The Real Estalker: Kim and Kanye Bite the Real Estate Bullet in Bel ...

We know lots of y'all don't care to hear about Kim Kardashian and/or Kanye West and will kvetch about our decision to discuss this matter until the damn cows come home. Howevuh, hunties, we do have to feed all the children their favorite and sundry celebrity real estate meals and, as?a property gossip in good standing, Your Mama just can't resist the latest from celebrity scuttlebutt juggernaut TMZ?who reported this morning that the perpetually pap-trailed and newly preggers Kim K. and Kanye W. have snatched up an $11,000,000 mansion in a swank gated community in Bel Air.

The TMZ report claims the couple scooped up an approximately 10,000 square foot mansion several weeks ago and have already "gutted it" to make way for a much larger 14,000 square foot Italian-style villa. The rehabbed house, so the story goes, will be fitted and kitted with a gym, movie theater, bowling alley, basketball court as well as indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Naturally a full-serivce?hair and makeup salon is planned because these two don't even go to the freaking terlit let alone outside without full hair and make-up.

Anyhoo, the?TMZ report went on to note that "Kim & Kanye's new neighbors will include Jennifer Aniston, Chris Paul, and Joe Francis." Subsequent reports by People,?the Daily News and the New York Post go on to report that Aniston, Paul and Francis all live in the same gated community as Kimye's (alleged) new crib. Well, children, we do not know who Chris Paul is but we do know that neither Jennifer Aniston nor Joe Francis live in this or any other gated community. In fact Miz Anistons new house?in Bel Air is nearly six miles away on surface streets from the house pictured in the TMZ report and Mister Francis' Bel Air spread is even farther away.

Furthermore, the under construction residence pictured in the TMZ report was actually completed in 2010 according to the Los Angeles County Tax Man. There it is (above) from the air in all its bloviated semi-circularless. According to various property record data bases Your Mama consulted, that house?the one pictured in the TMZ report?already measures in at more than 20,000 square feet and records indicate it is currently owned by a high-powered attorney and his wife who also, as it turns out, own the nearly 9,000 square foot mock-Med mac-mansion immediately next door that's listed on the open market with a $10,750,000 price tag. Could that be the house they bought? Hmm.

Something's fishy. We're not saying Kim and Kanye didn't buy a big ol' house in Bel Air in which to bring up baby in unwedded bliss. We're just saying we're not sure the house shown in the TMZ report is the house they bought. Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Bueller?

aerial image: Google

Source: http://realestalker.blogspot.com/2013/01/kim-and-kanye-bite-real-estate-bullet.html

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Students rally against university's treatment of assault and mental illness cases

Approximately 150 students, masters, administrators and staff members gathered for a sit-in and rally against the university?s treatment of mental illness and sexual assault cases on campus. Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson spoke at the sit-in and addressed student questions.

The sit-in, held Dec. 3 in the Academic Quad in front of Lovett Hall, occurred from 3 p.m. to approximately 4:10 p.m. It was organized by Duncan College senior Philomena Bradford, Duncan juniors Elizabeth Casey and Colleen Fugate, Martel College junior Denis Leahy and Duncan senior Drew Moore.

Leahy said the rally?s purpose was to launch a public discussion and open collaboration with the administration on how sexual assault and mental illness are handled on campus.

?It?s not just a response to [Olivia Hansen?s] case,? Leahy said in a personal interview. ?We?re recognizing a pattern that?s been existent for many years.?

Fugate said in an interview that another goal of the rally was to urge the administration to seriously reassess its policies dealing with sexual assault and mental health. She cited a lack of resources on campus, little awareness of existing resources and, particularly, the lack of staff members hired to deal specifically with sexual assault cases.

The organizers began the rally by reading various anonymous accounts of experiences with sexual assault, mental illness, the Rice Counseling Center and the administration. Former member of Duncan class of 2014 Mikayla Sweet read an account of her own experience.

Hutchinson then spoke to attendees and said the university is anxious to enter into a dialogue with students about mental illness and sexual assault policies at Rice.

?It pains every one of us [my staff] ? I?m in pain right now, and so you have reached me ? to think about the difficulties that many of you go through in your times at Rice,? Hutchinson said. ?We are self-aware enough to know that we can always do better. We can always reassess.?

