Bee deaths stir up renewed buzz

From 2012: Honeybees may be victims of widely used insecticides. NBC's Anne Thompson reports.

By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News

This past winter has been exceptionally rough for honeybees ??and although it's too early to say exactly why, the usual suspects range from pesticides that appear to cause memory loss to pests that got an exceptionally early start last spring.

Friday marked the start of an annual survey that asks beekeepers to report how many bees they lost over the winter, conducted by the Bee Informed Partnership, the Apiary Inspectors of America and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The advance word is that the results will be brutal.??The New York Times, for example, quoted beekeepers as saying the losses reached levels of 40 to 50 percent?? which would be double the average reported last year.

One beekeeper in Montana was quoted as saying that his bees seemed health last spring, but in September, "they started to fall on their face, to die like crazy."

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Dennis vanEngelsdorp, an entomologist at the University of Maryland who is one of the leaders of the survey team, said he can't predict what the past winter's average loss figure will be. The beekeepers' reports are being solicited online for the next two weeks, and the figures are due for release on May 7.

"What I can say is, when we were in California this year, the strength of the colonies that were there was significantly lower than it was in previous years," vanEngelsdorp told NBC News.?

Pesticides at issue
That's consistent with a mysterious ailment known as colony collapse disorder, which has stirred scientists' concern for the past decade. The malady almost certainly due to combination of factors ??including the Varroa mite, a single-celled parasite known as Nosema, several varieties of viruses, and pesticides. Researchers point to one particular class of pesticides, known as neonicotinoids, as a prime suspect.

Neonicotinoid-based pesticides are commonly applied as a coating on corn seeds, but the chemicals can persist in the environment. Although they have low toxicity for mammals, they've been found to have a significant neurotoxic effect on insects, including bees. Several European countries have banned neonicotinoids, the European Union has been looking at a wider ban, and the Environmental Protection Agency is considering new limitations as well. Just last week, a lawsuit called on the EPA to suspend the use of two types of neonicotinoids immediately.

Two recently published studies add to the concern: This week, researchers report in Nature Communications that neonicotinoids block the part of a bee's brain that associates scents with foods. They suggest that without that functionality, the bees effectively forget that floral scents mean food is nearby, and thus die off before they can pollinate. A study published in January in the Journal of Experimental Biology found a similar link to problems with scent-related learning and memory.

Mild winter, dry summer
Although neonicotinoids are currently front and center in the debate over colony collapse disorder, they're not necessarily the primary reason for this winter's dramatic dip in bee colonies.

VanEngelsdorp noted that the winter of 2011-2012 was easy on the bees: Losses amounted to just 21.9 percent, compared with a 2006-2011 average of 33 percent. However, the mild winter was kind to the bees' pests as well. VanEngelsdorp speculated that Varroa mites may have gained an early foothold in the hives last spring. By the time beekeepers started their treatments on the usual schedule, it was too late to keep the mites from weakening the colonies. That would help explain why the past winter's losses were worse than usual.

Scott Bauer / USDA via AP

A worker bee carries a Varroa mite, visible in this close-up view.

California beekeeper Randy Oliver, who discusses industry trends on the Scientific Beekeeping blog, said the past summer's drought was also a factor: "When there's a drought, the bees are in poor shape with the food," he told NBC News. He said he and other beekeepers predicted that there'd be heavy winter losses last July, when the scale of the drought became clear.

Heavy losses are bad news, and if bee colonies are becoming progressively weaker, that's worse news. It's not just because of the honey: The Department of Agriculture says that bee pollination is responsible for more than $15 billion in increased crop value each year. A bee scarcity increases costs for the farmers who need them for pollination, and that could lead to higher food prices. But Oliver said it's important to keep a sense of perspective about the bad news.

"The situation with the bees is not dire," he said. "The bees are doing OK. There's no danger that the bees will go extinct. ... That's just not true."

More about bees:

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Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's?Facebook page, following?@b0yle on Twitter?and adding the?Cosmic Log page?to your Google+ presence. To keep up with Cosmic Log as well as NBCNews.com's other stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out?"The Case for Pluto,"?my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.

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ANIMALS: Oklahoma making it legal to slaughter horses for food - blog

Posted on | March 30, 2013 | Comments

Folks in Norco may not want to read any further. Horse is back on the menu.

No, not in Horsetown USA or anywhere else in California. Voters in the Golden State criminalized horse slaughtering for human consumption in 1998.

In California, these fellows would not comprise a three-course dinner. But Oklahoma is about to make slaughtering horses for human consumption legal. FILE PHOTO

But in horse-loving Oklahoma, it?s about to be legal to kill horses and process the meat for sale to people.

