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Madonna in unscripted plunge steals show at Brit awards Pop diva Madonna's gasp-inducing "wardrobe malfunction" at a star-studded London awards ceremony grabbed British headlines on Thursday along with photos of her falling backwards downstairs tangled in a swirling cape.From the up-market daily Guardian to the mass circulation Sun, Madonna's tumble overshadowed anything else at Wednesday's British music industry annual Brit Awards."Ma-gonna!" ran the headline in commuter daily Metro.The fall came in the midst of her singing "Living for Love" on Wednesday night when she failed to loosen the cape that was part of a matador costume before her dancers pulled it away.She looked startled as she fell backwards down stairs but kept going with the performance and later said on her Instagram account that she was fine.Madonna's plunge provided the most dramatic moment of the show which otherwise produced few surprises..English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran was the biggest winner of the night, walking away with two of the four Brit Awards he was nominated for.He was named the best British solo artist and also took home the coveted best album prize for his second studio album, "X".Soul singer Sam Smith, who was nominated for five Brits and competed with Sheeran for the best album, topped off his recent four Grammy wins with a Global Success award and British Breakthrough trophy.Other winners included Paloma Faith for British female artist and rock duo Royal Blood, who defeated popular boy band One Direction to be named the best British band.Award for the best international female artist went to Taylor Swift, who opened the show. The pop-heavy ceremony also saw performances from Take That, Kanye West and George Ezra.

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Texas attorney general aims to void marriage license for same-sex couple The Texas attorney general asked the state's Supreme Court on Friday to revoke a marriage license issued a day earlier to two women, arguing the move violated a decade-old state ban against gay marriage and could cause legal chaos.Travis County, where the capital Austin is located, issued a marriage license to Sarah Goodfriend and Suzanne Bryant, who have been together for about 30 years and have two daughters. It was the first license issued to a same-sex couple in Texas since the ban was put in place.A county judge made a one-time exception to allow the license to be issued, saying Goodfriend was in poor health due to ovarian cancer and denying the couple the license violated their rights under the U.S. Constitution. Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican who has pledged to fight for the sanctity of marriage between a man and woman, said in a press release, "the rogue actions of Travis County judges do not withstand the scrutiny of law." His office filed the petition with the Texas Supreme Court to have the license declared void."Relief from this Court is necessary to avoid the legal chaos that would follow if the trial court’s ruling is mistakenly interpreted as authorization for the creation or recognition of same-sex marriages in Travis County or throughout the State," the petition said.A U.S. district judge in Texas last year ruled the state's ban on gay marriage unconstitutional because it denied same-sex couples equal protection under the law. Enforcement of the decision is on hold pending an appeal.Supporters of the couple have argued the license is valid and Paxton is standing on the wrong side of history by trying to deny same-sex couples the right to marry.Chuck Herring, a lawyer for the couple, said the Paxton filing is inappropriate and out of step with the current situation in the country, where same-sex marriage is permitted in most states."If he wants to sue a woman who has ovarian cancer to try to take away her marriage license, so be it. His continuing meanness and lack of compassion are remarkable," Herring said.

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Book Talk: Rachel Joyce's inspiring story set in a hospice British novelist Rachel Joyce's new novel "The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy" is a curiously inspiring story set in a hospice.The two main characters first appeared in Joyce's bestselling novel "The Pilgrimage of Harold Fry", about a man who walks for weeks across England to see an old friend who is dying of cancer, Queenie Hennessy. In the latest novel, their friendship is seen through the eyes of Queenie as she looks back over her life.It is a moving tale of loneliness, loss and acceptance, and although the setting seems bleak there is an affectionate warmth and humor in the prose.Queenie has held a torch for Harold, an old work colleague, for more than 40 years, unbeknown to him. As Harold makes the trek to visit her, Queenie reflects on her former life at her beach house and the beautiful garden she created. And as she explores her memories of her relationship with Harold, and the guilt hidden at its heart concerning his tragic son David, it becomes clear that Queenie has a journey of her own to make.Joyce, a former Royal Shakespeare Company actress and BBC playwright, spoke to Reuters recently about her latest novel.Q: What inspired you to explore this difficult setting?A: Partly having seen my dad’s journey to die, which came from a very frightened place to an acceptance, a serenity.I drew on what I saw with my Dad.Q: Although many of the characters die, the novel doesn't seem bleak: it is warm and affectionate. A: That came directly out of my experience of visiting hospices. There was a lot of laughter, sometimes bare-faced, gallows humor, because there is nothing left to hide from.Q: When did Queenie's character take shape?A: After "Harold Fry", people often asked about Queenie -- why had I given her the deformed face due to cancer? I always explained that it was my dad’s cancer, but it bothered me that I defined my dad as ‘a man with cancer’. I’d written Queenie as a woman with a tumor on her face, and that was all she was.Q: Where did the idea of Queenie’s sea garden come from?A: I wrote that she lived in a beach house, and invented the sea garden. It intrigued me, and I liked the idea. I then went on holiday to an English fishing village called Craster, and there were gardens right by the sea, rather like I’d described.Q: Why is dying still such a taboo subject?A: I really regret that my dad and I couldn’t talk about death. I think it makes our suffering greater by not talking. We’re so afraid of saying the wrong thing.Q: Why does Queenie carry such unrequited love for Harold?A: Queenie realizes that what she felt for Harold was not going to be replicated, although she tried. The effect of that love, and the way it ended when she fled, means she’s lived her life with something missing. Conventional life didn’t work for Queenie. But building a beautiful sea garden and expressing herself that way, did work for her.Q: Harold Fry has been a huge success. Why has an eccentric Englishman had such appeal?A: I really don’t know. It has sold well in China and Taiwan. People say it has a universal theme; Harold is an everyman, whatever country you’re in you can pass a man walking on a road.Q: What are you reading currently?A: I’ve just finished "The Paying Guests" by Sarah Waters, which I loved. When I read a book I get swallowed by it. I kept feeling I’d done something awful, but it was the character in the book.

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Oscars still top draw for advertisers despite fickle ratings The number of people who watched Sunday's Oscars was down and the critics were less than impressed, but Hollywood's biggest night is still a top draw for television advertisers.This year's telecast - which producers believed could build off 2014's big audience of 43.7 million - attracted its lowest audience in six years and the oldest demographic ever with a median age of 53.Despite a 15 percent drop in viewership to 37.3 million, however, it is still worth the price tag for advertisers and broadcaster ABC, analysts said."It's definitely a showcase place to be, and they (ABC) never have a problem selling it out year to year," said Steve Kalb, a director at ad agency Mullen.This year's telecast hosted by actor Neil Patrick Harris commanded $1.9 million for 30 seconds of advertising time, up from last year's $1.76 million, the highest among awards shows. Last year's Ellen DeGeneres-hosted ceremony reaped $95 million in ad revenue, according to Kantar Media. This year's figure is not yet available.ABC pays $75 million annually to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for TV broadcast rights, said Brad Adgate, the research director at Horizon Media. The contract with Walt Disney Co's ABC and the Academy runs through 2020.However, the search for a way to attract the younger viewers that advertisers prize most leads many to believe the Academy might have to make long-term changes to the ceremony.Criticism this year focused on lack of diversity among acting nominees, clunky jokes and the perennial complaint that it is too long. The show clocked in at three hours and 40 minutes and went past midnight on the East Coast.It also hurt that it was a lackluster year at the box office, and only one film that Americans went to see in droves, "American Sniper," was in the running for best picture."It's up to the Academy to change it," Adgate said. "It's up to them to make this awards show more compelling."The Academy selects the show's producers and host, and its 6,100 members choose winners on merit. The biggest recent change was expanding the best picture nominees from five to up to 10 for the 2010 ceremony in an effort to boost interest."As we do each year, the Academy will meet in the coming months to evaluate not only the telecast but also our awards season in its entirety," an Academy spokesperson said in a statement.ABC declined comment.Although the Academy might be taking a long view on how to keep the show relevant in a world where TV viewership is on the decline, advertisers are not likely to complain. They like the Oscars reach, prestige and loyal viewers, particularly among women, said Kalb.One-fifth of Oscar viewers this year said ads increased their likelihood to purchase a product, three times greater than the Super Bowl's audience, according Extreme Reach, a distributor of video advertising."It's sort of the Super Bowl for women," Kalb added.

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Lupita Nyong'o's $150,000 Oscars dress stolen from hotel The $150,000 pearl-studded, custom-made Calvin Klein dress worn by Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o at this year's Academy Awards has been stolen, police said on Thursday.The gown, embellished with 6,000 natural white pearls, was stolen from Nyong'o's room at the London Hotel in West Hollywood, during the day on Wednesday, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in West Hollywood said. "Ms Nyong'o was not in the room at the time of the theft," Deputy John Mitchell told Reuters.The Calvin Klein dress, custom designed by Francisco Costa, was one of the stand-outs on the red carpet at last Sunday's Oscars. Nyong'o told Reuters she had helped with the design of the one-of-a-kind gown, influenced by the ocean. Nyong'o, 31, won a best supporting actress Oscar in 2014 for her role in "12 Years a Slave" and is closely watched for her fashion choices. She presented the award for best supporting actor at this year's Oscars ceremony.Representatives for Calvin Klein declined to comment.

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Ed Sheeran wins best British record at top UK music awards The top British music awards went to young men on Wednesday as Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith bagged the most important trophies in a star-studded Brit Awards show in London. But the grand dame of pop music, Madonna, who performed at the ceremony for the first time in two decades, almost stole the show despite tripping off the stage in the middle of her new single "Living for Love".English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran was the biggest winner of the night, walking away with two of the four Brit Awards he was nominated for.He was named the best British solo artist and also took home the coveted best album prize for his second studio album, "X".The 24-year-old looked genuinely surprised as he mounted the stage to collect the trophy, a pale pink statuette designed by British artist Tracey Emin."I didn't expect it... It's been a very good year for British music", he said.Soul singer Sam Smith, who was nominated for five Brits and competed with Sheeran for the best album, topped off his recent four Grammy wins with a Global Success award and British Breakthrough trophy.The 22-year-old, who has spoken about his breakthrough album being inspired by heartbreak, had a word of advice for James Bay, winner of this year's Critics' Choice Award."Just get dumped. Immediately," Smith quipped.Other winners included Paloma Faith for British female artist and rock duo Royal Blood, who defeated popular boy band One Direction to be named the best British band.Award for the best international female artist went to Taylor Swift, who opened the show. The pop-heavy ceremony also saw performances from Take That, Kanye West and George Ezra.This year, the awards will be shown in over 100 territories across the world in addition to the usual live broadcast on Britain's commercial ITV network.

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Rap mogul 'Suge' Knight taken to jail medical facility again Rap mogul Marion "Suge" Knight told a judge in Los Angeles on Monday that he had fired his attorneys and could not understand court proceedings against him, the Los Angeles Times reported, before he was taken to a jail medical facility.The 49-year-old co-founder of influential label Death Row Records, who has pleaded not guilty to murder charges stemming from a fatal hit-and-run, was still in the infirmary late in the afternoon, said a sheriff’s official.Knight’s attorney, David Kenner, said he could not comment on whether he would continue representing the music executive, but added that Knight’s health was "not good."During the hearing, Knight stood before Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Brandlin wearing an orange jumpsuit and eyeglasses. The Times reported that he told the judge he had lost 30 pounds since the his last court appearance."I can't really see. I can't really comprehend what's going on," Knight said, according to the paper.Brandlin transferred Knight’s hit-and-run case, along with a pending robbery case, to the downtown Los Angeles courthouse from two distant courthouses.Knight missed another appearance scheduled for later on Monday in a different courtroom. The incident marked the third time since Knight’s arraignment in early February that he has requested medical treatment when expected to appear at court. His attorney had previously said that Knight, who was shot six times in a shooting in August, had suffered breathing issues and blood clots.  Prosecutors say Knight ran over two men with his pickup truck in a parking lot, killing one of them, in an altercation outside a fast food restaurant in the Los Angeles suburb of Compton on Jan. 29. The murder charge makes Knight a candidate for the three-strike-rule that would automatically hand him a sentence of 25 years to life. He is being held without bail.Knight also faces robbery and criminal threats charges stemming from an incident on Sept. 5 involving a celebrity photographer in Beverly Hills.

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Film producer betting musical of 'Finding Neverland' will fly on Broadway "Finding Neverland," Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein's first hands-on foray into musical theater and which follows the British family that inspired Scottish playwright J.M. Barrie's classic children tale "Peter Pan," has staked its place on Broadway.After the reworking of the 2012 version that played in England and a dispute over publicity in New York, the musical will begin performances in March and open on April 15 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre."Finding Neverland," with music and lyrics by Gary Barlow of British pop group Take That, chronicles Barrie's friendship with the widow Sylvia Llewelyn Davies and her young sons.Barrie, a playwright, is in the midst of a career slump and suffering from writer's block when he meets and befriends the family in a London park. They help him find joy again in his life and the imagination and courage to write his tale about the boy who can fly and who never grows up."At the end of the day, this is about the power of imagination, and what better place to explore that than in the theater," said Matthew Morrison, the Broadway veteran and star of the hit TV series "Glee," who plays Barrie in the musical."Finding Neverland" marks a return to Broadway for Morrison after a seven-year absence. The musical also stars "Frasier" actor Kelsey Grammer in the dual roles of Captain Hook and Barrie's theatrical producer Charles Frohman. "Finding Neverland" is based on Weinstein's 2004 film of the same name, starring Johnny Depp as Barrie and Kate Winslet as Llewelyn Davies. Although Weinstein has been involved in other Broadway shows, this collaboration with Tony-winning director Diane Paulus ("Pippin") is close to his heart."The alchemy is mine and Diane has been the leader ever since and it has been great," Weinstein told Reuters.He credits his four daughters, whom he said don't agree on anything, for being the impetus for adapting the film into a musical."They are really happy I am doing it. Here is a show that unites them and hopefully unites other families," he said.The musical, which had a run last summer at the American Repertory Theater in Massachusetts, has not been without problems.Weinstein brought in a new creative team following the English production in 2012, and he parted ways with New York publicist Rick Miramontez after a disagreement about how the musical was being promoted.

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Aging French rockers criticized for jobless jibe at young A music video by a group of mostly middle-aged French stars telling the young they can succeed only if they "do something" triggered a bitter generational row on Friday, with critics accusing the rich singers of hypocrisy.The row underlined the anger felt by France's young, facing unemployment rates upwards of 25 percent and increasingly shut out of a jobs market where permanent contracts are coveted and fiercely protected.Penned by Grammy-winning singer Jean-Jacques Goldman and sung by a star-studded charity music collective called "Les Enfoires" ("The Bastards"), the song "Your Whole Life" prompted a tirade of angry Twitter and blog comments.The video has two groups of singers face off against each other and trade accusations, with people under 30 on one side and mostly older and well-established entertainers on the other.The younger group tells the elder that they enjoyed "peace, liberty and full employment" while their own generation faces "joblessness, violence and AIDS". The elders respond that they didn't "steal anything" and that young people should "do something" as they have their whole lives in front of them."When 'The Bastards' say 'do something', are they talking to the 25 percent of young people who are unemployed, or just the 22 percent who under the poverty line?" tweeted Laura Slimani, head of the Socialist Party youth movement."A monument of vulgarity and hatred for young people," economist Jacques Attali, a former adviser to Socialist ex-president Francois Mitterrand, commented on Twitter.In 1975, France's youth unemployment rate was around 7 percent and overall joblessness was about 3 percent. The overall jobless rate is now three times that at 10 percent. Four out of five jobs are now offered only as temporary contracts.The song and its video are aimed at promoting an annual series of concerts whose proceeds go to the "Restos du Coeur" food charity for the needy.Goldman, 63, often shown in polls as France's most popular entertainer, defended the song as being well-intentioned."The 'Bastards' are playing the role of adults who answer (young people) the way they do too often: by skirting blame and with hypocrisy, but hoping they will do better."

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Ed Sheeran wins best British record at top UK music awards Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran took home the coveted best album prize at Britain's top music honors on Wednesday for "X" at a star-studded Brit Awards show in London.The singer looked genuinely surprised as he climbed on the stage to pick up the trophy, a pale pink statuette designed by British artist Tracey Emin."I didn't expect it... It's been a very good year for British music", he said.Other winners of the night included Paloma Faith for British female artist and Royal Blood, who defeated popular boy band One Direction to be named the best British band. Award for the best international female artist went to Taylor Swift, who opened the show. The pop-heavy ceremony also saw performances from Take That, Sam Smith and Madonna.This year, the awards will be shown in over 100 territories across the world in addition to the usual live broadcast on Britain's commercial ITV network.

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Court orders more community service for Lindsay Lohan after dispute Actress Lindsay Lohan on Wednesday was ordered to perform 125 additional hours of community service as part of her probation, her lawyer said, following a dispute over whether she performed the work.Lohan, who was not present in Los Angeles Superior Court for the hearing, will have until May 28 to complete the additional community service hours of her sentence stemming from a 2012 auto accident near Los Angeles, said her lawyer, Shawn Holley.The 28-year-old former child star is set to complete her probation, which she has been on since 2007, if she complies with the court's order. Lohan was originally ordered to complete 240 hours of community service in addition to rehabilitation and psychotherapy as part of a 2013 plea deal.But Santa Monica city prosecutor Terry White had said Lohan reported credit for insufficient work, like a "meet and greet" with fans in London.The "Mean Girls" star crashed her Porsche sports car into a dump truck in the seaside town of Santa Monica while driving to the set of the Lifetime TV movie "Liz & Dick" and later lied to police.Lohan has been arrested in the past for drunk driving and theft before the 2012 crash.

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Conductor Rattle heads to London, wants 'theatrical' concerts International conducting star Simon Rattle said he hoped to make the concert experience more theatrical to attract younger audiences, as the London Symphony Orchestra announced on Tuesday he would become its fulltime music director in 2017.Rattle, 60, who will combine his new job with his current role as principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic until 2018, said he had learned a lot since joining the German ensemble more than a decade ago."It's been fascinating to work in such a different type of culture," Rattle, whose move to London was one of the worst kept secrets in music, said at a news conference announcing his appointment by the LSO."I've learned an enormous amount and probably the orchestra has taken on a few things," Rattle said of the Berlin ensemble, often ranked as the world's best orchestra. Rattle said he planned to keep a home in the German capital where he lives with his Czech mezzo-soprano wife Magdalena Kozena and their three children.He said his posting in London, where he takes over from Russian maestro Valery Gergiev, who ends his stint as principal conductor this year, would probably be his last."This is my last job, this is my last big job," Rattle said, adding that he expected to work beyond an initial five-year contract.He said he and the LSO musicians and management saw eye-to-eye on the need for more music education and community outreach, and on making classical music more exciting and accessible."There are all kinds of possibilities of how we can change the concert experience and make things more theatrical," Rattle said, noting that he had been in touch with directors like Peter Sellars and Simon McBurney to work on semi-staged productions.Rattle, who joined the Berlin Philharmonic in 2002, would not be drawn on who he thought his successor might be. He also sidestepped the issue of whether London needed a new concert hall, for which a feasibility study has been announced."I think it's going to be incredibly important not only for the orchestra and the city but the country as a whole to bring a new vision to music, one that includes as many people as possible...but now we await with interest what comes next," he said.Rattle, born in Liverpool, earned a reputation as a whiz-kid conductor following his graduation from London's Royal Academy of Music in 1974, where he won a prestigious conducting competition.From 1980-1998 he was principal conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. He pushed for a new Symphony Hall which opened in 1991 and is considered one of the best in Britain.

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Obama to Iran: Nuclear deal would bring "brighter future" President Obama urged the Iranian people on Thursday to seize the chance to broker a nuclear deal with the U.S. and the international community, saying 2015 presents "the best opportunity in decades to pursue a different future between our countries." In a video recorded to mark Nowruz, the Iranian new year, the president said a deal "can help open the door to a brighter future," particularly for young Iranians."Iran's leaders have a choice between two paths. If they cannot agree to a reasonable deal, they will keep Iran on the path it's on today - a path that has isolated Iran and the Iranian people from so much of the world, caused so much hardship for Iranian families, and deprived so many young Iranians the jobs and opportunities they deserve," he said. "On the other hand," he added, "if Iran's leaders can agree to a reasonable deal, it can lead to a better path - the path of greater opportunities for the Iranian people, more trade and ties with the world, more foreign investment and jobs, including for young Iranians." The U.S. and five other international powers are seeking a deal that would roll back economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for the ability to verify that Iran's nuclear energy program is being used only for peaceful purposes. The deal would also place limits on the kinds of nuclear infrastructure Iran is able to develop for at least 10 years. Negotiators are working toward an end-of-March deadline to agree on a framework for a deal, and they hope to broker a final agreement by the end of June. The ongoing talks temporarily broke on Friday, allowing negotiators from the U.S. and Iran to huddle with allies, and they'll resume next week. "We've had a series of intensive discussions with Iran this week, and given where we are in the negotiations, it's an important time for high-level consultations with our partners in these talks," U.S. State Department spokesperson Marie Harf said Friday. The president said in his Nowruz message that the negotiations "have made progress, but gaps remain." He also acknowledged the controversy the emerging deal has engendered at home and abroad, nodding at "people in both our countries and beyond who oppose a diplomatic resolution."Lawmakers in the U.S., most of them Republicans, remain deeply skeptical about the deal, and they're mulling a variety of proposals as negotiations approach the deadline. One proposal would ratchet up sanctions on Iran if a deal fails to materialize, and another would require the president to submit any deal he negotiations to Congress for approval. Some U.S. allies in the Middle East, including Israel and some of the Gulf Arab states, have also voiced deep reservations about a deal. The administration and the other negotiating partners, though, have pressed ahead regardless, framing the deal as the only verifiable way to ensure that Iran isn't building a nuclear bomb. "This moment may not come again soon," the president said Thursday. "I believe that our nations have an historic opportunity to resolve this issue peacefully - an opportunity we should not miss."

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Obama rejects as 'ugly lie' notion that West at war with Islam U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday urged countries to tackle violent Islamist militancy around the world and rejected as "an ugly lie" suggestions that the West was at war with Islam and embroiled in a clash of civilizations.Obama said there was a complicated history between the Middle East and the West and no one should be immune from criticism over specific policies. "But the notion that the West is at war with Islam is an ugly lie," he said. "And all of us, regardless of our faith, have a responsibility to reject it," he told a conference convened by the White House on countering violent extremism.  "Muslim communities, including scholars and clerics, therefore have a responsibility to push back not just on twisted interpretations of Islam, but also on the lie that we are somehow engaged in a clash of civilizations," Obama said.With violent groups like Islamic State and Boko Haram gaining strength in parts of Africa and the Middle East, more than 60 countries and international organizations pledged after the three-day summit in Washington to step up efforts to tackle "violent extremism in all its forms."They also agreed that military force and intelligence gathering could not solve the problem of increased violent extremism, and they underscored the need to promote tolerance and peace.Obama announced that the United States would join the United Arab Emirates to create a new digital communications hub to work with religious and community leaders to counter "terrorist propaganda" and urged others to join the effort. Political critics have accused the White House of shying away from tying extremism to the religion of Islam after the recent attacks staged by Islamist militants in Paris and Copenhagen.Addressing the conference, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he would convene a meeting in coming months of faith leaders from around the world and warned that violent extremism posed a grave threat to international peace and security."Military operations are crucial to confront real threats. But bullets are not the 'silver bullet,'" Ban said. "Missiles may kill terrorists. But good governance kills terrorism."U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said it was important to address social and economic inequality that militants use to recruit."You have to do everything. You have to take the people off the battlefield, who are there today," Kerry said. "But you’re kind of stupid if all you do is do that, and you don’t prevent more people from going to the battlefield," he added.Nick Rasmussen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, a U.S. spy agency, said the threat of Islamist militants was constantly changing and the United States and its allies faced "more frequent low-level attacks against all of us." Islamic State has demonstrated an "agile and highly capable use of social media," Rasmussen said. The group's messaging has included both horrifying videos of executions and more enticing images of Islamic State fighters and their families, he said.

