Siberian plane crash kills 31

[ [ [['A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GV9zpj', '[Related: View photos of the JetBlue plane in Amarillo]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Afghan security forces and police killed three', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/H9BcJE', '[Related: Bales\' wife on his alleged shooting: \'He would not do that\']', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['looking for fireworks between the opposing camps', 16]], 'http://yhoo.it/GSvEsj', '[RELATED:\?It?s going to be a circus\?: Activists begin protests outside Supreme Court]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 8]], 'http://yhoo.it/GE6jSh', '[RELATED: Obama\?s health care law passed 2 years ago, but where are we now\?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Witnesses said the gunman pulled up on a black scooter', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GzwOIW', '[Related: New York police tighten security at Jewish sites]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['test Zimmerman for alcohol or drugs', 11]], 'http://yhoo.it/Gzn6VF', '[Related: White House says Trayvon Martin is local issue]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Trayvon Martin decked the Neighborhood', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GUovUP', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/2/61/261d2c36bccf0971c2734a4d4398aa5a.jpeg', '512', ' ', 'AP/David Goldman', ], [ [['Can you create commerce in order to regulate it', 9]], 'http://yhoo.it/GSgtu8', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/7/78/778e2416573870cd705774e92403447d.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP/Charles Dharapak', ], [ [['associated with such a small earthquake', 4]], 'http://yhoo.it/GTco9z', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/0/b4/0b493c1a47b6e3f97f8f48a2b251d7d4.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP Photo/Carrie Antlfinger', ], [ [['Fox News host Geraldo Rivera sparked outrage', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GKMVTk', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/2/7c/27c7367bc512d233ae1790b320a5e92c.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP Photo/John Minchillo', ], [ [['The charges signed against Bales include', 1]], 'http://yhoo.it/wZT5zV', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/7/a0/7a07c51b2aa0f39b1a23355046d13870.jpeg', '512', ' ', 'AP Photo/DVIDS\, Spc\. Ryan Hallock\, File', ], [ [['George Zimmerman, if I had a son', 6]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/thousands-protest-fla-teen-death-1332387124-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/03/22/d761a49f3fcc99080a0f6a70670053cd-jpg_150905.jpg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/John Minchillo', ], [ [['Mohamed Merah', 10], ['prosecutor Francois Molins', 5]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/four-dead-in-french-jewish-school-shooting-1332173151-slideshow', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120321/2012_03_21t151508z_425380421_gm1e83l1sqs01_rtrmadp_3_france_shootings_raid.jpg', '630', ' ', 'REUTERS/Jean-Paul Pelissier', ], [ [['Shortly after he wrapped up his victory remarks', 2]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/4-straight-romney-wins-washington-gop-caucus-1330835515-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/e9/3e9b0082c3c3111dcc19e3527ae94cc7.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/Steven Senne', ], [ [['best understands the problems of average Americans', 2]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/4-straight-romney-wins-washington-gop-caucus-1330835515-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/e9/3e9b0082c3c3111dcc19e3527ae94cc7.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/Steven Senne', ], [ [['Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GB2RVy', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/03/20/photo-1332257995646-4-0-jpg_171722.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AFP', ], [ [['xxxxxxxxxxxx', 11]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/russian-grannies-win-bid-to-sing-at-eurovision-1331223625-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/1/56/156d92f2760dcd3e75bcd649a8b85fcf.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP', ] ]

