Demands for Discovery to cancel the broadcast Anatomy "Jackson"

Newspaper reported, "Los Angeles Times" that once the American Declaration channel "Discovery" program for a display showing the autopsy of the King of Pop Michael Jackson on 13 January, received the David Zslav chief executive of the channel a lot of demands to halt "Anatomy of Michael Jackson .. Why did you kill Michael Jackson, "was the most prominent of a letter John Branca and John McLean, the two Executive Directors to the property of the King of Pop, had gone through a sharp attack against the channel.

They said in their rhetoric: "We are upset Jem about the intensification of the campaign ads about the program, which highlights the death of Jackson, but underestimated the degree that the offer of a body lying on a stretcher of steel and covered with a sheet, and shows them only by wearing gloves embroidered upon signing of the King of Pop " .

They added: "Discovery see it as spam smart program, but in fact is a declaration and lose, and a patient Ovj, no doubt that the image promoted by the program has spread to everywhere around the world thanks to the Internet, and view lovers Jackson They do not realize that the channel is fabricated" .

And seal up their rhetoric of last December 29 by saying "on behalf of the family of Michael Jackson, and love and common sense and courtesy, we urge you to reconsider and cancel the program. " The spokesman for the official channel "Discovery" to comment on this letter.

small shitbox on wheels

Back in the day I owned a FIAT 500. It broke down every time I drove it. And I mean every time. It was almost impossible to get parts for because the so-called auto workers went on strike every other month. I wouldn't own or drive another FIAT if the President of Chrysler wanted to give me one for free. They don't call FIATs "Fix It Again Tony" for no reason. I will drive FIATs never again forever.

So it's not unusual?

Bernstein:  Markets go through four phases. The first phase is a period of denial, where people say, it can't happen (stocks rising despite risks), it won't happen, and if it's happening it can't continue. That's where we are in the U.S. The second phase is acceptance, like OK, I should probably be (buying stocks). The third is what I call the brave new world, things are never going to change, everything is wonderful. The fourth phase is the bear market.

Why is that?

Chung:  China policy, which has been the topic of almost every conversation that affects macro issues, is going to be very tricky next year. The Chinese government is clearly not happy with their efforts to slow what they believe is a rising property bubble. We are going to see some more (policy tightening) action there. Finally, the rest of the world, including China, isn't that happy with what the U.S. Federal Reserve has been doing with (its easy-money policies). There are risks related to policy responses by emerging markets.

Will the deal to extend the Bush-era tax cuts and reduce payroll taxes give stocks a lift?

Chung: It's a very positive tail wind for accelerating something that's been occurring, which is increasing capital expenditures by business. The payroll tax cut is not insignificant in terms of putting more money in the pockets of working Americans. So, both of those are very pro growth.

How can companies generate such big profits with so many people out of work?

Bianco:  About 40% of the S&P 500's revenue comes from abroad, where many countries are growing at a faster clip than the U.S. The S&P has a lot of powerful indirect exposures to the world economy, via emerging market and commodity demand. Commodity prices are very important to the energy, industrial and material companies. Business spending also has a lot of connections to global growth. And that's what drives S&P earnings.

What else is driving corporate earnings?

Chung:  Earnings are likely to be better than expectations for a while. Retail investors need to remind themselves that public companies represent some of the most dynamic innovation in our country. Netflix was recently added to the S&P 500. This is a company we invested in many years ago at $5 (Thursday's close: $181.65). Everyone knows it now. It's an example of zero international exposure, but pure innovation. Most of what it does is an old business of watching movies delivered by mail. Now they're moving to the Internet. This type of innovation is why U.S. stocks are very attractive now.

Will higher stock prices create a wealth effect and boost the economy and stocks?

Chung:  Where the wealth effect tends to play out very directly is in upper-end consumers that have a lot of discretionary income. We're watching very carefully how the luxury goods manufacturers, or companies that service higher-end consumers, are doing. They've seen some of the strongest comebacks. It seems very unlikely that that gets derailed in 2011. I think sentiment improves, as does spending on higher-end luxury items, and more actual investing in U.S. stocks, something that even high-end consumers have been shy of in the last couple years.

Cohen: The wealth effect impact will be very different on middle-income investors than on others. For many middle-income families, their most significant asset is still their home. Middle-income families and lower are skewed much more towards fixed income. So even if we were to see a meaningful rally in stocks, the impact would be very uneven in terms of which families would benefit.

What about the impact of the U.S. dollar? It's showing strength after months of weakness.

Bernstein:  Normally people say a weak dollar means your exports are going to go up, and there's something to that, although I don't think we're a big manufacturing economy. We export services and agricultural things, and that type of stuff.

