Fishing in the sea of proteins

Public release date: 2-Jul-2013
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Contact: Dr. Jessica Jacobs
Jessica.Jacobs@rub.de
49-234-322-2197
Ruhr-University Bochum

Composition of splicing complex in chloroplasts identified for the first time

To convert a gene into a protein, a cell first crafts a blueprint out of RNA. One of the main players in this process has been identified by researchers led by Dr. Jessica Jacobs at the Ruhr-Universitt Bochum. The team "fished" a large complex of proteins and RNA, which is involved in the so-called splicing, from the chloroplasts of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. This cuts non-coding regions out of the messenger RNA, which contains the protein blueprint. "For the first time, we have established the exact composition of an unknown splicing complex of the chloroplasts", says Jacobs. She reports with her colleagues from the Department of General and Molecular Botany and the Work Group for Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry in the journal "Molecular and Cellular Proteomics".

From gene to protein craftwork required

Genes, the bearers of genetic information, contain coding and non-coding regions. To convert a gene into a protein, enzymes first create a copy of the gene, the messenger RNA. A useful blueprint for a protein is only obtained, however, when enzymes cut the non-coding regions, called introns out of the messenger RNA. Scientists call this process splicing. Large complexes of RNA and proteins are responsible for the splicing.

Components of the splicing complex identified in chloroplasts

The RUB researchers examined the splicing of the gene psaA, which is found in chloroplasts. These cellular constituents of plants which carry out photosynthesis probably originated from formerly free-living cyanobacteria. According to the endosymbiotic theory, the cyanobacteria lived in symbiosis with the plants and were eventually integrated into their cells. Chloroplasts therefore have their own genetic material - a relic from the cyanobacterial genome. However, the chloroplasts are dependent on the communication with the cell nucleus in order to be functional. The Bochum team identified the components of the protein complex that splices the chloroplast gene psaA. In the splicing complex they found 23 different proteins that are encoded in the genome of the cell nucleus. "The protein complex discovered gives us an insight into the functioning of components involved in the communication between chloroplasts and the nucleus", says Jessica Jacobs.

How to fish a splicing complex

The team carried out its investigations on the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. "We used a protein bait to fish the splicing complex out of the chloroplasts", says Jacobs. Before starting the experiment, it was known that the protein Raa4 is involved in the splicing of the psaA gene. The many interaction partners of Raa4, however, were unknown. The RUB biologists genetically altered the alga in such a way that it produced a modified form of the protein Raa4 - with a tag, i.e. a kind of "fish hook". They isolated all the proteins of the cell and filtered them through a particular material, on which only Raa4 got caught on its fish hook along with all of its bound interaction partners. They determined the components of the splicing complex fished out with the aid of mass spectrometry. The researchers found a splicing complex with the same composition for various environmental conditions: in light, darkness, and in an oxygen-free environment.

###

Bibliographic record

J. Jacobs, C. Marx, V. Kock, O. Reifschneider, B. Frnzel, C. Krisp, D. Wolters, U. Kck (2013): Identification of a chloroplast ribonucleoprotein complex containing trans-splicing factors, intron RNA and novel components, Molecular and Cellular Proteomics DOI: 10.1074/mcp.M112.026583

Further information

Dr. Jessica Jacobs, Department of General and Molecular Botany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology at the Ruhr-Universitt, 44780 Bochum, Germany, Tel. +49/234/32-22197, E-mail: Jessica.Jacobs@rub.de

Editor: Dr. Julia Weiler

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 2-Jul-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Dr. Jessica Jacobs
Jessica.Jacobs@rub.de
49-234-322-2197
Ruhr-University Bochum

Composition of splicing complex in chloroplasts identified for the first time

To convert a gene into a protein, a cell first crafts a blueprint out of RNA. One of the main players in this process has been identified by researchers led by Dr. Jessica Jacobs at the Ruhr-Universitt Bochum. The team "fished" a large complex of proteins and RNA, which is involved in the so-called splicing, from the chloroplasts of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. This cuts non-coding regions out of the messenger RNA, which contains the protein blueprint. "For the first time, we have established the exact composition of an unknown splicing complex of the chloroplasts", says Jacobs. She reports with her colleagues from the Department of General and Molecular Botany and the Work Group for Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry in the journal "Molecular and Cellular Proteomics".

