Subway platform door test








Stand clear of the closing platform doors.

The MTA is considering adding sliding doors at L-train stations to stop riders from falling on the tracks following the deaths of two straphangers pushed in front of trains last month.

The L would be the ideal test spot because it doesn’t share track with other lines and is used by only one type of train, said Thomas Prendergast, the agency’s acting executive director.

That means the doors in the pilot program would only have to fit one kind of subway train.

It would likely be at just one station to start and spread to others if successful, he said.




Adding platform doors system-wide could cost over $1 billion, he said.

But it’s possible the agency will get funding from private companies, who could take a share of the ad revenue on the doors, he said.

In addition, the agency is planning an “aggressive passenger information campaign” to warn riders to stand away from the platform edge.

And they also are considering expanding the “see something, say something” campaign to ask riders to look out for the mentally ill.

Both suspects in the subway shoving deaths last month — Naeem Davis and Erika Menendez — have a history of mental-health issues, cops said.

jennifer.fermino@nypost.com










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Jurors hear secret tape recording in Miami police corruption trial as feds rest their case




















As rain began to fall on a June evening, Miami Police Sgt. Raul Iglesias told an undercover detective in his drug-fighting squad to turn off his cell phone and take out the battery as both officers stood outside the boss’s home.

Iglesias, already relieved of duty on suspicions of being a dirty cop, feared Roberto Asanza’s phone could be recording him. And his instincts were right, because Asanza was wired — though not through his phone.

“No one has done anything illegal or broke the law,” Iglesias told Asanza in the recorded conversation, played for jurors Friday at the sergeant’s corruption trial in Miami federal court. “... If they got, they got [it], but I [have] never seen anyone in my unit do anything wrong.”





Later in their chat, Asanza — who was cooperating with authorities and trying to bait his boss into incriminating statements — expressed fears about lying on the witness stand if he was asked to testify. Iglesias agreed that committing perjury would be a bad idea.

“Yeah, of course, you don’t wanna, you don’t wanna f---ing lie,’’ Iglesias responded.

The secret tape recording from June 2010 was the last piece of evidence that prosecutors presented before resting their corruption case Friday against Iglesias, 40, who has been on the force for 18 years.

Iglesias, an ex-Marine and Iraq War veteran who was shot in the leg during a 2004 drug bust, is standing trial on charges of planting cocaine on a suspect, stealing drugs and money from dope dealers, and lying to investigators about a box of money left in an abandoned car as part of an FBI sting.

Asanza, 33, also an ex-Marine, pleaded guilty last year to a misdemeanor charge of possessing cocaine and marijuana. The deal helped him avoid a felony conviction; in exchange, he testified Thursday that Iglesias told him it was “okay” to pay off confidential informants with drugs.

The secret tape recording could cut both ways for jurors. On it, Iglesias did not say anything to Asanza to implicate himself in connection with charges in the nine-count indictment, his defense attorney, Rick Diaz, pointed out Friday. The charges encompass the police sergeant’s brief stint as head of the Crime Supression Unit from January to May 2010.

Miami Internal Affairs Sgt. Ron Luquis, a government witness, agreed with Diaz’s general assessment during his testimony Friday, though the witness also sided with many of prosecutor Ricardo Del Toro’s critical views of the same evidence.

Asanza, despite agreeing to cooperate, discreetly gave his supervisor a heads-up that he was facing a potential criminal investigation when they met for the recorded conversation, according to sources familiar with probe.

The recording was made two months after other members of Iglesias’ Crime Suppression Unit wrote an anonymous letter to internal affairs, alleging that he was “stealing drugs and money” from dealers “2-3 times per 4-day work week.” Five CSU members, including Asanza, testified against Iglesias over the past week.

Asanza’s recording of Iglesias was less intelligible when both went inside the police sergeant’s home. Asanza’s wire picked up the sound of a barking dog, a blaring TV and the rustling of paper. Investigators believe Iglesias wrote down information on sheets of paper and later burned them, but that evidence was not presented to jurors.





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The Raspberry Pi mini-computer has sold more than 1 million units









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Britney Spears Split with Jason Trawick

After more than three years together, Britney Spears and her fiance Jason Trawick have split, her rep confirmed to People.


RELATED - Britney "Working Hard" on New Music

"Jason and I have decided to call off our engagement," Spears says in the statement. "I'll always adore him and we will remain great friends." Trawick adds, "As this chapter ends for us a new one begins. I love and cherish her and her boys and we will be close forever."

Spears, who got engaged to Trawick on his 40th birthday in December of 2011, previously said of her now-ex, "We're really normal. We just like to watch movies. We work out a lot. We love to work out. We do stuff together like that. We take walks."


VIDEO - More Shocking Celebrity Splits

Today has been a big day for sad Spears news as it was previously announced she wouldn't be returning for another season of The X Factor.

"I've made the very difficult decision not to return for another season," Spears told ETonline in a statement. "I had an incredible time doing the show and I love the other judges and I am so proud of my teens but it's time for me to get back in the studio."

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What the week’s big mortgage moves mean for consumers




















This week brought three big developments to the nation’s beleaguered mortgage landscape. For consumers, the complex moves have been mostly mystifying, but experts say they all aim at turning the page.

“There is a strong desire to put behind us all this period of time — the aftermath of the darkest period in American finance. All these things [announced this week] are intended to do that,” said John Taylor, president and CEO of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based community advocacy group. “There are good and bad things in it for consumers.’’

A new rule issued Thursday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau aims to prevent lenders from making the sort of toxic mortgages that forced many unsuspecting borrowers into ruin. Yet the new “qualified mortgage” rule, according to some lenders, also could perpetuate the nation’s tight credit problem and keep many would-be homebuyers on the sidelines.





Meanwhile, two settlements unveiled Monday with big banks should resolve some lingering issues from the mortgage meltdown that have kept banks focused on past errors instead of getting back to the business of lending.

Here is a quick primer on the week’s developments and some likely implications for consumers.

OCC Settlement

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates nationally chartered banks, Monday unveiled an $8.5 billion settlement with 10 giant banks that service mortgages.

As part of the controversial settlement, the OCC is scrapping its Independent Foreclosure Review, which was aimed at identifying victims of robo-signing and other improper foreclosure tactics by banks, but soon proved to be a badly flawed effort.

Instead, under the OCC’s new approach — which will be spelled out in enforcement actions in a couple of weeks — more than 3.8 million borrowers who faced foreclosure between Jan. 1, 2009 and Dec. 31, 2010 stand to get some payment regardless of whether they actually suffered any harm.

The mortgage servicing banks covered are Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, SunTrust, PNC, Sovereign, U.S. Bank, MetLife Bank and Aurora.

The agreement provides for $3.3 billion to go directly to borrowers. Another $5.2 billion is earmarked for loan modifications and the forgiveness of deficiency judgments.

The OCC said the amount that eligible borrowers get will range from a few hundred dollars up to $125,000, depending on the type of error that possibly occurred in their mortgage servicing.

“If a borrower went through foreclosure with one of those 10 lenders, they should receive a couple hundred bucks, whether they deserve it or not,” said Guy Cecala, publisher and CEO of Inside Mortgage Finance Publications in Bethesda, Md., which tracks news and statistics in the residential mortgage industry. “The odds of getting $125,000 is the odds of winning the lottery. It would have to be a false foreclosure or where they were thrown out of their house illegally.”

The OCC will look to 13 broad categories of errors outlined in the Independent Foreclosure Review launched in April 2011.

Those include a litany of bumblings and misdeeds by the mortgage servicers, ranging from foreclosing on a homeowner who was following the rules during a trial period of a loan modification, to failing to offer a loan modification as mandated under a government program, to failing to follow up with a borrower to obtain needed documents under a government program.





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Man gunned down in Bed-Stuy








A man was gunned down in Bedford-Stuyvesant Thursday night, according to police.

