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| Iraq civilian death toll 'down' Violence against civilians in Iraq dropped dramatically in 2009, a report by an independent monitoring group says. news.bbc.co.uk |
US fears double-dip recession with rising job losses • Hopes that low interest and higher spending would halt slide• 85,000 December job losses reveals 'disappointing' outlookFears of a double-dip recession in the world's biggest economy were heightened today when Washington announced that the US shed 85,000 jobs last month.Dashing hopes that America was pulling smoothly out of its toughest postwar economic setback, the commerce department revealed that the expected pre-Christmas hiring spree had failed to materialise.Wall Street had been expecting fresh evidence that low interest rates and higher government spending were bringing a halt to the job losses that have sent the US unemployment rate spiralling to 10% – its highest level since the early 1980s.Revisions to November's payroll data showed the first jobs growth – a 4,000 increase – in more than two years. But the dollar, shares and oil prices fell back when the December figures were published.Since the start of the financial crisis in August 2007, the Federal Reserve had cut interest rates to barely above zero and created new electronic money in order to kickstart growth.Analysts said the poor employment numbers meant there was little chance of the US central bank raising rates in the near future, and that was leading to pressure on the dollar.Amelia Bourdeau, senior currency strategist at UBS, said: "It was disappointing. The market had been looking for a flat to slightly positive result and investors had been wondering whether or not the market would price in rate hikes sooner than expected. "That won't be the case. So what we're getting is a weak dollar reaction. I think we'll see selective risk-seeking now, as this number will suggest the Fed won't be hiking rates earlier than the second half."Dan Cook, analyst at IG Markets in Chicago, said: "It's a surprise. I didn't think we'd see something like this until February. I thought we'd have more temporary workers, and the other job indicators we had seemed fairly positive.US unemployment and employment dataUS economyUS economic growth and recessionGreen shootsFinancial crisisLarry Elliottguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Q&A: Haiti earthquake Haiti is on a tectonic plate boundary. But we still don't know when earthquakes will strikeIs it possible to predict earthquakes?We can predict fairly well where earthquakes may occur. The vast majority occur on or near the boundaries of the tectonic plates that cover the Earth, one of which runs through Haiti. However, most plate boundaries consist of very complex networks of faults, so it is not easy to say which one will move next, although in some instances we can suggest which are more likely to slip. Unfortunately, at present we cannot say just when the next quake will occur.This earthquake has devastated the poorest houses in the zone, but it has also affected well-designed buildings. How powerful was this earthquake?The Haiti earthquake was magnitude 7, which releases the energy equivalent of several nuclear bombs. The United States Geological Survey estimates magnitude 7 as equivalent to about half a million tons of high explosive. Each increase of 1 in the magnitude scale is equivalent to 30 times more energy, so this one was only one thousandth of the energy of the magnitude 9.3 earthquake that struck Banda Aceh, in Indonesia, in 2004 and triggered a devastating tsunami.Is this the biggest earthquake to hit Haiti?There is a history of earthquakes in Haiti, but the British Geological Survey estimates that the last one of this size was 250 years ago. There are around 50 earthquakes of this size somewhere in the world each year. There were major earthquakes in Haiti in 1860, 1770, 1761, 1751, 1684, 1673 and 1618.What preparations can be made in areas of risk?This depends very much on the local authorities, education of the people, and, of course, financial resources. In earthquake zones in highly developed regions such as California and Japan, there are strict building codes to ensure that buildings are, as far as possible, "earthquake resistant". There are also regular drills in schools and elsewhere to teach the safest response during an earthquake: stay indoors until the quake ends; shelter in a doorway or under a table. In areas without building codes, the collapse of homes and offices cause many deaths. Another big problem results from destruction of infrastructure by a quake: roads, communications, water, energy and hospitals are all needed to respond to the emergency. Landslides are common, and can cause significant damage.Is it possible this area will suffer other earthquakes in the near future?Smaller aftershocks are occurring now – the USGS measured over 30 up to 14.00 GMT yesterday. I am afraid it is certain that, sooner or later, there will be another big earthquake. It might be soon, or it might not be for hundreds of years.Additional reporting: Damian CarringtonHaitiNatural disasters and extreme weatherguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Airline defends policy of asking obese passengers to buy second seat Air France-KLM says measure is intended to ensure passenger safety following complaints from anti-discrimination campaignersAir France-KLM, one of the world's biggest airlines, was today forced to defend its practice of asking obese passengers to reserve two seats instead of one after anti-discrimination campaigners denounced it as unfair.In what the airline insisted was an attempt to ensure passenger safety on its flights, people too large to fit into a single seat have been encouraged to pay for the extra space, for which they are charged 75% of the standard rate.A spokesman today announced the airline's intention to begin reimbursing obese passengers the price of their second seat on flights that were not full.But while Air France-KLM was keen to stress the advantages of the system to customers "with special requirements", campaigners against obesity discrimination said the policy was unfair in principle."Air France must take into account the individual needs of its passengers," a spokesman for the Allegro Fortissimo campaign group said. "A passenger should only have to pay for one ticket."Nadine Morano, the French junior minister for the family, criticised any policy that resulted in passengers being charged more because of their size."If people have to pay twice because of their illness, I find that shocking," she said.Contrary to earlier reports, which said Air France-KLM was introducing a mandatory two-seat charge for obese customers, the airline insisted the two-seat rule was a "recommendation", not an obligation.Under the modified policy – due to come into effect on reservations made after 1 February for flights leaving after 1 April – passengers would be reimbursed "in 99% of cases", a spokesman said.But he admitted that, on flights with no free seats, a passenger who was too large to fit into a standard seat and could not fasten their seatbelt could face being turned away."An aircraft has to be evacuated in emergencies within 90 seconds. If you have difficulties sitting on your seat ... it could have a serious impact on security," he said.This is not the first time Air France's policy on overweight passengers has come under scrutiny.In 2007, it was ordered to pay damages of €8,000 (£6,935) to a 160kg Frenchman forced to pay for a second seat.But it is far from being the only airline to provoke controversy – last year, Ryanair said it was considering imposing a "fat tax" on passengers who "invade the space of the person next to them".Several US airlines, such as Delta and American Airlines, say that, when flights are full, passengers who cannot fit into a single seat will have to buy another.FranceAir transportLizzy Daviesguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Keri Glassman - The O2 Diet - Video Nutritionist Keri Glassman Provides the Tools for Wellness in Her New Book, The O2 Diet feedproxy.google.com |