Sunday, March 31, 2013

Help On Choosing The Ultimate E Cigarette Beginner Kit

Finding the Best Deals of the Day

Electric cigarettes might possibly be the safest replacement of the smoking cigarettes. Smoking cigarettes has many health threats similar to cancer. Cigarette smoking is actually addictive habit and most folks who have tried to give up cigarettes didn?t work advertising online. Now a new electronic cigarette ended up being developed that needs to all chain smokers to stop. An electric cigarette is usually called an e-cigarette or electronic cigarette. It will be the Best Method of not using tobacco when all the other attempts have failed. An electronic cigarette resembles swimming pool is important of the traditional cigarette.

It includes a liquid within which vaporizes with heat and produces the issue of a traditional cigarette. The fluid within is addressed as an e-liquid. The consumer experiences the first feeling of traditional smoking without the harmful effects.

A huge variety of known as would finally be obtainable in marketplace like the 510 ecigarette the actual functioning of all of the the product is comparable to. An e-cigarette has three parts; a mouthpiece associated with a cartridge containing the e-liquid, heating unit plus a rechargeable battery. The cigarette heats up a power which heats the e-liquid. The fluid then vaporizes producing nicotine vapours which provide the conventional smoking experience. The consumer inhales the nicotine vapours while using mouthpiece from the device. Some people who smoke the e-cigarette think that the aroma and flavour looks like that of a traditional cigarette. Safety from credit card won?t be able to even tell the difference.

Resulting from its increasing popularity, many companies have started production electronic Cigarette. These vary in design and value. With variations in design, there?s also a huge variety of flavours in your consumer to choose from. Available flavours include vanilla, coffee, chocolate, strawberry and in some cases the more common tobacco flavour. Also, different e-liquids can also be found. These vary in strength of nicotine content. Some are low whilst others are sturdy. However this is all impacted by a choice of your specific. Most smokers have said quite possibly place to control simply how much nicotine they smoke considering the e-liquid. This will assist to managing and managing their nicotine addiction. It can be becoming public knowledge those funds used on electric powered smokes is considerably below what that allocated to the standard tobacco cigarettes. The cartridges containing the e-liquid would be refilled easily. Nicotine refills replace the purchasing of cigarettes. One refill is one of the just like a pack of traditional cigarettes. The price tag range depends on a variety of brands available in the market.

{If you need to get the electronic cigarettes, it is best that you study the market industry for all kinds of brands available. It is a sensible way forawrd to compare the prices and styles associated with business. You can actually easily have the ideal e-cigarette for your self by comparing brides. Always remember the cost of the earliest starter kits, nicotine refills, different flavours and the strength if e-liquids. Purchase a digital cigarette now and save your self, others you deal with and the environment via the damages of a cigarettes cigarette. The electric cigarette will never harm people around you by the risk of passive smoking.

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Source: http://gaiati.com/help-on-choosing-the-ultimate-e-cigarette-beginner-kit/

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Saturday, March 30, 2013

iPhone 5S announcement rumored for June 20th, launch in July

By Martyn Herman LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - Whether by design, necessity, self-interest or because of all three, nurturing youngsters has become fashionable for England's elite with no expense spared in the hunt for the new Wayne Rooney or Steven Gerrard. The length and breadth of the country, scouts from top clubs are hoovering up promising footballers barely old enough to tie their bootlaces in a bid to unearth the 30 million pounds ($45.40 million) treasures of the future. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iphone-5s-announcement-rumored-june-20th-launch-july-145826634.html

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Checking out Havok's Project Anarchy at GDC 2013

Though Project Anarchy may be free, it looks like all a mobile game dev could need

Android Central at GDC

One of the more interesting bits of mobile news at GDC 2013 was Havok's announcement of a free version of their well-established 3D engine. For those unfamiliar, Havok is the backbone of such AAA titles as Skyrim, Black Ops 2, L.A. Noire, and many more. We had to swing by their booth to see just how well it performed. Project Anarchy handles a wide range of graphical tasks extremely well, but it also has an AI engine, allowing developers to make a fully-realized game with just a few tweaks to the demo apps included. 

read more



Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/VmIvovPY1tw/story01.htm

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Obama plays 1st golf since automatic budget cuts

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama is on his first golf outing since automatic spending cuts known as the sequester went into effect on March 1.

Some conservatives have called on Obama to give up golf since popular public tours of the White House were canceled because of the budget cuts.

The White House has said the tours were canceled to keep Secret Service agents from being furloughed because of the spending reductions.

Critics of the decision to cancel the White House tours also noted that Obama's golf outings require a sizable Secret Service presence for security.

Obama hit the links Saturday on the course at Andrews Air Force Base. The White House said he was playing with his friend, Marty Nesbitt, and two White House aides.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-plays-1st-golf-since-automatic-budget-cuts-181017463.html

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FDA approves Johnson & Johnson diabetes drug, canagliflozin

By Toni Clarke

(Reuters) - FDA has approved a new diabetes drug from Johnson & Johnson, making it the first in its class to be approved in the United States.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug, Invokana, after data showed it was effective in lowering blood sugar in patients with Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease.

The FDA has asked for five postmarketing studies for the drug including a cardiovascular outcomes trial, an enhanced pharmacovigilance program, a bone safety study and two pediatric studies, the agency said in a statement on its website. (http://r.reuters.com/juj96t)

Invokana is expected to generate sales in 2016 of around $468 million, according to analysts' estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters.

Known chemically as canagliflozin, Invokana is a member of a new class of diabetes treatments called sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors that lower blood sugar by blocking reabsorbtion of glucose and increasing its excretion in urine.

Earlier this year, an advisory committee to the FDA discussed the benefits and risks of canagliflozin with a focus on any potential increased risk of heart attack or stroke.

A clinical study of patients at especially high risk of cardiovascular disease showed that within the first 30 days, 13 patients taking canagliflozin suffered a major cardiovascular event compared with just one patient taking a placebo. After that, the imbalance was reversed. The drug also caused a slight increase in unhealthy LDL cholesterol.

In January, 2012, the FDA rejected a similar drug, dapagliflozin, made by Bristol-Myers Squibb Co and AstraZeneca Plc, citing concerns over a possible increased risk of cancer and liver injury. The drug was subsequently approved in Europe under the brand name Forxiga.

In January 2013, Britain's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), which decides whether drugs should be paid for on the state health service, declined to recommend that Forxiga be reimbursed and asked the companies for more information.

