Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- "I was a walking time bomb. I knew I had to get on that plane if I wanted to be around to see my grandkids."

Sandra Giustina is rolled into surgery to correct her atrial fibrillation at Max Hospital in New Dehli, India.

Sandra Giustina is a 61-year-old uninsured American. For three years she saved her money in hopes of affording heart surgery to correct her atrial fibrillation. "They [U.S. hospitals] told me it would be about $175,000, and there was just no way could I come up with that," Giustina said.

So, with a little digging online, she found several high quality hospitals vying for her business, at a fraction of the U.S. cost. Within a month, she was on a plane from her home in Las Vegas, Nevada, to New Delhi, India. Surgeons at Max Hospital fixed her heart for "under $10,000 total, including travel."

Giustina is just one of millions around the world journeying outside their native land for medical treatment, a phenomenon known as "medical tourism." Experts say the trend in global health care has just begun. Next year alone, an estimated 6 million Americans will travel abroad for surgery, according to a 2008 Deloitte study. "Medical care in countries such as India, Thailand and Singapore can cost as little as 10 percent of the cost of comparable care in the United States," the report found.

Companies such as Los Angeles-based Planet Hospital are creating a niche in the service industry as medical travel planners. One guidebook says that more than 200 have sprung up in the last few years. "We find the best possible surgeons and deliver their service to patients safely, affordably and immediately," said Rudy Rupak, president of Planet Hospital. "No one should have to choose between an operation to save their life or going bankrupt."

Planet Hospital, which works with international clients as well as Americans, books patients' travel and arranges phone interviews with potential surgeons. Patients are greeted by a company representative at the airport in the country where they've chosen to be treated; a 24-hour personal "patient concierge" is also provided, a level of service that's standard among many of the top medical travel planning companies.  Watch Dr. Sanjay Gupta meet some medical tourists »

"Our patient concierge was amazing," said Giustina. "He came to the hospital every day, gave us his personal [telephone] number and after my operation, he arranged private tours of India." Just two days post-op, Giustina and her husband, Dino, toured local markets and landmarks including the Presidential Palace and the Taj Mahal.

"I was able to fix my heart and tour India, which is something I thought I'd never do."

Walk through a patient wing at Max Hospital in New Delhi on any given day and you're likely to see people from around the world. In one visit, CNN met patients from the United Kingdom, Nigeria, Jordan, Afghanistan and the United States. They're alike in choosing surgery abroad, but their reasons differ.

Many South Asians and Africans said they travel abroad because they do not have access to care in their homeland.

Some Canadians and Europeans said they chose to travel aboard, despite having national health plans, because they are tired of waiting -- sometimes years -- for treatment.

Patients from the Middle East said they come to India because the technology as well as the staff is more advanced.

For most Americans CNN spoke to, it came down to finding the best value. "If I could have afforded my procedure in the United States, I would have taken it, but that was not my option," Giustina said. "I had to get online and look for a Plan B." Read about hot destinations for medical tourism

The private hospitals in India market themselves as having upscale accommodations, Western-trained surgeons and state-of-the-art medical equipment.

CNN spent time at Max Healthcare in New Delhi and saw operating rooms similar to those in many U.S. hospitals. If fact, Max's neurosurgery room had an inter-operative MRI scanner, which is technology hardly seen at hospitals in the United States.

The lobby had marble floors, a book café, coffee station and a Subway sandwich shop. The patient suites were equipped with flat screen TVs, DVD players and Wi-Fi. This hospital also catered to families traveling together. The suites had adjoining rooms with a kitchenette, coffee maker and a sofa bed.

Max neurosurgeon Dr. Ajaya Jha said the hospital can provide high-quality care at low prices because the staff work hard to cut waste.  Watch Dr. Gupta visit an Indian spice market »

"I've seen hospitals in the U.S. where they open up something costing $10,000 and say, 'Oh it's not working. OK, give me another one.' We would never do that here. Even for 100 rupees (about $2) -- we would say, "Do we need to open this suture? Do we need to open this gauze?' We are very conscious of cost."

Hospital officials negotiate hard to keep costs low for high-tech medical machinery and other supplies, Jha said. "In the U.S. people are making careers out of carrying laptops and documenting things that are not really useful in the long term for the patient."

The salary of a U.S. surgeon is five times that of a surgeon in India. "We [surgeons in India] want to make a profit, but we don't want to profiteer. We don't want squeeze people and I think American industries should also think that way," Jha said.

Critics of medical tourism warn patients to be diligent when researching treatment aboard. "I've found that industry voices tend to crowd out those of us who are more cautious about the legal risks," said Nathan Cortez, assistant law professor at Southern Methodist University, who is conducting a case study investigating what legal recourse patients have outside America.

Patients don't think about their legal vulnerabilities, Cortez said. "Some countries limit patient access to medical records so they can't really learn what happened during the surgery. And a lot of practitioners in other countries just refuse to give you your medical records. So people have to weigh the risk versus benefits."

While most tourism patients from America are uninsured, major U.S. insurance companies are considering providing "medical tourism" coverage to their customers. Several have already launched pilot programs.

"I think what's really important about medical tourism is that you make the choice for what's right for you and what's important to them," said a spokesman for U.S. health insurer WellPoint Inc.

Experts say that every patient considering traveling abroad for surgery should inquire about postoperative care, legal rights and the safety standards and certifications of the hospital. Foreign health care providers should be willing to discuss the procedure and answer question ahead of time.

"What really helped me feel good about the process was that my doctor in the U.S. spoke to the cardiologist in India prior to my trip," said Giustina. "They were so open about everything; I knew I'd be in good hands."

Just weeks from returning from abroad, Giustina says she has only one regret, "I shouldn't have waited so long! I feel like a new person again, no more pain."

Response: Study: More than 6 million from U.S. will travel abroad for treatment in the next year. Companies creating a niche in the service industry as medical travel planners. Hospitals market upscale accommodations, Western-trained surgeons.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- At the American Music Awards on Sunday, there was plenty of love for international artists.

British boy band One Direction was a big winner at the 2014 ceremony, taking home both the artist of the year award and the trophy for favorite pop/rock band, duo or group.

Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, who walked into the ceremony as the lead nominee with six nods, also won two awards on Sunday, including the favorite rap/hip-hop album honor.

"This award is the first award I've ever won in my entire life, and it means so much to me that it is for best hip-hop because that's what inspired me to move to America and pursue my dreams, and it's what helped me when I was a teenager to escape and to get through my life and to better times," Azalea told the audience while accepting her trophy.

Meanwhile, soulful British singer Sam Smith, who showcased his pipes during Sunday's ceremony, was awarded the favorite pop/rock male artist trophy.

That's not to say that homegrown artists were left out in the cold: Katy Perry, Beyonce and country stars like Luke Bryan also got their due.

But some stars shone brighter than others during what wound up being a rather tame affair. Once the AMAs were all said and done, here's who left everyone talking:

1. Taylor Swift

Talk about star power. On Sunday, music's reigning pop princess, Taylor Swift, received the Dick Clark Award of Excellence from none other than Diana Ross.

Swift, being the smart young woman she is, recognized the importance of having the trailblazer there, and honored Ross in her acceptance speech.

"I'm just so blown away to have just received an award from Diana Ross, who over the course of her career stood up for herself so many times in a time when it was not popular for a woman to stand up for herself," she said. "I'm so honored."

Swift, who performed her single "Blank Space" on Sunday, also thanked her fans for pushing sales of her new album "1989" well past one million. The album is not available on the streaming service Spotify, and during her speech for her Dick Clark award, Swift appeared to be sticking to her guns.

"What you did by going out and investing in music and albums is you're saying that you believe in the same thing that I believe in, that music is valuable and should be consumed in albums, and albums should be consumed as art and appreciated," Swift said.

2. Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez promised to perform her single "Booty" at the AMAs, and the singer/actress gave a set for the ages.

Iggy Azalea was there, too, but even she admitted that J. Lo (and her flexibility) stole the show.

Response: The 2014 American Music Awards were held Sunday. There was lots of love for international artists like One Direction. Stars like Taylor Swift, J. Lo and Selena Gomez also stood out.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:Moscow (CNN) -- Prisoners in ice, more than 100 Beluga whales in far eastern Russia risk death unless rescued soon.

The flock of gentle ghost-white whales was trapped in ice floes in the Sinyavinsky Strait off the Bering Sea near the village of Yanrakynnot, said a statement from the Chukotka Autonomous Region.

Fishermen reported that the whales were concentrated in two relatively small ice holes, where, for now, they can breathe freely. But the Belugas' chance of swimming back to water is slim due to the vast fields of ice over the strait.

The whales have little food, and the ice floe is increasing, the statement said. They are at risk of rapid exhaustion and, ultimately, death by starvation or suffocation. Trapped whales are also susceptible to predators like polar bears and killer whales.

The Chukotka Autonomous Region government has sought help from federal authorities and asked for an icebreaker to help rescue the Belugas. A rescue tug, Ruby, was in the area helping a Korean cargo ship that ran aground on the southern coast of Chukotka but it would take one and a half days for it to reach the whales, the statement said.

Trapped belugas are a frequent phenomenon in the Arctic waters but are not often detected by people. In Chukotka, the last relatively successful case was recorded in 1986, when an ice-breaker helped free trapped beluga whales.

Response: More than 100 Belugas are trapped in ice floes off the Bering Sea. Unless the whales are rescued soon, they could die from suffocation or starvation. Local authorities have sought help from Moscow.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Russia's top diplomat said Thursday the nation will permit NATO to move armored vehicles through Russia to Afghanistan, state-run Russian media said.