But a stronger dollar will be a positive because it will reflect renewed confidence in the U.S. If there's one theme that transcends every bearish view — whether it's inflation, deflation, economic malaise — the general consensus is: You should not invest in the U.S.; there's no future in the U.S.; we're on our way down to some new low in global society. It's quite dramatic. My point is that in 2011 into 2012, people will be surprised by the growth in the U.S., and you will see investment flows come towards the U.S., and that will be a big support for the dollar.

Bianco:  A stronger dollar will be a bit of a head wind to earnings growth, but there will still be strong earnings growth. The focus is going to shift to interest rates: How far can they go up? A stronger dollar is going to help keep interests rates from going up a whole lot. It's also going to attract foreign investors to things like the U.S. equity markets.

Experts agree: Get over your fear and get back into stocks

NEW YORK — Five Wall Street heavyweights say it's time for individual investors to shun the perceived safety of bonds — and get over their fear of the U.S. stock market — so they can take advantage of what they predict will be a third straight year of solid gains for stocks in 2011.

The major theme from USA TODAY's 15th annual Investment Roundtable is that the bond market is looking riskier amid signs the economy is gaining traction. The five panelists say stocks, which get a boost from stronger growth, will post better returns than bonds in 2011. They are advising investors, many still leery two years after the financial crisis, to start shifting some investment dollars out of bonds and back into stocks.

"If you don't believe in a depression, and I don't," saysBlackRock's chief equity strategist Bob Doll, "stocks will go up and bonds will go down in the next few years."

Adds David Bianco, chief U.S. equity strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch: "We're broadly bullish on U.S. equities. It's important for investors to get back into the asset class. Go buy mutual funds. Go buy index funds."

With the odds of a double-dip recession fading, assets perceived as safe, such as bonds, may be riskier than investors think. And "risk assets" like stocks may be better priced than they appear, says Abby Joseph Cohen, senior investment strategist for Goldman Sachs' Global Markets Institute

Solar System: Attractive app for amateur astronomers

The new Solar System for iPad app is an amazing and extraordinarily attractive resource for amateur astronomers.

CAPTION

Touch Press

This first app to come out of the partnership between developer Touch Press and publishing house Faber & Faber can best be described as an electronic book penned by best-selling author (and former radio astronomer) Marcus Chown.

Featured is interactive 3D imagery of the sun, planets and moons. You can touch Saturn's rings (based on images from NASA's Cassini mission), flick through the icy rubble of the Kuiper Belt, or pinch and zoom into Earth to study the continents from above, with or without cloud cover.

Along with an opening song set to space imagery, this app features many well-written articles for each part of the solar system you touch. There are dozens of high-resolution galleries, extensive videos and animated sequences. Check out "How to spot a planet?" and "The real Mars." You also find data for each planet or moon including diameter, mass, volume, gravity and atmosphere.

While relatively pricey, Solar System for iPad is an out-of-this-world digital book that is as informative as it is beautiful. It's a stellar example for other reference app makers on how to best take advantage of the tablet medium

Sears and Kmart launch movie download service

Sears and Kmart have teamed up to offer their customers a movie download service called Alphaline Entertainment.

The service uses Sonic's RoxioNow platform for content delivery, which makes it quite similar to Best Buy's CinemaNow (which is based on the same platform). The pricing, too, is very similar, as Alphaline Entertainment offers movie rentals for $3.99 and purchases at $19.99 for new releases.

Sonic and Sears plan a multi-phase rollout, which should eventually make the service available from a variety of connected devices.

Check the service out over at alphaline.roxionow.com; users outside of the U.S. shouldn't bother as they'll be greeted with an unsightly error message.

iPhone 4, Barbie top eBay's shopping trends in 2010

eBay's annual Top Shopped report usually offers insight into the pop culture moments and fashion trends that captivated shoppers' curiosity, and cash during the year. In 2010, it was all about Apple, the World Cup and toys, according to eBay, which released its top-10 list today.

Apple's iPhone 4 (1,634,674 related items sold) and iPad (621,399) dominated the tech scene. On the sporting scene, it was a buzzing plastic instrument at the World Cup in South Africa (more than 265,000 vuvuzelas sold). Classic toys like Barbie (1,178,909 related items sold) and Hot Wheels (748,140) also made a comeback.

eBay based its results on analyzed sales and search data across categories in its online Marketplace to come up with this year's list below:

1. iPhone
2. Barbie
3. Military jackets
4. Hot Wheels
5. iPad
6. World cup
7. The Beatles
8. Silly Bandz
9. Alice in Wonderland
10. New Orleans Saints

Adobe's Lightroom was a dramatic upgrade for 2010

We continue our look at favorite products of the year, today with photo software. Tomorrow we'll look at video programs.

No software made a bigger impact on my daily life than Adobe's update of Lightroom, the program for managing workflow and making quick edits on the fly.

