Homebuilding takes a breather, wholesale prices up

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. builders broke ground on fewer homes last month but a jump in permits for future construction to a 4-1/2-year high indicated the housing market recovery remains on track.

Another report on Wednesday showed wholesale prices rose for the first time in four months in January. However, the gain was smaller than expected and left scope for the Federal Reserve to keep buying bonds to stimulate the economy.

Housing starts dropped 8.5 percent in January to an 890,000-unit annual rate, pulled down by a sharp drop in the volatile multi-family unit category, the Commerce Department said.

But starts for single-family homes hit their highest since July 2008 and permits for future construction, which lead starts by at least a month, were at their highest since June of that year.

The drop in starts followed an outsized gain in December and was confined to the Northeast and Midwest, suggesting winter weather likely contributed to the pullback.

"The fundamentals are there and the drivers are looking good," said Patrick Newport, an economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts. "We see more new construction this year. The only question is whether it will be in the multi-family or single-family segment."

Housing has shifted from being a headwind for the economy to being a pillar of support, although mortgage rates have crept higher in recent weeks, cooling loan demand.

Luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers on Wednesday reported disappointing quarterly results, hurt in part by lower selling prices, but other homebuilders have been able to take advantage of the recovering market.

A separate report from the Labor Department showed producer prices rose 0.2 percent last month as rebounding food costs offset declining gasoline prices. Wholesale prices had slipped 0.3 percent in December, and economists had expected them to rise 0.4 percent in January.

Food prices accounted for more than 75 percent of the rise in wholesale prices last month.

INFLATION PRESSURES MUTED

Away from the spike in food prices, the producer price report showed inflation pressures were generally muted.

In the 12 months through January, wholesale prices were up 1.4 percent and data on Thursday is expected to show consumer inflation below the U.S. central bank's goal of 2 percent.

"Inflationary pressures remain well contained," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago. "The Federal Reserve would rather see inflation slightly higher in response to stronger economic conditions than benign because the recovery remains tepid."

In an effort to drive down borrowing costs and spur stronger growth, the Fed last year launched an open-ended bond buying program and said it would keep it up until it saw a substantial improvement in the outlook for the labor market.

But minutes of the U.S. central bank's January 29-30 meeting suggested that concerns over the costs of the program could compel it to slow or stop asset purchases before seeing an acceleration in job growth.

U.S. stocks fell on the minutes, while the dollar rose to session highs against the euro and the yen. U.S. Treasury debt prices trimmed gains.

Wholesale prices excluding volatile food and energy costs edged up 0.2 percent last month after gaining 0.1 percent in December. In the 12 months through January, those so-called core prices rose 1.8 percent, the smallest gain since February 2011.

A surge in the cost of fresh and dried vegetables pushed up food prices in January. Gasoline prices surprisingly recorded another substantial decline last month, even though prices at the pump have been rising almost every week this year.

The core PPI was lifted by a jump in the cost of drugs, while passenger car and light truck prices fell.

(Additional reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Andrea Ricci, Tim Ahmann and James Dalgleish)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/housing-starts-drop-multi-family-permits-four-high-133325377--business.html

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China Holiday Roils Factories

By DANA MATTIOLI and LAURIE BURKITT

Getty Images

Migrant workers arrive at the Beijing Railway Station at the end of January. Every year, millions of China's migrant workers leave their factories to visit their families at home, but fewer workers are returning to the factories when the break is over.

For toymaker The Bridge Direct, Easter now begins in August.

That is when the Boca Raton, Fla., producer of Inkoos stuffed monsters and Justin Bieber dolls has to file orders with its Chinese suppliers to ensure delivery by the spring holiday. It used to place orders closer to the key selling period, which allowed it to get a sharper sense of demand and better manage its cash. But now the greater concern is making sure it doesn't get left shorthanded because of China's New Year holiday.

Associated Press

Migrant workers seek jobs at a labor market in Qingdao, in east China's Shandong province. Many Chinese start looking for jobs after returning from their family reunion in their hometowns during a week long holiday of the Lunar New Year.

The company is one of many from the U.S. and other countries that are closely watching China as factory workers slowly return this week from the country's long Lunar New Year holiday. Every year, millions of China's 250 million migrant workers leave their factories and travel across the country to visit their families at home. The problem for toy and apparel makers in particular is that fewer and fewer workers are returning to the factories when the break is over.

For the world's manufacturers, post-holiday no-shows are an increasingly frustrating part of China's tightening labor market. The trend reflects rising expectations among China's workers, who are seeking out higher pay even as they show less inclination to work in factories. Many workers use the break to look for new jobs or start families.

Demographics are exacerbating the problem. China's one-child policy, implemented in 1980, has already started to erode the labor supply. In 2005, there were 120.7 million Chinese people between the ages of 15 and 19, according to estimates from the United Nations. By 2010, the number had fallen to 105.3 million. By 2015, it is expected to drop to 94.9 million.

Another factor is workers at toy and apparel factories are shifting to more lucrative industries like electronics. Underscoring the draw of that industry, Foxconn Technology Group, which makes products for Apple Inc. and others, Wednesday said it is freezing hiring of assembly-line workers in China due to high employee return rates after the holiday. A spokesman for the company, formally called Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., said more than 90% of workers returned to the company.

Retention has historically been a problem for many manufacturers in China, which rely on the country's vast migrant labor pool. In 2010, 34% of rural migrant workers left their factory jobs to move back home, according to the most recent data available from the Rural-Urban Migration in China and Indonesia project at Australian National University.

The exodus is putting a kink in a long supply relationship that has reduced costs for American consumers while helping China flourish. For years, American companies have worked closely with Chinese factory owners to improve production times and reduce error rates. Now, changes in China's labor patterns are setting back that progress and forcing business partners to rework arrangements they thought had been nailed down.

The New Year exodus typically forces factories to rush to hire new employees, which often creates quality-control issues. Following the holiday last year, fewer people than usual returned to work at the factory Jordache Ltd. uses to make outerwear and activewear. Jordache CEO Cliff Lelonek said his team caught loose seams, holes and other problems after the break, which meant goods had to be resewn or made over.

