The Voice goes country again Why last nights eliminations could be the ...

Image Credit Tyler Golden/NBC

After last night The Voice is officially on it s way to the Top 6 and quickly falling into the all too familiar pattern of last season. With the shocking elimination of Team Adam s Sarah Simmons and Judith Hill both of whom my colleague Adam Carlson and I had pegged for the final four America has once again sided with Team Blake. Deja vu anyone

Here s how the pattern played out last season Adam s powerhouse vocalist Amanda Brown peaked too early and instead America became infatuated with the everyday listenings of Team Blake s rocker turned country artist Cassadee Pope who would go on to win the entire show. That s not to say that Pope wasn t talented but with the choice of 1) a Team Blake artist and 2) Pope s rock country we ve heard it before radio voice (as opposed to someone like CeeLo s Nicholas David) the feel of The Voice shifted.

A year later we find ourselves in a similar position with America choosing all three of Blake s country acts (some more talented than others) over two of Adam s three powerhouse vocalists. So with three of the top six singers being country artists at this point in season 4 the country influence seems to have grown from last season so much so that the show could be well on its way to becoming The Country Voice.

What brought about this pattern which really only began during season 3 In my opinion all signs point to the addition of using iTunes to vote for singers. iTunes added an advantage for never before heard songs (aka a lot of country) because audiences are much more likely to buy a song that s brand new to them rather than add yet another cover of a song they already have two versions of on their iPod (the original version and the Glee version obviously). Also if audiences haven t heard the original they re much less harsh in their judgment of the contestant s version.

The prominent role of iTunes which can usually be used to predict elimination outcomes also points to The Voice s core audience. My parents aren t exactly jumping on their computer to update their iPod after every episode. We re looking at young people who love to pull for the younger contestants and who seem to have fallen in love with both Blake as a coach and country music as a whole. First up Blake s charming he s funny and he loves his contestants. So does having Blake as a coach give contestants an immediate advantage It s possible. Does singing country give contestants an immediate advantage It s also possible. Blake always mentions how very loyal country music fans are. And perhaps the fact that there aren t any high profile country music singing competitions has brought people to The Voice. After all who s a better face for country music than the handsome Blake Shelton

More importantly if this pattern becomes routine it could easily be the downfall of the show. If each year America becomes infatuated with Blake and his country roots therefore siding with his talented country artists over some of the most original voices in the competition much like this season s Sarah Simmons and Judith Hill the show could be at risk of becoming predictable which is the kiss of death for any reality show (or any show really). Is Danielle Bradbery not this year s Cassadee Pope

Will you keep watching if Blake wins yet again with yet another country artist Do you agree that Blake being so lovable plays into how successful his contestants are (all talent aside) Is The Voice becoming a country music competition

Read more The Voice recap This Cut Is the Deepest The Voice coaches do their best impressions of each other EXCLUSIVE VIDEO The Voice recap Shine Bright Like A Diamond

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Did player mutiny lead to Rangers firing John Tortorella

John Tortorella instructs his bench against Boston. (USATSI)

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When asked what the reason why John Tortorella was fired as coach of the New York Rangers GM Glen Sather didn't say much other than to say there wasn't any one particular thing. That's because he couldn't say the players told him to.

If there is any truth to the abundance of rumors circulating the day after the gruff coach was given the boot on Broadway that seems to be what most precipitated the decision. One of those rumors/reports comes from Larry Brooks of the New York Post saying things changed dramatically when Sather had his exit interviews with the players.

The Rangers players had had enough of the coach and they said so during their exit meetings on Monday. Sources have confirmed Sather had no intention of dismissing Tortorella in the wake of the team's second round elimination by the Bruins until a critical mass of players informed the GM that the coach's overbearing personality had become a roadblock to success.

When Henrik Lundqvist told the press Monday he would need time to think about committing his future to the Rangers that was the tip of the iceberg. The franchise goaltender did not sing an executioner's song but we've learned that he was troubled enough by what had become a deteriorating dynamic between the coach and his teammates that he believed it was necessary to give voice to it.

We're told that though there were no ultimatums issued by the players the overwhelming sentiment was that Tortorella had become the problem rather than the solution for the Rangers who are now going on 20 years and 19 seasons since their last Stanley Cup in 1994.