The man, described by cops as a white male in his 30s, was shot in the torso near the corner of Macon Street and Throop Avenue at around 9:30 p.m., authorities said.

He was transported to Kings County Hospital where he later died.

Police are still investigating. No arrests have been made.











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DOJ proposes overhaul of Florida’s program for disabled children




















In a new and even harsher indictment of Florida’s treatment of severely disabled children, federal civil rights lawyers have issued a comprehensive blueprint for overhauling the state’s system of care for frail youngsters.

The 17-page “settlement proposal” by the U.S. Justice Department demands the state stop slicing in-home nursing services for frail youngsters, stop ignoring the requests of family doctors who treat disabled children and stop sending hundreds of children to geriatric nursing homes — where they often spend their childhoods isolated from families and peers.

On the same day The Miami Herald obtained the “confidential” settlement proposal, the heads of three state agencies held a news conference in Tallahassee to defend the housing of hundreds of disabled children in nursing homes and to tout a newly minted program that matches medically complex children with specialized caseworkers.





“I can tell you that what I found was way better than I even thought I would find,” Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Liz Dudek said Thursday, a day after she toured two nursing homes in Miami Gardens and Plantation. “I have to wonder what the DOJ was looking at when they went through there and I would invite any of you to go to any of those facilities, because I certainly did not see what they were seeing.”

The Miami Herald asked to join several Department of Children & Families administrators, including Secretary David Wilkins, on a tour of the most-troubled nursing home last month — but was rebuffed.

The home, Golden Glades Nursing and Rehabilitation in Miami Gardens, is where two severely disabled children died in recent years — one of them, 14-year-old Marie Freyre, perished after caregivers failed to give her life-saving anti-seizure drugs.

Federal regulators fined the home $300,000 for the girl’s death.

“We were quite pleased with what was going on there,” Dudek said of Golden Glades and the two other homes she visited Wednesday. “One place had clouds in the sky and they had personalized activities; their rooms were very much personalized. Children had buddies who were there. They went out to school in all the cases where they could or were in in-home school,” Dudek said of the six homes in the state that house youngsters.

Dudek and the other agency heads called the news conference to offer details of a new program — announced last month — that offers “enhanced care” coordinators, or caseworkers, for every medically fragile child whose care is paid for by Medicaid, the joint state and federal insurance program for the needy.

The Enhanced Care Coordination program will enlist at least 28 nurse care managers throughout the state to work with families of disabled children and the nursing homes where they are being treated.

“The program is designed to help empower parents, to help them and to educate them and to help them personalize the experience that they have,” Dudek said, adding that the coordinators will be able to help some children return home from institutions.

Dudek extended an olive branch to the Justice Department, saying AHCA’s intent was “to work with the federal government.”

But she also said the state was eager to convince the DOJ that Florida is breaking no laws by housing so many children in institutions.





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Native Canadians could block development, chief warns






OTTAWA (Reuters) – Native Canadians are so angry that they could resort to blocking resource development and bring the economy “to its knees” unless the Conservative government addresses their grievances, an influential chief said on Thursday.


Native Canadian chiefs are due to meet with Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Friday to discuss the poor living conditions facing many of Canada’s 1.2 million aboriginals.






“We have had enough. Our young people have had enough. Our women have had enough … . We have nothing left to lose,” said Grand Chief Derek Nepinak from the province of Manitoba.


Activists have already blockaded some rail lines and threatened to close Canada’s borders with the United States in a campaign they call “Idle No More.”


Canada has 633 separate native “bands,” each of which have their own communities and lands, and not all share the same opinions. The chief of the Assembly of First Nations, the aboriginal umbrella group, said his members had come to a tipping point, but he made no mention of damaging the economy.


“You cannot ignore what is happening with Idle No More… We will drive the final stake in the heart of colonialism and it will happen in this generation,” Shawn Atleo told a separate news conference.


“First Nations are not opposed to resource development, they are just not supportive of development at any cost,” he said.


Native Canadian leaders say they want more federal money, a greater say over what happens to resources on their land and more respect from the federal Conservative government.


“These are demands, not requests,” said Nepinak. “The Idle No More movement has the people – it has the people and the numbers – that can bring the Canadian economy to its knees. It can stop Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s resource development plan,” Nepinak told reporters in Ottawa.


“We have the warriors that are standing up now, that are willing to go that far. So we’re not here to make requests, we’re here to demand attention,” he said.


Aboriginal bands are unhappy about Enbridge Inc’s plans to build a pipeline from the oil sands of Alberta to the Pacific province of British Columbia, and some say they will not allow the project to go ahead.


Some aboriginal bands oppose the Enbridge pipeline on the grounds that it is too environmentally dangerous while others say the company did not do enough to consult them before applying for permission to go ahead with the project.


“DIPLOMATIC HAND”


Nepinak said he wants to extend a “diplomatic hand” toward resolving the issues and gave no details about what he meant by bringing the economy to its knees.


Nepinak and other Manitoba chiefs are also demanding that Ottawa rescind parts of two recent budget acts they say reduce environmental protection for lakes and rivers, and make it easier to sell lands on the reserves where many natives live.


“We’ve been working tirelessly to gain access through various channels into this Harper regime … . How do we trust the words of this prime minister?” Nepinak asked.


Successive Canadian governments have struggled for decades to improve the life of aboriginals.


Ottawa spends around C$ 11 billion ($ 11.1 billion) a year on its aboriginal population, yet living conditions for many are poor, particularly for those on reserves with high rates of poverty, addiction, joblessness and suicide.


As part of the Idle No More campaign, protesters blocked a Canadian National Railway Co line in Sarnia, Ontario, in late December and early January.


($ 1=$ 0.99 Canadian)


(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Peter Galloway, Xavier Briand and David Brunnstrom)


Internet News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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They Dated Golden Globes Edition Part 2

Remember them?

Angelina Jolie, Matt Damon and Jake Gyllenhaal have a tendency to mix it up as far as dates go at the Golden Globes. With the 70th annual ceremony almost upon us, we're looking back at these celebs and their various plus-ones as they arrived to the star-studded event over the years.

Related: They Dated?! Golden Globes Edition - Part 1

Jolie has had the privilege of walking the Golden Globes red carpet multiple times in her career, often on the arm of a different gorgeous gentleman. The beauty's very first adult appearance was in 1999, with then-hubby Johnny Lee Miller. Just three years later, Jolie walked the carpet with new husband Billy Bob Thorton. In 2009, the actress debuted her latest beau, Brad Pitt.

Damon is now happily married to wife Luciana Barroso, but back in 2000 the Good Will Hunting star proudly held the hand of then-girlfriend Winona Ryder. A decade or so prior, his date arrived with her Square One co-star Rob Lowe.

Related: Pick the Winners With ET's Golden Globes Ballot!

Gyllenhaal has dated two award show beauties, Kristen Dunst and Reese Witherspoon. In 2003, the actor escorted Dunst to the ceremony and just three years later, Gyllenhaal would bring Witherspoon as his plus-one.

Click the video for more, and tune in to the Golden Globes on January 13 at 8 ET/5 PT on NBC.

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Miami doctors, Walgreens join race for ACOs




















With Walgreens joining insurers and hospitals in a race to reshape healthcare delivery in the country, a group of 75 doctors has become the first federally approved accountable care organization in Miami-Dade, Medicare officials announced Thursday.

South Florida ACO and the drugstore chain were on a list of 106 groups receiving approval to offer integrated care that is intended to improve quality and lower healthcare costs, with the providers sharing in any savings.

The concept, part of the Affordable Care Act, has sparked a race among major healthcare providers throughout the country. Many hospitals are hiring doctors and other groups are organizing networks that are expected to create a major shift in the nation’s healthcare system.





Many healthcare experts believe growing numbers of doctors will soon work for large entities. Jorge Acevedo-Crespo, a Miami pulmonologist, said he brought together the South Florida ACO to avoid that trend.

