Pew: More Than Half Of Adults Used Cell Phones In Stores For Purchasing Decisions During The Holidays

The Pew Research Center?s Internet & American Life Project is releasing a new study today that provides further evidence of the growing trend of consumers using mobile phones in stores for purchasing decisions. Pew says that more than half of adult cell phone owners used their cell phones while they were in a store to seek help with purchasing decisions this past holiday shopping season. According to the report, 38% of cell owners used their phone to call a friend while they were in a store for advice about a purchase they were considering making And 24% of cell owners used their phone to look up reviews of a product online while they were in a store, with 25% of adult cell owners using their phones to look up the price of a product o

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World stocks fall ahead of EU summit (AP)

LONDON ? World stock markets fell Monday as uncertainty about a tentative deal to resolve Greece's debt crisis weighed on investor sentiment ahead of a summit of European leaders.

The leaders gathering in Brussels hope to focus on how to stimulate economic growth and create jobs at a time when huge government spending cuts threaten to push many countries back into recession.

The latest data showed Spain was one step closer to recession ? technically defined as two consecutive quarters of economic contraction ? after its economy shrank in the last three months of 2011.

Experts say Europe's efforts to cut its high levels of debt will be for nothing if its economies remain uncompetitive. The leaders will also discuss a new treaty on tightening budget controls and setting up a permanent bailout fund.

But the meeting will be dominated by another topic that is not officially for discussion ? Greece's debt problem.

Greece has reached a tentative deal with its private creditors that could avert a disastrous default this spring. Investors holding euro206 billion ($272 billion) in Greek bonds would exchange them for bonds with half the face value. The replacement bonds would have a longer maturity and pay a lower interest rate. When the bonds mature, Greece would have to pay its bondholders only euro103 billion.

But because Greece has been in recession for years, some experts fear it could need more rescue loans from its bailout partners ? other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund ? if it is to remain solvent.

Richer countries like Germany, however, are losing patience with giving Athens loans, saying the Greek government is not implementing reforms and austerity cuts quickly enough.

A German official even proposed to have an EU official directly oversee Athens' government spending. The idea was quickly rejected, however, by both the European Commission and Greek leaders.

Despite progress in Greece's debt talks with private creditors, the continued uncertainty over its finances pushed markets lower Monday.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.8 percent to 5,689.76 and Germany's DAX lost 0.9 percent to 6,4552.51. France's CAC-40 shed 1.1 percent to 3,281.48. Wall Street was also headed for a lower open, with Dow Jones industrial futures falling 0.6 percent to 12,533 and S&P 500 futures down 0.8 percent to 1,302.50.

Sentiment, which has been relatively buoyant so far this year on hopes for a recovery in the U.S., was also dented by Fitch Ratings agency's announcement late Friday that it had downgraded five eurozone countries, including Italy and Spain.

Looking ahead, investors will keep an eye on an Italian bond auction and more earnings, which were mixed Monday in Europe ? airline Ryanair beat expectations but appliances maker Philips disappointed.

In Asia, most indexes closed lower as investors there reacted to Friday's release of data showing the U.S. economy grew more slowly than expected in the last three months of 2011. The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in the October-December quarter, lower than the 3 percent that economists were expecting.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index shed 0.5 percent to close at 8,793.05. South Korea's Kospi was 1.2 percent lower at 1,940.55 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.7 percent to 20,160.41. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.4 percent at 4,272.70.

Benchmarks in mainland China, Singapore, Indonesia, India and the Philippines also fell. Taiwan and New Zealand rose.

Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corp. plummeted 14.8 percent after the Defense Ministry and the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center said they would not sign contracts with the electric machinery manufacturer, which acknowledged it had overcharged on defense and space-related projects, Kyodo News agency reported.

Traders are awaiting more data this week for clues about which way the U.S. economy is headed. On Wednesday, the Institute for Supply Management will release its manufacturing index for January and the U.S. Labor Department will release monthly employment data Friday.

"Because the market has been expecting rather good economic data from the U.S. ... I am afraid if those figures disappoint the market, it may trigger further correction in the stock market," said Louis Wong, dealing director of Phillip Securities Ltd.

Benchmark oil for March delivery was down 60 cents to $98.96 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 14 cents to end at $99.56 per barrel on the Nymex on Friday.

In currencies, the euro fell to $1.3129 from $1.3208 late Friday in New York. The dollar fell to 76.70 yen from 76.72 yen.

___

Pamela Sampson in Bangkok contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets

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Private investors near deal on Greek debt (AP)

ATHENS, Greece ? Greece and investors who have bought its bonds have reached a tentative deal to significantly reduce the country's debt and pave the way for it to receive a much-needed euro130 billion bailout.

