APNewsBreak: New Iran nuke claim against scientist (AP)

VIENNA ? A former Soviet nuclear scientist's son-in-law has told the U.N. atomic agency that the scientist's involvement in alleged Iranian efforts to develop nuclear arms is broader than originally thought, diplomats have told The Associated Press.

The International Atomic Energy Agency is investigating Iran for purportedly trying to develop such weapons and has implicated a "foreign expert" in a report as helping Iran work on ways to set off a nuclear blast through a sophisticated multipoint explosives trigger. Its 35-nation board met Friday for a briefing on the agency probe by the IAEA's top experts.

Diplomats and media have identified the expert as Vyacheslav Danilenko, but say he has told IAEA investigators he wasn't involved in developing such a device, or in other aspects of Iran's suspected covert work on nuclear weapons.

But the diplomats ? who asked for anonymity because their information was privileged ? said Danilenko's son-in-law has further implicated the scientist, telling the agency the expert also helped Iran build a related project, a large steel chamber to contain the force of the blast set off by such explosives testing.

Diplomats first told the AP last week that the IAEA had evidence of such a chamber, set up at Iran's Parchin military complex. The confidential IAEA report obtained by the AP on Wednesday confirmed their statements.

It said Iran constructed "a large explosives containment vessel" in which to conduct experiments on triggering a nuclear explosion, apparently 11 years ago, adding that it had satellite images "consistent with this information."

IAEA experts were expected to show those images and detail other information in the IAEA report in Friday's closed meeting for board members. Next week, a board session will focus on concerns that Iran may be seeking to develop nuclear weapons ? something Tehran vehemently denies.

The diplomats said they would be expressing their concerns Friday about another worrying issue; Indications that nearly 20 kilograms ? about 45 pounds ? of a component used to arm nuclear warheads was unaccounted for in Iran.

The IAEA has long known that Iran has drawings of how to form uranium metal into the fissile core of warheads. But the diplomats pointed to an inconspicuous section of Wednesday's report ? near the end, under "Other Matters" ? revealing that an IAEA inspection in August came up 19.8 kilograms, or 43.56 pounds, short of what Iran says it had stored.

One diplomat said that amount of the metal ? which can also be used to make uranium fuel ? would be enough to arm a nuclear bomb. The agency said it was studying Iran's explanation for the discrepancy.

On Danilenko, one of the diplomats who is familiar with the IAEA's Iran probe said the scientist told the agency that he did not work on such a chamber. That, said the diplomat, directly contradicts a statement by his son-in-law, who said the container was built under Danilenko's direct supervision.

The diplomat did not name the son-in-law, but a nuclear expert familiar with the issue identified him as Vladimir Padalko.

Danilenko, 76, pioneered the process that uses explosions to create tiny diamonds for a range of industrial uses ? technology similar to the multipoint explosives trigger the IAEA suspects him of working on in the 1990s.

Padalko is the director of Alit, a Ukrainian company that produces such diamonds. The Russian daily Kommersant said after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, Danilenko was employed for several years by Alit. It cited Padalko as saying that experts from the IAEA and the U.S. State Department had met with Danilenko several times in recent years.

Efforts to reach the two men Friday were unsuccessful.

Danilenko went public with his denial Thursday, telling Kommersant: "I am not a nuclear scientist and I am not the founder of the Iranian nuclear program."

The diplomat said he told IAEA experts that he thought his work was limited to assisting civilian engineering projects.

The IAEA report cited intelligence from a nation it did not name, saying the "foreign expert" worked "for much of his career" in developing explosive triggers for a nuclear blast in his home country.

It said the expert was in Iran from about 1996 to about 2002, ostensibly to help Iran develop a technique to make the tiny industrial diamonds. The process also uses steel chambers, but the diplomat said the one at Parchin ? described as the size of a double-decker bus ? was much too large for this use.

Kommersant said that starting in the 1950s and until his retirement he had worked at one of the Soviet Union's top nuclear weapons research centers, known as Chelyabinsk-70.

Iran is under U.N. sanctions for refusing to stop uranium enrichment ? which can produce both nuclear fuel and fissile warhead material ? and other suspected activities that the international community fears could be used to make atomic arms. It dismisses such allegations and says its activities are meant to be used only for energy or research.

But Wednesday's IAEA report strongly suggested that Iran is using the cover of a peaceful nuclear program to produce atomic weaponry. Based on years of trying to probe Tehran's secretive activities, its release will stoke debate on whether it's time to jettison failed diplomatic efforts to end Iran's nuclear defiance and replace them with force.