The developments have American apparel companies scouring other countries for factory sites and have raised concerns in China. Officials in the province of Guangdong, a manufacturing hub in southern China, warned factories early this month to begin recruiting and urged local companies to help employees make sure they can come back to factories, for example by arranging return tickets.

The Human Resources and Social Security Department of Guangdong estimated that 10 million workers, or 61% of the province's migrant-labor pool, would head home to see their families for the New Year Holiday, with a return rate of around 90%, leaving a labor shortfall of up to 1.2 million workers after the holiday. The human-resources department said the shortage could be compounded by higher demand for factory workers, which it said climbed 15.2% in 2012 from a year earlier.

Jay Foreman, CEO of The Bridge Direct, said 15% to 30% of the workers at the factory he uses don't show up after the holiday. "We get delayed shipments because not enough workers return to the factory," he said.

The company has changed tactics as a result. In 2006, The Bridge Direct had committed to deliver 100,000 Care Bears dolls to a major retailer ahead of Easter. Issues with workers returning to the factory where the Care Bears were made caused heavy delays. In the end, the company had to send the toys by air instead of by boat, spending $7 apiece to ship toys it sold for $8 apiece.

Now, Mr. Foreman places his Easter orders in August, which protects him from dealing with delays related to the New Year because the orders get filled and shipped before the holiday break, but it also has its downside. Vendors used to be able to place Easter orders as late as November, giving them a better understanding of what might sell well. Earlier ordering also means vendors have to pay for their orders well before they can sell them to retailers, which can create cash constraints.

"Now, we have to make our bets so far in advance that it really creates a risk," Mr. Foreman said.

On the other side of that equation are workers like Yan Changsheng, who planned to celebrate this Chinese New Year by quitting his factory job, which paid him 2,200 yuan a month, or $352, to make pipes.

The 29-year-old native of central Hubei province has been working in the southern city of Shenzhen for the past five years. He is one of the many workers using the long break to cut ties with employers in hopes of finding higher pay in factories that produce televisions, mobile phones and other gadgets.

Mr. Yan, said the No. 1 factor in his departure is his salary. The factory where he has been working, Hua Han Technology Co., doesn't pay for food and has no dormitory. "There's almost nothing left by the end of the month," Mr. Yan said.

Shen Hongliang, a manager at Hua Han, said it offers competitive salaries and sufficient working conditions. Mr. Shen also said most Hua Han employees have returned to work from the holiday.

Toy maker LaserPeg Ventures, of Sarasota, Fla., works with three different factories in China. Each year, about 25% of the workers there don't return after the New Year holiday, LaserPeg Chief Executive Jon Capriola said.

Last year, the company received its orders 45 days late because of the New Year holiday. The delay meant hundreds of thousands of dollars in missed revenue for the company, which had sales of $17 million last year, the CEO said.

This year, Mr. Capriola didn't risk it. He doubled his order ahead of the New Year so that his toys were on the water and headed to Florida before the holiday even started.

"If you don't do that," he said, "you won't see anything until late April or the middle of May, and you can miss part of a season."

?Olivia Geng contributed to this article.

Write to Dana Mattioli at dana.mattioli@wsj.com and Laurie Burkitt at laurie.burkitt@wsj.com

A version of this article appeared February 21, 2013, on page B1 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: China Holiday Roils Factories.

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323864304578315872427597756.html?mod=rss_about_china

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N.Y. man who died on way to late wife's memorial buried beside her

NEW YORK (Reuters) - An upstate New York man who died on the way to his late wife's wake was buried in a plot beside her on Wednesday, after a dual funeral service that capped a 66-year marriage, their daughter said on Thursday.

Norman Hendrickson, 94, a retired assistant postmaster in an Albany suburb, stopped breathing in the limousine on the way to a wake on Saturday for his late wife Gwen, who died earlier this month after suffering for years from Parkinson's Disease, daughter Norma said.

Funeral home staffers laid Hendrickson in a casket and placed him beside an urn containing his wife's remains in a viewing room, while daughter Merrilyne posted a light-hearted sign for arriving mourners:

"Surprise - it's a Double-Header - Norman and Gwen Hendrickson - February 16, 2013."

Norma Hendrickson said her parents were buried side by side in the same plot on Wednesday, along with some of the ashes of their late son, who died in 2008, and a watercolor painting her sister Merrilyne had made for them.

Funeral director Elizabeth Nichols-Ross, a family friend, said the couple laughed a lot and would have enjoyed the irony of the situation - especially Norman, who loved jokes.

"I don't blush easily, but he told ones that made you blush," she said.

She joked with the family that their father, who was known to be thrifty, would have loved to save the costs of a second funeral, so she didn't charge the family for two services.

Mourners took the surprise in stride, Nichols-Ross said.

"Oh, that doesn't surprise me," she quoted one mourner as saying. "He wanted to be with Gwen.'"

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Todd Eastham)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/n-y-man-died-way-wifes-memorial-buried-033229507.html

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Sports briefs

LOCAL

Armstrong?s Ward earns freshman honor

Armstrong Atlantic State outfielder Nathan Ward has been named the Peach Belt Conference?s baseball Freshman of the Week, according to league officials.

Ward went 5 for 6 in the first two games of the Augusta State series for an .833 batting average with two RBIs. He had his first career four-hit game as he went 4 for 4 in the opener, driving in one of the two Armstrong runs.

The Richmond Hill native went 1 for 2 in the next game, driving in another and scoring once. Ward has appeared in three games for the Pirates this season, collecting hits in all three and driving in at least one run each time.

Pirates offer bus tickets for games at USC Aiken

The Armstrong Atlantic State athletic department and the Armstrong Campus Union Board are offering fans a chance to ride with the Pirates to South Carolina Aiken for this weekend?s key Peach Belt Conference basketball doubleheader against the Pacers on Saturday.

