US Consumer Bankruptcies Jump By Most In Three Years; Third-Party Collections At All Time High -

US Consumer Bankruptcies Jump By Most In Three Years; Third-Party Collections At All Time High - 



Something funny happened on the road to the epic consumer balance sheet cleansing and subsequent releveraging (without which there can be no actual non-Fed sugar high fueled recovery): the second quarter. And specifically, as the Fed just disclosed in its quarterly Household Debt and Credit Report, the number of consumer bankruptcies during the second quarter, just jumped by 71K, to 380K from 309K in Q1, the biggest quarterly jump in precisely three years - on both an absolute and relative basis - and the most since the 158K jump recorded in Q2 2010. It appears that when the "releveraging" US consumer isn't busy buying stuff on credit, they are just as busy filing for bankruptcy. Healthy consumer-led recovery and all that.




But wait, there's more.

Because as this other data set also from the NY Fed shows, the proportion of US Consumer that have a third-party collection process commenced against them is pretty much at all time highs, where it has been for the past two quarters. Must be the recovery too.



Read more - 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-08-14/us-consumer-bankruptcies-jump-most-three-years-third-party-collections-all-time-high

How a cat helped convict a U.K. killer -

How a cat helped convict a U.K. killer - 



Fingerprints are not the only thing that killers can leave behind — add cat hair to that list.
A British university said Wednesday that its DNA database of British felines helped convict a man of manslaughter, illustrating how the genetic material of pets can be used by crime scene investigators.
“This is the first time cat DNA has been used in a criminal trial in the U.K.,” said Jon Wetton from the University of Leicester. “This could be a real boon for forensic science, as the 10 million cats in the U.K. are unwittingly tagging the clothes and furnishings in more than a quarter of households.”
Although drawing DNA from human hair, saliva, or blood samples has long been a part of crime scene investigations, animal material has also provided invaluable clues. The Veterinary Genetics Laboratory at the University of California, Davis, has used animal DNA to catch criminals for more than a decade — including one case in London in which blood left at the scene of a nightclub stabbing was matched to a murder suspect's bull terrier.

In the latest case in Britain, investigators tapped the same lab to identify the cat hair discovered around the dismembered torso of David Guy, 30, who was found hidden in a trash bag on a British beach in July 2012. Detectives matched the hair to a cat belonging to the man's friend, David Hilder, but because the genetic material was mitochondrial DNA — which can be shared among large number of animals — the strength of the match couldn't be known.
That's where the cat DNA database came in.
Wetton — who had previously helped to set up a similar database for dogs — worked with doctoral student Barbara Ottolini to create a repository of cat DNA for the Hilder case. They gathered samples of mitochondrial DNA from 152 felines across England over a six-week period.
“Only three of the samples obtained matched the hairs from the crime scene,” Wetton said, suggesting that while the match wasn't perfect, it was still a pretty good indication the hairs on the torso came from Hilder's cat.
“No one's going to be convicted on this alone, but if it's helping to reinforce other sorts of evidence then you can paint a picture in the jury's mind,” Wetton said.
In this case there was a host of additional evidence — including traces of Guy's blood discovered at Hilder's residence in Southsea, in southern England — and it was enough to secure the 47-year-old's conviction.
On July 30, Hilder was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 12 years before he is eligible for parole.

Read more - 

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2013/08/14/how_a_cat_helped_convict_a_uk_killer.html

Hackers can now target light bulbs -

Hackers can now target light bulbs - 



In the modern world, everything is online -- and unsafe.
That's the message from researcher Nitesh Dhanjani, who discovered a vulnerability in Philips new line of smartphone-controlled lightbulbs that would allow a hacker to remotely turn them on and off, an action that could have major consequences in hospitals and other public venues, he said.
It’s just one example of the challenges tech companies face in the modern era, where everything from doorknobs to refrigerators is connected and therefore at risk, explained Dan Goodin on Ars Technica.

“They're susceptible to the same kinds of hack attacks that have plagued computer users for decades,” Goodin wrote, a phenomenon known as "the Internet of Things." “[It's] another example of the risks posed by connecting thermostats, door locks, and other everyday devices to the Internet so they can be controlled by someone in the next room or across town.”
“While the so-called Internet of Things phenomenon brings convenience and new capabilities to gadgets, they come at a cost,” he said.
The Philips Hue lightbulbs in question have LED bulbs that can be tuned to any of 16 million colors. The color and on/off status are controlled via an app on an owner’s iPhone or Android-powered smartphone. And through a backdoor in that control software, a hacker can take over the bulb and create a perpetual blackout.
“If the victim manually switches the bulbs off and on, the lights will flicker on for less than half a second and then go off again until the victim recognized and terminates the script,” Dhanjani wrote.
Efforts to explain the problem to Philips fell on deaf ears, the researcher said.
"Image the power of a remote botnet system being able to simultaneously cause a perpetual blackout of millions of consumer lightbulbs," Dhanjani wrote. "As consumer devices permeate homes and offices, this scenario is increasingly likely."


