Sunday, January 20, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
Sailors, Marines depart for Cambodia MEDEX 13-1
CAMP FOSTER, Japan - Marines and sailors with 3rd Medical Battalion
departed Okinawa for Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Jan. 17 to conduct Cambodia
Medical Exercise 13-1.
The service members will work alongside Royal Cambodian Armed Forces medical personnel at the Phnom Penh Preah Ket Meleah Hospital during subject-matter expert exchanges to increase Cambodian and U.S. medical capability, capacity and interoperability.
The U.S. and Cambodian armed forces have conducted medical exercises together since 2007, and the purpose of this year’s exercise is to exchange expertise and ideas to further develop both militaries’ medical capabilities.
“We will observe our medical counterparts, so we can understand how they utilize equipment and handle the daily challenges they face,” said Lt. Cmdr. Lawrence Decker, the officer in charge of the exercise and the subject-matter expert in emergency medicine with the battalion, part of Combat Logistics Regiment 35, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force.
Surgeon, nurse and emergency room doctor subject-matter expert exchanges will take place during the exercise. Both the RCAF and U.S. military medical personnel will develop a relevant presentation to share with each other. The U.S. service members will also share their medical experiences and medical record-keeping skills.
Exercises, training and exchanges like Cambodia MEDEX 13-1 are valuable opportunities for all involved, according to Chief Petty Officer Chris Guckeyson, the operations officer with the battalion.
“A benefit of this is not only increased interoperability between the two nations, but increased medical capability, which fosters greater stability in the region,” said Guckeyson. “It also helps the subject-matter experts because the cultural differences provide an opportunity to see their medical priorities as opposed to ours.”
During last year’s Cambodia MEDEX, both Cambodian and U.S. military medical personnel benefitted from working together and gaining knowledge.
“(The most important thing I saw was) the desire the Cambodian physicians showed to improve their medical care – it was extremely heartening to see that,” said Decker. “This year, we will continue developing those personal relations so in the future, we are able to coordinate better and improve our (interoperability).
“My overall goal is that our 14-day (exercise) provides a lasting effect.”
The service members will work alongside Royal Cambodian Armed Forces medical personnel at the Phnom Penh Preah Ket Meleah Hospital during subject-matter expert exchanges to increase Cambodian and U.S. medical capability, capacity and interoperability.
The U.S. and Cambodian armed forces have conducted medical exercises together since 2007, and the purpose of this year’s exercise is to exchange expertise and ideas to further develop both militaries’ medical capabilities.
“We will observe our medical counterparts, so we can understand how they utilize equipment and handle the daily challenges they face,” said Lt. Cmdr. Lawrence Decker, the officer in charge of the exercise and the subject-matter expert in emergency medicine with the battalion, part of Combat Logistics Regiment 35, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force.
Surgeon, nurse and emergency room doctor subject-matter expert exchanges will take place during the exercise. Both the RCAF and U.S. military medical personnel will develop a relevant presentation to share with each other. The U.S. service members will also share their medical experiences and medical record-keeping skills.
Exercises, training and exchanges like Cambodia MEDEX 13-1 are valuable opportunities for all involved, according to Chief Petty Officer Chris Guckeyson, the operations officer with the battalion.
“A benefit of this is not only increased interoperability between the two nations, but increased medical capability, which fosters greater stability in the region,” said Guckeyson. “It also helps the subject-matter experts because the cultural differences provide an opportunity to see their medical priorities as opposed to ours.”
During last year’s Cambodia MEDEX, both Cambodian and U.S. military medical personnel benefitted from working together and gaining knowledge.
“(The most important thing I saw was) the desire the Cambodian physicians showed to improve their medical care – it was extremely heartening to see that,” said Decker. “This year, we will continue developing those personal relations so in the future, we are able to coordinate better and improve our (interoperability).
“My overall goal is that our 14-day (exercise) provides a lasting effect.”
Sony to sell US HQ building for $1.1B
Sony said it is selling its U.S. headquarters in Manhattan for
US$1.1 billion, which will help tide the financially-strapped Japanese
electronics giant over while it is in the midst of improving its
business.
AFP reported Friday the Japanese electronics maker has sold the 37-storey building to a consortium led by New York-based commercial property firm Chetrit Group in a deal expected to close this March. The deal will net Sony US$770 million after paying off building-related debt and transaction costs, it added.
Its various business units, including music and movie divisions, would remain in the building for another three years under a new lease agreement, but will leave it once the tenure ends, the report stated.
In a statement reported by AFP, Sony said: "Sony is undertaking a range of initiatives to strengthen its financial foundation and business competitiveness and for future growth. At the same time, Sony is balancing cash inflows and outflows while working to improve its cash flow by carefully selecting investments, selling assets and strengthening control of working capital such as inventory. This sale is made as a part of such initiatives."
A separate report by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Thursday revealed the deal is a big boost for Sony as it is more than four times the amount it had paid for when acquiring it from AT&T in 2002.
Nicole Seligman, president of Sony America, said in an internal memo to employees: "As we had hoped, there was great interest in this iconic building. Given the opportunities and challenges in the current economic and real estate landscape, selling 550 Madison now is a timely and logical strategic move."
