simondoro: June 2013

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Murder conviction against US Marine overturned

FILE - This Dec. 7, 2006 file photo shows Marine Corps Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III, of Plymouth, Mass., at Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base, Calif. The military's highest court overturned a murder conviction Wednesday against Hutchins in one of the most significant cases against American troops from the Iraq war. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy, File)

SAN DIEGO (AP) ? The military's highest court overturned a murder conviction Wednesday against a Camp Pendleton Marine in one of the most significant cases against American troops from the Iraq war.

The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces threw out the conviction of Sgt. Lawrence Hutchins III of Plymouth, Mass., who has served about half of his 11-year sentence.

According to the ruling posted on the court's website, the judges agreed with Hutchins, who claimed his constitutional rights were violated when he was held in solitary confinement without access to a lawyer for seven days during his 2006 interrogation in Iraq.

The decision is seen as a major blow to the military's prosecution of Iraqi war crimes.

Hutchins led an eight-man squad accused of kidnapping an Iraqi man from his home in April 2006, marching him to a ditch and shooting him to death in the village of Hamdania.

Hutchins has said he thought the man ? who turned out to be a retired policeman ? was an insurgent leader. Prosecutors accused the squad of planting a shovel and AK-47 to make it appear he was an insurgent.

None of the other seven squad members served more than 18 months.

The move is the latest in a series of twists and turns for Hutchins, whose case already was overturned once by a lower court three years ago.

The lower court ruled Hutchins' 2007 trial was unfair because his lead defense lawyer quit shortly before it began. The military's highest court disagreed on that point and reinstated Hutchins' conviction in 2011, sending him back to the brig after eight months working at a desk job at California's Camp Pendleton. The high court said at the time that the problem wasn't grave enough to warrant throwing out the conviction.

On Wednesday, it agreed with Hutchins' latest petition.

Hutchins' lawyer, Babu Kaza, said he expects him to now be released in days.

"Sgt. Hutchins and his family have suffered enough with this case, and it's time for this to be over," Kaza said. "Enough is enough."

The Navy can appeal to the Supreme Court or send the case to the convening authority, who can either order a retrial or let the ruling stand.

Navy officials could not be immediately reached for comment.

In their ruling Wednesday, the court's judges said the Naval Criminal Investigative Services violated Hutchins' Fifth Amendment rights when it interrogated him in May 2006 about the incident and then put him in a trailer in Fallujah with no access to a lawyer or phones.

After seven days, the same Navy investigator returned and asked Hutchins for permission to search his belongings. Hutchins said he asked to tell his side of the story and was told he could do so the next day, when he waived his right to counsel and provided a sworn statement about the crimes.

The judges ruled much of the case rested on that confession, which they determined was illegally obtained after Hutchins was held under guard for seven days.

"Accordingly, under the circumstances of this case, it was error for the military judge to admit the statement made by Hutchins on May 19, 2006," the judges concluded in their ruling.

The case was among the most serious Iraqi war crimes prosecuted by the government. In another major case that took six years, the lone Marine convicted in the killings of 24 unarmed Iraqi civilians in a raid in Haditha seven years ago reached a deal to escape jail time.

Another case involved the November 2004 death of an unarmed Iraqi detainee in Fallujah. One Marine was spared prison time after pleading guilty to dereliction of duty, and another was acquitted. Their former squad leader was acquitted in federal court.

Former Navy officer David Glazier, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, said Wednesday's ruling demonstrates the military's poor prosecution record.

"For these very serious allegations of conduct that one would think of as war crimes, the military justice system has not performed very well in the past couple decades," Glazier said.

"Here this guy's conviction is overturned on the basis that he was mistreated by the government during his initial apprehension, and yet he's already served five years in prison," he added. "If the conviction was unjust in the first place, it's kind of appalling it's taken the military justice system five years to resolve it."

Hutchins' lawyer said his client told him after the ruling that he can't wait to return to his wife and two children.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-06-26-Marine-Iraq%20Shootings/id-a6b1ed8a91ec4241b09ed41760ba80ac

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Will Snowden join ranks of airport denizens?

Transit passengers and press sit at a cafe in Sheremetyevo,airport in Moscow Wednesday, June 26, 2013. Russia?s President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden has remained in Sheremetyevo?s transit zone, but media that descended on the airport in the search for him couldn?t locate him there.(AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Transit passengers eat at a cafe with a TV screen with a news program showing a report on Edward Snowden, in the background, at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow Wednesday, June 26, 2013. Russia?s President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden has remained in Sheremetyevo?s transit zone, but media that descended on the airport in the search for him couldn?t locate him there. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

LONDON (AP) ? Amid the thousands of people passing through Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, Edward Snowden is ? if Russia's government is to be believed ? staying put. That makes his situation unusual, but for all its extraordinary elements of intrigue, it's not unique.

The former National Security Agency contractor who leaked U.S. surveillance secrets is not the first person to be stranded in the legally ambiguous zone between the arrivals gate and the immigration desks of an international airport.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says Snowden is in the airport's transit area after flying in from Hong Kong on Sunday. Authorities in Moscow say he is not officially in Russia and is free to leave.

But U.S. officials have issued a warrant for his arrest and have revoked his passport ? meaning that there are few places he can go.

Snowden could end up joining the roster of unwilling airport residents whose ordeals, suspended between states, have stretched on for months or even years.

Putin said Tuesday that Snowden has not passed through Russian immigration, so he is not technically in Russia.

That's more a diplomatic convention than a legal reality, according to James C. Hathaway, director of the Program on Refugee and Asylum Law at the University of Michigan law school.

"Moscow airport is as much a part of Russia as is the Kremlin," Hathaway said in an email.

"Many nations pretend that airport transit lounges are not part of their territory, indeed not under their jurisdiction. As a matter of international law, this is completely false."

Nonetheless, airport transit areas provide a limbo zone in which human beings can sometimes get lost. Moscow's Sheremetyevo has seen crowds of refugees from countries including Afghanistan and Somalia living in corridors awaiting refugee status, and Russia has been accused of using the airport as a convenient way of stalling asylum requests.

In 2010 the U.S. State Department cited the case of 16 Somali asylum seekers who "spent several months living in the airport's transit zone, at times compelled to beg for food from airline passengers." The State Department report said they were unable to apply for Russian asylum and were forced to turn to the United Nations for help.

Iranian human rights activist Zahra Kamalfar spent more than nine months in the airport's transit lounge with her two children in 2006-2007 before Canada granted her asylum.

