While you're still settling in to HDTV, NHK is already looking past 4K toward 8K broadcast trials -- and it has the hardware to do it. The Japanese broadcaster just showed off a compact 8K broadcast camera that joins the H.265 encoder we saw earlier, and packs a 33-megapixel sensor and drive circuits into a mere four square inch package. Like NHK's 8K Super Hi-Vision cam, the more compact model runs at 120Hz, and the company said it would soon upgrade its encoders to handle the higher resulting frame rates. Broadcast trials are scheduled to begin in 2016 in Japan, regardless of whether you can see the pixels or not.
Motorola's X phone is finally confirmed, now all we need are the details
Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside is speaking at D11, and he announced what many of us have been waiting to hear -- news of the Moto X. According to Woodside, who teases us by saying the phone is in his pocket but he can't show us, the Moto X will be a true game changer. Made in the USA, using all the APIs Google announced at Google I/O last month, the X is the lead device to show off the companies new direction.
He also was sure to mention that Motorola was ready to build high quality, low cost devices for emerging markets, but the X is not one of these. The X will be "more contextually aware. And you can interact with it in different ways."
There's not much to go on here, but you can rest assured that we'll let you know as soon as we do.
Edit: A lot of the talk was about how the X will be different. Specifically mentioned was the battery tech, which we all care about. The question was asked: "How can you fix it, [battery life] when everyone else has struggled with it so much? There are ways to improve it, but can you solve the underlying problem? How do you go about doing that?"
The answer:
I'll save the more detailed discussion for later. But your question about how you understand the change in state and optimized the battery — we have some of the best engineers, and they've created a system where there are two processors that are more aware.
So we can expect an all-new "smart" battery monitoring processor of some sort. I can't wait for the details on this!
Edit 2: Motorola has also issued a mini press release, which you'll find after the break in its entirety.
Gemini Observatory captures Comet ISON hurtling toward uncertain destiny with the SunPublic release date: 30-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Peter Michaud pmichaud@gemini.edu 808-974-2510 Gemini Observatory
Images of Comet ISON over the past three months hint at coming changes as comet speeds into the inner solar system
The time-sequence images, spanning early February through May 2013, show the comet's remarkable activity despite its current great distance from the Sun and Earth. The information gleaned from the series provides vital clues as to the comet's overall behavior and potential to present a spectacular show. However, it's anyone's guess if the comet has the "right stuff" to survive its extremely close brush with the Sun at the end of November and become an early morning spectacle from Earth in early December 2013.
When Gemini obtained this time sequence, the comet ranged between roughly 455-360 million miles (730-580 million kilometers; or 4.9-3.9 astronomical units) from the Sun, or just inside the orbital distance of Jupiter. Each image in the series, taken with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph at the Gemini North telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i, shows the comet in the far red part of the optical spectrum, which emphasizes the comet's dusty material already escaping from what astronomers describe as a "dirty snowball." Note: The final image in the sequence, obtained in early May, consists of three images, including data from other parts of the optical spectrum, to produce a color composite image."
The images show the comet sporting a well-defined parabolic hood in the sunward direction that tapers into a short and stubby tail pointing away from the Sun. These features form when dust and gas escape from the comet's icy nucleus and surround that main body to form a relatively extensive atmosphere called a coma. Solar wind and radiation pressure push the coma's material away from the Sun to form the comet's tail, which we see here at a slight angle (thus its stubby appearance).
Discovered in September 2012 by two Russian amateur astronomers, Comet ISON is likely making its first passage into the inner Solar System from what is called the Oort Cloud, a region deep in the recesses of our Solar System, where comets and icy bodies dwell. Historically, comets making a first go-around the Sun exhibit strong activity as they near the inner Solar System, but they often fizzle as they get closer to the Sun.
Sizing up Comet ISON
Astronomer Karen Meech, at the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy (IfA) in Honolulu, is currently working on preliminary analysis of the new Gemini data (as well as other observations from around the world) and notes that the comet's activity has been decreasing somewhat over the past month.
"Early analysis of our models shows that ISON's brightness through April can be reproduced by outgassing from either carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide. The current decrease may be because this comet is coming close to the Sun for the first time, and a "volatile frosting" of ice may be coming off revealing a less active layer beneath. It is just now getting close enough to the Sun where water will erupt from the nucleus revealing ISON's inner secrets," says Meech.
"Comets may not be completely uniform in their makeup and there may be outbursts of activity as fresh material is uncovered," adds IfA astronomer Jacqueline Keane. "Our team, as well as astronomers from around the world, will be anxiously observing the development of this comet into next year, especially if it gets torn asunder, and reveals its icy interior during its exceptionally close passage to the Sun in late November."
NASA's Swift satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) have also imaged Comet ISON recently in this region of space. Swift's ultraviolet observations determined that the comet's main body was spewing some 850 tons of dust per second at the beginning of the year, leading astronomers to estimate the comet's nucleus diameter is some 3-4 miles (5-6 kilometers). HST scientists concurred with that size estimate, adding that the comet's coma measures about 3100 miles (5000 km) across.
The comet gets brighter as the outgassing increases and pushes more dust from the surface of the comet. Scientists are using the comet's brightness, along with information about the size of the nucleus and measurements of the production of gas and dust, to understand the composition of the ices that control the activity. Most comets brighten significantly and develop a noticeable tail at about the distance of the asteroid belt (about 3 times the Earth-Sun distance between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter) because this is when the warming rays of the Sun can convert the water ice inside the comet into a gas. This comet was bright and active outside the orbit of Jupiter when it was twice as far from the Sun. This meant that some gas other than water was controlling the activity.
Meech concludes that Comet ISON "could still become spectacularly bright as it gets very close to the Sun" but she cautions, "I'd be remiss, if I didn't add that it's still too early to predict what's going to happen with ISON since comets are notoriously unpredictable."
