Singer Elvis Presley is pictured in an undated, autographed publicity photograph.
By Eric Kelsey, Reuters
LOS ANGELES -- Elvis Presley and The Beatles top the list of most-forged celebrity signatures in 2012, with less than half of their autographs for sale certified as genuine, memorabilia authenticators PSA/DNA said on Thursday.
The King and The Fab Four British rockers, who topped the list two years ago when it was last released, joined notable figures such as former U.S. President John F. Kennedy and late pop star Michael Jackson on the list of most-forged celebrity signatures.
Late American astronaut Neil Armstrong landed at No. 3 on the list, after fake Armstrong signatures rose significantly after his death in July.
One reason forgeries of Armstrong's autograph soared was that he rarely signed for fans during his life, Joe Orlando, president of Newport Beach-based PSA/DNA, told Reuters.
"Armstrong is someone who is very conscious of the value of his own autograph," Orlando said. "Even before he passed away he was very tough to get ... It really heightens the level of his market."
Secretaries and assistants responding to huge volumes of fan mail are one reason for fake signatures floating through the marketplace, said Margaret Barrett, director of entertainment and music memorabilia at Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles.
"Back in the day, the kids would write to the movie studios," Barrett said.
"There was absolutely no financial gain 50 years ago and secretaries and assistants just wanted to make them happy. A lot of times people stumble upon an old box of signed photographs in grandma's attic and don't know they're forged."
Barrett, whose specialty is late Hollywood actress Marilyn Monroe's autographs, said that official documents such as contracts and checks are reliable sources to verify whether or not a signature is forged.
"A good rule of thumb is to compare it to a signed contract," she said. "Sometimes (celebrities) would have secretaries or others sign photos and letters but they couldn't have a contract signed by a proxy."
It appears as if Britney Spears may be on the chopping block after the “X Factor” lost viewers on their finale show. Insiders report that Simon Cowell is ready to fire Spears because he wanted “crazy Britney, but he got boring Britney.” The singer, who had a lucrative $15 million contract for her stint on ...
A Life Inc. post this week on ways to fix Social Security?s longer term funding issues prompted an intense debate over whether the system can be fixed, how to do it ? and when.
Social Security could start to face funding shortfalls in about two decades if nothing is done. Experts say now would be a good time to think about how to fix the potential shortfalls, because it would give lawmakers years to ease in the changes gradually.
Many also note that there are some relatively simple, if not very popular, ways to amend the current system. They include raising taxes on some or all Americans, reducing benefits and extending the age at which people can start collecting benefits.
Many readers agreed that now is the time for action.
?Fixing it before it goes broke is easier and less painful than waiting. Get it done. Now,? one reader urged.
But others ? perhaps watching how little progress politicians have made on the fiscal cliff negotiations - were more skeptical about whether the current roster of lawmakers would take any meaningful action.
?Our collective first mistake is to trust politicians,? one reader lamented.
Readers also were starkly divided on whether Social Security benefits will be available to them when they retire,
?I'm paying all of this money into SS that will likely not be paying back what I put in. I'm tired of supporting everyone when I need to (save),? one reader wrote.
Others noted that?confidence about receiving benefits is probably?tied to age.
?This is an age sensitive question. I'm 59, so I suspect my answer is quite different than my youngest child's would be at 27,? another wrote.
Still, some also pointed out that people have been worrying about Social Security for decades, and yet it?s still around.
?I'm 72 and all of my life it's been said Social Security was going to run out of money. Yet 2 years ago I began withdrawing my deposits,? one reader wrote.
Mid way through the week now and we?re still rolling on with plenty of content for you all. Did you miss out on anything? If so, jump on back a page and get caught up.. then once you?re done, join us in the Android Central forums for some more awesomeness. HTC Thunderbolt Forums ? Verizon [...]
Monday, July 16, 2012 Interview by Lon Woodbury David Brinkman, Founder and Director of Brinkman House, spoke to Lon Woodbury from strugglingteens.com on L.A. Talk Radio about a relatively new treatment option for at-risk teens called the Family Emerging Model. David and Melinda, his wife, have actually worked with a variety of boys between the [...]
