5 signs he's ready for a relationship | eHarmony Relationship Advice

Are you dating someone but finding it difficult to establish whether he is really ready for a relationship? Without asking directly it can be hard to know so here are some signs you could look out for.

As with every forum where men meet women there may be some men on eHarmony who ?aren?t really ready for a relationship. It can be difficult to tell a charmer from someone who is genuinely sincere about wanting to find a connection and develop a serious relationship so here are some signs to look out for which can help you know whether the man you are dating is actually ready for that commitment.

1.????? He has time for you

The first and most concrete sign that a guy is interested in developing a relationship with you is that he will make time for you even if his life is really busy. He will respond quickly to emails, calls and texts (within 24 hours) and will initiate conversations and dates to meet up.

A man is ready for a relationship when the time he invests in pursuing it is consistent and doesn?t change after the relationship has reached the bedroom. Often men are very attentive when they first meet a woman they are attracted to but their interest begins to wane once they have the prize and they start to look for the next pretty face.

If he won?t give you his time, don?t waste any more of yours on him.

2.????? He opens up to you

Notoriously men are a lot less open with their emotions than women are and are generally more reserved when talking about their feelings, past relationships and struggles they have in their life. A man is ready for a relationship when he has reached a level of emotional maturity where he understands the importance of developing intimacy through communication ? he wants to invite you into his inner world and isn?t afraid that you will judge him as weak if he lets you know that sometimes he hurts. One of the most intimate times for a man is after sex ? if he wants to cuddle up and talk then he is really into you rather than just casually dating you.

Another important aspect of this is when a man wants to draw you into his life ? showing you where he lives and introducing you to his family and friends ? all of this indicates that he is interested in developing a deepening relationship and making a commitment rather than keeping it casual.

3.????? He is affectionate as well as sexual

For men, wanting to have sex with a woman is not a sure sign of wanting to have a relationship with her. Women often mistake physical passion as a sign of deepening emotional intimacy ? it isn?t. Even if your sex life is off the scale, if only one part of a man?s anatomy is interested there is no guarantee the rest will follow. Showing affection outside of the bedroom, in ways that don?t always lead to sex ? hugging, holding hands, kissing etc ? gives a much stronger indication that he is ready for a relationship.

4.????? His friends are primarily people who are in relationships

Men will usually engage with people whose values they share so if their closest friends are people who are in steady, committed relationships it is a good indication that he is ready for that too. If however he is still hanging out with his mates, acting irresponsibly, playing the field and living an active bachelor lifestyle he may not be ready to give it up yet. Most men will have a combination of the two but over time you will see where his strongest attachments are and whose values he shares. Avoid getting deeply involved with someone who you think has the ?potential? to calm down and engage in a committed relationship ? you need to accept someone as they are now rather than what you think they could be if you push them in the right direction.

5.????? He is over past relationships

This is the biggest indication that a man is ready for a new relationship ? he is not bitter or cynical about women, commitment or relationships. He can look look at what happened realistically and see where he made mistakes rather than placing the blame for the failure of past relationships solely at the door of his exes ? his mother ? or women in general. He will give you his attention and get to know you as an individual and explore the relationship between you without prejudice.

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Source: http://www.eharmony.co.uk/relationship-advice/relationships/2012/12/5-signs-hes-ready-for-a-relationship

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NHL cancels all games through Jan. 14

In this photo taken Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012, championship banners and retired numbers of the Detroit Red Wings hockey team hang from the rafters above the ice at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. The NHL lockout that's already wiped out the first three months of the season is taking its toll on small businesses in many of the NHL's markets. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

In this photo taken Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012, championship banners and retired numbers of the Detroit Red Wings hockey team hang from the rafters above the ice at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. The NHL lockout that's already wiped out the first three months of the season is taking its toll on small businesses in many of the NHL's markets. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