According to our friends at Food Safety News, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin is expected to sign into law a bill that will bring an end to the state?s five-decade-old ban on slaughtering horses.

The bill passed the state Senate this week. It passed the House last month.

?One important fact that the public may be unaware of: Oklahoma horses are already being slaughtered, ? said Aaron Cooper, the Governor?s spokesman. ? They are simply being shipped out of the country to Mexico and killed, in conditions that may be inhumane.?

That may be a bit of equine rationalization, however, it?s true. And the law won?t put pony burgers on the menu at Thunder games. While the law allows the slaughter of horses, all the meat must be shipped out of state.

However, the law could be rendered moot in the years ahead. Myriad efforts have been made for a national law banning horse consumption.

Read the complete story here.

Written by: Tom Bray

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Leadership fight divides Occidental shareholders - report

(Reuters) - Occidental Petroleum Corp chairman and former chief executive Ray Irani is pushing to replace the oil company's current CEO, Stephen Chazen, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing "investors and people familiar with the company's operations."

However, several big investors who support Chazen have considered the possibility of trying to vote some directors, including Irani, off the board, the newspaper said, citing "people familiar with their plans."

The debate over the leadership of the fourth-largest U.S. oil company has divided major shareholders ahead of the company's annual meeting on May 3, the newspaper said.

The boardroom drama comes as shares of Occidental have fallen 18 percent in the past year, compared with an 11 percent rise for California rival Chevron Corp and a 4 percent rise for giant Exxon Mobil Corp.

Occidental, in a brief press release on February 14, announced that it was searching for someone to succeed Chazen, 66, after less than two years in the top job.

Yet, earlier this month at an industry event in New Orleans, Chazen told a group of investors that he did not volunteer to leave, the newspaper said.

Chazen is only the third CEO at Occidental in half a century. Irani was named CEO in 1990 by Armand Hammer, a flamboyant tycoon who spent three decades building the company up from a small firm of just three employees.

Chazen and Irani found both themselves targeted over their high compensation, until a shareholder effort to take board seats sparked reform in 2010. Chazen ended up earning compensation worth $31.7 million (20.8 million pounds) in 2011, down from $38.1 million the year before, while Irani made $49.8 million in 2011, down from $76.1 million.

The 78-year-old Irani, who is scheduled to retire at the end of 2014, owns a substantial amount of Occidental stock, the Journal said.

Occidental's lead director, Aziz Syriani, said in a statement that the company's independent directors, and not Irani, were making decisions about Chazen's eventual successor.

"Any suggestion otherwise, or insinuation that Dr. Irani is guiding the process, is completely and flatly wrong," Syriani said in the statement, which Occidental provided to Reuters.

An Occidental spokeswoman had no additional comment.

(Reporting by Julie Ingwersen; editing by Gunna Dickson)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/leadership-fight-divides-occidental-shareholders-report-181903044--finance.html

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Iran, Syria, N. Korea block first global treaty to control $70 billion arms trade

Maysun / EPA, file

Syrian Army fighters preparing themselves to shoot against Syrian Army positions in Aleppo, Syria, March 11.

By Louis Charbonneau, Reuters

UNITED NATIONS -- Iran, Syria and North Korea on Friday prevented the adoption of the first international treaty to regulate the $70 billion global conventional arms trade, complaining that it was flawed and failed to ban weapons sales to rebel groups.

To get around the blockade, British U.N. Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant sent the draft treaty to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and asked him on behalf of Mexico, Australia and a number of others to put it to a swift vote in the General Assembly.

U.N. diplomats said the 193-nation General Assembly could put the draft treaty to a vote as early as Tuesday.

The head of the U.S. delegation, Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Countryman, told a group of reporters, "We look forward to this treaty being adopted very soon by the United Nations General Assembly."

He declined to predict the result of a vote but said it would be a "substantial majority" in favor.

"A good, strong treaty has been blocked," said Britain's chief delegate, Joanne Adamson. "Most people in the world want regulation and those are the voices that need to be heard."

"This is success deferred," she added.

The point of an arms trade treaty is to set standards for all cross-border transfers of conventional weapons.

It would also create binding requirements for states to review all cross-border arms contracts to ensure arms will not be used in human rights abuses, terrorism or violations of humanitarian law.

NRA: Treaty threatens gun rights
Arms control activists and human rights groups say a treaty is needed to halt the uncontrolled flow of arms and ammunition that they say fuels wars, atrocities and rights abuses.

"The world has been held hostage by three states," said Anna Macdonald, an arms control expert at humanitarian agency Oxfam. "We have known all along that the consensus process was deeply flawed and today we see it is actually dysfunctional."

"Countries such as Iran, Syria and DPRK (North Korea) should not be allowed to dictate to the rest of the world how the sale of weapons should be regulated," she added.?

