1st witness testifies in Gulf oil spill trial

AAA??Feb. 26, 2013?10:59 AM ET
1st witness testifies in Gulf oil spill trial
By MICHAEL KUNZELMANBy MICHAEL KUNZELMAN, Associated Press??

FILE - Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill floats on the water as the sky is reflected in sheen on Barataria Bay, off the coast of Louisiana, in this June, 7, 2010 file photo. A high-stakes trial to assign blame and help figure out exactly how much more BP and other companies should pay for the spill began Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

FILE - Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill floats on the water as the sky is reflected in sheen on Barataria Bay, off the coast of Louisiana, in this June, 7, 2010 file photo. A high-stakes trial to assign blame and help figure out exactly how much more BP and other companies should pay for the spill began Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

FILE - This file photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows oil leaking from the drill pipe of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig after it sank on April 22, 2010, two days after it exploded. A high-stakes trial to assign blame and help figure out exactly how much more BP and other companies should pay for the spill began Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP photo/US Coast Guard)

Protestors from the National Audubon Institute, the Gulf Restoration Network and other organizations stand outside Federal Court on the first day of the Gulf oil spill settlement trial in New Orleans, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier is scheduled to hear several hours of opening statements Monday by lawyers for the companies, federal and state governments and others who sued over the disaster. Barbier is hearing the case without a jury. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

FILE - In this aerial file photo madeWednesday, April 21, 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico, more than 50 miles southeast of Venice on Louisiana's tip, an oil slick is seen as the Deepwater Horizon oil rig burns. Nearly three years after the deadly rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico triggered the nation's worst offshore oil spill, a federal judge in New Orleans is set to preside over a high-stakes trial for the raft of litigation spawned by the disaster on Monday Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, file)

FILE - BP PLC Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward asks members of the media to step back as he walks along Fourchon Beach in Port Fourchon, La., in this file photo taken May 24, 2010, about a month after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico. Hayward visited the beach to observe efforts to clean oil that washed ashore from the spill. A high-stakes trial to assign blame and help figure out exactly how much more BP and other companies should pay for the spill began Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? An expert witness for people and businesses who sued BP over the Gulf oil spill says he found ample evidence that the company's cost-cutting culture led to the disaster.

University of California-Berkeley engineering professor Robert Bea testified Tuesday at a civil trial. He says BP PLC didn't implement a safety management program on the rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

The London-based company has said the program was designed to drive a rigorous and systematic approach to safety and risk management.

Bea is the trial's first witness. He says it is "tragic" and "egregious" that BP didn't apply its own safety program.

A former BP consultant, Bea also investigated the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill and New Orleans levee breaches after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Associated PressNews Topics: Business, General news, Trials, Legal proceedings, Law and order, Pollution, Environmental concerns, Environment, Environment and nature, Industrial accidents, Accidents, Accidents and disasters, Oil spills

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-02-26-Gulf%20Oil%20Spill-Trial/id-37ed4f9a816446f9a89126206ebf1207

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Bob Finnan's NBA notes: Winners and losers after the trade deadline

By Bob Finnan
RFinnan@News-Herald.com
@BobCavsinsider

New Orleans Hornets' Ryan Anderson (33) reaches for a rebound between Cleveland Cavaliers' Wayne Ellington and Marreese Speights (15) during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013, in Cleveland. The Cavaliers won 105-100. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

Of the dozen deals at the NBA trade deadline, most were salary-cap conscious.

There might not have been many blockbusters, but Memphis' trade of Rudy Gay to Toronto was certainly a headliner. However, that occurred on Jan. 31.

The Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors made deals to get under the luxury-tax threshold. Chicago tried desperately to follow suit, but the Bulls were unable to trade veteran shooting guard Richard Hamilton. Chicago will be a taxpayer for the first time.

There were 12 trades, involving 18 teams, and more than 20 players changed hands in the final 24 hours before Thursday's deadline.

