Amazon's shiny new Kindle Paperwhite will start trickling out of the company's myriad warehouses in short order, but it seems e-reading rival Barnes & Noble won't let Amazon set foot in the illuminated e-reader market unanswered. To that end, BN has announced that it has cut the price of its conceptually-similar Nook SimpleTouch with GlowLight from $139 to $119 ? the same price as Amazon's ad-supported Paperwhite model.
COLUMBUS, Ohio ? Ohio State may not be in town today, but it?s still game day and Paul Ryan stopped by a sports bar here to greet fans and voters in this crucial battleground state, as well as have a Miller Lite and watch some of the game with his wife, Janna. Dressed in a jacket with Ohio State colors of scarlet and gray, Ryan greeted a crowd of diehard Ohio State fans at the Varsity Club, a bar located just 500 yards away from the ...
NASA's Curiosity rover has found evidence of an ancient riverbed on Mars. While it's now dried up, it's the first ever evidence to prove that running water once poured over the surface of the red planet. This is huge. More »
GENEVA (AP) ? Amid the firestorm over an American film that mocks the Prophet Muhammad, the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva votes Friday on a resolution by a group of African and Latin American governments urging countries to "to counter the dissemination of ideas based on racial superiority or hatred."
The developing world nations are essentially telling the West: Curb free speech that inflicts wounds based on race or religion. But the West is far from uniform on how to balance free speech rights it considers sacrosanct with efforts to tackle the spread of racial, ethnic or religious hatred.
The "Innocence of Muslims," an amateurish, privately produced U.S. video that mocked Muhammad's image, sparked deadly violence in some Islamic countries. The anger was enflamed by the publication of lewd caricatures of the prophet by French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.
The non-binding resolution from South Africa ? on behalf of the Africa Group ? as well as Cuba, Venezuela and Bolivia, follows calls by the Arab League for the international community to criminalize blasphemy.
Here is a look at different models for dealing with the conundrum of protecting freedom of expression, while ensuring that speech does not become hate crime.
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FRANCE: Dating back to the Revolution-era Declaration of the Rights of Man more than two centuries ago, France has enshrined protections of free speech. But following World War II, France has also enacted a law that bans incitement to racial or religious hatred. It has a separate law prohibiting Holocaust denial. French far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen ? who was repeatedly convicted for anti-Semitic remarks ? was fined ?10,000 for "inciting racial hatred" for disparaging remarks against Muslims made in a 2003 newspaper interview. That was just a year after he shocked France, home to western Europe's largest Muslim community, by qualifying for the presidential race runoff against President Jacques Chirac.
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GERMANY: Freedom of speech is guaranteed by the constitution, and in one prominent case in the 1990s, the country's top court allowed the use of the slogan "soldiers are murderers." However, "incitement of the people," defined as fomenting hatred for a segment of the population, is a crime ? an effort to prevent use of tactics employed by the Nazis against the Jews. In 1994, a paragraph was added explicitly forbidding denial of the Holocaust and other Nazi crimes. In 2009, the constitutional court affirmed limitations on speech that endorses neo-Nazi views, citing "an exceptional circumstance" considering the country's Nazi past. In Austria, which like Germany bans Holocaust denial, British writer David Irving served 13 months in prison after being convicted in 2006 on charges that he denied the Nazis exterminated 6 million Jews during World War II.
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AUSTRALIA: Australia has no explicit legal right to free speech in its constitution. However, its High Court in 1992 ruled that the constitution implied that a right to free political speech exists. Last year, a popular right-wing commentator was found guilty of breaking discrimination law by implying that fair-skinned Aborigines chose to identify as indigenous for profit and career advancement. Federal Court Justice Mordy Bromberg ruled that fair-skinned Aborigines were likely to have been "offended, insulted, humiliated or intimidated by the imputations" included in columnist Andrew Bolt's articles published by the Herald Sun newspaper in Melbourne in 2009. The Racial Discrimination Act is not enforced by prison sentences or fines, but enables judges to make orders to correct breaches.
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BRITAIN: Britain sometimes limits freedom of speech when it is judged to incite people to violence. That was the case with Abu Hamza al-Masri, the radical Muslim cleric imprisoned for his fiery diatribes urging jihad, or holy war, against the West. In Britain, it is illegal to use threatening language to incite racial or religious hatred.
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UNITED STATES: In the United States, today a land of no-holds-barred talk radio, the Constitution's First Amendment says Congress "shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech." But in an unanimous opinion on the government's ability to regulate speech during the World War I draft, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. argued that Congress can bar use of words in some circumstances that "are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger" ? such as "a man in falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic." Speaking to the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, President Barack Obama said free speech is sacrosanct in the United States. "The strongest weapon against hateful speech is not repression," he said, "it is more speech ? the voices of tolerance that rally against bigotry and blasphemy."
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Associated Press writers Juergen Baetz in Berlin, Jesse Holland in Washington D.C., Gregory Katz in London and Kristen Gelineau in Sydney contributed to this report.
IRVINE ? Irvine is working to create a 10,000-guest amphitheater at Orange County Great Park to replace iconic outdoor concert venue Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, which will lose its land lease in 2017 to make way for homes.
Two studies on the viability of an amphitheater have been conducted at the direction of the park board, which includes the Irvine City Council, public records show. Now, park staff is moving the project forward.
Jimmy Buffett fans have fun tailgating before his show in 2010 at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre.
FILE PHOTO: THE REGISTER
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"We are developing a request for proposals (to select a private-sector partner) for an amphitheater that we expect to bring to the board for approval," park spokesman Marcus Ginnaty said via email.
