Further burnishing his bullish case is the fact that the euro broke decisively above the $1.10 level, which "projects measured upside to $1.15 ... ultimately I think we test the 150-day [moving average] around the $1.17 level."

Taking the broader view, Ross says that the countertrend move ultimately leaves "room for a bounce into $1.20 to $1.22," he said. "You want to be a buyer of the euro in anticipation of that bounce."

A further move higher would make sense given market positioning, said Andrew Burkly, head of portfolio analysis at Oppenheimer, in the same "Power Lunch" segment.

Going long the dollar against the euro "became a very crowded trade a month ago ... and we're starting to see that unwind a bit," he said.

However, not everyone is a true euro believer just yet.

While granting that a bullish technical case can be made, currency strategist Kathy Lien of BK Asset Management used bold red letters to warn clients in a Thursday afternoon missive that "the one thing that is NOT supporting the uptrend in the EUR/USD is fundamentals."

Short covering and the breaking of a resistance level have juiced the common currency in the near term, but given the state of the European economy, "these resistance levels along with the overstretched rally should lead to a near-term move back down to $1.10," Lien wrote.

Summary: The euro has bounced sharply against the U.S. dollar. But technical indicators could point to more upside ahead.


* IMF, EU and ECB hammer out joint proposal to put to Greece

* Tsipras: Athens sent creditors "realistic plan" to exit crisis

* Greek officials say will reject any "take-it-or-leave-it" offer

* Leaders of Germany, France press for solution this week

BRUSSELS/ATHENS, June 2 (Reuters) - Greece's creditors drafted the broad lines of an agreement on Tuesday to put to the leftist government in Athens in a bid to conclude four months of acrimonious negotiations and release aid before the cash-strapped country runs out of money.

The joint effort by the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund to set out the terms for a cash-for-reforms deal came after the leaders of Germany and France held emergency talks with the institutions in Berlin on Monday night to press the lenders to bridge their own differences and find a solution.

"It covers all key policy areas and reflects the discussions of recent weeks. It will be discussed with (Greek Prime Minister Alexis) Tsipras tomorrow," a senior EU official said.

Another official said German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande would put the plan to Tsipras by telephone within hours to try to secure his acceptance.

Tsipras, who has vowed not to surrender to more austerity, tried to pre-empt a take-it-or-leave-it offer by the creditors, sending what he called a comprehensive reform proposal to Brussels on Monday before they could complete their version.

Euro zone officials branded the Greek text insufficient and said it was not formally on the table.

The Greek leader faces a backlash from his own supporters if he has to accept cuts in pensions and job protection to avert a default and keep Greece in the euro zone.

Despite defiant rhetoric and face-saving efforts, he seems likely to have to swallow painful pension and labor reforms, facing the choice between putting them to parliament at the risk of a revolt in his Syriza party, or calling a snap referendum.

Starved of aid and access to bond markets, Athens is precipitously close to running out of money. It has threatened to default on an IMF payment this week without a deal, though it also says it will reject any ultimatums.

Failure to reach agreement this month could trigger a Greek default and lead to the imposition of capital controls and a potential exit from the euro zone, dealing a serious blow to Europe's supposedly irreversible single currency.

The euro zone source said the Greek document contained no significant concessions on the main outstanding issues of pension and labor market reform, fiscal targets and the size of the civil service.

The European Union's economics chief said earlier Athens had put forward first proposals for pension reform as the talks reach a crunch point this week with Greek funds drying up.

The chairman of euro zone finance ministers, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who was not at the Berlin meeting, said there were growing indications that Greece wanted a deal, but that required the Greek government to tell its voters the truth, that it will not be able to deliver on all its election promises.

"There are signs that Greece and Tsipras are motivated to achieve a breakthrough," Dijsselbloem told RTL Nieuws. "We aren't far enough along and time is pressing."

"The bottom line is that we are not going to meet them halfway," he said. "The package as a whole must make sense in budgetary terms."

The Berlin meeting showed that national and international leaders have taken the battle to keep Greece in the euro zone into their own hands after months of insisting it was a matter for technical negotiations among experts.

A Greek government official said Athens would make a 300 million euro ($329.58 million) repayment to the IMF on Friday as due if there was an agreement with the creditors, hinting it might otherwise withhold the money without saying so explicitly.

"If we judge that a deal has been sealed, then we will make the June 5 payment normally," the official said, adding that the money would be transferred even if a preliminary agreement had not yet been approved by Eurogroup finance ministers.

Greece's central bank governor, Yannis Stournaras, who served as finance minister in a previous conservative-led government, urged the government to respect the "sacrifices" its people had made to stay in the euro, citing a 35 percent drop in living standards since the crisis began in 2009.

EU Economy Commissioner Pierre Moscovici deflected Greek demands for official debt relief, saying the issue of making Greek debt sustainable in the longer term would only be addressed once Athens had accepted a reform deal to release some 7.2 billion euros in frozen aid.

That program expires at the end of June unless there is an agreement.

The ECB's top banking supervisor, Daniele Nouy, stressed on Tuesday that Greece's banks remain solvent despite deposit outflows and the government's cash squeeze - a key condition for the central bank continuing to provide emergency liquidity.

Greek officials say the IMF has been toughest in demanding pension cuts and opposing any restoration of collective wage bargaining, while some euro zone governments have privately accused Juncker and Moscovici of being too soft on Athens.

Greece has received two EU/IMF bailouts totalling 240 billion euros since 2010, when it lost access to capital markets after admitting it had issued erroneous figures for years concealing the true scale of its budget deficit. ($1 = 0.9102 euros)

(Additional reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Karolina Tagaris in Athens, Andreas Rinke in Berlin and Leigh Thomas in Paris; Writing by Paul Taylor and Deepa Babington,; editing by Anna Willard)

Summary: *Tsipras: Athens sent creditors "realistic plan" to exit crisis. BRUSSELS/ ATHENS, June 2- Greece's creditors drafted the broad lines of an agreement on Tuesday to put to the leftist government in Athens in a bid to conclude four months of acrimonious negotiations and release aid before the cash-strapped country runs out of money. The joint effort by the European...


(Adds Gross comments on CNBC, details)

NEW YORK, April 21 (Reuters) - Bill Gross of Janus Capital Group Inc said on Tuesday that German 10-year Bunds were "the short of a lifetime" and that the trade could earn 10-15 percent over a period of one to two years.

"It's certainly a trade that doesn't cost you anything in the short-term because it doesn't yield anything, and it has an ultimate potential of 10 or 15 percent over a one- or two-year period," the closely watched U.S. bond investor told cable television network CNBC.

Gross had previously said in a tweet on Tuesday that German 10-year Bunds were "the short of a lifetime. Better than the pound in 1993. Only question is Timing / ECB QE."

Gross, who told CNBC his Janus Global Unconstrained Bond Fund was "in the trade" as of the last reporting period at the end of March, also said the risk was "minimal" relative to the reward and suggested the trade could earn more through leverage.

"You've got 200 basis points of spread to narrow between German bunds and U.S. Treasuries," Gross said. "If levered, gosh, maybe you don't do as well as Soros and Druckenmiller, but it comes close," he said.

Gross was referring to investors George Soros and Stanley Druckenmiller, who made their names betting against the pound in 1992.

German 10-year Bund yields have hit fresh record lows since the European Central Bank began purchases of public-sector bonds on March 9 as part of its trillion-euro stimulus program, with the latest low of 0.049 percent touched on April 17.

The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield, by comparison, was last at 1.92 percent.

The ECB has committed to buying 60 billion euros of assets a month with newly created money until September 2016, or longer if needed, to get inflation back on track to hit its target of just below 2 percent.

Gross also opined on the U.S. Justice Department's announcement Tuesday of the arrest of a high-frequency trader in Britain over charges he manipulated the futures market and played a role in sparking the 2010 "flash crash."

Gross said he would point not to one individual, but to leveraged financial market conditions.

"These things happen, it's really a function of leverage and the ability I suppose of one individual or one firm to impose their will on the market for a short period of time," Gross said.

(Reporting By Sam Forgione and Jennifer Ablan; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Paul Simao)

Summary: NEW YORK, April 21- Bill Gross of Janus Capital Group Inc said on Tuesday that German 10- year Bunds were "the short of a lifetime" and that the trade could earn 10-15 percent over a period of one to two years. Gross was referring to investors George Soros and Stanley Druckenmiller, who made their names betting against the pound in 1992.. German 10- year Bund yields have...


A couple in the US have decided to adopt a child with Down syndrome, a process which would take them two years.

When Mercedes Lara approached her husband Andy and suggested they adopt a baby with the condition, she didn’t expect him to agree so quickly.

The couple understood people with Down syndrome have unique physical and developmental needs, but were ready for the challenge and began the adoption process straight away.

It took two years before they officially adopted their daughter Sunflower Mae.

Ms Lara documented the process in a video for LittleThings.com, filming her earliest moments with her daughter and her time in court before the adoption was approved.

“In my career I’ve never had a couple come in and say ‘we’re here to adopt a Down syndrome baby’,” a spokesman from the adoption agency said in the video, speaking for the couple in court.

The judge overseeing the decision joked with the couple before agreeing to the adoption.

“This isn’t a democratic process, we don’t put it up for a vote,” he said.

“Well let’s find out, all in favour say aye,” he said to a resounding aye from the audience.

“Those opposed, leave the courtroom,” he quipped.

Ms Lara said Sunflower had brightened their lives every day since joining their family.

“She’s taught us what it means to love unconditionally and what it means to be selfless,” Ms Lara said.

“Every morning she brings us joy just by waking up, just by waking up she brings us joy and it’s like that for the whole rest of the day.”

The couple said in the video their new daughter was a gift from God.

Ms Lara wrote a message to Sunflower Mae on her Instagram account shortly after the adoption.

“Joy overflows from you and their (sic) are no words for how beautiful you truly are! Always be strong and courageous my darling<3 we love you <3 Mom and Dad."

Watch the full video here.

