Gingrich defends government-sponsored enterprises (AP)

SIOUX CITY, Iowa ? Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich describes some government-sponsored enterprises as valuable entities that can help people.

Gingrich on Thursday night defended his time working with Freddie Mac, the quasi-government home mortgage agency. Gingrich made more than $1.6 million working with it.

Gingrich says at the latest GOP debate that some public-private partnerships ? institutions like credit unions and electricity cooperatives ? are important and do a good job.

His Republican rivals criticized him. Texas Rep. Ron Paul says those are the "worst kind" of economic entity because they mix free enterprise with the government.

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann says Freddie Mac and a similar entity, Fannie Mae, "need to go away."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111216/ap_on_el_pr/us_gop_debate_gingrich_freddie_mac

hoppin john dan wheldon walking dead weldon weldon danica patrick david garrard

CA-CANADA Summary (Reuters)

Canada first nation to pull out of Kyoto protocol

OTTAWA (Reuters) ? Canada on Monday became the first country to announce it would withdraw from the Kyoto protocol on climate change, dealing a symbolic blow to the already troubled global treaty. Environment Minister Peter Kent broke the news on his return from talks in Durban, where countries agreed to extend Kyoto for five years and hammer out a new deal forcing all big polluters for the first time to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

Government bans veils during citizenship ceremonies

OTTAWA (Reuters) - In a move likely to increase tension with Canada's Muslim minority, the government said on Monday it would bar all women wearing face coverings from taking part in citizenship ceremonies. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said he had received complaints from citizenship judges and parliamentarians about veiled women taking the oath to formally become Canadian.

Watchdog, Ottawa differ on Canada's budget balance

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's budget watchdog sees the federal government's structural balance as at least C$10 billion ($9.71 billion) lower per year than Ottawa estimates, and called for more disclosure of assumptions and methodology used in drafting forecasts. The Parliamentary Budget Officer said the discrepancy was likely caused by different estimates on how the economy is performing at any given time in relation to its potential to grow. Miscalculations can lead to bad policy decisions, it suggested.

Crosby out indefinitely with concussion-like symptoms

(Reuters) - Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is out indefinitely with concussion-like symptoms and there is no timetable for his return, the National Hockey League's (NHL) biggest drawing card said on Monday. Crosby, who missed the last two games as a precaution, did not practice with his team on Monday and told reporters after that he has had symptoms for the last couple days.

CN Rail, union reach tentative deal

(Reuters) - Canadian National Railway Co and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) have reached a tentative agreement on labor contracts before the expiry of the current contract. Details were not available, as the agreement needs to be ratified by TCRC members, a process expected to take about 60 days.

Congress cannot accelerate Keystone decision: State Department

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department warned on Monday that a plan by congressional Republicans to fast track the Canada-to-Texas Keystone XL pipeline decision would violate environmental laws and force it to withhold approval. "Should Congress impose an arbitrary deadline for the permit decision ... the department would be unable to make a determination to issue a permit for this project," the State Department said in a statement.

Competition to cut food inflation in Canada: report

TORONTO (Reuters) - Target Corp's impending arrival in Canada, paired with Wal-Mart Stores Inc's expanding grocery business in the country, will help slow food inflation next year and keep established grocers under pressure, researchers said on Monday. Food prices will rise no more than 2 percent in 2012 according to a new forecast from University of Guelph professors Sylvain Charlebois and Francis Tapon, a significant drop from the 4.3 percent year-over-year price gain that Statistics Canada has estimated for October.

Canada settles long court case against U.S. Steel

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada and U.S. Steel Corp have settled a court case that started when Ottawa sought to fine the firm in 2009 for breaking job-protection promises made when it bought Canadian steelmaker Stelco, Industry Minister Christian Paradis said on Monday. Under the terms of the settlement, U.S. Steel will operate both the Lake Erie and Hamilton plants until 2015. It has also agreed to spend a total of C$250 million ($243 million) in capital investment, C$50 million more than initially envisaged.

Liberals seek to block Canadian Wheat Board bill

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The federal Liberals formally asked Governor General David Johnston on Monday not to give final assent to the Conservative government's bill to end the Canadian Wheat Board's marketing monopoly on Western Canadian wheat and barley. However, Johnston has already signaled that he does not think it is his place to withhold royal assent, which is required for bills to become law. In September, Canadian Press quoted Johnston as saying that while governors general may have had the theoretical right to veto legislation in the past, those days are gone.