There are 42 spots available on the bus and tickets are first-come, first-serve. Tickets cost $15 and includes admission to the game. The bus will leave Armstrong?s campus at 1:30 p.m. for the 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. men?s and women?s games at the USC Aiken Convocation Center.

To buy tickets or for more information, contact Armstrong Assistant AD for Business and Marketing Michael Smoose by phone at 912-344-3236 or by email atmichael.smoose@armstrong.edu.

Savannah Harbor hosts junior golf tournament

The IJGT Georgia Junior, a tournament featuring some of the top junior golfers ages 9-19 in the Southeast, is Saturday and Sunday at The Club at Savannah Harbor.

The tournament includes three divisions: Boys 15-19, Boys Under-14 and Girls Under-19.

The tournament is nationally ranked by Golfweek and Junior Golf Scoreboard.

The International Junior Golf Tour annually offers more than 60 two- and three-day events in the United States. IJGT members represent 45 U.S. states and 43 countries. Alumni include Webb Simpson, Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan, Paula Creamer and other PGA and LPGA Tour players.

For more information about the event at Savannah Harbor, call 888-936-5327.

NATIONAL

Richt adds DL Johnson as UGAs? 33rd signee

ATHENS ? Junior college defensive lineman Toby Johnson has become the 33rd member of Georgia?s signing class.

Georgia coach Mark Richt says Johnson, from Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College, signed with the Bulldogs on Tuesday. Johnson, from College Park, Ga., attended Banneker High School.

At 6-foot-4 and 305 pounds, Johnson was ranked among the top junior college prospects in the nation. He had five sacks and 17 tackles for losses in two seasons at Hutchinson.

Richt says he is looking forward to Johnson competing for playing time in the 2013 season.

Mayweather-Guerrero bout set for May

Floyd Mayweather Jr. will fight Robert Guerrero on May 4, and he?s changing television networks to do it.

The biggest star in boxing dropped a surprise Tuesday while announcing his long-rumored next bout: After several years on HBO, Mayweather is moving to Showtime with a lucrative multi-fight deal.

Mayweather?s move is a coup for Showtime, the CBS-owned network that has always trailed behind HBO in boxing prominence. Mayweather (43-0, 26 KOs) is the sport?s biggest moneymaker, and his new revenue-sharing deal with Showtime could include up to six fights over 30 months.

?They were extremely aggressive from the start, and they made it clear they want Floyd Mayweather to be the face of Showtime,? Mayweather adviser Leonard Ellerbe told The Associated Press. ?It?s the ultimate compliment to a fighter like Floyd. They were aggressive, and the deal that they put on the table was essentially a deal that you can?t refuse.?

Mayweather?s first bout is against Guerrero (31-1-1, 18 KOs), the WBC?s interim welterweight champion. The fight likely will be at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas.

Source: http://savannahnow.com/sports/2013-02-19/sports-briefs

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'Survivor' alliance devastated by early blindside

Monty Brinton/CBS

Sherri Biethman, Reynold Toepfer, Edward "Eddie" Fox and Hope Driskill of the Gota tribe.

By Drusilla Moorhouse, TODAY contributor

Is it too soon in our relationship to say "I love you" to "Survivor: Caramoan"? Its second installment was even more amazing than the premiere, with a thrilling Tribal Council, an epic blindside and all manner of crazy courtesy of Brandon Hantz, Shamar and Phillip. ?Also: Hello, Hidden Immunity Idol!

First congratulations are in order: Dawn made it all the way to episode two before bursting into tears! With Brandon yelling "explicatives" (see: "The Specialist's Guide to Malapropism"), we might turn on the waterworks too. ?

L'il Hantz, you see, is "feeling revengeful" after finding himself outside The Specialist's alliance of six. With madness in his eyes, he says he plans to go "Russell Hantz-style" on his tribe and feels his "uncle's blood coursing through" him, driving him to play "dir-ty to the core."

But overnight, Brandon manages to exorcise his uncle's evil spirit, with the 180 flip frightening Cochran.

"He has these moments of extreme rage and they're almost immediately followed by unbelievable pleasantness --? the sort of behavior befitting a murderer who is sociopathic," notes the candidate for SPF 1,500.

But Brandon's mood sours again after being rebuffed by Special Agent Pink Panther, who calls him a "narcist." (He may garble his diagnosis, but at least the Specialist pronounced his name correctly. "Coreen" wasn't so lucky.)

At Camp Gota, the fans are exasperated by Shamar's indolence. With ominous foreshadowing, Allie says if they go to Tribal Council, voting out the Marine sergeant is "non-negotiable."

Sherri, however, encourages Shamar to keep up the aggro, welcoming him into her alliance with Julia, Laura, Michael and Matt. "Shamar is my Phillip," she crows, "but I get along with my Phillip."

Too bad the rest of her Gota tribe couldn't get along at the challenge for both immunity and reward (a fishing kit).

Owing to their teamwork and smart division of labor, the Favorites took a huge lead in the three-part contest. The favorites retrieved all nine of their submerged rings and had them ashore while Sherri, Hope and Julia has only released two.

But Reynold nearly overcame their deficit in the final ring toss. While Malcolm landed two, The Specialist earned the win -- and more PSI in his already overinflated ego.

The Stealth R Us CEO celebrated their victory by awarding more nicknames -- the Enforcer for Malcolm and True Grit for Dawn -- and then performing a terrifying dance.

Gota weren't dancing or ?celebrating, unless you count Vote for Shamar Day. Reynold called out Sgt. Boo Boo the Fool ?for his "unacceptable" behavior, and the Foxy Four expected that his ouster would be unanimous.

Actually Matt was on the fence (it was not love at first sight between the pogonophile and the Iraq War vet), and makes a case for voting out Shamar so that the Cool Kids wouldn't feel betrayed.

Cut to Reynold, who also must be channeling Russell Hantz, because he finds the Hidden Immunity Idol after a brief search of likely hiding places. He's better at finding than concealing, however, and Laura spots the tell-tale bulge in his pocket -- just as the group is departing for their rendezvous with Jeff Probst.

