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PartDesign Workbench
The PartDesign Workbench provides advanced tools for modeling complex solid parts. It is mostly focused on creating mechanical parts that can be manufactured and assembled into a finished product. Nevertheless, the created solids can be used in general for any other purpose such as architectural design, finite element analysis, or machining and 3D printing.
The PartDesign Workbench is intrinsically related to the Sketcher Workbench. The user normally creates a Sketch, then uses the PartDesign Pad tool to extrude it and create a basic solid, and then this solid is further modified.
While the Part Workbench is based on a constructive solid geometry (CSG) methodology for building shapes, the PartDesign Workbench uses a parametric, feature editing methodology, which means a basic solid is sequentially transformed by adding features on top until the final shape is obtained. See the feature editing page for a more complete explanation of this process, and then see Creating a simple part with PartDesign to get started with creating solids.
The bodies created with PartDesign are often subject to the topological naming problem which causes internal features to be renamed when the parametric operations are modified. This problem can be minimized by following the best practices described in the feature editing page, and by taking advantage of datum objects as support for sketches and features.
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Tools
- 3 Tutorials
- 4 Links
The Part Design tools are all located in the Part Design menu and the PartDesign toolbar that appear when you load the Part Design workbench.
Structure tools
These tools are not part of the PartDesign Workbench. They belong to the Std Base system. They were developed in v0.17 with the intention that they would be useful to organize a model, and create assemblies.
- Part: adds a new Part container in the active document and makes it active.
- Group: adds a Group container in the active document, which allows organizing the objects in the tree view.
Part Design Helper tools
- Create body: Creates a Body in the active document and makes it active.
- Create sketch: creates a new sketch on a selected face or plane. If no face is selected while this tool is executed, the user is prompted to select a plane from the Tasks panel. The interface then switches to the Sketcher Workbench in sketch editing mode.
- Edit sketch: Edit the selected Sketch.
- Map sketch to face: Maps a sketch to a previously selected plane or a face of the active body.
Part Design Modeling tools
Datum tools
- Create a datum point: creates a datum point in the active body.
- Create a datum line: creates a datum line in the active body.
- Create a datum plane: creates a datum plane in the active body.
- Create a local coordinate system: creates a local coordinate system attached to datum geometry in the active body.
- Create a shape binder: creates a shape binder in the active body.
- Create a clone: creates a clone of the selected body.
Additive tools
These are tools for creating base features or adding material to an existing solid body.
- Pad: extrudes a solid from a selected sketch.
- Revolution: creates a solid by revolving a sketch around an axis. The sketch must form a closed profile.
- Additive loft: creates a solid by making a transition between two or more sketches.
- Additive pipe: creates a solid by sweeping one or more sketches along an open or closed path.
- Create an additive primitive: adds an additive primitive to the active body.
- Additive box: creates an additive box.
- Additive cone: creates an additive cone.
- Additive cylinder: creates an additive cylinder.
- Additive ellipsoid: creates an additive ellipsoid.
- Additive prism: creates an additive prism.
- Additive sphere: creates an additive sphere.
- Additive torus: creates an additive torus.
- Additive wedge: creates an additive wedge.
Subtractive tools
These are tools for subtracting material from an existing body.
- Pocket: creates a pocket from a selected sketch.
- Hole: creates a hole feature from a selected sketch. The sketch must contain one or multiple circles.
- Groove: creates a groove by revolving a sketch around an axis.
- Subtractive loft: creates a solid shape by making a transition between two or more sketches and subtracts it from the active body.
- Subtractive pipe: creates a solid shape by sweeping one or more sketches along an open or closed path and subtracts it from the active body.
- Create a subtractive primitive: adds a subtractive primitive to the active body.
- Subtractive box: adds a subtractive box to the active body.
- Subtractive cone: adds a subtractive cone to the active body.
- Subtractive cylinder: adds a subtractive cylinder to the active body.
- Subtractive ellipsoid: adds a subtractive ellipsoid to the active body.
- Subtractive prism: adds a subtractive prism to the active body.
- Subtractive sphere: adds a subtractive sphere to the active body.
- Subtractive torus: adds a subtractive torus to the active body.
- Subtractive wedge: adds a subtractive wedge to the active body.
Transformation tools
These are tools for transforming existing features. They will allow you to choose which features to transform.
- Mirrored: mirrors one or more features on a plane or face.
- Linear Pattern: creates a linear pattern based on one or more features.
- Polar Pattern: creates a polar pattern of one or more features.
- Create MultiTransform: creates a pattern with any combination of the other transformations.
Dress-up tools
These tools apply a treatment to the selected edges or faces.
- Fillet: fillets (rounds) edges of the active body.
- Chamfer: chamfers edges of the active body.
- Draft: applies an angular draft to selected faces of the active body.
- Thickness: creates a thick shell from the active body and opens selected face(s).
- Boolean operation: imports one or more Bodies or PartDesign Clones into the active body and applies a Boolean operation.
Some additional functionality found in the Part Design menu:
- Migrate: migrates files created with older FreeCAD versions. If the file is pure PartDesign feature-based, migration should succeed. If the file contains mixed Part/Part Design/Draft objects, the conversion will most likely fail.
- Shaft design wizard: Generates a shaft from a table of values and allows to analyze forces and moments. The shaft is made with a revolved sketch that can be edited.
- Involute gear: creates an involute gear profile that can be used by a Pad.
Contextual Menu tools
- Set tip: redefines the tip, which is the feature exposed outside of the Body.
- Move object to other body: moves the selected sketch, datum geometry or feature to another Body.
- Move object after other object: allows reordering of the Body tree by moving the selected sketch, datum geometry or feature to another position in the list of features.
- Preferences...: Preferences available in PartDesign Tools.
- Fine-tuning: Some extra parameters to fine-tune PartDesign behavior
- How to use FreeCAD, a website describing the workflow for mechanical design.
- Creating a simple part with PartDesign v0.17
- Basic Part Design Tutorial 017
- PartDesign Bearingholder Tutorial I (needs updating)
- PartDesign Bearingholder Tutorial II (needs updating)
- What's new in PartDesign Next
- Updated PartDesign workflow
- FC v0.17dev: Part Design Next Usecases and Best practices
- Sandbox:Part Design Next
- Installation: Linux/Unix, Windows, Mac; Getting started
- Basics: About FreeCAD, Workbenches, Preferences, Document structure, Interface Customization, Properties, Mouse Model; Tutorials
- Workbenches: Std Base; Arch, Draft, FEM, Image, Inspection, Mesh, OpenSCAD, Part, PartDesign, Path, Plot, Points, Raytracing, Reverse Engineering, Robot, Ship, Sketcher, Spreadsheet, Start, Surface workbench, TechDraw, Test Framework, Web
- Scripting: Introduction to Python, FreeCAD scripting tutorial, FreeCAD Scripting Basics, How to install macros, Gui Command, Units Modules: Builtin modules, Workbench creation, Installing more workbenches Meshes: Mesh Scripting, Mesh Module Parts: The Part Module, Topological data scripting, PythonOCC, Mesh to Part Coin scenegraph: The Coin/Inventor scenegraph, Pivy Qt interface: PySide, Using the FreeCAD GUI, Dialog creation Parametric objects: Scripted objects Other: Code snippets, Line drawing function, Embedding FreeCAD, FreeCAD vector math library, Power users hub, Python, Macros, FreeCAD Scripting Basics, Topological data scripting


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Vandals cut down England's 2,000-year-old Glastonbury Holy Thorn Tree.
Watch the Metrodome collapse.
Al Queda claims responsibility for Saturday's Stockholm attacks.
The Mona Lisa has tiny numbers and letters in her eyes.
Iranian courts sentence a man to be blinded with acid. Ooo, heaven is a place on earth.
Ron Paul may run for president again.
How to take part in a massive web attack.
Wikileaks documents indicate Texas-based DynCorp provided young boys as sex slaves in Afghanistan.
Meet the Paranoid Parrot.
The Louisiana Swamp Monster photo looks like a stupid cartoon.
The Subway at 98th and Central was robbed and two people were shot.
APD has identified one of the women in the mysterious photographs as Christina Leyba.
Happy birthday, Steve Buscemi.

subset: commoncrawl


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. . . . in a few days!
This cute little monster is from the Cricut Mini Monsters cartridge. I used a Peachy Keen face stamp for the face, colored the eyes with a white gel pen, then added glossy accents.
Everything piece of my monster is inked with a slightly darker shade than the colored piece.
Have a happy day!


text:
Hello everyone!
I have recently decided I want to try my hand at programming. My father used to love to program on BASIC, so I thought we could learn together. I tried flash too, and Pivot (currently have an account at The Pivot Forum, my username is Ragon_pip) but I just kept on thinking I wanted programming, not animation.
I will post on this forum for help with my codes. I use the online book JavaNotes to learn DIY Java.
Hope I can get to know you guys!
} //end of class Hello!


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Foam Tool Kit (16.5"X36.75") for Craftsman Model #113668
- Protect your tools and drawers with customizable foam tool kits
- 2-color system helps prevent missing tools by showing when a tool is not in its correct place
- Top sheet: 1/2" thickness, Bottom sheet: 1/4" thickness
- Constructed from 4lb/cubic ft. cross-link, closed-cell foam
- Includes foam-cutting knife
Using tool outline foam in your toolbox or tool drawers can help you better organize your tools for increased productivity. Foam Tool Kits come with two pieces of durable, closed-cell foam in two high-contrasting colors so you quickly notice when tools are missing. To use a kit, just cut your tool shapes into the top primary layer (1/2" thick) and then add the high-contrast colored foam backing (1/4" thick). Insert both layers in the drawer of your tool box or chest and put your tools in place. These 16.5"x36.75" kits are designed specifically for use with Craftsman model number 113668, so this foam will fit snuggly into your Craftsman toolbox.
Durable Foam
Foam Tool Kits are made from cross-link, closed-cell foam that can withstand continual use.
Easy to Install
Cut the foam with a utility knife or hot knife and place the layers in your drawer.
At Creative Safety Supply, we guarantee the quality of our products. If you̥re unsatisfied with your purchase, you can return new, unopened items within 30 days of purchase for a full refund. That way you can feel confident the products you order will meet your expectations, or you'll get your money back.
For full warranty information, please visit our warranties page.