The 13-page annex to the latest in the IAEA's quarterly Iran reports included evidence that the agency says indicates the Islamic republic is working on the clandestine procurement of equipment and designs to make nuclear arms.

"While some of the activities identified in the annex have civilian as well as military applications, others are specific to nuclear weapons," the report said.

Among these were indications that Iran has conducted high explosives testing and detonator development to set off a nuclear charge, as well as computer modeling of a core of a nuclear warhead. The report also cited preparatory work for a nuclear weapons test, and development of a nuclear payload for Iran's Shahab 3 intermediate range missile ? a weapon that can reach Israel.

___

Maria Danilova in Kiev, Ukraine, and Vladimir Isachenkov and Lynn Berry in Moscow contributed to this report.

___

George Jahn can be reached at http://twitter.com/georgejahn

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111111/ap_on_re_eu/iran_nuclear

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Russians desperately try to save Mars moon probe

In this Nov.2, 2011 photo distributed by Russian Roscosmos space agency on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, Russian space engineers work to prapare the unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe on the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP photo/ Russian Roscosmoc space agency, HO) EDITORIAL USE ONLY

In this Nov.2, 2011 photo distributed by Russian Roscosmos space agency on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, Russian space engineers work to prapare the unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe on the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP photo/ Russian Roscosmoc space agency, HO) EDITORIAL USE ONLY

The Zenit-2SB rocket with Phobos-Grunt (Phobos-Soil) craft blasts off from its launch pad at the Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, early Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP Photo/Oleg Urusov, Pool)

In this Nov.2, 2011 photo distributed by Russian Roscosmos space agency on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, the unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe is seen on the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP photo/ Russian Roscosmoc space agency, HO) EDITORIAL USE ONLY

(AP) ? A Russian space probe became stuck in orbit Wednesday after an equipment failure, raising fears it could come crashing down and spill tons of highly toxic fuel on Earth unless engineers can steer it back to its flight path.

The spacecraft was headed for one of Mars' two moons when it developed technical problems.

U.S. space and Defense Department officials are tracking it. Officials at NASA in Washington figure it will be at least a week, maybe more, before the errant space probe falls back to Earth, if it does. The Russians are trying to get it back on course.

One independent U.S. expert on the Russian space program said the spacecraft could become the most dangerous manmade object ever to hit the planet. But those at the U.S. space agency and other space debris experts are far less worried. They believe the fuel will probably explode harmlessly in Earth's upper atmosphere.

NASA chief debris scientist Nicholas Johnson says the spacecraft's orbit is already starting to degrade slightly.

"From the orbits we're seeing from the U.S. Space Surveillance Network, it's going to be a couple weeks before it comes in," Johnson said Wednesday afternoon. "It's not going to be that immediate."

The unmanned $170 million Phobos-Ground craft was successfully launched by a Zenit-2 booster rocket just after midnight Moscow time Wednesday (2016 GMT Tuesday) from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. It separated from the booster about 11 minutes later and was supposed to fire its engines twice to set out on its path toward Mars, but never did. The craft was aiming to get ground samples from Phobos, one of Mars' two moons.

The mishap was the latest in a series of recent Russian failures that have raised concerns about the condition of the country's space industries.

Federal Space Agency chief Vladimir Popovkin said neither of the two engine burns worked, probably because the craft's orientation system failed. He said engineers have three days to reset and fix the spacecraft's computer program before its batteries die ? but the space agency later said the probe's orbit and its power sources could allow it to circle the Earth for about two weeks.

Russia news agencies cited space experts who offered widely varying estimates of how long the craft could stay in orbit before crashing down ? from five days to one month.

James Oberg, a NASA veteran who has written books on the Russian space program and who now works as a space consultant, said it's still possible to regain control over the probe.

"This is not an impossible challenge," Oberg said in an email to The Associated Press. "Nothing irreversibly bad has happened, the full propellant load is still available, and short-term 'stay healthy' maneuvers can be performed" like deploying the craft's solar panels to boost its power.

He warned, however, that if controllers failed to bring the Phobos-Ground back to life, the tons of highly toxic fuel it carries would turn it into the most dangerous spacecraft ever to fall from orbit.

"About seven tons of nitrogen teroxide and hydrazine, which could freeze before ultimately entering, will make it the most toxic falling satellite ever," he said. "What was billed as the heaviest interplanetary probe ever may become one of the heaviest space derelicts to ever fall back to Earth out of control."

Oberg said such a crash could cause significantly more damage than the Russian Mars-96 that crashed in the Andes Mountains or the American USA 193 spy satellite that was shot down by a U.S. Navy missile in 2008 to prevent it from splashing its toxic fuel.

