Let your baby babble with your talk

New York: Here comes brand new advice for new mothers - having one-on-one conversation with your baby would help him/her develop better language skills. Shunning earlier theories that the more words babies hear the faster their vocabulary grows, a new research shows that what spurs early language development is the quality, not quantity.

“What our analysis shows is that the prevalence of baby talk in one-on-one conversations with children is linked to better language development, both concurrent and future,” said Patricia Kuhl, co-author and co-director of University of Washington's Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences.

Researchers examined several 30-second snippets of verbal exchanges between parents and babies.  The criteria was to measure parents' use of a regular speaking voice versus an animated baby talk style, and whether speech occurred one-on-one between parent and child or in a group, said the study published in the journal Developmental Science.

The more parents exaggerated vowels - for example "How are youuuuu?" - and raised the pitch of their voices, the more the one-year olds babbled, added the study. Baby talk was most effective when a parent spoke with a child individually, without other adults or children around, it said.

"The fact that the infant's babbling itself plays a role in future language development shows how important the interchange between parent and child is," Kuhl said. "Some parents produce baby talk naturally and they don't realise that they are actually benefiting their toddlers,” said first author Nairán Ramírez-Esparza, an assistant psychology professor at University of Connecticut. 

(IANS)

Let your baby babble with your talk

New York: Here comes brand new advice for new mothers - having one-on-one conversation with your baby would help him/her develop better language skills. Shunning earlier theories that the more words babies hear the faster their vocabulary grows, a new research shows that what spurs early language development is the quality, not quantity.

“What our analysis shows is that the prevalence of baby talk in one-on-one conversations with children is linked to better language development, both concurrent and future,” said Patricia Kuhl, co-author and co-director of University of Washington's Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences.

Researchers examined several 30-second snippets of verbal exchanges between parents and babies.  The criteria was to measure parents' use of a regular speaking voice versus an animated baby talk style, and whether speech occurred one-on-one between parent and child or in a group, said the study published in the journal Developmental Science.

The more parents exaggerated vowels - for example "How are youuuuu?" - and raised the pitch of their voices, the more the one-year olds babbled, added the study. Baby talk was most effective when a parent spoke with a child individually, without other adults or children around, it said.

"The fact that the infant's babbling itself plays a role in future language development shows how important the interchange between parent and child is," Kuhl said. "Some parents produce baby talk naturally and they don't realise that they are actually benefiting their toddlers,” said first author Nairán Ramírez-Esparza, an assistant psychology professor at University of Connecticut. 

(IANS)

India test-fires n-capable missile

Bhubaneswar: India Tuesday successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Prithvi-II missile from a military base in Odisha, a senior defence official said. The indigenously-developed ballistic missile with a maximum range of 350 km was fired from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur-on-sea in Balasore district, about 230 km from Bhubaneswar.

"The test was carried out by the strategic forces command as a part of the regular training exercise. The test was successful and the missile was tested for its full range," test range director M.V.K.V. Prasad informed reporters.

(IANS)

India test-fires n-capable missile

Bhubaneswar: India Tuesday successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Prithvi-II missile from a military base in Odisha, a senior defence official said. The indigenously-developed ballistic missile with a maximum range of 350 km was fired from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur-on-sea in Balasore district, about 230 km from Bhubaneswar.

"The test was carried out by the strategic forces command as a part of the regular training exercise. The test was successful and the missile was tested for its full range," test range director M.V.K.V. Prasad informed reporters.

(IANS)

Devyani seeks indictment deadline extension, Bharara opposed

New York/Washington: Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade has sought a one-month extension of the deadline for charging her in the visa fraud case but her plea has been opposed by the prosecution, even as the US today said it wants to resolve the "ordeal" as soon as possible.

Khobragade has requested for the extension of the January 13 indictment deadline, saying the "pressure of the impending" deadline is interfering with the ability of the parties to have meaningful discussions. India-born US prosecutor Preet Bharara's office is required to file charges against the 39-year-old diplomat within 30 days of her arrest.

However, in the request submitted late yesterday with Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Khobragade's counsel sought postponement of the preliminary hearing date, currently scheduled for January 13 and extension of the indictment deadline by 30 days "to and including February 12, 2014".

"Significant communications have been had between the prosecution and the defense and amongst other government officials and it is our strong view that the pressure of the impending deadline is counterproductive to continued communications," Khobragade's counsel Daniel Arshack said in the request.

