From Times Online February 3, 2009 US to build fastest computer on planet for managing nuclear arsenal The supercomputer will be built at IBM's BlueGene centre in Minnesota A supercomputer with the processing power of two million laptops is to be built by IBM for the US government to help manage its nuclear arsenal. IBM announced it was developing the technology for its "Sequoia" system, which will be easily the fastest computer on the planet, with delivery to the Department of Energy (DOE) scheduled in 2011. According to IBM, Sequoia will be able to achieve performance speeds of up to 20 petaflops or 20,000 trillion calculations a second. IBM estimates that the computing power of the Sequoia system will be greater than that of every one of the current systems on the Top 500 supercomputer rankings combined. The system will be housed at the US Department of Energy's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. The system will contain more than 1.6 million microprocessors, placed in a series of 96 refrigerator-sized racks. The supercomputer will be contained in a 3,422 sq ft building – the size of a large house. As microprocessors have become much smaller and more powerful, they have also become more energy efficient. Sequoia will use only about 6 megawatts of energy a year – the equivalent to the power consumed by 500 American homes a year. Before IBM builds the Sequoia supercomputer, the company's engineers will begin work on "Dawn," a supercomputer which is designed to deliver 500 teraflops or 500 trillion calculations per second. Dawn will act as the delivery system for Sequoia's computing operations. Both systems will be constructed at IBM's BlueGene facilities in Minnesota.

Iran launches its first satellite Iran has launched its first domestically built satellite. The spacecraft, named Omid (Hope) - the first in a series that Iran plans to put into space by the end of next year - was lifted into orbit on a rocket on Tuesday."With this launch, the Islamic Republic of Iran has officially achieved a presence in space," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, said in broadcast remarks. Omid will stay aloft for up to three months as part of a programme Iranian officials say is aimed at improving telecommunications and monitoring natural disasters.Robert Wood, a US state department spokesman, voiced "great concern" at Iran's actions, saying that their satellite work could "possibly lead to the development of ballistic missiles".Ahmadinejad has made scientific development, which often puts the country at odds with the West, a central theme of his presidency. The satellite's launch demonstrates the development of technologies that many countries fear could one day be used to launch nuclear weapons. Iran insists it has no plans to do so.The Iranian Fars state news agency said the satellite "has been designed for gathering information and for testing equipment ... [that] is going to help Iranian experts send an operational satellite into space". It said the launch was "another achievement for Iranian scientists under sanctions".Iran is under two rounds of UN sanctions due to its refusal to halt uranium enrichment, which the US and other Western nations fear could lead to the production of nuclear weapons.Tehran says its nuclear ambitions are limited to generating electricity.A satellite was put into orbit by Iran in 2005, but was carried by a Russian rocket.

Bailed Out Bank of America Sponsors Super Bowl Fun Fest Morgan Stanley Hosts Conference at 5-Star Resort in Palm Beach February 2, 2009 Despite a near collapse that required $45 billion in federal taxpayer bailout funds, Bank of America sponsored a five day carnival-like affair just outside the Super Bowl stadium this past week as President Obama decried wasteful spending on Wall St . Brian Ross investigates the bankers who sponsored Super Bowl festivities. The event – known as the NFL Experience – was 850,000 square feet of sports games and interactive entertainment attractions for football fans and was blanketed in Bank of America logos and marketing calls to sign up for football-themed banking products. The bank staunchly defended its sponsorship, saying it was a " business proposition " and part of its "growth strategy." Critics blasted the spending as a serious abuse of taxpayer money.

Infamous Plaza penthouse back on market Thu Jan 29, 10:24 am ET NEW YORK (Reuters) – That $53.5 million New York penthouse apartment, derided by its last owner as "attic-like" with oppressive ceilings and a terrible view of Central Park, is back on the market. The buyer of the apartment in New York's famed Plaza Hotel, home to the children's book character "Eloise," has ended his legal battle with the building's developers in a confidential settlement, his lawyer said on Wednesday. Y. David Scharf, who represents Russian financier Andrei Vavilov, said the two sides had reached an agreement on Tuesday but he declined to elaborate. The real estate website StreetEasy.com now shows that the apartment -- made up of two separate penthouses built on top of the Plaza -- was still on the market with no buyers having closed, the New York Times reported. Representatives for developer El-Ad Properties and broker Stribling & Associates were not available for comment. In a breach of contract lawsuit filed last year against El-Ad and Stribling, Vavilov said he expected more for the price he paid. He complained the apartment was "attic-like" with small windows, low ceilings, obstructed views and ugly drainage grates. He demanded the return of his $10.7 million deposit and $30 million in damages. In a counter suit, El-Ad accused Vavilov of libel and demanded $36 million in damages. The Plaza overlooks Central Park and has inspired writers such as Kay Thompson, author of the "Eloise" stories about a 6-year-old girl who lived at the hotel, and Neil Simon, who wrote the Broadway play and hit film "Plaza Suite." The hotel, opened in 1907, has been owned by moguls such as Conrad Hilton and Donald Trump. After $400 million worth of renovations, the Plaza reopened last March as a mixture of hotel rooms and condominiums. The penthouses for sale were advertised as magnificent "one of a kind" properties.

