Kanye gets 7 Grammy noms; Adele, Mars, Foos get 6 (AP)

Adele scored six Grammy nominations on Wednesday, including for record, song and album of the year, but the owner of the 2011's best-selling album with "21" wasn't the night's top nominee ? and that wasn't the evening's only surprise.

Kanye West came away with a leading seven nominations, including a bid for song of the year for his all-star song "All of the Lights." However, the album from which it came ? "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," heralded by many critics as the best album of 2010 ? was not in the best album category, and all of his other nominations were relegated to the rap fields.

Other notable omissions in the top categories included country phenomenon Taylor Swift and veteran crooner Tony Bennett.

Bruno Mars and the Foo Fighters tied Adele with six nominations each, including in the album of the year category. Lil Wayne had five nods and critical-darling folky act Bon Iver scored four nominations, with two in the prestigious record and song of the year categories. But dubstep star Skrillex may have been the night's biggest surprise, getting five nominations, including a bid for best new artist.

"It feels incredible. Me and these guys, we locked ourselves in the studio not too far from here and worked on this album, especially `Grenade,'" Mars said after the nominations were announced. "That's the song we worked the hardest on. That's like our trophy right there. Of all the songs we've been fortunate enough to be a part of this year, we were most proud of that one."

The nominations were announced after the Recording Academy's fourth annual live concert special, which aired on CBS from the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles. The hour-long event featured key nominees like Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj and the Band Perry.

Even though Adele didn't get the lion's share of nominations, she got them where it counted: Her "21," the mournful post-breakup album that produced smash hits like the torch ballad "Someone Like You" ? was nominated for album of the year. The searing groove "Rolling in the Deep," which spent seven weeks at No. 1 this past summer, got nominations for both record and song of the year. Only Mars got nominations in all three categories as well.

Other nominees in the record of the year category included Bon Iver's ballad "Holocene"; Mars' ballad "Grenade"; Mumford & Sons' "The Cave"; and Katy Perry's inspirational anthem "Firework." For song of the year, which honors the writers of the tune, contenders included "The Cave," "Grenade, "Holocene" and Lady Gaga's "You and I."

The best album category was as noteworthy for who was excluded as it was for who was nominated. Lady Gaga garnered her third straight nod in the category for "Born This Way," while veteran rockers the Foo Fighters were nominated for "Wasting Light," along with Mars' debut album, "Doo-Wops & Hooligans," and Rihanna's steamy dance album "Loud."

Shut out were perceived favorites like 85-year-old Bennett, who became the oldest person to score a No. 1 debut when his "Duets II" album was released earlier this year, and the megawatt collaboration of Jay-Z and West with the heavily hyped "Watch The Throne."

The biggest snub may have been to Swift, who won in the category in 2010 and was considered by some critics to be a favorite for "Speak Now," which has sold 3.7 million copies. She did get three nominations, however, including for best country album.

(Another blonde diva, Beyonce, merited just two nominations in lesser categories).

Unlike the past two years, which saw Swift and fellow country act Lady Antebellum soar in the general categories, the only country act that got a mainstream nomination was the country sibling act The Band Perry. Best known for their poignant ballad "If I Die Young," they got a nomination for best new artist. Their competition also includes Bon Iver, Jay-Z rap protege J. Cole, Skrillex and rapper-singer Nicki Minaj, who scored four nominations in total.

The 54th Grammys will be held Feb. 12 in Los Angeles. The ceremony will mark the first since the academy shaved its categories from 109 to 78 this year, amid some protest. Some of the more niched categories, like best Zydeco or Cajun music album, were eliminated.

In addition, men and women now compete together in vocal categories for pop, R&B and country, instead of having separate categories for each sex. This year, the category is best pop solo performance and Bruno Mars is the only man nominated for "Grenade." His competition includes Adele for "Someone Like You," Lady Gaga for "You and I," Pink for "(Expletive) Perfect" and Perry for "Firework."

___

Online:

http://www.grammys.com

____

Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen contributed to this report from Los Angeles.

___

Nekesa Mumbi Moody is the AP's music editor. Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/nekesamumbi. AP Entertainment Writer Sandy M. Cohen is at http://www.twitter.com/apsandy

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111201/ap_on_en_mu/us_grammy_nominations

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Suspect in East Coast rapes arraigned in Virginia

This undated handout photo provided by the Prince William County, Va., Police Department shows Aaron Thomas. Thomas, a Connecticut man who police believe is responsible for a series of sexual assaults along the East Coast over more than a decade was arraigned Wednesday in Virginia on charges of raping two teenage trick-or-treaters in 2009. (AP Photo/Prince William County, Va. Police Department)

This undated handout photo provided by the Prince William County, Va., Police Department shows Aaron Thomas. Thomas, a Connecticut man who police believe is responsible for a series of sexual assaults along the East Coast over more than a decade was arraigned Wednesday in Virginia on charges of raping two teenage trick-or-treaters in 2009. (AP Photo/Prince William County, Va. Police Department)

MANASSAS, Va. (AP) ? A Connecticut man who police believe is responsible for a series of sexual assaults along the East Coast over more than a decade was arraigned Wednesday in Virginia on charges of raping two teenage trick-or-treaters in 2009.

Aaron Thomas, 40, was extradited Tuesday from Connecticut to Virginia and made an initial appearance Wednesday morning in Prince William County's Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.

He appeared through a video hookup from the county jail and, unlike the other inmates awaiting their hearings, was shackled at his wrists and ankles. Asked if he understood the charges against him, Thomas replied "No," and mumbled for a court-appointed attorney. He hung his head throughout the brief hearing.

Before he was extradited, his public defender in Connecticut said he had been consulting experts about a possible mental health defense. After Wednesday's hearing, Prince William County Commonwealth's Attorney Paul Ebert said he would not be surprised if a similar defense were offered in Virginia.

Ebert said he sought to try Thomas first because the charges against him in this jurisdiction are especially heinous, and that it was hard to imagine a more disturbing crime than what Thomas allegedly committed in the Woodbridge area on Halloween 2009 ? abducting three trick-or-treaters at gunpoint in the Woodbridge area, and raping two 17-year-olds. The third victim, age 16, was able to send a text message to her mother seeking help, and the attacker was forced to flee as police lights and sirens approached.

"When you have a serial rapist, it always strikes fear in the heart of the citizenry," Ebert said, noting that some parents had been reluctant to let their kids trick-or-treat after the attack.

