Here is a news article: Caught overnight at Las Vegas' McCarran Airport with practically no one else around, Richard Dunn could have taken a cab back to the strip and partied until his flight in the morning. Instead, he whipped out his iPhone and made this gloriously cheesy music video for Celine Dion's 1996 cover of "All By Myself."

 And he really did make it all by himself, with an ingenious repurposing of the airport's escalators and moving walkways.

 "I had a person behind a ticket counter give me a roll of luggage tape before she left. I then used a wheel chair that had a tall pole on the back of it and taped my iPhone to that. Then I would put it on the moving walkway for a dolly shot. I also used the extended handle on my computer bag and taped the iPhone to my handle. I would tuck different stuff under the bag to get the right angle. For the escalator shot I had to sprint up the steps after I got my shot so the computer bag didn't hit the top and fall back down. Quite fun!"

 That's all pretty clever, but it was recreating the Flashdance scene using a water bottle that really put the video over the top.

 Update: Now Celine Dion wants to hang out with him.

 [H/T Reddit] ||||| LAS VEGAS, June 10 (UPI) -- A man waiting overnight in Las Vegas' McCarran Airport recorded a cell phone video of himself lip-syncing Celine Dion's 1996 single "All By Myself" while he waited alone for his flight.

 Using just his smartphone, a wheelchair and water bottle, Richard Dunn spent the evening shooting himself lip-syncing the ballad around various locations of the nearly deserted airport with no help from other would-be passengers.

 "I had a person behind a ticket counter give me a roll of luggage tape before she left," Dunn said on his Vimeo page.

 "I then used a wheelchair that had a tall pole on the back of it and taped my iPhone to that. Then I would put it on the moving walkway for a dolly shot. I also used the extended handle on my computer bag and taped the iPhone to my handle. I would tuck different stuff under the bag to get the right angle. For the escalator shot I had to sprint up the steps after I got my shot so the computer bag didn't hit the top and fall back down."

 Not content with a single dated pop-culture reference, about four-and-a-half minutes into the video Dunn uses a water bottle to recreate the iconic waterfall silhouette shot from the 1983 film Flashdance.

 Uploaded earlier today, the video already has nearly 500,000 views. |||||
A summary of this is?

– Richard Dunn recently found himself stuck, apparently all alone, overnight at Las Vegas' McCarran Airport—so, naturally, he created an incredible music video of himself lip-syncing to Celine Dion's cover of "All By Myself" in various locations around the terminal. It even includes a shot of Dunn re-creating the iconic waterfall scene from Flashdance using a chair and a water bottle, UPI notes. Dunn explains, per Gawker, that his tools were his iPhone, a wheelchair with a tall pole on the back, a roll of luggage tape, his own computer bag, and the airport's escalators and moving walkways. He taped the iPhone to the pole or the extended handle of his computer bag, sometimes tucking "different stuff under the bag to get the right angle," he says, and then placed it wherever he needed it to be, including the aforementioned escalators and walkways. "For the escalator shot I had to sprint up the steps after I got my shot so the computer bag didn't hit the top and fall back down," he says. "Quite fun!"


Here is a news article: A Pakistan army soldier stands guards while rescue workers examine the site of an oil tanker explosion at a highway near Bahawalpur, Pakistan, Sunday, June 25, 2017. An overturned oil tanker burst into... (Associated Press)

 BAHAWALPUR, Pakistan (AP) — An overturned oil tanker burst into flames in Pakistan on Sunday, killing 153 people who had rushed to the scene of the highway accident to gather leaking fuel, a hospital official said as the death toll continued to rise.

 Dr. Javed Iqbal at Bahawalpur's Victoria Hospital in south Punjab said the latest deaths occurred at a hospital in Multan where some of the 50 critically injured, many of whom suffered extensive burns, had been taken.

 The death toll could rise further as dozens are still in critical condition, said Dr. Mohammad Baqar, a senior rescue official in the area. There were dozens of other injuries of varying degree, he said.

 Local news channels showed black smoke billowing skyward and scores of burned bodies, as well as rescue officials speeding the injured to hospital and army helicopters ferrying the wounded.

 Saznoor Ahmad, 30, whose two cousins were killed in the fire, said the crowd of people screamed as the flames engulfed them.

 "The fire moved so fast," he said. When the flames subsided the field was strewn with bodies, and nearby were the charred shells of motorcycles and cars that the villagers had used to race to the scene.

 As the wounded cried out for help, residents wandered through the area looking for loved ones.

 Zulkha Bibi was searching for her two sons.

 "Someone should tell me about my beloved sons, where are they? Are they alive or are they no longer in this world? Please tell me," she pleaded.

 The disaster came on the eve of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. While Saudi Arabia and most other Muslim countries celebrated the holiday Sunday, Pakistanis will mark it on Monday.

 The tanker was driving from the southern port city of Karachi to Lahore, the Punjab provincial capital, when the driver lost control and crashed on the national highway outside Bahawalpur.

 A loudspeaker atop a local mosque alerted villagers to the leaking fuel, and scores raced to the site with jerry cans, said Rana Mohammad Salim, deputy commissioner of Bahawalpur.

 Highway police moved quickly to redirect traffic but couldn't stop the scores of villagers who raced to collect the fuel, spokesman Imran Shah told a local TV channel.

 When the fire erupted, the same mosque loudspeaker called on the remaining villagers to help put it out.

 Mohammed Salim ran toward the smoke carrying buckets of water and sand, but said the heat was too intense to reach those in need.

 "I could hear people screaming but I couldn't get to them," he said.

 Abdul Malik, a local police officer who was also among the first to arrive, described a "horrible scene."

 "I have never seen anything like it in my life. Victims trapped in the fireball. They were screaming for help," he said.

 When the fire subsided, "we saw bodies everywhere, so many were just skeletons. The people who were alive were in really bad shape," he said.

 Eyewitnesses said about 30 motorcycles that had carried villagers to the accident site lay charred nearby. Eight other vehicles were destroyed, they said.

 A state of emergency was declared at the Victoria Hospital in Bahawalpur, said Dr.Iqbal. Within 15 minutes of the fire the hospital had called in extra doctors and nurses, and had formed a team to handle the emergency.

 Iqbal said most of the patients suffered burns to upward of 80 percent of their bodies. After being stabilized 22 patients were transferred by C-130 aircraft to hospitals in the provincial capital, Lahore. Some of the most badly burned were evacuated by army helicopters to Multan, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.

 The dead included men, women and children. Many were burned beyond recognition, Baqar said, and will have to be identified using DNA testing. ||||| At Least 150 People Killed After Oil Truck Catches Fire In Pakistan

 Enlarge this image toggle caption STR/AFP/Getty Images STR/AFP/Getty Images

 Updated at 8:20 a.m. ET

 At least 150 people who had gathered to collect fuel from an overturned tanker truck in Pakistan were killed when it caught fire Sunday, according to The Associated Press.

 More than 100 people were injured, many with severe burns.

 "Authorities say most of the bodies are burnt beyond recognition and the death toll is likely to rise," reporter Abdul Sattar in Islamabad reports for NPR. "Children and women are among the injured."

 The oil tanker was traveling to the city of Lahore in Pakistan's Punjab province when one of the tires burst, causing it to overturn outside of the city of Bahawalpur. Hundreds of people gathered around it, trying to collect the oil after it began leaking.

 "People living in roadside villages, carrying domestic pots rushed to the scene to collect oil and they also made phone calls to their relatives living in other villages to immediate[ly] come to collect oil," police told Pakistan's state-run APP news.

 They told the APP that police tried to prevent people from collecting oil, warning of the fire hazard, but the crowds ignored the warnings.

 "According to the initial reports, somebody tried to light a cigarette, and when the spilt fuel caught fire, leading to the tanker's explosion," rescue worker spokesman Jam Sajjad Hussain told Reuters.

 "Suddenly, huge fire erupted in the oil tanker which engulfed all people standing around the vehicle," police told the APP. They said the tanker was carrying about 6,600 gallons of oil.

 "At least three cars and more than 70 motorcycles were also destroyed in the flames," Sattar reports.

 Dozens of people are being treated in hospitals; several people were airlifted by helicopter. DNA testing may be required to identify some of the victims, according to the BBC.

 It took firefighters more than two hours to put out the fire, Reuters reports.

 Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has been in London, is "immediately" returning to Pakistan to respond to the incident, the APP reports. He "has expressed deep grief over the heavy loss of life in the unfortunate accident of oil tanker fire at Ahmad Pur Sharqia, Bahawalpur," he said in a statement from his office to Reuters. |||||
A summary of this is?

– It was a simple highway accident: A tanker blows a tire, and overturns. But it overturned Sunday in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, carrying 6,600 gallons of oil, and surrounding villagers " carrying domestic pots rushed to the scene to collect oil and they also made phone calls to their relatives living in other villages to ... come to collect oil" police told state-run media, per NPR. According to a rescuer, "somebody tried to light a cigarette," which caught fire, exploded the tanker, and "engulfed all people standing around the vehicle," reports the AP. At least 153 are dead, a toll expected to rise as dozens more remain critically injured. "The fire moved so fast," said one survivor who lost two cousins. Others describe an unbearable scene: "I could hear people screaming but I couldn't get to them," says one would-be rescuer, while a cop says that "I have never seen anything like it in my life. Victims trapped in the fireball. They were screaming for help." A local doctor says most victims suffered burns on 80% of their bodies, while another says that many of the dead were burned beyond recognition and will have to be identified via DNA testing.


Write a summary based on this article:

LISTEN TO ARTICLE 2:32 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

 Steve Wynn’s plan to sell a pair of Picasso paintings for a high estimate of $105 million was derailed after the more expensive of the two was damaged Friday -- a dozen years after the billionaire collector and erstwhile casino magnate put his elbow through another masterpiece by the artist.