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Make data strategic
Who We Are
We are a technology company serving independent businesses, cooperatives, nonprofits, foundations and social enterprises committed to using data as a strategic tool to improve performance and impact.
What We Do
Our methodology combines technology and automated processes for collecting and standardizing data with peer learning and collaboration to report real-time data.
How We Do It
We begin by understanding the strategic data needs, design the solution, then create reports and analytic tools that turn data into
actionable insights.
actionable insights.
As a former systems analyst with a Fortune 100 company I was pleasantly surprised by the technical sophistication and usability of the CoMetrics tools. They demonstrate how a cooperative approach to exchanging ideas and expertise can quickly leverage emerging technologies to get a 'leg up' in a rapidly changing industry.
Eric Hatting
Initiatives Manager
Seward Community Co-op


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Wednesday, 31 August 2011
RSS feed of Drug Approval Monographs
An RSS feed has been set up for the ChEMBL-og NME Drug Approval Monographs.
Posted by Unknown at 8/31/2011 02:34:00 pm No comments: Links to this post
MIABE - Minimum Information about a Bioactive Entity
Minimum Information Standards are an important feature in many aspects of science, and there is a rich history of the success of these in encouraging data interoperability across scientific resources and data analysis. An opinion paper has just been published in NRDD, that discusses bioactivity data. The paper itself seems to be open access (from my hotel room at least) - the link is here.
%T Minimum information about a bioactive entity (MIABE)
%J Nature Reviews Drug Discovery %V 10 %P 661-669 %D 2011 %A S. Orchard %A B. Al-Lazikani %A S. Bryant %A D. Clark %A E. Calder %A I. Dix %A O. Engkvist %A M. Forster %A A. Gaulton %A M. Gilson %A R. Glen %A M. Grigorov %A K. Hammond-Kosack %A L. Harland %A A. Hopkins %A C. Larminie %A N. Lynch %A R. K. Mann %A P. Murray-Rust %A E. Lo Piparo %A C. Southan %A C. Steinbeck %A D. Wishart %A H. Hermjakob %A J. Overington %A J. Thornton %O doi:10.1038/nrd3503
Tuesday, 30 August 2011
New Drug Approvals 2011 - Pt. XXVI - Icatibant (FirazyrTM)
Wikipedia: Icatibant
On the August 25th 2011, the FDA approved Icatibant (trade name: FirazyrTM), a bradykinin B2 receptor (B2R) antagonist indicated for the treatment of acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) in patients aged 18 or older.
HAE is a rare genetic disease and is caused by low levels of C1-esterase inhibitor (C1-INH), the major endogenous inhibitor and regulator of the protease plasma kallikrein and the key regulator of the Factor XII/kallikrein cascade. One component this cascade is the production of bradykinin by plasma kallikrein. During HAE attacks, disregulated activity of plasma kallikrein leads to excessive bradykinin production; bradykinin is a potent vasodilator, which s thought to be responsible for the characteristic HAE symptoms of localised swelling, inflammation and pain.
Icatibant treats the clinical symptoms of HAE attack by selective- and competitively binding, as an antagonist, to the B2 bradykinin receptor (B2R) (Uniprot: P30411; ChEMBL ID: CHEMBL3157; PFAM: PF00001), with similar affinity to bradykinin (1-10 nM for the B2R, while affinity for the B1R is 100-fold lower). Icatibant is the first in class agent against this target. The -tibant stem covers bradykinin antagonists.
B2R is a Rhodopsin-like receptor, 391 amino acid long, which belongs to the G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) A3 family and is encoded by the BDKRB2 gene in humans. The amino acid sequence of B2R is:
B2R is a Rhodopsin-like receptor, 391 amino acid long, which belongs to the G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) A3 family and is encoded by the BDKRB2 gene in humans. The amino acid sequence of B2R is:
There are no known experimental structures of B2R, however there are several relevant homologous structures of other members of the rhodopsin-like GPCR family (see here for a current list).
Icatibant is the third drug approved in the US to treat HAE attacks. Previous drugs include Ecallantide (approved in December 2009 under the trade name Kalbitor), which is a potent, selective, reversible inhibitor of plasma kallikrein, and C1-INH (approved in October 2009 under the trade name Berinert), which is a freeze-dried human C1-esterase inhibitor concentrate.
Icatibant (IUPAC: (2S)-2-[[(3aS,7aS)-1-[2-[(2S)-2-[[(2S)-2-[[2-[[(4R)-1-[1-[2-[[(2R)-2-amino-5-(diaminomethylideneamino)pentanoyl]amino]-5-(diaminomethylideneamino)pentanoyl]pyrrolidine-2-carbonyl]-4-hydroxypyrrolidine-2-carbonyl]amino]acetyl]amino]-3-thiophen-2-ylpropanoyl]amino]-3-hydroxypropanoyl]-3,4-dihydro-1H-isoquinoline-3-carbonyl]-2,3,3a,4,5,6,7,7a-octahydroindole-2-carbonyl]amino]-5-(diaminomethylideneamino)pentanoic acid; ChEMBL ID: CHEMBL375218; PubChem: 71364; ChemSpider: 5293384) is a synthetic decapeptide that differs from bradykinin (a nonapeptide with an amino acid sequence RPPGFSPFR) at the amino acids' positions 3, 5, 7 and 8, which have been replaced by four non-natural amino acids, and also in one additional amino acid (a D-arginine) at the N-terminus of the bradykinin arginine at position 1. Thus, Icatibant amino acid sequence is D-Arg-Arg-Pro-Hyp-Gly-Thi-Ser-D-Tic-Oic-Arg. These modifications prevent Icatibant from being metabolised by major bradykinin-metabolizing enzymes, which makes it more stable that bradykinin. Icatibant has a molecular weight of 1304.5 Da.
Icatibant can be self-administrated through an injection in the abdominal area, thus providing a new option for the treatment of acute HAE attacks. The recommended dose is 30 mg administrated subcutaneously. In the case of inadequate response or recurrence of symptoms, additional dose may be administrated at intervals of at least 6 hours, with no more than 3 doses administrated in any 24-hour period (recommended daily dose equivalent 69.0 umol).
Following a 30 mg subcutaneous dose, the absolute bioavailability of Icatibant is ca. 97%, with a plasma clearance of 245 mL/min, a mean elimination half-life of 1.4 hours and a volume of distribution of 29 L. Icatibant is extensively metabolised by proteolytic enzymes to inactive metabolites that are primarily excreted in the urine, with <10% of the dose eliminated as unchanged drug. As would be anticipated for a peptide drug, Icatibant is not an inhibitor of major cytochrome P450 (CYP) isoenzymes and is not an inducer of CYP 1A2 and 3A4.
The full prescribing information can be found here.
Icatibant is marketed by Shire Human Genetic Therapies Inc. and the product website is www.firazyr.com (Since 2008, Icatibant has been approved for use in the European Union; the european SPC can be found here).
Sunday, 28 August 2011
New Drug Approvals 2011 - Pt. XXV crizotinib (Xalkori®)
Wikipedia: Crizotinib
On the August 26th 2011, the FDA approved crizotinib (trade name:Xalkori® Research code: PF-02341066), an anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that is ALK-positive as detected by an approved FDA-approved test.
Non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLC) are cancers of the epithelial cells in the lung and describe all types of lung carcinomas other than small cell carcinomas. NSCLCs make up 88% of all lung carcinomas (see Cancer Research UK pages) and comprise genetically distinct classes of cancer, the most common are: Lung adenocarcinoma, large cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Across the NSCLC types, some tumors harbour an ALK fusion protein. The EML4-ALK fusion gene has been shown to be affect the outcome of drug response and cells show resistance to EGFR inhibitors.
Crizotinib is an orally-dosed receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor with significant activity against ALK (UniProt:Q9UM73, CHEMBL4247), HGFR (also known as c-Met) (Uniprot:P08581 CHEMBL3717) and RON (UniProt:Q04912, CHEMBL2689), and it is the first in class agent against any of these targets. However, ALK is the main targeted protein in these ALK-dependent, EGFR inhibitor resistant cancers. ALK is a trans-membrane receptor tyrosine kinase with the regulatory domains being extracellular and the kinase catalytic domain intracellular. The amino-acid sequence of the full wild type kinase is:
>ALK (full length wild type, kinase domain in red) MGAIGLLWLLPLLLSTAAVGSGMGTGQRAGSPAAGPPLQPREPLSYSRLQRKSLAVDFVV PSLFRVYARDLLLPPSSSELKAGRPEARGSLALDCAPLLRLLGPAPGVSWTAGSPAPAEA RTLSRVLKGGSVRKLRRAKQLVLELGEEAILEGCVGPPGEAAVGLLQFNLSELFSWWIRQ GEGRLRIRLMPEKKASEVGREGRLSAAIRASQPRLLFQIFGTGHSSLESPTNMPSPSPDY FTWNLTWIMKDSFPFLSHRSRYGLECSFDFPCELEYSPPLHDLRNQSWSWRRIPSEEASQ MDLLDGPGAERSKEMPRGSFLLLNTSADSKHTILSPWMRSSSEHCTLAVSVHRHLQPSGR YIAQLLPHNEAAREILLMPTPGKHGWTVLQGRIGRPDNPFRVALEYISSGNRSLSAVDFF ALKNCSEGTSPGSKMALQSSFTCWNGTVLQLGQACDFHQDCAQGEDESQMCRKLPVGFYC NFEDGFCGWTQGTLSPHTPQWQVRTLKDARFQDHQDHALLLSTTDVPASESATVTSATFP APIKSSPCELRMSWLIRGVLRGNVSLVLVENKTGKEQGRMVWHVAAYEGLSLWQWMVLPL LDVSDRFWLQMVAWWGQGSRAIVAFDNISISLDCYLTISGEDKILQNTAPKSRNLFERNP NKELKPGENSPRQTPIFDPTVHWLFTTCGASGPHGPTQAQCNNAYQNSNLSVEVGSEGPL KGIQIWKVPATDTYSISGYGAAGGKGGKNTMMRSHGVSVLGIFNLEKDDMLYILVGQQGE DACPSTNQLIQKVCIGENNVIEEEIRVNRSVHEWAGGGGGGGGATYVFKMKDGVPVPLII AAGGGGRAYGAKTDTFHPERLENNSSVLGLNGNSGAAGGGGGWNDNTSLLWAGKSLQEGA TGGHSCPQAMKKWGWETRGGFGGGGGGCSSGGGGGGYIGGNAASNNDPEMDGEDGVSFIS PLGILYTPALKVMEGHGEVNIKHYLNCSHCEVDECHMDPESHKVICFCDHGTVLAEDGVS CIVSPTPEPHLPLSLILSVVTSALVAALVLAFSGIMIVYRRKHQELQAMQMELQSPEYKL SKLRTSTIMTDYNPNYCFAGKTSSISDLKEVPRKNITLIRGLGHGAFGEVYEGQVSGMPN DPSPLQVAVKTLPEVCSEQDELDFLMEALIISKFNHQNIVRCIGVSLQSLPRFILLELMA GGDLKSFLRETRPRPSQPSSLAMLDLLHVARDIACGCQYLEENHFIHRDIAARNCLLTCP GPGRVAKIGDFGMARDIYRASYYRKGGCAMLPVKWMPPEAFMEGIFTSKTDTWSFGVLLW EIFSLGYMPYPSKSNQEVLEFVTSGGRMDPPKNCPGPVYRIMTQCWQHQPEDRPNFAIIL ERIEYCTQDPDVINTALPIEYGPLVEEEEKVPVRPKDPEGVPPLLVSQQAKREEERSPAA PPPLPTTSSGKAAKKPTAAEISVRVPRGPAVEGGHVNMAFSQSNPPSELHKVHGSRNKPT SLWNPTYGSWFTEKPTKKNNPIAKKEPHDRGNLGLEGSCTVPPNVATGRLPGASLLLEPS SLTANMKEVPLFRLRHFPCGNVNYGYQQQGLPLEAATAPGAGHYEDTILKSKNSMNQPGPThe ELM4-ALK translocation protduces a chimeric protein with the N-terminal part of ELM4 and the catalytic region of ALK. This chimeria is constitutively active causing unregulated proliferation (Soda et al)
The structure of ALK in complex with crizotinib has been determined (2XP2)
ALK and other proteins inhibited by crizotinib are members of the large protein kinase family, the target of several other recently approved drugs - with the approval of crizotinib there are now 12 US approved small molecule protein kinase inhibitors (Imatinib, Gefitinib, Erlotinib, Sorafenib, Dasatinib, Sunitinib, Nilotinib, Lapatinib, Pazopanib, Vandetanib & Vemurafenib), with over an additional 300 protein kinase inhibitors that have progressed to clinical trials.
The molecular formula for crizotinib is C21H22Cl2FN5O, with a molecular weight of 450.34 Da. (IUPAC: (R)-3-[1-(2,6- Dichloro-3-fluorophenyl)ethoxy]-5-[1-(piperidin-4-yl)-1H-pyrazol-4-yl]pyridin-2-amine, Canonical SMILES:CC(C1=C(C=CC(=C1Cl)F)Cl)OC2=C(N=CC(=C2)C3=CN(N=C3)C4CCNCC4)N, InChI key:KTEIFNKAUNYNJU-GFCCVEGCSA-N, Chemspider:9801307, PubChem:11626560). It is fully rule of five compliant. Crizotinib has two ionizable centres with a pKa of 9.4 (for the piperidinium cation) and 5.6 (for the pyridinium cation). The experimental logD (octanol/water) at pH 7.4 is 1.65. Crizotinib is a chirally pure, synthetic small molecule drug.
Standard dosing of Crizotinib is 250mg twice daily (so a 500 mg daily dose - equivalent to 1,110 umol). The mean absolute bioavailability of Crizotinib is 43% following the administration of a single 250 mg oral dose. Crizotinib shows a median time to achieve peak concentration (Tmax) of 4 to 6 hours. Following crizotinib 250 mg twice daily dosing, steady state drug levels are reached within 15 days. The volume of distribution (Vss) of crizotinib is 1,772 L (following intravenous administration of a 50 mg dose) - so crizotinib is extensively distribution into tissues from the plasma; plasma protein binding (ppb) is 91%, and it is a substrate for P-glycoprotein (P-gp).