He said the university is committed to constant improvement of mental health and sexual assault programming and resources and cited steps that the university took recently, such as Wellbeing Week, held earlier this semester, and the expansion of the RCC, which included adding social workers to ease students? transition into and out of the hospital. Hutchinson said Rice also hired an external consultant in October to review its mental illness and sexual assault policies and protocol; the review is ongoing, and results are not yet ready for release, he said.

?I say that not to say we have solved all the problems, but to say we are completely in sympathy with all of you in the sense that we need even more resources, even more approaches, even more possibilities for our students to seek out the assistance that they need,? Hutchinson said.

Hutchinson said he would like to create a task force formed jointly between students, administrators and staff members. The task force would identify how Rice can improve its resources and provide transparency regarding Rice?s processes for handling mental illness and sexual assault cases.

A student asked that Hutchinson apologize. Hutchinson said he shared the pain of those who felt they were mistreated by the university?s handling of sexual assault and mental illness, but he would not apologize for university protocol or how any specific cases have been handled.

Source: http://www.ricethresher.org/news/students-rally-against-university-s-treatment-of-assault-and-mental-illness-cases-1.2965987

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Apollo Group cuts profit forecast, sign-ups slip again

(Reuters) - Apollo Group Inc , which owns the biggest U.S. for-profit college, reported lower student sign-ups for the third straight quarter and cut its operating profit forecast for 2013.

Apollo, which runs the University of Phoenix, now expects operating income of between $500 million and $550 million for the year ending August 2013, down from its prior forecast of $525 million to $575 million.

"They are going to see more cost savings than they had expected, but yet now they're expecting lower profit, so something strange is going on there," William Blair & Co analyst Brandon Dobell said.

Apollo said in October that it would cut 800 jobs and shut down 25 campuses to save costs, as fewer students signed up at its colleges.

"During the first quarter, we achieved much of our anticipated 2012 fixed cost savings -- earlier than expected," Chief Financial Officer Brian Swartz said on a post-earnings conference call on Tuesday.

General costs fell 8 percent in the first quarter.

"We now expect to realize at least two-thirds of the annual cost savings in fiscal 2013," Swartz added.

For-profit education providers have been plagued by falling enrollments over the last two years in the face of tighter regulations and low job-placement rates.

U.S. colleges were forced to focus more on the quality of education after the government introduced new rules that threatened to cut financial aid if debt loads remained high.

The company's University of Phoenix has also ramped up its spend on marketing and frozen tuition fees to tempt students to sign up.

New student enrollments fell 15 percent to 54,100 in the first quarter ended November.

CFO Swartz also said new student enrollments in December did not meet Apollo's expectations.

The company had said last year that it expected new enrollments to grow again in the second half of 2013.

Net income attributable to Apollo fell to $133.5 million from $149.3 million a year earlier.

However, the company's attributable net income per share rose to $1.18 from $1.14 as Apollo bought back some of its shares.

Excluding items, the company earned $1.22 per share.

Revenue fell 10 percent to $1.06 billion.

The company's shares were down about 6 percent after the bell. They closed down 3 percent at $20.94 on Tuesday on the Nasdaq. The stock has dropped more than 60 percent over the past year.

(Reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bangalore; Editing by Roshni Menon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/apollo-group-profit-falls-student-sign-ups-decline-213425964--sector.html

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Jurassic ecosystems were similar to modern: Animals flourish among lush plants

Jan. 8, 2013 ? CO2 levels in fossil soils from the Late Jurassic confirm that climate, vegetation and animal richness varied across the planet 150 million years ago, suggesting future human changes to global climate will heavily impact plant and animal life.

In modern ecosystems, it's widely known that animals flourish in regions where the climate and landscape produce lush vegetation.

A new study set out to discover whether that same relationship held true 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic when dinosaurs roamed Earth.

"The assumption has been that ancient ecosystems worked just like our modern ecosystems," said paleontologist and lead author Timothy S. Myers, Southern Methodist University, Dallas. "We wanted to see if this was, in fact, the case."

To test the theory, Myers analyzed fossil soils from the Late Jurassic by measuring the ratios of carbon isotopes. His analysis indicated that the Jurassic soils contained high levels of CO2 from vegetation.

