'Following' cast withholds finale spoilers

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Even before the season finale of "The Following" had finished airing in Eastern and Central time zones Monday night, followers of the popular weekly television thriller were serving up spoilers galore on the Internet.

"I was just reading all the tweets, because it's on right now," commented "Following" executive producer Marcos Siega. "And I'm sitting there going, 'Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God. They're saying everything.'"

The problem, he explained, was that the show had yet to be broadcast in the Pacific time zone or internationally.

"The Following" spins around a former FBI agent who is forced to recapture a serial killer who has escaped from prison. But this time it's a different cat-and-mouse game: While in jail, the killer has become a cult leader, with hundreds of followers to run interference.

Executive producer Siega, show creator Kevin Williamson, and the series' cast, headed by Kevin Bacon, walked the press gauntlet before a special screening of the season's final episode followed by a Q&A, held at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

In interviews, cast members avoided plot specifics.

"I think the finale is going to be really shocking to everybody," said actress Valorie Curry, who plays cult follower Emma Hill. "It's the same thing I've been saying all season, which is 'Never get comfortable. Never think you know who is safe and who is not.'"

Spoiler revelation has proven dangerous even to star Bacon, who recently re-tweeted a key "Following" development after the show's stateside airing, only get blasted by both domestic and international fans who'd yet to see the episode. He later issued apologies.

"Yeah, you know, I actually meant to send (a tweet) out today, asking, 'How soon is too soon?'" noted actress Natalie Zea, who portrays Bacon's one-time lover and the killer's ex-wife, Claire Matthews. "I think the U.K. is a day behind. And I think Argentina is a month behind. So, I'm always really confused as to what the etiquette is, what's OK, after what just happened to Kevin."

Of all the actors in attendance, only Bacon would confirm his character, former federal agent Ryan Hardy, was returning for the series' second season. Bacon said he and creator Williamson have been kicking ideas around.

"Well, one thing that we've talked about is that we might jump time a little bit," Bacon revealed.

"You might see a character (a Ryan Hardy) who is in a slightly different headspace than where he has been. When you meet my character at the beginning of this season, I'm drinking too much, I'm depressed, I'm a wreck. I don't know if that's going to be where I'm going to start. Who knows?"

___

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Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-04-30-TV-Following%20Finale/id-d13cece2753b457c8d2ac0e72b6058b0

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Herschel completes its 'cool' journey in space

Apr. 30, 2013 ? The Herschel observatory, a European space telescope for which NASA helped build instruments and process data, has stopped making observations after running out of liquid coolant as expected.

The European Space Agency mission, launched almost four years ago, revealed the universe's "coolest" secrets by observing the frigid side of planet, star and galaxy formation.

"Herschel gave us the opportunity to peer into the dark and cold regions of the universe that are invisible to other telescopes," said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington. "This successful mission demonstrates how NASA and ESA can work together to tackle unsolved mysteries in astronomy."

Confirmation the helium is exhausted came today, at the beginning of the spacecraft's daily communication session with its ground station in Western Australia. A clear rise in temperatures was measured in all of Herschel's instruments.

Herschel launched aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana in May 2009. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., built components for two of Herschel's three science instruments. NASA also supports the U.S. astronomical community through the agency's Herschel Science Center, located at the California Institute of Technology's Infrared Processing and Analysis Center in Pasadena.

Herschel's detectors were designed to pick up the glow from celestial objects with infrared wavelengths as long as 625 micrometers, which is 1,000 times longer than what we can see with our eyes. Because heat interferes with these devices, they were chilled to temperatures as low as 2 kelvins (minus 271 degrees Celsius, or 456 Fahrenheit) using liquid helium. The detectors also were kept cold by the spacecraft's orbit, which is around a stable point called the second Lagrange point about 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth. This location gave Herschel a better view of the universe.

"Herschel has improved our understanding of how new stars and planets form, but has also raised many new questions," said Paul Goldsmith, NASA Herschel project scientist at JPL. "Astronomers will be following up on Herschel's discoveries with ground-based and future space-based observatories for years to come."

The mission will not be making any more observations, but discoveries will continue. Astronomers still are looking over the data, much of which already is public and available through NASA's Herschel Science Center. The final batch of data will be public in about six months.

"Our goal is to help the U.S. community exploit the nuggets of gold that lie in that data archive," said Phil Appleton, project scientist at the science center.

Highlights of the mission include:

• Discovering long, filamentary structures in space, dotted with dense star-making knots of material.
• Detecting definitively, for the first time, oxygen molecules in space, in addition to other never-before-seen molecules. By mapping the molecules in different regions, researchers are learning more about the life cycles of stars and planets and the origins of life.
• Discovering high-speed outflows around central black holes in active galaxies, which may be clearing out surrounding regions and suppressing future star formation.
• Opening new views on extremely distant galaxies that could be seen only with Herschel, and providing new information about their high rates of star formation.
• Following the trail of water molecules from distant galaxies to the clouds of gas between stars to planet-forming solar systems.
• Examining a comet in our own solar system and finding evidence comets could have brought a substantial fraction of water to Earth.
• Together with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, discovering a large asteroid belt around the bright star Vega.

Other findings from the mission include the discovery of some of the youngest stars ever seen in the nearby Orion "cradle," and a peculiar planet-forming disk of material surrounding the star TW Hydra, indicating planet formation may happen over longer periods of time than expected. Herschel also has shown stars interact with their environment in many surprising ways, including leaving trails as they move through clouds of gas and dust. More information is online at http://www.herschel.caltech.edu , http://www.nasa.gov/herschel and http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Herschel .

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Jury weighs fate of abortion doctor in murder trial

By Dave Warner

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Jury deliberations began on Tuesday in the murder trial of a Philadelphia doctor accused of killing babies and a patient during late-term abortions at a clinic serving low-income women.

Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 72, who ran the now-shuttered Women's Medical Society Clinic, could face the death penalty if convicted by the jury in Common Pleas Court in Philadelphia.

The case focuses on whether the infants were born alive and then killed.

The seven-woman, five-man jury began deliberations early in the afternoon on Tuesday after receiving instructions for about an hour and a half from Judge Jeffrey Minehart. The trial is in its sixth week.