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Aussie actor gets sugar rush from low-fat health foods An Australian actor who set out to expose hidden sugar in health food said he gained 8.5 kg (19 lb) and a paunch after a 60-day low-fat diet, including yogurt, cereal, muesli bars and juices.Damon Gameau's documentary, "That Sugar Film", studies the effect of consuming what it says is the average daily sugar intake for Australian adults - the equivalent of 40 teaspoons - on the human body."I think you can’t not be shocked by learning the average Australian consumes 40 spoonfuls of sugar per day, ” Gameau told Reuters.The film's website explains how Gameau came to the "40 teaspoons" figure, with the first stop the Australian Bureau of Agriculture Resource Economics."Sugar is now hidden in so many foods that it is difficult to get a precise measurement. As a result there are lots of different figures flying around," it says. (www.thatsugarfilm.com/faqs/)"That Sugar Film", featuring cameos by actors Hugh Jackman and Stephen Fry, opened in Australian cinemas this month and will be released in Britain in March.In an experiment under medical supervision, the actor-turned-director increased his sugar intake while maintaining his exercise routine, but stayed away from soft drinks, chocolate and ice cream - traditional villains in anti-obesity campaigns.Gameau's film makes him the guinea pig, just like Morgan Spurlock's award-winning 2004 documentary "Super Size Me" in which the American filmmaker stuck to a McDonald's-only diet.A bowl of cereal with yogurt and a glass of apple juice used up half of Gameau's sugar quota for the day, bringing modern-day breakfast habits under increased scrutiny."It especially made me think of kids who are having breakfast in the morning," he said. "Their blood sugars are just going up and down like a yo-yo."Doctors said the sugar experiment put the actor at risk of fatty liver disease, while his body fat had risen by 7 percent.The film also shows Gameau visiting an Aboriginal community in the desert, where people had lived off the land for decades. But a Western diet has become an insidious threat, ushering in deaths from liver disease and diabetes."Their sugar levels are astronomical," said Gameau. "It can't go on because they are going to die out and they are the oldest culture in the world."The World Health Organization issued draft guidelines last year recommending that adults eat less than the equivalent of six teaspoons of sugar a day.

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Discovery adds online adventure channel to reach Web generation Cable network operator Discovery Communications Inc said it is boosting investment in original Web video with a new channel focused on adventurers, in an effort to reach younger audiences who have grown up watching media online.The owner of The Discovery Channel and Animal Planet launched the ad-supported free online network called Seeker on Tuesday and will pitch it to advertisers in May during the newfronts, an annual showcase of digital content.Michelob Ultra, owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, has signed on as the channel's first sponsor. Seeker will feature more than a dozen original series created specifically for the network. Many are produced and hosted by journalist Laura Ling, who was held captive in a North Korean prison in 2009.That experience inspired "Rituals with Laura Ling," a series that will examine how people survive under pressure.Major media companies such as Discovery are trying to connect with younger viewers who turn to the Internet and social media more often than traditional television, and are more likely to shun the pay TV subscriptions that fuel Discovery's core business. Discovery believes those audiences crave uplifting stories that can be shared, a counterpoint to humorous "fail" videos that go viral, Colin Decker, general manager of Discovery Digital Networks, told Reuters in an interview on Monday. Seeker aims to fill that void."There is a very powerful appetite in this Web video generation for content that inspires," Decker said.Discovery's approach to digital video differs from other companies such as Fullscreen or The Walt Disney Co's Maker Studios, which aggregate videos from tens of thousands of YouTube stars who create the content. Discovery focuses on a smaller universe of digital content it creates and owns. It launched science-themed channel TestTube in 2013 and now operates six channels with more than 100 series.By owning content, Discovery Digital Networks has greater latitude to let advertisers integrate their brands through product placement or joint development of content, Decker said. That is a plus for advertisers who want to do more than just put their logo on a video, said Scott Donaton, chief content officer at marketing agency DigitasLBi."They have been really open and flexible in their willingness to work with brands as content creators," he said. Online views of Discovery's digital networks doubled in 2014 and now reach about 150 million per month. The networks are available on Google Inc's YouTube, on websites and on devices such as Roku and Xbox. The company does not disclose revenue for the digital networks.Seeker, like other programming, faces the challenge of finding an audience amid an explosion of online video. Episodes will range from about three minutes to 30 minutes. One series called "Going Off Grid" features people who have disconnected from modern life. "Trucker Josh" follows a truck driver who travels with his dog. Discovery will promote Seeker on social media outlets including Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram, Decker said.

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Leonard Nimoy, Star Trek's 'Mr. Spock,' dies at 83 Leonard Nimoy, who won fame and fans with his portrayal of logic-bound, half-alien Mr. Spock in the "Star Trek" TV series and movies, died on Friday. He was 83.Nimoy, who had battled chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), died in the morning at his home in Los Angeles' Bel Air section, his agents, Bob and David Gersh, said in a statement."We return you now to the stars, Leonard," fellow "Star Trek" cast member George Takei wrote on Facebook."You taught us to 'Live long and prosper,' and you indeed did, friend," said Takei, recalling the trademark phrase uttered by Nimoy's character.Nimoy had long struggled with a love-hate relationship with the role of Spock - the half-human, half-Vulcan first officer on the starship Enterprise - but came to accept its part in his life.Last year, he disclosed on Twitter that he had been diagnosed with COPD, a progressive lung disease. "I quit smoking 30 years ago. Not soon enough," he tweeted to his 810,000 followers. "Grandpa says, quit now!!" Nimoy had other roles during a lengthy career in TV, film and theater. He directed successful movies, wrote books, composed poetry, published photographs and recorded music. But he will be forever linked to Spock in the original 1960s "Star Trek" TV series and subsequent movies.Known for suppressing his emotions and using logic to guide his actions, the pointy-eared Spock - whose father was from Vulcan and whose mother was from Earth - became one of science fiction's best-known, most beloved characters.U.S. President Barack Obama, who has been compared to Spock for his prominent ears and coolheaded demeanor, called Nimoy and his character "the center of 'Star Trek's' optimistic, inclusive vision of humanity's future.""I loved Spock," the president said in a statement.For years, Nimoy resented that Spock defined him, but ultimately came to accept that his life would be intertwined with the character, who inspired a fervent fan following.His feelings were summed up in the titles of his memoirs: "I Am Not Spock" in 1975 and "I Am Spock" two decades later."I was involved in something of a crusade to develop a reputation as an actor with some range," Nimoy wrote in "I Am Not Spock.""I went through a definite identity crisis. The question was whether to embrace Mr. Spock or to fight the onslaught of public interest. I realize now that I really had no choice in the matter. Spock and 'Star Trek' were very much alive and there wasn't anything that I could do to change that."Still, he wrote that if given the choice of being any other TV character, he would choose Spock.Nimoy had often confronted the original series' creators over their conception of Spock, and his input was responsible for many aspects of the character. He came up with the "Vulcan nerve grip" that rendered foes unconscious, and the split-fingered Vulcan "live long and prosper" salute. (He said the gesture was inspired by one he had seen worshippers make in his synagogue when he was a boy.)Nimoy signed off his tweets with "LLAP," an abbreviation of "live long and prosper."RELATIONSHIP WITH SHATNER"Star Trek" followed the Enterprise's crew as they explored other worlds and encountered aliens. Spock was first officer and science officer under Captain James T. Kirk, played by William Shatner. The two helped make "Star Trek" a cultural phenomenon.Shatner and Nimoy sometimes had a professional rivalry but maintained a long friendship."I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love," Shatner said in a statement.NBC canceled the original TV series in 1969 after three seasons. But it found success during syndicated reruns in the 1970s and inspired fan conventions with hordes of devotees. It jumped to the big screen by the end of the decade.Nimoy was not thrilled about taking part in the big-budget first film, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" in 1979.But it was a financial success, leading to many sequels. Nimoy agreed to appear in "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" in 1982 only after the producers promised him a great death scene and other sweeteners.Even though Spock "dies" at the movie's end, Nimoy reprised the role in the next four "Star Trek" films. He directed the third and fourth ones.After those efforts, Nimoy branched out and directed the comedy "3 Men and a Baby," the top money-making movie of 1987.In the successful 2009 "Star Trek" reboot of the film franchise, Zachary Quinto took over the role of Spock, but Nimoy appeared as an older version of the character.Nimoy, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, was born in 1931 in Boston and began acting at age 8. In the 1950s and 1960s, he had roles on TV and in the movies, including "Zombies of the Stratosphere." Later, he hosted the TV series "In Search Of..." (1976-1982) and co-starred in 1978's "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" film remake.His renown as Spock led to quirky guest appearances on popular TV shows in recent decades, including the cartoons "The Simpsons" and "Futurama" (in which he provided the voice for his own disembodied head) and on the "The Big Bang Theory," in which he was the voice of an opinionated Spock doll.Nimoy was married twice and had two children. He is survived by his wife, Susan, children and grandchildren.

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Queen Elizabeth strips entertainer Rolf Harris of honor over child sex conviction Britain's Queen Elizabeth has stripped veteran entertainer Rolf Harris of an honor she bestowed on him in 2006, basing the move on his conviction for child sex crimes last year, an official notice on Tuesday revealed.Harris, a household name in his native Australia and adopted home Britain, was jailed for almost six years in July last year for repeatedly abusing young girls over decades when he was a much loved host on children's television.An announcement in the London Gazette, Britain's official newspaper of record, said the royal award given to Harris, who had painted the queen's portrait in 2005, had now been rescinded."The Queen has directed that the appointment of Rolf Harris to be a Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 17 June 2006, shall be canceled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order," the statement said.Police and prosecutors said Harris, an artist and musician who first earned fame in the 1950s with the top 10 hit novelty song "Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport", had used his fame to abuse girls for years.He was the most high-profile figure to have been convicted of crimes since British police launched a major inquiry into celebrity sex crimes, following revelations three years ago that late BBC TV host Jimmy Savile had been a prolific child abuser.

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Wanted: ideas to engineer a female MacGyver TV series Hollywood and top engineers are crowdsourcing ideas for a TV series with a female MacGyver, the brainy 1980s small-screen secret agent who used little more than a paper clip to solve tricky problems.The University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering is launching the competition for series ideas with Washington's National Academy of Engineering and the MacGyver Foundation, officials said on Thursday.“We want to be surprised. We want to be amazed,” Lee Zlotoff, the creator of the original "MacGyver" series, told a news conference.Organizers are hoping that a show featuring a dashing female engineer will do for the field what the "CSI" series has done for forensic sciences.They also want to get more girls and young women interested in engineering. Less than 20 percent of engineering bachelors degrees go to women, and trends point to even fewer in the future."Who among us wants to live in a world designed primarily by males?” said Ruth David, former deputy director of science and technology for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.Zlotoff urged people to send in ideas for the new TV show by April 17. Five winners will receive $5,000 and be paired with producers to create a script, which will then be pitched to a network.The "MacGyver" series ran on ABC from 1985 to 1992, with Richard Dean Anderson starring as Angus MacGyver, a secret agent educated as a scientist.

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Bastille play intimate London gig for war charity Just over a hundred lucky fans gathered in a London flat on Monday night to sing along with British electro-pop quintet Bastille at a special gig for the War Child charity.The intimate show was part of the Sofar Sounds events - small, exclusive gigs that are held in carefully selected spaces in more than 50 cities worldwide. The band, winners of the BRIT awards 2014 breakthrough act, played such hits as "Things We Lost In The Fire", "Laura Palmer" and "Pompeii"."We haven't done anything like this for a long time. It's been very special for us and it's a pleasure to do something different," singer-songwriter Dan Smith said after the show. "It is nice that we all live in London, we can walk into a tube and come to a gig."Bastille and Sofar joined forces to raise funds for War Child, which aids children affected by conflicts and war across the world. Fans made donations to enter a ticket lottery."The big part of that was our contribution to War Child, of course, because, you know, our job is completely ridiculous and is a bit of a joke, so anything that we can do to get involved with something serious like that is nice," Smith said.Bastille played one of their first shows with Sofar in 2011, when the band was starting out. This time they were supported by emerging band To Kill a King, which played an acoustic set.Bastille's debut album "Bad Blood" was released in 2013 and brought them international recognition. They were nominated for the Best New Artist at the 2015 Grammys but the award went to a fellow Brit, Sam Smith."We kind of still see ourselves as a new band and it is probably quite sad that we are not seen as one anymore," Dan Smith said.With the Sofar gig closing the Bad Blood tour, the band is planning to return to the studio to record a new album."We want to make a record that is completely different from the last one," Smith said. "We hope it will be an evolution of what we have done before."Bastille will headline a dozen festivals across Europe and Latin America this summer, including German's Rock im Park.

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Stars take Oscars out to play at after parties The Oscars may be over, but Hollywood was not done celebrating its biggest night on Sunday as the film industry took Academy Award winners and their statuettes out for an extended spin through glamorous after-parties.As the Oscars ceremony wrapped up with "Birdman" winning the best picture prize, stars piled into the Governor's Ball, the official after-party hosted by Oscars organizers, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "I'm feeling tired and exhilarated and relieved and excited and hungry," said "Whiplash" winner J.K. Simmons as he entered the party with his best supporting actor Oscar in hand. "It was surreal and wonderful to see him share that moment with his family," Simmons' co-star, Miles Teller, said. Graham Moore, who won best adapted screenplay for "The Imitation Game" and made a passionate speech in which he revealed his own suicide attempt as a teen, said he was "overwhelmed and teary" with his win."I keep spontaneously crying," he said as his mother carried his Oscar. The event saw many of Hollywood's big stars casually catching up over champagne and gourmet desserts provided by chef Wolfgang Puck. Singer Will.i.am performed upbeat dance numbers with Brazilian musician Sergio Mendes, as the crowd danced along."Birdman" best supporting actor nominee Edward Norton rushed by, saying "I'm all about the love tonight," as he went to celebrate with his co-stars.Animated feature winner "Big Hero 6" co-director Don Hall said holding his hefty Oscar felt "weird, surreal, strange, amazing, fantastic and unbelievably cool." While he had no ideas for a sequel to the Disney animated hit yet, he said he envisioned "a new superhero character who can turn into gold."After months of campaigning through the rigors of awards season, actors, like nominees Steve Carell and Marion Cotillard, enjoyed a laugh together. First-time Oscar performers also marveled in the surreal nature of it all. The Roots musician, Questlove, made his Oscar debut alongside Will Arnett dressed as Batman on the stage for the "Everything is Awesome" performance."All throughout rehearsal, because Will Arnett does these exaggerated arm movements, I got punched unintentionally," he said with a laugh. "For such a gentle song it was physically brutal."Academy president Cheryl Boone-Isaacs praised first-time host Neil Patrick Harris and said the musical numbers, which included Lady Gaga, Rita Ora and Common and John Legend, were "spectacular."For those who aren't nominated or invited to the Oscars, British singer Elton John hosted his annual viewing party to raise money for his AIDS foundation.Guests sipped cocktails and dined under a tent that occasionally sprang a leak, dribbling rainwater on the halibut and macaroons, all part of a menu designed by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.Alex Baldwin was there to raise funds and watch on the small screen as his "Still Alice" costar, Julianne Moore, won best actress.Â

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'Timbuktu' director wants more cinema from West Africa The Oscar nomination of "Timbuktu", a film about the occupation of the Malian desert town by al Qaeda-linked Islamists in 2012, should not mask the lack of established cinema from West Africa, its director said.Up for the Best Foreign Language Film at Sunday's ceremony, Abderrahmane Sissako's film has already won two awards at this year's Cannes Film Festival and seven at the Cesar Award's, France's equivalent of the Oscars.It tells how residents in the ancient town, which has a rich history as a seat of Islamic learning, resisted the harsh Islamic law imposed by militants, whose decrees ranged from bans on music and football to stoning those accused of adultery.Despite being home to FESPACO, a biennial film festival held in Burkina Faso, and Nollywood, Nigeria's cinema industry that churns out hundreds of films every years, Sissako called for West African leaders to do to more to promote regional film making "Being nominated is great for the continent and Mauritania ... (But) You cannot say that cinema is established because there is a festival," Sissako told Reuters, speaking from the United States."When you have countries that produce one film a year or one film every three years, which is the reality of African nations, cinema is not well established," he said.Sissako was born in Mauritania but spent some of his school years in Mali. Based in France, much of his work focuses on Africa and issues from across the continent."Timbuktu" was shot in the eastern deserts of Mauritania, near the border with Mali, where the Islamists were scattered in early 2013 by a French military intervention but there are still sporadic attacks as militants mount a resurgence.Sissako's crew received protection from Mauritania's security forces but he said that cinema, and culture in general, was still delegated to being a secondary issue for governments across in the region."There is a lack of political vision in nearly all the countries," he said. "Wherever there is no culture it is not a good thing."His film highlights defiant individuals and the contradictions of the Islamists.An imam argues against the interpretation of Islam imposed by the mix of foreign and local gunmen. A woman fishseller refuses to wear gloves, as requested. Boys play a football match with an imaginary ball as the sport has been banned.Meanwhile, one Islamist secretly smokes a cigarette behind a sand dune while others debate the skills of top footballers.The resistance ordinary Malians show in the film highlights how, culturally, West African societies largely reject the form of Islam espoused by extremists."We have to be clear - the salafists are a step backwards for society," Sissako said. "This is not something that we can resolve in two years. It is much more complex than that." "You should not minimize what NATO did in Libya. This was a major factor yet there has been a silence over this," he said, referring to the West's support for rebels who ousted the late leader Muammar Gaddafi.

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Trumpet maestro Clark Terry dies aged 94 Clark Terry, a Grammy award-winning trumpet player and composer who recorded with greats such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Quincy Jones, has died aged 94, his wife said on Sunday.Terry, who had gone into hospice care after suffering from diabetes, "has joined the big band in heaven where he'll be singing and playing with the angels", Gwen Terry said on the musician's Facebook page."He left us peacefully, surrounded by his family, students and friends." Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Terry won fame after serving several years in the navy, playing with Count Basie and Duke Ellington from the late 1940s through the 1950s, before joining The Tonight Show band, where he played under its famed bandleader Doc Severinsen.According to his website, Terry is one of the most recorded musicians in the history of jazz, with more than 900 recordings with names such as Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Dinah Washington, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Billy Strayhorn and Thelonious Monk.Terry also headed up his own bands, including Clark Terry’s Big Bad Band and Clark Terry’s Young Titans of Jazz.In 2010 Terry was presented a Lifetime Achievement Grammy award. He was also nominated for Grammys, the music industry's top honor, three times.Among many other honors, the French and Austrian governments presented Terry their Arts and Letters Awards, and he was knighted in Germany.In his later years, Terry directed his attention toward music education.Terry published his autobiography, "Clark: The Autobiography of Clark Terry", in 2011.

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'Big Hero 6' wins best animated feature Oscar Disney Animation's "Big Hero 6," a comic book-inspired tale of a teen science genius who befriends a huggable robot and forms a superhero team, won the Academy Award for best animated feature film on Sunday."This has been an amazing year for animated films and we are privileged to be in your company," said co-director Don Hall.He was the second winner of the night to make a point of thanking his parents, after best supporting actor J.K. Simmons made a passionate speech urging people to call their parents and thank them. "One upon a time there was a freckle-faced little boy who told his mom and his dad he was going to work at Walt Disney Animation and they did something amazing. They supported him," Hall said. "Big Hero 6," released in November last year, was Disney's first animated film foray into the Marvel comics universe, fusing Japanese influences into American pop culture.The film's superheroes use scientific knowledge to create their superpowers, and its protagonist Hiro endures both sorrow and joy in his journey to save his city from an evil masked villain."30 Rock" actor Scott Adsit voiced huggable healthcare robot Baymax, while rising star Ryan Potter voiced Hiro. To date, the film, directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams, has made more than $521 million at the worldwide box office."Big Hero 6" earned the second consecutive Academy Award win in the animated feature category for Walt Disney Co's (DIS.N) animation studios, which won last year for musical blockbuster "Frozen." The animation feature Oscar category was first handed out in 2002, and has been dominated by Disney-owned Pixar, which has won seven Academy Awards. Pixar did not release a film in 2014."Big Hero 6" beat out DreamWorks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon 2," Laika Studios' "The Boxtrolls," Studio Ghibli's "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya" and Irish studio Cartoon Saloon's "Song of the Sea."

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Jeb Bush addresses family legacy: 'I'm my own man' Republican Jeb Bush staked out a robust vision for U.S. foreign policy in line with party doctrine on Wednesday and sought to ease concerns that he might be influenced by his powerful political family by insisting, "I'm my own man."A frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, Bush said he would back a global strategy against Islamic State that "takes them out."But he offered no specifics on how to do this and avoided military threats that could reawaken memories of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq launched by his older brother, former President George W. Bush, over weapons of mass destruction that were never found. Speaking at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the former Florida governor struck a balance between respecting the service of his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and brother, while suggesting he would make decisions based on circumstances neither of them had to face."I'm my own man, and my views are shaped by my own thinking and my own experiences," Bush said.In a speech and question-and-answer session, Bush demonstrated a fluency in international issues that none of his potential rivals for the Republican nomination has matched to date.A list of Bush foreign policy advisers suggested he is trying to split the difference between party hawks and pragmatists. Many of his advisers were important players in the administrations of the last three Republican presidents - the two Bushes and Ronald Reagan.Bush largely stuck to standard Republican criticisms of the policies of President Barack Obama even while using similar language to the Democratic president. In September, Obama cited a relentless U.S. effort "to take out" Islamic State militants wherever they exist.Bush questioned the concessions that Obama may be ready to make to secure a nuclear deal with Iran, criticized Obama's diplomatic opening to Cuba, and said Obama is "feckless" for not providing defensive equipment to Ukraine as requested.He said he looked forward to a speech in Congress by Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu and expressed surprise that the White House was opposed to the visit from a key ally."We have lost the trust and the confidence of our friends. We definitely no longer inspire fear in our enemies," he said.His stances appeared aimed at boosting his foreign policy credibility with conservatives who are more likely to vote during the Republican primary battles while not scaring moderates with talk of sending troops abroad.Peter Feaver, a Duke University professor who was a White House adviser under George W. Bush, said Jeb Bush's views were in line with the Republican Party mainstream and also many Democrats who have criticized the Obama administration.Bush stuck to a pledge not to re-litigate the debates of past administrations but, when prodded, offered a view on the Iraq war launched by his older brother.'MISTAKES MADE'"There were mistakes made in Iraq for sure," Bush said, but he gave his brother credit for a 2007 troop surge that helped stabilize Iraq and said the U.S. withdrawal ordered by Obama created a void filled by Islamic State. Asked if the United States should engage diplomatically with Islamic State, Bush said absolutely not.Democrats accuse Jeb's brother of giving rise to the current turmoil in the region with the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. The prolonged conflict damaged George W. Bush's second term and his popularity. Twelve years earlier Jeb's father, former President George H.W. Bush, assembled a global coalition to push Iraq out of Kuwait, a swift war that was far more popular at home.Republicans say the jihadist fighters of Islamic State would never have gained footing if Obama had reached an agreement with the Iraqi government to leave a U.S residual force behind.Bush is casting a wide net for advice on national security. An aide provided to Reuters a list of 21 diplomatic and national security veterans who will provide informal advice to Bush in coming months.It includes people representing a wide spectrum of ideological views in the Republican Party. It includes James Baker, known for his pragmatism in key roles during the Reagan and George H.W. Bush presidencies, and former World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, a hawk as deputy defense secretary who was an architect of George W. Bush's Iraq policy.Among others are two former secretaries of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff, former national security adviser Stephen Hadley and a deputy national security adviser, Meghan O'Sullivan, as well as two former CIA directors, Porter Goss and Michael Hayden.Reagan's secretary of state George Schultz is also on the Bush list.Democrats pounced on Bush's claim to be his own man.“We know that Jeb Bush is leaning on more than a dozen foreign policy advisers who were the architects of George W. Bush’s cowboy foreign policy agenda that damaged the country’s reputation abroad," said Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Holly Shulman.