The difference between Lightroom 2 and Lightroom 3, the new version ($99 for upgrades, $299 for new purchasers--but often discounted to around $220) released officially in July, is dramatic. Adobe also came out in the summer with a new version of flagship Photoshop, CS5, which has a few new bells and whistles, but not enough to make you run out to fork over $199 for the upgrade. (New users will pay $699.)

Lightroom 3 is what all upgrades should be--with so much cool new stuff that you can't live with the old version any more.

There are so many must have features, but topping the list is Lightroom 3's noise reduction technology. You can take a photo shot in ultra low light, run it through Lightroom, and much of the noise will go away. (You'll also need to sharpen the photo post noise reduction as well, otherwise it might look a little fuzzy.) This tool eliminates the need for add-on software like Noise Ninja or Nik Multimedia'sDfine.

When importing pictures into Lightroom, the new version offers visual thumbnails, and lets you select which images to bring in--saving room on your hard drive from turkeys that would have been deleted later.

The "Develop" module of Lightroom, where you make your edits, lets you tweak the exposure, white balance, saturation and overall color. I've put a photo shot in front of a green screen into Lightroom, and eliminated the green completely--turning the background into gray. I could have done it in Photoshop, but this saved a step.

Lightroom 3 also added the ability to view video files in the program, which seemed like a big deal at the time, but while welcome, doesn't really add much. Many of us are shooting stills and videos on the same memory card with Digital SLRs and point-and-shoot cameras, but Lightroom is a video viewer, not an editor, so not much help there except for putting the video files in the same folder as your photo shoot. But if they're going to be edited, you'll have to eventually move them into their own folder.

Photoshop guru Scott Kelby this year wrote a long post about features he'd like to see in Lightroom 4 -- software we'll surely see in 2011. Specifically, he asked for better tools for online slideshows, printing and web galleries. I agree that the tools available now are lackluster, but the Lightroom editing and organization tools are so strong, I think Adobe should focus on those, and just forget about the others. Lightroom should focus on what it does best--instead of trying to be all things

Tap Tap Revenge 4: Fun for music lovers, but not radically different

The most popular rhythm game series for Apple iOS devices is back for more with Tap Tap Revenge 4 .

CAPTION

Tapulous/Disney Mobile

While Disney Mobile's latest doesn't mess much with the formula, it introduces a new arcade mode, high-resolution Retina Display graphics, Game Center integration and more music.

First, the basics: Much like in Guitar Hero or Rock Band, gamers are challenged to tap one of three circles, in time with the music, when the orb soars into the circle near the bottom of the screen. Tap at the correct time and you'll accumulate points, but you'll see the "Miss" icon if you fail to press in rhythm (or tap on the wrong circle). At times, you'll also need to shake the device for a bonus, quickly tap multiplier icons and press and hold for orbs with a long tail. There are four difficulty levels: Easy, Medium, Hard and Extreme.

As with past Tap Tap Revenge games, there are many hundreds of songs to download, including new ones from the likes of Katy Perry, Train, Justin Timberlake and Bad Religion, to name a few. Be aware that not all of the many free songs listed in the game's press release are full-length tunes. For example, Linkin Park's free Waiting for the End is just 1:37 minutes and not the full 3:54-minute song.

Another issue: You can't import any songs downloaded from previous Tap Tap Revenge games and only some of those purchased from premium games, such as Tap Tap Coldplay. Disney Mobile says it is working on a remedy.

To round-off what's new in this iOS game (playable on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch), Arcade mode puts a greater emphasis on tapping stars for bonus points. Game Center integration allows you to challenge others and share high scores on the global leaderboard or via Facebook, Twitter and email.

Overall, this free app is fun, especially for music lovers, but it's not radically different than its predecessors

iPad 2 rumors: the comprehensive guide

It's nearly impossible to keep up with the chatter surrounding the iPad 2. Every day it seems like there's a new rumor about a new model, a new launch date or even a USB port. It's a bit overwhelming.

That's why we decided to scour the web for the most prominent iPad 2 rumors and create a comprehensive guide detailing what we think is likely to be in the next generation of the iPad.

We've picked out our top 10 rumors and provided not only our analysis, but the percentage chance a specific iPad 2 rumor will actually come to fruition. We'd bet money on some of these rumors (two cameras), while others will only happen when pigs learn how to fly (the mythical 7-inch iPad).

Without further ado, here is our comprehensive guide to the iPad 2 rumors:

Facebook is No. 1 in yet another category: Searched term

In a year in which its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, was namedTime's person of the year, and a major motion picture based on its origin was a runaway hit, Facebook has another honor.

