Buoyed by Obama, leaders press for climate action

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) ? Hurricanes, floods, droughts and a newly climate-conscious Barack Obama are helping boost efforts around the world to fight climate change.

Top political and financial leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos say recent natural disasters, along with Obama's inauguration announcement this week that he's making the battle against rising temperatures a pillar of his second term, could rev up the glacially slow climate pact negotiations and revive fundraising for global action to cool the planet.

"Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled," International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde told participants at Davos.

The U.N.'s climate chief, Christiana Figueras, told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday that Obama's emphasis on climate "definitely is a political boost." She said Hurricane Sandy and drought in the Midwest last year helped push climate change back onto the U.S. political debate.

"We also need to see clearly much more engagement from the United States, we need to a confirmation from the new leadership in China that they remain on course and are willing to engage further. From the Europeans, we need to see that they also remain on course," Figueras said. "And then all of the emerging economies, in addition to China, need to begin to explore the opportunities that they have."

The U.N. climate talks, now two decades in the making, have so far failed to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions that most scientists say are warming the Earth.

Participants at the Davos forum ? which identifies extreme weather as one of the top three risks to the global economy ? called for global action.

Until now, rich and poor countries have accused U.S. leaders of hampering the global fight against climate change, which scientists say is causing a rise in temperatures and sea levels, threatening island nations and other low-lying areas, and shifting weather patterns to produce more droughts, floods and devastating storms.

Figueras, the daughter of a former Costa Rican president, and Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla both said their country could serve as an example.

"Costa Rica is already producing 90 percent of the energy we are consuming from renewable sources," Chinchilla told AP. "We are encouraging the policies of many different companies ? many are already adopting the right policies. For example, in the agricultural sector, we already have coffee which is certified carbon-neutral coffee."

European Union Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard called the battle against global warming the greatest economic challenge of this century.

Several CEOs of major banks and businesses said there have been robust discussions at Davos on potential private financing for "green" technologies to produce cleaner sources of energy.

So far, nations have ponied up about $30 billion toward the $100 billion a year goal by 2020 set at Copenhagen's U.N. climate talks in 2009.

A U.N. climate conference in Doha, Qatar, agreed in December to extend the Kyoto Protocol, a treaty that limits the greenhouse gas output of some rich countries, and agreed to adopt a new global climate pact by 2015. But hopes for stronger U.S. leadership in the ongoing U.N. climate talks were dimmed when legislation to cap emissions stalled in Congress.

"We're coming out of two years of climate silence," said Fred Krupp, president of the U.S.-based Environmental Defense Fund. "The impacts of extreme weather are now affecting everybody in the wallet."

Krupp said while no one is going to invest in unprofitable new technologies, a growing number of clean-energy investments are highly profitable.

Nations also agreed at the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen to set a goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). But because of inaction, Figueras said, the world is now on "somewhere between a 4 and 6 degree (Celsius) trajectory."

"But the door is not closed," she quickly added. "We have the technology, we have the capital. We have the possibility."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says one of his top hopes for 2013 is to reach a new agreement on climate change.

"Slowly but steadily, we are coming to realize the risks of a carbon-based economy," he told the forum Thursday. "Those supposedly longer-term issues are actually silent crises with us today: the death of children from preventable diseases; the melting of the polar ice caps because of climate change. ... Let not our inaction today lead to harsh judgment tomorrow."

Prince Albert II of Monaco, whose foundation focuses on climate change and other environmental issues, said Obama's inauguration speech gave a welcome lift toward collective action.

"That can only be positive, because we need to have the U.S. on board," he told the AP.

But Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said despite Obama's speech there would still be resistance.

"While the president and his colleagues will pursue what we believe is an aggressive climate change policy, they're not going to get it through the Congress," Donahoe predicted. "It's going to be done on a regulatory basis ... and that's going to create a different approach to dealing with this very important but controversial subject."

___

Heilprin can be reached at www.twitter.com/JohnHeilprin

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/buoyed-obama-leaders-press-climate-action-204335220--finance.html

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The 3D fireworks of a star

Public release date: 24-Jan-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: SINC
info@agenciasinc.es
34-914-251-820
FECYT - Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology

In 1901 the star GK Persei gave off a powerful explosion that has not stopped growing and astonishing ever since. Now a team of Spanish and Estonian astronomers has reconstructed the journey of the emitted gas in 3D which, contrary to predictions, has hardly slowed down its speed of up to 1,000 km/s after all this time.

Thanks to the images captured from the Isaac Newton Telescope and the Nordic Optical Telescope in La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain), a European team of astronomers has constructed a three dimensional map of the remnant of a nova, or in other words, what was left of the star after its explosion. The results have just been published in the Astrophysical Journal.

The protagonist of this story is the star GK Persei situated at 'just' 1,300 light years away from Earth. It is also known as Nova Persei 1901 because a strong thermonuclear eruption occurred on its surface on the 21st February 1901. On that day astronomers observed how its brightness suddenly increased to such an extent that it became one of the brightest stars in the skies.

The surprising thing is that the explosion created remaining material made up of gaseous knots, which become visible in 1916. "From then the visual spectacle has been similar to that of a firework display seen in slow motion," claims Miguel Santander, researcher at Spanish National Observatory and coauthor of the study.

After patient work to gather images, the team was able to measure the movements of more than 200 knots as well as the radial velocity using the Doppler effect, which allows to determine if they are getting closer or moving further away from us. In this way the 3D map of the nova was created and its dynamic was analysed.

"Such data are rarely available in astrophysics because as a general rule apparent expansion or, in other words, in the layout of the sky, the majority of objects cannot be seen," outlines another of the authors, Romano Corradi, from the Astrophysics Institute of the Canary Islands.

An unexpected result

In any case, the main result of this work "is that the gas seems to be moving further away in a ballistic or free manner and is hardly slowing down, contrary to what was thought in previous studies," comments the lead author of the investigation, Tiina Liimets of the Tartu Observatory in Estonia.

Until now it was thought that the gas from the explosion would slow down "significantly" due to the large quantity of matter in its path that the star has expelled previously. However, its speed has remained between a range of 600 and 1000 kilometres per second.

Long before the explosion in 1901, more than one hundred thousand years ago, GK Persei had already undergone a massive transformation from a red giant to a white dwarf. This process expelled its external layers forming a planetary nebula, which is a giant gas cloud within which the nova is now growing in 3D.