Before you go thinking that this is just coming from some kind of ax that Brooks has to grind with Tortorella two guys who had some verbal sparring matches over the years it was pretty much echoed by Pat Leonard of New York's Daily News. Not to mention Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada tweeted very soon after the firing that Lundqvist's comments changed everything.

There is plenty of smoke to see the fire here.

Torts firedTortorella not the only problem in New York

Everybody sees the Tortorella in the media who is occasionally pleasant but most often surly and blunt. He apparently is pretty much the same guy behind the closed doors because the act definitely seems to have worn thin. Sather referred to coaches all having shelf lives in his comments on Wednesday and that's certainly true for a guy like Tortorella who is so demanding and rough around the edges. That eventually can get tiresome for the players.

Just to add a little more credence to the idea of Tortorella not being every player's favorite coach here is a sampling of a few of his former players' thoughts after he was fired. That would be Marian Gaborik who was treated like a scapegoat under Tortorella until he was traded to Columbus and Matthew Barnaby who played for him with Tampa Bay.

Everything happens for a reason...

Marian Gaborik ( MGaborik10) May 29 2013

Torts is awful to play for. A good guy away from the rink but NO fun at all to be around. Very smart hockey guy but I played for him and ugh

Matthew Barnaby ( MattBarnaby3636) May 29 2013

The players' pushing for Tortorella's exit would seem to obviously be more than just the tip of the iceberg here but it is also a move that probably isn't made if the Rangers had found a little more success. But when you have a near mutiny on your hands you have little choice if you're Sather than to make Tortorella walk the plank.

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Boston Strong Concert

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Grumpy Cat Goes from Meme to Movie

Elizabeth Renstrom for TIME

Move over Garfield Grumpy Cat is making the move to movies.

Grumpy Cat the king of the internet cat meme is breaking off from the computer screen and heading to the silver screen. Grumpy Cat s agent has sold a one picture deal for a Garfield like feature film in which Grumpy Cat whose real name is Tardar Sauce will star and yes talk. Grumpy Cat is no stranger to the camera. The grouch s official YouTube Channel has over 120 000 subscribers and over 20 million views.

While some may be surprised about the meme to movie path Grumpy Cat is one of the most successful internet memes around. This started off as a picture of a cat but rare is an image that evokes that much comedy Todd Garner one of the producers of the Grumpy Cat film told Deadline. You read all of the memes and the comments and one is funnier than the next. We think we can build a big family comedy around this character.

(MORE Grumpy Cat Is Not Impressed by TIME s Photo Shoot)

The movie deal is just another laurel in Grumpy Cat s crown. The sour puss kitty has had a whirlwind year since a photo of her surly mug was posted on Reddit.com in September. Since then it s been a swift ride to the top for Grumpy Cat. She was voted Meme of the Year at the 2013 Webby Awards named the most influential cat of 2012 by MSNBC a Meme of 2012 by Mashable was the star of SXSW and has appeared on TV shows including Today Good Morning America CBS Evening News Anderson Cooper Live VH1 Morning Buzz and The Soup. The celebrated feline even stopped by TIME s offices for a photo shoot.

Not that any of these accolades will turn that famous frown upside down.

MORE Adorable Dog Photo Bombs Owner s Craiglist Ad

MORE Internet Cats Behind the Memes

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Keegan Bradley cleared by PGA Tour of wrongdoing at Memorial

Keegan Bradley has come under fire for a pre shot routine that may be a tad less twitchy than that of a former member of his sainted Red Sox. The leader of the belly putter brigade has even weathered charges of cheating for using an anchoring stroke that remains legal.

Thursday at the Memorial the 2011 PGA Champ was the object of further scrutiny after a European TV analyst's suggestion that the 2011 PGA champ cheated during his first round caused a mini maelstrom on Twitter.

Sky Sports Mark Roe a former professional golfer from England who s claim to infamy was his DQ from the 2003 British Open for a scorecard blunder raised the possibility of wrongdoing as Bradley practiced chip shot after chip shot on the seventh hole while walking the fairways alongside Tiger Woods and Fred Couples.

This is buried. This is a horrible lie....He can t see his golf ball right now the broadcaster identified in a Steve Elling tweet as Roe said as Bradley went through the motion he would use to chip the ball out of a wretched spot in heavy rough off the green. During this pre shot routine there s a lot going on behind the ball.

