Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

Jared Goff displays his talents for NFL scouts and coaches, including new 49ers head coach Chip Kelly (right).

Jared Goff displays his talents for NFL scouts and coaches, including new 49ers head coach Chip Kelly (right).

Quarterback Jared Goff shows the gathering of NFL scouts and coaches his measurable abilities during Cal’s pro day.

Quarterback Jared Goff shows the gathering of NFL scouts and coaches his measurable abilities during Cal’s pro day.

NFL scouts track the time of cornerback Kameron Jackson's 40-yard run at the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on Friday, March 18, 2016.

NFL scouts track the time of cornerback Kameron Jackson's 40-yard run at the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on Friday, March 18, 2016.

Running back Daniel Lasco runs through a drill for NFL scouts at the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on Friday, March 18, 2016.

Running back Daniel Lasco runs through a drill for NFL scouts at the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on Friday, March 18, 2016.

Equipment managers Grant Hanson (left), Brian Kong (center) and Daniel Hong drag heavy pop-up tackling dummies into place for the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on Friday, March 18, 2016.

Equipment managers Grant Hanson (left), Brian Kong (center) and Daniel Hong drag heavy pop-up tackling dummies into place for the California Golden Bears Pro Day at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif. on

Cal’s Goff checks all the necessary boxes at pro day

In draft-analyst lingo, Cal’s Jared Goff displayed good “arm talent,” made “all the throws” and did nothing to diminish his “draft stock” at his pro day.

This obviously isn’t news. It would inspire headlines if Goff suddenly looked different from the quarterback who set 26 school records during a highlight-stuffed career that made him a consensus top-10 draft pick long before Friday’s workout at Memorial Stadium.

Goff clearly possesses the attributes needed to succeed in the NFL: arm strength, size (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) and pedigree. But there’s far more to evaluating quarterbacks and, unfortunately for NFL personnel types, the most important qualities can’t be measured.

Just ask 49ers head coach Chip Kelly, who acknowledged this week that the difficulty in locating some must-have traits explains the high bust rate at the position.

“I think a lot of times it’s how are they in adverse situations,” Kelly said. “I think the difficulty for everybody in this league is the two toughest things to evaluate, because it’s subjective, is the intangibles and the intelligence in terms of how it relates to the game. There’s not a test. It’s not like putting a clock on him and he ran a 40, so he can do it.”

In the weeks before next month’s draft, of course, quarterback-needy teams such as the 49ers will attempt to discern whether Goff is the next Matt Ryan (No. 3, 2008) or Matt Leinart (No. 10, 2006).

That explains why both Kelly, whose team has the No. 7 pick, and Browns head coach Hue Jackson (No. 2) were among the gaggle of scouts, coaches and executives in attendance Friday. They probably didn’t come away with a better grasp of Goff’s intangibles, but they might have learned more about how he could grasp a football in a monsoon.

After the scripted portion of his workout, Browns quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton handed Goff a dripping-wet football and asked the Novato native to make a few more throws.

“Yeah, growing up in California, they probably wanted to see that,” Goff said. “That makes sense. At the same time, I’ve played in cold weather before. I wouldn’t be the first quarterback to go from California to cold weather. I think (Green Bay’s) Aaron Rodgers and (New England’s) Tom Brady have done pretty well.”

It wasn’t just about Goff’s Marin County roots. It was also about his hands. They measured nine inches at last month’s combine, which is considered small for a quarterback. In Indianapolis, Goff had a bemused look when queried about his hands, and he smiled Friday when a reporter noted that his much-discussed mitts had evidently grown: They measured 9¼ inches at his pro day.

Cracked Goff: “They got me a new measuring tape that’s made for small-handed people.”

Plenty of 49ers fans would like to see their team get their hands on Goff after a 5-11 season during which Colin Kaepernick’s career nosedived. It’s a realistic possibility and a flood of analysts expect the 49ers to grab Goff after the Browns select North Dakota State’s Carson Wentz.

On Friday, Kelly was joined by four 49ers assistants, including quarterbacks coach Ryan Day. Goff acknowledged he’s also interested in playing for the 49ers.

“It’d be great,” Goff said. “It would be a really cool thing. I grew up as a fan of them. It would be awesome. At the same time, I’d be more than happy to play anywhere.”

Before he discovers his NFL employer, Goff will have pre-draft visits that will allow teams to get to know him on a more personal level. Part of those visits is designed to assess those all-important intangibles.

For his part, Goff said that process began at the combine. Many of the quarterbacks were posed a question about being in an adverse situation: Where would they want to be sitting if they were on a bus that lost its brakes and was careening down a snowy mountain?

“And immediately you guys all think, ‘In the back’ or ‘I want to be out of the bus,’ right?” Goff said. “But ‘In the front’ would be the correct answer if you’re a quarterback. You want to take control of it.”

Goff smiled as he told reporters he’d passed one of his first NFL tests: “I said, ‘The front.’”

Eric Branch is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ebranch@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @Eric_Branch

Summary: In draft-analyst lingo, Cal’s Jared Goff displayed good “arm talent,” made “all the throws” and did nothing to diminish his “draft stock” at his pro day.  Goff clearly possesses the attributes needed to succeed in the NFL: arm strength, size (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) and pedigree.  [...] there’s far more to evaluating quarterbacks and, unfortunately for NFL personnel types, the most important qualities can’t be measured.  Just ask 49ers head coach Chip Kelly, who acknowledged this week that the difficulty in locating some must-have traits explains the high bust rate at the position.  In the weeks before next month’s draft, of course, quarterback-needy teams such as the 49ers will attempt to discern whether Goff is the next Matt Ryan (No. 3, 2008) or Matt Leinart (No. 10, 2006).  After the scripted portion of his workout, Browns quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton handed Goff a dripping-wet football and asked the Novato native to make a few more throws.  In Indianapolis, Goff had a bemused look when queried about his hands, and he smiled Friday when a reporter noted that his much-discussed mitts had evidently grown:  Cracked Goff: “They got me a new measuring tape that’s made for small-handed people.”  On Friday, Kelly was joined by four 49ers assistants, including quarterbacks coach Ryan Day.  Before he discovers his NFL employer, Goff will have pre-draft visits that will allow teams to get to know him on a more personal level.  Where would they want to be sitting if they were on a bus that lost its brakes and was careening down a snowy mountain?


Would you go swimming with sharks if someone paid you to?

Well that's exactly what 32-year-old Daniel Botelho has been doing since he was 17, capturing some of the most breathtaking images of underwater inhabitants in the world.

How about tussling with alligators in the bayous of Florida?

We interviewed several individuals who we feel may have some of the world's coolest jobs. Click ahead to find out what drives them do what they do and what they enjoy most about their work.

By Jermaine Taylor Posted 1 June 2013

Summary: Would you go swimming with sharks under the sea or tussling with alligators in the Florida bayous?  Meet the people who get paid for this stuff and more of the world's coolest jobs!


NEW YORK — US regulators proposed new rules on Thursday to overhaul the way Wall Street executives are paid, addressing years of complaints that excessive bonuses helped lead to the 2008 financial crisis.

The long-awaited rules are aimed at stopping executives from making risky financial bets to boost their pay and then collecting large bonuses before the fallout is clear. Under the proposed rules, big banks could soon demand the return of executives’ bonuses if their gambles don’t pay off.

The regulations could potentially affect the pay of thousands of bankers and senior executives at some of the country’s largest financial institutions, but public advocates quickly charged that regulators likely didn’t go far enough.

‘‘I think the key question to ask about this regulation is this: If it had been in place in the years leading up to the financial crisis, would it have significantly reduced the reckless behavior that led us into that crisis,’’ said Sarah Anderson, the global economy project director at the Institute for Policy Studies. ‘‘Unfortunately, while there are some areas of improvement, I think the answer to this question is still no.’’

The proposal comes at a time when Wall Street has been thrust into the presidential campaign amid calls by Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders to break up the big banks. Asked about bankers on NBC’s ‘‘Today Show’’ Thursday morning, Republican Donald Trump described the executives as ‘‘good people like everybody else. They’ve got a lot of money. I think they’re paid too much money but what are you going to do? I mean, you know, it’s one of those things.’’

Under the proposed rules, the nation’s largest banks would have up to seven years to ‘‘claw back’’ executives’ bonuses if it turns out their actions hurt the institution. Also, instead of handing over all of a person’s bonus in one year, the payments would be spread out over four, according to the proposed rules.

Reining in Wall Street pay has been one of the most complicated, and controversial, parts of 2010’s financial reform package approved by Congress, known as Dodd Frank. A team of regulators, including those from the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Reserve, initially proposed limits to pay and bonuses given to top executives at financial institutions in 2011.

‘‘It has been a long time in coming, because on this controversial issue, it is challenging to develop a rule, which both meets the mandate of the law and at the same time is focused and fair,’’ Debbie Matz, chair of the National Credit Union Administration, one of the agencies involved in developing the rules, said in a statement.

The rules are ‘‘slightly’’ stronger than those proposed in 2011, but still leave the industry some wiggle room, said Bart Naylor, financial policy advocate for Public Citizen. The clawback provision, for example, covers a relatively long period of time, seven years, but banks will be able to determine when to use it, he said.

They could determine that an executive was not specifically responsible for the actions that led to a fine from the government or other significant losses and leave the executives’ bonuses untouched, he said. ‘‘We think senior executives should pay for [those losses] no matter what. It would presumably force them all to look over each other’s shoulders,’’ Naylor said.

