When Lindsay Lohan gets in trouble, she doesn't do it halfway. Early this morning she was arrested for allegedly assaulting a woman in a New York City nightclub -- and now Lohan has been charged with three more crimes in California, including lying to police.
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The Surface Pro launches in January, just after the holiday rush. It's a pricey bauble at $899 plus an extra hundred for the Touch Cover. But everyone is excited. This is the model most of the Surface sympathizers are waiting for. It has the full Windows 8 experience, a capable Intel chipset, and an ecosystem two decades in the making. But here's the problem: come January the Surface Pro could have serious competition from Asus, Samsung, Lenovo and maybe even HP. In short, what happens when the big guys finally catch up to Microsoft?Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/ItG7jS0KnNo/
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By Joseph Gillmer, Vice President, CCS
With the election in the rearview mirror, Congress and the White House are focusing on budgets and taxes. Specifically, they are attempting to avoid the so called ?Fiscal Cliff,? a scenario where a variety of Federal taxes will increase while across-the-board spending cuts will occur at the same time?January 1, 2013. There are several aspects of charitable giving that could be impacted by Congressional decisions (or lack thereof) for 2012, 2013 and beyond. Below is a breakdown of the key charity-related tax issues on the table that would be addressed by The ?Family and Business Tax Cut Certainty Act of 2012? (FBTCC Act of 2012,) a bill that has passed the Senate Committee on Finance but requires full passage in Congress to take effect. The bill would extend certain expired or expiring tax provisions through December 31, 2013. The staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimates that enacting the bill would reduce revenues by about $205 billion from 2013 to 2022 period. More than 60% of that revenue reduction would arise from a two-year extension of relief from the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT.) The charitable tax deduction ?extenders? are a smaller, but important part of the FBTCC Act of 2012.
Individual Charitable Deduction Extenders
Charitable IRA Rollover
The Charitable IRA Rollover was first enacted with the passage of the Pension Protection Act in 2006. It provided the ability for individuals 70 ? or older to direct traditional or ROTH IRA funds to charitable organizations up to $100,000. These gifts to charitable organizations, while not tax deductible (because they were pre-tax assets,) allowed individuals to fulfill part or all of his or her Required Minimum Distribution. The Charitable IRA Rollover provision has required approval from Congress as part of tax ?extender bills? every year or two years since 2009. The latest provision expired at the end of 2011.
The FBTCC Act of 2012 would reinstate the Charitable IRA Rollover to the beginning of 2012 and extend it through 2014. The Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office estimate that the Charitable IRA Rollover would cost the federal government about $877 million in lost tax revenue for 2013 and 2014. That equates to $2.5 to $3 billion in charitable giving through the Charitable IRA Rollover in 2013 and 2014. While the permanent expiration of the Charitable IRA Rollover does not necessarily mean that charitable giving would drop by several billion dollars over the next two years (as many donors use the gift vehicle as a substitute for other types of giving as opposed to wholly new giving,) the loss in giving would number in the hundreds of millions of dollars ? real dollars that could be going to worthy causes.
Contributions of Capital Gain Real Property Made for Conservation Purposes
The FBTCC Act of 2012 that would extend the Charitable IRA Rollover would also extend for two years the increased contribution limits and carry-forward period for contributions of appreciated real property (including partial interests in real property) for conservation purposes. The Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office estimate that the extension of the enhanced contribution limits of capital gain real property for conservation purposes would cost the Federal Government about $132 million in lost tax revenue for 2013 and 2014.
Annual Gift Tax Exclusion
The annual gift tax exclusion is one change taking effect in January 2013. The annual gift tax exclusion amount, which is adjusted annually, will be $14,000 for 2013, as announced by IRS last week (Internal Revenue Bulletin 2012-45.) Taxpayers will be able to make gifts of up to $14,000 per person in 2013 without any federal gift tax consequences. This means that an individual can provide up to $14,000 to any number of individuals without owing federal gift taxes (as long as the gift does not exceed $14,000 to any ONE individual) While the annual gift tax exclusion is not in the category of charitable deductions (and separate from FBTCC Act of 2012,) many individuals take into account what he or she can give to family members in a given year when considering a budget for charitable support.
Business Charitable Tax Deduction Extenders
The FBTCC Act of 2012 also provides provisions to extend several charitable avenues for businesses.
