German court convicts couple of spying for Russia

BERLIN (AP) ? A German court on Tuesday convicted a married couple of spying for Russia over more than two decades and handed them prison sentences for passing European Union and NATO secrets to Moscow.

Andreas and Heidrun Anschlag ? known only by the fake names on the Austrian passports they used to enter Germany ? were sentenced to 6 ? years and 5 ? years in prison, respectively, by the state court in Stuttgart. The court said their real identity hasn't been established, but they are believed to be Russian and in their early to mid-50s.

The verdict came after a court in the Netherlands sentenced a Dutch diplomat in April to 12 years in prison for delivering EU and NATO documents to the agents. The Anschlags sent on the information he gathered ? in exchange for bribes of at least 72,200 euros ($94,000) ? to Russia's intelligence agency, judges said.

The German judges determined that the documents were confidential rather than top-secret and found no evidence of "concretely measurable damage" to Germany, the Netherlands, the EU or NATO. But while the Anschlags' sentences fell short of the maximum possible 10 years for espionage, the court found that their actions "significantly endangered confidence in the reliability and ability to protect secrets" of Germany and its partners.

The couple's activities ? including dead letter drops and radio communications with Russia ? sounded like something out of the Cold War, but the case centered to a large extent on their actions in the final years before their arrest in 2011.

Andreas Anschlag arrived in what was then West Germany in 1988, the year before the fall of the Berlin Wall. Heidrun arrived in 1990, the year Germany was reunified. Both claimed to be Austrian citizens of South American background and blended into German society, living in four provincial German towns over the next two decades.

The two were arrested in October 2011 ? investigators arrived at their home just as Heidrun Anschlag was receiving a radio message from Russia, the court said. Authorities were able to piece together fragments of their communication with Moscow from computers that they seized, but the court said it wasn't possible to establish exactly how many documents from the Netherlands the couple handed over.

The defendants declined to testify during the trial, which opened in January. A lawyer for Andreas Anschlag, Horst Dieter Poetschke, said the verdict was "acceptable" but the defense would consider whether to lodge an appeal.

The Dutch diplomat already convicted in the case, Raymond Poeteray, was arrested in March 2012. He has appealed against his conviction.

German media have reported that there were three-way talks involving Germany, Russia and the United States about a possible spy swap. The Russian Foreign Ministry and U.S. Justice Department have declined in the past to comment on the case.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/german-court-convicts-couple-spying-russia-090021453.html

sean taylor Nexus 4 Girl Meets World Jason Babin Nolan Daniels angus t. jones monday night football

An American Tech Company Is Advertising Its American-Built Smartphone On The Most American Holiday

Happy Independence Day, fellow Americans! It's time to go to the lake, eat some red meat, and, of course, buy a cell phone from a good ol' American company, Motorola and Google. Motorola is running a full-page spread in the July 3 editions of The New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post. And it's all for the upcoming, and very American, Motorola X smartphone.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/ZAvJGg2Zx7g/

ncaa march madness cbs march madness bracket ncaa basketball scores Harry Reems ncaa basketball ncaa tournament schedule

Snowden has applied for political asylum in Russia, state agency says

President Barack Obama comments on former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, who is reportedly still inside a Moscow airport without a valid passport. Obama made the remarks Monday in Tanzania.

By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer, NBC News

Professed NSA leaker Edward Snowden has applied for political asylum in Russia, but President Vladimir Putin says he can stay only if he stops "damaging our American partners." Only hours later, Snowden released a statement railing against the U.S. government.

Russia was one of about 20 countries that the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks, which has been assisting Snowden in exile, said it had approached for asylum on Snowden's behalf.?Others included China, Cuba, France, Germany, Italy, India, Nicaragua and Spain.

---

Putin told reporters that Russia won't hand Snowden over to U.S. authorities, but he said there would be strings attached if he wants to remain in Moscow.

"If he likes to stay here, there is one condition: He should cease his work aimed at damaging our American partners. No matter how strange it will sound from me," Putin told reporters, adding that Snowden isn't working for Russian intelligence.

He said he doubted Snowden would curtail his activities and suggested that the former National Security Agency contractor should figure out which country he wants to wind up in and "move there."

Snowden left the U.S. for Hong Kong before he allegedly leaked top-secret details of U.S. surveillance programs and was charged with espionage. With the help of WikiLeaks, he traveled to Moscow eight days ago.

