Edinburgh panda 'no longer pregnant'

15 October 2013
Last updated at 05:12 ET

Edinburgh Zoo's female giant panda, Tian Tian, is no longer expecting a cub, it has been announced.

Experts said her hormone and behavioural signs indicated that she had conceived and carried a foetus until late term, but then lost it.

Tian Tian was artificially inseminated in April and had been showing signs of pregnancy for several weeks.

However, the zoo said she had now returned to the eating and behavioural patterns of a non-pregnant panda.

Chris West, chief executive officer for the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, said: "Such a loss has always been in our minds as a very real possibility, as it occurs in giant pandas as well as many other animals, including humans.

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What we have achieved, considering we have had giant pandas for less than two years, is immense”

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Chris West
Royal Zoological Society of Scotland

"Our dedicated team of keepers, veterinary staff and many others worked tirelessly to ensure Tian Tian received the best care possible, which included remote observation and closing the panda enclosure to visitors to give her quiet and privacy.

"We are conducting a detailed review of the scientific data collected, but I am totally confident that we did everything it was possible to do."

The panda enclosure will remain closed until the end of the week to give Tian Tian time to get back into her routine and to give her keepers a chance to recuperate.

Keepers insist Tian Tian received the best care possible and remain confident she will eventually give birth.

Mr West added: "The majority of research centres and zoos with giant pandas around the world have not successfully bred until the third or fourth year.

Tian Tian was artificially inseminated in April

"What we have achieved, considering we have had giant pandas for less than two years, is immense.

"New hormone research is beginning to indicate that lost pregnancies are more common in giant pandas than first thought, though at the moment no-one knows why."

The zoo is renting Tian Tian and male panda Yang Guang from China for around £600,000 a year, hoping a cub or cubs would bring in more visitors.

Some experts believe money spent on captive breeding would be better used to preserve the habitat of wild pandas.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-24533158#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
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German gummi bear baron Hans Riegel dies at 90

BERLIN (AP) — Hans Riegel, who made German candy maker Haribo and its signature gummi bears a chewy hit for children — and adults — across the globe, died on Tuesday. He was 90.

Haribo said in a statement that Riegel died of heart failure in Bonn, where the company is based. He had been recovering from an operation to remove a benign brain tumor.

Riegel was the son of the company founder, also named Hans Riegel, who in 1920 set up Haribo — an acronym for "Hans Riegel Bonn." In 1922, his father invented the "dancing bear," a small bear made out of fruit gum that laid the foundations for Haribo's later success with the "gold bear."

The company founder died in 1945. Upon being released as allied prisoners after World War II, Riegel and his younger brother, Paul, set about rebuilding the family firm. Haribo had only about 30 employees immediately after the war but, as West Germany's economy took off, the number was up to 1,000 five years later.

Paul Riegel, who died in 2009, focused on production while Hans Riegel took charge of marketing and sales — for instance, promoting the company's wares with the slogan "kids and grown-ups love it so, the happy world of Haribo."

Haribo said Riegel took inspiration from children's magazines and comics, once saying: "I love children. They are my customers. I have to be informed about what they want to nibble, what they think, what language they speak."

In the 1960s and 1970s, Haribo acquired businesses in the Netherlands, France and Britain; and in 1982, it added a sales office in the United States, setting up Haribo of America Inc. in Baltimore.

Ubiquitous in Germany, they are also available in the most far-flung and unlikely places around the world, beloved for their bright colors, sugary taste and teddy-bear shape.

"Wherever I traveled in the last few years, the gold bears had already long been there," Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said as he paid tribute Tuesday to Riegel's achievement in making Haribo "a German global brand."

Riegel remained a co-owner of the company and actively involved in the business until the end, his career spanning nearly seven decades.

The privately owned company now employs more than 6,000 people, about half of them in Germany, and has 15 production sites in 10 European countries.

Riegel was awarded Germany's highest honor, the Federal Cross of Merit, in 1994. That was recognition not only of his business career but of his commitment to social issues, such as encouraging the training of talented young people, and sports. Riegel was a passionate player and promoter of badminton.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/german-gummi-bear-baron-hans-riegel-dies-90-132528919.html
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Rockets top Pacers 107-98 in NBA preseason game

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — It was a perfect homecoming for Houston Rockets point guard Jeremy Lin in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei.

Lin, whose parents emigrated from Taiwan to the United States in the 1970s, scored 17 points and went 3-4 from the three-point line to help the Rockets overcome the Indiana Pacers 107-98 in an exhibition game played before a capacity crowd of 13,686.

James Harden led all Rockets scorers with 21 and had three 3-pointers of his own.

Paul George's 19 points led the Pacers. George Hill contributed 17, but suffered what coach Frank Vogel called "a mild ankle sprain" in a third quarter scramble. Vogel said that Hill's condition will be monitored in the coming days.

