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DC5m United States art in english 89 articles, created at 2016-12-24 16:09 articles set mostly positive rate 6.2

1 2.8 Donald Trump welcomes 'nice' letter from Vladimir Putin After months of promising to engage more with Russia, President-elect Donald Trump (3.36/4) vowed to enhance America's nuclear capabilities, admonishing Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday that he hopes both global powers can restore...... 2016-12-24 02:43 857Bytes article.wn.com

2 1.1 World's last wild frankincense forests are under threat ERIGAVO, Somalia (AP) — In a tradition dating to Biblical times, men rise at dawn in the rugged Cal Madow mountains of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa to scale rocky (2.12/4) outcrops in search of the prized sap of wild... 2016-12-24 06:33 773Bytes article.wn.com

3 1.5 NASA climate scientist and astronaut Sellers dies at 61 Piers Sellers, a climate scientist and former astronaut who gained fame late in life for (2.09/4) his eloquent commentary about the earth's fragility and his own cancer diagnosis, has died. He was 61. Sellers died Friday morning in Houston of pancreatic cancer, NASA said in... 2016-12-24 05:09 841Bytes article.wn.com

4 7.1 Christmas in London, 2016 The festive season in the capital reflects much about the city itself 2016-12-24 07:10 1KB (2.07/4) www.theguardian.com

5 1.3 AP PHOTOS: A selection of pictures from the past week Highlights from the weekly AP photo report, a gallery featuring a mix of front-page (2.06/4) photography, the odd image you might have 2016-12-24 05:18 669Bytes article.wn.com

6 1.2 Directors Guild Reaches Deal With Companies on New Contract The Directors Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television (2.06/4) Producers have agreed to a tentative three-year successor deal on the master contract for directors. The two sides announced the agreement on Friday night, but provided no details. More information about the tentative... 2016-12-24 02:25 1KB article.wn.com

7 1.9 This Gorham family will celebrate with a menorah and a Christmas tree When Amy Starr, who is Jewish, fell in love with Matt Hartnett, who was raised Catholic, honoring their collective religious roots became the most important holiday (2.05/4) tradition of all. 2016-12-24 05:00 9KB www.pressherald.com 8 0.0 PICTURED: Creating the world in shadows in Milan MILAN (AP) — Shadows are not just something fleeting for the dancers of the

(1.26/4) American company Catapult as they perform in Italy this Christmas. They create sh... 2016-12-24 05:31 1KB www.dailymail.co.uk

9 1.3 Wrap Up These Tamales For A Christmas Eve Feast Tamales are a Christmas Eve tradition for many Latinos. But they're also labor intensive and daunting for the newbie. Never fear: Mexican chef Pati Jinich shows us (1.06/4) how to master this holiday favorite. 2016-12-24 08:00 4KB www.npr.org

10 1.6 What was Christmas like 100 years ago? He remembers (1.03/4) Gifts? Forget it. Decorations? Maybe one. 105-year-old New Jersey resident reflects on a era of simplicity. 2016-12-24 03:20 4KB rssfeeds.usatoday.com

11 2.2 For Iraq’s Christians, Christmas cheer tinged with despair (1.02/4) IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — The Nativity scene and Christmas tree are in place on the corner of the street. Some of the children proudly wear red Santa Claus hats or show off new toys, mostly… 2016-12-24 07:44 5KB wtop.com

12 1.6 Sweden's German-born queen hospitalized for dizziness (1.02/4) COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden's popular German-born Queen Silvia has been hospitalized on her 73rd birthday because of dizziness. The Swedish royal house... 2016-12-24 07:23 1KB www.dailymail.co.uk

13 0.2 Catholic Envoy to Holy Land Expresses Hope for Aleppo

(1.02/4) The top Roman Catholic cleric in the Holy Land says he's glad that "at least the military war" in the Syrian city of Aleppo is over and that Christians there can celebrate Christmas "without fear. " Rev. Pierbattista Pizzaballa traveled from Jerusalem in a traditional Christmas Eve... 2016-12-24 07:16 1KB abcnews.go.com

14 0.0 When will a electricity come from a sea? Image copyright Getty Images If you've ever 2016-12-24 00:00 9KB headlinenewstoday.net

(1.02/4)

15 2.2 Sherlock stars Martin Freeman and Amanda Abbington exhibit split

(1.02/4) Image caption Freeman and Abbington's characters are 2016-12-24 00:00 2KB headlinenewstoday.net 16 1.1 Michelle Obama's fashion influence rivaled Jackie Kennedy's (1.02/4) NEW YORK (AP) — The morning after Michelle Obama's big speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2012, in which she argued passionately for a second te... 2016-12-24 03:34 5KB www.dailymail.co.uk

17 2.5 Behind the scenes and bloopers 2016 (VIDEO) — RT News (1.02/4) RT’s CrossTalk show with Peter Lavelle can be heated and (we always hope) engaging. But over the course of 1,000 episodes, there were some lighter moments. Enjoy some of the bloopers we have captured over the years. 2016-12-24 03:03 791Bytes www.rt.com

18 1.4 Israeli Ambassador: “Why Did Obama Change The Policy Of Standing With Israel And Not Supporting Her (1.02/4) Enemies?”

Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com… 2016-12-24 06:46 1KB www.patdollard.com

19 1.6 NYPD cop under suspension after posting humiliating Christmas photo of Brooklyn family cuffed on (1.02/4) Snapchat A Brooklyn woman says she became the butt of a joke after an NYPD officer posted a picture of her handcuffed on social media. 2016-12-24 00:13 2KB feeds.nydailynews.com

20 0.3 Democrat lawmaker pledges to do more for Hindus in S Asia A Democratic lawmaker, who is set to become the new face of the party in post- (0.01/4) election debacle, has pledged to highlight the persecution of Hindus in South Asia and do more to integrate the concerns and aspirations of the community in India into his work. Congressman... 2016-12-24 02:32 909Bytes article.wn.com

21 1.7 High school students have chance to be hospital residents

(0.01/4) Watching a chest tube drain fluid from a lung is not your run-of-the-mill high school lab. 2016-12-24 02:02 4KB www.washingtontimes.com

22 4.0 Granit Xhaka: I wouldn't change myself for anybody Granit Xhaka has vowed not to shy away from his tough-tackling style - despite collecting eight red cards since 2014. 2016-12-24 08:46 2KB www.independent.ie

23 0.6 8 Nights Of Fried Delights From Around The World Jews commemorate Hanukkah by eating fried foods. For most American Jews, that means latkes — potato pancakes fried in oil. But other cultures toss different foods into pots of boiling oil. 2016-12-24 08:40 9KB www.npr.org 24 3.4 12 ways to fill a day in downtown Muskegon during winter While some downtown Muskegon attractions do close during winter, many others are open year-round and ready to entertain families, groups of friends and couples. 2016-12-24 08:28 2KB www.mlive.com

25 4.0 5 most incredible discoveries of the Week (NEWSER) – An ancient source of water and an intriguing find about how pregnancy affects the brain were among the discoveries making headlines this week: 2016-12-24 08:26 944Bytes rssfeeds.usatoday.com

26 1.6 No getting around 'deeming' when collecting Social Security If you file early, you're treated as though you filed for both retirement and spousal benefits. 2016-12-24 08:00 1KB rssfeeds.usatoday.com

27 1.4 In Gritty Sao Paulo, Samba Reinvents Itself With An Introspective Sound A hundred years after the first recorded samba, São Paulo is pioneering the genre's second act. The city's introspective anthems couldn't be more different than Rio's optimistic, breezy samba beat. 2016-12-24 08:00 6KB www.npr.org

28 1.4 Natasha Oakley mocked after claiming Australians will be 'first to open their presents' She's the bikini blogger who recently made headlines after admitting she photoshops her photos. 2016-12-24 07:46 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

29 2.6 Heart-warming nostalgic photos reveal how travellers from yesteryear celebrated Christmas Heart-warming scenes of the season’s getaway by plane, train and cruise ship across the world have been captured in the collection, which dates from the 1920s through to the 1950s. 2016-12-24 07:40 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

30 4.8 Judi Dench stormed out of first ever audition after being blasted 'for her face'

She's a seven-time Oscar nominee and has been knighted. 2016-12-24 07:35 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

31 0.0 Shocking image shows baby's legs protruding through the uterine wall An ultrasound image showing the unusual positioning and a description of the contributing circumstances were recently published in a journal. 2016-12-24 07:35 1KB www.aol.com 32 2.4 Tamara Ecclestone's daughter Sophia spends quality time with granddad Bernie in Switzerland She's always at her doting mother's side. But Sophia, two, also met up with her billionaire grandfather and F1 Boss Bernie as the family stepped out in Gstaad, Switzerland on Friday. 2016-12-24 07:29 3KB www.dailymail.co.uk

33 2.5 What airlines will be serving passengers over the festive period revealed British Airways, Virgin and Emirates are among the airlines offering seasonal treats to passengers. The festive food ranges from mince pies and chocolates to full turkey dinners with all of the trimmings. 2016-12-24 07:28 4KB www.dailymail.co.uk

34 1.1 Kanye West steps out in LA amid reports he is 'battling health issues' Kanye West seemingly brushed off the allegations when he stepped out in Los Angeles on Friday, paying a visit to his Yeezy fashion line warehouse. 2016-12-24 07:13 4KB www.dailymail.co.uk

35 1.4 Canadians working in U. S. under NAFTA exemption worry about future under Trump One of Donald Trump's biggest campaign promises was to renegotiate NAFTA. The deal currently allows thousands of Canadians to work in the U. S. — and now they are concerned about their status under the incoming administration. ... 2016-12-24 06:42 821Bytes article.wn.com

36 0.0 Jimmy Carter reportedly the only former president confirmed to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration As the list of celebrities refusing to perform increases, so does the number of former U. S. presidents feeling ambivalent. 2016-12-24 06:37 2KB feeds.nydailynews.com

37 9.1 Get in the Christmas spirit with Chewbacca's rendition of 'Silent Night'

Chewie never disappoints. 2016-12-24 06:33 1KB rssfeeds.usatoday.com

38 1.0 The dairy plantation putting a uninformed face on India’s milk India is a huge consumer of milk - it's used to make yoghurt, cheese and a wide range of Indian sweets. But much of India's milk is collected from small farms 2016-12-24 00:00 1KB headlinenewstoday.net

39 3.6 England’s many pro and anti-EU boroughs Media captionEU referendum: A tale of two votesThe vote in England exposed huge differences in the level of support for the Remain and Leave 2016-12-24 00:00 8KB headlinenewstoday.net 40 3.3 Russia's Rosneft says has flexibility on oil output levels MOSCOW, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Rosneft's plans for next year allow it to be flexible with production volumes, Russia's top oil producer said on Saturday, after M... 2016-12-24 06:04 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

41 1.1 How That Holiday Song Becomes An Inescapable Earworm : Shots There's a reason why certain songs get stuck in our brains, scientists say. They interrupt the musical patterns we expect with surprises that we can't help but notice. 2016-12-24 06:00 6KB www.npr.org

42 3.4 This clever wallet's hidden feature is a game- changer What if your wallet could do more than hold your cash in style? Find out why the internet is buying up this wallet, fast. 2016-12-24 06:00 2KB www.aol.com

43 0.6 Leaked documents show Facebook's guidelines on hate speech are a muddled mess The documents were obtained and published by German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the newspaper that originated the reporting on the "Panama Papers. " 2016-12-24 06:00 5KB www.aol.com

44 0.7 Try one of these thrilling winter adventures Explore these ten seasonal holidays with a twist; from carving up a Swedish frozen lake in a 4x4, to hurtling through an icy wilderness with a pack of huskies in Lapland. 2016-12-24 05:59 6KB www.dailymail.co.uk

45 1.3 SEE IT: A look back at the best viral videos of 2016 — WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE A year that had its ups and Harambes, 2016 was an unending abyss of entertainment. 2016-12-24 05:54 6KB feeds.nydailynews.com

46 1.4 Ned Kelly shown in his teen years before he became Australia's most notorious bushranger This grainy image depicts two rugged mates cutting timber, but what makes this archaic photo immortal is the man on the right with the beard is deemed 'very likely' to be Victorian bushranger Ned Kelly. 2016-12-24 05:26 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

47 0.6 Motorists reminded: Naia Expressway T3 link open, fees waived for 1 month Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. reminded passengers that it opened a new section of a toll road aimed at cutting road congestion around Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport. 2016-12-24 00:00 3KB newsinfo.inquirer.net 48 3.6 Christmas nativity scene portrayed by 8 adorable dogs The serene biblical scene was recreated by the holiday-loving hounds' owners Sammie McCormick and 32-year-old support worker Cheryl Waddell at their home in Consett, County Durham. 2016-12-24 05:20 3KB www.dailymail.co.uk

49 2.9 Kylie Jenner appears nearly topless in brand new wall photo The 19-year-old posed for photographer Sasha Samsonova for the photo. It's not the first time they've worked together. Sasha also took a sexy photo of Kylie with her boyfriend Tyga. 2016-12-24 05:12 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

50 2.2 Learn English Grammar in Hindi Looking for some source to learn English grammar for free in Hindi Language with comprehensive explanations? Yes! You are at the right place because TheTubeGuru brings for you the free video lectures on English grammar in Hindi Language. Why English Language? Significance of English cannot be... 2016-12-24 05:09 3KB article.wn.com

51 1.4 Santander to provide BEL with cheaper power supply On Tuesday, December 13th, Belize took a major step in becoming self-sufficient in energy production after signing a 15 year agreement between Belize Electricity Limited and SS Energy, a subsidiary of the sugar producing company, Santander, located in the Cayo District. This new... 2016-12-24 05:09 1KB article.wn.com

52 3.4 State to unveil newly renovated Capitol building More than three years of renovations at the Alaska State Capitol have wrapped up and the building’s expected to be fully open for business in January. 2016-12-24 05:07 1KB www.washingtontimes.com

53 2.9 A lost teddy bear has an epic airport adventure A girl missing her favorite stuffed friend got an amazing surprise, thanks to an old family friend and a little Christmas magic. 2016-12-24 05:04 4KB rssfeeds.usatoday.com

54 2.4 Children's books for a Native worldview Not so long ago, children’s books with an authentic focus on Alaska Native stories and culture were harder to find. 2016-12-24 05:02 3KB www.washingtontimes.com

55 0.0 Father-son YouTubers share virtual reality with seniors With a chilly Fairbanks morning framed in the rec room window, seniors at the Pioneers’ Home took turns taking a trip to sunny grassland in Africa. 2016-12-24 05:02 4KB www.washingtontimes.com 56 2.1 Sydney's homeless people spend Christmas Day on the streets Carol is homeless and lives underneath a bridge in Glebe, inner-western Sydney, but she has decorated a Christmas Tree with alcohol cans, plastic forks and goon bags to celebrate Christmas Day. 2016-12-24 04:55 7KB www.dailymail.co.uk

57 1.2 Immigrant children take citizenship oath in unique Brooklyn ceremony A group of 19 immigrant children became American citizens during a unique swearing in ceremony at the Museum of Food and Drink. 2016-12-24 04:53 2KB feeds.nydailynews.com

58 2.9 The Bachelor's Megan Marx signs off social media for the year Signing off: Megan Marx took to Instagram on Saturday to reveal her solo plans for Christmas - which involve camping in a remote location with no phone reception. 2016-12-24 04:51 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

59 2.9 Modern Family's Sarah Hyland is all smiles after visiting a Beverly Hills salon The Manhattan native looked every part the Hollywood star, wearing a wintry black jacket that went just past her waist, a fluffy white top and cloud-grey, thigh-high heeled boots. 2016-12-24 04:42 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

60 4.3 Guy Sebastian's wife Jules shares a cute tribute to her family's Elf On The Shelf toy She is known to update her fans with precious family moments on Instagram. 2016-12-24 04:19 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

61 0.0 Rockettes not required to perform at Trump inauguration, union says The company managing the Rockettes and the union representing the dancers said Friday any performer may choose to skip Trump's inauguration. 2016-12-24 04:08 4KB www.cnbc.com

62 3.2 Controversial Sarasota dredging plan gets green light A controversial dredging plan along Sarasota-area beaches has been given a green light to move ahead. 2016-12-24 04:01 1KB www.washingtontimes.com

63 2.8 Amazon Prime Inks Content Deal With India’s Ultra MUMBAI — Amazon India’s Prime Video service has added to its already considerable Bollywood content by signing a deal with Indian home video outfit Ultra Media & Entertainment. Subscriber… 2016-12-24 04:01 1KB variety.com 64 5.0 WATCH: Mugabe's minister, 70, weds 23-year-old lover A video clip showing a Zimbabwean minister, 70, dancing after he married his 23-year- old lover has gone viral on social media. 2016-12-24 04:00 1KB www.news24.com

65 1.2 Jerry McDonald: Raiders' Sebastian Janikowski has proved his doubters wrong Sitting on a bench outside the performance center at the Raiders' practice facility, Sebastian Janikowski is smiling, relaxed and for the most part, satisfied. 2016-12-24 04:00 5KB www.charlotteobserver.com

66 4.2 A would-be Jewish astronaut and the search for the origins of life Jerusalem-based scientist Gary Steinman's quest for answers has led him to an incredible career. 2016-12-24 03:03 8KB www.jpost.com

67 2.7 Couple's botanical business takes off Maranda Johnson stood on the stepladder, nine months pregnant, and poured a trickle of water from a huge jug into the vat. Next to her, her husband Michael Johnson operated a 1-horsepower mixer, emulsifying the collection of organic oils and water into a thick mixture. 2016-12-24 03:02 5KB www.washingtontimes.com

68 2.2 No more Work! Rihanna touches down in native Barbados to spend Christmas with family RiRi, 28, seemed to be calm as she exited the aircraft clad in a long black jacket, with a black T-shirt emblazoned with her image on it, denim blue jeans with torn knees and black sandals. 2016-12-24 02:55 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

69 4.8 'Can't believe this kid is two': Erin McNaught shares sweet snap celebrating son Evander's birthday Model and television personality Erin McNaught, 34, took to Instagram on Saturday, sharing a sweet snap while celebrating son Evander's second birthday. 2016-12-24 02:43 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

70 1.1 Lucy Hale ‘will not apologise’ over leaked images Lucy Hale has responded after pictures were leaked from her phone, saying she will not apologise for living my life. In a post on Twitter the Pretty Little 2016-12-24 00:00 2KB headlinenewstoday.net

71 0.9 Duckie Thot poses for stunning selfie to celebrate landing in Australia for Christmas Her social media pages are flooded with eye-catching snaps showcasing her model figure. But South Sudan-born catwalk queen Duckie Thot has sent her fans into a frenzy with her latest Instagram post. 2016-12-24 02:18 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk 72 2.5 Brad Rock: Utah Jazz would be a beast in the Eastern Conference Close loss to Toronto underscores the difference between conferences, but no realignment is in sight. 2016-12-24 02:15 4KB www.deseretnews.com

73 3.6 Airport jewelry store giving ex-offenders a leg up NEWARK, N. J. (AP) -- Shoppers perusing the jewelry at a pop-up store in Newark Liberty International Airport's Terminal B can talk to a sales clerk who als 2016-12-24 02:10 4KB mynorthwest.com

74 0.5 Chesterton music program gives a voice to recovering addicts The struggles, hopes and triumphs of those recovering from addiction are poured out on a stage every Thursday night in a garage turned into a recording studio behind the offices of Frontline Foundations. 2016-12-24 02:02 9KB www.washingtontimes.com

75 0.7 Ryan Reynolds looks slick in bodywarmer, flat cap and shades as he takes a stroll in Tribeca He just got a star on the most famous street in the world. But on Friday Ryan Reynolds took a more low-key stroll on the opposite coast in Tribecca, New York. The 40-year- old looked dead cool 2016-12-24 02:01 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

76 3.2 Dear Abby: Mom won't tell teen he has autism DEAR ABBY: My nephew, "Logan," is a sophomore in high school. He is a bright, awesome kid who is on the autism spectrum. He is very 2016-12-24 02:00 2KB chicago.suntimes.com

77 0.8 Jessica Alba looks serious as she steps out for last minute holiday shopping in dark duster cardigan and fedora It's the time of year for holiday cheer. But it didn't look as though Jessica Alba wanted to participate in the festivities as she stepped out for some shopping on Friday. 2016-12-24 02:00 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

78 0.8 Kim Zolciak shares family photo with husband Kroy and six children on Instagram The family photo was taken in their backyard. The Biermanns also paid a visit to Santa Claus, and the 38-year-old reality star recorded her children as they listened intently to St. Nick. 2016-12-24 01:48 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

79 3.7 Tim Robards says Christmas is 'providing people with experience that could change lives' The Bachelor's original couple Tim Robards, 33, and Anna Heinrich, 30, talk Christmas plans in Saturday's Daily Telegraph. 2016-12-24 01:45 3KB www.dailymail.co.uk 80 5.9 Lisa Wilkinson shows off youthful beauty in makeup free selfie for Instagram

She's known for both her brains and her beauty. 2016-12-24 01:37 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

81 1.9 Washington Heights Church donates over $10K to buy bulletproof vests for Ogden police OGDEN, Utah — It's the season of giving and one Ogden church is giving more than $10,000 to their local police department so they can buy new bulletproof vests. This week, Washington Heights Church presented the Ogden Police Department with a giant check for... 2016-12-24 01:04 2KB fox13now.com

82 2.1 Today in History Today in History Today is Saturday, Dec. 24, the 359th day of 2016. There are seven days left in the year. This is Christmas Eve; the Jewish Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, begins at sunset. Today's Highlight in History: On Dec. 24, 1906, Canadian physicist Reginald A. Fessenden... 2016-12-24 01:02 5KB abcnews.go.com

83 0.0 Durham's Scrap Exchange opens time capsule, celebrates 1966 Dana Few Pope and Gary Lewis peeled the top layer of tin off of a time capsule that was sealed and buried 50 years ago at the former Center Theater, now The Scrap Exchange. 2016-12-24 01:01 5KB www.washingtontimes.com

84 0.0 Trump’s education pick believes U. S. public schools are a ‘dead end’ Many people in the education world are trying to learn as much as they can about Betsy DeVos, the Michigan billionaire tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to be education secretary. They are reading articles she has written, checking political donations she and her family have made... 2016-12-24 01:00 6KB www.post-gazette.com

85 2.8 Ex-Bachelor star Jacinda Gugliemino is happy to sleep in over the holidays Jacinda Gugliemino, who shot to fame on The Bachelor, now works backstage on the Channel 7 breakfast show Sunrise. 2016-12-24 00:39 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

86 2.3 Film captures genius of Detroit-based architect Eero Saarinen Saarinen saw his work derided by the high priests of glass-box modernism as mere advertisements for corporate clients. 2016-12-24 00:32 5KB rssfeeds.freep.com

87 4.3 Kudlow: The Trump Transition Is Transcendent, but the Economy Needs Attention Now There's a great transition going on, but the economy needs immediate attention. Tax reform is the key. 2016-12-24 00:31 5KB www.cnbc.com 88 4.3 'Mr. Holiday' lights up NW DC neighborhood WASHINGTON (WUSA9) - On the street, in a city where Christmas decorations are pretty bare, there's a house that's baring it all. 2016-12-24 00:27 1KB rssfeeds.wusa9.com

89 0.0 Kate Beckinsale cuts casual figure for solo outing in Beverly Hills On Friday, the 43-year-old stepped for shopping at Barney's New York in Beverly Hills. The actress wore a grey turtleneck with ripped denim, a duster coat and a Saint Laurent handbag. 2016-12-24 00:25 1KB www.dailymail.co.uk Articles

DC5m United States art in english 89 articles, created at 2016-12-24 16:09

1 /89 2.8 Donald Trump welcomes 'nice' letter from Vladimir Putin (3.36/4) After months of promising to engage more with Russia, President-elect Donald Trump vowed to enhance America's nuclear capabilities, admonishing Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday that he hopes both global powers can restore......

Trump vows nuclear expansion, hails 'nice letter' from Putin article.wn.com

Trump on Putin's criticism of Vladimir Putin writes to Trump tweets praise of Putin: Trump's Nuclear Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump wishing Putin for attack on Clinton Weapons Comments Not Democrats: 'So true!' X'mas greetings washingtonpost.com New aol.com article.wn.com article.wn.com

Foresaw Trump win, Putin Trump cites ‘very nice letter’ boasts from Putin after calling for article.wn.com enhanced nuclear capability pressherald.com

2016-12-24 02:43 system article.wn.com

2 /89 1.1 World's last wild frankincense forests are under threat

(2.12/4) ERIGAVO, Somalia (AP) — In a tradition dating to Biblical times, men rise at dawn in the rugged Cal Madow mountains of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa to scale rocky outcrops in search of the prized sap of wild... World's last frankincense forests threatened by demand for essential oils independent.ie

World’s last wild frankincense forests are under threat article.wn.com

World's Last Wild Frankincense Forests Are Under Threat abcnews.go.com

2016-12-24 06:33 system article.wn.com

3 /89 1.5 NASA climate scientist and astronaut Sellers dies at 61

(2.09/4) Piers Sellers , a climate scientist and former astronaut who gained fame late in life for his eloquent commentary about the earth's fragility and his own cancer diagnosis, has died. He was 61.

Astronaut Piers Sellers dies Piers Sellers, NASA climate Piers Sellers: UK-born of cancer aged 61 scientist and astronaut wanderer dies aged 61 dailymail.co.uk featured in Leonardo headlinenewstoday.net DiCaprio's Before the Flood dies at 61 dailymail.co.uk

2016-12-24 05:09 system article.wn.com

4 /89 4 /89 (2.07/4) 7.1 Christmas in London, 2016 The sights and sounds of Christmas in the capital reflect the place itself - an extraordinary montage of tradition and change, glamour, pathos, enterprise, curiosity, possibility, poignance and generosity. I asked student film maker Max Curwen- Bingley to collect some seasonal scenes from the city, concentrating on variety and musicality. Here’s what he found.

From Good King Wenceslas on Oxford Street to Oh Come All Ye Faithful in Trafalgar Square, with room for reggae at Oxford Circus too. That’s the spirit. Merry Christmas from London to readers everywhere.

What Really Matters: The 5 ways to get through a blue Other Side of Christmas Christmas abc7news.com rssfeeds.usatoday.com

2016-12-24 07:10 Dave Hill www.theguardian.com

5 /89 1.3 AP PHOTOS: A selection of pictures from the past week

(2.06/4) Highlights from the weekly AP photo report, a gallery featuring a mix of front-page photography, the odd image you might have missed and lasting moments our editors think you should see.

PICTURED: A selection of pictures from the past week dailymail.co.uk AP PHOTOS: A Selection of Pictures From the Past Week abcnews.go.com

2016-12-24 05:18 system article.wn.com

6 /89 1.2 Directors Guild Reaches Deal With Companies on New Contract (2.06/4) The Directors Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have agreed to a tentative three-year successor deal on the master contract for directors. The two sides announced the agreement on Friday night, but provided no details. More information about the tentative agreement will be released once it’s been submitted to... Read more »...

Directors and Producers Reach Tentative Agreement on New Contract feedproxy.google.com

Directors Guild Reaches Deal on New Contract variety.com

2016-12-24 02:25 system article.wn.com

7 /89 1.9 This Gorham family will celebrate with a menorah and a Christmas tree (2.05/4) Finnian Hartnett slept peacefully, wearing a bib embroidered with a blue menorah, rocking in a swing next to a glowing Christmas tree. While their 3-month-old brother napped in the living room, Everett and Roxy Rovin decorated sugar cookies in the kitchen.

Roxy, 9, pushed hard on the rolling pin to flatten the dough. Everett, 7, named the shapes of the cookie cutters on the table.

“A menorah, a dreidel, a Maccabee, a Star of David,” he said, pointing to each one in turn.

Amy Starr, the children’s mother, is Jewish. Matt Hartnett, the baby’s father, grew up Catholic. This year, the first since Finn’s birth brought them all under one roof, the calendars of the two faiths coincide.

Hanukkah begins on Christmas Eve, which means the Gorham family will recognize both holidays as they travel to spend time with Hartnett’s relatives.

The sugar cookies were destined for his family’s annual celebration – a gathering with as many as 20 relatives around their Christmas tree.

“Matt gave his family the heads-up – ‘It’s Hanukkah at the same time, and Amy’s bringing the menorah,’ ” Starr said.

Starr, 40, grew up in New Jersey in an active Jewish household.

Her mother taught Hebrew school at the synagogue. As a little girl, Starr remembers protesting when a holiday concert at her school only included Christmas carols. The teacher eventually added a Hanukkah song to the program.

After college, Starr took a job with Hillel International, a Jewish organization on college campuses. She led trips to Israel and helped Jewish students celebrate the holidays, and the majority of the students she met came from interfaith families. She later worked for Interfaith Family, a national organization that helps families find ways to blend multiple faith traditions.

“You fall in love with who you fall in love with, and you find a way to make it work,” Starr said. “But what I found working with college students was, if there was no communication about making it work, the level of confusion was so high that they were just completely lost.”

Starr married a Jewish man, and they lived in Rhode Island before moving to Maine in 2012. They joined a Reform Jewish congregation in South Portland, looking for new friends. The couple divorced, and both parents decided to stay in Maine to raise Everett and Roxy.

Starr built a house in Gorham and eventually began to date again. Her mother signed her up for a Jewish dating website, but she expanded her profiles to other websites in hopes of meeting more people. She was just about to delete them all in frustration when she got a message from Hartnett.

“I have no idea why I answered his message,” she said. “It just stuck.”

Hartnett grew up in Philadelphia in a large Irish Catholic family.

He served as an altar boy at his family’s parish, studied at Catholic school and attended Christmas Eve Mass with his family. “Grandmom sang in the choir,” he said. “The next day, after all the presents, we would head back over to Grandmom’s for dinner.”

As an adult, he doesn’t observe many Catholic traditions. He has never missed a Christmas morning with his 10-year-old son Owen, though.