Crizotinib is predominantly metabolized by CYP3A4 and CYP3A5. The primary metabolic pathways in humans are oxidation of the piperidine ring to crizotinib lactam and O-dealkylation, followed by subsequent Phase 2 conjugation of O-dealkylated metabolites. Crizotinib is an inhibitor of CYP3A. The mean apparent plasma terminal half-life of crizotinib iss 42 hours, with an apparent clearance (CL/F) of 100 L/hr following a single dose, or 60 L/hr for the 250 mg twice daily standard dosing - this is most likely due to inhibition of CYP3A4/5.
Crizotinib is marketed by Pfizer, full prescribing information can be found here.
Posted by Bissan Al-Lazikani at 8/28/2011 03:15:00 pm No comments: Links to this post
Saturday, 27 August 2011
ChEMBL-og NME Approval Monographs now on ChEMBL site
cumulative list of the ChEMBL-og drug monographs to the ChEMBL web interface. As new drugs, more specifically new molecular entities (NMES)) are approved (currently in the US) we write a short, consistent monograph on each approval. Coverage is from 2009 onwards. These typically appear a few days after the approval. We also provide a set of assignments (Rule of Five, Chiral, Black Box Warnings, etc.) for each drug. Some of these assignments are subjective, for example assigning a drug as natural product-derived is sometimes challenging.
We try to keep these current, so there will be inconsistency between the views through the ChEMBL interface and on this page, but this is currently inevitable in our versioned release of ChEMBL.
Any feedback on the view, data, etc. would be gratefully received.
We try to keep these current, so there will be inconsistency between the views through the ChEMBL interface and on this page, but this is currently inevitable in our versioned release of ChEMBL.
Any feedback on the view, data, etc. would be gratefully received.
Posted by Unknown at 8/27/2011 11:26:00 am No comments: Links to this post
Friday, 26 August 2011
ChEMBL Release Scheduling
We are currently reviewing our internal release process for ChEMBL, and have a question. When we do a release, there are sometimes changes to the schema (we generally detail these in the release notes of previous releases) and also changes to deprecated items (targets or compounds that have changed or disappeared). We now also have a series of sites that use the ChEMBL data to provide new services, and these will invariably break (often both in and outbound links) as loading and processing of the ChEMBL data happens in these other systems.
One of the ideas we are considering is to have a 'pre-release' of the forthcoming release to interested parties during our normal one or two week long testing period. This could allow a smoother release schedule, and also help us with support issues after releases, but I'm sure have some further problems for us. So, if you run a resource, using ChEMBL and would like to discuss this with us, or if you have other views, we'd be happy to hear (mail link).
Posted by Unknown at 8/26/2011 03:27:00 pm 1 comment: Links to this post
PhD studentship Available for Oct 2012 Intake
We will be recruiting a PhD student to start in October 2012. Details of the application process can be found at www.embl.org/phdprogramme. The deadlines are important - you will need to register by December 1st 2011, with a final deadline of 12th December 2011.
There is a lot of exciting research in chemical biology at EMBL, and ideas for potential PhD projects within the chembl group include:
- Design of biopharmaceuticals using rule-based approaches.
- Drug design strategies to improve drug safety.
- Multi-scale indexing, visualisation and navigation of chemical structures.
- Drug attrition analysed using systems biology and simulation approaches.
However, we would be really keen to discuss your interests if you do apply. Contact us if you wish to discuss anything.
Monday, 22 August 2011
ChEMBL Identifiers
ChEMBL identifiers are stable with respect to the entities they represent. For compounds (with known/defined structures), ChEMBL identifiers represent distinct compound structures, as defined by the standard InChI, e.g., CHEMBL25 represents: InChI=1S/C9H8O4/c1-6(10)13-8-5-3-2-4-7(8)9(11)12/h2-5H,1H3,(H,11,12). Therefore, two compounds reported in different papers but having the same standard InChI will be assigned the same ChEMBL ID.
These ChEMBL IDs will never be reassigned to a structure with a different standard InChI. However, since compounds may be reported or drawn incorrectly in the literature, it is sometimes necessary to alter the compound ChEMBL ID (structure) to which a particular bioactivity measurement links. In this case, the old (incorrect) ChEMBL identifier may be 'downgraded' in the database if no other data link to it. Downgraded compounds are not currently displayed on the live interface, but are retained in the database and the ChEMBL ID lookup table, and could be re-instated in future (with the same ChEMBL ID) if new data become available for them.
External identifiers for ChEMBL entities are also recorded in the database, where possible. For example, in addition to ChEMBL IDs and InChI/InChIKeys, all small molecule compounds with defined structures are assigned ChEBI identifiers. Where data are taken from other resources, the original identifiers are also retained (e.g., SIDs and AIDs for PubChem substances and assays, HET codes for PDBe ligands). PubMed identifiers or Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) are stored for documents, and protein targets are represented by primary accessions from the UniProt database.
New Drug Approvals 2011 - Pt. XXIV Vemurafenib (Zelboraf TM)
ATC code: L01XE15
Wikipedia: Vemurafenib
On the August 17th 2011, the FDA approved Vemurafenib (trade name:Zelboraf TM Research code: PLX-4032, RG-7204 and RO-5185426), a BRAF kinase inhibitor for the treatment of patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma carrying the mutant BRAFV600E.
Melanoma is a malignant tumor of melanocytes (skin cells that produce melanin) and is an aggressive disease responsible for an estimated 50,000 deaths worldwide. Over 50% of patients with advanced melanoma carry an activating mutation in the Serine/Theronine protein kinase: BRAF (V600E).
The MAPK signal transduction pathway is an important and frequently mutated pathway in cancer. A wide variety of growth factors signal through this pathway, via RAS and RAF proteins to cause cell proliferation. The activating mutation in BRAF causes activation of this pathway downstream of BRAF regardless of the presence of growth factor (the signalling pathway is 'dysregulated'). The protein of Vemurafenib is this mutant enzyme BRAFV600E (Uniprot:P15056(wt)), although it shows activity in vitro against other protein kinases including such as CRAF, ARAF, wild-type BRAF, SRMS, ACK1, MAP4K5 and FGR at similar affinities.
One side effect observed in nearly a quarter of patients is the paradoxical growth of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (cuSCC), a different, and less aggressive type of skin cancer. Intriguingly, this appears to be cause by activating the same pathway in normal cells of the same patient that carry a RAS mutation.
The structure of Vemurafenib complexed to BRAF is known (PDBe:3og7).
CHEMBL1229517, Chemspider:24747352, PubChem:CID 42611257). Vemurafenib is a synthetic small molecule drug, with no chiral centres, it has a molecular weight of 489.9 MWt and is fully rule of Five compliant.
Vemurafenib is orally administered as tablets, each tablet contains 240 mg of active compound - dosing is 960 mg twice daily (equivalent to 3920 umol). The bioavailability of vemurafenib has not been determined. Following oral administration of vemurafenib at 960 mg twice daily for 15 days to patients with metastatic melanoma, the median Tmax was approximately 3 hours. Vemurafenib is a moderate CYP1A2 inhibitor, a weak CYP2D6 inhibitor and is a CYP3A4 inducer, it is highly bound to serum albumin and alpha-1 acid glycoprotein (> 99% ppb). In treated patient populations the apparent volume of distribution is 106 L, the clearance is 31 L/day and the median half life is 57 hours. It is largely excreted in feces (94% of dose).
Vemurafenib is also notable in being arguably the first drug discovered and optimised using fragment soaking methods for initial lead discovery. Vemurafenib was discovered in the labs of Plexxikon.
Full US Prescribing information is here
Zelboraf is marketed by Hoffmann-La Roche Inc.
Posted by Bissan Al-Lazikani at 8/22/2011 08:45:00 am No comments: Links to this post
Sunday, 21 August 2011
New Drug Approvals 2011 - Pt. XXV Brentuximab vedotin (AdcetrisTM)
Hodgkin's lymphoma is a cancer of cells derived from white blood cells called lymphocytes. In Hodgkin's lymphoma, the disease spreads from one lymph node group to another, and then leads to more systemic effects. Hodgkin's lymphoma can be treated with radiation therapy, chemotherapy or autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The occurrence of the disease shows two age peaks: the first in young adulthood (age 15–35) and the second in those over 55 years old
Brentuximab vedotin's molecular (for the antibody component of the ADC, Brentuximab) target is CD30 (Uniprot: P28908; canSAR ; PFAM: PF00020), which is expressed on activated T- and B-cells, and also is an established tumour marker. Endogenous CD30 ligands include TRAF1, TRAF2, TRAF3 and TRAF5. CD30 is a transmembrane protein, 577 amino acid long, containing three related copies of the TNFR_c6 domain (PFAM:PF00020). The structure of TRAF2 complexed to part of CD30 is known (see PDBe:1d01)
The antibody component Brentuximab binds to CD30 expressing cells, the the complex is then internalised, and the cytotoxic agent Monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE) which blocks cell division by preventing tubulin polymerisation. Auristatin is a marine natural product peptide derivative. There are approximately 4 copies of MMAE coupled to each antibody, and MMAE is linked through a protease activatable linker. The total molecular weight of Brentuximab vedotin is ca. 153 kDa. Brentuximab can therefore be considered to have two targets (CD30 and tubulin), and also to be a prodrug.
Brentuxumab vedotin is the second US approved antibody drug conjugate - the first being gemtuzumab ozagamicin (Mylotarg) which was approved in 2001, but subsequently withdrawn from the market. A significant number of ADCs are currently in clinical development.
Brentuximab is a human antibody. The antibody portion of Brentuximab vedotin has the sequence of two copies of:
>Brentuximab vedotin - heavy chain QIQLQQSGPEVVKPGASVKISCKASGYTFTDYYITWVKQKPGQGLEWIGWIYPGSGNTKY NEKFKGKATLTVDTSSSTAFMQLSSLTSEDTAVYFCANYGNYWFAYWGQGTQVTVSAAST KGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTSGVHTFPAVLQSSGLY SLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKKVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSV FLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTY RVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSRDELTK NQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQG NVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPG >Brentuximab vedotin - light chain DIVLTQSPASLAVSLGQRATISCKASQSVDFDGDSYMNWYQQKPGQPPKVLIYAASNLES GIPARFSGSGSGTDFTLNIHPVEEEDAATYYCQQSNEDPWTFGGGTKLEIKRTVAAPSVF IFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC
The linker-MMAE has the following structure:
Brentuximab is administered intravenously, and the recommended dose is 1.8 mg/kg administered over 30 minutes every 3 weeks for a maximum of sixteen cycles doses. The terminal half-life (t1/2) is 4 to 6 days.
The full US prescribing information for Brentuximab vedotin can be found here. Adcetris™ is a product of Seattle Genetics
Wednesday, 10 August 2011
Drug Repurposing: Screening of known drugs against malaria