Large bonuses have long been a key motivator on Wall Street, but they drew new scrutiny in the wake of the financial crisis after American International Group, the massive insurance company, took a taxpayer-funded lifeline of more than $100 billion. The company faced a backlash for setting aside millions of dollars for employee bonuses and retention pay, despite its bailout. Lawmakers were incredulous. AIG eventually agreed to revise some executive payouts.

Many banks have already moved to address the concerns raised in the wake of the financial crisis and have made changes to the way they hand out bonuses, said John Trentacoste, a director with Farient Advisors, an executive compensation firm. ‘‘It was not lost on the boards of these financial institutions that there was a lot of public ire focused on them,’’ he said.

The proposed rules arrive at a time when Wall Street has become stingier with its bonuses amid an industry slowdown. The average bonus tumbled by 9 percent to $146,200 last year, according to the New York State Comptroller’s Office. But, compensation experts have said, bonuses at hedge funds and private equity firms can still reach millions of dollars a year.

And some Wall Street’s top executives are still receiving hefty pay packages. JPMorgan Chase boosted the pay of its chief executive, Jamie Dimon, by 35 percent last year to $27 million.

The National Credit Union Administration approved the executive compensation rules Thursday, but five more agencies still must act before they become binding. It is unclear when those other agencies will take up the proposal.

Summary: US regulators proposed new rules on Thursday to overhaul the way Wall Street executives are paid.


May 5, 2016 11:03 a.m. ET

It’s hard to rethink the earring, said New York-based jewelry historian Marion Fasel, but “it looks like Charlotte Chesnais has.” The 31-year-old French designer’s hook earrings have “a lyrical line that swoops in a graphic way,” said Ms. Fasel. Ms. Chesnais, who honed her skills for nine years at Balenciaga and calls her pieces “little sculptures,” launched her own jewelry collection in 2015 with loop-the-loop hoops, triple-knuckle rings and intertwining bangles in silver, vermeil and 18-karat gold.

This week, she launches her fine jewelry line exclusively at Dover Street Market in New York. In it, she’s embellished her modern-classic vermeil designs with diamonds or, if you prefer, blue sapphires or pink amethysts. Diamond Swing Earring, $4,435, Dover Street Market, 646-837-7750

Summary: Paris-based designer Charlotte Chesnais creates sculptural jewelry in silver, vermeil and gold. Her new fine jewelry line of gem-studded earrings has been launched exclusively at Dover Street Market in New York.


The company now expects procedures using da Vinci robots to increase 12 percent to 14 percent in 2016, helped also by a favorable outlook for prostate and gynecological surgeries, executives said on a conference call. Intuitive previously forecast procedure growth of 9 percent to 12 percent.

In the first quarter, procedures using da Vinci robots rose 17 percent worldwide from a year ago, driven by growth in U.S. general surgery and overseas urological surgeries.

Growth in hernia repair was robust, and the robot saw continued adoption in colorectal surgery, executives said. The company is also focused on expanding use of the robot in thoracic procedures, particularly complex cancer cases.

“You are seeing both clinical and economic benefits with robotic surgery use in these procedures,” said Canaccord Genuity analyst Jason Mills.

Excluding one-time items, Intuitive said it earned $4.42 a share. Analysts on average expected $4.33 a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Net profit for the quarter rose to $136 million, or $3.54 a share, from $97 million, or $2.57 a share, a year ago.

The company’s net quarterly profit had been projected at $3.43 a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose 12 percent to $595 million.

The company shipped 110 da Vinci systems in the first quarter, up from 99 units in the year-ago period.

The company said it had made steady improvements in reducing product costs, including for surgical instruments, and expected to make additional progress this year and in 2017.

Intuitive is also boosting spending on research and development, particularly in the areas of imaging and analytics, Chief Executive Gary Guthart said in an interview.

Intuitive is now the only maker of robotic surgical systems for the U.S. market, but is expected to face competition in the next few years from Medtronic Plc, a startup funded by Johnson & Johnson and Alphabet Inc’s Google, and others.

Guthart said the company’s focus on developing cost-effective technologies that improve outcomes for patients had not changed.

“As competitors come in, they are going to have to work within that same framework,” Guthart said.

Summary: After expanded use of its da Vinci robots


It’s not up for adoption yet, but already major tech companies are sounding the alarm about a new bill that could pressure companies to bust into encrypted devices like smartphones when asked to do so by the government.

On Tuesday four groups representing companies such as Microsoft msft , Google googl , Amazon amzn , Paypal pypl , and Facebook fb drafted an open letter to Senate intelligence committee chairs Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who released their new draft of the controversial bill last week. The tech groups say if adopted, the new law would create “government-mandated security vulnerabilities,” essentially requiring tech companies to build hackable software for the government.

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The new encryption bill comes on the heels of Apple’s aapl big fight with the FBI last month over whether the company could be forced to help law enforcement crack into an encrypted iPhone used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook. That fight was pushed aside when the FBI got help from a third party, but the debate over whether tech companies should be forced to help crack into other encrypted information on user devices wages on.

Apple’s latest transparency report suggests the company did help law enforcement in a majority of cases last year, objecting to 11% of law enforcement requests, while providing data in 80% of cases. But the difference with the new law, the companies say, is it could force software engineers to make security systems weaker and more hackable because it would make it illegal for companies to bow out of decoding unintelligible, encrypted data on devices in criminal cases.

For more on Apple and its iPhones, watch:

Under the new bill, companies would be responsible for turning over encrypted data if demanded by court order in criminal cases that involve death, serious injury, drug offenses, child victims, or foreign intelligence operations, Reuters reported.

Burr and Feinstein are now soliciting input on the bill, introduced as a draft last week, before formally introducing it for adoption in the Senate.

Here’s the letter to the senators:

Dear Chairman Burr and Vice-Chairman Feinstein:

We write to express our deep concerns about well-intentioned but ultimately unworkable policies around encryption that would weaken the very defenses we need to protect us from people who want to cause economic and physical harm. We believe it is critical to the safety of the nation’s, and the world’s, information technology infrastructure for us all to avoid actions that will create government-mandated security vulnerabilities in our encryption systems.

As member companies whose innovations help to drive the success and growth of the digital economy, we understand the need to protect our users’ physical safety and the safety of their most private information. To serve both these interests, we adhere to two basic principles. First, we respond expeditiously to legal process and emergency requests for data from government agencies. Second, we design our systems and devices to include a variety of network- and device-based features, including but not limited to strong encryption. We do these things to protect users’ digital security in the face of threats from both criminals and governments.

Any mandatory decryption requirement, such as that included in the discussion draft of the bill that you authored, will to lead to unintended consequences. The effect of such a requirement will force companies to prioritize government access over other considerations, including digital security. As a result, when designing products or services, technology companies could be forced to make decisions that would create opportunities for exploitation by bad actors seeking to harm our customers and whom we all want to stop. The bill would force those providing digital communication and storage to ensure that digital data can be obtained in “intelligible” form by the government, pursuant to a court order. This mandate would mean that when a company or user has decided to use some encryption technologies, those technologies will have to be built to allow some third party to potentially have access. This access could, in turn, be exploited by bad actors.

It is also important to remember that such a technological mandate fails to account for the global nature of today’s technology. For example, no accessibility requirement can be limited to U.S. law enforcement; once it is required by the U.S., other governments will surely follow. In addition, the U.S. has no monopoly on these security measures. A law passed by Congress trying to restrict the use of data security measures will not prevent their use. It will only serve to push users to non-U.S. companies, in turn undermining the global competitiveness of the technology industry in the U.S. and resulting in more and more data being stored in other countries.

We support making sure that law enforcement has the legal authorities, resources, and training it needs to solve crime, prevent terrorism, and protect the public. However, those things must be carefully balanced to preserve our customers’ security and digital information. We are ready and willing to engage in dialogue about how to strike that balance, but remain concerned about efforts to prioritize one type of security over all others in a way that leads to unintended, negative consequences for the safety of our networks and our customers

Computer & Communications Industry Association

Summary: Tech groups warn a new law would make tech like smartphones less secure.


This piece was originally published on Entrepreneur.

You’re excited to start a business. Maybe you have an idea, or you’re just fascinated with the idea of launching and growing your own enterprise. You’re willing to take some risks, like leaving your current job or going without personal revenue for a while. But there’s one logistical hurdle stopping you: You don’t have much money.

On the surface, this seems like a major problem, but a lack of personal capital shouldn’t stop you from pursuing your dreams. In fact, it’s entirely possible to start and grow a business with almost no personal financial investment whatsoever — if you know what you’re doing.

Why a business needs money

First, let’s take a look at why a business needs money in the first place. There’s no uniform “startup” fee for building a business, so different businesses will have different needs. It’s important to first estimate how much you need before you start finding alternative methods to fund your company.

With that said, you have two main paths of starting a business with less money: lowering your costs or increasing your available capital from outside sources. You have three options here:

Option one: Reduce your needs

Your first option is to change your business model to demand fewer needs as listed above. For example, if you were planning on starting a company of personal trainers, you could reduce your “employee” expenses by being the sole employee at the start. Unless you need office space, you can work from home. You can even do your homework to find cheaper sources of supplies, or cut out entire product lines that are too expensive to produce at the outset.

There are a few expenses that you won’t be able to avoid, however. Licensing and legal fees will set you back even if you cut back on everything else. According to the SBA, many microbusinesses get started on less than $3,000, and home-based franchises can be started for as little as $1,000.