A Close Encounter
On November 28, 2013, Comet ISON will make one of the closest passes ever recorded as a comet grazes the Sun, penetrating our star's million-degree outer atmosphere, called the corona, and moving to within 800,000 miles (1.3 million km) of the Sun's surface. Shortly before that critical passage, the comet may appear bright enough for expert observers using proper care to see it close to the Sun in daylight.
What happens after that no one knows for sure. But if Comet ISON survives that close encounter, the comet may appear in our morning sky before dawn in early December and become one of the greatest comets in the last 50 years or more. Even if the comet completely disintegrates, skywatchers shouldn't lose hope. When Comet C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy) plunged into the Sun's corona in December 2011, its nucleus totally disintegrated into tiny bits of ice and dust, yet it still put on a glorious show after that event.
The question remains, are we in for such a show? Stay tuned
Comet ISON: The View from the North and South
Regardless of whether Comet ISON becomes the "Comet of the Century," as some speculate, it will likely be a nice naked-eye and/or binocular wonder from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres in the weeks leading up to its close approach with the Sun.
By late October, the comet should be visible through binoculars as a fuzzy glow in the eastern sky before sunrise, in the far southeastern part of the constellation of Leo. By early November, the comet should be a much finer binocular object. It will steadily brighten as it drifts ever faster, night by night, through southern Virgo, passing close to the bright star Spica. It is during the last half of the month that observations will be most important, as the comet edges into Libra and the dawn, where it will brighten to naked-eye visibility and perhaps sport an obvious tail.
The comet reaches perihelion (the closest point in its orbit to the Sun) on November 28th, when it will also attain its maximum brightness, and perhaps be visible in the daytime. If Comet ISON survives perihelion, it will swing around the Sun and appear as both an early morning and early evening object from the Northern Hemisphere. The situation is less favorable from the Southern Hemisphere, as the comet will set before the Sun in the evening and rise with the Sun in the morning.
By December 10th, and given that everything goes well, Comet ISON may be a fine spectacle in the early morning sky as viewed from the Northern Hemisphere. Under dark skies, it may sport a long tail stretching straight up from the eastern horizon, from the constellations of Ophiuchus to Ursa Major. The comet will also be visible in the evening sky during this time but with its tail appearing angled and closer to the horizon.
###
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Gemini Observatory captures Comet ISON hurtling toward uncertain destiny with the SunPublic release date: 30-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Peter Michaud pmichaud@gemini.edu 808-974-2510 Gemini Observatory
Images of Comet ISON over the past three months hint at coming changes as comet speeds into the inner solar system
The time-sequence images, spanning early February through May 2013, show the comet's remarkable activity despite its current great distance from the Sun and Earth. The information gleaned from the series provides vital clues as to the comet's overall behavior and potential to present a spectacular show. However, it's anyone's guess if the comet has the "right stuff" to survive its extremely close brush with the Sun at the end of November and become an early morning spectacle from Earth in early December 2013.
When Gemini obtained this time sequence, the comet ranged between roughly 455-360 million miles (730-580 million kilometers; or 4.9-3.9 astronomical units) from the Sun, or just inside the orbital distance of Jupiter. Each image in the series, taken with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph at the Gemini North telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i, shows the comet in the far red part of the optical spectrum, which emphasizes the comet's dusty material already escaping from what astronomers describe as a "dirty snowball." Note: The final image in the sequence, obtained in early May, consists of three images, including data from other parts of the optical spectrum, to produce a color composite image."
The images show the comet sporting a well-defined parabolic hood in the sunward direction that tapers into a short and stubby tail pointing away from the Sun. These features form when dust and gas escape from the comet's icy nucleus and surround that main body to form a relatively extensive atmosphere called a coma. Solar wind and radiation pressure push the coma's material away from the Sun to form the comet's tail, which we see here at a slight angle (thus its stubby appearance).
Discovered in September 2012 by two Russian amateur astronomers, Comet ISON is likely making its first passage into the inner Solar System from what is called the Oort Cloud, a region deep in the recesses of our Solar System, where comets and icy bodies dwell. Historically, comets making a first go-around the Sun exhibit strong activity as they near the inner Solar System, but they often fizzle as they get closer to the Sun.
Sizing up Comet ISON
Astronomer Karen Meech, at the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy (IfA) in Honolulu, is currently working on preliminary analysis of the new Gemini data (as well as other observations from around the world) and notes that the comet's activity has been decreasing somewhat over the past month.
"Early analysis of our models shows that ISON's brightness through April can be reproduced by outgassing from either carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide. The current decrease may be because this comet is coming close to the Sun for the first time, and a "volatile frosting" of ice may be coming off revealing a less active layer beneath. It is just now getting close enough to the Sun where water will erupt from the nucleus revealing ISON's inner secrets," says Meech.
"Comets may not be completely uniform in their makeup and there may be outbursts of activity as fresh material is uncovered," adds IfA astronomer Jacqueline Keane. "Our team, as well as astronomers from around the world, will be anxiously observing the development of this comet into next year, especially if it gets torn asunder, and reveals its icy interior during its exceptionally close passage to the Sun in late November."
NASA's Swift satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) have also imaged Comet ISON recently in this region of space. Swift's ultraviolet observations determined that the comet's main body was spewing some 850 tons of dust per second at the beginning of the year, leading astronomers to estimate the comet's nucleus diameter is some 3-4 miles (5-6 kilometers). HST scientists concurred with that size estimate, adding that the comet's coma measures about 3100 miles (5000 km) across.
The comet gets brighter as the outgassing increases and pushes more dust from the surface of the comet. Scientists are using the comet's brightness, along with information about the size of the nucleus and measurements of the production of gas and dust, to understand the composition of the ices that control the activity. Most comets brighten significantly and develop a noticeable tail at about the distance of the asteroid belt (about 3 times the Earth-Sun distance between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter) because this is when the warming rays of the Sun can convert the water ice inside the comet into a gas. This comet was bright and active outside the orbit of Jupiter when it was twice as far from the Sun. This meant that some gas other than water was controlling the activity.
