Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/17uohXnuYV4/
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Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Great Ideas! Laila Ali?s Kid-Friendly Oral Hygiene Tips
The mom of two shares some helpful ideas on how to get your kids excited about caring for their teeth.
Thanks to AT&T Performing Arts Center, Pearl Cup to become 'the ...
The pavilion next to the Winspear will be filled with Pearl Cup Coffee come this time next month.
How time flies: Back in May 2012 the AT&T Performing Arts Center announced it was building a $3.9-million information kiosk-slash-box office-slash-coffee shop between the Meyerson Symphony Center and the Winspear Opera House on Flora. Its opening is now but weeks away ? which is why the AT&T PAC today finally announced who?s getting the coffee concession: Pearl Cup Coffee.
?Pearl Cup has established itself as a local favorite for coffee lovers,? says Doug Curtis, AT&T PAC?s president and acting CEO, in the announcement that just landed in the in-box. ?It has a great reputation for quality and service and a strong commitment to the community. We are excited to have a locally owned company providing coffee in this very unique space.?
The cafe will serve the expected offerings: coffee, tea, pastries and assorted ?light fare.? Of course, one hopes this is just the beginning of the beginning ? because as this morning?s release notes, ?When it opens, Pearl Cup Coffee will be the only caf? located inside the Dallas Arts District.?
No doubt you?d like to know when it?ll be open.
Right now, per AT&T PAC spokesman Chris Heinbaugh, the Pearl Cup will open at 7:30 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays ? ?or one hour after a performance in the Arts District,? it just depends. On weekends, says the heads-up, ?Pearl Cup will open one hour before a matinee performance and two hours before an evening performance at the Center. It will close one hour after the performance.? It may also open for special events; that?s being worked out.
Of course, as we noted last year, this isn?t just a $4-million, Foster + Partners-designed coffee shop.
?The Center also provides free AT&T Wi-Fi, ping-pong and foosball tables,? says the release. ?Customers can also enjoy the free Thursday afternoon Patio Sessions concerts in the spring and fall.?
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Willem-Alexander becomes new Dutch king
AMSTERDAM (AP) ? Queen Beatrix has signed the official act of abdication at the Royal Palace in downtown Amsterdam, making her eldest son Willem-Alexander the first Dutch king in more than 100 years.
The much-loved Beatrix ended her 33-year-reign Tuesday in a nationally televised signing ceremony as thousands of orange-clad people cheered outside and millions more watched on television.
With her abdication, she becomes Princess Beatrix and her son ascends the throne as King Willem-Alexander. He is the first Dutch king since Willem III died in 1890.
The 46-year-old father of three's popular Argentine-born wife becomes Queen Maxima and their eldest daughter, Catharina-Amalia, becomes Princess Orange and first in line to the throne.
Willem-Alexander gripped his visibly emotional mother's hand after they both signed the abdication document.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/willem-alexander-becomes-dutch-king-081540031.html
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Monday, April 29, 2013
Gigabit Internet In Vermont Is Cheaper Than Google Fiber
There have been vague rumblings
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In a first, black voter turnout rate passes whites
WASHINGTON (AP) ? America's blacks voted at a higher rate than other minority groups in 2012 and by most measures surpassed the white turnout for the first time, reflecting a deeply polarized presidential election in which blacks strongly supported Barack Obama while many whites stayed home.
Had people voted last November at the same rates they did in 2004, when black turnout was below its current historic levels, Republican Mitt Romney would have won narrowly, according to an analysis conducted for The Associated Press.
Census data and exit polling show that whites and blacks will remain the two largest racial groups of eligible voters for the next decade. Last year's heavy black turnout came despite concerns about the effect of new voter-identification laws on minority voting, outweighed by the desire to re-elect the first black president.
William H. Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, analyzed the 2012 elections for the AP using census data on eligible voters and turnout, along with November's exit polling. He estimated total votes for Obama and Romney under a scenario where 2012 turnout rates for all racial groups matched those in 2004. Overall, 2012 voter turnout was roughly 58 percent, down from 62 percent in 2008 and 60 percent in 2004.
The analysis also used population projections to estimate the shares of eligible voters by race group through 2030. The numbers are supplemented with material from the Pew Research Center and George Mason University associate professor Michael McDonald, a leader in the field of voter turnout who separately reviewed aggregate turnout levels across states, as well as AP interviews with the Census Bureau and other experts. The bureau is scheduled to release data on voter turnout in May.
Overall, the findings represent a tipping point for blacks, who for much of America's history were disenfranchised and then effectively barred from voting until passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965.
But the numbers also offer a cautionary note to both Democrats and Republicans after Obama won in November with a historically low percentage of white supporters. While Latinos are now the biggest driver of U.S. population growth, they still trail whites and blacks in turnout and electoral share, because many of the Hispanics in the country are children or noncitizens.
In recent weeks, Republican leaders have urged a "year-round effort" to engage black and other minority voters, describing a grim future if their party does not expand its core support beyond white males.
The 2012 data suggest Romney was a particularly weak GOP candidate, unable to motivate white voters let alone attract significant black or Latino support. Obama's personal appeal and the slowly improving economy helped overcome doubts and spur record levels of minority voters in a way that may not be easily replicated for Democrats soon.
Romney would have erased Obama's nearly 5 million-vote victory margin and narrowly won the popular vote if voters had turned out as they did in 2004, according to Frey's analysis. Then, white turnout was slightly higher and black voting lower.
More significantly, the battleground states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Florida and Colorado would have tipped in favor of Romney, handing him the presidency if the outcome of other states remained the same.
"The 2012 turnout is a milestone for blacks and a huge potential turning point," said Andra Gillespie, a political science professor at Emory University who has written extensively on black politicians. "What it suggests is that there is an 'Obama effect' where people were motivated to support Barack Obama. But it also means that black turnout may not always be higher, if future races aren't as salient."
Whit Ayres, a GOP consultant who is advising GOP Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a possible 2016 presidential contender, says the last election reaffirmed that the Republican Party needs "a new message, a new messenger and a new tone." Change within the party need not be "lock, stock and barrel," Ayres said, but policy shifts such as GOP support for broad immigration legislation will be important to woo minority voters over the longer term.
"It remains to be seen how successful Democrats are if you don't have Barack Obama at the top of the ticket," he said.
___
In Ohio, a battleground state where the share of eligible black voters is more than triple that of other minorities, 27-year-old Lauren Howie of Cleveland didn't start out thrilled with Obama in 2012. She felt he didn't deliver on promises to help students reduce college debt, promote women's rights and address climate change, she said. But she became determined to support Obama as she compared him with Romney.
"I got the feeling Mitt Romney couldn't care less about me and my fellow African-Americans," said Howie, an administrative assistant at Case Western Reserve University's medical school who is paying off college debt.
