Yes, Robots Are Coming for Our Jobs Now What?

M.I.T. economist Erik Brynjolfsson explains how technology has affected economic growth and productivity, and how human workers can adapt

By Seth Fletcher

Pundits and experts seem to agree that the robots are definitely taking our jobs. Pictured: Baxter of Rethink Robotics. Image: Flickr/Steve Jurvetson

Fifteen years ago Deep Blue beat Garry Kasparov in a game of chess, marking the beginning of what Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist Erik Brynjolfsson calls the new machine age?an era driven by exponential growth in computing power. Lately, though, people have been feeling uneasy about the machine age. Pundits and experts seem to agree that the robots are definitely taking our jobs. At last week?s TED conference, Brynjolfsson argued that the new machine age is great for economic growth, but we still have to find a way to coexist with the machines. We asked him to expand on a few points.

[An edited transcript of the interview follows.]

You?ve written a lot about what you call the new machine age, which you argue is fundamentally different from previous industrial eras. What?s so different about it?
The first and second industrial revolutions were defined by these general-purpose technologies, the steam engine and, later, electricity. The new machine age is defined by digital technologies, and those have a lot of unusual characteristics. First, you can reproduce things at close to zero marginal cost with perfect quality and almost instant delivery?that?s something you can?t do with atoms. Second, computers are getting better faster than anything else?ever. That?s something we?re not used to dealing with, and it?s happening year over year, relentlessly. Third, you can remix or combine technologies in a way that doesn?t use them up, but that instead allows for even more combinations. That means we?re in no danger of running out of ideas. Put those all together, and I?m very optimistic about the future of economic growth and productivity growth. And the data bear that out.

You?ve also said that productivity has become ?decoupled? from employment. Can you explain?
Throughout most of modern history, productivity and employment have grown side by side. But starting about 15 years ago they started becoming decoupled. Productivity continued to grow, even accelerate, but employment stagnated and even fell, as did median wages for the people who were still working. This was an important milestone, because most economists, including me, used to be of the mind-set that if you just keep increasing productivity, everything else kind of takes care of itself.

But there?s no economic law that says everyone has to benefit equally from increased productivity. It?s entirely possible that some people benefit a lot more than others or that some people are made worse off. And as it turns out, for the past 10 to 15 years it?s gone that way. The pie has gotten bigger but most of the increase in income has gone to less than 1 percent of the population. Those at the 50th percentile or lower have actually done worse in absolute terms.

There are a lot of causes for this?some of it has to do with offshoring, tax policy and so on?but those are minor players compared with the big story, which is the nature of technology. It?s simultaneously allowing us to grow faster and leading us to a very different allocation of those benefits.

Exactly how is technology shifting the landscape of jobs and wealth?who wins and who loses?
In our book Race against the Machine [written with Andrew McAfee, principal research scientist at the Center for Digital Business in the M.I.T. Sloan School of Management], we describe three sets of winners and losers. The first is skilled versus less skilled workers, as a result of what?s called skill-biased technical change. As technology advances, educated workers tend to benefit more, and workers with less education tend to have their jobs automated. It?s not a perfect correlation, but there is a correlation.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=908b82b83c787d3810b68f80e582a04d

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Global leaders, celebrities honor Chavez at funeral

CARACAS (Reuters) - From Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to U.S. Oscar-winner Sean Penn, an eclectic mix of mourners bid farewell on Friday to Venezuela's Hugo Chavez at the funeral for the charismatic but divisive leader who changed the face of South American politics.

Chavez died this week at age 58 after a two-year battle with cancer, devastating millions of mostly poor supporters who hailed him for plowing the country's vast oil wealth into social projects, but giving hope to foes who decried him as a dictator.

A frequent visitor to Caracas and fellow "anti-imperialist," Ahmadinejad received a standing ovation as he took his place in a guard of honor by Chavez's coffin, then broke protocol to touch the casket and clench his fist in a revolutionary salute.

"Commander, here you are undefeated, pure, living for all time," Chavez's preferred successor, acting President Nicolas Maduro, said over the casket, his voice cracking with emotion.

"Your soul and spirit are so powerful that your body could not hold them, and now they are traveling this universe, growing with blessings and love."

The mourners chanted: "Chavez lives! The fight continues!"

Maduro, who was due to be sworn in as caretaker president on Friday, laid a replica of the sword of 19th century independence leader Simon Bolivar on top of the coffin, which was draped in the country's red, yellow and blue flag.

A singer in a cowboy hat serenaded the mourners with folk music from Chavez's birthplace in Venezuela's "llanos" plains.

The late president's body was to be embalmed and shown "for eternity" - similar to how Communist leaders Lenin, Stalin and Mao were treated after their deaths.

His remains will lie in state for an extra seven days to accommodate the millions of Venezuelans who still want to pay their last respects to a man who will be remembered as one of the world's most colorful and controversial populist leaders.

Huge crowds of "Chavistas" gathered from before dawn for the ceremony at a military academy where his body was lying in state. Many were dressed in the red of the ruling Socialist Party, carrying his picture and waving Venezuelan flags.

"SO MUCH PAIN"

"There are no words for so much pain," said 30-year-old Kimberly Garcia, sobbing uncontrollably. "Comandante, you are our sky, our sun, our life. Thanks to you, we have a homeland."

Some fans waited for more than 26 hours to view Chavez's coffin. More than 2 million people have filed past the casket since Wednesday, many in tears, some saluting, and others crossing themselves.

In Caracas were most of Chavez's highest-profile Latin American friends, such as Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa and Brazil's former leader, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Underscoring Chavez's talent for uniting a mix of perhaps unlikely allies, the center-right presidents of Chile and Colombia attended, as well as Western idealists like actor Penn and U.S. civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson, who read a prayer.

As the funeral took place, indigenous priests in Bolivia, a close leftist ally, made offerings to 'mother earth' in Chavez's honor.

"He was invincible. He left victorious and no one can take that away. It is fixed in history," Cuban President Raul Castro said, referring to Chavez's four presidential election wins, among a string of other ballot victories in his 14-year rule.

The Castro's were very close Chavez allies. Chavez regarded Fidel Castro as a mentor and father figure, and his country's oil and investments helped keep the island nation's economy afloat.

Renowned conductor Gustavo Dudamel, who heads Venezuela's Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, led musicians at the funeral playing classical numbers and the national anthem.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Ahmadinejad were among the more controversial figures present. Ahmadinejad has caused a storm back home for saying Chavez would be resurrected alongside Jesus Christ and a "hidden" imam who Shi'ite Muslims believe will rise up to bring world peace.