###

References:

T. Liimets, R.L.M. Corradi, M. SantanderGarca, E. Villaver, P. Rodrguez-Gil, K. Verro, I. Kolka. "A three-dimensional view of the remnant of Nova Persei 1901 (GK Per)". Astrophysical Journal 761(1): id. 34, December 2012.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 24-Jan-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: SINC
info@agenciasinc.es
34-914-251-820
FECYT - Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology

In 1901 the star GK Persei gave off a powerful explosion that has not stopped growing and astonishing ever since. Now a team of Spanish and Estonian astronomers has reconstructed the journey of the emitted gas in 3D which, contrary to predictions, has hardly slowed down its speed of up to 1,000 km/s after all this time.

Thanks to the images captured from the Isaac Newton Telescope and the Nordic Optical Telescope in La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain), a European team of astronomers has constructed a three dimensional map of the remnant of a nova, or in other words, what was left of the star after its explosion. The results have just been published in the Astrophysical Journal.

The protagonist of this story is the star GK Persei situated at 'just' 1,300 light years away from Earth. It is also known as Nova Persei 1901 because a strong thermonuclear eruption occurred on its surface on the 21st February 1901. On that day astronomers observed how its brightness suddenly increased to such an extent that it became one of the brightest stars in the skies.

The surprising thing is that the explosion created remaining material made up of gaseous knots, which become visible in 1916. "From then the visual spectacle has been similar to that of a firework display seen in slow motion," claims Miguel Santander, researcher at Spanish National Observatory and coauthor of the study.

After patient work to gather images, the team was able to measure the movements of more than 200 knots as well as the radial velocity using the Doppler effect, which allows to determine if they are getting closer or moving further away from us. In this way the 3D map of the nova was created and its dynamic was analysed.

"Such data are rarely available in astrophysics because as a general rule apparent expansion or, in other words, in the layout of the sky, the majority of objects cannot be seen," outlines another of the authors, Romano Corradi, from the Astrophysics Institute of the Canary Islands.

An unexpected result

In any case, the main result of this work "is that the gas seems to be moving further away in a ballistic or free manner and is hardly slowing down, contrary to what was thought in previous studies," comments the lead author of the investigation, Tiina Liimets of the Tartu Observatory in Estonia.

Until now it was thought that the gas from the explosion would slow down "significantly" due to the large quantity of matter in its path that the star has expelled previously. However, its speed has remained between a range of 600 and 1000 kilometres per second.

Long before the explosion in 1901, more than one hundred thousand years ago, GK Persei had already undergone a massive transformation from a red giant to a white dwarf. This process expelled its external layers forming a planetary nebula, which is a giant gas cloud within which the nova is now growing in 3D.

###

References:

T. Liimets, R.L.M. Corradi, M. SantanderGarca, E. Villaver, P. Rodrguez-Gil, K. Verro, I. Kolka. "A three-dimensional view of the remnant of Nova Persei 1901 (GK Per)". Astrophysical Journal 761(1): id. 34, December 2012.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-01/f-sf-t3f012413.php

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In Order To Live With People, Canines Evolved To Love Carbs

Got spaghetti? Dogs digest starch more efficiently than their wolf ancestors, which may have been an important step during dog domestication.

Lauren Solomon/iStockphoto.com/Nicholas Moore /Courtesy of Nature

Got spaghetti? Dogs digest starch more efficiently than their wolf ancestors, which may have been an important step during dog domestication.

Lauren Solomon/iStockphoto.com/Nicholas Moore /Courtesy of Nature

These days, a trip down the dog food aisle of your local pet store or supermarket can be a little overwhelming. There are hundreds of brands out there, catering to ? let's be honest ? every dog owner's taste: everything from generic kibble to organic nuggets.

There are even dog food cookbooks and specialty gourmet shops for people who want their pets to eat as well ? or better ? than they do.

How did we get here? The first step happened thousands of years ago, when meat-eating wolves evolved to tolerate people ? and their more starchy, plant-based diet.

If you listen to my story on Morning Edition, you'll hear about Erik Axelsson. He's an evolutionary geneticist at Uppsala University in Sweden. (You'll also hear some pretty cool wolf howls.)

Now, dog food wasn't on Axelsson's mind when he started looking for genetic differences between dogs and wolves. During his research, Axelsson found changes between wolves and dogs in genes related to the nervous system. But he also noticed something else: "Three key genes involved in the digestion of starch also look differently in dogs and wolves."

Axelsson says he expected to find differences in nervous system genes since dogs behave very differently from wolves. But the ability to digest starch?

"That was surprising," Axelsson says. "I mean, no one's really been hypothesizing about any such changes. On the other hand, it makes sense."

It makes sense because some researchers, including Axelsson, speculate that wolves first became domesticated when people settled down and started farming.

The hungry wolves would have been attracted by their garbage dumps full of food scraps. But Axelsson says to take advantage of this convenient new food supply, the wolves would have to adapt not just to being near people, but also to eating their food, which now included starchy grains and vegetables.

So any wolves who could digest starch would have had an advantage. Axelsson thinks today's domesticated dogs are probably descended from them. His comparison of the wolf and dog starch genes are published this week in the journal Nature.

UCLA evolutionary biologist Robert Wayne has very different ideas about how and when dogs became domesticated. But he says Axelsson's findings about starch digestion are fascinating new piece of the story.

Wayne believes dogs and people got together more than 30,000 years ago, when we were still hunting, not farming. He says it could have been the leftover animal carcasses that drew wolves to humans.

Then, when farming started, it wasn't just dogs that had to deal with a more starchy diet. "Humans might have likewise adapted to such carbohydrate-rich diets, after they transitioned from more of a meat-eating diet," Wayne says.

In other words, dogs and humans would have undergone similar genetic changes at around the same time. Axelsson says this is a really striking example of parallel evolution. "Both dogs and humans have adapted to a similar environment," Axelsson says, "and that environment was probably created by the development of agriculture."

Axelsson says because dog and human history is so closely tied together, there may be other examples of our adapting in similar ways. This makes him think that studying dog genetics could provide insights into human physiology and disease.

And as dogs have adapted, so has dog food. Most brands are relatively high in carbs, and have a lot less protein than meat.