Will she follow the lead of the "Survivor: Philippines" truth vomiters and spill all at Tribal? Our hearts were racing with anticipation while Reynold and Eddie vented about Shamar. ?

But if Matt and Mike really considered voting out the big man, they changed their minds when Laura revealed what she witnessed.

Obviously Probst is dousing his council members with sodium pentothal, because Reynold immediately fessed up to his "pocketful of Kryptonite" -- and announced that he'd play it immediately.

But he didn't play it at all, and he was crushed when Allie, his snuggle bunny, was voted out 6-4. Eddie's slack-jawed shock is priceless. Aw, the purty people has the sads! ?

Next time, on "Survivor": More Shamantics from the 300-pound sloth, and Brandon threatens to burn down the shelter and pee in the rice and beans. Hey, it could be worse.

What do you think of the drama so far this season? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

Related content:

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Source: http://theclicker.today.com/_news/2013/02/21/17037118-survivor-caramoan-alliance-devastated-by-early-blindside?lite

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Apple Says It Was Targeted By The Same Hackers That Hit Facebook, Will Release Protection Software Tuesday

Apple has revealed that it was attacked by the same group that went after Facebook in a recent attempt to break that network's security. The company says a "small number" of its Macs were affected, but there is "no evidence that any data left Apple," according to a report by Reuters. The company will be issuing software to prevent customers from being attacked in the same manner, Apple said.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/e-Xxt69hK_4/

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Retired New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici reveals secret son (Los Angeles Times)

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

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Pictures Don't Lie: Corn And Soybeans Are Conquering U.S. Grasslands

A corn field is shrouded in mist at sunrise in rural Springfield, Neb.

Nati Harnik/AP

For years, I've been hearing stories about the changing agricultural landscape of the northern plains. Grasslands are disappearing, farmers told me. They're being replaced by fields of corn and soybeans.

This week, those stories got a big dose of scientific, peer-reviewed validation. A study published in the Proceedings of the American Academy of Sciences shows actual pictures ? derived from satellite data ? of that changing landscape. The images show that farmers in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska converted 1.3 million acres of grassland into soybean and corn production between 2006 and 2011.

"This is kind of the worst-kept secret in the Northern Plains. We just put some numbers on it," says Christopher Wright, from South Dakota State University, who got funding from the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy to take a close look at this phenomenon. Earlier studies from the Environmental Working Group and the USDA's Economic Research Service have also looked at it, each using slightly different methods.

Hot spots of grassland conversion: This map shows the percentage of existing grasslands that were converted into corn or soybean fields between 2006 and 2011.

Christopher K. Wright/South Dakota State University

Still, Wright's images are striking, and these changes are having profound effects on the environment of this region. For instance, it's bad news for wildlife, because corn fields are much less inviting habitat for a wide range of wild creatures, from ground-nesting birds to insects, including bees. Corn and soybean fields are increasingly encroaching into the Prairie Pothole region of the Dakotas and Minnesota, the most important breeding habitat for waterfowl in North America.

In southern Iowa, Wright says, much of the land conversion is taking place on hillsides. The soil of those fields, without permanent grass to hold it in place, is now much more likely to wash into streams and ponds. And on the western edge of this region, farmers are taking a chance on corn and soybeans in places that sometimes don't get enough rainfall for these thirsty crops.

Why? There's one very simple reason: Corn and soybean prices are high, so farmers can earn a lot of money growing those crops. Meanwhile, funding has been declining for one important alternative ? the government's Conservation Reserve Program, which pays farmers to protect wildlife and water quality by keeping land in grass.

Another reason, however, is getting increasing attention: crop insurance. The government subsidizes private insurance policies that cover the risks of poor harvests, or even that prices will fall. Because farmers don't pay for the full cost of this insurance, critics of crop insurance say that it encourages risky behavior: planting crops in areas that don't drain well, where rainfall is unreliable, or on hillsides where soil erosion is a problem.

Critics say that the government should drastically reduce its subsidies for such insurance. Not only is it fiscally irresponsible, they say. It's encouraging farmers to destroy the grasslands of the northern plains, a priceless and increasingly scarce natural treasure.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/02/14/172021095/pictures-dont-lie-corn-and-soybeans-are-conquering-u-s-grasslands?ft=1&f=1007

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PlayStation Evolution video reminds us about video games | Joystiq

With Sony taking care to refresh our memories on all its PlayStation hardware over the last few days, it has finally brought it all home with what really matters: Games. The video above highlights a few examples that stand out from the usual gaming crowd, including Gran Turismo, Flower, Journey, Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, The Unfinished Swan and LittleBigPlanet.

Presumably, we'll quickly forget about all of these games ? perhaps even grow to hate them for their hilariously antiquated technologies ? after Sony's big PlayStation 2013 event tomorrow night, where the company is expected to unveil its next PlayStation.

Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/19/playstation-evolution-video-reminds-us-about-video-games/

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Video: Tearful Pistorius charged with premeditated murder

>>> of course, that bail hearing for oscar pistorius is going on in south africa right now. michelle kosinski has been inside the court all morning long. good morning to you.

>> reporter: good morning. as we speak, up in that courtroom, oscar pistorius is inconsolable. a statement by him is now being read to the court in which he denies the allegation of murder against him in the strongest terms. a judge just decided that his case, from here on out, at least for now, will be considered premeditated murder and that affects things like whether or not he will be let out on bond. that will also be decided very soon. i was actually seated directly in front of pistorius , about a foot away. i could hear him crying. when i would turn around, i could see his body shaking. in fact, throughout this hearing, every time lawyers would detail the alleged crime, he would break down, hiding his face in his hands. oscar pistorius faced the court and the global scrum of media he's used to, but never like this. his family held each other and prayed. immedia the court would not allow the media to take any pictures during the hearing. showing little if any emotion he could barely control during his first appearance. but it was there. he stood before the magistrate who asked him if he was well. his eyes filld with tears, he shrugged barely uttering, i guess. prosecutors laid out their case, accusing pistorius of shooting and killing an unarmed, innocent wom woman, his girlfriend, reeva steenkamp. she came to his house between 5:00 and 6:00 that evening planning to stay the night . her makeup bag in the bathroom, her overnight bag in the bedroom. he armed himself, attached his prosthesis, walked 20 feet to the bathroom where he believed reeva locked herself inside, and fired through his gun four times through the door. he broke through the door, carried her downstairs where he encountered a security guard and a friend, who he told him he thought was a burglar. she locked that door for a purpose, they said, and saying there's no possible explanation for his actions, that even if he did think it was a burglar, this would be a clear intention to kill the burglar while the burglar was harmless in the toilet and that would still be a premeditated murder of a defenseless burglar. nothing remotely indicative of premeditation his lawyers say. emotions flow from a different set of loved ones and supporters at reeva's funeral.