The United States did not send senior officials to honor Chavez, who famously derided George W. Bush as "the devil" and championed international pariahs like Ahmadinejad, Libya's late Muammar Gaddafi and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Former U.S. Representative William Delahunt and U.S. Representative Gregory Meeks were attending, amid speculation of a possible post-Chavez rapprochement between ideological foes.

ELECTION LOOMS

A government source said Chavez slipped into a coma on Monday before dying the following day of respiratory failure. The cancer had spread to his lungs, the source added.

Chavez never said what type of cancer he was suffering, and for privacy, chose to be mainly treated in Cuba.

His death paved the way for a new election in the OPEC nation that boasts the world's biggest oil reserves. But it is unclear when the vote will be held.

At the gates of the academy, activists handed out photos of Chavez along with printed quotes of his call for supporters to vote for Maduro should anything happen to him.

The constitution stipulates that an election must be called within 30 days, but politicians say the electoral authorities may not be ready and there has been talk of a possible delay. Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said the election date may be announced in the coming hours.

Maduro, 50, a former bus driver who became foreign minister and then vice president, looks certain to face opposition leader Henrique Capriles, 40, the centrist governor of Miranda state who lost to Chavez in October's election.

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that Maduro would not have to step down to campaign. Capriles called the decision a "constitutional fraud."

Opposition sources say the 30 or so political groupings making up the Democratic Unity coalition have again agreed to back Capriles, whose 44 percent vote share in 2012 was the best performance by any candidate against Chavez.

Contrasting with the outpouring of grief at the funeral, senior opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez cautioned that the post-Chavez era would not automatically bring a brighter future.

"The uncertainty goes on, as does the gross meddling by Cuba and the flagrant violation of the constitution. Our people continue to be overwhelmed by insecurity, inflation and food shortages," he said.

Two recent opinion polls gave Maduro a strong lead over Capriles, and Western investors and foreign diplomats are factoring in a probable win for Maduro and a continuation of "Chavista" policies, at least in the short term.

The latest survey, by respected local pollster Datanalisis, gave Maduro 46.4 percent versus 34.3 percent for Capriles. It was carried out on in mid-February, before Chavez's death.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Cawthorne, Deisy Buitrago, Marianna Parraga, Pablo Garibian, Simon Gardner and Girish Gupta in Caracas, Rosa Tania Vald?s in Havana and Carlos Quiroga in La Paz; editing by Jackie Frank)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/venezuelas-chavez-embalmed-public-view-022616369.html

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Time Warner to Spin Off Shriveling Publishing Unit ... - Yahoo! Finance

Not even Kate Upton could convince Time Warner Inc. (TWX) to keep its magazine segment. The company announced Wednesday that it will be spinning off its Time Inc. division, creating a new public freestanding company. The announcement comes less than a year after News Corp. (NWSA) announced similar plans for its own publishing business.

Rich in history but light in profits TWX's publishing division has seen its business shrink dramatically, never recovering from the recession of 2008. Last year publishing saw revenues shrink 7% to $3.4 billion. Operating income declined a whopping 25% to $420 million, less than half of the $907 million in profits posted in 2007.

The spin-off will leave Time Warner focused on its growing cable television and film segments which include TNT, TBS, HBO and Warner Brothers film studio. The remaining assets accounted for nearly 90% of Time Warner's revenues and 92.5% of operating income in 2012.

The timing of the deal reflects both the failing economics of the print industry as well as optimism about the stock market's willingness to buy shares of a struggling company in a dying industry. The swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated which this year featured Ms. Upton wearing nothing but dab of bodypaint is one of the few bright spots for the company. The annual edition regularly sells more than a million copies and accounts for 7% of all Sports Illustrated's advertising revenues.

Even if money managers, actors and world leaders were all willing to strike unnatural positions wearing wildly inappropriate clothing Time Inc. would be in trouble. Time, Fortune, Money and People may have less and less to offer other than prestige. According to the Wall Street Journal, People magazine which once accounted for half of the magazine division's profits is struggling to compete with the instant gratification found on TMZ and other celebrity gossip sites.

Whether or not institutional investors are willing to take positions in both Time Inc. and News Corp.'s newspaper division is an open question. Generating digital revenues are mostly ads, as users prove reluctant to pay for access to content behind so called pay-walls.

It's perhaps telling that the most dish-worthy financial article in recent memory, a Vanity Fair story about the feud between Bill Ackman and Dan Loeb was gleefully passed around the internet ,devoured and forgotten before the magazine was even for sale.

As an informal check on magazine usage I asked more than 13,000 followers on my Twitter account if they'd actually purchased the magazine Vanity Fair issue or were buying any magazines now as they were five years ago. Fewer than 1% of more than 200 respondents said yes to either question.

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/breakout/time-warner-spin-off-shriveling-publishing-unit-152632715.html

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Choose The Right Plumbing Milwaukee Supplies

by admin on March 7, 2013

Your local home improvement center should have all the plumbing milwaukee supplies that you need to complete the job. Though, I wouldn?t suggest doing any of the work yourself unless you are a professional. Leaky pipes only look easy to fix but maybe it is just me and my sincere lack of plumbing knowledge that comes into play whenever I try to do it. Anyway, having the parts on hand will save the plumber from having to stop what he is doing to go out and purchase them.

Posted in Hobby Online

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Comments are closed.

Source: http://www.chumbyblog.org/hobby-online/choose-the-right-plumbing-milwaukee-supplies/

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CIAC moving football finals from Rentschler Field to CCSU

The CIAC confirmed Thursday it will move its state championship football games to Central Connecticut's Arute Field beginning in 2013.

The decision comes just as the CIAC's contract with Rentschler Field was up for renewal. The organization has held its state championships there for the past three seasons.

Arute Field recently completed a renovation of its facility, adding opposite-field seating to expand its capacity to approximately 5,500.

It also features a synthetic surface as opposed to Rentschler Field's grass turf, which was typically beat up by UConn's football season by December's championship weekend.

The capacity of Arute Field also aligns with the average attendance of the state finals, compared to the 40,000-seat Rentschler Field.

"The CIAC Football Committee is grateful to CCSU for their interest and support in hosting CIAC events," CIAC Assistant Executive Director Paul Hoey said in a statement.

"CCSU is the perfect size to accommodate our spectators and creates an outstanding championship atmosphere. Their facility is one of the best in the state, and having a turf field available will allow for predictability with scheduling and field conditions."