FILE - Donald Fehr, executive director of the NHL Players Association, speaks to reporters about on going labor talks with the league outside the NHL headquarters in New York, in this July 31, 2012 file photo. Donald Fehr and the players' association are ready to get back to the bargaining table at any moment. They are now just waiting for the NHL to feel the same way. "(We aren't talking) because the owners have not indicated a desire to resume," the NHLPA's executive director said Wednesday night Dec. 19, 2012 before a charity hockey game. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

In this photo taken Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012, a hockey goal sits on the ice at Joe Louis Arena home of the Detroit Red Wings hockey club in Detroit. The NHL lockout that's already wiped out the first three months of the season is taking its toll on small businesses in many of the NHL's markets. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

(AP) ? The NHL could be one step away from canceling another hockey season because of a labor fight with the players.

In the latest round of cancellations, the NHL on Thursday wiped out all games through Jan. 14. More than 50 percent of the schedule has been lost, and the rest is now in great danger, too.

"I don't want to characterize what today's cancellations mean or don't mean," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told The Associated Press in an email. "I will stand on the announcement that was made."

So far, 625 regular-season games have been called off, including nearly 100 in the announcement made Thursday ? the 96th day of the NHL's lockout. The New Year's Day Winter Classic and the All-Star game also have been lost.

The NHL had previously canceled games through Dec. 30.

Daly said in a radio interview Wednesday that mid-January is likely the latest the sides could go to make a deal to save the season. When pressed, however, he said he expects the season will be played.

No drop-dead date has been announced by the NHL, which is the only North American professional sports league to cancel a season because of to a labor dispute. The 2004-05 season was lost to a lockout.

Daly said the sides hadn't been in contact with each other Thursday, and no new talks are planned.

The groups have remained apart since two days of meetings with a federal mediator last week produced no progress. There haven't been negotiations since Dec. 6 in New York, when talks broke down after a few days of bargaining.

Since the sides split last week, there has been limited contact ? phone calls and a brief email exchange.

The NHL believes negotiations should resume only when there is something new to say.

"I don't think either party is refusing a meeting," Daly said Wednesday. "But unless there is an indication one side or the other is prepared to move or has a new idea to move the process forward ? and so far neither side has indicated ? I am not sure what we would do at the meeting.

"What is the agenda? Who is directing the conversation? We don't have anything new to say right now."

Union executive director Donald Fehr said Wednesday he was glad to hear Daly's belief that there would be a season, and added he hopes Daly is right.

"Hopefully, we'll get back together and negotiate out the remaining issues as soon as possible," Fehr said. "(We aren't talking) because the owners have not indicated a desire to resume.

"We've indicated any number of times that we're willing to resume when they are (and) we're willing to resume without preconditions. So we're waiting to hear back from them."

Last week, the NHL announced it filed a class action suit in the U.S. District Court in New York, seeking to establish that its lockout is legal. In a filing posted Thursday, the court said the union had three weeks after receiving the suit to file an answer.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-12-20-NHL%20Labor/id-58b1767bc233412cadf55bf2c462d68c

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Business Is About Making Life Better ? Empowering Your Mind

Business isn?t just about the bottom line and making money. It?s about making life better, for everyone: owners, investors, employees, customers and society at large. Business is about people, not inanimate objects. Unfortunately, the prevailing attitude is that everyone is there to serve the business instead of the way it should be, the business serving society.

The business community?s philosophy of considering everyone just a cog on a wheel, whose purpose is to provide them with more money, has cost them. In Northern Arizona, most service and retail businesses refuse to allow their employees federally required lunches or breaks. Because of that, and their cavalier treatment of employees, their staff has no loyalty to them. When a business isn?t loyal to its employees, the employees return the same level of loyalty.

Many businesses drive away their best employees, and don?t invest in them or support them which would let them serve better. The mindset of ?bottom lining? is a short sighted idea. It means that business puts on blinders that keep them from seeing other opportunities.

A local restaurant that had good food was sold. The new owners bought cheaper ingredients and the quality and taste of the food suffered. As a result, sales declined and the restaurant closed its doors. When business focuses only on today, and doesn?t take a long view of their future, it constricts the ability of the business to grow.