From gene to protein craftwork required

Genes, the bearers of genetic information, contain coding and non-coding regions. To convert a gene into a protein, enzymes first create a copy of the gene, the messenger RNA. A useful blueprint for a protein is only obtained, however, when enzymes cut the non-coding regions, called introns out of the messenger RNA. Scientists call this process splicing. Large complexes of RNA and proteins are responsible for the splicing.

Components of the splicing complex identified in chloroplasts

The RUB researchers examined the splicing of the gene psaA, which is found in chloroplasts. These cellular constituents of plants which carry out photosynthesis probably originated from formerly free-living cyanobacteria. According to the endosymbiotic theory, the cyanobacteria lived in symbiosis with the plants and were eventually integrated into their cells. Chloroplasts therefore have their own genetic material - a relic from the cyanobacterial genome. However, the chloroplasts are dependent on the communication with the cell nucleus in order to be functional. The Bochum team identified the components of the protein complex that splices the chloroplast gene psaA. In the splicing complex they found 23 different proteins that are encoded in the genome of the cell nucleus. "The protein complex discovered gives us an insight into the functioning of components involved in the communication between chloroplasts and the nucleus", says Jessica Jacobs.

How to fish a splicing complex

The team carried out its investigations on the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. "We used a protein bait to fish the splicing complex out of the chloroplasts", says Jacobs. Before starting the experiment, it was known that the protein Raa4 is involved in the splicing of the psaA gene. The many interaction partners of Raa4, however, were unknown. The RUB biologists genetically altered the alga in such a way that it produced a modified form of the protein Raa4 - with a tag, i.e. a kind of "fish hook". They isolated all the proteins of the cell and filtered them through a particular material, on which only Raa4 got caught on its fish hook along with all of its bound interaction partners. They determined the components of the splicing complex fished out with the aid of mass spectrometry. The researchers found a splicing complex with the same composition for various environmental conditions: in light, darkness, and in an oxygen-free environment.

###

Bibliographic record

J. Jacobs, C. Marx, V. Kock, O. Reifschneider, B. Frnzel, C. Krisp, D. Wolters, U. Kck (2013): Identification of a chloroplast ribonucleoprotein complex containing trans-splicing factors, intron RNA and novel components, Molecular and Cellular Proteomics DOI: 10.1074/mcp.M112.026583

Further information

Dr. Jessica Jacobs, Department of General and Molecular Botany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology at the Ruhr-Universitt, 44780 Bochum, Germany, Tel. +49/234/32-22197, E-mail: Jessica.Jacobs@rub.de

Editor: Dr. Julia Weiler

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-07/rb-fit070213.php

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Sony Xperia Z Ultra hands-on redux: benchmark and camera preview

You may have already read our Sony Xperia Z Ultra hands-on last week, but since then we've also been able to spend a tiny bit more time with a pre-production unit (with firmware build 14.1.B.1.277). Instead of going over again how hilariously large this 6.4-inch, pen-friendly phone is, this time we'll focus on some early benchmark results, camera performance and Sony's very own UX features.

As you'll see after the break, many of the benchmark scores aren't too far off from what we saw on the MDP phone with the same Snapdragon 800 SoC, and the final units should be optimized with higher numbers. While we didn't manage to get CF-Bench and Quadrant running on the phone, the higher-than-before 3DMark score did cheer us up, meaning either Sony or Qualcomm's managed to fine tune the latter's new Adreno 330 GPU.