“Every Christmas Eve, I head over to his house, and we watch the Santa tracker,” Hartnett said. “The next morning, we open presents and basically we’re on the road heading to his grandmom’s house. It’s tradition repeating itself.”

Hartnett, 39, lived in an apartment in South Portland when he met Starr. Last year, she encouraged him to get his own Christmas tree for the first time in years. When the tree fell and destroyed the ornaments, Everett and Roxy asked whether they could buy new ones and fix the tree for Hartnett.

“They’re decorating the tree and they’re singing Hanukkah songs in Hebrew,” Starr said. “The entire scene was so strange, but they were so happy.”

In years past, Starr took Everett and Roxy out for Chinese food and a movie on Christmas Day. Few other businesses are open.

“Everything’s closed, because everybody celebrates Christmas,” Roxy said.

“Not everybody,” Everett said.

Last year, however, they traveled to Philadelphia to meet Hartnett’s family. His mom gave them gifts and ornaments – snowmen for the kids and a “Happy Hanukkah” pendant for Starr. Roxy and Everett see Christmas not as an adopted holiday for themselves, but something special for Hartnett.

“We’re not really celebrating it … ” Starr began to explain.

“We’re helping him,” Roxy finished enthusiastically.

The couple had talked about having a baby, and they agreed to raise a child Jewish because Starr is more active in her faith.

She became pregnant this year, and Hartnett moved in with Starr’s family before the baby was born. The house has a traditional Jewish marker called a mezuzah on the front door, and artwork from Israel hangs inside on the walls.

“The whole time, I was really concerned about making sure that he wasn’t feeling alienated,” Starr said. “I wanted him to be able to feel like this was as much his home as it is mine.”

Their baby has two names – Finnian Jordan in English, Yardain Chanan in Hebrew.

In Hartnett’s family, a number of living relatives share first names. In Jewish tradition, a baby is named after a relative who has passed away. They eventually chose his English and Hebrew names in tribute to Hartnett’s grandmother and Starr’s great aunts who have passed away. His first name is also a nod to Hartnett’s Irish heritage.

“He’s going to completely be the oddball in Hebrew school,” Starr said with a laugh. Eight days after a Jewish boy is born, he is circumcised.

Starr worried that Hartnett and his family would feel disconnected from the ceremony. She sent an email to his family explaining the tradition and its meaning, and she searched for inclusive passages for the rabbi to read at the ceremony.

“I didn’t realize it would be a solemn thing, but it was definitely a religious process that (Finn) went through,” Hartnett said. “It was emotional.”

Seeing her partner moved by the ceremony reassured Starr.

“From that point, I knew we could do this,” Starr said.

Once, the older children asked Starr whether Finn is Jewish. She said yes.

They asked if he would be confused about his faith when he is older.

“He might at some point be confused, but it’s our job to teach him,” she told them.

They asked whether Hartnett will become Jewish, too. She said no, but she still wants to include her partner in her traditions.

“I would never want to get to a point where he’s 13 and it’s time for his bar mitzvah, and Matt is so disconnected that it doesn’t have meaning for him,” Starr said. “I don’t think Judaism is ever going to have meaning for him because it’s not his faith, but I’d like to know he can find ways to connect.”

As Finn gets older, Hartnett said he will learn from Starr and the kids.

“I just want him to experience a little bit of both,” Hartnett said of the baby. “That smell on Christmas morning is different than any other day. Hanukkah – maybe him and I could learn that together.”

This year, the whole family went to a farm to cut down a Christmas tree.

Hartnett wrapped the tree and the outside of the house in strings of bright white lights.

Starr hung their ornaments and arranged her collection of teddy bears in Hanukkah sweaters on the nearby table.

Finn sat on Santa’s lap for a photo, which Starr plans to give to Hartnett’s mom.

And on Tuesday night, while Hartnett visited his son Owen in New Hampshire, Everett and Roxy poured sprinkles onto the sugar cookies for his extended family.

“That’s too many,” Starr told Everett when he dumped a heap of gold confetti onto a dreidel cookie.

“What?” he said, indignant. “Why?”

Finn woke up from his nap, and Starr brought him to the table to watch his siblings. Everett shook a mound of hot pink sprinkles onto a cookie shaped like a Maccabee — one of the soldiers that helped the Jewish people retake the Temple in Jerusalem from their enemies. Hanukkah celebrates that victory, and Starr began to retell the story as the kids finished their cookies.

“It’s a very complicated story … ” she said before Finn interrupted with a gurgle.

“Oh,” she said to him. “You’re going to tell it?”

He looked up at his mother and babbled his response. His cheeks were fat with a smile.

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Inside Blue Mbombo's Sara McGrath shares tips on special family Christmas how to celebrate Christmas timeslive.co.za with 'blended families' dailymail.co.uk

2016-12-24 05:00 By www.pressherald.com

8 /89 0.0 PICTURED: Creating the world in shadows in Milan

(1.26/4) MILAN (AP) — Shadows are not just something fleeting for the dancers of the American company Catapult as they perform in Italy this Christmas. They create shadow sculptures with their bodies, giving a contemporary twist to the ancient Chinese art of shadow theater. Shifting live silhouettes are the performance. Dancers create animals, flowers, trains and even a Western-style saloon. The Catapult dance company was created in 2008 by Adam Battelstein, who spent 19 years as a dancer, choreographer and creative director of the Pilobolus Dance Theater. Catapult gained popularity followings its appearance on "America's Got Talent" in 2013. The company is touring Italy for the second time, with performances running through mid-January. AP Photos: Creating the PICTURED: A selection of world in shadows in Milan pictures from the past week article.wn.com dailymail.co.uk

2016-12-24 05:31 Associated Press www.dailymail.co.uk

9 /89 1.3 Wrap Up These Tamales For A Christmas Eve Feast

(1.06/4) Maria Godoy

For many Latinos, the taste of Christmas Eve is a delicious gift of corn masa and filling wrapped up in aromatic leaves: tamales.

Latin American has hundreds of interpretations of the tamal. Some are savory, some sweet, some are filled with chicken, beef or pork, others with cheese or vegetables. Whatever the variety, tamales are a favorite for important holidays.

In part, that's because they're labor-intensive — one reason why tamale-making can be quite intimidating for the newbie. It's also why making tamales at home can be a social event in its own right. In traditional tamaladas , friends and family gather to assemble dozens or even hundreds of little mas a bundles to enjoy and share with others. Often, it's a multi-generational affair, with grandmothers and mothers passing down techniques and recipes.

If you don't have a tamale-master grandma in the family, don't despair. For help, we turned to Mexican chef Pati Jinich, host of Pati's Mexican Table on PBS. In the video above, she demystifies the art of tamale-making and shows us how to make her favorite chicken tamales in green salsa. For merrier results, we recommend tackling this recipe with the help of loved ones.

Happy Holidays!

From Pati Jinich

The easiest way to make tamales is to prepare your filling(s) first. In fact you can make it a day or two in advance. For the ones I feature here, make your cooked salsa verde , pictured in the molcajete below. Combine it with cooked shredded chicken to make a wet mix. No, you don't want it dry! The tamal masa will soak up some of that salsa. After the tamales cook for almost an hour, you want to bite into a tamal that has a saucy, moist filling.

Then get your hands on dried corn husks , pictured below. You can get them in the Latin aisles of your supermarket, at many a Latin or international store, or online. No excuse. Soak those husks in warm water, so they will become malleable and pliable. You don't want them to crack as you use them to wrap the dough and roll the tamal. You will also need to place some of the leaves in the tamalera or steamer.

Get the tamalera ready. Pour water and drop a coin in there. That's a passed down trick from endless generations. It works as an alarm for when the tamales may be running out of water, so you won't need to open up the pot and let all that precious steam come out: if the water is running out, the coin will start jumping up and down and make loud clinking noises.

The most important thing about the masa, aside from being well seasoned, is that it needs to be as fluffy as fluffy can get. It has to be so airy that, if you take a cup of cold water and drop half a teaspoon of the masa in it, it floats! You can only achieve this by beating it for a long time at a good speed. That's why I recommend a mixer in the recipe below, but of course, you are welcome to get a good work out from the masa mixing by hand or with a sturdy spatula.

Then, follow my detailed instructions below on how to fill and wrap the tamales, place them in the tamalera and hold your horses for 50 minutes until they are ready.

Hopefully, you make more than what you need. I can think of few foods that have as much warmth, sustenance and meaning than tamales. They are food that is meant to be shared. So I suggest you try a tamalada gathering!

Make many fillings ahead of time. Make your masa. Invite friends over and have a tamal-making party before the Tamalada. Everyone will have gifts to open and eat, as that is what tamales are, indeed. And the best gift of them all will be any leftover tamales that a lucky guest gets to take along. Or be a bit greedy, keep them at home.

Ingredients

To Prepare

South Koreans to march against president on Christmas Eve article.wn.com

2016-12-24 08:00 Maria Godoy www.npr.org

10 /89 1.6 What was Christmas like 100 years ago? He remembers

(1.03/4) FREEHOLD, N. J. — Some Christmas gifts we never forget; for Ambrose LeVan, it was the wagon .

When he was 6, his father gave him a small wagon that he could pull along.

“It wasn’t a play thing,” LeVan said. “We would go along the railroad tracks for 4 miles and pick up the coal that was spilled as they tried to shovel it into the boilers of a moving train. We couldn’t afford coal.”

That was Christmas 1917, 8½ months after the United States entered World War I.

LeVan is 105 years old now. If you’re curious about how Christmas has evolved over the past century, the Freehold resident is a living witness.

Back then, he said gifts were rare and practical. With that wagon, a young LeVan also lugged home groceries from the corner store in his hometown of Reading, Pa.

The LeVan family lived in a rented house heated with a pot-bellied stove and illuminated via kerosene lamps. Their one holiday decoration each December was a Christmas tree.

“My father would buy a small tree for a nickel,” LeVan said. “We couldn’t afford ornaments. We had a box of cotton and he winded it and put that on the tree limbs. That was the first indication of Christmas as we know it today.”

Christmas 1918 brought a big breakthrough.

“My father found a second-hand Lionel train that didn’t run, and he took it apart and got it running,” LeVan said. “That was a big thing. Few people had it.”

They set it up in the yard — an engine and two cars — and it was the talk of the neighborhood.

You know what else was a topic of conversation that season? The end of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. These days, we celebrate it every year as Veterans Day.

“I well remember that,” LeVan said. “I remember my mother took me to a (victory) parade and she was kissed by one of the soldiers.”

The Roaring '20s ushered in prosperity for some, but not for all. LeVan was 14 when is father died, and he dropped out of school to earn a paycheck.

“I stamped details on men’s stockings that showed the size and the manufacturer,” he said. “I worked 30 hours a week and would make $3.60 a week. That was enough to buy the food for us for a whole week.”

Things got better when his mother remarried. He remembers getting small Christmas gifts more regularly, but the staples of the holiday remained the same: Mass at midnight or dawn and visits to friends and family in town.

LeVan continued those traditions when he started a family of his own. After climbing the ladder of an engineering firm, rising from draftsman to vice president, he added a few twists to the holidays.

“Things my father talked about but never could afford,” he said. “We put up a tree with a lot of nice decorations and electric light bulbs, which was quite a treat.” One Christmas, he bought his daughter a set of Lionel trains. She passed it on to her daughters and now one of her granddaughters has it.

“The tradition of the trains goes on,” said Joan Jones, the daughter who now is 78.

The holidays are about tradition, but for someone like LeVan, they’re also about perspective. After all, his first Christmas gift was a wagon for collecting coal.

“It’s disheartening to see kids with so many presents take them and tear off the covering like it’s another piece of junk,” he said. “They’re opening them without any real appreciation for what went behind that gift — the thought in selecting it, the cost of it.”

LeVan never lost that appreciation. At 105 he remains remarkably sharp and fit, still swimming and playing the organ. His wife, Dorothy, died in 2003 after 67 years of marriage.

He will spend this Christmas like those simple holidays of his youth, seeing family and going to church.

Regarding the latter, he will make one concession to Father Time.

“Probably at 4 in the afternoon instead of midnight,” he said.

Follow Jerry Carino on Twitter: @NJHoopsHaven

VIDEO: Wildest Christmas Day weather of the last 50 years article.wn.com

2016-12-24 03:20 Jerry Carino rssfeeds.usatoday.com

11 /89 2.2 For Iraq’s Christians, Christmas cheer tinged with despair (1.02/4) IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — The Nativity scene and Christmas tree are in place on the corner of the street. Some of the children proudly wear red Santa Claus hats or show off new toys, mostly plastic guns for small boys. Windows and balconies are festooned with colorful balloons.

It is unmistakably Christmas on Friday at the Ankawa camp, home to thousands of Iraqi Christians who have been displaced since the Islamic State group seized their towns and villages in the Nineveh plains of northern Iraq in 2014.

But the holiday spirit is tinged with a mix of homesickness and despair. They still can’t go home even though their towns and villages have been wrested back from the militants by Iraqi forces. The towns are too devastated, with no water or electricity. The Christians are also haunted by memories of their flight under cover of darkness to escape the IS onslaught.

“I just want to go home,” said a tearful 79-year-old Victoria Behman Akouma. She was among a handful who briefly stayed behind after IS seized her town of Karamlis in August 2014. “They asked me to convert to Islam, but I told them I will die a Christian and that they can kill me if they want to,” she said.

After 11 days under IS rule, the militants escorted her to the border of the self-ruled Kurdish region in northern Iraq.

The Christians of Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital, were once members of an ancient but still vibrant Christian community in Iraq. They enjoyed protection and near equal rights with Iraq’s Muslim majority under Saddam Hussein, but their numbers rapidly dwindled after the U. S.-led invasion of Iraq toppled the regime of the late dictator in 2003, ushering in the rise of religious militancy with the al-Qaida terror network taking the lead.

The Sunni militants frequently attacked Christians and churches, terrorizing the community and forcing many to flee abroad, some to the West, some to the Kurdish region where tolerance for religious minorities is much greater than in the rest of Iraq. Of the estimated 1.5 million Christians who lived in Iraq on the eve of the U. S.-led invasion, about 500,000 are left.

The Islamic State group’s onslaught across northern Iraq in 2014 devastated the unique communities in Christian-majority town like Karamlis, Bartella and Qaraqosh — all in the Nineveh plains.

The Iraqi offensive launched in October to retake Mosul has recaptured most Christian areas. But so far, the Christians have only gone back for visits, to see homes or attend services in churches that were not as badly damaged and deemed safe. Returning home for good appears a distant prospect.

The Rev. Khouri Youssef, a Catholic Chaldean priest from Karamlis, was one of two priests who organized the exit of the town’s estimated 3,000 population in 2014 when news spread that IS was about to take the town. Now, he somberly speaks of the plight of the town’s people away from home and without hope of returning soon.

“They are crammed four families or more to an apartment, with no privacy or space,” he said, standing in the part of Ankawa where more than a 100 families from Karamlis have lived in two- story apartment buildings since 2014. “When we went back to the town after Daesh left, we expected it to have been looted, but we found it destroyed too,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for the extremist group.

That means that the Christians of Karamlis, like others, would continue to endure the indignities of living in camps for the foreseeable future, relying on government handouts, assistance from aid organizations and the church’s benevolence. “We miss praying in our churches, sitting outside our homes in the summer evenings, tending our gardens and living in our homes,” said 73-year-old Youssef. “We bear the wound in our hearts, but life goes on,” said Youssef, holding an old painting depicting St. Barbara, Karamlis’ patron saint who is thought to have lived in the 3rd century.

“We found it buried under the rubble when we returned to the town,” he said.

For Victoria, the 79-year-old woman from Karamlis, life in a camp for the displaced may well be the final stop in a life defined by tragedy. She lost her husband to a murderous gang of Muslims when she was 24. She had not seen her two children — a daughter in Britain and a son she thinks is in Jordan — in 30 years, she said.

Raheel Georgis is another elderly woman who refused to leave with the rest of the town in 2014, preferring to stay home. After living for three months under IS rule, the militants placed her at an old people’s home in Mosul. Later, they took her before a Sharia court and gave her the choice of converting to Islam or paying a special tax for non-Muslims.

She rejected both options and, as a result, was dumped on the border with the Kurdish region from where she was taken to Irbil.

“I humored them the whole time,” the 72-year-old Georgis said of the IS militants.

“But I refused to be a Muslim.” comments

Need a break? Play a quick game of solitaire or Sudoku. Or take one of our fun quizzes!

As 2017 approaches, here’s a look back at some of the best images that have appeared on WTOP.com from our photographers.

No cheer this Christmas due to EJKs — Pangilinan newsinfo.inquirer.net

2016-12-24 07:44 The Associated wtop.com

12 /89 1.6 Sweden's German-born queen hospitalized for dizziness (1.02/4) COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden's popular German-born Queen Silvia has been hospitalized on her 73rd birthday because of dizziness. The Swedish royal household says Silvia was kept overnight for observation and "is doing well. " In a statement, the palace said Saturday she was admitted to Stockholm's Karolinska Institute hospital late Friday "after feeling dizzy. " It added the mother of Crown Princess Victoria — heir to the throne — Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine, had been struggling with a cold "for some time. " Born Silvia Renate Sommerlath in Heidelberg, Germany, she met Crown Prince Carl Gustaf — who later became King Carl XVI Gustaf — at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. The pair wed in 1976.

Sweden’s German-born queen hospitalized for dizziness wtop.com

2016-12-24 07:23 Associated Press www.dailymail.co.uk

13 /89 0.2 Catholic Envoy to Holy Land Expresses Hope for Aleppo (1.02/4) The top Roman Catholic cleric in the Holy Land says he's glad that "at least the military war" in the Syrian city of Aleppo is over and that Christians there can celebrate Christmas "without fear. "

Rev. Pierbattista Pizzaballa traveled from Jerusalem in a traditional Christmas Eve procession on Saturday ahead of midnight Mass in Bethlehem.

He told The Associated Press that he hoped the people of Aleppo could "rebuild the city, not only the infrastructure but also the common relations that was a tradition over there. "

The Syrian government assumed full control of Aleppo earlier this month when rebels, including some Islamic militants, agreed to withdraw from their last remaining enclave after more than four years of heavy fighting over the country's largest city.

Catholic envoy to Holy Land expresses hope for Aleppo article.wn.com

2016-12-24 07:16 By abcnews.go.com

14 /89 (1.02/4) 0.0 When will a electricity come from a sea? If you’ve ever struggled to travel opposite a rug of a vessel as it rolls in a choppy sea, or attempted to mount adult opposite violation waves during a beach, you’ll have felt a competence of a ocean. It feels like there’s a lot of appetite there too, so removing appetite from a waves of a sea sounds as if it’s got genuine potential. For World Service listener Michael McFarlane, it’s a doubt that’s been on his mind for years.

“I live in Jamaica and we are never unequivocally distant from a sea… Electricity era [here] is generally formed on hoary fuels,” he says.

So since isn’t a sea powering Michael’s home yet?

In sequence to tackle this doubt for a World Service programme Crowdscience , first, there was a denunciation problem to unpick.

Deborah Greaves, Professor in Ocean Engineering and Director of a COAST Laboratory during a UK’s Plymouth University explains: “We’ve tended to use “marine renewable energy” to report call and tidal energy…[it’s] appetite that can be extracted from a transformation of a oceans in a sea environment.”

Large tidal appetite generators already exist in comparison locations around a universe – a La Rance River bay plant in Brittany, France, non-stop in 1966, and a world’s stream largest tidal appetite hire is during Sihwa Lake in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, costing 313.5 billion South Korean won (£212 million GBP or $263 million USD).

Expense is one cause that now boundary a worldwide series of tidal appetite plants. Environmental concerns are another, as some places with utterly clever tides are also supportive ecosystems, such as estuaries.

And there’s one some-more fact that’s utterly applicable for listener Michael: As anyone who’s been propitious adequate to spend time on a beach in Jamaica knows, a tides there don’t go in and out that much. It can be by as tiny as centimetres, compared with metres during a time in other locations around a world. Early development

For a programme, this means we spin to call power, which, as Prof Greaves tells us, is still in a early stages of development. “Wave appetite on a other palm involves extracting a call appetite suit in a device, and there are a outrageous series of opposite approaches to how we can do this.”

Out during sea, H2O doesn’t always pierce as predictably as in a tide. Ocean waves are churned adult by winds, and can be all over a place, interacting from all directions. It’s this anomaly and disproportion that means that appetite can be harvested in many ways, and there are thousands of patents purebred for a whole accumulation of opposite approaches.

You can get some thought from a devices’ innumerable of names, that include: The Limpet, a Frog, Mighty Whale, Wave Roller, Wave Dragon, a Oyster, and a Penguin. The latter bobs adult and down in a sea like a genuine penguin does – nonetheless it looks a bit like a animation retard of cheese – some names aren’t totally representative.

But, accumulation and stately names aside, what has a many intensity to beget a electricity – call or tidal? “There’s some-more intensity for call appetite in terms of a apparatus since a tidal apparatus tends to be located in specific positions turn a coastline.

“So there’s indeed a incomparable intensity for call energy, though during a impulse it’s serve off being commercially developed,” says Deborah Greaves. At a Coastal Ocean and Sediment Transport laboratory during Plymouth University in a UK, Professor Greaves oversees new call appetite inclination being tested in their hulk Ocean Wave Basin. Over 100 cars could be parked inside a 35m long, 15m far-reaching and adult to 3m low tank – if it weren’t full of water. Ocean simulator

And during one end, there are 24 paddles that can be away tranquil to beget waves coming 1m in height. This means that a accumulation of waves can be combined – from a arrange of waves that we competence see during a beach, to a many some-more mixed-up aspect with opposite sized and timed waves from many directions, that a COAST group call a sea state.

As immeasurable as this sounds, this is usually laboratory scale – it’s not a patch on a open ocean, though it’s where call appetite inclination start out. Deborah explains: “We can usually go adult to a certain scale here…and so in sequence to unequivocally know how your device is going to perform in a sea, and some of a additional hurdles in installing it and removing it to tarry in a sea environment.

“All of those things we can’t exam though they can be tested during incomparable scale during a hothouse site in a sea.”

FaB Test in Falmouth Bay is one such place. Heading out about a mile into a sea on a investigate vessel illustrated how this theatre helps call appetite device developers pierce their models forward.

“It enables us to make certain that we have entrance to a devices… At a same time, this area here is providing us with unequivocally severe and impassioned conditions. We have seen waves tighten to 10m,” pronounced Prof Lars Johanning of Exeter University, accidentally disposition on one leg and progressing considerable fortitude while a CrowdScience group clung on to a vessel rails and their microphones.

“In a genuine universe as you’ve only gifted here… you’ve got waves from opposite directions, you’ve got a current, you’ve got wind, you’ve got salt H2O – so you’ve got corrosion,” Prof Johanning explains.

“It’s a tiny thing that goes wrong utterly mostly unfortunately though it stops we from going further. Or of march then, we residence it.”

Prof Johanning tells us that a genuine plea for call appetite inclination is flourishing impassioned conditions. “You would like to have unequivocally good looking waves from one instruction if possible… unequivocally well-spoken and regular. That is not a genuine sea. The genuine sea is a bit opposite unfortunately so we have to overcome this. We can pattern for these conditions though we also have to make certain that it is cost effective.”

Once safely off a vessel and behind in a car, we set off from a hothouse site towards what we were affectionately terming as ‘big school’ for call appetite inclination (much to a contributors’ amusement). Here, station on a stately and unequivocally breezy beach, we met Stuart Herbert, Commercial Director of Wave Hub Ltd. Extension lead

“Wave Hub we can consider of as a immeasurable electrical prolongation lead. So we have a wire that is 25km prolonged – unequivocally thick wire – and it goes underneath a silt we’re station on and heads out to a sea and ends adult about 10 miles off [the city of] St Ives,” pronounced Stuart. Given a breeze and wintry conditions, this was a closest we could get currently – thankfully. Mr Herbert tells us: “[The conditions have been] as high as 15 metres in a final integrate of years.

“Bigger is improved to a certain border though these inclination have to tarry out there… This site has an stately call apparatus and a good place where we can bond to a National Grid… There’s other places like Australia, Western Ireland, Portugal, France, Spain also have unequivocally good call resource.”

So what does he consider about listener Michael McFarlane’s question: Could a appetite of a sea yield us with all a electricity?

“What a illusory question! And Jamaica has a good call resource.” A earnest start. But what’s a timeline, and could it happen?

“It has been estimated that there’s some-more than twice as many call appetite out there than is compulsory to appetite a whole world. However, capturing that call energy, capturing this furious and indeterminate resource, is utterly a challenge. It’s going to take some time for these inclination to get to a blurb theatre where we can muster them in mixed numbers all over a world.

“Would we ever get to a theatre where we can appetite a whole universe from call energy? we have to be positively honest with we and contend that’s unequivocally not going to happen. There have been some estimates done that it could be 15-20% in a UK.”

So, not all of a electricity then. But island communities could still make use of some call appetite in a future, generally because, as Mr Herbert says, “A lot of island communities during a impulse possibly have no appetite or get their appetite from costly sources like diesel generators.”

Michael was distant from wrong in meditative that a sea appears to offer this immeasurable apparatus of giveaway power. But a plea is creation inclination that can collect a many appetite from those indeterminate waves, in a cost effective manner, and tarry a relentless bruising and battering of a environment.

As Stuart Herbert concludes: “Wind turbines have been around for during slightest 20 years… Wave appetite is during slightest 10 years behind that. So 10 years from now we would suppose that we’ll start saying blurb arrays of call appetite inclination producing unequivocally useful amounts of power.”

BBC CrowdScience, Wave Power initial front on a World Service during 1132 GMT on Saturday 24th December. Listen online and download a podcast.

Delays star Greg Gilbert Who is Michel Barnier? Meet Year of upsets cancer interest ‘among a EU’s arch Brexit negotiator headlinenewstoday.net fastest ever’ headlinenewstoday.net headlinenewstoday.net

2016-12-24 00:00 admin headlinenewstoday.net

15 /89 2.2 Sherlock stars Martin Freeman and Amanda Abbington exhibit split (1.02/4) Sherlock stars Martin Freeman and Amanda Abbington have suggested they have distant after 16 years together.

“I’m not with Amanda any more,” Freeman told a Financial Times , describing a separate as “very, unequivocally amicable”.

Abbington also gave an talk to The Sunday Telegraph ‘s Stella magazine, in that she pronounced she and Freeman had “realised we’d come to a finish of a time together”.

The couple, who met on a film set in 2000, have dual children together. ‘No hostility’

“Martin and we sojourn best friends and adore any other, and it was wholly amicable,” Abbington said.

“There was no hostility, really, we only pronounced that we couldn’t live together anymore, so we put all in place, he changed out to a prosaic in north London, we stayed during home and we’ve started a new chapter.

“It is unhappy and it is upsetting, since we consider you’re going to be with someone forever, though we possibly do that or we mangle up, and we both came to a preference that bursting was best for us. We’ve been unequivocally propitious to make it such a purify break, generally for a kids.”

On Friday morning, Abbington tweeted: “Thanks for a pleasing and understanding messages. We are all ok! But thanks.”

The integrate will shortly be seen reprising their roles as John Watson and his mother Mary in Sherlock’s latest series.

In his talk with a FT, Freeman said: “I’ll always adore Amanda.”

The new array sees their characters with a baby daughter, named Rosamund Mary Watson.

Freeman and Abbington seemed with other expel members during an eventuality this week to foster a initial episode, to be promote on New Year’s Day.

Abbington also seemed on Wednesday’s book of Christmas Kitchen , during that she pronounced she would be spending Christmas with her children.

A orator for a BBC pronounced it does not criticism on a personal lives of the stars.

Follow us on Facebook , on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts , or on Instagram during bbcnewsents. If we have a story idea email [email protected] . Delays star Greg Gilbert Who is Michel Barnier? Meet Kitchen know-how cancer interest ‘among a EU’s arch Brexit negotiator headlinenewstoday.net fastest ever’ headlinenewstoday.net headlinenewstoday.net

2016-12-24 00:00 admin headlinenewstoday.net

16 /89 1.1 Michelle Obama's fashion influence rivaled Jackie Kennedy's (1.02/4) NEW YORK (AP) — The morning after Michelle Obama's big speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2012, in which she argued passionately for a second term for her husband, designer Tracy Reese's phone was ringing. And ringing. Mrs. Obama's powerfully delivered speech had attracted much attention — but these phone calls were about her dress. A shimmering sleeveless sheath in rose and silvery gray, it was pretty universally considered a fashion slam dunk. And customers wanted it. There was only one problem, Reese recalls: "We didn't have inventory — we had made that dress custom. " And so the label went into production. "And people waited," Reese says. "You know, so many people admire Mrs. Obama and they want to dress like her. We sold quite a few of those dresses. " She estimates the number at over 2,000. Reese, who hails from Detroit, is one of the first lady's favored designers — Mrs. Obama has been photographed in her clothes some 20 to 30 times. But unlike some past first ladies who favored one or two big-name designers, Mrs. Obama has spread her fashion choices among a huge stable of them — often promoting lesser-known names, and taking care to promote American designers at such high-profile events as inaugurations, conventions and state dinners. Which is why so many designers and industry watchers will miss her when she steps away from her post after eight fashion-conscious years, and why they consider her one of the most influential first ladies in fashion, perhaps even more so than Jacqueline Kennedy, because of her broad appeal. "Michelle Obama embraced everyone," says Andre Leon Talley, a fashion editor at Vogue magazine. "She embraced black designers, Asian designers, European designers. ... She was very democratic in her choice of clothes. " And that includes wearing fashion that ordinary women could potentially afford — like cardigans from the retailer J. Crew. "She's made an effort to wear accessible fashion," Reese says. "I think Jackie (Kennedy) was a great role model but she wore a lot of couture, and things that most Americans could not afford. " Mrs. Obama, she says, has worn both high-end and moderately priced fashion. Reese, who is African-American, is particularly proud that one of her designs — a black dress printed with bright red flowers — is on display at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The first lady wore it to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. Mrs. Obama set the stage for her broad-based fashion choices with her first inauguration. Previous first ladies had often gone with established luxury designers like Oscar de la Renta. Mrs. Obama wore a two-piece lemongrass-hued ensemble by Cuban-American designer Isabel Toledo for day, and a one-shouldered white gown by New York-based, Taiwanese-Canadian designer Jason Wu at night. For her husband's second inauguration, she wore a sleek coat and dress by American designer Thom Browne, known for his eclectic talents, and in the evening Jason Wu again. "It was an honor to have the opportunity to dress Mrs. Obama," Browne said in an email message. "She is such a stylish individual because of her confidence and intelligence. " For Browne, Toledo, Reese and others, it was never clear until the moment Mrs. Obama actually appeared whether she would be wearing their designs. "We would get calls periodically from her team," says Reese. "But we never knew exactly what things were for and when she would be wearing them. And I think that that's just necessary, because you don't know when plans will change. " However it unfolded, it certainly could change a designer's career. "We've been brought to the attention of millions more people than we ever would have reached," Reese says. David Yermack, a professor of corporate finance at New York University, studied the financial impact of Mrs. Obama's fashion choices in her first year as first lady. He says he found an immediate spike in stock prices of companies whose apparel she wore (he only examined publicly traded companies). "There was a very strong and immediate reaction in the stock prices of the design firms and also the retailers," Yermack says. For major appearances, this could run into the tens of millions of dollars: "That's happened many times with her. " And the public, Yermack says, remembers what Mrs. Obama wears. "Do you remember what Pat Nixon or Laura Bush wore? She has the ability to hold the interest of the consumer in a way that almost no one else does. I've looked far and wide — Kate Middleton, Carla Bruni. Nobody begins to approach Mrs. Obama on this. " Yermack thinks what's different about Mrs. Obama is that first ladies "have traditionally tried to be nondescript in the way they dressed — they didn't want to overshadow their spouses... or be seen as spending a lot on clothing. But she had no inhibitions in that sense. "She really had an impact on how professional women dressed, and how you could have fun with fashion, in a way that you couldn't imagine Rosalynn Carter or Barbara Bush ever doing," he says. "It's a very short list of first ladies who are going to leave that kind of legacy. " ___ Leanne Italie in New York contributed to this report.

