Further strikes over public sector pensions are possible as union leaders consider whether to accept the government?s revised pensions offer, he said.
?It is not a foregone conclusion that all union executives will feel that they can live with this. Bear in mind, the industrial action is only suspended. It has not been called off. We can switch the industrial action back on if it goes wrong,? he said.
The concessions granted after the one-day November strike have encouraged public sector workers to consider industrial action to defend pay and jobs as wage freezes and further staff cuts loom in 2012, Mr Sutton said.
"Local government has been on an absolute pay freeze for two years. Council leaders are warning it may be the same. Then there is the juxtaposition of those issues with huge job losses. There is to be 710,000 in the public sector in total, half of which have already gone. Next year we will have pretty well run out of those who would volunteer for redundancy so you start getting into compulsory redundancies. That is when your members start kicking back.
"This year was hard, 2012 is going to be much, much harder. November 30 was a real boost for the unions. It has given the whole union movement a lot of confidence going into next year. People will say, ?after November 30 we ended up in a better place?.
?My hope is that it will lead to more realistic negotiations, that the Government will not just think that the public sector is there for the taking. We have shown there is still spirit amongst public sector workers, that they are prepared to stand and fight.?
A spokesman for Francis Maude, the Cabinet Office Minister who led negotiations with union leaders, said: ?We have enjoyed good relations with the unions every step of the way. We will not get drawn into commenting on any speculation into what may happen in 2012.?
Say what you will about the decision to turn one of Philip K. Dick's bleakest, most nihilistic stories into a metaphysical romance, but The Adjustment Bureau is filled with VFX shots so classy, you never realize that whole streets, crowds and environments were fake. The most dizzying sequence comes at the end, when Matt Damon and Emily Blunt's characters sprint through various magical doors, seamlessly teleporting from one New York location to another. They travel from a courthouse to Yankee stadium to a Manhattan street, and then to Liberty Island. Without the VFX house?s before-and-after highlight reel, the reality-warping illusion is impossible to see through.
9. Immortals: Clashing with Titans
Gods move in mysterious ways in Immortals. Or, rather, their victims do, hanging and twisting in midair after being killed?a way the filmmakers demonstrated the superhuman speed of the gods making war with Titans.
This effect shows up multiple times during the movie, but the brawl that follows the Titans' prison break is most stunning, as the gods' targets and their spattered blood instantly downshift to a new, slower speed, drifting through space while combat proceeds at a regular pace around them. Though copious CGI completed the effect, the VFX wizards smoothly integrated the different movement rates by filming different actors at different speeds. One shot combined motion-capture footage filmed at 48 frames per second (fps), and separate footage at 500 fps.
8. Hugo: Paris Overflight
Scorsese's surprise contribution to 3D and family-friendly cinema, Hugo, begins with an extended overflight of a snowy Paris in 1931. The entirely digital cityscape is convincing, but it's when the camera nosedives into the rail terminal, through the crowds and past the walls to follow the eponymous hero's hidden route among the station's pipework and clockwork gears that we realize what CG can do in the hands of a master director and cinematographer. The interior shots are mix of live and digital elements, but none of it comes across as a polished-up videogame cutscene. It's a fitting beginning to a movie-length tribute to cinema in general, and the father of visual effects, Georges M?li?s, in particular.
For more, read PM?s story, Five Things to Know about Martin Scorcese?s Hugo
7. Battle: Los Angeles: Command Center
This one features its fair share of the decidedly unspectacular kind of VFX that dominates many alien invasion flicks. We?re thinking particularly of the weightless, gummy movement of the extraterrestrial foot soldiers. But give VFX creators Hydraulx credit for the sheer spectacle of Battle: Los Angeles? climax, in which an alien command center rises from the depths of Los Angeles (you can see it at the end of this trailer).
The command center tears through the elevated freeway with a convincing mass and bulk. It sheds rubble and wreckage throughout the ensuing fight, turning what should have been a cut-and-paste, gung-ho showdown into a visually convincing snapshot of what a modern infantry squad might actually look like while repelling a vanguard of metal-encrusted aliens.
6. Super 8: Train Crash
The most effects-heavy shots come late in Super 8, when the mysterious alien's eerie, work-in-progress spaceship continues to draw everything metallic through the air, and into its shifting, roiling hull. That's perfectly cool, but floating particles are par for the course in computer animation. It's the train crash early on, which releases the rampaging alien and sets the plot in motion, that feels the most dangerous and is the most technically complex. Director J.J. Abrams combined early CG-only shots created for a teaser trailer with live-action footage of the child actors charging past on-set explosions. Filmmakers added falling train cars to sync up with the kids' flinching, as well as the real-world pyrotechnics of a moving, bomb-laden sled.
5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2: Trouble with Treasure
The last movie in the series is packed with thunderous spells and swooping aerial sequences, the sort of swashbuckling visuals a franchise is supposed to end with. It's the scene in Gringott's Bank, though, where Harry and company are searching a vault for an item that could help kill off his archnemesis, that stands out. Treasure scattered around the enchanted storage space starts multiplying at an exponential rate, threatening to drown the characters in its gilded undertow. The fact that the propagating treasure is 100 percent CG is hard to believe, given the way to rattles, tumbles, and reflects against the actors.
4. Rise of the Planet of the Apes: Battle on the Bridge
Nearly every scene that features the hyper-intelligent, wildly compelling CG chimpanzee Caesar deserves a debriefing. Those eyes. That fur! Then again, much of what makes Caesar work is the motion-capture performance of Andy Serkis, who became famous (in his way) as Gollum in the Lord of the Rings movies.
In Rise of the Planet of the Apes, it's the battle on the Golden Gate Bridge that had the highest degree of difficulty, as dozens of digital primates charge a roadblock of mounted police. Actors in motion capture suits?most wearing prosthetics to give them longer, more chimp-appropriate arms?would run and leap across the 300-foot-long outdoor replica set, and animators turned their movements into superhuman feats in post-production.
3. Transfomers: Dark of the Moon: Bumblebee Ditches Sam, Reconsiders
By the third Transformers movie, we've seen it all. Even the city-block-length skyscraper-constricting apocalyptic robo-worm seems like more of the same (if slightly bigger). What we haven't seen, it?turns out, is just how terrifying it is to be a Transformer's passenger.
During a high-speed chase Bumblebee is forced to dodge a rolling truck. Instead of going right or left, he goes over, turning into a robot in midair, while his hapless passenger, Shia LeBeouf, is left clawing at empty air. After slapping aside a few chunks of giant shrapnel?debris from that pesky truck?the Autobot lands as a Camaro, transforming around a screaming LeBeouf, who winds up back in the driver's seat. It's a flawless slow-motion shot that uses a real stretch of highway, a real LeBeouf swinging on a wire harness, and a very unreal Bumblebee to create a visual that's pure Michael Bay: utterly pointless but totally thrilling.