By RACHEL COHEN AP Sports Writer Associated Press Sports updated 7:54 p.m. ET Nov. 17, 2011 The researchers studying a degenerative brain disease in former athletes plan to test about 100 retired NFL players to try to learn how to diagnose the condition during life. For now, the only way to confirm Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy [...]
Source: tom selleck calendar 2012 neil diamond tmobile def leppard epo the simpsons
BEIJING (AP) ? A Foxconn Technology Group employee jumped to his death Wednesday from a company-rented apartment building in southwest China?s Sichuan province, local police said. At least a dozen Foxconn employees have jumped to their deaths or tried to do so since 2010, casting spotlight on the world?s largest contract maker of electronics. The [...]
Broader background checks and denial criteria could help prevent mass shooting catastrophesPublic release date: 27-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Carole Gan carole.gan@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu 916-734-9047 University of California - Davis Health System
(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) Garen Wintemute, a leading authority on gun violence prevention and an emergency medicine physician at UC Davis, believes broader criteria for background checks and denials on gun purchases can help prevent future firearm violence, including mass shooting catastrophes such as those that occurred at Sandy Hook, Aurora, Virginia Tech and Columbine.
"To reduce the number of deaths and injuries from firearms in the United States, we need to develop policies that require background checks for all firearm purchases, including private-party sales the most important source of firearms for criminal buyers and others who are prohibited from purchasing guns," said Wintemute, director of the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program and inaugural Susan P. Baker-Stephen P. Teret Chair in Violence Prevention at UC Davis.
"We need to prevent individuals with a previous conviction for a misdemeanor violent crime, such as assault and battery, from purchasing or possessing a firearm. We also need to develop better data and criteria that allow us to distinguish between those with a treatable mental disorder who do not have a history of violence from those with a history of violence or substance abuse," he said.
Wintemutes views posted on the Online First section of the New England Journal of Medicine website as a Perspective article, entitled Tragedys Legacy, on December 26, 2012. It also will appear in the journal's January 31, 2013 print edition.
According to Wintemute, the United States represents only 5 percent of the worlds population, but it owns more than 40 percent of all firearms that are in civilians hands. In addition, he believes that policies governing gun purchases and use have allowed the widest possible array of firearms to be available to the widest group of people, for use under the widest array of conditions. Wintemute specifically cites the Stand Your Ground laws, enacted at the state level, as dangerous experiments that have been used to legitimize shootings that once were considered to be murder.
Wintemute emphasizes taking a broad approach.
"It may be impossible to predict the next mass shooting incident, and we cannot expect interventions designed for specific circumstances to eliminate the risk of firearm violence. But we can change our firearms laws, based on existing evidence, to reduce harm and better ensure public safety, he said.
Some 40 percent of all firearm transactions, for example, involve private-party sellers, who are not required to keep records and cannot obtain a background check, Wintemute said. We need policies that prevent these quick, anonymous and undocumented sales. We also need policies that deny gun purchases to those who we know are at high risk for violence.
Wintemutes research has shown that among persons who purchase firearms legally, those with a previous conviction for a misdemeanor violent crime are roughly nine times as likely as those with no criminal history to be arrested for a violent crime later. For those with two or more such prior convictions, he found the risk increases by a factor of 10 to 15. In addition, studies have shown that firearm owners who abuse alcohol are more likely than other owners to engage in violence-related firearm behavior.
We know that comprehensive background checks and expanded denial criteria are feasible and effective, because they are in place in many states and have been evaluated, Wintemute said. In California, the denial policy reduced the risk of violence and firearm-related crime by 23 percent among those whose purchases were denied. But we need to broaden these and other effective state-level regulations to eliminate the flow of firearms from states where laws are lax to states where laws are stricter.
Wintemute also notes that proposals for comprehensive background checks and denials for misdemeanor violence and for alcohol abuse enjoy broad public support, including among firearm owners. Survey data come from Wintemutes own research as well as a series of public polls conducted for the Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
While the individual circumstances of the mass shooting massacres in the U.S. are different, we can only change the outcome if we confront the challenge of unchecked and easy access to firearms, Wintemute said. Strengthening our background check and denial policies for firearm purchases will not eliminate firearm violence, but they can reduce it.
