Arne Duncan calls for personal finance lessons starting in ...

Duncan (AP)

Education Secretary Arne Duncan said this week that schools should incorporate personal finance into lesson plans. He proposes that such instruction should start as early as kindergarten to combat widespread financial illiteracy.

?As important as reading and math and social studies and science, I think today more than ever financial literacy has to be part of that,? Duncan said at a speech at the Treasury Department. ?To continue to have a population that is relatively illiterate in these matters I think has real negative consequences to our democracy.?

Duncan acknowledged that it?s up to individual districts and states to make the move, however, since the Education Department doesn?t have any authority over curriculum content. (Unlike Australia, for example, which began?mandating K-12 financial education in all schools this year.)

Some American schools have already taken the lead on this, showing their students not only how to open savings accounts but also how to understand credit markets and interest rates.

More?

Schools affiliated with the National Academy Foundation?a nonprofit network of career academies?teach high school students the basics of personal finance. More than 200 of their high schools focus on finance as a career, linking students to internships in the finance industry and offering them electives in subjects such as accounting.

In the elective classes, students learn to read and interpret documents such as a company?s annual report or a home loan. But they also learn about economic principles in their traditional classes.??We connect finance education to Math, History and Language Arts,? NAF Chief Academic Officer Andy Rothstein said.

Some credit unions open up branches in the high schools?partially staffed by the students?where students can also open up savings accounts. Rothstein said that since most of the students in NAF schools are poor and live in urban areas, it?s even more important that they learn how to navigate basic financial decisions.

?Their financial needs are higher by definition,? Rothstein said. ?They need to be able to access that knowledge to move from poverty to middle class. Too often their own communities and families are not sophisticated in financial management.?

And poorer students need to be able to understand student loans in order to access higher education. ?There are a lot of forms that are very complicated to complete. FAFSA??the Free Application for Federal Student Aid??is worse than a tax return,? Rothstein said.

A recent working paper by Dartmouth economist Annamaria Lusardi?found that??the majority of Americans lack basic numeracy and knowledge of fundamental economic principles such as the workings of inflation, risk diversification, and the relationship between asset prices and interest rates.? Most Americans do not prepare for retirement or their kids? college expenses, and a?significant minority of them do not know the terms of their own mortgages or the interest rates on their loans. Since employer-controlled pension plans have largely been replaced by 401k plans, it?s even more important that Americans know how to plan for their own retirement.

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Bears manhandle Lions

Another Hester return TD, two INT TD returns lead Chicago to 37-13 win

By ANDREW SELIGMAN

updated 9:52 p.m. ET Nov. 13, 2011

DETROIT - The Chicago Bears understand where they were and can appreciate how far they've come.

Charles Tillman and Major Wright returned interceptions for touchdowns early in the third quarter, and Chicago picked off Matthew Stafford four times to beat the Detroit Lions 37-13 in a heated game on Sunday.

"We're getting better," Brian Urlacher said. "No doubt about that. We're not done yet. We've still got a long way to go. But we're going the right direction, that's for sure."

Beating Detroit was another big step.

The four interceptions by Stafford matched his season total entering the game and helped knock the Lions (6-3) into a second-place tie with the Bears in the NFC North. Stafford was also involved in a skirmish that led to an ejection of Chicago's D.J. Moore early in the fourth quarter.

By then, the Bears (6-3) had locked up their fourth straight win thanks to a dominant defense and another punt return for a touchdown by Devin Hester, who ran one back 82 yards. That extended his NFL record for punt-return TDs to 12 and combined kick-return touchdowns to 17.

Julius Peppers and Tim Jennings forced turnovers on Detroit's first two possessions, leading to a touchdown and field goal by Chicago. Wright and Tillman returned interceptions for touchdowns on the Lions' first two possessions of the second half to put game out of reach.

In between turnover binges, Hester caused his usual havoc before leaving with an undisclosed illness.

For a guy who was listed as questionable with a sprained left ankle, Hester sure looked good while he was in the game. He had already set up a field goal by Robbie Gould in the opening seconds of the second quarter with a 29-yard punt return before his long TD return along the left sideline, giving the Bears a 20-0 lead.

The idea that the Bears would be tied with the Lions seemed far-fetched after their 24-13 Monday night loss at Ford Field last month, but the teams have gone in different directions since.