>> we are here today as a family. but there's only one thing miss i ing. reeva.

>> reporter: next, the judge will decide whether or not pistorius is released from jail. if he is not, he is expected to be transferred and held in a prison. back to you guys.

>> michelle kosinski in south africa for us. michelle, thank you.

Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/50854353/

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RAW INTERVIEW: Football legend Billy Cannon is recovering in a hospital, but on...

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Opera Shrinks In-House Developer Team As It Prepares Shift To WebKit

Opera has been making a lot of headlines of late -- with last week's announcement of its big strategic shift to WebKit. Followed hard on the heels by the news of its $155m purchase of Skyfire. But the Norwegian software maker's decision to abandon its own web-rendering engine in favour of WebKit, has had another, less visible impact: it has reportedly dismantled a core in-house developer team.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/7DR88Ic4nvY/

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HTC's Great White Hype Is Here

Carved out of a solid block of aluminum, HTC's great white hype is the oft leaked One aka M7. It's what the company is touting as its new flagship device today in New York. And in typical HTC style, the One has one or two new software features to help differentiate itself from the rest. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/dgONd8dnUuk/htcs-great-white-hype-is-here

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LG Display invests $655 million to expand OLED HDTV mass production next year

Sure, LG's current 55-inch OLED HDTV is pretty pricey with a US MSRP of $12K, but that may start to change next year when panel supplier LG Display kicks its new 8G production line into full gear. LG Electronics holds a 38 percent stake in the company and although it supplies screens to many others as well, the next generation of 55EM9700s will likely be a large segment of the displays produced. Although LCD manufacturers ramped up 8G facilities capable of producing six 55-inch displays from one piece of glass in the late 2000s, oversupply caused prices to drop and manufacturing to slow down, including at LG Display.

Now, new display technology is ramping up investment again, which will see this new line installed at its P9 plant in Paju, South Korea at a cost of 706 billion won ($655 million). Based on LG's WRGB OLED evaporation process, it should be capable of working with as many as 26,000 input sheets per month once it's up to full speed in the first half of 2014. Chief competitor Samsung showed off "production" OLED HDTVs last year and plenty of demo units at CES with a mid-year release planned, we'll see if it manages to keep up before / if the tech goes mainstream.

Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD, LG

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/18/lg-display-invests-655-million-in-oled-hdtv/

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Residents Report Bright Streak Over Bay Area Friday Evening

The Chabot Space and Science Center has received numerous reports of a bright object flying through the sky in over northern California Friday night, as noted by The Washington Post, NBC, and others. According to NBC's version of the story "Chabot astronomers in Oakland said the meteor was not related to the asteroid passing near Earth. Gerald McKeegan, an astronomer at Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland, said he did not see it, but based on accounts he thinks it was a 'sporadic meteor.' Sporadic meteors bring as much as 15,000 tons of space debris to Earth each year, according to McKeegan. He said it was likely smaller than another meteor that landed in the Bay Area in October, which caused a loud sonic boom as it fell." The eyewitness accounts make it sound pretty spectacular, though; too bad we don't have quite as many dashcams going as there are in Russia.

Source: http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotScience/~3/9LuEyMCt76M/story01.htm

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Oil under $96 a barrel on US industrial data

NEW YORK (AP) ? Oil prices fell below $96 a barrel Friday after disappointing U.S. industrial production data fed concerns about the nation's economic recovery.

In New York benchmark crude for March fell $1.45 to finish at $95.86 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price many varieties of foreign oil, fell 34 cents to end at $117.66 per barrel in London.

The Federal Reserve said Friday that U.S. factory production slowed in January, mostly because of a big drop in output at auto factories. Most analysts think the slowdown is temporary, but it was enough to raise concern about the still-sluggish economic recovery.

"Global growth will still be fairly weak this year, which will prevent industry from firing on all cylinders. But there's no denying that industrial conditions have recently improved," said Paul Dales, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

Heading into the Presidents Day weekend, drivers are still seeing gas pump prices climbing. The national average is $3.64 a gallon, up a cent and a half from Thursday, with the highest prices in California, the Northeast and the Midwest.

Retail gasoline prices have been rising steadily as oil prices have lingered in the upper 90's and many refineries have slowed operations for seasonal maintenance. That is crimping supplies and pushing up prices.

"The annual switchover from winter to summer grade product by the refineries at this time of the year always represents a balancing act with the availability of cheaper-to-produce winter grade supply often times being reduced too much in order to make room for summer grade product," said independent analyst Jim Ritterbusch.

In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:

? Heating oil fell 1 cent to finish at $3.21 a gallon.

? Wholesale gasoline rose 2 cents to end at $3.13 a gallon.

? Natural gas fell 1 cent to finish at $3.15 per 1,000 cubic feet.

___

Pamela Sampson in Bangkok, Pablo Gorondi in Budapest ND Martin Crutsinger in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/oil-under-96-barrel-us-industrial-data-190753002--finance.html

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Investors watching for fallout from Carnival cruise debacle

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shareholders are anxious to see whether the mess on board a disabled Carnival cruise ship will hurt the broader industry.

The 4,200 passengers on the Triumph were able to get off of the ship on Friday after it docked in Mobile, Ala. The ship lost power in an engine-room fire on Sunday.