The following are some of the winners and losers:

Winners

-- Cavaliers: GM Chris Grant stood pat at the deadline, but it wasn't because they didn't try to make a deal. Their big trade came on Jan. 22, when they acquired center Marreese Speights, guards Wayne Ellington and Josh Selby and a first-round pick from Memphis for Jon Leuer. They were able to keep their flexibility ? very important to Grant ? and $4 million in cap space.

Grant could conceivably clear out half the roster after this season. C.J. Miles, Speights, Ellington, Selby, Omri Casspi, Daniel Gibson, Luke Walton, Shaun Livingston and Kevin Jones could be free agents.

Grant wanted a first-round pick to go with his collection. However, he couldn't find a taker for Speights.

-- Houston: The Rockets were forced to give up on the talented Patrick Patterson, but acquired the No. 5 pick in the 2012 draft in Sacramento power forward Thomas Robinson in a six-player deal. The Kings viewed Robinson as their third big, since he couldn't supplant either Justin Thompson or DeMarcus Cousins. Two questions beg to be answered: Why draft him in the first place? Why give up on him eight months after drafting him? I'd love to know the Kings' thinking on this. Continued...

-- Golden State: The Warriors made two subtle moves by shipping out two former second-round picks in center Jeremy Tyler (Atlanta) and guard Charles Jenkins (Philadelphia) to get under the tax threshold of $70.8 million. Paying the tax is one thing. Being a repeat offender is disastrous. They didn't want to start the process.

-- Milwaukee: Adding a player like shooting guard J.J. Redick is huge, if the Bucks are able to re-sign him. On the surface, it doesn't appear as if Redick will want to stay in Milwaukee unless GM John Hammond overpays (which could happen). The move should keep the Bucks in the playoff race. It also gives them protection if guard Monta Ellis opts out of his contract. He might want to think twice about opting out of an $11 million contract. He might not be able to recoup that on the open market. "I don't know what Milwaukee is doing," TNT analyst Charles Barkley said. "They are just trying to cover the market on guards. They've got Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings. Reddick isn't better than either one of those guys. I don't know what they're trying to do."

-- Toronto: The Raptors shipped point guard Jose Calderon to the Pistons in the deal that added slick forward Rudy Gay. The Raptors have a completely new feel after adding Gay. They are talking playoffs in Toronto. That's probably not going to happen, but let them dream.

-- Phoenix: In an under-the-radar deal, the Suns got forward Marcus Morris from Houston for a second-round pick. He'll be reunited with twin brother Markieff Morris with the Suns. The Van Arsdale family will be excited. However, the Zeller family isn't. Tyler Zeller's brother, Luke, was waived to fit Marcus on the Suns' roster.

-- Portland: The Trail Blazers now have a legitimate backup point guard in Eric Maynor. In a deal concluded 30 minutes before the deadline, he was sent to Portland for the NBA rights to Greek player Giorgos Printezis.

Losers

-- Atlanta: After a lot of bluster, Hawks GM Danny Ferry was unable to trade forward Josh Smith. The Hawks will reshape their team in the offseason. They could have just three players under contract after this year: center Al Horford and guards John Jenkins and Lou Williams. The rest of the roster are free agents or don't have fully guaranteed contracts. No teams appeared to be willing to give up what Ferry wanted for Smith, who insists he never demanded a max contract. He told NBA.com's Sekou Smith, "I never asked for the max. Those words never came out of my mouth." That's good, too, because he's not a max player.

"You can't give up a valuable asset (to acquire Smith) when you don't know if the guy is going to stay with you beyond this year," Barkley said.

-- Sacramento: The Kings appear to be in cost-cutting mode, as the Maloof brothers are trying to move the team to Seattle. They saved about $1 million in the Robinson trade, and another million in salary savings. Sorry, but that's a total joke. "I don't think they got maximum value out of him," TNT analyst Kenny Smith said.

-- Washington: They dealt guard Jordan Crawford, a player in Coach Randy Wittman's rotation, for a journeyman center (Jason Collins) and an offensive-minded guard who will miss the rest of the season with an injury (Leandro Barbosa). Crawford went to Boston in the deal. I just can't figure this one out. I don't see how it benefits the Wizards. Continued...

