal had not been completed. It was expected to be announced Thursday once Upton passes his physical.

Upton's score would be the biggest free-agent contract of the offseason so far and the largest in Braves history.

Pettitte, meanwhile, will return for another season with the New York Yankees.

Feeling strong at age 40, the veteran lefty completed a one-year deal worth $12 million, putting baseball's biggest postseason winner back in the Bronx.

"I think we're good enough to go all the way, I really do," Pettitte said on a conference call. "I'm at the point where, if I didn't feel like we had a chance to win it deep down, I wouldn't do this."

The five-time World Series champion retired after the 2010 season to spend more time at home but then decided to come back this year ? while working as an instructor during spring training ? and signed a contract guaranteeing him $2.5 million.

Pettitte went 5-4 with a 2.87 ERA in 12 starts. He missed almost three months because of a broken lower left leg, sustained when he was hit by a line drive off the bat of Cleveland's Casey Kotchman on June 27.

"I definitely think that if I would have pitched a full season and thrown 200 innings, that I definitely wouldn't feel as fresh and physically feel as good as I do right now," Pettitte said. "Obviously, I feel like that helped lead me to a quick decision."

The move means the AL East champs are set to start 2013 with the same rotation as last season: CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Pettitte, Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova or David Phelps.

Next up for general manager Brian Cashman could be a contract for 43-year-old closer Mariano Rivera, determined to come back from a torn knee ligament.

Madson is making a comeback from Tommy John surgery, and he agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels five days before the start of baseball's winter meetings in Nashville, Tenn.

The longtime Philadelphia reliever missed last season with Cincinnati, which signed him in January after a stellar performance in 2011 with the Phillies. He had surgery in April on a torn ligament in his right elbow.

Well ahead of schedule in his recovery, Madson said he expects to be the Angels' closer. General manager Jerry Dipoto agreed the veteran is likely to supplant Ernesto Frieri when fully healthy.

"I feel like if I can throw the ball like I'm capable of, I expect to have that role," Madson said. "I expect to come to spring training and earn the job."

Broxton isn't sure what role he'll have in Cincinnati after securing a $21 million, three-year contract that gives the NL Central champions a chance to reconfigure their starting rotation.

The two-time All-Star came to the Reds last July in a trade with Kansas City. He filled in as the closer when Aroldis Chapman developed a tired shoulder and had four saves in six chances overall with a 2.82 ERA.

Now the Reds have the option of turning Chapman into a starter, which was the plan last season until Madson blew out his elbow. The team has told Chapman to prepare for next season as a starter, although it hasn't committed to Broxton as the closer.

"Nothing's in stone right now," assistant general manager Bob Miller said. "When we talked to Jonathan we said he was going to be at the back end of the bullpen. What happens depends on spring training and how things play out in the offseason."

Broxton wanted a multiyear deal so he could settle in one place. He didn't insist on assurances he'd be a closer.

"I went into the offseason with an open mind," Broxton said. "I've got experience in both roles. Even if Chapman doesn't work out as a starter, he can come back in and fill in as the closer. I'll be happy to throw the eighth (inning). It doesn't matter. You saw what he did last year."

The 28-year-old Upton hit .246 with 78 RBIs for the Rays last season. He will replace free agent Michael Bourn as the Braves' center fielder and should provide much-needed power from the right side.

Upton's first full season with Tampa Bay was 2007, when he hit a career-best .300 with 24 homers and 22 stolen bases. His home run totals have increased in each of the last three seasons, but he has hit below .250 with more than 150 strikeouts in four straight years.

Bourn was the Braves' leadoff hitter, but Upton is not expected to fill that role.

Elsewhere, the Boston Red Sox made a flurry of minor moves, trading right-handers Zach Stewart and Sandy Rosario as well as third baseman Danny Valencia.

Stewart was sent to Pittsburgh and Rosario to Oakland for players to be named. Valencia was shipped to Baltimore for cash.

Boston also hired Greg Colbrunn as hitting coach.

Athletics reliever Pat Neshek agreed to a one-year contract that avoided salary arbitration, while Kansas City traded right-hander Vin Mazzaro and first baseman Clint Robinson to the Pirates for minor league pitchers Luis Santos and Luis Rico.

The Chicago Cubs designated right-hander Casey Coleman for assignment to make roster room for newcomer Scott Feldman, who agreed to a $6 million, one-year contract the previous day.

Feldman's former team, the Texas Rangers, acquired right-hander Cory Burns from San Diego for a player to be named or cash.

___

AP Sports Writers Charles Odum, Greg Beacham and Joe Kay contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/upton-headed-braves-pettitte-returns-yanks-082645583--mlb.html

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Internet service goes out across Syria

BEIRUT (AP) ? Internet service went down Thursday across Syria and international flights were canceled at the Damascus airport when a road near the facility was closed by heavy fighting in the country's civil war.

Activists said President Bashar Assad's regime pulled the plug on the Internet, perhaps in preparation for a major offensive. Cellphone service also went out in Damascus and parts of central Syria, they said. The government blamed rebel fighters for the outages.

With pressure building against the regime on several fronts and government forces on their heels in the battle for the northern commercial hub of Aleppo, rebels have recently begun pushing back into Damascus after largely being driven out of the capital following a July offensive. One Damascus resident reported seeing rebel forces near a suburb of the city previously deemed to be safe from fighting.

The Internet outage, confirmed by two U.S.-based companies that monitor online connectivity, is unprecedented in Syria's 20-month-old uprising against Assad, which activists say has killed more than 40,000 people.

Regime forces suffered a string of tactical defeats in recent weeks, losing air bases and other strategic facilities. The government may be trying to blunt additional rebel offensives by hampering communications.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland condemned what she called the regime's "assault" on Syrians' ability to communicate with each other and express themselves. She said the move spoke to a desperate attempt by Assad to cling to power.

Syrian authorities often cut phone and Internet service in select areas to disrupt rebel communications when regime forces are conducting major operations.

The government sent mixed signals about the Internet outage but denied it was nationwide. The pro-regime TV station Al-Ikhbariya quoted Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi as saying that "terrorists" have targeted Internet cables, interrupting service in several cities.

Separately, state-run TV said the outage was due to a technical failure that affected some provinces, adding that technicians were trying to fix it.

Activists in Syria, reached by satellite telephones unaffected by the outage, confirmed the communications problems.

A young Syrian businessman who lives in an upscale neighborhood of Damascus, which some refer to as part of "the green zone" because it has remained relatively safe, sent a text message to an Associated Press reporter Thursday that said the Internet had been cut in his area and that mobile phone service was cutting out.

He said he was driving Wednesday through the Damascus suburb of Aqraba, near the airport, and saw dozens of rebel fighters for the first time in the area, riding in pickup trucks and motorcycles, and wielding AK-47s.

