NYC, NY, United States (AHN) – New York Fashion Week is pulling out all the stops and adding some high-tech techniques to make the week a memorable and successful event.

New this year, some New York City cab riders will have the opportunity to purchase luxury beauty products by swiping their smartphones over special tags inside some 50 cabs that have been specially outfitted with the technology for NY Fashion Week, which officially kicks off Thursday.

Only select cabs in neighborhoods associated with Fashion Week, such as Lincoln Center and the Meatpacking District, will carry the technology.

As part of the five-day Fashion Week experiment, passengers will get a free ride. But, unlike most other riders who have the option to switch off clips shown on screens inside their cab, these riders must sit through the ads.

The “mobile taxi shops” were the brainchild of Glamour magazine for Fashion Week. Screens will stream programming from Glamour on beauty trends, with makeup artists from L’Oreal brands Lancome and Yves Saint Laurent doing demonstrations.

Also new to this year’s Fashion Week extravaganza is the expanded use of the Internet and social media.

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NYC, NY, United States (AHN) – Shoppers may be perusing stores for the latest in Spring 2012 Fashion, ready and eager to shed winter layers. But for fashionistas, this week will be all about the must haves in Fall Fashion.

Thursday kicks off New York Fashion Week, which is expected to be one of the busiest and most eclectic in recent years.

Featured will be iconic designers such as Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Marc Jacobs and Donna Karen. Also featured will be a plethora of smaller brands from the likes of Milly, Tracy Reese, Zac Posen and others.

More than 200 shows will take place during the week, which has been expanded over the years to nine days to accommodate all the activities.

Playing important roles this year are digital technology and social media sites which will allow myriad of individuals to view the newest in global fashion.

Fashion weeks used to be by invitation only. But live-steam shows and mobile apps have changed that, allowing consumers, editors and buyers to watch via their laptops and/or cellphones.

Much of the week’s events will take place at Lincoln Center, but several other shows will be held at venues all across Manhattan.

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NY, NY, United States (AHN Sports) – Talk about the dreaded bulletin board material.

Despite being Las Vegas favorites, few football observers are picking the New England Patriots to win Sunday over the New York Giants, and the G-Men also posted “The Giants are Super Bowl champions!” on their website for a brief time Saturday.

The NFL tried to have the Giants “backs” in a statement saying the team was just getting the web page prepared in advance should they win the game.

“It is common practice for both teams to create web pages in advance of the conference championship games and Super Bowl,” the NFL said in a statement. “In this case, the hidden URL for the page was inadvertently available for a brief period of time while it was being positioned on the NFL server for possible post tomorrow night.”

It would be interesting to know if the Patriots use the “error” during any pre-game speeches to get any more fired up for the contest.

It could be that dropping the last two contests to New York, one during the regular season and another four years ago in the Super Bowl, might be motivation enough for the Pats to play their best.

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NY, NY, United States (AHN Sports) – Jose Reyes sat in a barber’s chair during a live show on the MLB Network to undergo the necessary, cuts of three years worth of locks in order to play for his new team, the Miami Marlins.

“It’s been three years with this hair,” Reyes said on the program. “I’ve been through a lot with this hair.”

The Marlins have a policy against long hair, so Reyes sat patiently getting his locks trimmed.

“I can’t wait to get to spring training and get together with my new team,” Reyes said, anyway. “It’s a new family.”

Reyes expects one thing to remain the same as it was with his former team, the New York Mets. The shortstop expects tons of triples and steals with the Marlins.

Florida fans will be excited to watch their new player, as Reyes led the NL in batting average at .337 and in triples with 16 last season.

Reyes auctioned off the dreadlocks on eBay with the proceeds going to the Make-A-Wish foundation.

“People said I look good in the studio,” Reyes said with a laugh. “But it doesn’t feel that good.”

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Leading multimedia retailer QVC continues to set the trend in accessible designer fashions at New York Fashion Week. QVC will once again broadcast live from New York City during February Fashion Week. QVC will offer viewers an exclusive look at one of the fashion industry’s most iconic events.

QVC will host a unique runway show for invited guests on Wednesday, Feb. 8 to introduce four new designer collections. Also showcased will be the latest styles from customer favorites and preview items set to launch later in the month.

The runway fashions will be styled using elements from several designers to present an ensemble of trends for the spring collection.

On Feb. 10, viewers can tune into QVC at 10 p.m. for a live NY Fashion Week Web broadcast featuring feminine looks from Christina Ehrlich and Isaac Mizrahi. Also featured will be styles appropriate for a global expedition from the debut collection created by Fern Mallis and Karen Zambos. Also highlighted will be designs from QVC veteran Marc Bouwer and debut designer Cynthia Vincent.

In addition, QVC will broadcast behind-the-scenes video of the fashion show and exclusive interviews with the designers about their new QVC collection.

A second NY Fashion Week show will be aired live at 10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11. Featured will be bohemian chic styles and new pieces from Brazilian designer and model Camila Alves. The QVC premiere of Geren Lockhart, creator of Geren Ford, will also be highlighted.