Finally, businesses are beginning to recognize that the lack of value they provide affects their bottom line. In the article ?We Need To Stop Maximizing Profit and Start Maximizing Value? at businessinsider.com, the author addresses this issue.

Since the 1970?s, businesses have been focused on the bottom line. This has increased profits, but the quality of products and services and workers incomes have decreased. That means fewer consumer dollars are spent to grow business. It also means that the business isn?t investing in its own company.

?Maximizing profits? will eventually cause the house of cards to fall. More money is spent to train a revolving door of workers because there?s no reason for them to stick around.

Business needs to create more value for the community, and value its workers, for it to thrive. It?s in a business? own interest to realize that business is not about products or making money. It?s about people and making life better.

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Source: http://self-improvementtools.com/2012/12/19/business-is-about-making-life-better/

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What NFL history says about (un)importance of Nos. 3 and 4 playoff seeds

Perhaps the Patriots will want to take a page from Doug Flutie and the 2005 team and dropkick their way to the No. 4 AFC seed again. (AP)

Perhaps the Patriots will want to take a page from Doug Flutie and the 2005 team and dropkick their way to the No. 4 AFC seed again. (AP)

With their loss to the 49ers on Sunday night, the Patriots slipped from the No. 2 to No. 3 seed in the AFC, a setback with obviously considerable implications. New England would have to win an additional playoff game to reach the Super Bowl, and the team would then have to win a road game in the divisional round in order to advance to the AFC championship game with a Super Bowl berth on the line.

WEEI.com?s Christopher Price argues that, given the likelihood that the Pats can?t overtake the Broncos (who play a couple of easy marks in the last two weeks of the season), New England would be well served to lose its way down to the No. 4 seed in the playoffs.

But what does history say? Have teams with the No. 3 seed done any better than those with the No. 4 seed? For that matter, how big is the difference in the second and third seeds in terms of the likelihood of emerging from a conference and reaching the Super Bowl?

Here?s a look at the seeds of the 44 teams to reach the Super Bowl since 1990, when the NFL went to a 12-team playoff format:

No. 1 seeds ? 21 reached Super Bowl, 9 won

No. 2 seeds ? 12 reached Super Bowl, 6 won

No. 3 seeds ? 2 reached Super Bowl, 1 won

No. 4 seeds ? 6 reached Super Bowl, 3 won

No. 5 seeds ? 1 reached Super Bowl, 1 won

No. 6 seeds ? 2 reached Super Bowl, 2 won

As one might expect, the No. 1 seeds have been the most frequent conference representatives in the Super Bowl, emerging almost one out of every two times (47.7 percent). And, as might also be expected, the No. 2 seed is the second most frequently represented, an unsurprising development given the opportunity to host a divisional playoff game and, in years where the No. 1 seed gets upset, the AFC championship game as well.

But beyond the top two seeds, the No. 4 seed has advanced to the Super Bowl with far greater frequency than the No. 3 seed. That doesn?t mean that there?s particular benefit to being the No. 4 seed as compared to the No. 3 seed, per se ? but, at the least, it?s hard to make the case for the intrinsic value of being the No. 3 or No. 4 seed.

Teams that win their divisions get to host home playoff games in the wild card round. After that, it?s a crapshoot. In other words, if the Patriots don?t think that they have a realistic chance of catching the Broncos or Texans in the remaining two weeks of the season, then they have little incentive to play to win ? particularly if they believe, as in 2005, that they could have a more favorable series of matchups if they lose one or both of their remaining games.

Source: http://itiswhatitis.weei.com/sports/newengland/football/patriots/2012/12/18/what-nfl-history-says-about-unimportance-of-nos-3-and-4-playoff-seeds/

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IRS: 100M taxpayers face delays without AMT fix

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Up to 100 million taxpayers ? about two-thirds of all filers ? won't be able to file their 2012 tax returns until late March if Congress doesn't adjust the alternative minimum tax by the end of the year, the Internal Revenue Service said Wednesday.