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Kirk Cameron, Cameron Diaz rake in 'worst achievement' Razzies Former child star Kirk Cameron tried "Saving Christmas," but he more likely killed a career comeback with the movie that ruled at this year's Razzies, the awards for the worst achievement in film.Cameron, 44, was declared the big winner at Saturday night's 35th Golden Raspberry Awards ceremony, taking four of the six categories in which he and his Christian family comedy "Saving Christmas" were nominated: worst picture, worst actor, worst screenplay and worst screen combo - for him and his ego. The tongue-in-cheek answer to Sunday's Academy Awards poked fun at another Cameron, as in Diaz, who won the $4.97 gold spray-painted berry trophy for worst actress for two comedies, "The Other Woman" and "Sex Tape."But in a sign that there can be redemption after a Razzie, actor/director Ben Affleck won the inaugural Redeemer award, going from his Razzie-earning role in 2003's "Gigli" to 2013 Oscar best picture winner "Argo" and box office hit "Gone Girl." Affleck was deemed more redeemable in a popular online vote than fellow nominees Jennifer Aniston, Mike Myers, Keanu Reeves and Kristen Stewart.Director Michael Bay might have gotten off lightly. His special effects spectacle "Transformers: Age of Extinction" led all movies with seven Razzie nominations, but was only worthy of worst director and worst supporting actor for Kelsey Grammer.Megan Fox won worst supporting actress for her role in the reboot film "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."The award for worst remake, rip-off or sequel went to "Annie," the modern telling of the Broadway classic that hackers leaked online before its December opening after attacking Sony Pictures.The Razzies are handed out at a ceremony in the heart of Hollywood on Oscar eve, although those honored seldom show up.The ignominious awards are chosen by 811 members in 47 U.S. states and 20 foreign countries who pay a minimum annual fee of $40 their first year and $25 thereafter.As the Razzie organizers noted, their society is not alone in panning "Saving Christmas". Users of the international movie database IMDB.com rated it the No. 1 worst movie of all time, while it scored a rare perfect "Zero" rating on critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.In the film, the child star of television's "Growing Pains" who later became an evangelical Christian tries to "put Christ back into Christmas."

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Warren Buffett's old Cadillac fetches $122,500 at auction Warren Buffett's 2006 Cadillac attracted a high bid of $122,500, more than 10 times its market value, in a charity auction that concluded on Thursday night.The autographed DTS sedan, with 20,310 miles (32,685 km) on the clock, was auctioned on the website Proxibid. A spokeswoman, Dana Kaufman, did not immediately identify the winner.Proceeds from the auction will go to Girls Inc of Omaha, Nebraska, the city where Buffett runs Berkshire Hathaway Inc.A longtime favorite charity of the 84-year-old billionaire, Girls Inc offers educational and recreational opportunities to girls in the United States and Canada. It is raising money for an $18.5 million expansion of a facility in Omaha.Buffett's daughter, Susan, is a director of Girls Inc's national organization, and first lady Michelle Obama is honorary board chair.Buffett will deliver the keys to his old Cadillac personally if the buyer travels to Omaha to pick them up. He replaced the car last year with a new Cadillac XTS.A 2006 Cadillac similar to Buffett's is worth about $11,200 on the open market, according to the Kelly Blue Book.It is common for items once owned by prominent people to sell at auction for well above market value.In 2009, Proxibid was involved in an auction of items once owned by Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff, including a blue satin New York Mets baseball jacket with "Madoff" embroidered on the back. Estimated to be worth $720 at most, it fetched $14,500.Buffett previously donated his 2001 Lincoln Town Car to Girls Inc. It fetched a $73,200 high bid at auction in 2006.Annual auctions for a steak lunch with Buffett, which benefit a San Francisco charity that serves the poor and homeless, routinely draw seven-figure sums.

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Heist, heist baby?: Rapper Vanilla Ice calls arrest a misunderstanding The rapper known as Vanilla Ice was out of jail on Thursday, a day after being arrested on a burglary charge that he says is a misunderstanding.The musician turned reality television star, who famously rapped that “anything less than the best is a felony” in his 1990s hit song “Ice Ice Baby” was charged with burglary of an unoccupied residence and grand theft, both felonies.The rapper, whose real name is Robert Van Winkle, allegedly stole furniture, a pool heater and other items from a neighbor's home, the Lantana Police Department said in a news release on Wednesday, after finding several items that were reported missing in recent months in Van Winkle's home.The rapper's home currently is under construction and also is the site of his latest venture, a reality TV show for the DIY Network called “The Vanilla Ice Project."Van Winkle, 47, was released from jail on a $6,000 bond Wednesday night. He told reporters that the situation was “overblown.”“I wish you guys would focus on the good things I’ve done,” he told the WPTV news station.It was not immediately clear if Van Winkle had hired an attorney.Police said the items included two bicycles, a $3,000 pool heater, art and a $1,000 sofa. Lantana Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday about Van Winkle's claim that the charges resulted from a misunderstanding.The rapper met with investigators and offered a sworn statement before he was taken into custody, police said.

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Factbox: Key winners at the 30th Independent Spirit Awards The 30th Independent Spirit Awards handed out top accolades for the year's best achievements in independent film on Saturday.Below is a list of winners in key categories.BEST FEATURE"Birdman"BEST ACTORMichael Keaton, "Birdman"BEST ACTRESSJulianne Moore, "Still Alice"BEST SUPPORTING ACTORJ.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESSPatricia Arquette, "Boyhood"BEST DIRECTORRichard Linklater, "Boyhood"BEST SCREENPLAYDan Gilroy, "Nightcrawler"BEST DOCUMENTARY"CitizenFour"BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM"Ida," Poland BEST FIRST FEATURE"Nightcrawler"BEST FIRST SCREENPLAYJustin Simien, "Dear White People"BEST CINEMATOGRAPHYEmmanuel Lubezki, "Birdman"BEST EDITINGTom Cross, "Whiplash"ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD"Inherent Vice"JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (for films made under $500,000)"Land Ho"

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'Birdman' wins Oscar for best picture "Birdman," a dark satire of show business and fame directed by Alejandro G. Inarritu, on Sunday won the Academy Award for best picture, the film industry's highest honor.The film from Fox Searchlight Pictures (FOXA.O) portrays a washed-up former superhe

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'Birdman' leap makes Fox Searchlight shine at Oscars Fox Searchlight, the arthouse film division of Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox (FOXA.O), dominated the Academy Awards on Sunday with eight awards including the coveted best picture prize for its absurd comedy-drama "Birdman."The recognition at the film industry's top honors will likely boost theater, DVD and digital sales for "Birdman," which has collected $76 million at global box offices. It was the second best-picture trophy in a row for Fox Searchlight after last year's victory for "12 Years a Slave." The studio also scored with offbeat winner "The Grand Budapest Hotel," which took home four trophies in technical categories.Movie studios mount months-long, multi-million dollar campaigns for Oscar trophies to earn prestige, grab bragging rights they can use in advertising, and kickstart ticket or home entertainment sales. "Birdman" is a surreal story about a washed-up movie star trying to rebuild his career with a stint on Broadway. It was filmed in an unusual style in what seems like one long, continuous take featuring an avian alter-ego with a booming voice. "Everything sounds so risky," Mexican director Alejandro Inarritu said backstage after the awards show. "Fox Searchlight, they are smart guys. They trusted me. It could have been a disaster."The post-Oscar bump for each of the last five best picture winners has translated into $9.7 million at domestic theaters, said Keith Simanton, managing editor of movie website IMDB. A win also helps stimulate interest in international markets, Simanton said. "The Oscars are a powerful brand," he said. "Birdman" prevailed in what many Oscar watchers called a two-way contest with coming-of-age tale "Boyhood" from small distributor IFC Films, a unit of AMC Networks Inc (AMCX.O). "Boyhood" ended the night with one trophy for best supporting actress Patricia Arquette.IFC Films was new to the best-picture race. The New York-based distributor abandoned most film production about a decade ago but stuck with "Boyhood," which was filmed for a few weeks each year for 12 years using the same cast. "To find a financier to give us money, even though it was only $2.8 million, that's a big investment to make with no safety net," Arquette said backstage.Sony's (6758.T) movie studio, which was hit by a devastating cyber attack in December, earned four awards including best supporting actor for J.K. Simmons in "Whiplash" and best actress for Julianne Moore in "Still Alice."Another best picture contender, "American Sniper" from Warner Bros. (TWX.N), grabbed only one Oscar, for sound editing. But it is far ahead of fellow nominees at the box office, having collected more than $428 million in global ticket sales.Walt Disney Animation Studios, a unit of The Walt Disney Co (DIS.N), won the animated feature prize for a second year in a row, this time with "Big Hero 6" about an inflatable oversized waddling robot. The privately held Weinstein Company, a master of awards campaigns, won best documentary feature with "Citizenfour" about U.S. government whistleblower Edward Snowden.

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Bomb scare proves false alarm near Hollywood venue for Oscars A bomb scare triggered by an erratic motorist brandishing a propane tank at a shopping strip near the Hollywood venue for the upcoming Oscars show proved to be a false alarm on Thursday, but the man was detained, Los Angeles police said.Bomb squad investigators cordoned off a row of storefronts and the front entrance of a hotel across the street after a man who was driving recklessly in the area emerged from his car with the propane cannister, according to police on the scene.The man told police who stopped him that he also had two canisters of nitrous oxide, a non-flammable gas also known as laughing gas. He was taken into custody while the bomb squad was called to investigate the situation, police said.Bomb disposal technicians later detonated the items in question as a precaution, one officer said. Police spokeswoman Jane Kim said no explosives were found in the investigation.The incident unfolded at about 11 a.m. local time about a block away from the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, where the Dolby Theatre complex is located, and police were on the scene for roughly five hours before the all-clear was given.The area around the Dolby, site of the upcoming 87th annual Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday, had already been closed to traffic in preparation for the film industry's highest honors.

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Art exports from Britain reach record high The value of art exports from Britain reached a record high last year as buyers from around the world took advantage of London's thriving art scene and light-touch export regulations, according to a study on Monday.The study, by Thomson Reuters legal business, said art works and cultural items worth 11.3 billion pounds ($17.4 billion) were exported from Britain in the year to April 2014, up 7.6 percent from the previous year, with the majority traded in London."London remains a key market with buyers from across the globe attracted by its dense network of galleries, collectors and artists, as well as its pragmatic export regime," the study quoted Massimo Sterpi, co-editor of "The Art Collecting Legal Handbook", published by Thomson Reuters, as saying.The growing value of art exports suggests that the Artist’s Resale Right, which grants artists or their heirs a share of up to 4 percent in the resale of work has not impacted British sales as much as had been feared, the study said.The Art Resale Right was first introduced in 2006 and since January 2012 has applied to qualifying works by artists who have been dead for less than 70 years."There was some concern in London that the new law would encourage sellers to use rival markets where no such resale right applies," the study quoted handbook co-editor Bruno Boesch as saying."However, sales prices achieved in London are normally so high that there is little incentive to sell in other markets - in Paris, for example," he added.Britain denied export licenses to art worth just 13.9 million pounds last year, less than 1 percent of the value of exports requiring legal referral, the study noted.

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Rebellious Mexican filmmakers follow in Inarritu's wake A new wave of Mexican filmmakers is following in the wake of the success of Alejandro G. Inarritu, bent on breaking Hollywood convention and making daring movies with high-profile actors.Inarritu's "Birdman" garnered nine Academy Awards nominations including best picture, best director and best actor, and follows fellow Mexican Alfonso Cuaron's best director win last year with space thriller "Gravity," a first for a Latin American filmmaker. Inarritu, Cuaron and fellow "Three Amigos" director Guillermo del Toro began their careers in the 1990s when the domestic film industry was practically dead and they left Mexico to make the climb to global fame."We were very lucky to have the possibility to be fed by European filmmakers, by some American filmmakers ... cinema of the world," Inarritu said. "Mexico is still an incredible fountain of culture, but cinematically speaking ... 20 years ago, it was horrible." The trio managed to maintain control over their iconoclastic film projects within the Hollywood system, raising Mexico's profile as they made both big blockbusters such as Cuaron's "Gravity" or del Toro's "Pacific Rim," and more personal, lower-budget projects such as Inarritu's "Birdman."Mexican film production has surged from 28 films in 2000 to 130 last year, according to industry group Canacine. But top new talents are not looking to make it in Hollywood. This year will see new films from Gerardo Naranjo and Michel Franco, two of the most notable rebels among Mexico's growing ranks of directors who have cast aside studio formulas. This new generation grew up in a rapidly globalizing Mexico following the opening of the country's closed economy in the 1990s and the end of authoritarian one-party rule in 2000.Naranjo's early films, "Miss Bala", about a beauty queen sucked into the violent world of drug traffickers, and "I'm Gonna Explode", a tale of teen love and rebellion, nabbed the attention of 20th Century Fox.He spent almost four years working on developing two major Fox films, including a remake of "Death Wish" with Bruce Willis, but quit in frustration with the studio system."It is important to recognize the mastery of the older generation," Naranjo said. "Cuaron, Inarritu, they found a way to protect their projects and that is the hardest thing to do in the United States. The industry finds ways to limit creativity over and over." HOLLYWOOD BLUESBut Naranjo's defiant exit from Hollywood grabbed attention and he drew in a group of young actors led by Dakota Fanning to star in his new independent film "Viena and Fantomes." After struggling for years in the studio system with little to show, he wrote, directed and shot the film himself in a matter of months, and is now editing."I feel I had something to offer that was lacking in the industry," he said. "I am giving American actors the chance to do what they should be doing but don't get the chance to do.""Viena" stars Fanning as a young groupie in the thrall of a punk band. "It is her trip to understand that celebrity does not come out of talent in America," Naranjo said.Mexico's directors have developed sophisticated styles of filmmaking that have pushed the traditional boundaries of fiction and documentaries, winning the top honors at the world's biggest festivals.They are limited by ultra-low budgets, around $2 million, but by holding to their personal visions, Mexican filmmakers are attracting big Hollywood actors starved for meatier roles. Michel Franco, whose bullying-themed "After Lucia" won a top prize at Cannes in 2012, is now editing his first English-language film, "Chronic", starring Tim Roth.Roth, who sat on the jury that feted Franco in Cannes, was excited to work with the young director and convinced him to re-write a script that Franco was working on with a male lead."Chronic" was inspired by the woman who cared for Franco's dying grandmother, now Roth who plays a nurse attending terminally ill patients as he struggles to reconnect with the family he abandoned."My films are not trying to be easy on the public, but rather are developing a story that is not very common and does not fit into a genre," he said.Roth is also in one of the lead roles in "600 miles" the debut film from Gabriel Ripstein, who also co-produced "Chronic" with Franco."600 Miles" won the coveted best first feature award at Berlin in February for Ripstein, the son of Mexican film auteur Arturo Ripstein, who worked as an executive for Hollywood studios for a decade."It is a question of finding actors who want to work with interesting filmmakers," Ripstein said. "But we are keeping control over the projects and don't have to make concessions." Loosely inspired by the botched Fast and Furious program where U.S. agents lost thousands of high-powered guns in Mexico, "600 Miles" tracks a young Mexican on his first run as a gun smuggler and stars Roth as a U.S. agent hunting him.With Hollywood balance sheets dependent on blockbuster franchises, directors are confident they will be able to keep attracting disaffected talent to their independent projects. "Its not the same Hollywood that Inarritu and Cuaron went to," said Gaz Alazraki, who is directing Netflix's first Spanish-language series "Club de Cuervos." "But there are a whole lot of great actors who want to make personal films, so if you can team up with them, it's great."

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Jewish dealers' heirs turn to U.S. to recover German art trove The heirs of Jewish art dealers who say their families were forced to sell the Nazis a trove of medieval church treasure worth some $250 million today have turned to a U.S. court to reclaim it, after failing in their attempts in Germany.The collection, known as the Guelph Treasure, consists of 44 gold, jewel and pearl encrusted pieces which have belonged to the city of Berlin's art collection since their purchase in 1935, on the orders of leading Nazi Hermann Goering.Germany says an expert committee established last year that the sale was not forced, following a 2008 claim by the heirs. The reliquiaries dating from the 11th to 15th centuries were once owned by northern German aristocrats and kept in Brunswick cathedral. Today they are on show in Berlin's Bode Museum. Lawyers for the heirs of the dealers, who bought the collection from the Duke of Brunswick in 1929, said on Tuesday they filed a civil suit with a district court in Washington DC, appealing to the U.S. Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA).They say the court has jurisdiction because the FSIA covers violations of international law, such as forced property sales.A Jewish refugee from Austria, Maria Altmann, used this law in 2000 to recover paintings by Gustav Klimt. She successfully fought the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court and was then awarded ownership by an Austrian court of arbitration. "The fingerprints of Goering and Hitler are on this sale, the dealers had no chance," restitution lawyer Markus Stoetzel said. The Jewish dealers sold the works to the state of Prussia for 35 percent of its value, lawyer Nicholas O'Donnell said.Ingolf Kern, a spokesman for the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, said he was surprised by the move, given that the advisory commission had found the price was reasonable.The consortium of dealers bought 82 pieces in 1929 for 7.5 million Reich marks and then sold 40 for 2.5 million marks. The Prussian state paid 4.25 million marks for the rest in 1934-35.The commission said the market was depressed in the early 1930s, Prussia was the only interested buyer and the works were stored in Amsterdam at the time, although the dealers were based in Germany. This month Berlin designated the Guelph Treasure of national cultural value, making it impossible for it to leave the country without the approval of the culture ministry."If they were so sure they owned it, they wouldn't need to do this," said O'Donnell. Kern argued, however, that this was a logical move for Germany's most precious artifacts. Germany has faced criticism for its handling of artworks looted by the Nazis, with some museums accused of reluctance to research the provenance of suspect works.

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U.S., Turkey soon to sign Syrian opposition train-and-equip deal The United States and Turkey have reached a tentative agreement to train and equip moderate Syrian opposition fighters and expect to sign the pact soon, U.S. and Turkish officials said on Tuesday with Ankara predicting a signing in days.The U.S. military has said it is planning to send more than 400 troops, including special operations forces, to train Syrian moderates at sites outside Syria as part of the fight against the Islamic State. Three U.S. officials, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the training could begin in mid-March.The vetted Syrian fighters would be equipped with items including pickup trucks with mounted machine guns, radios and global positioning system trackers, the officials said. The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that the radios and GPS equipment would enable the fighters to call in airstrikes, but the officials told Reuters no authority had yet been granted for them to do so. U.S. officials have said they plan to train about 5,000 Syrian fighters a year for three years under the plan. Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as Turkey, have publicly offered to host training sites. Reuters reported in December that Jordan had also privately offered to host training.Turkey hopes the training will also bolster the weakened and divided Syrian opposition in their struggle against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad."Negotiations have been concluded and an agreement text will be signed with the U.S. regarding the training of the Free Syrian Army in the coming period," Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said."We will share all the technical details ... when the text is signed, but it is anticipated that this will happen in the coming days," he told reporters in Ankara.In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki confirmed an agreement with Ankara in principle."As we have announced before, Turkey has agreed to be one of the regional hosts for the train-and-equip program for moderate Syrian opposition forces. We expect to conclude and sign the agreement with Turkey soon," Psaki told reporters.The Free Syrian Army is seen by Turkey as a key actor in Syria's kaleidoscopic conflict, but the group has been riven by divisions and suffered setbacks at the hands of government forces and other rebel factions.A deal between Ankara and Washington would be a positive development between the two longstanding allies, despite strains over Middle Eastern policy. Turkey wants Assad's departure to be the focus in Syria, while Washington's priority remains battling the Islamic State insurgents.

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Oscar host Neil Patrick Harris runs gamut, in his tux and undies Love him or hate him, Neil Patrick Harris proved to be one of the hardest-working hosts in Oscar history on Sunday night, singing, dancing and even sprinting in his underpants onto the stage of Hollywood's Dolby Theatre.But the 41-year-old Broadway and television talent who came to prominence as the child star of "Doogie Howser, M.D.," also confronted a major elephant in the room, opening the show with a fleeting but pointed jab at the homogenous field of Oscar nominees."Tonight we honor Hollywood's best and whitest, sorry, brightest," Harris enthusiastically dead-panned to hearty laughter that seemed to break the usual pre-show jitters among the movie royalty packing the auditorium for the 87th Academy Awards.The opening joke was a reference to the criticism Oscar voters faced this year for failing to nominate a single performer of color in any of the acting categories for the first time in many years, including the critically acclaimed star of the civil rights drama, "Selma," David Oyelowo.It was the first of several politically charged moments of the night, including Patricia Arquette's remarks in accepting her statuette as best supporting actress for her role as a single mom in "Boyhood.""To every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else's rights," Arquette said on stage. "It's our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America," she added."Citizenfour" filmmaker Laura Poitras went on to hail National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden as a hero as she accepted the award for best documentary."When the most important decisions being made affecting all of us are made in secret, we lose our ability to check the powers that control," she said.Her speech was quickly followed with a biting counterpoint, and play on words, from Harris: "The subject of 'Citizenfour,' Edward Snowden, could not be here for some treason."STANDING OVATIONSIn one of the evening's more emotional moments, rap artist Common and R&B star John Legend sang a duet of "Glory," the anthem from "Selma" that also has played at "Black Lives Matter" rallies protesting lethal police force against racial minorities across the country. The two went on to share the Oscar for best song as composers of "Glory," and their performance brought the celebrity-studded house to its feet, some with tears in their eyes.The second standing ovation of the night came after Lady Gaga delivered a rousing medley from the musical film classic "The Sound of Music," then welcomed the star of that movie, Julie Andrews, onto the stage."Dear Lady Gaga, thank you for that wonderful tribute," said a visibly moved Andrews, 79. "It's hard to believe that 50 years have gone by since that joyous film was released."UNFLATTERING REVIEWSEarly reviews of the live ABC telecast, which ran about 40 minutes beyond its three-hour schedule, were generally unflattering of the show. And Harris drew largely harsh critiques from viewers chiming in on social media.Variety credited Harris with getting the show off to a buoyant opening but faulted bad writing for what it described as a subsequent breakdown in the telecast."Too much clunky scripted material flummoxed even Harris' impish, good-natured charms," Variety's Brian Lowry wrote.The New York Times' Alessandra Stanley called Harris' performance "bland," while offering tepid kudos for his zaniest stunt of the evening.In a comic homage to a memorable scene from best-picture Oscar winner "Birdman," Harris was followed on camera running from backstage onto the show's main stage, dressed only in his white underpants, black shoes and socks, to introduce presenters of the sound-mixing award.Time magazine's early online review said Harris seemed off his game, despite having "been pre-sold as an expert live host."Harris was perhaps at his best showing off his chops as a song-and-dance man in the night's opening musical number - a salute to movie magic that also marked a conscious effort to connect with tech-savvy younger television viewers. "Check out the glamor, and glitter/ people tweeting on the Twitter / and no one's drunk and bitter yet/ because no one has lost," sang Harris, the star of the hit CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother," who previously has won three Emmys for hosting Broadway's Tony Awards. Another overt bid to reach younger viewers came in a musical performance of the pop duo Tegan and Sara teaming up with former "Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg and the Lonely Island trio for a rendering of the kids' favorite "Everything Is Awesome," from "The Lego Movie."Turning one of last year's great Oscar faux pas into one of this year's more comical interludes, John Travolta returned to the stage as a presenter with singer Idina Menzel, whose name he mangled at the 86th Oscars show. He went out of his way to pronounce her name correctly this time, then rather sheepishly stood aside to leave Menzel the task of pronouncing the names of the best original song nominees. The winners, Legend and Common, neatly brought the evening's political and comic moments full circle.