Their presence so close to the "green zone" may have led to the Internet being cut, said the resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared government reprisal. He said the military was positioned a few hundred meters away from the rebel fighters and had built large speed bumps to enclose the area.

The opposition said the Internet blackout was an ominous sign that the regime was preparing a major offensive.

"I fear that cutting the Internet may be a prelude to a massacre in Damascus," said Adib Shishakly, a Syrian opposition figure from Cairo, Egypt. "The regime feels it is being choked off by rebels who are closing in on the capital from its suburbs. It's a desperate move; they are trying to sever communications between activists."

Renesys, a U.S.-based network security firm that studies Internet disruption, said in a statement that Syria effectively disappeared from the Internet at 12:26 p.m. local time.

"In the global routing table, all 84 of Syria's IP address blocks have become unreachable, effectively removing the country from the Internet," Renesys said. It added that the main autonomous system responsible for Internet in the country is the Syrian Telecommunications Establishment, and that "all of their customer networks are currently unreachable."

Akamai Technologies Inc., another U.S.-based company that distributes content on the Internet, also confirmed the complete outage.

Jim Cowie, the chief technology officer at Renesys, said the abruptness of the outage suggested it wasn't due to a severed cable. Syria has several cables that connect it to the outside world, and all of them would have had to be cut at once for a complete outage. A power outage or an intentional shutdown at central Syrian telecommunications facilities is a more likely cause, he said.

"We saw everything go in three to four minutes, which looks like a light switch," Cowie said.

He said the profile of the outage was similar to what the Egyptian government did in January 2011 during the Arab Spring uprising that toppled longtime leader Hosni Mubarak. Egypt switched off the Internet for five days, halting businesses, banking and ? at the height of the demonstrations ? the ability of protest leaders to organize and communicate with each other.

Bahrain's Sunni rulers also jammed cellphones during the military offensive on the protesters' encampment in the capital of Manama in March 2011. Internet service remained at a crawl when the Bahrain's military stormed the city's Pearl Square ? the headquarters of the revolt ? after weeks of street protests.

Ann Harrison, deputy program director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, said in a statement that the group worried the communications were cut in Syria "to shield the truth of what is happening in the country from the outside world."

Thursday's violence appeared to be focused on southern suburbs near the Damascus international airport, forcing the military to shut the road to the facility. The surrounding districts have been strongholds of rebel support since the uprising began.

At the United Nations, the secretary-general's office said at least four soldiers assigned to the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights were injured in the crossfire on the airport road as their unit was heading out for a routine rotation of forces.

Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the regime has started a major offensive around the airport where rebels have been particularly active in recent weeks.

Abdul-Rahman, who relies on a network of activists in Syria, said large convoys of government reinforcements were seen heading south toward the airport, which is 25 kilometers (15 miles) southeast of Damascus. The fighting was concentrated in and around the suburbs of Aqraba and Beit Saham, he said.

The Syrian Information Ministry later said the airport road was secure after attacks by "terrorist groups" on motorists, according to state TV. It was not immediately clear whether the road had been reopened.

The fighting prompted both Emirates airline and EgyptAir to cancel flights to Damascus.

Despite months of sporadic fighting and deteriorating security in Damascus, the airport has remained open.

But EgyptAir said in a statement that the airline will halt all flights to Damascus and Aleppo starting Friday, until further notice. EgyptAir head Rushdi Zakaria said the decision was due to deteriorating security conditions in Syria.

Syrian TV also said government forces were chasing "al-Qaida elements" around Damascus, mostly in the eastern suburbs of Douma and the southern suburb of Daraya.

The Observatory said the regime used warplanes to hit districts including Daraya, where fighting has raged for days.

The operation around Damascus comes days after rebels made significant advances in the area. Last week, they captured a major helicopter base just outside the capital.

In the southern city of Daraa, where the uprising began, rebels detonated a car bomb near the house of a senior member of the country's ruling Baath Party, killing him and his three bodyguards, activists said. Rebels frequently target regime figures and military commanders.

___

Associated Press writers Barbara Surk in Beirut, Matthew Lee in Washington, Peter Svensson in New York, Peter James Spielmann at the United Nations, Robert H. Reid in Berlin and Aya Batrawi in Cairo contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/internet-goes-across-syria-213845781--finance.html

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Raising Kids that Craft (or not) | FIMBY

?

I have crafty kids. It's just what we do.

This time of year especially. For weeks leading up to Brienne's birthday C?line sequestered herself away in our bedroom - one of the few rooms in our home with a door - to sew.

And now with the Christmas gift giving season upon us there will be a lot more secret sewing and crafting going on.

Recently, when we went to our friend's farm for the weekend the kids took a small bin of supplies and their favorite new craft book (mailed to us from the Netherlands by a FIMBY reader). Along the way, we bought felt at the fabric store, and the kids arrived ready to get on their crafting groove.

The kids were worried they wouldn't be able to speak to their French-speaking friends but we knew crafting could be the common language.

Ever since that visit C?line has been e-mailing back and forth with her friends en Fran?ais et en Anglais photos of the craft projects they are doing.

People have asked me how to encourage their own children to be creative and I have shared those ideas already here on my blog: have good supplies, be willing to make the time for it, be ok with the mess it will create (teaching your kids to clean up their mess will help with this).

(It's interesting to note that even though I don't do as many crafty things, especially sewing and paper memory keeping, as I used to when my children were younger, our kids continue to craft on their own initiative.)

I wrote a little book about how you can nurture creativity in your own life, and honestly, the same advice I give to moms' applies to kids and people in general. The advantage kids have is that when they start creating from the time they are little they don't have the same hang-ups adults do - fear of failure and perfectionism being too biggies.

Encouraging creativity is near and dear to my heart and it's something that comes up in most of my coaching and online teaching. I think it's one of my core life messages right now.

Based on your suggestions during the teleconference, I've even started doing my own art again - which is my life's passion, but I thought I had to put it on hold until my kids were older. Instead, now we're doing it together. Yes, our house is much more peaceful and I'm even getting my own "battery recharged".

As an educator, I believe creativity is an important part of learning. As a human being and a mother, I believe creativity is simply a part of joyful and wholehearted living (see Bren? Brown's book The Gifts of Imperfection for more on this).

I was asked the following question in a recent interview:

There is always a lot of discussion about the need for creativity in our lives, but not as much on the subject of why. What do you believe mothers gain, both as individuals and as parents, from fostering their own creative spirit.

Here's my answer:

Joy. When you tap into that creative activity (or activities) that both challenge you and help you express yourself you have access to a sweet spring of joy.

Not all moments are joy of course (writing ebooks is NOT all joy). But the main reason I both nurture creativity and tune into the creativity in my days, e.g. arranging pottery just so on the table and taking a picture to share on my blog, is for the pure joy of it. The joy of beauty. The joy of being alive and having a gift to share.

My children also get immense pleasure from their creativity. The actual making of things brings them joy. Showing and giving their art to family and friends. Playing with their handmade toys. They do it because it brings them joy.