Meech concludes that Comet ISON "could still become spectacularly bright as it gets very close to the Sun" but she cautions, "I'd be remiss, if I didn't add that it's still too early to predict what's going to happen with ISON since comets are notoriously unpredictable."
A Close Encounter
On November 28, 2013, Comet ISON will make one of the closest passes ever recorded as a comet grazes the Sun, penetrating our star's million-degree outer atmosphere, called the corona, and moving to within 800,000 miles (1.3 million km) of the Sun's surface. Shortly before that critical passage, the comet may appear bright enough for expert observers using proper care to see it close to the Sun in daylight.
What happens after that no one knows for sure. But if Comet ISON survives that close encounter, the comet may appear in our morning sky before dawn in early December and become one of the greatest comets in the last 50 years or more. Even if the comet completely disintegrates, skywatchers shouldn't lose hope. When Comet C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy) plunged into the Sun's corona in December 2011, its nucleus totally disintegrated into tiny bits of ice and dust, yet it still put on a glorious show after that event.
The question remains, are we in for such a show? Stay tuned
Comet ISON: The View from the North and South
Regardless of whether Comet ISON becomes the "Comet of the Century," as some speculate, it will likely be a nice naked-eye and/or binocular wonder from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres in the weeks leading up to its close approach with the Sun.
By late October, the comet should be visible through binoculars as a fuzzy glow in the eastern sky before sunrise, in the far southeastern part of the constellation of Leo. By early November, the comet should be a much finer binocular object. It will steadily brighten as it drifts ever faster, night by night, through southern Virgo, passing close to the bright star Spica. It is during the last half of the month that observations will be most important, as the comet edges into Libra and the dawn, where it will brighten to naked-eye visibility and perhaps sport an obvious tail.
The comet reaches perihelion (the closest point in its orbit to the Sun) on November 28th, when it will also attain its maximum brightness, and perhaps be visible in the daytime. If Comet ISON survives perihelion, it will swing around the Sun and appear as both an early morning and early evening object from the Northern Hemisphere. The situation is less favorable from the Southern Hemisphere, as the comet will set before the Sun in the evening and rise with the Sun in the morning.
By December 10th, and given that everything goes well, Comet ISON may be a fine spectacle in the early morning sky as viewed from the Northern Hemisphere. Under dark skies, it may sport a long tail stretching straight up from the eastern horizon, from the constellations of Ophiuchus to Ursa Major. The comet will also be visible in the evening sky during this time but with its tail appearing angled and closer to the horizon.
###
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?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
He's a movie star and a rock musician today, but in his childhood, Jared Leto was "food-stamp poor," he tells style catalog and publication Mr. Porter.
Leto and his brother Shannon were raised by a single mom who moved often, but infused her sons with a sense of creativity and the arts.
"It was the 1970s, the age of the artist and the hippy, and my exposure to that shaped me in a really deep way," he said. "I had no concept of the word 'fame'; or a notion of success or money. We grew up very poor, so our world wasn't anywhere near that kind of stuff. You have to do what is important to you and protect that."
Leto is known to many as Angela Chase's crush Jordan Catalano in the 1994-1995 cult TV favorite "My So-Called Life." He's also starred in such films as "American Psycho," "Requiem for a Dream," and "Urban Legend," but his second love is music. Leto and his brother perform together as part of the rock group 30 Seconds to Mars.
The band's latest album, "Love Lust Faith and Dreams," features a song that harks back to Leto's childhood, as "Depuis Le D?but," the final song on the album, closes by featuring a music box playing the theme from "Swan Lake."
"My mother used to put my little brother and me to sleep by playing that exact music box," he said. "And we wanted to put a little bit of our life on there. The whole record is very personal and I hope it is an album that can be transformative."
In this May 18, 2013 photo, Wan Long, chairman of Shuanghui International, speaks at the U.S.-China Cooperation Forum on Agricultural Investment in Zhengzhou in central China's Henan province. The force behind China's biggest takeover of an American company is the 71-year-old meat-packing entrepreneur dubbed "China's Chief Butcher" by the press who built an empire on his country's voracious appetite for pork. The $4.7 billion bid for Smithfield Foods by Wan, is another big step up for Chinese entrepreneurs who are emerging from the shadow of state-owned corporate giants and expanding on the global stage. (AP Photo) CHINA OUT
In this May 18, 2013 photo, Wan Long, chairman of Shuanghui International, speaks at the U.S.-China Cooperation Forum on Agricultural Investment in Zhengzhou in central China's Henan province. The force behind China's biggest takeover of an American company is the 71-year-old meat-packing entrepreneur dubbed "China's Chief Butcher" by the press who built an empire on his country's voracious appetite for pork. The $4.7 billion bid for Smithfield Foods by Wan, is another big step up for Chinese entrepreneurs who are emerging from the shadow of state-owned corporate giants and expanding on the global stage. (AP Photo) CHINA OUT
In this Friday, Feb. 24, 2006 photo, a worker loads boxes of foods at a freight station at the Shuanghui Group in Luohe city in central China's Henan province. The force behind China's biggest takeover of an American company is a 71-year-old meat-packing entrepreneur dubbed "China's Chief Butcher" by the press who built an empire on his country's voracious appetite for pork. The $4.7 billion bid for Smithfield Foods by Wan Long, chairman of Shuanghui International, is another big step up for Chinese entrepreneurs who are emerging from the shadow of state-owned corporate giants and expanding on the global stage. (AP Photo) CHINA OUT
BEIJING (AP) ? The force behind China's biggest takeover of an American company is a 71-year-old meat-packing entrepreneur dubbed "China's Chief Butcher" by the press who built an empire on his country's voracious appetite for pork.
The $4.7 billion bid for Smithfield Foods by Wan Long, chairman of Shuanghui International, is another big step up for Chinese entrepreneurs who are emerging from the shadow of state-owned corporate giants and expanding on the global stage.