The new amphitheater will be an "inspiring" and "financially sustainable 21st-century performing arts facility among the finest venues anywhere for popular entertainment, symphonic performances, dance, opera and community/educational programming," according to its working mission statement.
The venue has big shoes to fill. The 16,000-capacity Verizon Wireless, which opened in 1981 as Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, is a popular concert hall with a rich history.
Ozzy Osbourne record a concert there in 1982 that was just recently released in the U.S.
Michael Jackson performed three nights there on his 1988 Bad Tour.
Robert Plant and Jimmy Page cranked out Led Zeppelin hits there a few times in the '90s.
The amphitheater is the summertime home to Pacific Symphony Orchestra and is the annual site of KROQ's Weenie Roast and Christian music event Fish Fest, during which the venue's numerous beer taps don't flow.
It is nestled against foothills west of I-405 in Irvine, near Spectrum Center. In the early years, some folks would climb the hills behind the venue to catch a free show.
The general-admission grass lawn above the reserved seating gives 'nosebleed' ticketholders freedom to move around, dance, picnic and bundle up in blankets. The Great Park amphitheater is to also have a lawn.
In 1998, Irvine Meadows was purchased by Live Nation Entertainment, a concert giant that merged with Ticketmaster.?The venue?s name changed a few years later.?
Live Nation declined to comment for this story, but Irvine Co. spokesman Mike Lyster confirmed that the lease on Verizon will not be renewed when it expires in 2017. The developer plans to build apartments in its stead.
Verizon's longtime neighbor Wild Rivers was forced to close down last year for the same reason. The water slide amusement park was quickly dismantled and demolished.
The Irvine Co. is constructing the first 1,750 apartments of its Los Olivos Village project there, and expects the first leases to be signed early next year. It is undecided how many homes the second phase will include or when, exactly, Verizon will be demolished.
The amphitheater and water park were always meant as temporary uses, Lyster said. They originally subleased from Lion Country Safari, a drive-through wild animal park that closed in 1984.
Irvine's zoning plan designated that area for commercial recreation until the mid-2000s, when the City Council changed it to residential at landowner The Irvine Co.'s request, city spokesman Craig Reem said.
So, why a smaller venue at the Great Park? The studies showed that a 10,000-capacity amphitheater is more realistic in the modern, Internet-driven music industry in which many artists establish careers but don't build huge fan bases. The 11.5-acre Great Park venue is to have about 8,000 seats and a 2,000-person lawn.
The studies, which included tours of seven similar amphitheaters, also confirmed demand.
"The expiration of the land lease on (Verizon) will create a void in the market," park staff stated in a report.
The plan is for a private company to build, own and run the amphitheater on leased land in the park. Officials roughly estimate that it will cost $40 million to $50 million to construct, City Councilman Jeff Lalloway said.
Live Nation and Goldenvoice, promoter of Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, have been mentioned as possible partners.
Great Park officials are already working with Goldenvoice on producing an annual "signature music festival" on the park grounds. The company was chosen after a request for proposals last year.
The acoustics and stage design will be able to handle pop, rock, jazz and many other types of music, staff reports show. Dining options would be similar to that of Hollywood Bowl, which include restaurants and eateries, private box food service, a dessert shop and a market caf? with picnic offerings.
Parking is planned at 4,000 spaces on pre-existing concrete runways at the Great Park, which is on the former El Toro Marine Corps air base in the northwestern part of the city. Repurposing the runways will cost just 5 percent of what it would take to build a parking lot, officials said.
Traffic would enter and exit on the runways and on a widened Marine Way and is not expected to be a nuisance, a staff report says.
The request for proposals for the new amphitheater is still being developed and no date has been set yet to bring that to the park board.
There is no schedule established as to when the amphitheater will open, but it will most likely open after Verizon shuts down in 2017 and not before then, Lalloway said.
Wild Rivers is building a new waterpark to open in 2014 on county-owned land next to the Great Park.
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe said on Wednesday the death of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was as tragic as that of U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens, as he delivered a scathing critique of U.S., U.N. and NATO actions.
Speaking firmly, if occasionally stumbling over words, the 88-year-old president accused the United States of "rushing to suck oil from Iraq" when it invaded the country in 2003 on the erroneous grounds that it possessed weapons of mass destruction.
He said the U.N. Security Council had allowed itself to be "abused" last year by authorizing "all necessary measures" - diplomatic code for military intervention - to protect civilians in Libya in a NATO operation that eventually toppled Gaddafi's government and led to his death at the hands of rebels.
Speaking with deliberate irony, Mugabe opened an address to the U.N. General Assembly by praising as "most glowing and most moving" a speech by U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday in which he rued Stevens' death.
Stevens and three other Americans were killed during what Washington has called a "terrorist" attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi on September 11. The assault forced the evacuation of U.S. personnel from the eastern city that was the hub for the Libyan rebel movement.
"I am sure we were all moved, we all agree, that it was a tragic death indeed and we condemn it," said Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980 and is among Africa's longest-serving leaders.
"As we in spirit join the United States in condemning that death, shall the United States also join us in condemning that barbaric death of the head of state of Libya - Gaddafi? It was a loss, a great loss, to Africa, a tragic loss to Africa."
'A HUNT, A BRUTAL HUNT'
The Zimbabwean accused the United States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the 28-member Western security alliance whose air strikes helped Libyan rebels defeat Gaddafi's forces, of acting under false pretenses.
"The mission was strictly to protect civilians, but it turned out that there was a hunt, a brutal hunt, of Gaddafi and his family," Mugabe said. "In a very dishonest manner we saw ... Chapter 7 being used now as a weapon to rout a whole family."