“I think it’s best for doctors to control healthcare — not hospitals, not insurance companies,” Acevedo-Crespo said Thursday.

One reason commonly given by Medicare for setting up ACOs is that many patients discharged from hospitals are quickly readmitted because they do not take required medications or have follow-up visits with their doctors.

Walgreens, the national drugstore chain, believes it can help fix those kinds of problems, starting with the three ACOs it has set up, including one in the Tampa area.

Jeffrey Kang, the physician who is running the Walgreens ACO effort, said one example of how coordinated care can work is a Walgreens pilot program in which pharmacists checked to see that patients were taking the proper meds after being released from hospitals. That program reduced readmissions by 40 percent, Kang said.

“Walgreens is a very natural partner” for physicians, Kang said. In Tampa, it is working with Diagnostic Clinics, which employs doctors. Many of the chain’s stores already contain Take Care clinics, which employ nurse practitioners to treat minor ailments.

“Walgreens provides 365-day-a-year, convenient, accessible, face-to-face health offering for the public,” Kang said. “We’re now the largest provider of vaccinations in the country. And we’re second in hypertension and diabetes screening.”

Walgreens is heavily promoting its virtues as it enters a competition that is growing increasingly intense. Fifteen other Florida entities were granted ACOs Thursday — most of them in the Tampa-Orlando-Jacksonville area.

Florida Blue has already set up informal ACOs, with Holy Cross doctors in Fort Lauderdale and with Baptist Health South Florida and a group of oncologists in Miami-Dade. But the state’s largest health insurer has not yet sought official federal approval, which carries with it a complex series of requirements.





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LI travel agent shoved to his death in Brooklyn robbery: police








A Long Island travel agent who showed up at a South Slope, Brooklyn address to buy a car wound up dead when he was shoved to the ground and smashed his head in an apparent robbery, law enforcement sources said this morning.

Jesus Morales, 67, of Merrick, LI, was discovered lying with head injuries at 260 18th street at around 7:15 p.m. yesterday.

Morales was rushed by EMS to Lutheran Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Cops are calling the incident a robbery, though it was unclear what was taken.

According to family, Morales owns a travel agency in the neighborhood.











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Wisdom from the mouths of babes




















The other day, a friend of mine email me the following letter from a 7-year-old second-grader, Abigal Lily Alder, at Heron Heights Elementary in Broward County, and I want to share it with you, my dear Neighbors in Religion readers:

The title: "AUTISM SPEAKS to Me!"

"If I could help somebody it would be my brother, Grant, who has autism. People with autism like Grant sometimes have trouble communicating and they may act 'different.' I participated in a walk for Autism Speaks with my family, and learned that for every 88 kids one of them will have autism like my brother. If you have a conversation with someone who has autism they are not always able to focus on what you are saying and they may only want to talk about things that are important to them.





“Restaurants, playgrounds and shops can sometimes be too exciting for them at first. They may be loud, say things you may not expect or they may have trouble understanding what you are asking them.

I would like people to accept kids like my brother who are unique in their own way, and not judge them. Just be patient. If you see someone who you think may have autism, you should help them or just be a friend. I went to camp during the summer with kids who have autism like my brother, and I found out that they can be real friends just like anyone else. We laughed together and played games. It was a blast and I am still friends with many of them.

“There are good things about autism, too. My brother is the most fun and active person. He is awesome on computers and every morning when I wake up, my brother has a big smile on his face and he says, 'It is a beautiful morning.' He is still the BEST BROTHER EVER!

“I know I may be only seven, but I can make a difference and so can you."

Abby is in Mrs. Chiros' class and was the essay contest winner for her grade level.

Oh, thank you, so much Abby. You are wise beyond your young years. I know your parents are so proud of how sensitive you are — and that's a feather in their hats. God bless you and Grant. My godson Isaiah Swift, 6, has autism and I love him so much, and tell him often.

Although he had not been able to speak, one day at church he shocked my boots off, so to speak, when he said without any prompting, "I ... love ... you.”

It brought tears of joy to my eyes.

‘Why I am Thankful’

On Dec. 28, I asked readers to share reasons they are thankful. Here is a response from Charlotte Delascasas:

"I am grateful for the upcoming MLK Holiday and our national tradition of community service. Coral Gables Congregational Church will be having their annual food drive and Pastor Laurie Hafner will remain fasting up in the tower until 3,000 pounds (one dollar also equals one pound) is raised before the cherry picker brings her down, usually 7 p.m. Saturday night, when there will be a rock ‘n’ roll band in our parking lot in front of the Biltmore Hotel, to celebrate.

“Our church will also adult education about Dr. King from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m., each Sunday in January. I am thankful that our congregation welcomes everyone, no matter where you are on your spiritual journey, with an open door. Each Thanksgiving we join Temple Judea and Riviera Presbyterian for an interfaith service and we have welcomed theologians from all religions to speak as well. Our social justice program includes Green Christians, who have just started a community garden.





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Facebook to hold press event, stock passes $30






NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Facebook are pushing above $ 30 for the first time since July after it sent out invitations to “come and see what we’re building” Tuesday at its headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif.


The company will say nothing more about the event. Speculation Wednesday ranged from a Facebook phone, something the company has consistently denied exists, to new search capabilities that would put it into direct competition with Google Inc.






The company emailed invitations to reporters and bloggers Tuesday and by Wednesday, shares passed the $ 30 mark for the first time since July.


Though still below its initial public offering price of $ 38, shares of Facebook Inc. have risen steadily since November as investors grow more confident that the social media site can make money through its growing mobile audience.


Social Media News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Oscar Moments: Best & Supporting Actress Wins

The 85th Annual Academy Awards is just six weeks away, and we're taking a look back at four great moments from the last two years: When Meryl Streep, Natalie Portman, Melissa Leo and Octavia Spencer picked up their coveted statuettes.

ET's Complete Academy Awards Coverage

In a bit of an upset, Streep won her third Oscar at the 84th Academy Awards for her spot-on portrayal of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady, besting front-runner Viola Davis (The Help), Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs), Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn). "When they called my name I had this feeling that half of America said, 'Oh no, her again?'" said the self-effacing star. "But, whatever." The 17-time Oscar nominee closed her speech by saying she was "sure she'd never be up here again" and thanking, "all my colleagues and all my friends … the thing that counts the most with me is the friendships and the love."

A pregnant Portman danced to the stage to cradle her Best Actress statuette at the 83rd Academy Awards for her riveting performance as a dancer on the edge in Black Swan, out-pirouetting Annette Bening, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Lawrence and Michelle Williams. "I truly, sincerely wish the prize was to get to work with my fellow nominees," said Natalie. Brought to tears when she thanked her parents for "showing me every day to be a good human being by example," she also singled out her fiance and "beautiful love, Benjamin Millepied, who has now given me my most important role in life."

Video: 83rd Oscars Red Carpet Flashback

The Help star Spencer was named Best Supporting Actress at the 84th Academy Awards over Bridesmaids star Melissa McCarthy, Albert Nobbs' Janet McTeer, The Artist's Bérénice Bejo and her Help co-star Jessica Chastain. "Thank you, Academy, for putting me with the hottest guy in the room," quipped the break-out character actor before breaking down in tears of joy. "I share this with everybody. … I'm sorry, I'm freakin' out. Thank you world!"

And at the 83rd Academy Awards, Leo bested her The Fighter co-star Amy Adams in addition to Helena Bonham Carter, Hailee Steinfeld and Jacki Weaver for the Best Supporting Actress statuette. Asking legendary presenter Kirk Douglas, "Will you pinch me?" Leo basked in the moment, declared, "I'm shakin' in my boots here," then accidentally dropped the F-bomb before she thanked the real-life Fighter clan matron Alice Ward.

