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Double Oops! American Idol Finalists Flub Thanksgiving Performances


We still love you, Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina.

Neither of these former American Idol finalists enjoyed a great Thanksgiving yesterday, as each was given a prime spot to perform - and each suffered through an embarrassing mishap.

FIRST, McCreery stood atop a float during the Macy's parade and prepared to sing a version of "The Trouble with Girls." But a recording of the track started a few seconds before the young crooner started to lip synch, resulting in the following awkward start to the performance:

NEXT, Alaina sang the national anthem prior to the Lions/Packers game, forgetting a few words and going silent for a few seconds after "What so proudly we hailed, through the twi..." But she did recover in time to finish strong, similar to Christina Aguilera at the Super Bowl.

Watch now:

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/11/double-oops-american-idol-finalists-flub-thanksgiving-performanc/

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Thousands rally in Egypt on "last chance Friday" (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) ? Tens of thousands of Egyptians demanding an end to military rule converged on Cairo's Tahrir square on Friday in what activists say will be the biggest day yet in a week of demonstrations in which 41 people have been killed.

The military men who took over after people power toppled President Hosni Mubarak on February 11 are themselves under fire from protesters who accuse them of clinging to power, leading to street battles that look like a replay of February's unrest.

The ruling army council named Kamal Ganzouri, 78, who served as prime minister under Mubarak from 1996 to 1999, to head a national salvation government. Prime Minister Essam Sharaf's cabinet had resigned this week amid the protests.

The United States, long a bedrock supporter of Egypt's military, called on the generals to step aside "as soon as possible" and give real power to the new cabinet "immediately."

The military rulers say they are working on a transition of power, including parliamentary elections set for Monday, which could be overshadowed if violence continues. Some protesters say the army cannot be trusted to hold a clean vote.

Speaking to Reuters by telephone shortly after his appointment was announced, Ganzouri declined to reveal details of his new cabinet.

"Everything will be outlined later," he said.

After his appointment was confirmed, crowds in Tahrir chanted: "They brought a thief and appointed another thief," referring to Sharaf and Ganzouri.

"Say without fear: the (army) council must leave," they shouted.

Activists sought to bring a million people into the streets of Cairo on what they dubbed "the Friday of the last chance."

Thousands flooded into Tahrir Square for prayers, where Sheikh Mazhar Shahin told worshippers the protest would go on until Egypt had a new salvation government.

Protesters said they expected the crowd to continue to grow in the afternoon. Friday, the weekly Muslim prayer day, has traditionally been the biggest day of demonstrations in the "Arab Spring" protests sweeping the Middle East this year.

"We are all for the revolution and stand steadfast for the demands of the revolution. There is no conflict between us and the army," the cleric said in an address over loudspeakers.

BATTLE ZONES

Until a truce calmed violence on Thursday, streets around Tahrir had become battle zones with stone-throwing protesters fought police firing tear gas, pellets and rubber bullets.

A steady stream of men, women and children surged into Tahrir before Friday prayers. Some, like Atef Sayed, 45, with his wife and two daughters, were protesting for the first time.

"We're here to back the idea that the military council hands responsibility to civilians and focuses on military affairs. Nine months have gone by with many things that have happened in a way opposite to what the revolutionaries wanted," he said.

But enthusiasm for the protests was not universal.

About 5,000 people waving Egyptian flags demonstrated in favor of the military rulers in Cairo's Abbassiya district.

"The people want the emptying of the square," shouted the demonstrators. A big banner read: "Egypt will not be governed from Tahrir square."

Activists who tried to organize a march to Tahrir from a mosque in the capital's Shubra neighborhood were rebuffed.

"The army council will leave in six months. We have elections in three days. What do these people want?" asked one worshipper angrily. "They are hired to start trouble."

The White House stepped up pressure on Egypt's military rulers to speed up the handover to civilian control.

"Full transfer of power to a civilian government must take place in a just and inclusive manner that responds to the legitimate aspirations of the Egyptian people, as soon as possible," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement.

"The United States strongly believes that the new Egyptian government must be empowered with real authority immediately."

Activists set up checkpoints at entrances to Tahrir square, searching people arriving and checking identity cards.

"We've had enough of government controlled by the military," read a huge banner tied between two lamp posts. Several hundred young men marched around waving Egyptian flags and chanting "Down, down with military rule" and "Down, down with the field marshal," a reference to army chief Mohamed Hussein Tantawi.

FRUSTRATION WITH ARMY

The army, once hailed for its role in easing Mubarak from power, has come under increasing fire for dragging out a handover to civilian rule, even as Egypt's economy falters.

This week it promised to accelerate the timetable for a transfer of power to a civilian president and again pledged that parliamentary elections will start on Monday as planned.

The army and the Muslim Brotherhood, which expects to do well in the election, say it must go ahead, but many protesters do not trust the military to oversee a clean vote. Some scorn the Brotherhood for its focus on gaining seats in parliament.

The group organised a protest last Friday against army efforts to shape a new constitution, but left Tahrir as protests widened. It held a separate rally this Friday at al-Azhar mosque for the "liberation" of Jerusalem from Israeli control.

The Health Ministry said 41 people have died in the week's violence, state television reported. More than 2,000 people were also wounded in the unrest in Cairo and several other cities.

The latest upheaval makes it even harder to dig the economy out of a crisis whose first victims are the millions of poor Egyptians whose frustration spurred the revolt against Mubarak.

Egypt's central bank unexpectedly raised interest rates on Thursday for the first time in more than two years, after depleting its foreign reserves trying to defend a local currency weakened by the political chaos.

In fresh blows to confidence, the Egyptian pound weakened to more than six to the dollar for the first time since January 2005, and Standard & Poor's cut Egypt's credit rating.

The economic woes may argue in favor of Ganzouri, whose government virtually balanced the budget, cut inflation, held the exchange rate stable and maintained healthy foreign currency reserves during his time in office from 1996 to 1999.

He introduced some economic liberalisation measures and many Egyptians viewed him as an official who was not tainted by corruption. But his record serving under Mubarak could stir opposition from those demanding a clean break with the past.

Some Facebook activists derided the choice of a Mubarak-era man to steer the country into a new era, listing four ancient pharaohs as useful alternatives if Ganzouri turns the job down.

"Tutankhamun is more suitable because he is from the youth," one said, referring to the boy king of ancient Egypt.

(Additional reporting by Shaimaa Fayed, Edmund Blair, Ali Abd El-Ati, Patrick Werr and Tamim Elyan; Writing by Alistair Lyon; Editing by Peter Graff)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111125/wl_nm/us_egypt_protests

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Scientists uncover new role for gene in maintaining steady weight

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Against the backdrop of the growing epidemic of obesity in the United States, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have made an important new discovery regarding a specific gene that plays an important role in keeping a steady balance between our food intake and energy expenditure. The study may help scientists better understand the keys to fighting obesity and related disorders such as diabetes.