The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with Russia, but President Barack Obama noted that Snowden traveled to Moscow without legal papers and referred to "high-level" discussions between the two countries about the case.

"We are hopeful that the Russian government makes decisions based on the normal? procedures regarding international travel and the normal interactions that law enforcement have," Obama said.

It was thought that Snowden would eventually head for Ecuador, but the president of the South American country said this week that no asylum request was sent and suggested Russia would make the call on when Snowden could leave and where he would go.

And in a statement released late Monday through WikiLeaks, Snowden claimed the White House is pressuring other countries to deny him asylum.

"The Obama administration has now adopted the strategy of using citizenship as a weapon," his statement said.

"This kind of deception from a world leader is not justice, and neither is the extralegal penalty of exile. These are the old, bad tools of political aggression. Their purpose is to frighten, not me, but those who would come after me," he added.

"Although I am convicted of nothing, it has unilaterally revoked my passport, leaving me a stateless person. Without any judicial order, the administration now seeks to stop me exercising a basic right. A right that belongs to everybody. The right to seek asylum."

While Snowden remains in legal limbo, new claims about U.S. surveillance based on his purported leaks continue to emerge.

Obama addressed reports that the NSA has bugged America's European allies with something of a shrug, saying it should not be a surprise that intelligence agencies seek "additional insight beyond what's available through open sources.?

"If that weren't the case, then there'd be no use for an intelligence service," Obama told reporters while traveling in Africa.

?And I guarantee you that in European capitals there are people who are interested in, if not what I had for breakfast, at least what my talking points might be should I end up meeting with their leaders,? he added.

?That's how intelligence services operate.?

He said his team would look into the allegations and report back to European Union allies, who have expressed concern and, in some cases, outrage.

Secretary of State John Kerry, who is traveling in Brunei, echoed Obama's statement.

"I will say that every country in the world that is engaged in international affairs of national security undertakes lots of activities to protect its national security, and all kinds of information contributes to that, and all I know is that that is not unusual for lots of nations," he said.

"But beyond that, I'm not going to comment any further until I have all of the facts and find out precisely what the situation is."

Related:

America's unlikely man in Moscow takes on Putin

TGI Fridays, Irish pubs, free Wi-Fi: Welcome to Snowden's airport hideaway

This story was originally published on Mon Jul 1, 2013 6:27 PM EDT

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663306/s/2e0eb325/l/0Lusnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A70C0A10C192345460Esnowden0Ehas0Eapplied0Efor0Epolitical0Easylum0Ein0Erussia0Estate0Eagency0Esays0Dlite/story01.htm

rich ross april 20 secret service prostitution 4 20 sheree whitfield weather dallas pat summitt

Time to make your UFC 162 picks

UFC 162 is days away, and we want to know who you think will win. On Cagewriter's Facebook page, you'll find polls asking who you think will win for every main card fight that will happen this Saturday in Las Vegas.

Anderson Silva vs. Chris Weidman
Frankie Edgar vs. Charles Oliveira
Tim Kennedy vs. Roger Gracie
Mark Munoz vs. Tim Boetsch
Dennis Siver vs. Cub Swanson

Take the poll, then tell us why you think your fighter will win in the comments of the poll. The best comments will be featured right here on Cagewriter with picks from Kevin Iole and me. It will be lots of fun.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/time-ufc-162-picks-134734999.html

mario manningham mario manningham williams syndrome hoya casa de mi padre corned beef and cabbage diners drive ins and dives

Spotify 'Discover' functionality now available on iOS app, 'coming soon' elsewhere

Spotify's Discover area isn't quite as ubiquitous as we'd hoped by this point, primarily serving computer-based Spotify users. But today that trend begins to change, with Spotify's iOS app getting an update (version 0.7.1) which adds the long-awaited Discover functionality alongside a slew of other updates. The "Now Playing" section is changing a bit as well, getting a makeover, and playlists can now be edited directly from your phone. Should those actually useful things not be enough for you, the music streaming company says there's a new logo to gaze at, though it looks identical to what we've always seen in our iOS app tray. Oh, and Spotify says all this stuff is heading to other mobile devices "soon." The full list of changes is below, including the always exciting fictitious addition. We won't spoil it for you.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Software, Mobile, Apple

Comments

Source: iTunes App Store

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/02/spotify-discover-ios/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

bryce harper dodgers Kevin Ware Google Nose success Cookies april fools day

Biomedical research revealing secrets of cell behavior

July 1, 2013 ? Knowing virtually everything about how the body's cells make transitions from one state to another -- for instance, precisely how particular cells develop into multi-cellular organisms -- would be a major jump forward in understanding the basics of what drives biological processes.

