Friday, October 28, 2011

Ohio woman set to reclaim exotic animals from zoo





WILLIAMS: Good evening.

BRIAN WILLIAMS, anchor: We begin tonight with a strange and sad story out of Zanesville , Ohio . It started with a local man known as something of an eccentric and a criminal who'd served time in prison. He kept a wild animal preserve on his property, big exotic animals , the kind we see in zoos, until last night when he released the animals and took his own life . Police responding in the dark to protect the families in the area had no choice but to draw their weapons and bring down the animals . Those still on the loose today were tranquilized, taken away. The 48 dead animals include 18 endangered Bengal tigers , and there are only about 2500 in the world. Tonight in Zanesville it's mostly the scene of a terrible waste and a rekindled debate over private rights vs. animal welfare . We have two reports tonight, beginning at the scene with NBC 's John Yang . John , good evening.

JOHN YANG reporting: Good evening, Brian . It was a tense and terrifying night. Fifty exotic animals roaming the hillsides. Not only those 18 Bengal tigers , but 17 lions. The sheriff said that they were big, mature and aggressive. Sheriff's deputies pursued them with assault weapons. Their orders were simple: Shoot to kill. By the time the sun came up in Zanesville , most of the animals that had escaped from Terry Thompson 's farm were gone.

Sheriff MATT LUTZ (Muskingum County, Ohio Sheriff): One wolf, six black bears , two grizzly bears , nine male lions, eight lionesses, one baboon, three mountain lions and 18 tigers.

YANG: It had been a nerve-racking night as local news broadcasts warned residents.

CABOT REA reporting: Stay inside. There just might be a lion, a tiger or a grizzly roaming in your neighborhood.

YANG: Thompson , the owner of a 73-acre exotic animal farm, had apparently set most of his animals free and then took his own life . Fred Polk , one of Thompson 's neighbors, saw many of the animals on his property.

Mr. FRED POLK: I seen some mountain lions and African lions and, I think, three bears. One of the bears charged a deputy and the deputy shot it.

Sheriff LUTZ: We don't go to the academy and get trained on how to deal with 300-pound Bengal tigers .

YANG: Danielle White and her two children live right next door. For them it was a terrifying night.

Ms. DANIELLE WHITE: The gunfire was very close to the house. I almost felt at one point that it may have been right in the backyard.

Offscreen Voice #1: That is a bear.

YANG: Today, schools were closed as a precaution amid new questions about the animal's owner. Neighbors and other area residents called Thompson eccentric. Late last month he was released after more than a year in federal prison on gun charges. Six of his animals , including three leopards, have been safely taken to the Columbus Zoo , but scores of others had to be killed to protect a community.

Mr. JACK HANNA (Columbus Zoo Director Emeritus): Tragedy for the animal world is what it is. It could have been a bigger tragedy for the human world , and that's what we tried to avoid here.

YANG: Tonight most of the exotic animals have been returned to Terry Thompson 's property and buried there. John Yang , NBC News, Zanesville , Ohio .

STEPHANIE GOSK reporting: This is Stephanie Gosk . An animal control officer shot a monkey on the loose last week in St. Cloud , Florida . This mountain lion attacked and mauled a four-year-old in Texas earlier this month. Both cases of exotic pets on the loose.

Mr. JEFF CORWIN (NBC News Wildlife Expert): In the United States today there are thousands of people who keep exotic animals as pets. Globally, the market trade of creatures is a $20-billion-a-year industry.

GOSK: Buying an exotic animal can be as easy as a click of the mouse. One site has up to 600 for sale. But state laws vary widely on regulating who can own what depending on where they live. According to the Humane Society of the US, 12 states ban the private possession of exotic animals , 28 states have restrictions and 12 states have almost none. Ohio is one of those states.

Offscreen Voice #2: Damn, you got to be nuts if you want to keep one of these.

GOSK: A new documentary highlights the sometimes murky business of exotic animal sales.

Mr. MICHAEL WEBBER ("The Elephant in the Living Room" Director): I went to exotic animal auctions and I had to go undercover, and I actually had to go with bodyguards, too, because they didn't allow cameras in there.