The charges against Gosnell and nine of his employees have added more fuel to the debate in the United States about late-term abortions.

It is legal in Pennsylvania to abort a fetus up to 24 weeks into a pregnancy. Other states have recently put new restrictions on abortions, with Arkansas banning them at 12 weeks and North Dakota at six weeks.

Gosnell is charged with first-degree murder for delivering live babies during late-term abortions and then deliberately severing their spinal cords, prosecutors said.

His defense contends there is no evidence the babies were alive after they were aborted.

Defense lawyer Jack McMahon, in his closing argument on Monday, cited testimony by Medical Examiner Sam Gulino, who said none of the 47 babies tested randomly from the West Philadelphia clinic had been born alive.

"You may not like that evidence, but it is the evidence," McMahon said.

Assistant District Attorney Edward Cameron said in his closing argument that witnesses testified that one of the aborted babies was breathing before its neck was cut, another made a whining sound and another moved its arms and legs.

"You have three witnesses who saw a baby breathe and move, and he killed it," Cameron said.

'HOUSE OF HORRORS'

The clinic that prosecutors call a "house of horrors" has been cited as powerful evidence by both abortion and anti-abortion rights groups.

Reverend Frank Pavone, director of the anti-abortion group Priests for Life, said the often gory trial testimony "will change the conversation ... It'll help people engage and make them realize they're not just talking about a theoretical idea."

Abortion-rights activists said Gosnell was an outlier among predominantly safe and legal abortion providers.

"Gosnell ran a criminal enterprise, not a healthcare facility, and should be punished to the fullest extent of the law," said Eric Ferrero, a spokesman for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Testimony has depicted a filthy clinic serving mostly low-income women in the largely black community. McMahon said Gosnell wanted to help the under-privileged community.

Gosnell is also charged with murdering Karnamaya Mongar, 41, of Virginia, who died from a drug overdose after going to him for an abortion, prosecutors said.

The defense lawyer said Mongar was given guideline amounts of the drug Demerol as an anesthesia during the abortion, as had hundreds of other women at the clinic.

Gosnell, who has been in jail since his January 2011 arrest, is being tried along with Eileen O'Neill, a medical graduate student accused of billing patients and insurance companies as if she had been a licensed doctor. Eight other defendants have pleaded guilty to a variety of charges and are awaiting sentencing.

(Additional reporting by Atossa Araxia Abrahamian; Editing by Barbara Goldberg, Scott Malone, Lisa Von Ahn and Ellen Wulfhorst)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/case-u-abortion-doctor-accused-running-house-horrors-000222756.html

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Justin Timberlake Signs Two-Year Deal with MasterCard

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/04/justin-timberlake-signs-two-year-deal-with-mastercard/

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Collins: Support after coming out 'incredible'

In this photo provided by ABC, NBA basketball veteran Jason Collins, left, poses for a photo with television journalist George Stephanopoulos, Monday, April 29, 2013, in Los Angeles. In a first-person article posted Monday on Sports Illustrated's website, Collins became the first active player in one of four major U.S. professional sports leagues to come out as gay. He participated in an exclusive interview with Stephanopoulos, which is scheduled to air on Good Morning America on Tuesday. (AP Photo/ABC, Eric McCandless)

In this photo provided by ABC, NBA basketball veteran Jason Collins, left, poses for a photo with television journalist George Stephanopoulos, Monday, April 29, 2013, in Los Angeles. In a first-person article posted Monday on Sports Illustrated's website, Collins became the first active player in one of four major U.S. professional sports leagues to come out as gay. He participated in an exclusive interview with Stephanopoulos, which is scheduled to air on Good Morning America on Tuesday. (AP Photo/ABC, Eric McCandless)

Foto de Jason Collins del 28 de septiembre del 2012, cuando todav?a militaba con los Celtics de Boston. Collins revel? que es gay. Es el primer deportista activo de uno de los cuatro deportes m?s populares de Estados Unidos que confirma que es homosexual.(AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

FILE - In this Jan. 20, 2013 file photo, then-Boston Celtics center Jason Collins (98) guards Detroit Pistons center Greg Monroe, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Auburn Hills, Mich. Jason Collins has become the first male professional athlete in the major four American sports leagues to come out as gay. Collins wrote a first-person account posted Monday on Sports Illustrated's website. The 34-year-old Collins has played for six NBA teams in 12 seasons. He finished this past season with the Washington Wizards and is now a free agent. He says he wants to continue playing. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson, File)

FILE - In a Wednesday, April 17, 2013 file photo, Washington Wizards center Jason Collins, right, battles for a rebound against Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Chicago. NBA veteran center Collins has become the first male professional athlete in the major four American sports leagues to come out as gay. Collins wrote a first-person account posted Monday, April 29, 2013 on Sports Illustrated's website. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

FILE - Boston Celtics center Jason Collins battles Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard (12) for a rebound during the first half of their NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013 in Los Angeles. NBA veteran center Collins has become the first male professional athlete in the major four American sports leagues to come out as gay. Collins wrote a first-person account posted Monday, April 29, 2013 on Sports Illustrated's website.(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

Jason Collins said he has gotten "incredible" support since coming out as the first openly gay player in one of the four major U.S. pro sports leagues, and hopes he may have made the path easier for others to follow.

Collins sat down for an interview that was aired by ABC's "Good Morning America" on Tuesday, one day after the veteran NBA center revealed his sexuality in a first-person story posted on Sports Illustrated's website.

"I think, I know, in my personal life, I'm ready and I think the country is ready for supporting an openly gay basketball player," Collins told ABC's George Stephanopoulos.

ABC aired the interview in two segments, with Stephanopoulos asking Collins in the second portion if he hoped that other players will follow his example.

"I hope that every player makes a decision that leads to their own happiness, whatever happiness that is in life," Collins responded. "I know that I, right now, am the happiest that I've ever been in my life."

Collins said he went through something akin to a 12-step program while deciding to come out, dealing with emotions such as anger and denial.

"But when you finally get to that point of acceptance, there's nothing more beautiful than just allowing yourself to really be happy and be comfortable in your own skin," Collins said.

Dozens of NBA players sent messages to Collins after the story was posted Monday, many doing so through social media. The support didn't stop there, with President Barack Obama also calling to offer his support.

