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Spring 2001
Recent studies have examined the experience of women and the potential for gender differences with respect to HIV progression and the acceptance, tolerance, adherence, and response regarding highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Differences in CD4 cell count and viral load have not been reported in all studies. For any given CD4 cell count, women may be at a higher risk of HIV progression. Women appear to have an increased risk of progression to AIDS compared with men with the same viral load. They have lower initial viral loads than men in early-stage disease, but these catch up in advanced-stage disease. Because of depression and other psychological factors, women may be in greater need of supportive services, and this can affect the success of antiretroviral therapy. Women also have an increased risk of adverse drug reactions from HAART. Gender should be considered when prescribing therapy.
Knowledge of the natural history of HIV infection is based primarily on the studies of men, and the applicability of this information to women is unclear. In the era before HAART, evaluation of HIV disease progression focused mainly on survival. Retrospective epidemiologic studies have reported shorter survival periods and an increased relative risk of death for women with AIDS, compared with the relative risk of death for men with AIDS. This difference was believed to be due to the social issue of access to care, as opposed to biologic factors related to gender.
The majority of women with AIDS in the United States are unemployed, and 83% live in households with incomes below $10,000 per year. Only 14% are currently married, compared with 50% of all women in the United States aged 15 to 44 years who are married. Twenty-three percent of HIV-infected women live alone, 2% live in various facilities, and 1% are homeless. Approximately 50% have at least one child younger than 15 years. Similar to other population groups with AIDS in the United States, the majority of women with AIDS are from minority racial and ethnic groups, with African Americans accounting for 57%; Latinas, 20%; and whites, 23%.
In the pre-HAART era, women with symptomatic HIV disease had significantly higher levels of impairment in activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living, compared with HIV-infected men, in regard to personal care needs, informal care, and utilization of formal health care services. Despite such impairment, women did not seek care earlier in the course of disease. Use of help sources differed significantly by gender; women were more likely than men to rely on formal sources and more likely to receive help from extended family members (especially daughters). Hospital days to death, home care costs, and total cost of care were all higher for women. Both personal care needs and the structure of social support systems appear to differ by gender and may help explain observed differences in use of formal services. Before initiating HAART, women may be in greater need of support services because of their functional status impairments or gaps in the informal support systems available to them.
Socially, gender differences prevail in regard to medical access and health care. The unique social barriers to care and the psychologic, epidemiologic, and biologic aspects of HIV disease in women pose a number of challenges for individual providers as well as for the health care system. Care for women with HIV disease is often complicated by poverty as well as by the competing needs of children; therefore, innovative efforts must be made to provide both HIV care and women's health care to women in impoverished areas, in particular. Studies from the pre-HAART era found that women with AIDS received fewer services than men with AIDS. In addition, men under medical care were up to three times more likely to be offered zidovudine [AZT, Retrovir] monotherapy than were women, despite similar disease severity, insurance status, race, and injection drug use. Among those who were not drug users, men were twice as likely as women to receive either zidovudine or Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia [PCP] prophylaxis.
Estrogens and progestins appear to have immunoregulatory effects through production of cytokines. Luteinizing hormone [LH] may increase the percentage of circulating CD4 cells, while follicle-stimulating hormone [FSH] may decrease the percentage of CD4 cells but increase the percentage of CD8 cells. Combined oral contraceptive pill use was found to be associated with a trend toward a lower absolute CD4 cell count. High serum prolactin levels were found to be associated with symptomatic versus asymptomatic HIV infection, regardless of gender, CD4 cell count, or degree of viral suppression.
In a prospective study, nearly two-thirds of HIV-infected women reported irregular periods, and 15% noted spotting or abnormal bleeding. However, there was no statistical difference in these symptoms compared with those of HIV negative controls. In another prospective study requiring completion of monthly diaries by 802 HIV-infected women and 273 HIV negative women, infection was associated with very short menstrual cycles (less than 18 days). Yet, HIV status did not correlate with mean length or variability of standard cycles; in general, the possibility of having short cycles was only slightly increased. In a group of ovulating women in whom HIV RNA levels were measured weekly, the median HIV RNA level fell by 0.16 log10 from the early follicular phase to the midluteal phase. Women who did not ovulate had no change in median HIV RNA levels.
In the pre-HAART era, lower CD4 cell counts were reported during pregnancy, with a significant increase before and after delivery in healthy and HIV-infected women. Among HIV-infected women, the decline in CD4 cell counts during pregnancy was similar to that of noninfected women, but prepartum [before delivery] levels were increased and postpartum [after delivery] levels were reduced. In a prospective cohort study that compared pregnant HIV-infected women with nonpregnant HIV-infected women during follow-up, the rate of any AIDS-defining event was higher in pregnant women but did not reach statistical significance. Considering CD4 cell counts before conception, acceleration of disease progression is inconsistent among HIV-infected women who become pregnant during follow-up. In a prospective European study, pregnancy did not affect CD4 cell count decline after seroconversion.
When compared with HIV-seropositive men who abuse drugs, HIV-seropositive women who abuse drugs exhibited significantly poorer overall nutritional status (defined by low prealbumin levels) in the pre-HAART era. In addition, women had low retinol binding protein levels and low selenium levels. In women with CD4 cell counts below 200 CD4 cells/mm3, significantly lower levels of vitamin A, vitamin E, and selenium were observed, compared with the levels found in men. Such nutritional deficiencies may contribute to HIV progression.
The absolute number of CD4 cells indicates the extent of immune system damage that has already occurred in an HIV-infected person. The decline rate of CD4 T-lymphocyte count can vary but normally averages 40 to 80 CD4 cells/mm3 a year in untreated homosexual men. However, some patients may have relatively stable CD4 cell counts for years, while others may experience a rapid decline over a period of several months. In a cohort of Zambian (untreated) HIV-seropositive women, median annual CD4 cell decline was significantly higher than in Zambian men.
The absolute CD4 cell count and percentage were significantly higher in HIV-seronegative women than in heterosexual, HIV-seronegative men. At baseline evaluation, HIV-seropositive women have higher absolute CD4 cell counts and higher CD4:CD8 ratios than do men. This difference may persist for up to five years after HIV infection. Women also have higher CD4 cell counts at AIDS onset than men. Therefore, for any given CD4 cell count, women may be at a higher risk for HIV progression than men.
In men, there is an inverse correlation between plasma HIV RNA level and CD4 cell counts. However, at any CD4 cell count, plasma HIV RNA concentrations show wide interindividual variation. Those who display higher steady-state concentrations of plasma HIV RNA are at greater risk for disease progression.
Among HIV-infected children aged six years or older, the baseline geometric mean HIV RNA level was 13,261 copies/mL for girls versus 53,680 copies/mL for boys (P=.04). Among children aged nine years and older, repeated measures analysis showed a trend toward lower geometric mean HIV RNA values for girls than for boys: 8,710 copies/mL versus 30,902 copies/mL (P=.06). Yet, among children younger than six years, no gender difference in HIV RNA levels was observed. These results suggest that gender differences in HIV RNA levels may be mediated by factors associated with sexual maturation.
In a cohort of injection drug users in the pre-HAART era, HIV-seropositive women were found to have significantly lower HIV RNA levels both at baseline and at a later follow-up visit compared with men. Median viral load values for women were approximately half of those values for men, a finding also seen in other studies. The differences were consistent by branched chain assay [bDNA], polymerase chain reaction [PCR] assay, and quantitative microculture technique after controlling for CD4 cell count. HIV RNA levels were also consistently lower for women across various CD4 cell count strata (0 to 200, 201 to 499, and greater than 500 CD4 cells/mm3). Women with the same viral load values as men had a 1.6-fold higher risk of progression to AIDS.
A nested, case-controlled, longitudinal study of HIV-1 seroconverters also showed that women have an initial median viral load level that is much lower than that of men: 14,918 copies/mL versus 148,354 copies/mL (P=.001). Women experienced a much greater viral load increase over time (0.24 log per year versus 0.003 log per year, P=.002), so that after five years, the median viral load values became equivalent. These results are corroborated by other studies that show women with lower HIV RNA values in early-stage disease but equivalent HIV RNA values in advanced-stage disease.
The increased magnitude of HIV RNA levels was associated with an increased likelihood of isolating high-risk, oncogenic [cancer-causing] human papillomavirus [HPV] genotypes from cervical specimens. The incidence of abnormal Papanicolaou [Pap] test results was 81% in women with such isolates. This observation is similar to the increased risk of opportunistic infection in men with high viral loads.
When used in concert with viral load determinations, enumeration of CD4 cells enhances the accuracy with which the risk of disease progression and death in men can be predicted. CD4 cell count was highly predictive of survival in a cohort of HIV-infected women, even in the presence of a low viral load. Both CD4 cell count and HIV RNA level were predictive of survival. While lower viral loads and higher CD4 cell counts were also seen in the Swiss HIV Cohort Study, there were no gender differences in disease progression when CD4 cell counts and HIV RNA levels were controlled in Cox regression analyses.
Not all cohorts have observed gender differences in patients' CD4 cell counts and viral loads. Within the Johns Hopkins primary care inner-city population, women had the same CD4:HIV RNA ratio as did men. Investigators from the Community Programs for Clinical Research on AIDS (CPCRA) who conducted community-based studies also found no significant gender differences in viral load among patients enrolled in six clinical trials.
In Australia, women were shown to be significantly less likely than men to be receiving antiretroviral therapy, to be using prophylactic treatments, and to be optimistic about the benefits of therapy. Women felt isolated from both community and medical responses to HIV infection. Women with dependent children were more likely to accept antiretroviral therapy.
While most studies would indicate that the efficacy of the various reverse transcriptase inhibitors and/or protease inhibitors (PIs) is equal among women and men, some authors have observed lower rates of viral suppression. In New Orleans, women had an OR [odds ratio] of 1.55 (95% CI, 1.07 to 2.25) of having a viral load greater than 400 copies/mL [i.e., were much more likely to have detectable HIV in blood tests than men]. Women were also significantly more likely to have their HAART regimen changed and to experience depression during the study. In a study of 249 women receiving HAART, with [a median] baseline CD4 cell count of 182 CD4 cells/mm3 and viral load of 64,317 copies/mL, only 34% achieved durable viral suppression. These women did experience a significantly greater increase in CD4 cell count.
While women can respond to HAART, the toxicity may be different. In a retrospective review of HAART, women were found to have a statistically increased risk of adverse drug reactions compared with men (P=.008), with occurrence in 25% of men and 37% of women. A study of adverse effects of the PI ritonavir [Norvir] in 90 women compared with 996 men showed that women were more likely to have nausea, vomiting, malaise, fatigue, and numbness and tingling around the mouth but were less likely to have diarrhea. Women receiving the PI nelfinavir [Viracept] were more likely to have stomach pain, itching, and rash but less likely to have diarrhea.
Women can also experience body habitus changes and serum lipid abnormalities while receiving HAART (a single PI with two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors [NRTIs]). Changes included increase in abdominal size and breast size, weight gain of greater than 5 kg (11 lb), peripheral fat wasting, buttock fat wasting, and development of cervicodorsal fat pad. HAART was also associated with significant increases in total cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. When compared with men, women had significantly more fat accumulation but not fat depletion or the combination of fat accumulation and depletion.
Studies of adherence are gaining increased relevance, because it is apparent that HAART works only if the patient takes it, and medication-taking behavior is influenced by many factors. The association of adherence with viral load and CD4 T-lymphocyte counts was striking when adherence to a nelfinavir-based regimen was measured with electronic pill monitors. Adherence clearly determined the outcome of treatment with HAART. In British Columbia, using prescription refills as the measure for adherence to HAART, men had a nearly two-fold better rate of adherence than women. Within a multicenter, prospective women's cohort, levels of self-reported adherence were quite high (74% of women reporting greater than 95% adherence), yet only 39% of these women achieved undetectable viral loads. Significantly higher levels of crack cocaine use and depression were observed in women with poor and moderate self-reported adherence.
Anemia associated with hypermenorrhea developed in four of ten women who began treatment with HAART at a clinic in Denmark. All four were receiving ritonavir, and symptoms resolved in three of the women following substitution of a different PI. The women had normal menstrual function before therapy and did not experience intramenstrual [between cycles or "periods"] bleeding.
Several antiretroviral agents are known to interfere with the metabolism of oral contraceptives. Nevirapine [Viramune] induces those enzymes that metabolize ethinyl estradiol, leading to a clinically relevant decrease in the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) of oral contraceptives that contain this agent. Similarly, the glucuronosyltransferase enzyme system [a family of enzymes that metabolize drugs] is induced by ritonavir and nelfinavir, also leading to a 40% and 47% decrease, respectively, in the AUC of ethinyl estradiol in women taking oral contraceptives. Indinavir [Crixivan] is associated with a 24% increase in levels of ethinyl estradiol and a 26% increase in levels of norethindrone in patients taking oral contraceptives, but the changes are not felt to be clinically significant.
There are many gender differences that could potentially affect HIV disease progression. Access to health care services or to antiretroviral medications may differ, as may the toxicity of antiretroviral drugs. Psychological factors, such as depression, may be different among HIV-infected men and women. Social and environmental factors, such as child rearing responsibilities, may interfere with the ability to access care and may affect disease progression. CD4 cell counts appear to be higher for women than for men who have the same degree of illness. In early stages of HIV disease, the level of HIV RNA in plasma appears to be lower but rises more quickly and eventually catches up to the levels for men in advanced stages of the disease.
Guidelines for initiation of antiretroviral therapy have been based on data derived primarily from men. As the question of when to initiate antiretroviral therapy is addressed, gender-specific recommendations may be appropriate. Further studies are needed to better understand gender differences and the effects on HIV disease progression, treatment, and response.
This article was reprinted from The AIDS Reader (2001;11[1]:29-33), Copyright © 2001, Cliggott Publishing Company, a division of SCP Communications, Inc., and appeared subsequently on Medscape, www.medscape.com.
(Note: Publication information can be found at the end of the Abstract paragraph of the article on Medscape.)
Ross G. Hewitt, M.D., is a clinical associate professor in the department of medicine, State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, and medical director of immunodeficiency services at Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo.
Nader Parsa, Ph.D., is an instructor in the department of social and preventive medicine at SUNY Buffalo.
Lawrence Gugino, M.D., is a clinical associate professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at SUNY Buffalo, and the women's HIV program director at Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo.
Chaisson, R.E. and others. Race, sex, drug use, and progression of HIV disease. New England Journal of Medicine 333(12): 751-756. September 1995.
Ehmann, W.C. and others. Relationship of CD4 lymphocytes to survival in a cohort of hemophiliacs with HIV. Journal of AIDS 7(10): 1095-1098. October 1994.
Fahey, J.L. and others. The prognostic value of cellular and serologic markers in infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1. New England Journal of Medicine 322(3): 166-172. January 1990.
Hessol, N.A. and others. Progression of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection among homosexual men in hepatitis B vaccine trial cohorts in Amsterdam, New York City and San Francisco, 1978-1991. American Journal of Epidemiology 139(11): 1077-1087. 1994.
Lemp, S.F. and others. Survival for women and men with AIDS. Journal of Infectious Diseases 166(1): 74-79. July 1992.
MacDonell, K.B. and others. Predicting progression to AIDS: combined usefulness of CD4 lymphocyte counts and p24 antigenemia. American Journal of Medicine 89(6): 706-712. December 1990.
Melnick, S.L. and others. Survival and disease progression according to gender of patients with HIV infection. Journal of the American Medical Association 272(24): 1915-1921. December 1994.
Morlat, P. and others. Women and HIV infection: a cohort study of 483 HIV-infected women in Bordeaux, France, 1985-1991. AIDS 6(10): 1187-1193. October 1992.
Munoz, A. and others. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-free time after human immunodeficiency virus type 1 HIV-1 seroconversion in homosexual men. American Journal of Epidemiology 130(3): 530-539. September 1989.
Sheppard, H.W. and others. The characterization of non-progressors: long term HIV-1 infection with stable CD4+ T-cell levels. AIDS 7(9): 1159-1166. September 1993.
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Aussie Suite is the latest among the many St. John villa rentals that Villa Vacations is offering on rent. The rental company is expecting steep booking during Christmas and New Year.
(PRWEB) November 24, 2012
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Those who are looking for a luxurious getaway during Christmas and New Year in St. John, they can book Aussie Suite, says the owner of Villa Vacations. Booking for this 2-bedroom waterfront suite is on and expected to fetch excellent response during the festive season. St john vacation rentals is known for exotic and superior St. John villa rentals and Aussie Suite is also expected to be in the same league.
During a recent event, the owner of Villa Vacations described about some of the highlights of Aussie Suite. He said, "The size of the villa is 500 square feet and it includes two beds and two baths. Every room has central air conditioning along with high speed internet and iPod connectivity. You will enjoy pristine vistas of Chocolate Hole beach amid every other amenity. If you want a sophisticated experience during Christmas and New Year, then book this St. John villa rental now."
The marketing head of Villa Vacations revealed that this villa is rented for minimum one week of stay and at least 5% deposit should be made for the reservation. He said, "If you want to book the suite on rent for 3-4 people, then there is a good news for you. During Xmas and New Year, the rental charge is same for 2 people and 3- people. We have retained this rent because during these festivals, people love to go out in a group and we are sure that this St. John villa rental will surely entice them."
Mr. Christopher, a holiday enthusiast, says, "I have traveled a lot and specifically love to go out with my friends and family during New Years. I have checked information on Aussie Suite at the website of Villa Vacations and I am impressed. I have good experience of staying in exotic villas, but this one truly seems fascinating to me."
Booking for Aussie Suite and other St. John villa rentals is on at Villa Vacations. They are expecting excellent numbers considering the festive period.
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Former Guatemala soldier on trial in California
RIVERSIDE, California (AP) — The soldiers were told it was a job for men: They were to bring the residents of a small Guatemalan village to a well where they would be killed and their bodies dumped inside.
Three decades later, two of the soldiers brought their horrific accounts of the killings in the village of Dos Erres to an American courtroom where Guatemalan army officer Jorge Sosa is on trial. He's charged with lying on his U.S. citizenship application about his military service and his role in the massacre.
A former sergeant, Cesar Franco Ibanez, recalled for jurors Thursday through an interpreter what one of the commanding officers of the special forces unit sent to Dos Erres yelled at him as he took a woman to her death.
The officer said the task "was only for men," Franco Ibanez, who is living outside Guatemala as a protected witness, said in Spanish.
The remarks echoed testimony a day earlier by another former sergeant, Gilberto Jordan. After soldiers were ordered to kill everyone in the village, Jordan took a boy who was about 3 years old, the same age as his son, and sobbed as he walked toward the well, Jordan recalled for the court.
A sergeant approached him and told him not to cry because he would also wind up in the well if he did, Jordan said. He said Sosa, who was a second lieutenant, told him it was "a job for a man" and he threw the child inside.
While Sosa is not on trial for war crimes, the testimony of the two former soldiers has brought Guatemala's civil war to the present for jurors. Sosa is charged with making false statements and obtaining citizenship unlawfully by allegedly omitting information about his army service and participation in the killings.
If convicted, he could face up to 15 years in prison and lose his citizenship.
But defense attorney Shashi Kewalramani said Sosa's military service was no secret to U.S. officials since he told them about his role in the army when he applied for asylum years before he became a citizen — information that was held in his immigration file.
He cautioned jurors that Sosa is only on trial for the way he answered questions on his immigration paperwork — not for the atrocities of war.
About 200,000 people were killed during the civil war that ended in Guatemala in 1996, mostly by state forces and paramilitary groups.
Prosecutors say Sosa's patrol went to Dos Erres in December 1982 to search for missing rifles believed stolen by guerrillas, then decided to kill the villagers after some of the soldiers began raping the women. At least 160 people were killed.
In 1985, Sosa left the country and sought asylum in the U.S., claiming that Guatemalan guerrillas were after him. His application was denied and he ended up moving to Canada, where he became a citizen. Sosa later returned to the U.S., married an American, got a green card and eventually U.S. citizenship after filing an application in 2007.
After authorities searched his Southern California home in 2010, Sosa headed to Mexico and boarded a flight to Canada. He was arrested there and extradited last year to the United States.
In the trial, Jordan recalled for the court through a Spanish interpreter how Sosa fired his rifle and threw a grenade at villagers from Dos Erres who screamed from within the well.
"The people that were there, half-dead, were all screaming," said Jordan, who is serving time in a U.S. prison for lying on his naturalization papers about his role in the war. "When he threw the grenade the people that were there were quiet because they were killed."
Jordan also testified that he took a woman to the well and shot her in the back of the head before pushing her inside, and started taking a teenage girl to be killed when another soldier stopped him and asked if he was going to rape her. When he answered no, the soldier took the girl away and later brought her back, bleeding, to the well, he said.
Franco Ibanez testified that he raped a woman that day, and that he watched women being killed.
"They would blindfold their eyes and they would kneel them at the edge of the well," he said, adding that the women were asked if they knew where the missing rifles were. "When they would say no, they would hit them over the head with a sledgehammer. Then they would dump them into the well."
Sosa and Jordan are among four former members of the Guatemalan army arrested by U.S. homeland security officials in connection with the Dos Erres massacre.
Pedro Pimentel was deported from the U.S. and sentenced in Guatemala to 6,060 years in prison for the massacre. Santos Lopez is detained as a material witness in the government's case against Sosa.
Sosa's ex-wife, Maria Ortiz, testified she moved out upon learning about Sosa's alleged implication in the Dos Erres massacre by running an Internet search on his name after law enforcement officers searched the couple's Moreno Valley home.
Soon thereafter, she was supposed to meet with him one morning but he never showed up. Later that day, she went by the house and saw he had left a newspaper on the table, his car in the driveway and his wedding ring behind.
"I saw the wedding ring and then I realized he's gone," said Ortiz, who divorced him the following year.
She said the couple traveled to a host of Latin American destinations — but never Guatemala.