"The eased transit regulations have been extended to armored vehicles with anti-mine protection," Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after discussions in Moscow, Russia, with Afghan foreign minister Zalmay Rasul, according to state-run RIA Novosti.

At the NATO summit in Lisbon, Portugal, last week, Russia and the alliance agreed to "broadened transit arrangements through Russian territory" of "non-lethal" material. The cargo would be moved through Russia to and from Afghanistan.

"We underlined the importance of international efforts in support of the Afghan government and in promoting regional peace and stability. In that context, the revised arrangements aimed at further facilitating railway transit of non-lethal ISAF goods through Russian territory are of particular value," the NATO-Russia Council Joint Statement said Saturday.

The agreement will help NATO's International Security Force break its dependency on Pakistani authorities to allow supplies and vehicles to get through.

Pakistan last month temporarily closed the main land route for NATO supplies crossing from Pakistan to Afghanistan after U.S. helicopter strikes across the border killed two Pakistani soldiers.

Dmitry Rogozin, the Russian permanent representative to NATO, said the matter refers to vehicles for transporting civilians only, Interfax news agency reported, citing remarks he made on Echo Moskvy radio.

"This has been made so that they could freely move even if militants using improvised explosive devices step up their activities," Rogozin said. "We have not given and will not give our consent to transportation of military cargo by rail through Russian territory."

Response: The Afghan and Russian foreign ministers are meeting in Moscow. The agreement extends to 'armored vehicles with anti-mine protection'. Pakistan closed the route into Afghanistan last month due to U.S. helicopter strikes.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:NEW YORK (CNN) -- Topps Meat Co. on Saturday expanded a recall of ground beef from about 300,000  pounds to 21.7 million pounds, one of the largest meat recalls in U.S. history.

The recalled products are all ground beef patties with various brand names.

In a statement, the Elizabeth, New Jersey, company said the hamburger patties may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, a bacterium that can cause severe diarrhea and cramps, as well as other complications.

A statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture said 25 illnesses are under investigation in Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The ground beef products being recalled have a "sell by date" or a "best if used by date" between September 25, 2007, and September 25, 2008, Topps' statement said.  Watch the latest on the beef recall »

The packages also have the marking "Est. 9748" inside the USDA mark of inspection.

Tuesday, the company announced a recall of about 331,000 pounds of hamburger meat, according to the USDA.

"Because the health and safety of our consumers is our top priority, we are taking these expansive measures," said Vice President of Operations Geoffrey Livermore in the statement.

"Topps is continuing to work with the USDA, state departments of health, retailers and distributors to ensure the safety of our consumers. Additionally, we have augmented our internal quality control procedures with microbiologists and food safety experts. We sincerely regret any inconvenience and concerns this may cause our consumers," Livermore said.

This is the company's first recall in its 65 years of business, the statement said.

Consumers who find the products at home are asked to cut off the UPC code and return it to Topps for a full refund, then dispose of the product immediately, Topps spokeswoman Michelle Williams said.

The company said to avoid E. coli, consumers should wash hands thoroughly after handling the beef.

Topps set up a toll-free recall help line at (888) 734-0451.

Williams said because the products may have been produced up to a year ago, many of them have already been safely consumed.

Production in the ground beef area of the company's plant in Elizabeth has been shut down until all the investigations are complete, Williams said in a phone interview.

"We're working with the USDA and the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and conducting our own investigation," she added.

The products, all ground beef patties and hamburgers with various brand names, were distributed mainly in the northeastern United States, but went to retailers in many other areas of the country as well, Williams said.

While the sheer size of the recall is large, two other companies have been involved in larger recalls.

In 2002, Pilgrim's Pride recalled more than 27 million pounds of poultry, and Hudson Foods recalled 25 million pounds of ground beef in 1997. E-mail to a friend

Response: Topps Meat Co. hamburger patties may contain E. coli bacteria. New Jersey plant's grinding operation shut down. As many as 25 cases of illness recorded in eight states.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- When Suzanne Jablonski moved to New Jersey to start a new life, she felt mostly alone in her struggles raising a special-needs child.

Her 18-year-old son, Brandon Timberwolf Munic, has emotional, learning and behavioral difficulties as well as mild cognitive impairment. A single mother, Jablonski often felt as though she were in crisis mode, until she found a support system last year called Mom2Mom.

Mom2Mom is the only helpline in the United States focused on mothers of special-needs children. The service, staffed by moms of special-needs kids, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and callers get follow-up support from a dedicated staff who checks up on them.

"I don't think, 'Oh, my God, this is the end of the world,' even though many times before ... I did," Jablonski said. "I don't feel so alone anymore."

Cherie Castellano, who launched Mom2Mom in 2010, has started a number of initiatives based on the idea of "reciprocal peer support": that people with similar experiences can help each other. Having experienced the stress of having a child with developmental delays, she wanted to provide a way for other mothers to have caregiving support.

Dads are welcome to call the Mom2Mom line too, Castellano said.

Mom2Mom now has about 20 mothers on staff, all of whom have children with some sort of special need, including medical illness and mental health problems. The program is part of University Behavioral HealthCare, which will be under Rutgers University as of July 1.

"It's not just good for the moms they're helping, it's also good for them because they get to feel connected and recognize their own strengths," Castellano said.

Along the same lines, she also founded a law enforcement crisis hot line called Cop2Cop and the veteran support line Vets4Warriors.

A staffer always picks up the hot line, no matter what time of day. In the initial call, the peer counselor mother will find out from the caller what she is calling about and then asks, "How are you?" The conversation then turns from the child's needs to the mother's own mental health and impact on the family.

Most of the time, the caller agrees to engage in ongoing peer support, Castellano said. Mom2Mom then assigns her a support partner with a child who has a similar condition.

Autism: What we know right now

The peer counselors check back often with these mothers, talking about what challenges might arise and the state of everyone's mental and physical health in the family. They can refer them to a network of service providers. Mom2Mom also hosts in-person support group meetings.

Because it's a state-funded program, Mom2Mom's activities are aimed at New Jersey residents, but no one is turned away; peer support counselors will research resources to try to find connections for the callers in their own states. The program has gotten calls from more than 20 states where moms struggle to find support as they care for special-needs children.

On Monday, more than 40 callers came to the Mom2Mom headquarters -- a call center -- in Piscataway, New Jersey, to meet their counselors in at an event to allow peer partners to meet each other for the first time, in honor of Mother's Day.

Castellano met a mother she had been speaking with for two years. Staff members spoke about how much comfort they've gotten from the callers as well.

"For like 20 minutes, there was just hugging, crying and chatter," she said.

Many mothers of special needs children want to appear as "supermoms," being able to balance all of their appointments and challenges and emotions, Castellano said.

"Moms don't want to seem like they're depressed about it or they're sad about it or they're afraid of what's going to happen to their child when they're gone," Castellano said. "There's a lot of shame and guilt and suffering that nobody wants to talk about."

Mom2Mom has been a big help to Debra Lee, 52, of Newark, New Jersey.

The youngest two of Lee's four children are on the autism spectrum: a 27-year-old son and a 20-year-old daughter. Her son graduated from Rutgers and works part-time. She worries about both of them, but especially her daughter, who attends a public school with an autism program and doesn't go anywhere alone.

Growing up autistic: My story

She was one of the first callers to Mom2Mom and connected with peer counselor Mary Beth Walsh. Today, she attends in-person support groups as well.

"You meet a lot of people that you can talk to," she said. "You do a lot of crying. At least you can talk to people who can understand what you're going through. It makes you feel much better."

Since connecting with Mom2Mom, Lee said, she realizes how hard she had been on herself. She had put her whole self into her children and had lost sight of taking care of herself.

Before, she would never buy nice clothes for herself; now, she'll buy suits.

"It just made me see that I could still look nice even though I'm overweight," she said.

Walsh, Lee's peer counselor, has a 14-year-old son with autism. She has been immersed in the world of autism advocacy since his diagnosis, and admires Lee's positive attitude toward everyone on the autism spectrum.

"I might say, 'Oh, he's so sensitive to sound,' but Debra will say, 'Oh, it's amazing how he's always listening to the environment and picking up all these cues.' "

Both these mothers took part in a Mom2Mom collaborative project expressing their feelings and struggles through artwork; each sculpture consists of two pieces of glass connected to look like a book. The result is called "Breathless: Mothers of Children with Special Needs."

Lee's glass panel depicts a tree; she wrote about "having faith."

The Mom2Mom helpline is 1-877-914-MOM2.

Response: Mom2Mom provides peer counseling, support and referrals in New Jersey. Peer supporters also have children with special needs. Many mothers of special-needs children don't want to appear depressed.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(PEOPLE.com) -- Liv Tyler highly approves of her rock-star father Steven's choices -- both in love and career.

Asked about the "American Idol" judge's recent engagement to Clear Channel executive Erin Brady, Liv tells PEOPLE that she's an enthusiastic supporter of it, explaining that the two have been together "for a long, long time" and adding, "I like her very much."

Speaking to PEOPLE at the Sundance Film Festival, where she's promoting her new movie "Robot and Frank," the actress, 34, also revealed that she's finally following in her father's footsteps -- into the music business.

"I got to record a cover of INXS's 'I Need You Tonight' for a Givenchy commercial," says the model, who has a longstanding beauty contract with the European cosmetics company. "It was fun and terrifying and wonderful," she says of recording the song, which is due out soon.

It's a logical step for a woman whose roots are in music.

"I always thought when I was a little girl that I'd be a singer," she says. "My mom [Bebe Buell] was always in bands. My dad. And my stepfather, Todd Rundgren, is an incredible musician."

