Yemen's main oil pipeline attacked, pumping halted

SANAA (Reuters) - Attackers blew up Yemen's main oil export pipeline on Friday, halting the flow of crude, an official working for the state-run Safer oil company said, the latest in a series of attacks.

Yemen's oil and gas pipelines have been repeatedly sabotaged by insurgents and tribesmen, especially since anti-government protests created a power vacuum in 2011, causing fuel shortages and slashing export earnings for the impoverished country.

Yemen's stability is a priority for the United States and its Gulf Arab allies because of its strategic position next to top oil exporter Saudi Arabia and shipping lanes, and because is home to one of al Qaeda's most active wings.

"Subversive elements" had blown up the pipeline linking the al-Hawi Wadi Abida production field in the central Marib province to the Red Sea on Friday morning, the Safer official told Reuters, declining to be identified.

The blast had halted crude flows to the Ras Isa terminal but pumping would resume once the pipeline had been repaired, he added.

"The pipeline burst into flames immediately after the explosion," a witness said.

The last in a spate of attacks on the pipeline was in January, when production was halted for one day. In December, Yemen said oil was being pumped through the pipeline at a rate of around 70,000 barrels per day (bpd).

The pipeline used to carry around 110,000 bpd of Marib light crude to Ras Isa.

A long closure of the line last year forced Yemen's largest refinery at Aden to shut, leaving the small producer dependent on fuel donations from Saudi Arabia and imports.

(Reporting By Mohammed Ghobari, writing by Raissa Kasolowsky, editing by William Hardy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/yemens-main-oil-pipeline-attacked-pumping-halted-124046601.html

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U.N. says 5,000 Syrian refugees fleeing each day

GENEVA (Reuters) - About 5,000 refugees are fleeing Syria each day, seeking safe haven in neighboring countries, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.

"This is a full-on crisis," Adrian Edwards, spokesman of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told a news briefing in Geneva. "There was a huge increase in January alone, we're talking about a 25 percent increase in registered refugee numbers over a single month."

Since the conflict began two years ago, more than 787,000 Syrians have registered as refugees or are awaiting processing in the region, mainly Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Turkey, he said.

In Syria, water shortages are worsening and supplies are sometimes contaminated, putting children at an increased risk of diseases, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned on Friday.

The agency's first nationwide assessment revealed that water supplies in areas affected by the conflict are one-third of pre-crisis levels, UNICEF said in a statement.

"It points to a severe disruption of services, damage done to water and sanitation systems, and limited access to basic hygiene, all of which puts children at much greater risk of disease," UNICEF spokeswoman Marixie Mercado told the briefing.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Oliver Holmes)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-n-says-5-000-syrian-refugees-fleeing-101637042.html

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Best Security Systems for Small Business - Top Ten List

Protecting your small business from theft, vandalism, and fire is not just a matter of protecting your property, you're protecting you livelihood. As such, you must be extra cautious when choosing a trustworthy security company to protect your business.

There are only a few security companies that cater to the needs of small business. Securing a business often requires a different approach than securing a home, so be sure you are not dealing with a company that is not just repackaging their consumer product as a business security system.

This list has been created to help you find the best security system for small business. The security companies on this list understand the security needs of small businesses, and provide specialized services and products to give you the best security available for your business. Don't agree with the list? Vote for an existing item you think should be ranked higher or if you are a logged in, add a new item for others to vote on or create your own version of this list.

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UPS takes 100 EVs on the road in California, makes delivering packages eco-friendlier

The Golden State's without a doubt at the forefront of the so-called green movement, and thus it shouldn't come as a surprise that UPS chose it as the destination for 100 of its brand-new electric trucks. This initiative is a natural expansion of UPS' eco-friendly scheme, as the delivery behemoth has already implemented something similar in New York City and Europe, with nearly 30 roadsters currently being operated around those areas. It's also worth noting that's only a small chunk of the more than 2,500 "alternative fuel vehicles" on the company's roster, which includes more electrics, hybrids and others with natural gas technologies. In California, meanwhile, the 100 delivery EVs mark the culmination of a plan that started back in 2011, and will see UPS take these (and all of their 75-miles-on-a-single-charge goods) to a few West Coast cities, such as Bakersfield, Fresno, Sacramento and San Bernardino. Folks in the area, be on the lookout, since you may very well spot one the next time your expected package reaches its "On Vehicle for Delivery" status.

