onirbansharma: April 2013

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Smooth Operator

Emily Yoffe

Photo by Teresa Castracane.

Emily Yoffe, aka Dear Prudence, is on Washingtonpost.com weekly to chat live with readers. An edited?transcript of the chat is below. (Sign up here?to get Dear Prudence delivered to your inbox each week. Read Prudie?s?Slate columns?here. Send questions to Prudence at prudence@slate.com.)

Q. Hair Down There: My husband and I have been married for 18 years and have a good relationship overall. We are good friends and rarely fight. But over the past year or so, we haven't been intimate very often. I tried talking with him about it recently, and he admitted that he isn't as turned on by me anymore because I don't shave. I'm not like a beast, I trim some, but apparently he wants it all gone. I don't really want to, I like the way I look. I don't understand why so many men want it all gone. He is insisting. I really want to be intimate again. Any advice?

A: Using my incredible psychic powers, I am able to see your husband and it turns out that when he tells you he's going to the home office to look up ways to refinance your mortgage, he's actually mesmerized by porn. It's true that there's a new grooming standard which dictates that no one of either sex displays a single strand of body hair. Maybe economists need to investigate whether part of our high unemployment rate is due to the fact a large percentage of our population is spending most of their time depilating. When I started writing this column I had a very laissez-faire attitude toward porn, but it's irrefutable that excess consumption can interfere with normal sexual expectations. It's one thing if your husband made a reasonable request that you trim more enthusiastically. He could have come to you long ago and suggested you both play around with this together?because if he's still sporting body hair, what's his excuse? It's another thing if he's withdrawn from you sexually, has refused to address this, then announces he can't get turned on by you if you don't look like the people on YouPorn. Before you pick up the razor, you two need to talk about how hurtful his behavior has been over the past year, and that you hope he understands that putting his demands in such a demeaning way is not likely to turn you on.

Dear Prudence Live in New York: The Dirty Bra

Q. Misrepresentation?: I am an elderly woman who needs to use a cane to walk. I found a beautifully handmade cane on eBay, carved with flowers and a cross, which remarkably, I won with a bid I could afford. I love it, but, my Christian sister strongly objects to me using it, because I am an atheist, and she says "a person so hostile to religion should not advertise herself as being a Christian." Now, I am in a bit of a quandary. I am not a Christian, and don't want people to think of me as one, but living in the Bible belt, with a large majority Christian population, most people assume I am anyway. And the cane is a beautiful work of art, and I so hate having to use a cane, it gives me some solace to carry such a beautiful one. Do you think it is false representation for me to use it?

A: I always enjoy it when people use their religion to beat each other about the head to demonstrate their moral superiority. You can say to your sister you find it odd that she would so object to your getting solace and help from a beautiful object celebrating her faith. Then tell her if she needs to continue to vent about this, she should do so to her pastor.

Q. Mothers-in-Law Hate Each Other: My wife and I have been together for 15 years including courtship and 11 years of happy marriage. Our mothers have never gotten along. They simply have different outlooks on life, parent responsibilities (my mom was a single parent, her parents fought a lot but were together), boundaries, pretty much everything. For most of the past five years, they have refused to be in the same room with each other. This has caused yearly stress come the holiday season to ensure we see them evenly and no one gets preferential treatment; most particularly we refuse to allow anyone to be with us on Christmas morning. My father-in-law passed away suddenly a month ago. We are already feeling that we are going to have to have her mother with us for the first Christmas without him. We also think this puts us in a position where we have to insist on a bridge being built between these two women. Any advice on how to carry that out effectively is appreciated.

A: Stop trying to referee this wrestling match. Your mothers don't have to like each other, they just have to behave like adults. I don't know the geography here, but if in order for your mother-in-law not to be alone this Christmas you feel an obligation to invite her to stay at your home Christmas Eve, then do so. Then you can announce that you are having a Christmas brunch to which both mothers are invited. If they want to play a game of chicken and refuse to attend unless the other mother is uninvited, you say the invitation stands, both are welcome, and you will be happy to see whoever comes. If each mother wants to enumerate the reasons the other is unacceptable, refuse to listen. Surely each mother when raising her children told you both about the need to get along with people you don't particularly like. Quote that back to the moms and say it was excellent advice. And think about how much of a hold these bickering women have on you if you are sweating in April over what's going to happen in December.

Q. Re: Shaving down there: For the woman whose husband wants her to shave. He won't find her much of a turn-on when she's in the hospital with a Staph A. infection either. We have hair for a reason and shaving it puts you at risk for all kinds of bad stuff like this. And the LW needs to find out if this is just an excuse, excess porn, or a new girlfriend on the side. "Insisting," indeed!

A: No way I'm clicking on "this"! Millions of people do remove body hair without getting infected, and I've even read that this trend has apparently reduced the incidence of crabs. However, good point about the possibility of a very smooth girlfriend. The wife needs to investigate this.

Q. Martyr Mom: My mother is a person who always puts her own needs second and it's driving me and my siblings crazy. She secretly/silently sacrifices her own desires in order to accommodate what she thinks we want, then breaks down in tears when we fail to appreciate it. Oftentimes, the "sacrifices" are things nobody wants and just make our lives harder?for instance, she wants to talk to us often, but refuses to initiate phone calls because, quote, "I don't want to bother you," but then becomes miserably unhappy if we don't call her. We kids are all late 20s/early 30s and trying to live our own lives, and it's creating enormous amounts of drama and tension having to be responsible for Mom's feelings like this. Begging her to please just do what she wants hasn't worked. Do you have any advice? We're losing our minds here.