The lawyer told the judge that he has conferred with the prosecution concerning extending the deadline and has been informed that the prosecution will not seek an extension of the deadline. "We therefore, wish to inform the court that we waive the 30 day time limit set by the court on December 12, 2013 because we believe that the time limit is interfering with the parties ability to continue to have meaningful discussions," Arshack said in his request to the judge.

Responding to Arshack's request, Bharara wrote to the judge that his office is opposed to the extension of the deadline sought by Khobragade, saying plea discussions can continue even after she is charged. "This office remains receptive to continuing the plea discussions that have taken place over the past several weeks. We have participated in hours of discussion in the hope of negotiating a plea that could be entered in Court before January 13," Bharara said.

"Indeed, as recently as Saturday, January 5, the Government outlined reasonable parameters for a plea that could resolve the case, to which the defendant has not responded," he said. 
The US, meanwhile, stated that it wants the issue to be resolved as soon as possible, with State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf saying "As I've said, many, many times throughout this whole ordeal, that we don't want this to define our relationship going forward and don't think that it will."

"We want it to be resolved as soon as possible. Certainly, that's our goal, but we're only part of this process," Harf said. She said the US does not want India-US ties to be affected by the arrest of the Indian diplomat in New York. Asked if the US was hopeful that the issue would be resolved, Harf said, "absolutely".

The US and Indian officials are believed to be working on both the diplomatic and judicial front to arrive at an amicable resolution of the issue, with American officials insisting that law would take its own course. "We're the diplomatic part that focuses on the relationship and all the issues we work together on. There is a separate judicial and legal process that is working its way through right now," Harf said.

"There is a reason we have these processes, and hopefully that will work itself out soon as well, but I don't want to get ahead of that process, and certainly don't want to speak for it," she noted. India has sought an US apology and withdrawal of charges against Khobragade.  The US, however, insists that this is an isolated incident. Harf said that the US is "letting it (this entire episode) run its course" and was focused on "where to go from here because, as we've always said, the relationship with India is incredibly important."

A 1999-batch IFS officer, Khobragade was arrested on charges of making false declarations in a visa application for her maid Sangeeta Richard. She was released on a USD 250,000 bond. 
India retaliated by downgrading privileges of a certain category of US diplomats among other steps last month.

Devyani seeks indictment deadline extension, Bharara opposed

New York/Washington: Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade has sought a one-month extension of the deadline for charging her in the visa fraud case but her plea has been opposed by the prosecution, even as the US today said it wants to resolve the "ordeal" as soon as possible.

Khobragade has requested for the extension of the January 13 indictment deadline, saying the "pressure of the impending" deadline is interfering with the ability of the parties to have meaningful discussions. India-born US prosecutor Preet Bharara's office is required to file charges against the 39-year-old diplomat within 30 days of her arrest.

However, in the request submitted late yesterday with Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Khobragade's counsel sought postponement of the preliminary hearing date, currently scheduled for January 13 and extension of the indictment deadline by 30 days "to and including February 12, 2014".

"Significant communications have been had between the prosecution and the defense and amongst other government officials and it is our strong view that the pressure of the impending deadline is counterproductive to continued communications," Khobragade's counsel Daniel Arshack said in the request.

The lawyer told the judge that he has conferred with the prosecution concerning extending the deadline and has been informed that the prosecution will not seek an extension of the deadline. "We therefore, wish to inform the court that we waive the 30 day time limit set by the court on December 12, 2013 because we believe that the time limit is interfering with the parties ability to continue to have meaningful discussions," Arshack said in his request to the judge.

Responding to Arshack's request, Bharara wrote to the judge that his office is opposed to the extension of the deadline sought by Khobragade, saying plea discussions can continue even after she is charged. "This office remains receptive to continuing the plea discussions that have taken place over the past several weeks. We have participated in hours of discussion in the hope of negotiating a plea that could be entered in Court before January 13," Bharara said.

"Indeed, as recently as Saturday, January 5, the Government outlined reasonable parameters for a plea that could resolve the case, to which the defendant has not responded," he said. 
The US, meanwhile, stated that it wants the issue to be resolved as soon as possible, with State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf saying "As I've said, many, many times throughout this whole ordeal, that we don't want this to define our relationship going forward and don't think that it will."