Other airport denizens have become stranded through bureaucratic or political misfortune. Chinese human rights activist Feng Zhenghu camped out at Tokyo's Narita airport for three months in 2009 after Chinese officials barred him from returning home. He slept on a plastic bench and survived on handouts of crackers and noodles from passers-by until Chinese authorities relented and let him fly to Shanghai.

Hiroshi Nohara of Japan spent almost three months at Mexico City's airport in 2008, becoming a local celebrity, frequently interviewed by television crews. He turned out to have a valid visa for Mexico, and never disclosed the reasons for his stay.

The most famous airport resident was Mehran Karimi Nasseri, an Iranian who spent 18 years inside Terminal 1 of Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport. He lost papers confirming his refugee status and got stuck in a bureaucratic vicious circle with officials from several European countries refusing to provide him with documents that would allow him to leave the terminal.

His airport life there developed a kind of domestic routine. He slept on a red plastic bench surrounded by his boxes and bags. The pharmacy took his phone calls and fast food restaurants provided him with meals. But it was also a Kafkaesque existence, without purpose.

"Here, it's not life. It's just staying like a passenger and waiting for departure," Mehran told the AP in 2004, when he'd been in the airport for 16 years. "To be here is just like being in transit."

Mehran's ordeal, which ended in 2006 when he was hospitalized, was recast as a romantic comedy in the movie "The Terminal," in which Tom Hanks played a man denied entry to the United States because his native country descended into a civil war. Stuck at New York's JFK airport, he falls in love with a flight attendant.

The eventual outcome of Snowden's predicament is unclear. As a wanted man without a passport, his travel options are extremely limited.

His best bet could be to seek political asylum from a country that would grant him safe passage. Iceland has been mentioned, and Ecuador says it has already received an asylum request from Snowden.

"Having documents to travel is not a prerequisite to applying for asylum," said Laura Padoan of the United Nations refugee agency.

The U.N. agency says there are established procedures allowing countries to grant travel documents for the resettlement of refugees who do not have passports or other papers.

It's unclear whether Snowden possesses such a document. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has been aiding Snowden's journey, says Ecuador has granted him a refugee document that will allow him to travel. Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino, however, has said he does not know what travel documents Snowden is using.

Ecuador says it is considering Snowden's asylum request ? but Patino said Wednesday that coming to a decision might take months.

___

Associated Press writer James Brooks contributed to this report. Jill Lawless can be reached at http://Twitter.com/JillLawless

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-06-26-NSA%20Surveillance-Snowden's%20Limbo/id-a36ccf802e3245ff94f9861e0450d4e4

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Samsung?s Scattershot Product Strategy Explained

With so many products available, it seems that Samsung is just taking a "spray and pray" approach to its product strategy. But there are actually a number of reasons why Samsung wants, and is able, to ship such a huge ...

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/mKkuYvWCjac/

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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Ireland to pay $45M to Catholic laundry workers

DUBLIN (AP) ? Ireland will pay several hundred former residents of Catholic-run Magdalene laundries at least 34.5 million euros ($45 million) to compensate them for their years of unpaid labor and public shame, the government announced Wednesday following a decade-long campaign by former residents of the workhouses.

Justice Minister Alan Shatter apologized to the women ? an estimated 770 survivors out of more than 10,000 who lived in the dozen facilities from 1922 to 1996 ? that it had taken so long for them to receive compensation. The move marked the latest step in a two-decade effort by Ireland to investigate and redress human rights abuses in its Catholic institutions.

Shatter's decision came four months after a government-commissioned probe found that women consigned to the laundries were broadly branded "fallen" women, a euphemism for prostitutes. The investigation found that few actually were, while most instead were victims of poverty, homelessness and dysfunctional families in a state lacking the facilities to care for them.

In remarks to former Magdalenes, some of them in the press-conference audience, Shatter said he hoped they would accept the compensation plans as "a sincere expression of the state's regret for failing you in the past, its recognition of your current needs, and its commitment to respecting your dignity and human rights as full, equal members of our nation."

And in a challenge to the four orders of nuns that ran the workhouses, Shatter called on them to help pay the bill.

The orders ? the Sisters of Mercy, the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity of Refuge, the Sisters of Charity, and the Good Shepherd Sisters ? all issued statements welcoming the payments plan. None offered any pledge to contribute and insisted their staff had done the best they could at the time, given the state's own inability to care for the women.

The nuns noted that they still were providing homes to more than 100 former laundry workers who chose to remain in church care when the last of the laundries closed, while virtually none of the nuns involved in running the workhouses was still alive today.

"We wish we had provided a better and more comprehensive service and shown more empathy, but we were also part of a system that had little comprehension or understanding of how to truly care for these women," said the Good Shepherd Sisters, who ran four laundries in Cork, Limerick, Waterford and Wexford. "We always acted in good faith and many of our sisters dedicated their entire lives to this work."

Shatter said the total cost of payments could reach 58 million euros ($75.5 million) if the maximum number of eligible women worldwide applies. The tax-free payments would range from 11,500 euros ($15,000), for women who spent less than three months working in a laundry, to up to 100,000 euros ($130,000) for those who spent 10 years or more there.

As part of the plans, former Magdalenes also will receive state-funded retirement pensions and free medical care at state-funded facilities.

Activists representing the so-called "Maggies" had demanded justice and state compensation since 2002, when a previous government launched a compensation fund for people abused in Catholic-run orphanages and workhouses for children.

Former Magdalene residents were declared ineligible, as the government contended that the laundries were privately run institutions with negligible state involvement. Taxpayers since have paid more than 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) to more than 13,000 people who suffered sexual, physical and psychological abuse in the children's residences.

A government-commissioned investigation in February found that the state was legally responsible for overseeing the laundries, too. Prime Minister Enda Kenny offered an official apology for what he called "a cruel, pitiless Ireland" that had abused the women with " untrue and offensive stereotypes."

Investigators trawling through decades of the laundries' residency records found that more than a quarter of women were directly committed to the laundries by public officials, such as judges or truancy officers, and all residents spent their days in menial labor without access to education.

Most did laundry for hotels, hospitals and prisons, while others scrubbed floors or made rosary beads for the church's profit.

The report found that the average length of stay was just seven months, not the lifetime imprisonment commonly depicted in fictional works. It said 14 percent stayed more than five years, and 8 percent more than a decade.

Many hundreds checked into the facilities repeatedly for short periods, reflecting their poverty and the Irish state's inadequate facilities for homeless women. And until the 1970s, judges often ordered women guilty of crimes ranging from shoplifting to infanticide into the laundries rather than Ireland's male-dominated prison system.