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Factbox: Oscar nominations in key categories The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will hold the 87th Academy Awards at a ceremony on Sunday.Following is a list of nominees in leading categories.BEST PICTURE"American Sniper""Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)""Boyhood""The Grand Budapest Hotel""The Imitation Game""Selma""The Theory of Everything""Whiplash"BEST ACTORSteve Carell, "Foxcatcher"Bradley Cooper, "American Sniper"Benedict Cumberbatch, "The Imitation Game"Michael Keaton, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"Eddie Redmayne, "The Theory of Everything"BEST ACTRESSMarion Cotillard, "Two Days, One Night"Felicity Jones, "The Theory of Everything"Julianne Moore, "Still Alice"Rosamund Pike, "Gone Girl"Reese Witherspoon, "Wild"BEST DIRECTORAlejandro G. Inarritu, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"Bennett Miller, "Foxcatcher"Wes Anderson, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Morten Tyldum, "The Imitation Game"BEST SUPPORTING ACTORRobert Duvall, "The Judge"Ethan Hawke, "Boyhood"Edward Norton, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"Mark Ruffalo, "Foxcatcher"J.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESSPatricia Arquette, "Boyhood"Laura Dern, "Wild"Keira Knightley, "The Imitation Game"Emma Stone, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"Meryl Streep, "Into The Woods"BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAYJason Hall, "American Sniper"Graham Moore, "The Imitation Game" Paul Thomas Anderson, "Inherent Vice"Anthony McCarten, "The Theory of Everything"Damien Chazelle, "Whiplash"BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAYAlejandro G. Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander DinelarisJr., Armando Bo, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"Richard Linklater, "Boyhood"E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman, "Foxcatcher"Wes Anderson, Hugo Guinness, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Dan Gilroy, "Nightcrawler" BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM"Ida" (Poland)"Leviathan" (Russia)"Tangerines" (Estonia)"Timbuktu" (Mauritania)"Wild Tales" (Argentina)BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM"Big Hero 6""The Boxtrolls""How to Train Your Dragon 2""Song of the Sea""The Tale of the Princess Kaguya"BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE"CitizenFour""Finding Vivian Maier""Last Days in Vietnam""The Salt of the Earth""Virunga"BEST ORIGINAL SONG"Everything is Awesome," from "The Lego Movie""Glory," from "Selma""Grateful," from "Beyond the Lights""I'm Not Gonna Miss You," from "Glen Campbell ... I'll Be Me""Lost Stars," from "Begin Again"BEST ORIGINAL SCOREAlexandre Desplat, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Alexandre Desplat, "The Imitation Game"Hans Zimmer, "Interstellar"Gary Yershon, "Mr. Turner"Johann Johannsson, "The Theory of Everything"BEST COSTUME DESIGNMilena Canonero, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Mark Bridges, "Inherent Vice"Colleen Atwood, "Into The Woods"Anna B. Sheppard and Jane Clive, "Maleficent"Jacqueline Durran, "Mr. Turner"BEST CINEMATOGRAPHYEmmanuel Lubezki, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"Robert Yeoman, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Lukasz Zal, Ryszard Lenczewski, "Ida"Dick Pope, "Mr. Turner"Roger Deakins, "Unbroken"BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLINGBill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, "Foxcatcher"Frances Hannon, Mark Coulier, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou, David White, "Guardians of the Galaxy"BEST VISUAL EFFECTS"Captain America: The Winter Soldier""Dawn of the Planet of the Apes""Guardians of the Galaxy""Interstellar""X-Men: Days of Future Past"

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London's fashion pack turns focus to business for online sales Britain's emerging talent kicked off the first day of London Fashion Week with designs featuring oversized coats, geometric shapes and voluminous skirts, amid hopes online demand for luxury goods is growing stronger.Delicate embroidered dresses paired with cropped jackets highlighted Turkish designer Bora Aksu's show on Friday, in colors of gold, dusty pinks and pale blue inspired by Irish writer Oscar Wilde's The Nightingale and the Rose.Earlier, Korean-born designer Eudon Choi sent models down the runway in boxy leather jackets decorated with colorful geometric shapes, oversized scarves and floral printed flares.More than 5,000 buyers, journalists and bloggers have flocked to London to see emerging talent like Aksu and Choi showcase their designs alongside leading designers Paul Smith, Vivienne Westwood and Burberry's Christopher Bailey.This season sees the British Fashion Council (BFC) focus on how designers can grow their businesses into successful brands and boost growth in Britain's 26 billion pound ($39.98 billion) fashion industry."It is fantastic that we are seeing these young businesses going from strength to strength," Chief Executive Caroline Rush told Reuters."The next stage of course is thinking about e-commerce and online businesses and again as part of our business pillar, I’m working closely with the tech sector looking at some quick wins and some really strong guys to help in e-commerce," Rush added.With online fashion sales expected to reach 19 billion pounds in the next four years, according to research firm Mintel, designers are turning to social media like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to help drive more online purchases."We have been very focused on the past year or so, helping designers to understand how they can best use social media," Rush said.Aksu said the networks were the perfect tool to help his label grow internationally and gain recognition.Camille Juras, who three weeks ago launched what she called a vegan shoe company making footwear with micro fibers rather than animal leather, said she had already generated sales from using social media websites."Social media is key. It all starts with online presence and then you grow," said Juras. "On Instagram, it was instant. You would launch your page, people would start to like you, like your products and that started the sales process." London Fashion Week, which generates more than 100 million pounds in orders each season from buyers around the world, will run until Feb. 24.

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Bill Cosby appearance postponed at Kentucky university A March appearance by Bill Cosby at a Kentucky university has been postponed, adding to the list of shows postponed or canceled following accusations of sexual misconduct against the comedian.The March 15 appearance by Cosby at the University of Kentucky in Lexington was postponed "by mutual agreement" with the entertainer and the show's promoter, National Artists Corp, the university said in a brief news release on Tuesday. Refunds to ticket holders will be made starting March 2, the school said.A total of 655 tickets had been sold for a hall that holds 1,502, said Whitney Hale, a university spokeswoman.More than a dozen women have publicly accused Cosby of sexual misconduct in recent months, in a controversy that has tarnished the image of the actor and comedian best known as the lovable father figure on the 1980s sitcom "The Cosby Show." Cosby denies the allegations of sexual assault, many of which are decades old and fall outside the statute of limitations for criminal or civil cases.Cosby, 77, had a show scheduled for Feb. 12 in Bakersfield, California, but postponed it. His Feb. 21 show at Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh was also canceled by what venue officials described as the result of a mutual agreement with Cosby.

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Removed from ventilator, Bobbi Kristina Brown's condition unchanged: source Doctors have taken Bobbi Kristina Brown, daughter of late singer Whitney Houston, off the ventilator that has helped her breathe since she was found unresponsive in a bathtub last month, but no decisions have been made to take her off life support, a family source said on Thursday.The source, who declined to be identified, said Brown's overall condition has not changed. Removing the breathing tube was a standard course of practice to avoid infection, the source said.CNN reported that Brown will now receive air through a hole in her throat, indicating she will likely remain in that position for weeks or months rather than of days.Family members have said Brown, 21, the only child of singers Bobby Brown and Houston, is fighting for her life at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta after she was discovered on Jan. 31 face down and unresponsive in a bathtub in her suburban home.They have said little about the aspiring singer's treatment or medical prognosis. Bobby Brown has asked for privacy.Police in Roswell, Georgia, are treating the case as a criminal investigation and have been questioning people about the circumstances leading up to Brown being found in the tub.Brown's famous mother, a six-time Grammy Award winner and actress who battled substance abuse, drowned in a hotel bathtub in Beverly Hills, California, on Feb. 11, 2012. Authorities said cocaine use and heart disease contributed to Houston's death at age 48.

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Shimmer and shine dominate rain-soaked Oscars red carpet Shimmering beads and jewels in pale hues and dresses in bold tones brightened an unusually dreary rainy afternoon in Hollywood on Sunday as the film industry's stars hit the glamorous Oscars red carpet. Actresses Julianne Moore in shimmering Chanel, Felicity Jones and Emma Stone donned dresses with sparkle and shine as they arrived for the biggest night for the movie business.Jones, nominated for best actress for her role in "The Theory of Everything," wore a fairy tale-inspired Alexander McQueen gray gown with a beaded halter bodice and full skirt. She said she chose the design for its "strength and femininity"."This year was a turning point for fashion on the red carpet. We are really starting to see almost everyone take chances," said Eric Wilson, fashion news director at Instyle Magazine. He noted that actresses eschewed traditional "fairy princess" dresses for an array of necklines and textures.Lupita Nyong'o, closely watched on the red carpet, opted for a custom Calvin Klein white halter dress that she helped design and which was embellished with 6,000 pearls. "I was thinking about it being fluid and liquid, an homage to the sea," the actress said.Light metallic tones were popular among actresses such as Jennifer Aniston in a blush beaded Versace number and Anna Faris in a silver beaded Zuhair Murad. Jennifer Lopez and Emma Stone both opted for shimmering Elie Saab dresses - Lopez preferred a plunging bronze, full-skirted gown while Stone went for a light green sparkling fitted dress that offset her red hair.Best actress nominee Moore wore a strapless white beaded Chanel gown with black accents, while "Birdman" actress Naomi Watts shimmered in an Armani Prive gown with head-to-toe silver and black beads.Lady Gaga made a statement on the red carpet in a silver beaded white structured, full-skirted gown by Azzedine Alaia with red gauntlet gloves. Wilson called her gown "a big fashion moment."Best actress nominee Marion Cotillard also opted for white, in a embroidered Christian Dior couture gown. Wilson picked Cotillard and Moore as his choices for best dressed of the night."Embellishment was a big story tonight," said Wilson. LADIES IN REDRed was a popular choice for actresses including Dakota Johnson in Saint Laurent Paris, and best actress nominee Rosamund Pike, who said she wanted to wear some color to close out awards season after having worn predominantly black and white.She opted for a red strapless Givenchy gown with lace embroidery that gave it the appearance of layered rose petals.Scarlett Johansson wore a curve-hugging deep green Versace gown, while Anna Kendrick donned a coral halter Thakoon gown. Best supporting actress nominee Patricia Arquette bucked the shine trend with an understated black and white off-the-shoulder gown designed by her childhood friend, Rosetta Getty.Witherspoon, in a pale blue Tom Ford gown with black trim, talked about the "Ask Her More" campaign, in which female celebrities are lobbying to be asked about more on the red carpet than just what they are wearing."We're more than just our dresses," Witherspoon said. "We are so happy to be here to talk about the work that we've done. It's hard being a woman in Hollywood, or any industry."(This story has been refiled to correct the first name of Arquette dress designer to Rosetta from Rosanna in the seventh paragraph)

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Emmy Awards to feature more contenders in comedy, drama categories New rules will expand the number of contenders for top honors in the comedy and drama categories in television's annual Emmy Awards this year, organizers said on Friday.The Television Academy said it was making numerous revisions to the awards in order to reflect a changing television landscape. Both the comedy and drama series categories will now include seven nominees, up from six in previous years. Comedy series will be defined by shows that are 30 minutes or shorter per episode, while drama series will be for shows over 30 minutes. That means shows such as Netflix's "Orange Is the New Black" will no longer be considered in the comedy series category. Producers will be able to petition for eligibility in an alternative category, the Television Academy said."Our over 17,000 voting members represents a dramatically changing television industry and we want to continue to make sure we honor their creativity in the most relevant and fair ways possible," Bruce Rosenblum, chairman of the Television Academy, said in a statement. After switching the Primetime Emmy awards show from a Sunday in late September to a Monday in late August last year, the Television Academy is going back to its late September weekend slot with this year's awards on Sept. 20.The mini-series category will be renamed "limited series," and will reflect any shows that have two or more episodes running for at least 2-1/2 hours, that tell a "complete, non-recurring story" and will not continue the story or characters in following seasons. This will mean shows such as BBC America's "Luther" and PBS Masterpiece's "Sherlock" will not be eligible in this category, as both feature same characters in ongoing seasons.Other changes include splitting the variety series category into Outstanding Variety Talk, to be awarded during the live Primetime Emmy telecast, and Outstanding Variety Sketch, which will be awarded at the separate Creative Arts Emmy awards.

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Hidden sketches by French painter Cezanne found in Pennsylvania Unfinished sketches by the famed French artist Paul Cezanne have been found hidden on the backs of two of his watercolors, a Pennsylvania-based art foundation said on Saturday.The Barnes Foundation said the sketches, one graphite and one watercolor, likely have not been seen since the early 20th century.They were discovered when art conservators in Philadelphia undertook a conservation treatment of paintings known as "The Chaine de l'Etoile Mountains," and "Trees," both of which depict French landscapes.Albert Barnes purchased the works from American art collector Leo Stein in 1921, and Barnes likely did not know about the sketches, according to Martha Lucy, a Barnes Foundation consulting curator.The newly discovered sketches will go on display April 10 through May 18. Afterwards the watercolors will go back on display in their original locations, the foundation said."These sketches offer a window into Cezanne’s artistic process, which is truly invaluable," Barbara Buckley, senior director of conservation at the Barnes Foundation, said in a statement.It was not uncommon for the post-Impressionist painter to work on both sides of the paper in his sketchbooks and on larger sheets, the foundation said.Before he died in 1906, Cezanne produced thousands of drawings, some of which were done in preparation for oil paintings, but many just as experiments with lines and color, according to the foundation.The Barnes Foundation was established in 1922. Its collection holds 365 works on paper, mostly American and European works from the late 1800s to early 1900s.

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Poland's 'Ida' wins best foreign language film Oscar Black-and-white Polish drama "Ida" won the Oscar for best foreign language film on Sunday, capping a successful awards season run in which the austere tale of identity in post-World War Two Poland won top awards in Europe and the United States.Director Pawel Pawlikowski's film, about a novitiate nun who learns she is a Jewish orphan, earned the country its first Academy Award in 10 total nominations in the category.“To my Polish friends who are in front of the TV, the crew who were in the trenches with us and who are totally drunk now and you were fantastic, you were brilliant, you carried me through this film and you are what I love about Poland, your resilient courage is brave and funny," the filmmaker said.Pawlikowski, 57, drew laughter and applause from the audience for continuing his speech after the play-off music had started."Ida" has won Britain's BAFTA for best foreign film, and top film, director, screenplay, cinematography and audience honors at the European Film Awards.Cinematographers, Lukasz Zal and Ryszard Lenczewski, have also earned Oscar nominations for best cinematography.The film set in 1962 follows novice nun Anna, played by 23-year-old amateur actress Agata Trzebuchowska, as she travels with her aunt Wanda, a fallen Stalin-era prosecutor, to the countryside where Anna was born as a Jew named Ida.The widely praised film that touches on personal history and individual culpability has been criticized by Polish nationalists who believe it unfairly depicts Poles during the war and for its lack of focus on the German occupation.Pawlikowski said ahead of the Oscars that he did not want to make a film that explained Polish history but one that explored the characters' "psychological situation and paradoxes of the human soul."

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Man charged in stabbing of member of rapper Nicki Minaj's tour crew Philadelphia police said on Tuesday that they charged a suspect with the stabbing of a member of rapper Nicki Minaj's touring crew outside a local bar last week.Pierce Boykin, 31, was arrested on Monday and charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and other offenses following the stabbing. The victim, an unidentified 27-year-old man, was taken to a hospital where he remains in critical condition, with wounds to his arm and side.Another man, 29-year-old Devon Pickett, was fatally stabbed in the same incident outside the Che Bar and Grill in Philadelphia on Feb. 18 after an argument."The gentleman who is in custody is only charged with the stabbing of the male who is in critical condition," a Philadelphia police spokeswoman said."It is still an active investigation," she added. "Our homicide unit is still working the case."In a tweet following the stabbing, Minaj said the two men had been in the city rehearsing for her upcoming tour.Minaj's tour is due to start in Europe in March, according to her website. The rapper is known for numerous hit songs, including "Anaconda" and "Bang Bang."

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Obamacare rescue ruled out by some states, others weigh options Five Republican state governors say they will not rescue a crucial part of Obamacare if it is struck down by the Supreme Court, underlining the prospect for a chaotic aftermath to a ruling that could force millions of Americans to pay much more for coverage or lose their health insurance.The Supreme Court is due to hear opening arguments in the case known as King v. Burwell on March 4, marking the second major challenge to President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) after the justices ruled in 2012 against a claim that it was unconstitutional. The latest case tests the tax-credit subsidies at the core of Obamacare.In its ruling expected by June, the high court could bar the federally run insurance marketplace from providing the subsidies in at least 34 states. That could throw the insurance system into turmoil as states respond in starkly different ways. In response to Reuters' queries, spokespeople for the Republican governors of Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, South Carolina and Wisconsin said the states were not willing to create a local exchange to keep subsidies flowing. Republicans argue that Obamacare is unacceptable government intervention that raises costs for consumers and businesses.“State exchanges are the federal government’s way of sticking states with the cost and responsibility of a massive new bureaucratic program," said Chaney Adams, a spokeswoman for South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. "The right decision was made for South Carolina, and Governor Haley would make it again today.”    State government officials in Georgia, Missouri, Montana and Tennessee – a mix of Republicans and Democrats - said that opposition by majority Republican state legislators could make it all but impossible to set up a new exchange. Those nine states combined are home to 1.4 million people who have signed up for subsidized coverage in 2015, according to government data. The fate of 5.1 million residents in the remaining 25 states that have signed up for subsidized benefits on the HealthCare.gov exchange is also unclear. Six states - Delaware, Maine, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Virginia – are discussing contingency plans to keep the subsidies but each faces substantial logistical or political barriers, according to officials. Ten states did not respond to Reuters queries, while three others had no comment. Iowa, Wyoming, Oklahoma and West Virginia said they were not currently considering setting up exchanges; Alaska said it has not ruled it out; and Arkansas said it was moving toward creating a state exchange in 2017. Republicans are opposed to Obamacare, but such a ruling could have a political cost in their states if hundreds of thousands of low-to-middle-income people are priced out of health coverage. Even if states say they don't plan to set up exchanges, that could change closer to the ruling or afterwards as they come under pressure to avert spiraling insurance costs.“We can say with some confidence that the insurance markets are likely to melt down, because only the sick people will stay in them and the others will find it unaffordable,” said Drew Altman, who heads the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation.STATES WEIGH WORKAROUNDS    The plaintiffs in King v. Burwell contend that the Affordable Care Act allows subsidies to be distributed only through state-based exchanges. Thirteen states and the District of Columbia set up their own exchanges from October 2013. The remainder of states either opposed the law or could not find ways to make their own exchanges work, so the federal government stepped in. Insurers including Aetna Inc, Cigna Corp and Humana Inc are major players in the HealthCare.gov markets.About 87 percent of enrollees in those states qualify for Obamacare subsidies, which can reduce a family’s healthcare bill by thousands of dollars annually. A Milwaukee family of four earning the median U.S. household income of $53,000, for example, could receive $7,800 a year in subsidies, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. A ruling against Obamacare would raise their monthly premium payments by at least $652.Congress could respond to a negative ruling with legislation to keep subsidies in place. But partisan gridlock would make any action a challenge. Health policy experts say the most likely fix to a ruling against the administration would involve a new type of partnership with the federal government or between states.       Maine and Delaware have considered a model in which the state creates the exchange in name but still relies on the federal government’s technology systems to run it. Marketplaces for Nevada, New Mexico and Oregon have operated in that fashion. But experts say this model could be rejected by the Supreme Court, because the ACA does not list the federal government as an entity with which states can contract for exchange services.     Other workarounds that have been discussed include setting up regional exchanges that cover multiple states, or keeping the HealthCare.gov website operating as a place to sign up for insurance but allowing states to disburse the federal subsidies.    At the very least, states that are open to setting up their own exchange hope the Supreme Court allows for a transition period if it rules against the administration.     “A state-based exchange from scratch in six months is probably not doable. We’re trying to see what other states are doing and what may work and may not work,” said Eric Cioppa, Maine's leading insurance official.

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Oscars promise suspense and maybe some surprises Hollywood's awards season reaches its apogee on Sunday at the 87th Academy Awards, where "Birdman" and "Boyhood" are locked in a battle for best picture and veteran actors are likely to grasp their first golden Oscar statuettes.The film industry's biggest night will serve up its share of suspense as three top honors - best picture, best director and best actor - are proving hard to predict, even for the most seasoned experts.But those nail-biters will come at the tail end of the three-hour ABC telecast from Hollywood's Dolby Theater, where first-time host Neil Patrick Harris will guide a show heavy on humor, magic and music from big names like Lady Gaga.Hours before Hollywood's A-list celebrities were due to walk the famous red carpet, a plastic tent remained in place for possible rain showers.News crews from around the world, in tuxedos and gowns, set up for a telecast that will be seen by hundreds of millions of people in 225 countries and territories.Meryl Streep will be vying for an Oscar for a record 19th time, in the best supporting actress category. But most, including several of the favorites, are first-time contenders. "It's been a long journey up to here," said Pawel Pawlikowski, director of "Ida," Poland's nominee for best foreign-language film. "Of course, it would be nice to win as well, but I'm not going to collapse if we don't." In a sign of how the Oscars might be split, the Film Independent Spirit Awards for small-budget movies on Saturday crowned Alejandro G. Inarritu's show business satire "Birdman" as best feature and its star Michael Keaton took best male lead. Richard Linklater won best director for his coming-of-age tale "Boyhood," made over 12 years with the same actors.While both Linklater and Inarritu have been nominated for Oscars before, they have never won.Together, "Birdman" and "Boyhood" have made $62 million at the North American box office, compared to $310 million for the most commercially successful of the eight best picture nominees, Iraq war drama "American Sniper" from director Clint Eastwood. CRITICISM OF ACADEMYThe dearth of blockbuster movies at this year's Oscars could diminish the number of people who tune in to watch the biggest non-sports televised event in the United States. Last year with host Ellen DeGeneres and her selfie that broke Twitter, the Oscars pulled in its largest audience in 14 years of 43.7 million viewers.Forty percent of American adults plan to tune in to the awards telecast, according to the annual Reuters/Ipsos Oscars poll. Forty-five percent said they most enjoy seeing who wins.The Oscars are determined by 6,100 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a body that has taken its knocks this year for nominating no actors of color in the acting races. Civil rights groups have called a boycott of the Oscars to protest the lack of diversity and will demonstrate before the ceremony.But experts believe the Academy, where actors are the largest voting bloc, will reward performers with long careers with their first Oscars.Eddie Redmayne is front-runner for best actor for his portrayal of physicist Stephen Hawking in "The Theory of Everything." But there might be an upset from Keaton, whose "Birdman" role had him working in very long takes."I had no idea how precise we had to be, and how difficult, but you know there's no other way to do it, it's the only way you could make this movie," Keaton said after winning his Spirit Award Saturday. Julianne Moore, nominated five times in her career, should win her first best actress for her role as a woman with early onset Alzheimer's in "Still Alice."