Related: Seth MacFarlane to Host 85th Oscars

The 85th Academy Awards will air live from Hollywood on Oscar Sunday, February 24, 2013 on ABC.

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Florida company provides electrical power for the world




















More than 4,000 miles from its home base in Doral, Energy International is helping keep the lights on and the power grid humming in Gibraltar, the British territory on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula.

Energy International, a global provider of power plants and energy solutions, sent a temporary plant that will provide power for at least the next two years while a more permanent fix is sought for the territory’s erratic and aging electrical system.

The Doral company was founded 14 years ago as MCA Power Systems and its initial goal was to pursue energy contracts in Latin America. It began in 2000 with a name change and in recent years its focus has become global.





“The world needs energy,’’ said Brett Hall, EI’s vice president of finance.

While the 2007-2008 recession curtailed the growth of worldwide energy demand, the U.S. Energy Information Agency has projected that global demand for electricity will increase by 2.3 percent annually from 2008 to 2035.

The potential is especially strong in developing nations. The International Energy Agency estimated that in 2009, 21 percent of the world’s population — 1.4 billion people — didn’t have access to electricity. In sub-Saharan Africa, the percentage of people without power rises to 69 percent.

Energy International has expanded sales from Latin America and the Caribbean to Europe, Africa and the Middle East, boosting revenue from $100 million annually in 2009 to more than $300 million today, Hall said. This year, EI is anticipating revenue of $350 million to $375 million.

In the next seven years the company, which is privately owned by American shareholders and affiliated with Gecolsa — the Caterpillar dealership in Colombia — hopes revenue will top $1 billion, he said.

Even though Energy International is based in the United States, it does little work domestically. Its sweet spot is emerging economies and projects that require an investment on its part of $100 million or less.

“Our focus is to do whatever makes the most economic sense for a particular market,’’ said Hall.

“We’re not going to be building a nuclear power plant,’’ he said. But EI will accommodate its solutions to local fuel supplies whether it’s biofuel, natural gas or heavy fuels that are more prevalent.

When it comes to the type of temporary power solution needed by Gibraltar, which had been plagued by a string of power outages at its archaic electrical facilities, EI can have a temporary plant up and running in 30 to 40 days, supplying the engineering, rental turbines and other equipment and doing the installation.

“We were able to support Gibraltar’s power needs on short notice,’’ said Andres Molano, EI’s vice president of sales. “Some of their equipment required major maintenance and they needed to stop their plants.’’

EI, one of the world’s largest suppliers of interim energy solutions, signed a $12 million contract with the government of Gibraltar in November and the plant was operational by Dec. 21. The agreement includes an option for a three-year extension.

The equipment now in use in Gibraltar is considered part of EI’s fleet and will move on to other energy emergencies when its service in the territory famed for the Rock of Gibraltar is complete.

But when it comes to its permanent power plants, EI will build a facility for a client looking to generate its own power or construct a plant, run it and sell power directly to the final user.

“We can do all the work ourselves. We have all the skills in house — finance, design, operations, maintenance, building and the equipment,’’ said Hall.

Energy International moved into the Middle East last year, completing projects in Oman and Yemen and establishing a subsidiary in Dubai to pursue business in Africa and the Middle East, said Molano.

“Africa is new to us, but we believe there are opportunities there,’’ he said.

The company also is looking for continued growth in Latin America, especially in Colombia, which is now attracting foreign investors who previously had been spooked by violence.

Remote areas of the Amazon where temporary power solutions are needed also represent opportunity for the company.

“EI is very fortunate to be in a position in which we have more excellent opportunities than capital.’’ said Hall, so this year it will be concentrating on raising equity to finance growth.

“One of our biggest challenges in 2013,’’ Hall said, “will be to find investors or joint venture partners to provide capital that will enable EI to perform these projects so our aggressive revenue growth targets can be achieved.’’





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Kennedy kid sues nurses








A son of the late Robert F. Kennedy who was acquitted of criminal charges in a maternity-ward scuffle is suing two nurses who said on TV that he hurt them.

Douglas Kennedy alleges defamation and malicious prosecution stemming from a legal battle with the pair, who said he physically harassed them after his son’s birth.

The suit, filed in White Plains, doesn’t specify damages.











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Miami police to buyback guns — no questions asked




















In efforts to reduce gun violence, Miami police will hold its first 2013 gun buyback operation of the year.

Beginning on Jan. 19, anyone can drop off any firearm at designated locations and receive a gift certificate with no questions asked.

“We are urging the public to join us in the efforts to reduce gun violence and make a difference,” the police department said in a news release.





The buybacks will be from 10 a .m. to 2 p.m. at the following locations:

• Jan. 19 - Model City NET, Jordan Grove Baptist Church, 5946 NW 12th Ave.

• Jan. 26 - Overtown NET, St. John Baptist Church, 1328 NW Third Ave.

• Feb. 2 - Little Havana NET, San Juan Bosco Catholic Church, 1301 W. Flagler St.





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Samsung’s big push for 2013: content, corporates






LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics, the global leader in consumer smartphones, is planning two major thrusts in 2013: bulking up mobile content and moving faster into the corporate market dominated by Research in Motion.


The South Korean electronics company is investing in devices that enterprise users like corporations will endorse, with a higher level of security and reliability than general users need. In doing so, Samsung is capitalizing on doubts about the longevity of the BlackBerry as its Canadian maker struggles to revive growth.






Samsung’s corporate market ambitions have advanced as the Galaxy SIII, its popular flagship smartphone, won the requisite security certifications from companies, said Kevin Packingham, chief product officer for Samsung Mobile USA.


As RIM prepares to launch its next-generation BlackBerry 10 this quarter, the company’s future remains shaky. Corporate technology officers have begun to explore other smartphones, such as those by Apple Inc or Samsung.


“The enterprise space has suddenly become wide open. The RIM problems certainly fueled a lot of what the CIOs are going through, which is they want to get away from a lot of the proprietary solutions,” Packingham said in an interview at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. “They want something that integrates what they are doing with their IT systems. Samsung is investing in that area.”


“It’s been a focus for a long time but the products have evolved now that we can really take advantage of that,” he added. “We knew we had to build more tech devices to successfully enter the enterprise market. What really turned that needle was that we had the power of the GS3.”


Samsung in 2012 overtook Apple as the world’s largest maker of smartphones, with a vastly larger selection of cellphones that attacked different price points and proved popular in emerging markets.


German business software maker SAP provides employees with Samsung’s Galaxy S III, the larger Galaxy Note and the Galaxy Tab, SAP Chief Information Officer Oliver Bussmann said in an interview.


“The one clear trend in enterprise is the shift away from one device to multiple devices,” said Bussman, who makes 10 devices available to SAP employees for official use. The list includes Apple’s iPhone and iPad, Nokia Lumia and RIM’s Blackberry.


“Because of the fragmentation of the Android software, we decided to go with just one Android company and we went with Samsung,” he added.


Now, the Korean hardware specialist is beefing up its software – an area in which it has lagged arch-enemy Apple, which revolutionized the mobile phone from 2007 with its content-rich, developer-led iPhone ecosystem.


Packingham sees an area ripe for innovation – combining the mobile phone with Samsung’s strength, the TV, which has barely evolved in the past decade.


Still, the U.S.-based executive remained cagey about Samsung’s plans for content and enterprise.


“You are going to see from content services, we’ll start to integrate what’s happening on the big screen, what’s happening on the tablet,” he said.


“We know now that people like to explore content that they are watching on TV while they have a tablet in their lap, and that’s going to be a big theme for this year.”


(Editing by Richard Chang)


Tech News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Behind the Scenes of PSY's 2013 Super Bowl Commercial

ET has your exclusive sneak peek at PSY's next big project!

Video: Stars Party Gangnam Style Backstage at AMAs

The Korean superstar will launch an out-of-this-world Super Bowl commercial Sunday, January 3, and we have your first look behind the scenes of the top-secret shoot this Wednesday.

