CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Endeavour blasted off on NASA's next-to-last shuttle flight, thundering through clouds into orbit Monday morning as the mission commander's wounded wife, Gabrielle Giffords, watched along with an exhilarated crowd estimated in the hundreds of thousands.

NASA is winding down its 30-year-old shuttle program before embarking on something new. The event generated the kind of excitement seldom seen on Florida's Space Coast on such a grand scale – despite a delay of more than two weeks from the original launch date because of an electrical problem.

Monday's countdown was close to perfect, and the shuttle quickly disappeared into thin, low clouds.

"That was four seconds of cool," said Manny Kariotakis, who was visiting from Montreal. The 50-year-old day care owner got goosebumps watching the liftoff with thousands along Highway 1 in Titusville.

Launch manager Mike Moses apologized for the fleeting glimpse. "The view wasn't the best," he said.

Just before launching, commander Mark Kelly thanked all the who put hands "on this incredible ship."

"It is in the DNA of our great country to reach for the stars and explore. We must not stop," he said.

Remarkably, Giffords made a return visit to see Kelly off. She is still undergoing rehabilitation in a Houston hospital to recover from a gunshot wound to the head in an assassination attempt little more than four months ago.

The Arizona congresswoman was shielded from the cameras on launch day, as were the families of the other five astronauts. All watched the liftoff in private.

Source : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/16/space-shuttle-endeavour-f_0_n_862297.html

While the foreplay between the Cannes Film Festival and Terrence Malick's complex rumination The Tree of Life has been going on for well over a year, it finally climaxed with this morning's 8:30AM press screening. There was such anticipation for this film that the cavernous 2300 seat Lumiere Theatre at the Palais was completely full a half hour ahead of showtime, unprecedented.  Reactions afterwards seem to be mixed. There was a smattering of loud boos when the picture went to black at the end but then good (but not spectacular) applause once Malick's name came up on screen. One columnist immediately emailed a friend, "the film is terrible" while another critic rushed to print calling it "major". The movie  splits its time between the lives of a family in 50's Texas with Cosmic images of how the Universe was created, a couple of dinosaur cameos and bigger metaphysical questions about our existence than anyone can answer in a two hour and 18 miinute movie, even Terrence Malick. It's not a traditional kind of narrative but rather an experiencemeant to inspire deep thought about our own lives in a greater context. For those special effects sequences detailing the beginnings of time alone the  three companies whose logos appear at the top of the film (Fox Searchlight, Summit, River Road) should be doing everything they can to insure this gets booked on to every available IMAX screen. It's a visual stunner, as you might expect from a man whose four previous films were Days Of Heaven,  Badlands, The Thin Red Line and The New World.

Four time Oscar nominated cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki was behind the camera and did a sterling job juxtaposing between small town Texas  and the evolution of the world, no easy task. Certainly what's on display in this much delayed work is vintage Malick,the kind of auteur Cannes loves (he won Best Director here for Days Of Heaven in 1978) but it can't help but divide audiences the way many great art films do. It can be compared in ways to Kubrick's 1968 masterpiece, 2001: A Space Odyssey which also split audiences at the time but now is regarded a true classic (not surprisingly 2001 special effects wizard Douglas Trumball consulted here too).

Some people have the patience and curiosity to endlessly explore movies like this like they would a great painting , others just want the normal popcorn fare. This is anything but that as principals , including star (and producer) Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain, tried to explain at the press conference that followed the screening. Missing was co-star Sean Penn who is enroute from Haiti  to Cannes for tonight's premiere (and  the preem of his other film here later in the week,This Must Be The Place as well as Wednesday night's Cinema For Peace dinner at the Carlton where he is being honored for his humanitarian work) according to producer Bill Pohlad who also appeared on the panel with producers Grant Hill, Sarah Green and Dede Gardner (Pitt's producing partner). Most notably absent though was Malick himself, a highly unusual occurence at a Cannes press conference. This is a director-driven fest if ever there was one. Green explained away the absence of the ultra-reclusive helmer saying, "Mr. Malick is very shy. He likes to think his work can speak for himself," she said and when pressed further it was emphasized "he's really shy". The fact is Malick is here for the premiere and will be walking the red carpet tonight which is an easy thing in Cannes since at premieres directors just wave, pose for pictures and soak up the adulation. One thing  they don't have to do is talk. Searchlight co-President Nancy Utley told me a few weeks ago Malick would be travelling to Cannes but likely unavailable while he was here. He never gives interviews, not even in the official press notes.