Do you have any news photos or videos?


One small corner of the materials sector is flying high.

The S&P 500 materials stocks have tumbled more than 12 percent year to date, hit by falling commodity prices and concerns about global growth.

But construction materials stocks Martin Marietta Materials and Vulcan Materials are actually two of the best performers in the S&P this year, beaten only by popular tech picks Netflix and Amazon.

Stifel analyst Stanley Elliott said the performance of such companies is exclusively focused on domestic growth, which is one reason why these stocks have been on the rise. Construction materials stocks won't see the same impact as the rest of the materials sector from global markets, currencies and commodities, Elliott said.

Additionally, infrastructure spending in both the public and private sectors are growing, he said.

"There hasn't been a silver bullet, if you well, but there have been several things all trending in the right direction," Elliott said Thursday in a phone interview.

According to Elliott, state and local infrastructure funds are seeing a boost in revenue streams from healthier budgets, gas and sales taxes and public-private partnerships in the form of toll roads.

Elliott is also watching the process of a six-year highway bill that was passed by the Senate this summer, which would aid visibility and planning in construction projects, as well as improve confidence. Although the bill has yet to pass in the House, the prospect of a more long-term plan is "at least encouraging," he said.

Read More U.S. House Republicans plan 3-month highway bill, no trade bank renewal

Growth has been even better on the private side, Elliott said, which has seen increased construction of residential properties, commercial properties, hospitals and other buildings.

However, Elliott said much of the growth has been recovery from a post-recession plunge.

"This is an industry that has fallen from peak 40 percent in some markets [since the recession]," Elliott said. "What we've seen so far has been an inflection, as opposed to growth above a normal trend."

Read MoreUS housing starts approach eight-year high in July

But Erin Gibbs of S&P Capital IQ said there should be plenty of room left to run for Martin Marietta and Vulcan in particular, which expect to see earnings growth in the mid-teens by next year.

"These guys look good both from a valuation perspective, and they're fundamentally growing," Gibbs said Wednesday on CNBC's "Trading Nation." "Valuations are trading below their historical averages, they're below the analyst consensus target prices."

Summary: Within the beaten-down materials sector, two little-known stocks are soaring. Here's the reason behind the surge.


We Dem Boyz/Splash News Online

10/16/2015 AT 12:55 PM EDT

Between her killer abs and new rumored flame, there are plenty of reasons to be "

After attending a charity event Thursday night, the actress changed into a sexy cutout jumpsuit and went to New York City's Up & Down nightclub, where rumored beau

We Dem Boyz / Splash News Online

The Fabletics founder's skin-baring black jumpsuit showed off her incredible abs, super toned arms and generally age-defying physique. She paired the jumpsuit with matching open-toe, platform heels and a small black clutch. Jonas stepped out in a red hoodie sweatshirt, black jeans and white sneakers.

We Dem Boyz / Splash News Online

Hudson, 36 and Jonas, 23, first incited rumors of a relationship in late September, when they spent a

. However, a source close to Hudson

that it was "just a fling" and "definitely not anything serious."

The source continued, "They are both single and seeing other people too. Kate's mostly focusing on her boys and doesn't want a serious relationship right now."

The actress has been single since

at the end of 2014, and Jonas

, Olivia Culpo, in June.

"I'm definitely dating and hanging out," the

earlier this month. "I am single, but I'm hanging out with people and just getting to know people and enjoying seeing what's out there."

Hudson is undoubtedly taking a similarly casual approach to dating: She has had an extremely busy year. Besides raising her sons Ryder, 11, and Bingham, 4, Hudson has also been promoting her

Summary: The actress rocked a cutout jumpsuit while party-hopping across N.Y.C. Thursday night


A visitor looks at Chariot by Alberto Giacometti at Sotheby's auction house in London.

McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty, the insurer of collectible cars, said that the auction total for collectible cars was $1.3 billion in 2014, up from $1.2 billion in 2013. There were 158 cars sold for $1 million or more, up from 145 in 2013.

Read MoreWhat millionaires expect for 2015

Yet Hagerty said that prices have gotten so high after four-straight years of increases that many buyers are starting to balk. He said prices started to soften at the end of this year, which may signal a slowdown—but not a crash—next year.

"There are still a ton of buyers out there," he said. "But no one wants to be made a fool of by overpaying. I think the market may be taking a collective inhale to see where this market goes."

Read MoreThis $30M yacht is the Batmobile of the ocean

Most of the auction experts and companies in the collectibles are bullish on the collectibles market. They all point to a simple equation—there are more rich people (more than 12 million millionaires and nearly 2,000 billionaires in the world) yet a scarce number of 1960s Ferraris and Mark Rothko paintings.

Summary: From a $147 million Hamptons estate to a $38 million Ferrari, the most sought-after status symbols and collectibles reached an entirely new level.


Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garçon has filed a lawsuit against FanDuel Inc., the New York-based daily fantasy sports company, saying the company routinely used his name and likeness and those of other NFL players without permission.

The suit, filed in US District Court in Maryland, seeks class-action status to represent National Football League players who appeared in FanDuel’s television advertising since 2013.

According to a statement Garçon’s lawyer provided to The Boston Globe, FanDuel “knowingly and improperly exploits the popularity and performance of Garçon, along with all the other National Football League players . . . without their authority or a valid a license.”

“‘Neither Mr. Garçon nor the NFL players he seeks to act on behalf of have given their consent to FanDuel’s blatant misappropriation of their publicity rights,” the statement continued.

FanDuel said the lawsuit was “without merit.”

“There is established law that fantasy operators may use player names and statistics for fantasy contests,” a company spokeswoman said in a statement.

In daily fantasy sports contests, customers pay entry fees to assemble rosters of athletes for the chance to win large cash prizes.

Federal investigators are examining whether FanDuel and its Boston rival, DraftKings Inc., violate gambling laws. Legislators in a number of states, including Massachusetts, are considering whether and how to regulate the contests.

In September, DraftKings struck a group licensing deal with the NFL Players Association that allows the company to show players in its ads.

Summary: The lawsuit by Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garçon comes as daily fantasy sports industry faces scrutiny from prosecutors and regulators.


Photo: Charles Rex Arbogast, Associated Press

Blaine Gabbert runs 44 yards for the tying touchdown in Chicago on Sunday. The quarterback led the 49ers with 75 yards on six carries.

Blaine Gabbert runs 44 yards for the tying touchdown in Chicago on Sunday. The quarterback led the 49ers with 75 yards on six carries.

Blaine Gabbert has led the 49ers to an average of 17.3 points per game in his four starts at quarterback.

Blaine Gabbert has led the 49ers to an average of 17.3 points per game in his four starts at quarterback.

49ers’ Blaine Gabbert impresses with fancy footwork

Here comes a strangely familiar question: Should the 49ers call more plays to take advantage of their nimble, running quarterback?

Yes, we’re kidding. Sort of.

Blaine Gabbert might not zoom downfield with Colin Kaepernick-like swiftness, but he ran with striking efficiency in Sunday’s 26-20 victory over Chicago. The final numbers: 75 yards on six carries, including a 44-yard, game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Gabbert had five runs of 6 or more yards against the Bears. In many ways, he was San Francisco’s most reliable option during a mostly sluggish offensive performance at Soldier Field.

Head coach Jim Tomsula insisted the “zone option” is still in his team’s playbook. Tomsula smiled as he spoke.

“He’s a very good athlete,” Tomsula said Monday of Gabbert. “He can run, he’s fast, he’s strong. You got to see that (Sunday), but we see it in practice.”

The Bears saw it firsthand, especially on the game-tying drive. Gabbert scrambled three times — 9 yards to pick up a first down, 7 more yards soon thereafter and then the long TD jaunt up the middle.

The 49ers needed Gabbert to show off his wheels because the rest of the offense frequently sputtered. Their running backs gained 46 yards on 17 carries (2.7 average).

“Coming out of the gates, it wasn’t where we wanted it to be or expected it to be,” Tomsula said of the offense. “We did have a 16-play drive in the second quarter, and that’s what we want to look like. … Then there was a lull again. So there were a lot of things to feel good about and grow from, along with things we need to continue to fix.”

Tomsula and his staff are encouraged by Gabbert’s progress. Once considered a washout after three dreadful seasons in Jacksonville, he has found new life since replacing Kaepernick with the 49ers.

Gabbert might not be the long-term solution at quarterback, but he’s earning his teammates’ confidence — especially after Sunday’s late-game performance, culminating in his 71-yard, game-winning touchdown pass to Torrey Smith.

“He’s a take-charge guy, a leader,” running back Shaun Draughn said. “He’s poised and calm every time we’re in the huddle.”

The 49ers have averaged 17.3 points in Gabbert’s four starts, a slight improvement from their output in eight games with Kaepernick (13.6).

At any rate, Tomsula clearly sees this as a justified second chance for Gabbert after his struggles in Jacksonville.

“The bottom line to me is, Blaine came out of college at 20 years old (actually 21) and became a starting quarterback in the NFL with the Jaguars,” Tomsula said. “I’m not critiquing anybody’s team, but it was a tough situation. …

“Sometimes, looking at it from a different vantage point can do a world of good.”

Ron Kroichick is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: rkroichick@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ronkroichick

Summary: Should the 49ers call more plays to take advantage of their nimble, running quarterback?  Blaine Gabbert might not zoom downfield with Colin Kaepernick-like swiftness, but he ran with striking efficiency in Sunday’s 26-20 victory over Chicago.  The final numbers: 75 yards on six carries, including a 44-yard, game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter.  Head coach Jim Tomsula insisted the “zone option” is still in his team’s playbook.  The Bears saw it firsthand, especially on the game-tying drive.  Once considered a washout after three dreadful seasons in Jacksonville, he has found new life since replacing Kaepernick with the 49ers.  Gabbert might not be the long-term solution at quarterback, but he’s earning his teammates’ confidence — especially after Sunday’s late-game performance, culminating in his 71-yard, game-winning touchdown pass to Torrey Smith.  The 49ers have averaged 17.3 points in Gabbert’s four starts, a slight improvement from their output in eight games with Kaepernick (13.6).  “The bottom line to me is, Blaine came out of college at 20 years old (actually 21) and became a starting quarterback in the NFL with the Jaguars,” Tomsula said.