While appearance and the synthetic move were factors, the move was mainly for financial reasons. According to several reports in January, Hoey contended that the CIAC lost between $20,000-$38,0000 during last season's four state finals. A source confirmed the CIAC lost $9,000 per game at Rentschler Field and added it will lose approximately half of that at Arute Field.

"I think it came down to money," said New Canaan coach Lou Marinelli, a member of the CIAC football committee. "From a coach's perspective, I think many of the coaches enjoyed playing at Rentschler, the way they use the Carrier Dome in New York. But I also understand the finances of it. If we haven't met our financial commitments, that comes first."

CIAC football committee members toured CCSU last month and voted to approve the move at its monthly meeting Wednesday.

"Central Connecticut State University is extremely excited to partner with the CIAC in hosting their football championships beginning this fall," CCSU Director of Athletics Paul Schlickmann said in a statement.

The Class LL championship between Xavier and NFA, played on a Friday night, drew 4,576 fans, according to game statistics. Significantly less attended were the Class S and Class M championship games on Saturday morning and afternoon.

The Class L title game between Hand and Windsor drew the second-best crowd of the weekend.

Total attendance for the Saturday games was 5,189, according to figures.

Staff Writer Dave Ruden contributed to this story

sbowley@ctpost.com; @SPBowley

Source: http://www.newstimes.com/highschool/article/CIAC-moving-football-finals-from-Rentschler-Field-4338168.php

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The Mealimu Nyerere African Union Scholarship Scheme 2013 ...

Application Deadline: April 30 2013

Special Call for Scholarship Applications(Only for Female Applicants)

?Masters Programmes in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Education Science (STEME )

?

The Mwalimu Nyerere African Union Scholarship Scheme was
launched in 2007 with the aim to contribute in the production and retention of high level African human resources for sustainable development of the continent in critical development areas, while promoting regional integration through intra
-African mobility of students.

The Scholarship Scheme is intended to enable young Africans to study in
leading African Universities with a binding agreement that beneficiaries will work in any African country for at least the same duration of scholarship period
after graduation.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be eligible for the Special Scholarship , a candidate must:

• Be a Female Citizen of an African Union Member State

?i. Be under the age of thirty five (35) years.

?ii. Be a holder of a Bachelor?s Degree in the field of STEM

?ii. Have demonstrated outstanding academic achievement as evidenced by

academic transcripts.

iii. Have proof of admission to a reputable university in any African Union

Member State to undertake a full time Masters programme

?iv. Be willing to commit to work in an African Union Member State on completion

of study for at least three (3) years.

ELIGIBLE FIELDS OF STUDY

The following fields of study are eligible:

• Science
• Technology
• Engineering
• Mathematics
• Education Science

?The Masters programme should be of two years duration

METHOD OF APPLICATION

Interested candidates should complete the Application Form in PDF

format as well as the EXCEL Applicants? Data Sheet, which are available on the

Africa Union web-site.

?The applicants should submit their formal application and include the following:

i. Completed application form

ii. A recent passport-size photograph

iii. Summarized CV with names and contacts of three referees.

?iv. Certified copies of academic certificates and transcripts

?v. Certified copies of Passport or national Identity Card indicating citizenship

vi. Copy of admission letter from a leading African University

?vii. Two (2) Reference Letters with contact addresses.

?viii. An essay of not more than 500 words that explains why the candidate has

chosen her particular field of study and its importance to Africa?s development.

Two (2) sets of hard copies of the above documents must be sent by post to the

address below.

Mwalimu Nyerere Scholarship Programme Education Division

?Department of Human Resources, Science and Technology

?African Union Commission

?P.O. Box 3243

?Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

?In addition applicants must scan and produce electronic copies of all the above

documents (convert to PDF format) along with the Application Form and EXCEL

Applicants? Data Sheet; and send to the following e-mail addresses.

CLOSING DATE: 30th April 2013

AFRICAN UNION UNION AFRICAINE
UNI?O AFRICANA
Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA P. O. Box 3243
Telephone: 251-11-5517700 Fax: 251-11-551 7844
Website: www.au.int

For More Information

Source: http://www.opportunitiesforafricans.com/mwalimu-nyerere-african-union-scholarship-scheme-femal-applicants-only-masters-programmes-in-science-technology-engineering-mathematics-and-education-science-steme/

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N. Korea threat of nuclear attack not easily dismissed

The communist nation of North Korea threatened this morning to launch a pre-emptive strike, after accusing the United States of using military drills in South Korea as preparation for its own nuclear strike.

By Robert WindremSenior investigative producer, NBC News

Thursday?s announcement by North Korea that it could launch a pre-emptive nuclear attack against the United States in the face of new U.N. sanctions is a predictable escalation of the isolated nation?s increasingly aggressive stance toward Washington over the past year. But experts note that Pyongyang?s recent advances in its nuclear weapons and missile programs mean that such bellicose rhetoric cannot be taken lightly.

ANALYSIS

The escalation of the North?s oratory began not long after the country?s 28-year-old leader, Kim Jong Un, ?took over from his late father, Kim Jong Il, on Dec. 28, 2011. It has been accompanied by two space launches ? one successful ? and a third nuclear weapons test.

?It is not unusual for the North to make threats against the U.S., Japan or South Korea. And on occasion -- as in the case of the 2010 artillery barrage of Yeonpyeong Island and an earlier attack on a South Korean gunboat -- it has carried out these threats. ?It has never taken any military action after threatening the United States, however.

---

Some analysts have suggested that the latest round of threats is intended to show that the young Kim will continue his father?s legacy of hostility toward the U.S.

To what end?

North Korea has long wanted the U.S. to sit down with its negotiators to hammer out an agreement to end the Korean War, which ended in 1953 not in a peace treaty but in a truce.

The North would like to gain concessions from the U.S. in such a negotiation, but its escalating threats and rhetoric have the opposite effect: ?The Obama administration, like preceding administrations, has steadfastly refused to negotiate with Pyongyang.

KCNA / Reuters

This picture, released Tuesday by North Korea's official KCNA news agency, is said to show a rally by citizens and soldiers to support a statement by the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army that it will scrap the armistice signed in 1953 that ended a three-year war with South Korea if the South and the United States continue with annual military drills.

The problem is that North Korea, which has long taken a backseat in U.S. councils to the Middle East, does have military capabilities that could at the very least threaten U.S. interests in North Asia.

