groupware corina: February 2013

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Maryland Farm Wedding from Brooke Courtney Photography + Bliss ...

I could put together an entire post gushing only about how spectacular this venue is? a beautiful race horse farm in rural Maryland with lush green pastures, picturesque views, and its own vineyard? I mean, wow. But you see, I would have barely scratched the surface of the story because this farm is home to this bride?s childhood and her family?s history?(the little girl in me just melted).?Brought to us by?Brooke Courtney Photography?and Bliss Weddings and Events, this elegant east-coast wedding is so gorgeous it will make your head spin. It?s also filled with tons of DIY details and nods to the couple?s friends and families. The result is a warm, intimate, incredibly personal event filled with the glow of one very in love boy and girl and you can see it all right here in the gallery.

From Bliss Weddings and Events? Michelle & Harry approached us to help them pull the details of their wedding day together. Despite being on a tight budget, the couple felt it important to include as many of their family and friends as possible without compromising their vision. So with some cost saving tips from us, Michelle?s creative intuition, and the help of family and friends, we all worked tirelessly to bring their vision to life.

Michelle & Harry met their freshman year at Washington & Lee University in Lexington, VA. It was a case of ?opposites attract? for this beautiful country girl from Maryland and handsome city boy from New Jersey. After seven years together they knew they wanted to plan a wedding which was personal and meaningful, and would be a reflection of them as a couple.?Since she was a little girl, Michelle had always dreamed of having her wedding on her family?s race horse farm. This 400 acre property with its sprawling hillsides, a working race track, and a vineyard would certainly be a breathtaking backdrop. The farm houses 3 generations of the bride?s family, including her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

In creating her personal touches, Michelle drew inspiration from her family, her friends and her farm. One of the couple?s favorite paintings is of a horse that won the Preakness in 1983 (and the cornerstone of the family business). This very painting, which hangs above the mantle in Michelle?s grandmother?s 18th century home, is depicted on their invitations and response card, and its theme is carried out through much of the d?cor. Carol St. John, the groom?s mother is a well established designer in NYC, and, with the help of her florist friend, Patti Pearce, designed all of the wedding flowers. Michelle?s bouquet was hand tied with lace from her late Aunt?s veil and her great grandmother?s locket. The guests? tables, named after famous racehorses, were decorated with lush flowers in vintage vases and each place setting had a sprig of rosemary, a symbol of remembrance, in honor of those who could not be with them on this day. Michelle?s father, Kevin, hand crafted the ceremony seats and bar backboard from old barn wood. They decorated the bar backboard with jockey silks, plaques, awards and photos ? a tribute to the family?s history and legacy in horse racing. All of the wooden signs, directing guests to the day?s activities, were specially designed by Kevin and the bride and groom.

The local neighbors took part in their wedding by transporting guests in hay wagons from the breeding shed at the base of the farm to the beautiful ceremony spot which overlooked the property. Following the ceremony, as the newlyweds recessed back down the aisle, guests tossed oats in place of traditional rice, to celebrate their union. The couple then boarded their private ?Just Married? get away wagon pulled by the most beautiful Clydesdale horses. The celebration continued with delicious food served during cocktail hour including oysters straight from the Chincoteague Bay, local cheeses, produce, and homemade recipes. A traditional southern BBQ with pit beef, ham, turkey and all the sinful fixings were washed down with Makers Mark (a family favorite), and wine made right on the farm. Because of Michelle and Harry?s love of pie the dessert display included every kind of pie imaginable. The final touch was a 1 tier wedding cake, baked locally using Michelle?s great grandmother?s famous recipe.

Other meaningful details included silhouettes of Washington and Lee painted on the game of corn hole which paid homage to the couple?s alma mater, and a Bruce Springsteen biography book which the couple used as their guest book, paying tribute to New Jersey and their love of music. This book is displayed on the coffee table in the couple?s home and they love flipping through the pages to read love notes from guests bringing back memories of the day.?Every detail of Michelle and Harry?s wedding had a purpose and was a true labor of love.

From Jeff of Brooke Courtney Photography??When I first spoke to Michelle before she booked our team, I knew her wedding was going to be special. On the tippy top of a beautiful horse farm was where they shared their I do?s. But before then, Michelle shared a very special first look with her father. It?s become a tradition now to have a first look between not only the bride and groom but also the bride and her father. And I love it. With that first look, both Michelle and Dad were at ease and ready to enjoy the day. Without a cloud in the sky, guests were taken by carriage up from the house to the hill. There aren?t enough words to explain how beautiful it was. As the sun set we took portraits upon that hill. It was perfect. We rode the carriage back with the sun setting behind us. Music, singing and laughing, all shared by great friends. During the reception, so much love was shared by each family, and their speeches were some of the most touching I?ve ever heard. Such a relaxing, beautiful day for a relaxing, beautiful wedding. Certainly one of Sam?s and my favorites from the 2012 season.

From the Bride??Our families and friends have spent wonderful times at the farm, and in fact, it was here that Harry proposed to me! For us, the farm is home and encompasses all things important to us?not only family, friends, horses and nature, but also good food, wine, and relaxed good old fashioned Southern fun.

The inspiration for the wedding was to have it be rustic to reflect the farm setting, comfortable and relaxed for guests to reflect Harry and I?s vision for the wedding as a bigger version of the many bonfire and band parties we have had there and at Washington and Lee with all our wonderful friends and family, and also incorporate the racehorse theme that is such a big part of my family and the farm. We wanted neutral colors as to not take away from the natural beauty of the farm but also to reflect the fall season with browns and burgundy and textures like straw, burlap, and wood.

Almost every detail of this wedding was DIY ? my dad and mom worked tirelessly on the farm to prepare for the wedding. We did the flowers ourselves and the cocktail hour food as well as the desserts. It was a wonderful team effort, especially for 250+ guests.?My dad and his best friend hand made the benches that the guests sat on when we got married.?The wooden signs that my dad and I made for parking, directing guests and for ones showing the miles to some of our favorite places on earth.?