I believe we were created for joy and pleasure. For relationship and beauty. Nurturing creativity puts us back in touch with this.

What if your kids don't craft or fill-in-the-blank?

There are so many things that can bring creativity, joy, pleasure and beauty into our lives.

Music is one of those things. Did you know that none of our children play a musical instrument?

Some people might think this is a shame but our children haven't expressed an interest to learn an instrument and we decided this wasn't going to be one of the requirements of their home education.

Did you also know that learning never stops and people can learn new things all the time?

What this means is that if our kids one day want to learn how to play a musical instrument they can! If they want to learn to speak Japanese they can! I don't have to teach them all these things when they are knee high, nor do I have to hire someone to do so.

I don't have to carry the burden of exposing our children to every good thing before they are eighteen, training their young minds to speak three languages and play two instruments. They have their whole lives.

It may be sacrilege to say this but you don't have to give your children the perfectly well balanced and well rounded upbringing. In fact, trying to do so would be impossible because none of us are perfect.

You can build your family life and home learning environment on your family values, your children's interests and natural talents, your interests and talents, and your overall goals for your children's education. Yes. You. Can.

When your children leave your home they will build on this foundation, carrying forward some of the values and teaching you instilled and then add entirely new pieces according to their own desires and life mission. And won't that be fun. For them and for us.

Damien and I have already talked about the twists and turns our family life will take when our children come of age and choose their own path. We're excited about it! We're going to learn so much.

I think the reason parents, especially homeschooling parents, feel we have to teach it all when our kids are young is because we must carry a belief deep-down (so deep it's hard to acknowledge) that learning stops when kids reach a certain age. Or if not learning, the ability to study something you're interested in and pursue your dreams.

That freedom stops when you are an adult and if you haven't learned how to sew or haven't wrapped your brain around Newton's Laws by the time your eighteen, well that's just too bad. It's all over. Because now real life starts, and don't you know "in real life you don't get to determine your own course of action, you have responsibilities". And if you want to learn Latin, well too bad. If your homeschool mom didn't teach it to you when you were twelve, it's all over for you.

Do you hear what I'm saying?

We create because it brings us joy. We make useful things, and some not so useful things, and we learn important skills. We make time for creativity in our homeschool curriculum because it is one of our family's core values.

Does this mean you have to craft with your kids? Not at all. Maybe you bake with them instead, or play musical instruments together, take dance classes, or spin wool from your own sheep. Maybe you speak Japanese in the morning and conjugate Latin verbs in the afternoon.

If this is what you love, what brings your family joy, and is inline with your family values - then do it! And do it with gusto. Do it well, do it often. Do it to the glory of your creator.

And teach your kids this with your example - we never stop learning. The door is always open. We never graduate, though we may pass some exams along the way to show certain proficiencies (trust me, I want that surgeon to have passed their medical school exams).

Our children's childhood, foundational as it may be, it not "it" in terms of their learning window of opportunity.

Release yourself from that burden. Release them.

And then go make something. Just for the fun of it.

http://fimby.tougas.net/trackback/8788

Source: http://fimby.tougas.net/raising-kids-that-craft-or-not

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QuickBooks Mobile now fully optimized for Android tablets

Intuit has updated the QuickBooks Mobile app for Android, making the app fully optimized for use with Android tablets. With almost 400,000 companies and over 1 million people using QuickBooks Online, there is a real need for a comprehensive companion application that's built to take advantage of the screen real estate a tablet offers. Of course, the app still offers all the same features to help users manage their finances it always has.

Intuit also recognizes the market swing and how Android is quickly gaining share. The number of mobile users is expected to surpass the number of computer users by mid-2013, and a significant number of those will be running Android. Simply put, these folks will need to have access to the programs they want and need -- including productivity software. QuickBooks Mobile is free in Google Play, but requires access to QuickBooks online or other Intuit services which may be subscription based.

Read through the break for the press release from Intuit, and a few screenshots of the app in action. 

read more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/MU_Lpfwspqo/story01.htm

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Ornamental, cleansing ponds not suitable for fishing - lovidatraaza's ...

From Chia Seng Jiang Director, Parks, National Parks Board
Today Online 28 Nov 12;

We thank Mr Jeremy Wong for his suggestion, "Let's have more fishing spots" (Nov 23) in our parks.

There are several parks with designated recreational fishing spots. They include Bedok Jetty at East Coast Park, Bedok Reservoir Park, Changi Beach Park, Kranji Reservoir Park, Lower Seletar Reservoir Park, MacRitchie Reservoir Park, Pasir Ris Town Park, Sembawang Park, West Coast Park and Woodlands Waterfront Park.

Mr Wong had written to us separately and suggested that we open up more spots for recreational fishing, such as at Sengkang Riverside Park and the freshwater ponds at East Coast Park.

We replied that the ponds at East Coast Park are primarily designed as ornamental ponds and are not suited for fishing, while the pond at Sengkang Riverside Park is designed to capture and cleanse storm water run-off prior to discharge into the river.

For the safety and enjoyment of all park users, we take this opportunity to encourage anglers to use the designated fishing areas, which are demarcated by signboards in our parks.

Members of the public can send their feedback and suggestions to Parks_Public_Affairs@nparks.gov.sg or call our helpline (1800 471 7300).

Let's have more fishing spots
From Jeremy Wong Today Online 23 Nov 12;

With more youngsters taking up fishing, the National Parks Board should open up more spots for this recreation, namely, at Sengkang Riverside Park and the freshwater ponds at East Coast Park.

There could be catch limits, like in Australia's sport fishing grounds, no use of netting, strict action against litterbugs and so on.

There are more park users and anglers at places such as Bedok Jetty, especially on weekends, than at the three spots mentioned above. The latter may thus be safer for fishing if space is set aside.

Source: http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.com/2012/11/ornamental-cleansing-ponds-not-suitable.html

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Source: http://lovidatraaza.posterous.com/ornamental-cleansing-ponds-not-suitable-for-f

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Soccer Goalkeeping Tips ? Recreation and Sports

The goalkeeper?s job is definitely the toughest of all soccer players. Even though a defender, midfielder or attacker can get off with a few blunders once in a while, a goal keeper?s blunders really are a lot more noticeable. To complicate things even further, modern goalkeepers have a whole lot more attributions than before. They need to coordinate the defense. They quite often have to work as sweepers, and they are able to fire off lethal counter attacks immediately after a clean save.

1 Versus 1 is a very popular routine. That being said, it?s very effective given that goal keepers are bound to become caught in a one on one challenge against an opposing attacker in practically every single game. Add to that, at beginner or youth levels, in which defenses are less demanding than they are with the professionals, 1-on-1s are quite typical for goalkeepers. You need to train them properly.

