Design-focused e-commerce site Fab.com has been having a good year (and a half), and thanks to the massive 100-plus page slideshow the company has now shared, it has the figures to prove it. According to Fab's latest, the site reached 10 million members in 2012, and sold 4.3 million products across 26 countries.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/th9w8wzcL6I/
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SANAA, Yemen (AP) ? Al-Qaida's branch in Yemen has offered to pay tens of thousands of dollars to anyone who kills the U.S. ambassador in Sanaa or an American soldier in the country.
An audio produced by the group's media arm, the al-Malahem Foundation, and posted on militant websites Saturday said it offered three kilograms of gold, worth $160,000, for killing the ambassador.
The group said it will pay 5 million Yemeni riyals ($23,000) to anyone who kills an American soldier inside Yemen.
It said the offer is valid for six months.
The bounties were set to "inspire and encourage our Muslim nation for jihad," the statement said.
The U.S. Embassy in Sanaa did not respond to an Associated Press phone call asking for comment.
Washington considers al-Qaida in Yemen to be the group's most dangerous branch.
The group overran entire towns and villages last year by taking advantage of a security lapse during nationwide protests that eventually ousted the country's longtime ruler. Backed by the U.S. military experts based at a southern air base, Yemen's army was able to regain control of the southern region, but al-Qaida militants continue to launch deadly attacks on security forces that have killed hundreds.
In the capital, Sanaa, security officials said two gunmen on a motorbike shot and killed two intelligence officers early Sunday as they were leaving a downtown security facility. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity according to regulations, said all intelligence and security officers have been instructed to take precautionary measures outside working hours.
The government blames al-Qaida for the killing of several senior military and intelligence officials this year mainly by gunmen on motorbikes.
The officials said security authorities in Sanaa have launched a campaign against motorcyclists suspected of involvement in these attacks or other crimes, arresting about 200 for questioning for violations, including driving motorcycles without license plates.
___
Associated Press writer Maamoun Youssef in Cairo contributed to this report.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/yemen-al-qaida-offers-bounty-us-ambassador-123417649.html
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The issue of concussions in sports has attracted considerable media coverage in recent years. Understandably, the early focus was on professional football, a game built around high-speed, full contact between heavy, powerful players.
A pioneer of reporting in this field was Alan Schwarz of the New York Times; his work highlighted the history of concussions and their consequences in the NFL. The league has responded by banning some high-risk hits, and also aggressively investigated a ?bounty pools? scandal that involved a team paying bonuses to players who injured opponents. (Similar behavior has even turned up in a Pop Warner youth league.) Retired players continue to pursue legal action and raise awareness of the issue, particularly with cases of former players suffering from early-onset dementia that can result from repeated brain trauma.
Ice hockey is another rough, physical sport that takes a high toll. NHL all-star player Sidney Crosby was out for the better part of a year, beginning in 2010, because of a severe concussion. The long-term consequences of such injuries can be dire: A?post-mortem of NHL ?enforcer? Derek Boogaard, who died in May 2011, determined that he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive degenerative disease directly linked to repeated brain injuries.
Even professional sports that aren?t designed around physical contact between players can result in concussions. During the National Basketball Association 2012 Finals, Oklahoma City star James Harden suffered one just before the beginning of the playoffs. In Major League Baseball, concussions are known to have helped end the careers of Mike Matheny (now the manager of the St. Louis Cardinals) and Corey Koskie; they also cost Minnesota Twins star Justin Morneau the better part of a season of play. The league instituted a disabled list for players with concussions in 2011 and continues to work on the issue.
Concussion risk starts at the youth level, in football and ice hockey as well as baseball, soccer, boxing, gymnastics, horseback riding, skiing and cycling ? any sport with potential for hard contact. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. emergency departments annually treat an average of 173,285 sports- and recreation-related traumatic brain injuries among children and adolescents. Such emergency visits have increased 60% over the past decade; in 2009 alone, there were 248,418 such cases. Because of specific concerns over youth football, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest have started a ratings system for helmets.
New research from Harvard, Dartmouth, Brown and Virginia Tech has called into question whether current diagnostic techniques are adequate. In addition, the long-term effects of head injury are only partially understood. The Boston University Center for Traumatic Encephalopathy, which received a $1 million donation from the NFL in 2010, continues to examine the brains of deceased athletes to research and compile case studies on the long-term effects of concussions; the center also conducts other inquiries and publishes academic studies in this evolving field.
Below are studies and articles that bring a research perspective to questions around concussions in sports:
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?The Spectrum of Disease in Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy?
McKee, Ann C, et al. Brain, November 2012, 135 (11).
