Sequester: What Will Happen, What Won't Happen

When it comes to critical elements of the sequester timeline, not much is known -- because federal agencies have been tight lipped.Asked when specific effects will be felt, officials at three federal departments declined to discuss the timing of sequester cuts and their consequences. Some departments were waiting for President Obama's Friday night sequester order and subsequent...

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Smartphone projector breathes life into storybooks

Hal Hodson, technology reporter!--By use of this code snippet, I agree to the Brightcove Publisher T and C found at https://accounts.brightcove.com/en/terms-and-conditions/. -->!-- This script tag will cause the Brightcove Players defined above it to be created as soonas the line is read by the browser. If you wish to have the player instantiated only afterthe rest of the HTML is processed and the...

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Canada's Q4 GDP flat, growth at 1.8% for 2012

OTTAWA: Canada's economy grew 1.8 percent last year, a bit less than the central bank's forecast and down from 2.6 percent in 2011, the government statistics agency said on Friday.Gross domestic product in the fourth quarter was up 0.2 percent, similar to the previous quarter's gains, as mining and oil and gas extraction was up and manufacturing recorded a significant decrease.The arts...

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Google's European conundrum: When does privacy mean censorship?

Google's New York City headquarters.(Credit:Zack Whittaker/CNET)How Google and other American Internet companies operate in Europe could come down to a link that, depending on what side of the Atlantic Ocean you're on, should or should not be deleted.A case heard Tuesday before the European Court of Justice (ECJ) hinges on a complaint submitted by a Spanish citizen who searched Google for his name...

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Scarred Duckbill Dinosaur Escaped T. Rex Attack

A scar on the face of a duckbill dinosaur received after a close encounter with a Tyrannosaurus rex is the first clear case of a healed dinosaur wound, scientists say.The finding, detailed in the current issue of the journal Cretaceous Research, also reveals that the healing properties of dinosaur skin were likely very similar to that of modern reptiles.The lucky dinosaur was an adult...

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Sequester Set to Trigger Billions in Cuts

Nobody likes the sequester.Even the word is enough to send shivers of fiscal panic, or sheer political malaise, down the spines of seasoned politicians and news reporters. And today, the sequester will almost certainly happen, a year and a half after its inception amid the stalemate of the debt-limit crisis in 2011.Automatic budget cuts will be triggered across federal agencies,...

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Leap Motion unveils contents of its own app store

Paul Marks, chief technology correspondent(Image: Leap Motion)The Next Big Thing now has the next big app store. The Leap, the forthcoming 3D gestural control device that could by all accounts replace the mouse, the joystick and even the keyboard, will launch on 13 May alongside a fully stocked app store called Airspace. The $80 gadget's maker, Leap Motion of San Francisco, numbers at least two...

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US pledges US$60m for Syria opposition

ROME: The United States on Thursday pledged US$60 million in "non-lethal" assistance for the Syrian political opposition to President Bashar al-Assad as well as the first direct US aid to rebel fighters in the form of food and medical assistance."The US will be providing an additional US$60 million in non-lethal assistance to support the efforts of the Syrian opposition coalition over...

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Barnes & Noble's earnings slide on declining Nook business

The Nook is having some trouble.(Credit:James Martin/CNET)Barnes & Noble had a rough fiscal third quarter -- the three-month period ended January 26 -- due mainly to its ailing Nook operation.During the period, Barnes & Noble snagged $2.2 billion in revenue, down 8.8 percent compared to the same period last year. The company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization...

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Why African Rhinos Are Facing a Crisis

The body count for African rhinos killed for their horns is approaching crisis proportions, according to the latest figures released by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). To National Geographic reporter Peter Gwin, the dire numbers—a rhinoceros slain every 11 minutes since the beginning of 2013—don't come as a surprise. "The killing will continue as long as...

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