Goodbye, Mrs Wolowitz: The Big Bang Theory's touching tribute to the late Carol Ann Susi

 The Big Bang Theory has paid tribute to one of its most important - if unseen - characters. On the first episode following the death of actress Carol Ann Susi, the hit comedy aired a goodbye card dedicated to the woman behind Mrs. Wolowitz. Carol Ann, who died of cancer on Tuesday at the age of 62, was never seen on the show, but her voice had been heard from off-screen since The Big Bang Theory began in 2007.

The tribute, featuring a photo of Carol Ann as its backdrop, read in part, 'Every time you spoke, we laughed.'

It ended by saying, 'You're in our hearts forever.'

Mrs. Debbie Wolowitz was the overbearing mother of one of the main characters, Howard (played by Simon Helberg).

She lived with her son and regularly called him for a wide variety of reasons.

Even after Howard married his beloved Bernadette (Melissa Rauch), Mrs. Wolowitz maintained her invisible presence.'In addition to her talent, Carol Ann was a constant source of joy and kindness to all. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with her family during this time, and we will miss her greatly,' read a statement released by the show's producers.

Although she was never seen during her eight-season run on The Big Bang Theory, Carol Ann's face was familiar to television audiences.

Her TV career began in 1974, with a recurring role on the thriller series, Kolchak: The Night Stalker.

Carol Ann then worked steadily in television over the next few decades, guest-starring in everything from Growing Pains to ER to Ugly Betty.

Some of her more notable roles came during this time as well, playing Carrie on two episodes of Seinfeld and Frannie on three episodes of Married... With Chidren.

Her film work was impressive, if not as extensive, and included a prominent role as Michael J. Fox's secretary (who constantly walks in on her boss as he is changing clothes) in the 1987 film, The Secret Of My Success. But it was as the disembodied voice of Mrs. Wolowitz that Carol Ann ended up finding her greatest fame.

Tribute to Jacques Bertrand

For me, the radio it was him. I am indebted Jacques Bertrand. Aura lasted twelve years the legendary Macadam tribes, I have been there eleven seasons as a columnist, not to mention occasional collaborations with other projects supported by his deadpan humor and deliciously laugh behind. I am always amazed that pays me more to be at his side.


In less than a year, I saw Jacques Bertrand die twice. Once when the Radio-Canada has resigned herself to show him the door. Then a second, last week, when a laconic word of his two daughters he confirmed his unexpected death. I have not slept all night, making me hard to the idea that the resurrection of microphones now he was living his single word would not even be possible.


In June, forced to explain his departure to his listeners, he had recorded, true to his style, short message cryptic. "To explain my long absence, let's say I was floored by a nasty virus. [...] I tried to fight with an impressive barrage of medications. It did not work. So I tried another approach: the virus bored watching hours of TV platform, which is not hard to find, by the way. Except that it did not work either and it's more than that floored me. [...] While I was ready for my return to work, I learned that I retired. I was not aware, but now it's done. [...] I am working on one project for now, is my autobiography which I have only the title: Well well, that. [...] I hope you talk one day, but it seems that it is not possible at the moment. "


In private, like many, it hardly contained his rage towards the direction of the station. It seemed that, tossed from one issue to another, his fate was unfairly subjected to the will of a series of confused usurpers of a collective project increasingly disfigured. Emissions, like those of his comrades, he looked like trees being felled for no reason. In fact, everything seemed to weigh on him more and more. He isolated himself, let himself be desired, without manifest with the same enthusiasm as before.


He had let himself sink slowly into some of the many black holes that line our fragile existences. Light like no, this monument waves had come to regard her solitude alone oasis worthy of his confidence. He felt so strongly the feeling that he was trying to saw the legs that nailed him to the ground. Apparently did not know the person recover.


Sometimes my son with me to the studio of the show. Installed governed by the window that overlooks the guests and the host, son laughing or become severe, depending on what the moment. It was a long time ago already. Grown up, he still speaks, because of a truth that seems undeniable: the voice of Jacques Bertrand knew anyone to grow. She embodied not only a new way of looking at radio, but mostly open on behalf of the intelligence space.


Who else Jacques Bertrand could talk for fifteen minutes a newspaper Indonesia or Mali that does not even exist, but nevertheless offered if accurate portraits of the world that mystified by some listeners? Macadam tribes was a vast laboratory open to young people. What other brand could have been heard stories both whimsical and informed as he had spent Catherine Pépin to a breeder of earthworms? So where Philippe Lague could he become a master of the sound cartoon?


This flagship program had come to be a unique nursery for many new voices before being put through the mill, according to the ridiculous premise that novelty must hunt each other, no matter which.


Going back to Jacques Bertrand. I insisted that it was not only funny and sarcastic. He was especially brilliant. Incredibly bright and crisp. On the radio, to this day, I have known people like it. We say that I push the line a little strong on the occasion of his death. Not. I live here in the exact measure of truth. Those who knew me as you say.


In 2009, even if I was invited, I did not attend the finale of Macadam tribes. I never liked these funerals that it tries to make up with a festive air. I was so content to go greet the day before or the day before, I do not know to express my sadness.


In sum, this is many times that I attend funerals Jacques Bertrand. But at age 61, he was off for real. I will miss it more than ever, as he already lost his wide audience.


I cry today Jacques Bertrand incarnation audacity was capable radio our taxes. I mourn this great master of our hotel waves. I mourn his tragic agony sad reflection of the public network, the one he loved, without which, I sincerely believe he could not have anyway to live much longer.