Howie said she saw some Romney comments as insensitive to the needs of the poor. "A white Mormon swimming in money with offshore accounts buying up companies and laying off their employees just doesn't quite fit my idea of a president," she said. "Bottom line, Romney was not someone I was willing to trust with my future."
The numbers show how population growth will translate into changes in who votes over the coming decade:
?The gap between non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black turnout in 2008 was the smallest on record, with voter turnout at 66.1 percent and 65.2 percent, respectively; turnout for Latinos and non-Hispanic Asians trailed at 50 percent and 47 percent. Rough calculations suggest that in 2012, 2 million to 5 million fewer whites voted compared with 2008, even though the pool of eligible white voters had increased.
?Unlike other minority groups, the rise in voting for the slow-growing black population is due to higher turnout. While blacks make up 12 percent of the share of eligible voters, they represented 13 percent of total 2012 votes cast, according to exit polling. That was a repeat of 2008, when blacks "outperformed" their eligible voter share for the first time on record.
?White voters also outperformed their eligible vote share, but not at the levels seen in years past. In 2012, whites represented 72 percent of total votes cast, compared to their 71.1 percent eligible vote share. As recently as 2004, whites typically outperformed their eligible vote share by at least 2 percentage points. McDonald notes that in 2012, states with significant black populations did not experience as much of a turnout decline as other states. That would indicate a lower turnout for whites last November since overall voter turnout declined.
?Latinos now make up 17 percent of the population but 11 percent of eligible voters, due to a younger median age and lower rates of citizenship and voter registration. Because of lower turnout, they represented just 10 percent of total 2012 votes cast. Despite their fast growth, Latinos aren't projected to surpass the share of eligible black voters until 2024, when each group will be roughly 13 percent. By then, 1 in 3 eligible voters will be nonwhite.
?In 2026, the total Latino share of voters could jump to as high as 16 percent, if nearly 11 million immigrants here illegally become eligible for U.S. citizenship. Under a proposed bill in the Senate, those immigrants would have a 13-year path to citizenship. The share of eligible white voters could shrink to less than 64 percent in that scenario. An estimated 80 percent of immigrants here illegally, or 8.8 million, are Latino, although not all will meet the additional requirements to become citizens.
"The 2008 election was the first year when the minority vote was important to electing a U.S. president. By 2024, their vote will be essential to victory," Frey said. "Democrats will be looking at a landslide going into 2028 if the new Hispanic voters continue to favor Democrats."
___
Even with demographics seeming to favor Democrats in the long term, it's unclear whether Obama's coalition will hold if blacks or younger voters become less motivated to vote or decide to switch parties.
Minority turnout tends to drop in midterm congressional elections, contributing to larger GOP victories as happened in 2010, when House control flipped to Republicans.
The economy and policy matter. Exit polling shows that even with Obama's re-election, voter support for a government that does more to solve problems declined from 51 percent in 2008 to 43 percent last year, bolstering the view among Republicans that their core principles of reducing government are sound.
The party's "Growth and Opportunity Project" report released last month by national leaders suggests that Latinos and Asians could become more receptive to GOP policies once comprehensive immigration legislation is passed.
Whether the economy continues its slow recovery also will shape voter opinion, including among blacks, who have the highest rate of unemployment.
Since the election, optimism among nonwhites about the direction of the country and the economy has waned, although support for Obama has held steady. In an October AP-GfK poll, 63 percent of nonwhites said the nation was heading in the right direction; that's dropped to 52 percent in a new AP-GfK poll. Among non-Hispanic whites, however, the numbers are about the same as in October, at 28 percent.
Democrats in Congress merit far lower approval ratings among nonwhites than does the president, with 49 percent approving of congressional Democrats and 74 percent approving of Obama.
William Galston, a former policy adviser to President Bill Clinton, says that in previous elections where an enduring majority of voters came to support one party, the president winning re-election ? William McKinley in 1900, Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936 and Ronald Reagan in 1984 ? attracted a larger turnout over his original election and also received a higher vote total and a higher share of the popular vote. None of those occurred for Obama in 2012.
Only once in the last 60 years has a political party been successful in holding the presidency more than eight years ? Republicans from 1980-1992.
"This doesn't prove that Obama's presidency won't turn out to be the harbinger of a new political order," Galston says. "But it does warrant some analytical caution."
Early polling suggests that Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton could come close in 2016 to generating the level of support among nonwhites as Obama did in November, when he won 80 percent of their vote. In a Fox News poll in February, 75 percent of nonwhites said they thought Clinton would make a good president, outpacing the 58 percent who said that about Vice President Joe Biden.
Benjamin Todd Jealous, president of the NAACP, predicts closely fought elections in the near term and worries that GOP-controlled state legislatures will step up efforts to pass voter ID and other restrictions to deter blacks and other minorities from voting. In 2012, courts blocked or delayed several of those voter ID laws and African-Americans were able to turn out in large numbers only after a very determined get-out-the-vote effort by the Obama campaign and black groups, he said.
Jealous says the 2014 midterm election will be the real bellwether for black turnout. "Black turnout set records this year despite record attempts to suppress the black vote," he said.
___
AP Director of Polling Jennifer Agiesta and News Survey Specialist Dennis Junius contributed to this report.
EDITOR'S NOTE _ "America at the Tipping Point: The Changing Face of a Nation" is an occasional series examining the cultural mosaic of the U.S. and its historic shift to a majority-minority nation.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/first-black-voter-turnout-rate-passes-whites-115957314.html
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LG Optimus GK brings things back down to a more manageable 5 inches
Think Optimus G Pro, only smaller, and only in South Korea for now
LG tonight has announced the Optimus GK, basically taking the better parts of the LG Optimus G Pro and scaling things down into a slightly more manageable 5-inch form factor in line with its recently release national cousin, the Samsung Galaxy S4.
The Optimus GK is a tad taller and thicker than the Galaxy S4 -- and as of this announcement it's only destined for South Korea. But we've been pleasantly surprised by the larger Optimus G Pro, and chances are its little brother will be equally well-designed. It's got a 5-inch IPS display at 1,080 by 1,920 resolution, a 3,100 mAh battery and is running Android 4.1.2 on a Snapdragon 600 platform.
Plus, this one's got the same Photosphere feature -- called VR Panorama here -- as the Optimus G Pro (thanks, LG, but license that thing out already!) as well as the dual video recording that was first made available in an update for the Optimus G Pro and is also a feature on on the Galaxy S4. Yes, the back-and-forth feature battle is alive and well in the southern part of the Korean peninsula.
So if you're looking forward to AT&T's upcoming Optimus G Pro this week (we'll be at Wednesday's launch event in New York City, by the way) but don't want that oversized form factor, this might be the phone for you. Just hang tight and hope we get it here in the states.