As for her dad's dicey performance of The Star-Spangled Banner on Sunday? Liv hadn't seen it yet. "Somebody told me my dad just sang the national anthem," she said. "I've got to go Google it."

Or, you know, maybe not.

See the full article at PEOPLE.com.

© 2011 People and Time Inc. All rights reserved.

Response: Liv Tyler says she's a supporter of her father Steven Tyler's engagement. "I like her very much," she said about Erin Brady. Tyler is promoting her new movie "Robot and Frank" at the Sundance Film Festival.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN)You might call her a watchdog, because this Boston area Doberman really has a thing for timepieces.

She recently ate three.

Last Thursday, Jeff Courcelle came home from work to find 5-year-old Mocha -- a pure bred fawn-colored Doberman pincher -- hovering over a pile of screws, metal pieces, three watch heads and some chewed leather straps.

"My husband, who's the most calm person that I know, called me up and said, 'I'm not quite sure if I should panic,' " said Courcelle's wife, Michele Parkinson.

The 80-pound Doberman, whom her owners describe as "more goofy than scary," had pulled down a basket of wrist wear from a shelf in their bedroom and eaten nearly all the contents.

Parkinson knew that Mocha wouldn't be able to pass all that leather on her own. The couple took her to the MSPCA's Angell Animal Medical Center, a 24-hour emergency and specialty hospital, where a veterinarian performed a 3-hour endoscopy to explore the contents of her belly.

Mocha was a repeat offender: Just last summer, she got very sick and had to have emergency stomach surgery after a piece of plastic from an orange juice container perforated her intestine. She had 28 staples down her belly and 10 inches of intestine removed, Parkinson said.

Fortunately this time, the jewelry remains were still in Mocha's belly and had not made their way into the digestive tract.

The X-ray, however, was disturbing.

Parkinson and her husband were just expecting to see a couple metal pieces.

"It just looked like a Christmas tree and I almost threw up," Parkinson said.

The veterinarian removed "about a pound of leather straps and metal pieces and detritus" during the endoscopy, and let nature take its course for the remaining pieces, MSPCA spokesman Rob Halpin said.

As of Friday, Mocha was no worse for wear.

The hospital sees dozens of cases each week of dogs ingesting foreign objects, and is trained to look for the symptoms of blockages -- typically lethargy, not eating and vomiting, Halpin said.

They once saw a golden retriever who had stopped eating and found 43 pacifiers in her belly. (Apparently she was taking them from babies at the park.) And there was the 100-pound bull mastiff who ate his owner's brie that was set out for a party -- along with the cheese knife.

The night Mocha stayed in the hospital, a nervous Parkinson stayed awake reading stories about dogs ingesting watches and other objects.

She found one article about a Newfoundland whose owner knew something was awry only when he heard an alarm go off from his dog's belly.

"We've taken every imaginable thing that could fit down the gullet of a dog out with surgery," Halpin said. "There's some evolutionary traits that some dogs have that lead them to eat first and think later ... and some of them are so food motivated that anything with a scent could be associated with food, and they go for it."

Mocha likes to suck on fleece blankets and has been known to eat rubber ear buds or hair elastics, but nothing like a pile of jewelry, Parkinson said. Her breeder wondered if the dog was acting out of anxiety. That day, Parkinson had left Mocha in a different apartment the couple owns that the dog wasn't as used to. The breeder told Parkinson that Dobermans are particularly known to get anxious and do these sort of things.

"She had a dog that actually consumed her whole dog bed," Parkinson said.

From now on, Parkinson said she will put Mocha in a crate if the dog will be staying somewhere new.

Follow-up X-rays Monday on Mocha showed a few pieces of metal left, "but they were moving along" and the vet expected her to pass them naturally.

Parkinson said Friday Mocha was "her playful, energetic, curious Doberman self."

But now that she thinks of it, the timing of this whole incident is a little suspicious.

"My husband was all excited about the new Apple watch, but couldn't justify a reason to purchase it since he owned three watches," she said. "I am convinced that he and Mocha joined forces here to destroy all of his current watches in order to make room for Apple's new watch."

Response: A Boston-area dog ate three of her owner's wristwatches. A veterinarian removed about 1 lb. of watch parts from her stomach. Mocha the Doberman is now doing well.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- Massive food distribution coordinated by the World Food Programme, international aid agencies and the Haitian government will begin Sunday in the quake-ravaged capital.

WFP will roll out food at 16 distribution points across Port-au-Prince, the United Nations agency said.

Each location will receive 42 metric tons of rice each for the next two weeks, and each family will receive a 25-kilogram ration of rice.

Only women will be allowed into the distributions sites to collect the food, WFP said. Women are receiving the food vouchers because they tend to be responsible for the household food supply, said WFP spokesman Marcus Prior.

"Our long experience in food distribution tells us that by delivering food into the hands of women, it is more likely to be redistributed equitably among the household -- including the men," Prior said.

The agency said it will work with its partners to ensure that men in need of assistance are not excluded.

The distribution sites will be set up with proper security, making it difficult for those not entitled to receive food to enter, he said. The WFP said the 16 fixed sites are a key step in establishing food security.

"It is the most complex challenge we have ever confronted, but this distribution system will not only allow us to reach more people, it will give us the qualitative step we need to facilitate the delivery of all kinds of humanitarian assistance in the weeks and months to come," WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran said in a statement from Rome, Italy.

The food aid plan involves at least eight private humanitarian agencies: Samaritan's Purse, Catholic Relief Services, CARE, World Vision, ACTED, Save The Children, GOAL and ADRA.

"Together with our NGO partners we are working with the local authorities, churches and other civil society organizations to ensure that all male-headed households and others with special needs are not excluded from these distributions," Prior said.

Details of the plan were finalized at a meeting attended by WFP, the aid agencies and senior members of the Haitian government, said Ken Isaacs, vice president of programs for Samaritan's Purse.

He said those attending the meeting were given coupons, which are being handed out to needy families in the districts drawn up around each distribution point.

The distribution will begin early Sunday. The two-week effort aims to reach 2 million people in Port-au-Prince but does not expand to those living in other quake-devastated cities like Leogane.

Aid distributions to outlying areas will continue, Prior said.

"Up until now the nature of this emergency has forced us to work in a 'quick and dirty' way simply to get food out," Sheeran said. "This new system will allow us to provide food assistance to more people, more quickly through a robust network of fixed distribution sites."

Multinational troops, including the U.S. military, will help secure food convoys and the distribution sites, Prior said.

CNN's Alec Miran and Moni Basu contributed to this report.

Response: The World Food Programme will roll out food at 16 distribution points across city, agency says. Each location will receive 42 metric tons of rice each for next two weeks. Women will receive vouchers for a 25-kilogram ration of rice per family.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Chile poured firefighters and police into the battle against a wildfire that swept through hundreds of homes in the Pacific coastal city of Valparaiso, leaving at least 12 dead, according to an official.

Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo reported at least 2,000 homes had been destroyed by the blaze, leaving some 8,000 people without a place to live.

Earlier, Chile's National Emergency Office's website, citing police, had said that at least 16 people were dead. It was not immediately clear why the reported death tolls were different.

More than 1,200 firefighters worked to control the wind-whipped blaze in Valparaiso and the suburb of Vina del Mar, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said Sunday.

The wind hampered firefighters' ability to create firebreaks, and the blaze had spread to more than 2,000 acres, Penailillo said.

"It's been one of the worst fires in history," said Fernando Reseio, the fire superintendent in Vina del Mar.

Bachelet said the firefighters were backed up by 17 aircraft and that additional police were being brought in to prevent looting in the areas abandoned by their residents. Many of the survivors suffered burns, and the most seriously burned patients were being transferred to hospitals in the capital, Santiago, about 75 miles away, the president said.

In images broadcast by CNN sister network CNN Chile, residents could be seen fleeing the flames overnight. The network reported that the sweeping fire is endangering thousands more homes.

In addition, plans were being drawn up to evacuate inmates at Valparaiso prison as a preventive measure, Mayor Jorge Castro said. The city is under a red alert, said emergency office spokesman Ricardo Toro.

Earlier, Bachelet had declared a state of emergency, which legally allows armed forces to get involved.

CNN's Michael Roa and Ben Brumfield contributed to this report.

Response: Strong winds are fanning the flames in Valparaiso. 500 firefighters from seven provinces are battling the fire, but wind is complicating efforts. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet declared a state of emergency.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:Editor's note: Rudy Ruiz founded RedBrownandBlue.com, a site featuring multicultural political commentary. He is host of a nationally syndicated Spanish-language radio show and wrote a guide to success for immigrants ("¡Adelante!" published by Random House). He is co-founder and president of Interlex, an advocacy marketing agency based in San Antonio, Texas.

Rudy Ruiz says taxing fattening foods is a good way to combat the epidemic of obesity in America.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (CNN) -- I recently accompanied my family to one of the top-selling movies in America, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs."

All I could think of, aside from struggling ironically to keep my children from overindulging in junk food, was that members of Congress should watch the movie. It might inspire them to add an important dimension to health reform: smarter food policy.

In the movie, a town nearly dooms itself via gluttony. As hamburgers, steaks and ice cream rain down, residents feast euphorically, oblivious to their expanding waistlines -- until a child succumbs to a food coma.

The movie is a thinly veiled allegory for our nation's obesity epidemic. It serves up -- in digestible terms -- the dysfunctional relationship between government, industry and parents in engineering and promoting a glut of food that keeps dollars in our pockets and smiles on our faces in the short term, while rendering us dangerously unhealthy in the long term.