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Civil rights groups to protest Oscars over lack of diversity Civil rights groups are calling for a boycott of Sunday's Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles to demand more diversity among Academy Awards voters after no actors from ethnic minority groups earned nominations this year, organizers said on Friday.Activist and political commentator Al Sharpton's National Action Network, civil rights group Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable said they would demonstrate on Sunday before the televised ceremony."We are calling for a boycott of Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony," National Action Network political director Najee Ali said at a news conference. "We believe the Oscars needs more diversity within its membership."The location of the Los Angeles demonstration has yet to be determined with police, Ali said.The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which hands out the Oscars, does not disclose the demographic breakdown of its roughly 6,100 members, but has long been criticized for being predominately white and male.A 2012 investigation by the Los Angeles Times found Academy members were 94 percent white and 77 percent male. Members, who are selected for their work and recommended by existing members, had a median age of 62, the study said.This year's nominations had no ethnic minority actors among the 20 nominees in all four acting categories, which spawned the trending Twitter hashtag "#OscarsSoWhite.""It is very important that the Academy Awards and its leadership have a membership and a type of voting system that represents America," Ali said.Notable minority exclusions this year include British actor David Oyelowo and director Ava DuVernay of Martin Luther King Jr. biopic "Selma," which earned a best picture nomination.A Reuters/Ipsos poll published on Wednesday found that 34 percent of the nearly 2,000 respondents said they believed Hollywood had a general problem with minorities. Sixty-two percent of black respondents said the film industry had a problem with minorities, compared with 48 percent from all minority groups polled.

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'Birdman' soars to Oscar heights on best picture win The dark comedy "Birdman" held up a mirror to Hollywood and its struggling actors and in return received the film industry's highest recognition on Sunday, the Academy Award for best picture.Director Alejandro G. Inarritu's story of a washed-up, former superhero actor attempting an improbable comeback on Broadway won four Oscars in its nine nominations, including best director, the second consecutive win in that category for a Mexican filmmaker.Acclaimed for looking like one continuous shot through a Broadway theater and mixing reality with fantasy, the movie, Inarritu said, came from learning to be fearless in filmmaking."Fear is the condom of life. It doesn't allow you to enjoy things," Inarritu said backstage at the 87th Academy Awards.The reward for the Fox Searchlight satire hews to an Academy tradition of awarding films that honor the entertainment industry, such as "Argo" and "The Artist" in recent years. Britain's Eddie Redmayne won best actor with his painstaking portrayal of physicist Stephen Hawking in "The Theory of Everything", robbing "Birdman" lead and former superhero actor Michael Keaton of a big comeback moment. Each of the eight best picture nominees went home with at least one award, but it was a disappointing night for "Boyhood," Richard Linklater's unprecedented 12-year endeavor to depict the simple story of a boy growing up, using the same actors. It won one Oscar out of its six nods. Wes Anderson's colorful caper, "The Grand Budapest Hotel" proved popular among the 6,100 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences who vote for the Oscars, winning four awards on its nine nominations. "Whiplash," the independent film about an aspiring jazz drummer and his tough mentor from young director Damien Chazelle, won three Oscars. The only box office blockbuster among the eight, the Iraq war drama "American Sniper" from director Clint Eastwood, also fell short with one win.It was a night in which the controversy over the lack of diversity among this year's nominees was front and center. First-time host Neil Patrick Harris opened the telecast with a quip: "Tonight we honor Hollywood's best and whitest, sorry brightest."But the race theme resonated in a more serious way too, when Common and John Legend got a standing ovation and made many in the audience cry with their performance of "Glory" from the 1960s civil rights drama "Selma."It won best song, delivering the sole victory to "Selma," the film at the center of the diversity debate sparked by the exclusion of actors of color from the four acting categories. The nominations prompted a backlash on Twitter with the hashtag "#OscarsSoWhite. "'Selma' is now, because the struggle for justice is right now," said Legend in the aftermath of recent racially charged protests in America. ACTRESSES MOORE, ARQUETTE PREVAILAll four acting award winners celebrated their first Oscars.Redmayne, who won critical acclaim for his depiction of the various stages of disability endured by Hawking, who suffers from the motor neuron disease known as ALS."I am fully aware that I am a lucky, lucky man," Redmayne said. "This Oscar belongs to all of those people around the world battling ALS." Five-time nominee Julianne Moore won best actress, also for her portrayal of an illness, as a middle-aged woman suffering Alzheimer's in "Still Alice.""I read an article that said that winning an Oscar could lead to living five years longer," said the 54-year-old Moore. "If that's true, I'd really like to thank the Academy because my husband is younger than me."Patricia Arquette won best supporting actress for her role as a struggling single mother in "Boyhood" and made an appeal for equal pay and rights for women in America in her acceptance speech. J.K. Simmons, after decades as a character actor, won the best supporting actor as a monstrous music teacher in "Whiplash". For the biggest televised event outside the sports world, the Academy aimed to attract young viewers who may not care much about the films but who could tune in for the musical acts.A bridge between the young and old, pop diva Lady Gaga received a standing ovation for her medley of tunes from "The Sound of Music" before introducing that film's star, Julie Andrews.Harris got laughs with his brave appearance in white underwear, a spoof of Keaton's opening scene in "Birdman." But some of his jokes fell flat and his debut got mixed reviews.Ratings for the ABC telecast might also suffer because the show ran past midnight on the U.S. East Coast. Poland's "Ida" clinched best foreign-language film, and director Pawel Pawlikowski pushed the 45-second acceptance speech boundary to thank "my Polish friends who are in front of the TV, the crew who were in the trenches with us and who are totally drunk now, and you were fantastic."Best documentary went to "Citizenfour," director Laura Poitras' feature about National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden, the former government contractor who detailed the secret mass surveillance programs."The subject of 'Citizenfour,' Edward Snowden, could not be here for some treason," joked Harris.

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Chris Brown's Canada concerts canceled after singer denied entry R&B singer Chris Brown, whose California probation stemming from a 2009 plea to assaulting singer Rihanna was revoked last month, said on Tuesday he was denied entry into Canada for concerts in Montreal and Toronto.Concert promoter Live Nation said "due to immigration issues" Brown's Tuesday show in Montreal with R&B artist Trey Songz and rapper Tyga was canceled as well as their Wednesday performance in Toronto."The good people of the Canadian government wouldn't allow me entry," Brown, 25, wrote on Twitter.It is unclear where and when Brown, whose probation was revoked by a judge last month for leaving Los Angeles County without court permission, was denied entry into Canada. He has a court date on March 20 and could face jail time.Messages left with Canada's Border Services Agency were not immediately returned, and Brown's publicist and attorney did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.It is not uncommon for performers with legal troubles to be denied entry to foreign countries. Brown postponed a British tour in 2010 after he was denied a visa.The "Turn Up the Music" singer has been on probation since 2009 following his guilty plea to assaulting Rihanna, who was his girlfriend at the time. He was jailed for 2-1/2 months last year for violating the terms of his probation.In 2013, a four-concert festival in Canada that Brown was set to headline was canceled due to the singer's health concerns. Prominent sponsors had also pulled out of one of the festival dates because of Brown's inclusion.

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With eye on Oscars, Tom Ford shows latest collection in Hollywood When Tom Ford learned his upcoming London Fashion Week runway show was scheduled for the day after Hollywood's Oscars night, where celebrity fashion on the red carpet is closely watched, he made a quick decision to make sure all eyes were on him."I wasn't going to try to compete with the Oscars," Ford told Reuters on Friday. Instead, the American-born, London-based designer opted to present his fall/winter 2015 collection to a star-studded front row at Milk Studios in the heart of Hollywood on Friday evening, two days before the Oscars ceremony.Watched by fashion's elite, including Vogue editor Anna Wintour perched beside actress Gwyneth Paltrow, Ford's autumnal collection featured his trademark sleek silhouettes and bold designs.Models walked a runway of white rose petals in high-laced blouses with denim and leopard print skirts, teamed with luxe fur coats and leather trim. As sequined and fringed body-hugging gowns emerged, rose petals fell from the ceiling, showering the models and front row guests. The audience included actress Scarlett Johansson in a figure-hugging gold dress, Oscar nominee Reese Witherspoon in a black latticed outfit, and fashion designer Nicole Richie, clad in a leopard print gown. Ford is the first high-profile designer to showcase a ready-to-wear collection in Los Angeles, but he reflects a growing fashion spotlight on the city. Saint Laurent Paris' creative designer Hedi Slimane famously moved the Parisian label's design studios to Los Angeles in 2012. Louis Vuitton is currently hosting an exhibition through February in Hollywood that showcases inspirations behind its latest collection. "LA is really coming into its own," Ford told Reuters backstage after the show. "It has a great vibe, space is less expensive, so if you are an artist, you can work more easily here than you could in New York or London." Known for dressing a selection of men and one woman at the annual Oscars ceremony, Ford mused on the evolution of the red carpet, avidly watched for fashion hits and misses. His gowns have been worn to the ceremony in previous years by Paltrow and Julianne Moore.Ford said while the red carpet was "very important" for the exposure it can give a designer, in recent years it had become "very safe and very predictable." "I don't like when clothes wear a woman," he said. "The woman I've made a dress for this year knows that, so hopefully it's reflective of her character, her personality."

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North Korean 'Snow White' takes to stage in London, Paris The tunes were familiar but the words were not as a troupe of deaf and blind North Koreans performed "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" and songs from "The Phantom of the Opera" in Britain and France over the past week.North Korea's "Youth Para-Ensemble", including 19-year-old blind accordionist Un Hyok Kang and seven deaf "dwarfs" fawning on a Snow White dressed in a glittery silver gown in a dance routine, put on shows in Paris, London and elsewhere in Britain over the past week.The tour was billed as a follow-up to the participation of paralympians from one of the world's most secretive states at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London."Dancing on the stage here was absolutely great," Hyok Ri, 14, gaily dressed in yellow and red with a floppy cap and false nose as one of the mostly over-sized "dwarfs", told Reuters through a sign-language interpreter at the Royal College of Music at the weekend.The fairytale was danced to familiar tunes including "Whistle While You Work", sung in Korean on a recorded soundtrack, and managed to condense the Disney classic movie to about 15 minutes.At least as tuneful was the performance of accordionist Kang, who lost his sight at the age of one and picked up the accordion at age 11. He played several pieces with British-Korean violinist So Ock Kim, a professor of violin at the Royal Academy of Music, including selections from "Phantom" and a Hungarian-style csardas folk dance."I usually perform alone but being able to perform with her, even though she is not from North Korea, was really, really great," Kang said through an interpreter.Kim said she'd been recruited at the last minute to play with Kang and had only had one day to rehearse after the performers arrived in Britain following a 50-hour trip from North Korea."He's got a lot of sense and he's got great rhythm but they're so used to having to do things in a set way, and of course he can't see me," Kim said of the blind accordionist. "But he did a fantastic job, he really tried hard because in the csardas he was trying to fit to me, so it was quite tricky for him. I am really quite proud."The trip was sponsored in part by the British-based charity DULA, which says it is "dedicated to the improvement of living conditions of handicapped people in North Korea".

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Julianne Moore takes best actress Oscar for 'Still Alice' Julianne Moore won the best actress Oscar on Sunday for her role as a university professor with Alzheimer's disease in "Still Alice".The win marked Moore's first Academy Award after being nominated four times previously. The 54-year-old actress was favored to win this year's prize after picking up Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and BAFTA awards earlier this year."I read an article that said that winning an Oscar could lead to living five years longer," Moore said while accepting her award. "If that's true I'd really like to thank the Academy because my husband is younger than me."In "Still Alice," the veteran actress plays a brilliant lecturer and beautiful redhead who is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease at 50. The small budget film was picked up for distribution by Sony Pictures only in September, thanks to Moore's award-winning potential.Last year, she said she was attracted to the role because she had never seen Alzheimer's portrayed from the point of view of the patient.The film was adapted from the novel "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova and was directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland.Moore has been among Hollywood's most celebrated actresses for the last 20 years, earning Oscar nominations for previous roles in "Boogie Nights," "The End of the Affair," "The Hours" and "Far from Heaven."She also won an Emmy in 2012 for her acclaimed turn as politician Sarah Palin in the television movie "Game Change."

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Oliver Stone's 'Snowden' film set for Christmas release Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone's big-screen dramatization of U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden's mass surveillance revelations will be released on Dec. 25, distributor Open Road Films said on Friday."Snowden" will star Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the former National Security Agency contractor who leaked details of U.S. and British surveillance and electronic monitoring programs.Filming has begun in Munich and will move to other locations before its expected completion in May. Open Road Films is a joint venture by Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Theatres, part of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto and Tom Wilkinson will also star in the film adapted from books "The Snowden Files" by Luke Harding and "Time of the Octopus" by Anatoly Kucherena, Snowden's lawyer.Snowden's disclosures were documented in filmmaker Laura Poitras' "Citizenfour," which was released last year and is the favorite to win the best documentary Oscar on Sunday. The 31-year-old Snowden fled to Hong Kong before revealing the secret surveillance programs and now lives in Russia.

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Sony taps Tom Rothman of 'Titanic' fame to head movie studio Sony Pictures Entertainment on Tuesday named veteran film executive Tom Rothman, a force behind all-time top-grossing blockbusters "Titanic" and "Avatar," to head its movie studio in a shuffle prompted by the fallout from a cyberattack.Rothman, 60, takes over for Amy Pascal, who suffered public embarrassment after hackers leaked emails she had written to other Hollywood executives.Rothman, who brings expertise in both blockbusters and art-house films, will probably push for more franchise development as he did at Fox, where he launched the "X-Men," "Planet of the Apes" and "Ice Age" movies. Sources close to the company said Rothman would start his new job in the next week or so.Rothman was known for financial discipline when he co-led Fox Filmed Entertainment from 2000-2012. In 2013, he became chairman of TriStar Productions, a joint film and television venture with Sony, and has pulled together a slate of films with directors like Jodie Foster and stars George Clooney and Meryl Streep.While the Sony studio came under pressure a few years ago from activist investor Daniel Loeb because of its flops and high costs, Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst said the motion picture division was "doing rather well."Ernst said the entertainment arm of Sony Corp would probably not have changed the studio leadership if not for the cyberattack.Rothman will report to Michael Lynton, who will continue to run the Japanese corporation's global entertainment business. His contract was extended for an undisclosed number of years, Sony said in a statement.Lynton had several choices inside Sony for Pascal's replacement, including her deputy, Doug Belgrad, and Columbia Pictures production president Michael De Luca."Tom’s creativity, strong talent relationships and track record of enduring films and commercial success are unparalleled in this industry and exactly what we are looking for to grow our film business," Lynton said in the statement. Pascal and Lynton announced this month that she was stepping down as studio chief and moving to a production deal on the lot with Sony's financial backing.The executive shuffle comes after hackers launched a devastating cyberattack on the studio in November, angered by the Sony Pictures comedy "The Interview." The movie, championed by Pascal, mocks North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

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London designers pin hopes on next generation of online shoppers Britain's designers took to the stage at London Fashion Week over the weekend to showcase modern elegance and eclectic design, amid hopes the next generation of online shoppers would help boost sales in coming years.Designer Jasper Conran filled the catwalk with leaves to create an autumnal mood. Models wore cashmere dresses and tunics, paired silk shirts and printed skirts, which were inspired by prints by Japanese artist Kunisada, in rich tones of aubergine, moss green, plum and chocolate.Conran, whose privately listed business empire also encompasses designing furniture, home ware and collections for Britain's leading department store Debenhams, said 20 percent of his sales came from his online business and he expected his company's future growth to be driven by the Internet and use of technology."Given that the whole world is online and the global reach that gives you, it's phenomenally important (to have a presence online). We sell in 85 different countries, it's an important part of business," Conran told Reuters."What I know will happen in the next five years, is that the Internet will hugely change our business globally. And it will be the Internet that does that. And that will be, I imagine, where our substantial future growth comes," he added.With online sales of clothing and footwear expected to grow to 19 billion pounds in the next four years, according to research firm Mintel, some designers are relying solely on the use of social media to help grow their businesses."For me, it’s a huge part of what I do. For someone who can't afford to advertise and afford traditional mediums to communicate to your consumer, then social media is a huge part of that," designer Henry Holland told Reuters."It has definitely helped me and my business, definitely enabled me to reach out to a wider audience, grow my business on a global scale," he added.Holland, who founded his label House of Holland seven years ago, said he looked to futuristic films like "The Fifth Element" and "Blade Runner" for inspiration for his latest collection which featured striped sheepskin coats, patterned trousers and high-waisted mini skirts.Designer Julien Macdonald showcased a collection of glamorous gothic-inspired evening dresses with lace and metallic detailing in shades of black, blood red and emerald green, whilst brightly colored latex dresses with furry trims and oversized knitted cardigans were seen at design trio Sibling.London Fashion Week, which attracts more than 5,000 buyers, journalists and bloggers to the capital, runs until Feb. 24.

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Some 11.4 million Americans have enrolled in Obamacare: White House Some 11.4 million Americans enrolled in private health insurance through Obamacare during the open enrollment period, the White House said in a tweet on Tuesday."The Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, is working. It's working better than we anticipated, certainly working a lot better than many of the critics talked about early on," President Barack Obama said in a video linked to the White House tweet.Administration officials have said they expected 9.1 million people to be enrolled in coverage and up to date on insurance payments by the end of the year. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office had predicted 12 million enrollees for 2015. Last April, the Obama administration announced that more than 8 million people had selected plans for 2014. But by the end of last year, only 6.7 million were still enrolled.Obamacare's open enrollment period for 2015 began on Nov. 15 and closed on Sunday.The White House said there had been a surge of applications in the last nine days of enrollment, particularly on Sunday."Sunday, February 15 was the biggest enrollment day ever: more new consumers signed up for health coverage than on any day this open enrollment period or the last," the White House said in a statement.The U.S. Health and Human Services Department said on Saturday that a technical problem had prevented some consumers from enrolling but that the issue, involving income verification, was fixed late on Saturday. The department said on Saturday that anyone who had been unable to submit an application because income could not be verified due to that problem or any other technical issue would receive an extension for enrollment.Plans for Obamacare, formally known as the Affordable Care Act, are sold on HealthCare.gov for 37 states. The other 13 states plus Washington, D.C., run their own websites.The Obama administration said last week that 2015 Obamacare subsidies were averaging $268 a month for people in the 37 states who had qualified for federal assistance.

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Ellie Goulding spends third week at top of UK music singles chart Ellie Goulding topped the British music singles chart for the third week running on Sunday, the Official Charts Company said, with her track "Love Me Like You Do" breaking the all-time audio streaming record.The song, which appears in the "Fifty Shades of Grey" movie, was streamed 2.6 million times over the last seven days, just pipping the previous record set by Mark Ronson's "Uptown Funk" featuring Bruno Mars.Ronson's track remains in third place in the charts, while Hozier's "Take Me To Church" also held steady in second.In the album chart, U.S. rock band Imagine Dragons went straight in at the top spot with their second studio album "Smoke + Mirrors", which was self-produced alongside British hip-hop producer Alex Da Kid.Sam Smith's "In the Lonely Hour" and Ed Sheeran's "X" both slipped one place to second and third respectively.

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Factbox: Oscar winners in key categories The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held the 87th Academy Awards at a ceremony on Sunday.Following is a list of winners in leading categories.BEST PICTURE"Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"BEST ACTOREddie Redmayne, "The Theory of Everything"BEST ACTRESSJulianne Moore, "Still Alice"BEST DIRECTORAlejandro G. Inarritu, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"BEST SUPPORTING ACTORJ.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESSPatricia Arquette, "Boyhood"BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAYGraham Moore, "The Imitation Game" BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAYAlejandro G. Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander DinelarisJr., Armando Bo, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM"Ida" (Poland)BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM"Big Hero 6"BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE"CitizenFour"BEST ORIGINAL SONG"Glory," from "Selma"BEST ORIGINAL SCOREAlexandre Desplat, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"BEST COSTUME DESIGNMilena Canonero, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"BEST CINEMATOGRAPHYEmmanuel Lubezki, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue ofIgnorance)"BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLINGFrances Hannon, Mark Coulier, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"BEST VISUAL EFFECTS"Interstellar"

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Lady Gaga, Julie Andrews notch Oscars' top social media moment There were underpants, Lego statues and a nail-biting finale on the Oscars stage on Sunday, but it was Lady Gaga's "Sound of Music" spectacular that sparked the most chatter on social media. The Oscars lit up digital platforms, with 21 million people logging 58 million interactions about the awards ceremony on Facebook Inc, according to figures from the social networking site on Monday.Lady Gaga performed a medley of hits from "The Sound of Music" and then was joined by Julie Andrews on stage for the 50th anniversary of the musical, which was talked about by 214,000 people per minute globally on Facebook, the company said.According to Nielsen Social, which monitors comments on Twitter Inc, some 60,000 tweets were posted in the minute following Lady Gaga's tribute performance as she was joined by Andrews, making it the most-tweeted moment of the night. With 129,000 mentions, Lady Gaga was also the celebrity who garnered the most chatter on Twitter.About 13 million people viewed 5.9 million tweets in the United States about the Oscars on Sunday night.Show highlights included host Neil Patrick Harris wearing just his underpants on stage in an homage to a scene from "Birdman," the audience receiving Lego Oscar statues during the "Everything Is Awesome" performance from "The Lego Movie" and John Travolta's apology to Idina Menzel for flubbing her name at last year's ceremony.On Instagram, it was Oscars presenter Ansel Elgort's photo with his mother as his date to the ceremony that earned the most "likes" - more than 733,000. The Oscars, aired live on Walt Disney Co's ABC, saw a sharp dip in viewership, with 36.6 million people in the United States tuning in to see frontrunners "Birdman" and "Boyhood" battle it out for the night's best picture prize. "Birdman" won, while "Boyhood" was shut out of the major categories.

