Time on your hands: Good or bad?

ScienceDaily (Oct. 19, 2011) ? What is more desirable: too little or too much spare time on your hands? To be happy, somewhere in the middle, according to Chris Manolis and James Roberts from Xavier University in Cincinnati and Baylor University in Waco, TX. Their work shows that materialistic young people with compulsive buying issues need just the right amount of spare time to feel happier.

The study is published online in Springer's journal Applied Research in Quality of Life.

We now live in a society where time is of the essence. The perception of a shortage of time, or time pressure, is linked to lower levels of happiness. At the same time, our consumer culture, characterized by materialism and compulsive buying, also has an effect on people's happiness: the desire for materialistic possessions leads to lower life satisfaction.

Given the importance of time in contemporary life, Manolis and Roberts investigate, for the first time, the effect of perceived time affluence (the amount of spare time one perceives he or she has) on the consequences of materialistic values and compulsive buying for adolescent well-being.

A total of 1,329 adolescents from a public high school in a large metropolitan area of the Midwestern United States took part in the study. The researchers measured how much spare time the young people thought they had; the extent to which they held materialistic values and had compulsive buying tendencies; and their subjective well-being, or self-rated happiness.

Manolis and Roberts' findings confirm that both materialism and compulsive buying have a negative impact on teenagers' happiness. The more materialistic they are and the more they engage in compulsive buying, the lower their happiness levels.

In addition, time affluence moderates the negative consequences of both materialism and compulsive buying in this group. Specifically, moderate time affluence i.e. being neither too busy, nor having too much spare time, is linked to higher levels of happiness in materialistic teenagers and those who are compulsive buyers.

Those who suffer from time pressures and think materialistically and/or purchase compulsively feel less happy compared with their adolescent counterparts. Equally, having too much free time on their hands exacerbates the negative effects of material values and compulsive buying on adolescent happiness.

The authors conclude: "Living with a sensible, balanced amount of free time promotes well-being not only directly, but also by helping to alleviate some of the negative side effects associated with living in our consumer-orientated society."

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Journal Reference:

1. Chris Manolis, James A. Roberts. Subjective Well-Being among Adolescent Consumers: The Effects of Materialism, Compulsive Buying, and Time Affluence. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 2011; DOI: 10.1007/s11482-011-9155-5

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019105514.htm

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Sony LA-EA1 Alpha NEX Camera Mount Adapter

Even though it uses the same size sensor as Sony's mainstream D-SLR camera line, the mirrorless NEX system uses a different lens mount. The LA-EA1 ($199.99 direct) makes it possible to use Sony and Minolta Alpha mount lenses with a NEX camera. All functions are supported, including aperture adjustment, exposure metering, and autofocus. A detachable tripod collar is included, which is necessary to properly balance heavier lenses with the small and light NEX camera bodies.

Autofocus is limited to contrast detection, and if you have a first-generation NEX camera you may need to upgrade its firmware for this to function. This method of autofocus is noticeably slow, sometimes taking a few seconds to lock on to a subject. Sony also markets an LA-EA2 adapter (399.99 direct), which adds a dedicated phase detection autofocus system for faster focus.

The LA-EA1 is 2.6 inches in diameter and is 1.1 inches deep. It adds 3.9 ounces of weight to your camera and includes front and rear caps for safe storage. If you've got a stash of Alpha mount glass and would like to use it on a NEX camera, but don't mind the focus being a little slow, the LA-EA1 is a good accessory. It is compatible with all NEX cameras, including our Editors' Choice NEX-C3 ($649.99, 4.5 stars).

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/Mq1gjoxixG0/0,2817,2394994,00.asp

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Oil falls below $86 amid weak US economy signs (AP)

SINGAPORE ? Oil fell below $86 a barrel Thursday in Asia as further evidence of weak U.S. economic growth undermined the 19 percent gain in crude prices over the past two weeks.

Benchmark crude for November delivery was down 60 cents at $85.51 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract, which expires later Thursday, fell $2.23 to settle at $86.11 in New York on Wednesday.

Brent crude for December delivery was down 39 cents at $108.00 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange in London.

Crude rose above $89 early in U.S. trading Wednesday, but reversed sharply amid concern the U.S. economy remains wobbly. The Federal Reserve's "Beige Book" showed only a slight increase in consumer spending last month while the economy expanded modestly in the Fed's 12 bank regions.

Traders are anxious ahead of this weekend's meeting of European leaders. Global stock markets have rallied this month on expectations the meeting will produce a plan to contain the region's debt crisis, and failure to do so could send equities and commodities tumbling next week.