[ [ [['measure all but certain to fail in the face of bipartisan', 4]], '28771014', '0' ], [ [['matter what you do in this case', 5]], '28759848', '0' ], [ [['presume laws are constitutional', 7]], '28747556', '0' ], [ [['has destroyed 15 to 25 houses', 7]], '28744868', '0' ], [ [['short answer is yes', 7]], '28746030', '0' ], [ [['opportunity to tell the real story', 7]], '28731764', '0' ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 7]], '28723797', '0' ], [ [['point of my campaign is that big ideas matter', 9]], '28712293', '0' ], [ [['As the standoff dragged into a second day', 7]], '28687424', '0' ], [ [['French police stepped up the search', 17]], '28667224', '0' ], [ [['Seeking to elevate his candidacy back to a general', 8]], '28660934', '0' ], [ [['The tragic story of Trayvon Martin', 4]], '28647343', '0' ], [ [['Karzai will get a chance soon to express', 8]], '28630306', '0' ], [ [['powerful storms stretching', 8]], '28493546', '0' ], [ [['basic norm that death is private', 6]], '28413590', '0' ], [ [['songwriter also saw a surge in sales for her debut album', 6]], '28413590', '1', 'Watch music videos from Whitney Houston ', 'on Yahoo! Music', 'http://music.yahoo.com' ], [ [['keyword', 99999999999999999999999]], 'videoID', '1', 'overwrite-pre-description', 'overwrite-link-string', 'overwrite-link-url' ] ]

san antonio weather mike daisey nicollette sheridan mike wallace mike wallace snow white and the huntsman snow white and the huntsman

This Football-Sized Robot Sub Handles Law Enforcement's Underwater Beat [Video]

From inspecting cargo ships in NYC Harbor to searching for missing persons in South Texas, law enforcement is increasingly supplementing its human divers with these football-sized remote submersibles. More »

anguilla gone with the wind michael jordan checkers imbibe msg network ray j

NCAA Final Four: Basketball royalty, but how's their football lineage?

As a general rule, teams that achieve great success on the hardwood can't boast of the same on the gridiron.

Basketball and football excellence seldom go hand in hand in college sports ? at least not in the same academic year ? and the teams playing in Saturday?s NCAA Final Four in New Orleans are no exception.

Skip to next paragraph

Only one of the basketball programs represents a ?football school.? And that school, as fans realize, is not Kentucky, Kansas, or Louisville, but Ohio State. Yet last fall the Buckeyes turned in one of their poorest seasons in many years. ?Their 6-7 overall record (3-5 in the Big Ten Conference) came after two scandals involving the football team that led to suspensions of key players and the resignation under pressure of head coach Jim Tressel.

In the history of the NCAA basketball tournament, which dates to 1939, the fans of only one college have been able to chant ?We?re No. 1? in football and basketball in the same school year. That was the University of Florida. The Gators turned the trick during the 2006 football season and the basketball campaign that immediately followed, when Yoakim Noah and a few of his talented sidekicks resisted the temptation to turn pro early and stayed on to secure a second straight basketball title at the end of the 2006-07 season.

If any school ever had a golden opportunity for synergy between basketball and football, it was UCLA during the Bruins? incredible basketball reign under Coach John Wooden, when the team won 10 championships in the space of a dozen years, beginning in 1964.

The football squad managed to pull itself up by the shoelaces during this stretch, landing in the season-ending Top 20 polls four different times, including a No. 5 AP ranking in 1966, the year UCLA quarterback Gary Beban won the Heisman Trophy.

The general argument is that there can only be one dominant sport on any campus, that there just isn?t enough institutional support in various forms to be spread equally between two major sports teams.?

Also, in the intense world of college recruiting, blue chippers want to go to schools where their sport is king because it means more visibility and adulation ? and the potential for major bowl bids, top March Madness seedings, and possibly a national championship.??

As for the other schools in this year?s Final Four:

Louisville went unranked in football in the school years in which it won its two NCAA basketball championships, 1980 and 1986.

Kansas has enjoyed slightly better success. Before winning the last of its three NCAA basketball titles in 2008, the Jayhawk football team posted a No. 7 ranking in the final 2007 AP poll.

