The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Friday, January 11, 2013 - 3
The Michigan Daiiy - michigandailycom Friday, January 11, 2013 - 3
NEWS BRIEFS
LANSING, Mich.
State gov. to spend
more in key areas
Michigan's budget outlook
is stable despite softer-than-
expected economic growth, put-
ting the governor in position to
spend more in key areas while
socking away money and address-
ing long-term costs of retirement
for public workers, the state's
budget director said Thursday.
John Nixon told The Associated
Press that while tax revenues are
lower than projected eight months
ago, much of the dip was expected
because of tax cuts and other pol-
icy changes. He also attributed it
to a "little softer" economy that he
says is turning around.
"We're starting from a posi-
tion of stability. ... We have some
money to invest and to make stra-
tegic investments," he said.
INDIANAPOLIS
Missing son found
after 19 years
An Indiana woman whose
young son was abducted 19 years
ago was screaming and "jump-
ing up and down" after learning
he was living in Minnesota under
a different name, her husband
said Thursday shortly after police
announced they had found him.
Richard Wayne Landers Jr.
was just 5 years old when he and
his paternal grandparents, who
were upset over custody arrange-
ments, disappeared from Wol-
cottville, a town about 30 miles
north of Fort Wayne.
Indiana State Police said the
now 24-year-old Landers was
found in Long Prairie, Minn.,
thanks in part to his Social Secu-
rity number. His grandparents
were living under aliases in a
nearby town and confirmed his
identity, investigators said.
ATHENS
Unemployment in
Greece highest yet
Unemployment has reached
new highs in Greece, with Octo-
ber 2012 figures showing the job-
less rate at 26.8 percent, a major
increase from the same month in
2011.
The country's Statistical
Authority said Thursday that
unemployment increased from
the 26.2 percent in September
2012, and marked a significant
jump from the 19.7 percent of
October 201L The young are the
worst affected, with 56.6 percent
of those aged between 15 and 24
out of work in October 2011.
Greece has been struggling
through a severe financial cri-
sis since late 2009, and has been
dependent on international
rescue loans since May 2010.
In return, the government has
imposed strict austerity mea-
sures that have slashed salaries,
increased taxes and plunged the
country into a recession. Tens
of thousands of businesses have
shut down.
CAIRO
Yemeni tribal chief
killed by al-Qaida
Yemeni security officials say a
prominent tribal chief has been
killed in an ambush, an apparent
revenge attack by al-Qaida for his
security links.
The officials said suspected
al-Qaida militants fatally shot
Ali Abdul-Salam Thursday and
wounded two of his guards as they
rode in his vehicle in the southern
province of Abyan.
Security and tribal officials
said Abul-Salam, an elected local
council member in Shabwa prov-
ince, was accused by militants of
providing information to security
agencies and foreign intelligence
that led to'the targeting of al-Qai-
da members.
The officials were speaking on
condition of anonymity because
they were not authorized to speak
to reporters.
The government, backed by the
U.S., has been going after al-Qaida
militants who have established
strongholds in Yemen's south.
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports
Struggling Mali
gov. calls for aid
Pakistani police officers and local residents gather at the site of a bomb blast that targeted paramilitary soldiers in a
commercial area in Quetta, Pakistan, killing at least 115 people, according to police.
Coordinated bombings kill
-15 1n Pakistani southwest
Taliban keeps
bloody insurgency
alive in face of drone
strike attacks
QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) - A
series of bombings in different
parts of Pakistan killed 115 peo-
ple on Thursday, including 81
who died in a sectarian attack
on a bustling billiard hall in the
southwest city of Quetta, offi-
cials said.
The blasts punctuated one
of the deadliest days in recent
years in Pakistan, where the
government faces a bloody
insurgency by Taliban mili-
tants in the northwest and Bal-
uch militants in the southwest.
The country is also home to
many enemies of the U.S. that
Washington has frequently tar-
geted with drone attacks. A U.S.
missile strike Thursday killed
five suspected militants in the
seventh such attack in two
weeks, Pakistani intelligence
officials said.
The billiard hall in Quet-
ta, the capital of Baluchistan
province, was hit by twin
blasts about 5 minutes apart on
Thursday night, killing 81 peo-
ple and wounding more than
120 others, said senior police
officer Zubair Mehmood.
The billiard hall was located
in an area dominated by Shi-
ite Muslims, and most of the
dead and wounded were from
the minority sect, said anoth-
er police officer, Mohammed
Murtaza. Many of the people
who rushed to the scene after
the first blast and were hit by
the second bomb, which caused
the roof of the building to col-
lapse, he said.