Diabetes affects the body's ability to metabolize glucose, which is needed for energy. Glucose circulates throughout the bloodstream, is filtered by the kidneys, and returned to body by glucose-specific transporters. By blocking the amount of glucose reabsorbed into the bloodstream, more is excreted in urine.

Left untreated, diabetes can cause nerve damage, kidney disease and blindness. It affects roughly 25.8 million people in the United States, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Despite FDA's rejection of dapagliflozin, and a broad association in the class with genital infections, several companies are still developing SGLT2 inhibitors, including Astellas Pharma Inc, which recently filed for Japanese approval of its ipragliflozin, and Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly & Company, which recently filed for U.S. approval of their drug, empagliflozin.

(Additional reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bangalore; Editing by David Gregorio)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/fda-clears-johnson-johnson-type-2-diabetes-drug-191339556--finance.html

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Governor signs bill for health insurance exchange

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) ? New Mexico can move ahead with establishing a state-run health insurance exchange under legislation signed into law Thursday by Republican Gov. Susana Martinez.

Martinez is one of a small number of GOP governors to opt for a state-run exchange under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. States had the option of establishing their own exchange, leaving it to the federal government or forming a state-federal partnership.

The new law takes effect immediately, and one of the next steps is the appointment of a 13-member governing board for the exchange.

The exchange is to serve as a marketplace for the uninsured to buy medical coverage. One of the early decisions for the board likely will be selecting a contractor to establish a computer system, which will allow individuals and small businesses to shop online for health care plans offered by private insurers.

Uninsured individuals and families can receive federal subsidies to reduce the amount they pay for insurance. Small businesses can be eligible for a tax credit to help provide medical coverage for workers.

New Mexico faces a tight deadline ?under federal law ? to have the exchange ready to enroll the uninsured starting in October and be fully operating in January.

It's estimated that about 200,000 New Mexicans may be able to buy health insurance through the exchange by 2020.

"As I said during my State of the State address, I didn't support Obamacare, but it is the law of the land. My job is to implement this law in a way that best serves New Mexicans," Martinez said in a statement.

The exchanges have placed Republican governors in an awkward position, given how much the party has opposed the health care law. Nevada and Idaho are taking the state-run exchange approach while Iowa is pursuing a partnership with the federal government. Utah already has an exchange but it doesn't cover individuals, as required by federal law.

The Martinez administration previously had taken steps to establish an exchange through an existing organization ? the New Mexico Health Insurance Alliance, which is a nonprofit public corporation established in 1994 to provide access to insurance for small businesses and some individuals.

However, work on the exchange was put on hold during the recent legislative session and because of the threat of a possible lawsuit challenging whether the governor could unilaterally create the new insurance marketplace. Attorney General Gary King contended that the Legislature had to change state law for the alliance to be able carry out federally managed duties of an insurance exchange.

Martinez and legislators eventually reached an agreement on legislation to create the framework for an exchange. One initial dispute was over the board's power, and whether it should be able to regulate what health insurance plans are offered to consumers. Federal law spells out minimum requirements for health coverage, and it will be up to the state insurance superintendent's office to determine whether plans meet qualifying standards.

"This may not be a perfect solution, but it is a start that helps keep New Mexico on the path toward the creation of a unique solution for New Mexicans," said Sen. Benny Shendo Jr., D-Jemez Pueblo, a sponsor of the measure.

The law requires a Native American service center to ensure the exchange's services are accessible for members of New Mexico's Indian tribes and pueblos.

The governor will name six board members, including the secretary of the Human Services Department, and legislative leaders will appoint six members. The state superintendent of insurance also is on the board but will vote only to break ties. The board must include two insurance industry representatives as well as a health care provider and consumer advocate.

___

Follow Barry Massey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/bmasseyAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/governor-signs-bill-health-insurance-exchange-232426562.html

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Friday, March 29, 2013

Nelson Mandela back in hospital with lung infection

By Brian Homewood March 28 (Reuters) - Swiss champions FC Basel, renowned for their youth development programme, face a constant battle to stop teenage players moving to English, Spanish and Italian clubs. President Bernhard Heusler told Reuters in an interview that parents often do not listen to the club when warned against taking their sons elsewhere. "We get enormous pressure from outside, including English clubs," said Heusler before adding Basel were powerless to stop their youngsters leaving before the age of 16. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/africas-mandela-back-hospital-070540290.html

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Syracuse's D, Carter-Williams beat Indiana 61-50

WASHINGTON (AP) ? With its 2-3 zone defense disruptive from start to finish, and Michael Carter-Williams pouring in 24 points, fourth-seeded Syracuse upset No. 1 seed Indiana 61-50 Thursday night to reach the NCAA tournament's East Regional final.

Syracuse limited Indiana to its lowest point total of the season, forced 19 turnovers, compiled 10 blocks and held the normally efficient Hoosiers to 33 percent shooting.

After getting past preseason No. 1 Indiana, Syracuse (29-9) will face No. 3 seed Marquette on Saturday night in an all-Big East matchup for a berth in the Final Four. Coach Jim Boeheim and the Orange haven't been to the national semifinals since Carmelo Anthony led them to the 2003 title.

Marquette beat No. 2 seed Miami 71-61 in Thursday's first game in Washington.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syracuses-d-carter-williams-beat-indiana-61-50-041549194--spt.html

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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Saudi Arabia vs. China: America can't play favorites with human rights

While the US has been quick to condemn human rights violations in China and rally behind persecuted activists there, President Obama has seemed hesitant to do the same with Saudi Arabia and its persecution of human rights activist?Mohammad Fahad Al-Qahtani.

By Andrew Fitzgerald / March 28, 2013

Mohammad Fahad al-Qahtani, one of Saudi Arabia's most outspoken human rights activists (pictured here on May 9, 2012) was sentenced to 10 years in prison on March 9. Op-ed contributor Andrew Fitzgerald says 'the Obama administration must choose whether it supports universal rights or not ? and to what degree it is willing to voice and meaningfully show that support.'

Christa Case Bryant/The Christian Science Monitor/File

Enlarge

I remember that, even among members of Saudi Arabia?s feminist movement, human rights activist Dr. Mohammad Fahad Al-Qahtani ?stood out for his courageous actions and seemingly radical ideas.

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Dr. Qahtani is a cofounder of The Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (known as ACPRA). I met him on my trip to the kingdom in April and May of 2012, when he?told our group of college students and our professor how ACPRA seeks to document and challenge human rights abuses including torture and indefinite detention without trial.