Ab Volley is one of the toughest goal keeping drills. If executed correctly, it?s an extremely effective one. Here?s how it goes: your goalie must remain on his bottom, in the very same position he?d do ab situps in. You or a teammate will need to throw the ball towards him and while he?s doing ab situps, he will pass it back to you. To speed things up a little, you can have an additional group of 8-10 players behind the goal, returning the balls back to the firing squad.

Automatic Fire. Have 8-10 players stand at about twenty to thirty yards from the goal, each with his or her own ball. At your signal, the attackers must, 1 by 1, run forward and kick the ball from a distance you specified earlier. Your goal keeper must be under a constant rain of shots, jumping from one particular post to the other to save the ball. It is not really that essential if he saves them or not, it is crucial that he understands the way to react rapidly and get up from the floor fast and be prepared for an additional shot.

Visit www.lacrossegoals.org to learn more about the similarities of soccer and lacrosse.

Tags: football, goalie, goalkeeper, soccer

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 29th, 2012 at 3:05 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Source: http://recreationandsports.russiacourse.com/uncategorized/soccer-goalkeeping-tips/

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Arafat's remains exhumed for poison tests

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Forensic experts took samples from Yasser Arafat's uncovered corpse in the West Bank on Tuesday, trying to determine if he was murdered by Israeli agents using the hard-to-trace radioactive poison, Polonium.

Palestinians witnessed the funeral of their hero and longtime leader eight years ago, but conspiracy theories surrounding his death have never been laid to rest.

Many are convinced their icon was the victim of a cowardly assassination, and may stay convinced whatever the outcome of this autopsy. But some in the city of Ramallah where he lies deplored the uncovering of his body on Tuesday.

"This is wrong. After all this time, today they suddenly want to find out the truth?" said construction worker Ahmad Yousef, 31. "They should have done it eight years ago," he said.

Arafat's body was uncovered in its grave and samples were removed without having to lift the corpse from the ground. As a result, the planned reburial ceremony with full military honors was called off.

The tomb was resealed in hours and wreaths were placed by Palestinian leaders including Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

"The state of the body was exactly what you would expect to find for someone who has been buried for eight years. There was nothing out of the ordinary," Health Minister Hani Abdeen told a news conference.

French magistrates in August opened a murder inquiry into Arafat's death in Paris in 2004 after a Swiss institute said it had discovered high levels of polonium on clothing of his which was supplied by his widow, Suha, for a television documentary.

The head of the Palestinian investigation committee, Tawfiq Tirawi said the forensic procedure went smoothly. A Palestinian medical team took samples and gave them to each of the Swiss, French and Russian teams.

"We need proof in order to find those who are behind this assassination and take it to the ICC (International Criminal Court)," he said. "When we have proof, we will go to the ICC for it to be our first case to try those whose policy is assassinations."

RESULTS IN SPRING 2013

Jordanian doctor Abdullah al Bashir, head of the Palestinian medical committee, said about 20 samples were taken and analysis would take at least three months.

"In order to do these analyses, to check, cross-check and double cross-check, it will take several months and I don't think we'll have anything tangible available before March or April next year," said Darcy Christen, spokesman for Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland that carried out the original tests on Arafat's clothes.

Arafat was always a freedom fighter to Palestinians but a terrorist to Israelis first, and a partner for peace only later. He led the bid for a Palestinian state through years of war and peacemaking, then died in a French hospital aged 75 after a short, mysterious illness.

No autopsy was carried out at the time, at the request of Suha, and French doctors who treated him said they were unable to determine the cause of death.

But allegations of foul play surfaced immediately, and many Palestinians pointed the finger at Israel, which confined Arafat to his West Bank headquarters in Ramallah for the final two and a half years of his life after a Palestinian uprising erupted.

Israel denies murdering him. Its leader at the time, Ariel Sharon, now lies in a coma from which he is expected never to awake. Israel invited the Palestinian leadership to release all Arafat's medical records, which were never made public following his death and still have not been opened.

Polonium, apparently ingested with food, was found to have caused the death of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko in London in 2006. But some experts have questioned whether Arafat could have died in this way, pointing to a brief recovery during his illness that they said was not consistent with radioactive poisoning. They also noted he did not lose all his hair.

Eight years is considered the limit to detect any traces of the fast-decaying polonium and Lausanne hospital questioned in August if it would be worth seeking any samples, if access to Arafat's body was delayed as late as "October or November."

Not all of Arafat's family agreed to the exhumation.

Arafat's widow watched her husband's uncovering on television from her house in Malta.

"This will bring closure, we will know the truth about why he died. I owe this answer to the Palestinian people, to the new generation, and to his daughter," a tearful Suha told timesofmalta.com.

(Writing by Crispian Balmer; addition reporting by Chris Scicluna in Malta; Editing by Douglas Hamilton, Tom Pfeiffer and Jason Webb)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/arafats-body-exhumed-murder-inquiry-053058256.html

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`China India must build new type of international ties

Texas Guardian (IANS) Wednesday 28th November, 2012

China and India should work together to build "new type of international relations", a Chinese expert said here Wednesday at a conference to look into the implication of the onceinadecade leadership change in Beijing.

"We are the two most populous countries and the two fastest growing economies...the rise of the two together will be (an) important phenomenon in global arena," said Huang Huaguang, director general, Research Office, International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Huang, one of the delegates from China at the conference on 'Implications of the Change in Leadership in PRC: Internal and External Dimensions', organised by the Observer Research Foundation, said: "We want to have better relations with India."

China, one of the world's strongest economies, earlier this month witnessed a leadership change that put Xi Jinping on top of the Chinese political hierarchy and the next president after Hu Jintao. His party colleague Li Keqiang will step into the shoes of Premier Wen Jiabao.

Huang suggested that the two countries should have "better strategic communication and coordination" and people to people exchanges should take place.

He said that in various fora, "we should work together to build a new type of international relations".

Huang pointed out that "complex changes" are taking place in the global arena. "The world is not as stable as we want...there are many issues."

He referred to the global financial crisis and also noted that in certain regions "we see hegemony and intervention in other countries".

"Generally speaking, we are optimistic of the growing forces of peace and stability. At the same time, we must not overlook the challenges...We don't see it (challenges) resolving under the existing order."

China, he stressed, wants to resolve conflicts in a peaceful manner through dialogue.

Also addressing the conference was Li Junru, former vice president, Central Party School of the CPC, who said the rise of China would help build lasting peace.

He said the Chinese people dream of walking out of poverty and wanted a strong China. The Chinese people, he added, want "peaceful coexistence and not repeat the past of powerful countries invading other countries".

Li said the US was the world's largest economy and China the second strongest. "One day, we will surpass them and the US is worried about this."

Both China and the US should not "misjudge each other".

He said that America is also worried about China's military development. "Our military power is enough to defend our own territory and US need not worry," he said, stressing that Beijing was keen on long term stability.

