Hillary Clinton admitted to hospital with blood clot

Kevin Lamarque / Reuters file

Clinton, photographed here on Dec. 6 at Dublin City University, canceled a trip to Morocco earlier this month after a bout of flu. She was hospitalized Sunday after doctors discovered a blood clot stemming from a concussion she sustained earlier in the month.

By NBC News staff

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was?admitted to a New York City hospital on Sunday after doctors discovered that a blood clot had formed, the State Department said in a statement.

Philippe Reines, a deputy assistant secretary, said in the statement that the clot stems from a concussion Clinton sustained several weeks ago.

Reines said that Clinton, 65, is being treated with anti-coagulants at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan. She will be monitored there for the next 48 hours, he said.

?Her doctors will continue to assess her condition, including other issues associated with her concussion," he said. "They will determine if any further action is required.?

Related: Hillary Clinton recovering after fainting

Clinton sustained the concussion from fainting earlier in December. She had been sick for several days with the flu and had canceled a trip to Morocco where she was to officially recognize the Syrian rebels. ?

Brain injury doctors told NBC News said that although details haven't been made public, initial reports indicate that Clinton may have developed a blood clot in her lower limbs as a result of prolonged rest and inactivity after her recent concussion.

A deep vein thrombosis, known as a DVT, or a dural venous sinus thrombosis, could be two types of blood clots treated with anticoagulants, said Dr. Alex Valadka, a spokesman for the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. A blood clot could be dangerous if it breaks free and lodges in a vital organ, such as the heart.

A deep vein thrombosis could be serious, but not necessarily life-threatening, and would require months of treatment with blood-thinning drugs, said Dr. Inam Kureshi, chief of neurosurgery at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Conn.

"Usually hospitalization is more of a precaution," Kureshi said.

It is possible that Clinton developed a blood clot elsewhere, including her brain. Doctors interviewed would not speculate about treatment or prognosis for the secretary of state.?

Days after she fainted, State Department officials said she was at home recovering. Officials also issued a statement from?Dr. Lisa Bardack of Mount Kisco Medical Group and Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi of George Washington University that provided more information about the secretary's condition:

"Secretary Clinton developed a stomach virus, leading to extreme dehydration, and subsequently fainted. Over the course of this week we evaluated her and ultimately determined she had also sustained a concussion. ?We recommended that the Secretary continue to rest and avoid any strenuous activity, and strongly advised her to cancel all work events for the coming week. ?We will continue to monitor her progress as she makes a full recovery."

It wasn?t the first time Clinton passed out while sick with a stomach bug. As a U.S. senator representing New York, Clinton?fainted in 2005?during a speech in Buffalo after complaining of a stomach virus.

NBC's Robert Bazell tells MSNBC's Chris Jansing that it is unclear how severe the blood clot could be for the health of Sec. of State Hillary Clinton, given lack of specific information about her condition on Sunday evening.

NBC's JoNel Aleccia and Isolde Raftery contributed reporting.?

Source: http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/30/16255487-hillary-clinton-hospitalized-after-doctors-discover-blood-clot?lite

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Christmas shopping totals a disappointment for retailers | NOLA.com

WASHINGTON -- U.S. shoppers spent cautiously this holiday season, a disappointment for retailers who slashed prices to lure people into stores and now must hope for a post-Christmas burst of spending.

Sales of electronics, clothing, jewelry and home goods in the two months before Christmas increased 0.7 percent compared with last year, according to the MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse report.

That was below the healthy 3 to 4 percent growth that analysts had expected -- and it was the worst year-over-year performance since 2008, when spending shrank sharply during the Great Recession. In 2011, retail sales climbed 4 to 5 percent during November and December, according to ShopperTrak.

This year's shopping season was marred by bad weather and rising uncertainty about the economy in the face of possible tax hikes and spending cuts early next year. Some analysts say the massacre of schoolchildren in Newtown, Conn., earlier this month may also have chipped away at shoppers' enthusiasm.

