Louisville, Kentucky – (The Hosting News) – March 3, 2009 – A new study, conducted by web hosting provider, Hosting.com, surveyed over 600 individuals, to find striking similarities in how, when and why small and large businesses will utilize Cloud computing.
Hosting.com released its 2009 Cloud Computing Trends Report, completed based on data it collected over a five-week period by conducting an open survey targeting company executives and IT professionals.
The 2009 Cloud Computing Trends Report introduces new data into the cloud marketplace. This survey provided insight into the expectations small, medium and large businesses have of Cloud Computing, their intended uses, reasons for adopting, and expected time-frames for implementing cloud-based solutions.
The report revealed that there is little difference between how larger companies and small businesses will utilize Cloud Computing. Key findings include:
Driving Factors for investing in Cloud Computing were similar regardless of company size, including Reduced Costs, Uptime, Scalability and Performance. Adoption Rates are not impacted by company size


Gamma-secretase is a membrane protein complex comprised of presenilin, nicastrin, Aph-1, and Pen-2.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12740439
gamma-Secretase catalyzes the intramembrane proteolysis of Notch, beta-amyloid precursor protein, and other substrates as part of a new signaling paradigm and as a key step in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. This unusual protease has eluded identification, though evidence suggests that the presenilin heterodimer comprises the catalytic site and that a highly glycosylated form of nicastrin associates with it. The formation of presenilin heterodimers from the holoprotein is tightly gated by unknown limiting cellular factors. Here we show that Aph-1 and Pen-2, two recently identified membrane proteins genetically linked to gamma-secretase, associate directly with presenilin and nicastrin in the active protease complex. Coexpression of all four proteins leads to marked increases in presenilin heterodimers, full glycosylation of nicastrin, and enhanced gamma-secretase activity. These findings suggest that the four membrane proteins comprise the limiting components of gamma-secretase and coassemble to form the active enzyme in mammalian cells.
Pubmed ID: 12740439 RIS Download
Mesh terms: Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases | Animals | Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins | Cricetinae | Cricetulus | Endopeptidases | Homeodomain Proteins | Membrane Glycoproteins | Membrane Proteins


Many millennials check websites and social media for information and commentary about colleges and universities before deciding where to apply. However, international students planning to study in the U.S. are even more likely than their American counterparts to seek out—and be influenced by—online sources while researching schools.
World Education Services, a New York City-based not-for-profit organization that evaluates foreign academic credentials, surveyed 4,852 foreign nationals aged 17-36 who wanted to come to the U.S. to obtain a degree. Those students already tended to use electronic media more for reading and information-gathering than for posting content of their own, according to the survey report.
In researching U.S. schools, 91% of survey participants accessed online information via a computer, 56% used a smartphone, and 26% employed a tablet. They looked at websites, social media, blogs, and discussion forums. It turns out that information put out by an institution’s network (faculty, admissions counselors, alumni, and current students) often carried more weight with students than the preferences of their families.
Bachelor’s degree candidates typically were concerned with details about cost: tuition, fees, and living expenses. They also wanted to know about student services available to help them if needed. Those considering a master’s program often probed online discussion forums to learn what current enrollees had to say.
The survey report noted that usage of mobile devices is rising overseas and advised U.S. colleges and universities to ensure their online communications are mobile-friendly.


Revonto is indicated, along with appropriate supportive measures, for the management of fulminant hypermetabolism of skeletal muscle characteristic of malignant hyperthermia crises in patients of all ages. It is also indicated preoperatively and sometimes postoperatively, to prevent or attenuate the development of clinical and laboratory signs of malignant hyperthermia in individuals judged to be malignant hyperthermia susceptible.
The use of Revonto in the management of malignant hyperthermia crisis is not a substitute for previously known supportive measures. These measures must be individualized, but it will usually be necessary to discontinue the suspect triggering agents, attend to increased oxygen requirements, manage the metabolic acidosis, institute cooling when necessary, monitor urinary output, and monitor for electrolyte imbalance. Patients who receive i.v. dantrolene sodium preoperatively should have vital signs monitored.
If patients judged malignant hyperthermia susceptible are administered dantrolene sodium preoperatively, anesthetic preparation must still follow a standard malignant hyperthermia susceptible regimen, including the avoidance of known triggering agents. Monitoring for early clinical and metabolic signs of malignant hyperthermia is indicated because attenuation of malignant hyperthermia, rather than prevention, is possible.
Despite initial satisfactory response to i.v. dantrolene there have been reports of fatality, which involve patients who could not be weaned from dantrolene after initial treatment. The administration of i.v. dantrolene is associated with loss of grip strength and weakness in the legs, as well as drowsiness and dizziness. There have been reports of thrombophlebitis following administration of intravenous dantrolene. Tissue necrosis secondary to extravasation has been reported. Injection site reactions (pain, erythema, swelling), commonly due to extravasation, have been reported. Fatal and non-fatal liver disorders of an idiosyncratic or hypersensitivity type may occur with dantrolene sodium therapy.
For additional information, see full prescribing information for


Title
Functionalised inherently conducting polymers as low biofouling materials
RIS ID
102495
Abstract
Diatoms are a major component of microbial biofouling layers that develop on man-made surfaces placed in aquatic environments, resulting in significant economic and environmental impacts. This paper describes surface functionalisation of the inherently conducting polymers (ICPs) polypyrrole (PPy) and polyaniline (PANI) with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and their efficacy as fouling resistant materials. Their ability to resist interactions with the model protein bovine serum albumin (BSA) was tested using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). The capacity of the ICP-PEG materials to prevent settlement and colonisation of the fouling diatom Amphora coffeaeformis (Cleve) was also assayed. Variations were demonstrated in the dopants used during ICP polymerisation, along with the PEG molecular weight, and the ICP-PEG reaction conditions, all playing a role in guiding the eventual fouling resistant properties of the materials. Optimised ICP-PEG materials resulted in a significant reduction in BSA adsorption, and > 98% reduction in diatom adhesion.
Grant Number
ARC/FL110100196
Please refer to publisher version or contact your library.


The Louisiana Court of Appeal held that income derived from diagnostic testing of Louisiana patients’ blood samples and other medical specimens performed in Texas should be sourced to Texas for corporate income tax apportionment purposes. The taxpayer, which operates a multistate network of laboratories where it performs medically prescribed diagnostic services, had sought a refund for overpayments on its 2005 and 2006 income taxes. The court held that because the taxpayer is a service business and not a manufacturer or a merchandiser the income it derives from performing services does not constitute “net sales” (which refers to sales of tangible items) under the states’ general apportionment formula. While noting that Louisiana had expressly adopted market-based sourcing beginning in 2016, the court concluded that for prior years the state’s apportionment formula “clearly does not look to the location of the taxpayer’s market or customers; instead, the source of the income is the state where the income-producing service is performed.” Accordingly, the court held that the income derived from services performed in Texas was attributable to Texas and not to Louisiana.
Quest Diagnostics Clinical Labs., Inc. v. Barfield, No. 2015-0926 (La. App. 1 Cir. 9/9/16).


Review: Wolfgang Frindte & Jörg Neumann (Eds.) (2002). Fremdenfeindliche Gewalttäter. Biografien und Tatverläufe [Xenophobic Perpetrators. Biographies and Crimes] Abstract
This empirical study of FRINDTE and NEUMANN deals with xenophobic perpetrators in a unified Germany. It follows a social-psychological approach and focuses on the biographical development of the perpetrators. The main question is: how are knowledge structures related to aggression developed. The study's data is based on qualitative interviews (supplemented by a questionnaire) with 101 male (ex-) prisoners, who were convicted for xenophobic violence. This study re-validates already known findings on xenophobic perpetrators, but is unique in its combining of quantitative and qualitative methods. Regretfully, the quantification of the qualitative data is too far reaching and thus limits new insights into the world of xenophobic perpetrators.
URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs030332
URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs030332
Keywords
violence; right-wing extremism; social psychology; biographical research
Copyright (c) 2003 Andreas Klärner
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.


Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy
Despite steady progress, poverty remains the dominant problem in Bangladesh, with 50% of its population living under the income poverty line. Due to the geographical location of the country on vast flat floodplain at the confluence of the three main rivers, the livelihoods of the poor are fundamentally affected by water-related disasters, including floods, drought, riverbank erosion, cyclones, and tidal surges. Global climate change will further exacerbate these disasters. An increasing population amplifies the risk of disasters, and the high population density of Bangladesh restricts the scope for moving people away from disaster prone areas. The government has been progressively developing a sector policy and planning framework since the 1990s to address these water sector challenges. However, the operationalization and institutionalization of the policies and plans are still under way.
Riverbank erosion is one of the most prominent disasters in Bangladesh, caused by dynamic channel shifting of the rivers. An estimated 10,000 ha of floodplain land is lost annually. This process annually affects about 100,000 people including the poor, who face significant social hardships, such as loss of homestead, lands, and/or crops, and being displaced to fringe lands, river islands (chars), or urban slums. Erosion, thus, increases the landless poor population. Poverty incidence appears higher in riverine districts. Erosion damage extends to infrastructure, including river embankments for flood protection. The threat of disasters discourages investment, and lead to lower economic growth of riverine areas. Therefore, enhanced riverbank erosion and flood protection management is essential for the poverty reduction and economic growth of these areas.
The JMREMP has established a new more cost effective and flexible riverbank protection method which can effectively cope with the highly dynamic morphological changes of the main rivers in Bangladesh. The JMREMP also developed a systematic construction and quality control methodology of protection structures, a regular flood/ river survey monitoring system, erosion prediction modeling, and design guidelines for protection. The proposed investment will expand the achievements of the JMREMP to other river reaches, with necessary improvement: (i) exploring more effective integration of structural and non-structural measures, effective stakeholder participation, and ensured sustainability of constructed structures, (ii) addressing uncertainty due to climate change, and (iii) strengthening institutional capacity to address these issues. Further, the flood and erosion management in Bangladesh necessitates more strategic planning, in due consideration of the long-term morphological trend of the entire river reach, as opposed to the current ad hoc and piecemeal approach. This new reach-wise approach will be considered in the proposed investment, and could lead to the future long-term stabilization of the entire river course, which the government envisages in their sector road map, followed by more stable economic growth in the riverine districts.
Economic growth and poverty reduction are the main objectives of the government's Sixth Five Year Development Plan for 2011-2015. Sustainable management of rivers and enhancement of climate change resilience, including disaster risk management, are considered essential means to accomplish the growth and poverty reduction objectives. Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Country Partnership Strategy (CPS): Bangladesh (2011-2015) emphasizes supporting climate resilient economic growth and poverty reduction by encouraging sustainable management of natural disasters including reducing disaster risks. The proposed program is in line with the government and ADB strategies.