Hit the link below for the full translation, and keep on keepin' on for the full specs.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/E0WAlu-vPCU/story01.htm
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Turtle genome analysis sheds light on turtle ancestry and shell evolution
Apr. 28, 2013 ? From which ancestors have turtles evolved? How did they get their shell? New data provided by the Joint International Turtle Genome Consortium, led by researchers from RIKEN in Japan, BGI in China, and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in the UK provides evidence that turtles are not primitive reptiles but belong to a sister group of birds and crocodiles. The work also sheds light on the evolution of the turtle's intriguing morphology and reveals that the turtle's shell evolved by recruiting genetic information encoding for the limbs.
Turtles are often described as evolutionary monsters, with a unique body plan and a shell that is considered to be one of the most intriguing structures in the animal kingdom.
"Turtles are interesting because they offer an exceptional case to understand the big evolutionary changes that occurred in vertebrate history," explains Dr. Naoki Irie, from the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, who led the study.
Using next-generation DNA sequencers, the researchers from 9 international institutions have decoded the genome of the green sea turtle and Chinese soft-shell turtle and studied the expression of genetic information in the developing turtle.
Their results published in Nature Genetics show that turtles are not primitive reptiles as previously thought, but are related to the group comprising birds and crocodilians, which also includes extinct dinosaurs. Based on genomic information, the researchers predict that turtles must have split from this group around 250 million years ago, during one of the largest extinction events ever to take place on this planet.
"We expect that this research will motivate further work to elucidate the possible causal connection between these events," says Dr. Irie.
The study also reveals that despite their unique anatomy, turtles follow the basic embryonic pattern during development. Rather than developing directly into a turtle-specific body shape with a shell, they first establish the vertebrates' basic body plan and then enter a turtle-specific development phase. During this late specialization phase, the group found traces of limb-related gene expression in the embryonic shell, which indicates that the turtle shell evolved by recruiting part of the genetic program used for the limbs.
"The work not only provides insight into how turtles evolved, but also gives hints as to how the vertebrate developmental programs can be changed to produce major evolutionary novelties." explains Dr. Irie.
Another unexpected finding of the study was that turtles possess a large number of olfactory receptors and must therefore have the ability to smell a wide variety of substances. The researchers identified more than 1000 olfactory receptors in the soft-shell turtle, which is one of the largest numbers ever to be found in a non-mammalian vertebrate.
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Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by RIKEN, via AlphaGalileo.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
- Zhuo Wang, Juan Pascual-Anaya, Amonida Zadissa, Wenqi Li, Yoshihito Niimura, Zhiyong Huang, Chunyi Li, Simon White, Zhiqiang Xiong, Dongming Fang, Bo Wang, Yao Ming, Yan Chen, Yuan Zheng, Shigehiro Kuraku, Miguel Pignatelli, Javier Herrero, Kathryn Beal, Masafumi Nozawa, Qiye Li, Juan Wang, Hongyan Zhang, Lili Yu, Shuji Shigenobu, Junyi Wang, Jiannan Liu, Paul Flicek, Steve Searle, Jun Wang, Shigeru Kuratani, Ye Yin, Bronwen Aken, Guojie Zhang, Naoki Irie. The draft genomes of soft-shell turtle and green sea turtle yield insights into the development and evolution of the turtle-specific body plan. Nature Genetics, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/ng.2615
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/8zHOVHrvis0/130428144848.htm
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"Trombone Shorty" carries on New Orleans jazz tradition
By Kathy Finn
NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Musician Troy Andrews, better known as "Trombone Shorty," witnessed his first New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival at age 12 - not from the viewing area but on stage.
"I was playing with my brother's brass band," said Andrews, now 27.
At this year's New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Andrews will be given a high honor. He will perform for the first time as the closing act of the final day on the biggest stage. That time slot previously had long been occupied by one of New Orleans' most famous bands, the Neville Brothers.
The festival, which began Friday and ends May 5, has music lovers filling the walkways linking 12 stages arranged across 150 acres of the festival grounds, not far from downtown.
During the next two weekends, some 500 bands will perform at the festival, including a sprinkling of big names from Billy Joel, Dave Matthews and Adam Levine to Jill Scott, George Benson and Willie Nelson.
The stars will help draw some 400,000 people through the gates over the seven days of the festival, but many fans are interested in less famous local performers such as Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue, Rebirth Brass Band, Irvin Mayfield, Anders Osborne and Tab Benoit, among the 400-plus bands in the lineup that hail from New Orleans and the surrounding area.
"I can't believe the mix of music here," said Keith Oliver, who came to the festival from Richmond, Virginia.
"I don't know where else you could hear great blues, jazz, gospel and all the rest all in one place," Oliver said as he and his wife merged into the sea of flowered shirts and sun hats heading for the next stage.
Festival producer and director Quint Davis said the festival showcases New Orleans' "musical DNA."
"People in New Orleans are wired different for music," he said. "It's not just entertainment here, it's sustenance. It's like po-boys and fried oysters - we can't live without it."
Davis, in his 44th year of producing the festival, said he continues to be impressed by the depth of the local talent pool. That enables him to book one out-of-town headliner per day on each stage and fill all the remaining slots with Louisiana bands in genres including jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, hip-hop, Cajun, zydeco, Latin and Caribbean.
PASSING IT ON
Davis said what distinguishes the New Orleans sound has to do with history.
"No matter what genre they're playing, a lot of this music has been passed through many generations," he said.
Trombone Shorty, one of the hottest musical artists in New Orleans, is an example of that history. His brother gave Andrews his nickname years ago, he said.
Andrews wields a trumpet as easily as the trombone and is also skilled at keyboards, drums and songwriting. His music mingles jazz, funk, hip-hop and soul in high-energy compositions that rev up audiences on frequent tours that take him across the country and abroad.
Andrews has played at the festival nearly every year since his first appearance, and this year, Davis contacted him about performing in the final festival slot.
"Quint Davis sent me a text saying it could be time for the passing of the torch and he asked if I'm ready," Andrews said, recalling how the scheduling came about.
Landing the time slot "is a dream come true" for a young man who grew up among the city's most famous musicians.
Andrews' grandfather, R&B singer-songwriter Jessie Hill, made musical waves in the 1960s working with Ike and Tina Turner, Sonny and Cher and New Orleans artist Dr. John.
Andrews' uncle played in Fats Domino's band "way before my time," he said, "and just about every brass band in the city had a member of my family in it."
As a kid growing up in the Treme neighborhood, Andrews hung out with the Neville family and often "sat in" when the Neville Brothers played around town. "I was put on so many different musical stages growing up that I didn't think about what kind of music we played," he said. "I just thought music was music."
Andrews said he was keenly aware that local musicians have a responsibility to pass musical styles from one generation to another.
"When I was younger, we all wanted to play like Rebirth (Brass Band), but people in the neighborhood said before you can play like that, you've got to learn some traditional music so you can understand how Rebirth got where they are," he said.
