Emmys: Alex Karpovsky on 'Girls' - 'Every character has shown unsavory, forbidden aspects'

By Lucas Shaw

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Alex Karpovsky had written, directed and edited three movies and starred in several more before he met Lena Dunham at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2009. Dunham was there with her first movie, "Creative Nonfiction," and she recruited Karpovsky to star in her next, "Tiny Furniture."

Dunham soon scored a deal with HBO and brought Karpovsky into the fold for one of the most divisive shows on television, "Girls." Karpovksy plays Ray, the manager of a coffee shop who dated Shoshana (Zosia Mamet) until the last episode of Season 2.

Had you ever done TV before "Girls"?

I hadn't, but I needed very little persuasion. I loved the way "Tiny Furniture" came out and was so proud of the movie. I have total faith in Lena. Wherever she wanted to take us, I was willing to go without any hesitation.

How would you say the show has evolved over its first two seasons?

In Season 1 we established a lot of characters, but in Season 2 and now midway through Season 3 we're trying to explore the underpinnings and backstories. That's a lot of fun to do, going to zany and weird places without disorienting the audience - whether that's a coke bender or a really dark episode on Staten Island.

Has the progression of any character particularly surprised you?

All of them have. I don't mean that as a copout, but whether it's Hannah's OCD or Adam's Alcoholics Anonymous past, every character has surprises. There's Ray's dark energy and unresolved interpersonal issues. Every character has shown unsavory, forbidden aspects.

You once said in an interview that you tend to play characters who are "neurotic, guilt-ridden and full of anxiety." Does that apply to Ray?

He's definitely anxiety-ridden, because he's in his 30s and working at a coffee shop, and that's not what he wants to do with his life. Neurotic would seem to apply more to other characters like Hannah and Shoshana. Guilt-ridden certainly, not for taking Shoshana's virginity but for being his own worst enemy.

Why do you play those types of characters?

I have a lot of those properties myself and play those characters in my own films. It's pretty clear I play largely autobiographical versions or caricatures of myself. When you do something some people feel works, you just keep doing it for a long time.

How similar are other people on "Girls" to the people who play them?

I don't know, just because I don't know these people very well. I never knew anyone on the show except Lena before we started working on it. Lena is very different from Hannah. Hannah is still trying to figure things out, struggling and unsure of herself. Lena is almost the polar opposite.

Would you say that people who struggle to get out of their own way is one of the primary themes of the show?

One of the primary themes is the obstacles people in their early 20s are negotiating with, fumbling around in modern-day New York City. It centers on four girls, and the boys are satellites hovering around the four central planets that are at the front door of womanhood.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/emmys-alex-karpovsky-girls-every-character-shown-unsavory-180455737.html

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Good Reads: From a bold vision for China to cyberwarfare to Norwegian fishing

CHINA'S WORLDVIEW

China?s new president, Xi Jinping, has a bold vision for his country, inspired by its ancient prestige. In Time magazine, Hannah Beech describes how Mr. Xi intends for China to match US military capabilities, becoming the strongest country economically, politically, and culturally.

This ?China Dream,? depending on how Xi shapes his tenure as president, could lead to shifts in international dynamics. ?How China sees the world matters because Chinese aspirations, tastes and fears will shape the lives of billions of people across the globe. Indeed ... China ? and its worldview ? may once again dictate the narrative of our age,? Ms. Beech writes.

But despite its desire to become the world?s main superpower, China must deal with internal issues first, Beech writes. Chief among these is stanching the exodus of the country?s elite ? 150,000 Chinese received permanent residency abroad in 2011. ?When a nation?s elite is ready to bolt at a moment?s notice, it says much about the regime?s lack of legitimacy and its staying power,? David Shambaugh, a China scholar, told Beech.

RECOMMENDED: Six countries where Edward Snowden could get asylum

HERO OR TRAITOR?

In a carefully executed leak, former National Security Administration contractor Edward Snowden unveiled documents showing how US government programs mine communication data including people?s e-mails, Facebook posts, and even Skype chats. Digital surveillance is not new, especially during this era of heightened national security awareness. Gathering electronic information is legal under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, but Mr. Snowden said the government is redefining what is constitutional, creating ?architecture of oppression.?

In an identity-revealing video interview with Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian, Mr. Snowden explained why people should be worried about the government?s actions.

?Even if you are not doing anything wrong, you are being watched and recorded. And the storage capabilities of these systems increases every year, consistently by orders of magnitude,? Snowden said, adding that just a wrong call could raise suspicion. ?Then they can use the system to go back in time and scrutinize every decision you?ve ever made, every friend you?ve ever discussed something with, and attack you on that basis to sort of derive suspicion from an innocent life and paint anyone in the context of a wrongdoer.?