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Another thief joins the million-dollar club
An Arcade woman joined an exclusive group of white-collar criminals Monday: the million-dollar-plus category for theft.
Debra A. Davis, 44, of Java Lake Road, tearfully admitted stealing $1.3 million from American Stainless Corp. in Buffalo, where she worked as a bookkeeper, by writing checks to take the money.
Davis became the sixth person prosecuted by the Erie County District Attorney's Office in the past 25 years to be convicted of a theft of more than $1 million, prosecutors said. She is the third such offender to be prosecuted since Frank A. Sedita III became district attorney in 2009.
"A million is a real marker," Sedita said. "Once you hit a million dollars, the punitive sanctions increase dramatically."
Davis pleaded guilty to first-degree grand larceny, falsifying business records and offering a false instrument for filing. She faces up to 25 years in prison.
An executive for the company, a distributor of stainless steel, nickel, aluminum and other metals with offices at 1374 Clinton St., declined to comment on her guilty plea.
Sedita said Davis spent the stolen money on gambling and also to buy a company, named Triple Star Towing, for her husband.
"The company was named after her favorite slot machine," Sedita said.
At her plea hearing, Davis hesitated when State Supreme Court Justice Penny M. Wolfgang asked Davis if she was guilty.
"I was doing my job," Davis replied.
Did that mean taking money she was not entitled to? Wolfgang asked.
"There's a lot more," Davis said, looking ready to explain. But she pleaded guilty to the charges without offering additional information.
Davis pleaded guilty to the highest charge for which she could have been prosecuted.
During the hearing, prosecutors Candace K. Vogel and Gary M. Ertel said she wrote checks to herself and to cash between October 2010 and September 2012.
"We tell companies all the time, you should have a regular, independent audit done by an outside auditing agency," Sedita said.
"Number one, if anyone's stealing from you, they'll catch it. Number two, it's the best insurance they can buy because it has such a deterrent effect."
One check mentioned in court – for $9,790 – was for paying Erie County taxes.
But a company record for the same check indicated it was for payment to a steel company.
"This was done to cover up a larceny," Vogel said.
Prosecutors filed the "offering false instrument for filing" count because she did not report the stolen money on her 2011 state income tax return. She remains free on her own recognizance.
Wolfgang did not make Davis any promises about a sentence but indicated restitution, if any, would affect the sentence, scheduled for July 22. The five others whose thefts exceeded $1 million received jail time.
• Joseph V. Raymond, a medical supplies salesman from Orchard Park, in 2011 stole almost $1.8 million worth of implants and other surgical devices destined for Buffalo's Mercy Hospital and cheated his employer. He's the only one among the five sentenced offenders who made full restitution.
• Kenneth P. Bernas in 2011 was sentenced to 2-1/3 to 7 years in prison for swindling 53 law clients out of $3.1 million.
• Lee D. Burns, chief financial officer of Servotronics Inc., in 2006 was sentenced to 4½ to 13½ years in prison for corporate thefts amounting to almost $4 million. He has been released from prison.
• Accountant Edward J. Jarosz Jr. in 1993 became the first local person to plead guilty to a first-degree grand larceny charge, which covers thefts of at least $1 million. He was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison for stealing more than $1.5 million from a construction company.
• Anthony Franjoine, a comptroller, pleaded guilty in December 1991 to embezzling almost $1.5 million from the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo. He paid back all but $274,040 before being sentenced to 2-2/3 to eight years in prison.
email: email@example.com