Now, he's helping his younger cousins, who are anxious to follow in his musical footsteps.
"It's what we've been taught to do," Andrews said. "We have to let the younger generations take our music - and approach it the way they want - but just teach them where it all comes from."
(This story is corrected to Adam Levine from Adam Lambert in paragraph 5)
(Editing By Brendan O'Brien, Greg McCune and Bill Trott)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/trombone-shorty-carries-orleans-jazz-tradition-143751844.html
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Sunday, April 28, 2013
B. Draper's pair dominating Ladbrokes Scottish Derby 2013 Heat 1 ...
B. Draper?s pair dominating Ladbrokes Scottish Derby 2013 Heat 1
Months of wait comes to an end. Time has come for one of the biggest entertainments of the season, as Ladbrokes Scottish Derby 2013 begins at Shawfield on Saturday, April 27, 2013. A long list of powerful hounds will be seen in the first round, and some real drama is expected.
The opening heat is particularly exciting. Among the contenders are: Ballymac Eske, Eden Star, Teejays Bluehawk, Calzaghe Jack, Rokka Lucy, and Greenwell Thor. The contest will be kicked off at 20:34 GMT. The winner will earn a place in the next round as well as a prize of 150 pounds.
All the six contestants are mighty dangerous, but the real competition is only between B. Draper?s pair; Eden Star and Ballymac Eske. Both dogs are mighty talented, and a thrilling contest is expected.
Our vote goes to Ballymac Eske, who looks simply awesome in full flight and can master kennelmate. The fawn dog was superb in his previous appearance last month, when beating Jaytee Hellcat by seven and a quarter lengths.
The September-10 hound did not relax after an amazing performance, and continued the hard work. He recently made three wonderful solo outings, showing great momentum. Confidence is high, and there is no reason why he should not bag the first prize.
Wearing red jacket, Eden Star is likely to chase the kennelmate home. The black and white suffered a shock defeat in the Trial Stake, but one should not judge him on that. Just have a look at his CV in 2011.
The son of Top Savings also gained good rhythm by making a few nice solo rides lately. All he needs is to take advantage of the first trap. Otherwise, he might find his kennelmate going too far away.
Teejays Bluehawk comes home well, but B. Draper?s duo is unlikely to give him any chance whatsoever. Calzaghe Jack is going the right way, in with the big boys now. Greenwell Thor warmed up for the event with a bold win over T1, but a repeat is unlikely. Rokka Lucy pitched in at the deep end on his debut. It is hard to expect him to make a winning move.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and do not reflect Bettor.com's editorial policy.
Source: http://blogs.bettor.com/B-Drapers-pair-dominating-Ladbrokes-Scottish-Derby-2013-Heat-1-a214873
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Friday, April 26, 2013
Time to negotiate for a raise? Here's how. - Ask Annie -Fortune ...
FORTUNE -- Dear Annie: The article that appeared on your site about Gen Y women closing the pay gap resonated with me, because I am a 26-year-old female e-commerce manager making about 20% less than I'm worth on the open market -- at least, according to all the research I've done (and two recruiters I've spoken with). What happened was, I accepted this job at a low salary in 2009 because I had only about a year of experience at that point and because, in the worst of the recession, I felt lucky to be working at all.
Since then, I've expanded our business significantly, hired and trained some real stars, and made other important contributions, but I've still gotten just the standard 2.5% annual raise everybody here gets, and I think I deserve more. I love working here and would rather not leave, but my negotiation skills are not so great, and budgets are still tight. Can you recommend any specific things to say to my boss, or not say? --?Just Jill
Dear J.J.: You're not the only one who's "not great" at negotiating. Regardless of their position, 36% of men say they "always" ask for more money when they feel they've earned it, says a recent poll by Salary.com -- which is more than the 26% of women who say they do, but still hardly a majority.
Moreover, it seems that tech professionals (including e-commerce managers) leave $4,300 or more per year on the table by accepting the first offer a hiring manager makes, according to a new report from tech job site Dice.com. National average pay for techies is $85,619, and, says this poll of 838 hiring managers, most candidates would get at least 5% ($4,300) more if they just asked for it. Only 18% of the managers surveyed said their initial offer is set in stone.
MORE: Wall Street isn't bowing to caps on pay
"The only explanation for the lack of haggling is fear," observes Tom Silver, a Dice.com senior vice president. He suggests that people calm their nerves by keeping in mind that "a negotiation is simply a discussion aimed at reaching an agreement, which both sides want."
That's especially true since, from your description, you sound like someone your company would prefer to keep around. "But attitude is key," says Stuart Diamond, who teaches a popular course on negotiating at The Wharton School and wrote a book called Getting More: How You Can Negotiate to Succeed in Work and Life. "Going in as the injured party and being negative will not work. You have to be positive and upbeat."
You also have to be "collaborative," he adds. "Be ready to acknowledge, at some point in the conversation, that budgets are tight. Say something like, 'I know it must be tough for you with so many people wanting more money.' The last thing you want is to make your boss uncomfortable." A little empathy can go a long way.
Then, Diamond recommends these four tactics:
1. Ask the right questions. "First, ask your boss to tell you her perception of your work," Diamond says. "Then ask whether she thinks you're worth more than you're making. Explain that you know you're underpaid relative to the market outside the company, but are you also making less than other people of similar rank inside the company?"
You should also ask what the company's criteria are for giving bigger raises than the across-the-board 2.5%. "Seek out the standards they use," says Diamond. If that information isn't forthcoming, "focus on the company's needs in the future. Ask, 'What can I do for you going forward that would be worth the kind of raise I'm requesting?' The answer commits your boss to a standard and gives you something to shoot for." It might also be the basis for a performance bonus down the line.
2. Don't make it personal. "Instead of saying, 'I'm worth more than a 2.5% raise,' talk about what the job is worth" -- for example, how much your department contributes to revenues and profits. Says Diamond, "The conversation should center on the work, not on you. The less personal you make it, the easier it will be for your boss to justify a bigger raise to the people upstairs."
3. Be prepared to think incrementally. It's unlikely you'll get a 20% raise all at once. "So try for a smaller amount now and more later on," Diamond suggests. "The best negotiators don't have a home-run mentality. They go for lots of little wins. Bunts and singles are what win ball games."
4. Consider intangibles. Assuming the pay hike you're offered (for now) is a small one, have a few other possibilities in mind. "Be ready to ask for something else besides money that matters to you," Diamond says. Maybe it's extra vacation time, a window office, a health club membership, or the chance to telecommute a couple of days a week -- whatever would help close the pay gap, in your mind, and that would be a relatively easy "yes" for your boss.
MORE: Truck stop royal family falls on hard times
What can you do (besides quit) if you still hear "no"? "Start keeping a list of specific accomplishments -- date, time, and task -- and write down at least two or three items a week," Diamond suggests. "In particular, be sure to include anything that saves the company money." This way, when you ask again in six months or a year, "you'll have a detailed record of your contributions, which is hard for any boss to say 'no' to." He adds: "This is one of the surest ways to hear 'yes,' yet very few people do it."