"We want it to be resolved as soon as possible. Certainly, that's our goal, but we're only part of this process," Harf said. She said the US does not want India-US ties to be affected by the arrest of the Indian diplomat in New York. Asked if the US was hopeful that the issue would be resolved, Harf said, "absolutely".

The US and Indian officials are believed to be working on both the diplomatic and judicial front to arrive at an amicable resolution of the issue, with American officials insisting that law would take its own course. "We're the diplomatic part that focuses on the relationship and all the issues we work together on. There is a separate judicial and legal process that is working its way through right now," Harf said.

"There is a reason we have these processes, and hopefully that will work itself out soon as well, but I don't want to get ahead of that process, and certainly don't want to speak for it," she noted. India has sought an US apology and withdrawal of charges against Khobragade.  The US, however, insists that this is an isolated incident. Harf said that the US is "letting it (this entire episode) run its course" and was focused on "where to go from here because, as we've always said, the relationship with India is incredibly important."

A 1999-batch IFS officer, Khobragade was arrested on charges of making false declarations in a visa application for her maid Sangeeta Richard. She was released on a USD 250,000 bond. 
India retaliated by downgrading privileges of a certain category of US diplomats among other steps last month.

Demands in Devyani case not unreasonable: India

Washington: Asserting that its demand after Devyani Khobragade's arrest is not unreasonable, India has said the case is not about mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather of US laws being gamed for immigration purposes. "This case is about not the mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather US laws being gamed for immigration purposes," Indian Embassy spokesman Sridharan Madhusudhanan, wrote in a letter to The Washington Post.

India has been demanding the withdrawal of the case against Khobragade and an apology from the US for the treatment meted out to the 39-year-old diplomat, including a strip search and detention with criminals after her arrest on December 12. India's demands are not unreasonable, Madhusudhanan asserted, referring to an op-ed published in the daily a few days ago.

"These include respecting Indian legal processes and affording our diplomats the same immunities and courtesies under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations that the US government seeks for its officials posted abroad," the Indian diplomat said. Madhusudhanan said the diplomat was the first complainant in this dispute, both in New York and in India.

"Additionally, the domestic worker's employment contract is partly with the government of India, which pays for her medical care, travel and significant portions of her salary and living costs. Therefore, any dispute should be resolved in an Indian court," he contended.

"It is surprising that a pre-existing legal case in India and Indian diplomatic initiatives have been ignored. This case is about not the mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather US laws being gamed for immigration purposes," Madhusudhanan said.

Refuting media reports that claimed in India, US diplomats have been stripped of their identity documents, he said those officials posted in consulates have been issued identity cards with stipulations similar to those their Indian counterparts receive in the US.

The US Embassy in New Delhi has not been deprived of security, the official said, adding that traffic barricades that blocked a public street have been dismantled, but the embassy continues to receive exceptional protection by the Indian government.

"If anything, security has been stepped up recently. However, securing immunities and privileges for US officials abroad is best done by respecting international conventions and according entitled courtesies in the US," Madhusudhanan wrote in response to the op-ed published earlier by Martina E Vandenberg, a pro bono human rights attorney. Vandenberg, president of the Human Trafficking Pro Bono Legal Center, had argued that diplomats who commit crimes should not get a free pass.

Demands in Devyani case not unreasonable: India

Washington: Asserting that its demand after Devyani Khobragade's arrest is not unreasonable, India has said the case is not about mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather of US laws being gamed for immigration purposes. "This case is about not the mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather US laws being gamed for immigration purposes," Indian Embassy spokesman Sridharan Madhusudhanan, wrote in a letter to The Washington Post.

India has been demanding the withdrawal of the case against Khobragade and an apology from the US for the treatment meted out to the 39-year-old diplomat, including a strip search and detention with criminals after her arrest on December 12. India's demands are not unreasonable, Madhusudhanan asserted, referring to an op-ed published in the daily a few days ago.

"These include respecting Indian legal processes and affording our diplomats the same immunities and courtesies under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations that the US government seeks for its officials posted abroad," the Indian diplomat said. Madhusudhanan said the diplomat was the first complainant in this dispute, both in New York and in India.

"Additionally, the domestic worker's employment contract is partly with the government of India, which pays for her medical care, travel and significant portions of her salary and living costs. Therefore, any dispute should be resolved in an Indian court," he contended.

"It is surprising that a pre-existing legal case in India and Indian diplomatic initiatives have been ignored. This case is about not the mistreatment of a domestic employee but rather US laws being gamed for immigration purposes," Madhusudhanan said.