Bradley brushed the grass a couple of times walked up to the hole to take a peek and returned to his spot to tap the grass three more times and weed whack again which is when Roe called foul.

Now I can see the ball a little bit more clearly now than before said Roe who claimed Bradley s actions improved his lie. There was too much going on behind the ball for my liking there. You know it s just a little bit too deliberate.

One would be hard pressed to find a golf watcher not perturbed by Bradley s Nomar Garciaparra/OCD like prep.

shosheak Sky Sports fairly certain it was deliberate. Used that term twice. There's too much going on behind the ball for my liking.

Steve Elling ( EllingYelling) May 30 2013

shosheak ellingyelling sorry but no over reaction. Blatantly repeatedly taps club behind ball and improves lie making shot easier.

Malcolm Macleman ( malcolm1980) May 31 2013

The incident made its way to the usual La Z Boy suspects prompting Golf Channel s Scott Walker to respond with his own tweet.

Just got a viewer call saying that keegan_bradley may have committed a rules violation. For future notice I'm not the one to call really

Scott Walker ( ScottWalkeronTV) May 30 2013

Whether remote rules refs blew the whistle on Bradley or the potential violation made its way to tourney authorities some other way it was as readers may have surmised a big brouhaha about absolutely nothing.

Rules staff saw it. No issue Chris Reimer the tour s director of communications told SBNation in an e mail on Friday. Not sure if someone called in or how the rules officials heard about it. but they definitely took a look at it.

We now return to Jack Nicklaus Memorial Tournament where through 10 holes of Friday s second round Tiger has a bogey and a double and sits with Bradley directly on the projected cut line at 2 over.

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Gross growing Google doodle celebrates Julius Richard Petri

If you haven t checked today s Google Doodle grab some disinfectant wipes and check out this birthday homage to German microbiologist Julius Richard Petri creator of that eponymous laboratory staple known as the petri dish.

This Google Doodle lets you watch gross looking cultures of bacteria grow out of six petri dishes that take the place of Google's logo. Each dish's microbial inhabitants come from a different source Smelly socks a doorknob a dish sponge.

The nastiest culture by far comes from a dog s mouth but be warned The computer keyboard seems to come in second place.

Ick factor of this Google Doodle aside the petri dish was an ingeniously simple device that allowed researchers to grow and test microbes without contaminating them. The dish works by filling one side of the round clear glass dish with agar and nutrients and covering it with its overlapping lid.

But when in action petri dishes look like they re upside down. That s because once the agar has solidified the dish is flipped so that the bacteria can incubate on the ceiling of the dish without getting dripped on by any condensation says Principles of Microbiology.

According to The Joy of Science the device works on the same principle as Louis Pasteur s famous swan necked flask experiment which kept its contents sterile by blocking any bacteria from entering the container.

The petri dish was so effective that it's still in wide use today.

Follow me on Twitter aminawrite.

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Lets Prancercise

She also wouldn t be an Internet sensation which is something of an understatement. Since Rohrback recently revived the hilariously original aerobic routine she created in 1989 but shelved for more than two decades the Coral Springs Florida woman has been bombarded with so many clicks at her website that it crashed Wednesday and she s scrambling to figure out how to add more server capacity. She can barely keep track of the interview requests galloping in. It s such a big deal that its founder can t find the time to prancercise.

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Julius Richard Petri Google Doodle honours Petri dish inventor

Google has celebrated the birth of the inventor of the petri dish Julius Richard Petri who was born on May 31 1852 with a doodle on its home page.

He studied medicine at the Kaiser Wilhelm Academy for Military Physicians in Berlin and later worked at the Imperial Health Office with Robert Koch who is considered the father of modern bacteriology.

The doodle features six petri dishes which are swabbed by a hand. Images of bacteria grow and spread in the dishes.

Petri was not the first to use agar a substance made from algae to culture bacteria but he invented the standard dish in which it was done. The petri dish allowed for the better identification of bacteria and the diseases they caused. Petri dishes later moved from the laboratory to the class room where they are used by every pupil of biology.

Petri died on December 20 1921.