The report did dispute depictions in popular culture of physical beatings in the institutions, noting that many Magdalene residents had transferred there as teenagers from Catholic-run industrial schools where such violence was common, and some survivors in their adult recollections failed to distinguish between the two. It found no evidence of such attacks in the nuns' care and, specifically, no complaints of sexual abuse by the nuns.

___

Online:

Ireland's compensation plans, http://bit.ly/19Ce2vt

Magdalene Laundries report, http://www.idcmagdalen.ie/

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ireland-pay-45m-catholic-laundry-workers-152940299.html

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Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Orange County Home Improvement Specialists: A New Swimming ...

Once the decision to have a new swimming pool installed has been made there is often a lot of excitement surrounding the project itself as well as the end result. Before homeowners can begin enjoying their pool however they must first undertake one of the most daunting aspects of the new swimming pool. Swimming pool design often drives homeowners mad due to the number of existing designs and the possibilities that are limited only by their own minds and their budget.

In addition to the actual design or architecture of a swimming pool, homeowners must also decide whether their new swimming pool will be of the in ground or above ground variety. Both design have their pros and cons, things that homeowners will need to consider heavily and maybe even consult with the contractor on to ensure they get the pool they want. While many homeowners will immediately begin gravitating towards above ground pool simply because they are far more inexpensive than in ground pools there are some reasons that cause homeowners to change their minds.

When dealing with in ground pools homeowners will have a pool that's made from concrete, vinyl, or even fiberglass. All of these materials have advantages and disadvantages though they're all very strong and make for great swimming pools. In an in ground pool made of concrete homeowners will get peace of mind knowing that they have the most versatile and durable material available for a swimming pool. This means far less hassle and even less repair. While vinyl in ground pools are nearly as versatile as concrete they require greater care when a homeowner wants to avoid tearing or puncturing there liners. As far as fiberglass is concerned in an in ground pool, it is the cheapest and easiest to install however is far less versatile than both concrete and vinyl. Regardless of the type of material a homeowner selects for their new in ground pool they're going to be getting a pool that is of the highest quality.

Many times the need for repairs, limited design choices, the lack of versatility, and dealing with the hassles of an above ground pool aren't enough to dissuade someone from purchasing one. Another reason homeowners may elect an above ground pool as opposed to an in ground pool is cost. Generally speaking and with only a few exceptions, above ground pools are far less expensive than their in ground cousins. Many homeowners also select an above ground pool because they don't want to wait months to begin utilizing their new swimming pool. Additionally a great deal of above ground pools require no contractor for installation. Though they can still be hired to do so most homeowners will be savvy enough to handle installation themselves.

It behooves any homeowner that has decided to have a new swimming pool installed to first consult with a contractor to determine the reality of such a project. Things like placement, cost, design, and above ground versus in ground are things that will need to be sorted out long before any decision to have one installed is made.

Millennium Construction specializes in Orange County swimming pools, Corona Del Mar landscaping ,and pools.

Source: http://orangecountyhomeimprovement.blogspot.com/2013/06/a-new-swimming-pool-above-ground-or-in.html

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Man Walks Across Grand Canyon on Tightrope (Voice Of America)

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Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/314745040?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Monday, June 24, 2013

DC United snaps 13-game winless streak? |? Reax

How it happened: For the second week in a row, D.C. United took the lead first from, once again, a converted penalty kick. As United worked to open things up in San Jose's box, Chris Korb was brought down while driving to the net and the refs awarded the Black-and-Red a penalty kick at the 10-minute mark.

Chris Pontius stepped up to take the honors and faked Earthquakes keeper Jon Busch into diving to his right early as Pontius sailed an easy shot into the netting. The tally would prove to be enough for three points as United notched their second win of the season, the first since their March 9 win over Real Salt Lake.

Good to be back: Pontius missed last week's 2-1 loss to Toronto due to a concussion during their Open Cup win over Philadelphia earlier that week. The converted PK was Pontius' first of the season.

Clean sheet club: The shutout was the fourth of the season for United, thanks to a stout effort by DCU's defense, who blocked seven shots and a dazzling performance from Bill Hamid, who had three crucial saves.?

What it means: It's a confidence booster. The three points doesn't allow United to climb over anyone in the standings, they're still firmly planted in last place, but with their improved play of late this could be the win that pushes things back on course.?

Looking ahead: United will finish out the month of June when they face Vancouver (6-5-4) at home next Saturday.

Source: http://www.csnwashington.com/blog/dc-united-talk/united-snaps-13-match-winless-streak-1-0-win

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Sony Disney Streaming Movies In Theaters - Business Insider

Disney/Getty Images

US movie studios Disney and Sony are trying to cut down on piracy by streaming movies even while they're still in the theater.

The studios are streaming the movies over a new service, currently available only in South Korea,?The Verge's Matt Brian reports.

The service allows for people to choose if they'd rather pay for a traditional movie ticket, or instead pay to enjoy the flick from the comfort of their own homes.

Sony and Disney have made "Wreck-It Ralph," "Django Unchained," and "Brave" available to stream.

This isn't the first time Disney has tested the service.

Back in 2011, Disney briefly tested the same streaming program in Portugal, where they offered on-demand streaming of "Tangled."

While many consumers in the US would be interested in such an affordable option, don't hold your breathe.

A large reason that Sony and Disney chose South Korea as a test market is the nation's openness to such a program. The US has seen much more resistance from studios, as many are keen to keep the current system.

With $10.8 billion in domestic revenue last year, ticket sales might have to decrease significantly before a similar on-demand service is considered.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/sony-disney-streaming-movies-in-theaters-2013-6

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'Playboy' Paul Giamatti joins 'Downton Abbey'

Ree Hines TODAY contributor

7 hours ago

Evan Agostini / AP

Paul Giamatti.

There was a time when Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) was the lone Yank on "Downton Abbey," but those days are long gone.

Last season, her mother, Martha (Shirley MacLaine), arrived on the scene -- much to the displeasure of the Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith) -- and next season, the American invasion will continue.

The next non-Brit on his way to the Abbey is Cora's brother, and if Lady Violet cringed at every Americanism out of Martha's mouth, she's bound to be positively apoplectic about Harold, as played by the oh-so-modern American Paul Giamatti.

Yes, that's right. The man who once played Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton in Howard Stern's "Private Parts" is joining the show.