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President's Page
Nicholas J.
Im extremely pleased to be writing my first Presidents Page column for the Bulletin and would like to take this opportunity to thank the membership of ASIS&T for making it possible for me to do this. Ill do all that I can over the next year to justify the trust youve placed in me, and to live up to the fine example set by our past president, Sam Hastings.
The coming year brings great promise for the Society, with a host of new member services and new delivery methods of member services. It also brings challenges, financial and other, as well as new opportunities. In her last column in the Bulletin, Sam described some of the hard decisions that have had to be made and also some of the new initiatives that will be (or by the time this is published, may already have been) implemented during this year. Id like to offer her my heartfelt personal thanks for having volunteered to take the heat associated with announcing the dues increase for members; but she also got to announce the establishment of a lot of new benefits for members. Id like to devote this issues column to describing briefly some of these new initiatives and to give you an indication of my priorities and plans for this coming year.
ASIS&T Enters the 21st Century
This year marks the full commitment of ASIS&T to the digital environment. With the collaboration of our publishers, John Wiley and Information Today, and the invaluable contributions of Access Innovations, Inc., and to all those who worked on the development of the third edition of the ASIS&T Thesaurus of Information Science and Librarianship, we will be implementing the ASIS&T Digital Library. This will consist, in the first instance, of the Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (JASIST), the Bulletin, the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting and the Annual Review of Information Science and Technology. A unique feature of the ASIS&T Digital Library will be its support for subject access through automatic indexing using the new ASIS&T Thesaurus of Information Science.
The ASIS&T Handbook and Directory will also be available to members electronically with searching capabilities to stimulate member networking. You will be able to specify how much and what information you want available to other members. We plan to add access to further information sources relevant to our membership through a variety of arrangements.
The ASIS&T Jobline will become totally (and only) electronic as of this year, as will the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting. JASIST will continue to be published in both paper and electronic forms. Future plans call for converting the Bulletin to only electronic form but only after a new printed (and electronic) publication is conceived and developed, whose role will be to maintain and enhance communication about the Society and its activities. This will be a major activity for the Board of the Society over the coming year.
The ASIS&T website has been wholly re-designed, and the new version will be available to members early in 2005. The new site will not only enhance the user experience with ASIS&Ts major public face, but will also serve as the framework for much improved communication among the members of the Society, between them and their local chapters and SIGs, and between all these parties and the Board and Headquarters staff.
Some Priorities for 2004-2005
Here I just mention and briefly describe my thoughts about how to address some issues that I intend to make priorities during this year. In subsequent columns, I will discuss these issues, and others, in more detail. I welcome your comments on these priorities, on whether and how we should address them, and your thoughts about any other issues to which we should be devoting our attention.
Membership. Membership in ASIS&T has been in steady, though gradual, decline. I would like to reverse this trend, primarily by attracting members from new constituencies, including the information architecture community and students in the variety of undergraduate programs that the various schools of information and library science have established in recent years. More effort will also be placed on increasing international membership.
Chapters. It is clear that the chapters are the lifeblood of our Society, but also that they are perhaps not getting all of the support that they could use from the central organization. Steps have been initiated to help the chapters in their work; I plan to further these steps and initiate some new ones.
Digital Library and Publications. We have made a really significant start on moving ourselves into the digital information environment. I intend to continue this movement and to at least set the stage for collaboration with other groups with related interests in sharing access to digital publications. How the Bulletin will be published and how we will maintain regular contact and communication with the membership are issues of special concern.
Communication. A society such as ours depends for its health and well-being on effective communication among its members and between its members and all of the officers of all of its units. As I mentioned above, weve already taken some significant steps toward improving communication; I intend to expand on these, considering all modes and media that are relevant.
Relations with other Societies. ASIS&T
already has good relations with a number of related societies
and other organizations. I will work to increase both the
intensity and number of such relationships, both to increase
benefits to the membership and to extend the influence and image
of the Society in
Nicholas J.
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Information Science and Technology