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Amelia Earhart mystery again rises to the surface

(CNN) Could search crews be just a few hundred feet from solving a mystery that has riveted millions for 76 years

That's the question raised by tantalizing evidence published this week by teams trying to find out what happened to famed aviator Amelia Earhart who vanished along with navigator Fred Noonan during a doomed attempt to fly around the world in 1937.

Yet that evidence has been met with skepticism in some quarters.

Debate about the mystery gained new currency this week after researchers publicized images recorded by search teams scanning the ocean floor nearly a year ago near Nikumaroro Island in the South Pacific.

The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery raised the prospect of a big break in the case by publishing an image online. It showed something hard for the layman to size up on the ocean floor.

Amelia Earhart laughs before a flight to Northolt England in a DH 82 Tiger Moth plane on June 24 1928. Earhart poses in front of her plane in the 1930s. Earhart looks through the cockpit window of her plane. Earhart stands on the roof of the Hyde Park Hotel in London with Capt. Hilton H Railey on June 20 1928. A crowd surrounds Earhart center upon arrival at Hanworth airfield in London after she crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1932. Earhart poses for a photo in Newfoundland Canada. Earhart poses with Capt. A. N. White in Northolt England on June 20 1928. The Lockheed Electra 'Flying Laboratory' piloted by Earhart and Fred Noonan flies over the Golden Gate bridge in Oakland California at the start of a planned around the world flight on March 17 1924. The trip had to be abandoned after the plane crashed on takeoff in Hawaii. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Photos Amelia Earhart Pioneer of the sky

The group said It's the right size it's the right shape and it's in the right place.

Could it really be a piece of Earhart's Lockheed Electra plane

Louise Foudray caretaker and historian of the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum in Atchison Kansas chose her words carefully on Friday afternoon.

We don't want to shrug off the hard work anyone is doing. We do like the idea that people are still interested she said. But we're skeptical.

She said there have been other theories that have emerged. One is that Earhart's plane was forced down by the Japanese around the Marshall Islands. Another is that Earhart secretly returned to the United States and the government gave her a new identity.

There are people out there who buy those theories. But in reality Foudray said no one has yet to come up with anything conclusive.

It wasn't until March that one analyst made a possible connection to Earhart in an online forum for the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery.

The group said experts have offered various interpretations. Some think the sonar image could be a man made object and others say it could be a geologic feature.

So did (last summer's) expedition actually succeed in locating the wreckage of the world's most famous missing airplane Or is this sonar target just a coral rock or ridge the organization says on its website. Of course we're not going to know until we can get back out there but until then the anomaly is worth close study.

Richard Fredricks executive director of the American Salvage Association a trade group said that almost anything is possible these days with advanced technology. And that includes locating a lost airplane.

He cited technology such as side scan sonar and magnetometers but said finding a lost plane such as the Earhart craft is more a function of funding than technology. Money is needed to invest in expeditions he said. The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery on its website is asking for contributions to continue its work.

Foudray said she's heard all of the evidence and nothing solid has risen to the surface. And that includes the latest foray into the South Pacific deep.

We don't expect anything she said.

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Chris Andersen Suspended For Game 6

Don't Worry Miami

The numbers say the Heat are a better team offensively and defensively this series when Chris Andersen is on the bench as well as just a tad better on the boards. Here's a look at the Heat with Andersen on/off the floor per 48 minutes this series

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Alexis Wright Zumba Instructor In Prostitution Scandal Sentenced To 10 ...

ALFRED Maine A Zumba fitness instructor at the center of a prostitution scandal featuring sex videos adultery and more than 100 clients told a judge who sentenced her Friday to 10 months in jail that she's happy to have escaped her former life.

Sniffling and fighting back tears Alexis Wright said she felt relief when police raided her business on Feb. 12 2012 because she wanted out.

In my eyes I'm free. I'm free from this she told the judge. I have an incredible amount of strength that I knew was in me somewhere. Now that I have the strength I want to encourage others to come forward. I want them to know that there's at least one person out there who'll believe their story no matter how crazy it seems.

The former single mother was accused of conspiring with insurance business owner Mark Strong to run a prostitution business in which she videotaped clients without their knowledge and kept detailed records over an 18 month period indicating she made $150 000 tax free. She also collected more than $40 000 in public assistance.