Rumor mill

-- Cavs coach Byron Scott said he hasn't spoken to veterans and Gibson recently after they fell out of his rotation. "I haven't addressed it," he said. "I talked to ?Boobie' and I talked to Omri earlier this season. You always tell those guys who are veterans to just stay ready. The one thing about both of those guys is they've been very professional. They come to work every single day. They're just waiting to get their opportunity. If somebody gets injured or hurt or isn't playing well, they'll get an opportunity again. The second unit's playing well together, and our starters are playing pretty well. So, we're making some strides. We're going to keep it the same way unless something else changes as far as an injury or something like that occurs."

-- According to an Israeli website, Casspi wants a buyout. He's no longer in the team's plans. It wouldn't be surprising if the Cavs do buy him out. Gibson missed Saturday's game for personal reasons.

-- The Cavs will face LeBron James and the Miami Heat on Sunday night. "LeBron James will probably win his fourth MVP, but there has to be a lot of consideration for Tony Parker," TNT analyst Reggie Miller said. Barkley said he thinks the Spurs' point guard should be consideration, too. "Tony Parker should be the MVP," he said. "He's unbelievable."

-- Maybe injured Bulls point guard Derrick Rose should tell his brother to shut up. Reggie Rose, Derrick's brother and manager, said Thursday that the franchise hasn't put enough quality players around Rose to win a championship. He said that could be a "big factor" in whether he returns this season from a knee injury, he told ESPN Chicago. Reggie was concerned the Bulls didn't make any moves at the deadline to get better. The Bulls issued a statement from Rose on Thursday. "I have always felt that the Bulls organization's goals have been the same as mine and that is to bring another championship to this city," he said.

-- Speaking of keeping one's mouth shut, how about Mavericks owner Mark Cuban saying the Lakers should use their amnesty clause on future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant? He made the comments on the "Ben and Skin Show" on ESPN Dallas. Bryant will make almost $30 million next season.

Quick shots

-- Scott said he's seen no evidence of Kyrie Irving's teammates being jealous of his success. "I think these guys understand we're still a team," Scott said. "As great as Kyrie has been playing, he can't do it by himself. You need those other four guys to be out there doing their job as well. I think that's the beauty of basketball. Our guys, I don't think they get jealous or anything like that. I don't care who scores, at the end of the day, there's two columns that really matter: that ?W' and that ?L.' That's it. I think our guys are starting to understand that."

-- Scott was asked recently why he's been keeping Jones, a rookie forward, with the club instead of letting him play in the NBA Development League. "He still has to learn our system, but it's still good to have him here to continue to go against these guys every day and continue to learn the system," Scott said. "For the most part, he'll probably be here for the rest of the year."

Information for the NBA notebook was gathered by personal interviews and from other beat writers around the league. Continued...

By the numbers

Odds are courtesy of Bovada, (www.Bovada.lv): Will the Lakers make the playoffs?

Yes -150 (2/3)

No +110 (11/10)

Source: http://news-herald.com/articles/2013/02/23/sports/nh6591802.txt

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Microsoft joins list of companies recently hacked

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) ? Microsoft has joined the list of prominent technology companies confirming they have been hit by a recent computer hacking attack.

In a blog posting Friday, Microsoft said it had found no evidence that any customer data had been heisted.

Microsoft Corp. gave few other details about the break-in, except to say that was it similar to a hacking attack that online social networking leader Facebook Inc. disclosed last week. Facebook had said its investigation had discovered other companies had been hacked, but didn't identify the other victims.

Like Facebook, Microsoft says it is still investigating how malicious software was planted on what it said were a small number of its computers.