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SQL Server 2005 is a huge release for the SQL Server team—and for the industry in general—that heralds a new era in the development of database applications. Over the next few months, I'll look at some of the more exciting and industry-altering features of SQL Server 2005. I'll also occasionally pontificate about how you can use SQL Server 2005's enhanced features to develop "data-based" applications. But first, I want to look back on the history of storing and using data. It's always good to learn from the past, as long as you don't get stuck there.
To understand the revolutionary changes coming in SQL Server 2005, it helps to look at how databases have evolved. People have always stored data, but when we developed technology to store data electronically, we quickly realized that what makes computer systems so important isn't just the ability to keep data. The ways we retrieve and manipulate that data are also vital.
When computers first became prevalent, companies used large mainframe systems with dumb terminals as the client stations. These systems offered enterprise-level power and storage, and the mainframe performed all the application work. But such systems offered little user functionality and no offline support. When PCs hit the industry, users suddenly had powerful applications that stored data on client machines. Products such as Microsoft Access opened the power of databases to all users.
The PC model was liberating, but the complexity of accessing and synchronizing local data with enterprise data meant that the enterprise servers became dumb data stores, whereas the client applications did all the data manipulation. Because of the amount of data moving between server and client, this model led to high bandwidth usage and low utilization of the powerful central servers. More advanced client-server systems moved much of the data manipulation back to the server so that only the results the client required moved across the network. The main drawback of these systems was that you needed a direct network connection to access enterprise data.
The Internet gave people new ways to interact with enterprise data. Applications that ran within a Web browser let you access enterprise data from anywhere in the world. Applications resided in a central location—typically a middle tier—and the browser acted as a simple display mechanism for the application data. Although this model solved the problem of accessing enterprise data without a direct network connection, browser functionality was somewhat limited, and business logic and much of the data manipulation moved from the database into the middle tier. The entire model felt similar to the abandoned mainframe/dumb-terminal scenario.
Recent models use the Internet as a transport layer and retain the n-tier model for business logic and most data manipulation while utilizing smart-client applications to provide the presentation layer and advanced functionality. This model lets users work from anywhere in the world, but still uses the database mostly as a dumb data store rather than an application-architecture tool.
SQL Server 2005 blurs the traditional boundaries of the n-tier application model and releases the power of the database server as a key component in the application architecture. CLR integration lets you move your complex, middle-tier, data-manipulation code back into the database, so that working with data-intensive business logic is more efficient and less of a drain on resources. SQL Server 2005 also introduces innovations such as native Web Services and XML support, which let you use your SQL Server as an integral part of your service-oriented architecture (SOA). SQL Server can now be more than just a database engine, thanks to functionality such as Service Broker, which provides a reliable asynchronous messaging service; Reporting Services, which provides a true enterprise-reporting solution; and Integration Services, which provides a mechanism for gathering, investigating, integrating, and publishing data from disparate data sources. SQL Server 2005 will be an integral part of your development toolset, providing the means to easily implement the complex functionality in today's applications.
Over the next few months, I'll explore many of these great features and talk about ways to use SQL Server outside the traditional database world. In the meantime, you can read the latest technical information about SQL Server 2005 at http://msdn.microsoft.com/sql/2005.