The National Rifle Association opposes the treaty and has vowed to fight to prevent its ratification if it reaches Washington. The NRA says the treaty would undermine domestic gun-ownership rights.

The American Bar Association, an attorneys' lobby group, has said that the treaty would not impact the right to bear arms.

Jim Watson / AFP - Getty Images

Demonstrators from Amnesty International call for a global arms treaty in a protest outside the White House, March 22.

The main reason the arms trade talks took place at all is that the United States - the world's biggest arms exporter - reversed U.S. policy on the issue after President Barack Obama was first elected and decided in 2009 to support an arms treaty.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had told Iran's Press TV that Tehran supported the arms trade treaty. But Iranian U.N. Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee told the conference that he could not accept the treaty in its current form.

"It is a matter of deep regret that genuine efforts of many countries for a robust, balanced and non-discriminatory treaty were ignored.,? he said.

One of those flaws was its failure to ban sales of weapons to groups that commit "acts of aggression," ostensibly referring to rebel groups, he said. The current draft does not ban transfers to armed groups but says all arms transfers should be subjected to rigorous risk and human rights assessments first.

Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari echoed the Iranian concerns. "Unfortunately our national concerns were not taken into consideration," he said.

North Korea's delegate voiced similar complaints, suggesting it was a discriminatory treaty.

Russia and China made clear they would not have blocked it but voiced serious reservations about the text and its failure to get consensus.

A Russian delegate told the conference that Moscow would have to think hard about signing it if it were approved.

If adopted by the General Assembly, the pact will need to be signed and ratified by at least 50 states to enter into force.

Related:

'Not good enough': Rights groups blast draft of arms trade treaty

North Korea is no 'paper tiger', warns US official as regime puts rockets on standby

Israel to grill Obama over possible military strike on Iran

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

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Estrogen plus progestin use linked with increased breast cancer incidence and mortality

Public release date: 29-Mar-2013
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Contact: Zachary Rathner
Zachary.Rathner@oup.com
919-677-2697
Journal of the National Cancer Institute

Estrogen plus progestin use is linked with increased breast cancer incidence. In addition, prognosis is similar for both users and nonusers of combined hormone therapy, suggesting that mortality from breast cancer may be higher for hormone therapy users as well, according to a study published March 29 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

In the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) randomized trial, estrogen plus progestin was associated with an increase in both breast cancer incidence and mortality. However, most observational studies have linked estrogen plus progestin with more positive outcomes.

In order to determine the differences between the WHI trial and other observational studies, Rowan T. Chlebowski, M.D., Ph.D., Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) lead researcher and colleagues, looked at postmenopausal women with no prior hysterectomy with negative mammograms within two years who were either users or non-users of estrogen and progestin combined therapy.

The researchers found that breast cancer incidence was higher in estrogen plus progestin users than incidence in nonusers. Women who started hormone therapy closer to menopause had a higher breast cancer risk with a weakening influence as the time from menopause increased.

"Because survival after breast cancer diagnosis did not differ between estrogen plus progestin users and nonusers, the higher breast cancer incidence of those using estrogen plus progestin may lead to increased breast cancer mortality on a population basis," the authors write.

In an accompanying editorial, Catherine Schairer, Ph.D., and Louise A. Brinton, Ph.D., both of the National Cancer Institute, write that questions remain about whether the data analyzed from the WHI observational study resolves the differences in tumor prognosis and tumor characteristics when compared to the WHI randomized trial. They write that, "In general, tumors in estrogen plus progestin users in the WHI Observational Study were not significantly different from those in non-hormone users with regard to number of positive lymph nodes or tumor size, but were more likely to be well differentiated and positive for hormone receptors, findings which are similar to other observational studies." This, however, did not translate into a survival benefit. They recommend further analyses in this and other datasets of currency and duration of hormone use in relationship to tumor development to fully resolve the issue of tumor characteristics associated with estrogen plus progestin therapy.

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

Public release date: 29-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Zachary Rathner
Zachary.Rathner@oup.com
919-677-2697
Journal of the National Cancer Institute

Estrogen plus progestin use is linked with increased breast cancer incidence. In addition, prognosis is similar for both users and nonusers of combined hormone therapy, suggesting that mortality from breast cancer may be higher for hormone therapy users as well, according to a study published March 29 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

In the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) randomized trial, estrogen plus progestin was associated with an increase in both breast cancer incidence and mortality. However, most observational studies have linked estrogen plus progestin with more positive outcomes.

In order to determine the differences between the WHI trial and other observational studies, Rowan T. Chlebowski, M.D., Ph.D., Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) lead researcher and colleagues, looked at postmenopausal women with no prior hysterectomy with negative mammograms within two years who were either users or non-users of estrogen and progestin combined therapy.