GOSK: Scott Shoemaker in Nevada is raising 30 animals , including six tigers and a 550-pound African lion . He says he spent more than $100,000 in caging and nine-feet wire fencing for his 10-acre property.

Mr. SCOTT SHOEMAKER: Some guy lets his out. It's obviously not a caging issue, not a safety issue. The guy obviously had a mental issue. And why would I get lumped in with him? We have taken precautions here in being responsible.

GOSK: Tonight the pressure is on Ohio Governor John Kasich to change the law. His office has been re-evaluating a proposed ban on exotic pets , Brian , that would have prevented today's incident.

WILLIAMS: Stephanie Gosk and John Yang starting us off tonight from Zanesville . Thanks to you both.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45063189/ns/us_news-life/

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Thursday, October 27, 2011

I've Been Waiting All My Life for This Kind of Advancement in Umbrella Technology [Genius]

There are some inventions—think umbrellas or nail clippers—that have been somewhat serviceable but hardly perfect. Why can't we find something more effective? Did we all just give up? Athanasia Leivaditou didn't. She wants to create a raincoat with an umbrella hoody. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Lg8qsrqpdTQ/ive-been-waiting-all-my-life-for-this-kind-of-advancement-in-umbrella-technology

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Mexican army raids bulletproofing auto shop (AP)

MEXICO CITY ? The Mexican army have found an auto shop used to bulletproof vehicles for drug gangs.

Ten people were arrested and soldiers confiscated 10 cars or SUVs that were being bulletproofed, as well as six other vehicles in a warehouse in the northern state of Sinaloa, said the army in a late-Monday statement.

Authorities did not say which cartel managed the shop, but it was in the home state of Mexico's most-wanted drug lord Joaquin Guzman, who is known as "El Chapo."

In border states such as Tamaulipas, soldiers have raided similar bulletproofing auto shops and found freight trucks completely covered in steel.

The army's operation in Sinaloa took place Sunday.

In Acapulco, federal police caught a young woman and a young man as they were getting off a car near a shopping mall with an ice chest, and inside a decapitated head and other human remains, authorities said Tuesday. Police followed them because the car matched the description in a kidnapping report.

Inside their vehicle, police found another head inside another ice chest and poster boards. When drug gangs commit crimes, they often leave messages against rival groups.

Federal police said 19-year-old Damaris Gomez, or "Guera" a nickname for blonde, is the leader of a hitmen cell working for "the street sweeper" gang. The 21-year-old man riding with her is an alleged hitmen, police said.

The local gang is fighting against the Independent Cartel of Acapulco for control of the coastal city following the 2010 arrest of a suspected drug capo for the Beltran Leyva cartel, Edgar Valdez Villarreal, also known as "La Barbie."

In the northern border city of Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas, police found the dismembered bodies of four men in bits scattered around the city.

Prosecutors spokesman Arturo Sandoval said police first found two heads and parts of two bodies at street corner in the southern part of the city, along with a handwritten message saying "To the New Juarez cartel, keep recruiting, we're waiting for you."

The New Juarez Cartel is a group that recently appeared, and which accuses authorities of favoring the Sinaloa cartel, which is fighting a bloody turf battle against local gangs for control of Ciudad Juarez.

The other victims' remains were found scattered elsewhere in the city later in the day.

Amid continuing reports about the operation of U.S. intelligence officers in Mexico, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City issued a statement Tuesday saying that "in accordance with Mexican law, the U.S. government does not carry out law enforcement operations in Mexico. That is a job for Mexican authorities."

The U.S. statement noted that "we closely cooperate with Mexican authorities in that effort, in full respect for Mexico's sovereignty and Mexican law, for the mutual benefit of our two counties and our shared goals. The U.S. government does this by providing equipment and training, and by sharing information."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mexico/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111026/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_drug_war_mexico

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Investors brace for euro zone debt decision (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? Investors stayed cautious ahead of a summit expected to deliver pledges to tackle the euro zone's debt crisis rather than firm commitments, keeping the euro above $1.39 as stocks markets traded little changed.

Core euro zone government bond prices were also flat.

Market expectations that EU leaders will come up with a comprehensive solution to the debt problem have dipped as political wrangling ahead of Wednesday's meeting has continued.

Investment bank Citi said it was a "numbers game, without the numbers."