Congress routinely adjusts the AMT to spare millions of middle-income taxpayers from steep tax increases. But the fix for 2012 is caught up in negotiations over the year-end "fiscal cliff" of automatic tax increases and spending cuts.

If Congress doesn't fix the AMT retroactively to the beginning of 2012, the tax would hit an additional 28 million filers, increasing their taxes by an average of $3,700. Millions of others would face filing delays because the annual fix affects their tax credits.

The last adjustment expired at the end of 2011, and the IRS assumed Congress would adjust the tax again when it set up its computer systems for the upcoming filing season, acting IRS Commissioner Steven T. Miller said in a letter to Congress. It would take until late March at the earliest for the agency to re-work its computers, he said.

This scenario would leave taxpayers a small window to meet the April 15 filing deadline. The IRS, however, would not comment on any proposal to extend the filing deadline, agency spokesman Terry Lemons said.

The AMT was first enacted in 1969 to ensure that wealthy people can't use tax breaks to avoid paying any federal taxes. The tax, however, was never adjusted for inflation, so Congress routinely patches it to keep it from hitting middle-income families.

In a November letter to lawmakers, Miller said 60 million filers could face filing delays, if the AMT is not addressed. On Wednesday, he said 80 million to 100 million filers could face delays. The number grew because of millions of taxpayers ultimately may not pay the AMT but will have to do calculations to make sure.

"That up to 100 million American households could be impacted according to the IRS demonstrates the urgency in which Congress and the White House must reach a reasonable, balanced solution to stopping the fiscal cliff," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee. "The alternative minimum tax simply has to be permanently fixed."

Hatch and other Republicans said the AMT issue provides a good reason to vote for House Speaker John Boehner's plan to extend expiring tax cuts for everyone who makes less than $1 million. Boehner said his proposal is a backup plan in case stalled talks with President Barack Obama fail. The bill, which is scheduled for a vote in the House on Thursday, would permanently patch the AMT.

"It gives us 100 million more reasons to pass the Republican plan now," said Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee.

Obama said Boehner's bill is a poor alternative to serious discussions about a comprehensive deficit-reduction package. Lawmakers from both political parties expect the AMT to be adjusted in any comprehensive deal, if one can be reached.

___

Follow Stephen Ohlemacher on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stephenatap

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/irs-100m-taxpayers-face-delays-225506904.html

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DNA Dieting: Will DNA Testing Identify the Best Diet for You - Shape ...

Q: Is DNA testing to find the ?perfect? diet for me worth the money?

A: Not at this time. DNA testing is fascinating, but we are really not to the point where you will get enough information to create the ?perfect? diet for you based off your genes.

Currently one of the more popular and affordable genetic testing services is 23andMe. All you need to do is spit in a tube, pop it in the mail in the provided prepaid box, and log onto their site a few weeks later to see your genetic profile.

The 23andMe report gives you information about your DNA, carrier status, and risk for 245 different disease and conditions. At best, the information you will be able to get from test reports from companies like 23andMe will let you know if you are at increased risk for diseases including diabetes, heart disease, or obesity. It can also tell you things such as if you are likely to be lactose intolerant?or have Celiac?s disease. All this information if very interesting and much of it is useful, but we currently can't use it to generate the perfect diet for someone.

For example, if you find out you have the genetic profile such that you shouldn?t have lactose, there?s a simple fix: Stop consuming dairy or take a Lactaid when you do. But if you find that you have the genetic predisposition for heart disease, it?s less clear what you should do. Poll five different experts, and you?ll get at least three different dietary approaches that are the ?best? for treating heart disease. We aren?t to the point with our knowledge about certain diseases and treatments that a DNA test could give you advice for a diet specific for your genes.

I think it also depends on your personality and what you would do with the information. Diet and exercise is far and away the best treatment for diabetes, but despite this many people with diabetes refuse to commit to a regular exercise program or modify their diet in any significant way. Smoking can increase your risk for lung cancer by 13 to 23 times (depending on your gender) regardless of your genetic makeup, but more people start smoking every day.