I'm staying! "We used the C-tiered" announcement, but the "echo Juanita" With the launch of the groom in WE Magazine.

Men feel heartbroken throughout the country. Bachelor of ceremonies for the announcement of a beautiful princess nicknamed it "The tiered marketplace of the V's blazing descent" who now has a bachelor. Prepare marring the "echo Juanita Rakariyapong" through the social need.
"It's time to tell everyone that it's officially getting married. It could be someone who does not show love anything on social service. But I want the fans to cheer on the start once I complete the series with. The IT service industry is the love and life series. And is thought to be more favorable when the good cheer of love. I was encouraged by all the people who Follow me likes it, but never the groom launched the #we Thanks for the beautiful pictures with it. "
For those who doubt that the groom was a new guy. WE magazine column can be tracked in the November issue of Bride to Be. The Coffee News Crawling exclusive look around. Image of Correa from the lighthearted AND WE Magazine Lucky's Department.
 

The APEC Summit Closes With a ‘Historic’ Climate Deal Between the U.S. and China

On Nov. 9, the eve of President Obama’s arrival in Beijing for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, a bright moon climbed across a dark sky. This took months of staging: to clear the air for arriving dignitaries, the government closed factories, cut traffic and ordered workers home. But by the time Obama and China’s President Xi Jinping sat down to dinner on Nov. 10, the smog was back, and the moon rose, as it usually does, through a toxic pall.

And so went the summit: days of diplomatic murk punctuated by carefully created blue sky. The highlight was the announcement, on Nov. 12, of an ambitious Sino-U.S. plan to curb emissions to tackle climate change. The agreement, which was the result of months of negotiations, includes new targets for the U.S. and China’s first-ever commitment to stop emission growth by 2030. The broader goal is to “inject momentum” into efforts to negotiate a new global pact on emissions in Paris in 2015.

In a joint press conference, President Obama hailed the accord with China as a “historic agreement” and a “major milestone in the U.S.-China relationship.”The past few years have been tough on those ties. China bristled at U.S. plans to “pivot” to Asia; the U.S. is unhappy with China’s assertive posture on various territorial disputes, as well as on human rights and trade. All this, says Cheng Li, a China expert at the Brookings Institution, has created a “difficult atmosphere for U.S.-China relations.”

The strategy seems to be to find ways to collaborate on issues of common concern while steering clear of the more contentious stuff. In addition to the landmark emissions goals, the U.S. and China reached an understanding on tariffs for technology products, and a military accord aimed at preventing clashes in the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

Xi, in a rare appearance before the press, said China would “make our due share of contribution” to peace and stability in the region. “Both President Obama and I believe that when China and the United States work together we can become an anchor of world stability and a propeller of world peace,” he said.

“Counter to the heated rhetoric over the last few years, U.S.-China relations show more signs of cooperation than confrontation right now,” says Yun Sun, a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.–based Stimson Center. “The key question is, does this adjustment reflect a change in foreign policy in the longer run?”

And that, of course, is very complicated. The last time it hosted APEC, in Shanghai in 2001, China was an emerging market and still finding its way geopolitically. Now China is the world’s second largest economy and a coming superpower. It deals with the U.S. as an equal.

At APEC, both Washington and Beijing pushed for different trade agreements, with the U.S. pushing the Trans Pacific Partnership, which excludes China, and Beijing backing its own Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific. China also used the run-up to the summit to announce $40 billion for infrastructure development along what it calls the new Silk Road — a network of railways and airports across Central Asia.

“This is a message for the U.S.,” says Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. “China wants to be at the center of economic life in the region.”

Political differences are also acute. The U.S. and its allies, including Japan and the Philippines, are no closer to accepting China’s territorial claims than before. Beijing still seems to think the U.S. and other unspecific foreign forces somehow have a hand in the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. And the ruling Communist Party refuses to budge on visas for reporters from the New York Times and Bloomberg, who have been given the cold shoulder since running stories about the wealth of China’s top leaders, including Xi.

At the Nov. 12 press conference to close out the meetings, the talk of cooperation was undercut somewhat by awkward exchanges. Xi, unaccustomed to questions from the foreign press, first ignored a question from a Times reporter about the visa issue, turning instead to a reporter from the state-controlled China Daily. After reading a response to the China Daily, he returned to press access, sort of.

“In Chinese,” he said, “we have a saying: The party which has created the problem should be the one to resolve it. So perhaps we should look into the problem to see where the cause lies.”

Myles Munroe die in plane crash with wife and daughter

Prolific best selling author and internationally renowned preacher and business coach, Dr. Myles Munroe of Bahamas Faith Ministries International and his wife Mrs. Ruth Ann Munroe, died in a plane crash on Sunday in the Bahamas.

The plane, a Lear 36 executive jet, reportedly struck a crane at the Grand Bahama Ship Yard, exploding on impact and crashing into the ground near a junkyard area.The crash killed all nine people including his daughter, on board the private jet.

The cause of the crash was not immediately determined, though there had been heavy rain across the region.

A full investigation is expected to begin today, Monday. The crash occurred as people were gathering in Grand Bahama for Dr. Munroe’s 2014 Global Leadership Forum, which has to starts on November, 10.

Former mayor of Atlanta and former U.S Ambassador to the United Nations, Andrew Young scheduled to speak at the popular leadership forum, released the following statement through his foundation: “Ambassador Young expresses his deep sadness over the tragic death of his friends Dr. Myles and Mrs. Ruth Munroe. He offers condolences to the Munroe family and the families of the other souls who lost their lives as a result of this shocking plane crash.”

