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Veda Petals - Yellow
Veda Petals - Yellow $60.00
-Whimsical flower stud earrings featuring clear crystal quartz spikes and gold crystal seed bead cabochon.
-Fun and chic versatile earrings that can take you from day to night.
-Light weight earrings that won't cause damage to your earlobes.
-Materials: Genuine leather, Quartz gemstones, Seed beads
-Closure: Post back
-Measurements: 2.5 inches in length.
Frequently Asked Questions
We send all U.S. packages through the U.S. Postal Service, First Class with tracking number to the address provided when placing an order. Most items will be shipped within 24-48 hours of placing an order. However, some items are made to order and may take up to, but not more than, one week to ship.
Periodically dust with a clean, damp and non-abrasive white cloth. Please do not soak the leather. Pat the surface dry, using a clean dry cloth. Let air-dry. Keep Chandra Jewelry in a jewelry box laying flat or hang on a jewelry stand or display. You may need to iron the leather tassels/fringes carefully with very low heat, with a piece of cloth on top of it.
If there has been a mistake by us, please let us know immediately and wait before sending it back or leaving a feedback. Negative feedbacks only harm us and our business while you get nothing. We are very understandable shop owners and will do anything to make you happy with your purchase.
Please let us know if you would like to send this item as a gift. The items are wrapped beautifully and they can be given as a gift directly by yourself or we can ship them directly to the gift recipient. The packages do not have any price tag. Let us know if you want us to add a special note to the item purchased.
still have a question? Chat with us


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Facebook offered $3 billion for the photo-messaging application Snapchat, three times more than was reported earlier this week.
The $3 billion price tag comes from unnamed sources, according to the Wall Street Journal, and Snapchat's founders turned down the all-cash deal.
Are they insane? you may ask yourself. Maybe, or perhaps the two founders have a very strong belief in their product which has yet to make any money in its two-year existence. Remember Color? Yeah, we don't either.
U.S. & World
Snapchat also has other suitors, including a Chinese conglomerate that wants to invest $200 million in the app and lead to a $4 billion valuation. The word is that founder and chief executive Evan Spiegel won't consider selling until next year when its numbers, and especially users, will be impressive enough to garner an even larger price tag. Then he can sell off all his stock and then be a 24-year-old billionaire (he's 23 now.)
Are they insane? you may ask yourself. How can a company with no revenue, no ads and no noticeable business plan be valued at billions of dollars? Snapchat declined to comment on the report, according to the WSJ.
We have to think that sometimes, even to Silicon Valley bigwigs, all this cash has to seem like Monopoly money.

subset: commoncrawl


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KidsCan now providing 22,500 meals a week for kiwi kids in poverty
KidsCan now providing 22,500 meals a week for kiwi kids in poverty
Monday 4th of February
For immediate release
2013 will be the biggest year yet for children's charity KidsCan. Supported by the community, businesses, government, and thousands of individual donors, KidsCan has been providing support for the growing number of disadvantaged children in our schools for the past seven years.
Julie Chapman - KidsCan Founder and CEO says "More than 4000 people now regularly donate $15 a month which provides Kiwi children in need with a raincoat, shoes, two pairs of socks and a daily meal at school, with 100% of the money going to the kids. This, combined with funds raised in 2012 by Campbell Live and More FM, has enabled KidsCan to expand its support in 2013 to ensure thousands more disadvantaged children can arrive at school warm, dry and well fed".
276 low decile primary and intermediate schools will receive raincoats, shoes and socks this year and in term one, KidsCan will also provide 22,500 meals a week for children who experience regular food insecurity. The number of schools receiving KidsCan programmes will increase again in term two to 338 to meet the needs of children still urgently in need of assistance.
"We are thrilled that we are able to expand our programmes, however there are still thousands of children who need our support." "Our ultimate goal is to ensure that no Kiwi child in a decile 1-4 school goes cold, hungry and without the basics most of us take for granted" "It's not acceptable that so many New Zealand children struggle to keep up in class and suffer low self-esteem because their families are unable to make ends meet." says Chapman.
Massey University evaluations of KidsCan initiatives have consistently found that providing food and clothing for less fortunate children has increased their school attendance and ability to participate in class whilst reducing social issues such as bullying and theft.
KidsCan is urging more caring Kiwis to visit its website and join the 'In Our Own Backyard' programme to support a Kiwi child by donating just $15 a month (just 50 cents a day). "Our kids are our future and society will benefit as a whole if we show our commitment to the health and well-being of all New Zealand children right now." Says Chapman
For more information on KidsCan please visit www.kidscan.org.nz or contact Julie Chapman on 027 293 1778 or (09) 478 1525.


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Flash players downloads
In this section, you'll find popular FLV (Flash Video) and SWF (Small Web Format) players with a variety of features.
Flash players
Currently Browsing:
Filters: Shareware | Freeware | Demo | OpenSource | Other | All
Adobe Flash Player is a lightweight, highly expressive client runtime that delivers...
Ad Supported Software
Added Aug 9, 2012
Popularity: 96%
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FLV Player by LongTail.TV is a free standalone application to play Flash FLV files.
Ad Supported Software
2k / XP / 2003
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A dormer is a structural element in architecture that protrudes from a sloped roof and allows for additional space. If you're a tiny house enthusiast, the words "additional space" in a tiny house article might seem oxymoronic. Yes, owning a tiny home means that you are "okay" with small spaces, but there is no reason that you should have to sacrifice comfort in your tiny house RV.
So let's learn a little more about dormers and what they could do for your loft.
A Tumbleweed Elm or Cypress loft WITHOUT dormers (keeping the gable roof line throughout) and a skylight.
Some tiny housers love the coziness and lightweight option of the un-dormered loft (keeping the triangular gable roof line throughout), but most prefer to have a little more headroom. Dormers provide extra space for comfort and additional windows, while keeping the lovely visual aesthetic.
Tumbleweed Cypress WITHOUT dormers. A lovely gable roof line throughout.
Tumbleweed Elm WITH Dormers. Space is gained. The visual aesthetic is not sacrificed.
How much space do you really gain by having dormers? In order to visualize how much space is actually gained by adding dormers, you will need to have a basic understanding of roof pitch.
Roof pitch is described as the vertical rise divided by the horizontal span of a roof. The gable roof in our Elm and Cypress models have a 12:12 pitch, while our lofts with dormers have a 3:12 pitch. It is important to maintain some roof pitch for weather runoff.
Examples of roof pitch. Photo credit: Wikipedia
An older Tumbleweed model, where the 3:12 pitch returns to 12:12 for the last few inches of the loft.
If you peer into the back of this older Tumbleweed's loft, you can see where the 3:12 pitch returns to the triangular gable roof line (12:12 pitch). This is a great way to visualize the difference between these two roof pitches.
If the above loft DID NOT have dormers:
- The roof pitch would be that triangular slope throughout
- The four windows that line the sides of the bed would be lost
- The space on either side of this queen bed would be lost
- A king bed would not be possible (only possible with dormers)
- The use of a staircase would be rather difficult (a ladder would most likely be used instead)
Jenna Spesard is currently traveling around North America in a DIY Tumbleweed Cypress with her partner, Guillaume. They are photographing and writing about their adventure and occasionally they will be hosting Tumbleweed workshops and open houses. Be sure to follow their tiny house and giant journey.


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Want to drill down on the possibilities of a particular monster? This is the place to discuss it.
This site is owned and operated by Team Compendium, Inc.
All content is © 2000-2011 Team Compendium, Inc.
The PokeGym is not affiliated with The Pokémon Company, International
or any anime or video game companies.


