Grassley: Politics in US attorney?s decision not to prosecute Holder?

[ [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 2]], 'http://yhoo.it/KeQd0p', '[Slideshow: See photos taken on the way down]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 7]], ' http://yhoo.it/KpUoHO', '[Slideshow: Death-defying daredevils]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['know that we have confidence in', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/LqYjAX ', '[Related: The Secret Service guide to Cartagena]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['We picked up this other dog and', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JUSxvi', '[Related: 8 common dog fears, how to calm them]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 5]], 'http://bit.ly/JnoJYN', '[Related: Did WH share raid details with filmmakers?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 3]], 'http://bit.ly/KoKiqJ', '[Factbox: AQAP, al-Qaeda in Yemen]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have my contacts on or glasses', 3]], 'http://abcn.ws/KTE5AZ', '[Related: Should the murder charge be dropped?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JD7nlD', '[Related: Bristol Palin reality show debuts June 19]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 1]], 'http://bit.ly/JRPFRO', '[Related: McCain adviser who vetted Palin weighs in on VP race]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GV9zpj', '[Related: View photos of the JetBlue plane in Amarillo]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['the 28-year-old neighborhood watchman who shot and killed', 15]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/white-house-stays-out-of-teen-s-killing-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120411/martinzimmermen.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['He was in shock and still strapped to his seat', 6]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/navy-jet-crashes-in-virginia-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120406/jet_ap.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['xxxxxxxxxxxx', 11]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/russian-grannies-win-bid-to-sing-at-eurovision-1331223625-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/1/56/156d92f2760dcd3e75bcd649a8b85fcf.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP', ] ]

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/grassley-politics-us-attorney-decision-not-prosecute-holder-210409449.html

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Android 4.1 'Jelly Bean' looks cool at Google I/O, but will you get it?

Google's new Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" includes a much smoother UI experience, offline voice dictation, offline maps, and the slightly creepy Google Now.

Of course, none of that matters if you aren't going to get it.

As we've recounted many, many times, unless you have an unlocked, non-carrier-branded Google Nexus phone, you just can't count on your Android phone ever getting an upgrade. But rather than the toothless, failed "Android update consortium" announced last year, Google is finally calling the phone makers' bluff on upgrades. Pity it won't make any difference.

The Good News ... And The Bad News

For a while now, phone makers and chipset companies have been deeply annoyed that they only get new Android code when it comes out on Nexus phones. That means they start out months behind whoever the preferred Nexus partner was, as they optimise the new version first for their hardware and then they add those notorious OEM skins. Only then can the new version go to carriers for their weeks worth of compatibility testing.

Google's new "PDK" changes that game. Google will now give Android code to chipset and phone companies months before a Nexus device hits the scene, leveling the playing field. Now any delays that happen really will be the fault of manufacturer skins and carrier testing.

Here's the problem, though: while the PDK takes effect with Android 4.1, many device makers haven't even gotten up to Android 4.0 yet. Let's take Motorola, which you can be critical of because it's actually owned by Google. Motorola posts a handy-dandy chart of Android 4.0 upgrade status, where you'll find that many phones won't begin their upgrade rollouts until the third quarter of 2012, and many others will remain with Android 2.3 forever.

If OEMs care enough to prioritise upgrades, they'll rush the 4.1 upgrade into production and bring it along shortly after the 4.0 upgrade, or wrap both of them together. But Google's PDK doesn't necessarily change the economics of the phone marketplace. Carriers still want you to extend your contract by picking up a new subsidised device rather than going off-contract with an older phone. Manufacturers still make their money from selling new devices, not upgrading old ones.

Google's GSM-based Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S, and Xoom tablets will get Jelly Bean in mid-July, because Google controls those updates. But I wouldn't even expect other models of those same devices to get Jelly Bean quickly; US carrier Verizon has trapped incremental updates to Ice Cream Sandwich in carrier testing, to many Galaxy Nexus owners' dismay. Android 4.0.4 arrived on Verizon's phones two months after appearing on GSM models. Both Verizon and Sprint - another US mobile service provider - have thusfar declined to comment on the issue.

Why Android Upgrades Just Don't Happen

Apple has convinced carriers that iPhone users are terribly, terribly sticky; they're so satisfied with the platform (Apple's story goes) that if carriers just hand over control to Apple, they'll have customers for life. So far, that equation has worked out decently for the carriers; investment firm Canaccord Genuity said that the iPhone 4S is still the top seller on America's largest compatible national networks, while other analysts are venturing that prospects for 2013 look equally rosy for Cupertino, given the expected autumn launch of iPhone 5.

Microsoft also demands that every phone will get upgrades (if only to Windows 7.8), but I'm reluctant to take lessons from a company with such a tiny market share right now, so we'll move on.

Google doesn't push upgrades on OEMs and carriers; they're offered as purely optional add-ons. OEMs and carriers, meanwhile, see stock Android as a commodity. The best way to get an upgrade, in their minds, is to buy a new phone.

Since most of Android is open source, the one stick Google could hold over their heads would be withdrawing permission to use Google Play, Maps, and Gmail, but the company doesn't seem willing to go that far. The carriers and OEMs don't feel threatened by Google, but Google also isn't suffering; Android's market share just keeps rising. There's no incentive for Google to push harder. Things are working out for everyone except consumers who want upgrades.

So yes, Jelly Bean looks cool. Pity you'll probably never get it.

Published under license from Ziff Davis, Inc., New York, All rights reserved.
Copyright ? 2012 Ziff Davis, Inc

Source: http://feeds.itproportal.com/~r/itproportal/rss/~3/BgN7umtrYLI/

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Video: Matthews: Anger from the right over health care ruling foreshadows more outrage

Psst: asparagus pee. Are you in the club?