The Russian rescue effort Wednesday was being hampered by a limited earth-to-space communications network that already forced flight controllers to ask people in South America to help find the spacecraft. Amateur astronomers were the first to spot the trouble when they detected the craft was stuck in an Earth orbit.

The Phobos-Ground was Russia's first interplanetary mission since a botched 1996 robotic mission to Mars, which failed when the probe crashed shortly after the launch due to an engine failure.

The spacecraft is 13.2 metric tons (14.6 tons), with fuel accounting for a large share of its weight. It was manufactured by the Moscow-based NPO Lavochkin, which specializes in interplanetary vehicles.

Data Russia shared with NASA shows that about 11 metric tons of the spacecraft is fuel, Johnson said. The key is whether that fuel remains in liquid form or freezes. If it's liquid it would harmlessly blow up about 50 miles (80 kilometers) above ground, Johnson said. But if frozen, it could fall to Earth posing more of a hazard.

Most U.S. space debris experts believe it will likely stay liquid.

"We've had much larger objects than this come down and not have a problem," said William Ailor of the Aerospace Corp.'s Center for Orbital and Reentry Debris Studies.

The company also designed the craft for Russia's botched 1996 launch and the two probes sent to Phobos in 1988, which also failed. One was lost a few months after the launch due to an operator's mistake, and contact was lost with its twin when it was orbiting Mars.

The Russian space agency responded to the failures by promising to establish its own quality inspection teams at rocket factories to tighten oversight over production quality.

In contrast with the failures that dogged Soviet and Russian efforts to explore Mars, a succession of NASA's landers and rovers, including Spirit and Opportunity, have successfully studied the Red Planet.

If Russian space experts manage to fix the Phobos-Ground, it should reach Mars orbit in September 2012 and land on Phobos in February 2013. The return vehicle is expected to carry up to 200 grams (7 ounces) of ground samples from Phobos back to Earth in August 2014.

It is arguably the most challenging unmanned interplanetary mission ever. It requires a long series of precision maneuvers for the probe to reach the potato-shaped moon measuring just 20 kilometers (over 12 miles) in diameter, land on its cratered surface, scrape it for samples and fly back.

Scientists had hoped that studies of Phobos' surface could help solve the mystery of its origin and shed more light on the genesis of the solar system. Some believe Phobos is an asteroid captured by Mars' gravity, while others think it's debris from when Mars collided with another celestial object.

China contributed to the mission by adding a mini-satellite that is to be released when the craft enters an orbit around Mars on its way to Phobos. The 115-kilogram (250-pound) satellite, Yinghuo-1, will become the first Chinese spacecraft to explore Mars, studying the planet during two years in orbit.

___

AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein contributed from Washington.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-11-09-EU-Russia-Mars-Moon-Mission/id-590f5c1d17a346ab81d59b003faf427e

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Zero Motorcycles reveals longer range, longer lasting 2012 lineup (video)

Zero Motorcycles 2012 Lineup
Zero Motorcycles is gearing up for 2012, and not by stockpiling canned goods and ammunition. The company is refreshing its line of all-electric bikes and adding a host of refinements, including a new powertrain and a battery pack rated to last as long as the motorcycle does (though, whether or not it lives up to that lofty claim in real-world conditions remains to be seen). Of particular interest is the 9kWh configuration of the Zero S, which has an estimated range of 114 miles -- making it the first EV bike available to consumers that can exceed 100 miles on a single charge. In total Zero will be shipping five models in February, starting at $7,695 for the XU, while the S and DS will fetch $11,495 or $13,995 in their respective 6kWh and 9kWh versions. Off-road enthusiasts can choose between the trail shredding Zero X at $9,995 or the motocross-minded Zero MX for $9,495. Check out the gallery below and the video after the break for peek at the company's 2012 line.

Continue reading Zero Motorcycles reveals longer range, longer lasting 2012 lineup (video)

Zero Motorcycles reveals longer range, longer lasting 2012 lineup (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Nov 2011 15:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dyson Hot Bladeless Fan Heater [Video]

Dyson Hot Bladeless Fan HeaterDyson Hot Bladeless Fan Heater Everyone knows that Dyson products are not cheap. Their vacuums, despite being very well designed, are only slightly better than models that are half the price. Their bladeless fans are unique and safe and functional, but are hard to justify in a world where cheap fans do just as good a job. So why do I love the Dyson Hot heater so much?

Let's get this out of the way first. The Dyson Hot fan heater ($399) is a luxury product. It's not luxury in the way that a nice chair to support your back while you work is luxury; it's luxury in the way that a top-of-the-line Lexus is luxury.