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One percent, or five, is not enough, says Dan Goldman.
Costs are going up for schools: employees, utilities and fuel, insurance, and just about everything else in the Hood River County School District budget.
But the district must deal with $800,000 less in State School Funding for 2014-15, Supt. Goldman said Wednesday. He portrayed an unhappy fiscal picture in the Hood River County School District Board of Directors meeting at May Street School.
Goldman criticized the unpredictable Oregon education funding system, but also pointed the finger at himself. Further, Goldman told the board that the district is looking at a budget reserve of less than 1 percent in 2014-15, and that is too small a margin.
"Less than 1 percent puts us in an unbelievably precarious position," Goldman said. "If anything happens, a pipe breaking, we're going to have to deal with that." It's critical that the district achieve a 5 to 10 percent reserve, Goldman said, largely because the district needs it at that level for the sake of a positive bond rating, when future bond requests come before the taxpayers.
In addition, the district needs a reserve sufficient to ensure it makes payroll, particularly if the district faces an emergency.
"We have to get a responsible reserve. That's going to take time. We can't do it overnight," Goldman said.
Goldman, in his first year as HRCSD superintendent, told the board that Oregon has dropped from the top 10 states for per student spending in 1992 to the bottom 15 in 2014.
"I think that is completely unacceptable," Goldman said. "It makes me angry to look at it and it makes me angry to talk about it."
He showed a chart indicating a 34 percent overall increase in state general fund and lottery spending since 2003-05, and increases of 43 to 71 percent for Human Resources, public safety and other programs, compared to 16 percent for K-12 education.
"No one is taking it on the chin like (K-12). These conversations have gone on for way too long," he said.
"Through all of this, I think it's important to look at our kids and how well they have achieved, despite the strap continuing to be pulled," Goldman said.
Teachers continue to perform for kids, despite fewer resources and larger class sizes, he said. He noted that the district is heading into negotiations with its teachers, who he said deserve to be paid a salary "that will allow them to live in the district where they work."
But the SSF hit on the district totals $800,000 as a result of changes in two funding "weights," or extra amounts schools receive per student: The first is what the district will have for 47 fewer students considered living below the poverty line, based on a change made by the state this year in how it calculates poverty.
The second change was the end of small-school status granted Hood River Valley High School following the closure of Cascade Locks High School in 2008, and transfer of those students to HRVHS and Hood River Middle School. (Cascade Locks had been K-12, and in the past five years has been scaled back to K-5, because of declining enrollment.)
"The jig is up — that ends this year," Goldman said of the sunseting of the small school weight. "We didn't have a good handle on it, and that's on me," Goldman said. Losing the small-school funding "was not part of our forecasting and it's a big hit for us."
The good news is that the district has saved about $500,000 in efficiencies over the past year, and Goldman said students and programs have benefited from grant funding totaling about $3 million for efforts such as STEM, professional development, arts and dual language learning.
"These are all high value, without adding to the general fund and in some cases extending the school day for some of our disadvantaged students," he said.
Adoption of a transportation revision plan (pending) and the recent change in the district's contract with the Education Service District would total about $300,000 in savings, Goldman noted.
"There are not that many big-ticket items out there to save us money," Goldman said. "There is no one big thing. It will take a number of little things."
(District staff presented the transportation plan to the board last night, but the board has not taken action on it: the district is considering reducing the number of bus runs as a way to cut transportation costs. The district would cut seven bus runs but to do so would have to create staggered starting times for the schools, meaning many elementary students would start school earlier, and some students living less than a mile from school would no longer be bussed. According to a survey of district patrons, support for the idea is running about 70 percent.)
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Israeli and global leaders, local celebrities and Hollywood superstars celebrated under one roof Tuesday to honor Israeli President Shimon Peres for his upcoming 90th birthday, reflecting world respect for one of the country's peace pioneers.
Peres is hosting his annual Presidential Conference that brings together an array of artists, thinkers and leaders to discuss issues relevant to Israel and the world.
Instrumental in building Israel's military in the first days of the state six decades ago, Peres served twice as prime minister and promoted peace between Israel and the Palestinians, sometimes reaching far ahead of his own people.
For his role in the landmark interim peace accord in 1993, he received the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize along with Israel's then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and then-Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
His tireless campaigning for a peace agreement has won him supporters and sympathizers around the world. His last five years as Israel's president has also gained him affection at home, absent during much of his political career.
In an event that kicked off the conference Tuesday and marked Peres' birthday, songstress Barbra Streisand sang a prayer in Hebrew and belted out one of her greatest hits, "People," to enthusiastic applause. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton was ushered to the stage by a quintet of saxophones.
Leaders and public figures from around the world, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Barack Obama to Bono, sent their good wishes to Peres. His birthday is in August, but organizers felt it would be difficult to bring back such a star-studded, high-powered crowd so soon. The conference, held every June, is doubling as a birthday bash.
Clinton, who on Monday prodded Israelis to hasten to make peace with the Palestinians, stepped away from politics at the two-hour long celebration, choosing instead to poke fun at Peres' age, calling him "the last living Israeli who knew King David."
Scattered in the audience among Israeli Cabinet ministers and local clergy sat actors Robert De Niro and Sharon Stone. Rwandan President Paul Kagame sat in the front row beside former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, now an international envoy to the Middle East.
The star of the night was Streisand, dressed in a flowing black dress accented with gold jewelry. Streisand sang the Jewish prayer "Avinu Malkeinu," which Peres called "heavenly" and gave her a long embrace and two kisses on the cheek. The prayer, which means "our Father, our King" is recited on the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur, a day of fasting and reflection. Streisand said the prayer was meant to "cause all hate and oppression to vanish from the earth."
Peres, who serves in a largely ceremonial position, was serenaded by local musicians and entertained by dance troupes, one of which intercut its music with inspirational quotes from the nonagenarian leader.
"We long for peace with our neighbors," Peres said to the applauding crowd. "The yesterday between us and the Palestinians is full of sadness. I believe that the Israel of tomorrow and the Palestine of tomorrow can offer our children a ray of hope."


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A rep for Whitney Houston is blasting a tabloid report that the R&B star is in rehab for drug use.
"The National Enquirer continuously publishes false, fabricated and malicious stories about Whitney Houston, including the latest cover story with the headline, saying it's 'Rehab For Whitney.' Whitney is not headed to rehab she is headed to Paris, where she will be continuing her world tour," a rep for Houston said in a statement to Access Hollywood.
The rep also shot down another Enquirer story claiming that the singer collapsed during her tour due to binging on drugs and alcohol, saying, "that is ridiculous. It did not happen."
The rep reiterates that the singer is not currently dealing with substance abuse issues.
"Whitney is not using drugs and is not in rehab," the statement continued. "She is on tour, putting on great shows which are being enjoyed by tens of thousands of concert-goers and which have been praised by reviewers."
Whitney did endure some negative reviews about her recent Australian leg of her world tour, which the rep referred to as a "handful of negative reviews," that the rep says the Enquirer has been using, "to justify the lies published about Whitney."
Related Content from AccessHollywood.com:
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Celebs In Rehab
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Whitney Houston & Bobby Brown
PLAY IT NOW: Music Video: Whitney Houston Feels Like A 'Million Dollar Bill'
PLAY IT NOW: Access Extended: Whitney Houston & Clive Davis Talk Comeback (July 21, 2009)
MORE ACCESS ON THESE TOPICS: Whitney Houston - Rehab - TV One - Music