In all, authorities believe Thomas is responsible for rapes and other attacks on 17 women from Virginia to Connecticut over the span of a decade. Many of the cases, including the Woodbridge rapes, are linked by DNA evidence, and police say a DNA sample obtained from a cigarette butt smoked by Thomas connects him to the crimes.

Thomas was arrested in March in Connecticut and had been held there on charges connected to a 2007 rape in New Haven. But Connecticut agreed to extradite Thomas after what Ebert said were long conversations with his Connecticut counterpart. Ebert emphasized the potentially lengthy prison term Thomas could face ? in all he faces eight felony counts, several of which carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years and maximum sentence of life in prison.

Under the terms of the extradition agreement, Thomas would not be returned to Connecticut if he gets a sentence of 60 years or more in Virginia.

Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Scott Bailey scheduled a preliminary hearing for Jan. 25.

Ebert also said Wednesday that the victims in the Halloween assault are willing to testify against him at trial.

Defense lawyer Ronald Fay, who was appointed by the judge Wednesday to represent Thomas, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-11-30-East%20Coast%20Rapes/id-a1111d5b2f2c4aaaa8e7b494a09b2774

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Cell molecule identified as central player in the formation of new blood vessels

Public release date: 28-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Les Lang
llang@med.unc.edu
919-966-9366
University of North Carolina School of Medicine

CHAPEL HILL Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have identified a cellular protein that plays a central role in the formation of new blood vessels. The molecule is the protein Shc (pronounced SHIK), and new blood vessel formation, or angiogenesis, is seriously impaired without it.

The study, which appeared online November 16, 2011 in the journal Blood, was led by associate professor of cell and molecular physiology at UNC, Ellie Tzima, PhD, who is also a member of the university's Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and the McAllister Heart Institute.

"Angiogenesis is the formation of new blood vessels from existing blood vessels and it's a process that's important during embryonic development and in the development of diseases such as cancer," Tzima said. "So understanding the molecular mechanisms of how blood vessels form is important from the basic science perspective and for understanding and treating disease."

Vascular networks form and expand by sprouting, similar to the way trees grow new branches. The process allows fresh oxygen and nutrients to be delivered to tissues, whether in a developing embryo or a cancerous tumor. Blood vessel formation is spurred by a variety of chemical signals that zoom along complex pathways. Some are cues that come from growth factors, others from the tissue matrix that the cells sit on. This extracellular matrix (ECM) serves the cell in a number of ways, such as supporting the cell's structure, helping to regulate cell-to-cell communication.

The protein Shc, is known to regulate a number of important molecular signaling pathways, but its role in angiogenesis has remained unknown until now, Tzima says. She also points out that Shc is evolutionarily conserved, which indicates its essential importance across species.

"We hypothesized that Shc would be the central player that accepts signals from all of the stimuli that have been previously shown to be important for regulating blood vessel formation and would process them and regulate the cell's response," Tzima said. "And that is what we found that Shc coordinates signals, those coming from growth factors as well as from the extracellular matrix."

Tzima suggests that we imagine the cell as a complex highway network with electronic toll plazas through which cars with a transponder can whiz at highway speeds without slowing down. The system works because the transponder's personalized signal is relayed to a computer system that calculates the toll and charges the car's account in a flash. "Shc is the toll plaza, the checkpoint through which signals crucial to blood vessel formation must pass and get coordinated for proper angiogenesis to occur."

In the study, Tzima and her team found that Shc is required for angiogenesis in zebrafish, mouse and human endothelial cell culture models of blood vessel formation.

"The animal studies gave us the broad perspective that Shc may be important to this process," said graduate student and study first-author Daniel T. Sweet. "Zebrafish and mice have previously been used to explore blood vessel formation in vivo. We found that without Shc, blood vessel formation is impaired."

"Then for a closer look we used a cell culture model to determine which endothelial cell processes require Shc for angiogenesis. We found it mediates signals from growth factor receptors and extracellular matrix receptors," Sweet said. "Shc is important for the crosstalk between these processes, meaning that they need to "talk" to each other in order to properly form a tube or to sprout and migrate. That's the exciting thing about this paper."

Tzima notes that elegant genetic models of mice have been used to understand important cellular processes, including angiogenesis. "But if you want to think about designing therapeutics it becomes much more important to understand the molecular mechanism. And this was the strength of the study. We went all the way down to molecular interactions that allowed us to figure out this new angiogenesis pathway."

###

UNC co-authors with Tzima and Sweet are Zhongming Chen, David M. Wiley, and Victoria L. Bautch. The research was supported by grants from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, American Heart Association and Ellison Medical Foundation.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

Public release date: 28-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Les Lang
llang@med.unc.edu
919-966-9366
University of North Carolina School of Medicine

CHAPEL HILL Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have identified a cellular protein that plays a central role in the formation of new blood vessels. The molecule is the protein Shc (pronounced SHIK), and new blood vessel formation, or angiogenesis, is seriously impaired without it.

The study, which appeared online November 16, 2011 in the journal Blood, was led by associate professor of cell and molecular physiology at UNC, Ellie Tzima, PhD, who is also a member of the university's Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and the McAllister Heart Institute.

"Angiogenesis is the formation of new blood vessels from existing blood vessels and it's a process that's important during embryonic development and in the development of diseases such as cancer," Tzima said. "So understanding the molecular mechanisms of how blood vessels form is important from the basic science perspective and for understanding and treating disease."

Vascular networks form and expand by sprouting, similar to the way trees grow new branches. The process allows fresh oxygen and nutrients to be delivered to tissues, whether in a developing embryo or a cancerous tumor. Blood vessel formation is spurred by a variety of chemical signals that zoom along complex pathways. Some are cues that come from growth factors, others from the tissue matrix that the cells sit on. This extracellular matrix (ECM) serves the cell in a number of ways, such as supporting the cell's structure, helping to regulate cell-to-cell communication.

The protein Shc, is known to regulate a number of important molecular signaling pathways, but its role in angiogenesis has remained unknown until now, Tzima says. She also points out that Shc is evolutionarily conserved, which indicates its essential importance across species.

"We hypothesized that Shc would be the central player that accepts signals from all of the stimuli that have been previously shown to be important for regulating blood vessel formation and would process them and regulate the cell's response," Tzima said. "And that is what we found that Shc coordinates signals, those coming from growth factors as well as from the extracellular matrix."

