How do you fight fire in space? Experiments provide some answers

Public release date: 31-Jan-2012
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Contact: Ioana Patringenaru
ipatrin@ucsd.edu
858-822-0899
University of California - San Diego

Research on the International Space Station also aims for a better understanding of fuel combustion here on Earth

Improving fire-fighting techniques in space and getting a better understanding of fuel combustion here on Earth are the focus of a series of experiments on the International Space Station, led by a professor at the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California, San Diego. A first round of experiments ran from March 2009 to December 2011. A second round kicked off in January and is set to last a year or more.

Forman Williams, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has been working on fire research and fire safety with NASA since the 1970s. You will not, however, find him on the space station. The experiments are run by remote control from NASA's John Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Williams and colleagues at Princeton, UC Davis, the University of Connecticut and Cornell analyze the results at their home institutions. They will present findings based on the first series of experiments this summer at a symposium in Poland.

"Research leads to a better understanding of fire behavior," Willams said. "And better understanding ultimately leads to better safety designs."

All the experiments take place in a chamber located in the Destiny module of the International Space Station. The chamber is part of a piece of equipment called the Combustion Integrated Rack, which is roughly the size of a 5.5-foot bookcase and weighs close to 560 lbs. The rack is crammed with sensors and equipped with video cameras that record experiments. The chamber is equipped with a device called the Multiuser Droplet Combustion Apparatus that can generate and ignite droplets from different fuels in different atmospheric conditions.

Fire safety on the space station

The Flame Extinguishment Experiment, known as FLEX, ran in the chamber from March 2009 to December 2011. The goal was to get a better understanding of how fire happens on a space craft, where there is no up or down and where atmosphere and pressure are tightly controlled. The ultimate goal was to improve fire-fighting techniques in space.

To help understand how flames behave and burn in space, FLEX researchers ignited a small drop of either heptane or methanol. As this little sphere of fuel burned for about 20 seconds, it was engulfed by a spherically symmetric flame. The droplet shrank until either the flame extinguished or the fuel ran out.

Flames in space can burn at a lower temperature, at a lower rate and with less oxygen than in normal gravity. This means that materials used to extinguish fire must be present in higher concentrations. The slow flow of air from the fans mixing air in a spacecraft can make flames burn even faster.

The space station is equipped with carbon-dioxide fire extinguishers, so researchers investigated how fuel droplets burn in the presence of different amounts of CO2. Also, ambient air can become completely fire safe when there is not enough oxygen for fuels to ignite. This threshold is called the limiting oxygen index. Williams and colleagues pinpointed this index for methanol and heptane on the space station.

Fuel combustion experiments

Williams is now working on a new series of experiments, called FLEX-2, which aims to recreate conditions that are closer to what actually happens in a combustion engine. Findings could lead to new designs for cleaner fuels that have a smaller carbon footprint and emit fewer pollutants, among other applications.

While the original FLEX experiments looked at fuels with only one component, FLEX-2 will run tests on fuels with two components, more similar to fuels used in real-life conditions, which usually have multiple components. While FLEX examined the behavior of single fuel droplets, the new round of tests will also look at the interaction of two fuel droplets.

But Williams said he isn't quite done with the original FLEX experiments. He and colleagues still need to explain some of what they observed. For example, when the flame around a fuel droplet extinguishes, that droplet should stop shrinking because combustion has essentially stopped. But in about a dozen instances during the FLEX experiments, heptane droplets kept shrinking at the same rate as when the flame was still burning. Williams, who has studied combustion for the past 50 years, said he has never seen anything like it.

Tests on the space shuttle

This is not Williams' first round of tests to be run in space. His work includes several experiments that ran on Spacelab, a science module flown in the cargo bay of U.S. space shuttles. The holy grail of combustion science is a flame around a fuel droplet that looks like a perfectly symmetrical sphere. That is very hard to achieve here on Earth. It is however a common occurrence in microgravity. Spherical symmetry makes it easier to observe droplets' behavior and to craft the calculations that explain it, Williams said.

During the space shuttle missions, he and colleagues used to work around the clock at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Williams and colleagues also took their families to Cape Canaveral to watch space shuttle Columbia take off in July 1997, when it was carrying a microgravity combustion experiment they designed.

William's interest in combustion dates back to his undergraduate days at Princeton. He was taking a graduate-level course. His professor wrote out on the blackboard the conservation equations of combustion. "When I realized how complicated they were, I said to myself that there is enough there to last me a lifetime," Williams explained.

###

Willams' colleagues on the FLEX and FLEX-2 experiments are: Frederick Dryer, of Princeton; Mun Choi, of the University of Connecticut; Benjamin Shaw at UC Davis; Tom Avedisian of Cornell; Vedha Nayagam at the National Center for Space Exploration Research; Michael Hicks, Daniel Dietrich and others from NASA's Glenn Research Center.

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 31-Jan-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Ioana Patringenaru
ipatrin@ucsd.edu
858-822-0899
University of California - San Diego

Research on the International Space Station also aims for a better understanding of fuel combustion here on Earth

Improving fire-fighting techniques in space and getting a better understanding of fuel combustion here on Earth are the focus of a series of experiments on the International Space Station, led by a professor at the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California, San Diego. A first round of experiments ran from March 2009 to December 2011. A second round kicked off in January and is set to last a year or more.

Forman Williams, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has been working on fire research and fire safety with NASA since the 1970s. You will not, however, find him on the space station. The experiments are run by remote control from NASA's John Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Williams and colleagues at Princeton, UC Davis, the University of Connecticut and Cornell analyze the results at their home institutions. They will present findings based on the first series of experiments this summer at a symposium in Poland.

