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NewsQA
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(CNN) -- U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III plans to emulate the decision of his Presidents Cup counterpart Fred Couples and select former world number one Tiger Woods for next year's contest with Europe.
Woods, a 14-time major winner, has struggled with form and fitness since problems in his personal life emerged two years ago. The American has slipped to 50th in golf's world rankings, having not won a tournament since the Australian Masters in November 2009.
But the 35-year-old's recent slump has not prevented Couples, the 1992 Masters champion, from selecting Woods as a wildcard pick for November's Presidents Cup clash with the International team in Australia.
"Well I've been asked that a lot, what would I do if I was in Fred's situation," Love, himself a former major champion, told a press conference at Medina Golf and Country Club in Chicago, the venue for the 2012 Ryder Cup.
Look out Europe: American golf is bouncing back
"You certainly want one of the best players ever in the game, you want him on your team. I'm hoping, for Tiger's sake, that he has a full healthy season next year and we are not in this situation. That he's back to his form and he's ready to go.
"I would love to play as Tiger Woods' partner in a Presidents Cup or a Ryder Cup. So I would probably have to go with exactly what Fred did."
Woods has played in six Ryder Cups since 1997, but his only experience of team victory came at Brookline, Massachusetts in 1999 after missing out due to injury three years ago.
He had planned to take the rest of this year off, but his Presidents Cup selection persuaded him to enter the Frys.com Open starting October 6, when he will be partnered by new caddy Joe LaCava -- who carried Couples' bag for more than 20 years.
LaCava left Couples this year when the 51-year-old decided to reduce his playing schedule, and worked with 2010 Ryder Cup player Dustin Johnson until the end of the PGA Tour's recent FedEx Cup playoffs.
"Joe is an outstanding caddy," Woods told his official website on Sunday. "I have known him for many years. I've personally seen the great job he did for Freddie. I'm anxious for us to be working together."
LaCava added: "I'm excited to be working with Tiger. I contacted Tiger and Mark (Steinberg, Woods' agent) because this is a unique opportunity to be part of something very special.
"Tiger and I have been friends for a very long time, and I know what he can do."
|
399dc9f4f6534be9a968938faacdc50a
|
Who hired Joe LaCava?
|
[
"Tiger Woods"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Half a million homes remained without power across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic region on Sunday, as rain continued to pound states from West Virginia to Connecticut for a second day.
The rain caused flooding and airport delays across the region, even as Saturday's high winds -- reaching hurricane force in some areas -- waned dramatically on Sunday.
"High winds are over, but the rain and flood threat remain in Mid-Atlantic and Northeast," CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras said. "There are major travel delays -- and more expected on Monday."
Some coastal areas have received up to six inches of rain since Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Flood warnings remained in effect in parts of the Eastern Seaboard into Sunday night, including much of New England.
Flooding in West Virginia caused one death there, authorities said.
Con Edison reported more than 100,000 customers without power in New York City and Westchester County on Sunday, while the Long Island Power Authority said that 150,000 of its customers were without electricity.
"The ground is so wet from all the snow we've had this winter, it's helping the trees to topple over, as well as our utility poles," said Long Island Power Authority president and CEO Kevin Law. "The conditions are still too terrible to get crews out there."
Law said that some customers will likely go without power until early in the week.
Roughly 100,000 New Jersey customers saw their electricity restored Sunday, along with 30,000 PPL Electric Utilities customers in Pennsylvania. But tens of thousands of other homes in New Jersey and Connecticut were still without power on Sunday.
iReport: Share photos, video of storm damage
The outages were mostly due to power lines downed by Saturday's winds, which toppled trees and utility polls. Wind speeds reached 75 miles per hour at New York's JFK International Airport -- as strong as a Category 1 hurricane -- and 72 miles per hour in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
New York-area airports reported delays of at least two hours on Sunday, while Boston's Logan International Airport averaged 40 minute delays.
In the Midwest, meanwhile, flooding continued on Sunday because of snow melt, rains and ice jams. Farther west, North Dakota's Red River is expected to reach major flood stage around Fargo and Moorhead on Tuesday.
|
143f388f039d49059a701fd6a0672dc8
|
How many houses are without power?
|
[
"Half"
] |
NewsQA
|
KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Afghanistan's opium production dropped dramatically this year partly because of new aggressive drug-fighting tactics in the country, a United Nations study found.
Afghan police officers use tractors to destroy poppy crops in Helmand province earlier this year.
According to the report from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, production dipped by 10 percent this year, while cultivation fell by 22 percent.
"At a time of pessimism about the situation in Afghanistan, these results are a welcome piece of good news and demonstrate that progress is possible," said Antonio Maria Costa, the office's executive director.
The United Nations notes that drugs originating in Afghanistan have "catastrophic consequences."
"They fund the activities of criminals, insurgents and terrorists in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Collusion with corrupt government officials is undermining public trust, security and the rule of law.
"Widespread money-laundering is harming the reputation of banks in the Gulf and farther afield," it said. Watch U.N. official discuss concerns about opium stockpiles »
The report, released this week, attributed the decrease to better government leadership, aggressive counter-narcotics tactics, a push for farmers to grow legal crops and pressure from NATO-led soldiers.
This was the second year that the production of the opium, used to produce heroin, had dropped in Afghanistan. The study found 20 of the 34 provinces in Afghanistan were now free of opium farming.
The most significant drop this year was in Helmand province, the volatile southern region where NATO-led forces are battling with militants. In that opium hotbed, cultivation dipped from 103,590 to 69,833 hectares (255,976 to 172,561 acres).
But even with this seemingly good news, some fear that drug traffickers in Afghanistan are preparing to fight back. According to the report, researchers found evidence strong drug cartels, similar to ones seen in Colombia, were being formed by participants in Afghanistan's drug trade.
"A marriage of convenience between insurgents and criminal groups is spawning narco-cartels linked to the Taliban," Costa said.
Incentive programs giving local farmers seeds and training in growing legal crops represent a key tactic in the fight against drugs.
Local farmers in Helmand are being trained at a facility ran by the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Farmers like Abdul Qadir said programs like this one are key to bringing peace to war-torn Afghanistan.
"These countries that are here, why are they with guns and bombs? If you can just help the people of Afghanistan in this way, the fighting will go away, these Taliban and other enemies of the country will also disappear," Qadir said.
CNN's Atia Abawi contributed to this report.
|
49293f95d34e45389c05a83f9c953cb2
|
where do the drugs come from
|
[
"Afghanistan's"
] |
NewsQA
|
London, England (CNN) -- The former vice president of Bosnia was arrested Monday in London on a request from Serbia, where he is wanted for conspiracy to murder and breach of the Geneva Convention.
Metropolitan police arrested Ejup Ganic at Heathrow Airport on Monday afternoon, and he appeared at the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court, the United Kingdom Foreign Office said in a news release.
The British authorities were awaiting the full extradition paperwork before a court date for an extradition hearing can be set, the Foreign Office said.
Citing the ongoing case, authorities declined to comment further.
Ganic was the vice president of Bosnia during the bloody civil war there between 1992 and 1995, and he was twice president of the Bosnian-Croat Federation in the years after the Dayton peace agreement in 1995. Ganic was regarded by many independent commentators at the time as a relative moderate in the war-time Bosnian leadership.
An engineer by profession, Ganic studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States. He would regularly brief journalists during the three-year civil war from his often-shelled office in the Bosnian presidency building in the heart of Sarajevo.
On Sunday, Bosnia and Serbia signed an agreement on extraditions for war crimes committed during the war that would let Bosnians be tried in Bosnia and Serbs in Serbia.
Ganic was in Britain attending a graduation ceremony at the University of Buckingham, which partners with a university in Sarajevo in which Ganic is reported to have a significant financial interest.
CNN's Nic Robertson contributed to this report.
|
af66c6b5fcff45a78ee426804791c9a5
|
Where did Ganic study?
|
[
"Massachusetts Institute of Technology"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- A tornado swept through parts of Tupelo, Mississippi, on Thursday, damaging trees, power lines and overturning a 18-wheel truck, a law enforcement official said.
iReporter Graham Hancock saw damage Thursday at the Tupelo Furniture Market in Tupelo, Mississippi.
"Just a little earlier this morning, we began to get reports of damage starting from the west side of Tupelo," said Chief Deputy John Hall of the Lee County Sheriff's Department.
Hall said the storm moved north across the city to the Mall at Barnes Crossing. Nearby on U.S. 45, an 18-wheel truck was overturned, he said.
There were no reports of injuries, and Hall said authorities were assessing damages. Watch as a Tupelo resident describes the storm »
Jeff Snyder, general manager for the Mall at Barnes Crossing, said the shopping center sustained "minor property damage."
Terry Anderson, executive director of Tupelo Regional Airport, said the facility had minor damage, including some broken windows.
He said the airport was closed for about 10 minutes while the taxiway and runway were cleared. No flights were delayed, he said, and the airport is "up and running."
Mark Waddle, who works at the airport, said he saw the storm form.
"It was real small at first," said Waddle, an employee at the airport's Budget Car Rental counter. "All the clouds were twirling around."
Waddle said he watched as the tornado touched down near the airport.
"It looked like it hit some kind of transformer because the whole sky lit up blue," he said. "Then it kind of blew through the Tupelo airport. ... It was blowing so hard the trees were touching the ground."
Waddle said he was not aware of any significant damage to the airport apart from overturned trash cans and debris in tree branches.
"All of the people and all the vehicles and everything are fine up here at the airport," he said.
Bobbye Jones, who works at the Mississippi Department of Transportation in Tupelo, said the roof blew off the lab at the agency.
She said fallen tree branches also had damaged vehicles outside her office.
"Everything just got real dark," Jones said. .
A tornado watch, which denotes favorable conditions for tornadoes, is in effect until late Thursday afternoon for parts of northwestern Alabama.
|
119639d50e0746c78403a5b52142c01a
|
Where was reported tornado damage?
|
[
"Tupelo, Mississippi,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- The bone fragment found near the California home where Jaycee Dugard is said to have been confined for 18 years is "probably human," a sheriff's spokesman said Tuesday.
Jaycee Dugard was locked in a shed tucked under a blue tarp in her alleged captor's backyard.
Investigators said they found the bone last week on a neighbor's property in an area that Dugard's accused captor and rapist, Philip Garrido, had access to.
The fragment, which was analyzed by an outside expert, will go on to the state DNA lab for testing, Jimmy Lee, director of Public Affairs for the Contra Costa County's Sheriff's Office said in an e-mail.
"The expert has determined that the bone fragment found in the backyard of Garrido's neighbor is probably human," Lee said.
"We will be requesting the state to see if it can develop a DNA profile on the fragment. It should be noted that it is not uncommon to find Native American remains in Contra Costa County," he said.
Garrido and his wife, Nancy, have pleaded not guilty to 29 felony charges, including rape and kidnapping, stemming from Dugard's disappearance when she was 11 years old.
Investigators believe Garrido kidnapped Dugard in 1991 in South Lake Tahoe, California, fathered two daughters with her and held her captive in a well-hidden compound behind his home in Antioch.
After the Garridos were arrested in August, investigators used cadaver dogs to search the couple's ramshackle home and the surrounding rural property for possible connections to unsolved crimes.
Police in Hayward, California, are trying to determine whether Garrido is linked to the 1988 kidnapping of Michaela Garecht, Hayward Police Lt. Chris Orrey said last week.
Garecht and Dugard were of similar age and appearance, both were abducted in daylight and a sketch of a suspect resembled Garrido, Orrey said.
In Dublin, California, investigators said last week they were looking into whether Garrido was connected to the 1989 disappearance of Ilene Misheloff, who was 13 when she was abducted.
Garrido was convicted of kidnapping and raping Katie Callaway Hall in 1976. He was released from prison after serving 10 years of a 50-year sentence. He was labeled a sex offender and put on lifetime parole.
CNN's Dan Simon contributed to this report.
|
ebb9f09e61304368aadea2cccaafe6ea
|
What was analyzed by an outside expert?
|
[
"The fragment,"
] |
NewsQA
|
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A U.S. government panel listed 13 countries Friday as "egregious" violators of religious freedom.
Homeless Pakistani Christians protest last month in Islamabad for protection of Christian minorities.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom's annual report named Myanmar, North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
It recommended that the Obama administration designate them as "countries of particular concern" or CPC.
The group has issued a watch list that includes Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, Egypt, Indonesia, Laos, Russia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Venezuela, countries that don't rise to the level of a CPC but need to be monitored.
"Unfolding events in Pakistan make clear the relevance of this theme to the 2009 Annual Report. At the time of writing, emboldened Taliban-associated extremists had advanced to within 60 miles of the Pakistani capital of Islamabad," the report said.
"In the areas they already control, these groups are imposing draconian restrictions on human rights and religious freedom and engaging in brutal acts against individuals, particularly women and local police, who refused to accede to their repressive policies."
The federal commission is bipartisan, and its commissioners are appointed by the president and members of Congress.
A CPC designation gives Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "a range of specific policy options to address serious violations of religious freedom."
It requires the secretary "to enter into direct consultations with a government to find ways to bring about improvements in the respect for religious freedom."
The report covers the period May 2008 through April. The commission was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
"While sanctions are a possible policy option, the secretary may decide to develop a binding agreement with the CPC government on specific actions that it will take to end the violations that gave rise to the designation or take a commensurate action," the commission said. "The secretary may determine that pre-existing sanctions are adequate or waive the requirement of taking action in furtherance of the Act."
|
6940bb416c23449d9e3f55f488204d49
|
What is the number of nations named?
|
[
"13"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- At least 15 people have been killed and more wounded after a weekend of heavy fighting in Somalia's capital, journalists and a hospital spokeswoman said Monday.
Artillery shelling from an area controlled by the government into an insurgent stronghold killed at least 15 and wounded 60 others Sunday in northeastern Mogadishu, journalists said after surveying the aftermath.
More than 120 people have been admitted to a hospital with wounds related to fighting since Friday, said Duniyo Ali Mohamed, head of the medical department at Medina Hospital.
The fighting comes after a militant Islamist group associated with al Qaeda attacked areas controlled by government troops and peacekeepers Friday, leaving 12 dead and at least 30 injured, witnesses said.
Two of the 12 were members of al-Shabaab, according to Sheik Ali Mohamud Raghe, a spokesman for the militants. Al-Shabaab is an extremist group that the United States considers to be a terrorist organization.
Somali government officials downplayed the offensive, calling it "small and careless."
Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991 when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and sparked brutal clan infighting. The transitional government has struggled to establish authority amid challenges by militants.
|
b1ff643b61034a85b119747ebf2464aa
|
What do Somali officials call the offensive?
|
[
"\"small and careless.\""
] |
NewsQA
|
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Obama pledged Monday to make good on his promise to transform the Department of Veterans Affairs and said he would "dramatically improve" mental health aid.
President Obama and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, seen here last month, vow to increase aid.
Flanked by Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, the president said his budget calls for a $25 billion increase in funding for the VA over the next five years -- a commitment that will be tested by the needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
"With this budget, we don't just fully fund our Veterans Affairs health care program, we expand it to serve an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013," he said.
He promised that the VA would "dramatically improve services" related to mental health, post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, and he said homeless veterans would be targeted for support.
"Those heroes have a home," Obama said. "It's the country they served, the United States of America, and until we reach a day when not a single veteran sleeps on our nation's streets, our work remains unfinished."
|
38cdd1d411d64301a05f5621bbbca7f4
|
Who is being targeted for support?
|
[
"homeless veterans"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- An 11-year-old boy is facing adult charges in the shooting death of his father's pregnant girlfriend, authorities said Saturday.
Police say Kenzie Marie Houk's daughter found her shot to death in her bed on Friday.
Police say the boy shot Kenzie Marie Houk, who was eight months pregnant, once at point-blank range in her farmhouse in western Pennsylvania.
The boy, whose name was withheld by CNN because he is a juvenile, was charged with one count each of criminal homicide and homicide of an unborn child in the death of Houk, 26, Lawrence County District Attorney John Bongivengo told CNN.
Houk's 4-year-old daughter found her in her bed Friday, according to police. The child alerted landscapers working near the home, who then called authorities. Watch a community in shock »
"This is something that you wouldn't even think of in your worst nightmare, that you'd have to charge an 11-year-old with homicide," Bongivengo said, according to CNN affiliate WTAE. "It's heinous, the whole situation."
Under Pennsylvania law, anyone over the age of 10 accused of murder or homicide is charged as an adult. If convicted, the boy faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, Bongivengo said.
Authorities said the boy is the son of the victim's live-in boyfriend at the home in Wampum, about 35 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.
"At this point, we don't believe it's accidental," Bongivengo said.
The weapon was a youth model 20-gauge shotgun, designed for use by children, that belonged to the boy, according to investigators.
Bongivengo told reporters the household has no history of child abuse, but that an investigation is ongoing.
Calls to the boy's public defender, Dennis Elisco, went unanswered Saturday.
CNN's Chloe Melas and Kristin Hamill contributed to this report.
|
eead79d0b7e14229ade5fed4fbb44a41
|
What medical condition did the woman have?
|
[
"pregnant"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho will be banned for the next three Italian Serie A games following a gesture he made during Saturday's controversial 0-0 draw against Sampdoria.
League leaders Inter had two players sent off, while Sampdoria also had a man dismissed in a fiery encounter at the San Siro.
Is your boss a "Special One?"
Former Chelsea coach Mourinho was seen to cross his arms in the manner of being handcuffed -- a gesture aimed to suggest that Inter were being victimized by match officials -- after the first-half dismissals of defenders Ivan Cordoba and Walter Samuel.
Mourinho, who has also been handed a $55,000 fine for the gesture, is now bannded from the touchline for the matches against Udinese, Genoa and Catania as Inter try to hold off the challenge of a rampant Roma side at the top of the table.
To add to Inter's problems, Esteban Cambiasso and Sulley Muntari were handed two-game bans for their behavior towards match officials after the game, joining Samuel and Cordoba on the suspended list.
The controversy comes just 48 hours before Inter host Mourinho's former club Chelsea in the last 16 of the Champions League -- the first time he has come face-to-face with the Londoners since his dismissal in September 2007.
|
24400230267f41019892d9c4f2f6acf1
|
What gesture did he make?
|
[
"Jose Mourinho"
] |
NewsQA
|
Lagos, Nigeria (CNN) -- A series of bomb and gun attacks targeting police stations, mosques and churches left 65 people dead in northeastern Nigeria, the Red Cross said Saturday.
Attackers also left scores injured -- probably more than 100 -- in a three-hour rampage in the Yobe state city of Damaturu, according to Ibrahim Bulama of the Red Cross. Sixty-three people died.
"It is a very bad scene," he said.
Gunmen first attacked the police headquarters and the anti-terror office before moving to churches and mosques, he said. Most of the casualties were police officers.
In Potiskum, also located in Yobe state, gunmen attacked a book shop near the police station, killing two and injuring 5, the Red Cross said.
The Friday attacks came the same day suicide bombers suspected to belong to a militant Islamist group targeted a military base in nearby Maiduguri.
Three suicide bombers drove a stolen black SUV toward a Joint Task Force headquarters, but could not get through the gate, military spokesman Lt. Col. Hassan Mohammed said.
The blast damaged roofs and walls of the base.
Mohammed said two other simultaneous explosions took place at other military facilities. An unspecified number of Nigerian soldiers suffered injuries.
Saturday evening, a suicide bomber launched another attack in Maiduguri, Mohammed said. No casualties were reported except for the bomber.
He blamed the militant group Boko Haram for the attacks.
Loosely translated, the group's name means "Western education is sinful." It wants to establish a state based on Sharia, or Islamic law, in northern Nigeria.
The Red Cross official said Boko Haram is suspected in the Damaturu attack as well.
|
38e904886d9d4dd39a439ab15bbf70b6
|
Where did it take place?
|
[
"northeastern Nigeria,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- The recent snowstorm in China, which has stranded hundreds of thousands of people across the country and killed dozens, is related to the La Nina phenomenon, according to a Chinese weather expert
Suzhou, China, is blanketed by the most snow the city has had in 25 years, according to I-Reporter Susan Arthur.
La Nina is the opposite of El Nino, which follows El Nino and occurs every few years. During La Nina, sea temperatures over eastern equatorial Pacific are lower than normal.
La Nina enhances Arctic weather systems and causes a cold winter in Asia, including in China.
As warm and moisture air from the south meets cold air in the north under freezing temperatures, snow forms.
"The warm air is very active this year," said Li Weijing, deputy director-general of the National Climate Center of China.
As a result, persistent snowstorms occur in central and western China, paralyzing the transport and electricity systems.
The current storm, which hit just ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday -- China's busiest shopping season -- has shut much of the nation down. China's transportation system and power grid have been paralyzed this week.
The storm also has cost the nation's economy $4.5 billion, according to figures released Wednesday by the Civil Affairs Ministry. Watch how Nanjing is coping with the unusual weather »
The winter precipitation had caused at least 49 deaths due to collapsed roofs and treacherous travel conditions, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and local officials said.