Tzima suggests that we imagine the cell as a complex highway network with electronic toll plazas through which cars with a transponder can whiz at highway speeds without slowing down. The system works because the transponder's personalized signal is relayed to a computer system that calculates the toll and charges the car's account in a flash. "Shc is the toll plaza, the checkpoint through which signals crucial to blood vessel formation must pass and get coordinated for proper angiogenesis to occur."

In the study, Tzima and her team found that Shc is required for angiogenesis in zebrafish, mouse and human endothelial cell culture models of blood vessel formation.

"The animal studies gave us the broad perspective that Shc may be important to this process," said graduate student and study first-author Daniel T. Sweet. "Zebrafish and mice have previously been used to explore blood vessel formation in vivo. We found that without Shc, blood vessel formation is impaired."

"Then for a closer look we used a cell culture model to determine which endothelial cell processes require Shc for angiogenesis. We found it mediates signals from growth factor receptors and extracellular matrix receptors," Sweet said. "Shc is important for the crosstalk between these processes, meaning that they need to "talk" to each other in order to properly form a tube or to sprout and migrate. That's the exciting thing about this paper."

Tzima notes that elegant genetic models of mice have been used to understand important cellular processes, including angiogenesis. "But if you want to think about designing therapeutics it becomes much more important to understand the molecular mechanism. And this was the strength of the study. We went all the way down to molecular interactions that allowed us to figure out this new angiogenesis pathway."

###

UNC co-authors with Tzima and Sweet are Zhongming Chen, David M. Wiley, and Victoria L. Bautch. The research was supported by grants from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, American Heart Association and Ellison Medical Foundation.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/uonc-cmi112811.php

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Arizona gun club offers photos with Santa, rifles (Providence Journal)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

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Anne Hathaway Engaged to Adam Shulman! (omg!)

Anne hath a ring on it!

After three years together, Anne Hathaway is engaged to actor Adam Shulman, her rep confirms to Us Weekly.

PHOTOS: Huge celeb engagement rings

The Oscar-nominated actress, 29, has been spotted out and about recently wearing an engagement ring -- designed, her tells Us, by Kwiat Heritage.

Low-key Shulman was initially Hathaway's rebound romance after the messy end of her four-year romance with Raffaello Follieri in mid-2008. (Follieri pled guilty in October 2008 to defrauding investors of millions of dollars in a shocking scheme in which he posed as a real estate consultant for the Vatican.)

PHOTOS: Anne's princess moment

"We hit it off immediately, but it took us a pretty long time to get together," Hathaway has said. After they realized they were both single, the actress reveals that "things sped up a bit -- and I think I'll leave it at that."

"So far, it's worked out great," the Dark Knight Rises actress told Harper's Bazaar of her guy, adding that Shulman was far more "mellow" than her previous romances.

PHOTOS: How Anne bounced back after her messy breakup

"Mellow doesn't always make for a good story, but it makes for a good life."

Get more Us! Follow us on Twitter, Friend us on Facebook, Subscribe to Us Weekly

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Britain faces mass strike over pension reform (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? Teachers, hospital staff and border guards will be among workers taking part in Britain's first mass strike for more than 30 years on Wednesday, adding to pressure on a coalition facing a weakening economy.

Up to 2 million public sector workers are protesting over reforms that unions say will force them to pay more for their pensions and work for longer before they can retire.

The government says reform is needed as people are living longer and public service pensions are unaffordable.

The stoppage will hit services as diverse as health, refuse and tax collection, close schools and probably bring chaos to ports and airports as border control staff walk out.

Airlines said on Monday they were cutting flights into London Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, because of fears of long delays and overcrowding due to the passport control strike.

The government has flown some embassy staff home and recruited volunteers from other departments to help take the place of striking border guards.

Reacting to grim economic forecasts on Tuesday, the Conservative-led coalition government said a further dose of austerity was needed to keep its deficit-cutting plan on track.

Finance Minister George Osborne said pay rises for public sector workers, who are already enduring a two-year freeze, would be capped at one percent from 2013, while job losses would shoot up to 710,000 from an original estimate of 400,000.

"UNPRECEDENTED UNITY"

Brendan Barber, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, an umbrella group coordinating the strike, said workers were no longer being asked to make "a temporary sacrifice, but accept a permanent deep cut" in living standards when you include pay and pension contributions.

"It is no wonder that the government has alienated its entire workforce who are coming together in unprecedented unity tomorrow to take a stand against such unfair treatment," he said.

A coalition of 30 trade unions will take part in the strike, billed as the biggest walkout since action during the "Winter of Discontent" in 1979 that helped Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher sweep to power.

Unions have organized 1,000 demonstrations and rallies across the country and picket lines will spring up around public buildings and hospitals.

The dispute mirrors those in other European countries where countries are grappling with tight budgets and ageing populations.

Prime Minister David Cameron condemned the strike as "irresponsible," urging unions to continue talking as negotiations on pensions run until the end of the year.

Unions insist it is ministers who are unwilling to negotiate.

Dave Prentis, who heads Unison, a union representing 1.4 million workers, said on Monday unions wanted a settlement but that more strikes could follow next year if the government failed to budge.

(Reporting by Stefano Ambrogi; editing by Andrew Roche)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111129/wl_nm/us_britain_strikes

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Conrad Murray Sentence 'Not Enough,' MJ Fans Say

But other Michael Jackson supporters outside L.A. courthouse tell MTV News 'justice has been served.'
By Katie Byrne, with reporting by Vanessa White Wolf

Conrad Murray
Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES — During the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson's fans have been as much a fixture at the courthouse as the Jackson family. When Murray was sentenced to four years in jail Tuesday (November 29), MTV News spoke with those loyal fans outside the court to see if the maximum sentence was an apt punishment.

"Four years — not enough, but at least something," said one fan, sporting a red jacket in tribute to MJ. "And where I come from, a little something is always better than nothing."

One pair of friends might have been wearing matching Thriller T-shirts, but their opinions on Murray's sentence certainly didn't match. "If four years is the maximum and he got the maximum — I know she's not happy, but I'm happy," one of the women said, gesturing to her less-than-pleased companion. "I feel like justice was served and that L.A. can now be proud and stand tall."

"It's better than nothing, but it's not even close to justice," said another fan, wearing Jackson's trademark fedora and sequined glove. "Not only was [Murray] negligent; he let the man die. It's unconscionable. He didn't even try. How would a heart doctor not know how to give CPR? It's insane."