And in the end, Lavery said, that fact that blu's sales are very small compared with Reynolds' overall business "makes it quite possible that Imperial was more interested in owning blu than Reynolds was."

The news agency Reuters, citing a source familiar with the situation, reported Tuesday that Imperial Tobacco insisted that blu be among the assets it was buying in the deal.

Read MoreAn e-cigarette boom could be around the corner

Miguel Martin, president of Logic, the No. 2 e-cig brand after blu, told CNBC.com, "My quick read on it is that I don't know that Reynolds felt that they had to have blu. My sense is they felt they didn't have to have it."

"It wasn't important to them, and it was to Commonwealth," he said, using the name of Imperial's U.S. sales division. "I think Reynolds feels comfortable going it alone with Vuse."

Martin said he doesn't believe that blu's change of ownership will affect Logic's sales.

"From my point of view, I don't know it changes anything," Martin said. "I don't know that it's better off fighting blu under the Commonwealth flag than under the Lorillard flag."

Blu has lost market share to Logic in recent months, according to both Martin and Lavery.

Regardless of who owns blu, the brand will continue facing future declines in market share due to competition from Logic and ongoing "disruption" in the still-young industry, Martin said.

He said companies such as Logic, which do not sell traditional combustible tobacco products, may have an edge with getting shelf space while competing with blu because convenience stores keep a larger percentage of the sale price with their products than they do with the e-cig brands sold by traditional tobacco companies.

Also, Blu, like other e-cig companies that sell replaceable nicotine liquid cartridges, are now facing competition from the accelerated growth of so-called open system vaping devices, said Cynthia Cabrera, executive director of the Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association.

Unlike "ciga-likes" such as blu, whose shape resembles a traditional cigarette and whose manufacturers sell disposable or refillable cartridges of nicotine liquid of their own brand, open-tank systems allow users to refill the devices with a nicotine liquid of their choosing. "Vaping" shops often sell a wide range of such liquids, with different levels of nicotine and a variety of flavors.

Bonnie Herzog, a tobacco analyst at Wells Fargo, noted earlier this year that the open system sector is growing twice as fast as the overall e-vapor category, which includes traditional e-cigs like blu. Herzog said users of open-system vaping devices spend less money on their habit than people who buy traditional branded e-cigs.

In terms of innovation, "the ciga-like category is really not where it's at right now, where it is is open vapor," Cabrera said.

Still, she doesn't expect Imperial to let blu lose market share to open system products without a tough fight.

Big traditional tobacco companies "will use every competitive and regulatory means possible to squeeze out the little guys, the innovative guys, because those aren't their products," Cabrera said. "I do have concerns about that."

Summary: A huge merger between tobacco giants Reynolds American and Lorillard will see electronic cigarette leader blu go to another company.


02/01/2016 AT 09:15 AM EST

The nominations for the 2016 ACM Awards were announced Monday morning, with

both tied with five nominations each, including male vocalist of the year.

First-time ACM nominee Cam followed closely behind with four nominations, including female vocalist of the year, tying with

. Meanwhile, Chris Janson and

both scored three nods each.

The competition is also fierce for the night's biggest award, entertainer of the year, with nominations for Jason Aldean, Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Church and Lambert.

See the list of ACM nominations below:

"Buy Me A Boat," Chris Janson

"Die A Happy Man," Thomas Rhett

"Girl Crush," Little Big Town

"I'm Comin' Over," Chris Young

"Take Your Time," Sam Hunt

For the full list of nominees,

Dierks Bentley and Luke Bryan, aka "Lurks,"

The 51st Annual ACM Awards will air live from Las Vegas on April 3, on CBS.

Summary: The 51st Annual ACM Awards will air live from Las Vegas April 3 on CBS


02/19/2016 AT 05:25 PM EST

A New York man died early Friday after rescuing his fiancÃ©e and two children from a raging house fire and running back in to save his 3-year-old son.

Demetrius Johnson, 24, found the child, put him in a closet, and then collapsed, his family told

. Firefighters arrived on the scene and were able to rescue the little boy, though they could not save Johnson.

"My brother died a hero. We're all proud of that," said William Johnson Jr., Demetrius's brother, according to the newspaper. "My brother woke everybody up after the fire broke out. He died doing everything he could do to rescue his family."

The fire at the Buffalo, New York, apartment building killed Johnson and another tenant and left Johnson's 8-year-old daughter with severe burns over 90 percent of her body.

Family members said that Demetrius's fiancÃ©e, Tempest Thomas, told them there were smoke detectors in the apartment, but that they did not work during the fire. "From what she told me, the smoke detectors did not go off," William Johnson said. "My brother woke up because he smelled smoke."

After rescuing his fiancée; daughter and the couple's youngest son, Demaris Johnson, 15 months; the couple realized their 3-year-old, Demetrius Jr. was still in the apartment.

"Tempest told Demetrius, 'Don't go back in there, it's too bad,' " William Johnson said, recounting what Thomas told him after the fire. "My brother said, 'I'm not going to let my son die.' "

Demetrius broke a window and then rushed back in the building that was engulfed in flames to search for his son. He collapsed soon after he put Demetrius Jr. in a closet for safety.

Firefighters rescued Demetrius Jr. but they were too late to save his father. "He was an angel," his brother said. "He pulled his family out of there, but he couldn't save himself."

Investigation of the cause of the fire and efficacy of the smoke detectors is ongoing and the second victim has not been identified. Treasure is being treated at Shriners Hospital in Cincinnati and Demaris and Demetrius Jr. were treated at Women and Children's Hospital of Buffalo.

he's working to establish a network of people to help the affected families get back on their feet. He said he has been inundated with offers of help.

Family members told the paper this wasn't the first time Demetrius entered a burning home in a daring rescue. William Johnson said that several months ago his brother had entered a burning home to save an elderly woman.

"That house was on fire, and Demetrius went in looking for her. He searched the whole inside of the house, but then he found out she was out having lunch somewhere," William Johnson told the newspaper.

Demetrius's siblings told the newspaper that while they're heartbroken over their brother's death, he's extremely proud of his heroism.

"It doesn't surprise me that he did all that. Those were his kids, and he loved them," Tamika Johnson said. "I'm just really hurt that he's gone."

Summary: Demetrius Johnson died after rescuing his fiancÃ©e and two children from a raging house fire and running back in to save his 3-year-old son


03/08/2016 AT 12:00 PM EST

and her mother Krista Keller come back from this latest fight?

In an exclusive sneak peek at Tuesday's

, Keller drops a major and slightly disturbing bombshell that hurts her daughter.

"I admitted that I was emotionally attached to her husband [

]," reveals Keller, 56. "I admitted that I told your husband that I loved him."

"That's the first time I've heard her say that," maintains Stodden, 21.

The momager says, "I've been saying it in all my interviews. Why don't you ask your husband what his fantasy was?"

Stodden and Hutchison, now 55, made the tabloids in 2011 by

when she was just 16 years old. In 2014, they

Naturally, everyone in the mansion in the mansion hears this argument, and

pretty much captures what everyone else is thinking.

"I don't know whether to be concerned or entertained," says

alum, 29. "I think I'm more entertained and that's the problem."

As the other women in the house rush to comfort Stodden after this shocking revelation, Keller starts packing her things, declaring that she's leaving the house.

"She fell in love with my husband. I need to have a mother and I need to feel that mom side of her, but I don't," Stodden says in an interview. "This is the last opportunity my mom and I are going to have to heal this relationship, but she doesn't care."

airs Tuesday (10 p.m. ET) on Lifetime.

Summary: The Mother/Daughter Experiment airs Tuesdays (10 p.m. ET) on Lifetime


Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill 9 p.m., HBO

This filmed-live special features the 2014 Broadway hit that won Audra McDonald her sixth Tony. She plays Billie Holiday, who, in a performance shortly before her death, shares her life story and sings her most memorable songs including “God Bless the Child,” “Strange Fruit,” and “What a Little Moonlight Can Do.”

The 2016 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards 8 p.m., Nickelodeon, TV Land, CMT

Blake Shelton hosts the 29th annual event, which honors kids’favorites in movies, TV, and music. This year’s best TV show nominees are “Austin & Ally,” “Girl Meets World,” “Henry Danger,”“Jessie,” “Lab Rats: Bionic Island,” and “The Thundermans.”

Saturday Night Live Saturday at 11:30 p.m., NBC

Ariana Grande is the host and the musical guest.

The Sting 8 p.m., TCM

Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

CNN Ohio Democratic Town Hall Sunday at 8 p.m., CNN

Clinton and Sanders answer voters’ questions.

Summary: “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” a filmed-live HBO special, features the 2014 Broadway hit that won Audra McDonald her sixth Tony.


A Canadian free climber was left bruised and battered but it could have ended much worse when he plunged nine metres while scaling an iconic Vancouver building.

The video posted to YouTube last week shows a climber known only as Joseph and a friend named Kalen attempting to make their way to the top of the 17-storey Fairmont Hotel Vancouver without ropes.

A description in the video says after nine hours of studying the structure they took "the riskiest way up".

"Which was climbing a rubber cable about five stories up."

After climbing up scaffolding to reach the cable around nine metres off the ground, Joseph, who says he suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome, begins the ascent.

But just over two minutes later and "exhausted" he realises that he can't make it to the top.

Joseph tries to hold on but moments later lets out a guttural scream as he slides down the cable and kicks Kalen in the head on the way down.

He then plummets the remaining nine metres to the ground and lands flat on his back.

As he lies on the concrete groaning in agony his friend offers a back-handed compliment.

"That was a perfect landing though, like right on your back," Kalen says.

Joseph was able to walk away in pain but said he broke his arm and shoulder and damaged his spine in the fall.

