Judges to Hear Arguments Over NSA Surveillance

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A panel of federal appeals judges in Seattle is considering an Idaho woman's challenge to the National Security Agency's bulk collection of cellphone information.

U.S. District Court Judge Lynn Winmill ruled in Boise, Idaho, last June that the NSA's collection of such data doesn't violate the Fourth Amendment prohibition on unreasonable searches. But the judge also said the issue does raise privacy concerns and that the case could wind up before the Supreme Court.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have joined nurse Anna Smith's case for the appeal. Arguments at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals were scheduled for Monday morning.

The NSA has said it collects the phone numbers of calls made and received and how long a call lasts, but the agency contends it does not monitor the contents of a call. Smith said her cellphone is her primary means of communication with family, friends, doctors and others, and that her phone calls are none of the government's business.

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Fifth Amendment Right Against Self-Incrimination – FindLaw

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Even if youve never studied law or sat for a bar exam, you likely have heard the phrase pleading the Fifth. Its become part of our national lexicon, so most Americans know they have the right not to answer police questions both while in custody or in court. The right against self-incrimination is spelled out in the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and also extends to state and local jurisdictions. When someone exercises this right, we often say that they plead the Fifth.

The Constitution grants this right quite simply: [No person]shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself However, as with most other constitutional rights, it is subject to interpretation by the courts and often inspires fierce debate.

This article focuses on the self-incrimination clause of the Fifth Amendment in legal proceedings. For details about your right to remain silent while in police custody, check out FindLaws Miranda Rights section. See Double Jeopardy; How Does a Grand Jury Work?; and The Appeal, Writ, and Habeas Corpus Petition Process to learn about other provisions of the Fifth Amendment.

The right against self-incrimination is rooted in the Puritans refusal to cooperate with interrogators in 17th century England. They often were coerced or tortured into confessing their religious affiliation and were considered guilty if they remained silent. English law granted its citizens the right against self-incrimination in the mid-1600s, when a revolution established greater parliamentary power.

Puritans who fled religious persecution brought this idea with them to America, where it would eventually become codified in the Bill of Rights. Today, courts have found the right against self-incrimination to include testimonial or communicative evidence at police interrogations and legal proceedings.

At trial, the Fifth Amendment gives a criminal defendant the right not to testify. This means that the prosecutor, the judge, and even the defendants own lawyer cannot force the defendant to take the witness stand against his or her will. However, a defendant who does choose to testify cannot choose to answer some questions but not others. Once the defendant takes the witness stand, this particular Fifth Amendment right is considered waived throughout the trial.

When a defendant pleads the Fifth, jurors are not permitted to take the refusal to testify into consideration when deciding whether a defendant is guilty. In the 2001 case Ohio v. Reiner, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a witness may have a reasonable fear of prosecution and yet be innocent of any wrongdoing. The [Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination] serves to protect the innocent who otherwise might be ensnared by ambiguous circumstances. This case beefed up an earlier ruling that prosecutors cant ask a jury to draw an inference of guilt from a defendants refusal to testify in his own defense.

Defendants may assert their Fifth Amendment rights during civil trials, too, if testimony would open them up to criminal charges. But they do not enjoy the same protections against jury bias with respect to liability. This means that ajury is free to make inferences when a defendant chooses not to testify in a civil trial for fear of self-incrimination. Civil defendants often claim ignorance (I dont recall) instead of pleading the Fifth in such situations.

At a criminal trial, it is not only the defendant who enjoys the Fifth Amendment right not to testify. Witnesses who are called to the witness stand can refuse to answer certain questions if answering would implicate them in any type of criminal activity (not limited to the case being tried). Witnesses (as well as defendants) in organized crime trials often plead the Fifth, for instance.

But unlike defendants, witnesses who assert this right may do so selectively and do not waive their rights the moment they begin answering questions. Also, unlike defendants, witnesses may be forced by law to testify (typically by subpoena).

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Fifth Amendment Right Against Self-Incrimination - FindLaw

Parade Of Texas Open-Carry Bills Exposes Divide In Ranks

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Updated: Monday, December 8 2014, 01:44 PM CST

by Morgan Smith, The Texas Tribune

As momentum grows behind a push to let Texans carry handguns openly, the biggest fight may be among Second Amendment advocates themselves.

A conflict is emerging over how far changes to the current state law should go, and some gun-rights supporters fear that the divide may sink efforts to lift handgun restrictions during the legislative session that begins in January.

