Is Facebook envy making you miserable?

LONDON (Reuters) – Witnessing friends’ vacations, love lives and work successes on Facebook can cause envy and trigger feelings of misery and loneliness, according to German researchers.

A study conducted jointly by two German universities found rampant envy on Facebook, the world’s largest social network that now has over one billion users and has produced an unprecedented platform for social comparison.

The researchers found that one in three people felt worse after visiting the site and more dissatisfied with their lives, while people who browsed without contributing were affected the most.

“We were surprised by how many people have a negative experience from Facebook with envy leaving them feeling lonely, frustrated or angry,” researcher Hanna Krasnova from the Institute of Information Systems at Berlin’s Humboldt University told Reuters.

“From our observations some of these people will then leave Facebook or at least reduce their use of the site,” said Krasnova, adding to speculation that Facebook could be reaching saturation point in some markets.

Researchers from Humboldt University and from Darmstadt’s Technical University found vacation photos were the biggest cause of resentment with more than half of envy incidents triggered by holiday snaps on Facebook.

Social interaction was the second most common cause of envy as users could compare how many birthday greetings they received to those of their Facebook friends and how many “likes” or comments were made on photos and postings.

“Passive following triggers invidious emotions, with users mainly envying happiness of others, the way others spend their vacations and socialize,” the researchers said in the report “Envy on Facebook: A Hidden Threat to Users’ Life Satisfaction?” released on Tuesday.

“The spread and ubiquitous presence of envy on Social Networking Sites is shown to undermine users’ life satisfaction.”

They found people aged in their mid-30s were most likely to envy family happiness while women were more likely to envy physical attractiveness.

These feelings of envy were found to prompt some users to boast more about their achievements on the site run by Facebook Inc. to portray themselves in a better light.

Men were shown to post more self-promotional content on Facebook to let people know about their accomplishments while women stressed their good looks and social lives.

The researchers based their findings on two studies involving 600 people with the results to be presented at a conference on information systems in Germany in February.

The first study looked at the scale, scope and nature of envy incidents triggered by Facebook and the second at how envy was linked to passive use of Facebook and life satisfaction.

The researchers said the respondents in both studies were German but they expected the findings to hold internationally as envy is a universal feeling and possibly impact Facebook usage.

“From a provider’s perspective, our findings signal that users frequently perceive Facebook as a stressful environment, which may, in the long-run, endanger platform sustainability,” the researchers concluded.

(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, editing by Paul Casciato)

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Heath Ledger Through the Years

April 1979- Jan. 2008

Five years ago, Hollywood was struck with grief upon hearing that Heath
Ledger had passed away at the young age of 28. Today, we remember the Dark Knight actor and his big smile and presence on the red carpet. Click the pics for a look back at the Ledger's life in the limelight.

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Tuiasosopo apologized to woman whose picture was used to portray fake Te'o girlfriend

The woman whose photo was used as the "face" of the Twitter account of Manti Te'o's supposed girlfriend says the man allegedly behind the hoax confessed and apologized to her.

Diane O'Meara spoke to NBC's "Today" show Tuesday. She says Ronaiah Tuiasosopo used pictures of her without her knowledge in creating a fake woman called Lennay Kekua. Te'o asserts he was tricked into an online romance with Kekua and, until last week, believed she died of leukemia in September.

O'Meara went to high school with Tuiasosopo, but she says they're not close. She says he called to apologize Jan. 16, the day Deadspin.com broke the hoax story, but "I don't think there's anything he could say to me that would fix this."

Photo of the image used to portray Manti Te'o's imaginary girlfriend Lennay Marie Kekua.

The 23-year-old O'Meara is a marketing executive in Los Angeles. She says that for five years, Tuiasosopo "has literally been stalking my Facebook and stealing my photos."

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Existing home sales and prices rose in Broward in December

South Florida’s housing recovery is on strong footing.

In Broward County, the median price of an existing single-family home surged 21.1 percent to $230,000 in December from a year earlier, according to the Greater Fort Lauderdale Realtors.

The median price of an existing condo or townhouse in Broward in December jumped 24.7 percent to $95,100 year over year, the group said.

Sales of single-family homes in Broward climbed 14.9 percent in December year over year while the volume of condo and townhouse closings increased 4.7 percent over the period.

The inventory of single-family homes in Broward fell 35.5 percent in December from a year earlier, while the inventory of condos and townhomes on the market declined 25.2 percent year over year, the Fort Lauderdale group said.

“Buyers are quite surprised there is not more inventory after everything they have been hearing,’’ said Eyvonne Kafourus, an agent with Prudential in Fort Lauderdale. “I see a lot of people coming in from other states, for job transfers and retirement.’’