Good luck.
Talkback: If you've asked for a raise recently and gotten it, what worked for you? Leave a comment below.
Source: http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2013/04/25/time-to-negotiate-for-a-raise-heres-how/
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Wall Street climbs on earnings, but Exxon and 3M drag
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks edged higher on Thursday, as investors digested a raft of earnings and a drop in initial jobless claims, though declines in Dow components ExxonMobil and 3M Co capped the advance.
United Parcel Service Inc
Akamai Technologies Inc surged 18 percent to $42.59 as the best performer on the S&P 500 after the internet content delivery company posted first-quarter earnings above Wall Street estimates and forecast second-quarter results above analysts' expectations late on Wednesday.
"Investors coming into this earnings season were quite fearful, so even modestly positive news becomes great news and that is what we've experienced for the last several days," said Lawrence Creatura, portfolio manager at Federated Investors in Rochester, New York.
"It's probably a little early in the earnings season to talk about aggregate results but it's important to recognize that earnings are growing and so higher prices are deserved."
But declines in ExxonMobil and 3M Co briefly dragged the Dow into negative territory and curbed gains on the S&P 500.
ExxonMobil Corp
Fellow Dow component 3M Co
Economic data showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits in the latest week dropped 16,000 to a seasonally adjusted 339,000 versus expectations for 351,000.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 8.02 points, or 0.05 percent, to 14,684.32. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> added 4.48 points, or 0.28 percent, to 1,583.27. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> rose 18.60 points, or 0.57 percent, to 3,288.25.
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc
Qualcomm Inc
Companies expected to post earnings after the close include Amazon.com Inc and Starbucks
Verizon Communications Inc
Earnings season has been largely positive, with 68.4 percent of S&P 500 companies that have reported results through Wednesday morning beating expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data through Tuesday morning. Since 1994, 63 percent have surpassed estimates on average, while the beat rate is 67 percent for the past four quarters.
Analysts see earnings growth of 3.1 percent this quarter, up from expectations of 1.5 percent at the start of the month.
Revenues, however, have been disappointing, with only 40.1 percent of 119 reported companies having topped expectations, well short of the 62 percent average since 2002 and the 52 percent beat rate for the past four quarters.
(Editing by Bernadette Baum)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-index-futures-signal-slightly-higher-open-081750934--finance.html
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Lily Tomlin speaks up for elephants in documentary
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Lily Tomlin's admiration for elephants began when she met Ruby and Billy.
The zoo dwellers also sparked her desire to help improve the lives of elephants in captivity and the chances for survival of those in the wild. "An Apology to Elephants," a documentary produced and narrated by Tomlin, is one result. It debuted this week on HBO.
"I had done some animal activism" and donated money, Tomlin said, but becoming enlightened about elephants prompted her to focus on their plight.
The film is an unabashed polemic, calling for improved treatment of elephants in zoos and an end to the use of the animals as entertainment, which the film contends must invariably involve abuse. Circus operators do not have a say, although a zoo that has overhauled its elephant habitat weighs in.
"An Apology to Elephants" also outlines the animal's importance to ecosystems and the dangers faced by wild African and Asian elephants, including habitat destruction and poachers after their highly marketable tusks.
Last month, leading conservation groups warned that the illegal ivory trade is growing and is hastening the decline of Africa's already endangered elephant population.
"The elephants became so symbolic to me, the evidence (of their treatment) so clear, and I wanted to tie it together and show how inured we are to that around the planet," said Tomlin, an Oscar-nominated actress ("Nashville") and comedian.
Feld Entertainment, the parent company of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, said the film misrepresents its practices.
"Clearly, it's a distortion of the animal care we provide 24 hours a day, seven days a week for this magnificent species. We have a team of animal care professionals and veterinarians who spend their lives caring for these animals," said spokesman Stephen Payne.
The film also failed to include the company's conservation efforts that Feld said are international and done in concert with zoos and researchers. "As opposed to people who make one-off documentaries or protest, we put our money where our mouth is," Payne added.
The film's images are dramatic, some by contrast: We see a line of elephants silhouetted majestically against an orange African sun as well as a solitary pachyderm confined within a zoo enclosure. There also are disturbing shots, including elephants prodded by sharp-edged rods and footage of the 1903 death of a Coney Island elephant that, according to the film, had turned violent because of abuse. Thomas Edison agreed to electrocute the animal named Topsy to illustrate a certain type of current.
The film spotlights those who are working for elephants today, including the Oakland Zoo, which has implemented new methods of managing the animals, including more space to roam, and a Northern California wild animal sanctuary that helps remove elephants from circuses and zoos.
The grounds are home to elephants Gypsy and Wanda, who performed for the same circus before being split up. When the pair ended up 20 years later at the sanctuary, they "went crazy and are inseparable," said Pat Derby, the former animal trainer who co-founded the Performing Animal Welfare Society, or PAWS, which operates the sanctuary.
Their new life, in nature and without the demands of performing, represents her dream, Derby says in "An Apology to Elephants." The film is dedicated to Derby, who died in February of cancer at age 69.
"Knowing they have some days or even years of safety and peace and dignity, that's the big reward," said Derby in the documentary directed by Amy Schatz.
Tomlin said her hope is that people take heed of what elephants face. Her narration, written by her longtime partner, Jane Wagner, is measured and eloquent, but she's passionate in conversation as she decries "inequity and injustice and suffering" and encourages others to get involved.
"The first thing is to be conscious of the ivory trade. Don't foster anything like admiring ivory objects or people wanting them," she said. "Just to have that consciousness affects the movement of things. It takes years, but it's like getting people to wear seatbelts."
___
Online:
http://www.hbo.com
____
Lynn Elber is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. She can be reached at lelber(at)ap.org and on Twitter (at)lynnelber.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lily-tomlin-speaks-elephants-documentary-183256770.html
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Thursday, April 25, 2013
Political chaos enables elephant poachers to expand slaughter
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) ? Elephant meat is flooding food markets in villages near a famed wildlife reserve in Central African Republic one month after rebels believed to be involved in poaching overthrew the government, conservationists said Thursday.
The Dzanga-Sangha reserve in the rainforests of southwestern Central African Republic has been home to more than 3,400 forest elephants and features a world-renowned clearing where dozens gather each day.
Now the political chaos unleashed by a rebellion that overthrew Central African Republic's president of a decade has enabled elephant poachers to further their slaughter.
"Elephant poaching is on the increase and given the fact that Central African Republic for the moment is also in dire straits we are fearing for the worst in terms of people trying to look seriously for ivory," said Bas Huijbregts, head of policy for WWF's campaign against poaching in Central Africa.