"It's incredible. Just try to live an honest, genuine life and the next thing you know you have the president calling you," Collins said. "He was incredibly supportive and he was proud of me, said this not only affected my life but others going forward."

Collins said he does not know of any other gay NBA players. He also told ABC that he was overwhelmed by the reaction of tennis legend Martina Navratilova, who came out in 1981 and called him a pioneer after he went public with his story.

"I look at her as one of my heroes, the dignity and class that she's lived her life and all that she's achieved in her career," Collins said. "She is my role model. Hopefully going forward I can be someone else's role model."

Collins averaged 1.1 points this season for the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards. He will be a free agent this offseason, and plans to continue his career.

"From my teammates, I'm expecting support because that's what I would do for my teammates," Collins told ABC. "A team is like a family. The NBA is like a brotherhood. And I'm looking at it like we all support each other, on and off the court."

Asked by Stephanopoulos what his story could mean to youth who play basketball and are worried about their futures because they are gay, Collins offered a simple piece of advice.

"It doesn't matter that you're gay. The key thing is that it's about basketball," Collins said. "It's about working hard, it's about sacrificing for your team. It's all about dedication. That's what you should focus on."

In the second part of the ABC interview, Collins discussed what it was like to come out to his family and people closest to him. In the SI piece, Collins said that the first relative he came out to was his aunt, Teri Jackson, a San Francisco Superior Court Judge ? "so I guess she's good at reading people," Collins told ABC.

"When you keep telling yourself a lie, at some point you buy your own cover story, like a CIA spy or something," Collins said.

His own twin brother, Jarron Collins, had no idea about his brother's orientation.

"I am really good at playing it straight," Jason Collins said, laughing at his own joke. "Maybe he needs to hang out with my aunt a little more, get a discerning eye like she has."

Collins told Stephanopoulos that he one day hopes to be married and have children, but currently describes his relationship status as single.

"I tried everything in the book as far as trying to convince myself to lead the life that you should," said Collins, who dated women in the past and was once engaged. "Calling off the wedding was obviously a tough decision, but it was the right one, because I knew I wasn't getting married for the right reasons."

ABC said the interview was taped Monday night in Los Angeles.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-04-30-BKN-Jason-Collins-ABC-Interview/id-e054167d56b14269b57b2403df3de8c1

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Jackson trial witness list includes stars, kids

Sony Pictures

Michael Jackson in 2009, rehearsing his "This Is It" tour.

By Randee Dawn, TODAY contributor

This is it: On Monday, the wrongful death civil trial pitting members of Michael Jackson's family against tour promoter AEG Live is set to begin in Los Angeles. Depending on any number of legal factors it could end up being a long slog, dipping into the darker side of fame and celebrity.

But one thing drawing attention right now is who could take the witness stand -- given the Jackson family legacy its no surprise the list is lengthy, and star studded.

Currently, there are 97 possible witnesses for the plaintiffs and 113 for the defense (though overlap is likely in some cases), according to the?Los Angeles Times. Dr. Conrad Murray, whose actions (or lack of thereof) precipitated Jackson's death could be a key witness on the stand -- if he speaks. As noted on TODAY last week?Murray, now serving out and appealing his sentence of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death, is likely to take the 5th.?

Jackson's mother Katherine has already been deposed; his son Prince and daughter Paris are likely to to discuss Jackson's final hours on the stand. Katherine, Michael Joseph "Prince" Jackson, Paris Michael Katherine and Prince Michael Jackson II -- aka "Blanket" -- are are the plaintiffs in the case.

The?plaintiff's witness list also includes director Spike Lee, bodybuilder and "Incredible Hulk" star Lou Ferrigno, music producer Quincy Jones, longtime Jackson family friend and singer Diana Ross and Jackson's ex-wives Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe. "Purple Rain" musician Prince has also been named as a potential witness.

Ferrigno was initially enlisted by Jackson to help him get in shape for the "This Is It" tour, as People noted, something the muscleman had done for Jackson in 1994. "Being 50, his body went through a lot of stress getting ready for the tour, but he was awesome," Ferrigno told People back in 2009. It seems likely that as his personal trainer, Ferrigno will have a first-hand opinion about Jackson's fitness.?

Jones was a long-time friend of Jackson's (as well as a producer of albums including "Thriller" and "Bad") and?hinted to Details?after Jackson's death?that what killed the pop star was as much psychological as physical: "I'm a musician. I'm not a psychiatrist. I would think that the pressure of the concerts and the debt and everything else.... I know that Lisa Marie Presley said she always thought was going to die like Elvis. You sit and think about that stuff, it'll happen to you."

What other celebrities may contribute remains murkier. Ross was next in line after Jackson's mother to be the guardian of his children, though there is no indication that she had any specific knowledge about his death. The singer Prince might seem to have been Jackson's sons' namesake, but reportedly that's an old Jackson family name. Spike Lee has directed several projects related to Jackson, including 2012's "Bad 25" documentary and two music videos for the singer's 1996 "They Don't Care About Us" song.

The trial won't be televised, which may dial down the circus factor -- but this is Hollywood, and Jackson remains nearly as iconic a draw in death as he did in life.?

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Source: http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2013/04/29/17969739-michael-jackson-trial-witness-lists-star-studded-include-his-kids?lite

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RIM CEO Thorsten Heins told Bloomberg that "in five years I don't think there'll be a reason to have

RIM CEO Thorsten Heins told Bloomberg that "in five years I don't think there'll be a reason to have a tablet anymore," and that tablets are "not a good business model." Which is maybe true if you sell PlayBooks and less so if you sell, say, 20 million iPads every three months.