The researchers found that breast cancer incidence was higher in estrogen plus progestin users than incidence in nonusers. Women who started hormone therapy closer to menopause had a higher breast cancer risk with a weakening influence as the time from menopause increased.

"Because survival after breast cancer diagnosis did not differ between estrogen plus progestin users and nonusers, the higher breast cancer incidence of those using estrogen plus progestin may lead to increased breast cancer mortality on a population basis," the authors write.

In an accompanying editorial, Catherine Schairer, Ph.D., and Louise A. Brinton, Ph.D., both of the National Cancer Institute, write that questions remain about whether the data analyzed from the WHI observational study resolves the differences in tumor prognosis and tumor characteristics when compared to the WHI randomized trial. They write that, "In general, tumors in estrogen plus progestin users in the WHI Observational Study were not significantly different from those in non-hormone users with regard to number of positive lymph nodes or tumor size, but were more likely to be well differentiated and positive for hormone receptors, findings which are similar to other observational studies." This, however, did not translate into a survival benefit. They recommend further analyses in this and other datasets of currency and duration of hormone use in relationship to tumor development to fully resolve the issue of tumor characteristics associated with estrogen plus progestin therapy.

###

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[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/jotn-epp032613.php

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Unlike AT&T, Verizon reportedly putting promotional muscle behind BlackBerry Z10 launch

By Jason Szep SIT KWIN, Myanmar (Reuters) - The Muslims of Sit Kwin were always a small group who numbered no more than 100 of the village's 2,000 people. But as sectarian violence led by Buddhist mobs spreads across central Myanmar, they and many other Muslims are disappearing. Their homes, shops and mosques destroyed, some end up in refugee camps or hide in the homes of friends or relatives. Dozens have been killed. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/unlike-t-verizon-reportedly-putting-promotional-muscle-behind-142056565.html

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Toddler Picks Lock, Raids Sister's Room to Gank Pillow Pet at Night

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/03/toddler-picks-lock-raids-sisters-room-to-gank-pillow-pet-at-nigh/

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Pope's foot-washing final blow for traditionalists

VATICAN CITY (AP) ? Pope Francis has won over many hearts and minds with his simple style and focus on serving the world's poorest, but he has devastated traditionalist Catholics who adored his predecessor, Benedict XVI, for restoring much of the traditional pomp to the papacy.

Francis' decision to disregard church law and wash the feet of two girls ? a Serbian Muslim and an Italian Catholic ? during a Holy Thursday ritual has become something of the final straw, evidence that Francis has little or no interest in one of the key priorities of Benedict's papacy: reviving the pre-Vatican II traditions of the Catholic Church.

One of the most-read traditionalist blogs, "Rorate Caeli," reacted to the foot-washing ceremony by declaring the death of Benedict's eight-year project to correct what he considered the botched interpretations of the Second Vatican Council's modernizing reforms.

"The official end of the reform of the reform ? by example," ''Rorate Caeli" lamented in its report on Francis' Holy Thursday ritual.

A like-minded commentator in Francis' native Argentina, Marcelo Gonzalez at International Catholic Panorama, reacted to Francis' election with this phrase: "The Horror." Gonzalez's beef? While serving as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Francis' efforts to revive the old Latin Mass so dear to Benedict and traditionalists were "non-existent."

The night he was chosen pope, March 13, Francis emerged from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica without the ermine-rimmed red velvet cape, or mozzetta, used by popes past for official duties, wearing instead the simple white cassock of the papacy.

He also received the cardinals' pledges of obedience after his election not from a chair on a pedestal as popes normally do but rather standing, on their same level. In the days since, he has called for "intensified" dialogue with Islam ? a gesture that rankles some traditionalists because they view interfaith dialogue as a sign of religious relativism.

This year's Good Friday procession at Rome's Colosseum, which re-enacts Jesus Christ's crucifixion, was dedicated to the plight of Mideast Christians, with prayers calling for an end to "violent fundamentalism."

Francis, however, chose to stress Christians' positive relations with Muslims in brief remarks the end of the ceremony. He recalled Benedict's 2012 visit to Lebanon when "we saw the beauty and the strong bond of communion joining Christians together in that land and the friendship of our Muslim brothers and sisters and so many others."

Francis also raised traditional eyebrows when he refused the golden pectoral cross offered to him right after his election by Monsignor Guido Marini, the Vatican's liturgy guru who under Benedict became the symbol of Benedict's effort to restore the Gregorian chant and heavy silk brocaded vestments of the pre-Vatican II liturgy to papal Masses.