It really didn't matter since most of the questions were about Malick anyway, even with Brad Pitt sitting right there in the middle. Pitt explained how he loved Malick's directorial style. " I could go on about him for a couple of days. He was more interested in capturing what might be happening on that day (rather than what's in the script), waiting for the truth to come. There was only one light on the set, the rest was all natural and handheld. I don't know that I could do this a lot. It was exhausting but you see what you get," he said.  Of this experience Pitt also added, "It's changed everything I've done since. For me the best moments are not pre-conceived or planned. I now try to go off script and see what happens".

Pitt said he and Plan B Entertainment partner Gardner jumped on board because they wanted to see Malick's  script made. "I was surprised by the structure. It's quite ingenious merging the micro with the macro and finding parallel truths in it," he said.

As for the version that was meant to originally come to Cannes last year but was eventually deemed "not ready" compared to the version being debuted today Pohlad said "there isn't a huge difference but  there were refinements."

The film is certainly stirring up talk here so Malick, the Garbo of directors, will get his wish. People will decide for themselves. As I mentioned in a piece yesterday , Chastain told me Sunday she likes to tell people "this is a movie that could change cinema".  After seeing The Tree of Life I would say that would only be possible if studios start giving extrordinary visionary but eclectic directors like Malick big budgets to bring their personal art to the screen - and that ain't happening in Hollywood's corporate culture anytime soon. Bottom line is every now and then one slips through the system, gets made, even released with the director's vision intact. And that's why we've finally got this one to argue about up and down the Croisette today.

Before the fest started many in the media were predicting Malick , with his film sight unseen, could be the one to beat for the Palme d'Or. It's certainly possible but with so many of Cannes' favorite auteur directors still to come this week, the race for Sunday's top honors is just heating up.

Source : http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/tree-of-life-finally-debuts-in-cannes-to-mixed-reaction/

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - It was a moment that a few short months ago seemed so improbable: Rep. Gabrielle Giffords watched her husband power into space on the shuttle Endeavour. In person.

Still recovering from a devastating wound to the head, the Arizona congresswoman was at Kennedy Space Center on Monday to witness Mark Kelly and his five crewmates blast off and head to the International Space Station. She watched in private -- as do all crew families.

What had already been a historic event -- the second-to-last space shuttle flight and the last for Endeavour itself -- had become the Gabrielle Giffords-Mark Kelly saga after the Jan. 8 shooting.

Since the assassination attempt in her Tucson, Ariz., hometown, Giffords has been shielded from public view: during her two weeks in intensive care, her transfer to Houston, and the weeks since at a rehab hospital. Her doctors last spoke publicly about her progress in early March, and the only recent details have come from select interviews granted by her husband, staff, and those caring for her.

The night before launch, Kelly bid Giffords goodbye at the exclusive beachfront house the crew uses before launch. According to the Houston Chronicle, the two also exchanged wedding rings.

"Mark wanted a part of Gabby to go into space with him and Gabby wanted a part of him to keep here on Earth," Giffords spokesman Mark Kimble told the Chronicle.

The congresswoman's doctors say she has made "leaps and bounds" in what will be a long recovery. The bullet pierced the left side of Giffords' brain, thus affecting speech and movement on her right side. The Arizona Republic reported last month that she was speaking mostly in single words or declarative phrases, could stand and walk on her own, pushing a grocery cart through the rehab center's hall as therapy.

This season saw the return of Boston Rob vs Russell. Although Russell was voted off by his team mates in a surprise thrown challenge, Rob emerged as the ultimate Survivor strategist. Despite wild card Philip, who gave us a new kind of crazy to admire, and Christian Matt, who survived Redemption Island over and over again, Rob seems set to make it all the way to the end, and finally, after 4 attempts, win the million dollar prize for himself. We saw Russell cry, Matt pray, and Rob scheme and scheme and scheme again, while his cult-like followers voted out every single member of the former Zapatera tribe. The featured duel on Redemption Island turned into a thruel, and then a fruel, and it looked like Matt would be the only Survivor to be voted off twice, but still make it to the end. So who will win the million dollar prize?