More than 177 million Chinese were expected to travel by train, and 22 million more by plane, for the February 7 Chinese Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival.
China uses a color system for its snowstorm warning:
The current once-in-50-years snowstorm calls for the red warning, the first time such a warning has been issued since the system launches. E-mail to a friend
CNN's Clarence Fong contributed to this report.
|
4c39ccf1ea88412c84c83d3c8481d96c
|
What calls for the first-ever and most severe red warning?
|
[
"once-in-50-years snowstorm"
] |
NewsQA
|
Marjah, Afghanistan (CNN) -- U.S. Marines fighting the Taliban in southern Afghanistan achieved a main objective Tuesday -- taking over the police headquarters in the center of the Taliban stronghold of Marjah.
CNN correspondent Atia Abawi, embedded with the Marines, said troops didn't receive any resistance when they took the station, but gun battles broke out in the area a few hours later.
There was an engagement for 15 to 20 minutes, with constant gunfire coming from different directions, and there have been "sporadic battles," Abawi said.
Unlike previous days, there was fighting in the evening, with Taliban militants trying to attack Marine locations with small arms and rocket-propelled grenades. One of the grenades hit close to one of the U.S. positions and a fire broke out.
About 15,000 Afghan and NATO forces are taking part in Operation Moshtarak, which focuses on the town of Marjah and surrounding areas in Helmand province. Set in a region known as the country's heroin capital, Marjah is where the Taliban established a shadow government.
The military says the goal of Operation Moshtarak is to provide security, governance and development, and authorities hope fighters choose to reject the insurgency and join the government's reintegration process.
Clearing out poppy fields is a key part of the push, the biggest since the Afghanistan War started in 2001. The Taliban finances its activities in part through the illegal opium trade.
One of the biggest challenges facing the NATO mission in Afghanistan is attacking the Taliban while limiting civilian casualties. On Sunday, 12 civilians died in a rocket attack by coalition troops. Three other Afghan civilians were killed by NATO in separate incidents on Sunday and Monday.
On Tuesday, Abawi spoke to one civilian whose property had been destroyed in the initial push by Marines. Despite that, he said he was happy to see Americans arrive and noted that Marines promised to pay for the damages to his home.
He said Afghans have suffered under the Taliban, who he said had beheaded some people and forced their way into people's homes for food.
|
b7fea93a80484ac08d2e7f4ef3e94592
|
What illegal trade does the Taliban use?
|
[
"opium"
] |
NewsQA
|
MONTE CARLO, Monaco -- Russia's Yelena Isinbayeva has broken her own world record in the women's pole vault with a leap of 5.04 meters as she warmed up for her Olympic defense.
Isinbayeva broke her own women's pole vault world record on her third attempt in Monaco.
The record came at the Monaco Grand Prix on Tuesday on her third and final attempt at the height.
Her previous record of 5.03 meters was set in Rome on July 11.
Isinbayeva is the reigning Olympic and world champion.
Asafa Powell claimed his third 100 meters success inside a week when he raced clear in his season-best time of 9.82 seconds.
Powell shaved 0.06sec off his previous season-best of 9.88, set last Tuesday in Stockholm, where he saw off fellow Jamaican and world record holder Usain Bolt.
On Tuesday Powell was too hot for Davis Patton of the U.S. (9.98) and Nesta Carter of Jamaica (10.02), the fourth best time of the season all the more impressive given the calm conditions.
"I am very happy," said Powell. "I feel great, very fresh. I've got a world record in my legs. I am very confident. My goal is to be consistent."
A tough headwind had compromised Powell's attempts to have a tilt at Bolt's mark although he still cruised to a weekend victory at the London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace in 9.94sec.
Other Tuesday highlights saw Jamaica's Melaine Walker set a year mark in the women's 400m hurdles in clocking 53.48 sec.
Walker, who shattered her own personal best of 54.14 in the process, will hope her performance augurs well for the Beijing Games, where Aussie two-time world champion Jana Rawlinson will not be competing owing to a toe injury.
Kenyan Daniel Kipchirchir Komen also set a year best mark in the 1500m, crossing the line in 3 min 31.49sec to take 0.08sec off compatriot Augustine Kiprono Choge's June 1 showing in Berlin.
The 23-year-old's win tempered the disappointment of missing out on an Olympic berth.
Britain's Martyn Rooney also improved his personal best in the 400 meters for the second successive race, following up his win in the London Grand Prix with victory in 44.72 seconds.
The Monaco Grand Prix was the last major international track and field meeting before the Beijing Olympics which start on August 8.
|
11444a3ddb2747e984994646576db033
|
What did Powell win?
|
[
"claimed his third 100 meters success"
] |
NewsQA
|
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal safety investigators said Tuesday they fear flaws found in Washington's Metro subway system after a deadly crash this summer may endanger other transit systems, and they sent out an urgent recommendation asking that other rail operators check for similar problems.
Investigators are shown at the crash scene in Washington. Nine people were killed in the June 22 wreck.
In letters to federal regulators, the National Transportation Safety Board said "all rail transit operators and railroads should be informed" about system flaws that could cause a track circuit to fail to detect a train.
It was not clear how many rail systems have similar train detection systems. Neither the NTSB nor the Federal Transit Administration had a list of systems that use the "audio frequency track circuits" that are the focus of the probe.
But an FTA spokesman said that because it doesn't know how many operators use the systems, "we are sending today's urgent recommendation to all rail transit operators, and will identify the pertinent operators through a later survey."
Meanwhile, the Federal Railway Administration, which regulates Amtrak and more than a dozen commuter rail systems, said it also will follow the NTSB guidance but believes the number of impacted systems will be "limited."
Nine people were killed and 52 taken to hospitals June 22 when a southbound Metrorail train struck the rear end of stopped train just north of the Fort Totten station. Investigators say an automatic train protection system did not detect the stopped train, so the moving train did not receive a command to slow or stop.
The NTSB said it is continuing its investigation into the precise causes of the crash, but it said the investigation has raised concerns that the track circuit is susceptible to errant signals.
In its letter to regulators, the NTSB said it discovered one circumstance in which an unintended signal path could be created, resulting in a track relay remaining energized even though a stopped train was occupying the circuit.
"After only three months, this complex investigation is far from complete, so we are not ready to determine the probable cause of the [Metro] accident," NTSB Chairwoman Deborah A.P. Hersman said. "However, our findings so far indicate a pressing need to issue these recommendations to immediately address safety glitches we have found that could lead to another tragic accident."
The NTSB sent letters to Metro, the Federal Transit Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration and Alstom Signaling Inc., which acquired General Railway Signal, the manufacturer of some of the equipment.
|
07bdaaf6e59e43ebb4718879f70de17b
|
What happened in the DC train crash?
|
[
"Nine people were killed and 52 taken to hospitals June 22 when a southbound Metrorail"
] |
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(CNN) -- Holders Barcelona made hard work of beating Czech minnows Viktoria Plzen 2-0 in their Champions League Group H clash Wednesday but need just one win to reach the knockout stages.
The Catalan giants were near their fluent best in the Nou Camp but wasted a string of chances after midfielder Andres Iniesta put them ahead early after being set up by Lionel Messi.
Argentine goal machine Messi hit the woodwork twice before David Villa made the game safe with a second eight minutes from time.
It left Barcelona unbeaten in the group, but they trail AC Milan on head-to-head record as the Italians beat BATE Borisov 2-0 in the San Siro.
Both the big guns have seven points with their return clash in the San Siro on November 23 set to decide who goes through as winners of the group.
Goals from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Kevin Prince Boateng ensured an easy night's work for the Rossoneri, but their coach Massimiliano Allegri is already looking ahead to playing Barcelona again after holding them to a draw in the Nou Camp.
"It was an important win tonight to help with qualification, we still need points but our aim is to be playing Barcelona for first place, that would be an important result for the subsequent draw," he told SkySport of Italy.
In Group G, Cypriots APOEL Nicosia held Portugal giants Porto to a 1-1 draw and top a tight section with five points.
Brazilian star Hulk put the home side ahead as he lashed home an early free kick, but six minutes later the visitors were level.
Hulk's fellow Brazilian Ailton found space and produced a 25 meter shot that Helton in the Porto goal could not cover.
Zenit St Petersburg are second in the group, a point behind, after coming from behind twice to draw 2-2 at Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk.
Brazilians Willian and Luiz Adriano scored for Shakhtar, while Roman Shirokov and Viktor Faizulin leveled for the Russians.
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4eb230d68523426eb57a66b8e0cdf550
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Who did Barcelona win against?
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[
"Viktoria Plzen"
] |
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(CNN) -- Five young men died Saturday when the car they were in drove off the end of a private airstrip near Ocala, Florida, became airborne for 200 feet and slammed into an oak tree, authorities said.
The 2008 BMW was split in two in the violent wreck. All of the victims died at the scene.
"This had to be the worst vehicle crash that I have ever seen during my career," said Randy Robinson, a spokesman for the Emergency Medical Services Alliance with 27 years on the job.
The 2008 BMW was split in two in the wreck, which happened at 3:45 a.m., said Lt. Mike Burroughs, a spokesman for the Florida Highway Patrol Troop B.
He told CNN the victims -- 18 to 20 years old and all from the area -- were declared dead at the scene.
Burroughs said it was not clear how the car got onto the private Greystone community airstrip -- the same one actor John Travolta uses for his aircraft -- but the car was driving north on Runway 36, which is 1.5 miles long.
"It is evident that the driver of the vehicle saw he was approaching the end of the runway," Burroughs said. "He attempted a braking maneuver and the vehicle slid sideways off the end of the runway."
The car flew through the air for 200 feet, he said, and struck an oak tree 15 feet off the ground, splitting the vehicle in two.
Three of the occupants were ejected -- one landing 40 feet away, Burroughs said.
The engine block of the BMW was completely dislodged and wreckage from the car was found over a 200-square-foot area, the FHP spokesman said.
It was not known if the victims were wearing seat belts and the agency was awaiting the results of toxicology tests from the medical examiner's office to find out if alcohol or drugs played a role, Burroughs said.
The airstrip's private taxiways back up to homes in the Jumbolair and Greystone gated communities. E-mail to a friend
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d0a0dff77ac54953ba80892868095597
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What did the BMW hit?
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"oak tree,"
] |
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(CNN) -- Former first lady Barbara Bush was admitted Saturday to a hospital in Texas for routine tests, a spokeswoman said.
"Mrs Bush is in for some routine tests, not an emergency of any kind," said Jim Appleby, spokesman for former President George H.W. Bush.
The former first lady was taken to Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas. She had not been feeling well for about a week, said Jean Becker, the chief of staff for Bush's husband.
Bush, 84, is expected to stay at the hospital for a day or two, Becker said. Details on the testing were not immediately available.
Becker, the chief of staff for former President George H.W. Bush, said her hospitalization is "not serious at all."
Last year, Bush underwent open-heart surgery during which doctors replaced her aortic valve with a biologic valve. She spent nine days in the hospital afterward.
Her recent hospitalization is "not related" to the surgery, Becker said.
In November 2008, Bush underwent surgery for a perforated ulcer.
CNN's Leslie Tripp and Ed Henry contributed to this report.
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e9ea3cb189704f90bfb165d4f714a566
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What operation did Bush had last year ?
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"open-heart surgery"
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(Entertainment Weekly) -- Score a personal best at the box office for Quentin Tarantino this weekend. "Inglourious Basterds," his revisionist take on WWII starring Brad Pitt, grossed an estimated $37.6 million, besting the reigning box office champ "District 9," and giving beleaguered studio The Weinstein Co. a little financial relief.
"Inglourious Basterds," a revisionist take on WWII starring Brad Pitt, grossed an estimated $37.6 million.
"Basterds'" opening far surpasses Tarantino's previous best opener, "Kill Bill Vol. 2," which brought in $25 million in April 2004. The critical question now is how "Basterds" will hold up during the next few weeks. Since Weinstein only has domestic rights to the movie -- Universal Pictures holds international -- a large overall gross stateside is mandatory for the company.
Warner Bros. had a much harder time with its release "Shorts" from auteur Robert Rodriguez. Opening to only $6.6 million, the PG-rated kid flick landed in a weak 6th place finish for its opening frame.
The only other new release to reach the top ten was Fox Searchlight's post-college flick "Post Grad" starring Alexis Bledel. Despite opening in 1,959 locations, the film grossed only an estimated $2.8 million for the three days.
Among holdovers, "District 9" did incredibly well considering Basterds was angling directly for its male audience. The $30 million sci-fi movie from newcomer Neil Blomkamp dropped a scant 49% to $18.9 million putting its total ten day gross at an impressive $73 million.
"G.I. Joe" also hung in for its third week in theaters. The high-octane actioner fell only 44 percent to $12.5 million. It's three-week cume now stands at $120 million. Female moviegoers helped keep "The Time Traveler's Wife" and "Julie & Julia" in the top five.
"Time Traveler" dropped only 46 percent to $10 million its second week putting its ten-day gross at $37.4 million while "Julie & Julia" fell only 25 percent, which is remarkable considering the movie is in its third week of release. Grossing $9 million for the three days, the Meryl Streep, Amy Adams two-hander has now earned $59 million total.
Thanks to the strong opening of "Basterds" and the solid hold of the incumbent films, the box office was up 26 percent compared to the same time last year. It's the third week in a row the box office was up after four weekends of unimpressive results. Next weekend's horror mash-up of "Halloween II" and "The Final Destination 3-D" should yield some positive results too.
CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly
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f4a38dbd5bc24307a9b525407fd33b82
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Who had a hard time with its release "Shorts"?
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"Warner Bros."
] |
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Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- A trendy California sushi restaurant says it's closing after being accused of serving illegal whale meat.
The company that owns Santa Monica's The Hump restaurant had already apologized for the whale meat accusation earlier in the week.
The restaurant's Web site said: "After 12 years doing business in Santa Monica, The Hump will be closing its doors effective March 20, 2010. The Hump hopes that by closing its doors, it will help bring awareness to the detrimental effect that illegal whaling has on the preservation of our ocean ecosystems and species."
The investigation into the eatery began in October when two members of the team that made the documentary, "The Cove" visited The Hump, officials said.
"The Cove," which exposes the annual killing of dolphins at a Japanese fishing village, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary earlier in March.
Armed with a hidden camera, two women from the documentary captured the waitress serving them whale and horse meat and identifying them as such, a federal criminal complaint said. A receipt from the restaurant at the end of the meal identified their selection as "whale" and "horse" with a cost of $85 written next to them.
The women snuck pieces of the meat into a napkin and later sent them for examination to a researcher at Oregon State University. He identified the whale sample to be that of sei whale, prosecutors said.
The meat from whales, considered an endangered species, cannot be sold legally in the United States.
The restaurant, located at the Santa Monica Airport, is known for its exotic fare. Its Web site asks diners to surrender themselves to its chefs for "a culinary adventure ... unlike any that you have previously experienced."
Prosecutors have also charged Typhoon Restaurant Inc., the parent company of the restaurant, and one of its chefs -- Kiyoshiro Yamamoto, 45 -- with the illegal sale of a marine mammal product for an unauthorized purpose.
The misdemeanor charge carries a federal prison sentence of up to a year and a fine of up to $200,000 for the company, federal authorities said.
The Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act make it illegal, except under very limited circumstances, to hunt, kill or capture whales and also prohibit trade in the animals or any part of them.
CNN's Sonya Hamaski contributed to this report.
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1726bf4f688e493cb0dfcb83513864db
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What is the name of the restaurant?
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"The Hump"
] |
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(PEOPLE.com) -- Just over a week after being hospitalized for "mild kidney failure," Nick Cannon stepped out for the first time with wife Mariah Carey -- and praised her for being his "hero" during the ordeal.
"When times are hard, you guys don't see her at 3 o'clock in the morning, getting up in the middle of the night, fixing me soup when my kidneys ain't acting right. Mariah Carey does that," Cannon, 31, said onstage before presenting his wife with the Entertainer Award at the 2012 BET Honors taping, held Saturday in Washington, D.C. The show will air February 13 at 9 p.m.
Holding 8-month-old son Moroccan -- dressed in a matching mini tux -- Cannon gushed over Carey and at times appeared emotional as he reflected on the woman he calls "my angel."
"It is truly, truly a blessing to be here tonight, and I am humbled and in awe of everyone's presence, but mostly my hero right there," he said as Carey, 42, looked on from the front row.
"What most people don't get the opportunity to experience is the true woman; the virtuous person who is my angel."
A teary-eyed Carey soon returned the adoration, thanking God for having her husband and baby by her side.
"To my incredible husband who [has been] out of the hospital two days -- look at him all strong and healthy and big and too buff for the tux -- it's incredible," she beamed.
On the mend, Cannon even did an impromptu performance: beatboxing for his son.
"This is what makes Roc the most happy," said Carey, dressed in a form-fitting black and nude-colored gown. "And Miss Monroe Cannon's backstage, darling. We were both sewn into our dresses, so she couldn't make it out."
"She's a diva like her mama," quipped Cannon.
See the full article at PEOPLE.com.
© 2011 People and Time Inc. All rights reserved.
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3201a5a535134fbfb1e48141d8f50325
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what did he say about mariah carey
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"praised her for being his \"hero\" during the ordeal."
] |
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LONDON, England -- A mother is seeking to have the womb of her severely disabled daughter removed to prevent the 15-year-old from feeling the pain and discomfort of menstruation.
Doctors in Britain are now taking legal advice to see if they are permitted to carry out the hysterectomy on Katie Thorpe, who suffers from cerebral palsy.
But a charity campaigning for the disabled said on Monday the move could infringe human rights and would set a "disturbing precedent."
Andy Rickell, executive director of disability charity Scope, told the Press Association: "It is very difficult to see how this kind of invasive surgery, which is not medically necessary and which will be very painful and traumatic, can be in Katie's best interests.
"This case raises fundamental ethical issues about the way our society treats disabled people and the respect we have for disabled people's human and reproductive rights. Watch why the surgery is so controversial »
"If this enforced sterilization is approved, it will have disturbing implications for young disabled girls across Britain."
Katie's mother Alison Thorpe, who lives in Billericay, southern England, said the operation was in her daughter's best interests.
"First of all, this is not about me. If it was about me, I would have given up caring for Katie a long, long while ago," she told GMTV.
"It is about quality of life and for Katie to not have the associated problems of menstruation adds to her quality of life. It means she can continue with the quality of life we can give her now.
"Katie wouldn't understand menstruation at all. She has no comprehension about what will be happening to her body. All she would feel is the discomfort, the stomach cramps and the headaches, the mood swings, the tears, and wonder what is going on."
Thorpe said an operation would be best for Katie, despite the initial pain it would cause.
She added: "The short-term pain and discomfort we can manage with painkillers. We will be able to manage that pain much better than menstruation once a month, when Katie cannot tell us 'I'm in pain.'" E-mail to a friend
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a8a1855ff54f425596679d786439cbf5
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What does the charity think?
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"the move could infringe human rights and would set a \"disturbing precedent.\""
] |
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(CNN) -- One Australian soldier, three civilians and Taliban militants were killed early Friday during heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan, according to information from Australian and NATO officials.
Four Australian troops have now died in the conflict in Afghanistan.
The incident occurred in Tarin Kowt in Uruzgan province, where Taliban militants killed an Australian commando, the Australian Defence Ministry said.
The 26-year-old commando -- Pvt. Luke Worsley of Sydney -- served with the Special Operations Task Group. This is the fourth Australian troop to die in the Afghan conflict.
"The action in which Private Worsley died only concluded in the last few hours and was characterized by heavy, close quarter fighting. The SOTG was conducting an operation to clear an identified Taliban bomb making facility in Uruzgan province, when the soldier was hit by small arms fire," Chief of the Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force said "a significant number of Taliban insurgents were killed or captured as part of the operation. Taliban insurgents initiated the firefight which lasted several hours."
Gen. Carlos Branco, ISAF spokesman, said it is not known how the civilians, two women and a child, died.
"However, we do know that the insurgents fired upon ISAF soldiers from the compound in which the Afghan civilians (two women and one child) were found after the fight. ISAF makes all effort to prevent losses of innocent civilian lives." E-mail to a friend
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014c3aea95e54b049f8ae079697bb75f
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Where was the Australian commando shot?
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"Tarin Kowt in Uruzgan province,"
] |
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KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Afghanistan's opium production dropped dramatically this year partly because of new aggressive drug-fighting tactics in the country, a United Nations study found.
Afghan police officers use tractors to destroy poppy crops in Helmand province earlier this year.
According to the report from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, production dipped by 10 percent this year, while cultivation fell by 22 percent.
"At a time of pessimism about the situation in Afghanistan, these results are a welcome piece of good news and demonstrate that progress is possible," said Antonio Maria Costa, the office's executive director.
The United Nations notes that drugs originating in Afghanistan have "catastrophic consequences."
"They fund the activities of criminals, insurgents and terrorists in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Collusion with corrupt government officials is undermining public trust, security and the rule of law.
