Nintendo has a lot to announce this morning, including an app for its Miiverse platform, as well as some fan-favorite game titles that will be available on the Wii U platform in the coming months. By the time E3 rolls around, in mid-June, the Wii U will support two new Zelda games, as well as new Super Mario and Mario Kart titles. Nintendo announced the Wii U back in June, offering a new level of gameplay with multiple screens (one on the TV and one on the controller) and a brand new GamePad controller complete with NFC and a gyrometer/accelerometer.
FILE - This Jan. 7, 2013 file photo shows, President Barack Obama and his choice for Defense Secretary, former Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel, left, and his choice for new CIA Director, current Deputy National Security Adviser for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, John Brennan in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Minutes after his inauguration speech Monday, President Barack Obama signed documents officially submitting top administration nominations to the Senate. Obama affirmed the nominations of John Brennan to be director of the CIA, former Sen. Chuck Hagel for secretary of defense, Sen. John Kerry to be secretary of state and Jack Lew for Treasury secretary. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
FILE - This Jan. 7, 2013 file photo shows, President Barack Obama and his choice for Defense Secretary, former Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel, left, and his choice for new CIA Director, current Deputy National Security Adviser for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, John Brennan in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Minutes after his inauguration speech Monday, President Barack Obama signed documents officially submitting top administration nominations to the Senate. Obama affirmed the nominations of John Brennan to be director of the CIA, former Sen. Chuck Hagel for secretary of defense, Sen. John Kerry to be secretary of state and Jack Lew for Treasury secretary. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 20, 2012 file photo, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass. on Capitol Hill in Washington. Minutes after his inauguration speech Monday, President Barack Obama signed documents officially submitting top administration nominations to the Senate. Obama affirmed the nominations of John Brennan to be director of the CIA, former Sen. Chuck Hagel for secretary of defense, Sen. John Kerry to be secretary of state and Jack Lew for Treasury secretary. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Current White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew, who President Barack Obama has nominated to be the new treasury secretary, arrives on the West Front of the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Jan. 21, 2013, for President Barack Obama's ceremonial swearing-in ceremony during the 57th Presidential Inauguration. (AP Photo/Win McNamee, Pool
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Minutes after his inauguration speech Monday, President Barack Obama signed documents officially submitting top administration nominations to the Senate.
Obama affirmed the nominations of John Brennan to be CIA director, former Sen. Chuck Hagel for defense secretary, Sen. John Kerry to be secretary of state and Jack Lew for treasury secretary.
Obama also signed a proclamation to commemorate the inauguration. The proclamation is entitled "National Day of Hope and Resolve, 2013."
"I'm proclaiming peace on Earth and goodwill towards men," Obama quipped as he signed the document.
Obama signed the documents at a traditional inauguration day ceremony in the Capitol's President's Room, a small ornate room near the Senate chamber where presidents historically conducted business. Vice President Joe Biden and Democratic and Republican congressional leaders attended the short, light-hearted ceremony.
President Ronald Reagan established the tradition of visiting the room after taking the oath of office to sign documents and pose for photographs.
As he signed the nomination papers, Obama said, "I know they will be dealt with with great dispatch," eliciting laughter from the Republican leaders.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for Kerry on Thursday. Kerry remains the panel's chairman until his Senate confirmation, but Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., the incoming chairman, will preside at the hearing.
The Senate Armed Services Committee has scheduled a confirmation hearing for Hagel on Jan. 31. Brennan's hearing in the Senate Intelligence committee is Feb. 7.
The Senate Finance Committee has yet to schedule a hearing for Lew.
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Associated Press writers Donna Cassata and Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report.
Most primates are active either in the day or night, but camera traps are revealing that some monkey and chimp day dwellers also go out at night for things such as pool soaks and snacks.
The latest to be snapped unaware is the Guizhou snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus brelichi. Once thought to be exclusively diurnal, this Asian monkey's nightlife is documented in the latest issue of the journal Primates.
"Our camera trap photos showed Guizhou snub-nosed monkeys moving in trees at night," lead author Chia Tan told Discovery News. "We believe the monkeys were on their way to search for food."
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Tan, who works at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, and her colleagues Yeqin Yang and Kefeng Niu spied the monkeys after setting out the camera traps. Guizhou snub-nosed monkeys are endangered, with just a single global population of 700-800 individuals restricted to Fanjingshan in southwest China.
The monkeys were active during both day and night all year round, but they went out more at night during the early spring and autumn.
"We think the monkeys are extending their activity beyond daylight hours to increase feeding, and the highly sought-after food items are young leaves in spring and fruit and seeds in autumn," Tan explained.
She added, "It makes sense that the monkeys take advantage of these super nutritious foods to maximize their reproduction and survival. Spring and autumn are critical times for the monkeys; they are the birthing and mating seasons, respectively."
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Since their forest home is often foggy, the researchers suspect that the monkeys may have evolved the ability to see under low light conditions. Poor eyesight along with night predators, such as the clouded leopard, would make for a potentially disastrous combination, but the monkeys seem to have mostly overcome it.
Other primates that are active during the day have been found to have nightlives too. The well-named owl monkey, for example, is known for its nocturnal ways.
Humans who have swum on a hot summer's night will also appreciate what was discovered about our closest living primate relatives.
"A recent camera trap study conducted in Fongoli, Senegal, revealed nocturnal behavior -- pool soaking -- in savanna chimpanzees," Tan said.
Eduardo Fernandez-Duque, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania, told Discovery News that Tan's team used a "novel approach to the study of primate activity."
He added, "The article combines the use of some new technology with traditional approaches to learn that the snub-nosed monkeys, traditionally considered diurnal, may show some nocturnal activity under certain circumstances. Their proposition that this flexibility in activity patterns may be associated to the temperate environment is reasonable."
Humans, of course, fall into the day and/or night-living primate category too. This is often a survival tactic, as people with late shift jobs could attest. It's possible that our distant relatives were 24-7 individuals as well.
"It is difficult to infer a full range of behavior from fossilized species, but I would not be surprised if some of our earliest human ancestors were regular night owls," Tan said. "They would, under certain environmental conditions, be up at night. Party anyone?"
This screen grab from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif. Flickr page shows an altered photo of Pelosi posing with female House members on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013. Pelosi is defending an altered picture of Democratic congresswomen that was posted on her Flickr social media site. The group photo shows four House members, in the back row, who arrived too late to pose on the Capitol steps. A computer program was used to add them to the image later posted on Flickr. (AP Photo)
This screen grab from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif. Flickr page shows an altered photo of Pelosi posing with female House members on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013. Pelosi is defending an altered picture of Democratic congresswomen that was posted on her Flickr social media site. The group photo shows four House members, in the back row, who arrived too late to pose on the Capitol steps. A computer program was used to add them to the image later posted on Flickr. (AP Photo)
This combo of two photos shows, at left, an Associated Press photo taken Jan. 3, 2013 of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi posing with female House members on Capitol Hill in Washington, and at right, a screen grab from Pelosi's Flickr page of an altered photo of Pelosi with female House members on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013. Pelosi is defending the altered picture that was posted on her Flickr social media site. The group photo shows four House members, in the back row, who arrived too late to pose on the Capitol steps. A computer program was used to add them to the image later posted on Flickr. (AP Photo)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? For House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, the swearing-in of a record number of Democratic women was a historic moment worth a photograph. And, she decided, history needed a little digital help.
After only 57 of the 61 congresswomen showed up in time for the photo scheduled Thursday on the Capitol's steps, Pelosi's aides digitally inserted images of the four absent members into the photograph. She then had the altered image posted on her Flickr photo-sharing site.
Journalists and historians frown on such altered views of history. On Friday, Pelosi defended the photo.
"It was an accurate historical record of who the Democratic women of Congress are," Pelosi said at a news conference. "It also is an accurate record that it was freezing cold and our members had been waiting a long time for everyone to arrive and ... had to get back into the building to greet constituents, family members, to get ready to go to the floor. It wasn't like they had the rest of the day to stand there."
Pelosi said the photo reflected the nation's diversity because it included women from every community and religious faith.
"So we were pretty excited about it," she said. "We got a lot of response back from the country, and one I loved was when they said, 'Can the women in Congress hear the people cheering across the country?'"
In this Wednesday, Dec. 12 2012 photo a job seeker leaves his contact information with a potential employer during a job fair in New York. More Americans sought unemployment benefits in the last week of 2012, though the winter holidays likely distorted the data for the second straight week. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
In this Wednesday, Dec. 12 2012 photo a job seeker leaves his contact information with a potential employer during a job fair in New York. More Americans sought unemployment benefits in the last week of 2012, though the winter holidays likely distorted the data for the second straight week. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The U.S. job market showed resilience in three reports Thursday, suggesting it may able to withstand a federal budget battle that threatens more economic uncertainty in coming months.
A survey showed private hiring increased last month, while layoffs declined and applications for unemployment benefits stayed near a four-year low. The data led some economists to raise their forecasts for December job growth one day before the government releases its closely watched employment report.
"The job market held firm in December despite the intensifying fiscal cliff negotiations," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. "Businesses even became somewhat more aggressive in their hiring at year end."
The most encouraging sign came from payroll provider ADP. Its monthly employment survey showed businesses added 215,000 jobs last month, the most in 10 months and much higher than November's total of 148,000.
Economists tend to approach the ADP survey with some skepticism because it has diverged sharply at times from the government's job figures. The Labor Department releases its employment report Friday.
But some economists were also hopeful after seeing businesses were less inclined to cut jobs last month.
Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said that the number of announced job cuts fell 43 percent in December from November, and overall planned layoffs in 2012 fell to the lowest level since 1997.
The decline in layoffs coincided with a drop last month in the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits. The four-week average was little changed at 360,000 last week. That's only slightly above the previous week's 359,750, which was the lowest since March 2008.
Most economists expect the Labor Department report will show employers added about 150,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate stayed at 7.7 percent.