For girls, Michelle Obama is an empowering example charlotteobserver.com

2016-12-24 03:34 Associated Press www.dailymail.co.uk

17 /89 2.5 Behind the scenes and bloopers 2016 (VIDEO) — RT News (1.02/4) RT’s CrossTalk show with Peter Lavelle can be heated and (we always hope) engaging. But over the course of 1,000 episodes, there were some lighter moments. Enjoy some of the bloopers we have captured over the years. See the scenes from Do-All Inc.'s 2016 holiday party mlive.com

2016-12-24 03:03 www.rt.com

18 /89 1.4 Israeli Ambassador: “Why Did Obama Change The Policy Of Standing With Israel And Not Supporting Her Enemies?” (1.02/4) Categories Uncategorized 2012 presidential campaign 2016 Elections Abortion Afghanistan Africa Benghazi China Climate Conservatism World News Winter Olympics War Video Venezuela US News Unions Trayvon Martin Terror Technology Syria Sports Science Russia Religion Race War Press Politics Pakistan Osama Bin Laden Opinion Obamacare North Korea Nigeria Muslims MMA Military Middle East Mexico Medical Media Libya Leftist Indoctrination Of Children Leftist Indoctrination Law Enforcement Judiciary Israel ISIS IRS Scandal Iraq Iran Immigration Humor Hollywood Guns Global Warming Feature Fast & Furious Europe Environment Entertainment Energy Egypt Education Economy Culture War Crime stories Special Features

Israeli Ambassador: “Why Did Obama Change The Policy Of Standing With Israel And Not Supporting Her Enemies?”

Israel Abandoned by US to Most Hostile Enemies - Israeli Construction Minister article.wn.com

2016-12-24 06:46 Mary Curry www.patdollard.com

19 /89 1.6 NYPD cop under suspension after posting humiliating Christmas photo of Brooklyn family cuffed on Snapchat

(1.02/4) A Brooklyn woman says she became the butt of a yuletide joke after an NYPD officer posted a picture of her handcuffed on social media with the caption, “Merry Christmas, it’s the NYPD. "

Kimberly Santiago, 28, said the photo — that was shared worldwide on the Snapchat app – shows her relatives being detained as warrant squad cops rummaged through her Dumont Avenue apartment in Brownsville on Thursday morning.

“Oh my God. When I saw that, I just said, man, this whole time this guy was recording this, like we were a joke?” Santiago told the Daily News.

One cop stood watching the group from the door, typing away on his phone, she recalled.

Texas students expelled for posing in blackface in Snapchat video

Hours later, a friend sent her a picture that Snapchat circulated as part of its “New York Story.”

A second photo popped up a few hours later, Santiago said.

It was another snapshot of the handcuffed family and it read, "Warrant sweeps Its still a party smh,” using an acroynm for “shaking my head.”

The NYPD confirmed that a warrant was executed at the address, but would not say what or who they were looking for, citing an ongoing investigation.

Police did not identify the officer who posted the photos, but said he works at the 73rd Precinct and has been suspended.

The NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau is investigating.

‘Merry Christmas Its NYPD!’: Cop posts photo of handcuffed family nypost.com

2016-12-24 00:13 Ben Kochman feeds.nydailynews.com

20 /89 0.3 Democrat lawmaker pledges to do more for Hindus in S Asia (0.01/4) A Democratic lawmaker, who is set to become the new face of the party in post-election debacle, has pledged to highlight the persecution of Hindus in South Asia and do more to integrate the concerns and aspirations of the community in India

Democrat lawmaker pledges to do more for Hindus in South Asia article.wn.com

2016-12-24 02:32 system article.wn.com

21 /89 1.7 High school students have chance to be hospital residents (0.01/4) HUNTLEY, Ill. (AP) - Watching a chest tube drain fluid from a lung is not your run-of-the-mill high school lab.

But that is part of the routine for 24 Huntley High School students serving hands-on residencies at Centegra Hospital-Huntley, a high school program that’s the only one of its kind in the nation, hospital officials said.

“It’s a pretty unique experience,” said senior Harpal Singh, who at age 17 has decided he wants to become a doctor. “It’s giving a quick glimpse into the future.”

The residency, he said, gives him insight into the profession and practical experience that goes beyond what he could learn in textbooks.

Emergency room nurse Kathleen Bolanowski said she had some trepidation about how students would react in such intense situations.

“They handle themselves very professionally,” she said. “They are extremely goal-oriented. It kind of gives them a well-rounded picture and makes all their school learning come together. It’s actually applying real-world elements to all of the work they have done.”

In the unique school-hospital partnership, students do extensive job-shadowing of physicians and other health care professionals. Buoyed by the initial results, Centegra already is talking about expanding the program.

“It’s really about expanding their knowledge of the profession,” said Bernadette Szczepanski, senior vice president of human resources for Crystal Lake-based Centegra Health System. “Our hope is these kids stay on in the health care profession, return to serve their friends, family and their community.”

Centegra already offers residencies for hundreds of college students in nursing and other clinical areas at its hospitals in McHenry and Woodstock, including a partnership with Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago.

The 128-bed Centegra Hospital-Huntley, at Reed and Haligus roads, and other clinical facilities will serve as learning sites. Officials envision the program could provide a homegrown pipeline of future health care workers and support Centegra’s goal to train the next generation of providers.

Only high-achieving juniors and seniors able to make Huntley High’s competitive Medical Academy program are considered, and of those, only a few students qualify for the hospital residency. Eligible candidates must maintain a 3.5 grade-point average or higher.

The students who have taken three years of biomedical science were selected for the residency program, which can handle a maximum of 30 students.

Students are paired with mentors at Centegra or one of its affiliates who can provide counseling and guidance. They get a minimum of 2.5 hours of weekly experience for the program’s duration, exploring a variety of hospital jobs, including critical care, emergency room, immediate care, medical/surgical, and various specialties.

Among their experiences — shared on a blog through district158.org — are watching babies being born and nursed, seeing pharmacists filling prescriptions and administering flu shots, and learning what it takes to cool and power the hospital and keep its equipment running.

“Some of the rotations are more hands-on. Some of them are more observational,” said Sheilagh DeLorenzo, biomedical science teacher and Project Lead the Way coordinator. “They love seeing the procedures that they’ve heard about.”

Senior Savannah Valeria, 18, never expected learning about filing and filling pharmacy prescriptions would be so interesting. It has opened doors to professions she had not considered. “It’s been awesome so far,” she said. “I feel like this program is really helping me to figure out what I want to be … to see if there are other jobs that are out there for which you don’t have to go to medical school.”

___

Source: (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald, http://bit.ly/2gbFVYJ

___

Information from: Daily Herald, http://www.dailyherald.com

School district to give each high school student laptop washingtontimes.com

2016-12-24 02:02 By MADHU www.washingtontimes.com

22 /89 22 /89 4.0 Granit Xhaka: I wouldn't change myself for anybody Granit Xhaka has vowed not to shy away from his tough-tackling style - despite collecting eight red cards since 2014.

The Switzerland midfielder was sent off in Arsenal's 3- 2 home Premier League win over Swansea on October 15, but has now gone eight games in all competitions without a card of any sort.

Xhaka hopes he can now balance aggression with timing on the tackle front - without losing his gritty edge.

"There are of course phases in the game where the line becomes blurred, but then you need to step up psychologically," said Xhaka.

"I play with a lot of emotion because I'm a passionate guy and I play with that passion. I love playing that way.

"Sometimes you're late onto the ball, sometimes you're not. Sometimes you make contact with the guy when you tackle him, sometimes not.

"It's a sport where individual duels are vital so I don't see it as a problem. "

Xhaka has added much-needed steel to Arsenal's midfield since his £35million summer move from Borussia Monchengladbach.

The 48-cap Switzerland star will aim to shut down West Brom's attacking raids in the Boxing Day clash at the Emirates Stadium.

And the Basle youth product will look to be every bit as physical against Tony Pulis' regimented visitors as in the past.

"I wouldn't change myself for anybody. I am who I am, people accept me or they don't," Xhaka told Arsenal's official club website.

"I have my strengths and my weaknesses which I can try to improve upon, of course. I'm still not the finished product. I'm only 24 so I've got plenty of time to keep improving. "

Arsenal must sweat on the availability of Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey, who will undergo a late fitness test on a hamstring issue.

Wenger's men are bidding to set their Premier League campaign back on track after consecutive defeats at Everton and Manchester City have hampered their early designs on a title challenge. 2016-12-24 08:46 Press Association www.independent.ie

23 /89 0.6 8 Nights Of Fried Delights From Around The World Bonny Wolf

Jews commemorate Hanukkah by eating fried foods. For most American Jews, that means latkes — potato pancakes fried in oil. But other cultures toss different foods into pots of boiling oil. Take, for example, these fried and jam-filled doughnuts, called sufganiyot in Hebrew, on display at a bakery in Kadima in central Israel.

David Silverman/Getty Images hide caption

Jews commemorate Hanukkah by eating fried foods. For most American Jews, that means latkes — potato pancakes fried in oil. But other cultures toss different foods into pots of boiling oil. Take, for example, these fried and jam-filled doughnuts, called sufganiyot in Hebrew, on display at a bakery in Kadima in central Israel.

Editor's note: This story was originally published in 2006.

It's all about the oil.

Through the eight days of Hanukkah, it almost doesn't matter what you eat, as long as it's cooked in oil. A good case could be made for eating potato chips with every meal throughout the holiday.

The story goes that in 165 B. C., the Maccabees, a small band of pious Jews, led a revolt that defeated the powerful Hellenist imperial army. The Hellenist forces had mandated pagan rituals into Jewish life and desecrated the Jews' temple.

There was only enough consecrated olive oil left to keep the temple lamp burning for a single day, so a messenger was sent for more. When he returned to the temple eight days later, the lamp was still burning. And to celebrate this miracle, Jews cook with oil during Hanukkah, which begins Saturday.

For most American Jews, that means cooking up latkes — potato pancakes fried in oil. But other cultures toss different foods into pots of boiling oil. In Austria, Jews eat deep-fried breaded meat called schnitzel, and in Morocco, Hanukkah couscous features deep-fried, rather than boiled, chicken.

"Italian Jews are not latke people," writes Joyce Goldstein in Cucina Ebraica: Flavors of the Italian Jewish Kitchen. But deep-frying is an old Roman Jewish tradition, according to Goldstein, and cooks known as friggitori used to sell fried vegetables from street stands.

Today, restaurants in what was the Roman Jewish ghetto sell all kinds of deep-fried foods. One of the best known is carciofi alla Giudia , crispy-fried artichokes, Jewish style.

"The first time you eat one of these artichokes, it is so delicious, you will want to cry," Goldstein writes. She goes on to say, however, that the dish is difficult to make with American artichokes.

On Hanukkah, Italian Jews serve pollo fritto per Hanucca , fried chicken for Hanukkah; torzelli , a deep-fried curly endive that is a Roman specialty; any kind of fritto misto , mixed fry; and frittelle di zucca , squash fritters from the Veneto region.

If you do choose to make latkes this Hanukkah, here's a New Mexico twist for you. Jewish food doyenne Joan Nathan shows Salt host Maria Godoy how to make traditional latkes — with and without a green chile relleno topping.

In Israel, the national Hanukkah food is fried jelly doughnuts called sufganiyot. Some sources say the name comes from a Hebrew word for "sponge," and others that is from the Greek for "puffed and fried. " Hundreds of thousands of these jelly-filled doughnut puffs rolled in sugar are eaten in Israel in the weeks leading up to the holiday and through the eight days of Hanukkah.

These yeast doughnuts, like other Middle Eastern dessert fritters, are probably descended from loukoumades , one of the oldest-known sweets.

Loukoumades and their like, however, are coated in a sugar-and-honey syrup, while sufganiyot are filled with jam or jelly and rolled in granulated sugar.

Much of the history of the Jewish people is reflected in this little doughnut. Eviction from many countries sent Jews all over the world, where they picked up culinary traditions from a variety of cultures.

Sephardic Jews were expelled from Spain and Portugal, and many settled in countries along the Mediterranean Sea, in North Africa, the Balkans, Italy, Syria and Palestine. Those who lived in the Middle East would have been familiar with the loukamades -like sweet fritters eaten in that part of the world.

Ashkenazic Jews from Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe brought a taste for jelly-filled doughnuts. Polish Jews, for example, ate traditional Polish doughnuts — called ponchiks — filled with preserves as a Hanukkah dish. The Israelis filled the Eastern fritter with the Western jelly and created the sufganiyot.

Sweet or savory, Middle Eastern or Italian, there is no shortage of options for Hanukkah dining. The only real requirement is that whatever you eat, it's made with oil.

This recipe for the Israeli national Hanukkah treat is adapted from Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook . (Schocken Books 1979) For non-greasy fritters, watch the temperature of the oil. It should remain at 375 degrees. If it's not hot enough, the dough will absorb oil, and if it's too hot, the outside will brown before the inside is cooked. Sufganiyot are best served hot and fresh.

Makes 30 to 35 2 tablespoons dry yeast

3 1/2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 cup lukewarm milk

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 egg yolks

Pinch of salt

Pinch of cinnamon

1 1/2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

Berry or plum preserves

Peanut oil for deep-frying

Granulated sugar for rolling the doughnuts

Dissolve the yeast and 2 tablespoons sugar in the milk.

Sift the flour. Place it on a board or in a bowl and make a well in the center. Add the yeast mixture, egg yolks, salt, cinnamon and remaining sugar. Knead well. Add the butter or margarine and knead until dough is elastic.

Cover with a damp cloth and let rise 2 hours.

Sprinkle flour on board. Roll the dough out thin (1/2 to 1/8 inch). Cut out with a glass into rounds about 2 inches in diameter. Cover and let rise 15 minutes more.

Pour 2 inches of oil into a heavy pot and heat to 375 degrees.

Drop the doughnuts in the oil, 4 to 5 at a time, turning when brown. Drain on paper towels.

With a tiny spoon, take some jam and fill the sufganiyot. Insert the spoon in the top of the doughnut, revolve it inside the doughnut and remove from the same hole made on entering.

Roll in granulate sugar and serve. You can make the sufganiyot larger if you like.

Eat while hot.

In Italy, pumpkin fritters are considered a good Hanukkah dessert. This recipe is adapted from Joyce Goldstein's Cucina Ebraica: Flavors of the Italian Jewish Kitchen (Chronicle Books 1998). She cautions that it's hard to find a squash or pumpkin that weighs exactly 1 1/4 pounds. Just be sure the milk covers the cubed squash, and add enough flour so the mixture has the consistency of sour cream. Adjust the sugar to taste, since squashes vary in sweetness. Butternut squash is usually sweeter than pumpkin.

Makes 6 servings 1 butternut squash or pumpkin, about 1 1/4 pounds

2 cups milk, or as needed

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or as needed

2 teaspoons baking soda dissolved in 2 teaspoons water

2 eggs

Pinch of salt

2/3 cup granulated sugar, or to taste

Grated zest of 2 oranges

1/3 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

Peanut oil for deep-frying

Confectioners' sugar for topping

Halve squash or pumpkin, scoop out and discard seeds and fiber, peel and cut into 1/2-inch dice. You should have 3 to 3 1/2 cups. Place in a saucepan, add milk to cover and place over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until the squash breaks down into a smooth puree, about 30 minutes. Don't worry if the mixture looks curdled; it will smooth out.

Stir in the flour and continue to stir until the mixture is thick, about 5 minutes, adding more flour as needed to bind. Beat in the dissolved baking soda, and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the salt, granulated sugar, orange zest, raisins and pine nuts. Remove from heat. Let stand for about 15 minutes until most of the moisture has been absorbed. Pour oil to a depth of 3 inches in a deep-frying pan or wok and heat to 375 degrees. In batches, drop the batter by small (1-inch diameter) teaspoonfuls into the hot oil. (These should not be large or the center will not cook.) Fry until golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain briefly. Keep warm until all the fritters are cooked.

Arrange the fritters on a platter and sift a heavy dusting of confectioners' sugar over the top. Eat while hot or very warm.

2016-12-24 08:40 Bonny Wolf www.npr.org

24 /89 3.4 12 ways to fill a day in downtown Muskegon during winter Downtown Muskegon is shot from atop the Harbor Holiday Inn. (MLive file)

Carmen's Cafe, 878 Jefferson St. d owntown Muskegon. (Joel Bissell | MLive.com)

Loyd and Marcha McNeal of Muskegon browse goods at the Muskegon Farmers Market on Jan. 3, 2015. The market is open on Saturdays through April from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. (Andraya Croft | MLive.com)

Kathleen Riegler, of The Cheese Lady, pours a glass of wine to be paired with a cheese inside shop on March 21, 2014. (Natalie Kolb | MLive.com)

Crews work on renovations to Hackley Public Library on Tuesday, June 7, 2016, downtown Muskegon, Mich. Improvements will include: ramps to the front door from Webster Street and from the parking lots, handrails and resting places, more lighting (relocating the 2 historic light poles plus adding new lighting), reconstructed steps and removing the outdoor carpet to make them safer, and a reading garden with benches between the library and museum. (Joel Bissell | MLive.com)

Toni Cook, 49, takes an order out for customers at Fatty Lumpkins Sandwich Shack, 971 Washington St. in Muskegon on Aug. 12, 2011. (Ken Stevens | MLive.com)

Savannah Sleboda, 13, of Armada, takes a run down the track. The USA Luge Slider Search took place at the Muskegon Winter Sports Complex in Muskegon on Jan. 13, 2015. (Tommy Martino | MLive.com)

Drip Drop Drink employee Mariel Goodman, of Roosevelt Park, makes a cup of coffee using the drip process on Oct. 29, 2013, in the Russell Block building, 360 W. Western Ave. (Natalie Kolb | MLive.com)

Gozo Promo store on Friday, Nov. 18, 2016 inside Century Club Retail Center in Muskegon, Mich. (Shannon Millard | MLive.com)

Pizza bakes in the oven at Top Shelf Liquor Bar and Pizza on Dec. 23, 2014. (Tommy Martino | MLive.com)

The Frauenthal Center at 425 W. Western Ave. in Muskegon. (MLive file)

Michael TerMolen pours a beer during the opening night at The Pigeon Hill Brewing Co. on Friday, March 21, 2014. (Madelyn Hastings | MLive.com)

Harbor Holiday Inn downtown Muskegon at 939 3rd St. in Muskegon. (MLive file)

2016-12-24 08:28 Justine McGuire www.mlive.com

25 /89 4.0 5 most incredible discoveries of the Week (NEWSER) – An ancient source of water and an intriguing find about how pregnancy affects the brain were among the discoveries making headlines this week: Read about more discoveries on Newser , a USA TODAY content partner providing general news, commentary and coverage from around the Web. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.

2016-12-24 08:26 Newser editors rssfeeds.usatoday.com

26 /89 1.6 No getting around 'deeming' when collecting Social Security Q: I began collecting Social Security at 62. I am now 64. Can my wife, who will be 62 in January, begin to collect Social Security under her earnings record and then when she turns 66 change to collect under mine? Her benefit from mine at 66 would be greater than hers. –

Gary McEntee, New Jersey

A: She cannot, says Joe Elsasser, a certified financial planner and president of Covisum.

“When she files, she will automatically receive her own benefit, plus any extra that would be due her as a spousal benefit,” says Elsasser. “This is a concept called ‘deeming.’ Effectively, when someone files prior to full retirement age, or at any age if they were born on or after Jan. 2, 1954, they are treated as though they had filed for both retirement benefits and spousal benefits .”

To learn more about deeming, read Retirement Planner: Deemed Filing FAQs at http://bit.ly/2hrjZpy .

Robert Powell is editor of Retirement Weekly, contributes regularly to USA TODAY, The Wall Street Journal and MarketWatch. Got questions about money? Email [email protected] .

2016-12-24 08:00 Robert Powell rssfeeds.usatoday.com

27 /89 1.4 In Gritty Sao Paulo, Samba Reinvents Itself With An Introspective Sound Marina Lopes "Samba doesn't accept restraint," says Sao Paulo performer Douglas Germano. "It has to break free or else it dies. "

Courtesy of Douglas Germano hide caption

"Samba doesn't accept restraint," says Sao Paulo performer Douglas Germano. "It has to break free or else it dies. "

"São Paulo is the graveyard of samba. " So claimed the late Brazilian poet Vinicius de Moraes, who co-wrote Brazil's most famous song, "The Girl From Ipanema. " Home to more than 20 million people, the landlocked city, a graveyard of buildings ordered against the sky, clashed with samba music's optimistic, beach-breezy beat. But now, 100 years after the first recorded samba, São Paulo is pioneering the genre's second act, with a nuanced accent on alienation that is revolutionizing its sound.

"Out there, the buildings will suffocate me," the São Paulo band Pitanga em Pé de Amora sings on its 2014 Pontes para Si (Bridges for You) album. "It's like São Paulo is moaning, not even the walls want to listen to me. " The group's manic samba hit " Insonia " (Insomnia), churning with the distress of loneliness, doesn't paint a picture of Carnival — and would have been unthinkable a generation ago.

Artists like Flora Poppovic, who sings with the band, have replaced samba's usual tales of unrequited love in the favelas with existential musings about anonymity in the city, electric guitars underscoring the solitude. "I feel so alone in these streets without corners, I'll always be going the wrong way," she sings in the group's 2016 single " Passaro " (Bird).

São Paulo has always served as a foil to Rio de Janeiro, its breezy, curvy cousin to the north, where samba has flourished for decades with peppy songs about life and love in the city's slums, like Nelson Cavaquinho's 1976 classic " A Flor e O Espinho " (The Flower and the Thorn) or Alcione's 1975 hit, " Nao Deixe o Samba Morrer " (Do Not Let Samba Die).

Inspired by performers like Elza Soares, an 80-year-old samba veteran who spikes her songs with elements of punk and jazz , São Paulo musicians have searched for a less manicured sound. They morphed Soares' angry, combative samba — known as samba sujo or "dirty" samba, and fueled by a sense of social injustice — into introspective anthems of urban ennui.

The sprawling, landlocked mega-city of Sao Paulo has become home to an introspective form of samba exploring themes of alienation. It's a far cry from the breezy music synonymous with Rio de Janeiro.

Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption The sprawling, landlocked mega-city of Sao Paulo has become home to an introspective form of samba exploring themes of alienation. It's a far cry from the breezy music synonymous with Rio de Janeiro.

Sao Paulo was their muse. Unlike Rio, with its aggressive beauty, São Paulo has a prickly charm. Forever submerged in thick smog, the mega-city is Brazil's industrial and financial capital, constantly churning as its rich and poor hustle for deals. São Paulo's texture and movement attracted artists exploring rebellious sambas focusing on self-examination.

Samba emerged from percussion styles brought over by the 4 million African slaves trafficked into Brazil between the 16th and 19th centuries. In order to maintain morale during the transatlantic voyages, masters would allow the slaves to sing and dance on ships to African rhythms.

When they landed in Rio's ports, the slaves continued to make music as a way to reclaim ownership over their bodies, according to Marcos Alvito, a history professor at the Fluminense Federal University in Rio. "It was the only available reminder that they were human beings," he says.

The genre blossomed after the abolition of slavery in 1888. Musicians would gather locally and freestyle rhythms and lyrics. They played tambourines, guitars, several different drums and the berimbau , a musical bow made from a single string that produces a twangy sound, heard in most samba songs.

The popularization of radio standardized Rio's samba nationally. It became the soundtrack to the country's wildest party every year, Carnival — and fashioned an image of Brazil as a happy- go-lucky collection of beaches, soccer balls and swaying palm trees.

At the end of the 20th century, Brazil became an agricultural powerhouse and samba took a back seat to Brazilian country music, the guitar-heavy sertanejo , which came to dominate radio stations and concert halls. The few musicians still entranced by samba's emphasis on a strong second beat — a precipitated accent that forces the leg down and pulls the hip back — were bound to the traditional instruments and themes of Rio.

But the rise of the Internet freed these artists from the whims of music mega-labels. Suddenly, all kinds of songs could be uploaded in cities around Brazil for the world to hear. Samba became local again.

"[Our samba] has this sadness, this urban hardness," said Rodrigo Campos, 39, a singer in São Paulo who performs with Elza Soares on her highly acclaimed 2016 release, The Woman at the End of the World. "We don't have Rio's landscape, so the focus is on the characters," he says.

Campos' characters blend into the bustle of the city, navigating metro lines and waiting at bus stops. In one song , two young people fall in love on the outskirts of São Paulo and make love behind the gates of a closed metro station. The city is in constant dialogue with the characters.

What started as an underground movement is growing increasingly popular outside the city, too, with fans packing concert halls as far away as Frankfurt. This melancholic twist is resurrecting samba for a new generation of listeners, says Douglas Germano, one of the movement's most popular stars.

"We want to celebrate 100 years of something living, pulsing, vibrating," said Germano, who wrote songs for Elza Soares before breaking out on his own this year with his critically acclaimed album, Golpe de Vista or "Illusion". "Samba doesn't accept restraint," the 48-year-old performer says. "It has to break free or else it dies. "

2016-12-24 08:00 Marina Lopes www.npr.org

28 /89 1.4 Natasha Oakley mocked after claiming Australians will be 'first to open their presents' She's the bikini blogger who recently made headlines after admitting she photoshops her photos. But Natasha Oakley, 25, has made waves for a different reason this Christmas Eve after making an embarrassing geographical blunder in her latest Instagram caption. Taking to her popular page, the beach-loving blonde shared a photo of herself posing on a Sydney street in front of a red Porsche with the caption: 'So excited for Christmas! Australia will be the first in the world to open their presents.' In reality, there are many countries that will ring in Christmas before Australia, some of which include New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Tuvalu and a small region of Russia. Further, residents of some European countries traditionally open their Christmas presents on Christmas eve. Fans immediately mocked the permanently bronzed blogger, with one commenting: 'Um after New Zealand sweetie'. 'New Zealand is 5 hours ahead of us omfg,' another stunned follower wrote. Meanwhile, one fan decided to educate Natasha on customs from abroad, writing: 'Actually in some European countries the presents are opened on the 24th at night.' While Natasha may need to brush up on her map-reading skills, she is certainly a whizz when it comes to photoshop. 'I think that everyone is doing that (retouching) because of what they see in the media,' the airbrush enthusiast told The Daily Telegraph . 'I think with the general population are just trying to follow exactly what they see with pictures being edited'. She also admitted that she feels pressure to look good all the time but is adamant her aim to look good is more for herself than anyone else. 'I feel it - I'm a human and a natural curvy woman! But for me, it's really more about feeling good in myself, and healthy and fit,' she noted. Natasha's photos are gazed upon by some 1.8 million Instagram fans, many of whom are young girls who aspire to look just like her. In October last year, unflattering paparazzi snaps of Natasha at the beach surfaced online, prompting many fans to question whether her Instagram-worthy physique was genuine. Rather than owning up to doctoring her images, Natasha claimed she was 'proud' of her body and that 'I pose in swimwear everyday of my life so I know my angles.'

2016-12-24 07:46 Daily Mail www.dailymail.co.uk

29 /89 29 /89 2.6 Heart-warming nostalgic photos reveal how travellers from yesteryear celebrated Christmas A collection of fascinating vintage pictures reveal that Christmas has long been celebrated in style by travellers. Heart-warming scenes of the season’s getaway by plane, train and cruise ship have been captured in the collection, which dates from the 1920s through to the 1950s. Cheerful holidaymakers draped in furs and clutching skis are pictured at Victoria Station in London, heading to the continent for the season. Steam trains deliver the Christmas post to Paddington Station in 1922 and undelivered parcels spill on to the platform in a shot from New Year’s Day in 1934. Keeping the magic alive for children of the 1930s, a Father Christmas is snapped after a flight in a bi-plane over rural England while another Santa distributes toys to children in an aeroplane cabin above Chicago. Despite the conflicts of the past, military men are pictured embracing the generosity and goodwill of the season. The American army staying at the Palace Hotel in London in 1918 carry a Christmas tree and the RAF British Coastal Command Sunderland share a cake before an operational flight in 1940. Exuding silver screen glamour, a celeb-filled party at the Savoy hotel in London was a highlight of the season during the 1950s. And lucky travellers are captured marking the festivities at sea on an opulent Cunard cruise during the same golden age era.