I am personally fascinated by the level of information an average person can get from spitting into a vial and sending it off in the mail. While this information won?t give you the perfect diet for your body, it will give you lots of insights about your health and potential risk for a myriad of diseases. The price of this testing continues to go down, but whether the information is worth the financial cost is a personal decision.

Source: http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/diet-tips/ask-diet-doctor-dna-diet-bogus

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Ghana names Kyerematen as first candidate to succeed WTO's Lamy

GENEVA (Reuters) - Ghana has put forward the first official candidate to succeed Pascal Lamy as head of the World Trade Organization (WTO), nominating its former Trade Minister Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen.

Kyerematen's bid to take over after Lamy's second term expires on August 31. was widely expected after he won the backing of the African Union earlier this year.

However, that endorsement was done so quietly that some diplomats have suggested he might face a challenge from another African nation belonging to the 157-member trade body.

Applications must be submitted by the end of the year, in time for a three-month campaigning period and for a winner to emerge by the end of May.

Many trade diplomats think the job should go to an African, Latin American or Caribbean candidate, since all but one head of the 17-year-old WTO have been from developed countries. The exception was Thailand's Supachai Panitchpakdi.

But Lamy has said there was no system of rotating the job between countries and regions and said his successor, chosen by consensus, should be picked on the basis of competence alone.

Other names in the frame are New Zealand's Trade Minister Tim Groser, Brazil's Ambassador to the WTO Roberto Azevedo, Costa Rica's Trade Minister Anabel Gonzalez and South African Trade Minister Rob Davies.

The head of Mexico's competition commission Eduardo Perez Motta, a former ambassador to the WTO, told Reuters in September that he would enter the race if his name was put forward.

Former Jordanian Trade Minister Ahmad Al Hindawi will also be nominated, Jordanian media reported earlier this month.

The office of Nigeria's Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who failed in a bid to head the World Bank, headed off rumours by saying in September that she had not expressed interest and was not a candidate.

The only WTO member to rule itself out of the race so far is the European Union.

"Obviously this time it will not be somebody from Europe, so we will have to see what the candidatures are," European Trade Commissioner Karel de Gucht told reporters last week during a visit to Geneva.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ghana-names-kyerematen-first-candidate-succeed-wtos-lamy-053340263.html

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Dimensional Negotiations

Arguably, negotiation is one of the most common methods of dispute resolution. The assumption that negotiation is a concept that is only useful in a conflict solving environment is a serious misconception. Apparently, negotiation is used in such environments as the political and the business fields. Notably, negotiation has been the most effective method of control sharing in the world of politics. Similarly, negotiation is applied in making of business contracts and setting of prices. Haggling is one of the most common types of negotiation in everyday business transactions. The aim of negotiation is mainly to establish a middle-ground with which either party is comfortable and contented. For a long time, people have always seen negotiation as a social theory that requires only skills and tactics during the round table meeting. However, modern day negotiators are using the revolutionary process of negotiation referred to as the 3-dimensional negotiation. This paper seeks to explain the elements of three dimensional negotiations as explained by Lax and Sebenius (2006).

According to lax and Sebenius (2006), negotiation is not effective if given the usual one dimension style. They argue that traditionally, negotiations entailed the use of tactics to either gain the advantage under the topic of conflict or have such benefit distributed among the concerned parties. The usual one dimensional approach to negotiations sought either a win-win result or a win-lose outcome. However, practically speaking, such outcomes could only create more conflict where the parties to the clash were more than two. Lax and Sebenius (2006) explain that one-dimensional approaches only stimulate more conflict and yield unsatisfactory deals. Much like a gambling game, one-dimensional techniques are not appropriate where the other party is the holder of all the cards. It is for this reason that the two scholars came up with the three dimensional approach.

