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'Schizophrenic ally': $33M in Pakistan aid to be axed?

Pakistan's decision to convict a doctor who helped the U.S. track down Osama bin Laden was met with outrage in the U.S. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

By msnbc.com news services

WASHINGTON ??A Senate panel expressed its outrage Thursday over Pakistan's conviction of a doctor who helped the United States track down Osama bin Laden, voting to cut aid to Islamabad by $33 million ? $1 million for every year of the physician's 33-year sentence for high treason.

"It's arbitrary, but the hope is that Pakistan will realize we are serious," said Senator Richard Durbin after the unanimous 30-0 vote by the Senate Appropriations Committee.


"It's outrageous that they (the Pakistanis) would say a man who helped us find Osama bin Laden is a traitor," said Durbin, the Senate's number two Democrat.

Pakistan jails doctor who helped CIA find Osama bin Laden

The sentencing on Wednesday of Dr Shakil Afridi for 33 years on treason charges added to U.S. frustrations with Pakistan over what Washington sees as its reluctance to help combat Islamist militants fighting the Afghan government and the closure of supply routes to NATO troops in Afghanistan.

'A schizophrenic ally'
The punitive move came on top of deep reductions the Appropriations Committee already had made to President Barack Obama's budget request for Pakistan, a reflection of the growing congressional anger over its cooperation in combatting terrorism. The overall foreign aid budget for next year had slashed more than half of the proposed assistance and threatened further reductions if Islamabad failed to open the overland supply routes.

"We need Pakistan, Pakistan needs us, but we don't need Pakistan double-dealing and not seeing the justice in bringing Osama bin Laden to an end," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who pushed for the additional cut in aid.?

Fuel tankers sit idle during Pakistan-US dispute over supply routes

He called Pakistan "a schizophrenic ally," helping the United States at one turn, but then aiding the Haqqani network which has claimed responsibility for several attacks on Americans. The group also has ties to al-Qaida and the Taliban.?

It's been a tough year for Pakistan U.S. relations. Crucial NATO supply routes have been shuttered since November, there is tension over drone strikes and now the countries are at odds over the treason conviction of the Pakistani doctor who helped the U.S. locate Osama Bin Laden.?

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the jailing of the doctor was "unjust and unwarranted" and vowed to continue to press the case with Islamabad. "The United States does not believe there is any basis for holding Dr. Afridi."

Afridi was accused of running a fake vaccination campaign, in which he collected DNA samples, that is believed to have helped the American intelligence agency track down bin Laden in a Pakistani town last year.?

Aid workers become targets as Pakistan faces new?crisis

The al-Qaida leader was killed in the town of Abbottabad a year ago in a unilateral U.S. special forces raid that heavily damaged ties between Islamabad and Washington. Since then, there have been growing calls in the U.S. Congress to cut off some or all of U.S. aid.

Senator John McCain, top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, said lawmakers had agreed to withhold certain military aid for Pakistan until the defense secretary certifies that Pakistan is not detaining people like Afridi.

Muhammed Muheisen / AP

Images of daily life, political pursuits, religious rites and deadly violence.

"All of us are outraged at the imprisonment and sentencing of some 33 years ? virtually a death sentence?? to the doctor in Pakistan who was instrumental ... in the removal of Osama bin Laden," McCain said, adding that Afridi was innocent of any wrongdoing. "That has frankly outraged all of us."

McCain criticizes Pakistan for jailing of doctor

The Senate Appropriations Committee's action docking Pakistan's aid came after a subcommittee earlier in the week slashed assistance to Islamabad -- and warned it would withhold even more cash if Pakistan does not reopen supply routes for NATO soldiers in neighboring Afghanistan.

Members of the committee complained about mafia-style extortion by Pakistan in seeking truck fees in exchange for opening the supply lines. The cost had been $250 per truck prior to the attack. Pakistan is now demanding $5,000 per truck. The United States has countered at $500.

Pakistan has been one of the leading recipients of U.S. foreign aid in recent years. Even after the cuts voted this week it still would receive about $1 billion in fiscal 2013, if the full Senate and House of Representatives approve. That figure?includes $184 million for State Department operations and $800 million for foreign assistance. Counterinsurgency money for Pakistan would be limited to $50 million.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

More world news from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world

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Saturday, May 19, 2012

Most Effective After-Sex Contraception: IUDs

The most effective way to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex is with an intrauterine device (IUD), a new study finds.

