Japan hopes Europe will boost rescue mechanism: sources (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) ? Europe should boost the total firepower of its rescue fund and frontload its funding to send a positive signal to investors and international partners that it is determined to solve its debt crisis, Japanese officials said on Monday.

Japan has repeatedly expressed its willingness to help Europe contain its debt crisis, but has also stressed it wanted to see a convincing action plan before making any firm commitments.

"Japan like other non-euro countries is prepared to do something, but unless European countries take decisive action it is hard to make those steps effective," a senior Japanese government official said.

Lifting the combined size of the current bailout fund (EFSF) and the new permanent European Stability Mechanism (ESM) beyond the current 500 billion euros would be a major step and an encouraging signal.

"We expect European countries will review the combined ceiling of 500 billion euro of EFSF (European Financial Stability Fund) and ESM in a very positive manner," the official told Reuters.

European leaders agreed in Brussels earlier this month to accelerate the launch of the ESM by a year to mid-2012 with an effective lending capacity of 500 billion euros ($650 billion), but questions have arisen about the size and timing of contributions.

Japanese officials said that while bringing forward the launch of the fund was positive, a more ambitious ceiling might be needed given that Europe had little success in bringing in outside investors to boost the firepower of the EFSF fund.

"The leveraging of EFSF money by investors' money doesn't look like materializing very well. That's why they are frontloading the ESM and the review of the ceiling of 500 billion euro is very important," said the official, who declined to be named.

"European countries may think what they've already decided is a major step forward, but markets want Europe to act more decisively."

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble signaled over the weekend that Europe's biggest economy and its main paymaster could boost its contribution to the fund and support its swift launch, although any decisions would have to be made in January.

Since the beginning of the crisis more than two years ago, European leaders have orchestrated bailouts of Greece, Ireland and Portugal, set up a euro zone rescue fund and earlier this month agreed to boost the International Monetary Fund's resources by 150 billion euros.

Still, throughout the crisis that has also shaken Italy and Spain, investors have repeatedly been left with the impression that whatever was agreed in Brussels was too little, too late.

Japan, the United States, Canada and others have voiced their frustration with Europe's piecemeal progress and repeatedly called for bold steps that would create effective "firewalls" around the euro zone's weaker, heavily indebted economies.

Another Japanese government official reiterated on Monday that Tokyo, which led an international effort to boost the IMF's coffers after the Lehman crisis, was open to contributing more but that its decision depended on Europe's actions.

Officials in Tokyo said markets needed to see both effective defenses in the form of funds sufficient enough to cover the crisis-hit nations' financing needs and commitments to fiscal discipline.

"Fiscal discipline is very important. Even if we provide firewalls we need fiscal discipline," the official said.

While Tokyo has repeatedly voiced concern about developments in Europe, its plans to buy Chinese government debt did not reflect lack of confidence in the euro or U.S. dollar assets, another official said.

He said the plans, discussed during Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's visit to Beijing, aimed at strengthening economic ties between the two nations rather than diversifying Japan's exchange reserves, mostly made up of dollar and euro assets.

"The idea is not to depart from the dollar or U.S. government bonds or the euro, so it should not be interpreted as diversification of our portfolio," the official said.

"I don't have any doubts about creditworthiness of the dollar or U.S. government bonds. The dollar will remain the most important currency for the foreseeable future."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111226/bs_nm/us_japan_eurozone

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VT nears completion of HokieSpeed, world's 96th most powerful supercomputer

If basking in the presence of a powerful supercomputer is on your list of "must-haves" when selecting a proper university, then you may wish to fire off an admissions application to the Hokies at Virginia Tech. The school's HokieSpeed system is now in its final stages of testing, which combines 209 separate computers, each powered by dual six-core Xeon E5645 CPUs and two NVIDIA M2050 / C2050 448-core GPUs, with a single-precision peak processing capability of 455 teraflops. To put things in perspective, HokieSpeed is now the 96th most powerful computer in the world, and yet it was built for merely $1.4 million in loose change -- the majority of which came from a National Science Foundation grant. As a further claim to fame, HokieSpeed is the 11th most energy-efficient supercomputer in the world. Coming soon, the system will drive a 14-foot wide by four-foot tall visualization wall, which is to consist of eight 46-inch Samsung 3D televisions humming in unison. After all, with virtually limitless potential, these scientists will need a fitting backdrop for all those Skyrim sessions. The full PR follows the break, complete with commentary from the system's mastermind, Professor Wu Feng.