Excerpts: ?Chronic traumatic encephalopathy [CTE] is a progressive tauopathy that occurs as a consequence of repetitive mild traumatic brain injury. We analysed post-mortem brains obtained from a cohort of 85 subjects with histories of repetitive mild traumatic brain injury and found evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in 68 subjects: all males, ranging in age from 17 to 98 years (mean 59.5 years), including 64 athletes, 21 military veterans (86% of whom were also athletes) and one individual who engaged in self-injurious head banging behaviour?. CTE is a unique neurodegenerative condition that is associated with repetitive mild traumatic brain injury. Although there are many issues that require more thorough investigation, such as how much head trauma is causative, what type, and how frequent, the age when players are most susceptible and whether some individuals are genetically more prone than others, this study clearly shows that for some athletes and war fighters, there may be severe and devastating long-term consequences of repetitive brain trauma that has traditionally been considered only mild.?
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?Spectrum of Acute Clinical Characteristics of Diagnosed Concussions in College Athletes Wearing Instrumented Helmets?
Duhaime, Anne-Christine, et al. Journal of Neurosurgery, October 2012.
Excerpt: ?Data were collected from 450 athletes with 486,594 recorded head impacts. Forty-eight separate concussions were diagnosed in 44 individual players. Mental clouding, headache, and dizziness were the most common presenting symptoms. Thirty-one diagnosed cases were associated with an identified impact event; in 17 cases no specific impact event was identified. Onset of symptoms was immediate in 24 players, delayed in 11, and unspecified in 13. In 8 cases the diagnosis was made immediately after a head impact, but in most cases the diagnosis was delayed (median 17 hours). One diagnosed concussion involved a 30-second loss of consciousness; all other players retained alertness. Most diagnoses were based on self-reported symptoms?. Approximately two-thirds of diagnosed concussions were associated with a specific contact event. Half of all players diagnosed with concussions had delayed or unclear timing of onset of symptoms. Most had no externally observed findings. Diagnosis was usually based on a range of self-reported symptoms after a variable delay. Accelerations clustered in the higher percentiles for all impact events, but encompassed a wide range. These data highlight the heterogeneity of criteria for concussion diagnosis, and in this sports context, its heavy reliance on self-reported symptoms. More specific and standardized definitions of clinical and objective correlates of a ?concussion spectrum? may be needed in future research efforts, as well as in the clinical diagnostic arena.?
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?Epidemiology of Concussions among United States High School Athletes in 20 Sports?
Marar, M., et al. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2012.
Excerpt: ?During the study period, 1,936 concussions were reported during 7,780,064 athlete-exposures (AEs) for an overall injury rate of 2.5 per 10,000 AEs. The injury rate was higher in competition (6.4) than practice (1.1) ? The majority of concussions resulted from participation in football (47.1%, n = 912), followed by girls? soccer (8.2%, n = 159), boys? wrestling (5.8%, n = 112), and girls? basketball (5.5%, n = 107). Football had the highest concussion rate (6.4), followed by boys? ice hockey (5.4) and boys? lacrosse (4.0)?. In gender-comparable sports, girls had a higher concussion rate (1.7) than boys (1.0)?. The most common mechanisms of injury were player-player contact (70.3%) and player-playing surface contact (17.2%). In more than 40% of athletes in sports other than girls? swimming and girls? track, concussion symptoms resolved in 3 days or less. Athletes most commonly returned to play in 1 to 3 weeks (55.3%), with 22.8% returning in less than 1 week and 2.0% returning in less than 1 day?. Although interest in sports-related concussions is usually focused on full-contact sports like football and ice hockey, concussions occur across a wide variety of high school sports. Concussion rates vary by sport, gender, and type of exposure. An understanding of concussion rates, patterns of injury, and risk factors can drive targeted preventive measures and help reduce the risk for concussion among high school athletes in all sports.?
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?Response to Acute Concussive Injury in Soccer Players: Is Gender a Modifying Factor??
Zuckerman, S.L., et al. Journal of Neurosurgery Pediatrics, October 2012.
Abstract: ?Several studies have suggested a gender difference in response to sports-related concussion (SRC). The Concussion in Sport group did not include gender as a modifying factor in SRC, concluding that the evidence at that point was equivocal. In the present study the authors endeavored to assess acute neurocognitive and symptom responses to an SRC in equivalent cohorts of male and female soccer players. The authors hypothesized that female athletes would experience greater levels of acute symptoms and neurocognitive impairment than males?. The results failed to replicate prior findings of gender specific baseline neurocognitive differences in verbal and visual memory. The findings also indicated no differential gender based acute response to concussion (symptoms or neurocognitive scores) among high school soccer players. The implications of these findings for the inclusion of gender as a modifying factor in this tightly matched cohort are addressed.?
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?Management of the Athlete with Concussion?
Su, John K., etc. The Permanente Journal, 2012.
Excerpt: ?The approach to and management of the athlete with concussion can be a challenging endeavor to physicians who care for athletes who have suffered a head injury?this group includes family physicians, pediatricians, internists, emergency medicine physicians, primary sports medicine physicians, orthopedic surgeons, neurologists, and neurosurgeons. Sometimes questions regarding the need for neurologic, psychological, or radiographic imaging can make the decision for return to play unclear. New legislation will undoubtedly increase physician visits for these athletes to return to play. Thus, the goal of this article is to review the latest guidelines regarding concussion management to help all physicians who care for athletes do so appropriately.?
