CFTC bans Corzine-style deals (Politico)

Financial regulators Monday banned the kinds of in-house deals that may have contributed to the the bankruptcy of MF Global and the downfall of Jon Corzine, the former New Jersey Democratic governor and senator whose ties to Wall Street once made him a possible contender to become the next Treasury secretary.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission voted 5-0 on a rule stemming from the Dodd-Frank reforms that limits how futures brokerages can invest their customers? money.

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MF Global, where Corzine had served as the chief executive, is missing an estimated $1.2 billion in customer funds, though it?s unclear whether the brokerage siphoned off client money through repurchase agreements that are now forbidden by the rule. The agreements allowed the brokerage to borrow from its customers.

Corzine, among others, lobbied the CFTC earlier this year to postpone finalizing the rule, which also prevents brokerages from investing customer money in foreign sovereign debt.

?We proposed this rule in October 2010, and since then, I have consistently felt the CFTC needed to finalize it to ensure customer funds are protected,? CFTC chairman Gary Gensler, who worked with Corzine at the investment bank Goldman Sachs, said in his opening statement at a Monday commission meeting. ?This rule is important, but the agency will look at additional ways to enhance customer protections.?

MF Global and Corzine have emerged as prime targets for Republicans in Washington, with the House Agriculture Committee issuing a subpoena to have the former governor testify at a Thursday hearing. The House Financial Services Oversight and Investigations subcommittee will hold a separate hearing on December 15.

A tight budget might cause the CFTC to struggle implementing the rule, as Congress approved a $205 million budget for the agency - lopping more than $100 million off the 2012 request from President Barack Obama.

?Without funding, the CFTC simply does not have enough cops on the beat to patrol the high-crime area that Wall Street has become,? said Dennis Kelleher, president of Better Markets, a nonprofit advocating for greater transparency in the financial markets.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/politico_rss/rss_politico_mostpop/http___www_politico_com_news_stories1211_69796_html/43810650/SIG=11m5tkbg1/*http%3A//www.politico.com/news/stories/1211/69796.html

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No. 15 Wisconsin beats No. 11 Michigan State 42-39

Wisconsin's Nick Toon runs against Michigan State's Trenton Robinson during the second half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Wisconsin's Nick Toon runs against Michigan State's Trenton Robinson during the second half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Wisconsin's Aaron Henry (7) laterals the football to B.J. Cunningham as Wisconsin's Antonio Fenelus defends during the first half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. Cunningham scored a touchdown on the play. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Wisconsin's Jared Abbrederis is tackled by Michigan State's Brad Sonntag during the first half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Michigan State's Keshawn Martin is tackled by Wisconsin's Marcus Cromartie during the first half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

Michigan State's Le'Veon Bell goes in to the end zone for a touchdown ahead of Wisconsin's Ethan Hemer during the first half of the Big Ten conference championship NCAA college football game on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? Montee Ball ran for three touchdowns including the decisive 7-yard score with 3:45 to go, leading No. 15 Wisconsin past No. 11 Michigan State 42-39 in the inaugural Big Ten championship game.

Wisconsin (11-2) is now headed to its second straight Rose Bowl.

Ball ran 27 times for 137 yards and caught a TD pass, giving him 38 touchdowns this season. That's one short of Barry Sanders' single-season record.

Russell Wilson was 17 of 24 for 187 yards with three TDs and no interceptions. He set a new NCAA record with a TD pass in his 37th straight game. Texas Tech's Graham Harrell had the previous mark of 36.

The Big Ten's first championship game made the idea of a conference title tilt seem like a good one.

Michigan State (10-3) rallied from a 21-7 first-quarter deficit to take a 29-21 halftime lead and still led 39-34 after Dan Conway's 25-yard field midway through the fourth quarter.

But Wilson and Ball answered with a score and a 2-point conversion.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-12-04-T25-Big%20Ten%20Championship/id-9cd533100a384983ac645adfcb4807b4

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Video: Decision 2012

>> on decision 2012 , let's bring in cnbc's chief washington correspondent john harwood . we witnessed plenty of surges in this race. you had bachmann, perry, cain, all had their turn. how does gingrich's rise differ, if at all?