2. Real Steel: Atom vs. Zeus
Two fully-CG creations engage in fisticuffs, in a largely CG boxing ring and venue, with an almost entirely CG crowd cheering them on. It should be an unmoored, dislocated mess. But Real Steel's bot-on-bot fight scenes?and the final, championship match in particular?have all the crunching impact of a demolition derby.
Despite the towering size of the robots, the filmmakers emphasized motion-capture wherever possible, by putting performers on stilts and fitting them with hulking shoulderpads. And while many of the less action-oriented scenes used actual, practical robots, the fight between the contender Atom and titleholder Zeus was a motion-capture standoff, choreographed by boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard. The VFX team was able to show the director and cinematographer live, composite footage of the robots in action, overlaid on top of the performers, during filming. They also created a new crowd-replication and management program that turned 85 extras into a crowd of 20,000.
1. Tree of Life: In the Beginning
In the run-up to the release of Tree of Life, as well as in head-scratching reviews once the movie hit theaters, much was made of a brief and somewhat inscrutable scene between two dinosaurs. Prehistoric creatures are rare in arthouse flicks, but here's what's rare in any film, of any kind: a 20-minute, near-wordless sequence showing the birth of the universe, the stars, and planet Earth, and finally those two dinos. Nebulae flow though the void, the Milky Way rolls on its mighty axis, the surface of the Sun churns and roars. It's patient and immaculate, and the only thing more astonishing than this cosmic meditation is how it was created.
Some of those shots are animated versions of the static images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope. Others feature lower-tech photographic effects, such as the use of dry ice and miniatures for celestial bodies, and shooting without a lens to encourage light leaks. Our favorite trick by far: creating an ominous, on-screen nebula by filming the languid billow of half-and-half poured into a tank of water. Light cream has never been so heavy.
By Agence France-Presse Wednesday, December 28, 2011
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BEIJING ? China said Thursday police killed seven ?terrorists? who took hostages in the nation?s restive Xinjiang region during a rescue operation that left one police officer dead.
A ?violent terrorist group? kidnapped two people in the northwestern region?s Pishan county late Wednesday night, prompting a stand-off with police, the Xinjiang government said on its official Twitter-like weibo account.
During the stand-off in Pishan, in southern Xinjiang, the kidnappers killed one police officer and wounded another. Police opened fire and killed seven of the suspects, and wounded and arrested four others, it added.
The two hostages were subsequently rescued, it said, without providing further details.
Xinjiang ? a resource-rich region that borders eight countries ? has been the scene of sporadic bouts of violence, much of which has been blamed by Beijing on the ?three forces? of extremism, separatism and terrorism.
The region is home to roughly nine million Turkic-speaking Uighurs who have long bristled under Chinese rule, and many members of the ethnic minority accuse the government of religious and political repression.
It was unclear whether the kidnappers involved in the latest incident were Uighurs.
Police in Pishan refused to comment when contacted by AFP, and the local government was not immediately available for comment.
Agence France-Presse
AFP journalists cover wars, conflicts, politics, science, health, the environment, technology, fashion, entertainment, the offbeat, sports and a whole lot more in text, photographs, video, graphics and online.
Republican presidential candidate, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks during a campaign stop in Dubuque, Iowa, Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Republican presidential candidate, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks during a campaign stop in Dubuque, Iowa, Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Chris Noth, a Ron Paul supporter, holds up a sign outside Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's campaign stop in Davenport, Iowa, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Traffic passes a campaign sign for Republican presidential candidate U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, at an instersection in Ankeny, Iowa Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
SAN ANTONIO (AP) ? Ron Paul wants to legalize pot and shut down the Federal Reserve. He thinks the federal government has no authority to outlaw abortion, no business bombing Iran to keep it from acquiring a nuclear weapon, and no justification to print money unless it's backed up by gold bars.
And he might win the Iowa caucuses.
The closer the first votes of the 2012 presidential campaign get, the more competitive the Texas congressman has become. It's a moment his famously fervent supporters have longed for. Plenty of others are asking: What's Ron Paul about, again?
As in his two prior quixotic campaigns for president, Paul has toiled for months as a fringe candidate best known for staking out libertarian positions. As every other Republican candidate lined up to attack President Barack Obama's health care law and to promise tax cuts, Paul again demanded audits of the Federal Reserve and a return to the gold standard.
Leading in some state polls, Paul is getting a look from mainstream voters in Iowa, where the 76-year-old obstetrician has emerged as a serious contender in the Jan. 3 caucuses ? and in other early voting states, should he pull off a victory.
The sudden rush of attention to Paul's resume hasn't been kind. He's spent the past week disowning racist and homophobic screeds in newsletters he published decades ago, including one following the 1992 riots in Los Angeles that read, "Order was only restored in L.A. when it came time for the blacks to collect their welfare checks three days after rioting began."
"Everybody knows I didn't write them and they're not my sentiments, so it's sort of politics as usual," Paul said during a recent Iowa campaign stop.
Looking to cut into Paul's support, rivals laid into him on Tuesday.
In an interview on CNN, Newt Gingrich said Paul holds "views totally outside the mainstream of virtually every decent American." And Rick Santorum chided, "The things most Iowans like about Ron Paul are the things he's least likely to accomplish and the things most Iowans are worried about about Ron Paul are the things he can accomplish."
Paul returns to Iowa on Wednesday, giving his impressive grass-roots organization in the state a last chance to present, and perhaps defend, positions he's staked out over a long political career and reiterated during the 13 Republican debates held this year.
Paul has served a dozen terms in Congress as a Republican, but he espouses views that have made him the face of libertarianism in the U.S. He blames both Republicans and Democrats for running up the federal debt and opposes any U.S. military involvement overseas. He wants to bring home all troops from all U.S. bases abroad.
He vows to do away with five Cabinet-level departments ? Commerce, Education, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, and Interior ? and repeal the amendment to the Constitution that created the federal income tax. He opposes federal flood insurance and farm subsidies and wants to remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances while allowing states to decide how to regulate it.
He says he'll cut $1 trillion out of the first budget he offers as president. He doesn't believe in a border fence but says illegal immigrants shouldn't get a free education in public schools.
He's reliably described by political pundits as non-establishment, quirky, unorthodox. During a Republican debate in Sioux City, Iowa, earlier this month, Paul defended his views and rejected the idea that they make him unelectable.
"The important thing is, the philosophy I'm talking about is the Constitution and freedom, and that brings people together," Paul said. "It brings independents in the fold and it brings Democrats over on some of these issues."
Paul doesn't always side with the most extreme conservative proposals. When it comes to Gingrich's suggestion that judges could be hauled before Congress to explain their rulings, Paul joined other Republicans in dismissing the idea.
Paul's recent surge in Iowa isn't the first time the GOP establishment has been forced to pay attention to him. A fundraising blitz that netted $5 million in one day in 2008 led Republican operatives to weigh whether he was a bigger threat to siphon votes than previously thought.
Now he may be in his best position yet to do more than just steal votes.
"I see this philosophy as being very electable, because it's an American philosophy, it's the rule of law," Paul said.