 Picasso’s 1943 self-portrait "Le Marin" Source: Christie’s

 “Le Marin,” a 1943 self-portrait, was damaged Friday “during the final stages of preparation” for auction Tuesday and pulled from the block, Christie’s said in a statement. It declined to comment on the nature or extent of the damage. Lin Wood, a spokesman for Wynn, declined to comment.

 The painting, which measures a little more than 4-by-2 1/2 feet and estimated at $70 million, was one of three Wynn consigned to Christie’s for sale this week for a total of as much as $135 million, according to the auction house’s estimates. On Monday, Picasso’s 1964 portrait of a woman with a cat, “Femme au chat assise dans un fauteuil,” was also pulled from the auction by mutual agreement with the seller, Christie’s said. That piece, also owned by Wynn, is estimated at $25 million to $35 million.

 Wynn, who suffers from a disease that affects his peripheral vision, accidentally struck his Picasso “Le Reve” with his right elbow in 2006 while showing it to friends in his Las Vegas office, leaving a hole the size of a silver dollar. The painting had been worth $139 million before that, according to Wynn’s lawsuit against the insurer, Lloyd’s of London. A restorer said the repaired painting was worth $85 million, according to the lawsuit. Hedge fund titan Steve Cohen bought it from Wynn in 2013 for $155 million.

 “Femme au chat assise dans un fauteuil” Photographer: Katya Kazakina/Bloomberg

 Both withdrawn paintings had been guaranteed by Christie’s and backed by third-party guarantees. The withdrawal of a work from sale removes any guarantee made for the transaction, Christie’s said, adding that its consignment contracts “have insurance provisions to cover damage and other contingencies.”

 Wynn resigned as chief executive officer of Wynn Resorts Ltd. in February amid sexual-misconduct allegations. He has denied wrongdoing.

 The other Wynn lot at Christie’s is Andy Warhol’s 1963 “Double Elvis [Ferus Type],” which will be offered as planned at the postwar and contemporary evening sale on May 17, Christie’s said. Estimated at more than $30 million, it depicts Elvis Presley dressed as a cowboy and shooting from the hip.

 The painting last appeared at auction in 2012 when it fetched $37 million at Sotheby’s. At the time it was bought by the Mugrabi family, which owns one of the world’s largest private Warhol collections.

 — With assistance by Peter Jeffrey ||||| Follow

 ALBRECHT DÜRER (1471-1528) The Four Horsemen of the Apocal... |||||

– Pricey mistake: A Picasso worth an estimated $70 million had to be yanked from an auction at Christie's this week because it sustained damage as workers were preparing it. It's not clear how bad the damage is to Le Marin, or The Sailor, or even how the damage occurred, but the auction house said in a statement that two outside conservators "have made recommendations for the successful restoration of the painting," reports ABC News. One weird twist: The painting belongs to former casino mogul Steve Wynn, who previously had bad luck with a different Picasso painting. Back in 2006, Wynn stuck his elbow through Picasso's Le Reve while showing it to friends in his Las Vegas office, reports Bloomberg, which adds that Wynn has a disease that messes up his peripheral vision. That restoration had a happy ending: The painting had been valued at $139 million prior to the damage, and Wynn eventually sold it for $155 million. This hasn't been a stellar year for Wynn: He stepped down as CEO of Wynn Resorts amid a slew of sexual harassment allegations.


Article:

Police fired warning shots to disperse hundreds of stone-hurling Afghans on Wednesday in the latest in a series of protests against Quran burning in the U.S. At least five people were wounded, two from gunshots.

 An Afghan man cries as he hears that the desecration of a Quran in the United States, during a protest after morning prayers outside a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. The protest... (Associated Press)

 Police officers arrest a suspected protester after a protest against alleged burning of Quran turned violent in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. Protests were held in different parts of... (Associated Press)

 Afghans holding chapters of the Quran shout anti-U.S. slogans at a protest after morning prayers outside a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. The protest was held after reports of... (Associated Press)

 Afghans shout anti-U.S. slogans at a protest after morning prayers outside a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. The protest was held after reports of the desecration of a Quran in... (Associated Press)

 Policemen charge a handful of protesters after a protest against alleged burning of Quran turned violent in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. Protests were held in different parts of city... (Associated Press)

 A car passes by as stones and a bullet casing remain on the road after a protest against alleged burning of Quran turned violent in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. Protests were held in... (Associated Press)

 Police officers stand guard to prevent further tension after a protest against alleged burning of Quran turned violent in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. Protests were held in different... (Associated Press)

 Policemen chase after protesters following a rally against a once-planned Quran burning in the U.S., in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das) (Associated Press)

 The topic of Quran burning has stirred outrage among millions of Muslims and others worldwide after a small American church in Florida threatened to destroy the holy book to mark the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks. Although that church backed down, several copycat burnings were posted on the Internet and broadcast in the Muslim world.

 But Afghan police have claimed that the Taliban are deliberately using the anger to turn the rallies into anti-government protests ahead of this week's parliamentary elections.

 Up to 800 protesters gathered at a square on the outskirts of the capital, Kabul, chanting "Death to America" and listening to fiery speeches from Muslim clerics demanding the ouster of the Afghan government and calling for foreign troops to leave the country.

 The protesters burned tires and hurled stones at police officers, who responded with assault rifle firing into the air.

 Khalil Dastyar, deputy Kabul police chief, said the protest started peacefully, but the crowd eventually charged the police.

 "Police opened fire to stop the charge," he added, claiming the protesters fired toward the police with pistols.

 An Associated Press reporter saw at least three wounded protesters, hit by police batons. Hospital officials said two other people had gunshot wounds.

 Cleric Enayat Ullah said at the protest that he was "ready to sacrifice my life for the Quran, we came here to defend our holy book."

 Police officer Mohammad Fahim said he doubted that the Quran burning was the main aim of the protest.

 "They say they are protesting because of the Quran, but what I saw among the protesters were our enemies, the Taliban," he said. "They want to sabotage the security ahead of this week's elections."

 Parliamentary elections take place Saturday. The Taliban has vowed to target polling stations and has warned Afghans not to participate in what it calls a sham vote.

 Similar protests have been mounted across this Muslim nation in recent days. Hundreds protested on Sunday, and two people were killed in that unrest. In another protest by thousands on Friday, 11 people were injured.

 ___

 Associated Press writer Dusan Stojanovic contributed to this report. ||||| KABUL (Reuters) – Police fired into the air to disperse thousands of anti-American protesters in Afghanistan's capital Wednesday, witnesses and police said, with one person killed and at least five wounded.

 Demonstrators chanted "Death to America," "Death to Christians," and "Death to Karzai," the latter referring to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in the biggest protests since unrest erupted last week over plans by a U.S. pastor to burn the Koran.

 "There are more than 10,000 of the demonstrators and some of them are waving the Taliban flag," police officer Mohammad Usman.

 The protests come three days before a parliamentary election which the Taliban have vowed to disrupt. The election is a key test of stability in Afghanistan before U.S. President Barack Obama conducts a war strategy review in December.

 They follow three days of protests at the weekend over plans by an obscure U.S. pastor, which he later abandoned, to burn copies of the Koran to mark the anniversary of the September 11, 2001, hijacked airliner attacks on the United States.

 Three people were killed in those protests. Observers including the top U.N. diplomat in Afghanistan had warned the Taliban may try to exploit the Koran-burning protests.

 A police source later said one person had been killed and five wounded, and that the toll could rise. The protests were the Reuters television pictures showed protesters waving large white flags, the symbol used by Taliban supporters.

 A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, said the hardline Islamist group was aware of the protests but had no role in them.

 "People may have raised the Taliban flags to show their sentiment and sympathy for the Taliban," Mujahid told Reuters from an undisclosed location.

 At the Pul-e-Kandahari, or Kandahar bridge in Kabul, police were ordered to advance toward one group of hundreds of protesters who were throwing stones and shouting "Death to American slaves" at police.

 Police were seen firing into the air and dragging away several protesters. At one point, volleys of gunfire could be heard. The protesters scattered, some sheltering in nearby houses in the mainly ethnic Pashtun and Tajik area of Kabul.

 The protesters earlier gathered in the west of the capital, burning tires and blocking a main highway link to the south. Thick black smoke rose above the area and police kept journalists several hundred meters back.

 Reuters witnesses at the scene saw two unconscious people, covered in blood, being carried away suffering what appeared to be gunshot wounds.

 (Additional reporting by Sayed Salahuddin; Editing by Paul Tait and Sanjeev Miglani) |||||
What is a summary?

– Afghan police today fired into a crowd of rock-hurling anti-American demonstrators chanting "Death to America," "Death to Christians," and "Death to Karzai" in Kabul today. One was killed and at least five injured, two from gunshots. The US Koran-burning controversy has stirred days of outrage and protests among millions of Muslims and others worldwide, notes the AP; today's protests were the largest so far, Reuters adds. Afghan police say the Taliban are using this anger to fuel anti-government sentiment ahead of elections next week. "There are more than 10,000 of the demonstrators and some of them are waving the Taliban flag," says one officer.


Summarize this article:

'Such a heavy condition is because they came to doctors too late and received a large dose of the surrogate (alcohol).' Picture: Vesti.Irkutsk

 The poisoning after drinking bath lotion or bath oil, masquerading as a safe alcoholic drink called Hawthorn, is now the worst such case in modern Russian history.

 With 55 dead, Irkutsk region health minister Oleg Yaroshenko said that almost half of those who are still alive have almost no chances of survival. 13 are in a very hard condition and the chances of survival are practically nil,' he said.

 'Such a heavy condition is because they came to doctors too late and received a large dose of the surrogate (alcohol). Only a miracle can save them.'