I hand made our invitations with stamps and used a painting of our horse who won the Preakness as the front of the post card that served as a reply card. That same painting is on the wall in my grandparents? house on the farm where we got ready for the wedding ? it is also on my family?s bottles of wine made with grapes that are grown on the farm that were on each table.

Our signature drinks at the wedding were the ?Uncle Chuck? a drink named after Harry?s Uncle that his family loves and ?the Buck stops here? ? a Maker?s Mark and ginger ? my grandfather?s favorite drink, we named it after a plaque that he has on the front of his desk where Harry asked my dad permission to marry me.

Leading up to the wedding the weather was calling for lots of rain but much of our plans included outdoor activities ? lawn games, hay wagons, and being married overlooking the farm. We didn?t want to use our backup plan so we took a chance and evoked an old southern tradition which says that the sun will shine on your wedding day if you bury a bottle of bourbon at the place where you are to be married. It worked! ? Our wedding day could not have been more beautiful ? full of sunshine, love, and laughter.

A few months before the wedding my cousin Ben passed away in an accident on the farm. He was only 20 years old and we grew up on the farm together, he was more of a brother than a cousin. He and his friends were going to play bluegrass for our wedding until he passed away. We had also decided to get married in the field where by coincidence his accident occurred. We decided to still have the ceremony there and asked the bluegrass band to play ?Wagon Wheel? by Old Crow Medicine Show, one of Ben?s favorite songs as well as a theme song for our time at college in Virginia. We dedicated it to Ben.

From the bride + groom??Our favorite moments were getting into the wagon to go to the cocktail hour with our wedding party. We decided to share the ride with them on a wagon we outfitted with benches and beers on ice instead of our own wagon and it was so great. We drove through the farm drinking and laughing ? my brother and Harry?s best friend playing the guitar as the sun was going down behind us. It was perfect.

Our entrance into the tent was maybe our favorite moment of the whole day ? Our band first did the traditional call to post that every horse race starts with. They then led our parents and the wedding party in with a second line. It was amazing to watch our best friends and family dance their way into the tent in front of us. We made our way to the dance floor where many guests joined us and never left!

Photography: Brooke Courtney Photography / Ceremony + Reception Venue: Bonita Farm / Officiant: Pastor Barbara Stumpf?/ Event Planning + Coordination: Emilie Hilsenrath of Bliss Weddings and Events / Floral Design: Patti Pearce (friend of the family) of Flowers by Design and Carol St. John (Mother of the Groom)?/ Event Design : The Bride together with Bliss Weddings and Events?/ Invitations: DIY by the bride (Stamp from Antiquaria) / Event Rentals: Party Party Inc.?/ Catering: Beefalo Bobs / Band: Brother Josephus and the Love Revival Orchestra?/ Bluegrass Trio: Smooth Kentucky / Pies: Woodlea Bakery?/ Wedding Dress: Anne Barge via Lovely Bridal Shop, New York City / Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Hair + Makeup: Alison Harper & Co.

Source: http://www.stylemepretty.com/2013/02/27/maryland-farm-wedding-from-brooke-courtney-photography-bliss-weddings-and-events/

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US economy showing strength as spending cuts loom

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Even with automatic spending cuts looming, the outlook for the U.S. economy brightened a bit Tuesday after reports showed that Americans are more confident and are buying more new homes.

Home prices are also rising steadily, and banks are lending more. Such improvements suggest that the economy is resilient enough to withstand the deep government cuts that will kick in Friday.

That's especially encouraging because uncertainty over the federal budget could persist for months.

"The stars are lining up for stronger private sector growth this year," said Craig Alexander, chief economist at TD Bank.

Sales of new homes jumped nearly 16 percent in January to their highest level in 4? years, adding momentum to the housing recovery. Consumer confidence rose in February after three months of declines. And home prices increased in December from the same month in 2011 by the largest amount in more than six years.

The upbeat economic news contributed to a rally on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 100 points.

Consumers still face numerous burdens. Among them is a sharp increase in gas prices. The national average for a gallon, $3.78, has surged 44 cents in a month.

And Social Security taxes rose 2 percentage points beginning Jan. 1. This year, the increase will cost a typical household that earns $50,000 about $1,000. Income taxes for the highest-earning Americans also rose.

Both factors could reduce overall spending.

On Friday, about $85 billion in automatic spending cuts are to kick in, and there's little sign that the White House and Congress will reach a budget deal to avoid them. The cuts will cause furloughs and temporary layoffs of government workers and contractors and sharply reduce spending on defense and domestic programs.

For about 2 million long-term unemployed, benefits now averaging $300 a week could shrink by about $30. Payments that subsidize clean energy, school construction and state and local public works projects could be cut. Low-income Americans seeking heating or housing aid might face longer waits.

Overall, the tax increases and spending cuts could shave up to 1.2 percentage points from growth this year, economists estimate. Alexander estimates that without the spending cuts or tax increases, the economy would expand more than 3 percent this year. Instead, he predicts growth of only 2 percent.

But growth should accelerate later this year as the effects of the government cutbacks ease, he and other economists say. And several reports Tuesday suggest that the economy's underlying health is improving despite the prospect of lower government spending and further budget stalemates:

? The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose 6.8 percent in December from a year earlier. That was the biggest year-over-year increase since July 2006. Rising home prices tend to make homeowners feel wealthier and encourage more spending. They also cause more people to buy before prices rise further. And banks are more likely to provide mortgages if they foresee higher home prices.

? Consumer confidence rose after three months of declines, according to the Conference Board, a business research group. Confidence had plunged in January after higher taxes cut most Americans' take-home pay. The rebound, though, suggests that some consumers have begun to adjust to smaller paychecks. The consumer confidence index rose to 69.6 in February from 58.4 in January. That's higher than last year's average of 67.1.