Gallery: Sony Xperia Z Ultra hands-on redux: benchmark and camera preview

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/02/sony-xperia-z-ultra-benchmark-camera/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Egypt's military issues 48-hour ultimatum

Opponents of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi celebrate after the military issued an ultimatum, outside the presidential palace, in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, July 1, 2013. Egypt's military on Monday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Islamist president and his opponents to reach an agreement to "meet the people's demands" or it will intervene to put forward a political road map for the country and ensure it is carried out. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Opponents of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi celebrate after the military issued an ultimatum, outside the presidential palace, in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, July 1, 2013. Egypt's military on Monday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Islamist president and his opponents to reach an agreement to "meet the people's demands" or it will intervene to put forward a political road map for the country and ensure it is carried out. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

This image released by the office of the Egyptian Presidency on Monday, July 1, 2013, Mohammed Morsi, center, meets with members of his government leadership in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, July 1, 2013. Egypt?s military on Monday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Islamist president and his opponents to reach an agreement or it will intervene to put forward a political road map for the country and ensure it is carried out. (AP Photo/Egyptian Presidency)

Mourners carry the coffin of Mohamed Abdel Hamid Mecca Masjid, who was killed Sunday when gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a protests against Egypt's Islamist President, Mohammed Morsi, in Assiut, Egypt, Monday, July 1, 2013. In the city of Assiut, a stronghold of Islamists, gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a protest in which tens of thousands were participating, killing one person, wounding several others and sending the crowd running. (AP Photo/Mamdouh Thabet)

Opponents of Egypt's Islamist President Mohammed Morsi chant slogans as they celebrate outside the presidential palace, in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, July 1, 2013. Egypt's military on Monday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Islamist president and his opponents to reach an agreement to "meet the people's demands" or it will intervene to put forward a political road map for the country and ensure it is carried out. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

FILE - In this Thursday Feb, 21, 2013 file photo, released by the Egyptian Presidency, Egyptian Minister of Defense, Lt. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, left, meets with Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi at the presidential headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. A year ago, Egypt?s opposition and youth movements demanded the then-ruling military leave power. Now some are counting on its protection as they try to remove Islamist President Mohammed Morsi with a wave of protests. They?re hoping the generals, who have signaled discontent with the president, will pressure him out without outright taking over. But Morsi?s Islamist backers are already angrily denouncing what they call a potential coup against an elected leader. (AP Photo/Mohammed Abd El Moaty, Egyptian Presidency, File)

CAIRO (AP) ? Egypt's powerful military warned on Monday it will intervene if the Islamist president doesn't "meet the people's demands," giving him and his opponents two days to reach an agreement in what it called a last chance. Hundreds of thousands of protesters massed for a second day calling on Mohammed Morsi to step down.

Military helicopters, some dangling Egyptian flags, swooped over Cairo's Tahrir Square where many broke into cheers with the army's announcement, read on state television. The statement seemed to fuel the flow of crowds into city squares around the country where protesters chanted and sang.

"Come out, el-Sissi. The people want to topple the regime," protesters in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla el-Kubra chanted, urging military chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to intervene.

The military's statement puts enormous pressure on Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood. So far, the president has vowed he will remain in his position, but the opposition and crowds in the street ? who numbered in the millions nationwide on Sunday ? have made clear they will accept nothing less than his departure and a transition to early presidential elections.

That makes action by the generals when the deadline runs out nearly inevitable, since a deal seems unlikely. The statement did not define the "people's demands" that must be met. But it strongly suggested that Sunday's gigantic rallies expressed the desire of Egyptians, raising the likelihood it would insist on Morsi's departure.

An army move against Morsi, however, risks a backlash from his Islamist supporters, who include hard-line former militants.

Morsi met Monday with el-Sissi and Prime Minister Hesham Kandil, according to the president's Facebook page, without giving further details.

Already, the military's presence in Cairo has increased at sensitive spots the past two days. Troops on Monday manned checkpoints on roads leading to a pro-Morsi rally of Islamists near his palace. They checked cars for weapons, after repeated reports some Islamists were arming themselves.