The study, which was published in the November 25, 2011 print edition of The Journal of Biological Chemistry, focused on the melanocortin-3 receptor (MC3R), which normally responds to signals of nutrient intake.

"What we discovered was quite a surprise," said Scripps Research Associate Professor Andrew Butler, who led the study. "We thought that the actions of the receptor expressed in the brain would be critical for metabolic homeostasis. However, what we found is that actions of the receptor expressed outside the brain appear to be equally important."

The existence of drug targets in areas outside of the central nervous system (the body's "periphery") might help in the effort to develop drugs that influence metabolism without major side effects, Butler said.

The findings were made possible by the team's development of a new transgenic animal model, where expression of the MC3R gene can be selectively "switched on" in different cell types.

In the study, the suppression of MC3R expression in the brain and peripheral tissues had a marked impact on metabolic homeostasis (equilibrium). Interestingly, mice expressing the MC3R gene in the brain only displayed an obese phenotype (physical appearance) similar to those where all types of expression was suppressed, indicating that actions of this receptor in the brain are not sufficient to protect against weight gain. The finding that loss of MC3R activity in the periphery impairs metabolic homeostasis is startling, Butler said, and point to a distinct role for MC3R signaling in the peripheral tissues. However, how the actions of these receptors impacts on obesity remains to be determined.

"It's clear that these peripheral receptors are important and the new mouse model will let us explore that potential," Butler said.

###

The first author of the study, "Genetic dissection of melanocortin-3 receptor function suggests roles for central and peripheral receptors in energy homeostasis," is Karima Begriche of Scripps Research. In addition to Butler and Begriche, other authors include Jari Rossi, Danielle Skorupa, Laura A. Solt, Brandon Young, and Thomas P. Burris from The Scripps Research Institute in Florida; Randall L. Mynatt and Jingying Zhang at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, which is part of the Louisiana State University System; and Peter R. Levasseur and Daniel L. Marks at the Oregon Health & Science University. Seehttp://www.jbc.org/content/early/2011/10/07/jbc.M111.278374.abstract?sid=8a17ce75-de95-45d1-b688-a039da52b5f1

Scripps Research Institute: http://www.scripps.edu

Thanks to Scripps Research Institute for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 35 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/115456/Scientists_uncover_new_role_for_gene_in_maintaining_steady_weight

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WIA Emergency Communications Operator Training | Southgate ...

To date, well over 100 emergency communications operators across Australia have been training via the WIA Emergency Communications Operator training program.

This program, Certificate II in public safety (SES Operations), is now available 'on-line' and can be completed as a self-paced program.
The WIA registration requirements apply.

The process to undertake the course can be commenced by completing the WIA on line application form found on the WIA web site.
https://www.wia.org.au/members/emcom/emcomregisteronline/

The on line program will assist those wishing to complete the program but are unable to attend a formal training session or those who have missed a section of the training as well as those who want to complete the program and provide a service to their community.

WIA website
http://www.wia.org.au/

Source: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/november2011/wia_emcomm_training.htm

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Beautifully Minimal ?Hidden Radio & Bluetooth Speaker?

I’m a sucker for Bluetooth speakers. They make it so easy to play music straight from my iPad or — when my slightly weird friends come to visit — from Android cellphones. No cables, no annoying Wi-Fi AirPlay delays, just simple music. And when the speakers look as good as the HiddenRadio & Bluetooth Speaker, [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/vmtm_5Izrkw/

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Plane with 3 men, 3 children crashes in Arizona

A floodlight illuminates a fire from a small plane crash in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction east of Phoenix, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. Authorities said there was no apparent sign of survivors in the small twin-engine plane crash. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Michael Schennum) MARICOPA COUNTY OUT; MAGS OUT; TV OUT; NO SALES

A floodlight illuminates a fire from a small plane crash in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction east of Phoenix, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. Authorities said there was no apparent sign of survivors in the small twin-engine plane crash. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Michael Schennum) MARICOPA COUNTY OUT; MAGS OUT; TV OUT; NO SALES

A twin-engine plane crashes into the Superstition Mountains near Phoenix killing six.

A helicopter search light looks over the scene of an aircraft that crashed in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction, on Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. The small plane with three adults and three children on board crashed into the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix on Wednesday, and there was no sign of survivors, authorities said. (AP Photo/Tim Hacker East Valley Tribune)

A brush fire burns at the scene of an aircraft that crashed in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction, Ariz., on Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. The small plane with three adults and three children on board crashed into the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix on Wednesday, and there was no sign of survivors, authorities said. (AP Photo/Tim Hacker East Valley Tribune)

A helicopter search light looks over the scene of an aircraft that crashed in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction, on Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. The small plane with three adults and three children on board crashed into the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix on Wednesday, and there was no sign of survivors, authorities said. [AP Photo/Tim Hacker East Valley Tribune)

(AP) ? A small airplane with three men and three young children onboard crashed Wednesday evening into a sheer cliff in the mile-high mountains east of Phoenix while going around 200 mph, the Pinal County sheriff said.

The body of one child was recovered and "it is not hopeful" there are any survivors because of the nature of the crash and explosion, said Sheriff Paul Babeu.

Ten deputies spent the night on the mountain to keep it secure. They and dozens of volunteers began searching the area at first light, he said, adding that hikers and curiosity seekers should stay away. Video from news helicopters Thursday morning showed the wreckage strewn at the bottom of a blackened cliff.

Some immediate family members are out of the country, so the names of those involved can't yet be released, Babeu said.

The twin-engine aircraft flew from Safford in southeastern Arizona to Mesa's Falcon Field to pick up three children for the Thanksgiving holiday and was headed back to Safford, Babeu said.

KPNX-TV reported the father of the three children, who are ages 5 to 9, lives in Safford. Their mother lives in Mesa.

"Our hearts go out to her at this time," Babeu said.

The aircraft slammed into an area of rugged peaks and outcroppings in the Superstition Mountains, 40 miles east of downtown Phoenix, at about 6:30 p.m. MST Wednesday, authorities said.

Callers reported hearing an explosion near a peak known as the Flat Iron, close to Lost Dutchman State Park, Sheriff's spokeswoman Angelique Graham said.

Witnesses reported a fireball and an explosion.

"I looked up and saw this fireball and it rose up," Dave Dibble told KPHO-TV. "All of a sudden, boom."

Sheriff's spokesman Elias Johnson said the body of one child was recovered late Wednesday night from the crash scene.

Besides the pilot and three children, a mechanic and another adult were also on board, Babeu said.

Rescue personnel used infrared devices to search for bodies but found no sign of movement, according to Johnson.

Rescue crews flown in by helicopter to reach the crash site reported finding two debris fields on fire, suggesting that the plane broke apart on impact.

"The fuselage is stuck down into some of the crevices of this rough terrain," Babeu said late Wednesday. "This is not a flat area, this is jagged peaks, almost like a cliff-type rugged terrain."

Video after the crash showed several fires burning on the mountainside, where heavy brush is common. Flames could still be seen from the suburban communities of Mesa and Apache Junction hours later.