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|Works for Study Double Bass and Piano Two Double Basses Four Double Basses Violoncello and Double Bass Viola Bassetto Solo Bassetto and Piano Bassetto and Orchestra
Dragonetti, Domenico: Andante und Rondo
Price:14.00 €It is most likely that many of the stories and anecdotes surrounding the Venetian double bassist Domenico Dragonetti (1763-1846) are apocryphal. For instance, his alleged participation as an 82-year old in the Bonn Beethoven Festival of 1845, where he was said to have led a group of 13 double bassists, could not be proven. The reason behind the creation of such tales is found in Dragonetti's exceptional position among the musicians of that time as a result of his spectacular performances. His capabilites were also correspondingly rewarded; for almost thirty years, while he was principal double bassist of the London "Philharmonic Society", he always belonged to the the top earners of the orchestra. His income was as much as six times more than that of his double bass section colleagues. Therefore, it is understandable that Dragonetti's testament reads like the inventory of a musical instrument museum, with valuable violins, violas, celli and double basses by Stradivari, Amati, da Salo, and other master luthiers. Dragonetti's compositions were written spontaneously. According to contemporary reports, he was a master of improvisation. With this in mind, the quantity of works left behind is fairly slender. Incidentally, the popular A major concerto does not belong to these works, as it was obviously composed by Edouard Nanny (1872-1943). Dragonetti's compositions comprise of mostly smaller pieces for solo double bass with string accompaniment. For some of them, Simon Sechter (1788-1867), a music-theorist and composition teacher, wrote piano versions. The "Andante and Rondo" presented here also has both piano and string accompaniments. Matthias Petersen arranged the piano score and combined the best elements of both versions. For example, the rondo theme from measures 71-78 and 172-186 has been transferred from the double bass to the piano to allow the soloist a few bars of rest. I have edited the solo part with phrasing and articulation markings, as well as logical dynamic markings, according to a historically informed musical perspective.
Bruch, Max: Kol Nidrei
Price:12.50 €
Fauré, Gabriel: Élegie
Price:12.50 €
Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Felix: Lied ohne Worte
Price:11.50 €
Schumann, Robert: Adagio und Allegro
Pergolesi, Giovanni Battista: Sinfonia
Price:12.00 €
Bottesini, Giovanni: Ręverie
Price:7.50 €
Valls, Pedro: Suite Andaluza
Price:18.50 €
Fauré, Gabriel: Pičce
Price:7.50 €
Tschaikowsky, Peter Iljitsch: Nocturne op. 19/4
Price:10.00 €


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A bedroom at John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center.
The staircase at John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center.
The exterior of John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center.
Our newsletter delivers vacation inspiration straight to your inbox.
Vacation ideas, travel tips, and great travel deals right to your inbox.
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In the early 1900's automotive engineers were trying some crazy stuff. That is one of the reasons that I love older cars so much. These guys didn't really have a "norm" to start with, so they attempted to create it. Cars in general were in their infancy and each manufacturer was completely different than the next.
The other day I spotted an engine that still had an old clutch assembly attached. It was something that I had never seen before so I snapped off a few quick pics. Judging by the planetary gears on the back of the clutch, it was probably from a tractor or some piece of farm equipment, but it was cool looking & genius design nonetheless. It vaguely resembled a modern puck clutch with it's multi-pad design. From what I am told, you could swap those friction pads out without pulling the transmission. Now that is a good idea! Just imagine how much cheaper clutch jobs would be if the transmission didn't need to come out. Even if clutches didn't last as long, it could be a 30K mile service that is 1 hour of labor, and likely ~ $50 in friction material. What am I missing here? Why was this design lost in history? Why doesn't somebody reinvent this for ultimate profit? What the heck?


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How to Prevent and Fix Self-Tanner Streaks
3 Ways to Avoid Self-Tanner Streaks and Blotches
Applying self-tanner is a great way to get a tan without the sun's harsh effects. But whereas the product can be a life-saver (literally), it also poses a conundrum, often marking its presence in the form of patchy, blotchy marks and streaks on the knees, elbows, fingers, and toes. "I always tell people, it's [self-tanner is] like makeup. You just have to practice a little bit," explains Sinead Norenius, a tanning expert and founder of Beautisol, an environmentally-conscious sun-care line. To see her advice on preventing tanning mishaps, just keep reading.
- In the buff: Immediately after you've applied self-tanner, use a dry washcloth to lightly buff areas that tend get patchy (like on the wrists, elbows, and back of the heels). "It will absorb any excess product and will soften into those lines because anywhere where you have folds or wrinkles, it picks up some of the color. It's a really soft feathering look," Sinead explains.
- Q-Tip tip: If you have any dark spots or freckles that you don't want to get darker, simply take a dry or slightly wet Q-Tip over these areas to take off some of the tanner.
- Avoid the finger(s): The fingers have a naturally wrinkly texture, and that's why Sinead says you should stay away from applying tanner directly to the hands. Instead, take your fingers and rub them on a place of your body where there might be some tanner residue, and let that pick up some of the color. "It's much softer and easier to feather into your fingers and toes instead of trying to apply a heavy layer," she advises.


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So I finally found which game it was. Actually that does depend on who made the trainer. Or is it my disk that has a soul? Hmm. If that's the explanation then now that soul is available for the spreading n_n
Just kidding. I was almost certain the game was Dragon Breed, but downloading an image on the net gave me this trainer:
F3 cycles between 1 and 6.
So, just to make sure I'm not wrong about this game (was not 9when I found this trick), some deep investigation must be carried out n_n
Ok, start at stage 6.
Jeez I died like 40 times before reaching the end of it. How could one play 6 levels + the "boss" ones with three lives? Off topic, ok.
So, when level 6 is done, you reach this bouncing dude with some eyeball above his head:
He finally dies:
Aha! Now, do I get to level 7?
Answer: no.
You get a nice ending screen:
Well, nice is relative. Whatever.
Then ... surprise?
Actually if you see this screen, I suppose it means: "based on the hypothesis you've started with level 1, you've seen all you had to see in this game. This is the truth."
-> geeks will add: "what truth?".
So. Back to my box-o-floppies. Hah! The damaged one with the worn label "dragon breed":
MSA2.3 in action (yeah I show this because it was a pain to figure out how to make a simple image... my dreadful 486 (my only computer that still has a floppy disk. Beware my 486) and makedisk failed to read sectors. I suppose it's due to the 10 sectors issue?)
MSATOST made a gread job to combine the two files. Yay. And 486DX4-100 are excellent machines.
Ah. Now that's the trainer I remembered:
Do be fooled, it accepts input from one to nine. Also attempted hex a, b and co but only three "hidden" levels available. Jeez was proud of my discovery, I remember that. Was young, too. Hehe, my age could nearly be coded on three bits.
Hey look at these weird things.
Stage 7:
Wow you meet a strange egg.
Inside it a crab awaits. Poetry.
Please not the crab has rude manners and throws buggy textures at you. Nasty crab.
Note: If you get killed, either the ST crashes (no even bombs, just reboot), either the egg will be "frozen" and will have "god mode on".
Stage 8:
Connoisseurs have harmoniously dubbed this level: "it came from the toilet". Haha.
Notice how it throws up some buggy textures. The eyes are also composed of buggy textures, which make this whole level feel like a kind of unfinished business sanctum. Initiates only, are we?
Don't get killed by the poo tower, or else you appear cursed in the middle of it (and die btw):
Stage 9:
This one will beat the poo out of you, for sure. Perhaps the initial "boss" at the end of level 9. So tough that it's maybe been replaced by the blue freak with his eyeball pet.
Ok, Voilà!
Guess what's next? Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran (...)
Oh, the file:
You don't need an account to download it, just pass a picture-with-text-inside-test. The link to download it is at the bottom of the page. Ta-ta.
Dragon Breed - Only 6 levels? I say 9! nine.
Requests for manuals and detailed information on playing games
Moderators: Mug UK, Doctor Bob Gordon, Moderator Team
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- hobstad
- Retro freak
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Sun Nov 04, 2007 5:18 pm
- Location: Belgique - Waterloo
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Dragon Breed - Only 6 levels? I say 9! nine.
Hobstad channel, "me being random":
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Aleta brings young son Delta by for a leisurely look.
Santini is always willing to show off her winning smile.
DRC staff and volunteer introduce visitors to cool objects in the Whale Wagon.
The news continues to be positive for the Florida Keys regarding the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. According to the most credible sources, currently, there is no imminent danger of the Keys being affected by the spill. Officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, report that the northern end of the Loop Current has been pinched off into a large clockwise eddy (Eddy Franklin) so there is no clear path for spilled oil to enter the Loop Current from the source in the northern Gulf of Mexico.
We will certainly keep everyone posted if the situation changes, but right now the waters surrounding Dolphin Research Center and the Keys remain clear, clean, oil-free, and beautiful. You can check out some great footage that was filmed on Sunday, June 20th at www.fla-keys.com. It's a great time to make vacation plans and visit in person. In the meantime, here are some new photographs taken a short time ago around the grounds at DRC. (Please share this information with family and friends! Thank you!)
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Update on Oil for the Florida Keys
Posted by The DRC Family at 12:38 PM


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At First American, our values are the guiding principles behind everything we do.
They are the stepping stones that help us work to become the company that we aim to be as described in our Vision.
At First American, being positive means more than a smile on your face. Colleagues shared that to them, it means "creating a fun, yet productive work environment" and "being approachable so that others can look to you as a resource".
Earning relationships, both internal and external, means becoming a team of people that others can trust, and depend on to provide solutions they truly need, instead of assuming what they want to hear.
One colleague shared that striving for excellence to him meant, "committing yourself to excellence on the small daily items, and holding your self to a high standard on everything... excellence will follow in a big way."
First American embraces and drives innovation in our own practices and seeks to help our clients implement projects that do the same. This means being a self-starter, taking on tasks outside of your day-to-day and following them through to completion.
Follow Us
© 2000-2020 First American Equipment Finance All rights reserved.