Kentucky has won seven national basketball championships, which is second only to UCLA. Although its football program is often usually well overshadowed by what happens on the hardwood, the Wildcats were highly ranked in football twice in the prelude to basketball championships in 1951 and 1978, finishing No. 7 and No. 6, respectively, in the final AP polls. The first of those football teams was coached by Bear Bryant, one of the legends of the game who achieved his greatest fame at Alabama.

ben nelson extreme couponing taylor lautner sinead o connor dan marino passing record ipad 2 cases movie times

Cleveland native Earl Boykins finds his way back onto court with Houston Rockets: NBA Tipoff

Earl Boykins received a call from his agent late last Sunday telling him there was a 10-day contract waiting for him in Houston if he could be there early the next morning and pass conditioning and stress tests.

The 35-year-old Cleveland native arrived at the Rockets' training facility Monday ready to run 40 length-of-the-court sprints. One minor problem: Boykins was wearing Nike cross-training shoes, not exactly ideal footwear for timed drills on hardwood. But the 5-5 guard knew better than to ask the Rockets for basketball shoes.

The NBA doesn't do size 9 1/2.

It was just another obstacle for Boykins to overcome. He is the kid at the amusement park forever being told he's too small to ride the coasters, but who always finds his way into the front car.

Boykins entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 1998. Of the 58 players chosen that year, just 16 have appeared in more games than Boykins.

The Cleveland Central Catholic product had a shot at appearing in his 645th game after successfully completing his conditioning test. But he still needed to drive to a Houston hospital to walk on an inclined treadmill to gauge his heart rate before earning a jersey for that night's game against Sacramento.

The second-shortest player in league history has a long list of past teams: New Jersey, Cleveland, Orlando, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State, Denver, Milwaukee, Charlotte. The NBA keeps getting larger, stronger, swifter, yet Boykins keeps finding work. He appeared in 57 games last season with the Bucks.

When he's out of the league he's still playing pick-up games in Cleveland and Denver, coaching his son's AAU teams and checking his cellphone for calls from agent Mark Termini. There's always been another club willing to take a flier on the cagey guard who has averaged 8.9 points and 3.2 assists in his career.

The last word

"Of course, I love everything about being in Cleveland and growing with this organization and these teammates." -- Alonzo Gee, Cavs forward, after being asked if he would like to be back with the Cavaliers next season. (He is a restricted free agent at season's end.)

---

Inside the numbers

7 Cavs home losses by 15 points or more, tying them with Detroit and Charlotte for most in the NBA this season, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

Boykins sailed through the stress test, but tipoff was less than two hours away as he sat in traffic -- still with no basketball shoes. He spotted an off ramp that led to a mall. Boykins was sprinting again, this time to FootLocker.

"I grabbed a pair of old-school Nike Huarache, you know, the kind the Fab Five at Michigan made famous," Boykins said.

He signed his 10-day contract about 45 minutes before tipoff, introduced himself to his new teammates and did some minor alterations to his ill-fitting No. 6 Rockets jersey.

"I can't tell you what kind of alterations or the NBA fashion police might fine me," he said.

The Rockets, already without guards Kyle Lowry and Kevin Martin, lost Goran Dragic to a sprained ankle. Coach Kevin McHale, planning to use Boykins sparingly, played him 20-plus minutes that first night.

The guard didn't know the plays that first game with Houston. There were times coach Kevin McHale had to tell him where to run. Boykins just kept putting one Huarache in front of the other and ending up at the foul line. He sank four critical free throws in overtime, finished with 10 points and five assists and helped the Rockets win, 113-106, to keep their playoff hopes buoyant.

"What a day," Boykins said.

He understands there are no promises beyond Tuesday, when his deal expires. In basketball, as in life, nothing is guaranteed. Michael Olowokandi, the top overall pick in the 1998 NBA Draft, played just 500 games. Robert "Tractor" Traylor, the No. 6 overall pick, is dead.

Earl Boykins, the undrafted free agent from the streets of Cleveland, is still hoopin,' still showing the league there's a little bit of tread left in those size 9 1/2 feet.

-- Tom Reed

zynga free shipping free shipping esophageal cancer marfan syndrome marfan syndrome britney spears engaged

Getting It Right: Taxation and Economic Growth | Finance ...