The fallout of his actions is not yet known as the United States arranges to press charges against the whistle-blower. Whether he is a hero or a traitor depends on how one weighs the balance between civil liberties and national security.

CYBERWAR PROLIFERATION

The US government, reportedly using cyberattacks to deter Iran?s nuclear program, has opened itself up to similar cyberattacks ? igniting a tit-for-tat struggle that is ushering in a new wave of proliferation, which Michael Joseph Gross describes in Vanity Fair.

?The paradox is that the nuclear weapons whose development the U.S. has sought to control are very difficult to make, and their use has been limited ? for nearly seven decades ? by obvious deterrents,? Mr. Gross said. ?Cyber-weapons, by contrast, are easy to make, and their potential use is limited by no obvious deterrents. In seeking to escape a known danger, the U.S. may have hastened the development of a greater one.?

Both Washington and Tehran are boosting their arsenal of cyberweapons in a war that is increasingly aggressive and cryptic. Not to mention that cyberwarfare is not limited to traditional rules of engagement. ?You don?t have to be a nation-state to do this,? one hacker told Gross. ?You just have to be really smart.?

ERADICATING EXTREME POVERTY BY 2030

Can the world powers eradicate extreme poverty for 1 billion people by 2030? If gross domestic product growth during the past decade is any indicator, the answer is a resounding yes, according to The Economist.

Whereas poverty used to be an unchangeable fact of life, unprecedented growth in developing countries has shifted the outlook for eliminating poverty in places where people live on less than $1.25 a day. The primary condition for continued progress is for developing countries to maintain the steady growth of their GDP.

?Poverty used to be a reflection of scarcity. Now it is a problem of identification, targeting and distribution. And that is a problem that can be solved,? says the report.

RECOMMENDED: Six countries where Edward Snowden could get asylum

FISHERMEN NO MORE

In the small coastal communities in northern Norway, traditional occupations of whaling and cod fishing are losing luster for young people bent on landing salaried positions on the mainland, far from their roots. In National Geographic, Roff Smith explains that this change is a drastic turnaround for the region, where previous generations flocked in order to cash in on a booming industry.

?It isn?t a scarcity of whales that is bringing down the curtain, or even the complicated politics of whaling,? writes Mr. Smith. ?It?s something far more prosaic and inexorable: Norwegian kids, even those who grow up in the seafaring stronghold of Lofoten, simply don?t want to become whalers anymore. Nor do they want to brave storm-tossed winter seas to net fortunes in cod, as their forebears have done for centuries.?

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/good-reads-bold-vision-china-cyberwarfare-norwegian-fishing-143823672.html

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US tones down demands that Russia expel NSA leaker

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Rebuffed by Russia's president, the Obama administration toned down demands Tuesday that fugitive National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden be expelled from a Moscow airport in a sign that the U.S. believes he is not worth scuttling diplomatic relations between the former Cold War enemies.

The White House issued a measured, if pointed, statement asking again that Russia help U.S. authorities capture Snowden ? but stopped far short of threatening a cooling detente if he escapes.

It was a turnabout from tough talk against China a day earlier for letting Snowden flee Hong Kong instead of sending him back to the U.S. to face espionage charges for revealing classified national security surveillance programs that critics worldwide say violate privacy rights.

The outright refusals by Russia and China to cooperate on Snowden served as a fresh wake-up call to the U.S. that it cannot expect burgeoning superpowers to comply with its requests despite recent attempts to overcome longtime suspicions, and improve global partnerships.

Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking to reporters in Saudi Arabia, called for "calm and reasonableness" as Moscow and Washington danced around Snowden's fate.

"We would hope that Russia would not side with someone who is a fugitive from justice," Kerry said. "We're not looking for a confrontation. We are not ordering anybody."

Russian President Vladimir Putin also said he wished to avoid a diplomatic showdown over Snowden. But he refused to back off his refusal to turn over Snowden to the U.S.

"Mr. Snowden is a free man, and the sooner he chooses his final destination the better it is for us and for him," Putin said. "I hope it will not affect the business-like character of our relations with the U.S. and I hope that our partners will understand that."

Snowden remained for a third day in the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport, and Putin said he was out of Moscow's reach since he had not passed through immigration and was, technically, not on Russian territory. Snowden was believed to be waiting to fly to an undisclosed location ? most likely in South America or Iceland ? that would give him political asylum despite frustrated U.S. demands that he be extradited.