"Widespread money-laundering is harming the reputation of banks in the Gulf and farther afield," it said. Watch U.N. official discuss concerns about opium stockpiles »
The report, released this week, attributed the decrease to better government leadership, aggressive counter-narcotics tactics, a push for farmers to grow legal crops and pressure from NATO-led soldiers.
This was the second year that the production of the opium, used to produce heroin, had dropped in Afghanistan. The study found 20 of the 34 provinces in Afghanistan were now free of opium farming.
The most significant drop this year was in Helmand province, the volatile southern region where NATO-led forces are battling with militants. In that opium hotbed, cultivation dipped from 103,590 to 69,833 hectares (255,976 to 172,561 acres).
But even with this seemingly good news, some fear that drug traffickers in Afghanistan are preparing to fight back. According to the report, researchers found evidence strong drug cartels, similar to ones seen in Colombia, were being formed by participants in Afghanistan's drug trade.
"A marriage of convenience between insurgents and criminal groups is spawning narco-cartels linked to the Taliban," Costa said.
Incentive programs giving local farmers seeds and training in growing legal crops represent a key tactic in the fight against drugs.
Local farmers in Helmand are being trained at a facility ran by the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Farmers like Abdul Qadir said programs like this one are key to bringing peace to war-torn Afghanistan.
"These countries that are here, why are they with guns and bombs? If you can just help the people of Afghanistan in this way, the fighting will go away, these Taliban and other enemies of the country will also disappear," Qadir said.
CNN's Atia Abawi contributed to this report.
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16917eba5d924deab4e3ca6491b94f9d
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How many provinces in Afghanistan are now free of opium farming?
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"20"
] |
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(CNN) -- In death, Michael Jackson is topping charts all over the world again.
Stores around the globe are seeing a surge in sales for Michael Jackson's music.
Jackson's albums hold the top nine positions of Billboard's "Top Pop Catalog Albums" chart, according to Nielsen SoundScan sales data released Tuesday.
Jackson's albums are not eligible for the current Billboard 200 chart, which is for newer albums. But if they were eligible, his record sales would bounce the Black Eyed Peas' current No. 1 album to fourth place, Billboard said.
Jackson's albums "Number Ones," "The Essential Michael Jackson" and "Thriller" all sold more than 100,000 copies last week, close to 20,000 more copies than the Black Eyed Peas' "The E.N.D."
Scores of listeners have downloaded Jackson's music on iTunes as well.
Jackson's songs were on the Top 10 download lists in 21 countries, according to iTunes' Web site early Wednesday. Watch crowds pack Apollo Theater for Jackson tribute »
In the United States and United Kingdom, Jackson's introspective song, "Man in the Mirror," was No. 1 in iTunes downloads. In France and the Netherlands, "Billie Jean" was No. 1. In Sweden, "Smooth Criminal" was in the top spot, while pop fans in Luxembourg preferred "Earth Song."
Of the 22 countries that iTunes tracks, Japan was the only one without a Jackson song in its Top 10.
Jackson had 25 songs on the Top 75 "Hot Digital Songs" chart, according to Billboard. Twenty-one of the songs were solo tunes, while the other four included Jackson's siblings.
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940be46dd6e548eb83e859e1212536ff
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"iTunes"
] |
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RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (CNN) -- Antiviolence protesters stretched out 16,000 coconuts on Brazil's world-famous Copacabana beach Saturday, each one representing a victim of urban violence.
Protesters used dummies to represent victims of violence on Brazil's Copacabana beach this week.
Activists from ONG Rio de Paz led a protest march Saturday morning that included residents and tourists who usually can be found on the beach on weekends.
The protesters strung up a sign on the sand that said "Shame" in Spanish, Portuguese, English and French.
They finished with a minute of silence for the victims of violence.
Rio de Paz said the coconuts represent victims of violence, homicides, dead police officers and those who have been shot in gunfights between authorities and gangs of narcotics traffickers.
The figure itself was obtained from official information from the Rio de Janeiro governmental Institute of Public Security.
It was the second protest staged this week on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach by the group Rio de Paz.
On Tuesday, the group created a mock cemetery in the sand with mannequins representing 9,000 people who Rio de Paz says have been slain and secretly buried since January 2007.
Rio de Paz President Antonio Carlos Costa said he believes that about 6,000 of the missing people were killed, many by drug traffickers fighting for territory in Rio's slums and poor neighborhoods. Others, he said, were killed by hit squads and police acting on their own.
"In general, they are assassinated by police -- police acting outside of their regular work hours," Costa said Tuesday.
"They are also assassinated by narcotraffickers. The bodies are disposed of in secret cemeteries in the metropolitan Rio de Janeiro area or incinerated alive by narcotraffickers in what they call 'microwaves.' "
To illustrate the point, demonstrators also constructed facsimiles of the "microwaves" that narcotics traffickers and death squads reportedly use to cremate remains of those they have abducted.
CNN's Fabiana Frayssinet contributed to this report.
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447278f236e541b0be88699f41698057
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What do the coconuts represent
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"victims of violence,"
] |
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PANAMA CITY, Panama (CNN) -- A helicopter crashed into a building in Panama City on Thursday, killing 11 of the 12 people aboard, including Chile's federal police chief, a Panamanian government official said.
The incident occurred during the afternoon in a commercial zone of the city as the Panamanian helicopter was carrying several Panamanian police officials and six members of a group from Chile. They had been attending a regional forum in the city of Colon, the official said.
Witnesses said a rotor blade hit a three-story building, causing the helicopter to fall in a ball of fire.
Several people on the ground were burned, and the building -- which houses a clothing store -- also caught fire. Watch emergency workers at the scene »
It took firefighters hours to control the flames and to keep the blaze from spreading to other buildings.
"The principal problem is the smoke and the toxic gases; that's what makes the work more difficult," said Cecilio Lasso, one of the firefighters.
Chilean police chief Gen. Jose Alejandro Bernales and his wife were among the dead, the official said.
A delegation from Chile was expected to arrive late Thursday to help identify the bodies.
No cause was immediately identified for the crash.
"It's an old but well-maintained helicopter," said Daniel Delgado Diamante, minister of government and justice. "It was in good shape. Of course, now there will be a process of validating that."
The Chilean government has declared three days of mourning.
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9a0e8d8ceedc44f5a8f89ad62f21d63a
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"a rotor blade hit a three-story building, causing the helicopter to fall in a ball of fire."
] |
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LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Members of the Screen Actors Guild overwhelmingly voted to approve a new two-year contract with studios and producers, the union announced Tuesday.
Alan Rosenberg, national president of SAG, calls the terms of the contract "devastatingly unsatisfactory."
"This decisive vote gets our members back to work with immediate pay raises and puts SAG in a strong position for the future," said David White, the group's interim national executive director.
The union endorsed the package 78 percent to 22 percent. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers hailed the vote, after a two-year-long negotiating process.
"The ratification vote by SAG members is good news for the entertainment industry," the alliance's Web site said. "We look forward to working with SAG members ... to emerge from today's significant economic challenges with a strong and growing business."
The actors had been working without a contract for nearly a year and the new contract did not immediately clear away the bad feelings.
"The membership has spoken and has decided to work under the terms of this contract that many of us, who have been involved in these negotiations from the beginning, believe to be devastatingly unsatisfactory," said Alan Rosenberg, the Screen Actors Guild national president.
"I call upon all SAG members to begin to ready themselves for the battle ahead."
Before the agreement, the two sides had been at odds mainly over the amount actors should be paid when their movies or TV shows are distributed on discs or through new media, such as mobile phones and the Internet.
The talks were tumultuous for Hollywood's biggest actors union. During the drawn-out process, SAG fired its executive director and named a new chief negotiator amid a bitter division among the actors over the question of calling a strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
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e621389cab20449ab1bee43c3e8b0bb2
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Who is Alan Rosenberg?
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"national president of SAG,"
] |
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Three Chinese nationals accused of importing thousands of counterfeit luxury handbags in the United States have been arrested in the past two days, federal authorities announced Thursday.
Shoppers sort through counterfeit brand name luxury bags and wallets on a Hong Kong street.
"This was a sophisticated criminal conspiracy that trafficked millions of dollars of counterfeit goods from China, profiting off the backs of legitimate companies and their hard-working employees," said Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher.
Authorities call it one of the largest counterfeit operations ever discovered, involving about 300,000 bags and wallets with names like Burberry, Gucci and Coach.
For customers who bought the knockoffs, it seemed like a deal.
They paid a total of about $16 million for what would have been more than $100 million in handbags, purses and wallets in legitimate retail sales.
The alleged leaders of the counterfeit operations are three Chinese citizens living in New York.
Chong Lam, 49, and Joyce Chan, 39, were arrested there Wednesday. Eric Yuen, 39, was arrested Thursday in Las Vegas, Nevada. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who made the arrests began investigating the alleged scheme five years ago, after raids turned up counterfeit goods.
The indictment was secretly returned in Richmond, Virginia, in October. The charges were unsealed when the alleged conspirators were taken into custody. Authorities seized and froze 29 bank accounts and three New York properties.
The Chinese defendants will be taken to Richmond, where they will be arraigned at a later date, officials said. E-mail to a friend
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254e12ee381a4fe5b05d0a3c3c18a6b9
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Who profited off the backs of legitimate companies?
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"Three Chinese nationals"
] |
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Washington (CNN) -- The State Department condemned Iran's persecution of religious minorities on Friday following the Iranian authorities' detention of Baha'is and Christians in recent months.
Iranian authorities have detained more than 45 Baha'is in the last four months, and as many as 60 Baha'is are imprisoned in Iran on the basis of their religion beliefs, the State Department said.
Iranians have also recently detained more than a dozen Christians, according to the State Department.
"The United States is increasingly concerned about the Iran's ongoing persecution of Baha'is and other religious minority communities," said Philip J. Crowley, assistant secretary for public affairs, in a statement on Friday.
The State Department's condemnation comes a day after it released a human rights report on Iran that blasted the country's government for abusing religious minorities, among other criticisms.
"Government rhetoric and actions created a threatening atmosphere for nearly all non-Shia religious groups, most notably for Baha'is, as well as for Sunni Muslims, evangelical Christians, and members of the Jewish community," Thursday's report said.
Iran is an Islamic Republic where Shia Islam is the state religion.
The Iranian government did not respond directly to the State Department on Thursday or Friday. However, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad criticized the West on Friday for ignoring religious principles like monotheism.
At a meeting with Iranian intellectuals, "the president stressed that [many] efforts should be made to ... promote justice and support [a] campaign against oppressors and help monotheism flourish," Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency reported.
Thursday's State Department report said that Iran's government prevents Baha'is from gathering in homes to worship and bans Baha'is from public schools, universities, the social pension system and government leadership posts unless they conceal their faith.
"The government repeatedly pressured Baha'is to recant their religious beliefs in exchange for relief from mistreatment," the report said.
All seven members of Iran's Baha'i national leadership body, who were arrested in 2008, remained in prison at the end of 2009, according to the report.
The Baha'i faith was founded in Iran in the 19th century. Today, Baha'is are the country's largest religious minority, with 300,000 members, according to the official Baha'i Web site.
Thursday's State Department report also accused the Iranian government of destroying a Sufi library and religious hall in Isfahan; demolishing several Sunni mosques; and requiring evangelical Christian groups to submit congregation membership lists to the government.
The report was part of a broader State Department release of human rights reports on 194 countries.
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dfc666d4f7a54e31af603035e2f4c201
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Who is the president?
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[
"Mahmoud Ahmadinejad"
] |
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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Photographer Terry O'Neill is famous for his iconic images Hollywood stars in the 1960s and 1970s.
One of the 1970s hottest actresses, Faye Dunaway photographed by Terry O'Neill in 1976.
He made his name capturing the era's A-listers including Audrey Hepburn, Orson Welles and Brigitte Bardot in a uniquely relaxed and natural way.
Always polite and professional in his approach, his informal and spontaneous style captured the spirit of the times.
Rising stars, including rock bands The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, did not want the wooden, pre-fabricated images typical of the 1950s. As a result O'Neill became much in demand and his star began to rise alongside that of his subjects.
During the 1980s Terry became the photographer of choice for Hollywood, and his commissions from the time are nothing short of a catalogue of global superstardom.
Terry's success continued into the 1990s and with 65 pictures held by London's National Portrait Gallery, he is today revered as one the great British photographers.
Born in the east end of London in 1938, he began his photographic career working for an airline at Heathrow Airport as part of their photographic unit.
Terry O'Neill's images will be on exhibition through Getty Images Gallery in a pop-up gallery at Westfield, London from 7th July until 3rd August.
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Where is the show?
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"Westfield, London"
] |
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(CNN) -- A car bomb exploded outside a British army base in Northern Ireland early Monday, injuring one person.
The blast went off about 12:30 a.m. (7:30 p.m. Sunday ET) outside the Palace Barracks in the Belfast neighborhood of Holywood where Britain's MI5 intelligence service has its regional headquarters.
The incident occurred just 30 minutes after police powers were transferred from London to Belfast.
According to a statement from the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the bomb was placed in a stolen taxi which had been hijacked late Sunday in North Belfast.
The taxi driver was held by three males for almost two hours before being told to drive his silver Skoda to the base. Police added that security staff at the facility were made aware of the abandoned vehicle just before midnight and commenced evacuation procedures.
One elderly male, who was walking past the barracks at the time of the explosion, sustained minor injuries after the bomb detonated.
There was no immediate report of a claim of responsibility for the blast, though the BBC reported that the Real IRA, a republican splinter group, admitted being behind the attack.
"Clearly the people responsible for this showed absolutely no regard for human life," said local police commander, Chief Superintendent Nigel Grimshaw.
"There is no question in my mind, this was designed for one thing and one thing only -- to kill or cause serious injury to people and that's exactly what it would have done were it not for the actions of my officers and military colleagues in the Barracks and the community themselves working together.
"Thankfully we were able to evacuate people from the immediate area of the explosion.
"The people responsible for this cowardly attack refuse to accept that Northern Ireland is moving on and that peace is working here. They are callous criminals who simply want to drag everyone back to the past to suit their misguided objectives."
Recent attacks in Northern Ireland have been blamed on dissident Irish republicans who reject the 1998 Good Friday accords, which sharply reduced violence in the British-ruled province.
Northern Ireland was wracked for decades by violence between pro-British unionists and republicans who wanted Northern Ireland to join the rest of Ireland.
About 3,000 people died in the "Troubles," as the violence was known, before the tenuous peace agreement was hammered out.
There has been sporadic violence since then. A booby-trapped car exploded on January 8, severely injuring Constable Peadar Heffron. A car bomb partly exploded outside the headquarters of the Policing Board of Northern Ireland on November 21, and another under-car booby trap exploded on October 22 in east Belfast, injuring a woman, the PSNI said.
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41bc0144da4848ebb3b48e7db058e4fe
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Recent attacks were blamed on who?
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[
"dissident Irish republicans"
] |
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(CNN) -- While most Americans continue to get fatter, Coloradans stand out as being among the fittest in the country, the Trust for America's Health says.
Exercise and good nutrition are part of the Colorado public consciouness, says one former official.
The state ranked 51st in obesity, with 17.6 percent of its 4.3 million residents squeezing into that category. (The rankings included the District of Columbia.)
And fewer than one in five state residents leads an inactive lifestyle, the trust found.
That appeared to pay off in health benefits, with Colorado ranking 50th in diabetes and high blood pressure.
These figures did not surprise Spenser Havlick, former deputy mayor of Boulder, where exercise and good nutrition rank high in the public consciousness and attract like-minded people from other parts of the country, he said.
"They are leaving behind a more sedentary life in the larger cities," he said. "Every weekend, there's a 5K race, a 10K race; there are ultramarathons."
A number of organic health food stores dot the city, and organic produce "is pushed throughout the schools," he said.
Boulder's 100,000 residents have 360 miles of bike paths and 64 underpasses, so cyclists need not stop when they reach an intersection.
"We think that's much safer, and it's much faster and it's more fun," said Havlick, 72, who returned last week from hiking on glaciers in Alaska.
Exercise is also part of the political culture of Boulder, where seven of the nine City Council members are bicyclists, said Havlick, professor emeritus of architecture and planning at the University of Colorado.
"There's a strong inclination for more money to be spent on reducing car dependency."
Weather, too, plays a role, with 330 days of sunshine, he said.
And social pressure may have an impact. "I think there is a stigma attached to people who have a BMI that's high," he said, referring to body mass index, a measure of body fat based on height and weight.
Still, he noted, the percentage of obese Coloradans has gone up slightly in the past two years. "Some of the folks who come to Colorado to work may not have picked up on these healthy lifestyles yet," he said. E-mail to a friend
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b4d0169d83d849639ca41eca0ad2be59
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one in five state residents leads what kind of lifestyle?
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"inactive"
] |
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Newark, New Jersey (CNN) -- A security breach at Newark Liberty International Airport Sunday evening forced the closure of a terminal for hours while authorities rescreened thousands of passengers.
The incident happened at about 5:20 p.m. at Terminal C, when a man walked through an exit on the public side to the secure "sterile" side for passengers who had cleared screening, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
"Rescreening began after the Port Authority Police and TSA swept each of the concourses in the terminal with negative findings," said Ann Davis, a TSA spokeswoman.
"The man in question was never located; however, TSA's rescreening effort will ensure that every passenger boarding an aircraft tonight out of Newark's Terminal C has been fully screened."
Watch more about the situation in Newark
All passengers had been rescreened by early Monday, according to the TSA. Flights from Terminal C were grounded until the process was completed.
iReport: Passenger photographs massive crowd
Authorities reviewed video from airport cameras but were not sure whether the man was once on the sterile side and went back or if he never went through screening, Davis said.
The incident caused arrival delays and mainly affected Continental Airlines, which is the airport's largest tenant.
CNN's Alina Cho, who arrived at the airport Sunday night on a flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, described a hectic scene, saying many passengers who had already boarded outgoing flights had to get off planes to be rescreened.
Flying Continental? Important company notice
"I just saw one woman pleading with a gate agent, saying that she had two small children and a heart condition -- that she simply could not take this," Cho said. "But of course, there will be no exceptions."
Newark Liberty International Airport, which is about 15 miles from Manhattan, is the second-largest hub for Continental.
The airport handles about 35 million passengers a year.
CNN's Susan Candiotti and Ross Levitt contributed to this report.
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44da8a2c4ab3405a8d02299810c01b7b
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Was the man ever found?
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"never located;"
] |
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(CNN) -- The saga of Jack the cat, the lost pet that roamed New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport for weeks before being found last month, has an unhappy ending.
The feline had to be euthanized Sunday evening, American Airlines announced on Facebook, where the cat's plight has attracted thousands of followers.
"We are deeply saddened that Jack the cat has passed away, and we offer profound sympathy to Jack's owner, Karen Pascoe, for her loss," the airline wrote.
"From all of us at American, our sincere apologies to Karen and Jack's family and friends."
It was less than two weeks ago the airline announced that Jack had turned up in Kennedy's customs room after being missing for two months. The carrier originally described him as "well," but a health check revealed a number of problems.
"Jack had extensive wounds on the back of his body, and the wounds were unable to heal because his skin had deteriorated due to the malnutrition that occurred while he was lost," said Pascoe's friends in a post on "Jack The Cat is Lost in AA Baggage at JFK," the Facebook page devoted to the cat, which has more than 24,000 followers.
"Jack had been through so much, and the last thing anyone wanted was for him to suffer more."
The saga started August 25 when Pascoe was flying from New York to San Francisco with Jack and a second cat as part of a job relocation. But Jack escaped his kennel and was last seen at Kennedy's inbound baggage claim.
(A Department of Transportation Pet Incident Report released last month explains how it happened: A clerk placed one kennel on top of another on a baggage cart and the kennel on top fell. The impact "caused the kennel to separate," allowing the cat to escape.)
When a search failed to turn up Jack after a few days, Pascoe became frustrated with American and started the Facebook page "to help us put pressure on AA to step up their efforts." She also urged fliers to "do whatever they can do to keep their animals out of cargo."
The airline said it did everything it could to find Jack. While the cat was missing, workers placed food and water around the airport and set up humane traps. American even hired a pet detective and issued a pet Amber Alert in hopes of locating the feline.
When Jack was found, the airline promised to cover his veterinary bills.
The cat's owner hopes Jack's death will spur improvements in how airlines transport pets "so that no one else ever has to go through this again," her supporters wrote on Facebook.
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45b160e76f5b4b60b5453b964752b4c3
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Where was found the cat?
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"New York's John F. Kennedy International"
] |
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House did not intend to show any disrespect toward Nancy Reagan when it failed to invite the former first lady -- a vigorous supporter of stem-cell research -- to a bill-signing ceremony on the subject, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.
Nancy Reagan watches President Obama sign the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act Tuesday.
"I think she speaks in real personal terms about the issue," Gibbs told reporters.
"And I think her candor and her courage have been heartening, and we certainly meant no slight to her whatsoever."
On Monday, Vanity Fair published an interview with Nancy Reagan on its Web site in which she suggested the Obama administration missed an opportunity by not inviting her to witness President Obama signing a measure in March expanding federal support for stem-cell research.