2016-12-24 07:40 Caroline Mcguire www.dailymail.co.uk

30 /89 4.8 Judi Dench stormed out of first ever audition after being blasted 'for her face' She's a seven-time Oscar nominee and has been knighted. But Dame Judi Dench has admitted that her impressive acting career didn't exactly get off to a flying start. In an upcoming BBC documentary the award- winning actress, 82, revealed she walked out of her first film audition after being told 'you have every single thing wrong with your face'. Scroll down for video Speaking on the programme, due to be aired over the festive period, the Mirror report that the Bond star said: 'I went up about a film once before I'd ever made a film before and there were five big men there. 'They offered me a seat and no one said anything for a long time and then he took a cigar out of his mouth and he said Ms Dench you have every single thing wrong with your face, I got up and I walked out of the room.' But despite a shaky start, Judi went on to a big hit in the theatre, as well as winning an academy award for her role as Queen Elizabeth I and nominations for her roles in Mrs Brown, Chocolat, Iris, and more. And more recently her role in Bond film Skyfall was critically acclaimed. Speaking about her performance 007 star Daniel Craig praised her, admitting: 'She absolutely stole every scene she was in. But what a joy is that, someone like that walks on set, I relax.' Former 007 Pierce Brosnan, added: 'Judi has balls, M has balls and she knows how to use them.' Judi Dench: All the World’s Her Stage hits screens on BBC2 at 8pm on December 30.

2016-12-24 07:35 Jessica Rach www.dailymail.co.uk

31 /89 0.0 Shocking image shows baby's legs protruding through the uterine wall In an extremely rare medical case, a gestating baby's legs can be seen protruding out of the mother's uterus.

An ultrasound image showing the unusual positioning and a description of the contributing circumstances were recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

In the study, the French doctors wrote , "A 33-year-old asymptomatic woman...presented at 22 weeks of gestation with a large herniation of the amniotic sac through the left uterine wall that was detected by routine ultrasonography. "

Check out these other recent discoveries

Through scanning, they were able to eventually determine that she had a rupture in her uterine wall, notes Gizmodo.

Pierre-Emmanuel Bouet, one of the doctors, told the Washington Post that "the fetal legs did not cause the rupture. "

Instead, the likely cause is believed to be scarring from the woman's five previous C-sections which prevented the uterus from expanding as usual.

Despite being warned of the potential risks, the study says the parents decided to proceed with the pregnancy and ended up having a healthy baby boy at 30 weeks.

2016-12-24 07:35 AOL Staff www.aol.com

32 /89 2.4 Tamara Ecclestone's daughter Sophia spends quality time with granddad Bernie in Switzerland She's always at her doting mother's side. But Sophia Ecclestone, two, got to spend some quality time with her billionaire grandfather Bernie on a family ski trip in Gstaad, Switzerland on Friday. With glamorous mum Tamara also out for the day, the family unit seemed in great spirits. Scroll down for video Dressed to hit the slopes, Sophia donned a cream bodysuit with bright pink boots. Ensuring she wouldn't catch a chill, the adorable youngster also donned beige beanie hat and finished off the look with a pair of pink sunglasses. Meanwhile, Tamara, 32, wrapped up in a camouflage coat and knitted black hat with a large pom pom. Tamara, husband Jay Rutland, and their adorable daughter have often stayed at Formula One boss grandfather Bernie Ecclestone's chalet, but Tamara had never put a pair of skiis on - until now. Tamara beamed with pride as she took Fifi on her first run, snowplowing down a small incline with the little girl perched between her knees. Beaming from behind her pink-rimmed shades, Sophia was having a blast as she got to grips with the winter sport. All bundled up in her cream onesie with a fluffy hood, the toddler looked absolutely adorable in her ski gear. She proudly held her pink skis aloft as she posed for endless pictures with her proud parents. Tamara was glamorous as ever during her ski trip, sporting a close- fitting camouflage jacket with black waterproof trousers. She enthused, 'Proudest mumma', as she posted dozens of snaps of Sophia's adventures, adding, 'Best morning another first'. The family all posed for a group selfie, with former City trader Jay, 35, and Tamara cuddling up to Sophia, before treating the youngster to a meet and greet with Santa. 'Not quite the smile I had in mind', Tamara had jokingly posted alongside another cute family selfie the day before, showing a grumpy looking Fifi. Tamara married Jay in June 2013, before welcoming little Sophia in March the following year. Almost always seen out and about together, the brunette beauty spoke recently of the close bond she has with her daughter, and revealed she is consistently by her side. She said in an interview with Hello magazine: 'We've never left her, ever. I don't really feel the need to.' 'When she's asleep at the end of the day I have a cup of hot chocolate and watch a TV show or a movie. Jay and I are on the same page for that.' Further dismissing the use of a nanny or babysitter, Tamara explained: 'She still feels like a baby to me. 'When she's older we'll get that kind of stuff back in our lives but for now I'm happy with where I am.'

2016-12-24 07:29 Rebecca Lawrence www.dailymail.co.uk

33 /89 2.5 What airlines will be serving passengers over the festive period revealed Flying over Christmas isn't fun for anyone, but several airlines are trying to make the experience as enjoyable as possible by releasing festive in-flight menus for the occasion. British Airways, Virgin, Qantas and Emirates are among the airlines offering seasonal treats ranging from complimentary mince pies, to a full turkey dinner with all the trimmings. So what can customers expect from individual airlines when flying over the Christmas season this year? Read on to find out... Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines are offering up festive meals from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day this year. In first class, passengers can enjoy a three-bird Christmas roast with pigs in blankets, winter vegetables and potatoes, followed by Christmas pudding with brandy sauce. In business class, guests have a three-bird roast dinner minus the Christmas pud and economy passengers are given roast turkey breast with pigs in blankets, winter vegetables and potatoes, followed by Christmas pudding ice cream. British Airways British Airways is once again pulling out all of the stops to provide some festive cheer for passengers over Christmas. The airline will serve roughly 60,000 traditional Christmas dinners from December 22 to 25, with an estimated 300,000 Brussels sprouts, 240,000 roast potatoes, 16,534lbs of turkey and 90,000 mince pies. A selection of Christmas films and TV shows will be shown on board too, including Jingle All the Way, Elf and Home Alone, as well as audio programmes like Christmas Carols by the Cambridge King’s College Choir. Emirates Airlines Emirates has introduced a Christmas menu for the first time across all cabin classes for customers travelling from Dubai to Australia, Europe or the US throughout December. Economy class passengers can enjoy turkey buffé served with mashed potatoes, chicken sausage and vegetables, with festive chocolate pudding and spiced ginger custard for dessert. Those travelling in first and business class will start with king prawns in Marie Rose sauce, followed with turkey buffé, chestnut stuffing, pumpkin mash and Brussels sprouts with turkey rashers, followed by chocolate and chestnut torte or yule log. A special kid’s festive menu is also available with roast turkey, sweet potato mash, carrots and peas, as well as a candy cane and Emirates’ Little Travellers chocolate buttons. Virgin Airlines Virgin is offering a Christmas dinner with all of the trimmings from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day in all cabins on selected routes. In addition, the premium economy and upper class passengers on day flights departing from the UK will also receive themed afternoon teas with warm mince pies and brandy butter. The upper class passengers can also enjoy a festive tipple thanks to a Christmas themed cocktail menu from December 24 to 26, with drinks including a merry Manhattan, a mistletoe cosmopolitan and a candy cane fizz. Qantas is offering festive chocolates to all passengers and mince pies to first and business class customers on international flights over Christmas Day. For their domestic flight customers, mince pies, chocolates and Simmone Logue white chocolate and apricot balls are available to buy on flights until December 28. They are also offering Christmas cocktails and turkey, ham, festive pavlova and rum balls in their Australian airport lounges until December 30. Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines is saving its holiday spirit until the New Year, by giving passengers a complimentary drink to ring in 2017 on New Year's Day. It has also made a range of seasonal drinks available to buy, including Cranberry Ginger Shandy by Leinenkugel’s and Coffee-Mate hazelnut creamer. The company has also updated its in-flight entertainment system to include films like Elf, A Christmas Story and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. 2016-12-24 07:28 Caroline Mcguire www.dailymail.co.uk

34 /89 1.1 Kanye West steps out in LA amid reports he is 'battling health issues' It has been reported that he is 'battling health issues' in the wake of his breakdown. But Kanye West seemingly brushed off the allegations when he stepped out in Los Angeles on Friday, paying a visit to his Yeezy fashion line warehouse. The rapper kept it comfy in sweatpants and a green Adidas hoodie as he strolled along. Scroll down for video Kanye completed his off- duty look with a black cap and a pair of sneakers, dressing down for the day. The star was pictured sporting his wedding ring, dispelling claims of marriage woes with wife Kim Kardashian. A source told People on Friday that he needs to be back to fully well and fit before he will get the all-clear to work again. 'Fitness - physical and mental - are essential to him being able to be restored fully and cleared to work,' the source said, adding: 'He has health issues that need to be resolved prior to returning to work.' Another source told the publication that the rapper’s impulsive behavior and fluctuating moods that have made it difficult to solidify future plans of any kind. 'He is mercurial. One minute he is here. One minute he is there. He is very difficult to pin down. Things are changing minute to minute,' the source told them. A month after canceling the remaining North American dates of his Saint Pablo Tour, it was revealed earlier this week that Kanye will not be moving forward with European shows. claimed that hospital staff were 'hunting' for his medical information. According to TMZ , they were 'curious' when the rapper was admitted and tried to gain access to the computer system - reportedly leading to 'several dozen' staff members being fired. Sources have alleged that the hospital has launched an investigation, while others claim 'several dozen people' have been or will be fired. The publication claimed: 'Kanye West's stay at UCLA Med Center had some staffers hunting for medical info, according to multiple people at the facility. 'A slew of people couldn't resist attempting to look at his info in the computer'. MailOnline has contacted UCLA Medical Center for comment. He had been taking part in a gym session at the West Hollywood home of trainer Harley Pasternak when he became agitated and allegedly began screaming that people were trying to kill him. Dr Michael Farzam was called to the scene and West was placed on a 5150 hold, which allows a physician to forcibly admit a patient to hospital, before being taken to the UCLA Medical Center. West is said to have been handcuffed to a gurney during the journey, which came two days after he launched a bizarre rant on stage in Sacramento, California, and 24 hours after he announced that he was canceling all remaining dates on his Life of Pablo tour. He and wife Kim Kardashian are thought to have been arguing a lot in the run-up to his meltdown, while the armed robbery on her in Paris on October 2 is also believed to have contributed. Kim's world was torn apart when she was the victim of a terrifying $8.5 million heist back in October. She has barely left the house for weeks afterwards - and removed herself from social media. Kim and Kanye were seen having dinner together earlier this week, but emerged looking glum. He was also seen on Wednesday looking downcast while leaving the Cinepolis Luxury Cinema in Westlake Village, California where he saw Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The still-unwell rapper met with President-elect Donald Trump last week.

2016-12-24 07:13 Kate Thomas www.dailymail.co.uk

35 /89 1.4 Canadians working in U. S. under NAFTA exemption worry about future under Trump One of Donald Trump's biggest campaign promises was to renegotiate NAFTA. The deal currently allows thousands of Canadians to work in the U. S. — and now they are concerned about their status under the incoming administration. ...

2016-12-24 06:42 system article.wn.com

36 /89 0.0 Jimmy Carter reportedly the only former president confirmed to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration As the list of celebrities refusing to perform at Donald Trump’s inauguration increases in size, so does the number of former U. S. presidents still feeling ambivalent about attending.

Jimmy Carter, 92, is reportedly the only former U. S. president confirmed to be attending the Jan. 20 inauguration.

Former President Bill Clinton has yet to make a decision on whether to go, Slate reports .

Considering the lengths both camps — both Trump and Clinton — went to bash one another during the election cycle, it’s easy to see why potential bad blood still lingers.

All the celebrities who turned down performing at inauguration

Slate writes that Clinton allies are suggesting the family attend, however, out of respect for the transition of power. Former President George W. Bush, 70, is also still on the fence, and will not make a decision until 2017, Slate notes. A Bush spokesperson told CBS News that Bush’s schedule is not discussed this far in advance. His father, George H. W. Bush, 92, has already stated he will not attend, Slate reports.

While all four living presidents attended Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009, the Bush family did not go to his second swearing-in event, citing health reasons.

The news of Trump’s lack of commanders-in-chief and celebrities for the event has led the President-elect to take to his soapbox medium , Twitter.

Beach Boys can't decide if they'll perform at Trump inauguration

“The so-called ‘A’ list celebrities are all wanting tixs to the inauguration, but look what they did for Hillary, NOTHING. I want the PEOPLE!” he tweeted on Dec. 22.

A CNBC report from earlier in the week indicates that, according to a Trump inaugural official, singer Andrea Bocelli offered to perform but was turned away by the President-elect’s camp.

2016-12-24 06:37 Dan Gunderman feeds.nydailynews.com

37 /89 9.1 Get in the Christmas spirit with Chewbacca's rendition of 'Silent Night' Chewbacca is a Wookiee of many talents. He's incredibly smart, super strong, has a great sense of humor and adept of handling advanced weaponry.

And he's also a great singer.

The viral hit, which has generated over 3.2 million views on YouTube, can be watched below:

OK, so perhaps Chewbacca's performance was a bit — as Hans Solo eloquently put it — "ridiculous. " But you can't bash him for trying, right?

A link has been posted to your Facebook feed.

2016-12-24 06:33 Charles Ventura rssfeeds.usatoday.com

38 /89 38 /89 1.0 The dairy plantation putting a uninformed face on India’s milk India is a outrageous consumer of divert – it’s used to make yoghurt, cheese and a far-reaching operation of Indian sweets.

But most of India’s divert is collected from tiny farms opposite a country, and by a time it reaches consumers it’s polluted and old.

Some of it is even churned with chemicals like urea in try to boost a apportion and fat content.

As partial of a BBC’s Taste of Asia series, Suranjana Tewari visited one dairy plantation outward Mumbai that’s perplexing a fresher approach.

2016-12-24 00:00 admin headlinenewstoday.net

39 /89 3.6 England’s many pro and anti-EU boroughs The opinion in England unprotected outrageous differences in a turn of support for a Remain and Leave campaigns in London and a rest of a country.

Boston in south Lincolnshire available a tip leave opinion in a UK, with 75.6% subsidy Brexit.

The precinct of Lambeth in south London saw roughly a retreat result, with 78.6% of electorate ancillary Remain.

The BBC visited a dual boroughs during frigid opposites of a European Union referendum. At a stage in Boston: David Sykes, BBC News

The opinion comes opposite a backdrop of internal concerns over a series of migrant workers in a town, and a increasing vigour on internal services.

Many are from Eastern Europe, captivated by work in a rural industry.

Among those apparently gratified with a outcome was a travel sweeper pushing his car past a organisation of UKIP councillors during 6am, and giving a grin that was accompanied by a thumbs-up sign.

It was a view common by many electorate in one of a UK’s many impassioned examples of a city influenced by new EU immigration.

The usually other people in a town’s marketplace block were tiny groups of people watchful for a lift to work. Every one of them hailed from Eastern Europe, and this is a common steer in this town.

Yvetta from Lithuania spoke to reporters as she waited for her train to work.

She said: “What happened, happened”, while her friend, Martinez questioned what a supervision would do with people, like him, who come from other countries. He added: “I wish it will be all right, yet we don’t know. Now we are waiting.”

Other unfamiliar visitors offering a opposite viewpoint on a result.

Fredrick Meon from French TV hire ARTE, that was filming in Boston, said: “In France, greeting is a bit polarised, divided yet fundamentally happy that a British will leave. Economically, we consider Britain will humour for a subsequent few years… some countries of a EU will see some advantages of this and we consider France could be one of them.”

Recent surges in emigration to Boston meant that an estimated 14% of people in a area were innate in other EU countries, and that competence be a reason since some of a some-more than three-quarters of people here voted Leave. Boston

Steve, creation his approach by Boston city centre on his approach to work, pronounced he was endangered by a outcome of a vote.

“I unequivocally don’t know if it is a right thing,” he said.

“I’m disturbed for my job. we work for a tiny business we don’t know what outcome it is going to have on that.”

But, another Steve, who like so many others, voted to leave, pronounced he was sleepy of a EU revelation a UK to burst and David Cameron saying, ‘how high?’

The 2011 census showed that a district had a largest series of non-British EU pass holders outward of London.

Figures showed 12.1% of Boston residents hold such passports, compared with a Lincolnshire normal of 3.5%.

Protests have been hold in a town about a turn of abroad workers, notwithstanding a internal stagnation rate being next a inhabitant average, during 4.4%, as opposite 5.2% nationally.

The town’s Conservative MPs Matt Warman, who upheld Remain, said: “We’ve got to honour a fact that if people wish to take that play afterwards we have to get a best understanding for a country… eventually what is in everyone’s seductiveness is a fast economy in a time of transition.”

However, for those awaiting things to occur immediately, they competence be unhappy – this new dawn, in loyal European style, is expected to take some time. At a stage in Brixton, Lambeth: Clark Ainsworth, BBC News

On a streets of Brixton there was sadness, disappointment, annoy and even calls for London to mutiny from a UK, following a opinion to leave Europe.

Finding anyone who corroborated Brexit in an area where 4 out of 5 people upheld a Remain debate was roughly impossible.

Many shoppers, stallholders and residents in this ethnically diverse, yet increasingly gentrified area of south London, voiced disappointment that notwithstanding overwhelmingly voting to stay in a European Union, immigration concerns elsewhere in a UK meant they would be private from a EU. Mohammed Baez, a manager during Brixton Foodland, fears trade tariffs will be introduced and prices will go up.

“I feel unequivocally unhappy we are out since we cite we stay in together.

“We get many products from Europe and it does outcome when things go adult since we don’t sell as much.

Mr Baez, who has lived in a UK for about 17 years, added: “I trust since this thing happened that retrogression will start again.

“People will remove their jobs since when a taxes come things will turn some-more costly and it will impact a business.

“Many people from a North have voted about immigration. But a people who separate, what is a answer for them? we haven’t listened any good answers saying: ‘This is what we are going to do’.” Lambeth

Helen Palmer, of Herne Hill, became visibly romantic when she described since she believed Brexit was bad for a destiny of her family and a country.

“I felt unequivocally indignant when we looked during a voting demographics and saw that it was comparison generations who were voting and unequivocally selecting a destiny for a nation that a younger generations did not choose.

“Everyone we know in this precinct believes sexually in formation and operative with others.

“I’m station in Brixton Market feeling utterly romantic since it’s a hugely vibrant, cosmopolitan, mixed-up melting pot of cultures.

“We feel a same about Europe: no matter what are a faults of a European Union we have to be inside and have to co-operate and combine with a associate Europeans.”

Vernon Ray initial came to Lambeth from Jamaica in 1959 to work for London Transport.

He says a referendum outcome is a “worst thing that could occur in a story of Britain”.

“Now all is going to be approach over a top. We’re going to have to compensate behind by a nose.

“It’s unequivocally upsetting.

“Lambeth became worldly and that is one of a reasons [it voted to remain].

“The emanate is immigration, and this since they [the UK] opted out yet in 3 or 4 months’ time they will realize a mistake they’ve made.”

Midwives Olivia Snowball and Rebecca Manners were endangered about a impact of a opinion on London.

“I’m unequivocally gutted that we’ve left,” pronounced Ms Snowball.

“Having oral to all of my friends and observant what my friends on Facebook and Twitter were saying, it only seemed to be overwhelmingly that we would stay yet apparently that’s not what everybody else thought.”

Ms Manners said: “Absolutely gutted that we voted out.

“I consider there’s really going to be a dump in a housing marketplace via London, that some people will contend is a certain thing.

“But we consider that a evident effects will be utterly disastrous and again, generally within a NHS, we consider we are going to see large changes via there as well.”

Italian Camilla Cabasso expects Britain to knowledge an evident and a long-term change for a worse.

She was not authorised to vote, yet when we asked her what she suspicion of a referendum outcome she shrugged her shoulders and sighed.

“It’s not so certain for people that come from other tools of Europe.”

She believes a UK could turn “more about control” since it would now not work together with other European countries.

Another Italian, who works during a sourdough pizza restaurant, pronounced a outcome done her feel as yet “the UK doesn’t wish me to stay here”.

2016-12-24 00:00 admin headlinenewstoday.net

40 /89 3.3 Russia's Rosneft says has flexibility on oil output levels MOSCOW, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Rosneft's plans for next year allow it to be flexible with production volumes, Russia's top oil producer said on Saturday, after Moscow clinched a deal with OPEC to cut production to bolster weak oil prices. State-controlled Rosneft, which accounts for over 40 percent of Russian oil production, said its board has looked into plans for 2017-2018. "The plan is formed on the basis of actual long-term development programme and takes into account changes in Russia's fiscal law and a possibility of carrying out a manoeuvre with the production volumes in order to boost sales efficiency in the first half 2017," the company said in a statement. It did not mention the OPEC agreement and a spokesman declined to elaborate on the statement. OPEC and non-OPEC producers, including Russia, reached their first deal on Dec. 10 since 2001 to curtail oil output and ease a global glut after more than two years of low prices. Russia, in line with the OPEC deal, will cut its oil output by 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) by the end of the first quarter. The decline will amount to 300,000 bpd thereafter from the level of 11.247 million bpd reached last October. Rosneft's Chief Executive Igor Sechin, a powerful ally of President Vladimir Putin, has been a staunch opponent of OPEC, saying that the group has lost its sway over global oil markets as shale oil production in the United States has risen dramatically over the past few years. In October, Sechin said Rosneft would not cap oil production as part of a possible agreement with OPEC. Following the Vienna deal, Russia's energy minister said on Dec. 14 he had reached a framework agreement with oil companies on how to implement an output cut, but the producers said there were still details to be worked out. There are doubts that Russian oil companies, with their own interests and plans, will be able to hammer out a joint strategy to cut the country's production, which has reached a post-Soviet high. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Adrian Croft)

2016-12-24 06:04 Reuters www.dailymail.co.uk

41 /89 1.1 How That Holiday Song Becomes An Inescapable Earworm : Shots Angus Chen

Santa tell me? Ariana Grande performs at the Jingle Ball concert at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 9.

Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for iHeart hide caption

Santa tell me? Ariana Grande performs at the Jingle Ball concert at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 9.

It's the time of year when seemingly innocent jingles tunnel into my brain. Right now I'm haunted by Ariana Grande's "Santa Tell Me," which I heard for the first time while researching this article. Help me.

There may be good reasons why a song like that becomes an earworm, according to Elizabeth Margulis, director of the music cognition lab at the University of Arkansas. Like déjà vu, you might feel like you know the tune, but something throws you off. "[There's] this idea that songs that tend to get stuck are conventional in some ways but also have some little surprising twist," she says.

The latest evidence comes from a study published last month in the journal Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. The researchers broke down the anatomy of an earworm tune and started looking for melodic features that may lead to compulsive looping. "This was really the first study into this area of melodic features of earworms," says lead author Kelly Jakubowski, a music psychologist at Durham University. "We focused on the pitch and rhythmic elements of a melody. "

The researchers didn't find earworms marked with anything as specific as a notable chord, note or musical interval. Instead, Jakubowski says, patterns came to light. When the researchers compared songs that 3,000 people deemed either earworms or not-so-catchy, they noticed the earworms were suspiciously lacking in uncommon musical patterns, such as where the melody only rises in pitch without sliding back down, like in the chorus of "Rock'n Me" by the Steve Miller Band. Instead, earworms often had a very common melodic pattern. "They tended to have this general melodic shape, a pattern of ups and downs in terms of pitch," Jakubowski says. And then they surprise us.

Something happens in our brains when we hear the same sorts of patterns over and over, says Margulis, who wasn't involved with this study. When we hear a familiar pattern start, our brains start expecting the rest of it. "We're predicting what's about to come next," she says.

Jakubowski says songs that obey simple conventions are nice. "The brain is pretty happy to predict what is happening in our [musical] environment," she says. But in her study, earworms usually had a surprising detail. For example, the hit big band song "In the Mood" by Glenn Miller has a familiar up-and-down movement but a lot of uncommonly large shifts in pitch. "It might be some large leap in pitch that's unexpected or more leaps than are expected in your average pop song," she says. "Something unique to add interest to make the brain want to recall or ponder over this melody. "

Some of the top earworms identified by study participants include Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance;" "Don't Stop Believing," by Journey; and "Moves Like Jagger," by Maroon 5.

Those earworms set you up just to pull the rug out from under you. "Once [your brain starts predicting], you can really start to mess with them and do something new and surprising," Margulis says. "Your expectations are violated. There's a norm that is being crossed. "

Beautiful music tends to do this, too, Margulis says. "People also link those surprising moments to what gives rise to emotion in music or what passages seem expressive," she says. But earworms aren't always beautiful. And great music doesn't always get caught in an uncontrollable loop.

Earworms tend to be simple tunes with just enough variation to distinguish them. "Familiar but a little unfamiliar, not too much," says Lassi Liikkanen , a cognitive scientist at the Helsinki Institute for Information Technology. Maybe, Liikkannen hedges, it's our brains way of integrating new, strange variations with the old ones. "Maybe in order for us to pick up more challenging patterns," he says.

"Bad Romance," Lady Gaga

"Can't Get You Out of My Head," Kylie Minogue

"Don't Stop Believing," Journey

"Somebody That I Used to Know," Gotye

"Moves Like Jagger," Maroon 5

Holiday songs do have a characteristic, familiar feel. When a songwriter throws a melodic insurrection into the jingle, it may only be a matter of time before the tune spirals maddeningly in a chorus only I can hear (unless I decide to drag everyone my voice can reach into my purgatory with me.) It doesn't help, of course, that every business on the block finds it necessary to drone the same songs all day.

The repetition may contribute to triggering earworms, too, Margulis thinks. "You often get this feeling when you listen to music you've heard before that's different than when you listen to music that's new," she says. "There's a link between that feeling of getting swept along and having something get stuck in your head. This is the case where you really are getting swept along. You're doing it in your head and can't stop. "

According to work from Liikkannen, over 90 percent of people experience earworms weekly. They are often associated with specific times of day or situations, like a song first heard in a morning, or during relaxation.

Luckily, there are ways to break the cycle. Jakubowski suggests "engaging with the earworm. " Play or sing the song until you feel like it's gone. Or you can distract yourself with another more tolerable earworm, she says.

"You can try chewing gum ," Margulis suggests. Studies have found this interferes with certain thought processes like memory recall and scanning melodies. And there's always good old- fashioned passive resistance. If you wait long enough, the earworm will subside on its own.

It's almost January, after all.

Freelance science writer Angus Chen is on Twitter @angrchen .

2016-12-24 06:00 Angus Chen www.npr.org

42 /89 3.4 This clever wallet's hidden feature is a game-changer This post was created by our Shop on AOL curators, who share the best products at great prices.

For the most part, wallets stick to holding cash and cards, and looking good all the while. But what if your wallet could do so much more?

It's no secret that typical smartphone batteries don't last a whole day without needing a recharge. If you often find yourself frantically searching for somewhere to plug in your iPhone, you'll love the Nomad Leather MFi-Certified Charging Wallet. It holds your cash, looks great and most importantly charges your iPhone on-the-go.

Constructed out of handsome black leather, this multi-tasking wallet comes in a traditional bi- fold design with ample room for wallet essentials like credit cards, ID and cash. But the slim wallet also has a 2400mAh MFi-certified iPhone charger cleverly built into the design without adding extra bulk. And since the Lightning cable is MFi-certified (approved by Apple), you can trust that it won't harm your phone like low quality third party cables.

Currently marked down 50%, the Nomad Leather MFi-Certified Charging Wallet is listed at $49.95. That's a steal for the wallet that will work double time to keep your day running smoothly. More from Shop on AOL The gorgeous leather tote celebs are buying up, fast 5 reasons you shouldn't drive without a dashcam Cook healthy gourmet meals with 54% off Blue Apron

2016-12-24 06:00 AOL Staff www.aol.com

43 /89 0.6 Leaked documents show Facebook's guidelines on hate speech are a muddled mess As Facebook faces intense scrutiny from high-ranking German officials over how the platform handles hate speech, a German newspaper has shared what it's reporting to be internal documents that show a detailed yet confusing blueprint for how Facebook handles hate speech on its site.

The documents were obtained and published by German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung , the newspaper that originated the reporting on the infamous " Panama Papers. "

The report was published last week, just as German politicians were threatening to create a new law that would punish platforms like Facebook for refusing to properly delete hate speech and fake news. The new law would be in addition to the country's internet censorship laws that are far more flexible compared to the United States.

Most notable in the internal documents, especially in light of the current ideological tug-of-war between Germany and the social media platform, is the "protected category" and "non-protected category," the means by which Facebook organizes which specific groups should be protected by hate speech.

Those categories include: sex, religious affiliation, national origin, gender identity, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disability or serious illness. There are additional sub- categories, too, like age, political affiliation, and appearance.

And this is where it gets confusing, especially when "protected categories" and "non-protected categories" are combined and certain categories take precedence, causing some conflicting examples.

In one example, it's pointed out that a post insulting "Irish women" is not permissible because both nationality and gender, "protected categories," are at play. But something negative posted about "Irish teens" would be permitted as "teens" is a non-protected category, somehow seemingly canceling out the nationality protection.

In another, equally confusing example, according to an excerpt from the document, posting "migrants are filthy cockroaches that will infect our country"or "migrants are scum" violate the site's policy but posting "fucking migrants" and "migrants are so filthy" does not. RELATED: How to avoid Facebook phishing scams

According to SZ , "migrants" were classified as a "quasi protected category" in Germany and yet the above examples show a clear inconsistency in how the rules are applied.