Donald L. Fishback, 78, a longtime resident of Albuquerque, passed away on Saturday, December 24, 2011. He is survived by daughters Judy Gravning and Trina Fishback; sons Steven Owen and wife Mary Anne, Kevan and Kenny Fishback; and several grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife Doris Fishback. Donald was a member of the NAWCC and was very proud to have served in the United States Marine Corps. Services will be held on December 29, 2011, at 10:00 am at Manzano Baptist Church 12411 Linn Ave. NE 87123. Interment will take place at Santa Fe National Cemetery.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is receiving a posthumous Grammy for his technological innovations in the arts.
Jobs is among a dozen people, music groups or companies receiving honorary awards Feb. 11, the day before the Grammys. He died of cancer in October.
The Grammys are honoring Jobs with one of the group's Trustees Awards, citing the late Apple boss' advancements that "transformed the way we consume music, TV, movies, and books."
Grammy organizers called him a "creative visionary" for Apple Inc. innovations that include the iPod, iPhone and iPad.
Others receiving honorary awards the day before the Grammys include Diana Ross, the Allman Brothers, Glen Campbell, Antonio Carlos Jobim, George Jones, the Memphis Horns and recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder.
The Kepler spacecraft has made two landmark discoveries of Earth-like planets this month. But determining whether such planets can sustain life would require years of additional study.?
What makes for a potentially livable planet? That question moved center stage this month as NASA's Kepler mission passed two milestones.
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On Tuesday, the Kepler team announced the discovery of two truly Earth-size planets orbiting another star ? but too close to the star for life to emerge. This followed an announcement on Dec. 5 that the Kepler team had found a planet?in the host star's habitable zone, but?2.4?times larger that Earth.
The findings move the Kepler team closer to its goal of finding other planets like ours. The spacecraft is searching 150,000 stars to see how many are like the sun and have planets roughly the same size and distance away as Earth.
But researchers caution that even when Kepler eventually scores a direct hit, that will not be the end of the story. Astronomers will have to answer many more questions about such planets before they can suggest that any of them may be Earth-like, let alone livable for some form of life.
According to Yale University astronomer Debra Fischer, three important pieces of this habitability puzzle begin with: a planet's distance from its sun, its mass, and the shape of its orbit.
Watch video aboot the newly discovered habitable planet Kepler-22b?here:
Other traits come into play, but "if we can find 100 planets that meet the three conditions, we will have have gone a long ways in our search for life," she writes in an e-mail exchange.
Distance is most straightforward for Kepler to gauge.?The distance from the sun to the Earth is about 93 million miles, or 1 Astronomical Unit (AU). By some estimates, the habitable zone around a sun-like star ??where with a little help from an atmosphere, water can exist on the surface as solid, liquid, and gas ? is between 0.95 and 1.37 AU.
The planet announced Dec. 5, Kepler 22b, is almost exactly 1 AU from its star.?But its mass has yet to be confidently established.
Mass is important, because if a planet is a lightweight, with less than about half Earth's mass, it won't have enough gravity to retain much of an atmosphere. Mars, at 10 percent of Earth's mass, has had much of its atmosphere stripped away.
"Too big is harder to quantify," Dr. Fischer adds.
If a planet has only a few times Earth's mass, it might still be potentially habitable. But if a planet becomes too massive, its gravity could be too strong, meaning that it builds a thick, deep atmosphere, resulting in crushing atmospheric pressures on the surface.?
For Kepler 22b, the best the Kepler team can do at the moment is give an upper limit to the mass ? 124 times Earth's mass.?The reason: Kepler's technique for pinpointing planets. It does this by gauging how they?briefly dim the light of their host star when they pass in front of it.
While the team can make some rough estimates about a planet's mass from this technique, the best information on mass, as well as the shape of the orbit,?comes from a different technique used by ground-based astronomers. This approach measures the wobble the planet imposes on host star's spectrum as it orbits.?
Knowing the planet's mass and its volume, researchers can also estimate its density, and so glean something about the planet's general composition by comparing its density with that of water. If the density is relatively small, it could be more gaseous, like a mini-Neptune. If the density is larger, it could suggest a denser, rocky planet.?
LONDON ? Britain's Prince Philip will spend a fourth night in hospital Monday, as he recovers from treatment for a blocked coronary artery.
Queen Elizabeth II's 90-year-old husband is making "good progress," but will remain under observation at Papworth, a specialist heart hospital in Cambridge, a Buckingham Palace spokesman said Monday.
The spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with policy, said there are no details on when Philip may be released.
Philip underwent a successful coronary stent procedure at the specialist hospital, where he was taken Friday after complaining of chest pains.
"The Duke of Edinburgh continues to make good progress from the procedure. He remains in hospital under observation and in good spirits," the spokesman said.
It was the most serious health scare suffered by Philip, who is known to be active and robust. He has continued to appear at many engagements, most recently taking a 10-day tour of Australia with the queen.
He missed the Royal Family's traditional Boxing Day shooting party on Monday at the queen's private Sandringham estate in Norfolk, an event he usually leads.
Six of Philip's grandchildren, including Princes William and Harry, visited him Sunday in the hospital.
Source: www.ky3.com --- Saturday, December 24, 2011 Are you looking for TV to tune into during the upcoming Christmas holiday weekend? Maybe you can't get home to your family this year, or you aren't celebrating Christmas, or you just don't like those relatives of yours and would rather watch a "Hoarding: Buried Alive" marathon. Whatever the reason, Zap2it has you covered for all the sports, marathons and specials over the holidays. (Don't worry, we'll have a new post for next week's New Years holiday.) ...
DALLAS ? NBA Commissioner David Stern opened his lockout-delayed season by hearing boos from fans.
Stern was in Dallas for the NBA finals rematch between the Mavericks and Heat, and he was on the court for the start of the Mavs' banner-raising ceremony honoring their first championship. The jeers came as soon as he started speaking, but he quickly turned them into cheers by offering his congratulations to team owner Mark Cuban.
Cuban's often contentious relationship with Stern could've been as much of a reason for the boos as the lockout, which pushed the opener from Nov. 1 to Christmas and cut the season by 16 games.
Cuban and Miami's Mickey Arison were among five owners who voted against the labor deal. Stern downplayed that, hailing the agreement as beneficial to everyone.