Chapter 7 of the United Nations Charter allows the U.N. Security Council to authorize actions ranging from diplomatic and economic sanctions to military intervention.
"Bombs were ... thrown about in a callous manner and quite a good many civilians died. Was that the protection that they had sought under Chapter 7 of the Charter?
"So the death of Gaddafi must be seen in the same tragic manner as the death of Chris Stevens. We condemn both of them."
Mugabe, a long-standing critic of the West, is himself widely criticized for turning what was once one of Africa's strongest economies into a basket case and has been accused of hanging on to power through vote-rigging.
Other speakers at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday - notably Bolivia's leftist president, Evo Morales, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - also criticized the United States for what they see as economic and political bullying.
A U.S. official had no immediate comment on Mugabe's remarks.
The Zimbabwean leader appeared to be in reasonable health despite questions about his wellbeing sparked by Zimbabwean media reports that he has traveled to Singapore eight times in the past year to seek medical attention.
He walked in an almost jaunty manner to and from the lectern in the General Assembly hall, where he read his speech from a written text.
Sony Micro Hi-fi Shelf System With Built in Ipod/Iphone Dock, CD Player, AM/FM Radio, Remote Control by Sony Buy new: $109.95 (Visit the Hot New Releases in Compact Stereos list for authoritative information on this product?s current rank.)
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"Game on," I whispered to no one in particular as I walked out of a New York City hotel a few days ago. Barnes & Noble's executives and mark... Read more
1 day
Wilson Rothman
NBC News photographer Jim Seida spent a day shooting stills?with the iPhone 5, along with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, the new Samsung?Galaxy S III and a high-end point-and-shoot from Nikon, the P7000. The results? While the iPhone 5's 8-megapixel camera performed well, it did not noticeably?outperform its most recent forebear. But there was one way that the iPhone 5 clearly?bested the 4S.
The key to the test was that Seida didn't use any special apps, just the native camera mode, and the only manipulation he did was to tap the same spot on the screen each time, to focus the camera and determine the exposure.
By?comparing low-light portraits of Seida's colleague, you can see a slight reduction in noise compared to the 4S, but the picture itself is a tad?underexposed, too.
While noise was also not a problem for the Samsung Galaxy S III's 8-megapixel camera, it did lag in detail (and also appeared somewhat dim).
Outdoors, Seida challenged the phone-cams with high color contrasts and an abundance of light. The only noticeable difference between the iPhone 5 and 4S was background detail, which could be explained away by multiple factors. (Besides, having a slightly blurred background is generally preferred.)
The Galaxy struggled a bit with exposure ? towards the top, the meter is?too washed out.
The results aren't surprising.?One of the biggest leaps for the iPhone 4S was its camera ? just look at how the iPhone 4 did in the above experiments, paying special attention to the noise in the low-light shot and the over-saturation in the outdoor shot.?Meanwhile, the specs on the iPhone 5's camera never suggested a quantum leap forward.?
But Apple has promoted its camera as improved ? going so far as to say that the new A6 chip has an image signal processor that can deliver more brightness to a picture, up to two full stops. In our real-world and controlled testing, we have not seen any significant difference.?
Consumer Reports had similarly unspectacular results in its comparison test of the iPhone 5 and 4S cameras.?Though usability is better, due to the phone's overall?faster performance and bigger screen, outdoor shooting showed a?"modest step up," yet "the claimed improvements of the iPhone 5 in handling low-light shots were not apparent in our tests."
When it comes to the front-facing camera, however, the difference doesn't require expertise to spot. The FaceTime camera on the 4S supports?"VGA-quality photos and video" in the 640x480 resolution, while the new one on the 5 brings 720p HD-quality video and 1.2-megapixel stills. Seida's self-portrait shows just?what that means:
Wilson Rothman is the Technology & Science?editor at NBC News Digital. Catch up with him on Twitter at @wjrothman, and join our conversation on Facebook.
By Beatrice Whelan, Social Media & Content Specialist at Sage
We have just published our latest Ebook: 50 Ways To Help Improve Your Business
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Our memory is something we never want to lose. It is possible to prevent memory loss with a few simple steps. By being educated about memory loss and ways to prevent it, you will save yourself agony later in life. You can never start too early with memory loss prevention. This article will give you plenty of tips on how to prevent memory loss.
Link bits of information together in your mind by constructing a memory chain to facilitate learning. Finding things about the information you?re trying to memorize that logically go together can help you make the association and recall it. On the other hand, sometimes it?s equally helpful to think of things that are illogical associations. For instance, the chemical elements of the periodic table can be memorized by finding different meanings for their acronyms. These sorts of odd connections are memorable because of how odd they are.
When studying, be sure to put the entirety of your focus on the information at hand. Information that is learned must be transferred to long-term memory if it is to be recalled for more than a few seconds. You won?t be able to store anything in your long term memory unless you?re completely focused.
Fish oil can help your memory. A lack of any good Omega-3 source in your diet can easily lead to memory issues. The easiest way to include it in your diet is by taking a pill.
Stress can cause forgetfulness. When you?re attempting to recall where you placed something, try to relax. Do not get upset or frustrated: leave yourself enough time to remember.
Laughing and enjoying yourself has been shown to strengthen your brain and make storing memories that much easier. By hearing jokes and figuring out brain teasers and punch lines, you are activating the same areas in your brain that are in charge of creativity and learning. Do not be afraid to laugh, tell some jokes and let others in on your new found secret memory weapon, laughter.
Few things are more exasperating than grasping at straws as you try to remember an important idea. By clearing your mind, only for a minute, you may have an easier time recalling this memory. Sit down in a quiet place and take a few deep breaths while your mind clears. After a moment, try to remember what it was you could not bring to mind.