Some economists saw potential for stronger gains after seeing Thursday's data.
Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank, raised his forecast for job growth in December to 190,000 jobs, up from 150,000.
Credit Suisse increased its forecast to 185,000, up from 165,000.
"Given that we have restraints, the labor market data do appear to be improving," said Dana Saporta, an economist at Credit Suisse.
Still, many economists remained cautious about where the job market is headed. While Congress and the White House reached a deal this week that removed the threat of tax increases to most Americans, they postponed the more difficult decisions on cutting spending. And the government must also increase its $16.4 trillion borrowing limit by late February or risk defaulting on its debt.
Congressional Republicans are pressing for deep spending cuts in return for any increase in the borrowing limit. President Barack Obama has repeatedly said wants the issues kept separate.
The economy has added about 150,000 jobs a month, on average, over the past two years. That's too few to rapidly lower the unemployment rate.
Hiring probably won't rise above the current 150,000 per month trend until after the borrowing limit is resolved, economists say.
A similar fight over raising the borrowing limit in 2011 was only settled at the last hour and nearly brought the nation to the brink of default.
"That's not an environment where you're likely to be taking risks," such as boosting hiring, said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.
Even with modest gains in hiring, the unemployment rate remains high. It fell to 7.7 percent in November from 7.9 percent in October. But that was mostly because many of the unemployed stopped looking for jobs. The government counts people as unemployed only if they are actively searching for work.
The number of people receiving jobless benefits fell to 5.4 million in the week ended Dec. 15, the latest data available. That's down about 70,000 from the previous week. The figure includes about 2.1 million people receiving emergency benefits paid for by the federal government. The White House and Congress agreed earlier this week to extend that program for another year.
There are signs the economy is improving. The once-battered housing market is recovering, which should lead to more construction jobs this year. Companies ordered more long-lasting manufactured goods in November, a sign they are investing more in equipment and software. And Americans spent more in November. Consumer spending drives nearly 70 percent of economic growth.
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AP Economics Writer Martin Crutsinger contributed to this report. Follow Chris Rugaber at http://Twitter.com/ChrisRugaber
Say the words ?alternative medicine,? and you?re likely to envision acupuncture, a treatment that involves stimulating strategic points on the body with small needles. According to statistics from the National Institutes of Health, millions of adults have used acupuncture to treat a variety of conditions, from migraine headaches to low-back pain. But what?s often not mentioned is that children can be acupuncture patients, too. Figures from a 2007 National Health Interview Survey, which collects data every five years on the use of complementary and alternative medicine, showed that 150,000 children in the United States used acupuncture.
Exactly how acupuncture works is unknown. Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners say that the treatment spurs healing by modulating the body?s chi or energy pathways. Western medicine experts believe that placing thin, metallic needles under the skin stimulates the release of certain chemicals in the brain that can calm down pain receptors in the body.
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?Our belief is that a lot of chronic pain is not caused by anything other than a hyper-arousal of the nervous system,? says Michael Waterhouse, a licensed acupuncturist in Beverly Hills, Calif., who works with the pediatric pain program at the University of California, Los Angeles. ?The kids have been in pain so long that the pain receptor sites in the brain are firing off all the time. Acupuncture can help stop that.?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has no official stance on treating children with acupuncture, but a recent study published in its journal, Pediatrics, found that the practice is generally safe when performed by a skilled practitioner. In fact, fewer serious adverse effects are reported with acupuncture than with conventional pain treatments. Acupuncture can be used on even very young children, as long as the practitioner is trained to work with patients of that age. ?I?ve treated 2-week-old infants with colic, for instance,? Waterhouse says.
Though the effectiveness of acupuncture for adults has been widely studied, less research on pediatric acupuncture exists. Waterhouse notes that large-scale trials in pediatrics have not happened yet. However, some studies have shown it to be an effective treatment for ailments like acute pain, anesthesia-induced vomiting, and headache. In the United States, acupuncture is mainly used in children to control nausea from surgery or chemotherapy treatments, as well as chronic pain, says Lawrence Rosen, MD, chairman of the AAP section on integrative medicine.
Most children tolerate acupuncture treatments quite well, says Waterhouse, whose pediatric patients are usually 8 to 18 years old. Patients who may not like the idea of having needles under their skin can still take advantage of acupuncture?s benefits with laser acupoint stimulation, which uses cold lasers to stimulate points on the body, or with acupressure, which involves pressing or massaging these areas. ?It?s very easy to do a lot of points without pain this way,? Waterhouse says.
The role that acupuncture plays in a child?s treatment plan can vary. For children with cancer, it doesn?t replace conventional treatments, but it can be used to help control unwanted symptoms. For other conditions, acupuncture may be useful as a standalone therapy. ?In acute or chronic pain cases, it may replace medication use in some patients,? Dr. Rosen says. In all instances, children who undergo acupuncture should be monitored by their pediatrician to make sure the treatments are helping.
Because the requirements for becoming an acupuncturist vary from state to state, it can be hard for parents to choose the right practitioner for their child. The most important step is checking with your state to make sure a practitioner you?re considering is licensed to practice acupuncture. A good place to start your search is on the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) website. Most states require that acupuncturists have completed the NCCAOM exam and/or certification process. You'll need to check further with office that regulates acupuncture in your state (note that Kansas, Alabama, Oklahoma, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Wyoming do not regulate acupuncture).
If you visit the NCCAOM State Licensure Requirements page and click on Acupuncture Licensure Requirement, you'll find a State Licensure Requirement table with contact information for your state. It's also important to be sure that the acupuncturist you're considering has experience in treating children.
?It?s just a question of personality after that,? Waterhouse says. ?Make a few phone calls. Hopefully the acupuncturist will give you 5 minutes to talk on the phone and get a feel for what they?re like and if your personalities gel. You should always feel safe and that your child is in the hands of a competent practitioner.?
"Can Acupuncture Help Children?" originally appeared on Everyday Health.
Obama administration officials unveiled rules on Wednesday that will allow many American citizens ? perhaps hundreds of thousands ? to avoid long separations from immediate family members who are illegal immigrants as they apply to become legal residents.
The rules, announced by Homeland Security Secretary?Janet Napolitano, create a waiver that bypasses an arcane Catch-22 in?immigration?law. It had presented Americans with the prospect of being separated for up to a decade from immigrant spouses, children or parents who were applying for the legal documents known as?green cards.
Until now, the risks for those immigrants of leaving the United States to return to their native countries to pick up their visas, even ones that were already approved, had been so great that countless families decided not to apply, adding to the numbers of immigrants living illegally in this country.
The immigration authorities will begin accepting applications for the waivers on March 3. Administration officials first announced the policy change a year ago, but they have been receiving public comments and making revisions before publishing the final rules.
It is generally straightforward for American citizens to obtain?green cards?for foreign-born spouses or minor children, and in some cases for parents. But if the immigrants entered the United States illegally, they must return to their native countries to receive their visas from American consulates there. However, under a 1996 statute, once illegal immigrants leave this country, they are barred automatically from returning for at least three and as many as 10 years.
Even immigrants who did not incur any bars to re-entry were often stranded overseas for many months while consulates completed their applications.
With the?new rules, Americans? family members can apply in the United States for a waiver from the bars to re-entry, before they leave to pick up their visas. Officials estimated the time immigrants would have to spend out of the country would be reduced to ?a matter of weeks.?
For immigrants, officials said, having an approved waiver in hand before leaving the country would also eliminate many doubts about whether they would ultimately receive their visas.
?This rule is leaps and bounds better than what we have now,? said Laura Lichter, president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. ?For families that were sitting on the fence, unwilling to subject their loved ones to the uncertainty, now they don?t have to wait.?
Ms. Lichter said many families would still face a hurdle in coming up with the $585 application fee for the waiver.
One American who was heartened by the new rule is Erika Torres, 30. She has been married for six years to a Mexican man who was brought illegally to the United States 24 years ago, when he was 8. Ms. Torres, speaking by telephone on Wednesday, said she and her husband, who have known each other since they were children, now own a home and a winemaking business in Cambria, Calif.
Like many Americans, Ms. Torres said she expected no difficulty gaining legal documents for her husband once they were married. But after learning about the convoluted visa process, she said, ?We have waited because we were just terrified of the separation.?
Ms. Torres said her husband would probably have to collect his visa from the American Consulate in Ciudad Ju?rez, Mexico, a city racked by drug trafficking violence. ?He would be a prime target for kidnappers,? she said.
?We are a team,? Ms. Torres said, adding that she feared she would not be able to sustain their business without her husband?s help. She said they would apply for a waiver as soon as they became available.
The rules do not give any legal status to illegal immigrants or shortcut the underlying application. In order to receive green cards, immigrants must still show that it would cause ?extreme hardship? to an American citizen if they were deported.?It is a limited change, but a definitely a good step forward in the right direction,? said Randall Emery, president of?American Families United, an organization of thousands of Americans with family members who are illegal immigrants.
Ms. Lichter called on Congress to change the law to eliminate the snag created by the automatic bars. ?This is a great solution to a problem that should never have existed in the first place,? she said.
Jan 2 (Reuters) - Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett said on Wednesday he is seeking to have the costly sanctions levied by the NCAA against Penn State University over the Jerry Sandusky sex-abuse scandal thrown out, saying the punishment threatens to cause devastating damage to the state's residents and economy.
The sanctions, which included an unprecedented $60 million fine, are "overreaching and unlawful," he said at a news conference in State College where the university is located.
"I cannot and will not stand by and let it happen without a fight," said the Republican governor, who was accused of dragging his feet on the Penn State scandal when he was state Attorney General.
The lawsuit asks the U.S. District Court in Harrisburg to throw out all Sandusky-related sanctions that the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the governing body of U.S. collegiate sports, filed against Penn State.
At least one legal expert said the case is weak.