Suncor shares sink after pullout from Syria

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Suncor Energy Inc Chief Executive Rick George figured his investors were uneasy with the risks of new Middle East and North African operations when the company acquired Petro-Canada in 2009, and with Sunday's pullout from Syria that discomfort has been borne out a second time in less than a year. Suncor shares sank 3 percent on Monday as investors weighed the Canadian company's retreat from a $1.2 billion Syrian gas project with no indication of any financial recourse. It came as Libyan operations recovered from a shutdown in that country early this year due to the civil war.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111213/wl_canada_nm/canada_summary

cranberry sauce oregon usc la auto show powerball winning numbers powerball winning numbers uc davis pepper spray uc davis pepper spray

Measles outbreaks on the rise across Europe

(AP) ? After years of decline, measles is on the rise in Europe, according to a new report released Thursday.

As of October, European health officials reported more than 26,000 measles cases this year and nine deaths. That's a threefold increase in cases from the same time period in 2007, said the World Health Organization.

France accounted for about 14,000 cases, mainly in children older than five and in young adults.

Other big outbreaks of the highly-contagious disease have been identified in Spain, Romania, Macedonia, and Uzbekistan. So far, measles has killed nine people in Europe and hospitalized thousands of others. The report was published Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"We are seeing a surge of cases much larger than we've seen in the past five or six years," said Rebecca Martin, immunization program manager for WHO's Europe office in Copenhagen. Measles cases had been dropping for years, but began to increase sharply in late 2009.

Martin said the epidemic was fueled mainly by low vaccination rates and noted about half the cases were in people older than 15.

"Over the years, people who haven't been vaccinated are now giving the virus a big opportunity to spread," Martin said.

The report said overall vaccination rates in Europe were high, but still didn't meet the 95 percent target needed to stop outbreaks. Of the people who got measles, about half weren't vaccinated and the vaccination histories of many of the others was unknown.

More cases in Europe have also meant spillover elsewhere. The U.S. has 205 cases this year ? the most in a decade ? and virtually all are linked to other regions, including 20 cases from Europe. Because North America has so little measles, every imported case requires a thorough investigation and response costing tens of thousands of dollars, Martin said.

The U.S. normally only has about 50 cases a year. In May, international health officials posted an alert urging travelers everywhere to get vaccinated before flying overseas.

Measles is highly contagious and up to 90 percent of people exposed to an infected person get sick, experts say. The virus spreads easily through the air, and in closed rooms, infected droplets can linger for up to two hours after the sick person leaves.

It causes a fever, runny nose, cough and a rash all over the body. The disease kills about one to two children for every 1,000 it infects, and can also cause pregnant women to have a miscarriage or premature birth.

In 2008, there were about 164,000 measles deaths worldwide. More than 95 percent of those deaths were in poor countries.

Health officials say controlling measles outbreaks in Europe is still being compromised because of ignorance of the disease's severity and skepticism about the vaccine.

The measles shot was tainted by now discredited research published by Andrew Wakefield in 1998 suggesting a possible link between autism and the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella. Parents abandoned the vaccine in droves and suspicion about its safety still lingers, even though repeated studies have shown no connection.

Unlike in the U.S., where most states require children to be vaccinated against measles before starting school, no such regulations exist in most of Europe.

Spain and Switzerland exclude unvaccinated children from school during measles outbreaks, but don't otherwise insist on vaccination. In France and Britain, parents are advised to have their children immunized if they haven't received the measles shot, but there is no penalty for not doing so.

WHO's Martin said Europe's measles epidemic appeared to be on the decline. She said France and Switzerland were planning to offer the measles vaccine to older age groups in the future.

She warned people who skipped the shot that measles is not a mild disease.

"It's a dangerous decision not to get vaccinated," she said. "One death is too many when we have an effective vaccine."

____

AP Medical Writer Mike Stobbe contributed to this report from Atlanta.

___

Online:

CDC report:www.cdc.gov/mmwr/

(This version CORRECTS Corrects number of cases in U.S. to 205, not 250)

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2011-12-01-EU-MED-Europe-Measles/id-022a9b4a992f4476866a59c99e2bb3f0

brandon mcinerney black friday 2011 deals nfl power rankings week 12 nfl power rankings week 12 brine turkey brine turkey uc davis

Obama fights for Jewish support amid GOP attacks (AP)

WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama and his Republican opponents are clashing over U.S. policy toward Israel as each side jockeys for support from Jewish voters, who could be critical in the 2012 election.