Read more: -

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/08/14/hackers-target-light-bulbs/?test=latestnews

New line of cups and straws detect date rape drugs -

New line of cups and straws detect date rape drugs - 



As the night gets hazier, partiers have a harder time keeping track of their drinks. That makes them vulnerable to sipping odorless, tasteless date-rape drugs. Now a startup plans to combat that by producing drinkware next month that changes when those drugs are present.

A Massachusetts-based company called DrinkSavvy first gained attention last fall when it announced it had developed date-rape-drug-detecting drinkware and then kicked off a crowd-funded campaign to get the products made. The campaign raised more than its $50,000 goal and will begin shipping plastic cups and straws next month, Chris Welch at The Verge reported.
DrinkSavvy founder Michael Abramson, a graduate from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, had once been unknowingly given rohypnol, known as roofies, one night at a Boston nightclub. He woke up on his apartment steps. The experience prompted Abramson, now a patent attorney, to begin collaborating with WPI chemistry and biochemistry researchers on a way to make invisible drugs like rohypnol and ketamine visible.
The result: A line of drinkware products, including straws and 16-ounce plastic cups, containing a special material that changes color when in the presence of certain drugs. The cups reveal red stripes and a clear straw turns red. “That means discrete, effortless and continuous drink monitoring throughout the night,” Abramson said in a video about the products. Next year the company plans to expand its line to glassware, bottles and cans.

DrinkSavvy says its products are going to be free for rape crisis centers. Abramson also indicated he’s hoping to convince bars, clubs and colleges to use the drinkware. Ultimately his goal is to make drug-facilitated sexual assault a thing of the past. Perhaps drinking savvier will get us closer to that vision.


Read more: -

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/08/14/new-line-cups-and-straws-detect-date-rape-drugs/?test=latestnews

Beer-In-a-Bag: Just Add Water -

Beer-In-a-Bag: Just Add Water - 



An Alaskan brewer says it has made a beer from concentrate that tastes and smells as good as a premium micro brew.
Pat’s Backcountry Beverages is planning to launch the beer-in-a-packet this fall that will come in two flavors: pale ale and black ale. All thirsty drinks have to do is add water, carbonate, and knock it back.
Sam Hobbs, director of sales at the company, told the MailOnline that the beer will soon be sold in the U.S. and Canada. "We're hoping to launch it early to mid-September and it should costs around $9.95 for a four pack."
Pat's says it has developed a process to brew concentrate instead of beer. According to the company's website, the process of the beer concentrate begins "with almost no water, and carefully control the environment of the fermentation," making a highly concentrated beer with a percentage similar to that of vodka. But when water and carbonation is added, the result is "the same great taste you’re used to in a premium micro brew."
The company currently sells a carbonated beverage system on its website which can be used to create the beer.  But by the looks of the contraption, getting a head you'd get from a traditional bottle or can could be a little challenging.  


Read more: -

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/08/14/company-to-release-new-beer-from-concentrate-product/

How To Make 7900% In Two Days Thanks To Twitter -

How To Make 7900% In Two Days Thanks To Twitter - 


A CNBC anchor's friendly hint (to keep monitoring twitter) and a well-timed (SEC reg pre-empted) tweet is all one needs to generate a 'healthy' 7900% gain 'trading' stocks in the US markets. Courtesy of the much-hyped expectations that @Carl_C_Icahn would tweet his next big idea, when the activist dropped the buy signal heard around the world yesterday, the lucky holders of the $480 AAPL Aug Calls saw their position appreciate from a cheap bet at $0.20 to a magnificent $16.00... not a bad return for 140 characters work...



and the SEC pre-empting PR from the day before (that had CNBC so excited)...

On April 2, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") issued a report in which it provided guidance to issuers regarding the use of social media to disclose material non?public information.

Our Chairman, Carl C. Icahn, intends to use Twitter from time to time to communicate with the public about our company and other issues.

Mr. Icahn's Twitter handle is @Carl_C_Icahn.

It is possible that the information that Mr. Icahn posts on Twitter (which may include information regarding companies in which we and/or Mr. Icahn have or may be contemplating an investment position) could be deemed to be material information.

Therefore, in light of the SEC's guidance, we encourage investors, the media, and others interested in our company to review the information that Mr. Icahn posts on Twitter in addition to the information that we disclose using our investor relations website (http://www.ielp.com/investor.cfm), SEC filings, press releases, public conference calls and webcasts.

Read more - 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-08-14/how-make-7900-two-days-thanks-twitter

Scientists say sugar at levels considered safe is harmful -

Scientists say sugar at levels considered safe is harmful - 



When mice were fed a diet that was 25% added sugars – an amount consumed by many humans – the females died at twice the normal rate and the males were less likely to reproduce and hold territory, scientists said in a study published Tuesday.

The study shows "that added sugar consumed at concentrations currently considered safe exerts dramatic impacts on mammalian health," the researchers said in the study, published in the journal Nature Communications. "Many researchers have already made calls for reevaluation of these safe levels of consumption."

The study’s senior author, University of Utah biology professor Wayne Potts, said earlier studies fed mice sugars at levels higher than people eat in sodas, cookies, candy and other items. The current study stuck to levels eaten by people.