Marini has gamely stayed by Francis' side as the new pope puts his own stamp on Vatican Masses with no-nonsense vestments and easy off-the-cuff homilies. But there is widespread expectation that Francis will soon name a new master of liturgical ceremonies more in line with his priorities of bringing the church and its message of love and service to ordinary people without the "high church" trappings of his predecessor.

There were certainly none of those trappings on display Thursday at the Casal del Marmo juvenile detention facility in Rome, where the 76-year-old Francis got down on his knees and to wash the feet of 12 inmates, two of them women. The rite re-enacts Jesus' washing of the feet of his 12 apostles during the Last Supper before his crucifixion, a sign of his love and service to them.

The church's liturgical law holds that only men can participate in the rite, given that Jesus' apostles were all male. Priests and bishops have routinely petitioned for exemptions to include women, but the law is clear.

Francis, however, is the church's chief lawmaker, so in theory he can do whatever he wants.

"The pope does not need anybody's permission to make exceptions to how ecclesiastical law relates to him," noted conservative columnist Jimmy Akin in the National Catholic Register. But Akin echoed concerns raised by canon lawyer Edward Peters, an adviser to the Vatican's high court, that Francis was setting a "questionable example" by simply ignoring the church's own rules.

"People naturally imitate their leader. That's the whole point behind Jesus washing the disciples' feet. He was explicitly and intentionally setting an example for them," he said. "Pope Francis knows that he is setting an example."

The inclusion of women in the rite is problematic for some because it could be seen as an opening of sorts to women's ordination. The Catholic Church restricts the priesthood to men, arguing that Jesus and his 12 apostles were male.

Francis is clearly opposed to women's ordination. But by washing the feet of women, he jolted traditionalists who for years have been unbending in insisting that the ritual is for men only and proudly holding up as evidence documentation from the Vatican's liturgy office saying so.

"If someone is washing the feet of any females ... he is in violation of the Holy Thursday rubrics," Peters wrote in a 2006 article that he reposted earlier this month on his blog.

In the face of the pope doing that very thing, Peters ? like many conservative and traditionalist commentators ? have found themselves trying to put the best face on a situation they don't like lest they be openly voicing dissent with the pope.

By Thursday evening, Peters was saying that Francis had merely "disregarded" the law ? not violated it.

The Rev. John Zuhlsdorf, a traditionalist blogger who has never shied from picking fights with priests, bishops or cardinals when it concerns liturgical abuses, had to measure his comments when the purported abuser was the pope himself.

"Before liberals and traditionalists both have a spittle-flecked nutty, each for their own reasons, try to figure out what he is trying to do," Zuhlsdorf wrote.

But, in characteristic form, he added: "What liberals forget in their present crowing is that even as Francis makes himself ? and the church ? more popular by projecting (a) compassionate image, he will simultaneously make it harder for them to criticize him when he reaffirms the doctrinal points they want him to overturn."

One of the key barometers of how traditionalists view Francis concerns his take on the pre-Vatican II Latin Mass. The Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that brought the church into the modern world, allowed the celebration of the Mass in the vernacular rather than Latin. In the decades that followed, the so-called Tridentine Rite fell out of use almost entirely.

Traditionalist Catholics who were attached to the old rite blame many of the ills afflicting the Catholic Church today ? a drop in priestly vocations, empty pews in Europe and beyond ? on the liturgical abuses that they say have proliferated with the celebration of the new form of Mass.

In a bid to reach out to them, Benedict in 2007 relaxed restrictions on celebrating the old Latin Mass. The move was aimed also at reconciling with a group of schismatic traditionalists, the Society of St. Pius X, who split from Rome precisely over the Vatican II reforms, in particular its call for Mass in the vernacular and outreach to other religions, especially Judaism and Islam.

Benedict took extraordinary measures to bring the society back under Rome's wing during his pontificate, but negotiations stalled.

The society has understandably reacted coolly to Francis' election, reminding the pope that his namesake, St. Francis of Assisi, was told by Christ to go and "rebuild my church." For the society, that means rebuilding it in a pre-Vatican II vision.

The head of the society for South America, the Rev. Christian Bouchacourt, was less than generous in his assessment of Francis.

"He cultivates a militant humility, but can prove humiliating for the church," Bouchacourt said in a recent article, criticizing the "dilapidated" state of the clergy in Buenos Aires and the "disaster" of its seminary. "With him, we risk to see once again the masses of Paul VI's pontificate, a far cry from Benedict XVI's efforts to restore to their honor the worthy liturgical ceremonies."

