The U.S. technology company IBM has reached an agreement with the operator AT&T to acquire its subsidiary Sterling Commerce by 1.400 million dollars in cash (1,131 million euros), according to both companies.
IBM and AT&T expect to complete a transaction in the second half of 2010, waiting to receive permits from the relevant authorities. Thus, AT&T provides extraordinary record a gross capital gain of 750 million dollars (606 million euros) in the quarter in which the transaction was finally closed.
“This acquisition will provide new tools to help IBM customers to build networks of business dynamics that come into contact with partners, suppliers and customers,” said Craig Hayman, chief executive of IBM.
In the present, Sterling Commerce has about 18,000 customers, and performs annually more than 1,000 million transactions in financial services, retail, manufacturing, communications and distribution. Is expected in the second half of 2010 that 2,500 employees will be integrated into Sterling Commerce WebSphere organization within the IBM Software Group. (http://www.sevensidedcube.net)
Tuesday 25 May 2010
Labor activists blame Foxconn, world’s largest electronics maker
A 19-year old male worker reportedly fell from a building at Foxconn Technology Group, Shenzhen, China. It is the tenth death in the list this year.
Three days before the incident, a 21-year old employee in the logistics department jumped four storeys above ground. Two more workers attempted to jump from the buildings but survived, and another committed suicide in a smaller plant in the province of Hebei last January.
And labor activists are pointing fingers at the company linking the incidents with employees that work under strenuous conditions, with extended work hours, and stern management of the company. Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou has denied the allegations. “We are certainly not running a sweatshop. We are confident we’ll be able to stabilize the situation soon,” quotes the Associated Press.
According to Business Insider, two reporters of Southern Weekly were able to get inside the Shenzhen factory. “One thing they must take note is that please don’t treat the workers like dogs. If Foxconn does not solve the problem, there will be more suicides to happen. The workers definitely need beer, romance and slightly higher pays. To say it simple, just make them happy. Let’s hope we don’t see a 10th jump…,” concludes the report.
(http://www.sevensidedcube.net)
Three days before the incident, a 21-year old employee in the logistics department jumped four storeys above ground. Two more workers attempted to jump from the buildings but survived, and another committed suicide in a smaller plant in the province of Hebei last January.
And labor activists are pointing fingers at the company linking the incidents with employees that work under strenuous conditions, with extended work hours, and stern management of the company. Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou has denied the allegations. “We are certainly not running a sweatshop. We are confident we’ll be able to stabilize the situation soon,” quotes the Associated Press.
According to Business Insider, two reporters of Southern Weekly were able to get inside the Shenzhen factory. “One thing they must take note is that please don’t treat the workers like dogs. If Foxconn does not solve the problem, there will be more suicides to happen. The workers definitely need beer, romance and slightly higher pays. To say it simple, just make them happy. Let’s hope we don’t see a 10th jump…,” concludes the report.
(http://www.sevensidedcube.net)
Still’s Disease’s Unknown Origin
The causes are vague but the disease exists.
Still’s disease is a disorder which leads to a type of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRS) or systemic onset JRA. Systemic means joint inflammation is coupled with symptoms affecting other parts of the body. The symptoms include having on and off rashes and high fever reaching 39 degrees C during the day and reoccurs in about the same, then often joint pain and swelling follows. It may lead to inflammation of the heart, fluid accumulation in the lungs, loss of appetite, and nausea.
It is diagnosed based solely on the aforementioned symptoms that usually last for months, except for arthritis that persists even after the symptoms, until it becomes chronic in adulthood. It is common among 25,000-50,000 children in the U.S., but adults can acquire it, termed as Adult-Onset Still’s Disease, according to Medicinenet. Its name originated from Dr. George Still.
Medications include anti-inflammatory drugs, like aspirin; cortisone and prednisone for severe cases. Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy is being studied as an alternative measure.
(http://www.sevensidedcube.net)
Still’s disease is a disorder which leads to a type of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRS) or systemic onset JRA. Systemic means joint inflammation is coupled with symptoms affecting other parts of the body. The symptoms include having on and off rashes and high fever reaching 39 degrees C during the day and reoccurs in about the same, then often joint pain and swelling follows. It may lead to inflammation of the heart, fluid accumulation in the lungs, loss of appetite, and nausea.