Morsi's backers have been infuriated by what they call an opposition move to forcibly overthrow Egypt's first president chosen in a democratic election. Some see the campaign as aimed at defeating the "Islamist project."

In the evening, the pro-president rally outside the Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque not far from the Ittihadiya palace also swelled, though it was eclipsed by the opposition rallies. Its participants blew whistles and waved banners with Morsi's picture on it.

"The military has sacrificed legitimacy. There will be a civil war," Manal Shouib, a 47-year-old physiotherapist at the pro-president rally outside the Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque not far from Ittihadiya.

Mohammed Saeed, another Morsi supporter, vowed that he would fight the military if the president is ousted.

"If he (el-Sissi) wants to get rid of us, we will not run. We will face bullets with our bodies. Let the general commander of the armed forces respect his president."

The sense of predicament among Morsi's supporters was apparent as they concluded the sunset prayers with a supplication.

"May God answer the prayers of these extended hands to You. God, accept us as martyrs for Your cause and make Your slave Mohammed Morsi victorious," said the imam who led the prayers. Muslims routinely refer to themselves as slaves of God.

In a sign of Morsi's growing isolation, five Cabinet ministers said on Monday they have resigned their posts to join the protest movement, the state news agency said. The five are the ministers of communications, legal affairs, environment, tourism and water utilities, MENA reported.

The governor of the strategic province of Ismailia on the Suez Canal, Hassan el-Rifaai, also quit Monday, saying he made the decision in the interest of the nation.

Monday's statement was the military's second ultimatum. Earlier, el-Sissi gave the two sides a week to reach an agreement. That ultimatum expired on Sunday, with Morsi repeating his longstanding offer for dialogue, which the opposition rejected.

On Monday, the military praised the anti-Morsi protests as "glorious," saying the participants expressed their opinion "in peaceful and civilized manner," and that "it is necessary that the people get a reply ... to their calls."

The military underlined it will "not be a party in politics or rule." But it said it has a responsibility to act because Egypt's national security is facing a "grave danger," according to the statement.

It said it repeats its call "for the people's demands to be met," giving all sides 48 hours "as a last chance to shoulder the burden of the historic moment."

If the demands are not realized in that time, the military would be obliged to "announce a road-map for the future and the steps for overseeing its implementation, with participation of all patriotic and sincere parties and movements ... excluding no one."

The group that organized Sunday's mass rallies, Tamarod, issued an ultimatum of its own earlier Monday, giving Morsi until the next day at 5 p.m. (1300 GMT) to step down or it would escalate its campaign with larger marches and "complete civil disobedience."

It also urged the military and police to make clear their support for the protesters. When the military statement came out hours later, it made no changes in its own ultimatum.

The swiftness of the military's new statement suggested it was prompted by the stunning turnout by the opposition on Sunday ? and the eruptions of violence that point to how the confrontation could spiral into chaos if it continues.

Sunday's protests were the largest seen in Egypt in the 2? years of turmoil since the ouster of autocrat Hosni Mubarak in February 2011. Millions packed Cairo's Tahrir Square, the streets outside the Ittihadiya presidential palace and main squares in cities around the country on the anniversary of Morsi's inauguration.

The main rallies in Cairo were largely peaceful, but deadly violence broke out in several parts of the country, often when marchers came under gunfire, apparently from Islamists.

At least 16 people were killed and more than 780 injured, Health Ministry spokesman Yehya Moussa told state television.

In Cairo, protesters Sunday night attacked the Brotherhood's main headquarters, pelting it with stones and firebombs. Brotherhood backers barricaded inside opened fire on them in clashes that went on for hours and left eight dead. In the early hours Monday, protesters breached the walls of the six-story luxury villa and stormed inside.

They carted off furniture, files, rugs, blankets, air conditioning units and portraits of Morsi, according to an Associated Press journalist at the scene. One protester emerged with a pistol and handed it over to a policeman outside.