Lin was clearly the crowd favorite and didn't disappoint with a dazzling array of clutch shooting and pinpoint passing.

His play earned him accolades from Rockets coach Kevin McHale, who said that all the hard work Lin put in over the summer is giving him the boost he needs to cope with the immense pressure he feels at being one of the most closely watched NBA players in Asia.

"He puts so much pressure on himself," McHale said. "There's an entire half of the world that seems to be pulling for him."

After a seesaw first quarter, Houston pulled away to lead by 15 points at halftime but Indiana cut that lead to only two before fading in the final quarter.

McHale singled out Houston newcomer Omri Casspi for special praise. Casspi had had 13 points and nine rebounds, all but one on the defensive end.

"Omri is doing a really good job for us," McHale said. "He's playing at a really high level."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rockets-top-pacers-107-98-nba-preseason-game-093204580--spt.html
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RI 7th-grader appeals suspension for gun keychain

COVENTRY, R.I. (AP) — The family of a Rhode Island seventh-grader who was suspended for three days for having a small toy gun keychain at school is appealing the suspension.

WJAR-TV (http://bit.ly/198ZOTV ) reports the family of 12-year-old Joseph Lyssikatos (lis-ih-KAH'-tos) is appealing Monday to the superintendent in the town of Coventry.

Joseph was suspended last month after bringing a 2-inch keychain he won at an arcade to Alan Shawn Feinstein Middle School. Another student found it and showed it off to classmates, and Joseph was suspended.

He has already served the suspension, but his parents hope to get it expunged from his record so Joseph can try for perfect attendance this year.

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Information from: WJAR-TV, http://www.turnto10.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2013-10-07-US-Toy-Gun-Suspension/id-16d068cee7474486a733f7a62d39843e
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U.S. stock futures up, dollar stabilizes on U.S. deal hopes

By Dominic Lau

TOKYO (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures ticked higher on Tuesday on expectations of an imminent deal that will reopen the U.S. government and avert a possible debt default, though the political squabbling in Washington kept markets on edge ahead of the Thursday deadline.

Asian stocks were expected to open higher, with Japan's Nikkei index futures up 0.8 percent, after U.S. Standard & Poor's 500 <.spx> index reversed early losses to close up 0.4 percent, spurred by hopes of a U.S. budget deal. <.n/>

Many markets in the region, including Singapore, Indonesia and India, were closed for holidays.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he and his Republican counterpart, Mitch McConnell, have made strong progress toward reaching a deal to end a partial government shutdown and lift the debt ceiling, averting a possible default, an outcome that is unthinkable for the global economy.

U.S. S&P 500 E-mini futures added 0.1 percent in early Asian trade on Tuesday, though U.S. Treasury futures slipped 5-1/2 ticks.

The dollar held steady at 98.67 yen, recovering from a low of 98.05 hit in the previous session. The greenback also stabilized at $1.35555 to the euro after slipping 0.1 percent on Monday.

"Risk sentiment remains resilient despite the lack of a clear breakthrough in the U.S. debt ceiling and government shutdown negotiations," analysts at BNP Paribas wrote in a note.

"The Japanese yen's initial rally has now fully reversed although in the absence of an agreement the near-term risks are for a stronger yen," they added.

The plan under U.S. Senate discussion would raise the $16.7 trillion debt ceiling by enough to cover the country's borrowing needs at least through mid-February 2014, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. It would also fund the government operations through the middle of January.

But any deal would have to win approval in the House of Representatives, where conservative Republicans have insisted that any continued government funding must include measures to undercut President Barack Obama's healthcare programme - non-negotiable for Democrats.

JPMorgan analysts said market reaction to the U.S. budget impasse has been muted so far, though it did not believe investors were complacent.

"Our sense is not complacency, but more a belief that a true default, beyond a technical delay in payments lasting several days, is highly unlikely, and a lack of clarity of what such a default would mean for markets beyond a sense that it will be bad," they wrote in a note.

"Market participants appear to be preparing for the event risk of a delayed payment of U.S. Treasury coupons and principals by adding liquidity and avoiding securities maturing around the debt ceiling deadline."

In the commodity markets, U.S. crude slipped 0.2 percent to around $102 a barrel, giving up some of Monday's gains as traders bought contracts to cover short positions ahead of a possible deal in Washington.

(Editing by Shri Navaratnam)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/asian-shares-fall-yen-firms-u-debt-deadline-051628181--finance.html
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U.S. senators would ease sanctions only after Iran concessions

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ten Democratic and Republican U.S. senators said on Monday they were open to suspending the implementation of new sanctions on Iran but only if Tehran takes significant steps to slow its nuclear program.