Africa’s richest woman and oil mogul, Mrs. Folorunso Alakija is also expected to speak at the leadership forum. Dr. Munroe was the senior pastor of Bahamas Faith Ministries International Fellowship, where his wife, Ruth Ann, served as co-senior pastor. They left behind two children, daughter, Charisa and son, Chairo (Myles Jr.) Munroe.

Man slumps and dies while having sex with wife

A middle-aged commercial bus driver died yesterday while making love with his wife. The incident occurred in their home at Ikota, along Victoria Island-Epe expressway, Lagos State. Simply identified as Emmanuel, The Eagle Online reports that the deceased suddenly slumped and died during the ‘action’.It was learnt that when his wife, a mother of two, Afion, noticed that her husband was no longer moving, she had called his name several times and shook him. Still, Emmanuel did not respond. Scared and confused, Afion was said to have called the husband’s younger brother, Akpan, who resides in Badore area and broke the news to him.
A neighbour, Okechukwu, said that the woman told her husband to rest because he was just recovering from an illness but he would not listen. She said the man insisted he wanted sexual intercourse or he would seek for it elsewhere.

Boris Vallaud appointed deputy secretary general of the Elysee

Boris Vallaud husband of Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, was named this weekend deputy secretary general of the Elysee. A key position which marks a new stage in the ascent of torque to power. Since the start with loss and crash Arnaud Montebourg government Vallaud Boris, who was his chief of staff, took care of her twins, Nour and Louis. The two children are also those of Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, Minister of Education from the same reshuffle and fashionable personality of the government. When one draws on her light and made politics open mics, the other sails for a long time behind the scenes. Boris Vallaud was successively director of the office of the Prefect of the Gard, Secretary General of the Prefecture of Landes, sub-prefect of Mont-de-Marsan and General Secretary of the General Council of Saône-et-Loire in the team of Arnaud Montebourg . He has been named this weekend deputy secretary general of the Elysee. A position that amounted to the number 3 of the Presidency of the Republic, behind the head of state and Jean-Pierre Jouyet.

The uninitiated yet sensed that the main contributor of Montebourg would long remained "tricard" in a majority now taken over by Manuel Valls. There is thus nothing. And we already hear the evil spirits imply that Boris Vallaud has been appointed to the Elysee that due to a swabbing in good standing of his wife. This highly commented appointment has yet other reasons, starting with the crisis that shook the Elysee Palace after the revelations of two journalists of the World on the General Secretary Jean-Pierre Jouyet. The appointment of Boris Vallaud at the Elysee is then the result of the will of Francois Hollande to surround himself with loyal after the scandal that hit Aquilino Morelle in spring (also too close Montebourg). 

For if he himself has worked for the bubbling economy minister until his departure, Boris Vallaud done before any party, with his wife, the most loyal members to the team in power. Long in Ségolène Royal Service, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem served as faithfully Hollande since taking campaign in 2011. Boris Vallaud, he was for two years an interface between the Elysee and Bercy, where the design of the line to follow was often very different. Never told, it has so far betrayed neither Montebourg, or Holland with whom he maintained good relations. Another highlight of Boris Vallaud: it is near Emmanuel Macron, the Minister of Economy, with whom he shared the benches of the ENA. Himself a former adviser to Francois Hollande at the Elysee Macron embodies this new pro-business executive orientation. The appointment of Boris Vallaud with Jean-Pierre Jouyet is therefore mainly a continuation of what is achieved at the summit of the state since the beginning: to harmonize the discourse of Bercy and the Elysee and avoid hiccups on economic policy.

EM-Quali: Fan rampage overshadowed Italy game

Riot in the European Championship qualifier: The match between Italy and Croatia has been overshadowed by fan riots and was about to crash. The 1: 1 (1: 1) in the San Siro Stadium in Milan had a quarter of an hour before the deadline will be interrupted after fireworks and smoke bombs were thrown onto the field from the Croatian block for the umpteenth time. 17 Croatian was subsequently arrested by the police. The Dutch referee Bjorn Kuipers sent both teams temporarily in the cabins. After about ten minutes, the match between the four-time world champion and the leader of the European Championship qualifying Group H could be continued.

Already in the first half, the visiting fans have repeatedly thrown objects on the playfield. At this time the highlights from a sporting perspective were already set. The leadership of the host by Antonio Candreva (11 minutes) resembled Bundesliga player Ivan Perisic (15) from post. His Wolfsburg team-mate Ivica Olic denied in Milan his 100th game. Dortmund striker Ciro Immobile was in the starting line-up Italian. In the Group H table Croatia is tied with ten points ahead of second placed Italians.

Jennifer Lawrence Talks Mockingjay Kiss, Solange Gets Hitched & More Weekend News

Jennifer Lawrence certainly a considerate one – or so she thinks. Sure, she ate a sandwich and then didn't brush her teeth before filming a big kiss with costar Liam Hemsworth, but, she said Saturday at a press conference for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, "I gave him fair warning." Not according to her scene partner. As Hemsworth told Jimmy Fallon earlier, "Any time I had to kiss Jennifer was pretty uncomfortable. When you look at it on the outside it looks like a great picture. She's one of my best friends. I love her. But if we had a kissing scene, she would make a point of eating garlic or tuna fish or something that was disgusting."

All kidding aside, the Oscar winner does credit Hemsworth with teaching her to have more of a backbone.

"I am a wimp about standing up for myself," the 24-year-old actress told PEOPLE at the press conference in Manhattan, saying Hemsworth "taught me how to stand up for myself," she said. "I would always be like, 'Please like me! Please like me!' "

"Maybe not with this movie," she joked. "Not since Catching Fire.