The power to tax is

the power to destroy. Even Pharaoh, 3000 years ago, aware of what this wise saying. Unfortunately, it seems to have been forgotten by some of the more influential modern economists. But, what is destroyed? What is destroyed are economic incentives for business formation and growth.

With Congress and the White House talking about a stimulus package sporadically to spur economic growth, it is important to distinguish what tax policies will work and what is sheer puff and political business as usual (increase spending) disguised as economic stimulus package to. . With this in mind, you might say that this article is a short primer on understanding the growth aspects of tax policy

Taxes, broadly speaking, can be categorized into two types of headings ? taxes on capital and taxes on labor. Since this article will be dealing with taxes on income, capital taxation would be identified with the corporate income tax. Similarly, a tax on labor is equivalent to the personal income tax schedule. Now the sixty-four thousand dollar question. Which one is more important in helping to stimulate economic and business growth?

As President Lincoln stated in one of early speeches as president, the tax on labor is of more importance than the tax on capital. Why? Economic growth is driven by net new business formation. Or, to put it another way ? the economy is driven briskly when everyone wants to be a business owner. When entrepreneurs (risk takers) to start enterprise, their business income tax is initially reported on the personal income tax schedule. As the business grows, the owners may incorporate and file using the corporate tax rate. (As a reminder, when individuals start businesses, they hire people. Businesses with less than 100 employees are responsible for 75% of the net new job growth. Net new business formation should be the goal of tax policy designed to stimulate economic growth.)

Since the tax on labor is more important than the tax on capital, the top marginal income tax rate on labor should be less than the top corporate rate. Presently, the top corporate tax rate is 35%, while the top tax rate on labor is about 35%. If policymakers are serious about providing incentives for stimulating vibrant business growth, the top personal income tax rate should be reduced to less than 35%. To provide a real fillip to economic growth, the top personal income tax rate should be significantly below 35%. It was no accident that President Regan, in his second term, reduced the top individual rate to 28%. This was a true top rate that did not include any phaseout of deductions or any of that nonsense that has the perverse effect of increasing the marginal rate.

Economic policy makers, Whether they are in position to administrative or legislative , like to take the path of least resistance ? similar to electrons in a circuit. Their path of least resistance is to stimulate economic growth to increase spending. It does not work! (If it did, many of the major European economies would be booming by now. Instead they have been in the doghouse for the past ten years.) The money for their Increased spending is just sucked out of the private sector. The net effect is zero. Providing financial incentives for individuals to take immediate and significant business risks by reductions in the top marginal individual income tax rate is the best way to promote vibrant and sustained economic growth. id=?article-resource?> Sanford Kahn, Business Author / Speaker, has been a professional speaker for over 30 years to both the corporate and national trade and professional association markets. She is the host and producer of the popular Times mirror cable vision series ?Ask the Economist?. Mr. Kahn has authored many articles on the business impact of future economic trends. His most recent publication is The Great Economic Myths That Dominate Business & Our Lives. For more information please visit his web page at http://www.businessspeaker.biz .

Find More Economic Articles

Source: http://www.lovefinanceinfo.com/2012/03/getting-it-right-taxation-and-economic-growth/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=getting-it-right-taxation-and-economic-growth

odd fellows eli whitney blake griffin dunk on kendrick perkins kendrick perkins carolina panthers steve jones emily maynard

sheriff joe arpaio limbaugh aaron smith wilt chamberlain joe arpaio national weather service cat in the hat

The History of April Fools' Day [VIDEO]