Also tomorrow, inside Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey's American Idol feud! Plus, the deleted scene deemed too sexy for Twilight.

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4 smartphones with standout features




















These days, smartphones are almost all drawing from the same bag of tricks, and it can be hard to tell one from the next. If the average smartphone will do all the basic things you want it to, what does it take to be special? Here are four smartphones with unusual features that really make them stand out.

Nokia Lumia 920

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)





The good: This phone forges new Windows Phone ground with wireless-charging support and a highly sensitive screen you can use with gloves. Moreover, Nokia helps fill in Windows Phone OS gaps with a few missing features.

The bad: A thick, heavy build and slippery finish for some colors make the Lumia 920 harder to hold and carry, and the phone’s overhyped camera doesn’t have enough settings.

The cost: $99.99

The bottom line: Nokia’s Lumia 920 is heavy and thick, but if you want the most powerful, feature-rich Windows Phone smartphone available, this is it.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: Oodles of screen real estate make this terrific for videos, games, and reading, and its improved stylus aids productivity. A blazing quad-core processor, a great camera and strong battery life round out the advantages of this Android 4.1 phone.

The bad: The huge display makes it unwieldy to carry, and hiccups in the S Pen stylus and apps can slow you down. The pricey Note 2 isn’t a suitable tablet replacement across all categories.

The cost: $149.99 to $309.99

The bottom line: Samsung delivers a powerful, boundary-pushing device that gets a lot right. Yet its complicated features and high price raise questions about its purpose.

Motorola Droid Razr Maxx HD

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: This Droid (Verizon) offers fast performance, a big, eye-popping screen and luxurious design. It also has great call quality, lots of storage, 4G data speeds, and unbeatable battery life.

The bad: The major weakness is a camera that produces subpar images. The phone is filled with Verizon bloatware as well.

The cost: $149.99 to $299.99

The bottom line: Motorola’s fast, stylish Droid Razr Maxx HD offers outstanding battery life, but its camera captures unimpressive images.

Samsung Galaxy Beam

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: An integrated pico projector, as well as a dual-core processor, 720p video capture and a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen.

The bad: The projection software needs some work, the 5-megapixel camera sometimes blurs indoor shots, and the Beam is thicker and heavier than many phones.

The cost: $474.49 to $839.99

The bottom line: Despite weak software, the Galaxy Beam’s bright projector pushes boundaries, and strong smartphone features make it a worthy standalone device.





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Two struck by Chinatown bus








William Miller



Two pedestrians were struck Monday night by a Brooklyn-bound Fung Wah line bus just as it was pulling onto the Manhattan Bridge.

The accident happened at around 11 p.m. in the crosswalk at Canal Street and Bowery, across the street from the Chinatown bus company’s office, cops said.The victims are in stable condition. The driver of the bus is not expected to be charged, cops said.

It is unclear if the bus was carrying passengers at the time of the accident.

The accident snagged traffic across Canal Street for at least two hours, holding up a fleet of massive high-end yachts fresh from the New York Boat Show at the Javits Center.




"You have to have an even temper driving these huge, oversized trucks through New York City, but I can tell you, the first thing I thought about was the poor guy driving that bus,” said Brian Christensen, 51, of Florida, who was towing an $800,000, 50 foot-Prestige 500 yacht to Staten Island. “It’s crazy driving down here. People just jump right out."

Additional reporting by Natasha Velez

William Miller


Anchors a-wait: The accident left yachts from a boat show stuck in traffic near the Manhattan Bridge.












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Parents of disabled kids blast Florida care




















Twice in the past year, state health administrators cut the number of hours caregivers assisted Alex Perez’s severely disabled son at his Westchester home. Both times, the child’s pediatrician was left wondering why the state had reduced the care he had prescribed for the boy.

On Monday, state Rep. Katie Edwards asked Perez if she had been “misled or misinformed” when state healthcare bosses told her that the company that reviews such prescriptions always speaks with family doctors to find a way to help parents.

“Yes,” Perez told Edwards at a town hall meeting in Sunrise for parents of disabled and medically fragile children Monday night.





Perez, whose 13-year-old son, Christian, suffers from cerebral palsy and failure to thrive, was one of a dozen parents and advocates who spoke to several lawmakers and other community leaders Monday night at the meeting called to address the needs of Florida children with severe disabilities and life-threatening medical conditions.

As Perez looked on, Edwards, the meeting’s chairwoman, called a spokesman for the state Agency for Health Care Administration to the podium. AHCA legislative director Chris Chaney said it was common for the private company, eQHealth Solutions, to speak with family doctors to “reach a consensus” over the care for children like Christian.

“Not happening,” several parents shouted from the audience.

“You need to correct this,” Edwards said, speaking to Chaney.

Edwards, a Democrat from Sunrise who was recently elected to the House, called Monday’s meeting at the Sunrise Senior Center following several stories in The Miami Herald about the state’s cutting of in-home nursing care to medically fragile children, which has forced some parents to place their children in geriatric nursing homes. Edwards said she became aware of children like Christian while volunteering at, and raising money for, a Homestead daycare center for children with complex medical conditions.

“They keep finding new reasons to deny services,” Perez told the group about eQHealth, a private company under contract with the state at the center of the controversy. “It’s a very combative atmosphere.”

The plight of children with complex medical needs came to light last fall when civil-rights lawyers with the U.S. Justice Department accused the state of warehousing severely disabled children in geriatric nursing homes — where the youngsters often have little contact with the outside world, and can spend their entire childhood with no social or family interaction. Hundreds of children have landed in such homes, the Justice Department wrote, because state health administrators have dramatically cut in-home and other services to children whose parents care for them at home.

Edwards said it was partly the Legislature’s “fault” that disabled children were suffering from lack of care. For too long, she said, lawmakers avoided getting involved in the details of state health and social service agencies, allowing departments to write their own rules with little legislative guidance, and offering inadequate oversight over how the state’s “limited pool of resources” is spent.

If the state is favoring nursing homes by strangling the flow of dollars to families raising disabled children at home, though, Edwards said that should stop.





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181,354 People on Twitter Think They’re Experts at Twitter






Do you tweet a lot? Do you post everything on Facebook? Do you #hashtag #complete #sentences #like #this? Do you describe yourself, variously, as a social media “maven”, “master”, “guru”, “freak”, “warrior”, “evangelist” or “veteran”? (Yes, a social media veteran. As if Tumblr were a deadly war you narrowly survived.) Well: you’ve got company! There are more than 181,000 such individuals on Twitter, people who adorn their profiles with credentials like “social media freak” and “social media wonk” and “social media authority.”


RELATED: Teens Hacking Their Friends’s Twitter Accounts Is All the Rage






B.L. Ochman at Advertising Age, whose heroic research produced the final tally, first noted the trend three years ago — when she recorded, among other distinctions, 68 “social media stars” and 79 “social media ninjas” on Twitter alone — and has been keeping track ever since. This isn’t just the stuff of legitimate Twitter news-breakers like Anthony DeRosa and Andy Carvin — Ohman provides a helpful breakdown of the terms she looked for — you know, like “social media warrior.” (We’re tempted to argue that such diligence makes Ochman something of a social media warrior herself.) Ochman also warns of using “guru” — a Sanskrit term — to describe oneself:



While a great many of these self-appointed gurus are no doubt taking the title with tongue firmly planted in cheek, the fact remains: a guru is something someone else calls you, not something you call yourself. Scratch that: let’s save “guru” (Sanskrit for “teacher”) for religious figures or at least people with real unique knowledge.


I’d argue, in fact, that “social media” and “guru” should never appear in the same sentence.



Whatever the term, social media seems to be a growth industry: there were only 15,740 “mavens” (or whatever) in 2009 — less than a tenth of those represented today.