"I was told to give two months for recovery by a doctor," he said.

"This accident really made me reconsider about scaling buildings."

Summary: A Canadian free climber was left bruised and battered but it could have ended much worse when he plunged 9m while scaling an iconic Vancouver building.


04/16/2016 AT 04:35 PM EDT

On Saturday, the world said goodbye to

, was honored at a memorial service in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, where she had built

alongside husband Mike Pearce and their four dogs (and where she was known, simply, as Anna, her birth name).

The public service, at Lake City Church, was attended by friends and family alike.

, who starred alongside Duke in 1979's

, said, "From the moment we met, we were thick as thieves and we remained that way for 40 years."

Melissa Gilbert now speaking about her friend at @pattyduke_id memorial @KHQLocalNews pic.twitter.com/qyYbGLcjaD

"I hate that I'm here, and yet I love that I'm here to celebrate my dear teacher friend, Anna," Gilbert said.

Duke's son Mackenzie Astin honored her advocacy for mental health, following her own

, and said, "She put a beautiful face to the illness."

Gilbert echoed that, in part: "Anna loved to laugh," she said.

"She had courage like no one I've ever known."

Summary: "I hate that I'm here, and yet I love that I'm here to celebrate my dear teacher friend, Anna," former costar Melissa Gilbert said


FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- Northern Arizona is set for an offensive showdown Saturday when it visits No. 4 Eastern Washington in Cheney, Wash.

Two of the top quarterbacks and the top two wide receivers in the league will face off on the red turf at 4 p.m. on FOX Sports Arizona Plus.

Quarterbacks Case Cookus vs. Jordan West and wide receivers Emmanuel Butler vs. Cooper Kupp -- all at the top of the national FCS and Big Sky rankings -- should make this an offensive explosion for the ages.

The Lumberjacks (5-3, 3-2) registered a new conference high of 63 points last weekend against Northern Colorado. NAU's efforts led to Cookus and Ryan Hawkins earning Big Sky player of the week honors.

Cookus was also named the national player of the week, after tying a school record seven thrown touchdowns. Butler and running back Casey Jahn are both on pace to record 1,000-yard seasons. On the defensive side of things, the Lumberjacks have come away with seven interceptions. Senior safety Eddie Horn is leading the way with three picks and 56 tackles.

NAU hasn't won in Cheney since 2006, dropping its last two games there. The Lumberjacks handed the Eagles their only conference loss last season, so the home team will be looking for redemption.

And just in case you forgot, this is play-by-play man Mitch Strohman's call of the dramatic finish a year ago.

Coach Beau Baldwin is 82-30 in eight seasons at Eastern Washington, as the Eagles (6-2, 6-0) ride a six-game win streak into Saturday.

For the second straight year, EWU will go up against NAU with an undefeated conference record. The Eagles were stunned by NAU in Flagstaff last year, falling 28-27 for EWU's only league loss.

Kupp leads the Big Sky in scoring, receptions per game and receiving yards per game. He's tallied 1,290 yards on 91 catches with 17 touchdowns. West is the leagues' leader in passing yards per game (329.9). He's thrown 28 touchdowns this season.

Summary: The Lumberjacks handed the Eagles their only conference loss last season, so the home team will be looking for redemption Saturday on FOX Sports Arizona Plus.


04/19/2016 AT 11:20 AM EDT

In major throwback news, here's your chance to see Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in 2005, when he was just a Harvard dropout with a little startup called "The Facebook" and a fridge full of beer.

An interview with a baby-faced Zuckerberg (sans his now-signature hoodie) has been making the rounds on the Internet since Sunday, when Silicon Valley-based investor and writer Semil Shah

In the video, Zuckerberg, now 31, describes Facebook's beginnings and evolution – all while holding a red solo cup.

"We launched it at Harvard in early February of 2004, and within a couple of weeks, two thirds of the school had signed up," he says. "So at that point, my roommates were like, 'This is pretty cool, I bet this would work at other schools,' but we were all busy with classes and stuff so we kinda just wanted to make sure it would work before going any further with it."

Zuckerberg explains how they went on to expand "The Facebook" to Columbia, Yale and Stanford, where it was equally well received.

"We were like, alright, this is pretty sweet, let's just go all out and see how many schools we can launch this at as quickly as possible," he says. "So we closed out the year with, I think, 29 schools, came out to Palo Alto for the summer just to hang out because Palo Alto's kind of this mythical place where all the start-ups come from, and got ready to launch at another 150 schools when the year started."

The video periodically cuts away from the young tech guru's story to show his friends doing a keg stand, Zuckerberg showing off a fridge fully stocked with nothing but beer and ketchup and the colorfully graffiti'd walls.

Surprisingly, at the time of this interview, Zuckerberg wasn't especially concerned with expanding his social networking site outside of the college network.

"There doesn't necessarily have to be more – like a lot of people are focused on taking over the world or doing the biggest thing, getting the most users, and I think part of making a difference and doing something cool is focusing intensely," he says. "There was a level of service that we could provide when we were just at Harvard that we can't provide for all of the colleges, and there's a level of service that we can provide when we're a college network that we wouldn't be able to provide if we went to other types of things."

He continues: "I really just want to see everyone focus on college and create a cool college directory product that is very relevant for students and has a lot of information that people care about when they're in college."

A year later, however, in September 2006, Facebook became open to anyone at least 13 years old. As of December 2015, the site had 1.04 billion daily active users, according to

Summary: The 11-year-old video, which resurfaced this week, shows the Facebook founder talking about his plans for the then-tiny startup


French soccer clubs have unanimously voted Thursday to go on strike next month in protest of the government's decision to impose a 75 percent tax rate on high-earners.

"There will be a weekend without matches, with an open-day in clubs" Jean-Pierre Louvel, the president of the Union of Professional Soccer Clubs, announced after the vote was taken at a meeting in Paris.

Frederic Thiriez, president of the French Professional Soccer League, which organizes the different French soccer championships, wrote a letter to the French government-sponsored Commission on Sustainable Soccer Wednesday saying "enough is enough!"

(Read more: French soccer team PSG scores on shirt sales with Beckham)

"For 18 months now, French professional soccer has been fighting, without being heard, against the 75 percent tax project", added Thiriez, saying the tax is not only unfair and discriminatory, but also threatens the clubs competitiveness and survival.

The 75 percent tax, which was one of President Hollande's election pledges, and will be levied on incomes over 1 million euros ($1.37 million) earned between 2013 and 2014, has sparked a high degree of controversy. Several high-profile French citizens, including actor Gerard Depardieu, have changed their nationalities in protest.

Fourteen clubs would be directly affected by the French tax, including Paris Saint-Germain, whose players and directors face an 44 million euros increase in their tax bills.

It is not the first time French soccer players have gone on strike. In December 1972, players went on a two-day strike that saw five out of ten games cancelled. More recently, the French national team refused to get out of the bus that had taken them to their South African training ground during the 2010 World Cup after one of the players was fired for swearing at the coach.

(Read more: Even French criminals can't escape... the taxman)

This latest action, which will impact First and Second League matches on November 29 and December 2, is unlikely to garner much support from the French public opinion.

According to a BVA survey released on October 13 by Le Parisien-Aujourdh'hui en France newspaper, 82 percent of French people say they have a "bad opinion" on the French national soccer team, with 54 percent expecting them to fail to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Over three quarters of the people polled admitted still think about the South African saga.

Individual players are not spared either, as 86 percent of French people believe football players are overpaid; selfish, at 84 percent; and rude, at 73 percent.

(Read more: Adieu! How France could be losing its elite)

Summary: French soccer clubs have voted Thursday to strike next month to protest the government's decision to impose a 75 percent tax rate on high-earners.


Josue Flores was described as "giving" and "obedient" by family members

05/18/2016 AT 09:20 AM EDT

The death of an 11-year-old boy who was stabbed multiple times while walking home from school Tuesday has shocked his Houston community.

According to police, Josue Flores was just two blocks from home as he returned from Marshal Middle School in North Houston around 4:45 p.m. when a man walking in the other direction crossed the street and stabbed the him multiple times.

Authorities are searching for Che Lajuan Calhoun, 31, who they have named as a possible suspect in the attack, PEOPLE confirms.

No motive for the attack has been identified, but Sgt. Tommy Ruland told

Che Calhoun has been named as a suspect in the slaying

According to a press release from the Houston Police Department, witnesses heard screaming and saw the two struggling. Josue collapsed next to the sides, and the suspect then fled the scene on foot.

Josue was rushed to Memorial Hermann Hospital but died from his injuries.

"He had a bright future," Maria Flores, the boy's mother, told ABC 13. "He was very obedient and he was giving. You give him $10, he would buy everyone else something before he bought himself something."

Other family members are also struggling to understand why anyone would target Josue.

The boy's 16-year-old sister told

he was well-liked in the community, and Isidro Barrera, the boy's brother-in-law said, "He don't have a phone, he didn't own an iPad, a laptop, anything," that might motivate a robbery.

A small memorial of flowers and candles has started at the scene of the attack.

Summary: Josue Flores was a sixth grade student walking home from school when he was attacked and killed


While many people are increasingly looking to solar energy to help reduce pollution, organizations like non-profit GRID Alternatives see it as a solution for also addressing increasing income inequality.

GRID Alternatives, founded in 2001, works to provide cheaper solar panels to low-income communities in the U.S. and Nicaragua. In addition to helping customers save on their energy bills, GRID also helps these communities by providing them with jobs. To fund its operations and the panel installations, GRID gets funds from corporate philanthropy, individual donations, government grants, and its own revenue.

“We’re building a power plant, one house and one person at a time,” said GRID Alternatives co-founder and CEO Erica Mackie during Fortune‘s Brainstorm E conference in Carlsbad, Calif. on Tuesday. “We are similar to any mid-size solar installation company, except we only install for people who may not be able to install otherwise,” she added.

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Since its humble beginnings, GRID Alternatives has grown to perform thousands of installations per year, and to date has trained 26,000 people, according to Mackie.