The NCAA fined Penn State $60 million in July and voided its football victories for the past 14 seasons in a dramatic rebuke for the school's failure to stop the assistant coach's sexual abuse of children.
"The NCAA, and the competing colleges and universities represented on its governing boards, cynically and hypocritically exploited the tragedy of the Sandusky Offenses as a 'blank check' to impose crippling and unprecedented sanctions on an already weakened competitor," the lawsuit said.
Corbett said the NCAA overstepped its bounds and said the case was "a criminal matter, not a violation of NCAA rules."
The scandal was revealed by a grand jury Corbett convened in 2009 when he was Pennsylvania's attorney general.
State Attorney General-elect Kathleen Kane, a Democrat, said during her campaign last year that by convening the grand jury, Corbett failed to protect children by delaying prosecution for more than two years. She has vowed to probe his handling of the case. Corbett has said he would welcome such an investigation.
In a statement, Kane said she had not been consulted on the filing of the lawsuit and would reserve comment.
Pennsylvania voters also have expressed dissatisfaction with Corbett's handling of the case. Nearly two thirds of registered voters said he did a fair or poor job, according to a Franklin & Marshall College survey in September.
Sandusky, Penn State's former defensive coordinator, was convicted in June of 45 counts of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years, some in the football team's showers. He is serving a prison term of 30 years to 60 years.
The scandal sparked a national discussion of child sex abuse, embarrassed the university and implicated top officials in a cover-up, including the late Joe Paterno, the legendary football head coach.
The NCAA said it was disappointed by Corbett's move.
"Not only does this forthcoming lawsuit appear to be without merit, it is an affront to all of the victims in this tragedy - lives that were destroyed by the criminal actions of Jerry Sandusky," NCAA General Counsel Donald Remy said in a statement.
Pennsylvania residents have also been unhappy with the NCAA sanctions. The Franklin & Marshall poll showed more than half the respondents believed they were unfair.
Although Corbett might be seen as pursuing the lawsuit to further his own political ends, "this decision will be popular among Pennsylvanians," said Terry Madonna, a professor of public affairs at Franklin & Marshall and director of the poll.
At Wednesday's press conference Corbett rejected any political motivation for the lawsuit.
Max Kennerly, a Philadelphia-based attorney who has followed the case closely, questioned the chances of the case succeeding. It was unclear if the governor has the legal authority to file such a lawsuit he said, adding courts have generally sided with the NCAA on issues of sanctions.
"It's not a frivolous lawsuit, there are real arguments to make, but, boy is it weak," he said.
James Schultz, general counsel for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, who will be handling the case, said the governor has legal standing to sue, because he is acting on behalf of residents and businesses "collaterally damaged" by the NCAA sanctions.
The sanctions harm those who depend on revenue from the Penn State football program and negatively impact the state's tax revenue base.
Also, the lawsuit said: "The stigma attached will diminish recruitment of students and student athletes, as well as the value of a Penn State education, for decades."
In State College, Pennsylvania where the university has its campus, Kathy Punt, manager of a motel used by football fans, said her business dropped 30 to 40 percent this past fall as fewer people attended the games.
"We didn't get the Penn State fans who usually come in," she said.
The university recently made the first payment of $12 million of the sanctions toward a national fund to support the victims of child abuse. Other sanctions included a ban on its football team from appearing in bowl games for four years.
According to the governor's office, Penn State football was the second-most profitable, collegiate athletic program in the United States in 2010-11 when it brought in $50 million, generating more than $5 million in tax revenue.
Penn State released a statement saying it was not party to the lawsuit and reiterated its commitment to comply with the NCAA sanctions.
The governor was asked about the report into the Penn State scandal produced by former FBI director Louis Freeh that was the basis of the NCAA sanctions. The report was scathingly critical of the university and said Penn State leaders covered up Sandusky's sexual abuse of children for years.
"The Freeh report is an incomplete report," Corbett said.
The family of Joe Paterno, who was fired by Penn State trustees who said he failed to do enough when he was alerted to suspicions about Sandusky, said: "The fact that Governor Corbett now realizes, as do many others, that there was an inexcusable rush to judgment is encouraging."
Believe it or not! Over past 12 years Internet usage has increased by over 500%. With Internet technology booming at such a rapid rate, web trade and online promotion are also evolving at an exceptional rate.
Entrepreneurs and marketers are investing in innovative and new age web application development techniques that can facilitate online business processes and promotions. And surprisingly, it has also provided business owners with an effective mode of communicating with their prospective customers. Business-centric web applications facilitate the completion of various non-viable tasks almost immediately, making it easier for businesses to outreach the masses.
Web Application and the World Wide Web:
Web apps are used as business tools and techniques that are launched on the World Wide Web by businesses, who wish to extend their data services to both online and offline customers. These applications constitute the ?Gen-X? of Internet evolution. These days, several business firms are seeking aid of web application development processes to target potential customers and buyers in a more effective manner. The primary aim of these business-centric apps is to promote products and services and expand the customer base with the help of targeted marketing. Thus, these web applications act as the primary interface between businesses and their customers that allow them to expand their service offerings and target potential audience to improve their bottom line.
The Web Application Development Process:
Web application development is a full cycle process that involves multiple stages, each of which plays a significant result in delivering a qualitative output. Being a multi-level process, development is intricate yet easy to perceive. Normally, before a web app in launched, it has to go through 4 major stages of development. Let?s take a deeper look at the major phases involved in the development process:
Verification: This is the foremost stage in the development process. In this stage, the direction and purpose of the web app is verified. This phase demands the management team to come together and jot down the goals and purpose of the web application. It includes numerous sub-stages such as scheduling, judging limitation and installing updates. At the end of this phase, there is a clear overview about the main purpose of the application.
Devising: This stage involves devising plans about the various instances involved in development. Which scripting language is to be used or which features need to be incorporated in the website is decided during this phase.
Judging: This stage involves job allocation and judgment regarding the functional scheme of the web app. This is the concluding stage that ensures that the application is developed in flow. All significant decisions are made at this stage.
Development: This is the phase wherein coders and programmers play a pivotal role. This stage calls for the developers to pull their socks and develop data variables, entities and various code snippets required to get the application running. Post completion of the development activities, the team of programmer?s hands over a completion document to the management team for review.
Stability: As the name suggests, this stage tests the stability of the application built during the development stage. At this stage, the functionality of the app is thoroughly tested and verified. It includes removal of any errors that may occur and updating the application thereon.
Web application development is an intricate process. With so many stages involved, it requires a professional firm to bring about the desired results. If you are also planning to develop a web app for your online business, you can hire the services of a professional web development firm or you can outsource your app development project.
Author's Bio:?
Steve Graham is a Sr. Content Writer in Xicom technologies. Xicom is a leading Website Development Company and Mobile Apps Development company which provides different array of genuine software solutions like Custom Software Development,Web application development services to its clients globally.
Real estate, and the careers that depend upon it, is a boom-bust business in the age of inflation. The illusion of wealth is everywhere..until it is snatched away.
That?s why it?s a great time for David Mamet?s Pulitzer Prize winning ?Glengarry Glen Ross? to make its third appearance on the Broadway stage. It?s a show about Chicago real estate salesmen selling Florida properties through deception and intimidation.
The show appears just as Iowa dirt ascends to new heights, hope springs eternal that home prices have stopped falling, and Bernanke?s tonic is finally putting some sizzle in the home market.
I?m a huge fan of the movie, as those who attended last year?s Vancouver Symposium may have detected. When asked during the Whiskey Bar panel what movie depicted the U.S. economy, I offered up ?Glenngary Glen Ross.?
I was sky high with anticipation taking my seat on 4th row. I was not disappointed. Broadway is indeed magic, especially when you can see the shine on the actor?s shoes and spit flies as they say their lines.
Reviewers are carping that the production is nothing but a vehicle for Al Pacino, who plays deluded has-been Shelly Levine. Maybe, but Bobby Cannavale steals the show as Ricky Roma, the role Al Pacino earned an Oscar nomination for in the 1992 movie version.
Cannavale brings more swagger to the Roma role than even Pacino did. He combs his slick Guido-style hairdo using his sun glasses as a vanity mirror. He looks to have stolen his suit, suspenders, white-collared shirts, and argyle socks from Gordon Gecko?s closet.
The audience was on the edge of their seats ready to react to any utterance or facial expression Pacino would produce. Still, his portrayal of ?The Machine? did not have the Willie Loman desperation that Jack Lemmon brought to the role on the big screen.
John C. McGinley on the other hand makes for an even angrier Dave Moss than the Ed Harris movie version. If there?s a plot to Glenngary, Moss is its protagonist. It is his desperate plan to do something, rather than just being stuck with the deadbeat sales leads, that puts the Premier Properties office in turmoil and sets up the climax.
Real estate investment is an opportunity. We paraphrase that great investment mind Ricky Roma, the alpha male salesman at the top of his game. Investments can teach a man about himself, as Roma waxes philosophical to the lonely James Lingk. It?s the power of suggestion plying the vulnerable.
In real life today, there is no shortage of vulnerable, especially not in Sioux County, Iowa.
On October 25th in Iowa, no spell was needed to entice buyers of fertile Iowa farmland. No condos or McMansions will sit on this land, only corn or soybeans. Auctioneers took turns taking bids as prices climbed for 80 acres in this heart of corn country. When bidding hit $20,000 per acre, reported an observer, ?you could hear a gasp in the room.? Applause broke out when bidding stopped at $21,900.
It?s been awful dry in the midwest, but the land market continues on fire, with prices up over 31 percent in the past five years, according Bloomberg Businessweek. Yep, it?s a no-brainer; income from crops ?and the long-term appreciation of the property,? professor Michael Duffy opines.
In a similar way, the Toronto condo market has defied reason and gravity for years, enticing investment from around the world. One reason is that people like Herbert Crockett believe in the old saw, passed on to him by his father: Invest in things you can touch. So Mr. Crockett took the plunge on a Trump Tower Hotel condo for C$904,000.
