The Blackbird SR-71 is a legendary Cold War spy plane, faithfully recreated here with Lego. Built by Lego Technic expert Pawe? "Sariel" Kmiec
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June 27, 2013 ? Although it may seem difficult for adults to understand what an infant is feeling, a new study from Brigham Young University finds that it's so easy a baby could do it.
Psychology professor Ross Flom's study, published in the academic journal Infancy, shows that infants can recognize each other's emotions by five months of age. This study comes on the heels of other significant research by Flom on infants' ability to understand the moods of dogs, monkeys and classical music.
"Newborns can't verbalize to their mom or dad that they are hungry or tired, so the first way they communicate is through affect or emotion," says Flom. "Thus it is not surprising that in early development, infants learn to discriminate changes in affect."
Infants can match emotion in adults at seven months and familiar adults at six months. In order to test infant's perception of their peer's emotions, Flom and his team of researchers tested a baby's ability to match emotional infant vocalizations with a paired infant facial expression.
"We found that 5 month old infants can match their peer's positive and negative vocalizations with the appropriate facial expression," says Flom. "This is the first study to show a matching ability with an infant this young. They are exposed to affect in a peer's voice and face which is likely more familiar to them because it's how they themselves convey or communicate positive and negative emotions."
In the study, infants were seated in front of two monitors. One of the monitors displayed video of a happy, smiling baby while the other monitor displayed video of a second sad, frowning baby. When audio was played of a third happy baby, the infant participating in the study looked longer to the video of the baby with positive facial expressions. The infant also was able to match negative vocalizations with video of the sad frowning baby. The audio recordings were from a third baby and not in sync with the lip movements of the babies in either video.
"These findings add to our understanding of early infant development by reiterating the fact that babies are highly sensitive to and comprehend some level of emotion," says Flom. "Babies learn more in their first 2 1/2 years of life than they do the rest of their lifespan, making it critical to examine how and what young infants learn and how this helps them learn other things."
Flom co-authored the study of 40 infants from Utah and Florida with Professor Lorraine Bahrick from Florida International University.
Flom's next step in studying infant perception is to run the experiments with a twist: test whether babies could do this at even younger ages if instead they were watching and hearing clips of themselves.
And while the talking twin babies in this popular YouTube clip are older, it's still a lot of fun to watch them babble at each other.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=_JmA2ClUvUY
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/living_well/~3/ttEOJhEX-Xk/130627102835.htm
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New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) prides himself on his record of fighting pork in the state legislature. But he's never taken that mandate as literally as he did Thursday, when he vetoed a bill that would have banned the use of gestation crates on pig farms in New Jersey.
The bill, S. 1921, passed the state Assembly by a vote of 60 to 5 and the state Senate by a vote of 29 to 4 in May, with both Democrats and Republicans supporting the effort to prohibit farmers from using any confinement method that would prevent pigs from turning around or laying down. A poll taken in the state showed that 89 percent of voters were in favor of Christie signing the measure into law [pdf].
The bill's passage was hailed by animal rights groups, such as the Humane Society of the United States, as an important symbolic victory for their movement. Though major buyers, such as McDonald's and Smithfield Foods, have recently announced plans to stop buying pork from farmers that use gestation crates, 83 percent of American pigs still spend some time in them, and their use remains legal in 41 states, including all the major pork-producing states. Recent efforts to pass such legislation in four other states have failed, though a bill remains on the table in Massachusetts.
But agricultural interest groups have been pressuring Christie's office to veto the bill for the past six weeks. They argued that gestation crates are not only the cheapest method of raising sows, but also the best for their health, because they allow the farmer total control over the animals' upbringing. And on Thursday, Christie sided with the hog farmers.
In his statement on the decision [pdf], he noted that "neither the American Veterinary Medical Association nor the American Association of Swine Veterinarians advocates" banning the use of gestation crates, and suggested that the legislature continue to take its cues on animal welfare from the state's Department of Agriculture, which opposed the bill.
The National Pork Producer's Council applauded Christie's veto. "It's important that these things are defeated, because we don't need outside groups telling farmers how to raise their animals," spokesman Mark Warner told The Huffington Post.
It's unclear what practical impact the veto will have on animal welfare, if any. New Jersey is among the smallest hog-farming states in the country, with just 700 pigs residing in the Garden State [pdf]. Still, animal rights advocates were unequivocal in their denunciation of Christie's veto.
"From our perspective, even one gestation crate is too many," said ASPCA attorney Debora Bresch, who lobbied for the bill in New Jersey.
"It seems odd that anyone would want to be on the side of such a barbaric practice," added Bruce Friedrich, senior advocacy director at Farm Sanctuary. "When you compare badly on animal welfare with Smithfield and McDonald's, you might want to reconsider your position."
Friedrich chalked Christie's rejection of the gestation crate ban up to his busy schedule. "My suspicion is that the governor didn't fully consider the issue. He's had an awful lot on his plate recently," he said.