? Bank lending rose 1.7 percent in the October-December quarter, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said. It was the sixth rise in seven quarters. Banks made more commercial and industrial loans to businesses and auto loans to consumers. More lending means the Federal Reserve's policy of keeping interest rates at record lows will benefit more people. Chairman Ben Bernanke reiterated to Congress on Tuesday that the Fed's efforts are helping the economy and signaled that they will continue.

? Sales of new homes rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 437,000, the Commerce Department said. That's the highest level since July 2008. The gain will likely encourage more construction. Higher sales are keeping the supply of new homes low, even as builders have tried to keep up. At the current sales pace, it would take only 4.1 months to exhaust the supply of new homes for sale. That's the lowest such figure in nearly eight years.

"Builders are not putting up homes fast enough to meet underlying demand," said Patrick Newport, an economist at IHS Global Insight.

New homes have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to data from the National Association of Homebuilders.

Construction hiring has picked up in recent months. The industry has gained 98,000 jobs since September, its best stretch since the spring of 2006 ? before the housing bubble burst.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-economy-showing-strength-spending-cuts-loom-212049200--finance.html

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Is historical claim behind the mystery group of (armed?) Filipinos in Borneo?

Malaysian troops are negotiating with about 100 men from the Philippines who have identified themselves as the 'royal army' of the Sulu Sultanate, which has a historic land claim to the area, say police.

By Simon Roughneen,?Correspondent / February 15, 2013

Malaysian policemen check a vehicle along the main road near Lahud Datu in Malaysia's eastern Sabah state Thursday. Malaysian security forces in Borneo surrounded armed intruders believed to be from the southern Philippines and sought to persuade them to leave peacefully Thursday, authorities said.

Bernama News Agency/AP

Enlarge

It's around an hour by speedboat from Sulu in the southern Philippines to Sabah in the Malaysian part of Borneo, a route often plied by fishermen, traders, and migrants. The maritime route goes from what is the poorest part of the Philippines to eastern Malaysia, and many make the journey in search of work.

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What is the Sultanate, anyway?

The sultanate, or the territory the sultan governed, existed from the late 15th century until the late 19th century, governing Muslims spanning parts of Sulu and northern Borneo.
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Though the sultanate is not recognized anymore internationally as a governing entity, Malaysia still pays a token "rental fee" to the heirs of the last sultan.
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The claims could put the Philippines in an awkward position, embroiled in an unwanted territorial dispute, given that the men camped out in Lahud Datu are Filipino nationals.

Who are these men?

Though it?s unclear who this ?royal army? is, analysts are eyeing three southern Filipino militias. Militants from the southern Philippines have a history of crossing the narrow stretches of water to Borneo.
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Some speculated at first that the groups' appearance had something to do with deadly clashes in early February between the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and Abu Sayyaf, two Muslim armed groups from Mindanao, in the southern part of the Philippines.
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Some Filipino media reports suggested that at least some of the men who crossed the waters to Sabah are MNLF fighters. But that has not been confirmed.
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The MNLF signed a peace deal with the Manila government in 1996, while the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a MNLF splinter, recently forged its own tentative peace agreement with the Filipino government (with the aid of Malaysia).
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By far the smallest of the three groups, Abu Sayyaf opposes the agreements, as they grant autonomy to parts of Muslim Mindanao, because Abu Sayyaf has said it wants an Islamic state in the southern Philippines.
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And Abu Sayyaf has been known to make the same crossing to Malaysia as these self-described descendants of the Sultan of Sulu, much more frequently than other groups, as they have been pursued on and off by the Filipino Army.
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Abu Sayyaf has long been linked to Al Qaeda. It?s known for hosting the likes of Khalid Sheihk Mohammed, a central figure in the 9/11 attacks. And it is also known for taking 20 people, mainly tourists, hostage in 2000 in Malaysia.
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These days, though, the group seems more like a criminal gang than a politically-motivated terror cell. It is currently holding, by some estimates, six foreign hostages who it likely wants to exchange for ransom, a money-making tactic used by Abu Sayyaf in the past.
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MNLF leaders spun a recent attack on Abu Sayyaf as an attempt to crush the group, end such hostage-taking, and thus widen the appeal of the impoverished southern Philippines to tourism.
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If this group of self described descendants are linked to either the MILF or MNLF, Manila will hardly be happy that groups with which it signed peace deals crossed to Malaysia and faced off with Malaysian soldiers. If they're linked to Abu Sayyaf, it would highlight the inability of US-trained Filipino troops to rein in the group.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/bqZeg8Tyb-I/Is-historical-claim-behind-the-mystery-group-of-armed-Filipinos-in-Borneo

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Are Online Paid Surveys A Scam? - Morse Asa60's blog

Is taking surveys on the web a scam? Many have argued that paid surveys are a waste of time, but have you noticed any seasoned survey takers among the critics? No! That is so, due to the fact exper?

There are a assortment of survey internet sites on-line and not all are respected, but after you locate a very good reputable company, it will be easy to earn some extra funds on the web from surveys. Surveys are speedily becoming a excellent way for men and women to make fast money, just for giving their honest opinions.

Is taking surveys on the web a scam? A lot of have argued that paid surveys are a waste of time, but have you noticed any seasoned survey takers among the critics? No! That is so, simply because knowledgeable on the internet survey takers are happy with what they can earn with paid surveys, and are achieving what they set out to do make funds. To be frank taking on-line paid surveys is not for the old-fashioned, the conservative, or those afraid to take a challenge.

You have to be open-minded, versatile, adaptable and ambitious in order to pursue a profitable online profession as a professional on the web survey taker. When you get started and first get paid, you turn into a fan of acquiring paid for your opinion. Then, you expand your on-line profession horizons by perhaps becoming a mystery shopper, freelance writer for some online project, freelance programmer, or what ever else you feel like! There are no scams where taking on-line surveys are involved. In some circumstances paid surveys is typically just the begin. A lot of have began out on the Net by becoming paid surveys taker, and are now proud managers of their own businesses and, most of all, masters of their own time, space and life.

