Water allocations for farmers and communities in western NSW are reduced in new plans released today.

The BOM says "scraggly" showers moved over the Great Dividing Range with a few millimetres in places like Orange and Dubbo but nowhere near enough to make a difference to the enduring drought.

(California Court of Appeal) - In an action for breach of an indemnity agreement, the trial court's grant of summary judgment requiring defendant to pay plaintiff approximately $6.07 million pursuant to the indemnity agreement is affirmed where although the signatory did not have actual authority to execute the indemnity agreement on defendant's behalf, in these circumstances, the person's signature binds defendant pursuant to former Corporations Code section 17157(d) (now section 17703.01(d)), provided that the other party to the agreement does not have actual knowledge of the person's lack of authority to execute the agreement on behalf of defendant.

(California Court of Appeal) - Held that an insurance company could not bring a subrogation claim against its insured's tenant (a furniture manufacturing business) for amounts paid out under a fire insurance policy, even if the tenant was negligent. Affirmed a summary judgment ruling.

(California Court of Appeal) - Held that a lawyer should not have been disqualified from representing a student-employee at a community college in a sexual harassment case. He did not violate California State Bar Rules of Professional Conduct concerning communications with represented parties when he contacted another student-employee seeking a witness statement. Granted writ relief.

(California Court of Appeal) - In an action for breach of an indemnity agreement, the trial court's grant of summary judgment requiring defendant to pay plaintiff approximately $6.07 million pursuant to the indemnity agreement is affirmed where although the signatory did not have actual authority to execute the indemnity agreement on defendant's behalf, in these circumstances, the person's signature binds defendant pursuant to former Corporations Code section 17157(d) (now section 17703.01(d)), provided that the other party to the agreement does not have actual knowledge of the person's lack of authority to execute the agreement on behalf of defendant.

(United States Supreme Court) - Reversed and remanded. WesternGeco owns a patent for a system to survey the ocean floor and they believed that a competing system owned by ION infringed on their patent. WesternGeco sued. The jury found ION liable and awarded WesternGeco damages including lost profit damages. ION argued that the lost profit damages was not allowed and the appellate court agreed with them. The US Supreme Court disagreed and reversed and remanded the decision stating that lost profits for a domestic patent was permissible under the Patent Act.

A SCREAMING 419 scammer. Maybe he is frustrated because nobody believes in the $700,000 prize money.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Invalidated portions of an Environment Protection Agency final rule regarding waste streams from steam-electric power plants. Remanded to the agency for reconsideration in regard to legacy wastewater and combustion residual leachate, in this challenge brought by environmentalists, utilities and others.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Revived conservationist groups' challenge to the federal government's participation in the killing of gray wolves in Idaho. Reversed a dismissal for lack of Article III standing and remanded.

Texas-Based Zack Walther Band Corrals Americana/Roots Music Extravaganza On New CD, The Westerner, Releasing October 25

The National Western Stock Show's Sheep Lead judges sheep and their human escorts in a contest that stresses the chic side of the industry.

Critics of a plan that makes tracts of public lands in western Colorado available to oil and gas drilling say the final insult is its release in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic when people are dealing with health and economic concerns.

The groundbreaking celebration will have to wait, but construction is starting on the first of three buildings that will make up Colorado State University's complex at the National Western Center in Denver.

IBM today announced it has been selected by Australian energy provider Western Power as the systems integration and project management partner for its SmartGrid-Advanced Meter Infrastructure pilot program.

There was a time – before I sank my teeth into the board game hobby and before I took on the demands of being a stepmom to three children - that I planned frequent trips for my friends circle. Each month would see us jet setting off to a different part of the United States (or a different part of the world) in search of adventure and great cuisine. I would pour myself into the research project that proper trip planning requires and create a custom itinerary for our group, working to ensure we caught all the highlights of our destination. This post is about the one I worked up for our last trip to some of the great Western National Parks in the United States.  I share it here with the hope that you might find the itinerary useful in planning your trip out west.