>> reporter: it is a bigger threat to mitt romney because of how close it comes to when voting starts in january. because of newt gingrich 's national track record as the leader of the 1994 republican revolution , gingrich starts way behind in organization to convert popular support into delegates and money for tv ads and mitt romney has just begun to advertise.

>> we heard it a moment ago, some white house attacks seem to presuppose romney as the nominee. might that change?

>> reporter: i wouldn't expect the white house to change tactics at all. they clearly fear mitt romney more than any other republican candidate. they believe as democrats do generally that the background and record of newt gingrich makes him an easy target, but we have seen that the white house doesn't always calculate those things correctly as we saw in 1980 when president jimmy carter 's aides wanted to run against ronald reagan .

>> john harwood , appreciate the insight. thanks.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/45543653/

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Herman Cain supporters fret over next step (Politico)

For Herman Cain?s supporters, his decision to suspend his presidential campaign brings confusion about where to go next, frustration with the political process and heartbreak.

They won?t go to their next choice with the same fervor ? if they get involved in the primary at all.

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?I feel like I?ve thrown my money away,? Greg Pucci, a western Michigan businessman who gave Cain $1,000 after seeing him at a Grand Rapids rally last month, said Friday. ?I?m not going to get burned like this again. I?m not going to give another dime to anybody until I figure out who is going to be the nominee.?

The same goes for Florida state Rep. Scott Plakon, who backed Tim Pawlenty and then threw his support to Cain before the Florida straw poll. Plakon said he?ll work for the GOP nominee in the general election but plans to stay out of presidential politics until the general election field is set.

?I may just focus on my legislative duties now,? he said. ?That?s not final, but that?s my feeling right now.?

And Jack Hoogendyk, a former Michigan state representative who has organized tea party supporters in the state for Cain, said he?s not ready to work for anyone else.

?My inclination is to step back and reassess who is still in and maybe wait through the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primaries,? he said. ?I?m not necessarily in a big hurry to jump on board with another campaign.?

For those who are ready to move on to a new candidate, Newt Gingrich is expected to be the biggest beneficiary: 38 percent of Cain backers list Gingrich as their second choice, according to Public Policy Polling.

But no other candidate engenders the same enthusiasm. Mike Rogers, a Hollis, N.H., telecommunications engineer, broke his wrist after falling while hanging a banner before a Cain rally in Nashua last month, then returned to the rally with his arm in a sling.

?I think I wind up with Newt,? Rogers said. ?If you asked me in June, I?d have have said, ?Hell no, that guy doesn?t have a prayer.? We may have to take the rough with the smooth and pray this guy knows what he?s doing.?

Dave Funk, the co-chairman of the Polk County, Iowa, GOP, said while he expects about half of Cain?s support going to Gingrich, though Rick Perry?s organization been working hard to court Cain?s Iowa staff and influential supporters in the state.

That squares with results earlier this week from Iowa pollster J. Ann Selzer, who said Gingrich and Perry will be the chief beneficiaries of Cain?s departure.

?They are working very rapidly,? Funk said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/politico_rss/rss_politico_mostpop/http___www_politico_com_news_stories1211_69702_html/43794859/SIG=11m3n56sa/*http%3A//www.politico.com/news/stories/1211/69702.html

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This Beautiful Water Jug Opens and Closes Automagically [Design]

Created by Danish designer Pil Bredahal, this water jug is not only beautiful but useful, opening automatically when you pour and keeping ice and any other solids inside. Also, the picture makes me thirsty for a gin-tonic. [Amazon via Swiss Miss] More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/2OfS6vRkEU0/this-beautiful-water-jug-opens-and-closes-automagically

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U.S. jobless rate drops to 2-1/2 year low (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The U.S. unemployment rate tumbled to a 2-1/2 year low in November, even though the pace of hiring remained too slow to suggest a significant acceleration in the labor market recovery.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 120,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said on Friday, and the jobless rate dropped to 8.6 percent, the lowest since March 2009, from 9.0 percent in October.

It was the biggest monthly decline since January. While part of the decrease was due to people leaving the labor force, the household survey from which the department calculates the unemployment rate also showed solid gains in employment.