The crucial to receiving paid for taking online surveys is to join as several on the web survey web sites as possible. Reason getting is that most web sites will only send a couple of surveys to you each and every month despite the fact that this differs from internet site to site. There is more than 500 cash for survey websites on the web at the moment and that figure is increasing on a normal basis, the top 50 of these will send you surveys often although from the rest you may acquire a couple of surveys every single month or so.
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Apart from taking surveys, some of the internet sites accessible give you the chance to participate in online or offline concentrate groups. Focus groups are a group of men and women sat in a room obtaining a discussion about a distinct solution or service focus groups have a tendency to offer a larger reward than taking surveys on the internet. One more service offered by money for survey internet sites is product testing, this is exactly where you will be sent a totally free item and asked to test it then post your opinion on the internet site. Once more with solution testing the rewards can be high and if its not so very good at least you get to maintain the item!

If you are looking for a complete-time revenue online, paid for surveys might not be the point for you. Even though you can make some very good funds taking paid surveys online, far more than likely it will not be sufficient to make you wealthy but at least your not getting scammed and will be paid for all your efforts. On the other hand, if you want to make some extra cash with out a lot work then cash for surveys is absolutely the way to go.

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Source: http://asa60.typepad.com/blog/2013/02/are-online-paid-surveys-a-scam.html

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Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T

Run down the laundry list of what makes a great ultrabook, and chances are the Windows 8-equipped Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T11 ($1,199 list) has it: Stylish, thin design? Check. Touch-enabled full HD display? Check. Great battery life? Check. And so on. While it isn't entirely free of faults?its paucity of storage capacity spring to mind?the good easily outweighs the bad. It's the high-end ultrabook to beat.

Design and Features
The first thing that you'll notice when you pull the UX31A-BHI5T out of the included fabric sleeve is its undeniably attractive design. Its svelte brushed aluminum chassis measures 0.7 by 12.8 by 8.8 inches (HWD) and, at only 3.20 pounds, it's among the lightest touch-enabled ultrabooks that we've seen, including the Samsung Series 5 UltraTouch NP540U3C-A01UB (3.83 pounds) and the Dell Inspiron 15z-5523 (5.19 pounds). With its impressively compact body, the UX31A-BHI5T fits into your bag just as easily as two or three magazines.

The UX31A-BHI5T's 13.3-inch display is, quite literally, a site to behold. With a full HD resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 and built-in IPS (in plane switching) panel, the display's stellar color reproduction and wide viewing angles handily complement its class-leading 1080p resolution. Taken as a whole, the UX31A-BHI5T's display is indisputably superior to that of the 1,366-by-768 resolution displays found in most comparable ultrabooks, like the Samsung NP540U3C-A01UB and Dell 15z-5523. Moreover, the display's capacitive touch functionality is pleasantly responsive, so pinching, zooming, scrolling, and Windows 8-specific functions?like bringing up the Charms menu or swiping through open apps?can be pulled off smoothly. The UX31A-BHI5T's Bang & Olufsen ICEpower speaker do a good job delivering crisp audio, and although its maximum volume lacks the oomph to make the windows rattle, this is an understandable limitation in the tinny-sounding realm of ultrabooks.

The chiclet-styled keyboard makes for a fairly comfortable typing experience. For such a thin system, it largely succeeds in sidestepping the shallow key travel that often plagues ultrabooks. Moreover, it's brightly backlit and doesn't exhibit any noticeable flexing, so the end result is all-around good keyboard. The system's smooth and responsive touchpad provides a good amount of tactile feedback and sports left- and right-click buttons that don't exhibit any unappealing clackiness.

As if often the case with ultrabooks, port selection on the UX31A-BHI5T is limited. The left side of the system houses a USB 3.0 port, a 2-in-1 card reader (SD, MMC), and a headphone jack. The right side, meanwhile, sports another USB 3.0 port, a micro HDMI port, and a mini VGA port, the latter of which can be outfitted with the included mini VGA to VGA dongle. The micro-HDMI port is puzzling, as the similarly sized former high end ultrabook Editor's Choice Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD-DB71 has a full-sized HDMI port. The UX31A-BHI5T comes equipped with Intel's Wireless Display technology (WiDi 2.0), so you can stream HD video from your system to any television outfitted with an adapter, like the Netgear Push2TV ($99 list).

The UX31A-BHI5T's 128GB SSD may be too small for some, since only 90.4GB of it is can be used. Thankfully, it ships with a minimal amount of preloaded software. Aside from Office Starter 2010, a trial version of Trend Micro A/V, and some proprietary programs (ASUS Software Suite, ASUS PowerWiz, and so on), extraneous software is kept to a minimum. Asus covers the UX31A-BHI5T11 with a one-year warranty on parts and labor.

Performance
Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T11 Like the rest of its class?save for the Asus UX32VD-DB71?the UX31A-BHI5T packs a 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-3317U processor and an integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU. Consequently, it yielded very similar performance to its peers on our benchmark tests. Thanks to its speedy SSD, though, the UX31A-BHI5T was able to maintain a slight edge. Its PCMark7 score of 4,510 points trumped the rest of its class, save for the Vizio 14-inch Thin + Light (CT14-A2) (4,819 points). Its Cinebench R11.5 score of 2.40 points, meanwhile, was equal to that of the Vizio CT14-A2 and Asus VivoBook S400CA-UH51 and was bested by the class-leading SamsungNP540U3C-A01UB (2.41 points) by a razor-thin margin and, to a greater extent, the Asus UX32VD-DB71 (3.58 points).

The UX31A-BHI5T also has the chops to tackle moderately intense media creation tasks. It completed our Handbrake video-encoding test in 1 minute 29 seconds, the same as the Dell 15z-5523 (1:29) and a mere second behind the front-running Vizio CT14-A2 (1:28). Similarly, the 5 minute and 31 seconds it took to complete our Photoshop CS6 test was roughly on par with the Dell 15z-5523 (5:33) and only two seconds short of the Vizio CT14-A2 (5:29).