Market researcher Experian Hitwise just anointed "Facebook" as the top searched term in 2010, based on data from January to November. (http://bit.ly/i7Hrg2)

It is the second year the social-networking power was No. 1, this year accounting for 2.1% of all U.S. searches.

What is more, four variations of the term "facebook" were among the top 10 terms, comprising 3.5% of all searches.

UPDATE: Google properties accounted for 9.85% of U.S. visits, good for top spot. Facebook properties came in at 8.93

Report: Three versions of new iPad in works for 2011

With the Consumer Electronics Show right around the corner, new rumors have surfaced surrounding a new iPad from Apple.

Taiwanese news site DigiTimes reports, citing "industry sources," that Apple plans on releasing three versions of the next-generation iPad, and will start production as early as next month.

USA TODAY was not able

.

According to the report, the models will utilize Wi-Fi as well as UMTS and CDMA cell phone technologies. The screen will also feature "anti-smudge and anti-reflective treatments in order to compete against Kindle and attract more consumers," reads the DigiTimes piece.

Earlier this month, Reuters reported the new iPad will include front- and rear-facing cameras

More states let students opt out of P.E. classes

DES MOINES — When the Des Moines school district announced this fall it was going to make it tougher for students to waive their physical education classes by scaling back all but a handful of exemptions, it caught students and parents by surprise.

It also countered a national trend.

Despite growing concerns about obesity among young people, the number of states that allow students to waive or substitute physical education classes has grown from 27 to 32 since 2006, according to Paula Kun, a spokeswoman for the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE

Coast to coast, cities ready to ring in 2011

It seems MTV has already dropped the ball on its New Year's Eve festivities. New York City officials promise the snow will be cleared and the annual Times Square blowout will go on, but they turned down MTV's request to lower Jersey Shore star Snooki in a glass ball from the roof of the network's studio as the clock struck midnight.

MTV made the request too late, and it was "too impractical," Times Square Alliance spokeswoman Alice McGillion said.

The official crystal-encrusted Times Square ball will drop as scheduled.

"Our event is scheduled to go on," said Chris Heywood of NYC & Co., the city's tourism organization. "We're expecting dry weather and temperatures in the 40s."

Streets should be cleared for traffic and tourists by Friday, he said.

New York expects a big crowd. Hotels are 90% occupied, Haywood said, and the warmer weather should bring out more than the 1 million people who were there last year.

While usually frigid cities such as New York and Chicago expect higher temperatures this weekend — enough so for the snow to melt —Las Vegas may see record-breaking lows: a high of 39 degrees and a low of 29 degrees, according to The Weather Channel.

Revelers in other cities, including Dallas and Los Angeles, will also need warm jackets as temperatures dip into the 40s.

Some of the nation's biggest parties:

•Las Vegas Strip casinos will set off fireworks from their rooftops. Fremont Street downtown will have live bands and a light show.

•Atlanta's giant peach will drop down its 138-foot tower at the Atlanta Underground for the 22nd time.

•Chicagoans expect 50-degree temperatures for fireworks at Navy Pier.

•Los Angeles' Universal Studios will sponsor a free concert and fireworks show at Citywalk.

•Miami's giant orange will climb the side of the Hotel InterContinental, sparking the beginning of a fireworks display at Bayfront Park Amphitheater.

•Seattle will send fireworks sailing from the deck of the Space Needle.

•Boston will continue its family-oriented First Night tradition of alcohol-free entertainment downtown.

•Dallas' annual free event will feature fireworks and live bands in Victory Park.

Obama under pressure to deliver on climate

Jan. 2 isn't your ordinary Sunday.

It's the day the Obama administration will officially start regulating greenhouse gas emissions, and critics have issued dire predictions of economic destruction.

With all the fiery rhetoric about how damaging the regulations could be, the White House is under pressure to fulfill its vow to tackle climate change while avoiding the appearance it's hindering job growth.

gop lawmakers have already launched a series of efforts to hamstring the Environmental Protection Agency — and that's before the rules have even officially kicked in. Those efforts are expected to increase in frequency and in force in the next Congress as repulicans claim the House majority and industries continue to lobby against the greenhouse gas regulations.

mp3 players

Cities1.Salt Lake City, UT, USA

2.Rochester, NY, USA3.Charlotte, NC, USA4.Cincinnati, OH, USA5.San Antonio, TX, USA6.Philadelphia, PA, USA7.Orlando, FL, USA8.Tampa, FL, USA9.Denver, CO, USA10.Raleigh, NC, USA

mp3 players

Cities1.Salt Lake City, UT, USA
2.Rochester, NY, USA3.Charlotte, NC, USA4.Cincinnati, OH, USA5.San Antonio, TX, USA6.Philadelphia, PA, USA7.Orlando, FL, USA8.Tampa, FL, USA9.Denver, CO, USA10.Raleigh, NC, USA