At first the actor might seem like an odd fit for the "Dowton" ensemble, but fans can take heart. Giamatti already mastered the art of the perfect period piece performance in HBO's "John Adams," for which he won an Emmy, and it's not like he'll be channeling any of his past crude, nerdy or neurotic on-screen personas for his "Downton" role. In fact, according to TVLine, Giamatti's Harold is a "maverick, playboy" type.

Executive producer Gareth Neame told TVLine that Harold would be "free spirited," and that he -- along with mom Martha -- holds the promise of upsetting "the Grantham apple cart" by the end of season four.

But there's still a long wait for the beginning of season four -- at least for Harold's fellow Americans. "Downton Abbey" returns to PBS Jan. 5, 2014.

Source: http://www.today.com/entertainment/american-invasion-downton-abbey-continues-paul-giamatti-joins-cast-6C10423979

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Sunday, June 23, 2013

96% Stories We Tell

All Critics (74) | Top Critics (34) | Fresh (71) | Rotten (3)

Stories We Tell is not just very moving; it is an exploration of truth and fiction that will stay with you long after repeated viewings.

Part of the movie's pleasure is how comfortable the "storytellers" are with their director; you get a sense of a complicated but tight-knit family, going along with Sarah's project because they love her.

Never sentimental, never cold and never completely sure of anything, Polley comes across as a woman caught in wonder.

After you see it, you'll be practically exploding with questions - and with awe.

Stories We Tell is just the latest reminder of nonfiction film's current, endlessly innovative state. That's a story worth savoring.

Sarah Polley is often referred to in Canada as a 'national treasure'. She's far more than that. She's a treasure to the world - period. And so, finally, is her film.

An absorbing exercise not only in documentary excavation but in narrative construction.

Sarah Polley's exploration of her tangled family history is a complex and thoroughly fascinating inquiry into the nature of truth and memory -- and, inevitably, into Polley herself.

This is simply a gorgeously realised and warmly compiled family album, which lingers with us not because its subjects are so unusual and alien, but because they feel so close to home. What a success.

Sarah Polley's personal "documentary" suffers from one additional emotional beat too many. Otherwise, it's mesmerizing.

Polley interviews her family and acquaintances with remarkable candor and intimacy, perhaps as a method of catharsis, but it never feels like a vanity project or a simple airing of dirty laundry.

The great conceit of Polley's theories of perspective and truth is that she, as director, ultimately controlled everyone's memories because she arranged them on film.

As with her other films, when Sarah Polley takes it upon herself to tell us a story, you can bet it's a tale well-told and one that you'll want to hear.

What Stories We Tell does so brilliantly is both tell the story and tell about how we tell our stories. The truth may not be out there.

This is a warm, brave and thought-provoking piece of autobiography.

Stories We Tell shows us that the truth and the way its told are two very different things. Polley's wonderful documentary honors both by preferring neither.

I could not love it more.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/stories_we_tell/

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Supermoon rising: How to photograph this weekend's full moon

Courtesy of J. Mrachina via Flickr

This photo of the moon over Des Moines, Iowa, was captured using a Canon Rebel XS camera.

By Denise Chow, Live Science

The largest full moon of the year will rise this weekend, and for any shutterbugs hoping to snap photos of the so-called "supermoon," following some easy guidelines can help people make the most of their moon shots.

On Sunday (June 23), the moon will reach the closest point to Earth in its asymmetrical orbit, and will appear roughly 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than the full moon at its farthest point from the planet, according to SPACE.com. Photographing the supermoon does not require much special equipment, but the trick to capturing more than just a bright, white blob is to think like a camera, said Jason Mrachina, a professional photographer based in Des Moines, Iowa.

"To your camera, the moon is extremely bright, especially compared to a black background," Mrachina told LiveScience. "It's kind of akin to taking a picture of a bare light bulb in a black room, and wondering why you can't see the filament. When you're shooting at night, the relative difference between light and dark is extremely high, so you have to take that into consideration." [ Full Moon Rising: Glitzy Photos of a Supermoon ]

Tripods are key
To start, photographers should use a tripod to avoid taking blurry images. The best results come from holding the camera very still, and one of the biggest mistakes people make is trying to hold the camera steady by hand, Mrachina said.

He also recommends using a long lens ? generally 200 millimeters or longer ? to capture the dazzling lunar display.

"If you take the photo with a camera phone, or a wide-angle point-and-shoot without an optical zoom, you're going to be unhappy because the moon is going to look tiny in the image," Mrachina said. "With too wide of an angle, you don't get much of the moon to fill the frame."

Another key way to manage the sharp contrast between light and dark in moon photos is to adjust the camera's settings. This involves manually setting the shutter speed and aperture, which acts as the iris of the camera and regulates how much light will be allowed into the lens, and changing the ISO, which refers to the sensitivity of the photo cell in the camera.

"As soon as you tell people not to shoot in automatic mode, you lose a lot of people who are too scared to try it," Mrachina said. "But, it's actually not hard, and with the manual settings, you will instantly get better results than if you had shot automatic."

Recommended camera settings
Since the moon is bright and moves quickly, photographers need to use a fast shutter speed. "The moon traverses the sky very quickly, so you have to have a shutter speed that can capture the frame and stop the motion of the moon, while also keeping the image properly exposed," he explained.

Mrachina recommends the following settings for handheld cameras, and ones mounted on tripods:

Tripod

ISO 100 - 200
Aperture F11 - F14
Shutter? 1/125 - 1/250

Handheld

ISO 800-1000
Aperture f8 - 9
Shutter 1/1000?- 1/1500

For even more up-close-and-personal lunar views, photographers can mount their cameras on telescopes or certain spotting scopes, which are normally attached to rifles for target shooting, Mrachina said.

"If people already own that equipment, those are inexpensive options rather than buying a new camera," he added.

Rewarding shots
Photographers can snap moon photos from anywhere, so long as conditions are clear, but the most spectacular shots tend to come from locations with less pollution and humidity. [ Supermoon Secrets: 7 Surprising Big Moon Facts ]

"That includes light pollution," Mrachina said. "If you're standing in the middle of Times Square, you're not going to get as good results as if you're in a desert or on a beach."

For more artistic shots, Mrachina recommends finding something to create a silhouette in front of the moon. A nice tree, building or a fence line are all options of objects that can add to a picture. To create a dramatic effect, stand away from the object creating the silhouette, Mrachina said.

"The further away you stand from the object, the larger the moon will appear in relation to that object," he explained. "If you're too close and you're shooting with a wide-angle lens, you won't get that effect."

For amateur photographers, full moons offer a good chance to exercise creativity in choosing the shots, and the results can be quite rewarding. "Those pictures tend to be different and more memorable than if you just went out and photographed the moon from your backyard," Mrachina said.