When it came to 3D rendering, the UX31A-BHI5T showcased an unrivaled surefootedness. Its 3DMark11 scores (1,160 points in Entry-level settings; 216 points in Extreme settings) landed at the top of the pile, with the Asus S400CA-UH51 (1,101 and 187 points, respectively) and Vizio CT14-A2 (1,152 points and 208 points, respectively) trailing closely behind. Don't get your hopes up for high-end gaming, though. The UX31A-BHI5T's integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 didn't have the gusto to break the 30 frames per second (fps) playability barrier on our gaming benchmark tests. Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T11

A major area where the UX31A-BHI5T held a clear advantage over its peers is battery life. Its non-removable 50Whr battery lasted an impressive 6 hours 38 minutes on our battery rundown test, or nearly an hour longer than the runner-up HP Envy TouchSmart Ultrabook 4t-1100 (5:48). With other systems clocking in at under five hours?like the Asus S400CA-UH51 (4:18) and Vizio CT14-A4 (4:30)?the UX31A-BHI5T's great battery life becomes all the more apparent.

The Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T isn't the perfect ultrabook. Its limited storage capacity and so-so port selection are obvious shortcomings. Even with these flaws, though, it comes close to delivering a superlative Windows 8 experience. Its brilliant, touch-enabled screen, incredibly thin design, and great battery life, make it worthy of serious consideration. Throw in the fact that its $1,100 price tag is on par with its competitors, and it becomes a no-brainer. This is the ultrabook to beat, and it justifiably replaces the Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD-DB71 as our Editors' Choice award for high-end ultrabooks.

BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS:

COMPARISON TABLE
Compare the Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T with several other laptops side by side.

More laptop reviews:
??? Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T
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??? Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2
??? Dell XPS 10
??? Dell Latitude 10
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/HOd3oX83N7o/0,2817,2415921,00.asp

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Hagel takes helm at Pentagon after bitter fight

FILE - In this Jan. 31, 2013, file photo, Secretary of Defense nominee Chuck Hagel testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee during his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Hagel is expected to be sworn in as Secretary of Defense Wednesday Feb. 27, 2013 and is likely to address the staff in his first day as defense secretary. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, file)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Chuck Hagel takes charge at the Defense Department with deep budget cuts looming and Republican opponents still doubtful that he's up to the job.

Hagel is expected to be sworn in Wednesday and is likely to address the staff in his first day as defense secretary. The bitter, seven-week fight over his nomination ended Tuesday as a deeply divided Senate voted 58-41 to confirm him. Just four Republicans joined Democrats in backing the former two-term Republican senator from Nebraska and twice-wounded Vietnam combat veteran.

"I am honored that President Obama and the Senate have entrusted me to serve our nation once again," Hagel said in a statement. "I can think of no greater privilege than leading the brave, dedicated men and women of the Department of Defense as they perform vital missions around the globe."

Hagel promised to work closely with Congress, but he faces lingering reservations about his ability to handle the responsibilities. Shortly after the vote, Sen. Lindsey Graham said he still has serious questions about Hagel and his qualifications.

"I hope, for the sake of our own national security, he exceeds expectations," said the South Carolina Republican.

The top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, said Hagel's record on Israel, Iran, defense spending and nuclear weapons "demonstrate, in my view, a profound and troubling lack of judgment on many of the critical issues he will now be confronted with as secretary of defense."

But Inhofe promised to work with Hagel to avoid the $46 billion in automatic, across-the-board budget cuts that hit the Pentagon on Friday.

Obama alluded to the need for cooperation in his statement welcoming the vote.

The president said he was grateful to Hagel "for reminding us that when it comes to our national defense, we are not Democrats or Republicans, we are Americans, and our greatest responsibility is the security of the American people."

Hagel joins Obama's retooled national security team, including Secretary of State John Kerry and CIA Director-designate John Brennan, at a time of uncertainty for a military emerging from two wars and fighting worldwide terrorism with smaller, deficit-driven budgets.

Among his daunting challenges are dealing with the budget cuts and deciding on troop levels in Afghanistan as the United States winds down its combat presence. He also will have to work with lawmakers who spent weeks vilifying him.

Republicans insisted that Hagel was battered and bloodied after their repeated attacks during the protracted political fight.

"He will take office with the weakest support of any defense secretary in modern history, which will make him less effective on his job," said Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the Senate GOP's No. 2 Republican.

Not so, said Democratic Sen. Jack Reed, who pointed out that Hagel now has the title and the fight is history.

"All have to work together for the interest of the country," said Reed, D-R.I.

The vote ended one of the bitterest fights over a Cabinet choice and former senator since 1989, when the Democratic-led Senate defeated newly elected President George H.W. Bush's nomination of Republican John Tower to be defense secretary. This time, Republicans waged an unprecedented filibuster of a president's Pentagon pick and Hagel only secured the job after Republicans dropped their delay.

A 71-27 vote to end the filibuster cleared the way for Hagel's confirmation.

In the course of the rancorous nomination fight, Republicans, led by Inhofe and freshman Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, insinuated that Hagel has a cozy relationship with Iran and received payments for speeches from extreme or radical groups. Those comments drew rebukes from Democrats and some Republicans.

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, dismissed the "unfair innuendoes" against Hagel and called him an "outstanding American patriot" whose background as an enlisted soldier would send a positive message to the nation's servicemen and women.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., questioned how the confirmation process devolved into a character assassination in which Hagel was accused of "having secret ties with our enemies."

"I sincerely hope that the practice of challenging nominations with innuendo and inference, rather than facts and figures, was an aberration and not a roadmap," she said in a statement after the vote.

___

Follow Donna Cassata on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DonnaCassataAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-02-27-Hagel/id-927179d9ce0f4a538cafcb5002d08ea2

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One and done at Oscars for MacFarlane

NEW YORK (AP) ? It looks like it's one and done at the Oscars for Seth MacFarlane.

The "Family Guy" creator was asked on his Twitter account whether he'd consider hosting the Academy Awards again and he replied: "No way. Lotta fun to have done it, though."