Obama's half brother arrested on charge of marijuana possession CNN NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- George Obama, the half brother of U.S. President Barack Obama, has been arrested by Kenyan police on charges of possession of marijuana, police said Saturday. George Obama was arrested in Kenya on a charge for possession of marijuana, according to police. Inspector Augustine Mutembei, the officer in charge, said Obama was arrested on a charge of possession of cannabis, known in Kenya as Bhang, and resisting arrest. He is scheduled to appear in court Monday, Mutembei said. He is being held at Huruma police post in the capital of Nairobi. CNN Correspondent David McKenzie talked with George Obama at the jail where he is being held. Speaking from behind bars, Obama denied the allegations. "They took me from my home," he said, "I don't know why they are charging me." George Obama and the president barely know each other, though they have met before. George Obama was one of the president's few close relatives who did not go to the inauguration in Washington last week. In his memoir, "Dreams from My Father," Barack Obama describes meeting George as a "painful affair." Barack Obama's trip to Kenya meant meeting family he had never known.

St. Charles County man stole explosives for 'end of the world,' officials say ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 01/31/2009 St. Louis — A man charged in the theft of more than 50 pounds of explosives from a police range near Weldon Spring was preparing for the "end of the world," federal court documents say. Ryan D. Webster, 22, of the 100 block of Margaux Court, near St. Charles, was charged with possessing stolen explosives and was arrested Thursday night at an undisclosed grocery where he worked, officials said. Webster was an honor roll student who graduated from St. Charles High School and appears to have no arrest record. Officials offered no explanation for exactly what he intended to do. On Friday, federal agents searched the dwelling Webster shared with two housemates, while bomb squad trucks waited outside. Jeff Fulton, assistant special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives office in St. Louis, declined to comment on whether all the explosives were recovered. He did say, "The public should not be concerned." Fulton also said, "He may or may not have done it alone, but we'll find out." An affidavit filed in federal court in St. Louis quotes an unnamed acquaintance calling Webster "overly interested" in explosives and possessing numerous firearms. The acquaintance also said Webster was preparing for the world to end in 2012, a date some say is predicted by the Mayan calendar. The affidavit was signed by ATF Special Agent David Whittaker. The acquaintance told agents he saw Webster fire a silenced AK-47 rifle Wednesday and had seen explosives in Webster's home, including tear gas grenades and six blocks of C-4 explosive. Between June 3 and 12, 2007, someone cut a fence, broke into a van and cut locks on a Dumpster-size explosives magazine at the St. Charles County Law Enforcement Training Center, 1835 South Highway 94. The 13 missing C-4 blocks and other blasting materials were for use by the county bomb squad and FBI in training and disarming bombs. A laptop computer and video camera also were taken. The affidavit says Webster paid the acquaintance $500 to dig a hole to stash some of the material, which agents recovered.

Please join me in remembering a great icon of the entertainment community. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71. Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours. Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite being a little flaky at times, he still was a crusty old man and was considered a positive roll model for millions. Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, three children: John Dough, Jane Dough and Dosey Dough, plus they had one in the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart. The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.