Not long after I returned to the United States, Qahtani, along with several other ACPRA activists, were put on trial for ?breaking allegiance with the ruler??and running an unlicensed political organization. This did not quiet Qahtani?s activism or outspokenness, though. He used the forum of the court to condemn the monarchy, leading Foreign Policy magazine to name him no. 47 of its Top 100 Global Thinkers ?for putting Saudi Arabia on trial.?

But on March 9th, Qahtani and fellow activist Abdullah al-Hamid were sentenced to 10 years and 5 years in prison respectively for charges including sedition and giving inaccurate information to foreign media. ACPRA was ordered disbanded, and its property confiscated.

What is also disturbing is the Obama administration?s relative silence throughout the trial and in the aftermath of Qahtani?s conviction. While the US has been quick to condemn human rights violations in China and rally behind persecuted activists there, President Obama has seemed hesitant to do the same regarding Saudi Arabia.

If the Obama administration wants to use the global movement for democracy and human rights as a rhetorical and diplomatic tool, it needs to apply equal criticism not only to its rivals but to its own policies and the policies of its allies as well.

On March 14, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom did finally issue a statement calling for Saudi Arabia to release Qahtani and Dr. Hamid from prison ?immediately and unconditionally.? But during the trial, the Obama administration made no public comment.

At a State Department press briefing the Monday after Qahtani?s conviction, spokeswoman Victoria Nuland was pressed as to whether Secretary of State John Kerry had discussed the trial during his visit to Saudi Arabia days earlier. Ms. Nuland said the sentences came down ?after we had already left Saudi Arabia.? She then expressed ?concern? at the sentence adding, ?we always make strong representations for human rights activists wherever we are around the world.?

She concluded that the US maintains ?an ongoing and robust dialogue with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a wide range of political reform issues, including human rights for individuals.? She then moved on to the next question.

Such a guarded response stands in stark contrast to Washington?s repeated criticisms of China for its human rights abuses, and the rhetoric the Obama administration uses about universal rights and freedom in presidential speeches.?In his second inaugural address President Obama said: ?We will support democracy from Asia to Africa; from the Americas to the Middle East, because our interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/VsgsYra1PO4/Saudi-Arabia-vs.-China-America-can-t-play-favorites-with-human-rights

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Google adds street views inside Japan nuclear zone

(AP) ? Concrete rubble litters streets lined with shuttered shops and dark windows. A collapsed roof juts from the ground. A ship sits stranded on a stretch of dirt flattened when the tsunami roared across the coastline. There isn't a person in sight.

Google Street View is giving the world a rare glimpse into one of Japan's eerie ghost towns, created when the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami sparked a nuclear disaster that has left the area uninhabitable.

The technology pieces together digital images captured by Google's fleet of camera-equipped vehicles and allows viewers to take virtual tours of locations around the world, including faraway spots like the South Pole and fantastic landscapes like the Grand Canyon.

Now it is taking people inside Japan's nuclear no-go zone, to the city of Namie, whose 21,000 residents have been unable to return to live since they fled the radiation spewing from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant two years ago.

Koto Naganuma, 32, who lost her home in the tsunami, said some people find it too painful to see the places that were so familiar yet are now so out of reach.

She has only gone back once, a year ago, and for a few minutes.

"I'm looking forward to it. I'm excited I can take a look at those places that are so dear to me," said Naganuma. "It would be hard, too. No one is going to be there."

Namie Mayor Tamotsu Baba said memories came flooding back as he looked at the images shot by Google earlier this month.

He spotted an area where an autumn festival used to be held and another of an elementary school that was once packed with schoolchildren.

"Those of us in the older generation feel that we received this town from our forbearers, and we feel great pain that we cannot pass it down to our children," he said in a post on his blog.

"We want this Street View imagery to become a permanent record of what happened to Namie-machi in the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster."

Street View was started in 2007, and now provides images from more than 3,000 cities across 48 countries, as well as parts of the Arctic and Antarctica.

___

Online: Namie Street View link: http://goo.gl/maps/iFIWD

Follow Yuri Kageyama on Twitter at www.twitter.com/yurikageyama

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-03-27-Japan-Nuclear%20Images/id-0e3c3131eb6c4520b549fe54acd534a0

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Tamra Barney and Gretchen Rossi: What Started the Feud?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/03/tamra-barney-and-gretchen-rossi-what-started-the-feud/

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How does innovation take hold in a community? Math modeling can provide clues

Mar. 27, 2013 ? Mathematical models can be used to study the spread of technological innovations among individuals connected to each other by a network of peer-to-peer influences, such as in a physical community or neighborhood. One such model was introduced in a paper published yesterday in the SIAM Journal on Applied Dynamical Systems.

Authors N. J. McCullen, A. M. Rucklidge, C. S. E. Bale, T. J. Foxon, and W. F. Gale focus on one main application: The adoption of energy-efficient technologies in a population, and consequently, a means to control energy consumption. By using a network model for adoption of energy technologies and behaviors, the model helps evaluate the potential for using networks in a physical community to shape energy policy.

The decision or motivation to adopt an energy-efficient technology is based on several factors, such as individual preferences, adoption by the individual's social circle, and current societal trends. Since innovation is often not directly visible to peers in a network, social interaction -- which communicates the benefits of an innovation -- plays an important role. Even though the properties of interpersonal networks are not accurately known and tend to change, mathematical models can provide insights into how certain triggers can affect a population's likelihood of embracing new technologies. The influence of social networks on behavior is well recognized in the literature outside of the energy policy domain: network intervention can be seen to accelerate behavior change.

"Our model builds on previous threshold diffusion models by incorporating sociologically realistic factors, yet remains simple enough for mathematical insights to be developed," says author Alastair Rucklidge. "For some classes of networks, we are able to quantify what strength of social network influence is necessary for a technology to be adopted across the network."

The model consists of a system of individuals (or households) who are represented as nodes in a network. The interactions that link these individuals -- represented by the edges of the network -- can determine probability or strength of social connections. In the paper, all influences are taken to be symmetric and of equal weight. Each node is assigned a current state, indicating whether or not the individual has adopted the innovation. The model equations describe the evolution of these states over time.

Households or individuals are modeled as decision makers connected by the network, for whom the uptake of technologies is influenced by two factors: the perceived usefulness (or utility) of the innovation to the individual, including subjective judgments, as well as barriers to adoption, such as cost. The total perceived utility is derived from a combination of personal and social benefits. Personal benefit is the perceived intrinsic benefit for the individual from the product. Social benefit depends on both the influence from an individual's peer group and influence from society, which could be triggered by the need to fit in. The individual adopts the innovation when the total perceived utility outweighs the barriers to adoption.