Retailers still have time to make up lost ground. The final week of December accounts for about 15 percent of the month's sales, said Michael McNamara, vice president for research and analysis at MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse.

Still, this season's weak sales could have repercussions for 2013, McNamara said. Retailers will make fewer orders to restock their shelves, and discounts will hurt their profitability. Wholesalers will buy fewer goods and orders to factories will likely drop in the coming months.

Steep discounts weren't enough to get people into stores, said Marshal Cohen, chief analyst at the market research firm NPD Inc.

"A lot of the Christmas spirit was left behind way back in Black Friday weekend," Cohen said, referring to the traditional retail rush the day after Thanksgiving. "We had one reason after another for consumers to say, 'I'm going to stick to my list and not go beyond it.'"

Holiday sales are a crucial indicator of the economy's strength. November and December account for up to 40 percent of annual sales for many retailers. If those sales don't materialize, stores are forced to offer steeper discounts. That's a boon for shoppers, but it cuts into stores' profits.

Spending by consumers accounts for 70 percent of overall economic activity, so the eight-week period encompassed by the SpendingPulse data is seen as a critical time not just for retailers but for manufacturers, wholesalers and companies at every other point along the supply chain.

The SpendingPulse data released Tuesday, which captures sales from Oct. 28 through Dec. 24 across all payment methods, is the first major snapshot of holiday retail sales. A clearer picture will emerge next week as retailers like Macy's and Target report revenue from stores open for at least a year. That sales measure is widely watched in the retail industry because it excludes revenue from stores that recently opened or closed, which can be volatile.

In the run-up to Christmas, analysts blamed bad weather for putting a damper on shopping. In late October, Superstorm Sandy battered the Northeast and mid-Atlantic states, which account for 24 percent of U.S. retail sales.

Shopping picked up in the second half of November, but then the threat of the country falling off a "fiscal cliff" gained strength, throwing consumers off track once again.

Lawmakers have yet to reach a deal that would prevent tax increases and government spending cuts set to take effect at the beginning of 2013. If the cuts and tax hikes kick in and stay in place for months, the Congressional Budget Office says the nation could fall back into recession.

Shopping over the past two months was weakest in areas affected by Sandy and a more recent winter storm in the Midwest. Sales declined by 3.9 percent in the mid-Atlantic and 1.4 percent in the Northeast compared with last year. They rose 0.9 percent in the north central part of the country.

The West and South posted gains of between 2 percent and 3 percent, still weaker than the 3 percent to 4 percent increases expected by many retail analysts.

Online sales, typically a bright spot, grew only 8.4 percent from Oct. 28 through Saturday, according to SpendingPulse. That's a dramatic slowdown from the online sales growth of 15 to 17 percent seen in the prior 18-month period, according to the data service.

Online sales did enjoy a modest boost after the recent snowstorm that hit the Midwest, McNamara said. Online sales make up about 10 percent of total holiday business.

Source: http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2012/12/christmas_shopping_totals_a_di.html

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Building Your Dream Home in Mexico ? Different Styles Part 2

Happy Boxing Day to all my fellow Canadians, and along with them, I hope everyone else is still enjoying the festive season!

Two days ago, on Christmas Eve, I talked about 2 styles for having your?Mexico homes built ? modern luxury and classic colonial. Today, I?ll introduce two more of the most popular styles for building a home in Mexico.

Contemporary Mayan

One architect from the Playa del Carmen real estate area, Gian Luca, includes some sort of Mayan symbol or element in each building he designs, (provided the owner approves, of course.)? The Mayan culture is rich in symbols, history and style which can be incorporated into contemporary designs and lay outs.