 'I called to ambulance, and they brought me to hospital. Here I found out what is going on in the city.' Picture: Vesti.Irkutsk, KP

 Some 7 people have been detained in connection with the poisoning. In addition to the dodgy bath lotion, black marketeers behind the poisonous alcohol were producing several brands of vodka.

 People aged 25 to 62 were stuck down by the poisoning. Almost half are women. The victims included a doctor and a kindergarten teacher, while 24 bodies were found in homes - people who had no time to call an ambulance.

 Survivor Alexei, 33, said: 'I met with my old friends, and we decided to drink a bit. My mates bought vodka, I do not remember the label. The taste seemed to me strange, bitter. I drank only one shot and then went home.

 In addition to the dodgy bath lotion, black marketeers behind the poisonous alcohol were producing several brands of vodka. Pictures: Channel 1, Life

 'We had a supper, then I played with my child and went to sleep. In the morning I was blind. I could not even see what is in my cell-phone. I wanted to get up, but my legs did not obey. I'm a doctor by education, so I quickly understood that I had been poisoned.

 'I called to ambulance, and they brought me to hospital. Here I found out what is going on in the city. Hope these bastards will be found!' ||||| Image copyright EPA Image caption The labels of the contaminated lotion said the product contained ethyl alcohol rather than deadly methanol

 The number of people in Russia who have died as a result of drinking bath oil has risen from 49 to at least 58, local media has reported.

 Most of the 37 other people who became ill are still being treated, with some in a serious condition.

 The highly toxic hawthorn-scented liquid was consumed as if it were safe alcohol, according to Russia's Investigative Committee.

 But it contained poisonous methanol, which can also cause blindness.

 Image copyright EPA Image caption Police in Irkutsk have been checking private stores to ensure they are not selling poisonous lotions

 Image copyright EPA Image caption This boxed package of hawthorn bath essence was confiscated during an operation checking all private stores selling alcohol in Irkutsk

 The Siberian Times said the mass poisoning in Irkutsk "is now the worst such case in modern Russian history".

 Health minister Oleg Yaroshenko said that almost half of those still being treated are not expected to live and were in a very serious condition.

 "They came to [the] doctors too late.... Only a miracle can save them," he was quoted by The Siberian Times as saying.

 The paper said that a doctor and a kindergarten teacher are among the victims and that many of those who died were discovered in their homes because they did not have sufficient time to call an ambulance.

 Most of the victims are reported to be aged between 35 and 50.

 One 33-year-old survivor said that he only drank a small amount of the lotion but still woke up blind the following morning.

 Household products are seen by some as a cheap alternative to alcohol across the former Soviet Union.

 Bottles with the lotion normally carry warnings stating they are not to be consumed, but correspondents say that the labels in this case said that the product contained ethyl alcohol rather than deadly methanol.

 Analysts say up to 12 million Russians drink cheap surrogate alcohol, including perfume, after shave, anti-freeze and window cleaner. Two years of Western economic sanctions have made the situation worse.

 Police earlier uncovered an illicit workshop where the lotion was being made, and arrested its owners. ||||| Nearly 50 people died recently in a Siberian city after they drank bath oil as a substitute for alcohol. But why was the substance so deadly?

 Authorities in Irkutsk, the sixth-largest city in Russia, declared a state of emergency today (Dec. 19) after at least 49 people died from drinking the apparently mislabeled bath oil, according to the Washington Post. Another 15 people were hospitalized and are in critical condition.

 The label on the bath oil said it contained ethanol, and people drank the product as a cheap alternative to alcohol, which is a common practice in Russia, the Post reported. However, authorities said that the bath oil product actually contained methanol — which is a chemical in antifreeze.

 Methanol is harmful because of what happens when the body breaks it down. When people consume methanol, the body metabolizes it first into formaldehyde, and then into a compound called formic acid, which is highly toxic to cells, according to the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology. The breakdown of formic acid is slow, and so it can accumulate in the body.

 Methanol poisoning can cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, breathing problems, dizziness, blindness and coma, according to the National Institutes of Health. As little as 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of methanol can kill a person, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [7 Ways Alcohol Affects Your Health]

 There are antidotes to reverse the effects of methanol, including fomepizole or ethanol, the NIH said on its website. But whether a person recovers after ingesting methanol depends on how much the individual swallowed and how soon he or she received medical care, the NIH said. In people who survive, blindness is common, the agency said.

 A minute level of methanol is found in most alcoholic drinks, and such levels are safe. But if alcohol is not properly distilled, methanol levels can be dangerously high, according to a report on a case of methanol poisoning that the CDC issued earlier this year.

 Methanol is colorless and smells like alcohol, and it is sometimes deliberately added to illegal alcohol drinks in order to strengthen them or make them stretch further, according to the National Health Service in the United Kingdom.

 Police in Irkutsk said that they have found a workshop where the bath oil was being made, along with bootleg vodka, according to Reuters. Officials have confiscated about 500 liters of bath oil and other liquid from stores in the area.

 Original article on Live Science. |||||

– "They came to doctors too late. … Only a miracle can save them." Those were the words to the Siberian Times from the Irkutsk region's health minister regarding those sickened from ingesting a deadly bath oil, with dozens already dead from the mass poisoning—said to be the "worst such case in modern Russian history." The BBC reports at least 58 have died, per local media, and notes the death toll is expected to rise, as many of the more than three dozen poisoned are in serious condition. The concoction that caused the deaths was a black-market mixture promoted as a safe, hawthorn-scented alcoholic beverage, with a label that said it contained ethyl alcohol, which is OK to consume. However, it actually was made with methanol, which Live Science notes is a harmful chemical used in antifreeze that (besides death) can also cause a slew of other medical problems, including blindness. A market worker tells Reuters she usually uses the oil to remove grease and remnants of old price tags still stuck on surfaces. The BBC—which notes millions of cash-strapped people in Russia often resort to drinking cheap "surrogate" booze, including perfume and window cleaner—says the owners of the shop where the bath oil was made have been arrested. (Beer wasn't officially considered alcohol in Russia until a few years ago.)


Here is a news article: People typically report substantive changes to their personality when they become intoxicated, but observations from outsiders suggest less drastic differences between “sober” and “drunk” personalities, according to research published in Clinical Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

 “We were surprised to find such a discrepancy between drinkers’ perceptions of their own alcohol-induced personalities and how observers perceived them,” says psychological scientist Rachel Winograd of the University of Missouri, St. Louis—Missouri Institute of Mental Health. “Participants reported experiencing differences in all factors of the Five Factor Model of personality, but extraversion was the only factor robustly perceived to be different across participants in alcohol and sober conditions.”

 Winograd and colleagues speculate that this discrepancy may come down to inherent differences in point of view:

 “We believe both the participants and raters were both accurate and inaccurate — the raters reliably reported what was visible to them and the participants experienced internal changes that were real to them but imperceptible to observers,” she explains.

 The idea that we transform into different people when we’re under the influence is a popular one. And systematic differences in an individual’s sober behavior and their drunken behaviors can even inform clinical determinations about whether someone has a drinking problem. But the science on “drunk personality” as a concept is less clear. In Winograd’s previous studies, participants reliably reported that their personality changes when they imbibe, but experimental evidence for this kind of global change was lacking.

 Winograd and colleagues decided to bring the question into the lab, where they could carefully calibrate alcohol consumption and closely monitor individual behavior. They recruited 156 participants, who completed an initial survey gauging their typical alcohol consumption and their perceptions of their own “typical sober” personality and “typical drunk” personality.

 Later, the participants came to the lab in friend groups of 3 or 4, where the researchers administered a baseline breathalyzer test and measured the participants’ height and weight. Over the course of about 15 minutes, each participant consumed beverages — some drank Sprite, while others consumed individually-tailored vodka and Sprite cocktails designed to produce a blood alcohol content of about .09.

 After a 15-minute absorption period, the friends worked through a series of fun group activities — including discussion questions and logic puzzles — intended to elicit a variety of personality traits and behaviors.

 The participants completed personality measures at two points during the lab session. And outside observers used video recordings to complete standardized assessments of each individual’s personality traits.

 As expected, participants’ ratings indicated change in all five of the major personality factors. After drinking, participants reported lower levels of conscientiousness, openness to experience, and agreeableness, and they reported higher levels of extraversion and emotional stability (the inverse of neuroticism).

 The observers, on the other hand, noted fewer differences across the sober and intoxicated participants’ personality traits. In fact, observer ratings indicated reliable differences in only one personality factor: extraversion. Specifically, participants who had consumed alcohol were rated higher on three facets of extraversion: gregariousness, assertiveness, and levels of activity.

 Given that extraversion is the most outwardly visible personality factor, it makes sense that both parties noted differences in this trait, the researchers argue.

 They acknowledge, however, that they cannot rule out other influences — such as participants’ own expectations of their drunk personality — that may have contributed to the discrepancy in ratings.

 “Of course, we also would love to see these findings replicated outside of the lab — in bars, at parties, and in homes where people actually do their drinking,” says Winograd.

 “Most importantly, we need to see how this work is most relevant in the clinical realm and can be effectively included in interventions to help reduce any negative impact of alcohol on peoples’ lives,” she concludes.

 Co-authors on the research include Douglas Steinley of the University of Missouri, Columbia; Sean P. Lane of the University of Missouri, Columbia and Purdue University; and Kenneth J. Sher of the University of Missouri, Columbia. ||||| There is no such thing a ‘happy drunk’ scientists have concluded after finding that alcohol does not radically change personality.

 Although many people blame drinking for alterations in their usual behaviour, new research shows that there is little shift in character between sober and squiffy.

 In fact, the only change is that people become more extroverted. But it is simply a louder version of their usual personality.