From that, Myers was able to infer the presence of lush plant life in certain regions during the Jurassic. The soils came from locales where scientists previously have gathered animal fossils -- North America, Europe and Africa. Combining the data with the known fossil sampling allowed Myers to confirm that the modern relationship between animals and vegetation held true even millions of years ago.

"Our analysis represents the first time that anyone has tried to apply ecological modeling to this relationship in the fossil record," Myers said.

Relatively few places in the world are well-sampled for terrestrial fossils, so Myers' discovery of a new use for an already existing method represents a useful tool, he said. The new use allows scientists to tap the geochemical data of soils from anywhere in the world and from other geologic time periods to infer the relative abundance of plants and animals, particularly for areas where fossils are lacking.

"This not only provides a more complete picture of the ancient landscape and climate in which ancient animals lived," Myers said. "It also illustrates that climate and biota have been ecologically connected for many millions of years and that future human-caused changes to global climate will have profound impacts on plant and animal life around the world."

Myers and his co-researchers reported the findings in Paleobiology, "Estimating Soil pCO2 Using Paleosol Carbonates: Implications for the Relationship Between Primary Productivity and Faunal Richness in Ancient Terrestrial Ecosystems."

Co-authors were SMU sedimentary geochemist Neil J. Tabor and paleontologists Louis L. Jacobs, SMU, and Oct?vio Mateus, New University of Lisbon, Portugal.

"Devising new and creative methods to understand how Earth and life have functioned together in the past is the foundation for predicting the future of life on our planet," said Jacobs, a vertebrate paleontologist and professor in SMU's Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences. "It is the only approach that provides a long enough perspective of what is possible."

New method applied to old hypothesis confirms regional variability

Typically researchers count the number of animal species discovered in a region to determine how many different types of animals once lived there. Scientists call that a measure of faunal richness.

Myers took a different approach. Using a traditional method typically used to estimate carbon dioxide in the ancient atmosphere, Myers instead applied it to estimate the amount of CO2 in ancient soils.

Measurements were taken from nodules of calcite that form in soil as a result of wet and dry seasons. These nodules take on the isotopic signature of the CO2 gas around them, which is a mixture derived from two sources: the atmosphere, which leaves a more positive isotopic signature, and plants decaying in the soil, which leave a more negative isotopic signature.

A higher volume of CO2 from plants indicates a lusher, wetter environment.

"There's a lot more litter fall in an environment with a lot of plants, and that produces a lot of organic material in the soil, creating CO2. So we see more soil-produced CO2, displacing the atmospheric CO2. These are established relationships," Myers said.

"Our method can be used to infer relative levels of richness for areas where soils have been preserved, but where fossils are lacking because conditions were unsuitable for their preservation," he said.

The research demonstrates creative use of existing geological data, said co-author Tabor, an expert in ancient soil in SMU's Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences.

"Vertebrate paleontologists have been accumulating information about vertebrate fossils in the Jurassic for well over 100 years. In addition, geochemists have been systematically sampling the composition of ancient soils for several decades," Tabor said. "In these respects, the data that are the foundation of this study are not extraordinary. What is remarkable, though, is combining the paleontology and geochemistry data to answer large-scale questions that extend beyond the data points -- specifically, to answer questions about ancient ecosystems."

Data from Morrison Formation, Central Africa and Portugal

Myers tested Upper Jurassic soil nodules collected from the Morrison Formation in the western United States. The formation extends from Montana to New Mexico and has been the source of many dinosaur fossil discoveries.

He also analyzed Upper Jurassic soil nodules from Portugal, another location well-sampled for dinosaur fossils. The region's paleoclimate was broadly similar to that of the Morrison Formation.

In addition, Myers tested a small Upper Jurassic core sample from Central Africa, where there's no evidence of any major terrestrial life. Unique minerals in the rocks indicate that the region had an arid environment during the Late Jurassic.

Based on their hypothesis, the researchers expected to see regional variations in plant productivity -- the amount of new growth produced in an area over time, which is an indirect measure of the amount of plant life in an environment. Forests, savannas and deserts all have different amounts of plant productivity, although those specific ecosystems can't be identified on the basis of plant productivity alone.

The researchers expected to see higher plant productivity for Portugal than for the Morrison Formation, with the lowest productivity in Central Africa.

