Scientists criticize Europe's $1.6B brain project

BRUSSELS — Dozens of neuroscientists are protesting Europe's $1.6 billion attempt to recreate the functioning of the human brain on supercomputers, fearing it will waste vast amounts of money and harm neuroscience in general.

The 10-year Human Brain Project is largely funded by the European Union. In an open letter issued Monday, more than 190 neuroscience researchers called on the EU to put less money into the effort to "build" a brain, and to invest instead in existing projects.

If the EU doesn't adopt their recommendations, the scientists said, they will boycott the Human Brain Project and urge colleagues to do the same.

EU spokesman Ryan Heath called for patience, and said it was too early to say whether the project is a success because it had only been under way for nine months. He said the EU plans to rigorously review the scientific progress made and the project's management every year.

Henry Markram, who heads the Human Brain Project at the Swiss Federal Institute for Technology in Lausanne, suggested those who signed the letter of protest did so because they didn't understand the venture.

In an interview, he said the project, established in 2013, would bundle the work of some 100,000 neuroscientists worldwide the way that CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has done for particle physics. He acknowledged the brain project may have done a poor job telling scientists how they may benefit, even if they aren't directly involved.

"I think we need to communicate more that it's going to actually help them get more funding," Markram said. "They feel that money is being taken away, that it's going to distract from the important work that they're doing. There is really not a threat."

The Human Brain Project involves 112 institutions across Europe and the pooling, sharing and organization of their data on brain research. That information will be used to reconstruct the workings of a human brain on computers. "Only through simulations can you do some things that aren't possible in the lab," said Markram.

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Jordans reported from Berlin.

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Stocks slip in early trading after holiday

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are falling in early trading as investors look ahead to corporate earnings this week.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 59 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,009 Monday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped five points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,980. The Nasdaq fell nine points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,476.

Investors will get a sense of how companies are faring when some big names report quarterly results this week, including Alcoa and Wells Fargo.

BioDelivery Sciences International surged 15 percent after the company said its pain treatment fared better than a placebo in a study.

The Dow closed above 17,000 for the first time Thursday after the U.S. reported strong job gains. U.S. financials markets were closed Friday for July 4th.

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Global stocks dip after US indexes hit record

LONDON — Global stock markets turned lower on Monday after key U.S. indexes hit record highs in the wake of strong job numbers last week.

Stocks had rallied last week after the official U.S. jobs report showed the world's largest economy generated a stronger-than-expected 288,000 jobs in June and that the unemployment report fell to 6.1 percent.

"The market saw another piece of evidence that the U.S. economy is gathering steam while at the same time central bank rhetoric remains dovish," said Credit Agricole CIB in a report.

But on Monday, after a long weekend in the U.S., traders seemed reluctant to chase stocks any higher.

In Europe, France's CAC-40 fell 1.4 percent to close at 4,405.76 while Germany's DAX dropped 1 percent to 9,906.07. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.6 percent to 6,823.51.

On Wall Street, the Dow traded 0.4 percent lower at 17,000.74, having closed above 17,000 for the first time on Thursday ahead of the three-day Independent Day weekend. The S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent to 1,976.08.

Investors are keeping an eye on upcoming corporate earnings.

"Companies in the U.S. are widely expected to report better earnings after the winter slumber," said Desmond Chua of CMC Markets in a report.

Earlier, in Asia, China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was little changed while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 shed 0.4 percent to 15,379.44. Sydney and Seoul also declined.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng was flat at 23,540.92. Taiwan, India and Jakarta rose.

U.S. crude for August delivery was down 74 cents to $103.32 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3602 from $1.3594 late Friday. The dollar fell to 101.86 yen from 102.08 yen.

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Massachusetts gas prices down 3 cents per gallon

BOSTON — The price of a gallon of gas in Massachusetts has dropped 3 cents in the past week.

AAA Southern New England reports Monday that self-serve regular is down to $3.67 per gallon.