The former first lady has long promoted such steps despite objections from many in the GOP.
She has argued that expanded stem-cell research could have helped her husband, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease.
"I would have gone, and you know I don't like to travel," she told the magazine. Watch more on Gibbs' reaction to the controversy »
"Politically, it would have been a good thing for (Obama) to do. Oh well, nobody's perfect. He called and thanked me for working on it. But he could have gotten more mileage out of it," she said.
Gibbs' comments also come the same day Mrs. Reagan attended a White House ceremony marking Obama's signing of legislation authorizing a Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission.
The 11-member commission will plan activities marking Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday on February 6, 2011. Watch Obama laud Reagan's optimism »
Mrs. Reagan is slated to attend the unveiling of a new statue of President Reagan on Wednesday morning at the Capitol and then share a private White House lunch with first lady Michelle Obama.
Obama issued an apology to Mrs. Reagan earlier this year after joking in a news conference that she held seances during her years in the White House -- an apparent reference to reports she consulted with astrologists during her husband's presidency.
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8f748a8e01d04371a573f16b2e3a976d
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What is going to be unveiled Wednesday?
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[
"a new statue of President Reagan"
] |
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BEIJING, China (CNN) -- China is shutting down a pair of smelting plants suspected of sickening several thousand children with lead poisoning, according to state-run media.
A Chinese boy gets treated for blood poisoning in Shaanxi province Aug. 15.
At least 851 children living near a plant in northwestern China's Shaanxi province were found to have excessive lead levels in their blood, according to the Xinhua news agency.
The Dongling Lead and Zinc Smelting Co. would cease operations no later than Saturday, Xinhua reported Wednesday, citing local authorities.
County officials had agreed to relocate residents who live within 1,640 feet (500 meters) of the Dongling Lead and Zinc Smelting Co. in three years, but the relocation is behind schedule, Sun Hong, the company's general manager, told Xinhua.
The local government has pledged to speed up the relocation, Xinhua reported this month.
A second smelter also was closed Wednesday in central China and two of its executives detained, a local official said, according to Xinhua,
Initial tests showed more than 1,300 children in the Hunan province town of Wenping have excessive lead in their blood from the Wugang Manganese Smelting Plant. A second round of testing has been ordered to confirm the results.
The plant opened in May 2008 without gaining the approval of the local environment protection bureau, said Huang Wenbin, a deputy environment chief in Wugang City, Xinhua reported. The plant was within 500 meters (about a quarter mile) of three schools.
The poisonings have occurred against the backdrop of China's rapid industrialization, which has produced economic success and wrought environmental havoc. Hundreds of millions of Chinese lack access to uncontaminated drinking water, and air pollution is blamed for myriad deaths and illnesses every year. Toxic air enshrouds cities across the country, one of the most polluted in the world.
The government has stepped up anti-pollution efforts in recent years, but many companies flout such campaigns and laws.
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811c572943514b5bb49ad955352594e8
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How many children were poisoned in Hunan?
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"At least 851"
] |
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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Drugmaking giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has agreed to buy independent U.S. skincare specialist Stiefel Laboratories for up to $3.6 billion.
The new business will operate under the Stiefel identity within the GSK Group.
In a statement Monday, the two companies said the deal would create a new world-leading specialist dermatology business with combined revenues of $1.5 billion.
Under the terms of the agreement GSK will acquire the total share capital of Stiefel for $2.9 billion. GSK also expects to assume $400 million of net debt upon closing. A further $300 million cash payment will be made depending on future performance.
GSK's existing prescription dermatological products will be combined with Stiefel's and the new specialist global business will operate under the Stiefel identity within the GSK Group.
The new business will have a broad portfolio of dermatology products including Stiefel's leading brands: Duac, for acne, Olux E for dermatitis and Soriatane for the treatment of severe psoriasis. GSK's key dermatology brands include: Bactroban, Cutivate and the recently launched Altabax.
Stiefel, part-owned by buyout firm Blackstone Group, is the world's largest independent dermatology company, with a range of prescription and over-the-counter products. According to Reuters.com it was put up for sale a month ago and attracted interest from a number of large pharmaceutical companies, including Novartis and Johnson & Johnson.
Following the announcement, GSK Chief Executive Andrew Witty said: "As part of our strategy to grow and diversify GSK's business, we are continuing to make new investments through targeted acquisitions. This transaction will create a new world-leading, specialist dermatology business and re-energize our existing dermatology products.
"The addition of Stiefel's broad portfolio will provide immediate new revenue flows to GSK with significant opportunities to enhance growth through leveraging our existing global commercial infrastructure and manufacturing capability. We look forward to working with Stiefel to develop this exciting opportunity."
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ce9f61901c854f0eaa78eff7f4409542
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Which company will operate under global business?
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[
"Stiefel identity"
] |
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PANAMA CITY, Panama (CNN) -- Ricardo Martinelli, the multimillionaire owner of a supermarket chain, was inaugurated as president of Panama on Wednesday.
Ricardo Martinelli is a pro-business conservative who defeated a candidate from the ruling center-left party.
National Assembly President Jose Luis Varela performed the swearing-in and placed the presidential sash on Martinelli, a pro-business conservative who defeated a candidate from the ruling center-left party in May.
The citizens of Panama "want things to be done differently," Varela said at the inauguration. "An attitude of change starts today."
In his first speech as president, Martinelli promised a smaller government budget but raises for public workers.
Public safety, an issue that the outgoing administration of Martin Torrijos struggled to maintain, will be a priority, Martinelli said.
"Our prisons will be rehabilitation centers, not schools for criminals," he said.
Panama will also work with Mexico and Colombia to combat drug trafficking in the region, Martinelli said.
Among the dignitaries at the inauguration was deposed Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya, who was ousted in a military-led coup Sunday. The Organization of American States has condemned the coup, and Zelaya has continued to carry out his presidential duties.
The son of Italian immigrants, Martinelli, 57, is a self-made businessman who is chairman of the Super 99 supermarket chain, one of the largest private companies in Panama.
The U.S.-educated president previously served as minister and chairman of the board of directors of the Panama Canal Authority and formerly was director of social security for Panama, according to his Web site.
Martinelli won the presidency with 60 percent of the votes in a race against ruling-party candidate Balbina Herrera.
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e1b424c5e0e24c4da5fefb4840a63ab7
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Who was inaugurated?
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[
"Ricardo Martinelli,"
] |
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(CNN) -- What would you see if you could fly over Mars in a plane and look out the window?
Victoria Crater as seen by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The crater is about half a mile in diameter.
It must be something like the thousands of curious, intriguing and spectacular images taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera mounted on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The University of Arizona, Tucson, which operates HiRISE, has just released a new batch of these photos taken in the last several months.
You can check out the full set here.
They reveal an alien landscape of craters, valleys, ridges, channels, weird surface patterns and other features in incredible detail.
Take the stunning image on the left, which shows the muffin-cup-like Victoria Crater, a site once explored by the Mars rover Opportunity.
The camera isn't looking straight down, but is pointed 22 degrees east so we get a better view of the crater's slopes, "comparable to a view from an airplane window," the university says.
Looking at some of the photos, you feel like you're flying over the Grand Canyon or the Sahara. Others are distinctly extraterrestrial in nature. In all cases, the images reveal lots of details about the surface of our neighbor in the solar system.
"Each full image from HiRISE covers a strip of Martian ground 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) wide, about two to four times that long, showing details as small as 1 meter, or yard, across," according to NASA's Web site.
It might be the closest thing to visiting Mars without leaving your chair.
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cb786c8bcd2b42b1b5d7c091086df77c
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What i the location of the camera?
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"mounted on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter."
] |
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(CNN) -- Two tractor-trailer trucks crashed and burst into flames Thursday on a bridge between the United States and Mexico, shutting a key border crossing and killing four people, police said.
Police look at the aftermath of a fiery crash on a bridge linking Reynosa, Mexico, and Pharr, Texas.
The collision on the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge in Texas triggered a chain-reaction accident with three other vehicles, said Lt. Lupe Salinas with the Pharr Police Department.
A pickup flipped off the bridge, killing three people. Another person died in a vehicle that struck one of the tractor-trailers. Six others were injured.
Pharr Emergency Management Coordinator Elsa Sanchez told The Associated Press the pickup truck had Texas license plates, and the two 18-wheelers and a minivan involved in the wreck appeared to have Mexican plates. Watch aftermath of fiery crash »
The accident happened around 7:30 p.m. (8:30 p.m. ET). The bridge was closed for the rest of the evening.
The bridge reopened on Friday morning after Texas Department of Trnasportation engineers inspected it, according to CNN affiliate KRGV.
The bridge is normally open from 6 a.m. until midnight and is closed overnight.
The 3.2-mile-long bridge connects U.S. 281 in Pharr, Texas, to the city of Reynosa in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, according to the city of Pharr's Web site. On an average day, the site says, 5,800 vehicles cross it. E-mail to a friend
CNN's Ed Payne and Jessica Jordan contributed to this story.
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3674c0150c8d4061b51f7563b9a3e0c0
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When did the bridge reopen?
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"Friday morning"
] |
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BEIJING, China (CNN) -- China has recalled two tainted leukemia drugs tied to "adverse reactions" in patients, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported Sunday.
The factories involved in the production of the tainted drugs have been closed for investigation.
According to Xinhau, the State Food and Drug Administration and the Ministry of Health suspended the production, sale and usage of methotrexate and cytarabin hydrochloride, produced by Shanghai Hualian Pharmaceutical Co., on September 5.
There is no indication the drugs in question were ever exported outside of China.
On Friday, the two agencies issued a notice saying that vincristine sulfate was the culprit -- an anti-cancer medicine which had been mistakenly mixed with the leukemia drugs, causing leg pains and retention of urine -- Xinhua reported. The factories involved have been closed, while the cause is being investigated.
Separately, China returned to U.S. and Canadian exporters 42 tons of pork and turkey products after samples of the pork in the shipments showed traces ractopamine, Xinhua reported.
Ractopamine is a hormone used to promote lean meat growth in some animals and is banned in many parts of the world, including China and the European Union. E-mail to a friend
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c7a1bf30e7e7470180390eb3f255441a
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China has recalled what?
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"two tainted leukemia drugs"
] |
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BOSTON, Massachusetts (CNN) -- A 23-year-old medical student pleaded not guilty Monday to an indictment alleging first-degree murder charge in a killing tied to Craigslist.
Philip Markoff is charged with killing a woman and robbing another in Boston hotels in April.
Philip Markoff is accused in the the fatal shooting of one woman and the robbery another in Boston hotels earlier this year.
A Massachusetts grand jury late last week indicted him on seven counts, including first-degree murder.
Markoff is charged with the April 14 fatal shooting and attempted robbery of Julissa Brisman, 25, and the armed robbery of a 29-year-old Las Vegas woman on April 10. Investigators have linked both crimes to ads on the popular Web site Craigslist.
He is also charged with "the armed and forcible confinement" of the two women, as well as two counts of unlawful firearm possession, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said. Watch Markoff in court »
The grand jury returned the indictment late Thursday, and it moves the case from Boston Municipal Court to Suffolk Superior Court, where Markoff entered his not guilty plea on Monday. He previously had pleaded not guilty in the city court and is being held without bail.
Markoff's attorney, John Salzberg, had no comment on the new indictment.
Prosecutors said Brisman, a model from New York who advertised as a masseuse on Craigslist, was shot three times at close range and suffered blunt head trauma at the Marriott Copley Place hotel.
The Las Vegas woman was robbed of $800 in cash and $250 in American Express gift cards at the Westin Copley Place hotel, police reports said.
Markoff, a second-year medical student at Boston University's School of Medicine, also has been charged in a nonfatal hotel assault in Rhode Island.
He has been charged with assault with the intent to rob, assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a handgun and use of a firearm while committing a crime of violence, stemming from an April 16 robbery attempt at a Holiday Inn Express in Warwick, Rhode Island.
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8ab3e1fd61f44eb980cf3ddb7c6975d7
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What were both April incidents linked to?
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[
"ads on the popular Web site Craigslist."
] |
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(CNN) -- Five suspected pirates went on trial Tuesday in the Netherlands in what is thought to be the first trial in Europe of pirate suspects.
The trial of the five Somali men opened in Rotterdam District Court and is expected to last five days, said Wim de Bruin, a spokesman for Netherlands National Prosecutor's Office.
The five were captured by the Dutch Navy in January 2009 in the Gulf of Aden, off Somalia, after a cargo ship with Dutch Antilles flag was attacked, de Bruin said.
"The ship of the pirates was destroyed by the Danish Navy, and the pirates were captured and handed to the Dutch authority. They're being tried for sea robbery, and if convicted the maximum sentence will be 9 to 12 years," he said.
The men are Ahmed Yusuf Farah, 25, Jama Mohamed Samatar, 45, Abdirisaq Abdulahi Hirsi, 33, Sayid Ali Garaar, 39, and Osman Musse Farah, 32, he said.
A different suspected Somali pirate is awaiting sentencing in the United States, where he pleaded guilty earlier this month to hijacking and kidnapping.
Prosecutors say Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse led an attack on a U.S.-flagged vessel, the Maersk Alabama, off the coast of Africa last year.
He pleaded guilty May 19 in a New York federal court to felony counts of hijacking maritime vessels, kidnapping and hostage taking, for his role in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama in the Indian Ocean on April 8, 2009.
Muse faces a maximum sentence of almost 34 years behind bars when he is sentenced October 19.
The suspects being tried in the Netherlands spent four weeks aboard the Danish navy ship after their capture before being taken to the Netherlands, the spokesman said.
They were held in pre-trial custody while the court interviewed witnesses from the Danish Navy and seamen on the Dutch Antilles cargo ship that was under attack, he said.
Five Dutch defense lawyers are representing the suspects, he said. He did not know what plea, if any, the suspects had entered.
Germany will soon try 10 suspected pirates who were captured in the Gulf of Aden earlier this year.
They were arrested after their attempt to board a German cargo vessel, but the Danish Navy ended the hijacking and handed them over to the Dutch authorities, de Bruin said.
They have since been held in the Netherlands, and Germany requested their extradition about two months ago.
CNN's Eileen Hsieh contributed to this report.
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ade866c5edcf496795ae22eaa2c1aa46
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What was thought to be the first of its kind?
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[
"trial in Europe of pirate suspects."
] |
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SEATTLE, Washington (CNN) -- A 16-year-old girl was found dead and another girl was found unconscious in an Army barracks at Fort Lewis near Tacoma, Washington, during the weekend, a base spokesman said Monday.
"Neither of the two women had any outward signs of trauma on them," said Fort Lewis spokesman Joseph Piek.
He said that an Army solider who was "allegedly an acquaintance" of the two 16-year-olds was questioned by investigators, but no arrests had been made.
The spokesman said the name and rank of the soldier who had been questioned was not being released.
According to an Army news release, the names of the two girls "are not being released due to their ages, their civilian status, and the nature of the ongoing investigation."
The Fort Lewis Criminal Investigation Division is trying to determine why the two girls were in the barracks, where soldiers live, and what led to their conditions when they were found.
Emergency personnel from the base responded to a 911 call about 3:30 a.m. Sunday and found the two girls in one of the barracks. A doctor declared one of the girls dead on the scene, and the second girl was transported to Madigan Army Hospital, where she was in stable condition Monday.
The Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner is conducting an autopsy, Piek said, and it will be at least a week before results are complete.
Both girls are from the nearby South Puget Sound area but were not related to anyone living on base, Piek said. Both girls' families had been notified, he said.
Although Fort Lewis is not open to civilians, they can be escorted in by a soldier living there if they have identification and a reason for coming onto the facility.
The circumstances of how the girls came unto the base are under investigation, Piek said, but there was no evidence that security had been compromised.
About 30,000 military personnel are based at Fort Lewis. Barracks where soldiers live are usually split into rooms for one to three soldiers, Piek said. Details about the barracks where the girls where found were not released.
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ab3a864006174bdab2838bf0e56df8e4
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What is the Fort Lewis policy on civilians?
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"they can be escorted in by a soldier living there if they have identification and a reason for coming onto the facility."
] |
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HARYANA, India (CNN) -- In a nation of more than a billion people and millions of unresolved court cases, how do you take care of the backlog?
Long distances over questionable roads stop many Indians from making it into courtrooms.
Solution: You take the courts to the people.
A bell rings. A bailiff yells out the name of the accused. It's another day in the mobile courtroom of Judge Sandeep Singh.
His courtroom is a desk plopped down in the middle of a dusty schoolyard in the northern Indian village of Haryana.
"It works like any other regular court," Singh said. "The only difference is that instead of people going to the court, the court comes to the village."
The mobile court is bused into rural areas to hear both criminal and civil complaints as part of an effort to dig the nation's court system out from under an enormous backlog of cases.
With an estimated 300 million unresolved cases languishing in Indian courts, one consultant believes, it could take more than 300 years to clear the docket at the current pace.
There's one main reason for the backlog: inconvenience. People often have to travel long distances over questionable roads, using slow modes of transportation.
"The witnesses -- definitely, they don't show up -- and even the parties -- they don't show up -- and they send their advocate," Singh said. "But here, people are closer by, so definitely it makes a difference."
With distance no longer a problem, more villagers and their attorneys are coming to hearings.
Compared to the traditional legal system, the mobile court claims to be both fast and efficient. Singh said he has been able to clear 1,100 cases in just six months time compared to 500 under the traditional court system. E-mail to a friend
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aa5bbcf5a8994cefa1b78be514d3c0f3
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Whereto do the judges bus mobile courts?
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[
"rural areas"
] |
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MADRID, Spain -- Atletico Madrid recovered from their painful recent defeat by Barcelona to crush European rivals Real Zaragoza 4-0 in the Primera Liga on Sunday.
Luis Garcia celebrates his first Atletico Madrid goal in their superb 4-0 victory over Real Zaragoza.
Luis Garcia's first goal for the club, a double from Argentine Maxi Rodriguez and a Diego Forlan strike clinched a comfortable win as Atletico moved up to sixth in the table.
It was also sweet revenge for Atletico as Zaragoza beat them home and away last season to beat them to sixth place and the final UEFA Cup spot.
Atletico went ahead in the 10th minute when Forlan picked out a precise pass for Garcia who made no mistake with a calm side-footed finish.
Forlan then got on the scoresheet himself with a first-time lob on 34 minutes for his third goal of the season, before Rodriguez stole the show with two more goals.
Getafe registered their first win of the season with a 2-0 victory over Murcia.
Substitute Kepa, who was later sent off, opened the scoring in the 54th minute and Francisco Casero added a second five minutes later to clinch the points.
Elsewhere last season's second division champions Valladolid continue to struggle in the top flight, crashing to a 2-1 defeat against Athletic Bilbao.
Artiz Aduriz scored twice for Bilbao after eight and 31 minutes to leave Valladolid second from bottom with promoted Levante, who have a meagre one point, propping up the table. E-mail to a friend
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4817010225a4435faabc7dd86529fefe
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Which team won?
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"Atletico Madrid"
] |
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(CNN) -- The Queen of the Blues is dead.
Koko Taylor performs in Spain in 2005. Her last performance was in May of this year.
Koko Taylor, a West Tennessee sharecropper's daughter who went to Chicago, Illinois, with "35 cents and a box of Ritz Crackers" at 24 and wound up an award-winning blues legend, died Wednesday at her Chicago home at 80.
She died of complications from a May 19 surgery for gastrointestinal bleeding, her Web site reported.
Just days before the surgery, Taylor won her 29th Blues Music Award, picking up the trophy for Traditional Female Blues Artist Of the Year. She performed her signature song, "Wang Dang Doodle," at the ceremony.
Known for her powerful vocals, Taylor was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1997, won the Blues Foundation Lifetime Achievement Ward in 1999 and was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship in 2004.
She also won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 1985 for her album "Queen of the Blues."
Taylor was born Cora Walton and picked up the nickname "Koko" because of her love of chocolate as a child. She also displayed a love of singing from an early age.
She and her future husband, the late Robert "Pops" Taylor, traveled to Chicago in 1952, where Pops Taylor worked for a packing company while Koko Taylor cleaned houses. By night, the two roamed Chicago's blues clubs, where Koko Taylor sat in with top bands and was soon a popular guest artist.
But it took 10 years for Koko Taylor to record on her own, after Willie Dixon got her signed to Chess Records and produced several singles, including "Wang Dang Doodle."
Taylor landed a permanent home with Alligator Records when Chess was sold in 1975.
Her final performance was the May 7 blues award show, but earlier in the year she performed at the Kennedy Center Honors program honoring actor Morgan Freeman.
Throughout her lengthy career, she shared the stage with nearly every blues performer imaginable, from Junior Wells and B.B. King to Taj Mahal and Muddy Waters. She was a strong influence to later performers, including Bonnie Raitt and Janis Joplin.
Survivors include Taylor's husband, Hays Harris, daughter Joyce Threatt, son-in-law Lee Threatt, grandchildren Lee Jr. and Wendy, and three great-grandchildren.