Under pressure to keep economic growth strong, the new government of President Xi Jinping has promised a bigger role and lighter regulatory burden to entrepreneurs who generate China's jobs and wealth. Still, it is unclear how far the ruling Communist Party is willing to go in making crucial changes including curbing the dominance of state industry.
"If these Chinese entrepreneurs who are highly capable are allowed to get on and do what they do best, we're going to see a lot more deals like this," said Charles Maynard, senior managing director of Business Development Asia, which advises companies on acquisitions. "Despite lots of hurdles, they are increasingly able to think globally and act globally."
Another private investor, Fosun International, bought a stake last year in Club Med and says it will team up with insurer AXA to acquire the rest of the French resort operator. Last year, a private firm set the current record for the biggest Chinese takeover of an American company when Wanda Group bought the AMC cinema chain for $2.6 billion.
China's private companies follow a different path from Western buyers pursuing acquisitions.
Cash-rich but inexperienced, they shop for brands, technology and skills to speed their development. Unlike Western buyers, which might lay off employees, Chinese companies keep them and sometimes hire more. Sweden's Volvo Cars expanded its workforce after it was acquired in 2010 by Chinese automaker Geely Holding Group.
"We were especially attracted to Smithfield for its strong management team, leading brands and vertically integrated model," said Shuanghui's Wan in the statement announcing this week's bid.
The purchase was endorsed by Smithfield's board but still require approval from shareholders and U.S. regulators.
Reflecting the sensitivity of Chinese acquisitions at a time of American complaints about computer hacking and market access, the companies said they would submit the proposed deal for a U.S. government national security review.
The announcement comes as President Barack Obama and China's Xi prepare to meet for the first time, overshadowed by mounting American frustration about a wave of cyber intrusions traced to China and possibly its military that targets government and commercial secrets. Obama is expected to press Xi to crack down on cybercrime.
The Chinese acquisition of a major food producer "is a bit concerning," said U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley in a statement. He said regulators should look at what role the communist Beijing government plays in Shuanghui and whether the acquisition might affect national security.
Some, however, warn against linking the deal to strains in the U.S.-China relationship.
"This is just not the kind of deal that would or should rankle the U.S. government," said James Zimmerman, a lawyer in Beijing for the firm Sheppard Mullen and a former chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, in an email.
"The U.S. government would do more harm than good if they use this transaction to leverage out of China better behavior on unrelated issues," said Zimmerman. "Promoting free trade and open investment only comes from setting an example."
Despite their role in driving growth, private companies like Shuanghui still are second-class corporate citizens behind state companies that benefit from monopolies and low-cost access to bank loans, land and energy.
The World Bank and other advisers have warned that model requires drastic change if China's growth is to stay strong. They say more industries have to be opened to private and possibly foreign competitors.
A statement by the Cabinet's planning agency on May 24 promised such change. But it consisted mostly of repeating previous pledges and gave no details of possible reforms. Those are likely to provoke fierce opposition from party factions that depend on state industry to supply money and jobs to reward their supporters.
Entrepreneurs' expansion abroad comes as China's explosive double-digit economic growth that powered their rise slows.
The slowdown is largely self-imposed as Chinese leaders try to nurture more self-sustaining growth based on domestic consumption instead of exports and investment. But consumer spending growth is slow. That has forced Beijing to prop up China's rebound from its deepest downturn since the 2008 global crisis with spending on building subways and other public works, which pumps still more money into state industry.
Growth of the world's second-largest economy is forecast at 7 to 8 percent over the next decade ? far above the low single digits expected from the United States and Europe but China's weakest performance since the '90s.
"They know this economy may have rough days ahead, so why not take their capital and diversify around the world?" said Jim McGregor, chairman for Greater China at consulting firm APCO.
State-owned oil and mining companies still account for China's biggest deals abroad, including multibillion-dollar investments in Australia, Africa and Latin American. In 2007, China's sovereign wealth fund bought a 9.9 percent stake in Morgan Stanley for $5.6 billion.
But smaller private companies are expanding in a wider array of industries including technology, manufacturing, food processing and real estate.
Bright Foods acquired a majority stake last year in Weetabix, which makes Alpen muesli. Hanergy Group, a builder of hydroelectric dams, bought two makers of solar panels ? MiaSole in California and Germany's Solibro.
Shuanghui's Wan, a former soldier, started his rise in 1985 when coworkers elected him manager of a slaughterhouse in his hometown of Luohe in central China.
The economy was in the early stages of then-supreme leader Deng Xiaoping's reforms. The ruling party had begun allowing privately owned restaurants and other small businesses. Rolling back its "iron rice bowl" policies of jobs for life and nationwide wage standards, Beijing was starting to let companies pay employees for the first time based on their productivity.
According to Caixin, China's leading business magazine, Wan turned around his struggling slaughterhouse with such radical innovations for the time as operating three shifts around the clock, every day of the year. It said that in the first year the business swung to a profit of 5 million yuan (about $1.7 million at that time).
The company grew rapidly while undergoing repeated restructurings. It split into two competing companies at one point before reuniting. In 2006, its managers bought out the remaining state stake using money from investors including Goldman Sachs and Singapore state investment company Temasek Holdings Ltd.
Today, the company is controlled through Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd. in Hong Kong, of which Wan is chairman. The operating unit on the mainland, Shuanghui Investment and Development Co., says it is China's biggest meat processor, with annual sales in excess of 50 billion yuan ($8 billion) and more than 60,000 employees.
China consumes more than half the world's pork. That makes the tie-up with Shuanghui a possible boost to Smithfield by giving the American producer a readymade distribution network for its Armour, John Morrell and other brands as Chinese buy more processed and packaged meat.
Shuanghui's reputation was battered in 2011 when state television revealed its pork contained clenbuterol, a banned chemical that makes pork leaner but can be harmful to humans.
