Apple Wants Happy Landings For Falling Phones

Apple has been examining various ways of protecting devices such as the iPhone when they are accidentally dropped or knocked off a counter or table.

Devices are getting increasingly complex, and damaged parts such as screens are proving more and more expensive to repair or replace.

It has now emerged that Apple applied to the US Patent & Trademark Office offering several potential solutions to protect hardware such as smartphones, cameras, laptops and tablets.

The key to protecting a device like an iPhone is to use a sensor or gyroscope system to detect a change in its orientation - for example when it has been dropped and is in "freefall".

The processor, having received a warning message, would work out which part of the phone is likely to hit the ground.

It would then alter the way the phone falls, for example by ejecting the battery and shifting the centre of gravity, to make sensitive areas like the screen land the right way up and avoid damage.

As Apple puts it: "The method may include detecting a freefall of the device by a sensor. Then, determining via at least one sensor an orientation of the device.

"After the orientation of the device has been determined, estimating an impact area of the device.

"Then, selectively changing the orientation of the device via a protective mechanism, depending on the estimated impact area of the device."

Another method would be to deploy an aerofoil system, rather than altering its weight, to shift the phone's centre of mass and make it land a certain way.

A separate option being examined is to use a gas canister to generate thrust to force the device to land one way or another.

However, although the patent application was filed in September 2011, there is no firm indication any of the ideas will be put into practice.

Apple, along with the other major manufacturers, has been concentrating on making its devices thinner and lighter, reducing the amount of room in the chassis for any protection system.

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Georgia Baby Buggy Shooting: Two Arrested

Two teenage boys have been arrested after a 13-month-old baby was shot dead as his mother pushed him in a buggy.

The two suspects - aged 14 and 17 - have been charged with murder over the death in the coastal community of Brunswick, Georgia, on Thursday.

The 17-year-old, identified as Demarquis Elkins, was charged as an adult, while the 14-year-old was not named because he is a minor.

Sherry West told police that two boys approached her and demanded money as she walked with 13-month-old Antonio in his buggy.

She said she told the muggers she had no money and tried to shield her boy, but one of them pushed her aside and shot the baby.

Demarquis Elkins is jointly accused of fatally shooting the baby

"I put my arms over my baby and he shoves me, and then he shot my baby right in the head," Ms West said.

She was shot in the leg and said her ear was grazed by a bullet.

The boy's father, Luis Santiago, told WAWS TV: "He was special ... He had the bluest, bluest eyes."

Police said before the arrests that they had been looking at school attendance records as part of their investigation.

Brunswick police spokesman Todd Rhodes asked the public for any tips or information that could lead to an arrest, and announced a $10,000 (£6,500) reward.

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Cyprus Leaders Head To Brussels For Talks

Cyprus Bailout: Threat To Savings

Updated: 7:36am UK, Saturday 23 March 2013

By Ashish Joshi, Sky News Correspondent

Finally late into Friday night - an agreement on Plan B, meaning Cyprus has moved one giant step towards securing a Brussels bailout.

It includes a solidarity fund pooling together state assets and the granting of power to the Government to control bank capital.

The latter move is to prevent a run on the banks when their doors finally open on Tuesday.

There will also be a restructuring of the country's banks and a savings tax on Cypriot savers.

The details of the tax have still to be finalised, but the framework is in place.

It could mean savings over 100,000 euros held in Bank of Cyprus accounts being taxed up to 20%, according to one source close to the negotiations.

The same source said if that proposal is rejected there will be a plan to impose a tax of around 10% on all Cypriot bank accounts over 100,000 euros.

The threat of savers being hit hangs over the heads of people like Loizos Michael.

The 60-year-old tailor worked hard for 35 years, building up a good business.

He was looking forward to a wealthy retirement. Not anymore. Times are hard.

Speaking from his small tailor's shop in central Nicosia, Mr Michael said: "With the banks being closed, it is hard because I don't have a credit card and so cash flow is a problem.

"Even filling your car with petrol needs thinking about.

"Cypriots have always been workers by nature and nobody could have imagined that unemployment would be so high.

"This has hit us hard in the pockets."

Cyprus is weathering a storm - the likes of which this Mediterranean island has never faced in her young history.

Mr Michael said he knew things were getting bad, but expected solutions to be found to avoid ordinary people having to suffer.

"I expected something better. But now, it looks like the problem has been brewing for some time," he said.

"There used to be some people talking about the crisis, but now everyone's talking about it.