Source: http://gizmodo.com/rim-ceo-thorsten-heins-told-bloomberg-that-in-five-yea-485777599

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EU aims to better protect bees from pesticides

Beekeepers protest next to a giant inflatable bee in front of the European Council and Commission in Brussels, Monday, April 29, 2013. EU Member States meet on Monday, to decide on a proposal by the European Commission to impose a 2-year moratorium on neonicotinoid pesticides, which many scientists agree are the driving force behind Europe's dramatic bee decline. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

Beekeepers protest next to a giant inflatable bee in front of the European Council and Commission in Brussels, Monday, April 29, 2013. EU Member States meet on Monday, to decide on a proposal by the European Commission to impose a 2-year moratorium on neonicotinoid pesticides, which many scientists agree are the driving force behind Europe's dramatic bee decline. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

Beekeepers protest next to a giant inflatable bee in front of the European Council and Commission in Brussels, Monday, April 29, 2013. EU Member States meet on Monday, to decide on a proposal by the European Commission to impose a 2-year moratorium on neonicotinoid pesticides, which many scientists agree are the driving force behind Europe's dramatic bee decline. The text in French reads: 'Stop the slaughter'. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

In this photo taken Monday, April 15, 2013, honey bees and the queen (with yellow dot) sit on a honeycomb in Wezembeek-Oppem near Brussels. EU Member States meet on Monday April 29, to decide on a proposal by the European Commission to impose a 2-year moratorium on neonicotinoid pesticides, which many scientists agree are the driving force behind Europe's dramatic bee decline. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

A beekeeper protests in front of the European Council and Commission in Brussels, Monday, April 29, 2013. EU Member States meet on Monday, to decide on a proposal by the European Commission to impose a 2-year moratorium on neonicotinoid pesticides, which many scientists agree are the driving force behind Europe's dramatic bee decline. The text in French reads: 'Stop the slaughter'. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

BRUSSELS (AP) ? The European Union plans to restrict the use of three pesticides to better protect dwindling bee populations.

The announcement Monday was cheered by environmentalists, disappointed chemical companies and came after the bloc's 27 nations failed to agree on a common stand.

EU Consumer Commissioner Tonio Borg said his agency will override the deadlock and move "in the coming weeks" to restrict three neonicotinoid pesticides on plants and cereals that attract bees. The measure takes effect Dec. 1 for two years unless decisive new information becomes available.

Beekeepers have reported an unusual decline in bees over the past decade, particularly in Western Europe, according to the European Food Safety Authority. It says bees are critically important to the environment, sustaining biodiversity by providing pollination for a wide range of crops and wild plants ? including most of the food crops in Europe.

Borg said bees contribute over 22 billion euros ($29 billion) a year to European agriculture.

In all, 15 EU nations were for the restrictions, eight were against and four abstained. Borg said he still felt confident in moving ahead because "a majority of member states now support our proposal."

Environmentalists welcomed the move.

"Today's pesticide ban throws Europe's bees a vital lifeline," said Iain Keith of the Avaaz environmental group. "Europe is taking science seriously and must now put the full ban in place to give bees the breathing space they need."

But major chemical companies, which were against Borg's proposals, have questioned the scientific evidence for such a ban.

The head of the EU Parliament's environmental committee acknowledged that "precise data is still lacking" but applauded the consumer agency's action.

"We shall now try to understand how exactly neonicotinoids affect the behavior of bees," said Matthias Groote.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/b2f0ca3a594644ee9e50a8ec4ce2d6de/Article_2013-04-29-Protecting%20Bees/id-c10f1bfd65294700b37818bca16f7a3f

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Look at SpaceShipTwo's Rocket Ablaze

In case you missed it earlier today, Virgin Galactic successfully performed its first rocket-powered test flight of the SpaceShipTwo. In other words, space tourism is nigh.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/PBFOSz5yTm8/look-at-spaceshiptwos-rocket-on-fire-484674630

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Patterned hearts: Bioengineers create rubber-like material bearing micropatterns for stronger, more elastic hearts

Apr. 29, 2013 ? A team of bioengineers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) is the first to report creating artificial heart tissue that closely mimics the functions of natural heart tissue through the use of human-based materials. Their work will advance how clinicians treat the damaging effects caused by heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States.

"Scientists and clinicians alike are eager for new approaches to creating artificial heart tissues that resemble the native tissues as much as possible, in terms of physical properties and function," said Nasim Annabi, PhD, BWH Renal Division, first study author. "Current biomaterials used to repair hearts after a heart attack and other cardiovascular events lack suitable functionality and strength. We are introducing an alternative that has the mechanical properties and functions of native heart tissue."

The study was published online on April 26, 2013 in Advanced Functional Materials.

The researchers created MeTro gel-an advanced rubber-like material made from tropoelastin, the protein in human tissues that makes them elastic. The gel was then combined with microfabrication techniques to generate gels containing well-defined micropatterns for high elasticity.

The researchers then used these highly elastic micropatterned gels to create heart tissue that contained beating heart muscle cells.

"The micropatterned gel provides elastic mechanical support of natural heart muscle tissue as demonstrated by its ability to promote attachment, spreading, alignment, function and communication of heart muscle cells," said Annabi.

The researchers state that MeTro gel will provide a model for future studies on how heart cells behave. Moreover, the work lays the foundation for creating more elaborate 3D versions of heart tissue that will contain vascular networks.

"This can be achieved by assembling tandem layers of micropatterned MeTro gels seeded with heart muscles cells in different layers," said Ali Khademhosseini, PhD, BWH Division of Biomedical Engineering, co-senior study author. "As we continue to move forward with finding better ways to mend a broken heart, we hope the biomaterials we engineer will allow us to successfully address the limitations of current artificial tissues."

This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health (HL092836, DE019024, EB012597, AR057837, DE021468, HL099073, EB008392); National Health and Medical Research Council; CRC for Polymers; BHP-Billiton Fulbright Scholarship; National Science Foundation; Office of Naval Research Young National Investigator Award; Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers; Australian Research Council; and Australian Defense Health Foundation and National Health and Medical Research Council.

Anthony Weiss, PhD, University of Sydney, co-senior study author is scientific founder of Elastagen Pty Ltd.

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Journal Reference:

1. Nasim Annabi, Kelly Tsang, Suzanne M. Mithieux, Mehdi Nikkhah, Afshin Ameri, Ali Khademhosseini, Anthony S. Weiss. Highly Elastic Micropatterned Hydrogel for Engineering Functional Cardiac Tissue. Advanced Functional Materials, 2013; DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201300570

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/health_medicine/heart_disease/~3/OQiD_HD9WH0/130429133652.htm

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Two police officers shot as Italian government sworn in

ROME (Reuters) - Two police officers were shot and wounded outside the Italian prime minister's office on Sunday as Enrico Letta's new government was being sworn in around a kilometer (mile) away at the president's palace, police and witnesses said.