The region is filled with steep canyons, soaring rocky outcroppings and cactus. Treasure hunters who frequent the area have been looking for the legendary Lost Dutchman mine for more than a century.

Some witnesses told Phoenix-area television stations they heard a plane trying to rev its engines to climb higher before apparently hitting the mountains. The elevation is about 5,000 feet at the Superstition Mountains' highest point.

Calls to Falcon Field, which mostly serves small, private planes, weren't immediately returned Wednesday night.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Allen Kenitzer said the Rockwell AC-69 was registered to Ponderosa Aviation Inc. in Safford. A man who answered the phone Wednesday night at Ponderosa Aviation declined comment.

Kenitzer said the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board would be investigating the cause of the crash.

___

AP writer Michelle Price in Phoenix contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-11-24-Arizona%20Plane%20Crash/id-c4ee18ead1004b159fa8b68ab4bffdd8

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Guatemala proposal for aged inmates draws anger (AP)

GUATEMALA CITY ? A proposal in Guatemala to allow convicts over 80 to serve their sentences under house arrest is drawing fire from human rights groups who say it would be used to benefit suspects accused of massacres during the 1960-1996 civil war.

The law has passed two of the three votes needed to win approval in congress.

Rights activist Iduvina Hernandez said Wednesday the proposal came just as several former military officials await trial on genocide and other charges.

The bill originally contained a clause excluding those convicted of rights abuses, but it was deleted from the bill submitted to Congress.

About 200,000 people were killed in Guatemala's 36-year civil war, 93 percent of them by state forces and paramilitary groups.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/latam/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111124/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_guatemala_past_crimes

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Predators drive the evolution of poison dart frogs' skin patterns

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Natural selection has played a role in the development of the many skins patterns of the tiny Ranitomeya imitator poison dart frog, according to a study that will be published in an upcoming edition of American Naturalist by University of Montreal biologist Mathieu Chouteau. The researcher's methodology was rather unusual: on three occasions over three days, at two different sites, Chouteau investigated the number of attacks that had been made on fake frogs, by counting how many times that had been pecked. Those that were attacked the least looked like local frogs, while those that came from another area had obviously been targeted.

The brightly coloured frogs that we find in tropical forests are in fact sending a clear message to predators: "don't come near me, I'm poisonous!" But why would a single species need multiple patterns when one would do? It appears that when predators do not recognize a poisonous frog as being a member of the local group, it attacks in the hope that it has chanced upon edible prey. "When predators see that their targets are of a different species, they attack. Over the long term, that explains how patterns and colours become uniform in an area," said Bernard Angers, who directed Chouteau's doctoral research.

A total of 3,600 life-size plasticine models, each less than one centimetre long, were used in the study. The menagerie was divided between two carefully identified sites in the Amazon forest. "The trickiest part was transporting my models without arousing suspicion at the airport and customs controls," Chouteau said. He chose plasticine following a review of scientific literature. "Many scientists have successfully used plasticine to create models of snakes, salamanders and poison dart frogs." The Peruvian part of the forest proved to be ideal for this study, as two radically different looking groups of frogs are found there: one, living on a plain, has yellow stripes, and the other, living on a mountain, has green patches. The two colonies are ten kilometers apart. 900 fake frogs were placed in each area in carefully targeted positions. Various combinations of colours and patterns were used.

Chouteau was particularly surprised by the "very small spatial scale at which the evolutionary process has taken place." Ten kilometers of separation sufficed for a clearly different adaptation to take place. "A second surprise was the learning abilities of the predator community, especially the speed at which the learning process takes place when a new and exotic defensive signal is introduced on a massive scale," Chouteau said.

This process could be at origin of the wide range of colour patterns that are observed not only in frogs but also many species of butterflies, bees, and other animals. Mathieu Chouteau is in fact currently undertaking post-doctoral research into the Heliconius genus of butterfly. "Considering that this kind of project requires regular field work, I have taken up residence in the small town of Tarapoto, where I am responsible for the opening of a research centre that will facilitate the study of neotropical butterfly mimicry," he said.

###

University of Montreal: http://bit.ly/mNqklw

Thanks to University of Montreal for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 19 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/115365/Predators_drive_the_evolution_of_poison_dart_frogs__skin_patterns

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Antipsychotic drugs tied to diabetes risk in kids (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) ? The antipsychotic drugs that are increasingly being used to treat bipolar disorder, autism and other mental disorders in children may come with an increased risk of diabetes, a new study suggests.

Previous research has linked the so-called second-generation antipsychotics to an increased risk of diabetes in adults. And there's been some evidence that the drugs can cause weight gain in children.

The new findings, published in the journal Pediatrics, add to concerns that the medications may ultimately lead to diabetes in some kids.

Using records from three U.S. health plans, researchers found that children and teens who started on an antipsychotic had four times the risk of being diagnosed with diabetes, versus kids not using any psychiatric medication.

They developed diabetes at a rate of just over three cases per 1,000 children per year. That compared with just under 0.8 cases per 1,000 among medication-free kids.

Second-generation antipsychotics include drugs such as Risperdal, known generically as risperidone, Zyprexa (olanzapine), Seroquel (quetiapine) and Abilify (aripiprazole).

The drugs are used to treat conditions like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and irritability and aggression in children with autism. They are also sometimes given to children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), even though there's no research evidence to support that.

And it's the growing use of the drugs in kids -- particularly for conditions in which the benefit is unclear -- that makes the potential diabetes risk concerning, according to Dr. Jonathan Mink, chief of child neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York.

"These medications can be very helpful in certain settings," said Mink, who is also part of a pediatric advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In September, the panel recommended that the agency keep monitoring the risks of weight gain and diabetes in children on antipsychotics.

The drugs are often effective, for example, in managing aggressive behavior in children with autism. In other cases -- like ADHD, Mink noted -- the effectiveness, if any, has not been established.

Exactly why antipsychotics would lead to diabetes in some children is not clear. It's known that they can spur weight gain, but Mink said that "it's hard to argue that it's just weight gain."

In this study, kids on antipsychotics who developed diabetes were diagnosed an average of 4.5 months after starting the drug. That's a short period of time, Mink noted. And it's not clear, he said, exactly how the drugs could lead to diabetes in that time frame.

"The take-home from this study, to me, is that this (risk) is real," Mink said. "It's something we should take seriously."

For the study, researchers led by Susan E. Andrade, of the University of Massachusetts in Worcester, combed through records for more than 74,000 five- to 18-year-olds enrolled in one of three health plans between 2001 and 2008.

Of those kids, 9,636 started on a second-generation antipsychotic during the study period. And out of the entire study group, 57 kids were diagnosed with diabetes.

Andrade's team found that children on antipsychotics were at relatively higher risk of diabetes than those not on any psychiatric medication. On the other hand, their risk was not statistically greater compared with kids on antidepressants.

With antidepressants, the diabetes rate was just under two cases per 1,000 kids per year.