I'll never think of my dog's kibble the same way again.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/01/23/170103080/in-order-to-live-with-people-canines-evolved-to-love-starchy-foods?ft=1&f=1007

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'Workaholics' Give You A Tricked-Out Tour Of 'The 'Vo'

We check out the guys' custom ride, complete with 'state of the art' manual antenna, secret stash.
By James Montgomery

Anders Holm and "The Vo" on the set of "Workaholics"
Photo: MTV News

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1700671/workaholics-the-vo-comedy-central.jhtml

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Stocks Mixed As SodaStream Tries To Break Out ... - Investors.com

Stocks remained narrowly mixed in early-afternoon action Tuesday, but were well off their session lows.

The Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 both traded near the day's highs, gaining 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively. The Nasdaq edged down 0.1%. Volume continued to track down sharply from Friday's levels, which were boosted by options expirations.

SodaStream International (SODA) was up 2% in big turnover, but it had popped as much as 6% intraday. The move had taken SodaStream past a 50.08 buy point from a three-weeks-tight pattern. It's now back below that trigger. The Israeli maker of in-home soda machines has been earning spots in the IBD 50 lineup and IBD's Stock Spotlight screen. It was featured in a Stock Spotlight column in Monday's IBD.

In M&A news, Dell (DELL) rose 3% as published reports said Microsoft (MSFT) might invest $1 billion to $3 billion as part of a leveraged buyout of the ailing PC maker. Dell regained its 200-day moving average last week amid buyout chatter, but it still remains nearly 30% off its February peak. Microsoft fell a fraction. It's also consolidating below its 200-day line.

On the earnings front, Google (GOOG) slid less than 1% in strong volume ahead of its quarterly report after the market's close. Analysts see EPS up 11% to $10.52, as sales rise 52% to $12.36 billion. Google, which has been consolidating since October, has dropped to its 50-day moving average.

Kansas City Southern (KSU) jumped 4% in heavy turnover, striking a fresh all-time high. The railroad said fourth-quarter EPS rose 19% to 92 cents, topping forecasts, as revenue grew 7% to $568 million, also above expectations. The stock has gapped up beyond a buying range established by a recent buy point at 84.08.

Apple (AAPL), which reports earnings Wednesday, was down a fraction and holding below 500 after giving up a modest early gain. Volume was coming in below average. Analysts see EPS dipping 2% to $13.42, which would be Apple's first decline in quarterly profit in years.

In economic news, existing-home sales slowed to an annualized rate of 4.94 million in December, according to the National Association of Realtors. That was below forecasts for 5.1 million and down from November's 5.04 million pace.

Source: http://news.investors.com/investing-markets-update/012213-641430-stock-market-today-mixed-in-lower-volume.htm

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Apple?s Tim Cook Sees ?Huge Opportunity? For iPad In Mac Cannibalization

Apple CEO Tim Cook responded to questions about the issue of potential cannibalization of Mac sales by iPad devices on today's earnings call, a question made more timely by the fact that Mac sales were down considerably on the quarter. He reiterated that supply constraints are leading to fewer sales, but also tackled cannibalization as a broad topic, noting that there is opportunity there for the iPad in a couple of important ways.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/rK5vehXUCo4/

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Sales Firm Expanding- 10 FULL TIME ENTRY LEVEL POSITIONS ...

?

Basic Job Info

?

Location

US-SC-Greenville

?

Employment Type

Full-Time

?

Relocation Covered

False

Job Description

10 entry level sales, advertising, and sales account manager positions open.

SCBusinessConsulting.org

"The edge in sales and marketing"

SC Business Consulting is quickly becoming one of the fastest growing sales and marketing firms in?Greenville, SC. Due to increased client demand we will be opening 3 new offices by the end of the year so we have several entry level sales account manager positions open. We are conducting immediate interviews for candidates with exemplary work ethic, ambition, and highly competitive nature. The account manager position is considered an entry level position as posted, meaning thorough training is provided so they are a part of the SCBC team as it grows through out the year!

Our account managers are the face of our clients to their high priority customers and small to medium business demographic, and specialize in new business acquisition and customer retention. Because our Fortune 500 clients trust us to represent their reputation we provide extensive training in cutting edge sales techniques, product knowledge, and business psychology. Combining that training with relationship based selling and upholding the utmost integrity allows the account managers to not only succeed professionally but to gain pride in their position. Candidates with a sports background and leadership experience will do extremely well at SCBC!

Duties in the account management position include:

-- Customer relationship building

-- Create client loyalty through personal attention

-- Territory management

-- Manage small to medium accounts

-- Providing sales and marketing presentations

-- Reporting marketing data and feedback to the client

-- Relaying state of the art technology updates to customers

-- New customer acquisition

-- Consult priority customers given to us by the client

-- Client branding

-- Account updates

-- Contract overview

-- No Telemarketing- Cold Calling

Benefits include:

-- Rapid advancement opportunity

-- Health benefits

-- Work in an exciting and friendly environment

-- Weekly Bonus Structure

-- Travel opportunities (optional)-- Relocation options (optional)

-- Career advancement opportunities in Management, Consulting, and Sales

-- Exceptional long term compensation packages
(this is not 100% commission position)

?

Job Requirements

* Authorized to work in the U.S.

* College degree or relevant work experience.

* Sales and/or marketing experience a plus, but not a requirement.

* Competitive and proactive attitude.

* Confident demeanor.

* Strong student mentality.

We have begun the interviewing process. To be considered for the position click the "apply now" button below. In addition, feel free to contact us at (864) 233-5690 or?please click on the web address to find out more information: scbusinessconsulting.org

Best of luck in your job search!

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Careers.org gives you access to over a million jobs and career opportunities across the US including in Greenville. Find your perfect job and apply directly through a simply online application process

Source: http://jobs.careers.org/job/JHN42S5Y31DV5BWLD74/Sales-Firm-Expanding--10-FULL-TIME-ENTRY

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Obama starts second term in White House ceremony

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama took the official oath for his second term on Sunday at the White House in a small, private ceremony that set a more subdued tone compared to the historic start of his presidency four years ago.

Gathered with his family in the Blue Room on the White House's ceremonial main floor, Obama put his hand on a family Bible and recited the 35-word oath that was read out loud by U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts.

"I did it," Obama said as he hugged his wife, Michelle, and daughters Sasha and Malia. "Thank you, sweetie," he told Michelle when she congratulated him. "Good job, Dad. You didn't mess up," 11-year-old Sasha Obama told her father.

