May 28, 1959: Inventing a New Language for Business

By Dylan Tweney

1959: A meeting at the Pentagon lays the foundations for the computer language that will later be known as COBOL, which goes on to become a mainstay of business computing for the next four decades.

COBOL, short for Common Business-Oriented Language, was one of the earliest computer languages. It was also, along with Fortran, one of the first programming languages to be based on English words.

It owes its existence to Grace Hopper, one of the earliest computer programmers. Hopper cut her programming teeth in the U.S. Naval Reserve, writing machine code for the Harvard Mark I computer during World War II. In the late 1950s, she came up with the idea that computer languages could be made to resemble human language, making them far more understandable than the assembly language and machine code used for all computer programming up to that point.

Sensing an opportunity to make computer programming more accessible and useful for business, the 1959 Pentagon meeting set up several working committees. They included reps from various computer manufacturers, so the language would be machine-independent. The most productive of those committees quickly developed the initial language specification, using Hopper’s Flow-Matic language as a starting point, and extending it with ideas from IBM’s business-oriented Fortran sibling, Comtran.

By December 1959, the committee had finished its specifications and named the language COBOL. The first COBOL compilers were built shortly thereafter, in 1960. The language evolved somewhat and became an ANSI specification in 1968.

Gary Coleman Made Undeniable Impact On Pop Culture

Onetime child actor lived a complicated public life following star-making turn on 'Diff'rent Strokes'

By Brian Warmoth

Gary Coleman's career in the public eye introduced nearly as many tangled issues as his "Diff'rent Strokes" character Arnold Jackson grappled with amid laughs. The 42-year-old actor died due to an intercranial hemorrhage Friday (May 28) after being taken off life support at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, and he left behind one of television's most iconic characters, as well as an adult life that reflected the problems he carried away from his experiences as a child actor.

Coleman's recent appearances in works like the documentary "Midgets vs. Mascots" and the TV show "Divorce Court" demonstrated the personal issues he dealt with in the shadow of a young role that defined him for many and the public displays of anger he became known for later on in life. As an actor whose early television work brought discussions about race relations and class into homes across the country, his legacy will also encompass the 1989 lawsuit he filed against his real-life adopted parents for mismanaging his money and the parodies his role as Arnold spawned, both in Coleman's own work and elsewhere.

"Diff'rent Strokes" hit on dramatic real-world topics during its run, notably inviting Nancy Reagan on during an episode focused on drugs. The show also took a stand against racism in a story where Arnold's adopted father, Dr. Drummond, tried to get him and his brother Willis (played by Todd Bridges) into his exclusive prep-school alma mater. In that case, the criteria in the school's entrance exam became part of the issue. During its run, "Diff'rent Strokes" revisited such themes, though, including an episode where Willis encountered more overt discrimination while trying to take a white girl to a dance.

Mark Zuckerberg: I Donated to Open Source, Facebook Competitor

By Ryan Singel

You might expect that Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg would dismiss the four NYU college students who want to take on Facebook’s dominance of social networking by building a distributed, open alternative that includes a way for people to run their own servers.

But instead, Zuckerberg said he donated to the Diaspora project, adding to the $190,000 it has raised, in part because he appreciates their drive to change the world. (Note: This reporter followed up with Facebook’s press office Thursday to ask how much Zuckerberg donated to Diaspora, but the press office said they’d rather not answer.)

In an interview with Wired.com on Wednesday after announcing simpler privacy controls for Facebook, Zuckerberg also talked about where he sees the site going, his drive to make the world more open, why the face in Facebook is so important and why he wouldn’t start a social network if he were launching a site today.

Romania qualifies for the Eurovision final

Romania's song "Playing with fire", by Paula Seling and Ovi, has qualified for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest.

The final is scheduled for Saturday, in Oslo (Norway).

Countries that made it through yesterday’s semi-final (Thurs) also includes Georgia, Ukraine, Turkey, Israel, Ireland, Cyprus, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Denmark.

Performers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Russia, Greece, Portugal, Belarus, Serbia, Albania, Belgium and Iceland were selected for the finals during the first round of semi-finals held Tuesday.

France, Germany, Norway, Spain and Great Britain qualified directly for the final, without semifinals.

Last year, Romania's song, "The Balkan Girls" by Elena Gheorghe, finished 19th in the final.

Rabbi for human rights

By Peggy Cidor

Religious leader on Sheikh Jarrah injustice.