"But there were times when I was really bad about that," Lawrence continued. "It's my biggest weakness – with negotiating, or even with people. Liam is always fair, he is always kind, he is always strong. He's teaching me to toughen up a little bit and it's important. I need that."

While filming the Hunger Games movies over the years, she said she grew particularly close to both Josh Hutcherson, 22, and Hemsworth, 24.

"Liam is the most wonderful, lovable, just family-oriented sweet, hilarious [guy]," she said. "I guess the biggest surprise is that I would never expect to ever have a man this good-looking ever be my best friend. I never knew that those things could happen."

When he returned the compliment, saying how "she has never changed" and is "a great actress because she adapts to situations," she laughed and said, "This is the best press conference ever!" In true JLaw fashion, she also joked about taking a selfie in a meadow during shooting "while I was peeing in it." But the conversation turned serious as she explained how surrounding herself "with 'no' people" has kept her grounded amid her international stardom.

"I have an amazing group of friends who are not in the business, who I trust. I have been friends with them for years," she said. "They will tell me, 'Stop doing that' or 'You look terrible.' " When it comes to her fame, she said, "I don't feel any different. But the way people look at you feels alienated and odd. So I surround myself with people who don't fake laugh at my jokes." Costar Natalie Dormer chimed in to compare Lawrence to her fearless character, Katniss Everdeen.

"Katniss doesn't have any ego and neither does Jennifer. The reason why she's so compelling to an audience is because she's true to herself and doesn't suffer the bulls--- or superficial elements," Dormer said. "That's why people look up to her. She's a great role model. So is Katniss."

Design contest lingerie Held at the International Fashion Week in China

Fashion aficionados are gathering in Beijing as the 17th China Fashion Week begins in the capital. The opening show featured event regular NE TIGER's haute couture collection. The show hinted at traditional Chinese fashion. The designer said the collection is inspired by the styles of the Ming dynasty, some 600 years ago. The collection mainly features women's formal attire. And there was also a series of wedding dresses showcased on the runway.

"I try to revive the old traditions and blend it into modern day fashion. Red and gold are the major colors, symbolizing joy and fortune. And I also use some traditional materials," said Zhang Zhifeng, fashion designer. Rounding out the rest of day one were Beautyberry by Wang Yutao's men's collection and the La pargay Lai Rui collection. In total, there will be 66 shows, a record high for the event, making it the largest fashion week in the Asia-Pacific area. The fashion week is a great platform for Chinese designers, but also invites international designers to join.

China Fashion Week runs until November 2. There are 88 brands and institutions from home and abroad participating in the week. Eighty-three domestic and overseas designers will launch 63 collections, and about 110 promising designers will take part in three professional contests.

Bill Cosby Rape Allegations: Comedian’s First Interview about Barbara Bowman is Completely Awkward

Nasty allegations have been haunting one of America's most iconic comedians, a man with a reputation for moral wholesomeness. For nine years, Bill Cosby has been accused of sexual assault by women who say they were the victims.

Cosby has repeatedly said that the allegations are untrue. And he has never been prosecuted. But since 2005, a handful of women have made the claim. This year, those accusations resurfaced, and on Monday, a seemingly harmless post to Cosby's confirmed Twitter account turned them into a social media storm. In its wake, one of his accusers, Barbara Bowman, turned to the public once more with an article in the Washington Post. She also spoke to CNN's Don Lemon.

Bowman claims she was drugged then raped, though she said she never saw drugs.

"I woke up out of a very confused state not in my clothes." She said she knew her body had been touched without her permission. This occurred several times in the course of their contact, she said.

She said to CNN that Cosby told her she had been drunk.

Bowman was 17 and an aspiring actress when she met Cosby in 1985. She considered him to be her mentor.

She spent time in his home, which included dinners with the star.

She said the abuse began after she turned 18.

Despite what she said was happening to her, she kept coming back. And Cosby and her agent financed her apartment in addition to supporting her acting ambitions, she said.

She was afraid to talk to her agent about her concerns, and she felt Cosby's influence over her was too powerful.

"I was terrified of him," she said.

"As a teenager, I tried to convince myself I had imagined it. I even tried to rationalize it: Bill Cosby was going to make me a star and this was part of the deal," she wrote in her Washington Post article.

In a Friday morning interview on CNN's "New Day," Bowman said she went to a lawyer in 1989 to discuss legal action against Cosby but "he laughed me right out of the office."

After that, Bowman said, she "just gave up" and moved on with her life. When another woman took legal action against Cosby years later, Bowman decided to lend her support, she said.

"I believe her because it happened to me," she said Friday.

CNN reached out to Cosby's representative for comment on this article but has not yet heard back.

When asked about the allegations Saturday during an interview on NPR, Cosby did not respond -- instead shaking his head "no," according to the interviewer, Scott Simon.

"There are people who love you who might like to hear from you about this. I want to give you the chance," Simon said, to silence from Cosby. "All right."

B.C. civic election day - as it happened

On Saturday, Nov. 15, voters across British Columbia went to the polls in the 2014 civic elections. Polls were open across B.C., from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. with some in Vancouver remaining open later due to long line ups.
Global News has now concluded their live coverage of the 2014 B.C. civic election. Advance poll numbers have shown interest is up in this civic election. In Vancouver there has been a 98 per cent increase in advance polls from 2011.
Vancouverites said yes to bike lanes and re-elected Gregor Robertson, who is set to become the city's longest serving (consecutive) mayor.