 "We were surprised to find such a discrepancy between drinkers' perceptions of their own alcohol-induced personalities and how observers perceived them," says psychological scientist Dr Rachel Winograd of the University of Missouri, St. Louis.

 "Participants reported experiencing differences in all factors of personality, but extraversion was the only factor robustly perceived to be different across participants in alcohol and sober conditions." ||||| People typically report substantive changes to their personality when they become intoxicated, but observations from outsiders suggest less drastic differences between "sober" and "drunk" personalities, according to research published in Clinical Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

 "We were surprised to find such a discrepancy between drinkers' perceptions of their own alcohol-induced personalities and how observers perceived them," says psychological scientist Rachel Winograd of the University of Missouri, St. Louis--Missouri Institute of Mental Health. "Participants reported experiencing differences in all factors of the Five Factor Model of personality, but extraversion was the only factor robustly perceived to be different across participants in alcohol and sober conditions."

 Winograd and colleagues speculate that this discrepancy may come down to inherent differences in point of view:

 "We believe both the participants and raters were both accurate and inaccurate -- the raters reliably reported what was visible to them and the participants experienced internal changes that were real to them but imperceptible to observers," she explains.

 The idea that we transform into different people when we're under the influence is a popular one. And systematic differences in an individual's sober behavior and their drunken behaviors can even inform clinical determinations about whether someone has a drinking problem. But the science on "drunk personality" as a concept is less clear. In Winograd's previous studies, participants reliably reported that their personality changes when they imbibe, but experimental evidence for this kind of global change was lacking.

 Winograd and colleagues decided to bring the question into the lab, where they could carefully calibrate alcohol consumption and closely monitor individual behavior. They recruited 156 participants, who completed an initial survey gauging their typical alcohol consumption and their perceptions of their own "typical sober" personality and "typical drunk" personality.

 Later, the participants came to the lab in friend groups of 3 or 4, where the researchers administered a baseline breathalyzer test and measured the participants' height and weight. Over the course of about 15 minutes, each participant consumed beverages -- some drank Sprite, while others consumed individually-tailored vodka and Sprite cocktails designed to produce a blood alcohol content of about .09.

 After a 15-minute absorption period, the friends worked through a series of fun group activities -- including discussion questions and logic puzzles -- intended to elicit a variety of personality traits and behaviors.

 The participants completed personality measures at two points during the lab session. And outside observers used video recordings to complete standardized assessments of each individual's personality traits.

 As expected, participants' ratings indicated change in all five of the major personality factors. After drinking, participants reported lower levels of conscientiousness, openness to experience, and agreeableness, and they reported higher levels of extraversion and emotional stability (the inverse of neuroticism).

 The observers, on the other hand, noted fewer differences across the sober and intoxicated participants' personality traits. In fact, observer ratings indicated reliable differences in only one personality factor: extraversion. Specifically, participants who had consumed alcohol were rated higher on three facets of extraversion: gregariousness, assertiveness, and levels of activity.

 Given that extraversion is the most outwardly visible personality factor, it makes sense that both parties noted differences in this trait, the researchers argue.

 They acknowledge, however, that they cannot rule out other influences -- such as participants' own expectations of their drunk personality -- that may have contributed to the discrepancy in ratings.

 "Of course, we also would love to see these findings replicated outside of the lab -- in bars, at parties, and in homes where people actually do their drinking," says Winograd.

 "Most importantly, we need to see how this work is most relevant in the clinical realm and can be effectively included in interventions to help reduce any negative impact of alcohol on peoples' lives," she concludes.

 ###

 Co-authors on the research include Douglas Steinley of the University of Missouri, Columbia; Sean P. Lane of the University of Missouri, Columbia and Purdue University; and Kenneth J. Sher of the University of Missouri, Columbia.

 For more information about this study, please contact: Rachel P. Winograd at rachel.winograd@mimh.edu.

 The article abstract is available online: http://journals. sagepub. com/ doi/ full/ 10. 1177/ 2167702616689780

 The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "An Experimental Investigation of Drunk Personality Using Self and Observer Reports" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Anna Mikulak at 202-293-9300 or amikulak@psychologicalscience.org. |||||
A summary of this is?

– Think you're a happy drunk, a real life of the party? Well, allow science to be your buzzkill. A study out of the University of Missouri published in Clinical Psychological Science finds there's a big difference in the personality you think you take on when you're drinking and the one your friends see. "We were surprised to find such a discrepancy between drinkers’ perceptions of their own alcohol-induced personalities and how observers perceived them," says lead author and psychological scientist Rachel Winograd in a release. Researchers rounded up 156 subjects, quizzed them on their "typical" sober or drunk personalities, then fed some enough vodka to jack their BAC to about 0.09%; others were given Sprite. Participants measured their personalities at two points in the session that followed, as did outside observers. Those imbibing reported differences in all five personality factors: lower levels of conscientiousness, openness to experience, and agreeableness, and higher levels of extraversion and emotional stability. The kicker? Observers only noticed the extraversion, per the Telegraph, specifically gregariousness, assertiveness, and levels of activity. "We believe both the participants and raters were both accurate and inaccurate—the raters reliably reported what was visible to them and the participants experienced internal changes that were real to them but imperceptible to observers," says Winograd, though she adds that you, dear reader, might have to conduct further research: "We also would love to see these findings replicated outside of the lab—in bars, at parties, and in homes where people actually do their drinking." (Winograd previously concluded there are four kinds of drunks.)


Article:

Though almost every food item you buy at the supermarket has some sort of expiration date — under the headers of “Sell By,” “Use By,” “Use Before,” “Best Before,” among others — printed on the packaging, the truth is date labels are largely voluntary and determined by the food producers. If handled properly, most foods are perfectly safe to eat after whatever date is on the label, but stores and consumers throw away an inordinate amount of food every year simply because that date has passed. In an effort to reduce food waste, the federal government is hoping to encourage meat and dairy producers to all use the same phrase: “Best If Used By.”

 This afternoon, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued new guidance on labeling for the foods regulated by the agency [PDF], and making the case for the “Best If Used By” phrasing.

 “Research shows that this phrase conveys to consumers that the product will be of best quality if used by the calendar date shown,” explains the guidance. “Foods not exhibiting signs of spoilage should be wholesome and may be sold, purchased, donated and consumed beyond the labeled ‘Best if Used By’ date.”

 Other date-related phrases are not as clear to retailers or consumers, notes the FSIS. “Sell By” says nothing of food safety or quality; it’s merely an indicator of how long the manufacturer thinks a store should keep an item available for sale. Then there’s “Use By,” which is intended to imply that this is the last date on which a product will be at its peak freshness, but which may be misinterpreted as an indication that a product is not safe after that date.

 The FSIS says “Use By” should be reserved for infant formula — the one food for which the USDA does have a date-labeling requirement — where the date is indeed intended to be an indicator of the product’s safety.

 The ultimate goal, notes the FSIS guidance, is to try to curb food waste. The USDA claims that around 30% of the U.S. food supply is lost or thrown out at the retail and customer level each year.

 While the guidance doesn’t put a number on how much of that discarded food is safe to eat, a 2014 study out of Harvard found that 90% of Americans had thrown out food at some point based solely on the date stamped on the packaging.

 The USDA guidance is only a recommendation, and even then the USDA’s regulatory oversight is generally limited to fresh produce, meat, and dairy products. The larger bulk of packaged foods falls under the Food and Drug Administration’s umbrella.

 Dana Gunders, Senior Scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council and author of the Waste-Free Kitchen Handbook, hopes that a shift toward “Best If Used By” would keep safe food out of the garbage bins.

 “USDA is rallying the industry around one commonsense label so consumers will know that food is still safe to eat even past the printed date,” says Gunders. “This will not only mean less wasted food, but also less wasted water, climate pollution and money. The FDA should follow suit on the food it oversees so all products will have the same easy-to-follow date labels.”

 Last May, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (CT) and Rep. Chellie Pingree (ME) introduced the Food Date Labeling Act, which would have eventually established a single nationwide standard for date labeling, and distinguished between a date that indicates a product’s quality and one that indicates the food may no longer be safe to eat. However, both the Senate and House versions of the bill have been stalled in their respective committees and show no sign of life going forward.

 Of course, since date labeling is largely self-regulated by the industry, there’s nothing really stopping the various food-producing trade groups from agreeing to go with “Best If Used By” without being pushed by the federal government. ||||| New labeling guidance from the USDA that is designed to decrease waste by resolving consumer confusion about “best by” and “sell by” dates on food may also boost in-home food safety practices by providing more specific information.

 Although infant formula is the only food product that must carry product dating under current federal law, many food companies include such information on packaging of other products. A lack of uniformity in the date coding on food, though, leaves many wondering how long food can safely be stored, according to a news release from USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS).

 “Food manufacturers frequently use a variety of phrases, such as ‘Sell-by’ and ‘Use-by’ on product labels to describe quality dates on a voluntary basis. The use of different phrases to describe quality dates has caused consumer confusion and has led to the disposal of food that is otherwise wholesome and safe because it is past the date printed on the package,” according to the FSIS.

 “FSIS is changing its guidance to recommend the use of ‘Best if Used By’ because research shows that this phrase is easily understood by consumers as an indicator of quality.”

 The USDA estimates that 30 percent of food is lost or wasted at the retail and consumer level. The new guidance suggesting use of the “Best if Used By” language builds on other recent changes FSIS has made to facilitate food donation and reduce food waste.

 Since 2009, USDA has launched new and ongoing initiatives to reduce food waste. In 2013, USDA the Environmental Protection Agency launched the U.S. Food Waste Challenge, creating a platform for leaders and organizations across the food chain to share best practices on ways to reduce, recover, and recycle food loss and waste.

 In 2015, USDA and EPA set the first-ever national food waste reduction goal of 50 percent by 2030 to reduce the amount of wasted food in landfills.