Researchers reviewed 42 previous studies involving a total of 7,034 women who had an IUD inserted after unprotected sex, and found that 0.9 percent of the women subsequently became pregnant.

The study did not directly compare IUDs with emergency contraception pills, but other studies of women taking the pills have shown that 1.4 to 3 percent become pregnant, said study researcher Kelly Cleland, a public health researcher at Princeton University.

The notion that IUDs can prevent pregnancy after intercourse is not widely known.

"I think that IUDs are not at all on the radar of most women," Cleland said. "The idea of using an IUD as emergency contraception is completely new to most people."

In the U.S., IUDs are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use as emergency contraception; this would be an off-label use. But doctors' guidelines say this use is appropriate.

Unlike the pills, IUDs provide long-lasting protection against pregnancy, for as long as 10 years after they are inserted into the uterus.

To be sure, there are reasons why women may opt for emergency contraception pills instead of IUDs. The pills are safe, effective and much easier to obtain than IUDs, Cleland said. IUDs must be inserted by a health care provider; pills are sold over the counter (without a prescription) to women ages 17 and older (those ages 16 and younger need a prescription).

"Although IUDs are clearly the most effective option for emergency contraception, and provide excellent ongoing contraceptive protection, this does not mean that we think emergency contraceptive pills should be abandoned," she said.

How IUDs work

Cleland and her colleagues reviewed 42 studies conducted in six countries between 1979 and 2011. Most of the IUDs in the studies were made of copper; IUDs that use hormones, such those sold under the name Mirena, have not been studied as a method of emergency contraception.

The majority of the studies were done in China, where IUD use is common. In 2009, 53 percent of married women using contraception were using IUDs, according to the study. In the U.S., about 5 percent of women use them for birth control.

The main way IUDs prevent pregnancy is by preventing fertilization, Cleland said. "Copper ions released by the IUD are believed to be toxic to sperm, impairing their motility and viability," she said. In addition, IUDs cause inflammation in the uterus, which leads to the release of fluids that impair the function of both eggs and sperm.

The fact that IUDs are so effective suggests that the devices may, in a small number of cases, prevent fertilized eggs from implanting in the uterus, Cleland said. Emergency contraceptive pills, which are slightly less effective, are not believed to prevent implantation.?

Guidelines recommend that IUDs be inserted with five days of unprotected intercourse to be effective, and this also helps avoid the possibility of inserting the device after a fertilized egg has implanted in the uterus. On average, implantation happens nine days after ovulation, Cleland said.

IUDs can cost up to $500 and emergency contraception pills generally cost between $10 and $70, according to Planned Parenthood. [Morning-After Pill: Plan B Controversy Explained ]

Use on the rise

The only copper IUD available in the U.S. is sold under the brand name ParaGard. Guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say that copper IUDs are "appropriate for emergency contraception in women who meet standard criteria" for using IUDs. (The devices are not recommended for women with chlamydia, gonorrhea, pelvic inflammatory disease or certain cancers.)

Risks of using the device include severe menstrual pain and heavy bleeding, bleeding between periods and vaginal inflammation, according to the Mayo Clinic.

"In the U.S., the IUD has a bad reputation," Cleland said. One device called the Dalkon Shield, which was sold in the 1970s, was poorly designed and caused a great deal of illness and infection, she said. Much of the reluctance to use IUDs on the part of providers and women is likely related to that, but the fact that insurance companies do not always cover IUDs may also play a role.

In recent years, use of IUDs for birth control has risen, and further increases are expected, Cleland said.

The study was published on May 8 in the journal Human Reproduction. The research was funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Development.

Pass it on: IUDs are an effective way to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex.

Follow MyHealthNewsDaily on Twitter @MyHealth_MHND. Find us on Facebook.

Copyright 2012 MyHealthNewsDaily, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Yemen army advances towards Qaeda bastion

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HBT: Angels without Hunter until son's case settled

Torii Hunter, who was placed on the restricted list after learning that his 17-year-old son had been arrested on sexual assault charges, doesn?t plan to rejoin the Angels until things are settled with the case.

That?s according to his son?s attorney, Todd Shapiro, who told Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times that Hunter will remain home until??this matter is resolved or under control.?