• CITY VOTES 2014 Full coverage of the municipal elections

Robertson will not be the city's first three-term mayor, but new rules mean his third term will be four years instead of three.

Robertson defeated former journalist Kirk LaPointe of the Non Partisan Association by more than 10,000 votes, in an election that saw a 44 per cent turnout, up from 35 per cent in 2011.

• CITY VOTES 2014 Gregor Robertson re-elected mayor of Vancouver

Pollsters had predicted the tightest race would be in B.C.'s second largest city, Surrey. But they were proven wrong, as Linda Hepner — riding the endorsement of outgoing mayor Dianne Watts — won in a landslide.

• CITY VOTES 2014 Linda Hepner wins Surrey mayoral race

The closest race in the province was in the capital, Victoria. Lisa Helps defeated incumbent Dean Fortin, by fewer than 100 votes. There was speculation about a recount, but Fortin called Helps and conceded.
Kelowna, a city known to attract retirees, elected one of the province's youngest mayor's — 37 year old Colin Basran, who had the endorsement of the outgoing mayor, and defeated a former three-term mayor.

Barack Obama wins 1000 new fans with University of Queensland G20 speech

The US president says Asia's security must not be based on intimidation of small nations by big ones.

Barack Obama told students in Brisbane, Australia - where he is attending the G20 summit - that security in the region must depend on mutual alliances. He said there was "no question" over his commitment to Asia-Pacific allies, referring to US efforts to strengthen strategic ties with the region. The two-day G20 summit will focus on promoting economic growth. World leaders are expected to expand on plans agreed by G20 finance ministers in February to boost global growth by 2% in five years. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also urged those attending to meet the challenges posed by Ebola, climate change and the conflict in Ukraine. Meeting on the margins of the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged his French counterpart Francois Hollande to join him to defuse tensions between the two countries over Ukraine.
France has withheld the delivery of two warships to the Russian navy over its actions in Ukraine.
The Russian president also discussed "rebuilding relations" with the UK after a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron, Mr Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Even she seemed surprised to have made it, but she shook off the shock quickly. After all, Obama was only 30 centimetres away. Others followed suit. Two women managed to leap, jump and dash their way through close enough for the Obama-selfie. They were so excited after, they could barely speak. And the "power of the man and the message," as former deputy prime minister Wayne Swan put it following the speech, was enough to bring even the most bitter of enemies together, if even for a moment. Queensland Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk and LNP Treasurer Tim Nicholls stood together, a little in awe, both politely struggling to be the first to speak.

Mr Nicholls didn't shake his hand, "I left that to the school kids", but was very impressed with his message about America standing with Australia over MH17. Ms Palaszcuk was just "inspired" particularly by the focus on "young people's hopes". Assistant minister for the Premier Deb Frecklington, who has been everywhere this G20, got the closest. "He shook my hand and asked me my name and what I did," she said. "And he said 'that's a very long title. Does it fit on a business card?'." But it was the students who were most affected. And that, given the President directed the majority of his speech towards them, was the point.
"It was such a honour, it was unbelievable," Lily Treston said.
She and fellow Year 12  Mt St Michael's College students ("we're in the Premier's electorate") described the speech, just under a hour, as an "inspiration". "You feel as though he is reaching out to just you," Sophia Aston said. "As if he is just speaking to you specifically. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Griffith University student John Hopper stood at the back once the President had left the building, contemplating. "It is a lot to take in," he said.
"As the President said, there are a lot of opportunities for us out there. It was inspiring and it has left me with a lot of things to think about over the next few years. It was something I will never forget."
Reid Barry still had stars in his eyes. He'd lost his friends, but was distracted from finding them, as he thought over the speech. "I thought it was fantastic," he said. Why? He paused. "I don't know. It was just great."
The room cleared out and photos and selfies were compared. "Ermagawd!  One student said.  "I just got a selfie with Obama!" "I can't believe I heard him speak," another said.  "Maybe that's even better."

Fall Back Into Daylight Saving Time With a Cozy Weekend Wardrobe

It’s About Time! The Clock That Keeps the Entire U.S. Ticking What's better than sleeping in on a Sunday? How about dodging the days-long consequences of rolling the clocks back this weekend?

Daylight Saving Time ends this weekend, which means that most residents in the country return to Standard Time at 2 a.m. Sunday. To do so, most people set the clocks back one hour Saturday night, before they hit the hay. This does not apply to you if you live in most of Arizona or Hawaii, where it’s always island time.

Sure, you'll gain an hour when Daylight Saving Time ends at 2 a.m. Sunday. But spending said hour in bed after sunrise will do you few favors in the long run, sleep experts say.

"It will hit you Sunday evening," said Dr. Yosef Krespi, director of the New York Head and Neck Institute's Center for Sleep Disorders. "But if your body clock is tuned to waking up with sunlight, you're going to benefit."

The body clock is a cluster of neurons deep inside the brain that generates the circadian rhythm, also known as the sleep-wake cycle. The cycle spans roughly 24 hours, but it's not precise.

"It needs a signal every day to reset it," said Dr. Alfred Lewy, director of Oregon Health and Science University's Sleep and Mood Disorders Laboratory in Portland.

The signal is sunlight, which shines in through the eyes and "corrects the cycle from approximately 24 hours to precisely 24 hours," said Lewy. But when the sleep-wake and light-dark cycles don't line up, people can feel out-of-sync, tired and grumpy.

With time, the body clock adjusts on its own. But here are a few ways to help it along.

1. Wake Up at a Normal Time Sunday Morning

Many people see the extra hour as an excuse to stay up later and sleep in longer. But sleeping through the Sunday morning sunlight can leave you feeling out of sorts for the start of the week, according to Krespi.

