Shiite leader urges end to Iraqi political crisis (AP)

ANKARA, Turkey ? A top Iraqi Shiite official said Thursday that the political crisis pitting Shiite officials against his country's largest Sunni-backed bloc must end.

But Ammar al-Hakim, a powerful cleric and leader of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, did not offer any change in the legal challenge that started the standoff: An arrest warrant that Iraq's Shiite-led government filed against the Sunni vice president, Tareq al-Hashemi, on terrorism charges, sending him into virtual exile to the Kurdish autonomous region in northern Iraq.

Al-Hashemi's Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc has responded by boycotting Iraq's parliament and Cabinet sessions, bringing government work to a standstill. Al-Hashemi denies charges of running death squads that targeted Shiite officials and refuses to return for trial in Baghdad.

"I want to invite Iraqiya to return to parliament and take its place in parliament," al-Hakim said during his visit to Turkey. "We say that we will examine their just demands and do whatever is necessary."

Al-Hakim said that an administration run by members of only one sect was impossible, but he didn't say what Iraq's government should do to end the crisis.

A month after the U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq, violence has surged during its escalating political crisis, and this has raised concerns in neighboring Turkey, which has been dealing with an insurrection by its Kurdish minority since 1984, with some Kurdish guerrillas based in northern Iraq.

Turkey, whose population is mostly Sunni, has criticized Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite, regarding the standoff. He has replied by accusing Turkey of interfering in Iraqi affairs.

"We can't remain silent, if you start a process of sectarian conflict," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said of al-Maliki on Wednesday.

Al-Hakim also was scheduled to meet Erdogan and Turkish President Abdullah Gul later Thursday.

Sunnis fear that Iraq's Shiite-led government will try to do push aside their leaders one by one, as al-Maliki tries to cement his own grip on power.

Last week, the leader of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc, Ayad Allawi, accused al-Maliki, a Shiite, of unfairly targeting Sunni officials and deliberately triggering the political crisis. Allawi, also a Shiite, said Iraq needs a new prime minister or new elections to prevent the country from disintegrating along sectarian lines.

The Iraqi government crisis has intensified sectarian resentments that have remained raw in Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion unleashed fierce fighting between Sunni and Shiite militias battling for dominance and killing tens of thousands civilians on both sides of the sectarian divide just a few years ago.

___

Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad contributed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_re_eu/eu_turkey_iraq

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Michigan Celebrates 175 Birthday On Anniversary Of Statehood (PHOTOS)

Description: Portrait of William Hull taken from life. Pastel on paper. Date: c. 1795-1801 Source: Currently in the collection of the City of Philadelphia Author: James Sharples Sr. (1751-1811)

Description: Portrait of William Hull taken from life. Pastel on paper.
Date: c. 1795-1801
Source: Currently in the collection of the City of Philadelphia
Author: James Sharples Sr. (1751-1811)

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/26/michigan-175-birthday-statehood-anniversary_n_1233931.html

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Oklahoma Senator's Proposal is Off the Deep End (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | It's a scenario that seems weirder than weird -- the idea that aborted fetuses could be used in food items is too icky to even be considered real. But an Oklahoma senator wants to pass a law to make sure such a thing never happens. According to the Associated Press, state Senator Ralph Shortey introduced a bill that would ban the use of aborted fetuses in food.

Really? We need a law for such a thing? Shortey conceded he isn't aware of any companies practicing such a thing, but he thought the bill would be a good idea just in case and to raise public awareness. Does the public really need to be aware of every Internet rumor and hoax and have it regulated by the government?

The AP stated Shortey had done research and found suggestions that some food manufacturing companies use embryonic stem cells from aborted fetuses to create artificial food flavorings. One would hope someone who is a close adviser to Shortey would explain to Shortey that you can't believe everything you read on the Internet. Really, you can't.

Most of us who use the Internet regularly have more than enough discernment to differentiate between what is probable and what is unlikely. Aborted fetus flavored snacks? Unlikely -- not too difficult to guess that one.