It is diagnosed based solely on the aforementioned symptoms that usually last for months, except for arthritis that persists even after the symptoms, until it becomes chronic in adulthood. It is common among 25,000-50,000 children in the U.S., but adults can acquire it, termed as Adult-Onset Still’s Disease, according to Medicinenet. Its name originated from Dr. George Still.
Medications include anti-inflammatory drugs, like aspirin; cortisone and prednisone for severe cases. Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy is being studied as an alternative measure.
(http://www.sevensidedcube.net)
Jared Leto Defends Justin Bieber
Rocker Jared Leto came to Justin Bieber's rescue on Saturday by defending the teen heart-throb after he was booed at a British music festival.
Leto was performing on stage with his band 30 Seconds To Mars at Radio 1's Big Weekend event in Bangor, Wales, when Bieber's name was announced over a speaker ahead of his performance.
The crowd proceeded to boo the 16 year old but Leto quickly ordered them to stop, reports JustJared.com.
He told the audience, "He's a young kid. He'll be able to charm the crowd." (starpulse.com)
Wednesday 19 May 2010
Study shows 'female Viagra' works
A pill called Flibanserin can boost sex drive in women. It's being called 'female Viagra.'
A new paper from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists reports that after a 6-month treatment with the pill, women found improvement in their decreased sexual desire.
The FDA has not yet approved the drug, which was originally meant to be an anti depressant.
A survey conducted by a drug manufacturer, amongst 1,378 women who were suffering from a lack of sexual desire, revealed that the drug improved sex drive by 18 per cent, after a usage of 24 weeks.
Another study notched this number to four weeks.
Unlike the Viagra used by men, which increases bloody supply, this pill may affect a female's mind and the neurotransmitters in the central nervous system, with minor side effects like dizziness, nausea, fatigue and insomnia.
For now Ashton suggests couples therapy and consulting a sexual therapist for these problems.
"You want to get at the root problem," CBS News quoted her as saying.
"If it's something like depression or a medication side-effect, deal with those things and hopefully you'll see an improvement in your sex life." (http://news.oneindia.in)
A new paper from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists reports that after a 6-month treatment with the pill, women found improvement in their decreased sexual desire.
The FDA has not yet approved the drug, which was originally meant to be an anti depressant.
A survey conducted by a drug manufacturer, amongst 1,378 women who were suffering from a lack of sexual desire, revealed that the drug improved sex drive by 18 per cent, after a usage of 24 weeks.
Another study notched this number to four weeks.
Unlike the Viagra used by men, which increases bloody supply, this pill may affect a female's mind and the neurotransmitters in the central nervous system, with minor side effects like dizziness, nausea, fatigue and insomnia.
For now Ashton suggests couples therapy and consulting a sexual therapist for these problems.
"You want to get at the root problem," CBS News quoted her as saying.
"If it's something like depression or a medication side-effect, deal with those things and hopefully you'll see an improvement in your sex life." (http://news.oneindia.in)
Tuesday 18 May 2010
Tiger Woods Mistress Rachel Uchitel to Strip for Playboy
Tiger Woods mistress Rachel Uchitel, is about to add another “distinction” to her resume — Playboy model. She would join a long list of “celebrities” and semi-celebrities who have posed nude to jump start a career.
The sometime club hostess and well-known New York and Hamptons party girl told celebrity gossip site TMZ on Friday that she was unsure whether she’d pose for the magazine because her family would have a “heart attack.”
But TMZ says it’s learned from a source at the magazine that Uchitel has indeed signed a contract to pose naked for in an as yet, un-named issue.
Unchitel will not be doing full frontal nudity similar to shots that appeared in the magazine recently featuring former Elliott Spitzer call girl Ashley Dupre.
The shoot will be limited to topless shots and her bare butt.
Uchitel also has the right to pull out any time before the shoot goes down — which is in three weeks, according to TMZ.
The former New Yorker, who now lives in Las Vegas, has a reputation for pursuing celebrities.
Before emerging at the center of the Tiger Woods scandal, Uchitel also had an affair with “Bones” star David Boreanaz while his wife was pregnant with their second child.
A series of racy text messages between the actor and Uchitel were recently leaked onto the Internet, in which she tried to pressure Boreanaz to leave his wife.
Boreanaz recently went public about an affair with another woman, because she allegedly tried to “extort” money from him to keep the details of their sexual relationship from becoming public.
Uchitel denied being the woman in question.