According to a recent analysis, North Korea has a weapon stockpile that could threaten both Japan and South Korea and, in longer term, the United States. Some of the weapons have already been deployed, say U.S. officials, who spoke to NBC News on condition of anonymity. Moreover, the North has begun research into more advanced and dangerous weapons, possibly even thermonuclear weapons, they say.?

At the high end of the stockpile range, U.S. officials and other researchers said North Korea may already have up to "a few dozen" nuclear weapons that could be fitted atop its vast fleet of ballistic missiles. Those missiles are limited to an intermediate range, capable of hitting targets in Japan, South Korea or elsewhere in the northern Pacific, including U.S. military bases as far south as Guam, the officials believe.

Related story: UN passes sanctions despite North Korea threat of 'pre-emptive nuclear attack'

The U.S. believes the space launch tests are part of a development plan for an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of reaching the continental United States with a payload of several hundred kilotons ? 10 to 20 times the size of the bombs that destroyed the Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

U.S. officials publicly express confidence that the national missile defense system based in Alaska would be able to shoot down any incoming North Korean ICBM.

?I can tell you that the United States is fully capable of defending against any North Korean ballistic missile attack,? White House spokesman Jay Carney said Thursday in response to a question about the North Korean threat.

?He also said the U.N. sanctions will make it harder for Pyongyang to continue to make progress on its weapons and missiles.?

?North Korea ? will now face new barriers to developing its banned nuclear and ballistic missile programs,? he said. ?Resolution 2094 increases North Korea's isolation and demonstrates to North Korea's leaders the increasing costs they pay for defying the international community.??

For the past several years, the U.S. also has been monitoring North Korean research into thermonuclear weapons ? hydrogen bombs and bombs known as boosted-fission weapons, in which plutonium and uranium are combined for a higher energy yield. (The problem is that if the North conducted a test and claimed that it was thermonuclear, the U.S. would have difficulty determining if the North was telling the truth. The test site at Kilchu is far enough inland that the U.S. would not have access to the particulate matter needed to make an accurate determination, experts say. )

David Guttenfelder, AP's chief Asia photographer, was given unprecedented access on his 2011 journey to Pyongyang and areas outside the nation's showcase capital.

David Albright, president of the Institute for Science and International Security, or ISIS, a nonpartisan nuclear arms research group, said last year that any tests in the future may also be about ensuring the reliability of North Korea's current weapons design.

"Once you get beyond a dozen, it makes sense to test type and reliability of your weapons," he said. Albright said then that his group's estimate of North Korea's weapons stockpile is a bit less than those provided by the U.S. officials, but that ISIS, too, believes Pyongyang has "missile-deliverable weapons."

The design of the weapons is believed to be based on Chinese models (as were the first generation Pakistani nuclear weapons). The design is basic, and was developed in the 1960s with help from the Soviet Union, which used it to produce a whole line of nuclear warheads.

While some analysts suggested that the North planned its December rocket launch to gain attention ahead of the presidential election in South Korea , some in the U.S. non-proliferation community think otherwise. They expect that once the North feels comfortable with its ICBM technology, it will deploy the missiles.? They point to the Musudan intermediate range missile which was tested in middle of the last decade, then deployed ? presumably with nuclear warheads ? and aimed at Japan.

Once the North has confidence in the long-range missile based on the space rocket, U.S. officials believe they will deploy it as well, making North Korea the third nation to have nuclear weapons targeted at the United States, after Russia and China.

Many in the Obama administration see that as a more frightening prospect than Iran gaining nuclear weapons, believing that Tehran is a rational actor that will serve its own national interest and preserve the regime, compared to successive generations of North Korean leaders who have shown that they are unpredictable and erratic.

But would it force the U.S. to conduct face-to-face talks with the North? State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in December that the North has a better option.

Referring to Kim Jong Un, Nuland said: "He can plot a way forward that ends the isolation, that brings relief and a different way of life and progress to his people, or he can further isolate them with steps like this. He can spend his time and his money shooting off missiles, or he can feed his people, but he can't have both."

NBC News' Shawna Thomas contributed to this report; this piece is an updated version of a post originally published on Dec. 13, 2012.

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Source: http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/07/17225444-north-korea-threat-of-nuclear-attack-against-us-not-easily-dismissed?lite

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Bieber recovering after fainting at London concert

FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2012 file photo, Justin Bieber performs at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London on Thursday, March 7, 2013. A spokeswoman for Bieber said that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at his show at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Isaac Brekken/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2012 file photo, Justin Bieber performs at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London on Thursday, March 7, 2013. A spokeswoman for Bieber said that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at his show at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Isaac Brekken/Invision/AP, File)

FILe - In this Monday, March 4, 2013 file photo, Canadian singer Justin Bieber performs at the O2 Arena in east London. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London. A spokeswoman for Bieber said Thursday, March 7, 2013, that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - In this March 4, 2013 file photo, Canadian singer Justin Bieber performs at the O2 Arena in east London. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London on Thursday, March 7, 2013. A spokeswoman for Bieber said that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at his show at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - In this Monday, March 4, 2013 file photo, Canadian singer Justin Bieber performs at the O2 Arena in east London. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London. A spokeswoman for Bieber said Thursday, March 7, 2013, that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - In this Monday, March 4, 2013 file photo, Canadian singer Justin Bieber performs at the O2 Arena in east London. Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London. A spokeswoman for Bieber said Thursday, March 7, 2013, that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at London's O2 Arena. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, File)

Justin Bieber is recovering after fainting backstage at a concert in London.

A spokeswoman for Bieber said late Thursday that the 19-year-old pop star was given oxygen and took a 20-minute reprieve after fainting backstage at London's O2 Arena.

"Getting better," Bieber posted on Twitter. "Thanks for everyone pulling me thru tonight. Best fans in the world. Figuring out what happened. Thanks for the love."

In a video of the concert posted online, Bieber's manager appeared on stage Thursday night and told the crowd that the singer was feeling "very low of breath" but would return to finish the show, which he did.

The "Baby" singer is in London to perform four concerts at the O2 arena.

The incident caps a difficult week for Bieber. He was forced to apologize to outraged fans who accused him of taking the stage almost two hours late for his first concert at the O2 on Monday. He insisted he was only 40 minutes late and blamed "technical issues." He took to Twitter to vent his frustrations with the media's portrayal of the incident.

___

Online:

http://www.justinbiebermusic.com/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-07-People-Justin%20Bieber/id-646c5e50ad284a8786e9a681ca6222b9

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Do you have online networking all wrong? - Business Management ...