___

Follow Nicole Winfield at www.twitter.com/nwinfield

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/popes-foot-washing-final-blow-traditionalists-204320747.html

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iFixit breaks open an HTC One, literally

Considering its sleek, primarily aluminum construction we never thought the HTC One was going be easy to crack open. But, it seems not even iFixit was completely prepared for the challenge of picking one apart. Since there are no screws used in the construction of the body, the fearless hackers needed to turn to a heat gun, a suction cup and a metal spudger to gain access to the internals. Underneath the swaths of aluminum and glass it turns out most of the components are covered in foil-like copper shielding that is quite difficult to deal with. There are a few screws inside, however, like the pair of fasteners that connect the 2,300mAh battery's cable to the motherboard. In the end, iFixit handed the One its namesake on the repairability scale -- meaning this sucker is practically impossible to pull apart and reassemble. To see the complete and careful destruction of HTC's latest flagship hit up the source.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

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Source: iFixit

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AP source: Barbara Walters to retire next year

NEW YORK (AP) ? Barbara Walters plans to retire next year, ending a television career that began more than a half century ago and made her a trailblazer in news and daytime TV.

Someone who works closely with Walters said the plan is for her to retire in May 2014 after a series of special programs saluting her career. The person was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday.

Walters, 83, was hospitalized earlier this year after falling and cutting her head while leaving a party in Washington and remained out of work after developing the chickenpox. Largely retired from ABC News already, her main work is at "The View," the daytime hit she created in 1997.

Her television career began in 1961 when she was hired as a writer for the "Today" show. She graduated quickly to on-air work and became the show's co-host before leaving in 1976 to become co-anchor of ABC's evening news with Harry Reasoner ? the first woman in such a role for a television network.

The pairing ended quickly and Walters settled into a role as ABC News' cajoler-in-chief, competing ferociously to land newsmaking interviews with heads of state and stars of the day. She regularly did interview specials, including an annual show with the most fascinating people of the year, and was co-host of "20/20" for two decades, much of the time with Hugh Downs.

She described "The View" as the "dessert" of her career, a regular gathering of women chatting about the hot topics of the day and interviewing visiting presidents and actors eager to reach a daytime audience. Walters appeared semi-regularly as one of the hosts.

"The View" faces a transition continuing without Walters and also the last remaining original host, Joy Behar, who recently announced she was stepping down.

Walters underwent heart surgery in 2010, turning the experience into a prime-time special, "A Matter of Life and Death," featuring interviews with fellow heart patients Bill Clinton and David Letterman.

ABC news and entertainment representatives would not comment Thursday and Walters' publicist, Cindi Berger, did not immediately return requests for comment.

It wasn't clear when Walters would announce her plans. Late spring is the time TV networks generally reveal their plans for the upcoming year so advertisers can lock in commercial time.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ap-source-barbara-walters-retire-next-201952868.html

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RIM sells a million new BlackBerry 10 phones in 4Q

TORONTO (AP) ? Research In Motion Ltd. said Thursday that it sold about 1 million of its critically important new BlackBerry 10 devices and returned to profitability in the most recent quarter.

The earnings provide a first glimpse of how RIM's new touch-screen Z10 is selling internationally and in Canada since its debut Jan. 31. Details on the U.S. launch are not part of the fiscal fourth quarter's financial results because the Z10 just went on sale in the U.S. last week.

In the quarter that ended March 2, RIM earned $98 million, or 19 cents a share, compared with a loss of $125 million, or 24 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue fell 36 percent to $2.7 billion, from $4.2 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected $2.82 billion.

"I thought they were dead. This is a huge turnaround," Jefferies analyst Peter Misek said from New York.

Misek said the Canadian company "demolished" the numbers, especially its gross margins. RIM reported gross margins of 40 percent, up from 34 percent a year earlier. The company credited higher average selling prices and higher margins for devices.

"This is a really, really good result," Misek said. "It's off to a good start."

Chief executive Thorsten Heins said he implemented numerous changes at the company over the past year and those changes have resulted in RIM returning to profitability.

The company also announced that co-founder Mike Lazaridis will retire as vice chairman and director.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-03-28-CN-Earns-Research-In-Motion/id-78086b3f1741495eb25b9dbe7c484f03

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Ex-Sen. Craig loses bid to dismiss FEC lawsuit

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A federal judge is refusing to dismiss a Federal Election Commission lawsuit accusing former Sen. Larry Craig of misusing $217,000 in campaign funds for his legal defense after his arrest in a 2007 airport bathroom sex sting.

Craig contends that the airport bathroom trip fell under his official duties as senator because he was traveling between Idaho and Washington for work.

But U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson said in a ruling Thursday that neither the charge nor the underlying conduct had anything to do with Craig's official duties.