On Redemption Island, Grant is the newest guest. With Ralph gone, Andrea likely found a place to sleep under the shelter. Matt’s finally realized that he’s had the best of the series, having his own little holiday, mainly alone with his Bible and his thoughts, on an island paradise.

On Murlonia, Rob tries to show his ‘heart’, saying he’s missing Grant already. But really, the win’s the thing. So Rob’s already planning on getting rid of Ashley as soon as possible. TreeMail arrives – they’ll be attending the last duel (or ‘fruel’) and Purgatory is coming to an end for Matt, Mike, Andrea and Grant. We’re not leaving RI without another revival meeting from Matt, but all of the contenders seem happy to finally know what the heck is going on. It’s a stamina challenge, basically balancing a vase on a board with your foot. Only one will win. The other three will join the jury. After more than an hour, Grant is the first to break his vase, followed by Matt and Mike. Holy smokes! Andrea stays alive, and she’s back in the game! You can bet that Rob is not at all happy with this outcome. Grant, Mike and Matt become jury members. Matt can’t resist praising God one more time before he leaves RI.

Andrea joins Natalie, Ashley, Philip and Rob for the last phase of the game. Andrea feels out of the group love, but it’s an individual game now, so she’s ready to get back in there and give it her all. Rob, of course, wants Andrea gone, even more than Ashley, since he feels she betrayed him by forming an alliance with Matt. Ashley may have a reprieve, should she win immunity. (Really bad move, Rob! Keep your eye on the prize! Splitting up the friendships, remember?)

Rob can’t help being happy that the Redemption Island phase is finished. Andrea knows she has a target on her back, so makes nice with the girls, telling them that Mike, Matt and Grant had told her they’d be giving the winning vote to Philip. It’s not true, but the gullible girls swallow the lie. Rob’s only confidante now is Philip … oh, the humanity!

The Immunity Challenge breaks the tension. Race across the balance beams, grab bags of tiles, then head for your table and count out your tiles, from 1 to 100. (Told you, tiles are the next big seller.) Philip is useless on the balance beams. Ashley, Andrea and Rob are neck and neck, but Ashley wins immunity again. Which just goes to show, that if you lay around, and do nothing but pluck body hairs, you’ll have a good bit of stamina left when it comes down to crunch time.

Rob bluntly tells Andrea, sorry, you’re next. Although tonight is the last time an Immunity Idol can be played, Rob is so confidant of the win, he interviews that he won’t even be using his hidden idol. In fact, he’d like to take it home as a souvenir. He’s going fishing. Philip plays secret agent, following Natalie and Ashley when they disappear for a quiet chat, then reports back to Rob. While Philip and Rob strategize, Andrea takes the chance to tell Natalie and Ashley that this is their last chance to vote out Rob, whom everyone else will likely vote for as winner.

Tribal Council. David, Julie, Steve, Ralph, Grant, Matt and Mike are the jury. Jeff asks Rob if paranoia is playing a part in his feelings this evening. Rob says, definitely. Philip boasts that he’s still the Undercover Agent, and he’s keeping Rob informed. Natalie and Andrea admit that Rob is the one to beat. They vote. Devious Rob produces his Immunity Idol, and again, the tribe has spoken … Andrea is voted out.

The Final Four are Ashley, Natalie, Philip and Rob. Back at camp, Rob again hugs his girlies, swearing he’ll be with them to the end. Ten years he’s worked for the prize, don’t let him down now.

The Final Challenge – yet another puzzle! Run through a maze, grabbing pieces, then solve your puzzle. Yawn. We all know that Rob is the puzzle champion, so someone please tell me why puzzles have been the most common challenge of the season? Oh right, because, we all want Rob to finally win. Or do we?

Ashley, wisely, trails Rob through the maze, and at least starts the puzzle part of the challenge even with Rob. Philip and Natalie never have a prayer at the challenge, as they wander through the maze in a daze. Big surprise – Rob wins final immunity. He’s now guaranteed to be in the Final Council.