Just a quick (but surprisingly wordy) follow up on the previous post on the drug profiling against malaria. Drug repurposing/reuse/rescue offers great potential for the enhancement of patient lives and also is a quick way of pushing new therapies through the clinic. It is often see as low cost and low risk, is highly translational in terms of the research, and there are some stunning success stories. It is therefore very sensible to screen known drugs in assays of interest, which is exactly what was done in the recent, excellent, Science paper.
The compounds in Table 1 of the paper are reported at the highly active set (and these exclude already known established antimalarial drugs which all pass the selection criteria used for compounds in this table, this seems a pretty good and pragmatic place to set cutoffs). For use as an widely-used and developing world-applicable antimalarial (co)-therapy I would have imagined that ideally you would want established well tolerated daily dosing, since existing malaria therapies are oral and have (generally) good tolerability.
So, for this list of 32 drugs, a quick internet-based classification was done - factors analysed included:
- whether the drugs were already approved for human use
- the dosage/absorption route
- any special monitoring requirements (there is probably no option for dose titration/liver monitoring for the vast majority of malaria victims).
Of the 32, I could find (using a flaky internet connection from the my holiday sun-chair) data that looked OK on 30 (the ones I couldn't easily find things on were suberoylanilide and Alazanine triclofenate - if others know anything, post something in the comments). Of these 30, five (20%) are currently animal use only, nine (30%) are IV use only, one (3%) is not currently approved in humans or animals (Lestautinib), and eight (27%) are topical/inhaled use only. This leaves six (20%) that have the desired profile of being orally dosed and currently approved for human usage. Of these, four have restrictive use/or appear to be poorly tolerated (for example, fumagilin is hospital use only and requires careful monitoring). So this leaves two reasonable candidates for first pass consideration as real 'drug-repurposing' candidates - Dextroamphetamine saccharate and orlistat.
Dextroamphetamine will clearly have regulatory and huge misuse potential, so is also probably a non-starter, regardless of any PK/exposure concerns; so Orlistat then? Orlistat is used as an over-the-counter (in some territories) and prescription drug to assist with weight loss. If works by reducing the absorption of fat from the diet, leading to a variety of side effects - there is much discussion on the safety and side effects (google will find a lot of comment), so in populations that are in malaria endemic regions, a drug that could be dosed to underweight malnourished patients and that reduce the absorption of a key food group (and also most fatty essential vitamins) may not be optimal. A larger issue though is that orlistat works in the lumen of the stomach and intestine, where the target human enzyme is secreted, so for obesity treatment, orlistat does not need to be absorbed into the rest of the body, and it isn't. So, ignoring the side effects for a moment, the negligible systemic exposure of orlistat again probably precludes its use as an antimalarial.
It will be interesting to me if this sort of pattern of results, and the importance of considering in vitro to in vivo translation for 'known drug' screening is typical. Sorry for the long post - thoughts, comments and discussion most welcome.
Update: Looking at the supplementary material for the paper - it seems likely that suberoylanilide from table 1 is actually suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (aka Vorinostat, or Zolinza). This is an oral drug for the treatment of certain refractory cancers, it can give rise to a wide range of serious side effects that would almost certainly preclude widespread non-supervised use (at least at the doses used for current indications).
Update 2: Thanks to the authors for confirming that the suberoylanilide should be SAHA, and also for confirming that Alazanide triclofenate is an unusual compound with not a lot of current published literature.
ChEMBL 11 Released
- 1,195,368 compound records
- 1,060,258 distinct compounds
- 582,982 assays
- 5,479,146 activities
- 8,603 targets
- 42,516 documents
- 7 activity data sources
- The loading of the quantitative activity data from the Guide to Receptors and Channels (4th Edition)
- Updating of the organism classification information
- The ChEMBL identifiers for all previous compounds/assays/documents/targets within the database, including those that have been removed/downgraded are now maintained within the chembl_id_lookup table
- The ChEMBL widgets have been updated. The example widget below displays the molecular weight distribution of compounds that bind to human ABL1. (Note, the widget will now load external JavaScript dependencies, so you can easily add it to blog posts like this and target based widgets now accept UniProt accessions) Further details about the widgets can be found here https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chembl/widget
- An InChI key resolving URL has been set up, e.g. https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chembl/compound/inchikey/NXQMNKUGGYNLBY-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- You can now search for a list of target ChEMBL identifiers on the target search page, https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chembl/target
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Driving home from Vegas, I got into San Marcos around 10:00 p.m. I drove by a house that had festive lights glowing in the back yard and several cars parked in front.I went home, took a leak, threw on a new shirt, grabbed my camera, and headed to the party.
I saw three teenaged girls on the driveway. I heard one say that she thought some grass she stepped in was poisonous. I asked the girls whose party it was. They looked at me without saying anything, and then one of them said, "Uh, it's my dad Bob's. He's turning 40. Why? Are we being too loud?" I said, "No. I was just wondering if he'd be cool with me crashing."
"Well, I could ask him."
A tall guy came to the door. I could smell alcohol on him. He smiled and said, "Yeah, sure. Come on in." I told him I write about parties for the Reader . One of the girls said, "Oh, my God! That's so cool! I hope we get to be in there."
For the first 45 minutes, the three girls followed me everywhere. I spoke with Jennie who told me that she ran track. She said she was Bob's best friend and that he was her soccer coach.
Another girl played softball. I asked the third girl, Jill, if she played any sports. She told me she's a junior black belt. I said, "I didn't know they had 'junior' attached to that. I sometimes hear about six-year-old kids that have black belts. Now that makes a bit more sense."
She said the junior label is attached if you're under 15. I said, "Have you broken any boards. Or any bones?" She had a serious look on her face as she said, "I've broken two boards. No bones."
As I took pictures of these girls, one of the older guys nearby said, "Put the signs up." The girls were doing things with their fingers as I snapped photos. Since someone had recently brought up Asian women doing a "V" with their fingers, and I was seeing it here from three white girls, I asked what it meant. The girl that did it said, "What do you mean?" I said, "Does the V represent Vista or anything like that?" She said, "No. I thought it just meant 'peace.'" Another one of the girls said, "I know how to claim west side."
There was a poker game going on. Bob came over and said, "I need to get back in that game." I asked him if they were going easy on him because it was his birthday. He said, "Hell no! I've already lost some money. But I'll probably buy back in."
I saw people leaving and asked them why so early. They said, "We've been here for a while. And, a lot of people left before us, around 9 o'clock."
Bob told me his family had been in Lake Havasu and they just got back. He said, "We didn't have much time to plan this party. My mom and I are thinking of going into business together."
Bob introduced me to a few people. He told them that I worked for the Reader . They said, "Oh," and went back to what they were doing. That was understandable at the poker table, but it felt awkward when I was standing near someone and there was no follow-up conversation. They just went back to the conversation they were having.
One guy looked like George Clooney. He said, "Hey, are you that guy who writes about parties?" I told him I was, and he extended his hand. He asked me questions about the parties I'd been to. When others looked over, he said, "This guy is the crasher!" I thought, Now, this is more like it!
We walked out to the back yard where there was more room. It was huge with a grill built on the patio. There was a saloon-style bar stocked with booze. I grabbed a Coke and noticed that across the yard, near the Jacuzzi, one of the girls was watching my every move.
The Clooney guy introduced himself as Tosh. After we talked about my job, I asked Tosh about his. He told me that he worked at the post office, and I asked which one. It turned out to be the same one my stepfather worked at. Tosh knew my stepfather and told me a few stories about him. When I told him that I worked at that branch for a few years, we talked about the mutual people we knew and some of the crazy bosses we had to deal with. I then remembered him from the shift before mine.
When I mentioned my high school reunion, Tosh asked which school I went to. I told him that it was Mira Mesa, and he said his sister Brenda went there. "I think she was a grade behind me," I said. "She was really cute." I asked what she's been up to, and he told me about her job and the various DJs and newscasters in town she's dated over the years.
When he mentioned his half-brother Carl, I said, "Oh, yeah. He was on the swim team. We used to hang out at the basketball courts at lunch. The first time I ever had string cheese was with him. He always had it packed in his lunch."
Then I remembered that Carl and I had a falling out, but I couldn't remember what it was about. I wonder how many kids in high school have fights about little things that end friendships.
As I lit my cigar, Tosh suggested that I dip it into the Amaretto.
I said, "When people find out you work at the post office, do they ask you all kinds of questions about it? Do they assume you get free stamps?"
"Yeah, I get all kinds of questions. The most common one is when stamp prices are raised. People will say 'Why are you doing this? I pay taxes.'"
I told Tosh that I'd heard of several people at the post office having affairs, but that I'd never heard about him getting into any. And the women seemed to dig him. He said, "That's because I'm married."
I asked where he met his wife. "I met her at a bar." Since Bob told me earlier that he and Tosh had met at a bar, I said, "Who haven't you met at a bar?" He said, "I really had it made, because it was a bar in Hillcrest. I was one of the only straight guys there."
He then told me about how he met his wife a previous time, when he was on a date -- with her friend. I said, "You're lucky that your wife was cool with that. A lot of women wouldn't let something like that die. Instead of always hearing 'Do I look fat in these pants?' you'd hear 'Do you think Stephanie would look better in these pants? You probably do, since you dated her first.'"
Crash your party? Call 619-235-3000 x421 and leave an invitation for Josh Board.
More from SDReader
- More stories by Josh Board
- Goatfest 2007 — Nov. 29, 2007
- Cop Breaks Speedo Limit — Oct. 11, 2007
- Boards and Bones — Sept. 6, 2007
- Three Slushees, Two Pools, One Old Lady — June 1, 2006
- The Bear of Lemon Grove — Jan. 19, 2006