"I think things are harder now than just after the war. After the war of '74 people could still find work. Now, there is just no work so people have no money. What can we do?"

In the 1990s, Cyprus boasted a dynamic, booming economy, but it grew and unchecked.

An overbloated banking sector exposed to Greek debt has crippled the country's economy.

Now people like Loizos Michael must pay the price. He and the rest of Cyprus will soon find out exactly how much that is going to be.

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Obama Ends Mid East Tour With Petra Visit

Obama Beams On Mid East Trip

Updated: 11:49am UK, Saturday 23 March 2013

By Sam Kiley, Middle East Correspondent, Jerusalem

He beamed and Bibi-ed at every opportunity literally back slapping his way out of a sour relationship with Israel's Prime Minister.

Then Barack Obama shooed Benjamin Netanyahu into a cabin at Ben Gurion airport which was being swept with a khamsin sandstorm from the Sahara.

Inside the little room he stood over "Bibi" like the parent of a petulant child ordered to phone to apologise to an angry neighbour.

The call to Recep Erdogan, Turkey's Prime Minister, was to say sorry for the deaths of nine of his countrymen who were killed in a botched commando raid on the Mavi Marmaris in May 2010.

The raid was intended to stop the Marmaris from breaching the sea blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel.

It shattered relations with Turkey, until then an Israeli ally.

Obama told Netanyahu to fix it - and he dutifully got some diplomatic glue out and got to work.

After four days of his first tour of Israel and Palestine since he became US president, the Israel-Turkey break through was Mr Obama's only visible achievement.

The Palestinians expected nothing and got it from an administration which has, in their eyes, woefully neglected the region while illegal Jewish settlements continued to eat into Palestinian lands on the West Bank.

The Israeli public was charmed by a speech he gave to 600 university students in Jerusalem in which he quoted the Torah, dropped the occasional Hebrew phrase and celebrated the princes of modern Zionism, Theodor Herzl and David Ben-Gurion.

That speech was an effort to reach past Netanyahu and appeal directly to the Israeli people. He told them to campaign for change and peace directly and demand their politicians take risks to achieve a two-state solution.

Many in Israel believe that the "status quo" is acceptable. He told them that no wall was high enough, no anti-missile batteries too impregnable, that Israel could survive indefinitely without making peace with he Palestinians.

But he didn't demand a freeze on settlements, which he has in the past and which has been a pre-condition for the Palestinians to return to talks.

Obama was his usual captivating self when delivering a set-piece speech.

Off the cuff at press conferences he was as poor as a performer as Ronald Reagan. Not with gaffes but by appearing uncomfortable, halting and insecure when asked to provide solutions to the problems that he had eloquently identified.

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Senate Passes First Federal Budget In Four Years

The US Senate has narrowly passed its first federal budget in four years in a move which seeks to raise nearly $1 trillion in new tax revenues.

The budget plan was passed by a 50-49 vote in the Democratic-controlled chamber, with four Democrat senators facing tough re-election campaigns in 2014 joining Republicans in opposing the measure.

But it will square off in the next few months against a Republican-focused budget passed by the Republican-dominated House of Representatives.

Neither of the non-binding blueprints has a chance of passage in the opposing chamber, leaving Congress no closer to resolving deep differences over how to shrink US deficits and grow the economy.

Republican Paul Ryan's (L) budget passed a House vote

The Democrats' plan from Senate Budget Committee chairman Patty Murray aims to reduce deficits by $1.85 trillion over 10 years through an equal mix of tax increases and spending cuts.

The Republican plan from House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan seeks $4.6 trillion in savings over the same period without raising new taxes.

It aims to reach a small surplus by 2023 through deep cuts to health care and social programmes that aid the poor.

Mrs Murray said after the vote on Saturday she would try to work with Mr Ryan on a compromise.

"While it is clear that the policies, values, and priorities of the Senate budget are very different than those articulated in the House budget, I know the American people are expecting us to work together to end the gridlock and find common ground, and I plan to continue doing exactly that," she said.

In 2011, a similar fight over the debt limit shook financial markets and cost the US its top-tier credit rating.

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Lindsay Lohan Escapes Nightclub Fight Charges

Lindsay Lohan is not being charged in connection with an alleged fight at a nightclub in New York last November.

Lawyer Mark Heller said the actress would face no formal charges after prosecutors were unable to gather sufficient evidence to prove the case.

"She's totally clear and exonerated. She has nothing but smooth sailing ahead," he said.

Lohan last appeared in court in Los Angeles on Monday

A spokeswoman for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance declined to comment.