Refuting media reports that claimed in India, US diplomats have been stripped of their identity documents, he said those officials posted in consulates have been issued identity cards with stipulations similar to those their Indian counterparts receive in the US.

The US Embassy in New Delhi has not been deprived of security, the official said, adding that traffic barricades that blocked a public street have been dismantled, but the embassy continues to receive exceptional protection by the Indian government.

"If anything, security has been stepped up recently. However, securing immunities and privileges for US officials abroad is best done by respecting international conventions and according entitled courtesies in the US," Madhusudhanan wrote in response to the op-ed published earlier by Martina E Vandenberg, a pro bono human rights attorney. Vandenberg, president of the Human Trafficking Pro Bono Legal Center, had argued that diplomats who commit crimes should not get a free pass.

Bone-chilling cold cripples airline flights in US

The chaos in the nation's air travel system worsened Monday as a wave of frigid weather forced airlines to cancel thousands more flights, stranding passengers from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Los Angeles. Compounding the issue, at least for one airline, were new regulations requiring more rest time for pilots that began at the beginning of the year.

JetBlue Airways said the combination of bad weather and the new Federal Aviation Administration rules led it to cancel all of its flights into and out of Boston and the three New York area airports for 17 hours starting Monday afternoon. The regulations made airlines build more leeway into their already tight pilot scheduling. Once the delays hit, some pilots who formerly would have been available to fly were not allowed to.

'In the midst of us repairing those schedules disrupted by this week's winter storms, we're facing an additional challenge as new F.A.A. rules went into effect for crew rest,' JetBlue said in a statement. The biggest impact on the airlines was in the Northeast and the Midwest, where polar weather swooped in. Airlines canceled 4,400 flights on Monday, bringing the total to more than 18,000 since last Thursday, according to FlightView.com, a flight information website.

The delays, during one of the busiest travel periods of the year, marooned thousands of people trying to return home from holiday trips, begin a new school term or get back to work. Fans of Florida State and Auburn scrambled to find their way to Pasadena, Calif., for college football's national championship game at the Rose Bowl on Monday night.

One traveler, Courtney Morrissey, said she was supposed to start a new job on Monday in Denver but has been stuck in Rochester, N.Y., since last Thursday after three different flights she had rebooked were canceled. She is now scheduled to fly on Wednesday. 'I am not holding my breath,' Morrissey said. 'Every time they put me on a new flight now, I expect that to be canceled.'

Widespread cancellations are increasingly common in the airline industry, which relies on the hub-and-spoke model of connecting flights. Airlines also now operate on a much tighter schedule, leaving them with little slack, and have few spare planes to rebook passengers. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy forced airlines to cancel more than 20,000 flights over a four-day period.

Chicago's O'Hare International Airport was hit the hardest, with more than 1,600 flights canceled on Monday as temperatures fell below minus 12 degrees. 
United Airlines operated a pared-down schedule as ground workers and bag handlers could not stay more than 15 minutes on the tarmac. Refueling operations also took longer than usual, said Mary Ryan, a United spokeswoman.

JetBlue stopped all service from 5 p.m. Monday to 10 a.m. Tuesday from Logan Airport in Boston and from Kennedy International, La Guardia and Newark Liberty International Airport in the New York area. The airline warned of the effect of the new FAA regulations on service.

The new rules mandate a minimum rest period for pilots of 10 hours before they report for duty, up from eight hours, and includes a provision that they get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. It also limits the number of hours a pilot can fly and sets cumulative flight duty limits. 'These rules further impact our ability to operate an already disrupted schedule, causing our pilots to 'time out' even sooner,' JetBlue said. 'As a result, additional cancellations are likely to occur as we work to reset the operation.'

Capt. Sean Cassidy, a first vice president at the Air Line Pilots Association, said it was too soon to know what impact, if any, the new rules had on the recent cancellations. Airlines have had nearly two years to plan for the new regulations. 
'It's rather unfortunate that the day the new rule change became mandatory happens to coincide with this massive weather system,' Cassidy said. 'It is very difficult to extrapolate.' Still, Cassidy added, 'some airlines were better prepared than others, that's fair to say.'

These regulations, the most significant change for pilots in decades, were long in the making but were given a new impetus after the 2009 crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407, which killed 49 people on board. The investigation found that fatigue had most likely contributed to the crew's performance.