Repeat items that you are trying to remember aloud. When you learn something simple like someone?s name, say it out loud. Repeating the information aloud reinforces the information you just learned, making it easier to remember later. Find a way to sneak your repeat of the information into casual conversation, it does not need to be obvious you are practicing a memory trick.
You must drink water every day. Your brain is mostly made of water, and if your brain begins to be dehydrated, you are going to feel fatigued and your brain function will begin to decrease. It can be hard to remember both long term and short term events. Drink at least eight glasses of water every day.
In conclusion, there are ways to prevent and treat memory loss. If you turn these tips into daily habits, you can age without suffering from memory loss and improve your current memory skills. There is no such thing as a bad time to exercise your brain or memory. Every little bit can help, just like with physical exercise.
As the initial wave of iPhone 5 reviews hit, it looked as if Apple's dual-core A6 processor was sporting a clock speed of around 1GHz. We saw reports (and confirmed with our own handset) ranging between 1.00 and 1.02GHz, but a new Geekbench build (v2.3.6) has today revealed a horse of a different color. According to Primate Labs' own John Poole, the latest version of the app -- which landed on the App Store today -- "features a dramatically improved processor frequency detection algorithm, which consistently reports the A6's frequency as 1.3GHz." In speaking with us, he affirmed that "earlier versions of Geekbench had trouble determining the A6's frequency, which lead to people claiming the A6's frequency as 1.0GHz as it was the most common value Geekbench reported."
When we asked if he felt that the A6 was capable of dynamically overclocking itself for more demanding tasks, he added: "I don't believe the A6 has any form of processor boost. In our testing, we found the 1.3GHz was constant regardless of whether one core or both cores were busy." Our own in-house iPhone 5 is regularly displaying 1.29GHz, while a tipster's screenshot (hosted after the break) clearly display 1.30GHz. Oh, and if anyone wants to dip their iPhone 5 in a vat of liquid nitrogen while trying to push things well over the 2GHz level, we certainly wouldn't try to dissuade your efforts.
ScienceDaily (Sep. 26, 2012) ? A research team led by investigators at New York University and NYU School of Medicine has determined how cells that cause inflammatory ailments, such as Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, and arthritis, differentiate from stem cells and ultimately affect the clinical outcome of these diseases.
"We've found that hundreds of new genes are involved in the function and development of these cells," said co-author Richard Bonneau, an associate professor at New York University's Center for Genomics and Systems Biology and the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences. "This expansion in our understanding can be used as a framework for designing new therapies to combat a range of ailments where the immune system attacks self."
These cells, called T-cells by immunologists, play a role in fighting off infection, but can also induce inflammation and other processes that damage tissues and contribute to several common inflammatory diseases. T-cells are also key cell types in new immune-cell based therapies for fighting cancer. There are many types of T-cells, and how they differentiate from stem cells in the human body lies at the center of understanding several diseases.
"We have been striving for several years to understand what makes inflammatory T-lymphocytes special," said lead investigator Dan Littman, MD, PhD, the Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Professor of Molecular Immunology and a professor of pathology, microbiology and molecular pathogenesis at NYU School of Medicine and a faculty member of the Skirball Institute on Biomolecular Medicine. "They can protect us from microbes, but they also have the potential to cause autoimmune disease.
"We were fortunate to be able to bring together a team of immunologists, computational biologists, and genomics experts to begin to solve this puzzle. Whereas before we only knew of a handful of genes that influence the function of these cells, we now know of hundreds of new ones that can serve as a resource for further studies by us and other laboratories. Our hope is that some of these new molecules will be the Achilles heel that we can target to treat these diseases."
The findings, which are reported in the latest issue of the journal Cell, lay the groundwork for understanding how these cells regulate their genomes through a regulatory network that connects many environmental stimuli to a large number of genes and their interactions. This large network model is essentially the brain that T-cell precursors, or stem cells, use to decide what they want to be when they grow up. Specifically, a network model can be used simulate what inhibiting a gene with a drug would do to different T-cells and, in this way, aid the development of new therapeutic measures to address these afflictions.
The study focused on T-helper 17 cells (Th17) and how they regulate the synthesis of gene products from thousands of regions of the chromosome. Th17 cells have previously been implicated in inflammatory diseases. Other studies have also identified hundreds of genes that roles in pro-inflammatory diseases. This new study places these implicated genes on a timeline of cellular development and ultimately puts them together in an integrated model of how genes interact.
To explore the inner workings of these cells, the researchers used a systems biology approach, which focuses measuring multiple biomolecules and capturing multiple interactions within an organism to understand how it functions. For example, each of the 450 data sets integrated in this study contained measurements of gene expression, chromatin structure, or gene-chromosome interaction that spanned millions of locations along the genome. This holistic method offers a broader understanding of interconnected molecular phenomena essential to running life's program -- a process similar to studying an entire automobile while it functions rather than separately studying the headlights, brakes, or steering column.
To extract meaningful results from this very large data set, the researchers employed statistical techniques to uncover the network model from the large amount of data. To verify the accuracy of the computer modeling, further laboratory experiments were conducted using mice. Although the study was carried out in mice, the researchers found that their work could offer explanations as to why a large number of genes are associated with several human inflammatory diseases. The researchers' computer models identified candidate genes that influence the expression of more than 2,000 genes and play a significant role in the regulation of Th17 cells. They found that the core of this network was significantly enriched for the genes that human geneticists have found to be associated with pro-inflammatory disease. These genes serve as cogs in the regulation of expression or suppression of genes in Th17 cells and are potential leads for developing new therapeutic approaches to modulating inflammation.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by New York University.