In an odd twist to the already strange case the defense said in a court document that Wright became part of Strong's private investigation firm and was manipulated into believing she was an operative working for the state with the task of investigating all manner of sexual deviants.

Her attorney Sarah Churchill said Friday that Wright coached by Strong thought she was investigating sex even as she was getting paid large sums of money by clients.

Churchill said self deception is a coping mechanism for women involved in prostitution.

Because of her trauma history it makes her more easily manipulated she said. As this all unravels and charges are brought you look back on it like everybody does you say to yourself What was I thinking How did I fall into this ' You just don't see it while you're in the middle of it.

Deputy District Attorney Justina McGettigan however said investigators continue to believe Wright was a willing participant in the prostitution business.

The state believes she and Mark Strong were equal partners and that she played an active role in the operation she told reporters.

The scandal in the seaside town of Kennebunk known for its sea captain's mansions beaches and New England charm became a sensation following reports that Wright had at least 150 clients some of them prominent. So far those who have been charged include a former mayor a high school hockey coach a minister a lawyer and a firefighter.

So far 68 accused clients have been charged and more than half have been convicted McGettigan said. Another 40 remain under investigation she said.

Churchill told the judge that the defendant had a difficult childhood she witnessed domestic violence and suffered sexual abuse before becoming an exotic dancer and meeting Strong. She said Strong used her troubled background to manipulate her.

The 30 year old Wright was sentenced under a plea agreement to 20 counts including prostitution conspiracy tax evasion and theft by deception. Afterward she was led from court to begin serving her sentence at a county jail.

Wright was originally charged with 106 counts. All the counts in the plea agreement were misdemeanors including three counts relating to welfare and tax fraud. Under the agreement prosecutors will seek restitution of $57 280.54.

Strong 57 of Thomaston was convicted of 13 counts related to promotion of prostitution and was sentenced to 20 days in jail. The married father of two acknowledged having an affair with Wright.

On Friday Wright looked back at her husband whom she married last year before addressing the judge telling her it was incredibly nauseating to hear Strong speak in the media of their relationship as one of love and friendship.

Wright said she was relieved that the relationship ended. These actions were not taken because I wanted to. I did not feel I was in a position to choose she said.

She said she intends to make good on her vow to help others.

When I'm out I'm going to pursue helping people fight through situations that are similar to mine she said. I'm optimistic that something good will come out of this.

Wright's husband Jayson Trowbridge left without speaking to reporters. But he gave a statement to the judge describing his wife as a good mother who was anguished over her actions and explaining that he was there for her.

My vow of marriage was a choice to stand up for her when she couldn't find the strength to stand up for herself he wrote.

After agreeing to the plea bargain Justice Nancy Mills had words of encouragement for Wright.

Based on what you have to say and what I know about you from your attorney I know that you will succeed when you're released and that you will prevail. I wish you success Mills said.

___

Follow David Sharp at http //twitter.com/David_Sharp_AP

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Loading Slideshow Alexis Wright

FILE In this March 13 2013 file photo Alexis Wright 30 leaves the Cumberland County Courthouse in Portland Maine. Whether Wright's tale makes it to the small screen remains to be seen but there is nothing specifically in state law _ and nothing in the plea bargain she reached with prosecutors _ that prevents Wright from selling her story whether in the form of an interview a book or a script. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty File)

FILE In this Oct. 12 2012 file photo a sign is seen near a marina in Kennebunk Maine. Alexis Wright 29 is accused of operating a prostitution business out of her Zumba studio in Kennebunk secretly videotaping her encounters and keeping meticulous records of her clients. Police plan to release more than 100 names little by little over the next several weeks. The warning has set off a flurry of rumors among residents who say they ve heard the list might include lawyers doctors law enforcement officials and a television personality.(AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Alexis Wright

FILE In this March 13 2013 file photo Alexis Wright 30 leaves the Cumberland County Courthouse in Portland Maine. Wright a Zumba fitness instructor who pleaded guilty to using her Maine studio as a front for prostitution is due to be sentenced Friday May 31 2013 bringing to an end a scandal featuring sex videos exhibitionism and pornography. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty File)