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By UL The WERCS based in
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The electronics industry all over the world faces challenging issues on environmental and sustainability aspects; examples are product carbon footprint, material declaration and compliance on regulations referring to hazardous materials, toxicity, recycling and supply chain education.
By thinkstep based in
Leinfelden-Echterdingen, GERMANY.
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OBJECTIVE:
Provide a comprehensive review of the existing literature on the prevalence, causes, and consequences of sleep disruptions in parents of youth with chronic illnesses.
METHODS:
A comprehensive literature search of PsychInfo, MEDLINE, and CINAHL for articles related to sleep in parents of youth with chronic illnesses yielded 59 potential articles, with 19 meeting inclusion criteria.
RESULTS:
Parents of children with eczema were the most commonly studied group. The prevalence of sleep disruptions was 15-86%. Potential causes of parent sleep disruptions included nighttime caregiving, monitoring of the child's illness, and stress related to the child's illness. Consequences included poor sleep quality, depression, and anxiety.
CONCLUSIONS:
Parents of youth with chronic illnesses experience sleep disruptions, providing a potential mechanism to explain elevated rates of negative daytime functioning found in previous studies. To provide interventions and support for these parents, additional research is needed to address the limitations of the existing literature.


Smooth muscle (sm) alpha-actin is expressed in vascular smooth muscle cells and fibroblast cells. Its expression is regulated by cell proliferation and repressed during oncogenic transformation. In this study, we demonstrate that p53 activation is associated with a dramatic increase in organized microfilament bundles and an increase in sm alpha-actin mRNA level. Wild-type p53, but not mutant p53, strongly stimulated human sm alpha-actin promoter activity in p53 null cell lines. The sequences homologous to the p53 consensus sequence and to the p53 binding sequence from the muscle creatine kinase, were found within a specific region of the sm alpha-actin promoter. This sequence was sufficient to confer p53-dependent activation to a heterologous promoter and p53 was capable of binding to this sequence as assessed by gel shift analysis. Ionizing irradiation of colorectal tumor cells caused an increase in alpha-actin mRNA level in a p53-dependent manner. Taken together, these results demonstrate that human sm alpha-actin gene is a transcriptional target for p53 tumor suppressor protein and represents the first example of a cytoskeletal gene with a functionally defined p53 response element.


Over deze norm
Status Definitief Aantal pagina's 21 Commissie Wegvoertuigen Gepubliceerd op 01-06-2012 Taal Engels
This part of ISO 12219 specifies a fast, qualitative and semiquantitative screening method for vapour-phase organic compounds (volatile and some semi-volatile) released from vehicle trim materials under simulated realuse conditions using micro-scale test chambers. This method is intended for evaluating new car interior trim components but can, in principle, also be applied to used car components. Target analytes include VOCs (conventionally defined as organic compounds in the volatility range of n-hexane to n-hexadecane) and volatile carbonyl compounds such as formaldehyde. The specified analytical procedure for VOCs is ISO 16000-6 and for formaldehyde and some other light carbonyl compounds is ISO 16000-3. This part of ISO 12219 provides third party test laboratories and manufacturing industry with a cost-effective approach for: a) monitoring and screening VOC emissions as part of routine quality control; b) monitoring product uniformity or conformity between formal certification tests; c) comparing emissions from products within a range (e.g. different colours or patterns); d) evaluating prototype, "low-emission" materials or products during development.
Details
ICS-code 13.040.20
43.020
Nederlandse titel Binnenlucht in wegvoertuigen - Deel 3: Bepaling van de emissies van vluchtige organische stoffen uit interne onderdelen en materialen van voertuigen - Methode met een kamer op microschaal Engelse titel Interior air of road vehicles - Part 3: Screening method for the determination of the emissions of volatile organic compounds from vehicle interior parts and materials - Micro-scale chamber method


This is not exciting news.
The National Institute of Scientific Research in Brussels has identified global warming to be a significant contributor to erectile dysfunction. Dr. Alfvin Schwartz, chief of the study, said:
The evidence is clear! All statistics confirm it, but most scientists would not believe it. However, the data is irrefutable. Global warming makes it go numb! There is no other way to say it.
In related bad news, the Subcommittee on Food Sustainability and Safety, responsible under the Department of Agriculture and Health and Human Services, is drafting the 2015 U.S. Dietary Guidelines that include concerns for saving the planet.
Read more: IJ Review


Today, more than ever, any organization's health and survival is linked directly to its ability to build and to sustain positive and clear relations with its key publics. Τhis is crucial whether it is shareholders, investors, associates, competitors, or political leaders and key decision makers.
In a period of monumental socio-economic changes, emerging challenges, immense competition and changing economies, FORESIGHT has become one of the leading advisory groups by providing outcome-driven intelligence and innovative, client-specific strategic communications to a range of multi national corporations, private and public organizations, NGOs and public figures.


CONSUMPTION & DESTRUCTION - RAINFORESTS IN SARAWAK Yu Tanaka, a renowned expert on international affairs, in particular environmental issues and John Barah, a leader in the struggle to protect the lands of indigenous people from timber and plantation interests, introduced themselves to Peace Boat passengers with a joint presentation entitled "Forests Destroyed for Shampoo." Tanaka began by describing a conversation with a friend who had spent his life defending his tribe's rainforest lands from logging companies looking to harvest timber for Japan. "He thought Japan must be a desert," said Tanaka, or else they wouldn't need to destroy other people's forests. Tanaka explained that 25% of the timber harvested from rainforests goes to Japan, and that a large portion of that is used during construction, as panels to keep concrete in place while it dries. The panels, often from trees which are hundreds and thousands of years old, are used for about a month and then thrown away, because it is much cheaper to purchase them new (around 800 yen for a plank the area of a single bed) than to recycle. He described how the rainforests in Malta, the Philippines, and Thailand have been completely destroyed, and mentioned that at current rates the rainforests of Papua New Guinea and Samoa will be destroyed within the next 20 years. Both Tanaka and Barah explained that once a region's rainforests have been depleted by logging companies, palm oil plantations move in. These plantations, which produce oil used in many household items, including shampoo, soap, cooking grease, and shortening, have a disastrous affect on native communities. Barah described his experience working on a plantation, which entailed backbreaking labor from six in the morning at wages equivalent to 50 US cents per day. He described how such wages often require that an entire family, including children, must go to work to support itself, leaving no time for education. As these children grow up without the ability to read or write, they often have no way to break free from working at plantations, and so entire generations have become trapped as plantation workers. In areas where locals refuse to work under such conditions, plantation owners simply import workers who will, often from poverty-stricken areas in the Philippines. Barah ended the lecture by describing recent efforts by native peoples to fight back, focusing on a blockade of logging roads in his native Sawarak. Eventually the military was sent in to break the blockade and 20 tribe members were arrested, including Barah himself. He explained his people had no choice but to continue to fight, as to them the land is "our life, our blood, and our culture. If the land is taken, we have no identity." Shingapore-Mombasa / Peace Boat's 36th Voyage


Neutral sentiment is at highest level since December 22, 2011 in the latest AAII Sentiment Survey. The rise in neutral sentiment is occurring as both short-term optimism and pessimism are falling among individual investors.
Bullish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will rise over the next six months, fell 2.9 percentage points to 35.5%. This is the third consecutive weekly decline. It also puts optimism at its lowest level in a month. The historical average is 39.0%.
Neutral sentiment, expectations that stock prices will stay essentially unchanged over the next six months, rose 3.4 percentage points to 36.3%. As noted above, this is the highest neutral sentiment has been in more than 16 months. It is also the first time neutral sentiment has been above its historical average of 30.5% on consecutive weeks since October 4 and October 11, 2012.
Bearish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will fall over the next six months, declined 0.5 percentage points to 28.2%. This is a nine-week low for pessimism. The historical average is 30.5%.
The last time both bullish and bearish sentiment were below their respective historical averages on consecutive weeks was August 2 through August 16, 2012. The second-most-recent occurrence was on February 25 and March 4, 2010.
The declines in optimism and pessimism are not significant as both bullish and bearish sentiment remain close to their historical averages. While the major indexes continue to trade near record or multi-year highs, AAII members are mixed about what the next six months will bring in terms of market direction. Some members are encouraged by this year's gains, while others fret that stocks are overbought and are due for a pullback. Also impacting sentiment are mixed views about the pace of economic growth and ongoing frustration with Washington.
This week's special question asked AAII members which industries and sectors they like right now. Energy, including master limited partnerships, received the most votes, listed by 30% of respondents. Health care came in second with 23% of respondents favoring the sector, technology was a close third (21%) and financials came in fourth (14%). When we asked the same question last September, AAII members favored energy, health care, commodities and technology.
This week's AAII Sentiment Survey results:
Bullish: 35.5%, down 2.9 percentage points Neutral: 36.3%, up 3.4 percentage points Bearish: 28.2%, down 0.5 percentage points
Historical averages:
Bullish: 39.0% Neutral: 30.6% Bearish: 30.6%
The AAII Sentiment Survey has been conducted weekly since July 1987 and asks AAII members whether they think stock prices will rise, remain essentially flat, or fall over the next six months. The survey period runs from Thursday (12:01 a.m.) to Wednesday (11:59 p.m.) The survey and its results are available online
Charles Rotblut. CFA is a Vice President with the American Association of Individual Investors and editor of the AAII Journal. Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.