Boreanaz and his wife have since reconciled, but Woods is still estranged from his wife, Elin Nordegren, and appears headed for divorce.
Uchitel surfaced as Woods’ alleged mistress in a National Enquirer article shortly before Woods November car crash, which triggered the scandal.
Uchitel has since moved to Las Vegas were she is attempting to line up work in reality television. (http://www.theimproper.com)
Commuters travel to work on the Tube NAKED to help boost company's bottom line
It was a cheeky and unexpected sight that greeted commuters as they boarded a Tube into work.
But the four naked men and women certainly livened up the usually dull journey for many people – attracting gasps from stunned workers.
Carrying handbags or briefcases to cover their modesty – and wearing shoes – the nudes travelled on escalators and rode in the carriages as though their lack of suitable attire was completely normal.
But, rather than trying to start a new trend on the London Underground, the group were promoting a TV series which sees staff at struggling businesses helping to turn their company around.
Steven Suphi, behaviour change specialist and leadership guru, believes stripping off in the office will help boost employees' confidence and develop trust.
She said: ‘For most people in the UK going to work in the nude is a very daunting prospect.
‘I believe this extreme process will help them push their boundaries and become a close team that trust each other enough to get naked together.’
The nudes were publicising tomorrow’s episode of the new six-part series The Naked Office being screened on Virgin 1 at 9pm.
(www.telegraph.co.uk)
Rima Fakih. Ex-pole dancing, muslim Miss USA.
Rima Fakih has attracted much attention since she won the Miss USA competition. Firstly conservative bloggers are having a field day because she is the first-ever Muslim to win the beauty pageant, and secondly photographic evidence has emerged that in 2007 she won a pole-dancing competition. See the TMZ website.According to the Salon website “Arab-Americans rejoiced Monday over the crowning of raven-haired beauty Rima Fakih, a 24-year-old Lebanese immigrant from Michigan, calling it a victory for diversity in the United States, especially at a time when Arabs suffer from negative stereotypes in this country — and anti-immigrant sentiment is in the news.”
But conservative commentators are saying that it was a political correct move. And, some like blogger, Debbie Schlussel who called her “Miss Hezbollah” are stereotyping dangerously.
A spokeswoman for the Miss USA competition, Lark-Marie Anton, told The Daily Beast that Fakih’s critics were way off base and the contest was conducted fairly.
“I don’t believe this has anything to do with affirmative action and I am saddened by the ignorance surrounding her multicultural heritage.” (http://blogs.timeslive.co.za)
Thursday 6 May 2010
The History of National Day of Prayer
The National Day of Prayer (36 U.S.C. § 119) is an annual day of observance held on the first Thursday of May, designated by the United States Congress, when people are asked "to turn to God in prayer and meditation". The law formalizing its annual observance was enacted in 1952, and is being challenged in court
There had been at least two individual (i.e. single-day) national days of prayer in U.S. history before the day was made an official annual day of observance in 1952. Prior to the nation's founding, the Continental Congress issued a proclamation recommending "a day of publick [sic] humiliation, fasting, and prayer" be observed on July 20, 1775.
During the Quasi-War with France, President John Adams declared May 9, 1798 as "a day of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer," during which citizens of all faiths were asked to pray "that our country may be protected from all the dangers which threaten it".
On March 30, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation expressing the idea "that the awful calamity of civil war, which now desolates the land, may be but a punishment, inflicted upon us, for our presumptuous sins", and designated the day of April 30, 1863 as a day of "national humiliation, fasting and prayer" in the hope that God would respond by restoring "our now divided and suffering Country, to its former happy condition of unity and peace". He went on to say, "...it is the duty of nations as well as of men, to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions, in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord."
More recently, the idea of an annual National Day of Prayer was introduced by the Rev. Billy Graham, who suggested it in the midst of a several-weeks crusade in the nation’s capitol. Members of the House and Senate introduced a joint resolution for an annual National Day of Prayer, "on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals."
A Senate report incorrectly claims as part of the rationale for the law that prayers were conducted at the Constitutional Convention, which adopted the U.S. Constitution: “When the delegates to the Constitutional Convention encountered difficulties in the writing and formation of a Constitution for this Nation, prayer was suggested and became an established practice at succeeding sessions,” according to the report by the Committee on the Judiciary. However, Benjamin Franklin suggested prayer, but in his own notes recorded that the convention, “except for three or four persons, thought prayers unnecessary.” His suggestion to pray was met politely but with some embarrassment, scholars note, and delegates quickly adjourned.