###
The Violence Prevention Research Program is an organized research program of the University of California, Davis. The program focuses on addressing the causes, nature and prevention of violence. Current major areas of emphasis include the prediction of criminal behavior, effectiveness of waiting period/background check programs for prospective purchasers of firearms, and the determinants of firearm violence. The mission of the program is to conduct research that will further America's efforts to understand and prevent violence.
UC Davis Health System is improving lives and transforming health care by providing excellent patient care, conducting groundbreaking research, fostering innovative, interprofessional education, and creating dynamic, productive partnerships with the community. The academic health system includes one of the country's best medical schools, a 619-bed acute-care teaching hospital, a 1000-member physician's practice group and the new Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. It is home to a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, an international neurodevelopmental institute, a stem cell institute and a comprehensive children's hospital. Other nationally prominent centers focus on advancing telemedicine, improving vascular care, eliminating health disparities and translating research findings into new treatments for patients. Together, they make UC Davis a hub of innovation that is transforming health for all. For more information, visit healthsystem.ucdavis.edu.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
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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.
Broader background checks and denial criteria could help prevent mass shooting catastrophesPublic release date: 27-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Carole Gan carole.gan@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu 916-734-9047 University of California - Davis Health System
(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) Garen Wintemute, a leading authority on gun violence prevention and an emergency medicine physician at UC Davis, believes broader criteria for background checks and denials on gun purchases can help prevent future firearm violence, including mass shooting catastrophes such as those that occurred at Sandy Hook, Aurora, Virginia Tech and Columbine.
"To reduce the number of deaths and injuries from firearms in the United States, we need to develop policies that require background checks for all firearm purchases, including private-party sales the most important source of firearms for criminal buyers and others who are prohibited from purchasing guns," said Wintemute, director of the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program and inaugural Susan P. Baker-Stephen P. Teret Chair in Violence Prevention at UC Davis.
"We need to prevent individuals with a previous conviction for a misdemeanor violent crime, such as assault and battery, from purchasing or possessing a firearm. We also need to develop better data and criteria that allow us to distinguish between those with a treatable mental disorder who do not have a history of violence from those with a history of violence or substance abuse," he said.
Wintemutes views posted on the Online First section of the New England Journal of Medicine website as a Perspective article, entitled Tragedys Legacy, on December 26, 2012. It also will appear in the journal's January 31, 2013 print edition.
According to Wintemute, the United States represents only 5 percent of the worlds population, but it owns more than 40 percent of all firearms that are in civilians hands. In addition, he believes that policies governing gun purchases and use have allowed the widest possible array of firearms to be available to the widest group of people, for use under the widest array of conditions. Wintemute specifically cites the Stand Your Ground laws, enacted at the state level, as dangerous experiments that have been used to legitimize shootings that once were considered to be murder.
Wintemute emphasizes taking a broad approach.
"It may be impossible to predict the next mass shooting incident, and we cannot expect interventions designed for specific circumstances to eliminate the risk of firearm violence. But we can change our firearms laws, based on existing evidence, to reduce harm and better ensure public safety, he said.
Some 40 percent of all firearm transactions, for example, involve private-party sellers, who are not required to keep records and cannot obtain a background check, Wintemute said. We need policies that prevent these quick, anonymous and undocumented sales. We also need policies that deny gun purchases to those who we know are at high risk for violence.
Wintemutes research has shown that among persons who purchase firearms legally, those with a previous conviction for a misdemeanor violent crime are roughly nine times as likely as those with no criminal history to be arrested for a violent crime later. For those with two or more such prior convictions, he found the risk increases by a factor of 10 to 15. In addition, studies have shown that firearm owners who abuse alcohol are more likely than other owners to engage in violence-related firearm behavior.
We know that comprehensive background checks and expanded denial criteria are feasible and effective, because they are in place in many states and have been evaluated, Wintemute said. In California, the denial policy reduced the risk of violence and firearm-related crime by 23 percent among those whose purchases were denied. But we need to broaden these and other effective state-level regulations to eliminate the flow of firearms from states where laws are lax to states where laws are stricter.