Aiming to cast Obama as unfairly harsh toward Israel and soft on the Palestinians, Republican presidential hopefuls Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have called on the president to fire his ambassador to Belgium. The envoy, Howard Gutman, had said that some anti-Semitism stemmed from tensions between Israel and the Palestinians; Romney and Gingrich say his remarks unfairly blamed Israel.

The White House says Obama has a strong record on support for Israel, and quickly fired back with a statement condemning "anti-Semitism in all its forms." The State Department said Gutman would remain in his job.

Republicans also challenged Obama's assertion at a fundraiser last week that "this administration has done more in terms of the security of the state of Israel than any previous administration." Romney said Obama has "repeatedly thrown Israel under the bus" ? an accusation the Republican National Committee repeated Monday.

Firing back, Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz called Romney's comments "outrageous" and questioned his own policies. The White House cited military aid to Israel and support at the United Nations, and pointed to statements from Israeli officials backing up Obama's assertion.

The fiery debate will probably continue Wednesday when the GOP presidential candidates attend a Washington forum hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition.

Obama campaign officials say they will be ready to respond. And the next day, Jewish leaders will be at the White House for briefings on Israel and a Hanukkah party, followed by an Obama speech next week to an expected audience of nearly 6,000 at a conference of the Union for Reform Judaism.

Such attention is all being paid in recognition that Jewish voters, though comprising only 2 percent of the electorate nationwide, are an important part of Obama's base and could make the difference in battleground states including Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Nevada in a close election. Moreover, the Jewish community is an important source of donations, and Obama campaign supporters want to maintain that support as much as Republicans want to chip away at it.

"This campaign takes the Jewish vote very, very seriously," said Ira Forman, the Obama campaign Jewish outreach director. "I'm confident this will be the most comprehensive effort in presidential campaign history."

The White House outreach has increased since May when Obama caused a furor by calling for Israel's 1967 borders, with agreed-upon land swaps, as a basis for resuming negotiations toward a two-state solution with the Palestinians. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the `67 borders as indefensible and largely disregarded Obama's emphasis on land swaps to account for current conditions.

Republicans seized on the dispute. And while Obama supporters say his argument was widely mischaracterized, damage was done. Now the Obama campaign and its backers say they are determined to respond rapidly to such criticism in future.

"We are trying to responsibly respond to all of these unsubstantiated or false allegations, but there are so many of them, and they are so frequently recited despite the fact that the people who are spreading them have to know that they're false, that it's hard to keep up with them," said Alan Solow, an Obama fundraiser and longtime associate.

The effort involves using surrogates including Vice President Joe Biden, and use of the president's own time in public appearances and private talks with donors and religious leaders, such as a conference call between Obama and rabbis ahead of the Jewish New Year this fall.

The Obama campaign also is going on the offense against Republicans. In conversations about the Jewish vote, Obama backers are quick to bring up comments by Romney, Gingrich and Rick Perry at a debate last month suggesting they would start foreign aid for all countries at zero. Obama supporters say would imperil funding for Israel, even though the candidates also sought to affirm their support for the Jewish state.

Democratic candidates typically enjoy a big electoral advantage among Jewish voters. Obama won 78 percent of the Jewish vote in 2008, compared with 21 percent for Republican John McCain.

But Gallup has found that Obama's approval rating among Jews has fallen from 83 percent in January 2009 to 54 percent in late summer and early fall of this year. Still, that figure is much higher than his overall 41 percent approval rating, and the drop-off in support was about in line with other voter groups.

Sid Dinerstein, chairman of the Palm Beach County Republican Party in Florida, predicted that Obama would be limited to around 60 percent of the Jewish vote in 2012. Obama backers say that won't happen, but it could mean a potentially decisive difference of tens of thousands of votes in key states.

A candidate's position on Israel may not be the top issue for most Jewish voters, who like others are more motivated by jobs and the economy. But it's important to many, and Republicans see an opening, given the consternation over Obama's 1967 borders speech, his administration's rebukes of Israel for building settlements in disputed areas, and a recent incident in which Obama was overheard appearing to endorse criticism of Netanyahu from French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

"The reality is that the Jewish community understands that on a number of critical issues this administration has undermined not only the U.S.-Israel relationship, but has made Israel more vulnerable," said Matt Brooks, executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition.

Brooks points to the recent upset in New York's special election to replace Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner, in which Republican Bob Turner won in the heavily Jewish district. Brooks says this was a warning sign to Obama on his stance on Israel. Obama supporters say other factors were at play, including the heavily Orthodox and more conservative makeup of the district.