MacFarlane's edgy comedy proved a polarizing force on Sunday's Academy Awards, with jokes about domestic violence, women's bodies and Jews in Hollywood that offended some viewers. The Oscars did get their biggest audience in three years, however, with particular growth among young viewers.

MacFarlane's spokeswoman said Tuesday she had nothing to add to the tweet.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/one-done-oscars-macfarlane-185207358.html

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New fabrication technique could provide breakthrough for solar energy systems

Public release date: 27-Feb-2013
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Contact: Colin Poitras
colin.poitras@uconn.edu
860-486-4656
University of Connecticut

Atomic layer deposition process could greatly improve efficiency of solar rectenna arrays

A novel fabrication technique developed by a University of Connecticut engineering professor could provide the breakthrough technology scientists have been looking for to vastly improve the efficiency of today's solar energy systems.

For years, scientists have studied the potential benefits of a new branch of solar energy technology that relies on nanosized antenna arrays theoretically capable of harvesting more than 70 percent of the sun's electromagnetic radiation and simultaneously converting it into usable electric power.

But while nanosized antennas that also serve as rectifiers have shown promise in theory, scientists have lacked the technology required to construct and test them. The fabrication process is immensely challenging. The nano-antennas known as "rectennas" because of their ability to both absorb and rectify solar energy from alternating current to direct current must be capable of operating at the speed of visible light and be built in such a way that their core pair of electrodes is a mere 1 or 2 nanometers apart, a distance of approximately one millionth of a millimeter, or 30,000 times smaller than the diameter of human hair.

The potential breakthrough lies in a novel fabrication process called selective area atomic layer deposition (ALD) that was developed by Brian Willis, an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Connecticut and the former director of UConn's Chemical Engineering Program.

It is through atomic layer deposition that scientists believe they can finally fabricate a working rectenna device. In a rectenna device, one of the two interior electrodes must have a sharp tip, similar to the point of a triangle. The secret is getting the tip of that electrode within one or two nanometers of the opposite electrode, something similar to holding the point of a needle to the plane of a wall. Before the advent of ALD, existing lithographic fabrication techniques had been unable to create such a small space within a working electrical diode. Using sophisticated electronic equipment such as electron guns, the closest scientists could get was about 10 times the required separation. Through atomic layer deposition, Willis has shown he is able to precisely coat the tip of the rectenna with layers of individual copper atoms until a gap of about 1.5 nanometers is achieved. The process is self-limiting and stops at 1.5 nanometer separation.

The size of the gap is critical because it creates an ultra-fast tunnel junction between the rectenna's two electrodes, allowing a maximum transfer of electricity. The nanosized gap gives energized electrons on the rectenna just enough time to tunnel to the opposite electrode before their electrical current reverses and they try to go back. The triangular tip of the rectenna makes it hard for the electrons to reverse direction, thus capturing the energy and rectifying it to a unidirectional current.

Impressively, the rectennas, because of their extremely small and fast tunnel diodes, are capable of converting solar radiation in the infrared region through the extremely fast and short wavelengths of visible light something that has never been accomplished before. Silicon solar panels, by comparison, have a single band gap which, loosely speaking, allows the panel to convert electromagnetic radiation efficiently at only one small portion of the solar spectrum. The rectenna devices don't rely on a band gap and may be tuned to harvest light over the whole solar spectrum, creating maximum efficiency.

Willis and a team of scientists from Penn State Altoona along with SciTech Associates Holdings Inc., a private research and development company based in State College, Pa., recently received a $650,000, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation to fabricate rectennas and search for ways to maximize their performance.

"This new technology could get us over the hump and make solar energy cost-competitive with fossil fuels," says Willis. "This is brand new technology, a whole new train of thought."

The Penn State Altoona research team which has been exploring the theoretical side of rectennas for more than a decade is led by physics professor Darin Zimmerman, with fellow physics professors Gary Weisel and Brock Weiss serving as co-investigators. The collaboration also includes Penn State emeritus physics professors Paul Cutler and Nicholas Miskovsky, who are principal members of Scitech Associates.

"The solar power conversion device under development by this collaboration of two universities and an industry subcontractor has the potential to revolutionize green solar power technology by increasing efficiencies, reducing costs, and providing new economic opportunities," Zimmerman says.

"Until the advent of selective atomic layer deposition (ALD), it has not been possible to fabricate practical and reproducible rectenna arrays that can harness solar energy from the infrared through the visible," says Zimmerman. "ALD is a vitally important processing step, making the creation of these devices possible. Ultimately, the fabrication, characterization, and modeling of the proposed rectenna arrays will lead to increased understanding of the physical processes underlying these devices, with the promise of greatly increasing the efficiency of solar power conversion technology."

The atomic layer deposition process is favored by science and industry because it is simple, easily reproducible, and scalable for mass production. Willis says the chemical process is particularly applicable for precise, homogenous coatings for nanostructures, nanowires, nanotubes, and for use in the next generation of high-performing semi-conductors and transistors.

The method being used to fabricate rectennas also can be applied to other areas, including enhancing current photovoltaics (the conversion of photo energy to electrical energy), thermoelectrics, infrared sensing and imaging, and chemical sensors.

Over the next year, Willis and his collaborators in Pennsylvania plan to build prototype rectennas and begin testing their efficiency.

"To capture the visible light frequencies, the rectenna have to get smaller than anything we've ever made before, so we're really pushing the limits of what we can do," says Willis. "And the tunnel junctions have to operate at the speed of visible light, so we're pushing down to these really high speeds to the point where the question becomes 'Can these devices really function at this level?' Theoretically we know it is possible, but we won't know for sure until we make and test this device."

###

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New fabrication technique could provide breakthrough for solar energy systems

Public release date: 27-Feb-2013
[ | E-mail |

Share ]

Contact: Colin Poitras
colin.poitras@uconn.edu
860-486-4656
University of Connecticut

Atomic layer deposition process could greatly improve efficiency of solar rectenna arrays

"This new technology could get us over the hump and make solar energy cost-competitive with fossil fuels," says Willis. "This is brand new technology, a whole new train of thought."

