MIAMI ? All-Star closer Heath Bell has agreed to a $27 million, three-year contract with the Miami Marlins, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press
The person spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because the deal had not yet been announced. The agreement,.which is subject to a physical, is the first free-agent deal for the Marlins since they began courtships last month with several top players. The deal was first reported by ESPN.
Bell had more than 40 saves each of the past three seasons for the San Diego Padres. This year he had 43 in 48 chances with a 2.44 ERA.
The Marlins are uncertain of the availability of their closer this year, Leo Nunez. He's on the restricted list after he admitted to playing under an assumed name.
Nunez, whose real name is Juan Oviedo, had 36 saves in 42 chances this year with a 4.06 ERA.
The Marlins' move into a new ballpark next year has improved their financial outlook, allowing them to become more active in free agency. They've courted slugger Albert Pujols, shortstop Jose Reyes and left-handers Mark Buehrle and C.J. Wilson, and they're interested in Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes.
Pujols remains a long shot, but the Marlins have high hopes of signing at least a couple of the others as they prepare to move into a new ballpark.
The burly Bell was an All-Star for the third consecutive season this year, and made his appearance in the game memorable by sliding onto the infield grass before he took the ball to pitch. He'll be reunited in Miami with former Padres relievers Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica, who joined the Marlins a year ago.
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AP Sports Writer Ronald Blum in New York contributed to this report.
KABUL, Afghanistan ? A suicide bomber blew up a truck full of explosives outside a joint Afghan-NATO combat outpost in eastern Afghanistan on Friday morning, killing one Afghan civilian and wounding five other people, officials said.
The bomber tried to enter Combat Outpost McClain in Mohammad Agha district of Logar province, said Gen. Ghulam Saki Rooghlawanay, the provincial police chief.
When the bomber was not allowed onto the base, he drove his vehicle toward a group of buildings including government offices, a clinic and a youth center, and detonated it, Rooghlawanay said.
"It was a very powerful explosion," he said. "It was a semitrailer with explosives."
The police chief said an Afghan businessman was killed. Three Afghan soldiers and two Afghan intelligence employees were wounded by shrapnel.
NATO confirmed that an explosion occurred near the entrance to the base, but that the truck never penetrated security protecting the installation. No NATO service members were injured or killed in the attack.
The province's governor Atiqullah Ludin inspected the site of the explosion, which was littered with parts of the truck and debris from the damaged building.
"There were no students in the youth center," he said. "We were very lucky. It is Friday," which is part of the Afghan weekend.
ScienceDaily (Dec. 1, 2011) ? Despite aggressive demand-management policies announced in recent years, China's oil use could easily reach levels comparable to today's U.S. levels by 2040, according to a new energy study by the Baker Institute.
The study's authors said this finding has timely significance because China's growing energy use could continue to pose a major challenge for global climate deliberations in South Africa this week.
The study, "The Rise of China and Its Energy Implications," finds that China's recent efforts at centralizing energy policy do not appear to be significantly more successful than the makeshift patchwork of energy initiatives devised by the United States. In fact, the study said, the U.S. system of open and competitive private sector investment is stimulating more innovation in the American energy sector than in the Chinese energy industry, especially in the area of unconventional oil and gas.
That, ironically, is attracting Chinese state investment to U.S. shores and prompting Beijing to consider further opening of its oil and gas exploration activities to partnerships with U.S. firms, the study said.
China, like the United States, has substantial potential shale gas resources but faces technical, regulatory and market infrastructure challenges that are likely to delay rapid development. Were China to mobilize investments in shale gas more quickly, the study said, it could greatly reduce the country's expected large import needs for liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Australia and the Middle East and contribute to a future glut in global natural gas markets.
Despite sporadic government policies to discourage private car ownership, the growth in the number of vehicles on the road in China has more than quadrupled in recent years to more than 50 million. The Baker Institute report projects that this number could increase to more than 200 million vehicles by 2020 and 770 million by 2040 under a scenario where China's real gross domestic product growth averages 6 percent between now and 2030. Even under a scenario where the number of electric cars rises to 5 million a year by 2030, which is in line with ambitious targets announced by China's National Development and Reform Commission, China's oil use from the transportation sector will grow significantly, the Baker Institute study said.
"Given the scale of vehicle stock growth in China, it is going to be extremely difficult to move the needle of the country's rising transport fuel outlook," said Kenneth Medlock, a study author and the James A. Baker III and Susan G. Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics at the Baker Institute.
The study noted that China's "going abroad" strategy has also encountered recent difficulties in light of geopolitical events and rising global political risks in oil-producing regions.
"China is learning that owning equity oil in risky regions may not be as effective an energy security strategy as it had previously imagined," said Amy Myers Jaffe, an author of the study and the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at the Baker Institute. "China is now finding itself mired in more energy-related foreign diplomacy than it bargained for.
"But this could be good news for the United States," Jaffe said. "It may mean China will be more inclined to act in concert with other members of the international community in conflict-prone regions."
The study noted that China has tried to offset some of this risk by increasing investments in the United States and Canada, which gives the U.S. more leverage in seeking China's collaboration in international diplomatic matters.
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Philabundance's Community Food Center, which serves 450 cupboards and pantries throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, has seen a 26 percent spike in need this year and now serves food for about 65,000 people weekly.
By Eve Tahmincioglu
Bill Clark, executive director of food bank Philabundance, doesn?t put much credence in the unemployment rate?s monthly fluctuations because every day he sees how the long-term jobless are struggling to meet basic needs.?
The food bank, which serves 450 cupboards and pantries throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, has seen a 26 percent spike in need this year and now serves food for about 65,000 people weekly.?
?We?re seeing a lot more families, many who are running out of money and benefits because of long-term unemployment,? he explained. ?Since 2007, the changing face of hunger has been influenced a lot by unemployment.??
On Friday, the Labor Department will release employment data for November. In October, employers added 80,000 jobs, offering a glimmer of hope for the beleaguered employment market.?
Still, the labor market remains a big problem for the economic recovery;?14 million Americans are out of work.?