Beyond the movie magic, it's a sobering reality that two-thirds of Americans are afflicted by the obesity epidemic. Our bulging waistline correlates to our ballooning health care budget, accounting for $147 billion a year in medical bills, according to a study funded by the CDC Foundation and published this summer in the health policy journal Health Affairs.

Experts at Johns Hopkins call the trend "a public health crisis," projecting that by 2015, 75 percent of Americans will be overweight or obese. Shockingly, the Center for Children's Health Innovation reports that by the time kids enter kindergarten, over 26 percent are already overweight or obese.

As I surveyed the theater, those stats ceased to surprise. While my children drank water and nibbled on a negotiated ration of candy, their peers lurked beyond enormous buckets of popcorn and towering cups of soda balanced precariously on their laps.

Fast forward to my point. In improving America's health, are we missing a key plotline? Wouldn't the best way to control escalating health costs be to become healthier to begin with? Are rising costs driven not only by corporate greed, but also by self-destructive behavioral patterns?

If the government is serious about tackling our nation's health problems, then it should address food's role in the looming crisis.

To Congress' credit, proposed reforms emphasize increased prevention. But if socioeconomic incentives to consume harmful food persist, unhealthy patient behavior will prevail at monstrous cost to all of us.

The affordability of unhealthy food is at the congested heart of the matter. According to TIME magazine, the largesse of taxpayers enables McDonald's to offer a Big Mac, fries and a Coke for under $5. Our tax dollars underwrite Agriculture Department subsidies to corn farmers.

Cheap, abundant corn enables mass production of economical, aggressively marketed beef and pork. The corn syrup that sweetens soft drinks and candy oozes from the same source. That's why it's so cheap to be fat and -- comparatively -- so expensive to be thin.

In response, a comprehensive preventive health strategy should:

• Shift subsidies away from corn toward the production of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as organic farming, so healthier, more natural foods become as accessible as Happy Meals.

• Tax fast food, soft drinks, and packaged foods high in processed fats and sugars to decrease demand for unhealthy food. A study published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine recommends a tax on "sugar-sweetened beverages," projecting that for every 10 percent rise in price, consumption of soft drinks would decline a corresponding 8 to 10 percent, leading to weight loss and reduced health risks.

• Regulate youth nutrition marketing, preventing paradoxes like the teaming of "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" -- despite its well-intentioned message -- with Burger King for a promotion heavily advertised on children's TV.

While some will argue that more taxes and regulations are the last things we need and that the government has no place telling people what to consume, precedent exists for both.

We already tax and regulate other harmful products -- like tobacco and alcohol -- because it's common sense to dissuade individuals from nasty habits that cost our entire society. Plus, tax proceeds would help underwrite health reforms and preventive education.

And since the government's current subsidy system enabled our transformation into an obese nation in the first place, why shouldn't the government implement a corrective course of action encouraging families onto a healthier track?

I hate to spoil the movie, but in the end, the endangered town didn't solve its problems by building more hospitals and paying doctors and insurance companies to treat and cover those who overate or were flattened by mammoth meatballs. Instead, the townspeople simply destroyed the machine drowning them in supersized food.

Likewise, Congress must rage against the machines not only of the health care industry tasked with healing us, but also of the food industry making us sick.

Drawing inspiration at the movies, they might even find that in the dark sanctum of the theater, it's easier to reach across the aisle, hold hands, and craft a happy ending that leaves America clamoring for a sequel.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Rudy Ruiz.

Response: Rudy Ruiz:  America's obesity epidemic costs the nation billions. He says taxing unhealthy food is one way to combat spread of obesity. He says government subsidies make unhealthy food more affordable. Ruiz: A study predicts 75 percent of Americans will be overweight by 2015.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Nearly a million acres were burning as 21 wildfires raged in the Pacific Northwest on Sunday, fire officials said.

The unconfined fires in Oregon and Washington, mostly ignited by lightning from thunderstorms that swept through the region a week ago, covered 942,247 by Sunday, Northwest Interagency Coordination Center spokeswoman Carol Connolly said.

The 21 large fires are the most the region has seen on the landscape at one time, she said.

According to Okanogan County, Washington, Sheriff Frank Rogers, one person died attempting to protect his home from the flames.

Authorities arrested two people over the weekend on suspicion of arson, the sheriff said. They set backfires to protect their property.

More than 150 structures have been lost. The sheriff expects that number to go up.

"I've been here 30 years, never seen anything like this," Rogers said.

According to Connolly, firefighters from across the United States, including Mississippi, Illinois, New Mexico, Utah and Montana, have joined the battle, bringing to 8,928 the number of people involved in trying to contain the fires. There are 35 "hot shot" crews involved, she said.

Health officials in Washington and Idaho are warning residents that smoke drifting eastward from the Washington wildfires would create unhealthy air.

"The biggest health threat comes from the fine particles in smoke," the National Weather Service said. "These can cause burning eyes, runny nose, bronchitis and other illnesses. Smokey air can also aggravate heart and lung disease, and even lead to death."

Hundreds evacuated as Washington wildfire grows

What to know about wildfires

CNN's Dave Alsup and Janet DiGiacomo contributed to this report.

Response: Wildfires cover 942,247 acres in the Pacific Northwest on Sunday. The 21 large fires are the most the region has seen at one time, an official says. Health officials in Washington and Idaho warning smoke creates unhealthy air.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Poor Microsoft. People who use your search engine seem especially interested in ... Apple.

Bing published its most-searched news stories for 2012, and topping the list -- ahead of the presidential election, Superstorm Sandy and the London Olympics -- was the iPhone 5, the newest version of Apple's iconic smartphone.

In case we need it, the ranking is further evidence of the feverish speculation that accompanies major Apple product launches. Released in October, the iPhone 5 was the subject of countless rumors and news reports all year about its launch date, features and 4G capability.

But still -- did people on Bing really care more about the iPhone 5 than the election?

"Tim Cook might want to send a thank you card to Steve Ballmer this morning," wrote Taylor Soper on GeekWire.

At least the presidential election beat out Honey Boo Boo. Other tech news stories on Bing's list included the launch of Amazon's newest tablet, the Kindle Fire HD, and Facebook's public stock offering in May. That's a big change from 2011, when no tech stories made Bing's most-searched list.

The complete list of Bing's top news stories:

1. iPhone 5

2. 2012 elections

3. 2012 Olympics

4. Hurricane Sandy

5. "Honey Boo Boo" reality show

6. "Gangnam Style" dance

7. KONY 2012

8. Academy Awards

9. Kindle Fire HD

10. Facebook IPO

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian topped Bing's most-searched person rankings for the year, dethroning 2011 champ Justin Bieber. President Obama was 46th, while his GOP rival Mitt Romney was 43rd.

Apple also dominated Bing's list of the year's most-searched consumer electronics, taking 5 of the 10 spots. Other popular products were the Samsung Galaxy S III phone, the Kindle and Sony's PlayStation 3 gaming console.

Facebook topped Bing's rankings of most-searched social media, followed by Twitter and, perhaps surprisingly, MySpace.

Fortunately for Microsoft, the company wasn't shut out of its own search results. On the consumer-electronics list were the Xbox and Windows 8.

With a market share of 16%, Bing is the second-most popular search engine in the U.S. behind Google (almost 67%), according to comScore.

Response: The iPhone 5 topped Bing's list of most-searched news stories so far in 2012. It ranked ahead of the presidential election, Superstorm Sandy and the London Olympics. Kim Kardashian was the year's most-searched person.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Each Father's Day, I thank my father for giving me life -- twice -- the first time in the traditional sense and the second when he donated his kidney to me. When I speak about getting him a Father's Day gift, he says the best gift I can give him is to live a good, healthy life.

Five years ago, we were in the OR, side by side as one of his kidneys was transferred into my body, saving my life. I had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes the summer I turned 17, and now, 20 years later, my kidneys were so damaged from the ups and downs of sugar in my blood that my medical team told me I needed either to get on dialysis or to receive a new organ from a deceased donor or a living relative.

To my father, the choice was simple -- he said, "Let's do it next week."

I marveled at his ability to make a quick decision that would alter both of our bodies forever.

During the pre-operation testing period, we spent a lot of time together. We kept our spirits high and our minds off the possibility of a failure or a postponement (if one of us got sick, for instance, or if my kidneys got worse and I needed dialysis) by making plans for the future -- all the things we wanted to do individually and apart.

Before he knew of my condition, my father, 63, had made plans to climb to Mount Everest's base camp with close friends, and it was scheduled for about two months after surgery. I was worried about the short recovery time, but he kept his sights on this adventure of a lifetime in addition to my regaining my health.

As a debt of gratitude to my dad (who finished his Mount Everest trek in good health), I created my new company, Lyfebulb, an organization that aims to connect and help people with chronic disease and inspire them to lead better lives. The ultimate goal is curing people of diabetes, kidney disease and other chronic illnesses, but while scientists in academia and industry fight that battle, I wanted to create a place both online and offline, for people to enjoy the small pleasures in life, share their stories, learn about new treatments and medications, and find resources.

Many people are not as fortunate as I was. As noted in the 2013 U.S. Renal Data System, about 34% of patients with diabetes survive five years after initiation of hemodialysis and 10% were alive after 10 years. Waiting for an organ on the regular transplant list may take years. Those years are tough ones, and when the organ finally arrives, it may be too late.

I believe that many more people would do what my father did for me if they knew more about the transplant process and outcomes. Improving access to organs is crucial now that the rate of diabetes is exploding and the average age of people living is increasing. We will be faced with many individuals needing an organ who may not have someone to ask who is educated about the risks, healthy enough to be approved and willing to step up to the plate.