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Lemon: a Fruit for all Seasons
Lemon: is an aromatic citrus fruit used in recipes to make lemonade, lemon cake and lemon meringue pie.
Additionally, lemons are beneficially used in formulas for beauty and health needs.
Today, we continue to discover many beneficial ways to use lemons as we share culturally diverse recipes and formulas with an international community. More/Less
When life gives us lemons... We can turn tart into delicious and bitter into beneficial with the right "ingredients."Check out the Recipes for delights of kitchen and the Books section for inspiration and practical solutions.
Lemons were an adventure of discovery!
We believe that lemons are native to the region of Southeast Asia between India and Southern China.
Traders and Botanist alike delighted in discovering and learning the value of lemons.
For more information about Plant Hunters and Agriculture visit the history section
What is more fun than your first business venture! A lemonade stand is a grand tradition!
Often the phrase "making lemonade" expresses entrepreneurial abilities and triumph over adversity. More/Less
With just a few lemons, sugar and water you can start a business!
You are cordially invited to "Click Over" to the Lemonade Stand and calculate the profits from your venture.
Enjoy your lemonade plain or sweet. Add other fruit and dress it up for a party.
Lemons, originally found in Northern India, and prized for their unique flavor, enhance culinary delights around the world.
Referred to as the "golden apple," lemons were traded for a variety of precious items. Once treasured and cared for by kings lemons are now delivered to a store near you!
Some favorite recipes include More/Less
Any many thousands more! Check out the Recipes section for delights of the palate. See the Books section for inspiration.
Lemons give their natural goodness to thousands of recipes, check out some of ours...
Lemon for Your Health
Lemons offer substantial health benefits.
A staple in the kitchen, lemons inspire natural health and beauty products.
You may be familiar with a hot lemon drink to help clear a cold. More/Less
Be sure to check out the video section for cold remedies and other recipes too!
Lemons vitamin C levels help boost the immune system
Lemons: A World Famous Beauty Treatment
For centuries women of wisdom have used the juice of lemon to improve their skin. This lovely citrus fruit enjoys a long standing reputation for cleaning and freshening the skin and hair.
After you squeeze a lemon use the "cupped" rind to soften rough skin spots such as elbows and heels. More/Less
In the kitchen, lemon slices also help deodorize and deep cleanse your hands after a messy or smelly job. If you want added scouring power use a bit of cornmeal.
Itchy scalp? No problem just add a little fresh lemon juice to your shampoo to refresh and tone your scalp. Fresh lemon juice does not store well, so mix it per use.
Lemons blend their natural goodness with beauty formulas, check out some of ours...
Lemon Tips
Selecting lemons: lemons are ripe when they are yellow, without any green spots and firm. Check and reject if they have soft or brown spots.
Scrub lemons well to remove any dirt and residue.
Recipes that call for grated zest: use a zester remove thin strips of the peel.
Use the yellow skin only, not the bitter white pith. More/Less
A warm lemon (room temperature) will yield more juice. Roll the lemon on the kitchen counter, pressing down firmly, to break up the pulp before juicing.
See the Tips section for more information.
In the kitchen, lemon slices also help deodorize and deep cleanse your hands after a messy or smelly job.
If you want added scouring power use a bit of cornmeal.
Fresh lemon juice keeps in the refrigerator for only 5 days, so mix it per use or freeze.
If you are zesting, do that first, then juice.
Whole fresh lemons should stay fresh for 2-3 days at room temperature and a couple of weeks in the refrigerator.
Lemon Law
When you drove you car off the lot you were not planning multiple return visits to the repair department. And you certainly were not planning on adding "Lemon Car administrator" to your resume.
If your purchase turned out to be a lemon you have the unpleasant task of seeking a remedy. More/Less
Federal and State Laws protect consumers...
State and Federal laws governing lemon cars, trucks, SUVs, lemon computers, and lemon pets (yes, pets) and other warranted products provide consumers with legal remedies for seeking financial relief in the event that the product you purchased is a "lemon."
Turn your lemon into lemonade... there's help!


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|Image: Conception Abbey
I'll repost this litany on each Saturday of Lent.
Which of the names or titles for Mary in this Litany captures your mind's and heart's attention? I think the one that grabs me this week is, "Queen of painful meetings..." Especially in the the last days and hours of Jesus' life, Mary encountered her Son's pain and her own Mother's pain in seeing his... My ministry often brings me to meeting with others who share their pain...
Which name or title for Mary in the Litany captures your minds' and heart's attention?
Bring that name and how it reaches you to your 10 minutes of prayer today...
Sit in silence with the Lord, and with his Mother... Be still and know that he is with you... Be still and know that she is with you...
In this season of Lent when we contemplate the suffering and death of Jesus, let us to draw close to his Mother, Mary, whose own suffering and witness of her Son's passion was more than we can imagine.
As she stood by her Son in his suffering, so does she stand with us in our own hours of need...
A Marianist Litany to Mary
Holy Mary,
pray for us!
Mother of God,
Mother of our redemption,
Mother of a lost child,
Mother of comfort and understanding,
Mother who shares our joys,
Mother who endures our sorrows,
Mother whose heart was pierced by a sword,
Mother most merciful,
Woman responsive to God's word,
pray for us!
Woman willing to believe the impossible,
Woman who rejoices in her lowliness,
Woman with an undivided heart,
Woman of perfect freedom,
Woman wrapped in mystery,
Woman moved by the Spirit,
Woman champion of the poor and lowly,
Woman graced by a husband's love,
Woman widowed by a husband's death,
Woman at the cross,
Woman patient and waiting,
Woman clothed with the sun,
Queen of the fullness of times,
pray for us!
Queen of beauty unalloyed,
Queen of integrity,
Queen of painful meetings,
Queen of all our heart's treasure,
Queen of our destiny,
Queen of peace,
Mary, you are mother and virgin,
wife and widow,
peasant and queen,
blessed for all time.
We need the comfort of your prayers.
Remember us always to our Father through your Son, Jesus Christ,
who is our Lord for ever and ever.
- Rev. Joseph H. Lackner, S.M.
Subscribe to A Concord Pastor Comments


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Hi Guys,
Can anybody help me with me with this problem. I've managed to get PCHelpware to work on a domain network going though a firewall. I've used the repeater and hosted it on a server belonging to the network which uses a static IP address. The one problem I've noticed is that the reaction time for the mouse to move over the screen is very slow.
Is there nany twaeks that I can make to the program in order to make it quicker and more efficient at its job.


text: Today News – Trump Claims Russia Campaign Probe Illegal | Trending News KHkdZgU 2018-09-16T23:46:43+00:00 September 16th, 2018| Video Transcription Share This ArticleFacebookTwitterLinkedinTumblrGoogle+PinterestVkEmail Related Posts The Emergency Reason Mike Pence Flew Back To The White House Will Be REVEALED In 2 Weeks | Trending News Trump Takes BLOWTORCH To AOC And Her RADICAL LIES At Border Detention Facility | Trending News The Styxhexenhammer Show Ep. 5 (Clinton Deflection, Buttigieg Cash, Steyer and Swalwell, Twitter) | Trending News NY State Is Going Down The Toilet After Handing Out FREE PASSES to END ALL Safe Driving Laws | Trending News WOW! Melania Trump HONORED In Beautiful Way At Her Hometown In Slovenia | Trending News Antifa DOOFUS Tries To Light Flag On Fire, Gives Up Shortly After Failing To Spark A Fire | Trending News Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris Release Competing Identity Politics Plans | Trending News Buttigieg Outraises All His Opponents This Last Quarter | Trending News AOC Uses the Climate Change Boogeyman to Explain a DC Storm | Trending News Yes, Trump Will Likely be Re-elected | Trending News


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did you ever post a report on your trip to Bonne terre Mine???? or was it eaten by the forum troll??? how was your trip?/
Good that you are going diving. My last dive last weekend didn't go out due to conditions. This weekend is a quarry stop for some nav practice. Then back to the coast July 31 to dive with Chicken. SOME of my ST friends actually make it out here to dive you know.
The nearest coast is at least 5 hours away.
I'm actually trying to secure a job at a couple local dive shops. We'll see what happens. I REALLY want to go diving.
NAVY!!! My first non lurking visitor! I'm doing fine, going to dive with sticks this weekend. You?
I have not done anything since my check dives. Lack of gear is horrible, but I'm reading and trying to talk with and learn from every diver I can.
Doing good! You?
Hey there Navy! How is ya?
"Welcome back my friends, hope your diving never ends. We're so glad you could attend, come inside, come inside!"
-with all respect to Emerson, Lake and Palmer
Diving Info, Certs, Logged Dives