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?Head Impact Exposure in Youth Football?
Daniel, Ray W., et al. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, February 2012.
Abstract: ?The head impact exposure for athletes involved in football at the college and high school levels has been well documented; however, the head impact exposure of the youth population involved with football has yet to be investigated, despite its dramatically larger population. The objective of this study was to investigate the head impact exposure in youth football. Impacts were monitored using a custom 12 accelerometer array equipped inside the helmets of seven players aged 7 to 8 years old during each game and practice for an entire season. A total of 748 impacts were collected from the 7 participating players during the season, with an average of 107 impacts per player. Linear accelerations ranged from 10 to 100 g, and the rotational accelerations ranged from 52 to 7694 rad/s2. The majority of the high level impacts occurred during practices, with 29 of the 38 impacts above 40 g occurring in practices. Although less frequent, youth football can produce high head accelerations in the range of concussion causing impacts measured in adults. In order to minimize these most severe head impacts, youth football practices should be modified to eliminate high impact drills that do not replicate the game situations.?
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?Sports-Related Head Injury?
American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Patient Information Report, December 2011.
Excerpt: ?A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is defined as a blow or jolt to the head, or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain. TBI can result when the head suddenly and violently hits an object, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue. Symptoms of a TBI can be mild, moderate or severe, depending on the extent of damage to the brain. Mild cases may result in a brief change in mental state or consciousness, while severe cases may result in extended periods of unconsciousness, coma or even death.?
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?Functionally-Detected Cognitive Impairment in High School Football Players Without Clinically Diagnosed Concussion?
Talavage, T.M., et al. Journal of Neurotrama, 2011.
Findings: Overall, the data suggest ?the presence of a previously unknown, but suspected ? group of athletes exhibiting neurocognitive deficits that persist over time, but which does not present observable symptoms.? The study?s authors say the findings indicate current on-field tests for concussions may not be sufficient in determining full risks to the brain.?
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?Nonfatal Traumatic Brain Injuries Related to Sports and Recreation Activities Among Persons Aged ? 19 Years: United States, 2001-2009?
Gilchrist, Julie, et al. CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 2011.
Excerpt: ?From 2001 to 2009, the number of annual [Traumatic Brain Injury-related Emergency Department visits] increased significantly, from 153,375 to 248,418, with the highest rates among males aged 10-19 years. By increasing awareness of TBI risks from sports and recreation, employing proper technique and protective equipment, and quickly responding to injuries, the incidence, severity, and long-term negative health effects of TBIs among children and adolescents can be reduced.?
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?Assessment and Management of Sport-Related Concussions in United States High Schools?
Meehan, William P., et al. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2011.
Excerpt: ?Concussions account for nearly 15% of all sport-related injuries in high school athletes. The timing of return to play after a sport-related concussion is similar regardless of whether the decision to return the athlete to play is made by a physician or an AT. When a medical doctor is involved, most concussions are assessed by primary care physicians as opposed to subspecialists. Computed tomography is obtained during the assessment of 1 of every 5 concussions occurring in high school athletes.?
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?Clinical Report: Sport-Related Concussion in Children and Adolescents?
Halstead, Mark E., etc. American Academy of Pediatrics, 2010.
Excerpt: ?Sport-related concussion is a ?hot topic? in the media and in medicine. It is a common injury that is likely underreported by pediatric and adolescent athletes. Football has the highest incidence of concussion, but girls have higher concussion rates than boys do in similar sports. A clear understanding of the de?nition, signs, and symptoms of concussion is necessary to recognize it and rule out more severe intracranial injury? This report serves as a basis for understanding the diagnosis and management of concussion in children and adolescent athletes.?
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?Trends in Concussion Incidence in High School Sports: A Prospective 11-Year Study?
Lincoln, Andrew E., et al. The American Journal of Sports Medicine, May 2011.
Abstract: ?Data were prospectively gathered for 25 schools in a large public high school system. All schools used an electronic medical record-keeping program?. 2651 concussions were observed in 10,926, 892 athlete-exposures, with an incidence rate of 0.24 per 1000. Boys? sports accounted for 53% of athlete-exposures and 75% of all concussions. Football accounted for more than half of all concussions, and it had the highest incidence rate (0.60). Girls? soccer had the most concussions among the girls? sports and the second-highest incidence rate of all 12 sports (0.35). Concussion rate increased 4.2-fold (95% confidence interval, 3.4-5.2) over the 11 years (15.5% annual increase). In similar boys? and girls? sports (baseball/softball, basketball, and soccer), girls had roughly twice the concussion risk of boys. Concussion rate increased over time in all 12 sports?. Although the collision sports of football and boys? lacrosse had the highest number of concussions and football the highest concussion rate, concussion occurred in all other sports and was observed in girls? sports at rates similar to or higher than those of boys? sports. The increase over time in all sports may reflect actual increased occurrence or greater coding sensitivity with widely disseminated guidance on concussion detection and treatment.?