Antidepressants can cause weight gain. And there's some evidence, Andrade's team notes, that the drugs are related to diabetes risk -- but studies have come to conflicting findings on that.

For now, Mink said that parents of children on antipsychotics should be sure their doctor regularly checks their child's weight and blood sugar, to detect any signs of trouble early.

And if your child's doctor recommends an antipsychotic, Mink said, don't hesitate to ask questions -- including whether there are any alternative treatments, and what the plan will be for monitoring your child for side effects.

U.S. researchers have found that children's use of antipsychotics increased by 65 percent from 2002 to 2009, primarily through prescriptions for teenagers.

From fall 2009 to spring of this year, 1.9 million prescriptions of Abilify alone were dispensed to patients under 18, including even 875 prescriptions for toddlers younger than two, according to FDA research.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/rqcgIy Pediatrics, online November 21, 2011.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/diseases/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111122/hl_nm/us_antipsychotic_drugs

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Google's Street View hits the slopes again, stops for hot cocoa in Squaw and Whistler (video)

Were you worried that Google's Street View snowmobile was put out to pasture after 2010's Winter Olympics? Relax you worrywart, as Mountain View's resurrected the snow-trottin' beast, only to unleash it upon the slopes of an additional four alpine locales. Joining existing (and updated) imagery from Vancouver's Whistler resort, 2011's additions stayed stateside, testing out the snow in Squaw Valley, Breckenridge, Deer Valley and Crystal Mountain. Yet, while the additional footage is welcome, we can't help but notice it's of vastly lower quality than that taken from last year. From exploring Swiss railroads to documenting the Amazonian river, apparently not much is off limits for street view. Which begs the question, how long until it jury-rigs a lunar rover into giving us a tour of the moon?

Continue reading Google's Street View hits the slopes again, stops for hot cocoa in Squaw and Whistler (video)

Google's Street View hits the slopes again, stops for hot cocoa in Squaw and Whistler (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/googles-street-view-hits-the-slopes-again-stops-for-hot-cocoa/

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Leftist govts shown the exit amid European crisis (AP)

MADRID ? Throw a dart at a map of Europe now and it takes expert aim to hit a country run by a left-of-center government, especially after Spain's Socialists were emphatically drubbed out of power over the weekend.

Although the shift to the right began years ago in such heavyweights as France and Germany, it is now all but complete three years into the continent's grinding debt and economic crisis. Why? When times get tough ? when "the cows get thin" as the Spanish say ? political experts say edgy voters seek comfort with conservatives.

"The center-right is the natural preference in times of crisis," said Piotr Kaczynski of the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. "If you look at societies and how they make their preferences, they all tend to vote more conservative in times of crisis and more center-left in times of economic progress."

Granted, on the European Union map there are scattered spots of leftist liberalism. A new Social Democratic government runs Denmark, there is a center left government in Norway and there is a broad Social Democratic-led coalition in Austria. And the Socialists might beat conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy in France's presidential election next year.

But Kaczynski said there is no doubt the European left faces an uphill battle in re-establishing itself with an appealing message and the means to enact it, despite widespread disillusionment with go-go capitalism as seen in the Occupy Wall Street protests and Europe's widespread anti-austerity marches.

In Spain, voters enduring a 21.5 jobless rate ejected the Socialists and install the center-right Popular Party by a crushing margin in Sunday's election.

Voters dumped the Socialists in Portugal earlier this year and the Labour Party in Britain last year, in both cases shifting to conservative parties. A technocrat government has taken over in the last month from Greece's Socialist prime minister.

Kaczynski said is not an ironclad rule that a government will be dumped from power during an economic crisis. He cited the cases of troubled governments being re-elected in Latvia, Estonia ? a member of the eurozone ? and Poland, and said as long as the public concludes the government is capable and taking the right approach to a financial crisis, it might get a second chance.

That was not the case for Spain's Socialists, due to the poor record of outgoing Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero in fighting unemployment and in resurrecting an economy that overcome nearly two years of recession in 2010 only to stall again last quarter.

His punishment: the conservative Popular Party won 186 seats in the 350-seat lower chamber of Parliament, up from 154, while the Socialists plummeted from 169 seats to 110, their worst performance ever.

"Clearly, Spain is the biggest loss for the European Socialists. That is absolutely the case," Kaczynski said.

In his first public comments, Zapatero ? who did not seek a third term ? said Monday that the austerity measures he took ? and which caused supporters to flee in a stampede ? "put the national interests ahead of party interests."

Spanish stock and bond markets shrugged off the Popular Party win because it was so widely expected and because leader Mariano Rajoy has yet to spell out how he will attack Spain's unemployment debacle, deficit and growth woes.

However, some experts say Europe is not going right ideologically but rather seeking something ? anything ? new to get out of its quagmire.

"I wouldn't say Europe is turning to the right. It's basically the crisis is crushing the incumbents," said Eurasia Group's analyst for Europe, Antonio Barroso. "People are disappointed in the bad economic data, high unemployment and basically they are voting for the other alternative."

He noted that in Italy, conservative premier Silvio Berlusconi was forced to resign this month as the eurozone crisis centered on his debt-laden country ? but that was to a technocratic administration, not to leftist politicians.

Barroso also mentioned the 2012 French presidential race and Sarkozy's record low approval rating. The feisty French conservative is trailing the Socialist Francois Hollande badly in the polls, although he has recovered a bit in recent weeks.

Socialists are strong in local and regional politics in France: They head 24 of France's 26 regional governments and run major cities including Paris, Lyon, and Lille. Most recently, in September, the Socialists wrested control of the Senate, Parliament's upper house, for the first time in more than a half-century ? seen by many as a rebuff to Sarkozy.

In Germany, conservative Angela Merkel beat the center-left's Gerhard Schroeder in 2005 after he pushed through labor market reforms and welfare state cuts. The moves angered his leftist supporters but they are credited with bolstering Germany's strength in the current financial crisis.

However, Stephen Lewis of Monument Securities in London agreed it is perhaps natural for people to turn to the right in times of extreme financial hardship. He noted it happened in the 1930s during the Depression.

"It is not surprising that we are seeing all these right-wing governments appear as a result of elections or imposed from Brussels," Lewis said.

___

Ciaran Giles and Alan Clendenning in Madrid, Geir Moulson in Berlin and Jamey Keaten in Paris contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111121/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_spain_elections

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সোমবার, ২১ নভেম্বর, ২০১১

Market negative as Spain tilts to the right

Conservative Popular Party candidate Mariano Rajoy waves after winning the general elections in Madrid, Sunday, Nov, 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Conservative Popular Party candidate Mariano Rajoy waves after winning the general elections in Madrid, Sunday, Nov, 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Conservative Popular Party candidate Mariano Rajoy reacts next to his wife Elvira Fernandez Balboa, left, and the secretary general of the party Maria Dolores de Cospedal, right, as they celebrate after wining in the national election polls at the party headquarter in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Conservative Popular Party candidate Mariano Rajoy, centre jumps alonside his wife Elvira Fernandez Balboa, 2nd right and party members after winning the general elections, in Madrid, Sunday Nov, 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Supporters of conservative Popular Party wave party and spanish flag next to their party headquarter as they celebrate the first results in the national election polls Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Spain's Socialist candidate Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, looks down during a press conference announcing that Spain's ruling Socialists concede defeat in general elections, marked by economic crisis, in Madrid, Sunday Nov, 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa de Olza)

(AP) ? Spain's conservative Popular Party on Monday began tackling the gigantic task of lifting the country out of its worst economic crisis in decades, following an overwhelming and historic victory in the general election.