A: No, you're mother is not putting others' needs first. As you're experiencing, her primary need is to be the center of attention and her method is to play the martyr. So, to reiterate my usual advice about impossible family members, refuse to engage. Since you want to improve your relationship with her, set up a weekly phone call schedule and agree to talk to her for 10 to 15 minutes every Sunday night, for example. If the conversations turn maudlin and accusatory, say you're sorry to hear she sounds so unhappy, you hope her week improves, and you'll talk to her next Sunday. If she makes some dramatic sacrifice none of you are interested in, just shrug and say, "Oh, you didn't need to do that, Mom," and move on. Your begging and pleading just play into her world of melodrama. If you limit contact when it's unpleasant and increase it when she's being normal, that might have an excellent effect on her outlook and interactions with her loved ones.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=882ea165475a1118948b7685ccedb0b0

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What do you think makes a gaming console succeed or fail? - Video ...

To get back to the topic at hand, and to stop the clear sandwich posting, I'd like to add more input. What makes a console fail is horrible platform design(such as weight and style of it), bad games that come out prior to the release of the console, and horrible timing and endorsement or if its similar to older gaming consoles to its franchise with no new good feature changes.

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Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11 review

More Info

Normally, when a company releases two laptops in different sizes (the MacBook Air, anyone?) we review just one: we assume you'll get the gist about the design and trackpad the first time, ya know? So it's funny, then, that we're taking a look at the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11 after we've already tested the Yoga 13 and named it one of our favorite Windows 8 convertibles. They look alike, with an inventive hinge allowing you to fold the screen back like a book cover. The keyboards are the same too, though the 11-incher's is understandably a tad more crowded. They even have the same oddly shaped power port.

Except, of course, they're totally different products. Whereas the Yoga 13 is a proper laptop, with a Core i5 processor and full Windows 8, the Yoga 11 runs Windows RT, and is powered by a Tegra 3 chip (yes, the same one you're used to seeing in Android tablets). That means a big dip in performance, but exponentially longer battery life. Legacy x86 apps are off-limits too, given that this is Windows RT and all. Now that we've set up that equation for you (weaker performance plus longer battery life minus standard Windows apps equals what?) let's meet up after the break to see if this is just as good a deal as its big brother.

Gallery: Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11 review

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, Lenovo

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/LOZWwcx5Ph8/

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Watch The Disrupt NY 2013 Hackathon Presentations Live

Disrupt NY 2013's Hackathon took place over roughly the last 24 hours, and now the teams are ready to present. Watch along as we live stream all 164 hacks built during the event, each of which gets just under a minute to demo what they've built on stage in order to try to convince the judges they're worthy of the sponsor prizes. 164 is a lot of hacks for just under a day, and in fact it's a record for any Disrupt Hackathon to date.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/LAaVZx7XLJc/

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Sunday, April 28, 2013

Are lesbians more accepted than gay men? | The Salt Lake Tribune

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY, APRIL 28, 2013 AND THEREAFTER - Sarah Toce, editor of a daily online news magazine "The Seattle Lesbian," poses for a photo Friday, April 19, 2013, in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, in an alleyway that has been the site of fights and other violence against gay men. Even as society has become more accepting of homosexuality overall, longstanding research has shown more societal tolerance for lesbians than gay men, and that gay men are significantly more likely to be targets of violence. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

Society ? Research shows more societal tolerance for lesbians, and gay men face more violence.

Chicago ? It may be a man?s world, as the saying goes, but lesbians seem to have an easier time living in it than gay men do.

High-profile lesbian athletes have come out while still playing their sports, but not a single gay male athlete in major U.S. professional sports has done the same. While television?s most prominent same-sex parents are the two fictional dads on "Modern Family," surveys show that society is actually more comfortable with the idea of lesbians parenting children.

And then there is the ongoing debate over the Boy Scouts of America proposal to ease their ban on gay leaders and scouts.

Reaction to the proposal, which the BSA?s National Council will take up next month, has been swift, and often harsh. Yet amid the discussions, the Girl Scouts of USA reiterated their policy prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, among other things. That announcement has gone largely unnoticed.

Certainly, the difference in the public?s reaction to the scouting organizations can be attributed, in part, to their varied histories, including the Boy Scouts? longstanding religious ties and a base that has become less urban over the years, compared with the Girl Scouts?.

But there?s also an undercurrent here, one that?s often present in debates related to homosexuality, whether over the military?s now-defunct "Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell" policy or even same-sex marriage. Even as society has become more accepting of homosexuality overall, longstanding research has shown more societal tolerance for lesbians than gay men, and that gay men are significantly more likely to be targets of violence.

That research also has found that it?s often straight men who have the most difficult time with homosexuality ? and particularly gay men ? says researcher Gregory Herek.

"Men are raised to think they have to prove their masculinity, and one big part about being masculine is being heterosexual. So we see that harassment, jokes, negative statements and violence are often ways that even younger men try to prove their heterosexuality," says Herek, a psychologist at the University of California, Davis, who has, for years, studied this phenomenon and how it plays out in the gay community.

That is not, of course, to downplay the harassment lesbians face. It can be just as ugly.

But it?s not as frequent, Herek and others have found, especially in adulthood. It?s also not uncommon for lesbians to encounter straight men who have a fascination with them.

story continues below

"The men hit on me. The women hit on me. But I never feel like I?m in any immediate danger," says Sarah Toce, the 29-year-old editor of The Seattle Lesbian and managing editor of The Contributor, both online news magazines. "If I were a gay man, I might ? and if it?s like this in Seattle, can you imagine what it is like in less-accepting parts of middle America?"

One of Herek?s studies found that, overall, 38 percent of gay men said that, in adulthood, they?d been victims of vandalism, theft or violence ? hit, beaten or sexually assaulted ? because they were perceived as gay. About 13 percent of lesbians said the same.

A separate study of young people in England also found that, in their teens, gay boys and lesbians were almost twice as likely to be bullied as their straight peers. By young adulthood, it was about the same for lesbians and straight girls. But in this study, published recently in the journal Pediatrics, gay young men were almost four times more likely than their straight peers to be bullied.