Experts predicted that Putin, ultimately, will not stop Snowden from leaving or take any steps to help the U.S. catch him. But Washington may have to place Snowden's escape against the risk of damaging relations as the U.S. and Russia negotiate a number of high-priority issues, including nuclear arms reductions and a peace settlement in Syria.

Gary Hart, the former Democratic senator and presidential candidate, doubted that Washington would let Snowden make already poor U.S.-Russian relations any worse. Hart is an expert on Russia and board chairman of the American Security Project think-tank that was created by Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.

"An incident like this should not interfere with the ongoing relationship between both countries," Hart said in an interview Tuesday. "There is too much else at stake to seriously impair a bilateral relationship with both Russia and China. In the grand scheme of things I don't think it's going to make much difference."

But Russia hasn't made it easy for the U.S.

Earlier this month, Putin held off President Barack Obama's call for negotiations to reduce nuclear weapons by noting that any talks would have to involve other nations. And Putin has refused to back down from Russia's support for the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad and, in turn, has forced leaders of the Group of Eight industrial economies to call for a negotiated Syrian peace settlement instead of Assad's outright ouster.

"For quite some time now, the Russians have shown themselves when the opportunity presents itself to poke a finger in the U.S. eye," said Andrew Weiss, a Carnegie Endowment for International Peace expert who oversaw Russian issues on the White House National Security Council in the late 1980s and 1990s.

"At this point, both sides see an interest in not having a huge rupture over Snowden, mostly, I think, over the expectation that Snowden doesn't want to stay in Russia," Weiss said. "I think on the U.S. side there's a desire, with President Obama scheduled to be in Moscow in early September, not to blow up the relationship over this issue."

Kerry also was expected to meet next week with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Brunei.

On Tuesday, State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell would not discuss how the Obama administration might respond if Snowden was allowed to leave the Moscow airport unscathed. "We're not there yet," Ventrell said.

Obama administration lawyers believe Russia has legal authority to deport Snowden, even though Moscow says it does not. Ventrell also noted that the U.S. has returned "many hundreds of criminals over the recent years" to Russia as Moscow has requested, and cited stepped-up law enforcement cooperation between the two countries since the April 15 twin bombings at the Boston Marathon that killed three people. The attack allegedly was carried out by two brothers who are ethnic Chechens originally from the Russian province of Dagestan.

Several Republican lawmakers urged Obama to step up pressure on Putin.

Sen. John McCain of Arizona, speaking on CNN, called Putin "an old KGB colonel apparatchik." And Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., a former ambassador, said the Russian leader's refusal to expel Snowden "reinforces a concern all of us have that these relations are deteriorating."

"There is essentially no respect between these two presidents of these two very important countries," Coats said.

___

Associated Press writers Sagar Meghani, Pete Yost, Nedra Pickler, Alicia A. Caldwell and Donna Cassata in Washington, Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and Matti Huuhtanen in Naantali, Finland, contributed to this report.

___

Follow Lara Jakes on Twitter at https://twitter.com/larajakesAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-tones-down-demands-russia-expel-nsa-leaker-222456623.html

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Jon Gosselin: I live in the woods now

Celebs

Gael Fashingbauer Cooper TODAY

4 hours ago

Michael Buckner / Getty Images file

Jon Gosselin in 2012.

Once Jon Gosselin lived in a large house in Pennsylvania and his life unrolled on television in front of millions. Now, the dad of eight lives "in the woods," and says he doesn't even have an address.

Gosselin didn't clarify exactly where or how he lives, but he confirmed to VH1's "The Gossip Table" that he's taken to a more private life after living in an apartment where paparazzi and others "figured out where I was."

Gosselin, then-wife Kate, and their twins and sextuplets starred on "Jon and Kate Plus 8" for five seasons before divorcing. The show continued as "Kate Plus 8" despite Jon Gosselin suing to prevent filming of his children.

Gosselin was asked if Kim Kardashian and Kanye West should allow their newborn daughter, North, to appear on the reality show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," and unsurprisingly, he didn't think so.

"I wanted to raise my kids off television, so I changed my mind," he said. "So I would definitely not film with my newborn child."

Gosselin was also asked if he still wore Ed Hardy clothing, the brand he favored at the height of his tabloid fame in 2009. He said no, adding "I gave all my (Hardy clothing) to my mother." Tattoo artist Hardy recently told the New York Post that an association with Gosselin "tanked" his clothing brand.

He also said he'd be interested in appearing on "Dancing With the Stars," as his ex-wife Kate Gosselin famously did in 2010. She was the fourth celebrity eliminated on the show's tenth season, and partner Tony Dovolani later joked he needed "a lot of therapy" after partnering with her.

"I feel like I could probably get further than her," Jon Gosselin said.