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Eddie Redmayne wins first Oscar for 'Theory of Everything' Eddie Redmayne won his first Oscar on Sunday for his break-out role as physicist Stephen Hawking in the biographical movie "The Theory of Everything."The British actor, 33, took home the Academy Award for best actor for playing Hawking and the disabling complications of a motor neuron disease, known as Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS, over the course of 30 years.The Oscar came as little surprise following Golden Globe, SAG and British BAFTA trophies for his performance, which catapulted Redmayne from a relative unknown in Hollywood to its newest and most modest star."I am fully aware that I am a lucky, lucky man," Redmayne said as he held the gold statuette on stage. "This belongs to all of those people around the world battling ALS." Redmayne spent seven months preparing to play Hawking, mastering his physical decline into almost total paralysis as well as his dry wit, mischievous glint and lady's man charm. He met the author of "A Brief History of Time" just days before filming began.Hawking, now 72, gave his blessing to the film, even though it is based on the memoir of first wife Jane who married the young genius when he was given two years to live.Before "The Theory of Everything," the freckle-faced Redmayne was best known as an up-and-coming actor in movies such as "My Week with Marilyn" and the musical "Les Miserables," in which he played the rebellious young lover, Marius.Educated among Britain's elite at Eton College and Cambridge University, Redmayne made his professional acting debut in London in 2002 at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.Eight years later he won Britain's top stage award, an Olivier, for his role in the play "Red" and followed it with a Tony award when the play transferred to Broadway.Redmayne has also worked as a Burberry clothes model, and he topped the 2015 list of GQ's magazine's 50 best-dressed British men.

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'American Horror Story' actor Ben Woolf taken to hospital after accident "American Horror Story" actor Ben Woolf was rushed to a hospital in critical condition after being struck in the head by the side mirror of a passing car in Hollywood, police said on Friday.Woolf, who stands about four feet four inches (132 cm) tall and plays the character Meep on the FX channel show, was hit around 9 p.m. on Thursday, Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman Jane Kim said.He was rushed to a hospital in critical condition, Kim said, though his current condition was not known. The driver remained at the scene after the accident, Kim said.The Emmy-nominated "American Horror Story," by "Glee" creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuck, takes on an anthology miniseries format, exploring a new storyline and cast of characters each season.

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Aerodrums turn thin air into a virtual drum kit Everyone has seen someone play an air guitar that makes no sound. Now two researchers from Dublin have developed a program that allows a drummer beating sticks in the air to produce drum sounds without drums.As odd as it looks, the inventors of Aerodrums say it is the first fully drumless drum set, and they have ambitious plans for the product.Developed by Yann Morvan and Richard Lee, research fellows at the Trinity College Dublin Vision and Visualization lab, the kit is intended as an alternative for drummers who lack space for a drum set or who don't want to annoy their neighbors.Using motion-tracking technology similar to that used for motion-capture effects in movies, Aerodrums replicates the sound and experience of a real drum kit while being compact enough to fit in a backpack.A high-speed camera tracks the motion of markers on the sticks and determines when sounds should be triggered in response to their movement. Drummers have to sit about four feet (1.2 m) from the camera, "playing" a drum kit that is visualized on a computer monitor."It's what they use in Hollywood," Morvan said. “You have a high-speed camera that films the scene. It also sends light... that gets reflected back at the camera by those markers on the drumsticks and on the feet. This is retro-reflective material, meaning it reflects the light back from where it came.”The kit is being sold by Amazon for 129 pounds ($199). The Amazon website says the program for Aerodrums uses more than a gigabyte of high-quality drum samples to produce the desired percussion sounds."We didn't want Aerodrums to be a fad. We didn't want it to be the gadget of the year and then it's forgotten," Morvan said."We wanted it to be a proper musical instrument that is introducing air drumming as a legitimate way to drum and keeps going, keeps improving until it's fine to air drum live, it's fine to record using air drums because it's a real musical instrument."

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Patricia Arquette wins first Oscar with 'Boyhood' Patricia Arquette won her first Oscar on Sunday for her supporting actress role as a mother struggling to bring up two children in the movie "Boyhood."Arquette, 46, has swept the movie awards this season for playing the ups and downs of an every day mom in the independent coming-of-age drama that was filmed over a span of 12 years."To every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else's rights" Arquette said, accepting the award. "It's our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America," she added.The petite, blonde actress, who hails from an acting family that includes brother David Arquette and sister Rosanna, has appeared in more than 40 movies since the late 1980s.Previously best known for her roles in the TV crime series "CSI" and her Emmy-winning turn as a psychic in "Medium," Arquette was cast in 2002 as divorced mother Olivia Evans in director Richard Linklater's ambitious plan to film the story of young boy growing to adulthood in real time.Like the other actors, Arquette ages naturally over the course of the film, which sees her return to college as a single mom, marry, leave a violent alcoholic husband, and raise two children.Arquette grew up in a hippie commune in Virginia and drew much of her character from her own family experiences. Twice married - once to actor Nicolas Cage - and divorced, she won attention in her early career for unconventional choices and roles that exuded sexuality, including "True Romance" and "Lost Highway.""At 46, it's really beautiful, I can appreciate how meaningful it is," Arquette said of her Oscar nomination at a recent industry lunch.

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J.K. Simmons wins best supporting actor Oscar for 'Whiplash' J.K. Simmons won the best supporting actor Oscar on Sunday for playing a brutally demanding jazz teacher who pushes a drummer to the edge in "Whiplash."It was the first Academy Award for the 60-year-old actor, who had never been nominated before for an Oscar. He had been a favorite to win for the film, after sweeping the supporting actor category in all the major awards shows before Sunday.Simmons thanked his wife and his children and then made a family-centered plea to the audience and those watching at home."If I may, call your mom everybody, call your mom, call your dad. If you're lucky enough to have a parent or two alive on this planet, call them,” Simmons said.In his Oscar winning role, the actor portrayed a sharp-tongued teacher named Fletcher at an elite music school who does whatever it takes to make a promising drummer, played by Miles Teller, fulfill his potential. Fletcher goes as far as slapping the drummer in the face and throwing a chair at his head, yet he commands the respect of his students as he recounts jazz lore in a low-pitched voice.Simmons, the son of a university professor of music, has previously said that he believes his obtaining the role was an instance of "kismet," or fate.Simmons is known for playing another wise-cracking authoritarian in newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson from the "Spider-Man" franchise, a role he has reprised as a voice actor in a number of animated television shows. He also has played a neo-Nazi in HBO's prison drama "Oz" and a psychiatrist in police procedural show "Law & Order," and has been the face of Farmers Insurance in a number of commercials.

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'Birdman' vs 'Boyhood' Oscar battle heats up after Spirit Awards Dark showbiz satire "Birdman," and coming-of-age tale "Boyhood," took the top honors at the Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, a day before Hollywood's biggest night when both will face off in the top Oscars categories."Birdman," nominated for nine Oscars on Sunday, won three Spirit Awards, including the top prize of best feature. "We're threatened as a species into extinction," Alejandro Iñárritu, director of "Birdman," said of independent filmmakers in his acceptance speech. "These kinds of awards are where we can celebrate the cinema that is being forgotten.""Birdman" led the nominees with five nods along with jazz drama "Whiplash," which won two accolades, and civil rights drama "Selma," which left empty handed."Boyhood," filmed over a span of 12 years and nominated for six Oscars, won the best director award for Richard Linklater and best supporting actress for Patricia Arquette. All four acting categories were won by Oscar-nominated frontrunners, including Michael Keaton for best actor for "Birdman." In his acceptance speech, he called the film "bold cinema," and a "game-changer."Julianne Moore was named best actress for her portrayal of a woman suffering from Alzheimer's disease in "Still Alice.""I was lucky enough to come in at the beginning of the independent film movement and its really shaped my life and career," she said in an emotional acceptance speech.The 30th annual Spirit Awards, hosted by Film Independent, honors the best achievements across movies made under $20 million and are often an indicator of Academy Award winners, with drama "12 Years a Slave," taking top honors at both the Spirit Awards and Oscars last year.Unlike the formal glitz of the Oscars, the Spirit Awards opts for a relaxed, boozy lunch in a Santa Monica tent on California's coast. The show, hosted by Kristen Bell and Fred Armisen, was broadcast live for the first time on cable network IFC."Hollywood movies may be keeping the industry afloat, but the people in this room are keeping the industry alive," said "Boyhood" star Ethan Hawke as he presented the best supporting female award to Arquette. J.K. Simmons won best supporting actor for "Whiplash," and thanked his fellow nominees in the category.Poland's "Ida" won best international film, while "CitizenFour," about National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden, won best documentary. Both are nominated for Oscars.Dan Gilroy, nominated for the best screenplay Oscar, won best screenplay and first feature for "Nightcrawler."

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ABC's Oscars telecast draws smallest audience in six years Sunday's Academy Awards telecast on ABC drew its smallest audience in six years with 36.6 million average viewers, according to Nielsen figures, in what critics deemed a long, lackluster show and limited box office appeal among top nominees.Nielsen data on Monday showed a 16 percent decline from last year, a significant drop for Walt Disney Co's ABC since the program is its biggest annual draw. ABC banked on actor Neil Patrick Harris, who has earned plaudits as host of TV's Emmy Awards and theater's Tony Awards, to build on the momentum of comedian Ellen DeGeneres, who helped last year's show attract 43.7 million viewers, its biggest audience since 2000.The Oscars annually attracts the biggest non-sports TV audience in the United States, but the show this year drew the lowest viewership since 2009. ABC is signed on to broadcast Hollywood's biggest awards show through 2020.Harris, 41, who has a strong following among younger viewers as the star of sitcom "How I Met Your Mother," was seen as a bridge between older viewers and the younger audiences advertisers covet most.The telecast reached 60 million U.S. viewers overall, according to Nielsen figures. Producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, in their third straight year running the Oscars telecast, gambled on big musical numbers with the likes of Lady Gaga's tribute to "The Sound of Music" and an opening song-and-dance routine that failed to garner a strong ovation from the star-studded crowd.Critics faulted the show, which ran about 40 minutes longer than its three-hour schedule, for poor writing and bland bits.Harris ventured into the audience like DeGeneres did last year, but failed to spark a popular moment on social media as when the comedian took a selfie with several stars.Mary McNamara, television critic at the Los Angeles Times, faulted the show for its emphasis on how Martin Luther King Jr biopic "Selma" seemed to have gotten snubbed for some awards and the resulting debate about diversity among Oscar voters."As if trying to make up for 'Selma' being overlooked in many categories, the camera sought out and lingered on nonwhite members of the audience whenever 'Selma' or the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was mentioned," McNamara wrote.Additionally, besides "American Sniper," which made $320 million at box offices in the United States and Canada, the other seven best picture nominees failed to surpass $85 million, and few A-list Hollywood stars earned acting nominations unlike last year.

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U.S., Cuba to hold second round of talks on February 27: State Department The United States and Cuba will hold a second round of talks on Feb. 27 in Washington with the aim of restoring diplomatic relations, a State Department spokesperson said on Tuesday."The talks will be held on the 27th (of February) here at the State Department," spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a daily briefing for reporters.

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Designers spin '70s vibe for winter looks at New York Fashion Week Hemlines fell, sultry dresses hugged the body and tailored coats with generous fur trim oozed elegance on the runway as designers at New York Fashion Week spun a retro 1970s look with sleek silhouettes for their 2015 fall/winter collections.Chunky-knit sweaters, high collars, long layering and fur hats paired with ponchos and capes exuded a warm, comfortable feeling as the week-long fashion fest came to a close on Thursday and temperatures outside dipped below freezing."The bohemian side of the 70s is what you are seeing," said Lizzy Bowring, head of the catwalks department at trend forecasting and analysis company WGSN. "The look is much closer to the body, more streamlined, much more elegant than we have seen before."Ralph Lauren, one of the final designers to show his collection, topped an embroidered, feathered skirt with a cashmere turtleneck sweater and a shearling jacket with suede pants.The look was luxurious with long, belted coats and jackets with fur collars or sleeves, and gowns in cream floral lace, bronze tulle and black satin with a plunging back."What I am really loving the most is the continuation of this 1970s sensuality," said Ken Downing, fashion director and senior vice president of Neiman Marcus stores.Many designers dropped hemlines to mid-calf, while others kept them higher. Black and a rich color palette of burgundy, rust and olive, along with slit skirts, plaids, belted waists and beading and embroidery also featured prominently on the runway.Rugged met refined as coats and jackets were more structured with a military influence and large buttons, and chunkier heels appeared on shoes and boots.Calvin Klein kept to the '70s theme in his collection with patch-work leather coats and jackets and leather sheath dresses."You will see a lot of strong, tailored looks, something quite put together with a lot of definition to the waist," Jason Wu, a favorite designer of First Lady Michelle Obama, said about the upcoming season.New York Fashion Week attracts more than 230,000 people to shows held mostly at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week tents at Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and other venues. In September the event will be moving to a new, and as-yet undisclosed, location in Manhattan.The semi-annual Fashion Week, which is followed by shows in Europe, generates $887 million in economic activity each year, according to the New York City Economic Development Corporation.

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Hit 'Fifty Shades of Grey' retains top spot at U.S. box office The hit film "Fifty Shades of Grey", an adaptation of the best-selling novel about a kinky relationship between a businessman and a college student, raked in another $23.2 million in ticket sales to lead U.S. and Canadian box office charts for a second week.The film, which stars James Dornan and Dakota Johnson as the libidinous couple, again outpaced the No. 2 release, "Kingsman: The Secret Service", which took in $17.5 million from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates.Third place on Oscar weekend, when Hollywood is buzzing with anticipation of Sunday's annual Academy Awards ceremony, again went to the family-friendly "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water", based on the popular television show about a talking animated sponge. It sold $15.5 million in tickets.The three films replicated their standings from a week ago, and also outperformed a trio of new films that opened this week."Fifty Shades", a bona-fide box office bonanza, has already racked up $410 million in global sales in less than two weeks, according to Universal Pictures, the Comcast Corp unit that released the film."Despite an expected steep second weekend drop, the film is an unqualified success and a profit-making machine," noted Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at box office tracking firm Rentrak.Fourth place went to "McFarland, USA", which stars Kevin Costner as a track coach in a small California town. The film, released by Walt Disney, made $11.3 million for the three days from Friday to Sunday.Rounding out the top five, high school comedy "The DUFF", which stars Mae Whitman, took in $11 million. Both films scored solid reviews before proving popular with audiences.Another new release, "Hot Tub Time Machine 2", settled for the No. 7 spot after being outpaced by box office juggernaut and Oscar nominee "American Sniper"'s $9.7 million haul. The film, developed and financed by MGM and which cost just $14 million, took in $5.8 million on its opening weekend, less than half the take of the original 2010 film."Kingsman" is an adaptation of a popular comic series starring Samuel L. Jackson and Colin Firth about a spy agency's training program and a global threat by a tech genius."Kingsman: The Secret Service" was released by 20th Century Fox, the unit of 21st Century Fox. "The SpongeBob Movie" was distributed by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc.

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Alejandro Inarritu wins best director Oscar for 'Birdman' Mexican filmmaker Alejandro G. Inarritu won the Oscar for best director on Sunday for "Birdman," his darkly satirical take on show business.This was the first Academy Award for Inarritu, 51, whose film stars Michael Keaton as a washed-up, former superhero actor trying to make an improbable comeback with his own Broadway play."I am very, very thankful, grateful, humbly honored by the Academy for this incredible recognition," Inarritu said. "This is crazy."He praised his fellow best director nominees, saying "our work will only be judged by time."Inarritu's best director win makes it two years in a row that the honor has gone to a Mexican filmmaker. His friend, Alfonso Cuaron, won the Oscar last year for "Gravity", the 3-D space thriller starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney.Inarritu had faced stiff competition for the best director category from fellow filmmaker Richard Linklater and his coming-of-age tale "Boyhood," which was filmed over 12 years using the same cast.Previous feature films by Inarritu, "Amores perros" (2000), "21 Grams" (2003), "Babel" (2006), and "Biutiful" (2010), have all received Oscar nominations in various categories.

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Happy St. Patrick's Day from NASA: Ireland from space Nothing says St. Patrick's Day like a view of Ireland from space. At least that is the thinking of NASA, which issued this gorgeous image of Ireland in all its green glory. And the timing could not be more fit, considering millions of Irish around the world will be traipsing about Tuesday in green - many of them drinking green beer. This image taken by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer on NASA's Aqua satellite shows the Emerald Isle dominated by green vegetation, primarily grassland. The only exception is the exposed rock on mountaintops. Ireland owes its greenness to moderate temperatures and moist air, which means lots of rain and fog, as well as cloudy conditions 50 percent of the time. You might say NASA cashed in on a little luck of the Irish when it got this picture on a nearly cloudless day.

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​Saturday is a very special Pi Day -- here's why Whether or not you're a math geek, you know pi, or at least the beginning of it: 3.14. The infinite, irrational constant, without which you couldn't find the area of a circle, gets its day each year on March 14 (3/14).But this year is special. If you stretch out pi to its third and fourth decimal places, you get 3.1415, making March 14, 2015 (3/14/15) the ultimate tribute. And unless you're 117-year-old Misao Okawa, the world's oldest person, it's a once-in-a-lifetime event. It won't happen again until the year 2115. Whether you are celebrating with a math marathon or a pie-eating marathon (or a combination in which you use pi to figure out how much pie you just ate), if you really want to do it up this year, plan something for 9:26 and 53 seconds, stretching your commemoration all the way out to 10 digits.

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​Live-streaming apps dominate buzz at SXSW A live-streaming app called Meerkat, calls to online activism and pedicabs with a "Game of Thrones" iron throne seat were the top topics of conversation at South by Southwest over the weekend, as 33,000-plus members of the technology, marketing and media industries poured into Austin, Texas."Pinterest is about creativity and the employee base is quirky and interesting, so it's a good place to meet potential employees," he said. The five-day festival is not yet half over, but buzz-worthy trends are already emerging. Here's a look at top topics so far at the annual gathering of the Technorati. Live-Streaming Apps An app called Meerkat is dominating conversations. The simple app allows people to live stream anything at the touch of a button. The app used to let users automatically Tweet live streams too, but that came to a stop after Twitter confirmed Friday it acquired Periscope, a Meerkat rival, for undisclosed terms and limited Meerkat's access to Twitter.Meanwhile, rival live-streaming app Stre.am is a finalist for SXSW's innovation awards. Online Activism Some major political figures are using the festival to call for online activism. Former Vice President Al Gore gave a rousing talk about the need for urgent action on climate change on Friday. Gore called upon SXSW attendees to get involved in supporting climate change legislation ahead of environmental talks in Paris in December. "We are at a fork in the road, we can win this, but it requires passion," he said. In a keynote on Saturday, Princess Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud of Saudi Arabia discussed her efforts to bring women into the workplace and announced a new breast cancer awareness campaign that will rely on social and mobile media to spread the word in the Middle East, including the Twitter-ready hashtag #10ksa. Often in the Middle East, "a woman doesn't want to admit unhealthy status," she said. "There are larger cultural issues involved to talk about breast cancer." Corporate Stunts Promotions are everywhere. HBO's "Game of Thrones" is employing pedicabs with Iron-Throne seats and hosting "SXSWesteros," an event site that serves a "Game of Thrones" beer and allows fans a chance to sit on the show's Iron Throne. Meanwhile, smartphone battery pack maker Mophie created buzz with St. Bernard dogs that "rescue" festival-goers low on batteries when they tweet a plea for help to Mophie. The dogs, all locally owned by people in Austin, are part of the St. Bernard's Rescue Foundation, which was created to raise awareness about rescue dogs. "People don't get exposure to St. Bernard's ever," said Mophie spokesman Kevin Malinowski. "People get them as puppies when they're so cute, but once they grow up they can't handle them, so this is almost an education." Russell Brand's No-Show A documentary about actor Russell Brand, called "Brand, a Second Coming," was a headliner for the film portion of the festival. Brand was set to appear at the Friday premiere and give a talk as well as discuss his daily YouTube show "Trews," in which he talks about news topics. But that day Brand announced on his blog that he wouldn't appear at the festival, saying he was uncomfortable with how the documentary turned out, and backed out of the talk. "I apologise sincerely to the organisers of SXSW for my non-attendance, especially Janet Pierson, Brian Solis and Rynda Laurel from the interactive festival who were responsible for the keynote talk that I was due to do," he wrote in the blog post.

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What kind of damage can a solar storm do? A solar storm that hit Earth Tuesday is now at its "tail end," experts say. And as far as they know, the only effects have been beautiful displays of the aurora borealis along the northern latitudes. A solar storm is more than a light show, though. And they can be dangerous, albeit in a somewhat indirect way, affecting communications and power infrastructure. A 1-2-3 punch A solar storm happens when major eruptions called solar flares or coronal mass ejections (CME) happen in the solar atmosphere. If these events take place on the part of the sun facing Earth, they can send electromagnetic radiation and charged particle radiation hurtling our way. Annti Pulkkinen, a research astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Center, told CBS News that space weather scientists refer to what happens in a solar storm as a 1-2-3 punch.The first punch is that electromagnetic radiation coming from the solar flares comes toward us at the speed of light, reaching Earth in about eight minutes. It can change the composition of Earth's upper atmosphere in a way that interferes with high frequency radio communications and GPS signals. In the second punch, fast moving charged particles arrive, which can also have this sort of impact on the upper atmosphere -- or worse, if they hit satellites in space.The third punch comes courtesy of the CME, when the sun releases an enormous cloud of billions of tons of solar atmospheric material into the solar system. These fast moving clouds can reach Earth in about three days, which is what we experienced yesterday. When they interact with Earth's magnetic field, they can induce extra currents along high voltage power lines. That can trigger protective relays in the power grid and could, in the worst-case scenario, lead to widespread blackouts, as happened during a powerful solar storm in March 1989. In 2012, a massive solar storm that narrowly missed Earth. The storm was the strongest ever recorded, and had the planet been in its path, it could have had a catastrophic effect, blowing out electrical systems, GPS, radio systems and other technology worldwide, and sending billions of people into a blackout that could have taken years to repair. Two years later, one University of Colorado scientist remarked, "If it had hit, we would still be picking up the pieces." A classic storm Pulkkinen called Tuesday's solar storm a "classic" example of a coronal mass ejection."We saw a quite violent variation in Earth's geomagnetic environment yesterday," he said. While he has thus far not received any reports of operational problems in technical systems, there were sightings of "quite spectacular" northern lights in Minnesota and the higher states, as well as in Canada and Northern Europe. "That's the entertaining aspect," he said. He added that information about outages or other effects tend to trickle in over the days following a storm and that NASA scientists will be able to build a full picture of the impact within a couple weeks. "My expectation is that there may have been some observations of elevated levels of induced currents along power grids," Pulkkinen said. "It was not an extreme storm so I don't expect major problems in operating power grids. It was not associated with significant charged particles, so I don't expect major reports of impact on satellites." The storm hit about seven or eight hours earlier than expected, which is within typical range of uncertainty, according to Pulkkinen. Not that there's a whole lot to be done to prepare for one anyway."If you are a satellite operator, or operating airlines or transmission grids, there are mitigation actions you can take," he said. "On the citizen level, there's not too much you can do."But that's OK: "A solar storm couldn't do anything to a person on the surface of the Earth."