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Berkeley Explains Why Google Trumps Microsoft (Caleb Garling/Wired Enterprise) bit.ly/vC8BlIIl y a environ 16 heuresvia twitterfeedRetweeted by 15 people
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2011-12-22 Several venue, date changes on 12 Champions schedule
All official events will be televised nationally in the United States, with most receiving complete coverage on GOLF Channel, the Tours exclusive cable-television partner that reaches some 83 million homes in the United States. Four events will have network coverage on the weekend (NBC: Senior PGA Championship, Senior U. S. Open; CBS: Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf; ESPN: Senior British Open). Champions Tour telecasts are distributed internationally in Canada, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Australasia, and Latin America through various distribution partners. The events air live, tape-delayed or in a highlights-package format in excess of 117 countries, reaching more than 133 million households.
www.pgatour.com
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- The Champions Tour announced Wednesday the tournament schedule for the 2012 Champions Tour season. - 2011 Jack Nicklaus Tom Lehman
2011-12-21 Press Tent: Truth and Rumors: Lexi says her dad will stay on as caddie
Professional sports have always been carried by stars, and golf is no different. All you have to do is check out the TV ratings when Tiger isnt in the field for proof that star power is king. Unfortunately for the LPGA Tour, true stars have been few and far between since Annika Sorenstam left the scene. There have been a few pretenders, like Michelle Wie and Paula Creamer, but a real crossover celebrity just hasnt turned up in womens golf, until maybe now. Lexi Thompson is tall and blonde and drives the ball as long as most men. At age 16, she just became the youngest player ever to win an offical LPGA event. Shes now a full member of the LPGA Tour, since the commissioner waived the 18-year-old age requirement and let Thompson become a full member of the Tour in 2012.
blogs.golf.com
2011-12-18 Smugglers Glen hosts Canadian Tour - Brockville Recorder and Times - Ontario, CA
There is going to be a Canadian Tour pro golf event at Smugglers Glen Golf Club in Gananoque in .
A Canadian Tour tournament attracts 156 players, 20 staff and officials to a typical event. That means hotel rooms and meals for the players and the estimated 3,500 spectators. There are more than 300 volunteers -- 200 local and 100 caddies -- involved in an event where the economic impact is judged to be usd. 1. 2 million for the region.
www.recorder.ca
Its an exciting and early Christmas present. There is going to be a Canadian Tour pro golf event at Smugglers Glen Golf Club in Gananoque in. - Brockville Ontario Canada News Community Events Alerts Mobile Photos Blogs Image Picture article comments reviews amber sports music classified careers obituaries wheels business arts life
2011-12-16 Breakout Players of 2011: Charl Schwartzel
The Masters was the official breakthrough moment in America for Schwartzel, 27, whod proven himself an up-and-coming player on the European Tour, where hed won seven times since turning pro at 18. For serious golf observers, the Masters was more of a what-took-you-so-long moment. I tagged Charl as a potential "Next Big Thing"
Then, while hanging out at the Old Palm Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. , where a number of international players who are clients of agent Chubby Chandler either have second homes or use the course as a base to play and practice, he got some putting advice from Nick Price, a Hall of Famer from Zimbabwe, and David Frost, another South African now on the senior circuit who was known for his putting prowess in his younger days.
www.golf.com
- Charl Schwartzel Masters
2011-12-15 Insider: The most wonderful time to remember Crosby
Four faces that belong on golfs Mount Rushmore. The tournament began at Rancho Santa Fe Country Club in the San Diego area and moved to the Monterey Peninsula after World War II, where it endures today as the ATandT Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. First televised in 1957, today millions of viewers tune in for the pleasure of seeing the scenery from the Pebble Beach area.
Thats because Der Binger probably loved golf more than almost anything else. He was most known as a singer and "White Christmas" is one of the seasons seminal songs. He was also an accomplished actor who appeared in 86 titles and won an Oscar for his performance as Father OMalley in "Going My Way. " He produced albums and movies, owned race horses and was one of the worlds most popular figures.
www.pgatour.com
The holiday season wouldnt be complete without a viewing of "White Christmas. " The days would be neither merry nor bright without watching the classic movie starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye and filled with some of the greatest songs ever written by Irving Berlin. - 2011 Bob Wallace Ben Hogan Sam Snead Byron Nelson Jimmy Demaret Don Massengale Tom Shaw Manuel Pinero Stan Awtrey Contributor
2011-12-14 Gulfnews : Davies calls for change in rules
Asked how to combat it, Davies said: "Have a minimum requirement. Obviously the Evian Masters and the British Open carry huge amounts of prize money and obviously Dubai is big prize money, but its over and euro;360,000 Ai got for winning. You could win nine tournaments and not pick that amount up. "So what you could do about it is make a points system, but thats no fun because everyone likes to see in professional golf how much people have won. Thats always been the judgement.
gulfnews.com
- Golf birdie tee desert classic abu dhabi open pga lpga
2011-12-12 Sharmila Nicollet best local performer at Hero Womens Indian Open Womens Golf
On her immediate plans, she said, "Well, I have a tournament to play at the Qutab Golf Course next week, after which I head out to Spain for the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School. Its going to be tough there with a 90 hole Pre-Qualifier and a 72 hole Qualifier. The weather is going to play a huge part too but I am ready for the challenge with my long game. "
Sharmila Nicollet maintained her current position as Indias top professional with an excellent 68 on the final day for tied 22nd as the curtain came down on the Hero Womens Indian Open on Sunday. She totaled 217 and jumped from overnight 50th to 22nd place and picked up 2,565 euros. Swedens 23-year-old Caroline Hedwall stayed calm and patient through the day for a fine 69, following 67 and 68 on the first two days to finish at 12-under 204 and run out a two-shot winner over the fighting second-placed Phatlum Pornanong whose two bogeys on the ninth and 16th cost her dear. The champion of 2008 and 2009 finished in top-6 for the fourth year running.
www.thesportscampus.com
Sharmila Nicollet best local performer at Hero Womens Indian Open - Sharmila Nicollet Hero Womens Indian Open
2011-12-07 Retired Deerpath golf pro reflects on shooting a 61, working at the course - Lake Forester
He started working at Deerpath in 1977 and became the courses fourth head pro during the 1980s. He and his wife Sandra have three children: Christin, Jacqui, and Rosemary. He wants to stay in the golf business and teach during his retirement years -- and play a bit more golf than he has been able to.
Deerpath Golf Course Pro Christopher Marszalek, 57, retired after a lengthy career at the Lake Forest par-70 layout.
lakeforest.suntimes.com
Deerpath Golf Course Pro Christopher Marszalek, 57, retired after a lengthy career at the Lake Forest par-70 layout. He started working at Deerpath in 1977 and became the courses fourth head pro during the 1980s. He and his wife Sandra have three children: Christin, - News COURSE GOLF HOLE DEERPATH PRO SAND CLUB FAVORITE LOT MOMENT
2011-12-06 GW Monday: Bittersweet start to Konos pro career: Local Knowledge: Golf Digest
Still, why did the LPGA have to be so rigid with its protocol Given their role in the mix-up, officials could have made an exception for Kono and let her join the tour after her college season. Kono certainly has a bright future as a pro. Too bad it starts under such bittersweet circumstances.
The UCLA senior simply wanted a Futures Tour card so she could play there after finishing college this spring. Had she been told correctly before the final stage that she had achieved that just by advancing to the five-day final -- instead of after the start of the competition -- Kono said she wouldnt have bothered to come to LPGA International.
www.golfdigest.com
Of the 20 golfers who earned full LPGA status at last weeks Qualifying School, Stephanie Kono is likely the only one disappointed about it. The UCLA senior simply wanted a Futures Tour card so she could play there after finishing college this spring. Had she been told correctly before the final stage that she had achieved that just by.