But even strong supporters are disappointed that Obama has not yet traveled to Israel in his capacity as president, after delivering a major speech in Cairo early in his administration. An Israel trip had been rumored to be in the works but seems unlikely to happen prior to the 2012 election.

Democratic Rep. Steve Rothman of New Jersey said he remains hopeful a trip will happen in the next year.

"No president has been perfect on every subject, though history will record that Obama has been the best president for Israel when it comes to military and intelligence support," said Rothman.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111206/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_jewish_voters

aaron hernandez portland news portland news tibetan mastiff manny pacquiao pacquiao blanche

Posthumous Amy Winehouse album leading UK charts (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? Amy Winehouse's posthumous album "Lioness: Hidden Treasures" was on course to top the British album charts by the end of the week, the Official Charts Company (OCC) said on Tuesday.

Although not yet at the halfway point for the weekly ranking, the collection of 12 tracks recorded from as early as 2002 but not used on either of Winehouse's studio albums was well ahead of the competition.

In a brief statement, the OCC said Lioness: Hidden Treasures had sold nearly 70,000 copies so far.

Winehouse's father Mitch, writing on Twitter, said the figure was 140,000, although it was not clear whether that was projected sales for the whole week or reflected more up-to-date data.

"Just been told. Amy at number 1. 140,000 sold = ?140,000 to foundation in one day. Well done baby," he wrote.

"My heart is sad but bursting with pride. Mitch"

Winehouse died in July aged 27, ending a promising career that was marred by highly publicized battles with drug and alcohol addiction.

The "Back to Black" singer, known for her beehive hairstyle and distinctive soulful voice, had high levels of alcohol in her blood at the time of her death.

Mitch has set up a charity in her name aimed at helping children and young adults suffering ill health and addiction, and for every copy of the album sold, one pound goes to the Amy Winehouse Foundation.

Reviews of the album have been mixed, with several critics saying the music pointed to Winehouse's huge potential but also failed to live up to the high standards she would have demanded when at her peak.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111206/en_nm/us_amywinehouse_abum

honey badger brooke mueller herman cain harry potter and the half blood prince drew brees drew brees city of ember

Egypt runoff exposes tensions between Islamists (AP)

CAIRO ? The runoff Monday for Egypt's first-round parliamentary elections heated up tensions between competing Islamist groups that have so far dominated the vote, with scuffles breaking out and allegations of death threats.

The strife shows the challenges facing the front-runner, the Muslim Brotherhood, after hard-line Islamist parties made a surprisingly strong showing. The more moderate Brotherhood is now under pressure to reassure both Egyptians and foreign allies that the country is not going down an extremist path and remains committed to democratic transition.

The Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and best organized political group, is in the lead so far, with about 37 percent of the vote, according to partial results released Sunday. But the hard-line Al-Nour bloc grabbed nearly a quarter of the vote for the ultraconservative Salafis, who seek to impose strict Islamic law in Egypt.

The strong Islamist showing came at the expense of liberal activist groups that led the uprising against Hosni Mubarak, toppling a regime long seen as a secular bulwark in the Middle East.

Nabil Abdel-Fattah, a senior researcher at Al-Ahram Center for Strategic Studies, said the Islamists are in a "fierce" battle over the same ideological base."

"They both have high financial resources. The Brotherhood have experience and social networks," he said.

The Salafis "have no (political) experience, but are relying on a long history ... of concessions" by the Mubarak regime, which "left them to expand as a way to counter the power of the Muslim Brotherhood."

"This is going to be a very conservative Islamic parliament," he said. "The conflicts will be between that trend and the democratic forces."

The Salafis espouse a strict interpretation of Islam similar to that of Saudi Arabia, where the sexes are segregated and women must be veiled and are barred from driving. They speak openly about their aim of turning Egypt into a state where personal freedoms, including freedom of speech, women's dress and art, are constrained by Islamic law.

Reform leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Mohamed ElBaradei warned that the strident positions of some ultraconservative leaders have sent "shock waves" both inside and outside Egypt.

"I think the Brotherhood in particular, and some of the Salafis, should send quickly messages of assurance both inside the country and outside the country to make sure that society continues to be cohesive, to make sure that investment will come in," ElBaradei told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday.

Tensions between the Brotherhood and Salafis were simmering Monday in some runoff districts.

In southern Assiut province, there were scuffles and even allegations of death threats against Brotherhood candidates by supporters of Gamaa Islamiya, a former militant group that is part of the Al-Nour bloc. The province is a stronghold of the group, which fought the Mubarak regime in a bloody insurgency in the 1990s.