After eating asparagus, about one in five people detects a distinct scent in their urine that, depending on the person, carries a pungent bouquet that?s been compared to a vegetable garden, sulfur, cabbage soup -- or simply cooked asparagus.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/48020483#48020483

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Report: US student fights for life after chimp attack

Erin Conway-Smith/AP, file

Chimpanzees sit in an enclosure at the Chimp Eden rehabilitation center, near Nelspruit, South Africa in this Feb 2011 photo.

By NBC's Rohit Kachroo and msnbc.com staff

An American studying chimpanzee behavior in South Africa was ?fighting for his life? after he was attacked by two of the animals, according to a report.

The chimpanzees dragged the man for more than a mile, under a fence and into their enclosure at Jane Goodall Institute Chimp Eden near Nelspruit, The Telegraph newspaper reported.

---

The paper said the victim of the attack had not been named. However, it said it understood he was a ?young university student from the United States who had been observing the animals at the reserve for several weeks.?

Jeffrey Wicks, a spokesman for private ambulance firm Netcare911, told the Telegraph that witnesses said the man was leading a group of tourists when the attack happened.

"A ranger at a chimpanzee sanctuary near Nelspruit is fighting for his life after he was attacked by two frenzied animals while leading a tour group at the park this afternoon," he added. "According to eyewitnesses, two chimpanzees grabbed the man by his feet and pulled him under the perimeter fence and into the enclosure."

Armed escorts for paramedics
Paramedics needed armed escorts as they went in to treat the victim, NBC?s Rohit Kachroo reported. It was unclear whether this caused any delay.

NBC's Meredith Vieira sits down with Charla Nash, who recently underwent a face transplant that's helped her regain the life she had before being brutally attacked by a chimp.

The victim was stabilized at the scene and taken by ambulance to a private hospital in Nelspruit, NBC said. There have been no similar attacks at the reserve, which opened more than six years ago.

David Oosthuizen, Jane Goodall Institute executive director, confirmed the reserve was on lock down following the incident, The Telegraph said.

A game of peek-a-boo between a chimp and three-year-old twins turns from laughter to screams at the Honolulu Zoo. TODAY.com's Dara Brown reports.

"We understand that the gentleman is stable and we really feel for him," he told the paper. "This has been very upsetting for everyone ? it is just horrific. We are an organization that's respected worldwide for the work we do so anything like this is very bad."

Victim of chimpanzee attack shares progress, optimism

He added that some of the animals kept there had been abused before they were rescued and taken to the institute.

"These chimpanzees have six times the strength of a human being so you have to respect them and we certainly do," he said.

More world news from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Follow World News on msnbc.com on Twitter and Facebook

?

Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/06/29/12477253-report-us-student-fighting-for-life-after-chimps-attack-at-south-africas-jane-goodall-institute?lite

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Obama: Ruling a win for the people (CNN)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/234791022?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Dallas Commercial Real Estate Investing Information | South Jersey ...

Everyone knows that real estate is a brilliant approach to diversify your investment techniques and reduced your exposure to instruments and bond market segments, but still commercial real estate investing isn't discussed whenever this subject matter is broached. Commercial real estate investing may not have the radio and TV exposure highlighting its positive aspects like its residential cousin having said that it has a range of pretty engaging aspects to the opportunist hunting for diversity.

When you have found one individual property for financial commitment , value the property using standard in addition to present day methods. Look at the shape of the property. Be brooding about the future and could it take part in any kind of upcoming expansion? Following that is usually to evaluate if it will satisfy your earnings needs. Ultimately , see the way in which the property will impact your borrowing capacities. You will find PC programs you can get which are frequently useful to estimate the end results by using current industry figures.

Check into and investigate every piece of specifics of the commercial real estate property you are looking to invest in. You're looking at this kind of asset so you are able to flourish in your business matters. Do not ever get foolhardy whenever using these details.

One of the number one stages in becoming a wealthy commercial real estate investor is certainly to start to know your local community. You must know the buildings, how much they are really worth, and who actually owns them. It is time to turn into a detective and distinguish trends or rhythms in your local marketplace. There may be certain residences which are being wrongly maintained and are getting ready to get into property foreclosure, or a cutting edge mall in the development schedule a couple of years from at the moment and purchasing the property surrounding the approaching construction site at an especially cheap price per acre will likely be worth way above your early monetary obligation when the mall moves under construction.

Dallas commercial real estate investments demand a significant degree of patience, in depth planning, and persistence. Getting into commercial real estate opportunities and not employing a balanced approach may be a monetary death nail. The successes in this discipline are especially interlinked to the status of your own finance. The kind of commercial property you are looking to invest in should be decided beforehand. It is best to invest in a commercial property which you have some basic practical data. After that would be the amount of money you are intending to invest. Ultimately, you need to choose an appropriate place for your financial commitment.

Capital is really a major requirement for the purchase of commercial real estate. Take the procedures of being pre-qualified for your loan before you decide to check around for the right property. Thru doing this you're going to try to find the commercial property that you can essentially afford.

Commercial real estate investors really have to create trustworthy connections with fellow stockholders along with non-public loan firms. A solid connection with private banks along with other speculators will come in handy through your business ventures especially when an investor wants to buy properties that are enormous amounts of money. These connections might also allow financiers to be a step ahead of the other people as a great deal of commercial properties are bought without them ever being openly listed.

Stop by and talk with one of our top commercial real estate and property management Dallas pros and find the perfect Dallas office space for your business.

?Mail this post

Posted under Resources

Source: http://southjerseyrealestateagent.com/?p=10023

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AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL CHEMISTRY ...