That's a penny more than the national average, 3 cents higher than the in-state price a month ago and a full 19 cents higher than at this time a year ago.

AAA found wide range of prices, from a low of $3.45 for a gallon of self-serve regular to a high of $3.89 for the same grade.

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Oil slips below $104 as Libya set to boost exports

The price of oil slipped below $104 a barrel Monday as expectations that Libya will soon boost its exports of crude offset strong U.S. job growth.

By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark U.S. crude for August delivery was down 19 cents to $103.87 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, was down 37 cents at $110.63 on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

Crude fell despite signs the U.S. economy is steadily improving, which typically would increase demand. Employment grew by an unexpectedly large 288,000 workers in June.

Oil has been sliding since it reached a 10-month closing high of $107.26 on June 20 due to concern about an advance by Islamic militants in controlling Iraqi territory. Since then, it has become clear that there are no imminent disruptions to supplies from Iraq, OPEC's second-biggest producer.

On top of that, an agreement in Libya between the central government and a regional militia was expected to lead to the reopening of two eastern oil terminals that would boost the country's crude exports by about 500,000 barrels a day. Libya currently produces around 350,000 barrels of oil a day.

While some analysts said it was only a matter of days before crude shipments could be again on their way from the ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, others were more cautious.

"We would not expect to see a resumption of exports from the facilities this month assuming that no field maintenance was done since the shutdown of close to one year," said a note to clients from JBC Energy in Vienna.

In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:

— Wholesale gasoline was down 1.38 cents to $3.006 a gallon.

— Natural gas lost 9.5 cents to $4.311 per 1,000 cubic feet.

— Heating oil fell 0.77 cent to $2.9207 a gallon.

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China's premier says country's economy improving

BEIJING — China's economy improved in the latest quarter but faces "downward pressure," and Beijing will increase the strength of targeted policy measures to shore up growth, the country's premier said Monday.

Speaking at a news conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Premier Li Keqiang gave no indication how fast the economy might have grown in the three months ending in June after expanding by 7.4 percent the previous quarter.

"China's economic performance in the second quarter has been improved from that in the first quarter. However, we cannot lower our guard against downward pressure," Li said.

Manufacturing grew in June at its strongest pace this year, but the expansion was weaker than normal.

Chinese leaders are trying to guide the economy toward self-sustaining growth based on domestic consumption, rather than exports and investment. Those plans have been complicated by weakness in exports, which support millions of jobs.

The premier and other leaders have ruled out an across-the-board stimulus but have tried to head off politically volatile job losses with more spending on building railways and other public works.

The ruling Communist Party's official growth target this year is 7.5 percent, but leaders have tried to downplay expectations, saying the expansion might come in under that level.

Economic growth also is under pressure from declines in housing sales and prices, which are dragging on construction and other industries.

"The Chinese economy is also facing downward pressure, but we will keep up our composure and not adopt strong stimulus," Li said. "Instead, we will increase the strength of targeted measures."

Li promised more market-opening reforms. He has said previously improvement in economic growth must come from structural reforms, rather than stimulus spending.

On Monday, he promised to reduce burdens on small companies and to give them more access to financing.

"We must also inspire the vitality of the market and lend support to the real economy," Li said.

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Author John Cheever's suburban NY home for sale

OSSINING, N.Y. — The historic suburban New York home of late author John Cheever is on the market for $525,000.

Cheever's three children tell the Journal News they've decided to sell the house on 5-acres in Ossining.

Susan Cheever says the house was the center of their family, but after their mother, Mary Cheever, died in April none of them wanted to live in it.

John Cheever died in 1982.

The 1795 house needs work but retains its architectural details and historic charm.

It features Dutch doors, pegged floors, stone terraces and patios and eight rooms on three levels. A brook runs through the front of the property.

The Cheevers bought the house in 1961.

Cheever's novels include "The Swimmer" and "Falconer."