On a Friday afternoon two months ago, someone drew my the attention to a man wearing a crocheted kippa at the weekly Friday demonstration at Sheikh Jarrah, and the tone of his remark was rather cynical. “I wonder if he is here for provocation or support,” said the young man standing beside me. A photojournalist standing nearby, recognizing the man, answered, “The most probable provocation you may expect from this guy is that he might be the only one the police will arrest here today”.

The man in question, tall and bearded, his tzitzit sticking out of his pants, pacing nervously and talking on his cellphone, was Rabbi Arik Ascherman, executive director of Rabbis for Human Rights. 

Since the onset of the weekly demonstrations by left-wing Israelis protesting against the Jewish residents who moved into the houses evacuated by their Arab inhabitants about six months ago, Ascherman has become a prominent figure among the demonstrators. The houses were recognized by the High Court of Justice as legal Israeli property, which sanctioned the eviction of the Arab families who had been living there since 1948.

Ascherman believes that even if the seizure of the properties is legal, the eviction of the families, which include children and the elderly, who are now forced to live in tents, is contrary to Jewish ethics.

Cameron welcomes Kenyan piracy help

LONDON — Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed Kenya's efforts in the fight against Somali piracy during talks on Friday with Prime Minister Raila Odinga in London, Downing Street said.

The pair also discussed international development and bilateral ties in Cameron's first meeting with an African leader since taking office.

"The prime minister welcomed Kenya's cooperation in confronting the threat of piracy off the coast of Somalia," a spokesman said after the talks.

Kenya has detained more than 100 suspected pirates for trial, many of them captured in waters off lawless Somalia, under an agreement with the European Union, although it said last month that it intended to stop doing so.

A British couple are among those who have fallen foul of the pirates. Paul and Rachel Chandler have been held in Somalia ever since their yacht was seized in the Indian Ocean last October.

Downing Street also said Cameron also assured Odinga "of his commitment to the UK's strong partnership with Kenya, and his support for vigorous political and economic reform" and vowed to keep international development aid at 0.7 percent of GDP.

Cameron was due to speak to Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni later on Friday.

Futenma's relocation to Henoko a done deal

Joint statement falls in line with 2006 accord fundamentals

By MASAMI ITO

Staff writer

Japan and the United States released a joint statement Friday on the contentious relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko, Okinawa, basically ending up in line with a 2006 bilateral agreement and triggering strong anger and disappointment among locals.

After the government spent months reviewing the 2006 accord as well as holding discussions with U.S. officials, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyamaabandoned his plan to move Futenma out of Okinawa and agreed to ensure the environmental impact assessment procedures and construction of the replacement facility would be "completed without significant delay."

The government had to drop an extraordinary Cabinet meeting later Friday to approve the Futenma decision amid turmoil over how to deal with Social Democratic Party chief Mizuho Fukushima, who has threatened to quit the ruling bloc if the base stays in Okinawa.

Canada expresses regret, says it is reviewing visa policy

Sandeep Dikshit

NEW DELHI: Canada has regretted the use of the language that “cast false impressions” in the denial of visa to former or serving members of the Indian armed forces and security institutions and assured India that it is reviewing the admissibility policy set forth in the legislation on visa policy.

This followed a belated, but sharp Indian reaction to the Canadian authorities citing reasons such as human rights violation while declining visas to Indians who were or are associated with the security and intelligence organisations.

In a statement aimed at assuaging India's sentiments, Canadian Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney deeply regretted the incident in which letters drafted by his consular officials during routine visa refusal cast “false aspersions” on the legitimacy of work carried out by Indian defence and security institutions.

These organisations, he acknowledged, operated under the framework of “democratic processes and the rule of law,” and assessments of candidates, in no way, questioned the functioning of these organisations.

Dissociating Ottawa from the language or the “inaccurate” impression it has created, Mr. Kenney felt that the problem arose from the “deliberately” broad legislation on visa policy that led to officials casting the net “too widely.” For this reason, Canada was actively reviewing the admissibility policy.

Johnson & Johnson Criticized Over Drug Recall

Criminal penalties are one option, FDA says

FRIDAY, May 28 (HealthDay News) -- Criminal penalties could be levied against the Johnson & Johnson division responsible for a recent massive recall of pediatric medications, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration official said Thursday.