"This market continues to gyrate daily in response to shifts in risk sentiment," energy consultant Ritterbusch and Associates said.

Stock, currency and commodity markets will continue to "respond feverishly" to almost anything said by European officials about the prospects for the E.U. summit this weekend, Ritterbusch said.

In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell 0.3 cent to $2.98 per gallon and gasoline futures dropped 1.3 cents to $2.63 per gallon. Natural gas slid 0.2 cent to $3.58 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111020/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices

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China police shoot Tibetans, nun burns to death: group (Reuters)

BEIJING (Reuters) ? Chinese police shot and wounded two Tibetan protesters in China last Sunday, and a Tibetan nun burned herself to death the following day, a group advocating self-determination for Tibet said, the latest incidents in months of protests.

The self-immolation and the protests would appear to signal that anger is growing in Aba prefecture, a mainly ethnic Tibetan part of the southwestern province of Sichuan that has been the center of defiance of Chinese control.

Rights groups say the unrest could lead to a crackdown in Aba, which erupted in violence in March 2008 when Buddhist monks and other Tibetans loyal to the exiled Dalai Lama, their traditional religious leader, confronted police and troops.

The condition and whereabouts of the two protesters who were shot and wounded, Dawa and Druklo, were not known, the London-based Free Tibet group said.

On Monday, a 20-year-old nun, Tenzin Wangmo, set fire to herself outside a nunnery in the same region, the ninth self-immolation this year in Tibetan parts of China, Free Tibet said.

The nun had called for religious freedom in Tibet and for the return of the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, as she set herself alight, the Free Tibet group said.

Her death comes seven months after a Tibetan Buddhist monk, Phuntsog, 21, from the restive Kirti monastery, burned himself to death. As a result, security forces detained about 300 monks for a month.

A Sichuan government propaganda official told Reuters she knew nothing about the latest two cases.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin also said he had no information about the latest self-immolation.

"We believe that promoting and encouraging harm to life is immoral," Liu said at a regular news briefing.

Liu did not elaborate but last week he criticised the Dalai Lama for not only failing to denounce the self-immolations but for playing them up and even asking people to "follow the example.

The self-immolation attempts "showed signs of having been instigated by a clique jockeying for power in the overseas Tibetan community under the Dalai Lama," state news agency Xinhua said, citing officials from Aba's religious affairs bureau.

The Xinhua report quoted bureau head Song Tendargye as saying that the Tibetan community in Aba was "disgusted" that the former "living Buddha" of the Kirti monastery in Aba had led prayer services for those who had attempted self-immolation.

Nine ethnic Tibetans, eight of them from Aba prefecture, have burned themselves since March to protest against religious controls by the Chinese government, which labels the Dalai Lama a violent separatist. The Dalai Lama denies the charges.

Free Tibet Director Stephanie Brigden said in a statement late on Monday her group had "grave concerns that greater force may be deployed if protests spread."

China has ruled Tibet with an iron fist since Communist troops marched in 1950.

But it rejects the criticism of rights groups and exiled Tibetans, saying its rule has bought much needed development to a poor and backward region.

(Reporting by Sui-Lee Wee, Additional reporting by Huang Yan and Chris Buckley, Editing by Robert Birsel and Paul Tait)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/china/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111018/wl_nm/us_china_tibetans_protest

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IR's Compact, Reliable, Automotive-qualified AUIRS2332J 600 V ...

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.?(BUSINESS WIRE)?International Rectifier, IR^? (NYSE: IRF), a world leader in
power management technology, today introduced the AUIRS2332J 600 V
three-phase gate driver IC for automotive high-voltage motor drives for
electric (EV) and hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) applications.

?With its high level of integration and comprehensive set of protection
features, the AUIRS2332J simplifies and shrinks design while providing
the reliability and ruggedness required for EV and HEV motor drive or
inverter applications?

The AUIRS2332J, high-voltage, high speed power MOSFET and IGBT driver
features three independent high- and low-side referenced output
channels. Proprietary HVIC technology enables ruggedized monolithic
construction with logic inputs compatible with CMOS or LSTTL outputs,
down to 3.3V logic. The new device also offers an integrated
ground-referenced operational amplifier to provide analog feedback of
the bridge current via an external current sense resistor, current trip
function, and open drain FAULT signal to indicate over-current or
under-voltage shutdown. The IC is housed in a PLCC44 package, providing
higher creepage distances between high voltage pins, simplifying PCB
layout.

?With its high level of integration and comprehensive set of protection
features, the AUIRS2332J simplifies and shrinks design while providing
the reliability and ruggedness required for EV and HEV motor drive or
inverter applications,? said Davide Giacomini, Product Marketing
Director, IR?s Automotive Products Business Unit.