Alexis Wright

FILE In this Oct. 9 2012 file photo Zumba fitness instructor Alexis Wright turns towards her attorney Sarah Churchill left during her arraignment in Portland Maine on 109 counts including prostitution violation of privacy and tax evasion for allegedly providing sex for money at her Kennebunk fitness studio and office. In the trial of her business partner Mark Strong Sr. the jury watched a video Thursday Feb. 28 2013 showing a sexual encounter between Wright and a man who left cash on her massage table. Strong is charged with 13 counts that relate to promoting prostitution. He contends he had an affair with Wright and helped her launch her Pura Vida dance studio in Kennebunk Maine but his lawyer has said he was unaware of any paid sex. (AP Photo/Joel Page File)

A pizzeria worker is interviewed by a TV crew in front of the former fitness studio where prostitution has been alledged to have occured in Kennebunk Maine Friday Oct. 12 2012. The police department's plan to release some of the more than 150 names of suspected clients was delayed Friday by last minute legal wrangling. Alexis Wright a 29 year old fitness instructor from Wells Maine has pleaded not guilty to prostitution invasion of privacy and other charges for allegedly accepting money for sex and secretly videotaping her encounters. Her business partner Mark Strong Sr. a 57 year old insurance agent and private investigator from Thomaston Maine pleaded not guilty to 59 misdemeanor charges.(AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Mark Srong Sr. Julie Strong

Mark Strong Sr. listens as Justice Nancy Mills discusses Strong's sentencing at Cumberland County Unified Criminal Court in Portland Me. on Thursday March 21 2013. Strong was sentenced to 20 days in jail and ordered to pay $3 000 for his role promoting a prostitution business with Alexis Wright in Kennebunk Maine. (AP Photo/Portland Press Herald Gregory Rec Pool)

Alexis Wright appears with her attorney Sarah Churchill Friday March 29 2013 in Cumberland County Court in Portland Maine. Wright a dance instructor accused of using her Zumba fitness studio as a front for prostitution pleaded guilty Friday to 20 counts in a scandal that captivated a quiet seaside town. (AP Photo/Portland Press Herald John Ewing Pool)

Mark Strong Sr.

FILE In this Jan. 18 2013 file photo Mark Strong Sr. leaves the Cumberland County Court House in Portland Maine. Emails and text messages between Alexis Wright and Mark Strong Sr. were obtained Tuesday April 16 2013 through a records request by the Portland Press Herald. The communications included spreadsheets Wright used to keep track of her clients that included names dates times sex acts and payments. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty File)

Alexis Wright listens to Justice Nancy Mills during her sentencing hearing at York County Superior Court in Alfred Maine on Friday May 31 2013. Wright was sentenced under a plea agreement to 20 counts including prostitution conspiracy tax evasion and theft by deception. Wright 30 was accused of conspiring with an insurance business owner to run a prostitution business in which she videotaped clients without their knowledge and kept detailed records over an 18 month period indicating she made $150 000 tax free. She also collected more than $40 000 in public assistance. (AP Photo/Portland Press Herald Gregory Rec Pool)

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How to cook a knaidel

The German Yiddish word knaidel didn't stump Arvind Mahankali this time.

Mahankali 13 nabbed the title of Scripps National Spelling Bee champion on Thursday night after losing two previous championships on German derived words.

But like many you may have wondered what the heck does knaidel mean

In its basic form it means a small ball of unleavened dough. But it is essentially a type of dumpling popular in Jewish cooking. One type of knaidel most are familiar with is a matzo ball commonly made of matzo meal (unleavened wheat flour) chicken fat and eggs.

You can also make them out of potatoes for a gluten free version.

Mahankali told the AP that he'd never tried the Jewish comfort food. So in honor of spelling bee whiz kid make a bowl of matzo balls this weekend.

Recipe Matzo Ball Knaidel

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Mookie Blaylock in critical condition after car accident

Mookie Blaylock shown in 1996 is most known for his time with the Hawks in the mid 1990s.(Photo NBA)

JONESBORO Ga. Former NBA All Star guard Daron Mookie Blaylock was in critical condition at a hospital Friday after his SUV crossed the center line and crashed head on into a van in suburban Atlanta police said.

Blaylock was driving in Jonesboro on Friday when he crashed. He was airlifted to the Atlanta Medical Center in critical condition Clayton County police spokesman Clarence Cox says.