Couture and contemporary designers Dennis Basso and Mark Zunino will present glamorous pieces, while editorial favorite Lori Goldstein will shine with an eclectic line.

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Indianapolis, IN, United States (AHN) – The spiritual side of football has never been more apparent than during this season with the very public display of religious devotion and God-giving gratitude displayed by the iconic Tim Tebow.

The Denver Bronco’s quarterback won’t be playing at Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 5 in Indianapolis. No, this year’s big game pits the New England Patriots against the New York Giants in what is expected to be the most watched game in television history.

One can safely bet that many prayers will be said, a few “hail Mary” passes will be tossed, and promises will be made that almost certainly will never kept in a bid to have the favorite team take home the coveted trophy and title. A few other choice words are also bound to be uttered.

But, when the winner emerges, and the thanks begin, odds are that God and family will be remembered first.

According to the online betting site Sportsbook.com, the odds that the player selected as MVP will thank God are 5-4; his teammates, 2-1; he doesn’t thank anyone, 5-2; his coaches 4-1; and the odds he will thank his family are the long shot at 5-1.

The odds that the winning coach will thank his team are 2-3; the odds he thanks God are 6-5; that he thanks his coaching staff and owner are 4-1; the odds he doesn’t thank anyone are 8-1, the same as the odds that he thanks his family.

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – January was good for stocks and commodities.

Major stock indexes in the United States closed out the first month of the year with the largest gains in 15 years.

While the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 20.81 points Tuesday, the last day of January, the Dow rose 3.4 percent for the month, the biggest increase since 1997. The Dow advanced 415.35 points in January, the most on record.

Signs of accelerating growth both here in the U.S. and abroad fueled the gains.

Also turning in impressive gains in January was a basket of commodities.

Corn, oil, tin, aluminum and other industrial metals that can serve as manufacturing barometers gained by double digits in percentage terms in January after steep declines last year.

Precious metals also glistened brighter in January. Gold glowed, finishing the month up 11 percent, and silver looked even more radiant, posting a 19 percent gain during the first month of 2012,

The broad-based gains in commodities mark a sterling reversal from the fourth quarter of 2011, when commodities prices tumbled along with risky assets.

Some investors are betting that further gains are to be had, believing the U.S. economy is gathering steam and momentum. In addition, market participants are counting on China and other fast growing Asian economies to remain heavy and hearty consumers of the raw materials needed to build homes, cars, appliances and consumer electronics. There is also the mindset that precious metal bugs will continue to take a shine to metals including gold, silver, platinum and palladium.

Stocks, and commodities in particular, are notoriously volatile, so ups and downs are expected, and even encouraged, by some.

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Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – The so-called Oscars of the food world this year will present the most coveted award to the man best known for feeding celebrities at the real Oscars, Wolfgang Puck.

Chef Wolfgang Puck will receive the iconic James Beard Lifetime Achievement Award.

Puck, who has won multiple honors from the foundation and is the only chef to have twice received its Most Outstanding Chef Award, was selected for his talent as a chef and a restaurateur, as well as for his history of revolutionizing how American chefs think about food, Susan Ungara, Foundation President, said in a news release.

Puck, whose cooking combines classic French techniques, with a heavy focus on seasonal and local ingredients, has been an important influence and revered voice in the California cuisine circuit.

Puck was born in Austria and moved to Los Angeles in 1975. In 1982 he opened the renowned restaurant Spago, for which he remains best known. Currently, Puck has 20 restaurants peppered throughout the United States.

Puck will receive the honors on May 7 in New York at the foundation’s awards gala.

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – While much of the recent buzz in the IPO market has been about the expected filing by Facebook on Wednesday, eight other deals are expected to public during the week of Jan. 30.

The list is composed mainly of energy-related and tech deals. The most highly anticipated in the bunch is AVG Technologies NV, which is scheduled to launch its IPO on Thursday.

The Netherlands-based company will attempt to raise as much as $144 million. The company’s business consists of Internet security, online backup, mobile security and identity protection. Shares will trade on the NYSE under the symbol AVG.

Another deal attracting interest is U.S. Silica Holdings Inc. The company, which specializes in commercial silica used in a variety of industries, the most prominent being “frac sand” to stimulate oil and gas recovery in formations such as shale, hopes to raise as much as $212 million. Shares will be listed on the NYSE, and will trade under the symbol SLCA.

Medical software company Greenway Medical Technologies Inc. will list as GWAY in a $87 million offering.

A trio of energy companies will also hit the market this week. They include Dynamic Offshore Resources (DOR), Matador Resources (MTDR) and Platinum Energy Resources (FRAC). All will trade on the NYSE.

Two drug developers will also launch initial public offerings. Neither have any drugs with regulatory approval, revenue or profit. But that hasn’t stopped other IPOs in the past, many which have been very successful.

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals is focused on cancer treatments and Cempra is developing new antibiotics for pneumonia and staph. Both will list on the NASDAQ.

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Jerusalem, Israel Arieh O’Sullivan (The Med – As United Nations nuclear inspectors touch down in Tehran, the running assessment is that Israel will not tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran and will do everything including a military strike to stop it.