Over the next year, Willis and his collaborators in Pennsylvania plan to build prototype rectennas and begin testing their efficiency.

###

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-02/uoc-nft022613.php

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This Neat Lego Automaton Can Draw Portraits

This is Legonardo, an automaton capable of drawing portraits. Obviously, it doesn't have the complex clockwork used by automatons of old, like its Swiss counterpart made by Pierre Jacquet-Droz and Henri Maillardet in the 18th century. But it's pretty neat anyway. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/1hi9GoBnPa8/this-neat-lego-automaton-can-draw-portraits

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Chicken - Rooster - Bantam - Small - Young - Male - Bird | Arlington ...

Chicken - Rooster - Bantam - Small - Young - Male - Bird

We have 3 pet bantam roosters needing a new home. They are mainly black. Their person is in hospital and will not be able to return to his farm as he is going to an assisted living facility. The roosters are not for eating. All 3 roosters appear to get along together. Don't know if that would be the case once a chicken appears! They are located in Granite Falls. Email [email removed] or call (360) 652-5844.

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Breed: Chicken
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Petfinder ID: 25416215

CONTACT:
Humane Society at Happypaws Farm | Arlington, WA | 360-652-5844

For additional information, reply to this ad or see: http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=25416215

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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Sequester cuts will impact homeland security, Napolitano says (cbsnews)

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Liver stem cells grown in culture: Therapeutic benefit demonstrated

Feb. 25, 2013 ? For decades scientists around the world have attempted to regenerate primary liver cells known as hepatocytes because of their numerous biomedical applications, including hepatitis research, drug metabolism and toxicity studies, as well as transplantation for cirrhosis and other chronic liver conditions. But no lab in the world has been successful in identifying and growing liver stem cells in culture -- using any available technique -- until now.

In the journal Nature, physician-scientists in the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at Oregon Health & Science University Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Portland, Ore., along with investigators at the Hubrecht Institute for Developmental Biology and Stem Cell Research, Utrecht, Netherlands, describe a new method through which they were able to infinitely expand liver stem cells from a mouse in a dish.

"This study raises the hope that the human equivalent of these mouse liver stem cells can be grown in a similar way and efficiently converted into functional liver cells," said Markus Grompe, M.D., study co-author, director of the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital; and professor of pediatrics, and molecular and medical genetics in the OHSU School of Medicine.

In a previous Nature study, investigators at the Hubrecht Institute, led by Hans Clever, M.D, Ph.D., were the first to identify stem cells in the small intestine and colon by observing the expression of the adult stem cell marker Lgr5 and growth in response to a growth factor called Wnt. They also hypothesized that the unique expression pattern of Lgr5 could mark stem cells in other adult tissues, including the liver, an organ for which stem cell identification remained elusive.

In the current Nature study, Grompe and colleagues in the Pap? Family Pediatric Research Institute at OHSU Doernbecher used a modified version of the Clever method and discovered that Wnt-induced Lgr5 expression not only marks stem cell production in the liver, but it also defines a class of stem cells that become active when the liver is damaged.

The scientists were able to grow these liver stem cells exponentially in a dish -- an accomplishment never before achieved -- and then transplant them in a specially designed mouse model of liver disease, where they continued to grow and show a modest therapeutic effect.

"We were able to massively expand the liver cells and subsequently convert them to hepatocytes at a modest percentage. Going forward, we will enlist other growth factors and conditions to improve that percentage. Liver stem cell therapy for chronic liver disease in humans is coming," said Grompe.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Oregon Health & Science University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Meritxell Huch, Craig Dorrell, Sylvia F. Boj, Johan H. van Es, Vivian S. W. Li, Marc van de Wetering, Toshiro Sato, Karien Hamer, Nobuo Sasaki, Milton J. Finegold, Annelise Haft, Robert G. Vries, Markus Grompe, Hans Clevers. In vitro expansion of single Lgr5 liver stem cells induced by Wnt-driven regeneration. Nature, 2013; 494 (7436): 247 DOI: 10.1038/nature11826

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/co-OcQp_tVg/130225153130.htm

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Tesla team mulls image reboot after NYT review

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Tesla Motors Inc's top brass, including Chief Executive Elon Musk, this week are considering a strategy to recoup market value and boost demand after a critical review of the automaker's Model S sedan in New York Times this month.

Musk says that Tesla has lost about $100 million in sales and canceled orders due to the Times story, which said the sedan ran out of battery power sooner than promised during a chilly winter test drive from Washington D.C. to Boston.

"We have seen a few hundred cancellations that are due to the NYT piece and slightly lowered demand in the U.S. Northeast region," Musk told Reuters in an email.

To lose $100 million in car sales, assuming a $100,000 price per vehicle, Tesla would have to sell 1,000 fewer cars than expected.

Since the Times' February 8 story, by reporter John Broder, Tesla shares have fallen 13 percent, while the S&P 500 index has slid 1.4 percent. Between $100 million and $200 million of Tesla's drop in market value was due to the Times article, Musk said.

"The Tesla team and I are brainstorming this week how to correct the misperception that they have created in the market about how well our car performs in cold weather," he wrote. "That too, will take money and time."

The Model S is the company's second electric vehicle, after the two-passenger Roadster sports car. The Model S, which went into production last June, starts at nearly $60,000 before a federal tax credit, with stickers ranging to more than $105,000.

Its success is crucial for Tesla, which is looking to turn an adjusted profit in the first quarter - the company's first since going public in 2010.

Musk lambasted the Times' review of the Model S, calling the test a "fake" on Twitter and producing data logs from that vehicle to disprove the article.

Broder in a Times story dated February 12 denied that he had faked anything.

Times Public Editor Margaret Sullivan said Broder took "casual and imprecise notes" of his test drive and did not exercise good judgment, but noted that vehicle data logs reproduced by Musk on Tesla's website were "sometimes quite misleading."

Sullivan concluded that "there is still plenty to argue about and few conclusions that are unassailable."