SZ also spoke with employees at Arvato , an outside company that assists Facebook in Germany with keeping track of such violations and moderating the website. Overall, more than 600 people are working there on behalf of Facebook and finding it increasingly difficult to maintain the company's policies.

Workers complained of the "unclear" guidelines that change often and of the heavy workload — workers lowest on the chain of command are told to moderate 2,000 posts a day — at low pay, just above minimum wage (in Germany, between US$9 and $10 an hour).

There's also an emotional toll, as workers have to view videos that range from child pornography to terrorist beheadings and other violent images. One employee told SZ , "I've seen things that made me seriously question my faith in humanity. Things like torture and bestiality. "

Mashable has reached out to Arvato for comments regarding the document and the employees' statements.

It's been a tough year for Facebook, particularly the last few months, and the ongoing saga in Germany only shines a brighter spotlight on its failings.

While those 600-plus workers toil away, moderating posts based on seemingly contradictory guidelines, Facebook fired the human editors who maintained its popular "trending topics" section which many say led to the proliferation of fake news on the platform that affected the outcome of the U. S. presidential election (Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg originally denied this accusation).

The platform has taken some steps to remedy the situation, such as searching for a "Head of News Partnerships" to bring more newsroom experience to the company. The company has also banned fake news sites from its ad network and Zuckerberg himself has backtracked on his initial denial , vowing to fight the spread of fake news on the site.

In a statement via email, a Facebook spokesperson told Mashable , "Facebook is no place for the dissemination of hate speech, racism or calls for violence. We evaluate reported content seriously. And as we learn from experts, we continue to refine the way we implement our policies to keep our community safe, especially for people that may be vulnerable or under attack. "

But if SZ 's reports are accurate, it's a sign of the company taking one step forward but two steps back. Even where the human element is reportedly involved in moderating the site, it's hard to see that plan being very effective given the working conditions and the shifting, conflicting guidelines.

2016-12-24 06:00 AOL Staff www.aol.com

44 /89 0.7 Try one of these thrilling winter adventures There is so much more to Europe’s Alps in winter than swishing across slopes on skis. How about carving up a frozen lake in a 4x4, or hurtling through an icy wilderness with a pack of huskies? We pick ten seasonal holidays with a twist. Step into the ice age Thanks to some impressive drilling in 2010, visitors can now promenade straight through the middle of Langjökull, Iceland’s second largest glacier, via a three- metre-wide illuminated tunnel. Dazzling milky-blue ice awaits, as far as the eye can see. Good for: Budding geologists, and families. Children under 11 go free. Book it: One-day tours to the glacier cost about £212, leaving from Reykjavik ( Into The Glacier ). Discover The World has three-night breaks to the Icelandic capital from £364pp including flights ( Discover The World ). Lap frozen lakes Central Sweden’s winter temperatures plummet so low that the region’s lakes are transformed into giant frozen arenas, perfect for would-be 007s who fancy driving on ice. Get behind the wheel of a 4WD with a professional and learn how to lap at speed in sub-zero conditions. Good for: Certified petrolheads looking for new kicks. Book it: A three-night break with Classic Grand Touring costs £1,350pp based on two sharing B&B accommodation. Included is two days’ driving, flights and transfers. Trips available on two dates in February. Bird's eye Austria The winter resort town of Filzmoos breaks out the hot-air balloons as soon as the calendar clicks into January, with skiers frequently raising their eyes to marvel at hundreds of giant orbs that cruise through the valleys. Book your own ride until the end of February from £245pp ( apfelwirt.at ). Good for: Couples with a head for heights. Book it: Ryanair fly to Salzburg from £45 return. Five nights at the four-star Hotel Unterhof costs £510 based on two sharing a room. Sledding in Lapland The most exhilarating way to experience Lapland? Being whipped along at speed by husky dogs going full pelt — and it’s even more white-knuckle if you’re steering. Hetta Huskies in Finnish Lapland offers sledding lessons through the Taiga Forests. A sky‑illuminating appearance from the Northern Lights is often par for the course. Good for: Animal lovers; you’ll get to feed, train, race and perhaps even hug these Arctic beauties. Book it: A full-board two-day husky sledding tour with tuition costs £375pp, with accommodation at the husky farm, ( Hetta Huskies ). February flights to Kittlia Airport cost from £157 ( Monarch ). Snow hikes Take one pair of snow-shoes and a sage guide, then trek through some of the most thrilling scenery the Pyrenees has to offer. An escorted tour from the French town of Luchon tackles five hikes over seven days, most of which end beside a crackling log fire in a mountain hut. Good for: Sociable walkers seeking a trek that marries tricky terrain with beautiful scenery Book it: A seven-night ‘snow-shoeing’ tour with Exodus costs £1,049 including treks, equipment, food, accommodation and flights. Build an igloo Learn how to fashion your own snow-home out of ice bricks in Bavaria. When you’ve built your abode, enjoy a torch-lit walk or a campfire before retreating for a night in your frozen dome. Thermals are a must. Good for: Friends looking for a new twist on a skiing holiday. Book it: A one-night igloo stay for two people costs £225pp, including dinner, a forest tour and igloo-building tuition ( Bayerwald Travel ). EasyJet flights to Munich in January from £57 return. Nighttime safari Under the star-studded skies of Dumfries, Scotland, a nocturnal wildlife tour is wowing those who sign up. Thanks to heat-seeking cameras, naturalists braving the midnight frost can spot badgers, roe deer, bats and more roaming through Galloway Forest Park. Good for: Nature enthusiasts happy to stay up late Book it: A three-hour night-time wildlife safari using thermal imaging technology costs £89 pp ( NWT Nocturnal Wildlife Tours ). Doubles at the nearby cosy Old Station House B&B start from £70 a night ( bedandbreakfast-castledouglas.co.uk ) Climb Chamonix The Alps’ frozen sheets of water are not just spectacular to look at, they can be scaled, too. In the shadow of Mont Blanc, ski champion Chamonix has waterfalls galore, with many perfect for climbers of all levels. Strap on crampons and hack your way to a spectacular view. Good for: Adrenaline junkies wanting a high-energy winter fix. Book it: A five-night guided climbing trip to Chamonix, including B&B accommodation, costs £1,645 ( Mountain Tracks ). Flights to Geneva from £81 ( Swiss ). Snow-grooming How do they make perfect corduroy pistes? Join an overnight snow- grooming tour in the Sierra Nevada and find out, with a spectacular sun-rise thrown in for good measure. While skiers are sleeping (or sinking schnapps), you can hitch a ride to 3,300 metres and watch dawn unfold over the region’s Veleta mountain. Good for: Photography fans seeking a spectacular dawn. Book it: Snow-grooming tours cost £46pp ( Sierra Nevada ). Rooms at the El Lodge in Sierra Nevada start from £251 a night. Fly to Granada from £137 ( Iberia ). Soak up Andorra Andorra’s sulphur-rich Caldea spa is the largest thermal pool in Southern Europe. Set over 6,000m, guests can spend their entire break marinating in mineral-rich waters. Even better, the cheapest tickets cost just £25 for a three-hour session. Good for: Those who want to wind down while mountain high. Book it: Rooms at the Roc Blanc Hotel close to Caldea cost from £112 a night. Flights to Toulouse from £17 ( easyJet ).

2016-12-24 05:59 Joanna Tweedy www.dailymail.co.uk

45 /89 1.3 SEE IT: A look back at the best viral videos of 2016 — WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE A year that had its ups and Harambes, 2016 was an unending abyss of entertainment.

With pop culture leaking so heavily into the aquifers of everyday life that people voted for a game show host to be president of the United States, these overwhelmingly popular internet clips managed to stand out at a time when everything gets shared with everyone.

From videos that affirmed the human spirit in times of tragedy to a sister getting tricked into thinking zombies were coming to kill her, these viral hits were as much a welcome distraction as they were microcosms of 2016.

Here's a look at some of our favorites.

Canadian cop sorry for mocking Nickelback in drunken driving PSA

Leave it to Adele to turn a car ride into a phenomenon.

Though this international treasure wouldn't be the first to readily sing while riding shotgun with "Late Late Show" host James Corden, she easily became the most popular, surpassing the likes of Justin Bieber, One Direction and First Lady Michelle Obama.

Featuring Adele's incredible take on Nicki Minaj's "Monster," the video has garnered over 138 million views and would become the most viral video made by a late-night program since 2013.

Viral story about Santa meeting dying child might not be true

You'll want to stab yourself with a Pineapple Apple Pen.

Like a minimalist "Gangnam Style," Japanese comedian Kazuhiko Kosaka's one-minute song will fill you with equal parts exuberance and shame. It's not hard to imagine how many social gatherings have been destroyed by an Apple TV featuring the absurd lyrics ("I have a pen/I have an apple") mixed with the all-too-easy-to-emulate dance moves.

As of Thursday afternoon, the best argument against multiculturism has easily cracked 100 million views — which doesn't even count the numerous unofficial uploads of the video.

Four historical events that would cause a viral frenzy today

Like clicking on fake news or making light of a dead zoo animal, exploiting a family member post-dental surgery has become a timeless tradition of the internet.

However, Cabot Phillips and his brothers' plan to completely annihilate their sister's sense of reality after getting her wisdom teeth yanked set the bar incredibly high when they convinced her that a zombie epidemic had broken out.

Drugged up and mouth stuffed with cotton balls, Millicent takes charge of the situation, making such hard decisions on camera as which family pet to save, the dog or the cat.

Deflating dinos, birds ablaze and other Thanksgiving disasters

"He's the worst, he's already dying! " she says. "Leave him, get the cat! "

The apocalyptic prank would earn them over 22 million views and an appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show. "

“Get out of my car!”

Viral photo taken on N. C. bridge shows Trump supporters, not KKK

Overwhelmed when seemingly presented with the epitome of stubbornness, this on-demand vehicle operator demanded his customer leave his car.

Video of the enraging encounter would last nearly three minutes, yet it will echo forever in the halls of righteous indignation.

To say that 2016 robbed the world of titans dear to our hearts would be an understatement. We said goodbye all too soon to such greats as David Bowie, Gene Wilder and Muhammad Ali, each loss resonating profoundly with those they inspired.

SEE IT: 92-year-old woman reacts to Willie Nelson song she wrote

On the day that the curtain would fall on music legend Prince, one student would capture her teacher's reaction to the heartbreaking news, his emotional reaction encapsulating how fans everywhere were feeling.

Once again, we braved blizzards, wildfires and tornados, with Louisiana in particular facing one of the most catastrophic disasters in the history of the country.

In August, a storm would dump over 7 trillion gallons of water onto the state, forcing authorities to evacuate at least 30,000 residents.

In one incident caught on video by a team of rescuers who just so happened to be in the right place at the right time, a car can be seen sinking into the flood waters of Baton Rouge as a voice from inside says, "Oh my god, I'm drowning. "

After struggling to pierce the vehicle's windows, the team works quickly enough to free the woman and her dog from a tragic end.

What a Wookie.

Captioning her video "It's the simple joys in life," mother of two and utterly enthusiastic "Star Wars" fan Candace Payne would create the most watched video of 2016 on Facebook Live when she donned a roaring Chewbacca mask she bought on sale.

The footage would net nearly 165 million views and word is this jovial Jedi will return as a vlogger for TLC.

Where to begin.

Joshua Holz made a collection of Snapchat videos in which he complimented friend and Riverside Polytechnic Daniel Lara on his fashion choices, repeating the line, "Damn Daniel! " Posted to Twitter, the kindhearted compilation has received over 334,000 retweets.

The phrase would get co-opted by companies such as Denny's and Clorox, Lara would receive a lifetime supply of Vans' sneakers and Holz would get "swatted" - a prank in which someone convinces 911 to send a SWAT team to break into the target's home.

Damn internet.

2016-12-24 05:54 Brian Lisi feeds.nydailynews.com

46 /89 1.4 Ned Kelly shown in his teen years before he became Australia's most notorious bushranger 'It sounds made up, but it is just gripping. It surfaced in 2002 and after the auction I always wondered where it went. I wondered if it was Ned but no one knew where the photo was, so we couldn't test it,' the local historian told Daily Mail Australia. 'We got a call by the Kelly family and they said we have this photo and we have always believed it to be Uncle Ned,' the shocked local historian told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was looking at it an hour or so later and I was hesitant. It had his facial features, but it didn't just pop out at me. 'I am not a qualified historian I am just an enthusiast, but after closer examination and playing around with this photo it took my breath away. 'The face just matched. In my eyes I thought this could be him so I contacted the family and told them we needed experts to look at it.' ow and behold the expert believed it was 'very likely.' The local historian has admitted that experts and historians alike are still putting the pieces of the puzzle together and have called upon the public to help unearth who took the photo and where. 'It on display in the Ned Kelly Vault and we hope the public can help solve all the puzzles that relate to it because there is still so much we don't know.' 'We would love to know who took it and where it was taken. There are some growing evidence that the other man in the photo is Dan Kelly.' A high quality reproduction image is on show at the Ned Kelly Vault in Beechworth in Victoria.

2016-12-24 05:26 Riley Morgan www.dailymail.co.uk

47 /89 0.6 Motorists reminded: Naia Expressway T3 link open, fees waived for 1 month Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. reminded passengers that it opened a new section of a toll road aimed at cutting road congestion around Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

SMC said it opened the so- called Phase 2-B of the Naia Expressway, which refers to the stretch from Naia road to the passenger Terminal 3 of the airport complex. This follows the Sept. 2016 opening of the toll road linking Macapagal Boulevard near the Entertainment City complex along Manila Bay to the Naia Terminals 1 and 2.

Toll fees for certain areas would be waived for a month, the company added.

“Toll will be free for motorists coming from the Skyway and the Villamor area, going to Macapagal and NAIA Terminal 1 and 2. Similarly, vehicles coming from Macapagal and Terminals 1 and 2 going to NAIA Terminal 3, Villamor and Skyway, will also be able to pass, toll- free,” SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang said.

“With the arrival of many balikbayans and tourists this holiday season, along with the expected increase in vehicular traffic at around this time, we’re hoping that opening this section for free will provide our motorists even more convenience and a reason to smile,” he added. SMC and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) partially opened the section connecting to Skyway, to help ease traffic congestion at the NAIA 3 area during the Holidays.

This section is set for full completion within the first quarter of 2017.

Meanwhile, motorists using NAIAX Phase 2-A, the segment that connects Macapagal Road to Terminals 1 and 2, will continue to pay the regular toll of P35.

Naia Expressway is a four-lane, 7.75-kilometer elevated expressway (12.65-km when counting ramps). It also includes a 2.22-km at grade road running from Sales Ave., Andrews Ave., Paranaque River, and MIAA Road as well as Diosdado Macapagal.

The toll road, initially scheduled to open under the Aquino administration, earlier suffered from right of way issues, including the relocation of critical utility assets along its alignment like power lines and water pipes.

The project was among the public private partnership projects launched by the Aquino administration. SMC, through Vertex Tollways Development Inc., won the P17.9 billion project in 2013 after its P11-billion bid bested the offer of sole rival Metro Pacific Investments Corp. JE

2016-12-24 00:00 Miguel R newsinfo.inquirer.net

48 /89 3.6 Christmas nativity scene portrayed by 8 adorable dogs This is the hilarious moment a pack of eight solemn-faced pooches recreated the Nativity scene while wearing kids' Christmas costumes and TEA TOWELS on their heads. The serene biblical scene was recreated by the holiday-loving hounds' owners Sammie McCormick and 32-year-old support worker Cheryl Waddell at their home in Consett, County Durham. The pack, including five Siberian huskies, a boxer, a Rottweiler cross and a staffie all patiently posed for the camera as Mary, Joseph, the three wise men, a shepherd, an angel and the star of Bethlehem in the festive scene. The starring role of baby Jesus went to a Boofle teddy bear nestled inside a cardboard crib covered in gold paper. However judging by the 'death stares' and gloomy expressions the dogs exhibited, they were not as impressed by the situation as their Christmas-loving owners. Supermarket store assistant Sammie, 27, said: 'We just thought with the doom and gloom 2016's brought and the terrible stuff we're seeing on the news recently, we wanted to make Christmas fun and exciting again. 'Everyone who's seen the pictures so far have loved seeing them dressed up and posing for the camera.' The couple decked half of the Christmassy canines out in supermarket-bought £12 children's costumes while fashioning the rest using a t-shirt, blazer and hoodie. The couple only planned to shoot one Christmassy pic but decided to capture more throughout December to spread the holiday joy. The dogs have donned fluffy red and green elf outfits, gold rings and Santa hats as part of the festive photo shoots - with the promise of treats at the end of each sitting. Sammie said: 'They like the stimulation of it - the mental training - and the treats at the end. 'We've taken lots of group pictures before and they know they're going to get something at the end of it, either raw chicken or dehydrated lungs, so they know to stay still. 'It only takes two minutes to get them in place and take the pic. Instead of saying 'cheese' before the photo we shout 'chicken' to get them to look at the camera. 'That generally works and they'll sit and stay but every now and again they'll run at the camera thinking they're about to be fed their dinner. 'The outfits are a little extreme to what they have usually worn at Easter and Halloween but they seem to enjoy it as they're rewarded really well.' Despite their stunning looks and quirky personality Sammie said that taking on a dog, such as a husky, is a huge responsibility and one that shouldn't be taken lightly. Sammie said: 'There are lot of huskies in shelters as they look really cute and cuddly as puppies but they need a lot of exercise, stimulation and proper training. 'Huskies, like any breed, can destroy things if they're bored. 'Puppies are hard work, so if anyone is thinking about getting a pet I would suggest going down the road of looking at shelters and rescue centres - that way you get the best of all worlds.'

2016-12-24 05:20 Daily Mail www.dailymail.co.uk

49 /89 2.9 Kylie Jenner appears nearly topless in brand new wall photo She's clearly a fan of taking photos of herself.

And Kylie Jenner shared with her fans the latest self-portrait to make it to her wall.

The 19-year-old took to Instagram on Friday to share a gorgeous photo of herself appearing nearly topless as she gazed seductively at the camera.

Work of art: Kylie Jenner took to Instagram on Friday to share a gorgeous photo of herself appearing nearly topless as she gazed seductively at the camera

By the angle the photo was cropped at, the star appeared to wear nothing more than a pair of earrings.

Raven black hair blowing high into the air, the stunning reality star gave her complexion even more drama with a dramatic slick of eyeliner and bold red lipstick.

Wrapped up in each other: Photographer Sasha Samsonova even once took a photo of the reality star seductively cuddled up with her boyfriend, Tyga

The large, glossy photo had yet to be hung as it leaned against the wall. In the caption, Kylie thanked photographer Sasha Samsonova for the eye-catching snap.

'thank you @sashasamsonova,' she wrote.

Mark your calendars: The teen has recently released a Kylie Jenner calendar, in which she modeled for photographer Terry Richardson

It is not the first time Sasha has worked with Kylie - among the numerous snaps she's shot of the star, she even took a photo of the reality star seductively cuddled up with her boyfriend, Tyga.

As any fan of Kylie knows, the star feels right at home in front of the camera.

Aside from regularly sharing photos of herself, she's turned into a business.

The teen has recently released a Kylie Jenner calendar, in which she modeled for photographer Terry Richardson.

Not shy: As any fan of Kylie knows, the star feels right at home in front of the camera (pictured Wednesday)

2016-12-24 05:12 Christine Rendon www.dailymail.co.uk

50 /89 2.2 Learn English Grammar in Hindi (Source: CATESOL - California Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages ) -Attendees were fortunate to welcome five speakers at the CATESOL Orange County Chapter's ...

Staff Selection Commission – Combined Graduate Level also known as SSC CGL Examination. This examination is conducted by the Government of India for recruiting staff for...

It looks like the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) follows a different set of guidelines for filmmakers like Aditya Chopra and Shyam Benegal, as compared with the ...

New Delhi: Barring the mother tongue or one regional language listed in Schedule VIII of the Constitution, none other has been made mandatory by the new three-language ...

The partnership enables BSNL broadband users to set up an email ID in their native language. State-run telecom firm BSNL has partnered with Jaipur-based Datamail for...

Most props can master the dark arts of the scrum, but can they handle German, French, economics, math and English? Meet Charlie Hancock - the ACT Brumbies under-20s prop who has been playing rugby for just one year and has already cemented his place as a rising star in Canberra's junior ranks. Portrait of Charlie Hancock who was named in the Brumbies under 20s team on Thursday. ...

(Source: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Republic of India ) Need to update policies in view of changing dynamics in the print media sector: Venkaiah Naidu Minister releases Government of India Calendar 2017 & Press in India Report 2015-16 'Mera Desh Badal Raha Hai, Aage Badh Raha Hai' overarching theme of the calendar Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Minister for...

This service will be accessible to users both in English and Hindi language. Feeling like relieving yourself and unable to find a loo, now one can Google to find the same in Madhya Pradesh and the National Capital Region (NCR). Starting today, Google has made available information about thousands of public toilets in NCR and Madhya Pradesh available on Google Maps. "Working...

New Delhi: Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) will accept different versions of the answers to the essay paper of the Civil Services (Main) examinations, 2016. The test paper had an essay that carried 125 marks, but the framing of the proposition in English and Hindi created confusion for the candidates. In Hindi, the version read: "Stri-purush kay samaan sarokaroko shamil...

BHUBANESWAR: A day after the Centre announced to conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for undergraduate medical admissions (NEET-UG) in eight languages, the state government demanded inclusion of Odia as a medium in the overarching pre-medical entrance for admissions in medical colleges across the country. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik wrote a letter to Prime...

2016-12-24 05:09 mahfug50 article.wn.com

51 /89 1.4 Santander to provide BEL with cheaper power supply On Tuesday, December 13th, Belize took a major step in becoming self-sufficient in energy production after signing a 15 year agreement between Belize Electricity Limited and SS Energy, a subsidiary of the sugar producing company, Santander, located in the Cayo District. This new source of electricity supply to the national grid is expected to continue improving the quality and reliability of BEL's power services nationwide. ...

2016-12-24 05:09 system article.wn.com

52 /89 3.4 State to unveil newly renovated Capitol building JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - More than three years of renovations at the Alaska State Capitol have wrapped up and the building’s expected to be fully open for business in January. The Juneau Empire reports (http://bit.ly/2i1Su6s ) that about $36 million has been spent to reinforce the structure against earthquakes, improve its heating system and freshen up the look of the 85-year-old building. Six new rooms have also been added to the Capitol.

With all the work that’s been put in, project manager Jeff Goodell says it’s still hard for some people to notice the changes. He says the renovations to the outside of the building are more noticeable than the work completed on the inside.

The Legislature began setting aside money for the construction work in 2006 after the Capitol began showing signs of aging.

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Information from: Juneau (Alaska) Empire, http://www.juneauempire.com

2016-12-24 05:07 By www.washingtontimes.com

53 /89 2.9 A lost teddy bear has an epic airport adventure DETROIT — A little girl missing her favorite stuffed friend got an amazing surprise, thanks to an old family friend and a little Christmas magic.

Eleanor Dewald, 8, of Royal Oak, Mich., and her family landed Wednesday evening at Detroit Wayne County Metropolitan Airport after a difficult flight from Dallas. When it was bedtime, she realized one member of the family hadn't made it home.

Missing: a stuffed bear named Teddy. Teddy and Eleanor have been best friends ever since the last day of preschool.

"Teddy goes everywhere with Eleanor, so he occasionally ends up in a snowbank or under a car seat," said her mom Trish Dewald, 38. "But Teddy wasn't anywhere that Teddy would usually be. "

Trish Dewald called the airline and filed a lost items claim. She didn't know what else to do, so she posted this photo of a very similar (and cleaner-looking) Teddy on Facebook.

The post reads:

How might one go about posting an amber alert for a missing Teddy? Last seen: Detroit Metro Airport North Terminal on 12/21/16 at 6:05pm. Looks similar to the one pictured though more....ahem... "loved". Name: Teddy Sex: nonconforming Height: approximately 12" Race: bear Weight: negligible Reward: 8 year old girl child's undying appreciation If seen, contact parental units of said girl child. Authorities (DTW lost and found/airline lost and found) have been notified. #operationteddy

Then, Steven Laudeman saved the day and gave Teddy an adventure too.

Friends of Trish Dewald began tagging other friends in the comments of the Facebook post. That's how Laudeman, 38, saw the plea to help find Teddy.

Laudeman and Trish Dewald attended middle school and high school together in St. Clair Shores, Mich., and kept in touch.

"Twelve hours later, I didn't think the bear would still actually be there," Laudeman said. But he decided to search anyway before his shift began as a ramp agent at Southwest Airlines.

He tried the lost and found. No Teddy.

So Laudeman retraced Eleanor's steps. The Dewald's bags had flown through a separate airline so he checked the Spirit lost and found.

No Teddy there either. He asked an agent, who said she had seen a bear who looked an awful lot like Teddy, over by the garbage.

When Laudeman found the right garbage can, Teddy was perched on the rim, right next to the hole where the trash goes. But he hadn't fallen in.

Teddy was safe. Now, Laudeman decided, it was time for his new furry friend to have a little fun.

"In some of the comments on the Facebook post, Trish said Eleanor would love it if the bear went on an adventure," he said. "And I had the bear for eight hours. "

Take a look at Teddy's adventures at Detroit-Wayne County Metropolitan Airport:

"Teddy got to be the captain of an airplane, tried to push a plane out, wrote a letter to Santa, meet other stuffed animals," Laudeman said. "He had a pretty good day. "

A few of his coworkers looked at Laudeman like he was crazy, but "I have two little boys of my own," he said. "They would be so upset if they lost their stuffed animals. I understood. "

Thursday evening, Teddy and his favorite little girl in the world were reunited. Eleanor's eyes lit up when she saw her almost-lost stuffed bear. She thanked Laudeman with a little gift and a card she wrote out herself.

Trish Dewald called her old friend Laudeman one of the kindest men she knows.

"So much time has passed and so many people come in and out of your lives, and to have someone stay in touch like this — It's so meaningful to our family," she said. " That's how we got Teddy back. "

Thursday marks Steve Laudeman's 13-year anniversary since he began working at Southwest Airlines in Detroit. It was the first day on the job he spent alongside a lost teddy bear.

*** For more stories like this, like Humankind on Facebook .

2016-12-24 05:04 Ashley Catherine rssfeeds.usatoday.com

54 /89 2.4 Children's books for a Native worldview JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Not so long ago, children’s books with an authentic focus on Alaska Native stories and culture were harder to find.

That’s changing with Baby Raven Reads , a Sealaska Heritage Institute program focusing on children up to age 5.

Dec. 10, SHI released five new children’s books “that reflect the Native worldview;” it aims, said SHI Chief of Operations Lee Kadinger, to publish 18, and to distribute the books to libraries around Southeast Alaska. Through social media, they’ve even had a request from Europe that the books be translated into French, reported Capital City Weekly (http://bit.ly/2hU4RBz).

“When we looked at it eight years ago, there were no books like this out on the market,” he said. “That was really our goal in the grant - to make high-quality, culturally-based, place-based books.”

Three of the books have to do with Raven creation stories: Raven and the Box of Daylight,” ”Raven Brings us Fire,” and “Origins of Rivers and Streams.” They’re written in rhyme by retired Sitka first grade teacher Pauline Duncan and illustrated by Lindsay Carron. At the book release, Carron brought the originals of each of her illustrations, originally done with colored pencil, and completed in colored pencil, watercolor and ink.

Also released was “Tlingit Alphabet,” illustrated by Crystal Worl, edited by Katrina Hotch, Linda Belarde and Keri Eggleston, and reviewed by Dr. Walter Soboleff. That book’s words will be added to one of SHI ’s language apps, Kadinger said.

Earlier in December, the institute released “Colors,” illustrated by David Lang.

Lang and Duncan worked together on “Ten Sitka Herring,” one of the first three books released under the grant. Worl drew the formline in two of the other first three books, “Baby Eagle” and “Baby Raven,” which teach Tlingit words for clan crests. Nobu Koch did the illustrations of the environment in the books.

“The release of the books is groundbreaking because so few culturally-relevant children’s books from Southeast Alaska exist that are not tailored for the commercial market. And, research has shown that Native students do better academically when their cultures are incorporated into learning materials and classes,” said a press release from SHI.

Incorporating traditional stories is something Duncan did for years, as a first-grade teacher in Sitka. “I had it (two of the stories) up in my classroom,” she said. She also created felt panels that told the stories visually, which she brought with her to a Baby Raven Reads event prior to the release.

Jeff Ketah said he and his wife Crystal were there with their kids, 2-year-old Selena and 5-year- old Dexter, because “It’s important to read to the kids, and also for them to learn a little bit about their heritage.” 2016-12-24 05:02 By MARY www.washingtontimes.com

55 /89 0.0 Father-son YouTubers share virtual reality with seniors FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) - With a chilly Fairbanks morning framed in the rec room window, seniors at the Pioneers’ Home took turns taking a trip to sunny grassland in Africa.

There, through the lenses of a virtual reality headset donated by a family with ties to the Pioneers’ Home, the seniors laughed, gasped and smiled as a herd of elephants sauntered by in a 360-degree video.

“It just about knocked me out of the chair,” said a beaming Joe Nistler, a 90-year-old resident of the home.

The event was put on by Dan and Lincoln Markham , the father-son duo behind the enormously popular YouTube channel “What’s Inside,” during a family vacation to Fairbanks.

Lincoln Markham , who’s 10, is the great-grandson of well-known Fairbanks miner and University of Alaska Fairbanks leader Earl Beistline, who spent his final years at the Pioneers’ Home.

Dan Markham said he and Lincoln wanted to give back to the Pioneers’ Home and perhaps inspire their nearly 4 million YouTube followers to do the same for their communities, reported the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (http://bit.ly/2h2cCmR).

“The reason we thought of doing this is we were looking for an opportunity to do a Christmas video and encourage people to get out and do some service,” he said.