'Some carriers got out front of this and planned better than others, and hired-up for the added resources required,' said Bob Mann, an airline consultant in Port Washington, N.Y. 'When the cusp of a significant adjustment like this coincides with serial bad weather across the country and a heavy holiday traffic period, it would be unrealistic to expect good things to happen, and they didn't and in some cases still haven't, and won't for days to come.'

In fact, airlines are still struggling to regain their footing from last week's snowstorm that blanketed the Northeast. 'It's just been a very challenging string of weather events,' said Morgan Durrant, a spokesman for Delta Air Lines. 'Whenever you have that line up when you can't get a day to reboot and reset all your operations and assets, it gets to be very challenging.'

Some airlines fared better than others. Delta, for instance, canceled 695 flights on Monday, including 75 on its mainline operations and 620 in Delta Connection, its regional partner. That amounted to about 15 percent of its daily flights.

The weather disruptions affected travelers even in sunny climes. At Fort Lauderdale International Airport, the backlog of people waiting at the JetBlue counter on Monday morning was hundreds deep, forcing airport employees to steer them outdoors to queue up. There, they were handed free bottles of water to help cope with the 84-degree temperature.

Nancy Labrecque, a nursing student from Montreal who had just returned from a cruise in the Bahamas, said she arrived to the airport at 6:30 a.m. but found that her flight to New York had been canceled.

Traveling with her husband and two children, she was told they might have a chance on Friday. 'I was not being picky. I said, 'Take me somewhere else,' but there were no flights to anywhere,' she said. 'We were in line for 4 1/2 hours. This is a fiasco.'

Michael A. Nonnemacher, director for operations at the Fort Lauderdale airport, said that flights grounded in New York or elsewhere end up having a domino effect on later flights that depend on that aircraft. 'It's a whole trickle-down effect,' he said. 'When you have this number of flights canceled, you have a systemwide effects. It's like a plume.'

Melissa Garcia arrived at the airport at 9 a.m. Monday with her husband, two children and baby sitter. At noon, the nanny was still holding their place in line. Her 11:20 a.m. flight to Newburgh, N.Y., was canceled. At about 11 a.m., the airline sent an email offering a refund.

'If you look at the other airlines, they are delayed, not canceled,' Garcia said. 'We're still waiting to find another flight. It's supposed to be first come first served, but when we got here the line was to the door.' She added, 'I don't think this is related to the weather.'

Garcia, a biologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is out of sick and vacation days. If her vacation is extended, she will have to take unpaid days off. 'I'm not mad yet,' she said. 'I just want to get home.' 
The New York Times

'

Bone-chilling cold cripples airline flights in US

The chaos in the nation's air travel system worsened Monday as a wave of frigid weather forced airlines to cancel thousands more flights, stranding passengers from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Los Angeles. Compounding the issue, at least for one airline, were new regulations requiring more rest time for pilots that began at the beginning of the year.

JetBlue Airways said the combination of bad weather and the new Federal Aviation Administration rules led it to cancel all of its flights into and out of Boston and the three New York area airports for 17 hours starting Monday afternoon. The regulations made airlines build more leeway into their already tight pilot scheduling. Once the delays hit, some pilots who formerly would have been available to fly were not allowed to.

'In the midst of us repairing those schedules disrupted by this week's winter storms, we're facing an additional challenge as new F.A.A. rules went into effect for crew rest,' JetBlue said in a statement. The biggest impact on the airlines was in the Northeast and the Midwest, where polar weather swooped in. Airlines canceled 4,400 flights on Monday, bringing the total to more than 18,000 since last Thursday, according to FlightView.com, a flight information website.

The delays, during one of the busiest travel periods of the year, marooned thousands of people trying to return home from holiday trips, begin a new school term or get back to work. Fans of Florida State and Auburn scrambled to find their way to Pasadena, Calif., for college football's national championship game at the Rose Bowl on Monday night.

One traveler, Courtney Morrissey, said she was supposed to start a new job on Monday in Denver but has been stuck in Rochester, N.Y., since last Thursday after three different flights she had rebooked were canceled. She is now scheduled to fly on Wednesday. 'I am not holding my breath,' Morrissey said. 'Every time they put me on a new flight now, I expect that to be canceled.'