Footage on local TV networks showed smashed windows, blackened walls and smoke billowing out of the fortified villa in the Muqattam district in eastern Cairo. A fire was still raging on one floor hours after the building was stormed. One protester tore down the Muslim Brotherhood sign from the building's front wall, while another hoisted Egypt's red, black and white flag out an upper-story window and waved it in the air in triumph.

Morsi's critics view the Brotherhood headquarters as the seat of real power in Egypt, consistently claiming that the Islamist group's spiritual leader, Mohammed Badie and his powerful deputy, Khairat el-Shater, actually call the shots behind Morsi. Morsi and Brotherhood officials have denied this and say they have tried to give opponents a greater voice, only to be spurned.

On Monday, the anti-Morsi brought their rallies into a second day.

Some protesters spent the night in dozens of tents pitched in the capital's central Tahrir Square and in front of the president's Ittihadiya Palace.

The anti-Morsi demonstrators are calling for widespread labor strikes in an attempt to ratchet up the pressure on the president, but it was not immediately clear whether unions would respond to the call. Organizers are also calling for sit-ins at the Cabinet building, interim parliament, and another presidential place where Morsi has been working since late last week instead of Ittihadiya.

The military has for months been sending subtle but telling messages that it was not pleased with the policies pursued by Morsi and his Brotherhood.

Morsi was clearly scolding el-Sissi when he said in a televised address last Wednesday that the armed forces should focus on improving its capabilities.

The military seemed to reject that in its statement Monday, underlining that it "is a main player in the nation's future" and has "a national and historic duty to protect the security and safety of the nation."

Morsi has said he will not quit, saying that street action must not be allowed to remove an elected president or else the same could happen to future presidents.

For weeks, Morsi's supporters have depicted the planned protest as a plot by Mubarak loyalists to return to power. But their claims were undermined by the extent of Sunday's rallies. In Cairo and a string of cities in the Nile Delta and on the Mediterranean coast, the protests topped even the biggest protests of the 2011's 18-day uprising, including the day Mubarak quit, Feb. 11, when giant crowds marched on Ittihadiya.

The mood was largely festive at Sunday's giant anti-Morsi rallies in Tahrir and outside the Ittihadiya palace.

Fireworks went off overhead. Men and women, some with small children on their shoulders, beat drums, danced and sang, "By hook or by crook, we will bring Morsi down." Residents in nearby homes showered water on marchers below ? some carrying tents in preparation to camp outside the palace ? to cool them in the summer heat, and blew whistles and waved flags in support.

"Mubarak took only 18 days although he had behind him the security, intelligence and a large sector of Egyptians," said Amr Tawfeeq, an oil company employee marching toward Ittihadiya with a Christian friend. Morsi "won't take long. We want him out and we are ready to pay the price."

___

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael and Mariam Rizk contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-07-01-Egypt/id-80cad7e5f5674e77955e07f45cc59fa6

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Gov.'s office asks that SF transit talks continue

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) ? California Gov. Jerry Brown's office has asked that two of San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit's largest unions and management return to the bargaining table as a possible strike looms.

Marty Morgenstern, Brown's secretary of the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, requested that talks continue between Service Employees International Union Local 1021, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 and BART representatives, Brown spokesman Evan Westrup said Sunday.

Westrup added that the governor will not call for a "cooling off period" and state mediators will continue assisting the negotiating parties as the unions' contracts are set to expire at midnight.

"BART and its labor unions owe the public a swift resolution of their differences," Westrup said. "All parties should be at the table doing their best to find common ground."

Both unions were scheduled to meet at noon Sunday to discuss their next steps, an SEIU spokeswoman said, one day after union negotiators said they would likely strike, which would cripple the region's Monday morning commute.

BART spokesman Rick Rice said the transit agency had scheduled a 1 p.m. Sunday meeting with the unions with hopes talks will continue.

"We're certainly expecting to have conversations today," Rice said. "We'll be there."

As the deadline nears, both sides said Sunday they were far apart on key sticking points including salary, pensions, health care and safety as anticipated around-the-clock negotiations fell apart as the unions packed up and left after talks stalled Saturday afternoon.