Rob interviews, tearfully, that Amber encouraged him to try one last time for the win. He feels like he’s done his best, but now he has to figure out which of these ‘idiots’ should be voted out. Way to defuse my moment of empathy, Rob!

Despite Rob’s insistence on taking Philip with him to the end, I’m thinking that Natalie and Ashley will be too cuddly to split up. What can Rob say or do to break that alliance? Did Rob back the wrong horse in keeping Natalie in the game until the end?

Rob assures Ashley that Philip will be tonight’s loser. Ashley thinks she’s safe, with Rob and Natalie on her side. Philip is certain that Ashley’s laziness has sealed her fate. And Natalie, although tight with Rob, is increasingly friendly with Ashley, despite Rob’s insistence that Ashley has way too many friends on the jury. It seems that Natalie will be the deciding vote.

Another Tribal Council. Rob has the Immunity Necklace, so he’s definitely in the Final Three. Natalie, Ashley and Philip explain why they should join Rob, with Philip bragging that he’s never won a challenge. They vote. The tribe has spoken – it’s time for Ashley to go.

The next night will be their final Tribal Council, when Rob, Natalie and Philip will have their chance to plead their case before the jury. But first – it’s Day 39.  Philip’s got his crazy feather hat going on, as he interviews that he’s found out that it’s okay to tell the world that he’s got a relationship with someone that’s been dead since 1870. Plus, he’s ready to ditch the ‘plum’ colored underwear in the fire, which is a plus all on its own. TreeMail today is a Big Breakfast; fruit, Mimosas, and other goodies. Rob gloats that he’s survived 39 days in this game, 117 days in total for his 4 attempts. He takes the time to coach Natalie on how to deal with the jury. What, no traditional Walk of Shame?

The Final Tribal Council. The power now shifts to the jury. Rob, Philip and Natalie will each get the chance to plead their case, then the jury will have the chance to query them. Natalie begins by saying that her strength in the game was her social skills, especially her alliance and loyalty to Rob. Plus, she’d be the youngest winning Survivor in history, should they choose her. Philip says he changed his entire game plan when he saw Boston Rob emerge from the helicopter, and he owes everything to Rob. But he then says that his whole concept of the Stealth crew was his strength, and Rob, “The MasterMind” has essentially been his savior. Frankly, neither Natalie nor Philip has made strong cases for the win.

Rob says he was a hard worker, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is what the jury thinks is a successful quality in a player. He works his 10 year, 117 day stint, a third of his life, into his appeal, bringing up winning for the sake of his wife and his child. Cue the violins!

It’s now the jury’s turn to quiz the Final Three. Andrea begins, asking Philip who is the real Philip. He says she’s had 39 days to get to know him, he’s Philip Sheppard. Vote for him or not. She asks Natalie what made Rob so alluring that she’d turn against Ashley. Natalie blathers something about never having been camping before.

Ashley begins with a diatribe against Philip, who leaps to his own defense. She then tells Natalie that she’s angry at her betrayal. Ashley simply tells Rob that, after putting him on a pedestal, she just doesn’t want to know who Rob is at all.

Grant asks all of the crew what the dynamic was that caused him to be voted out. Rob and Natalie talk in circles, and no one is the wiser for their answer. Ralph accuses Natalie of being Rob’s pawn, who made no effort to know any other team players, and then tells Philip he feels let down that Philip is not wearing a whole chicken on his head. Philip is surprisingly kind as he tells Ralph they could have been friends, had things worked out differently.

Matt’s turn. He asks Rob where the line is drawn, after all this time, in how he deals with the game? Rob says the line ends, when the game ends. At home, he’s nothing like he is on Survivor. Matt says that all the betrayed players still wonder how Rob could have been so deceitful.

Julie says that all three players should be very humble, because none of them deserve to be there. (I agree!) She wonders if their parents would be proud of how they played the game. She won’t take Philip’s work ethic away from him, but she thinks his son would not be proud of him. Philip takes great offense at her words. To Rob, she says, teach your daughters to be strong women, and tell them not to let themselves be treated as he treated Natalie.