"The economy is continuing to head in the right direction," said Millan Mulraine, senior macro strategist at TD Securities in New York. "However, the ultimate test of the sustainability of the recovery is for the economy to create a sufficient number of jobs to sustain a consumer-led rebound in activity."

"On this measure, this report falls short," he said.

Although the gain in the number of jobs created as measured by the survey of employers was relatively modest, it marked a pick-up from October's upwardly revised 100,000 increase.

In all, 72,000 more jobs were created in October and September than previously reported.

The retail sector accounted for more than a third all new private sector jobs in November as shops geared up for a busy holiday season, but average earnings fell two cents.

So far data ranging from manufacturing to retail sales suggest the U.S. economy's growth pace could top 3 percent in the fourth quarter, an acceleration from the third quarter. In contrast, much of the rest of the world is slowing and the euro zone appears to have already fallen into recession.

FED MAY STILL ACT

Stocks on Wall Street rose on both the employment report and growing optimism of a solution to the European debt crisis. Prices for U.S. government debt rose and the dollar gained against a basket of currencies.

The report could temper the appetite among some Federal Reserve officials to ease monetary policy further.

In forecasts released earlier this month, the Fed said the jobless rate would likely average 9 percent to 9.1 percent in the fourth quarter. It did not expect it to drop to an 8.5 percent to 8.7 percent range until late next year.

"The drop in the unemployment rate may make them a little less antsy to pull out the big guns, but there is still not enough evidence of sustained, above-trend growth to get them to stop worrying about downside risks," said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan in New York.

However, it is unlikely to take much pressure off President Barack Obama, whose economic stewardship will face the judgment of voters next November.

Obama used the report to press Congress to extend a payroll tax holiday which expires this month. Economists have warned that failure to renew the tax cut would a significant drag on the recovery next year.

"Now is not the time to slam the brakes on the recovery, right now its time to step on the gas," Obama said.

ROBUST HOUSEHOLD JOB GAINS

While the government's survey of employers has shown a still-tepid pace of job growth, its separate poll of households has shown robust jobs gains for four straight months amounting to 1.28 million.

Analysts were unperturbed by the exit by 315,000 people from the labor force last month, noting that more people had piled in over the last three months. If the labor participation rate had held steady, the unemployment rate would have fallen less dramatically to 8.9 percent.

The expiration of extended long-term unemployment benefits at the end of December may have contributed to the big drop in the labor force, as well as some of the so-called baby-boomers retiring.

In order to qualify for unemployment benefits, recipients have to be actively looking for work.

"It is likely that many long-term unemployed workers are dropping out as their unemployment insurance benefits expire. Many of these workers will likely stay out of the job market permanently," said Sophia Koropeckyj, a director of research at Moody's Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Also pointing to the improving labor market tone, a broad measure of unemployment that includes people who want to work but have given up looking for jobs and those working only part time for economic reasons dropped to a 2-1/2 year low of 15.6 percent in November from 16.2 percent in October.

Last month, the private sector added 140,000 jobs and government employment fell 20,000. Elsewhere, retail employment surged 49,800, the most in seven months.

Construction payrolls fell for second straight month, while factory jobs edged up 2,000. Temporary hiring -- seen as a harbinger for future hiring - increased 22,300.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111202/bs_nm/us_usa_economy

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A natural dye obtained from lichens may combat Alzheimer's disease

ScienceDaily (Dec. 2, 2011) ? A red dye derived from lichens that has been used for centuries to color fabrics and food appears to reduce the abundance of small toxic protein aggregates in Alzheimer's disease. The dye, a compound called orcein, and a related substance, called O4, bind preferentially to small amyloid aggregates that are considered to be toxic and cause neuronal dysfunction and memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease. O4 binding to small aggregates promotes their conversion into large, mature plaques which researchers assume to be largely non-toxic for neuronal cells.

Further research with animal models is needed to determine whether this new approach by Dr. Jan Bieschke (Max Delbr?ck Center for Molecular Medicine, MDC, Berlin-Buch), Dr. Martin Herbst (Charit? -- Universit?tsmedizin Berlin) and Professor Erich Wanker (MDC) in Berlin, Germany, will be useful for therapy development.

