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VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Church marked its first Sunday in nearly eight years without a papal blessing, as cardinals gathered to elect a new leader of the 1.2 billion-member faith in one of the most troubled periods of its history.

The windows of the papal apartments overlooking St. Peter's Square were shut, which is normally the case only when a pope is outside Rome and delivers the Sunday blessing elsewhere.

There was no papal blessing of any kind, the first time the church has been in such a state of limbo since Sunday, April 3, 2005, the day after Pope John Paul died.

"It's strange, very strange to come to Rome to St. Peter's Square and not to hear the Angelus (Sunday blessing) of the pope, especially because the pope is still alive - it's a unique situation that we are living through," said Fabio Ferrara, who was one of the few people in the square at noon.

"We have been praying a lot, it's sad, it is very, very sad, we feel like orphans," said Sister Agnese Carreddu, an Italian nun in the square.

Catholics at Sunday masses throughout the world did not hear the customary prayer for "our pope, Benedict". It will be omitted from every mass until there is a new pope.

On Monday cardinals will begin preliminary meetings, known as general congregations, to get to know each other, discuss church issues and decide the starting date of the closed-door conclave to choose Benedict's successor.

The meetings are open to all cardinals, whereas only those under 80 can enter the Sistine Chapel and elect a new pope from their own ranks.

Currently 115 cardinal electors are due to take part in the conclave, which many believe will start around March 10.

The Vatican seems to be aiming for an election by mid-March so the new pope can be installed in office before Palm Sunday on March 24 and lead Holy Week services culminating in Easter the following Sunday.

No front-runner stands out and no campaigning is allowed for the election but leading candidates include Peter Turkson of Ghana, Leonardo Sandri of Argentina, Austrian Christoph Schoenborn, Brazil's Odilo Scherer, Canadian Marc Ouellet and Angelo Scola, the leading candidate from Italy.

"SAINTLY MAN" SOUGHT

In an exclusive interview with Reuters, Sandri said the Church must open itself up to women in the next pontificate, giving them more leadership positions in the Vatican and beyond.

He also said the next pope should not be chosen according to a geographic area but must be a "saintly man" who is "best qualified" to lead the Church in a time of crisis.

Benedict ended his difficult eight-year reign on Thursday pledging unconditional obedience to whoever succeeds him.

The cardinals will be worrying about a bureaucracy hit by scandals, intrigue and betrayals befitting a Renaissance court.

As well as sexual abuse by priests around the world, the scandals closer to home involve the leak of Benedict's personal papers, media reports of sexual misconduct in the Vatican, wiretapping, bureaucratic bungling and mishaps that many say could have been avoided.

The foreign cardinals who will choose the next pope have been particularly alarmed over the reports and might be inclined to pick someone not connected with the Vatican's Italian-dominated central administration, Vatican insiders say.

The cardinals will not see a top secret report prepared for Pope Benedict on mismanagement and infighting. But its three cardinal authors will be in the general congregations to advise electors on its findings.

"Since we don't really know what's in the report, I think we'll depend on the cardinals in the congregations to share with us what they think will be valuable for us to know to make the right decision for the future," said Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

The Vatican has accused the Italian media of spreading "false and damaging" reports, condemning some as deplorable attempts to influence the cardinal electors.

But last week it acknowledged that parts of an Italian magazine report about wiretapping in the Vatican were true. It said "a few" phones had been tapped by magistrates investigating the leaks scandal but that the tapping was not as widespread as the magazine suggested.

(Reporting by Philip Pullella; additional reporting by Leon Malherbe and Tom Heneghan)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-pope-blessing-cardinals-gather-elect-pontiff-143308663.html

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meridajoseph13

Oxford University is working on a self drive car controlled by an iPad A Nissan Leaf electric car has been modified by Oxford University to become a robotic car controlled by an iPad. The project which it is called ?auto drive? enables the car to drive itself for short stretches which could mean a stress free school run for parents or a productive work commute for others.

The system has been developed by the University and uses small cameras and lasers built into the cars bodywork which all link back to a trunk mounted computer. The iPad becomes the front end and is fitted within the cars dashboard.

The whole user experience is provided by an iPad which quickly guides the user through the few checks that are needed to induce autonomy. When it is safe to do so, the car offers the drive the chance to be driven automatically. Here is video showing that process. At any time the driver can take back control of the car by touching the brake - it's exactly like cruise control in an existing vehicle - only this time the car sees obstacles, controls speed and steering. It feels very natural.