Your second option invokes the idea of a “warmup” period for your business. Instead of going straight into full-fledged business mode, you’ll start with just the basics. You might launch a blog and one niche service, reducing your scope, your audience and your profit, in order to get a head-start. If you can start as a self-employed individual, you’ll avoid some of the biggest initial costs (and enjoy a simpler tax situation, too).

Once you start realizing some revenue, you can invest in yourself, and build the business you imagined piece by piece, rather than all at once.

Your third option is all about getting funding from outside sources. I’ve covered the world of startup funding in a number of different pieces, so I won’t get into much detail, but know there are dozens of potential ways to raise capital — even if you don’t have much yourself. Here are just a few potential sources for you:

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting Your First Business 7 Myths About Starting a Business That I Used to Believe Starting a Business in 2016? Avoid These 5 ‘Beginner’ Mistakes.

With one or more of these three options, you should be able to reduce your personal financial investment to almost nothing. You may have to make some other sacrifices, such as starting small, accommodating partners or taking on debt, but if you believe in your business idea, none of these losses should stand in your way. Capital is a major hurdle to overcome, but make no mistake — it can be overcome.

Summary: Don't overlook these options when starting on a shoestring.


Dropbox is getting more serious about developing business among corporate accounts with the hire of a long-time Microsoft sales executive, Thomas Hansen.

His official title at the cloud storage upstart: global vice president of sales and channel. (The latter is a fancy term to describe business partners and resellers.)

Hansen previously headed Microsoft’s sales activities focused on small and midsize businesses, where he led what probably rates as the biggest indirect software sales channel in the world. He also led big sales regions at Dell.

Hansen will start in August, reporting to Dropbox COO Dennis Woodside. “We’re scaling at an extraordinary pace, and Thomas’ insights will help us accelerate Dropbox adoption even faster,” Woodside wrote on the company’s blog.

Dropbox figures that more than 100,000 paying organizations use its Dropbox for Business offering, including The Absolut Company, Hyatt Hotels, News Corp., Spotify, Under Armour, and Yahoo. Its current user count is 400 million across 8 million businesses.

Back in April, the cloud file-sharing startup signed a big partnership with telecommunications giant SoftBank, which will present its services in Japan.

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Summary: The online file-sharing company counts about 100,000 paying customers for its business-targeted offering. It wants way more.


A month after David Lynch pulled out of Showtime’s Twin Peaks reboot, the director and Showtime confirmed on Friday that Lynch is back.

“This damn fine cup of coffee from Mark and David tastes more delicious than ever. Totally worth the extra brewing time and the cup is even bigger than we expected. David will direct the whole thing which will total more than the originally announced nine hours. Pre production starts now!!” said David Nevins, President of Showtime Networks, Inc. in a statement.

“Dear Twitter Friends, the rumors are not what they seem ….. It is !!! Happening again. #TwinPeaks returns on @SHO_Network,” Lynch wrote on Twitter.

Back in April, Lynch cited an insufficient budget for departing the reboot. “After 1 year and 4 months of negotiations, I left because not enough money was offered to do the script the way I felt it needed to be done,” he wrote at the time.

This article originally appeared on EW.com

Summary: David Lynch is back


From the giant rorquals to the tiny vaquita, the Gulf of California is home for one third of the marine mammal species on earth, and it one of the last sanctuaries for the blue whale, the largest animal that has ever existed.

In February of 2014, with support from the National Commission of Protected Areas of Mexico (CONANP), photographers Jaime Rojo and Patricio Robles Gil led a three-week expedition to the Gulf of California.

Using a mixture of stunning time-lapse techniques, stills photography and an expert eye for the magnificent, Jaime and Patricio reveal this beautiful sea as you've never seen it.

Jaime Rojo is a Senior Fellow with the International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP) that specialises in the production of multimedia campaigns to engage the public in conservation issues.

Patricio Robles Gil is a conservation artist that uses his passion and skills to communicate the beauty and importance of the last wild places.

Summary: The majestic Gulf of California as you've never seen it, a place where wild desert meets ocean wildlife


An employee of a Palo Alto company was hospitalized and more than a dozen co-workers were evaluated for chemical exposure after an “unexpected” chemical reaction, authorities said.

Two employees of Stangenes Industries were mixing epoxy at about 9 a.m., said Catherine Capriles, Palo Alto’s deputy fire chief. But they used the wrong quantities of chemicals, she said, and the solution began emitting gas and melted the plastic bucket in which it was being held.

The pair ran outside with the bucket so the fumes could be released outdoors, Capriles said.

When firefighters got to the scene on the 1000 block of East Meadow Court, 50 or so employees who had been the building had already evacuated. Fourteen employees complained of shortness of breath and abdominal pain. One man was transported to a hospital and the rest were treated outside the building.

Hazardous materials crews from the Palo Alto and neighboring Mountain View fire departments were dealing with the incident into the afternoon, waiting for a cleaning company to finish its work so they could go inside the building.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: kveklerov

Photo: Paul Hart, Getty Images

One person was taken to a hospital after being exposed to a chemical Tuesday in Palo Alto.

One person was taken to a hospital after being exposed to a chemical Tuesday in Palo Alto.

Worker hospitalized in chemical accident in Palo Alto

Summary: An employee of a Palo Alto company was hospitalized and more than a dozen co-workers were evaluated for chemical exposure after an “unexpected” chemical reaction, authorities said.  Two employees of Stangenes Industries were mixing epoxy at about 9 a.m., said Catherine Capriles, Palo Alto’s deputy fire chief.  Hazardous materials crews from the Palo Alto and neighboring Mountain View fire departments were dealing with the incident into the afternoon, waiting for a cleaning company to finish its work so they could go inside the building.


For the keen dog lover, there's a cunning way to make money from man's best friend. If you take your dog for a walk round the block before and after work, why not charge to take neighbours' dogs, too? Dog-walkers can charge upwards of £10 per hour per dog, with higher rates for walkies at weekends and on bank holidays. Those interested should either post an ad in the window of your local newsagent on an online noticeboard such as gumtree.com, or search for local animal-sitting firms that are looking to sign up new walkers.

It is not just Britain's stately homes and landmark listed buildings that are in demand by directors of films, TV series and advertisements. Many use ordinary homes and flats, and will pay the owners handsomely for the privilege of having the run of the place. Rates vary, but the minimum location fee is £500 a day; if your house is deemed suitable - or distinctive enough - to appear in a major film, it could earn up to £3,000 a day.

If you think your home has star quality, contact an independent agency such as Lavish Locations (020 8742 2992, www.lavishlocations.com) or Film London (020 7613 7676, www.filmlondon.org.uk). Alternatively, contact the European Film Commission Network (www.eufcn.net) which can give you further details of where you can register your property for European film productions.

If you home fails the screen test, you can still make money from it by renting out your driveway. There are now a number of agencies, including letmepark.com and yourparkingspace.co.uk, that match motorists looking for regular parking slots with homeowners with spare drive space. Rates vary depending on location and the demand for parking in the area.

Not surprisingly, prime locations in London and those within easy walking distance of train and Tube stations command the highest rates. Those who live near major sporting venues, such as Wimbledon, Ascot, Silverstone or Wembley, can also charge premium rates during major sporting events.

According to one parking space agency, letmepark.com, homeowners can earn between up to £75 a week by renting out their driveways, with those near sporting venues taking between £10 and £35 a day, depending on the occasion and local parking availability.

Television, film and advertising agencies are always looking for "star pets" to appear in their productions - and are willing to pay up to £90 an hour to the owners of animals with a natural ability to perform, who can take stage directions, and look generally adorable in front of a camera.

While leading agencies such as Animal Ark (020 8560 3029, www.animal-ark.co.uk), whose beasts have appeared in the likes of Absolutely Fabulous and Gladiator, prefer that their pet actors are raised by professional trainers, ordinary owners have a chance of getting an exceptional pooch or moggy on the books. However, be wary of any agents charging hefty advanced fees to represent your pet.

Whatever your skills - be it speaking a second language, playing a musical instrument or an advanced knowledge of calculus - you can get paid for teaching in your spare time.

Families will pay up to £25 an hour to tutors prepared to coach their kids through key exams. To see if you make the grade, contact Personal Tutors (personal-tutors.co.uk; 0161 428 2285), First Tutors (firsttutors.co.uk), the UK's largest database of private tutors, or localtutor.co.uk, which has a search engine matching subjects with teachers in a chosen catchment area. Would-be tutors with more esoteric skills may want to list their services on setyourrate.com. You simply list your skill, set your asking per-hour rate, and wait for someone to contact you.

Currently the site lists those offering poker lessons, photography workshops, and pole dancing fitness clubs.

Fans of Lynne Truss (the author of the grammar guide Eats, Shoots and Leaves) will be pleased to know that they can earn good money by proof-reading and editing manuscripts - up to £3.95 a page. The Society for Editors and Proofreaders suggests a minimum rate of £19.25 an hour, although this is for those with appropriate proofing qualifications; beginners are likely to earn far less.

Also, in most cases, you will not be proof-reading novels destined for the Booker Prize shortlist, or even a Richard and Judy-approved bestseller - it is far more likely to be drier technical information. Look out for the numerous advertisements for part-time proof-readers in newspapers, or search online.