The unions want a 5 percent annual raise over the next three years. BART said Saturday that train operators and station agents in the unions average about $71,000 in base salary and $11,000 in overtime annually. The workers also pay a flat $92 monthly fee for health insurance.

Rice said BART's latest proposal offered an 8 percent salary raise over the next four years, instead of its original offer of 4 percent. The proposed salary increase is on top of a 1 percent raise employees were scheduled to receive Monday, Rice added.

The transit agency also said it offered to reduce the contribution employees would have to make to their pensions, and lower the costs of health care premiums they would have to pay.

But ATU Local President Antonette Bryant said Sunday that BART's latest proposal is not an actual pay increase, calling it "surface bargaining."

"They are not straight across-the-board raises. They haven't provided us with the information that we need, numbers on the budget are bouncing all over the place, they change almost daily," Bryant said. "We can't bargain with incorrect or misinformation."

Josie Mooney, an SEIU chief negotiator, said Saturday after talks stalled that there was "a 95 percent chance" that her union and the ATU would strike.

"I'm afraid I don't see a way we will avoid a strike," Mooney said, claiming that the unions have met with BART's management for only 10 minutes in the past 36 hours.

The two unions, which represent nearly 2,400 train operators, station agents, mechanics, maintenance workers and professional staff, had no plans to meet with BART on Sunday.

But, with a walkout that could derail the more than 400,000 riders who use the nation's fifth-largest rail system and affect every mode of transportation, clogging highways and bridges throughout the Bay Area, the governor's office request may salvage talks.

Rice said Sunday that BART's latest proposal may not be its best last offer.

"We need to have some substantial discussions," Rice said. "I hope we can make some progress."

BART's last strike lasted six days in 1997. On Friday, other area transit agencies urged commuters to consider carpooling, taking buses or ferries, working from home and, if they must drive to work, to leave earlier or even later than usual.

A strike would be "an absolute nightmare," said Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, a business advocacy organization.

"Our transportation system simply does not have the capacity to absorb the more than 400,000 BART riders who will be left at the station," Wunderman said Saturday. "There will be serious pain."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gov-office-asks-sf-transit-talks-continue-185720411.html

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Will new British surveillance revelations fuel another hacking backlash?

British agency GCHQ's involvement in the NSA's global surveillance have some drawing parallels with the phone-hacking scandal that rocked the British media.

By Sara Miller Llana,?Staff writer / June 17, 2013

Rebekah Brooks (c.), former News International chief executive, leaves Southwark Crown Court in London where she appeared to face charges related to phone hacking earlier this month. Some are drawing parallels between the phone hacking scandal and the revelations of broad surveillance of phone calls and email by British spy agency GCHQ and its US counterpart, the NSA.

Sang Tan/AP

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The Guardian newspaper?s allegations that British intelligence agents spied on foreign diplomats at a G20 summit surely comes at an awkward moment in foreign policy circles: just as leaders gathered for the G8 in Northern Ireland.

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Europe Bureau Chief

Sara Miller Llana?moved to Paris in April 2013 to become the Monitor's Europe Bureau?Chief. Previously she was the?paper's?Latin America Bureau Chief, based in Mexico City, from 2006 to 2013.

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But it also comes at a sensitive moment for Britain itself, still reeling from the phone hacking of British media giants that has brought privacy issues to the fore of the public debate.

?The issue of the ease with which organizations can both collect and then publicize information is transforming society?s understanding about what is and what is not confidential,? says?Martin Moore of the London-based Media Standards Trust, a charity advocating more ethical practices in the British press.

The most recent allegations, against the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), are based on documents provided by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward?Snowden. The British newspaper reported Sunday night that the agency?spied on the phone calls and emails of diplomats who were visiting London during a G20 summit in 2009. This included setting up and tapping an Internet?caf??and?hacking the communications of the South African foreign ministry and a Turkish delegation.