 “In an effort to reduce food loss and waste, these changes will give consumers clear and consistent information when it comes to date labeling on the food they buy,” Al Almanza, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety said in the news release. “This new guidance can help consumers save money and curb the amount of wholesome food going in the trash.”

 The government is accepting comments on the revised labeling guidance from USDA for 60 days.

 Comments on this revised guidance may be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov or by mail to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, FSIS, Docket Clerk, Patriots Plaza III, 355 E St. S.W., 8-163A, Mailstop 3782, Washington, DC 20250-3700. All comments submitted must include docket number FSIS-2016-0044.

 (To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)

 © Food Safety News |||||
What is a summary?

– The USDA wants Americans to know it's probably fine to eat that yogurt hiding in the back of the fridge. Consumerist reports the agency released new guidance Wednesday asking meat and dairy producers to do away with the various "sell by" and "use by" dates they put on their packaging in favor of a universal "best if used by" date. The USDA says that wording isn't quite so confusing to consumers, who may not understand that most foods are still safe to be eaten well after the date on the package. It's part of the agency's attempt to cut down on food waste. The USDA estimates about 30% of all food is thrown away by stores or consumers before being eaten, according to Food Safety News.


Write a summary based on this article:

We already know Walmart is no friend to the gays, but do they have to actively peddle ex-gay therapy to shoppers?

 Though I’ve yet to spot anyone on People Of Walmart snapping it up, the book Chased by an Elephant, the Gospel Truth about Today’s Stampeding Sexuality is available for purchase at over 100 Walmart stores. Authored by Janice Barrett Graham (better known as the wife of Stephen Graham, president of the “LDS-oriented” group Standard of Liberty, which “exists to raise awareness of radical sexual movements overrunning America’s Christian-moral-cultural life”), the book aims to “shed the clear light of truth on today’s dark and tangled ideas about male and female, proper gender roles, the law of chastity, and the God-given sexual appetite.”

 It also touches upon Stephen and Janice’s son Andrew — a proud ex-gay who’s written his own tome — described in the book as securing “his subsequent deliverance and healing through family support, expert professional counseling, truth, and repentance through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.”

 It’s described as a “MUST READ” by the S.A. Lifeline Foundation (Mission: “Delivering a message of hope that recovery from pornography addiction is possible”), which is where I go for all my children’s book recommendations. ||||| Walmart Carrying Anti-Gay Book for Children

 A children’s book written by the wife of anti-gay Standard of Liberty president Stephen Graham is being carried by over 100 Walmart stores. Chased by an Elephant, the Gospel Truth about Today’s Stampeding Sexuality by Janice Barrett Graham was written to “help shed the clear light of truth on today’s dark and tangled ideas about male and female, proper gender roles, the law of chastity, and the God-given sexual appetite,” according to Janice Graham in the book’s introduction.

 “The number of our young people involved in sexual sins has greatly increased in recent years. Some of the most stalwart-seeming youth find themselves involved in pornography, fornication, promiscuity, homosexuality, and the like,” Janice continued.

 According to the Standards of Liberty Web site, the book is available at 104 Walmart stores in the Intermountain West, the Brigham Young University bookstore, and through its sister sites.

 “This charming, unique, and important book is a must-read for leaders and parents to use as they see fit that stunningly and resoundingly echos the truths and warnings presented in President Boyd K. Packer’s conference talk this past Sunday,” the announcement said. “For the sake of our children and youth, we can no longer afford to be silent on this topic. Given the licentious world around them, they need to be purposely taught the correct information and attitudes concerning human sexuality and God’s law of chastity.”

 The Grahams claim that their son, Andrew, successfully changed his sexual orientation and is now a happily married man.

 Andrew Graham wrote the book, Captain of My Soul, saying that he was “lured into same gender internet pornography during his high school years, and recruited into cursory homosexual experimentation with older men while at Brigham Young University.”

 Andrew says he is shedding light on the “deceitful and predatory nature of the ‘gay’ lifestyle.”

 The book’s introduction says Andrew’s “story ends happily with his subsequent deliverance and healing through family support, expert professional counseling, truth, and repentance through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Included is a lengthy introduction by expert on overcoming homosexuality.” |||||

– Wal-Mart is selling a book for kids and parents that makes the case that homosexuals can overcome their "sin" and revert to heterosexuality, Q Salt Lake reports. Chased by an Elephant, the Gospel Truth about Today’s Stampeding Sexuality is by Janice Barrett Graham—the wife of Stephen Graham, who leads the Standard of Liberty group and its philosophy of "pray the gay away." Graham says Chasing an Elephant's goal is to "shed the clear light of truth on today’s dark and tangled ideas about male and female, proper gender roles, the law of chastity, and the God-given sexual appetite." It includes the story of her own son, who claims to have turned from gay to straight after seeing the error of his ways. The book is hardly a bestseller, and for the folks over at Queerty, the fact that Wal-Mart is lending its titanic reach to an anti-gay book is just another example of the big-box store's bias.


Write a summary based on this article:

In this Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, photo, Phil Wiggett, right, a recruiter with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, looks at a resume during a job fair in San Jose, Calif. On Friday, Oct. 6, 2017,... (Associated Press)

 In this Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, photo, Phil Wiggett, right, a recruiter with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, looks at a resume during a job fair in San Jose, Calif. On Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, the U.S. government issues the September jobs report. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) (Associated Press)

 In this Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, photo, Phil Wiggett, right, a recruiter with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, looks at a resume during a job fair in San Jose, Calif. On Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, the U.S. government issues the September jobs report. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) (Associated Press) In this Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, photo, Phil Wiggett, right, a recruiter with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, looks at a resume during a job fair in San Jose, Calif. On Friday, Oct. 6, 2017,... (Associated Press)

 WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. shed 33,000 jobs in September because of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, which closed thousands of businesses in Texas and Florida and forced widespread evacuations. It was the first decline in nearly seven years.

 The unemployment rate fell to 4.2 percent from 4.4 percent, the Labor Department said Friday, the lowest level since February 2001.

 Looking past the hurricanes' impact, the job market and economy generally look healthy. Job growth is likely to rebound in the coming months as businesses in the area reopen and construction companies ramp up repair and renovation work.

 Last month's drop was driven by huge losses in restaurants and bars, which shed 105,000 jobs, a sign of the damage to Florida's tourism industry.

 Roughly 1.5 million people were unable to work last month because of the weather, the government said, the most in 20 years.

 Hourly workers who couldn't work and missed a paycheck were counted as not working, which lowered September's job totals. That's true even if those employees returned to work after the storm passed.

 The unemployment rate fell because it is calculated with a separate survey of households. That survey counted people as employed even if they were temporarily off work because of the storms.

 As a result, the drop in the jobless rate is a sign the job market improved outside hurricane-hit areas. The proportion of adults with jobs rose to 60.4 percent, the highest since January 2009.

 Average hourly wages rose 2.9 percent from a year earlier, a solid gain. But the government said that figure was artificially inflated by the loss of so many lower-paid workers in hurricane-hit areas.

 More than 11 million people had been employed in the 87 counties in Texas and Florida that were declared disaster areas, the government says. That's equal to about 7.7 percent of the nation's workforce.

 Other recent indicators point to a solid economy and job market.

 On Wednesday, a survey of services firms — covering restaurants, construction companies, retail stores, banks and others — found that they expanded in September at their fastest monthly pace since 2005. That followed a survey of manufacturers, which found an equally strong gain. Factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in more than 13 years.

 There are signs that a rebound from the hurricanes is already boosting the economy. Auto sales, which had been lackluster this year, jumped 6.1 percent to more than 1.5 million in September from a year ago, according to Autodata Corp., as Americans began to replace cars destroyed by the storms. That increase in purchases should soon lead automakers to step up production.

 Harvey caused about $76 billion to $87 billion in economic losses, according to Moody's Analytics, an economic consulting firm. The estimate includes damage to homes and businesses as well as lost business and economic output. That calculation would make Harvey the second-worst U.S. natural disaster, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

 Irma will likely end up having caused $58 billion to $83 billion in economic losses, Moody's forecasts. Maria, which hammered Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, could cost $45 billion to $95 billion, though that is a preliminary estimate.

 ___

 This story has been corrected to show that September's job losses figure was the first decline in nearly seven years. ||||| In many ways, this is a pretty lousy report, but the market is treating it like a good one.

 That's due in part to the average hourly earnings number, which rocketed higher in September. Traders have long looked particularly carefully at that measure of wages because so many economists have been confounded by the lack of wage growth in this otherwise hot labor market.

 The 0.5% gain in average hourly earnings versus a month ago indeed shows an accelerated pace, but that's likely due in part to the effects of hurricanes. Economists point to the fact that many low-wage workers are unemployed during and after hurricanes, which can push up the overall wage number. We'll have to see if this holds up next month.

 BMO Capital Markets rates strategist Ian Lyngen writes in a note to clients: "Treasuries are selling off however as the market looks past the weak headlines and focuses on AHE."

 Another pocket of strength in the report: the unemployment rate fell to 4.2%, it s lowest since 2001. And that number didn't fall because people are dropping out of the workforce. In fact, labor force participation actually rose. ||||| The U.S. economy was nicked by two summer hurricanes in September but is showing signs of underlying strength.

 The country shed 33,000 jobs in September, the first loss in seven years, the Labor Department said Friday, ending the longest stretch of job growth on record.