The cardiologist, who was found guilty of one felony count of involuntary manslaughter November 7, was facing up to four years in state prison in the death of the pop icon, but due to recent changes to alleviate overcrowding in California prisons, the judge in the case said he was unable to send the doctor to state prison for his crime. On top of that, legal expert Mike Cavalluzzi told MTV News that Murray will likely serve less than half of his four-year sentence.

Those legal loopholes concerned a female fan outside the courthouse, but she was also happy that the maximum punishment was doled out.

"The only thing I'm worried about now, with the overcrowding of the jails, he might get one year and house arrest," she told MTV News. "I'm just hoping it'll be four years, that's what I'm praying. I'm just glad that justice has been served today, and I'm glad justice can be served to the family and to the fans, and everybody around today will be happy and celebrate that justice has been served. And I'm sure Michael's looking from heaven right now."

Related Videos

• Michael Jackson Doctor Conrad Murray Sentenced

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• Michael Jackson

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675105/conrad-murray-sentencing-michael-jackson-fans.jhtml

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UN warns 25 pct of world land highly degraded

ROME (AP) ? The United Nations has completed the first-ever global assessment of the state of the planet's land resources, finding in a report Monday that a quarter of all land is highly degraded and warning the trend must be reversed if the world's growing population is to be fed.

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that farmers will have to produce 70 percent more food by 2050 to meet the needs of the world's expected 9 billion-strong population. That amounts to 1 billion tons more wheat, rice and other cereals and 200 million more tons of beef and other livestock.

But as it is, most available land is already being farmed, and in ways that actually decrease its productivity through practices that lead to soil erosion and wasting of water.

That means that to meet the world's future food needs, a major "sustainable intensification" of agricultural productivity on existing farmland will be necessary, the FAO said in "State of the World's Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture."

The report was released Monday, as delegates from around the world meet in Durban, South Africa, for a two-week U.N. climate change conference aimed at breaking the deadlock on how to curb emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutants.

The report found that climate change coupled with poor farming practices had contributed to a decrease in productivity of the world's farmland following the boon years of the Green Revolution, when crop yields soared thanks to new technologies, pesticides and the introduction of high-yield crops.

Thanks to the Green Revolution, the world's cropland grew by just 12 percent between 1961 and 2009, but food productivity increased by 150 percent.

But the U.N. report found that rates of growth have been slowing down in many areas and today are only half of what they were at the peak of the Green Revolution.

It found that 25 percent of the world's land is now "highly degraded," with soil erosion, water degradation and biodiversity loss. Another eight percent is moderately degraded, while 36 percent is stable or slightly degraded and 10 percent is ranked as "improving."

The rest of the Earth's surface is either bare or covered by inland water bodies.

Some examples of areas at risk: Western Europe, where highly intensive agriculture has led to pollution of soil and aquifers and a resulting loss of biodiversity; In the highlands of the Himalayas, the Andes, the Ethiopian plateau and southern Africa, soil erosion has been coupled with an increase intensity of floods; In southeast and eastern Asia's rice-based food systems, land has been abandoned thanks in part to a loss of the cultural value of it.

The report found that water around the world is becoming ever more scarce and salinated, while groundwater is becoming more polluted by agricultural runoff and other toxins.

In order to meet the world's water needs in 2050, more efficient irrigation will necessary since currently most irrigation systems perform well below their capacity, FAO said.

The agency called for new farming practices like integrated irrigation and fish-farm systems to meet those demands, as well as overall investment in agricultural development.

The price tag deemed necessary for investments through 2050: $1 trillion in irrigation water management alone for developing countries, with another $160 billion for soil conservation and flood control.

___

Online:

www.fao.org

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/b2f0ca3a594644ee9e50a8ec4ce2d6de/Article_2011-11-28-EU-UN-Food-and-Water/id-0dbfea9668b54a049535000548d34e27

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Police ban Congo election rallies, at least 2 dead (Reuters)

KINSHASA (Reuters) ? Police in Congo blocked President Joseph Kabila's main rival at an airport in Kinshasa on Saturday to stop him staging an election rally after at least two died in violence across the central African state's capital city.

Two days before presidential and parliamentary elections, rival factions hurled rocks at each other and gunfire was heard across town.

A Reuters reporter saw one lifeless body on the road to the airport while a U.N. source reported another death elsewhere in town.

The violence was the latest sign of tension in the run-up to Congo's second election since a 1998-2003 war, a poll which has been marked by opposition allegations of irregularities and concerns about inadequate preparations.

Police stopped opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi and his entourage from leaving Kinshasa's N'djili airport after his party said it would defy a ban on political rallies imposed earlier on Saturday.

"I'll call the population of Kinshasa to come here," Tshisekedi, 78, sitting in a red Hummer surrounded by police at the exit gate of the airport, told reporters.

"We are already dying in our thousands, we are not going to let a few injuries stop us fighting now," he said, a reference to his accusations that Kabila's government has saddled Congo's population with insecurity and poverty.

After hours of failed negotiations by the United Nations peacekeeping mission, police moved in on Tshisekedi's entourage, dragging several people from their cars, according to a Reuters witness. Tshisekedi was later escorted to his home by the police, according to a U.N. source.

Earlier, tens of thousands of Congolese turned out on the airport road, most of them identifiable as Tshisekedi supporters. Some chanted his name while many billboards for Kabila and his allies had been torn down.

Kabila, Tshisekedi and the other main challenger, Vital Kamerhe, had been due to hold rallies within several hundred metres of each other in central Kinshasa on Saturday.

Kamerhe told Reuters that four people had been killed, including one of his supporters, but it was not immediately possible to confirm that toll.

POLL DELAY?

Under constitutional amendments signed off by Kabila this year, the presidential vote will be decided in a single round, meaning the winner can claim victory with a simple majority. Analysts say that favours Kabila against the split opposition.

Despite a logistics operation supported by helicopters from South Africa and Angola, some observers doubt whether all the ballot slips will reach the 60,000 voting stations by Monday in a country two-thirds the size of the European Union.

However national election commission president Daniel Ngoy Mulunda said he did not expect any delay to the polls, saying that materials were 90 percent deployed in the provinces.

"No, I am not expecting any change. We have today, the whole night, tomorrow day and night to finalize (preparations)," Mulunda told a news conference in Kinshasa.