The Idaho Republican was arrested by an undercover police officer conducting a sting operation at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. After his arrest and guilty plea to disorderly conduct later became public, Craig tried unsuccessfully to reverse his conviction.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ex-sen-craig-loses-bid-dismiss-fec-lawsuit-211033753--politics.html

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Leadership and Risk Culture - Ivey Business Journal

It is only slightly arguable, but many believe that the ability to manage risk is the crucible of a leader?s effectiveness. Failure to manage risk and to develop a risk-focused culture will sink the company and the CEO. Citing two recent, highly visible cases, these Ivey professors describe how the leaders of TD Bank Group and Maple Leaf Foods designed and implemented a strong risk management ethos and strategy in their companies.

In an increasingly volatile world there is arguably no more important role for senior leaders than to prepare their organizations for risk ? taking it, avoiding it and managing it.? This was apparent before, during and after the 2008 financial crisis. Some organizations were ill prepared to manage the risks they had built up over the previous decade of dramatically expanded leverage. They either failed or were badly damaged by the financial markets meltdown and subsequent recession. Others had recognized the risks and had either avoided them or developed robust coping structures, systems, processes and cultures that allowed them to survive or even prosper when the immediate crisis was over.

There were many differences between those organizations that collapsed or were badly hurt ? the ?failures? ? and those that survived and prospered ? the ?successes.?? We conducted an exploratory study of leadership during this time[1] and concluded that the differentiating factors could be found in those organizations? risk prediction and management competencies; character of their leaders; commitment to hands-on leadership, especially with respect to the risk management function; their management cultures, and other factors.

In the years following our work, we looked at what organizations are doing to manage risk, taking into account that certain types of risk are Black Swans[2] whereas others are ? more or less ? predictable. Organizations face different types of risks:? strategic, operational, market, liquidity and credit risk, as well as reputational risk from the non-fulfillment of a brand promise.? The only defense against such Black Swan risks is to build organizational structures, systems, processes and cultures that can allow the particular company to weather such storms.[3]

Since we are case-writers and teachers, we have the opportunity to develop teaching materials that address risk management as well as discuss them with many audiences: executives, lower-level managers and MBA/EMBA students, both in Canada and elsewhere.? Two extensive case studies in particular have given us some deeper insights into what leaders can do to establish and maintain effective risk-management cultures: ?Risk leadership at TD Bank Group, and Maple Leaf Foods Inc.: The Listeriosis Crisis.? We discuss these cases briefly in this article, along with their implications for leadership, especially the development of comprehensive and robust risk management cultures.

?Figure 1:? Case Studies in Risk Leadership

? TD Bank Group In 2002, the new leadership of the TD Bank decided to redefine its risk management appetite. This shift in risk strategy followed many years of volatile and uneven performance, during which the bank had experienced some significant credit losses because of over exposure to single names or specific industry sectors.? Over the next decade, the bank exited risky and complex synthetic investment products, reduced its reliance on single-name and concentrated industry lending, and built out its retail banking and wealth management businesses in the U.S. and Canada.? These moves shifted its risks from those over which it had little or no control to those it could better understand and manage.? From 2002-2012, TD Bank Group moved from being the 55th largest North American bank in terms of market capitalization to become the 6th largest. It also was one of only two U.S. or Canadian-based banks with a Moody?s AAA credit rating. (Ivey case 9B12C001) ? Maple Leaf Foods Maple Leaf Foods Inc. is a $1.6 billion (market cap.) food processing company with approximately $5 billion annual sales in meat products, bakery, and agri-business operations.? The company went through a serious set-back in 2008, when processed meats sold by the company under its major brand names were implicated in the deaths of 23 people from Listeriosis Monocytogenes, a food-born bacterium that had colonized in meat slicers used in one of the company?s plants.? The direct and indirect costs of this event, its reputational aftermath and disruptions to normal patterns and terms of trade, initially shook consumer confidence in its brands, depressed the company?s leading brand shares and stock price by 50 percent, and left indelible marks on many of the company?s employees.? These effects were of course secondary to the tragedy of the consumers who had used the products and their families.? Since a low point in 2008/9, the company has recovered its brand shares, restored its margins and has a refreshed and reenergized approach to food safety management; one that it believes will minimize its future food-safety risks. A key component of this new approach was the development of a world-leading food-safety culture. (Ivey case 9B11C001) ?

In both of these cases the senior leadership, led by the CEOs and fully supported by their management teams and boards of directors, created and sustained strategic risk cultures that have had a powerful influence on risk-related behaviors at all levels in the companies.? These new risk cultures were built on existing risk practices, processes and systems that had proved wanting under severe stress.? In both cases these new cultures represented significant organizational changes, led from the top but reinforced through new structures, processes and systems, and congruent behaviors that cascaded throughout the leadership ranks.