Since the transplant, my father and I have celebrated holidays, gone skiing, enjoyed wine, argued and laughed -- essentially behaved like a normal father and daughter -- with the exception that we share his original pair of kidneys. Every day I remind myself what a precious gift my father has given me. I am alive today thanks to my father, and I hope to make him proud.

One day a year isn't enough to celebrate and thank my father for all he has done for me. To show my appreciation, the best gift I will give my dad this Father's Day is to take care of my health and to live each day to its fullest. It's the gift I've been giving him each year since we were in the OR side by side. And I plan on giving that gift to him for many Father's Days to come.

Opinion: Son, this is how to be a man

When is 'Daddy' more than DNA?

Opinion: 5 lessons my 9-year-old son taught me about men

Response: Karin Hehenberger: Celebrating Father's Day isn't enough to thank her dad for saving her life. With Type 1 diabetes, she needed kidney transplant; her dad said, "Let's do it next week". The transplant success inspired her to start a site helping those with chronic ailments connect. She says many don't have option she did; she thanks her dad by living a good, healthy life.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Having just quit a highly lucrative job with tech giant Microsoft in the United States, where he'd made millions working as a program manager, Patrick Awuah would wake up once in a while wondering if he'd done the right thing.

"And then I read the words of Goethe," remembers Awuah: "Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it -- begin it now."

What Awuah wanted to begin was to create a university in his native Ghana, a state-of-the-art education hub that would help educate the country's next generation of leaders.

Inspired by the saying of the famous German writer, Awuah moved with his family back to Ghana. There, he invested his own money and with the help of other donors he founded Ashesi University.

"Africa needs to have a renaissance," says Awuah, as he explains what drove him to take the risky decision.

"The world needs to change in this way and I strongly believe that people like me who have had the privilege of a great education need to be part of the solution; that I need to be really actively involved in helping to drive this change in Africa so that 30, 50 years from now, the world will be a different place for all people of African descent in the world."

Fostering leaders

Located about an hour's drive from the capital Accra, Ashesi, which appropriately translates to "beginning," is the first Ghanaian university to combine technical majors with a liberal arts approach.

Its vibrant campus, set on 100 acres in a town called Berekuso, was designed to be inspiring for the more than 500 young Ghanaians studying there.

Read this: Building a network of leaders

And while Ashesi has already come a long way -- when the school first opened in 2002 there was no campus, just a couple of rented buildings for its 30 students -- Awuah plans to expand his offering as part of his dream of finding and developing Africa's next problem solvers.

"In this country, only 5% of college-age kids go to college," he says. "And there's two problems with that number: one is it's too small, but the second is that everyone who goes to college by definition is going to be running this country one day, the 5% -- they're going to be running the courts, they're going to be designing roads and buildings and infrastructure, they're going to be running the hospitals, the schools, the businesses.

"So when I look at universities I see Africa fast-forward 30 years. When this 20-year-old is now in his or her 50s, that person is going to be a leader. And so I felt that engaging how that leadership, that future leadership core, is educated could be catalytic."

Tough decisions

Awuah, who grew up in Accra, left Ghana in 1985 to pursue his own education in the United States. There, he got a job at Microsoft, spearheading software design for dial-up internet access, making millions in the process.

He admits that quitting Microsoft was not an easy decision and credits his American wife for supporting him.

"I won't lie to you -- it was tough," says Awuah. "But I can tell you that when I mentioned this idea to my wife, she immediately agreed," he adds. "She'd never been to Africa before she met me and part of her conviction that this sounded like a good idea and her willingness to go ahead with it was very encouraging."

Read this: South Africa's outspoken educator

Committed to providing greater education opportunities in Ghana, he went back to school himself, earning a Master's degree at Berkeley, one of the world's top business schools. For his efforts, he's won many awards.

Changing the continent

Today Ashesi, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, offers degrees in business, information systems and computer science, with plans to offer engineering and economics majors in the near future. Its graduation rate is between 70 and 90%, according to Awuah.

Total fees costs $9,000 a year, including tuition, housing and meals. Awuah says the university brings together a diverse mix of students from different backgrounds, including scholarship-winning undergraduates from humble beginnings who are the first in their families to attend college.

Read this: Young innovators can change how world sees Africa

"Our last freshman class, 50% of that class paid full tuition, 25% were on full scholarships and 25% on partial scholarships," he says."The reason why diversity's so important is that the most important conversation on campus is a conversation about the good society -- what is the good society we would like to see in Africa?' That conversation is a lot more interesting if you have diversity in the classroom," adds Awuah.

"Because each person has an important perspective to share, but each person also has certain blinders that need to be peeled away -- that can be peeled away if they're in a room with others who have other perspectives as they do."

Looking ahead, Awuah says he hopes Africa's universities will cultivate a new generation of bold and innovative leaders, helping the continent to transform itself.

"If you come back in 30 years, universities will be competing for the best and brightest students," he says. "I hope that universities will also be competing on things such as whose students are the most ethical," he adds." If that happens, it will change the continent."

Response: Patrick Awuah is the founder of Ashesi University in Ghana. He was working for Microsoft and made millions in the United States before returning to his home country. Ashesi is known for its high-tech facilities and emphasis on business, technology and leadership. The school celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(Mental Floss) -- Major League Baseball's umpires are all over the news after a spate of, er, questionable calls throughout this postseason. Despite larger postseason umpiring crews that include two extra umps in the outfield, it feels like an inordinate number of calls have gone the wrong way.

All of these gaffes have prompted renewed debate about whether baseball should start using instant replay. How could umps blow this many calls that are so obvious when viewed in slow motion? Aren't these guys trained professionals? Are they handsomely rewarded? What do we really know about the men in blue, anyway?

After some spotty officiating in the NFL last fall, we did some digging on the officials in the four major sports. Here's what we found:

They make good money

A National Football League ref can make anywhere from $25,000 to $70,000 a season, although since most of the games are on Sundays, they can also have other jobs during the week. (We'll get to those in a minute.)

That cash comes with responsibilities, though. In addition to relaying the calls to the teams and fans, a ref is also the crew chief, or leader, of the seven-man officiating team that also includes an umpire, a field judge, a back judge, a line judge, a side judge, and a head linesman.

Officials in other sports pull down more loot, but they have much more grueling schedules...

• Baseball. According to MLB.com, MLB umpires get around $120,000 when they start out in the big leagues, and senior umps can earn upwards of $300,000. Between spring training, a 162-game schedule, and the postseason, being an MLB ump is a job that takes up most of the year.

They are, however, well cared-for while on the road. Each ump gets a $340 per diem to cover hotel and food, and when they fly, it's always first class. Working a full postseason can tack on an extra $20,000, plus expenses. They also get four weeks of paid vacation during the regular season.

These guys hang onto their jobs, too; on average, there's only one opening for a new big league ump each season.

• Basketball. National Basketball Association refs are similarly well compensated. They earn anywhere from $100,000 to $300,000 for an 82-game season. There are some nice fringe benefits, too; when referee Tim Donaghy admitted to helping gamblers fix games, the NBA asked that he repay other benefits he'd pulled in over the course of his 13-year career, including $750 worth of sneakers and $4500 worth of free tickets.

• Hockey. If you can skate and survive the occasional lockout, National Hockey League ref is hardly a bad job. Refs make between $110,000 and $255,000 while linesmen earn from $72,000 to $162,000. Mental Floss: Stories behind all 30 NHL team names

NFL refs have day jobs

Since NFL refs only work one day each week, they can have "real" jobs to supplement what they earn on any given Sunday. Some of them actually have pretty interesting jobs.

• Mike Carey, my personal favorite ref, is an entrepreneur and inventor who holds eight patents for snow sports apparel. He founded and co-owns Seirus Innovation, a ski apparel company.

• Walt Coleman is infamous in Oakland for being the ref in the "Tuck Rule Game," but he's also a fifth-generation dairy farmer who once held the position of president of the Arkansas Dairy Products Association.

• Walter Anderson became an official in the league in 1996 and got the promotion to referee in 2003. Prior to becoming a referee, he was better known as Dr. Walt Anderson, a dentist.

• Tony Corrente is probably used to dealing with unruly crowds of guys from his day job as a high-school social studies teacher.

• If Jeff Triplette seems hard to scare on the field, it's probably because he's seen worse. He was an Army Reserve colonel during the Persian Gulf War, where he was awarded a bronze star. Mental Floss: What's with those AFL throwback uniforms?

• Bill Leavy is similarly tough; he spent 27 years as a police officer and firefighter in San Jose.

• Ron Winter's not just a ref, he's also an associate professor in Western Michigan University's phys. ed. department.

• Gene Steratore must love how he looks in stripes. In addition to being an NFL ref, he officiates NCAA hoops games and has drawn March Madness assignments in previous seasons.

• And when Ed Hochuli isn't officiating a game (or working out), you might find him in a courtroom. He's a trial lawyer in the Arizona firm Jones, Skelton, and Hochuli, which employs over 80 attorneys.

It's a long climb to the top

How does one become a ref? Most of these guys have humble beginnings as officials. Carey started officiating Pop Warner games in 1972 and gradually worked his way up through the college ranks. Eventually, he became an NFL side judge in 1990 and received a promotion to NFL referee, the pinnacle of football officiating, in 1995.

Hochuli started as a Pop Warner ref in the early 1970s; he was a law school student who needed a little extra pocket cash. He then slowly made his way up through high school, junior college, and small conference college ball before getting a Pac-10 gig. He eventually made it to the NFL in 1990. It's a slow build, but if you stick it out long enough and have some natural talent, you can be the one patting his head to signal an ineligible receiver downfield.