Instead, try to get up at the same time. Use the extra hour to go for a morning walk or make a hearty breakfast.

2. Eat Well and Exercise

Speaking of morning walks and breakfast, an active lifestyle and a healthy diet can work wonders for your sleep, according to Krespi. So grab your partner, your dog or your favorite playlist and get outside some fresh air and exercise. And dig into a breakfast packed with whole grains and protein to keep you energized through the 25-hour day.

3. Get a Good Night's Sleep Sunday Night

Still have extra time to kill Sunday? Use it to turn your bedroom into a full-fledged sleep zone.

"It has to be quiet, it has to be cool and it has to be dark," said Krespi. "Shut down your gadgets and turn away that alarm clock so you don't watch it tick."

Try to hit the sack at your usual bedtime, even though it will be dark one hour earlier.

4. Try a Low Dose of Melatonin

While light synchronizes the body clock in the morning, the hormone melatonin updates it at night. The exact function of the hormone, produced by the pea-size pineal gland in the middle of the brain, is unclear. But it can activate melatonin receptors on the neurons of the body clock, acting as a "chemical signal for darkness," Lewy said.

Taking a low dose of melatonin in the evening can help sync the sleep-wake and light-dark cycles. But be careful: Although melatonin is sold as a dietary supplement, it can cause drowsiness and interfere with other drugs. Talk to your doctor about the dosage and timing that's right for you.

5. Know That Your Body Will Adjust It might take a few days to feel 100 percent normal, but fear not: Your body will adjust to the new light-dark cycle.

"Some people suffer more, some people less, it all depends," said Krespi, adding that falling back in November tends to be easier than springing forward in March. "On Monday morning, we'll appreciate that we're waking up for work or school with sunlight."

Tomorrow marks our next national foray into Daylight Saving Time (at 2:00 a.m. EST, feel free to set your clocks—though, pro tip, your iPhone will update automatically), and the increasingly unfriendly climes and incumbent winter season mean that we’re falling back, to reap all of the dwindling daylight hours that we can. We gain an hour, is what we’re saying, but that doesn’t mean that your look for the weekend should be anything less than totally relaxed. Why not use the extra hour where you know you’ll enjoy it—cuddled up and cozy in bed? (And after all those Halloween festivities, you’ve certainly earned it.) Could anything feel more, well, timely? Here, the best looks for a very tucked-in, snuggled-up weekend.

Virgin Galactic crash: Branson vows to continue space project

A pilot was killed and another injured as Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space tourism craft crashed in the California desert. The craft was flying a manned test when it experienced what the company described as "a serious anomaly". It was undergoing its first powered test flight since January over the Mojave Desert, north of Los Angeles. Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson said he was "shocked and saddened" by the "tragic loss". In a blog post, he said everyone involved in the project was "deeply saddened". "All our thoughts are with the families of everyone affected by this tragic event," he wrote.

He said that he was flying to California immediately, describing it as "one of the most difficult trips I have ever had to make". "Space is hard - but worth it. We will persevere and move forward together," he added. Even as details emerge of what went wrong, this is clearly a massive setback to a company hoping to pioneer a new industry of space tourism. Confidence is everything and this will not encourage the long list of celebrity and millionaire customers waiting for their first flight.

An innovative design for a spacecraft combined with a new type of rocket motor to make the development challenge exceptionally hard. Despite an endless series of delays to its spacecraft, Virgin Galactic has over the years managed to maintain some very optimistic public relations and positive media coverage.

I interviewed Sir Richard Branson when he first announced the venture and his enthusiasm and determination were undoubted. But his most recent promises of launching the first passenger trip by the end of this year had already started to look unrealistic some months ago. Today's accident will delay plans even further. Space is never easy, and making it routine is even harder. Virgin Galactic has been a frontrunner in the nascent space tourism industry, and Sir Richard said earlier in October he expected to see the craft make it to sub-orbital space within a few months. More than 800 people have already paid or put down deposits for a trip on SpaceShipTwo, at a cost of about $200,000 (£125,000) per person.

Yom Kippur, Holiest Day On Jewish Calendar, Begins

One of the holiest days, oldest traditions, and joyous times in Judaism begins Friday at sundown. Yom Kippur, also called the Day of Atonement, is a serious day, but it should not be a somber one for followers of the Jewish faith, said Rabbi Scott Perlo, associate director of Jewish programming at Sixth & I Historic Synagogue. “The Talmud says there are no more joyous days than Yom Kippur,” he said. “That joy, the joy that comes with forgiveness, reconciliation.” Rabbi Perlo said Yom Kippur is about separating the two drives within every human being.

“There’s a drive to do good, and a drive to not do good,” he said. “Both are necessary, both make us who we are. Yom Kippur is about separating them back out again and letting the drive for good win. It’s asking forgiveness for the time when the drive to do bad has overtaken us.” The Jewish new year — which is now 5775 — began last week. Yom Kippur is begins Friday night just before sundown and ends when the stars come out Saturday. During the services there will be the blowing of the shofar, a ram’s horn, which Rabbi Dorsch said serves as a wake-up call. “It’s one thing to be sorry, it’s another thing to be sorry and then recognize and take the steps we need to do to be different, to not make the same mistakes again,” Rabbi Dorsch said.

In a message to those observing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said, “During this period of reflection, it is my hope that we can recommit to creating a more secure and peaceful future for all. … I extend warm wishes for a meaningful day and an easy fast. Gmar Chatima Tova.” The Day of Atonement is the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. More people go to temple on Yom Kippur than any other holiday, 1010 WINS reported. The Long Island Rail Road is adding extra trains to accommodate passengers observing Yom Kippur.