Protein misfolding is considered to be the cause of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and also Huntington's disease. In a multistep process, proteins misfold and accumulate into large extra- or intracellular plaques. Researchers assume that small misfolded protein aggregates that are precursors of mature plaques are toxic for nerve cells and are the reason why they are eventually destroyed.

Dye from the Canary Islands

The dye orcein is isolated from lichens that grow on the Canary Islands, among other places. Lichens have been used for centuries to color fabrics and food. Eight years ago Professor Wanker screened hundreds of natural compounds to find potential candidate drug molecules for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Among those substances he found orcein, a compound made up of about 14 small molecules. As these molecules might have different biological effects, the researchers in Berlin began to search for pure chemicals with similar properties. They identified the substance O4, a blue dye, which is structurally very similar to one of the 14 molecules. Moreover, they showed that O4 stimulates the formation of large, non-toxic protein plaques from small toxic protein assemblies.

New Mechanism

A few years ago Professor Wanker and his colleagues discovered that EGCG (Epigallocatechin-3-gallate), a natural chemical compound found in green tea, renders toxic protein assemblies non-toxic. With orcein and O4 the researchers have now found another mechanism to eliminate small toxic protein aggregates. However, instead of remodeling protein plaques, the dyes reduce the abundance of small, toxic precursor protein assemblies by accelerating the formation of large plaques, as the researchers could now show in their laboratory.

"This is a new mechanism," Professor Wanker explained. "Up to now it has been considered to be very difficult to stop the formation of small toxic protein assemblies. If our hypothesis is correct that the small aggregates, which are precursors of plaques, indeed cause neuronal death, with O4 we would have a new mechanism to attack the disease."

The synthetic dye methylene blue is currently being tested in clinical trials. This dye also seems to stimulate the formation of large plaques in a way similar to O4. Other therapeutic approaches tested in clinical trials which aim at eliminating small precursor aggregates have so far not led to a significant improvement of disease symptoms.

However, it still remains to be seen whether the blue dye O4 can also be effective against small amounts of misfolded proteins in the brains of Alzheimer's patients and whether the accelerated formation of larger plaques can indeed reduce the signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's disease in humans. Further studies will be necessary to address the question whether the accelerated formation of large plaques can be a therapeutic approach. "We hope that our findings will stimulate research activities in this direction, especially in drug discovery," Professor Wanker said.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Jan Bieschke, Martin Herbst, Thomas Wiglenda, Ralf P Friedrich, Annett Boeddrich, Franziska Schiele, Daniela Kleckers, Juan Miguel Lopez del Amo, Bj?rn A Gr?ning, Qinwen Wang, Michael R Schmidt, Rudi Lurz, Roger Anwyl, Sigrid Schnoegl, Marcus F?ndrich, Ronald F Frank, Bernd Reif, Stefan G?nther, Dominic M Walsh, Erich E Wanker. Small-molecule conversion of toxic oligomers to nontoxic ?-sheet?rich amyloid fibrils. Nature Chemical Biology, 2011; DOI: 10.1038/NCHEMBIO.719

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/hVAewOE2BTw/111202155519.htm

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Kanye gets 7 Grammy noms; Adele, Mars, Foos get 6 (AP)

It was Adele's year, and when the Grammy Awards are revealed next February, it very well may be her night.

But on Wednesday night, the British songstress shared in the Grammy nominations glory. While she was nominated for six trophies, including album of the year for "21" and record and song of the year for her bitter groove "Rolling in the Deep," Bruno Mars and the Foo Fighters also received six each, and it was Kanye West who was the night's top leader, with seven nominations.

West was nominated for song of the year for his all-star anthem "All of the Lights," which featured everyone from Rihanna to Elton John. But even though the album from which it came, "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," heralded an epic album by critics when it was released last year, it was not featured in the best album category (so far, no obligatory West rant has surfaced in response).