While there appears to be broad consensus on the need for around 110 billion euros ($150 billion) to be injected into the European banking system to help it withstand a potential Greek debt default and wider financial contagion, there is little clarity on two other critical parts of the package.

Those are how to scale up the region's rescue fund and how much of a loss private bondholders will take on Greek debt.

"They can't quite pull the rabbit out of the hat yet, though they will probably get something better over time," said Lothar Mentel, chief investment officer at Octopus Investments.

He suggest that markets would react badly to any failure to come up with a plan, but there was no early sign of that.

World stocks as measured by MSCI were flat while the pan-European FTSEurofirst (.FTEU3) struggled to gain 0.1 percent.

The latter was buoyed somewhat by corporate earnings. Sweden's Handelsbanken (SHBa.ST) reported a better-than-expected rise in operating profit in the third quarter.

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch said there was scope for a tactical stock rally even if the EU summit disappoints because investors are holding a lot of cash and are bearishly positioned.

EURO STEADY

The euro inched higher versus the dollar, with analysts saying that the fact it remained within sight of a six-week high of $1.3959 hit the previous session showed many investors were still hoping for a positive summit outcome.

The dollar was generally weaker on expectations that the Federal Reserve may opt for more monetary easing following weak economic data.

It has lost nearly 5 percent against a basket of major currencies since a high at the beginning of October.

Core German debt was flat pending news from the EU summit.

"What Europe needs is a clear, quick-to-implement and easy-to-fund solution ... (T)here is a clear risk that we get a vague plan with no specific timetable and specific numbers," Lloyds TSB said in a note.

(Additional reporting by Brian Gorman, Dominic Lau and Kirsten Donovan; Editing by John Stonestreet)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111026/bs_nm/us_markets_global

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Poachers Drive Javan Rhino to Extinction in Vietnam [Updated]

Sad news coming out of Vietnam today: the Javan rhinoceros subspecies (Rhinoceros sondaicus annamiticus), once endemic to Southeast Asia, has been confirmed as extinct, according to WWF International. There are now officially no rhinos left in Vietnam.

This is the second of the three Javan rhino subspecies to be hunted into extinction. The first, the Indian Javan rhinoceros (R. sondaicus inermis), disappeared more than a century ago. Now only the Indonesian Javan rhino (R. sondaicus sondaicus) remains alive, and it might not last much longer either. Just 50 or fewer of these animals are thought to exist in Ujung Kulon National Park on the island of Java.

All rhino species worldwide are heavily threatened by rampant poaching for their horns, which are sold for upward of $30,000 each for use in so-called traditional Asian medicine, even though they are of no actual medicinal value. There are two other Asian rhino species: the one-horned Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis), which numbers about 3,000 animals in the wild, and the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis), which has two subspecies with a combined population of less than 300 individuals. A third Sumatran rhino subspecies may or may not still exist. In addition, there are two African rhino species: the white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum)?which includes the southern white rhino (the healthiest rhino subspecies, with more than 17,000 animals) and the northern white rhino, which is now down to its last seven individuals?and the black rhino (Diceros bicornis), with three critically endangered subspecies (two of which are below 1,000 individuals) and a fourth subspecies that was last seen in the year 2000 and is now believed to be extinct.

What is now known to have been the last Vietnam Javan rhino (the subspecies?s official name) was killed by poachers in April 2010. At the time, scientists estimated that there might have been up to eight of these elusive, rarely photographed rhinos left in Vietnam. Now it seems that already low estimate was too optimistic. Genetic analysis of 22 dung samples collected by a WWF survey team in 2009 and 2010 reveals that they were all from a single rhino?the same one shot by poachers last year.

?The last Javan rhino in Vietnam has gone,? Tran Thi Minh Hien, WWF-Vietnam country director, said in a prepared statement. ?It is painful that despite significant investment in the Vietnamese rhino population conservation efforts failed to save this unique animal. Vietnam has lost part of its natural heritage.?

The Vietnam Java rhino was actually thought extinct for more than 50 years, but it was rediscovered in 1988 when a single animal was killed by hunters. Since then, camera traps only captured a few images of the rhinos and the only time scientists actually laid eyes on one was the de-horned corpse found last year.