As far back as 1997, Jane’s Intelligence Review stated this very clearly and no one has denied it. What has changed over the decade is the timetable. Signs are increasingly pointing to this year being the decisive one of decision and there are indications that a direct military confrontation between Iran and the West – the U.S. and/or Israel – is more likely today than at any time in more than two decades.

“The strategy vis-a-vis Iran should be to do whatever is possible under the radar coupled with painful and crippling sanctions, but at the same time we should also keep a viable military option on the table with the willingness to use it if necessary,” former Israeli army chief Lt.-Gen. Gaby Ashkenazi said at a recent conference in Tel Aviv. “When the moment comes, I don’t know if we won’t be alone, and for this reason Israel must also rely on itself.”

But just as the belligerent rhetoric goes up a notch there also has emerged increasing signs of divisions within Israel’s strategic community on exactly when and how to deal with Iran’s nuclear challenge.

Shlomo Brom, a general retired from Israel intelligence and former deputy national security adviser, said the Iranians have not yet made the crucial decision to assemble a nuclear bomb.

“There is time,” Brom told The Media Line. “If the only consideration is the Iranian program and how close they are to a bomb, well they haven’t taken yet the decision to take the last step for weaponization. They are acquiring all the necessary technology so that once they do decide to do it they will.”

Ronen Bergman, an Israeli writer on strategic affairs, published an article in the New York Times last week saying that the three major factors for a strike are in place now. These were “international legitimacy,” “Israel’s capability” and “necessity” to act.

Last year, former Mossad chief Meir Dagan said a military strike now would be “the stupidest thing I have ever heard.” He has said in published remarks that war planes should only be dispatched when the knife was at Israel’s throat.

His position was echoed this week by the recently retired head of Israeli military intelligence, Maj.-Gen. Amos Yadlin. He believes there is still a point once a decision is made by Iran to get the bomb and the process is in motion that the strike could be ordered.

“Assuming that once they do make a decision to weaponize, we will know it and that is the assumption of Yadlin. There is a window of time from the point of making this decision and until they succeed in weaponizing,” Brom explained.

But the flaw in this thinking was raised by Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who is troubled by what he called Iran’s “immunity zone.” He has described this as the ability by Iran to accumulate know-how, raw materials and equipment so that a military attack would be too late.

“Even if Iran hasn’t taken that decision, they are taking steps to make their program immune and remove their vulnerability and then it [a military strike] won’t be a possibility,” said Brom, currently a senior research associate at the Institute for National Security Studies.

Brom added that containing a nuclear-armed Iran is also out of the question, not because it wouldn’t be impossible to establish a situation of mutual deterrence with Iran, but because of the impact of a nuclear Iran on the region.

“The question is the affect of nuclear proliferation will have on the Middle East and the ability of Iran to cause trouble by other means,” Brom said.

Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel, currently head of planning for the Israeli military and front runner to be named the next air force chief, outlined recently the prevailing view that once an enemy nation has the bomb, it severely restricts the use of force in the neighborhood.

“This is going to create a dramatic change in Israel’s strategic posture, because if we are forced to do things in Gaza or Lebanon under an Iranian nuclear umbrella, it might be different,” Eshel told reporters and diplomats at a Jerusalem think tank last week.

He deflected questions on whether Israel could contain a nuclear Iran, saying that was a political decision. His job, he said, was to give the government the “tool box” of options.

“We have to provide the government with tools in the box. The decision to use them or not is a few blocks from here,” Eshel said. “I will say what President Obama said, ‘Nuclear Iran is unacceptable’.”

A recent cartoon in the Jerusalem Post shows Netanyahu facing a street sign: “War with Iran before they get nukes” point one way and “War with Iran after they get nukes” pointing the other way.

This illustrates the dilemma facing Israeli leaders. A vast majority say war with Iran before it got nukes could have horrific results, but one Israel could weather and would eventually end, despite casualties and damage. The other scenario could see the annihilation of the Jewish state. The choice is obvious to those who advocate early action.

The question is also whether other measures, such as sabotage and assassination and mysterious explosions and computer worms, could reach the same results as an overt military strike.

According to the Ha’aretz daily, the Israel Defense Forces are not at ease with Barak’s public warnings about Iran attaining nuclear capacity within months. The army’s latest assessment reportedly states that “possibly Iran will have nuclear operation capability sometime within the span of the next five-year plan.” This could mean anywhere between 2013 and 2018.

The question is the timeline. The Institute for Science and International Security, a non-profit institution headed by former U.N. nuclear inspector David Albright, concluded last week that Iran did not have enough weapon-grade uranium to make nuclear weapons this year. But, it said, the Islamic republic had developed a capability to “rapidly build nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program” once a decision was taken.

The task of the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors in Iran this week is not to inspect the nuclear sites, merely to get talking again on their nuclear program. This tactic, Israel says, is Tehran’s ploy for gaining time.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says his country, facing toughened sanctions, is ready for nuclear talks with the world powers. However, he says sanctions will not force Iran to stop uranium enrichment, which he claims they seek for energy not weapons.

In the meantime, mysterious explosions continue to rock Iran, kill nuclear scientists and destroy missile plants.

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