Blaylock was taken off life support shortly after 8 p.m. ET and remains in guarded but critical condition.

Cox says the man and woman riding in the van were also taken to the medical center.

Late Friday night WXIA in Atlanta reported that the woman in the van died. Monica Murphy 43 of Gwinnett County died just after 10 p.m. ET.

Blaylock was an All Star in 1994 with the Atlanta Hawks for whom he played seven seasons.

He began his career as the No. 12 overall pick out of Oklahoma in the 1989 NBA draft for the New Jersey Nets where he played his first three seasons. Blaylock retired with the Golden State Warriors whom he also played three years for after 13 NBA seasons.

He averaged 13.5 points 6.7 assists and 2.3 steals over 889 games. He made the NBA's all defensive teams six times in the 1990s.

At Oklahoma Blaylock helped the Sooners to reach the 1988 NCAA title game where they lost to Kansas.

Blaylock has twin sons playing football for the University of Kentucky.

Contributing The Associated Press Holly Pennebaker of 11Alive a Gannett owned NBC affiliate in Atlanta.

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Woman baby three others killed as tornadoes hit Oklahoma City suburbs

Multiple tornadoes one of them a mile wide killed five people and injured more than 70 Friday evening in the Oklahoma City area just miles from where a monster tornado left 24 dead last week.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph said a woman and a baby were killed when the SUV they were in overturned on Interstate 40 between the western suburbs of El Reno and Yukon. One person was killed in Yukon and two others died elsewhere NBC station KFOR of Oklahoma City reported citing the state medical examiner's office. KFOR reported that all the victims were in vehicles.

The tornadoes were part of a Midwestern storm system that spun off twisters as far away as North Dakota and Tennessee. The St. Louis airport was closed after it and other parts of Missouri where Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency were also hit.

Brooke Cayot a spokeswoman for Integris Health said 71 people were treated for injuries at the hospital system's facilities in the Oklahoma City area after the tornadoes struck.

Many of them were hurt in accidents along Interstates 35 and 40 west of the city where at least three semi trailer rigs were overturned after the biggest tornado touched down near El Reno authorities said.

Flash floods hit across the Oklahoma City area Lieutenant Jay Barnett of Oklahoma City Police Department said. Barnett said a damage assessment team was out in the city.

Authorities also said some of the worst damage was from flooding around El Reno and Yukon.

One tornado turned south from Oklahoma City and then toward the suburb of Moore which was hit by a devastating twister on May 20 that killed 24 people and injured hundreds of others.

About 64 000 customers were without power in the metro area 12 000 of them in Moore electric utilities reported.

Interstates 35 and 40 were closed. We've got a terrible situation going on Trooper Randolph told NBC station KFOR of Oklahoma City.

An SUV used by Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Bettes and a crew of storm trackers was thrown 200 yards by the tornado tumbled about eight times and came to rest in a field near El Reno Bettes said. Some members of the crew suffered minor injuries and the vehicle was destroyed.

That was the scariest moment of my life Bettes said. I saw my life flash before my eyes.

Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency.

This has been a very large storm that hit a lot of communities she told KFOR. She said she had heard from at least 30 fellow governors offering assistance.

At Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City where winds hit 71 mph all flights were canceled and about 1 000 travelers were herded underground where they were told to put their hands on their heads.

Tornado warnings meaning a funnel cloud that could become a tornado had been spotted in the area were in effect much of the day for numerous counties in Oklahoma Missouri Illinois and Wisconsin.

Forecasters sounded the alarm that much of the Midwest already pummeled by a week of tornadoes and flooded with drenching rains was facing another round of violent weather overnight and into the weekend.

Observers at Tinker Air Force Base reported a tornado on the ground near the base southwest of Oklahoma City. In Norman home to the University of Oklahoma a tornado touched down near Norman North High School and Norman Regional Hospital.

Buildings at Lambert St. Louis International Airport were damaged by tornadoes with debris strewn across the runway. The airport was closed because of the damage but re opened just before midnight the airport said in a statement.

Another tornado touched down Friday night 7 miles northeast of Moscow Mills Mo. about 50 miles northwest of St. Louis. In St. Charles County 24 houses were severely damaged or destroyed said Mike O'Connell communications director for the Missouri Department of Public Safety.