When the effect of each individual node is analyzed along with its influence over the entire network, the expected level of adoption is seen to depend on the number of initial adopters and the structure and properties of the network. Two factors in particular emerge as important to successful spread of the innovation: The number of connections of nodes with their neighbors, and the presence of a high degree of common connections in the network.

This study makes it possible to assess the variables that can increase the chances for success of an innovation in the real world. From a marketing standpoint, strategies could be designed to enhance the perceived utility of a product or item to consumers by modifying one or more of these factors. By varying different parameters, a government could help figure out the effect of different intervention strategies to expedite uptake of energy-efficient products, thus helping shape energy policy.

"We can use this model to explore interventions that a local authority could take to increase adoption of energy-efficiency technologies in the domestic sector, for example by running recommend-a-friend schemes, or giving money-off vouchers," author Catherine Bale explains. "The model enables us to assess the likely success of various schemes that harness both the householders' trust in local authorities and peer influence in the adoption process. At a time when local authorities are extremely resource-constrained, tools to identify the interventions that will provide the biggest impact in terms of reducing household energy bills and carbon emissions could be of immense value to cities, councils and communities."

One of the motivations behind the study -- modeling the effect of social networks in the adoption of energy technologies -- was to help reduce energy consumption by cities, which utilize over two-thirds of the world's energy, releasing more than 70% of global CO2 emissions. Local authorities can indirectly influence the provision and use of energy in urban areas, and hence help residents and businesses reduce energy demand through the services they deliver. "Decision-making tools are needed to support local authorities in achieving their potential contribution to national and international energy and climate change targets," says author William Gale.

Higher quantities of social data can help in making more accurate observations through such models. As author Nick McCullen notes,"To further refine these types of models, and make the results reliable enough to be used to guide the decisions of policy-makers, we need high quality data. Particularly, data on the social interactions between individuals communicating about energy innovations is needed, as well as the balance of factors affecting their decision to adopt."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. N. J. McCullen, A. M. Rucklidge, C. S. E. Bale, T. J. Foxon, W. F. Gale. Multiparameter Models of Innovation Diffusion on Complex Networks. SIAM Journal on Applied Dynamical Systems, 2013; 12 (1): 515 DOI: 10.1137/120885371

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/hugYw5OyB2M/130327163559.htm

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Ex-chairman of Republican Party of Florida gets 1.5 years in prison for stealing

John Raoux / AP

Former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer, center, arrives at the Orange County Courthouse, with his wife Lisa, left, and attorney Damon Chase, right, for a sentencing hearing, Wednesday, March 27, in Orlando, Fla.

By Mike Schneider, The Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla. ? The former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida was sentenced Wednesday to one-and-a-half years for stealing $125,000 in party funds, completing the fall of a man who once was one of the most powerful political figures in the state.

Jim Greer was sentenced in Orlando, more than a month after he pleaded guilty to four counts of theft and a single county of money laundering. The guilty pleas ended Greer's trial before it even started.

Circuit Judge Marc Lubet handed down a sentence that was less severe than the three-and-a-half years in prison requested by prosecutors. Lubet explained that he went with a more lenient sentence because Greer had agreed to pay restitution.

The trial had threatened to expose the underbelly of Florida's dominant political party and its formerly high-spending ways. Some of Florida's most powerful politicians were scheduled as witnesses, including former Gov. Charlie Crist, former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, former Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and several state House and state Senate leaders.

Topics covered in pretrial depositions included allegations of prostitutes at a state GOP fundraiser in the Bahamas, the drinking habits of Crist and intraparty strife.

Prosecutors said Greer funneled almost $200,000 to a company he had formed with his right-hand man, Delmar Johnson. He kept $125,000 of the money funneled to Victory Strategies for himself.

Johnson had been scheduled to be prosecutors' star witness and was granted immunity in exchange for his testimony.

Greer was vice mayor of the small central Florida town of Oviedo when Crist surprisingly picked him to be the state party chairman after he led local efforts to help Crist get elected governor in 2006. He previously was the president and CEO of a company that provides training to the hospitality industry on how to comply with alcohol laws.

The plea arrangement was reached at the last minute. Jury selection was set to begin early last month, but neither Greer nor prosecutors had appeared in the courtroom an hour after the trial was supposed to start.

Until he entered his guilty pleas, Greer had contended that party leaders, including Crist, knew about the financial arrangement that gave Greer's company a cut of party money in exchange for fundraising efforts. Greer had said he was targeted because of his support for Crist, who later defected from the GOP to run as an independent for U.S. Senate but lost to Rubio.

Crist denied ever knowing about the arrangement.

? 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653381/s/2a10b70d/l/0Lusnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A30C270C174893150Eex0Echairman0Eof0Erepublican0Eparty0Eof0Eflorida0Egets0E150Eyears0Ein0Eprison0Efor0Estealing0Dlite/story01.htm

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Tuesday, March 26, 2013

T-Mobile says its iPhone 5 has HSPA+ on AWS bands, HD Voice

TMobile John Legere

We all know the iPhone is at last reaching T-Mobile -- but what you might not know is that it won't just be a one-for-one port of the existing hardware. Carrier CEO John Legere just stated that the T-Mobile iPhone 5 will support HSPA+ on AWS bands (1,700MHz and 2,100MHz) in addition to ready-made LTE support. If you wander outside of an LTE coverage area, you'll still have up to 42Mbps data on Magenta's network. There's more: it'll also support the same HD Voice calling that went nationwide in January.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/3ZeAaOJNVxk/

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Portman's Son Describes Personal Side of Senator's Shift on Same ...

4:58 p.m. | Updated When Senator Rob Portman, the Ohio Republican, announced his support for same-sex marriage, he said his son?s admission that he was gay prompted the change of heart. But the timeline left some puzzled: If the son, Will, came out two years ago, why did the senator?s announcement come 10 days ago?

The younger Mr. Portman answers that question in a deeply personal essay in the student paper at Yale, where he is a junior. As he describes sending a letter to his parents, Will Portman suggests that his own reticence to make his sexuality public explains much of the timeline.

?Part of the reason for that is that it took time for him to think through the issue more deeply after the impetus of my coming out,? Will Portman writes. ?But another factor was my reluctance to make my personal life public.?