Many art schools and colleges will pay good money for life models to pose for their classes - and it's not just for the lithe-limbed and big-busted. As this generally involves sitting around with no clothes on in front of a group of strangers, it is not for shrinking violets.

But with models able to earn £12 an hour at some of London's top art schools, the pay may more than compensate for any initial embarrassment.

Central St Martins College of Art, which has more than 2,000 models on its books, says classes last between two and a half hours and five hours. Anyone interested should contact their local university, colleges and schools running adult education classes.

Many companies want to know about your shopping habits - and are prepared to pay you to find out which flavour of crisps you prefer or how amusing you find the rhymes in greetings cards. Those who take part in online surveys will be paid £6 an hour. To register for NOP surveys, contact www.surveys.com.

Those taking part in focus groups are paid more - up to £50 per session, but most are randomly selected. For more information, contact Ipsos Mori (020 7347 3000, www.ipsos-mori.com) and NOP (020 7890 9000, www.gfknop.com).

Some market research companies hire mystery shoppers to review service standards in hotels, restaurants, pubs, health spas and even trains. While the rates of pay are relatively low - in some cases, just £5 an hour - these "shoppers" can claim back expenses, so at least you get an evening out for free, too. For details, contact NOP's mystery shopping team on 01865 262701, https://cybershop.gfk.com.

Since the start of the year, door-to-door cosmetic sales company Avon has reported a substantial increase in the number of new recruits, which it says is partly due to the credit crunch.

Lesley Hughes, 26, from Grantham, joined two months ago as she was looking for ways to earn extra money to meet rising food costs and petrol bills. She already works full-time as an administrator, but was aware that her salary was becoming more and more stretched each month.

"Selling cosmetics seemed like a good opportunity," she says, "as I can be flexible about the hours I work and fit it in around my family." Once a sales representative has sold £76 worth of goods, she pockets £1 in every £5 she sells, and this rises to £1 in £4 once orders exceed £144.

"Even when times are tough, I have found people will still happily spend a bit of money on a new lipstick," Lesley says. "It helps to cheer them up." Lesley mainly sells to friends, family and colleagues but is hoping to expand and become the main representative for her village, South Withan in Lincolnshire. With the money she earned from her first brochure sale she took her three-year-old son Korben on a trip to the seaside.

"It's nice to have a bit of extra money for treats," she says. "I wouldn't be able to afford them otherwise, because I certainly don't want to run up money on credit cards."

For details on becoming an Avon sales rep, contact Avon (0845 601 4040, www.avon.uk.com).

Summary: 10 ways to make extra cash on the side


The popular French writer Guy de Maupassant (1850 – 1893) reportedly ate lunch in the Eiffel Tower’s restaurant every day for years — not because he loved the great iron monument but because, so the story goes, it was the only place in Paris where he could sit and not see the tower itself. Maupassant, like countless French artists and aestheticians of the late 19th century, despised Gustave Eiffel‘s creation, seeing it as a vulgar eyesore and a blight on their beloved Parisian skyline.

Whatever. For the rest of the world, the Eiffel Tower is and has long been one of the singular architectural emblems anywhere on earth: a formidable, graceful, soaring structure that connotes Paris as surely and as indelibly as the Empire State Building, Il Duomo, Hagia Sophia and other enduring landmarks signify their own great, respective cities.

[See the winners of our #EiffelTowerLIFE Instagram campaign.]

Here, on the 125th anniversary of the opening of the Eiffel Tower to the public during the 1889 World’s Fair, LIFE considers the phenomenal edifice through a single picture: Dmitri Kessel’s classic 1948 portrait of La Dame de Fer as seen on a winter’s day.

Perhaps it’s the absence of a single, visible human form that lends Kessel’s photograph its timeless power. Maybe it’s the ill-defined look of the structure, almost phantasmal as it looms in the Parisian fog, that somehow draws the viewer even deeper into the scene — as if, given enough time, the fog itself might clear and, even as we watch, the spire might grow more defined in the stark winter light.

Whatever the source of this one picture’s abiding appeal, the allure of the tower itself remains undimmed 125 years after wondering, awestruck crowds first encountered what was then, and remained for the next four decades, the tallest manmade structure on the planet.

– Ben Cosgrove is the Editor of LIFE.com

Summary: On the 125th anniversary of the Eiffel Tower's public opening, LIFE celebrates Dmitri Kessel's classic 1948 portrait of the tower seen on a foggy winter's day.


Dia Center for the Arts

'Mapping the Studio II (Fat Chance John Cage)'

''Mapping the Studio I,'' at Dia, which even some Bruce Nauman fans I've heard from find stupefyingly dull, may turn out to be one of his most important works. I find it amazing, as a Cagean gambit and a grueling, weirdly beautiful meditation on nothingness and artist's block, but I admit it took a while to sink in. Another version of it now at Sperone Westwater makes a useful comparison.

The original 5-hour, 45-minute version has occupied a vast Dia gallery all year: seven DVD's projected around the walls of the room, showing Mr. Nauman's studio from different angles. The work is shot with a cheap video camera at night, in darkness, by infrared light. What you see are real-time gray-green images edited down from months of shooting. They're the sort of images you see on security cameras, with the same paranoid overtones.

Visitors on rolling office chairs, like night watchmen, stare at almost nothing for hours and hours. After a while the tendency is simply to stop watching and just gaze passively, the empty room becoming strangely comforting, with much of what you register happening unconsciously on the periphery of your vision, the way you sense what's going on around you even when you're focused on something different or half-dozing.

The scenes flicker and shimmy slightly. You can hear, on the seven soundtracks, the drone of an air-conditioner, the wind and a distant train whistle. Sound is psychologically crucial in Mr. Nauman's work, but always subtly. The work is like Cage's music, making use of ambient noise and chance. I said almost nothing happens because a cat or mouse sometimes skitters through the studio, and a chair or a stack of videotapes moves around, the result of different nights of shooting spliced together. But otherwise, nothing changes.

The gallery at Dia, much bigger than Mr. Nauman's studio in New Mexico, multiplies the sense of desolation but distorts the domestic scale. What's at Sperone Westwater is a second version, with colors added (sickly reds, greens and blues, typical Nauman off-key colors -- I love them -- which slowly phase from one image to the next), the images also flipping upside down, then right side up every several minutes.

The Sperone gallery is closer to the size of Mr. Nauman's studio, so you can feel more as if you were there, except that the colors and the flipping at the same time abstract the projected images, making you less attuned to specific objects and more to generalized moving shapes. Mr. Nauman has talked, interestingly, about the work going on all the time, like a Warhol movie -- or like a sculpture, which is always there, even when you're not in the room looking at it. There's also something sculptural about the way the gallery shares space with the video projections.

In a back room at Sperone, Mr. Nauman's ''All Action Edit,'' as he calls it, picks out just ''highlights'' of the original 42 hours of tape: instants when something moves (a moth, the cat). But after you've got accustomed to the real-time version, the ''action edit'' suddenly seems too full of action. Your head spins.

The desolate beauty of ''Mapping the Studio'' is really to do with its long stretches of inaction. The grinding pace gradually sinks into your bones, as is the case with Mr. Nauman's early videos in which he neurotically paced around his studio, but here the desolation is grander because the place is empty; and the work overwhelms you with the anxiety, and expectation, that an artist must feel in a studio, alone, desperately waiting for an idea. Mr. Nauman has done more than make something of nothing. He has found a haunting mental music in the endless silence of an empty room. MICHAEL KIMMELMAN

Photos: Shades of paranoia in meditations on nothingness: Above, scenes projected on the walls of Sperone Westwater Gallery in the Village show Bruce Nauman's studio in New Mexico at night. Left, a still of cats at the studio. Both are part of ''Mapping the Studio II (Fat Chance John Cage).'' (Photographs from Sperone Westwater)

Summary: Dia Center for the Arts  548 West 22nd Street  Chelsea  Through July 27    'Mapping the Studio II (Fat Chance John Cage)'  Sperone Westwater Gallery  415 West 13th Street  West Village  Through July 27      ''Mapping the Studio I,'' at Dia, which even some Bruce Nauman fans I've heard from find stupefyingly dull, may turn out to be one of his most important works. I find it amazing, as a Cagean gambit and a grueling, weirdly beautiful meditation on nothingness and artist's block, but I admit it took a while to sink in. Another version of it now at Sperone Westwater makes a useful comparison.


British pedophile Richard Huckle has been sentenced to life in prison by a London court for abusing 23 Malaysian and Cambodian babies and children over almost a decade.

Huckle, 30, stood in the dock at London's Old Bailey court with his hands clasped together as if in prayer as he was told he would have to serve at least 23 years behind bars for his crimes against victims aged six months to 11 years.

"It is very rare indeed that a judge has to sentence sexual offending by one person on such a scale as this," judge Peter Rook said.

As Huckle was led away after the sentencing, a woman sitting in the public gallery shouted: "a thousand deaths is too good for you".

Huckle had pleaded guilty to 71 offences and was found with over 20,000 indecent images of children on his computer and camera when he was arrested at Gatwick Airport in 2014.

He is one of the most prolific child sex abusers known to have operated in Malaysia, where the authorities have been criticised for failing to tackle sex crimes properly against children.

The sentencing was leading news bulletins in Malaysia on Monday.

Huckle abused his victims over a period of nine years between March 2006 and December 2014. All the crimes took place in Malaysia, apart from the first incident which involved the abuse of a two-year-old child during a visit to Cambodia.