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Displaced Colo. residents wait as fire rages

This aerial photo taken on Wednesday, June 27, 2012, shows burned homes in the Mountain Shadows residential area of Colorado Springs, Colo., that were destroyed by the Waldo Canyon wildfire. More than 30,000 have been displaced by the fire, including thousands who frantically packed up belongings Tuesday night after it barreled into neighborhoods in the foothills west and north of Colorado?s second-largest city. (AP Photo/John Wark)

This aerial photo taken on Wednesday, June 27, 2012, shows burned homes in the Mountain Shadows residential area of Colorado Springs, Colo., that were destroyed by the Waldo Canyon wildfire. More than 30,000 have been displaced by the fire, including thousands who frantically packed up belongings Tuesday night after it barreled into neighborhoods in the foothills west and north of Colorado?s second-largest city. (AP Photo/John Wark)

A plume of smoke from the Waldo Canyon wildfire rises behind homes west of Colorado Springs, Colo., Wednesday, June 27, 2012. A large number of homes were destroyed by the fire Tuesday night in subdivisions west of Colorado Springs. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

Evacuees of the Waldo Canyon Fire look at the most recent map of the fire's progression at the Cheyenne Mountain High School evacuation center on Wednesday, June 27, 2012, in Colorado Springs, Colo. The wildfire doubled in size overnight to about 24 square miles (62 square kilometers), and has so far forced mandatory evacuations for more than 32,000 residents. (AP Photo/Bryan Oller)

Map shows spread of wildfire over last 24 hours and previous six days

Evacuees of the Waldo Canyon Fire are assisted by a volunteers from the Red Cross at the Cheyenne Mountain High School evacuation center on Wednesday, June 27, 2012, in Colorado Springs, Colo. The wildfire doubled in size overnight to about 24 square miles (62 square kilometers), and has so far forced mandatory evacuations for more than 32,000 residents. (AP Photo/Bryan Oller)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) ? Tens of thousands of Colorado Springs residents forced from their homes by a raging wildfire took refuge with friends or family and crammed into hotels and shelters as Army troops helped firefighters protect the U.S. Air Force Academy from encroaching flames.

The blaze was burning out of control early Thursday in the mountains and within Colorado's second-largest city, after more than 30,000 evacuees frantically packed up belongings and fled.

The wildfire was one of many burning across the parched West, blazes that have destroyed structures and prompted evacuations in Montana and Utah and forced the closure of a portion of Zion National Park.

Shifting winds Wednesday challenged firefighters trying to contain the 29-square-mile Waldo Canyon blaze and extinguish hot spots inside Colorado Spring's western suburbs. The National Weather Service reported 60 mph winds and lightning above the fire Wednesday afternoon, but winds were calmer by nightfall.

"It won't stay in the same place," said incident commander Rich Harvey.

Neighborhoods where explosions of bright orange flame Tuesday signaled yet another house had been claimed were still dangerous, keeping authorities away from being to assess the damage.

But an AP aerial photo taken Wednesday of one neighborhood showed dozens of heavily damaged or destroyed homes.

Ed and Florine Gigandet took refuge in a hotel in Manitou Springs, which days earlier had been evacuated when the same fire passed through. They fled their home as ash fell on their driveway from an ominous orange smoke overhead.

Trying to learn about damage, the Gigandets drove to near their west Colorado Springs neighborhood to talk to police officers and see the area. They scoured media photos and spent hours on the phone with friends for any scrap of information. Authorities told the Gigandets it could be at least week before they're allowed home.

"We only packed clothes for four days," Florine Gigandet, 83, a retired photo printer, said. "I really thought that we'd be gone for only a day."

The displaced residents took stock of what they left behind. Some sat in coffee shops, others stood on bluffs to keep an eye on their neighborhoods, and others met with insurance company representatives.

The fire moved so fast that Laura Oldland grabbed damp laundry out of her drier and threw it into a suitcase. But she forgot her grandmother's dishes.

The Gigandets, avid golfers, left their clubs behind. "We should be out golfing," said Ed Gigandet, 81, a retired mining machinery sales analyst.

Meanwhile, the White House said President Barack Obama will tour fire-stricken areas of Colorado on Friday and thank firefighters battling some of the worst fires to hit the American West in decades.

Colorado Springs Police Chief Peter Carey said Obama's visit to Colorado, considered a key battleground state in the presidential election, would not tax the city's already-strained police force. Gov. John Hickenlooper said he expected the president might sign a disaster declaration that would allow for more federal aid.

The fire burned about 10 acres along the southwest boundary of the Air Force Academy campus. No injuries or damage to structures ? including the iconic Cadet Chapel ? were reported.

Late Wednesday night, Air Force Academy officials announced they were relocating about 550 cadets off academy grounds. About 200 cadets in summer academics were being moved to the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, and 350 others in airmanship and other training programs were released to local sponsor families, the school said. The cadet area isn't immediately threatened, and an incoming class of more than 1,000 is still scheduled to arrive Thursday.

About 120 soldiers from nearby Fort Carson built firebreaks around parts of the academy, aided by equipment including 10 heavy bulldozers, four excavators, 13 military transportation and support vehicles, and one commercial road grader, Army officials said.

The full scope of the fire remained unknown. So intense were the flames and so thick the smoke that rescue workers weren't able to tell residents which structures were destroyed and which ones were still standing. Steve Cox, a spokesman for Mayor Steve Bach, reported that at least dozens of homes had been consumed.

Indeed, authorities were too busy Wednesday struggling to save homes in near-zero visibility to count how many had been destroyed in what is the latest test for a drought-parched and tinder-dry state. At one point, a team assessing the damage had to leave charred neighborhoods because of smoke and fire danger.

Carey said officials had no plans to release the numbers of homes destroyed ? insisting residents have a right to be told first, in private.

The FBI said it was investigating the cause of the blaze.

In addition to the some 30,000 evacuees, about 3,000 more people were evacuated to the west of the fire, Teller County authorities said Wednesday, and Teller County courts were closed through Thursday.

The Red Cross was accommodating victims at its shelters, with space enough for perhaps 2,500 people. Most evacuees were staying with family and friends.

Crews also were battling a deadly and destructive wildfire in northern Colorado and another that flared Tuesday night near Boulder.

Colorado wasn't the only state affected by fire, as several burned throughout the parched West.

Tom Harbour, director of fire and aviation management for the U.S. Forest Service, said there is competition for firefighting resources, including aircraft. "We're still at a point where we've got lots of available assets to mix and match on individual incidents."