One man, described by witnesses as well dressed, was arrested at the scene of the shooting where a crowd was waiting for Letta to arrive but it was initially unclear whether the attack was linked to the launch of the new government.

"We still have to understand who he is. He's been caught," Antonio Catricala, a cabinet undersecretary in the former government told reporters.

A police official told Reuters that the man was from the southern region of Calabria and having fired several shots at the two police on duty outside the prime minister's office, he shouted "shoot me, shoot me" to other police nearby.

Letta and his new cabinet were due to come to the prime minister's office to accept a transfer of power from the outgoing government of Mario Monti at 1 p.m. (7:00 a.m. EDT).

One of the officers was shot in the neck and was in a serious condition, a police official said. Another was hit in the leg and was less seriously hurt. Italian media said a passer-by had also been injured but not seriously.

Five or six shots were fired and police had found five spent shells from a small caliber weapon, another official said.

Letta, 46, the moderate deputy head of the Democratic Party (PD), on Saturday ended two months of political stalemate since February's inconclusive election when he brought together former political rivals in a broad coalition government.

Letta's ministers stepped forward one by one to swear allegiance to the republic before President Giorgio Napolitano, who personally picked Letta as prime minister and had a central role in the choice of his cabinet team.

(Reporting by Gavin Jones, Antonella Cinelli, Roberto Landucci; Editing by James Mackenzie and Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/italian-government-under-enrico-letta-sworn-094720376.html

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AllThingsD connected the dots about a Twitter app for Google Glass in the works.

AllThingsD connected the dots about a Twitter app for Google Glass in the works. Tweet with your eyeballs (and voice)!

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/8QN7VTF7Mgs/allthingsd-connected-the-dots-about-a-twitter-app-for-g-485176409

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Chrysler says second-quarter vehicle shipments to rise at least 13 percent

BERLIN, April 29 (Reuters) - Barcelona will try every trick in the book to overturn a 4-0 first-leg deficit against Bayern Munich in their Champions League semi-final return leg on Wednesday, honorary Bayern president Franz Beckenbauer warned on Monday. Bayern crushed the Spaniards last week in a surprisingly one-sided encounter but Beckenbauer, former player, coach and president of Germany's most successful club, warned that Barcelona were not ready to surrender. "Barca will try everything to throw Bayern off balance," he told Bild newspaper. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/chrysler-says-second-quarter-vehicle-shipments-rise-least-132821547.html

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Horschel takes first PGA win at Zurich Classic

AVONDALE, La. (AP) ? Billy Horschel shot an 8-under 64 in the final round of the Zurich Classic, maintaining his composure through a pair of weather delays for his first-career PGA Tour victory on Sunday.

The 26-year-old former Florida Gator began the day two shots behind third-round leader Lucas Glover and surged into the lead with six straight birdies after the first weather delay. He finished at 20 under, narrowly holding off Shell Houston Open winner D.A. Points, who shot a final-round 65 to finish one shot behind.

The second delay happened before Horschel could take his second shot on the 18th hole, giving him 50 minutes to reflect on what was at stake ? $1.19 million and a two-year exemption.

Kyle Stanley shot a 5-under 67 to finish third, while Chinese 14-year-old amateur Guan Tianlang finished 71st after making his second cut in two PGA events, the first coming famously at the Masters.

Horschel sealed the win with a 27-foot birdie putt on 18, after which he pumped his arms and screamed in triumph, before sinking into a crouch and briefly pulling his cap over his face as the crowd roared.

Although Horschel had never won on the Tour, he had been playing the best golf of his young career lately, with three top 10 finishes in his past three tournaments ? tying for second in Houston, tying for third in San Antonio and tying for ninth in Hilton Head Island, S.C., a week ago.

He has also made a PGA Tour-leading 23 straight cuts, and had already earned $1.3 million this year. Now he has nearly doubled that, thanks to a final round which tied a single-round course record that has been matched several times, including by Rickey Barnes in Thursday's first round.

Horschel began the day at 12-under, two shots behind third-round Glover. He began to make his move up the leaderboard with his first birdie on the fifth hole.

His string of six straight birdies ran from seventh through 12th holes move him to 7-under on the round and 19-under for the tournament.

On the par-5 seventh hole, Horschel chipped from about 89 feet to within 2 feet to set up his first birdie putt. He made a 9-foot birdie putt on eight and then hit a 191-yard tee shot about 4 feet from the pin to set up a birdie on the par-3 ninth.

He made a birdie putts from 13? feet on 10, from 6 feet on 11 and 15? feet on 12.

Horschel bogeyed 15th hole after twice hitting in the right rough to fall back into a tie with Points.

But Horschel then birdied 16 by hitting a 109-yard approach within 5 feet, putting him back at 19-under and restoring his one-shot lead.

Points, playing in the same crowd-pleasing group as Horschel, birdied the 10th through 13th holes to stay on Horschel's heels. However, he left a 98-yard approach shot 30 feet short and left on 16, where he lost the lead.

Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open winner who was looking for his first Tour victory in about two years, took a two-shot lead into the final round and opened with five pars ? narrowly missing birdie when his put rimmed out on the first hole. He was about to line up a birdie putt from 27 feet when a horn sounded, signaling nearby lightning. Play was halted immediately and a downpour ensued shortly after, causing a 2-hour, 54-minute delay.

Glover two-putted for par when play resumed, then struggled on the seventh hole, hitting his drive to an uphill lie in the rough on the edge of a pot bunker. That forced him to lay up, and he chipped over the green and wound up with a bogey on a hole that many players birdied or eagled.

That dropped him out of the lead for good, and he wound up finishing tied for fourth with Bobby Gates, five shots off the lead.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/horschel-takes-first-pga-win-zurich-classic-232722088.html

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First snapshot of organisms eating each other: Feast clue to smell of ancient Earth

Apr. 29, 2013 ? Tiny 1,900 million-year-old fossils from rocks around Lake Superior, Canada, give the first ever snapshot of organisms eating each other and suggest what the ancient Earth would have smelled like.

The fossils, preserved in Gunflint chert, capture ancient microbes in the act of feasting on a cyanobacterium-like fossil called Gunflintia -- with the perforated sheaths of Gunflintia being the discarded leftovers of this early meal.