The AUIRS2332J is fully characterized for negative transients on the
switching node that may occur during normal operation and protection
mode for increased system robustness. The device?s output drivers
feature a high pulse current buffer stage designed for minimum driver
cross-conduction. Propagation delays are matched to simplify use at high
frequencies. The floating channel can be used to drive N-channel power
MOSFET or IGBT in the high-side configuration.

IR?s automotive grade IC products are subject to dynamic and static part
average testing combined with 100 percent automated wafer level visual
inspection as part of IR?s automotive quality initiative targeting zero
defects. The devices are qualified according to AEC-Q100 standards,
feature an environmentally friendly, lead-free and RoHS compliant bill
of materials.

More information is available on the International Rectifier website at http://www.irf.com/whats-new/nr111018.html

Availability and Pricing

Pricing for AUIRS2332J begins at US $3.34 each in quantities of
10,000-units. Production quantities are available immediately. The
devices are lead free and RoHS compliant. Prices are subject to change.

About International Rectifier

International Rectifier (NYSE:IRF) is a world leader in power management
technology. IR?s analog and mixed signal ICs, advanced circuit devices,
integrated power systems and components enable high performance
computing and reduce energy waste from motors, the world?s single
largest consumer of electricity. Leading manufacturers of computers,
energy efficient appliances, lighting, automobiles, satellites, aircraft
and defense systems rely on IR?s power management benchmarks to power
their next generation products. For more information, go to www.irf.com.

Patent and Trademark Notice

IR^? is a registered trademark of International Rectifier
Corporation. All other product names noted herein may be trademarks of
their respective holders.

Source: http://www.clearingandsettlement.com/2011/10/ir%E2%80%99s-compact-reliable-automotive-qualified-auirs2332j-600-v-gate-drive-ic-simplifies-and-shrinks-design/

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HBT: Expect Rangers to win close Series

Boston beats Philly in six games. Mark it down.

Oh, wait. ?The accepted narrative was upset weeks ago. None of the 45 ESPN experts ? and to be honest, none of us here ? picked the Rangers to face the Cardinals back in the spring. It made some amount of sense to pick against the Cards given Adam Wainwright?s injury. ?We probably all need to think hard about why we picked against the defending AL Champions. I suppose it was because we all thought Cliff Lee was God and that without him Texas was toast. Or maybe we should just fall back on the old ?you can?t predict baseball? thing and call it a day, hmmm?

But even if we can?t predict baseball, we?can at least lay out the parameters. So let?s take a look at what the Rangers and the Cardinals have in store for us during the World Series.

The Teams

Texas Rangers vs. St. Louis Cardinals

The Matchups

Game 1?Wednesday in St. Louis: C.J. Wilson vs. Chris Carpenter
Game 2?Thursday in St. Louis: Colby Lewis vs. Jaime Garcia
Game 3?Saturday in Texas: Edwin Jackson vs. Derek Holland
Game 4?Sunday in Texas: Kyle Lohse vs. Matt Harrison
Game 5?(if necessary) Monday in Texas: TBA vs. TBA
Game 6 (if necessary)?next Wednesday in St. Louis: TBA vs. TBA
Game 7 (if necessary)?next Thursday in St. Louis: TBA vs. TBA

That?s all sort of up in the air, of course. At least beyond Game 1. ?And if we?ve learned anything in the playoffs so far it?s that the starting pitching with these guys is anyone?s guess, both in terms of who will be doing it what we can expect from them. Both the Rangers (6.59 ERA) ?and Cardinals (7.03 ERA) starters were awful, and both managers had quick hooks and relied more heavily on their bullpens than any successful playoff teams I can recall.?So it would seem that if someone ? anyone ? can actually come through and pitch a solid seven inning game for once, their team would have a distinct advantage.

Another thing we know: the Rangers are lefty-heavy and the Cardinals hit pretty well against lefties. That could be the difference maker. ?Or we could simply have six or seven games in which the pens pitch 80% of the innings. Which would be all kinds of ugly fun.

The Lineups

We?ll get new ones every day, of course, but you know all the players by now: Nelson Cruz, Mike Napoli, Adrian Beltre, Josh Hamilton and their friends lead the Rangers attack. The Cardinals are led by Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, Lance Berkman David Freese, Jon Jay and Rafael Furcal. Each team is capable of knocking the cover clean off the ball. Each team has a guy who, when he?s on, makes opposing pitchers reach for a clean pair of BVDs. ?There aren?t a ton of holes in either lineup, and even the Nick Puntos of the world are capable of an annoying hit in a key situation, it seems. ?The upshot: it doesn?t look like either team is capable of simply going to sleep on offense en masse, because there are just too many good hitters here.