Online messaging service Twitter also recently disclosed that hackers may have stolen information about 250,000 of its users.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-02-22-Microsoft-Hacked/id-253c8ab4ed784c5da999c5c2f55cac82

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ASUS teases new PadFone MWC launch, with help from talking Christopher Columbus statue

The latest MWC teaser video from ASUS is light on the details and heavy on the talking statue. The 33-second video titled "A New Discovery at Hand," features Barcelona's Columbus Monument taking a phone call on his stone tablet and the tag line "Join ASUS to Discover a New World." No mentions of PadFones (or, for that matter, FonePads) in the video itself, though the accompanying text promises that those who attend the company's February 25th press conference will witness "Pad and Phone come together."

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, ASUS

Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/22/asus-columbus/

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FCC Sets Controversial New Rules on Cell Signal Boosters | Mobile ...

On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission confirmed the establishment of new regulations for cell phone signal boosters.

Per the new rules, signal boosters or their plans can only be obtained with the advanced knowledge and permission of the involved carrier. If permission is granted, the signal booster must be registered with the carrier.

The FCC says registration is important to make certain that the booster meets proper specifications.

The FCC recently adopted new rules to improve signal booster design so these devices won?t cause interference to wireless networks.

Not surprisingly, some are viewing the new rules as a gross intrusion of consumer freedoms through the addition of new rules dictating when and how cell phone signal boosters can be procured.

So if you?re thinking about buying a signal booster, what should you do.

?Before purchasing a new booster,? the FCC says, ?you should (1) make sure you have your wireless provider?s permission to use the booster, and (2) buy a booster that displays the label to the right (this means it meets the new FCC rules.) The four largest providers, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T have already agreed to give consumers permission to use boosters displaying the label below. Once you have your provider?s permission, you must register your booster with your wireless provider before turning it on. There is no fee to register your booster.?

Do you agree with the new rules regarding cell phone signal boosters?

Source: http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/fcc-sets-controversial-new-rules-on-cell-signal-boosters-29536/

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Mocked for Pushing Fake Story, Breitbrats Go Totally Ballistic (Little green footballs)

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Sunlight forecasts to benefit electric utilities and ? NASCAR

John Roach , NBC News ? ? ? 17 hrs.

Race car drivers are likely to benefit from a newly-launched $4.1 million U.S. government-funded program to improve 36-hour forecasts of incoming energy from the sun.

Cloud cover impacts racetrack temperature, which in turn affects how well tires grip the pavement, researchers working on the program explained.

The program?s primary aim is to help electric utilities forecast how much electricity their solar power plants will generate every fifteen minutes, which is largely dependent on how cloudy the skies are during daylight hours.

Forecasting cloud cover, however, is notoriously difficult. Clouds form on microscopic droplets of water or ice and are affected by factors including winds, humidity, sunlight, surface heat, airborne particles, as well as chemicals and gases in the atmosphere.

Solar energy output is also affected by what types of clouds form ? thin, wispy ones high in the sky let in more sunlight than thick, low-lying clouds, note researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).

The fickleness of clouds, in turns, can wreak havoc on electric utilities with solar power plants on their grid. If cloud cover reduces the amount of sunlight available, they need to source it from somewhere else such as natural gas or coal-fired power plants, which are more expensive to operate.

?We can help predict when those renewable resources will be available and that way they can better integrate them into the grid and they can plan their power rates accordingly,? Sue Ellen Haupt, director of the weather systems and assessment program at NCAR, told NBC News.

Her group is heading up the project, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.

The researchers aim to design a system that uses an array of instruments and techniques including a laser-based technology that measures particles in the atmosphere, satellites, computer models, and artificial intelligence.

Central to the effort will be three total sky imagers in each of several locations that will observe the sky, triangulate the depth and height of clouds, and trace their paths across the sky.

The output of the system will prove useful to utility managers as well as just about everyone else, including local weather forecasters tasked to provide the public with accurate and reliable information used to do everything from dress themselves and decide whether or not to hit the beach.

The modeling "is very specific to solar, but we do expect everything that we do will feed back into the public domain and become available for lots of different uses downstream," Haupt said.

John Roach is a contributing writer for NBC News. To learn more about him, check out his website. For more of our Future of Technology series, watch the featured video below.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/futureoftech/sunlight-forecasts-benefit-electric-utilities-nascar-1C8481442

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