KJ highest US poverty rate, census says Times Herald-Record January 30, 2009 More than two-thirds of Kiryas Joel residents live below the federal poverty line and more than 40 percent receive food stamps, according to the American Community Survey, a U.S. Census Bureau study of every place in the country with 20,000 residents or more. That makes the village poorer than crumbling big cities like Detroit and noted slums like East St. Louis, and by far the poorest place in the mid-Hudson. The poverty rate in Newburgh, the next-poorest place, is 28 percent. Regionwide, it's about 11.5 percent. Places in the country with poverty rates similar to Kiryas Joel are mostly college towns with large populations of students who don't have full-time jobs. Village officials did not return calls seeking comment, but an expert in Hasidic communities said the poverty figures are tied strongly to the village's religious culture and mores. Pressure to have many children and the demand to send them to expensive private schools, combined with a low number of people who go to college or leave the village to get higher-paying jobs, produces a static and poor society, said Samuel Heilman, professor of Jewish studies at Queens College. "This is a population that sees childbirth as a sign of high status and for women a fulfillment of their divine and socially sanctioned role in life," Heilman said. "They are also an insular community that see life on the inside superior to the outside." The tendency toward large families is borne out in the American Community Survey data. The median age in the village is 14.4, meaning half of its more than 21,000 residents is 14 or younger. Also, the village has the highest marriage rate in the country, with 80 percent of women ages 15 to 50 being married.

Charging Ahead Popular Science 12.15.2008 Man and Machine: Elon Musk and his all-electric Tesla Roadster: John B. Carnett If there's a gene for entrepreneurship, Elon Musk has it. From his first project at age 12 creating and selling a videogame called Blastar for $500, to his $1-billion-plus sale of PayPal to eBay in 2002, the 37-year-old South African is every bit the born mogul. These days he's chairman of Solar City, the largest residential solar-power provider in California. He's also the founder and CEO of Space X, a space-exploration company that made headlines last September when it launched the first privately developed rocket into orbit. But lately it's Musk's newly minted role as CEO of the San Carlos, California-based start-up Tesla Motors that is drawing the most attention. In October, amid global financial tumult, Tesla received a $40-million cash infusion from private investors and announced that by 2011 it would begin selling an electric sedan powered by lithium-ion batteries with an unthinkable 244-mile range. The Model S won't overtake Tesla's 125mph Roadster, but it will be nearly half the price, at $60,000, and made in America. We spoke with Musk about his push to make affordable high-performance electric cars and why hybrids have no future. Q: Can you be successful selling an alternative-fuel car now that gas prices have dipped below $3 a gallon? A: Absolutely. The cost difference between electric and gasoline is gigantic. When we started Tesla in 2003, gasoline was around $2.50. It takes 60 kilowatt-hours to charge the Roadster's battery. So at California's special rate for electric cars, currently seven cents a kilowatt-hour to charge at night, it costs roughly $5 to go 250 miles. And we're zero-emissions.

Shoe monument for man who threw footwear at Bush Fri Jan 30, 12:12 pm Reuters – A statue built for Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, who hurled his shoes at former U.S. president … TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) – An Iraqi town has unveiled a giant monument of a shoe in honor of the journalist who threw his footwear at former U.S. President George W. Bush. The two-meter (six-foot) high statue, unveiled on Thursday in former dictator Saddam Hussein's home town of Tikrit, depicts a bronze-colored shoe, filled with a plastic shrub. "Muntazer: fasting until the sword breaks its fast with blood; silent until our mouths speak the truth," reads an inscription, in honor of journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, who hurled his shoes at Bush and called him a "dog" at a news conference during the former president's final visit to Iraq. Zaidi has been held in jail in Baghdad since the incident, facing charges of assaulting a visiting head of state. Fatin Abdul Qader, head of an orphanage and children's organization in the town, said the one-and-a-half-tonne monument by artist Laith al-Amiri was titled "statue of glory and generosity." "This statue is the least expression of our appreciation for Muntazer al-Zaidi, because Iraqi hearts were comforted by his throw," she said.

Two rams and a woman Khaled Al-Sulaiman | Okaz, Jehat5@yahoo.com We have an entrenched judicial system that is based on Divine Law and not personal whims. This is the reason why I could not understand two recent court verdicts handed out on the same day. In the first ruling, two thieves who stole two rams were sentenced to three years imprisonment and 1,000 lashes each. The second ruling of two years imprisonment and 200 whiplashes was for a husband who beat his wife until she swallowed her tongue and died. I could not find any explanation for the great difference in the two rulings although they were reached under the same law. Are the two rams more valuable than the woman or is the life of a human being cheaper than that of livestock? I am not evaluating the judicial system or delving into the parameters of the rulings. I’m just trying to understand how some judges think and issue their verdicts? It might be true that the woman was killed unintentionally and the rams were stolen with intent, but this will not answer the questions that arise from the two verdicts.