"We had a lot riding on this game," Smith said. "NFC division game at home we just couldn't afford another loss. We've gotten better and better each week."

Detroit has dropped three of four after winning its first five, and this one was brutal ? particularly for Stafford and Calvin Johnson.

Johnson had 81 yards on seven catches with Tillman locking him down.

Stafford, playing with a fractured finger in his right hand, completed 33 of 63 passes for 329 yards, and any shot the Lions had at a comeback ended when Wright and Tillman picked him off early in the third.

Wright returned his interception 24 yards and Tillman ran his back 44 yards for TDs that made it 34-6, sending the Lions to their first road loss after they won their first four away from Ford Field.

Stafford said the finger wasn't really a factor, but the strong wind was.

"Wind was blowing the ball around, and they had a tough time throwing it and we had a tough time throwing it," he said.

Things really got chippy early in the fourth quarter after Stafford threw his third interception. Jennings picked him off and got shoved hard out of bounds by Nate Burleson. While that unfolded, Stafford grabbed Moore by the helmet and threw him to the ground, setting off a confrontation involving players from both teams that ultimately led to Moore's ejection.

"When you are going after my livelihood, my neck, and you're trying to hurt me, I just can't let that go," Moore said.

Stafford said he wasn't trying to injure Moore.

"He kind of blocked me and I was just trying to get him off me best I knew how," Stafford said. "And I guess he didn't like the way I did it. He wanted to ask me about it."

There was also some tension earlier in the game.

Jay Cutler had his helmet ripped off by Ndamukong Suh after a run, and he got slammed to the ground by Nick Fairley on a late hit in the third quarter.

And a few plays before Jennings' interception, Chicago's Lance Briggs had a hard hit on Johnson.

"It wasn't clean and it wasn't quiet," Cutler said. "I know that. That's just how it is."

Those incidents aside, there was little drama in this one.

The Bears pulled out an easy win even though Matt Forte and Cutler did not have big games.

Forte scored the game's first touchdown on a 6-yard run but finished with 64 yards ? 40 of them on one run.

Cutler was consistently under pressure while throwing for 123 yards, but for one game it didn't matter.

Notes: Smith said LG Chris Williams was undergoing surgery Sunday after leaving the game with a wrist injury. ... Tillman tied Mike Brown and Bennie McRae for the club record with his fourth career interception return for a touchdown. He has 28 interceptions and ranks fourth on the Bears' all-time list. ... Peppers had an 11-yard sack on third down at the six that forced Detroit to kick a field goal in the second quarter. ... The Lions had won six straight road games dating back to last season.

? 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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More Bangkok residents advised to flee floodwaters (AP)

BANGKOK ? Bangkok authorities are telling more residents to leave as floodwaters threaten southwestern neighborhoods in the Thai capital.

Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said people should evacuate three neighborhoods due to surging water levels. He said Sunday pumps were operating around the clock and more pumps were being added to help drain the water.

Still, floodwaters are receding elsewhere. Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said previously the city center would have light flooding if the water penetrated that far but western areas of Bangkok were threatened with inundation.

The national death toll from floods since late July has reached 536. More than 13.1 million people ? one in five Thais ? are affected.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111113/ap_on_re_as/as_thailand_floods

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Kingfisher flies into debt turbulence (Reuters)

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI (Reuters) ? The civil aviation minister sought to cool a crisis over debt-hobbled Kingfisher Airlines on Friday as investors bailed out, alarmed by scores of flight cancellations and reports that its leasing firms wanted their planes back.

Named after the country's most-famous beer, Kingfisher has climbed to become India's No. 2 private carrier since it began operations in 2005 as the economy boomed and forecasts for passenger growth reached for the skies.

But it has become one of the main casualties of high fuel costs and a fierce price war between a handful of airlines which, between them, have ordered hundreds of aircraft for delivery over the next decade in an ambitious bet on the future.

The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) has forecast a record $2.5-$3 billion loss for Indian airlines for the year ending March 2012, with state-run Air India alone likely to account for more than half of it.

As shares in Kingfisher slumped by as much as 18 percent to their lowest level since being launched by flamboyant liquor baron Vijay Mallya, Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said he would approach the finance minister to seek emergency bank assistance for the cash-strapped company.