Mike says that his Survivor experience brought him closer to God, Nature and himself. So, did any of the Final Three learn anything? Natalie says that as a 19yr old, fresh out of high school, she learned that she’s stronger and more capable than she thought she could be. Rob says he’s learned it’s time to stop playing games, and go home to his wife and his children. Philip says he feels blessed to have had the opportunity, and to be an outcast, yet still be a beacon in the Sheppard family.

Steve congratulates Rob and Natalie for getting through the 39 days, but says he’s sorry for Philip, for what he’s grown into. David, the lawyer, addresses the jury rather than the trio, saying that Rob controlled the entire game, their minds, and their thoughts, and each jury member was blindsided. Of the two past champions who came into the game, Russell was kicked out on Day 8, but Rob stayed in until Day 39. It’s pretty easy to see who should get their vote. Your witness, your honor.

Time for the jury to vote. But don’t get too cosy, because, as we all know, Jeff’s going to grab the big jar and run off to New York for the finale. Let’s join him!

And here they are, all cleaned up. I don’t even recognize Natalie! Has she had a nose job? It’s clear it’s a  ‘Rob’ audience, as the votes are read out. And the winner is … Rob. Amber and his two little girls are there to congratulate him, along with his parents.

We are live in New York City, so now it’s time to find out, once and for all … was Philip really ever a Federal Agent? How does Russell feel after crying at the end of his game? And does anyone else think this whole season was slanted towards Rob winning? Oh, sorry, that last question was mine.

We are now treated to a montage of Rob moments, as though we haven’t seen enough Rob showcased throughout the season. Yeah, yeah, he won. But what choice did the jury have? The 19 year old Natalie, who’s only loyalty was to Rob? Or crazy Philip, whom only Ralph, in a surprisingly kind moment, voted for?

Jeff asks Rob about his strategy, and Rob explains at length. Loyalty was paramount, he says. Jeff wonders about the ‘cult-like’ atmosphere in Rob’s camp. Rob says, it took a lot of hard work and strategy to maintain his leadership.

Jeff asks Ashley why the girls never flipped on Rob, and she says that she and Natalie knew that Rob had an idol, so they were afraid to make a move. Natalie agrees with Ashley’s assessment. Natalie also says that she took Julie’s criticism at the final Council with a grain of salt, and moved on.

Andrea admits she thought of Rob as an older brother. Julie still can’t believe that the girls never got into a female alliance, but her hat is off to the Final Four.

Rob talks about Philip, saying he’s a loveable guy, if people would only listen to him. So Rob showed him love, listened to him, and Philip paid him back with loyalty. Rob also says that he’s sorry that his friendship with Grant went astray. Grant says he had to draw a line between calling Survivor a game and the reality of who he was, and that’s why Rob is no longer a friend. Rob says that you can’t take the game of Survivor personally, or it will eat you up.

Jeff’s opinion is that Rob played as close to a perfect game as he’s ever seen in 22 years of Survivor. Although some may agree, I think that Rob would have lost had he been captain of the older and wiser Zapatera’s rather than the young and impressionable Ometepes.

Matt then talks about being blindsided twice, and Jeff brings up Matt’s record as winner of 10 0ut of 11 duels. How bad was it, Matt? Matt says his lowest point was when he broke down and cried, saying God was carrying him. But he’s thankful for the life changing experience. He started the game saying he’d expected to follow his heart, but an educated decision, using logic and reason might have been a better plan. Being alone for so many days was lonely and miserable at times, but being able to talk about God and his faith was his salvation.

Andrea admits that she had a crush on Matt, but Matt will only say that they had a connection on the island. Say no more, Matt.

Mike, a war veteran, says that the experience brought him closer to God. He then talks about how difficult and real Survivor is, even though no one dies. He’s passionate about his time on Survivor, glad that he was there.

It’s time to pick on Russell now. Jeff wants to know what Russell’s fans thought when they saw him cry. Russell deftly dodges the question, congratulates Rob on his win, and they shake hands. Russell says the real question is, why did his team throw the challenge to get rid of him? It makes him sick to his stomach to think that his team threw in the towel rather than deal with him. Jeff wonders if Russell was serious about never playing again. Russell admits that Jeff can keep his phone number handy.