Source: http://www.today.com/entertainment/jon-gosselin-i-live-woods-now-6C10433570

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The CW Sets Fall Premieres: 'Tomorrow People,' 'The Originals'

By Tim Kenneally

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The CW's new sci-fi drama "The Tomorrow People" will premiere October 9 at 9 p.m., following the the Season 2 premiere of the network's superhero hit "Arrow."

Meanwhile, the historical drama "Reign" will make its debut on October 10, after the season premiere of "The Vampire Diaries," and the "Vampire Diaries" spinoff "The Originals" will sink its teeth into the CW schedule on October 15, prior to the season premiere of "Supernatural."

The CW released its Fall 2013 premiere dates on Monday, including new series such as "The Originals" and returning shows such as "Hart of Dixie" and "The Carrie Diaries."

Read the full schedule of premiere dates below.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7

8:00-9:00 PM HART OF DIXIE (Season Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (Season Premiere)

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9

8:00-9:00 PM ARROW (Season Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM THE TOMORROW PEOPLE (Series Premiere)

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10

8:00-9:00 PM THE VAMPIRE DIARIES (Season Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM REIGN (Series Premiere)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15

8:00-9:00 PM THE ORIGINALS (Series Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM SUPERNATURAL (Season Premiere)

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25

8:00-9:00 PM THE CARRIE DIARIES (Season Premiere)

9:00-10:00 PM AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL: GUYS AND GIRLS

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cw-sets-fall-premieres-tomorrow-people-originals-211406172.html

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Flooding forces 75,000 from western Canadian homes

A police car sits stuck in a parking lot of an apartment building after heavy rains have caused flooding, closed roads, and forced evacuation in Calgary, Alberta, Canada Friday, June 21, 2013. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh)

A police car sits stuck in a parking lot of an apartment building after heavy rains have caused flooding, closed roads, and forced evacuation in Calgary, Alberta, Canada Friday, June 21, 2013. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh)

The Bow River overflows in Calgary, Canada on Friday, June 21, 2013. Heavy rains have caused flooding, closed roads, and forced evacuations in Calgary. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh)

A search and rescue boat carries rescued passengers from a flooded industrial site near highway 543 north of High River, Alberta, Canada on Friday, June 21, 2013. The rescued passengers spent the night moored on a structure they built in the water. Calgary's mayor said Friday the flooding situation in his city is as under control as it can be, for now. Officials estimated 75,000 people have been displaced in the western Canadian city. Mayor Naheed Nenshi said the Elbow River, one of two rivers that flow through the southern Alberta city, has peaked. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jordan Verlage)

Firefighters monitor flood waters that spilled over a highway 543 north of High River, Alberta, Canada on Friday, June 21, 2013. The rescued passengers spent the night moored on a structure they built in the water. Calgary's mayor said Friday the flooding situation in his city is as under control as it can be, for now. Officials estimated 75,000 people have been displaced in the western Canadian city. Mayor Naheed Nenshi said the Elbow River, one of two rivers that flow through the southern Alberta city, has peaked. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jordan Verlage)

A search and rescue boat carries rescued passengers from a flooded industrial site near highway 543 north of High River, Alberta, Canada on Friday, June 21, 2013. The rescued passengers spent the night moored on a structure they built in the water. Calgary's mayor said Friday the flooding situation in his city is as under control as it can be, for now. Officials estimated 75,000 people have been displaced in the western Canadian city. Mayor Naheed Nenshi said the Elbow River, one of two rivers that flow through the southern Alberta city, has peaked. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jordan Verlage)

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) ? Flooding forced the western Canadian city of Calgary to order the evacuation of its entire downtown Friday, as the waters reached the 10th row of the city's hockey arena.

Communities throughout southern Alberta were inundated by overflowing rivers that washed out roads and bridges, soaked homes and turned streets into dirt-brown waterways. Police say as many as four people might have died.

About 350,000 people work in downtown Calgary on a typical day. However, officials said very few people need to be moved out, since many heeded warnings and did not go to work Friday.

Twenty-five neighborhoods in the city, with an estimated population of 75,000, have already been evacuated due to floodwaters in Calgary, a city of more than a million people that hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics and serves as the center of Canada's oil industry.

Outside the city, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said two men were seen floating lifeless in the Highwood River near the hard-hit community of High River on Thursday, but no bodies have been found. They also say a woman who was swept away with her camper has not been located. And it wasn't clear whether a man who was seen falling out of a canoe in the High River area was able to climb back in.

In the downtown Calgary, water was inundating homes and businesses in the shadow of skyscrapers. Water has swamped cars and train tracks.

The city said the home rink of the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames flooded and the water inside was 10 rows deep.