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- Twenty Years of AIDS
- New Federal HIV Treatment Guidelines
- British Doctors Recommend Longer Treatment Deferral
- Treatment Interruptions
- Viral "Blips" Do Not Indicate Treatment Failure
- Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM)
- Dealing with Drug Interactions
- Memory Cells and HIV Eradication
- Genetic Variation May Affect AIDS Progression
- Lipodystrophy Syndrome: Uncertainties Remain
- PLA Injections for Facial Wasting
- AZT/3TC and Vertical Transmission
- Breast-Feeding May Increase Maternal Mortality
- Cesarean Section Morbidity
- Aerobic Exercise Helps People with HIV
- Advances in Hepatitis Care
- Liver Transplants Successful in HIV-Positive People
- Methadone Stimulates HIV Infection in Lab Studies
- Sexual Risk Factors Among IDUs
- Supreme Court Rules Against Medical Marijuana
Twenty Years of AIDS
June 2001 marked the twentieth anniversary of the first medical reports of the disease that would later become known as AIDS. On June 5, 1981, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a report in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report describing a cluster of cases of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) occurring in five gay men in Los Angeles. Within months, more cases of PCP and the rare cancer Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) were reported in gay men in New York City and San Francisco. The new syndrome was labeled gay-related immune deficiency (GRID), and KS was called "gay cancer." But soon, cases were also reported in injection drug users, women, infants, and hemophiliacs, and the disease was renamed acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS. By 1982 it was apparent that the agent that caused the syndrome was transmitted through blood, as well as through sex. In 1983 researchers at the Institut Pasteur in Paris isolated a virus they called lymphadenopathy-associated virus, or LAV; the following year Robert Gallo, M.D., and colleagues in the U.S. discovered a virus they called human T cell lymphotropic virus, or HTLV-III. It later became clear that the two viruses were the same, and it was renamed human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV. Today it is estimated that over 800,000 people in the U.S. and 36 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS and that approximately 22 million have died of the disease.
New Federal HIV Treatment Guidelines
In April the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Kaiser Family Foundation released an updated version of the Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in HIV-Infected Adults and Adolescents. In this version, all changes are in the section "Considerations for Antiretroviral Therapy in the HIV-Infected Pregnant Woman."
In May, the federal government also updated the Public Health Service Task Force Recommendations for the Use of Antiretroviral Drugs in Pregnant HIV-1 Infected Women for Maternal Health and Interventions to Reduce Perinatal HIV-1 Transmission in the United States. The sections on "Antiretroviral Clinical Scenarios," "Recommendations for Monitoring of Women and Their Infants," and "Clinical Research Needs" have all been revised. Both updated sets of guidelines are available online or by calling 800-448-0440.
Also in May, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) released a new manual entitled A Guide to the Clinical Care of Women with HIV (PDF). The 508-page guide, billed as the "first of its kind," is aimed at primary-care physicians and others caring for women with HIV/AIDS. It includes discussions of gynecologic conditions, child-bearing concerns, and social issues unique to women. The guide's editor, Jean Anderson, M.D., of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, said that the new manual will help fill gaps in people's understanding of the disease in women, since "people who did a lot of HIV care didn't necessarily know what were the special issues for women, and providers who did a lot of health care for women didn't know much about HIV." The guide is available online.
British Doctors Recommend Longer Treatment Deferral
British physicians are considering whether to recommend that antiretroviral treatment be delayed longer than advised by current treatment guidelines. This past February, the U.S. DHHS updated its antiretroviral therapy guidelines for adults and adolescents, suggesting that treatment should be offered to people with viral load levels greater than 55,000 copies/mL by RT-PCR assay or 30,000 copies/mL by bDNA assay, or CD4 cell counts less than 350 cells/mm3. The previous guidelines (from May 1999) recommended treatment for people with viral load levels above 20,000 copies/mL (RT-PCR) or 10,000 copies/mL (bDNA), or CD4 cell counts below 500 cells/mm3.
At the 7th Annual Conference of the British HIV Association (BHIVA) held in Brighton in April, proposed new guidelines were presented that recommend starting treatment at even later stages of HIV disease. The BHIVA suggests that therapy should be deferred in persons with CD4 cell counts above 350 cells/mm3, regardless of viral load. The guidelines recommend that physicians should consider treatment for people with CD4 cell counts of 200-350 cells/mm3 if they have a high viral load (above 100,000 copies/mL), a rapid CD4 cell decline, or symptoms of opportunistic infections (OIs). Treatment is still recommended for persons with CD4 cell counts of 200 cells/mm3 or less, again regardless of viral load.
As in the U.S., the desire to delay treatment is prompted by factors such as the side effects of aggressive combination therapy, the difficulty of adherence to complex regimens, and the development of drug-resistant HIV that could lead to fewer treatment options at later stages of disease. Some U.S. physicians have expressed concern over the draft British guidelines. According to W. David Hardy, M.D., of the University of California at Los Angeles School of Medicine, for example, the proposed UK guidelines appear "premature and perhaps too avant-garde."
Treatment Interruptions
Researchers at the April BHIVA meeting presented results of studies showing that structured interruptions in antiretroviral therapy may negatively affect immune functioning. Research presented earlier this year in Chicago at the 8th Retrovirus Conference (CROI) suggested that stopping and restarting treatment on a specified schedule (structured treatment interruption [STI] or drug cycling) appeared to cause little or no harm; HIV remained fully suppressed in persons on a seven-days-on/seven-days-off drug schedule, and participants who continued drug cycling for ten months had "no evidence of damage to their immune systems or the development of resistant strains of the virus," according to National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) researchers. This research cannot be generalized, since the number of participants was very small.
But studies presented in April show that longer and less carefully monitored treatment interruptions may indeed lead to HIV disease progression. M. Poulton, from the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, and colleagues presented results of a study of 38 subjects who stopped treatment for two months or longer; the median length of treatment interruption was 289 days, with a range of 77-1,036 days. During treatment interruption, the participants experienced significant increases in viral load and significant drops in CD4 cell count. Those who had lower nadir CD4 counts (the lowest level ever reached) before starting therapy were at the highest risk of disease progression. The 24 participants who had enough data to do the calculation lost a median of 63 CD4 cells/mm3 per year off treatment. Four participants experienced an AIDS-defining illness during their STI, and 29 experienced some type of clinical event.
C. Burton and colleagues from Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London looked at CD4 cell response during treatment interruption in 15 persons who had temporarily stopped antiretroviral therapy due to side effects, drug toxicity, inability to adhere to the regimen, or other reasons; all had undetectable viral loads when the study started. The researchers used a lymphocyte proliferation assay (LPA) to measure participants' cellular immune response to HIV antigens, and also assessed the production of interferon in response to HIV. After one month without treatment, participants began to experience viral rebound and their CD4 cells showed increased response to HIV antigens. However, after two months without treatment, eight participants experienced viral load rebound to pretreatment levels, decreased CD4 cell counts, and reduced response to HIV antigens. The researchers concluded that while people with HIV may try STIs in an effort to jump-start the body's immune response to HIV, "longer cessation of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) results in loss of regained HIV-1-specific responses." These results help pinpoint what length of treatment interruption is likely to have the most benefit with the least risk. Treatment interruption should only be done under the close supervision of an HIV-experienced physician.
Viral "Blips" Do Not Indicate Treatment Failure
Slight, intermittent increases in viral load in people using HAART do not necessarily indicate that the drugs are not working, according to two studies published in the July 11 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. In the first study, Diane Havlir, M.D., and colleagues from the University of California at San Diego analyzed data from 254 HIV-positive persons taking triple combination antiretroviral therapy; 241 people were followed for a median of 84 weeks (101 were on triple therapy for the entire period), and 13 were followed for 4.5 years. Intermittent viremia was defined as an increase in viral load to over 50 copies/mL, followed by a drop back below 50 copies/mL on the subsequent test. Intermittent viremia was seen in 40% of the shorter follow-up group and just under one-half of the longer follow-up group. In the shorter follow-up group, intermittent viral load increases did not predict eventual treatment failure; ten of 96 participants (10%) who had experienced intermittent viremia went on to experience virologic failure, compared with 20 of 145 participants (14%) who had not had viral "blips." In genetic tests of viral DNA from the longer follow-up group, viral material from seven of the 13 did not show drug-resistance mutations.
In the second study, Robert Siliciano, M.D., and colleagues from Johns Hopkins University examined blood samples from 20 HIV-positive persons (seven children and 11 adults) who had been on standard HAART including a protease inhibitor (PI) for two years or more. The researchers found that combination therapy appeared to inhibit viral mutation even in those who experienced intermittent viral load increases.
Physicians often assume that increases in viral load indicate treatment failure and should prompt a switch to new drugs. The new results suggest that this may not always be necessary. According to Dr. Havlir, "Unnecessary regimen switching may result in disruption of a patient's medication routine, toxic effects from new drugs, and premature discarding of useful drugs." Steven Deeks, M.D., of the University of California at San Francisco, who wrote an accompanying editorial in the same issue, said that based on data from the two studies, "it may be argued that 'complete' viral suppression may not be a prerequisite for durable treatment benefit." However, he cautioned that the results were preliminary, and that the findings appear to apply to those whose combination regimen includes a PI.
Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM)
The issue of therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) was among the hot topics at the 2nd International Workshop on Clinical Pharmacology of HIV Therapy held in early April in Noordwijk, the Netherlands. In TDM, levels of antiretroviral drugs in the bloodstream are measured in an effort to ensure that an adequate amount is available to suppress HIV, and also to help reduce drug toxicities and side effects. The usefulness of TDM in clinical practice is not yet known; two key studies presented at the conference produced conflicting results.
The PharmAdapt study and the Athena study are the first two prospective comparative trials of TDM versus standard care. Results from the PharmAdapt study were presented by P. Clevenbergh, M.D., from Nice, France. This study included 180 participants who had been unable to maximally suppress HIV on a previous antiretroviral regimen; they were prescribed a second regimen with the help of genotypic resistance testing. Participants were randomized into two groups, one of which received TDM while the other received standard therapy without TDM. In the TDM group, drug levels were measured four weeks after starting the new regimen; if TDM showed that drug levels were too low, a dose modification was recommended (this occurred in less than 15% of the participants). After 12 weeks, the PharmAdapt study could not statistically demonstrate that TDM was beneficial; the decreases in viral load level and the percentages with an undetectable viral load in the two groups did not differ significantly.
Results from the Athena study were presented by David Burger, Pharm.D., from the University Medical Center in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. This study involved 600 participants, half of whom were treatment-naive and half treatment-experienced, who were randomized to a TDM or a non-TDM arm. The TDM group received repeated drug level measurements within four weeks of beginning the study, and repeated dosage adjustments if indicated. Dr. Burger presented early data on treatment-naive participants starting regimens containing either nelfinavir (Viracept) or indinavir (Crixivan). The Athena study showed that TDM could significantly improve treatment outcomes. For persons starting indinavir, after six months, 93% of participants in the TDM group had an undetectable viral load compared with 74% in the non-TDM group (using an intent-to-treat analysis in which everyone who started the study was included). After 12 months, the undetectable viral load percentages were 75% and 48%, respectively. For those starting nelfinavir, the undetectable viral load percentages after six months were 95% in the TDM group and 82% in the non-TDM group; after 12 months, the percentages were 81% and 59%, respectively.