U.S. troops head to Africa for Ebola mission

As he was preparing to leave Liberia for Dallas two weeks ago, Thomas E. Duncan, the man confirmed to be the first Ebola case in the United States, was checked at the airport for signs of the disease. He was determined to have no fever and allowed to board his flight, American officials say. Since the deadly Ebola virus began spreading rapidly through West Africa, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been pushing the authorities in the worst-hit countries, including Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, to implement just that type of screening for departing passengers.  About 1,400 soldiers will head to Liberia this month to help support the fight against the Ebola virus that is spreading across West Africa, a Pentagon official said Tuesday.

The Army's 101st Airborne Division, based at Fort Campbell, Ky., will provide about 700 of those soldiers, while the other 700 will be mostly combat engineers culled from Army units across the force, Defense Department spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said. The soldiers will be among the total 3,000 U.S. troops whom the Pentagon plans to send into West Africa this fall. About 300 of the troops from the 101st Airborne will come from the division headquarters, and they will serve as the Joint Force Command for the mission. They are expected to arrive by the end of October. "Operation United Assistance is a critical mission," said Maj. Gen. Gary Volesky, commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division, in a statement. "We will coordinate all of the Department of Defense resources in Liberia to support USAID and the government of Liberia to contain the Ebola virus and, ultimately, save lives."

The U.S. military mission will include building 17 100-bed hospital facilities and a health care facility for infected physicians and health care workers. U.S. troops will not provide direct care to patients infected with the Ebola virus, according to the Pentagon. More than 3,000 people have died in the current Ebola epidemic and at least 6,574 have been infected, according to the World Health Organization. Dr. Steve Monroe, deputy director of the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Disease at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said during a "The most important thing we can do right now is get cases in isolation so we can stem this outbreak," said Monroe. The CDC estimates the disease could affect up to 1.4 million people by January if it's not contained. On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the first case of Ebola in a critically ill patient diagnosed in a U.S. hospital. The unnamed man, who traveled from Liberia on Sept. 19, is being treated in the intensive care unit at Texas Health Presbyterian hospital in Dallas. A second person, who had close contact with the Dallas patient, is being monitored for Ebola.

Josh Michaud, associate director of global health policy for the Kaiser Foundation, said more than 300 U.S. government workers are in the affected countries, including 28 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development, more than 100 CDC workers and roughly 200 military personnel. Those troops include Army Maj. Gen. Darryl Williams, commander of U.S. Army Africa and Operation United Assistance, as the deployment is being called, and dozens of Navy Seabees who are laying the foundations for construction of the new Ebola care facilities. When the 101st Airborne Division soldiers deploy, Volesky will take over for Williams, who will return to his duties as commander of U.S. Army Africa. About 300 soldiers from the division headquarters will deploy to Monrovia, said Lt. Col. Brian DeSantis, the 101st Airborne's spokesman. The rest of the soldiers will come from the division's sustainment brigade and the 86th Combat Support Hospital. The remaining 700 or so soldiers, as announced by Kirby, will come from across the Army. "It will be very humanitarian-assistance focused," said DeSantis. Deploying units will include lift aviation, field hospital assets, transportation soldiers and engineers, he said.

While deployed, the soldiers will be responsible for building some Ebola treatment units and providing logistical support to USAID. "We also have the responsibility of setting up the training for  approximately 500 aid workers per week that will go out and actually staff the (Ebola treatment units)," DeSantis said. Another priority is force protection, he said. "We're making sure all the soldiers who deploy, not just from Fort Campbell but across the Army, get all the training required to protect themselves from Ebola," he said. Deploying soldiers should have a "very, very low" risk of contracting Ebola, DeSantis said.

"If anything, there are other health risks we're more concerned about, and we'll mitigate those," he said. One example is malaria, which is more prevalent in Liberia than Iraq or Afghanistan, he said. "Protecting the health of our Soldiers is our number one priority," Volesky said in his statement. "Before our Soldiers deploy they will be trained on how to protect themselves from Ebola and all other potential health risks found in Liberia."

A Department of Defense spokeswoman said last week the department will make "every effort to ensure that U.S. personnel on the ground and all health care workers" are protected. Troops will receive regionally specific training on Ebola prevention, malaria prevention and other medical threats and also are required to have immunizations ranging from chickenpox, influenza and hepatitis to yellow fever and pneumococcal vaccines, according to a DoD official. The department has been involved in research on Ebola treatments and preventives for more than two decades. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said last week the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research received approval to begin safety testing of a potential vaccine. However, health experts, including Monroe and Sophie Delaunay, executive director of Medecins Sans Frontieres, or Doctors Without Borders, have cautioned that an effective vaccine is still months from development. "In the meantime, we need to increase the access to isolation units," Delaunay said during a Web seminar for reporters Tuesday sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation. The soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division will form a headquarters element for the 3,000-troop mission that is estimated to last about six months.  conference call Tuesday that the outbreak is considered nearly contained in Nigeria and Senegal, which saw just 20 and 1 case, respectively. But in the most affected nations, including Liberia, where troops are heading, and Sierra Leone, the number of cases are doubling roughly every three weeks, he added.