"Relentlessly, you preyed upon the very young - pre-pubescent vulnerable children from a minority ethnic community into which you ingratiated yourself," the judge told him.

"This was a prolonged campaign of rape of the children from a small community."

The judge said one of the most aggravating features of the case was that Huckle targeted and groomed impoverished children and their families, seeking to impress them with his relative wealth and status as a Westerner.

"Your offending behaviour became entrenched in your everyday life," he added.

"Your life revolved around your sexual activities with young children. Your distorted beliefs in respect of children are deep-seated. Your self-delusion knows no bounds."

Huckle boasted of his crimes online and had written a 60-page manual advising other pedophiles on how to abuse children.

The judge said this was a "truly evil document proselytising pedophilia" and that Huckle had intended this to become a commercial enterprise.

Summary: A UK man, 30, has been sentenced to life in jail for his abuse of 23 Malaysian and Cambodian babies and children.


An Australian family has been torn apart after the immigration minister, Peter Dutton, cancelled a man’s visa on the basis of a secret security assessment and placed him in detention.

In a decision that is likely to alarm migrant communities, Dutton cancelled the visa of Mustapha El Ossman, who had been living in Australia for several years. El Ossman is Lebanese and was on the verge of gaining a partner visa.

His wife, Mariam Albaf, and his infant daughter, Haffa Arwa Albaf, are both Australian citizens. Mariam Albaf and her family have lived in Australia for more than 20 years, after her parents emigrated from Lebanon.

El Ossman has never been accused of any criminal wrongdoing and has always complied with his visa conditions. He has had three positive security assessments from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation since he first visited Australia.

Related: A phonecall, a meeting, then indefinite detention: the refugees at the mercy of Asio

But suddenly, and with no clear explanation, that position changed. After an adverse security assessment from Asio in August 2015, Dutton used his discretion to cancel El Ossman’s visa on Asio’s recommendation, which led to his placement in the Villawood detention centre in Sydney. The immigration department and Serco, the private contractor that manages Villawood, decided to place El Ossman in the highest security area of the Villawood compound, known as Blaxland.

He potentially faces indefinite detention in Villawood and is unable to seek a review of the Asio decision on its merits because he is not an Australian citizen. This gap in Australian law has consistently been criticised and has drawn the attention of the UNHRC on several occasions.

Mariam Albaf and her family have spoken out about the security assessment in a video interview with Guardian Australia. She has issued a direct plea to Dutton to reconsider the visa cancellation and the family has started a petition to call for his release from detention.

Albaf told Guardian Australia her daughter has difficult recognising her father when they visit the detention centre.

“It’s a travesty; you’re in a system where you’ve got laws that protect humans and their rights,” she said. “But he doesn’t have rights as a human. So we don’t get to find out why he’s in there. We don’t get reasons.

“Right after he was taken away if I left the room [my daughter] would scream hysterically. She would literally hold onto my leg.

“She started waking up in the middle of the night. She’d wake up screaming hysterically.”

El Ossman has appealed against the visa cancellation decision to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on two occasions but the appeals were rejected in September 2015 and December 2015.

Although the tribunal member Antoinette Younes in September 2015 ruled against El Ossman, she noted: “The applicant is in detention and it is possible that he could remain in indefinite detention as a consequence of the cancellation.”

Younes acknowledged that family unity was important and that the interests of their daughter was a primary consideration “but the tribunal is satisfied that they are not the overriding interests in this matter”.

In the subsequent appeal, the senior tribunal member Irene O’Connell ruled against El Ossman but cast some doubt over Asio’s assessment, given its secret nature.

This time O’Connell was critical of some aspects of the decision.

“The applicant was not, for example, picked up in a raid, questioned by police, or charged with any terrorist activities,” she wrote.

“Given the nature of the Asio assessment, that the applicant is directly or indirectly a risk to security, it is to be given considerable and substantial weight.

“However, the manner in which the assessment has been implemented would tend to suggest that the attribution of substantial weight to the Asio assessment is to be treated with some circumspection.”

The basis for the decision is almost entirely unknown. In July 2014 El Ossman was questioned by Asio about his political views on the Syrian conflict and his religious views. No clear allegation has been put to him about any extremist activities or links, although Asio has suggested that this is the basis for the decision.

“I said that I love and respect this country and I want to live here for the rest of my life and I love this country to stay safe and sound,” El Ossman said in a written recollection of his interview.

“I promise Asio that if had any information about anyone who is trying to mess with the national security of this country that I will not hesitate to contact them, even if that person was a family member, as the damage that this person can cause in this beautiful country will hurt everyone.”

After the five-hour interview El Ossman thought this was the last he would hear from Asio. He even laughed and joked with the officers during the interview. They made him feel at ease. He told Mariam when he left that he thought it was fine, they didn’t seem bothered.

While both were anxious about the interview, nothing happened for almost a year. The family had been living in Sydney.

More than a year later, in September 2015, El Ossman was called in to the immigration department for what his family thought was a routine meeting. The family thought he was going to be granted his partner visa.

He was walked into another room, where two Australian Border Force officers were sitting. They told Mustapha his visa had been cancelled because of a security assessment from Asio. Neither officer would tell him any more than that. They asked him to explain why his visa shouldn’t be cancelled but did not accept his response. He was taken into detention immediately.

“I said why? What have we done wrong?” his wife says.

“I said but he’s my husband, he’s the father of this child. Why? You can’t just take a man away from his family without saying why.”

The truth was that neither officer knew. They, like the immigration minister, and the tribunal, have no idea about Asio’s reasons for the security assessment. But his visa was still cancelled.

You can’t just take a man away from his family without saying why.

The toll it has taken on the family is enormous and was recognised in both tribunal cases.

Albaf said: “I have nightmares. I’m a grown woman and I have nightmares. I’m moving because I don’t feel safe in my house.”

“I’m moving because I have nightmares that Asio comes into my house in the middle of the night and takes my daughter away.

“I have nightmares that Asio comes in and plants things in my house. Because there’s nothing in my house, because they want proof that my husband was a bad person.”

El Ossman has launched a federal court challenge to the assessment. Because Australian law does not permit him to appeal Asio’s decision on its merits, he is limited to questions of law, which can be more limited grounds of appeal.

Stephen Blanks, who is representing El Ossman, said the situation for non-citizens faced with adverse security assessments was a “very unfair situation”.

“It makes it very difficult to challenge and it’s terribly unfair, when somebody is deprived of their liberty but have no knowledge of who is making accusations against them or what they are,” he said.

“The immigration minister has to revisit his policy that non-citizens who receive these assessments should have their visas cancelled.

“By all means monitor them, even impose some small conditions on them, but don’t take them from their family and all the support networks that make them productive members of our society.”

After a lengthy delay, El Ossman was given a carefully redacted version of Asio’s reasons. It raises far more questions than it answers. The heavily redacted assessment claims he “harbours extremist ideology” and maintains some form of unsatisfactory association with individuals “involved in activities prejudicial to security” but does not disclose any clear basis for the decision.

Asio says he was not truthful in his interview with some responses about Syria and his views on the conflict, and maintains associations with “extremist individuals”, but does not outline what it believes is the basis for this view.

The decision is particularly controversial because Asio had already given El Ossman three positive security assessments. It was only the fourth assessment that was found to be negative.

Asio’s security assessment procedures have come under scrutiny before. The auditor general previously released an audit that noted some operational failings “limit assurance that the agency is making sound assessments that result in non-prejudicial advice”.

When asked why they only recommended El Ossman have his visa cancelled now, after being in Australia for several years, Asio said: “Asio does not provide a recommendation on the detention or otherwise of the individual. Asio issues assessments based on its knowledge and information available at the time and in the context of the security environment at the time.”

Convicted offenders are placed in Blaxland to await deportation and El Ossman’s mental health has deteriorated since his placement there. The population of Villawood has radically changed over the last 18 months and is now increasingly criminals awaiting deportation rather than asylum seekers.

It also means that his family must undergo strict security screening on order to visit him and have to take their infant daughter into the detention centre on a regular basis.

“It’s not a place that you want to bring your child to. There’s people in there who have committed crimes,” Mariam Albaf said.

Related: Man who led Manus Island inquiries to review adverse Asio security findings

“They provide toys that are broken and that have been vandalised. They’re weapons, they’re not toys.”

When questioned about the basis for the placement decision, a spokesman for the immigration department would not comment on El Ossman’s individual placement. But he added: “Decisions on where to place individuals in the detention network are based on a number of factors, including criminal histories, operational requirements, security and welfare issues.”

“In circumstances where an unlawful non-citizen has been determined as presenting a risk to the community, they may be detained in a facility commensurate to the level of risk they pose.”

Serco did not respond to questions and referred questions to the immigration department.

Dutton has been talking up the government’s human rights record before the looming federal election after he announced it had released children from mainland immigration detention centres.

When asked about El Ossman’s case, a spokeswoman for Dutton asserted that the minister had nothing to do with the decision, because the decision was made by a delegate of the minister.

“The minister’s a very busy man, he doesn’t have time to look at every single individual’s cancellation,” she said. “You’re making it sound like he personally reached in and ruined this guy’s life.”

She added: “If you want to go in to bat for these people then that’s fine.”

Summary: Mustapha El Ossman has never been accused of criminal wrongdoing, passed three security checks, and was on verge of gaining a visa before new Asio ruling


A 40-foot inflatable character from the movie Minions got loose from a Dublin fairground on Monday and caused confusion when it blocked a road.