At the grounds for the world-famous Calgary Stampede fair, water reached up to the roofs of the chuck wagon barns. The popular rodeo and festival is the city's signature event. Mayor Naheed Nenshi said it will occur no matter what.

About 1,500 have gone to emergency shelters while the rest have found shelter with family or friends, Nenshi said.

Nenshi said he's never seen the rivers reach so high or flow so fast, but said the flooding situation was as under control as it could be. Nenshi said the Elbow River, one of two rivers that flow through the southern Alberta city, has peaked.

The mayor suggested that levels on the Bow River ? which, in Nenshi's words, looked like an ocean ? would remain steady for the rest of the day as long as conditions didn't change.

Police urged people to stay away from downtown and not go to work.

The flood was forcing emergency plans at the Calgary Zoo, which is situated on an island near where the Elbow and Bow rivers meet. Lions and tigers were being prepared for transfer, if necessary, to prisoner holding cells at the courthouse.

Schools and court trials were cancelled Friday and residents urged to avoid downtown. Transit service in the core was shut down.

Residents were left to wander and wade through streets waist-deep in water.

"In all the years I've been down here, I've never seen the water this high," resident John Doherty said.

"I've got two antique pianos in the garage that I was going to rebuild and they're probably under water," he said. "We're shell-shocked."

Alberta Premier Alison Redford promised the province would help flood victims put their lives back together and provide financial aid to communities that need to rebuild. The premier said at a briefing that she had spoken to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who was heading to Calgary and promised disaster relief.

Redford urged people to heed evacuation orders, so authorities could do their jobs. She called the flooding that has hit most of southern Alberta an "absolutely tragic situation."

The premier warned that communities downstream of Calgary had not yet felt the full force of the floodwaters.

It had been a rainy week throughout much of Alberta, but on Thursday the Bow River Basin was battered with up to 100 millimeters (four inches) of rain. Environment Canada's forecast called for more rain in the area, but in much smaller amounts.

Calgary was not alone in its weather-related woes. Flashpoints of chaos spread from towns in the Rockies south to Lethbridge.

More than a dozen towns declared states of emergency. Entire communities, including High River and Bragg Creek, near Calgary, were under mandatory evacuation orders.

Some of the worst flooding hit High River, where an estimated half of the town's residents experienced flooding in their homes.

Military helicopters plucked about 30 people off rooftops in the area. Others were rescued by boat or in buckets of heavy machinery. Some even swam for their lives from stranded cars.

A spokesman for Defense Minister Peter MacKay said 354 soldiers are being deployed to the entire flood zone.

Further west, in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, photos from the mountain town of Canmore depicted a raging river ripping at house foundations.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-06-21-Canada-Alberta%20Flooding/id-d8af4cbfa9894eb99a6c36614c47d423

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China Has the World's Fastest Supercomputer (And It's 2x Fast as Ours)

Watson may have been able to trounce a pair of Jeopardy champs, but it can't hold a candle to the new king of number crunching, the 3.12 million-core Tianhe-2.

Built by China's National University of Defense Technology at the National Supercomputer Center in Guangzho, the Tianhe-2 supercomputer runs on a proprietary Linux build. The system is powered by 32,000 Xeon processors, themselves augmented by 48,000 Xeon Phi accelerators and a petabyte of memory to sustain its 33.86 petaflop (quadrillion mathematical calculations per second) performance.

That's double, double, what the last year's top-ranked (by the semi-annual Top 500) supercomputer, the 17.59 petaflop Titan at Oak Ridge National Labs can do. But the race to hit a Quintrillion calculations a second, an exoflop, is just heating up. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's deputy director, Horst Simon, believes that the exaflop barrier could be broken by the end of the decade, assuming researchers can figure out how to power the process. The Tianhe-2 consumes 17.8 megawatts currently and as Horst explains:

The increasing trend in power efficiency, though it might look like a gradual slope over time, is really a one-time gain that came from switching to accelerator/manycore [architectures] in 2010. This is not a sustainable trend in the absence of other new technology. There is no more magic ? we're maxed out. Right now, the most efficient system needs 1 to 2 megawatts per petaflops. Multiply that by 1,000 to get to exascale and the power is simply unaffordable.

Perhaps most impressive is the amount of indigenous hardware employed in the machine. Outside of the Intel processors, "The interconnect, operating system, front-end processors, and software are mainly Chinese," said Top500 editor Jack Dongarra. We'll have to wait until December, however, to see if the Tianhe-2 can hold onto its crown in an increasingly crowded field. [Top 500 - CNet - Image: Top 500]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/china-has-the-worlds-fastest-supercomputer-and-its-2-513791711

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