"We had some delays with weather but we know it will work - on Monday it won't rain."

Earlier, Tshisekedi said he could accept a delay but only if Mulunda, whom he accused of having political ties to Kabila and turning a blind eye to alleged irregularities, was sacked.

"I would agree (to a delay) if that meant a more credible, democratic and transparent process," he told French RFI radio.

"But one thing is clear: if we say there will be a delay, it is clear that the election commission cannot be led by Daniel Ngoy Mulunda," he said, accusing him of having been a founding member of Kabila's PPRD political party.

Mulunda, who will have the deciding vote if his commission is split on any election dispute, said this week he did not deny having been a member of the delegation that accompanies Kabila on foreign trips, but said he was not a founding PPRD member.

Kabila's rivals say fake polling stations have been set up to allow vote-rigging, an allegation denied by the authorities. They also accuse Kabila of using state media and transport assets for his campaign.

Kamerhe said the Congolese would not accept a rigged poll.

"They want free and fair elections that allow them to take their destiny in their own hands. People will refuse cheating wherever it takes place," he told Reuters, surrounded by chanting and dancing supporters at his party headquarters.

For many Congolese, there was a last-minute scramble to find out where they should be voting. Gervis Ilunga, a 44-year-old security guard, said he registered in one Kinshasa district but ultimately found his name elsewhere.

"In 2006, things were at least organised," he said of the first post-war poll largely organised under the auspices of the United Nations. "It is not like that this time ... There will be too many challenges this time."

(Additional reporting by Finbarr O'Reilly; Writing by Mark John; Editing by Sophie Hares and David Cowell)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111127/wl_nm/us_congo_democratic_election

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Ohio officials take 200-pound boy from mother (AP)

CLEVELAND ? The case of an 8-year-old Cleveland Heights boy taken from his family because he weighs more than 200 pounds has renewed a debate on whether parents should lose custody if a child is severely obese.

The boy was removed from his family and was placed in foster care in October after county case workers said his mother wasn't doing enough to control his weight. The boy, at his weight, is considered at risk for developing such diseases as diabetes and high blood pressure. Government growth charts say most boys his age weigh about 60 pounds.

Roughly 2 million U.S. children are extremely obese ? weighing significantly more than what's considered healthy.

Cuyahoga County removed the boy because case workers considered the mother's inability to get his weight down a form of medical neglect. The county's Children and Family Services agency said Monday it stood by its custody move, which was approved by a judge.

"We have worked very hard with this family for 20 months before it got to this point," agency Administrator Patricia Rideout said.

Rideout said the issue has created a buzz among agency staff members and she has heard it was a popular Internet item. She said she was following state law in withholding the boy's name in his best interest.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity tries to address the roles of nutrition and physical activity in improving public health and preventing and controlling chronic diseases. It says achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is part of an ongoing lifestyle that can be adopted. It offers resources to help people determine which foods are needed for a healthy diet and promotes regular physical activity to reduce the risk for diseases and control weight.

There's no easy answer when it comes to determining who's to blame in such obesity cases, said Dr. Naim Alkhouri, who works with overweight children and their families at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital and leads its pediatric metabolic clinic.

"It's not only the parents or the child," he said. "Obesity is an epidemic in the United States. As a society we're all responsible."

It's not enough to just encourage some children to eat healthier and exercise, he said, because there's also "a big psychological component."

"When it comes to involving the authorities, I don't think we have clear guidelines," he said. "Starting the debate is a good thing. We need more guidance on how to react to the issue."

County workers were alerted to the boy's weight early last year after his mother took him to a hospital for breathing problems. He was diagnosed with sleep apnea, which is characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep and can be weight-related, and he was given a breathing machine.

Parents have lost custody of obese children a few times in the United States, and an opinion piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association in July said putting children temporarily in foster care is in some cases more ethical than obesity surgery, which can involve removing part of the stomach.

Dr. David Ludwig, an obesity specialist at Harvard-affiliated Children's Hospital Boston, said the point isn't to blame parents but rather to act in children's best interest and get them help their parents can't provide.

Dr. Norman Fost, a medical ethicist at the University of Wisconsin's Madison campus, said Monday that foster care wouldn't cure the Ohio boy's obesity but might help.

"The goal is to make him less obese," he said.

Fost said the boy's sleep apnea could be related to his weight and could be imminently dangerous. A target weight of 150 pounds might improve the apnea problem, he said.

The boy's mother said she has worked on the weight issue.

"They are trying to make it seem like I am unfit, like I don't love my child," she told The Plain Dealer newspaper, which didn't reveal her identity because the case could involve abuse.

A public defender, Sam Amata, said Monday the custody removal would be challenged based on the contention that the boy is not in imminent danger.

"We don't feel there's that kind of requisite danger," he said.

___

Associated Press writer John Seewer in Toledo contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/weightloss/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111129/ap_on_re_us/us_obese_third_grader

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Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket review

It was a long wait between the release of the international version of the Samsung Galaxy S II and a version for AT&T, but the U.S. carrier has now ended up with two of them.  One version is pretty faithful to the original (check out our review here), and the second version, the Samsung Skyrocket, is what were looking at today.  There's a good bit of difference, both the obvious (a larger 4.5-inch screen and an LTE modem) and the not so visible (different chipsets), but the user experience is the same for the most part.  Hit the break where we dive in and have a look at what the Skyrocket has to offer, besides having one of the best device names since the OG Droid.

The beautiful screen looks even better at 4.5-inches.  Handoff times from LTE to a GSM/HSPA network are quick.  HSPA+ fallback when not in an LTE area offers a better experience to the user.  Overall the phone is very smooth, like we're used to from the GSII line.	LTE is hard on battery life.  A 4.5-inch screen may be too big for some.  AT&T's LTE network is in its infancy and still full of holes.  The different internals may mean longer wait times for updates from Samsung and AT&T.  NFC is once again notoriously absent from the software.
The Skyrocket stays faithful to the Galaxy S II line, offering the same (or better) performance and an identical user experience.  AT&T still needs to work on its LTE network, but with a fast handoff and fast HSPA network speeds to fall back on, the casual user will be pleased with its speed on the Internet.  The big, beautiful screen and LTE radio are hard on the battery (especially when compared to using it in a non-LTE enabled area) but that can be solved by carrying a spare battery or plugging it in when possible.