Even the modern Mayan people with their thatched roofs and simple homes offer inspiration for a modern style that incorporate this simple elegance with contemporary spatial concepts.? This culture is unique, in that after the Spanish conquest almost 500 years ago, after independence and after the modernization of Mexico, they Mayan people have retained their traditional lifestyle living in close proximity and harmony with the nature surrounding their villages; the architectural style inspired by them offers this same harmony.

Various other indigenous peoples of Mexico have likewise offered inspiration for contemporary styles that capture the essence of their unique way of life and values which the modern world has largely lost; among these are the Purepecha of Michoacan near Morelia.

Indoor-Outdoor

Because of Mexico?s warm climate, there are a significant number of Americans and Canadians who enjoy what is called indoor-outdoor living; very large terraces with pools can be combined with open-space living and dining areas by folding away glass walls.? This makes for a very relaxing lifestyle taking the idea of ?open concept? to new heights.? Of course airflow is at its best! Even when closed, these glass walls outdo even the largest of windows offering spectacular views of the ocean(for example, from the hillside in the Puerto Vallarta real estate), the jungle or the town.

Another example is the lakefront cottages with rustic charm and items like fireplaces, which are popular on Lake Chapala and near Morelia.

These are just a few examples of the most popular ideas.? There are many other possibilities to consider when for building a dream home in Mexico!

Andy Welbourne, from London, Ontario, has been living in Playa del Carmen and working as a part of the team with Thomas Lloyd for 7 years. He has worked with many Canadians and Americans to assist in finding their dream home in the Mexican Caribbean; many of these clients have turned into great friendships. Contact Andy at (512) 879-6546.

The TOP Mexico Real Estate Network; ?Mexico?s Leading Network of Specialists for Finding and Purchasing Mexican Properties Safely!?

Tagged as: Building your home in Mexico, Home Design & Style, Mexico Land for sale, Playa del Carmen Real Estate

Source: http://www.topmexicorealestate.com/blog/2012/12/26/building-your-dream-home-in-mexico-different-styles-part-2/

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Disaster oil rig supervisors face trial in 2014

Winehouse boyfriend to face trial

The boyfriend of the late singer Amy Winehouse has been sent for trial on two charges of rape. Reg Traviss, 35, was Winehouse's boyfriend when she died at her home in Camden, north London, last July. Traviss, of Devonshire Street, Marylebone, London,...

Source: http://www.newsrt.co.uk/news/disaster-oil-rig-supervisors-face-trial-in-2014-1073303.html

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Western Digital offers 8TB version of its My Book Live Duo NAS

Western Digital is mightily proud of its new 4TB hard drives, so it shouldn't be a surprise to see them winding up in the company's range of external storage products. The latest to get the spec bump is the My Book Live Duo, the dual-drive RAID box that promises to keep your memories safe should the worst happen. The range-topping 8TB edition will set you back $660, but if your credit card isn't that elastic, you can snag a 6TB unit for $440 and a 4TB box for $375.

Filed under: Storage

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Via: CNET

Source: Western Digital

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HostSEO.org Increases Class C IP Availability - hostingBlender ...

(The Hosting News) -?HostSEO.org (http://www.hostseo.org), a provider of IPs for web hosting, increases its IP inventory as just a couple months ago the RIPE NCC (The European IP Authority) announced it was down to it?s last few IP blocks. ARIN (American Registry for Internet Numbers) and APNIC (Asia Pacific Network Information Centre) made similar announcements in 2011. This officially signifies the end of available ip?s on the internet, leaving only those who have ip reserves to be able to issue them.

The same IPs that are released by RIPE, are used by web hosting companies to put websites on the internet in Europe. HostSEO.org takes this a step further and allows businesses with multiple websites to host them each on a different IP range.

It has long been known amongst SEO experts that the use of Class C IPs in a website network increases website exposure amongst search engines.

A website, just like a personal internet connection, is assigned to an IP address. An IP address is a four-part digit: aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd. If you are the owner of multiple websites, it is wise to put each website on a different IP range. This tells Google, and other search engines, that there is diversity amongst the websites which could lead to better overall search rankings.