Philip’s turn on the hot seat now. Was he really a Federal special agent? Philip says that Rob’s appearance on the team was critical in his strategy, and that everyone he’s met since says he played the game well. He is proud that he played the game with integrity. Philip again tries to take over the show, but Jeff reminds him that they are live. Jeff asks if Philip still feels the same about Steve, concerning the famous ‘race’ war. Philip says he’d like to apologize to Steve, and shakes his hand. Jeff then brings in someone from Philip’s past, a current Federal Agent, to determine if Philip’s credentials are real. She says it is true, that Philip was an outstanding student. Although their paths haven’t crossed since then, she believes he would have gone on to be an outstanding Agent. The crowd is not so sure, but Jeff leaves the question in the air.

Jeff announces the Sprint Player of the Season – it’s very close, the two in contention are Boston Rob and Matt. The prize is $100,000. The winner is Rob, yet again.

Jeff tidies up a few leftover items, mentioning Ralph’s vote for Phillip, Grant’s recent marriage, and David’s budding romance with Carolina, a former Survivor contender. In yet another blind side, David proposes to Carolina right there and then. She accepts, and Jeff begins to pitch the next Survivor, coming your way starting this fall. 

Welcome to Survivor: South Pacific.  Scorching heat, torrential rains, two returning players, (my guess, Russell and Philip) and yes, yet more Redemption Island.  

After 11 years, and 22 seasons, I’ll be there. Will you?    

Source : http://www.starpulse.com/news/Roxanne_Tellier/2011/05/16/survivor_redemption_island_the_finale

Although today's launch attempt of the STS-134 has been scrubbed and rescheduled, we still wanted to let Android users know that NASA has been working on its NASA TV live streams so that they do work on Android devices. Today was set to be a beta test of those streams and while some did have issues with playback, others had no problems at all.

NASA is looking into the matter so that when STS-134 is ready to launch we'll all be able to tune in and enjoy it. If you head on over to the NASA mobile page you can click on Watch NASA TV Live and the stream will open up for you. If not, let them know in the comments. Part of the issue they are having is they can't test all possible versions of Android so dropping some comments may help them sort it all out.

Source: NASA. Thanks, Sam for sending this in!

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will “very likely” open the Morganza Spillway north of Baton Rouge this weekend to lower the levels of the swollen Mississippi River, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said Friday.

“It is extremely likely that the Morganza Spillway will open by tomorrow night or Sunday at the latest,” Jindal said in an official statement after meeting with state and federal officials.

Opening the spillway would divert water from the Mississippi River, which has risen to as much as 13 feet above flood stage in some areas, and send it south through the Atchafalaya Basin, a swath of swampland that extends to the Gulf of Mexico. The flooding has impeded river traffic and sent refiners in the area scrambling as they try to bring crude oil into their plants and send fuel out.

Diverting the water could affect oil and gas production in the basin, however. An estimated 19,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day is produced at more than 2, 200 oil and natural gas wells in the basin.

The Corps will likely open the flood gates halfway at first, allowing the flow of 300,000 cubic feet of water a second, Jindal said.

-By Ben Lefebvre, Dow Jones Newswires

Photo: Morganza Spillway courtesy Flickr user Eric Paul

Source : http://boating.resource4.info/morganza-spillway-likely-to-open-over-weekend/

Metra is notice which this morning’s deadly incident in between a bail out lorry as well as a Metra sight is expected to outcome in travelling headaches upon a Union Pacific-Northwest Line this afternoon, as passengers expected will have to go around a collision site around convey buses.

Trains scheduled for this sunrise were some-more than an hour during a back of scheduled. And trains will run from downtown Chicago to a downtown Des Plaines station, where passengers stability upon will house buses which will take them to a Arlington Heights station, according to Metra. Passengers starting in a conflicting citation with follow a same process.

Metra mouthpiece Judy Pardonnet pronounced which a group hoped to revive a line by pour out hour, though “People really need to have pick plans.”

Police pronounced it would be until during slightest 3 p.m. prior to a intersection of Mount Prospect Road as well as Northwest Highway as well as a marks have been non-stop since they have been still investigating.

For updates upon a afternoon commute, check Metra’s Web site. 

Source : http://thedailynewsupdate.com/headlines-news/metra-collision-could-lead-to-commute-headaches.html