“Buyers are getting aggravated because they are losing deals,’’ said Charles Bonfiglio, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Realtors. “Eighty to 90 percent [of sales] are multiple offer situations. They’ve got to move quickly.’’

The median days on the market for a single-family home in Broward declined to 37 days in December from 56 days a year earlier, the Realtors group said.

Florida has been seeing a flow of new arrivals after a period of exodus during the downturn.

“We’ve obviously turned the corner. We’ve noticed inventory tightening up,’’ said Philip Vias, a broker associate with Prudential in Fort Lauderdale.

Vias said more buyers seem to be coming in from the Northeast. “What’s held things up is homes weren’t selling up north. North it’s starting to trickle down.’’

Statewide in Florida, single-family home sales climbed 15.8 percent in December from a year earlier as the median price increased 14.1 percent to $154,000.

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Lemurs run amok in North Miami Beach; scratch toddler

It was a case of lemurs on the loose in one North Miami Beach neighborhood early Monday morning.

Julio Hincapie, who owns the two lemurs, said someone cut the locks on their cage and tried to steal them around 2 a.m.

The lemurs, however, had other ideas and ran wild through the neighborhood in the 2000 block of Northeast 73rdSt.

They charged at neighbors, launched themselves at police and at one point jumped on a toddler and scratched her face.

“They were scared. They were running around, everyone chasing them. There were a lot of lights,” said Hincapie. “They were scared.”

Rosemary Alonzo will never forget the screeching sound one made.

“A terrible sound, like a ‘roar’, very strong,” she said.

Surveillance video at her house shows a family quickly walking past with a lemur hot on their trail.

“I saw this lady running with a kid in her hands and a gentleman, it was terrible,” said Alonzo.

Her German Shepherd Thor went haywire trying to get it, as it walked the top of the fenceline.

“It was trying to fight and trying to scream at the dog,” said Alonzo.

One of the lemurs jumped on a two-year-old girl as she got out of the car with her mother. It jumped on her and scratched her face just under her eye.

Police and Hincapie finally managed to round-up the lemurs and put them back in their cage.

“In my 17 years, I have never seen anything like this. This is the first time I’ve been dispatched to a call like this,” said North Miami Beach Sgt. Richard Rand.

Rand said when he first got the call he thought he was being ‘punked’ by his fellow officers.

Neighbors familiar with the little lemurs said they are normally no threat.

“There’s nothing wrong with the monkeys. They’re very peaceful, we feed them and everything,” said Carlos Lezcano.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has launched an investigation into the incident.

Hincapie was ticketed for having an expired permit for the lemurs, and for allowing them to escape. But FWC officers say the caging for the animals is actually better than the state requires. They say he will be allowed to keep the animals.

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Atari US files for Ch. 11 to separate from parent

NEW YORK (AP) — Video game maker Atari’s U.S. operations have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in an effort to separate from their French parent company.

In a statement, Atari says the move is necessary to secure investments it needs to grow in mobile and digital gaming.

Atari’s U.S. operations have shifted to focus on digital games and licensing, including developing mobile games, and have become a growth engine for its owner. France’s Infogrames Entertainment first took a stake in Atari in 2000. It acquired the remaining stake in 2008 and changed its name to Atari S.A.

But the U.S. operations have been better performing than the rest of the company. In fiscal 2012 digital and licensing revenue both grew significantly and contributed 70 percent of revenue, while sales in bricks-and-mortar stores declined.

In December, Atari S.A. said a credit agreement it entered into with investor BlueBay would lapse at the end of the year and the company was seeking other ways to raise capital. It added that it expects to report a “significant loss” for fiscal 2012.

Atari, which turned 40 last year, was a videogame pioneer with games like “Pong” and “Centipede,” but has changed owners several times amid financial problems. In its filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, Atari said it had $ 1 million to $ 10 million in assets and $ 10 million to $ 50 million in debt. It is seeking approval for $ 5.25 million in debtor-in-possession financing from private investment firm Tenor Capital Management.

Atari said it expects to sell its assets or confirm a restructuring plan within the next three to six months.

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Alexander Skarsgard The East Trailer

Alexander Skarsgard's new movie, The East, was unveiled this weekend at The Sundance Film Festival, and now a bracing new trailer for the drama has been unleashed upon the world.

In the politically charged drama, the nearly unrecognizable True Blood star plays Benji, a founding member of an eco-anarchist group, called The East, that aims to punish those who pollute the earth. But don't you dare call him the leader.