Though the pork lobby was among the groups that allegedly encouraged Christie to veto the bill, New Jersey pig farmers aren't necessarily thrilled about it.
Michael Clampffer of Mosefund Farm is one of the biggest hog farmers in the state; he raises 150 heritage breed pigs on 15 acres of land in Sussex County. He has never used a gestation crate and says he never would. "It's inhumane," he explained. "It's not good for the animals. They like to be outdoors, rooting around in the mud and basking in the sun."
He worries that the continued legality of gestation crates in New Jersey could make it hard to market his pork.
"This is one of the big black marks in people's minds about pork, that the animals aren't raised well," he said. "This bill could have changed that in New Jersey. Vetoing it strikes me as detrimental to the movement of eating local and sustainable."
Yet Warner, of the National Pork Producer's Council, insisted that the veto is an important deterrent to future efforts to ban gestation crates in larger pork-producing states, such as Iowa. He said that discontinuing the use of gestation crates would require farmers to dedicate more space and labor to each sow, increasing the cost of pork.
And that, he said, is a central motive of groups like the Humane Society: "That's part of their goal -- to reduce the amount of meat we eat."
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/27/chris-christie-gestation-crate_n_3512521.html
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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? A year away from basketball has rejuvenated Larry Bird.
Now he wants to win a championship.
Bird, the former NBA star who left his job last season after rebuilding the Indiana Pacers and winning the league's executive of the year award, will be reintroduced to the media Thursday morning as the president of basketball operations. That's the same job Bird held from 2003-12.
"The year off gave me a chance to reflect, to rest, to take care of some health issues and it re-charged me," Bird said in a statement issued by the team.
The move is hardly a surprise.
He reportedly met earlier this month with Sacramento about becoming that team's general manager and had become a regular in recent weeks as the Pacers held public draft workouts, making his imminent return one of the worst kept secrets in Indy. Following Tuesday's draft workout, general manager Kevin Pritchard even alluded to the fact that Bird appeared on the verge of making a comeback.
Donnie Walsh, who preceded Bird as the Pacers' top decision-maker then succeeded him last summer as president of basketball operations, will now settle in his new role ? as a team consultant.
Walsh had said all along that if, or when, Bird wanted to return, he would gladly step aside. He has.
"He's ready and I couldn't be happier," Walsh said. "I had a great year last year with this team. It is a great group of guys who have the potential for some great things and to remain a part of this, with two people who I love to work with and respect greatly, is very special."
Bird has a long track record of success in the NBA.
As a player with Boston, he won three championships, three MVP awards, was twice the MVP of the NBA Finals and retired in 1992 as one of the greatest players in league history.
In 1997, he returned to the bench this time as coach of the Pacers ? his home state team. He was the 1998 NBA coach of the year and two years later led the Pacers into the franchise's only appearance in the NBA Finals. Indiana lost that year to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games, and Bird retired after the season in part because of health problems.
Three years later, he came back to the Pacers in a front office job.
He and Walsh worked together as a team for five years before Walsh left to join the New York Knicks and Bird took over most of the day-to-day decisions with the Pacers.
Under Bird's guidance, the Pacers returned to the playoffs in 2011. Bird's shrewd moves included a draft-day trade for Roy Hibbert and another draft-day trade for George Hill, the signing of free-agent power forward David West and the selections of Paul George and Lance Stephenson in the 2010 draft. Those five, and Danny Granger, produced the franchise's first playoffs series win in seven years last season, and it was those five, without Granger, that pushed Miami to the limit in Indiana's first conference finals appearance in nine years.
"We are all very happy to have Larry back," team owner Herb Simon said. "Larry had a huge impact on this team and where it is now, so it's fitting that he comes back at this time. Donnie has been a friend and a valuable contributor to the franchise and will continue to be both. I wanted him to agree to stay in some capacity as I believe with Larry and Kevin, it gives us three of the best basketball minds in the business."
The team will hold a news conference Thursday morning to introduce Bird, who will officially take over July 1.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/larry-bird-returning-pacers-front-office-211538606.html
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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) ? Texas Gov. Rick Perry is set to address a national convention of anti-abortion activists Thursday little more than a day after a special legislative session failed to approve sweeping restrictions to make abortion all but impossible for many women in the state.
The Republican leader has called a second special legislative session beginning July 1, allowing the GOP-controlled Texas statehouse another crack at passing the restrictions that opponents say could shutter nearly all abortion clinics in the country's second-largest state.
Perry's announcement came hours after the much-watched proposal failed in the face of a Democratic filibuster in the Senate that turned chaotic when Republicans used parliamentary rules to cut it short. The hubbub from jeering opponents of the proposal in the public gallery became so deafening that it halted all action on the floor.
Perry, who has said he'd like to make abortion at any stage of pregnancy a thing of the past in Texas, called the special session after lawmakers finished the regular session May 27. He didn't add the abortion measure to the issues to be discussed until late in the session.
The omnibus abortion measure passed the Texas House after nearly an entire night of heated debate Sunday, but the effort to get Senate approval before the session ended at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday failed.
Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis of Fort Worth staged a filibuster for more than 11 hours. But when Republicans were able to silence her on a technicality minutes before midnight, hundreds of protesters raised such a ruckus that lawmakers were unable to hold a final vote until after the clock had run out.
The spectacle put the spotlight on Perry as he prepared to open the 43rd annual National Right to Life Convention in Dallas on Thursday.
His decision to call another special session gives lawmakers 30 more days to push the abortion restrictions ? perhaps enough time to withstand Democratic stalling tactics. The governor can call as many special sessions as he likes, though lawmakers can only work on the agenda Perry sets.
In addition to a renewed abortion fight, Perry asked lawmakers to pass two pieces of legislation that also died with Davis' filibuster: funding for major transportation projects statewide, and approval of new, stricter sentencing guidelines for 17 year olds in capital murder cases.
"I am calling the Legislature back into session because too much important work remains undone for the people of Texas," Perry said in a statement. "Texans value life and want to protect women and the unborn."
The entire process starts over with lawmakers filing the bills that then undergo public hearings before being passed out of committee. Only then can they be considered by both chambers.
Supporters are likely to draft a measure similar to the one that nearly passed this week that sought a statewide ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy ? the point at which anti-abortion activists claim a fetus can feel pain. There is no scientific evidence to support that claim.
It also would have forced many clinics that perform abortions to upgrade their facilities to be classified as ambulatory surgical centers. Doctors would have been required to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles.
If such a provision became law, it is possible only five of Texas' 42 abortion clinics would remain in operation in a state 773 miles wide and 790 miles long ? and with 26 million people.
In a statement Wednesday night, Davis said that if her GOP colleagues intend "to keep pushing their extreme personal political agenda ahead of the interests of Texas families, I will not back off of my duty to fight on their behalf."
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund and daughter of the late former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, said: "While yesterday was a great victory, we knew the fight was not over. And it's a fight we will win. The nation is watching and we will defeat this again."
But Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, who oversees the Texas Senate, said an extra session will let lawmakers "address the issues derailed by the actions of an angry mob."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/perry-texas-gop-revive-abortion-limits-fight-071605448.html
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By Tarek Amara
TUNIS (Reuters) - A Tunisian court on Wednesday decided to release three European feminist activists who staged a topless protest in Tunis last month against the Islamist-led government.
The release of the three women -- one German and two French members the women's rights group, Femen -- could ease the anger of the European Union, Tunisia's main economic ally.
They were sentenced to four months in jail for indecency earlier this month after their May 29 protest to call for the release of fellow activist Tunisian Amina Tyler.
Tyler, 18, remains in custody, awaiting trial. She was arrested in Kairouan on May 19 after she hung a feminist banner from the wall of a mosque and tried to bare her breasts, on the same day that the Islamist Ansar al-Sharia group held a rally in the city that authorities tried to ban.
The decision to jail the three European women angered France, Germany and the European Union who urged the Islamist-led government to reform its laws on freedom of expression.
"The court sentenced these three activists to four months suspended jail terms... (the) women would leave Tunisia as soon as possible", one of their lawyers, Souhaib Bahri, told Reuters.
Witnesses said the women left the prison of Manouba late on Wednesday night.
Marguerite Stern and Pauline Hillier of France and Josephine Markmann of Germany apologized on Wednesday during their appeals hearing.
"I didn't think it was going to shock Tunisians to that extent. I would never do it again. We want to return to our country and our loved ones," Hillier said.
Femen has staged protests across Europe, mainly against Russia's detention of the all-female Pussy Riot punk band last year.
The new government is led by a moderate Islamist party, Ennahda, but hardline Islamist Salafists are seeking a broader role for religion, alarming a secular elite which fears this could undermine individual freedoms, women's rights and democracy.
Tunisia was the first country to be rocked by an "Arab Spring" uprising, inspiring similar revolutions in Egypt and Libya.
Secular groups say the Islamist-led government is trying to stifle freedom of expression and creativity, but the government strongly denies this.
(Reporting By Tarek Amara; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tunisia-frees-three-europeans-jailed-topless-feminist-protest-011514213.html
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![158882 American Video Gamers By Type, 2013 [CHART]](http://www.emarketer.com/images/chart_gifs/158001-159000/158882.gif "American Video Gamers By Type, 2013 [CHART]")
Research and consulting firm?Frank N. Magid Associates?found that just fewer than seven out of 10 US residents had ever played video or computer games, 10 percentage points higher than the ESA?s estimate. Of that 69% cited by Frank N. Magid, more than half played games weekly on their smartphone.
There is no question that the digital game audience has well surpassed those on traditional platforms: Besides those playing on smartphones, another 29% reported playing social networking games weekly, and 27% played online games that often. By comparison, 42% played on video game consoles, once the signature gaming platform.?Read the rest at eMarketer.
Source: http://trends.e-strategyblog.com/2013/06/25/american-video-gamers-by-type/12222
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