In reality, an organization known as Children of God for Life alleges that aborted fetal tissue is used in everything from food products to facial creams to medicines, according to the organization's website. The group accused food manufacturing companies such as PepsiCo and Nestle of using fetal tissue in their products but those companies have denied such claims and no real proof has been offered that the claims are valid.

While Oklahoma is not my home state and this bill is a state issue rather than federal, I still find it ridiculous. Oklahoma taxpayers should be outraged that their Legislature is spending time -- and money -- even discussing such a bill.

Perhaps Shortey should focus his time and energy on issues that need legislative attention such as poverty, unemployment, taxes, political corruption and government waste. These would be better ideas because they are real and definite needs, as opposed to the worry that food companies will try to sell us baby-flavored candy or infant additives in our breakfast cereals.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120125/pl_ac/10881731_oklahoma_senators_proposal_is_off_the_deep_end

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Highlight: The Nearby Social Network [App Of The Day]

You're probably wondering just how many social networks we need. Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Path are already on my iPhone. You know what, let's add another. The latest to jump into the social pool is Highlight and it wants you to find your friends—at least potential friends—nearby. Maybe the guy down the street also loves pastrami as much you do. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/SSaZpjq55PQ/highlight-the-nearby-social-network

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Auroras spark awe across the north

AuroraMAX / Canadian Space Agency

The northern lights take on a weird, rippling shape in a super-wide-angle view captured Sunday night by the Canadian Space Agency's AuroraMAX webcam in Yellowknife, capital of the Northwest Territories. There's more from AuroraMAX at the project's website and on Twitpic.

By Alan Boyle

Is it "auroras" or "aurorae"? The dictionary?prefers the former, but either way, there was a multiplicity of auroral awesomeness this weekend ? thanks to a solar storm that swept past Earth's magnetic field over the weekend. During the past few days, we've shown off a few stunning images from Norway and Canada, and there's a new crop to share today.

First, a little explanation for what you're looking at:


Auroral lights arise when electrically charged particles from the sun interact with atoms and ions high up in Earth's atmosphere, 60 to 200 miles up. The interaction sets off?emissions in wavelengths ranging from blue, to green (the most common color), to red. The?colors depend on the energy of the?particles in question. To get the full story on that, check out the explanations from the "Causes of Color" website and the?University of Alaska at Fairbanks.

This weekend's auroras were particularly bright because of a strong solar outburst that occurred on Thursday. There's an interval between the outburst and the displays because the particles that are ejected from the sun travel at far less than the speed of light. But they're still pretty speedy ? the velocity?is on the order of a million miles an hour.

Solar outbursts, known more formally as coronal mass ejections or CMEs, have the potential to disrupt electrical grids or satellite communications. There could be radiation effects on astronauts in orbit or passengers on high-altitude, pole-traversing airplane flights. Thursday's outburst dealt Earth's magnetic field a glancing blow, and no significant negative impact has been reported. However, an even stronger CME is currently on its way toward Earth and may force the?rerouting of polar flights.?Once again, electric-grid managers and satellite operators will be on alert, as will aurora-watchers.

Observers in northern latitudes can look forward to enhanced auroras over the next couple of nights ? and the rest of us can look forward to more images like these:

Chad Blakley / Lights Over Lapland

Chad Blakley said on Sunday that he had "an unbelievable night" at Sweden's Abisko National Park. "As soon as the sun went down I realized that we were about to experience something special," he told SpaceWeather.com. "The auroras have been dancing all night long and show no sign of stopping! I only came in because 32 gigabytes of memory cards were full and all three batteries were dead!" Click on over to Blakley's Vimeo page for a time-lapse video version of this imagery, and check out SpaceWeather.com for more from Abisko.