The millions of long-term jobless, a nagging trait of this anemic recovery, have been taxing the nation?s food banks that have seen a spike in usage and a decline in donations.?
?The emptying of food banks is another indicator of the depth of the recession and its long term impacts,? said Jerry McElroy, economics professor with Saint Mary?s College in Notre Dame, Ind., who has been watching the food bank crisis and blames a big part of it on long-term unemployment. ?I was astounded looking at the food bank situation. It?s a national phenomenon across almost every state in the union.??
As of October, there were nearly 6 million long-term unemployed, those jobless for 27 weeks or more, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,?and McElroy pointed to the growing number of individuals who are now food insecure as a by product of that.?
After declining in 2005 and remaining relatively stabile for several years, food insecurity among Americans rose in 2008 to 14.6 percent of households and has stayed at that level ever since, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The rise in long-term unemployment beginning in 2008 has closely mirrored the increase of participation in the SNAP program, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, previously known as food stamps,?according to Congress'?Joint Economic Committee.?
?These people have used all their resources, exhausted their savings, and their family and friends are worn out because many of them are beginning to feel pinched,? McElroy said, referring to?the long-term jobless.?
Indeed, food banks across the country are seeing large increases in the numbers of people looking for help. Last year food pantry usage nationally jumped 46 percent to 37 million people, according to hunger relief charity Feeding America. And the crowds haven?t let up.?
The Connecticut Food Bank, which serves 300,000 people annually and serves six of the state?s eight counties, saw usage jump 30 percent in 2008 and the increases never abated. ?It?s this constancy that is so disturbing, and we?re not seeing an end in sight,? said Nancy Carrington, CEO and president of the food bank.?
And the food bank clientele is also changing, she said, from people who?ve been teetering on poverty in low-wage jobs, to professionals who were solidly middle class. ?We have experienced many individuals for the first time --?people who never thought they?d need help," she said.
Carrington recalled one particular family from a suburban town in greater New Haven who came looking for assistance at a food pantry this past summer. The husband had a good-paying job in the financial sector but lost his job after companywide cutbacks.?
?His wife worked for the state but with two daughters in college and a son in high school it didn?t take long before they spent down their savings,? she said. ?So he found himself in position he never dreamt he?d be in and went to a pantry in a neighboring town because he was embarrassed of the situation and was afraid someone would know him if he went close to home.??
Families like this, she added, are often not eligible for food stamps or other assistance because they may have a home or other assets. ?Of the people who are food insecure in Connecticut, over half don?t qualify for federal assistance,? she said.
So many are turning to food pantries and cupboards, and that?s causing a strain on many food banks at a time when donations, especially from manufacturers and wholesalers, are on the decline and food prices are rising.?
?The food industry has become much more efficient in recent years, so they don?t have the excesses they used to or they?re selling it to secondary markets, like a dollar store,? she said. ?Many items used to be donated to use, such as a discontinued line of flavored soup, or items with not so many days left on it to sell to consumers.??
Individual donations have held steady, she added, but canned food?drives typically only make up 1 to 2 percent of the food they distribute.?
Increasingly, Philabundance has to rely more heavily on purchasing food and not just on donations from companies, said Clark. ?We?ve really begun in earnest in last two or three years of really having purchased food be a strategic part of our total food acquisition plan,? he noted.?
Clark said the food bank was going to do whatever it could to meet escalating demand, including opening up a cupboard for the first time instead of just being a distributor of food. ?A lot of areas most in need don?t have preexisting distribution points,? he said, and that?s why they opened the Community Food Center in North Philadelphia. ?Food banks across the country are trying to deal with this new reality,? he added.?
Mariann Sharp of Wallingford, Conn,, is facing her own new reality when it comes to pantry aid.?
Sharp, 57, lost her job as a computer assembler nearly two years ago and has been unable to find a job. She gets $388 a month in unemployment and recently lost her apartment and had to move in with a friend. Earlier this year, she made her first trip to a pantry and said the experience ?killed me. In my entire life I never had to ask for anything.??
In addition to being a client at Master?s Manna, a pantry in Wallingford, she?s also begun volunteering for the organization about 30 hours a week until she finds work. ?At my age a lot of places don?t even want to talk to me, especially with me being out of work for so long,? she said about perspective employers. ?But I?d be the best employee going.??
Food pantries have sprung up on campuses from California to New Hampshire, as rising college costs, shrinking financial aid and a tight job market make students' budgets even tighter than normal. NBC's John Yang reports.
BEIRUT/ANKARA (Reuters) ? Syria's biggest trade partner Turkey suspended all financial credit dealings with it on Wednesday and froze its government's assets, joining the Arab League in isolating President Bashar al-Assad over his military crackdown on opponents.
The government of regional transport hub Dubai said airlines based in the United Arab Emirates would stop flying to Syria, part of a decisive break with Assad's government among countries in the Middle East after eight months of violence.
Syria held military funerals for 14 members of the army and security forces, marking the rising cost of its battle to smother a revolution inspired by uprisings across the Arab world that toppled the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya this year.
Announcing Ankara's new measures, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a news conference Turkey would block delivery of all weapons and military supplies to Syria. Relations with Syria's central bank were suspended and a cooperation agreement was halted until there was a new government in place.
"Until a legitimate government which is at peace with its people is in charge in Syria, the mechanism of the High Level of Strategic Cooperation has been suspended," Davutoglu said, adding Assad's government had come "to the end of the road."
Muslim Turkey, which last year had $2.5 billion in bilateral trade with Syria, was once one of Assad's closest allies, but Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan lost patience with him. Turkey now hosts Syrian army defectors and an umbrella opposition group.
Ankara has said any sanctions would not hurt the Syrian people and has ruled out cutting off electricity and water supplies. It has also said civil aviation by Turkish Airlines to Damascus will continue.
Dubai said UAE carriers would stop flying to Syria next week. The UAE's Dubai-based Emirates and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad are two of the region's biggest airlines.
Turkey, a NATO member, has a 900 km long border with Syria. It said on Tuesday it did not want military intervention in Syria but was ready for any scenario, including setting up a buffer zone to contain any mass influx of refugees.