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I'm a rookie using eclipse as my IDE, and I like to learn by debugging and stepping into the program to watch how each variable is affected by each line of code.
Sometimes this works and other times I get an error that says "Object.wait() line: 503 [local variables unavailable]"
What could this mean? Hmmm


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UN Gang had close links to Calgary's Fresh Off the Boat Killers: Police
After Jonathan Barber was shot to death in May 2008, alleged killer Troy Tran admitted to an associate that he mistakenly believed he hit Jamie Bacon because all "white guys" look the same.
Tran, a Calgary gangster linked to the Fresh Off the Boat Killers (FK), was regularly in B.C. in the company of United Nations leader Clay Roueche and others in the gang behind a lengthy conspiracy to murder the Bacon brothers and their Red Scorpion associates.
While Tran has not been charged in the Barber murder, both he and FK gangster Billy Ly were listed as unindicted co-conspirators in B.C. Supreme Court this week in both in the slaying of Barber and the plot to kill B.C.'s most notorious gangster siblings.
And the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the case is still open despite the guilty pleas July 8 of five gangsters in the conspiracy, suggesting more charges may be coming.
Police experts say the connections between the B.C.-based UN and the Calgary gang run so deep that Alberta gangsters were willing to kill for Roueche in this province.
Sgt. Jennifer Pound, of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, said Friday that "police believe there was a clear link between the Fresh Off the Boat Killers and the UN gang during the period of the indictment" in the Bacon plot.
Abbotsford Police Det. Andrew Wooding, who worked on the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit probe into the UN that began in 2006, said that in the early days of the case, investigators watched as Roueche met with numerous Calgary FK gangsters, including Ly, Tran and the late Mark Kim, who was gunned down on New Year's Eve 2007.
"It became clear from our surveillance that these guys were actually working with Roueche and taking direction from Roueche," Wooding said.
"At the time, we believed the FK were adopted by the UN and they were benefiting by getting better access to cocaine through the UN supply lines and the UN were bringing that sort of oversight and organization and the threat of a larger group that are looking after you."
Not only have Ly and Tran been implicated in the murder of Barber, an innocent stereo installer, but others in the FK are linked to other shootings in both Vancouver and Chilliwack, The Vancouver Sun has learned.
Wooding confirmed that both Ly and Tran were with Roueche and two others in February 2007 when the group was targeted in a shooting after leaving a downtown Vancouver nightclub around 5 a.m.
One of the FK members was paralyzed after being shot in the head.
Also that February, Chilliwack resident Clayton Eheler, identified in court documents this week as a Bacon associate at the time, was shot near his house as he drove with a woman and a young child. He survived.
Wooding said that minutes later Chilliwack RCMP pulled over Roueche's van, driven by another UN member with a Calgary FK gangster inside. The assault rifle used in the shooting was never located, though a Glock was found in a secret compartment in the vehicle. No charges were ever laid.
Later that year when the FK's Mark Kim was shot to death in Calgary, Roueche arranged for another member of the gang wounded the same night to get treatment in B.C.
He also made sure he was at Kim's funeral in Calgary a few days later.
Tran also agreed in 2007 to forfeit to the B.C. government more than $240,000 in suspected drug profits found in his vehicle when he was stopped in Vancouver 18 months earlier.
The agreed statement of facts entered in B.C. Supreme Court as part of the UN guilty pleas says that Roueche first turned to the FK for help killing the Bacons "in late 2007/early 2008."
The statement also details some of the efforts of Ly, Tran and the UN to kill their enemies. Between January and May 2008, both Tran and Ly were with UN conspirators as they scouted out the Mission house of Bacon associate Dennis Karbovanec hoping to shoot him.
Roueche was captured on wiretap talking about Tran and Ly as the "C-town guys" and said they were more willing to proceed with public shootings.
"The C-town guys, they're f—king anywhere, anytime. Boom, boom, boom," said Roueche, who is serving a 30-year U.S. sentence for drug smuggling and money laundering.
Hours before Barber was shot to death on Kingsway after picking up a Bacon vehicle to install speakers, Tran and Ly were involved in another Burnaby shooting. They were in one UN vehicle that was shot at by another car full of UN members who mistook their allies' car for a vehicle belonging to their rivals. Ly was hit in the shoulder.
Even then, he didn't abandon the mission on behalf of his UN brethren.
He was still hunting for the Bacons with Barzan Tilli-Choli outside a Lil Wayne concert at GM Place in January 2009.
A wiretap captured Ly giving advice to Tilli-Choli to "unload the whole thing" — a reference to emptying the clip if he came upon the Bacons' rented limo. Police stopped the UN conspirators before they could act.
Both Tran and Ly remain in Calgary. Ly was arrested last month at Vancouver airport on aggravated assault charges out of Calgary.
CFSEU Sgt. Lindsey Houghton said Friday that "it should come as no surprise to people that gangsters here in B.C. are using criminal connections from outside the province to do their dirty work.
"It happens regularly and you even see B.C. gangsters going to other parts of Canada to do dirty work," he said.
CFSEU anti-gang officers have been at the Calgary Stampede this month "because we know B.C. gangsters go there to not only holiday, but to do their business," Houghton said.
"So we are there working with our Alberta counterparts to find them and keep track of them and hopefully prevent any violence from happening there," he said.