The National Weather Service evacuated its St. Louis office as tornado warnings were issued for north and northeastern St. Louis and surrounding counties.

Severe thunderstorm warnings meanwhile stretched from Minnesota and Michigan south to Arkansas. Forecasters said storms overnight could bring several more intense tornadoes hail up to 4 inches in diameter and wind gusts approaching 80 mph.

Janet Shamlian and Aaron Marmelstein of NBC News and Mike Bettes of The Weather Channel contributed to this report. Follow M. Alex Johnson on Twitter and Facebook.

Related

More Oklahoma twisters Latest outbreak fits Tornado Alley's pattern Midwest tornadoes like a giant game of Battleship

This story was originally published on Sat Jun 1 2013 1 19 AM EDT

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After Earth Will Smiths Parenting Movie

It s not giving away too much to explain that the futuristic technology (which is imagined thinly but with verve) involves a Naviband a device strapped to Kitai s forearm that allows Cypher to see everything taking place around the young man and to communicate with him in effect a super cell phone and that the drama kicks into high gear when it s disabled and Kitai has to make his way through Earth s dangers on his own. The future features advanced versions of other contemporary child safety paraphernalia such as the EpiPen and the asthma inhaler.

Kitai s journey of initiation subject to a set of rules (each inhaler lasts twenty to twenty four hours he has six inhalers each leg of the journey takes a certain amount of time ) plays out like a live action video game and as the movie progresses new rules present new challenges their changing demands even posted on screen in the protagonists video arrays. Whether or not the similarity is intended it s worth noting as I discovered just now by clicking around on IMDb that the co scenarist Whitta was editor of PC Gamer for several years as well as a writer for the games Prey and The Walking Dead. It s an aesthetically neutral matter regarding the film (though these elements do seem foregrounded in a way that is occasionally unintentionally comical) but I wonder if there s an actual After Earth game on its way. I suspect it would be a lot more fun than the movie itself.

After Earth is also an allegory of the family business a public affirmation that Will Smith is yielding the spotlight to Jaden and letting him run free as an actor. Since Jaden spends much of his time on screen as the only person in the frame the responsibility of performance does fall squarely on his young shoulders.

Unfortunately Jaden though agile and skillful isn t a charismatic actor he doesn t put a lot of personality into the part and he doesn t have a deft way with the dialogue. Meanwhile Will Smith doesn t give himself very much to do and what he does do is close to a parody of set jawed war movie determination. As drama After Earth offers no surprises as action it s rarely stimulating (there s exactly one shot from Kitai s point of view as he s being dragged to safety by a hidden benefactor that reflects visual imagination) as a parenting manual it seems that Will has thrown Jaden into water that s a little too deep. For all the free range plotting Will does play a large role in the movie suggesting all too clearly that Jaden isn t quite ready to go as far out on his own as the story suggests Kitai must.

Of course it s too soon to tell what kind of acting chops what kind of allure beyond the childhood cuteness of The Karate Kid Jaden Smith has. He may prove to be formidable but I suspect that to become so he ll need to work in a wider range of movies perhaps a smaller scale movies that allow him to cultivate on screen relationships with a variety of actors including ones his own age and away from his father s spotlight and counsel.

As for Shyamalan his direction is impersonal efficient and clean even too clean resulting in an action film that doesn t move. It s worth comparing his blandly clear images with the kinetic frenzy that the director Gary Ross working with the cinematographer Tom Stern created for The Hunger Games. I wonder whether the placid stolidity of After Earth is intended to showcase the actors as if in a picture gallery a sort of favor returned or service rendered. (Andrew Stewart reports in Variety that It was Will Smith who hand picked Shyamalan to direct After Earth. )

I ve seen a couple of reports (here and here) speculating that After Earth is inspired by Scientology. I don t know about that but I do know that Will Smith performs with an unappealing and constrained earnestness. The movie offers no trace of Will Smith the mercurial and hearty comedian or Will Smith the introspective and fierce dramatic actor of Ali. I have no idea whether it s dogma paternal sentimentality or mere actorly choice that burdens him in After Earth but the result is the diminution of a superb performer his self reduced to a celebrity emblem that advertises the movie from within.

Credit After Earth Official Site.

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