Networking is at the heart of any job search and vital to advancing your career. If you aren?t seeing the results you hoped for, don?t give up yet. Ritika Trikha has five ways you may be getting it all wrong and suggestions on how to get it right.

1. Asking too many questions. You don?t want to send a message full of questions to someone you don?t know. It?s overwhelming and off-putting. In your first message, just send your most important question, then if she writes back you can send some follow-ups.
2. Avoiding LinkedIn?s ?introduce? feature. This feature helps you get beyond your first-degree connections and meet those in the second and third tiers. Having an existing connection vouch for you is a great way to meet new people who could help your career.
3. Aiming too high. Unless you?re an executive yourself, you shouldn?t limit your online networking to executives. You?ll get better results if you try to connect with a mix of people at your level and above.
4. Inquiring about a job straight out. Asking for a job at first contact is like asking someone to marry you on the first date. Networking takes time and patience. Start out general and discuss your career in general, and don?t forget to bring something to the table to benefit your new contact.
5. Applying a generic template to every message. A stiff, standard form letter isn?t going to get anyone?s attention. Show yourself in your writing, and craft a personalized message to each prospective contact.

? Adapted from ?5 Reasons Your Online Networking Efforts Aren?t Working,? Ritika Trikha, U.S. News & World Report.

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Tornado Survivors Surprisingly Optimistic, Study Finds news

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Saturday: John Cena to headline SXSW 2013 panel

STAMFORD, Conn. ? WWE and Echo, the first and largest real-time web platform provider, announced that they will share the strategies behind WWE?s award-winning digital programs at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference this Saturday, March 9.

The panel will feature a candid discussion with John Cena, the third most followed U.S. athlete on Facebook and Twitter with more than 17 million fans combined, and provide insight into how the 10-time WWE Champion utilizes social media to extend WWE?s brand and connect with fans.

The panel will explore how WWE is leveraging creative, media, technology and talent to become one of the most widely respected and successful brands in social TV.

With more than six hours of domestic weekly programming, 300 Live Events each year and broadcasts in more than 145 countries, WWE is in a unique position to unite the web, mobile, television and live audience experiences under an integrated digital strategy, with the goal of building the ultimate interactive experience for fans.

Last year, WWE launched an unprecedented second-screen experience, WWE Active, on its WWE flagship app, which has been downloaded more than 3.5 million times since its debut. (MORE ON WWE ACTIVE)

PANELISTS
John Cena, WWE Superstar and 10-time WWE Champion
Stephanie McMahon, EVP, Creative, WWE
Perkins Miller, EVP, Digital Media, WWE

MODERATOR
Khris Loux, CEO, Echo (about Echo)

Add this to your calendar now.

For more on SXSW, visit SXSW.com.

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Source: http://www.wwe.com/inside/cena-headlines-sxsw-2013-panel

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Alistair Overeem-Junior Dos Santos "Likely" For Later This Summer

UFC president Dana White didn't confirm anything, but it appears the planned heavyweight collision brewing since early last year between Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos will be rescheduled. Overeem suffered a training injury recently and was forced out of UFC 160: Velasquez Vs. Silva II.

White posted on Twitter that it's "not lookin good" as far as finding a replacement for Overeem to meet "Cigano" in May.

Mark Hunt, coming off a recent win over Stefan Struve, volunteered to step in and meet the former UFC heavyweight champion if UFC officials wanted him to.

"I want in troops and only the boss (White) can make it happen lets go army ATTACK the general wants in on this fight," Hunt wrote on Twitter after news of Overeem's exit was confirmed.

Overeem (36-12) and dos Santos (15-2) were scheduled to first meet back in 2012 for the UFC title, but Overeem failed a pre-fight drug test. Both fighters are coming off losses.

Follow FightLine.com on Twitter by clicking the "Follow" button below:

Source: http://feeds.fightline.com/~r/fightline_ufc_news/~3/AD2jHvHG8AY/

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U.S. to allow small knives to be carried onto airplanes

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Transportation Security Administration said on Tuesday that travelers can soon bring small pocket knives on board airplanes for the first time since the September 11 attacks, sparking outrage from flight attendants who said the decision would endanger passengers and crew.

The TSA said that effective April 25, it would allow knives with blades that are 2.36 inches or less in length and less than 1/2 inch wide. Other items that will be allowed on board again as part of a passenger's carry-on luggage include billiard cues, ski poles, hockey sticks and lacrosse sticks.

Items that had been prohibited like razors, box cutters or knives with a fixed blade are still not allowed on board.

TSA spokesman David Castelveter said the decision was made to bring U.S. regulations more in line with International Civil Aviation Organization standards and would also help provide a better experience for travelers.

"This is part of an overall Risk-Based Security approach, which allows Transportation Security officers to better focus their efforts on finding higher-threat items such as explosives," he said.

The Flight Attendants Union Coalition, which represents nearly 90,000 flight attendants from carriers across the country, called it a "poor and shortsighted decision" by the TSA.

"As the last line of defense in the cabin and key aviation partners, we believe that these proposed changes will further endanger the lives of all flight attendants and the passengers we work so hard to keep safe and secure," the coalition said in a statement.

Castelveter said the TSA had implemented a number of safety measures, including reinforced cockpit doors, allowing some pilots to be armed and federal air marshals on board airplanes. He said those measures would help ensure safety of the passengers and crew.

At Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, travelers reacted to the change with alarm.

"I would say, what were you thinking? Because it's ludicrous to think of allowing knives on a plane," said Deborah Debare. "They are as dangerous as guns."

Another traveler, David Veeder, said that when it came to knives and blades, even small instruments could pose a danger.

"I'd prefer they had nothing," he said.

After the September 11, 2001 hijacked airliner attacks on New York and Washington, the government imposed strict rules for what could be carried on board an aircraft, some of which differed from what other countries allowed.