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Volcanic eruption forms new island in South Pacific An underwater volcanic eruption in the South Pacific has spawned a new island near Tonga. But before you book your tickets to this untouched paradise, be warned. Scientists have suggested it probably is too hot and unstable. The 1,640-foot-long island resulted from the eruption of the Hunga Tonga volcano in December. Images taken Jan. 19 by the Pléiades, a high-resolution satellite operated by Airbus Defence and Space, showed the crater that emerged between two existing islands as a result of the volcano.The rock and ash expelled from the volcano connected the crater to one of the two islands and wiped out all its vegetation, according to Airbus.Tonga is a collection of some 170 islands. Images from the new island showed a barren, gray landscape. The only redeeming feature was an emerald greensulfurous lake that formed on one end of the island. Several people witnessed the eruption and made visits to the new island, according to the BBC."It's really quite solid once you are on it and it's quite high," Gianpiero Orbassano, who owns a hotel in Tonga and travelled to the island with two friends, told the BBC."It felt quite safe - the only difficult thing was getting out of the boat on to the island. The surface was hot, you could feel it. And climbing it was hard in the bright sun." But Matt Watson, a reader in natural hazards at the University of Bristol, warned the island was likely to be "highly unstable." "It will be very loose and unconsolidated material," he told the BBC. "It's formed by fragmentation of magma, so it's basically small pieces of rock on top of each other that have formed an island."

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​9-foot "butcher crocodile" reigned before dinosaurs A 9-foot-tall beast with bladelike teeth once stalked the warm and wet environs of what is now North Carolina some 230 million years ago, before dinosaurs came onto the scene there, scientists have found. Now called Carnufex carolinensis, the crocodile ancestor likely walked on its hind legs, preying on armored reptiles and early mammal relatives in its ecosystem, the researchers say. They named it Carnufex, meaning "butcher" in Latin, because of its long skull, which resembles a knife, and its bladelike teeth, which it likely used to slice flesh off the bones of prey, said lead study author Lindsay Zanno, of NC State University and the NC Museum of Natural Sciences. "'Butcher' seemed a very appropriate way to get that into the minds of people," Zanno told Live Science in an interview. The large creature reveals not only one of the earliest crocodylomorphs, a group that includes today's crocodiles and their close relatives, but also highlights the diversity of top predators of the time. "People don't think about how many different predators were around in the Triassic, and that crocs really ruled before dinosaurs," Zanno said. [Photos: Ancient Crocodile Relatives Roamed the Amazon] Odd creature Zanno and her colleagues discovered parts of the skull, spine and arm bone of the creature while digging in the Pekin Formation in Chatham County, North Carolina. Sediments there were deposited 231 million years ago during what is called the late Triassic Period, when the area was still a part of the supercontinent Pangaea and was located near Earth's equator. "Around the equator at that time, we don't yet have dinosaurs showing up in this ecosystem," Zanno said. That could be a sampling artifact or because scientists just haven't found those dinosaur bones, "but as far as we know they weren't there," she added. The absence of predatory dinosaurs may have allowed meat eaters like Carnufex to balloon to its giant size. As soon as they saw the bones of the newfound creature in the rocks, the scientists knew it was something new. For instance, they noticed this weird texture on the animal's bones. "It has really pronounced ornamentation on the skull, it has all these pits and grooves," Zanno said, adding that the ornamentation is seen in crocs today but not in their early ancestors. Being one of the earliest and most primitive crocodylomorphs, Carnufex shared characteristics with several groups of organisms, including cheekbone features and tooth shape that resemble those found in theropods, a group of meat-eating dinosaurs. It also shared some skeletal features with the big-headed dinosaurlike reptiles called rauisuchids, a sister group of top predators on Pangaea at the time, Zanno said. Little guys win out Its reign as "top dog" didn't last. The extinction at the end of the Triassic killed off a slew of Earth's predators, including large crocodylomorphs and rauisuchids, leaving unscathed small crocodylomorphs and theropods. "Theropods were ready understudies for vacant top predator niches when large-bodied crocs and their relatives bowed out," Zanno said in a statement. "Predatory dinosaurs went on to fill these roles exclusively for the next 135 million years." Crocodile ancestors would have been pushed into secondary predator roles, the researchers noted. "As theropod dinosaurs started to make it big, the ancestors of modern crocs initially took on a role similar to foxes or jackals, with small, sleek bodies and long limbs," study co-author Susan Drymala, graduate student at NC State, said in the statement. "If you want to picture these animals, just think of a modern-day fox, but with alligator skin instead of fur." The researchers detailed the discovery Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

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Scientists mapping Earth in 3D, from the inside out The wacky adventures of scientists traveling to the Earth's core have been a favorite plot line in Hollywood over the decades, but actually getting there is mostly science fiction. Now, a group of scientists is using some of the world's most powerful supercomputers to do what could be the next best thing.Princeton's Jeroen Tromp and colleagues are eavesdropping on the seismic vibrations produced by earthquakes, and using the data to create a map of the Earth's mantle, the semisolid rock that stretches to a depth of 1,800 miles, about halfway down to the planet's center and about 300 times deeper than humans have drilled. The research could help understand and predict future earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. "We need to scour the maps for interesting and unexpected features," Tromp told CBS News. "But it's really a 3D mapping expedition." To do this, Tromp and his colleagues will exploit an interesting phenomenon related to seismic activity below the surface of the Earth. As seismic waves travel, they change speed depending on the density, temperature and type of rock they're moving through, for instance slowing down when traveling through an underground aquifer or magma.Thousands of seismographic stations worldwide make recordings, or seismograms, that detail the movement produced by seismic waves, which typically travel at speeds of several miles per second and last several minutes. By combining seismographic readings of roughly 3,000 quakes of magnitude 5.5 and greater the geologists can produce a three-dimensional model of the structures under the Earth's surface. For the task, Tromp's team will use the supercomputer called Titan, which can perform more than 20 quadrillion calculations per second and is located at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. The technique, called seismic tomography, has been compared to the computerized tomography used in medical CAT scans, in which a scanner captures a series of X-ray images from different viewpoints, creating cross-sectional images that can be combined into 3D images.Tromp acknowledged he doesn't think his research could one day lead to a scientist actually reaching the mantle. But he said it could help seismologists do a better job of predicting the damage from future earthquakes and the possibility of volcanic activity. For example, they might find a fragment of a tectonic plate that broke off and sank into the mantle. The resulting map could tell seismologists more about the precise locations of underlying tectonic plates, which can trigger earthquakes when they shift or slide against each other. The maps could also reveal the locations of magma that, if it comes to the surface, causes volcanic activity.

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Lockheed says technology investments cut cost of F-35 jets Lockheed Martin Corp said a series of manufacturing changes and technology investments were already driving down the cost of the F-35 fighter jet, and the savings were set to triple in the ninth batch of jets to be produced.Lockheed's F-35 program manager Lorraine Martin said on Wednesday that 58 of 131 ideas submitted under a new "Blueprint for Affordability" initiative launched last July had been accepted. She said $49 million had already been invested and $57 million in further projects were still under consideration.Lockheed is working closely with the U.S. government to lower the $400 billion projected cost for developing and building three models of the stealth fighter jet. Changes include new tools to apply coatings to the jet, high tech lasers to remove excess paint, and a new cryogenic process for cooling tools used during machining, Martin said.Martin said changes already adopted had trimmed the cost of each jet in the eighth production lot by $260,000, and those savings were slated to triple in the ninth batch, which includes 57 jets, for cumulative savings of over $1 million per jet.Lockheed has submitted a proposal to the Pentagon for the ninth and 10th batches of jets, with an eye to completing those contract by the end of the fiscal year.Martin said the program was on track to realize its overall goal of cutting the cost of producing the jets by $1.8 billion by 2019, or $10 million per jet, with a goal of achieving a cost of $80 million per jet by 2019, including inflation. Under the initiative, Lockheed and its key suppliers, Northrop Grumman Corp and Britain's BAE Systems agreed to invest $170 million in new tools and processes, with the government due to repay that money as savings are achieved.Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp in coming weeks plans to unveil its own cost-cutting measures for the jet's engine together with Britain's Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc, which builds the lift fan for the short takeoff model.Martin said the program was rapidly maturing, with 120 jets playing at nine operating bases, and more than 26,000 flying hours. She said more than 158 pilots and 1,640 technicians had been trained to fly and service the jets.The program's development was 65 percent complete, and was on track to be finished in 2017, she said.

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Nintendo games are finally coming to smartphones Nintendo is finally making its move into smartphone gaming. Following years of speculation, the House of Mario confirmed on Tuesday that its stable of popular gaming characters will be arriving on smart devices, courtesy of a new tie-up. It also revealed the code-name of its next dedicated games system. Nintendo is the owner of some of the best-known video game franchises of all time, including Mario, The Legend of Zelda and many more. Traditionally, the Japanese gaming giant has been extremely conservative about letting its popular franchises roam onto non-Nintendo products -- but with the firm's fortunes fading in the face of competition from gaming on phones and tablets, a new wave of customers could be about to get a chance to play with the company's most popular characters. As part of a tie-up with Japanese company DeNA -- which publishes a range of free-to-play mobile games -- Nintendo content will be coming to game apps for smart devices. "All Nintendo [intellectual property] will be eligible for development and exploration by the alliance," Nintendo's press release explains. This suggests that mobile Mario and Zelda games are definitely on the cards, though notes that only new and original games will be made, so don't expect any ports of Wii U or 3DS games. Nintendo has resisted calls to get involved in smartphone and tablet gaming for years, but risks being left behind if it doesn't make its games available on these increasingly popular platforms. "The business morphed from the only way that any young person could play a video game into one of many choices for young people who are just learning how to play games," Michael Pachter, an analyst with Wedbush Securities told CNET in January. Many of DeNA's games generate cash for their maker using in-app payments. This suggests that Nintendo may be planning to release games that are free to download, but offer gamers the option to buy extra items or unlock levels by throwing down small amounts of real cash. Popular apps like Candy Crush have demonstrated the earning power of these so-called "freemium" games, but gaming purists may find the thought of paying for in-game shortcuts hard to swallow. Nintendo says details on games and release dates "will be forthcoming", but hopes to get an online membership service that works across PC, smartphones, tablets and Nintendo systems up and running in autumn of this year. Speaking to CNET's sister site GameSpot, Nintendo confirmed its mobile efforts would be focused on iOS and Android, and not Windows Phone for now. NX games systemMeanwhile Nintendo looks to be cooking up a new console, promising its next games machine will feature an "entirely new concept." At the same press conference where it unveiled its mobile deal, Nintendo also moved to reaffirm its commitment to dedicated games machines, confirming it has a new own-brand system in the works -- though details are very scant for now. "Nintendo is currently developing a dedicated games platform with a brand new concept under the development codename NX," an English audio translation of the press conference says. "It is too early to elaborate on the details of this project but we hope to share more information with you next year," the company stated. This article originally appeared on CNET.com as "Nintendo will make games for phones, new 'NX' system."

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The next big hack could take place in the palm of your hand While the retail and health care industries have been rocked recently by a string of security breaches, another potential attack is massing right in the palm of your hand: your mobile apps. Four out of 10 large corporations are failing to ensure the safety of their apps, according to new research from IBM (IBM). The study, which was undertaken with the Ponemon Institute, found that one-third of companies never test their apps before releasing them, while half of organizations have no budget for mobile security.The findings should give mobile users pause, given the amount of sensitive data that's carried on their smartphones, ranging from passwords to GPS information. With hackers increasingly reverse-engineering apps and releasing them on unofficial stores, that's also increasing the likelihood that apps will include malware or security faults that could expose consumers to attacks."There is a race on for every company to have a mobile app out there," Caleb Barlow, vice president of mobile management and security at IBM, told CBS MoneyWatch. "At the same time, often they are using less mature developers. If you look at the demographics they are young and ambitious, but they aren't thinking about security, so security is an afterthought."The fact that about half of large organizations have no budget for mobile security is "staggering," he added.Other researchers besides IBM have raising alarms about the security issues prevalent in mobile applications. Security company FireEye, for one, has warned that it noticed a sixfold increase in the number of mobile malware designed to swipe financial data during the first 10 months of 2014 alone.So far, Barlow noted, the mobile industry hasn't been hit by the kind of large hacking attack that's impacted the retail industry, such as the massive data breach Target (TGT) suffered last year. "We think [an attack] is just a matter of time," he added.While much of the responsibility for a mobile app's security is up to the developer, consumers can take some steps to protect themselves, Barlow said.First, use what Barlow calls "good permission fitness." When an app asks to use data that it doesn't need to perform its task -- such as when a flashlight app asks to use the phone's GPS -- deny that request. Similarly, a map app doesn't need access to your contacts. Keeping apps from gleaning data that's not necessary to their function is one way to limit potential damages if an app is targeted.Secondly, don't "jailbreak" your phone -- and make sure your teens and college students aren't doing this -- because that can open your device up to a number of security issues. Teens find jailbreaking appealing because it allows them to download apps for free, but they might not be aware that many of those apps have actually been reverse-rigged by hackers to include malware, Barlow noted."All of the top 100 apps on Android have hack variance, or a version of the game or banking app that still works but didn't actually come from the publisher," he said. Teens and college students "go to store that's posted the app for free. In many cases what they think are free apps are apps with malware or malicious code." That's why Barlow tells parents to pay for their children's apps. He added, "That $3 you pay for an app is a whole lot less than you'll pay to fix their identity."

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Twitter's top 10 tweets Nine years ago, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey sent out his first tweet -- and the rest is history."Just setting up my twttr," Dorsey tweeted on March 21, 2006.With 52,530 retweets and 36,147 favorites, it was the tweet that started it all.As Twitter turns 9 years old on Saturday, the social media site took a look back at some "landmark moments" in its history, which, of course, includes Dorsey's famous first tweet.These are the top 10 tweets of all time, according toTwitter:Co-founderJack Dorsey's first tweet -- when the service was called 'Twttr.'"The day the idea of the #hashtag was born.NASA's Phoenix Mars lander confirmed on Twitter that there was evidence ofice on Mars.The day U.S. Airways Flight 1549 landed on the Hudson River near New York City, Twitter user Janis Krums was among the first on the scene. The picture Krums tweeted became an iconic photo of the "Miracle on the Hudson."Will they? Won't they? The Clarence House put an end to rumors when it announced Prince William became engaged to longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton.Sohaib Athar, whoold CBS News in 2011 he happened to be "taking a break from the rat-race by hiding in the mountains with his laptops," in Abbottabad, Pakistan, live-tweeted the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound.President Barack Obama dethroned popstar Justin Bieber with his"Four more years" tweet, which became the number one retweet on Twitter within minutes.The Boston Globe was one of the first news organizations to break the news of theBoston Marathon bombing on Twitter, which has become a crucial way for journalists to gather, report and spread information.Ellen DeGeneres made the 2014 Oscars go viral with this epic selfie. The photo broke the record set by President Barack Obama with the picture of him hugging first lady Michelle Obama after his re-election in 2012 (see above).Thousands of people took to social media to express solidarity with satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo after the Paris terror attacks by using the hashtag #JeSuisCharlie.

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Having given up his secrets, Richard III to be reburied Yep, it's a skeleton, archaeologist Matthew Morris announced. Captured in a newly released video, that discovery three years ago in a British church parking lot would eventually lead to confirmation that the bones Morris was excavating were indeed those of King Richard III. Eleven days after the first mud-covered fragments were found, the University of Leicester researchers exhumed the skeleton and found it to be that of a young male with evidence of battle trauma and severe curvature of the spine.Five months later, Skeleton One from what was called the Greyfriars Archaeological dig was confirmed to be the remains of Richard III. Now, those remains will be reburied in an elaborate ceremony fit for a king, complete with a procession Sunday taking the lead-lined coffin from the university to Leicester Cathedral.It will be on public view at the cathedral until March 26, when his remains will be reburied there in a ceremony that will be led by the Archbishop of Canterbury and include representatives of other faiths. Two days later, the sealed tomb of King Richard III will be exhibited for the public. There are no plans to reopen the tomb after that.In a run-up to the reburial, the University of Leicester has released video footage of the first moments of discovery that led to the torrent of new information about the king who died in battle 500 years ago and who was immortalized by Shakespeare as a villainoushunchback who had his brother and nephews killed to secure the thronefor himself. Researchers used DNA analysis to affirm there was a "perfect mitochondrial DNA match" in the sequence obtained from the skeleton and two living relatives of Richard III. Those relatives, Michael Ibsen and Wendy Duldig, were linked to Richard III through a female-only line descended from the king's eldest sister Anne of York. The DNA analysis also provided fresh details about his appearance. Most likely he had blond hair and blue eyes. And the researchers used whole body CT scans and micro-CT imaging of injured bones to provide details of exactly how he died. The king sustained a total of 11 wounds at or near the time of his death at the Battle of Bosworth Field on August 22, 1485. Nine of the injuries were inflicted to the skull, which suggests that he had removed or lost his helmet. Two other wounds were found elsewhere on the body.

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California struggles to conserve what little water that's left In the midst of a historic drought, California imposed new restrictions Tuesday on water use. State regulators voted to outlaw watering lawns more than twice a week, and within 48 hours of a rain storm. Restaurants can only serve water if customers request it.Almost all of California, 93 percent, is facing "severe" drought. In 67 percent of the state, it's "extreme." The March measurement of the snow pack in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains came just after a fresh snowfall.But that couldn't hide the fact that after the driest January on record, the state's reservoirs may hold just one year's water supply."It makes for scenic photographs, but really has minimal impact in terms of water supply," says Frank Gehrke of the California Department of Water Resources Well drillers in the state have been busy.Steve Arthur has had farmers lined up for one of his half-dozen rigs, which aren't finding water until 1,000 or 1,200 feet below ground. "From this job site, we go up the road here about a mile and half, we got another thousand-footer," Arthur says. The need for deeper wells adds to worry that the water table under the Central Valley is being depleted.Dairy farmer Joey Airosa depends on well water to grow feed for his 2,700 cows.He's worried that there will come a time that no matter how deep he drills, he won't be able to pump up water."I think everybody's worried about that," Airosa says.NASA water scientist Jay Famiglietti uses a satellite to measure the drought. The latest images show California is drying out, 11 trillion gallons below normal. "To satisfy this deficit of 11 trillion gallons of storage, we would need about three years of above-average precipitation," Famiglietti says. But with California going into a fourth year of drought, farmers are worried some of the most-productive agricultural land in the country is on its way to becoming desert.

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Tesla shares jump after Elon Musk tweet It was just a tweet. Monday at 9:35 a.m. Tesla Motors founder and CEO Elon Musk sent out a titillating tweet saying that, in a few days, he was planning to say something.He teased that at a press conference on Thursday he would be announcing something that would "end range anxiety" with a software update to the company's highly rated Model S electric sedans.The speculation began. Will it be a change that would actually stretch the car's range? Or an improved reporting system that will help alleviate the stress of running out of battery? Either way, the market was buying it. Tesla (TSLA) stock immediately shot upward. And that prompted another tweet later in the day, this time a defensive assertion that, no, the first tweet was not intended to drive stock prices up:By the end of trading Monday, Tesla's stock price had risen from $191.10 a share at tweet time, to $195.70 at the closing bell.It seems this whole range anxiety thing has turned into tweet anxiety. Late Monday night Musk sent out a tweet celebrating the apparent success of his battery-swapping program along the California coast. He quickly added: "But that's not what I mean by addressing range anxiety."

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​Facebook explains why some posts are blocked, others not You know it when you see it doesn't really work anymore (if it ever did), so Facebook is trying to be transparent about how it determines what constitutes hate speech, when threatening language goes too far and exactly how much buttock is too much buttock. The social network has the right to block or take down content that violates its community standards, and to reprimand people who post offensive text or images by imposing temporary or permanent bans. But it's not always clear what's kosher and what will earn a user the boot. Examples range from pages that are deemed blasphemous under conservative laws, such as when Turkey called for Facebook pages that "insult" Mohammed to be blocked, to a mom and professional photographer who was banned for a day after she posted a photo of her two-year-old daughter with the top of her bottom exposed over her sagging bathing suit, looking like the Coppertone baby. What constitutes blasphemy and how many inches of butt crack you can show are among the many judgment calls that Facebook has to make when someone flags a post, page or picture as offensive or inappropriate. So an in effort to clarify how it makes these judgment calls, the company released a set of explanatory notes to its policies Sunday. What is nudity? Facebook recognized that people may bare their bodies for perfectly good reasons, such as raising awareness of certain issues, and that not all skin is bad. But it admitted that "our policies can sometimes be more blunt that we would like" and that it occasionally has to "restrict content shared for legitimate purposes" because members of certain backgrounds and underage users might be sensitive to it.Photos of people's genitals will be removed, as will those "focusing in on fully exposed buttocks." Pictures of female breasts cannot show the nipple, unless the woman is breastfeeding or displaying post-mastectomy scars. Art of nudes is OK. So is digital content of nudity and sexual activity as long at it's educational, satirical, or just plain funny.Graphic sex is a no-no. What is hate speech? Facebook's definition of hate speech is content that directly attacks people based on their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, or "serious" disabilities or diseases. The company relies on people reporting defamation and harassment, but encourages discussion that promotes debate and challenges hateful ideas, institutions and practices.It also gently suggests users to just avoid commentary if it bothers you, by unfollowing, messaging or blocking whoever says it or presenting your own "alternative viewpoints." "We know that our policies won't perfectly address every piece of content, especially where we have limited context, but we evaluate reported content seriously and do our best to get it right," Facebook's head of global policy management and deputy general counsel said in a statement.Defining threats and violence Facebook recently added tools to help prevent suicide, and in its policy update it clarified that it won't allow "promotion of self-injury or suicide." It also removes "credible threats of physical harm," which it determines are credible based on things like whether a person's physical location is known. And though it has flip-flopped on whether or not to allow people to post graphic videos of beheadings by terrorist organizations, lifting a ban in 2013, it avowed that it does not let any such organizations maintain a presence on the site. It will also remove content expressing support for such groups.For the full explanation, see the community standards here.

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Malware targets gamers, holds high scores hostage A new type of malware is playing with gamers. The ransomware, described by a researcher at cybersecurity company Bromium, affects at least two dozen popular games, locking players out until they pay to open up their saved games, add-ons and scores.Ransomware has been a rising trend among cyberattackers over the last couple years. The name comes from the fact that the malware infects your computer and then takes over, requiring payment to let you back into your files. Earlier this year, readers of the Huffington Post and other sites were victims of rasomware that made its way onto their machines via infected advertisements.Bromium said on its blog that this is the first time it's seen gamers being targeted by ransomware. Given that gamers not only work hard to advance in their games, but that they also pay for upgrades and new features within the games, they certainly seem like ripe marks for blackmail. The infected games include Call of Duty, Minecraft, Half-Life 2, Assassin's Creed, Resident Evil 4 and Bioshock 2, as well as the online game World of Warcraft. (There is a full list on Bromium's blog.) To help keep important files on your computer safe, Bromium offers this advice: "We'd like to remind you keep your files backed on an external hard drive and keep this hard drive unplugged when you go online." They also warn that if you have folders synced with DropBox or other cloud services, "malware will get to them too."