At least one historian says it wasn?t always that way for either men or women, whose "expressions of love" with friends of the same gender were seen as a norm ? even idealized ? in the 19th century.

"These relationships offered ample opportunity for those who would have wanted to act on it physically, even if most did not," says Thomas Foster, associate professor and head of the history department at DePaul University in Chicago.

Today?s "code of male gendered behavior," he says, often rejects these kinds of expressions between men.

We joke about the "bro-mance" ? a term used to describe close friendships between straight men. But in some sense, the humor stems from the insinuation that those relationships could be romantic, though everyone assumes they aren?t.

Call those friends "gay," a word that?s still commonly used as an insult, and that?s quite another thing. Consider the furor over Rutgers University men?s basketball coach Mike Rice, who was recently fired for mistreating his players and mocking them with gay slurs.

If two women dance together at a club or walk arm-in-arm down the street, people are usually less likely to question it ? though some wonder if that has more to do with a lack of awareness than acceptance.

"Lesbians are so invisible in our society. And so I think the hatred is more invisible," says Laura Grimes, a licensed clinical social worker in Chicago whose counseling practice caters to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender clients.

Grimes says she also frequently hears from lesbians who are harassed for "looking like dykes," meaning that people are less accepting if they look more masculine.

Still, Ian O?Brien, a gay man in Washington, D.C., sees more room for women "to transcend what femininity looks like, or at least negotiate that space a little bit more."

Next Page >

Source: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/56228624-68/gay-lesbians-says-scouts.html.csp

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A new front for gun background checks: the ballot

FILE - In this Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013 file photo, a Glock representative explains features of the Glock 37 Gen 4 .45 caliber pistol at the 35th annual SHOT Show, in Las Vegas. After struggling to sway both state and federal lawmakers, proponents of expanding background checks for gun sales are now exploring whether they will have more success by taking the issue directly to voters. While advocates generally prefer that new gun laws be passed through the legislative process, especially at the national level, they are also concerned about how much sway the National Rifle Association has with lawmakers. Washington state Rep. Jamie Pedersen, a Democrat who had sponsored unsuccessful legislation on background checks at the state level, said a winning ballot initiative would make a statement with broad implications (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File)

FILE - In this Jan. 26, 2013 file photo, a customer looks over shotguns on display at the annual New York State Arms Collectors Association Albany Gun Show at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany, N.Y. After struggling to sway both state and federal lawmakers, proponents of expanding background checks for gun sales are now exploring whether they will have more success by taking the issue directly to voters. While advocates generally prefer that new gun laws be passed through the legislative process, especially at the national level, they are also concerned about how much sway the National Rifle Association has with lawmakers. Washington state Rep. Jamie Pedersen, a Democrat who had sponsored unsuccessful legislation on background checks at the state level, said a winning ballot initiative would make a statement with broad implications. (AP Photo/Philip Kamrass, File)

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) ? After struggling to sway both state and federal lawmakers, proponents of expanding background checks for gun sales are now exploring whether they will have more success by taking the issue directly to voters.

While advocates generally prefer that new gun laws be passed through the legislative process, especially at the national level, they are also concerned about how much sway the National Rifle Association has with lawmakers.

Washington Rep. Jamie Pedersen, a Democrat who had sponsored unsuccessful legislation on background checks at the state level, said a winning ballot initiative would make a statement with broad implications.

"It's more powerful if the voters do it ? as opposed to our doing it," Pedersen said. "And it would make it easier for the Legislature to do even more."

On Monday, proponents of universal background checks in Washington will announce their plan to launch a statewide initiative campaign that would require the collection of some 300,000 signatures, according to a person involved in the initiative planning who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to pre-empt the official announcement.

The Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility has scheduled a fundraiser in Seattle at the end of next month and hopes to have a campaign budget in the millions of dollars.

Ballot measures may be an option elsewhere, too. Hildy Saizow, president of Arizonans for Gun Safety, said an initiative is one of the things the group will be considering as it reconsiders strategies. An organizer in Oregon was focused on the Legislature for now but wouldn't rule out a ballot measure in the future if lawmakers fail to pass a proposed bill there.

While advocates have had recent success on background checks in places like Connecticut and Colorado, they've been thwarted in some other states and in Congress. The U.S. Senate rejected a plan to expand background checks earlier this month, although lawmakers in the chamber are still working to gather additional votes.

Brian Malte, director of mobilization at the national nonprofit lobbying group Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said passage through Congress is the ideal in order to have a national solution and so that states with strong gun laws aren't undermined by nearby states with weaker standards. He noted that initiative campaigns are costly endeavors that can drain important, limited resources.

Still, Malte said, the ballot measures are an option to consider.

"At some point, certainly decisions need to be made about what the right time is to say we take it to the people," Malte said.

Brian Judy, a lobbyist who represents the NRA in Washington state, did not return calls seeking comment about the new initiative. He has previously said the NRA would likely oppose such an effort, arguing that the recently proposed laws on background checks would largely impact law-abiding citizens instead of the intended targets such as criminals and the mentally ill.

Gun measures have had mixed results at the ballot. More than 70 percent of Washington state voters rejected a 1997 initiative campaign that would have required handgun owners to pass a safety course. After the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, voters in Colorado and Oregon approved ballot measures the next year to require background checks for buying weapons at gun shows.

Following another massacre in Colorado earlier this year, state lawmakers approved a bill to expand background checks to private transactions and online purchases. A similar expansion plan in Oregon is stalled in the state Senate.

Some states don't see initiatives as a viable option right now. In Missouri, state Rep. Stacey Newman has been pushing for background checks with little success. While she spoke positively about the idea of a ballot initiative, she said there's no serious consideration of it because of the cost and coordination required just to get it on the ballot. Instead, the supporters of background checks in the state are simply working to prevent NRA-supported legislation from passing the state's General Assembly.

"We're continually on defense," she said.

