| Mora: Coaching in Seattle his ‘priority’
His decision came after the Redskins' owner had sent a plane to fly him east and then hosted Seattle's assistant head coach and defensive backs coach at the tycoon's guesthouse during two days of interviews. "I want to thank the Redskins organization and owner Daniel Snyder for the opportunity to interview for the head coaching position," Mora said in a statement released by the Seahawks. "The process reconfirmed that the quality of life for my family in Seattle is my first priority. This past year has been a great experience both professionally and personally for myself, my wife Shannon, and our kids. We are very happy members of this community and the Seattle Seahawks organization." Holmgren added Mora, 46, to his staff soon after he was fired as head coach of the Falcons on New Year's Day, 2007, after three seasons leading Atlanta.
NFL gets the TMQ seal of approval
Detroit finished last in defense, 19th in offense, and coach Rod Marinelli, who supervises the defense, fired offensive coordinator Mike Martz, seeming to blame him for the team's late-season collapse. Herm "I Honor My Contact When I'm in the Mood" Edwards just fired his entire offensive staff. The grapevine says Mike "The Ultimate Leader" Shanahan might fire defensive coordinator Jim Bates, one year after firing defensive coordinator Larry Coyer. Apparently, all these assistant coaches did terrible jobs -- they must all have forgotten how to coach! -- while all the head coaches in question were in no way responsible. "Win as a team, lose as a team" means that when you lose, all coaches are equally to blame. Instead, coaches shift blame by cashiering assistants, either implying or stating outright that whatever went wrong was the assistants' fault.
New Tech fan blog: 'Shake and Bake' cooking up great future with ...
JASON JONES: It was about this time last year that Derek Dooley arrived on campus and had to basically start from scratch to put together a recruiting class. To top things off, he had about six weeks to get the job done. This year, thanks to hours and hours of work, Dooley and his staff are sitting in a much better position. Coach Dooley has commitments from 12 high school athletes. In addition, junior college standout Kwame Jordan, a 6-5 defensive end, signed in December. Jordan had offers from Marshall and Troy, but it's his former high school teammate that might be his biggest contribution. John Ehret end Eric Harper switched his commitment from Nebraska to Tech when he visited in December along with Jordan, his former teammate. Other big names pledged to the Dawgs are Bastrop athlete Bud Patterson and Mississippi prep quarterback Bret Jefcoat.
Critics peek inside Oscar
If the past few years (or the past few decades) are any indication, trying to predict who will get a nod is like trying to predict Kevin Federline's musical career.So this year, Fresno Bee movie critics Donald Munro and Rick Bentley are taking a different approach. Their lists are the actors and films that they would honor if they were selecting those to get the Oscar nods. Here's how they would hand out the 2008 Academy Award nominations.Donald Munro's picksBest picture"Hairspray": The feel-good movie of the year, perfectly pitched and so giddy in its forward momentum and cheery social message that you'll be dancing out of the theater."No Country for Old Men": It captures the Wild West tinge of underlying violence that boosted the United States in its early days and to an extent still forms the framework of our society: a country of wide-open spaces, boundless opportunities and a chilling tendency toward taking what you can get."Once": A perfect little musical love story about a struggling Irish songwriter, this low-budget charmer has the best soundtrack of the year."Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street": This pared-down version of the Broadway musical is so bloody economical that the film achieves an amazing double whammy: It gives you the chills and makes you sing at the same time."Into the Wild": Sean Penn's adaptation of the Jon Krakauer book about a young man (Emile Hirsch) who naively challenges the Alaska wilderness is a taut, superbly told and ferociously filmed adventure.Best actorJohnny Depp, "Sweeney Todd": He's a cut above, no doubt about it.Chris Cooper, "Breach": A clenched and compelling performance as a traitorous FBI officer who shrouds much of himself -- motivations, back story, moral center -- and yet keeps offering intimate glimpses.Don Cheadle, "Talk to Me": An endearing and moving performance from an actor who captures the charisma of a born entertainer.Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood": Among the most chilling personifications of evil ever portrayed on the big screen.
Gadgets Scientists Devise Brighter LEDs via Nano-imprint Lithography
The LED, or Light Emitting Diode, has been around since the late 60's but only over the last few years have LEDs made headway into commercial mainstream use. Some new vehicles now use LED's in headlights and taillights. The benefits of this are brighter light and much improved life span for the bulbs. Some stop lights also use LEDs to combat against the hazard of a stop light burning out. Of more interest to technophiles is the advent of LEDs for use as backlighting in our notebook computers, such as the recently announced Dell Latitude XT tablet PC, and other personal electronic devices. LEDs promise less power consumption in out notebooks thereby increasing battery life. LEDs are also slowly making their way into our flat panel TVs such as the Samsung 31-inch OLED panel DailyTech reported on last week.
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