To incorporate some natural color into the photos, try photographing the moon as it rises, rather than while it sets, Mrachina said.

"There tends to be more color in the sky in the evening, just because there tends to be more dust," he said. "If you want an orange or pink moon, the evening atmosphere can give you that."

But, even if conditions are not clear for the supermoon this weekend, or if other plans get in the way of photography, skywatchers should not give up.

"I would encourage people to go out and shoot the moon in all its phases," Mrachina said. "A crescent moon is really beautiful, too. Sometimes you can get interesting pictures with the shadows of half moons or quarter moons, so if you miss the supermoon, you shouldn't be discouraged."

You can watch a?live webcast of the supermoon on SPACE.com?on Sunday?beginning?at 9 p.m. EDT (0100 June 24 GMT), courtesy of the Slooh Space Camera, an online skywatching website (http://www.slooh.com).

Editor's note: If you snap an amazing photo of the Sunday Supermoon and you'd like to share it for a possible story or image gallery on LiveScience.com or SPACE.com, please send images and comments, including equipment used, to managing editor Tariq Malik at?spacephotos@space.com.

Follow Denise Chow on Twitter@denisechow. Follow LiveScience@livescience,Facebook?&Google+. Original article on? LiveScience.com.

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Candidate shot at Albania election polling place

Albania?s Conservative Prime Minister Sali Berisha, 68, who is seeking a third term in office, speaks at a rally in Tirana, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. The general election taking place Sunday, June 23, 2013 is considered a test for the Balkan country to shed its post-Communist legacy of troubled popular votes, as it seeks closer ties and eventual membership in the European Union. Conservative Sali Berisha, is seeking a third term and will speak at his Democratic Party's main election rally Friday in the capital Tirana. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina)

In this Thursday, June 20, 2013 photo, main opposition Socialist Party leader Edi Rama, speaks at a rally, in Tirana, Albania, ahead of the Sunday?s general elections. Political parties in Albania entered their final day of campaigning for Sunday's general elections, considered a test for the Balkan country to shed its history of troubled campaigns as it seeks closer ties and eventual membership in the European Union. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina)

Trash bins in the capital Tirana Saturday, June 22, 2013, are filled with posters, banners and other materials used by the political parties during the month-long electoral campaign. Political campaigning stops in Albania Saturday, a day before parliamentary elections which are considered a crucial test for its ambitions for closer ties and eventual membership in the European Union. (AP Photo/Hektor Pustina)

TIRANA, Albania (AP) ? An Albanian political candidate was shot and a supporter of a rival party killed in an exchange of gunfire near a polling station, police said Sunday, as the country held crucial elections already marred by a dispute that could leave the outcome up in the air.

Both conservative Prime Minister Sali Berisha and his close rival, Socialist leader Edi Rama, have hopes for eventual entry to the European Union, and the election is seen as a test of whether the country can run a fair and safe vote. An EU diplomat condemned the violence.

There were few immediate details, but a police spokesman said that Gjon Gjoni, 53, died after being shot in an exchange of fire with Mhill Fufi, 49, a candidate for Berisha's governing Democratic Party. An opposition party leader identified Gjoni as a supporter.

Another man, Kastriot Fufi, was also injured. It was not immediately clear if he and the candidate were related.

The shooting in the city of Lac started with an argument, said police spokesman Tefik Sulejmani, who gave few other details.

Once one of the world's hardest-line communist countries, the impoverished country has had a rocky road to democracy, plagued by corruption and elections marred by violence and vote-rigging.

The month-long contest had been relatively calm until election day, though there had been reports of civil servants and even school children being pressured to attend pro-government rallies.

Ilir Meta, the leader of the Socialist Movement for Integration said the dead man was a supporter and directly blamed police and "criminal elements" of the ruling Democrats of exerting pressure at polling stations.

"Sali Berisha is not Albania's premier any more. He cannot leave power without shedding blood," said Meta.

The EU's top diplomat in Albania took a hard stand on the violence.

"I want to say something very clear, very firm. Among the international and European standards for elections, there is the refusal of violence," said Ettore Sequi, the EU ambassador to Tirana.

Some 3.3 million registered voters are eligible to cast their ballots in the eighth national polls since the fall of communism in 1990.

The country's president called for unity.

"Peace, calm, citizens' life is important. I appeal for calm and maturity because, true we vote for different parties, but we are one nation," Bujar Nishani said.

Because of a battle over the country's election commission, it is uncertain when results will be announced, though the law mandates they be revealed no later than three days after the vote.

Rama postponed voting to head to Lac, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) northwest of the capital Tirana.

Berisha invited all Albanians to take part in the vote and turn Sunday "into a day of festivities and good understanding."

"I assure you that your vote will be fully respected," Berisha told reporters after casting his ballot.

The premier declined to comment on the killing, saying he needed more information first.

Following aggressive campaigns by both Berisha's Democrats and the Socialists, streets in the capital of Tirana were uncommonly empty, but had long queues of people at polling stations.

The country's seven-member election commission, which prepares and holds votes, is down by three people, meaning it may be unable to certify the election. If the election is not certified, it means Parliament cannot be convened and no government formed.

In April, one of Berisha's main government allies withdrew from the coalition to join forces with the opposition. He was then ousted and replaced at the election commission by Berisha's Democrats. That move drew sharp criticism from the United States and the EU, who said it would erode people's confidence in the electoral process.

Three members affiliated with the opposition withdrew in protest, leaving the commission short of the people necessary for 5-2 approval. They have said they would consider returning to the commission to certify the election once they see the results.

Albania joined NATO in 2009 but has failed to gain candidate status from the EU, which is pressing for broader democratic reforms and an improved election record.

Some 400 international observers and about 8,000 local ones are monitoring the voting.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-06-23-Albania-Elections/id-6ca95201da8d4bd8b9e3b24816c04638

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Heat, LeBron securing places in history

MIAMI (AP) ? Dwyane Wade was walking down the hallway toward the Miami Heat locker room in the wee hours of Friday morning, still in uniform and fussing with the new championship hat atop his head as his team and their families were in the midst of partying the night away.

He stopped briefly and assessed the celebration.

"We're getting pretty good at these," Wade said.

That's understandable, the Heat are getting plenty of practice at throwing themselves end-of-season parties. Four trips to the NBA Finals since 2006, three championships in that span and with the last two titles coming consecutively, it's making the decisions that the Heat and LeBron James made three summers ago look pretty smart.