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?Catastrophic Sports Injury Research Twenty-Ninth Annual Report Fall 1982 ? Spring 2011? (PDF)
Mueller, Frederick O., et al. Department of Exercise and Sport Science, University of North Carolina, 2011.
Description: ?The National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research collects and disseminates death and permanent disability sports injury data that involve brain and/or spinal cord injuries. The research is funded by a grant from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the American Football Coaches Association, and the National Federation of State High School Associations. This research has been conducted at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill since 1965. Each year three annual reports are compiled.?
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?Hockey Concussion: Is It Child Abuse??
Hemond, Chris. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 2012.
Excerpt: ?If not a stampede, it appears there is at least a slow shuffle of Canadian youngsters out of contact hockey as a result of widespread publicity about the parade of National Hockey League (NHL) superstars onto injured reserve lists. Meanwhile, one critic says Hockey Canada?s failure to implement even more stringent anti-concussion measures constitutes nothing short of ?child abuse.??
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?Effect of Bodychecking on Rate of Injuries Among Minor Hockey Players?
Cusimano, Michael D., et al. Open Medicine, 2011.
Excerpt: ?Bodychecking is a leading cause of injury among minor hockey players. Its value has been the subject of heated debate since Hockey Canada introduced bodychecking for competitive players as young as 9 years in the 1998/1999 season?. In this study, the odds of injury increased with decreasing age of exposure to bodychecking. These findings add to the growing evidence that bodychecking holds greater risk than benefit for youth and support widespread calls to ban this practice.?
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?Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport?
McCrory, P., et al. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, 2009.
Excerpt: ?This document is developed for use by physicians, therapists, certi?ed athletic trainers, health professionals, coaches and other people involved in the care of injured athletes, whether at the recreational, elite or professional level. While agreement exists pertaining to principal messages conveyed within this document, the authors acknowledge that the science of concussion is evolving and therefore management and return to play (RTP) decisions remain in the realm of clinical judgment on an individualized basis.?
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Tags: sports, children, youth, safety, research roundup
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?2012 Bay East. ?2012 CCAR. ?2012 EBRD. All rights reserved. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. This information is provided from three separate sources: Bay East, CCAR and EBRD. The listings presented here may or may not be listed by the Broker/Agent operating this website. Information last updated on 12/30/12 8:32 PM PST.This IDX solution is (c) Diverse Solutions 2012.
This year in gaming developers and publishers tested and bent the limits of what they could get away with in terms of downloadable content (DLC). From removing vital content from the retail experience or even leaving the content on the disc but still charging a premium for it, companies like Capcom attempted to move the industry in a frightening direction. They saw how well the freemium model was working for social and mobile gaming and decided to try it out on games that still cost $60 up front.
This year also saw a rise in sequels to popular franchises scaling back on what was included in their predecessors, only to sell it to the loyal fan base and unsuspecting new customers later. Without a doubt, the abuse of DLC is a dangerous and popular precedent for video games. In the following gallery we take a look back at some of the biggest offenders of 2012.
Source: http://venturebeat.com/2012/12/29/the-worst-uses-of-video-game-dlc-in-2012/
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ISMAILIA, Egypt (Reuters) - Islamist-led Egypt allowed building materials into Gaza via the Rafah crossing on Saturday for the first time since Hamas seized control of the Palestinian enclave in 2007, an Egyptian border official said.
It was part of a shipment of building materials donated by the Gulf Arab state of Qatar, which has pledged $400 million to finance reconstruction in Gaza. The Islamist group Hamas has run Gaza since driving out its rivals in the Palestinian Authority.
Israel tightened a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas, which refuses to recognize the Jewish state, took power there.
Hamas has been hoping that the rise to power in Egypt of a fellow-Islamist government sympathetic to its cause will lead to a full opening of Rafah to commercial goods. Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi sent his prime minister to Gaza last month to show solidarity during a brief war between Hamas and Israel.
The Rafah border with Egypt is the only Gaza crossing not controlled by Israel, which withdrew its settlers and soldiers from Gaza in 2005. Cairo has restricted the use of Rafah crossing to travelers and medical relief, giving rise to extensive smuggling into Gaza through tunnels under the border.
The border official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that while the Egyptian authorities had agreed to allow the Qatari-donated material into Gaza, the shipment did not mark the start of the full opening of the crossing sought by Hamas.
An official in Gaza's Hamas government said it was a positive step. "We hope that Egypt will open this crossing permanently for goods so our people can meet their needs," said Ehab al-Ghsain, head of the Hamas government media office.
Palestinians said it was the first time anything other than people and medical supplies had been allowed in since 2006. Six truck loads of building material had crossed on Saturday, with more expected later in the day, the Egyptian official said.
The government of Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, who was removed from power by a popular uprising nearly two years ago, looked on Hamas with suspicion bordering on outright hostility.