FLOWERS AND WREATHS
Syria, which does not allow access to most foreign journalists, says it is fighting an insurgency by armed groups supported from abroad, who have attacked its troops trying to defend the peace.
Fourteen members of the security forces were laid to rest "with flowers and wreaths," official news agency SANA said. It named the dead but did not say when they were killed.
"The martyrs were targeted by armed terrorist groups while they were in the line of duty in Homs and the Damascus countryside," it said on Tuesday.
European and Arab diplomats say the top United Nations human rights forum will paint a far different picture of events in Syria at a special session on Friday, which is likely to condemn the Syrian government for crimes against humanity.
A U.N. report this week said Syrian forces have committed murder, torture and rape against pro-democracy protesters. The U.N. says more than 3,500 people have been killed since March.
Friday's human rights committee session is partly designed to put pressure on China and Russia, which have blocked measures by the U.N. Security Council to condemn Syria, to take a stronger stand, say diplomats.
OPPOSING VIEWS
Moscow has so far shown little sign of abandoning Assad.
"For the most part, armed groups are provoking the authorities," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. Outside powers should "stop issuing ultimatums."
The United States and the European Union demand an end to Syrian state "brutality" and want Assad to relinquish power.
What began 8 months ago as a one-sided crushing of unarmed street protests is now sliding towards civil war.
Rebels on Tuesday ambushed an army vehicle in a northern town, killing three soldiers, said a statement from the Syrian Human Rights Observatory, an activist group.
"The security forces vehicle was targeted ... by a group of suspected army defectors," it said.
Government forces later killed a civilian and wounded three others in raids in the same town, it said. In a district of Homs, an 8-year-old girl was shot dead at a checkpoint.
Two civilians died of their wounds in the area of Rinkous outside Damascus on Tuesday and a 33-year-old man was killed by sniper fire as he tried to escape arrest, the Observatory said.
Terrified families were too scared to bury their dead.
Turkey said it feared there could be an exodus of Syrians if the violence got worse, and that border states might have to create a buffer zone to cope with masses of refugees fleeing to Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon.
France has raised the idea of a secured humanitarian corridor to relieve civilians, a step which would appear to imply some use of armed forces for security and logistics.
(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Peter Graff)
FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2010, file photo, Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., talks to the media on Capitol Hill in Washington. Kirk is blocking President Barack Obama's nominee for ambassador to Russia over concerns that the U.S. might provide Moscow with sensitive missile defense information. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2010, file photo, Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., talks to the media on Capitol Hill in Washington. Kirk is blocking President Barack Obama's nominee for ambassador to Russia over concerns that the U.S. might provide Moscow with sensitive missile defense information. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? A Republican senator is blocking President Barack Obama's nominee to become ambassador to Russia over suspicions the U.S. might provide Moscow with sensitive missile defense information.
The administration says it has no plans to provide such data. But it says the assurances sought by Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., are so broad, they would prevent any substantial cooperation on missile defense.
The dispute with Kirk further complicates the Obama administration's efforts to get U.S.-Russian relations back on track at a time of increased tensions over missile defense.
It also has political overtones ahead of next year's elections. The White House considers improved relations with Russia, including the signing of a major arms reduction treaty, to be one of the big foreign policy successes of Obama's presidency. Republicans have accused Obama of granting too many concessions to Russia and getting little in return.
Kirk is holding up the nomination of Michael McFaul, a senior adviser to Obama on Russia. In an interview with The Associated Press, Kirk said he wants written assurances that the United States will not provide Russia with any currently classified information on the missile defense system.
Kirk said he is particularly concerned that the administration could offer Russia data on the speed of interceptors planned for Europe in order to ease Russian fears that the system could knock out Russian ballistic missiles.
He said he also is concerned about Russia's "record of espionage and cooperation and dialogue with Iran." He said precise data on the interceptor speeds could help Iran evade the U.S. defenses. The U.S. insists its missile interceptors are aimed at countering a threat from Iran.
The administration says that while it is not considering such an offer, it does not want to limit its options by ruling out any exchange of sensitive information they say would be essential for any substantial missile defense cooperation.
"In the future, some classified information exchange may benefit the United States," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement.
U.S. missile defense plans in Europe have been one of the touchiest subjects in U.S.-Russian relations going back to the administration of Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush.
One of Obama's earliest moves to ease tensions was the administration's 2009 announcement that it would revamp Bush's plan to emphasize shorter-range interceptors. Russia initially welcomed that move, but has more recently suggested that the new interceptors could threaten its missiles as the U.S. interceptors are upgraded.
U.S. talks with Russia over missile defense cooperation have nearly broken down. Russia recently threatened to target missiles at the U.S. missile defense systems in Europe and just commissioned a radar in Kaliningrad, near the Polish border, capable of monitoring missile launches from Europe and the North Atlantic.
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Chace Stanback had a career-high 28 and added 10 rebounds to help UNLV beat top-ranked North Carolina 90-80 on Saturday night in the championship game of the Las Vegas Invitational.
Mike Moser added 16 points and 18 rebounds, Oscar Bellfield had 16 points and nine rebounds, and Anthony Marshall finished with 13 points for the Rebels (7-0).
P.J. Hairston and John Henson each had 15 points for North Carolina (5-1).
After North Carolina took a 42-38 halftime lead, UNLV opened the second half with a 14-0 run as the Tar Heels missed their first 10 shots. The Rebels built a 77-63 lead on Lopez's basket off a rebound with 5:39 left.
Rebels fans stormed the Orleans Arena court after the victory.
The Tar Heels shot 31 percent in the second half.
NO. 4 CONNECTICUT 78, NO. 22 FLORIDA STATE 76, OT
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) ? Ryan Boatwright hit three clutch free throws with 7 seconds left in regulation, Napier had 26 points and the Connecticut beat Florida State in overtime in the third-place game in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The defending national champion Huskies lost to Central Florida in the semifinals.
Boatwright's three foul shots tied it at 71. He finished with 14 points and three assists in 33 minutes.