Zhang Yansheng, secretary general, Academic Committee, National Development amp; Reform Commission, suggested inking of a free trade agreement between the two countries so as to allow market access.

He sought strengthening of the strategic economic dialogue.

Source: http://www.texasguardian.com/index.php/sid/211012675/scat/b8de8e630faf3631

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Earnings Preview: B&N 2Q a Nook report card

NEW YORK (AP) ? Barnes & Noble Inc., the largest traditional U.S. bookseller, should give hints on how its Nook e-book reader business is doing this holiday season when it reports its fiscal second-quarter earnings before the market opens Thursday.

The company is expected to report a narrower second-quarter loss on nearly flat revenue.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Barnes & Noble Inc. faces tough competition from online retailers like Amazon.com and discount stores as consumers increasingly move away from traditional books in favor of electronic books. These factors have pushed the chain to invest heavily in its Nook e-reader and e-books and other digital content. The company now breaks out its Nook division to give a better picture on how that business is doing.

In October, Barnes & Noble closed its deal for $300 million from Microsoft Corp. in exchange for a 17.6 percent stake in the venture, Nook Media LLC, so investors will be looking for an update on that transaction.

They'll also be looking to see if there has been any improvement in revenue from stores open at least one year, as traditional Barnes & Noble stores increasingly shift merchandise toward games, toys and items besides books.

WHY IT MATTERS: Barnes & Noble's sales of books and e-books can give a hint to how well the publishing industry is doing and how it is evolving.

WHAT'S EXPECTED: Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect a loss of 9 cents per share on revenue of $1.88 billion in the quarter ended in October.

LAST YEAR'S QUARTER: The company reported a loss of 17 cents per share on revenue of $1.89 billion.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/earnings-preview-b-n-2q-nook-report-card-164350077--finance.html

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LinkedIn do's & don'ts ? Business Management Daily: Free Reports ...

Guidelines to make the most of LinkedIn:

DO

Obtain a professional-looking photo with either a work background or no background. Data from LinkedIn shows that users with photos are seven times more likely to be contacted about opportunities.

Post your complete work history. That doesn?t mean every single job, but a picture of your relevant experience.

Gather at least 50 connections. That brings second- and third-degree LinkedIn connections?those important ?weak links? that studies show are most likely to pay off for jobs, referrals and new business.

Simplify your URL. Change your LinkedIn settings so that your profile?s web address is simple, like LinkedIn.com/in/YourName, instead of an enormous default URL. This way, you can add it to your email signature.

Lavish attention on your headline and summary. People see these in search results, so they are your best pitch.

Bonus tip: Model your profile on the bios you admire. You?ll find them on their organizations? websites.

DON?T

Don?t use the same boring words everybody uses: including creative, effective, innovative, dynamic, motivated and extensive experience.

Don?t be greedy. Or, as one career coach calls it, a ?gimme-gimme networker? who asks for but never gives help. Swap industry info in a status update or help with a referral.

Don?t assume you?re famous. Putting ?Founder, Wonder Widgets? in your headline presumes that everybody knows about Wonder Widgets. And cares.

Source: Investor?s Business Daily.

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Tom Ricks, on Fox, Tells Fox It Hyped Benghazi Attack

With a $425 million Powerball jackpot now up for grabs, people are lining up across the country with dreams of money, money, money. ?[I] really want that Powerball,? Tony Hanson of Georgia said. In 2006, eight meatpacking workers ? called the ?Nebraska 8? ? struck...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tom-ricks-fox-tells-fox-hyped-benghazi-attack-181924556.html

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Activists: Syrian rebels seize major dam in north

In this image taken from video obtained from the Ugarit News, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, Syrian rebels capture a helicopter air base near the capital Damascus after fierce fighting in Syria, on Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. The takeover claim showed how rebels are advancing in the area of the capital, though they are badly outgunned by Assad?s forces, making inroads where Assad?s power was once unchallenged. Rebels have also been able to fire mortar rounds into Damascus recently. (AP Photo/Ugarit News via AP video)

In this image taken from video obtained from the Ugarit News, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, Syrian rebels capture a helicopter air base near the capital Damascus after fierce fighting in Syria, on Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. The takeover claim showed how rebels are advancing in the area of the capital, though they are badly outgunned by Assad?s forces, making inroads where Assad?s power was once unchallenged. Rebels have also been able to fire mortar rounds into Damascus recently. (AP Photo/Ugarit News via AP video)

In this image taken from video obtained from the Ugarit News, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, Syrian rebels capture a helicopter air base near the capital Damascus after fierce fighting in Syria, on Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. The takeover claim showed how rebels are advancing in the area of the capital, though they are badly outgunned by Assad?s forces, making inroads where Assad?s power was once unchallenged. Rebels have also been able to fire mortar rounds into Damascus recently. (AP Photo/Ugarit News via AP video)

In this image taken from video obtained from the Shaam News Network, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, smoke rises from buildings due to government shelling in the Damascus suburb of Zabadani, Syria, on Friday, Nov. 23, 2012. At the same time, Syrian forces are raiding another neighborhood showing how fighting is spreading in Damascus, once a stronghold of President Bashar Assad. (AP Photo/Shaam News Network via AP video)

BEIRUT (AP) ? Syrian rebels on Monday captured a hydroelectric dam on the Euphrates River in the country's north after days of heavy clashes, carting off boxes of ammunition from defeated regime forces in the latest in a string of recent strategic advances for opposition fighters, activists said.

Also Monday, activists said rebels and pro-government Kurdish gunmen struck a truce to end days of fighting in the town of Ras al-Ayn near the border with Turkey that opposition forces entered earlier this month.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebel fighters overran regime defenses and captured the Tishrin Dam, near the town of Manbij, before dawn Monday. Observatory director Rami Abdul-Rahman said the dam supplies several areas of Syria with electricity.

"This is a major blow to the regime," said Abdul-Rahman by telephone, describing the dam as "strategic location" on the Euphrates, which flows from Turkey through Syria and into Iraq.

The rebels have scored a series of hard-fought strategic advances recently, perhaps even seizing the momentum in their relentless battle of topple President Bashar Assad's regime. On Sunday, they captured a regime helicopter base outside Damascus before pulling back for fear of government airstrikes.

Amateur videos posted online showed gunmen inside the dam's operations room as an employee sat in front of five screens speaking by telephone about the level of water behind the dam. Another video showed gunman in front of dozens of green wooden boxes apparently full of munitions.

A gunman opened one of the boxes showing that it contained hand grenades. "The Free Syrian Army has fully liberated the Tishrin Dam," one of the rebels could be heard saying.

The activist videos appeared genuine and corresponded to other AP reporting about the events depicted. Syria restricts the access of reporters.

Syria's conflict started in March 2011 as an uprising against Assad's regime, but quickly morphed into a civil war that has since killed more than 40,000 people, according to activists. It has also prompted hundreds of thousands of Syrians to flee to neighboring Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey.

Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency said airstrikes by regime warplanes killed and wounded several people in the Syrian border town Atmeh on Monday. The agency said some of the wounded were brought to Turkey for treatment, and several people were also heading to the Turkish border to seek refuge. Atmeh is about 130 kilometers (80 miles) west of the Tishrin Dam.

Because it is close to the border, Atmeh has emerged as a key smuggling route for aid and arms to rebel areas in the northern provinces of Idlib and Aleppo and as a base for many rebel groups fighting further south. Residents assumed that their proximity to the Turkish border kept them safe from airstrikes.

"This is the first time the jets have hit us here, but it's probably not the last," said Musab Kadour, an Atmeh resident.

A local official in the Turkish town of Reyhanli confirmed that Turkish F-16 jets flew over the border region Monday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.

The Observatory reported air raids on other areas as well, including the northern towns of Maaret al-Numan, Kfar Rouma and Harem.

Also Monday, Kurdish activist Mustafa Osso and the Observatory's Abdul-Rahman said the town of Ras al-Ayn has been quiet since Saturday after fighters from the government-leaning Kurdish Democratic Union Party, or PYD, reached an agreement on a truce with rebels, most of them from Islamist extremist groups, including the al-Qaida-inspired Jabhat al-Nusra.

The rebels entered the town earlier this month and have since clashed almost daily with PYD gunmen for control over the area. Both factions add to the complexity of Syria's conflict, which has taken on heavy sectarian ? and ethnic ? overtones.

The fighting in recent days has left dozens of people killed or wounded, and dozens captured on both sides. Osso and Abdul-Rahman said PYD forces and the rebels agreed to exchange prisoners and to withdraw their militiamen from the town.

Abdul-Rahman said the rival parties agreed to form a local council that will run day to day life in Ras al-Ayn. Osso said thousands of people who fled the town, which has a mixed population including Arabs, Kurds, Chechens and Christians, have started returning home.

A journalist in Ras al-Ayn told The Associated Press that the town has been calm since Saturday, adding that cars with PYD gunmen were seen in the streets with loudspeakers urging residents to return to their homes after the truce was reached. He added by telephone that parts of the town were heavily damaged by government air raids earlier this month.

When regime forces withdrew from Kurdish areas in northeastern Syria in July, they were quickly replaced by Kurdish fighters from PYD. Those forces then battled rebel fighters after they pushed their way into predominantly Kurdish areas. The Kurdish group is affiliated with the PKK, rebels fighting for autonomy in the Kurdish-dominated southeast region of Turkey.

The Islamic militants, who are fighting on the side of the rebels, have played a bigger role in the Syrian conflict in recent months and many openly say they want to set up an Islamic state. The opposition is split, with some groups strongly opposed to the influence of extremists.

The Observatory also said that the health of leading opposition figure Abdul-Aziz al-Kheir, who it said is being held by one of the country's security agencies, has deteriorated recently. It did not disclose details of his health problems.

The National Coordination Body for Democratic Change in Syria accused the regime of being behind the disappearance of two of its leaders, including al-Kheir, shortly after they arrived home from China in September.

Al-Kheir, 61, comes from Assad's hometown of Kardaha and belongs to the president's ruling Alawite minority sect. He spent long periods in jail in the past because of his opposition to the regime.

____

Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser contributed to this report from Ankara, Turkey.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-11-26-ML-Syria/id-8c3474df350a4148be8ae002d0445a1b

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Wii U system music gets collected into unofficial nine-track album

Want to relive the labors of setting up Nintendo's new console? How about taking the aural route? DJ Cutman has cut together an unofficial greatest hits album from the Wii U's built-in soundtrack, encompassing memorable 'hits' like the firmware update and menu tunes. We've embedded one of Nintendo's decidedly relaxed tracks after the break, while there's a little bit more info (and some download links) for the unofficial project at the source below.

Continue reading Wii U system music gets collected into unofficial nine-track album

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Source: DJ Cutman

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/11/26/wii-u-system-music-gets-collected-into-unofficial-nine-track-alb/

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Long Distance Relationships

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Source: http://www.funnyjunk.com/channel/furry/Long+Distance+Relationships/DebjGQr/

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US twin astronaut, Russian to spend year in orbit

This photo combo provided by the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center via NASA, shows NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko. Kelly and Kornienko will spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2015, according to reports, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. The extended mission was approved almost two months ago to provide a medical foundation for future missions around the moon, as well as far-flung trips to asteroids and Mars. (AP Photo/Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center via NASA)

This photo combo provided by the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center via NASA, shows NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko. Kelly and Kornienko will spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2015, according to reports, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. The extended mission was approved almost two months ago to provide a medical foundation for future missions around the moon, as well as far-flung trips to asteroids and Mars. (AP Photo/Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center via NASA)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) ? A former space shuttle commander whose twin brother is married to former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will attempt the longest spaceflight ever by an American.

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko will spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2015.

Both countries' space agencies announced the names of the two veteran spacefliers on Monday. The extended mission was approved almost two months ago to provide a medical foundation for future missions around the moon, as well as far-flung trips to asteroids and Mars.

Both men already have lived aboard the space station for six months. NASA wanted experienced space station astronauts to streamline the amount of training necessary for a one-year stint. Officials had said the list of candidates was very short. They will begin training next year.

"Their skills and previous experience aboard the space station align with the mission's requirements," Bill Gerstenmaier, head of human exploration for NASA, said in a statement. "The one-year increment will expand the bounds of how we live and work in space and will increase our knowledge regarding the effects of microgravity on humans as we prepare for future missions beyond low-Earth orbit."

Kelly's identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, retired from the astronaut corps last year and moved to Tucson, Ariz., his wife's hometown. The former congresswoman was critically wounded in an assassination attempt in January 2011, while Scott Kelly was living aboard the space station.

Astronauts normally spend about four to six months aboard the space station. The longest an American lived there was seven months, several years back.

Russia, though, will continue to hold the world space endurance record.

Three cosmonauts spent at least a year aboard the old Mir space station. A Russian physician, Valery Polyakov, logged nearly 15 continuous months there in the mid-1990s.

Boris Morukov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Medical and Biological Problems, Russia's main space medicine research center, told the Interfax news agency that communications and food rations for Kelly and Kornienko may be limited during their yearlong mission to better simulate interplanetary travel.

Kelly and Kornienko will launch aboard a Russian rocket from Kazakhstan. Americans must buy seats on Russian spacecraft now that NASA's shuttles have retired to museums, until private U.S. companies have vessels capable of carrying human passengers. That's still four or five years off.

Kelly is a 48-year-old, divorced Navy captain with two daughters. Kornienko, 52, a rocket engineer, is married with a daughter.

"We have chosen the most responsible, skilled and enthusiastic crew members to expand space exploration, and we have full confidence in them," Russian Space Agency chief Vladimir Popovkin said in the announcement.