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0e946cef1814405eb5f7ca2872403ffc
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when Taylor dies at Chicago home of complications from?
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[
"died Wednesday"
] |
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(CNN) -- British boxer Amir Khan has retained his WBA light-welterweight title after winning the much-hyped "battle of the faiths" by stopping challenger Dmitriy Salita in the first round on Saturday night.
Khan, a devout Muslim, knocked down his Jewish opponent three times before the referee stopped after just one minute and 16 seconds.
Salita, an American citizen who was born in Ukraine and is nicknamed "Star of David", was unable to follow up his bold claims made in the build-up to the fight, which took place in Newcastle in the north-east of England.
The 22-year-old Khan was successful in his first defense of the belt that he won in defeating Andreas Kotelnik in July.
He is trained by American Freddie Roach, who also guides Filipino star Manny Pacquiao, considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
"It was very explosive. The fight was just what we asked for, what Freddie asked me to do. We had too much power for this guy," a delighted Khan told reporters after the fight.
"I'm a growing young man and developing as a man. Freddie said to take it easy, pick the right shots and you'll take this guy out and we did.
"Freddie is a great trainer, he's like a father figure to me and to have him in my corner means a lot. Everyone knows I'm a hard-working fighter and if you put the hard work in you're going to get the benefits.
"After the first shot I could see his legs buckling and I just had to take my time. I knew he was going."
Roach has helped the Olympic silver medal winner to rebuild his career after a humiliating defeat by unknown Colombian Breidis Prescott last year.
"It was a blessing in disguise what happened against Prescott, I got beat and came back stronger," Khan said.
Roach was equally impressed with his young charge.
"I would give him an A+. I said if you hurt him, finish him. We've been working on that power and the fight was really over after that first punch," he said.
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162a547c64d044e6aea8a15dff1af6eb
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Does British boxer Amir Khan retain his WBA light-welterweight title in his first defense?
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[
"has retained"
] |
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Editor's note: Campbell Brown anchors CNN's "Campbell Brown: No Bias, No Bull" at 8 p.m. ET Mondays through Fridays. She delivered this commentary during the "Cutting through the Bull" segment of Friday night's broadcast.
CNN's Campbell Brown praises Mark Felt, the Watergate case's "Deep Throat."
(CNN) -- Cutting through the bull. It's hard to think of anyone who gave those words more meaning than Mark Felt.
The man we all came to know as "Deep Throat" died Thursday at his California home after a life in the shadows.
His willingness to risk everything -- career, family, and even his safety -- helped bring down President Richard Nixon in disgrace.
Felt was the No. 2 man at the FBI. And yes, it's fair to say he had an ax to grind after being snubbed for the top job. Watch Campbell Brown's commentary »
But that didn't make his information less accurate or crucial. And even after taking that huge risk, he gave up all kinds of chances to cash in on his secret identity.
Imagine the book deal "Deep Throat" would have gotten or the movie rights to a blockbuster like "All the President's Men"?
What millions did he lose by not spending years on the lecture circuit?
No, Felt's willingness to keep Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward pointed in the right direction as Woodward and Carl Bernstein flushed out the greatest political scandal in American history had its roots in the integrity that no one else would show back then.
We remind you of this because the timing of Felt's death is not lost on us.
Just this month, we've watched a governor accused of redefining crooked politics in Illinois.
We're in the final days of a White House that pushed the limits of the Constitution and never appeared eager to share information with the American people.
And just this week, the president-elect, who talks of change, tried to stop a journalist from finishing a question at a news conference.
Now, as ever, we need people like Woodward and Bernstein to keep asking questions.
But more importantly, we need people brave enough to give the answers.
People like Mark Felt. A man whose name you never heard until he finally surfaced near the end of his life.
By then, he was a quiet, meek-looking person who changed our country forever -- by cutting through the bull.
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Campbell Brown.
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4d8ec6e9a77a4fe19099badde1c0a7a8
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who had integrity that no one else?
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[
"Woodward and Carl Bernstein"
] |
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LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Thirty-eight years ago, Joseph McGinty Nichol was a boy in Kalamazoo, Michigan, playing with toy robots.
Many of the robots in "Terminator Salvation" are real machines, which increased realism, the cast says.
Today "McG," as he is better known, builds and blows up real robots.
The prominent filmmaker is the driving force behind one of the season's summer blockbusters, "Terminator Salvation," which is filled with very expensive and very explosive robots. The choice to use real robots when possible, instead of CGI (computer generated images), was deliberate, McG said.
According to the director and the film's stars, the decision to use real machines was a testament to the growing sophistication of the moviegoing public, whom they believe can "feel" the difference between actors standing in front of a green screen versus actors interacting with the real thing.
It was also done in honor of the legendary special effects supervisor, four-time Oscar winner Stan Winston ("Jurassic Park," the other "Terminator" films), who passed away during filming last year. Watch the robots in action »
The director and three of his cast members -- Christian Bale, Bryce Dallas Howard and Anton Yelchin -- took a time out with CNN to explain why gravity and singed eyebrows both played a role in "Terminator Salvation."
Bryce Dallas Howard: That was something that was really important to McG ... when an audience member sees this film, that they can actually feel what's occurring.
I think that audiences are very savvy now. We can feel when something is CGI and that's no disrespect to CGI -- we couldn't do this movie without it -- but, whenever possible, in the tradition of Sam Winston, he wanted to build the robots. So a lot of what you see is real.
McG: And if you drop something, we've spent our whole lives watching physics in play, and if you say, just have the CGI do that, people can tell something's off, and it releases you from being involved in the picture. So, we built all the robots, we built all the sets, we blew them up for real, a great many of us lost our eyebrows!
Christian Bale: It was kind of comical at times because something that's meant to be so intimidating was actually surrounded by five guys with these kind of puppet rods I had to blank out or I would start laughing. But, the end result is something really formidable and you know, really iconic in movie history.
Anton Yelchin: Now I'm obsessed with the robots! I'm so [annoyed] that this guy or whoever it is that's in charge of it wouldn't let me have one!
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7bae1cdebd4e4b01a1d3e81917fd7fcb
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What was the reason behind the idea to avoid CGI?
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[
"in honor of the legendary special effects supervisor, four-time Oscar"
] |
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Americans have varied feelings about guns. In Focus: Guns in America is a series of stories by CNN photojournalists that looks at the complex views and emotions that surround this controversial subject.
In a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected Washington, D.C.'s, ban on handgun ownership, saying it violates the constitutional right to "keep and bear arms" by preventing individuals from having guns in their homes.
In this series, Americans tell their stories about guns on a first-hand basis, providing a more intimate look at a topic that is often ignored until gun violence erupts.
In one video, 32-year-old Steve Ferguson talks about a shooting in Washington that left him paralyzed, his battle to recover and his views on guns. In another story, Scott Morris shares his passion for his shooting range on a road he named 2nd Amendment Drive.
CNN photojournalists also traveled to Massachusetts to play paintball, rural Pennsylvania to hunt turkeys, and to Hollywood to hang out on a movie set.
They also meet Dale Tate, who hand-makes guns that he considers works of art, and they learn about new technology for less lethal weapons.
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51db1a69f4e24d84b6171ba91dd1353e
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Who tell their stories?
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[
"CNN photojournalists"
] |
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TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Two hundred thousand boats sat idle in Japan, as fishermen across the nation took to the streets on Tuesday to protest skyrocketing fuel prices.
Fishermen rallied in Tokyo on Tuesday against skyrocketing fuel prices.
The strike -- the first ever by the country's fishermen -- hopes to convince the government that without its intervention, rising fuel costs will kill the fishermen's businesses.
Across Japan's fishing ports, fishermen simultaneously blew their whistles in a symbol of solidarity, and operations ground to a halt.
Thousands of others rallied in downtown Tokyo, marching in circles around the fisheries ministry and chanting, "We're dying," through bullhorns.
The protesting fishing unions say fuel once accounted for 10 percent of a business' operating cost. It now accounts for 30 to 50 percent. Watch the unions protest in the streets »
They want the government to provide subsidies to make up for the price hike.
The demonstration was the latest in a wave of protests around the world over fuel prices.
Masatoshi Wakabayashi, the minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, told reporters Tuesday morning that he "understands the frustration of the fishermen."
He urged reforms within the fishing industry to decrease its reliance on oil, adding it would be "difficult to compensate them for the hike in the price of oil."
The deep-sea tuna fishermen's association told CNN it might suspend operations for two to three months later this year, due to fuel price hike.
Marine life has long been a staple food source in Japan.
Last week, nearly 400 taxis brought traffic to a halt in Berlin, Germany, as drivers drove through the city in a protest over high fuel prices.
Truckers in Vienna, Austria, also staged a protest last week.
And earlier this month, hundreds of British truckers drove past Parliament to voice their anger about the high cost of fuel.
India, France, Spain and South Korea have had similar protests.
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818b3cef020341949090742251a8b37a
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What city did the fishing ministry demonstration take place?
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[
"Tokyo"
] |
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(CNN) -- The Scottish Rugby Union has appointed Andy Robinson, formerly coach of bitter rivals England, as the new national team boss.
Andy Robinson will be seeking to revive the fortunes of Scotland's struggling rugby side.
The 45-year-old won eight caps as a flanker for England, and was assistant coach in Clive Woodward's 2003 World Cup-winning set-up before taking over for an ill-fated reign himself in 2004, winning just nine of 22 matches.
Robinson returned to top-class coaching with Celtic League team Edinburgh in 2007, and has sufficiently impressed Scottish officials in the 20 months since then to win favor as the replacement for Frank Hadden.
He had been part of Hadden's backroom staff, and had already been chosen to coach Scotland A this summer. Hadden resigned on April 2 after Scotland again struggled in the Six Nations, finishing second from bottom with just one win from five outings.
Robinson was delighted to be given the chance to return to the international stage.
"With the World Cup in New Zealand in 2011, I believe we have a crop of players who can really challenge the world's best, and preparation for that starts now," he told the SRU Web site.
"I'm looking forward to leading Scotland A into the IRB Nations Cup in Romania next week and thereafter preparing for our Autumn Tests at Murrayfield against Fiji, Australia and Argentina."
Robinson is believed to have headed off the likes of South Africa's World Cup-winning coach Jake White and former Australia boss Eddie Jones for the job.
Former Scotland captain and British and Irish Lion Gordon Bulloch was part of the interview panel that determined the appointment.
"Andy was the outstanding candidate from a quite exceptional shortlist which underlines the allure of coaching the Scotland team," he told the SRU's Web site.
"I know from having had the privilege of his coaching and guidance on Lions tours that he is passionate about his rugby, is a skilled communicator and has values and an ethos which are absolutely at one with developing a winning Scotland team."
Scottish Rugby chief executive Gordon McKie said he was confident Robinson would prove to be successful.
"Andy has proved himself at every level of the game and we are thrilled that he will now be leading the Scotland team as we look towards the challenges of the next three years, including the 2011 World Cup," McKie said.
"He has been part of the Scottish Rugby family for the past two years and has brought success both to Edinburgh Rugby, with their highest ever Magners League finish in successive seasons, and has also guided the Scotland A team to notable successes."
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6d0ae0a105464e4fa6468acdac48e6af
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Who did he rebuild his career with?
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[
"Celtic League team Edinburgh"
] |
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NEW YORK (CNN) -- A rare and original manuscript of one of America's most patriotic songs has been discovered in a flea market bargain.
The manuscript of the song could be worth tens of thousands of dollars.
A shopper browsing through the market in New York bought a framed picture of a flower for $10 and found handwritten manuscript of "America" (My Country 'tis of Thee) tucked behind the picture, the manuscript's owner said Thursday.
The manuscript of the song whose lyrics were written by Samuel Francis Smith in 1831 could be worth tens of thousands of dollars, said the owner, art collector Keya Morgan. He said he bought it from the flea market shopper, who has asked not to be identified.
The song was intended to be played in schools to inspire and teach children and was first played in public on July 4, 1831, in the First Baptist Church in Newton, Massachusetts, Morgan said. The song is written to the tune of "God Save the Queen," the national anthem of the United Kingdom. Take a look at the manuscript »
The authenticity of the document was confirmed by Morgan, a handwriting expert who has been authenticating historical documents for nearly a decade, and Diana Yount, an archival specialist at Andover Newton Theological School. Yount reached her conclusion after comparing the handwriting with that in a hymn written by Smith.
Morgan, whose collection includes artifacts from Abraham Lincoln, Marilyn Monroe, Thomas Jefferson and Ulysses S. Grant, was ecstatic.
"It's the biggest high I could get," said Morgan. "It shaped the nation and reminds us that this nation is just a baby."
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c06751d0664e4c3794c5e6e941407f6c
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what was found
|
[
"A rare and original manuscript of one of America's most patriotic songs"
] |
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(CNN) -- Space shuttle Discovery docked with the international space station early Wednesday despite a broken antenna that knocked out radar tracking aboard the shuttle.
The shuttle docked with the space station at 3:44 a.m. ET. At the time of docking, both spacecraft were traveling 225 miles over the Caribbean sea near Caracas, Venezuela, NASA said.
Commander Alan Poindexter and his crew completed the rendezvous without the use of the shuttle's Ku-band radar, relying instead on other navigation tools to precisely track the space station, NASA said.
The Discovery's seven-person crew now joins the six-person space station crew for more than a week of work together.
It will mark the first time four women have been in space at one time.
Three women -- mission specialists Stephanie Wilson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger and Naoko Yamazaki -- comprise part of the Discovery's crew. NASA astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson is already at the space station.
Discovery launched Monday morning from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The shuttle's 13-day mission includes three planned spacewalks, replacing an ammonia tank assembly and retrieving a Japanese experiment from the station's exterior.
It is scheduled to return to Earth on April 18 at 8:35 a.m. ET.
There are only three shuttle missions remaining before the space shuttle fleet is retired.
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a0d72367bdc64eb5bd1b00578bf80f71
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What did the space shuttle lose?
|
[
"radar tracking"
] |
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(CNN) -- Two crew members were taken to a hospital after a FedEx cargo plane crashed on landing Tuesday morning at the Lubbock, Texas, airport, officials said.
A damaged FedEx ATR-42 lies beside a runway early Tuesday at the Lubbock, Texas, airport.
The injuries appeared to be minor, said James Loomis, director of Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport.
There was a small fire on the plane, the Federal Aviation Administration and FedEx spokeswoman Sandra Munoz said. Munoz said she was not sure about the extent of the damage.
The plane is an ATR-42 twin-turboprop aircraft and landed short of the touchdown zone at 4:37 a.m. CT (5:47 ET), Loomis said.
Munoz said the plane had been traveling from Fort Worth Alliance Airport and skidded off the runway amid light freezing rain. iReport.com: Are you there? Send photos, video
Neither official could immediately say what caused the accident, and Munoz didn't know why parts of the plane caught fire.
The plane was operated by Empire Airways, which is under contract with FedEx Corp., based in Memphis, Tennessee.
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c15aaa34d092408b90781a55459454bc
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When was the fire reported?
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[
"Tuesday"
] |
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MOSCOW, Russia -- Russia declared an end Thursday to its 10-year anti-terror "operation" in the autonomous republic of Chechnya.
Russian forces have been operating in Chechnya since Boris Yeltsin's order in 1999.
The end to the offensive could see the withdrawal of thousands of troops from the Muslim-majority region, where Russia has fought two wars since the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991.
The head of the Federal Security Service "canceled the decree declaring a counterterrorist operation in the territory of the republic as of midnight of April 16," Russia's anti-terror committee said.
It said it did so to create "the conditions for the future normalization of the situation in the republic, its reconstruction and development of its socio-economic sphere," it said in a statement.
The late president Boris Yeltsin ordered the counter-terrorist operation in 1999. Since then, the region has been relatively stable.
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34fafc7e226e434bb4e57e4206f1a5b4
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Who ordered the counter-terrorist operation?
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[
"Boris Yeltsin"
] |
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(CNN) -- Cervelo's Xavier Tondo won the toughest stage of this year's Paris-Nice cycling classic as Alejandro Valverde finished second to ratchet up the pressure on race leader and their fellow Spaniard Alberto Contador.
It was the biggest victory of Tondo's fledgling career and reward for a solo break with just under 40km remaining of the 220km ride from Peynier to Tourrettes-super-Loup.
The whittled down chasing bunch closed fast in the final kilometers but Tondo had five seconds to spare with Valverde leading the charge to claim six bonus seconds.
It left him 14 seconds adrift of reigning Tour de France champion Contador ahead of a difficult final day in the south of France.
Young Slovakian Peter Sagan, who claimed his second stage win of the race in dramatic style pm Friday, finished third to retain the green jersey of points leader.
Tondo was delighted to win in his debut year for Cervelo, with his main duties this season set to be as a helper for Carlos Sastre in the Giro d'Italia and other major tours.
He felt he was ready to challenge on Friday, but suffered bad luck with a mechanical problem, dropping over two minutes to lose his chance for the overall crown.
"It gave me a chance to go in the breakaway today and I felt very good on the climb," he told the official Web site www.letour.fr.
"It's incredible for me, in my first year with Cervelo. It's my 10th victory as a pro, but in the past I only rode for small teams," he added.
Sunday's final leg is a 119km stage based around Nice with several tough climbs where Contador has predicted he will seal his final victory.
Meanwhile, last year's winner Michele Scarponi claimed the fourth stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico to take the overall lead.
Scarponi was in a small elite group who forged clear about 4km from the finish of the 243-km route from San Gemini to Chieti.
He now leads Benoit Vaugrenard of France by 18 seconds in the overall classification.
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5598474760e847ca85a7f337bf8a56a4
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who finishes second to claim six-second time bonus?
|
[
"Alejandro Valverde"
] |
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HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Unilever is recalling four batches of Lipton Milk Tea sold in Hong Kong and Macau after finding traces of the chemical melamine in the product, the company said Tuesday.
Unilever Hong Kong Limited described it as a precautionary measure and said no other Lipton Milk Tea Powder products were affected.
The announcement came a day after British confectioner Cadbury said it has recalled all of its Chinese-made candy products after preliminary tests showed they contained trace amounts of melamine. Some of the products were exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia, Nauru and Christmas Island, according to the company.
They are the latest companies to get caught up in China's tainted milk scandal, which began earlier this month when authorities discovered melamine in powdered infant formula. Watch how scare affects companies outside China »
Contaminated milk has sickened nearly 53,000 children in China, killing four.
Countries around the world have since banned the import of Chinese products containing milk, or have withdrawn products that contain milk from China -- such as chocolates -- amid worries they contain melamine.
Authorities have arrested 40 people in connection with the milk scandal, including two brothers who could face the death penalty if convicted.
Investigators suspect people watered down milk in an attempt to sell more of it, and added melamine in order to fool quality checks, Chinese authorities have said. The toxic chemical is used to bolster apparent protein levels in diluted or poor-quality milk.
Others arrested include 19 managers of pastures, breeding farms and milk-purchasing stations. Chinese authorities have said those arrested were involved in a network that made and sold melamine.
Authorities have implicated 22 Chinese dairy companies in the scandal.
Melamine is the same industrial contaminant from China that poisoned and killed thousands of U.S. dogs and cats last year.
Health experts say ingesting melamine can lead to kidney stones, urinary tract ulcers, and eye and skin irritation. It also robs infants of much-needed nutrition.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said a company in Taiwan, the King Car Food Industrial Company, had recalled seven instant coffee and milk tea products that were sold in the United States under the Mr. Brown brand name. They contain a non-dairy creamer found to be contaminated with melamine.
The FDA also recommends that U.S. consumers not eat White Rabbit Creamy Candy, which in China has been found to contain unacceptable levels of melamine. The candy's maker, Guanshengyuan, has recalled its exports of White Rabbit Cream Candy.
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dc96995ab4ef4435be97d0abc563d642
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What were Chinese milk products contaminated with?
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[
"melamine."
] |
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LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- While automakers lay off staff and shut down plants in response to the economic downturn, one automaker announced Thursday that it will open a manufacturing plant in the United States, potentially creating hundreds of jobs in the area eventually chosen.
Tesla unveils its Model S sedan, with a base price of $57,400. The manufacturing plant will be in California.
Tesla Motors, maker of a high-end electric sports car, says it will build an all-electric sedan in Southern California.
Thursday's announcement was made in Hawthorne, California, where Tesla unveiled the Model S sedan at a base price of $49,900, after a federal tax credit of $7,500.
That's less than half the price of its first model, the Roadster.
Started in 2003 and bankrolled by PayPal millionaire Elon Musk, Tesla has attracted investments from the Silicon Valley elite, among them Google founder Larry Page.
It is widely believed that the Model S sedan will be built near the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation facility in Hawthorne. That aerospace company, more commonly known as SpaceX, was founded by Musk in 2002.
SpaceX recently won a NASA contract to deliver cargo to the international space station when the space shuttle program is retired next year. That contract, worth $1.6 billion, was won over such industry mainstays as Boeing and Lockheed.