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How about some Draco?
Goddamn is it November yet? It hasn't even been a year yet since the Half Blood Prince was in theatres but f-ck it feels like forever and we've still 5 months to go before Part 1 of the Deathly Hallows. They take their time. Because it's GOOD. Because Potter fans demand quality. So yes, I will accept the wait. But it doesn't mean I have to enjoy it.
Potter cast sightings are rare. Emma Watson is in college. She turns up at a fashion event now and again but she largely stays out of the spotlight. Danielle Radcliffe keeps an even lower profile. Rupert Grint too. But Tom Felton, he seems to enjoy the scene a bit more. Was spotted at Nobu with his girl Jade on the weekend wearing his pants very, very well.
Post Potter?
Felton worked on The Apparition recently with Ashley Greene and Sebastien Stan, apparently playing a "ghost expert". He barely looks 20. I'll say it for you because I'm a bitch. So that's the kind of movie we should expect...? Well...they did cast Ashley Greene in the lead.
Photos from Flynetonline.com


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When Bill Clinton officiated at the Gatsbyesque wedding of Representative Anthony D. Weiner and Huma Abedin at Oheka Castle on Long Island last summer, the former president reportedly joked that marrying a politician can be difficult, because it is "easy to distrust them, whatever their religion."
Less than a year later, Mr. Clinton's warning has proved to be prescient.
Mr. Weiner's admission Monday that he had conducted sexually charged online correspondence with six women over the last few years — even after his wedding — shocked those who knew him as a doting and adoring newlywed.
But it seemed all the more striking, given the congressman's elaborate courtship of Ms. Abedin and her Muslim family, whose blessing he sought when he proposed marriage.
During his press conference Monday, Mr. Weiner seemed most choked up as he apologized to Ms. Abedin, 35, a deputy chief of staff to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose own marriage has been rocked by her husband's sexual peccadilloes.
Ms. Abedin did not appear alongside Mr. Weiner, 46, during his news conference; instead, she put in a full day of work for the State Department.
"My wife is a remarkable woman," Mr. Weiner said. "She's not responsible for any of this. This was visited upon her. She's getting back — getting back to work. And I apologize to her very deeply."
Mr. Weiner and Ms. Abedin have seemed an unlikely couple from the start. They come from very different backgrounds — he is a Jewish man from Brooklyn, she a Michigan-born Muslim-American raised in Saudi Arabia by an Indian father and a Pakistani mother. And Mr. Weiner and Ms. Abedin have very different personalities.
He is a fiery, publicity-craving wisecracker with a reputation as a Romeo and a habit of turning up in the tabloids. He can be overbearing and intense and pushes his staff and himself unrelentingly.
She is calm, private and glamorous, with a sense of elegance that has earned her attention from fashion magazines. Her close friend Oscar de La Renta designed her chiffon wedding gown, likening her to Scheherazade, the beautiful queen from "One Thousand and One Nights."
But they complement each other well, said friends of the couple, who described Mr. Weiner as a sweet, supportive partner. Ms. Abedin, a practicing Muslim who speaks fluent Arabic, does not drink, and Mr. Weiner has given up alcohol in solidarity with her, they said. He sometimes fasts with her during Ramadan, and often meets her at the airport when she returns from long trips, even in the early morning hours.
Friends say that Ms. Abedin had been courted by "a lot of very successful, important people," but it was Mr. Weiner's persistence and tenacity, as well as his confidence and sense of humor, that eventually won her over.
"I kept on hearing stories of how adoring he was of her and how much he cared about her, and over time it became clear that this was something he was focused on, and it was for real," said a friend of Ms. Abedin, who asked to remain anonymous because he was commenting on a personal matter. Ms. Abedin got her start in politics in 1996 as an intern in Ms. Clinton's White House office, and has been her aide since. She and Mr. Weiner met when Ms. Clinton ran for the Senate in 2000, but did not start dating until Ms. Clinton ran for president 2008.
At their wedding, Mr. Weiner's robust premarital dating life was the subject of considerable roasting, and Mr. Weiner made it clear Monday that Ms. Abedin knew about his rakish past, including his use of social media for sexual communication.


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IRVINE, CA and CARDIFF, UK - August 23, 2010
West Coast Labs, part of the Haymarket Media Group and one of the world's leading independent test facilities for information security products and services, today announces the launch of its newest Checkmark Certification testing – Checkmark Web Threats Certification. Webroot Software Inc. is the first company to submit its service for testing and certification evaluation, and the first to earn the Platinum Product Award for Checkmark Web Threats Certification.
Clearly, the most prevalent attack vector in the current threat landscape is malicious URLs. Social networking sites, advertisements, legitimate web sites, and questionable locations on the web can all contain links to threats.
As the Internet is increasingly considered the "operating system" thanks to the ubiquity of social networking sites and applications on everything from gaming systems and phones to traditional laptop and desktop environments, there is strong motivation for malware authors to exploit the Web to deliver malicious links and malware. The need for robust security protection against web-based threats is growing exponentially along with an increasingly hostile internet.
According to Lysa Myers, director of research, West Coast Labs, "The Web has become the primary vector in attacks, with people falling victim on a daily basis. Securing web browsers is critical as more demand is placed on internet usage. Prime targets for attackers are social networking sites, advertisements and even traditional online searching services like Bing, Google and Yahoo which are used to distribute malicious links when searches on popular topics are performed.
Checkmark Web Threats Certification – the Basics
Within the context of this Checkmark Certification, Baseline tests measure a product's ability to block access to URLs that contain web threats including web browser exploits and plug-ins, AJAX and lframe vulnerabilities, drive-by downloads, and spear phishing.
Completion of this new testing regime qualifies vendor products for Checkmark Web Threats Certification, a standalone accreditation applicable and relevant to a range of information security technologies, including standalone solutions, desktop anti-malware solutions, intrusion detection solutions, intrusion prevention solutions, unified threat management solutions and integrated threat management solutions. To receive the certification, products must successfully detect 100% of the URLs in the test suite current at the time of registration and testing. Products are tested twice a year.
Testing includes visits via the browser to a series of URLs and record keeping of successfully recognized and blocked URLs. When URLs go undetected, the machine is rebooted into an alternative operating system and analysis to determine the extent of any infection occurs. The test continues if the machine is deemed clear of infection. Otherwise the machine is re-imaged back to the non-infected state.
Enhanced Testing Certification – Dynamic and Real Time – Defined
Baseline test certification requires a product to detect and block access to 100% of malicious URLs in the West Coast Labs Certification test suite that contain web threats.
A more robust level of product evaluation that measures product performance relative to malware downloading and/or executing as experienced in the real-world by end users and corporations is available in Dynamic testing. The solution is exposed to malware retrieved by West Coast Labs from various malicious, or otherwise infected, websites, and its ability to successfully prevent the malware from downloading over the appropriate protocol and/or executing at the endpoint level evaluated. To receive Web Threat Dynamic certification, products must successfully prevent the download and/or execution of 100% of a wide variety of executed samples in the test – viruses, Trojans, spyware and worms. A blanket blocking of extension types is considered insufficient to pass the test.
"Given the random and often short-lived presence of this type of threat it is imperative that testing be both rigorous and continuous. In addition to early recognition, the ability of a solution to identify these threats within the different stages of an infection lifecycle is the key test metric we are tracking," said Myers.
The third component that provides key data for evaluation of a vendor's overall effectiveness in the Platinum certification is their commitment to the Real Time research and testing program. Real Time testing measures product performance and vendor responsiveness to both existing and emerging malcode threats. West Coast Labs tests products 24x7x365 against malicious URLs harvested in real time. For more information on the Real Time Network visit www.westcoastlabs.com
Webroot has demonstrated a commitment to continuous evaluation by West Coast Labs against malicious URLs. "With more than 85 percent of malware now distributed via the Web, we believe that delivering security as a service is the most effective way to protect businesses today," said Gerhard Eschelbeck, chief technology officer for cloud technologies, Webroot. "We are pleased to be the first company to receive Checkmark Web Threats Certification from West Coast Labs for protection against Web threats with Webroot Web Security Service. These test results from an independent third party further validate the performance and effectiveness of Webroot's cloud-based Web security."
Web Threat Test Environment, Test Specifications and Methodology Explained
The Checkmark Web Threats Certification test environment is designed to match system requirements of the solutions under test, and contain at least one client machine running the latest Service Pack of the supported operating system and the latest version of Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Opera.
Appropriate test arrangements are made for solutions requiring a server component, and steps taken to avoid exposing the server component to malicious URLs or any subsequent infection of files contained in the test set.
Machines on the internal network are configured with only the security provided by the default browser settings. During the test all security settings offered by the operating system are disabled. In addition, no additional security devices between the internal and external network are allowed, and access is granted via standard network routing. The single point of protection is the solution under test.
In addition to configuring all solutions and appliances with all the default settings, configuration of the solution or device will:
- cover the full range of service available on a standard corporate network
- include web browsing and email
The solution under test will be installed to a machine running a clean installation of the operating system, and a forensic image taken to provide a return-to point should infection to the machine occur.
Upon awarding the Checkmark Certification, a summary report detailing all of the current certification held by each qualifying solution is available to the participating vendors and end-users. Test result details for participating vendors and their products are available at: www.westcoastlabs.com/checkmark.
About West Coast Labs Checkmark Certification Checkmark is one of the world's leading certification systems for information security products and services. This highly regarded accreditation program provides a level of assurance across a wide range of technologies that products and services perform to industry accepted standards.
About West Coast Labs Real Time Testing Program The Real Time Testing Program builds upon Checkmark Certification program with the belief that effective independent performance validation of content security technologies should occur as an actual business experience in real-world environments. West Coast Labs now delivers sophisticated, live testing and real-time product performance through its 24x7x365 Real Time Testing program. Products are tested continuously against content security threats collected through West Coast Labs' global network in real time to provide the ultimate in performance validation. Upon completion of the Checkmark Certification program and Real Time Testing program, products are recognized with a Platinum Product Award indicating its ability to meet superior levels of performance standards.
About West Coast Labs
Part of the Haymarket Media Group, West Coast Labs is a global leader in technical research, testing and the Checkmark Certification of information security products and services. With market-leading technology and testing facilities accredited to ISO17025 in the UK, USA and India, West Coast Labs' services and the Checkmark Certification System are used by the leading global brands to create market advantage and by large business enterprises for obtaining crucial technical insight into product performance.


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We don't celebrate holidays in our house - isn't it shocking? - but we plan to take some time off next week so we can sit around and watch our favourite films, read the books that have been piling up, and indulge in some seriously scrumptious cooking.
For those of you who do celebrate we're wishing you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Kwanzaa and Happy Holidays.
We'll post on our Katz Tales facebook page, we'll visit you all again, and we'll be back to posting regularly in the New Year.
Meow and purry furry headbutts from Au, Target and Guido!
And Ellen aka "de survunt"
PS Mouse over our pic for our secret message...