(Additional reporting by Pavithra George; Editing by Edith Honan and David Brunnstrom)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-allow-small-knives-carried-onto-airplanes-020537436.html

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Hey, Atlanta! Let Us Buy You Some Beer and Give You a Sneak Peek of Gizmodo's Upcoming TV Special

We're taking the literal Gizmodo TV show on the literal road to give you guys a chance to see some clips before we air on BBC America on March 18th. (10:20PM after Top Gear!) And because I know seeing my pasty mug isn't enticement enough, we teamed up with our friends Matt Hardigree and Travis Okulski from Jalopnik, not just because we enjoy their company (they're actually terrible), but because they've got the pull to let us travel in style: I'm writing this now from the heated back seats of a 470 HP 2014 Grand Cherokee SRT over its built-in Wi-Fi hotspot. Not too shabby. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/pkZcGxaleVY/hey-atlanta-let-us-buy-you-some-beer-and-give-you-a-sneak-peek-of-gizmodos-upcoming-tv-special

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Indiana flirting with losing grip on top seeds in NCAA, B1G tourneys

All it took was a trio of tough drives from Aaron Craft and a sensational defensive performance sparked by Shannon Scott and, all of a sudden, Indiana, who many believed to be the best team in the country heading into Tuesday night, no longer had themselves locked into a No. 1 seed.

The No. 14 Buckeyes stymied Indiana?s powerhouse offense for 40 minutes, getting timely buckets from Craft and a huge three from Deshaun Thomas with four minutes left as they beat No. 2 Indiana 67-58 on Senior Night for the Hoosiers.

That drops the Hoosiers, who held a commanding two games lead in the Big Ten race entering the day, to just one game ahead of the four teams currently sitting tied for second place. And with a trip to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan on Sunday, Indiana is going to have their work cut out for them.

Win, and Tom Crean?s club will earn an outright Big Ten regular season title.

Lose and, well, they?ll fall into a first place tie with as many as three other teams, lose control over the top seed in the Big Ten tournament and potentially cost themselves that No. 1 seed in the Big Dance.

That?s concerning, especially when you consider that Indiana has now lost two of their last three games with a less-than-inspiring win over Iowa in Assembly Hall being sandwiched by losses at Minnesota and at home to Ohio State. Or that for the first time all season, Victor Oladipo struggled in a marquee game. Or that for the second time in the span of a week, Cody Zeller got pushed around in the paint; his 17 points on Tuesday will help mask the fact that he didn?t play all that well.

The Hoosiers have some kinks to work out, but they?re going to be fine. Tonight was more about how well Ohio State played defensively than any massive issue with the Hoosiers moving forward.

But it does go to show you: even if Indiana is the best team in the country, they are anything-but unbeatable.

And right now, they are anything-but a lock for a No. 1 seed.

More than anything, that?s where the concern should lie. The Hoosiers have a chance to play in Indianapolis in the Sweet 16 and the Elite 8. That may not be a ?home game?, but it would be a crowd made up of roughly 90% Hoosier fans. Pretty ideal, eh?

That?s what this loss may cost them.

You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.

Source: http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/06/indiana-flirting-with-losing-grip-on-top-seeds-in-ncaa-b1g-tourneys/

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Russian police arrest 3 suspects in Bolshoi attack

MOSCOW (AP) ? Russian police said Tuesday they arrested three men in the acid attack that nearly blinded the artistic director of the Bolshoi ballet, including a star dancer suspected of masterminding the plot.

Sergei Filin was left with severe burns to his eyes and face when a masked attacker threw a jar of sulfuric acid in his face as he returned home late on Jan. 17. The 42-year-old former dancer is now undergoing treatment in Germany.

Interior Ministry spokesman Anatoly Lastovetsky said Bolshoi soloist Pavel Dmitrichenko is suspected of planning the attack.

Police also arrested the suspected perpetrator of the attack and the man believed to have driven him to and from the scene, the spokesman said.

It was unclear whether either man had any connection to the famed ballet company.

Dmitrichenko, who joined the Bolshoi in 2002, has danced several major parts in recent years, including Ivan the Terrible in the ballet of the same name.

Bolshoi Theater spokeswoman Katerina Novikova said management was not aware of a conflict between him and Filin. Channel One state television reported that Dmitrichenko's girlfriend, however, also a Bolshoi soloist, was known to have been at odds with Filin.

The Bolshoi Theater is one of Russia's premier cultural institutions, best known for "Swan Lake" and the other grand classical ballets that grace its stage. But backstage, the ballet company has been troubled by deep intrigue and infighting that have led to the departure of several artistic directors over the past few years.

Filin's colleagues have said the attack could be in retaliation for his selection of certain dancers over others for prized roles. Filin told state television before he checked out of a Moscow hospital that he knew who ordered the attack but would not name the person.

The Interior Ministry said the alleged perpetrator, 35-year-old Yury Zarutsky, was arrested in the Tver region north of Moscow. Earlier in the day, police had detained and questioned the suspected accomplice, whom the spokesman identified as Andrei Lipatov. No other details were provided.

Russian news agencies reported that Lipatov had been detained in the town of Stupino, a sprawling Moscow suburb that has summer houses owned by the Bolshoi Theater and used by its dancers and management. Dmitrichenko said in a recent interview that he was managing the dachas in his spare time.

In a February interview with Snob magazine, the Bolshoi's general director, Anatoly Iksanov, said the attack on Filin was inspired by longtime principal dancer Nikolai Tsiskaridze.

"I don't blame that particular crime on him, but I'm accusing Nikolai of escalating the situation at the theater, of putting psychological pressure on the theater's staff and management, on Filin, on myself and teachers," he said.

Tsiskaridze, a long-time critic of the theater's management, has denied the allegation and accused Iksanov and his allies of fueling the dispute.

Dmitrichenko's girlfriend, Anzhelina Vorontsova, was coached by Tsiskaridze.

Many ballet stars, including Anastasia Volochkova, have sided with Tsiskaridze. Alexei Ratmansky, the Bolshoi ballet's artistic director from 2004 until 2008, has likened the atmosphere at the theater to "a disgusting cesspool" and said that the attack stems from "the lack of any ethics at the theater."

Ratmansky is now an artist-in-residence at the American Ballet Theater in New York.

____

Nataliya Vasilyeva, Varya Kudryavtseva, Yelena Yegorova and Laura Mills contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/russian-police-arrest-3-suspects-bolshoi-attack-171559526.html

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Google Play gift cards now available in the UK, spotted in Tesco

Google Play gift cards appear to be finally available in the United Kingdom, as they've been spotted in Tesco. We first got wind back in December of the UK redemption page going live, but no other news about the cards. Then, just a couple of days ago, we were given the gift card denominations that would be available, but still no physical items. Finally, they have been spotted in one of the most common grocery stores in the UK and hopefully will be found elsewhere as well.

The cards, as you can see, can be bought in the £10 or £25, though we heard that £50 options will also be available.

Source: EuroDroid

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/W-XAweaOIMc/story01.htm

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Most Murder Victims in Big Cities Have Criminal Records | American ...