There are three computers onboard. The iPad, the LLC (Low Level Controller) and the MVC (Main Vehicle Computer). The iPad runs the user interface and demands constant attention from the LLC. If any of these computers disagree the driver will not be able to start autonomous driving. If at any point there is a problem when the car is in control the human driver is prompted to take control, if they fail to do so the car is automatically brought to a stop.

The car is based on a modified Nissan Leaf which is powered solely by electricity. When you run out of fuel you just need to find a suitable power point rather than a gas station. Of course that wouldn't be too hard when you have a self drive system as capable as this. As Oxford University points out, we should imagine a time when all cars can drive themselves some of the time. This is what?s needed for everyday use; a future not condemned to congestion and accidents and one that has cars driving themselves and interacting safely with other road users. Maybe that possibility has just taken a step closer.

Source: Oxford University, Robot Car

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/Xee92fyh4xE/story01.htm

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meridajoseph13

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (Reuters) - Tiger Woods, who has endured his share of controversy and media scrutiny, said world number one Rory McIlroy should choose his words more carefully after withdrawing from the Honda Classic with what was initially a mysterious explanation. Before driving away from the PGA National course on Friday after a nightmare start to his round, McIlroy told reporters: "I'm not in a great place mentally. I can't really say much, guys. I'm just in a bad place mentally. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/sibanye-says-fy-production-down-15-pct-1-063556236--finance.html

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Source: http://freshmin.blogspot.com/2013/03/aerobic-cardio-exercises-small-way-to.html

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Heesun Wee , CNBC ? ? ? 3 hrs.

If mandatory federal spending cuts begin to take effect Friday, small companies are likely to experience a negative ripple effect of a slowdown in business.

The budget cuts, also known as sequestration, would hit domestic programs that fill every corner of the U.S. economy ? military spending, aviation, and education programs for low-income families. But unlike larger private-sector businesses, smaller employers usually don't have buffers such as large cash reserves to ride out federal budget cuts. Most smaller firms also can't quickly pivot their business strategies to ride out a rough patch.

"Larger companies have economies of scale these days. They have cash reserves, better access to credit markets. They tend to have more of a multinational presence," said Jared Bernstein, a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and former chief economic adviser to Vice President Joseph Biden. "Small firms tend to be less insulated from this kind of a hit."

Read More:Sequestration?CNBC Explains

Sequester 'ripple effect' seen
To be clear, the budget cuts are likely to have a rolling, accumulated impact on small business. Companies with U.S. government contracts must decide which workers will likely be laid off as funds to keep them on payroll evaporate.

"The sky isn't going to fall on March 1," Bernstein said.

Other budget experts note that President Barack Obama's state-by-state sequester report includes improbable precision in administration statements about what could happen. "It's not clear who gets hurt by this," Paul Light, a New York University professor who specializes in the federal bureaucracy and budget, told The Associated Press.

Of course, furloughing workers is never good news, and the budget cuts will have consequences.

Unemployment would create a gradual, domino effect on Main Street. "Less income means those workers will not visit the restaurants around the corner, bring dry cleaning to small businesses at the end of the block," said Bernstein. "There's a ripple effect that hits small businesses, as well."

Small employers squeezed
A study released in late 2012 estimates that in 2013 alone, a sequester would put 2.14 million jobs at risk, including about 956,000 small-business jobs. The sequester would cut across all government spending including the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The study was conducted by Stephen Fuller, a George Mason University economist, along with analysis from the Aerospace Industries Association, a trade group that represents aerospace and defense manufacturers.

"As contracts are cancelled, re-negotiated, or otherwise reduced, small business leaders will have limited flexibility in adjusting their business model," said Fuller in the study. "While some will seek to diversify, others will just downsize."

Read More: Amid 'Fiscal Cliff' Stalemate, Main Street Deteriorates

Hit to aerospace and defense
Not surprisingly, the nation's aerospace and defense programs are especially vulnerable to budget cuts. And those programs are dependent on small businesses ? often the sole suppliers of key components used to manufacture major weapons, aircraft, spacecraft and satellite systems.

Main Street, Washington disconnect
President Obama is scheduled to meet Friday with top leaders in the House and Senate, several hours past the deadline for averting automatic budget cuts. They'll discuss how to proceed on the divisive tax-and-spending issues.

The Budget Control Act of 2011 mandates about $1 trillion in sequestration budget cuts to the Department of Defense and non-DOD programs over nine years.

Meantime, for many Americans, shouts of sequester sound like politicians fanning the flames of economic doom ? again.