[ [ [['A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GV9zpj', '[Related: View photos of the JetBlue plane in Amarillo]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Afghan security forces and police killed three', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/H9BcJE', '[Related: Bales\' wife on his alleged shooting: \'He would not do that\']', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['looking for fireworks between the opposing camps', 16]], 'http://yhoo.it/GSvEsj', '[RELATED:\?It?s going to be a circus\?: Activists begin protests outside Supreme Court]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 8]], 'http://yhoo.it/GE6jSh', '[RELATED: Obama\?s health care law passed 2 years ago, but where are we now\?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Witnesses said the gunman pulled up on a black scooter', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GzwOIW', '[Related: New York police tighten security at Jewish sites]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['test Zimmerman for alcohol or drugs', 11]], 'http://yhoo.it/Gzn6VF', '[Related: White House says Trayvon Martin is local issue]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Trayvon Martin decked the Neighborhood', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GUovUP', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/2/61/261d2c36bccf0971c2734a4d4398aa5a.jpeg', '512', ' ', 'AP/David Goldman', ], [ [['Can you create commerce in order to regulate it', 9]], 'http://yhoo.it/GSgtu8', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/7/78/778e2416573870cd705774e92403447d.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP/Charles Dharapak', ], [ [['associated with such a small earthquake', 4]], 'http://yhoo.it/GTco9z', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/0/b4/0b493c1a47b6e3f97f8f48a2b251d7d4.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP Photo/Carrie Antlfinger', ], [ [['Fox News host Geraldo Rivera sparked outrage', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GKMVTk', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/2/7c/27c7367bc512d233ae1790b320a5e92c.jpeg', '630', ' ', 'AP Photo/John Minchillo', ], [ [['The charges signed against Bales include', 1]], 'http://yhoo.it/wZT5zV', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/7/a0/7a07c51b2aa0f39b1a23355046d13870.jpeg', '512', ' ', 'AP Photo/DVIDS\, Spc\. Ryan Hallock\, File', ], [ [['George Zimmerman, if I had a son', 6]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/thousands-protest-fla-teen-death-1332387124-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/03/22/d761a49f3fcc99080a0f6a70670053cd-jpg_150905.jpg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/John Minchillo', ], [ [['Mohamed Merah', 10], ['prosecutor Francois Molins', 5]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/four-dead-in-french-jewish-school-shooting-1332173151-slideshow', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120321/2012_03_21t151508z_425380421_gm1e83l1sqs01_rtrmadp_3_france_shootings_raid.jpg', '630', ' ', 'REUTERS/Jean-Paul Pelissier', ], [ [['Shortly after he wrapped up his victory remarks', 2]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/4-straight-romney-wins-washington-gop-caucus-1330835515-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/e9/3e9b0082c3c3111dcc19e3527ae94cc7.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/Steven Senne', ], [ [['best understands the problems of average Americans', 2]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/4-straight-romney-wins-washington-gop-caucus-1330835515-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/3/e9/3e9b0082c3c3111dcc19e3527ae94cc7.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP Photo/Steven Senne', ], [ [['Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery', 7]], 'http://yhoo.it/GB2RVy', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/os/152/2012/03/20/photo-1332257995646-4-0-jpg_171722.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AFP', ], [ [['xxxxxxxxxxxx', 11]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/russian-grannies-win-bid-to-sing-at-eurovision-1331223625-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/1/56/156d92f2760dcd3e75bcd649a8b85fcf.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP', ] ]

[ [ [['measure all but certain to fail in the face of bipartisan', 4]], '28771014', '0' ], [ [['matter what you do in this case', 5]], '28759848', '0' ], [ [['presume laws are constitutional', 7]], '28747556', '0' ], [ [['has destroyed 15 to 25 houses', 7]], '28744868', '0' ], [ [['short answer is yes', 7]], '28746030', '0' ], [ [['opportunity to tell the real story', 7]], '28731764', '0' ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 7]], '28723797', '0' ], [ [['point of my campaign is that big ideas matter', 9]], '28712293', '0' ], [ [['As the standoff dragged into a second day', 7]], '28687424', '0' ], [ [['French police stepped up the search', 17]], '28667224', '0' ], [ [['Seeking to elevate his candidacy back to a general', 8]], '28660934', '0' ], [ [['The tragic story of Trayvon Martin', 4]], '28647343', '0' ], [ [['Karzai will get a chance soon to express', 8]], '28630306', '0' ], [ [['powerful storms stretching', 8]], '28493546', '0' ], [ [['basic norm that death is private', 6]], '28413590', '0' ], [ [['songwriter also saw a surge in sales for her debut album', 6]], '28413590', '1', 'Watch music videos from Whitney Houston ', 'on Yahoo! Music', 'http://music.yahoo.com' ], [ [['keyword', 99999999999999999999999]], 'videoID', '1', 'overwrite-pre-description', 'overwrite-link-string', 'overwrite-link-url' ] ]