One such employee who went through GRID’s program and currently works there as an installation supervisor is Diana Adams, who joined Mackie on stage in Carlsbad. As Adams tells it, she found GRID Alternatives after deciding she wanted to find an outlet to help people on a large scale. A poster advertising solar panel installations inspired her to enroll at a skills centers in Los Angeles, and she was eventually selected to participate in GRID’s training program.

“It never even crossed my mind, not once,” she said when asked by Fortune senior editor Jennifer Reingold whether she had ever thought solar energy would be a part of her life.

For Adams, one of the most important aspects of her job is what solar panels can do for people financially because of their energy bill savings. “If you add up all those savings in a year’s time, there’s no telling what you can do,” she said.

Summary: Its economic impact is two-fold.


Jason Mraz got in a serious accident after a driver sped through a red light and crashed into him.

The other driver t-boned Jason's car and then spun 90 degrees, striking another car.

Jason complained of neck pain but didn't go to the hospital. The female passenger in his car had more serious neck pain and was taken by ambulance to Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside.

Jason had just left Home Depot when he got hit.

Summary: Jason Mraz got in a serious accident after a driver sped through a red light and crashed into him. The other driver t-boned Jason's car and then spun…


The Truth’s latest ad campaign hits pretty close to home.

The anti-smoking initiative recently released a commercial encouraging people to quit smoking in order to save the future of cat videos and prevent what it’s calling #CATmaggedon. The ad shows us a string of various cat videos and superimposes the equation, “Smoking = No Cats = No Cat Videos.” And who would want to live in a world with no cat videos?

Though the complete eradication of cats and cat videos might be somewhat of a stretch, the Truth does have some important facts to share with animal lovers. Its website states that cats are two times as likely to get cancer if their owner smokes. Even if you attempt to do your due diligence by going into a different room, toxic particles from tobacco smoke infiltrate everything in your home. From chairs and couches to your hair and clothes, everything your pet touches is likely tainted. They even get into your pet’s fur, and when the little guy grooms himself he ends up ingesting those toxins.

In addition to its ad campaign, the Truth has teamed up with Petco to educate pet owners about how their bad habit harms their pets.

Summary: Prevent #CATmaggedon.


SXSW 2014 is upon us, which means that thousands of bands have swarmed to the annual music festival in Austin, Texas — and that tens of thousands of attendees have followed, eager to see their favorite stars emerge from a giant Doritos machine or play a “secret” show to hundreds of fans. While they’re at it, they might discover a new sound or two.

After all, you could see Coldplay, Lady Gaga, 50 Cent and Soundgarden at the South By Southwest Music Conference, which runs from March 11–16 this year, but the major acts are not the only attraction. SXSW has emerged as an essential destination for up-and-coming groups eager to get themselves in front of new fans and old music executives.

Even if you’re not heading to Austin for the music festival, it’s a great opportunity to find new musical acts to fill your playlist. To help you sift through the over 2,000 bands heading to Austin this week, here are 17 bands to watch at SXSW or elsewhere:

If you’ve never heard someone rock a zither before, be sure to check out Norwegian Grammy nominee Highasakite. The band was invited to tour with Bon Iver after Justin Vernon was blown away by their dreamy indie pop.

This just-out-of-the-gate New York group delivers energetic garage rock that earns them apt comparisons to The Strokes. Their debut album, Manhattan, is filled with songs that crackle with electricity and infectious enthusiasm sure to make you a fan.

Hurray for the Riff Raff

Frontwoman Alynda Lee Segarra is from New Orleans-by-way-of-The Bronx, and that’s an apt description for her music, too. Her debut album, Small Town Heroes, gracefully blends idiosyncratic eras and genres for a sweetly gritty Americana sound.

This Brighton, UK-based three-piece are riding a wave of surf-psych rock across the pond in the hopes of putting America under their spell. The band cites Leonard Cohen and Black Sabbath as influences for the narco-hazy “Paint It Black”-esque riffs they’ve dubbed “surf doom,” but there’s no real comparison for their sound.

Alt-pop trio Sir Sly have flown under the radar in the States so far, but they are poised to make big waves at SXSW. The band is signed to the same UK label who preached the gospel of Haim, Atlas Genius and Chvrches early on — and Cherrytree Records in the U.S., which is home to Feist, Robyn and Disclosure among others— and Sir Sly’s dark pop tunes fit in well with that company. Their danceable, if occasionally melancholic, tracks are laden with enough pop hooks and sing-along choruses to be genuine crowdpleasers.

Chicago upstart Trinity Home, a.k.a. Tink, could be either the next Nicki Minaj or the next Ashanti, and she has the chops to rival both. On the four mix tapes the 18-year old has released so far, she drifts effortlessly between R & B groovers and knock-’em-down, beat-laden tracks — and delivers on all fronts.

The Kentucky-bred New Yorker just released her first full-length in four years and she makes up for lost time on Bluebird. The album is a smart mix of alt-folk, country and indie pop experimentation that goes down like a beer bong of sweet tea.

Listen: “I Don’t Need Love”

Portland, Ore., has a reputation for being a hothouse for musical taste-makers and trendsetters. Aan makes good on that reputation with their complex, challenging rock. The band has been around since 2007, but only recently put out their debut album, Amor Ad Nauseum. Apparently it can take awhile to capture their brand of perfection.

Temples have been making a name for themselves in England’s psychedelic pop scene, based on their undeniably groovy sound, which is rooted in the 1960s with hefty helpings of Motown, glam and Krautrock sprinkled throughout. Temples have been receiving lots of well-deserved attention throughout the UK, including praise from the likes of Johnny Marr and Oasis’ Noel Gallagher.

Singer-songwriter Torres mines the same musical vein that Sharon Van Etten and Waxahatchee do, and strikes gold each time she hits the stage with her lucky Gibson guitar in hand. Torres comes to her shows armed with a gorgeous, vulnerable croon and a litany of intricate, tender songs sure to woo all comers.

The band may take their name from a Big Star song, but the songs that the Dublin five-piece craft sound like what would happen if the Bangles started a My Bloody Valentine cover band. The floating vocals and fuzzed out guitar make for memorable tunes and inescapable earworm melodies.

Listen: “Love Sublime” feat. Nile Rogers and Flora

Berlin-based producer Tensnake knows how to fill a dance floor and has traveled the world doing just that for years, building a reputation as one of the premiere house and disco producers out there. Now he is getting ready to release his debut album, Glow. It’s due out March 11th but is already earning accolades for its raw emotion, crossover dance-pop appeal and modern disco feel.

Ásgeir Trausti is barely known in the U.S. — but in Iceland he’s huge. One in 10 Icelanders own his album, In the Silence, which has already outpaced sales of albums by fellow Icelandic acts Björk and Sigur Rós. The 22-year old singer-songwriter works in sweetly hushed acoustic numbers with lyrics frequently penned by his 70-something father, accompanied by synths and pianos and electronic trappings, which, when paired with his soaring voice, build irrepressible harmonies sure to win over audiences outside of Iceland in no time.

Toronto’s Alvvays are a vvarmly bright new project by Molly Rankin, who is descended from Canadian folk royalty and uses her talents to make wistfully jangly, bittersweet Brit pop. The quintet’s lo-fi sound pairs perfectly with Rankin’s breathy vocals to create guitar-driven confections sure to earn a place on your playlist.

Listen: “Love More Worry Less”

Adio Marchant, a.k.a. Bipolar Sunshine, infuses warmth into his electronic-tinged pop songs. He cites David Bowie, Kanye West, reggae and The Carpenters among those who influenced his songs, which frequently pair heartfelt, yearning lyrics with lush arrangements. His distinctive style will undoubtedly garner this British singer/songwriter plenty of attention in Texas.

Listen: “Sunday’s Best / Monday’s Worst”

Detroit-based producer and rapper Curtis Cross, a.k.a. Black Milk, has worked with J. Dilla, Danny Brown and Jack White, but is making a name for himself with his album No Poison No Paradise. The semi-autobiographical album tells the story of a man and his dreams in a flurry of unrelenting rap that will take you to church and back again.

The Brooklyn five-piece delivers soulful funk sounds with pretty harmonies and an endearingly punky brashness. The band just released their second album, Electric Balloon, and to call it an eclectic mix is an understatement. The band blends full-on no wave rockers with R & B inspired slow burners with a little of everything in between, which just means that there’s something for everyone at their shows.

MORE: 14 Musical Acts To Watch in 2014

MORE: 14 Albums To Look Forward To In 2014

Summary: From Åesgir to Wytches, here are 17 rising bands to watch


Ever wonder what you could do to help the world—then forget all about it because you have so much to do around the house? Now you can do both, though you will miss out on a potential tax deduction at Goodwill.

Stacey Boyd, a serial entrepreneur who has started everything from a charter school (at age 25) to, more recently, SavvySource.com, a site aimed at preschool education, hit upon the idea of reselling kids’ clothes when she was searching for a way to help public schools restore funding for things like music and dance. “We had lots of ideas,” she says, “But they all created extra work for parents.”

Finding a useful way to get rid of clothes that don’t fit any longer, however, helps parents. So Boyd created Schoola, an online consignment business that resells “gently used” kids and women’s clothes and gives 40% of the gross profits to a school chosen by the person donating the clothes. You simply sign up; a prepaid plastic bag is sent to you; you designate the school; and ship your castoffs to Schoola. (If you want to buy others’ clothes, just check out the site). Schools also organize their own clothing drives. In its two years in operation, Schoola has partnered with 18,000 U.S. schools and provided as much as $68,000 to institutions like KIPP Academy Middle School in the Bronx, enough to fund its “rhythm and string” orchestra for several years.

Boyd’s business is designed to make money (which explains why people who send in clothing receive no tax deduction) and it’s potentially quite profitable; after all, the product is donated. VCs have noticed: Jim Davidson of Silver Lake Partners and Thomas Weisel are among the investors who put $20 million into Schoola’s Series B, which closed in May.