Some states are seeing fires earlier this year, but Harbour said resources are far from being exhausted.

"With over 10,000 firefighters in the Forest Service and the ability to get over 700 aircraft of all types, we're feeling cautiously confident when you look at the season as a whole," Harbour said.

Among the fires elsewhere in the West:

? A 72-square-mile wildfire in central Utah has destroyed at least 56 structures, mainly homes, and continues to burn with little containment, authorities said Wednesday. Officials expected the damage estimate to rise considerably as they continue their assessment of the fire-ravaged area between Fountain Green and Fairview and north across the Utah County line. Officials returned to an evacuated area and found a woman dead Tuesday.

? The smaller New Harmony Fire near St. George started Wednesday afternoon and had grown to 2,000 acres by midnight, forcing an undetermined number of residents near New Harmony and Bumblebee to evacuate. The fire was burning about three miles north of Zion National Park, prompting park officials to close a canyon area popular with hikers known as the Kolob section.

? Wildfires that have torched more than 200 square miles and burned dozens of homes in southeastern Montana spread farther Wednesday, with additional evacuations ordered after a blaze south of Roundup jumped a perimeter line built by firefighters. The growing Dahl fire, which has burned more than 60 homes by one estimate, forced an unknown number of residents to leave their homes near its southern flank, on top of an estimated 600 people evacuated the day before.

"That's one of the most dangerous fires in the history of Montana," Gov. Brian Schweitzer said.

? A wildfire in the Bridger-Teton National Forest has grown from about 2,000 acres to 12,000 acres, or nearly 19 square miles, officials said Wednesday. Authorities worked to get campers out of the area.

___

Associated Press writers Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, N.M., and Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyo., contributed to this report.

Associated Press

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Why You Should Use A Concrete Driveway Sealer For Your Home

While it may be a fact that concrete and asphalt are already very durable materials, you can always add a layer of driveway sealer on top of the finished surface in order to fortify it even more. This way, you will not have to keep finishing and refinishing the surface in order to ensure that it will uphold the value of your home. Below are some of the different benefits that you stand to enjoy by applying a layer of water based driveway sealer on your driveway. Read on and find out how you can further maintain your driveway using this kind of finishing.

It is true that people rarely spend so much time worrying about the state of their driveway, which is a shame for this part of your house is one of the first things people will notice when they visit your home. In order for you to be able to keep your driveway in pristine condition no matter how often you drive over it, you have to invest on good sealers that will help you fortify this area of your home. Driveway sealing is one of the best things that you may implement order to make the already durable materials used for your driveway stronger. All you have to do is to add a layer of sealer and you will be good to go.

Since your driveway is on the exterior of your home, it will come across different kind of forces that will cause a certain level of wear and tear. Applying a driveway sealer will help you see to it that the concrete will not bear signs of water, sunlight, or snow damage no matter what happens. Gone are the days when all you can do is to keep adding another layer of concrete in order to keep your driveway looking neat. With a sealer, you will be able to protect this area of your house even if you do not place much attention in maintaining this area of your home.

Applying layers of driveway sealer to your driveway will also make it so much easier for you to clean this part of your house. All you would have to do is to regularly sweep the area in order to keep it well maintained. This means that you will not have to worry yourself over taking extra care of the exteriors of your house, for all you have to do is to finish it using a water based driveway sealer.

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Judge halts US sales of Samsung Galaxy Tab - Undisputed Legal Inc.

By Dan Levine

A U.S. judge on Tuesday backed Apple Inc?s request to stop Samsung Electronics selling its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in the United States, giving the iPhone maker a significant win in the global smartphone and tablet patent wars.

Samsung?s Galaxy touchscreen tablets, powered by Google?s Android operating system, are considered by many industry experts to be the main rival to the?iPad, though they are currently a distant second to Apple?s device. Microsoft and Google are also preparing tablet offerings.

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, had previously denied Apple?s bid for an injunction on the tablet and multiple Galaxy smartphones. However, a federal appeals court instructed Koh to reconsider Apple?s request on the tablet.

?Although Samsung has a right to compete, it does not have a right to compete unfairly, by flooding the market with infringing products,? Koh wrote on Tuesday, adding the order should become effective once Apple posts a $2.6 million bond to protect against damages suffered by Samsung if the injunction is later found to have been wrong.

Apple has waged an international patent war since 2010 as it seeks to limit the growth of Google?s Android system, the world?s best-selling mobile operating platform. A decisive injunction in one of the U.S. legal cases could strengthen Apple?s hand in negotiating cross-licensing deals, where firms agree to let each other use their patented technologies.

Opponents of Apple say the iPhone and iPad maker is using patents too aggressively in its bid to stamp out competition.

?The relief being given to Apple here is extraordinary. Preliminary injunctions are rarely asked for and rarely granted,? said Colleen Chien, a professor at Santa Clara Law in Silicon Valley.

?That this was a design patent and copying was alleged distinguish this case from plain vanilla utility patent cases. Cases involving these kinds of patents are based more on a counterfeiting theory than a competition theory, so I don?t expect this case to have ramifications for all smartphone disputes, but rather those involving design patents and the kind of product resemblance we had here.?

The injunction against Samsung comes less than a week after Apple suffered a serious setback when a federal judge in Chicago dismissed its patent claims against Google?s Motorola Mobility unit. Judge Richard Posner ruled that an injunction barring the sale of Motorola smartphones would harm consumers.

LIKELY APPEAL

Samsung will likely seek to appeal Koh?s ruling to a federal appeals court in Washington, DC, which has exclusive jurisdiction over intellectual property disputes.

?Apple sought a preliminary injunction of Samsung?s Galaxy Tab 10.1, based on a single design patent that addressed just one aspect of the product?s overall design,? Samsung said in a statement. ?Should Apple continue to make legal claims based on such a generic design patent, design innovation and progress in the industry could be restricted.?