By topping San Antonio in Game 7 of a back-and-forth NBA Finals on Thursday, the Heat became the sixth franchise in league history to win consecutive championships. It's their third title overall; only four clubs have more. And for James, it capped two seasons where he won all he could ? two regular-season MVPs, two titles, two Finals MVPs, even an Olympic gold medal.

"It feels great. This team is amazing. And the vision that I had when I decided to come here is all coming true," James said. "Through adversity, through everything we've been through, we've been able to persevere and to win back to back championships. It's an unbelievable feeling. I'm happy to be part of such a first-class organization."

James said winning his first title was the toughest thing he's ever done.

It's now the second-toughest. Defending the crown, he said, was even more arduous. He was exhausted when it was over ? and still scored 37 points in the finale, more than he posted in any other postseason game this season.

"Believe in LeBron," Heat President Pat Riley said.

Miami did, all the way to the end.

The Heat rolled past Milwaukee in a first-round sweep, needed five games to oust Chicago in the second round, but then went to the seven-game limit against Indiana in the Eastern Conference finals and then to the last game again against the Spurs, who actually were 21 seconds away from ending the series in six games before James and the Heat engineered a huge rally.

Without that comeback, a championship-or-bust season would have gone bust.

Instead, legacies were enhanced, more trophies were hoisted, and Miami's place atop the NBA landscape was cemented.

"To be in the championship three years in a row, to win two of those three, is unbelievable," Wade said. "Everybody can't get to the Finals and win six in a row, like win six and not lose one like Michael Jordan. Everyone don't do that. But we are excited about the future of this organization. We are still a good team. And we're going to do everything we can to make sure that we can stay competitive."

Moves will be made, of course. The Heat have some luxury-tax concerns to address, and it would be a shock if they didn't try to get even better through a trade or free agency.

"All it's about now is what's in front of us," Riley said.

Then again, if James keeps getting better, Miami's place in history will probably only rise.

At 6-foot-8 and 250 pounds, James has a combination of size, speed and strength that seems unmatched in the NBA world. After Miami lost the 2011 finals to Dallas, James decided to improve his post play by working with Hakeem Olajuwon. Last season, his focus was on enhancing his mid-range jumper, something he continued working on throughout the season with Ray Allen.

So with about a half-minute left and the Heat up by two points, it was that mid-range jumper that sealed Miami's title. James delivered with 27.9 seconds left to make it a two-possession game. Not long afterward, he had the Larry O'Brien Trophy in one arm, the Finals MVP trophy in the other, ready for a well-deserved break from basketball.

"I want to be, if not the greatest, one of the greatest to ever play this game," James said. "And I will continue to work for that, and continue to put on this uniform and be the best I can be every night."

James has already put himself in that best-ever conversation.

"We all know his work ethic," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who spent part of his first day as a two-time champion coach at Jim Larranaga's basketball camp at the University of Miami. "It's probably unique for a guy who has been the best in the game since he was in seventh grade. Usually you wouldn't have the type of work ethic that would match that type of talent."

Jordan won six titles, James only has two. But if that's the sole standard, then Jordan isn't even close either, considering Bill Russell won 11 rings in his Boston career. Russell was there for the Heat title clincher, served as part of the on-court trophy presentations, then retreated to a small room not far from the Miami locker room as players meandered in for one of the immediate perks of winning a title ? a photo shoot with the trophy.

James posed for hundreds of photos during his time in there. Camera clicks were a constant sound for about 10 minutes when he was in the room. And before he left, he and Wade waved for Russell to come join them for some more snapshots.

"Get the legend up here," James shouted.

Russell walked to the front of the room as a few people, mostly Heat employees and family members, clapped. He shook hands with the Heat stars, then turned around to face the cameras and said something to James that was barely audible to those even a few feet away.

"You earned this one," Russell said.

James' grin became even broader, and camera shutters kept on whirring. Suddenly, that oft-mocked, oft-replayed "not two, not three, not four" answer James gave during the Heat celebration of their free agency coup in 2010 doesn't look like such a punch line anymore.

"I always felt that when he got up to five, six, seven that he was joking a little bit, but the media decided to take him very seriously," Heat managing general partner Micky Arison said. "I think right now he's real happy with two and next year he'll be worried about three."

James has played 10 seasons now. Including playoffs, his scoring average is 27.6, third-best in league history behind only Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. Since the league began charting plus-minus (the point differential when a player is on the court), James' teams have outscored opponents by 3,861 points with him in regular-season and playoff games. Second-best on that list? Wade, at 2,301 points. That gap is simply huge.

With an average season next year, he'll move into the Top 25 in all-time regular-season scoring. He got more rebounds per game this season than ever before, shot the 3-pointer better than ever before, punctuating that by making five in Game 7 of the finals. And here's what might be truly frightening for opponents: For the sixth straight year, James' shooting percentage got better.

"Hopefully people will leave him alone a little more now," Heat forward Shane Battier said. "He takes a lot of heat, I think undeservedly. He's the best player on the planet. And hopefully now with two titles, he'll get more the benefit of the doubt. But, you know, he's the best. He's the best right now."

So are the Heat. And that can't be argued.

The Celtics, Lakers and Bulls are the only franchises to win three straight titles. That will be the challenge for the Heat next year, to take a great run and make it a truly elite run.

For now, though, James wants no part of that conversation. He's going to enjoy this one for a good long while.

"It's the ultimate," James said. "I don't want to think about next year right now, what our possibilities are next year. Got to take full advantage of this one. It's an unbelievable moment for our team."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/heat-lebron-securing-places-history-212916314.html

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Sexually Active in High School? Predictors of Hookup Behavior For ...

By Janice Wood Associate News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on June 22, 2013

Sexually Active in High School? Predictors of Hookup Behavior For College Women Researchers have identified several factors associated with an increase in hookups ? casual, no-strings-attached sex ? among women in their first year of college.

?Our findings suggest hooking up during the first year of college is influenced by pre-college hookups, personality, behavioral intentions, the social and situational context, family background and substance use patterns ? particularly marijuana use,? said Robyn L. Fielder, M.S., a research intern at The Miriam Hospital?s Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine in Providence, R.I.

Fielder and her team surveyed 483 incoming first-year female college students about their risk behaviors, personality traits and social environment.

Specific questions covered the students? sexual behavior, hookup attitudes and intentions, self-esteem, religious beliefs, parents? relationship status, alcohol and marijuana use, smoking, impulsivity, and sensation-seeking behavior. Researchers followed up with the women monthly for eight months.