What Dyson did was take a normal Dyson air multiplier and strap a heating element onto the body, which should not work as well as it does! The airflow is nice and steady, and unlike regular space heaters (which I've been using all my life), the Hot doesn't burn as much as it heats. Evenly. Because you can control the fan speed from 1-10, and control the temperature down to the degree?rather than just warm/hot/super hot modes?you can easily customize it to keep you warm without burning your skin. This is already a step up from regular heaters. In fact, it's probably the best space heater I've ever used.

Dyson Hot Bladeless Fan HeaterBut that's only half the equation. What's super neat about the Hot is that it's also a fan. By basing a heater off of a fan design, you get the best of both worlds. And instead of having to put a fan into storage in the winter and swap it for a heater, you can keep one device in your house the entire year round.

Not that $400 is affordable by any means, but when you consider that you're getting both a quality space heater (the best I've used) and a pretty good fan, the Dyson Hot isn't too bad a deal. Though you have to keep in mind that like all space heaters, the Dyson uses a lot of electricity. Using a Kill-a-watt, I measured the stable power usage at 1300W, so if you're looking to save on your electric bill, you shouldn't have this on all the time. However, it's still cheaper than running your central air, but it's pricier than wearing a sweater. Though if you have $400 to spend on a space heater, electricity use is probably not a huge concern.

Dyson

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/YfiTRaANpLk/dyson-hot-bladeless-fan-heater

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Portal 2: Still Alive - Interest Check

So here's the deal: I did a quick search and didn't find any Portal threads. If there is one and I'm stepping on somebody's toes, please let me know. Otherwise, I'd love to make a Portal 2 game. I've been playing with the idea for months now and I'm desperate to type it out. PLEASE BE AWARE that there are Portal 2 spoilers everywhere. Read at your own risk.

The premise: Our storyline runs congruent to the events in Portal 2. With Wheatley at the helm, Chell's containment room toppled over countless others before her run in with the 'docking station'. Miraculously, or perhaps by some cruel twist of fate, six survivors, (or more, depending on interest) dragged themselves from the wreckage. They were met with a strange new facility, much different than the one they had been welcomed to. Plants reclaimed their lost terrain, floor plates were cracked, wall panels had fallen off their hinges. The Enrichment Center was out of commission. Now, disoriented, scared and utterly alone, our test subjects must find a way to escape, a way to freedom, because they are still alive...

Pretty snazzy, right? This gives us the ability to run testing tracks; interact with GLaDOS, Wheatley, and any other personalities we develop; use all the new testing equipment; and potentially devise our own ending to the game. I mean, come on. Who doesn't want to strap into a pair of long fall boots and launch themselves off an aerial faith plate?

What I'm looking for: First and foremost, anybody interested has to have played or have considerable knowledge of the second game. Proper grammar and spelling as well as cohesive sentence structure is a must. I'm also looking for active and dedicated players as this game has the potential to be very long term. As far as posting length is concerned, a solid paragraph would be lovely. I honestly don't mind as long as you progress the story line. Contribution is important as well. Make up an NPC, split up the group, or even start some boss battle. I like it when my fellow players shake things up a bit.

What you can expect from me: I have an extensive (borderline obsessive) knowledge of the Portal universe. If you have any questions about any technology, character or major historical event, I can answer it for you. In terms of writing and orginazational skills, I've run many games in the past and know how to keep a plot moving. I interact with all my players and love to create dramatic tension. I post anywhere from 1 to 6 paragraphs, averaging around 3 or 4, but I'll always try to mirror. If there's anything else you'd like to know, please ask.

So, if after reading this you're interested in being a part of Portal 2: Still Alive, post in the thread or PM me, whichever you prefer.

"Her hands, however, were not beautiful--perhaps a shade too red and a little hard in the fingers. She herself was too tall, and her figure lacked the soft, caressing outline. Her good point was her eyes. They were dark, but her long lashes made them seem black, and she looked at you frankly, with a sort of fearless candour."
- Gustave Flaubert, Madame Bovary

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/Y9ZVm2yQaxM/viewtopic.php

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Evaluate Automotive Insurance For The Best Deal ? Articles Support

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Source: http://articlessupport.com/2011/11/07/evaluate-automotive-insurance-for-the-best-deal/

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City lights could reveal E.T. civilization

City lights could reveal E.T. civilization

Friday, November 4, 2011

In the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, astronomers have hunted for radio signals and ultra-short laser pulses. In a new paper, Avi Loeb (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics) and Edwin Turner (Princeton University) suggest a new technique for finding aliens: look for their city lights.