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'Being Mandela:' Granddaughters dish on show

In this Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013 photo, Swati Dlamini, left, and Zaziwe Dlamini-Manaway, granddaughters of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, speak during an interview in New York. The sisters are stars of the new reality show "Being Mandela," produced by COZI TV for NBC. The 30-minute weekly show premieres on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9 PM ET and will follow the next generation of Mandela family through the experiences of sisters Zaziwe and Swati and their families. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

In this Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013 photo, Swati Dlamini, left, and Zaziwe Dlamini-Manaway, granddaughters of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, speak during an interview in New York. The sisters are stars of the new reality show "Being Mandela," produced by COZI TV for NBC. The 30-minute weekly show premieres on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9 PM ET and will follow the next generation of Mandela family through the experiences of sisters Zaziwe and Swati and their families. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

In this Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013 photo, Swati Dlamini, left, and Zaziwe Dlamini-Manaway, granddaughters of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, pose during an interview in New York. The sisters are stars of the new reality show "Being Mandela," produced by COZI TV for NBC. The 30-minute weekly show premieres on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9 PM ET and will follow the next generation of Mandela family through the experiences of sisters Zaziwe and Swati and their families. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

In this Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013 photo, Swati Dlamini, left, and Zaziwe Dlamini-Manaway, granddaughters of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, pose during an interview in New York. The sisters are stars of the new reality show "Being Mandela," produced by COZI TV for NBC. The 30-minute weekly show premieres on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9 PM ET and will follow the next generation of Mandela family through the experiences of sisters Zaziwe and Swati and their families. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

NEW YORK (AP) ? The newest reality television show is in some ways like any other: mother and daughters, sibling rivalry, family gossip and talk of Big Grandpa, who is very strict but loves it when his great-grandchildren are around making a racket. But that's where the twist comes in: Big Grandpa is Nelson Mandela, the anti-apartheid legend.

"Being Mandela," a new series premiering Sunday on COZI TV, invites U.S. audiences into the lives of Zaziwe Dlamini-Manaway and Swati Dlamini, the fashionable, 30-something granddaughters of Mandela and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. The 94-year-old former South African president, who recently was treated for a lung infection and had surgery to remove gallstones, does not appear in the series but his controversial ex-wife ? "Big Mommy" to her grandchildren ? does and seems to relish it.

If the Mandela clan seems like an odd subject for a reality show, the granddaughters make no apologies.

"We get asked this question a lot. Is this not going to tarnish the name and is this not going to be bad for the name?" Swati Dlamini said in an interview with The Associated Press in New York, where she and her sister were promoting the show. "But our grandparents have always said to us, this is our name too, and we can do what we think is best fitting with the name, as long as we treat it with respect and integrity."

The 13-episode first season follows the two women as they try to carry on the family legacy while juggling motherhood in Johannesburg.

The sisters, who spent most of their childhood in exile in the United States, make an emotional visit to the prison on Robben Island where their grandfather spent 18 of the 27 years he was imprisoned by South Africa's white-ruled government. Swati works on publishing the prison diaries that her grandmother wrote but now cannot bear to read.

Swati, whose full name is Zamaswazi, was smuggled onto Robben Island in 1980, when she would have been less than a year old, wrapped in blankets that grandmother Winnie Madikizela-Mandela pretended she needed as protection against the cold.

Let in on the secret, prison guard Christo Brand recalls initially refusing to allow Mandela to see his grandchild, according to his memoir at the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory.

Then, Brand says, he gave in, though he feared he might lose his job. "I gave him the baby, he had tears in his eyes while he held her ..." he says. "Mandela never told anyone about this. When we walked back to the prison section, he told me how important the moment was, to touch something small."

The sisters, along with two brothers, also become the latest famous names to launch a fashion line, called "Long Walk to Freedom" in honor of their grandfather's autobiography. Their lives are special and glamorous and they know it. They hope that U.S. audiences ? COZI TV is a new network launched by NBC Owned Television Stations ? will see a vibrant and modern side of South Africa through their eyes.

They also bicker. The family, especially Madikizela-Mandela, loves to gossip about when Swati, the single mother of a 4-year-old daughter, is going to get married. Swati is furious when Zaziwe, despite being sworn to secrecy, blurts to their grandmother that her sister is dating someone. Zaziwe, 35, is married to an American businessman and has three children.

The sisters are the daughters of Zenani Mandela and Prince Thumbumuzi Dlamini of Swaziland. But parents everywhere will delight in seeing that being royal doesn't help them face toddler tantrums or get older children out of bed and into school uniforms.

Big Grandpa and Big Mommy are into the show, the sisters insisted.

Mandela will definitely watch it, they said. The Nobel Peace Prize winner apparently sort of likes reality TV.