Jeremy Lamb added 19 points for Connecticut (6-1), which shot 48 percent from the field, including 11 for 25 from 3-point range. Freshman Andre Drummond had 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocked shots and three steals.
Michael Snaer scored 20 points for Florida State (5-2), which lost 46-41 to Harvard on Friday. Deividas Dulkys had 14, and Bernard James finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.
NO. 2 KENTUCKY 87, PORTLAND 63
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) ? Terrence Jones and Darius Miller scored 19 points apiece, Anthony Davis had 13 points and 12 rebounds, and the Wildcats rolled in their final tuneup before playing St. John's and No. 1 North Carolina next week.
Kentucky (6-0) has won every game by double digits, but Portland gave the Wildcats plenty to work on in the coming days after the Pilots (2-4) challenged them with sharp outside shooting and won the rebounding battle, 39-38.
Kentucky used an 18-3 first-half run to take a double-digit lead. After Portland pulled within six in the second half, the Wildcats put on a full-court press as part of an 18-4 run that put the game out of reach.
Nemanja Mitrovic went 6 of 12 from 3-point range and finished with 20 points for the Pilots.
NO. 11 WISCONSIN 73, BYU 56
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. (AP) ? Ben Brust scored 21 points on seven 3-pointers and the Badgers won the Chicago Invitational Challenge championship, improving to 6-0 for their best start since the 1996-97 season.
The sophomore reserve was 7 of 10 beyond the arc, making five of his 3s in the second half.
Tournament MVP Jordan Taylor added 18 points, while Mike Bruesewitz and Jared Berggren had 13 points apiece for Wisconsin.
The teams were tied at 42 when Brust hit the first of his trio of 3-pointers during an 11-0 run that gave the Badgers a 53-42 lead with 8:47 to play.
Noah Hartsock paced the Cougars (4-2) with 18 points.
NO. 19 GONZAGA 78, WESTERN MICHIGAN 58
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) ? Robert Sacre scored 15 points to lead Gonzaga to the victory.
Sam Dower added 15 points for Gonzaga (4-0), which was playing its annual game in the off-campus Spokane Arena.
Western Michigan (0-6), coming off an 80-37 loss to Purdue, has yet to play a home game. It shot 41 percent and committed 22 turnovers.
Matt Stainbrook had 11 points in the Broncos' first game against the Zags.
Gonzaga led by eight at halftime, and outscored the Broncos 16-6 at the beginning of the second half. Three straight baskets by Sacre and a layup by Kevin Pangos pushed the lead to 52-34 with 12:20 left.
NO. 20 CALIFORNIA 80, DENVER 59
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) ? Allen Crabbe scored 15 points and matched his career high with 10 rebounds as California remained unbeaten at home.
Crabbe, last season's Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, shot 6 for 9 with three 3-pointers and helped the Golden Bears (5-1) overcome a slow start against the Pioneers (4-1). Cal bounced back from a 92-53 defeat to No. 21 Missouri in the CBE Classic championship game Tuesday night in Kansas City, Mo.
Chris Udofia scored nine points to lead Denver, which was outmuscled inside in losing the rebounding battle 33-20 and outshot from the perimeter. The Pioneers struggled offensively on the heels of an impressive win over Bay Area team Saint Mary's on Wednesday night in Colorado.
Justin Cobbs added a career-best 22 points on 7-for-9 shooting and made all four of his 3-point tries for the Bears.
NO. 25 TEXAS A&M 56, TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI 43
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) ? Elston Turner scored 14 points and Texas A&M used its stifling defense to get the win.
Ray Turner had 13 and eight rebounds for the Aggies (4-1), who played for the first time in eight days and held the Islanders to 27.8 percent shooting. It was the lowest shooting percentage for an Aggies opponent since the first round of
LONDON (AP) ? A public sector strike in Britain next week threatens to paralyze operations at Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport.
BAA, the airport's operator, said Friday 12-hour delays for arriving passengers are likely because the Nov. 30 strike will hit the U.K. Border Agency's ability to support normal operations.
An estimated 2 million workers are expected to protest changes in public sector pensions with a 24-hour walkout ? billed as potentially the biggest union action since 1979.
The lines at Heathrow's immigration counters are expected to be so long that passengers will need to be held on planes, BAA warned.
"This in turn would quickly create gridlock at the airport, with no available aircraft parking stands, mass cancellations of departing aircraft and diversions outside the U.K. for arriving aircraft," Normand Boivin, the chief operating officer for Heathrow, warned in a letter to airlines.
The letter, written Thursday and shared with The Associated Press, urged airlines to reduce the number of passengers they bring in on Nov. 30 because BAA had "reluctantly concluded that the U.K. Border Agency wouldn't be able to come up with a contingency plan to ensure business-as-usual."
Boivin said the border agency expects to be functioning at less than 50 percent of normal productivity.
British Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Cathay Pacific both agreed to waive fees for rebooking flights on Nov. 30 and expressed concern over the strike's impact on business.
"While we hope to operate our regular schedule, customers may experience prolonged delays awaiting immigration processing and there may even be the possibility of flight diversions," Cathay Pacific said in a statement.
The U.K. Border Agency acknowledged travelers could see longer waiting times at airports but said it has considered "all options" to make sure it's prepared for the strike and aims to minimize any disruptions.
It said the security of Britain's borders is the agency's top priority, though unions have criticized moves to draft in civil servants and contractors to cover for striking immigration officials.
"Our members take two to three months to train - the idea that people can cover after a few days' training is absurd," said Mark Serwotka, leader of the Public and Commercial Services union.
The Home Office said it has undertaken "significant work" to plan for the strike, which includes training managers, staff and contractors to the high standards it requires to carry out border checks and asking staff around the world to provide additional cover on Nov. 30.
Government ministers have warned the nationwide could cost the economy half a billion pounds and lead to job losses.
Heathrow Airport handles 180,000 passengers on a typical day, according to BAA.
Gatwick Airport also warned passengers to be prepared for "significant disruption" at immigration and said it asked carriers to give passengers the chance to change their flights.
Gatwick's chief operating officer, Scott Stanley said the airport is working with the border agency and airlines to put contingency measures in place and ensure disruptions are kept to a minimum.