"If the acrimony between the various groups gets too pronounced, then nothing will pass," said Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who helped get the state's concealed handgun law passed in 1995, when he was a state senator. "Their challenge very simply is to recognize that the legislative process is designed to kill legislation and to drop their disagreements, even if it's not perfect."

The law allows the open carrying of long guns like rifles and shotguns. Texas is one of six states that specifically prohibit the open carrying of handguns, according to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

In the last two legislative sessions, Texas lawmakers have unsuccessfully pushed to allow handgun license holders to openly carry their firearms. Five nearly identical bills that would do that have already been filed.

A sixth, from state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, a Republican, would allow Texans to carry a handgun openly without a license.

"There are a lot of people who are sick and tired of paying a fee for their basic rights and liberties," Stickland said. "It's rejecting the notion that we need to beg government for permission to do things like protect ourselves."

Stickland's proposal has attracted the support of activists who object to the costs of obtaining a concealed handgun license and the restrictions the state places on applicants.

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Parade Of Texas Open-Carry Bills Exposes Divide In Ranks

Parade Of Open-Carry Bills Exposes Divide In Ranks

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As momentum grows behind a push to let Texans carry handguns openly, the biggest fight may be among Second Amendment advocates themselves.

A conflict is emerging over how far changes to the current state law should go, and some gun-rights supporters fear that the divide may sink efforts to lift handgun restrictions during the legislative session that begins in January.

If the acrimony between the various groups gets too pronounced, then nothing will pass, said Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who helped get the states concealed handgun law passed in 1995, when he was a state senator. Their challenge very simply is to recognize that the legislative process is designed to kill legislation and to drop their disagreements, even if its not perfect.

The law allows the open carrying of long guns like rifles and shotguns. Texas is one of six states that specifically prohibit the open carrying of handguns, according to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

In the last two legislative sessions, Texas lawmakers have unsuccessfully pushed to allow handgun license holders to openly carry their firearms. Five nearly identical bills that would do that have already been filed.

A sixth, from state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, a Republican, would allow Texans to carry a handgun openly without a license.

There are a lot of people who are sick and tired of paying a fee for their basic rights and liberties, Stickland said. Its rejecting the notion that we need to beg government for permission to do things like protect ourselves.

Sticklands proposal has attracted the support of activists who object to the costs of obtaining a concealed handgun license and the restrictions the state places on applicants.

C.J. Grisham, a retired Army officer who founded Open Carry Texas last spring after he was arrested while walking near his home with an AR-15, said his group would oppose any bill that stopped short of allowing what he called the constitutional carry of handguns. (Grisham was fined $2,000.)

We will not compromise on our rights, he said. "We absolutely will not."

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Parade Of Open-Carry Bills Exposes Divide In Ranks

The Supreme Court Is Tackling Facebook, Rap Lyrics, and the First Amendment

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By Rachel Raczka

Boston.com Staff | 12.08.14 | 9:39 AM

ICYMI the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments last week about whether or not violent statements posted on social media are proof of intent to harm. And before you hit post on that status update about how Tommy So-and-So in your office is driving you so crazy you could strangle him, listen up.

The case at hand involves an Allentown, Penn., man named Anthony Elonis, who posted violent rants and threats against his estranged wife, schoolchildren, and law enforcement on Facebook in 2010. He was found guilty of making threats and the court sentenced him to 44 months in prison. Elonis appealed to the Supreme Court, where he argued that he didnt actually intend for his words to be threatening.

Words like this:

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If I only knew then what I know now/I would have smothered your ass with a pillow/Dumped your body in the back seat/Dropped you off in Toad Creek and made it look like a rape and murder

Not pretty. But heres the catchElonis claims these were rap lyrics. Rather than a threat, theyre just an expression of creativity and therefore protected by the First Amendment, just as they are for musicians and rappers who have garnered praise and awards for lyrics like these for years. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. even quoted Eminems 97 Bonnie and Clyde during the debate.

The Supreme Court seems hung up on whether theres a difference in the creative liberties allowed to artists and those allowed to independent individuals. The intent of a statementwhether or not it is meant to incite fear and/or violencehas been paramount in previous cases brought before the justices and the lower courts. Also, in some cases, its more about who the threats are directed atthe military, the President of the United States, your family and peers. Sometimes a test known as the Dinwiddie factors, which gauges the frequency, medium, and reaction to a said threat, is used to determine whether or not its valid.