He also describes how his father told the Romney campaign that his son was gay when he was being vetted as a potential running mate, and that the family would have been open about that on the campaign trail.

In yet another reminder of how simply knowing gay people seems to influence one?s position on marriage, Senator Claire McCaskill announced on her blog on Sunday that she, too, is getting behind same-sex marriage rights.

?My views on this subject have changed over time, but as many of my gay and lesbian friends, colleagues and staff embrace long-term committed relationships, I find myself unable to look them in the eye without honestly confronting this uncomfortable inequality,? writes Ms. McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat.

However, the center of the marriage debate is a few blocks from the Senate at the Supreme Court, where justices will hear arguments over bans on same-sex marriage on Tuesday and Wednesday. In the audience will be Jean Podrasky, a cousin of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and a lesbian from California who hopes to marry her girlfriend, according to the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

On the organization?s Web site, Ms. Podrasky writes that the Portmans? experience ?got me thinking a little more about family relationships and the impact that living your life proudly, and honestly, may have on those who have yet to become allies.?

She continues, ?I know that my cousin is a good man. I feel confident that John is wise enough to see that society is becoming more accepting of the humanity of same-sex couples and the simple truth that we deserve to be treated with dignity, respect and equality under the law.?

Update: Senator Mark R. Warner, Democrat of Virginia, announced his support for same-sex marriage rights on Monday afternoon.

?I support marriage equality because it is the fair and right thing to do,? he wrote on Facebook. ?Like many Virginians and Americans, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and this is the inevitable extension of my efforts to promote equality and opportunity for everyone.?

Source: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/25/portmans-son-describes-personal-side-of-senators-shift-on-same-sex-marriage/

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Well: A Push for HPV Vaccinations

The government recommended years ago that all adolescent girls get a vaccine to protect against cervical cancer. But nearly seven years after it first came to market, an overwhelming majority of girls have yet to be inoculated.

Just 35 percent of girls 13 to 17 have received a full course of the vaccine, which inoculates against the strains of human papillomavirus that can cause cervical cancer, according to 2011 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And a study in Pediatrics this month, also based on C.D.C. data, says the intent to vaccinate is declining: 44 percent of parents in 2010 said they did not intend to vaccinate, up from 40 percent in 2008.

Alarmed by the stubbornly low rates, doctors and federal health officials are brainstorming about how to get more children vaccinated.

?Behind these numbers are people who will develop cervical cancer that could have been prevented,? said Dr. Bruce Gellin, director of the National Vaccine Program Office at the Department of Health and Human Services. At a meeting in Washington last month, federal and local officials, doctors and other health workers explored ways to make the shots more accessible. Some suggested giving the first of the three doses required to complete the vaccine at a doctor?s office and the other two at schools or pharmacies.

Others argued for a greater emphasis on cancer prevention, playing down the fact that the vaccine prevents a sexually transmitted disease. The STD link has put off many parents who are loath to talk about sex with their children.

Outside the policy world, local health departments and researchers are applying their own ideas. At Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, researchers have designed postcard reminders for children who got the first of the three shots required over six months, but did not finish the course. One card features a child in the rain with a broken umbrella.

In Kentucky, advocates have used Facebook to conduct a public education campaign that has increased inoculations by 10 percent in areas that participated.

Researchers at Boston University have raised inoculation rates for patients in two clinics in Massachusetts by teaching pediatricians to present the HPV vaccine as being equal in importance to other childhood vaccines, even though it is rarely required for school. The virus is usually diagnosed in adults, so pediatricians are less experienced with it and may give the vaccine short shrift.

HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. Nearly half of woman ages 14 to 59 were infected with at least one strain, with the highest rate, 54 percent, among women ages 20 to 24, according to a recent analysis by the C.D.C.?A vaccine to prevent certain strains of HPV, first licensed in 2006, was seen as a major breakthrough by doctors and researchers.

Experts attribute the low rates to an array of factors: The three-dose requirement is unwieldy. The vaccine is for adolescents, who are less likely than younger children to have regular checkups.

In addition, it comes with a stigma. HPV is a sexually transmitted infection, and some parents fear their daughters will see talking about the vaccine as condoning sex or giving the green light to start having it. Health professionals say it should be administered at age 11, though it is approved for children as young as 9.

Finally, there is the lingering fear many people have for vaccinations in general. The Pediatrics study found that in 2010, fear of side effects had risen to the second-most cited reason parents did not vaccinate, said Dr. Paul M. Darden, one of the study?s authors and a pediatrics professor at the University of Oklahoma.

HPV vaccination rates vary dramatically by state. According to the C.D.C.?s data for 2011, Rhode Island had the highest, with 57 percent of adolescent girls fully inoculated, followed by Vermont and South Dakota, both 50 percent. Arkansas had the lowest, 15 percent, less than half the national rate. Other states with low rates were Mississippi and Utah, at 20 percent, and Kansas, at 22 percent.

The pattern of vaccination among ethnic groups was surprising: while Hispanic girls were less likely to come from families with health insurance or to get regular medical care, they were more likely to have been vaccinated than white girls.

Just 48 percent of white teenage girls had received the first dose of the vaccine, compared with 56 percent of blacks and 65 percent of Hispanics, according to the C.D.C. But the rate fell steeply by the third dose. In all, 42 percent of Hispanic teenage girls had been fully vaccinated. About a third of whites had received all three doses, similar to the share of black girls.

That breakdown turns the typical pattern of whites having better health outcomes on its head. ?I can?t remember a vaccine where I saw a pattern like this,? said Dr. Walter A. Orenstein, director of Emory University?s Program for Vaccine Policy and Development, who ran the C.D.C. immunization program for 16 years.

One reason is money. A federal inoculation program that covers vaccines for the poor and underserved gave the HPV vaccine to clinics for free. Private insurance coverage was less reliable, and many patients had high co-pays or had to pay the full price, generally up to $500 for a complete cycle of the vaccine.

The new health care act requires insurers to cover the vaccine, a change that has the potential to even out the disparity and increase the vaccination rate.

There are other sociological factors at work. Dr. Amanda F. Dempsey, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado in Denver, said that in her previous practice, in Michigan, the most-educated parents were the most reluctant to get their daughters vaccinated. For some, the hesitation stemmed from a suspicion of vaccines. For others, it was more about having to broach the topic of sex.

?Most say, ?I just don?t want this vaccine for my daughter,??? Dr. Dempsey said. ?If you probed further, it was either safety concerns or the sex issue.?