The company apologized and promised to improve quality ? a process that might benefit from an infusion of know-how from Smithfield.
"Pork in China is a vegetable. It's everywhere," said McGregor. "Good for China, trying to up its game on best practices."
May 30, 2013 ? Trichloroethylene (TCE) exposure has possible links to increased liver cancer risk, and the relationship between TCE exposure and risks of cancers of low incidence and those with confounding by lifestyle and other factors need further study, according to a study published May 30 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
TCE is a chlorinated dry-cleaning solvent and degreaser that has been widely used for approximately the last 100 years and has shown carcinogenicity in rodents. Previous epidemiologic studies have shown a reported increase in cancer risk in humans for the kidney, cervix, liver and biliary passages, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and esophageal adenocarcinoma.
In order to determine the link between TCE exposure and increased cancer risk, Johnni Hansen, Ph.D., of the Danish Cancer Society Research Center in Copenhagen, and colleagues looked at a cohort of workers that had individual documentation for exposure to TCE in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, where the individuals were monitored for urinary TCE metabolite trichloroacetic acid during 1947-1989 and followed for cancer.
The researchers found statistically significant elevated standardized incidence ratios for primary liver cancer and cervical cancer, but did not find a statistically significant risk of either non-Hodgkin lymphoma or esophageal or kidney cancer.
"Our pooled study of documented TCE-exposed workers provides some evidence for an increased risk of liver cancer, although confounding by other exposures cannot be ruled out. Evaluation of a possible modest risk for kidney cancer and non- Hodgkin lymphoma requires studies with greater statistical power," the authors write.
In an accompanying editorial, Mark P. Purdue, Ph.D., of the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics at the National Cancer Institute writes that there has been concern with workers exposed to TCE since the early 1970s and that even though it is now classified as a human carcinogen, further research is needed and safer options should be explored. "Where possible, TCE should be substituted by safer alternative chemicals and/or emissions should be reduced. Conversion from conventional vapor degreasers to new low-emission equipment such as enclosed vapor degreasing systems can greatly reduce solvent exposures in the workplace, and aqueous cleaning systems may also be feasible alternatives in certain applications."
Letters threatening New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his gun-control group tested positive for ricin, officials said Wednesday. On Thursday, a similar letter addressed to President Obama surfaced.
By Chelsea B. Sheasley,?Correspondent / May 30, 2013
President Obama walks past flowers as he leaves the Oval Office, walking in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, to the Marine One helicopter for a short trip to Andrews Air Force Base, Md. then onto Chicago for fundraising events. A suspicious letter addressed to President Obama has been turned over to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Enlarge
A White House mail screening facility has intercepted a suspicious letter addressed to President Obama that is similar to two letters containing threats for New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his gun-control group in Washington, according to the Secret Service Thursday.
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The letter addressed to Mr. Obama has been turned over to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The other two letters, which are also being investigated, have already tested positive for ricin, authorities said Wednesday.?
The pair of letters that surfaced first, and that were sent anonymously, were opened in New York on Friday at the city?s mail facility in Manhattan and in Washington on Sunday, according to New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne. Mr. Browne said ?the writer, in the letters, threatened Mayor Bloomberg, with references to the debate on gun laws." ?
The letter addressed to Obama also had an anti-gun control message, along with a suspicious substance, a law-enforcement source told ABC News.
The civilian personnel who initially came into contact with the first pair of letters showed no symptoms of exposure to the poison, but three police officers who later examined the New York letter experienced minor symptoms that have since abated, Browne said.
One letter was addressed to Mark Glaze, the director of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a nonprofit advocacy group started by Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino that lobbies federal and state lawmakers for stricter gun-control laws.
Mr. Glaze opened the letter while sitting outside over the Memorial Day weekend, a colleague told the Associated Press. According to ABC News, Glaze opened the letter on a park bench and then called for help after seeing powder in the envelope.
A Joint Terrorism Task Force of the FBI and the NYPD?s Intelligence Division are investigating the threats, Browne said.
Ricin can be made from castor beans and can be lethal if ingested even in small quantities.
Asked about the letters Wednesday night, Bloomberg said: ?There?s 12,000 people that are going to get killed this year with guns and 19,000 that are going to commit suicide with guns, and we?re not going to walk away from those efforts. And I know I speak for all of the close to 1,000 mayors? in Mayors Against Illegal Guns, he said. ?This is a scourge on the country that we just have to make sure that we get under control and eliminate.?
While officials would not comment on what specific threats were made or where the letters were postmarked, ABC News reports that the author wrote he or she has a "constitutional and God-given right and I will exercise that right 'til I die" ? saying that the government would have to kill him or her before he or she would relinquish any weapons.
The first two letters to surface were postmarked from Shreveport, La., ABC News reports. The Shreveport mayor, Cedric Glover, released a statement Thursday morning:
"The city of Shreveport in conjunction with the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force is working to apprehend those responsible for mailing ricin laced letters to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg," Mr. Glover said. "We are also taking the necessary steps to protect local [Postal Service] & Government Plaza personnel as well as local citizens from any possible harm."
The letters are the latest in a string of toxin-laced missives. In Washington State, Matthew Buquet of Spokane was charged last week with threatening to kill a federal judge in a letter that contained ricin. That letter was discovered earlier this month during screening, before it was delivered to the judge, Reuters reported.
In April, letters containing the same substance were addressed to Obama, a US senator, and a Mississippi judge. J. Everett Dutschke, a former tae kwon do instructor from Tupelo, Miss., was arrested in that case on April 27, four days after federal prosecutors dropped charges against Paul Kevin Curtis, an Elvis impersonator from Corinth, Miss, whose lawyer says he may have been framed.
Browne would not say whether the latest letters were believed to be linked to the other ricin cases.