Unlawful Restraint
The ability to go where you please, when you please, is one of the most widely cherished liberties in modern society, and one that forms the basis for what most people think of when they think of the word “freedom.” The idea of being confined without being able to freely go where you choose is so troubling that it forms the basis of one of the most serious penalties the law can impose: incarceration in a jail or prison. The crime of unlawful restraint occurs whenever someone illegally deprives others of their physical freedom.
Unlawful restraint happens when one person knowingly and intentionally restrains another person without that person's consent and without legal justification. Though state laws differ in how they categorize unlawful restraint crimes, they all prohibit the same kind of conduct.
Detention.Unlawful restraint always involves some sort of intentional detention. You cannot commit unlawful restraint by accident, and you must intend for your actions to result in confining someone else. However, there is no requirement that the victim is physically placed in a cell, secure building, or other confined area. It's enough that victims believe they are restrained from taking action or leaving an area. The detention can result from verbal orders, lies, or physical restraint. Violence or the threat of violence may also be involved. If only threatened force is used to confine a victim, the victim must have a reasonable apprehension or fear of the threatened force. Unlawful.You cannot unlawfully restrain someone if you have the legal authority to confine the person. However, it is up to a court to determine lawfulness. So, if you restrain someone believing that you had the legal authority to do so, and a court later determines you did not have that authority, you can be convicted of unlawful restraint. Time.There is no minimum time requirement involved in unlawful restraint. If a victim is confined even for a few moments, this is enough to qualify as an unlawful restraint. Consent.You cannot unlawfully confine someone who consents to the restraint. The victim must be an unwilling participant. For example, a security guard that asks a store customer to accompany him to the store's security area does not commit unlawful restraint if the person agrees to accompany the guard voluntarily. Escape.The confinement involved in unlawful restraint must be complete, meaning the victim must not be able to leave. For example, a person who can leave a confined area by opening a door or walking away is not confined. However, the victim must be aware of the reasonable manner of escape and be capable of acting upon it. So, if the victim believes that attempting to escape would result in violence or harm because of threatened violence, that can be enough to make the confinement total even if there is an easy route of escape. Unlawful Restraint vs. False Imprisonment vrs. Kidnapping
It's useful to mention that though state laws often refer to unlawful restraint as “false imprisonment,” the term “false imprisonment” can also refer to a civil lawsuit, which is very different than criminal charges.
When you are charged with a crime, a state prosecutor files charges against you accusing you of violating a state criminal law. Being convicted of violating the law means you face fines, prison time, or other criminal penalties. (See section on “Unlawful Restraint Penalties,” below.)
On the other hand, if a person sues you for false imprisonment, and wins, you will not have to face criminal penalties because you are not being accused of committing a crime. You may have to pay money damages if you lose a lawsuit, but you do not face jail time, fines, or other criminal penalties.
Kidnapping is another related crime. To be convicted of kidnapping, the defendant must have moved the victim and then restrained him. The amount of movement need not be great.
Unlawful Restraint Penalties
States often differentiate between felony and misdemeanor unlawful restraint crimes. Felony offenses involve the possibility of a year or more in prison. Felony charges usually apply when the circumstances surrounding the unlawful restraint exposed the victim to harm or substantial risk of injury, or involved violence or the threat of violence. Misdemeanor unlawful restraint usually does not have an element of physical risk to the victim or any use of violence. However, state laws on unlawful restraint differ significantly, as do the potential punishments involved.
Incarceration.For a misdemeanor conviction of unlawful restraint, a jail sentence of less than a year is possible, while felony convictions may impose potential prison terms of 15 years or more. In some situations, such as where the unlawful detention victim was a child, a sentence of life in prison is possible. Fines.Misdemeanor convictions of unlawful restraint typically involve fines of $1,000 or less, while felony fines can exceed $5,000 or more. Probation.Probation as a sentence for unlawful restraint is possible, but often only with misdemeanor charges where the convicted person has not committed previous crimes. However, even felony unlawful restraint charges may result in a probation sentence in some situations. Probation usually lasts at least 6 months, though one-year or longer probation sentences are common. Someone sentenced to probation must regularly meet with a probation officer and comply with specific orders imposed by the court, such as passing regular drug tests and not committing more crimes. If a person violates the terms of probation, a court may impose a jail or prison sentence, more fines, or renew the probation term for a longer period. Legal Advice
Unlawful restraint charges are very serious. Even if you've never been convicted of a crime or believed you were acting legally, unlawful restraint charges can result in years in prison and substantial fines. If you're facing unlawful restraint charges, you need legal advice from an experienced criminal defense lawyer. Only an attorney who can evaluate your case in light of the the laws of your state can provide you with competent advice.


As you may have heard, the U.S Supreme Court denied Hobby Lobby an injunction against the PPACA contraceptive coverage mandate. Employers who maintain health care plans are required to pay excise taxes for failure to comply with a particular aspect of the law, regardless of whether coverage is affordable. As we previously explained, these nondeductible taxes are computed per affected individual, per day, and they may be substantial. Hobby Lobby will purportedly accrue taxes of $1.3 million per day if it continues to maintain its plan, but fails to provide the mandated coverage.
On December 28, the IRS issued …


Modeling Interactions Between a Tumor Cell and Its Host Epithelium Speaker:Eline Boghaert Series:Final Public Oral Examinations Location:Lapidus Lounge (E-Quad A210) Date/Time:Tuesday, February 18, 2014, 3:15 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.
Breast tumor development is regulated in part by cues from the local microenvironment, including interactions with neighboring non-tumor cells as well as the extracellular matrix. This thesis explores how characteristics of the host microenvironment affect tumor phenotype at the earliest stages of tumor development by using a 3D microfabrication-based approach to engineer ducts comprised of normal and tumorigenic mammary epithelial cells, and agent-based modeling implemented through the CompuCell3D framework.
Experimentally, we found that the phenotype of the tumor cell was dictated by its position in the duct: proliferation and invasion were enhanced at the ends and blocked when the tumor cell was located elsewhere within the tissue. Regions of invasion correlated with high endogenous mechanical stress, as shown by finite element modeling and bead displacement experiments, and modulating the contractility of the host epithelium controlled the subsequent invasion of tumor cells. Combining micro-computed tomographic analysis with finite element modeling suggested that predicted regions of high mechanical stress correspond to regions of tumor formation in vivo. This work suggests that the mechanical tone of the non-tumorigenic host epithelium directs the phenotype of tumor cells, and provides additional insight into the instructive role of the mechanical tumor microenvironment. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a non-invasive form of breast cancer resulting from abnormal proliferation of mammary epithelial cells. Computationally, we explored the conditions leading to the development of the four morphologies of DCIS using a two-dimensional agent-based model. We found that relative rates of cell proliferation and death governed which of the four morphologies emerged. The natural progression between morphologies cannot be investigated in vivo; however, our model suggests probable transitions between these morphologies during breast cancer progression. Motivated by our experimental studies, we extended our model from a circular geometry to more physiologically relevant geometries. Again we found that cells are more likely to invade from the end of ducts and that this preferential invasion can be modulated by altering cell adhesion or contractility. This preliminary model provides us with additional insight into tumor cell behavior and allows us to explore behavior not readily monitored in vivo.


Challenging Behavior in Young Children: Understanding, Preventing, and Responding Effectively (4th ed.)
Item #:307
ISBN:
9780132159128
A new edition of the acclaimed, best-selling survival guide for teachers struggling to find answers to children’s challenging behavior.
Stressing that every child has some kind of special need, especially children with challenging behavior, this book contains numerous practical, indispensable tips for responding to those needs, building relationships with children and their families, and preventing challenging behavior. It provides teachers with background information that enables them to understand why children behave the way they do and presents several evidence-based strategies to address their challenging behavior effectively so that teachers can select those best suited to the child and the situation. Useful to education students as well as in-service teachers in pre-school, child care, and primary school, the book emphasizes the importance of the teacher’s role in the behavior of children and encourages students and educators to reflect on their own values, feelings, and actions. In addition to up-to-date research on culture, dual-language learning, resilience, and inclusion, this new edition focuses on what stress can do to children’s brains, executive function, and behavior. The Enhanced Pearson eText features embedded videos.
© National Association for the Education of Young Children - Promoting excellence in early childhood education 1313 L St. NW, Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 20005 | (202)232-8777 | (800)424-2460 | webmaster@naeyc.org


Abstract
Title IV of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) established a market for transferable sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission allowances among electric utilities. This market offers firms facing high marginal abatement costs the opportunity to purchase the right to emit SO2 from firms with lower costs, and this is expected to yield cost savings compared to a command-and-control approach to environmental regulation. This paper uses econometrically estimated marginal abatement cost functions for power plants affected by Title IV of the CAAA to evaluate the performance of the SO2 allowance market. Specifically, we investigate whether the much-heralded fall in the cost of abating SO2, compared to original estimates, can be attributed to allowance trading. We demonstrate that, for plants that use low-sulfur coal to reduce SO2 emissions, technical change and the fall in prices of low-sulfur coal have lowered marginal abatement cost curves by over 50 percent since 1985. The flexibility to take advantage of these changes is the main source of cost reductions, rather than trading per se. In the long run, allowance trading may achieve cost savings of $700$800 million per year compared to an "enlightened" command-and-control program characterized by a uniform emission rate standard. The cost savings would be twice as great if the alternative to trading were forced scrubbing. However, a comparison of potential cost savings in 1995 and 1996 with modeled costs of actual emissions suggests that most trading gains were unrealized in the first two years of the program.