White parents also ?tended to have a rosier view of their child?s behavior,? said Dr. Rebecca B. Perkins, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Boston University School of Medicine, citing a survey to be published in The Journal of Healthcare for the Poor and Underserved.

Parents who went to publicly funded clinics, Dr. Perkins said, were more likely to say, ?I tried to teach my child the best thing, but I?d rather take the precaution.? Those who went to private clinics, she said, were more likely to say, ?This isn?t necessary,? even though the behavior of both groups of teenage girls, according to their doctors, was no different.

Cultural differences also play a role. Many foreign-born Hispanics are from countries where babies still die of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles. They consider vaccines essential for survival. Parents born in the United States, on the other hand, are more skeptical of vaccines, as many have no living memory of the lethal diseases they prevent.

Dr. Perkins described a typical encounter with a Hispanic mother. ?She said, ?In my country, if a baby doesn?t get vaccines, the baby dies. Why would I not do this????

Source: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/25/a-push-for-hpv-vaccinations/?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Down's syndrome brain protein loss

A lack of a protein in Down's syndrome brains could be the cause of learning and memory problems, says a US study.

Writing in Nature Medicine, Californian researchers found that the extra copy of chromosome 21 in people with the condition triggered the protein loss.

Their study found restoring the protein in Down's syndrome mice improved cognitive function and behaviour.

The Down's Syndrome Association said the study was interesting but the causes of Down's were very complex.

Prof Huaxi Xu, senior author of the study from the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, said that in experiments on mice they discovered that the SNX27 protein was important for brain function and memory formation.

Continue reading the main story

?Start Quote

In Down's syndrome, we believe lack of SNX27 is at least partly to blame for developmental and cognitive defects.?

End Quote Prof Huaxi Xu Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute

Mice with less SNX27 had fewer active glutamate receptors and therefore had impaired learning and memory.

The SNX27-deficient mice shared some characteristics with Down's syndrome, so the researchers looked at human brains with the condition.

This confirmed their findings in the lab - that people with Down's syndrome also have significantly lower levels of SNX27.

"So, in Down's syndrome, we believe lack of SNX27 is at least partly to blame for developmental and cognitive defects," Prof Xu said.

In the lab, the research team increased the levels of the protein in mice brains to see if the problem could be resolved.

"Everything goes back to normal after SNX27 treatment," said Xin Wang, a graduate member of the research team.

"First we see the glutamate receptors come back, then memory deficit is repaired in our Down's syndrome mice."

But Prof Xu cautioned that science still had work to do to develop a safe technique of delivering genes into the human brain.

Ethical concerns

The researchers are now screening small molecules to look for those that might increase SNX27 production or function in the brain.

Carol Boys, chief executive of the Down's Syndrome Association, said they were following the development of many biomedical research studies into Down's syndrome with interest.

"This particular study is of interest; however, the genetic causes of Down's syndrome are very complex and we are still a long way away from the development of therapeutic treatments that might lead to improvement to cognition in people with Down's syndrome."

She also said they were mindful of the ethical issues that such treatments might raise for people with Down's syndrome and their families.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21900954#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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Monday, March 25, 2013

Arguments in the home linked with babies' brain functioning

Arguments in the home linked with babies' brain functioning [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 25-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Anna Mikulak
amikulak@psychologicalscience.org
202-293-9300
Association for Psychological Science

Being exposed to arguments between parents is associated with the way babies' brains process emotional tone of voice, according to a new study to be published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The study, conducted by graduate student Alice Graham with her advisors Phil Fisher and Jennifer Pfeifer of the University of Oregon, found that infants respond to angry tone of voice, even when they're asleep.

Babies' brains are highly plastic, allowing them to develop in response to the environments and encounters they experience. But this plasticity comes with a certain degree of vulnerability research has shown that severe stress, such as maltreatment or institutionalization, can have a significant, negative impact on child development.

Graham and colleagues wondered what the impact of more moderate stressors might be.

"We were interested in whether a common source of early stress in children's lives conflict between parents is associated with how infants' brains function," says Graham.

Graham and colleagues decided to take advantage of recent developments in fMRI scanning with infants to answer this question.

Twenty infants, ranging in age from 6 to 12 months, came into the lab at their regular bedtime. While they were asleep in the scanner, the infants were presented with nonsense sentences spoken in very angry, mildly angry, happy, and neutral tones of voice by a male adult.

"Even during sleep, infants showed distinct patterns of brain activity depending on the emotional tone of voice we presented," says Graham.

The researchers found that infants from high conflict homes showed greater reactivity to very angry tone of voice in brain areas linked to stress and emotion regulation, such as the anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, thalamus, and hypothalamus.

Previous research with animals has shown that these brain areas play an important role in the impact of early life stress on development the results of this new study suggest that the same might be true for human infants.

According to Graham and colleagues, these findings show that babies are not oblivious to their parents' conflicts, and exposure to these conflicts may influence the way babies' brains process emotion and stress.

###

Support for this work was provided by the Center for Drug Abuse Prevention in the Child Welfare System (1-P30-DA023920); the Early Experience, Stress, and Neurobehavioral Development Center (1-P50-MH078105); a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (F31-10667639); and the Lewis Center for NeuroImaging at the University of Oregon.

For more information about this study, please contact: Alice M. Graham at agraham2@uoregon.edu.

The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "What Sleeping Babies Hear: A Functional MRI Study of Interparental Conflict and Infants' Emotion Processing" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Anna Mikulak at 202-293-9300 or amikulak@psychologicalscience.org.


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?


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Arguments in the home linked with babies' brain functioning [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 25-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Anna Mikulak
amikulak@psychologicalscience.org
202-293-9300
Association for Psychological Science

Being exposed to arguments between parents is associated with the way babies' brains process emotional tone of voice, according to a new study to be published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The study, conducted by graduate student Alice Graham with her advisors Phil Fisher and Jennifer Pfeifer of the University of Oregon, found that infants respond to angry tone of voice, even when they're asleep.

Babies' brains are highly plastic, allowing them to develop in response to the environments and encounters they experience. But this plasticity comes with a certain degree of vulnerability research has shown that severe stress, such as maltreatment or institutionalization, can have a significant, negative impact on child development.

Graham and colleagues wondered what the impact of more moderate stressors might be.

"We were interested in whether a common source of early stress in children's lives conflict between parents is associated with how infants' brains function," says Graham.

Graham and colleagues decided to take advantage of recent developments in fMRI scanning with infants to answer this question.