On April 17, 1952, President Harry S. Truman signed a bill proclaiming a National Day of Prayer must be declared by each following president at an appropriate date of his choice. In 1982 a conservative evangelical Christian organization called the "National Prayer Committee" was formed to coordinate and implement a fixed annual day of prayer for the purpose of organizing evangelical Christian prayer events with local, state, and federal government entities. In his 1983 declaration, Ronald Reagan said, "From General Washington's struggle at Valley Forge to the present, this Nation has fervently sought and received divine guidance as it pursued the course of history. This occasion provides our Nation with an opportunity to further recognize the source of our blessings, and to seek His help for the challenges we face today and in the future." In 1988, the law was amended so that the National Day of Prayer would be held on the first Thursday of May. Two stated intentions of the National Day of Prayer were that it would be a day when adherents of all great religions could unite in prayer and that it may one day bring renewed respect for God to all the peoples of the world. (wikipedia.org)
There had been at least two individual (i.e. single-day) national days of prayer in U.S. history before the day was made an official annual day of observance in 1952. Prior to the nation's founding, the Continental Congress issued a proclamation recommending "a day of publick [sic] humiliation, fasting, and prayer" be observed on July 20, 1775.
During the Quasi-War with France, President John Adams declared May 9, 1798 as "a day of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer," during which citizens of all faiths were asked to pray "that our country may be protected from all the dangers which threaten it".
On March 30, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation expressing the idea "that the awful calamity of civil war, which now desolates the land, may be but a punishment, inflicted upon us, for our presumptuous sins", and designated the day of April 30, 1863 as a day of "national humiliation, fasting and prayer" in the hope that God would respond by restoring "our now divided and suffering Country, to its former happy condition of unity and peace". He went on to say, "...it is the duty of nations as well as of men, to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions, in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord."
More recently, the idea of an annual National Day of Prayer was introduced by the Rev. Billy Graham, who suggested it in the midst of a several-weeks crusade in the nation’s capitol. Members of the House and Senate introduced a joint resolution for an annual National Day of Prayer, "on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals."
A Senate report incorrectly claims as part of the rationale for the law that prayers were conducted at the Constitutional Convention, which adopted the U.S. Constitution: “When the delegates to the Constitutional Convention encountered difficulties in the writing and formation of a Constitution for this Nation, prayer was suggested and became an established practice at succeeding sessions,” according to the report by the Committee on the Judiciary. However, Benjamin Franklin suggested prayer, but in his own notes recorded that the convention, “except for three or four persons, thought prayers unnecessary.” His suggestion to pray was met politely but with some embarrassment, scholars note, and delegates quickly adjourned.
On April 17, 1952, President Harry S. Truman signed a bill proclaiming a National Day of Prayer must be declared by each following president at an appropriate date of his choice. In 1982 a conservative evangelical Christian organization called the "National Prayer Committee" was formed to coordinate and implement a fixed annual day of prayer for the purpose of organizing evangelical Christian prayer events with local, state, and federal government entities. In his 1983 declaration, Ronald Reagan said, "From General Washington's struggle at Valley Forge to the present, this Nation has fervently sought and received divine guidance as it pursued the course of history. This occasion provides our Nation with an opportunity to further recognize the source of our blessings, and to seek His help for the challenges we face today and in the future." In 1988, the law was amended so that the National Day of Prayer would be held on the first Thursday of May. Two stated intentions of the National Day of Prayer were that it would be a day when adherents of all great religions could unite in prayer and that it may one day bring renewed respect for God to all the peoples of the world. (wikipedia.org)
Are you stunned by the new 'Idol' Top 4?
SPOILER ALERT!!! Tonight's blog entry will reveal the contestant being sent home from "American Idol." Don't read any further if you don't want to know the results.
I am officially bummed out.
No way Aaron Kelly should have gone home tonight. He wasn't the best, but goodness knows he wasn't the worst. And by the worst, I mean he wasn't Casey James.
Casey is a cutie, but based on performance, he should have totally been on his way.
What do you think happened? Did a cutie face trump a baby face?
Let us know. And don't forget to head over to iReport to post a video of your questions for Aaron Kelly. (cnn)
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