Optimal decision making and the anterior cingulate cortex. Kennerley SW., Walton ME., Behrens TE., Buckley MJ., Rushworth MF.
Learning the value of options in an uncertain environment is central to optimal decision making. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been implicated in using reinforcement information to control behavior. Here we demonstrate that the ACC's critical role in reinforcement-guided behavior is neither in detecting nor in correcting errors, but in guiding voluntary choices based on the history of actions and outcomes. ACC lesions did not impair the performance of monkeys (Macaca mulatta) immediately after errors, but made them unable to sustain rewarded responses in a reinforcement-guided choice task and to integrate risk and payoff in a dynamic foraging task. These data suggest that the ACC is essential for learning the value of actions.


The four basic EU regulations of the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) are published in the Official Journal of 20 December 2013.
These four legislative texts reflect the political agreement between the European Commission, EU Member States Agriculture Ministers (in the Council) and the European Parliament.
With these new rules, the vast majority of CAP legislation will be defined under four consecutive Regulations – a significant simplification - covering:
Rural Development: Regulation 1305/2013 "Horizontal" issuessuch as funding and controls: Regulation 1306/2013 Direct paymentsfor farmers: Regulation 1307/2013 Market measures: Regulation 1308/2013
To ensure a smooth transition, Regulation 1310/2013 lays down certain
transitional provisions as regards the application of the four basic regulations in the year 2014.


What Preparedness MeansPublic Health Emergency Preparedness involves coordinating, planning, and communicating with partner agencies, organizations, and the community to understand potential threats and have effective responses to public health emergencies.
Freeborn County Public Health Department is continually preparing to respond to public health emergencies, including:
Communicable disease outbreak
Health related effects from natural or man made disasters
Illness related to food or water
Public Health Departments PreparingThe threat of bioterrorism, along with the recognition that many common occurrences like food borne illnesses, power outages, floods and other natural disasters have public health impacts, has driven the need for local public health departments across the state, along with the Minnesota Department of Health, to prepare responses to a wide variety of events. Freeborn County Public Health will share accurate and up-to-date information and resources before, during and after a public health emergency.
What Freeborn County is DoingFreeborn County Public Health is currently developing and testing public health emergency response plans. This includes:
Planning for mass clinics to dispense medications or vaccinations in case of a local or regional communicable disease outbreak
Planning to assist the Minnesota Department of Health in areas such as disease surveillance, follow-up and monitoring
Emergency Preparedness CommitteeA county-wide Emergency Preparedness committee currently meets bi-monthly to discuss preparedness related issues.
Staff is available for presentations to community groups to discuss emergency preparedness and planning and share how county businesses, agencies, organizations, families and individuals can be involved in planning and response.


On July 9, 2015, the EBA published final guidelines on conditions for group financial support under the BRRD, together with final draft Regulatory Technical Standards, specifying the conditions for group financial support and final draft RTS on the form and content of disclosure of financial support agreements. The EBA’s guidelines enhance the means through which one member of a banking group may provide support to another member of the same group, which is in financial difficulty. This overcomes the current lack of a comprehensive group support mechanism across the EU, ensuring that such support may be enforced between cross-border institutions forming part of the same banking group. The RTS outline the factors to be considered when ascertaining whether the conditions for the provision of group financial support are satisfied. National regulators are also required to consider the possible reasons for the financial distress of the relevant entity (e.g., whether this is due to its business model, the current market situation or other circumstances). The guidelines and RTS also confirm that group support may be enforced in certain instances, even where prudential requirements have not been met.
The final guidelines are available at:
http://www.eba.europa.eu/documents/10180/1137032/EBA-GL-2015-17+Guidelines+on+group+financial+support.pdf and both final draft RTS are available at: http://www.eba.europa.eu/documents/10180/1136980/EBA-RTS-2015-08+RTS+on+financial+support.pdf; and http://www.eba.europa.eu/documents/10180/1136953/EBA-ITS-2015-07+ITS+on+Disclosure+of+Group+Financial+S upport+Agreements.pdf.


On 28 April 2016, the Belgian Competition Authority issued its policy priorities for the current year. This document, which has existed since 2014, aims to explain how the Authority selects its formal investigations and to describe its strategic and sectoral priorities of competition policy.
In line with the priority areas already identified in previous years, the Authority has announced that it will continue its actions in the following sectors:
the liberalized sectors and network industries, especially postal markets and telecommunications; the distribution sector and its relations with suppliers; the sector of the digital economy and the media; services to enterprises and consumers; and public procurement.
However, the banking sector, which was a priority area in 2015, is no longer included in the Authority’s 2016 priorities.
Given its reduced human resources, the Authority wants to focus on cartels that have significant undesirable effects on the market, whether raising prices, or reducing incentives for producers to innovate or for consumers to compare prices. Abuses of dominant position, which have been the focus of important decisions in the past, are no longer a priority for the Authority.


J Clin Outcomes Manage 2004 Jul;11(7):444-460 Identification and management of alcohol use disorders in primary care Gordon Aj, Saitz R Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) constitute a range of problem alcohol drinking, from consumption of “at-risk” amounts to alcohol abuse and dependence. These disorders are common and contribute to significant preventable disability, disease, and mortality. National authorities, including the Institute of Medicine, suggest that primary care physicians identify and manage the range of AUDs. Almost three fourths of at-risk drinkers escape the detection of their primary care physician. The following case illustrates the current best evidence for the identification and management of AUDs in primary care practice. Once identified, primary care providers can address AUDs with brief counseling, pharmacologic therapy, referral specialty services, monitoring response, and assistance with relapse prevention. Review, CME
Search the Turner White index to find abstracts of articles published in JCOM.


The Big Shift Send a friend or colleague a link to this article
The world economy, based in the post-Information Age on invention, is moving to models based on copying and theft. This is happening not in single product lines or economic sectors, but across the entire globe, from agriculture to medicine, from personal computers to phones, from online companies to software firms.


Each year, families across Virginia set a household budget. Businesses in the Commonwealth, both large and small, do the same. This week, the House of Representatives acted on a budget plan for Fiscal Year 2015, which begins on October 1, 2014. In addition to laying out a blueprint for federal spending, the budget process is also an opportunity to strengthen programs like Medicare and Social Security and expand pro-growth economic reforms like tax reform, domestic energy production, and regulatory reform.


The UK is consuming less energy than it did in 1998.
Energy consumption fell by 17% between 1998 and 2015, new data from the Office from National Statistics (ONS) reveals.
That’s due to the increased use of energy efficient technologies, government policies designed to reduce consumption and a decline of manufacturing, especially in energy-intensive industries, it states.
It adds the percentage of total energy consumption from renewable and waste sources has risen to 9% during the same period.
Earlier this month, BEIS stated 25% of the country’s electricity comes from renewables.
However, the decline in North Sea oil and gas production has increased the UK’s reliance on imports of energy.
Since 1998 the UK has gone from being a net exporter to a net importer of energy while Germany, Spain, France and Italy have all consistently imported more energy than they exported, the ONS states.
In 2014, the UK’s import dependency was below the EU average and the country was the least dependent on foreign sources of energy compared to Germany, France, Italy and Spain.
However, even though the UK’s reliance on imported energy is still below its EU neighbours, the UK is now more in line with them than it has been in recent history, the ONS adds.


Goldman Sachs: QE will last through 2014
While the economy is expected to get over the hump in 2013, the
Federal Reserve is likely to continue purchases of Treasuries and agency mortgage-backed securities past market projections.
The market is expecting an end to the open-ended third round of quantitative easing in mid-to-late 2013, but
Goldman Sachs expects the program to continue through 2014, indicating QE3 will eventually turn into QE4.
Click on the chart to view Fed securities holdings.
The
Federal Open Market Committee minutes for December reveal the Federal Reserve is likely to slow monthly purchases of $85 billion in mortgage bonds and Treasuries sometime in 2013.
While there was a clear majority in favor of further asset purchases beyond the Maturity Extension Program, the timing of completion of such purchases received mixed results.
The FOMC announced rates will remain unchanged with continued purchases of additional agency mortgage-backed securities at a pace of $40 billion per month.
"Taken together, these actions should maintain downward pressure on longer-term interest rates, support mortgage markets, and help to make broader financial conditions more accommodative," the Fed said.
There are two reasons Goldman Sachs remains dovish on Fed policy: higher than desired unemployment and low inflation.
Fed officials said they would not hike up interest rates as long as the unemployment rate stays above 6.5%, which is likely to happen through late 2015.
Other analysts expect a more rapid fall in the unemployment rate and some doubt that officials will follow through on the guidance provided. However, Goldman Sachs believes the Fed will stick to its word.
Lower inflation is also expected to stay below the 2% target.
During the past six months, the core personal consumption expenditures price index rose at a 1% annualized rate, which is under Goldman Sach's projection of 1.5% growth.
However, Fed officials may be contemplating an even more aggressive approach than assumed, Goldman said.
"This is evident from simulations by Vice Chair Janet Yellen that use the Fed staff’s large-scale econometric model, FRB/US, to generate an 'optimal control' path for monetary policy. We believe that market participants have so far failed to grasp the full implications of Yellen’s approach," the report noted.