Shapiro is optimistic about a quick resolution to the case. He said that the girl allegedly assaulted has recanted her accusation in a phone call that was unknowingly taped by a Hunter family friend. Being that the charges and the call happened in Texas, the call could be recorded without her permission.

17-year-old Darius McClinton-Hunter is currently free on bond following his arrest Monday. Shapiro has maintained that his client is innocent of the accusations.

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Thursday, May 10, 2012

Where the Wild Types Are


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Video of the Week #42 May 8th, 2012:

From: Where the Wild Types Are ? A Biology Parody Dedicated to Maurice Sendak by Carin Bondar at PsiVid.

Source: Joshua Meisel

This week?s video was created by MIT biology student Joshua Meisel to promote a Halloween party in 2009, but it?s really too great a production to be watched only for the sake of attending an undergraduate booze-up. This short film is based on Maurice Sendak?s classic book ?Where the Wild things Are?, and it beautifully captures its mysticism and innocence. The video is an outstanding testament to Where the Wild Things Are ? and today is the perfect day for you to watch it.

Bora ZivkovicAbout the Author: Bora Zivkovic is the Blog Editor at Scientific American, chronobiologist, biology teacher, organizer of ScienceOnline conferences and editor of Open Laboratory anthologies of best science writing on the Web. Follow on Twitter @boraz.

The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

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How Telerobotics Could Help Humanity Explore Space

GREENBELT, Md. ? Advances in telerobotics are in high gear here on Earth, enabling scientists to plumb the deepest oceans, extract resources from dangerous mines and even carry out high-precision surgery from thousands of miles away.

Now researchers are considering ways to adopt and adapt telerobotics for more far-reaching duties ? in outer space. The ability to extend human cognition to the moon, Mars, near-Earth objects and other accessible bodies remotely could curb the challenges, cost and risks of deep-space exploration, some scientists say.

Astronauts, robotics experts and space scientists and engineers discussed such possibilities in the first-of-its-kind Exploration Telerobotics Symposium, held here May 2-3 at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

Extending human cognition and dexterity

The idea is that future space exploration crews could teleoperate systems deployed on planetary bodies from some distance away. Tucked inside a high-tech habitat circling a planet or perched in a module at a Lagrange point, astronauts can use high-quality telepresence to conduct surface operations on other worlds, including scouting out and mining valuable resources. [Gallery: Asteroid Mining Idea Takes Off]

While landing humans on these surfaces may be an eventual ambition, extending human cognition and dexterity to these locales via telepresence might be achieved on a shorter timescale and at a more modest cost, researchers said.

Establishing on-orbit proximity telerobotic control for the surface of the moon could be a good place to start, they added, with more far-flung destinations perhaps following later.

Credible strategy

The symposium underscored for the space community the meaning and potential importance of telepresence as "a credible exploration strategy," said astronomer Dan Lester of the University of Texas in Austin, who was a key organizer of the meeting.

"Space is big, and the speed of light is small enough by comparison that we often don?t feel much 'presence' with our sensory extensions we send out into space in the form of robots," Lester told SPACE.com. As such, we really don't have any experience with space telepresence, even for such relatively close bodies as the moon and asteroids, he added.

Lester said that there are countless lessons to be learned from the terrestrial telerobotics experts who attended the meeting. They brought a wide range of experience, from looking for oil and gas reserves in the oceans to performing telerobotic surgery and mining operations.

"That's all happening right now, in a big way, and space exploration has a lot to learn from those endeavors," Lester said. "They don't use space-qualified hardware, but their operations management and protocols have important lessons for us."

Terrestrial teachings

Similar in outlook is James Garvin, the chief scientist at NASA Goddard who helped chair the recent meeting.

Garvin's personal view is that the growing body of terrestrial experience with telerobotics in medicine, sea-floor exploration, mining and unmanned aircraft offers many fundamental lessons. That knowledge and know-how, he told SPACE.com, can be extended both to near-space locales like the International Space Station and to deep-space destinations, to the advantage of science and engineering capabilities.

"My general feeling is that low-latency telerobotics is a critical capability that must be investigated," Garvin said, "so that future human-robotic scientific activities can open up new frontiers in our scientific understanding of Mars, the moon, asteroids, Venus" and other locations.