2011-12-05 PDGA: Results of Disc Golfs 7th DISContinuum in Gurnee, Illinois - Yahoo. Sports
The first time K. C. Dermody played disc golf was in the spectacular Black Hills of South Dakota. She has since become addicted to the sport, and enjoys playing in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. She welcomes comments and suggestions, with the goal of promoting the sport of disc golf throughout the world. Find her on /KCDermodyWriter.
Sitting in third place in the Advanced division was Andy Rasmussen of Libertyville, Illinois, scoring 3-under par. Rasmussen had a second place finish at the IOS no. 5 Tour Finale at Fairfield in October. Following at fourth place, there was a tie between Tyler Williams of South Elgin, Illinois and Eric Willhite of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, both scoring at even par. Williams had a fourth place finish in the same division at the IOS no. 3 Sinnissippi Open, and Willhite had a second place finish in the Recreational division at the Shot Down in Flames in May.
sports.yahoo.com
The 7th DISContinuum Club Invite took place in Gurnee, Illinois at the Warren Township Park Disc Golf Course on . This was a PDGA sanctioned C-Tier event that consisted of two rounds of 24 holes, and it was Dave Naspinski of Gurnee, who was the winner of. - news
NEW YORK ? Most people are excited before recording a new album, but Common didn't particularly feel that way.
He says before making his ninth album, "The Dreamer, the Believer," he was at a low point musically.
"I hadn't figured out what I was going to do, what label I was going to work with," he said. "I wasn't inspired."
Common had major success with 2005's "Be" and "Finding Forever," which came two years later. The albums reached gold status and each earned multiple Grammy nominations, including a win for best rap performance by a duo or group for "Southside" with Kanye West. Both albums were mainly produced by West.
But 2008's "Universal Mind Control," produced by the Neptunes, was a commercial disappointment, only selling 245,000 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan; the CD, however, did earn a Grammy nomination for best rap album.
But Common parted ways with Universal Music, where he's released five of his nine albums.
Now, on Warner Bros. Records, the rapper said he's got his mojo back, mainly thanks to producer and longtime friend No I.D.
"He was willing to be like, `Yo, let's go! Let's get it. Let's go get on this hip-hop,'" Common recalled. "So I think that meant a lot to me and from there we just continued to grow."
The album, released Tuesday, features Nas, Maya Angelou, John Legend and Makeba Riddick. The 39-year-old says the disc embarks on "real, traditional, new hip-hop."
_____
Online:
http://www.thinkcommon.com/
_____
Mesfin Fekadu covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/musicmesfin
PILnet: the Global Network for Public Interest Law is seeking a full-time Legal Officer for its Pro Bono Program. He/She will be based in PILnet?s Budapest office.
PILnet is an international NGO devoted to building a global network to activate, empower and connect those who use legal tools to work in the public interest (www.pilnet.org). PILnet connects with local partners to develop the institutions essential to rights-respecting societies. It inspires lawyers to serve the public interest, strengthens the ability of civil society to help shape law and policy and makes formal systems of justice more accessible. In addition to its New York headquarters, PILnet conducts its work from offices in Budapest, Moscow, and Beijing. The Pro Bono Legal Officer is responsible for coordinating the global pro bono clearinghouse run by PILnet, long-term relationship building with NGOs and legal professionals, and managing several projects in Europe, including the annual European Pro Bono Forum. The Legal Officer reports to the Director for Europe and works in close collaboration with the organization?s other legal officers. Key responsibilities
Coordinating the Global Pro Bono Clearinghouse activities, assisting in matching law firms and NGOs for pro bono legal services and supporting the development of other clearinghouses.
Collaborating with NGOs in Europe and elsewhere, and strengthening relationships with public interest lawyers, law firms, NGOs, bars and governmental representatives from target countries.
Planning and organizing the Annual European Pro Bono Forum and other events, under the supervision of the Director for Europe.
Preparing and delivering presentations at conferences and other public events on pro bono topics.
Maintaining PILnet?s Pro Bono web pages.
Editing and drafting reports, proposals and other documents.
Assisting the Director for Europe in developing new projects.
Qualifications
A law degree, and at least 5 years relevant work experience.
Demonstrated interest in law, human rights, international civil society development. Law firm and especially pro bono experience desirable.
Project management and event planning experience.
Excellent communication skills including fluency in written and spoken English required; working level in at least one Western European language (French, German, Spanish) required; additional European language skills strongly desireable.
Strong research and communication skills.
Goal-oriented with strong attention to detail.
Ability to manage multiple projects with tight deadlines.
To apply: Interested candidates should submit a CV and cover letter that specifically addresses the candidate?s suitability to perform the job responsibilities detailed above to: legalofficerbp@pilnet.org. Salary is commensurate with experience; generous benefits package included. Deadline: January 20, 2012 Start date: February 15, 2012 (or earlier)
It's so much easier to be deceitful when you don't have to actually look into somebody's eyes, right? That's what a study conducted by the University of British Columbia figured out. Here's how it was done: 170 students were brought in to perform mock stock transactions using one of four methods -- face-to-face, text, video or audio. Brokers were promised higher monetary compensation for more stock sales, while buyers were told their reward would all depend on the value of the stock. The brokers were given inside information that the stock was rigged to lose half of its value, while buyers were only told after the transaction was over and were asked to report on whether or not the brokers were deceitful when selling this stock to them. The study analyzed which method produced the most lies and found that buyers who used texts were much more likely to report deception, while video chatting was the least. Skeptical about your significant other's text that says they're just at their friend's house or washing their hair? See if you can Skype them instead. Check out the full results of the study after the break.
(Reuters) ? Blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo, who penned the screenplay for the classic film "Roman Holiday," had his credit restored by a Hollywood writers group on Monday, reversing history 58 years after the movie's release.
Trumbo, the writer behind the original story for the 1953 film starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, was part of the Hollywood Ten, a group of industry writers and directors who were accused of being Communist sympathizers by the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Un-American Activities.
The Ten and others were blacklisted in the late 1940s and '50s by Hollywood film studios concerned that hiring them would be bad for business. The blacklist ruined many careers and some writers, like Trumbo, used surrogates for their work.
"It is not in our power to erase the mistakes or the suffering of the past," Writers Guild of America West President Chris Keyser in a statement. "But we can make amends, we can pledge not to fall prey again to the dangerous power of fear or to the impulse to censor, even if that pledge is really only a hope. And, in the end, we can give credit where credit is due."
The WGA is a trade organization that represents film, TV and other writers, and it regularly decides issues on screenwriting credit when, and if, disputes arise.
Following his blacklisting, Trumbo moved to Mexico to work anonymously and used fellow screenwriter Ian McClellan Hunter as a frontman for his writing in Hollywood. Hunter, whose name appears on the credits for "Roman Holiday," submitted Trumbo's script and collected the studio's payment on his behalf.
Hunter was later blacklisted, too.