What the researchers found is that pre-college hookups emerged as the strongest predictor of hooking up during freshmen year, suggesting early experiences may provide a model for future behavior.

?These findings suggest that women?s hookup behavior during the first year of college may influence their hookup behavior later in college,? said Fielder.

?That?s why the transition to college is an important time for health care professionals to provide sexual health information and resources to help women make informed choices.?

It?s also important to consider the array of individual, social and contextual factors when studying hookup behavior, she noted.

?Focusing on any one area of influence fails to capture the complicated matrix of forces that influence young adults? relationship decisions,? Fielder added.

The study was published online in the Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Source: Lifespan

College woman looking into the camera photo by shutterstock.

APA Reference
Wood, J. (2013). Sexually Active in High School? Predictors of Hookup Behavior For College Women. Psych Central. Retrieved on June 23, 2013, from http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/06/22/sexually-active-in-high-school-predictors-of-hookup-behavior-for-college-women/56324.html

Source: http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/06/22/sexually-active-in-high-school-predictors-of-hookup-behavior-for-college-women/56324.html

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Saturday, June 22, 2013

Hong Kong skyscrapers appear to fall in real-world illusion

June 20, 2013 ? No matter how we jump, roll, sit, or lie down, our brain manages to maintain a visual representation of the world that stays upright relative to the pull of gravity. But a new study of rider experiences on the Hong Kong Peak Tram, a popular tourist attraction, shows that specific features of the environment can dominate our perception of verticality, making skyscrapers appear to fall.

The study is published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The Hong Kong Peak Tram to Victoria Peak is a popular way to survey the Hong Kong skyline and millions of people ride the tram every year.

"On one trip, I noticed that the city's skyscrapers next to the tram started to appear very tilted, as if they were falling, which anyone with common sense knows is impossible," says lead researcher Chia-huei Tseng of the University of Hong Kong. "The gasps of the other passengers told me I wasn't the only one seeing it."

The illusion was perplexing because, in contrast with most illusions studied in the laboratory, observers have complete access to visual cues from the outside world through the tram's open windows.

Exploring the illusion under various conditions, Tseng and colleagues found that the perceived, or illusory, tilt was greatest on night-time rides, perhaps a result of the relative absence of visual-orientation cues or a heightened sense of enclosure at night. Enhancing the tilted frame of reference within the tram car -- indicated by features like oblique window frames, beams, floor, and lighting fixtures -- makes the true vertical of the high rises seem to tilt in the opposite direction.

The illusion was significantly reduced by obscuring the window frame and other reference cues inside the tram car, by using wedges to adjust observers' position, and by having them stand during the tram ride.

But no single modification was sufficient to eliminate the illusion.

"Our findings demonstrate that signals from all the senses must be consonant with each other to abolish the tilt illusion," the researchers write. "On the tram, it seems that vision dominates verticality perception over other sensory modalities that also mediate earth gravity, such as the vestibular and tactile systems."

The robustness of the tram illusion took the researchers by surprise:

"We took the same tram up and down for hundreds of trips, and the illusion did not reduce a bit," says Tseng. "This suggests that our experiences and our learned knowledge about the world -- that buildings should be vertical -- are not enough to cancel our brain's wrong conclusion."

Co-authors on the study include Hiu Mei Chow of the University of Hong Kong and Lothar Spillmann of China Medical University and the University of Freiburg.

The study was supported by grants from the Hong Kong Grant Research Council and the University of Hong Kong Seed Funding Programme for Basic Research to Chia-huei Tseng, and by awards from the Serena Yang Educational Fund and the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (German Academic Exchange Council) and National Science Council of Taiwan to Lothar Spillmann.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/dRZcnVKNS6Q/130620162848.htm

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U.S. chicken sector boosted by fast-food items, costly beef

By Bob Burgdorfer

CHICAGO (Reuters) - This is a good year to be in the U.S. chicken business. Profits are up, production and prices are rising, fast-food restaurants are promoting chicken dishes, and feed costs appear headed lower thanks to expected large U.S. corn and soybean crops.

High beef prices also have chased many supermarket shoppers to more-affordable chicken.

Healthy profits are expected for chicken companies this year, a sharp turnaround from two years ago when the industry was hurt by the recession and high feed prices.

Surging sales pushed wholesale prices for chicken breasts, the industry's key product, past $2 a pound this spring for the first time since 2004. A USDA report this week shows benchmark breast prices up 36 percent from a year ago at $2.18-1/2 per lb.

"It's the best of both worlds because we have grain prices going down and chicken prices going up. We are looking at a great year for chicken companies," said Paul Aho, economist with the consulting firm Poultry Perspective.

Analysts predict earnings at giant meat producer Tyson Foods Inc will surge to $2.11 per share this fiscal year from $1.58 in 2012, according to ThomsonReuters I/B/E/S. Forecasters expect Sanderson Farms earnings will more than double to $5.67 per share from $2.35 in 2012, with Pilgrim's Pride Corp profit jumping to $1.68 per share from 70 cents in fiscal 2012.

Tyson also produces beef and pork, while Pilgrim's and Sanderson are strictly chicken.

The industry's bottom line should get a boost from falling feed prices. Futures prices indicate corn should sell for below $6 a bushel after the fall harvest and into 2014. Also, USDA is forecasting the farm price for corn in the 2013/2014 crop year (September-August) at $4.40-$5.20.

"We are going to have more corn. We don't know if it will be $4 or $5, but it is not going to be $7," said Aho.

U.S. chicken companies feed flocks about 1.2 billion bushels of corn a year and the soymeal equivalent of 500 million bushels of soybeans.

"Chicken fundamentals remain extraordinary," BMO analyst Kenneth Zaslow said in research report last month. But the report warned that U.S. corn and soybean crops were not yet far enough along to assume feed costs would stay low.

PRODUCTION SLOWLY GOING UP

Chicken companies are responding to prosperity by boosting production. The U.S. Agriculture Department predicts a 2 percent increase this year from 2012 and a 3 percent increase in 2014.

No. 4 U.S. producer Sanderson Farms said it has returned to full production this month at its nine plants for the first time since 2011. Tyson Foods said it tries to balance supply with "forecasted demand."

Companies are being hindered from increasing production even more because recession, drought, and high feed prices in recent years had them cutting breeding flocks. Also, eggs needed to rebuild those flocks have been sent to Mexico, which is repopulating flocks decimated by avian influenza, or bird flu.

Mexico destroyed more than 26 million chickens in 2012 and early 2013, and has been buying millions of U.S. eggs, according to Mexico's Ministry of Economy.