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Information from: The Journal News, http://www.lohud.com

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Germany takes aim at foreign drivers with car toll

BERLIN — Germany plans to introduce a car toll that seeks to make money off the millions of foreigners who drive through the country every year, the transport minister said Monday.

Germany has a truck toll but, unlike many European countries, no car toll. Alexander Dobrindt said it wasn't fair that foreign drivers do not contribute to maintaining the roads, and that "fairness gap" should be closed.

Dobrindt plans to introduce toll stickers in 2016 for all cars using any roads in Germany, not just highways. Foreign drivers will be able to get one-year, two-month or 10-day stickers online or at filling stations. The cheapest option, the 10-day sticker, will cost 10 euros ($13.60).

Annual fees will vary according to cars' engine size and environmental credentials and will average 88 euros, while a separate car tax will be reduced so that German drivers won't pay more overall. Dobrindt put the expected proceeds over four years at about 2.5 billion euros ($3.4 billion).

Dobrindt's Bavaria-based conservative party, the smallest of three in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government, has insisted on introducing a car toll for foreigners despite the long-standing misgivings of its coalition partners. Merkel vowed before last year's German election that "there will be no car toll with me," but later agreed to the plan.

Many worry that the system won't be compatible with European Union law because only foreign car owners will pay more. After spending months putting together the elaborate plan, Dobrindt said he's confident that won't be a problem.

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TV meteorologist hurt in fireworks accident

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — A meteorologist at a Detroit-area television station has been injured in a fireworks accident in Iowa.

WXYZ-TV says its chief meteorologist, Dave Rexroth, on Wednesday is to undergo surgery that will begin the process of implanting a prosthetic eye.

According to the station, Rexroth lost sight in his left eye during a fireworks mishap Friday night that occurred while he was vacationing with his family in Iowa City. In response to a request for information on the incident, an Iowa City police spokesman said he doesn't have a report that lists Rexroth's name.

WXYZ says Rexroth is expected to recover by September.

General manager Ed Fernandez says Rexroth and his family have the station's "full support during this difficult time," and he looks forward to Rexroth's return.

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Information from: WXYZ-TV, http://www.wxyztv.com

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Stocks fall after market hit milestones

NEW YORK — Stocks were modestly lower in midday trading Monday as investors looked ahead to the start of corporate earnings season. The market gave up some of its gains from late last week, which were driven partly by news of a surge in hiring last month.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average lost 49 points, or 0.3 percent, to 17,018 as of 12:15 p.m. Eastern. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost eight points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,978 and the Nasdaq composite fell 30 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,455.

The Dow closed above 17,000 for the first time Thursday following the strong jobs report. U.S. financials markets were closed Friday for the Independence Day holiday.

EARNINGS BEGIN: Investors will get a sense of how corporate profits are faring as earnings season begins this week. Aluminum mining giant Alcoa reports its latest results on Tuesday and Wells Fargo, the No. 1 U.S. mortgage lender, reports on Friday. Investors are expecting second quarter profits to be up 4.9 percent from a year ago, according to FactSet.

GROUNDED: Major airlines stocks fell after the Transportation Security Administration announced new security measures that would impact international flights into the United States. The TSA said that all electronic devices would need to have power in order to travel, including tablet computers and cell phones, which could impact the number of passengers able to travel.

United Continental, American Airlines and Delta all fell 2 percent or more. Domestic U.S. airlines such as JetBlue and Southwest fell less.

PROMISING RESULTS: BioDelivery Sciences International surged 10 percent after the drug developer said its treatment for severe pain fared better than a placebo in another late-stage study. The company said the trial triggered another $10 million milestone payment from Endo International Plc, which has a licensing agreement with BioDelivery. BioDelivery's stock rose $1.25 to $13.28.

BONDS AND COMMODITIES: Government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.62 percent from 2.64 percent late Thursday. Bond yields fall when prices rise. U.S. crude oil for August delivery fell 57 cents to $103.49 a barrel.

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