"Unfortunately, airport staff cannot man the desks at the border zone but we will provide all necessary assistance to the Border Agency and we are determined to make sure that the needs and welfare of all our passengers will be met on the day," Stanley said.
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Cassandra Vinograd can be reached at http://twitter.com/CassVinograd
TEHRAN, Iran ? An influential Iran parliamentarian has said that the country has arrested 12 agents of the American Central Intelligence Agency, the country's official IRNA news agency reported.
Parviz Sorouri, who sits on the powerful committee of foreign policy and national security, that the alleged agents had been operating in coordination with Israel's Mossad and other regional agencies, and targeted the country's military and its nuclear program.
"The U.S. and Zionist regime's espionage apparatuses were trying to damage Iran both from inside and outside with a heavy blow, using regional intelligence services," Sorouri was quoted as having said on Wednesday.
"Fortunately, with swift reaction by the Iranian intelligence department, the actions failed to bear fruit," Sorouri said.
The lawmaker did not specify the nationality of the alleged agents, nor when or where they they had been arrested.
Iran periodically announces the capture or execution of alleged U.S. or Israeli spies, and often no further information is released.
This current announcement follows the unravelling by Lebanon's Hezbollah of a CIA spy ring in that country. Hezbollah reportedly works closely with Iran.
Hezbollah's longtime leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, boasted in June on television he had unmasked at least two CIA spies who had infiltrated the ranks of the organization. Though the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon officially denied the accusation, American officials conceded that Nasrallah wasn't lying and that Hezbollah had subsequently methodically picked off CIA informants.
The United States and its allies suspect Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon program, a charge Iran denies.
DULUTH, Minn. ? Jeno Paulucci, a Minnesota business icon whose restaurant ventures included a company that popularized the finger food known as pizza rolls, has died. He was 93.
Dougherty Funeral Home in Duluth confirmed the death Thursday night to The Associated Press. Paulucci's daughter Cindy Paulucci Selton tells the Duluth News-Tribune (http://bit.ly/rW7fP3) he died Thursday morning at his home, just four days after his wife, Lois, passed away.
In 1944, Paulucci founded Duluth-based Chun King, which sold a line of canned Chinese food. He eventually sold that company to R.J. Reynolds Food Inc.
He'd become the first chairman of R.J. Reynolds Food Co. before establishing Jeno's Inc., which specialized in the finger-food snacks called pizza rolls. It grew to be Duluth's largest employer and was sold to Pillsbury in 1985.
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Information from: Duluth News Tribune, http://www.duluthsuperior.com
Contact: Ana Godinho agodinho@igc.gulbenkian.pt 351-214-407-959 Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia
Tiny pest's genome opens door to novel approaches to crop protection and silk production
The tiny two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) causes much anxiety for farmers, and has been, to date, a scientific mystery. It feeds on over 1,100 species of plants, including 150 greenhouse plants and crops, such as maize, soy, tomatoes and citrus. The cost of chemically controlling damage caused by the spider mite exceeds USD 1 billion per year. In the latest issue of the journal Nature, a multinational consortium of scientists publish the sequenced genome of the spider mite, revealing how it is capable of such feeding frenzy, as well as other secrets of this tiny pest. These findings open the door to new approaches in pest control and crop protection, by allowing greater insight into the biological interactions between plants and herbivores that feed on them.
lio Sucena and Sara Magalhes, group leaders at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Cincia (IGC) and the Centre for Environmental Biology, University of Lisbon (Portugal), respectively, are part of the 55-strong team of researchers from 10 countries that were involved in this project. Led by Miodrag Grbic (University of Western Ontario, Canada), this team analysed the genome of the spider mite, sequenced with funds from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute (JGI) programme, Genome Canada and the European Union.
The spider mite feeds on an astonishingly large number of plants because it withstands the toxins that plants produce. This in itself is an amazing feat. However, among arthropods (animals with exoskeletons, such as spiders, ticks, crustaceans and insects), the spider mite holds first place in the number of pesticides it is resistant to. Mites become resistant to new pesticides within two to four years, meaning that control of multi-resistant spider mites has become increasingly difficult.
Having the sequence of the spider mite genome has shown light on the genetic basis for its feeding flexibility and pesticide resistance. The secret lies in having, on the one hand, more copies of the genes involved in digesting and degrading plant toxins when compared to insects. On the other, the tiny pest seems to have incorporated genes from bacteria and fungi that are involved in digestion and detoxification.
Indeed, the researchers identified two groups of bacterial and fungi genes that are unique to the spider mite, suggesting that the tiny arthropod is adept at making the most of the innovation of transfer of genes between distant species (called lateral gene transfer - a rare occurrence in nature).
Other groups of genes are shared, with aphids, for example (aphids are insects that also feed on crops). By comparing the aphid genome with that of the spider mite, it seems that the bacterial genes moved first into the insects and from these were taken up by the spider mite.
The name gives it away: spider mites make webs, for protection against predators and as a barrier against bad weather. However, their webs are different to those made by spiders: the genome sequence has revealed 17 genes involved in making web proteins. These proteins make thinner fibres, but seem to be slightly more resistant to mechanical forces than other natural materials.
All these secrets came out of a very small genome - only 90 megabases (the fruit fly genome has 180 megabases; the human genome has 3,000 megabases). It is, indeed, the smallest arthropod genome sequenced so far, and reveals a remarkable evolutionary history: the spider mite has lost many genes that are shared amongst arthropods, but has accumulated species-specific genes, such as those that give it the ability to withstand toxins and pesticides.
The Portuguese scientists were involved in analysing immunity-related genes found in the spider mite genome. The spider mite belongs to the Chelicerata family, the second largest group of terrestrial animals. Chelicerates include spiders, scorpions and ticks. Chelicerates and insects make up the Arthropods. The spider mite is the first chelicerate to have its entire genome sequenced and analysed.