If the court decides that Eloniss intent was to show off his rap prowess and not to terrify two women and a bunch of children, it would set a problematic precedent, as Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. notes:

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The Supreme Court Is Tackling Facebook, Rap Lyrics, and the First Amendment

Midwest Bitcoin Food Desert Gyft to the Rescue – Uncoinventional Living Tour West – Day 12 – Video

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Midwest Bitcoin Food Desert Gyft to the Rescue - Uncoinventional Living Tour West - Day 12
http://letstalkbitcoin.com/blog/post/uncoinventional-living-tour-west-day-12-podcast-midwest-bitcoin-food-desert-gyft-to-the-rescue.

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Hedgy wants to eliminate Bitcoin volatility

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One of the hardest aspects for merchants wishing to offer their services or product in Bitcoin is volatility, with the cryptocurrency being notoriously fickle in its exchange rate. Hedgy wants to eliminate that level of volatility.

San Mateo, CA-based Hedgy uses the first principles of derivatives combined with the novelty of the Bitcoin block chain to manage Bitcoin price risk, according to the company.

The startup offers two services: BITForward, an Over-the-Counter (OTC) derivative contract on the market, and BITLock, a Bitcoin hedging tool.

BITForward offers a smart contract that is executed between counter parties with what is claimed to be zero default risk. The product promises to allow speculators to gain consistent exposure to the price movement of Bitcoin, enabling them to realize a profitwithout the need to buy or sell the underlying asset.

The more interesting product for merchants who sell goods in Bitcoin is BITLock. The service sees a smart contract executed between counter parties with what is agin claimed to be zero default risk. The hedge in the contract exchange is said to effectively eliminate Bitcoin volatility for miners, merchants, remittance processors and payment gateways by locking in the value of their Bitcoin holdings using margin deposits.

The service overcomes the need for merchants accepting Bitcoin being immediately forced to liquidate their coin holdings to dollars due to the ongoing volatility in the market; it gives merchants the ability to lock in the value of their Bitcoin holdings.

The team behind Hedgy comes with strong backgrounds:Juan Pineda and Tim Olsen (Heads of Technology and Engineering respectively) were both previously employees of Apple, and CEO Matt Slater was the founder of Campus Ink.

The company has so far raised $765,000 in an Angel round from Boost VC.

Its an interesting, be it somewhat risky play into the sometimesmurky world of Bitcoin.

Unlike a good portion of startups today which seem to be a solution looking for a problem, Hedgy definitely addresses a problem: Bitcoin volatility for those who trade in it, particularly merchants in B2C and B2B markets.

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Hedgy wants to eliminate Bitcoin volatility

Is That an Asteroid or a Comet? Its Getting Harder to Tell

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Traditionally, comets and asteroids belong to two distinct categories. In one corner, you have icy comets with long, wispy tails of gas and dust. In the other, you have dim, rocky asteroids in orbit between Mars and Jupiter.

Recent findings, however, are now revealing the distinction to be rather murky. For example, astronomers have discovered asteroids that look like cometsand vice versa. We have indeed been witnessing discovery after discovery blurring the line between asteroids and comets, said planetary scientist Henry Hsieh of Academia Sinica in Taiwan.

Comets are usually thought of as chunks of ice and dust, often described as dirty snowballs. They contain volatile chemicals like carbon dioxide, ammonia, and methane, and were formed far from the sun where its cold enough for these compounds to survive. Comets are in long, looping orbits, spending most of their time beyond Neptune and approaching the sun only once every few decades or even millennia. As they get closer to the suns warmth, their ices sublimateand turn into gasses,that along with dust that is blown off, formahazy envelopecalled a coma. Solar wind and radiation shapes the comainto a comets signature tail.

Meanwhile, asteroids are composed mainly of rock and metal, making them much denser than comets. They are inert rocks that havent changed much since they formed nearly 4.6 billion years ago. Most reside in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, sitting in fairly stable, circular orbits.Occasionally, asteroids can provide risky protection when being chased by the Empires TIE fighters.

Despite their differences, asteroids and comets do share some common ground. Besides both being objects that wander around space, asteroids and comets have both been visited recently by spacecraft: Last montha European spacecraft landed on a comet for the first time,and in 2005 a Japanesespacecraft landed on an asteroid andreturned samples from the surface (Japan launched another mission to an asteroid on Dec. 3). And both have starredin Hollywood movies: In 1998 two space-disaster movies depicted near-destruction of Earth from a comet (Deep Impactnot the one with Bruce Willis) andan asteroid (Armageddonthe one with Bruce Willis).