Carnival Corp. shares held onto their pre-fire values above $39 through Tuesday. By Wednesday, news reports of poor conditions on the ship began to get more attention, and its shares got as low as $37. They were at $37.23 in afternoon trading on Friday.

The mess on board the ship was the worst publicity the cruise industry has had since the Costa Concordia ? operated by a company owned by Carnival ? capsized off the coast of Italy in January 2012, killing 32 people. A third Carnival ship, the Splendor, lost power in 2010 and was towed back to port under similar conditions to those on the Triumph.

Goldman Sachs on Thursday reduced its 2013 earnings estimate for Carnival to $2.24 per share, from $2.32, reflecting guidance from Carnival management about the impact of the Triumph's problems. The reduction just accounted for the lost income of taking the Triumph's 2,750 berths out of action, and for repairing the ship. Goldman Sachs analyst Steven Kent wrote that Carnival yield growth could also be hurt by the bad publicity.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. stock also fell Wednesday. After trading as high as $36.64 on Tuesday it was at $35.46 on Friday, down by 20 cents for the day. Norwegian Cruise Line shares have been rising this week after it reported quarterly results on Monday. They were up 53 cents to $29.78 on Friday.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/investors-watch-fallout-cruise-mess-184053313.html

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Chavez's cancer fight: a glance at cancer struggle

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has undergone surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation treatment since June 2011 for an undisclosed type of pelvic cancer. Key moments in his medical treatment have included:

- June 30, 2011: Chavez says on television from Cuba that he had a cancerous tumor removed from his pelvic region. He later says the tumor extracted was the size of a baseball.

- July 4, 2011: Chavez returns to Venezuela, but later travels to Cuba periodically for chemotherapy and medical tests.

- Sept. 23, 2011: Chavez says he completed chemotherapy and calls the treatment successful. Says later that tests show no reappearance of cancer cells.

- Feb. 21, 2012: Chavez says his doctors found a new lesion in the same place where the tumor was previously removed, and announces plans to return to Cuba for surgery.

- Feb. 26, 2012: Chavez undergoes operation that removes the tumor from the same location in his pelvic region. Says later that follow-up tests showed the tumor was "recurrence of the initially diagnosed cancer."

- March 24, 2012: Chavez travels to Cuba to begin radiation therapy.

- April 14, 2012: Chavez travels to Cuba for second round of radiation treatment.

- April 26, 2012: Chavez returns to Venezuela following cancer treatment in Cuba, saying his latest round of therapy was successful.

- July 9, 2012: Chavez says at a news conference that tests show he is "totally free" of cancer.

- Oct. 7, 2012: Chavez wins re-election to another six-year term, beating challenger Henrique Capriles.

- Nov. 27, 2012: Chavez announces he will travel to Cuba for more medical treatment. He says doctors have recommended he "begin special treatment consisting of various sessions of hyperbaric oxygenation."

- Dec. 9, 2012: Chavez announces that cancerous tumor reappeared and that he must travel to Cuba for another operation. He says the surgery could be complicated and that if he is unable to stay on as president, Vice President Nicolas Maduro should run in an election to take his place.

- Dec. 10, 2012: Chavez travels to Cuba and undergoes surgery the next day.

- Jan. 10, 1013: Chavez misses his scheduled swearing-in ceremony, which was indefinitely postponed by lawmakers. Supporters stage symbolic inauguration in the streets of Caracas, swearing themselves in in their leader's place.

- Jan. 20, 2013: Maduro says he is optimistic that Chavez will return to Venezuela "sooner rather than later."

- Jan. 22, 2013: Information Minister Ernesto Villegas says no date has been established for Chavez's return.

- Feb. 13, 2013: Maduro says Chavez is undergoing "extremely complex and tough" treatments.

- Feb. 15, 2013: Government shows first photos of Chavez in more than two months, says he is breathing through a tracheal tube.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/15/3236424/chavezs-cancer-fight-a-glance.html

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Analysis: India - why is women's labour force participation dropping?

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Google Maps with Street View now live on Nintendo's Wii U eShop

This morning's Nintendo Direct was all about the games, specifically those starring the likes of Luigi. But inbetween news of DLC updates, Nintendo's Bill Tritten made casual mention of Google Maps with Street View availability for North American Wii U owners. To recap, the service -- which is free-to-download right now on the eShop -- brings the GMaps you know and love to the widescreen and the GamePad, as well. What's still unknown, however, is whether or not Nintendo intends to eventually charge users for access to the app's Panorama View-like feature, much like the company plans to do in Japan later this summer.

Filed under: Gaming, Google, Nintendo

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Source: Nintendo Direct

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/14/google-maps-with-street-view-now-live-nintendos-wii-u-eshop/

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Iran says it is converting uranium, easing bomb fears

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran acknowledged on Tuesday that it was converting some of its higher-grade enriched uranium into reactor fuel, a move that could help to prevent a dispute with the West over its nuclear program hitting a crisis in mid-2013.

Conversion is one way for Iran to slow the growth in its stockpile of material that could be used to make a bomb. That stockpile is currently projected to reach a level intolerable to Israel in mid-year, just as Iran's room for negotiation is being limited by a presidential election in June.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast was asked at a weekly news conference about a Reuters report that Iran has converted small amounts of its 20-percent enriched uranium into reactor fuel.

"This work is being done and all its reports have been sent to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in a complete manner," he was quoted as saying by the state news agency IRNA.

It was Iran's first acknowledgment that it had apparently resumed converting into fuel small amounts of uranium enriched to a concentration of 20 percent fissile material.

Iran's production of that higher-grade uranium worries the major powers because it is only a short technical step away from the 90-percent purity needed for a weapon.

On-off negotiations with the major powers and four rounds of U.N. Security Council sanctions have failed to persuade Iran to stop its enrichment activities, and the IAEA has been refused full access to investigate other suspect elements of the nuclear program.

Iran denies that it is seeking a weapon and says its nuclear program serves only peaceful purposes such as electricity and the production of medical isotopes.