The auroral lights in Sweden were so bright that Chad Blakley could capture this view from the street. Blakley says his pictures were shot with a Nikon D7000 and a Tokina 11/16 lens at 2.8 with a 1600 ISO six-second exposure. For more of Blakley's images, check out the Lights Over Lapland website.

Bjorn Jorgensen

Bjorn Jorgensen's view of the aurora was captured on Sunday at Grotfjord, close to Tromso in north Norway. "This was amazing," he told SpaceWeather.com. "It was a wonderful experience to see these stunning auroras." The bird-of-prey picture was taken with a Nikon D3S camera equipped with a Nikkor 14-24mm lens. Exposure for the pictures in Jorgenson's set was ISO 2200 at five and six seconds. Check out SpaceWeather.com and ArcticPhoto.no for more views.

Gregory Clarke

The green glow of the aurora is reflected in a rock pool on the Emerald Isle, in Ireland's County Donegal. "The photo was taken at the end of my shoot as a last grab before heading home," photographer Gregory Clarke said in an email. "I climbed over some rocks to get to a rock pool, took a few test shots and then was treated to what I photographed. The photo was taken at Malin Head, County Donegal, using a Canon EOS Mk3. For that shot I bumped up the ISO to 1600 at f4, shot in RAW, and it seems to be the settings that worked for that shot." You'll find many more shots in Clarke's Flickr photostream.

Jason Ahrns

The red and green auroral lights look like glowing curtains in Jason Ahrns' photo, captured near Fairbanks, Alaska, using a Nikon D5000 camera and an all-sky lens. You can see a time-lapse video that includes this still at Ahrns' Flickr gallery.

Marketa Stanczykova

Marketa Stanczykova said she used a Canon 5D camera with a 17-40mm lens to take this picture of the northern lights dancing over Chatanika in Alaska. "I recently moved to Fairbanks," she said in an email. "My friends, photographers Ronn Murray and Casey Thompson (aurora chasers) took me close to Chatanika. It was an amazing night." For more of her pictures, check out this SpaceWeather.com page and this gallery from 500px.

More great auroral views:


Alan Boyle is msnbc.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter or adding Cosmic Log's Google+ page to your circle. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for other worlds.

Source: http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/23/10217788-auroras-spark-awe-across-the-north

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Protracted GOP Fight Helps Obama Win Re-Election (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Republicans have three winners in the first three primary states -- Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Reuters reports Rick Santorum won in Iowa, Mitt Romney was the clear front-runner in New Hampshire and Newt Gingrich won South Carolina with 40 percent of the vote. Romney is set to release his income tax returns in response to criticism that may have cost him a huge lead in South Carolina. A victory in the Palmetto State may have helped Romney win the overall GOP nomination.

The Democratic candidate is running unopposed. President Barack Obama hasn't had to spend money on expensive advertising. He hasn't had to take tours across entire states or even pay money for traveling. The Washington Post reported in early April that Obama declared his candidacy ahead of any of his rivals. He launched his re-election campaign on April 3.

Meanwhile, eight Republican candidates have been whittled down to four after nearly two months of non-stop campaigning. Debates have been aired since the late spring and GOP voters seem to be undecided as to who can best beat Obama.

In the end, once the nominee is selected for the Republicans, it may not even matter who is chosen. The Republican nomination process may continue into May or June. Super Tuesday isn't until early March, another six weeks from now. Some primary and caucuses run into June.

The longer the GOP nominating process goes, candidates will have to spend money against each other instead of someone in the opposing party in the general election. Meanwhile, Obama's war chest simply keeps getting bigger.

Republicans in 2008 at least had the benefit of the same process happening on the Democratic side. CNN reported Hillary Clinton and Obama, both Senators at the time, had back-and-forth primary victories through the whole spring.

Hampering the Republicans is that history isn't on their side. The last time someone won the White House without being involved in politics at the time was Ronald Reagan. He hadn't been in office since the mid-1970s in California when he ran for president on the Republican ticket in 1980. In the race now is a former governor, former Speaker of the House, former Senator and current Representative from Texas. Rep. Ron Paul is the only one of the four remaining mainstream candidates who hasn't won a state yet.