The South Korean firm said it would take necessary legal steps, and did not expect the ruling to have a significant impact on its business, as it has a broad range of products. It brought out three tablet models last year alone.

Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet reiterated a prior statement from the company, saying Samsung?s ?blatant copying? is wrong.

Apple sold 13.6 million iPads in January-March to control 63 percent of the global tablet market, according to research firm Display Search. Samsung sold 1.6 million tablets, giving it 7.5 percent of the market. The global tablet market is set to nearly double this year to 123.5 million units this year, according to IHS iSuppli.

Microsoft last week introduced its own line of tablet computers, making a major strategic shift for the software giant as it struggles to compete with Apple and re-invent its aging Windows franchise, and Google plans to unveil a $199 tablet co-branded with Taiwan?s Asustek Computer Inc at its developer conference this week, according to a media report. [ID:nL3E8HQ6MB]

Samsung, which has various tablet line-ups with different sizes from 7 inches to 10.1 inches, introduced the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in June last year and unveiled an upgraded version, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 II, last month.

The company said the U.S. ruling does not affect the updated Tab 10.1 II, and retailers can also clear their existing Tab 10.1 inventories.

In Seoul, Samsung shares rose 3 percent in a flat market, rebounding from 4-month lows early this week amid concerns over second-quarter profit growth.

The case in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, is Apple Inc v. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd et al, 11-1846.

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Portugal clings to austerity on edge of abyss

LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal's traditional fado music is taking on new meaning with the country's economic crisis, as variants of the age-old melancholic songs offer an outlet for young people reeling from relentless austerity.

"I come from the generation with no income," blare the powerful lyrics of 'How silly I am' by popular fado-inspired band Deolinda, pondering the increasingly hopeless outlook for the one-in-three people under 25 who are out of work.

The euro zone crisis has led Portugal into its deepest recession since the 1970s, with overall unemployment at a record 15 percent as the centre-right government slashes spending under a 78-billion-euro bailout deal with the European Union and IMF.

Still, strikes and protests against austerity, which has included wage cuts of up to 20 percent for civil servants, have been low-key compared with places like Greece and Spain.

While die-hard leftists rail in parliament and the largest union organizes poorly-attended strikes, the general mood has, until recently, been best summed up by the fatalism expressed in songs like 'How silly I am'.

The government, elected a year ago with clear warnings of the hardship to come, is determined to meet fiscal goals under the bailout and sees no alternative to more of the same.

"We received a country on the edge of the abyss, our obligation is to do everything within our reach so that with the help of the Portuguese we will be able to reform it into a free, autonomous country," said Foreign Minister Paulo Portas.

Such unswerving commitment to reform means Lisbon scores high marks in Berlin and Brussels, but criticism of austerity is beginning to extend well beyond fado, and, more importantly, the abyss is still there.

CHOKED

"Nobody is turning against the single currency, but they are turning against (Europe's) austerity system," said Mario Soares, 87, Portugal's Socialist elder statesman, considered by many as the father of its modern-day democracy.

Business leaders are increasingly calling for budget targets to be extended or relaxed to avoid killing the patient with austerity and urging Europe to take action to end the crisis.

"I personally believe that the ECB should inject money into these countries," said Alexandre Soares dos Santos, Portugal's second richest man and chairman of Jeronimo Martins, the second biggest retailer in Portugal and biggest in Poland.

"Why three years and not five (to meet deficit reduction goals), if you can reduce the number of people unemployed?" he asked, saying the government needed more time to distribute its harsh medicine.

Jose Avelino, 45, who drives a tourist bus, said people were getting ever more desperate. "We have choked on the measures."

There are no signs yet of discontent fuelling big strikes or protests and no whispers of dissent within Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho's centre-right coalition, which has an absolute majority in parliament.

The previous Socialist government collapsed last year after Portugal became the third country in the euro zone -- after Greece and Ireland -- to seek a bailout, because its financing costs had soared due to its high debt levels.

The country has approved the "fiscal compact" for budget discipline in Europe and the government has said it would support closer political and fiscal union, though it is sees economic reform and fixing state finances as priorities.

"The first obligation of a country is to stick to its word, to honor and fulfill the terms of its (loan) program," the prime minister told parliament on Monday.

The problem is that despite Portugal's best efforts, it remains the second most risky country in the euro zone after Greece, in terms of bond spreads. Portugal's 10-year bond yields are at 9.7 percent, above neighboring Spain's 6.7 percent.

That makes it especially vulnerable to further flare ups in the euro zone crisis, whether in Greece or in increasingly troubled Spain, its biggest export market.

EURO FEARS

Most in Portugal believe it is unthinkable that such pressures could eventually drive Portugal out of the euro -- 80 percent back the single currency in polls. But Joao Ferreira do Amaral, professor of macroeconomics at Lisbon's School of Economics and Management, is one of those lonely voices and his view has only been reinforced by the crisis.

"I always had the view that we did not have a sufficiently strong economy for a strong currency," said Ferreira do Amaral, who is one of Portugal's most high profile Eurosceptics, having been an advisor to former Socialist President Jorge Sampaio.

"Even without the crisis that started in 2008, we were on an unsustainable path," he said, advocating a gradual exit with the euro and a new escudo functioning in parallel at first.

Debts and bank deposits should remain in euros, Ferreira do Amaral says, while the central bank would carry out "monetary financing" of a new escudo used for all other payments.

"Either we have debt forgiveness or inflation," he said.

Those views get little backing from the Portuguese, despite the country having experienced one of Europe's lowest growth rates in the run-up to the financial crisis.

"If we went back to the escudo we would be more competitive as a country but citizens would be subject to mass devaluation of everything they own," said Paula Fazendas, 42, a cardiologist.

"If I could, I would take my money, put it in Switzerland and leave the country, but I won't do it because I have kids."

Business leaders worry about Portugal's euro future.

"I am very much in favor of the euro, for me it would be an enormous disappointment if we were forced to leave," said Soares dos Santos. "Now, how can I invest in this country if I don't know if we remain in the euro or we go back to the escudo?"