Negotiators for the investors announced the tentative agreement Saturday and said it could become final next week.

Under the agreement, the euro206 billion worth of Greek bonds that investors own would be exchanged for new bonds worth 60 percent less. That will help Greece remain solvent and avoid a potentially devastating blow to Europe's already weakened financial system.

Private investors would receive new bonds whose face value is half of the existing bonds. The new bonds would have a longer maturity and pay an average interest rate of slightly less than 4 percent. The existing bonds pay an average interest rate of 5 percent, according to the think tank Re-Define.

The deal would reduce Greece's annual interest expense on the bonds from about $10 billion to about $4 billion. And when the bonds mature, instead of paying bondholders euro206 billion, Greece will have to pay only euro103 billion.

Without the deal, which would reduce Greece's debt load by at least euro120 billion, the bonds held by banks, insurance companies and hedge funds would likely become worthless. Many of these investors also hold debt from other countries that use the euro, which could also lose value in the event of a Greek default.

The agreement taking shape is a key step before Greece can get a second, euro130 billion bailout from its European Union partners and the International Monetary Fund. Besides restructuring its debt with private investors, Greece must also take other steps before getting aid. It must cut its deficit and boost the competitiveness of its economy through layoffs of government employees and the sale of several state companies, among other moves.

This would be Greece's second bailout. The EU and the IMF signed off on a euro110 billion aid package for Greece in May 2010, most of which has already been disbursed.

Greece faces a euro14.5 billion bond repayment on March 20, which it cannot afford without additional help.

Private investors hold roughly two-thirds of Greece's debt, which has reached an unsustainable level ? nearly 160 percent of the country's annual economic output. By restructuring the debt held by private investors, Greece and its EU partners are hoping to bring that ratio closer to 120 percent by the end of this decade. Without a deal, analysts forecast that ratio ballooning to 200 percent by the end of this year as the Greek economy falters.

In return for the first bailout, Greece's public creditors ? the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the European Central Bank ? have unprecedented powers over Greek spending. However, Greece's problems will not be fixed simply by cutting government spending. In order to bring its debts to a more manageable level, the country must also find ways boost economic output, which would enable it to collect more taxes.

If no debt-exchange deal is reached with private creditors and Greece is forced to default, it would very likely spook Europe's ? and possibly the world's ? financial markets. It could even lead Greece to withdraw from the euro.

Sarah Ketterer, co-manager of Causeway International Value Fund, a $1.4 billion mutual fund that invests in European stocks, said the region's markets have rebounded this month largely on expectations that negotiators would reach a deal along the lines of the one being finalized now.

Any last-minute breakdown in the talks could trigger a sharp decline in European markets, she said. But a rally is unlikely if negotiations succeed.

"The equity markets have ... largely already discounted this, and you can see that in the confidence that has returned in European equities since the end of December, and especially for financial stocks," Ketterer said.

She said there "really was no other option" than reaching a deal for bondholders to take a haircut of 50 percent or more.

Ketterer said a Greek deal could help restore bond market confidence. That would help Italy manage its own debt crisis ? one that Ketterer views as more critical than Greece's because of Italy's greater size.

The investors who own Greek bonds are being represented by Charles Dallara, managing director of the Washington-based Institute of International Finance, and Jean Lemierre, senior adviser to the chairman of the French bank BNP Paribas.

___

Elena Becatoros in Athens and Gabriele Steinhauser in Brussels contributed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_greece_financial_crisis

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Slave port unearthed in Brazil

The Valongo Wharf in Rio de Janerio was the busiest of all slave ports in the Americas and has been buried for almost two centuries.

? A local, slice-of-life story from a Monitor correspondent.

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Not far from here at least 500,000 Africans took their first steps into slavery in colonial Brazil, which took in far more slaves than the United States and where now half of its 200 million citizens claim African descent.

The ?Cais do Valongo? ? the Valongo Wharf ? was the busiest of all slave ports in the Americas and has been buried for almost two centuries under subsequent infrastructure projects and dirt.

That is, until developers seeking to turn Rio?s shabby port neighborhood into a posh tourist center allowed teams of archaeologists to check out what was being unearthed.

?We knew we had found the wharf,? says archaeologist Tania Andrade Lima, showing a ramp made up of knobbly, uneven stones used by slaves. It lay beneath a layer of smoother cobblestones from a dock installed later for the arrival of a Portuguese royal.

Ms. Lima and other community leaders are creating a walking tour that will include the wharf, a nearby cemetery for Africans who died soon after their arrival, and a holding pen called the ?Lazareto,? derived from Jesus? parable about a beggar named Lazarus, where newly arrived Africans were checked for diseases.