Leaders in the Muslim Brotherhood, which propelled Mursi to the presidency in a June election, had said they backed the idea of opening Rafah to trade. But Mursi has taken no public steps in that direction since taking office.
Cairo has long feared that opening Rafah fully might prompt Israel to close permanently the other crossings with Gaza, which it captured from Egypt in the 1967 Middle East war.
Ghsain said: "Rafah had been closed for goods for so many years and we always hoped such a policy would change, without exempting the Israeli occupation from their responsibilities. Israel must end the closure and reopen all crossings with Gaza."
(Reporting by Yousri Mohamed in Ismailia and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Alistair Lyon)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-lets-building-material-cross-border-gaza-144023107.html
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We're very happy that 2012 ended up being the year of whole-home DVRs. We reviewed Dish Network's Hopper earlier this year and now we've spent some quality time with DirecTV's Genie -- can't say we expected the cute names. Capable of serving up to eight rooms in your house (but only four at once), the Genie system works with a variety of setups, including being built into some newer Samsung TVs. Only available as part of DirecTV service, the Genie can be had for free by some new DirecTV customers who are willing to sign a term agreement and select the right package, and available to existing customers as an upgrade for $300 depending on the circumstances. If DirecTV didn't already have you at five tuners, 1TB and up to eight rooms, then click through for a full rundown on the latest the original direct satellite broadcast TV provider has to offer.
Continue reading DirecTV Genie whole-home DVR review
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
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It appears that Alistair Overeem-Junior dos Santos fight everybody was looking forward to will have to wait a little while longer. Dos Santos dropped the UFC heavyweight title Saturday night to Cain Velasquez, and Overeem didn't waste a second before making a few comments about "Cigano."Overeem and dos Santos were originally set to met earlier this year, but the former Strikeforce heavyweight champion failed his pre-fight drug test. Dos Santos has made a handful of remarks concerning Overeem and the failed test.
Overeem is set to meet Antonio Silva in February at UFC 156: Aldo Vs. Edgar, with a title shot likely going to the winner. After watching Velasquez pick dos Santos apart Saturday evening, Overeem took to Twitter.
"JDS looks pretty lol," Overeem posted. "Great fight though. Aaaand, its all over... Great fight, great performance by Cain. Nice:)"
Overeem had predicted that Velasquez would defeat dos Santos when asked earlier this year. Overeem had his suspension expire a few days ago, and is slated to go before the Nevada Athletic Commission in early January to acquire his fight license.
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Editor's note:?Stephen Danos is the associate editor for the mobile app discovery site Appolicious.?Follow him on Twitter @sdanos.
This year's most captivating games either pushed the envelope with state-of-the-art graphics and rich narratives or perfected already proven formulas for touch-based devices. The best titles also bridged the gap between casual and hardcore gamers.
Some developers (Phosphor Games and Vivid Games, most notably) went for realistic 3D graphics that often packed in hours of story-based gameplay similar to console titles. Others like Rovio and RocketCat Games, stuck to churning out repetitive, casual gaming experiences that kept us fully engaged. All being equal, these disparate approaches produced truly riveting games that took full advantage of the features and processing capabilities of mobile devices.
The developers with games in this list should be very proud of their creations. Despite certain genres being oversaturated (such as pick up and play or side-scrolling games) and the unpopular monetization trend of forcing customers to pay for content through in-app purchases, these geniuses managed to make games that are infinitely addictive and rewarding. The picks listed below were curated by Appolicious advisors (most notably gaming guru Andrew Koziara) and members of our user community.
We also have a separate list of the best iOS and Android apps of 2012.
Horn (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Android $6.99) The character Horn is a young blacksmith's apprentice who must defeat giant monsters who are villagers transformed by a horrible curse. Using a melee combat system similar to Infinity Blade, but with major gameplay enhancements like using a crossbow and puzzle-solving, the developers on the Phosphor Games team were truly pensive during Horn's development. Horn is the best game of 2012 because it combines an imaginative narrative with top-of-the-line graphics, proving that mobile games with endearing stories can be beautiful despite the limitations of iOS devices. Horn appeals to gamers young and old, and is a great title that will enlighten you as to just what your smartphone or tablet is capable of handling. We should note that Horn does suffer a bit on earlier generation Android devices and operating systems.
ARC Squadron (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad free limited time only) ARC Squadron is a rail shooter game that combines the retro experience of playing an old Nintendo 64 console game with state-of-the-art graphics geared specifically to touchscreen devices. Powered by the Unreal Engine 3 development toolkit, ARC Squadron has players try their hands (and fingers) in intergalactic warfare. Each area of the galaxy involves a handful of levels with bonus challenge levels along the way, culminating in an epic boss fight. ARC Squadron is very arcade in nature, as scores in each level directly translate into currency that lets players upgrade and purchase new ships, weapons, and skins. Somehow ARC Squadron manages to ape the gameplay of classic console titles like Star Fox 64, yet feel fresh in a mobile media environment.