This summer Boyd spent a weekend with Malala Yousafzai and her family. Malala, now 18, became the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize last year and she’s a deeply inspirational figure. She survived a shooting by a Taliban gunman in Pakistan—when she was only 15—after she advocated for girls’ education.

On Oct. 10 Schoola is announcing a partnership with the Malala Fund, which aims to make sure every girl has access to K-12 education. Schoola donors can choose to have their 40% go to the Fund. The timing is great, since the new documentary “He Named Me Malala” opens this weekend. Boyd is also getting the assistance of the U.S. National Woman’s Soccer Team, including Carli Lloyd, to promote its “pass the bag” campaign using the hashtag stand #withmalala. She hopes it will be as successful as last year’s ALS ice bucket challenge.

There are worse ways to get rid of those pesky old pjs.

Summary: San Francisco startup Schoola resells your unwanted clothes--and gives 40% back to the school of your choice. Now it's partnering with the Malala Fund to help girls get educated.


A world endangered by terrorists and bad guys. The people cry out for something to save civilization, then recoil at its methods. A nation riven by internal dissent and bitterness.

American foreign policy from World War II to today? No, just the new superhero movie from Marvel.

Actually, it’s both — because buried in the new “Captain America: Civil War” is a horrifying message about the dangers of America’s drunken sailor approach to global domination.

And it’s not the message most Americans want to hear.

INSIDE THE MAKING OF 'CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR'

No spoilers here — even 6-year-olds have heard the plot of “Civil War” by now: The Avengers — the free range superheroes who keep the world safe — are at it again, battling neo-Nazis in Nigeria when the plan goes awry and hundreds of innocent civilians are killed. Just like the last time. And the time before that. Man, for superheroes, the Avengers are pretty damn careless where they fire their drones.

So the United Nations demands changes — and faster than you can say “blue helmet,” all the nations of the world sign a treaty to rein in the world’s self-appointed cops. Under the accord, if the world needs saving, the Avengers will get the call. If local authorities think they can handle the threat, the Avengers must stand down.

Half the Avengers welcome the treaty. Iron Man, Black Widow, Vision and War Machine are so guilt-ridden by how many people they’ve killed that they see government oversight as a way to win back the world’s trust and keep doing what they’ve been doing, albeit with minor restraints.

The other half of the team doesn’t trust world leaders, least of all working in the slow-moving compromise factory on the East Side. Captain America, Falcon, Hawkeye and Scarlet Witch don’t want to put their power in the hands of the bureaucrats and elected officials whose agendas change all the time.

'CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR': TOO MANY HEROES, TOO LITTLE FUN

“We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are our own,” Captain America says.

The split team is obviously on a collision course — a split mirroring the debate that America should have over what kind of power we want to be: one that respects international law and works with the global community towards a common goal that may not always be in our immediate self-interest or one that understands intuitively that America is always on the side of truth and justice so everyone should get out of the way and stop quibbling with the manner in which we dole out the righteousness.

Our real-life leaders long ago dispensed with this debate: Our government is run by would-be Captain Americas who shoot first and ask “You got a problem with that?” later.

Obviously, recent history is the story of American power saving the world time and time again, which is why France is speaking French now instead of German or how the people of Kosovo and Kuwait were saved from brutal villains.

But our national debate right now — and an election that will likely pit super hawk Hillary Clinton against enraged hyper hawk Donald Trump — is mostly a discussion of how America can exercise its power around the world without any restraint. We throw around terms like “carpet bomb” as if we get to redecorate the planet however we want.

President Obama’s nearly unchecked power to unleash drones against our supposed enemies — a tactic that has killed thousands of innocent civilians — has become a violation of that other supposed American value: due process. It may also violate international law. But it’s something today’s Captain Americas cheer. The moviemakers at Marvel would welcome a debate about that, but you won’t find one among our leaders.

The would-be Iron Men in our government — who recognize that America is just one player in a world with competing interests — are depicted as weak. When Obama fails to intervene aggressively, he is decried as indecisive. Some even wish we had “a Putin” to make America great again, as one candidate puts it.

In “Civil War,” Iron Man realizes that with great power comes great responsibility, while Captain America lives up to his name by advancing the “might makes right” theory of American foreign policy.

The movie exists only to set up the sequel, of course. But America has pretty much picked which side its on: It’s our way or the highway.

I’m on Iron Man’s side: “Team America: World Police” was a parody, not a playbook.

Summary: Buried in “Captain America: Civil War” is a horrifying message about the dangers of America’s drunken sailor approach to global domination.


“We’ve literally improved everything,” says Orth Hedrick, vice president of product planning for Kia Motors America, in reference to the redesigned 2016 Optima. Now sharing its bones with sister-brand Hyundai’s excellent Sonata, South Korea delivers a one-two punch to the midsize family sedan segment.

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• Complete redesign, though Optima retains familiar styling themes

• Three different engines, four new wheel designs, five different trim levels

• Larger inside and out, with a bigger trunk

• Quieter interior with upgraded materials and detailing

• New seat designs for greater comfort

• Improved ride and handling characteristics, better fuel economy

• Android Auto debuts, with Apple CarPlay planned for later

• Fast-charge USB ports in center console, accessible by front and rear seat occupants

• Expanded UVO eServices features including Speed Alert, Curfew Alert, Driving Score, and Geo-Fencing capability

• Available 630-watt, 10-speaker Harmon Kardon surround sound audio system with Clari-Fi music restoration technology

• Numerous new driver assistance and collision avoidance technologies

• Optional panoramic sunroof structure features carbon fiber reinforced plastic to reduce weight and lower the Optima’s center of gravity

• New paint and leather colors

Kia says the new 2016 Optima is “passionately designed and obsessively crafted.” The automaker doesn’t need to make overblown statements to sell this car, which is clearly one of the best midsize family sedans on the market today.

For 2016, the Optima is offered in LX, LX 1.6T, EX, SX, and SX Limited trim levels. A 185-horsepower, 2.4-liter 4-cylinder engine is standard for the LX and EX models, paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. The EPA says this version will get 28 mpg in combined driving.

If fuel efficiency is important to you, check out the LX 1.6T model, which has a turbocharged 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine. It makes 178 horsepower, but the real story here is the 195 lb.-ft. of torque, on tap from 1,500 rpm to 4,500 rpm. A 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is standard with this engine, and the EPA says the Optima LX 1.6T should get 32 mpg in combined driving.

For maximum power, the Optima SX and SX Limited are just the ticket. They have a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine generating 245 horsepower and 260 lb.-ft. of torque from 1,350 rpm to 4,000 rpm. In these models, the 6-speed automatic transmission has paddle shifters, and the official fuel economy estimate is 25 mpg in combined driving.

In addition to delivering maximum fuel economy, the Optima LX 1.6T adds welcome lighting, power folding heated side mirrors, acoustic front door window glass, and a smart trunk feature that automatically pops the lid after a few seconds whenever the key fob is detected nearby. Don’t worry. You can turn this feature off. The Optima 1.6T also gets a unique wheel finish and low rolling resistance tires, as well as push-button engine starting and leather wrapped around the steering wheel and shift knob.

READ MORE ABOUT ALL OF THE KIA MODELS

Optima EX models add leather seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, a 12-way power driver’s seat with 4-way power lumbar adjustment, and memory for the driver’s preferences. Heated front seats and a heated steering wheel are also included for the Optima EX, along with floor mats, a trunk mat, and quick-charge USB ports. Woodgrain trim dresses up the interior, while the exterior gains an upgraded grille finish, improved headlights, LED running lights, LED taillights, and larger 17-inch aluminum wheels.

For a more exciting version of the Optima, select the SX for its more powerful turbocharged engine, sport-tuned suspension, 18-inch machined-finish aluminum wheels, and rack-mounted electric steering for better feel and response. External signifiers include a sport grille and bumper design, a rear spoiler, adaptive HID headlights, sport LED taillights, dual chrome exhaust outlets, and red painted brake calipers. Inside, the Optima SX gets sport leather, metallic trim, a sport steering wheel with paddle shifters, alloy pedal covers and stainless steel doorsill scuff plates. Kia’s UVO eServices technology is standard, and includes navigation, HD Radio, and real-time traffic reports. A larger driver information display and an auto-dimming rearview mirror are also standard for this model.

Quilted premium Nappa leather and a premium black headliner with fabric roof pillar trim underscore the SX Limited model’s place at the top of the Optima lineup. This version of the car also comes with a panoramic sunroof, a Harmon Kardon premium surround sound audio system, a 10-way power front passenger’s seat, ventilated front seats, and heated rear seats. Leatherette material covers the dashboard and door panels, complete with exposed silver stitching, and LED cabin lighting bathes the interior in a soft glow.

Kia’s full suite of safety technology is also standard for the SX Limited, and is optional for the SX. The list includes a new 360-degree surround view camera system, as well as an adaptive cruise control system with forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking. A blind spot warning system with lane change assist is also standard for the SX Limited and optional for the SX, along with rear cross-traffic alert, rear parking sensors, a lane departure warning system, and adaptive HID headlights with automatic high-beams.

As this report was published, crash test results for the redesigned 2016 Optima were not yet available.

Alternatives to the Kia Optima

Just in case you’re interested in exploring your alternatives to the Kia Optima, they include the Buick Regal, Chevrolet Malibu, Chrysler 200, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata, Mazda Mazda6, Subaru Legacy, Toyota Camry, and Volkswagen Passat.

Did you find this article helpful? If so, please share it using the "Join the Conversation" buttons below, and thank you for visiting Daily News Autos.

Summary: Completely redesigned for the 2016 model year, the stylish Kia Optima retains signature design cues while continuing to blur the lines of distinction between mainstream and luxury sedans.


When the Rev. Al Sharpton couldn’t make it to Nelson Mandela ’s funeral in South Africa, President Barack Obama brought him back a little souvenir.

The memento, a program from the funeral, hangs on a wall in Mr. Sharpton’s nondescript offices above Midtown Manhattan.