Twenty infants, ranging in age from 6 to 12 months, came into the lab at their regular bedtime. While they were asleep in the scanner, the infants were presented with nonsense sentences spoken in very angry, mildly angry, happy, and neutral tones of voice by a male adult.

"Even during sleep, infants showed distinct patterns of brain activity depending on the emotional tone of voice we presented," says Graham.

The researchers found that infants from high conflict homes showed greater reactivity to very angry tone of voice in brain areas linked to stress and emotion regulation, such as the anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, thalamus, and hypothalamus.

Previous research with animals has shown that these brain areas play an important role in the impact of early life stress on development the results of this new study suggest that the same might be true for human infants.

According to Graham and colleagues, these findings show that babies are not oblivious to their parents' conflicts, and exposure to these conflicts may influence the way babies' brains process emotion and stress.

###

Support for this work was provided by the Center for Drug Abuse Prevention in the Child Welfare System (1-P30-DA023920); the Early Experience, Stress, and Neurobehavioral Development Center (1-P50-MH078105); a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (F31-10667639); and the Lewis Center for NeuroImaging at the University of Oregon.

For more information about this study, please contact: Alice M. Graham at agraham2@uoregon.edu.

The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "What Sleeping Babies Hear: A Functional MRI Study of Interparental Conflict and Infants' Emotion Processing" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Anna Mikulak at 202-293-9300 or amikulak@psychologicalscience.org.


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

?


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


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/afps-ait032513.php

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Scientists confirm first 2-headed bull shark

Scientists confirm first 2-headed bull shark [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 25-Mar-2013
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Contact: Layne Cameron
layne.cameron@cabs.msu.edu
517-353-8819
Michigan State University

Scientists have confirmed the discovery of the first-ever, two-headed bull shark.

The study, led by Michigan State University and appearing in the Journal of Fish Biology, confirmed the specimen, found in the Gulf of Mexico April 7, 2011, was a single shark with two heads, rather than conjoined twins.

There have been other species of sharks, such as blue sharks and tope sharks, born with two heads. This is the first record of dicephalia in a bull shark, said Michael Wagner, MSU assistant professor of fisheries and wildlife, who confirmed the discovery with colleagues at the Florida Keys Community College.

"This is certainly one of those interesting and rarely detected phenomena," Wagner said. "It's good that we have this documented as part of the world's natural history, but we'd certainly have to find many more before we could draw any conclusions about what caused this."

The difficulty of finding such oddities is due, in part, to creatures with abnormalities dying shortly after birth. In this instance, a fisherman found the two-headed shark when he opened the uterus of an adult shark. The two-headed shark died shortly thereafter and had little, if any, chance to survive in the wild, Wagner added.

"You'll see many more cases of two-headed lizards and snakes," he said. "That's because those organisms are often bred in captivity, and the breeders are more likely to observe the anomalies."

The shark was brought to the marine science department at Florida Keys Community College. From there, it was transported to Michigan State's campus for further examination.

Wagner and his team were able to detail the discovery with magnetic resonance imaging. Without damaging the unique specimen, the MRIs revealed two distinct heads, hearts and stomachs with the remainder of the body joining together in back half of the animal to form a single tail.

As part of the published brief, Wagner noted that some may want to attribute the deformed shark to exposure to pollutants.

"Given the timing of the shark's discovery with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, I could see how some people may want to jump to conclusions," Wagner said. "Making that leap is unwarranted. We simply have no evidence to support that cause or any other."

###


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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.


Scientists confirm first 2-headed bull shark [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 25-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Layne Cameron
layne.cameron@cabs.msu.edu
517-353-8819
Michigan State University

Scientists have confirmed the discovery of the first-ever, two-headed bull shark.

The study, led by Michigan State University and appearing in the Journal of Fish Biology, confirmed the specimen, found in the Gulf of Mexico April 7, 2011, was a single shark with two heads, rather than conjoined twins.

There have been other species of sharks, such as blue sharks and tope sharks, born with two heads. This is the first record of dicephalia in a bull shark, said Michael Wagner, MSU assistant professor of fisheries and wildlife, who confirmed the discovery with colleagues at the Florida Keys Community College.

"This is certainly one of those interesting and rarely detected phenomena," Wagner said. "It's good that we have this documented as part of the world's natural history, but we'd certainly have to find many more before we could draw any conclusions about what caused this."

The difficulty of finding such oddities is due, in part, to creatures with abnormalities dying shortly after birth. In this instance, a fisherman found the two-headed shark when he opened the uterus of an adult shark. The two-headed shark died shortly thereafter and had little, if any, chance to survive in the wild, Wagner added.

"You'll see many more cases of two-headed lizards and snakes," he said. "That's because those organisms are often bred in captivity, and the breeders are more likely to observe the anomalies."

The shark was brought to the marine science department at Florida Keys Community College. From there, it was transported to Michigan State's campus for further examination.

Wagner and his team were able to detail the discovery with magnetic resonance imaging. Without damaging the unique specimen, the MRIs revealed two distinct heads, hearts and stomachs with the remainder of the body joining together in back half of the animal to form a single tail.

As part of the published brief, Wagner noted that some may want to attribute the deformed shark to exposure to pollutants.

"Given the timing of the shark's discovery with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, I could see how some people may want to jump to conclusions," Wagner said. "Making that leap is unwarranted. We simply have no evidence to support that cause or any other."

###


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

?


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


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/msu-scf032513.php

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How to Go Out and Talk About Your Book | Writing and Publishing ...

It?s common for me to get questions from authors. And it?s interesting to see how the nature of the questions have changed over the years. It used to be that hopeful authors asked, ?How do I find a publisher?? ?Do I need an agent?? ?What publisher/agent would you recommend?? ?How do you write a query letter??

There was a period when I got a lot of questions related to writing a book proposal, identifying genre, copyright and so forth.

Lately, I seem to be getting questions about marketing. ?How do I prepare a marketing plan?? ?What?s the best way to promote a book?? ?How do I promote my ebook?? And today, I got a question from a Toastmaster about how to start going out and speaking about your book.

Of course, I told this author about my latest freebie??50 Ways To Sell Books Through Your Personality.? http://www.patriciafry.com

And I told him about my latest book?Talk Up Your Book, How to Sell Books Through Public Speaking, Interviews, Signings, Festivals, Conferences and More. This book is available at amazon.com and most other online and downtown bookstores. It is in print, on Kindle and audio.