Secret Service Director of USA Julia Pierson Resigns

Julia Pierson resigned under pressure as director of the Secret Service on Wednesday after failing to quell a bipartisan political furor over repeated breaches of White House security and losing the confidence of the president her agency is charged with protecting. Ms. Pierson’s support in the West Wing began crumbling late Tuesday, in large part because she did not tell the White House of a security failure in Atlanta last month when an armed man was allowed to ride in an elevator with President Obama at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite meeting with the president last week, Ms. Pierson informed him about the incident only minutes before it was reported in the news media on Tuesday evening, officials said. Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said Ms. Pierson’s delay in telling the president was a crucial part of “recent and accumulating reports about the performance of the agency” that led Mr. Obama to conclude that the Secret Service needed new leadership. After Ms. Pierson appeared at a brutal congressional hearing on Tuesday, when she had to explain to a House panel how an armed intruder jumped the White House fence on Sept. 19 and made it as far into the mansion as the East Room, she woke Wednesday to mounting calls for her resignation and withering criticism, some of it from Democrats.

By noon, Speaker John A. Boehner and Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the House’s top Democrat, had both called for independent inquiries into the security missteps, including the Secret Service’s response to a 2011 incident in which a man shot seven high-powered bullets into the south facade of the White House. But Ms. Pierson was already on her way out. In a meeting Wednesday morning with Jeh C. Johnson, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security — which oversees the Secret Service — she offered her resignation, and he accepted it. In a statement, Mr. Johnson said he had appointed Joseph Clancy, a former Secret Service agent in charge of the Presidential Protective Division, to become acting director. Mr. Johnson also bowed to demands for an outside inquiry and said he would appoint a “distinguished panel of independent experts” to report recommendations by Dec. 15. For Ms. Pierson, the resignation ended a tumultuous two weeks that started when Omar J. Gonzalez, 42, an Iraq war veteran, evaded capture as he jumped the White House fence, ran across the North Lawn, barged through the unlocked door of the North Portico and knocked down an agent as he sprinted through the Entrance Hall to the Cross Hall to the East Room, the site of presidential news conferences and other formal events.

The outrage about the failure to stop Mr. Gonzalez escalated with news reports that law enforcement officers had previously encountered him, armed and with a map of the White House. Anger intensified after The Washington Post reported that the Secret Service had misled the public about how far Mr. Gonzalez got inside the White House. Initial reports by the Secret Service gave the impression that Mr. Gonzalez had been stopped just inside the North Portico.

But the tipping point, according to Mr. Earnest, came Tuesday night, when The Washington Examiner reported the incident in Atlanta. Law enforcement officials later confirmed that Secret Service officials were initially unaware that the private security guard riding in the elevator with Mr. Obama was armed. They discovered his weapon, they said, after he started taking pictures of the president and acting unprofessionally.

Officials said the Secret Service quickly began to investigate the incident. Hours after it occurred, on Sept. 16, senior agents met at the agency’s Atlanta field office to start an “after action review” to determine what had occurred and how it could be prevented in the future. But the agency did not immediately inform anyone at the White House, Mr. Earnest said, and Ms. Pierson did not bring up the incident during an Oval Office meeting with Mr. Obama on Sept. 24, which had been arranged to discuss the fence-jumping case.

“I think if there’s a serious breach of the president’s security, that we would anticipate that, at a minimum, that White House officials would be informed in a timely fashion,” Mr. Earnest said. Ms. Pierson also did not bring up the incident during several hours of testimony before the House panel on Tuesday. In an exchange with Representative Jason Chaffetz, Republican of Utah, Ms. Pierson said that she had briefed Mr. Obama about only one incident involving his safety in 2014 — the case involving Mr. Gonzalez. “So the only time you’ve briefed the president on perimeter security, the president’s personal security, the first family’s security, has been one time in 2014,” Mr. Chaffetz said.

“That’s correct,” she replied, just hours before news reports broke about the Atlanta incident. Ms. Pierson had not been Mr. Obama’s first choice to lead the Secret Service when he appointed her 18 months ago, according to several law enforcement officials. As the White House searched in 2013 for a new director to replace Mark Sullivan, who was retiring, White House officials first offered the job to David O’Connor, a longtime agency official who had recently taken a job as the head of global security for Bain Capital. But despite making the offer to Mr. O’Connor, who was known as “the dean of discipline” during his time at the Secret Service, the White House continued to examine his background. Officials uncovered an incident in the mid-1990s in which he had been accused — and ultimately cleared by the Secret Service — of using a racial slur. Mr. O’Connor, who decided against taking the job, declined to comment. Julia Pierson became the first female director of the U.S. Secret Service in March 2013, tapped to change the culture of an agency that was then marred by a Colombian prostitution scandal.

On Wednesday, the intruder who jumped the White House fence, Mr. Gonzalez, pleaded not guilty to charges of unlawfully entering a restricted government building while carrying a weapon, carrying a dangerous weapon in public and unlawfully possessing ammunition. The judge ruled that Mr. Gonzalez would remain in detention until another hearing on Oct. 21. Representative Elijah E. Cummings, Democrat of Maryland, commended Ms. Pierson on Wednesday for stepping down, saying the move was in the best interest of the Secret Service and the president. But he said more change was necessary, including, possibly, more resignations. “I don’t want us, after she’s left, to say to ourselves that everything is resolved,” Mr. Cummings said. “Clearly there was a culture there that was not healthy.” In a brief interview with Del Quentin Wilber, a reporter for Bloomberg News, Ms. Pierson said that she had resigned because “Congress has lost confidence in my ability to run the agency,” according to a Twitter message from Mr. Wilber shortly after the resignation was announced. Mr. Wilber also wrote that Ms. Pierson said: “I can be pretty stoic about all this, but not really. It’s painful to leave.”