Still not convinced it's a tough ride? In a recent op-ed in The New York Times, former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent cited the paltry salaries for minor-league umps: just $9500 for a five-month season for junior umpires, and only $20,000 a season for guys who have risen all the way to Triple A ball. Mental Floss: 31 unbelievable high school mascots

For more mental_floss articles, visit mentalfloss.com

Entire contents of this article copyright, Mental Floss LLC. All rights reserved.

Response: NFL ref makes from $25,000 to $70,000 a season, working mostly Sundays. Other jobs held by some NFL refs include farmer, inventor and dentist. MLB.com says umpires get about $120,000 when they start out in the big league. NBA refs earn anywhere from $100,000 to $300,000 for an 82-game season.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- As the globe has become increasingly outfitted with wi-fi hotspots and cell phone towers, the skies have long been the last refuge from constant connectivity. That's changing, however, as more airlines are realizing wi-fi's earning potential.

By its own estimate, one of the fastest-growing companies in America is Gogo, which was the first to successfully hook up planes with internet. It has since installed systems on several U.S. carriers, including Delta, American and US Airways.

According to its CEO, Michael Small, Gogo's profits grew from $37 million in 2009 to $112 million in the first six months of 2012.

"We're now on over 1,600 commercial aviation jets, which is nearly half the U.S. fleet. We've done that in four years, which is extraordinarily fast," says Small. "In just a few more years, it will be done in America."

Watch video: In-flight wi-fi takes off

Though airlines pay to install the equipment, they also reap the rewards; Gogo charges the customers for internet usage -- between $5 and $20, depending on flight duration -- and shares its revenue with the carriers.

"More travelers are aware of our service, and many of them want it," says Small. "One in five say they will switch a flight to get our service."

The drawback with Gogo's system is that it uses an air-to-ground network of cell phone towers it built across the United States -- each with a 250-mile radius of coverage -- meaning its wi-fi isn't available when flying over water. Internet on Gogo-outfitted planes is therefore limited to domestic flights. This is where California-based firm Row 44 swoops in.

Row 44 also installs wi-fi on airplanes, though unlike Gogo, it relies on a satellite system, meaning passengers can access internet even when flying over the ocean.

"This is a distinct advantage, given that two-thirds of the planet is covered in water," notes John LaValle, Row 44's CEO. Also, satellite systems give passengers more options, due to better bandwidth.

"Air-to-ground has certain inherent limitations in terms of the amount of data that can be processed through the network of cell towers on the ground -- for example, live TV really is an impossibility," says LaValle, whose company also offers that service as part of its package. "In a satellite environment, you're able to get much more data through the pipe."

See also: Airplane phone calls to become standard?

But the satellite system is substantially more expensive than using cell-phone towers, and has the added drawback of taking longer to install. As airlines lose money for every day a plane is out of commission, this can make the process rather costly. Some carriers, however, find it's worth the price.

Mango Airlines and Southwest are among the airlines using Row 44's service, with Icelandair soon to follow. What's more, Norwegian Air Shuttle, which has also joined the fray, has just this month started offering wi-fi to passengers free-of-charge -- the first airline in Europe to do so.

"We had a trial period where we offered it free to passengers, and we saw increases on those routes; it went up volumes," notes Boris Bubresko, head of business development for Norwegian Air Shuttle. "After that, we decided to keep it free."

At the moment, connectivity is a perk; airlines that provide wi-fi or mobile services on board stand out. This will change, though, as customers increasingly start to expect the amenity, rather than merely appreciate it. LaValle feels that era has already dawned.

He says: "I was on a plane recently that wasn't wi-fi equipped, and this guy sitting across the aisle opened up his laptop and he couldn't find the hotspot. He slammed it down and said, 'I can't believe this, I really needed to get a lot of work done on this flight!'

"I think we're already at that point where everyone fully expects connectivity."

Is it time for all flights to offer wi-fi? Would you pay for in-flight wi-fi, or should it be free? Leave a comment below.

Daisy Carrington contributed to this report

Response: More airlines providing Wi-Fi on their flights. Norwegian Air first airline in Europe to offer free Wi-Fi. Gogo system installed on 1,600 U.S. jets, according to CEO. Row 44 provides satellite-based system that can access internet even over the ocean.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:LONDON, England (CNN) -- Four decades after he won over America with his scratchy, soulful voice and blues-inspired rock, British-born Joe Cocker is receiving an honor from the queen.

Joe Cocker is being honored at Buckingham Palace for his services to music.

Cocker, 63, was set to receive an OBE, or Order of the British Empire, at a ceremony Thursday morning at Buckingham Palace. The award officially recognizes Cocker's "services to music."

Prince Charles was planning to present Cocker with the honor, part of the queen's annual birthday honors list.

Famous for songs including "You Are So Beautiful" and his cover of the Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends," Cocker began his career by singing Ray Charles songs in pubs around his hometown of Sheffield, northern England in the early 1960s.

Cocker toured with a string of bands, often playing American airbases in Europe, winning fans among the servicemen.

The press hailed his first U.S. television performance on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1969, and the following summer, Cocker played to half a million people at the historic Woodstock rock festival in New York state.

The ensuing live album "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" remains a Cocker classic, with songs including "Cry Me A River" and "Feelin' Alright."

Rolling Stone magazine says Cocker's "gritty, powerful voice remains one of the most distinctive in rock & roll."

A whirlwind U.S. tour after Woodstock left Cocker "exhausted," according to his own Web site, and reported drug and alcohol abuse came soon after.

Cocker had a top 10 song in 1975 with "You are So Beautiful," but his fortunes really turned in 1982 with his No. 1 duet with Jennifer Warnes, "Up Where We Belong," the theme from the movie "An Officer and a Gentleman."

Cocker's most recent U.S. top 10 was "When the Night Comes," written by Bryan Adams.

Cocker now lives on a ranch in Colorado but still tours extensively. He has been touring Europe since June and plans shows in Sheffield and London this weekend.  E-mail to a friend

Response: UK-born Joe Cocker receiving an Order of the British Empire. The award officially recognizes Cocker's "services to music". Prince Charles scheduled to present Cocker with the honor.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:Hong Kong (CNN) -- Brothers Thomas and Raymond Kwok, who control Hong Kong's biggest property development company, Sun Hung Kai, have been arrested for suspected corruption, authorities said Thursday.

Also arrested for suspected corruption was a person described by Hong Kong's Department of Justice as "a former principal official of the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region," a spokesman for the Independent Commission Against Corruption said.

The Kwok brothers' fortune is $18.3 billion, according to Forbes Magazine, which rank the brothers and their family as the 27th richest in the world.

The commission's report said "the arrested persons are alleged to have committed offenses under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance and misconduct in public office."

The arrests come 10 days after Sun Hung Kai's executive director, Thomas Chan, was arrested by the commission in connection with a bribery investigation.

Four other people, whose backgrounds weren't disclosed by authorities, were also arrested on corruption charges.

On Thursday morning, Sun Hung Kai Properties suspended trading of its shares. The company has since announced the shares will resume trading when Hong Kong's stock exchange opens Friday morning.

The firm has set up a special committee to handle all matters arising from the investigation, and the company's board, whose six members include the two brothers, has resolved that the Kwoks will "continue to undertake and discharge their duties to the group, including their duties as joint chairmen and managing directors of the company," according to a company statement.

CNN's Andrew Henstock contributed from Hong Kong and Michael Martinez from Los Angeles.

Response: Thomas and Raymond Kwok run Hong Kong's biggest property development company. They were arrested for suspected corruption. An unidentified government official was also arrested for alleged corruption. Another Sun Hung Kai executive was arrested 10 days ago in a bribery investigation.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega opened the door to the possibility of his country going back to international bodies in an attempt to get a $17 billion payout from the United States.

But the United States considers the case closed, according to William Ostick, a State Department spokesman.

The money was originally awarded to Nicaragua in 1986 by the International Court of Justice in the Hague. Nicaragua had gone to the court alleging that American involvement in their civil war by arming, financing and supplying the Contra fighters was a breach of international law. The Central American country also alleged that U.S. overflights and attacks on Nicaraguan ports violated its sovereignty.

The court sided with Nicaragua, and ruled that the United States was to pay reparations. Nicaragua asked for $17 billion, though an amount was never set.

The United States, which did not recognize the jurisdiction of the court in this case, resisted international pressure to pay, and eventually, under the administration of President Violeta Chamorro, Nicaragua dropped its claim from the International Court in 1991. The International Court subsequently issued an order removing Nicaragua's case from the court's list, Ostick said.

"In due time we will call for a referendum," Ortega said Tuesday, referring to the revival of the claim.

Ortega was speaking at an event commemorating the fall of former dictator Anastasio Somoza, which brought the Sandinistas to power. The aim of the Contras was to destabilize the Sandinistas, the party Ortega belongs to.

The president said he would call for "a referendum so that the people ... say whether or not we collect this debt that the 'Yankee' government owes."

"Nicaragua has a legitimate position to be entertained and debated," said Larry Birns, director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.

However, it is unlikely that Ortega would seek such a referendum, which would stir the pot with the United States, he said.

In some ways, Ortega has proven to be more pragmatic in his actions than his rhetoric suggests, Birns said.

If Nicaragua chooses to revive the lawsuit, it could be because the impoverished nation sees the $17 billion -- or even a settlement at a fraction of that amount -- as a quick boost to the country, he said.

The case is most likely closed forever, said Fred Morrison, a law professor at the University of Minnesota who was on the U.S. legal team in the first phases of the case.

When Nicaragua dropped its claim, it did so by stating in a letter that it "had decided to renounce all further right of action based on the case and did not wish to go on with the proceedings."