The Athena study, which had a much longer period of follow-up, suggests that the real benefits of TDM are most apparent after extended treatment. More research is needed to determine how best to use TDM, including what dose adjustments should be made when measured drug levels are subtherapeutic (too low to be effective).
Dealing with Drug Interactions
Another popular topic at the Workshop on Clinical Pharmacology concerned interactions among drugs. Eighteen presentations at the conference dealt with drug interactions. Among the most notable studies were those on the once-daily use of nelfinavir plus ritonavir (Norvir), and potentially toxic interactions between rifabutin (a tuberculosis drug) and indinavir. Monique DeMaat, Pharm.D., of Slotervaart Hospital in Amsterdam presented results showing that St. John's wort (an herb often used as an alternative treatment for depression) increased nevirapine (Viramune) clearance by up to 35%, potentially leading to subtherapeutic drug levels. French researchers presented data on how the three drugs in a triple combination regimen interact. For a good overview of HIV/AIDS drug interactions -- including types of interactions; interactions commonly seen with nucleoside analog (NRTI), PI, and OI drugs; and charts of specific drug-drug interactions -- see the article entitled "Interactions among drugs for HIV and opportunistic infections," by Stephen Piscitelli, Pharm.D., and Keith Galliciano in the March 29, 2001 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Also at the workshop, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) proposed an expanded research effort and a central database for information about drug interactions, due to the fact that people with HIV/AIDS are often taking many different types of drugs (e.g., to treat mental illness, drug addiction, erectile dysfunction, diabetes, high cholesterol) and alternative herbal remedies -- combinations that in many cases have never been tested in laboratory studies or clinical trials.
Memory Cells and HIV Eradication
In late April, the media widely reported on research by Robert Siliciano, M.D., and colleagues from Johns Hopkins University suggesting that it is unlikely that HIV can be eradicated rather than controlled. In 1997, Dr. Siliciano first found HIV in the memory T cells of HIV-positive people who had an undetectable viral load for two years; fully potent copies of HIV remained in their memory cells even after antiretroviral therapy was started. Memory T cells are long-lived immune cells that "remember" microorganisms that have been previously encountered and allow the immune system to rapidly respond if the same "invader" is encountered again. After five years of follow-up on 50 subjects, Dr. Siliciano reported that their number of memory T cells has remained about the same. The body ordinarily kills HIV-infected cells, but because the latent memory cells appear normal, they are spared. Said Dr. Siliciano, "What HIV has done is tap into the most fundamental aspect of the immune system. ... It's the perfect mechanism for the virus to ensure its survival."
Many scientists are not optimistic that HIV-infected memory T cells -- which die at a very slow rate -- can ever be totally eliminated. Dr. Siliciano estimates that it would take about 73 years for a person's infected memory cells to completely die off, even with anti-HIV treatment. Attempts to "flush out" the hidden HIV by using interleukin 2 (IL-2) to activate the latent memory cells have not been successful. However, David Ho, M.D., of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center in New York, does not believe that the memory cells live that long, but rather that they are constantly replenished. He is currently studying an aggressive four-drug regimen that he hopes will "shut off the supply of newly infected memory cells" and eradicate existing HIV-infected memory cells in a matter of three to four years.
Genetic Variation May Affect AIDS Progression
Research published in the May 31, 2001 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine may help explain why AIDS progression varies so greatly among individuals. Mary Carrington, Ph.D., of the NIH, and colleagues found that a single mutation involving the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) can render a person more susceptible to rapid progression of HIV disease. The MHC is a collection of genes that play an important role in immune defense by determining what microbes a person's immune system can recognize and respond to. The mutation in question is a single amino acid change in the HLA-B*35 molecule that affects viral peptide binding affinity. The researchers examined 850 persons with known HIV seroconversion dates. Those with the HLA-B*35-Px gene variation developed AIDS in about seven years, compared with about 11 years for those with the HLA-B*35-PY variation; the effect was seen in both African-American and European-American persons. The HLA-B*35-Px variation is present in approximately 12% of the population overall. The researchers suggest that the HLA-B*35-Px configuration may be less efficient in presenting HIV to cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs, or killer T cells), since people with this HLA configuration have a poorer CTL response. The discovery could eventually help physicians tailor HIV treatment to specific individuals, with those most likely to progress receiving more aggressive therapy.
Lipodystrophy Syndrome: Uncertainties Remain
Lipodystrophy, lipoatrophy (fat loss), and similar abnormalities related to body fat metabolism and distribution continue to be a major concern for people with HIV/AIDS and their health-care providers. The combined 4th International Conference on Nutrition and HIV Infection and 2nd European Workshop on Lipodystrophy, held April 19-21 in Cannes, France, focused heavily on research in this area.
Conference attendees discussed various theories about the causes of lipodystrophy syndrome and how it is related to antiretroviral drugs, HIV infection, immune restoration, and other factors. Simon Mallal, M.D., from Perth, Australia, reviewed existing data concerning lipodystrophy syndrome, suggesting that various manifestations (such as fat loss, fat gain, abnormal fat metabolism, and abnormal glucose metabolism) should be looked at separately, even though they often occur together in a single person.
An overview of studies to date provides evidence of a strong association between PI drugs and abnormal fat and glucose metabolism; however, the same abnormalities also have been seen in some HIV-positive persons who have never used antiretroviral therapy. Studies of healthy, HIV-negative volunteers have shown that ritonavir can lead to increased cholesterol and triglyceride levels. A study by Mustafa Noor, M.D., and colleagues of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in San Francisco -- which was reported at the conference and published in the May 4, 2001 issue of AIDS -- showed that hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) and insulin resistance were associated with the use of indinavir in HIV-negative men who took the drug for four weeks. Body fat changes were not seen, leading Dr. Noor to suggest that abnormalities in glucose metabolism may be the earliest manifestation of metabolic changes associated with PI drugs.
Dr. Mallal noted that the relationship between lipoatrophy and specific drugs remains unclear. Fat wasting has been seen in persons taking double NRTI regimens, in those taking NRTI/PI combination regimens, and in people who have never taken NRTIs or PIs. Ken Lichtenstein, M.D., presented an analysis of CDC data on fat loss and anti-HIV drug use from eight large U.S. HIV practices. The drugs d4T (Zerit) and indinavir have been most frequently associated with lipoatrophy to date, but Dr. Lichtenstein found that people taking one or both of these drugs who did not have additional contributing factors (e.g., being 40 years of age or older, or being at a later stage of HIV disease) did not develop fat wasting. He concluded that immune restoration may trigger the syndrome in persons predisposed on the basis of age, genetics, or other factors.
Dr. Mallal, Peter Arner, and others reviewed the biology and physiology of adipocytes (fat cells) and discussed how these may be adversely impacted in people with HIV/AIDS. Dr. Mallal noted that adipocytes take in fats and sugar after eating and store them as triglycerides, later releasing them when energy is needed by the body. He suggested that antiretroviral therapy may interfere with the entry of fat into adipocytes, as well as the release of fat from these cells (lipolysis). Arner noted that fat cells not only store nutrients, but also secrete various substances important for normal metabolism; fat tissue in different parts of the body is more or less metabolically active.
Several presenters also looked at mitochondrial toxicity (related to mitochondria, the energy-producing components of cells) -- in particular, how NRTI drugs interfere with mitochondrial DNA (genetic material) -- and how this may contribute to lipodystrophy and related manifestations of the syndrome. Mitochondrial damage is known to be associated with lactic acidosis, in which high levels of lactate (a metabolic byproduct) can lead to organ failure. Kees Brinkman, M.D., Ph.D., from the Department of Internal Medicine at Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis in Amsterdam, discussed data showing that, while lactic acidosis itself is rare in HIV-infected people taking NRTIs, a more mild condition -- hyperlactatemia (high lactate levels) -- may occur in at least 10%. In related research published in the April 13, 2001 issue of AIDS, a study by Andrew Carr, M.D., and colleagues from St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney found that lactic acidemia associated with the use of NRTIs was correlated with osteopenia (moderately low bone mineral density) and osteoporosis (very low bone mineral density). (See more on bone mineral disorders in HIV-positive individuals.)
One presentation suggested that the risk of lipodystrophy syndrome is increased in people with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection. Massimo Galli, M.D., discussed results from an Italian study involving 655 participants, 58% of whom were HIV/HCV-coinfected. The coinfected individuals were almost four times as likely to experience body shape changes than those with HIV alone. This study also showed that women were three times more likely than men to experience fat accumulation, while injection drug users had a decreased risk of body shape changes. Presenters discussed various potential treatments for lipodystrophy and related syndrome manifestations, including human growth hormone (Serostim), anabolic steroids such as oxymethalone (Anadrol) and nandrolone decanoate (Deca Durabolin), antidiabetes drugs such as metformin (Glucophage), and the amino acid acetyl-L-carnitine. Other methods of management include switching antiretroviral drugs and plastic surgery.
PLA Injections for Facial Wasting
For many people with HIV, facial wasting is one of the most disturbing symptoms of lipodystrophy syndrome. A presentation at the 2nd International Workshop on Adverse Drug Reactions and Lipodystrophy, held in September 2000 in Toronto, offered a new option for people with sunken cheeks and temples. The method, developed by French plastic surgeon Patrick Amard, M.D., involves injections of polylactic acid (PLA, or New-Fill), a simple sugar, into the cheeks. In the initial analysis presented last year, 22 of 26 HIV-positive men had successful outcomes using PLA. Follow-up results at 54 weeks were presented at the European lipodystrophy workshop this past April. According to a report by Lark Lands, M.D., in the June 2001 issue of POZ, PLA injections are safe and unlikely to trigger allergic reactions, and give a natural appearance. According to Dr. Amard, the injection of PLA powdered particles triggers the body to produce collagen (a skin protein); direct injections of collagen are also used for facial wasting. People typically require several sessions of injections (depending on the severity of facial wasting), spaced three or more weeks apart. Ice or lidocaine can be used to reduce injection pain, and Dr. Amard says there is no bruising or swelling after the treatment. The new and improved appearance lasts about a year and a half, after which time treatment can be repeated. PLA is currently approved in Europe and Mexico, but not in the U.S. For more information, see www.new-fill.com.
AZT/3TC and Vertical Transmission
According to a study published in the April 25, 2001 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, combination therapy with AZT (Retrovir) and 3TC (Epivir) reduces perinatal transmission from HIV-infected women to their infants, but leads to more side effects in newborns than AZT alone. Laurent Mandelbrot, M.D. and colleagues from the French National Agency for AIDS Research studied 899 HIV-positive women who received AZT monotherapy administered beginning at a median of 23 weeks of gestation and 445 women who received 3TC orally in addition to AZT beginning at 32 weeks; the drugs were also given to the infants after birth. Women receiving AZT plus 3TC had a transmission rate of 1.6% compared with a rate of 6.8% for women receiving AZT alone. The researchers called the 1.6% rate the "lowest rate reported to date in a large prospective study." Controlling for Cesarean sections, the transmission rate with combination therapy was five times lower than the rate with AZT monotherapy.