___

AP writer Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.

___

Online:

NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-11-26-Space%20Station/id-aba288e78098459eb462262bedc15fe0

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Notre Dame reigns atop college football again

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? The postgame roars from Notre Dame's locker room echoed right through the Coliseum's thick cement walls and metal beams Saturday night, moving around the 89-year-old arena like a long-absent force of nature.

After decades away, the Fighting Irish are back on top of college football ? unmatched in the rankings, unblemished in the standings, and unequivocally ready for a chance to end a 24-year national championship drought.

Manti Te'o, the star linebacker from Hawaii who led this improbable revival season, took a moment to listen to those echoes.

"This is where you want to be when you go to Notre Dame," he said.

The Irish are No. 1 again ? a Golden Dome atop their sport.

Notre Dame (12-0) beat Southern California 22-13 to complete its first unbeaten regular season since 1988. That's also the last championship year for the school that produced a legion of the sport's most memorable figures: Knute Rockne, the Four Horsemen, Paul Hornung, Joe Montana ? heck, even Rudy Ruettiger.

A no-nonsense win over Notre Dame's intersectional rivals in Los Angeles capped a year of historic dominance for a defense led by Te'o, its inspirational Heisman contender. That defense allowed just nine touchdowns all season long, capped by four downs of unyielding play while backed up to its goal line by the Trojans in the final minutes.

"You just put the ball down in front of us, and if there's time on the clock, we're never going to give up," defensive end Kapron Lewis-Moore said.

These Irish never flinched, either in dire late-game circumstances or under the weight of history that has crushed decades of previous Notre Dame teams. After beginning the year unranked and projected for maybe eight victories by optimistic pundits, the Irish produced a marvelous season of old-fashioned, hard-nosed football amid the wacky spread offenses and garish neon uniforms that seem to dominate the sport these days.

After winning half of their games by nine points or fewer, including two hair-raising escapes in overtime, it's clear these Irish have something else going for them as well.

"Not saying it was lucky, but luck doesn't hurt," said Terry Brennan, who played at Notre Dame in the late 1940s and coached the team from 1954-58. "The point is, they got the break and they took advantage of it. That's the key."

The Irish have six weeks to prepare for the BCS title game on Jan. 7, but coach Brian Kelly's restoration of the Notre Dame mystique could linger much longer.

The Golden Dome atop Notre Dame's administration building has regained its luster at a school where coaches Bob Davie, Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis all failed to restore the program to its most recent glory under Lou Holtz in the late 1980s. All told, Notre Dame lost at least three games every season between 1993 and this fall ? not bad, but not good enough to contend for national titles.

Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick, a Notre Dame alum, said when he took the job in 2008 he found no reason Fighting Irish football could not be great again.

"I became convinced there weren't any insurmountable hurdles, institutional hurdles, something in our approach or our system that made it so we could never be this successful again," he said in a phone interview Sunday.

Just three years after taking over a 6-6 team with ancient expectations annually dwarfed by the modern realities of competing at a Catholic school in frigid northern Indiana with tough academic standards, Kelly has put the Irish back on top.

"One of the things I really wanted in a coach was somebody who ... would be a CEO coach," said Swarbrick, who hired Kelly to replace Weis. "I think what you're seeing in this third year is the maturation of that staff into a really cohesive unit."

And though he's still one win shy of ultimate success, Kelly did it in his third year ? the same season in which Frank Leahy, Ara Parseghian, Dan Devine and Holtz all won national titles during their tenures at Notre Dame.

"It's easy to say, 'Well, yeah, I'm surprised,'" Kelly said. "But when you go in that locker room and are around the guys I'm around, you're not surprised. The commitment they've made ? they've done everything I've asked them to do. It doesn't surprise me anymore."

Thousands of Irish fans turned up at the Coliseum for the regular-season finale, demonstrating the wide reach of Notre Dame's appeal. The Irish have embraced their status as an international program in recent years, playing everywhere from Yankee Stadium to Dublin, Ireland, while Kelly put the ingredients in place for this season's success.

Swarbrick acknowledges he expected the Irish to need maybe one more year to contend at an elite level.

"I knew we were much, much better, but frankly I thought the schedule might mask the progress," he said.

Although Notre Dame's defense was clearly tough, nobody could have expected such success from an offense now led by the likes of quarterback Everett Golson, who redshirted last year, and tailback Theo Riddick, who was a slot receiver last season.

The Irish were nobody's favorite, but they've ended up on top. The 84-year-old Brennan, who was just 25 when he took over the Irish program in 1954, knows all about the importance of seizing the moment.

"Grab it when you can," he said. "Next year you might have injuries, and the ball bounces the other way."

The Irish returned home Sunday knowing they've still got a bit of work to do ? and if their season to date is any indication, they're still hungry.

Notre Dame is likely to be an underdog to an opponent from the Southeastern Conference in the BCS title game. The Irish will rely on the experience of their unbeaten season, the history of past champions wearing their uniforms, and the support of untold millions who love what the team once represented ? and what it means again.

Te'o, who turns 22 in January, hadn't been born the last time Notre Dame won a national title. He still knows the date of the last Irish national championship by heart, thanks to the sign at the end of the tunnel at Notre Dame Stadium where he steps on that hallowed field each game day.

"I'm just hoping that we can add our year to it," Te'o said. "But it's going to take a lot of work."

___

AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/notre-dame-reigns-atop-college-football-again-001409103--spt.html

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No. 2 Alabama steamrolls Auburn 49-0

Alabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) scores a touchdown as Auburn defensive end Dee Ford (95) pursues during the first half of a NCAA college football game at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Alabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) scores a touchdown as Auburn defensive end Dee Ford (95) pursues during the first half of a NCAA college football game at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Auburn coach Gene Chizik reacts to a call during the first half of a NCAA college football game against Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Auburn coach Gene Chizik, left, greets Alabama coach Nick Saban at midfield prior to their NCAA college football game at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Auburn coach Gene Chizik, left, watches as quarterback Jonathan Wallace (12) warms up before the first half of an NCAA college football game against Alabama on Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron (10) celebrates with receiver Kevin Norwood after throwing him a 7 yard touchdown pass during the first half of a NCAA college football game against Auburn at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) ? Alabama left no doubt it's tops in the state.

Proving it's the best team in the Southeastern Conference and perhaps the nation won't be nearly so easy.

AJ McCarron passed for four touchdowns and Eddie Lacy rushed for 131 yards and two scores to lead the second-ranked Crimson Tide to a 49-0 beatdown of rival Auburn on Saturday, the most lopsided Iron Bowl in 64 years.

The Tide (10-1, 7-1 Southeastern Conference) clinched the Western Division title outright and a spot in the conference title game against No. 3 Georgia with the winner likely getting a BCS national championship shot.

"To me, in all those games that I've been a part of, they are about as good as any game in the country other than the national championship game," Alabama coach Nick Saban said of the SEC title matchup.