U.S. producers would "like to produce more chickens but we can't get more hatching eggs ... because we don't have the breeder hens laying eggs," said Bill Roenigk, chief economist at the National Chicken Council.

CHICKEN SELLING FAST AT FAST-FOOD

Restaurants have helped drive the chicken industry's prosperity, with new products such as McDonalds Inc's chicken McWraps and Wendy's flatbread chicken sandwich. Last week, McDonalds' said its U.S. sales in May were up 2.4 percent from a year ago due in part to its "wide range of chicken options."

"I think boneless breasts should remain relatively strong through the summer," said Mike Cockrell, Sanderson's chief financial officer. He said restaurants "won't continue promotions forever but these items should stay on the menu."

Supermarket chicken sales have been robust, with record high beef prices pushing shoppers toward lower-cost alternatives, Tyson Foods and Sanderson Farms have said.

Chicken prices in the meat case are up about 10 percent from a year ago, much less than the sharp increase in wholesale chicken prices.

"Eventually I think they will have to pass on some of the (wholesale) prices," Roenigk said. "It appears that there are still retailers that are giving consumers an awfully good bargain on chicken."

USDA price data for May showed boneless breasts averaged $3.429 per lb in stores, versus beef at about $5.24 per lb. A year earlier, breasts averaged $3.123.

(Additional reporting by Michael Hirtzer in Chicago and Adriana Barrera Espinosa in Mexico; Editing by David Gregorio)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-chicken-sector-boosted-fast-food-items-costly-181344216.html

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Friday, June 21, 2013

Fujifilm's X-M1 interchangeable camera leaks out, doesn't mess with retro success

Fujifilm's about to extend its line of mirrorless shooters packing manual dials and vintage looks, if a leak from Digicame Info is to be believed. The Japanese rumor site has flaunted pictures of a purported X-M1 model, which bears a strong resemblance to X-E1 we saw last year, minus the electronic viewfinder and shutter-speed selector dial. In place of the latter is a general mode selector, along with a tiltable LCD screen and WiFi, judging by the pictures above and after the break. While all that points to a cheaper model aimed at more casual shooters, there's no word from the company about specs, pricing or a release date, obviously. As soon as we hear, of course, you'll be the first to know.

Filed under: Cameras

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Source: Digicame Info (translated)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/21/fujifilms-x-m1-interchangeable-camera-leaks-out/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Google's Dart SDK and Editor arrive as beta with focus on performance

Dart isn't conquering the world wide web just yet, but that doesn't mean Google is giving up on its darling programming language. The internet giant has just released the first beta of the SDK and Editor, and the update's focus is obvious: speed. The analysis engine, which is responsible for altering you to errors in your code, has been revamped and is now 20 percent faster, according to Google. There are a whole bunch of new features designed to simplify development too, such as the ability to import or rename libraries. And the Editor's autocomplete engine is now "camelcase aware," meaning when you type "iE" the editor tracks down "isEmpty." Dart code compiled to JavaScript now results in significantly smaller file sizes and Dart VM performance has supposedly been boosted by between 33 and 40 percent. Oh, and there's much, much more... this is just the SparkNotes, folks. For the full change log hit up the source.

Filed under: Internet, Google

Comments

Source: Chromium Blog, Dart News & Updates

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

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Dunkin' Donuts jumps on gluten-free trend

Dunkin' Donuts will begin selling gluten-free doughnuts and muffins across the US this year. By selling gluten-free products, Dunkin' Donuts is joining the fast-growing gluten-free food industry, which drew in $19.7 billion in revenue in the last year, according to Nielsen.

By Akane Otani,?Contributor / June 20, 2013

A girl holds a Dunkin' Donuts sugar doughnut. Dunkin' Donuts plans to sell gluten-free doughnuts and muffins in stores nationwide.

Mark Lennihan/AP/File

Enlarge

Right on the heels of debuting its glazed donut breakfast sandwich, Dunkin? Donuts has shaken up its menu with another new item: gluten-free pastries.

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The baked goods and coffee chain announced Wednesday that it will sell gluten-free cinnamon-sugar doughnuts and blueberry muffins in stores nationwide this year,?making it the first fast-food chain in the US to offer gluten-free pastries.?

?We recognize the importance of providing our guests with many options, including alternative choices for people with food and dietary restrictions,? Stan Frankenthaler, Dunkin? Donuts? executive chief, said to Bloomberg.

Competing chains, including Starbucks and McDonald?s, have yet to add gluten-free pastries to their menus. But Dunkin? Donuts is hardly alone: it has jumped on a trend that has taken off in recent years, as more American consumers ??both with and without gluten intolerances ??pick up gluten-free products in grocery stores aisles.

In the last year, food stores racked up $19.7 billion in revenue from products with gluten-free labels,?beating revenue made from cholesterol-free, multigrain, and high-fiber foods, according to Nielsen in the US.

While one in every 133 Americans have celiac disease, a condition that doctors say can make gluten consumption harmful, nearly one in three adults say they want to cut down or completely eliminate their gluten consumption, according to a survey from consumer research firm NPD.

Food companies have responded. Way Better Snacks sells gluten-free tortilla chips; Canyon Bakehouse sells gluten-free bread; and Larabar sells gluten-free snack bars.

The rising popularity of ?gluten diets? may in part be fuelled by celebrities promoting gluten-free lifestyles, food industry experts say.

In 2012, tweeting to more than 12 million followers, Miley Cyrus told her fans that she lost weight because of a ?gluten and lactose allergy.? She later tweeted out a picture of herself smelling ? but not eating ? a bag of Carl?s Jr. goods.

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who also shuns gluten, published a cookbook in the spring that includes recipes for gluten-free sweet potato muffins, quinoa granola, and candy bars.

The pervasive talk about cutting gluten is a sign that the protein composite is overtaking other perceived health threats, according to NPD.

?A generation ago, health was about avoiding fat, cholesterol, sugar, and sodium in our diet. While those desires still exist for many, they are no longer growing concerns. Today, increasingly, more of us want to avoid gluten in our diet,? NPD said in a press release.

Whatever the reason behind it, gluten-free is likely to remain a trend in the food industry for the foreseeable future, NPD says.

Dunkin? Donuts? gluten-free doughnuts are slated to cost $1.89, while its gluten-free muffins will cost $2.39. The pastries are currently being sold in Dunkin? Donuts stores in Hartford, Conn. The company didn't say when this year they would expand to menus nationwide.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/yNdoirWm6xo/Dunkin-Donuts-jumps-on-gluten-free-trend

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