"Essentially that's what we found," Myers said. "We understand it's tenuous and not a trend, but few places in the world are well-sampled. However, it's still a useful tool for places where all we have are the soil nodules, without well-preserved fauna."

Soil nodules are fairly common, Myers said. They form as a result of seasonally dry conditions and may be preserved in all but the wettest environments. Since they harden into mineralized clods, they are easy to spot and sample as they weather out of ancient soil profiles.

CO2 in ancient calcite nodules offers key to ancient climate

From the analysis scientists can draw a more complete picture of the ancient landscape and climate in which prehistoric animals lived.

"The Jurassic is thought of as very warm, very wet, with lots of dinosaurs," said Myers, research curator for SMU's Shuler Museum of Paleontology. "But we see from our analysis that there was regional variability during the Late Jurassic in the climate and in the abundance of animals across the planet."

The Late Jurassic extended from 160 million years ago to 145 million years ago.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Southern Methodist University. The original article was written by Margaret Allen.

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


Journal Reference:

  1. Timothy S. Myers, Neil J. Tabor, Louis L. Jacobs, Oct?vio Mateus. Estimating soilpCO2using paleosol carbonates: implications for the relationship between primary productivity and faunal richness in ancient terrestrial ecosystems. Paleobiology, 2012; 38 (4): 585 DOI: 10.1666/11005.1

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/s-sil_IL_g8/130108132051.htm

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The FOSS Effect on the Mobile OS Landscape in 2013

The year is starting out with what may turn out to be significant changes in the mobile operating system market, with open source software playing a significant role just as it has in enterprise software, virtualization and cloud computing. With fading heavyweights and interesting new challengers, there are changes afoot in the mobile OS market.

Source: http://ectnews.com.feedsportal.com/c/34520/f/632000/s/274ed60d/l/0L0Stechnewsworld0N0Crsstory0C770A290Bhtml/story01.htm

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Personal Loans Can Help Consolidate Your Debt | Alek Financial Blog

Posted on Jan 9, 2013 in Credit

A large personal loan can be a very effective way to take control of an over burdened financial situation. It can allow a borrower to pay off multiple existing debts all at one time. This is a needed financial product that online lenders such as Quick Credit have become aware of. In today?s economy, people appreciate this type of help and these lenders have made obtaining them more available. Sometimes getting a larger loan can be a bit of a challenge. This is why a personal loan can be a good choice.

A personal loan is an unsecured loan. This means that the lender does not require the borrower to put up any collateral against the loan. Also, if a borrower has less than great credit, this is an option that you might want to strongly consider. With traditional lenders such as banks, a credit check is usually performed. While a person?s credit score isn?t used as a main deciding factor as much these days, a bank will most likely require some sort of collateral.

If you are looking at this option to help clean up your credit and get your bills paid off it is highly recommended that you do some research into the different types of personal loans available.

personal loans

A large personal loan can be a very effective way to take control of an over burdened financial situation. It can allow a borrower to pay off multiple existing debts all at one time.
CC image courtesy of Jellaluna

Look at repayment terms as well as the lender?s requirements. Make sure you understand every bit of what is presented. If you don?t understand, find someone who can explain it to you. The key to making this a viable option for yourself is to understand exactly what you are getting into.

Once you know what options are available, calculate the exact amount of money you need. This way you can figure out how much you will need to be able to repay each month. If you borrow too much and can?t make the monthly repayment, you might do more damage than good. Also keep in mind that this kind of loan may have a higher interest rate. The lender typically charges more because they are taking a higher risk in lending the money.

They are willing to offer this type of product because they understand that there are good, honest people who need a bit of help. They are recognized experts in lending to people with credit problems. Once you decide on a lender, make sure to check on their reputation with your local Better Business Bureau or look them up on the BBB website.

About Ben Holland

Ben Holland loves to write about finance and debt related issues. He enjoys investing, property and shares. Read more of his posts at Green Hills Blog.

Source: http://www.aleksandartasic.com/personal-loans-can-help-consolidate-your-debt/

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Honda CR-Z facelift to debut in Indonesia in February

honda crz facelift jakarta

Honda is certainly paying a lot of attention to the Indonesian market, at least where the CR-Z is concerned. First, the facelift made a surprise world premiere in Jakarta last September, instead of its planned Paris debut set for a week later, catching everyone off-guard.