Late on Friday, Kingfisher Chief Executive Sanjay Aggarwal said the carrier had not made any bailout request to the government, and that it was complying with credit terms and payment arrangements with its vendors.

"Kingfisher does not see any risk to its future or long term viability. The whole Indian aviation industry is struggling due to high costs and lower yields. We are no exception," he said.

The country's main opposition party made clear on Friday it would oppose a state bailout for Kingfisher, which means the pressure will remain on Mallya's United Breweries (Holdings) to keep the airline in business.

BANK SHARES SUFFER

Shares in India's top two lenders, State Bank of India and ICICI Bank, which each hold more than 5 percent of Kingfisher, fell on concern their loans could sour.

"I think it will be difficult for the UB Group to bail them out again and again," said an aviation analyst at a domestic brokerage, who asked not to be named.

"The airline needs fresh funds and there will be a question mark on its survival if it is unable to raise the funds."

The Economic Times reported that some companies that had lent aircraft to Kingfisher planned to take them back, and in Europe two industry sources said on Thursday that the carrier was set to cancel orders for two A340 Airbus aircraft.

India's aviation regulator, meanwhile, said it was starting financial surveillance of all airlines to ensure there was no corner-cutting on safety and said it had asked Kingfisher to explain why they had cut back drastically on scheduled flights.

Kingfisher said it was dropping unprofitable routes and speeding up a fleet reconfiguration, which would see its daily schedule of flights drop to 300 from 340. It apologised to the regulator for not informing it about the cancellations.

Kingfisher, which said it has been a few days late paying salaries in the last two or three months, is one of India's most successful brands, ranked 116 by Campaign magazine in its list of the top 1,000 Asia brands for 2011.

"Like Air India, Kingfisher is also a difficult duck to drown," said Rajan Mehra, executive director at the Asia Pacific Academy for Aviation and Hospitality.

"They are in very bad shape, but whether they will sink I am not too sure. Mallya will have to take some very serious and stern steps," he said.

Rising crude prices, a depreciating rupee and cut-throat competition have eroded airlines' ability to raise fares despite passenger growth of about 19 percent this year.

LOW-COST SERVICE TO GO

Six weeks ago Kingfisher announced plans to recast its business model by doing away with its low-cost service.

Kingfisher shares have lost 70 percent of their value so far this year. The airline, which listed when it bought out budget airline, Air Deccan in 2008, has never made a profit.

Its auditors noted in the annual report this year that the firm needs extra cash to survive. Kingfisher had aimed to raise $250-$350 million through an issue of global depositary receipts in January but did not follow through on the plan. It also tried to attract private equity investment in 2008 and 2009 but no deal was forthcoming.

Earlier this year, Kingfisher cut its debt through a restructuring by issuing shares to 14 banks, including State Bank of India and ICICI. Its current debt is about $1.2 billion.

Last week it said it had written to banks for further help.

"The only way out is they sell a stake to a foreign airline company - if the government passes the rule anytime soon, which I think they can, given the circumstances of the whole industry," said Sharan Lillaney, an analyst with Angel Broking.

Foreign airlines may not invest in Indian carriers, a rule the government has said is likely to be scrapped.

State-run Air India lost 70 billion rupees ($1.39 billion) before tax in the year that ended in March. Jet Airways, India's top carrier, and SpiceJet posted losses of 7.13 billion and 2.4 billion rupees, respectively, for the September quarter.

(Additional reporting by Swati Pandey; Writing by John Chalmers; Editing by Rosemary Arackaparambil and Tony Munroe)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/india/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111111/india_nm/india604638

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Romney: Obama re-election spells nuclear Iran (AP)

SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney says that if President Barack Obama wins a second term, Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon.

Romney opened Saturday night's GOP debate with strong criticism of Obama, the Democrat he hopes to challenge in 2012. He says that a Romney administration would prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon ? even if that means using U.S. military forces.

Rival Herman Cain says he would not use military action but says he would move warships to the region to deter Iran. Instead, Cain says he would prefer to aid the resistance to Tehran to overthrow the regime.

And rival Ron Paul, a congressman from Texas, says any use of force against Iran would require approval from Congress.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111113/ap_on_el_pr/us_gop_debate_iran

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Ninja Gaiden 3 confirmed as a Wii U launch title (Digital Trends)

Although no firm date has been set for the release of the Wii U (or a soft date for that matter), we are relatively confident that it will be due out in 2012. Almost certainly. At least there is a very good chance. But while Nintendo is apparently threatening certain doom to those that leak info on the console, there have been several announcements regarding what titles will be released for the console.