Experience gap

"Clearly, there are local settings and environments where human field explorers on other worlds should never go," Garvin emphasized. And in such places, even very local telerobotic operations with machines there and people in nearby safe havens could be essential, he said.

Garvin did point out that, on the science side, there is a profound lack of real experience with low-latency telepresence here on Earth in geological field situations.

"This experience gap limits our understanding of how to develop the required engineering and technology capabilities to use low-latency telepresence in deep-space field science, on the moon, Mars, asteroids or beyond," Garvin said. More work needs to be done in this area, he added.[Future Visions of Human Spaceflight]

Brain power

The computational crunching power of robots was addressed by Brian Wilcox, manager of Space Robotics Technology at NASA?s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

"Moore's law has been operating for 50 years, with about an order of magnitude increase in computational throughput every five years," Wilcox said.

This means that the throughput per wafer ? at a roughly constant fabrication cost of under $10,000 ? has increased from about the equivalent of one neuron on a 1.5-inch wafer using 1965 fabrication technology, to about 10 billion neurons using 2015 fabrication technology on an 18-inch wafer. Those wafers are just now going into production around the world, he said.?

Wilcox observed that 10 billion neurons is about the equivalent of the human brain.

"Today, a game console, about the most capable consumer product in terms of throughput, has about the equivalent performance of the best invertebrate animal, the octopus," Wilcox said. "Within the next 10 to 15 years, we will likely witness robot performance marching through all of vertebrate evolution, up to and including humans."

Redefining 'exploration'

A key and perhaps overriding issue, Lester concluded, is the extent to which the public and Congress can buy in to an exploration strategy that does not involve humans going all the way to an exploration site.

In many respects, Lester added, what telepresence is making us do is redefine what we mean by the word "exploration."

"We should understand that it is precisely the explosion of technological capability that even allows us to talk about doing telepresence," Lester said.

"Forty years ago, when we wanted to put human cognition on the moon, there was exactly one way to do it ? putting people there ? boots on the ground. That's what we did. But it's no longer the only option," he added.

Leonard David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. He is a winner of last year's National Space Club Press Award and a past editor-in-chief of the National Space Society's Ad Astra and Space World magazines. He has written for SPACE.com since 1999.

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Tuesday, May 8, 2012

InFocus IN1124


The InFocus IN1124 ($975 direct) is a compact, super-light, yet bright data projector geared to business travelers who need to frequently present to small groups. It?s highly portable, although you do need to run presentations from a computer as there?s no port for a USB thumb drive. Image quality is middling, though it?s up to the task of typical business presentations.

The IN1124?s brightness is rated at 3,000 lumens. The projector has a native XGA (1,024 by 768) resolution, a 4:3 aspect ratio typical of data projectors. ?At 2.8 by 8.6 by 7 inches (HWD) and 3.4 pounds, it?s very compact and lightweight. The Editors? Choice Epson PowerLite 93+ ($549 direct, 4 stars) isn?t quite as bright (at 2,600 lumens), while the NEC NP-V300X ($779 direct, 3.5 stars) matches the IN1124?s brightness. Though portable, they?re both larger and heavier than the InFocus. The 2,500-lumen Boxlight TraveLight3 ($999 list, 3.5 stars), another XGA projector, is roughly the same dimensions as the IN1124.

This projector is black and boxy. The front can be tilted upwards using an extendible riser. There are both zoom and focus wheels; I had no problem in bringing the IN1124 to a reasonably sharp focus.

The IN1124 packs a typical selection of ports for an ultraportable projector: an HDMI port (which we?re frequently seeing these days, even on XGA projectors); S-Video; an RCA jack for composite video; audio-in; VGA; and a USB mini-B port that you can plug into your computer for remote mouse support, allowing you to use the projector?s remote control in lieu of the mouse to advance slides and the like.

One port that would have been a useful addition is a USB type A to let you run a presentation computer free off of a USB thumb drive. Without it, you still have to lug a laptop with you. The projector does come with a soft carrying case for protection.

Data and Video Testing

I tested the IN1124 from about 10 feet away, where it threw a 6-feet diagonal image on our test screen that stood up well to ambient light. In testing with the DisplayMate suite (www.displaymate.com), data image quality was typical of a DLP data projector. There was some tinting, most often in the form of fringing, in which the boundary between a bright and dark area (for example, the edges of the image, would appear colored?yellow if at the top or right edge, blue if at the bottom. Areas of actual yellow, though, looked muddy and slightly green at times.