Angry Birds Star Wars (iPhone, iPod touch 99 cents, iPad $2.99, Android smartphones free, Android tablets $2.99) Star Wars merchandising, both before and after the Disney acquisition, has never felt so good. The newest edition to the Angry Birds family is just plain awesome. Old birds are re-dressed as Luke, Han, Obi-Wan, Chewie, and the rest. The birds also get all new powers, including shooting blasters and swinging light sabers. The game is a brilliant mix of the old school Angry Birds mechanics and the gravity mechanics of Angry Birds Space (also a worthy addition to any "best of 2012" list). Add all the Star Wars references and visuals (from the original trilogy, only) and you have a game that is out of this world.
Rayman Jungle Run (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Android $2.99) Apple named this?Ubisoft title the 2012 game of the year, and for good reason. Many of us were totally praising this game before it was cool. Based on the utterly brilliant Rayman: Origins (a console-based platformer to rival even Mario), this auto-scrolling runner manages to keep all the creativity and bizarre charm of its predecessor, but with bite-sized levels and half of the controls removed. Seriously though, Ubisoft stripped Origins' down to its core for this simple game, but it's just as fun and the visuals are just as jaw-droppingly crisp and vibrant as ever. It's a bit more challenging than other runners, but do not skip this one.
LetterPress Word Game (iPhone, iPad free) Move over, Words With Friends. Developed by atebits, Letterpress is an inventive multiplayer word game that mixes the strategies of Boggle and Chess. The virtual board of this game is covered in red and blue tiles, each representing you or your opponent. The objective is pretty basic: change as many tiles as possible to match your color while spelling words. Games end when tiles run out. It helps to both have a high letter count and know when to play defensively, blocking off letters by placing your tiles around them. LetterPress supports asynchronous multiplayer through Game Center, so you can face off against as many players as you desire from all over the world at the same time.
Beat Sneak Bandit (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad $2.99) Beat Sneak Bandit elegantly combines rhythm games (in which players tap along to the beat of the music playing in the game), with puzzle gameplay and stealth action. You'll need to tap to the beat to make the Beat Sneak Bandit character take his sneaky steps, and time your way through the game's obstacles and traps. The game is really a clever take on touchscreen games, has a great art style and musical selection, and is easy to play while challenging to master.
Punch Quest (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad) (Free) Punch Quest is an impressive side-scrolling, endless running game where the main objective is to meet monstrous obstacles head-on with a barrage of uppercuts and jabs. Enemies include feeble skeletons, shield-wielding orcs, fire-breathing imps, and spellcasting wraiths. During the game your fully-customizable protagonist collects coins called "punchos" for buying skills, super moves, boosts, and upgrades. There are even bonus levels where your warrior rides a dinosaur that shoots lasers out of its mouth or transforms into a cartwheeling gnome! RocketCat Games, one of the most reliably talented and awesome developers in the iOS gaming space, are is responsible for the Hook Champ games and the excellent Mage Gauntlet.
Real Boxing?(iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, iPad mini) $4.99 Real Boxing, developed by Vivid Games, delivers a one-two punch of well-designed gesture controls for a touchscreen combined with beautiful, console-quality graphics. Your device's camera catches punch gestures using the V-Motion Gesture Control System. The game features a surprisingly effective Career Mode, where you develop, train, and customize your prizefighter. You'll be hard-pressed to find flaws with this game as you build up your fighter and even take him online into real-time multiplayer fights over Game Center.
Jetpack Joyride?(Android) Free Jetpack Joyride, released by Halfbrick Studios on Android in September, is the endless running game closest to perfection. Although it launched and rocketed to the top of the charts on iOS in 2011, the game's presence in the Android Market was substantial. In Jetpack Joyride you play as the fiery and uber-manly Barry Steakfries who swipes a top-secret machine gun-powered jetpack from a laboratory only to be met by thousands of obstacles including electric pillars, rockets, and terrified scientists. Your goal is to collect coins and get as far as you can before dying. The game has an exceptional sense of humor and an impressive array of interchangeable costumes, jetpacks, power-ups, and vehicles. What sets Jetpack Joyride apart is that behind its simple formula, there's a hugely addictive mission/challenge system which pushes you to play again and again. The difficulty and learning curve are set perfectly so even casual gamers will never feel overwhelmed.
The Room (iPad, iPad mini) $1.99 With The Room, Fireproof Games delivered the most intriguing puzzle game of the year. Mind-bending puzzles, a surreal atmosphere, and delectable 3D graphics in stunning HD quality make The Room a necessary app for every gamer who owns an iPad 2 or higher. The game works ostensibly as a mystery that you solve using a single finger control scheme through puzzles contained within ornate boxes. It is definitely the most realistic looking game released in 2012, even more so than titles from the Zen Bound series. The Room was designed to be a pick up and play game, and although it is rated 9+ for Infrequent Horror/Fear Themes, it is the sort of game you can play with your family if they're cool enough and can handle the suspense.