Bloomberg?s advocacy group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, counts more than 700 mayors nationwide as members. It aired a spate of television ads this year urging Congress to expand background checks and pass other gun-control measures after the December school shooting in Newtown, Conn. The background-check proposal failed in a Senate vote in April, and other measures that gun-control advocates wanted ? including a ban on sales of military-style assault weapons ? have stalled.?
Separately, Bloomberg also has made political donations to candidates who share his desire for tougher gun restrictions. His "super political-action committee," Independence USA, put $2.2 million into a Democratic primary this winter for a US congressional seat in Illinois, for example. Bloomberg?s choice, former state lawmaker Robin Kelly (D), won the primary and the seat.
? Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.
Hertz took the top spot in the 2013-2014 Zagat Car Rental Survey, topping categories like vehicles, reliability, service and popularity. The survey was conducted among a national sample of 920 Zagat.com registered users and a total of eight US-based rental companies were rated. Hertz also topped the results when readers were asked to name the best company for business and leisure travel, and best Web site.?
The top five overall rankings went to Hertz, National, Avis, Enterprise and Budget based on these categories: vehicles, reliability and service. Enterprise was the pick when readers were asked to name the company with best neighborhood rentals, and the best deals and promotions.?
Business travel was the reason most surveyors rented a car in the past year (6.3 times for business, 4 times per year for leisure) and the average surveyor rented a car 10.3 times in the past 12 months.
May 29, 2013 ? Researchers from New York Medical College and the University of California Davis have for the first time codified age-specific probabilities of live birth after in vitro fertilization (IVF) with frozen eggs. A team of researchers led by Kutluk Oktay, M.D., a New York Medical College physician/scientist who specializes in preserving the fertility of female cancer patients, conducted a meta-analysis of oocyte cryopreservation cycles using individualized patient data to report the probability of live-birth from IVF cycles.
The study, "Age-specific probability of live birth with oocyte cryopreservation: an individual patient data meta-analysis," was published in the online May issue of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine's journal Fertility and Sterility.
Egg freezing is a relatively recent technique which enables women to preserve their fertility for medical or elective reasons. Until now, women who were undergoing oocyte cryopreservation, or egg freezing, were unable to predict their chances of a live birth once the eggs were reimplanted. Oktay and his team collected raw data from 10 previously published studies on egg freezing, allowing them to amass what may be the world's largest database on pregnancy outcomes after egg freezing. Using this database, which included data from 2,265 egg freezing cycles in 1,805 women in the U.S. and Europe, the researchers generated norms which can be used to determine egg freezing success rates based on a woman's age, the number of eggs frozen, and the method of egg freezing.
"Because of this breakthrough, women and fertility doctors will now be able to use a live pregnancy rate estimator to calculate their individual chances and to make a well-informed decision about the procedure," said Dr. Oktay.
The study also showed that while egg freezing success rates decline with age as expected, there is a sharper drop after age 36. Though pregnancies can result from frozen eggs implanted as late as age 44, the success rates are less promising after age 42.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by New York Medical College, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Aylin Pelin Cil, Heejung Bang, Kutluk Oktay. Age-specific probability of live birth with oocyte cryopreservation: an individual patient data meta-analysis. Fertility and Sterility, 2013; DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2013.04.023
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Compared to these animals, us humans are just so boring. What do we do when we're scared? Run away. What do we do when we're hungry? Go to the supermarket. What do we do when we're outside? Complain about the weather. Well, these animals and bugs can shoot napalm, break bones for claws and so much more.
That's mostly a risk if you're using a virus vector which integrates the DNA into an existing chromosome (which this one doesn't, I believe), AND you can't control the site of insertion. That is, unless the specific gene (in this case, the antibody gene) itself can cause a persistent change in the function of the cell - maybe causing the body to produce a compound which itself promotes cell growth or the like. (That's well outside my area of expertise.)
The great thing about inserting into an existing chromosome (which this does not do) is that then cell replication *does* propagate the gene. The downside is the risk of incorrect insertion which can lead to cancer, among other things.
SEATTLE (AP) ? The Army staff sergeant charged with slaughtering 16 villagers in one of the worst atrocities of the Afghanistan war will plead guilty to avoid the death penalty in a deal that requires him to recount the horrific attack for the first time, his attorney told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was "crazed" and "broken" when he slipped away from his remote southern Afghanistan outpost and attacked mud-walled compounds in two slumbering villages nearby, lawyer John Henry Browne said.
But his client's mental state didn't rise to the level of a legal insanity defense, Browne said, and Bales will plead guilty next week.
The outcome of the case carries high stakes. The Army had been trying to have Bales executed, and Afghan villagers have demanded it. In interviews with the AP in Kandahar last month, relatives of the victims became outraged at the notion Bales might escape the death penalty.
"For this one thing, we would kill 100 American soldiers," vowed Mohammed Wazir, who had 11 family members killed that night, including his mother and 2-year-old daughter.
"A prison sentence doesn't mean anything," said Said Jan, whose wife and three other relatives died. "I know we have no power now. But I will become stronger, and if he does not hang, I will have my revenge."
Any plea deal must be approved by the judge as well as the commanding general at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where Bales is being held. A plea hearing is set for June 5, said Lt. Col. Gary Dangerfield, an Army spokesman. He said he could not immediately provide other details.
"The judge will be asking questions of Sgt. Bales about what he did, what he remembers and his state of mind," said Browne, who told the AP the commanding general has already approved the deal. "The deal that has been worked out ... is they take the death penalty off the table, and he pleads as charged, pretty much."
A sentencing-phase trial set for September will determine whether Bales is sentenced to life in prison with or without the possibility of parole.
Browne previously indicated Bales remembered little from the night of the massacre, and he said that was true in the early days after the attack. But as further details and records emerged, Bales began to remember what he did, the lawyer said, and he will admit to "very specific facts" about the shootings.
Browne would not elaborate on what his client will tell the judge.
Bales, an Ohio native and father of two from Lake Tapps, Wash., had been drinking contraband alcohol, snorting Valium that was provided to him by another soldier, and had been taking steroids before the attack.