Elephant meat is now being openly sold not only in the town of Bayanga near the reserve, but also in surrounding villages near the protected wildlife area, which is part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, he said.
"Given the total absence of any type of law enforcement and rule of law in the area, there is elephant meat all over the place," he said.
At least 40 elephants have been slain at Dzanga-Sangha since the rebels took power on March 24, said local residents, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals from the rebels operating in the area.
However, WWF said it was impossible to estimate how many animals may have been killed because there are currently no patrols going on in the forest to determine where the elephant carcasses may be.
Central African Republic's forest elephants have faced growing threats in recent years from Sudanese hunters on horseback who are making their way further and further south.
The poachers are used to killing elephants in savannah terrain though experts say they are increasingly adapting their methods to hunt elephants in the forest terrain of southern Central African Republic and in neighboring Cameroon.
The Sudanese hunters are now working in tandem with armed rebels from the group known as Seleka, which now has seized control of the federal government, anti-poaching rangers who have fled rebel-controlled areas told The Associated Press.
At least one notorious poacher has declared himself the local representative for Seleka.
Poachers are making greater inroads because of the near-anarchic state that has emerged in many parts of the country since President Francois Bozize was forced from power. Bozize, who himself took control in 2003 after a rebellion, fled into exile as thousands of armed rebels descended upon the capital in late March.
While their leader Michel Djotodia has been chosen to lead a transitional government, critics say he wields very little control over the rebels, who came together from several different groups with a common goal of ousting Bozize.
The rebels are blamed for rampant looting of hospitals and aid groups in the capital, and WWF said it has also had to evacuate its staff from the Dzanga-Sangha reserve after armed rebels looted their offices several times.
WWF said it is working with park staffers who have remained behind to try to secure the key areas inside the reserve despite threats to their personal safety. Those efforts may not be enough to protect elephants though if the situation continues to deteriorate.
"The worst case scenario that we could imagine," said Huijbregts of WWF, "is there would be no change in rule of law, and total anarchy would install itself."
___
Associated Press writer Jose Richard Pouamba in Bangui, Central African Republic, contributed to this report.
___
Online:
Dzanga Sangha Reserve: http://www.dzanga-sangha.org
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/central-african-republic-elephant-poaching-rises-191329985.html
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Discovery of wound-healing genes in flies could mitigate human skin ailments
Apr. 24, 2013 ? Biologists at UC San Diego have identified eight genes never before suspected to play a role in wound healing that are called into action near the areas where wounds occur.
Their discovery, detailed this week in the open-access journal PLOS ONE, was made in the laboratory fruit fly Drosophila. But the biologists say many of the same genes that regulate biological processes in the hard exoskeleton, or cuticle, of Drosophila also control processes in human skin. That makes them attractive candidates for new kinds of wound-healing drugs or other compounds that could be used to treat skin ailments.
"Many of the key molecules and proteins involved in Drosophila wound healing are involved in mammalian wound healing," says Rachel Patterson, the first author who published the paper with Michelle Juarez and William McGinnis, a professor of biology and interim dean of the Division of Biological Sciences. "The genetics of Drosophila are not as complicated as mammalian genetics, so it's easier to attribute specific biological functions to individual genes."
By puncturing the cuticle and epidermis of fruit fly embryos in their experiments, the researchers examined 84 genes that are turned on and 78 that are turned off as the fly embryo responds to healing. From these 162 genes, they identified eight genes that are expressed at either very low levels or not at all in most cells during development, but are activated near the puncture wounds.
The researchers were surprised to discover that an immune response begins as soon as the flies' cuticles and epidermis were punctured, releasing antimicrobial peptides and other compounds that prepare the embryo should bacteria or fungi enter the site of injury. The key to their technique was the use of trypsin, a member of a family of enzymes called serine proteases, which activates genes involved in wound healing. The next step is to see if these genes play a comparable role in humans.
"I think one amazing application of our studies may be to build a better bandage -- containing compounds to promote would healing," said Juarez, a former postdoctoral fellow in McGinnis's lab who is now an assistant medical professor at the City College of New York.
"Perhaps our results can be translated to existing human therapies by incorporating specific, regulated series proteases and antimicrobial peptides at the sites of diabetic ulcers or skin grafts for more efficient wound healing," said Patterson. She said her team's results might also have application to treating chronic skin diseases such as psoriasis, severe dry skin and eczema in which levels of these enzymes are known to be abnormal.
Funding for the study was provided by the National Institutes of Health (GM077197 and HD28315), a Developmental Biology of Neural Diseases Training grant, the Ray Thomas Edwards Fellowship and the family of Herbert Stern.
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Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California - San Diego. The original article was written by Kim McDonald.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
- Rachel A. Patterson, Michelle T. Juarez, Anita Hermann, Roman Sasik, Gary Hardiman, William McGinnis. Serine Proteolytic Pathway Activation Reveals an Expanded Ensemble of Wound Response Genes in Drosophila. PLoS ONE, 2013; 8 (4): e61773 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061773
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/bxJQx67OIcs/130424185203.htm
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Harvey Weinstein: Why I?m Happy to Finally Have a Son
"Sundays I wake up and I go, 'The game's on!' and [my daughters say], 'At the mall, you're driving us,'" the Oscar-winning producer, 61, joked Tuesday on CBS This Morning.
Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/-gzKHotS7Uc/
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BBC iPlayer radio app finally starts broadcasting on Android and Kindle devices (video)
While the iPhone didn't even have a built-in FM radio to replace, Android hardware from all the major players has started to forgo the radio tuner in the last few years. Fortunately, Beeb listeners (at least) can finally access the iPlayer radio app, which has made the leap across from iOS. Not only will you be able to install it on your Android smartphone, but also Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet series. The new app doesn't use Flash, given its absence on most up-to-date versions of Google's mobile OS, instead using HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) to deliver your weekly doses of Doctor Who.
Meanwhile, the radio app's design has been given a rethink for its Android debut, following the design and navigation notions of Google's homemade apps and hopefully making sense to any seasoned Android 4.0 user. The BBC's Executive Producer James Simcock explains exactly what's been done differently at the source, but if you're not a "reading" kind of... reader, there's a trailer after the break.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets
Source: BBC, BBC iPlayer radio (Google Play)
Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/Gv9R3iQSx_s/
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Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Ichiro comes up big as Yankees top Rays
Associated Press Sports
updated 10:43 p.m. ET April 23, 2013
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - Struggling Ichiro Suzuki came up big for the New York Yankees.
Suzuki hit a go-ahead two-run single in the ninth inning and the Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 Tuesday night.
"I haven't been able to do much, but hopefully things like this will help me get past it," Suzuki, who is hitting just .220 this season, said through a translator.
Robinson Cano ended AL Cy Young Award winner David Price's night with a leadoff single in the ninth. After Cano stole second on a pitch by Fernando Rodney that struck out Vernon Wells, pinch-hitter Travis Hafner was intentionally walked and Lyle Overbay walked to load the bases.