Gun buyers currently must undergo a background check when they purchase a weapon from a federally licensed firearms dealer but can avoid checks in most states by using private purchases, such as at gun shows.

Washington state advocates believe polls show the public is sufficiently on the side of expanding background checks further. An independent Elway Poll conducted two months ago found that 79 percent of registered voters in Washington state supported background checks on all gun sales, including private transactions.

That wasn't enough to shepherd the bill through the Legislature. Even in the state House, which is controlled by Democrats, supporters fell short after an NRA campaign put pressure on some lawmakers. Pedersen had offered concessions through the process, including the option of sending the measure out for a public vote and exemptions for people who already have concealed pistol licenses or law enforcement credentials.

Pedersen said he was working with the initiative organizers on language for the proposal, and he said the Legislature would first have another chance to adopt the measure early next year. If it fails among lawmakers again, the proposal would then automatically go to the ballot, where Pedersen said he welcomed a campaign competing against groups like the NRA.

"I'm not afraid of it at all," Pedersen said. "The public is really with us. It's the right policy. I think it can be useful for further progress."

___

AP Writer Mike Baker can be reached on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/HiPpEV

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-04-28-US-Gun-Control-Initiatives/id-0a76f449d4fb408bbe8c771be73a3b78

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latestwatchesnews - Grays Antiques Bond Street London

Downstairs in the basement at Grays Antiques has been described as a treasure trove by the national press. Grays Antique Centre is an antiques centre in Mayfair, close to Bond Street station and is better known as Grays Antique Market. Dealers specialise in fine antiques, jewellery, watches and rare collectables from around the world. The centre is home to over 200 dealers on 2 levels and the centre is split into 2 sections, Grays and the Mews.

The Grays dealers are situated in a grade-two listed building on Davies Street designed by the Edwardian architect Reginald Bloomsfield. The building was originally commissioned by water closet manufacturers, John Bolding and Son. In 1977 it was restored by Bennie Gray, the founder of Grays from a near-derelict site to the former glories of the water closet showroom.

The Mews section of Grays was built circa 1900 and was also taken over by Bolding in 1931. The basement of the Mews had been under six feet of water for many years. On closer inspection it was found that a spring arose from one end of the building. This was discovered to be a lost tributary of the River Tyburn, which rises in Hampstead and flows through the basement towards the River Thames. During the restoration, Bennie Gray made a feature of the spring, now channelled into a water feature filled with exotic fish.

Based downstairs at the BASEMENT Floor in Grays Antiques Centre, Gorringe Antiques is a friendly family run business specialising in supplying Lalique Glass, Emile Galle, Vintage Gucci Small Hobo 269959 F851G 9720 Heart Bit Fake handbag Handbags, Luggage and Art Deco Antiques. The company has been in business since 1982 and hosts an extraordinary collection of Art Nouveau antiques.

The picture above features a French Art Nouveau two tier side table by Emile Gall?, with inlaid marquetry made of a combination of rosewood, walnut and fruitwoods. The table is signed: ?Gall?? France c.1900.

Carole and Jan VAN DEN BOSCH, specialists in late 19th early 20th century, Artist? designed, silver and jewellery, from the Arts Crafts, Art Nouveau, Jugendstil, Skonvirke movements, are situated at the BASEMENT floor in Grays Antiques Centre.

The picture above features a gold ring of openwork foliate design centered with a cut pink sapphire and set with moonstones and emeralds. (Ring case) English. Circa 1910. Approx ring size: British K. Width 1.9 cm. Lit.: Jewelry and Metalwork in the Arts Crafts Tradition. Elyse Zorn Karlin.
Grays Antiques Bond Street London

Based downstairs at the BASEMENT Floor in Grays Antiques Centre, Gorringe Antiques is a friendly family run business specialising in supplying Lalique Glass, Emile Galle, Vintage Handbags, Luggage and Art Deco Antiques. The company has been in business since 1982 and hosts an extraordinary collection of Art Nouveau antiques.

The picture above features a gold ring of openwork foliate design centered with a cut pink Louis Vuitton Replica bag sapphire and set with moonstones and emeralds. (Ring case) English. Circa 1910. Approx ring size: British K. Width 1.9 cm. Lit.: Jewelry and Metalwork in the Arts Replica Louis Vuitton Tri-Fold Purses bag Crafts Tradition. Elyse Zorn Karlin.

Source: http://latestwatchesnews.bcz.com/2013/04/27/grays-antiques-bond-street-london/

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CA-NEWS Summary

U.S. suspects Syria used chemical weapons, wants proof

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad had probably used chemical weapons on a small scale in the country's civil war, but insisted that President Barack Obama needed definitive proof before he would take action. The disclosure created a quandary for Obama, who has set the use of chemical weapons as a "red line" that Assad must not cross. It triggered calls from some hawkish Washington lawmakers for a U.S. military response, which the president has resisted.

Boston bombing suspect moved to prison from hospital: officials

BOSTON (Reuters) - Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been moved to a prison at Fort Devens, Massachusetts, from the hospital where he had been held since his arrest a week ago, the U.S. Marshals Service said on Friday. The 19-year-old ethnic Chechen, who was badly wounded in an overnight shootout last week with police hours after authorities released pictures of him and his older brother, also a suspect, had previously been held at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, where some of the victims were also being treated.

Anger on streets as Bangladesh building toll passes 300

DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh textile workers vented their anger on Friday, burning cars and clashing with police, as the death toll passed 300 following the collapse of a building housing factories that made low-cost garments for Western brands. Miraculously rescuers were still pulling people alive from the rubble - 72 since daybreak following 41 found in the same room overnight - two days after the eight-storey building collapsed on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka.

Fire kills dozens in Russian psychiatric hospital

RAMENSKY, Russia (Reuters) - Thirty-eight people were killed, most of them in their beds, in a fire that raged through a psychiatric hospital near Moscow on Friday, raising questions about the care of mentally ill patients in Russia. The fire, which broke out at around 2 a.m. (2200 GMT on Thursday), swept through a single-storey building at the hospital, a collection of wood and brick huts with bars on some windows that was home to people sectioned by Russian courts.