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Journal Reference:
Maria Ciofani, Aviv Madar, Carolina Galan, MacLean Sellars, Kieran Mace, Florencia Pauli, Ashish Agarwal, Wendy Huang, Christopher?N. Parkurst, Michael Muratet, Kim?M. Newberry, Sarah Meadows, Alex Greenfield, Yi Yang, Preti Jain, Francis?K. Kirigin, Carmen Birchmeier, Erwin?F. Wagner, Kenneth?M. Murphy, Richard?M. Myers, Richard Bonneau, Dan?R. Littman. A Validated Regulatory Network for Th17 Cell Specification. Cell, 2012; DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2012.09.016
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Labor income has dropped as a share of total income earned in the United States, widening the gap between rich and poor, according to a study by the Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank.
Citing data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, one of three data sources used in the report, the Cleveland Fed said labor's share of gross national income had declined to 63.8 percent now after fluctuating around 67 percent during the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s.
That has resulted in a spike in income inequality, the dispersion of annual incomes across households. Inequality had been declining up to the late 1970s.
"Since labor income is more evenly distributed across U.S. households than capital income, the decline made total income less evenly distributed and more concentrated at the top of the distribution, and this contributed to increase income inequality," it said.
According to the Cleveland Fed, between 1967 and 1980, the average real income of the bottom 20 percent of households grew by 1.34 percent, faster than the 1.09 percent growth rate of the top 20 percent and the 0.67 percent of the top 5 percent.
After that period, however, average real income grew by only 0.05 percent for the bottom 20 percent of households while it grew by 1.24 percent for the top 20 percent and by 1.67 percent for the top 5 percent.
The Cleveland Fed blamed the trend on changes in the technology used to produce goods and services, globalization, trade openness, and developments in labor markets and policies.
The Cleveland Fed said it expected labor's share of income to regain ground as the economic recovery continues, adding: "Income inequality will not necessarily decrease, though."
The wealth gap could still widen, it said, because inequality is also affected by the way income is concentrated, or distributed across the households, and because capital income is strongly correlated to business cycles and tends to rise during recoveries
"This suggests that capital income will become more concentrated at the top in the coming years of the recovery, helping to raise income inequality even further. This effect has dominated the dynamics of income inequality during the past two business cycles," the Cleveland Fed said.
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The suburban mother of four accused of running an upscale escort service in Manhattan pleaded guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday.
Anna Gristina, 44, of Monroe, N.Y., pleaded guilty to a single count of promoting prostitution, stemming from a July 2011 tryst she allegedly arranged involving two women and an undercover officer posing as a client.
Read the original story at NBCNewYork.com
Gristina will be ordered to serve five years of probation when she's sentenced on Nov. 20. The four months she's already spent behind bars will count toward the jail portion of her sentence, and she won't have to serve any additional time.
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Prosecutors said their five-year investigation revealed Gristina had a roster of wealthy, well-placed clients and boasted of law-enforcement connections during 15 years in a business that made her millions.
Video: Home from jail, alleged ?soccer mom madam? speaks (on this page)
She has maintained she was merely starting a dating service.
Gristina was arrested Feb. 22 and was held for months on $2 million bond. An appeals court in June called the amount "unreasonable and an abuse of discretion" and lowered it.
She was released on $250,000 bond in June after four months behind bars.
Gristina's lawyer unsuccessfully tried to have the case thrown out in August, arguing that the DA's office "vindictively prosecuted her as a result of her failure to cooperate with investigators" during what he called an illegal interrogation.
Gristina said in court papers that investigators shrugged off her requests for a lawyer and told her they'd let her go if she gave them information about five men ? not named in her filings, but described as a financier, an international banker and a member of a politically connected family, among others.
Story: ?Soccer Mom Madam? on arrest: ?It?s decimating my family?
The DA's office countered in court papers that Gristina "has not produced a shred of evidence of actual vindictiveness."
A grand jury decided there was enough evidence to indict Gristina before her arrest, undermining her argument that she was prosecuted because she didn't cooperate, Assistant District Attorneys Elizabeth Roper and Charles Linehan wrote in a July filing.
Story: NYC ponders: Suburban mom or high-rolling madam?
The judge's ruling didn't address the way Gristina was questioned, saying simply that there was adequate evidence for the case to go forward.
Jaynie Baker, accused of assisting Gristina as a matchmaking recruiter, struck a deal with prosecutors in August.
Co-founder of the National Capital Tea Party Patriots, Doug Mainwaring spoke up in favor of pro-gender marriage in The Washington Post:
I am certain that the vast majority [of people who signed the marriage petition] are others who, like me, simply view ?marriage? as an immutable term that can only apply to heterosexuals. It?s undeniable that, from age to age, marriage has been humanity?s greatest success and source of prosperity, crossing all cultures and religions. We shouldn?t mess with it.?
Full disclosure: I am gay. A few years ago, I was on the other side of the fence on this topic. But the more I read, thought, investigated and attempted to defend my position, the more I realized that I couldn?t. I feel very strongly that gay relationships should be supported by society. I have grown convinced, however, that the term ?marriage? should not be altered or adjusted in any way.?
Let?s face it: We should not attempt to force into an old construct something that was never meant for same-sex partnerships. We should welcome the opportunity to christen a new tradition, beginning a new chapter in the history of gays and lesbians within American society. Same-sex relationships are different from heterosexual relationships, and gay men and lesbians need to accept that and design their own tradition.
Support pro-gender marriage. ?Because gender matters.