The promise of a high-performance, all-electric vehicle became a reality with the startup's first model, the Tesla Roadster, a car with the look, speed and price tag -- a steep $109,000 and up -- that rivals other high-end, high-performance vehicles.
Recently though, the economic downturn has forced Tesla to delay production of their would-be flagship Model S until 2011. They've also had to lay off more than 80 workers, which is about 25 percent of the company's staff.
Nonetheless, Tesla predicts it will manufacture 20,000 Model S vehicles a year. That would make it more of a mass-market vehicle than the Roadster; only 1,200 of which are produced yearly.
The company faces many challenges, the foremost of which is convincing consumers to pay almost $50,000 for an all-electric sedan when they could pay thousands less for another brand of upmarket sedan or a gas-electric hybrid.
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27e5d441f3ca4e5492d346c82ee82531
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What number of Model S sedans does Tesla hope to make each year?
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[
"20,000"
] |
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(CNN) -- Alex Ferguson celebrates 25 years as Manchester United manager on Sunday, and the Scotsman has called his reign at Old Trafford a "fairytale."
Ferguson, who turns 70 this month, has overseen United's recent dominance of English football, guiding the Red Devils to 12 English Premier League titles and five FA Cups.
Continental success has also been achieved, with Ferguson leading United to two European Champions League triumphs in 1999 and 2008.
The highlight of the former Scotland coach's reign so far arrived in 1999, when United's Champions League final win over Bayern Munich completed an historic treble which also included Premier League and FA Cup triumphs.
United he stands: The real Fergie
"It's been a really fantastic spell for me and something you don't think is going to happen," Ferguson told the club's official website. "It's been a bit of a fairytale to last so long and I appreciate that."
Ferguson, who arrived at United from Scottish outfit Aberdeen on November 6 1986, was quick to praise the vast array of star players he has been able to work with during a quarter of a century at the club.
"I've been very fortunate to have some of the best players in the game and, when I look back on these players I think about how fortunate I am.
Ferguson's top 25 Manchester United moments
"It's incredible when you look at who's been here - Bryan Robson, Norman Whiteside, Brian McClair, Mark Hughes, Paul Ince, Roy Keane, Eric Cantona. What a collection of fantastic players."
It could all have been very different for United and Ferguson, with the Glasgow native originally planning to retire from football in 2002.
But Ferguson changed his mind, remained in the Old Trafford dugout and last season helped United to a record 19th English title -- overtaking the mark previously set by archrivals Liverpool.
Ferguson refuses to set a date for when he will step aside at United, saying he will remain in the job as long as his health allows.
"I'll continue as long as I feel healthy enough to do it," he said. "In management, things change as the years go on. It's different now even to seven or eight years ago. A lot of things have changed."
United's neighbors Manchester City currently lead England's top flight, five points clear of Ferguson's team.
Former United captain Steve Bruce brings his Sunderland team to Old Trafford for a Premier League clash on Saturday.
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ee9369b594e24a3caeb03bd3c077e6d3
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What did he call his reign?
|
[
"\"fairytale.\""
] |
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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Troubled pop star Amy Winehouse spent the night in a London hospital after suffering a reaction to a medication she was taking at home Monday night, according to her spokeswoman.
Amy Winehouse's husband was recently jailed for 27 months.
Tracey Miller said she could not say what medication was involved.
A statement from University College Hospital said Winehouse had been kept in overnight for observation.
She had a comfortable night and was released Tuesday morning, the statement said.
London Ambulance Service said it transported the singer after being notified of "an adult female taken unwell."
Winehouse's spokesman in London, Chris Goodman, told the British Press Association that he had not been told what was wrong with the 24-year-old singer, who is well known for her song "Rehab," describing the singer's reluctance to enter a clinic.
The pop singer was investigated this year after a London tabloid made public a leaked home video that showed her smoking something in a glass pipe minutes after she was heard saying she had just taken six tablets of the anti-anxiety drug Valium. Police declined to file charges.
The singer has battled drug addiction and spent about two weeks in a rehabilitation clinic in January.
Winehouse won five Grammy awards this year -- three for "Rehab" as well as Album of the Year and Best New Artist.
Winehouse's Grammy winning album, "Back to Black," is still a big seller, recently charting at No. 12 in the UK more than 19 months after its release. Madame Toussaud's London wax museum recently unveiled a wax statue of Winehouse alongside Madonna, Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce and other musicians in the museum's "Music Zone" exhibit.
On July 21, Winehouse's husband was jailed for 27 months. He admitted to brawling with a pub manager and then offering him $400,000 to not talk about the incident.
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6c3507d990264f3e98f303085c2f42d9
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Amy Winehouse has struggled with what issues?
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[
"drug addiction"
] |
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(CNN) -- The European Union has launched a fact-finding mission to determine the causes of the August war between Georgia and Russia, an EU spokeswoman said Tuesday.
Heidi Tagliavini, a Swiss dipomat, will head the investigation into what started the Georgian conflict.
The eight-month inquiry will examine the facts of the conflict in regard to international law, humanitarian issues and human rights, said the spokeswoman, who did not give her name because she was not allowed to speak publicly. Investigators will also assess the basis for all accusations made regarding the conflict, the spokeswoman said.
Heidi Tagliavini, a Swiss diplomat and former United Nations special representative for Georgia, will head the mission, the spokeswoman said.
The mission began its work Monday and was due to finish July 31, 2009, ending with a report to the EU, the U.N. and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the spokeswoman said.
Georgia launched a campaign against South Ossetia, a Russian-backed separatist territory, on August 7. The following day, Russian tanks, troops and armored vehicles poured into South Ossetia and another breakaway Georgian territory, Abkhazia, advancing into Georgian cities outside the rebel regions.
The two sides blamed each other for starting the conflict and have made accusations of ethnic cleansing.
Moscow has since recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent regions.
|
4eed1ffb4d6c4c46b156f34a455d8d87
|
What is Georgia and Russia blaming each other for?
|
[
"starting the conflict"
] |
NewsQA
|
ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) -- The mother of missing Florida toddler Caylee Anthony was arrested and charged Friday with forgery, fraudulent use of personal information and petty theft, the Orange County Sheriff's Department said.
Casey Anthony was taken into custody Friday night at her parents' home in Orlando, Florida.
The charges relate to Casey Anthony's use of "some monies and checks in an account that did not belong to her and she knew that," Orange County Capt. Angelo Nieves said.
Orange County Sheriff's Department officers ushered a handcuffed Anthony through a crowd of protesters that had gathered outside her parents' Orlando home.
The protesters cheered as Anthony -- wearing a T-shirt with Caylee's picture and the words "Have you seen me?" -- was taken to a unmarked police car.
The dramatic scene played out live on CNN Headline News' "Nancy Grace." Watch Casey Anthony being taken into custody »
Anthony had been out on bail after being charged with child neglect, making false official statements and obstructing a criminal investigation into her daughter's disappearance. On Thursday, a bounty hunter who had posted bond for Anthony said he planned to revoke the bond. Watch bounty hunter Leonard Padilla explain why he wants to revoke bond »
The new charges carry an initial $3,000 bail, Nieves said.
Anthony reported her 3-year-old daughter missing in July, a month after the last known sighting of her.
Law enforcement sources said DNA evidence suggested that a strand of hair in the trunk of a car linked to Casey Anthony was Caylee's.
Nieves confirmed reports that tests had "indicated human decomposition was present and located in the defendant's vehicle."
After holding onto "high hopes" that Caylee could be found alive, Nieves said Friday, "that hope is somewhat diminished."
Anthony told police that a babysitter kidnapped Caylee, but police found inconsistencies in her story, according to police reports.
Police learned of the car from Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony. At that time, Cindy Anthony told authorities that it smelled as if a dead body had been in the trunk.
Cindy Anthony has since said she believes that her granddaughter is alive.
|
940e2af2868e465bab82e84146870b57
|
What are the latest charges against her?
|
[
"forgery, fraudulent use of personal information and petty theft,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- The FBI was investigating after a dead newborn baby was found onboard a Carnival cruise ship, authorities said Sunday.
The baby was found by a Carnival Dream crew member Wednesday morning in a guest cabin, said Special Agent Dave Couvertier, spokesman for the FBI field office in Tampa, Florida. Carnival personnel reported the discovery to Dutch authorities on the Caribbean island of St. Maarten, where the ship was docked.
Dutch authorities took custody of the infant's body and interviewed the 20-year-old mother, an American passenger, Couvertier said in an e-mail. The FBI was coordinating with Carnival Cruise Lines, he said, adding the company has been "fully cooperative."
The FBI's Evidence Response team was activated Saturday when the ship returned to Port Canaveral, Florida, he said. Agents processed and searched two guest cabins and interviewed crew members and passengers.
"Due to the international and jurisdictional aspects involved with this incident, we are still working on obtaining facts and specific details," Couvertier said. "No one has been charged as we are still working on obtaining facts and gathering any available evidence. As a result, no information has been released regarding any suspect at this time."
The baby's mother remained in St. Maarten and is expected to return to the United States within the next 24 hours, Couvertier said Sunday. The FBI was coordinating with Dutch authorities.
-- CNN's Kara Devlin contributed to this report.
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dfc27e1e838442f98955130ea5415df0
|
Where the baby was found?
|
[
"Carnival cruise ship,"
] |
NewsQA
|
Washington (CNN) -- President Obama and the rest of the first family teamed up with an extremely oversized rabbit Monday to the host the annual White House Easter Egg Roll, much to the delight of visiting children from across the country.
The theme of this year's festivities was "Ready, Set, Go!" -- a reference to first lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" initiative, which is designed to address the problem of childhood obesity.
The first family kicked off the event, which dates to 1878, shortly before 11 a.m., appearing with the Easter Bunny on the White House's South Portico, a balcony overlooking the residence's sprawling South Lawn.
"Is this not the most perfect day for the Easter Egg Roll?" Michelle Obama asked the enthusiastic crowd. Washington is currently in the middle of a warm spell under a clear sky.
"Our hope today is that in addition to having fun and doing some of the traditional activities like the egg roll ... you can learn about beginning to live a more healthy life," she said.
As well as participating in the traditional egg roll, families were invited to visit the White House garden and play football, basketball and tennis, among other things. Several celebrities attended the event, including players from the Washington Redskins and athletes Apolo Ohno and Billie Jean King.
The president also read the Dr. Seuss book "Green Eggs and Ham" to the visiting children.
"When your parents tell you to eat your broccoli, you don't know whether you're going to like them or not," he told the kids, emphasizing the point of the classic story. "You've got to try it. ... [And] when your parents tell you to eat your peas, eat your peas."
The first White House Easter Egg Roll was hosted by President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1878.
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943deb553b794decbcc165904b05c6ea
|
What dates all the way back to 1878?
|
[
"the annual White House Easter Egg Roll,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- American sixth seed Andy Roddick denied Rafael Nadal a third final appearance at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami after another sensational serving performance on Friday.
Roddick, the tournament's 2004 champion, will face Tomas Berdych in Sunday's title match after coming from behind to defeat Spanish fourth seed Nadal 4-6 6-3 6-3 in the semis at Key Biscayne.
He has won an incredible 62 of his last 64 service games, reaching the final of two successive Masters 1000 events for the first time since 2003, when he went on to win the U.S. Open.
Roddick, beaten in the Indian Wells title match by Ivan Ljubicic two weeks ago, broke Nadal's serve at 4-3 up in the second set with three forehand winners and then held to love to level the match.
He again broke his fellow former world No. 1 in the third game of the decider and held serve to claim his first win in the last four meetings between the two.
"I knew I had to be more aggressive. My heavy forehand doesn't work against him, so I had to hit it flatter, which is higher risk. I took really, really ridiculous cuts at a lot of forehands," Roddick told the ATP Tour Web site.
"I took a lot of risk there in the last two sets. My comfort zone of moving the ball around and maybe chipping it around a little bit doesn't work against Rafa. I had to try to come up with something that at least took him out of his comfort zone a little bit, and it paid off."
Nadal was not too disheartened, having reached the semifinals in his two outings since suffering a knee injury at the Australian Open in January.
"Two semifinals in a row, first two Masters 1000 of the season for me is positive," Nadal said. "Positive American hardcourt season, first part. So, yeah, happy for that."
Berdych continued his giantkilling run as he followed up his victories over world No. 1 Roger Federer and 10th seed Fernando Verdasco by crushing Swedish fifth seed Robin Soderling 6-2 6-2.
The Czech, seeded 16th, has gone one better than his last-four achievement in Miami last year as he qualified for only his second Masters final.
"In all my matches with Robin in the past I've been too defensive. If you give him time to hit the ball hard it's really tough," Berdych said. "I wanted to play more aggressive, but without making mistakes."
|
5afae7e8f89744e2a69c72a9cf34faa6
|
who reaches final in miami?
|
[
"Andy Roddick"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Authorities are no longer able to watch a video of scenes at a Georgia nightclub in the case of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger because a digital video recorder system recorded over it, an attorney said Thursday.
Roethlisberger, who has been the starting quarterback for the Steelers for six seasons, has been accused of sexually assaulting a 20-year-old woman at a Georgia nightspot this month. He has not been charged.
Roethlisberger's attorney has said, "The facts show that there was no criminal activity."
Police were hoping to use the recording to glean any details and insights about the sequence of events surrounding the alleged incident, which was said to have occurred in a restroom.
Carl Cansino, the attorney representing the Capital City nightclub, said police were able to see a small portion of the recording, and the club manager said he saw the entire video.
Cansino said the club manager said the club's dance floor and entrance were in the recording during the night of the alleged assault, but he couldn't discern anything out of the ordinary.
Police talked to Roethlisberger, 28, and the woman at the scene immediately after the incident was reported about 2:30 a.m. March 5 at the club in Milledgeville, Georgia, said Deputy Police Chief Richard Malone. The woman "alleged that he is the perpetrator," Malone told reporters.
Attorney Lee Parks said the woman said she is "fully cooperating with law enforcement." The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the investigation is continuing and the file will be turned over to the local district attorney when it is over.
"There is a future interview scheduled at present, and she intends to keep that appointment," Parks said.
CNN's Carolina Sanchez contributed to this report.
|
430950ba0af94f6d91228077b1b2975c
|
What does the lawyer say?
|
[
"\"The facts show that there was no criminal activity.\""
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Serie A champions Inter Milan have confirmed the dismissal of coach Roberto Mancini, opening the way for former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho to replace him.
Mancini guided Inter Milan to the Italian league title for three successive seasons.
Ironically, the 43-year-old Mancini, who guided Inter to three successive Italian league titles, is now the favorite to take Mourinho's former job at Stamford Bridge.
Inter -- who won the first of their three titles in 2006 because those above them were demoted or deducted points over the matchfixing scandal -- released a statement about the sacking.
"Inter Milan have informed Roberto Mancini that he has been relieved of his role as coach, especially because of his comments that he was not going to stay after the end of the season following the Champions League tie against Liverpool on March 11," read their statement.
Mancini, however, rescinded those comments the following day declaring that he had made them in the heat of the moment following Inter's elimination from the competition, losing 3-0 on aggregate.
Inter's reasons for sacking Mancini appear less credible after club president Massimo Moratti announced that the coach had changed his mind about leaving at the end of the season.
"I've had a talk with Mancini, who confirmed to me that he wanted to stay at Inter next year to see out his contract. He wants to win the Champions League for us next season," Moratti said on March 12. "Mancini's words surprised me, I didn't expect it and even less so I believe the people close to him."
Mourinho, nicknamed 'The Special One' for guiding Porto to the Champions League in 2004 and then Chelsea to two Premier League titles, would not come cheap, but the exit of Mancini has cost Inter dear too as his contract, which runs till 2012, will leave him 24 million euros richer as compensation.
However, Mancini was unable to make Inter into viable Champions League contenders despite the three Serie A titles.
Mancini is the ninth coaching casualty under Moratti, following Ottavio Bianchi, Roy Hodgson, Luigi Simoni, Mircea Lucescu, Marcello Lippi, Marco Tardelli, Hector Cuper and Alberto Zaccheroni.
|
6e227f658ec54e13abeb7663d8fce6e8
|
What did Inter Milan confirm?
|
[
"the dismissal of coach Roberto Mancini,"
] |
NewsQA
|
Washington (CNN) -- An Iranian navy plane that approached a U.S. aircraft carrier last week was flying as low as 300 feet as it neared the USS Eisenhower, U.S. military officials said Wednesday.
The incident, first reported by CNN on Tuesday, came as Iran was beginning a series of military exercises last week meant to show off their military prowess.
The Eisenhower was on duty in the Gulf of Oman in the northern Arabian Sea, in support of the Afghanistan war efforts, when the Iranian maritime patrol aircraft flew within 1,000 yards of the vessel, according to military officials.
While the encounter was not threatening, it was unusual. U.S. navy ships have regularly encountered Iranian aircraft in the Persian Gulf in recent years, but this encounter took place in the Gulf of Oman, in an area where Iranian jets are seen much less frequently, several Navy officials said.
The officials declined to be identified, citing the extremely sensitive nature of any U.S. military interaction with Iranian forces.
Adm. Gary Roughead, the top Navy officer, confirmed the April 21 incident. The Iranians were "not provocative or threatening. As long as they are professional and not threatening or reckless, it's international space," he said.
Radar on the Eisenhower and other U.S. ships in the vicinity closely tracked the Iranian aircraft as it approached the aircraft carrier to ensure it maintained a nonthreatening path, Roughead said. A senior U.S. military official said the Iranian plane was tracked by U.S. units for nearly 100 miles before it reached the Eisenhower.
The Iranian aircraft was a Fokker F27 that was unarmed, officials said. It remained in the vicinity of the Eisenhower for about 20 minutes before leaving the area, according to the senior official. The Eisenhower had just finished a series of carrier aircraft flight operations and a resupply at sea mission.
U.S. officials believe the Iranians wanted a close look at the carrier, but they could not say if the Iranians took photos of the ship.
One of the officials also said Iran may simply have been trying to demonstrate its aerial capabilities to the United States.
U.S. military officials continue to emphasize that recent encounters with Iranian naval forces in the Persian Gulf have been professional and without confrontation or problems. The U.S. Navy takes great care to try to stay out of the way of any Iranian forces in the region, officials said.
|
6af720ca46e7458391f5669ae25f031d
|
What flew at 300 feet?
|
[
"Iranian navy plane"
] |
NewsQA
|
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (CNN) -- Thousands of people celebrated Friday on crowded Copacabana beach as the announcement that Brazil had been chosen as the 2016 Olympics host played live over huge screens erected above the sand.
Thousands packed Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro after the city learned it will host the Olympics.
"It was a fantastic victory. We beat the big cities. Passion talked louder," said one man as he danced to live samba music in front of the stage.
Rio de Janeiro beat out Chicago, Tokyo and Madrid to become the first South American city to host the Games, something President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva made clear during his pitch to the International Olympic Committee.
"It is a time to address this imbalance," he told committee members making the selection in Copenhagen, Denmark. "It is time to light the Olympic cauldron in a tropical country."
Happiness was a big part of Rio's pitch after it was voted the happiest city in the world by Forbes magazine.
On Friday, thousands of people piled onto the beach wearing green and yellow, many with the Brazilian flag painted on their faces. Exuberant Rio de Janeiro is first South American city to host Olympics »
"I thought that more than to the people, we owe this victory to our President Lula," said a woman wearing little more than a bikini.
Rio also won points with an ambitious budget and new venues like the Joao Havelange Stadium, which opened for the 2007 Pan American Games.
Rio's jaw-dropping natural beauty helped the city pull ahead of the competition.
"Rio is full of all things quintessentially Brazilian: sun, sand, soccer, samba, sensuality," the editorial director of Fodor's Travel, Laura Kidder, wrote in an e-mail. "In Rio, it's about taking each day as it comes and living life to the fullest."
Erik Torkells, editor for TripAdvisor, the world's largest online travel community, also praised the city for its social scene before the selection was made.
"If the Olympic Committee wanted to be sure everyone had a good time, they'd go to Rio," Torkells said.
The selection also had its critics in Brazil.
"I don't think it's appropriate considering what our country is going through," said Orlando Pinto, a social worker. "We don't have good health services, education; we have transportation problems, housing problems, crime problems."
Security and traffic remain enormous challenges to overcome in Rio de Janeiro.
But it was all celebration on Friday as crowds continued to stream onto the beach after the announcement was made.
|
b1ab226310d54817828b763e64f93f34
|
where is rio de janeiro
|
[
"Brazil"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- World number one Rafael Nadal continues to prove unbeatable on his favorite clay-court surface, as he won his fifth Barcelona Open title in a row with a straight sets victory over fellow-Spaniard David Ferrer on Sunday.
Rafael Nadal lifts the massive Barcelona Open trophy for the fifth year in a row after his win over David Ferrer.
The 22-year-old Nadal, who last week secured his fifth Monte Carlo title in succession, repeated that feat on home soil by winning 6-2 7-5 in a repeat of the 2008 final.