The three dimensional system is a method of handling negotiations from three perspectives. According to the consultants, the three aspects of this approach are, The Tactics Dimension, The Deal Design Dimension and the Set up Dimension. In addition to these dimensions, Lax and Sebenius (2006) explained a final aspect referred to as the three dimensional audit. The three aspects of the strategy are designed in such a way that they cover the period before the negotiations, during the actual discussion and after the deal are sealed. The set up dimension takes place away from the negotiation grounds. The side concerns itself with the parties to conflict and the subject matter of the conflict. In evaluating this dimension, the planner or the negotiator focuses on the actual parties involved in the conflict as well as the potential participants.

In addressing the issue of the parties expected to attend the negotiation proceedings, the negotiator finds information on which to rely when planning the tactics. The set-up dimension is as well concerned with the subject matter of the negotiator. The negotiator seeks to establish ways in which the subject matter can be useful to them and how valuable they can be to the other party. The essence of this aspect then can be said to be the evaluation of the pie to be shared. Being a preliminary stage, the set-up section concerns itself with estimating the possible outcomes and expected maximum costs. Lax and Sebenius (2006) argue that, in every negotiation procedure, there are unavoidable costs. Either party should make a provision for such costs prior to the actual negotiation process. Among the essential preliminary steps are the arrangements to hold private consultations with the key parties to the actual negotiations. This may involve the process of identifying the correct sequence of events, as well as, the hierarchy to be observed. Lax and Sebenius (2006) summarized this aspect as the process that concerns itself with doing the correct things, and doing them right.

The second dimension - the deal design - concerns itself with the events that take place both at and away from the table of negotiation. The deal design should be in such a manner that it takes into consideration the interests of both parties. As such the negotiator is expected to unveil the intentions of the other party. This will enable them to be more realistic in laying down their strategies and listing their expectations. According to Lax and Sebenius (2006), the negotiator should plan in such a way that the negotiations move north east on a Cartesian plane. This is to suggest that one side of the plane represents the planner's interests while the other scale represents the interests and intentions of the other. In moving north east, Lax and Sebenius (2006) meant that both parties' interests are catered for. Additionally, the deal design should be in such a way that the deals made are long lasting and unalterable.

Tactics, which make up the last dimension, are the real, convincing techniques applied at the negotiating table in both creating and claiming a fair share of the pie. The tactics should be strong and capable of winning the interests of the negotiator. Lax and Sebenius (2006) argue that the negotiator ought to listen actively, study carefully and apply relevant questions in order to achieve a competitive bargaining power. In addition to the above three discussed dimensions, the negotiator should carry out an assessment referred to as the three dimensional audit. This assessment is designed to expose the potential problem relating to the actual deal. After revealing the problems, negotiator should come up with an effective strategy to deal with such hiccups.

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Source: http://articles.submityourarticle.com/dimensional-negotiations-308261

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Twin Moon Probes Crash into Lunar Mountain

A pair of twin gravity-mapping moon probes ended their science mission today (Dec. 17) by becoming intimately familiar with the pull of the natural satellite.

The washer-and-dryer-size Grail spacecraft?slammed into a?crater rim?near the moon's north pole at 5:28 p.m. EST (2228 GMT) Monday. The pair was crashed intentionally because their low orbit and remaining fuel levels precluded further scientific operations.

The impacts, which were directed by earlier rocket burns, were designed to keep the two probes from colliding with historic sites on the surface of the moon.

"NASA wanted to rule out any possibility of our twins hitting the surface anywhere near any of the historic lunar exploration sites like the Apollo landing sites?or where the Russian Luna probes touched down," said David Lehman, Grail project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. [Video: Grail Probes' Death Dive]

Before each of the spacecraft's rocket firings, which were performed on Friday (Dec. 14), navigators calculated the odds of either probe impacting at an historic site at about seven in one million.

Instead, the Grail spacecraft, which were named "Ebb" and "Flow"?by contest-winning elementary school students in Bozeman, Mont., came down hard in the vicinity of the Goldschmidt crater located on the near side of the moon. Each spacecraft hit the lunar surface at roughly 3,760 mph (6,050 kph), researchers said.