A team, led by Dr David Wacey of the University of Western Australia and Bergen University, Norway, and Professor Martin Brasier of Oxford University, reports in this week's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the fossil evidence for how this type of feeding on organic matter -- called 'heterotrophy' -- was taking place. They also show that the ancient microbes appeared to prefer to snack on Gunflintia as a 'tasty morsel' in preference to another bacterium (Huroniospora).

'What we call 'heterotrophy' is the same thing we do after dinner as the bacteria in our gut break down organic matter,' said Professor Martin Brasier of Oxford University's Department of Earth Sciences, an author of the paper. 'Whilst there is chemical evidence suggesting that this mode of feeding dates back 3,500 million years, in this study for the first time we identify how it was happening and 'who was eating who'. In fact we've all experienced modern bacteria feeding in this way as that's where that 'rotten egg' whiff of hydrogen sulfide comes from in a blocked drain. So, rather surprisingly, we can say that life on earth 1,900 million years ago would have smelled a lot like rotten eggs.'

The team analysed the microscopic fossils, ranging from about 3-15 microns in diameter, using a battery of new techniques and found that one species -- a tubular form thought to be the outer sheath of Gunflintia -- was more perforated after death than other kinds, consistent with them having been eaten by bacteria.

In some places many of the tiny fossils had been partially or entirely replaced with iron sulfide ('fool's gold') a waste product of heterotrophic sulfate-reducing bacteria that is also a highly visible marker. The team also found that these Gunflintia fossils carried clusters of even smaller (c.1 micron) spherical and rod-shaped bacteria that were seemingly in the process of consuming their hosts.

Dr Wacey said that: 'recent geochemical analyses have shown that the sulfur-based activities of bacteria can likely be traced back to 3,500 million years or so -- a finding reported by our group in Nature Geoscience in 2011. Whilst the Gunflint fossils are only about half as old, they confirm that such bacteria were indeed flourishing by 1,900 million years ago. And that they were also highly particular about what they chose to eat.'

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Oxford, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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Journal Reference:

1. David Wacey, Nicola McLoughlin, Matt R. Kilburn, Martin Saunders, John B. Cliff, Charlie Kong, Mark E. Barley, and Martin D. Brasier. Nanoscale analysis of pyritized microfossils reveals differential heterotrophic consumption in the ?1.9-Ga Gunflint chert. PNAS, April 29, 2013 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1221965110

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

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/hiDQhD4eNRI/130429154107.htm

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SAGE to publish Canada's pre-eminent International Journal

Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Katie Baker
katie.baker@sagepub.co.uk
020-732-48719
SAGE Publications

Los Angeles, CA (April 29, 2013) SAGE has begun a partnership with the Canadian International Council (CIC) and the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History (CCIH) to publish Canada's pre-eminent journal of global policy analysis, International Journal. This long-standing journal publishes brief, policy-relevant articles alongside peer-reviewed scholarly assessments of interest to foreign policy makers, analysts and academics around the world. The journal publishes four times a year.

Established in 1946, International Journal is cross disciplinary in approach, combining the insights of history, political science and economics with anthropology and other social sciences to advance research and dialogue on global issues of significance.

"SAGE has a well-established global publishing programme in international relations and political science and we are delighted to welcome Canada's foremost foreign policy title to SAGE," said Karen Phillips, Editorial Director, SAGE. "We see a close alignment between SAGE and the CIC in our shared goal to advance research and support academic debate and policy discourse. International Journal plays an influential role in enabling the exchange of views and ideas on international relations and political science, and we look forward to developing this journal's global outreach as part of our world class international politics portfolio."

"When selecting a publisher, it was important for us to find someone who would both enhance our global impact and reader experience, while maintaining our unique brand and position. In SAGE we found a company whose infrastructure and global position would enable us to do this, and we look forward to benefitting from these during our partnership," commented Adam Chapnick, International Journal's co-editor.

"The Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History is pleased to join in the partnership with the Canadian International Council to publish Canada's leading international affairs journal. Our board member Dr. MacDonald will be co-editor and our conferences and speakers will provide content for this important journal that has deeply influenced the study of international affairs in Canada and elsewhere," said John English, Director of the CCIH.

Jennifer Jeffs, President of the Canadian International Council (CIC) added, "The journal is Canada's leading journal of international affairs and plays a key role in our mission to be a major voice in the international policy arena. SAGE is well known for its core strengths as a high quality publisher within international policy, and we see clear synergies with our core values and global publishing goals. We look forward to developing an influential relationship together."

###

SAGE is a leading international publisher of journals, books and electronic media for academic, educational, and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students spanning a wide range of subject areas including business, humanities, social sciences, and science, technology and medicine. SAGE has principal offices in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC. http://www.sagepublicaions.com

International Journal (IJ) has been recognized as Canada's pre-eminent scholarly publication on international relations since its inception in 1946. Readers benefit from wide-ranging research and analysis by scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers, Canadian and non-Canadian.

Canadian International Council (CIC) is a non-partisan, nationwide council established to strengthen Canada's role in international affairs. It aims to advance research and dialogue on international affairs issues by supporting a Canadian foreign policy network that crosses academic disciplines, policy areas, and economic sectors.

Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History (CCIH) is a joint undertaking of Trinity College and the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. It promotes the study of recent international events from a historical standpoint, and pursues programs of research, teaching, publication and other activities to that end.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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.

Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Katie Baker
katie.baker@sagepub.co.uk
020-732-48719
SAGE Publications

Los Angeles, CA (April 29, 2013) SAGE has begun a partnership with the Canadian International Council (CIC) and the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History (CCIH) to publish Canada's pre-eminent journal of global policy analysis, International Journal. This long-standing journal publishes brief, policy-relevant articles alongside peer-reviewed scholarly assessments of interest to foreign policy makers, analysts and academics around the world. The journal publishes four times a year.

Established in 1946, International Journal is cross disciplinary in approach, combining the insights of history, political science and economics with anthropology and other social sciences to advance research and dialogue on global issues of significance.