Despite the millions of dollars of international conservation funds poured into what was thought to be the last hold-out in Vietnam for R. sondaicus annamiticus?Cat Tien National Park?a WWF report released today (pdf) on the rhino?s extinction says insufficient measures were taken to protect those few surviving rhinos from poachers who sought their valuable horns. The report blames ?poor protection and law enforcement efforts and ineffective protected area management? and warns that ?Vietnam is on the verge of an extinction crisis with many other species threatened by hunting and habitat loss.? WWF is calling for improved law enforcement and management of key habitats ?to ensure that other species do not share the same fate as the Javan rhinoceros.? More specifically, said Nick Cox, manager of WWF?s Species Programme in the Greater Mekong, ?Vietnam?s protected areas need more rangers, better training and monitoring, and more accountability.?

WWF is also calling for increased efforts to protect the last Javan rhinos in Indonesia, before they, too, are also poached into extinction.

Updated: I asked Dr. Barney Long, WWF?s Asian species expert, for some additional information on the Javan rhino, which came in after this story was first published. Here are his answers:

I covered the news of the death of this rhino in May of last year. Why did it take so long to get the genetic test results?

This was a complicated process working with genetic material that is the property of Vietnam so we had to go through due process. First we had to get permission to export and import all the dung that we collected during the rhino surveys. We then had to repeat this for the dead rhino material. Each of these samples were then analyzed in Canada at Queen?s University. Genetic testing is not a quick process, especially on species such as the rare Javan rhino on which little genetic work has been conducted. These individual analyses then needed to be compared to check, double-check and triple-check so that we can be sure that all samples all came from the same individual. We had to be sure that we had the result 100 percent correct in this matter.

The press release mentions the ?significant investment? in conservation of this species. Are you able to release a figure to quantify this?

International conservation organizations have been supporting Cat Tien National Park for many years and development projects have been run by international development agencies around the park. Also the Vietnamese government has been investing in the park. Work on rhino conservation and Cat Tien National Park has been on-going since 1988 at various levels of investment by various organizations.

Since this Vietnamese subspecies was so hard to count over the years, how confident are you in the estimates of the population on Java?

The simple answer is that we currently are not that confident. Our best estimate is 27-44 individuals based on camera-trapping. There is currently a scientifically robust survey being designed and piloted, by WWF, the International Rhino Foundation and many partners including the government of Indonesia and the Ujung Kulon National Park authority. This will use genetic studies to identify how many rhinos there are in Ujung Kulon National Park, the only place left with Javan Rhinos. Once this is completed we will be confident of the numbers when they are calculated.

Are there any thoughts on how common this subspecies might have been historically?

Historical records show us that it was found across Java and Sumatra in Indonesia as well as Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh and NE India?clearly a very large area, although it was probably restricted to certain habitats within this area. So at some point in the past there must have been many thousand.

What action would you want people to take (if any) to help protect the remaining subspecies in Indonesia?

All partners are working together to save the Javan rhino in Indonesia. WWF has a campaign to support this,? as do IRF. Supporting these organizations would be the best way to help.

Photo 1: The skeleton of the last Javan rhino in Vietnam. Photo 2: a rare image of the Javan rhino, via a camera trap in Cat Tien National Park. Photos ? and courtesy of WWF-Greater Mekong

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=4b2671de4020ccf89ca05e1945af0df1

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Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Libyans bury Gadhafi in unmarked grave

FILE - In this Saturday, Oct. 22, 2011 file photo, a man reacts while viewing the bodies of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, background, his ex-defense minister Abu Bakr Younis and his son, Muatassim Gadhafi, foreground, in a commercial freezer at a shopping center in Misrata, Libya. Moammar Gadhafi, Libya's all-powerful leader for four decades, spent his final weeks shuttling from hideout to hideout in his hometown of Sirte, alternating between rage and melancholy as his regime crumbled around him, said a Gadhafi confidant now in custody. Gadhafi, his son Muatassim and an entourage of two dozen die-hard loyalists were largely cut off from the world while on the run, living in abandoned homes without TV, phones or electricity, said Mansour Dao, a member of the Gadhafi clan and chief bodyguard. (AP Photo/David Sperry)