The collisions were separated by about 20 seconds, with Ebb leading Flow into the side of a mountain at a site that has now been named after the late?Sally Ride, America's first woman in space.?There was no imagery of their end because the area was in shadow at the time

Mapping their own demise

The $496 million Grail mission (short for Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory) launched on board a Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla. in September 2011. Ebb and Flow arrived at the moon on New Year's Day.

In orbit, the duo's successful prime and extended science missions produced the highest-resolution gravity field map of any celestial body, providing a better understanding of how the Earth and other rocky planets in the solar system formed and evolved.

The map was created by the spacecraft transmitting radio signals to define precisely the distance between them as they flew around the moon in formation. As they orbited over areas of greater and lesser gravity caused by visible features ? such as mountains and craters ? and masses hidden beneath the surface, the distance between the two spacecraft changed slightly.

"What this [lunar] map tells us is that, more than any other celestial body we know of, the moon wears its gravity field on its sleeve," said Grail principal investigator Maria Zuber with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. "When we see a notable change in the gravity field, we can sync up this change with surface topography features such as craters, rilles or mountains."

In addition to mapping the moon's gravity, Ebb and Flow were also equipped with small student-controlled cameras. The MoonKAM program ? which until her death in July was led by Sally Ride?? allowed middle-school students to suggest and target areas on the moon to be imaged for their study.

Doing science until the end

Ebb and Flow conducted one final experiment before their mission ended. The two probes fired their main engines until their fuel tanks were empty to determine precisely the amount of propellant that remained.

The data from these last burns will help engineers validate fuel consumption computer models to improve predictions of the propellant needs for future missions.

"One thing is for sure ? they are going down swinging," said Lehman. "Even during the last half of their last orbit, we're [doing] an engineering experiment that could help future missions operate more efficiently."

Because the exact amount of fuel that was remaining on each spacecraft was unknown, the Grail navigators and engineers designed the depletion burn to allow the probes to descend gradually for several hours and then skim the surface until the elevated terrain of the targeted mountain got in their way.

"We have had our share of challenges during this mission and always came through in flying colors, but nobody I know around here has ever flown into a moon mountain before," said Lehman. "It [is] a first for us, that's for sure."

Follow collectSPACE on Facebook?and Twitter @collectSPACE?and editor Robert Pearlman @robertpearlman. Copyright 2012?collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved.

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/twin-moon-probes-crash-lunar-mountain-224120059.html

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Iran defiant on enrichment ahead of possible nuclear talks

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran will not stop higher-grade enrichment of uranium in response to external demands, Tehran's top nuclear official was quoted as saying on Tuesday, signaling a tough bargaining stance ahead of planned new talks with world powers.

Western powers want Iran to halt enrichment of uranium to a fissile concentration of 20 percent as it represents a significant step closer to the level that would be required to make nuclear bombs. Iran says it needs uranium refined to 20 percent to run its medical research reactor in Tehran.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran will not suspend 20 percent uranium enrichment because of the demands of others," said Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani, head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, according to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA). "The Islamic Republic of Iran will produce 20 percent enriched uranium to meet its needs and for however long it is required."

He did not specify what he meant by Iran's needs. Western diplomats say Iran already has produced sufficient quantities to fuel its Tehran Research Reactor for several years. Abbasi-Davani has in the past said Iran plans to build another research reactor.

"Twenty percent enrichment is the right of the Iranian nation for use in the Tehran reactor and it will defend this right with authority," Abbasi-Davani said.

His comments renewed Iranian defiance in negotiations with world powers that are expected to resume soon, aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the decade-old dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. But he did not appear to categorically rule out that Tehran at some point could shelve the activity.

(Reporting By Yeganeh Torbati in Dubai and Fredrik Dahl in Vienna; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iran-defiant-enrichment-ahead-possible-nuclear-talks-102457066.html

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