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The Genetic Programming Bibliography
[ News | Search It | Most recent | Most Downloaded | Add to It | Intro ]
The bibliography is part of the
Collection of Computer Science Bibliographies
W. B. Langdon and S. M. Gustafson. Genetic programming and evolvable machines: ten years of reviews. Genetic Programming and Evolvable Machines, 11(3/4):321--338, September 2010.
Bibtex filegp-bibliography.bib (Compressed) 12000 GP references.
Other formatsrefer format (Compressed)
text file (Compressed)
Author format (split by first author) co authorship graphs(description)
Search InterfacesThe GP bibliography is one of the many online computer science bibliographies
There are several on line search tools for these bibliographies. For example:
o WWW form based search
o The coauthor graphs can also be used for searching by author name.
o You can find all entries for an author using a URL like this one: http://www.cs.bham.ac.uk/~wbl/biblio/gp-html/WilliamBLangdon.html Naturaly you must replace WilliamBLangdon.html by the author's name.
Other Resourceso Bibliographies of evolutionary computation conferences.
Hints on using bibliographies with PC
based word processing packages


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Fara Sabina
Mindful motion. Walking in a slow rhythm, in a large circle with others, on a balcony with a panoramic view over the gentle grand beauty of the Roman campagna. A distraction eased into a train of thought, diminishing my mindfulness but useful for my column deadline.
After I had left England to start up a new monastic community with John Main I wrote to a young fellow monk to tell him of all that was happening. It must have caught him at a bad moment as he replied rather tartly thanking me for the news but adding that in his opinion in 'the real monastic life nothing ever happens'. As he went on to high office on the international monastic stage I wonder if later he might have changed his mind. His remark however remained with me because in a way I agreed with him more than he might really have agreed with himself. I remember a moment, visiting a monastery long before I entered one, watching the monk-porter sitting at his desk by the door ready – but rarely called upon – to respond to the bell. He was probably a good porter, but he certainly wasn't multi-tasking. My companion also noticed this and made an easy swipe about the non-eventfulness of the monastic life. I joined in the joke but realised to my surprise that I did not truly agree. I saw an unexpected purpose and value in doing – if not nothing exactly, at least not very much. Doing one thing at a time had an unexpected attraction even then and later was at the essence of what my teacher in that form of life taught me. Maybe it was an early glimpse into the meaning of contemplation as taught by the one who said to a burned-out multi-tasker that 'only one thing is necessary'.
I have just finished a weeklong meditation retreat near Rome with a group of forty teachers of the tradition drawn from fifteen countries in our Christian Meditation Community. We call it a 'School Retreat' after St Benedict's term for the monastery as a 'school of the Lord's service'. There were four clergy and the rest were a cross-section of the Church representing varying degrees of relation to the institution and many forms of life. The point of the retreat might appear either sublime, deep, self-centred or plain pointless depending on your perspective, experience of meditation or your mood of the moment.
Apart from a short personal interview each day, a short conference and a very quiet mass with a half-hour meditation after communion, we stayed in complete silence. The conferences were about the nature of faith and belief and their distinctions, not too heady but connecting with the challenges of Christian identity today. The point of the retreat however was not thinking but the work of contemplation. One of the early Christian monks described prayer as the 'laying aside of thoughts'. This is not as it sounds to many a way to gibbering mindlessness but, quite the reverse, to a very useful mindfulness. Minimum reading was recommended. We meditated seven times a day, interspersed with the mindful walk on the balcony with the vast view.
It was remarkable how everyone seemed to slip so quickly and readily into this engaged non-action (as different from inactivity as it is from hyper-activity). Actually, although all found it meaningful, not everyone found jumping in deep end of the pool of prayer easy; and one said that though she still liked meditation she wouldn't do it this way again, thank you. But most of those on this interior pilgrimage opened like flowers in sunshine. They expanded emotionally and spiritually finding peace and joy and renewed meaning for their life, work, family or ministry. Desires and anxiety diminished. One person coming to the retreat during a difficult and anxious transition in his career tasted the peace that lies in a place beyond all understanding but that also underlies all good and balanced judgement.
Discovering that happiness does not consist in the multiplication or even in the satisfaction of desires plunges those who experience it into the mind behind the Beatitudes. Deep shifts of consciousness happened in the silence of the retreat – maybe temporarily for some, for others as irreversible milestones. For us all, life became simpler, faith deeper. Reflecting on the relationship between faith and belief, Karl Rahner's insight seemed even truer, that the Christian of the future will be mystical - or nothing.
On the last night we celebrated the Pentecost Vigil Mass with a special liturgical love. As we prayed the Our Father in our different languages, from Aramaic to Swahili, we heard emerging the prayer of tongues, the music of the Spirit that is so often drowned in the busy blare of our minds. A life in which -'nothing happens'?
Laurence Freeman OSB
Laurence Freeman is a Benedictine monk of the Congregation of Monte Oliveto and also Director of The World Community for Christian Meditation (www.wccm.org)


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Forecasters predict a sunny and warm Christmas Day for the Southland, according to the National Weather Service.
Clear or mostly clear skies are expected through the week, with high temperatures in the mid-70s on Christmas Day in the San Gabriel and San Fernando valleys, as well as the Inland Empire, according to NWS forecasts.
"We're looking at about 5 degrees above normal," NWS Meteorologist Bill Forwood said.
High pressure and a weak offshore winds are responsible for the mild winter weather, he added.
Tuesday will be the warmest day of the week, with high temperatures potentially reaching the upper-70s, he added.
A slight cooling will take place into the weekend, Forwood said. High temperatures will drop into the lower-70s.