The promised change in political direction following the deafeat of the Socialists failed to immediately lift financial markets, with Madrid's key Ibex index down 1.2 percent in early trading.

Spain's key borrowing rate for 10-year bonds started a second week above 6 percent. A 7 percent rate is considered unsustainable over the long term.

With the vote count completed, the Popular Party won 186 seats in Sunday's election compared with 154 in the last legislature. The Socialists plummeted from 169 seats to 110, their worst performance ever.

"There won't be any miracles. We never promised any," said triumphant Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy, 56, in his victory speech.

"But as we have said before, when things are done properly, the results come in," he added.

Rajoy's party won most seats in 45 of the country's 52 provinces. The result, together with a clean sweep in municipal and regional elections in May this year, left it in its strongest position ever.

Curiously, the Popular Party only edged up from 10.2 million to 10.8 million votes, but the Socialists' vote plummeted from 11.1 million in 2008 to 6.9 million on Sunday. That was to the benefit of smaller parties such as the United Left, which saw its seat numbers shoot from 2 in 2008 to 11 this year.

It was the third time in as many weeks that Europe's debt crisis has led to a change in government. Financially troubled Greece and Italy have also seen their governments fall.

Spain has the eurozone's highest jobless rate, at 21.5 percent ? almost 5 million people out of work ? and the country holds a center-stage spot in Europe's debt crisis saga.

"It is no secret to anyone that we are going to rule in the most delicate circumstances Spain has faced in 30 years," said the gray-bearded, bespectacled Rajoy. "For me, there will be no enemies but unemployment, the deficit, excessive debt, economic stagnation and anything else that keeps our country in these critical circumstances."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-11-21-EU-Spain-Elections/id-836a7b93a07e40c4b432b1386c529320

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রবিবার, ২০ নভেম্বর, ২০১১

Common Trades Hoops For Hip-Hop On 'When I Was 17'

'I couldn't play for a little while, so I started rapping more,' he recalls on the episode, airing Saturday at 11 a.m. ET/PT on MTV.
By Henna Kathiya


Common
Photo: MTV News

While most 17-year-olds were spending their free time playing video games and hanging out, Common was perfecting his skills. There's no doubt that this led to his successful hip-hop career.

The Grammy-winning artist revealed how he began rapping thanks to a sports-related injury on this week's episode of "When I Was 17," airing Saturday at 11 a.m. ET.

"When I was 17, I went to high school at [Chicago's] Luther South, and I did well in high school," the MC said on the episode, which also features T-Pain and "Twilight" star Alex Meraz. "I played basketball, but I got injured."

Common was hit in the eye during one of the games. Of course, that put him out of the game for a little bit, since it's kind of important to be able to see what's going on. So Common decided to use his time a little more productively than most other 17-year-olds.

"When I got injured, I couldn't play for a little while, so I started rapping more," he said. "I would be in gym class, and I would, like, get somebody to start beatboxing, and I'd just start freestyling."

Even at such a young age, Common's freestyling skills were unmatched. "He would be able to freestyle on any topic," his friend Marlon recalled. "We would change topics for him, and he would be able to talk about and rap about it. It was actually amazing."

He went by the moniker Rashid Cool at the time, and people knew he was a force to be reckoned with. "It was right around the time hip-hop was getting strong, so you get respect. A lot of people were like, 'Rashid Cool, you know he's good people,' " Common said.

"When I Was 17" — this week featuring T-Pain, Common and Alex Meraz — airs Saturday at 11 a.m. ET/PT on MTV.

Related Videos Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1674694/common-when-was-17.jhtml

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A Secular Case for Intentional Creation

?Does aught befall you? It is good. It is part of the destiny of the Universe ordained for you from the beginning.?

? Marcus Aurelius, Stoic Philosopher and Emperor of Rome, in Meditations, circa 170 CE

??He said that, did he? ? Well, you can tell him from me, he?s an ass!?

? Bertie Wooster, fictional P.G. Wodehouse character, in The Mating Season, 1949

People have been arguing about the fundamental nature of existence since, well, since people existed. Having lost exclusive claim to tools, culture, and self, one of the few remaining distinctions of our species is that we can argue about the fundamental nature of existence.

There are, however, two sets of people who want to shut the argument down. One is the drearily familiar set of religious fundamentalists. The other is the shiny new set of atheists who claim that science demonstrates beyond reasonable doubt that our existence is accidental, purposeless, and doomed. My intent is to show that both are wrong.

I do not mean to imply a false equivalence here. Concerning the fundamentalist position, my work is done. Claims of a six-day Creation, a 6,000-year-old Earth, a global flood, and so forth have been demolished by science. It has not only amassed evidence against particular claims but has discovered laws of nature that exclude whole classes of claims. To the extent we can be certain about anything, we can rest assured that all supernatural claims are false.

The ?New Atheist? position, by contrast, demands serious consideration. It has every advantage that science can provide, yet it overreaches for its conclusion. The trouble with the ?New Atheist? position, as defined above, is this: it commits the fallacy of the excluded middle. I will explain.

But first, if you?ll pardon a brief diversion, I feel the need to hoist my flag. You may have inferred that I am a liberal religionist, attempting to unite the scientific narrative with some metaphorical interpretation of my creed. That is not so.

I am a secular humanist who is agnostic about many things ? string theory, Many Worlds, the Theo-logical chances of a World Series win for the Cubs ?? but the existence of a supernatural deity is not among them. What?s more, I am one of the lucky ones: I never struggled to let go of God. My parents put religion behind them before I was born.

I tell you this not to boast but in hopes that you?ll take in my argument through fresh eyes. The science-religion debate has bogged down in trench warfare, and anyone foolhardy enough to leap into the middle risks getting cut down with no questions asked. But here goes.

Science indeed excludes many possibilities. The conservation laws rule out ghosts who deploy photons to be visible, electromagnetic force to hurl objects, and kinetic wave energy to moan. Miracles are bunk. Like LaPlace, we?ve no need for a Creator to explain how the world works. But we might in searching for our ultimate origins.

The claim I aim to rebut is that science forces us to conclude that life is accidental, purposeless, and doomed. It?s a stance with quite a claque.

The A Team

In the vanguard are its Four Horsemen: neuroscientist Sam Harris, philosopher Daniel Dennett, zoologist Richard Dawkins, and lion of letters Christopher Hitchens. Other notables in the New Atheist ranks include physicists Victor Stenger, Lawrence Krauss, and Sean Carroll, and biologist PZ Myers. Plenty of intellectual heft there.