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|Denon DVD-5910CI Universal Disc Player
|Tuesday, 01 May 2007
Page 1 of 3Introduction
The format war for high-definition discs wages on, but for now, DVD is still the reigning king of home video formats. We all have years of back catalogue DVDs in our collections, and a solid player is of paramount importance to any theater. High-resolution audio in the form of SACD and DVD-Audio are still prominent and Denon makes several levels of players capable of spinning CD, DVD-Video, DVD-Audio and SACD discs, with their top of the line spinner being the DVD-5910CI priced at $3,800. The DVD-5910CI is designed to be the primary source for a high-end home theater or whole home distribution system and, as such, offers connectivity not often found on consumer level goods. The "CI" stands for Custom Integration. This is Denon's way of identifying their products with connectivity and control features for home integration and theaters using advance control systems.
This flagship DVD player in the Denon line offers a vast array of video-enhancing technologies, including Denon's proprietary Dual Discreet Video Circuitry with multi-directional diagonal filtering to reduce jaggies, Denon Pixel Image correction to make outlines appear more natural, 10-bit Precision Video Scaling™ by DVDO up to 1080p via HDMI or 1080i via DVI-D, and the Realta T2™ HQV chip to aid in smoothing out video artifacts. Video scaling can be set to 480p/576p, 720p, 1080i or 1080p, or to automatically set itself to your display's resolution when using the HDMI connector. Advanced video set-up options abound to adjust the output to your tastes and display (or displays, as the case may be), allowing brightness, contrast, hue, sharpness and even advanced Gamma correction to be stored in any of five memories, in addition to the factory default. 14-bit/216 MHz video DACs handle the conversion to analog signals to maximize the quality of video from these outputs as well. Denon didn't go light on the audio side, either. For multi-channel audio, the DVD-5910CI employs five discrete Burr Brown PCM-1792 24-bit/192 MHz DACs, as well as Denon's own Advanced AL24 processing, allowing up-sampling of CDs and DVDs via the analog outputs. Fully digital bass management, speaker configuration, level and delay controls are here for the analog outputs, but they can be bypassed to DTS default settings. The unit is HDCD-compatible, THX Ultra®-certified and has its own internal Dolby Digital and DTS decoders, as well as SRS TruSurround for a simulated surround field from the front left and right speakers for use in two-channel movie systems. Denon even offers a "Pure Direct Mode," which allows you to turn off the digital output circuitry when using the analog outputs to maximize sound quality as well as an SACD filter to limit ultra-high-frequency output from the player.
The DVD-5910CI comes with a pair of analog RCA cables, a composite video cable, a detachable two-prong power cord, a remote with batteries, a Denon Link cord and an IEEE 1394 cable, as well as the book-sized manual. Fortunately, the manual isn't as bad as it seems. It is in three languages, so the English section is only 85 pages long. The remote is large and thick at the lower end, making it clunky to handle even for my hands. It is backlit, albeit by pressing a backlighting button, which is small, as are many of the buttons on this remote. The buttons were laid out pretty well, however, and once familiar with it, I easily identified frequently-used keys blindly. I was happy to see discrete power on and off buttons on the remote, something I often have to hunt for on other gear to program my universal remote macros.
The DVD-5910CI I received for review was a trade show sample and, as such, the packaging was quite different from that of a new one you would purchase at a retail venue. Denon is a strong company and always packs their products well, and I am sure you would be happy with their attention to detail and care in the packaging of this player. Unpacking the player from the box was no light task, as the unit weighed 42 pounds and measured six-point-seven inches tall and 17.1 inches deep and wide. It was the size of a receiver and weighed more than many of them. The build quality was excellent, all the connectors were high-quality machined RCA connectors and the buttons had an excellent feel to them. The disc tray rolled out smoothly and had a brown tray inside the otherwise entirely black finish. The player embodied the classic Denon look of a simply finished black metal face with a transverse line carved from side to side. A large display lay below the disc tray in the middle of the front panel and was covered with seemingly every trademark symbol associated with home theater. The hard power and standby buttons were on the left of the display and transport buttons lay to the right of the disc tray above the setup controls. Most of the key set-up buttons were located on the front of the player, yet Denon kept it all looking clean and neat.
On the rear of the unit, I found HDCP-compliant HDMI and DVI-D digital video outputs, as well as two sets of component video outs, one with RCA connectors, one with BNC style connectors, two S-Video and two composite video outputs. All the video outputs were active all the time, allowing video to be sent to a multitude of sites in several different formats from this single player. Stereo, 5.1 channel analog RCA outputs, optical and coaxial digital outputs, two IEEE 1394 audio outputs and Denon's proprietary D-Link III connections were here, too. An RS-232 port and remote IR in and out ports finished off the connection options. All the connections were well-spaced across the back panel, making them easy to access.
I started with this player in my bedroom system, comprised of a Denon AVR-4306 receiver, powering the KEF KHT 5005.2 speaker system, and my Panasonic TH-42PX60U plasma. Connecting this player to its sibling receiver was, quite simply, as easy as it gets. I connected the D-Link III cable between the two of them, ran an HDMI cable from the DVD player to the receiver and plugged it in. After a quick trip through the setup menus of both the receiver and DVD player, I was up and running in minutes with any disc I wanted to play. When using the D-Link III connector, the player communicates directly to your receiver and the receiver does the speaker timing and distance settings. This was, bar none, the easiest set-up of a component I can remember. The player had excellent musicality and wondrous video performance in this system, but after a while, I felt a player of this caliber should be assessed in my reference system to allow it to show off its 1080p video scaling, as well as audio on a more revealing system, so off it went to the main rig for some serious critiquing.
I connected the DVD-5910CI to my Meridian 861v4 AV preamp, both via the 5.1 analog outputs and the coaxial digital output. Video was run with a Monster M1000 HDMI cable to a Meridian HDMax 421 HDMI switcher that fed my Sony KDS-R70XBR2 rear-projection display. I used my Proceed HPA 2 and HPA 3 amplifiers for the Paradigm Reference Studio 100v4s, ADP 590 surrounds, CC-690 center channel and a Paradigm Servo 15v2 subwoofer (review pending) and wired them with Transparent Reference balanced interconnects and speaker wire. Electricity was filtered through Chang Lightspeed HT 1000 and CLS 9900 amp power conditioners. Once all the connections were made, I fired up a movie to test it out and ran into an all too common problem: the DVD-5910CI wouldn't pass a video signal to my TV through the HDMax 421 switcher. I tried several different HDMI cables and a Geffen HDMI 341 switcher in series, as well as on its own, but finally connected the player directly to my TV's HDMI input. I tried using all video output options, including the Auto setting, but no matter how I tried, I couldn't get the player and display to make the required HDCP handshake through either of my HDMI switchers. When the player was connected directly to the display, it worked perfectly and the auto setting immediately recognized my display's 1080p potential. While the HDMI output worked easily in one system, I had troubles with it in another. This is not the fault of Denon, but rather of the HDCP copy-protection scheme and its inherent problems; this player is not immune to them.
For multi-channel audio, I bypassed the Denon's internal speaker set-up, as my AV preamp handles that. I went through the menus, though, and they were clear and easily followed. They allow you to adjust each speaker independently in one-foot and one-decibel increments, with crossover frequencies adjustable from 40 to 120 Hz in 20 Hz increments. While I didn't require this feature for either of my systems, they are crucial in many, and Denon has done it right on this player, offering plenty of flexibility and ease of use.


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Susan Hildreth, director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and Alejandro Mayorkas, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), will open the Washington Office Update with a new announcement Saturday, June 29, at 8:30 a.m. as part of the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference. Susan Crawford, former Special Assistant to President Obama for Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy, will follow with a provocative take on why Americans are paying more, but getting less for high-speed Internet access. The session will take place in McCormick Convention Center Room S502.
One of the most-discussed topics in the news is immigration reform. While the outcome of this political debate is still unclear, Hildreth and Mayorkas know libraries play vital roles in supporting access to government information, English language training and other educational opportunities. They will announce a new partnership that acknowledges these roles and lays out tools and activities for libraries to better assist new immigrants.
A frequent media commentator and Internet activist, Crawford will explore themes outlined in her new book "Captive Audience: The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age." Of particular interest to librarians, Crawford examines how powerful telecommunications monopolies stymie policy efforts to improve Internet access at affordable rates. The New Republic recently likened her to Elizabeth Warren in her efforts to increase public understanding of the issues at stake and seek regulatory action to address market failures.
"'Captive Audience'…offers a calm but chilling state-of-play on the information age in the United States. If you are looking for the answer to why much of the developed world has cheap, reliable connections to the Internet while America seems just one step ahead of the dial-up era, her book would be a good place to find out," said David Carr in the New York Times.
More recently, Crawford has written about the National Security Agency's over-dependence on technology for surveillance and challenged "free speech" claims from Comcast and Verizon in the context of network neutrality.
"She gets the facts straight–I know because I was there. But she also does something just as important: she puts the facts in perspective, providing readers with an analysis that is essential if we are ever going to forge communications policies that serve all Americans," said former Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Michael J. Copps of Crawford.
Crawford is a professor at Cardozo Law School and an adjunct professor at the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. She also is a Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute and a member of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Advisory Council on Technology and Innovation. Crawford has been a visiting professor at Harvard, Yale, and the University of Michigan, and serves as a faculty co-director of the Berkman Center at Harvard.
"From immigration to high-speed broadband and from surveillance to digital learning, the ALA Washington Office is engaged with federal agencies, Congress, and the courts on the issues that most impact librarians and the people we serve," said Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the ALA Washington Office. "I'm pleased we will be able to share a slice of this work at the update, and in other programs throughout the conference."
The Washington Office Update will be followed by break-out sessions on gigabit library networks, e-government, and copyright from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Larra Clark
Latest posts by Larra Clark (see all)
- ALA files amicus brief in support of net neutrality protections - August 30, 2018
- ALA urges Commerce Department to reject Census citizenship question - August 9, 2018
- Gearing up for the 2020 Census - April 4, 2018