All DLP projectors are potentially subject to a rainbow effect in which white areas break up into their component colors when one shifts one?s gaze (or, in the case of video, when something moves onscreen). This effect was obvious to me in images that tended to bring it out. White-on-black text was readable though fuzzy at the smallest two sizes, and was subject to mild tinting. Image quality should be fine for typical data presentations, unless you require exacting color.

Video quality is adequate for short video clips as part of a presentation. The projector did well in resolving detail in both dark and bright areas. Colors seemed reasonably true, except for two issues. The rainbow effect was more obvious than in typical DLP projectors, and people who are sensitive to it would likely not want to watch this projector?s video for any length of time.

The other problem is color fringing. The intersections where bright areas met dark backgrounds (including the edges of the screen when the part of the image near them was bright) frequently showed as colored lines, yellow if at the top (or right edge) of the bright area, and blue if at the bottom. The yellow edge was most notable, and the fringing was visible often enough to be distracting?it really stood out in the type in the film credits.

Another drawback to showing video with the IN1124 is that its sound system, which employs a 1-watt speaker, is feeble. You?d have to be very close to the projector for it to be audible.

The InFocus In1124 is a lightweight, highly portable projector fitting for its intended audience: businesspeople that need to make frequent presentations to small groups while traveling. It?s brighter?and lighter?than the Editors? Choice XGA-resolution Epson PowerLite 93+. However, the InFocus?s image quality was middling while the Epson?s data and video image quality were both excellent. The 93+ has the loud and clear audio that the IN1124 lacks. However, it?s not as wieldy, as the InFocus, so for frequent presenters who need a small and bright projector to get the job done while on the road the IN1124 may be preferable. The InFocus is brighter than the equally portable Boxlight TraveLight3, with about the same image quality and sound.

More Projector Reviews:

??? InFocus IN1124
??? Severtson GP4360
??? Volfoni SmartCrystal Pro
??? Severtson GP169923D
??? Hitachi BZ-1
?? more

j r martinez

Monday, May 7, 2012

Hands-on with SuperTooth Disco2

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Move over Jambox, there's a new portable audio contender entering the market. The Disco2, shown off at this week's CTIA 2012, is SuperTooth's smaller, more compact sequel to its O.G. 28 watt powerhouse of the same name and a direct threat to the niche market occupied by Jawbone. Housed in a colorful hourglass-shaped design that should please the style-minded, this rechargeable speaker connects over Bluetooth to your device of choice, outputting 16 watts of 360 degree sound through two speakers and a subwoofer. It's set to hit the market mid-month priced at $99, but for consumers that want a bit more of an aural punch, an additional unit can actually be paired up to deliver a fuller stereo effect. Judging from its powerful performance on the noisy showroom floor, however, you'd probably be fine with just the one. Click on below to take a better look at the company's curvy offering.

Sean Cooper contributed to this report.

Hands-on with SuperTooth Disco2 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 21:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Greek election forces coalition - parties agree bailout terms must change (Americablog)

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Former Mass. Gov. Romney takes in Celtics game (The Arizona Republic)

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Sunday, May 6, 2012

Who's who? Obama, Romney projecting mirror image (Providence Journal)

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Ask Engadget: best lens for wedding photography?

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We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is coming to us from Van, who needs some help recording his sister's wedding. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

"I'm supposed to be shooting my sister's wedding in June, with an outdoor ceremony and an indoor reception. I've got a Canon T2i (550D, non-Americans) with the kit 18-55mm lens and a 50mm f.18 prime lens. I'm looking for suggestions for an additional lens I could rent for the day, would a 200mm or a telephoto be worth it? Also, if anyone can suggest a good filter for an afternoon shoot, that'd be very welcome. Thanks!"

That's the second wedding-related query we've had this year -- there must be something in the water. We're sure plenty of you want to help Van's sister's big day go perfectly, so any photogs, camera buffs and bridezillas with an opinion, please add them below.

Ask Engadget: best lens for wedding photography? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 May 2012 22:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everyone Has Been Hacked. Now What? [Hacking]

The attackers chose their moment well. More »


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