"Research leads to a better understanding of fire behavior," Willams said. "And better understanding ultimately leads to better safety designs."

All the experiments take place in a chamber located in the Destiny module of the International Space Station. The chamber is part of a piece of equipment called the Combustion Integrated Rack, which is roughly the size of a 5.5-foot bookcase and weighs close to 560 lbs. The rack is crammed with sensors and equipped with video cameras that record experiments. The chamber is equipped with a device called the Multiuser Droplet Combustion Apparatus that can generate and ignite droplets from different fuels in different atmospheric conditions.

Fire safety on the space station

The Flame Extinguishment Experiment, known as FLEX, ran in the chamber from March 2009 to December 2011. The goal was to get a better understanding of how fire happens on a space craft, where there is no up or down and where atmosphere and pressure are tightly controlled. The ultimate goal was to improve fire-fighting techniques in space.

To help understand how flames behave and burn in space, FLEX researchers ignited a small drop of either heptane or methanol. As this little sphere of fuel burned for about 20 seconds, it was engulfed by a spherically symmetric flame. The droplet shrank until either the flame extinguished or the fuel ran out.

Flames in space can burn at a lower temperature, at a lower rate and with less oxygen than in normal gravity. This means that materials used to extinguish fire must be present in higher concentrations. The slow flow of air from the fans mixing air in a spacecraft can make flames burn even faster.

The space station is equipped with carbon-dioxide fire extinguishers, so researchers investigated how fuel droplets burn in the presence of different amounts of CO2. Also, ambient air can become completely fire safe when there is not enough oxygen for fuels to ignite. This threshold is called the limiting oxygen index. Williams and colleagues pinpointed this index for methanol and heptane on the space station.

Fuel combustion experiments

Williams is now working on a new series of experiments, called FLEX-2, which aims to recreate conditions that are closer to what actually happens in a combustion engine. Findings could lead to new designs for cleaner fuels that have a smaller carbon footprint and emit fewer pollutants, among other applications.

While the original FLEX experiments looked at fuels with only one component, FLEX-2 will run tests on fuels with two components, more similar to fuels used in real-life conditions, which usually have multiple components. While FLEX examined the behavior of single fuel droplets, the new round of tests will also look at the interaction of two fuel droplets.

But Williams said he isn't quite done with the original FLEX experiments. He and colleagues still need to explain some of what they observed. For example, when the flame around a fuel droplet extinguishes, that droplet should stop shrinking because combustion has essentially stopped. But in about a dozen instances during the FLEX experiments, heptane droplets kept shrinking at the same rate as when the flame was still burning. Williams, who has studied combustion for the past 50 years, said he has never seen anything like it.

Tests on the space shuttle

This is not Williams' first round of tests to be run in space. His work includes several experiments that ran on Spacelab, a science module flown in the cargo bay of U.S. space shuttles. The holy grail of combustion science is a flame around a fuel droplet that looks like a perfectly symmetrical sphere. That is very hard to achieve here on Earth. It is however a common occurrence in microgravity. Spherical symmetry makes it easier to observe droplets' behavior and to craft the calculations that explain it, Williams said.

During the space shuttle missions, he and colleagues used to work around the clock at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Williams and colleagues also took their families to Cape Canaveral to watch space shuttle Columbia take off in July 1997, when it was carrying a microgravity combustion experiment they designed.

William's interest in combustion dates back to his undergraduate days at Princeton. He was taking a graduate-level course. His professor wrote out on the blackboard the conservation equations of combustion. "When I realized how complicated they were, I said to myself that there is enough there to last me a lifetime," Williams explained.

###

Willams' colleagues on the FLEX and FLEX-2 experiments are: Frederick Dryer, of Princeton; Mun Choi, of the University of Connecticut; Benjamin Shaw at UC Davis; Tom Avedisian of Cornell; Vedha Nayagam at the National Center for Space Exploration Research; Michael Hicks, Daniel Dietrich and others from NASA's Glenn Research Center.

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/uoc--hdy013112.php

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Italian islanders worry about their future (AP)

GIGLIO, Italy ? Residents of the Italian island of Giglio held a strategy meeting Monday as fears mounted about threats to the environment and their prized tourism industry from the stricken Costa Concordia cruise ship lying off the coast.

Officials have ruled out finding anyone else alive more than two weeks after the ship hit a reef. Worries are now focusing on the impact the disaster could have on the pristine Tuscan region, especially if tons of fuel and chemical pollutants spill from the ship.

Ahead of the closed-door meeting, some residents hung a banner demanding the removal of the half-submerged ship, which threatens some of the most unspoiled waters in the Mediterranean and a sanctuary for dolphins and other marine life.

About 500,000 gallons (2,400 tons) of heavy fuel and other pollutants are in danger of leaking out of the ship, threatening the livelihoods of local fishermen and residents who depend on tourism.

"They need to get a move on. We are moving toward the tourist season," said Antonia Rum, a resident heading into the gathering of more than 200 people.

"Let's hope we are able to solve everything without pollution," said Giuseppe De Politi, a Giglio fisherman. "That's the main worry."

Concordia ran aground Jan. 13 when the captain deviated from his planned route and struck a reef, creating a huge gash that capsized the ship. More than 4,200 passengers and crew were on board. Seventeen bodies have been recovered, while 16 people are listed as missing, with one body not yet identified.

The gathering of residents came a day after Franco Gabrielli, the head of Italy's national civil protection agency, said it could take a full seven-to-10 months to remove the massive ship, which is 950 feet (290 meters) long and 115 feet (35 meters) wide. That means the damaged ship, or at least parts of it, will still be off the coast for most, if not all, of the summer tourist season.