They have been joined by the world?s best-known living scientist. After decades of soft-pedaling ?the mind of God,? Stephen Hawking came out as an atheist last year. The Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, author of A Brief History of Time, and cameo Simpsons star famously wrote: ?It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the universe going.?

Fine. Let us add that theory seems to imply a multiverse ? an infinite card table where the deck of laws is continually shuffled to deal out every conceivable hand. It may be that the Totalitarian Principle ? ?Everything not forbidden is compulsory? ? demands our presence in a biophilic bubble somewhere in the multiverse. But it ain?t necessarily so.

Until some evidence arrives, the pursuit of truth through science obliges us to entertain multiple hypotheses. When it comes to cosmic origins, that must surely include consideration of the idea that our Universe was deliberately created with a purpose in mind. Yet little authentically secular effort has gone into it.

Indeed, any talk of teleology seems to infuriate Dawkins: ?What is the purpose of a mountain? What is the purpose of a tsunami? What is the purpose of bubonic plague? Surely you can see that these are just silly questions? Same with the universe.?

They are indeed silly ? if you assume that a supremely powerful and virtuous deity created the Earth. But that hardly exhausts the possibilities.

To name just one, it may be that the fundamental property of the Universe is information, and that life, the Universe and everything amount to a program running for an obscure purpose. That conceit is captured with mordant humor here.

Why are such secular ideas bruited only by cartoonists and humorists? To be sure, physicists have better things to do. But the deeper reason, I suspect, is social. Scientists adopt methodological naturalism ? the working assumption that all phenomena can be explained in terms of impersonal laws and materials. To stray from that assumption is to risk ridicule and loss of credibility ? as responses to this essay will no doubt show. Yet, it can legitimately be done. The SETI project?s search for a signal from ET is proof of that.

When it comes to cosmic origins, however, religion predisposes nearly everyone to commit to impersonal naturalism or theistic creation. Thus, in opposition to the New Atheists, we find a handful of scientists who are Creationists of varying religious stripe: biochemist Michael Behe, physicists Frank Tipler and Gerald Schroeder, and geneticist Francis Collins, to name a few.

Please do not suppose that in raising these names I salute them. It would be unjust to link my argument with religious Creationism of any calibre. If you?re looking for a proper pigeonhole, park me with the SETI scientists.

I am precisely as agnostic about the existence of intelligent life beyond the observable Universe as I am about its existence within it. That is to say, I stand in equipoise ?mid skepticism and hope. And so, in the spirit (if you?ll pardon the expression) of T.C. Chamberlin, allow me to sketch an alternative hypothesis for our existence.

Life Is Good

Take the mainstream scientific narrative of cosmic evolution, abiogenesis, and biological evolution as given. Assume, for argument?s sake, that humanity will navigate the rapids of history through which we are passing and establish a peaceful, sustainable global civilization.

Darwinian evolution compels most of us to act as if the persistence of life into the future is good. In fact, for those of us in advanced nations, life has become really good in just the last few generations. (Consider how few of us starve to death, lose a child to infectious disease, or risk enslavement.) Assuming that civilization persists, it is reasonable to infer that life will be even better in the future, and that our descendants will want to keep it going.

In the long run, that will require moving beyond Earth (Brace yourselves, Trekkies!), and eventually into the kind of galactic colonization whose absence Fermi famously noted. (?Where are they??)

But in the very long run, as John Maynard Kenyes wryly observed, we are all dead. Everything we know about the Universe, with its dark energy and its goshdarn Second Law, tells us so.

Faced with this inevitability, what will our descendants do? If possible, they will follow the Darwinian imperative: Keep life alive! They will attempt to create a Baby Universe capable of giving rise to life like us.

Swell, you may think, but what has this to do with secular creation? Simple: the Principle of Mediocrity. It tells us that when we have only one data point, we should assume that it lies near the middle of the distribution curve. That being so, if we take the above as granted we would be foolhardy to assume that we will be the first proud parents of a Baby Universe. The ability to procreate a Universe would suggest that ours was so created, and for a similar reason: to keep life alive.

The extravagance and imperfections of the Universe are just what you might expect of imperfect creators doing the best they can with the materials on hand. SETI?s failure to date suggests they were none too extravagant! Indeed, nothing of which I am aware counts as evidence against this hypothesis.

All the same, it is falsifiable. I can think of at least two ways it might fail. Perhaps demographer Eric Kaufmann is right: the maximal reproduction rates of fundamentalists in an era of contraception may mean that by the end of the century they will swamp all others. In that case, we can expect that one prophecy, at least, will be fulfilled: Armageddon.

It may also be that new knowledge in physics will conclusively demonstrate that it is simply impossible to create a baby Universe. That day has not yet arrived.

Perhaps I?m an ass, but until it does I remain a hopeful agnostic ? hopeful not that some ancient religious myth happens to be true but that life is a gift given in trust that we will pass it on.

Read the response to this post here:

A New Creation Story

Related:

Physics and the Immortality of the Soul
Forgotten dreams? A call to investigate the mysteries of humanity
What does it mean that a nation is ?Unscientific??
Dubitable Darwin? Why Some Smart, Nonreligious People Doubt the Theory of Evolution
The deity by any other name: Army resilience program gets a thumbs down from atheists

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=8ea398c2f9ba51caf9adb345138092e7

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শনিবার, ১৯ নভেম্বর, ২০১১

Colon cancer screening campaign erases racial, gender gaps in use of colonoscopy

Colon cancer screening campaign erases racial, gender gaps in use of colonoscopy [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 18-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Stephanie Berger
sb2247@columbia.edu
212-305-4372
Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health

Model NYC program aims to address growing disparities in colon cancer mortality rates

Since the 1970s, U.S. mortality rates due to colorectal cancer have declined overall, yet among blacks and Hispanics, the death rates rose. Evidence suggests that underuse of colonoscopy screening among these groups is one reason for the large disparities. In 2003, New York City launched a multifaceted campaign to improve colonoscopy rates among racial and ethnic minorities and women. A new study conducted by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene demonstrates the notable success of the campaign. Results show a 20-percentage point jump in colonoscopy screenings among all New Yorkers ages 50 and older and the elimination of disparities across several demographic populations.

Full study findings are published online in the American Journal of Gastroenterology and featured in their highlights of important findings called the Red Section.

Results from the study show that the number of New Yorkers aged 50 years and older who reported at least one colonoscopy screening within the past 10 years increased from 41.7% in 2003 to 61.7% in 2007. Timely colonoscopy screenings for six categories of New Yorkers race/ethnicity, sex, insurance status, poverty level, education and age -- show disparities eliminated over the five-year study span among non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics as well as a 29-percentage point increase over time for screening among Asians.

While men had a higher rate of colonoscopies when the campaign was introduced in 2003, women closed the gap: their screening rate rose 22.3%, as opposed to a 16.7% increase among men.