It was a low-key start to the first African-American U.S. president's second term, which is likely to be dominated - at least at the start - by budget fights with Republicans and attempts to reform gun control and immigration laws.

Obama, 51, will be sworn in publicly on Monday outside the West Front of the Capitol overlooking the National Mall in front of as many as 800,000 people, a much bigger ceremony replete with a major address and a parade.

Downtown Washington was all but locked down with heavy security. Many streets were closed, lined with barricades. Police sirens blared. Outside the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue, an elaborate presidential viewing stand encased in bullet-proof glass was set up for Obama and other VIPs to watch the parade.

Sunday's ceremony, shown live on television, was needed because the U.S. Constitution mandates that the president take office on January 20. Planners opted to go with a private ceremony on the actual date and then hold the ceremonial inaugural activities the next day.

By Monday, Obama will have been sworn in four times, two for each term, putting him equal to Franklin Roosevelt, who won four terms. A second Obama swearing-in was deemed necessary in 2009 when Roberts flubbed the first one. On Sunday, Roberts read the oath carefully from a card and there were no mistakes.

Obama, who won a second four years on November 6 by defeating Republican Mitt Romney after a bitter campaign, opens round two facing many of the same problems that dogged his first term: persistently high unemployment, crushing government debt and a deep partisan divide over how to solve the issues.

This has taken some of the euphoria out of his second inauguration, with TV pundits debating how successful he will be and whether he can avoid policy over-reaching that often afflicts two-term presidents.

If the president harbored any doubts himself, there was no sign of it as he attended a rousing service at Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Washington where he and Michelle, who is sporting a new hair style featuring bangs, clapped and swayed to gospel music.

"Forward, forward," shouted Reverend Ronald Braxton to his congregation, echoing an Obama election campaign slogan.

Early Sunday morning, Vice President Joe Biden was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, making her the first Hispanic judge to administer an oath of office for one of the nation's two highest offices.

Obama and Biden then joined forces to lay a wreath of flowers at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in a solemn remembrance of those killed in the line of duty.

Biden's family, about 120 guests and a few reporters witnessed the private swearing-in ceremony in the main foyer of his Naval Observatory residence. Biden used a Bible with a Celtic cross on the cover that has been in his family since 1893.

The audience for Monday's ceremony is not expected to be as big as in 2009 when a record 1.8 million people crammed into the National Mall to witness the swearing-in. Turnout is projected at 600,000 to 800,000, with millions more watching on television.

INAUGURAL ADDRESS IS CENTERPIECE

Obama's Inauguration Day speech will set the tone for the start of his second term and gives him a chance to lay out his vision on where he would like to lead the country. He has been drafting the speech on yellow legal pads and working with his speech writers.

Senior Obama adviser David Plouffe told CNN that Obama would talk about how "our political system doesn't require us to resolve all of our disputes or settle all of our differences," but that it does encourage common ground.

"I think it's going to be a hopeful speech," Plouffe said.

Lately the president has been using a more combative tone against his Republican opponents, a possible foreshadowing of a more aggressive effort at trying to get his way.

After his tumultuous first term during which he achieved an overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system, his second term opens in the midst of a feud with congressional Republicans over taxes and spending.

His top policy goals for the first year, so far, include tightening gun regulations in response to the massacre of 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school a month ago. Obama is also seeking an overhaul of immigration laws and tax reform.

Abroad, he is facing a challenge from a resurgence of Islamist extremists in North Africa exemplified by the recent hostage-taking that turned deadly at an oil facility in Algeria. He is also winding down the war in Afghanistan and dealing with Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Obama will save specific policy proposals for his annual State of the Union speech before Congress on February 12.

In his inaugural address, Obama is expected to talk about the need for political compromise where possible, a reminder of the intense battles in his first term that led to paralysis and dysfunction in Washington.

"It'd be great if the inauguration were a unifying moment - though I honestly can't say it will be. But just maybe for a day they can bury the hatchet and celebrate an important day for American democracy," said Brian Hurley, 57, a local salesman, as he guided an out-of-town visitor outside the White House gates.

With the public ceremony falling on the national holiday honoring slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., Obama will also have a chance to draw historic parallels. While taking the oath on Monday, he will place his left hand on two Bibles - one once owned by Abraham Lincoln and the other by King.

The Obamas will attend two official inaugural balls - compared to the 10 that were held in 2009.

(Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Alistair Bell and Vicki Allen)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/two-day-inauguration-obama-sworn-white-house-060652512.html

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Live: Barack Obama's Second Inauguration Day!

Today is the day that President Barack Obama will be sworn in for another four-year term and deliver his all-important second inaugural?address. We'll have live updates on all the festivities throughout the day.

RELATED: Iranian Bank Hackers, the Fate of the Dreamliner, and a Poetic Inauguration

As you know, it's both Inauguration Day and the observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, adding ?extra symbolism and weight to the historic?occasion. Of course, technically he's already been sworn in, since the Constitution required him to take the oath on January 20, but tradition holds that formal festivities are not held on a Sunday. However, it's really the second inaugural speech, beginning at noon, that everyone will be looking forward to.

RELATED: Citing 'Agenda,' Obama's Inauguration Pastor Drops Out After 'Ex-Gay' Sermon

The sun is just now coming up in Washington, but people area already lining up on the mall and the media is out in full force, so say tuned for more updates.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/live-barack-obamas-second-inauguration-day-121358529.html

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Chelsea holds off?Arsenal, wins 2-1

By STEVE DOUGLAS

AP Sports Writer

Associated Press Sports

updated 10:50 a.m. ET Jan. 20, 2013

LONDON (AP) -Chelsea ended its barren run at home by holding off a second-half fightback by Arsenal to win 2-1 on Sunday, tightening the team's grip on third place in the Premier League and leaving its London rival struggling to make the top four.

Juan Mata's excellent finish and a penalty from Frank Lampard gave Chelsea a two-goal lead after only 16 minutes as Arsenal's frail defense wilted under gentle but regular snowfall at Stamford Bridge.

The visitors couldn't help but improve in the second half and a 58th-minute goal by winger Theo Walcott - signed up on Friday for a further 3 1/2 years at the club - offered them hope of at least a draw.

Aided by some desperate defending, Chelsea hung on for only its third win in eight home matches - and first in four in all competitions - under interim manager Rafa Benitez. The European champions remain favorites to take the final automatic Champions League qualification spot behind the Manchester clubs, who are battling for the title.