One of the residents at the meeting, Fabio Agugliari, expressed the determination to defend the island and its "treasures." Another, Alvaro Andolfi, said residents are mainly demanding transparency from Gabrielli.

"We want him to tell us how it happened that it's going to take a year to remove this ship, what they are doing and how the plans to remove the fuel are proceeding," Andolfi told reporters after the meeting.

The harbor at Giglio, which usually accommodates dozens of private and tourist boats, is now off-limits to any vessels except rescue boats and two ferry companies that connect the island to the mainland.

Lawmaker Angelo Bonelli, with the Greens party, said a 10-month removal process was a huge time span in which oil, solvents and the corrosion of the ship could "provoke a real disaster."

"We have the impression that there is underestimation of the enormous environmental, touristic and economic damage that will take place if the ship stays in its place for more than a year," he was quoted as saying by the ANSA news agency.

The prospects of a quick solution were further dampened Monday by bad weather, which prevented crews from starting to pump oil from the ship. Authorities set off another blast in an underwater compartment of the ship, hoping to find more bodies, but held off on removing fuel.

Despite the rough seas, other workers labored to collect tons of ship debris ? chairs, furniture, luggage ? floating in the surrounding waters or on the shore.

Experts say it will take a month to remove fuel from the 15 tanks that account for more than 80 percent of all the ship's oil. The next job would be to target the ship's engine room, which contains nearly 350 cubic meters of diesel, fuel and other lubricants.

Only once the fuel is pumped out can work begin on removing the ship, either floating it in one piece or cutting it up and towing it away. That operation will involve large barges, cranes and other commercial salvage equipment.

"They say there is not going to be any environmental damage, but we are not stupid. The damage to the environment is strong," said Riccardo Vicchianti, son of a Giglio resident. "If I think of just one cabin, it's like throwing a whole bar into the sea ... imagine a floating town!"

___

Gera reported from Rome.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_italy_ship_aground

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FASEB SRC announces conference registration open for: Protein Phosphatases

Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
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Contact: Jessica Lyons
SRC@faseb.org
301-634-7010
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Bethesda, MD The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) announces the opening of registration for the Science Research Conference (SRC): Protein Phosphatases.

This conference will take place July 15-20, 2012 in Snowmass, Colorado. It provides a forum, where researchers interested in and working on protein phosphatase can meet and discuss their unpublished data, exchange ideas and hypotheses, report about new technologies and intensify and start new collaborations. This 12th biennial conference will include keynote presentations from Drs Jack Dixon and David Sabatini, and sessions on cancer, metabolic disorders, developmental abnormalities, structure, function, regulation, signaling mechanisms, new frontiers and enabling thechnologies, and chemical biology and therapeutics. These sessions will also include short talks selected from submitted abstracts. The goal is to promote the development of fundamental areas of protein phosphatase biology and ultimately facilitate progress towards new therapies for human diseases.

###

Since 1982, FASEB SRC has offered a continuing series of inter-disciplinary exchanges that are recognized as a valuable complement to the highly successful society meetings. Divided into small groups, scientists from around the world meet intimately and without distractions to explore new approaches to those research areas undergoing rapid scientific changes.

In recent years, the SRC series has expanded into non-summer months. To better enhance the SRC series and allow for future expansion of conferences, FASEB's Office of Scientific Meetings and Conferences recently changed the SRC name from Summer Research Conferences to Science Research Conferences.

FASEB SRC has announced a total of 36 SRCs in 2012, spanning from June through October. To register for an SRC, view preliminary programs, or find a listing of all our 2012 SRCs, please visit http://www.faseb.org/SRC.

Additionally, in efforts to continue expanding the SRC series, potential organizers are encouraged to contact SRC staff at SRC@faseb.org. Proposal guidelines can be found by clicking "Submit a Proposal" on our website at http://www.faseb.org/SRC.

FASEB is composed of 26 societies with more than 100,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. Celebrating 100 Years of Advancing the Life Sciences in 2012, FASEB is rededicating its efforts to advance health and well-being by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences through service to our member societies and collaborative advocacy.

---

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?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jessica Lyons
SRC@faseb.org
301-634-7010
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Bethesda, MD The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) announces the opening of registration for the Science Research Conference (SRC): Protein Phosphatases.

This conference will take place July 15-20, 2012 in Snowmass, Colorado. It provides a forum, where researchers interested in and working on protein phosphatase can meet and discuss their unpublished data, exchange ideas and hypotheses, report about new technologies and intensify and start new collaborations. This 12th biennial conference will include keynote presentations from Drs Jack Dixon and David Sabatini, and sessions on cancer, metabolic disorders, developmental abnormalities, structure, function, regulation, signaling mechanisms, new frontiers and enabling thechnologies, and chemical biology and therapeutics. These sessions will also include short talks selected from submitted abstracts. The goal is to promote the development of fundamental areas of protein phosphatase biology and ultimately facilitate progress towards new therapies for human diseases.

###

Since 1982, FASEB SRC has offered a continuing series of inter-disciplinary exchanges that are recognized as a valuable complement to the highly successful society meetings. Divided into small groups, scientists from around the world meet intimately and without distractions to explore new approaches to those research areas undergoing rapid scientific changes.

In recent years, the SRC series has expanded into non-summer months. To better enhance the SRC series and allow for future expansion of conferences, FASEB's Office of Scientific Meetings and Conferences recently changed the SRC name from Summer Research Conferences to Science Research Conferences.

FASEB SRC has announced a total of 36 SRCs in 2012, spanning from June through October. To register for an SRC, view preliminary programs, or find a listing of all our 2012 SRCs, please visit http://www.faseb.org/SRC.