Recentlyscientists have found some more confusing similarities between asteroids and comets. About 10 years ago, researchers started discovering objects in the asteroid belt that were spewing out gas and dust just like a comet, says planetary scientist Scott Sheppard of the Carnegie Institute for Science in Washington, D.C.

Last month, Sheppard and Chad Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory announced the latest such discovery, detecting a faint tail on a known main-belt asteroid. To date, scientists know of 13 such objects, which have been dubbed main-belt cometsor active asteroids, depending on who you ask. Based on these initial numbers, Sheppard estimates that there may be 100 of them in the main belt.

Unlike a conventional comet, whose tail is due to increasing proximity to the sun, this object is probably spinning so fast that it flings out dust, which forms a tail, Sheppard explains. No ones sure what causes the activity on all the main-belt comets, but its likely due to fast spinning or collisions, which can also expose ices buried below the surface that can then sublimate and produce gas jets.

But its not just these active asteroids that are blurring lines. Last month, planetary scientist Karen Meech of the University of Hawaii at Manoa and her colleagues announced that they found what seem to be two comets without tails, which theyve dubbed Manx comets after the tailless Manx cat. The two curiously inactive objects originated from the Oort cloud, the distant repository of comets. Weve never seen anything like this before, she said in a press conference on Nov. 10.

One of the newly discovered objects, C/2013 P2, may be a type that was hypothesized in 1950 by astronomer Jan Oort (who also predicted the existence of the Oort cloud). According to Oort, some of the objects in the Oort cloud could be covered in a layer of frosting that gets burned off after passing by the sun once, resulting in a tailless object on a comet-like orbit. C/2013 P2 is also very red, similar to Kuiper belt objects, a collection of hundreds of thousands of cold, icy bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune but closer to the sun than the Oort cloud.

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Is That an Asteroid or a Comet? Its Getting Harder to Tell

Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson | Amazing Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson – Video

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Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson | Amazing Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson
http://www.tinyurl.com/psoriasisfreeforlifenow Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson: Psoriasis Free for Life is an effective method written by Katy Wilson, who is an alternative Medical Practitione...

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Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson | Amazing Psoriasis Free For Life Katy Wilson - Video

Psoriasis Free For Life Program | Amazing Psoriasis Free For Life Program By Katy Wilson – Video

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Psoriasis Free For Life Program | Amazing Psoriasis Free For Life Program By Katy Wilson
http://www.tinyurl.com/psoriasisfreeforlifenow Psoriasis Free For Life Program: Psoriasis Free for Life is an effective method written by Katy Wilson, who is an alternative Medical Practitioner...

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Researchers at Mainz University explore new approach for treating Alzheimer's disease

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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

7-Dec-2014

Contact: Kristina Endres kristina.endres@unimedizin-mainz.de 49-613-117-2133 Johannes Gutenberg Universitaet Mainz @uni_mainz_eng

It is estimated that about 35 million people worldwide currently suffer from dementia and it is expected that the number will increase to 135 million by the year 2050. The disease is already one of the most common health problems in the elderly, which is why experts predict that the numbers of people affected will increase over time. Researchers at the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy of the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have recently gained new insights into how it may in future be possible to treat patients with the currently most common form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease. It seems that a drug that is actually approved for treatment of the dermal disorder psoriasis stimulates the activity of the enzyme ADAM10 in the brain of Alzheimer's patients. There is already good evidence from basic research that this enzyme should be capable of suppressing Alzheimer's disease-related effects such as impaired cerebral function and that it thus might improve learning and memory capacity in patients. The results of the related study have recently been published in the journal Neurology.

According to estimates of the German Alzheimer's Association (DAlzG), approximately 1.5 million dementia patients currently live in Germany. Some 1 to 1.2 million of these suffer from Alzheimer's. Medicine is currently only able to treat the symptoms of the disease and delay its progress and thus also the need for increased nursing care. No curative therapy has yet been developed. This means that Alzheimer's disease remains one of the biggest challenges to modern medicine and is an important field for research.