New Markets Tax Credit
Through the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program, the federal government has been able to leverage federal tax credits to encourage significant private investment in businesses in low-income communities. The program provides a 39%tax credit spread over seven years. Many nonprofit organizations have been able to utilize new markets tax credits as part of a larger campaign for their capital needs over the last several years.
The FBTCC Act of 2012 would provide support for two more years of the new markets tax credit, permitting a maximum annual amount of qualified equity investments of $3.5 billion each year. The Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office estimate a two-year extension of this proposal will cost the federal government $32 million in 2013 and 2014 and about $1.8 billion over a 10-year period ending in 2022.
Enhanced Charitable Deduction for Contributions of Food Inventory
The FBTCC Act of 2012 would provide a two-year provision that would allow businesses to claim an enhanced deduction for the contribution of food inventory. The Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office estimate a two-year extension of this proposal would cost the Federal Government $314 million.
Basis Adjustment to Stock of S Corporations Making Charitable Contributions of Property
The FBTCC Act of 2012 would provide a two-year provision that would allow S corporation shareholders to take into account their pro rata share of charitable deductions even if such deductions would exceed such shareholder?s adjusted basis in the S corporation. The Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office estimate a two-year extension of this proposal would cost the federal government $224 million.
Latest on the Federal Estate Tax
Under current law the federal estate tax exemption is scheduled to change from $5 million in 2012 to $1 million in 2013. In addition, the estate tax rate is scheduled to revert from the current 35% rate for assets in an estate transferring to non-charitable beneficiaries that exceed the $5 million exemption to 55% for assets that exceed $1 million.
What would that mean in terms of an impact on charitable giving? The Congressional Budget Office concluded in reports published a couple years ago that repealing the estate tax would reduce charitable bequests as much as 28%. It is thought that the lower the exemption, the more individuals would need consider whether to give a significant amount of assets to either charity or the Federal Government. At a higher exemption or no federal estate tax at all, more individuals would just transfer assets to heirs, which would be why charitable support would drop in a high exemption or estate tax repeal scenario.
The Future of the Federal Estate Tax
President Obama has voiced support for a federal estate tax for 2013 to follow the rates of 2009: $3.5 million estate tax exemption and a 45% estate tax rate. On the left, there are legislators who are in favor of allowing the exemption to revert back to $1 million and 55% tax rate. On the right, there are legislators who are in favor of a permanent repeal of the estate tax.
If Congress acts before the end of the year, it will likely be a compromise that will set the estate tax exemption between $3.5 million and $5 million with an estate tax rate of 35-to 45%. As mentioned above, if Congress does nothing, the exemption automatically drops to $1 million with a 55% rate, effective January 1, 2013.
* CCS does not provide legal or tax advice. Donors and potential donors need to consult with tax professionals.
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TIMES are tough. When the UK government announced its new energy plans last week, newspaper headlines raged about how much household bills would rise to pay for cleaner power generation. They gave voice to a growing segment of the British public - wearied by the country's prolonged economic doldrums - that seems disinclined to pay for a greener future.
Ordinary Brits might understandably feel hard done by. Power companies have prospered mightily in recent decades, but the costs of green power will be visited on their customers, not their profits. Other Europeans, too, face a steep bill for climate change relief, but dire financial straits are hampering their efforts (see "Europe in 2050: a survivor's guide to climate change").
But while money is tight, so is time. The climate talks which kicked off in Doha, Qatar, this week, are unlikely to yield much progress towards a global deal to cut emissions. That will increase the need for meaningful national climate change strategies. While we shouldn't let governments and energy companies off the hook, they need public support and pressure to act. It's time we all thought hard about the price we're willing to pay for the future.
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Horowitz, Google VP of social products, made his comments during a 15-minute conversation at the Business Insider IGNITION conference. (See the full video below.)
His biggest verbal jabs at Facebook were on the subject of advertising. Horowitz said Facebook is ?jamming? ads into users? streams and frustrating both users and brands in the process. He said Google may someday have ads on Google+, but it won?t be because Google needs to ?make next week?s payroll based on jamming ads at users in an inappropriate way.?
Horowitz compared ads on Facebook to a guy selling sandwiches in the middle of someone?s conversation.