First baseman James Loney helped Rodney by making a sliding catch on Chris Stewart's foul ball, but Suzuki then drove in two for a 4-2 lead on a liner to center.
"We put some tough at-bats on some really tough pitchers," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.
Tampa Bay is winless in all five of Price's starts this year. The left-hander (0-2) allowed three runs and eight hits over eight-plus innings.
"I thought he threw the ball really well tonight, so if he throws the ball like that and we had scored four runs tonight, he walks away and feels like he was fantastic," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "But we don't score enough runs and he doesn't feel as good about himself. That's just how this baseball thing works."
The only other team to lose the first five starts made by a reigning Cy Young winner was the 1989 Minnesota Twins. They lost in Frank Viola's first seven starts before finally winning on May 9 that year.
A frustrated Price spent just about one minute talking with reporters after the game, saying that there is no satisfaction from what was called a better start and that he wanted to remain in the game.
"We're still 0-5 when I pitch, I don't feel good," Price said. "I want to be in that game. It's like it's my game to lose."
David Robertson (1-0) worked a perfect eighth before Mariano Rivera got his sixth save despite allowing Evan Longoria's leadoff homer.
Suzuki singled with one out in the eighth, went to third on Jayson Nix's single to left, and scored to get the Yankees even at 2 when Brett Gardner hit a grounder to second.
"I just had a feeling I could make it there," Suzuki said. "It was a steal and I was just running. I didn't see where he hit the ball but I heard it, and luckily when I looked up I saw the ball in front of me."
Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead in the seventh on Jose Molina's run-scoring single off Phil Hughes, who allowed two runs and six hits in seven innings.
"I felt like I had to pitch well," Hughes said. "Price wasn't going to continue the way he'd been throwing. I knew he was going to be tough, and I though the game was over in the seventh after making that bad pitch (to Molina). But thankfully the guys fought back hard and got us the win."
Ben Zobrist put the Rays up 1-0 on a first-inning sacrifice fly.
The Yankees tied it at 1 on Wells' RBI single in the fourth, but Price avoided further damage by getting a fly ball from Ben Francisco and Overbay's double-play grounder with runners on first and second with no outs.
Maddon's effort during the current homestand to keep his team loose Tuesday featured a cockatoo, which he had in clubhouse and later on his shoulder as he held his pregame media session. In previous games, Maddon had a DJ play music in the clubhouse and a magician do card tricks, and promised a big animal finale on Wednesday night when the homestand ends.
"Snakes are out," Maddon said. "I will not be in the clubhouse with a snake. Regardless of what people say, I'm not on board with that."
Yankees infielder Kevin Youkilis was out of the starting lineup for the third straight game with lower back tightness. Girardi expects Youkilis will also miss Wednesday's series finale.
NOTES: Price has given up six leads over his last three starts. ... New York SS Derek Jeter will be in a walking boot for a left ankle injury when rejoins the team Thursday at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees captain found out last Thursday that he fractured the ankle for a second time in six months. ... Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira (wrist) continues taking dry swings with a bat, but hasn't started hitting off a tee. ... Rivera met with a group of wounded soldiers and veterans before the game. The closer, who is retiring after the season, is taking part in events like that in road ballparks this year. ... Longoria has reached base in 34 straight games dating to last season.
? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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HBT: Justin Upton may lead the majors in home runs, but most of them have been solo shots. He still needs to prove he can drive in runners.
MLB-best Braves sweep?day-night with Rockies
DENVER (AP) - Jeff Francis was beaten by the home run ball in the opener of the day-night doubleheader. Jon Garland didn't fare much better for the Colorado Rockies in the nightcap against the Atlanta Braves.
Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/51640550/ns/sports-baseball/
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After Years Of Government Scrutiny Over Security Concerns, Huawei Says It's Quitting The U.S.
Huawei, the world's second-largest supplier of network gear by revenue, is pulling out of the U.S. after it sales efforts have been repeatedly stymied due to concerns over security. According to a report in the Financial Times, executive vice president Eric Xu said at the company's annual analyst summit yesterday that Huawei "is not interested in the U.S. market any more." He added that the company has been gradually shifting its focus away from the U.S. over the last year as it seeks to expand in other global markets.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/xQ0-4tBaeYc/
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Hundreds of tiny untethered surgical tools deployed in first animal biopsies
Apr. 23, 2013 ? By using swarms of untethered grippers, each as small as a speck of dust, Johns Hopkins engineers and physicians say they have devised a new way to perform biopsies that could provide a more effective way to access narrow conduits in the body as well as find early signs of cancer or other diseases.
In two recent peer-reviewed journal articles, the team reported successful animal testing of the tiny tools, which require no batteries, wires or tethers as they seize internal tissue samples. The devices are called "mu-grippers," incorporating the Greek letter that represents the term for "micro." Instead of relying on electric or pneumatic power, these star-shaped tools are autonomously activated by the body's heat, which causes their tiny "fingers" to close on clusters of cells. Because the tools also contain a magnetic material, they can be retrieved through an existing body opening via a magnetic catheter.
This image depicts an mu-gripper near the opening of an endoscopic catheter. Image credit: Evin Gultepe, Gracias Lab, Johns Hopkins University.
In the April print edition of Gastroenterology, the researchers described their use of the mu-grippers to collect cells from the colon and esophagus of a pig, which was selected because its intestinal tract is similar to that of humans. Earlier this year, the team members reported in the journal Advanced Materials that they had successfully inserted the mu-grippers through the mouth and stomach of a live animal and released them in a hard-to-access place, the bile duct, from which they obtained tissue samples.
"This is the first time that anyone has used a sub-millimeter-sized device -- the size of a dust particle -- to conduct a biopsy in a live animal," said David Gracias, an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering whose lab team developed the microgrippers. "That's a significant accomplishment. And because we can send the grippers in through natural orifices, it is an important advance in minimally invasive treatment and a step toward the ultimate goal of making surgical procedures noninvasive."
Another member of the research team, physician Florin M. Selaru of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, said the mu-grippers could lead to an entirely new approach to conducting biopsies, which are considered the "gold standard" test for diagnosing cancer and other diseases.
This photo shows dozens of dust-sized surgical grippers in a vial. Image credit: Evin Gultepe, Gracias Lab, Johns Hopkins University
The advantage of the mu-grippers, he said, is that they could collect far more samples from many more locations. He pointed out that the much larger forceps used during a typical colonoscopy may remove 30 to 40 pieces of tissue to be studied for signs of cancer. But despite a doctor's best intentions, the small number of specimens makes it easy to miss diseased lesions.