The victory gave Nadal his 35th career title (24 of them coming on clay) and meant the Barcelona tournament was won by a home player for a seventh straight year.
"I could have never have imagined that I would win here for a fifth time," a beaming Nadal said after the match.
"Congratulations to David also. Even if it was impossible for him to win today, he had a great tournament. For me, this is much more than a dream," he added.
Nadal will have no time to celebrate as he heads directly for the Rome Masters which begins on Monday. Last year, an obviously exhausted Nadal lost in his opening match to compatriot Juan Carlos Ferrero.
|
03930dd8a28a4686960f7545e9c2d011
|
Who took the trophy?
|
[
"Rafael Nadal"
] |
NewsQA
|
SYDNEY, Australia -- Eamon Sullivan regained the 50-meter freestyle world record with a 21.41 seconds swim at the Australian Olympic trials in Sydney.
Sullivan had lost his 50m freestyle record to Frenchman Alain Bernard four days ago.
He took the record back from Frenchman Alain Bernard, who recorded 21.50 seconds at the European championships four days ago.
Sullivan had held the record with 21.56, set in Sydney in February.
After missing out on Bernard's 100m record late on Wednesday, Sullivan said he hoped to improve his 50m time in Friday's final.
"I came in a bit more relaxed tonight, having got the 100m final out of the way last night and getting into the team for Beijing.
"It's sweet to get the record back off Alain after missing out on the 100m world record last night and after he broke the 50m record so quickly after I did it.
"I know I have another swim left so there's always another chance. I hope I can go faster in the final, but I like to think I can take a couple of a hundredths of a second leading into a final, so we'll see."
Sullivan missed Bernard's 100m world record by just two-hundredths of a second in qualifying in 47.52 seconds for the Olympics.
Libby Trickett broke the women's 100m freestyle world record with a 52.88 seconds swim.
Trickett, formerly Libby Lenton and competing for the first time under her married name, beat the 53.30 mark set by Germany's Britta Steffen in Budapest on August 2, 2006.
It is the second time Trickett has broken the 53-second barrier, but her previous time of 52.99 at the Duel in the Pool in Sydney last year was not ratified by FINA because she was swimming against American superstar Michael Phelps.
"I can't tell you how much I wanted to break that record ever since doing it in the Duel in the Pool in April last year. I just wanted it so badly," Trickett said.
"To see it officially up there on the scoreboard is just amazing. All my events are very important to me, but the 100m freestyle holds a special place in my heart and to know that four years ago I was going 0.8 seconds off, that is just awesome."
"I've come so far, it's been an amazing journey, but I am just so happy to be part of this team. We have some fantastic girls coming through and it's going to be great for our relay team." E-mail to a friend
|
bc806a50dd8d4dcb89a6569f8b027bd2
|
Who set the new mark?
|
[
"Eamon Sullivan"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- The U.S. military said it is investigating claims from Syria that U.S. helicopters based in Iraq killed eight people and wounded another Sunday in an attack inside Syria's territory Sunday.
A U.S. army Apache helicopter flies over southern Baghdad, Iraq.
Syria's state news agency SANA said four U.S. helicopters crossed the border and struck a farm about 8 kilometers (5 miles) inside Syria before returning to Iraqi airspace.
The raid occurred about 4:45 p.m. (1345 GMT). The helicopters hit a civilian building under construction on the farm, killing a father and his four sons, a married couple and another man, SANA said.
Syria's deputy foreign minister contacted the U.S. embassies in Damascus and Baghdad, SANA said.
Military officials are investigating the claims, Sgt. Brooke Murphy, a U.S. military spokeswoman, told CNN.
"Unfortunately, we cannot confirm anything at the moment," she said.
The attack occurred near the town of Al-Bukamal, which is home to a Red Crescent camp for Iraqi refugees.
The town is across the border from the Iraqi city of Qaim, which has been a major route for Sunni Arab fighters battling U.S. troops in Iraq. Watch CNN's Cal Perry explain the implications of the possible attack »
Syria has said it has made efforts to secure the 600-km desert border, which is marked largely by a sand wall. But Maj. Gen. John Kelly, the U.S. commander in western Iraq's sprawling Anbar province, told reporters last week that much of the border remains "uncontrolled."
"We still have a certain level of foreign fighter movement, not much, through Anbar, because of our activities out there," Kelly said. But he said Iraqi intelligence believes al Qaeda operatives and others "live pretty openly on the Syrian side, and periodically we know that they try to come across."
Syria demanded Iraq's government "immediately investigate this serious violation" and bar U.S. forces from striking Syria from its territory. The Syrian government summoned U.S. and Iraqi diplomats to the Foreign Ministry in Damascus to condemn the attack, SANA reported.
CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report, Nada Husseini, Mike Mount and Cal Perry contributed to this report.
|
dc0ca8cbdd54416985caf31be2602227
|
Where is the Foreign Ministry? (city)
|
[
"Damascus"
] |
NewsQA
|
ROME, Italy (CNN) -- A sixth U.S. service member died Friday from injuries sustained when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in northeastern Italy on Thursday, the U.S. military in Europe said.
The helicopter, carrying 11 U.S. military personnel, crashed Thursday afternoon about 22 miles from Aviano, Italy. Four people were killed and seven were injured in the crash, and two of the injured later died, the U.S. military said.
Treviso fire officials said one of the dead was a woman, and said no one on the ground was hurt.
The U.S. military said the helicopter was an Army H-60 Black Hawk attached to the 1st Battalion, 214th Aviation Regiment.
The military was not releasing the names of those killed, pending notification of the victims' families.
Police and fire officials said the craft crashed in an open area near the Piave River north of Treviso, between the towns of Maserata Sul Piave and Santa Lucia Di Piave. Watch scenes of the crash site in northern Italy »
The helicopter appeared crumpled and charred in photos from the crash.
Italy's ANSA news agency said the helicopter crashed near the bridge of a major highway and the road was closed as a precaution.
ANSA said the helicopter had taken off from Aviano Air Base, but fire authorities could not confirm whether it was leaving or returning to the base.
The Black Hawk is considered the workhorse of the military's helicopter fleet. It is used in missions in Iraq and Afghanistan to carry troops and equipment.
The military has employed Black Hawks for about three decades. The helicopter's first combat mission was about 25 years ago. E-mail to a friend
CNN's Hada Messia and Barbara Starr contributed to this report.
|
b21e2b0304054a209ae880d31cbce635
|
Where did the copter take off from?
|
[
"Aviano Air Base,"
] |
NewsQA
|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Pop star George Michael was cautioned by police in London after being arrested in public toilets on suspicion of possessing drugs, the UK's Press Association reported.
George Michael has talked candidly about drug use in the past.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said a 45-year-old man had been arrested in the Hampstead Heath area of London on Friday. He was later released with a caution for possession of class A and class C drugs.
The statement did not name Michael, but other sources confirmed his identity.
Reports Sunday said Michael had been arrested following a tip-off to police from a suspicious toilet attendant, PA said.
The 45-year-old, who has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, has talked openly about his use of drugs in the past.
In an inteview with the BBC last year he admitted: "I'm a happy man and I can afford my marijuana so that's not a problem."
Last May he pleaded guilty to driving while unfit through drugs and was banned from driving for two years after being found slumped behind the wheel of his car.
|
e250b82e60154ba3aca4f8ade5d4603f
|
Where did the crime happen?
|
[
"LONDON, England"
] |
NewsQA
|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Facing intense government pressure, Indian oil workers agreed to call off a three-day strike and go back to work, the Oil and Petroleum Ministry announced.
Long queues at gas stations have become a common sight across India in recent days.
The workers ended the strike Friday, after the government threatened to suspend, fire or arrest workers who did not return to their jobs.
The impact of the strike had been felt across all major cities in India, including Mumbai and New Delhi, where motorists waited in long lines to purchase fuel. Police had been called in to maintain order at many stations.
Power plants that rely on gas ran out, causing power cuts, and airlines were forced to delay flights.
Some 45,000 workers walked off the job at the government-controlled oil companies Wednesday after the government refused their demands for higher pay.
India's Home Minister P. Chidambaram had called on workers to end the strike immediately, saying it was "placing an intolerable burden on the people."
He had said the army could be called in if the crisis deepened.
Meanwhile, a separate nationwide strike by truck operators entered its sixth day, with some truck operators saying arrested strikers had to be released before talks could take place, the Press Trust of India reported.
Five All India Motor Transport Congress leaders were arrested Friday on charges of disrupting the supply of commodities, the Indo-Asian News Service reported.
"We will not give up our agitation and will not hold any talks with the government until we are released unconditionally," AIMTC Secretary-General S. Venugopal told the news service.
The AIMTC is demanding a reduction in diesel and tire prices, the Indo-Asian News Service reported.
On Saturday, the transport minister, Thiru T.R. Baalu, said the government was "ready to discuss" the truck operators' demands, the news service reported.
However, he warned the government could suspend or revoke workers' permits, according to a summary of his remarks released by the government.
-- CNN's Sara Sidner and Bharati Naik contributed to this report.
|
34aec699665149d49dc3ad399fdb39de
|
Where was the strike?
|
[
"in India,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Real Mallorca's hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were dented by a 1-0 defeat away to Spanish strugglers Tenerife on Monday night.
Gregorio Manzano's islanders dropped out of the top four following the weekend's games, and Nino's early goal for relegation-threatened Tenerife meant they stayed fifth, two points behind Sevilla.
Tenerife moved up to third from bottom, still a point away from safety as they seek to avoid an immediate return to the second division, after doubling their points tally earned from the previous eight matches.
Last season's top scorer Nino netted his sixth goal of the 2009-10 campaign in the 14th minute as he ran onto Mikel Alonso's pass and buried his shot from the edge of the area despite claims of offside from the visitors.
Nino missed a chance from a similar position soon after, and in the second half he was denied by Israeli goalkeeper Dudu Aouate, who also did well to save Julian Omar's rising shot.
Mallorca substitute Pierre Webo headed wide with 12 minutes to go as his team, who have a 100 percent home record, extended a poor away run of just one win in 12 trips.
Champions Barcelona lead Real Madrid by two points following Sunday's shock defeat by Atletico Madrid, while Valencia are third a further 10 points adrift.
|
c0cf4ecdd70f41efba8fa44ef8ae4e5c
|
Who was last season's top scorer?
|
[
"Nino"
] |
NewsQA
|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- The British Museum plans to display a statue of supermodel Kate Moss that it bills as the largest gold statue built since ancient Egypt.
The statue of Kate Moss will be displayed in the British Museum in a gallery holding anicent Greek sculpture.
Called "Siren," the statue will be part of a group of major sculptures by leading British artists to go on display at the museum in October, the museum announced.
The museum says the artist, Marc Quinn, claims it's the largest gold statue since ancient Egypt.
His previous work included the marble sculpture Alison Lapper Pregnant, which appeared on a plinth in London's Trafalgar Square.
The Kate Moss statue, weighing 50kg, will be displayed in a gallery of the museum that houses ancient Greek sculpture. The museum calls it a "fitting setting" for the statue of Moss, "interacting with the great Greek beauties that surround it."
Moss, whose slight frame was at the forefront of the waif look in the mid-1990s, is now nearly as well known for her celebrity lifestyle as her modeling career.
The one-time girlfriend of British rocker Pete Doherty is a tabloid newspaper and celebrity magazine favorite, and now dates Kills guitarist Jamie Hince.
She has recently mixed her modeling work with designing collections for the British clothing giant, Topshop.
Other artists exhibiting include Damien Hirst, who most recently created a $100 million diamond-covered skull, and Angel of the North creator Anthony Gormley.
The exhibit is expected to run from October 4 through January 25, 2009.
|
398ebdd63a344c30af4852b0e6377a60
|
What is the largest gold statue?
|
[
"of supermodel Kate Moss"
] |
NewsQA
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(CNN) -- Husbands are allowed to slap their wives if they spend lavishly, a Saudi judge said recently during a seminar on domestic violence, Saudi media reported Sunday.
It is OK to slap Saudi women who spend too much, a judge has told an audience.
Arab News, a Saudi English-language daily newspaper based in Riyadh, reported that Judge Hamad Al-Razine said that "if a person gives SR 1,200 [$320] to his wife and she spends 900 riyals [$240] to purchase an abaya [the black cover that women in Saudi Arabia must wear] from a brand shop and if her husband slaps her on the face as a reaction to her action, she deserves that punishment."
Women in the audience immediately and loudly protested Al-Razine's statement, and were shocked to learn the remarks came from a judge, the newspaper reported.
Arab News reported that Al-Razine made his remark as he was attempting to explain why incidents of domestic violence had increased in Saudi Arabia. He said that women and men shared responsibility, but added that "nobody puts even a fraction of blame" on women, the newspaper said.
Al-Razine "also pointed out that women's indecent behavior and use of offensive words against their husbands were some of the reasons for domestic violence in the country," it added.
Domestic violence, which used to be a taboo subject in the conservative kingdom, has become a hot topic in recent years. Groups like the National Family Safety Program have campaigned to educate the public about the problem and help prevent domestic abuse.
Saudi women's rights activist Wajeha Al-Huwaider told CNN that Saudi women routinely face such attitudes.
"This is how men in Saudi Arabia see women," she said in a telephone interview from the Saudi city of Dahran. "It's not something they read in a book or learned from a friend. They've been raised to see women this way, that they're less than a person."
Al-Huwaider added that "I'm not surprised to see a judge or a religious man saying that - they've been raised in the same culture - a culture that tells them it's ok to raise your hand to a woman that this works."
Another Saudi judge, in the city of Onaiza, was the source of a separate recent controversy: he twice denied a request from the mother of an 8-year-old girl that the girl be granted a divorce from her 47-year-old husband.
Last month, after human-groups condemned the union, the girl was granted the divorce.
|
13567d8828db4f6eb086a7abc09054a8
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what did the newspaper say about the judge
|
[
"were shocked to learn the remarks came from a"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Canadian researchers say they have discovered the smallest known North American dinosaur, a carnivore that roamed areas of the continent 75 million years ago and weighed less than most modern-day house cats.
Researchers say Hesperonychus, whose name means "western claw," was about 1.6 feet tall.
Hesperonychus elizabethae, a 4.4-pound (2-kilogram) creature with razor-like claws, ran through the swamps and forests of southeastern Alberta, Canada, during the late Cretaceous period, the researchers said.
The diminutive dinosaur likely hunted insects, small mammals and other prey, perhaps even baby dinosaurs, said Nick Longrich, a paleontology research associate in the University of Calgary's Department of Biological Sciences.
"It's basically a predator of small things," Longrich said.
Longrich co-wrote a paper on the dinosaur with University of Alberta paleontologist Philip Currie. The paper appeared in Monday's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The researchers said the clawed dinosaur was slight, ran on two legs and had dagger-like teeth. It had an enlarged sickle-shaped claw on its second toe, the researchers said.
Although fossilized remains of Hesperonychus were collected in 1982, they remained unstudied until Longrich came across them in the University of Alberta's collection in 2007, the university said. Because of their size, some of the fossilized parts had been thought to be from juveniles.
Longrich said he suspected the claws had come from another, smaller adult species, but said finding a fossilized pelvis in which the hip bones were fused -- which happens only once an animal is fully grown -- convinced him.
"The claws were kind of a bread-crumb trail that we followed along," until finding the well-preserved pelvis, Longrich said.
Longrich and Currie determined that Hesperonychus, whose name means "western claw," stood about 1.6 feet (50 centimeters) high.
Albertonykus borealis, a 2.5-foot-long insectivore, had been previously thought to be the smallest North American dinosaur.
Longrich came across the dinosaur's bones in storage at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller and decided to analyze them, Canadian Broadcasting Company reported in September. A dinosaur smaller than Hesperonychus has been found in China, Longrich said.
He said he found searching through museums' storage more productive in the short term than working in the field.
"People collect stuff so much more quickly than they can process," he said.
CNN's Taylor Gandossy contributed to this report.
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19637f4e950d42148c66f544677d1cbe
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where did the carnivore live?
|
[
"the swamps and forests of southeastern Alberta, Canada,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Zambia's incumbent president bowed out with "grace and honor" Friday after election results showed his main challenger had won, his party said in a statement.
"The people of Zambia have spoken and we must listen," outgoing President Rupiah Banda said on the website of his Movement for Multiparty Democracy. "The time now is for maturity, for composure and for compassion."
Zambians voted Tuesday in the presidential election.
The incoming president, Michael Sata, will be sworn in Friday, party officials said.
Sata is the leader of the opposition Patriotic Front and a major critic of China's investment in the nation.
Ten candidates took part in the presidential race .
Zambia has remained relatively peaceful amid unrest in neighboring Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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506e2d9f459a4c0f96843bc9094f673b
|
Who is Michael Sata?
|
[
"incoming president,"
] |
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|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Eight men plotted to use bombs disguised in drinks containers to blow up planes heading towards the United States in mid-flight in the name of Islam, a British court heard Tuesday.
The eight men deny conspiracy to murder by plotting to blow up transatlantic aircraft.
Prosecutors told London's Woolwich Crown Court the men planned to make the explosives from household objects to resemble drinks bottles, batteries and other items to be carried onto aircraft in hand luggage, the UK's Press Association reported.
The foiling of the alleged plot in August 2006 triggered the imposition of strict new security measures at international airports around the world, restricting the quantity of liquids passengers can carry on to aircraft.
The measures, which led to massive delays and scores of canceled flights when they were imposed overnight, remain in place at many airports.
Prosecutor Peter Wright described two of the men, Abdulla Ahmed Ali, 28, and Assad Sarwar, 28, as ringleaders of an Islamic fundamentalist conspiracy, according to PA.
"It was an interest that involved inflicting heavy casualties upon an unwitting civilian population all in the name of Islam," he said.
"These men were indifferent to the carnage that was likely to ensue if their plans were successful. To them the identities of their victims was an irrelevance by race, color, religion or creed.
"What these men intended to bring about together and with others was a violent and deadly statement of intent that would have a truly global impact."
Wright said the bombs were to be carried onto flights to the United States by suicide bombers as part of a plot hatched in Britain and Pakistan, according to PA.
He said a computer memory stick seized at the time of the defendants' arrests listed details of flights operated by three carriers -- American Airlines, United Airlines and Air Canada -- between August and October 2006.
"If each of these flights were successfully blown up the potential for loss of life was considerable," Wright said.
Ali, Sarwar and six others including Tanvir Hussain, 27, Ibrahim Savant, 28, Arafat Waheed Khan, 27, Waheed Zaman, 24, Umar Islam, 30, and Donald Stewart-Whyte, 22, deny conspiracy to murder. The trial is expected to last 10 months.
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4dd473cb16c44f5e8e4c63a875a93704
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Which airlines were the intended targets?
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[
"American"
] |
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(CNN) -- Space shuttle Atlantis launched Monday afternoon to deliver key spare parts to prolong the life of the International Space Station.
The shuttle lifted off as scheduled, at 2:28 p.m. ET from the Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral.
The delivery will add years to the station's life after the space shuttle fleet is retired next year, according to NASA. Monday's launch is among six planned before then.
"You'll see this theme in some of the flights that are going to come after ours as well," said Brian Smith, the lead space station flight director for the 11-day mission. "This flight is all about spares. Basically, we're getting them up there while we still can."
Some parts are for systems that keep the station from overheating or tumbling through space, according to NASA.
"We're taking the big ones," Smith said. "And not only are they the big ones -- they're the ones deemed most critical. That's why they're going up first."
The six-member crew will return to Earth with flight engineer Nicole Stott, who launched in August.
CNN iReport: Share your photos, video of shuttle launch
The mission also will include three spacewalks and installation of two platforms to the station's backbone. The platforms will hold spare parts to sustain station operations after the shuttles are discontinued.
"As the only vehicle large enough to carry many of the big pieces of equipment into space, several of the flights are devoted to the task," NASA said. iReporter attends NASA "Tweet-up"
Other items set for delivery include nitrogen and ammonia tank assemblies, a high-pressure gas tank and the station's robotic arm. The tanks help cool and pressurize the station.
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619ebf799de74309be3e4358e313171b
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Which space shuttled launched?
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[
"Atlantis"
] |
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HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- In Hong Kong, where the alert level has been raised to "emergency" after reporting its first case of swine flu, authorities are trying to keep the H1N1 virus from spreading through the metropolis of 7 million people through quarantine, stepped-up border measures and surveillance.
Quarantined guests and hotel employees wave through the glass of the main entrance of Hong Kong's Metro Park Hotel.
The quarantine has extended beyond the single confirmed case, a 25-year-old Mexican man, to include more than 340 people.
They include: two taxi drivers, two fellow taxi passengers, a local friend, 36 passengers within a three-row vicinity of the patient aboard a China Eastern flight from Shanghai to Hong Kong, and 300 guests and staff at the Metropark Hotel he checked into.
All have been put on the antiviral drug, Tamiflu.
Among the two cab drivers, one was suspected of taking the patient from the airport to the hotel, and another was believed to have taken him from the hotel to the hospital.
Authorities are seeing another 40 to 50 guests whose names are on the hotel's guest list. Some of them left their luggage behind.