For a country stuck on the edge of Europe with Spain on one side and the Atlantic on the other, joining the euro was always a way of joining the continent's mainstream.

As such, most Portuguese think lasting solutions to the euro crisis can only come from the centre.

"The day that the European Central Bank can print money the crisis will end, it's that simple," the veteran former prime minister Soares said.

The ECB has heard a chorus of such calls. Its reluctance to heed them means Portugal's hopes may go unrealized.

(Editing by Paul Taylor and Philippa Fletcher)

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Terrell Owens Naked Photos: Up For Sale!

Terrell Owens always had great hands on the football field.

Now the former NFL star is showcasing how he put them to good use off the gridiron in a series of graphic naked photos being shopped around ... if you know what we mean! We mean the pics show T.O. going to town on his Johnson.

Hopefully he gets a cut of the profits ... he's broke as a joke.

The woman shopping the Terrell Owens photos claims the two met on Twitter, and later moved on to Skype, where they engaged in cyber sex.

Yes, apparently people do this.

The women decided to take a few T.O. action shots for good measure, and why not, given the ease of the screen-grabbing function on MacBook.

A similar thing reportedly happened with the Tyson Beckford sex tape. Bottom line: Be careful out there, kids, before you whip it out on Skype.

[Photo: WENN.com]

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Infoaxe?s Flipora Passes 8M Registered Users, Adds Discovery Engine

A couple years ago, two Stanford grad students got together and created a personal search history plug-in and engine called Infoaxe that would surface better results based on your personal browsing history. Since then, they've rebranded as Flipora, passed 8 million registered users and they're now adding another key piece to their product -- a discovery engine that helps users figure out what to visit next on the web. They're calling it a "Pandora for websites". "There is so much great stuff on the web," said co-founder Jonathan Siddharth. "This should be like an intelligent cab driver who truly knows you and directs you to the right places."

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'Magic Mike' is a beefcake bonanza with heart

Claudette Barius / Warner Bros.

Adam Rodriguez, Kevin Nash, Channing Tatum, and Matt Bomer in "Magic Mike."

By David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter

REVIEW: In "Magic Mike,"?Channing Tatum?s pre-Hollywood experience as a male stripper has inspired not only one of his better roles but also arguably the raunchiest, funniest and most enjoyably nonjudgmental American movie about selling sex since "Boogie Nights," its obvious if considerably darker precursor. Delivering what feels like a young director?s work and not that of a guy nudging 50,?Steven Soderbergh?taps into the jazzy erotic energy that put him on the map more than 20 years ago with "Sex, Lies, and Videotape."

Following its closing-night premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival, the Warner release should rake in girl and gay dollars on the strength of its ample man candy alone. The script by first-time screenwriter?Reid Carolin?(Tatum?s producing partner) is stronger on dialogue and character than on narrative originality or emotional conflict. But as Soderbergh showed in his "Ocean?s Eleven"?series, the director has a terrific feel for depicting male camaraderie, and the buddy elements should give "Magic Mike"?inclusive appeal.

THR video: Channing Tatum's 'Magic Mike' offers a red-band strip tease

It might also be the first mainstream movie to feature a casual demonstration of a pump-operated penis enlarger (keep an eye on the left-hand margins of the widescreen frame), which should at least provide a talking point at the multiplex.

A self-described entrepreneur whose small businesses include roof tiling, car detailing and designing custom furniture from found objects, Mike (Tatum) makes his serious cash as one of the "c***-rocking kings of Tampa" in a male dance revue at ladies? nightspot Xquisite. The fringe benefits are apparent as Mike is slyly introduced, naked and still groggy following a three-way with occasional hookup Joanna (Olivia Munn) and a girl whose name neither of them can remember.

Mike?s stripper guru is club owner Dallas, a gonzo showman in leather vest and tear-away pants, played by a hilariously self-parodying?Matthew McConaughey. Sporting more six packs than a beer blast, Dallas? crew includes pretty boy Ken (Matt Bomer), whose "Living Doll" routine takes its cue from his name; Tarzan (Kevin Nash), a gnarled wild man in the?Mickey Rourke?mold; Latin stud Tito (Adam Rodriguez); and Big Dick Richie (Joe Manganiello), whose special talent requires no explanation, though he does get a little help from the aforementioned pump.

The undisputed star attraction, however, and big brother to the troupe is Magic Mike, a role that allows Tatum to show off the slick dance moves he?s kept hidden since "Step Up."

THR photos: 28 of summer's most anticipated movies

Choreographed by?Alison Faulk, the solo routines and the group numbers are a blast, embracing every cheesy male stripper stereotype from soldiers, sailors and cops to cowboys and firemen. These guys are like a heterosexual rethink of The Village People. Their routines include a fabulously hoary "It's Raining Men" number with trench coats and umbrellas and a boot-camp routine with McConaughey cranking up the crazy intensity as Uncle Sam.

Soderbergh clearly gets a kick out of flipping the gender roles of sexual objectification. The club scenes cater to male fantasies of mass female adoration, while the hordes of delirious, drunken women stuffing singles into jockstraps represent a liberating switch from the usual depictions of sleazy men leering at pole dancers.

The primary focus of Carolin?s story is the friendship between Mike and Adam (Alex Pettyfer), a directionless 19-year-old college football-scholarship dropout Mike meets on a roofing crew. Mike takes Adam under his wing, shoving him onstage without warning to do his first strip, appropriately to "Like a Virgin." Nervous but game, Adam is dubbed The Kid and proves a natural at pleasing the ladies.

Some of the funniest scenes include The Kid getting schooled in crotch-grinding moves by Dallas, glistening in a crop top and short shorts; and Adam?s awkward nonexplanation when his sister, Brooke (Cody Horn), discovers a box full of thongs and sex-fantasy costumes and finds him using her razor to shave his legs. The sibling rapport is sketched with warmth and humor, as is the slow-burning attraction between Mike and Brooke. This is complicated by her protectiveness toward her loose-cannon younger brother and her skepticism about Mike?s line of work.