Starting today, the WWE Universe can enjoy unlimited and instant streaming of WWE?s popular weekly programs anywhere, anytime ? thanks to Hulu Plus. (WATCH)
Visit?WWEonHulu.com for a free trial, and unlock next-day access to current episodes of Monday Night Raw, SmackDown, "WWE Superstars" and WWE NXT, as well as upcoming episodes of WWE Main Event, which debuts on ION Television Wednesday, Oct. 3.
Hulu Plus subscribers can also go to Hulu Latino to see WWE?s popular digital show, WWE En Espa?ol, the Spanish-language magazine program that recaps WWE?s most exciting moments each week.
?As a clear leader in digital content delivery, Hulu is an ideal partner for WWE,? WWE Chairman Vince McMahon said. ?Hulu delivers more ways for our fans to experience WWE programming than ever before.?
Subscribers can access content at home or on-the-go across mobile phones, tablets, PCs, internet-connected TVs, set-top boxes and gaming consoles.
Hulu Plus provides optimum video quality, with streams in SD and HD, and offers subscribers access to current hit TV shows, award-winning movies, classic TV series and beyond for $7.99 per month. For more information, visit www.WWEonHulu.com.
After a week of hearing the helicopter at the Lenoir County Agricultural Fair go over their house, Crystal Kennedy and her three daughters were more than ready to try it out for themselves Saturday.
?All week long, they?ve been watching it right from their bedroom windows,? Kennedy said as she watched 8-year-old Cassidy ride a roller coaster with a dragon theme on the midway ? her younger daughters Makayla, 7, and Emma Grace, 6 were with her watching.
Cassidy Kennedy was eager to get on the helicopter, which takes fairgoers above the midway, a short distance across N.C. 11 South and then back to the landing area between the midway and the demolition derby track.
?It was weird,? Cassidy said of the experience of having the helicopter over her home. ?It sounds like vibrating.?
Fairgoers who had been on the chopper described the experience as ?awesome.?
?It?s a beautiful view, a nice smooth ride,? said Stephanie Glass of the Baltimore, Md. area.
Glass came to the fair Saturday with her cousin and brother, along with family members they were visiting in New Bern.
?I think it?s pretty nice,? she said. ?They?ve got a lot of good stuff here. It?s nice to see the community get together.?
In addition to the helicopter rides, major draws at Lenoir County?s 57th annual fair included a circus, complete with a ?globe of death? motorcycle cage, a human cannonball, and more.
?Plus fair food ? everybody loves fair food,? said Waylon Adams, president of the Lenoir County Fair Association.
Adams estimated 7,500 to 8,000 people have come since the fair began Tuesday, and hoped for a crowd of 10,000 Saturday.
The main attraction Saturday was the heats for the demolition derby ? the championship race will be at 3 p.m. today.
Fairgoers surrounded the demolition derby track as the heats got underway, cheering loudly as the cars smashed into each other.
?You have the hometown boys out here in these cars that have a lot of family and friends supporting them ? it just draws a big crowd,? Adams said of the derby drivers.
One local man, who had been driving in demolition derbies since his teens, did not race Saturday, but watched many of the cars he has worked on go around the track.
?A lot of these cars have my motors in them. ? It's like a man and his machine type of thing,? said Reggie Davis, 40, of Deep Run. ?You try to build the toughest car you can, tougher than your competitors, and try to drive smarter and try to come out on top.?
One car in the field, No. 78, was built by Davis to honor his friend and fellow driver, Jackie Potter, who died of a heart attack following a derby at the Wayne County Fair in 2008.
Potter was 28 years old.
Davis said he was ?trying to retire? from demolition derbies, but was glad to know he could still be a part of the sport through his work on the cars.
?This sport, it's still in my blood,? he said. ?I?ll always be a derby driver at heart.?
Saturday also included a brief tribute to the late Free Press Chief Photographer Charles Buchanan, who passed away in March.
A tribute ceremony was held Thursday with a flight of model airplanes, and Lloyd Moody, past president of the Fair Association, said a second was held Saturday for the benefit of the crowd.
?He pretty much documented our history (in Lenoir County) for 35 years,? Moody said of Buchanan.
?
Sunday at the fair
LenoirCounty fair schedule
n For more information on the ?Love a Fair? photo contest, visit Facebook.com/lenoirfair
n For more information on the fair, visit lenoircountyfair.org
n Today?s predicted weather: high temperature of 75 degrees, sunny and clear
n Today?s scheduled activity at the fair: Demolition derby championship 3 p.m. Gate opens 1 p.m.
?
David Anderson can be reached at 252-559-1077 or David.Anderson@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at DavidFreePress.
Study reveals genomic similarities between breast cancer and ovarian cancersPublic release date: 23-Sep-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: NCI Office of Media Relations NCIPressOfficers@mail.nih.gov 301-496-6641 NIH/National Cancer Institute
The Cancer Genome Atlas, supported by NIH, finds shared genomic features that could aid treatments
One subtype of breast cancer shares many genetic features with high-grade serous ovarian cancer, a cancer that is very difficult to treat, according to researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health. The findings suggest that the two cancers are of similar molecular origin, which may facilitate the comparison of therapeutic data for subtypes of breast and ovarian cancers.
The researchers, using data generated as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), described new insights into the four standard molecular subtypes based on a comprehensive characterization of samples from 825 breast cancer patients.
The study, a collaborative effort funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), both part of NIH, was published online Sept. 23, 2012, and in print Oct. 4, 2012, in the journal Nature.
"TCGA's comprehensive characterization of their high-quality samples allows researchers an unprecedented look at these breast cancer subgroups," said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.