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Used 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab Review
Edmunds expert review
The 2007 Chevrolet Colorado is a handsome truck that, on paper, looks competitive. But in reality, it lags far behind pickups from Dodge, Nissan and Toyota in terms of performance, passenger comfort and overall fit and finish.
What's new for 2007
Vehicle overview
It is a sad, vicious cycle. In certain vehicle segments, the imports seem to always lead the way in functional design, overall performance and build quality while many of the domestics try to play catch up. The latest example of this industry frustration is the 2007 Chevrolet Colorado. Sure, it's a better truck than the antiquated S-10 it replaced back in 2004, but that isn't necessarily saying a lot.
On paper, the Colorado offers all the necessary ingredients to satisfy the majority of compact truck buyers. The engines promise both efficiency and power, and with three body styles to choose from, finding a configuration that meets your needs isn't too difficult. Plus, styling is a strong point for the Chevy Colorado, as its distinctive front fascia mimics the look of Chevy's full-size trucks and SUVs. Some versions of the Colorado also sport aggressive wheel flares and monochromatic exterior paint schemes.
But hop inside and that's where the attraction ends. Low-grade materials pepper the cabin and seat comfort is below average. It's a similar story dynamically, especially if one chooses a crew cab (the heaviest body style), which has proven to be the most popular choice among truck buyers. The Colorado's acceleration, even with the increased power of this year's engines, doesn't approach the performance of the bigger V6s available in the Chevrolet's rivals. In its favor, the Colorado offers a choice of several well-sorted suspension setups that provide impressive capability off-road or sporty handling dynamics on twisty blacktop.
The main problem is that the Colorado feels cheap, even in a class of vehicles where functionality and value come before upscale accommodations. And out on the road, the Colorado's performance is lacking compared to the stronger, more polished pickups offered by Toyota, Nissan and Dodge. If you're shopping for a smaller pickup, make sure you explore all the options before settling on the 2007 Chevrolet Colorado.
Trim levels & features
The 2007 Chevrolet Colorado is a compact pickup that's available in three body styles: a regular cab, an extended cab with small reverse-opening doors and a crew cab with 4 normal doors and the lineup's largest rear seating area. To keep the truck's overall size manageable, crew cabs come with a 5-foot bed while the other two have a 6-footer. There are three main trim levels for regular- and extended-cab Colorados: base ("Work Truck"), LS and LT. The crew cab comes in LT trim only. Base Chevy Colorados come with air-conditioning and an AM/FM stereo but not much else. The LS adds upgraded seating and trim and access to a few more optional features.
The LT trim actually consists of three subsets: 1LT, 2LT and 3LT. The 1LT adds a CD player, titanium-colored trim, leather-wrapped steering wheel and alloy wheels. The 2LT comes with full power accessories, keyless entry and a 5-cylinder engine (versus the inline 4 standard on lower trims). The 3LT adds color-keyed bumpers and grille, auto-dimming rearview mirror (with compass and outside temp display) and sliding rear window.
Several packages are available to tailor the Chevy Colorado to specific duties. Both the Z85 heavy-duty and Z71 off-road packages add a torsion-bar front suspension with heavier-duty shocks. The Z71 offers the tallest ride height, along with a locking rear differential, oversize tires and skid plates on 4WD models. The Xtreme package is geared toward street performance with a lowered suspension, quicker-ratio steering, 18-inch alloy wheels with 235/50 performance tires, and color-keyed wheel flares, grille and bumpers. Other available options, depending on trim level and body style, include leather seating, a CD changer, OnStar, satellite radio and a sunroof.
Performance & mpg
For the 2007 Colorado, both engines are slightly larger and more powerful. The 2.9-liter inline 4 makes 185 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque -- the most of any 4-cylinder engine offered in a pickup. The 3.7-liter inline 5 produces 242 hp and 242 lb-ft. A 5-speed manual transmission is standard on all 4-cylinder Colorados (except the 2WD crew cab), while a 4-speed automatic is optional. The automatic comes standard on 5-cylinder trucks. Although their outputs are respectable, neither engine provides acceleration on par with the V6 and V8 engines offered on the Colorado's competition. Four-wheel-drive models feature a dual-range transfer case with push-button controls and offer an optional locking rear differential. Maximum towing capacity, at 4000 pounds, is meager for this class of truck.
Antilock brakes are standard, while side curtain airbags are optional. Stability control is not available. Traction control is also optional, but only on 2WD automatic trucks. In government crash tests, the 2007 Chevrolet Colorado crew cab earned five stars (out of five) for the driver and front passenger in frontal impact testing. The other body styles earned four stars in those tests. Side-impact testing resulted in four stars for front-passenger protection and five stars for rear passengers. In IIHS frontal-offset crash testing, the Colorado rated "Good," the highest score possible.
The inline engines are reasonably smooth, but their lack of off-the-line punch and odd exhaust notes are disappointing compared to the larger V6s offered in competitors. Shifts from the 4-speed automatic are firm and well-timed, and the 5-speed manual gearbox is about as good as you're going to find in a compact truck. The stock suspension tuning is on the soft side, but the 2007 Colorado handles well for its class. If you're intent on going fast around corners or bashing boulders, the Xtreme and various off-road packages provide noticeable performance benefits in these areas.
While most pickup trucks have gotten more luxurious in recent years, that is not the case with the Chevy Colorado, where mediocre materials, an abundance of hard plastic and so-so seat comfort are the norm. On the plus side, simple climate and audio controls make the interior seem instantly familiar as soon as you get in. The gauges are similarly basic, but functional in their design.
Edmunds expert review process
This review was written by a member of Edmunds' editorial team of expert car reviewers. Our team drives every car you can buy. We put the vehicles through rigorous testing, evaluating how they drive and comparing them in detail to their competitors.
We're also regular people like you, so we pay attention to all the different ways people use their cars every day. We want to know if there's enough room for our families and our weekend gear and whether or not our favorite drink fits in the cupholder. Our editors want to help you make the best decision on a car that fits your life.
related vehicle information
2007 Chevrolet Colorado Information
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Build and Price TMV®
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Incentives & Rebates
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Consumer Discussions
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Consumer Reviews
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Features & Specs
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Pictures
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Review
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Dealer Price Quotes
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Used For Sale Near Me
- 2007 Chevrolet Colorado Ownership Costs


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|CMECF Civil Tutorial Filing a Response with Attachment
CM/ECF issues a receipt confirming that the entry has been received.
The document is now an official court document. The date and time your transaction was received by the court and the number assigned to the document is noted.
You can view the docket by clicking on the case number/name link at the top of the receipt. You can also view the response by clicking on the document number link (yellow highlight).
BEST PRACTICE. For future reference, print the receipt and attach it to your paper copy of the document. The filing is also available online through the docket report which is covered elsewhere in this tutorial.
Scroll down to view the entire receipt.
Responses and Replies
00-12345 Hodges et al v. Sun Resorts, Inc., et al
Notice of Electronic Filing
The following transaction was received from Howard Rheeling, on 2/15/2000 at 9:01 AM
Docket Text:
00-12345 Notice will be electronically mailed to:
Amani firstname.lastname@example.com
00-12345 Notice will not be electronically mailed to:
James Doe


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Frank Bruni on eating in the City of Angels:
Sure, New York also has a bit of everything, or rather a lot of everything. But its crowdedness and competitiveness make it the Everest to L.A.'s Kilimanjaro: you practically need a Sherpa to tackle New York effectively, and you just might lose a digit or limb. L.A. is more reasonably scaled, with the newest, hottest restaurants less likely to book up a solid month in advance. When a friend and I dropped in — at the height of lunch hour, no less — to one of the four branches of Umami Burger, the cult favorite of the city's ground-beef set, we were seated immediately, in comfy chairs at a big table that could have accommodated four. In contrast, almost any mealtime visit to any location of New York's Shake Shack involves a significant stretch of time — 20 minutes isn't exceptional — on a serpentine line. That's for counter service. At Umami, someone actually waits on you.
The Umami story demonstrates the enterprise and speed with which L.A.'s restaurateurs are tackling trends. When Adam Fleischman, its principal owner, opened the first Umami in Mid-Wilshire in January 2009, he was entering an arena brimming with competitors, each with fanatical adherents. There was Father's Office, with its unyielding commandment that arugula and caramelized onions should dress every patty. There was 8 oz. Burger Bar, which permitted free will. And there was of course In-N-Out, less restaurant than fast-food franchise but perhaps the earliest architect of the bridge between McDonald's and self-regarding gourmands.
Fleischman had a hook that sagely took into account the self-consciously erudite posturing of so many food enthusiasts today. ''I wanted to do something with umami,'' he says, referring to the so-called fifth taste (after sweet, salty, sour and bitter), which is vaguely described as ''savoriness'' and until recent years wasn't universally accepted as an actual, definable trait. So each of the burgers at Umami is constructed with an emphasis on ingredients thought to be catalysts for umami. The caramelized onions on the signature burger are seasoned with star anise ''because it's an umami booster,'' Fleischman says. The burger is also dressed with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, Parmesan cheese and oven-dried tomatoes, all thought to be umami bombs.
[Photo Credit: Alex Eats World, Signature L.A. Direct]


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William Webb 'Bill' Langdell
William Webb "Bill" Langdell, 59, of Poteau died Tuesday, March 12, 2013, in Poteau. Bill was born May 30, 1953 in Holtville, Calif., to Jack Sr. and Naomi (Perry) Langdell. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army. He was a truck driver. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother, Chester Langdell.Survivors include his sons and daughters-in-law, Billy Jr. and Lisa Langdell, Jeremy and Brittany Kinsey, Dustin James Crase of Spiro, and Scott Tucker of Poteau; grandchildren, Colten, Caleb, Carlee, Kyjia, Kruze, Kamdin, Brock, Brooklynn and Melissa; great-grandchildren, Audisea and Zyler; brothers, Jack and Monty Langdell of Poteau, John Langdell and Renee Travis of Hawthorne, Nev,, Mickey Langdell of Poteau, Max Langdell and Misty Mitts of Poteau, Hugo Langdell of Atlanta, Ga.; sisters, Sharon Mack of Clovis, Calif., Laverne Irvan of Poteau; special niece, Rachel Meisner of Madera, Calif.; and other relatives and loved ones.A private family service will be held at a later date.You may leave an online message at evansandmillerfuneralhomes.com.Arrangements are under the direction of Evans and Miller Funeral Home.