Additionally, in efforts to continue expanding the SRC series, potential organizers are encouraged to contact SRC staff at SRC@faseb.org. Proposal guidelines can be found by clicking "Submit a Proposal" on our website at http://www.faseb.org/SRC.

FASEB is composed of 26 societies with more than 100,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. Celebrating 100 Years of Advancing the Life Sciences in 2012, FASEB is rededicating its efforts to advance health and well-being by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences through service to our member societies and collaborative advocacy.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/foas-fsa_7013012.php

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European bank boss leaves huge bonus on table

LONDON?? Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Stephen Hester will not be accepting a 1 million pound ($1.5 million) bonus that drew criticism from British public and politicians, the bank said Sunday.

Spokesman David Gaffney said Hester would not receive the bonus of 3.6 million shares he was awarded last week by the board of the largely state-owned bank.

The British government spent 45 billion pounds bailing out RBS three years ago. It still owns an 82 percent stake, and politicians had criticized the reward at a time when Britons face painful spending cuts and tax hikes.

The government ? which has insisted it has no control over the bank's bonuses ? welcomed the announcement.

"This is a sensible and welcome decision that enables Stephen Hester to focus on the very important job he has got to do, namely to get back billions of pounds of taxpayers' money that was put into RBS," Treasury chief George Osborne said.

The decision follows Saturday's announcement that RBS chairman Philip Hampton was waiving his own bonus of 1.4 million pounds in shares.

Hester and Hampton were brought in after Fred Goodwin, who led RBS's ill-fated takeover of Dutch bank ABN Amro, stepped down in October 2008 as the government was spending billions to prop up the bank.

The board of directors decided last week to award Hester a bonus of 3.6 million shares ? worth just under 1 million pounds at Friday's closing share price of 27.74 pence. That came on top of his annual salary of 1.2 million pounds.

Prime Minister David Cameron said Saturday that Hester's bonus was "a matter for him," but pointed out it was much less than last year's.

The government claimed it had no control over bonuses awarded by the bank, and said replacing Hester if he resigned would be more costly than paying the reward.

But many politicians were critical. London Mayor Boris Johnson, a Conservative like Cameron, said he found the bonus "absolutely bewildering."

Rachel Reeves, Treasury spokeswoman for the opposition Labour Party, said Sunday the sum was inappropriate "when families are feeling the pinch."

"It's time the government explained why they have allowed these bonuses to go through unchallenged," she said.

Before the bank's announcement, the Labour Party said it would force a vote in the House of Commons next month calling for Hester to be stripped of his bonus.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46183338/ns/business-world_business/

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NBC objects to Mitt Romney?s ?history lesson? ad (Washington Post)

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Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/192711015?client_source=feed&format=rss

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College presidents wary of Obama cost-control plan (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Public university presidents facing ever-increasing state budget cuts are raising concerns about President Barack Obama's plan to force colleges and universities to contain tuition prices or face losing federal dollars.

Illinois State University President Al Bowman says the reality is that deficits in many public schools can't be easily overcome with simple modifications. Bowman says he's happy to hear Obama call for state-level support of public universities but adds that, given the decreases in state aid, tying federal support to tuition is a product of "fuzzy math."

Obama spelled out his proposal Friday at the University of Michigan.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_college_costs

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Senate Republicans take aim at PUC Chair Ellen Anderson (Star Tribune)

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Nuclear Waste Panel Urges ?Consent-Based? Approach

[unable to retrieve full-text content]With local cooperation, the panel said, the government might avoid the kind of conflicts that led to the cancellation of plans to create a vast repository at Yucca Mountain.

Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=e796546b9fc38789b412c1ca3742ca28

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Not So Quick Reax (talking-points-memo)

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Country music great Haggard recovering from pneumonia (Reuters)

NASHVILLE, Tenn (Reuters) ? Country singer Merle Haggard, who was admitted to a Georgia hospital last week after illness forced him to cancel a show, was recovering from a host of health issues discovered while he was being treated for pneumonia, his spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

Haggard was admitted to hospital on January 17, when illness forced him to cancel a show in Macon, Georgia, just moments before taking the stage. He later said that being hospitalized "probably saved my life."

The 74-year-old singer, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, is recovering from double-pneumonia but was also being treated for a number of serious ailments that doctors discovered while he was hospitalized.

Haggard's pneumonia is "almost completely clear, while he is recovering from three stomach ulcers, the removal of eight polyps from his colon and diverticulitis in his esophagus," which were discovered by the Macon medical staff, according to his Los Angeles-based spokesperson Tresa Redburn.

"He will be back up and running in 30 days," said Redburn, adding that Haggard would be in the hospital for "at least a few more days."

"Thanks to the wonderful people all over the world that prayed their special prayers," Redburn quoted Haggard as saying.

"I'm a new man. Another special thanks to the folks of Macon, Georgia, for their kindness, their intelligence and probably saving my life," he said.

Haggard had to cancel the remainder of his January tour and was planning on beginning his performance schedule again in late February.

With influences ranging from Lefty Frizzell to Bob Wills to Jimmie Rodgers, Haggard is an architect of country music's so-called "Bakersfield Sound." He is best known for songs like "Mama Tried," "Okie from Muskogee" and "The Fightin' Side of Me."

(Reporting By Tim Ghianni; Editing by Cynthia Johnston)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120125/people_nm/us_merlehaggard

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'One Tree Hill': What Happened When Julia Left The Baby In The Car? (VIDEO)

Julian got a little too excited and a little too distracted when he got a call from a television series interested in possibly using his soundstage on "One Tree Hill" (Wed., 8 p.m. EST on The CW). When he returns home to share this great news with Brooke in advance of the meeting, she asks him to drop the baby off at daycare on his way.