The two donated a Google Pixel Android phone and a Google Daydream headset to the Pioneers’ Home. Seniors were thankful about the donation and eager to give it another try.

“I’d like to go to Italy,” Nistler said. “I never made it there.”

The seniors chatted with each other, describing the details they noticed in each video.

Al Weber, 99, watched the elephant video as well as one in an underwater shark cage surrounded by sharks. He said he preferred the shark video.

“It was fantastic, really great,” he said.

Lincoln and Dan Markham found YouTube fame after Dan posted some videos from Lincoln ’s second-grade science project where they cut open a baseball, golf ball, soccer ball, basketball and tennis ball to see what was inside.

“My dad just wanted the teacher to have the impression that we had a YouTube channel that was cool, so I would just get some extra bonus points,” Lincoln Markham said.

Dan Markham said he did it because he was shy growing up and wanted to help Lincoln get comfortable with public speaking. Either way, it was the start of something life-changing for the two. The channel had just been intended for some fun videos to share with the family back in Alaska and New Mexico, but after a few months he said he noticed they earned $4 from YouTube for people watching those five videos.

“People from all over the world started asking us to cut open this, cut open that and cut open a bowling ball,” he said. “I said, ‘ Lincoln , we might have something. What if we hid all the rest of our (family) videos, changed the name to ‘What’s Inside’ and start cutting stuff open and maybe by the time you’re 18 you’ll have $10,000.”

But the channel took off far beyond their expectations, to the point where Dan Markham left his job to focus on producing weekly videos with his son.

Their videos include cutting open a bowling ball, light-up shoes, an Etch-A-Sketch and a genuine Olympic torch. Their most popular video is one about a rattlesnake’s rattler with an astounding 61 million viewers.

But Dan Markham said he credits the popularity not so much to the things they cut open but to the genuine relationship and fun that the father-son duo has on camera. The two have traveled the world, thrown a laptop from a helicopter and met Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

During visits to the Interior, they’ve cut open geodes with family and a snow globe from the Santa Claus House in North Pole.

“I don’t think people come to watch to just see what’s cut open, but they like Lincoln and I having fun and seeing the goofy things that we do,” he said. “We’re not the greatest hosts, or the smartest, but they have a connection together and are here for the ride.”

After filming at the Pioneers’ Home, Dan and Lincoln Markham went out to do what’s made them famous: cut open the VR headset and see what’s inside.

The video will be posted soon, you can see it online on the “What’s Inside” YouTube channel, which can be found at www.youtube.com/user/lincolnmarkham.

___

Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com

2016-12-24 05:02 By MATT www.washingtontimes.com

56 /89 2.1 Sydney's homeless people spend Christmas Day on the streets Carol is homeless and living underneath a bridge at Glebe, inner-western Sydney, but she hasn't let it stop her from celebrating Christmas. With the little possessions she does have, Carol has transformed her modest ‘home’ under the bridge into a place where she and her friends can celebrate the religious holiday. With empty alcohol cans, bottle caps, plastic forks and even 'a 'goon' bag for a bit of sparkle, Carol has decorated a Christmas tree for the occasion. The New Zealand woman even has photographs of random strangers hanging as decoration on the tree. She calls the people in the photographs her ‘extended family’. ‘I haven’t a clue who they are, but they’re our extended family, they just blew in from the streets,’ she said. Carol has lived in a modest tent at Glebe for 11 months now and says she has no plans to move. ‘We have no choice, but we’re happy,’ she said. ‘We have lunch planned, a few beers and a few cones. ‘It’s just another day really.’ Carol is just one of hundreds of people in Sydney and across Australia who will spend their Christmas on the streets and without family this year. Jake, 21 Carol’s neighbour Jake is just 21- years-old but has been living on the street since he was just 15. Jake may be young, but he has experienced some of the worst of what life has to offer. ‘I lost my Mrs at 15, pretty soon after she gave birth to our daughter,’ he said. ‘But I just recently lost my little girl as well, to a brain tumour.’ Jake has lived underneath the bridge at Glebe for nine months, and is one of the newest members of the community who call the area home. Richard, 60 Richard, 60, is a butcher by trade, and has only been out of work for a month. Although he has been employed for much of the time, Richard has lived under the bridge at Glebe for five years, longer than anyone else there. Unlike his neighbours, Richard doesn’t live in a tent and instead shelters himself with just a few blankets and keeps himself entertained by reading books. ‘I don’t have a tent because I always think I’m going to move on, but I haven’t moved in five years,’ he said. In those five years, he has witnessed three riots, two rapes and countless fights. He said life on the street was difficult, but he wouldn’t choose to live any other way. ‘I have a sister who lives near Manly and she has a lot of money, and my brother got in with the mining boom, but I don’t really want to cross that bridge,’ he said. ‘I have a bit of money in the bank, but it’s there for a rainy day.’ Ken describes himself as a man of faith, but he says he won’t be celebrating Christmas Day come December 25. Ken is 59-years-old and has spent almost everyday for the past 14 years on the corner of George and Market Streets, Sydney city, with a sign in his hands which reads ‘Medicine money’. While he’s spent years begging on the streets, Ken said this year had been ‘the most unchristmassy Christmas ever’. ‘No one’s giving any money anymore,’ he said. ‘People are giving me jams and toothpaste, but that doesn’t help me buy medicine.’ Ken said he hoped to spend some of Christmas Day with his sister who was driving to Sydney from Newcastle, but expected he would return to the street corner by the afternoon. ‘I have my sister and my step-daughter, but all my other family is now dead so I try to value who I have left,' he said. Ken said the reality of spending his days on the street was more difficult at Christmas. ‘The boredom of feeling lonely is the worst part,’ he said. ‘You feel unwanted, you feel rejected, when nobody’s with you just unconsciously slump. ‘It’s unavoidable that you feel unwanted, but a lot of people don’t understand or care.’ ‘That’s what I’ve just accepted.’ Ken didn’t want a lot for Christmas this year, he simply hoped he wasn’t robbed of his possessions. ‘A few years ago someone swiped everything, I went looking urgently and found it all dumped in a bin,’ he said. ‘That was on Christmas day.’ While he said it wasn’t an easy life begging on the street corner, Ken said he was one of the lucky ones because he had a steady place to sleep at night in Sydney’s Surry Hills. Red A man who goes by the name Red said he was also the victim of a callous Christmas robbery. Forced to sleep wherever he can find an inch of privacy each night, he said Christmas lured the hooligans out onto the streets. ‘It’s the worst over Christmas, drunk people come out and tip rubbish everywhere, urinate on the streets and steal your stuff,’ Red said. Red said he didn’t have family or friends to spend Christmas Day with, but he did have a friend he hoped would visit. ‘There’s a seagull who’s my friend, I feed him, hopefully he comes and sees me tomorrow,’ he said. Red said he felt as if he had been left behind and forgotten by the world. He said he had grown weak and weary and his hands were callous from sitting in the sun all day. He hoped to be off the streets by next Christmas, but said he didn’t want to let his expectations creep too high. Owen does not like to celebrate Christmas because it reminds him of a family he no longer speaks to. Owen has been living on the street for a couple of years but said music was his salvation, especially at Christmas. ‘Music motivates me, it gets me through the tough times,’ he said. Owen said he no longer spoke to his family, but he had found peace with it. Playing the button accordion at the Wynyard train station in Sydney’s central, Owen said he made enough money to get by. ‘It’s one per cent inspiration and 99 per cent perspiration. ‘It also depends on how lucky you are.’ Owen said he would spend Christmas Day as if it were any other, but said the holiday came with its annoyances. ‘It’s noisy on the streets over Christmas, I can’t sleep,’ he said. ‘Drunk people wake me up, I can’t get a night’s sleep.’ Ian has been homeless for two years and desperately wants to get off the streets. He said he has spent Christmas Day alone everyday for the past few years but this year would be different because he had been invited to a friend’s house for lunch. He said he was even equipped with ‘an expensive tin of biscuits’, orange juice and bread rolls for the occasion. Ian also looked forward to opening some Christmas cards he was gifted by people on the streets. ‘We don’t have too much, but it’s something,’ he said. Joey, 24 Joey has no family and has been living on the street since he was just 12-years-old. He said he was trying to save money for bond so he could finally live in a house, but didn’t know when he could expect to have enough. Like many others, Joey said Christmas was one of the most difficult times of year because it drove home how lonely life as a homeless person could be. ‘I haven’t gotten a Christmas present since I was eight,’ he said. 'As you can see, I'm doing it tough,' he wrote on a sign outside his make-shift home. 'I'm 24 and have no family to be with at Christmas, I was hoping you could please spare any change so i can try to get at least a few nights sleep indoors in an actual bed. 'If you can please help, it would mean so much and give me something to look forward to this Christmas.'

2016-12-24 04:55 Kate Darvall www.dailymail.co.uk

57 /89 1.2 Immigrant children take citizenship oath in unique Brooklyn ceremony A group of 19 immigrant children became American citizens Friday during a unique swearing in ceremony at the Museum of Food and Drink in Brooklyn.

“America is lucky to have you. Not only are you becoming American, you are shaping what this country is,” said museum director Peter Kim.

The children, who ranged in age from 5 to 17, took their naturalization oath in the main gallery space at the Williamsburg institution, where the current exhibit focuses on Chinese food. The freshly minted Americans hail from 14 different countries, including Algeria, Ivory Coast, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Greece, and Thailand.

Immigration waiver could help reunite same-sex couple

Nohemie Jean-Pierre, 13, from Haiti, said the museum provided a fitting atmosphere for the ceremony.

She said the diversity of cultures, and food, is one of her favorite thing about living in Flatbush with her family.

“I’d say the food, because there’s different cultures, and you get to try all different things.”

Judge Denny Chin presided over the ceremony.

4 years of asylum good enough to naturalize as U. S. citizen

“This is a very special day for me as well,” Chin said.

The Princeton and Fordham Law grad became a citizen in 1965, at age 11, after emigrating Hong Kong.

2016-12-24 04:53 Ellen Moynihan feeds.nydailynews.com

58 /89 2.9 The Bachelor's Megan Marx signs off social media for the year 'As many of you know I'm not a big Christmas fan (although I genuinely wish everyone a Merry time!) so I'm leaving today to go on a beach camping trip on my own, to read and write and dive and build fires and pretend I'm Bear Grylls,' she wrote. 'Solitude in nature really breeds a tranquility in me unparalleled and I'm excited for that. 'I won't be in reception so will be having someone look after my Insta... be back soon for some New Years party times! 'A big Feliz Natal to everyone in Brazil, a warm cuddle to those braving a white Christmas in the US & Canada, and of course to my fellow Aussies and everyone around the globe who I follow and follow me... MUCH LOVE!' She ended the post with hashtags reading: 'grinch out', 'campin' not glampin''. Megan was raised in a strict religious group by her mother and step-father and even got married at the early age of 18, as Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed earlier this year. Her step- father Ross Upchurch said: 'She was married. That didn't work out'. He also confirmed that Megan and her ex-husband were 'together for about six or seven years'. 'She was 18 when she married,' he added. 'I would have liked her to wait a little longer, but they seemed like a good match at the time.' The details of her family's church are unclear, but Megan told Woman's Day she 'broke free' from what she describes as a 'religious cult' four years ago. She also said the marriage was arranged and called the service 'the worst day of (her) life', claiming it involved a preacher 'screaming at everyone how they were all going to hell'. Megan stated she was banned from watching television and dancing due to the tough rules, adding: 'In there, education wasn't necessarily important, it was just about pleasing your husband.'

2016-12-24 04:51 Hannah Moore www.dailymail.co.uk

59 /89 2.9 Modern Family's Sarah Hyland is all smiles after visiting a Beverly Hills salon Sarah Hyland is feeling the spirit of the season. The 26- year-old beauty, who plays Haley Dunphy on ABC's Modern Family, was snapped in Beverly Hills Friday getting some last-minute touch-ups for her holiday festivities at the swanky salon, UNITE. The Manhattan native looked every part the Hollywood star, wearing a black jacket that went just past her waist, a fluffy white top and cloud-grey, thigh-high heeled boots. Scroll below for video Hyland accessorized with an off-white hat and black sunglasses, holding a bag of salon goodies as she chatted amiably with a few friends outside the establishment as a valet retrieved her vehicle. The actress, who's been seen in films such as XOXO and Scary Movie 5, is clearly ending the year on a good note amid her ongoing career success and an enduring romance with 26-year-old English actor Dom Sherwood, 26, her co-star in the 2014 film Vampire Academy. Earlier this week, Sarah took to Instagram with a shot of herself cuddling with the Britain native, who made a cameo on an episode of Modern Family this year. Hyland, channeling her inner Mariah Carey, wrote: 'All I want for Christmas is..... to be able to eat all the pizza in the world and still have abs without having to workout.... oh yeah and you @domsherwood,' adding an emoji of a heart to punctuate the romantic message. Earlier in the holiday season, the beauty uploaded a heartwarming shot of her and her beau cutting up apples, saying his presence helped make for the 'perfect Birthday/Thanksgiving' celebration, as she turned 26 on November 24. As the new year appearances, Hyland and Sherwood are closing in on two years together, as they originally linked up in the spring of 2015. Hyland's affection for the handsome Shadowhunters star was evident right from the start, as she called him 'an amazing person' in an interview with E! News. 'He's amazing ... we became such good friends on Vampire Academy.'

2016-12-24 04:42 Dailymail.com www.dailymail.co.uk

60 /89 60 /89 4.3 Guy Sebastian's wife Jules shares a cute tribute to her family's Elf On The Shelf toy She is known to update her fans with precious family moments on Instagram. And Guy Sebastian's wife Jules didn't disappoint on Christmas eve when she shared a cute tribute to her family's Elf On The Shelf toy. The mother-of- two uploaded a photo of the festive elf hanging on her family's Christmas tree alongside the caption: 'This guy, fondly named, Aiden, still not sure why...came to us this December.' 'He has been flying back and forth from the North Pole every night to report back to Santa if Huds and Arch have made the naughty or nice list.' she added: 'DYING to see how it all pans out for them tomorrow!! Thanks for being a part of the fam this year @elfontheshelf - I will actually miss trying to find you every morning!! A day earlier, the proud mother shared a photo of her sons, Hudson, four, and two-year-old Archer, decorating their Christmas tree. The picture captured Hudson on the left and Archer on the right hanging baubles on the family tree. The adorable little boys wore patterned pajamas and had their backs facing the camera. Jules kept her caption short and sweet, simply posting a series of Christmas tree and love heart emojis. Guy was quick to comment below the snap, writing: 'Almost home. I'm bummed I missed the tree! I'm taking everything off tonight to redo tomorrow.' Jules and Guy first met aged 13 in a church group and later married in 2008. The couple welcomed Hudson in 2012 and Archer in April 2014. Earlier this year, Guy revealed he wanted to have a vasectomy, while Jules admitted she has given up hope of having a daughter. Guy told KIIS FM's Kyle & Jackie O Show : 'No, I want to get the snip to be honest. 'I just went on holidays with the kids and that's when you realise what a punishment it can be,' he laughed. 'I've got two. Three we would be outnumbered.' Months later Jules wrote on her blog: 'We have two boys so of course everyone asks, "Are you going to go for a girl? " 'But I feel like if we go for the girl, we’ll have twin boys... so I’m scared to take the risk. 'Never say never on the children thing – but it’s not in the plan for the near future. Sorry guys.'

2016-12-24 04:19 Kristy Johnson www.dailymail.co.uk

61 /89 0.0 Rockettes not required to perform at Trump inauguration, union says The company that manages the Radio City Rockettes and the union that represents the dancers said Friday that any performer could choose to skip President-elect Donald Trump 's inauguration ceremony, after criticism online.

The announcement by Madison Square Garden and the American Guild of Variety Artists came after uproar on social media, with one dancer calling the performance "appalling" and claims that the dancers were being coerced into performing at the ceremony or risk being fired. "For a Rockette to be considered for an event, they must voluntarily sign up and are never told they have to perform at a particular event, including the inaugural," the company said in a statement. "It is always their choice. In fact, for the coming inauguration, we had more Rockettes request to participate than we have slots available. "

The controversy kicked up after Rockette Pheobe Pearl took to Instagram late Thursday to share her frustration at being informed that she would be performing for the President-elect.

"The women I work with are intelligent and are full of love and the decision of performing for a man that stands for everything we're against is appalling," she captioned a private Instagram post, adding the words "Not My President" to a photo of the dance troupe on stage.

The New York Post shared the Instagram post early Friday morning and it instantly went viral, with fans on social media praising Pearl and calling for a boycott of the ceremony, while others criticized the dancer for politicizing one of America's oldest performing groups.

Rumors began spreading on social media that the world famous dancers were told they had to perform at the ceremony, or face termination.

An email purportedly from the American Guild of Variety Artists which was published on the website BroadwayWorld called a boycott "invalid. " On Friday, the union said its position has been misrepresented.

"The Union never 'demanded' that the Rockettes perform at the inauguration, the AGVA said in a statement. "A message was sent to the Rockettes last evening that stated the terms of their contract. "

"There is a small group of year round Rockettes who are contractually obligated to perform at scheduled events throughout the year. We are pleased that Radio City has agreed that for those Rockettes with year-round employment, participation in this event will be voluntary as well. "

The dancers who choose to attend will join The Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the swearing-in ceremony on Jan. 20. Earlier this month, Trump's inaugural committee announced that "America's Got Talent" star Jackie Evancho will be singing the national anthem at the ceremony.

One dancer, who wished to remain anonymous, told NBC New York Friday that she felt performing for the president-elect would send "mixed messages" to their young girls, who are among their most passionate fans.

"We're just trying to spread joy and love and I think a lot of women are worried that because of the things that have been said from him, that we would be sending the wrong message," she said. "We get so many young girls coming to us saying, 'I want to be just be like you when I grow up' so I feel like performing in the inauguration would just promote something that we don't stand for. "

The Rockettes, who have performed at Radio City Music Hall since the 1930s, have previously appeared in Super Bowl halftime shows, Macy's Thanksgiving Day parades and George W. Bush's inaugurations in 2001 and 2005.

Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook .

2016-12-24 04:08 CNBC www.cnbc.com

62 /89 3.2 Controversial Sarasota dredging plan gets green light LIDO KEY, Fla. (AP) - A controversial dredging plan along Sarasota-area beaches has been given a green light to move ahead.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection on Thursday posted a notice of its intent to issue a permit necessary for the plan.

The proposed project is being led by the Army Corps of Engineers and the city of Sarasota.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune (http://bit.ly/2ipcxKT ) reports it would dredge up more than 1.2 million cubic yards of sand from Big Pass and use the sand to re-nourish Lido Key beaches.

Some businesses and residents from neighboring Siesta Beach fear the plan could lead to erosion along the key and circulate lower-quality sand to Siesta Beach.

Opponents of the plan now have 14 days to file an appeal.

___

Information from: Sarasota (Fla.) Herald-Tribune, http://www.heraldtribune.com

2016-12-24 04:01 By www.washingtontimes.com

63 /89 2.8 Amazon Prime Inks Content Deal With India’s Ultra MUMBAI — Amazon India ’s Prime Video service has added to its already considerable Bollywood content by signing a deal with Indian home video outfit Ultra Media & Entertainment.

Subscribers will be able to access some 300 Ultra titles including “I am Kalam,” “Damini,” “Mann” and “Himmatwala.”

Amazon has existing deals with Bollywood players T-Series, Dharma and Vishesh. The service launched in India last week and on the heels of that, rival provider Netflix announced a global content deal with Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment.

2016-12-24 04:01 Naman Ramachandran variety.com

64 /89 5.0 WATCH: Mugabe's minister, 70, weds 23- year-old lover Cape Town – A video clip showing a

Zimbabwean minister, 70, dancing after he married his 23- year-old lover has gone viral on social media.

According to New Zimbabwe , the Matebeleland North Provincial Governor Cain Mathema wedded his youthful wife Bathabetsoe Nare at a colourful wedding in Bulawayo.

Nare, a former Midlands State University student graduated in November this year.

Mathema could be seen in the video dancing in a jovial mood with his wife.

Mathema reportedly left his first wife for a house helper, whom he married customarily in 2009. The maid was only 20-years-old at the time. He later left her for Nare after her met her while she was on attachment at a government complex in Bulawayo in 2014.

Watch the video of the minister dancing with his youthful wife below.

Mathema joins a list of President Robert Mugabe’s top officials who left their wives to wed youthful women, the report said.

Mugabe himself married a then youthful Grace Mugabe in 1996. The age difference between the Mugabes is 42 years.

Meanwhile, several people have taken to social media to react to the minister's wedding. (see the reaction below)

2016-12-24 04:00 www.news24.com

65 /89 1.2 Jerry McDonald: Raiders' Sebastian Janikowski has proved his doubters wrong Sitting on a bench outside the performance center at the Raiders' practice facility, Sebastian Janikowski is smiling, relaxed and for the most part, satisfied.

The man known as "Seabass" is 17 years removed from being an unlikely first-round draft pick from Florida State. Imagine, a kicker - a kicker - taken with the 17th overall selection. It was considered a grand over-reach by the unpredictable Al Davis, who was reacting to his team's 8- 8 record due in part to kicking issues.

When the pick was made, Janikowski and a friend were on a Florida golf course.

"I was already on hole No. 4," Janikowski said. "St. Louis had visited me in Tallahassee. They were interested in taking me with the 31st pick. I figured I'd go hit some golf balls. "

It was duly noted at the time that his conference call with local media was conducted when Janikowski was, ahem, at the 19th hole in the golf course lounge.

Yet the last men standing from the 2000 draft class are Janikowski, former teammate and fifth- round pick Shane Lechler, and some guy named Tom Brady, taken as an after thought in the sixth round by New England.

Every day life was a challenge for Janikowski, but the wins came with regularity.

"We went to the playoffs the first three years," Janikowski said. "So in my head, I'm thinking, 'It's going to be this way every year. This is pretty cool.' "

In those days, the "Polish Cannon" was a loose cannon, with arrests involving alcohol dating to his days in college and through a DUI in Oakland in 2002.

That guy is long gone, replaced by a married father of three with twin 4-year-old girls plus a third girl who was born Monday. Janikowski and his wife, Lori, were married in 2008 after having dated for five years.

"It makes you realize how precious life is. It slows you down," Janikowski said. "You go home and play with your kids. You don't go to the club and get drunk. You take them out to soccer practice, to swimming. That will change you a lot. "

He lights up when talking about his twin girls, protective enough as a father to decline to give their names.

"One definitely looks like me, acts like me. She's shy like me. I don't do a lot of interviews, I'm not comfortable doing it. " Janikowski said. "The other one is more like her mom, looks like her mom and has an outgoing personality. Will walk up to anyone and say 'Hi' and will start playing. Two completely different people. "

Janikowski isn't proud of his past, but not ashamed either. "I've lived two lives," he said. In that regard he's similar to Charles Woodson, who put aside his wilder days from his first phase with the Raiders and returned a married father of two with a better work ethic and a different outlook.

Long a non-participant in the Raiders' offseason program, Janikowski has been at the facility the last two years at the behest of coach Jack Del Rio, who finally got the team back into the playoffs for the first time since the 2002 season.

Janikowski can hardly believe his good fortune, marveling at the talents of franchise foundation players such as quarterback Derek Carr and edge rusher Khalil Mack.

"Guys are committed to the process that Jack, Reggie (McKenzie) and Mark (Davis) brought in," Janikowski said, gesturing to the performance center behind him. "We've got new facilities, they're cooking food for us... we never had that before. It's a young team with young talent. We're going to be good for three, four, five... seven years, whatever.

"You've got Khalil. You've got Carr. We've been struggling with quarterbacks since (Rich) Gannon left. We've got a quarterback that can fling it. "

Janikowski leads the Raiders with 121 points (through Week 15), converting 29 of 35 field goals. He's perfect from 39 yards and in, with just one miss inside of 49 yards. He was 4-for-4 in a 19- 16 win over San Diego and believes he's kicking better than ever.

He has bonded with the free-spirited Marquette King, who replaced Lechler after the 2012 season. The two did an ESPN feature with soccer star Abby Wambach in which they took turns kicking heads of lettuce and loaves of bread. It showed a side of Janikowski's personality he doesn't often part with except among those he knows and trusts.

Janikowski and long-snapper Jon Condo, both married fathers, find King to be a source of amusement, a way of keeping them thinking young.

"That's just him. He's not showing off," Janikowski said. "That's who he is and that's why I respect him. "

Janikowski is fixated on winning a Super Bowl, but at age 38, hasn't given a thought to retirement. He's due to make just over $4 million in salary in 2017, the last year of his contract.

"I'll play as long as I can," Janikowski said. "If they need my services, I'll be here. If not, you never know what happens. "

Asked his biggest point of pride in a 17-year career, Janikowski has a quick answer.

"Longevity. Because of what I went through my first four or five years, how I lived my life, people thought I wouldn't survive this long," Janikowski said. "The Raiders could have just kicked me out after the third year. But they stuck with me. I appreciate it. I've got plenty of years left, I think. "

2016-12-24 04:00 By JERRY www.charlotteobserver.com

66 /89 4.2 A would-be Jewish astronaut and the search for the origins of life What is the origin of life? Dr. Gary Steinman, PhD, has been chasing the answer to this question his entire life. “How did life come about on earth?” he asks. “How did amino acids and proteins develop?” His quest for answers has provided Steinman with a career that goes something like this: chemist/biochemist-turned-professor- turned-astronaut-turned-medical-product- development-director-turned-doctor- turned-author-turned-university department chair-turned associate professor. Be the first to know - Join our Facebook page.

The predecessor to all of these achievements, however, was an all- American high-school science fair. “One year, I won for developing a treatment for polycythemia, a condition where there are too many red blood cells,” Steinman explains matter- of- factly. “The second time I won, it was for developing an improved method for storing blood in a blood bank.” This scientist’s career path hasn’t exactly been a straight line, nor has the road he has traveled to get there. Detroit- born, and raised Flint, Michigan, Steinman now calls Jerusalem his home after many stops in between, including one that was almost out of this world. NASA comes knocking, but first… Not long after the dust settled on his science-fair trophies, Steinman was off to East Lansing and Michigan State University where he completed a joint BA/ MA program in chemistry and biochemistry, respectively. He then accepted an invitation from Melvin Calvin, the 1961 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry, to join his lab at the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned his doctorate in biophysics. Switching coasts, the newly-minted PhD was welcomed by Penn State as an assistant professor in the university’s Department of Biochemistry. Then an ad in a science journal caught Steinman’s eye. The year was 1967. NASA was completing its Gemini program and about to begin the Apollo program. Until then, only experienced pilots who were astronauts were able to participate in NASA programs. Enter Gary Steinman and his curiosity for the genesis of life. “I wanted to be in the forefront of the origins of life, so being in the program would help me be more instrumental in developing that research,” he explains of his motivation to answer the ad. “I was in the first group of scientists that NASA recruited and was sought out to look for prebiotic conditions on the moon and other planets.” Following a battery of physical and psychological tests at the San Antonio, Texas, Aerospace Center, Steinman received the following acceptance notice: “It is the recommendation of the School of Aerospace Medicine that Dr. Steinman should be considered qualified for space crew duties.” This Jewish astronaut was about to take flight. “It is still exciting to relive,” Steinman says of the events from nearly five decades ago. The excitement, it turned out, was short -lived. Shabbat observant, the new astronaut met with Alan Shepard, one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts who, in May 1961, made the first manned Mercury flight. Steinman asked him one question: “What happens if there is a Saturday launch?” Shepard’s response was not what he had hoped for. “There is nothing to do about it,” he told him. “There is no room for variation.” Steinman made the difficult decision to drop out of the program and, as with many crossroads in his life, is philosophical about the missed opportunity, saying, “It was very disappointing, but these are the choices you make in life.” The doctor is in Six months after his astronaut career came to a halt, the scientist received a call that would bring him to Israel to become managing director for Ames-Yissum Ltd., a research development company affiliated with the Hebrew University. Seven years after his first trip to Israel in 1961, where he worked for six months in what is now Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Steinman was charged with overseeing the production of medical diagnostic products. Four years and $7 million in exported goods later, he was recognized by then-president Zalman Shazar as a “Distinguished Exporter.” “I think God knew all along that this was the plan,” he says, referring to his decision to leave NASA. “But then I had another decision to make. Should I stay or should I go?” Although he found success in Israel, Steinman had always been interested in medicine. He discovered a unique program at the University of Miami that would allow those who already earned a PhD to complete a medical degree in 18 months, as opposed to four years. One of 20 candidates accepted out of 1,100, he completed his degree in Florida and headed to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York to do his residency. “I like medicine, surgery, psychology, and it’s great delivering babies,” he says of his choice to become an ob-gyn. He should know, since he delivered four of his seven children (and performed the brit mila for his two sons). He also delivered the only set of identical quadruplets born in 1997 without the help of fertility treatments. After teaching at New York’s Touro Medical School, Steinman decided to return to Israel. He joined Hadassah University Medical Center’s ob-gyn staff and developed an interest in twins –beyond just delivering them – and autism. The former led to his being featured on a National Geographic television show and the latter to one of his many books, The Cause of Autism: Concepts and Misconceptions. “There is a town in Brazil that has a high rate of twins and it was rumored that Josef Mengele did something to women while he was there to cause twins,” Steinman explains of the National Geographic program, quickly dispelling the premise and explaining, “It has to do with inbreeding among the population and the twin gene being transmitted between family members.” Here again, though, the scientist’s research with twins led to the connection between insulin-like growth factor, or IGF, and autism, which impacts one in 68 children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. IGF’s function is to stimulate myelin, a sheath that forms around the nerve cells and that causes nerve impulses to go faster. Without this sheath, nerves are miswired. “In twins, there is a higher level of IGF in the mother,” Steinman says, “while children born with autism have a deficiency of IGF as fetuses. Autistic children between the ages of one and four also have lower levels of IGF. Right now, the only hope to repair damaged nerves is stem-cell research.” Steinman documented his five years of research in his 2014 book, written entirely by medical students under his supervision – a first in the profession. His newest discovery is that two existing drugs, when taken together, could be a treatment for autism as well as multiple sclerosis. It will take a minimum of five years for the drugs to reach the market, but he is patient. “When I was living in Queens, a rabbi had a severely affected son with autism,” he says. “I wished I could do something for him. I couldn’t do something for him then, but perhaps I can do something for other children in the future.” In addition to continuing his lifelong search for the origins of life, he currently is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry at Touro College in Jerusalem. His list of books and publications, which began in 1962, continues to grow as does his list of patents, which currently total six. In looking back at the choices he has had to make and the paths that have led him to where he is today, his only regret is time lost with his children due to the strains of such a demanding career. “I’m very lucky,” the former high school Science Fair winner-turned-astronaut- turned-doctor-turned- author-turned- professor says. “I’ve lived a life most people couldn’t even imagine.”