"They are gambling with their health, jeopardizing public health safety," said Dr. York Chow, secretary for Food and Health, appealing to the guests to come forward.
In addition to the Metropark Hotel in Wanchai district, the Lady Maclehose Holiday Village is being used as an isolation center during the one-week quarantines.
The government has assured that people under quarantine will have their visas automatically extended, their hotel lodging fees waived and their onward journeys prepared. The Wanchai hotel is providing guests $200 worth of free overseas telephone calls daily.
The isolation order, which went into effect Friday night, is to expire Friday at 8:30 p.m. (8:30 a.m. ET) -- the length of an incubation period for swine flu.
The isolation order did not extend to the air crew or remaining passengers aboard the China Eastern flight.
An airplane's air exchange rate is high compared to that in an office or hotel, explained Yuen Kwok-yung, chair of infectious diseases at the University of Hong Kong. "Risk is very low on a plane," he said.
So far, there have been no further confirmed cases of swine flu, and no Hong Kong pigs have tested positive for the virus, Yuen said.
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9dd24e4e02e347358f82090429e60bee
|
How many rows were people confined from?
|
[
"three-row vicinity"
] |
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|
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- The death toll from an outbreak of hepatitis B in India's western Gujarat state reached 38 on Sunday as authorities prepared to begin a vaccination drive against the disease.
Hepatitis-B patient Mahir Husain, center, is comforted at a hospital in Ahmedabad.
Malayappan Thennarasa, the top administrator of the affected Sabarkantha district, told CNN the toll had climbed to 38 and that shots would be administered free of cost starting Monday.
Health officials have recorded 125 cases of the infection in two weeks. Authorities were carrying out raids at medical stores for bogus drugs and recycled syringes.
Police have so far arrested five medical practitioners. One of them was charged Sunday with attempted murder. The doctor is accused of reusing syringes, Thennarasa said.
Hepatitis B is a contagious liver disease resulting from infection with the hepatitis B virus, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It usually spreads through blood, semen, or other bodily fluids, often through sexual contact or sharing needles or syringes with an infected person.
The disease can range from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, chronic illness resulting in long-term health problems or death, the CDC said.
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3c9efe2e37e6490088ce98f23de71d5e
|
What disease killed 38 people?
|
[
"hepatitis B"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Actor Bruce Willis married model-actress Emma Heming over the weekend in the Turks and Caicos Islands, the actor's publicists announced.
It is the second marriage for actor Bruce Willis, 54, and the first for model-actress Emma Heming, 30.
A small, private ceremony was held at the actor's home in the islands in the West Indies on Saturday, according to publicists Rogers and Cowan.
It is the second marriage for Willis, 54, and the first for Heming, 30. The couple met through friends and have been together for more than a year, the publicists said.
At the wedding were Willis' daughters, Rumer, 20; Scout, 17; and Tallulah Belle, 14. Their mother and Willis' first wife, actress Demi Moore and her husband, actor Ashton Kutcher, also attended the ceremony.
Willis and Heming will have a civil ceremony when they return to California, the publicists said.
|
a4e09e9d2c38480f8df81d0efbfea761
|
Who was involved?
|
[
"Willis' daughters, Rumer, 20; Scout, 17; and Tallulah Belle, 14. Their mother and Willis' first wife, actress Demi Moore and her husband, actor Ashton Kutcher,"
] |
NewsQA
|
NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- Pirates have hijacked a Thai cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast, the Kenya Seafarers Association said Thursday.
The ship, the MV Thor Star, was hijacked Tuesday with 28 Thai crew members on board, said Andrew Mwangura, a spokesman for the association, which acts on behalf of merchant vessels in the region.
The Thai-flagged ship is owned by Bangkok-based Thoresen Thai Agencies.
Pirate attacks are frequent in the waters off Somalia, a notoriously unsafe area for unescorted vessels.
Earlier this month, Canada announced it was dispatching a warship to the area to protect U.N. aid ships after more than two dozen reported pirate attacks in the waters off Somalia this year.
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2cb4e38fc8064518ad8be093598e5299
|
What was the ships name?
|
[
"MV Thor Star,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- A seventh minute goal from Brazilian teenager Alexander Pato proved enough to give AC Milan a 1-0 home victory over Fiorentina in a match totally dominated by Manchester City's $150 million bid for playmaker Kaka this week.
Pato (right) and David Beckham celebrate Milan's only goal at the San Siro on Saturday evening.
The goal was created by David Beckham who beat two defenders to a loose ball. He poked it back to Marek Jankulovski who played in Pato inside the penalty area.
There still appeared no danger to the Fiorentina goal, but Pato hit a stunning strike from the left that went in off the far post.
Fiorentina should have equalized on 66 minutes when Juan Vargas got to the byline and crossed to Mario Santana but the Argentine put his shot too close to goalkeeper Christian Abbiati who managed to save.
The result leaves Milan in third place on 37 points, six points behind leaders and city rivals Inter, who have a game in hand. Jose Mourinho's side travel to Atalanta on Sunday.
Jankulovski collected a late red card for timewasting, but Milan held on to secure the three points.
Meanwhile, Milan supporters made their opposition to the Kaka bid, and his possible departure, perfectly clear throughout the match -- unveiling a host of banners and singing songs pleading with the Brazilian to stay at the San Siro.
Reggina remain deep in relegation trouble after suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Siena. Mario Frick's goal 15 minutes from time was enough to give the Bianconeri three points which sees them leapfrog Sampdoria and move up to the relative comfort of 14th spot.
Siena in contrast, stay second from bottom and could slip to the foot of the Serie A standings if Chievo beat Napoli on Sunday.
|
2490a2aa2aef4043b97d79cda092c9b3
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Who scored the seventh minute goal?
|
[
"Alexander Pato"
] |
NewsQA
|
MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- Russian authorities are investigating the recent killing of a model-turned-bodyguard.
Anna Loginova in a photo shoot for the Russian edition of Maxim magazine.
Anna Loginova, a 29-year-old former successful model, ran a private security firm of female bodyguards, highly trained in martial arts, demanding high prices to protect Russian billionaires.
One notable client was Russian boxer Kostya Tszyu.
A carjacker pulled Loginova out of her Porsche Cayenne Sunday in Moscow. Loginova grabbed onto the door handle as the car picked up speed and she was dragged along the street before letting go as the car sped away.
"An intruder just threw her out of the car" Russian police stated, "She grabbed the door handle, but when the car picked up speed, she let go."
Her fearlessness proved fatal. Loginova died on the scene from serious cranial injuries. The vehicle was later found abandoned in southern Moscow.
Luxury car theft is common in Moscow. Loginova told Maxim magazine in a recently taped interview that she fought off a car thief just four months ago.
"I stepped out of my car and closed the door when I suddenly saw a young man near me. He grabbed me by the arm in which I was holding the car keys," she was quoted as saying.
"By reflex, I used a jiu-jitsu technique. I twisted his arm and hit him on the face with my elbow. The guy obviously was not expecting such a reaction. He fell down on the rear windshield, which gave me enough time to grab my gun. He immediately jumped into his Honda and drove away,"
Those who knew her said she was never deterred by danger.
For many Russians she was a feminine icon, bridging the glamorous world of modeling and the rough underbelly of Russian crime.
"I think she was kind and sweet, not like a terminator, not like Sigourney Weaver in 'Aliens'" said Igor Cherski from Maxim magazine "but I feel that she was not afraid of anything, there was no fear in her eyes." E-mail to a friend
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cd8ee4fe92034715a286e14c7ed10e08
|
Who did Loginova fight off?
|
[
"a car thief"
] |
NewsQA
|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- The archbishops of Canterbury and York are recommending that churches stop sharing the chalice at communion over swine flu fears, the Church of England said Thursday.
The Church of England's leaders are recommending parishoners don't share the chalice.
The archbishops wrote a letter to all Church of England bishops with the recommendation. It follows government advice not to share "common vessels" for food or drink so as not to spread the virus.
In the Anglican Church, worshippers commonly drink from the same chalice during communion. The chalice is wiped before the next person drinks from it.
For churches that still wish to offer both bread and wine, the archbishops recommend the priest dip communion wafers in the chalice before handing them out to those taking communion.
"The Department of Health have recently advised us that 'in a pandemic it makes good sense to take precautions to limit the spread of disease by not sharing common vessels for food and drink,'" the archbishops write in the letter.
"In the light of this advice, we recommend those presiding at Holy Communion suspend the administration of the chalice during this wave of pandemic flu. For those who still wish to offer in both kinds, we recommend the practice whereby the presiding minister, whose hands should have been washed with the appropriate alcohol-based rub before handling the elements and the vessels, personally intincts all wafers before placing them in the hands of communicants." Watch more on Australian vaccine trial »
The archbishops note that this practice is widely observed in Anglican churches throughout Africa.
"Communicants receiving in this way need to be confident that the clergy and all assistant ministers follow the relevant guidance on hygiene," they write.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader of the worldwide Anglican Church, the second-largest Christian denomination after the Roman Catholic Church.
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a8739ebe69114ec09649e3c66ab53a04
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What did the Church say the move will help stop?
|
[
"swine flu"
] |
NewsQA
|
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Police arrested a man near the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday after he drove up to one of the building's barricades with a rifle in his vehicle and told officers that he had a delivery for President Obama, a Senate spokesman said.
A man drove to the Capitol with a rifle and said he had a delivery for President Obama, police said.
Sgt. Kimberly Schneider identified the man as Alfred Brock, 64, of Winnfield, Louisiana. She said Brock was charged with possession of an unregistered firearm and unregistered ammunition.
Brock drove up to the north barricade at the Capitol late Tuesday afternoon, saying he had a delivery for the president, Schneider said.
After further questioning, he admitted he had a rifle in his truck. He was arrested and taken to police headquarters for processing, she said.
A search of his truck turned up several rounds of ammunition, Schneider said. Police also checked the area around the barricade, but found nothing hazardous.
Threats against Obama have led to arrests in previous cases.
In one, federal prosecutors concluded that three people arrested with drugs and weapons in a suburban Denver, Colorado, motel posed a "true threat" to Obama during the Democratic National Convention.
In the second, a Florida man was charged with threatening bodily harm against the then-candidate in August. He has pleaded not guilty.
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7a7eb4f3f4f2464e9ef805383da51127
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What did Brock tell the police?
|
[
"saying he had a delivery for the president,"
] |
NewsQA
|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Britain's Prince Charles has converted his 38-year-old Aston Martin to run on biofuel made from surplus wine, his office revealed Tuesday.
Prince Charles with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, on a visit to a whiskey distillery in Northern Ireland last month.
The car was a 21st birthday present from Queen Elizabeth, and the prince has converted it to run on 100 percent bioethanol as a way to reduce his carbon emissions, his office, Clarence House, said.
The prince has also converted his other cars -- several Jaguars, an Audi and a Range Rover -- to run on 100 percent biodiesel fuel made from used cooking oil, his office added.
Details of the prince's biofuel use were made public Monday in his household's 2008 Annual Review, which details the prince's income and activities over the past year.
The report says Charles and his household reduced their carbon footprint by 18 percent last year after switching to green electricity supplies and reducing their travel-related emissions.
Charles, 59, has a strong interest in environmental issues and rural affairs. He is active in environmental charities, and his food company, Duchy Originals, uses ingredients produced at his organic farm in Cornwall, southwestern England.
The biofuels are converted and provided by Green Fuels Limited, a British company that previously provided biodiesel to power the royal train, Clarence House said.
The wine used for the bioethanol comes from current vintage that remains after English wine producers reach the EU limit for annual wine production, a spokesman for Green Fuels said.
The prince uses wine from a vineyard close to his Highgrove Estate, the spokesman said.
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7a8571c9f34d44318c153bad3e3747c5
|
Prince Charles' car runs on biofuel made from what?
|
[
"surplus wine,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Manchester United are given more injury-time at the end of matches to equalize or score winning goals than their English Premier League rivals, a study has revealed.
Owen's 96th minute winner at Old Trafford left Manchester City livid.
As the row over the near seven minutes of added time accorded to United to win the Manchester derby with a last-gasp Michael Owen goal continues, the Guardian newspaper probed the official injury-time statistics.
They looked at league matches at United's Old Trafford ground since the start of the 2006-07 season and revealed that, on average, there has been over a minute of extra time added by referees when the English champions do not have the lead.
This is compared to when they are in front, but United have a reputation for scoring late goals on their ways to claiming three straight Premier League crowns.
In 48 games when Alex Ferguson's men were in front, the average amount of stoppage time was 191.35 seconds.
In 12 matches when United were drawing or losing there was an average of 257.17 seconds.
In mitigation, the study revealed that the average stoppage time added at Old Trafford is below that at the home grounds of top four rivals Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.
United's is 205 seconds, compared to Liverpool's 210 seconds, 224 seconds for Arsenal and Chelsea's 229 seconds.
But it is the disparity between the time added on when United are winning or losing which appears to assert the popular assertion that referees allow the match to continue until the Red Devils either equalizer or score the winner.
Manchester City manager Mark Hughes raged over the extra time in the 4-3 thriller on Sunday, speaking of feeling "robbed" as Owen slotted home his winner.
The 2007-08 season shows the greatest difference, with an average of 178.29 second added when United were winning, with official stats from Opta showing 254.5 seconds added when they were not.
The trend has continued in the first three United home games of the season.
In the two matches United have led they have played an average 304 seconds of injury time.
On Sunday, referee Martin Atkinson allowed the game to go on for another 415 seconds, despite his fourth official initially indicating 240 seconds should be added.
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ef306ef5c5ab42cd92dbad762d674697
|
What is apparent about the referee according to the official statistics?
|
[
"allowed the game"
] |
NewsQA
|
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Coalition forces found 26 bodies buried in mass graves and a bloodstained "torture complex," with chains hanging from walls and ceilings and a bed connected to an electrical system, the military said Wednesday.
Twenty-six bodies were found in mass graves near a "torture complex" discovered by coalition forces.
The troops made the discovery while conducting an operation north of Muqdadiya, Iraq.
From December 8 to 11, the troops who found the complex also killed 24 people they said were terrorists and detained 37 suspects, according to a statement issued by Multinational Division North at Camp Speicher in Tikrit.
The moves were part of an operation called Iron Reaper that has been in progress across northern Iraq for the past few weeks.
The complex was in an area thought to be an al Qaeda in Iraq haven and operating base, the military said. Iraqis had told the military about the site during an earlier operation.
"Evidence of murder, torture and intimidation against local villagers was found throughout the area," the military statement said.
Ground forces first found what appeared to be a detention facility, which was one of three connected to the torture complex, Multinational Division North said.
One of the facilities appeared to have been a headquarters building and a torture facility, it added.
As the area was cleared, the bodies were found.
Eventually, 26 bodies were uncovered in mass graves next to what were thought to be execution sites, the military said.
The bodies are believed to have been dead between six and eight months, according to a gruesome military video shot at the scene. Some had their hands tied behind their backs. Identification is proving to be a challenge because of advanced decomposition.
Photos given to the news media show a filthy bed wired to an electrical system, with an outlet hanging from wires on the wall. In the video, troops point out rubber hoses and boxing gloves, a ski mask and a blood-covered sword and knives. Other still photos show an entrance to the underground bunker and barbed wire stretched outside it.
A short distance away from the complex, troops found a bullet-riddled Iraqi police vehicle. Some of the bodies may belong to Iraqi police, according to the military video.
The operation netted nine weapons caches, which have been destroyed, the military said. They included anti-aircraft weapons, sniper rifles, more than 65 machine guns and pistols, 50 grenades and a surface-to-air missile launcher and platform, the statement said.
Also found were mines, pipe bombs, rocket-propelled grenades, mortar tubes and rounds and 130 pounds of homemade explosives. E-mail to a friend
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78cefdfa40154d19882331f6b117db6a
|
What does the military say?
|
[
"complex,\" with chains hanging from walls and ceilings and a bed connected to an electrical system,"
] |
NewsQA
|
(CNN) -- Rwandan troops have crossed into the Democratic Republic of Congo to prepare for a joint operation with Congolese forces against a Hutu militia, the United Nations said.
At least 800,000 people are thought to have died during 100 days of violence in Rwanda in 1994.
"We can tell you there are Rwandan soldiers here, but I cannot confirm the numbers," said Madnodje Mounoubai, spokesman for the U.N. mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Rwandans will team up "with the Congolese forces," he said Wednesday. "The Rwandan forces are in a meeting with Congolese forces and the understanding is that in the meeting they are preparing a joint operation against the FDLR," or the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda.
The Rwanda News Agency reported that Rwanda has dispatched 1,917 soldiers.
Rwanda and Congo traditionally have been on different sides of the conflict in eastern Congo.
The struggle pits ethnic Tutsis, supported by Rwanda, against ethnic Hutu, backed by Congo.
The conflict is effectively an extension of the Rwandan genocide dating back to the early 1990s, when hundreds of thousands of Rwandans were killed in ethnic battles between minority Tutsi and majority Hutu.
According to a statement issued last week by the Rwandan government, the joint military operation is aimed at driving out the FDLR and former members of the Interhamwe militia, "remnants of those who spearheaded the 1994 genocide against Tutsis."
Michael Arunga, a Kenya-based spokesman for the World Vision aid organization, said his colleagues in Goma -- a city in eastern Congo -- told him that Rwandan troops arrived Tuesday morning in the village of Ishsha, outside of Goma.
Arunga said he had no knowledge of Rwandan troops being in Congo before.
A U.N. statement said the FDLR has been involved in clashes since late August mainly in North Kivu, "where the national army, the mainly Tutsi militia -- known as the CNDP -- and other rebel groups ... have fought in shifting alliances, uprooting around 250,000 civilians on top of the 800,000 already displaced by violence in recent years." See photos from Mia Farrow's trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo »
A report by a U.N. Security Council panel last month said Rwanda and Congo were fighting a brutal proxy war for territory and precious natural resources in eastern Congo, and all parties involved in the conflict were using execution, rape and child soldiers as tools of war.
The report, filed by a panel of U.N. experts, "found evidence that Rwandan authorities have sent officers and units of the Rwanda Defense Forces" into Congo in support of Congo rebel leader Laurent Nkunda's fighters.
CNN's Carolina Sanchez contributed to this report.
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44aa11d142ca472ea6714d368416edd3
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What is an extension of the conflict ?
|
[
"the Rwandan genocide"
] |
NewsQA
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(CNN) -- The company was founded in 1985 by seven communications industry veterans -- Franklin Antonio, Adelia Coffman, Andrew Cohen, Klein Gilhousen, Irwin Jacobs, Andrew Viterbi and Harvey White.
One of Qualcomm's first products was OmniTRACS, introduced in 1988, which is currently the largest satellite-based commercial mobile system for the transportation industry.
Today, Qualcomm's patent portfolio includes approximately 6,100 United States patents and patent applications for CDMA and related technologies. More than 130 telecommunications equipment manufacturers worldwide have licensed QUALCOMM's essential CDMA patents.
Qualcomm is among the members of the S&P 500 Index, Fortune 500, and a winner of the U.S. Department of Labor's" Secretary of Labor's Opportunity Award."
The company has been listed among Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For in America" for nine years in a row and the magazine's list of" Most Admired Companies."
Qualcomm's Annual revenue for 2006 was $7.53 billion, with a net income of $2.47 billion. E-mail to a friend
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3f9126411e074509ae2aafcb9a188550
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What is the porfolio size?
|
[
"portfolio includes approximately 6,100 United States patents and patent applications"
] |
NewsQA
|
Paris, France (CNN) -- A French judge has issued an arrest warrant for U.S. cyclist Floyd Landis for allegedly hacking into the computer system of the French anti-doping agency's laboratory, the agency's president said Tuesday.
Investigating Judge Thomas Cassuto issued the warrant January 28 for the alleged hacking of the lab's computer system in 2006, said Marie-Christine Daubigney, the assistant prosecutor of the tribunal in Nanterre, near Paris.
It was not immediately clear why the judge was issuing the warrant after more than three years.
Landis, 34, was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France win and suspended from cycling for two years after he tested positive for synthetic testosterone, a banned male sex hormone.
Oscar Pereiro of Spain inherited the 2006 title after Landis was disqualified. Landis appealed, maintaining the French laboratory made errors in his case.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport, which handles international sports disputes, upheld the ban and the decision to strip him of his title in June 2008. The warrant relates to the computer system of the AFLD, the French anti-doping agency that conducted drugs testing at the Tour, said AFLD President Pierre Bordry.
The International Cycling Union, which governs the sport worldwide, has dropped the AFLD as the anti-doping agency for this year's Tour de France, though the decision has nothing to do with the Landis case, union spokesman Enrico Carpani told CNN.
The decision had to do with comments Bordry made after the 2009 Tour, Carpani said. A new anti-doping agency has yet to be chosen for the 2010 race, he said.
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51ad6b9a7647461dacdd2b60a8c36070
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What is Landis alleged to have done?
|
[
"hacking into the computer system of the French anti-doping agency's laboratory,"
] |
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