Syrian air strikes, shelling batter rebels in Damascus suburbs

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army attacked two rebel-held suburbs of Damascus with fierce air strikes and shelling on Friday, pursuing an offensive against President Bashar al-Assad's foes, residents and a monitoring group said. Assad's forces, which have been trying to dislodge rebels from several outlying districts south and east of the capital, focused their assault on Jobar, just inside central Damascus.

Bomb blast kills four outside Sunni mosque in Iraq capital

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A roadside bomb exploded outside a Sunni mosque in a southern district of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, killing four worshippers as they left following Friday prayers, police and medics said. The attack, which targeted the Kubaisi mosque, follows three days of the most widespread fighting in Iraq since U.S. troops withdrew in December 2011.

Italian government could be settled on Saturday: sources

ROME (Reuters) - Italian prime minister-designate Enrico Letta could announce a new government on Saturday and go before parliament to spell out its program early next week, political sources said on Friday. Letta, deputy leader of the center-left Democratic Party, has been in discussions to iron out remaining differences with Silvio Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PDL) party following an initial round of talks on Thursday.

South Korea to pull all workers from industrial zone in North

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea will pull out all remaining workers from a jointly run industrial zone in North Korea, it said on Friday, after Pyongyang rejected a call for formal talks to end a standoff that led to operations being suspended. The decision to remove about 170 people from the Kaesong factory park located just north of the armed border deepens a conflict between the two Koreas and puts at risk their last remaining channel of exchange that resulted from their breakthrough 2000 summit and a bid to improve ties.

Death toll in Nigeria shootout with Islamist militants reaches 25

KADUNA (Reuters) - Twenty-five people were killed in a clash between Nigerian security forces and suspected Islamist Boko Haram militants who robbed a bank and attacked a police station in northeastern Yobe state, police said on Friday. The military had earlier said seven people were killed in the shootout on Thursday.

Egypt's Pope says Islamist rulers neglect Copts

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Christians feel sidelined, ignored and neglected by Muslim Brotherhood-led authorities, who proffer assurances but have taken little or no action to protect them from violence, Coptic Pope Tawadros II said. In his first interview since emerging from seclusion after eight people were killed in sectarian violence between Muslims and Christians this month, the pope called official accounts of clashes at Cairo's Coptic cathedral on April 7 "a pack of lies".

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-news-summary-023356509.html

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Saturday, April 27, 2013

Ear Infections in Babies | Natural Holistic Health Blog

Babies can be fussy for a number of reasons. One reason is that their ears are hurting them. This could signify that an ear infection is in progress. Here is some helpful information on ear infections and what to do if your baby shows the signs.

An ear infection is not uncommon in babies. It occurs when there is a build-up of fluid behind the ear drum, or tympanic membrane. In that same area are the Eustachian tubes which are there to drain fluid and maintain our balance. But, sometimes these tubes can get blocked after a cold or an infection in the sinuses.

What are the signs of an ear infection? Well, babies can?t tell you what is happening to them so they cry, but this cry is often accompanied by other behaviors. You may notice that your baby pulls at their ears, leaving them red. Other signs include drainage from the ear, frequent diarrhea, fever and lack of appetite. If you notice these things happening after they have just gotten over a cold, it could be the final piece of the puzzle.

It is time to visit the doctor. Infections of the middle ear can go from bad to worse if left untreated. The pediatrician will examine your child?s ears and may refer you to an otolaryngologist. This doctor specializes in matters of the ears, nose and throat. They can prescribe a more detailed course of action for you and your baby.

The first thing that the doctor will do is look again with an otoscope. They may prescribe antibiotic drops to try and reduce the infection and drain the fluid naturally through the Eustachian tubes. For the pain, he may prescribe ibuprofen. Since babies like to squirm, lay them on their sides when administering the drops so they all get into the ear canal.

If the symptoms don?t subside, he will want to see you back. Sometimes frequent ear infections may require a surgical procedure called a myringotomy. The doctor makes an incision into the ear drum and inserts a tympanostomy tube to help the fluid drain away. Through the tube, drops can be administered and the bacteria can be washed away resolving the infection.

It is not uncommon for babies and young children to have many ear infections. They are around many other children in daycare and play centers. This exposes them to a greater amount of germs than they would encounter inside their home. Keep your child up on their immunizations to reduce the frequency of infections and illnesses they catch.

Breastfeeding your child also increases their immunity. Doctors recommend breastfeeding for at least six months for your baby to get the immunological boost.

If your child has the signs of an ear infection, get them to a doctor right away. Untreated, ear infections can affect their hearing.

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Source: http://www.natural-holistic-health.com/ear-infections-in-babies/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ear-infections-in-babies

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Samsung profit at record high on smartphone boost

Visitors operate Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S4 smartphones at a showroom of its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 26, 2013. Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday its first-quarter net income jumped to a record high because sales growth in smartphones continued even before the launch of the Galaxy S4 during a typically slow season for the electronics market. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Banners advertising Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S4 smartphones are displayed at a showroom of its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 26, 2013. Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday its first-quarter net income jumped to a record high because sales growth in smartphones continued even before the launch of the Galaxy S4 during a typically slow season for the electronics market. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) ? Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday its first quarter profit jumped to a record high as smartphone sales remained strong despite the impending launch of an updated version of its flagship Galaxy phone.

Sales of consumer electronics usually slow in the first three months of the year after the holiday shopping season, an effect that analysts thought would be compounded by the April release of the Galaxy S4 smartphone since many delay buying until the newest model is available. Apple Inc. has cited the upcoming release of a new iPhone model as a reason for a slowdown in sales of older models.