nascar news chardon high school shooting mark martin cleveland news daytona race the cutting edge fox 8 news

IT Sligo signs MOU with Chinese University

IT Sligo?s strategy of increasing its intake of international student has received a significant boost following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Institute and Henan University of Science and Technology (HUST) in China.

As a result of the agreement, future approval will be sought from the Ministry of Education in China for the delivery of an accredited IT Sligo-designed four year honours Bachelor? degree programme, most likely in an applied science discipline, for HUST students. This would see 20 to 25 Chinese students participating in the programme on the basis of the first two years delivered at HUST and the final two years at IT Sligo, or alternatively three years at the local university with the final year spent on the Sligo campus. It is hoped that the first such programme will begin at HUST as early as this October.

?This MOU represents our first bilateral agreement with a Chinese higher education institution and is a significant first for IT Sligo as we seek to boost our internationalisation agenda?, said President of IT Sligo, Professor Terri Scott.

The announcement, which underlines IT Sligo?s commitment to the Government?s strategy of increasing international student intake nationally, comes in the wake of a 15 day visit to China on which IT Sligo was represented by Patrick Lynch. The trip coincided with a visit by Minister of State for Training and Skills Ciaran Cannon who was in China for St Patrick?s Day, in a bid to unlock the massive Chinese education market. Mr Lynch participated in a number of Education in Ireland events hosted by Minster Cannon in Beijing and used the opportunity to foster links with a significant number of trusted education recruitment agents there.

Mr Lynch travelled as a guest of the Henan Provincial Government and met with representatives of six other universities in the cities of Zhengzhou and Luoyang, with whom he is also? hoping to collaborate in the near future.

?We believe we have a lot to offer the Chinese education market especially in the STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Maths) areas?, which we do so well at IT Sligo,? said Mr Lynch. ?This agreement is an important step in our mission to increase our proportion of international students to seven per cent of all fulltime equivalents by 2015?, he added.

Sligo has already been blazing a trail in fostering links with China in the areas of trade, education, tourism and culture and just over a year ago Sligo County Council and the government of Henan province signed an agreement in Sligo formally establishing a sister relationship. In November 2011 the Institute welcomed a delegation from the Chinese Peoples Association of Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), and during that visit an invitation was extended to visit HUST.

The MOU, which has been signed by the Presidents of both colleges, will facilitate the exchange of teaching and research between the two institutions. It is anticipated that the colleges will exchange students, graduates, lecturers, and visiting scholars each year. Exchange students and scholars will be liable for travel and living expenses while staying in the host institution.? The agreement will be in place for five years.

Mr Lynch pointed out that China is ranked number two in terms of overseas education market value for Education in Ireland. ?In Ireland we host the highest number of Chinese students on a per capita basis among all European countries,? Mr Lynch pointed out. ?We in IT Sligo are gratified to have made this progress so quickly and we look forward to collaborating with a number of other Chinese universities in the near future.?

Following An Taoiseach Enda Kenny?s visit to China this week Ireland and China have confirmed they have established a strategic partnership for co-operation on a range of issues, including the areas of education, trade and investment, tourism, science, agriculture and food.

IT Sligo already has a number of Memorandums of Understanding with a range of institutions in USA, Korea, Canada, Malaysia and across Europe.

ship aground off italy nfl playoff schedule 2012 nfl live saints vs 49ers vanessa marcil 49 ers frank gore