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oOoSteFoOo needed a new logo design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 197 designs submitted by 50 freelance designers.
We are a small venture-capital company specialized in the design and production of high speed optical devices and control circuit systems for the optical communications.
Our customers are private companies, industrial groups, private or public institutes… involved in optical communication or optical sensing technologies.
The original meaning of the company name is related to both parts of the name: "tri" (three) and "matis" (nuances). The general idea is that there are always three components in our work:
- Sales & marketing / research & development / realization & customization
- Optical technology / analog / digital electronic circuit technology.
- …
Our customers are professional industrials / laboratories (public or private) who work in the optical communication and/or optical sensors, and need fast optical devices and/or high-speed control circuit systems.
*** Please read the comments to have some updates about the requirements and our feelings ***
We would like our new logo to be simple but eye-catching. We are open to colors but we have a preference for the blue (we would like to see examples in colors and grey scale).
Our customers are based everywhere in the world but since we are a Japanese company, if it is possible, we would like the new logo to give some Japanese feeling.
Here is a list of keywords that we think our new logo could visualize:
- Light / optics / optical communication
- High speed / fast / dynamic / sharp
- Three / 3 (for example three stars or three mountains,..)
We encourage designers to propose their own ideas freely even if the logo they design does not take into account the proposed ideas / keywords.
All questions are welcome. We will give as much feedback as possible.
Thanks for joining in on this contest.
Find out how a design contest works or learn more about our logo design services.


text:
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Another mockery of the free and open exchange of ideas has unfolded in Indiana. Last week, Purdue University Calumet had the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), along with anti-Israel activist Sefi Samuel speak on campus. Yet the university's history department, in conjunction with the local Jewish Federation, played a role in the cancellation of another speaker, Peggy Shapiro, two weeks ago. Ms. Shapiro is the Midwest director of StandWithUs,[1] an organization "dedicated to informing the public about Israel and to combating the extremism and anti-Semitism that often distorts the issues." She was a special appointee to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council and is also the child of Holocaust survivors.
On Jan 24th, Ms. Shapiro was initially invited to speak by Marie Eisenstein, co-chair of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), a sub-organization within the Jewish Federation of Northwest Indiana. Mrs. Eisenstein was specifically interested in having Ms. Shapiro speak about the Nazi roots of contemporary anti-Semitism, because she was concerned that "'traditional' Holocaust education does not educate individuals about the lingering effects that are still with us today in terms of anti-Semitism," Eisenstein told FrontPage. "That is, I think the Jewish community does a wonderful job of Holocaust education and we always tie it to other genocides that have occurred since that time, but we do not educate individuals that the problems faced during the Holocaust have continued to confront world Jewry, manifested by different countries and people than what occurred in the 20th century, and that this is something that affects both Jew and non-Jew."
Ms. Shapiro accepted the invitation the following day, informing Eisenstein that she had "spoken on the topic in my capacity as President of the Association of Children of Holocaust survivors and as Special Appointee (years ago) to the US Holocaust Memorial Council." Many venues were considered for the event, but Purdue University Calumet on March 26th became the agreed upon location and date.
Soon after, however, trouble began. On February 8th, Marie Eisenstein wrote to Shapiro, noting that there was "some concern about presenting politically sensitive topics on a campus" and that Michael Steinberg, executive director of the Jewish Federation, was "considering if it might be wiser to hold such an event at the Federation instead." Mrs. Eisenstein advised Ms. Shapiro that she did not speak for Steinberg, "and if I have misrepresented his concerns, I am sure that he can present it to you more accurately."
As preparations for the event began to unfold on that end, Mrs. Eisenstein's husband, Maurice Moshe Eisenstein, Ph.D., associate professor of political science at Purdue Calumet, tried to get the history department at the university interested in sponsoring the event. Beginning on February 3rd, a series of email exchanges between Professor Eisenstein and history department head Richard Rupp initially indicated that the department was willing to do so, and Rupp wrote he was also willing to commit $250 towards Ms. Shapiro's speaking fee. On March 9th, Rupp was contacted by Mrs. Eisenstein regarding a flyer prepared for the event, and Mrs. Eisenstein told Rupp that he could freely disseminate the flyer on campus.
Rupp's reply was cause for concern. While promising to honor his commitment of $250, he revealed that after he had informed his department of the invitation, the faculty informed him that the event did not have their support. Rupp then said he would remove the line on the flyer indicating that the program would be jointly presented by the history and political science departments, but that the flyer would have the Purdue Calumet Logo.
Why did the faculty in the history department reject sponsoring the event? The minutes of the meeting attended by seven member of the faculty on March 2nd, during which their sponsorship was withdrawn, were vague: "Richard reported that Professor Eisenstein approached the department about sponsoring a speaker on the Holocaust and anti-Semitism. After discussion, the faculty decided not to sponsor the event. Richard informed the faculty that the event could go forward without department sponsorship. Richard has already committed $250 toward the event," the minutes recorded.
Professor Rupp was not forthcoming with details when asked. "Peggy Shapiro's name never came up," he said. "The general topic came up. The historians decided that they didn't want to sponsor the issue." When asked why, he refused to say, noting only that "the university is involved in challenging issues" — issues about which Mr. Rupp would not elaborate.
Yet the history department was not the only entity to back off. The Jewish Federation rescinded its invitation as well. According to information Mrs. Eisenstein was privy to, there was concern on the part of the JCRC that, irrespective of the event's educational merits, without the partnership of the history and political science departments, the event could face problems, specifically with respect to its potential to set off controversy given issues at the university.
Professor Eisenstein contends that the Federation was soured on the idea when Richard Rupp notified him that the flyer promoting the event had to be sent to university administrator Wes Lukoshus "for university approval." "They wanted to review the flyer to make sure it was politically correct, which I don't know what that meant," Eisenstein contended. When contacted, Lukoshus said that he and his department "only approve the use of the university logo, not the content of the particular fliers."
However, "the main reason I've heard [for canceling] is that they were afraid or concerned that it would offend Muslims," Eisenstein claimed. He further contended that a faculty vote aimed at making it difficult, if not impossible, for someone to speak on campus, is unprecedented. "Any faculty member or group who wanted to invite someone [to speak on campus], it was just done," he said.
As for the "issues" that no one contacted about this case will discuss? Professor Eisenstein has been involved in a long-running battle with the Muslim Students Association and some faculty members angered by his religiosity, his conservatism, and his determination to confront[2] Islamic jihad. The Muslim Students Association, along with several faculty members from his department, filed nine separate harassment claims against him for Facebook postings demanding justice for the killings of black Christians in Nigeria and alleged comments he made in class. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), a free-speech advocacy group, came to his defense.
All nine charges were dropped[3] after a three-and-a-half month investigation.
Eisenstein believes lingering animosity played a large part in the history department's decision not to support Ms. Shapiro's appearance and the Federation's decision to back off as well. "The Muslim students and their liberal supporters are using me as a conduit to demonize any criticism of Islam and Muslims and their activities around the world," he contends. Mrs. Eisenstein agreed, noting that the Federation was "very concerned that Shapiro would not say anything to antagonize Muslims, because it would be like they were aligning with [my husband,]" she contends.
Whatever the real issues are, one thing is certain: some combination of anger, fear, revenge and/or pressure from a combination of Muslim students and Purdue Calumet faculty members has prevented Ms. Shapiro from appearing on campus on March 26th, and perhaps the foreseeable future as well. And whatever other conclusions one wishes to draw, Professor Eisenstein is spot on when it comes to one particular criticism. "What really bothers me about the Jewish Federation is that they backed out of a talk about the Holocaust. There is nothing about it that you should not be fighting to have on campus," he said.
Among Purdue University faculty members, as well as officials at the Jewish Federation, the courage and determination needed to present the history of the Holocaust–regardless of who might take umbrage with such a presentation–is in critically short supply.
[1] http://www.standwithus.com/
[2] http://www.pucchronicle.com/mobile/student-protesters-demand-professor-s-resignation-1.2697907
[3] http://ulife.com/purdue-professor-cleared-of-discrimination-charges/
Arnold Ahlert is a former NY Post op-ed columnist currently
contributing to JewishWorldReview.com, HumanEvents.com and
CanadaFreePress.com. He may be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com
This articles appeared April 10, 2012 on Front Page Magazine


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The Cameron University chapter of Phi Eta Sigma, the national interdisciplinary honor society, inducted 36 new members during its 27th annual induction ceremony on March 7. Phi Eta Sigma, with chapters on more than 350 college campuses across the nation, encourages and rewards academic excellence achieved by students during their freshman year in institutions of higher learning.
This spring's inductees are (by hometown):
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Mohammed Abdullahi
Agege, Lagos, Nigeria: Anuoluwapo Sanni
Apache: Bobbi Loflin
Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis: Winston Thompson
Chelmsford, Mass.: David Dunnell
Cincinnati, Ohio: Holly Jones
Duncan: Robin Booth, Kendall Carnahan, Angela Gibbons
Gros-Islet, Saint Lucia: Aldrick Biscette
Ikeje, Lagos, Nigeria: Ifunanya Ekwunife
Ikorodu, Lagos, Nigeria: Kehinde Adelusi, Taiwo Adelusi, Samuel Emmanuel, Ruth Okenye
Indiahoma: Eric Igo
Iowa Park, Texas: Lilah Gilmore
Jacksonville, NC: Michael Dykes
Lawton: Benjamin Castricone III, Katarina Coffman, Kristen Collins, Angela Heimerl, Eloise Herbert, Taylor Hutton, Douglas Schlumbohm, Nicole Wilson, Monica Witherspoon
Marlow: Jade Savage
Mason City, Iowa: Lena Krenzke
Mountainburg, Ark.: Katelynn Wright
Naples, N.Y.: Ronald Erb
Ogba, Lagos, Nigeria: Eheneden Toni-Osagie
San Jose, Calif.: Korin Sanda
San Ramon, Calif.: Amy Smith
Savannah, Ga.: Sable Jones
Woodbine, Iowa: Anya Johnson
The Cameron chapter of Phi Eta Sigma was established in 1985. Students eligible for membership must have completed 24 to 42 hours of course work while attending full-time, be degree seeking, and have at least a 3.75 grade point average.
March 12, 2013