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2016-12-24 03:03 ELISSA EINHORN www.jpost.com

67 /89 2.7 Couple's botanical business takes off CRESTON, Mont. (AP) - Maranda Johnson stood on the stepladder, nine months pregnant, and poured a trickle of water from a huge jug into the vat. Next to her, her husband Michael Johnson operated a 1-horsepower mixer, emulsifying the collection of organic oils and water into a thick mixture.

They stood in the workshop of their house, where all the products in their business, The Good Stuff Botanicals, are born. It’s more of a modern apothecary’s nook than workshop, with jars of raw, organic treats from nature lining the walls, while others held oils in which seeds or other materials marinate for a year at a time.

Inside the vat was the mixture that changed the course of this couple’s life, compelling them to quit their jobs and take on the business of botanicals full-time, reported the Flathead Beacon (http://bit.ly/2i6zh2V).

“We found an old Romanian Gypsy recipe,” Maranda said. “We tinkered with it for two years until it really started working.”

The resulting Gypsy Cream has put The Good Stuff Botanicals on the map, and now the couple’s wares are in 70 stores across the country, including the organic Huckleberry’s section of 16 Rosauers grocery stores.

Like many good ideas, the recipe for Gypsy Cream was developed out of necessity. Before they knew about the cream, Michael had been struggling with psoriasis, and the medications he’d been prescribed were not cutting it. By the time he and Maranda met, he’d tried nearly everything to soothe and heal his skin.

“Steroids were not the answer for us,” he said.

They were already interested in natural remedies, so Maranda explored apothecary and other natural-remedy books for a solution. When they found the recipe, they experimented until it was effective for Michael. The Good Stuff’s products use raw and organic materials, harvested in the local forests if possible, and never include GMOs, parabens, sulfates, chemicals, fragrance, or dyes.

“We started in our kitchen, in a blender,” Michael said.

“We were going through blenders . ” Maranda started.

” . every week,” Michael finished.

The cream proved so effective for Michael ’s skin that the couple began giving it away as gifts. When their first child was born, they gave the NICU nurses at Kalispell Regional Medical Center a jar of Gypsy Cream as a thank you. It worked so well for the NICU’s patients’ diaper rash that it replaced another product, and the Johnsons continue to donate cream to the hospital.

Hemp oil is one of the main reasons the cream can heal and soothe so quickly, Michael said. Molecularly, it’s relatively small when compared to coconut butter, so it’s absorbed through the pores instead of clogging them, he said. They also tout the water they use in their products, which comes from a local hot spring with a high silica content and a favorable pH.

Gypsy Cream began to sell, and the couple worked three farmers markets a week all summer. Eventually, their botanical product line grew to include 15 items, ranging from creams to toners to bath salts. A production line that once put out perhaps 12 bottles of cream at a time now makes 12 cases of 24 bottles a week.

They aren’t technically certified organic, but that’s only because they didn’t think the USDA’s rules went far enough. They spent almost a year filling out the paperwork and getting visits from inspectors, but when the final paperwork arrived, the USDA said they needed to include some parabens so the product has a two-year shelf life. They rejected the USDA, Maranda said, and continue to use all organic, raw products.

“We sell fresh peaches,” Michael said, “not canned peaches.”

Even the process of using the mixer to emulsify the wax and the water is part of it, they said, because otherwise they would have to use an emulsifying wax that they don’t want in their product.

While they still peddle their botanicals at farmers markets, the product is stocked in many local shops, such as Withey’s Health Foods, Sykes’ Market, Sage & Cedar, and more.

Even big names like Saks Fifth Avenue and the hit show, “Shark Tank,” have come calling, but the Johnsons aren’t interested in being on TV. Their next step is finding a bigger workspace, perhaps a co-op of makers and artists, to expand.

Until then, they’ll continue in their home, letting the business grow organically. But before all of that, Maranda needs to give birth. Luckily, the couple has all the diaper-rash cream they could need.

“A little bit of Gypsy Cream goes a long way,” Maranda said.

For more information on The Good Stuff Botanicals, including a list of Montana retailers, visit www.thegoodstuffbotanicals.com.

___

Information from: Flathead Beacon , http://www.flatheadbeacon.com

2016-12-24 03:02 By MOLLY www.washingtontimes.com

68 /89 2.2 No more Work! Rihanna touches down in native Barbados to spend Christmas with family With about a day left until Christmas, Rihanna is back in her native Barbados. The Umbrella singer was snapped Friday getting off an private jet as it touched down at a Bridgetown airport on the island. RiRi, 28, seemed to be calm as she exited the aircraft clad in a long black jacket, with a black T-shirt emblazoned with her image on it, denim blue jeans with torn knees and black sandals. Scroll down for video The pop culture princess had her long, lustrous black tresses pulled back in a ponytail, sunglasses with a clear frame and lugged a large black bag as she touched down on her home soil. A hulking bodyguard trailed behind the breathtaking You Da One singer, who's back in her home country for the second time this month, after she was in town November 30 at a lavish ceremony at Kensington Oval cricket ground celebrating her nation's 50th year of independence from Britain. The Grammy-winning artist spent some time alongside Prince Harry, who was there on his Caribbean tour, as 20,000 in attendance enjoyed a concert and dance showcase. The 5 ft., 8 in. stunner also took part in a World AIDS Day event December 1 with the 32-year- old prince, as they both got tested for HIV at a Bridgetown, bringing goosebumps to some who remembered the tireless efforts of his late mother, Princess Diana, in the battle against HIV and AIDS. A Kensington Palace spokesman, following the public display from the two huge names, said that the prince asked the Diamonds songstress to take part in the influential exercise with him, and that she 'was very happy to do it. 'She has had people in her life that she has known who have died from AIDS,' the palace official said. 'She said this is important and she wanted to do this.' Following the official events, the Bajan beauty settled into some local fun, changing into her bikini for some poolside fun.

2016-12-24 02:55 Adam S www.dailymail.co.uk

69 /89 4.8 'Can't believe this kid is two': Erin McNaught shares sweet snap celebrating son Evander's birthday She's returned to Australia from London for the holidays, and has been updating her Instagram snaps with precious family photos. But Friday's post was extra special, as Erin McNaught celebrated her son Evander's second birthday, whom she shares with husband Example, real name Elliot Gleave, 34. The snap which saw the famous family blowing out Evander's birthday candles was captioned: 'Can't believe this kid is two'. Scroll down for video The sweet photo shared with Erin's 143,000 Instagram followers, saw the trio sitting in an outdoor area in Frew Park, Milton, in Queensland. Model and television personality Erin, sported a casual grey ensemble and a pair of stylish sunglasses perched on her head, while her striking facial features were enhanced with an elegant makeup palette. Husband Elliot was seen wearing a simple white hat, as he cradled Evander in his lap, while they all attempted to blow out candles on a chocolate birthday cake. Evander looked cute as a button in a white tank top with camouflage detailing, and had his hair tied up into a bun on the top of his head. Erin continues to remain positive, as seen in her Instagram posts, despite revealing to The Morning Show earlier this month, that she and Example recently suffered a miscarriage, which she described as 'heartbreaking.' 'We definitely want another baby,' she shared live on-air. 'I sadly had a miscarriage last month, which is, we're totally fine, it's just one of those things that's unfortunately really, really common,' the mother-of- one continued. 'For me, I found solace in knowing how common it was [miscarrying], because once I got talking, you realise just how many people are affected by it,' she said. 'If I could find solace in that and I think if more people spoke about it, then it might not be as tough for people to go through it.' Erin is married to British rapper Example, real name is Elliot John Gleave. The pair have been married since 2013 and share son Evander together. Erin is married to British rapper Example, real name is Elliot John Gleave. The pair have been married since 2013 and share son Evander together.

2016-12-24 02:43 Kristy Johnson www.dailymail.co.uk

70 /89 1.1 Lucy Hale ‘will not apologise’ over leaked images Lucy Hale has responded after cinema were leaked from her phone, observant she “will not apologize for vital my life”.

In a post on Twitter a Pretty Little Liars star writes: “Once again, a lady in a open eye was violated, stolen from and her private life and physique were unprotected for anyone to see.”

It’s after a porn site published topless cinema of a star.

The site has clearly given transposed them with fake, Photoshopped images.

The singer has reportedly recruited a authorised group to sue a website.

Her matter also says: “I wasn’t going to criticism on something so ridiculous, though given 2017 is gonna be all about vocalization my truth… I’m gonna contend something.

“I will not apologize for vital my life and carrying a personal life that is all mine.

“It’s truly hapless that being unprotected in this approach is allowed.

“Thank we for all a sweet, understanding messages I’ve been receiving.

“It was a most indispensable sign that I’m surrounded by so most love. we conclude we all really much.”

Lucy Hale is not a initial womanlike luminary to be a plant of hacking.

In Oct Ryan Collins , a male behind a outrageous trickle of bare photos of womanlike celebrities in 2014 famous as a “fappening”, was given 18 months in prison.

He certified to a two-year phishing fraud to benefit passwords of some-more than 100 people, including Jennifer Lawrence, Rihanna and Avril Lavigne.

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2016-12-24 00:00 admin headlinenewstoday.net

71 /89 71 /89 0.9 Duckie Thot poses for stunning selfie to celebrate landing in Australia for Christmas Her social media pages are flooded with eye-catching snaps showcasing her model figure. But South Sudan-born catwalk queen Duckie Thot has sent her fans into a frenzy with her latest Instagram post. Celebrating returning to Australia after spending time in the US, Duckie posed in a red velvet dress at a shopping mall in Melbourne. 'Honey I'm home,' she captioned the snap she shared with her 180,000 followers. The photo was liked over 20,000 times just hours after the 21-year-old beauty shared it on Friday. Duckie kept her makeup simple with a slick of plum lipstick, while her silky straight locks were styled fashionably with a blunt fringe. Earlier this month, she posted to Instagram about the negative experiences she has had with her hair in Australia. 'I've never really had a good experience with my natural hair and modelling in Australia before,' Duckie wrote. 'I remember on top model on one of the episodes I had to cornrow my own hair. 'I was extremely upset and embarrassed that they "didn't know how" to cornrow my natural hair when at the end of the day that's their job.' The 21-year-old revealed she was 's**t scared' she would be eliminated because she ended up doing the job herself, 'silently crying' in front of the mirror. The honest post went viral with nearly 20,000 likes.

2016-12-24 02:18 Max Margan www.dailymail.co.uk

72 /89 2.5 Brad Rock: Utah Jazz would be a beast in the Eastern Conference SALT LAKE CITY — With no games scheduled again until next week, the Jazz hoped to highlight their Christmas season by taking out the Toronto Raptors on Friday. It wouldn’t have been a fluke.

The Jazz live West of the Mississippi.

That seems to be the main criterion for good teams.

But it slipped away in the closing minutes, ending in a 104-98 Raptors victory. Too much DeMar DeRozan and too many Kyle Lowrys. In other words, two too many All- Stars. Under different circumstances, the Jazz might have a couple All-Stars of their own. Trey Lyles isn’t one of them — though he played that way.

But as the final horn sounded, it was hard not to wonder (again) what the game would have meant under a different alignment. The Jazz took the second-best team in the East down to the end. This leaves open the age-old question about just how good the Jazz could be in the Eastern Conference. Answer: Dangerously good.

Whether that ever happens is another story. Which lent a sense of intrigue to Friday’s proceedings. Would the sixth-place Jazz give second-place Toronto trouble and further accentuate the difference between the conferences?

They did, in a sense.

There is still plenty of reason for Western teams to cry foul. As The Donald would say, it’s rigged. Playing in the West is like kick-boxing a kangaroo. The disparity started in the 1990s, shortly after Chicago ended its dominance.

With the Jazz’s 18-12 record going into Wednesday’s game, they were in sixth place, eight games out of first. But if they were in the Eastern Conference with Toronto, they would have been in third place, 4 1/2 games behind conference-leading Cleveland and three behind the Raptors.

Realigning conferences is a topic every year. On one side of the country, it’s siege, on the other a picnic.

Commissioner Adam Silver isn’t averse to change. He moved the All-Star Game out of Charlotte for social justice reasons and is now experimenting with five referees in the D-League, in hopes of improving officiating. He has said he wants to discourage the construction of super teams. Under his watch, a new Collective Bargaining Agreement was approved with almost no hitches.

Bold steps, one and all.

But he hasn’t yet bridged East-West parity. The East has had a winning record against the West just once since 1998-99.

This naturally hurts Western teams as they cannibalize one another. In 2004 the Jazz missed the playoffs for the first time in 20 years. But if they had been playing in the East they would have tied for fourth.

In 2006 the Jazz record would have been good enough for a tie for seventh in the East, but they finished ninth. The next year they placed fourth, but would have been seeded second in the East.

In 2008 they were a No. 4 seed, but would have placed third in the East. In 2009 they squeaked in at No. 8, but would have been a comfortable fourth on the other side of the aisle. Their 53 wins in 2010 would have tied them for third in the East, but left them with a fifth seed in the West.

Things really spiraled for the Jazz in 2011. They were the 11th best team in the West, but would have been eighth and made the playoffs in the East. The 2013 Jazz missed the playoffs but would have been seeded seventh in the East. Utah’s 38 wins in 2015 were good for 11th in the West, but would have tied for eighth in the East.

Since 2004 the Jazz have missed the Western Conference playoff five times with records that would have qualified them in the East.

This season it’s more of the same. Going into Wednesday’s games, the West held an 88-75 lead.

Is it time to rezone the neighborhood?

Jazz president Steve Starks says the Board of Governors has discussed the possibility, but calls the phenomenon “cyclical.”

“We like traditional conferences; we like the geographical nature of them, and it’s cyclical,” he said. “Some decades, it may be in your favor, other decades it may not be. I don’t think realignment would be the answer.”

So the Jazz gave it a strong shot Friday, boosted by an unexpected 19-point night by Lyles. But a combined 60 points by Lowry and DeRozan was too much.

Again next spring Jazz fans will be able to rant about what might have been. But messing with the conferences isn’t an option.

“I think everybody in the organization wants to compete and battle it out in conference in order to get the ultimate prize,” Starks said.

Not to mention this: Who wants to see the Jazz play Philadelphia more than twice a year?

2016-12-24 02:15 Brad Rock www.deseretnews.com

73 /89 3.6 Airport jewelry store giving ex-offenders a leg up NEWARK, N. J. (AP) — Shoppers perusing the jewelry at a pop-up store in Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal B can talk to a sales clerk who also made the baubles, but they might be surprised to learn the employee is wearing a different kind of bracelet — the kind that goes around your ankle and tracks your every move.

The store is part of a program for women recently released from jail or currently in the criminal justice system. They get job skills, some income and, perhaps most important, self-confidence.

It’s the product of a union between a reverend, a film producer and a former governor all committed to easing a transition that can be daunting at best.

“When you get out of prison, society doesn’t let you out of prison, in a way,” said Francine LeFrak, the film producer. “You have a hard time with every step of the way. People look at you as ‘that person who was in prison.’ But if you’re managing a kiosk at Newark Airport and you’re in contact with other people, you’re feeling that dignity of, ‘I’m worth it and now I can talk to anybody.’ It’s about skill-building.” LeFrak, daughter of real estate mogul Samuel LeFrak, formed Same Sky in 2008 as a way to help women in Rwanda by selling their handmade jewelry in the U. S. Her interest in helping America’s burgeoning population of female ex-offenders dates back to the 1990s when she executive produced “Prison Stories: Women on the Inside” for HBO.

Three years ago, she partnered with former Gov. Jim McGreevey and the Jersey City-based New Jersey Re-entry Corp., the organization he chairs that provides links to education, job training, addiction treatment and other services. The third piece of the puzzle, Most Excellent Way Life Learning Center, offers housing and social services in northern New Jersey and is run by the Rev. Gloria Walton.

Barbara Murray was manning the Same Sky airport kiosk last week. She is a graduate of the Most Excellent Way and is studying to get a counselor’s license. The 46-year-old had been jailed for shoplifting numerous times in Brooklyn, and found herself repeating the same destructive behavior.

“The times I got incarcerated back in Brooklyn I was never given any help,” she said. “I just did my time, came out and went right back to the lifestyle. Today I’m not going back to the lifestyle.”

The program “is affording her the opportunity to transform herself,” Walton said.

For many people who have been incarcerated, the only jobs typically available when they get out are warehouse jobs, McGreevey said. Those can be physically demanding and difficult to juggle along with school and any parole or probationary requirements. In contrast, jewelry- making can be done at any time.

“What’s wonderful about this work is that they can do work all day Saturday or at 8 at night,” he said. “So they can earn money while going to college or attending employment training.”

Victoria Keenan, also from Brooklyn and a current Most Excellent Way resident, wears an ankle bracelet while her child endangerment case is pending in court. She said making the jewelry is like meditating. The 23-year-old said she is going back to school in January in hopes of becoming a paralegal.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

2016-12-24 02:10 By Associated mynorthwest.com

74 /89 0.5 Chesterton music program gives a voice to recovering addicts CHESTERTON, Ind. (AP) - The struggles, hopes and triumphs of those recovering from addiction are poured out on a stage every Thursday night in a garage turned into a recording studio behind the offices of Frontline Foundations.

Frontline ’s music recovery program is offered in addition to its counseling services to provide its clients and former clients an opportunity to create and perform music as a component to the recovery process. Mike Plebanski, a case manager at Frontline , a musician himself, understands the basic human need of self-expression and the relationship between music and spirituality. The weekly sessions, which draw about 10 to 15 clients, meld Bible study and a discussion about all types of music, which leads to the unique collaboration of all aspects of creating music in a variety of genres.

The clients perform as the Salt Exchange, a reference to the biblical passage calling people the salt of the Earth.

Their efforts have resulted in the production of two albums of original music; a third is underway.

Having a voice

“I poured everything into it just because I feel it’s such a great outlet - especially for recovery,” Plebanski said. “People are looking for that outlet. There’s that angst, there’s this internal pull, and especially early on in that recovery people have to have a voice. People have to be able to say what they need to say and feel comfortable. That was my biggest thing, was really creating an environment that everybody feels welcome. Everybody’s music, no matter where it comes from, whether it’s hip hop, punk, acoustic, grunge, blues, whatever it is, we bring it all together, we all have our say in it. It’s a beautiful thing to see it come together.”

While most of the participants are musicians, or have some musical background, it’s not a prerequisite. The only requirement is that everyone participate.

Plebanski said the discussion and musical collaboration give the clients an important and positive place to be. It keeps them plugged into a community, it helps them avoid some of the negative influences in their lives and the music helps facilitate a transformation in their lives.

Plebanski said counselors learn the importance of treating the mind, body and soul, but many treatments offered address only the body and the mind.

“But when you mention the word soul, people are like, ‘Whoa, we don’t talk about soul.’ Whether it’s taboo or they don’t want to get involved in it or they don’t believe. It’s just a crucial part of not only recovery but life. It’s that spirit, your purpose, your meaning, what gets you up in the morning. who are you? And music is our way of expressing that.

“A lot of times in addiction people have suppressed so much for so long that when they do put the substance down and they do start getting their mind back, they start getting their body back, their soul is either depleted, they pushed it all down, there’s nothing in there or it’s overflowing. It needs a voice. It needs a way to express itself.”

Honesty

Jesse Bailey, 22, a guitarist from Valparaiso, said he had faced consequences for his addiction in the past, but other programs didn’t have an effect on him.

Community service “never changed my heart,” he said.

He said the weekly discussions allowed him to be honest with himself and reflect on his life.

And the creative process allowed music to be a part of his transformation.

Bailey said he grew up in a family of gospel singers, and he’s been creating music for years. The music he creates sounds vastly different than the traditional gospel music his family performed.

“I wanted to venture off into a more honest genre,” he said.

‘A different kind of gospel’

“It’s a different kind of gospel for us,” said drummer and guitarist Morgan Szczygielski, 22, of Valparaiso.

Music connects her faith with her recovery.

“I feel like when people think of gospel in church and stuff like that and you think of this giant, organized religion where everybody comes together and it feels as though you have to be a certain way. For me, personally, I’m Christian, nondenominational, but this group, it gives you faith, almost. I know faith comes from within, but it really helps reach into your soul, and just it speaks through music. It’s amazing.”

Szczygielski said her recovery is a slow process, but it started with a wake-up call when her addiction took her close to death.

“I hit rock bottom,” she said.

“That’s a real, real thing.”

“For me. I was self-cannibalizing - I don’t know the word for it. self-loathing I guess. It was to a point of I couldn’t work, I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep. I was very close to dying before - that was my rock bottom, was knowing that it was real. You’re in the hospital and you’re laying there and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, I’m alive, OK.’ That was my personal rock bottom.”

She credits her mother and fiancé for helping her in recovery and said the music collaboration is key to changing her life.

“We collaborate so well,” Szczygielski said. “We all pick something and we play and it just comes out as this beautiful thing that works. And I don’t know how, it just does. It’s like a diary that we’re singing.”

‘Where spirituality and music meet’

Vocalist Joell Bailey, 25, of Valparaiso, said he was court-ordered to attend Frontline Foundations.

Along with his brother Jesse, he too grew up touring with his gospel-singing family where they performed in churches around the country.

He said his grandfather would tell him and his brother they would be the sixth generation of performers.

But Joell Bailey said he hasn’t shared the music he’s helped create at Frontline with his family - at least not yet.

When he was a child, he said he saw firsthand the effect music had on people and their faith. “It is definitely cool to see what effect it has on people - religion, that is, just that it could move someone to tears, or to do something wild that they would normally never do. It’s a pretty amazing thing. I think music is just like that, too. That’s where spirituality and music meet - is that they can both have those effects on people, whether it be to feel a certain emotion, or see things a certain way.”

‘God’s response’

Michael Rodich, 21, of Chesterton, has tried writing all kinds of music and has written poetry from a young age.

He grew up in church and played guitar and sang with a praise band.

“But I lost a lot of respect for the religious side of church,” he said. “I was tired of listening to others’ ideas of what my faith should look like.”

He completed the court-ordered portion of his program at Frontline , but has continued attending the music recovery program.

“I ended up finishing what was required for me by the courts and I stayed here just because I fell in love with the people here. Being around here keeps my head on straight. It gives me a place to be instead of out using or causing a ruckus or acting out or drinking or whatever I would be doing if I wasn’t here.”

He said performing at Frontline helps him deal with his anger and his relationship with God.

“I spent a lot of time almost angry with God in my writing, but once it’s there and it’s on the paper and I say it to the microphone, it’s like he hears me and the reaction on other people’s faces when they hear the music that I make, it’s almost like God’s response to me.”

‘Finding light’

Guitarist Alex McGowan, 21, of Valparaiso, also was court-ordered to attend Frontline , but found the positive atmosphere radically changed his life and the music he creates.

From the time he was 8 years old, he started writing poetry, a gift he shared with his grandmother, as a way to express himself.

“I’ve always been that kid that was rapping in the lunchroom. And everybody’s like kinda looking down on that and throwing negativity and shade on that type of behavior. And this is honestly the first time that I’ve experienced someone other than me finding light in what I do and trying to bring positivity to it, and it’s really inspiring. They gave me the opportunity to perform - that was incredible. It’s really just a chance to reach out and definitely being surrounded by positivity.”

McGowan said representatives from the United Way of Porter County visited with Frontline clients to learn more about addiction recovery and to hear their suggestions for improving services in the community.

“The fact that they were giving us sort of a voice and an influence in our community, we’re just, well, delinquents, as the community would name us, was kind of powerful they would trust us with that type of information or even value our opinion. That’s pretty cool. This is the most comfortable situation I’ve been forced into. I didn’t expect to stay here.” ___

Source: The (Northwest Indiana) Times, http://bit.ly/2gYgUvg

___

Information from: The Times, http://www.nwitimes.com

2016-12-24 02:02 By JOHN www.washingtontimes.com

75 /89 0.7 Ryan Reynolds looks slick in bodywarmer, flat cap and shades as he takes a stroll in Tribeca He just got a star on the most famous street in the world. But on Friday Ryan Reynolds took a more low-key stroll on the opposite coast in Tribecca, New York. The 40-year-old looked dead cool in black Nike trainers, grey jeans, a white longsleeve top and a brown bodywarmer. He finished his slick ensemble off in a flat cap and shades. Just one week earlier the Deadpool star's name was immortalized on Hollywood Boulevards Walk Of Fame. Proudly accompanying him at the ceremony was his wife Blake Lively, as well as their two daughters - James, 2, and Ines, 2 months - making their public debut. Despite being born in October, baby Ines' first name was only revealed by Us Weekly on Wednesday. 'I want to thank my wife, Blake, who is sitting right there who is everything to me. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me,' he told the crowd during the ceremony. 'You make everything better. You make everything in my life better. You've given me two of the most incredible children I've ever hoped to have.' Shortly afterward, his 29-year-old wife posted an Instagram snap of the family standing on the boulevard's newest tile. 'Proud is a pitiful word to describe how I felt today. @vancityreynolds,' she wrote, tagging her hubby. 'The permanence of your impact is undeniable ... Always has been, but now we have a fancy star to show for it'.

2016-12-24 02:01 Ross Mcdonagh www.dailymail.co.uk

76 /89 3.2 Dear Abby: Mom won't tell teen he has autism To this day, my sister refuses to tell Logan about his autism. She feels immense guilt and goes into panic mode every time I bring it up. She thinks he wouldn’t be able to handle it. The poor kid knows something is wrong but doesn’t know what.

Can I tell him? Or if it’s morally wrong to tell him, can I tell him when he is 18?

I agree that the boy should be told, but the person to persuade your sister to come clean would be your nephew’s pediatrician, because it appears she has tuned you out on that subject. He should have been getting counseling and/or therapy to help him deal with his social issues.

If the conversation still hasn’t happened by the time Logan turns 18, tell him then. He will probably be grateful to be able to put a label on what he’s experiencing.

But now I’m a sophomore in high school, and I have become a fan of rap and electronic music.

A lot of adults think rap is trash. I understand that it may cover some mature subjects like selling drugs, violence, sex and living in the ‘hood. But I still find rap songs to be a pleasure to listen to.

If you like a particular genre of music, I see no reason why you can’t continue to enjoy it. Although some employers check the internet profiles of prospective employees, I have never heard of an applicant being rejected for a job because of his taste in music.

To receive a collection of Abby’s most memorable — and most frequently requested — poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U. S. funds), to: Dear Abby — Keepers Booklet, P. O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.

2016-12-24 02:00 Abigail Van chicago.suntimes.com

77 /89 0.8 Jessica Alba looks serious as she steps out for last minute holiday shopping in dark duster cardigan and fedora It's the time of year for holiday cheer. But it didn't look as though Jessica Alba wanted to participate in the festivities as she stepped out for some shopping on Friday. The 35- year-old Fantastic Four star's outfit was the epitome of demure, and didn't offer a hint of holiday spirit. Jessica layered a slate grey duster- length cardigan over a long heather grey dress of the same length. Black leggings and black leather ankle boots completed the sedate look. In case she wanted to covered the little skin that was exposed, she also carried what looked to be a wide grey scarf. A bit of character was provided by a very distinctive black fedora, and a small black purse riddled with small metal rivets. The Honest Company co-founder's visage did look red carpet-ready however, thanks to some blush, nude lipstick and expertly-applied eye make-up. It seems as though someone had made Jessica's nice list, as she carried a small bag from high-end jeweler XIV Karats. Though she doesn't appear to have any projects in development at the moment, the mom of two daughters - Honor, aged eight, and Haven, aged five - has managed to keep busy during the holiday season. She was considerably more cheerful on Tuesday at The Grove outdoor mall in Los Angeles, which was celebrating the opening of the new Ladurée candy shop. The store in Los Angeles is the first on the West Coast for the Parisian-based sweets maker, and only the fourth in the entire country.

2016-12-24 02:00 Dailymail.com www.dailymail.co.uk

78 /89 0.8 Kim Zolciak shares family photo with husband Kroy and six children on Instagram She's clearly made her family a top priority. And reality star Kim Zolciak made sure 2016 would be year she wouldn't forget, as she took a gorgeous family photo with her husband Kroy Biermann and their six children, Brielle, Ariana, Kroy Jagger, Kash, and twins Kane and Kaia, in their backyard. Sharing the precious photos to her Instagram account, the reality star, 38, wished her followers happy holidays while gushing about how much she loved her family. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO 'Merrry Christmas!!!' she captioned the image. 'I have soooo much to be thankful for!!!' The reality star had a message for some of her naysayers as well. 'You would think with the holidays that you would refrain from your negative comments but I see some LOSERS just can't help themselves!,' she added. 'Negative comments you WILL be blocked!! ''Tis the season!!! The BIERMANNNNSSSS ARE SO BLESSED!... I love my family so much'. Love was in the air as Kim took a separate snap with just her football player husband Kroy. 'My (heart emoticons)', Kim captioned the snap of her and her husband cosied up together beside the family's waterfall. In various Snapchats shared that day, Kim recorded her children as they all took a photo together 'Family photo shoot with the six children!... Aww, so pretty!' she gushed proudly. She also shared a black-and-white photo of just her children, which she affectionately captioned, 'Alllll mine.' For the photo shoot, Kim rocked a red and black skirt, white turtleneck, and very tall red heels. But the photo shoot wasn't the only bit of family time she got in that day. The Biermanns also paid a visit to Santa Claus, and Kim recorded her children as they listened intently to St. Nick. And as usual, the reality star shared with her fans her daily mirror selfie from the day. Kim has two teen daughters whom Kroy has adopted: Brielle and Ariana and together the couple have four other children: Kroy Jagger, Kash, and twins Kane and Kaia.