The campaign to improve colonoscopy rates in NYC was developed by Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOH) in collaboration with the Citywide Colon Cancer Control Coalition. It included media campaigns on subways, ethnic radio stations and at check cashing sites, plus an outreach through the medical community. Health Department epidemiologists, evaluated the effectiveness of the Coalition's campaign to increase screening and were also co-authors of the paper.

Other components included an expanded capacity for colonoscopy at the public hospital system and streamlined colonoscopy referral system.

Data were analyzed from the Community Health Survey (CHS), a population-based, random telephone survey of New Yorkers that has been administered annually since 2002 by the NYC DOHMH.

The study also shows that the affluent and the well-educated continue to have the highest and fastest-growing rates of colonoscopies. Between 2003 and 2007, the greatest increase was among New Yorkers who are U.S.-born, college-educated, 65 years and older, and living at 200% of the federal poverty level or. In 2007, New Yorkers with household incomes below $25,000 had a colonoscopy screening rate of 34%, vs. 59% among those with household incomes above $75,000. Adults with high household incomes600% of the federal poverty level or morecontinued to have a much higher prevalence of timely colonoscopy screening than all other income groups (73.3%).

Over time, disparities for adults with private or government-provided insurance also disappeared. However, those without insurance continued to lag -- 43.3% reported a colonoscopy screening compared to 66.8% of the privately insured, although colonoscopy screening rates among the uninsured were a mere 15% in 2003.

"These analyses show how successful the Health Department and its partners have been in closing the cancer screening gap among racial and ethnic groups across New York City, although the screening rate in the Asian population remained low," said Dr. Bonnie Kerker, senior epidemiology and policy advisor at the Department of Health. "Since this analysis was done, however, the screening rate among Asians has increased from 53.6% percent in 2007 to 66.7 percent in 2010, a rate comparable to that among whites (68.5 percent)."

"Though there are still challenges for the uninsured, we were pleased to see that the New York City's campaign paid off, eliminating racial, ethnic and sex disparities in the use of colonoscopies. " noted Catherine Richards of the Mailman School of Public Health's Department of Epidemiology and lead author of the study. "Still, this improvement will become meaningful only if we see a corresponding reduction in deaths from colon cancer. This will need to be assessed in future studies."

###

About Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health

Founded in 1922 as one of the first three public health academies in the nation, Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting New Yorkers, the nation and the world. The Mailman School is the third largest recipient of NIH grants among schools of public health. Its over 300 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as preventing infectious and chronic diseases, environmental health, maternal and child health, health policy, climate change & health, and public health preparedness. It is a leader in public health education with over 1,000 graduate students from more than 40 nations pursuing a variety of master's and doctoral degree programs. The Mailman School is also home to numerous world-renowned research centers including the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs (ICAP), the National Center for Disaster Preparedness, and the Center for Infection and Immunity. For more information, please visit http://www.mailman.columbia.edu



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Colon cancer screening campaign erases racial, gender gaps in use of colonoscopy [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 18-Nov-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Stephanie Berger
sb2247@columbia.edu
212-305-4372
Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health

Model NYC program aims to address growing disparities in colon cancer mortality rates

Since the 1970s, U.S. mortality rates due to colorectal cancer have declined overall, yet among blacks and Hispanics, the death rates rose. Evidence suggests that underuse of colonoscopy screening among these groups is one reason for the large disparities. In 2003, New York City launched a multifaceted campaign to improve colonoscopy rates among racial and ethnic minorities and women. A new study conducted by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene demonstrates the notable success of the campaign. Results show a 20-percentage point jump in colonoscopy screenings among all New Yorkers ages 50 and older and the elimination of disparities across several demographic populations.

Full study findings are published online in the American Journal of Gastroenterology and featured in their highlights of important findings called the Red Section.

Results from the study show that the number of New Yorkers aged 50 years and older who reported at least one colonoscopy screening within the past 10 years increased from 41.7% in 2003 to 61.7% in 2007. Timely colonoscopy screenings for six categories of New Yorkers race/ethnicity, sex, insurance status, poverty level, education and age -- show disparities eliminated over the five-year study span among non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics as well as a 29-percentage point increase over time for screening among Asians.

While men had a higher rate of colonoscopies when the campaign was introduced in 2003, women closed the gap: their screening rate rose 22.3%, as opposed to a 16.7% increase among men.

The campaign to improve colonoscopy rates in NYC was developed by Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOH) in collaboration with the Citywide Colon Cancer Control Coalition. It included media campaigns on subways, ethnic radio stations and at check cashing sites, plus an outreach through the medical community. Health Department epidemiologists, evaluated the effectiveness of the Coalition's campaign to increase screening and were also co-authors of the paper.

Other components included an expanded capacity for colonoscopy at the public hospital system and streamlined colonoscopy referral system.

Data were analyzed from the Community Health Survey (CHS), a population-based, random telephone survey of New Yorkers that has been administered annually since 2002 by the NYC DOHMH.

The study also shows that the affluent and the well-educated continue to have the highest and fastest-growing rates of colonoscopies. Between 2003 and 2007, the greatest increase was among New Yorkers who are U.S.-born, college-educated, 65 years and older, and living at 200% of the federal poverty level or. In 2007, New Yorkers with household incomes below $25,000 had a colonoscopy screening rate of 34%, vs. 59% among those with household incomes above $75,000. Adults with high household incomes600% of the federal poverty level or morecontinued to have a much higher prevalence of timely colonoscopy screening than all other income groups (73.3%).

Over time, disparities for adults with private or government-provided insurance also disappeared. However, those without insurance continued to lag -- 43.3% reported a colonoscopy screening compared to 66.8% of the privately insured, although colonoscopy screening rates among the uninsured were a mere 15% in 2003.

"These analyses show how successful the Health Department and its partners have been in closing the cancer screening gap among racial and ethnic groups across New York City, although the screening rate in the Asian population remained low," said Dr. Bonnie Kerker, senior epidemiology and policy advisor at the Department of Health. "Since this analysis was done, however, the screening rate among Asians has increased from 53.6% percent in 2007 to 66.7 percent in 2010, a rate comparable to that among whites (68.5 percent)."

"Though there are still challenges for the uninsured, we were pleased to see that the New York City's campaign paid off, eliminating racial, ethnic and sex disparities in the use of colonoscopies. " noted Catherine Richards of the Mailman School of Public Health's Department of Epidemiology and lead author of the study. "Still, this improvement will become meaningful only if we see a corresponding reduction in deaths from colon cancer. This will need to be assessed in future studies."