Such a leap could open doors to far-reaching advances in medical science, bioengineering and related areas.

An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Arizona State University, with a partner at Imperial College London, report on taking at least a step toward better comprehension of the fundamentals of "cell fate determination" in the prominent research journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Cell fate determination relates to the mechanisms by which a cell "decides" in what direction it will go in moving through transitional phases into a final state.

Using mathematical modeling and synthetic biology techniques the team is manufacturing artificial gene networks (a collection of DNA segments in a cell that interact with each other) and introducing them into cells in the laboratory.

From there, the researchers are able to closely observe through microscopic imaging what is happening with particular cells at their "tipping point," a stage of rest right before they transition into other states.

By learning what takes place at that point, "We can get closer to a fundamental insight about all biology," says biomedical engineer and synthetic biologist Xiao Wang.

Once the mechanisms determining the fate of cells are better understood, Wang says, "We could make gene networks or devices that do what we want them to do," such as create cells that produce medicinal drugs or that kill diseased cells, or create cells that act as sensors to detect environmental hazards.

Wang is an assistant professor in the School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering, one of ASU's Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. He is the senior author of the PNAS paper.

Wang's fellow authors are: biomedical engineering research scientists Min Wu and Xiaohui Li, who work in Wang's lab; electrical engineering graduate student Ri-Qi Su; Ying-Cheng Lai, a professor in ASU's School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering; and synthetic biologist Tom Ellis from Imperial College London.

Their article, "Engineering of regulated stochastic cell fate determination," is available online.

The research team is studying the molecular-level interactions within the DNA sequences of cells, through which the products of one gene affect those of other genes. This helps to trace the lineages of cell development and reveal what drives them in the direction of what kinds of cells they will be in their final states.

Within deeper knowledge of the workings of such processes lays the key to more effectively engineering cells and gene networks.

Wang's team is focused on investigating the intricate properties of gene networks with the goal of learning new ways of regulating the mechanisms behind cell fate determination.

"Our research could be built upon to look at more complicated gene networks and more complex cellular behavior," paving the way for expanding the capabilities of bioengineering to protect and maintain human health, Wang says.

Support for the team's research has come from the National Science Foundation and the American Heart Association.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/UJzKzAFGc7E/130701163851.htm

braveheart roy orbison the third man 2012 nfl draft order mohamed sanu chris polk rueben randle

Apple applies to register 'iWatch' trademark in Japan

TOKYO (Reuters) - Apple Inc has applied for a trademark for "iWatch" in Japan, a patent official said on Monday, signaling the iPhone maker may be moving ahead with plans for a watch-like device as gadget makers turn their attention to wearable computers.

The trademark application, submitted on June 3 and released on the Japan Patent Office website on June 27, would cover computers, computer peripherals and wristwatches, the official said. He said it was unknown how long the application process would require.

An Apple spokesman in Japan could not immediately be reached for comment.

Speculation has mounted that Apple is preparing to launch an iWatch and CEO Tim Cook told a gathering of tech and media executives a month ago that wearable products were ripe for exploration, but added he was skeptical, including about Google Inc's recently unveiled Glass which combines a mobile computer and eyeglasses.

"There's nothing that's going to convince a kid who has never worn glasses or a band or a watch to wear one, or at least I haven't seen it," Cook said.

Wearable devices are considered a potential area for hit products as smartphones such as the iPhone and Samsung Electronics Co's Galaxy series are losing their ability to impress consumers and investors.

Samsung, which has leapfrogged Apple as the world's leading smartphone maker, is also developing a wearable device similar to a wristwatch, a source with knowledge of the matter has said.

The New York Times reported in February that Apple was experimenting with the design of a device similar to a wristwatch that would operate on the same iOS platform as its iPhone and iPad and would be made with curved glass.

(Reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo; Writing by Edmund Klamann; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/apple-applies-register-iwatch-trademark-japan-102704496.html

john wall gordon hayward gas prices rising stars challenge star trek 2 kathy ireland brooke mueller