The ?Trump? salesforce told Crockett he would rack up between a 5 and 27 percent annual return from his investment in the big-name project. That sure beats the 2.25% regulated rate banks are paying in Crockett?s home in France. ?We bought into the Trump name and what we were being told was a hot real estate market in Toronto for this kind of project,? Crockett told Bloomberg in an interview. ?It turns out that the hotel had nothing to do with him and that it isn?t a good investment after all.?
The Toronto market, with more condos under construction than any other city in the world, is now beginning to soften and Mr. Crockett and others that bought are only renting their units a quarter of the time projected. Instead of receiving a monthly check from his investment, the retired HR director is now losing C$7,000 a month according to his lawsuit.
Although the Donald was featured prominently in Trump Tower sales literature, he and his staff were not involved in the development other than selling his famous name to the project and attending the grand opening. An attorney for Trump said, he ?was not involved in the sales process and Talon, the developer, made no representations to buyers regarding return on investment.?
But while the Trump legal staff paints the picture that he didn?t have anything to do with Toronto?s tallest building, evidently EVP and daughter Ivanka didn?t get the memo. ?We look forward to continuing to achieve great success at Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto,? she told Bloomberg in an email. ?Our team is dedicated to providing world-class service and amenities only found in a Trump Hotel Collection property.?
Great success? Well, yeah. ?The hotel is an unbelievable success,? Trump attorney Alan Garten says. Hey, occupancy might not be great. Investors might be losing money. But, the Canadian Automobile Association has awarded the hotel restaurant?s a four diamond rating and TripAdvisor.com rates the Trump Hotel tops in Toronto.
Mr. Crockett has hired lawyers to fix his mistake. In his court filing, Crockett contends he is ?the victim of an investment scheme and conspiracy based upon reckless and negligent misrepresentations.?
With the Toronto boom turning into a bust, the advice of Mr. Crockett?s late father is not so sage. It turns out he?s an investing neophyte. ?These are not sophisticated investors,? said Javad Heydary, who heads the law firm that is suing the developer and Trump for Crockett and 20 other investors. But the developer?s head man says this is all just a case of ?buyer?s remorse? and the plaintiffs just want to get out of their deals.
What were dreams and opportunities in a boom, become in the bust the fraudulent schemes of court filings. The charming and helpful salesmen are suddenly liars and crooks. ?There?s the illusion of movement in the Toronto housing sector with sales and buyers,? Crockett told Bloomberg, ?But now it seems more like a Ponzi scheme.?
Central bankers can print money and for a while, in some markets of some things, create the illusion of wealth and prosperity. There will always be salesmen around to facilitate the transaction ? Glengarry style. But neither the Fed nor the salesmen can stop the busts, the ruined lives, and hard feelings. The money printing and money manipulations ? all taking place on a epic scale ? only creates more.
Sincerely, Doug French
Original article posted on Laissez-Faire Today?
Douglas French
Douglas French is a Senior Editor for Agora Financial. He received his master's degree under the direction of Murray N. Rothbard at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, after many years in the business of banking. He is the author of two books, Early Speculative Bubbles & Increases in the Money Supply, the first major empirical study of the relationship between early bubbles and the money supply, and Walk Away, a monograph assessing the philosophy and morality of strategic default. He is founder and editor of LibertyWatch magazine.
DENVER (AP) ? Relatives of those killed at a Colorado movie theater rejected an invitation Wednesday to attend its planned reopening, calling it a "disgusting offer" that came at a terrible time ? right after the first Christmas without their loved ones.
The parents, grandparents, cousins and widow of nine of the 12 people killed in the July shooting said they were asked to attend an "evening of remembrance" followed by a movie when the Aurora theater reopens on Jan. 17. They released a letter sent to the theater's owner, Cinemark, in which they criticized the Plano, Texas-based company for not previously reaching out to them to offer condolences and refusing to meet with them without lawyers.
"Our family members will never be on this earth with us again and a movie ticket and some token words from people who didn't care enough to reach out to us, nor respond when we reached out to them to talk, is appalling," the letter said.
Cinemark had no immediate comment.
The company announced last month that it would reopen the theater on Jan. 17 and invite people affected by the attack and other guests, a move that Aurora officials said has strong support in the community. Gov. John Hickenlooper plans to attend.
The Aurora Sentinel reported that plans filed with the city call for turning the theater into one of the company's "extreme digital cinema" sites that feature massive screens. It's not clear from the plans whether there will be a memorial to the victims.
The invitation was emailed to families by the Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance, which said the offer was being sent on behalf of Cinemark.
It arrived two days after Christmas as Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, the mother and stepfather of Jessica Ghawi, one of the 12 people killed, were housesitting in Denver.
They had left their home in San Antonio, Texas, on the advice of their grief counselor to avoid being where they typically would have celebrated Christmas with Jessica. Sandy Phillips said they picked Denver on purpose because her daughter, a 24-year-old aspiring sportscaster, had been happy there.
The Phillipses said the invitation could be a public relations ploy to help show the public that some victims or their families are willing to attend the theater reopening.
"It was a killing field. It was a place of carnage and they've not once told us what their plans are for the theater other than that they're reopening it," said Sandy Phillips. She would like the theater where her daughter was killed to be demolished, though she acknowledged that it was unrealistic to expect Cinemark to give up the rest of the building.
The families of some victims have sued Cinemark. The father of the youngest person killed in the shooting, 6-year-old Veronica Moser-Sullivan, is among them. He didn't sign the letter but the girl's grandparents did. The Phillipses have not decided whether they will sue.
Also Wednesday, prosecutors and defense lawyers said they are ready for a crucial hearing next week in which prosecutors will outline their case against James Holmes, who is charged with killing 12 people and wounding 70 during the midnight showing of the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises" on July 20.
It starts Monday and is scheduled to run all week. At its conclusion, state District Judge William B. Sylvester will decide if the evidence is sufficient to put Holmes on trial.
The defense could waive the hearing but legal analysts said defense lawyers sometimes go ahead with the hearing to get an idea of how strong the prosecution's case is.
Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and a former federal prosecutor, said preliminary hearings sometimes set the stage for a plea agreement as each side gets to assess the strength of the other.
Holmes is charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder and hasn't been asked to enter a plea yet. His lawyers have said he suffers from mental illness.
Next week's hearing will give the public its first officially sanctioned look at much of the evidence against Holmes.
A judge imposed a gag order shortly after Holmes' arrest barring attorneys and investigators from speaking publicly about the case, and many documents have been sealed.
The University of Colorado, where Holmes was enrolled in a Ph. D. neuroscience program, has also been tight-lipped about the case. Investigators said he began stockpiling firearms and ammunition while taking classes in the spring.
In June, he made threats to a professor and on June 10 filed withdrawal papers after failing a year-end exam, prosecutors said. The next day he saw his school psychiatrist who tried to report him to a campus security committee, according to Holmes' lawyers.
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Arts News Headlines - Yahoo! Newshttp://news.yahoo.com/arts/ Get the latest Arts news headlines from Yahoo! News. Find breaking Arts news, including analysis and opinion on top Arts stories, photos and more.en-USCopyright (c) 2013 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reservedSun, 23 Dec 2012 15:55:04 -05005Arts News Headlines - Yahoo! Newshttp://news.yahoo.com/arts/ http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/th/main_142c.gifWitch burns, audience on fire at Vienna opera show<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/witch-burns-audience-fire-vienna-opera-show-204619748.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/TSvdKj2imR6.7TAzIzy_CA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/1e7ad78a06a38c24240f6a706700fc30.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this undated, publicly provided picture by Volksoper Vienna, children dressed as angels perform during a rehearsal of the opera Hansel and Gretel, by composer Engelbert Humperdinck in the Volksoper opera in Vienna. (AP Photo/HONS/ Barbara Palffy,Volksoper Vienna)" align="left" title="In this undated, publicly provided picture by Volksoper Vienna, children dressed as angels perform during a rehearsal of the opera Hansel and Gretel, by composer Engelbert Humperdinck in the Volksoper opera in Vienna. (AP Photo/HONS/ Barbara Palffy,Volksoper Vienna)" border="0" /></a>VIENNA (AP) ? At the end of the evening, the witch was toast Sunday ? or more precisely a gingerbread cookie ? and the audience at Vienna's Volksoper loved it.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/witch-burns-audience-fire-vienna-opera-show-204619748.htmlSun, 23 Dec 2012 15:55:04 -0500Associated Presswitch-burns-audience-fire-vienna-opera-show-204619748<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/witch-burns-audience-fire-vienna-opera-show-204619748.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/TSvdKj2imR6.7TAzIzy_CA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/1e7ad78a06a38c24240f6a706700fc30.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this undated, publicly provided picture by Volksoper Vienna, children dressed as angels perform during a rehearsal of the opera Hansel and Gretel, by composer Engelbert Humperdinck in the Volksoper opera in Vienna. (AP Photo/HONS/ Barbara Palffy,Volksoper Vienna)" align="left" title="In this undated, publicly provided picture by Volksoper Vienna, children dressed as angels perform during a rehearsal of the opera Hansel and Gretel, by composer Engelbert Humperdinck in the Volksoper opera in Vienna. (AP Photo/HONS/ Barbara Palffy,Volksoper Vienna)" border="0" /></a>VIENNA (AP) ? At the end of the evening, the witch was toast Sunday ? or more precisely a gingerbread cookie ? and the audience at Vienna's Volksoper loved it.</p><br clear="all"/>Berlioz's 'Troyens' revived at Metropolitan OperaNEW YORK (AP) ? Marcello Giordani struggled mightily, his top notes effortful and thin. It turned out the tenor's third performance of Aeneas in the Metropolitan Opera's revival of Berlioz's "Les Troyens" would be his last.http://news.yahoo.com/berliozs-troyens-revived-metropolitan-opera-181944668.htmlSun, 23 Dec 2012 13:19:44 -0500Associated Pressberliozs-troyens-revived-metropolitan-opera-181944668Stokowski sleuth tracks past for Philly Orchestra<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/stokowski-sleuth-tracks-past-philly-orchestra-154544107.