RELATED - 2013's Most Anticipated Movies

"It's very important to Benji that he is not the leader," Skarsgard told EW. "There's no leader. They discuss everything. It's very decentralized, it's a collective."

Also fueling that hive mind is Ellen Page's character, who she describes as "a very intense eco-anarchist [who] believes in people taking responsibly for their destruction and death and sickness they're putting on the planet." Page says that she related to her character on a ethical level, adding, "In our world, we don't hold those people accountable. I can understand [her] frustration."

Click here to watch a trailer for The East, in theaters later this year.

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Former president Clinton photobombs Kelly Clarkson during inauguration

Twitter.com/@BrooklynSpoke

Oh Bill!

Former President Bill Clinton may have been putting in a request to become the Internet's latest meme.

Clinton, who was in attendance for the second inauguration of President Obama, seized the opportunity to photobomb Kelly Clarkson during the "American Idol" winner's rendition of "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

In the photo, posted to Twitter by Doug Gordon, who describes himself as a Brooklyn documentary TV producer, the 42nd President of the United States sticks his head out and gives what appears to be a look of approval.

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Series for Miami’s emerging art collectors begins Thursday

For art enthusiasts interested in bring their interest home, Miami’s Bakehouse Art Complex is hosting a lecture series for emerging collectors. The first panel, slated for Thursday at 6 p.m., features arists and curators who will talk about fine tuning your taste and learning to make informed decisions. The second session, Feb. 7, is oriented to the mechanics of purchasing. The third, on Feb. 21, explores how to manage your collection.

Moderating all three panels will be Denise Gerson, independent curator who served as associate director for the Lowe Museum of Art for 24 years. Cost is $25 per session or $60 for the series. Seating is limited; reservations are recommended.

Information at 305-576-2828; www.bacfl.org.

Jane Wooldridge

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High prices, Obama-paranoia at Miami gun show

The Miami gun-show line stretched 200 people long. Many blamed President Barack Obama.

This is what the president’s gun-control talk has wrought: long waits to get into gun shows, higher firearm and ammunition prices and more paranoia.

The word “Obama” was frequently mumbled, muttered, hissed, cursed at Saturday’s Southern Classic Gun and Knife Show.

“Obama” was a catch-all word, a gun-rights shibboleth of sorts, a no-longer-shocking swear, a conversation starter.

To Calvin Hudson, a Miami Gardens resident bargain-hunting at the Miami-Dade fairgrounds firearms bizarre, the Obama-blaming was a sign people were being fooled into paying more in a firearms market panic.

“The industry is getting people all scared of Obama so they can kill us with some of these prices,” Hudson said.

Hudson told a stranger or two next to him not to worry about the president’s gun-control plans, announced in response to last month’s deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut.

“Obama’s not taking away guns,” Hudson said to one couple. “He just wants semi-automatic rifles off the street.”

It’s extremely unlikely Congress will go along.

The president might drop his “assault-weapons” proposal if Congress agrees to close the so-called “gun-show loophole,” which can allow people to buy arms without a background check.

But Republicans in Congress are likely to stop that, too.

Asked the day before the gun show if universal background checks are needed for any gun purchase, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio suggested he was opposed.

“Well, let me give you an example, the individual who carried out the atrocity in Colorado passed two background checks, one of them erroneously. And obviously the individual who carried out this atrocity in Sandy Hook didn’t pass any background check because they weren’t his guns,” Rubio said.

“The bottom line is, if you write a law, law-abiding people will follow that law. And people that are criminals ignore the law because they are criminals,” he continued. “What is effective is mandatory sentences like those we have in Florida.”

Rubio, when he was in the Legislature, repeatedly voted along with his fellow Republicans to loosen restrictions on guns. Democrats predicted a crime wave.

But the violent-crime rate in Florida has been declining.

And though the push for universal background checks ostensibly targets gun shows, the stark evidence of the loophole wasn’t inside Saturday’s gun show at all.

It was outside, next to the soda machine, where a guy and his friends were hawking a semi-automatic rifle, ammunition and case for $3,000.

No paperwork, background checks needed.

A plumber in line who didn’t want to give his name fretted: “That’s dangerous. That’s how stuff gets on the street. I have no problem treating them like licensed firearms dealers.”

When he first got in line, he shook his head at the long wait ahead: “Obama.”

He was there to buy some high-capacity magazines for his AR-15. The cost has skyrocketed.

Inside, there were bins of gun clips, and tables of shotguns, semi-automatic rifles and handguns, switchblade and throwing knives, sharp steel Ninja stars, swords, stun guns, batons, night-vision scopes machine-gun-conversion kits for semi-automatic rifles.

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