2 Charged After Girl, 12, Found Drunk Incident Occurred At Slumber Party, Police Say January 30, 2009 GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- A Gainesville mother is facing child neglect charges after police said she didn't call for help when a 12-year-old girl under her care became extremely intoxicated. Police said the incident took place at a slumber party at Helen Sullivan-Napier's home in early January. Sullivan was arrested on Wednesday, after police said they began talking individually with the girls who were at the slumber party, WJXT-TV in Jacksonville reported. "Instead of immediately getting qualified medical personnel, they attempted to sober this 12-year-old up over the course of five hours," Gainesville Police Department spokesman Keith Kameg said. According to a police report, "the defendant and the witnesses (who are all juveniles) attempted to 'sober up' the victim for 5 hours by keeping her awake, covering her with blankets, and giving her liquids." It also states Sullivan tried to give the victim "mouth to mouth" resuscitation twice when the child appeared to have stopped breathing. Police said it was another juvenile at the home who eventually called authorities. "The arrest that took place yesterday was a follow up to original case," Kameg said. The police report states that when emergency personnel took the victim to an area hospital, "(the child's) blood alcohol level was measured at .076." However, it also stated, "The Child Protection Team reviewed the case and noted the victim's BAC was probably as high as .135" Police said Sullivan-Napier did not supply the girls at the sleepover with alcohol. They said 27-year-old Felipe Garibay provided the alcohol. Garibay was also arrested. He was charged with one count of lewd and lascivious acts on a minor because police said he touched one girl inappropriately. He is also charged with five counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and five counts of child cruelty. Sullivan, 38, has been released from jail on bond. Garibay remains jailed on a $30,000 bond.

Officials: Teacher Forced Student To Have Sex With Her January 29, 2009 SAN DIEGO -- A South Bay elementary school teacher accused of having had a four-year sexual relationship with her godson from the time he was 11 is scheduled to be arraigned Friday on charges of sexually assaulting the boy, who was also one of her students. Carmina Erica Lopez, 32, surrendered to detectives at her Mission Hills home on Wednesday evening, Chula Vista police spokesman Bernard Gonzales said. Lopez, a fifth-grade teacher at Sunnyslope Elementary School in the Palm City district of San Diego, was booked into the Las Colinas women's jail in Santee on suspicion of more than 60 counts of sexually assaulting a minor. Many of the alleged sex acts purportedly occurred in Chula Vista, Gonzales said. Authorities did not immediately disclose where the boy lives. County Child Protective Services officials reported to police the now-15-year-old's allegation that Lopez had repeatedly forced him to have sex with her, starting in 2004 and continuing until last June. The suspect has been placed on leave pending resolution of the charges against her.

Cops: Woman Molested Male Friend Colorado man says he was assaulted after barbecue at his home JANUARY 29--Meet Janice McCarl. The Colorado woman, 53, was arrested last night for allegedly sexually assaulting a male friend late last year. McCarl, seen below in a Longmont Police Department mug shot, was booked into jail on a felony charge of suspicion of sexual assault. According to a police report, a copy of which you'll find here , the victim, 50, told investigators that he invited McCarl to a barbecue at his home last November. Following the barbecue, the man contends that he passed out and awoke to find McCarl molesting him. The man, who believes that he was somehow drugged by McCarl, told police that she "had her hands...in his ass." The man said that when he later confronted McCarl, she laughed and asked, "What did I do, kill somebody." He added that McCarl eventually acknowledged the molestation and apologized. McCarl's arrest was first reported today by the Daily Camera . The victim told police that, prior to the attack, he had been "intimate" with McCarl "approximately 5-6 times since July 2008." McCarl is scheduled to appear this afternoon in Boulder County District Court.

'Underwear measurer' gets 44 years January 29, 2009 Ben Hawkins, convicted last year of sexually touching young children as he posed as a market researcher who wanted to measure them for underwear, was sent to prison for 44 years today. Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Robert Ruehlman imposed the maximum sentence possible, despite pleas from Hawkins' attorney, Scott Rubenstein. At age 16, Hawkins, who lived in Springfield Township, had most of his small intestine removed. Since then, he’s had to feed himself intravenously through a catheter that empties in to his heart. “It’s very difficult to keep that clean and sterile in a jail setting,” Rubenstein told the judge. Rubenstein suggested Hawkins be sentenced to house arrest for life while he also undergo sex offender treatment. “You do scare me,” the judge noted. “You’ve shown that you just can’t live in society. “I don’t think a person like you can be treated. I don’t want you harming any more children.”