The only good news is that the 2012 election may be eerily similar to 1980. Reagan ran against incumbent Jimmy Carter when the economy wasn't the best, foreign policy was muddled by the Iran hostage crisis and Carter's policies weren't popular.

The only way the GOP will win back the White House is if the 1980 election happens all over again. Otherwise, four more years of Obama is guaranteed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120123/us_ac/10874729_protracted_gop_fight_helps_obama_win_reelection

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How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job? [Ask Lifehacker]

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job? Dear Lifehacker,
I like my job. I really do. My coworkers are great people, my manager understands me, and I get to do what I'm great at and like doing every day. Even so, it's a struggle to get up every morning and go to the same office and do the same things every day. Coming back after weekends are the worst. I know it's called "work" for a reason, but how can I take a little more pleasure in it? How can I wake up every morning feeling invigorated and ready to tackle the day?

Signed,
Lost the Spark

Photo by Dmitriy Shironosov/Shutterstock.

Dear Lost the Spark,
What you're facing is completely normal. Even those of us who are lucky enough to do what we love every day have bad days, or even bad weeks where even though we love our work, it still sucks to drag yourself out of bed to go do it. That doesn't mean you have to live with that feeling though, there are some great ways to re-ignite that fire that will inspire you to give every day your very best, and help you fall in love with your job all over again?not that it seems too difficult, you said you already enjoy what you do.

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job?

Take Stock and Make the Case to Yourself

It sounds like you have a lot of good things going for you, and that you realize that. Your coworkers are people you enjoy working with, you do work that you enjoy and that you're good at doing, and all of those things are more than many people can ask for. Make a list of the things about your job that you love?things like your great coworkers, understanding manager, and the work that you do. If you like your workspace or have the freedom to work from home occasionally, jot that down as well. Then, make a similar list of the things you dislike about your job, whether it's the commute, outdated equipment at the office, the fact that you have to get up earlier than you'd like, or whatever may be getting you down.

The reason for this is two-fold. First, the process of making the list of good things will help you remember all of the great things about your job, or at least remind you that there are more than you may think about on a day to day basis. Second, by writing down the things you dislike, you may stumble on the thing that's got you down or depressed, and with luck, you can work out how to resolve it. If it's the commute that's bothering you, or the time you have to get up, maybe you can work out a different shift, change your schedule so you can arrive later and miss the traffic, or hunt down a great podcast or some other activity that will make your commute more bearable. If the list of things you dislike is short, you can hold it up against the list of positives and remind yourself that things really aren't that bad. It may not help the humdrum of getting up early every day, but it can offer some perspective.

Photo by Crystal.

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job?

Leave Yourself Reminders

Once you have your list of positives, don't just toss it in a drawer and forget about it?take some of the things you really like, jot them down on post-it notes, and put them somewhere in your cubicle or around your desk that you'll see them. When your eyes cross over one, you'll feel better, or if you're feeling particularly unmotivated one day, spend some time looking around your desk and reminding yourself why you like it here. Also, as good things happen to you at work, make note of them and save them for future motivation.

You can keep a work diary to help you keep perspective, or even better, keep an Awesomeness Journal to boost your self-esteem and stay motivated when the chips are down or you just don't feel like getting up in the morning. Whatever you do, it's important to give yourself regular reminders of why you enjoy your work, appreciate your job, and have reason to be happy. The more accessible they are, the easier it will be to drag yourself out of your funk and get back to work.

Photo by Joelk75.

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job?

Take a Vacation to Recharge Your Batteries

When's the last time you had a day off, or a full-fledged vacation? If you're like most people, you have a ton of vacation stored up, but it's never a good time to take a day off. Maybe you're starting to show the signs of burnout, or maybe you're having trouble leaving work behind and enjoying the rest of your life. Both situations are enough to make even the best job grate on your nerves.