"We are doing well and progressing," said Benitez, whose team's fast start meant he avoided the kind of crowd abuse that has marred his first two months at Chelsea.

Arsenal failed to recover from the damage inflicted by its dreadful first-half showing - arguably its worst 45 minutes of the season - and is now 11 points behind Chelsea. Finishing in the Champions League positions is far from guaranteed for Arsene Wenger's side, which has been a fixture in Europe's top competition for the past 15 years.

"The table is the table," Wenger said, bemoaning a second straight slow start following on from the 2-0 home loss to City last weekend. "We have lost two big games in the last week. That's damaging for us. We can't afford to lose more points. It's a concern."

Lacking leaders, defensively weak and failing to show the same work rate and hunger as its opponent, Arsenal was picked off time and again by Chelsea's effervescent midfield - led by Mata - in the first half. It should have been worse than 2-0 at halftime and Wenger had a face like thunder throughout the half.

"We only came into the game when we were 2-0 down - that's worrying," Wenger said.

Mata's goal came after Ramires escaped punishment for a foul on Francis Coquelin in the center circle. While Arsenal's players protested, Cesar Azpilicueta lofted a ball over the visiting defense to Mata, who controlled expertly and fired a shot high into the net with Bacary Sagna trailing in his wake.

It was all Chelsea and Lampard made it 2-0 after Ramires tumbled under a challenge by goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who as last man was fortunate to only receive a yellow card. The penalty was dispatched low into the corner for the midfielder's 195th goal for the club, leaving him seven behind Bobby Tambling's all-time record.

More chants of "Sign him up" came from the Chelsea fans, frustrated at the club hierarchy's apparent decision to let his contract run down this summer.

Ramires and the subdued Fernando Torres, recalled in place of Demba Ba, skied shots over as Chelsea toyed with Arsenal before the interval but the second half couldn't have been more different.

Chelsea surrendered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Southampton on Wednesday, virtually dashing the team's slim title hopes, and the same nearly happened five days on.

Walcott made it 11 goals in his last 15 appearances by running onto Santi Cazorla's perfectly weighted through ball and sidefooting a lofted finish past goalkeeper Petr Cech, sparking an all-out offensive from Arsenal.

Suddenly it was Wenger's team first to every ball as the home crowd became nervous but the equalizer never came, with Chelsea's defense - again missing the fit-again John Terry - holding form.

"It was very hard, the second 45 minutes," Mata said. "We were defending until the last minute."

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Dempsey saves the day for Spurs

Clint Dempsey scored a second crucial goal of the season for Tottenham against Manchester United on Sunday, striking deep into stoppage time to secure a 1-1 draw against the Premier League leaders.

Who had best weekend, Jozy or Clint?

PST: Jozy Altidore seemed to have a stranglehold on best weekend for a Yank abroad,?but what about Clint Dempsey?s day at snowy White Hart Lane?

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45087177/ns/sports-soccer/

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AP source: Inaugural ball to feature Lady Gaga

FILE - This Oct. 1, 2012 file photo shows Lady Gaga arriving at the Versace atelier in Milan, Italy. A person familiar with the inauguration tells The Associated Press that the pop star will perform at Tuesday's ball for White House staffers. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because that person wasn't authorized to publicly reveal the information. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

FILE - This Oct. 1, 2012 file photo shows Lady Gaga arriving at the Versace atelier in Milan, Italy. A person familiar with the inauguration tells The Associated Press that the pop star will perform at Tuesday's ball for White House staffers. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because that person wasn't authorized to publicly reveal the information. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Watch out Beyonce and Katy Perry. There's another diva set to perform during the inauguration festivities ? Lady Gaga.

A person familiar with the inauguration tells The Associated Press that the pop star will perform at Tuesday's ball for President Barack Obama's staffers. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because that person wasn't authorized to publicly reveal the information.

The staff ball is typically a private affair. During the last inauguration festivities, Jay-Z reportedly performed for that event.

According to one attendee, Jay-Z rapped a riff on one of his hit songs, "99 Problems but George Bush Ain't One," to the delight of the throngs of young staffers who worked to elect Obama in 2008.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-01-19-Inauguration-Lady%20Gaga/id-97e0bb20769847e4b3f48eced716fa68

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From bullying to relationships: Mapping our online communications

Jan. 19, 2013 ? When we typically think of kids who are the victims of school bullying, what comes to mind are isolated youth who do not fit in. A new study, however, shows that when that harassment occurs online, the victims tend to be in mainstream social groups -- and they are often friends or former friends, not strangers.

The research is part of a burgeoning field of study into the effects of social media on everyday relationships and behavior. Personality and social psychologists are finding surprising ways in which people's online environments and relationships reflect and influence their real-world ones, as presented January 19 at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) annual meeting in New Orleans.

"Researchers have known for a while that individuals give unique cues about who they are with the things they own, clothes they wear, things they say and do. However, though these cues are informative to knowing who someone truly is, they were not always so easily accessible to our entire social network," says Lindsay Graham of the University of Texas, Austin, one of the presenters. "Now with much of our lives being lived online, and the boundaries having been blurred between who sees these cues and who doesn't, it is all the more important to pay attention to the kinds of impressions we are giving off to those around us."

The emerging image of the cyber-bully

Some statistics indicate that as many as 160,000 students a year skip school just to avoid being harassed, and texting and social media are making it easier than ever to harass classmates. Victimization from schoolmates has been correlated with everything from depression and anxiety to thoughts of suicide and struggles with academics.

To study so-called "cyber-aggression" -- harassment that occurs online -- Diane Felmlee of the Pennsylvania State University and Robert Faris of the University of California, Davis, studied 788 students at a preparatory school in Long Island. They mapped the students' social network structure relative to online harassment: asking students to name their close friends, which schoolmates they have picked on or been mean to, and which schoolmates had picked on them.

What they found was that cyber-aggression occurs in the mainstream of the school and largely among friends, former friends, and former dating partners. They also found that non-heterosexual students were more likely to be the victims. Examples of the types of harassment found online were posting humiliating photos, texting vicious rumors, posting that a student is gay and making fun of him, and pretending to befriend a lonely person.