The next scene of Julian has him picking up a bottle of scotch to celebrate when he gets a phone call. It's Brooke. "Hey, is everything okay?"

He says all is well, but she responds, "Well the day care called and said you never dropped Davis off." At this, Julian rounds the corner to find that the sirens he'd been hearing in the background was the emergency response to his vehicle. The windows are smashed -- did the first responders do this or did something worse happen? -- and a bed is being loaded into the ambulance.

Is this baby Davis? Someone else? Was the baby kidnapped? Did Jordan simply forget him in the car, or did something else happen?

Viewers will have to find out as the final season of "One Tree Hill" continues Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST on The CW.

TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.

Related on HuffPost:

MONDAY, JANUARY 23: "Gossip Girl"

1? of ?19

"Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST, The CW) "Clueless" writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair's bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B's back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair's car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair's secret. "Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST, The CW)
"Clueless" writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair's bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B's back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair's car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair's secret.

MONDAY, JANUARY 23: "Gossip Girl"

"Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST, The CW) "Clueless" writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair's bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B's back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair's car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair's secret. "; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/26/one-tree-hill-julian-left-baby-in-the-car-video_n_1233005.html

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NFL extends Goodell's contract through 2018 season (AP)

NEW YORK ? NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's contract was extended Wednesday through the 2018 season.

The 52-year-old Goodell took over for Paul Tagliabue in 2006. His original five-year contract was extended in 2009, and the new extension runs through March 2019.

He was rewarded by the 32 clubs after one of the league's most successful seasons, even though it was preceded by a 4 1-2 month lockout that led to a new 10-year collective bargaining agreement. Goodell made about $10 million, including bonuses, in his previous deal; during the lockout, he had a $1 salary.

No terms were disclosed for the new contract.

"It is the only place I have ever wanted to work," Goodell said after the league's compensation committee approved the extension. "I am grateful for the contributions and counsel of NFL owners in managing our league, the talented staff that supports us, and the players and coaches that perform their magic on the field. It is truly a team effort.

"I am eagerly looking ahead to the challenge of building on our momentum and doing all we can to improve our game for the fans and everyone that is part of our league."

Goodell has made player safety and discipline his main focal points, and the league has ramped up fines and even suspensions for illegal hits. He also has been criticized for how the league dealt with retired players and with post-career health issues such as brain trauma; both issues have become priorities for Goodell and the league in recent years.

"I speak on behalf of 32 NFL club owners in saying we are fortunate to have Roger Goodell as our commissioner," said Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, chairman of the compensation committee, which also includes owners Tom Benson (New Orleans), Pat Bowlen (Denver), Robert Kraft (New England), Jerry Richardson (Carolina), and Steve Ross (Miami). "Since becoming commissioner in 2006, the NFL - already the leader in professional sports - has gotten even stronger.

"As evidenced by this contract extension, we have great confidence in Roger's vision and leadership of the NFL. Our clubs, players and fans could not ask for a better CEO."

The Sports Business Journal first reported the extension.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_goodell_contract

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NJ Dems firm on gay marriage despite veto threat (AP)

TRENTON, N.J. ? Republican Gov. Chris Christie vowed Tuesday to veto a gay marriage bill under consideration in the Legislature, upending Democrats' plans to revive a measure that failed two years ago and attempting to force lawmakers to put the issue on the ballot instead.

Recent polls show a majority of New Jerseyans support the right of same-sex couples to wed, while voters in 31 states have adopted constitutional amendments defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

Democrats who control the Legislature say the issue is one of civil rights; like a woman's right to vote or anti-discrimination measures, it doesn't belong on the ballot. With Christie seeking a referendum and Democratic leaders resisting, a protracted political standoff is likely.

Similar legislation failed in the Senate in 2010. Six states and Washington, D.C. permit gay marriages.

"Whether or not to redefine hundreds of years of societal and religious traditions should not be decided by 121 people in the Statehouse," Christie said. "Let the people of New Jersey decide what is right for the state."

Christie had said as recently as Monday he would consider the issue if the bill gained momentum in the Legislature, but then made his first explicit promise to veto the bill after a town hall event Tuesday in Bridgewater. The Senate Judiciary Committee, which was holding a hearing on the bill the same day, forwarded the measure to the full Senate hours later, on an 8-4 party-line vote.

"We are going to send this to the governor's desk somehow," said Senate Democratic leader Loretta Weinberg of Teaneck. "That I guarantee you."

With Christie's position now clear ? he staked out similar ground while campaigning for office in 2009 ? Republican lawmakers are expected to line up behind the governor regardless of how they feel personally about gay marriage. Democrats do not have veto-proof majorities in either house, dimming prospects for an override even if they get the bill through; not all Democrats support it.

Senate President Stephen Sweeney, a Democrat who is sponsoring the bill, said some Republicans support it.

"The governor should allow them to vote their conscience. His announcement today was to try to put a damper on what we're trying to do. It's not happening. We're not backing down. We're not giving up."

Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver agreed, saying lawmakers would not shy away from the issue because it is difficult. The Assembly could begin considering the measure as early as next week.

Sweeney, who didn't always support gay marriage, abstained from voting on the measure the last time around, but later called his inaction the biggest mistake of his political career.

"For those who haven't made their minds up, or are leaning toward voting no, I urge you to take another look," Sweeney testified at the hearing. "How would you feel if your government told you you couldn't marry the person you love because of who you chose to love?"

Some of Tuesday's testimony was from same-sex couples who said the state's civil union law ? which conveys the benefits of marriage without the title ? doesn't work as intended.

John Grant and Daniel Weiss, an Asbury Park couple who are in a civil union, attended the session to support the legislation.