The revelation comes after Mr.?Snowden?provided documentation, also to the Guardian and The Washington Post, disclosing the surveillance of common citizens by the US government in its ongoing anti-terrorism fight ? a revelation that had dismayed Europe.

But the GCHQ?scandal raises questions that relate to the 2011 phone-hacking scandal in British media, says Mr. Moore. In the earlier scandal, information that public figures and newsmakers considered private was accessible by corporations, creating a "digital footprint" and the ?potential for misuse,? he says ? much like the GCHQ spying, just with the government, instead of media corporations, doing the hacking of the public's data.

This case will turn attention to the access that governments?have to information considered private. ?We?re going to see many more conversations about what the safeguards ought to be and whether there ought to be greater openness from governments as to what [information] they are collecting and how they are using it,? Moore says.

Just this month, Rebekah Brooks, the former chief executive of News International, pleaded not guilty in court in London to charges including intercepting voice-mail messages in a scandal that eventually spread to officials and other news organizations.

?The phone-hacking scandal produced massive reaction," says James Curran, director of the media studies center at the University of London, and left a society sensitive to the powers of new technologies.?

?Powerful institutions in society are now enabled through new communications technology to probe private letters without sufficient public-interest justification,? he says. The discontent has spanned the political spectrum, with both the right and left condemning an erosion of privacy. ?My hunch is there will be enormous fuss, like a snowball that gets bigger and bigger.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/0h_2ezSpbsk/Will-new-British-surveillance-revelations-fuel-another-hacking-backlash

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James G. Hill: Why I Carry: Having A Firearm Is Like Having Insurance | Detroit Free Press

Detroit Free Press:

Two years ago, I was followed into a convenience store in northwest Detroit by two young men who were acting a bit too peculiar -- and paying me a bit too much attention.

They didn't do anything specific to raise my suspicion, but I've lived in big cities long enough to know when I ought to keep my eyes peeled. Something just didn't feel right.

Read the whole story at Detroit Free Press

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Two years ago, I was followed into a convenience store in northwest Detroit by two young men who were acting a bit too peculiar -- and paying me a bit too much attention. They didn't do anything sp...

Two years ago, I was followed into a convenience store in northwest Detroit by two young men who were acting a bit too peculiar -- and paying me a bit too much attention. They didn't do anything sp...

Filed by Kate Abbey-Lambertz ?|?

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/23/james-g-hill-why-i-carry-_n_3486909.html

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Tenet Healthcare to buy Vanguard Health for $4.3 billion

(Reuters) - U.S. hospital operator Tenet Healthcare Corp will buy smaller rival Vanguard Health Systems Inc for $4.3 billion including debt to expand into new geographies.

The offer of $21 per share represents a premium of 70 percent to Vanguard's Friday close. Vanguard shares were up 66 percent at $20.51 in thin trading before the bell.

The companies said the deal includes the assumption of $2.5 billion of debt.

Tenet said it expects the deal to add to earnings in the first year and estimates annual savings of $100 million to $200 million.

"This acquisition will take Tenet into new geographic markets, expand the breadth of our service offerings, diversify our earnings sources and increase the benefits we expect to realize under healthcare reform," Tenet CEO Trevor Fetter said in a statement on Monday.

Tenet has hospitals in California, Texas, several states in the U.S. Southeast and in Pennsylvania.

Vanguard owns and operates 28 acute care and specialty hospitals in the U.S. Midwest, South and Massachusetts.

U.S. hospital stocks have rallied this year as investors expect the companies to benefit from President Barack Obama's healthcare reform that will expand insurance coverage to more Americans. The reform has also spurred consolidation in the sector.

Tenet has secured fully committed financing from Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Gibson Dunn & Crutcher was Tenet's legal counsel and Lazard, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays and Teneo Capital were financial and strategic advisers.

Vanguard was advised by J.P. Morgan. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom was legal counsel.

The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

(Reporting by Esha Dey in Bangalore; Editing by Roshni Menon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tenet-healthcare-buy-vanguard-health-4-3-billion-103002493.html

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