Samsung began sales of the S4 in its home South Korean market Friday and starts U.S. sales on Saturday. Analysts expect Samsung's profits to reach new highs in the second and third quarters if S4 sales are strong. Lee Don-Joo, head of sales and marketing at Samsung's mobile division, said sales of the S4 will outdo its predecessor, the Galaxy S III.

Samsung said January-March net profit surged 42 percent to 7.2 trillion won ($6.5 billion) from 5 trillion won a year earlier. That increase was despite booking a one-time charge against earnings related to settlement of its intellectual property battle with Apple. Analysts estimated the charge at $600 million.

Sales rose 17 percent to 52.9 trillion won. Operating profit was up 54 percent to 8.8 trillion won, in line with its preliminary results released earlier this month.

Profit was up 2 percent from the previous quarter's result, beating market expectations for a fall. Sales of the S III smartphone and the oversized handset called the Galaxy Note remained strong and shored up profit, Samsung said. It also spent less on marketing its mobile devices than it did in the previous quarter when competition heated up.

Samsung's IT and Mobile Communications division that makes smartphones, tablets, PCs and cameras reported 6.51 trillion won in operating income for the first quarter, up 56 percent from a year earlier and its highest since Samsung reorganized the division to merge PC and handset departments.

Samsung capitalized on global demand for smartphones with a range of mobile devices that come in a variety of screen sizes and prices, outpacing rivals including Apple Inc. and Nokia Corp.

As the S4 goes on sales several months before rival Apple introduces a new version of iPhone, analysts said Samsung's streak of record-setting profit will not stop any time soon.

"You can say it is like a snowball is rolling," said James Song, head of technology at Daewoo Securities. Song forecast Samsung's second quarter operating income to surpass 10 trillion won ($9 billion).

Market research firm IDC estimated that Samsung shipped 70.7 million smartphones during the first quarter, up 61 percent over a year earlier and capturing 33 percent market share. Apple, the second-largest smartphone maker, sold 37.4 million iPhones. Its market share fell to 17 percent from 23 percent a year earlier, IDC said.

The company's strong performance in the mobile market helped offset sluggish demand for TVs and a still weak recovery in display panel sales.

Samsung, based in Suwon, South Korea, is also the world's largest maker of memory chips, televisions, mobile handsets and liquid crystal display panels.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-04-26-AS-SKorea-Earns-Samsung-Electronics/id-4c4b5426829f47d5acf26b9b00690a44

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Researcher studies hormone levels and sexual motivation among young women

Friday, April 26, 2013

Feeling frisky? If so, chances are greater your estrogen level ?? and, perhaps, fertility ?? are hitting their monthly peak. If not, you're more likely experiencing a profusion of desire-deadening progesterone, and the less fertile time in your cycle. Oh, the power of hormones.

Researchers have long suspected a correlation between hormone levels and libido, but now scientists at UC Santa Barbara, led by James Roney, a professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, have actually demonstrated hormonal predictors for sexual desire. Their findings appear in the current issue of the journal Hormones and Behavior.

"We found two hormonal signals that had opposite effects on sexual motivation," said Roney, the article's lead author. "Estrogen was having a positive effect, but with a two-day lag. Progesterone was having a persistent negative effect, both for current day, day before, and two days earlier." When hormone levels and sexual desire were factored against the menstrual cycles of test subjects ?? in this case, undergraduate students ?? the researchers saw a measurable increase in progesterone levels at the same time the subjects noted decreases in sexual motivation. Progesterone, the researchers say, is mediating this drop in desire from the fertile window to the luteal phase ?? the second half of the menstrual cycle.

"Progesterone acting as a potential stop signal within cycles is a novel finding in humans," noted Roney. "We know in rhesus monkeys there is a strong negative correlation with progesterone and a positive correlation with estrogen. The patterns are actually comparable to what you see in non-human primates, but hadn't been shown in humans."

The researchers' findings have potential implications on the treatment of low sexual desire and how hormone replacement trials are done. "We're not controlling hormones the way they do in the hormone replacement literature, so, in a sense, that literature is more directly applicable in terms of medical applications," said Roney. "But in the long run, it would be good to have a model of the combination of signals that operates in the natural cycle. The way hormone replacement trials are done now, there's no model of the natural signals, so they're sort of random ?? let's give estrogen, let's give testosterone, let's combine them this way or that way."

Roney noted that his findings don't present a full model, and he'd like to replicate his results with women of different age groups. "Undergraduates might be unique for a lot of reasons," he said. "Their hormone levels tend to be a bit different from those of women even just a little bit older. And married women in their 30's are likely to be more consistently sexually active, and that might change the patterns in some ways. They also tend to have higher hormone secretion and more regular cycles than younger women," he said

Eventually, Roney continued, the goal would be to have a better model of the signals in a natural cycle that might then inform medical research.

Another interesting finding, according to Roney, was the impact ?? or lack thereof ?? of testosterone on the women's sexual motivation. "There's a common belief in the medical literature that testosterone is the main regulator of women's libido," he explained. "Doctors tend to believe that, though the evidence isn't that strong in humans. In the natural cycles, we weren't finding effects of testosterone. It wasn't significantly predicting outcomes."

Roney doesn't deny that testosterone does seem to have a positive effect in hormone replacement therapy, but suggests the effects may be pharmacological. "Testosterone has those effects if you inject it externally in women who are menopausal, and there are a lot of reasons that might be the case," he said. "For example, testosterone can be converted to estrogen through a particular enzyme. If you inject menopausal women with testosterone, it might be acting as a device that's delivering estrogen to the target cells. So the fact that it works doesn't necessarily mean it's an important signal in the natural cycle."

###

University of California - Santa Barbara: http://www.ucsb.edu

Thanks to University of California - Santa Barbara for this article.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127964/Researcher_studies_hormone_levels_and_sexual_motivation_among_young_women

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Social Networks Grow As Ad Platforms - Business Insider

Social Media Insights is a daily newsletter from Business Insider that collects and delivers the top social media news first thing every morning. You can sign up to receive Social Media Insights here or at the bottom of this post.