Testimony at a hearing last fall established that Bales returned to his base between attacking the villages, woke up a fellow soldier and confessed. The soldier didn't believe him and went back to sleep, and Bales left again to continue the slaughter.
Most of the victims were women and children, and some of the bodies were piled and burned. The slayings drew such angry protests that the U.S. temporarily halted combat operations in Afghanistan. It was three weeks before American investigators could reach the crime scenes.
Browne said his client, who was on his fourth combat deployment, was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury. He continued to blame the Army for sending him back to war in the first place.
"He's broken, and we broke him," Browne said.
The massacre raised questions about the toll multiple deployments were taking on American troops. For that reason, many legal experts believed it that it was unlikely that he would receive the death penalty, as Army prosecutors were seeking. The military justice system hasn't executed anyone since 1961.
The defense team, including military lawyers assigned to Bales as well as Browne's co-counsel, Emma Scanlan, eventually determined after having Bales examined by psychiatrists that he would not be able to prove any claim of insanity or diminished capacity at the time of the attack, Browne said.
"His mental state does not rise to the level of a legal insanity defense," Browne said. "But his state of mind will be very important at the trial in September. We'll talk about his mental capacities or lack thereof, and other factors that were important to his state of mind."
Browne acknowledged the plea deal could inflame tensions in Afghanistan and said he was disappointed the case has not done more to focus public opinion on the war.
"It's a very delicate situation. I am concerned there could be a backlash," he said. "My personal goal is to save Bob from the death penalty. Getting the public to pay more attention to the war is secondary to what I have to do."
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Johnson can be reached at https://twitter.com/GeneAPseattle
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AP's special regional correspondent for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Kathy Gannon, contributed from Kandahar.
Quora's library of knowledge has been trapped behind inadequate topic search, but now any keyword generates a list of frequently asked questions and answers about the subject thanks to today's launch of full-text search on iOS and Android, and its web debut in March. Search became crucial as Quora usage is up 3X this year and it has grown to 350,000 topics, each with too many questions to browse.
Today was a big money day for startup funding ? and post-startup growth-stage and late-stage fund funding.
Online radio startup TuneIn closed $25M round of?funding
TuneIn, the terrestrial streaming radio service, has closed a new $25 million round of funding, the company announced today.
TuneIn aggregates over 70,000 live radio stations (that are available to stream online) and 2 million on-demand audio programs (podcasts, concerts, interviews, etc.) under one web service.
Insight Venture Partners raised a huge $2.57B fund
The firm announced today that it has raised a whopping new $2.57 billion fund (Insight Venture Partners VIII)?dedicated to investments in e-commerce, software, Internet, and data services businesses.
The New York-based firm says existing investors accounted for the majority of the new fund?s capital.
Moogsoft raised a $7 million series A
Moogsoft, an agile service management software company, announced a $7 million Series A funding round led by Redpoint Ventures.
Moogsoft?s software automatically identifies the existence of IT incidents, orchestrates stakeholder responses, and captures the resolution knowledge. Interestingly, it requires no rules, no business logic or models, and no learned patterns to administer and maintain.
Numecent raises $13.6 million
Cloud startup?Numecent?has raised $13.6 million in a new round of funding from?T-Venture, the venture arm of telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom.
Numecent is trying to reshape software distribution by making it far easier to deliver bits over the Internet, as they are needed, in real time.
Cloud call center biz Five9 hooks $34.5M
Cloud-based call center software maker?Five9?has raised $34.5 million in new funding to help it take on legacy software makers that still own 95 percent of the market.
Five9 helps its customers transition from call center software that?s on-premise to its software in the cloud.
ADLY raises $2 million in additional funding
Social advertising company Adly raised $2 million in additional funding from GRP Partners and Siemer Ventures.
Adly combines brand analytics with social media to reach targeted audience segments. The company has established relationships with more than 75,000 influencers and celebrities, who then can be matched to relevant brands.
Home improvement is a fantastic way to spruce up an outdated dcor or to give your home a new look. There are so many different options when it comes to home improvement while fitting almost anybody?s budget. Painting, wallpaper or even just new curtains are a few examples that will give any home a fresh look for a minimal price.
Beware custom made items. Custom is great for cabinets, but it can get costly when it comes to most items. Save money by figuring out how to modify store-bought items, or how to modify your home itself to fit around the item you purchase. This will typically end up saving you money.
How to paint an indoor room quickly and easily. If possible, try to do all your painting in daylight hours, as artificial light can cause you to miss small areas. Tackle the ceiling first, painting around the edges in bands, and working your way into the center. The walls should be painted starting at the top, and working downwards in sections.
A great home improvement tip is to not let your ego get in the way when making renovations. Sometimes, a renovation you may have in mind does not need to be done because it could violate a particular building code, or it could even harm the value of your home.
Install radiant heat under your new tile floors. There are kits available for the do-it-yourself homeowner, and it?s really not rocket science. It will make a dramatic difference in the ?wow? factor of your home both to guests and to potential buyers. Invite them to take their shoes off and feel the heat!
If you are interested in changing the look of your bathroom, this space could be the perfect choice for your next home improvement project. Give your bathroom an extra special touch by installing radiant floor heat and a light-tube, which gives the space the appearance of having natural light. Both features come with instructions that are easy to follow.
Installing new lighting fixtures is a great investment. Dark or dim rooms can seem smaller and depressing. Simply installing additional lighting can give new life to a room. A bright kitchen not only makes it easier to cook, but can liven the whole house, and a well lit bathroom can seem much larger than it really is.
When it comes to home improvement, be aware that you should never pay more than 35% of the project cost up front as a down payment. This is to ensure that you do not lose your money if the contractor backs out. Always pay by some method of payment that can be tracked such as check, instead of cash. Finally, only pay for the complete job when the job is actually completed.