Georgia will certainly present a tougher challenge the Tide faced Saturday.

Auburn (3-9, 0-8) completed the worst season for any team within two years of winning an Associated Press national title in what might have been the last game for embattled coach Gene Chizik.

University President Jay Gogue has only said he'll evaluate the program at season's end.

Chizik met Saban briefly at midfield, hugged McCarron, and walked off the field with cameras following his every move. He declined to discuss his future afterward.

"I'm not going to go into all of the job situation with any questions," he said. "This isn't about me. I've got a locker room of guys that are here that are very disappointed. That's my focus, I'm not going to entertain any of those questions. My focus is to be back in there with them."

Chizak said the Tigers' performance was "sad."

"Obviously that was a very disappointing loss, embarrassing loss to our state rivals," he said. "It was obvious to everybody.

"The Auburn fans, the Auburn alumni, don't deserve that."

And most haven't seen a game like this one. The biggest Iron Bowl margin was Alabama's 55-0 victory in 1948, the most lopsided in a rivalry that captivates a state.

This one could have topped that but Saban played subs for much of the second half. The Tide lost a fumble inside Auburn's 10 and then ran out the final seconds after getting to the 5.

Alabama outgained the Tigers 483-163 and had 25 first downs to Auburn's seven.

"We didn't take our foot off the gas," Lacy said. "We kept playing in the fourth quarter."

Auburn hasn't scored an offensive touchdown in the last two meetings since Cam Newton & Co. completed the rivalry's largest comeback in the Tigers' last visit to Bryant-Denny Stadium two years ago. This one supplied another milestone of sorts.

It's the first time Alabama has scored 40-plus points in two straight Iron Bowls, following last season's 42-14 win when Auburn managed to score on a kick return and fumble recovery.

The 42-0 halftime score was the same as the Tide had last week against FCS team Western Carolina, which finished 1-10. The previous largest halftime margin in the Iron Bowl was 34-0 by Auburn in 1957 in a 40-0 win during its only national title run before 2010.

"We had that sick feeling in our mouth," offensive lineman Chad Slade said. "You know, you hate to feel that way. I lost it last year, and I lose it this year. It's hard, it's real hard just to speak on it. Next year has to be a different story."

McCarron completed 15 of 21 passes for 216 yards in 2-1/2 quarters, including a pair of touchdowns apiece to Amari Cooper and Kevin Norwood.

Lacy ran 18 times for 131 yards, pinballing off defenders from a defense that ranks last in the SEC against the run.

Auburn freshman Jonathan Wallace completed 5 of 14 passes with two interceptions against the nation's top scoring defense. He's only the third freshman quarterback to start an Iron Bowl for the Tigers and first since Gabe Gross in 1998.

Wallace voiced his support for Chizik.

"He should be back. I definitely love coach Chizik and the whole coaching staff," he said. "They know exactly where this program needs to go, and they know what to do. I hope they are back next year. I really have no doubt. I really do believe they will be."

Tre Mason ran 21 times for 82 yards for Auburn, topping 1,000 for the season on the game's final play.

The Tide produced an array of big plays running and passing. McCarron and Cooper ? who had five catches for 109 yards ? connected for touchdowns of 37 and 29 yards. Norwood scored on a 7-yarder and a 38-yarder that completed the scoring with 24 minutes left.

Alabama produced touchdowns on its first seven possessions until a fumble deep in Auburn territory ended that streak.

The Tide also converted its first 11 third-down tries.

The worst news for Alabama was on the injury front. Saban said wide receiver Kenny Bell sustained a broken left leg and will have to have a rod inserted.

Auburn only pushed the ball across midfield only twice, making it as far as the Tide's 41 in the first quarter before punting. The Tigers have been outscored by 129 points in their last three SEC games, all against Top 10 SEC opponents Texas A&M, Georgia and Alabama.

The Tide shut out four opponents this season, the most in a season for Alabama since 1979. Last season's team also shut out LSU in the BCS title game in January.

"This was a great team victory," Saban said. "Everybody contributed. We asked for everyone to play their best game today. When you make a commitment to something, it comes from the heart, and I really thought our players did that."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-11-24-FBC-T25-Auburn-Alabama/id-bffb2b167a92464fbbad0710dd733d4e

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Home Based Business - Koko in Wonderland

In fact, a well-planned, well-designed website can be a home based business owner's best friend.

The first thing that you need to do is to start planning your home based business website as soon as possible. A mistake that many home based business owners make is in waiting until their company is already up and running. This can cause problems because the domain name should be on all offline marketing materials. It costs a great deal of money to have new letterhead, business cards and other printed materials redone to add the domain name. Also, having a website adds substance and credibility to your home based business. So you want to plan your home based business website strategy as early as possible.

You also want to put a great deal of thought into your home based business domain name. In many cases, it's the same as your business if the name isn't already taken. This may not be the best way to choose a domain name, however. You want to make it easy for prospective customers to find you, so you may be better off choosing a domain name that describes your home based business product or service accurately. The reason for this is that people who are looking for lawn care services are going to do a search for lawn care services, so the domain name should relate as closely to that as possible. A hot trend these days is to put hyphens between each word of your domain name, but stay away from periods and commas.

When it comes to actually building your home based business website, unless you're extremely knowledgeable about web development and design, it's a good idea to hire someone to do it for you. You can find many great web designers online who will build and host your website for a truly affordable fee. Many of these companies have templates you can use to design your home based business website yourself. Whichever method you choose, remember that you want your home based business website to look as professional as possible. And be sure to stay away from slow-loading graphics and flash. Web surfers aren't known for their patience and will leave a website if the pages take too long to load.

Another important part of your home based business website that you want to put a great deal of though into is the content. You'll want the content to speak to your customers in an conversational, informative manner. And website experts suggest the more pages the better. When you're first starting out five to ten pages is probably enough, but you will want to add to the content as you go and frequently update your content with news and information to give your home based business website visitors a reason to come back. If you're sitting there screaming, "But I can't write!" Relax. You can hire professional website content copywriters on outsourcing websites like Elance and Guru to develop the content for you for quite affordable rates. It's money well-spent to have the best content possible for your home based business website.

All of these, along with a merchant account, are essential for a successful home based business website. However, there are some other things that you will want to consider for your home based business website such as:

Opt-in newsletter

Shopping cart if you're going to be selling merchandise

Autoresponder

Affiliate program

Email courses

Free offers

And don't worry if all of this website building stuff sounds confusing or difficult to you. A good website developer or a few nights searching the Internet for information on building a website will clear everything up for you--or lead you to the right company that will build your home based business website for you, from beginning to end. Just make sure the company has a great reputation. You may be running your home based business from your basement, but that doesn't mean your website has to be anything less than perfect.

Source: http://kokoinwonderland.blogspot.com/2012/11/building-your-home-based-business.html

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