Police officers,journalists and
rescue workers who responded
to the initial explosion were also
among the dead, police said.
The sectarian militant group
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed
responsibility for the, attack
to local journalists. One of the
group's spokesmen, Bakar Sad-
diq, said the first blast was car-
ried out by a suicide bomber
and the second was a bomb
planted in a car and detonated
by remote control.
Radical Sunnis groups often
target Pakistan's Shiite minority,
whom they believe hold heretical
views and are not true Muslims.
Earlier in the day, a bomb
targeting paramilitary soldiers
in a commercial area in Quetta
killed 12 people and wounded
more than 40 others, said Sha-
keel, the senior police officer.
The United Baluch Army,
a' separatist group, claimed
responsibility for the attack
on the soldiers in calls to local
journalists.
Elsewhere in Pakistan,
a bomb in a crowded Sunni
mosque in the northwest city
of Mingora killed 22 people and
wounded more than 70, said
senior police officer Akhtar
Hayyat.
No group claimed responsi-
bility for the attack.
Half of Mali is under
Islamic extremist
control
UNITED NATIONS (AP) -
Mali's president asked France
for help Thursday to counter an
offensive by extremist and ter-
rorist groups who control the
northern half of the country
and are heading south.
France's U.N. Ambassador
Gerard Araud told reporters
after an emergency meeting of
the U.N. Security Council that
urgent action is needed against
the groups who captured the
city of Konna Thursday and
are now threatening the city
of Mopti, which has 100,000
inhabitants.
The Security Council
expressed "grave concern" at
the military action by the ter-
rorist and extremist groups and
called on U.N. member states
"to provide assistance to the
Malian Defense and Security
Forces in order to reduce the
threat posed by terroristorgani-
zations and associated groups."
Araud said it was urgent to
act against the threat and to
work to restore the country's
stability.
"This terrorist attack weak-
ens even more the stability of
Mali and thereby that of its
neighbors," he said. "Sustain-
ability of the Malian govern-
inent and. the protection of
civilian populations are now at
stake,"
Araud said Mali's President
Dioncounda Traore sent'a let-
ter to Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon, which he transmit-
ted to the Security Council, and
a similar letter to French Presi-
dent Francois Hollande seek- .
ing assistance from France,
the country's former colonial
power, against the offensive.
"It's up to the authorities
of my country to decide and
announce the nature of this
assistance," he said. "It will be
announced in Paristomorrow."
Araud said council resolu-
tions "call on all member states
to provide assistance in resolv-
ing the Malian crisis in all its
aspects, including military and
political - and I emphasize - to
provide support to the authori-
ties of this country to put an end
to the terrorist threat."
U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice,
asked whether the president of
Mali requested specific kinds
of military support and troops,
said: "It wasn't specific, but it
basically said, 'Help!France."'
Mali was* plunged into tur-
moil after a coup in March 2012
created a security vacuum. That
allowed the secular Tuaregs,
who have longfeltmarginalized
by Mali's government, to take
half the north as a new home-
land. But months later, the reb-
els were kicked out by Islamist
groups allied with' al-Qaida,
which have imposed strict Sha-
riahlaw throughout the north.
Late last year, the 15 nations
in West Africa, including Mali,
agreed on a proposal for the
military to take back the north,
and sought backing from the
United Nations.
The Security Council in
December authorized an
African-led force to support
Malian forces in recover-
ing the north - an area the
size of Texas - but set no
timeline for military action.
Instead, it set out bench-
marks to be met before the
start of offensive operations,
beginning with progress on a
political roadmap to restore
constitutional order, politi-
cal reconciliation, elections
and training of the Malian
and African troops and
police.
New bookstore to join
competitive A2 market
University Library showcases rare
document in iPhone and iPad apps
Owners lease space
formerly used by
Snyder campaign
By AARON GUGGENHEIM
Daily StaffReporter
On the corner of Washing-
ton and Fourth streets, several
blocks away from an empty
building formerly leased to
Borders, a dark-green building
will soon become the home of
the Literati Bookstore. '
The 2,600 square foot build-
ing - empty since last being
used as the office for Michi-
gan Gov. Rick Snyder's 2010
campaign - will open some-
time before spring, according
to owners Hilary Lowe and
Michael Gustafson.
Lowe and Gustafson are
repurposing old shelves from
Borders and are not doing
any construction in the store
before it opens. Because of the
turnkey setup, Lowe and Gus-
tafson are cautiously optimistic
about their ability to open the
storefront within two to three
months.