FILE - In this Saturday, Oct. 22, 2011 file photo, a man reacts while viewing the bodies of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, background, his ex-defense minister Abu Bakr Younis and his son, Muatassim Gadhafi, foreground, in a commercial freezer at a shopping center in Misrata, Libya. Moammar Gadhafi, Libya's all-powerful leader for four decades, spent his final weeks shuttling from hideout to hideout in his hometown of Sirte, alternating between rage and melancholy as his regime crumbled around him, said a Gadhafi confidant now in custody. Gadhafi, his son Muatassim and an entourage of two dozen die-hard loyalists were largely cut off from the world while on the run, living in abandoned homes without TV, phones or electricity, said Mansour Dao, a member of the Gadhafi clan and chief bodyguard. (AP Photo/David Sperry)

In this image made from amateur video provided by the Libya Youth Movement and filmed on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011, an injured Moammar Gadhafi is surrounded by Libyan fighters in Sirte, Libya. There are international calls, led by the U.S. and Britain, for an investigation of whether Libyan fighters killed a wounded Gadhafi after pulling him out of a drainage pipe in his hometown of Sirte last week. Gadhafi's body has been on display for public viewing in Misrata since Friday. Libya's former ruler was laid out on a mattress in a refrigerated produce locker in a shopping mall in Misrata, and long lines of people have formed to get a glance at the deposed dictator. In declaring Libya's declaration Sunday, interim leader Abdul-Jalil did not mention the circumstances of Gadhafi's death, but urged his people to eschew hatred. (AP Photo/Libya Youth Movement via APTN)

FILE - In this Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2011 file photo, rebel fighters trample on a head of Moammar Gadhafi inside the main compound in Bab al-Aziziya in Tripoli, Libya. Misrata's fighters emerged from weeks of punishing street fighting during the bloody siege of their hometown battle-hardened and instilled with a searing hatred for Moammar Gadhafi. In the end, they extracted their revenge, putting the dictator's body and that of his son on display as a trophy. For Misratans, it was a fitting end to the civil war, and a clear signal that they are a force to be reckoned with in post-Gadhafi Libya. (AP Photo/Sergey Ponomarev, File)

(AP) ? Moammar Gadhafi was buried early Tuesday morning in an unmarked grave in a modest Islamic ceremony, closing the book on his nearly 42-year rule of Libya and the eight-month civil war to oust him.

A Gadhafi nephew read a prayer for the dead before Gadhafi's body ? along with those of his son Muatassim and former defense minister Abu Bakr Younis ? were handed over for burial, said Ibrahim Beitalmal, a spokesman for the military council in the port city of Misrata.

The bodies had been kept in cold storage in Misrata for four days before being taken under cover of darkness to the burial site, which Beitalmal said was "not far" from the city. As part of the ceremony, the bodies were washed in line with Islamic tradition. A Muslim cleric, a nephew of Gadhafi and sons of Abu Bakr then recited prayers before handing the bodies over for burial, which took place at 5 a.m.

Libya's new leaders have said they would not reveal the location of the grave, fearing it could be vandalized or turned into a shrine for the former dictator's die-hard supporters.

Gadhafi was captured alive on Thursday as he tried to flee his hometown of Sirte, where he had been hiding since revolutionary forces swept into the capital, Tripoli, two months earlier.

He died later that day in unclear circumstances, and Libyan leaders have promised an investigation in response to international pressure to look into Gadhafi's death. Video has emerged showing Gadhafi being beaten and abused by a mob after his capture, and researchers for the New York-based Human Rights Watch have said there are strong indications he was killed in custody.

Human rights activists have warned that the new Libya could get off on the wrong foot if vigilante justice is condoned. However, many Libyans appeared relieved that Gadhafi is dead, saying a long trial for the former dictator would have been disruptive and made it harder on the country to get a fresh start. Earlier this week, interim leader Mustafa Abdul-Jalil formally declared an end to the civil war, starting the clock on what is to be a two-year transition to democracy.

The bodies of Gadhafi, Muatassim and Younis had been kept in a refrigerated produce locker in a warehouse area of Misrata for the past four days. Hundreds lined up every day to view the corpses, some coming from hundreds of miles away. Visitors donned surgical masks, and at times guards arranged separate lines for men and women.