The wharf alone is nearly 22,000 square feet. ?This gives a dimension to how huge the influx of slaves was,? says Lima.

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Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/C8HzhyUXmb0/Slave-port-unearthed-in-Brazil

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Getting Weird (talking-points-memo)

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The Evil That Men Do (Balloon Juice)

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Israeli film industry is a surprising powerhouse (omg!)

JERUSALEM (AP) ? The budgets are bare-bones and the talent pool is limited, but Israel has emerged as a surprising powerhouse in the foreign film industry.

The Israeli film "Footnote," up for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film this year, is Israel's fourth such nomination in the past five years, giving Israel more nominations during that period than any other country.

It's an indication to the renaissance of Israeli cinema, which has grown from a fledgling industry with poor cinematography and low box office sales to a darling of world film festivals. That's in spite ? or perhaps because ? of the country's troubled international reputation, due to its lengthy conflict with the Arab world.

The last three Israeli films that made it to the Oscar shortlist all mine the country's troubles with its Arab neighbors. "Beaufort," nominated in 2008, and "Waltz with Bashir," nominated a year after, both explored Israeli soldiers' experiences in Lebanon. "Ajami," the 2010 nominee, centers on Arab-Jewish tensions in a violence-ridden neighborhood near Tel Aviv.

This year's nomination went to an Israeli film featuring a more internal conflict ? two professors of Talmud, a father and son, dueling for academic prestige and a coveted national prize.

"It's a badge of honor for Israel," said Moshe Edery, producer of "Footnote," at a news conference after the Oscar nomination. "It's Israel's best business card around the world, especially these days."

Israeli cinema was long an embarrassment. Cheap comic melodramas were the norm in the 1960s and 1970s. Called "bourekas films" ? the Israeli equivalent of spaghetti Westerns ? they dealt with ethnic stereotypes of European and Middle Eastern Jews.

Sick of those tired tropes, a group of Israeli moviemakers created an Israeli national movie fund in 1979, hopefully named the "Israeli Fund to Encourage Quality Films."

With meager funding from studios and other private entities, filmmakers rely on public funds. But even with help from the new fund, the industry still floundered for two decades.

In 1995, the government cut public funding for cinema in half, leaving enough money to produce only five films a year. Three years later the industry hit an all-time low: Only 0.3 percent of Israeli moviegoers bought tickets to Hebrew-language cinema.

The national film body took on a new name, the Israel Film Fund, and in 2000 it begged Israel's parliament to save Israeli cinema. It did, boosting the budget to $10 million a year for investment in feature films, mandating that young filmmakers get a chance to make themselves known.

It's what gave Joseph Cedar, the Israeli director of the Oscar-nominated films "Footnote" and "Beaufort," his first big break fresh out of film school: The Israel Film Fund supported his first feature, "Time of Favor," which debuted in 2000.

"We didn't know him, but he had enthusiasm. There was something about his passion," said Katriel Schory, executive director of the national fund. "We took a chance."

In the past, "cinema funds would not support a filmmaker's first feature," said Renen Schorr, founder and director of the Sam Spiegel Film & Television School in Jerusalem. "Today, Israel wants young people to make their first films."

The boost in public funding has dovetailed with investments in Israeli cinema by European and Canadian producers, totaling about $15 million and increasing the number of films Israel puts out annually to nearly 20, according to the Film Fund.

Israel's television industry has also blossomed in recent years. After cable channels and a commercial TV station broke the monopoly and monotony of a lone state-run channel in the early 90s, there was a sudden need for new TV content, spurring competition and creativity among local screenwriters.

Now Hollywood TV executives are taking notice, adapting Israeli shows for American audiences. Showtime's hit thriller "Homeland" is adapted from the Israeli drama "Prisoners of War," the NBC game show "Who's Still Standing" originated in Israel, and other Israeli adaptations are currently in development for American TV.

Despite the surge in budgets, funding is a fraction of public money available for filmmakers in European countries.

While Israel has scored some Academy Award nominations in recent years, it hasn't won. None of the 10 Israeli films that made the best foreign language film shortlist over the years has won the big prize.

Now the focus is on Cedar, director of "Footnote," but he told reporters that the coveted Oscar isn't the only measure of success for a filmmaker.

That is exactly the lesson that his Oscar-nominated film imparts, he said.

"'Footnote' deals with the question of what happens when, while you're living your daily life, a prize is offered, which really takes over your moral reasoning and changes your perspective and sometimes completely destroys your perspective," Cedar said, summarizing the main plot line of his movie.