Social Networks Are The Next Big Mobile Advertising Platform (Mobile Marketing Watch)
Social media advertising has grown thanks to customized ad units on Facebook and Twitter, writes Eric Mugnier, of M&C Saatchi Mobile. Facebook has definitely shown its potential, although largely with direct response app acquisition campaigns. This success is largely due to the quality of data that Facebook provides, which helps fine-tune targeting and ensure relevance and downloads. This is also due to new ad units rolled out over the last few months that allow users to install advertised apps without leaving Facebook. But Facebook and Twitter also need to prove their ad products can do more than just drive short-term spikes in consumer engagement.?Read >

Facebook?s Friend And Relationship Status Through Big Data (The New York Times)
Wolfram Alpha released a detailed report this week about people?s friendships and relationship habits on Facebook. The research was culled from data linked to 1 million user accounts and found that, on average, people have 342 friends on Facebook. This metric has continued to grow rapidly in recent years. ?Read >

Data Researchers Use Facebook Likes To Gauge Public Health (GigaOM)
Facebook ?likes? are increasingly giving public health officials valuable clues into the country?s wellbeing. Recently, researchers at the Children?s Hospital in Boston analyzed aggregated data on users? Facebook activity and interests to examine the connection between online social environments and obesity prevalence. They found that areas with higher percentages of people with interests related to healthy activities and fitness had lower obesity rates, while populations with a greater percentage of people who had liked or commented on television was an indicator of higher obesity rates. Read >

Bad News Driving Marketers Away From Twitter (CNBC)
There may be a double-edged sword when it comes to social media marketing. Marketers can target Twitter users in real-time based on keywords found in tweets, but what if those terms are negative and focused on terror? Twitter also allows advertisers to insert a message atop its list of nine trending topics in a spot called the "promoted trend." This digital billboard sits alongside users' streams on its site and mobile application, and costs $200,000 a day in the U.S. What if those nine topics reflect bad news? ?Read >

The 2013 NFL Draft On Social Media?(Social Times)
The NFL began draft picks for the upcoming football season last night. Stars will be made, dreams will be crushed, and plenty of bets will be placed on the outcome of this event. An analysis of social media by Fizziology ranks the prospects in terms of social volume.

ESPN and the NFL Network will be reporting on the draft via their Twitter feeds.

Read >

Using Social Media To Increase Productivity (Business2Community)
What is the business value of social media? That?s the big question. There?s a land rush for control of the Enterprise Social Networking (ESN) space, with promises being made to improve office collaboration. Most organizations are chasing after these lofty goals without a strategy, hoping to find that magical answer to their platform adoption woes, unsure of the relationship between the tools they deploy and their impact on productivity. This article proposes some criteria by which to formulate clear goals for workplace social platforms, including collaboration, data-gathering, and driving desired behaviors.? Read >

The Most Engaged Brands On Twitter (Nestivity and UCLA via CMSWire)
Twitter has rapidly become a vehicle for brand marketing and reinforcement. Here is a list of the top 25 brands that best utilize Twitter for customer engagement.? Read >

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/social-networks-grow-as-ad-platforms-2013-4

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Friday, April 26, 2013

Boston bomb suspects also wanted to attack New York: officials

By Edith Honan and Mark Hosenball

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The two men suspected of carrying out last week's deadly Boston Marathon bombing decided after authorities identified them to drive to Manhattan and set off additional explosives in Times Square, New York City officials said on Thursday.

Their plan unraveled only when they realized that a Mercedes sport utility vehicle they had hijacked on April 18, three days after the bombing, did not have enough gasoline for the journey, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

New York has been on heightened alert since the September 11, 2001, hijacked plane attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center. Officials said the Tsarnaev brothers' alleged impromptu plan showed America's most populous city remained a magnet for those who want to strike at the United States.

Times Square was the target of an attempted car bombing in May 2010. A Pakistan-born U.S. citizen was arrested, admitted to the plot and is serving a life prison term.

In the sharpest criticism of President Barack Obama's security policies since the blasts, a Senate Republican said the Boston bombing attack - which killed three people and injured 264 others, illustrated a "broken" national security system.

Kelly said investigators learned of the alleged Times Square plan while questioning the surviving suspect, 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, in his hospital bed in Boston. Tsarnaev has been recovering from his wounds there since being captured on Friday night after an all-day manhunt that shut down much of Boston.

"Questioning of Dzhokhar revealed that he and his brother decided spontaneously on Times Square as a target," Kelly told a news conference with Mayor Michael Bloomberg. "They would drive to Times Square that same night.

"That plan, however, fell apart when they realized that the vehicle that they hijacked was low on gas and ordered the driver to stop at a nearby gas station," Kelly said.

At the time, the men still had six explosive devices, including a pressure-cooker bomb of the type used at the marathon and six pipe bombs, he said.

When they stopped to fill up the vehicle, the driver of the car escaped, Kelly said. The driver alerted authorities and sparked a late-night car chase across the university town of Cambridge, where police said the brothers shot and killed a Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus police officer.

Earlier on April 18, the FBI identified the ethnic Chechen brothers as suspects in the Boston bombing, releasing pictures and video of them at the scene.

The chase ended in an extended gun battle in suburban Watertown in which authorities said the suspects threw improvised explosives at police. The older suspect, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was shot and died of his wounds.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured the next night in Watertown, hiding in a boat parked in the backyard of a house. He was formally charged on Monday in the hospital with crimes that could carry the death penalty.

His lawyer, Miriam Conrad, declined to comment on Thursday on whether her client was still talking with investigators.

The U.S. Marshals Service, which is responsible for holding and transporting suspects outside of prison, declined to comment on whether or when he might be moved from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

PARENTS SAY SONS INNOCENT

The father of the brothers said he planned to travel to the United States from Russia to bury his older son, Tamerlan Tsarnaev.