A new study has found that many people without any cardiovascular disease are taking aspirin to prevent heart disease, which may not be beneficial to their health.
Advertisement
Researchers from the University of Alberta surveyed 807 patients at two family clinics in Alberta regarding the use of aspirin. Around 40% of them reported regular use of aspirin and among them nearly 87% took it to prevent heart attack and stroke without any signs of heart disease.
AdvertisementAccording to the authors, though previous studies have reported a decrease in the risk of first heart attack or stroke there is no significant difference in the mortality rates due to aspirin intake as a preventive measure.
Aspirin works by preventing platelets from forming clots in the blood. In the absence of cardiovascular disease, daily intake of aspirin leads to bleeding in the stomach and intestines and sometimes in the brain.
It was found from the survey that most of the people had initiated aspirin therapy following their physician's advice while 25% of them had taken it own their own.
This finding shows that both physicians and patients need to be aware of the benefits and risks of aspirin regimen.
Source: Medindia
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The term international arbitrage refers to the practice of simultaneously buying and selling a foreign security on two different exchanges. International arbitrage is profitable when pricing inefficiencies occur due to factors such as timing and exchange rates.
While stock exchanges are considered efficient markets, there are instances when the mispricing of one or more securities provides the opportunity for profits through techniques such as international arbitrage. This approach requires the trader to monitor the price of securities on two or more exchanges located throughout the world.
International arbitrage is considered a low-risk strategy, since the trades should only occur when the price differential between the two exchanges is large enough to cover the associated transaction fees. Profitable price differentials can be attributed to factors such as time zone differences between exchanges and exchange rate lag. The most common example of this strategy is the simultaneous buying and selling of an International Depository Receipt (IDR) and the same stock registered in a foreign country.


Spring Soccer Competition
As institutions and students begin to plan spring soccer events, it is important to remember how NAIA rules come into play for spring competition.
Scheduling Limits The scheduling limit for soccer is 18 contests. These 18 contests can be played at any time during a team’s 24-week season. If an institution’s soccer team did not use all 18 available games during the fall term, it could use any remaining contests during the spring term. During the spring semester, an institution may also schedule three additional playing dates. These dates may only be played during weekends (Saturday and Sunday) and other nonscheduled class dates (according to the institution’s academic calendar). The additional spring contests are expressed in terms of dates rather than games. A team may play multiple games on a single day which would count as one date, as opposed to each individual game counting towards the limit. Spring games will not be counted toward the team’s win-loss record, team or individual statistics, or ranking. Certification All student-athletes who participate in spring competition must be certified as eligible. Small-Team Competition Student-athletes frequently compete in small-team outdoor soccer tournaments (e.g., 7v7, 3v3) this time of year, but be aware of how these competitions may affect your institution. Regardless of the number of players competing in an outdoor soccer competition, unless every student participating satisfies the unattached student-athlete exception, the students are deemed to be representing your institution in competition. Such competition is then considered part of a soccer team’s 24-week season, must count towards playing limits for the team and student-athlete, and participating students would be required to be certified as eligible. Unattached Competition As an exception to the season of competition bylaw, a student-athlete who competes unattached will not be charged a season of competition for that participation. Seven criteria exist for unattached competition. If any one of the seven criteria is not met, a student-athlete is deemed to have represented the institution in competition. As a result, the student will be charged a season of competition, the contests will count toward the student’s and team’s scheduling limits, the competition will be part of the team’s 24-week season, and an eligibility violation may have occurred if the student was not eligible at the time of competition. While enrolled as a full-time collegiate student at an NAIA institution, a student is considered to be competing as an unattached student-athlete if the following seven criteria are met: 1. A coach or representative of the athletics department cannot enter the student(s) in the event; 2. The institution or its representative cannot provide transportation to the event, from the event, or at the event; 3. The institution or its representative cannot provide meals or housing to the student(s) with regard to the event; 4. The student(s) cannot wear an institutional uniform nor use the institution's name in the event; 5. Student(s) competing "unattached" are not covered by institutional athletic insurance; 6. Student(s) must be made aware of the restriction of no athletic insurance; 7. The competition and participation must conform to NAIA amateur status regulations.
A worksheet has been developed to aid athletics departments in ensuring proper application of the unattached criteria.


We have all been there. We have experienced handling difficult patients. No matter what you do, you cannot satisfy, you cannot reach and you cannot connect with them. These patients monopolize the majority of your time, and it seems as if you are fighting a losing battle. These patients can often be rude, aggressive and demanding, and working with them can be frustrating and exhausting. So, how do you handle them? Consider the following communication strategies in nursing:
Remember, safety first.Regardless of the situation, if the patient begins to get aggressive, threatening or combative, call for help. In the medical arena, emotions are intense and they can cloud judgment. It is essential to remember not to put yourself in a volatile domain, whereby there is the risk for injury. If you do not feel safe working with the patient, notify your nurse manager and document according to facility standards. Address basic necessities.When the patient is angry or upset, consider the cause. Their pain might not be well-controlled; they might be tired, hungry, frustrated or thirsty. If these basic needs are addressed and met, the subsequent irritability and/or anger is likely to subside. Acknowledge the patient.Many times if you simply sit down with the patient during an encounter and give him or her adequate time to vent their feelings, the patient will then feel valued and appreciated. Similarly, your advice and teachings, as the clinician, are more likely to be absorbed. Likewise, if their basic necessities are addressed, as noted above, he or she is more likely to feel acknowledged and valued. Observe the setting.In handling difficult patients, it is crucial to stay mindful of their situation. Notice his or her words or pitch of voice. Stay mindful of some non-verbal cues and threats. If there is any uncertainty about the situation, request assistance. But, being mindful of the extenuating factors can extinguish a potentially dangerous situation. Remain respectful a n d professional.When working with patients, make eye contact and address them as, Mr. or Mrs. The tone and the pitch of voice is also important to consider. Similarly, be mindful of non-verbal cues that might be expunged and remain professional when conversing with other professionals outside of the patient's room. Remember, body language in nursing is important. Be informed.As a means of being prepared, be familiar with your institution's policies and procedures for dealing with difficult patients, and know your patient's bill of rights. Set boundaries.At the time of admission to the hospital, it is noteworthy to clearly explain what behaviors are acceptable and what are not acceptable. It is equally helpful to set professional boundaries. This establishment of professionalism sets the stage for the continued clinician to patient relationship. Do not take it personally.Remember that your patients are struggling with a set of complex circumstances therefore they might exhibit abrasive behavior.
Communication in nursing is relevant in dealing with a difficult patient. It might be challenging but it can be combated. Hopefully, with the eight strategies outline above, we, as dedicated clinicians, will be able to handle each patient with empathy, fairness and timeliness in a compassionate fashion.


The case of
McMillen v. Hummingbird Speedway, Inc., PICS No. 10-3174 (Jefferson Co. September 9, 2010, Foradora, P.J.), involving a Plaintiff who filed suit to recover damages for personal injuries allegedly caused when a Defendant rear-ended the Plaintiff’s vehicle during a cool down lap following a 2007 stock car race, President Judge Foradora held that where a person’s social networking sites contain information that may be relevant to the claims or defenses presented in a lawsuit, access to those sites during discovery should be freely granted.
During discovery, Defendant Hummingbird Speedway, Inc., in its Interrogatories inquired if the Plaintiff belonged to any social networking computer sites. The Defendant also requested the name of the site, the Plaintiff’s user name, login name, and password.
In this case, the Plaintiff belonged to Facebook and Myspace but maintained that his user name and login name information were confidential and should not have to be provided.
In viewing the public portion of the Plaintiff’s Facebook page, the Defendant noted comments evidencing that the Plaintiff had gone on a fishing trip and had attended the Daytona 500 race in Florida.
When the Plaintiff refused to fully respond to the written discovery requests, the Defendant filed a Motion to Compel the discovery desired.
The trial court noted that a party may obtain discovery regarding any information that is relevant and not privileged. The Plaintiffs requested the Court to find the communications shared among one’s private friends on a social networking site to be confidential and, therefore, protect it from disclosure. President Judge Foradora noted that no binding or persuasive authority was cited by the Plaintiff.
Judge Foradora noted that evidentiary privileges are not favored under Pennsylvania law and should be narrowly construed.
The Court found that the Plaintiff did not satisfy the requirements to support a finding of privilege in this matter. The judge stated that these communication websites expressly noted the possibility of disclosure.
Accordingly, the Court found that a person using these sites could not reasonably expect that the communications would remain confidential. As the information contained in the Plaintiff’s sites may be relevant in proving the truth or falsity of the Plaintiff’s alleged injuries, the Court found that the overriding goal the search for truth in civil trials should prevail in favor of the disclosure of information that may not have otherwise been known.
As such, Judge Foradora ordered the Plaintiff to produce his Facebook and Myspace user names and passwords. The Plaintiff was further ordered not to delete or alter any of the information on the accounts.
Anyone desiring a copy of this case may contact the Pennsylvania Law Weekly’s Instant Case Service by calling 1-800-276-7427 and provide the PICS number noted above.
Source:
Pennsylvania Law WeeklyCase Digests, September 21, 2010.
I plan to expand on this topic in my next article, which is set to appear in the
Pennsylvania Law Weeklynear the end of October.