Since Mubarak's ouster, hard-line Islamists, many of whom were released from prison, exploited a growing security vacuum in the country and grew increasingly assertive in a push for power. In Assiut, they wrested control of mosques from government-appointed preachers and installed their own prayer leaders. The city is filled with signs exhorting residents to follow Islamic teachings and women to wear the hijab, or Muslim headscarf.

"The hijab is obligatory," one sign read. "Take your eyes off women," another warned.

In the city of Dayrout, the Brotherhood accused Gamaa Islamiya campaign workers of ordering all Brotherhood campaign workers to remove their computers and stay away from polling centers.

"A cleric was beat up, insulted and ordered to stay away," a Muslim Brotherhood campaign worker told the AP. "Our people were threatened that if they entered villages around this city, they will be shot dead," said the worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security concerns.

Despite the rivalry, Saad el-Katatni, the secretary general of the Brotherhood's political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, said he didn't expect election competition to spill over into parliament.

He said his party will work to form a broad coalition that includes liberal trends, and "absorbs" the Islamist parties who are new to the political scene.

"Some of the new parties wanted to be alone, to get as many seats as possible and to be seen as powerful in the parliament," he told the AP. "They will need to be part of the group (once in parliament). If they work alone, it will be a big loss for them."

He said it was too early to speak of specific parliamentary alliances, but so far, the major Salafi party has signaled it won't join, and has already walked out on a pre-election coalition with the Brotherhood.

Still, many fear the hard-line views of the Salafi and other radical groups may undermine the Brotherhood's attempt to maintain a moderate line inside parliament.

Voter Ali Serour, 49, said he voted Monday for the Brotherhood party candidate and a veteran Mubarak official "to balance things out a bit".

He said the Brotherhood "will be much more civil than religious. I think they will work with other parties to get things done."

But the Salafis, he said, "want to apply every letter of Islamic law. People won't accept that and they'll push them out in a revolution like they did Mubarak."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111205/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_egypt

lindsey vonn lindsey vonn josef stalin new york giants kourtney and kim take new york anne hathaway news channel 5

Gingrich meeting with Trump, running ad in Iowa

Donald Trump listens at left as Republican presidential candidate former House Speaker Newt Gingrich talks to media after their meeting in New York, Monday, Dec. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Donald Trump listens at left as Republican presidential candidate former House Speaker Newt Gingrich talks to media after their meeting in New York, Monday, Dec. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Donald Trump talk to media after a meeting in New York, Monday, Dec. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, right, waves after meeting with Donald Trump, and talking to the media in New York, Monday, Dec. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Donald Trump shake hands after they met and spoke to the media in New York, Monday, Dec. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

(AP) ? Republican Newt Gingrich praised Donald Trump as a "true American icon" Monday, and said he had persuaded the celebrity real estate mogul to mentor a group of children from New York City's poorest schools. Trump said he was impressed by the former House speaker's strong showing in the GOP presidential contest, but said he would refrain from endorsing a candidate until after he hosts a televised debate in Iowa a week before that state's caucuses.

Gingrich was making several stops in New York the same day his campaign debuted a new television ad in Iowa. He's hoping to capitalize on polls showing him leading top rival Mitt Romney nationally and in Iowa, which holds the first nominating contest January 3.

Gingrich met privately with Trump, who flirted with a bid for the Republican nomination last spring and has hosted many of the GOP contenders in the Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan.

Gingrich, who recently sparked controversy by suggesting disadvantaged children as young as 9 should be encouraged to clean their schools in order to learn about work, told reporters he had pressed Trump to help train needy youngsters.

The idea, Gingrich said, would be "to get them into the world of work, get them into the opportunity to earn money, to get them into the habit of showing up and realizing that effort is rewarded and America is all about the work ethic."

Trump, who hosts the reality show "Celebrity Apprentice," said he was happy to take up Gingrich's challenge.

"I thought it was a great idea," Trump said. "We're going to be picking 10 young wonderful children and make them 'apprenti.' We're going to have a little fun with it."

Gingrich said he was pleased to participate in the Trump-hosted debate and dismissed criticism from rival Ron Paul that such a forum demeaned the presidency.

"This is a country that elected a peanut farmer to the presidency. This is a country that elected an actor who made two movies with a chimpanzee to the presidency," Gingrich said, referring to Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. "Donald Trump is a great showman; he's also a great businessman. I think one of the differences between my party and the other party is we actually go to people who know how to create jobs. We need to be open to new ways of doing things."