Under CEO Ed Clark?s leadership, TD Bank:

• Pursued profitable long-term, institution building consistent with his views about stewardship, leaving an organization in better shape when he left it than when he had found it, and not pursuing fads and short-term opportunities at the expense of long-term growth. ?
• Developed and promulgated a risk appetite that had three fundamental pillars:? not taking risks you don?t understand and can?t control; not taking long-tail risks with low probabilities but very severe consequences; and not taking risks that could result in serious reputational damage to the bank, its brands and its franchises.
• Explicitly targeted a mix of 70 percent retail/30 percent corporate and capital markets banking.? In pursuit of this goal the bank intensified activity in Canadian retail through extended hours and convenience banking, and started to acquire banks in the Northeastern U.S. (Banknorth), then the tri-state area around New York (Commerce Bank of New Jersey), and then with selective acquisitions in the Carolinas and Florida (South Financial Group).? These were careful acquisitions, made over time and based on sequential learning where the acquisitions could benefit from superior TD Canada Trust management, systems, processes, etc., as well as a stronger balance sheet.?
• Made major investments in TD Ameritrade, a business that he knew well through TD?s experience with Internet banking (TD Greenline). TD also bought Chrysler Financial, again a business (automobile financing) that they knew well and with which they were very comfortable.
• Avoided sub-prime lending either in Canada (where it was, in any case, highly unusual because of the structure of the Canadian mortgage market, government insured mortgages, etc.) or the United States, in which it was becoming very common and which turned out to be the epicenter of the 2008 financial crisis.
• Avoided investment in or trading of third-party, asset-backed commercial paper other than a very limited amount for its internal, treasury needs.?
• Exited the profitable but very high-risk structured-products field.
• Talked constantly about the bank?s risk appetite, what they were doing to ensure that they complied with it, what successes they were having.?
• Instituted formal executive- and management-development programs, in which risk strategy, management and the role of senior managers and executives as risk leaders were addressed and discussed with more than 800 senior leaders, and which formally cascaded down to lower-level managers and non-managerial employees. The CEO personally participated in the vast majority of these programs.?????????
• Avoided strategic drift or muddying the message by not pursuing high-risk strategies in emerging markets or unfamiliar geographies.?
• Instituted formalized risk governance and risk management systems, starting in 2002 but evolving to very highly sophisticated levels by 2011.
• Understood and appreciated the value of regulation and worked proactively and effectively with regulators, thereby extending his influence within the financial community.
• Built up the bank?s Tier 1 capital reserves in anticipation of tighter Basel regulations.? This meant restricting dividend growth at a time when some of his competitors were increasing their dividend payouts.??

Maple Leaf Foods:

• Defined its risk appetite ? zero tolerance for pathogens in products ? while nevertheless recognizing the ubiquity of certain pathogens in plant environments.
• Established control systems with strong management oversight, locally and corporately, as well as good governance through the Environment, Health and Safety Committee of the board of directors.
• Created a new position, Senior Vice-President, Food Safety, and hired a high-profile, dedicated leader with a direct reporting relationship to the CEO. It incorporated a matrix of the food safety role into the plants? operations and provided the leader with adequate resources, even during hiring freezes when it had imposed very tight expense controls on all other functions.
• Spoke about, wrote about, and blogged about food safety leadership as a strategy not just in the immediate, post-recall phase but for years afterward.? The CEO and senior leaders became very visible in video messages, meetings, conferences, leadership development programs, press briefings and other venues.
• Mobilized an increased industry focus on food safety by organizing conferences and other events that were attended by customers, suppliers, competitors and regulators.
• Took appropriate disciplinary actions in those very rare situations where employees, at any level in the organization, breached food-safety protocols.
• Worked with regulators, proactively, to improve the national food-safety system.
• Beefed up centralized oversight of food safety while keeping responsibility at the local plant levels.? The plants clearly understand that they ?own? the risks but that they are now centrally controlled, tracked and reported.
• Showed integrity when it came to executive compensation.? The consequences of the 2008 Listeriosis incident were reflected in significantly reduced leadership pay, bonuses and stock price; there was no re-pricing of share units or options or adjustment of short-term bonuses because of this incident.?

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Establishing and Maintaining Risk Cultures

By these actions, the leaders at both TD Bank Group and Maple Leaf Foods were re-engineering the cultures of their organizations with respect to risk.? By culture, we refer to the shared assumptions, values, beliefs, and behavioral norms as they relate to risk management or, in a more colloquial way, ?how things are to be done around here? when it comes to managing risk.[4] The culture of an organization manifests itself in various artifacts that can be seen, felt or heard, including but not limited to behaviors or patterns of interaction, language, emotion, stories, structures and systems, rituals or ceremonies, and so forth.? In Figure 2 we represent the establishment and maintenance of a strategically driven culture as a set of five activities:

http://www.iveybusinessjournal.com/topics/leadership/leadership-and-risk-culture

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