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Contact: Ana Godinho agodinho@igc.gulbenkian.pt 351-214-407-959 Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia
Tiny pest's genome opens door to novel approaches to crop protection and silk production
The tiny two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) causes much anxiety for farmers, and has been, to date, a scientific mystery. It feeds on over 1,100 species of plants, including 150 greenhouse plants and crops, such as maize, soy, tomatoes and citrus. The cost of chemically controlling damage caused by the spider mite exceeds USD 1 billion per year. In the latest issue of the journal Nature, a multinational consortium of scientists publish the sequenced genome of the spider mite, revealing how it is capable of such feeding frenzy, as well as other secrets of this tiny pest. These findings open the door to new approaches in pest control and crop protection, by allowing greater insight into the biological interactions between plants and herbivores that feed on them.
lio Sucena and Sara Magalhes, group leaders at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Cincia (IGC) and the Centre for Environmental Biology, University of Lisbon (Portugal), respectively, are part of the 55-strong team of researchers from 10 countries that were involved in this project. Led by Miodrag Grbic (University of Western Ontario, Canada), this team analysed the genome of the spider mite, sequenced with funds from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute (JGI) programme, Genome Canada and the European Union.
The spider mite feeds on an astonishingly large number of plants because it withstands the toxins that plants produce. This in itself is an amazing feat. However, among arthropods (animals with exoskeletons, such as spiders, ticks, crustaceans and insects), the spider mite holds first place in the number of pesticides it is resistant to. Mites become resistant to new pesticides within two to four years, meaning that control of multi-resistant spider mites has become increasingly difficult.
Having the sequence of the spider mite genome has shown light on the genetic basis for its feeding flexibility and pesticide resistance. The secret lies in having, on the one hand, more copies of the genes involved in digesting and degrading plant toxins when compared to insects. On the other, the tiny pest seems to have incorporated genes from bacteria and fungi that are involved in digestion and detoxification.
Indeed, the researchers identified two groups of bacterial and fungi genes that are unique to the spider mite, suggesting that the tiny arthropod is adept at making the most of the innovation of transfer of genes between distant species (called lateral gene transfer - a rare occurrence in nature).
Other groups of genes are shared, with aphids, for example (aphids are insects that also feed on crops). By comparing the aphid genome with that of the spider mite, it seems that the bacterial genes moved first into the insects and from these were taken up by the spider mite.
The name gives it away: spider mites make webs, for protection against predators and as a barrier against bad weather. However, their webs are different to those made by spiders: the genome sequence has revealed 17 genes involved in making web proteins. These proteins make thinner fibres, but seem to be slightly more resistant to mechanical forces than other natural materials.
All these secrets came out of a very small genome - only 90 megabases (the fruit fly genome has 180 megabases; the human genome has 3,000 megabases). It is, indeed, the smallest arthropod genome sequenced so far, and reveals a remarkable evolutionary history: the spider mite has lost many genes that are shared amongst arthropods, but has accumulated species-specific genes, such as those that give it the ability to withstand toxins and pesticides.
The Portuguese scientists were involved in analysing immunity-related genes found in the spider mite genome. The spider mite belongs to the Chelicerata family, the second largest group of terrestrial animals. Chelicerates include spiders, scorpions and ticks. Chelicerates and insects make up the Arthropods. The spider mite is the first chelicerate to have its entire genome sequenced and analysed.
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New York ? Can a retelling of the Minnesota congresswoman's story, mixed with a little dishing, revive her presidential campaign?
Rep. Michele Bachmann's (R-Minn.) first book, Core of Conviction: My Story, was released Monday, and it's "largely a 206-page version of her stump speech" for the GOP presidential nomination, says Seema Mehta in the Los Angeles Times. The book recounts Bachmann's childhood, parents' divorce, spiritual awakening, marriage, child-rearing, early career, and, in the final chapter, her run for president. But among the well-worn talking points, says Minnesota Public Radio's Catharine Richert, are some "revealing tidbits" and dishy political nuggets. Book-promotion tours have worked wonders for rivals Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich,?says Tim Murphy at Mother Jones. So "if Core of Conviction can't save Bachmann's campaign, nothing will." Here, nine highlights from Bachmann's debut book:
1. She says she entered politics on a whim Bachmann's first successful election was in 2000, when she unseated a Republican state senator she found too moderate. As Bachmann tells it in Core of Conviction, she attended the GOP nominating convention, gave a speech, and threw her name in the hat on a whim, "just doing my duty as a citizen, speaking out." Not so fast, says Tim Murphy at?Mother Jones.?In earlier versions of her story, Bachmann said she planned her primary challenge for a year.?"By some accounts, there were even pro-Bachmann campaign signs" at the convention. This creation myth "whopper," on Page 1, sets the tone for the book.
2. She blasts Bush for "bailout socialism" Bachmann lobs plenty of shots at President Obama and his "gangster government," but she doesn't refrain from criticizing her own party, or its last president. In the 2006 elections, when Bachmann won her U.S. House seat and the GOP lost the House, voters felt Republicans "had grown smug and complacent" and turned the House into "a bad brew of GOP incompetence, carelessness, and a dash of corruption," she writes. By 2008, Bachmann laments, the Bush administration "was embracing a kind of 'bailout socialism'" by pushing the TARP bank rescue, which she calls an unconstitutional "$700 billion blank check." (A $700 billion "blank check" is "a logical impossibility," notes Mother Jones' Murphy.)
3. But still recalls Bush fondly Despite TARP, Bush is an "eminently decent man," Bachmann writes. When the 43rd president campaigned for her in 2006, Bachmann's?mother told her to dress like a lady, so she work a pink suit, pink shoes, and pink gloves. In the presidential limo, Bachmann says, Bush "asked with a crinkly smile" why she was wearing the gloves, and when she explained, "he said gently, 'Lose the gloves.'"
4. Bachmann just adores Iowa Bachmann moved to Minnesota from Iowa when she was 12, but she praises her must-win birth state throughout the book, "either as a proud former resident, a pandering politician, or both," says Devin Henry at?MinnPost. For example, here's her recollection of learning that she'd be moving: "I don't want to leave Iowa. I love living in Iowa. Iowa is home ? everything I know. It's family, friends, church. A happy place. A wonderful place. I never want to be anywhere else. And when I die, I want to be buried in the Garden of Memories Cemetery, alongside my grandparents."