Analyses of genomic data have confirmed that there are four primary subtypes of breast cancer, each with its own biology and survival outlooks. These TCGA findings are based on a large number of breast cancer specimens that capture a complete view of the genomic alterations. The four groups are called intrinsic subtypes of breast cancer: HER2-enriched (HER2E), Luminal A (LumA), Luminal B (LumB) and Basal-like. A fifth type, called Normal-like, was observed, but because of small numbers (only eight specimens) the researchers were unable to rigorously study it.
The TCGA Research Network uncovered marked genomic similarities between the Basal-like subtype and serous ovarian cancer. The mutation spectrum, or types and frequencies of genomic mutations, were largely the same in both cancer types. Further analyses identified several additional common genomic features, such as gene mutation frequency, suggesting that diverse genomic aberrations can converge into a limited number of cancer subtypes.
Computational analyses show that Basal-like breast cancer and serous ovarian cancer might both be susceptible to agents that inhibit blood vessel growth, cutting off the blood supply to the tumor, as well as to compounds that target DNA repair, which include chemotherapy drugs such as cisplatin.
The Basal-like subgroup has also been called Triple Negative Breast Cancer because many, though not all, Basal-like tumors are negative when tested for three receptors: the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). These receptors can trigger potent cell growth responses and act like a nametag, identifying the cell to the environment. The absence of these receptors means that treatments that target them will most likely be ineffective.
"The molecular similarity of one of the principal subtypes of breast cancer to that found in ovarian cancer gives us additional leverage to compare treatments and outcomes across these two cancers," noted Harold Varmus, M.D., NCI director. "This treasure trove of genetic information will need to be examined in great detail to identify how we can use it functionally and clinically."
According to the World Health Organization, there are approximately 1.3 million new cases of breast cancer and 450,000 deaths worldwide annually. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. The majority of cases are sporadic, meaning there is not a family history of breast cancer, as opposed to genetic, where genes predispose a person to the disease. Men can also develop breast cancer, but it accounts for less than 1 percent of breast cancer cases.
Breast cancer tumors that have the HER2 receptor are called HER2-positive, and those that don't are called HER2-negative. When researchers analyzed the genomic findings from tumors determined to be HER2-positive by standard cellular tests, they found that only half of the samples could be characterized as belonging to the HER2E subtype. The other half were characterized as Luminal subtypes, suggesting that there are at least two types of clinically defined HER2-positive tumors.
In general, the Luminal subtypes had the lowest overall mutation rate, but by contrast, had the largest number of genes observed to be significantly mutated. This suggests that each of the genes identified as significantly mutated in the Luminal subtypes is more likely to be important in fueling cancer progression. The Luminal subtypes are characterized by the specific expression signature of multiple so-called transcription-factor genes, including ESR1, GATA3, FOXA1, XBP1 and cMYB. These genes have a complex interaction, cooperating in an orchestrated series of activations. GATA3 and FOXA1 are frequently mutated, but those mutations are mutually exclusive, meaning that mutations were observed in either GATA3 or FOXA1 but never in both. However, ERS1 and XBP1 are highly expressed but infrequently mutated.
The scale of the TCGA program allows researchers to perform the integrative analyses that detect these complex patterns of genomic changes and interactions. This close inspection of the cancer genome has led to a deeper understanding of the mutations essential for cancer progression, and several new candidates were identified in this study. The authors hope that discovery of these mutations will be a crucial step toward improving breast cancer therapies.
This publication focuses on the discoveries made through a combined analysis involving data from 825 breast cancer cases, which are freely available in the TCGA Data Portal, with several hundred more cases to come.
"The data generated by the TCGA program comprise a vast resource that investigators will be analyzing for years to come. The resource of information about breast cancer genomes will undoubtedly fuel myriad discoveries by the cancer research community," said Eric D. Green, M.D., Ph.D., NHGRI director.
So far, The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network has published analyses on these cancers:
###
This work was supported by the following grants: U24CA143883, U24CA143858, U24CA143840, U24CA143799, U24CA143835, U24CA143845, U24CA143882, U24CA143867, U24CA143866, U24CA143848, U24CA144025, U54HG003079, P50CA116201 and P50CA58223 and supplemented by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Reference: The Cancer Genome Atlas Network. Comprehensive molecular portraits of human breast tumors. Nature. Online Sept. 23, 2012. DOI: 10.1038/nature11412.
The TCGA Research Network consists of more than 150 researchers at dozens of institutions across the nation. A list of participants is available at http://cancergenome.nih.gov/abouttcga/overview. More details about The Cancer Genome Atlas, including Quick Facts, Q&A, graphics, glossary, a brief guide to genomics and a media library of available images can be found at http://cancergenome.nih.gov.
NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI website at http://www.cancer.gov or call NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
NHGRI supports the development of resources and technology that will accelerate genome research and its application to human health. Additional information about NHGRI can be found at its website, http://www.genome.gov.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov.
NIHTurning Discovery into Health
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Study reveals genomic similarities between breast cancer and ovarian cancersPublic release date: 23-Sep-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: NCI Office of Media Relations NCIPressOfficers@mail.nih.gov 301-496-6641 NIH/National Cancer Institute
The Cancer Genome Atlas, supported by NIH, finds shared genomic features that could aid treatments
One subtype of breast cancer shares many genetic features with high-grade serous ovarian cancer, a cancer that is very difficult to treat, according to researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health. The findings suggest that the two cancers are of similar molecular origin, which may facilitate the comparison of therapeutic data for subtypes of breast and ovarian cancers.
The researchers, using data generated as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), described new insights into the four standard molecular subtypes based on a comprehensive characterization of samples from 825 breast cancer patients.
The study, a collaborative effort funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), both part of NIH, was published online Sept. 23, 2012, and in print Oct. 4, 2012, in the journal Nature.