"Looking for alien cities would be a long shot, but wouldn't require extra resources. And if we succeed, it would change our perception of our place in the universe," said Loeb.

As with other SETI methods, they rely on the assumption that aliens would use Earth-like technologies. This is reasonable because any intelligent life that evolved in the light from its nearest star is likely to have artificial illumination that switches on during the hours of darkness.

How easy would it be to spot a city on a distant planet? Clearly, this light will have to be distinguished from the glare from the parent star. Loeb and Turner suggest looking at the change in light from an exoplanet as it moves around its star.

As the planet orbits, it goes through phases similar to those of the Moon. When it's in a dark phase, more artificial light from the night side would be visible from Earth than reflected light from the day side. So the total flux from a planet with city lighting will vary in a way that is measurably different from a planet that has no artificial lights.

Spotting this tiny signal would require future generations of telescopes. However, the technique could be tested closer to home, using objects at the edge of our solar system.

Loeb and Turner calculate that today's best telescopes ought to be able to see the light generated by a Tokyo-sized metropolis at the distance of the Kuiper Belt - the region occupied by Pluto, Eris, and thousands of smaller icy bodies. So if there are any cities out there, we ought to be able to see them now. By looking, astronomers can hone the technique and be ready to apply it when the first Earth-sized worlds are found around distant stars in our galaxy.

"It's very unlikely that there are alien cities on the edge of our solar system, but the principle of science is to find a method to check," Turner said. "Before Galileo, it was conventional wisdom that heavier objects fall faster than light objects, but he tested the belief and found they actually fall at the same rate."

As our technology has moved from radio and TV broadcasts to cable and fiber optics, we have become less detectable to aliens. If the same is true of extraterrestrial civilizations, then artificial lights might be the best way to spot them from afar.

###

Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics: http://cfa-www.harvard.edu

Thanks to Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/114960/City_lights_could_reveal_E_T__civilization

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Hugo Ch?vez looks to take Venezuela's private Los Roques paradise public

Hugo Ch?vez said he intends to seize yachts and private property in Los Roques, a popular tourist archipelago off Venezuela's coast, worrying owners and tourists about the resort's fate.

Tourists from around the world sunbathe on the white sands of Francisqui, occasionally jumping into the turquoise Caribbean waters just off Venezuela's coast.

Skip to next paragraph

The beaches of the Los Roques archipelago ? in which Francisqui lies ? are some of the most idyllic in the world, and luxury yachts owned by international businessmen sit moored off the coast.

But the wealthy Venezuelans and foreign tourists who enjoy Los Roques may have their paradise spoiled.

President Hugo Ch?vez announced in October his intention to seize the yachts and expropriate property on the islands to be used for state tourism.

"I've always said we should nationalize Los Roques," Mr. Ch?vez said on national television.

"Expropriating a boat is completely absurd," says Venezuelan factory owner Javier ?lvarez, waist-deep in the water by his 74-foot yacht. "I don't see how they can take away something which you've worked hard for and have bought."

Vacation expropriation

Government expropriation of private industry has been a key policy of Ch?vez's regime.

More than 450 companies have been expropriated this year alone. ExxonMobil, which had its assets seized in 2007, is still fighting the Venezuelan government for $7 billion in compensation it believes it is owed.

The money demanded in compensation is taking its toll on Venezuela's economy, as Ch?vez plans to increase spending nearly 50 percent next year to drum up domestic support before next year's presidential elections.

Now, Ch?vez has set his sights on Los Roques, the cr?me de la cr?me of Caribbean beach resorts.

The crystal-clear ?waters attract divers from around the world, while the white-sand beaches are one of the few luxuries on Venezuela's Caribbean coastline.

The islands were made a national park in 1972, for fear that the land would be overtaken by developers. But privately owned posadas, or inns, still dot the islands, and it's those lands that Ch?vez is eyeing now.

"[Ch?vez's] policy is just to try to hurt the rich people," says Diego Arria, a former minister of tourism who was president of the corporation of hotels and tourism at the time of the park's formation.

Mr. Arria has been personally hit by the government's expropriation policy. Last year, his ranch in Yaracuy was seized by authorities.

'Owners are scared'

Just a five-minute boat ride away from Francisqui is the archipelago's main island, Gran Roque.

On it is a small landing strip, littered with small planes owned by wealthy businessmen, as well as the posadas that house the high-end tourists.

Many of these are owned by Italians who ventured to Los Roques over the past 20 years.

"I feel the owners are scared," says one manager, unwilling to reveal his name for fear of reprisal.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/STvY1cqOZSg/Hugo-Chavez-looks-to-take-Venezuela-s-private-Los-Roques-paradise-public

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