If you live in a home that was built before 1990, consider having your attic re-insulated with newer materials and energy saving foam. Newer home insulation technology can save you hundreds of dollars in less than a year by improving the overall efficiency of your heating and cooling systems.
Increase your productivity when installing new kitchen cabinets by planning the order in which you will hang them. Install the top cabinets first so you do not have to lean over the base cabinets to attach them to the wall. Beginning in a corner is the easiest way to avoid fitting problems.
In conclusion, it can be quite easy and affordable to improve your home?s appearance. If you are doing it yourself and only working on simple projects it will become obviously worth the little money spent. There are many options and styles available to suit everyone?s needs. Who doesn?t want to walk into their home and feel aesthetically refreshed?
For more details you will have to look on house cleaning new york and new york city cleaning
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) ? DNA testing so far has been inconclusive on whether two men executed in Kansas for the 1959 killings that inspired the book "In Cold Blood" can also be linked to the unsolved slayings of a Florida family weeks later, a senior investigator said Wednesday.
Kansas Bureau of Investigation will continue testing material collected from the remains of convicted murderers Richard Hickock and Perry Smith, Deputy Director Kyle Smith said. Investigators believe the men fled to Florida after killing the Clutter family in a gruesome case later documented by Truman Capote in his genre-forming classic.
"The analysis is not completed," Kyle Smith told The Associated Press. "We are still trying."
In Florida, the Sarasota County sheriff's office says it remains optimistic that it can resolve questions about the killings of four family members, just days before Christmas 1959. A detective there began investigating the case again in 2007.
"Hopefully, science will be able to give us the answers," spokeswoman Wendy Rose said.
The KBI initially projected it would have definitive results from the DNA early this month, but the agency now has no timetable for when the testing will be complete.
"Justice never rests," Smith said.
Hickock and Perry Smith were hanged in 1965 in Kansas for the killings of Herb Clutter, his wife and two of their children in the family's farmhouse outside the southwest Kansas town of Holcomb.
The hunt for the killers mesmerized the nation and drew journalists from across the U.S. to the small farming town. Capote's book takes readers through the killings, Hickock's and Perry Smith's trial and their execution. It is celebrated because it reads like a novel; scholars have long debated its accuracy.
Attention quickly turned to Hickock and Perry Smith when, only weeks after the Kansas slayings, a Florida family was killed. Cliff Walker and his wife, Christine, along with their two small children, were killed in their home in Osprey, Fla., south of Sarasota. The case was never solved.
Investigators believed Hickock and Smith fled to Florida after killing the Clutter family, then traveled to Las Vegas, where they were captured. A lie detector test cleared them of the Walker slayings ? but in 1987, a polygraph expert declared that such tests were worthless in the 1960s. Christine Walker also had been raped, so Florida authorities sought to compare a DNA profile from semen on her clothing to the DNA profiles taken from the remains of Hickock and Smith.
The convicted murderers were buried in Lansing. Kansas officials had their remains exhumed in December so state investigators could collect bone fragments for DNA samples.
Kyle Smith said the KBI will eventually turn over results of the DNA tests to Florida officials who will announce any links between the cases.
"In Cold Blood" alludes to the Walker killings in a short passage; Capote incorrectly states that the slayings occurred near Tallahassee, Fla., about five hours north of the actual scene. He also relates a conversation between Hickock and Smith on a beach in Miami, and has Smith speculating that "a lunatic" copied the Kansas killings. The book says that in reply, Hickock "shrugged and grinned and trotted down to the ocean's edge."
Authorities in Florida have said Hickock and Smith were spotted at least a dozen times from Tallahassee to Miami. On the day of the Walker slayings, authorities have said, Hickock and Smith bought items at a Sarasota department store.
The Sarasota County Sheriff's detective who began re-investigating the Walker deaths in 2007 said the Walkers had been considering buying a 1956 Chevy Bel Air, the kind of car Hickock and Smith were driving through Florida.
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Follow John Hanna on Twitter at http://twitter.com/apjdhanna
MediaCorp, the largest media broadcaster in Singapore, has acquired a majority stake in online gaming site Cubinet Interactive, hot on the heels of its investment in another online site last week.
The move continues MediaCorp?s spending spree in the tech scene, marking its first-ever investment in an online gaming site and only the second time that it has pumped money into a website after it led a $40 million?investment in luxury shopping site Reebonz.
MediaCorp declined to reveal the amount it paid for the Cubinet stake, with a spokesperson saying that company information isn?t readily available to the public in Malaysia and Cubinet was thus reluctant to reveal investment information that could be deemed classified.
Cubinet offers a variety of casual games and?Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing games, which include 9Yin and Forsaken World ? apparently popular in the region.
By tying up with a gaming site, MediaCorp aims to connect more with youths who are spending an increasing amount of time online, and even has its eye on turning Cubinet content into television shows.
?It?s a strategic fit with our outreach to youths, who spend a lot of time online. Cubinet?s reach provides a regional audience for our youth-oriented services. In turn, MediaCorp is keen to see how for example, Cubinet?s content could be turned into popular TV shows. The possibilities are endless,? said MediaCorp CEO Shaun Seow in a press statement.
Cubinet was founded in 2006 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It has since set foot in four other countries in Southeast Asia ? Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam.
Multiwindow, Best Shot added along with scores of other fixes, features
Hold onto your hats, folks. The Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3 is getting ready for a pretty major software update. The biggest bullet points probably are the addition of multiscreen and multiwindow, which let you run apps side-by-side. You'll also get some new camera functionality, including the ability to choose from five burst shots to get the "Best Shot."
That's just the tip of the iceberg for the update that has just started pushing out. Read on for the full rundown.
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Public release date: 30-May-2013
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Quora's library of knowledge has been trapped behind inadequate topic search, but now any keyword generates a list of frequently asked questions and answers about the subject thanks to today's launch of full-text search on iOS and Android, and its web debut in March. Search became crucial as Quora usage is up 3X this year and it has grown to 350,000 topics, each with too many questions to browse.