CRITICAL MASS

But Israel, widely believed to be the only nuclear-armed country in the Middle East, has indicated that Iran's stockpile will reach a level in June at which it considers it must attack to stop Iran acquiring enough fissile material for a bomb. With a presidential election taking place that month, Tehran's room to make concessions to foreign powers is limited.

In Washington, U.S. President Barack Obama, who is scheduled to visit the Middle East next month, exhorted Iran to reach a diplomatic agreement and stressed his determination to prevent it from obtaining an atomic bomb.

"The leaders of Iran must recognize that now is the time for a diplomatic solution, because a coalition stands united in demanding that they meet their obligations, and we will do what is necessary to prevent them from getting a nuclear weapon," Obama said in his annual State of the Union speech to Congress.

Iran averted a potential crisis last year by converting some 100 kg of its 20-percent enriched uranium into fuel, suggesting to some that it was carefully keeping below the threshold set by Israel, while still advancing its nuclear technology.

It is not believed to have enriched uranium beyond 20 percent. A fuller picture is unlikely until a new IAEA report on Iran's nuclear activity, due by late February.

Separately, officials from the IAEA are due to hold talks in Tehran on Wednesday in the hope of restarting their long-stalled inquiry into Iran's nuclear program.

The U.N. agency, whose mission is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, has been trying for a year to negotiate a so-called structured approach with Iran that would give its inspectors access to sites, officials and documents.

The IAEA especially wants access to the Parchin military complex southeast of Tehran where it believes explosives tests relevant for nuclear weapons development may have taken place and been subsequently concealed, allegations that Iran denies.

"READY FOR DEAL"

Mehmanparast said Iran was ready to come to a "comprehensive agreement" with the IAEA if Tehran's nuclear rights were recognized. Part of this agreement could include a visit to Parchin, he said.

But Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani, head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, on Tuesday criticised the IAEA's handling of documents related to Iran, signaling the continued mistrust between the agency and Tehran.

"Unfortunately their system is not sufficiently secure," Abbasi-Davani said, according to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA). "They need to be more careful in their interactions with Iran."

Last year Abbasi-Davani accused the U.N. agency of a "cynical approach" and mismanagement, and said "terrorists and saboteurs might have intruded" into the agency.

Iran and six world powers, known as the P5+1, are due to hold a new round of talks on the nuclear program in Kazakhstan on February 26.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday that the powers were ready to respond if Iran came to the talks prepared to discuss "real substance".

Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, visiting Moscow, said Iran was "counting on there being positive and constructive steps made to resolve this problem at the upcoming meeting".

In Tehran, Salehi's spokesman Mehmanparast responded to news that North Korea had conducted its third nuclear test in defiance of existing United Nations resolutions by saying: "We need to come to a point where no country will have any nuclear weapons."

(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed in Washington; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iran-says-converting-uranium-easing-bomb-fears-031809409.html

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Autodesk 123D Creatures lets you create monsters on your iPad

Love Spore's robust creature creator tool? Got an iPad? Autodesk has something for you. The company's latest iPad app, Creatures, is a streamlined monster maker -- allowing users to create the monstrosity of their dreams with relative ease. Abominations start as a simple stick figure, molded, thickened and textured with a suite of tools and lighting effects borrowed from Autodesk 123D Sculpt. Completed works can be exported for a more professional polishing Maya and other Autodesk programs, or sent to Sculpteo for 3D printing. The iPad exclusive app will eventually sell for $7.99, but will be available for $2 during its initial launch period. Skip on over to the rightmost source link to check out the app on iTunes, or read on for Autodesk's official press release.

Filed under: Tablets, Software

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Source: iTunes

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Canada to impose fines on Sikorsky for helicopter delay

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada will impose significant additional financial penalties on United Technologies Corp's Sikorsky unit for delays in delivering search and rescue helicopters, Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose said on Monday.

Canada signed a C$5 billion ($5 billion) deal with Sikorsky in 2004 for 28 Cylcone helicopters, the first of which was supposed to be delivered by early 2009.

But the project has been plagued with delays, some of which Sikorsky blamed on major modifications requested by Canada. In December 2008, the deal was renegotiated to push back delivery of the first helicopter to June 2012, but Canada is still waiting.

"Our government expects Sikorsky's obligations under this contact to be met and to date they have not been met. In fact they have missed every deadline and every timeline," Ambrose told the House of Commons.

"We have already applied millions of dollars in liquidated damages and we are going to be applying significant additional charges that will begin to accrue against this company for failure to deliver. We continue to aggressively insist that Sikorsky meet its obligations."

The affair is the latest in a string of military procurement problems for Canada's Conservative government. Last December, Ottawa scrapped a sole-source plan to buy F-35 jets from Lockheed Martin Corp after cost estimates ballooned.

The Sikorsky contract allows Canada to impose escalating penalties the longer the company takes to deliver the first aircraft. The charge could hit C$80.6 million if that helicopter is not formally handed over by June 2013.

Sikorsky has already provided four helicopters for training purposes, but the company said they remain on the firm's books because Ottawa has yet to officially sign for them.

"The remaining 24 Cyclones are in production, assembly or flight testing. Sikorsky and the government of Canada are in discussions to try to reach an agreement that will provide the remaining aircraft to the Canadian Forces as quickly as possible," Sikorsky spokesman Paul Jackson said by e-mail.

The helicopters will replace Canada's creaking fleet of Sea Kings, which first came into service some 50 years ago. In 2012, Defence Minister Peter MacKay blamed what he called "the worst procurement in the history of Canada" on the previous Liberal government.

The story started in 1993, when the then Progressive Conservative government signed a deal with Finmeccanica SpA's AgustaWestland unit for helicopters to replace the Sea Kings.

That government was defeated shortly afterwards and replaced by the Liberals, who scrapped the deal on the grounds it was too costly. It took the Liberals another decade to sign the initial contract with Sikorsky.

In 2010 Canada's auditor-general rapped the military for bungling the initial contract, saying officials wanted so many changes they had in effect "entered into an agreement with Sikorsky to develop a new helicopter."