Source: http://atn.cc/122773
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13 hrs.
Christmas day this year saw record numbers of devices coming online ? over 17 million of them, according to app analytics company Flurry. And that's not counting the ones that stayed offline.
Flurry identifies new devices as "activated" when?one of thousands of tracked apps is launched, and the company claims that this amounts to about 90 percent of all devices ? note that this is different from "activating" your new phone on a wireless carrier.
With so many tablets and smartphones on the market right now, perhaps it's not surprising that numbers should be so high. The iPad Mini, Nexus 10?and Kindle Fire all combine the latest hardware with a gift-friendly price.
By Flurry's measure, 17.4 million iOS and Android devices were activated Christmas day worldwide ? more than any other day in history by a good margin.?December saw about 4 million devices activated every day, which is about twice what December 2011 had, and Christmas day last year had only 6.8 million activations.
Flurry didn't provide a breakdown of how many of those millions were Android and how many were iOS ? and with competition fiercer than ever, it's difficult to speculate (although based on recent reports, it's likely that iOS has a solid?lead).
A second study by Mixpanel found that more than half of Internet traffic on Christmas was from mobile devices (much more than the week before), so clearly those millions of gifted tablets and phones were being put to use. Mixpanel put the traffic breakdown as 44 percent Android and 54 percent iOS, but that's of all the devices Mixpanel?saw, not just the ones opened on Christmas.
More complete numbers (including best-selling devices) will likely be released by retailers and manufacturers in the next few weeks ? perhaps at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBCNews Digital. His personal website is?coldewey.cc.
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The family of a man who stopped breathing in police custody and later died is considering filing a civil lawsuit against the Cedar Rapids Police Department.
Paul Saldivar
Paul R. Saldivar, 33, died May 17, one week after he lost consciousness in the back of a patrol car. Medical examiners ruled his death accidental, with intoxication a contributing factor. Following a seven-month investigation, Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden announced Wednesday that the officers involved did not use excessive force while arresting Saldivar, and he said no criminal charges would be filed.
Saldivar?s sister, Paulette Gandara, told The Gazette she and her siblings will discuss whether to file a wrongful death lawsuit. She said the explanation given by authorities about how her brother died ?doesn?t add up.?
?The moment the police department takes a person into custody, it is their responsibility to make sure that person arrives safely, no matter what they?ve done,? Gandara said Thursday.
Saldivar was arrested for public intoxication and an outstanding traffic-related warrant after an officer made a business check at Hazzard County Saloon, 315 Second Ave. SE, at around 11:10 p.m. on May 10. Police said Saldivar ran from the first officer he encountered and then resisted the officers? attempts to sit him in the squad car.
Police reported that Saldivar would not pull his feet into the squad car and refused to sit upright. An officer pulled Saldivar laterally across the back seat so that the rear doors could be closed. According to the final investigative report, Saldivar was lying on his right side when the police car left for the Linn County Jail, and was not buckled in.
As Officer Shannon Aguero drove to the jail, Saldivar was thrashing around, kicking at one door while hitting his head against the armrest of the other door, according to police. Saldivar became quiet as Aguero was pulling up to the jail.
Officials said the jail?s sally port was occupied when Aguero arrived, leading to a delay of about five minutes. Aguero tried to communicate with Saldivar while waiting for the sally port door to open, but Saldivar did not respond.
Once inside the sally port, deputies found Saldivar unresponsive in the back seat, lying on his stomach with his head against the car door. After failing to find a pulse, they began resuscitation efforts and called an ambulance.
Saldivar never regained consciousness, and his family removed him from life-support on May 17.
Tests showed no illegal drugs in Saldivar?s blood, but he had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.299 percent, more than three times the legal drunk-driving limit. Associate State Medical Examiner Dr. Jonathan Thompson concluded Saldivar died as a result of positional asphyxia, which occurs when a person?s posture hinders their ability to breathe.
Sgt. Cristy Hamblin, a police spokeswoman, said now that the county attorney was done with his review, the department would do its own internal investigation.
?We?ll simply look at what policies or procedures were involved in this case and see if there is anything we need to do differently,? Hamblin said.
Gandara, one of Saldivar?s five siblings, said she does not believe that her brother was conscious when he was put into the back of the squad car. She said he should have been able to move enough to be able to breathe properly, if he was as combative as the report indicates.
Gandara also questions why three officers couldn?t control her brother enough to get him secured by a seat belt.
?I feel that if they would have seat belted him in, he?d still be here,? Gandara said.
According to department policy, anyone who is arrested should be handcuffed and ?shall be seat belted prior to transport.? But the policy also indicates seat-belting is not mandatory in all cases.
?Special circumstances applicable to the original restraint of the arrestee will provide rationale for the inability to seat belt the arrestee. All circumstances disallowing restraint and seat belting of arrestees will be recorded in the Officer?s Case Investigation Report or in (an) Incident Report form to the case,? the policy says.