Negotiations about Iran's nuclear program are scheduled to start in Geneva on Tuesday and will be the first since the June election of President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate who wants to thaw Iran's icy relations with the West to secure the removal of punitive sanctions that have hobbled its oil-based economy.

In a letter to President Barack Obama, the 10 senators said the United States and other countries should consider a "suspension-for-suspension" initial agreement, in which Iran would suspend uranium enrichment and Washington would suspend the implementation of new sanctions.

However, Iran is not expected to offer to suspend enrichment during the talks.

The letter, which was sent to Obama on Friday and released on Monday, was written by six Democrats and four Republicans. They said they supported the negotiations but wanted confidence-building actions from Iran before they would support backing away from a new set of even stricter sanctions on Iran now making their way through Congress.

The senators said they wanted Tehran's full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, fulfillment of promises under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and implementation of all U.N. Security Council resolutions on its nuclear weapons program, including immediate suspension of all enrichment.

"If the Iranian government takes these steps in a verifiable and transparent manner, we are willing to match Iran's good-faith actions by suspending the implementation of the next round of sanctions currently under consideration by the Congress," they said.

They also reaffirmed that "a credible military threat" remains on the table and said current sanctions must be maintained aggressively.

The senators signing the letter included Democrats Robert Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Charles Schumer, the No. 3 Democrat in the Senate, as well as Republicans John McCain and Lindsey Graham, two of their party's most influential foreign policy voices.

Western nations believe Iran's uranium enrichment program is meant to achieve a nuclear arms capability. Tehran denies this, saying it wants only to generate electricity and carry out medical research.

(This version of the story corrects the numbers in paragraphs one and five to show that the letter was signed by 10 senators, six Democrats and four Republicans.)

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Bill Trott)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-senators-suspend-next-iran-sanctions-under-conditions-153104212.html
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Pressure on US as global economy meetings near end

WASHINGTON (AP) — World finance officials prepared to wrap up three days of meetings in Washington, where fretting about the risk of an unprecedented U.S. debt default overshadowed myriad worries about a shaky global economic recovery.

Finance ministers and central bank chiefs from the Group of 20 major economies urged the U.S. on Friday to take urgent action to resolve the political impasse that has partially shut down the government and delayed passage of a bill to raise the debt ceiling.

If Congress does not increase the borrowing limit by Thursday, the U.S. could default on its debt payments and cause serious turmoil in world markets and economies.

With the U.S., Europe and Japan all just emerging from long slumps, finance officials have been predicting a modest recovery in the global economy in the coming year, driven in large part by a strengthening U.S. economy.

But the current budget stalemate, coupled with anticipation that the Federal Reserve will soon start scaling back its massive stimulus program for the economy, have officials worried that the fragile global recovery could be derailed.

In prepared remarks to finance officials released late Friday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said the United States understood the role it played as "the anchor of the international financial system." He said the administration was continuing to push Congress to reopen the government and increase the borrowing limit.

"Prior to the government shutdown, all signs pointed to the strengthening recovery of the U.S. economy," Lew said. "If Congress acts quickly, this will continue to be the case."

The G-20 officials issued their plea for a U.S. resolution on the debt ceiling at the end of two days of discussions held in advance of Saturday meetings of the 188-nation International Monetary Fund and its sister lending organization, the World Bank. The Saturday meetings will be the last in three days of high level discussions.

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, whose country currently holds the rotating chair of the G-20, told a news conference Friday that the budget stalemate between Congress and the Obama administration was discussed at the meeting.

But "no emergency or extraordinary plans" were made during the meeting in case of a U.S. default, he said.

"In the course of today's meeting, no plans were drawn up," he said. "No worst-case scenario was discussed. We trust the U.S. authorities will find a way out of this complex situation."

A number of the leaders attending the meeting said they saw the risk of default as remote.

In one telling comment, Siluanov offered a glimpse of what a tremendous impact a U.S. debt default would have on Russia's economy and many others like it around the world. Most central banks hold a significant portion of their foreign currency reserves in U.S. Treasury securities — considered the safest investment in the world.

Siluanov said about 45 percent of Russian's foreign exchange reserves are invested in U.S. Treasuries. Nevertheless, he said Russia was not considering reducing the size of its Treasury holdings because they are long-term investments while the debt crisis was a short-term issue.

America will run out of borrowing authority for new debt on Thursday. Treasury Secretary Lew has warned there is expected to be only $30 billion in cash on hand at that time and the U.S. will soon fall short of money to meet all of its obligations, including interest payments on the $16.7 trillion federal debt. That would trigger the first U.S. debt default ever.

____

Associated Press reporters Harry Dunphy and Matthew Pennington contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pressure-us-global-economy-meetings-near-end-075017533--finance.html
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