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It’s that time of year, when we trade the anxieties of daily life for a whole different set of pressures. From the horrors of shopping malls and interstate traffic to awkward conversations with that aunt no one wants to sit next to at the dinner table, the holidays can be a harrowing experience. To help you cope, we handpicked the 20 best apps to help you survive the season. From essential travel and cooking tools to fun ways to share photos and video chat with the fam, these are the downloads that will bring holiday cheer to your handset.
DETROIT (AP) — Ford is recalling more than 128,000 Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan sedans from the 2010 and 2011 model years because the wheels can fall off the cars.
The recall affects only cars with 17-inch steel wheels built from April 1, 2009 through April 30, 2009, and from Dec. 1, 2009 through Nov. 13, 2010.
Federal regulators say that bolts holding the wheels on can fracture, causing a vibration. If the vibration is ignored, the wheels can separate from the car.
Ford says it’s not aware of any crashes or injuries caused by the problem.
Dealers will replace the lug nuts on all four wheels and check the rear disc brake surface. The recall is expected to begin around Jan. 24.
THE water industry in England is to follow the Scottish model by being opened up to competition.
More than half of Scottish firms have benefited from lower bills or improved packages since competition was introduced in 2008, according to the Water Industry Commission for Scotland.
It estimates that competition is saving businesses £20 million a year.
SHEPHERD Building Group is supporting a two-year environmental protection and community development project in Uganda.
The York-based group has joined forces with Yorkshire-based charity, United Bank of Carbon (UBoC), which was founded by Bettys and Taylors Group, the University of Leeds and Deloitte to enable businesses to play a part in tackling climate change by matching them with verified rainforest projects from around the world.
Shepherd’s chosen project in Uganda, called Trees For Global Benefits, is run by a Ugandan organisation, Ecotrust, and will enable local farmers to plant trees on their land.
The growth of the trees will be monitored, enabling the amount of carbon stored in the new trees to be calculated, resulting in carbon credits which Shepherd Group can offset against its carbon footprint.
The project will support some of the poorest communities in Uganda, helping them to become more self-sufficient while protecting local biodiversity. I
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Key speech: Angela Merkel
- Poll: Are the markets right to be less pessimistic about Spain and Italy?
- Merkel signals ‘new euroland’ to save the single currency
Talks over a 200 billion (£171 billion) “big bazooka” from the IMF boosted hopes of a permanent solution to Europe’s debt crisis today ahead of next week’s crucial summit.
Reports suggested European central banks could channel the funds to the IMF to offer emergency loans to eurozone strugglers such as Italy and Spain.
The fresh plans came as efforts to raise the firepower of Europe’s existing bailout pot, the European Financial Stability Facility, fell short of the 1 trillion hoped for at the time of October’s summit agreement.
The prospect of extra support for Italy and Spain encouraged international markets to give the strugglers vital breathing space amid rising hopes that political leaders are finally getting a grip on the region’s lingering debt crisis.
Vows to defend the euro by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the prospect of tighter budget controls on member states within the single currency gave a shot in the arm to global stock markets, sent the euro higher and eased the funding pressure on debt-laden Italy and Spain.
Italy and Spain’s benchmark 10-year borrowing costs have surged above the 7% danger mark which triggered previous bailouts in the past month, but hit their lowest point since early November today.
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In this photo taken on June 27, 2011, the remains of dead…
A cow tries to eat from a dried out cactus on a field near the…
DURANGO, Mexico — This country’s sun-baked northern states are suffering under the worst drought since the government began recording rainfall 70 years ago. Crops are withering. About 1.7 million cattle have died of starvation and thirst.
Hardest hit are five states in Mexico’s north, a region that is being parched by the same drought that has dried out the U.S. Southwest. The government is trucking water to 1,500 villages and sending food to poor farmers who’ve lost all their crops.
Life isn’t likely to get better soon. The next rainy season isn’t due until June, and there’s no guarantee normal rains will come then.
Most years, Guillermo Marin harvests 10 tons of corn and beans from his fields. T Read Full Article…