Gandara said her family was angered that they learned about the final findings from a reporter, not from the County Attorney?s Office. Vander Sanden acknowledged Thursday that neither Saldivar?s family nor the officers involved were notified before his report was released to the media.
?There was no common courtesy,? Gandara said. ?That was absolute disrespect. I?m ashamed to be a part of this city. We deserved more respect than that.?
Vander Sanden said he assumed it was public knowledge that his office had been reviewing findings from the Division of Criminal Investigation. He said no one from the family had inquired with his office about the status of the investigation.
The officers involved with Saldivar?s arrest declined to comment through a spokesperson, citing the internal investigation and potential civil lawsuit.
Gandara said her family is a long way from closure. She said they are coming to the realization that they may never have answers to all their questions.
?It?s hard, because I have a son that looks just like Paul when he was little,? Gandara said. ?It?s something I deal with every day. It?s not something that just goes away. There?s not a day that goes by that I don?t miss my brother.?
Official Report from the Linn County Attorney?s Office:
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Samsung also could face at the same time, a cease and desist order that would prevent the company from selling large quantities of infringing products in the U.S. At the same time, Samsung could be required to post a bond equal to 88% of? the value of all mobile phones, 32.5% of the value of mobile players and 37.6% of the value of all tablets that were ruled to have infringed on Apple's patents, during the Presidential review period. Samsung argued that a royalty rate of 4.9% was more appropriate.
Thankfully for Samsung, Judge Pender did approve design changes made by the Korean manufacturer that worksaround the claims made by Apple. These designarounds allow Samsung to continue to sell certain products in the U.S. even in the face of the October decision. And one of the patents involved in this case, the so-called "Steve Jobs" patent, has been ruled invalid by the USPTO. Despite the designarounds, Samsung could still be required to post a bond on the devices that no longer infringe on Apple's patents. Even worse, customs could still hold up shipments of these products until the agency is 100% sure that an exclusion order doesn't apply to the re-designed devices.These are just some of the remedies that could be used against Samsung. The commission still needs to vote on Pender's ruling, and the designarounds seem to mean that it is still business as usual in the states for Samsung, at least for now.
source: FOSSPatents
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FALLUJAH, Iraq (AP) ? Thousands of Iraqi Sunnis massed along a major western highway and in other parts of the country Friday for what appear to be the largest protests yet in a week of demonstrations, intensifying pressure on the Shiite-led government.
The rallies underscore the strength of a tenacious movement that appears to be gathering support. The largest demonstrations took place on a highway leading to Jordan and Syria in the Sunni-dominated desert province of Anbar west of Baghdad.
Protesters in the Anbar city of Fallujah held aloft placards declaring the day a "Friday of honor." Some carried old Iraqi flags used during the era of former dictator Saddam Hussein, whose Sunni-dominated government was ousted in the U.S.-led invasion nearly a decade ago.
Others raised the current flag, which was approved in 2008. A few raised the banner of the predominantly Sunni rebels across the border who are fighting to oust Syrian President Bashar Assad.
In the northern city of Mosul, around 3,000 demonstrators took to the streets to denounce what they called the sidelining of Sunnis in Iraq and to demand the release of Sunni prisoners. As in protests earlier in the week, demonstrators there chanted the Arab Spring slogan: "The people want the downfall of the regime."
Thousands likewise took to the streets in the northern Sunni towns of Tikrit and Samarra, where they were joined by lawmakers and provincial officials, said Salahuddin provincial spokesman Mohammed al-Asi.
At a conference in Baghdad, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki warned against a return to sectarian conflict and cautioned that the country is close to returning to the "dark days when people were killed because of their names or identities."
He also used the occasion to take a jab at the protesters in Anbar.
"Nations that look for peace, love and reconstruction must choose civilized ways to express themselves. It is not acceptable to express opinions by blocking the roads, encouraging sectarianism, threating to launch wars and dividing Iraq," he said. "Instead we need to talk, to listen to each other and to agree ... to end our differences."
The demonstrations follow the arrest last week of 10 bodyguards assigned to Finance Minister Rafia al-Issawi, who comes from Anbar and is one of the central government's most senior Sunni officials.
While the detentions triggered the latest bout of unrest, the demonstrations also tap into deeper Sunni fears that they are being marginalized by the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Although the government includes some Sunni Arabs and Kurdish officials as part of a power-sharing agreement, it draws the bulk of its support from Iraq's majority Shiites.
Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, another top-ranking Sunni politician, is now living in exile in Turkey after being handed multiple death sentences earlier this year for allegedly running death squads ? a charge he dismisses as politically motivated.
Sunni-dominated Anbar province has been the scene of several large demonstrations and road blockages since last Saturday. The vast territory was once the heart of the deadly Sunni insurgency that emerged after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
Al-Qaida is believed to be rebuilding in pockets of Anbar, and militants linked to it are thought to be helping Sunni rebels in Syria.
___
Associated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin and Adam Schreck in Baghdad contributed reporting.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iraqi-sunnis-demonstrate-several-cities-114420716.html
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