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/xHYzDS.4oFOsY1FIz5oemQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/f0e2bbc4d22c5823240f6a706700e7e0.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - in this Jan. 25, 1968 file photo, conductor Leopold Stokowski rehearses in the Felt Room in Madison Square Garden in New York. A century after Leopold Stokowski (sto-KOV'-ski) took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki." Jack McCarthy, an archivist for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, conducted a yearlong project for the orchestra to mark the 100th anniversary of Stokowski's 1912 appointment as conductor. (AP Photo)" align="left" title="FILE - in this Jan. 25, 1968 file photo, conductor Leopold Stokowski rehearses in the Felt Room in Madison Square Garden in New York. A century after Leopold Stokowski (sto-KOV'-ski) took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki." Jack McCarthy, an archivist for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, conducted a yearlong project for the orchestra to mark the 100th anniversary of Stokowski's 1912 appointment as conductor. (AP Photo)" border="0" /></a>PHILADELPHIA (AP) ? A century after Leopold Stokowski took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki."</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/stokowski-sleuth-tracks-past-philly-orchestra-154544107.htmlFri, 21 Dec 2012 11:25:26 -0500Associated Pressstokowski-sleuth-tracks-past-philly-orchestra-154544107<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/stokowski-sleuth-tracks-past-philly-orchestra-154544107.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/xHYzDS.4oFOsY1FIz5oemQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/f0e2bbc4d22c5823240f6a706700e7e0.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - in this Jan. 25, 1968 file photo, conductor Leopold Stokowski rehearses in the Felt Room in Madison Square Garden in New York. A century after Leopold Stokowski (sto-KOV'-ski) took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki." Jack McCarthy, an archivist for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, conducted a yearlong project for the orchestra to mark the 100th anniversary of Stokowski's 1912 appointment as conductor. (AP Photo)" align="left" title="FILE - in this Jan. 25, 1968 file photo, conductor Leopold Stokowski rehearses in the Felt Room in Madison Square Garden in New York. A century after Leopold Stokowski (sto-KOV'-ski) took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki." Jack McCarthy, an archivist for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, conducted a yearlong project for the orchestra to mark the 100th anniversary of Stokowski's 1912 appointment as conductor. (AP Photo)" border="0" /></a>PHILADELPHIA (AP) ? A century after Leopold Stokowski took the reins of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a history detective set on his trail has tracked down rarely-seen correspondence and belongings of the conductor affectionately known as "Stoki."</p><br clear="all"/>Renowned opera singer in Vienna going strong at 95<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/renowned-opera-singer-vienna-going-strong-95-073824047.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/B_rPECDBR2JoTkWQKZvfCA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c026c506b65b3623240f6a706700cf25.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="NIn this Aug. 31, 2012 photo provided by the Austrian parliament 95 year-old soprano Hilde Zadek delivers a speech after being awarded with the Great Medal of Honor of the Austrian Republic, at the parliament in Vienna, Austria. For Zadek, the city she once despised as part of Hitler's evil empire has long become a home that she says she would never leave _ and one that is proud to call her own. She has been showered with medals, granted high honorary titles and a singer's competition named after her 13 years ago has turned into an international launching pad for future opera stars. (AP Photo/Parlamentsdirektion/Bildagentur Zolles KG/Jacqueline Godany)" align="left" title="NIn this Aug. 31, 2012 photo provided by the Austrian parliament 95 year-old soprano Hilde Zadek delivers a speech after being awarded with the Great Medal of Honor of the Austrian Republic, at the parliament in Vienna, Austria. For Zadek, the city she once despised as part of Hitler's evil empire has long become a home that she says she would never leave _ and one that is proud to call her own. She has been showered with medals, granted high honorary titles and a singer's competition named after her 13 years ago has turned into an international launching pad for future opera stars. (AP Photo/Parlamentsdirektion/Bildagentur Zolles KG/Jacqueline Godany)" border="0" /></a>VIENNA (AP) ? It was 1947 in post-war Vienna, and Hilde Zadek remembers taking a deep breath behind the curtain. A rookie on her first opera gig, she was about to sing the prestigious role of Aida for an audience full of particularly harsh critics ? whistle-packing Nazis she says were determined to show "that Jew from Palestine" she was not welcome at one of the world's greatest opera houses.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/renowned-opera-singer-vienna-going-strong-95-073824047.htmlThu, 20 Dec 2012 08:29:27 -0500Associated Pressrenowned-opera-singer-vienna-going-strong-95-073824047<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/renowned-opera-singer-vienna-going-strong-95-073824047.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/B_rPECDBR2JoTkWQKZvfCA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c026c506b65b3623240f6a706700cf25.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="NIn this Aug. 31, 2012 photo provided by the Austrian parliament 95 year-old soprano Hilde Zadek delivers a speech after being awarded with the Great Medal of Honor of the Austrian Republic, at the parliament in Vienna, Austria. For Zadek, the city she once despised as part of Hitler's evil empire has long become a home that she says she would never leave _ and one that is proud to call her own. She has been showered with medals, granted high honorary titles and a singer's competition named after her 13 years ago has turned into an international launching pad for future opera stars. (AP Photo/Parlamentsdirektion/Bildagentur Zolles KG/Jacqueline Godany)" align="left" title="NIn this Aug. 31, 2012 photo provided by the Austrian parliament 95 year-old soprano Hilde Zadek delivers a speech after being awarded with the Great Medal of Honor of the Austrian Republic, at the parliament in Vienna, Austria. For Zadek, the city she once despised as part of Hitler's evil empire has long become a home that she says she would never leave _ and one that is proud to call her own. She has been showered with medals, granted high honorary titles and a singer's competition named after her 13 years ago has turned into an international launching pad for future opera stars. (AP Photo/Parlamentsdirektion/Bildagentur Zolles KG/Jacqueline Godany)" border="0" /></a>VIENNA (AP) ? It was 1947 in post-war Vienna, and Hilde Zadek remembers taking a deep breath behind the curtain. A rookie on her first opera gig, she was about to sing the prestigious role of Aida for an audience full of particularly harsh critics ? whistle-packing Nazis she says were determined to show "that Jew from Palestine" she was not welcome at one of the world's greatest opera houses.</p><br clear="all"/>La Scala chorus strike forces ballet cancellationMILAN (AP) ? La Scala has canceled the inaugural ballet of its season because of a strike by the chorus.http://news.yahoo.com/la-scala-chorus-strike-forces-ballet-cancellation-164658696.htmlWed, 19 Dec 2012 11:46:58 -0500Associated Pressla-scala-chorus-strike-forces-ballet-cancellation-164658696One Direction named MTV's 2012 Artist of the Year<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/one-direction-named-mtvs-2012-artist-010212999.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Ap5Sl8ualhtVrFPSfmxH2Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/ed77c2b21ab4a123230f6a7067007f9a.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - In this Friday Dec. 7, 2012 file photo, One Direction performs at Z100's Jingle Ball 2012 presented by Aeropostale at Madison Square Garden in New York. Band members, from left, are Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. MTV on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012 announced that One Direction is the network's 2012 Artist of the Year. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)" align="left" title="FILE - In this Friday Dec. 7, 2012 file photo, One Direction performs at Z100's Jingle Ball 2012 presented by Aeropostale at Madison Square Garden in New York. Band members, from left, are Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. MTV on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012 announced that One Direction is the network's 2012 Artist of the Year. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)" border="0" /></a>They're platinum. They're fascinating. And now One Direction is MTV's 2012 Artist of the Year.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/one-direction-named-mtvs-2012-artist-010212999.htmlThu, 13 Dec 2012 20:08:20 -0500Associated Pressone-direction-named-mtvs-2012-artist-010212999<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/one-direction-named-mtvs-2012-artist-010212999.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Ap5Sl8ualhtVrFPSfmxH2Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/ed77c2b21ab4a123230f6a7067007f9a.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - In this Friday Dec. 7, 2012 file photo, One Direction performs at Z100's Jingle Ball 2012 presented by Aeropostale at Madison Square Garden in New York. Band members, from left, are Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. MTV on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012 announced that One Direction is the network's 2012 Artist of the Year. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)" align="left" title="FILE - In this Friday Dec. 7, 2012 file photo, One Direction performs at Z100's Jingle Ball 2012 presented by Aeropostale at Madison Square Garden in New York. Band members, from left, are Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. MTV on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012 announced that One Direction is the network's 2012 Artist of the Year. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)" border="0" /></a>They're platinum. They're fascinating. And now One Direction is MTV's 2012 Artist of the Year.</p><br clear="all"/>Trevin Hunte Talks Elimination From The Voice: I'm 'Excited To Start My Life As An Artist'<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/trevin-hunte-talks-elimination-voice-im-excited-start-193830190.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/HskLN_nEsUiaarA7Dwwgmw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/AccessHollywoodTV/179007.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="Trevin Hunte performs on 'The Voice' -- NBC" align="left" title="Trevin Hunte performs on 'The Voice' -- NBC" border="0" /></a>Team Cee Lo lost teenager Trevin Hunte from "The Voice" competition on Tuesday, when he was eliminated just shy of the finals, and his reaction backstage was positively upbeat.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/trevin-hunte-talks-elimination-voice-im-excited-start-193830190.htmlWed, 12 Dec 2012 14:38:30 -0500Access Hollywoodtrevin-hunte-talks-elimination-voice-im-excited-start-193830190<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/trevin-hunte-talks-elimination-voice-im-excited-start-193830190.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/HskLN_nEsUiaarA7Dwwgmw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/AccessHollywoodTV/179007.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="Trevin Hunte performs on 'The Voice' -- NBC" align="left" title="Trevin Hunte performs on 'The Voice' -- NBC" border="0" /></a>Team Cee Lo lost teenager Trevin Hunte from "The Voice" competition on Tuesday, when he was eliminated just shy of the finals, and his reaction backstage was positively upbeat.