(Additional reporting by Randall Palmer in Ottawa and Jim Wolf in Washington; Editing by Peter Galloway, Janet Guttsman and Andre Grenon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/canada-impose-fines-against-sikorsky-over-helicopter-delays-195114031--finance.html

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G4S takes 70 million pound loss to settle 2012 Olympics dispute

LONDON (Reuters) - G4S settled a months-long dispute with the organisers of the London Olympics, having failed to supply enough security guards for the 2012 Games, and said on Tuesday it will take a 70 million pound loss on the contract.

The world's No. 1 security firm said just weeks before the Games began that it could not provide all 10,400 guards needed for the event, forcing the government to call on military and police personnel to cover the shortfall.

G4S, which had to explain its failure to parliament and saw two directors resign after an internal report into the affair, had estimated the loss on the contract, worth about 240 million pounds, to be about 50 million pounds.

The firm, which has incurred penalties and paid for the emergency staff that were drafted in, said the difference was largely due to it waiving a larger chunk of its management fee.

"The UK Government is an important customer for the group and we felt that it was in all of our interests to bring this matter to a close in an equitable and professional manner without the need for lengthy legal proceedings," G4S Chief Executive Nick Buckles said on Tuesday, after months of wrangling with Games organisers LOCOG.

The group said it had also incurred additional costs of 18 million pounds relating to charitable donations, external fees, Games sponsorship and marketing. G4S had already provided for a 50 million pound charge at the half year and said all the costs would be taken in the 2012 accounts as an exceptional charge.

Shares in the FTSE 100-listed firm, which operates in more than 125 countries, rose 0.6 percent to 282 pence by 10:26 a.m.

"In some respects this announcement is positive in that it provides resolution to G4S's discussions with LOCOG and the uncertainty that surrounded the Olympics contract, and whilst the total cost to G4S is worse than they envisaged I think the market and we had assumed a number of around this order," Espirito Santo analyst David Brockton said.

G4S's shares have gained 10 percent over the last three months as the firm has shown signs of recovering from the blow to its reputation. It has won electronic tagging work at home and abroad and been appointed on a contact centre services framework for Britain's Department for Work and Pensions.

Earlier this month its new UK CEO Richard Morris told Reuters it was regaining customers' confidence and had been boosted by assurances across government - including its core Ministry of Justice client - that if it has the best bid, it would win future contracts.

The group, which is targeting British police support work and an electronic tagging contract in England and Wales this year, derives about 10 percent of its expected 8 billion pound 2011/12 turnover from the UK government.

It is aiming to grow its emerging markets revenue from 30 to 50 percent by 2019.

(Editing by Louise Ireland)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/g4s-takes-70-million-pounds-loss-london-olympics-075505067--sector.html

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Biological connections in microelectronics

Feb. 12, 2013 ? Miniaturization of electronic components is reaching a physical limit. While the solution of three dimensional assembly has the advantage of reducing bulk, the manufacture of electrical connections in these new products remains a technological challenge. Biologists and physicists from the CEA, CNRS, Universit? Joseph Fourier and Inra in Grenoble have developed a system of self-assembled connections using actin filaments for 3D microelectronic structures. Once the actin filaments become conductors, they join the various components of a system together.

The results are published in the February 10, 2013 issue of Nature Materials.

Computers and smartphone performance improves each year due to the increased density of the microelectronic components they contain. This densification is the result of increasingly advanced miniaturization. It is in the process of reaching a technical limit due to the size of certain components that is close to that of some atoms. The microelectronics industry is thus confronting a physical barrier for increasing the integration density of components that only a technological breakthrough can overcome.

One solution may be the integration of microelectronics in three dimensions. Current microelectronic circuits are flat. Stacking components on top of one another is a solution for further densification, improving performance and reducing electric consumption. This poses a new challenge: how to connect the components together once they are stacked. Although manufacture and stacking are based on mature technologies, creating vertical connections to link them together and running a current remains complex. While current 3D microelectronic technologies for these high density connections are effective, alternative methods are worth evaluating.

Biologists and physicists from the CEA, CNRS, UJF and Inra in Grenoble had the idea of using the extraordinary self-assembly properties of certain biological components so these connections can construct themselves. In human cells, many regular, complex structures are continually assembling and disassembling. This is the case of the filament networks that constitute the cell skeleton (cytoskeleton). Such filaments are primarily composed of actin. They interact to form braids, bundles, layers and columns whose architecture and mechanical properties regulate and control cell shape. The formation of these superstructures follows mechanical and geometrical laws that are studied and understood by a team from the Laboratory of Vegetable Cellular Physiology[1] (CEA/CNRS/UJF/INRA).

These researchers have developed a technique for controlling self-assembly of actin filaments in 3D between two glass plates. Using technologies of the Microelectronics Technologies Laboratory (CNRS/UJF/LTM) and CEA-Leti, the plates were placed 30 microns apart and microstructured with a laser beam. The researchers then injected between the two surfaces a solution containing actin monomers that polymerized due to the microstructure geometry. Actin columns in controlled shapes and sizes thus self-assembled from the two surfaces and joined to establish connections. In the same fashion, the researchers succeeded in making columns grow from a surface and entering in deep cylinders based on the shape of the other, like a male/female connection. Using the expertise of CEA-Leti researchers, these connections were made metallic with gold nanoparticles to run an electric current between the two surfaces.

These results demonstrate that the self-assembly process of actin filaments may have unanticipated industrial applications. They illustrate how fundamental research into basic cell processes may be an extremely rich source of inspiration for engineering processes, even in very far removed fields.

[1] The Laboratoire de Physiologie Cellulaire V?g?tale is part of the Institut de Recherches en Technologies et Sciences pour le Vivant (Life Science and Technology Research Institute).

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique (CEA), via AlphaGalileo.

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Journal Reference:

1. R?mi Galland, Patrick Leduc, Christophe Gu?rin, David Peyrade, Laurent Blanchoin, Manuel Th?ry. Fabrication of three-dimensional electrical connections by means of directed actin self-organization. Nature Materials, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/nmat3569

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/JOO6Rsg_uO8/130212100432.htm

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