5. She prefers Hillary Clinton to Obama Assuming Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) couldn't have won the 2008 presidential election, Bachmann writes, "I would have wanted Mrs. Clinton" to win. "I could see that she seemed less leftist revolutionary than Obama."
6. Bachmann is a Palin fan, too The Minnesotan has even warmer words for McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, whom Bachmann met in the summer of 2008 in Alaska. "Sarah and I realized that we had a lot in common," Bachmann writes. "We shared the same firm faith; we both had carved out political careers thanks to our supportive husbands. In addition, we both had five biological kids."
7. She has a "love-hate relationship" with NPR's Garrison Keillor Even though she voted to cut funding for public radio, Bachmann has warm words for her fellow Ankola High School alum Keillor, calling the liberal Prairie Home Companion host a "legend." Keillor's "politics are very different from mine, but I love his gentle, knowing humor," she adds. Keillor doesn't return the love, says Ben Smith at?Politico. He wrote a campaign letter for Bachmann's 2010 rival calling the Republican "embarrassing to me and a great many Minnesotans."
8. Bachmann has some favorite buzz words Bachmann uses the word "faith" 43 times and "ObamaCare" 51 times in her book, and has 49 references to Obama and 37 to Ronald Reagan. It also has 109 exclamation points in its 200-plus pages.
9. And there's plenty more "Bachmannalia" Along with larger revelations, the book is "littered with Bachmannalia," says Mother Jones' Murphy. Like when she first saw a reference to the Beatles' song "Michelle," she was confused: "Why the two letters?" And as a teenager, she babysat a young Gretchen Carlson, now a Fox News morning host. The book includes a photo of the two of them in a swimming pool. Bachmann also recounts a family story in which her great-great-grandfather Halvor Munson won a Kansas farm in a poker game with infamous bandit Jesse James, reveling, "Who knew that you could win at poker with Jesse James and live?"
Sources:AP, CNN, Death & Taxes, Gawker, Los Angeles Times, Mother Jones, Minnesota Public Radio, MinnPost, Politico (2)
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Telecommuting parents have little chance to escape the messy world of parenting, a new study suggests.
By Linda Carroll
If you?re considering telecommuting to salve your stress from the constant juggling of work and family, think again.
A new study shows that ?telework? takes a toll on the very employees who might desire this option most ? those who feel especially torn between job responsibilities and family. For these people, the more hours spent working at home, the higher the risk of burnout, according to the report, published in the Journal of Business and Psychology.
That?s because when job and family are in the same place, some workers feel there is no chance for downtime ?no respite or time to relax, said Timothy Golden, an associate professor of management at the Lally School of Management and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
?A teleworker may feel conflict more because you?re being constantly reminded of your home role: whether it?s what you need to do as a parent or household chores,? Golden said. ?And that can make exhaustion worse."
Live Poll
Does work disrupt your family life?
167436
Yes, I wish I had more time with my family.
46%
167437
No, I have good work-life balance.
46%
167438
I don't have a job.
8%
VoteTotal Votes: 1351
Golden surveyed 316 employees from a large computer company that allows workers to? telecommute and to work with a flexible time schedules.
To ferret out the level of job/family conflict, Golden asked employees to rate on a scale of 1 to 5 how strongly they agreed with statements such as, ?My work keeps me from my family activities more than I would like,? ?Due to pressures at work, sometimes when I am at home I am too stressed to do the things I enjoy,? ?The time I spend on family responsibilities often interferes with my work responsibilities,? and ? Because I am often stressed from family responsibilities, I have a hard time concentrating on my work.?
Golden also surveyed the employees about their level of exhaustion. Study volunteers were asked to rate on a scale of 1-5 how strongly they agreed with statements such as, ?I feel emotionally drained by my work.?
Telecommuting was a boon to workers who felt little or no conflict between work and family. But those who were the most torn between home and work responsibilities showed increasing levels of exhaustion as hours spent teleworking rose.
Still, Golden said,? even among those who feel strong conflict, telecommuting can be a good choice if it?s done right. That means having clear boundaries, both mental and physical ? such as a door to one?s home office ? between work and family.
?Telework, if it?s done well, can be very beneficial,? he added. ?You save time commuting. You don?t have to deal with the stress of being delayed on your way to work because of traffic or weather.?You have the comfort of working where you want to. But you have to think ahead of time about what might impact you if you?re working from home.?
Researchers are making progress in developing a system that measures the mechanical properties of living cells, a technology that could be used to diagnose human disease and better understand biological processes.
The team used an instrument called an atomic force microscope to study three distinctly different types of cells to demonstrate the method's potentially broad applications, said Arvind Raman, a Purdue University professor of mechanical engineering.
For example, the technique could be used to study how cells adhere to tissues, which is critical for many disease and biological processes; how cells move and change shape; how cancer cells evolve during metastasis; and how cells react to mechanical stimuli needed to stimulate production of vital proteins. The technique could be used to study the mechanical properties of cells under the influence of antibiotics and drugs that suppress cancer to learn more about the mechanisms involved.
Findings have been posted online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology and will appear in the December print issue. The work involves researchers from Purdue and the University of Oxford.
"There's been a growing realization of the role of mechanics in cell biology and indeed a lot of effort in building models to explain how cells feel, respond and communicate mechanically both in health and disease," said Sonia Contera, a paper co-author and director of the Oxford Martin Programme on Nanotechnology and an academic fellow at Oxford physics. "With this paper, we provide a tool to start addressing some of these questions quantitatively: This is a big step."
An atomic force microscope uses a tiny vibrating probe to yield information about materials and surfaces on the scale of nanometers, or billionths of a meter. Because the instrument enables scientists to "see" objects far smaller than possible using light microscopes, it could be ideal for "mapping" the mechanical properties of the tiniest cellular structures.
"The maps identify the mechanical properties of different parts of a cell, whether they are soft or rigid or squishy," said Raman, who is working with doctoral student Alexander Cartagena and other researchers. "The key point is that now we can do it at high resolution and higher speed than conventional techniques."