"TCGA's comprehensive characterization of their high-quality samples allows researchers an unprecedented look at these breast cancer subgroups," said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.
Analyses of genomic data have confirmed that there are four primary subtypes of breast cancer, each with its own biology and survival outlooks. These TCGA findings are based on a large number of breast cancer specimens that capture a complete view of the genomic alterations. The four groups are called intrinsic subtypes of breast cancer: HER2-enriched (HER2E), Luminal A (LumA), Luminal B (LumB) and Basal-like. A fifth type, called Normal-like, was observed, but because of small numbers (only eight specimens) the researchers were unable to rigorously study it.
The TCGA Research Network uncovered marked genomic similarities between the Basal-like subtype and serous ovarian cancer. The mutation spectrum, or types and frequencies of genomic mutations, were largely the same in both cancer types. Further analyses identified several additional common genomic features, such as gene mutation frequency, suggesting that diverse genomic aberrations can converge into a limited number of cancer subtypes.
Computational analyses show that Basal-like breast cancer and serous ovarian cancer might both be susceptible to agents that inhibit blood vessel growth, cutting off the blood supply to the tumor, as well as to compounds that target DNA repair, which include chemotherapy drugs such as cisplatin.
The Basal-like subgroup has also been called Triple Negative Breast Cancer because many, though not all, Basal-like tumors are negative when tested for three receptors: the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). These receptors can trigger potent cell growth responses and act like a nametag, identifying the cell to the environment. The absence of these receptors means that treatments that target them will most likely be ineffective.
"The molecular similarity of one of the principal subtypes of breast cancer to that found in ovarian cancer gives us additional leverage to compare treatments and outcomes across these two cancers," noted Harold Varmus, M.D., NCI director. "This treasure trove of genetic information will need to be examined in great detail to identify how we can use it functionally and clinically."
According to the World Health Organization, there are approximately 1.3 million new cases of breast cancer and 450,000 deaths worldwide annually. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. The majority of cases are sporadic, meaning there is not a family history of breast cancer, as opposed to genetic, where genes predispose a person to the disease. Men can also develop breast cancer, but it accounts for less than 1 percent of breast cancer cases.
Breast cancer tumors that have the HER2 receptor are called HER2-positive, and those that don't are called HER2-negative. When researchers analyzed the genomic findings from tumors determined to be HER2-positive by standard cellular tests, they found that only half of the samples could be characterized as belonging to the HER2E subtype. The other half were characterized as Luminal subtypes, suggesting that there are at least two types of clinically defined HER2-positive tumors.
In general, the Luminal subtypes had the lowest overall mutation rate, but by contrast, had the largest number of genes observed to be significantly mutated. This suggests that each of the genes identified as significantly mutated in the Luminal subtypes is more likely to be important in fueling cancer progression. The Luminal subtypes are characterized by the specific expression signature of multiple so-called transcription-factor genes, including ESR1, GATA3, FOXA1, XBP1 and cMYB. These genes have a complex interaction, cooperating in an orchestrated series of activations. GATA3 and FOXA1 are frequently mutated, but those mutations are mutually exclusive, meaning that mutations were observed in either GATA3 or FOXA1 but never in both. However, ERS1 and XBP1 are highly expressed but infrequently mutated.
The scale of the TCGA program allows researchers to perform the integrative analyses that detect these complex patterns of genomic changes and interactions. This close inspection of the cancer genome has led to a deeper understanding of the mutations essential for cancer progression, and several new candidates were identified in this study. The authors hope that discovery of these mutations will be a crucial step toward improving breast cancer therapies.
This publication focuses on the discoveries made through a combined analysis involving data from 825 breast cancer cases, which are freely available in the TCGA Data Portal, with several hundred more cases to come.
"The data generated by the TCGA program comprise a vast resource that investigators will be analyzing for years to come. The resource of information about breast cancer genomes will undoubtedly fuel myriad discoveries by the cancer research community," said Eric D. Green, M.D., Ph.D., NHGRI director.
So far, The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network has published analyses on these cancers:
###
This work was supported by the following grants: U24CA143883, U24CA143858, U24CA143840, U24CA143799, U24CA143835, U24CA143845, U24CA143882, U24CA143867, U24CA143866, U24CA143848, U24CA144025, U54HG003079, P50CA116201 and P50CA58223 and supplemented by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Reference: The Cancer Genome Atlas Network. Comprehensive molecular portraits of human breast tumors. Nature. Online Sept. 23, 2012. DOI: 10.1038/nature11412.
The TCGA Research Network consists of more than 150 researchers at dozens of institutions across the nation. A list of participants is available at http://cancergenome.nih.gov/abouttcga/overview. More details about The Cancer Genome Atlas, including Quick Facts, Q&A, graphics, glossary, a brief guide to genomics and a media library of available images can be found at http://cancergenome.nih.gov.
NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI website at http://www.cancer.gov or call NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
NHGRI supports the development of resources and technology that will accelerate genome research and its application to human health. Additional information about NHGRI can be found at its website, http://www.genome.gov.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov.
NIHTurning Discovery into Health
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Amazon's shiny new Kindle Paperwhite will start trickling out of the company's myriad warehouses in short order, but it seems e-reading rival Barnes & Noble won't let Amazon set foot in the illuminated e-reader market unanswered. To that end, BN has announced that it has cut the price of its conceptually-similar Nook SimpleTouch with GlowLight from $139 to $119 ? the same price as Amazon's ad-supported Paperwhite model.
We have just published our latest Ebook: 50 Ways To Help Improve Your Business
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Public release date: 23-Sep-2012
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