“To Rev. Sharpton,” Mr. Obama wrote. “A fellow warrior for justice!”

Much has been made of Mr. Sharpton’s reinvention, the remaking of a local, sometimes divisive activist into a polished insider with a national TV show and a direct line to the White House.

Yet, at home in New York City, as tensions simmered last year over race, police conduct, and the deaths of Eric Garner and police officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, Mr. Sharpton’s new role has been tested.

With the relationship between Mayor Bill de Blasio and the city’s police unions deeply frayed, union leaders say Mr. Sharpton’s presence by the mayor’s side over the past year is part of the problem.

Mr. Sharpton said he often speaks with the mayor a few times a week.

“There’s a saying: ‘Show me your friends and I’ll show you who you are,’ ” said Sgt. Edward Mullins, president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association union.

Sgt. Mullins said many officers regard Mr. de Blasio’s tightknit relationship with Mr. Sharpton as a form of betrayal. He said he raised the issue at a December meeting meant to ease tensions between the mayor and police unions, telling the mayor, “sitting with Al Sharpton was causing divisiveness.”

“He’s the leading advocate against the police across the country,” former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said in a telephone interview. “Every time a policeman is in trouble they see him getting on a plane, then standing next to the family making allegations against the police.”

A de Blasio aide said Mr. Sharpton wasn't central to the conversation between the mayor and the union chiefs.

Mr. Sharpton calls the accusations “good demagoguery” by union leaders. And he points out that former Mayor Michael Bloomberg also held joint news conferences with him, as he did in 2006 after the killing of Sean Bell, who was unarmed when he was shot by police outside a nightclub in Queens.

And he says the narrative of his ‘reinvention’ is overblown.

“Even in my rebel days,” he said, “my medallion had Martin Luther King on it. I didn’t have Che Guevara. ”

Raised mostly by his mother in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, Mr. Sharpton was ordained as a minister at age 10 and has been preaching ever since.

Now loosely aligned with the Bethany Baptist Church in Brooklyn, Mr. Sharpton preaches nationwide—last year, he said, at 83 churches across the country.

After cutting his teeth in civil-rights activism as a teenager in the early 1970s, with the Rev. Jesse Jackson as one mentor—and soul singer James Brown as another—Mr. Sharpton founded the National Action Network, a Harlem-based civil-rights advocacy group, in 1991.

The reverend has taken a salary there only in the past few years, also earning money through speaking engagements and books, a spokeswoman said.

Mr. Sharpton turned 60 last year, and the way he sees it, history has come around to his point of view.

“I’ve seen a black mayor, a black governor and a black president,” he said. “So if you want to talk about how I’ve grown, maybe I grew because the city grew, and the country grew.”

The most obvious tipping point is the election of Mr. Obama. A TV show on MSNBC, “PoliticsNation,” followed, in 2011.

And Mr. Sharpton’s outsize influence in local politics seemed to have been cemented with the 2013 election of Mr. de Blasio, the first Democrat to lead the city in two decades.

One unlikely convert is Newt Gingrich, who went on an education tour with the reverend in 2009 at the behest of Mr. Obama. The former Republican House Speaker, in a telephone interview, called Mr. Sharpton “courageous.”

“I was frankly surprised,” Mr. Gingrich said. “He was effective, he was blunt. And he was a heck of a lot more effective with black politicians and leaders in communities than I was.”

Distrust of Mr. Sharpton among some white New Yorkers can be most directly traced to his involvement in publicizing the case of Tawana Brawley, a New York teenager who claimed in 1987 to have been raped; a grand jury found that Ms. Brawley had fabricated the story.

Mr. Sharpton, who paid $65,000 to a county prosecutor who sued him for defamation over the case, hasn’t apologized for his role in the case.

Recently, Mr. Sharpton has come under scrutiny for his business-tax practices, with a New York Times article charging more than $4.5 million in state and federal tax liens against him. Mr. Sharpton said this week the figure is lower and he has been paying the debt and cooperating with tax authorities since 2009.

At his birthday party last year, a glamorous black-tie affair at the Four Seasons Hotel New York, life-size cutouts of Mr. Sharpton in his earlier, heftier days—complete with replicas of his gold medallion—stood among the guests, who included Aretha Franklin and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and drew smiles.

His physical transformation has been dramatic, and brought him down to about 130 pounds.

Mr. Sharpton maintains his weight with a diet that bans most fruits (too much sugar, he said) and includes little more than a single slice of dry whole-wheat bread past 1 p.m.

He said he also has become more disciplined about his tone.

“It’s the same message but I’ve been able to say it in a way that is not as-the form doesn’t get in the way of the content,” he says.

Mr. Sharpton said he is worried about his legacy—and the moment when Mr. Obama “walks out of that White House and a whole generation has grown up watching a black family walk out on that lawn and get in Marine One, and that ain’t there no more, and they look at their reality.”

In an interview, Mr. Jackson likened Mr. Sharpton to a “long distance runner” who can adjust to the changing times.

Mr. Sharpton said that sounded about right.

“I must be saying something people agree with. Nobody has enough charisma to last as many years as I have,” he said. “How long can you dance?”

Write to Mara Gay at mara.gay@wsj.com

Summary: In New York City, as tensions simmered last year over race, police conduct, and the deaths of Eric Garner and two police officers, the Rev. Al Sharpton’s role as polished insider has been tested.


The Leadership Insider network is an online community where the most thoughtful and influential people in business contribute answers to timely questions about careers and leadership. Today’s answer to the question: How do you encourage creative thinking within your organization? is written by Amit Srivastav, president of Infinite Computer Solutions.

Creativity is often the core of any business, but it’s one of the trickiest components to maintain. This is particularly the case for technology, where creativity is its own currency and a tech company can live or die by the strengths of its new ideas. Faced with competition and flush with capital, Silicon Valley tech companies have added full snack bars, game rooms and even designated vacations, to capture that elusive spark of creativity and give them an edge in their industry. goog Google famously designated “20 Percent Time” for their engineering employees to explore their own personal, creative projects.

For traditional and mature technology businesses such as IT services, this can be a bit more challenging to implement; customers expect a level of service and financial savings, and creativity may take a back seat to servicing these well defined and time managed requirements. An added challenge of creativity is that it is an inherent risk: a new idea might fail, and that margin of error in a business like ours is very small due to the inherent constraints of the business. However, that this fear is misguided. There is always an imperative to find new markets and technology to stay ahead of the curve. This is the nature of technology.

And so the risk of creativity is worth taking, even if it is an investment that doesn’t immediately see a tangible, financial return. The reward is much more profound — businesses don’t grow because employees were simply competent; they grow because employees are constantly encouraged to share their ideas and take strategic risks, bringing their company to a new level of maturity.

See also: The Easiest Thing You Can Do to Impress Your Boss

A small or mid size business cannot be a Google, but they certainly can respect Google’s dedication to creativity. Creativity to a large extent is cultural. However, organizations need to provide the structure and the expectation of new ideas. Risks should – and needs – to be encouraged. Even Google has had their missteps – for every Google Maps, there are several other ideas that did not make an impact. Not every creative idea will succeed, nor should it be expected to. The key is to provide the time, space, and resources to build and foster that creativity, and integrate it into the heart of the business. I’d also add that it’s critical to recognize individuals for their input at the highest levels of the organization.

The resource side is relatively simple. Infinite, for example, sets aside a fund for new ideas with little expectation of the outcomes, and it doesn’t have to be a substantial commitment. $100,000 is not extensive in the scheme of a $300 million business, and the potential reward is immense. There’s also time set aside – even for people engaged with our largest clients – to brainstorm what can be done differently that could potentially give the client better rewards.

We implement this creative process through the concept of “Value Registers” – a defined capture mechanism for any idea that adds delivery excellence, financial savings for the client or a new way to define and deliver established processes. This Value Register is an inherent part of our business proposition to all our clients. There is a substantial reward and recognition program associated with the entries in the Value Register that gain the most impact for our clients.

The recognition side offers a more intangible contribution to creativity. Modest financial incentives for creativity can work – however, I find that the more intangible rewards for creating, developing, and executing a project with your name attached are even more powerful nurturers of creativity. There are few things as satisfying as when your big win is presented before a client and the entire business. The additional benefit of this expectation and structure is that it fosters the kind of company culture that drives success – dynamic, energized, and engaged. We select our talent for their capabilities; all we have to do is give them the resources to capitalize.

Summary: The reward will be worth it


06/06/2016 AT 12:20 PM EDT

Donald Trump may no longer own the

, but he's once again part of a controversy surrounding the show.

, the producers slipped in a question, posed to Miss Hawaii Chelsea Hardin, asking if she would vote for Trump or Hillary Clinton for President. But the controversy isn't surrounding Hardin's answer – judge Laura Brown, executive editor at

, who asked the question quickly found herself under attack on Twitter.

"If the election were held tomorrow, would you vote Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump, for President, and why would you choose one over the other?" Brown asked Hardin, amid boos from the crowd.

Forcefully smiling through it, Hardin joked, "I would get that, right?" before answering, "All I have to say, is it doesn't matter what gender. What we need in the United States is someone who represents those of us who don't feel like we have a voice, those of us who want our voices heard. We need a president to push for what is right, and push for what America really needs."

Twitter exploded with comments about the question, calling out Brown for asking a question many said should be private.

That was the worst question to give to a contestant and #MissHawaii handled that professionally and the best way possible. #MissUSA

@laurabrown99 @MissUSA That Question should NEVER have been asked. If you were a Stronger Woman you would have Rejected it Immediately...

When you vote for president, your ballot is secret. Completely inappropriate #MissUSA question, but #MissHawaii answered gracefully

Who is that judge that asks who would #MissHawaii vote for? She is horrible, insensitive and bias. #MissUSA No political q's in pageants pls

I'm embarrassed for the entire #MissUSA organization. Asking a contestant who they would vote for is absolutely inappropriate.