The high-speed capability makes it possible to watch living cells and observe biological processes in real time. Such a technique offers the hope of developing a "mechanobiology-based" assay to complement standard biochemical assays.
"The atomic force microscope is the only tool that allows you to map the mechanical properties - take a photograph, if you will - of the mechanical properties of a live cell," Raman said.
However, existing techniques for mapping these properties using the atomic force microscope are either too slow or don't have high enough resolution.
"This innovation overcomes those limitations, mostly through improvements in signal processing," Raman said. "You don't need new equipment, so it's an economical way to bump up pixels per minute and get quantitative information. Most importantly, we applied the technique to three very different kinds of cells: bacteria, human red blood cells and rat fibroblasts. This demonstrates its potential broad utility in medicine and research."
The technique is nearly five times faster than standard atomic force microscope techniques.
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Purdue University: http://www.purdue.edu/
Thanks to Purdue University for this article.
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NEW HAVEN, Conn.?? A rented U-Haul that struck and killed a Massachusetts tailgater at a Yale-Harvard football game malfunctioned as a Yale undergraduate drove the vehicle into a crowded parking lot, the student's attorney said Sunday.
William Dow, representing Yale student Brendan Ross, said Saturday's collision was a "tragic accident that appears to be the result of a vehicle malfunction." He did not elaborate and said Ross would not be speaking publicly about what happened.
But Ross and his family wanted to express their condolences to the three people who were hit by the truck, Dow said, including 30-year-old Nancy Barry of Salem, Mass., who was killed.
Barry suffered fatal injuries at the scene near the Yale Bowl. Sarah Short, 31, a Yale student from New Haven, remained hospitalized Sunday with leg injuries. Elizabeth Dernbach, 23, a Harvard employee originally from Naples, Fla., was treated for her injuries Saturday and released.
Ross passed a field sobriety test after the collision Saturday and police said he has been cooperative in their investigation, which remained open Sunday. No charges had been filed.
Police say Ross was driving the U-Haul carrying beer kegs through a popular tailgating area before the Yale-Harvard game when witnesses saw the vehicle turn a corner and speed up, striking Barry and injuring the other two women. The truck then crashed into other U-Haul vans on the lot.
The Yale Daily News reported Sunday that the U-Haul was heading to a tailgate party for Sigma Phi Epsilon, the fraternity of which Ross is a member and where police listed his address.
A spokesman for the Yale chapter referred questions to the national Sigma Phi Epsilon headquarters, which was sending a representative to Yale over the weekend. A statement from the Richmond, Va.-based fraternity Sunday said it was "deeply saddened by the tragic accident," and referred questions to New Haven police.
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. The fraternity is currently working with law enforcement officials as they investigate the details of exactly what happened," the statement read.
Yale put its mental health counselors and chaplain's office on alert to work with students and faculty who seek help, and said its Dean's Office and Yale Athletics plan to undertake a full review of policies and regulations on tailgating.
Harvard also issued a statement expressing its sympathy for those involved.
New Haven police said their investigation will include a forensic review of the rented U-Haul truck, a review of witness statements and other work before they can determine whether anyone should face charges. The truck was impounded as part of the investigation.
At the annual Yale-Harvard game, tailgating is nearly as storied as the competition itself. Elaborate buffets dot the parking lots, and fans frequently fill U-Haul trucks with kegs, grills and hard alcohol.
Six years ago, Yale began shutting down all parties after halftime in an effort to curb binge drinking and keep students and alumni safe. Saturday's fans had gathered for the 128th game of the Ivy League rivalry, which Harvard won 45-7 for its fifth straight victory over Yale.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (AP) ? A driver of a rental truck carrying beer kegs through a parking area before the Yale-Harvard game Saturday suddenly accelerated, fatally striking a 30-year-old woman and injuring two other women, police said.
It's not clear why the driver sped up, New Haven Police spokesman David Hartman said. The truck then crashed into other rental vans in the lot, an open playing field used for pre-game parties before Yale home games in New Haven.
Tim Walker of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, said he was grilling sirloin tips when he heard the crash behind him. He turned and saw two people lying on the ground.
People huddled around them trying to help, according to a video that appears to have been recorded shortly after the accident and posted online. "We're not getting a pulse," said someone crouched near one victim, while the cameraman notes the ambulance hasn't arrived.
After emergency officials arrived, Walker said, he saw one victim being given cardiopulmonary resuscitation as she was taken away.
"The driver looked shocked. Absolutely shocked," Walker said. Police have not said whether alcohol was a factor.
"He didn't look intoxicated or anything like that," Walker added. "He had a dazed look like he had just hit someone."
Hartman said the driver was in police custody.
He said the woman who was killed was pronounced dead at about 10:15 a.m. at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Police did not immediately release her identity.
A second woman was listed in critical but stable condition at the hospital. The third woman suffered minor injuries.
The fans had gathered for the 128th game of the Ivy League rivalry, with Harvard looking for its fifth straight win over Yale. Three hours after the accident, the loud partying continued in the lot, with music blaring from large speakers and fans grilling hot dogs, sausage and hamburgers. Some students danced on top of other rental trucks.
The accident scene was cordoned off by yellow police tape.
At halftime of the game, with Harvard leading Yale, 24-7, the public address announcer at Yale Bowl informed the crowd of the accident and the woman's death, noting that it had been confirmed by the New Haven Police. He asked spectators to stand and observe a moment of silence.
CANBERRA, Australia ? The Australian government says it is investigating how a classified booklet detailing Barack Obama's itinerary came to be lost in a gutter during the president's visit last week.
Journalist Dylan Welch of The Age newspaper reported that he found the 120-page booklet on Thursday about 100 yards (meters) from Parliament House in Canberra, where Obama attended several functions during his 27-hour Australian visit.
The booklet contained details on Obama's itinerary, his security convoy and the cell phone numbers of senior U.S. and Australian officials.
Australia's Attorney-General's Department said in a statement on Sunday it was investigating. The department said it did not comment on security matters.
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Public release date: 23-Nov-2011
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