Now, news has come about that the car is due to begin selling in Indonesia next month, according to schedule. Significantly, Indonesia is the second market to sell the vehicle after Japan. The car will be the first Honda hybrid to be sold there.

In related-news, the automaker says it?s aiming to boost its hybrid sales in the ASEAN region ? currently Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand ? from more than 12,000 last year to 20,000 units in 2013. No word on when exactly the CR-Z facelift is to debut here, but it should be sometime soon, within the first quarter.

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Source: http://paultan.org/2013/01/09/honda-cr-z-facelift-to-debut-in-indonesia-in-february/

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Coping with Kids: 911 wristwatch, fast-food calories | TribLIVE

A 911-GPS wristwatch allows children to instantly alert their parents and authorities the moment they are in danger. www.leowristwatch.com


By Tribune-Review

Published: Monday, January 7, 2013, 9:08?p.m.
Updated 6 hours ago

Wristwatch with 911 button protects kids

A new 911-GPS wristwatch is designed to let children instantly alert their parents and authorities when they face danger. The LEO wristwatch, invented by a group of child-protection advocates and manufactured by Guardian Lion Wireless, makes it easier for kids to call 911 by pressing a panic button, as opposed to fumbling with a cell phone.

Authorities will be dispatched to the child?s location. The watches are available on pre-order for $149.95.

Details: http://leowristwatch.com

Make birthday party a charity event

Kids may want to get toys for their birthdays, but you can also make their parties charitable events through ECHOage.

The founders of the program, Debbie Zinman and Alison Smith, met at a birthday party and came up with the idea. The ECHOage service works like this: The birthday child?s family selects the present or presents they want, and chooses a charity they want to support.

When guests make reservations to attend the party, they can choose to simply make a donation. Half of the money will go toward the child?s presents, and half will be donated to a nonprofit organization.

Details: echoage.com

Study: Teens take in extra 300 calories per fast-food trip

A new study reinforces that eating at home is the healthier option for families.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago found kids and teens consumed up to 300 calories more per trip to a fast-food or full-service restaurant, compared to days they ate at home. Over time, that can add up, contributing to the ballooning childhood-obesity epidemic.

?Parents (should) realize that restaurant consumption is not a straight-off substitute for eating at home,? study author Dr. Lisa Powell, professor of health policy and administration in the UIC School of Public Health, told Reuters. ?Restaurant consumption and fast-food consumption should not be the norm.?

About 12.5 million U.S. kids and teens ages 2 to 19 are obese ? that?s 12.5 million young Americans.

Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey that took place from 2003 to 2008, the researchers wanted to see whether there were differences in calorie intake, diet quality and consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages ? namely soda ? on days when kids ate at home and kids ate out.

They found that children consumed an extra 126 calories, and adolescents took in 309 calories more each trip to a fast-food restaurant, as opposed to home cooking.

Fast-food restaurants in particular tacked on an added 13 percent more sugar, 22 percent more total fat, 25 percent more saturated fat and 17 percent more sodium on teen?s diets than daily recommended values.

Parenting Task Force offers resources

The Allegheny County Family Resource Guide is a comprehensive compilation of services and systems available to Allegheny County families of children ages birth to 21 with developmental delays, special health-care needs or disabilities.

There is information about and contacts for the State and Local Interagency Coordinating Council. This is a federal- and state-mandated group of parents, professionals and community members that provides feedback on public early-intervention services for children ages birth to 5 years with special needs.

Parents of school-age children and youth may want to learn more about the Local Task Force on the Right to Education. These are ?state-mandated, parent-majority advocacy groups that oversee the delivery of special education in each Intermediate Unit in Pennsylvania,? according to a statement, which continues with each ?provides parent information and monitors special-education programs.?

The Allegheny County task force serves Allegheny County outside the city of Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh task force serves Pittsburgh and Mt. Oliver. Both groups offer Parent Assistance Hotlines and regular meetings.

For information, visit www.familyresourceguide.org, or call 412-350-7079.

? Staff and wire reports

Send parenting news to Coping With Kids in care of Rebecca Killian, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, D.L. Clark Building, 503 Martindale St., Pittsburgh, PA 15212, or e-mail rkillian@tribweb.com.

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Source: http://triblive.com/lifestyles/family/3220769-74/kids-pittsburgh-fast

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