--> Full Photo Gallery – Come and Explore 

1. Axed Western Force to rejoin Aussie rugby competition in July  PerthNow
2. New Zealand plotting stunning multi-billion dollar escape from World Rugby  Fox Sports
3. RA to ditch Super Rugby?  RugbyPass
4. Forget the Kiwis, Australian rugby's future is local  Sydney Morning Herald
5. Half of New Zealand Rugby staff face redundancy amid $NZ7m lockdown loss  The Guardian
6. View Full coverage on Google News

As if we weren’t in enough of a pickle, a new study claims that the western U.S. is in the midst of a megadrought affected by climate change.[...]

A two-decade-long dry spell that has parched much of the western United States is turning into one of the deepest 'megadroughts' of the past 1,200 years.

Paulette Jiles delighted with her convention-breaking western romance, 'News of the World.' Her follow-up, 'Simon the Fiddler,' is just old-fashioned.

Saddlemaker Steve Hafen talks about what it takes to build a saddle to last generations, and how family and hard work are key components in his life.

Comer was offensive coordinator for Western Boone's back-to-back state title teams

Key facts about the territory disputed between Morocco and the Polisario independence movement

As the Western Cape ramps up its screenings and testing for Covid-19 as confirmed cases rise, the ANC in the province is calling for the return to Level 5 lockdown to be considered.

Seventeen more Covid-19-related deaths have been recorded in the country, bringing the number to 178, while the biggest one-day spike in new cases hit 663.

Stay up to date with the latest news, views and analysis as the number of coronavirus cases in SA increases.

Cosatu in the Western Cape says that it is deeply concerned over the "alarming rate on increase" in Covid-19 infections in the province.

Western Australia

The Amateur Traveler talks to Karl Anders who returns to the show to talk about travel to Western Montana and in particular to the majestic Glacier National Park. Karl encourages us to drive the Going to the Sun Highway but then to get off the blacktop and hick some of the back country of the park (preferably in a group large enough to discourage the curiosity of bears). He describes some of his favorite hikes such as the trail to Hidden Lakes. Glacier is often rated as one of the top places in the United States to hike or backpack. The valleys of Glacier are carved by glacial activity although there aren't as many glaciers still in the park. Karl also talks about some nearby destinations like the National Bison Refuge, Bitterroot Valley and nearby Missoula with its museum to Smokejumpers.

The Amateur Traveler talks to Nathan from Wand’rly Magazine about Great Smoky Mountains National Park and about his current home of Western North Carolina. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited U.S. National Park.

Hear about travel to Oslo and Western Norway as the Amateur Traveler talks to Øystein about his native Norway.

Hear about travel to the Western Sahara as the Amateur Traveler  talks to Francis Tapon about this disputed region as part of his trip to every country in Africa. 

Hear about a western Mediterranean cruise to Spain, Gibraltar, France, Monaco and Italy on Holland America's Westerdam where I just attended a press trip.

Hear about travel to Western Australia as the Amateur Traveler talks to Erica Carrico from ericacarrico.com about her trip to the wild and surprising Pilbara region.

Hear about travel to Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania as the Amateur Traveler talks to Tom Shaner about his hometown.

4 March 2020 , Volume 96, Number 2

Fatty liver involves ectopic lipid accumulation and dysregulated hepatic oxidative metabolism, which can progress to a state of elevated inflammation and fibrosis referred to as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The factors that control progression from simple steatosis to NASH are not fully known. Here, we tested the hypothesis that dietary vitamin E (VitE) supplementation would prevent NASH progression and associated metabolic alterations induced by a Western diet (WD). Hyperphagic melanocortin-4 receptor-deficient (MC4R^–/–) mice were fed chow, chow+VitE, WD, or WD+VitE starting at 8 or 20 weeks of age. All groups exhibited extensive hepatic steatosis by the end of the study (28 weeks of age). WD feeding exacerbated liver disease severity without inducing proportional changes in liver triglycerides. Eight weeks of WD accelerated liver pyruvate cycling, and 20 weeks of WD extensively upregulated liver glucose and oxidative metabolism assessed by ²H/¹³C flux analysis. VitE supplementation failed to reduce the histological features of NASH. Rather, WD+VitE increased the abundance and saturation of liver ceramides and accelerated metabolic flux dysregulation compared with 8 weeks of WD alone. In summary, VitE did not limit NASH pathogenesis in genetically obese mice, but instead increased some indicators of metabolic dysfunction.