 But the picture was distorted by Hurricane Harvey, which hit Texas in... |||||

– The new jobs report is a case of good news/bad news. The US lost 33,000 jobs in September after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma hit Texas, Florida, and other Southeastern states, which the AP reports is the first decline in almost seven years. However, the Labor Department says the unemployment rate fell to 4.2% from 4.4%, the lowest level since February 2001. So what's going on? "Friday's report overall sent conflicting signals about the labor market, in part because it's based on separate surveys—one of employers, the other of households—that don’t always align precisely in any given month [but] typically point in the same direction over the longer term," explains the Wall Street Journal. Looking past the hurricanes' impact, the job market and economy generally look healthy, per the AP. Some economists expect job growth to rebound in the coming months as businesses in the area reopen and construction companies ramp up repair and renovation work. "People will write off the weak number because of the hurricanes," one economist tells the New York Times. "The underlying trend is still pretty strong." One good sign was that average hourly earnings, an important barometer, rose nearly 0.5%, though the Journal notes that if the hurricanes temporarily wiped out a lot of minimum wage jobs in the services industry, that would drive the overall number up. Next month will be a truer test.


– For decades, the human story was one told through signs of modernity—art, tools, burials—found only after Homo sapiens left Africa. Recent discoveries pushing back the date of departure are helping to change that narrative, as are three new studies in Science. Together, they describe the earliest stone tools of their kind in East Africa as well as the earliest evidence for long-distance transport of raw materials in the region, per Science News. Researchers previously believed the Early Stone Age marked by large, primitive tools (hand axes and cleavers) made way for the Middle Stone Age and its smaller tools (spearpoints and blades) around 280,000 years ago. But stone tools found in Kenya's Olorgesailie Basin show hominin groups—it's not clear which species is responsible—had developed these more advanced tools approximately 320,000 years ago. "We see a smaller technology, a more diverse series of stone tools … designed for specific purposes," researcher Rick Potts tells NPR. An expert not involved in the study says the tools are so "prepared and retouched" they suggest the Middle Stone Age likely started even earlier. What drove it? Microscopic and chemical analyses of the region's soil show the landscape was rapidly shifting between wet and dry conditions, meaning hominins might have been forced to adapt. But as the technology also coincides with the emergence of Homo sapiens in Africa, it's possible that the human mind deserves credit. The tools themselves suggest the development of trading networks, too. Some were made of rocks carried from 55 miles away, says Potts. Others were made of obsidian from as far as 30 miles away, per the Conversation. (These stone tools are also making waves.)

Expand this summary.

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about Science.

 NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address. ||||| Dramatic shifts in the East African climate may have driven toolmaking advances and the development of trading networks among Homo sapiens or their close relatives by the Middle Stone Age, roughly 320,000 years ago. That’s the implication of discoveries reported in three papers published online March 15 in Science.

 Newly excavated Middle Stone Age tools and red pigment chunks from southern Kenya’s Olorgesailie Basin appear to have been part of a long trend of climate-driven behavior changes in members of the Homo genus that amped up in H. sapiens. Locations of food sources can vary unpredictably on changing landscapes. H. sapiens and their precursors responded by foraging over larger areas with increasingly smaller tools, the researchers propose. Obsidian used for the Middle Stone Age tools came from far away, raising the likelihood of long-distance contacts and trading among hominid populations near humankind’s root.

 At roughly 320,000 years old, the excavated Middle Stone Age tools are the oldest of their kind, paleoanthropologist Rick Potts and colleagues report in one of the new papers. Researchers had previously estimated that such tools — spearpoints and other small implements struck from prepared chunks of stone — date to no earlier than 280,000 to possibly 300,000 years ago. Other more primitive, handheld cutting stones made of local rock date from around 1.2 million to 499,000 years ago at Olorgesailie. Gradual downsizing of those tools, including oval hand axes, occurred from 615,000 to 499,000 years ago, a stretch characterized by frequent shifts between wet and dry conditions, the scientists say.

 It’s not known whether that tool trend continued or if a sudden transition to Middle Stone Age implements happened between 499,000 and 320,000 years ago. Erosion at Olorgesailie artifact sites has destroyed sediment from that time period, leaving the nature of toolmaking during that time gap a mystery. Age estimates relied on measures of the decay of radioactive forms of argon and uranium in volcanic ash layers framing tool-bearing sediment. It’s unclear whether Homo sapiens or a closely related species made Olorgesailie’s Middle Stone Age tools, since no hominid fossils have been found there.

 Back-and-forth shifts from dry to wet conditions — many happening over only a few years or decades — continued to regularly reshape the Olorgesailie landscape around 320,000 years ago, conclude Potts, of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and colleagues in another of the new papers. That timing coincides roughly with the emergence of H. sapiens (SN: 12/23/17, p. 24). The team’s climate reconstruction is based on microscopic and chemical analyses of the region’s soil.

 A substantial number of Olorgesailie’s Middle Stone Age tools are made from obsidian that came from at least 25 to 50 kilometers away from the excavation sites. At one Olorgesailie site in particular, 42 percent of more than 3,400 stone artifacts were obsidian. Some of those finds display signs of having been attached to handles, likely as spearpoints, a group led by archaeologist Alison Brooks of George Washington University in Washington, D.C., reports in the third paper. Brooks is also a coauthor on the other studies.

 Formation of trading networks among dispersed groups of H. sapiens, or possibly among closely related populations, best explains how large amounts of obsidian turned up at Olorgesailie by 320,000 years ago, contends Potts, who coauthored the third paper. “Social networking during a long period of climate variability was a key to success for early Homo sapiens,” he says. “Greater mobility encouraged inventive thinking about how to acquire resources.” Potts has long argued that H. sapiens and close evolutionary relatives evolved to deal with constantly changing environments (SN: 8/20/05, p. 116).

 Still, factors other than climate fluctuations, such as hominid population declines or surges, may also have spurred ancient tool innovations to acquire more or different types of food, cautions archaeologist Yonatan Sahle of the University of Tübingen in Germany.

 In addition to the obsidian tools, a total of 88 pigment lumps, including two pieces with grinding marks, came from an undetermined distance outside the Olorgesailie vicinity, Brooks’ group says. Pigment applied to one’s body or belongings may have signaled group identity or social status, the researchers suggest.

 The new reports fit with genetic evidence that H. sapiens originated in Africa between 350,000 and 260,000 years ago (SN: 10/28/17, p. 16), says Stone Age archaeologist Marlize Lombard of the University of Johannesburg. Smaller, more specialized Middle Stone Age tools appearing along with pigment “provide strong indicators that by around 300,000 years ago we were well on our way to becoming modern humans in Africa,” she holds.

 Ancient toolmaking approaches varied greatly from one part of Africa to another, with hominids employing diverse mixes of old-school chopping tools and newer, sharp points, says archaeologist John Shea of Stony Brook University in New York. At Olorgesailie and elsewhere, he says, “early Homo sapiens and their immediate African ancestors were at least as smart as the scientists investigating them.”

 Editors’ note: This story was updated on March 21, 2018, to correct the percentage of stone artifacts made from obsidian at one Olorgesailie site. ||||| Scientists Are Amazed By Stone Age Tools They Dug Up In Kenya

 Enlarge this image toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR Jay Reed/NPR

 Our ancestors in Kenya's Southern Rift Valley made some pretty innovative tools. And they made them far earlier than previously thought.

 The oldest innovations were axes designed to be held in the palm of the hand. They were shaped like a tear drop, with a rounded end and a pointed eye. The edges were wavy and sharp. And they look as if they were great at chopping down branches — or chopping up the carcass of a large animal.

 toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR

 "I think of the hand axes as the Swiss army knife of the Stone Age," says paleoanthropologist Rick Potts, director of the Human Origins program at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and one of the lead scientists in a new study by a team of international scientists.

 The researchers also found that the next technological revolution, marking the beginning of the Middle Stone Age happened tens of thousands of years earlier than previously thought.

 And the researchers think that long periods of stress from repeated earthquakes and cycles of drought and heavy rains may have pushed these early humans to partner up with neighboring communities to come up with ways to cope.

 toggle caption Jay Reed

 The team was digging in a region called Olorgesailie in southern Kenya, an area filled with layers of sediment dating back 1.2 million years. The oldest stone tools discovered there are characteristic of what's called the Acheulian culture of the Early Stone Age and consisted mostly of the hand axes.

 Enlarge this image toggle caption Human Origins Program/Smithsonian Human Origins Program/Smithsonian

 In addition to branch- and carcass-chopping, the axes were likely used to dig for water to drink or tubers to eat. The carcasses probably belonged to large animals like the giant (now extinct) ancestors of hippos, elephants and wild pigs that roamed the grasslands back then. Potts says the ancient humans of that time likely scavenged dead animals, as their heavy, clunky hand axes wouldn't have served well for hunting big game. "These are very large tools," he says. "They might have been thrown but not very accurately."

 toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR

 Nevertheless, these hand axes served the ancient humans well for several hundred thousand years — from 1.2 million years ago to 500,000 years ago — and the technology remained largely unchanged during the time.

 But around 320,000 years ago, the ancient humans seem to have switched to an entirely new technology. The scientists found numerous smaller, flatter, sharper stone tools.

 "We see a smaller technology, a more diverse series of stone tools," says Potts. These tools were designed for specific purposes — some were used as blades, some as scrapers or spear heads. The scientists report their findings in three new studies published Thursday in the journal Science.

 "In Olorgesailie, you have the only record of the last million years in Africa," says Marta Mirazon Lahr, a paleoanthropologist who wasn't involved in the new study. And it's "the earliest ever documented Middle Stone Age in the whole continent."

 The new studies also show that by 320,000 years ago this technology was well established in the region, suggesting that human ancestors likely started developing it even earlier, she says.

 "The technology they have is not a crude, early version of the Middle Stone Age. It is the full-blown Middle Stone Age," Lahr says. "They have stone tools that are small, that are prepared and retouched, that are made with technique thought to come hundreds of thousands of years later."

 toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR

 The diversity of stone tools from the Middle Stone Age suggests advanced thinking and planning. "The flakes are being much more carefully prepared for a particular purpose," says Alison Brooks, an anthropologist at George Washington University and an author of the three studies.