Continue reading VT nears completion of HokieSpeed, world's 96th most powerful supercomputer

VT nears completion of HokieSpeed, world's 96th most powerful supercomputer originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Dec 2011 18:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/23/vt-nears-completion-of-hokiespeed-worlds-96th-most-powerful-su/

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France to pay for removal of risky breast implants

France took a costly and unprecedented leap Friday in offering to pay for 30,000 women to have their breast implants removed because of mounting fears the products could rupture and leak cheap, industrial-grade silicone into the body.

Tens of thousands of other women elsewhere in Europe and in South America have the same French-made implants, but authorities there have so far refused to follow suit. The silicone-gel implants in question are not sold in the U.S.

Over the past week, the safety fears have created a public furor over something usually kept private, even in France. Women, some whose own families didn't know they had their breasts enlarged, marched on Paris to demand more attention to worries about what might be happening inside them. Images of leaky, blubbery implants and women having mammograms have been splashed on French TV.

More than 1,000 ruptures pushed Health Minister Xavier Bertrand to recommend that the estimated 30,000 women in France with the implants get them removed at the state's expense.

Bertrand insisted the removals would be "preventive" and not urgent, and French health authorities said they had found nothing to link the implants to nine cases of cancer in women. The death last month of a woman who had the implants and developed a rare cancer ? anaplastic large-cell lymphoma ? had catalyzed worries.

The implants, made by the now-defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese, were pulled from the market last year in countries around Europe and South America where they had been sold. The company's website said it exported to more than 60 countries and was one of the world's leading implant makers.

International police agency Interpol put PIP's former director, Jean-Claude Mas, on its most-wanted list, based on a warrant from Costa Rica for crimes involving "life and health." Interpol's website carries a photo of the 72-year-old Mas but no details about his alleged crimes or link to Costa Rica. Mas' lawyer could not be reached for comment Friday.

France's health safety agency says the PIP implants appear to be more rupture-prone than other types. Also, investigators say PIP used industrial silicone instead of the medical variety to save money. However, the medical risks posed by industrial silicone are unclear.

The financial burden of the French government's decision falls on the state health care system, which estimated the removals could cost ?60 million ($78 million) at a time when the country is teetering on the brink of another recession and struggling with debt.

In recommending removal, the government noted the risks associated with major surgery and general anesthesia.

Because of those risks, many women may decide against removal. The government said those women should be examined every six months.

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After the French decision, Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency announced that it doesn't see enough proof of cancer or an excessive risk of rupture to recommend women in Britain have the implants removed. Up to 40,000 women in Britain may have had the implants, even more than in France.

Britain's chief medical officer, Sally Davies, said women "should not be unduly worried."

"While we respect the French government's decision, no other country is taking similar steps because we currently have no evidence to support it," she said.

The president of Brazil's Plastic Surgeons Association, Jose Horacio Aboudib, said it would be premature to have women remove the implants if they are not having any problems. About 25,000 women in Brazil received PIP implants.

"There is always a risk associated with surgery, and there is a cost. In France, the government is paying for it. Here it's not considered a public health risk, so the patient would have to pay for it," he said.

Medical authorities in Argentina and Venezuela recommended closer monitoring of women who have the implants.

In the U.S., concerns about silicone gel implants in general led to a 14-year ban on their use, in favor of saline-filled implants. Silicone implants were brought back to the market in the U.S. in 2006 after research ruled out links to cancer, lupus and some other concerns.

In France, one reason for the alarm was the uncertainty over the ingredients of the silicone used and the risk to internal organs. Also, while all breast implants can burst, especially as they get older, "these implants have a particular fragility" and appear to pose risks of rupture earlier in their life spans than other implants, said Jean-Claude Ghislain of the French health agency AFSSAPS.

France's state health care system normally pays for implants for medical reasons, such as after a mastectomy, but not for cosmetic implants. About 80 percent of those with the PIP implants had them for aesthetic reasons.

Annie Mesnil, who had a PIP implant to replace a breast removed after cancer in 1999, said she was relieved that the Health Ministry "accepts the idea that there is a potential danger." But she added: "It's not enough. They will pay for the removal of the implants, but they will not pay for the replacements."