Fred Deluca, the founder of privately held Subway Restaurants, said the government broadly is simply out of touch with small-business owners. Policies including Obamacare discourage entrepreneurship and the American dream of owning your own business, Deluca told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" Wednesday.

"It's continuously gotten worse because there's more and more regulation. And it's tough for people to get into business, especially small business," he said. "If I started Subway today, Subway would not exist."

Not surprisingly, small-business owners' confidence was virtually flat in January, as entrepreneurs failed to recoup losses sparked by December's scare about the so-called "fiscal cliff."

While a fiscal deal was reached in January on tax increases and spending cuts, benefits have remained elusive for much of Main Street ? a traditional driver of new jobs during past economic downturns.

"The only good news is that it 'budged' up, not down. If small businesses were publicly traded companies, the stock market would be in shambles," said Bill Dunkelberg, chief economist of the National Federation of Independent Business. "While corporate profits are at record levels as a share of (gross domestic product), small businesses are still struggling to turn a profit."

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/budget-cuts-likely-be-felt-main-street-1C8616903

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GENEVA (Reuters) - People in the area worst affected by Japan's Fukushima nuclear accident two years ago have a slightly higher risk of developing certain cancers, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

A magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, killed nearly 19,000 people and devastated the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, spewing radiation and forcing about 160,000 people to flee their homes.

It was the worst nuclear accident since a reactor exploded at the Chernobyl power plant in Ukraine in 1986.

"A breakdown of data, based on age, gender and proximity to the plant, does show a higher cancer risk for those located in the most contaminated parts," Dr. Maria Neira, WHO director for public health and environment, said of the Fukushima report.

The United Nations agency said for the general population in Japan the predicted health risks were low. But it was not able to say how many people were exposed in the area where the highest amount of radioactive material was released.

In the most contaminated area, the WHO estimated that there was a 70 percent higher risk of females exposed as infants developing thyroid cancer over their lifetime. The thyroid is the most exposed organ as radioactive iodine concentrates there and children are deemed especially vulnerable.

But experts said the overall risk was small. The radiation exposure means about 1.25 out of every 100 girls in the area could develop thyroid cancer over their lifetime, instead of the natural rate of about 0.75 percent.

"Due to the low baseline rates of thyroid cancer, even a large relative increase represents a small absolute increase in risks," the WHO said.

Thyroid cancer takes a minimum of three years to develop, according to WHO report co-author Dr. Roy Shore of the Radiation Effects Research Foundation in Japan.

"By the time people reach adulthood, susceptibility to radiation-associated thyroid cancer goes way down," he told reporters, speaking by telephone from Hiroshima.

LEUKEMIA, BREAST CANCER

The WHO report estimated that in the most contaminated area there was a 7 percent higher risk of leukemia in males exposed as infants, and a 6 percent higher risk of breast cancer in females exposed as infants. Overall, girls had a 4 percent increased risk of developing solid cancers.

"These percentages represent estimated relative increases over the baseline rates and are not absolute risks for developing such cancers," the WHO said in a statement.

One-third of emergency workers were estimated to have increased cancer risks, it said.

"The risk among emergency workers would be increased for thyroid cancer particularly, and some circulatory disorders," Neira told a news briefing.

But there was no discernible increase in health risks expected outside Japan, the WHO said in a 200-page report which was based on an assessment by international experts.

"In the rest of Fukushima prefecture and in particular neighboring countries and the rest of the world, the estimated increased cancer risk is negligible. It's within the variation of normal background rates," said Angelika Tritscher, acting director of WHO's department of food safety.

Jim Smith, Professor of Environmental Science at the University of Portsmouth in England, said: "Apart from emergency workers, the most affected people were those who remained in some highly contaminated towns and villages to the northwest of the power station for up to four months before evacuation.

"The report found that these people received a lifetime radiation dose of up to 50 milli-Sieverts (MSV) and therefore have a significant, but relatively small, additional risk of contracting cancer in later life."

Smith said the average British person receives more than 150 MSV during their lifetime from background radiation.

Neira said: "The WHO report underlines the need for long-term health monitoring of those who are at high risk, along with the provision of necessary medical follow-up and support services."

Fukushima operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) earlier this month received approval to tap the Japanese government for 697 billion yen ($7.5 billion) to compensate those harmed by the disaster, taking the total fund to 3.24 trillion yen.

"The report was not looking at mental health or psychological impact of three major events - the earthquake, tsunami and accident at the nuclear power plant. But we know for sure that the psychological consequences and their impact will be very high," Neira said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cancer-risks-higher-worst-hit-fukushima-area-093400519--finance.html

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