Trump has hinted he might run for president as an Independent if Republicans nominate a candidate who can't beat President Barack Obama. Trump sidestepped questions about a potential run but said he believes Paul has "zero chance" of getting the nomination.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-12-05-Gingrich-Show%20of%20Force/id-61293df5fee34699a956bdc7d2385078

sexiest man alive 2011 ruben studdard ruben studdard black friday sales 2011 black friday sales 2011 whitney duncan bradley cooper

Planet found orbiting habitable zone of sun-like star (Reuters)

MOFFET FIELD, California (Reuters) ? The most Earth-like planet ever discovered is circling a star 600 light years away, a key finding in an ongoing quest to learn if life exists beyond Earth, scientists said on Monday.

The planet, called Kepler-22b, joins a list of more than 500 planets found to orbit stars beyond our solar system. It is the smallest and the best positioned to have liquid water on its surface -- among the ingredients necessary for life on Earth.

"We are homing in on the true Earth-sized, habitable planets," said San Jose State University astronomer Natalie Batalha, deputy science team lead for NASA's Kepler Space Telescope that discovered the star.

The telescope, which was launched three years ago, is staring at about 150,000 stars in the constellations Cygnus and Lyra, looking for faint and periodic dimming as any circling planets pass by, relative to Kepler's line of sight.

Results will be extrapolated to determine the percentage of stars in the Milky Way galaxy that harbor potentially habitable, Earth-size planets.

This is the first detection of a potentially habitable world orbiting a Sun-like star, scientists reported in findings to be published in The Astrophysical Journal.

Kepler-22b is 600 light years away. A light year is the distance light travels in a year, about 6 trillion miles (10 trillion km).

GROUND TELESCOPES

Planets about the same distance from their parent stars as Earth take roughly a year to complete an orbit. Scientists want to see at least three transits to be able to rule out other explanations for fluctuations in a star's light, such as small companion stars. Results also are verified by ground and other space telescopes.

Kepler-22b, which is about 2.4 times the radius of Earth, sits squarely in its star's so-called "habitable zone," the region where liquid water could exist on the surface. Follow-up studies are under way to determine if the planet is solid, like Earth, or more gaseous like Neptune.

"We don't know anything about the planets between Earth-size and Neptune-size because in our solar system we have no examples of such planets. We don't know what fraction are going to be rocky, what fraction are going to be water worlds, what fraction are ice worlds. We have no idea until we measure one and see," Batalha said at a news conference at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffet Field, California.

If Kepler-22b has a surface and a cushion of atmosphere similar to Earth's, it would be about 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 C), about the same as a spring day in Earth's temperate zone.

Among the 2,326 candidate planets found by the Kepler team, 10 are roughly Earth-size and reside in their host stars' habitable zones.

Another team of privately funded astronomers is scanning the target stars for non-naturally occurring radio signals, part of a project known as SETI, or the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence.

"As soon as we find a different, a separate, an independent example of life somewhere else, we're going to know that it's ubiquitous throughout the universe," said astronomer Jill Tarter, director of the SETI Institute in Mountain View.

The Kepler team is meeting for its first science conference this week.

(Additional reporting by Debby Zabarenko in Washington; Editing by Jane Sutton and Philip Barbara)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111205/sc_nm/us_space_planet

patrice patrice tether lana peters lana peters jennifer nettles jennifer nettles

HBT: Phillies are strong players for Aramis Ramirez

Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post reports that the Phillies are ?strong players? for free agent third baseman Aramis Ramirez. Meanwhile, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com confirms that the Phils do indeed have interest.

The most likely scenario is that the Phillies envision Ramirez as a fallback option for their lineup if they are unable to retain free agent shortstop Jimmy Rollins. They can?t possibly afford both, right? Buster Olney of ESPN.com wrote earlier this morning that it appears the Phils? biggest competition for Rollins may come from the Brewers or Cardinals, though his colleague Jerry Crasnick hears that St. Louis doesn?t plan to pursue him even if they are unable to re-sign Albert Pujols.

Placido Polanco is still owed $6.25 million next season while his contract includes a $5.5 million mutual option for 2013 or a $1 million buyout. The 36-year-old is coming off an injury-plagued year which limited him to just 122 games, but if the Phils would likely attempt to flip him if they end up signing Ramirez.

Source: http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/12/05/the-phillies-are-strong-players-for-aramis-ramirez/related/

west virginia football west virginia football black friday violence black friday violence il postino il postino online black friday deals