There is still no consensus on what triggers the most common form of the disease, late-onset Alzheimer's. However, it is generally accepted that the activity of certain enzymes called secretases plays a role here. These enzymes cleave proteins on cell membranes, releasing the products of this cleavage process into the extracellular space. What happens in Alzheimer's is that there is increased cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein by beta-secretase, leading to the formation of amyloid-beta peptides. These peptides aggregate, damage nerve cells, and are the main component of the so-called Alzheimer's plaques that accumulate in the brains of patients. The alpha-secretase ADAM10 is a competitor of beta-secretase. It cleaves the amyloid precursor protein in such a way that the synthesis of amyloid beta-peptides is prevented while the growth factor APPs-alpha, which protects nerve cells, is released.

Taking this information as their starting point, Dr. Kristina Endres and Professor Falk Fahrenholz of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy of the Mainz University Medical Center have decided to take a new approach to the treatment of Alzheimer's. Working in collaboration with Professor Klaus Lieb and Professor Andreas Fellgiebel, both also working at the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, and with the cooperation of Professor Stefan Teipel and his team at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) in Rostock, the researchers have demonstrated that oral administration of a psoriasis medication in a group of Alzheimer's patients results in elevated levels of APPs-alpha in their spinal fluid. This is interpreted as a stimulation of the activity of the alpha-secretase ADAM10, which in turn would result in the reduced accumulation of Alzheimer's plaques. In animal models of Alzheimer's disease, it has also been shown that ADAM10 enhances learning and memory capacity. The medication was well-tolerated by the patients. In order to further investigate the effect of the test substance on cognitive performance and to establish whether it can be used as a long-term treatment for Alzheimer's patients, larger clinical trials in which the substance is administered for longer periods will need to be undertaken.

###

Contact:

Dr. Kristina Endres Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy Mainz University Medical Center Langenbeckstr. 1 D 55131 Mainz, GERMANY phone +49 6131 17-2133 fax +49 6131 17-6690 e-mail: kristina.endres@unimedizin-mainz.de http://www.unimedizin-mainz.de/Psychiatrie [in German]

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Researchers at Mainz University explore new approach for treating Alzheimer's disease

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KUCHING: AirAsia Bhd (AirAsia) has claimed the coveted title of Worlds Leading Low Cost Airline for the second year in a row at the prestigious World Travel Awards 2014 Grand Final Gala Ceremony, which was held in Anguilla.

Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, executive chairman and co-founder of AirAsia, received the award from Graham Cooke, President of World Travel Awards at the Grand Finale of the World Travel Awards 2014.

The World Travel Awards, also hailed as the Oscars of the travel industry recognizes companies, organizations and brands that push the boundaries of industry excellence.

AirAsia emerged as the winner in the Worlds Leading Low Cost Airline category, receiving the highest votes from travel professionals from around the globe, surpassing other nominees in the category, namely airberlin, easyJet, flydubai, JetBlue Airways, Jetstar Airways, Kulula, Mango, Norwegian, Ryanair and also Southwest Airlines.

We are humbled and grateful to receive this recognition for the second consecutive year. This award will never be possible without the hard work, passion, dedication and creativity of our 15,000 AirAsia Allstars. Each and every one of them should be proud that their commitment to the airline has once again put AirAsia on the world map, Datuk Kamarudin said.

He added that is indeed an honour to be recognized globally, and they are taking this win as a renewal of their commitment in creating a great travel experience for their guests.

This year, we increased and enhanced our Fly-Thru connections with over 858 connections available throughout our network; launched our Premium Flex service, offering business travellers with flexibility of flights; launched our low-cost Wi-Fi on board, and ready to launch our AirAsia Asean Pass, which is designed to integrate the Asean community these are just a few of the constant innovations that we work hard to bring to our guests. We will continue to innovate and better serve our markets, Datuk Kamarudin added.

Earlier in October this year, AirAsia was also named Asias Leading Low Cost Airline at the World Travel Awards (Asia & Australasia) Gala 2014.

AirAsia has also attained the title of Asias Best and Worlds Best Low Cost Airline by Skytrax for six consecutive years from 2009 2014.

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AirAsia named world's leading low-cost airline again

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PETALING JAYA - AirAsia has been given the coveted title of "World's Leading Low Cost Airline" for the second year running at the prestigious World Travel Awards 2014 grand final gala ceremony, which was held in Anguilla on Sunday.

"We are humbled and grateful to receive this recognition for the second consecutive year," said executive chairman and co-founder of AirAsia Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, who received the award from World Travel Awards president Graham Cooke.