</p><br clear="all"/>Swiss opera diva Della Casa dies at 93<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-opera-diva-della-casa-dies-93-103025528.html"><img src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/w_FfmkoBMNk1SKMZDyzosA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/da2db26bd0b16822230f6a706700b351.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - This is an October 1973 file photo of Swiss opera singer Lisa della Casa, center, as she performs on stage at the Zurich Opera "Opernhaus Zuerich", Switzerland, . According to media reports on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, Lisa della Casa died at the age of 93 at Muensterlingen at the Lake of Constance, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Keystone/file) NO ARCHIVE" align="left" title="FILE - This is an October 1973 file photo of Swiss opera singer Lisa della Casa, center, as she performs on stage at the Zurich Opera "Opernhaus Zuerich", Switzerland, . According to media reports on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, Lisa della Casa died at the age of 93 at Muensterlingen at the Lake of Constance, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Keystone/file) NO ARCHIVE" border="0" /></a>Famed for her beauty that matched her serene voice, Swiss-born diva Lisa Della Casa swept up crowds at opera houses of the past century with an elegant and radiant style that established her as one of the finest sopranos of her generation.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-opera-diva-della-casa-dies-93-103025528.htmlWed, 12 Dec 2012 10:46:25 -0500Associated Pressswiss-opera-diva-della-casa-dies-93-103025528<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-opera-diva-della-casa-dies-93-103025528.html"><img src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/w_FfmkoBMNk1SKMZDyzosA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/da2db26bd0b16822230f6a706700b351.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="FILE - This is an October 1973 file photo of Swiss opera singer Lisa della Casa, center, as she performs on stage at the Zurich Opera "Opernhaus Zuerich", Switzerland, . According to media reports on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, Lisa della Casa died at the age of 93 at Muensterlingen at the Lake of Constance, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Keystone/file) NO ARCHIVE" align="left" title="FILE - This is an October 1973 file photo of Swiss opera singer Lisa della Casa, center, as she performs on stage at the Zurich Opera "Opernhaus Zuerich", Switzerland, . According to media reports on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, Lisa della Casa died at the age of 93 at Muensterlingen at the Lake of Constance, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Keystone/file) NO ARCHIVE" border="0" /></a>Famed for her beauty that matched her serene voice, Swiss-born diva Lisa Della Casa swept up crowds at opera houses of the past century with an elegant and radiant style that established her as one of the finest sopranos of her generation.</p><br clear="all"/>Soprano Geraldine Chauvet makes Met Opera debutThe Metropolitan Opera's final performance this season of Mozart's last opera, "La Clemenza di Tito," was notable for the unexpected company debut of mezzo-soprano Geraldine Chauvet.http://news.yahoo.com/soprano-geraldine-chauvet-makes-met-opera-debut-232921660.htmlTue, 11 Dec 2012 18:29:21 -0500Associated Presssoprano-geraldine-chauvet-makes-met-opera-debut-232921660Russian opera diva Vishnevskaya dies at 86<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/russian-opera-diva-vishnevskaya-dies-86-153942200.html"><img src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4.FsktWnxNVlUH_FemqjnQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3B4b2ZmPTUwO3B5b2ZmPTA7cT04NTt3PTEzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/b3739a28d0c06822230f6a706700432d.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this photo taken on Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2007, Galina Vishnevskaya speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Russian opera diva Galina Vishevskaya, who conquered audiences all over the world with her rich soprano, has died. She was 86. Moscow's Opera Center, which Vishnevskaya created, said the singer died Tuesday in the Russian capital. It didn't give the cause. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)" align="left" title="In this photo taken on Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2007, Galina Vishnevskaya speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Russian opera diva Galina Vishevskaya, who conquered audiences all over the world with her rich soprano, has died. She was 86. Moscow's Opera Center, which Vishnevskaya created, said the singer died Tuesday in the Russian capital. It didn't give the cause. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)" border="0" /></a>World-renowned Russian opera diva Galina Vishnevskaya, who with her husband defied the Soviet regime to give shelter to writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn and suffered exile from her homeland, has died at 86.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/russian-opera-diva-vishnevskaya-dies-86-153942200.htmlTue, 11 Dec 2012 14:45:52 -0500Associated Pressrussian-opera-diva-vishnevskaya-dies-86-153942200<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/russian-opera-diva-vishnevskaya-dies-86-153942200.html"><img src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4.FsktWnxNVlUH_FemqjnQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3B4b2ZmPTUwO3B5b2ZmPTA7cT04NTt3PTEzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/b3739a28d0c06822230f6a706700432d.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this photo taken on Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2007, Galina Vishnevskaya speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Russian opera diva Galina Vishevskaya, who conquered audiences all over the world with her rich soprano, has died. She was 86. Moscow's Opera Center, which Vishnevskaya created, said the singer died Tuesday in the Russian capital. It didn't give the cause. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)" align="left" title="In this photo taken on Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2007, Galina Vishnevskaya speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Russian opera diva Galina Vishevskaya, who conquered audiences all over the world with her rich soprano, has died. She was 86. Moscow's Opera Center, which Vishnevskaya created, said the singer died Tuesday in the Russian capital. It didn't give the cause. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)" border="0" /></a>World-renowned Russian opera diva Galina Vishnevskaya, who with her husband defied the Soviet regime to give shelter to writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn and suffered exile from her homeland, has died at 86.</p><br clear="all"/>Van Gogh dazzles at Netherlands' Kroeller-Mueller<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-dazzles-netherlands-kroeller-mueller-124347101.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/MTa6vRoeAfru4qlmWKlK_w--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c9cfa87bd0046522230f6a7067007cc8.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this photo provided by the Kroeller-Mueller Museum in Otterlo on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012 the 1887 painting "Four sunflowers gone to seed" by Vincent van Gogh is seen.With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight. The lesser-known Kroeller-Mueller museum in the eastern Netherlands has revamped the layout of its central rooms, giving more space and focus to many of its top works. (AP Photo/ Kroeller-Mueller Museum)" align="left" title="In this photo provided by the Kroeller-Mueller Museum in Otterlo on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012 the 1887 painting "Four sunflowers gone to seed" by Vincent van Gogh is seen.With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight. The lesser-known Kroeller-Mueller museum in the eastern Netherlands has revamped the layout of its central rooms, giving more space and focus to many of its top works. (AP Photo/ Kroeller-Mueller Museum)" border="0" /></a>With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations until April, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-dazzles-netherlands-kroeller-mueller-124347101.htmlTue, 11 Dec 2012 14:37:09 -0500Associated Pressvan-gogh-dazzles-netherlands-kroeller-mueller-124347101<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-dazzles-netherlands-kroeller-mueller-124347101.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/MTa6vRoeAfru4qlmWKlK_w--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c9cfa87bd0046522230f6a7067007cc8.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="In this photo provided by the Kroeller-Mueller Museum in Otterlo on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012 the 1887 painting "Four sunflowers gone to seed" by Vincent van Gogh is seen.With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight. The lesser-known Kroeller-Mueller museum in the eastern Netherlands has revamped the layout of its central rooms, giving more space and focus to many of its top works. (AP Photo/ Kroeller-Mueller Museum)" align="left" title="In this photo provided by the Kroeller-Mueller Museum in Otterlo on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012 the 1887 painting "Four sunflowers gone to seed" by Vincent van Gogh is seen.With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight. The lesser-known Kroeller-Mueller museum in the eastern Netherlands has revamped the layout of its central rooms, giving more space and focus to many of its top works. (AP Photo/ Kroeller-Mueller Museum)" border="0" /></a>With the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed for renovations until April, the world's second-largest collection of the tortured Dutch master's work is stepping into the limelight.</p><br clear="all"/>A new museum for ABBA, but no stage reunionSTOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A new museum devoted to ABBA may attract hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Swedish capital but that does not mean the four members of the super group will ever reunite, at least on stage, former ABBA member Bjorn Ulvaeus said. The museum, a permanent exhibition within a hall of fame of Swedish pop music, opens in May next year. It will feature memorabilia like stage costumes worn by the singers, and visitors will also be able to sing along to ABBA songs alongside life size holograms of the group. ...http://news.yahoo.com/museum-abba-no-stage-reunion-153032009.htmlTue, 11 Dec 2012 10:30:32 -0500Reutersmuseum-abba-no-stage-reunion-153032009Russia's Hermitage Museum denounces blasphemy investigation<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/russias-hermitage-museum-denounces-blasphemy-investigation-161606225.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/xN.BYj4qHbj6MIId1kPc1g--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-12-10T211226Z_1_CBRE8B91MWX00_RTROPTP_2_RUSSIA.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="People launch floating paper lanterns into the sky in front of the Hermitage museum to mark Earth Hour in St. Petersburg" align="left" title="People launch floating paper lanterns into the sky in front of the Hermitage museum to mark Earth Hour in St. Petersburg" border="0" /></a>MOSCOW (Reuters) - The head of Russia's renowned Hermitage Museum accused Russian authorities on Monday of fostering "mob rule" in taking up complaints by Russian Orthodox Christians over a British exhibit they said injured religious feelings. The row coincides with a surge in religious, nationalist sentiment in Russia, with President Vladimir Putin moving closer to the Orthodox Church to consolidate his support after facing the biggest protests since he rose to power nearly 13 years ago. ...