 "They are fairly small in size, compared to the technology of earlier people. And in addition, they are made with much finer grained material," which allowed them to better control shapes and sizes of the stone tools.

 "We see the ability to produce small triangular points, that look like they were projectile points," says Potts. "They were tapered at the end, so that could have been put on the shaft of something that flew through the air." In other words, a potentially lethal spear.

 So our ancestors likely shifted from scavenging to hunting. An analysis of the fossilized animal bones found in the sediments show that people in that period were eating a range of mammals — which were by now much smaller, and closer in size to the animals of today — including hares, rabbits and springbok and even a couple of species of birds and fishes, says Brooks.

 And they weren't just picking up nearby stones to create their weapons. Earlier hand axes were made primarily from volcanic basalt, sourced within 2 to 2.5 miles of where these humans lived. The latter weapons were made of stones like obsidian, which originated far from Olorgesailie.

 toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR

 "That black obsidian, that rare rock was being transported, brought in in chunks, from 15 to 30 miles away," says Potts. "We have a couple of rocks that were brought from up to 55 miles away."

 These distances are far greater than what modern-day hunter gatherers travel over the course of a year, he says.

 "They weren't just traveling long distances and chipping rocks as they go," he adds. "If they did that, then there would have just been small chips of obsidian left at the archaeological sites where we dig. Instead we see large pieces of raw material coming in. The rocks were shaped at Olorgesaile itself."

 That kind of exchange of raw materials is a tell-tale sign of exchange between different groups of people, the scientists say. "In the Middle Stone Age, we begin to see the early stages of social networks, of being aware of another group and exchanging rocks over longer distances."

 Potts and his colleagues also find evidence of exchange of brightly colored red and black rocks that were then drilled into, possibly to extract pigment. This is the earliest evidence of the extraction of pigments, says Lahr.

 It's also evidence of a complex culture, where the ancient humans probably used pigments symbolically — perhaps to paint themselves, or their hides, or weapons. And where different groups exchanged raw materials (and possibly food).

 toggle caption Jay Reed/NPR

 There's that same kind of exchange today, says Brooks, referring to hunter gatherer groups like the Hadza people of northern Tanzania.

 "They deliberately maintain distant contacts with people in these other groups," she says. They have strategies to maintain these contacts — either by encouraging their children to marry into these other groups, or they take trips to visit the groups, to maintain ties by giving gifts. "It's a way of building up these distant contacts, which are extremely important for their survival."

 During times of stress, when food or water is scarce, people from one group can disperse and take shelter with other groups that they've cultivated a relationship with. "So the networks are like money in the bank, or wheat in your silo or cows in your barn," says Brooks. "They don't have any other way of saving for a rainy day."

 And as she and her colleagues show, the beginning of the Middle Stone Age in Kenya was preceded by a long and tumultuous phase in the region.

 "Things were going haywire, in terms of the development of geological faults, earthquake activity that moved the low places high and the high places low," says Potts. "It changed the shape of the landscape." This was accompanied by repeated cycles of droughts and high rainfall.

 "And it is precisely during those time periods that we expect to see hunting and gathering people to move further distances," says Potts, "and to begin to nurture relationships with groups beyond their own group."

 It is no different than what humans all over the world do today, he adds. When times are tough, we look for greener pastures. The archaeological records from the Middle Stone Age at Olorgesailie reveal "the roots of that kind of migration," he says. ||||| Just 20 years ago, many archaeologists believed there was a “human revolution” 40,000-50,000 years ago during which modern behaviours such as symbolism, innovation and art suddenly arose. This was thought to have enabled a major shift in cognitive organisation and probably the advent of complex language. At the time, the earliest modern human fossils had been found in Africa and dated to some 100,000 years ago, leaving a gap between the emergence of anatomically modern humans and behaviourally modern humans.

 This gap in the development suggested that we only achieved “modernity” as our species migrated out of Africa and into the rest of the Old World. But this view is increasingly being challenged. Just weeks ago, we learned that Neanderthals could paint images. Now, three new papers, published in Science, show that technologically advanced behaviours occurred much earlier than we thought in the African stone age.

 Not all researchers supported the view that modernity arose outside of Africa. Writing at the turn of the millennium, archaeologists Sally McBrearty and Allison Brooks complained that this view was Eurocentric and brought about by a profound under-appreciation of the depth and complexity of the African archaeological record. They argued that components of the “human revolution” were to be found in the African Middle Stone Age some 280,000-50,000 years ago.

 The role of climate change

 Now, two decades later, Brooks and her colleagues have presented well-dated evidence from the Olorgesailie Basin in Kenya that places the evolution of some of these behaviours much further back in time. They highlight technological change at around 300,000 years ago that likely occurred in response to the effects of long-term, global environmental and climatic change.

 Human Origins Program, Smithsonian

 Around 800,000 years ago, the Olorgesailie Basin comprised a series of floodplains. Over the course of the next several hundred thousand years, the climate changed and the area developed into a vast arid grassland with massive turnover of prey mammal species as a consequence.

 This would have made life difficult for early humans in the region by making food sources unpredictable. Human populations needed to adapt or go extinct. The crux of these papers is that hominin populations did not disappear – so at least some of them must have adapted technologically and culturally, with the environment driving greater mobility, information gathering and sharing, and innovation.

 Based on excavations at five sites dating from 320,000 years ago, the team found distinct differences in the forms of stone tools compared to older deposits in the area – suggesting technological innovation had taken place. Older sites yielded large, bulky stone tools such as hand axes and cleavers. This technology is generally referred to as Acheulean (Early Stone Age).

 In contrast, these sites at Olorgesailie contained much smaller, standardised pieces such as points and blades, some modified in a manner that made hafting possible. The team therefore classified them as Middle Stone Age industries. Many of the tools were made on obsidian (a volcanic glass) rather than rock. What’s more, chemical testing indictated that these raw materials came from 25-50 km away, and some from further afield. Some of these tools were made at the site and not brought in as finished items.

 Obsidian wasn’t the only exotic material – they also discovered bright red ochre pigment displaying evidence of grinding and cut marks, which makes this among the oldest known pigments used to colour rocks in the archaeological record.

 Human Origins Program, Smithsonian

 Together, the glass and ochre mark the earliest evidence for long-distance transport of raw materials in the East African record.

 Gap in the evidence

 Across Africa, the Middle Stone Age is characterised by the absence or rarity of large cutting tools and the presence of prepared core technologies for making sophisticated points and blades. Crucially, the transition between the African Early and Middle Stone Age occurred around the time that our own species, Homo sapiens, was evolving across the continent.

 It might therefore be tempting to treat the appearance of the earliest Middle Stone Age technology as a cultural marker linked to the evolution and appearance of our own species – a smoking gun for evidence of the modern human mind. But it is probably too soon to jump to that conclusion.

 Elsewhere across Africa, the association between Early and Middle Stone Age and pre- and fully-modern human fossils remains complex and confusing. Before 400,000 years ago, there are Early Stone Age sites which contain components such as blades and prepared cores. These are associated with archaic rather than modern human fossils such as at the Cave of Hearths. Conversely, we know that the production of Acheuelean large cutting tools by modern humans continued well into the period of the Middle Stone Age – such as at the 160,000-year-old site of Herto.

 Lee Berger et al/eLife Journal

 What is genuinely exciting about the discoveries in the Olorgesailie Basin is that we now know that one or more hominin groups were doing seemingly “modern” things at this critical time period. New tool forms and exotic materials require an understanding of space and time – bringing materials over great distances and passing on technological skills through successive generations. This suggests expanded social networks, transmission of information and technological innovation.

 Rethinking the revolution

 It does seem that the “human revolution” that made us modern never was – archaeological evidence for modern behaviours arose much earlier, starting in groups that predated our own species. Every criterion that has historically been used to differentiate modern humans from archaic humans – culture, art, treatment of the dead, ornamentation and abstract symbolism – has much older examples.

 What remains to be understood, however, is the relationship between complex behaviours and hominin species from 500,000 years to 160,000 years ago when many species of hominins (not just modern humans) inhabited the African landscape. Gradual complex change is more difficult to interpret than revolution. |||||


News article:

June 15, 2016 Morgan Warthin , (307)344-2015

 A Chinese national was fined $1,000 and a $30 court processing fee for walking off the boardwalk in the Mammoth Hot Springs thermal area Tuesday, June 14, 2016. A visitor observed and reported that the individual walked on the terrace formations near Liberty Cap and collected thermal water. The visitor also reported seeing the individual break through the fragile travertine crust.

 A park ranger took the witness’s statement, photos, and location of the violation.

 The subsequent law enforcement investigation identified the individual who stated that he did not read the safety information given to him at the park entrance. He also admitted to collecting hot springs water.

 A federal violation notice requiring a mandatory appearance in the Yellowstone Justice Center Court was issued for off boardwalk travel in a thermal area.

 Park rangers appreciate the willingness of the witness to document and report the violation.

 Park employees call on all visitors to protect their park and protect themselves. Regulations to stay on designated trails and boardwalks in thermal areas are for visitor safety and the safety of the exceptional park natural resources. Without visitor cooperation, park natural wonders will continue to be damaged and more individuals may be injured or killed. It is a violation of federal regulations to collect any park resources.

  ||||| YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (AP) — A tourist from China was fined $1,000 for walking off a boardwalk at Yellowstone National Park and collecting thermal water, apparently for medicinal purposes, park officials said Wednesday.

 A witness reported seeing the man break through the fragile, rock crust surrounding the Mammoth Hot Springs area. The witness took photos of the man that were turned over to park rangers, officials said.

 The incident came only a week after an Oregon man died after falling into one of Yellowstone's hot springs.