"This award will never be possible without the hard work, passion, dedication and creativity of our 15,000 AirAsia all-stars. Each and every one of them should be proud that their commitment to the airline has once again put AirAsia on the world map," he said Monday.

"It is indeed an honour to be recognised globally, and we are taking this win as a renewal of our commitment in creating a great travel experience for our guests," said Kamarudin.

He said that over the course of a year, AirAsia has increased and enhanced their Fly-Thru connections with over 858 connections available throughout their network; launched their Premium Flex service that offers business travelers with flexibility of flights; and also launched their low-cost Wi-Fi on board their flights.

Kamarudin also said that they are ready to launch their AirAsia ASEAN Pass, which is designed to integrate the ASEAN community.

"These are just a few of the constant innovations that we work hard to bring to our guests. We will continue to innovate and better serve our markets," said Kamarudin.

The World Travel Awards is also hailed as the Oscars of the travel industry, and recognises companies, organisations and brands that push the boundaries of industry excellence.

AirAsia emerged as the winner in the "World's Leading Low Cost Airline" category, receiving the highest votes from travel professionals from around the globe, surpassing other nominees in the category, namely airberlin, easyJet, flydubai, JetBlue Airways, Jetstar Airways, Kulula, Mango, Norwegian, Ryanair and also Southwest Airlines.

AirAsia has also attained the title of Asia's Best and World's Best Low Cost Airline by Skytrax for six consecutive years from 2009 to 2014.

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AirAsia named world's leading low-cost airline again

News24.com | SA named as top Safari destination in the world

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(World Travel Awards)

South Africa was especially praised for their safari offering, with the country as a whole winning the prize for the theWorld's Leading Safari Destination!

Other sub-Saharan African countries likeBotswana,Kenya,Namibia,Tanzania,Uganda,Zambia,Zimbabwehave dominated this prestigious recognition before, with Kenya winning theWorld's Leading Safari Destination in 2013.

Apart from being named as theWorld's Leading Safari Destination, other individual institutions also won awards for their service excellence in making South Africa the leading safari destination.

Legend Golf & Safari Resort won World's Leading Safari Resort and Shamwari Game Reserve's Eagles Crag LodgewonWorld's Leading Eco-Lodge.

Shamwari Game Reserve:

Shambala Private Reserve won for being the World's Leading Private Game ReserveandThanda Private Game Reserve was awarded theWorld's Leading Luxury Lodge.

Thanda Private Game Reserve:

The Saxon Hotel, Villas and Spa:

#TheSaxon #joburg

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News24.com | SA named as top Safari destination in the world

A Couch Potato's Guide to the 16 Best Super Bowl Ads of All Time

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1967 Sixty-five million Americans tune in to Super Bowl Iat the time the most ever for a sporting event.

With an audience of 111.5 million viewers, the 2014 Super Bowl was the most watched TV show in U.S. history. As the number of at-home spectators soars, so too have the rates advertisers pay to reach them: A 30-second spot in 2014 went for $4 million. Heres a couch potatos guide to what after-game polls have deemed the most memorable Super Bowl commercials. Not-to-be skipped ads 1973: Joe Namath and Farrah Fawcett for Noxzema

1976: Xeroxs (XRX) monks

1979: Mean Joe Greene for Coke

1984: Apples (AAPL) board balked at the Ridley Scott-directed 1984 spot, but it spurred strong initial sales of the first Macintosh computer, even though it aired only once. Hear Lee Clow tell the real story behind Apples 1984 Super Bowl ad here.

1984: A 1984 ad from Wendys (WEN) immortalized the phrase Wheres the beef? The tag line worked its way into the Democratic primary pitting Walter Mondale vs. Gary Hart.

1992:Pepsi (PEP) enlisted supermodel Cindy Crawford in 1992 to herald its redesigned can.

1995: Two years after its Bud-wei-ser frogs were a hit during the 1995 Super Bowl, Budweiser (BUD) hired Goodby Silverstein & Partners to kill off the amphibians. We settled on lizards, says agency co-founder Jeff Goodby. They would be like Goodfellas-type characters. Jersey guys. So we cast the thing, and it sounded like these guys were really going to kill the frogs. It wasnt funny, it was scary! So we went, Oh s, its not funny!

1998: Tabascos exploding mosquito

1999: With such memorable lines as When I grow up I want to claw my way up to middle management, a 1999 spot put online job search board Monster.com on the map.

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A Couch Potato's Guide to the 16 Best Super Bowl Ads of All Time