There is a precedent that such declarations are binding, Morrison said.

"I would think the case is now closed," he said.

Response: Ortega says he may hold a referendum to see if case should be revived. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1986 against the United States. At issue is U.S. involvement in Nicaragua's civil war.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Lebanese authorities on Saturday arrested three people in connection with the kidnapping of two Turkish pilots, both of whom remain missing more than a week later.

The Turkish Airlines pilots were riding a bus heading from Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport to their hotel early August 9 when armed assailants stopped the bus, according to Turkey's foreign ministry.

Reports on the number of attackers -- who were riding in two vehicles -- varied from four to eight.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported Saturday that three people had been arrested by the Internal Security Forces Information Branch "in connection" with the kidnapping.

It wasn't clear whether they were among the alleged kidnappers, or whether they were accused of being involved in some other fashion.

Security agents questioned the driver as a witness, according to NNA.

Other airline employees on the bus made it safely to the hotel, Turkey's foreign ministry said.

"Our ministry and our embassy will exert intensive efforts in cooperation with the Lebanese authorities to ensure the liberation of our pilots and their return to Turkey," the ministry said last week.

CNN's Deanna Hackney and Ben Brumfield contributed to this report

Response: Arrests made in the kidnapping of Turkish Airlines pilots, state news says. Gunmen had halted a bus near Beirut, then took away pilots. Others safely got to a hotel.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:London (CNN) -- The British government asked the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee to redact small parts of the panel's report that criticized the CIA's harsh interrogation program, a representative for Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday.

The comment came in response to a question from CNN about whether the UK government had seen the report on the CIA's enhanced interrogation program before it was released to the public this week, and whether London had asked for redactions or changes.

"The U.S. gave our agencies limited sight of some sections of the executive summary before its publication," Cameron's representative said about the report on the CIA program, which critics call torture. "Our agencies highlighted a small number of issues in the proposed text where changes would be necessary to protect UK national security and intelligence operations.

"None of these redactions related to allegations of UK involvement in detainee mistreatment."

Related: CIA feared for future of interrogation program, report shows

Information on what was altered or obscured in the 499-page executive summary at the UK government's request wasn't immediately available.

CNN's Jason Hanna contributed to this report.

Response: UK previewed parts of Senate report's executive summary, Cameron representative says. UK raised concern about a "small number of issues". Official: Redactions didn't relate "to allegations of UK involvement in detainee mistreatment".


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:He was a beefy 5-foot-10 but won an Oscar for playing the slight, 5-foot-3 Truman Capote. He had the booming voice of a deity but often played schlubs and conflicted characters.

He could be heartfelt and giving, as with his male nurse in "Magnolia" or rock critic in "Almost Famous," or creepily Machiavellian, such as the gamemaster in the latest "Hunger Games" movie.

Philip Seymour Hoffman was an actor who could be anybody.

"I don't know how he does it," director Mike Nichols told The New York Times Magazine in 2008. Nichols directed Hoffman on both stage ("The Seagull," "Death of a Salesman") and screen ("Charlie Wilson's War"). "Again and again, he can truly become someone I've not seen before but can still instantly recognize. ... He may look like Phil, but there's something different in his eyes. And that means he's reconstituted himself from within, willfully rearranging his molecules to become another human being."

"Philip Seymour Hoffman's precise, uncanny performance as Capote doesn't imitate the author so much as channel him, as a man whose peculiarities mask great intelligence and deep wounds," wrote Roger Ebert about 2005's "Capote."

Hoffman was found dead Sunday. Reports attribute his death to a drug overdose.

For years, Hoffman was the kind of anonymous character actor who earned critical raves but was often unnoticed by the general public. He had an Everyman face -- burly enough to be an athlete, soft enough to be an artist, with an eye twinkle that could be either vicious (as in his "Mission: Impossible III" villain) or humorous (the frat-boyish Sandy in "Along Came Polly").

Consider the roles that earned him Academy Award nominations: a conniving writer ("Capote"), a cranky CIA desk jockey ("Charlie Wilson's War"), an upbeat, dissembling priest ("Doubt") and a charming, enigmatic cult leader ("The Master").

Or consider the ones that didn't: baseball manager Art Howe ("Moneyball"), suspicious Freddie Miles ("The Talented Mr. Ripley"), clever Plutarch Heavensbee ("The Hunger Games: Catching Fire").

The New York Times' Ben Brantley, who saw him on stage, was unequivocal. "One of the finest actors of his generation," he wrote in his review of the 2012 staging of "Death of a Salesman" -- even while finding Hoffman miscast in that production.

One of a kind everyman:

He's of a type harder to find in Hollywood these days, where movie-star looks and charisma often take precedence over the ability to disappear into a role. Indeed, even when movie stars do try to disappear, we're all too aware of the tricks, whether it's weight gain, a putty nose or an unfamiliar accent.

Movie stars sell tickets. Character actors -- and Hoffman, for all his intensity, was a character actor -- support movie stars.

That seemed OK with him. You could more often find him in challenging roles or secondary parts than leads. He liked to take chances.

He worked with director Paul Thomas Anderson ("Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," "The Master") before either was a big name, and Anderson provided him with a steady stream of interesting roles. He took small parts in such films as the dark comedy "Strangers with Candy," based on the unpleasant characters dreamed up by Amy Sedaris, Paul Dinello and Stephen Colbert, and "The Invention of Lying," Ricky Gervais' comedy about religion and atheism.

In some respects he followed the path of one of his heroes, Paul Newman, who had looks and magnetism to burn but wasn't shy about taking "character" parts, such as a broken-down lawyer in "The Verdict" or a ne'er-do-well in "Nobody's Fool." The latter featured Newman acting opposite Hoffman, as did the HBO miniseries "Empire Falls."

He also kept his talent sharp with frequent stage work and the kind of "one for me, one for them" movie philosophy that made sure he was both busy and successful.

The price of fame:

In recent years, he'd become a more recognizable face -- and persona. In a video that quickly made the rounds, his voice was dubbed into a trailer for the Joaquin Phoenix movie "Her," taking the place of Scarlett Johansson's operating system, Samantha. Where Johansson is relaxed, Hoffman is intense; where Johansson is helpful, Hoffman is wily. It neatly summed up his capabilities.

But with fame comes intrusion, and Hoffman seemed uncomfortable with the attention. He was a New York-based actor, not a movie star. It was a job, not an excuse to turn him into an open book.

"Somebody wanted me to talk about my personal life," he told the UK newspaper The Independent in 2012. "I'd rather not because my family doesn't have any choice. If I talk about them in the press, I'm giving them no choice. So I choose not to."

His death has left his colleagues in shock.

"We have lost a true artist," said Robin Wright in a statement. Wright worked with Hoffman in "Moneyball" and the forthcoming "A Most Wanted Man."

"He was a giant talent," said Tom Hanks, who co-starred with Hoffman in "Charlie Wilson's War."

But perhaps director Nichols was most succinct -- and heartfelt -- in describing the void left by Hoffman's death.

"No words for this," he said in a statement. "He was too great and we're too shattered."

"Great" is an all-too-appropriate word, as Hoffman himself used it when expressing his goals. Given his work and the circumstances of his death, a line from the 2008 New York Times Magazine profile seems more haunting today.

"For me, acting is torturous, and it's torturous because you know it's a beautiful thing," he said. "I was young once, and I said, 'That's beautiful and I want that.' Wanting it is easy, but trying to be great -- well, that's absolutely torturous."

Response: Philip Seymour Hoffman was a rare breed in Hollywood. The actor could disappear into -- and transcend -- any role. He seemed to care more for his craft than celebrity. Hoffman died of an apparent drug overdose at the age of 46.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- A scathing resignation letter written by a former city clerk in Pleasant Hill, California, has gone viral after she wished the city "best of luck in finding some schmuck" to fill her position.

"This has been an atrocious, incredibly depressing, and mind-numbingly inane experience I would not wish on anyone," former clerk Kim Lehmkuhl wrote in her resignation letter. "I wish the City the best of luck in finding some schmuck eager to transcribe every last misogynistic joke, self-indulgent anecdote, and pathetic pandering attempt by Council, and every tinfoil hat conspiracy theory, racist aside, and NIMBY asshattery from the lovely Council meeting frequent flyers, without which, surely our democracy could not flourish. June, also best of luck with your imminent unfunded pensions scandal, that is going to be a rough one."

The letter was addressed to Mayor Tim Flaherty and City Manager June Catalano. It became public after it was admitted into the record during a council meeting Monday.

"At least her resignation demonstrated her ability to craft a full sentence with colorful language," Flaherty told CNN, adding that there was a recall effort under way to remove Lehmkuhl.

"Every councilmember had called for her resignation," he said. "We had to hire people to do her job."

CNN reached out to Lehmkuhl via Twitter and e-mail but did not receive a response.

In a blog dedicated to her clerk campaign, Lehmkuhl wrote she "would be honored to have the opportunity to serve our local community as your City Clerk." She adds, "I am committed to helping Pleasant Hill residents stay engaged in our community, and to keeping City Hall accountable, ethical and transparent."

Martin Nelis, the city's public information officer, told CNN that residents had complained that Lehmkuhl would post offensive tweets during public meetings about what was being discussed.

"Residents criticized her for tweeting during meetings rather than taking notes or recording the proceedings of the meetings for the formal minutes process," he said.

The Twitter account Lehmkuhl used has since been disabled.

"We are not quite sure why she ran for office in the first place, what her expectations were once elected. We have never received a complete answer. Obviously what her expectation was is different of what the public and the council expected of her," Nelis said.