The minion, which blew away during strong winds, seems not to have injured anyone, but did cause some traffic confusion.

A local resident who witnessed the incident told the Irish Independent that “everyone seems to have had a bit of fun from it,” but one Dublin city councillor took the accident more seriously, tweeting, “Escaped Minion at Omni in Santry may seem hilarious but its a dispicable breach of health & safety.”

It’s unclear whether the councillor’s choice of words was intentionally referring to the original movie the Minions characters appeared in, Despicable Me.

Summary: The balloon got loose from a fairground.


The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is one of the greatest sitcoms of our time, largely because it introduced us to the cultural phenomenon known as the “Carlton Dance.” And now, finally, we know where this iconic jig came from.

Actor Alfonso Ribeiro, who played Carlton Banks, told Variety that the dance was mostly improvised. It was created because the script simply read, “Carlton dances.”

Ribeiro took it from there.

“It was never even intended to be funny; it was just that he was dancing,” Ribeiro said. “The dance is ultimately Courteney Cox in the Bruce Springsteen video ‘Dancing in the Dark;’ that’s the basis. Or in Eddie Murphy’s ‘Delirious’ video, The White Man Dance as he called it. And I said, ‘That is the corniest dance on the planet that I know of, so why don’t I do that?'”

Soon enough, the Carlton Dance became a legend. Ribeiro revived it on a recent season of Dancing With the Stars, which he obviously ended up winning:

Summary: We have Courteney Cox, Bruce Springsteen and Eddie Murphy to thank


Vilified former biotech executive Martin Shkreli took to YouTube on Tuesday to analyze Valeant Pharmaceuticals vrx , the troubled pharmaceutical giant whose stock has cratered over 50% today on a messy earnings report. It was also Shkreli’s alleged drug price-gouging practices back in September that helped bring attention to Valeant’s own.

Shkreli, who hasn’t traded Valeant stock since he closed out of his long-position late October with a 3% loss, concluded in the live stream “investing class” that Valeant’s stock price seems fairly valued, and likely not a great investment. He states that the company’s dermatology brands are “smoke and mirrors,” with products that were non-medicinal.

That was after Valeant stock price dropped 50% to $33.51 on Tuesday, following an earnings report that missed analyst estimates and included an eyebrow-raising $600 million typo.

The former CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, Shkreli, is also predicting a management shakeup for Valeant.

“The terminal value is determined by management confidence. I don’t think Mike will eventually survive this—even through this week,” said the one-time hedge funder. “They’ll probably vote him out today, just knowing how boards work.”

Shkreli also noted that it probably wasn’t a great decision on the management’s part to buy “female viagra” maker, Sprout, or dole out so many stock options to employees, both of which have hurt earnings.

“That would’ve been a nice billion dollars to have handy,” he said, referring to how much those two items impacted Valeant’s bottom line.

Shkreli, who is known for his odd live chats, concluded the session by playing chess, hip hop, and “reading court cases for fun.” Of course, you might not want to take investing advice from Shkreli. The 32-year-old is currently facing securities fraud charges from the federal government stemming from his time as a hedge fund manager.

Summary: He was once long on the company at the start of their woes.


I thought about starting the busy week ahead by reflecting on how the fight between Apple and the FBI has become nastier than the audience at a Donald Trump rally. I also considered trying to convince you of the merits of the lowest-tech experience you can imagine: attending Major League Baseball’s spring training, as I did this weekend with my daughter in Arizona. I’m also mulling over the weird vibe in San Francisco these days, where all but the 0.1-percenters are quietly, or rather loudly, cheering for the tech industry to hit the skids so life can become a tad more reasonable for everyone else.

Instead I found myself in serene contemplation of why meditation suddenly has become so popular in the business world. Fortune’s Jen Wieczner raises the volume on the trend in the current issue of Fortune in her article “Meditating, for Love and Money.” Meditation, she writes, has become a billion-dollar business as companies from Goldman Sachs to Google shell out money to help their employees achieve more Zen. (A side note: The sheer number of startups with “Zen” in their names suggest something is afoot.)

This subject has crept into my consciousness over the last couple years. I’ve previously noted that super-investor Jim Breyer is among those who’ve staked a meditation app company called Headspace. Just last week former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, about the least calm business person imaginable, mentioned that he has become a fan of meditation.

I have no doubt that mindfulness and meditation are for real. I also know that when the tech industry grabs hold of a great idea it will overinvest, overhype, and generally pummel it into a cliché. Call me a cynic, but I also suspect that hard-charging converts to meditation are trying to compensate for garden-variety workaholism. I wish them all the best, but skipping their next business dinner and eating at home with their spouse and kids might do the trick just as well.

That said, the commercial world’s megaphone can be a force for good, getting the otherwise oblivious to take note of what matters.

I hope you have a mindful week.

Summary: Mind over machine


North Korea’s state media is reporting that on Aug. 15 the country will abandon the time zone it shares with Japan and South Korea and create its own.

Pyongyang Standard Time, as it were, will be 12 and a half hours ahead of the Eastern United States — 30 minutes behind Japan Standard Time, which both Koreas have used since Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula in 1910.

“The wicked Japanese imperialists committed such unpardonable crimes as depriving Korea of even its standard time while mercilessly trampling down its land,” said KCNA, North Korea’s state mouthpiece.

The decision serves to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Korea’s independence, which enabled the political rise of Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s founding father and grandfather to Kim Jong Un, the country’s third and current supreme leader. South Korea briefly returned to its precolonial time zone in 1954 before embracing Japan’s standard in 1961, citing diplomatic benefits.

Summary: Returning to the time standard it used prior to Japanese colonization.


Hey girl, don’t be too sad ... but Ryan Gosling is adding another baby to his family notebook.

The actor and longtime girlfriend, actress Eva Mendes, are expecting baby number two, US Weekly reported.

The 41-year-old brunette beauty was reportedly spotted hiding her growing baby bump during a photo shoot in February, according to the gossip site.

T.I. SAYS HE WAS 'HANDLING BUSINESS' DURING BABY'S BIRTH

This will be the second child for the Hollywood stunners, who welcomed daughter Esmeralda in September 2014.

It’s perfect timing for the bundle of joy as Mendes revealed in October that she would be taking a break from acting to focus on her family.

The notoriously private couple have kept their baby girl from the spotlight and have yet to share a photo of their 19-month-old daughter.

The couple have been together since 2011.

The two met in 2011 on the set of “The Place Beyond the Pines” and have yet to marry.

"I'm with the person I'm supposed to be with — I'm not looking for anything else beyond Eva — and I feel very lucky that we have a beautiful, healthy daughter, who is an angel. That's investment enough for me,” Gosling recently told Hello! magazine.

The news comes on the same day of other A-lister baby news. Gosling will be joining Ryan Reynolds, who is also expecting his second child with Blake Lively.

Summary: Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes are expecting baby number two.


It’s a whole new way to ‘double your pleasure:’ After you’re done chewing your gum, spit it out and turn it into a sensor.

That’s what researchers at the University of Manitoba and the Manitoba Children’s Hospital Research Institute did—and they found that a stick of Doublemint gum doubled up well as a stretchier, highly sensitive biosensor.

The gum just needs a little chew (about 30 minutes will do), then an ethanol cleaning before carbon nanotubes are stretched and folded into the gum, turning it into an active sensor.

All the gummy strength that goes into blowing a bubble is also perfect for medical body sensors: When a patient moves, the gum can stretch and bend, even under high strains. The new smartgum is also sensitive to humidity and could be used to track breathing.

Pricing out at under 3 bucks a piece, the gum sensors are much cheaper than other alternatives engineering professor Malcolm Xing says he’s tried.

It’s the latest thrifty find in a rapidly-evolving $10 billion-plus biotech market that’s shifting away from bulky machines towards stretchy tattoo-like monitors, fingertip-sized electrical boards, injectable dyes, and ingestibles.

And for Xing, all it required was a trip to the local supermarket.

Check out the tiny motion sensors inside Kinect video games:

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Summary: How the bubble-tastic power of gum could be used to track body movement and breathing.


Shayna Leigh is no stranger to the stage. After years of performing live, including a recent tour with American Idol contestant Lee DeWyze, the rising singer/songwriter can definitely call herself a seasoned pro. And anyone who has seen Shayna Leigh in real life can attest that her live performances are incredible. Her new EP "Drive" boasts Leigh's pop finesse, with songs that straddle different genres and incorporate lyrics ripped straight from her own personal journal. Between her emotional vocals, her infectious personality, and banter back and forth with the audience, Leigh makes her gigs events that are truly special for her audience.

And if you're hoping to see Leigh in action on stage, we've got good news for you. Shayna has her sights set on a tour across the country very soon. So while you're patiently waiting to scoop up tickets, you can get the inside look at Shayna Leigh's live performances from the singer herself! Check out the video above to see Leigh's take on all-things touring. Below, you'll also find out why she gravitates towards acoustic sets and what her big plans are for the future.

And don't forget to check out her brand-new music video "Goodbye July!"

If you want even more Shayna Leigh news, head over to AOL.com at 6 p.m. ET to see more exclusive features, including how she incorporated her personal journals into her new album.