"I am going to the United States. I want to say that I am going there to see my son, to bury the older one. I don't have any bad intentions. I don't plan to blow up anything," Anzor Tsarnaev told reporters in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's Dagestan region.

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick said investigators might be interested in speaking to the parents.

"There are a lot of questions unanswered about the whys and the hows, and anybody who may be able to shed some light on that is of interest to law enforcement," Patrick said.

This combination of undated file photos provided to the Associated Press shows, from left, Martin Richard, 8, Krystle Campbell, 29, and Lingzi Lu, a Boston University graduate student. Richard, ... more? This combination of undated file photos provided to the Associated Press shows, from left, Martin Richard, 8, Krystle Campbell, 29, and Lingzi Lu, a Boston University graduate student. Richard, Campbell and Lu were killed in the explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday, April 15, 2013, in Boston. (AP Photo/File) less? Anzor Tsarnaev's former wife, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, angrily denied that her son had any role in the attack and criticized police for shooting her 26-year-old son while apprehending him.

Tsarnaeva does not plan to accompany her former husband on his trip. One factor that may have influenced Zubeidat Tsarnaeva's decision not to travel with her former husband is an outstanding arrest warrant in Massachusetts.

A warrant for Zubeidat Tsarnaeva's arrest was issued on October 25 after she failed to make a court appearance on shoplifting-related charges, according to Natick District Court Clerk Brian Kearney.

Tsarnaeva was arrested in June at a department store on suspicion of shoplifting $1,624 worth of women's dresses, according to the Natick Police Department.

'WITCH HUNT'

In Washington, the focus remained on intelligence leading up to the Boston Marathon bombing. Tamerlan Tsarnaev had been on a federal database of potential terrorism suspects and the United States had twice been warned about him by Russian authorities. Congressional testimony earlier in the week focused on whether the FBI made mistakes in tracking him.

"We're in the post-event witch-hunt phase, which is predictable," said James Clapper, director of national intelligence, at a conference in Crystal City, Virginia. "I think it would be a real good idea to not hyperventilate for a while now until we actually get all the facts."

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told CNN he blamed the administration for failing to stop the attack.

"I just know the system is broken. The ultimate blame I think is with the administration," the South Carolina senator said, linking the bombings with last year's killing of a U.S. diplomat during an attack on a diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya.

"Between Benghazi and Boston, to me we're going backwards, not forward, in terms of national security," Graham said.

(Additional reporting by Tim McLaughlin, Svea Herbst-Bayliss, Aaron Pressman, Ross Kerber in Boston, Deborah Charles in Crystal City, Virginia, Alissa de Carbonnel in Makhachkala, Russia, and Atossa Araxia Abrahamian in New York; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Paul Thomasch, Grant McCool and Peter Cooney)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-had-more-tips-boston-suspect-congress-asks-000005101.html

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Thursday, April 25, 2013

Kidnapped Syrian bishops still missing, despite reports otherwise

The churches of two prominent Syrian Orthodox bishops reportedly kidnapped in northern Syria were unable to verify a claim that the pair had been released by their armed rebel captors.

By Arthur Bright,?Staff writer / April 24, 2013

This undated combo photo shows Bishop Boulos Yazigi of the Greek Orthodox Church (l.) and John Ibrahim of the Assyrian Orthodox Church (r.) who were kidnapped Monday, in the northern province of Aleppo, Syria. The fate of two prominent Orthodox bishops remains uncertain, after their churches were unable to verify a claim that the pair had been released by their 'terrorist' captors.

SANA/AP

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? A daily summary of global reports on security issues.

Skip to next paragraph Arthur Bright

Europe Editor

Arthur Bright is the Europe Editor at The Christian Science Monitor.? He has worked for the Monitor in various capacities since 2004, including as the Online News Editor and a regular contributor to the Monitor's Terrorism & Security blog.? He is also a licensed Massachusetts attorney.

Four questions that will be answered by UFC 159

UFC 159 is just over 48 hours from now. What questions will be answered by Saturday's fights?

Does Chael Sonnen have any real chance at beating UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones? Sonnen's moving up to 205 lbs. after spending his entire UFC career at middleweight. He is 2-3 in his last five fights, with both losses coming to Anderson Silva. Two of those wins were decisions, including a close one with Michael Bisping. Though Sonnen talks a good game, he just isn't on the same level as Jones. Every fighter has a puncher's chance in the cage. Will Sonnen find that one punch to get it done?

Will any punches be thrown in Phil Davis and Vinny Magalhaes' bout? When a Division I NCAA champion wrestler and a world champion jiu-jitsu player face off, will their ground game be neutralized? Watching their match will be like a chess match unfold.

Can Jim Miller change UFC president Dana White's mind about the next lightweight title shot? After Benson Henderson defended the UFC lightweight championship belt, White said the next title shot will go to the winner of Gray Maynard's May bout with T.J. Grant. Miller said this week that he wants to perform so well against Pat Healy that White will be forced to reconsider.

"It all comes down to timing and performances," he said. "I'm looking to make a statement on Saturday night. I'm hoping Dana forgets all the things he just said about the Maynard-Grant fight. It's happened before. Nothing's guaranteed about a No. 1 contender spot. I might (have to do some talking). But I plan on making some noise with my fists and my elbows and my knees."

Will Miller be able to get that title shot he's always wanted?

Can Sheila Gaff's finishing ability neutralize Sara McMann's wrestling? McMann is one of the most well-credentialed wrestlers to ever enter the octagon. She was an Olympic silver medalist in 2004, plus has three medals from world championships. Gaff's last three fights have ended in a first-round knockout, so will she be able to come up with another big finish against McMann's elite wrestling?

Don't forget to make your picks for UFC 159 on Cagewriter's Facebook page.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/four-questions-answered-ufc-159-160657311--mma.html

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