"SAGE has a well-established global publishing programme in international relations and political science and we are delighted to welcome Canada's foremost foreign policy title to SAGE," said Karen Phillips, Editorial Director, SAGE. "We see a close alignment between SAGE and the CIC in our shared goal to advance research and support academic debate and policy discourse. International Journal plays an influential role in enabling the exchange of views and ideas on international relations and political science, and we look forward to developing this journal's global outreach as part of our world class international politics portfolio."

"When selecting a publisher, it was important for us to find someone who would both enhance our global impact and reader experience, while maintaining our unique brand and position. In SAGE we found a company whose infrastructure and global position would enable us to do this, and we look forward to benefitting from these during our partnership," commented Adam Chapnick, International Journal's co-editor.

"The Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History is pleased to join in the partnership with the Canadian International Council to publish Canada's leading international affairs journal. Our board member Dr. MacDonald will be co-editor and our conferences and speakers will provide content for this important journal that has deeply influenced the study of international affairs in Canada and elsewhere," said John English, Director of the CCIH.

Jennifer Jeffs, President of the Canadian International Council (CIC) added, "The journal is Canada's leading journal of international affairs and plays a key role in our mission to be a major voice in the international policy arena. SAGE is well known for its core strengths as a high quality publisher within international policy, and we see clear synergies with our core values and global publishing goals. We look forward to developing an influential relationship together."

###

SAGE is a leading international publisher of journals, books and electronic media for academic, educational, and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students spanning a wide range of subject areas including business, humanities, social sciences, and science, technology and medicine. SAGE has principal offices in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC. http://www.sagepublicaions.com

International Journal (IJ) has been recognized as Canada's pre-eminent scholarly publication on international relations since its inception in 1946. Readers benefit from wide-ranging research and analysis by scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers, Canadian and non-Canadian.

Canadian International Council (CIC) is a non-partisan, nationwide council established to strengthen Canada's role in international affairs. It aims to advance research and dialogue on international affairs issues by supporting a Canadian foreign policy network that crosses academic disciplines, policy areas, and economic sectors.

Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History (CCIH) is a joint undertaking of Trinity College and the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. It promotes the study of recent international events from a historical standpoint, and pursues programs of research, teaching, publication and other activities to that end.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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/2013-04/sp-stp042913.php

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How Long Should You Spend on Making Tasks More Efficient?

These days everyone wants you to hack your life in order to make your day-to-day existence more efficient. But there are times when the effort's not really worth it—and this chart should help you work out what to spend time on, and what to ignore. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/WwUp1Dzyh64/how-long-should-you-spend-on-making-tasks-more-efficient

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Facebook And The Sudden Wake Up About The API Economy

What a two weeks it’s been. Something happened that has been simmering for a while. The API market exploded. Intel bought Mashery for more than $180 million and CA acquired Layer 7. 3Scale received a new $4.2 million round of funding from Javelin Ventures. Mulesoft acquired Programmable Web. And then Facebook jumped in and bought Parse. The acquisitions and funding point to a maturing market that is reflected in the ubiquity of APIs across the application landscape. It’s not a new market by any means. The space is filled with companies that have leveraged the API build out that has happened over the past several years. Instead this is an inflection point. There are more than 30,000 APIs, according to Programmable Web, the leading API directory and blog. Javelin Ventures Managing Director Noah Doyle said to me in an interview that analysts see the API market growing five to ten times over the next five years. With that scaling in number of APIs comes a virtuous circle for the developers that build compelling apps and APIs. The APIs extend the apps reach as they become part of distributed data network. As more people use the APIs so the app developer generates more data. As the data increases in scope, often the service will become an API. Facebook needs new streams of data to keep rolling out new digital products. Back end as a service providers like Parse provide SDKs and APIs that give developers access to infrastructure for storing basic data types, locations and photos. How Facebook uses this data is a question mark. But regardless, Pare serves as a constant replenishing source, nourished by the apps on the Parse platform that use APIs. Facebook now will decide how to package and segment that data to push more relevant advertising to its 1 billion users. APIs Are Like Glue APIs will be the glue to the Internet, said Programmable Web Founder John Musser. Musser, like Doyle, sees a new generation of APIs emerging that are fueled by demand, triggered by mobile devices, which serve in many respects as the new client/servers. Apps are hosted on cloud services and distributed across mobile devices that read and write data, sending and receiving information, connecting via APIs. In the first generation, Mashery and companies like Apigee pioneered the API management space. Twitter and other web companies emerged in the second generation. In the

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/w8YoAqX9UZY/

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Chevron resumes operations in unit closed by fire

RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) -- Chevron has resumed operations in a unit at its Bay Area refinery that was shut down after a massive fire last year.

Company officials said during a conference call with analysts Friday that crews had begun feeding crude oil through the unit knocked out by the Aug. 6 fire.

Chevron's chief financial officer, Patricia Yarrington, says the unit at Richmond is expected to be fully operational during the second quarter.

Both Chevron and government investigations have determined that corrosion in a pipe caused a leak that sparked the fire, sending a plume of black smoke over nearby areas.

Since the fire, the refinery had been operating at about 60 percent capacity until very recently. The factory wasn't processing crude oil and instead was being used to blend gasoline.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/chevron-resumes-operations-unit-closed-212000370.html

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Air Gun Blasts Shatter Undersea Tranquility

Proposals to open the U.S. East Coast for oil and gas exploration mean an increasingly noisy neighborhood for marine life. David Biello reports

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[audio clip] That's the sound of air gun testing for the presence of oil and gas under the seabed. ?Air gun? is a euphemism for a massive release of compressed air. Don?t like it? Neither does underwater life.

Such testing also isn't a one-off burst of 250-decibel sound louder than a jet engine. For days or even weeks at a time, these guns send a volley of ear-shattering sound through the ocean to impact the seafloor every ten seconds or so. That's nearly 9,000 such bursts per day.

Our mammal cousins, whales and dolphins particularly loathe air guns. Perhaps that's because hundreds of thousands of the animals can be injured by them each year.

As you can imagine, in addition to injuring whales and dolphins through hearing loss, it also puts them off their food and has even been linked to strandings. And it's not just sea mammals. Turtles, fish and other marine creatures are similarly affected as the sound travels for thousands of kilometers.

And this is all before any drilling takes place. If fossil fuel exploration is opened up along the U.S. East Coast, an already noisy neighborhood from ship traffic will get a lot louder.