Blood cell abnormalities -- including anemia (low red blood cell counts) and neutropenia (low white blood cell counts) -- were seen with similar frequency in infants in both groups, but were more severe in the AZT/3TC group. Two infants in the combination therapy group experienced suspected mitochondrial damage and died during their first year. Dr. Mandelbrot and colleagues also noted that 3TC resistance was seen in women taking the two-drug regimen, which may "compromise the future efficacy" of this drug for these women. The researchers concluded that the implications of their study were "unclear," because "the precise relationship between incremental benefit and incremental risk remains to be determined."
Nathan Shaffer, M.D., in an editorial in the same publication, called the AZT/3TC results "impressive," but emphasized the need for close monitoring when the combination regimen is used. Lynne Mofenson, M.D., of the NIH said that current guidelines for pregnant women -- as for most people treated with antiretrovirals -- call for a three-drug regimen. The two-drug regimen under study may have the most relevance for resource-poor areas where treatment to prevent perinatal transmission is started later in pregnancy.
Breast-Feeding May Increase Maternal Mortality
A randomized study of women in Nairobi, Kenya, suggests that breast-feeding by women with HIV may increase the risk of both maternal and infant death. The study results were reported in the May 26, 2001 issue of the Lancet. Ruth Nduati, M.D., and colleagues from the University of Nairobi and the University of Washington studied 425 HIV-infected pregnant women, 212 of whom were randomly assigned to breast-feed their newborn infants and 213 of whom were assigned to feed them formula. Most of the women did not have access to running water or the ability to sterilize infant formula. The women were followed up every month for a year after delivery, then quarterly for a second year. Several of the women in the study were lost to follow-up for various reasons. Of the remaining women, 18 breast-feeding women (11%) died during the two-year follow-up period, compared with six formula-feeding women (4%). The breast-feeding women were more than three times as likely to die, a significant difference in mortality rate. The infants of the women who died were eight times more likely to have died themselves, even after controlling for the infants' HIV infection status.
The researchers suggested various possible reasons for greater mortality among breast-feeding women. The metabolic burden of breast-feeding in women who are poorly nourished may lead to weight loss and "maternal depletion syndrome," a condition in which women do not replenish nutrients lost during pregnancy and breast-feeding. Also, higher levels of the hormone prolactin in women who breast-feed may increase immunosuppression. Further research is needed, especially in light of the fact that an earlier study of over 500 HIV-positive women in Durban, South Africa, did not find an association between breast-feeding and clinical problems in mothers.
Cesarean Section Morbidity
A study by Elisa Josefina Rodriguez, M.D., and colleagues from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta looked at morbidity (illness) related to Cesarean sections in HIV-infected women. The researchers studied 86 HIV-positive and 86 HIV-negative women matched for age and race who had a Cesarean delivery between 1992 and 2000. Minor postoperative complications were seen significantly more often in HIV-positive women (66%) compared with HIV-negative controls (42%); the most common complication was fever. There were also more major postoperative complications in HIV-infected women (9%) than in uninfected controls (3%), but this difference was not statistically significant. Among HIV-positive women, those with higher viral loads were more likely to experience complications than those with undetectable viral loads. The results of the study were published in the May 31, 2001 issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Rodriguez concluded, "Despite our reassuring findings that Cesarean delivery was not associated with major maternal morbidity, caution should be maintained in advocating Cesarean delivery as the standard of care for HIV seropositive mothers."
Aerobic Exercise Helps People with HIV
According to a study in the April 13, 2001 issue of AIDS, HIV-positive persons who exercise regularly experience increased endurance and improved body composition. The study by Barbara Smith, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing and colleagues involved 60 HIV-infected adults. Participants who did aerobic exercise for 12 weeks increased their treadmill endurance time by a minute, lost a mean 3.3 pounds, reduced their fat consumption from 35% to 30% of their total caloric intake, and had improved body mass index (BMI), subcutaneous fat, and waist circumference measurements. They had no significant changes in viral load or CD4 cell count. Concluded Dr. Smith, "Exercise is safe; it will increase endurance, and it will help improve body composition." She said further research should be done to determine the relationship between exercise and lipodystrophy and mitochondrial damage to the muscles. Previous research indicates that aerobic exercise in people with HIV-related wasting can actually accelerate weight loss.
Advances in Hepatitis Care
Two recent announcements heralded advances in hepatitis care. In May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a combination vaccine for hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV). The combination will be marketed under the name Twinrix. In several studies, the combined vaccine was shown to be as effective as the individual vaccines administered separately; use of the combination reduces the number of injections needed from five to three (given on three separate occasions). HAV causes acute liver inflammation, which later resolves, while HBV resolves in most cases but in some people leads to chronic liver disease and liver damage. HAV vaccination is recommended for travelers to developing countries and those who have household contact with HAV-infected persons. HBV vaccination is recommended for sexually active adults and health-care workers; it is now routinely given to all children in the U.S. Although there is no vaccine for hepatitis C virus (HCV), people with chronic HCV are advised to receive HAV and HBV vaccines.
On the hepatitis C front, new study results show that combination treatment with long-acting pegylated interferon (Pegasys or Peg-Intron) plus ribavirin (Rebetol) is more effective than standard interferon plus ribavirin, which is the current standard of care (Intron-A brand standard interferon and ribavirin are sold as a bundled kit called Rebetron). Michael Fried, M.D., and colleagues from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill studied over 1,000 HCV-positive people in 18 countries. People receiving the pegylated interferon combination had a sustained viral response (undetectable HCV viral load six months following 12 months of therapy) rate of 56%, compared with a 45% response rate for those receiving the standard interferon combination. In addition, the side effects of depression and flu-like illness were less frequent in people receiving pegylated interferon. The research was presented at the Digestive Disease Week 2001 conference in Atlanta in May.
Liver Transplants Successful in HIV-Positive People
According to study results presented at the Transplant 2001 conference in Chicago in May, liver transplants can be successfully performed in selected people with HIV. It was previously believed that the immunosuppressive drugs that must be taken following an organ transplant would further damage the immune systems of HIV-positive people. John Fung, M.D., and colleagues from the University of Pittsburgh assessed six HIV-infected people who had had liver transplants since March 1997. The subjects had viral loads ranging from undetectable to over 175,000 copies/mL and CD4 cell counts ranging from 108 to 660 cells/mm3. None had active opportunistic illnesses, and all were on antiretroviral therapy. Two subjects died following transplantation, one from a bacterial infection unrelated to HIV and the other due to liver failure related to chronic organ rejection. The other four did well, with liver function tests returning to normal after starting HAART; because PIs and transplant-related medications can interact, dose reductions were needed in some cases. Said Dr. Fung, "HIV-infected patients can do well after transplantation and they are at no additional risk for opportunistic infection or exacerbating their HIV disease."
Methadone Stimulates HIV Infection in Lab Studies
According to new laboratory studies, methadone can increase the infectivity of certain strains of HIV. Methadone is an oral opiate drug used as maintenance therapy for people addicted to heroin. Wen-Zhe Ho, M.D., of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and colleagues exposed human fetal microglia and macrophages (two types of immune cells that are susceptible to HIV infection) to methadone, then tried to infect the cells with HIV. The researchers found that methadone enhanced infection with R5 strains of HIV -- those that use the CCR5 coreceptor -- apparently because methadone upregulates, or increases, CCR5 expression on cell surfaces, as well as inhibiting the production of beta chemokines that decrease infectivity. The researchers also exposed peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from opiate users to methadone in the laboratory, and found that methadone enhanced the activation and replication of the latently infected cells. Dr. Ho and colleagues concluded that physicians should closely monitor the viral load and CD4 cell counts of persons taking methadone. Dr. Ho presented the study results at the PsychoNeuroImmunology Research Society meeting in May in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Sexual Risk Factors Among IDUs
A study published in the May 5, 2001 issue of the Lancet showed that HIV transmission in injection drug users (IDUs) was "strongly associated" with sexual behavior. It has long been known that sharing needles and other injection equipment can spread HIV through direct blood-to-blood contact, but the recent study suggests that sexual activity plays a major role in the high rates of HIV infection among IDUs. Alex Kral, Ph.D., of the University of California at San Francisco and colleagues administered questionnaires to 1,192 street-recruited San Francisco IDUs. The researchers found that men who have sex with men and inject drugs are almost nine times more likely than heterosexual IDUs to become infected with HIV, and that women IDUs who have traded sex for money are more than five times more likely to contract HIV than other women IDUs. "There has been a tendency for IDU prevention programming to be needle-obsessed, and here in San Francisco that has worked to a certain degree," said Dr. Kral. "Now we need to focus new energy on sexual risk reduction among IDUs, while continuing current programs that address needleborne risks."
In related news, a study presented at the 12th International Conference on Harm Reduction held in April in New Delhi, India, showed that young female IDUs who have sex with other women are more likely to contract HIV than other young female IDUs. The study by Samuel R. Friedman and colleagues of the Institute for AIDS Research in New York City involved 803 women IDUs aged 18-20 in five U.S. cities. Participants were classified as women who have sex with women if they had had sex with a woman in the past six months or self-identified as lesbian or bisexual. Woman-to-woman sex itself is not associated with a high risk of HIV transmission (although there are a few documented cases in the medical literature). However, female IDUs who had sex with women were also more likely to share needles, to trade sex (with men) for money, to be homeless, to have ever been incarcerated, and to have been in a mental health facility. According to Friedman, the researchers believe that "stigmatization and social marginalization" contribute to the higher HIV rates among female IDUs who have sex with women.
Supreme Court Rules Against Medical Marijuana
On May 14, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 8-0 against an Oakland, CA, cannabis (marijuana) buyers club that provided medicinal marijuana to people with a physician's recommendation. Many people use medical marijuana to relieve AIDS-related wasting and to combat nausea caused by anti-HIV drugs and cancer chemotherapy. The case is the outcome of a 1998 federal injunction against the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative and five other Northern California cannabis clubs. Overruling the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court ruled that a medical necessity defense could not be used by organizations dispensing medical cannabis, although a minority of the justices left open the possibility that such a defense might be used by individual patients. The court said that because it is a Schedule I drug (substances that have a high potential for abuse, have no currently acceptable medical use, and lack any accepted safe use under medical supervision), marijuana by definition has "no currently accepted medical use." Justice Clarence Thomas said it would be up to the legislature, not the courts, to change the drug's scheduling. Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) currently has a bill pending to reduce marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II (substances that have a high potential for abuse with a severe liability to cause psychic or physical dependence, but have some approved medical use). The court did not rule on the issue of whether federal law unconstitutionally impinges on the right of states to pass medical marijuana laws; for now, state and federal law remain at odds in the eight states that have passed initiatives allowing for medicinal cannabis.
Liz Highleyman is a freelance medical writer and editor based in San Francisco.
Back to the SFAF BETA Summer/Autumn 2001 contents page.