The mice lived in "seminatural enclosures," and the experimental and control groups lived in direct competition with each other. After being fed the two diets for 26 weeks, the mice lived for 32 weeks in mouse barns -- enclosures of 377 square feet ringed by three-foot walls. There were some nesting areas that were more desirable than others.

"Added sugars" are those added during processing or preparation, not those that occur naturally in fruit or milk. The scientists fed the mice a diet that got its added sugars from half fructose and half glucose monosaccharides, which is about what’s found in high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), Potts said. The study, he said, was not set up to differentiate between the effects of different forms of caloric sweeteners.

The Corn Refiners Assn., a trade group, questioned the use of mice in the study, saying in a statement that the only way to know the effect in people would be to test people.

"Mice do not eat sugar as a part of their normal diet, so the authors are measuring a contrived overload effect that might not be present had the rodents adapted to sugar intake over time," the group said.

Read more - 

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sn-sugar-20130813,0,982020.story

Personal jetpack gets flight permit for manned test -

Personal jetpack gets flight permit for manned test - 



The New Zealand developers of a personalized jetpack said Tuesday that aviation regulators have issued the device with a flying permit, allowing for manned test flights.
Martin Aircraft chief executive Peter Coker said the certification was a significant milestone in the development of the jetpack, which the company hopes to begin selling next year.
"For us it's a very important step because it moves it out of what I call a dream into something which I believe we're now in a position to commercialize and take forward very quickly," Coker told AFP.
The jetpack is the brainchild of inventor Glenn Martin, who began working on it in his Christchurch garage more than 30 years ago.
Inspired by childhood television shows such as "Thunderbirds" and "Lost in Space", Martin set out in the early 1980s to create a jetpack suitable for everyday use by ordinary people with no specialist pilot training.
His jetpack consists of a pair of cylinders containing propulsion fans attached to a free-standing carbon-fibre frame.
The pilot backs into the frame, straps himself in and controls the wingless jetpack with two joysticks.
While the jetpack's concept is simple enough -- Time magazine likened it to two enormous leaf blowers welded together -- fine-tuning it into an aircraft that is safe and easy to use has been a lengthy process.
Coker said the latest prototype, the P12, incorporated huge design improvements over earlier versions.
"Changing the position of the jetpack's ducts has resulted in a quantum leap in performance over the previous prototype, especially in terms of the aircraft's maneuverability," he said.
Coker said a specialized version of the jetpack designed for the military and "first responder" emergency crews such as firefighters should be ready for delivery by mid-2014.
A simpler model aimed at the general public is expected to be on the market in 2015.
The price of your own personal flying machine is estimated at $150,000-250,000, although Coker said the cost was likely to come down over time.


Read more: -

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/08/13/personal-jetpack-gets-flight-permit-for-manned-test/

Device Nags You to Sit Up Straight... Sensor Vibrates Whenever You Slouch... -

Device Nags You to Sit Up Straight...  Sensor Vibrates Whenever You Slouch... -



"Sit up straight. Put your shoulders back. Don't slouch." Chances are good that you've heard nags like these from your mother more than a few times in your life.

This week, I tested a gadget that might give mothers a rest. It's a $150 sensor called LumoBack, from a company called Lumo BodyTech, that straps around your lower waist to track your posture and vibrates whenever you slouch. It also tracks steps while walking and running, standing time, sitting time, sleep positions and sleep time.

I'm nearly eight months pregnant and I've been wearing this gadget on and off for several days and nights. If it fits me, one of the band's two sizes will likely fit you. LumoBack uses Bluetooth to correspond with a free app that runs on Apple's iOS devices. (An Android version of the app is planned before the end of this year.) The company released a new version of its app on Tuesday, as well as a smaller version of its sensor band, both of which I've been testing. The band is sold at LumoBack.com.

Read more -

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323585604579010720828024230.html?mod=WSJ__MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsTop

STUDY: BMW drivers really are jerks... - Men aged 35-50 with Blue BMW cars -

STUDY: BMW drivers really are jerks... - Men aged 35-50 with Blue BMW cars - 



Men who drive blue BMWs are more likely to be aggressive than motorists in any other car, a study claims.
And the peak time for drivers to get angry is 5.45pm on a Friday as they fight the rush-hour – followed by the dismal Monday morning commute.
The likeliest road rage culprits are men aged 35-50 with blue BMW cars, the study of 2,837 motorists found. Drivers also reported run-ins with owners of Land Rovers, Audis, Subarus and Vauxhalls.
Blue was seen as the most aggressive colour, followed by black, silver, green and red.
Men said they lost their temper behind the wheel seven times a month on average, while women got angry on only three occasions.

Drivers most often expressed road rage by shouting and swearing, followed by erratic driving and obscene gestures, the study for discount website VoucherCodesPro revealed.
The poll also found, unsurprisingly, that Monday morning and Friday evening proved to be the most stressful times, when motorists are queuing to get to and from work.

Read more: -

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2390373/BMW-drivers-really-aggressive-drivers-prone-road-rage-wheel.html