After the PIP product was recalled last year, a mammogram and ultrasound did not reveal any problems with Mesnil's implant. But Mesnil, 62, had it removed anyway, at her own expense, out of fear.

When her surgeon took it out and studied it, "he discovered it had already burst," she said. "I don't know what's spilled inside my body."

The state health care system only reimburses about 230 euros for implant removal operations, but public hospitals that provide the service for that low fee are rare and overbooked. Most plastic surgeons in France are private practitioners who can charge five to 10 times more than that for a removal. Some plastic surgeons have agreed to lower their fees under government pressure.

Chantal Guerin, a 46-year-old accountant and mother of three, had her left breast removed after cancer and had PIP implants put in both breasts. In 2010, she developed cancer in her right breast.

"One cannot directly incriminate the implant, since there is no scientific proof," she said in an interview. "But we have the right to ask ourselves a lot of questions, because there is a great amount of physical pain involved."

___

Jill Lawless in London, Juliana Barbassa in Rio de Janeiro, Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Ian James in Venezuela, Deborah Gouffran and Ingrid Rousseau in Paris contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45778822/ns/health-womens_health/

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Norm Chow Comes Home To Accept UH Football Job

POSTED: 12:15 am HST December 23, 2011
UPDATED: 12:16 am HST December 23, 2011

It's been a whirlwind week for the newly appointed University of Hawaii Football coach Norm Chow. He described his meeting with school officials late Tuesday night as a cloak and dagger kind of moment.

Source: http://www.kitv.com/video/30061597/index.html

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Deputies: Man returned to beer after bank robbery

(AP) ? Authorities say a Tampa Bay area man ordered a beer at a bar, left to rob a nearby bank then came back to finish his beer.

The Pasco County Sheriff's Office says 52-year-old John Robin Whittle was arrested at the Hayloft Bar in Port Richey on Thursday afternoon. Deputies say he's the man who robbed a Wells-Fargo bank branch earlier, but not before stopping off at the Hayloft for a brew.

A bartender there says Whittle ordered a beer, disappeared for about 30 minutes and then returned to his beer. Deputies say they arrested him at the bar about 10 minutes after he left the bank.

Whittle remained in jail early Friday on $10,000 bond. No attorney was listed for him.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2011-12-23-Bank%20Robbery-Beer/id-269a1ef1f8bc424d837162337a1cb788

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NYCGreenfield: RT @markknoller: This is Pres Obama's 12th vacation since taking office. His 3rd as president in Hawaii. His 4th if you count visit as P ...

Loader This is Pres Obama's 12th vacation since taking office. His 3rd as president in Hawaii. His 4th if you count visit as Pres.-elect..

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LogMeIn remote desktop app goes free on iPhone and iPad

Looks like LogMeIn Inc. has suddenly cottoned on to the freemium business model, deciding to offer its basic remote desktop app for iPhone and iPad entirely gratis. Previously, you had to hand over $29.99 for the simple pleasure of accessing your PC and Mac desktops via LogMeIn Ignition, but the new free version (simply 'LogMeIn') amply provides for that barebones service, while bells and whistles are reserved for those who buy an in-app subscription to LogMeIn Pro at $40 per year -- including things like HD video and sound streaming, file transferring and integration with cloud storage services . Confusing matters slightly, the old Ignition app won't die. It'll live on in the App Store with a massively inflated price to support old Ignition customers and -- most importantly -- give them grandfather rights to Pro features, so they don't feel left out and start sniffing around the competition. There's a full PR after the break, and it also mentions that Android update is on its way in 2012.

Continue reading LogMeIn remote desktop app goes free on iPhone and iPad

LogMeIn remote desktop app goes free on iPhone and iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 24 Dec 2011 04:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/24/logmein-remote-desktop-app-goes-free-on-iphone-and-ipad/

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Melanie Amaro Believes She Can Fly, Win The X Factor Title


Can we hand Melanie Amaro The X Factor title now, please?

The season-long front-runner proved once again last night that she clearly has the best voice in the competition, singing a duet with R. Kelly on "I Believe I Can Fly" and matching the iconic artist note-for-note.

She then went with "Listen" for her second cover and even L.A. Reid had to gush. "That was a $50 million performance," the often-picky judge told Amaro, while Simon Cowell added that Melanie should be the show's first winner.

We agree. Do you?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/12/melanie-amaro-believes-she-can-fly-win-the-x-factor-title/

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