SEO Web Hosting is web hosting tailored to SEO professionals. It allows for online marketers to build SEO networks using multiple IPs, each on a different C Class, or IP range. This business has become more lucrative as IP addresses on the web are running low. HostSEO.org stocked up on these IPs, allowing their clients to grab them before they run out.

HostSEO has added significant inventory from all over?Europe, allowing country-specific IP selection. HostSEO now offers UK, German, French, Spanish, Swedish, Irish, Italian, and Dutch IP?s. In addition, HostSEO continues to provide up to?100 c-class?s in the continental United States.

To take advantage of HostSEO.org?s offer, visit their website and choose between shared hosting and dedicated server plans. Apply the coupon ?2012LASTDAYS? during checkout for an additional 10% off your total purchase price. The coupon locks in your savings forever, if registered in 2012!

HostSEO.org Increases Class C IP Availability

Source: http://www.hostingblender.com/web-hosting-news/hostseo-org-increases-class-c-ip-availability.html

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TomTom updates its Android app to make it, you know, work

We've journeyed with the TomTom Navigator app for Android and it's been great -- except for one brake-punching problem. Version 1.0 was only compatible with phones that happened to have a display width of 480 pixels (WVGA or FWVGA), which meant that our Galaxy S IIIs, Nexus 4s and other favorite handsets all had to be left at home. That issue has now been fixed in v1.1, along with some other, less fundamental niggles. In particular, you can now download the large offline maps to microSD rather than filling up internal storage, and TomTom also says map downloads can be completed with the app running in the background -- although there's no mention of downloads being resumable. One thing that certainly hasn't improved is the price -- if you want to travel across the USA and Canada, for example, you'll find that Navigator for Android is precisely $50 more costly than Google's offline offering or Nokia Drive for Windows Phones.

Continue reading TomTom updates its Android app to make it, you know, work

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Mobile

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Tessco declares 75-cent special dividend

HUNT VALLEY, Md. (AP) ? Wireless communications company Tessco Technologies Inc. on Monday declared a special dividend of 75 cents, the latest in a slew of companies to do so this year.

The company said it will pay out about $6 million to shareholders. The dividend is payable Dec. 27 to shareholders of record on Dec. 13.

Many companies are moving up their quarterly dividends or making a special end-of-year payment to protect investors from potentially higher taxes on dividend income starting in January. Since 2003, investors have paid a maximum 15 percent on dividend income. But that historically low rate will expire in January unless Congress and President Barack Obama reach a compromise on taxes and government spending.

If no compromise is reached, dividends will be taxed as ordinary income in 2013. That means rates will go up depending on which income bracket a taxpayer is in. For the highest earners, the dividend rate would jump to 43.4 percent.

Tessco's current quarterly dividend is 18 cents. Tessco paid its most recent dividend on Nov. 28.

The Hunt Valley, Md., company's shares added 28 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $22.05 in afternoon trading.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tessco-declares-75-cent-special-dividend-200425835--finance.html

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Ideas For Finding Your Way To A Happier Life! | iNeedInfotips.com

Thousands of Americans of all ages would like to become better at something or improve upon one of their personal qualities. Some people want to become better fathers or spouses, while others want to be a workplace hero. There are some insights here that will help you, regardless of which area of personal development you are interested in.

Always try do do the best you can at whatever you do. The passions you have should always make you want to achieve greatness. Do not worry if you are not the best at what you do: the important part is to enjoy it and inspire others. You should always try to be the best you can be in your profession; your self-esteem will rise as a result.

Find people you can relate to. This will help to boost your self-esteem as well as give you a bit of a break from the kind of people that spend their time badmouthing your dreams and goals every chance that they get.

When engaging in personal development, tell yourself that you want to be better because you deserve better. Repeat this statement to yourself every day, ?I owe it to myself to strive for the best?. In the end, you will know that you did all that you can and you will not have any regrets.