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How NASA uses balloons to do science on the cheap Among NASA's vast array of hi-tech gadgets, its scientific balloons look like something out of a bygone era when space shuttles and planetary rovers were little more than science fiction. But looks can be deceiving.Considered the workhorses of the space community, these balloons are beloved by scientists for offering cheap ways to study everything from the ozone hole to distant planets at a fraction of the price of putting the same equipment on a space mission. And occasionally, they have been part of groundbreaking science. NASA's John Mather did some of his early investigations on balloons that later contributed to his Nobel Prize-winning work that affirmed the Big Bang, and the international BOOMERANG consortium used balloons to determine that the curvature of the universe is neither positive nor negative but that it's flat. "They probably have made an outsized impact on science for the amount of publicity they have gotten," Princeton University's William Jones, who has put payloads on several balloon missions including BOOMERANG (balloon observations of millimetric extragalactic radiation and geophysic), told CBS News. "Take BOOMERANG, for example. That established the cosmological model that we still believe to be accurate today," he said. "The balloon program delivers space quality data for a tiny fraction of the price that an orbital mission would cost. It's really the bang for the buck you get for that program and that spans a wide range of fields of physics and astrophysics." Now, NASA is planning to launch what many scientists see as the next generation of these balloons this week in Wanaka, New Zealand. Initially scheduled for March 15, the launch has been postponed on account of Cyclone Pam.The new so-called super pressure balloon is capable of staying in the air for up to 100 days, which is much longer than the two weeks of standard balloons. Made of polyethylene film, which is the same type material used for plastic bags, the pumpkin-shaped balloon is massive. This one is big enough to fit upwards of 100 Goodyear blimps within it, and can go as high as 110,000 feet into the air, into what is called the near-space environment, above 99.5 percent of the atmosphere.The plan is for the $1.2 million balloon to head east toward South America, circumnavigating the globe several times before landing most likely in Argentina.It will remain in the southern hemisphere, only because NASA doesn't have the approvals to fly over Russia. While this flight won't have any payloads, the $3 million project with 11 different camera systems on board is considered a crucial test for the program. "This is the most extreme test of the balloon itself," said Debbie Fairbrother, chief of the NASA Balloon Program Office. It will be the first time that a balloon of this size will be flown in typical day-night conditions, which would have been impossible with standard balloons, since gases heat up during the day and then cool at night, changing the pressure and volume of the balloon, and therefore its altitude. Earlier flights have been done in Antarctica during the summer where it has been light around the clock. "If I take our standard balloon and launch it here, I will have very large fluctuations from day to night on the order of 40,000 feet or more," Fairbrother said. "Scientists want to be in the stratosphere. They want to be high. If at night the balloon comes down too far, some of them can't do their science." Fairbrother said scientists are attracted to the fact the unmanned balloon will be traveling at the mid-latitudes or Earth's temperate zones between the tropics and the Arctic and Antarctic polar regions.These conditions are ideal for a range of scientific experiments, from using telescopes to repeatedly observe phenomena within the atmosphere, such as storms or the dynamics of water, methane or other cycles, to studying gamma-ray astrophysics, cosmic rays, cosmic microwave background, or high resolution optical astrophysics. If the test flight goes off without a hitch, NASA hopes to have its first balloon in the air next year with scientific equipment. "If this is successful, then it's oh, wow, we can do this," NASA's Mark Sistilli told CBS News. "Then, scientists are going to form a line at NASA saying, hey, can you fly our payload on one of those things? There is a whole class of scientists who would love to fly for multiple weeks, perhaps a couple of months." Among them is Jones, who is partnering with the University of Toronto and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to hopefully put a powerful wide-field imaging telescope on the super pressure balloon platform. "The space-like environment and the low backgrounds at night allow for imaging quality in the near ultra-violet to near infra-red that cannot be achieved anywhere but in space," he said."With this system, we can probe a variety of topics in astrophysics and cosmology.We intend to focus initially on gaining a better understanding the distribution of dark matter in our universe," he said. "Ultimately, this system will provide the capability of the Hubble Space Telescope at a cost of several million dollars, in contrast to the several-billion-dollar cost of the space mission." Another scientist hoping to get his project on what he called a "poor man's launch vehicle" is Chris Walker. A University of Arizona astronomy professor, Walker has submitted to NASA a proposal to map the Milky Way as part of his effort to better understand the interstellar medium, which is the gas and dust from which stars, planets and people are made of. His research cannot be done from the ground because the far infrared wavelengths he studies are absorbed by Earth's water vapor. He could try and get onto a space mission but cost are prohibitive - $200 million compared to $35 million for a balloon - and there would be much stricter limits on the weight and power of his equipment. "With the balloon, you have much more money to spend on your instruments," he said, adding the new balloons would allow him to get five times more data than in the past. "You wouldn't think that, because the balloon is low-tech," he said. "But you have much more money to spend on your instrument....and you can do leading edge science."

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Obama orders 40 percent cut in government's greenhouse gases President Barack Obama will order the federal government on Thursday to cut its emissions of greenhouse gases by 40 percent, as the U.S. seeks to spur other nations to get serious about climate change. Obama's executive order will also direct the government to ramp up use of renewable energy sources to 30 percent of the federal government's consumption. The White House said U.S. taxpayers could save up to $18 billion in electricity costs by reducing greenhouse gases 40 percent over the next decade, compared to 2008 levels. "Certainly our hope is that we are laying forth template that other countries could also learn from and look at as well," said Brian Deese, a senior adviser to Obama. Major companies that sell to the federal government like GE, HP, Northrup Grumman and Honeywell will also announce voluntary commitments to cut their own emissions of the heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming, the White House said. IBM, for example, said it will cut its energy consumption 35 percent by 2020 and buy at least 20 percent of its power from renewable sources by that year.All told, the government pollution cuts along with industry contributions will have the effect of keeping 26 million metric tons of greenhouse gases out of the air by 2025, or the equivalent of what about 5.5 million cars would pump out through their tailpipes in an average year, the White House said. Yet it was unclear exactly how either the government or private companies planned to meet those targets. Aiming to call attention to the government's initiative, Obama on Thursday was to take to the roof of the Energy Department's headquarters, where the president was to tour an installation of solar panels. While at the Energy Department, Obama also planned to discuss the new emissions targets at a roundtable with federal suppliers that do more than $1 billion per year in business with the government. The U.S. government is responsible for only a small portion of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, but the Obama administration is hoping that taking aggressive steps at home will increase the political pressure on other countries to do the same. A major global climate treaty, in the works for years, is supposed to be finalized in December at a summit in Paris, but most countries have yet to announce what their national contributions to the pact will be. Earlier this month the European Union unveiled its contribution, vowing to cut greenhouse gas emissions at least 40 percent by 2030, compared to 1990. The U.S. has yet to announce its contribution to the treaty. But in a bid to build momentum last year, Obama set a U.S. goal to cut emissions up to 28 percent by 2025 - compared to 2005 levels - in a joint announcement with China that boosted hopes that an aggressive climate treaty may come to fruition. The president hasn't fully explained how he'll meet that goal, but his aides have suggested that unprecedented pollution limits he's imposing on power plants will get the U.S. much of the way there. Obama's executive order will direct the federal government to:

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Republican Jeb Bush slams Obama's handling of Iran, urges sanctions Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush on Wednesday criticized President Barack Obama's approach to Iran's nuclear efforts, urging Congress to ramp up sanctions if negotiations fail.Bush, who is seeking his party's 2016 nomination, also said in a speech on Wednesday that any agreement the Obama administration reaches with Iran should be subject to congressional approval.

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​Now Facebook can also be your checkbook Facebook's (FB) Messenger app will soon let you send your friends money, the latest in a crowded field of services aimed at an increasingly wireless and cashless generation.Services including PayPal (EBAY), its Venmo unit and the disappearing-photo app Snapchat let you beam money to friends and family using smartphones linked to bank accounts or credit cards.Facebook's entry, announced Tuesday, is free, works with debit cards and is available on Apple (AAPL) andmobile devices running Google's (GOOG) Android and on desktop computers.The world's largest social network will process the payments and emphasized the service's security features.Facebook will likely expand internationally after the service becomes available to U.S. users over the coming months.To send money, Messenger users can tap a new "$'' icon that's next to the buttons that let you send photos, stickers or a thumbs-up sign. Then, enter the amount you want to send, tap "pay" on the top right corner and enter your debit card number. To receive money for the first time, enter the card number.Once you add your card number, you can create a pin code that you will need to enter the next time you want to send money. On Apple devices that have Touch ID, you can enable this instead and authorize transactions using your fingerprint.To help allay concerns about security, Facebook noted that it handles more than a million payments transactions on its site every day for its advertisers and game players.Its payments systems are stored separately from other parts of the Facebook network and receive additional monitoring and control, the company said in a blog post Tuesday.

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The best views of the total solar eclipse Sky-gazers in the Arctic were treated to a perfect view of a total solar eclipse Friday as the moon completely blocked out the sun in a clear sky, casting a shadow over Norway's remote archipelago of Svalbard. But for those of us who weren't able to make it to the tiny islands in the north of Europe that played host to the exclusive display, there are fantastic videos and beautiful pictures to revel in. There's also one viral image that has tricked a lot of hopeful web watchers into thinking they saw something they didn't.People shouted, cheered and applauded as Longyearbyen, the main town in Svalbard, plunged into darkness. The skies were clear, offering a full view of the sun's corona - a faint ring of rays surrounding the moon - that is only visible during a total solar eclipse. A few hundred people had gathered on a flat frozen valley overlooking the mountains, and people shouted and yelled as the sudden darkness came. A group of people opened bottles of champagne, saying it was in keeping with a total solar eclipse tradition."I was just blown away. I couldn't believe it," said Hilary Castle, 58, from London. "It was just fabulous, just beautiful and at the same time a bit odd and it was too short," said Mary Rannestad, 60, from Minnesota. A solar eclipse happens when the moon lines up between the sun and the Earth. This casts a lunar shadow on the Earth's surface and obscures the sun. During a partial eclipse, only part of the sun is blotted out. Though some enterprising eclipse-seekers got exactly what they were hoping for, others were less lucky. A blanket of clouds in the Faeroe Islands in the North Atlantic blocked thousands of people from experiencing the full effect of the total eclipse. The Faeroes and Svalbard were the only two places on land where the eclipse was total. About 20,000 visitors had traveled to the two remote island groups to watch the spectacle. Despite the clouds in the Faeroes, tourists and residents in Torshavn alike hooted and applauded as the daylight dimmed for about 2 minutes and 45 seconds. "It was a pretty big disappointment not to be able to see the sun," said Janaki Lund Jensen, who had sailed from Copenhagen with 884 others to see the eclipse. Hotel rooms have been booked for years as thousands came to the Faeroe Islands to try to see the eclipse.Sigrun Skalagard, in the northern parts of the Faeroes, said birds there went silent and dogs started howling. "Some people were surprised to see how fast it became dark," she said. A partial solar eclipse could be seen Friday across Europe and parts of Asia and Africa. Britain's Met Office said 95 percent of the sun was covered in the Hebrides, Orkneys and Shetland Islands, and one percent less further south in Glasgow and Edinburgh. In Copenhagen, the sun was 85 percent covered up while 80 percent was hidden in southern Sweden. Cloudy weather put a lid across large parts of the continent, making it hard to see the eclipse. However, a thin cloud cover allowed people in Stockholm to watch the eclipse without protective glasses, as the faint disk of the sun could be seen through the overcast sky. As CBS News correspondent Charlie D'Agata reported from London, hopeful watchers there didn't need their protective glasses. The clouds were too thick to see much of anything at all. Meanwhile, the European Space Agency's Sun-watching Proba-2 minisatellite got a breathtaking view from orbit, more than 400 miles above Earth:That image is real. This next one, however, is not. A photo of the eclipse supposedly taken from aboard the International Space Station, with Earth below and the Milky Way in the background, went viral on Twitter Friday. It turned out to be a fake.As Gizmodo reported, it is a 3D rendering made by a user on the site DeviantArt. The Milky Way was added later in Photoshop. The last total eclipse was in November 2012 over Australia. The next one will be over Indonesia in March 2016, according to NASA.

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​Sony launches PlayStation Vue TV streaming service The stream of streaming TV announcements continues. After the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Apple is due to come out with a television streaming service this fall, Sony steps in with a soft launch of its version, PlayStation Vue. Sony said Wednesday that the service is now available over PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 consoles in Chicago, New York City and Philadelphia.Like others, Vue offers both live streaming and on-demand TV, as well as DVR, without a cable or satellite subscription. And like Dish Network's Sling, Vue offers live sports, though the former has the market cornered on ESPN programming. The top tier plan from Vue has local sports, though, from stations such as the YES network, which broadcasts New York sports, including Yankees games.This is a substantial deal-sweetener, since losing local sports coverage keeps many fans from cutting the cord.And the sweetener might be necessary to help the cost of the service go down smoothly. The basic Sling TV service is $20 a month, with add-on packages like extra ESPN channels or kids stations costing $5 apiece. If you get all of them, it tops out at $45 for about as many channels. Apple is reportedly set to offer 25-plus channels for between $30 and $40 a month. Sony's Vue, meanwhile, starts at $50 a month, going up to $70 if you want all 80 or so available channels, including local sports. That's a lot of channels, but it's also a lot of money -- and if you want to watch in multiple rooms, you're going to need a lot of PlayStations. Sony will add the ability to watch Vue on iPad soon, and eventually will expand to other cities.

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82-year-old uses Internet for the first time -- and it blows her mind In her 82 years of life, Kerstin Wolgers never once used a computer or surfed the web -- until now. Last week, the Sweden resident Googled, Skyped, Instagrammed, tweeted and even swiped right on dating app Tinder. It was an experience -- or experiment, rather -- that she will never forget. Wolgers, agreeing to wear a camera strapped on her chest, participated in a five-day digital experiment conducted by public relations firm MyNewsDesk. Here in the U.S., around 41 percent of seniors report they don't go online, according to a 2012 Pew Research study. In Sweden, 10 percent of the entire population doesn't use the Internet because they don't understand it, MyNewsDesk said. Wolgers admitted she used to be one of those people. But she isn't anymore. More than 100 tweets, 39 Instagram posts and one "Gangnam Style" YouTube view later, Wolgers realized she was missing out. "To be honest, I don't think I was ever interested of the Internet before I realized that it was something I could benefit from," Wolgers explained in a Reddit AMA. "Everything has been very pleasant, but at the same time very difficult." In total, Wolgers fielded over 2,400 questions from Reddit users curious about her first Internet experience. One important question the 82 year old was asked: Will you continue using Tinder? "I'm not sure," Wolgers answered, highlighting that she hasn't met anyone on Tinder yet. "I dont know if anybody would find me interesting." "Just keep swiping," one user encouraged. A short film posted on YouTube by MyNewsDesk after the experiment showed Wolger'shilarious reactions while using a computer, cell phone and going online for the first time."You could look at this for hours!" Wolgers said with an iPad in hand. "I wish I had waited 82 years to completely ruin my life," one YouTube user commented on the video. Wolgers countered that, actually, "the world is better with access to Internet. It opens up so many possibilities!"In the end, Wolgers said she's planning to continue learning more about technology. She may give up on Tinder, but when it comes to navigating the Web, she's "up for the challenge."

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Solar storm hits Earth, may pull northern lights south A severe solar storm smacked Earth with a surprisingly big geomagnetic jolt Tuesday, potentially affecting power grids and GPS tracking while pushing the colorful northern lights farther south, federal forecasters said. So far no damage has been reported. Two blasts of magnetic plasma left the sun on Sunday, combined and arrived on Earth about 15 hours earlier and much stronger than expected, said Thomas Berger, director of the Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado. This storm ranks a 4, called severe, on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 1-to-5 scale for geomagnetic effects. It is the strongest solar storm to blast Earth since the fall of 2013. It's been nearly a decade since a level 5 storm, termed extreme, has hit Earth. Forecasters figured it would come late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning; instead, it arrived just before 10 a.m. EDT. They had forecast it to be a level 1."It's significantly stronger than expected," Berger said. Forecasters had predicted a glancing blow instead of dead-on hit. Another theory is that the combination of the two storms made it worse, but it's too early to tell if that's so, he said. The storm seemed to be weakening slightly, but that may not continue, and it could last all day, officials said. It has the potential to disrupt power grids but only temporarily. It also could cause degradation of the global positioning system, so tracking maps and locators may not be as precise as normal. Often these types of storms come with bursts of radiation that can affect satellite operations, but this one has not, Berger said. But the most noticeable effect is usually considered a positive. The Aurora Borealis or northern lights that usually can be viewed only in the far north will dip south, so more people should be able to enjoy the colorful sky show. Forecasters were not sure just how far south it would be visible. Forecasters said early Tuesday, before sunrise, auroras were already seen in the northern tier of the U.S., such as Washington state, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Space Weather branch chief Brent Gordon said if the storm effects continued through Tuesday evening, there was a "very strong possibility" that the northern lights could be seen as far south as the middle United States, even Tennessee and Oklahoma. That also means much of Russia and northern Europe, as far south as central Germany and Poland, had the potential for the sky show. The sky has to be clear of clouds but the crescent moon will appear small enough it shouldn't interfere with viewing of the aurora is in the sky, Gordon said.

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Rory McIlroy takes over as face of EA Sports' golf franchise The world's number 1 golfer is about to take over the top golf video game. EA Sports has announced Rory McIlroy will be the new face of the PGA Tour video game franchise. Previously, Tiger Woods had held the honor from 1998 until 2013, when the two ended their business relationship amicably, CBSSports.com reports. The sports video game behemoth didn't produce any golf video game in 2014, and had originally planned on producing a faceless game this year, CBSSports.com reports. The Irish golfer said in a press release he's thrilled with the honor. "I'm very proud and humbled to see my face and name on EA Sports Rory McIlroy PGA Tour," said McIlroy in a statement. "This is a great honor, and something I couldn't even dream of growing up playing the sport. I really hope people enjoy the game and I'm very glad I can be a part of it."

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​Volunteers fight to save starving Calif. sea lion pups The starving sea lion pup was so tiny that it looked like a rock at the base of the seaside cliff until it struggled to raise its head as humans approached. It bleated weakly as volunteer Brennan Slavik eased it into a crate for transport to a rescue center, where it peered from a child's playpen with woeful eyes made enormous by an emaciated frame.It's a scenario playing out daily in California this year as rescue centers struggle to keep up with hundreds of sick and starving sea lion pups washing up along the coast. More than 1,100 pups have been rescued since January from beaches, but also from inside public restrooms, behind buildings and along railroad tracks. It's not unusual to have some sea lions wash up each spring as the pups leave their mothers, but so far, the number of stranded babies is five times greater than in 2013, the worst season in recent memory. "These animals are coming in really desperate. They're at the end of life. They're in a crisis ... and not all animals are going to make it," said Keith A. Matassa, executive director at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, which is currently rehabilitating 115 sea lion pups. The situation is so bad that Sea World suspended its sea lion show so it can focus on rescue efforts. The theme park has treated 400 pups -- more than twice the number it would care for in a typical year -- and constructed two temporary pools to house them.Scientists aren't sure what's causing the crisis, but suspect that warmer waters from this winter's mild El Nino weather pattern are impacting the sea lion birthing grounds along the Channel Islands off the Southern California coast. The warm water is likely pushing prime sea lion foods -- market squid, sardines and anchovies -- further north, forcing the mothers to abandon their pups for up to eight days at a time in search of sustenance.Sea lions wouldn't normally start showing up in large numbers until April or May but this year, rescue centers began to get calls in December, said Matassa. "They're leaving with a very low tank of gas and when they get over here, they're showing up on the beach basically ... starving to death," said Justin Viezbicke, a coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's California Stranding Network. For rescue centers like the one in Laguna Beach, that translates into round-the-clock, back-breaking work for dozens of volunteers who've arrived from all over the U.S. to help. n

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Cybertrolls increasingly target women Cybertrolls are mostly anonymous users that pop up on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Their posts are deliberately provocative, can be abusive and vitriolic in nature and women are an increasingly common target, reports CBS News correspondent Jan Crawford.At a TED Talk in Vancouver Thursday, Monica Lewinsky spoke out on the dangers of cyberbullying, calling for a cultural revolution in the online community where vile abuse is delivered via social media."Anyone who is suffering from shame and public humiliation needs to know one thing: you can survive it," Lewsinsky said.She said her role in a presidential sex scandal turned her into "patient zero" for online bullying, and that she was branded "a tramp, tart, slut, whore, bimbo, and, of course, 'that woman.'"Activist Rachel Sklar said Lewinsky speaks for a growing number of women who have endured anonymous attacks on the internet and are starting to fight back."For many years, there was the mantra 'don't read the comments,' and this notion that anonymity and 'freedom of speech' was more important on the web than safety or pushing back on abuse," said Sklar, founder and gender justice activist at the organization Change the Ratio.Lewinsky's speech came just days after actress Ashley Judd became the most recent victim of a vicious social media barrage.The actress, an enthusiastic fan of Kentucky Wildcats basketball, tweeted that an opposing team was "playing dirty."What followed was an outpouring of sexually charged, violent threats too graphic to repeat."The way things happen on social media is so abusive and everyone needs to take personal responsibility for what they write," Judd said on MSNBC.While personal attacks on public figures like Judd are hardly new, a study by the Working to Halt Online Abuse organization found that women reported 72.5 percent of online harassment.Last month, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo admitted his company had failed to deal with internet attacks."We suck at dealing with abuse," Costolo told staffers in an internal memo. "We lose core user after core user by not addressing simple trolling issues... I'm frankly ashamed of how poorly we've dealt with this.""We are seeing the internet platforms start to take these threats seriously and you will start to see actual legal ramifications, because eventually the law does catch up with what is happening online," Sklar said."I know it's hard, it may not be painless, quick or easy, but you can insist on a different ending to your story," Lewinsky said.Nearly every state has some law against bullying, but currently no federal law exists against cyberbullying.

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​Could pee-resistant paint curb public urination problem? San Francisco's Department of Public Works is looking into a new weapon of sorts to combat those who urinate in the streets, alleys and on sidewalks: A high-tech, liquid-resistant paint that would repel the waste, splashing it back at the offender. CBS San Francisco reports Mohammed Nuru, head of San Francisco's Department of Public Works, is open to suggestions to combat those who might not have manners and use public space as a urinal, or the homeless who might not have a better place to go. San Francisco is notorious for its stench in some neighborhoods, stemming from those who pee in public. The Chamber of Commerce sees it as a growing concern and a quality-of-life issue. The liquid-resistant paint is already being used in other cities, including Hamburg, Germany, known for unruliness in its red-light district.Community group IG St. Pauli painted walls in the neighborhood and hung signs warning, "Do not pee here. We pee back!" A YouTube video of the Hamburg experiment is what grabbed San Francisco leaders' attention (watch it below)."Prohibitions and fines do scarcely anything," an IG St. Pauli member says on the video. "So we decided to solve the problem our own way. Now, St Pauli pees back." "We saw this report on the Internet and thought it looked interesting," Nuru told the San Francisco Chronicle, adding that the DPW is considering testing the paint in areas where "it's costing us a lot to send teams out and do clean-up". San Francisco passed legislation banning public urination in 2002 but the law has had a little success, even though fines can range from $50 to $500. "We know it's a problem and we're out there - our foot beats and our mobile patrol units. We're out there trying to enforce these kinds of violations," police spokesman Sgt. Dennis Toomer told the Chronicle in 2007. "When we do spot something we take action on it, but we have limitations. We're trying our best." In the first six months of 2013, San Francisco received more than 5,600 requests for steam-cleaning sidewalks, the majority of which were caused by human feces, according to CBS San Francisco. Bay Area Rapid Transit officials say human feces is responsible for gumming up many subway station escalators. In June of 2012, work crews opened up the broken BART escalator at San Francisco's Civic Center Station and found so much human waste that they had to call in a hazardous-materials team, the station reported.The pee-resistant paint is called Ultra-Ever Dry, made by a Florida-based chemical cleanup and waste management company called Ultra Tech. The company describes it as "super-hydrophobic" and says it has practical applications, water-resistant boots and gloves being a prime example. Suggestions for where the city should test the paint can be submitted to [email protected]. "If a suggestion sounds reasonable, we'll try it," Nuru said.

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