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Warlords have come to represent enemies of peace, security, and 'good governance' in the collective intellectual imagination. This book asserts that not all warlords are created equal. Under certain conditions, some become effective governors on behalf of the state.
This provocative argument is based on extensive fieldwork in Afghanistan, where Mukhopadhyay examined warlord-governors who have served as valuable exponents of the Karzai regime in its struggle to assert control over key segments of the countryside.
She explores the complex ecosystems that came to constitute provincial political life after 2001 and exposes the rise of 'strongman' governance in two provinces.
While this brand of governance falls far short of international expectations, its emergence reflects the reassertion of the Afghan state in material and symbolic terms that deserve our attention.
This book pushes past canonical views of warlordism and state building to consider the logic of the weak state as it has arisen in challenging, conflict-ridden societies like Afghanistan.


Beyond Advance Directives: Importance of Communication Skills at the End of Life Author
Tulsky, James A.
Bibliographic Citation
JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association 2005 July 20; 294(3): 359-365
Abstract
Patients and their families struggle with myriad choices concerning medical treatments that frequently precede death. Advance directives have been proposed as a tool to facilitate end- of-life decision making, yet frequently fail to achieve this goal. In the context of the case of a man with metastatic cancer for whom an advance directive was unable to prevent a traumatic death, I review the challenges in creating and implementing advance directives, discuss factors that can affect clear decision making; including trust, uncertainty, emotion, hope, and the presence of multiple medical providers; and offer practical suggestions for physicians. Advance care planning remains a useful tool for approaching conversations with patients about the end of life. However, such planning should occur within a framework that emphasizes responding to patient and family emotions and focuses more on goals for care and less on specific treatments.
Date2005-07-20 Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
Predictors of Site of Death of End-of-Life Patients: The Importance of Specificity in Advance Directives Pekmezaris, Renee; Breuer, Lorraine; Zaballero, Arturo; Wolf-Klein, Gisele; Jadoon, Erum; D'Olimpio, James T.; Guzik, Howard; Foley, Cornelius J.; Weiner, Joseph; Chan, Susanna (2004-02)


This innovative book teaches readers to understand the strategic value of data and statistics in solving real business problems. Following principles of effective learning identified by educational and behavioral research, the instruction proceeds from tangible examples to abstract theory; from the big picture, or "whole," to details, or "parts"; and from a conceptual understanding to ability to perform specific tasks. While the computer is used for computational details, the authors describe the role of st
This textbook applies statistical thinking to business processes. Illustrated with case studies, it provides instruction on deriving actionable conclusions from data analysis, problem solving, and process improvement. The book begins with a discussion of the uses of statistical thinking and goes on to describe specific improvement strategies, tools, and formal statistical methods. Concepts are emphasized, rather than formulas and calculations. Formal statistical methods are illustrated with Microsoft Excel, MINITAB, and JMP. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)


Keywords: municipal solid waste, MSW, organic solid waste, vegetable market waste, floral waste, earthworm species, vermiculture, composting, cadmium, lead, zinc, copper, manganese, waste management, earthworms, heavy metals, vermicomposting
Remediation of heavy metals from urban waste by vermicomposting using earthworms: Eudrilus eugeniae, Eisenia fetida and Perionyx excavatus
This study revealed that three earthworm species, viz., Eudrilus eugeniae, Eisenia fetida and Perionyx excavatus, through vermicomposting remediated heavy metals - Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu and Mn from the urban waste - organic fraction of Municipal Solid Waste [M(O)SW], vegetable Market Waste (MW) and Floral Waste (FW). The concentrations of Zn, Cd and Cu were 36.1, 50.9 and 70.2% higher in M(O)SW compared with that of MW, while the concentrations of Pb and Mn were 96.5% and 80.1% higher in MW than that of M(O)SW, respectively. Of the vermicomposts and the composts of the wastes, FW and its vermicompost possessed lower concentrations of the Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu and Mn by 72.2, 55.7, 73.6, 78.2 and 48.2% and 58.0, 77.4, 64.1, 63.0 and 71.2% compared with that of M(O)SW and MW, respectively. The concentrations of these metals were significantly lowered in the vermicompost produced by the earthworm species compared to that of the respective substrates. Their concentrations showed significant decrease across different time intervals during vermicomposting process. The removal efficiency of the heavy metals was more in the vermicompost produced by E. eugeniae than that of E. fetida and P. excavatus, and the compost (P < 0.05).


In today’s competitive environment, companies are looking for service providers that offer a lower cost
and a trusted partnership. This is a need that can turn the request-for-quotes (RFQ) process into more than a bidding war. It is especially true when companies are looking to outsource major activities and are concerned about losing control. For service providers bidding on these contracts, it is necessary to exceed the client’s expressed and hidden needs while ensuring their own ability to deliver at the desired margin.
Service providers can use Six Sigma in these critical selling situations through the use of a DMAIC-structured sales tool. This tool is formulated using a typical Six Sigma quality improvement process, modified to align with the major steps of the sales process. It is designed to assure alignment to the client goals, internal ability to meet them and a proven methodology.
The DMAIC sales structure includes the following steps:
The RFQ provides minimum specifications and details the services and functionality required by the client. From there, a determination of the scope and priority of the specifications or CTQs is needed. This is accomplished through interviews with the client’s functional experts, where several critical elements are collected. Use a comprehensive questionnaire to ensure all necessary information is captured including such elements as existing organization structure, headcount, IT systems profile, volume and frequency data, and any other details needed to fully define the client requirements expressed in the RFQ. It also is critical to collect pertinent transaction-level data for measurement and analysis. A complete profile from the Define phase provides a solid structure for a truly knowledge-based quote.
The Measure phase provides a framework for potential success. For each CTQ identified during the Define phase, it is necessary for the service provider to measure its own current performance capabilities as well as those of the client and the client’s competitors. This provides a view of any gaps between the client requirements and the service provider’s capability to meet or exceed them.
The following is an example of a service provider’s performance capability gap analysis.
Coding Errors
200
480
120
140
Payment < 90 Days
550
955
110
630
– 80
Wait Time < 3 Mins.
200
750
120
350
-150
Obtaining this information may require significant resources, especially if time is short. The client’s current performance is obtainable through the questionnaire and raw data acquired during the Define phase investigation. Competitive data is typically available through industry and trade publications or benchmarking services. In some instances, a competitor will disclose one or two metrics where it considers itself a market leader and may even provide basic information on how it achieved its level of expertise. The service provider’s capability is derived from previous contracts of similar scope and size, where information such as comparative size, time to achieve, control, the systems used and operating cost are available. The capability to meet additional perceived CTQs or exceed stated ones also is obtained from previous contract information, providing a statement of competitive advantage.
During the Analyze phase, the service provider must develop a plan to meet or exceed the RFQ requirements. To accomplish this, a full analysis of the required sub-functions and drivers is needed, including an analysis of each CTQ and the development of the personnel, systems and structure necessary to deliver them within budget. Once completed, this analysis allows determination of costs for the proposed plan, which may require trade-offs in the investment needed for each CTQ. The goal is to develop a detailed structure that provides a realistic, achievable and attractive plan. A good cost accounting tool is usually needed to manage this balance of dependent variables. Also critical is the assurance of the service provider’s operations management that the plan is achievable given the assumptions provided. This process should include a sensitivity analysis to highlight the effects of drivers such as volume and variability.
The Analyze phase provides the final structure required to support the client’s needs. In the Improve phase, the service provider develops a launch timeline to implement that structure. This gives the client a view of the service provider’s capability and sets expectations for management of the change and implementation process to be used. The Improve phase should present the service provider’s entire knowledge and data-driven plan, reflecting an understanding of the client’s goals and giving assurance that the service provider is structured to achieve them. The service provider should remain focused on the RFQ requirements (CTQs), highlighting capability versus minimum requirements and offering a comparison with the client’s known competitors. This also is an opportunity to review additional processes where the service provider’s expertise will provide leadership and competitive advantage for the client. Where applicable, the service provider should furnish guarantees based on critical assumptions, and should establish trust by supporting its capability calculations with an overview of the DMAIC process it followed in preparing the bid.
The Control phase includes a partnership with the client to complete the launch/change plan and manage changes. A plan that is agreed to and jointly managed by the client and service provider is essential. Included in the pre-implementation process are the identification of detailed roles and responsibilities, a timeline including major milestones, an escalation procedure, corrective actions and management reviews. A constant review of the CTQ requirements versus their achievement is prudent to ensure the client of a successful plan delivery. While delays may occur, implementing a culture driven by metrics and elevating concerns wherever necessary, will reduce the likelihood of hidden problems becoming disasters.
As companies continue to outsource non-core activities, they look for skillful service providers who understand their business and are capable of delivering to their bid. DMAIC-style selling raises the bar by employing a proven bid-development process. Data-driven analysis, sub-process development, robust work plans and cost refinement are the keys to its success. Through a Six Sigma approach, service providers offer a view of the excellence and capability of their organization and differentiate themselves from their competition.