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Hi All,
I am very new to opengl es as i used to program in opengl earlier.
so need answers to few of very basic opengl es related questions as follows :
Is opengl es just a stripped down version of corresponding opengl version (like opengl es 1.1 ~ opengl 1.5 ) or there can be more additions to this statement/distinction??
Are the internal function calls of opengl es similar to opengl ?
can i run opengl es on VS 2005 on x86 based machine by simply including EGL related files (all the libraries and egl header files)? because my p4 machine runs opengl programs if i include glut file(libs, and .h) and according to my understanding EGL is similar to opengl es as glut is to opengl? Am i right?
or do i need some emulator to run the code on my x86 machine?
Please help me out from these basic setup questions
Thanks in advance,


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It's Valentine's Day.
But I have an awesome boyfriend this year! Suck it, single people! This is the best day of my life!
No, not really. THIS was the best day of my life.
Sigh (of happiness).
But I know you don't read this blog to hear how much better my life is than yours, (which let's face it, prior to THIS, it wasn't. Now it is. Unequivocally. Sorry.) so I'll go back to being the Grinch Who Stole Valentine's Day just for you, my loyal readers, who love the snark.
To be fair, my boyfriend is a former tree-hugging hippie who used to live in the mountains, have a beard, and grow his own vegetables. In fact, if you put some aviators on him in his old pictures, he might have been the Unabomber. Minus that whole letter bomb thing.
But the point is that he doesn't like the idea of a commercialized holiday like Valentine's Day, so we celebrated yesterday, which was our four-month anniversary. So unless he pulls a Kaiser Soze-style trick today and surprises me with flowers/candy/a giant teddy bear/other random crap that Hallmark tells me I need even though I don't, I, as usual, have nothing to celebrate today.
Meaning it's time to trash the hell out of the holiday.
So who was this mysterious St. Valentine and why do we have to celebrate him? As always, when I don't know the answer to a question, I follow six simple steps to ensure that I arrive at the correct answer.
Step 1: Ask my dad. He knows all. He's like the Oracle at Delphi, except he explains things in cryptic physics terms instead of cryptic riddles. So you're more likely to wind up making something explode, less likely to commit patricide and incest, then gouge your eyes out when you ask him a question.
Step 2: Ask Siri. Why? Because my phone is always in my hand and it's easier than typing a question into Google. Duh.
Step 3: Ask my grandma. She doesn't usually know the answers, but she'll always lie and make up a good story, which is usually more interesting than the real version anyway.
Step 4: Bang my head against the wall because my grandma's answer made ZERO sense and she guilt-tripped me about something I didn't even know existed.
Step 5: Take some Advil from steps 3 and 4.
And finally, Step 6: Go to Wikipedia.
My findings?
Step 1: "Dad, what's the meaning of Valentine's Day?"
"[Profanity deleted for sake of keeping my teaching job. But I'll tell you it went on for exactly 18.5 minutes (the exact missing time in the Nixon tapes—coincidence?) and involved many different and creative uses for certain parts of the human anatomy and a goat.] Is that today? Your mother's going to [expletive deleted] murder me!"
"Dad, I already got you a card and sent mom flowers from you*, calm down. I just want to know why we celebrate Valentine's Day."
*Artistic license. I tried to send you flowers mom. I did. But dad went on some crazy rant about how if they wouldn't be there by 3, I couldn't send them. And because I have no control over when flowers are delivered on the busiest flower day of the year, I was told not to do it. I'm sorry. Please don't hurt me.
"Oh. Because billions of years ago, all the matter in the universe was tightly compacted into a really small space until it finally all exploded in what we call the Big Bang…"
This conversation lasted for 97 hours and at that point, we hadn't even made it to the dinosaurs dying yet. It was time to ask Siri.
FAIL. And apparently Siri doesn't understand sarcasm. Or else she was being nasty back when I sarcastically thanked her. What a [expletive deleted].
Okay, time for Step 3. Call Grandma.
Me: "Grandma, why do we celebrate Valentine's Day?"
My Grandma: "I made you cabbage soup."
Me: "Um thanks. I don't really like cabbage soup though. But that's not why I'm calling—"
My Grandma: "What do you mean you don't like cabbage soup? You've never had my cabbage soup! You had it off the back of a truck once!"
Me: "Huh?"
Steps 4 and 5. And a glass of wine. Because that conversation actually happened. And I still have no idea what she was talking about because I'm 100 percent positive that I've never eaten cabbage soup off the back of a truck. And I don't think that has anything to do with Valentine's Day either.
On to Step 6. My old standby. Wikipedia. Which as we all know, is NEVER, EVER wrong. Or getting back together with Taylor Swift apparently.
According to Wikipedia, we celebrate Valentine's Day because this dude, named Valentine (duh) was performing marriages illegally in the year 269 AD. So the Romans came to kill him, but he, in true romantic fashion, beat them to it. He cut his own heart out (which is pretty hardcore if you ask me. I mean, it's one thing to use that weirdo chant from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and pull it out with magic, but CUTTING your own heart out takes real effort), wrote a nice little note to his girlfriend, signed it "From your Valentine," and mailed the note and his heart to her, Van Gogh-style. Then the Romans came and slaughtered his zombie ass, as they should have, because anyone walking around AFTER cutting his own heart out NEEDS to be killed before he eats your brains. Duh again.
So unlike that ungrateful chick who got Van Gogh's cut off ear, Valentine's girlfriend thought this was sweet and romantic and wonderful and made all of her friends super jealous of the fact that HER zombie boyfriend loved her enough to cut out his own heart and mail it to her. Her friends then held out on sex until their boyfriends did the same the following year, and a tradition was born.
However, zombies weren't popular until about two years ago, so Hallmark stepped in and started this paper heart nonsense.
Then the flower, candy, and teddy bear industries got involved to suck the life out of men's wallets worldwide.
It's what's known in the industry as a perfect storm.
But this year, THIS YEAR, zombies are in style! They're more popular than vampires! (Take that you sparkly Twilight [expletive deleteds]!) So men, use this to your advantage! Don't buy in to the Hallmark nature of the holiday! If you love your woman, take some bath salts, go all zombie, and cut out your REAL heart to send to your girlfriend!
And the best part of this plan? It'll work even on years when Valentine's Day falls on Saturdays because the postal service will still deliver packages but not regular mail.
Everybody wins.
Until the zombies overtake us all.
Hmm. Maybe the Hallmark version isn't so bad.
Happy Valentine's Day everyone.