Chris Trumbo and Tim Hunter, sons of both screenwriters, approached the WGA in 2010 to propose that Dalton Trumbo be recognized as the original writer of "Roman Holiday."
The WGA found evidence supporting their claims and although the credited writers of the film are no longer alive, the guild made an attempt to reverse history.
"The WGA has not undone the hurt, but it has, at last and at least, told the truth. That fact is a tribute to the friendship of two fathers and then two sons and to a thing we can hold on to, which is that the friendship was stronger than and outlived the hate," said Keyser.
(Reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)
NEW YORK (Reuters) ? With two weeks left in the trading year, the euro-zone debt crisis will remain the primary impediment to pushing the S&P 500 index into positive territory for 2011.
Uncertainty over progress in the region, along with the potential for credit rating downgrades on euro-zone countries, have kept investors on edge and market volatility high.
Even with a fairly busy U.S. economic calendar, which includes a batch of data on the housing market, the final reading on gross domestic product and durable goods orders, markets will focus on developments from Europe.
"What everybody is going to look at is the same thing they've been looking at -- every time a German official opens their mouth, we get crushed," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist at Windham Financial Services in Charlotte, Vermont.
"I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Santa Claus is out there. But we've got to see something."
The benchmark S&P 500 index (.SPX)(.INX) is down about 3 percent for the year and would need to climb above 1,257.64 in order to end higher for the year.
A stocks' rally on Friday fizzled, and the market ended with only modest gains after the latest credit warning about possible downgrades of European nations. For last week, the Dow fell 2.7 percent, the S&P 500 lost 2.9 percent and the Nasdaq slid 3.5 percent.
Italy's prime minister urged European policymakers on Friday to beware of dividing the continent in the effort to contain the debt crisis, warning against a "short-term hunger for rigor" in some countries, in a swipe at Germany.
Stocks have been whipsawed as investors weigh the threat from the euro-zone crisis against modest improvement in U.S. economic data and stocks that many regard as cheap.
"There do appear to be some improving economic indicators domestically, but it's hard to see how they win the day if Europe continues to be a big concern. It's not like the valuations are at such bargain-basement prices that it becomes a one-way bet," said Stephen Massocca, managing director at Wedbush Morgan in San Francisco.
As volumes begin to dry up and market moves become more exaggerated during the holiday period, the volatility may help lift the stock market into the plus column.
CHANCE OF RALLY
"Can you see an upside rally? Certainly, because you are going to have some asset managers in the end who are going to try and just push it so the market ends at the very least flat on the year, if not higher," said Ken Polcari, managing director at ICAP Equities in New York.
"If there is going to be a rally at all, it will happen on light volume because there will be fewer and fewer participants. When there is less volume, you do have the ability to have those exaggerated moves, but people will take advantage of that."
Volatility in individual shares could also be affected by corporate earnings pre-announcements. There have been 97 negative earnings pre-announcements issued by S&P 500 corporations for the fourth quarter, compared with 26 positive pre-announcements, resulting in a negative-to-positive ratio of 3.7. That's the highest in 10 years, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Companies that have provided outlooks in recent weeks include DuPont (DD.N), Intel Corp (INTC.O), United Technologies Corp (UTX.N) and Texas Instruments Inc (TXN.N).
Unexpected management shakeups could also be on the horizon and increase the tumult in stocks. Both Cablevision Systems Corp (CVC.N) and The New York Times Co (NYT.N) saw high-level executives suddenly leave their posts.
But stock movements this week will ultimately be dictated by actions taken in Europe, with the light volume exacerbating market swings.
"The only thing that is going to be of any interest is certainly the continuing headlines on Europe, whether or not they come any closer to what looks like a potential agreement," said Polcari.
"You may get a little bit of a push to the 1,250 to 1,270 range, but much beyond that I don't see why it would go any higher unless you get some explosive announcement out of Europe."
(Reporting By Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Kenneth Barry and; Jan Paschal)
SIOUX CITY, Iowa ? Republican presidential front-runner Newt Gingrich clashed sharply with one rival, took pains to compliment another and said it was laughable for any of them to challenge his conservative credentials Thursday night in the last campaign debate before the Jan. 3 Iowa caucuses kick off the 2012 primary season.
In a forceful attack, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann said Gingrich "had his hand out and received $1.6 million to influence senior Republicans and keep the scam going in Washington, D.C.," for Freddie Mac, a government-backed housing entity.
"Just not true," Gingrich shot back. "I never lobbied under any circumstances," he added, denying an allegation she had not made.
The clash underscored the state of the race, with Gingrich, the former House speaker, atop the polls in Iowa and nationally, while Texas Rep. Ron Paul, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and his other pursuers work in television ads and elsewhere to overtake him in the final days before the caucuses.
Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, who has staked his campaign on Iowa, was quick to challenge Gingrich as a conservative leader. He recalled that Gingrich had to contend with a "conservative revolution' from the ranks of Republican lawmakers when he was House speaker in the 1990s.
Romney, who runs second in the polls in Iowa, largely refrained from criticizing Gingrich, despite increasingly barbed attacks in day-to-day campaigning. Instead, he firmly rejected suggestions that he had once favored gay marriage only to switch his position. "I have been a champion of protecting traditional marriage," he said.
Given the stakes, Gingrich, Bachmann and Santorum weren't the only contenders eager to impress Iowa voters and a nationwide television audience with their conservative grit.
"I hope I am the Tim Tebow of the Iowa caucuses," said Texas Gov. Rick Perry, referring to the Denver Broncos quarterback whose passing ability draws ridicule but who has led his team to a remarkable seven wins in eight weeks.
"We're getting screwed as Americans," said former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, insisting that he, in fact, was a steadier conservative than any of the others on stage.
"Anybody up here could beat Obama," said Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, whose views verge on libertarianism and who has struggled to expand his appeal.
And Bachmann, who was quicker than any other candidate to criticize a rival, bristled when challenged repeatedly on the accuracy of her facts. "I am a serious candidate for president of the United States, and my facts are accurate," she said.
Indeed, the big question in the opening moments of a fast-paced two-hour debate went to the heart of a dilemma that could eventually settle the race ? do conservative Republican caucus and primary voters pick a candidate with their hearts, or do they look elsewhere if they judge their favored candidate might not be able to defeat the president.
Those voters begin making that choice on Jan. 3, and if experience is any guide, one or more of the presidential hopefuls on the debate stage will not make it out of the state to compete in the New Hampshire primary a week later.
Gingrich, who seemed an also-ran in the earliest stages of the race, has emerged as a leader heading into the final stretch of the pre-primary campaign.
His decades in Washington and his post-congressional career as a consultant have been the subjects of tough critiques from Romney's campaign in the past week.
But the former speaker passed up an offer to criticize his rival on the issue of Medicare, saying, "I'm not in the business of blaming Gov. Romney." In fact, he said, Romney has made constructive suggestions for preserving the program that tens of millions of Americans rely on for health care yet faces deep financial woes.
Gingrich drew criticism earlier in the year for calling a GOP Medicare proposal "right-wing engineering." Romney refrained from criticizing that plan but did not embrace it in full.