Wintemute also notes that proposals for comprehensive background checks and denials for misdemeanor violence and for alcohol abuse enjoy broad public support, including among firearm owners. Survey data come from Wintemutes own research as well as a series of public polls conducted for the Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
While the individual circumstances of the mass shooting massacres in the U.S. are different, we can only change the outcome if we confront the challenge of unchecked and easy access to firearms, Wintemute said. Strengthening our background check and denial policies for firearm purchases will not eliminate firearm violence, but they can reduce it.
###
The Violence Prevention Research Program is an organized research program of the University of California, Davis. The program focuses on addressing the causes, nature and prevention of violence. Current major areas of emphasis include the prediction of criminal behavior, effectiveness of waiting period/background check programs for prospective purchasers of firearms, and the determinants of firearm violence. The mission of the program is to conduct research that will further America's efforts to understand and prevent violence.
UC Davis Health System is improving lives and transforming health care by providing excellent patient care, conducting groundbreaking research, fostering innovative, interprofessional education, and creating dynamic, productive partnerships with the community. The academic health system includes one of the country's best medical schools, a 619-bed acute-care teaching hospital, a 1000-member physician's practice group and the new Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. It is home to a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, an international neurodevelopmental institute, a stem cell institute and a comprehensive children's hospital. Other nationally prominent centers focus on advancing telemedicine, improving vascular care, eliminating health disparities and translating research findings into new treatments for patients. Together, they make UC Davis a hub of innovation that is transforming health for all. For more information, visit healthsystem.ucdavis.edu.
[ | 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.
When you want to tweak, edit, or just add a personal touch to your mobile photos before sharing them with your friends, a good photo filter app is a useful tool to have. Whether you love adding filters and effects to your photos or dislike the category entirely, we asked you which apps you thought were the best at the job. You responded with your nominations, and we looked at the five best photo filter apps based on your suggestions. Now we're back to highlight the overall winner.
Snapseed, originally from Nic Software and now a free, easy-to-use, and feature-packed Google app available for iOS and Android, took the top spot with over 33% of the overall vote.
In second place with close to 25% of the votes cast was Camera+ for iOS, a full-featured camera app replacement that just happens to offer some great personalization tools as well. Behind it in third place with just over 20% of the overall vote was the juggernaut in this category, Instagram, which aside from dealing with some terms-of-service issues (which it's now trying to put behind them,) just isn't that popular with you guys by comparison. Behind Instagram with 11% of the overall vote was Camera ZOOM FX, our favorite camera app for Android and a great camera replacement that again happens to have some great filters and tweaking options. Bringing up the rear with just over 10% of the overall vote was Pixlr-o-matic, another free customization app for iOS and Android.
The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it?it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!
Those who have to use a wheelchair are often bound to the elevation of the seat if they want to reach something, which isn't fair when some parts of our world are still built for standing height. Taiwan's National Cheng Kung University is redressing that imbalance with the i-Transport. Its robotic vehicle can raise the driver to an upright level and shift them into a better position to grab objects that wouldn't otherwise be at arm's length. The added independence doesn't stop with the assistance, either, as the i-Transport carries its own blood pressure and breathing monitors to keep checkups to a minimum. NCKU hasn't said how likely it is that we'll see the robot enter mass production, but we hope it forges ahead -- the potential freedom would be worth the effort.
It appears as if Britney Spears may be on the chopping block after the “X Factor” lost viewers on their finale show. Insiders report that Simon Cowell is ready to fire Spears because he wanted “crazy Britney, but he got boring Britney.” The singer, who had a lucrative $15 million contract for her stint on ...![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 27-Dec-2012
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When you want to tweak, edit, or just add a personal touch to your mobile photos before sharing them with your friends, a good photo filter app is a useful tool to have. Whether you love adding filters and effects to your photos or dislike the category entirely, we asked you which apps you thought were the best at the job. You responded with your nominations, and we looked at the five best photo filter apps based on your suggestions. Now we're back to highlight the overall winner. 
Snapseed, originally from Nic Software and now a free, easy-to-use, and feature-packed Google app available for iOS and Android, took the top spot with over 33% of the overall vote.