EXCUSE ME, SHAME ON MISS USA FOR THAT QUESTION. Miss Hawaii is such a poised young woman and handled that flawlessly. #MissUSA

The boos continued, and when the show returned from a commercial break, co-host Terrence Jenkins clarified that Brown and the judges did not come up with the questions.

And Brown responded on Twitter, praising Hardin.

Hi guys. I asked the question I was given and Miss Hawaii answered beautifully. @MissUSA

Hardin later became the runner-up to winner

, Miss D.C., with some Twitter users saying Hardin lost because of the voting question.

Sorry #MissHawaii you got screwed out of the crown you earned because our society loves to make everything social and political. #MissUSA

Wonder what would have happened if Miss DC got Miss Hawaii's question??? #MissUSA2016

Hardin was thrilled regardless, telling Barber, "Yes, yes! I'm so proud of you!" when Barber was crowned the winner.

Summary: Viewers started attacking judge Laura Brown on Twitter for asking the question


accusers and they all told the same tale ... of allegedly being drugged and sexually assaulted.

Linda Kirkpatrick says she met Cosby in 1981 when she was 25. She claims she met Cosby playing tennis at a club in Vegas, and Cosby invited her to a party in his hotel room ... and

She claims he gave her a drink and she woke up a short time later to find Cosby on top of her, kissing her. Kirkpatrick remembers a bracelet with

's name on it. She claims Cosby apologized the next day ... she went to his hotel room again and he tried to hug and kiss her.

Lynn Neal claims she met Cosby in her 20s, also at a tennis club. She says the two went out to dinner and he ordered a shot of vodka for her. After that she became disoriented.

Neal claims Cosby took her pants off and began having sex with her and says Cosby talked about an orgasm being like a thermostat building up pressure.

The third accuser, Kacey, says she met Cosby while working at William Morris for Cosby's personal appearance manager. She says their professional relationship soon became personal.

Kacey claims they were at lunch in his bungalow at the Bel Air Hotel and he insisted she take a pill. She did, and claims she passed out and woke up in bed with Cosby, who was naked.

The statute of limitations has run, so the end game is unclear.

Summary: Attorney Gloria Allred trotted out three new Bill Cosby accusers and they all told the same tale ... of allegedly being drugged and sexually…


is officially divorced, even though he and his ex haven't settled their money issues. Thing is ... he needs the divorce STAT so he can get married again.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... Zuiker fast-tracked the nasty divorce in order to marry Michelle Territo, the preschool teacher he's been dating for a year. We're told they may tie the knot next month.

We know Anthony, who's repped by disso-queen

, and ex-wife Jennifer have been in a battle royale over money, and there's a lot of it ... "CSI" has generated more than $6 BILLION.

As we reported, Anthony and Jennifer were married in 1999 with NO pre-nup. Our sources say Jennifer, who is repped by

, will make out like a bandit.

Summary: "CSI" creator Anthony Zuiker is officially divorced, even though he and his ex haven't settled their money issues.  Thing is ... he needs the divorce…


Forget "Swish" and "Waves" ... Kanye West just revealed the new title of his album, and it appears to be a shout out to the biggest drug lord in history.

West tweeted the answer to the T.L.O.P. riddle -- he challenged fans to guess what the initials stood for -- and it's "The Life Of Pablo." He also released the final track list for the record which comes out on Thursday.

Pablo could refer to famed drug cartel leader Pablo Escobar, who 'Ye mentions in his new track with Kendrick Lamar ... "No More Parties in L.A."

Warning: This IS Kanye, so he could still change his mind before the release.

Final track list for The Life Of Pablo pic.twitter.com/PMH94MAAeJ

Summary: Forget "Swish" and "Waves" ... Kanye West just revealed the new title of his album, and it appears to be a shout out to the biggest drug lord in…


The body of backpacker Rye Hunt was so decomposed that a cause of death could not be fully determined, says the detective leading the investigation in Brazil.

The remains of the 25-year-old are expected to be cremated and returned to Australia from Rio de Janeiro as early as Wednesday.

Mr Hunt went missing on May 21 after becoming separated from his travelling companion Mitchell Sheppard at the Rio airport.

They had an argument after the two took what is suspected to be a highly potent hallucinogen known as NBOMe.

A body that washed ashore at Marica near Rio on June 8 has been identified as Mr Hunt from dental records and the remains released to his family, Detective Elen Souto said on Tuesday.

"We were told by the police station in Marica that a dead body, with clothing similar to what Rye was wearing when he went missing, had been found," the detective said.

"The head, arms and legs were in a skeletal state."

The investigation has been completed without the cause of death being fully understood, she said.

Local residents found the body covered in sand on the idyllic Guaratiba beach in the district of Marica, 50km from the centre of Rio.

Mr Hunt was last seen by a fisherman on May 22 on the island of Cotunduba, near Copacabana beach in Rio, where he had apparently swum.

According to the testimony of the fisherman, he was acting "high", Detective Souto said.

He gave him water but Rye did not request help, she said.

"He drank the water quickly, stared at the boat, then looked away to the horizon and was gone."

The testimony of the fisherman supports the idea that Mr Hunt died while trying to swim away from the island, probably due to physical weakness or dehydration, police said.

His remains will be cremated and his ashes scattered in his home state of Tasmania when his uncle Michael Wholohan and girlfriend Bonnie Cuthbert bring them home, which could be as early as Wednesday pending the approval of a Rio court.

Summary: The ashes of Australian backpacker Rye Hunt could be home soon, pending court approval in Brazil.


He then negotiated a price of $300 for the woman and $300 for her friend, while sending her details of where to find the bankers and their clients, the court was told.

He did not try to claim expenses to cover the alleged cost and the bank did not know about the apparent activities.

The LIA claims its management team during the Gaddafi-era in 2007 and 2008 was “financially naive and unsophisticated”, allowing Goldman Sachs to “take advantage” and exercise “undue influence” over the fund.

It argues this resulted in the LIA striking a series of deals to buy derivatives, losing the LIA $1.2bn and earning Goldman Sachs a profit of up to $275m.

Goldman Sachs denies any wrongdoing, arguing that the LIA had experienced financiers in among its executives and made the investment decisions itself.

The bank also said that it earned no more than $130m on the deals.

In court documents Goldman has acknowledged the provision of entertainment such as meals and sports and musical show tickets, which it said are “unexceptional.”

Goldman’s global chief executive and chairman Lloyd Blankfein was also named in court, as a chain of emails from April 2008 shows he expressed an interest in the deals.

Summary: A Goldman Sachs banker “procured” prostitutes in Dubai to give executives at the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) clients “lavish” entertainment, building a relationship which the LIA claims the bank then abused, the High Court has heard.


First date conversation can be awkward. What do you talk about? How can you come across well?

In a study by Richard Wiseman, less than 9% of couples that talked movies wanted a second date vs 18% of couples that talked about travel.

Via Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things.

When talking about movies, less than 9 percent of the pairs wanted to meet up again, compared to 18 percent when participants spoke about the top topic—travel… the conversations about travel tended to revolve around great holidays and dream destinations, and that makes people feel good and so appear more attractive to one another.

Add to what they say and bounce the ball back.

This is how to have smooth first date conversation.

Avoid extremes in autonomy. Don’t dominate, but don’t be a non-contributor either.

Via Brain Trust: 93 Top Scientists Reveal Lab-Tested Secrets to Surfing, Dating, Dieting, Gambling, Growing Man-Eating Plants, and More!:

The trick, according to Finkel, Eastwick, and Saigal, is to avoid extremes in autonomy. Accept your date’s pass, redirect it slightly, and then return the ball— all with warmth and genuine interest in his or her responses. This acceptance and redirection is the push and pull that creates smoothness.

Emotional, personal information exchange during first date conversation promotes powerful feelings of connection.

Via Sam Gosling’s book, Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You:

Arthur Aron, a psychologist at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is interested in how people form romantic relationships, and he’s come up with an ingenious way of taking men and women who have never met before and making them feel close to one another. Given that he has just an hour or so to create the intimacy levels that typically take weeks, months, or years to form, he accelerated the getting-to-know-you process through a set of thirty-six questions crafted to take the participants rapidly from level one in McAdams’s system to level two.

But how effective can this be, really?

In under an hour it can create a connection stronger than a lifelong friendship.

Via Click: The Magic of Instant Connections:

What he found was striking. The intensity of the dialogue partners’ bond at the end of the forty-five-minute vulnerability interaction was rated as closer than the closest relationship in the lives of 30 percent of similar students. In other words, the instant connections were more powerful than many long-term, even lifelong relationships.

Read Aron’s most effective questions here.

If all else fails, talk about abortions and STD’s.

Forcing people to discuss interesting but more controversial topics made for more enjoyable first date conversation.

We limited the type of discussions that online daters could engage in by eliminating their ability to ask anything that they wanted and giving them a preset list of questions and allowing them to ask only these questions. The questions we chose had nothing to do with the weather and how many brothers and sisters they have, and instead all the questions were interesting and personally revealing (ie., “how many romantic partners did you have?”, “When was your last breakup?”, “Do you have any STDs?”, “Have you ever broken someone’s heart?”, “How do you feel about abortion?”)… Instead of talking about the World Cup or their favorite desserts, they shared their innermost fears or told the story of losing their virginity. Everyone, both sender and replier, was happier with the interaction…What we learned from this little experiment is that when people are free to choose what type of discussions they want to have, they often gravitate toward an equilibrium that is easy to maintain but one that no one really enjoys or benefits from.

Dating site OkCupid found one question that was the single best predictor of whether men or women would have sex on the first date:

“Do you like the taste of beer?”

Among all our casual topics, whether someone likes the taste of beer is the single best predictor of if he or she has sex on the first date… No matter their gender or orientation, beer-lovers are 60% more likely to be okay with sleeping with someone they’ve just met. Sadly, this is the only question with a meaningful correlation for women.

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This piece originally appeared on Barking Up the Wrong Tree.

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Summary: Talk Travel, Not Movies