Lohan, 26, was arrested on November 29 on a charge of misdemeanour assault after an encounter with a woman at the Avenue club in New York's trendy Meatpacking District.

Lohan's accuser, Tiffany Mitchell, was "disappointed" that the District Attorney's office had decided not to prosecute, said her lawyer, Gloria Allred.

"Ms Mitchell is considering all of her legal options in the civil justice system because of what she suffered that night," she said.

The DA's decision was welcome news for Liz & Dick star Lohan, who accepted a plea deal on Monday in a car crash case in California.

She had been accused of lying to the police about who had been driving her Porsche when it was in collision with a dumper truck and violating the terms of her probation.

The Mean Girls actress was sentenced to five days in prison, but that time will be served in a locked-down rehabilitation facility rather than a jail.

The plea deal also includes 90 days in rehab, 30 days of community labour, 18 months of psychological counselling, a fine and restitution.

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Tensions Rise In Lebanon As Premier Resigns

Lebanese president Michel Suleiman has formally accepted the resignation of prime minister Najib Makiti, who stepped down blaming government infighting.

On Friday, Mr Makiti announced his whole government was quitting because of arguments over elections and the extension to the term of office of an internal security chief.

Mr Makati has said he hoped the move would prompt leaders of the different factions to "shoulder their responsibilities".

Mr Suleiman asked Mr Mikati's government to assume a caretaking role while a new government is being formed.

Mr Mikati's unexpected resignation throws the country into uncertainty at a time when it is being hit by sporadic violence enflamed by the civil war in neighbouring Syria.

Lebanon has long been a tinderbox of inter-ethnic and religious rivalries and has only recently recovered from a devastating civil war.

The two main political groups in the country support different sides in the Syrian civil war, in which more than 70,000 have died.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati has resigned

Most Sunni Muslims in Lebanon support the uprising against Syria's leader Bashar al-Assad, who is from the Syria's Alawite minority.

But many Alawites also live in north Lebanon and sometimes the opposing groups clash violently.

It has led to fighting on the streets of Lebanon where tens of thousands of Syrian refugees have fled, with six killed and more than 20 wounded in Tripoli on Thursday.

Another 12 died in street battles in the northern city of Tripoli in December.

Mr Mikati has been prime minister since June 2011, heading a government dominated by the Shiite militant group Hezbollah and its allies, many of whom have a close relationship with Assad's regime.

But his relations with Hezbollah have never been smooth with Hezbollah frequently accusing him of loyalty to the pro-Western opposition.

He stepped down on Friday in part as a protest over Hezbollah's refusal to extend the tenure of the country's police chief, Maj Gen Ashraf Rifi, who at 58 is about to hit the mandatory retirement age for his rank.

Mr Rifi, like Mr Mikati, is a Sunni Muslim who is considered a foe by Hezbollah.

In his speech Friday, Mr Mikati said that if Mr Rifi was not allowed to stay on, his departure would send the police department into "a vacuum" at a time when a solid leader was needed.

As well as the outbreaks of violence, Lebanon has been accused by Syria of turning a blind eye to its citizens aiding rebels either by running weapons across the border or by actually taking part.

On Thursday a Lebanese citizen was captured by the Syrians after infiltrating the country to fight alongside rebel forces, state television said.

On Tuesday, President Michel Sleiman denounced as "unacceptable" a series of Syrian air raids a day earlier that targeted sites inside Lebanese territory. Syria denied launching the attack.

Israel fears that if Hezbollah gets the upper hand in Lebanon, it may use Syrian weapons smuggled across the border against its southern neighbour, which could then spark a new Middle Eastern war.

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US: Boy, 10, Killed By Falling Airport Sign

A 10-year-old boy was killed and several members of his family injured after an electronic information sign fell on top of them at an airport in Alabama.

Deputy Coroner Derrick Perryman said Luke Bresette was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Two of his siblings were being treated for injuries while their mother, Heather Bresette, was in a critical condition at University Hospital.

Firefighters estimated the arrivals and departure sign at Birmingham Shuttlesworth International Airport weighed between 150 kg and 180kg.

Albert Osorio, 46, described hearing a loud boom when the sign fell, followed by the screams of the family and witnesses.

It took him and five other people to lift the sign off the family.

He said: "The whole thing flipped down on those kids. It took all of us here to stand it up."

Jefferson County Deputy Coroner Derrick Perryman said the family is from Overland Park, Kansas.