The Bullpens

This is where the magic happens. Both Tony La Russa and Ron Washington has gotten outstanding bullpen work this postseason. I mean, neither manager got a single quality start out of their rotation, and that?s just nutso. But while each has been fantastic, if I had to bet on one of these pens continuing to be fantastic going forward, it?s the Rangers? pen.

La Russa has been a wizard, mixing and matching guys, gambling and winning with almost every call to the pen. ?But Washington ? while also being quite savvy with his bullpen use ? simply has more horses he can call on. ?In the middle of a game in which a starter creates a hot mess, La Russa can go to Marc Rzepczynski?for a situational matchup or?Octavio Dotel, which is great as long as they keep forgetting that they?re Marc Rzepczynski?and??Octavio Dotel and shouldn?t be as effective as they?ve been. Washington, in contrast, has Alexi Ogando for those middle innings. The same Alexi Ogando who was a starter on the All-Star team this year and deserved it.?At the back end it?s the same story. Jason Motte has been fantastic, but if you had to bet your life on someone saving the next 100 games, would you bet on Motte or Neftali Feliz?

The Cards? bullpen has been great and anything can happen in a short series. There is nothing at all which demands that the Cards? pen turn into pumpkins or that the Rangers pen play up to its superior potential over the course of the next week. ?But if you have to grab onto something, don?t you grab on to the superior talents? ?If so, I think you have to go with Texas.

Miscellaneous

• The TV narrative is probably going to be all about Tony La Russa. Which I understand. But let?s not fall into the ?La Russa is a genius and Ron Washington is overmatched? pattern here. La Russa has been on a good run lately, but as everyone knows, sometimes he?s too smart by half and things backfire. It?s high-risk, high-reward stuff that usually breaks his way, but not always. Meanwhile Washington ? who has always been a great clubhouse guy who gets the best out of his players ? has improved a good deal in the tactical department compared to where he was last postseason. Barring some absolutely historic brain lock, it seems silly to say that a series with two teams as talented as these two will be decided by some wily bit of managerial brilliance.
• Someone ? probably several someones ? will write the ?no one cares about this World Series matchup? column in the next 48 hours. Please feel free to ignore them. In any other sport the unexpected championship matchup would be heralded as awesome. In baseball for some reason everyone without a stake yawns when the Big Boys of the East Coast are out of it. ?And of course if they were in it everyone would complain about baseball not being fair to the have-nots. ?And all of that is before you realize that neither the Cards nor the Rangers can be described as ?have-nots.? ?Each team has a healthy payroll, great attendance, good marketing and local television deals and, in the Cardinals case, a nearly?unparalleled historic tradition.
• If the pattern of poor starting pitching and heavy bullpen use holds, these are gonna be loooong games.
• We rarely talk about defense with these two teams, what with all of the bashing they?ve been doing. ?Each team has several good defensive players but the Rangers are the overall better defensive team in my view and in the view of some advanced defensive metrics I don?t really understand too well. ?Upshot: unlike the case with the Brewers or the Tigers, it?s not a great bet that a game will really turn on a defensive blunder. ?Unless, of course, it does. (see above verbiage about being unable to predict baseball).

Prediction

This is a great matchup, and let no one tell you differently. Similar strengths, similar weaknesses. All kinds of moving parts due to some players who can play multiple positions, the DH and the likelihood that the bullpens are going to play a major role. Anyone who says that there is some obvious favorite here is smokin? banana peels. ?That said, in a close matchup, I think the Rangers have slight advantages in terms of bullpen talent and depth and offensive firepower.

RANGERS WIN THE SERIES 4-3

Source: http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/10/18/your-official-hardballtalk-world-series-preview/related

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Cincinnati financier Carl Lindner Jr. dies

Carl Lindner Jr., chairman of American Financial Group Inc., shown acknowledging the crowd at the Western & Southern Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011 in Mason, Ohio. Lindner has died at the age of 92. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

Carl Lindner Jr., chairman of American Financial Group Inc., shown acknowledging the crowd at the Western & Southern Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Aug. 20, 2011 in Mason, Ohio. Lindner has died at the age of 92. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

Cincinnati financier Carl Lindner Jr., who used his experience running the family dairy store to build a business empire whose reach included baseball, banks and bananas, has died. He was 92.

He died Monday night after being taken gravely ill to a hospital that morning, said a person close to the family who was not authorized to speak until a statement had been issued.