Flaherty said he considered sending the letter back to Lehmkuhl and asking her to rewrite it but instead settled for, "Your decision is best for you and for the City of Pleasant Hill."

Response: Former city clerk of Pleasant Hill, California, quit with blistering resignation letter. Kim Lehmkuhl said the job "has been an atrocious, incredibly depressing ... experience". A recall effort to remove Lehmkuhl from the job was under way, mayor says.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- The winning numbers for the largest multistate Powerball jackpot are: 22, 10,13,14, 52 and the Powerball number is 11.

Saturday's jackpot is a record $590.5 million. It marks the largest in Powerball history, surpassing a $587.6 million jackpot split by winners in Arizona and Missouri in November.

The jackpot has a cash value of $376.9 million.

The largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history was $656 million in the Mega Millions game in March 2012. That was split by three tickets sold in Illinois, Kansas and Maryland.

That mark will be dwarfed if no one wins the Powerball jackpot Saturday. With no winner, the jackpot will be about $925 million for Wednesday's drawing, according to Kelly Cripe, spokeswoman for the Texas Lottery, which is part of the multistate lotteries.

The Powerball game is played in 43 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. A single ticket costs $2, and the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 175,223,510.

Why you keep playing the lottery

But before you start dreaming of that mansion in Barbados, allow us to pour an icy bucket of mathematical reality over your head: You almost certainly aren't going to win.

You stand a better chance of walking onto the golf course and hitting two consecutive holes in one than winning that jackpot.

But that didn't stop hundreds from driving to the Trex Mart in Dearborn, Missouri, store where one of two winning tickets sold in last year's $587 million Powerball drawing.

About 100 people an hour were buying tickets at the store.

CNN's Scott Thompson and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Response: NEW: Saturday's jackpot is a record $590.5 million. Powerball is played in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Largest jackpot was $656 million in Mega Millions game in 2012.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Portuguese football legend Eusebio is in a stable condition after being admitted to hospital with bronchial pneumonia on Wednesday, his former club Benfica reported.

The 69-year-old, known affectionately as the "Black Panther" and one of the most talented players of his generation, is being kept at the Hospital da Luz in Lisbon as the illness has affected both lungs.

"He spent the night as well, and he is stable. From the clinical point of view (his condition) is stationary," the hospital's medical director Jose Roquette told reporters in quotes carried by Benfica's website.

"There was no significant improvement in inflammatory parameters, analytical or radiological findings. So we continue with appropriate therapy and we hope this is resolved quickly."

Roquette said Eusebio, who was the top scorer at the 1966 World Cup when Portugal finished third, would likely remain in hospital over the festive period after coming out of intensive care.

"This is not a situation that one can guarantee how long will it take to evolution, but admit it will take some time. We will give more information in due course. Most likely it will extend beyond Christmas, "he said.

Roquette said Eusebio's wife and daughters had come to the hospital, but other visitors had been restricted.

In 2007, he had surgery to unblock arteries which carry blood to the brain.

Eusebio played for three North American Soccer League teams in the twilight of his career, but is best known for his exploits in 15 years at Benfica where he scored 638 goals in 614 appearances up until 1975.

"We wish a speedy recovery to Eusebio and also to express that the whole Portuguese football family is behind him," the Portuguese Football Federation said in a statement.

"Eusebio is a symbol of Portuguese football. It will take a lot of strength to overcome this difficulty, but he has honored Portugal for many years with his distinguished presence, including as ambassador of the national team."

Born in Mozambique, which was then a Portuguese territory, he scored 41 goals in 64 appearances for his adopted country.

At the 1966 World Cup he scored two goals as Portugal eliminated defending champions Brazil at the group stage, then netted four times in an incredible quarterfinal comeback against North Korea as his side rallied from 3-0 down to win 5-3 in one of the tournament's most famous matches.

Eusebio scored again in the semifinal against England, but the hosts won 2-1 before beating Germany in the final.

Response: Eusebio in intensive care after being admitted to Lisbon hospital with pneumonia. Hospital's medical director says football legend will remain there over festive period. The 69-year-old former Benfica star was one of the most talented players of his generation. His adopted nation's soccer federation hails him as a symbol of Portuguese football.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:Charlotte (CNN) -- Four years later, consider the role reversal: As he closes his convention, Barack Obama's greatest challenge is to make the case against change.

Yet he can't ask the American people to simply stay the course.

The challenge, both daunting and delicate, is to make the case that his first-term policies were correct but that the second-term results will be dramatically different.

Veteran Democratic pollster Peter Hart says the president's challenge is to provide a clear and credible answer to this: "Why will you be better off in the second term?"

And Hart argues that the stakes, already high, are higher still now because of the strong prime-time performances of first lady Michelle Obama and former President Bill Clinton.

"This convention is now a home run derby," Hart said.

Four years ago in Denver, Sen. Barack Obama sold himself as the candidate of hope and change, presenting himself as a different brand of politician, someone who would change Washington -- and the economy -- for the better.

Obama to speak after forceful Clinton endorsement

But if Washington has changed at all, it is for the worse. And while both sides can find statistics that support their arguments on the state of the economy, it is clear that many Americans at best feel they are treading water.

So the tone is very different in Charlotte than in Denver. So is the targeting. Four years ago, the goal was to expand the map, and the Obama campaign ultimately succeeded.

This year, the path to 270 Electoral College votes and victory is less certain, though the president does have more viable options than does GOP nominee Mitt Romney.

Still, because of the changed climate, the Obama acceptance speech will close a Democratic convention that for the most part has been a giant get-out-the-vote rally, speakers chosen because of their appeal to specific constituencies (African-Americans, Latinos, suburban women, gays and lesbians) or major battleground states.

The most sustained appeal to undecided or independent voters was Wednesday's prime-time dissertation by Clinton.

Speaking to supporters Thursday morning, the president talked broadly about his test of convention success.

"Hopefully, at the end of this convention, people will say we accomplished what we needed to and delivered our vision for the country and offered a clear contrast to what people saw in Tampa," the president said.

Obama readies two-term pitch

While Charlotte has had plenty of contrast with the GOP convention in Tampa, there has been virtually no specific talk of the president's policy goals for the next four years. Will he, like Romney, offer a specific jobs target? Will he offer a new deficit reduction goal? Venture into goals or timetables for immigration reform?

How the president packages his pitch also could be defining.

For Ronald Reagan, the second term was wrapped as "Morning in America." Clinton's 1996 bid for a second term was sold as his "Bridge to the 21st Century."

Thursday night, Obama's challenge is to sell his road map.

And beyond the need to lay out a second-term policy agenda, some other Obama challenges are obvious.

Voters, albeit by a narrow margin, view Romney as better able to manage the economy. And while Obama leads when voters are asked which candidate best understands the middle class, the latest CNN/ORC International polling showed that Romney significantly narrowed that gap as a result of the Republican convention.

The president's top political advisers see discouragement as their greatest potential enemy. Proof of this is in a look at recent national polling: The president's numbers among registered voters are stronger than his numbers among likely voters, meaning a fair share of potential Obama voters aren't as engaged or interested this time around.

First lady seeks to reignite flame for president

Again, that is the strategy behind the convention agenda: careful targeting of the different pieces of the Obama 2008 coalition.

But for all the help he is getting from his friends, it is up to Obama himself to close the deal.

Now, the role of one speech should not be overstated. Just hours after the convention closes, the government will release August jobs data -- and that data could significantly shape morning-after reflections on the president's big moment.

Plus, there are two months of campaigning and three presidential debates ahead, so this isn't his last chance.

But it's a giant opportunity, his unfiltered chance to make the case against change.

Response: Stakes for Obama's speech are higher after two prime-time performances. Democratic pollster: "This convention is now a home run derby". Targeting in Charlotte differs from the messaging in Denver four years ago. Thursday night, Obama's challenge is to sell his road map.


Prompt:
Explain the text in one sentence.
 Text:(CNN) -- Turning 50 is a major milestone in a person's life -- and a country's history.

Kenya celebrates Thursday its Golden Jubilee year following 50 years of independence from British rule.

To commemorate the event, Nairobi-based photographer Mutua Matheka teamed up with Samsung last month to launch Picha Hamsini, a photo contest celebrating the East African country's heritage from past to present. They asked photography enthusiasts from across Kenya to submit images of people or places with historical and cultural significance and explain why these were relevant to them or the country.

"The goal of the contest was to see and show Kenya from the eyes of Kenyans," says Matheka. "(To) use images to celebrate our country and get people involved in that celebration. We have a lot we are not happy about as a country, but I believe we also have a lot to celebrate and I feel photography is usually a tool to further and foster that."

Read this: Africa's most exciting new photographers

The organizers received more than 2,000 images submitted via Facebook, Twitter and Istagram. In the end, the 25 best were selected and featured in a street exhibition in the center of the Kenyan capital, alongside some of Matheka's photos.

"The images we received were fantastic," says Matheka. "Some celebrated people, others celebrated our activities, others celebrated beautiful places," he adds. "The winners were mostly amateur photographers."

With celebrations underway across Kenya, many believe that this is also a time to look back and learn from the mistakes of the past.

Read this: Kenyan yoga strikes a pose

Matheka says the overriding message of the celebrations is that "we have moved quite a distance in democracy, value of life, ability to make a living in this country from 50 years back to now."

He adds: "A lot has changed for the better and a lot has changed for the worse too. I celebrate the progress and keep track of it so that for the next 50 years we try to avert from the former mistakes and progress as a nation."

Click through our gallery above to check out some of the competition's best photographs.

Response: Kenya celebrates its 50th year of independence from British rule. A photography competition celebrated the country's heritage and history. Outstanding images show people or places with historical and cultural significance.