When Grant was in a life-threatening automobile accident and rushed to a New York hospital in 2010 ? before that state legalized gay marriage ? Weiss said he couldn't authorize badly needed surgery or even go through his partner's wallet to find his health insurance card. He said their civil union was essentially worthless; Grant's neurosurgeon even asked, "What is a civil union?"

Also Tuesday, 127 professors from 48 law schools around the country signed a letter saying New Jersey's civil union law cannot be fixed.

The professors, including former New Jersey Public Advocate Ron Chen, said the law granting gay couples the benefits of marriage without the title will never be equal to the right to marry.

The letter was sent to Christie, a Catholic, and the Legislature.

The legislation contains a religious opt-out clause, meaning no church clergy would be required to perform gay marriages; places of worship would not have to allow same-sex weddings at their facilities.

Nonetheless, several cited their religious beliefs as the reason to vote down the proposal.

"A vote for gay marriage is a vote against God," said Pat Necerato, a Millstone resident who operates an online ministry, though he is not ordained.

Sen. Joseph Kyrillos, a Monmouth County Republican who is seeking the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, said flaws in the civil union law should be addressed. For example, he encouraged the Health Department to investigate claims that civil unions are being ignored when one partner is hospitalized.

Dissatisfied with the civil union law enacted five years ago, New Jersey's gay rights organization, Garden State Equality, and same-sex couples have sued to force the state to allow gay couples to marry. The lawsuit is pending and is likely to be decided by the state Supreme Court.

Christie on Monday nominated an openly gay black man to the court. During the news conference that followed, he said he would look at the gay marriage bill if it gained traction, though he said he was not inclined to change his opposition.

___

Henry reported from Bridgewater.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/democrats/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_re_us/us_gay_marriage_nj

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iVoices: Revving Up For Election 2012

Excitement surrounds the search for the next Republican nominee but what do voters want in a candidate? iVoices Beth Engelman, Sharon Rowley, Stephanie Dulli and Joey Fortman chime in on the issues that matter to them for the 2012 election.

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/ivoices-revving-election-2012/1-h-421506?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Aivoices-revving-election-2012-421506

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Mitt Romney Stumped By Open-Ended Personal Question in Florida Debate

"Well, number one, I've raised a family," Mitt Romney said during Monday night's Florida GOP debate when asked what he'd done to further the conservative movement.

"And I've - I've, with my wife, we've raised five wonderful sons, and we have 16 wonderful grandkids," he awkwardly continued, before finally answering the question.

He went on to mention his private sector and gubernatorial experience, but the reference to his family stuck, highlighting his inability to connect to many voters.

It's a problem evident in his defeat in South Carolina last week. He's skilled at detailing the X's and O's of policy, but falls short in efforts to prove he's authentic.

Newt, meanwhile, talked about helping Barry Goldwater's campaign in 1964 and later Ronald Reagan's successful 1980 bid, as well as his own efforts as Speaker.

The Gingrich campaign certainly reveled in Romney's non-answer. Minutes after the debate, it sent an e-mail titled "Mitt Romney's Top Conservative Achievements."

It was blank.

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/mitt-romney-stumped-by-open-ended-personal-question/

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Earthquake shakes northern Dominican Republic

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) ? A moderate earthquake struck Monday in the northern Dominican Republic but there were no reports of damage or injuries.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 5.1. The epicenter was in the coastal town of Rio San Juan, about 155 miles (250 kilometers) north of the capital and 22 miles (35 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco de Macoris.

A seismology institute at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo said its equipment recorded a magnitude of 5.4.

Juan Manuel Mendez, director of the country's Emergency Operations Center, said emergency workers had fanned out in communities along the northern coast to check for damage or injuries but had so far found none.

Tremors were felt as far away as Cap Haitien in northern Haiti and along the west coast of Puerto Rico.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-23-CB-Dominican-Republic-Earthquake/id-f02e96f3735c4d5c9108f2ec8fae3e45

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Ship search finds 12th body, captain's documents

An Italian fireman descends from an helicopter to the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

An Italian fireman descends from an helicopter to the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

A woman checks if her clothes are dry as the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia is seen in background, off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain, Capt. Francesco Schettino, who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

The grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia lays off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

An Italian Coast Guard boat patrols the area around the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

Fuel spilling experts work on the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. The cruise captain who grounded the Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast with 4,200 people on board did not relay correct information either to the company or crew after the ship hit rocks, the cruise ship owner's CEO said as the search resumed for 21 missing passengers. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

GIGLIO, Italy (AP) ? Divers plumbing the capsized Costa Concordia's murky depths pulled out the body of a woman in a life vest Saturday, while scuba-diving police swam through the captain's cabin to retrieve a safe and documents belonging to the man who abandoned the cruise liner after it was gashed by a rocky reef on the Tuscan coast.

Hoping for a miracle ? or at least for the recovery of bodies from the ship that has become an underwater tomb ? relatives of some of the 20 missing appealed to survivors of the Jan. 13 shipwreck to offer details that could help divers reach loved ones while it is still possible to search the luxury liner. The clock is ticking because the craft is perched precariously on a rocky ledge of seabed near Giglio island.

"We are asking the 4,000 persons who were on board to give any information they can about any of the persons still missing," said Alain Litzler, a Frenchman who is the father of missing passenger Mylene Litzler. "We need precise information to help the search and rescue teams find them."

Early Sunday, instruments monitoring any movement of the Concordia indicated that vessel had shifted slightly, so search efforts were suspended for the night, Italian state radio reported.