Airport spokeswoman Toni Herrera-Bast said officials were unsure how the sign fell over.

The airport continued to operate while rescue workers tended to the family.

It completed the first phase of a $201m modernisation effort and opened newly renovated concourses last week.

Mayor William Bell issued a statement saying the city offered its full support to the Airport Authority in investigating the accident.

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Historic Meeting Between New Pope And Old

Pope Francis has visited his predecessor Benedict XVI in what was an historic meeting between the two men.

The Argentine pope was carried by helicopter from the Vatican to the papal residence of Castel Gandolfo, near Rome, where Benedict, the "pope emeritus", has been living since his resignation last month.

The meeting between a pope and a former pope is believed to be a first for the Catholic Church as Francis embarks on a papacy fraught with challenges.

The two men dressed in white embraced warmly on the helipad in the gardens of Castel Gandolfo after Pope Francis' arrival.

Travelling from the helipad to the palazzo, Francis sat on the right-hand side of the car, the traditional place of the pope, while Benedict sat on the left.

When they entered the chapel inside the palazzo to pray, Benedict tried to direct Francis to the papal kneeler at the front of the chapel, but Francis refused.

"No, we are brothers, we pray together," Francis told Benedict, according to the Vatican spokesman the Reverend Federico Lombardi. 

The two used a different kneeler in the pews and prayed together, side-by-side.

Francis brought a gift to Benedict, an icon of the Madonna, and told him that it's known as the "Madonna of Humility".

Pope Francis' helicopter arrives at his predecessor's summer residence

"I thought of you," Francis told Benedict. "You gave us so many signs of humility and gentleness in your pontificate." Benedict replied: "Grazie, grazie."

Outside the villa, the main piazza of Castel Gandolfo was packed with well-wishers bearing photos of both popes and chanting "Francesco! Francesco!"

But the Vatican made clear they probably wouldn't see anything.

The Vatican spokesman said the two spoke privately for 40-45 minutes, followed by lunch with the two papal secretaries, but no details were released.

Benedict has been staying at the lakeside estate since he became the first Pontiff to step down in more than 700 years.

Italian media reported ahead of the meeting that Benedict, who stunned the world on February 11 by announcing that he was too frail in body and mind to carry on, has prepared a 300-page handwritten memorandum for his successor.

Benedict has said he intends to live "hidden from the world" as a "simple pilgrim" and will spend the rest of his life in a former nunnery on Vatican grounds in quiet contemplation and academic research.

Benedict has been living in Castel Gandolfo with his secretary Georg Gaenswein and with the four housekeepers who looked after him when he was still the leader of the world's 1.2bn Catholics.

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Greece: Bombs and Guns Used In Jailbreak

Gunmen used "very heavy weapons" to attack a prison in Greece and free 11 inmates.

Two guards were injured as they attempted to fight off the six attackers, who turned the jail perimeter into a "battlefield".

Guns, grenades, a van and a pickup truck were used in the breakout at 8.30pm local time on Friday.

It kicked off a night-long standoff between police and the remaining prisoners at the facility near the town of Trikala, 200 miles northwest of Athens.

Two of the men who escaped were later captured after being found hiding in a church nearby.

A manhunt is underway to track down the others, who the authorities said were all Albanian.

The Ministry of Justice said the gunmen used "two vehicles and very heavy weapons" to attack the perimeter guards, as well as a prison patrol vehicle and two police cars.

"During the exchange of heavy fire that lasted over half an hour and turned the area into a battlefield, two guards were injured in the abdomen, one of them seriously," the ministry said.

At least five grenades exploded and army experts were called to the prison to dispose of two unexploded grenades.

Trikala city councillor Costas Tassios, who lives in the nearby village of Krinitsa, said: "It was like a war was going on. There was so much gunfire."

A bullet fired at the village damaged a coffee shop window, but no members of the public are thought to have been hurt.

The escaped prisoners used ropes and bed sheets tied together to climb down from a guard tower.

Police set up roadblocks near the prison and searched vacant homes and farm buildings as two helicopters scoured the surrounding countryside.

The attack was the latest dramatic incident at Greek prisons, which are suffering from serious overcrowding and staff shortages as the country struggles through a financial crisis.

Last month, guards foiled a breakout attempt by four inmates who tried to escape by helicopter from Trikala prison.

Among them was the notorious gangster Panagiotis Vlastos, who is serving life for murder and racketeering.

On March 17, a convicted contract killer, Albanian Alket Rizaj, took several prison guards hostage in an attempt to escape from another jail in central Greece.

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