A review of murder statistics across America shows that in many large cities, up to 90 percent of the?victims?have criminal records.

WND previously reported that?gun murders in the U.S. are concentrated in big cities that typically have the strictest gun-control regulations.

The gun-murder rates in those cities are comparable to the rates in some of the deadliest Third World countries, the report said.

Now a WND review of a number of cities with high gun-murder rates shows a clear majority of the victims had criminal arrest histories. In some cities, it?s as high as 91 percent.

The 2011 Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission?is a review of police data compiled from Wisconsin?s largest city.

Milwaukee, with a population of just less than 600,000, is 40 percent African-American and 37 percent white. The 2011 Homicide Review Commission reports there were 86 homicides that year, with 93 percent of the suspects black males.

Overall, the homicide rate was 14.5 per 100,000 residents, and the nonfatal shooting rate was 79.5 per 100,000 residents. However, when broken down by race, ?the homicide rate per black residents is 27.9 per 100,000 compared to 9.7 per 100,000 Latino residents and 1.7 per 100,000 White residents.?

The report concludes that ?of the 2011 homicide victims, 77 percent (66) had a least one prior arrest and of the known 2011 homicide suspects 90 percent (74) had at least one prior arrest.?

Similar trends were found for nonfatal shooting victims and suspects.

{snip}

In 2011, there were 199 murders in New Orleans. Of the victims, the New Orleans Times- Picayune reported, 64 percent had a prior record.

In early 2012, after pressure put on the police by murder victims? families in New Orleans, the police department stopped revealing whether or not the murder victim had a prior record.

?Crime in New Orleans: Analyzing Crime Trends and New Orleans? Responses to Crime,? an examination of 200 criminal homicides in New Orleans from April 18, 2009, to May 11, 2010 by Charles Wellford, Brenda Bond and Sean Goodison, showed that 90 percent of the homicides were committed with a firearm.

Of the 200 victims, 91.5 percent were black, 5 percent were white and 2 percent were Hispanic. Only 51 percent of the homicides?102?were solved by the police, with 97.1 percent of the known first offenders being black.

Though data is no longer published in Baltimore,?USA Today reported?in 2007 that 91 percent of the then-205 murder victims in the city between Jan. 1 and Aug. 31, 2007, had criminal records.

A WND review?of the Philadelphia Police Department Murder and Shooting Analysis for 2011 shows a similar pattern to that of other large cities in America?a majority of the murder victims have prior records.

In Philadelphia in 2011, of 324 murders, 81 percent (263) of the victims had at least one prior arrest; 62 percent (164) had been arrested for a violent crime prior to their murder.

Seventy-nine percent (242) of the murder victims were black. Of the cases solved (176), 82 percent of the murder offenders were black.

In Newark, N.J., long considered one of America?s most dangerous cities, 85 percent of the 165 murder victims between 2009 and 2010 had serious arrest histories.

Anthony Braga, a professor with the Rutgers-Newark School of Criminal Justice,?told the Newark Star-Ledger?that 85 percent of 165 murder victims in Newark between 2009 and 2010 had been arrested at least once before they were killed.

Those victims, he said, had, on average, 10 prior arrests on their criminal records.

A WND review?of the Chicago Police Department Murder Analysis reports from 2003 to 2011 provides a statistical breakdown of the demographics of both the victims and offenders in the 4,265 murders in Chicago over that time period.

Of the victims of murder in Chicago from 2003 to 2011, an average of 77 percent had a prior arrest history, with a high of 79 percent of the 436 murdered in Chicago in 2010 having arrest histories.

For the same 2003-2011 period, blacks were the victims of 75 percent of 4,265 murders. Blacks also were the offenders in 75 percent of the murders.

{snip}

Original Article

?

Topics: Crime

Source: http://www.amren.com/news/2013/03/most-murder-victims-in-big-cities-have-criminal-records/

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Roku 3 goes on sale tomorrow for $99 with upgraded CPU and a new UI

Almost two years after its last major set-top box rollout, Roku is ready to introduce its first third generation player. Other than a new curvier design outside the Roku 3's main differences are a more powerful processor inside, the addition of dual band WiFi and a tweaked remote with audio out (headphones included) for private listening. Of course, hardware is only half the story and the new player debuts a reworked interface that will also spread to "current generation" players (read: Roku 2, new HD, LT and Streaming Stick) as an update in April. Roku 3 goes on sale tomorrow through Roku.com and Amazon.com for $99, taking the place of the current top of the line XS model. We'll go more in depth about what's new this time around, including a video preview of the new UI, after the break.

Gallery: Roku 3 hardware, interface

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: Roku Blog

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/lTpNGMy4RIs/

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Bird poop and Big Screens: Attempting a multiplayer world record

There's no category in the Guinness World Records for the most players in a single-screen multiplayer game. However, that's likely to change soon thanks to a group of New York University graduate students who created SPLAT, a multiplayer game designed for the 120-foot video wall installed in the lobby of the IAC building on the west side of Manhattan. The screen is a Prysm laser phosphor display and sports a whopping resolution of 11,520 x 1,080 pixels. The game was debuted at a packed showcase event last Friday night, along with the work of other students from an NYU Interactive Telecommunications Program class appropriately called Big Screens.

Filed under: Gaming

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Source: BigPlay

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/SawAdqI_O5A/

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Venezuela announces death of President Chavez

In this photo released by Miraflores Presidential Press Office, Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro, right, addresses the nation from Miraflores presidential palace as Governor Adan Chavez, the older brother of President Hugo Chavez, looks on in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Maduro met with top Venezuelan government ministers, the military high command and all 20 loyalist governors in Caracas following word of President Hugo Chavez's deteriorating health. (AP Photo/Miraflores Presidential Press Office)

In this photo released by Miraflores Presidential Press Office, Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro, right, addresses the nation from Miraflores presidential palace as Governor Adan Chavez, the older brother of President Hugo Chavez, looks on in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Maduro met with top Venezuelan government ministers, the military high command and all 20 loyalist governors in Caracas following word of President Hugo Chavez's deteriorating health. (AP Photo/Miraflores Presidential Press Office)

People sit in a restaurant where a TV on the wall shows a live image of Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro addressing the nation on state television during a government meeting in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Maduro met with top Venezuelan government ministers, the military high command and all 20 loyalist governors in Caracas following word of President Hugo Chavez's deteriorating health. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