Bachmann, who has long-since faded to the back of the pack in the polls, showed no such reluctance.
When he labeled her charges inaccurate, she shot back that when she made similar contentions in the previous debate, she was judged factually accurate by an independent arbiter. She said Gingrich's work for Freddie Mac was in furtherance of a "grandiose scam" to keep alive an entity at the heart of the housing crisis.
"I will state unequivocally for every person watching tonight: I have never once changed my positions because of any payment," Gingrich said, adding that in fact, he favored breaking up both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, his benefactor.
Moments later, Bachmann challenged Paul even more aggressively, saying his refusal to consider pre-emptive action to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon was dangerous.
"The problem would be the greatest under-reaction in world history if we have an avowed madman who uses that nuclear weapon to wipe nations off the face of the earth," she said, referring to an International Atomic Energy Agency report that said Iran was "within just months of being able to obtain that weapon."
Paul questioned the report. "They have no evidence; there has been no enrichment," he said.
Comparing the Occupy Wall Street movement to the Boston Tea Party, California Democratic Rep. Mike Honda told The Daily Caller that ?civil disobedience is part of citizenship,? and the protesters are ?frustrated? over the last year of Republican leadership.
TheDC asked Honda if he thought that the violence at Occupy protests across the country should stop.
Watch the interview:
?People are being arrested because they?re protesting and they?re resisting the local ordinances and laws, okay? ? It is a sign of a division in this country: It?s a division between the 1 percent and the 99 percent, that?s a big division. And the 99 percent, these folks who have been putting up with this government, with the leadership of this government for a year and they?re seeing nothing being done, they?re frustrated,? Honda, a member of the budget and appropriations committees, told TheDC on Capitol Hill.
?Civil disobedience is part of citizenship. When government is not responding to the needs of the people, the people have a right to bring these petitions, if the petitions are not being heard through the regular way, they take it to the streets and it?s a tradition in this country. You think the [Boston] Tea Party was a process that was followed traditionally? No. They were nervous about doing that but that was the first civil disobedience in telling the king, you know, enough is enough.?
The Republicans took control of the House in January 2011, while Democrats maintained control of the Senate.
Follow Nicholas on Twitter
Read more stories from The Daily Caller
Congressman: Occupy 'frustrated' with the last year of GOP leadership [VIDEO]
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Turning point? Limbaugh, Levin hit Nikki Haley over Romney endorsement
17 June 1959 Martin Dulcate Department of Archaeology, Kings College New York
The man read the piece of paper once again and frowned. He had read it over and over again in the hopes that perhaps it would suddenly change into something that actually made sense. Those in charge had the object checked by a metallurgist, a nuclear physicist and an aeronautical engineer. All the men were the best in their respective fields. These men of science were revered and held countless awards and honours and yet, they all reached the same conclusion; the same fantastical conclusion. Doctor Martin Dulcate read the report titled SP 133.7.8 once more noticed the Triple Black security clearance and Original Copy stamped on the header and realised only five people knew of it.
The body of the memo was comprised of four parts. The first was an elemental composition of the object; 13% Carbon, 8% Cobalt-Aluminium Alloy and 3% Copper. The remainder of the composition was speculative and completely undefinable, Martin Frowned and moved on. Next came the the mathematics accompanying the breakdown of radiation and the proof of nuclear origin. Not surprising as they had split the atom over five years ago but as the maths showed it would have taken the radiation of nine-hundred of their bombs and they, to date only possessed thirteen. Section three was a simple sentence fragment: Unknown origin, possible source of propulsion or engine component. Data inconclusive. The last part was Dulcate's own writing. Being an Archaeologist it was surprising to be included in the few chosen to know and participate in the Yorkshire project; the British attempt at Atomic Fission. This was achieved in 1951 and secured the power of the British Communal Expanse (BCE).
Dulcate read his words, so carefully chosen at the time and sighed. The object is cylindrical measuring 244 millimetres at the length, 71 millimetres at the breadth and weighs 1088 grams, silver in colour, 4 degrees centigrade warmer than room temperature.The object was discovered in 1946 contained in the tomb of General Zachary Taylor after he was hastily buried with it after his death in 1846, caused by the object itself. It is the professional opinion of of I, Doctor Martin Dulcate, the object is not relative to other artefacts discovered within the tomb.
The man shook a Chesterfield cigarette from a crumpled pack and placed it in his mouth. He retrieved his Cartier lighter from his vest pocket and lit the cigarette then touched the flame to the memo. The paper caught fire, crinkled black at the corner then Doctor Dulcate tossed the burning leaf of paper in his wire-waste bin and watched it burn. Martin ashed his cigarette, pulled out his Webley revolver, placed the barrel in his mouth and pulled the trigger.
***
This story will take place in the modern day in various locales. The timeline as we know it is skewed, the details will be contained in the actual roleplay. The gist of the story is after a body of a woman washes up and is discovered to posses some strange characteristics in her blood a haematologist is hired by a secretive organisation leading the scientist to enlist help of other colleagues. A dark history is uncovered and puts the entire team in danger. The canister is held in a catalogued but abandoned building that occupies three time periods; modern day, 1951 and 2189. Most of the players will be in the modern period but there will one working in 1951 on the Yorkshire Project which will progress the story in the modern day,as the old documents are discovered leading the team to the next objective.
If this sounds interesting I welcome all takers as long as you hold at least a moderate writing capability.
Winter diets? The secret is to chill the extremitiesPublic release date: 16-Dec-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Prof Walter Arnold walter.arnold@vetmeduni.ac.at 43-148-909-15100 University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna
Although the temperate climates of central Europe provide plentiful food in summer, finding enough to eat is much more problematic in winter. Many small mammals avoid the problem by hibernating but this survival strategy is generally not practised by larger animals. With the exception of some bears, large mammals remain fully awake throughout the year, yet they too must reduce their metabolism to cope with the comparative scarcity of food. Red deer, for example, are known to lower their heart rate and to allow their extremities to cool substantially during winter. These changes have been interpreted as a mechanism for conserving energy but could simply reflect the fact that the animals cannot find enough food to eat, as the act of digestion is known to have a direct influence on a ruminant's metabolism.
It is clear that red deer must minimise their energy requirements to be able to survive on little but their own body fat over the long winter season. To understand how they do so, Christopher Turbill and colleagues at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna inserted special transmitters into the reticulum (the foremost part of the stomach) of 15 female red deer and monitored the animals' heart rate and stomach temperature for a period of 18 months, including two winters. The deer lived under near-natural conditions but their food intake was tightly controlled, with the amount and the protein richness determined by the scientists. The air temperature was also recorded and statistical modeling was used to untangle the effects of the various different factors including swallowing snow, which naturally led to a rapid and dramatic decrease in stomach temperature on the animals' metabolism.