Widespread cancellations are increasingly common in the airline industry, which relies on the hub-and-spoke model of connecting flights. Airlines also now operate on a much tighter schedule, leaving them with little slack, and have few spare planes to rebook passengers. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy forced airlines to cancel more than 20,000 flights over a four-day period.

Chicago's O'Hare International Airport was hit the hardest, with more than 1,600 flights canceled on Monday as temperatures fell below minus 12 degrees. 
United Airlines operated a pared-down schedule as ground workers and bag handlers could not stay more than 15 minutes on the tarmac. Refueling operations also took longer than usual, said Mary Ryan, a United spokeswoman.

JetBlue stopped all service from 5 p.m. Monday to 10 a.m. Tuesday from Logan Airport in Boston and from Kennedy International, La Guardia and Newark Liberty International Airport in the New York area. The airline warned of the effect of the new FAA regulations on service.

The new rules mandate a minimum rest period for pilots of 10 hours before they report for duty, up from eight hours, and includes a provision that they get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. It also limits the number of hours a pilot can fly and sets cumulative flight duty limits. 'These rules further impact our ability to operate an already disrupted schedule, causing our pilots to 'time out' even sooner,' JetBlue said. 'As a result, additional cancellations are likely to occur as we work to reset the operation.'

Capt. Sean Cassidy, a first vice president at the Air Line Pilots Association, said it was too soon to know what impact, if any, the new rules had on the recent cancellations. Airlines have had nearly two years to plan for the new regulations. 
'It's rather unfortunate that the day the new rule change became mandatory happens to coincide with this massive weather system,' Cassidy said. 'It is very difficult to extrapolate.' Still, Cassidy added, 'some airlines were better prepared than others, that's fair to say.'

These regulations, the most significant change for pilots in decades, were long in the making but were given a new impetus after the 2009 crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407, which killed 49 people on board. The investigation found that fatigue had most likely contributed to the crew's performance.

'Some carriers got out front of this and planned better than others, and hired-up for the added resources required,' said Bob Mann, an airline consultant in Port Washington, N.Y. 'When the cusp of a significant adjustment like this coincides with serial bad weather across the country and a heavy holiday traffic period, it would be unrealistic to expect good things to happen, and they didn't and in some cases still haven't, and won't for days to come.'

In fact, airlines are still struggling to regain their footing from last week's snowstorm that blanketed the Northeast. 'It's just been a very challenging string of weather events,' said Morgan Durrant, a spokesman for Delta Air Lines. 'Whenever you have that line up when you can't get a day to reboot and reset all your operations and assets, it gets to be very challenging.'

Some airlines fared better than others. Delta, for instance, canceled 695 flights on Monday, including 75 on its mainline operations and 620 in Delta Connection, its regional partner. That amounted to about 15 percent of its daily flights.

The weather disruptions affected travelers even in sunny climes. At Fort Lauderdale International Airport, the backlog of people waiting at the JetBlue counter on Monday morning was hundreds deep, forcing airport employees to steer them outdoors to queue up. There, they were handed free bottles of water to help cope with the 84-degree temperature.

Nancy Labrecque, a nursing student from Montreal who had just returned from a cruise in the Bahamas, said she arrived to the airport at 6:30 a.m. but found that her flight to New York had been canceled.

Traveling with her husband and two children, she was told they might have a chance on Friday. 'I was not being picky. I said, 'Take me somewhere else,' but there were no flights to anywhere,' she said. 'We were in line for 4 1/2 hours. This is a fiasco.'

Michael A. Nonnemacher, director for operations at the Fort Lauderdale airport, said that flights grounded in New York or elsewhere end up having a domino effect on later flights that depend on that aircraft. 'It's a whole trickle-down effect,' he said. 'When you have this number of flights canceled, you have a systemwide effects. It's like a plume.'

Melissa Garcia arrived at the airport at 9 a.m. Monday with her husband, two children and baby sitter. At noon, the nanny was still holding their place in line. Her 11:20 a.m. flight to Newburgh, N.Y., was canceled. At about 11 a.m., the airline sent an email offering a refund.

'If you look at the other airlines, they are delayed, not canceled,' Garcia said. 'We're still waiting to find another flight. It's supposed to be first come first served, but when we got here the line was to the door.' She added, 'I don't think this is related to the weather.'

Garcia, a biologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is out of sick and vacation days. If her vacation is extended, she will have to take unpaid days off. 'I'm not mad yet,' she said. 'I just want to get home.' 
The New York Times

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