Do you normally play acoustic guitar when you're on tour? I just did acoustic on my last tour and we ran some mood tracks which I think is really cool to spice it up. I was playing with Lee DyWyze who was using a kick drum. But for me, it's just me and a guitarist. I have done full band shows, but it's really up to what the tour suggests. Acoustic is more manageable and if I'm supporting an acoustic act I go acoustic. I think it's nice to have the freedom to play that way, and acoustic sets let you be intimate with your guitar player and have your banter build towards the audience which is nice. Where do you see the progression of your music going in the next few years. My blanket for advice for anyone who will listen: you make plans and then you deviate. So I'm going to take things as they come when I head back to the studio in the next week or two. I'm going to start an EP which will hopefully be released in the summer. I'm looking to do more touring as well as playing locally. And there will be another music video and we're going to spend sometime working on the next EP. I think musically, we're going to add more indie elements as well. That's the direction I'm planning on going in at least.

YouShouldKnow is a feature that showcases up-and-coming social stars. To see more of past interviews, click here. And come back at 6 pm EST for more exclusives on Shayna Leigh, including how she incorporated her journals into her newest album.

To see more past YouShouldKnow stars, scroll through the gallery below:

Shayna Leigh reveals what is like performing live

What are you looking at 👀😂

How I look every day because life is too short to not have fun with yourself 🙆🏻

Move the way you want to move 💃🏼

This is my face when someone mentions food!🤓 Releasing a new video tonight! Can't wait!❤

Shooting a new vid for you guys!! Uploading Wednesday!!!😍❤🎬 #teamworkmakesthedreamwork

It's the most wonderful time of the year❤🎄🎁

"Mom she won't let me have a sip of her Capri Sun" -6 year old nerf gun loving Brent to 6 year old polly pocket obsessed Mere NEW VIDEO IS UP W/ @brentrivera 👫 Link to watch is in my bio! ❤

Adventuring with friends at the beach 🌊 Pretty sure this house was haunted... not to mention the door was open. Something you guys don't know about me is I am the most savage ghost hunter around nothing scares me and I mean nothing 👀 Do you believe in ghosts? 👻

Bonjour, je m'appelle Meredith. Comment t'appelle tu? Out of my 3 years of studying French this is one of the only things I remember 😂👋

AHH!!! We hit 3MILLION subbies today!! 💞🎉😭🎂 I love my #macbabies so so much!!! You all mean the WORLD to me!!! Our family is growing so much! Thank you for allowing me to just be my awkward self. I love you and I can never thank you enough for all the opportunities you've given me!! 💞🎉🎂✨😱

i like pink doors ♡ ps..new video going up soon! ahh who's excited?!? link in my bio! also, what's your fav color?! hehe 💞✌🏼🎉

until next time thailand ♡ ps...guess who just uploaded a vlog!! you get a sneak peek of my final room decor!! ahh! also, how did you find my youtube channel? i'm so curious! 💞🌎✌🏼

i just wanna travel the world ✈ where should I go next ?😉

so ready for halloween 👻 SOOOO, I just uploaded a brand new HALLOWEEN VIDEO!! Click the link in my bio to watch!🎃

eye see you 👀 Ps: thank you all for your amazing and continued support. I want you all to know how much I love and appreciate you so much. xoxo

Have you seen my new video yet!? It's all about music festivals so make sure to check it out on my YouTube channel! + there's some friends in it☺

My new video is dropping today!!! Can you guess what it'll be..?😗

u like em crazy babe don't u

the #londonhasfallen premiere last night 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧

when the waiter passes your table with food

Fun fact : purple and orange teacups are the fastest! :)

Once you see it, you can't unsee it

PROUDEST PUPPY MOMS EVER 🐶🐶☺ @karminmusic @garykarmin @djminimatt

WE OUT HERE AT THE #KCA's and the inner child in me is screaming.

trying my hardest to be "fierce"....

Welcome to slime history @rebelwilson !! 😁😂 #KCA2016

2 0 1 6 - #HAPPYNEWYEAR on the water 2-5~6

We love taking walks, no phones, just talking about life. If you can, make time every week to take a 30-minute walk with a friend or a loved one. It's a cool way to get to know each other on a deeper level!

Leap year gives us all 24 extra hours to #DayItForward! We’ve teamed up w/ @Chevrolet to send love to #UsTheFamily - check out our Twitter feed tomorrow!!

Have you heard?! We're joining our friends @ptxofficial on the first leg of their World Tour this Spring! Click the link in our bio for tix, or visit https://www.ustheduo.com/tour :) PUMPED to meet some new and current #UsTheFamily members!

NEW VIDEO: Creepy Things Girls Do 😂 Comment a, "🐬" if you've watched it/will watch it

Guess who's birthday is in 5 days?? (No it's not Dylan O'Brien) 😎

I came here to live life like nobody is watching ❥ ♡

Did you catch the latest blog post on the blog (link in profile)?? Who else loves afternoon tea?? // 📷: @torrancecoombs #TheAListIreland

Dorky smiles + a photobomb by some serious woman with a serious collar 😜😜 #HereCoombsTheBride

Soft curls and red lips 💋 // 📷: @torrancecoombs

Every girl ought to have a pair of nude suede pumps! Nothing like New shoes Monday with @mgemi. Get more details on @liketoknow.it www.liketk.it/2fcOb #liketkit #lovemgemi

On the streets of Paris in red and how I style my street style looks for fashion week revealed on #thechrisellefactor today! Direct link in bio 👉🏻 http://thechrisellefactor.com/2016/03/power-color/ 📷:@karenrosalie_

Rendezvous in Paris in Pink on #TheChriselleFactor today. Direct link in bio 👉🏻 http://thechrisellefactor.com/2016/03/rendezvous-in-pink/

Your not ready for this #chromat #nyfw #teamthis

We run THIS show #HBDWang #rkobh #teamthis

When it's "chilly" out 😜 #ootd

had the King of LA @yg come through last night 🙏🏽

If you guys saw how I looked before you would think it was magic 😩😭 My beautiful makeup for #kca by @beautybydianalomelin 💫

Winding down with @SkinnyMintCom 😌 #TheOriginalTeatox #ad

Eating all that sushi finally turned me into a mermaid! 😭 for @projectmermaids #saveourbeach Photography by @angelinaventurellaphoto Hair and Makeup by @ljbeauty Bra by @edwordgarcia Sponsored by @sexyhair Project Manager @crissycrissybobissy

If you know me well or have read interviews I’ve done then you know that @marthastewart has always been my biggest inspiration when it comes to food. One of my goals is to be a combination of my two idols- Martha and Andy Warhol. As a child I would dream about spending the time and care like her to prepare a table, creating something very special for people to join around and share a meal. Watching her cook inspired me to teach myself how to hand weigh ingredients, to always have my mise en place organized, how to pronounce words like vichyssoise, and her wide usage of produce variety is honestly a large part of where my curiosity for our food sparked from. With this said, I’m sure you can imagine my surprise when I was told that I was one of the 25 creatives @marthastewart is inspired by in celebration of their 25th anniversary. Thank you for helping me think and dream so big Martha, I am honored to share this and to make you all of the colors. #25yearsofmartha #foodgradients

I wanted to take a moment to reintroduce myself. I’m Brittany and I recognize that I seem to do a decent job of not sharing much about my actual self here or in interviews. I prefer to keep my art about the food and not myself. This community and my photography have become the biggest part of my life, I love it more than I have words to explain but there's more that makes me who I am. So for a quick moment here’s a bit- I’m 24, a taurus, live in Seattle but grew up in San Diego, my favorite food is a cheeseburger (super thin patty, toasted bun), my favorite bands are @stygoc and @metric, my first tattoo was the one on chest- it’s still my favorite and says ‘love your life’, something many people sadly forget. I was raised by my grandparents, I love to make small collections of items like rocks and stickers, I grew up playing a lot of sports competitively, I love Star Wars and have Boba Fett tattooed on my arm but Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is my favorite movie. Many times I have been told that being an artist “can’t be a real job” and that I was wasting my time trying to do so. I smile everyday not because I proved them wrong but because I achieved a goal. Dream big, everyone.

Thought I might start this week off with a past candy photo. Here's to hoping you all have the best days ahead! #foodgradients

Köln!!!! Didn't pronounce your name right on stage but... You were AMAZING. Only a couple shows left in EU-- next up, London... (📷: @annamaria_langer )

Practicing our Spanish with @tvtelehit Mexico 🇲🇽

Sam wants to play Jack & Rose in Titanic but Casey's all "nah i'm good, have fun tho mang"

We drove 28 hours to get to Canada. The jeep is still running💀😍

The Dallas episode for @heyusax is the funniest yet! Go watch it now on @go90 now!😄😄

That's a wrap #E! #Oscarafterpartyshow 🎉

Fashion influencer Chriselle Lim is poised for world wide web domination Meet the former Miss USA turned fashion blogger, Alyssa Campanella, who is dominating NYFW YouTube star Michael Buckley talks his famous YouTube channel, his favorite video to make and more!

Summary: After a recent tour with American Idol contestant Lee DeWyze, the rising singer/songwriter can definitely call herself a seasoned performing pro.


Dylan Minette plays Rex, Detective Michael Britton's (Jason Isaacs) son, who - in one of Michael's worlds - is dealing with the loss of his mother after a tragic car accident in NBC's "Awake."

Minette was born addicted to performing. At the age of six he booked his first job, a Sears print ad, after begging his parents to let him audition. Later, Minnette starred as Holly Hunter's nephew on the hit cable series "Saving Grace" for which he won the 2008 Young Artist Award. He is also known for his memorable performance as an earless patient who befriends Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) on "Grey's Anatomy," and for his recurring role on "Lost" as Jack Shephard's (Matthew Fox) son. Minette also recurred on TNT's hit show "Men of a Certain Age."