</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/russias-hermitage-museum-denounces-blasphemy-investigation-161606225.htmlMon, 10 Dec 2012 16:12:26 -0500Reutersrussias-hermitage-museum-denounces-blasphemy-investigation-161606225<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/russias-hermitage-museum-denounces-blasphemy-investigation-161606225.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/xN.BYj4qHbj6MIId1kPc1g--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-12-10T211226Z_1_CBRE8B91MWX00_RTROPTP_2_RUSSIA.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="People launch floating paper lanterns into the sky in front of the Hermitage museum to mark Earth Hour in St. Petersburg" align="left" title="People launch floating paper lanterns into the sky in front of the Hermitage museum to mark Earth Hour in St. Petersburg" border="0" /></a>MOSCOW (Reuters) - The head of Russia's renowned Hermitage Museum accused Russian authorities on Monday of fostering "mob rule" in taking up complaints by Russian Orthodox Christians over a British exhibit they said injured religious feelings. The row coincides with a surge in religious, nationalist sentiment in Russia, with President Vladimir Putin moving closer to the Orthodox Church to consolidate his support after facing the biggest protests since he rose to power nearly 13 years ago. ...</p><br clear="all"/>Belgian graphic artist breaks with comic traditionBRUSSELS (Reuters) - Comic artist Brecht Evens decided to break away from the traditional comic strip images of clear lines and pencil sketches developed in Belgium more than half a century ago. After surviving at first on government subsidies, in 2010 he produced a graphic novel featuring vibrant watercolours and smudged scenes of sexuality and riotous nightlife, with characters blurred into their surroundings. ...http://news.yahoo.com/belgian-graphic-artist-breaks-comic-tradition-142526248.htmlMon, 10 Dec 2012 09:25:26 -0500Reutersbelgian-graphic-artist-breaks-comic-tradition-142526248Chinese Nobel literature winner: censorship a must<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-nobel-literature-winner-censorship-must-173753873.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4xh6f8XFtn4fbjR2U5NmIw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/836849ed4f48ed22220f6a706700123b.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" align="left" title="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" border="0" /></a>This year's Nobel Prize in literature winner, Mo Yan, who has been criticized for his membership in China's Communist Party and reluctance to speak out against the country's government, defended censorship Thursday as something as necessary as airport security checks.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-nobel-literature-winner-censorship-must-173753873.htmlThu, 06 Dec 2012 20:24:03 -0500Associated Presschinese-nobel-literature-winner-censorship-must-173753873<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-nobel-literature-winner-censorship-must-173753873.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4xh6f8XFtn4fbjR2U5NmIw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/836849ed4f48ed22220f6a706700123b.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" align="left" title="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" border="0" /></a>This year's Nobel Prize in literature winner, Mo Yan, who has been criticized for his membership in China's Communist Party and reluctance to speak out against the country's government, defended censorship Thursday as something as necessary as airport security checks.</p><br clear="all"/>Nobel literature winner says censorship necessary<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/nobel-literature-winner-says-censorship-necessary-131127892.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4xh6f8XFtn4fbjR2U5NmIw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/836849ed4f48ed22220f6a706700123b.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" align="left" title="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" border="0" /></a>This year's Nobel literature winner Mo Yan, who has been criticized for his cozy relationship with China's Communist Party, defended censorship Thursday as something as necessary as airport security checks.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/nobel-literature-winner-says-censorship-necessary-131127892.htmlThu, 06 Dec 2012 11:12:06 -0500Associated Pressnobel-literature-winner-says-censorship-necessary-131127892<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/nobel-literature-winner-says-censorship-necessary-131127892.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/4xh6f8XFtn4fbjR2U5NmIw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/836849ed4f48ed22220f6a706700123b.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" align="left" title="The 2012 Nobel Literature Prize laureate, Mo Yan of China speaks during a press conference Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 at the Royal Swedish Academy in Stockholm. The official prize giving ceremony takes place in Stockholm on Dec. 10. (AP Photo/Janerik Henriksson) SWEDEN OUT" border="0" /></a>This year's Nobel literature winner Mo Yan, who has been criticized for his cozy relationship with China's Communist Party, defended censorship Thursday as something as necessary as airport security checks.</p><br clear="all"/>What the devil? Royal Opera stages Meyerbeer rarity<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/royal-opera-stages-meyerbeer-rarity-130217842.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/v1aktp3_sL0UcYW4Cey3HQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-12-06T142720Z_1_CBRE8B5145N00_RTROPTP_2_ARTS-US-DEVIL-OPERA.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="(Blank Headline Received)" align="left" title="(Blank Headline Received)" border="0" /></a>LONDON (Reuters) - The audience at London's Royal Opera House is in for a big surprise on Thursday night. They will witness German composer Giacomo Meyerbeer's 1831 grand opera "Robert le Diable" (Robert the Devil), a work so rarely performed that virtually no one has seen it, let alone sung it or played it. In fact, the last time Britain's prestigious Royal Opera House put on the epic work was in 1890, by which time it had fallen out of favor, never to recover fully. ...</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/royal-opera-stages-meyerbeer-rarity-130217842.htmlThu, 06 Dec 2012 09:27:57 -0500Reutersroyal-opera-stages-meyerbeer-rarity-130217842<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/royal-opera-stages-meyerbeer-rarity-130217842.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/v1aktp3_sL0UcYW4Cey3HQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-12-06T142720Z_1_CBRE8B5145N00_RTROPTP_2_ARTS-US-DEVIL-OPERA.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="(Blank Headline Received)" align="left" title="(Blank Headline Received)" border="0" /></a>LONDON (Reuters) - The audience at London's Royal Opera House is in for a big surprise on Thursday night. They will witness German composer Giacomo Meyerbeer's 1831 grand opera "Robert le Diable" (Robert the Devil), a work so rarely performed that virtually no one has seen it, let alone sung it or played it. In fact, the last time Britain's prestigious Royal Opera House put on the epic work was in 1890, by which time it had fallen out of favor, never to recover fully. ...</p><br clear="all"/>Legendary jazz artist Dave Brubeck diesDave Brubeck?recently called "the reigning elder statesman of jazz" by the Washington Post?died Wednesday in Connecticut on his way to a cardiology appointment, one day shy of his 92nd birthday.http://music.yahoo.com/blogs/stop-the-presses/world-mad-brubeck-dave-brubeck-1920-2012-180310597.htmlWed, 05 Dec 2012 18:07:55 -0500blogs/stop-the-presses/world-mad-brubeck-dave-brubeck-1920-2012-180310597London's Dickens Museum reopens after makeover<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/londons-dickens-museum-reopens-makeover-145932532.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/spUFDtlaWRkNUrqGMCaFow--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/19bd15533623d722220f6a70670051f7.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The study in Charles Dickens' home, part of the Charles Dickens Museum in London, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012. For years, the four-story brick row house where the author lived with his young family was a dusty and slightly neglected museum, a mecca for Dickens scholars but overlooked by most visitors to London. Now, after a 3 million pound ($4.8 million) makeover, it has been restored to bring the writer's world to life. Its director says it aims to look "as if Dickens had just stepped out." (AP Photo/Sang Tan)" align="left" title="The study in Charles Dickens' home, part of the Charles Dickens Museum in London, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012. For years, the four-story brick row house where the author lived with his young family was a dusty and slightly neglected museum, a mecca for Dickens scholars but overlooked by most visitors to London. Now, after a 3 million pound ($4.8 million) makeover, it has been restored to bring the writer's world to life. Its director says it aims to look "as if Dickens had just stepped out." (AP Photo/Sang Tan)" border="0" /></a>Charles Dickens' London home has gone from "Bleak House" to "Great Expectations."</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/londons-dickens-museum-reopens-makeover-145932532.htmlWed, 05 Dec 2012 12:21:13 -0500Associated Presslondons-dickens-museum-reopens-makeover-145932532<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/londons-dickens-museum-reopens-makeover-145932532.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/spUFDtlaWRkNUrqGMCaFow--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/19bd15533623d722220f6a70670051f7.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="The study in Charles Dickens' home, part of the Charles Dickens Museum in London, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012. For years, the four-story brick row house where the author lived with his young family was a dusty and slightly neglected museum, a mecca for Dickens scholars but overlooked by most visitors to London. Now, after a 3 million pound ($4.8 million) makeover, it has been restored to bring the writer's world to life. Its director says it aims to look "as if Dickens had just stepped out." (AP Photo/Sang Tan)" align="left" title="The study in Charles Dickens' home, part of the Charles Dickens Museum in London, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012. For years, the four-story brick row house where the author lived with his young family was a dusty and slightly neglected museum, a mecca for Dickens scholars but overlooked by most visitors to London. Now, after a 3 million pound ($4.8 million) makeover, it has been restored to bring the writer's world to life. Its director says it aims to look "as if Dickens had just stepped out." (AP Photo/Sang Tan)" border="0" /></a>Charles Dickens' London home has gone from "Bleak House" to "Great Expectations."</p><br clear="all"/>Review: 'Golden Age' offers a sneak pique at opera<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/review-golden-age-offers-sneak-pique-opera-015509192.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/IbyRs21m5rcDuQgO8c5l4Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/cf07d4751d67c422220f6a706700bb99.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="This undated theater image released by Boneau/Bryan-Brown shows, from left, Lorenzo Pisoni, Lee Pace, Will Rogers and Bebe Neuwirth, in a scene from Terrence McNally?s "Golden Age," currently performing at Manhattan Theatre Club at City Center in New York. (AP Photo/Boneau/Bryan-Brown, Joan Marcus)" align="left" title="This undated theater image released by Boneau/Bryan-Brown shows, from left, Lorenzo Pisoni, Lee Pace, Will Rogers and Bebe Neuwirth, in a scene from Terrence McNally?s "Golden Age," currently performing at Manhattan Theatre Club at City Center in New York. (AP Photo/Boneau/Bryan-Brown, Joan Marcus)" border="0" /></a>Jealous sniping has always been in fashion, whatever the century.