Social Media News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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David R. Ellis Passes Away at 60

David R. Ellis, former Hollywood stuntman and film director, passed away today at the age of 60 in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he was preparing to direct the upcoming film Kite.

Born in Hollywood, Ellis began working in the film industry as a stuntman in his late teens. He was promoted as stunt coordinator in the 1981 and worked on over 70 films in a 20-year span, including Scarface, Lethal Weapon, and Fatal Attraction.

After working his way up to becoming an assistant director, Ellis then directed his first film in 1996 with Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco.

Following his directorial debut, Ellis segued into the thriller genre, churning out two Final Destination sequels and most notably, the 2006 film Snakes on a Plane starring Samuel L. Jackson.

Growing up in the water as a junior pro surfer, his most recent project was the underwater horror film Shark Night. Amongst a slew of his upcoming unreleased thriller films, Ellis directed the sports drama The Hail Mary, which is based on a true story of an NFL quarterback.

Jackson, who was working with Ellis again on Kite after their Snakes on a Plane collaboration, expressed his condolences via Twitter, writing, "So sad to hear of David R Ellis passing! So talented, so kind, such a Good Friend. He'll be missed. Gone too soon!"

The cause of Ellis' death has yet to be determined.

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Florida company provides electrical power for the world




















More than 4,000 miles from its home base in Doral, Energy International is helping keep the lights on and the power grid humming in Gibraltar, the British territory on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula.

Energy International, a global provider of power plants and energy solutions, sent a temporary plant that will provide power for at least the next two years while a more permanent fix is sought for the territory’s erratic and aging electrical system.

The Doral company was founded 14 years ago as MCA Power Systems and its initial goal was to pursue energy contracts in Latin America. It began 2000 with a name change and in recent years its focus has become global.





“The world needs energy,’’ said Brett Hall, EI’s vice president of finance.

While the 2007-2008 recession curtailed the growth of worldwide energy demand, the U.S. Energy Information Agency has projected that global demand for electricity will increase by 2.3 percent annually from 2008 to 2035.

The potential is especially strong in developing nations. The International Energy Agency estimated that in 2009, 21 percent of the world’s population — 1.4 billion people — didn’t have access to electricity. In sub-Saharan Africa, the percentage of people without power rises to 69 percent.

Energy International has expanded sales from Latin America and the Caribbean to Europe, Africa and the Middle East, boosting revenue from $100 million annually in 2009 to more than $300 million today, Hall said. This year, EI is anticipating revenue of $350 million to $375 million.

In the next seven years the company, which is privately owned by American shareholders and affiliated with Gecolsa — the Caterpillar dealership in Colombia — hopes revenue will top $1 billion, he said.

Even though Energy International is based in the United States, it does little work domestically. Its sweet spot is emerging economies and contracts of $100 million or less.

“Our focus is to do whatever makes the most economic sense for a particular market,’’ said Hall.

“We’re not going to be building a nuclear power plant,’’ he said. But EI will accommodate its solutions to local fuel supplies whether it’s biofuel, natural gas or heavy fuels that are more prevalent.

When it comes to the type of temporary power solution needed by Gibraltar, which had been plagued by a string of power outages at its archaic electrical facilities, EI can have a temporary plant up and running in 30 to 40 days, supplying the engineering, rental turbines and other equipment and doing the installation.

“We were able to support Gibraltar’s power needs on short notice,’’ said Andres Molano, EI’s vice president of sales. “Some of their equipment required major maintenance and they needed to stop their plants.’’

EI, one of the world’s largest suppliers of interim energy solutions, signed a $12 million contract with the government of Gibraltar in November and the plant was operational by Dec. 21. The agreement includes an option for a three-year extension.

The equipment now in use in Gibraltar is considered part of EI’s fleet and will move on to other energy emergencies when its service in the territory famed for the Rock of Gibraltar is complete.

But when it comes to its permanent power plants, EI will build a facility for a client looking to generate its own power or construct a plant, run it and sell power directly to the final user.

“We can do all the work ourselves. We have all the skills in house — finance, design, operations, maintenance, building and the equipment,’’ said Hall.

Energy International has moved into the Middle East, completing projects in Oman and Yemen and establishing a subsidiary in Dubai in 2012 to pursue business in Africa and the Middle East, said Molano.

“Africa is new to us, but we believe there are opportunities there,’’ he said.

The company also is looking for continued growth in Latin America, especially in Colombia, which is now attracting foreign investors who previously had been spooked by violence.

Remote areas of the Amazon where temporary power solutions are needed also represent opportunity for the company.

“EI is very fortunate to be in a position in which we have more excellent opportunities than capital.’’ said Hall, so this year it will be concentrating on raising equity to finance growth.

“One of our biggest challenges in 2013,’’ Hall said, “will be to find investors or joint venture partners to provide capital that will enable EI to perform these projects so our aggressive revenue growth targets can be achieved.’’





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B'klyn man struck, killed while riding unregistered dirt bike








William Miller


Police officers inspect the dirt bike Paul Carthy was riding when he was struck and killed Sunday.



A 24-year-old Brooklyn man on an unregistered dirt bike was killed in an accident in front of Kings County Hospital yesterday.

Paul Carthy, of Brownsville, was riding his Kawasaki eastbound on Clark Avenue just after 9 p.m. when a Nissan Altima struck him as it entered the hospital’s parking lot.

In addition to the bike being unregistered, he did not have a license, police said. No criminality is suspected.











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Scott Israel talks about BSO’s future




















On Tuesday, Broward Sheriff-elect Scott Israel will take over the most powerful elected post in the county, overseeing about 5,500 employees and a $670 million budget.

Past Broward sheriffs have generated colorful and political headlines. Nick Navarro, elected in 1984, ordered deputies to cook crack cocaine to use in drug stings, and ordered the arrest of the rap group 2 Live Crew for obscenity. Ken Jenne, a former state senator, plastered his name on everything from pencils to Frisbees to rugs before he pleaded guilty to tax evasion in 2007 and landed in federal prison.

Then Gov. Charlie Crist appointed longtime BSO official Al Lamberti as sheriff. On Election Day a year later, Lamberti won as a Republican in Florida’s most Democratic county. Tens of thousands of voters who turned out to elect President Barack Obama skipped the sheriff’s race, helping Lamberti defeat Israel, a Democrat.





But in 2012, fewer voters skipped the sheriff’s race on their ballot and Israel — with the help of key political allies — ousted Lamberti.

Israel set to work changing BSO immediately. In December, his transition team sent emails to 28 high-ranking employees telling them they would be out once Israel took over. Many top officials had already announced they would be leaving, including BSO spokesman Jim Leljedal, attorney Judith Levine and Undersheriff Tom Wheeler.

After 35 years at BSO, Lamberti said Friday that he has not applied for any jobs and doesn’t plan to open a security firm. (He has been joking about the fact that there is an opening at the CIA.)

Bob Butterworth, a former Broward sheriff and Florida attorney general, calls the sheriff’s job the “most challenging office” in Broward.

“If you can deal with the issues of substance abuse and mental health — and a sheriff can if they wish to do that — I think you can reduce crime in this community by a lot and also reduce the jail population,” Butterworth said.

Beyond staff changes, it is not yet clear how Israel, a 56-year-old former Fort Lauderdale police captain and North Bay Village police chief — will change BSO.

But emails from Israel’s transition team to BSO show that Israel has sought information about every aspect of the agency, including budget forecasts, contracts for everything from garbage collection to lobbying, statistics about the race of employees and even about the protocol for military casket arrivals.

Israel’s senior command staff includes many who played key roles in his campaign, including his new general counsel, Ron Gunzburger, son of County Commissioner Sue Gunzburger, and Lisa Castillo, who worked on Israel’s campaign. The name of her husband, Pembroke Pines Commissioner Angelo Castillo, is also being bandied about as having a role in the Israel administration.