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Daniel Craig: Watch 'Skyfall' Title Sequence feat. Adele!
Daniel Craig arrives on a flight at Sydney International Airport on Thursday (November 15) in Australia.
The 44-year-old actor is in town for the premiere of his new James Bond flick Skyfall down under.
Skyfall opened in theaters in the U.S. this past weekend and broke records to have the highest grossing opening weekend for any Bond film in history. It has even crossed the $100 million mark already and the $500 million mark internationally.
In case you want to rewatch the awesome title sequence featuring Adele's song "Skyfall" – check it out below!
"Skyfall" Title Sequence featuring Adele


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Stars aim to extend win streak vs. struggling Preds
The Dallas Stars will try to continue their playoff push with a fourth straight victory when they visit the struggling Nashville Predators for Friday's game at Bridgestone Arena.
Despite being sellers before the deadline, dealing Brenden Morrow, Derek Roy and Jaromir Jagr out of Dallas, the surprising Stars find themselves tied with Columbus for 10th in the West and three points out of a playoff spot. Detroit, which is playing Friday night in Nashville, is occupying the West's eighth and final playoff seed with 44 points.
The Stars have won three straight and another victory on Friday would match the club's longest winning streak of the season. Dallas, which had lost three straight prior to its current hot streak, won four in a row from Feb. 4-12.
Dallas turned in its most recent triumph at home, as the Stars used a big third period on Tuesday to blast the Los Angeles Kings by a 5-1 score. Ray Whitney scored twice during the four-goal barrage over the final 20 minutes, helping Dallas cruise to the win.
Vernon Fiddler also had two goals and added an assist, while Alex Goligoski scored once for the Stars.
It wasn't all good news for Dallas, however, as starting goaltender Kari Lehtonen left the game in the first period with a lower-body injury after allowing one goal on eight shots. Richard Bachman stopped all 22 shots in relief.
"Solid. Real solid," said Dallas coach Glen Gulutzan on the play of Bachman. "You could see his rebound control and his confidence. He's out in his crease. He hasn't played for a while, so it's a good one for him."
Lehtonen, the clear-cut No. 1 netminder for the Stars, was able to return to practice on Thursday and will make the trip to Nashville. However, Dallas also recalled goaltender Cristopher Nilstorp from its AHL affiliate on Wednesday and he may be forced to serve as the backup tonight.
The Stars have won two straight on the road and are 10-8-1 as the guest this season. Dallas claimed three consecutive away wins once this season, beating Colorado on Feb. 4 before notching a pair of victories in Edmonton on Feb. 6 and 12.
While Dallas heads into Friday's encounter on a hot streak, the Predators have lost their last four in regulation to seriously damage their playoff chances. Nashville, which hasn't missed the postseason since 2009, is currently seeded 13th in the West and is six points out of a playoff spot.
Nashville has suffered a pair of 1-0 setbacks during its current slide and that was the final score in Tuesday's home loss to St. Louis. The Predators forced Brian Elliott to make just 15 saves for the shutout.
Alexander Steen's blast with 3:23 remaining in the second period was the lone blemish on Pekka Rinne, with the Nashville netminder accumulating 25 saves but receiving little offensive support.
"We can't sustain any offense and it is tough to get any shots," said Predators defenseman and captain Shea Weber. "Everything we've got has been from the outside and we really did not have very many good scoring chances."
Nashville has been dealing with a rash of injuries to forwards, as Gabriel Bourque, Mike Fisher, Paul Gaustad and Brandon Yip have been sidelined lately. Of that group, only Bourque, who has sat out the last five games due to an upper body injury, is expected to have a chance at playing in tonight's game.
The Predators have lost three straight on home ice to see their record at Bridgestone Arena this season fall to 10-6-4. Nashville is playing the second tilt of a four-game homestand on Friday and will close it with games against Detroit and Vancouver.
Nashville has won both meetings against the Stars this season, however, and has taken four straight in the series overall. Dallas also has dropped three of four and six of its past nine in Music City.


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BAGHDAD, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Thousands of people gathered Friday at sites across Iraq to protest Baghdad's Shiite-led government, accusing it of depriving the rights of Sunnis.
Protesters in the Sunni-dominated Anbar province held signs and chanted slogans against the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a report from Voice of America said.
Tensions between Sunnis and Shiites were inflamed last week when bodyguards of Sunni Finance Minister Rafia al-Issawi were arrested. Some saw the arrests as politically motivated.
Protesters blocked main roads in Anbar province and said they won't down until the government changes terrorism laws and releases Sunni prisoners.
Protests were reported in Fallujah, Mosul, Tikrit, Samarra and other locations to mark what Sunni organizers called "Friday of Honor."


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CONCORD, N.C. — Roush Fenway Racing driver Trevor Bayne, who won the 2011 Daytona 500 and then missed part of that season because of fatigue and double vision, has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
Bayne, who drives full time in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing and part time in Cup for Wood Brothers Racing, has been cleared by doctors to continue racing, and the 22-year-old is still slated to run for the Nationwide title next year in a Roush car sponsored by AdvoCare.
"I've never been more driven to compete," said Bayne, who is sixth in the 2013 Nationwide standings heading into the season finale this weekend. "My goals are the same as they've been since I started racing. I want to compete at the highest level and I want to win races and championships. I am in the best shape I've ever been in and I feel good.
"There are currently no symptoms and I'm committed to continuing to take the best care of my body as possible."
In 2011, Bayne missed five weeks of racing after experiencing fatigue, numbness and double vision. It was initially thought to be complications from an insect bite or Lyme disease. At the time, tests appeared to be inconclusive. Bayne's younger sister also has multiple sclerosis, a disease of the central nervous system that can lead to the loss of mobility, numbness and blindness.
Bayne, who said he has had no symptoms since June 2011, has undergone extensive testing at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota because he wanted to have a diagnosis, which he finally received in June shortly after winning the Nationwide Series race at Iowa.
"There could have been local Lyme's on my elbow and that's why at the time we were like, 'That's what it is,' and it was an easy thing because I did have the rash on my arm from a bug bite," Bayne said. "I don't know if the two are connected. I'm not a doctor and I wouldn't want to make that call, but they wanted to do more research because I wasn't satisfied with not knowing, so as a competitive person and as a racer you guys know how we work.
"We want to know how everything works and causes and effects, so I just kept going back for checkups and this is what it has led to."
Once he got the diagnosis, Bayne said he took a while to comprehend the situation and decided this was the time to go public with it so he can talk freely about it when he speaks to groups.
"I think anybody that gets a diagnosis is going to sit back and think about it," Bayne said. "What does this mean? What does it mean to my family? What does it mean to me and my partners? Our team.
"The more and more I thought about it and the more and more I realized that I was fine, the more and more it sunk in that everything is going to be OK."
Bayne is not taking any medication and hopes that a healthy diet and lifestyle will keep symptoms from returning. He said he did not believe the disease nor the medical testing has impacted his performance this year.
"My hope is not to ever have symptoms again," Bayne said. "Obviously, there are people who have gone with completely normal lives with MS and I hope to be one of those people. Nobody knows exactly what the future holds for anybody, but, for me, I trust that whatever God has planned for me is what's best for my life.
"I'd love to be healed. That would be perfect if that's what He plans for, but, if not, then we'll move on day by day."
Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark said that Bayne's health has not been an issue when courting sponsors, and AdvoCare has no issues with having Bayne — the youngest driver ever to win the Daytona 500 as he won it the day after his 20th birthday — being its driver.
"We are 100 percent supportive of Trevor and his ability to compete in a race car," said Roush Fenway co-owner Jack Roush. "I have full confidence in Trevor and his partners have all expressed that same confidence and support.
"As with all of our drivers, we look forward to standing behind Trevor and providing him with all of the tools he needs as he continues to develop in his young career."