The slow season
The most striking result was that the deer lowered their heart rates in winter regardless of how much food they ate. A heart rate of 65-70 beats per minute in May declined gradually to about 40 beats per minute throughout the winter, even when the deer were supplied with plenty of protein-rich food. Heart rate is a good indicator of metabolic rate, so as Turbill says, "The decrease in metabolism occurred exactly when food is normally scarce although our animals always had enough to eat and this shows that the deer are somehow 'programmed' to conserve reserves during winter." The enormous rise in heart rate in spring, at the start of the breeding season, was not associated with any change in food availability so also forms part of the animals' internal programming. As expected, when the deer were offered less food, their heart rates dropped even further. Surprisingly, however, this effect could also be observed in summer and was not solely caused by the reduced amount of digestion, showing that red deer react both to the winter season and to food shortages by actively lowering their metabolism.
Turbill, Arnold and coworkers found that the lowered heart rate was associated with a reduction in stomach (core body) temperature, suggesting that the deer adjust energy expenditure by regulating their internal heat production. However, relatively small changes in stomach temperature had larger than expected effects on metabolic rate, implying that the animals have an additional mechanism for saving energy. The key to explaining the results came from previous studies in Arnold's group, which had shown that red deer can greatly lower the temperature of their legs and other extremities, especially during cold winter nights. It thus seems likely that a small reduction in stomach temperature indicates a much greater reduction in the temperature of the deer's entire body, which could explain the substantial reduction in heart rate and metabolism. "Perhaps larger animals are able to make use of their size to enable temperature gradients," Arnold proposes. "This would enable them to reduce their metabolism dramatically without requiring a big decrease in core body temperature. It seems as though peripheral cooling might be an important mechanism for red deer and maybe other large mammals to conserve energy during winter and when food is scarce."
###
The paper Regulation of heart rate and rumen temperature in red deer: effects of season and food intake by Christopher Turbill, Thomas Ruf, Thomas Mang and Walter Arnold is published in the current issue of the Journal of Experimental Biology (Vol. 214, pp. 963-970) and is available online at http://jeb.biologists.org/content/214/6/963.full . Support for the study was provided by the Austrian Research Fund (FWF).
The paper in full text online (open access):
http://jeb.biologists.org/content/214/6/963.full
About the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
The University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna is the only academic and research institution in Austria that focuses on the veterinary sciences. About 1000 employees and 2300 students work on the campus in the north of Vienna, which also houses the animal hospital and various spin-off-companies. The Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology is located off-campus; its research focuses on the needs and behaviour of wild animals in their natural contexts.
http://www.vetmeduni.ac.at
Scientific contact:
Prof. Walter Arnold, , E walter.arnold@vetmeduni.ac.at, T 43-1-4890915-100
Released by:
Klaus Wassermann, E klaus.wassermann@vetmeduni.ac.at, T 43-1-25077-1153
[ | 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.
Winter diets? The secret is to chill the extremitiesPublic release date: 16-Dec-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Prof Walter Arnold walter.arnold@vetmeduni.ac.at 43-148-909-15100 University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna
Although the temperate climates of central Europe provide plentiful food in summer, finding enough to eat is much more problematic in winter. Many small mammals avoid the problem by hibernating but this survival strategy is generally not practised by larger animals. With the exception of some bears, large mammals remain fully awake throughout the year, yet they too must reduce their metabolism to cope with the comparative scarcity of food. Red deer, for example, are known to lower their heart rate and to allow their extremities to cool substantially during winter. These changes have been interpreted as a mechanism for conserving energy but could simply reflect the fact that the animals cannot find enough food to eat, as the act of digestion is known to have a direct influence on a ruminant's metabolism.
It is clear that red deer must minimise their energy requirements to be able to survive on little but their own body fat over the long winter season. To understand how they do so, Christopher Turbill and colleagues at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna inserted special transmitters into the reticulum (the foremost part of the stomach) of 15 female red deer and monitored the animals' heart rate and stomach temperature for a period of 18 months, including two winters. The deer lived under near-natural conditions but their food intake was tightly controlled, with the amount and the protein richness determined by the scientists. The air temperature was also recorded and statistical modeling was used to untangle the effects of the various different factors including swallowing snow, which naturally led to a rapid and dramatic decrease in stomach temperature on the animals' metabolism.
The slow season
The most striking result was that the deer lowered their heart rates in winter regardless of how much food they ate. A heart rate of 65-70 beats per minute in May declined gradually to about 40 beats per minute throughout the winter, even when the deer were supplied with plenty of protein-rich food. Heart rate is a good indicator of metabolic rate, so as Turbill says, "The decrease in metabolism occurred exactly when food is normally scarce although our animals always had enough to eat and this shows that the deer are somehow 'programmed' to conserve reserves during winter." The enormous rise in heart rate in spring, at the start of the breeding season, was not associated with any change in food availability so also forms part of the animals' internal programming. As expected, when the deer were offered less food, their heart rates dropped even further. Surprisingly, however, this effect could also be observed in summer and was not solely caused by the reduced amount of digestion, showing that red deer react both to the winter season and to food shortages by actively lowering their metabolism.
Turbill, Arnold and coworkers found that the lowered heart rate was associated with a reduction in stomach (core body) temperature, suggesting that the deer adjust energy expenditure by regulating their internal heat production. However, relatively small changes in stomach temperature had larger than expected effects on metabolic rate, implying that the animals have an additional mechanism for saving energy. The key to explaining the results came from previous studies in Arnold's group, which had shown that red deer can greatly lower the temperature of their legs and other extremities, especially during cold winter nights. It thus seems likely that a small reduction in stomach temperature indicates a much greater reduction in the temperature of the deer's entire body, which could explain the substantial reduction in heart rate and metabolism. "Perhaps larger animals are able to make use of their size to enable temperature gradients," Arnold proposes. "This would enable them to reduce their metabolism dramatically without requiring a big decrease in core body temperature. It seems as though peripheral cooling might be an important mechanism for red deer and maybe other large mammals to conserve energy during winter and when food is scarce."
###
The paper Regulation of heart rate and rumen temperature in red deer: effects of season and food intake by Christopher Turbill, Thomas Ruf, Thomas Mang and Walter Arnold is published in the current issue of the Journal of Experimental Biology (Vol. 214, pp. 963-970) and is available online at http://jeb.biologists.org/content/214/6/963.full . Support for the study was provided by the Austrian Research Fund (FWF).
The paper in full text online (open access):
http://jeb.biologists.org/content/214/6/963.full
About the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
The University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna is the only academic and research institution in Austria that focuses on the veterinary sciences. About 1000 employees and 2300 students work on the campus in the north of Vienna, which also houses the animal hospital and various spin-off-companies. The Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology is located off-campus; its research focuses on the needs and behaviour of wild animals in their natural contexts.
http://www.vetmeduni.ac.at
Scientific contact:
Prof. Walter Arnold, , E walter.arnold@vetmeduni.ac.at, T 43-1-4890915-100
Released by:
Klaus Wassermann, E klaus.wassermann@vetmeduni.ac.at, T 43-1-25077-1153
[ | 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.
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Public release date: 16-Dec-2011
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