 The Chinese tourist told rangers he did not read the safety information given to him when he entered the park. The man, whose name was not released, reportedly wanted the water for medicinal purposes, said park spokeswoman Charissa Reid.

 Reid said in an emailed response to questions about the case the "stiff fine" was levied in large part because of "the irreplaceable nature of the thermal feature."

 The 2.2 million-acre park has seen a string of incidents over the past month where tourists got into trouble.

 Some got too close to wildlife and several others walked off boardwalks near hot springs.

 On June 7, 23-year-old Colin Nathaniel Scott of Portland slipped on gravel and fell into scalding, acidic water after leaving a boardwalk in the Norris Geyser Basin. Park officials were unable to recover his body.

 A day after Scott's death, six people received $130-citations for walking off trail in the Grand Prismatic Springs area.

 Park regulations require visitors to stay on trails and boardwalks for their own safety as well as to protect Yellowstone's natural resources. It is a violation of federal regulations to collect any park resources. ||||| Yellowstone National Park tourist fined $1,000 for walking off boardwalk

 A man visiting Yellowstone National Park left with more than just memories Wednesday after he left the boardwalk at the Mammoth Hot Springs area. He walked away with a $1,000 fine and $30 court processing fee.

 According to the park, a witness saw the man step off the boardwalk, walk on the terrace formation near Liberty Cap and collect thermal water. The witness also said the man broke through travertine crust, which is very fragile.

 RELATED: 16 cool things you probably didn't know about Big Bend National Park

 When the man was interviewed by law officials, the Chinese national said he didn't read the safety information provided as he entered the park. He also admitted to taking water from the hot springs. A park spokeswoman told the Associated Press the wanted to water for medical purposes.

 The man was issued a federal violation notice, requiring an appearance in the Yellowstone Justice Center Court.

 >> Click the gallery above to see some dumb things tourists have done

 "Park employees call on all visitors to protect their park and protect themselves," Yellowstone Park officials said in a news release. "Regulations to stay on designated trails and boardwalks in thermal areas are for visitor safety and the safety of the exceptional park natural resources. Without visitor cooperation, park natural wonders will continue to be damaged and more individuals may be injured or killed. It is a violation of federal regulations to collect any park resources."

 Earlier this month, 23-year-old Colin Nathaniel Scott of Portland slipped on gravel and fell into scalding, acidic water after leaving a boardwalk in the Norris Geyser Basin. Park officials were unable to recover his body.

 The hefty fine follows another tourist incident at Yellowstone this year in which park visitors loaded a bison into their vehicle because it "looked cold." The bison was later euthanized when it could not be reunited with its herd. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– If you've ever wondered, "What's the worst thing that could happen if I stray from the boardwalk at Yellowstone?", well, the worst thing that could happen is you could be killed in a thermal hot spring. But, among the lesser-but-still-unfortunate consequences, you could be fined $1,000 plus a $30 court processing fee. That's what happened to a Chinese man visiting the Mammoth Hot Springs area of the national park, who was seen leaving the boardwalk, collecting thermal water, and breaking through the fragile travertine crust near Liberty Cap on Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle reports. After a witness took photos and turned them in, officials interviewed the man, who admitted to taking water from the hot springs (he said he wanted it for "medicinal purposes," the AP reports) and said he hadn't read the safety information he was given at the entrance to the park. In addition to being fined, he was hit with a federal violation notice, meaning he must appear at the Yellowstone Justice Center Court. "Without visitor cooperation, park natural wonders will continue to be damaged and more individuals may be injured or killed," park officials say in a press release.


News article:

Lululemon said it was pulling its popular black yoga pants from stores after some of them were found to be overly sheer. Shares tumbled. Andria Cheng reports. Photo: Reuters.

 A Taiwanese supplier to Lululemon Athletica Inc. was bent out of shape on Tuesday after the yoga-clothes retailer blamed it for producing a shipment of pants that were unacceptably see-through.

 The supplier, Eclat Textile Co. of Taiwan, hit back at Lululemon, saying the clothes it shipped weren't "problematic."

 "All shipments to Lululemon went through a certification process which Lululemon had approved," Eclat Chief Financial Officer Roger Lo said in an interview. "All the pants were manufactured according to the requirements set out in the contract with Lululemon."

 The Canadian company has built a billion-dollar business selling premium yoga gear at high prices, but the glitch with the recalled pants marks yet another recent stumble with products on its store shelves. The disclosure late Monday about the black Luon pants—one of its core items—followed a string of complaints last year that the colors were bleeding on some of its tops.

 With the black Luon pant recall, Lululemon has now had its fourth quality-control issue in the past year, Credit Suisse analyst Christian Buss said. In addition to the problem with bright colors bleeding, the company had transparency problems with some colors of swimwear shipped for last spring as well as a subset of light colored pants, Mr. Buss said.

 The string of glitches is a setback for a company that has attracted a devoted following for its high-end yoga wear, which faces growing competition.

 Last July, Chief Product Officer Sheree Waterson posted an apology on Facebook for the colorfastness problem, long after complaints started cropping up. Two months later, CEO Christine Day mentioned the issue during an earnings call, acknowledging bleeding issues with colors including "Paris Pink" in "a couple of small, isolated issues."

 This time, the company moved more aggressively, pulling all of the pants from stores and offering refunds, leading it to cut its sales first quarter forecast by around $20 million.

 Some analysts expressed concern about the company's quality control.

 Enlarge Image Close REUTERS A Lululemon Athletic shop in San Francisco.

 Analysts at Sterne Agee said the company doesn't appear to be exercising enough supervision of its supply chain.

 "We are concerned that LULU does not have the appropriate presence in and around its factories," the analysts said. "It appears that there is not appropriate oversight in place."

 Lululemon wouldn't comment on its supervision of suppliers.

 Linda Goldstein, vice president of sourcing, quality and production at Lululemon, said in an interview that the company's sourcing manager for raw materials is currently at Eclat's facilities in Taiwan. Lululemon has yet to determine the cause of the problem, she said.

 Lululemon relies heavily on a limited number of suppliers, a risk it called out in its annual report in March 2012. The Luon fabric at issue in the see-through pants comes from that one supplier.

 Ms. Day has intentionally kept supplies of hot sellers low in order to create scarcity and buzz—and to ensure customers pay full price as often as possible.

 Lululemon's shares were down almost 5% in early trading Tuesday, although they rebounded to finish at $64.08, down 2.3%, on the Nasdaq.

 The company's shares, after rising by about two-thirds last year, are down nearly 18% so far in 2013.

 Write to Aries Poon at aries.poon@dowjones.com and Karen Talley at karen.talley@dowjones.com ||||| After customers complained that a batch of the company's signature yoga pants were too transparent, Lululemon tried to make a scapegoat out of the Taiwanese company that manufactures the pants. Bad idea. Said supplier now says the pants were no different than any other batch. The Eclat Textile Company, whose clients include everyone from Gap to Under Armour, said Tuesday that Lululemon had signed off on the shipment, suggesting that Lululemon made the whole thing up. "All shipments to Lululemon went through a certification process which Lululemon had approved," Eclat's chief executive Roger Lo told The Wall Street Journal. "All the pants were manufactured according to the requirements set out in the contract with Lululemon." Ladies and gentlemen, we have a yoga pants scandal on our hands.

 So which one is it? Did Eclat make a bad batch of $100 yoga pants, or did Lululemon just design transparent $100 yoga pants and milk the market for as long as it could? It's really hard to say. When Lo talked to the press, he said that Lululemon hadn't contacted his company about the recall — which is kind of weird since Lululemon effectively blamed Eclat for screwing up the "level of sheerness" during the manufacturing process. (It's worth pointing out that Lululemon also said it was working closely with the manufacturer "to understand what happened during the period this fabric was made.") It's possible that there's a third party, some company that supplied Eclat with the fabric for the pants, clearing it somewhat from the blame. But at this point, this particular incident really is a frustrating finger-pointing match that's left Lululemon out about $20 million in lost sales and a whole lot yogis out of high-priced pants.

 Let's get real about this stretchy trousers tale, though. It's pretty obvious that the supplier gains nothing by saddling the blame, however the perhaps unexpected media circus that gathered around this see-through yoga pants scandal highlighted a number of questionable incidents in recent Lululemon history. As a Credit Suisse analyst pointed out in a note to clients that this is Lululemon's "fourth quality control issue in the last year." Not counting this latest debacle, two out of the other three issues involved the sheerness of its fabrics. Clearly, something is up.

 Along these lines, other analysts suggested that Lululemon needs to spend more time in Taiwan to make sure the manufacturers' work is up to snuff. No matter whose at fault in the growing list Lululemon's quality control issues, it can't hurt to get to the root of the problem. Then maybe next time, someone will spot the bad batch, before they ship $20 million worth of transparent yoga pants around the world.

 Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.

 Adam Clark Estes |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Lululemon's see-through yoga pants sound scandalous, and a scandal is what the company appears to have on its hands. The Taiwanese supplier of the pants is hitting back after the yogawear chain blamed its massive pants recall on the manufacturer. "All shipments to Lululemon went through a certification process which Lululemon had approved," Eclat's CFO tells the Wall Street Journal. "All the pants were manufactured according to the requirements set out in the contract with Lululemon." Writing for the Atlantic Wire, Adam Clark Estes sums up the drama thusly: "So which one is it? Did Eclat make a bad batch of $100 yoga pants, or did Lululemon just design transparent $100 yoga [pants] and milk the market for as long as it could?" For now, it remains unclear, and Lululemon may have larger problems on its hands than some potentially see-through pants: This is the fourth quality control issue the chain has experienced in the past year, and some analysts are expressing concern that the company "does not have the appropriate presence in and around its factories. It appears that there is not appropriate oversight in place."