Lindner became controlling partner and chief executive officer of the Cincinnati Reds in a 1999 deal that ended Marge Schott's rocky 15-year reign as owner. In contrast to her grandstanding, Lindner stayed mostly in the background ? save for a lasting memory in 2000 when he picked up Ken Griffey Jr. at the airport in his Rolls-Royce following the blockbuster trade.

Lindner was chairman of Cincinnati-based American Financial Group, a publicly traded financial holding company that had more than $17 billion in assets. In 2009, Forbes magazine estimated Lindner's personal wealth at $1.75 billion, placing him among the 400 richest Americans.

Lindner ruled over a complex maze of corporations with nearly 70,000 employees worldwide.

American Financial Group owned, or held substantial investments in, Charter Co., marketer of fuel to electric utilities; Chiquita Brands International Inc., one of the world's largest food producers, and Great American Insurance Co.

His financial support for the University of Cincinnati, which named its business administration building after him, and various charities earned him a reputation as a philanthropist.

Tributes from current and former business school students poured onto Twitter early Tuesday. They thanked Lindner for championing the city and the university and sharing his wealth with them.

"He's got to be one of the most generous guys in Cincinnati," friend Richard Farmer, chairman of Cincinnati uniform maker Cintas Corp., said in 1993. "I don't know of any positive thing that's happened in Cincinnati that Carl has not been a part of."

In the business world, some critics considered him a ruthless takeover artist. He made millions in the 1970s and 1980s by investing, then retreating, from companies.

An alleged attempt by Lindner to take over Gannett Co. prompted former chairman Al Neuharth to call him a "shark in sheep's clothing."

Lindner made a name for himself by becoming one of Michael Milken's earliest and most prominent junk-bond players. But he also showed his investment smarts by predicting a decline in the junk-bond market in the late 1980s.

"Of course, Carl was always a couple years ahead of the pack," said James Dahl, a former bond seller for Milken.

Lindner had a reputation for working long hours in pursuit of the next great deal.

"I'm working over 80 hours a week and have to keep on track," he once told a reporter in explaining why he usually refused interview requests. Even in his later years, he showed no signs of slowing down.

He was publicity-shy, yet he held a fundraiser for presidential candidate George H.W. Bush at his home in 1988. He also played host to Bush and Francois Mitterrand, at the time the president of France, at his vacation home in Ocean Reef, Fla., later that month.

Lindner paid his staff handsomely and threw lavish annual parties for them. At his 70th birthday party, Frank Sinatra entertained.

Lindner's fortunes began to slide in the late 1980s with the acquisition of Taft Broadcasting, a Cincinnati television and radio company.

The $1.5 billion takeover in 1987 left the new company, Great American Communications, mired in debt. The company was forced to sell several key assets in a short time, including cartoon creator Hanna-Barbera Productions.

In 1992, Lindner suffered losses of $560 million at Great American Communications and $284 million at Chiquita, leading to a $77 million loss at American Financial. In 1993, Lindner filed for "prepackaged" bankruptcy to restructure debts of Great American Communications.

Carl Henry Lindner Jr. was born in Dayton in 1919 but spent much of his youth in Norwood, a blue-collar suburb of Cincinnati. As he made his wealth, he moved to Indian Hill, where most of Cincinnati's rich and famous live.

Lindner, along with brothers Robert and Richard and sister Dorothy, helped his parents in a succession of dairy businesses, first in Dayton, and then in Cincinnati. He never finished high school because he was so busy.

In 1940, Lindner's father opened one of the nation's first cash-and-carry milk and dairy stores, in Norwood. That launched what became the United Dairy Farmers convenience store chain.

During World War II, with his father's health failing and his brothers being called into military service, Lindner began to direct UDF. By the mid-1960s, when Lindner left UDF to Robert's direction, the chain had more than 100 stores. That number has since more than doubled.

Lindner founded the cornerstone of his financial empire, American Financial Corp. (later American Financial Group), in 1959. From 1961 until the company went private in 1980, American Financial's portfolio made more than 60 times its original investment as Lindner diversified into banks, insurance and assorted industries.

Lindner had three sons with his second wife, Edyth Bailey: Carl H. Lindner III, 58, president of Great American Insurance Co.; S. Craig Lindner, 56, president of American Annuity Group and senior executive vice president of American Money Management; and Keith Lindner, 52, a former official at Chiquita.

___

McMillan reported from Philadelphia. Associated Press writer Dan Sewell in Cincinnati contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2011-10-18-Obit-Lindner/id-f7ce1686581d45dfb301b7014f5007e6

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