Even if you're doing what you love, you have to have a balance where you're not doing it all the time, and you have an opportunity to recharge, come up with new ideas, and return to your work refreshed and ready to move forward. Take some time off, perhaps even a week, and do something that's not work-related. Whether it's a getaway vacation to a far off place or a stay-cation where you spend some time tending the garden and cleaning the house, some time off will let you clear your head and get away from parts of your routine that are bringing you down.

Photo by yeowatzup.

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job?

Get a Mentor/Be a Mentor

It's also possible that you're not tired or feeling down about your work, but that you're just bored. The same way we would suggest you maintain your work/life balance and find enriching things to do away from the office, you may also find an outlet for your creativity by mentoring someone else in the work that you do, or finding someone else who represents where you'd like to go career-wise and talking to them. In many cases, finding a mentor can do a lot to recharge your batteries, because you have someone who's been in your shoes and is currently where you'd like to be that you can pose this very same question to. Similarly, becoming a mentor to someone else can offer a sense of perspective of how far you've come, what you've learned, and how much you have to offer to other people who are coming into the ranks behind you. Even that can be enough inspiration to take the edge off.

Photo by nyuhuhuu.

Join a Professional Organization/Society

In the same vein at mentoring or finding a mentor, joining a professional organization of people who do what you do can give you a wealth of helpful resources. You'll make new friends, have the opportunity to network professionally, and be able to talk to people who struggle with the same challenges that you're working through, even personally. For example, I'm still a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI) and my local chapter often has dinners and meet-and-greets where we can get together, have a few drinks, and talk over our recent endeavors. More often than not, the conversation tends to head towards the personal, always ending in encouragement and support. You're all in this together, and you'll find most members are more than happy to help each other.

How Can I Learn to Take More Pleasure in My Job?

Take Care of Your Mental and Physical Health

One area that you shouldn't overlook here is your personal health. It may seem like the problem is with the job, that it's just lost its luster for you, but the problem may not be the job here, it could be you. You've mentioned that logically, everything is wonderful with your work and you should be happy. Well, happiness starts with you. Are you getting enough sleep every night? Perhaps you've let your workout regimen slip a bit and it's been a while since you've been to the gym. If you're losing sleep or gaining weight, you could just be feeling awful, and even the best job can't fix that.

Make sure to take care of yourself first. Make sure you're getting a good night's rest, and if you're not, read up on our best tricks to get better, more fulfilling sleep. If the conditions are right but you're still not resting, maybe technology can help you get a good night's sleep. Also, don't forget to exercise as well. Even a half-hour walk can make a huge difference in your physical and mental health. We can even help you fit a workout into your daily routine. Take care of yourself, and you may find it easier to take the same joy in your work that you used to. it goes without saying that if you think you may be seriously depressed, you shouldn't hesitate to find someone to talk to about it, but if you're just a little down, you may be able to tackle the problems yourself with exercise, sleep, a proper diet, and overall healthy behavior.

Photo by Richard Riley.

We hope that these tricks help you re-light the fire that you used to find in your work, Lost the Spark, and that you manage to shake off these doldrums and find some joy in your job again. It sounds like you're lucky and have a job that most people would love to have, and we'd hate to see it slip away because of something that's easily fixed with a little inspiration, time, and attention to your own needs. Good luck!

Sincerely,
Lifehacker

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/dNLhM7j_0nI/how-can-i-learn-to-take-more-pleasure-in-my-job

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Megaupload site wants assets back, to fight charges (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The Internet website Megaupload.com, shut down by authorities over allegations that it illegally peddled copyrighted material, is trying to recover its servers and get back online, a lawyer for the company said on Friday.

The company and seven of its executives were charged in a 5-count, 72-page indictment unsealed on Thursday accusing them of engaging in a wide-ranging and lucrative scheme to offer material online without compensating the copyright holders.