Tatum deftly shows that beneath all the hard partying and easy sex, there?s a longing for a real relationship in Mike as well as a hunger to explore his creativity by focusing on his furniture designs. There?s also an encroaching fear of ending up a self-deifying nut job like Dallas, who plans to upgrade the act with a move to big-time Miami.

Inevitably, the movie takes a sobering turn. Adam?s lack of maturity impairs his judgment, prompting him to overindulge in druggy sex (notably with?Riley Keough?as a stoned Kewpie doll with a pet piglet) and split an Ecstasy deal with the club DJ (Gabriel Iglesias). The entree of Adam?s character into stripping was inspired by Tatum?s experience at 18, though the out-of-control spiral reportedly is fictional.

More from THR: Channing Tatum in talks to star in 'White House Down'

While this plotline echoes countless perils-of-success movies and easily could have become a male "Showgirls," Soderbergh shrewdly avoids letting it turn lurid or campy by underplaying the melodrama. Instead, he observes droll but humanizing details, like a quick shot of Mike patiently ironing out crumpled dollar bills retrieved from his underwear. The humor is refreshingly low-key and unforced, such as having "True Blood"?hunk Manganiello, who?s built like Iron Man, be the delicate one of the troupe, fretting over herpes or throwing his back out while giving a zaftig customer an airborne thrill.

Some of the movie?s best moments are those in which Soderbergh's nimble camera --?he shot the film under his usual cinematographer alias of?Peter Andrews?and edited as?Mary Ann Bernard?--?looks on while the guys chill backstage at Xquisite, pumping biceps, mending thongs or doing shots to get into performance mode. This dialogue often has a semi-improvised feel, with Soderbergh eavesdropping on snatches of conversation in a style reminiscent of?Robert Altman.

There?s a looseness and buoyancy to the filmmaking and to the naturalistic performances that keeps the story real, and while many of the key castmembers have relatively little to do, even the smallest roles add texture. Tatum?s balance of breezy confidence and nagging restlessness is just right, while Pettyfer scores as the cocky new recruit dazzled by his sudden demi-celebrity. And as the movie?s grounded voice of caution, Horn is enormously appealing.?Betsy Brandt?from?"Breaking Bad"?pops up in a nice bit as a bank officer processing Mike?s loan application.

Shot on Red Digital Camera, the well-paced film goes for desaturated exteriors, as if life outside the club unfolds in a sun-blasted permanent-hangover state. Music supervisor?Frankie Pine?s playlist keeps the action humming and provides propulsive enhancement to this cheeky peek at a seductive world distilled by Mike to its essence of "women, money and a good time."

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Military hunting smartphone safety to hold off enemy bugs, spooks

Ah, smartphones -- the delightful little slates carry our contacts, our content -- even our cash, and they still fit right in our pockets. No surprise then, that a lost or stolen phone can be a minor disaster -- or a major security risk (just ask the President). Now that soldiers are packing them to send GPS coordinates or situational images in the field -- on top of using them at home -- DARPA has enlisted security company Invincea to fortify the devices. Its first effort, encrypting OS files and filling the memory of a lost phone with worthless data, has already been deployed to 3,000 troops in Afghanistan. Its next target is to cloister apps into virtual rooms within the OS, locking off access to sensitive parts of the phone like its GPS or contact lists. That would keep any nasty bits of malware from potentially gaining root privileges so soldiers can fight, and Facebook, without compromise.

Military hunting smartphone safety to hold off enemy bugs, spooks originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 24 Jun 2012 04:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oil & Gas - Brazil - Petrobras' US$2.4bn fuel tax cut only short-term fix, says analyst

By Michael Place?/?Business News Americas

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Federal government plans for a fuel tax cut will inject more than US$2.4bn annually into the coffers of Brazil's Petrobras (NYSE: PBR), according to energy consultancy Centro Brasileiro de Infraestrutura (CBIE).

Local reports said on Friday (Jun 22) that Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff has agreed to abolish the Cide liquid fuel tax from July 1.

The move will make gasoline 7% cheaper at Petrobras refineries, allowing the company to raise prices without impacting inflation. The readjustment will also allow Petrobras to make 3-4% gains on diesel sales.

"The government is effectively conceding its fiscal benefits to Petrobras," CBIE director Adriano Pires told BNamericas.

The move comes amid growing concerns about Petrobras' falling output, rising production costs and continued offshore supply delays.

According to Credit Suisse, Petrobras has lost 25% of its value this year and is the third worst performing global oil stock behind Argentina's YPF and Spain's Repsol (NYSE: REP).

"This is going to give the company some oxygen but it's not going to help in the long term," Pires said.

"When the Cide tax was introduced by the Lula government in 2003, it constituted 50 centavos (US$0.24) per liter of gasoline. The government has since been slowly chipping away at that.

"Now it is US$0.09 and from July there won't be any scope left at all. The only option for the government will be to raise prices at the pump."

Wary of inflationary pressures associated with volatile international oil prices, Brazil's federal government has not raised the price of gasoline since 2005.

Pires said the policy had handicapped ethanol and provided incentives to carbon-emitting fossil fuels. Brazil's demand for gasoline rose 19% last year while ethanol fell 28%, he added.

Why settle for this one story when you can access all our news? Sign up here for your free 15-day trial.

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Phelps coy about showdown with Lochte in 400 IM

Ryan Lochte, left, and Michael Phelps greet each other as Lochte leaves and Michael Phelps arrives at a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials starts on Monday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Ryan Lochte, left, and Michael Phelps greet each other as Lochte leaves and Michael Phelps arrives at a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials starts on Monday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Michael Phelps' coach Bob Bowman, right, looks as Phelps speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials starts on Monday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Michael Phelps speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials starts on Monday. At right is Phelps' coach Bob Bowman. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Michael Phelps speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials are to start on Monday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Ryan Lochte walks into a news conference at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Saturday, June 23, 2012, in Omaha, Neb. The trials are to start on Monday. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) ? The first Nebraska showdown between Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte came at the edge of a curtained-off interview room, not far from the temporary pool where the U.S. Olympic swimming team will be decided.