(Additional reporting By Deepa Seetharaman in Detroit)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tesla-team-mulls-plan-boost-image-york-times-004920849--finance.html

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Can escape clause save voting rights provision?

FILE - This July 27, 2006 file photo shows President George W. Bush signing legislation for a 25 year extension of the Voting Rights Act on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. The Obama administration and civil rights groups are defending a key provision of the landmark Voting Rights Act at the Supreme Court by pointing reformed state, county and local governments to an escape hatch from the law's most onerous aspects. Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case, which is among the term's most important. From left are Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)

FILE ? In this Oct. 1, 2012, file photo people wait in line to enter the Supreme Court in Washington at the start of the new term. The Obama administration and civil rights groups are defending a key provision of the landmark Voting Rights Act at the Supreme Court by pointing reformed state, county and local governments to an escape hatch from the law's most onerous aspects. Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, the court will hear arguments in the case, which is among the term's most important, in a challenge from Shelby County, Ala. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Obama administration and civil rights groups are defending a key section of the landmark voting rights law at the Supreme Court by pointing reformed state, county and local governments to an escape hatch from the law's strictest provision.

The Voting Rights Act effectively attacked persistent discrimination at the polls by keeping close watch, when it comes to holding elections, on those places with a history of preventing minorities from voting. Any changes, from moving a polling place to redrawing electoral districts, can't take effect without approval from the Justice Department or federal judges in Washington.

But the Voting Rights Act allows governments that have changed their ways to get out from under this humbling need to get permission through a "bailout provision." Nearly 250 counties and local jurisdictions have done so; thousands more could be eligible based on the absence of recent discriminatory efforts in voting.

The viability of the bailout option could play an outsized role in the Supreme Court's consideration of the voting rights law's prior approval provision, although four years ago, conservative Justice Clarence Thomas said the prospect of bailing out had been "no more than a mirage."

The court will hear arguments Wednesday in the case, which is among the term's most important, in a challenge from Shelby County, Ala.

Opponents of the law say they no longer should be forced to live under oversight from Washington because the country has made enormous racial progress, demonstrated most recently by the re-election of President Barack Obama. They object in particular to the 40-year-old formula by which some jurisdictions, most in the Deep South, are swept under the law and others remain outside it.

The administration and its allies acknowledge that there has been progress. But they say minority voters still need the protection the law affords from efforts to reduce their influence at the polls. Last year, federal judges in two separate cases blocked Texas from putting in place a voter identification law and congressional redistricting plan because they discriminated against black and Hispanic residents.

Obama himself talked about the case in a radio interview last week. He told SiriusXM host Joe Madison that if the law were stripped of its advance approval provision, "it would be hard for us to catch those things up front to make sure that elections are done in an equitable way."

Also, the law's defenders say places that have changed their ways can win release from having to get Washington's blessing for election changes. Governments seeking to exit have to show that they and the smaller jurisdictions within their borders have had a clean record, no evidence of discrimination in voting, for the past 10 years.

Shelby County has never asked to be freed from the law, but would seem to be ineligible because one city in the county, Calera, defied the voting rights law and prompted intervention by the Bush Justice Department.

Yet places with a long, well-known history of discrimination probably could find their way out from under federal monitoring, according to a prominent voting rights lawyer who used to work for the Justice Department.

"Birmingham, Ala., where they used to use fire hoses on people, may well be eligible to bail out," said the lawyer, Gerry Hebert. Birmingham officials said they've never considered asking.

The Supreme Court made clear its skepticism about the ongoing need for the law when it heard a similar case in 2009. "Past success alone, however, is not adequate justification to retain the preclearance requirements," Chief Justice John Roberts said for the court. That ruling sidestepped the constitutional issue and instead expanded the ability of states, counties and local governments to exit the advance approval process.

At that point, so few governments had tried to free themselves from the advance approval requirement that, in 2009, Thomas said the "promise of a bailout opportunity has, in the great majority of cases, turned out to be no more than a mirage."

At the time, Thomas said, only a handful of the 12,000 state, county and local governments covered by the law had successfully bailed out.

The overall numbers remain low, but the Obama administration argues that "the rate of successful bailouts has rapidly increased" since the high court last took up the Voting Rights Act nearly four years ago.

In the past 12 months, 110 local governments have been freed from the requirement to show in advance that their proposed election changes are not discriminatory. Places that have won their release from coverage include Prince William County, Va., with more than 400,000 residents, and Merced County, Calif., and its 84 municipalities.

Shelby County says that even with the recent jump in bailouts, "only a tiny percentage" of governments have found their way out of oversight from Washington.

The advance approval was adopted in the Voting Rights Act in 1965 to give federal officials a potent tool to defeat persistent efforts to keep blacks from voting.

The provision was a huge success, and Congress periodically has renewed it over the years. The most recent time was in 2006, when a Republican-led Congress overwhelmingly approved and President George W. Bush signed a 25-year extension.

The requirement currently applies to the states of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia. It also covers certain counties in California, Florida, New York, North Carolina and South Dakota, and some local jurisdictions in Michigan and New Hampshire. Coverage has been triggered by past discrimination not only against blacks, but also against American Indians, Asian-Americans, Alaskan Natives and Hispanics.

The 10 covered towns in New Hampshire are poised to become the next places to win their release from the law. An agreement between the Justice Department and the state is awaiting approval from a federal court in Washington.

Critics of the law contend the Justice Department is highlighting the escape hatch and agreeing to allow places such as the New Hampshire towns to exit to try to make the entire law look more palatable to the court.

Alaska Attorney General Michael Geraghty says in his court filing in support of Shelby County that the Justice Department "commonly agrees to bailouts for jurisdictions that are not legally entitled to receive them."

But supporters of the law argue in response that the federal government's willingness to agree to free places from the need to get permission shows that the voting rights act is flexible and helps focus attention on potentially discriminatory voting schemes.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-02-25-US-Supreme-Court-Voting-Rights/id-8940d6bb8f494c76a2a89ea0f309a625

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