"What's the likelihood of finding the needle in the haystack?" said Selaru, an assistant professor in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. "Based on a small sample, you can't always draw accurate inferences. We need to be able to do a larger statistical sampling of the tissue. That's what would give us enough statistical power to draw a conclusion, which, in essence, is what we're trying to do with the microgrippers. We could deploy hundreds or even thousands of these grippers to get more samples and a better idea of what kind of or whether a disease is present."
Although each mu-gripper can grab a much smaller tissue sample than larger biopsy tools, the researchers said each gripper can retrieve enough cells for effective microscopic inspection and genetic analysis. Armed with this information, they said, the patient's physician could be better prepared to diagnose and treat the patient.
This approach would be possible through the latest application of the Gracias lab's self-assembling tiny surgical tools, which can be activated by heat or chemicals, without relying on electrical wires, tubes, batteries or tethers. The low-cost devices are fabricated through photolithography, the same process used to make computer chips. Their fingerlike projections are made of materials that would normally curl inward, but the team adds a polymer resin to give the joints rigidity and to keep the digits from closing.
Prior to a biopsy, the grippers are kept on ice, so that the fingers remain in this extended position. An endoscopy tool then is used to insert hundreds of grippers into the area targeted for a biopsy. Within about five minutes, the warmth of the body causes the polymer coating to soften, and the fingers curl inward to grasp some tissue. A magnetic tool is then inserted to retrieve them.
Although the animal testing results are promising, the researchers said the process will require further refinement before human testing can begin. "The next step is improving how we deploy the grippers," Selaru said. "The concept is sound, but we still need to address some of the details. The other thing we need to do is thorough safety studies."
Further development can be costly, however. The team has applied for grants to fund advances in the project, which is protected by provisional patents obtained through the Johns Hopkins Technology Transfer Office. Biotechnology investors might also help move the project forward. "It is more a question of money than time as to how long it will take before we could use this in human patients," Selaru said
Along with Gracias and Selaru, the Johns Hopkins researchers who contributed significantly to the two journal articles were Evin Gultepe, Sumitaka Yamanaka, Eun Shin and Anthony Kalloo. Additional contributors were Kate E. Laflin, Sachin Kadam, Yoosun Shim, Alexandru V. Olaru, Berkeley Limketkai, Mouen A. Khashab and Jatinder S. Randhawa. The researchers are affiliated with the School of Medicine, the Whiting School of Engineering and the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology.
Funding for this research has come from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Flight Attendants Medical Research Institute and the Broad Medical Research Institute.
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Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Johns Hopkins University.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal References:
- Evin Gultepe, Sumitaka Yamanaka, Kate E. Laflin, Sachin Kadam, YooSun Shim, Alexandru V. Olaru, Berkeley Limketkai, Mouen A. Khashab, Anthony N. Kalloo, David H. Gracias, Florin M. Selaru. Biologic Tissue Sampling With Untethered Microgrippers. Gastroenterology, 2013; 144 (4): 691 DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2013.01.066
- Evin Gultepe, Jatinder S. Randhawa, Sachin Kadam, Sumitaka Yamanaka, Florin M. Selaru, Eun J. Shin, Anthony N. Kalloo, David H. Gracias. Biopsy with Thermally-Responsive Untethered Microtools. Advanced Materials, 2013; 25 (4): 514 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201203348
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/gvhbrYrLy98/130423135845.htm
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Israel's Babylon in four-year Internet deal with Yahoo
TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Israeli translation software provider Babylon has signed a four-year cooperation agreement with Yahoo Inc in the Internet sector, including on mobile devices.
According to the agreement, which can be extended beyond four years, the two companies will share in revenue from Internet advertising, Babylon said in a statement on Tuesday.
"Babylon's management estimates this agreement will have a substantial contribution to the company. At this stage management cannot assess the amount of this contribution," the statement said. A spokeswoman for the company declined to provide further details on the deal.
In 2012 Google was the main source of revenue for Babylon.
The company has said it expects strong revenue growth this year thanks to increased advertising income on the back of its plan to offer its latest product free of charge.
Babylon, which provides translation of words, phrases, documents and web pages in 77 languages, said 94 percent of its revenue comes from advertising.
Among the company's mobile applications is Babylon Touch, which allows users to point a camera at signs or menus and receive instant translations.
In November, Babylon filed for an initial public offering on Nasdaq, with the aim of raising up to $115 million this year.
(Reporting by Tova Cohen)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israels-babylon-4-internet-deal-yahoo-080918618--sector.html
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Study shows reproductive effects of pesticide exposure span generations
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
North Carolina State University researchers studying aquatic organisms called Daphnia have found that exposure to a chemical pesticide has impacts that span multiple generations ? causing the so-called "water fleas" to produce more male offspring, and causing reproductive problems in female offspring.
"This work supports the hypothesis that exposure to some environmental chemicals during sensitive periods of development can cause significant health problems for those organisms later in life ? and affect their offspring and, possibly, their offspring's offspring," says Dr. Gerald LeBlanc, a professor of environmental and molecular toxicology at NC State and lead author of a paper on the work. "We were looking at a model organism, identified an important pathway for environmental sex determination, and found that there are chemicals that can hijack that pathway."
Environmental cues normally determine the sex, male or female, of Daphnia offspring, and researchers have been working to understand the mechanisms involved. As part of that work, LeBlanc's team had previously identified a hormone called methyl farnesoate (Mf) that Daphnia produce under certain environmental conditions.
The researchers have now found that the hormone binds with a protein receptor called the Mf receptor, which can regulate gene transcription and appears to be tied to the production of male offspring.
In experiments, the researchers exposed Daphnia to varying levels of an insecticide called pyriproxyfen, which mimics the Mf hormone. The pyriproxyfen exposure resulted in Daphnia producing more male offspring and fewer offspring in total, with higher doses exacerbating both effects.
"At high concentrations, we were getting only male offspring, which is not good," LeBlanc says. "Producing fewer offspring, specifically fewer female offspring, could significantly limit population numbers for Daphnia."
And low exposure concentrations had significant impacts as well. At pyriproxyfen concentrations as low as 71 nanograms per liter, or 71 parts per trillion, the Daphnia would still produce some female offspring. But those females suffered long-term reproductive health effects, producing significantly smaller numbers of offspring ? despite the fact that they had not been exposed to pyriproxyfen since birth.
"We now want to know specifically which genes are involved in this sex determination process," LeBlanc says. "And, ecologically, it would be important to know the impact of changes in population dynamics for this species. Daphnia are a keystone species ? an important food source for juvenile fish and other organisms."
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The paper, "A Transgenerational Endocrine Signaling Pathway in Crustacea," was published April 17 in PLOS ONE. The paper was co-authored by Dr. Ying Wang, a research associate at NC State; Charisse Holmes and Elizabeth Medlock, Ph.D. students at NC State; and Gwijun Kwon, a research technician at NC State. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
North Carolina State University: http://www.ncsu.edu
Thanks to North Carolina State University for this article.
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