Inside this	More info
Hardware Software The LTE network	Samsung Skyrocket specs Samsung Skyrocket forums

read more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/LvVM7KR0A60/story01.htm

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How To Get A Job At A Startup If You Have No Skills

Recently I had a conversation with a friend of mine who was interested in doing product management at a startup. He was working as a consultant, but wanted to join a company like foursquare as a PM. However, he wasn?t getting any return calls and was becoming frustrated, and wanted my advice on why.?I told him this:Guess what? Everyone thinks they are the next Steve Jobs, but they aren?t. The odds are you aren?t God?s gift to product design. And even if you are, no one will be inclined to believe it, because you have no evidence: you?ve never 1) started a startup, 2) worked at a startup, 3) worked in product management, 4) designed products as side projects. All your experience is in another irrelevant field; why should a successful startup give you a chance?

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/jhkm9WyOa6U/

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Long lines at polls as Egypt holds landmark vote

CAIRO?? Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians turned out in long lines at voting stations Monday in the first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what they hope will be a democracy after decades of dictatorship.

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Some voters brought their children along, saying they wanted them to learn how to exercise their rights in a democracy as they cast ballots in what promises to be the fairest and cleanest election in Egypt in living memory. With fears of violence largely unrealized, the biggest complaint was the hours of standing in long, slow-moving lines.

"If you have waited for 30 years, can't you wait now for another hour?" an army officer yelled at hundreds of restless women at one polling center in Cairo.

After the dramatic, 18-day uprising that ended Mubarak's three decades of authoritarian rule, many had looked forward to this day in expectation of a celebration of freedom. But Mubarak's fall on Feb. 11 was followed by nearly 10 months of military rule, divisions and violence and when election day finally arrived, the mood was markedly different. People were eager to at last cast a free vote, but daunted by all the uncertainty over what happens next.

US woman: I was sexually assaulted by Egypt police

"I never voted because I was never sure it was for real," said Shahira Ahmed, 45, waiting with her husband and daughter with around 500 other people at a Cairo polling station. "This time, I hope it is, but I am not positive."

Even as they vote, Egyptians are sharply polarized and confused over the nation's direction.

On one level, the election will be a strong indicator of whether Egypt is heading toward Islamism or secularism. The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and best organized group, along with other Islamists are expected to dominate in the vote. Many liberals, leftists, Christians and pious Muslims who oppose mixing religion and politics went expressly to the polls to try to stop them or at least reduce their victory.

The U.S. and its close ally Israel, which has a long-standing peace treaty with Egypt, worry that stronger Brotherhood influence could end Egypt's role as a major moderating influence in Middle East politics.

Also weighing heavily on voters' mind was whether this election can really set Egypt on a path of democracy while it is still under military rule. Only 10 days before the elections, major protests erupted around the country demanding the ruling generals accused of bungling the transition step aside and hand power immediately to a civilian authority.

Another concern is that the parliament that emerges may have little relevance because the military is sharply limiting its powers, and it may only serve for several months.

The Egyptian election is the fruit of the Arab Spring revolts that have swept the region over the past year, toppling several authoritarian regimes. In Tunisia and Morocco, Islamic parties have come out winners in elections the past month, but if the much larger Egypt does the same, it could have an even greater impact.

Even before voting began at 8 a.m., people stood in lines stretching several hundred yards outside many polling stations in Cairo, suggesting a respectable turnout. Under heavy security from police and soldiers, segregated lines of men and women grew, snaking around blocks and prompting authorities to extend voting by two hours.

Many said they were voting for the first time. For decades, few Egyptians bothered to cast ballots because nearly every election was rigged, whether by bribery, ballot box stuffing or intimidation by police at the polls. Turnout was often in the single digits.

"I am voting for freedom. We lived in slavery. Now we want justice in freedom," said 50-year-old Iris Nawar at a polling station in Maadi, a Cairo suburb.

Video: Egypt holds 1st elections since uprising (on this page)

"We are afraid of the Muslim Brotherhood. But we lived for 30 years under Mubarak, we will live with them, too," said Nawar, a first-time voter.

Waiting for hours, people joked, squabbled, and bought sandwiches from delivery men taking advantage of an eager, captive market.

Under a heavy rain in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria, a women's line displayed Egypt's religious spectrum ? Christians and Muslims with their hair loose, others in conservative headscarves, still others blanketed in the most radical garb, the black robes that cover a woman's entire body, leaving only the eyes exposed. At a nearby station, one soldier shouted through a megaphone, "Choose freely, choose whomever you want to vote for."

The Brotherhood entered the campaign armed with a powerful network of activists around the country and years of experience in political activity. Even though it was banned under Mubarak's regime, its politicians sat in parliament as independents. Also running is the even more conservative Salafi movement, which advocates a hard-line Saudi Arabian-style interpretation of Islam. While the Brotherhood shows at times a willingness to play politics and compromise in its ideology, many Salafis make no bones about saying democracy must take a back seat to Islamic law.

In contrast, the secular and liberal youth groups that ousted Mubarak failed to capitalize on their astonishing triumph to effectively contest the election. They largely had to create all-new parties from scratch, most of which are not widely known among the public and were plagued by divisions through the past months.

"The Muslim Brotherhood are the people who have stood by us when times were difficult," said Ragya el-Said, a 47-year-old lawyer in Alexandria, a stronghold for the Brotherhood. "We have a lot of confidence in them."

But the Brotherhood faces still opposition. Even some who favor more religion in public life are suspicious of their motives, and the large Christian minority ? about 10 percent of the population of around 85 million ? deeply fear rising Islamism.

Slideshow: Protests continue in Egypt (on this page)

"I'm a Muslim but won't vote for any Islamist party because their views are too narrow," said Eman el-Khoury, 53, as she looked disapprovingly at Brotherhood activists handing out campaign leaflets near an Alexandria polling station, a violation of election rules. "How can we change this country when at an opportunity for change, we make the same dirty mistakes."

For many of those who did not want to vote for the Brotherhood or other Islamists, the alternative was not clear.

"I don't know any of the parties or who I'm voting for," Teresa Sobhi, a Christian voter in the southern city of Assiut, said. "I'll vote for the first names I see I guess."

The election is a long and unwieldy process. It will be held in stages divided up by provinces. Voting for 498-seat People's Assembly, parliament's lower chamber, will last until January, then elections for the 390-member upper house will drag on until March.