?David Biello

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=5b0f485e4d3cf73ccd639c9e0ff68207

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Watson says fatherhood helped him brush off ''ghosts of past shackles''

Sydney, Apr 28: Former Australian vice-captain Shane Watson said that being a father helped him move on from the fractured relationships in the team, the infamous ''homework-gate incident and a public denouncement that he was not always a team man.

According to Watson, as soon as he held his newborn son, Will, in his arms, his mind cleared of all the past troubles and helped him focus more on his future, adding that having children is one of the most beautiful things into the world, News.com.au reports.

Watson further said that he has now got more important things to worry about, adding that he is now free to focus on his new family as he has lost the burden of being a vice captain and the previous other worries which were dogging his career.

Watson also said he counted his blessings for being with his wife Lee when his son was born, adding that it was strange that he got to see his wife deliver his son just because he got an one-Test suspension for not doing his ''homework'' in India. According to the report, being a night owl, Watson was up to prepare Will for feeding, adding that he cherished every moment of it, be it bathing him, dressing him, or just walking along the Cronulla foreshore as a family.

Admitting to feeling a sense of freedom, Watson said that the shackles of the past troubles have come off him, adding that he will spend his free time to give back to the people who have been supportive to him throughout his life and career.

Watson, as a team leader, was criticised by Arthur, Cricket Australia high-performance manager Pat Howard and captain Michael Clarke as he returned home to a blaze of publicity to be there for the birth of Will.

He has been forced to defend his relationship with Clarke, insisting their leadership was not dysfunctional, the report added.

? ANI

Source: http://www.vcricket.com/cricket-news/watson-says-fatherhood-helped-him-brush-off-ghosts-of-past-shackles--40524.html

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Leap Motion Hack Brings A Facebook Home Experience To The Desktop

One of the hacks at Disrupt NY's Hackathon this year employed hardware startup Leap Motion's new 3D gesture controller, which unfortunately just ran into a delay. Leap Motion's issues aside, this project, the combined effort of Chao Huang, Cedrich Pinson and Jorge Martinez, brings a Facebook Home-style experience to the desktop.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Mb6Bm0W7tLE/

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The Best Eyeglasses At The Hackathon

We decided to feature nerd fashion at this year's hackathon at Disrupt NY, and what better statement is there these days than eyeglasses? Obligatory Google Glass sighting aside, these hackers definitely had noteworthy eyewear. We've showcased some of our favorites below.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/j2Vqv0Q9i8s/

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Austerity-weary Iceland votes in national election

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) ? Five years after Iceland's economy imploded, austerity-weary voters looked set Saturday to return the parties widely blamed for the disaster to power.

Polls showed the Progressive and Independence parties, who are promising to ease Icelanders' economic pain, leading the Social Democrat-led coalition that has spent the last four years trying to pick up the pieces after the crash.

Iceland's economic recovery has been hard and uneven, and many voters are fed up.

"I think that Icelanders are craving change. The last government failed to lead us out of the economic crisis in the way people liked," said Svavar Bjorgvinsson, owner of a computer games company.

He said many voters were swayed by the center-right parties' promises of tax cuts and mortgage relief.

"Many people that have been struggling will give these parties their vote as they are seeing some light in the end of the tunnel," he said.

A shift to the right in Saturday's parliamentary election would likely shelve Iceland's plans to join the European Union, with which it has begun accession talks. Both Progressives and Independents oppose joining the 27-nation bloc.

Progressive Party chief Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson and Independence Party leader Bjarni Benediktsson are the two most likely candidates for prime minister under the system of proportional representation used for elections to Iceland's 63-seat parliament, the Althingi.

The two parties governed Iceland for several decades, often in coalition, overseeing economic liberalization that spurred a banking and business boom ? until Iceland's economy crashed spectacularly during the 2008 credit crisis.

A volcano-dotted North Atlantic nation with a population of just 320,000, Iceland went from economic wunderkind to financial basket case almost overnight when its main commercial banks collapsed within a week of one another.

The value of the country's currency plummeted, while inflation and unemployment soared. Iceland was forced to seek bailouts from Europe and the International Monetary Fund.

Despite being widely blamed for the meltdown, the Independents and Progressives say they are now best placed to lead the economic recovery.

The Progressives are promising to write off some mortgage debt, taking money from foreign creditors. Benediktsson's Independence Party is offering lower taxes and the lifting of capital controls that he says are hindering foreign investment.

"We believe we can do a lot for indebted households, but our plan is not to do only that" Benediktsson said after casting his vote in a Reykjavik suburb.

"I think the only way out of the economic difficulties we've had is growing the economy, and we need to create new jobs, start new investments and we have a very strong plan to start doing that tomorrow."

Whatever the outcome, 70-year-old outgoing Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir has said she will retire from politics after the election. Iceland's first female ? and first openly gay ? prime minister, she was elected as head of a center-left alliance in 2009 on a wave of public disgust at the previous administration.

Since then, Iceland has in many ways made a strong recovery. Unemployment has fallen and the economy is growing.

But inflation remains naggingly high, and many Icelanders still struggle to repay home and car loans they took out ? often in foreign currencies whose value soared after the crash ? in the years of easy credit.

Some accuse the government of caving in to international pressure to compensate Britain and the Netherlands for their citizens' lost deposits in the failed online bank Icesave. Icelanders have twice rejected repayment deals agreed to by Sigurdardottir's government.

"The government that many people thought was cleaning up the mess is getting severely punished for the last four years," said journalist and political analyst Egill Helgason. "I don't know whether they deserve it. In many ways I think not. But this is politics ? cruel."

Some voters say the outgoing government did as good a job as could be expected.

"We cannot forget that everything collapsed here and still health care, schools and society in general functions better than in most countries", said Jon Gunnar Bjornsson, an operations manager of one of Iceland's new, post-crisis banks.

"We still retain ownership of hospitals, the road system and the utility companies. I'm not sure we could have expected more.

"But still people are unhappy and want someone to take their debt away and shower them with golden fairy dust."

Polls close at 2200GMT (6 p.m. EDT), with full results expected early Sunday.

___

Lawless reported from London. Associated Press writer David Mac Dougall in Reykjavik contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/austerity-weary-iceland-votes-national-election-092545562.html

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