In this photo released by Miraflores Presidential Press Office, Venezuela's Vice President Nicolas Maduro, top center in white, addresses the nation from Miraflores presidential palace during a meeting with top government ministers, the military high command and all 20 loyalist governors in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Maduro says the government of President Hugo Chavez plans to expel a U.S. Embassy official for meeting with military officers and planning to destabilize the country. Maduro spoke hours after the government said Chavez was in "very delicate" health after undergoing cancer surgery in December. The large images on display in the room are of Venezuela's independence hero Simon Bolivar. (AP Photo/Miraflores Presidential Press Office)

A student protestor demanding more information about President Hugo Chavez's health reads a newspaper with a front page headline that reads in Spanish; "The President worsens," in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. A brief statement read on national television by Communications Minister Ernesto Villegas late Monday carried the sobering news about the charismatic 58-year-old leader's deteriorating health. Villegas said Chavez is suffering from "a new, severe infection." The state news agency identified it as respiratory. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

A poster of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez is seen through a cross-shaped window, from inside the military hospital's chapel, in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. A brief statement read on national television by Communications Minister Ernesto Villegas late Monday carried the sobering news about the charismatic 58-year-old leader's deteriorating health. Villegas said Chavez is suffering from "a new, severe infection." The state news agency identified it as respiratory. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) ? Venezuela's vice president announced that President Hugo Chavez died on Tuesday, ending 14 years of rule by the firebrand socialist but leaving his party firmly in control of the nation.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro said that Chavez died "after battling a tough illness for nearly two years."

The death apparently sets up a presidential election to replace Chavez, whose illness prevented him from taking the oath of office for the term to which he was re-elected last year.

Under the constitution, the head of Congress, Diosdado Cabello, would assume the interim presidency.

The announcement came just hours after Maduro announced the government had expelled two U.S. diplomats from the country.

Maduro also said "we have no doubt" that Chavez's cancer, which was first diagnosed in June 2011, was induced by foul play by "the historical enemies of our homeland."

He compared the situation to the death of the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, claiming Arafat was "inoculated with an illness."

Chavez's inner circle has long claimed the United States was behind a failed 2002 attempt to overthrow him, and he has frequently played the anti-American card to stir up support. Venezuela has been without a U.S. ambassador since July 2010.

Maduro is Chavez's self-anointed successor and has been taking on a larger role since the socialist leader urged Venezuelans to choose him as president before disappearing in early December to undergo a fourth round of cancer surgery in Cuba.

Venezuela's Constitution calls for snap presidential elections to be held if Chavez dies, and some analysts wondered whether Maduro's suggesting the country was under attack by U.S. subterfuge might not be an excuse to delay the election and tighten his grip on power.

The government announced late Monday that Chavez's condition was "very delicate" due to a "new, severe" respiratory infection threw an already anxious nation into even greater uncertainty

"We don't know if he's alive or if he's dead, because they are manipulating the public," Antonio Perez, a retired 60-year-old public servant, said of the government. "Everyone want to just see the president to know if it's true that he's still with us."

Supporters of the 58-year-old president prayed for Chavez on Tuesday at a chapel outside the military hospital where the government says he has been since Feb. 18.

Maduro aired his claim of an alleged attempt to destabilize "Venezuelan society" and the "political system constructed in recent years" before the nation's high command, and the governors of 20 of 23 states loyal to President Chavez, half of them former military officers.

He accused U.S. Embassy's Air Force attache Col. David Delmonaco of spying on Venezuela's military and seeking to involve officers in "destabilizing projects." Maduro gave Delmonaco 24 hours to leave, and U.S. officials said he had already departed the country.

Later Tuesday, Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said a second U.S. Air Force attache was being expelled, also for alleged espionage.

"Let's remember that active participation of the United States in the fascist coup of 2002," Jaua said.

Chavez had neither been seen nor heard from, except for photos released in mid-February, since submitting to a fourth round of surgery in Cuba on Dec. 11 for an unspecified cancer in the pelvic area. It was first diagnosed in June 2011.

The government said Chavez returned home on Feb. 18 and has been confined to Caracas' military hospital ever since.

Maduro said Tuesday that the government was "on the trail of other elements that figure in this entire venomous scenario and are seeking to stir up trouble."

The man Chavez defeated in Oct. 7 presidential elections, the youthful Miranda state Gov. Henrique Capriles, would be expected to represent the opposition in any new elections.

Maduro repeated government claims that Capriles met in the United States over the weekend with right-wing U.S. conspirators and was planning to meet over the weekend with Roberta Jacobsen, assistant U.S. secretary of state for the hemisphere.

One provocateur on state TV even accused the Capriles family of buying a New York City apartment with stolen funds.

Capriles responded via Twitter Tuesday by calling Maduro a liar.

"Lie after lie in every speech," he said.

According to Venezuela's Constitution, elections were to be called if the president could not be sworn in on Jan. 10, but a Supreme Court packed with Chavez loyalists said that wasn't necessary.

The campaigning, though undeclared, has nevertheless already begun. Maduro has frequently commandeered all broadcast channels, Chavez-style, to tout the "revolution" and vilify the opposition.

Chavez has run Venezuela for more than 14 years as a virtual one-man show, gradually placing all state institutions under his personal control. But the former army paratroop commander, who rose to fame by launching a failed 1992 coup, never groomed a successor with his same kind of force of personality.

Maduro said last week that the president had begun receiving chemotherapy around the end of January.

Doctors have said such therapy is not necessarily to beat Chavez's cancer into remission, but could have been palliative, to extend Chavez's life and ease his suffering.

Dr. Carlos Castro, scientific director of the Colombian League Against Cancer, said "it's difficult to predict" when Chavez might die, but he believes "it's a matter of days."

Castro said Chavez could face further respiratory complications if he receives more intense chemotherapy treatment.

If the president's medical team "gives him strong chemotherapy again, then it would not be surprising if some infections reappear," Castro said in a telephone interview.

While in Cuba, Chavez suffered a severe respiratory infection in late December that nearly killed him, Maduro said last week. A tracheal tube was inserted then, and government officials have said his breathing remained labored.

Libardo Rodriguez, a 60-year-old orange juice vendor, said he was very worried after Monday evening's announcement and the government should provide more information about Chavez.

"We are worried because he does not appear. The truth is that I don't know what's happening," said Rodriguez, who identified himself as a Chavez supporter.

"There are many rumors and nobody knows who to believe," he said. "We hope he's alive."

___

Associated Press writer Vivian Sequera in Bogota, Colombia, contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-05-Venezuela-Chavez/id-6ead4a120412448081ca930915f1ff30

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