On Thursday, Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai said his company's recovery was not yet complete but it is heading in the right direction. Amid its financial troubles, Sony has carried out a series of job cuts and venue closures to ease costs and stay afloat.
For its earnings in the second quarter ended Sep. 30, 2012, the company narrowed its losses to US$15.5 million from US$27 million a year ago.
AFP reported Friday the Japanese electronics maker has sold the 37-storey building to a consortium led by New York-based commercial property firm Chetrit Group in a deal expected to close this March. The deal will net Sony US$770 million after paying off building-related debt and transaction costs, it added.
Its various business units, including music and movie divisions, would remain in the building for another three years under a new lease agreement, but will leave it once the tenure ends, the report stated.
In a statement reported by AFP, Sony said: "Sony is undertaking a range of initiatives to strengthen its financial foundation and business competitiveness and for future growth. At the same time, Sony is balancing cash inflows and outflows while working to improve its cash flow by carefully selecting investments, selling assets and strengthening control of working capital such as inventory. This sale is made as a part of such initiatives."
A separate report by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Thursday revealed the deal is a big boost for Sony as it is more than four times the amount it had paid for when acquiring it from AT&T in 2002.
Nicole Seligman, president of Sony America, said in an internal memo to employees: "As we had hoped, there was great interest in this iconic building. Given the opportunities and challenges in the current economic and real estate landscape, selling 550 Madison now is a timely and logical strategic move."
On Thursday, Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai said his company's recovery was not yet complete but it is heading in the right direction. Amid its financial troubles, Sony has carried out a series of job cuts and venue closures to ease costs and stay afloat.
For its earnings in the second quarter ended Sep. 30, 2012, the company narrowed its losses to US$15.5 million from US$27 million a year ago.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Judge denies Apple request to ban Samsung phones
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge on
Monday denied a legal request by Apple Inc. to ban U.S. sales of Samsung
smartphone models that a jury in August said illegally used Apple
technology.
The decision is part of a series of rulings that U.S. Judge Lucy Koh says she is releasing over several weeks to address the many legal issues raised in the case.
Koh's ruling Monday night comes after Apple this summer was awarded $1.05 billion in damages. A jury found Samsung had copied critical features of the iPhone and iPad.
Apple had urged the judge to permanently ban the U.S. sales of eight Samsung smartphone models, while also seeking to add millions more to the award. A jury in August said Samsung illegally used Apple technology, while also seeking to add millions more to the award.
"The phones at issue in this case contain a broad range of features, only a small fraction of which are covered by Apple's patents," Koh wrote in her ruling. "Though Apple does have some interest in retaining certain features as exclusive to Apple, it does not follow that entire products must be forever banned from the market because they incorporate, among their myriad features, a few narrow protected functions," she wrote.
Earlier this month, Koh appeared ready to trim the $1 billion jury verdict Apple won over Samsung Electronics, but gave no indication as to how much.
Adding to the legal tangle, Apple filed a second lawsuit earlier this year, alleging that Samsung's newer products are unfairly using Apple's technology. That's set for trial in 2014. In addition, the two companies are locked in legal battles in several other countries.
Apple lawyer Harold McElhinny claimed earlier this year that Samsung "willfully" made a business decision to copy Apple's iPad and iPhone, and he called the jury's $1.05 billion award a "slap in the wrist."
Samsung lawyer Charles Verhoeven has argued that Apple was trying to tie up Samsung in courts around the world rather than competing with it head-on. Samsung has also claimed that it was deprived of a fair trial in a courthouse a dozen miles from Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters.
The decision is part of a series of rulings that U.S. Judge Lucy Koh says she is releasing over several weeks to address the many legal issues raised in the case.
Koh's ruling Monday night comes after Apple this summer was awarded $1.05 billion in damages. A jury found Samsung had copied critical features of the iPhone and iPad.
Apple had urged the judge to permanently ban the U.S. sales of eight Samsung smartphone models, while also seeking to add millions more to the award. A jury in August said Samsung illegally used Apple technology, while also seeking to add millions more to the award.
"The phones at issue in this case contain a broad range of features, only a small fraction of which are covered by Apple's patents," Koh wrote in her ruling. "Though Apple does have some interest in retaining certain features as exclusive to Apple, it does not follow that entire products must be forever banned from the market because they incorporate, among their myriad features, a few narrow protected functions," she wrote.
Earlier this month, Koh appeared ready to trim the $1 billion jury verdict Apple won over Samsung Electronics, but gave no indication as to how much.
Adding to the legal tangle, Apple filed a second lawsuit earlier this year, alleging that Samsung's newer products are unfairly using Apple's technology. That's set for trial in 2014. In addition, the two companies are locked in legal battles in several other countries.
Apple lawyer Harold McElhinny claimed earlier this year that Samsung "willfully" made a business decision to copy Apple's iPad and iPhone, and he called the jury's $1.05 billion award a "slap in the wrist."
Samsung lawyer Charles Verhoeven has argued that Apple was trying to tie up Samsung in courts around the world rather than competing with it head-on. Samsung has also claimed that it was deprived of a fair trial in a courthouse a dozen miles from Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters.
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