"Cyber-aggression occurred most often among relatively popular young people, rather than among those on the fringes of the school hierarchy," Felmlee says. "Those engaging in cyber-aggression also were unlikely to target strangers but often were in close relationships with their victims at one point in time, close enough to know how to harm them."

The researchers found that some of the processes that contribute to aggression in school include jockeying for status, enforcing norms of conformity, and competing for girlfriends or boyfriends.

How our online image affects our relationships

Even more innocuous online interactions can prove problematic for offline relationships, psychologists are finding. One new study shows that disclosing more about ourselves online actually lessens intimacy and satisfaction among romantic couples.

"We found that contrary to the research on offline self-disclosure, which shows that more offline disclosure leads to higher intimacy and relationship satisfaction between both romantic couples and friends," says Juwon Lee of the University of Kansas, "online self-disclosure was negatively associated with intimacy and satisfaction between couples."

In a series of studies, Lee and colleagues found that greater usage of Facebook predicted lower satisfaction in romantic relationships but not in friendships. In one study, the researchers created two different mock Facebook walls: one that had a high degree of self-disclosure (e.g., many personal pictures and personal status updates such as "Just had a fight with Mom" or "Pretty interesting training at work today") and one that had a low degree of self-disclosure (e.g., neutral status updates such as "Nice weather today"). They asked the participants to imagine that one of the walls was their partner's and then measured their relationship intimacy and satisfaction. Those who had the walls with high levels of self-disclosure reported less intimacy and satisfaction with their relationships compared to those with the more minimal walls.

"Disclosing a high degree of personal information online, regardless of whether or not the information is related to your partner or relationship, will likely negatively affect your romantic relationship," Lee says.

How our online image matches us offline

Researchers are also investigating how closely the information we disclose online mirrors who we are offline. In two new sets of studies, psychologists looked to World of Warcraft players and to profiles of people who frequent cafes and bars.

"With more and more of our lives being lived both in the physical and virtual worlds, it's important to understand the kinds of impressions we give off to others through the traces we leave behind in our environments," says Graham of the University of Texas, Austin, co-author of the studies with Sam Gosling. "Whether we're creating a screen name or avatar for ourselves, or broadcasting that the bar or coffee shop down the street is one of our frequent hangouts, we are inevitably telling those around us something about who we are as individuals."

In the study about World of Warcraft players, the researchers found that although people can make consistent judgments about a player's personality, those impressions do not match how the players view themselves. In the second set of studies, they examined 50 randomly selected cafes and bars in the Austin area and looked at the profile pictures of people who frequent those establishment using the social networking site Foursquare.com. Just by looking at the profile photos of the frequent patrons for each location, observers were able to assess the personality the typical patron (e.g., extraverted, likeable, narcissistic), the activities likely to occur at the establishment (e.g., drinking, surfing the web, flirting), and the atmosphere or "vibe" of the location itself (e.g., sophisticated, clean, kitsch-y).

For comparison, the researchers sent a second set of observers to the same locations to make the same assessments in person. "Interestingly, we found that when we compared the impressions formed from just the profiles with those formed from the establishments themselves, there was quite a bit of overlap," Graham says. "Impressions were consistent no matter what type of stimuli an observer sees -- suggesting there is some cohesion in the types of people who go to certain places and the places themselves."

How communication channels shape what we say

Aside from creating images of ourselves online, people increasingly use social media -- including Twitter, Facebook, and blogs -- to communicate a variety information, including about consumer products. Exactly which modes of communication we choose, online versus offline, affects how we talk and what we talk about, a new study finds.

Jonah Berger of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and colleagues analyzed more than 21,000 everyday conversations on- and offline. They found that online posts and texts provide people the opportunity to take pauses in conversations, and thus more carefully craft what they say. As a result, those conversations tend to be more interesting than conversations face-to-face or over the phone.

The researchers measured interest by "coding" the conversations, which came from the Keller Fay Group, a research marketing firm that tracks which brands and products consumers talk about. Brands such Christian Dior and products such as the Audi A6 scored as highly interesting, while brands like Ross and products like insurance scored as not at all interesting.

"These findings shed light on how communication channels shape interpersonal communication and the psychological drivers of word-of-mouth more broadly," says Berger, who is author of the upcoming book Contagious: Why Things Catch On.. "They underscore the old maxim of thinking twice before you open your mouth."

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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/u_EbwWKaFeM/130119185027.htm

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Two dead in London helicopter crash

Two people were killed when a helicopter hit a crane at a building site in central London and plunged to the ground, police said.

Police did not say if the deaths were passengers and crew in the helicopter or people on the ground at the scene of the crash, an under-construction apartment block in Vauxhall on the banks of the River Thames.

The stricken aircraft cartwheeled to the ground and exploded into flames before crashing into a street during the rush hour.

Burning wreckage and aviation fuel covered the road as eyewitnesses reported seeing cars on fire and hearing people screaming.

London Fire Brigade said the crash happened in South Lambeth.

Witnesses posted photographs of burning wreckage on social networking sites.

Paul Ferguson, who was working in an office near the incident, told BBC News: "There was a flash and the helicopter plunged to the ground. It exploded and you can imagine the smoke coming out of it."

Sarah-Beth Casey lives in an apartment near the incident.

She told Sky News: "When I heard the explosion - it was like a little earthquake.

"It was like a gas explosion. I looked up to see debris falling off the tower.

"I can't see any people on the ground, it seems to be a lucky escape. The police and ambulance response was incredible."

Erin Rogers was waiting at a bus stop outside Vauxhall station.

He told BBC News: "It was a bit surreal actually. I just had a coffee in my hand, I looked up, heard a bang and saw bits of crane debris falling to the floor.

"Then the helicopter was in flames. The rest of the people at the bus station were looking on going 'What was that?'.

"It's something I will never forget for a long time."

Unconfirmed early reports said one person was on board, the pilot.

London's Metropolitan Police said the helicopter was not one of its aircraft. "We had a call at approximately 8am this morning and we are dealing with an incident," a police spokesman said.

The crash was causing long tailbacks on roads during the morning rush hour.

Two people have been confirmed dead in the helicopter crash, Scotland Yard said on Wednesday.

Chris Yates, an independent aviation expert, told Sky News: "Helicopters are not supposed to come within 500 feet (152 metres) of any structure such as a high-rise building, so we don't know what caused the pilot to get quite so close.