Authorities in New Zealand arrested four of those charged, including one of its founders, who legally changed his name to Kim Dotcom. Assets were also seized money, servers, domain names and other assets in the United States and several countries.

"The company is looking at its legal options for getting back its servers and its domain and getting its servers back up online," Megaupload's lawyer Ira Rothken told Reuters. "Megaupload will vigorously defend itself."

He said the company simply offered online storage. "It is really offensive to say that just because people can upload bad things, therefore Megaupload is automatically responsible," he said.

No decision has been made yet about whether they will fight extradition from New Zealand to the United States, Rothken said.

U.S. authorities have painted a much darker picture of the company's operations, saying that Megaupload readily made available copyrighted material including music, television shows, movies, pornography and even terrorism propaganda videos.

Users could upload material to the company's sites, which then would create a link that could be distributed so others could download it, according to the indictment. Some paid subscription fees for faster upload and download speeds.

Despite complaints from copyright holders, the Megaupload did not remove all of the material when requested to do so, prosecutors said. The company's executives earned more than $175 million from subscription fees and advertising, they said.

POSSIBLE NEW MEGAUPLOAD SITE

Less than a day after U.S. authorities shut down the Megaupload.com site and several of its sister sites, there appeared to be an attempt to resurrect the site.

Twitter was flooded with messages circulating a new Internet Protocol address, but the site offered no substantive content immediately and it did not appear that it was sanctioned by Megaupload.

The new website, which is being hosted in the Netherlands, looked similar to the original Megaupload.com website. The company's lawyer said that he was not directly familiar with the new site.

"We're not familiar with any official effort at this point to get the site back up in light of the fact that its major servers are in the possession of the United States government and other governments," Rothken said.

One of those arrested on Thursday was Bram van der Kolk, who has citizenship in the Netherlands and New Zealand. He oversaw programming and the network structure for Megaupload's websites, according to court papers.

U.S. officials were asked on Thursday about the risk of the site reappearing elsewhere in the future, a key issue that has confronted authorities in the past when they've tried to shut down Internet sites selling counterfeit goods.

"Right now we're in the process of executing search and seizure warrants and certainly it's not going to pop up again today. But I couldn't speculate as to what may or may not happen in the future," one Justice Department official said on Thursday.

Another official said "maintaining and running and assembling a site like this is very expensive. And obviously the seizure of financial assets is critical in this type of investigation and prosecution in preventing it from going forward."

The case, which started as an investigation in March 2010, emerged just as lawmakers in Congress have been battling over new legislation sought by the television, movie and music industries that was aimed at making it harder for such material to be so easily peddled over the Internet.

Some major technology companies, including Google and Facebook, have sought to derail the current versions of the legislation because they were concerned they would lead to censorship and lengthy litigation.

Earlier on Friday, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid postponed a vote on one bill that was set for Tuesday until several issues are resolved.

(Additional reporting by Jim Finkle in Boston; Editing by Howard Goller, Gary Hill)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/enterprise/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120120/wr_nm/us_usa_crime_piracy

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Obama's Singing Gets Raves From 'American Idol' Coach

'AI' associate music director Michael Orland tells MTV News in an exclusive that prez's pipes would get him to Hollywood Week.
By Jim Cantiello


President Barack Obama at the Apollo Theater on Thursday
Photo: Shahar Azran/WireImage

This week, "American Idol" kicked off its 11th season, and it appears even President Obama is getting into the spirit. On Thursday night at a fundraiser at the Apollo Theater, the commander in chief surprised a star-studded Harlem, New York, crowd by busting out a few measures of "AI" staple Al Green's "Let's Stay Together."

Obama's smooth singing voice impressed many — including the Rev. Al Green himself, who told TMZ that Obama "nailed it" — but does the leader of the free world have what it takes to make it on America's #1 singing competition?

"American Idol" associate music director and vocal coach Michael Orland certainly thinks so!