An extremely important key to self improvement is knowing what you want to do with your life. Long-term goals are a tremendous thing to have and can make a big difference in your perspective.

Read good articles about self improvement. When you read a really good personal development book, you may come away with life-changing advice and ideas. Look for a book that is backed by very positive and very credible reviews because certain personal development books are written terribly.

Humility is key. We are but a cog in our universe. You still have so much to learn and discover. When you fully grasp this concept, you can truly open yourself to new ideas. Keeping an open mind will allow you to learn from other people.

Make all self improvement goals specific so that they will lead you to success. With your specific goals, success can come. If you are focused on your goals, then the obstacles between you and them will be easier to overcome.

Find a book that you can turn to for encouragement. Whether it is a religious book or a favorite novel, find a book that inspires you. A book functions as a concrete object you can use to find support and useful advice when you need it.

Be nice to your body to better your self improvement. Listen to what your body is saying to you, so if it is exhibiting hunger, thirst, etc., then it?s up to you to rectify that situation quickly. A healthy body provides you with the basis for pursuing a course of self improvement. Failing to heed your body?s warnings can set you up for disappointment later on.

Exercising is not only a way to lose weight. There are tons of reasons to exercise. When you exercise, your body makes a variety of chemicals that assist in relaxing you.

Every champion needs a coach, so get someone to help you. A coach is necessary to advise and keep the bigger picture in mind. All of us are expected to show others the way. Without someone to teach them the right way of doing things, it?s impossible to expect them to be able to properly succeed. Everyone who is great at something has had help getting to where they are.

Perhaps you have always wanted to accomplish some life changes but were not quite sure how to do it. There are good insights in this article that can assist you in getting started, but do keep in mind that your dedicated effort is still required. You?ll discover ways to keep your motivation and drive from waning by referring back to these suggestions periodically.

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Source: http://ineedinfotips.com/health/ideas-for-finding-your-way-to-a-happier-life/

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Plastic bulb promises truer light

3 December 2012 Last updated at 00:05 ET By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, BBC News

US researchers say they have developed a new type of lighting that could replace fluorescent bulbs.

The new source is made from layers of plastic and is said to be more efficient while producing a better quality of flicker-free light.

The scientists behind it say they believe the first units will be produced in 2013.

Details of the new development have been published in the journal Organic Electronics.

Continue reading the main story

?Start Quote

What we've found is a way of creating light rather than heat?

End Quote Prof David Carroll Wake Forest University Brighter white

The new light source is called field-induced polymer electroluminescent (Fipel) technology. It is made from three layers of white-emitting polymer that contain a small volume of nanomaterials that glow when electric current is passed through them.

The inventor of the device is Dr David Carroll, professor of physics at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. He says the new plastic lighting source can be made into any shape, and it produces a better quality of light than compact fluorescent bulbs which have become very popular in recent years.

"They have a bluish, harsh tint to them, " he told BBC News, "it is not really accommodating to the human eye; people complain of headaches and the reason is the spectral content of that light doesn't match the Sun - our device can match the solar spectrum perfectly.

"I'm saying we are brighter than one of these curlicue bulbs and I can give you any tint to that white light that you want."

Continue reading the main story

Lighting up the world

• Lighting accounts for around 19% of global electricity use
• A worldwide switch to low-energy bulbs could save the output of around 600 power plants

There have been several attempts to develop new light-bulbs in recent years - Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) have come a long way since they were best known for being indicator lights in electronic devices. Over the past decade, they have become much more widely used as a light source as they are both bright and efficient. They are now often used on large buildings.

Light not heat

Another step forward has been organic LEDs (OLEDs) which also promise greater efficiency and better light than older, incandescent bulbs. Their big advantage over LEDs is that they can be transformed into many different shapes including the screens for high-definition televisions.

But Prof Carroll believes OLED lights haven't lived up to the hype.