___

Follow Daniel Estrin: www.twitter.com/danielestrin

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/omg_rss/rss_omg_en/news_israeli_film_industry_surprising_powerhouse064723204/44323369/*http%3A//omg.yahoo.com/news/israeli-film-industry-surprising-powerhouse-064723204.html

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Too Few Americans Getting Screened for Common Cancers: CDC (HealthDay)

THURSDAY, Jan. 26 (HealthDay News) -- The number of Americans being screened for colon, breast and cervical cancers still fall below national targets, federal health officials said Thursday.

In 2010, 72.4 percent of women were being screened for breast cancer, below the target of 81 percent, for cervical cancer it was 83 percent of women, while the target is 93 percent, and for colon cancer 58.6 percent of Americans were screened, missing the target of 70.5 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Not all Americans are getting the recommended screening for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer," said report co-author Mary C. White, branch chief of the CDC's Division of Cancer Prevention and Control. "There continue to be disparities for certain populations."

The screening rates are particularly low among Asians and Hispanics, according to the report in the Jan. 27 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Among Asians, the screening rate for breast cancer was 64.1 percent, for cervical cancer it was 75.4 percent, and for colon cancer it was 46.9 percent.

Hispanics were less likely than non-Hispanics to have screening for cervical and colon cancer (78.7 percent and 46.5 percent, respectively), the researchers found.

Screening is important, said Dr. Stephanie Bernik, chief of surgical oncology at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

"Screening saves lives," she said. "When you catch a cancer at a smaller size it does affect outcome."

Some people may be confused about screening, because different medical groups have different screening protocols, Bernik said.

"It's hard to get people to do screening in general. People look for any excuse not to get screened. When they see there is a controversy about when to start screening, they look at it as an opportunity to not do the test," she said.

Bernik also admits that screening can result in some over-treatment.

"With screening comes that risk," she said. "Unfortunately, we are not at a point where we can select the patients that are not going to have a problem, so we treat everyone equally. So, there is a little bit of over-treatment but, overall, you are improving survival for many people."

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that women aged 50 to 74 get a mammogram every two years to screen for breast cancer.

Women aged 21 to 65, or those who have been sexually active for three years, should have a Pap test to screen for cervical cancer at least every three years, the task force recommends.

For colorectal cancer, men and women aged 50 to 75 should be screened with a yearly fecal occult blood test or sigmoidoscopy every five years, or have a colonoscopy every 10 years.

Other highlights of the report include:

• Breast cancer screening rates remained stable from 2000-2010, varying only about 3 percent.
• Colon cancer screening rates increased from 2000-2010, to more than 58 percent for both men and women.
• Cervical cancer screening rates dipped 3.3 percent from 2000-2010.
• Screening rates for all these cancers was much lower among the uninsured or those who didn't have a regular doctor.

The Affordable Care Act is expected to lower these barriers to access by expanding insurance coverage, the authors said.

"Other efforts are needed, such as developing systems that identify persons eligible for cancer screening tests, actively encouraging the use of screening tests, and monitoring participation to improve screening rates," the authors added.

More information

For more on cancer screening, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20120126/hl_hsn/toofewamericansgettingscreenedforcommoncancerscdc

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Watch: Newt Gingrich Talks Moon Base, Space Exploration (ABC News)

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The American Museum of Natural History hosts Beyond Planet Earth Tweetup with Scientific American

By Erica Angiolillo?| January 25, 2012 |??

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I knew it was going to be a wonderful night when I magically found street parking on Central Park West directly across from the American Museum of Natural History. Camera in hand I entered the planetarium where I enjoyed a presentation of vintage films and movies depicting space travel and life on other planets.

I was soon flying towards the ?dark side of the moon? and out into the Milky Way during a 3D presentation of the planets that was out of this world. I then eagerly entered the reception at The Hall of Reptiles and Amphibians where finally the opportunity to shoot presented itself and I took full advantage of capturing the guests, listening to speakers and meeting the editors and bloggers at Scientific American magazine in this magnificent setting.

The Beyond Planet Earth exhibit itself was also an excellent and fun place to shoot and I highly recommend checking out the exhibit yourself in person as there are many interactive apps and ways to explore! I have never had an opportunity like this before and I found the museum, discussions and science exhilarating! Perhaps, if there?s a next time, I can roller skate around the deserted museum taking photos and really bring ?a night at the museum? to life!

Related:

Scientific American Tweet-Up at the American Museum of Natural History
Getting Ready for Scientific American Tweet-Up at the American Museum of Natural History

About the Author: Erica Angiolillo is a freelance photographer who lives on Long Island with her husband & two children. She is the in house photographer for Manhattan Athletics & NYC Titans/Spartans baseball teams. You can enjoy her love of photography on Facebook at Gotcha! By Erica. Follow on Twitter @eangiolillo.

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The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

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