2016-12-24 01:48 Christine Rendon www.dailymail.co.uk

79 /89 3.7 Tim Robards says Christmas is 'providing people with experience that could change lives' They've been dating for three years, with Tim Robards constantly feeling pressure to wed. But in an interview with Saturday's the Daily Telegraph , the hunky chiropractor hinted girlfriend Anna Heinrich, 30, may get her happily ever after this holiday season. Tim, 33, revealed to the publication that Christmas is 'about providing people with a fun experience that could change their lives.' 'This year everyone will love the present I have got them,' Tim told the publication. Tim and Anna are at Lake Macquarie spending time with Tim's family, and will return to Sydney on Christmas Day for celebrations with Anna's family. Talk of an impending engagement has always surrounded the high-profile couple. Just last month, Anna, a lawyer, admitted to PopSugar Australia that she would like to receive jewellery. 'I think it's always fun and exciting to open jewellery on special occasions or a big holiday, and these rings are just gorgeous,' she said, plugging Pandora, whom she is an ambassador for. The former reality TV star's comments come a month after Tim hinted at an imminent proposal during an appearance on KIIS FM's Kyle & Jackie O Show. Tim revealed that while he has a jeweller in mind for Anna's engagement ring, he is still unsure of the size. 'It's three years on, so probably getting around that time,' he said. 'I know where I'd probably go to get [the ring]... I know what she likes. I need to steal one of her other ones to find out the size.' Meanwhile, Tim and Anna have been enjoying themselves on a luxury yacht. Anna flaunted her enviable bikini body in a vibrant crochet style bikini. The triangle top showed off her cleavage and delicate decolletage, while the skimpy briefs accentuated her taut torso and lean legs. Allowing her signature blonde tresses to fall effortlessly around her face and shoulders, the slender beauty concealed her minimally made-up face behind a pair of trendy tortoise-shell sunglasses. Tim also took to Instagram to share an affectionate snap, while on the water. With Anna embracing her famous beau, a rather bronzed Tim attempted to take the perfect selfie from above. His short dark locks were slicked back off his face, and a pair of dark Ray Ban sunglasses finished off the look. In the caption Tim made fun of a slight technical glitch: 'This happy snap was right before the battery died on the boat...although we kept up smiles whilst pulling it apart and eventually getting towed'. He also added in the hash-tags #firstworldproblems and #luckyonallaccounts.

2016-12-24 01:45 Kristy Johnson www.dailymail.co.uk

80 /89 5.9 Lisa Wilkinson shows off youthful beauty in makeup free selfie for Instagram Lisa Wilkinson looked absolutely gorgeous in a makeup-free selfie she shared to Instagram on Saturday. The star has been hosting Carols By Candelight for nearly a decade, so at this stage she knows what works and what doesn't. 'Costume changes can be quite challenging,' Wilkinson told AAP One year I actually missed an introduction to a song because we were having a few problems doing up a couple of buttons so we're not going to do that again'. Instead, Wilkinson will host the whole extravaganza wearing just one dress, which means the pressure is on her to make sure that it's perfect. 'I think I get to wear the most anticipated dress on Australian TV so I have to get the dress right every year,' she said. This year she's working with Melbourne designer Sonia Cappellazzo for the first time, a designer known for her couture gowns and bridal range. 'We've never worked together before but from the moment that I started working with Sonia I really felt like we were going to end up with something very, very special,' she said. 'I absolutely love what she's doing and we have very similar ideas of what we want the dress to look like.' In saying that, Wilkinson still has to face up to that first moment when she steps out on stage and the country's eyes are on her. 'There's always that nervous moment just before I step out on stage because everyone loves a frock, and everyone's got an opinion of a frock. 'But unlike an event like the Logies where there's a hundred frocks that can divert attention, this is the one frock. I absolutely have got to get it right so I've got my fingers crossed on that one,' she said. This will be Wilkinson's ninth year hosting Carols By Candlelight, and it hasn't lost any of its sheen for her. 'It's just the most magical night of the year and the most magical television experience of the year because, even as the world continues to change enormously, there's something that just draws people back to the beautiful traditions of Carols by Candlelight on Christmas Eve,' she said. It's also a much-needed reminder of the good that is in the world and the sense of community that still exists. 'We all remember the Christmas carols that we grew up with and I think people just really respond in such a disconnected world to such a connected TV experience as Carols by Candlelight,' Wilkinson said. The 79th Vision Australia Carols by Candlelight will air on Christmas Eve at 8pm on Nine.

2016-12-24 01:37 Daily Mail www.dailymail.co.uk

81 /89 1.9 Washington Heights Church donates over $10K to buy bulletproof vests for Ogden police This week, Washington Heights Church presented the Ogden Police Department with a giant check for $10,700 dollars.

"We thought that there is no better way to be able to show them that we care, we love, and we support,” said Pastor Jimi Pitts. "They are always taking care of our safety so, I'm like, 'How can we take care of their safety?'"

The police department's biggest need is new bulletproof vests.

"It's more important now that we stay with the curve or try to get ahead of the curve, rather than behind it, when it comes to officers’ safety,” said Detective Travis Kearl.

Kearl said these new vests, unlike their current ones, are built to handle high- powered rifles, which are becoming more common in active shooter situations around the country.

"A lot of officers are getting executed, ambushed, and there is not a whole lot they can do about it,” said Kearl.

Kearl has already tested one of the new vests and he's calling it a lifesaver.

"If you were to get shot while wearing this, you are going to feel it, but it's going to stop the round," said Kearl.

The church also made special badges for every officer in the department. Families pick a name and pray for that officer every day for the next year.

"The officers are definitely heroes in our eyes and, while they just feel they are the average person, we feel that they stand out," said Pitts.

The bond between this church and the police who protect it is another example of what Christmas is all about.

"It was very touching. It was inspiring, and we're forever grateful for them,” said Kearl.

The Ogden Police Department has already put in an order for 144 vests, that's one for every officer. They are expecting to be wearing them within the next few weeks.

2016-12-24 01:04 David Wells fox13now.com

82 /89 2.1 Today in History Today in History

Today is Saturday, Dec. 24, the 359th day of 2016. There are seven days left in the year. This is Christmas Eve; the Jewish Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, begins at sunset.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 24, 1906, Canadian physicist Reginald A. Fessenden became the first person to transmit the human voice (his own) as well as music over radio, from Brant Rock, Massachusetts. On this date:

In 1814, the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 following ratification by both the British Parliament and the U. S. Senate.

In 1851, fire devastated the Library of Congress in Washington, D. C., destroying about 35,000 volumes.

In 1865, several veterans of the Confederate Army formed a private social club in Pulaski, Tennessee, that was the original version of the Ku Klux Klan.

In 1871, Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Aida" had its world premiere in Cairo, Egypt.

In 1914, during World War I, impromptu Christmas truces began to take hold along parts of the Western Front between British and German soldiers.

In 1939, Pope Pius XII delivered a Christmas Eve address in which he offered a five-point program for peace and denounced "premeditated aggressions. "

In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe as part of Operation Overlord.

In 1951, Gian Carlo Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," the first opera written specifically for television, was first broadcast by NBC-TV.

In 1968, the Apollo 8 astronauts, orbiting the moon, read passages from the Old Testament Book of Genesis during a Christmas Eve telecast.

In 1974, Cyclone Tracy began battering the Australian city of Darwin, resulting in widespread damage and causing some 65 deaths.

In 1980, Americans remembered the U. S. hostages in Iran by burning candles or shining lights for 417 seconds — one second for each day of captivity.

In 1995, fire broke out at the Philadelphia Zoo, killing 23 rare gorillas, orangutans, gibbons and lemurs.

Ten years ago: Ethiopia sent fighter jets into Somalia and bombed several towns in a dramatic attack on Somalia's powerful Islamic movement; Ethiopia's prime minister said his country had been "forced to enter a war. " Broadcasting pioneer Frank Stanton, CBS president for 26 years, died in Boston at age 98.

Five years ago: In a setback, Republican presidential hopefuls Newt Gingrich and Texas Gov. Rick Perry failed to qualify for Virginia's Super Tuesday primary ballot by falling short of the 10,000 signatures required. Troops commanded by relatives of Yemen's outgoing president, Ali Abdullah Saleh (AH'-lee ahb-DUH'-luh sah-LEH'), attacked a crowd of more than 100,000 peaceful protesters, killing at least nine and driving Saleh to promise to leave the country. Pope Benedict XVI decried the increasing commercialization of Christmas as he celebrated Christmas Eve Mass.

One year ago: Christian faithful from around the world descended on the biblical city of Bethlehem for Christmas Eve celebrations as an outburst of Israeli-Palestinian violence dampened the typically festive mood. California Gov. Jerry Brown pardoned actor Robert Downey Jr. for a nearly 20-year-old felony drug conviction that sent the Oscar-nominated actor to jail for nearly a year. William Guest, 74, a member of Gladys Knight and the Pips, died in Detroit.

Today's Birthdays: Songwriter-bandleader Dave Bartholomew is 98. Author Mary Higgins Clark is 89. Federal health official Anthony S. Fauci, M. D., is 76. Recording company executive Mike Curb is 72. Actress Sharon Farrell is 70. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., is 70. Actor Grand L. Bush is 61. Actor Clarence Gilyard is 61. Actress Stephanie Hodge is 60. The former president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai (HAH'-mihd KAHR'-zeye), is 59. Rock musician Ian Burden (The Human League) is 59. Actor Anil Kapoor (ah-NEEL' kuh-POOR') is 57. Actress Eva Tamargo is 56. Actor Wade Williams is 55. Designer Kate Spade is 54. Rock singer Mary Ramsey (10,000 Maniacs) is 53. Actor Mark Valley is 52. Actor Diedrich Bader is 50. Actor Amaury Nolasco is 46. Singer Ricky Martin is 45. Author Stephenie Meyer is 43. Former " American Idol " host Ryan Seacrest is 42. Actor Michael Raymond-James is 39. Rock singer Louis Tomlinson (One Direction) is 25.

Thought for Today: "Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. " — The Rev. Norman Vincent Peale (born 1898, died this day in 1993).

2016-12-24 01:02 By abcnews.go.com

83 /89 0.0 Durham's Scrap Exchange opens time capsule, celebrates 1966 DURHAM, N. C. (AP) - Dana Few Pope and Gary Lewis peeled the top layer of tin off of a time capsule that was sealed and buried 50 years ago at the former Center Theater, now The Scrap Exchange .

Pope and Lewis took turns showing the contents in the box to a crowd that gathered on the night of Dec. 16 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Scrap Exchange and the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Center Theater. Among the contents unearthed: A register of names of people who attended the time capsule burial, a reel- to-reel tape recording of the theater’s opening ceremony, and a letter from then Mayor Wense Grabarek to the future mayor of 2016.

“Somebody put a picture of Mick Jagger in here,” Pope said, holding up a photo of a twentysomething Jagger. Some attendees at the 1966 ceremony put in school pictures. One of them was Duffy McDonald, who at the time was a seventh-grader at Githens Junior High School. McDonald attended the capsule opening.

“Duffy McDonald, here’s your school picture,” Pope said, and McDonald raised his hand.

The time capsule opening coincided with the unveiling of a new exhibit in The Scrap Exchange ’s Cameron Gallery titled “Unpacking the Past, Designing the Future: Lakewood and The Scrap Exchange in Partnership.”

The party featured local beer and food. The Bulltown Strutters led a parade around the store to the site where the capsule had been buried just outside the building entrance, with instructions to open it in 2016. Julia Gartrell, special events coordinator at The Scrap Exchange , then took the capsule to a podium inside the building, where it was opened.

Ann Woodward, executive director of The Scrap Exchange , said she was glad the capsule came with instructions. When the organization bought the building, “we knew we would honor the tradition” and open the time capsule, Woodward said.

Pope is the daughter of Ran Few, who developed Lakewood Shopping Center. Lewis is the son of Charlie Lewis, who opened the downtown Center Theater in 1938, then the Lakewood theater in 1966. Pope said she was 7 when she attended the theater dedication and capsule burial. Lewis said he was 13 at the time, and worked at the theater until he was 18.

“I know my dad would be glad the building did not get razed, as the old theater did,” Lewis said.

The celebration prompted many reminiscences about Lakewood. Cornell Johnson and his mom Marlene Johnson-Moses were at the capsule burial and attended the 50th anniversary party. Cornell Johnson said he was 8 at the time and remembers putting something into the box, but was not sure what he included.

Paula Januzzi-Godfrey, who ran the Busy Street children’s museum in Lakewood Shopping Center from 1998 to 2002, was at the event with her daughter Callie Scher, now 20, who remembered going to Busy Street as a child.

Today, people in their early 20s recognize her and reminisce about Busy Street, Januzzi- Godfrey said. “They all remember the fire pole” that was part of the play museum, she said.

Kim Digsby was a staff member at Busy Street. “I remember the kids having a great time,” Digsby said. “I remember the parties we used to have. It was a great and amazing place.”

The event also had Durham party touches. Willa Brigham led the crowd in a jingle she wrote for The Scrap Exchange (“Come on down to The Scrap Exchange / You may just have to change your name”). The Bulltown Strutters played their theme song “Little Liza Jane,” yelling the word “Reuse!” after each chorus.

The exhibit looks at the history of the Lakewood neighborhood, and offers a vision of what the future may hold. The Scrap Exchange recently purchased some of the northern buildings in Lakewood Shopping Center and plans to develop The National Center for Creative Reuse, which would include affordable housing, a theater, a skateboard park and space for nonprofit organizations and businesses.

Woodward said she wants The Scrap Exchange to be a steward of the surrounding neighborhood, with development centered around reuse and sustainability. “The reuse industry is going to have its day,” Woodward said. She sees the reuse economy creating jobs, fulfilling people’s basic needs, encouraging cottage industries and creativity.

Durham County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Wendy Jacobs said she was excited by The Scrap Exchange ’s vision for rejuvenating Lakewood.

“It’s amazing to watch the transformation of what has become an institution,” she said.

___

Information from: The Herald-Sun, http://www.herald-sun.com 2016-12-24 01:01 By CLIFF www.washingtontimes.com

84 /89 0.0 Trump’s education pick believes U. S. public schools are a ‘dead end’ Many people in the education world are trying to learn as much as they can about Betsy DeVos, the Michigan billionaire tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to be education secretary. They are reading articles she has written, checking political donations she and her family have made, assessing her lobbying efforts and her role in education policy — and they are parsing speeches she has made, such as a very telling one in 2015 at the SXSWedu convention in Texas.

In the speech, she explains her education vision, which she says is meant to bring a wide array of “choice” to parents, but that critics say amounts to privatizing America’s public education system.

She made some controversial statements, such as calling the traditional public education system a “dead end” and labeling as “immoral” President Barack Obama’s decision to send his children to private school while trying to end a voucher program that Congress forced on the District of Columbia. Voucher programs use public money to pay for private school tuition for children deemed eligible. And she also essentially trashed the entire D. C. public school system, saying:

“America falls further behind, too many kids are denied an opportunity, too many kids get substandard educations, the status quo remains, change is thwarted, and everyone loses. Let me give you a real world example of what I’m talking about, and I would like you to think about this as if we were talking about your own children. Here are your two choices. Alpha School is a high-performing school, with graduation rates ranging from 70-90 percent, depending on the year. Beta School is a low-performing school, with graduation rates hovering around 50 percent. If you were given the choice between Alpha School and Beta School for your children, which would you choose? If you chose Alpha School, then in Washington, D. C., you chose a private or charter school for your kids. If you chose Beta School, then in Washington, D. C., you chose the traditional public school.”

Actually, contrary to her notion that all D. C. traditional public schools are low-performing, the District has a number of high-performing schools. Meanwhile, there are some charter schools — which are publicly funded but operate outside the traditional district — and voucher schools that are low-performing. The public school district’s graduation rate isn’t 50 percent and hasn’t been for years; in 2011, the district says, it was 53 percent, but by 2015 it was 64 percent and in 2016, 69 percent. Some D. C. Public Schools graduates go to the nation’s best public and private colleges — and many of the District’s schools have been innovating for years. The Trump transition team did not respond to a request for comment. Ed Patru, vice president at DCI Group communications counsel who identifies himself on emails as spokesman for “Friends of Betsy DeVos,” a loosely affiliated group of her supporters and allies, said in an email:

“As you know, nominees aren’t granting interviews by protocol and out of deference to Transition. … The speech was great and it was incredibly well-received. Donald Trump’s entire campaign was premised on the notion that government isn’t working — be it on the economy, on jobs, on foreign policy, or on education — and that a new approach is needed. The American people overwhelmingly agreed.”

He also said in reference to Ms. DeVos’ comment that “government truly sucks”: “I can assure you that both her direct talk and her larger sentiment is pretty commonplace outside of the 202 area code.” That is the area code for Washington, D. C..

What public education advocates might find as the most jarring of her comments is what she said during a discussion of what she sees as the education reform battle now playing out across the country:

“It’s a battle of Industrial Age versus the Digital Age. It’s the Model T versus the Tesla. It’s old factory model versus the new internet model. It’s the Luddites versus the future. We must open up the education industry — and let’s not kid ourselves that it isn’t an industry — we must open it up to entrepreneurs and innovators.

“This is how families without means will get access to a world-class education. This is how a student who’s not learning in their current model can find an individualized learning environment that will meet their needs.

“We are the beneficiaries of startups, ventures and innovation in every other area of life, but we don’t have that in education because it’s a closed system, a closed industry, a closed market. It’s a monopoly, a dead end. And the best and brightest innovators and risk-takers steer way clear of it. As long as education remains a closed system, we will never see the education equivalents of Google, Facebook, Amazon, Paypal, Wikipedia or Uber. We won’t see any real innovation that benefits more than a handful of students.”

Ms. DeVos’ characterization of the public education system as an “industry” is in line with the corporate education reformers — including those in the Obama administration — who believe public schools should be viewed as businesses with competition from the outside.

This is in contrast to the notion that America’s public education system is a civic institution — the country’s most important, in fact — that can’t be run like a business without ensuring that some children will be winners and others will be losers, just like in business. Supporters of public education acknowledge the system has failed many students but largely believe the solution is to improve the public schools to address what students really need to succeed.

Ms. DeVos has not said she wants to eliminate traditional public schools, and in fact included them at the top of a list of what she said would be an “open system of choice.” Also included are publicly funded charters, private and parochial, and virtual schools. But she repeatedly makes comments seen as denigrating the quality of traditional public schools.

2016-12-24 01:00 By Valerie www.post-gazette.com

85 /89 85 /89 2.8 Ex-Bachelor star Jacinda Gugliemino is happy to sleep in over the holidays She rose to fame on last year's season of The Bachelor. But now Jacinda Gugliemino is working behind-the-scenes on Channel Seven's breakfast program Sunrise. And with the Christmas holidays now in full swing, the 32-year-old took to Instagram on Saturday to express her joy at not having to wake up at 3:30am for work every day. Sharing a picture of her iPhone alarm clock app, the former reality TV star wrote: 'None of you will know just how excited I am by this!' She added the hashtags: 'sleep', 'glorious', 'sleep', 'early riser', 'work', 'holidays' and 'sleep ins'. The times on the alarm clock read '3:20am, 3:35am, and 3:45am,' but Jacinda had switched the alarm to 8:40am, indicating that she was now able to enjoy a sleep in. Since her departure on The Bachelor, Jacinda has certainly been keeping busy. Previously a children's entertainer and part-time radio presenter, she is now enjoying her new gig at Sunrise. It's believed that Jacinda works backstage in the green room, where she helps the show's celebrity guests prepare for their appearance on the breakfast show. She previously posted a photo that showed her proudly posing for a photo with one guest, Daniel McConnell. He recently came to attention as the 'Aussie hero' who chased down a driver who allegedly crashed into a fish and chip shop. 'The people you meet at work!! Daniel is a true Blue bloody legend!!,' she wrote on Instagram. Jacinda has also posted a photo of The X Factor's Guy Sebastian, who performed on Sunrise recently. Despite her flourishing career, Jacinda remains a fixture on Sydney's social scene with Bachelor co-star Zilda Williams. Zilda previously told Daily Mail Australia the pair formed a close bond while filming Network Ten's dating show. She said: 'I met some amazing friends, but Jacinda is truly a best friend and a sister for life.'

2016-12-24 00:39 Daily Mail www.dailymail.co.uk

86 /89 2.3 Film captures genius of Detroit-based architect Eero Saarinen Fans of Detroit's architectural history are in for a treat this month as PBS-TV airs the documentary "Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future," as part of its acclaimed American Masters series.

Eero Saarinen (1910-1961) died tragically young of a brain tumor, but in the dozen years before his death he designed an astonishing array of iconic projects, including the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Dulles Airport outside Washington, D. C., and the swooping birdlike TWA Terminal at Kennedy Airport in New York.

Like his fellow mid-century modernists Minoru Yamasaki and Edward Durell Stone, Saarinen saw his work derided by the high priests of glass- box modernism as too showy, too emotional, as mere advertisements for corporate clients. But today's viewers are more likely to respond to the beauty and precision of the places Saarinen painstakingly created at his studio in Bloomfield Hills.

Related:

The film features Saarinen's son, Eric Saarinen, a filmmaker who shot the movie for director Peter Rosen. The younger Saarinen's relationship with his father's legacy was a complicated one because Eero abandoned his family to marry his second wife, who proved more supportive of his work.

"As it ended, I really got no closure with him," Eric Saarinen told me in a phone conversation. "He kind of booted us out of the house when I was 12 and my sister was 10 and my mother was still in love with him. ... Basically, I hated my father, and I didn't want to have anything to do with him and avoided him and his work. "

But after local architect Robert Ziegelman persuaded the late philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman to help finance the film, Eric signed on as guide and cinematographer and came to a new appreciation of his father's genius.

Ziegelman himself worked for the architect for three years around 1960 and found him a warm, engaging mentor, almost the father figure Eric lacked after Eero abandoned the family. Today, looking back on the architecture works, Ziegelman said they stand as outstanding examples of architectural art.

"I was astounded 50 years later how well they held up,' he said. "The designs are current, there's nothing about it that looks clichéd or hackneyed. And I think it was a lesson in what good design can be, just classical stuff. "

Eero Saarinen came to America with his famous father, Eliel, from their native Finland. Eliel won the job of designing the campus of the Cranbrook Educational Community in Bloomfield Hills. Eero Saarinen designed some of the furniture at Cranbook but struggled under his father's fame until he came into his own with the Gateway Arch and the GM Tech Center projects.

There followed a string of high-profile projects that drew inspiration from nature's organic forms and embodied the forward thrust of postwar American life. Projects, including the Dulles Airport and TWA Terminal projects, captured the spirit of the jet age. The bright enameled panels and "floating" staircases at the GM Tech Center caught the vibrancy of an automotive industry racing toward the future.

Each one differed from the next, a result perhaps of Eliel's advice to Eero "not to copy anybody, including himself, never do the same thing twice," Eric said. "Never repeat yourself. If you are, then you're falling into a style. He taught him not to fall into a style. " The work proved nothing if not bold. "Our architecture is too humble," Eero once said. "It should be prouder, more aggressive, much richer and larger than we see today. "

The unique designs did not come easily. Eero was famed in the architectural world for creating dozens of models of a single project to test how each iteration would look and work. His father, Eliel, had been more instinctive in his approach. Some used to quip that when father and son worked together the firm made money under Eliel and lost money under Eero.

Filming his father's work allowed Eric Saarinen to reach the closure denied him in childhood. "I began to realize just how good it was," Eric told me. "He was very driven, obviously, and nothing was going to stop him. "

The result was a brilliant body of work that is brilliantly captured in the film. If you like Detroit architecture, don't miss it.

The film " E ero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future," will premiere nationwide at 8 p.m. Tuesday on PBS (check local listings) as part of the American Masters series. It will be available on DVD on Jan. 3, 2017 from PBS Distribution.

Contact John Gallagher: 313-222-5173 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @jgallagherfreep.

2016-12-24 00:32 John Gallagher rssfeeds.freep.com

87 /89 4.3 Kudlow: The Trump Transition Is Transcendent, but the Economy Needs Attention Now President-elect Donald Trump 's transition continues to go smoothly. Better than smoothly. Confidently. More than confidently. Transcendently.

And to top it all off, the Dow is up 9 percent since the election, while economic- sensitive small-caps have jumped nearly 16 percent. These are signs of Trump confidence.

Hard-nosed investment manager Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates and a non- political guy, expects the Trump years to be as transformational as the Reagan-Thatcher years. Dalio says the Trump era could "ignite animal spirits" and "shift the environment from one that makes profit-makers villains with limited power to one that makes them heroes with significant power. "

That's as good a summary as I have found. Since the election, I have argued that the Barack Obama /Hillary Clinton war against business will come to an end, and that America will once again reward success, not punish it. And while the Left has demonized Trump's cabinet appointees as a terrible group of successful business people, free-market capitalists such as myself regard this group as very good indeed.

Why shouldn't the president surround himself with successful people? Wealthy folks have no need to steal or engage in corruption. Their business success demonstrates that they know how to achieve goals and convince skeptics that good deals can be made to the benefit of both sides. Isn't this just what America needs?

And most of these folks aren't political. They won't be afraid to reach across the aisle for bipartisan solutions. And that includes Mr. Trump himself. For many of his years he was a Democrat. Just like Ronald Reagan. Just like me.

I've always loved Winston Churchill's comment that "If you're not a socialist in your twenties, you have no heart. But if you're not a capitalist in your thirties, you have no mind. "

In our new book, JFK and the Reagan Revolution, Brian Domitrovic and I explain how the two great pro-growth tax-cutting presidents -- JFK the Democrat, Ronald Reagan the Republican -- used civility and respect to communicate key ideas in a bipartisan effort that yielded terrific results for American prosperity.

So far, this has been the Trump way. Not only has he conducted himself with great civility, beginning with his Oval Office meeting with President Obama, he has sought an inclusive approach wherever possible, irrespective of party.

Yet with less than a month until the inauguration, it is crucial that Mr. Trump embarks on immediate bipartisan efforts to strengthen the economy. It was the number-one election-year issue. And despite strong post-election increases in business and consumer-confidence -- along with the stock rally -- the economy is weakening yet again.

Measured year-to-year, real GDP is rising only 1.7 percent. Business fixed investment continues to decline. Productivity is flat. Consumer spending has barely risen in the last two months, while both auto production and sales are slumping. Non-financial domestic profits have declined year- to-year for the last six quarters.

Of all these factors the slump in business fixed investment is the most harmful. If you go back in history, across the four long post-war recoveries of the '60s, '80s, and '90s, BFI averaged nearly 7 percent. In the Obama recovery, BFI was only 4 percent. Over the past two years, it has been flat.

Using a back-of-the-envelope rule of thumb, if the JFK/Ronald Reagan/Bill Clinton investment performance were in place now, our economy would be growing at 3 rather than 2 percent. A big difference.

That's why pro-growth tax reform is so important. It is reported that Mr. Trump will immediately move to overturn costly Obama regulations, especially on small business. This is good. It will add to growth.

But the big decision will be whether to repeal and rewrite Obamacare or enact tax reform as the first order of legislative business. Replacing Obamacare is hugely important, both to improve our health-care system and remove the economic drag of its taxing, spending, and regulating. But business tax reform -- with low marginal corporate rates for large and small companies, easy repatriation, and immediate expensing for new investment -- will have an enormously positive impact on the weakest part of our economy, namely business investment.

That's where we'll see 3 or 4 percent growth, higher productivity, more and better paying jobs, and fatter family pocketbooks.

If there were a way to combine a two-year budget resolution with reconciliation instructions (51 Senate votes) to reform health care and taxes in one full sweep, that would be ideal. However, if tax reform (be it business or individual) comes second, and the start dates are postponed until 2018, then businesses and consumers will postpone economic activity. That could make 2017 a much weaker economic story than confidence surveys and the recent stock market suggest.

There's a great transition going on, but the economy needs immediate attention. Tax reform is the key.

2016-12-24 00:31 Larry Kudlow www.cnbc.com

88 /89 4.3 'Mr. Holiday' lights up NW DC neighborhood WASHINGTON (WUSA9) - On the street, in a city where Christmas decorations are pretty bare, there's a house that's baring it all.

The house radiates season’s greetings to passersby on 16th St NW. Dads like it, kids like it.

Adults like it, even dogs like it.

It's the reaction that Greg Nelson, the curator, the host, the enthusiast, is going for.

People in the Northwest, D. C. neighborhood call Nelson, Mr. Holiday. He may not look like Santa Claus but he certainly has St. Nick's spirit. And every year, the theme changes. Mr. Holiday says his brainstorming begins around September.

This year the theme is designed around Arbos, Nelson’s dog.

People often leave him ‘thank you’ gifts and notes. During the offseason, it takes a garage and basement to house all of the decorations.

In case there was any doubt, this is a professional operation. One that can get pretty pricey.

DC doctors help Haitian kids celebrate Christmas Tell a different story about Santa this holiday season

2016-12-24 00:27 Mola Lenghi rssfeeds.wusa9.com

89 /89 0.0 Kate Beckinsale cuts casual figure for solo outing in Beverly Hills The 43-year-old actress wore a grey turtleneck with black ripped denim, a silky duster coat and a Saint Laurent handbag. The brunette beauty pulled her locks into a ponytail, opting for just a touch of makeup. Kate brushed pink blush on her cheeks with a rosy hued lipstick for her retail outing. She opted to add a simple black choker with matching hued ankle boots and classic sunglasses.

2016-12-24 00:25 Sarah Sotoodeh www.dailymail.co.uk

Total 89 articles.

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Created at 2016-12-24 16:09