Bon Iver, the folky indie rock act that was a key part of "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" and received a popularity boost from its association with Kanye, was one of the night's big winners, receiving four nominations, including for best artist, and song and record of the year for "Holocene." And last year's critical darlings, Mumford & Sons, were once again nominated, receiving among their bids for song and record of the year for "The Cave."

Other multiple nominees were Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Radiohead, and dubstep artist Skrillex, who landed a bid for best new artist among his surprising five nominations.

Among the evening's biggest eye-openers were the artists not mentioned in certain categories. Taylor Swift, who won best album in 2010 for "Fearless" and was considered to be a key favorite for her multiplatinum "Speak Now," only got her three nominations in the country fields, and Tony Bennett, who had a feel-good story as his "Duets II" album made him the oldest act to debut an album at No. 1 at age 85, was not nominated for album of the year, as some critics had predicted.

West's joint album with Jay-Z, "Watch the Throne," was also ignored for best album.

Mars, who like Adele was nominated in all the top three categories ? record, album and song of the year ? was estatic about his night. He was nominated for song and record of the year for "Grenade," album for "Doo-Wops & Hooligans," and best pop solo performance, among other bids.

"It feels incredible. Me and these guys, we locked ourselves in the studio not too far from here and worked on this album, especially `Grenade.' That's the song we worked the hardest on. That's like our trophy right there. Of all the songs we've been fortunate enough to be a part of this year, we were most proud of that one," Mars said after the nominations, some of which were announced in Los Angeles at the Nokia Theatre as part of the Recording Academy's hour-long concert nominations special.

Mars, who was part of the CBS special, along with Rihanna, Lady Gaga, The Band Perry and others, also got key nominations last year. But he said of awards: "I'm trying to get used to it. It's hard for me, because Adele is incredible. Kanye West is incredible. All these people are just incredible and they all offer something different, so the fact that this album got recognized and is being categorized alongside these acts, that's the craziest part, because I'm a fan of all of this music."

The academy seemed to be fans of a wide variety of music as well. They top categories honored rap, pop, indie music, folk and dance.

Adele's "21" is the year's top-selling album with more than 4.5 million albums sold, and the singer-songwriter's mournful post-breakup album produced smash hits like the torch ballad "Someone Like You." Besides "21," the best album candidates inclduded Lady Gaga; Gaga garnered her third straight nod in the category for "Born This Way," while veteran rockers the Foo Fighters were nominated for "Wasting Light," along with Mars' debut album, and Rihanna's steamy dance album "Loud."

For record of the year, besides Bon Iver, Adele, Mars and Mumford & Sons, Katy Perry's inspirational anthem "Firework" got a nod. The category looked virtually the same for song of the year, with "Firework" being replaced by West's "All of the Lights."

Unlike the past two years, which saw Swift and fellow country act Lady Antebellum soar in the general categories, the only country act that got a mainstream nomination was the country sibling act The Band Perry. Best known for their poignant ballad "If I Die Young," they got a nomination for best new artist. Their competition also includes Bon Iver, Jay-Z rap prot?g? J. Cole, Skrillex and rapper-singer Minaj.

"It's been an amazing evening," said lead singer Kimberly Perry. "We got the good news yesterday that our debut album went platinum, it was certified yesterday, to so follow it with a nomination tonight is phenomenal. We're just in the clouds, absolutely."

The 54th Grammys will be held Feb. 12 in Los Angeles. The ceremony will mark the first since the academy shaved its categories from 109 to 78 this year, amid some protest. Some of the more niched categories, like best Zydeco or Cajun music album, were eliminated.

In addition, men and women now compete together in vocal categories for pop, R&B and country, instead of having separate categories for each sex. This year, the category is best pop solo performance and Bruno Mars is the only man nominated for "Grenade." His competition includes Adele for "Someone Like You," Lady Gaga for "You and I," Pink for "(Expletive) Perfect" and Perry for "Firework."

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Online:

http://www.grammy.com

___

Entertainment Writer Sandy M. Cohen contributed to this report.

____

Nekesa Mumbi Moody is the AP's music editor. Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/nekesamumbi. AP Entertainment Writer Sandy M. Cohen is at http://www.twitter.com/apsandy

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111201/ap_en_mu/us_grammy_nominations

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