Each round lasts two days. Some voters said they feared vote rigging or ballot stuffing because the ballot boxes would be left at polling stations overnight.

Monday and Tuesday's vote will take place in nine provinces whose residents account for 24 million of Egypt's estimated 85 million people.

The ballots are a confusing mix of party lists that will gain seats according to proportions of votes and individual candidates ? who will have to enter run-off votes after each round if no one gets 50 percent of the first-round vote. Mixed in are candidates labeled as "farmer" or "worker" who must gain a certain number of seats, a holdover for socialist days that Mubarak's regime manipulated to get in cronies.

Moreover, there are significant questions over how relevant the new parliament will even be. The ruling military council of generals, led by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, insists it will maintain considerable powers after the election. It will put together the government and is trying to keep extensive control over the creation of an assembly to write a new constitution, a task that originally was seen as mainly in the parliament's hands.

Video: Freed American student: ?It was very scary? (on this page)

The protesters who took to Cairo's Tahrir Square and other cities since Nov. 19 in rallies recalling the uprising that ousted Mubarak on Feb. 11 demand the generals surrender power immediately to a civilian government.

Some hoped their vote would help eventually push the generals out.

"We are fed up with the military," said Salah Radwan, waiting outside a polling center in Cairo's middle-class Abdeen neighborhood. "They should go to protect our borders and leave us to rule ourselves. Even if we don't get it right this time, we will get it right next time."

On Monday morning in Tahrir, a relatively small crowd of a few thousand kept the round-the-clock protests going. Clashes during the protests left more than 40 dead and had heightened fears of violence at polling stations.

Turnout among the estimated 50 million voters will play a key role. A higher turnout could water down the showing of the Brotherhood, because its core of supporters are the most likely to vote.

If there are heavy numbers of voters, that could also give legitimacy to a vote that the military insisted go ahead despite the recent turmoil.

A referendum on constitutional amendments in March had a turnout of 40 percent ? anything lower than that could be a sign that skepticism over the process is high.

The Brotherhood, which used to run its candidates as independents because of the official ban on the group, made its strongest showing in elections in 2005, when it won 20 percent of parliament's seats. Its leaders have predicted that in this vote it could win up to 40 or 50 percent.

? 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45459377/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

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Soap Dish: OLTL & AMC On Line Future Is Kaput!

Welcome to this week?s edition of Soap Dish. There really is only one thing to dish about this week, the future of All My Children and One Life To Live online has been suspended or as I like to call it kaput. By now it is no secret that that powers that be at Prospect Park have put their plans to further develop AMC and OLTL online on hold indefinitely. Their reasoning? Too many obstacles to overcome including AFTRA issues, even though the actors? guild that supports soap opera actors/actresses tells a different story, those are the reasons being given. I have a couple of issues with how all of this went down. Once it was announced the shows would be moving online the ending of each show on ABC was altered to make that transition smooth. So that sucks that fans will not get better endings or the closure they deserve. That isn?t even my biggest thing to complain about, it is what the back and forth has done to fans like me. First ABC axed both shows. Then they were given new life by Prospect Park via The Online Network, now they are ?suspended?. Talk about putting a [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/Z7JsQnph2Pg/

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It's beginning to look like Xmas at White House (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Michelle Obama, daughters Malia and Sasha, and family dog Bo have witnessed arrival of a 19-foot balsam fir from Wisconsin as the official White House Christmas tree.

The fir came from Tom and Sue Schroeder's Forevergreens farm near Neshkoro, Wis. It's the first time one of the Schroeder's trees has made it to the White House.

The tree was hauled up the White House driveway on Friday by horse-drawn carriage, where the Obamas inspected it and then gave it a thumbs-up.

The fir is destined for the Blue Room, where it will serve as the centerpiece of White House Christmas decorations.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111125/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_white_house_christmas_tree

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Ecuador volcano spews red-hot rocks, billows ash (AP)

QUITO, Ecuador ? The Tungurahua volcano in Ecuador is spewing out red-hot rocks and billowing coarse ash.

The South American country's Geophysical Institute says the increased activity began Sunday afternoon. It says the volcano has thrown pyroclastic boulders up to a mile from the crater, and there have been at least four earthquakes in the area.

The 16,480-foot (5,023-meter) volcano is in a sparsely populated area about 84 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of Ecuador's capital, Quito. It has been active since 1999.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111128/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_ecuador_volcano

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Aggressive Growth Stock: Allot Communications

While many are fearing EU-reliant stocks, Allot Communications Ltd. (NASDAQ:ALLT) is on the rise and sees growing demand in the region. Is now a good time to pick up shares of ALLT?

Company Description

Allot offers IP optimization and revenue generation solutions for fixed and mobile service providers.

Another Great Quarter

Since we covered Allot back in early October, the company has reported another earnings surprise. On Nov 1 the company said it earned $0.11 per share in the previous quarter, 4 cents better than the analyst polled by Zacks was expecting.

Despite ongoing concerns in Europe, the company is still seeing strong carrier spending in the region, which accounts for 60% of its revenue.

Estimates on the Rise

The full-year estimate for 2011 is up 7 cents, to $0.35 after Allot?s fifth consecutive earnings surprise. Next year?s forecast rose 3 cents, to $0.41.

In 2010 the company brought in just $0.09 per share, putting this year?s expected earnings growth rate at almost 300%. The 2012 projection is calling for 17%.

Valuations

While that P/E at 44 times forward estimates looks lofty, the PEG ratio is only 1.3 times. So the growth is at a decent price. Price to sales and price to book are both above 5 times, enough to scare away any value investor.

The Chart

Shares of ALLT have surged since the original feature, but a pullback here could make for another nice entry point. The market is a bit skittish right now, but this Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) might be worth buying on the dip.

Read the October 3rd Feature Here

Bill Wilton is the Aggressive Growth Stock Strategist for Zacks.com. He is also the Editor in charge of the Zacks Small Cap Trader service

This Week?s Aggressive Growth Zacks Rank Buy Stocks

Brunswick Corp (NYSE:BC) operates in markets that are highly sensitive to the economy, so this is a pretty aggressive play. But, with earnings momentum this Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) could turn around sharply if economic worries start to fade.

Read Full Article.

A region with a booming population will need plenty of infrastructure projects. Hollysys Automation Technologies, Ltd. (NASDAQ:HOLI) is one company set to profit from them.