The FDA is "considering additional enforcement actions against the company for its pattern of noncompliance, which may include seizures, injunction or criminal penalties," Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, the FDA's principal deputy commissioner, said during a Congressional hearing, The New York Times reported.

Evidence presented at the hearing indicated a history of problems within the company, the newspaper said.

Sharfstein said a pattern of violations in manufacturing and quality-control procedures led the J&J unit, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, on April 30 to recall on more than 136 million bottles of liquid children's drugs, including Tylenol, Motrin and Benadryl. The medications may have contained inactive ingredients that failed testing, bits of metal or too much active ingredient.

But that recall was not the drug manufacturer's first quality issue, and lawmakers and regulators are now questioning the company's integrity, the Times said.

Porn ban on net and mobiles mulled by South Africa

A South African government official is proposing a complete ban on digitally distributed pornography.

Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Malusi Gigaba has approached the country's Law Reform Commission to ask whether a change in the law is possible.

He has also had talks with the Justice Alliance for South Africa (JASA), a respected group which has written its own draft bill on the issue.

Internet security experts have dismissed the idea as "madness".

"Cars are already provided with brakes and seatbelts... There is no reason why the internet should be provided without the necessary restrictive mechanisms built into it," said Mr Gigaba.

Khaled opens Thuwal development project

By ARAB NEWS

JEDDAH: Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal opened the first phase of the Thuwal Development Project with the collaboration of King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST) on Wednesday.

Jeddah Gov. Prince Mishaal bin Majed and Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Ali Al-Naimi also participated in the function.

The project, envisioned by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, aims at the comprehensive development of Thuwal, where KAUST is located. It includes generation of employment opportunities for the local people apart from protection of environment, ecology and heritage of the region.

In his inaugural address Prince Khaled stressed the role of the university to speed up social and economic development.

English Defence League: Inside the violent world of Britain's new far right

Undercover Guardian investigation reveals plan by English Defence League to hit racially sensitive areas in attempt to provoke disorder over summer

Matthew Taylor

MPs expressed concern tonight after it emerged that far-right activists are planning to step up their provocative street campaign by targeting some of the UK's highest-profile Muslim communities, raising fears of widespread unrest this summer.

Undercover footage shot by the Guardian reveals the English Defence League, which has staged a number of violent protests in towns and cities across the country this year, is planning to "hit" Bradford and the London borough of Tower Hamlets as it intensifies its street protests.

Senior figures in the coalition government were briefed on the threat posed by EDL marches this week. Tomorrow up to 2,000 EDL supporters are expected to descend on Newcastle for its latest protest.

MPs said the group's decision to target some of the UK's most prominent Muslim communities was a blatant attempt to provoke mayhem and disorder. "This group has no positive agenda," said the Bradford South MP, Gerry Sutcliffe. "It is an agenda of hate that is designed to divide people and communities. We support legitimate protest but this is not legitimate, it is designed to stir up trouble. The people of Bradford will want no part of it".

The English Defence League, which started in Luton last year, has become the most significant far-right street movement in the UK since the National Front in the 1970s. A Guardian investigation has identified a number of known rightwing extremists who are taking an interest in the movement – from convicted football hooligans to members of violent rightwing splinter groups.

Unplugged Christians living off the grid

By Misty Showalter, CNN

Watch Christians Unplugged on CNN International "World's Untold Stories" May 29 at 1630 GMT, May 30 at 1100 GMT, 1830 GMT and May 31 at 0200 GMT

Summer Lake, Oregon (CNN) -- As the sun rises, cool blues and grays begin their slow transition to glowing golds and ambers. Like a child's pop-up book, dimension is added and a valley is transformed.

To look upon this beauty in the western U.S. state of Oregon is to understand what people mean when they say this is God's country, and that's exactly why Brother Gregory lives here.

He is part of a wider movement of conservative Christians who are choosing to live their lives on the edge of society, unplugged from civilization as much as they can, living under basic biblical principles.

Brother Gregory -- the "Brother" is more of a nickname than an occupational title -- ministers from the Oregon desert where he lives with his wife, some of his grown children and grandchildren.

Like other conservative Christians in this growing movement, Brother Gregory believes that Christianity has strayed too far from its roots, and has given its role in people's lives over to the government -- as with welfare programs or health care.

Tanker truck explosion forces closure of 91 Freeway in Corona

A tanker truck burst into flames and exploded Friday on the 91 Freeway in Corona, prompting the CHP to close the freeway in both directions.