?When you and I are having a conversation, the least opportune thing you could do is have a guy with a sandwich board run between us and try to sell me a sandwich. I?m trying to connect with someone. I?m trying to communicate in that sacred space of social connection. It doesn?t matter if I ?like? the sandwich. It doesn?t matter if it?s personalized with my favorite mustard. That is the wrong moment to try to dangle a sandwich in front of me.?
Horowitz joked about Google+ usage when only a small percentage of the audience raised their hands to say they?d used the service recently, but he also hinted that Google?s next published usage figures for Google+ will be impressive.
?We recognize that Google+ may not yet be the place where you go to wish your friends a Happy Birthday,? Horowitz told host Nicholas Carlson, before adding ??we aspire to that.?
Horowitz said that Google has a more ?holistic philosophy? about running a social product.
?Google+ is not attempting to chase the social networks of the past, we?re charting a new course,? he said.
When Carlson asked if the phrase ?social networks of the past? was a reference to Facebook, Horowitz said ?yes.?
In the film, Rocky Balboa was the underdog boxer that stunned the champion, Apollo Creed. One thing about that: Rocky wasn?t much of a talker, he just took care of business inside the ring. Google might do well to follow that path, as well.
Here?s the full interview via Business Insider.
Related Topics: Facebook | Google | Google: Google+ | Top News
Source: http://marketingland.com/googles-horowitz-facebook-is-a-social-network-of-the-past-27449
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Like behemoth ballerinas, blue whales pirouette before lunging at their prey, a strategy that may help the giants ambush krill from below.
"This behavior probably improves the whales' chances to engulf the most krill possible," said study co-author Ari Friedlaender, a marine biologist at Duke University.
The new findings, detailed on Tuesday in the journal Current Biology, may shed light on how the enigmatic creatures hunt and devour their shrimplike prey.
Hungry giants
The blue whale, the world's largest living creature, can span up to 98 feet (30 meters) in length and weigh up to 200 tons (180 metric tons). This creature the size of a submarine uses its bristly, comblike teeth, or baleen, to filter tiny crustaceans called krill from the water. Antarctic whalers who opened up the massive bellies of blue whales often found up to 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) of krill, though the sea giants probably don't eat that much every day, Friedlaender told LiveScience.
Because krill cluster in massive swarms, "they're perfect food for something like a baleen whale that wants to engulf a big amount of something at one time," Friedlaender told LiveScience.
While the marine mammals' diet is well-known, how they find their prey remains a mystery.
To understand these foraging behaviors, Friedlaender and his colleagues attached motion sensors to the backs of 22 blue whales using suction cups. They also attached a critter cam to one individual, which showed the ocean and part of the whale's head from the animal's point of view. [See Video as a Blue Whale Dives for Krill]
Underwater ballet
When Friedlaender's team analyzed the data, they found something completely unexpected.
The sensors, which captured several hours of data from each whale, revealed half of the whales doing full, 360-degree turns. Many of these underwater twirls occurred as whales dove for prey.
A blue whale typically spots a dense krill swarm by the dark patch it leaves on the water's surface as seen from below. Once the swarm is spotted, the whale surges upward toward the dark spot and opens its mouth to engulf the krill in one big gulp. But sometimes, it also whirls around as it performs this lunge.
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"As it opens its mouth it begins to roll over. It's a very energetically costly thing to do ? it's like a parachute opening and the whale slows down considerably," Friedlaender said.
The stealthy strategy may allow whales to anticipate the krills' escape route and adjust before the krill have a chance to cluster together out of reach, he added.
Because one dense krill patch could provide a day's worth of food, it makes sense to perfect their hunting strategies, even if it takes a lot of energy, the researchers write in the journal article.
Whales also turned just before and between dives, suggesting the rotations help the cetaceans scope out the location of prey.
"As in all cetaceans, the eyes are positioned laterally, and thus rolling the body should enhance panoramic vision in multiple dimensions," the researchers write.
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook and Google+.
? 2012 LiveScience.com. All rights reserved.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49987245/ns/technology_and_science-science/
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November 2nd, 2012
We just released our iPad Mini Take apart guide. The guide shows you how to open the iPad Mini and remove the various components. The iPad Mini is fairly easy to open up, especially if you?ve opened other iPad models. The video is embedded below:
Source: http://www.powerbookmedic.com/wordpress/2012/11/02/ipad-mini-take-apart-video-released
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