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/review-golden-age-offers-sneak-pique-opera-015509192.htmlTue, 04 Dec 2012 20:55:09 -0500Associated Pressreview-golden-age-offers-sneak-pique-opera-015509192<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/review-golden-age-offers-sneak-pique-opera-015509192.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/IbyRs21m5rcDuQgO8c5l4Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/cf07d4751d67c422220f6a706700bb99.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="This undated theater image released by Boneau/Bryan-Brown shows, from left, Lorenzo Pisoni, Lee Pace, Will Rogers and Bebe Neuwirth, in a scene from Terrence McNally?s "Golden Age," currently performing at Manhattan Theatre Club at City Center in New York. (AP Photo/Boneau/Bryan-Brown, Joan Marcus)" align="left" title="This undated theater image released by Boneau/Bryan-Brown shows, from left, Lorenzo Pisoni, Lee Pace, Will Rogers and Bebe Neuwirth, in a scene from Terrence McNally?s "Golden Age," currently performing at Manhattan Theatre Club at City Center in New York. (AP Photo/Boneau/Bryan-Brown, Joan Marcus)" border="0" /></a>Jealous sniping has always been in fashion, whatever the century.</p><br clear="all"/>Dallas art museum returns stolen mosaic to Turkish officialsDALLAS (Reuters) - The Dallas Museum of Art has returned an ancient piece of artwork to Turkish officials after learning that the piece was likely looted from an archeological site. Museum officials said they are cooperating with Italian authorities over the return of several antique artifacts that had been obtained from an Italian dealer under investigation for selling looted antiquities. The museum "deplores the illegal trade in antiquities" and officials said they have made it a priority to identify and return looted treasures from other countries. ...http://news.yahoo.com/dallas-art-museum-returns-stolen-mosaic-turkish-officials-223701377.htmlTue, 04 Dec 2012 17:37:01 -0500Reutersdallas-art-museum-returns-stolen-mosaic-turkish-officials-223701377Louvre comes to poor French city, raising eyebrows<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/louvre-comes-poor-french-city-raising-eyebrows-124754403.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/b_emnGqxySpnvAdWQH_UtQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/0c6b60c80213a522220f6a706700ef62.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="A woman walk past "La Vierge, l'Enfant Jesus et Sainte Anne" by Leonard de Vinci in the Louvre Museum in Lens, northern France, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. The museum in Lens, to open the 12 Dec, is part of a strategy to spread art beyond the traditional bastions of culture in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler)" align="left" title="A woman walk past "La Vierge, l'Enfant Jesus et Sainte Anne" by Leonard de Vinci in the Louvre Museum in Lens, northern France, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. The museum in Lens, to open the 12 Dec, is part of a strategy to spread art beyond the traditional bastions of culture in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler)" border="0" /></a>The Louvre has embarked on an ambitious quest ? opening a ?150 million ($196 million) extension in an abandoned coal mining town in northern France that has an unemployment rate nearly three times the national average.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/louvre-comes-poor-french-city-raising-eyebrows-124754403.htmlTue, 04 Dec 2012 11:37:35 -0500Associated Presslouvre-comes-poor-french-city-raising-eyebrows-124754403<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/louvre-comes-poor-french-city-raising-eyebrows-124754403.html"><img src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/b_emnGqxySpnvAdWQH_UtQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/0c6b60c80213a522220f6a706700ef62.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="A woman walk past "La Vierge, l'Enfant Jesus et Sainte Anne" by Leonard de Vinci in the Louvre Museum in Lens, northern France, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. The museum in Lens, to open the 12 Dec, is part of a strategy to spread art beyond the traditional bastions of culture in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler)" align="left" title="A woman walk past "La Vierge, l'Enfant Jesus et Sainte Anne" by Leonard de Vinci in the Louvre Museum in Lens, northern France, Monday, Dec. 3, 2012. The museum in Lens, to open the 12 Dec, is part of a strategy to spread art beyond the traditional bastions of culture in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler)" border="0" /></a>The Louvre has embarked on an ambitious quest ? opening a ?150 million ($196 million) extension in an abandoned coal mining town in northern France that has an unemployment rate nearly three times the national average.</p><br clear="all"/>Picker's 'Claiborne' to premiere at SF OperaThe San Francisco Opera will present the world premiere of Tobias Picker's "Dolores Claiborne" on Sept. 18 next year.http://news.yahoo.com/pickers-claiborne-premiere-sf-opera-033130292.htmlMon, 03 Dec 2012 22:31:51 -0500Associated Presspickers-claiborne-premiere-sf-opera-033130292Dallas museum returns stolen mosaic to TurkeyThe Dallas Museum of Art has returned an ancient mosaic to Turkish officials after discovering it was stolen.http://news.yahoo.com/dallas-museum-returns-stolen-mosaic-turkey-212923187.htmlMon, 03 Dec 2012 16:29:23 -0500Associated Pressdallas-museum-returns-stolen-mosaic-turkey-212923187UK artist hits out at Christie's over stolen workLONDON (Reuters) - Turner Prize-winning Scottish artist Douglas Gordon has criticized auction house Christie's after a solid gold sculpture was stolen from the auction house's London warehouse. Gordon's 2007 "The Left Hand and the Right Hand Have Abandoned One Another" was reported missing by the world's biggest auction house on November 12 and is believed to have an insurance value of around 500,000 pounds ($800,000). But Gordon complained that he was not informed about the theft until more than two weeks later. ...http://news.yahoo.com/uk-artist-hits-christies-over-stolen-180244410.htmlFri, 30 Nov 2012 13:02:44 -0500Reutersuk-artist-hits-christies-over-stolen-180244410Spanish poet wins Cervantes literature prizeSpanish poet and essayist Jose Manuel Caballero Bonald has won the 2012 Cervantes Prize, the Spanish-speaking world's highest literary honor.http://news.yahoo.com/spanish-poet-wins-cervantes-literature-prize-134828518.htmlThu, 29 Nov 2012 09:40:24 -0500Associated Pressspanish-poet-wins-cervantes-literature-prize-134828518Chicago artist gets a national stage: the holiday White House<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/chicago-artist-gets-national-stage-holiday-white-house-230805372.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/GUlfcMYpYhNU6_irqZUVcQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-11-28T230805Z_1_CBRE8AR1S9S00_RTROPTP_2_ARTS-US-USA-WHITEHOUSE-HOLIDAYS.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="Holiday decorations at the White House in Washington" align="left" title="Holiday decorations at the White House in Washington" border="0" /></a>CHICAGO (Reuters) - To help decorate the White House for the Christmas season this year, President Barack Obama turned to an artist from his hometown. David Lee Csicsko, a Chicago mosaic artist who specializes in public installations, designed the annual display in the corridor leading to the East Room and the State Dining Room, both areas that are elaborately decorated at the beginning of each holiday season. ...</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/chicago-artist-gets-national-stage-holiday-white-house-230805372.htmlWed, 28 Nov 2012 18:08:05 -0500Reuterschicago-artist-gets-national-stage-holiday-white-house-230805372<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/chicago-artist-gets-national-stage-holiday-white-house-230805372.html"><img src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/GUlfcMYpYhNU6_irqZUVcQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2012-11-28T230805Z_1_CBRE8AR1S9S00_RTROPTP_2_ARTS-US-USA-WHITEHOUSE-HOLIDAYS.JPG" width="130" height="86" alt="Holiday decorations at the White House in Washington" align="left" title="Holiday decorations at the White House in Washington" border="0" /></a>CHICAGO (Reuters) - To help decorate the White House for the Christmas season this year, President Barack Obama turned to an artist from his hometown. David Lee Csicsko, a Chicago mosaic artist who specializes in public installations, designed the annual display in the corridor leading to the East Room and the State Dining Room, both areas that are elaborately decorated at the beginning of each holiday season. ...</p><br clear="all"/>Van Gogh, John Lennon letters coming to NY auction<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-john-lennon-letters-coming-ny-auction-112315549.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/XnWG8_yt.FrdojZVBRaxeg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3B4b2ZmPTUwO3B5b2ZmPTA7cT04NTt3PTEzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c2519bbc812b2c21220f6a7067000404.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="This undated photo provided by Profiles in History shows the first page of a handwritten letter from John Lennon to Eric Clapton. The two-page letter is expected to draw $20,000 to $30,000 during an online and phone auction by Profiles in History on Dec. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Profiles in History)" align="left" title="This undated photo provided by Profiles in History shows the first page of a handwritten letter from John Lennon to Eric Clapton. The two-page letter is expected to draw $20,000 to $30,000 during an online and phone auction by Profiles in History on Dec. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Profiles in History)" border="0" /></a>An upcoming auction of over 300 historical documents includes rare letters written by Vincent van Gogh, George Washington, John Lennon and other iconic figures.</p><br clear="all"/>http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-john-lennon-letters-coming-ny-auction-112315549.htmlWed, 28 Nov 2012 11:52:32 -0500Associated Pressvan-gogh-john-lennon-letters-coming-ny-auction-112315549<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/van-gogh-john-lennon-letters-coming-ny-auction-112315549.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/XnWG8_yt.FrdojZVBRaxeg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3B4b2ZmPTUwO3B5b2ZmPTA7cT04NTt3PTEzMA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/c2519bbc812b2c21220f6a7067000404.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="This undated photo provided by Profiles in History shows the first page of a handwritten letter from John Lennon to Eric Clapton. The two-page letter is expected to draw $20,000 to $30,000 during an online and phone auction by Profiles in History on Dec. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Profiles in History)" align="left" title="This undated photo provided by Profiles in History shows the first page of a handwritten letter from John Lennon to Eric Clapton. The two-page letter is expected to draw $20,000 to $30,000 during an online and phone auction by Profiles in History on Dec. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Profiles in Hist
Nintendo has a lot to announce this morning, including an app for its Miiverse platform, as well as some fan-favorite game titles that will be available on the Wii U platform in the coming months. By the time E3 rolls around, in mid-June, the Wii U will support two new Zelda games, as well as new Super Mario and Mario Kart titles. Nintendo announced the Wii U back in June, offering a new level of gameplay with multiple screens (one on the TV and one on the controller) and a brand new GamePad controller complete with NFC and a gyrometer/accelerometer.