Misrata suffered immensely during the war. It was besieged for nearly two month this spring by Gadhafi forces, who shelled the city indiscriminately before being pushed out in fierce street fighting. Gadhafi was captured by fighters from Misrata, who brought him back to the city as a trophy.

International organizations asking to see the burial site would be given access, Beitalmal said.

Over the weekend, Libya's chief pathologist, Dr. Othman el-Zentani, performed autopsies on the three bodies and also took DNA samples to confirm their identities. El-Zentani has said Gadhafi died from a shot to the head, and said the full report would be released later this week, after he presents his findings to the attorney general.

Gadhafi and Muatassim had been wounded before capture, but an investigation is to determine whether they were subsequently executed. Government officials have suggested Gadhafi was killed in crossfire.

Tirana Hassan, a researcher for Human Rights Watch, said she spoke Monday to a 30-year-old Sirte resident who had traveled in the convoy that tried to smuggle Gadhafi out of Sirte.

Hassan quoted the woman as saying that Gadhafi did not sustain serious injuries during the NATO strike on the convoy.

The woman said the former Libyan leader and members of his entourage left their vehicle after the attack and took cover for about three hours in an abandoned building. Gadhafi then left the hideout with a small group on foot, and they were captured a short while later, Hassan quoted the woman as saying.

The woman, who had volunteered at a field clinic in Sirte treating wounded Gadhafi loyalists, was released by the revolutionary forces and has returned to Sirte, Hassan said.

The Libyan uprising that began in mid-February and quickly turned into civil war has decimated the Gadhafi family.

His wife, Safiya, fled to Algeria with their daughter and one son, while another son fled to Niger. At least other three sons ? Muatassim, Seif al-Arab and Khamis ? have been killed. Another son, former heir apparent Seif al-Islam, remains at large.

A high-ranking Tuareg official in Niger said Tuesday that Seif al-Islam, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, is headed for Niger with the help of ethnic Tuaregs, a tribe that was among Gadhafi's strongest supporters.

Also Tuesday, Bani, a revolutionary spokesman, said an explosion rocked a fuel depot near Sirte a day earlier and that there were casualties. Bani said the blast is being treated as an accident, but that an investigation has been opened.

Hassan, the Human Rights Watch researcher, said that while in Sirte on Monday, said she saw 11 people with severe burns arrive at the city's Ibn Sina hospital. Nurses said the injuries were from the blast.

___

Associated Press writer Maggie Michael contributed to this report from Cairo.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-10-25-ML-Libya/id-19944b0eecc340e19266d5b6bb5a9217

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Sprint and Apple are having nationwide data speed problems (Digital Trends)

iPhone 4 with Sprint LogoApple?s latest phone, the iPhone 4S, has been breaking sale records left and right, but slowly but surely we are starting to hear a couple of unforeseen issues with the device. This week?s issue seems to be the data speed of the phone while using Sprint?s network. Last week there was a security scare involving Siri.

Sprint iphone 4S data speedsThe early reports are saying that the data speed on the iPhone 4S on Sprint is causing some concern. The problem seems to be isolated to the iPhone 4S and does not seem to be effecting the iPhone 4 on Sprint?s network. These reports are coming from Sprint?s support forums, where iPhone 4S users are talking about the issue, and informing others of their experience with Sprint?s customer service. Sprint?s customer service reps are confirming the speed issue to clients, but they have not released an official word on the cause.

There are no exact numbers on just how slow the data speeds are for Sprint, but the supplied screenshot to the right paints a grim picture. Every user is experiencing slow speeds, but they are not all traveling at the same slow speed. ?There is a side by side data speed test on idownloadblog that also shows how much slower Sprint?s network is on the iPhone 4S compared to the other two U.S. carriers. ?In the video Sprint lags painfully behind the rest of the pack in almost all the tests.

It seems that if the issue is effecting just Sprint iPhone 4S users that it is a problem that should be fixable via a update instead of a defect in the phones themselves. If the problem was shared by AT&T and Verizon we might be looking at another antennagate scandal.

This article was originally posted on Digital Trends

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/applecomputer/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/digitaltrends/20111024/tc_digitaltrends/sprintandapplearehavingnationwidedataspeedproblems

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