"We don't know the circumstances he was operating in at the time - whether there was a problem with the helicopter itself, whether he misread his instructions or received false instructions from air traffic control."

Source: http://sbs.feedsportal.com/c/34692/f/637531/s/27924df6/l/0L0Ssbs0N0Bau0Cnews0Carticle0C17274740CTwo0Edead0Ein0ELondon0Ehelicopter0Ecrash/story01.htm

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End Near? Doomsday Clock Holds at 5 'Til Midnight

The hands of the infamous "Doomsday Clock" will remain firmly in their place at five minutes to midnight ? symbolizing humans' destruction ? for the year 2013, scientists announced today (Jan. 14).

Keeping their outlook for the future of humanity quite dim, the group of scientists also wrote an open letter to President Barack Obama, urging him to partner with other global leaders to act on climate change.

The clock is a symbol of the threat of humanity's imminent destruction from nuclear or biological weapons, climate change and other human-caused disasters. In making their deliberations about how to update the clock's time this year, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists considered the current state of nuclear arsenals around the globe, the slow and costly recovery from events like Fukushima nuclear meltdown, and extreme weather events that fit in with a pattern of global warming.

"2012 was the hottest year on record in the contiguous United States, marked by devastating drought and brutal storms," the letter says. "These extreme events are exactly what climate models predict for an atmosphere laden with greenhouse gases." [Doom and Gloom: 10 Post-Apocalyptic Worlds]

At the same time, the letter did give a nod to some progress, applauding the president for taking steps to "nudge the country along a more rational energy path," with his support for wind and other renewable energy sources.

"We have as much hope for Obama's second term in office as we did in 2010, when we moved back the hand of the Clock after his first year in office," Robert Socolow, chair of the board that determines the clock's position, said in a statement. "This is the year for U.S. leadership in slowing climate change and setting a path toward a world without nuclear weapons."

The Doomsday Clock came into being in 1947 as a way for atomic scientists to warn the world of the dangers of nuclear weapons. That year, the Bulletin set the time at seven minutes to midnight, with midnight symbolizing humanity's destruction. By 1949, it was at three minutes to midnight as the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated. In 1953, after the first test of the hydrogen bomb, the doomsday clock ticked to two minutes until midnight.

The Bulletin was at its most optimistic in 1991, when the Cold War thawed and the United States and Russia began cutting their arsenals. That year, the clock was set at 17 minutes to midnight.

From then until 2010, however, it was a gradual creep back toward destruction, as hopes of total nuclear disarmament vanished and threats of nuclear terrorism and climate change reared their heads. In 2010, the Bulletin found some hope in arms reduction treaties and international climate talks and bumped the minute hand of the Doomsday Clock back to six minutes from midnight from its previous post at five to midnight. But by 2012, the clock was pushed forward another minute.

Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook?& Google+.

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

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/end-near-doomsday-clock-holds-5-til-midnight-232147095.html

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Gerry Simpson SmartLine: Business Ethics

One of the more important attributes for small business success is practicing with carefully developed principles of high ethical standards. When practiced throughout the organization it becomes part of the image of the company and can be an important factor in overall success and how the community views the business.
In the research study, "Does Business Ethics Pay?" by The Institute of Business Ethics (IBE), it was found that companies displaying a "clear commitment to ethical conduct" consistently outperform companies that do not display ethical conduct.

The following are excerpts from that study that I believe merit consideration:

1. Be Trustful: Recognize customers want to do business with a company they can trust; when trust is at the core of a company, it's easy to recognize. Trust defined, is assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, and truth of a business. 2. Keep An Open Mind: For continuous improvement of a company, the leader of an organization must be open to new ideas. Ask for opinions and feedback from both customers and team members and your company will continue to grow. 3. Meet Obligations: Regardless of the circumstances, do everything in your power to gain the trust of past customers and clients, particularly if something has gone awry. Reclaim any lost business by honoring all commitments and obligations. 4. Have Clear Documents: Re-evaluate all print materials including small business advertising, brochures, and other business documents making sure they are clear, precise and professional. Most important, make sure they do not misrepresent or misinterpret. 5. Maintain Accounting Control: Take a hands-on approach to accounting and record keeping, not only as a means of gaining a better feel for the progress of your company, but as a resource for any "questionable? activities. Gaining control of accounting and record keeping allows you to end any dubious activities promptly.

6. Be Respectful: Treat others with the utmost of respect. Regardless of differences, positions, titles,ages, or other types of distinctions, always treat others with professional respect and courtesy.

Recognizing the significance of business ethics as a tool for achieving your desired outcome is only the beginning. A small business that instills a deep-seated theme of business ethics within its strategies and policies will be evident among customers. Its overall influence will lead to a profitable, successful company.
I believe there is merit in the values expressed in this study. Please let me know what you think.

Source: http://simpsonsmartline.blogspot.com/2013/01/business-ethics.html

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On debt ceiling, markets hopeful Washington has learned a lesson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. government is expected to bump up against its legal borrowing limit by March, and it would be hard to fault investors for feeling edgy.

The last fight over the debt ceiling led to one of the most volatile weeks in stock market history, cost the United States its top credit rating and pushed the government to the brink of default.

But this time around, markets are remarkably calm, with the benchmark S&P 500 barely budging on Friday after notching a five-year closing high on Thursday. Some investors seem to be betting that Congress learned its lesson from the bruising debt ceiling fight of 2011 and will choose compromise over market meltdown.

Lawmakers remain far apart in their views. Republicans want the White House to agree to deep spending cuts in exchange for raising the $16.4 trillion borrowing limit. However, some conservative voices are warning against playing hardball with the debt ceiling.

"We played this game of chicken before and we all know how that played out and we don't want to repeat that. The market knows this. Investors know it's not going to be like 2011," said Jack De Gan, the chief investment officer at Harbor Advisory in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. "I think the negotiation will go by with less volatility."

Meanwhile, the CBOE Volatility index <.vix>, Wall Street's preferred anxiety gauge that is known as the VIX, ended Friday just a few hundredths of a point from its lowest closing level since 2007.

Of course, market mood can change in a heartbeat, and there's still plenty of time for anxiety to rise.

NOT UP FOR A FIGHT?

Markets are still counting their blessings after Congress struck a last-minute deal on New Year's Day to avoid some $600 billion of automatic tax hikes and spending cuts -- measures that many had feared would drag the economy into recession.