Talk Up Your Book offers up step-by-step assistance for anyone who is eager to start selling books by personally addressing his/her audience as well as those who are terrified of public speaking or anything that resembles it. The book covers stage fright, noodle knees and the whole lack of confidence scenario for reluctant speakers whether you are the author of a nonfiction book, a novel or a children?s book. And it is a no-nonsense guide for those who know that public speaking is an excellent mode of book promotion.

My best advice for a new author who wants to get out in public and promote his or her book, but who isn?t accustomed to it or who is reluctant is this:

1: Begin stepping out into the limelight. Take it slow, if you want. Volunteer to head a committee at work, your club or church so that you get the opportunity to speak before a group. Join a Toastmasters club near you and participate. Join a storytelling or even drama group. Take a speaking course at a local college. Practice, practice, practice.

2: Talk about your book everywhere you go. Come up with a short spiel describing your book and share it often with people you meet at work, socially and in passing. Listen to their questions?these are the things your future audiences will want to know about your book. Make note to weave this information into your speeches when you start writing them.

3: Create a presentation that you would be comfortable presenting to a small group. It should involve an aspect of your book that you know well, are excited about and can convey to others fairly effortlessly. Use some of the notes you?ve collected reflecting some of the questions people have asked about your story, the writing of it or the information in your nonfiction book, for example.

4: Go in search of your ideal audience whether it is children during story time at a local library, civic group members during their monthly lunch meeting, your church auxiliary members, history buffs convening at the museum for docent training, a meeting of businessmen or women or a book club, for example. Contact the program chair and set up a date to speak.

Fill in the blanks?how to write a speech, how to prepare for a presentation, how to create rapport with your audience, radio interviews, getting people to attend your signing, ideas for unusual venues, great introductions to your speeches, how to rehearse your speech, tips for talking about your novel and so much more by reading Talk Up Your Book.

Source: http://www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog/?p=2653

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CA-BUSINESS Summary

IMF draft cuts 2013 U.S. growth forecast: report

MILAN (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is planning to cut its U.S. growth forecast for this year due to higher taxes and spending cuts, Italian news agency ANSA said, citing a draft of the IMF's next World Economic Outlook report. The U.S. economy, the world's biggest, will expand 1.7 percent this year, down from the 2.0 percent predicted in January, ANSA reported late on Saturday. The next round of IMF forecasts is scheduled to be published in mid-April.

Euro zone bailouts getting harder to agree: policymakers

SAARISELKA, Finland (Reuters) - Euro zone bailouts are getting tougher to agree as opposition within creditor nations grows and indebted states struggle to persuade citizens to back austerity, policymakers said on Sunday. At a meeting in Finnish Lapland this weekend, attendees including Ireland's Europe Minister Lucinda Creighton and host Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen sounded confident that Cyprus would secure a bailout deal to avoid financial collapse.

Switzerland denies banking deal in principle reached with U.S.

ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss government on Sunday denied a newspaper report that the country had reached a deal in principle with the United States over undeclared funds hidden by wealthy Americans in Swiss offshore bank accounts. "There is no agreed framework. The negotiations for an industry-wide deal to enable all Swiss banks to draw a line under the matter are ongoing," Swiss government spokesman Mario Tuor said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

Standard Chartered would consider Egypt buy, plans Iraq push

DUBAI (Reuters) - Standard Chartered would consider acquiring a bank in Egypt to ride an expected boom in one of the Middle East's largest economies, the firm's regional head said. The bank also plans to expand operations in Iraq this year. Many European banks are under pressure to cut costs and bolster their capital in the wake of the global financial crisis, but Christos Papadopoulos said such pressures would not deter Standard Chartered from growing in the Middle East.

Blackstone, Icahn set up three-way battle to buy out Dell

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dell Inc appeared to have received competing offers following a $24.4 billion agreement last month to be taken private by its founder and private equity firm Silver Lake, setting up a tug-of-war for the world's No. 3 PC maker. Blackstone Group LP submitted an indicative and preliminary offer ahead of the expiration of a "go-shop" period on Saturday that allowed Dell to explore other options, a person familiar with the matter said.

Canada's Flaherty sees substantial tax avoidance by the wealthy

VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Some wealthy Canadians are hiding "substantial" amounts of revenue offshore, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said on Friday, a day after unveiling a new plan to crack down on tax cheats and pay individuals who come forth with information on them. Flaherty's budget on Thursday proposed a series of measures to close tax loopholes and reduce international tax evasion and avoidance, part of a broader effort to boost revenues and eliminate the country's budget deficit by 2015.

Sky's the limit? Southeast Asia budget airlines bet big on growth

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Lion Air's record aircraft orders underline the ambitious plans the privately held Indonesian group is hatching to emerge as a pan-Asian low cost carrier, throwing a serious challenge to AirAsia Bhd , the region's biggest budget airline. The rivalry intensified on Friday when Lion Air launched its first service in Malaysia, barging onto AirAsia's home turf, but the pace of expansion has raised questions about whether airlines are overextending themselves.

ThyssenKrupp deems Steel Americas bids low, wants talks: paper

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp was surprised by the low value of bids for its Cia Siderurgica do Atlantico mill in Brazil and is seeking talks with bidders to raise the offer prices, the Agencia Estado news agency reported Saturday. The two main bidders, Brazil's Cia Siderurgica Nacional and the Luxembourg-based Latin American steelmaker Ternium SA , counted on ThyssenKrupp's wanting to sell the money-losing mill quickly to drive down the cost of buying it, Agencia Estado said, citing a source with access to the negotiations.

Deutsche Bank co-CEO asked for two million euro pay cut: paper

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank co-Chief Executive Anshu Jain requested a pay cut of almost 2 million euro ($2.60 million) to draw level with the 2012 compensation package of fellow top executive Juergen Fitschen, a German newspaper reported. Jain, who until June last year was head of investment banking at Deutsche, asked the supervisory board at the beginning of this year not to be paid parts of his bonus for 2012, Sunday paper Welt am Sonntag cited sources close to the board as saying.

BlackBerry shares dive on reports of muted U.S. debut for Z10

TORONTO (Reuters) - Shares of BlackBerry fell nearly 8 percent on Friday after reports of a flat response to the launch of its new Z10 smartphone in the vitally important U.S. market. The well-reviewed device, whose success is essential if BlackBerry is to reestablish itself as a power in the smartphone industry, finally hit U.S. store shelves early on Friday, nearly two months after being formally unveiled.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-business-summary-010555062--finance.html

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