"You'll be interested to know that he loves Toddlers and Tiarras," said Swati, laughing in reference to the TLC series about child beauty pageants.

"Because of the kids! He just loves children," Zaziwe added quickly.

The sisters said their grandfather is "happy and healthy."

Zaziwe showed a Feb. 2 photograph of Mandela at home, flashing his familiar smile, with his youngest great-grandchild on his lap ? Zaziwe's one-year-old son. The picture is a rare public image of Mandela, whose last appearance on a major stage was during the 2010 World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa.

Mandela, who always lamented his long separation from his family during his imprisonment, is happiest these days when his offspring are running around being loud, his granddaughters said.

"We're in and out of the house. We're loud and he loves the noise," Zaziwe said.

The granddaughters say their grandfather ? to the world, a symbol of integrity and magnanimity ? holds the family to high standards and sets rules for when the children should be home and when dinner should start.

"He's a very strict person. Most people wouldn't think that but he really, really is," Zaziwe said.

The sisters are closer to Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who divorced Mandela in 1997. Their adoring description of their grandmother as the doting matriarch stands in contrast with her checkered public image. Beloved by many poor urban blacks, Madikizela-Mandela also faces accusations that she and her bodyguard unit committed 18 killings in the 1980s. She denies it.

"She's fun. She never says no to us. I don't think I've ever heard my grandmother say no to us," Zaziwe said.

Still, the series shows Big Mommy clearly taking charge of the family. She marches into the hospital room where Zaziwe gave birth to Zen with a list of possible names for the baby boy.

The sisters say it was only after Mandela retired from public life that they started to get to know their grandfather.

"Our grandfather always told us that he belongs to the country and he's of service to the country and he doesn't belong to us as a family. And that's the sacrifice he's made for the country and that what he's told us as far as I can remember," Swati said.

____

AP Entertainment Writer Lauri Neff contributed to this story.

____

On the Internet:

www.cozitv.com

http://www.nelsonmandela.org/images/uploads/Nelson_Mandelas_Warders.pdf

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-02-08-Being%20Mandela's%20Granddaughters/id-022ad82ec9924e4b8cca781923a72eaf

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Smarter weather forecasts? There?s an app for that

John Roach , NBC News ? ? ? 7 hrs.

Millions of people carry around smartphones equipped with pressure sensors that help pinpoint their gadget's location. Atmospheric scientists have built an app to collect the pressure data in an effort to improve short-term weather forecasts.

?The big horizon in weather forecasting is high resolution; getting small-scale features like thunderstorms right,? Cliff Mass, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Washington, explained to NBC News. ?And what cripples us is we don?t have enough data to describe what is happening.?

Gadgets such as the popular Galaxy III smartphone come equipped with pressure sensors that make them weather observatories. Mass and colleagues collaborated with Cumulonimbus, a Canadian app company, to develop PressureNet, which measures atmospheric pressure and sends it to researchers.

"We have a massive pressure database that we can use to improve weather forecasting," Mass said.

Atmospheric pressure is the weight of the air above the surface. Lowering pressure is often a sign that a storm is brewing; rising pressure a sign of sunny skies. Precise tracking of pressure changes, in turn, give weather forecasters the ability to pinpoint when and where a storm will strike.

The data could be particularly useful for places where thunderstorms build up quickly, such as in the Midwest, though Mass noted that forecasting local weather features in most regions would benefit from the stream of pressure data.

The app went into service just before Hurricane Sandy punched the Eastern seaboard in October 2012. ?We were able to see the storm come in and see the details of the storm as it went over land,? Mass said.

In the case of Sandy as well as the current snowstorm set to wallop the Northeast today, the pressure data collected by the smartphones is of little use to weather forecasters since they come in over the ocean where there are few people with smartphones.

?It is the stuff that begins over land, because, obviously, that is where the smartphones are,? Mass said.

Currently, he is getting about 4,000 observations per hour, suggesting at least that many people have downloaded the app. He hopes that number grows significantly.

The app is available for Android devices equipped with pressure sensors. Examples include several of Samsung?s Galaxy-branded gadgets, the Nexus 4 smartphone, and Motorola Xoom tablet computers.

?This is just the beginning,? Mass said. ?I think this really has legs. It is cutting edge technology.?

John Roach is a contributing writer for NBC News. To learn more about him, check out his website. For more of our Future of Technology series, watch the featured video below.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/futureoftech/smarter-weather-forecasts-theres-app-1B8290978

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Kristen Stewart Signs on for The Big Shoe

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/02/kristen-stewart-signs-on-for-the-big-shoe/

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