The death toll rose to at least 12 Saturday after a water-logged body was extracted from a passageway near a gathering point for evacuation by lifeboats in the rear of the vessel, Coast Guard Cmdr. Filippo Marini said. It was not immediately clear if the woman was a passenger or crew member. A female Peruvian bartender and several adult female passengers were among the 21 people listed as missing before the latest corpse was found.

Relatives of the bartender and of an Indian crewman, along with two children of an elderly couple from Minnesota who are among the missing, boarded a boat Saturday to view the wrecked Concordia Saturday, said a maritime official, Fabrizio Palombo.

Family members tossed flowers near the site while islanders standing on the rocky edge of the island also strew bouquets on the water in a tribute to the victims.

Another Coast Guard official, Cosimo Nicastro, said the woman's body was found during a particularly risky inspection.

"The corridor was very narrow, and the divers' lines risked snagging" on furniture and objects floating in the passageway, Nicastro said. To help the coast guard divers reach the area, Italian navy divers had preceded them, setting off charges to blast holes for easier entrance and exit.

Meanwhile, police divers, carrying out orders from prosecutors investigating Captain Francesco Schettino for suspected manslaughter and abandoning the ship, swam through the cold, dark waters to reach his cabin. State TV and the Italian news agency ANSA reported that the divers located and remove his safe and two suitcases. His passport and several documents were also pulled out, state media said.

Searchers inspecting the bridge Saturday also found a hard disk containing data of the voyage, Sky TG24 TV reported.

Three bodies were found in waters around the ship in the first hours after the accident. Since then, divers have gone inside the Concordia to recover all the remaining victims, who were apparently unable to escape the lurching ship during a chaotic evacuation launched almost an hour after the liner hit a reef.

Some survivors who couldn't board lifeboats waited for hours aboard the capsizing craft for rescue by helicopters while others jumped into the water and swam to safety.

The last survivor, found aboard 36 hours after the crash, was an Italian crewman who broke his leg in the confusion and couldn't leave the ship.

The Concordia hit the reef, well-marked on maritime and even tourist maps, while most of the passengers sat down to dinner in the main restaurant, about two hours after the ship had set sail from the port of Civitavecchia on the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Costa Crociere, the ship's operator and subsidiary of U.S.-based Carnival Cruise Lines, has said the captain had deviated without permission from the vessel's route in an apparent maneuver to sail close to the island of Giglio and impress passengers.

Schettino, despite audiotapes of his defying Coast Guard orders to scramble back aboard, has denied he abandoned ship while hundreds of passengers were desperately trying to get off the capsizing vessel. He has said he coordinated the rescue from aboard a lifeboat and then from the shore.

The effort to find survivors and bodies has postponed an operation to remove heavy fuel in the Concordia's tanks; specialized equipment has been standing by for days.

Light fuel, apparently from machinery aboard the capsized ship, was spotted in nearby waters, authorities said Saturday.

But Nicastro said there was no indication that any of the nearly 500,000 gallons (2,200 metric tons) of heavy fuel oil has leaked from the ship's double-bottomed tanks, seen as a risk if the ship's position changes. He said the leaked substance appears to be diesel, which is used to fuel rescue boats and dinghies and as a lubricant for ship machinery.

There are 185 tons of diesel and lubricants on board the crippled vessel, which is lying on its side just outside Giglio's port. Nicastro described the fuel in the sea as "very light, very superficial" and appearing to be under control.

But an official leading rescue, search and anti-pollution efforts for the ship suggested that the luxury liner would have leaked contaminants on board when it tipped over.

"We must not forget that on that ship there are oils, solvents, detergents, everything that a city of 4,000 people needs," Franco Gabrielli, the head of Italy's civil protection agency, told reporters in Giglio.

Gabrielli was referring to the roughly 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew who were aboard the cruise liner when it ran into the reef and, with seawater rushing into a 230-foot (70-meter) gash in its hull, listed and fell onto its side. "Contamination of the environment, ladies and gentlemen, already occurred" when the liner capsized, Gabrelli said.

Vessels equipped with machinery to suck out the light fuel oil were in the area. Earlier on Saturday, crews removed oil-absorbing booms used to prevent environmental damage in case of a leak. Originally white, the booms were grayish.

Schettino, is under house arrest for investigation of alleged manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning the ship before all were evacuated.

The search had been suspended Friday after the Concordia shifted, prompting fears the ship could roll off a rocky ledge of sea bed and plunge deeper into the pristine waters around Giglio, part of a seven-island Tuscan archipelago.

___

D'Emilio reported from Rome. Colleen Barry contributed from Milan and Andrea Foa from Giglio.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-21-EU-Italy-Cruise-Aground/id-5babbe3aff9048afa65f7d6befb715f5

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Gingrich, Romney Ham house standoff fizzles (AP)

GREENVILLE, S.C. ? So just where was the beef?

It turns out that the great ham house standoff had no sizzle, no matter how you sliced it.

GOP presidential rivals Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich were expected to cross paths at a campaign stop in Greenville as they rallied voters on primary day. But the much-hyped Republican run-in failed to materialize after Romney showed up at Tommy's Ham House earlier than originally planned.

A sea of "Newt 2012" and "Romney" signs jostled in the packed restaurant.

Romney departed about 20 minutes before Gingrich arrived. When Gingrich walked in he said, "where's Mitt?"

Earlier, Gingrich urged voters to support him if they want to stop Romney from winning the nomination.

Gingrich stopped by The Grapevine restaurant in Boiling Springs not long after the polls opened g. He told diners who were enjoying plates of eggs and grits that he's the "the only practical conservative vote" if Republicans want to slow Romney, described by Gingrich as a Massachusetts moderate.

Gingrich said he would put a stop to federal actions against South Carolina's voter ID and immigration laws.