"They don't last very long and they're not very bright," he said. "There's a limit to how much brightness you can get out of them. If you run too much current through them they melt."

The Fipel bulb, he says, overcomes all these problems.

"What we've found is a way of creating light rather than heat. Our devices contain no mercury, they contain no caustic chemicals and they don't break as they are not made of glass."

Prof Carroll says his new bulb is cheap to make and he has a "corporate partner" interested in manufacturing the device. He believes the first production runs will take place in 2013.

He also has great faith in the ability of the new bulbs to last. He says he has one in his lab that has been working for about a decade.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20553143#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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business | Consumer Acquisition Specialists and Rob Gronkowski ...

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5 states to increase class time in some schools

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Open your notebooks and sharpen your pencils. School for thousands of public school students is about to get quite a bit longer.

Five states were to announce Monday that they will add at least 300 hours of learning time to the calendar in some schools starting in 2013. Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and Tennessee will take part in the initiative, which is intended to boost student achievement and make U.S. schools more competitive on a global level.

The three-year pilot program will affect almost 20,000 students in 40 schools, with long-term hopes of expanding the program to include additional schools ? especially those that serve low-income communities. Schools, working in concert with districts, parents and teachers, will decide whether to make the school day longer, add more days to the school year or both.

A mix of federal, state and district funds will cover the costs of expanded learning time, with the Ford Foundation and the National Center on Time & Learning also chipping in resources. In Massachusetts, the program builds on the state's existing expanded-learning program. In Connecticut, Gov. Dannel Malloy is hailing it as a natural outgrowth of an education reform law the state passed in May that included about $100 million in new funding, much of it to help the neediest schools.

Spending more time in the classroom, education officials said, will give students access to a more well-rounded curriculum that includes arts and music, individualized help for students who fall behind and opportunities to reinforce critical math and science skills.

"Whether educators have more time to enrich instruction or students have more time to learn how to play an instrument and write computer code, adding meaningful in-school hours is a critical investment that better prepares children to be successful in the 21st century," Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a statement.

The project comes as educators across the U.S. struggle to identify the best ways to strengthen a public education system that many fear has fallen behind other nations. Student testing, teacher evaluations, charter schools and voucher programs join longer school days on the list of reforms that have been put forward with varying degrees of success.

The report from the center, which advocates for extending instruction time, cites research suggesting students who spend more hours learning perform better. One such study, from Harvard economist Roland Fryer, argues that of all the factors affecting educational outcomes, two are the best predictors of success: intensive tutoring and adding at least 300 hours to the standard school calendar.

More classroom time has long been a priority for Duncan, who warned a congressional committee in May 2009 ? just months after becoming education secretary ? that American students were at a disadvantage compared to their peers in India and China. That same year, he suggested schools should be open six or seven days per week and should run 11 or 12 months out of the year.

But not everyone agrees that shorter school days are to blame. A report last year from the National School Boards Association's Center for Public Education disputed the notion that American schools have fallen behind in classroom time, pointing out that students in high-performing countries like South Korea, Finland and Japan actually spend less time in school than most U.S. students.

The broader push to extend classroom time could also run up against concerns from teachers unions. Longer school days became a major sticking point in a seven-day teachers strike in September in Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emanuel eventually won an extension of the school day but paid the price in other concessions granted to teachers.

Just over 1,000 U.S. schools already operate on expanded schedules, an increase of 53 percent over 2009, according to a report being released Monday in connection with the announcement by the National Center on Time & Learning. The nonprofit group said more schools should follow suit but stressed that expanded learning time isn't the right strategy for every school.

Some of the funds required to add 300 or more hours to the school calendar will come from shifting resources from existing federal programs, making use of the flexibility granted by waivers to No Child Left Behind. All five states taking part in the initiative have received waivers from the Education Department.

___

Reach Josh Lederman on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/5-states-increase-class-time-schools-221441177.html

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