Phelps rubbed at his thick mustache, which looked like something out of the Village People, and queried Lochte on his smooth face.

"I had one, but I had to shave it," Lochte said, extending a hand to his rival.

"C'mon, man, you've got to keep it as long as you can," Phelps replied, breaking into a big smile beneath all that hair.

The meeting Saturday between swimming's two biggest stars was downright cordial. Expect it to be much different when they get in the water at the Olympic trials, which is being held at a temporary pool set up in a 13,200-seat arena along the Missouri River, just as it was in 2008.

Phelps is a 14-time gold medalist trying to put an appropriate finish on his brilliant career at the London Olympics. Lochte is the guy standing in the way, a laid-back Floridian who beat Phelps twice at last year's world championships and keeps saying over and over again, "This is my time."

"Michael Phelps definitely set the limit," Lochte said. "But, I mean, he's human. He's not a fish or anything like that."

Phelps has already hoarded more gold than any other Olympian, and he's clearly regained the motivation that faded away after the Great Haul of China, where he toppled Mark Spitz's iconic record by winning eight events.

As he was winding down from six weeks of grueling training in the Colorado mountains, he wondered why he kept getting up so early instead of seizing the chance to sleep in. Then, it hit him: He's excited about the trials. He's pumped about what he can do in England. He's driven to end his career with one more dynamic performance.

"We've done everything. We done a lot of amazing things, a lot of cool, exciting things," Phelps said, sitting next to his omnipresent coach, Bob Bowman. "Now, it's just time to have fun. I'm a lot more relaxed that I've ever been. We'll see after this week what size cherry I want to put on my sundae."

Lochte has entered a staggering 11 events at the trials, though he'll surely drop several of those and perhaps use others just for training purposes in the preliminaries. Phelps has entered seven races, including the 400-meter individual medley on the very first day of the trials.

Phelps and Bowman were coy about their plans, refusing to say if the swimmer will actually compete in the grueling race he won at the last two Olympics but vowed never to swim again after Beijing. He brought back the 400 IM over the past year and entered it at the trials, potentially setting up his first clash with Lochte, the defending world champion in that event.

"We've got a couple of hours to decide, don't we?" Phelps said, chuckling.

Bowman chimed in, saying they actually had another day to make the call.

"OK, we've got 24 hours," Phelps said. "In 24 hours, we'll let you guys know."

He even skirted a question about when he would shave his mustache, fearing that would reveal his plans.

"I can't give that away," Phelps said. "If I say I'm doing it tomorrow, then you'll know I'm swimming the 400 IM. If I say I'm doing it Monday, that means I'm not. It will come off when the rest of my body hair comes off."

Lochte and Phelps will certainly face each other in two of their best events: the 200 IM and the 200 freestyle. Phelps is the defending Olympic champion in both races (a two-time defending champ, in fact, in the medley). But Lochte took them both at the 2011 worlds in Shanghai, beating Phelps by a total of about a half-second and setting a world record in the 200 IM, just to rub it in.

With that triumph still fresh, Lochte is itching to race Phelps as many times as possible in Omaha, starting with the 400 IM.

"He's the world's best swimmer ever," Lochte said. "I love racing against him. It's fun. He's one of the hardest racers in the world. He'll go toe-to-toe with you until the end. That's excitement for me. I really hope he does swim that."

Another of the top contenders, Tyler Clary, is also very interested in what Phelps decides. Last year, Clary finished second to Lochte at worlds with Phelps on the sideline, but the dynamic changes if all three are in the event. Only the top two earn spots on the Olympic team.

Asked if he expects Phelps to compete in the 400 IM, Clary replied somewhat nervously, "My expectations are no, but stranger things have happened."

No matter what happens, the Phelps-Lochte rivalry figures to be the defining storyline of these eight days in Omaha ? even at a meet that also features 11-time Olympic medalist Natalie Coughlin, rising star Missy Franklin, and two 40-somethings taking one more shot at glory, Dara Torres and Janet Evans.

"For so long, it was just him beating me," Lochte said. "Since 2008, I changed some things in my training and my eating habits, and I've gotten a lot faster. Now, especially going into this meet and hopefully London, this is probably going to be one of the biggest rivalries ever."

Lochte stopped eating junk food ? except for an occasional order of potato chips ? and added a Strongman-like routine to his weight-training program. He's noticed a big chance in his practice sessions, finding that where he once was thrilled to put together two good days in a row, now he can go weeks at a time with no letup.

He's respectful of Phelps, but not intimidated to race against him day after day.

"I love a challenge," Lochte said. "For me to be in the same era as him, in the same events as him, to be able to race him to the finish, it's awesome. I love it. I get soooo excited when I'm stepping on the blocks and trying to race him."

Rest assured, that sort of talk is pumping up Phelps. He seems to hear everything that anyone says about him ? Bowman has a lot to do with that ? and can turn even the slightest of slights into a reason to go faster.

Heck, Phelps still remembers what former Australian national coach Don Talbot said about him before the 2003 world championships, something about "being unproven on international ground."

"What did that do? It motivated me," said Phelps, who at that meet set world records in different events on the same day. "Obviously, it frustrates me sometimes, but I just use that as motivation. That's the biggest thing I've learned in my career. I've never once said anything publicly about anyone. I never will. That's how I am. I let my swimming do whatever needs to be done."

Ahh, this is getting good.

Even the other swimmers, who are mostly focused on their own Olympic goals, can't wait to see how Phelps vs. Lochte turns out.

"They push the best out of each other," Clary said, "every time they get in the pool."

___

Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

Associated Press

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