The former House speaker, who has seen his support rise in the days before the primary, said "polls are good, votes are better."

After disappointing finishes in Iowa and New Hampshire, the former House speaker hit his stride as the nation's first Southern primary neared, rallying conservatives behind him as the most viable alternative to the former Massachusetts governor.

Fueled by fiery debate performances and assisted in part by his Southern roots, Gingrich counted on a strong performance Saturday in South Carolina's GOP primary to catapult him back into the top tier of White House hopefuls.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_el_pr/us_gingrich

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HRW calls on West to end 'Arab exception'

Protesters chant slogans at a rally honoring those killed in clashes with security forces in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, Friday, Jan. 20, 2012, nearly a year after the 18-day uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak. Activists are now trying to energize the public to demand that the ruling military step down. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Protesters chant slogans at a rally honoring those killed in clashes with security forces in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, Friday, Jan. 20, 2012, nearly a year after the 18-day uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak. Activists are now trying to energize the public to demand that the ruling military step down. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Protesters seen through the Syrian national flag chant slogans during an anti-regime protest in front of the Syrian embassy in Amman, Jordan, Friday, Jan. 20, 2012. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)

CAIRO (AP) ? Popular uprisings sweeping the Arab world exposed biases by Western governments that supported Arab autocratic rulers for the sake of "stability" while turning a blind eye to their repressive policies, Human Rights Watch said Sunday.

The New-York based group urged democratic governments to adopt persistent and consistent support for peaceful protesters and to press both autocratic rulers and newly emerging democracies to avoid intolerance and seeking revenge.

"The events of the past year show that the forced silence of people living under autocrats should never have been mistaken for popular complacency," HRW's executive director Kenneth Roth said. "It is time to end the 'Arab exception.'"

The Arab Spring revolts began in Tunisia in late 2010 and quickly spread to Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Syria and Bahrain, deposing or challenging authoritarian rulers as citizens who long seemed incapable or unwilling to rise against decades of repression took to the streets in a stunning awakening.

In some ways, the unexpected uprisings amounted to a slap to the United States and other Western governments, which had supported autocratic regimes that served as bulwarks against Islamists hostile to the West and appeared to offer stability in a volatile region.

Western governments also have been accused of being selective in supporting the protesters, with NATO airstrikes proving key to the ouster of slain Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi. Meanwhile, the West has stood largely on the sidelines amid continued crackdowns in Bahrain, Yemen and Syria.

"The people driving the Arab Spring deserve strong international support to realize their rights and to build genuine democracies," Roth said in the group's annual report, which covers some 90 countries. He added that the Arab world is in a "transformative moment," and it will not be an easy one.

Human Rights Watch pointed to five main issues that dominated the relationship between Western governments and their Arab autocratic friends: the threat of political Islam, the fight against terrorism, support for Israel, protection of the oil flow and cooperation in stemming immigration.

Even after the leaders of Egypt, Libya and Tunisia were toppled, Western governments remained hesitant to lean too hard on other shaky authoritarian leaders, the group said.

As an example, the watchdog group singled out the United States, saying it has been reluctant to "press Egypt's ruling military council to subject itself to elected civilian rule," nearly a year after the country's longtime leader was ousted following an 18-day uprising.

Roth acknowledged Western governments were re-evaluating their policies as new governments emerge in the region, but said changes have been selective.

"The West has not put Bahrain under pressure, and other monarchs, to carry out reforms," he told The Associated Press in an interview ahead of the report's release in Cairo.

The organization also blamed the Western hesitation in part on the ascendence of political Islam in most of the countries that witnessed the fall of their autocratic rulers like Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia.

HRW urged the West to recognize that Islamists are the "majority preference," while keeping pressure on the emerging new governments to respect human rights, especially regarding women and religious minorities.

Roth was cautious when asked about concerns about potential human rights violations under Islamist rule, particularly in Egypt where the Muslim Brotherhood and ultraconservative Salafis won a majority of seats in the first post-Hosni Mubarak parliament.

He said the Muslim Brotherhood has been "saying the right things" but "we have to see how they govern and how they deal with women, religious minorities. These are the big questions."

The popular uprisings also have alarmed other repressive regimes such as China, Zimbabwe, North Korea, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Uzbekistan, where rulers were worried about facing similar fates. The group said China and Russia in particular acted "obstructionist," using their veto power at the U.N. security council to halt pressure on Syria to stop killings of protesters.

Saudi Arabia also continues to discriminate against its citizens and workers, according to HRW, which said 9 million women, 8 million foreign workers and 2 million Shiite citizens are either suppressed or lacking rights in the country.

"As we mark the first anniversary of the Arab Spring, we should stand firmly for the rights and aspirations of the individual over the spoils of the tyrant," Roth said.

Outside the Arab world, the last year has not witnessed significant progress in countries with poor human rights records, including China and North Korea, according to the report.

Corruption, poverty and repression still prevail in Equatorial Guinea, the tiny, oil-rich nation off the western coast of Africa, which has been ruled by Africa's longest-serving ruler Teodoro Obiang Nguema since he seized power in a 1979 coup, the group said.

Eritrea continues to be governed by "one of the world's most repressive governments," and its citizens are subjected to torture, detentions, restrictions on freedom of speech, HRW said.

It also cited Colombia, saying armed conflict in the South American country has displaced millions while paramilitary groups with ties to the security apparatus are on the rise.

Cuba, HRW said, remains "the only country in Latin America that represses virtually all forms of political dissent."

The group also claimed that even member states of the European Union have violated human rights through restrictive asylum and migration policies.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-22-Human-Rights-Report/id-cb9bc08685954025be900b9330733093

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