But the deal to avert the "fiscal cliff," which included higher taxes for the wealthiest Americans, delayed some important decisions on spending. That left Republicans with the chance to use the debt ceiling as leverage to get President Barack Obama to make cuts in Social Security, Medicare and other programs.

However, signs that some Republicans may not have the stomach for another fight have not escaped the notice of investors and traders.

In the equity markets, futures contracts on the VIX suggest expectations for rising volatility in coming months, but not at a rate that is considered alarming. Randy Frederick, managing director of active trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab, said investors have shown some interest in February VIX call options at 17, which is a bet on a rise in volatility around the time the debt ceiling debate is expected to heat up.

"I haven't seen a whole lot of action," he said. "I think the market will stay in a trading range until we get closer to the deal. We still have three to four weeks until we get too uptight or worried about the situation."

Prices of U.S. Treasuries have also been fairly steady as investors weigh an improving economy against impending battles over the federal debt ceiling.

Some senior Republican figures have expressed concern about their party being blamed for a shutdown of the government or a debt default.

Former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich, whose decision in the 1990s to shut down the government rather than raise the debt ceiling backfired politically, told MSNBC this week that a repeat performance would be a "dead loser" for the party.

In Thursday's Wall Street Journal, Republican strategist Karl Rove said the party may have to accept a debt ceiling increase that doesn't come with cuts to Social Security and Medicare programs.

"Having been defeated in the last election, the Republicans might not want to lose their last vestige of power, which is the House of Representatives, in the next one, so there may be some kind of incentive on both sides to get something done," said Millan Mulraine, senior bond strategist at TD Securities.

"Of course, the market is very mindful that we have a very polarized environment in Washington that has manifested itself in almost every aspect of policymaking," he added. "But I still think markets expect a deal."

DON'T RULE OUT ANYTHING

That's not to say investors shouldn't prepare for the worst.

"These days, it seems like it's dangerous to rule out anything," said Gregory Whiteley, government bond portfolio manager at DoubleLine Capital LP in Los Angeles, which oversees more than $50 billion. "We could see ourselves in a situation where neither side is willing to budge."

Options indicators suggest equity investors are starting to price in the uncertainty - but they're still too sanguine about it, strategists at Credit Suisse said in a January 4 research note. Expectations for volatility two months into the future started to rise just after the new year, compared with the forecast for one-month volatility.

However, the demand for bearish put options versus bullish call options is not particularly high, which "suggests investors may be too bullish on the outcome of the negotiation," they wrote.

In that case, stocks would likely suffer while investors may well look to take cover in Treasury debt, even though that might seem counter-intuitive given the threat of a default or a negative credit rating move. Whiteley and Mulraine both said that scenario would probably remain the case even if Moody's or Fitch decided to follow the 2011 downgrade by Standard & Poor's of the U.S. rating with a downgrade of their own.

U.S. Treasuries maintained strength even after the 2011 debt downgrade by S&P, still seen as a bastion of safety in a world rocked by myriad uncertainties.

Frederick of Charles Schwab said markets probably can handle another bruising battle that goes down to the wire, provided a deal is eventually reached.

He said the combination of the U.S. downgrade and worries that the euro zone could fall apart in 2011 meant there was a double-dose of pain at that time.

"We could be in for a tough battle, but I don't think we will see the meltdown in the market similar to what we saw in 2011," he said.

But at least one high-profile investor said it is too soon to breathe a sigh of relief.

Dan Fuss, vice chairman of Loomis, Sayles & Company with $182 billion under management, said the partisan divide in Washington and politicians' contempt for compromise may one day force investors to reconsider the appeal of U.S. assets.

"My principal concern is the international clients we deal with," he said. "They are really worried about the U.S. government. They look to the U.S. as one of the world's two major powers and it's important to them that we have our act together. So this does worry me a lot."

(Additional reporting by Angela Moon and Ellen Freilich; Editing by David Gaffen, Martin Howell and Leslie Adler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/debt-ceiling-markets-hopeful-washington-learned-lesson-120649853--sector.html

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Common Sense Solutions To Common Commercial Real Estate ...

TIP! Watch out for very motivated sellers. It?s up to you to seek them out, particularly those who are willing to let the property go for less than its market value.

It is true that commercial investment tends to be more profitable than residential property investment. Sometimes it can be difficult to find the appropriate opportunities. By following these tips, you will be able to understand the variables inherent in commercial real estate dealing. Therefore, you will be better able to make great deals.

TIP! You should be aware of any environmental concerns. One huge concern is when the property you currently own has problems with hazardous waste materials.

Variable interest rates are one of the most dangerous threats to investors. Current conditions, with their unpredictable rises and falls, leave investors room to make a great profit or to suffer an incredible loss. Keep this in mind during your comparison shopping, and look to the long-term for cost analysis.

TIP! Always have an inspector look over your commercial property before you put it out on the market. This way you can make sure it is prepared in advance of a sale, and if any problems arise during the inspection you can take care of it on the front end.

Consider the good tax benefits if you are thinking about purchasing commercial properties for investment purposes. As an investor, you might receive interest deductions as well as depreciation benefits. However, investors are sometimes taxed on income that they do not actually receive in the form of cash. This is known as ?phantom income.? Knowledge of this aspect is important when you make an investment decision.

TIP! Tour any properties you are considering for purchase. Definitely consider having a professional contractor go with you when looking at potential properties.

Those who invest in commercial real estate should be aware that higher-than-usual inflation can wreck and otherwise-good investment. One thing past leases had were clauses in them which based on Consumer Price Index protected the signers from inflation because there were adjustments in them. However, these days, this is rarely done, which means inflation could hit you where it hurts the most.

TIP! As with other property purchases, pay attention to the three Ls: location, location, and location. Pay attention to the property?s surrounding area.

Size does matter when it comes to buying a new building for your business. To avoid the need to move in the future, invest in a piece of commercial property that allows for ample growth.

TIP! Secure the proper financing prior to hunting for property to buy. Loan products and commercial lenders are different from home loans.

You should now be knowledgeable of the basic concepts involved in commercial real estate. Stay flexible and be ready to think on your feet as you navigate the ever-changing commercial real estate market. By doing so, you will be in a position to recognize the good opportunities that others might miss, and make a deal that maximizes your profitability.

Source: http://nhlmicke.com/common-sense-solutions-to-common-commercial-real-estate-issues/

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