Read Full Article.

Shares might be volatile, but with impressive growth rates and attractive valuations Universal Truckload Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:UACL) is worth a look.

Read Full Article.

?
ALLOT COMM LTD (ALLT): Free Stock Analysis Report
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Source: http://www.dailymarkets.com/stock/2011/11/25/aggressive-growth-stock-allot-communications-2/

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Lady Gaga?s Marry The Night (VIDEO): Thanksgiving Special

Lady Gaga?s Marry The Night aired this evening on ABC, giving the pop star a chance to show her softer side. You can see a few clips from the show here, and get the background story as well. When I think of the holidays, Lady Gaga doesn?t exactly pop into my mind. I love her, she is amazing, and her first record was one of the best pop albums in history. But with all of her meat wearing, outrageous fashion, and huge political statements, she doesn?t really fit into my version of a holiday television special. Somehow she was able to pull it off tonight after all. The special included a performance of her new single, and an in depth interview with Katie Couric. Get the full story over at Celebuzz. The girl who supposedly hooked-up with Ashton Kutcher while he was still married is calling her self a ?bump in the road? ? Have U Heard. Hilary Duff?s baby bump is growing by the minute! See some pictures over at ? Celebrity Baby Laundry. The divorce settlement for the Hulkster is unreal. Linda REALLY made out ? Celebrity Dirty Laundry. Want to know what it is like to be [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/yJox8VFMCHc/

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Sharp elbows: Shoppers scuffle on Black Friday (AP)

A shopper in Los Angeles pepper-sprayed her competition for an Xbox and scuffles broke out elsewhere around the U.S. as bargain-hunters crowded stores in an earlier-than-usual start to the madness known as Black Friday.

For the first time, chains such as Target, Best Buy and Kohl's opened their doors at midnight on the most anticipated shopping day of the year. Toys R Us opened for the second straight year on Thanksgiving itself. And some shoppers arrived with sharp elbows.

Near Muskegon, Mich., a teenage girl was knocked down and stepped on several times after getting caught in the rush to a sale in the electronics department at a Walmart. She suffered minor injuries.

On Thanksgiving night, a Walmart in Los Angeles brought out a crate of discounted Xboxes, and as a crowd waited for the video game players to be unwrapped, a woman fired pepper spray at the other shoppers "in order to get an advantage," police said.

Ten people suffered cuts and bruises in the chaos, and 10 others had minor injuries from the spray, authorities said. The woman got away in the confusion, and it was not immediately clear whether she got an Xbox.

On Friday morning, police said, two women were injured and a man was charged after a fight broke out at an upstate New York Walmart. A man was arrested in a scuffle at a jewelry counter at a Walmart in Kissimmee, Fla.

Wal-Mart Stores, the nation's biggest retailer, has taken steps in recent years to control its Black Friday crowds following the 2008 death of one of its workers in a stampede of shoppers. This year, it staggered its door-buster deals instead of offering them all at once.

Wal-Mart spokesman Greg Rossiter said Black Friday was safe at most of its nearly 4,000 U.S., but there were "a few unfortunate incidents."

The incidents were attributed to two converging Black Friday trends: Crowds are getting bigger as stores open earlier and stay open later. At the same time, cash-strapped shoppers are competing for deals on a small number of gifts that everybody wants ? tablet computers, TVs and game consoles like Xbox, Nintendo 3S and Wii.

That's a shift from years past, when there was a wider range of must-have items.

"The more the people, the more the occurrences," said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst with market research firm The NPD Group.

A record number of shoppers are expected this weekend to take advantage of discounts of up to 70 percent. For three days starting on Black Friday, 152 million people are expected to shop, either online or in stores, an increase of about 10 percent from last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

Thanksgiving weekend, particularly Black Friday, is huge for retailers. Over the past six years, Black Friday was the biggest sales day of the year, and it is expected to keep that crown this year, though shoppers seem to be procrastinating more every year, and the fate of the holiday season is increasingly coming down to the last few days before Christmas.

Last year, the Thanksgiving shopping weekend accounted for 12.1 percent of overall holiday sales, according to ShopperTrak, a research firm. Black Friday made up about half of that.

ShopperTrak is expected to release sales data on Saturday on how Black Friday fared, but a better picture will emerge when major retailers report their November sales figures next Thursday.

In addition to opening earlier than usual this year, some stores offered to match their competitors' prices, rolled out layaway programs or offered more door-buster deals than last year.

Emmanuel Merced and his brother showed up at a Best Buy in New York at 3 p.m. on Wednesday so they could be the first in line when it opened at midnight Thursday to grab a Sharp 42-inch TV for $199.99, a PlayStation 3 with games for $199.99 and wireless headphones for $30.

Merced said he likes camping out for Black Friday and figured he saved 50 percent.

"I like the experience of it," said Merced, who plans to spend $3,000 to $4,000 on gifts this season.

To be sure, not every place was full on Black Friday. With so many major stores opening at midnight, many people stayed up late and shopped early. Then there were those who stuck to their normal routine of going to stores that opened later Friday morning. That left a lull in the hours just before and after daybreak.

At a Target on Chicago's North Side, crowds were light four hours after the store opened at midnight. And door-buster deals, including the typically quick-to-sell-out TVs and game systems, remained piled up in their boxes. Shoppers pushed carts through mostly empty aisles while thumbing through circulars, and employees in Santa hats roamed the store. There was no Christmas music ? or any music ? playing.

Rebecca Carter, a graduate assistant, began Black Friday shopping at 11 p.m. on Thursday and left Target around 4 a.m. carrying a bag full of pillows. Carter said the crowds were noticeably lighter this year as she and a friend picked up a 32-inch TV for $180 and a laptop for $198, along with toys and pajamas.

"It's quiet," she said. "It was shocking."

Melody Snyder of Vancouver, Wash., had braced herself for anarchy when she got to Walmart at 6 a.m. but was pleasantly surprised when she pulled into the parking lot.

"I got here and thought, `Where is everyone?'" said Snyder, who found some Barbies and other toys sold out but was still able to find gifts for her three kids.

___

Retail writers Mae Anderson and Anne D'Innocenzio are in New York. Sarah Skidmore in Vancouver, Wash., Christina Rexrode in Cary, N.C., Ashley Heher in Chicago and Tamara Lush in St. Petersburg, Fla., contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personaltech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111126/ap_on_re_us/us_black_friday

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