Israel, who lives with his wife, Susan, and teenage triplets in Parkland, will be sworn in at a public ceremony by Broward Circuit Judge Ilona Holmes at 11 a.m. Tuesday at The Faith Center in Sunrise.

The Miami Herald spoke to Israel recently about his views on gun control, politics and other topics.

Q. The Broward sheriff is often described as the most powerful elected post in Broward. Your predecessor, Al Lamberti, tried to define himself as a law enforcement professional — not a politician. Do you view yourself as a politician?





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“Ubuntu for Phones” Turns Smartphones into Desktop PCs






Millions of people have tried out Ubuntu, a free operating system for desktop and notebook PCs. Like Android, Ubuntu is open-source and based on Linux, and while it’s mostly seen as an OS for hobbyists here in the U.S., hardware manufacturers like Dell and HP make Ubuntu PCs for markets like mainland China.


Now Canonical, the startup which drives Ubuntu’s partly community-based development, has announced a version of Ubuntu that’s made for smartphones. The company previously showed off an experimental version of desktop Ubuntu that hobbyists could install on their Nexus 7 tablets. But the version Canonical demoed Wednesday was tailor-made for smartphones.






What makes Ubuntu different?


The smartphone version of Ubuntu bears little resemblance to the desktop version, aside from its graphical style. Its interface is based around gestures and swipes; instead of a back button, for instance, you swipe from the right-hand edge of the screen to return to a previous app. Swiping up from the bottom, meanwhile, reveals an app’s menu, which remains off-screen until then.


Tech expect John Gruber was critical of the Ubuntu phone interface, noting that “gestures are the touchscreen equivalent of keyboard shortcuts” because they need to be explained to someone before they can use them. The Ubuntu phone site itself calls the experience “immersive,” because it allows more room for the apps themselves.


What will Ubuntu fans recognize?


First, the apps. The same Ubuntu apps which are currently available in the Software Center (Ubuntu’s equivalent of the App Store) will run on an Ubuntu phone, provided the developers write new screens designed for phones — much less work than writing a new app from scratch. Ubuntu web apps, already integrated into its version of Firefox, will also work in the phone version.


Second, the dash and the app launcher. Ubuntu’s universal search feature is easily accessible, and swiping in partway from the left edge of the screen reveals the familiar row of app icons.


What unique features does it have over other smartphone OSes?


Besides the gesture-based design, higher-end Ubuntu smartphones will be able to plug into an HDTV or monitor, and become a complete Ubuntu desktop PC. Just add a keyboard and mouse. This feature was originally announced for Android smartphones (using advertising which insults grandmothers), and Android phones featuring Ubuntu are expected before full Ubuntu phones launch.


When will it be available?


Ubuntu phones (not just Android phones with Ubuntu included) are expected to be on shelves starting in 2014. In a few weeks, however, Canonical will have a version available that you can put on your own Galaxy Nexus smartphone to try it out.


Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
Linux/Open Source News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Mary Hart Bradley Cooper Zoe Saldana Palm Springs International Film Festival

Former ET host Mary Hart hosted the Palm Springs International Film Festival for the tenth time over the weekend, serenading birthday boy Bradley Cooper during his first event appearance since his rumored split from Zoe Saldana and getting him to dish on his potential Golden Globes date.

VIDEO: The Star-Studded PSIFF Red Carpet

According to The New York Post, Cooper (who turned 38 on Saturday) split with Saldana before the holidays, leaving the spot for his Golden Globes date open for a special lady.

"I heard you were bringing your mother [to the Golden Globes]," said Hart, who led the audience in singing Happy Birthday to Cooper just moments before their interview.

Playing the protective son, Cooper explained that he's still undecided due to the atmosphere.

"She's a young woman, but it hard to navigate," said the Silver Linings Playbook star, who was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy. "It's like a zoo, so I think it's not the best place."

VIDEO: Cooper & Saldana's Love-Filled 'Words'

Presented by Cartier, the 24th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival honored Naomi Watts, Robert Zemeckis, the cast of Argo, Helen Hunt, Sally Field, Richard Gere, Bradley Cooper, Life of Pi composer Mychael Danna, Les Miserables director Tom Hooper and Helen Mirren.

In her tenth time hosting the PSIFF, Mary Hart once again pulled double duty as emcee and ET correspondent. This gave the stars a chance to interview each other backstage when Mary was called back to the podium!

Watch the video to see director David O. Russell, Sally Field and Martin Sheen try their hand at entertainment reporting for our ET cameras!

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Billionaire Phillip Frost an ‘entrepreneur’s entrepreneur’




















For that blind first date, a half-century ago, the young doctor, Phillip Frost, showed up at Patricia Orr’s family house in suburban New York, with an unusual gift: a miniature mushroom garden.

In the 50 years since, Frost, the son of a shoe store owner, has gone on to amass a fortune of $2.4 billion, according to Forbes magazine, becoming the 188th wealthiest man in the United States by developing and selling pharmaceutical companies. Along the way, he and Patricia have become major philanthropists in Miami-Dade County and they’ve signed a pledge to give away at least $1 billion more.

“He’s a relentless guy,” says Miami banker Bill Allen, who’s know him for more than 40 years. “He’s not afraid to take risks. ... He knows the intimate details of the chemistry of products, and he’s the kind of guy who can examine 50 deals while eating a sandwich.”





CNBC’s Jim Cramer recently praised Frost’s “incredible track record” for developing companies, calling Frost’s latest endeavor, OPKO Health, a “very risky” investment while noting it could offer huge gains under Obamacare.

But back in 1962, Patricia’s first impression was that Phil Frost was a bit of a nerd, finishing his medical internship with a strong interest in research — including mushrooms. She figured an academic career loomed.

“My mother was very impressed,” recalls Patricia, not so much by the M.D. behind Frost’s name but by the gift, something more serious than the usual flowers or candy. Serious was fine with Patricia, who was living at home while working toward a master’s degree in education at Columbia University. For their first date, they listened to a classical music concert.

Frost’s rise to riches may seem highly distinctive, but in an odd coincidence he has much in common with another prominent Miamian. Frost, 76, and car dealer Norman Braman, 80, both frequently appear on the Forbes list of wealthiest Americans. Both grew up in Philadelphia — Frost the son of a man who sold shoes, Braman son of a barber. Both are Jewish, well-known art collectors and philanthropists.

“He’s an entrepreneur’s entrepreneur,” says Braman. “We have a lot in common, coming from very poor families. But he went to Central High (a public school for exceptional students) and I was not qualified to go there.”

There are other differences. While Braman is voluble and highly visible in the causes he supports, Frost tends to be a reticent, almost shy speaker, given to careful pauses.

‘Lucky chances’

Told that a former colleague had called Frost “lucky,” Frost thought for a long moment. He could have cited many national business stories about his business acumen. Instead, he responded crisply: “I’ll be satisfied with lucky. I benefited from chance meetings.”

Frost spent his first years living above the shoe shop within an Italian market in South Philly. His two brothers were 15 and 16 years older. “I was an afterthought.”

The family was religiously observant, and Frost recalls his father singing him songs in Yiddish when he was small. He lived at home while attending the University of Pennsylvania, except for a year abroad in France. He took many science courses, but his major was French literature.





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Boozy Brolin








What a Goonie!

Boozed-up actor Josh Brolin was charged with public intoxication on New Year’s Day, California cops said yesterday.

One of the stars of the upcoming flick “Gangster Squad” was briefly held on a misdemeanor public-intoxication charge after he was found blitzed on a Santa Monica sidewalk, according to Santa Monica police.

“This was a booking only to hold him until he sobered up,” police spokesman Richard Lewis told NBC.

A source told gossip Web site TMZ the A-lister was partying with pals and had “too much fun.”

He paid a $250 fine and won’t have to go to court, according to Britain’s Daily Mail.





JOSH BROLIN Busted on booze rap.