So far the announced properties have all come from third-party developers, and while Nintendo will definitely have a handful of games available at launch, none of the details on those titles have been released as of yet. It also isn?t clear if the upcoming announced titles will be available whenever the Wii U is launched, or if they are simply scheduled for the console eventually.

That has changed, as Ninja Gaiden 3: Razer?s Edge has been confirmed as a launch title according to a report from Andriasang, and it is only the fifth title to officialy be listed for the Wii U in 2012. To be fair, many of the games announced will likely be available whenever the Wii U is released, but this is the first game that has been confirmed to be available at launch.

Ninja Gaiden 3 will be released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 on February 4, minus the subtitle ???Razers Edge.??

We???ll have to keep waiting for more info on the Wii U, but more and more titles for the system should be announced in the coming months.

?

This article was originally posted on Digital Trends

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Murderous shrimp kill during night

Like creepy stalkers, cleaner shrimp won't share their partner with anyone else. When placed in groups of more than two, the creatures attack in the dark of night, killing off the competition.

"We enlarged the group size to triplets and quartets, and we observed the molting cycle and the interactions between individuals,'' study researcher Janine Wong, of the University of Basel in Switzerland, told LiveScience. "In this species, the shrimp usually live in pairs. We were wondering, because monogamy is quite susceptible to cheating, if these individuals would stay in monogamous pairs."

They didn't.

Sperm or egg?
Cleaner shrimp (Lysmata amboinensis) pairs make their living picking parasites from fish. They stake out their cleaning stations and wait for fish to stop by their storefront. Each shrimp is a hermaphrodite, meaning it can reproduce as both a male and a female, though it can't fertilize its own eggs.

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In times of high competition for a mate, each shrimp makes fewer eggs and more sperm, since the eggs are more cost-intensive to produce and one individual's sperm can fertilize many eggs. The goal is to pass on one's genes, and in this case, sperm will do the trick. When two shrimp pair up in a monogamous relationship, however, they shift to making more eggs and less sperm, since there isn't competition for who is going to fertilize whom.

This type of social monogamy is found only in shrimp with cleaning behavior, Wong said, possibly because these cleaner shrimp stick to their territory instead of going around and searching for food.

Shrimp squabbles
Wong and her colleagues placed two, three or four cleaner shrimp together in a group (repeated 10 times for each condition). By the time 42 days had passed, every tank was down to two shrimp.

The shrimp are only vulnerable to attack right after they have molted, when their outer skins made of keratin are thin. To avoid predators, they molt during the night. Though the shrimp weren't aggressive during the day, at night they ganged up on any freshly molted tank-mates.

"During daytime, there were no aggressive interactions observable, they were just sitting next to each other or ignoring each other. You couldn't predict from their behavior during the daytime who would be the next victim," Wong said. "The individual that died had just molted a few hours before. Because the keratin didn't harden yet, they were very vulnerable and easy targets."

Territorial terrors
These shrimp, regardless of whether they are paired up, usually molt every two weeks. In high-competition environments, with three or four shrimp per tank, they molt less frequently. Wong's team noticed that after murdering their extra tank mates, the killer shrimp would return to their regular molting schedule.

In the threesomes, the victim was usually the smallest in the tank, but in the quartet, the same trend wasn't obvious. It wasn't always the first shrimp to molt that was done in, either. The researchers aren't sure yet why certain shrimp lived while others were killed.

This tank is an artificial environment compared with the wild, where the shrimp could just swim away when threatened. Researchers aren't sure how these L. amboinensis act in the wild, but they are very territorial. It's more likely that a "third wheel" type would be chased away from the mating pair's cleaning station, and the murderous rage would be much lower.

The study was published Thursday in the journal Frontiers of Zoology.

You can follow LiveScience staff writer Jennifer Welsh on Twitter @microbelover. Follow LiveScience for the latest in science news and discoveries on Twitter @livescience and on Facebook.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45256967/ns/technology_and_science-science/

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Today on New Scientist: 10 November 2011

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PHOTO: Dakota Fanning's Racy New Marc Jacobs Ad Banned