Abstract
Blastomyces dermatitidis belongs to a group of human pathogenic fungi that exhibit thermal dimorphism. At 22°C, these fungi grow as mold that produce conidia or infectious particles, whereas at 37°C they convert to budding yeast. The ability to switch between these forms is essential for virulence in mammals and may enable these organisms to survive in the soil. To identify genes that regulate this phase transition, we used Agrobacterium tumefaciens to mutagenize B. dermatitidis conidia and screened transformants for defects in morphogenesis. We found that the GATA transcription factor SREB governs multiple fates in B. dermatitidis: phase transition from yeast to mold, cell growth at 22°C, and biosynthesis of siderophores under iron-replete conditions. Insertional and null mutants fail to convert to mold, do not accumulate significant biomass at 22°C, and are unable to suppress siderophore biosynthesis under iron-replete conditions. The defect in morphogenesis in the SREB mutant was independent of exogenous iron concentration, suggesting that SREB promotes the phase transition by altering the expression of genes that are unrelated to siderophore biosynthesis. Using bioinformatic and gene expression analyses, we identified candidate genes with upstream GATA sites whose expression is altered in the null mutant that may be direct or indirect targets of SREB and promote the phase transition. We conclude that SREB functions as a transcription factor that promotes morphogenesis and regulates siderophore biosynthesis. To our knowledge, this is the first gene identified that promotes the conversion from yeast to mold in the dimorphic fungi, and may shed light on environmental persistence of these pathogens.


Abstract
New technologies provide new forums for the expression and challenging of racism. This article explores the potential of an interactive blog about asylum-seekers to serve as part of the Habermasian ‘public sphere’, facilitating debate between those with opposing views. We offer evidence that pro-and anti-asylum seeker arguments made in blogs construct a binary between those in favour and those against. Arguments are collectively constructed producing relatively coherent discourses, despite being articulated by different individuals. We then explore the ways in which pro-asylum seeker postings utilize strategies which social scientists have identified as effective in challenging racism. As such, the blog is a site where what has come to be called ‘bystander anti-racism’ is being practised, producing a counter-hegemonic discourse. Our evidence suggests that despite arguments to the contrary, blogs are potentially useful sites for the development of communicative consciousness in relation to race issues, particularly the challenging of racism.


Hydrometeorological data are commonly serially dependent and thereby deviate from the assumption of independence that underlies the Spearman rho trend test. The presence of autocorrelation will influence the significance of observed trends. Specifically, the positive autocorrelation inflates Type I errors, while it deflates the power of trend detection in… (More)


The first challenge to eating durian is finding one. The fresh fruit, imported from Malaysia and Thailand, is rare outside of cities with large Southeast Asian communities and well-connected international grocers. It's more commonly sold frozen in ethnic supermarkets and online.
The next challenge is stifling the gag reflex long enough to get a spoonful down your throat. The fruit's aroma is notoriously noxious. It's been compared to dead fish, rotting compost and a latrine. Even in its native land, where it's hailed as "the king of fruits," it's banned in hotels, airports and the subway.
With a smell that awful, you'd figure a food must taste awfully good to become a national icon. You'd be right. The durian's taste has been likened to bananas, caramel and walnuts, and sometimes all three, with a hint of vanilla and sweet onion. Its texture is soft, almost gooey, like custard.
What accounts for this cruel, gastronomic joke? Durians contain sulfuric compounds similar to the ones that give onions and garlic their eye-watering sting. But they're also unusually high in sugar and fat, making them rich and creamy. It's easy to go overboard when eating durian, as legions of fans will attest.
If you should develop a durian habit, take heart: Scientists are working to create less stinky varieties. That upsets some long-time durian lovers. To them, the foul aroma sharpens the anticipation of eating.
Next: a food that a lot of people consider a pest.


Aggression - Definition physical direct indirect active
Aggression is defined as behavior aimed at causing harm or pain, psychological harm, or personal injury or physical distraction. An important aspect of aggressive behavior is the intention underlying the actor's behavior. Not all behaviors resulting in harm are considered aggression. For example, a doctor who makes an injection that harms people, but who did so with the intent of preventing the further spread of illness, is not considered to have committed an aggressive act.
Aggression can be direct or indirect, active or passive, and physical or verbal. Using these categories, human aggression can be grouped into eight classes of behavior:
Punching the victim (direct, active, physical) Insulting the victim (direct, active, verbal) Performing a practical joke, setting a booby trap (direct, passive, physical) Spreading malicious gossip (direct, passive, verbal) Obstructing passage, participating in a sit-in (indirect, active, physical) Refusing to speak (indirect, active, verbal) Refusing to perform a necessary task (indirect, passive, physical)
Direct aggression, especially physically active aggression, is more common among animals. Actors who express indirect aggression usually feel less satisfaction, but they are also less concerned about retaliation. Passive and indirect aggression is the least noxious form. Subordinates rebelling against authority figures often use it. In the family relation it is often used by children against their parents.


Makale özeti ve diğer detaylar.
This case study is designed to investigate how distance education technology affects the instructor’s simultaneously teaching the same course via instructional television (ITV) and traditional education (face-to-face) formats. This study involved random observations of the instructor in a graduate course in both instructional television and face-to-face classrooms. In addition, an interview with the instructor was conducted to collect more data. This study has suggested that the instructor who teaches the same course in both ITV and traditional education formats exhibits both similarities and differences among the three instructional phases (before-class, in-class, and after-class) in both situations. The results of this study will have significant implications for future distance education instructors.


October 18, 2004
My mother was told when I was 16 months old that I was deaf. The official diagnosis many years later was Usher Syndrome Type I, a genetic disease that causes deafness, retinitis pigmentosa (vision limitations) and balance problems.
Upon hearing my diagnosis, my mother prayed for direction. As she did, she stumbled upon an evangelist preaching on television and was so moved by the message, she committed her life anew to Christ. As it turned out, I would be my mother's saving grace, and this would be the first of many examples of how God worked through my situation to bless and enrich lives.
When I was very young, my parents took me from Austin, where we lived, to San Antonio weekly to learn a language system that included English signing and voicing/lip-reading. I began attending a school with a deaf education program at age 3 and gradually mainstreamed through my elementary years. In my sophomore year of high school, I mainstreamed in English, after my parents advocated for me. My deaf education teachers had held me back, thinking I was not intellectually capable. The next year, I went into honors English, where I stayed until I graduated.
I attended Baylor University. I received a Business Law Student of the Year award, graduated magna cum laude with a BBA and a master's of taxation. I became a certified public accountant, passing the exam on my first sitting.
Throughout school, I also enjoyed many extracurricular activities. In high school, I ran cross country and track and held Student Council offices. At Baylor, I worked part time, held an office in Delta Delta Delta and was involved in Beta Alpha Psi.
My life has gone well. I live alone and have learned to cope with my challenges. For instance, I do not drive because of my poor vision, but I live close enough to my work that I can walk, and I buy groceries online. I spent two years on the tax staff with Arthur Andersen LLP and then a year with KPMG. Now I am a commission accountant for KPMG LLP.
In January 2003, just a few weeks before my 26th birthday, I chose to have cochlear implant surgery. Electrodes were implanted in my cochlea to replace my genetically missing cilia, thus enabling me to hear. Also, a magnet was surgically placed behind my ear, where a speech processor (which is like a hearing aid but for cochlear implant recipients) is attached.
It may be hard for others to understand how this procedure has changed my life. Before, I had absolutely no hearing, so I had no idea what hearing would be like. I am like a baby learning how to speak (using my diaphragm instead of my throat) and how to hear.
I had never heard a baby's cry, running water, music, snoring, whispering. Each new sound was a discovery -- not only an auditory one, but a cognitive one. At first after the hook-up, I could hear only distinct sounds such as talking (not words yet), moving hangers, shuffling paper, footsteps, a keyboard being played. I still could not hear traffic, water, music or constant, monotonous sounds.
I remember the first time I heard a baby cry. I was shopping, and I heard this sound I did not recognize. I heard it again several times and decided I didn't like it; I was getting annoyed! Later, in my church's library, while reading, I heard it again and understood for the first time it was a baby's cry.
One morning, when my parents were staying with me, again I heard a noise I did not recognize. How funny to learn it was my father snoring. That same morning, I also learned my mother's whisper. It was a joyful discovery because that sound and the sound of leaves rustling are the quietest sounds, which I was told I wouldn't be able to hear. Another day, I recognized a door creaking. I had learned that sound from watching a cartoon movie that showed sounds in subtitles.
I continue to make progress. I attend 45-minute sessions three times a week with a speech therapist and work independently on my voice and auditory exercises. Now I can hear running water, a vacuum cleaner, soft and low sounds, a television. I am beginning to find sounds I like and dislike because now I have a basis for sound comparison.
And I can hear music. Days after my cochlear implant, my younger sister gave me a music box on my 26th birthday in February. It had been hers as a child, and every time she listened to it, she would pray that I would be healed of my deafness. When I pressed my ear to the music box, I could barely hear the soft, soft sound. Then, at Christmas that same year, after not having listened to the music box since February, I listened to it again, and to my shock, I could hear it very clearly.
I still use alerting devices at night when I do not wear my speech processor. These devices vibrate whenever a phone rings, somebody knocks on the door or a bed alarm or weather alert goes off.
Throughout my life, I have shown that my deafness does not impede my success. God created me and endowed me with abilities, gifts and skills to use through his strength for his glory. With the cochlear implant, I also have discovered new ways to enjoy and experience God. When I hear thunder, I feel God's awesome presence and sense his incredible power. When I hear leaves rustling, I sense his praiseworthy sweetness, serenity and beauty. At a church service, I hear the pastor's voice change, and I feel his emphasis, his emotions.
At one church service, I cried with joy when a man was baptized. The congregation clapped, and my joy was intensified. At this overwhelming moment, I thanked God that I had been born and remained deaf until I was 26 years old. It did not hold me back, and now upon being able to hear, I have a deeper appreciation of and relationship with God and Jesus Christ.
Johnson, BBA and MTA '00, is a commission accountant for KPMG LLP in Dallas.


DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/25tkqb/epicast_report) has announced the addition of GlobalData's new report "EpiCast Report: Seasonal Influenza Vaccines Epidemiology Forecast to 2022" to their offering.
Seasonal Influenza is a respiratory infection caused by influenza virus that results in mild to severe symptoms, such as fever, cold and cough. Vaccination has been shown to reduce influenza morbidity and mortality and high economic burden associated with influenza illness.
Epidemiologists expect seasonal influenza vaccination coverage rates for all countries but the UK and China to remain constant on average throughout the forecast period. Vaccine demand for all nine countries, on the other hand, is forecast to increase in the next decade.
Overall, the US is projected to have the largest vaccine demand in the next decade at over 158 million, followed by Japan's 37.4 million, whereas Spain is expected to have the lowest demand at just over eight million.
Annual growth in vaccine demand for the next 10 years is highest in India (2.10%) and the UK (1.38%) and lowest in Japan (0.42%) and Germany (0.26%).
By 2022, the US will have the highest vaccination coverage rate (46.1%) and India and China the lowest (both at 1.7%).
Vaccine demand is expected to increase across all nine markets, even in countries where vaccination coverage rates remain stable. This increase is mostly due to population growth, especially growth in the elderly age group.
Scope
- The Seasonal Influenza Vaccines EpiCast Report provides an overview of risk factors for seasonal influenza and global trends for seasonal influenza vaccination coverage.
- Data provided for the US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK, Japan, India, and China.
- It includes a 10-year epidemiological forecast of seasonal influenza vaccination coverage segmented by age (0-4 years, 5-64 years, and =65 years) in these nine markets.
Reasons to buy
- This forecast is supported by at least 10 years of historical data sourced mostly from government reports and country-specific studies published by peer-reviewed journals.
- A major strength of the analysis is the consideration of a comprehensive list of factors such as policy, historical and current events, such as the H1N1 pandemic, cultural perception, economic situations, and population growth in forecasting trends.
- Forecast methodology is consistent across all nine markets, thereby allowing for a meaningful comparison of the nine markets.
For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/25tkqb/epicast_report
Source: GlobalData


The Office of the e-Envoy has launched a consultation on the adoption of open-source software (OSS) as part of its continuing drive to put pressure on commercial software providers to provide the best deals to the public sector.
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The consultation document states that "open-source software is not a hype bubble that will burst and UK government must take cognisance of that fact".
Adoption of OSS is, so far, limited in the public sector. While Dundee city council, for instance, has adopted a Linux-driven mainframe solution in partnership with IBM, a high-profile Linux trial at Newham borough council ended when Newham decided to stay with Microsoft.
The Office of Government Commerce has initiated a series of open-source trials in the public sector and is seeking to renegotiate its licence terms with Microsoft.
The OSS consultation runs until 11 June, and users are asked to comment on a series of recommendations. These include making it standard policy for the government to consider OSS solutions alongside proprietary ones in IT procurements.
It also spells out a commitment to using only products for interoperability that support open standards, so the public sector can avoid lock-ins to proprietary products.
The government may also consider obtaining full rights to bespoke software code or customisations of commercial off-the-shelf software it buys.
The draft policy says such measures will remove the reliance on individual IT suppliers, and provide more flexibility in the development, enhancement and integration of systems. It also points out that OSS is more secure against internet attacks, unlike the main applications available from Microsoft, for instance.
Open-source software: Use within the UK government http://www.govtalk.gov.uk/policydocs/consult_subject_document.asp?docnum=861


Joanna Simon
I breathe a sigh of relief when I see a screw cap — not only because I know that the wine won’t be corked (spoilt by a musty, tainted cork), but because I’m lazier than I realised. I always thought I enjoyed the anticipatory ritual of pulling the cork. I now recognise that I’d rather just grab the bottle and unscrew, whether I’m picnicking or dining
à deux
. I also know that I’m not alone. Tesco, which has switched 150 wines — about a quarter of its total — to screw caps, has discovered that its customers are choosing them not because they don’t want to risk a corked bottle, but because they like the corkscrew-free convenience, picnic or no picnic.
Oddly, other recent surveys have concluded that people still prefer corks, and don’t believe that screw caps are suitable for expensive wines. Yet it’s clear — and not just from Tesco, but from Oddbins


Average returns for funds with an equal mix of stock and bond allocations have historically been “statistically equivalent” during recessions and expansions, according to Vanguard. Vanguard studied balanced funds’ historical performance from 1926 through June 2009.
The reason for this, according to Vanguard’s research, is that during a recession, bonds typically outperform stocks as investors search for safety. Furthermore, stock prices tend to fall in the period before a recession is declared and rise again as the economy begins to recover.
Consequently, the average returns for balanced funds between 1926 and 2009 have been “similar regardless of whether the U.S. economy was in or out of recession.”
This is particularly true of inflation-adjusted returns, the paper notes, because inflation tends to be higher during expansions.
Vanguard acknowledges that while the average balanced portfolio returns have been similar, specific recessions have resulted in a wide variance between returns for stocks and bonds.
“Balanced portfolios have provided positive returns in a surprising number of recessionary periods, in part because equities often have done better during recessions than conventional wisdom would suggest,” according to Vanguard.
Despite these findings, Vanguard warns eager investors to remember that past performance no guarantee of future results.
“That a balanced 50%/50% portfolio has produced an average historical real return of approximately 5% during past recessions does not imply that a 5% real return is assured or even reasonable to expect should a recession occur in the near future,” according to the paper. Deep, long-lasting recessions preceded by a run-up in asset prices and leverage have been associated with lower balanced fund returns.
The level of stock valuations and interest rates going into a recession will also affect a balanced fund’s performance. As they stand now, according to Vanguard, these metrics suggest that balanced portfolios’ returns could be below the historical averages during any near-future recession.


The food prices in the Kakuma refugee market and the availability of the required commodities by the consumers at the market have been challenging for the local residents and the refugee communities. (more…)
Volume 1, Issue 4-5 / March-April 2009
With food supplies already meager, refugees must exchange food items for staples such as charcoal, leaving them hungry.
Volume 1, Issue 3 / February 2009
Dust storms, spare parts, and UNHCR head count drive up prices of boda-boda bicycle taxis, posing a dilemma for would-be customers (more…)
Volume 1, Issue 3 / February 2009
Refugee women created entrepreneurial groups to counter gender inequality and poverty, but now these initiatives are dying due to lack of NGO support (more…)


American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Series Title:
Journal of Biological Chemistry vol:287 issue:15 pages:12250-12266
Abstract:
Many cellular functions are driven by changes in the intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) that are highly organized in time and space. Ca2+ oscillations are particularly important in this respect and are based on positive and negative [Ca2+]i feedback on InsP3 receptors (InsP3Rs). Connexin hemichannels are Ca2+-permeable plasma membrane channels that are also controlled by [Ca2+]i. We aimed to investigate how hemichannels may contribute to Ca2+ oscillations. Madine Darby Canine Kidney cells expressing Cx32 and Cx43 were exposed to bradykinin (BK) or ATP to induce Ca2+ oscillations. BK-induced oscillations were rapidly (minutes) and reversibly inhibited by the connexin-mimetic peptides 32Gap27/43Gap26, while ATP-induced oscillations were unaffected. Furthermore, these peptides inhibited the BK-triggered release of calcein, a hemichannel-permeable dye. BK-induced oscillations, but not those induced by ATP, were dependent on extracellular Ca2+. Alleviating the negative feedback of [Ca2+]i on InsP3Rs using CytC inhibited BK- and ATP-induced oscillations. Cx32 and Cx43 hemichannels are activated by <500 nM [Ca2+]i but inhibited by higher concentrations and CT9 peptide (last 9 amino acids of the Cx43 C-terminus) removes this high [Ca2+]i inhibition. Unlike interfering with the bell-shaped dependence of InsP3Rs to [Ca2+]i, CT9 peptide prevented BK-induced oscillations but not those triggered by ATP. Collectively, these data indicate that connexin hemichannels contribute to BK-induced oscillations by allowing Ca2+-entry during the rising phase of the Ca2+ spikes and by providing an OFF-mechanism during the falling phase of the spikes. Hemichannels were not sufficient to ignite oscillations by themselves; however, their contribution was crucial as hemichannel inhibition stopped the oscillations.


The Pestera cu Oase is a sealed limestone cavern in southwestern Romania which served principally as a hibernation den for Pleistocene cave bears and wolves, but also contained the fossil remains of the earliest modern humans in Europe. Currently inaccessible except through cave diving androck climbing, the cave preserved its contents undisturbed for tens of thousands of years. To understand the cave, its contents, the bear and wolves, and especially the humans, an international team mapped and excavated the Pestera cu Oase from 2002 to 2005, and has since analyzed its remains indetail. The result was a wealth of information on the geology and paleontology of this cave as a reflection of life in the southwestern Carpathians 40-50 thousand years ago. This volume presents those findings. Among other things, the large cave bears provided the first solid evidence of the omnivorousnature of these not-so-gentle giants. The deer remains brought into the cave by wolves are among the largest known in Europe and document the westernmost extent of the eastern (wapiti) variant of this species. And the human remains, a complete lower jaw of a young adult and a largely complete skull of an adolescent, furhish detailed information on the anatomy of the earliet modern Europeans, who were modern without being fully modern. They combine an overall distinctly modern anatomy with traitsreminescent of earlier archaic humans and among the largest rear molars in the genus Homo. They thus document the initial spread of modern humans into the cul-de-sac of Europe, the complex ancestry of those humans, and the ongoing nature of human evolution after the established of people likeourselves.