###

About Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health

Founded in 1922 as one of the first three public health academies in the nation, Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting New Yorkers, the nation and the world. The Mailman School is the third largest recipient of NIH grants among schools of public health. Its over 300 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as preventing infectious and chronic diseases, environmental health, maternal and child health, health policy, climate change & health, and public health preparedness. It is a leader in public health education with over 1,000 graduate students from more than 40 nations pursuing a variety of master's and doctoral degree programs. The Mailman School is also home to numerous world-renowned research centers including the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs (ICAP), the National Center for Disaster Preparedness, and the Center for Infection and Immunity. For more information, please visit http://www.mailman.columbia.edu



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/cums-ccs111811.php

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শুক্রবার, ১৮ নভেম্বর, ২০১১

Official says Wagner not a suspect in Wood death (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? Actor Robert Wagner is not a suspect in the 30-year-old drowning of his actress wife, Natalie Wood, and there is nothing to indicate a crime, even though the investigation has been reopened, a sheriff's detective said Friday.

"Her death was an accident, an accidental drowning," said Sheriff's Lt. John Corina.

Officials would not say why they were taking another look at the case, although the captain of the boat where the couple had stayed blamed Wagner for Wood's death.

There have always been questions about Wood's death on Nov. 29, 1981, with renewed attention on the case as the anniversary neared. The case's re-opening and a public call for information are the first hint that the official account may need revision.

Within hours of the announcement, Corina said, several people emerged offering their recollections of what happened in the waters off Southern California's Santa Catalina Island.

But he quickly noted that nothing the agency has received so far has prompted it to change the view that there was no foul play.

The boat's captain, Dennis Davern, said Friday on NBC's "Today" show that he lied to investigators about events on the yacht Splendour when he was interviewed after Wood's death.

Davern accused Wagner of having a fight with Wood before she went missing and delaying the search for her after she disappeared.

Wagner's family released a statement through a spokesman that said they trusted detectives to evaluate any new information and determine whether it came from "a credible source or sources other than those simply trying to profit from the 30-year anniversary of her tragic death."

It did not mention Davern by name, and noted that detectives hadn't contacted Wagner or his family.

On the show, Davern mentioned a book he co-wrote last year on Wood's death, but refused to say precisely why he blamed Wagner for the three-time Oscar nominee's death. Davern also denied that he was seeking to profit from interest in the case.

Vanity Fair and the television program "48 Hours Mystery" have teamed up and are including Wood's case for a television special airing this weekend.

Corina said his agency would talk to Davern at some point and other witnesses would likely be interviewed. He downplayed the role Davern's book or the anniversary would play on the investigation.

"We're not concerned with the anniversary date," Corina said. "It may have jarred some other people's memories."

Wood, who was 43 when she died, received three Academy Award nominations, for "Rebel Without a Cause," "Splendor in the Grass" and "Love with the Proper Stranger." She appeared in numerous other Hollywood classics, including "West Side Story."

Wood and Wagner were married twice, first in 1957 before divorcing six years later. They remarried in 1972. Her death during the Thanksgiving weekend in 1981 has long sparked tabloid speculation that foul play was involved.

Wood, Wagner and actor Christopher Walken and Davern spent time on Thanksgiving weekend 1981 both on Catalina Island and drinking on the yacht.

Wagner has dismissed any suggestion that the actress' death was anything more than an accident. In a 2008 autobiography, he recounted drinking with Wood and Walken at a restaurant and on the boat.

Wood went to the master cabin during an argument between the two men, Wagner said. The last time Wagner saw his wife, she was fixing her hair at a bathroom vanity and she shut the door, he wrote.

Despite various theories about what led Wood to the water, which she feared, he said, it was impossible to know what happened.

"Nobody knows," he wrote. "There are only two possibilities; either she was trying to get away from the argument, or she was trying to tie the dinghy. But the bottom line is that nobody knows exactly what happened."

Coroner's officials said at the time that she was "possibly attempting to board the dinghy and had fallen into the water, striking her face."

Wood was found wearing a flannel nightgown, socks and a red down jacket, and Davern identified her body for authorities, according to an autopsy report. Her body had superficial bruises, according to the report, but those were considered consistent with drowning.

Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter said the agency hadn't been asked to do any additional investigation into Wood's case.

Wagner, star of the television series "Hart to Hart," wrote in his book that he blamed himself for his wife's death.

"Did I blame myself? If I had been there, I could have done something," he wrote. "But I wasn't there. I didn't see her."

___

Associated Press writer Alicia Rancilio contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/movies/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111119/ap_en_mo/us_natalie_wood_investigation

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Postcard On The Run Raises $750k, Makes An Investor Out Of Selena Gomez

SelgoOh, you didn't hear? Tech investments are all the rage in celebrity circles these days. Purse-sized puppies? Meh. Crazy outfits at awards shows? Over it! Participation in an early stage funding round? SO IN! Ashton Kutcher has Airbnb (and Likealittle, HipMunk, Grubwithus, etc.). Gaga has Backplane. Leo has Mobli. The latest A-lister to go A-ngel: actress/singer/Bieber's belle Selena Gomez, with an investment in Postcard On The Run.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/zbJX6P3J9dI/

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Fund backs cervical cancer vaccine in poor nations (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? The GAVI international immunizations group has agreed to fund the roll-out of vaccines against cervical cancer in developing countries, offering protection against a disease that kills one woman every two minutes.

Nearly 90 percent of the 275,000 deaths every year occur in poor nations, where cervical screening programs that are routine in rich nations are virtually non-existent.

The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation said up to 2 million girls in nine developing countries could be protected from cervical cancer by 2015 under the program, which still depends on negotiating a final price deal with manufacturers.

Nina Schwalbe, its managing director for policy and performance, said discussions were ongoing with the makers of the world's two approved HPV vaccines, Merck & Co Inc and GlaxoSmithKline Plc.

Human papillomavirus, or HPV, is a sexually transmitted virus that causes most cases of cervical cancer.

Adolescent girls are commonly vaccinated against HPV in Europe and the United States but the greatest need for the vaccine is actually in the developing world, where the burden of disease is far higher.

"For women in developing countries this is the only option," Schwalbe said in a telephone interview from Dhaka, where a GAVI board meeting gave the green light to the initiative.

"The introduction of an HPV vaccine is a major public breakthrough -- but to date this vaccine has only been available for women who live in developed countries."

For GAVI, which was set up a decade ago with backing from governments and Microsoft Corp co-founder Bill Gates, the decision to back HPV vaccination marks a step change, since until now it has been focused on vaccinating infants.

Merck's Gardasil and GSK's Cervarix are designed for use in girls aged between 10 and 13 years.

The first developing countries could be up and running with vaccination programs from 2013, with Rwanda and Vietnam -- both of which have conducted pilot vaccination programs -- likely to be among the first.

U.S. drugmaker Merck said earlier this year it would offer GAVI its Gardasil shot at a discounted price of $5 per dose, implying a cost of $15 for a three-dose course. Schwalbe described this as "a good starting offer."

Britain's GSK has not made a public price offer.

GAVI's move to close inequalities in access to HPV vaccination was welcomed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who also praised a separate plan by the Geneva-based group to open a funding window for vaccines against the rubella virus, which can lead to birth defects.

(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/cancer/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111117/hl_nm/us_cancer_hpv_vaccine

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