Published: January 31, 2009 HERE’S a bottom line to keep you up at night: The economy is falling faster than Washington can get moving. President Obama says his stimulus plan will save or create four million jobs in two years . In the last four months of 2008 alone, employment fell by 1.9 million. Do the math. The abyss is widening. Of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones industrial index, 22 have announced job cuts since October. Unemployment is up in all 50 states , with layoffs at both high-tech companies ( Microsoft ) and low ( Caterpillar ). The December job loss in retailing is the worst since at least 1939 . The new-home sales rate has fallen to its all-time low since record-keeping began in 1963 . What are Americans still buying? Big Macs , Campbell’s soup , Hershey’s chocolate and Spam — the four food groups of the apocalypse.

Police: Sister beats up bride at wedding reception HEBRON, Ind. — A woman who wasn't invited to her sister's wedding reception showed up anyway and attacked the bride, pulling out clumps of her hair, police said. Annmarie Bricker, 23, of Valparaiso, was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of battery. Jeremy Glotzbach told police he was hosting a reception for newlyweds Nicholas Landry and Lori Kappes at his home on Jan. 23 when Bricker, Kappes' sister, attacked Kappes on the front porch. Bricker pulled out clumps of Kappes' hair, struck her head and took the bride to the ground during a struggle, according to the Porter County Sheriff's Department. Bricker told police she went to the house because she "just wanted to talk" to her sister and parents about family problems. She said she never touched her sister, but five witnesses contradicted her, authorities said. Kappes did not need medical treatment. Bricker later resigned from her job as a Porter County 911 dispatcher, officials said.

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Headstrong California man busted for liquor store robbery FEBRUARY 5--Meet Stephen Bishop. The California man was arrested this week for the mid-December robbery of a liquor store. Surveillance video shows that Bishop, 49, made sure to wear a baseball cap when allegedly sticking up the Market Express Liquor Store in Grover Beach. Bishop, jailed in lieu of $450,000 bail, is pictured below in a mug shot taken by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department.

Super Bowl XLIII Fri Jan 30, 12:07 PM ET Wing Bowl 17 eater Frank 'Frank De Fraud' Farrell of Washington Township N.J. vomits during the eating contest at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Friday, Jan. 30, 2009. John 'Super Squibb' Squibb downed 203 chicken wings in the allotted time to win the 17th annual Wing Bowl eating contest, held every year the Friday before the Super Bowl.

Shadow-Catcher: 1839 Philadelphia, November 1839. "Robert Cornelius, self-portrait facing front, arms crossed. Inscription on backing: The first light-picture ever taken. 1839. " One of the first photographs made in the United States, this quarter-plate daguerreotype, taken in the yard of the Cornelius family's lamp-making business in Philadelphia, is said to be the earliest photographic portrait of a person. View full size.

Diners enjoying the new V-Sushi Bar, at the Vincent Hotel in Southport Merseyside, where the food is served on naked model Becky Wu.

A Thai demonstrator wears skull and cross bones sunglasses as he attends a rally in downtown Bangkok, Thailand. Thousands of anti-government protesters blocked traffic Friday on the busy streets of Bangkok, accusing Thailand's prime minister of ordering the violent suppression of an earlier demonstration and demanding his resignation.

A Bayeux-Calvados Award-winning photo by Balaz Gardi shows a U.S. soldier collapsing in exhaustion during fierce fighting with the Taliban in Afghanistan .

Rufus Ingalls: 1865 May 1865. "City Point, Virginia. Gen. Rufus Ingalls and group." As chief quartermaster of the Army of the Potomac, Ingalls oversaw the huge supply depot at City Point. Wet plate glass negative, photographer unknown. View full size.

August 1864. "Petersburg, Virginia. Group of Company B, U.S. Engineer Battalion." Photographs from the main Eastern theater of war, the siege of Petersburg, June 1864-April 1865. Wet-plate glass negative. View full size.

Tent Life: 1861 1861. "Washington, District of Columbia. Tent life of the 31st (later, 82nd) Pennsylvania Infantry at Queen's Farm, vicinity of Fort Slocum." View full size. Wet-plate glass negative, left half of stereo pair, photographer unknown.

Chain Bridge: 1865 View down the Chain Bridge over the Potomac near Washington circa 1865. Wet collodion glass plate negative by William Morris Smith. View full size.

Marilyn: 1947 Hollywood, February 1947. "Movie starlet Marilyn Monroe." And the world's luckiest phone book. Photograph by J.R. Eyerman. View full size.

Dangerous Curves: 1947 Los Angeles, February 1947. "Young upcoming Hollywood starlet Marilyn Monroe practicing in dance class." Photo by J.R. Eyerman. View full size.