JOSH BROLIN Busted on booze rap.





It’s the latest trouble for “Gangster Squad,” which after the Aurora, Colo., movie-theater massacre redid a scene in which gangsters fire guns into a crowded cinema.

Producers also pushed back the opening to this coming Friday, making it ineligible for the 2012 Academy Awards.

Brolin plays a sergeant in an elite LAPD squad that fights mobsters.

Brolin was also busted in a 2008 bar incident in Shreveport, La., along with crew members of the movie “W,” in which he played former President George W. Bush. That charge against Brolin - interfering with police officers after a disturbance involving a crew member - was later dropped.










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CrimeWatch: Two email scams you shouldn’t fall for




















This week I am going to share with you some scam emails that are going around. People are falling for them, but many could have been avoided with some common sense. If you get an email like the one below, please call the person before sending cash, which many have done and have lost their money.

Caught out of the country

Omg!! I’m writing this with tears in my eyes, my family and I came down here to Perth, Scotland, in United Kingdom for a short vacation unfortunately we were mugged at the park of the hotel where we stayed, all cash, credit card and cell were stolen off us but luckily for us we still have our passports with us. We’ve been to the embassy and the police here but they’re not helping issues at all and our flight leaves in less than 19 hours from now, but we’re having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won’t let us leave until we settle the bills, I’m freaked out at the moment.





Sandy scams

Dear Friend, in light of what happened in the Northeast, here is a great opportunity for you to help and make some money. FEMA needs clean-up crews for South Jersey. It’s $1,000 for seven days, hotel and food included. Call this number... [The fraudster’s number would be here.] We will contact you as soon as possible. Thank you for applying.

The latter is a scam that is truly deplorable, but due to the kind hearts of many, they have fallen for it and have given their social security number, date of birth and other information that probably will be used in identity theft. Here the first thing one should have done is gone to the FEMA sight to see if it’s true.

The above scams were emailed to me from several readers, so please be careful, and as I always say, learn to use the “delete” key because if it involves money you have to dish out, it’s a scam.

Assault weapons

Now on to a subject that we should all be adamant about, and that is the murders that have been caused by assault weapons this past year.

On Sept. 13, 2004, the federal assault weapons ban expired. This ban was put in place in 1994, and outlawed 19 types of military-style assault weapons. A clause directed that the ban expire unless Congress specifically reauthorized it, and our congressional leaders did not. Shame on them! These are the consequences we are now seeing across the country. As stated by many in the law-enforcement community, these weapons are nothing more than “cop-killer guns”.

I always tell you that we need to get involved, we need to be part of our community, and we must demand that our community be a safe place to live. Therefore I ask you to please contact your representatives in Congress and ask them to support this ban. I truly believe that the killing of 20 little children should be sufficient for our congressional leaders to take the appropriate action. If you don’t know who your House member is, go to www.house.gov/representatives/find and you can find your representative.





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Cricket-Herath alive and bowling despite death rumours






SYDNEY, Jan 5 (Reuters) – As Mark Twain might have said, rumours of the death of Sri Lankan spinner Rangana Herath which spread like wildfire across social media late on Friday proved to be greatly exaggerated.


Far from lying in a Sydney morgue alongside former test bowler Chaminda Vaas after perishing in a car crash as the reports had suggested, Herath was very much alive when he pitched up for work at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday.






The most prolific wicket-taker in test cricket last year, the 34-year-old leg spinner claimed two Australian wickets to seal a haul of four for 95 and then contributed nine runs with the bat.


Team mate Dimuth Karunaratne told reporters at the conclusion of the day’s play that the team had been dumbfounded by the rumours.


“I heard about it when we having breakfast but I had no idea where that came from,” he said with a laugh.


“Guys from Sri Lanka were calling us asking ‘when is the funeral?’ and stuff like that.


“Rangana is alive,” he added, somewhat unneccessarily.


Herath’s efforts were not enough to prevent Australia taking an iron grip on the third test match on Saturday and move to the brink of a 3-0 series sweep.


That could all change, however, if he and Dinesh Chandimal, who finished the third day unbeaten on 22, are able to dig in on Sunday, inflate their lead beyond the current 87 and give Sri Lanka a decent target to bowl at.


The Sydney track has traditionally offered a lot of turn for spinners in the last couple of days of a test and, as Herath’s 60 wickets last year showed, there are few better spinners operating in test cricket at the moment.


“The wicket is turning a lot now and the Aussie guys are playing the fourth innings, so I think Rangana… can do something,” said Karunaratne.


Vaas has no position with the test team and remains, also unharmed, in Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan reporters said. (Editing by John O’Brien)


Internet News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Cher Signs Development Deal with Logo

Logo just announced at The Television Critics Association in Pasadena, CA that the network has signed a development deal with the ultimate gay icon, Cher.


AUDIO - Listen to Cher's New Song

The show, which is in its earliest stages of development, would mark Cher's first regular TV gig since The Sonny and Cher Show ended in 1977.

While this could change before the show hits the air (if it actually does), Cher's Logo show is set to revolve around Hollywood in the 1960s. It's unknown what Cher's on-screen participation will be like at this time. 

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Billionaire Phillip Frost an ‘entrepreneur’s entrepreneur’




















For that blind first date, a half-century ago, the young doctor, Phillip Frost, showed up at Patricia Orr’s family house in suburban New York, with an unusual gift: a miniature mushroom garden.

In the 50 years since, Frost, the son of a shoe store owner, has gone on to amass a fortune of $2.4 billion, according to Forbes magazine, becoming the 188th wealthiest man in the United States by developing and selling pharmaceutical companies. Along the way, he and Patricia have become major philanthropists in Miami-Dade County and they’ve signed a pledge to give away at least $1 billion more.

“He’s a relentless guy,” says Miami banker Bill Allen, who’s know him for more than 40 years. “He’s not afraid to take risks. ... He knows the intimate details of the chemistry of products, and he’s the kind of guy who can examine 50 deals while eating a sandwich.”





CNBC’s Jim Cramer recently praised Frost’s “incredible track record” for developing companies, calling Frost’s latest endeavor, OPKO Health, a “very risky” investment while noting it could offer huge gains under Obamacare.

But back in 1962, Patricia’s first impression was that Phil Frost was a bit of a nerd, finishing his medical internship with a strong interest in research — including mushrooms. She figured an academic career loomed.

“My mother was very impressed,” recalls Patricia, not so much by the M.D. behind Frost’s name but by the gift, something more serious than the usual flowers or candy. Serious was fine with Patricia, who was living at home while working toward a master’s degree in education at Columbia University. For their first date, they listened to a classical music concert.

Frost’s rise to riches may seem highly distinctive, but in an odd coincidence he has much in common with another prominent Miamian. Frost, 76, and car dealer Norman Braman, 80, both frequently appear on the Forbes list of wealthiest Americans. Both grew up in Philadelphia — Frost the son of a man who sold shoes, Braman son of a barber. Both are Jewish, well-known art collectors and philanthropists.

“He’s an entrepreneur’s entrepreneur,” says Braman. “We have a lot in common, coming from very poor families. But he went to Central High (a public school for exceptional students) and I was not qualified to go there.”

There are other differences. While Braman is voluble and highly visible in the causes he supports, Frost tends to be a reticent, almost shy speaker, given to careful pauses.

‘Lucky chances’

Told that a former colleague had called Frost “lucky,” Frost thought for a long moment. He could have cited many national business stories about his business acumen. Instead, he responded crisply: “I’ll be satisfied with lucky. I benefited from chance meetings.”

Frost spent his first years living above the shoe shop within an Italian market in South Philly. His two brothers were 15 and 16 years older. “I was an afterthought.”

The family was religiously observant, and Frost recalls his father singing him songs in Yiddish when he was small. He lived at home while attending the University of Pennsylvania, except for a year abroad in France. He took many science courses, but his major was French literature.





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