Both owners spent years
in the publishing and writing
industries, but moved to Ann
Arbor in July to begin opening
the store.
Lowe said she and Gustafson
decided that in the absence of
Borders, it was the right time to
open a bookstore in Ann Arbor.
"The book market is rapidly
changing and evolving," Lowe
said. "Small bookstores have
been able to pick up the market
that Borders left."
Lowe added that although
online retailers like Amazon
offer stiff competition to inde-
pendentbookstores, she believes
Ann Arbor has a strong enough
market to support another
entrant to the market.
"We can't provide the dis-
count pricings of Amazon ...
but (we can provide) a superior
customer service experience,"
she said. "We can (also) try to
carry as diverse an inventory as
possible and pinpoint what the
community needs."
The Literati Bookstore will
join several other independent
book retailers in the downtown
Ann Arbor area such as Aunt
Agatha's, the Crazy Wisdom
Bookstore and Tea Room, the
Dawn Treader Book Shop and
the West Side Book Shop.
Robin Agnew, co-owner of
Aunt Agatha's, a bookstore that
sells new and used myster-
ies, said she's excited about the
opening of another independent
bookstore.
"It is a good synchronicity... it
gets more book shoppers down-
town," Agnew said.
. Agnew said her store had its
best year in 2012. She added that
Lowe and Gustafson have the
potential to be successful if they
limit their variety of titles.
"They might have a good
match if they can keep it lean
and mean," Agnew said. "Ann
Arbor is one of the better (book)
markets ... I don't know what is
happening long term, but I'm
enjoying the moment."
LSA senior Jessica Chick said
she was looking forward to the
arrival of Literati because she
prefers purchasing and reading
physical books over the plethora
of digital media available from
online retailers like Amazon.
"I'm from a small town, so
supporting local businesses is a
huge thing for me," Chick said.
Keith Taylor, coordinator of
the University's creative writing
program, said in an e-mail that
having downtown bookstores
was important because it fosters
a sense of community among
readers.
"Those of us who love to read
books talk to each other," Taylor
wrote. "It can be a very impor-
tant part of our lives."
Taylor added that he spends
large amounts of his money and
time in bookstores around Ann
Arbor and that he intends to
become a regular at Literati if it
has meaningful events in addi-
tion to a desirable book supply.
"I will discover . things
there. I will certainly pur-
chase things there. I will hang
out there," Taylor said. "I only
hope they won't have to ask me
to leave."
Interactive tool
translates rare
papyrus
By CHELSEA HOEDL
Daily StaffReporter
With just the tap of a finger,
some of the University's great-
est ancient documents are now
viewable by anyone.
In late December, the Uni-
versity Library released its
famous Epistles of St. Paul
papyrus, the earliest known
copy of the Letters of St. Paul,
to the general public in the
form of an app available for
download at the Apple App
Store. The papyrus, which was
once only available to a limited
audience, is now accessible by
iPhone or iPad and .offers an
interactive viewing experi-
ence.
The 30-leaf papyrus -
which was purchased by the
University in the 1930s - can
now be downloaded, flipped
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through and translated on the
Apple devices.
Arthur Verhoogt, an associ-
ate professor of papyrology and
Greek, developed the free app,
PictureIt:EP, with the help of
the University's 3D Lab in the
Digital Media Commons at the
Duderstadt Center. Verhoogt,
who is the acting archivist for
the University Papyrology Col-
lection, said the app is useful
for academics and interested
individuals.
"For scholars like myself it is
very important to be able to see
the papyrus in its book form,
to be able to flip the page and
things like that," Verhoogt said.
"More importantly, for the gen-
eral audience it's an opportuni-
ty to touch this ancient papyrus
and flip through it."
"That's not something that
can happen with these precious
artifacts in the real world," he
added.
The app provides line-by-
line translations as users drag a
finger over the papyrus. Anno-
tations about peculiarities as
well as the variations between
the papyrus and the common
version are also easily acces-
sible.
3D Lab manager Eric
Maslowski said the innovative
technology shows the ancient
documents in a new way.
"I've seen quite a few other
iBooks out there, a few that
deal with other languages, but
many of them don't have a very
nice interface for translation,"
Maslowski said. "No one else
is really doing this, where they
are showing this rare collection
in new ways."
Although the content of the
papyrus can be found online,
actual images have not been
available until the release of
this app. Verhoogt said similar
texts are often not available on
the Internet because of differ-
ing attitudes on copyright.
He said his colleagues have
expressed enthusiasm about
the technological advancement
and have shown interest in put-
ting other text collections inthe
same format.
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