"I swear to you, if he auditioned for me in the big stadium [rounds], I would have put him through to the producers immediately," Orland exclusively told MTV News. "I think he was really charming and had a great voice, and that's all you can really tell in the a cappella rounds anyway. ... I thought his phrasing was great, how he broke it up and really worked the room while he was doing it."

But even more noteworthy was Obama's perfect pitch. "He was in the exact same key [as Al Green's recording]. To pull that out of the air, with everything perfectly in tune, I was really impressed," Orland added.

The vocal pro even believes Obama's voice was strong enough to win over ultimate deciders Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler. "I guarantee you he would have gotten a Golden Ticket."

On his hypothetical "Idol" journey, Obama's next challenge would be the dreaded Hollywood Week, where hundreds of hopefuls are forced to work around the clock, learning group numbers with little sleep and lots of drama. "I think considering the amount of stress he's normally under, he'd do really well," Orland laughed.

The "Idol" insider struggled to compare Obama's singing voice to any previous contestants but, ultimately, that's what makes the President a fantastic prospect.

"It sounded like him! He sang like he speaks. He has a unique voice, which is all you ever try to find in somebody. ... He didn't try to copy anybody," Orland raved.

Still, every singer could use a little constructive criticism — even singers who have the power to start nuclear war — and if Orland were working with Obama on a full-fledged "Idol" performance, he would encourage the President to take a few risks. "When you do one of those really well-known songs, don't be afraid to change it up a little bit," Orland said, jokingly adding, "If they could send Air Force One, I would give him a free coaching!"

Alas, Obama is too old to audition for "Idol" by 22 years, but fear not, Mr. President: there's always season two of "The X Factor."

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1677644/obama-sings-al-green.jhtml

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Snakes improve search-and-rescue robots

ScienceDaily (Jan. 19, 2012) ? Designing an all-terrain robot for search-and-rescue missions is an arduous task for scientists. The machine must be flexible enough to move over uneven surfaces, yet not so big that it's restricted from tight spaces. It might also be required to climb slopes of varying inclines. Existing robots can do many of these things, but the majority require large amounts of energy and are prone to overheating. Georgia Tech researchers have designed a new machine by studying the locomotion of a certain type of flexible, efficient animal.

"By using their scales to control frictional properties, snakes are able to move large distances while exerting very little energy," said Hamid Marvi, a Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. candidate at Georgia Tech.

While studying and videotaping the movements of 20 different species at Zoo Atlanta, Marvi developed Scalybot 2, a robot that replicates rectilinear locomotion of snakes. He unveiled the robot this month at the Society for Integrative & Comparative Biology (SICB) annual meeting in Charleston, S.C.

"During rectilinear locomotion, a snake doesn't have to bend its body laterally to move," explained Marvi. "Snakes lift their ventral scales and pull themselves forward by sending a muscular traveling wave from head to tail. Rectilinear locomotion is very efficient and is especially useful for crawling within crevices, an invaluable benefit for search-and-rescue robots."

Scalybot 2 can automatically change the angle of its scales when it encounters different terrains and slopes. This adjustment allows the robot to either fight or generate friction. The two-link robot is controlled by a remote-controlled joystick and can move forward and backward using four motors.

"Snakes are highly maligned creatures," said Joe Mendelson, curator of herpetology at Zoo Atlanta. "I really like that Hamid's research is showing the public that snakes can help people."

Marvi's advisor is David Hu, an assistant professor in the Schools of Mechanical Engineering and Biology. Hu and his research team are primarily focused on animal locomotion. They've studied how dogs and other animals shake water off their bodies and how mosquitos fly through rainstorms.

This isn't the first time Hu's lab has looked at snake locomotion. Last summer the team developed Scalybot 1, a two-link climbing robot that replicates concertina locomotion. The push-and-pull, accordion-style movement features alternating scale activity.

This project is supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) (Award No. PHY-0848894). The content is solely the responsibility of the principal investigators and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NSF.

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