The tanker exploded about 10:39 a.m. after an accident involving two other vehicles. TV footage showed a huge fireball burning on the freeway.

Before the explosion, the California Highway Patrol closed the eastbound Riverside Freeway at Green River and the westbound 91 at the 71 Freeway for safety reasons.

Responding CHP officers had been unable to locate the driver of the tanker truck, according to a CHP incident report.

Apple iPad frenzy spreads abroad; supplies limited

By Matt Cowan and Marie Mawad

(Reuters) - Diehard fans mobbed Apple Inc stores in Europe and Asia as the iPad went on sale outside the United States on Friday, with some shoppers having queued all night to buy one of the coveted tablet computers.

The device, a little smaller than a regular notebook computer and with an open, colour touchscreen, is designed for surfing the Web, watching movies and reading, and has been hailed by the publishing industry as a potential life-saver.

Apple sold a million iPads in the United States in the first month after its April 3 debut, exceeding the most bullish pre-launch estimates. Demand was so heavy the company delayed the international launch.

RBC Capital Markets estimated iPad's total shipments will reach 8.13 million units worldwide by the end of the year -- which would translate into at least $4 billion in revenue.

"I wanted to touch it as soon as possible. I felt real excitement when it was finally in my hands," said Takechiyo Yamanaka, 19, who had camped out in front of Tokyo's flagship Apple store from Wednesday evening to be the first in line.

Nigeria: President Goodluck's wife wins motorcycle

LAGOS, Nigeria — It appears as though Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan's luck might have rubbed off on his wife.

A spokesman for Union Bank says First Lady Patience Jonathan has won a motorcycle in a drawing the bank held for its customers.

Union Bank spokesman Francis Barde told The Associated Press on Friday that officials have informed the first lady that she won and invited her to claim the motorcycle, known throughout Nigeria as an "okada".

Chance has played a large part in putting Jonathan into the presidency of the oil-rich nation. Jonathan formally assumed office after the May 5 death of the elected president.

Previously, Jonathan became a state governor after the elected governor was indicted on corruption charges.

Sex And The City 2: I’m just not that into it

Film review: Sex And The City 2 (15). Running time: 146min

Before you all start with the: ‘Two stars? Stupid critic, what does she know?’ I wish to state that I not only LOVED the first movie, I can practically recite the entire TV series. And I’m telling you, my fellow SATC-istas, that you just won’t be that into this sequel.

It’s two years later and Samantha (Kim Cattrall) is now the only one getting any sex in the city. And she’s menopausal. Charlotte (Kristin Davis) is in denial that her adoptive children are driving her crazy (despite an angelic full-time nanny and adoring rich husband). Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), also with full-time nanny and adoring husband, is threatening to quit her high-powered job. And Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) can’t sleep because there’s a tiny pea under her mattress. OK, I made that last one up – but her ‘big crisis’ this time is having a princessy strop over the fact that Big (now her happy and adoring mega-rich husband) would rather snuggle up with her watching old black-and-white movies in their palatial central Manhattan apartment than hit the party circuit. ‘Where’s the sparkle gone?’ she whines to Big. She could be talking about the franchise.

Spain's credit rating cut

Ratings agency Fitch downgrades the country, saying austerity measures will affect growth

Associated Press

Fitch Ratings cut Spain's credit rating today, saying the government's efforts to reduce debt will weigh on economic growth in the coming months – another blow to prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's efforts to shore up confidence in the state finances.

The ratings agency cut the country's rating one notch from AAA to AA plus, saying Zapatero's efforts to close the budget deficit "will materially reduce the rate of growth of the Spanish economy over the medium term".

The ratings agency decision echoes concerns from economists that efforts to cut state debt will also withdraw stimulus from the economy and hinder growth. Lower growth in turn means gathering less in tax revenues. It comes after a similar move a month ago by fellow ratings agency Standard & Poor's. The third main ratings agency, Moody's, has kept Spain on its highest level so far.

Spain currently has an unemployment rate of 20% and is struggling with large deficits and the hangover from a collapsed housing and real estate boom.

On Thursday, Zapatero's austerity package, which froze pensions and cut civil servants' wages, passed by just one vote in Parliament. The narrow margin underscored the government's shaky position in parliament and the depth of resistance by unions to austerity measures.