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JK Rowling on Mother's Day
Harry Potter author and all-round Twitter hero JK Rowling has offered up some heartfelt words for those celebrating Mother's Day without their mothers.
Rowling, who is a mother of three, reminded us that while Hallmark may have you believe otherwise, Mother's Day isn't all about pink cards emblazoned with bears, flowers and chocolate.
Many are lucky enough to have their mother still present in their life, but for others, today could be a struggle with the loss of their mum.
?@jk_rowling
Today's Mother's Day in the UK. If your mum isn't here to treat, do something nice for yourself, because she's part of you. Take a hug, too🌹
Some people may want to celebrate the other influential and supportive women in their lives. But whatever your circumstances:
Happy Mother's Day
http://indy100.independent.co.uk/article/jk-rowling-just-summed-up-the-sad-problem-with-mothers-day--bJn1capWJW?utm_source=indy&utm_medium=top5&utm_campaign=i100
Scientific paper which says the human hand was designed by a 'Creator' sparks controversy
A recent scientific paper on the movement of the human hand has faced strong criticism for referring to a 'Creator' throughout.
The paper, titled: 'Biomechanical characteristics of hand coordination in grasping activities of daily living' was written by a team of four researchers, three from Huazhong University in China, and one from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts.
Published in the PLOS ONE journal, the fairly conventional study looked at the mechanics of how we grasp things, and involved the measurement of the hand movements of 30 participants.
However, members of the scientific community have demanded the paper be retracted, for its several perceived references to the pseudoscientific theory of intelligent design and a possibly divine 'Creator'.
In the opening sentences of the study, it claims the link between muscles and hand movements is the product of "proper design by the Creator."
more
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/scientific-study-paper-creator-intelligent-design-plos-one-creatorgate-a6910171.html
The Modernist 1969 Palm Springs Dream Home Where Time Stood Still
In 1969, construction finished on 2055 S Joshua Tree Place, Palm Springs, CA 92264. The three-bedroom, 3.350 square feet property was decorated in the Palm Springs style. There were Moire wallpaper and draperies, gold crystal chandeliers and a wainscoted den. There still is. The place was decorated and left alone. To step inside is to enter a time warp. Let’s take a look around this Modernist masterpiece, valued at $850,000:
more
http://flashbak.com/the-modernist-1969-palm-springs-dream-home-where-time-stood-still-56154/
1 injured in explosion at troubled Texas Refinery
At least one person was injured when an explosion at a Pasadena refinery sent plumes of smoke into the air and first responders scrambling to the scene Saturday morning.
Officials with the Pasadena Refining Systems refinery, located off Federal Road and Crown Street, told Pasadena police there were no chemical releases or risk of harm to the public. However, the company has a long history of safety and pollution violations, including a previous December 2011 explosion and $1.1 million in fines since 201 from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
"Everybody knows that place is a ticking time bomb," said Mike Boydston, a 16-year veteran of the industrial east side, who works at the nearby Kinder Morgan tank farm. "I mean, look at it. I quit going in there. I refuse."
He first visited the refinery in 2000, and said it was poorly maintained then.
more
http://www.mysanantonio.com/neighborhood/bayarea/news/article/Explosion-reported-at-troubled-Pasadena-plant-6872189.php
Cattle rancher's wife goes vegan: "Every marriage has its issues"
ANGLETON, Texas -- All cattlemen face challenges beyond their control. But not long ago, on a ranch south of Houston, Tommy Sonnen faced a problem of his own doing.
"You know, every marriage has its issues. It's not always easy," he said.
It all began innocently enough. Shortly after they got married six years ago, Tommy's wife Renee just started hanging out with the livestock. Tommy warned her ...
"Renee, don't name those cows."
But she didn't listen. Then she started singing to them, too. And before long, the rancher's wife had turned into a rancher's worst nightmare -- a vegan, who couldn't stomach so much as living with a cattle rancher anymore.
"He was just going to get out of the business or our marriage was going to be over," Renee explained.
Tommy agreed.
"It wasn't working. And I said, 'I'm going to sell the whole herd.' She goes, 'Well, if you're going to sell the whole herd anyway, why don't you just sell 'em to me?' And I said, 'Sell 'em to you!?'"
more
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/cattle-ranchers-vegan-wife-turns-ranch-into-animal-sanctuary/
The debilitating economic disaster Louisiana’s governor left behind
Already, the state of Louisiana had gutted university spending and depleted its rainy day funds. It had cut 30,000 employees and furloughed others. It had slashed the number of child services staffers, including those devoted to foster family recruitment, and young abuse victims for the first time were spending nights at government offices.
And then, the state’s new governor, John Bel Edwards (D), came on TV and said the worst was yet to come.
Edwards, in a primetime address on Feb. 11, said he’d learned of “devastating facts” about the extent of the Louisiana’s budget shortfall and said the state was plunging into a “historic fiscal crisis.” For all the cuts of the previous years, the nation’s second-poorest state still needed nearly $3 billion — almost $650 per person — just to maintain its regular services over the next 16 months. Edwards then gave the state’s lawmakers three weeks to figure out a solution, a period that expires March 9, no clear answer in reach.
Louisiana now stands at the brink economic disaster. Without sharp and painful tax increases in the coming weeks, the government will cease to offer many of its vital services, including education opportunities and certain programs for the needy. A few universities will shut down and declare bankruptcy. Graduations will be cancelled. Students will lose scholarships. Select hospitals will close. Patients will lose funding for treatment of disabilities. Some reports of child abuse will go uninvestigated.
“Doomsday,” said Marketa Garner Walters, the head of Louisiana’s Department of Children & Family Services. If the state can’t raise any new revenue, her agency’s budget, like several others, will be slashed 60 percent.
more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/03/04/the-debilitating-economic-disaster-louisianas-governor-left-behind/
Schneiderman: Trump University fraud 'pretty straightforward'
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said that evidence of the fraud perpetrated by Trump University is "pretty straightforward."
"It [was] a bait and switch scheme," he said on CNN's New Day Friday, defending his and other lawsuits against the school. "He did ads saying my hand-picked instructors will teach you my personal secrets. You just copy what I did and get rich."
But Schneiderman said evidence in the case makes clear that Trump was not involved in hiring instructors, and that he didn't create the program's curriculum.
"If you tell people we're going to teach you Donald Trump's secrets, and he never had any part in writing the curriculum, that's fraud," Schneiderman said.
Schneiderman said thousands of students paid millions of dollars to the school, which closed in 2010. While the attorney general's suit is a civil suit rather than a criminal action, Trump could face millions in fines, Schneiderman said.
"This is the equivalent of putting up a sign that says Trump Hospital, when it's not, and the people in it aren't nurses and doctors," he said.
more
http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/04/news/companies/donald-trump-eric-schneiderman/index.html
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