Recently, Minette appeared in "Let Me In," which earned him rave reviews for his performance. His additional film credits include the Warner Brothers feature "The Clique."

Along with his acting career, Minette also performs in a band called The Feaver.

Minette was born in Evansville, Indiana, and now resides in Los Angeles with his parents.

Summary: Meet Dylan Minnette on NBC.com.


Google is buying Webpass, a heretofore independent Internet service provider, to bulk up Google Fiber effort to bring high-speed Internet to more U.S. customers.

San Francisco-based Webpass offers commercial accounts in select cities, with Internet connections from 10 to 1000 Mbps. Residential customers can get connections ranging from 100 Mbps to 1 Gig. Terms of the acquisition (announced Wednesday) were not disclosed, but the deal is expected to be completed this summer.

In a statement Webpass president Charles Barr said the combined company can “accelerate the deployment of superfast Internet connections for customers across the U.S. Webpass will remain focused on rapid deployment of high speed Internet connections for residential and commercial buildings, primarily using point to point wireless.”

That bit about wireless is especially interesting for potential customers wary of running cables everywhere.

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Many Internet users view the arrival of Google goog Fiber in their locale as a welcome break from big ISPs that often hold monopolies or near-monopolies that allow them to offer so-so service for high prices. This deal makes it clearer than ever that Google is set on taking on the cable/ISP giants of the world which include Comcast CMCSA , Charter cchjw , Time-Warner TWX , Cox, et al.

For more on Google Fiber watch:

Thirteen-year-old Webpass now offers fast Internet in its hometown, as well as Oakland, Berkeley, San Diego, Miami, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Chicago and Boston. According to its web site, Google Fiber is now available in Atlanta; Kansas City (Missouri and Kansas); Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Provo, Utah. Service is planned for Huntsville, Alabama; Charlotte, N.C.; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; San Francisco, San Antonio, and Salt Lake City.

Clearly Webpass will give Google Fiber a toe hold in far more communities faster than it could get there on its own.

Summary: Webpass acquisition will add more cities to Google Fiber roster fast.


“Spaceman,” the movie about a certain eccentric Red Sox pitcher, finally has a release date. The long-gestating film about Bill Lee will be in theaters Aug. 19. The film, directed by Brett Rapkin, stars Josh Duhamel as Lee, the clever and unquestionably kooky lefthanded pitcher who won 51 games for the Red Sox between 1973-75.

Based on Lee’s book, “The Wrong Stuff,” the film chronicles Lee’s life with the French Canadian Longueuil Senators after his release by the Montreal Expos. Duhamel, who’s best known for his work in the “Transformers” movies — and as the husband of Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas — spent some time with Lee at the pitcher’s place in Vermont. “It’s sort of a challenge to embody someone like [Lee] in a movie,” Duhamel has said. “Because he is so charismatic, and he’s incredibly smart, and I’m not either one of those things. So I had to do my best acting work of my life. He was gracious enough to let us tell a story — and not tell a story that always paints him in the perfect picture, because he’d be the first one to admit that he made a lot of mistakes.” (We’re not sure what he’s referring to specifically, but Lee did once admit he sprinkled marijuana on his buckwheat pancakes to make him “impervious to bus fumes.”)

Interestingly, Duhamel is righthanded, so Rapkin had to reverse the film’s negative to make it appear that Duhamel is throwing lefthanded. “Spaceman” was financed in part by Eric Gagne, the former Dodgers (and Red Sox, for part of 2007) relief pitcher who was a fan of Lee’s as a kid growing up in Canada.


The absolute best book for Nicole Zajack was the one in which Dawn moved into her new house and she and the other baby sitters became convinced there was a ghost rattling around. It turned out to be a playful mouse. ''That was great,'' said Nicole, who's 13. ''Dawn's really neat. She's just like me. She's on the quiet side, but she's definitely mature. A very neat person.'' After she read the fifth book, Nicole began to phone her local bookstore every day to see if the next one had come in yet. ''I mean, I couldn't wait,'' she said. ''Who could?''

''I sit glued to the books,'' said Kathy Ames, who's 12. ''They're not out-of-the-ordinary stories, like a space creature lands in the yard. I like books that are realistic.''

Nicole and Kathy, along with just about every 8- to 13-year-old American girl alive, are rabid fans of the ''Baby-Sitters Club'' books. Among the fundamental principles for their age seem to be that they must giggle at the mention of boys, learn to play the piano and have read ''Logan Likes Mary Anne!,'' ''Karen's Roller Skates,'' ''Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls'' and the 18 other books in the series. Otherwise, they're just out of it.

The books, which are currently the most successful paperback juvenile series in the country, trace the adventures of a group of spunky eighth-grade girls who run a baby-sitting cooperative in the fictional town of Stoneybrook, Conn. Kristy is the club's president. Three times a week, the girls get together after school at Claudia's house. They go there because she is the only one with her own phone, which they can use to get their bookings.

Each novel details the escapades of one of the members, often a taxing baby-sitting assignment. There was the time, for instance, that Jessi baby-sat for a deaf boy and hastily had to learn some sign language. In another book, Kristy's mother remarried and the new family moved into a neighborhood where the kids mocked the Baby-Sitters Club and, worst of all, teased Louie, Kristy's aged pet collie. On yet another occasion, Jessi baby-sat for a week in a house overrun with animals and got terribly agitated when the hamster ceased walking around. She took it to the veterinarian. He was able to figure out it was pregnant.

By now, there are more than 11 million copies in print of the 21 books in the series, all published by Scholastic Inc. New titles appear monthly, whereupon they routinely shoot to the top of children's best-seller lists. In one recent week, nine ''Baby-Sitters Club'' books were among the top 20 slots on the B. Dalton list.

The books are uncommonly well written for a paperback children's series. They sometimes incline toward soap-opera-style plots, but the twists and turns are less formulaic than the genre usually offers.

Ann M. Martin, a slight, blond-haired 33-year-old who lives in Manhattan with a cat named Mouse, writes the series. Most children's series are the product of a stable of authors, but Ms. Martin goes it solo. She works from 7 A.M. to 6 P.M. weekdays, with some breaks, and polishes off a book in about three-and-a-half weeks. (To fill her spare time, she produces four books a year of a spinoff series for younger readers, ''Baby-Sitters Little Sister,'' and one hardcover juvenile novel.) Starting this year, because Ms. Martin thought it might be interesting to have vacations, another writer will do two of the ''Baby-Sitters Club'' books.

The series came about because of a hunch. In 1983, Jean Feiwel, a Scholastic editor, noticed that a book about a young girl's baby-sitting job had sold well for the company, and she thought there might be something in a series revolving around a group of baby sitters. This was about the time that Bantam's ''Sweet Valley High'' titles had captivated young hearts and books about groups of girls were selling briskly. ''There was something resonant about the idea,'' Ms. Feiwel said. ''It just struck a chord with me.''

She recruited Ms. Martin, an author of several books for children who had had a truncated career as a schoolteacher before becoming a children's book editor. She was about to leave Bantam to write full time. She was never actually part of any baby-sitting cooperative, though she watched her share of children growing up and baby-sits even now. ''I even just baby-sat right before Christmas for a girl who's a next-door neighbor,'' she said. ''She taught me cheerleading drills all evening. She made me do every last drill.''

Ms. Feiwel and Ms. Martin thrashed out plots. Part of the concept for the series was that each girl was to have some sort of distinctive trait or problem. Some early notions didn't get too far. For instance, Ms. Martin had suggested that it might be interesting if Stacey's parents were in jail for embezzlement, but Ms. Feiwel felt that it would not be all that appropriate. So she got the adults out of prison and made Stacey a diabetic. Originally there were four girls, though the club has swelled to seven.

Ms. Martin derives some of the plots from her own life, like the time the baby sitters use Brillo pads to wash a car and the paint comes off. ''Sometimes they're things I overhear on the bus or things that people tell me,'' she said. ''Somebody told me recently that their dog got a credit card at Brooks Brothers. I'm going to use that as a plot.''

Summary: LEAD: The absolute best book for Nicole Zajack was the one in which Dawn moved into her new house and she and the other baby sitters became convinced there was a ghost rattling around. It turned out to be a playful mouse. ''That was great,'' said Nicole, who's 13. ''Dawn's really neat. She's just like me.


Jonathan was born with 50-60% hearing loss in both ears as the result of nerve damage and has worn hearing aids since he was two years old. Because of this, he sometimes struggles with diction while singing. He got his start singing during an elementary school talent show; since then, he has grown a local fan base in Kentucky. Jonathan sings at church and local fairs and has even performed during the Kentucky Opry.

Summary: Meet Jonathan Hutcherson on NBC.com.


The Supreme Court has struck down Texas’ widely replicated regulation of abortion clinics in the court’s biggest abortion case in nearly a quarter century.

The justices voted 5-3 Monday in favor of Texas clinics that protested the regulations as a thinly veiled attempt to make it harder for women to get an abortion in the nation’s second-most populous state.

Justice Stephen Breyer’s majority opinion for the court held that the regulations are medically unnecessary and unconstitutionally limit a woman’s right to an abortion.

Texas had argued that its 2013 law and subsequent regulations were needed to protect women’s health. The rules required doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals and forced clinics to meet hospital-like standards for outpatient surgery.

Summary: In a momentous 5-3 decision