text: Job Discussion Forums :: View topic - French Caribbean - what are my prospects? Get TEFL Certified & Start Your Adventure Today! Job Discussion Forums"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!" FAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Register Profile Log in to check your private messages Log in French Caribbean - what are my prospects? Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> General Caribbean Forum View previous topic :: View next topic Author Message Captain CavemanJoined: 10 Jun 2009Posts: 5Location: UK Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2009 8:32 pm Post subject: French Caribbean - what are my prospects? Hi Im new here... I am contemplating getting a TEFL certificate and I wondered what I could realistically do with it. Im 34, have 10 years experience as a practising lawyer and have recently moved into freelance translation. In the winter I also teach skiing. I am looking for a way to spend time in a francophone country between ski seasons (ie May to November) while still doing my translation work. This means no more than 20 25 hours a week and round-the-clock access to the internet. So my question is: can I realistically do something along these lines with a TEFL certificate and no language teaching experience? I dont care too much about the rate of pay provided that my accommodation is covered. I am posting this in the France, Africa and Caribbean forums - ideally Id like to teach in the French Caribbean but I realize Im already asking a lot... I have a UK passport, BTW. Id appreciate any advice, Thanks, CC Back to top carolynneJoined: 24 Sep 2005Posts: 80Location: Spain Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 10:15 pm Post subject: Me too Let me know if you get anywhere - I'm also curious about teaching there... Back to top eclecticJoined: 09 Nov 2006Posts: 1122 Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 11:33 am Post subject: there are sevral efl schools (private) in cayenne, french guiana. google it. Back to top toadsurferJoined: 16 Aug 2011Posts: 1 Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:12 am Post subject: Hi Caveman I know it's been 2 years since your post so guess you might not be a member of this forum anymore but just in case you are I wondered how you are getting on and whether you did leave the law and do tefl? I'm a lawyer too but also wanting to leave the legal world and give tefl a go so wanted to know how you have found things?? Back to top Display posts from previous: All Posts1 Day7 Days2 Weeks1 Month3 Months6 Months1 Year Oldest FirstNewest First Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> General Caribbean Forum All times are GMT Page 1 of 1 Jump to: Select a forum Where to Begin----------------General DiscussionNewbie ForumCurrent Events ForumTechnology ForumOnline Teaching Forum Africa Forums----------------General Africa Forum Asia Forums----------------CambodiaChina (Job-related Posts Only)China (Off-Topic)Hong KongIndiaIndonesiaJapanMalaysiaPhilippinesSingaporeTaiwanThailandGeneral Asia ForumVietnam Caribbean Forums----------------General Caribbean Forum Europe Forums----------------Czech RepublicFranceGermanyGreeceItalyMacedonia and the BalkansPolandRomaniaRussia & C.I.S.SpainTurkeyUkraineUnited KingdomGeneral Europe Forum Latin America Forums----------------ArgentinaBrazilChileColombiaCosta RicaMexicoMexico (off-topic)PeruGeneral Latin America Forum The Middle East Forums----------------BahrainEgyptIsraelKuwaitOmanQatarSaudi ArabiaUnited Arab EmiratesGeneral Middle East Forum North America Forums----------------General North America Forum Oceania----------------Australia/New Zealand You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot vote in polls in this forum This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling. Contact Dave's ESL Cafe Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved. Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group Teaching Jobs in China


text:
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text:
This package was created by Rubén Rodríguez <firstname.lastname@example.com>
Copyright (C) 2009 the authors
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
On Debian systems, the complete text of the GNU General
Public License can be found in `/usr/share/common-licenses/GPL'.


text:
What? General Plan shocker!! Who saw this coming?
Other than everyone, of course.
We saw it coming, and we're not even smart.
Anyone who thought this board was going to blithely accept the Kirk Girard General Plan Update needs to be issued an encephalitic helmet so he or she can walk down that hall without further injury to the brain. Elections have consequences. The progs flogged the dog on the GPU for more than a dozen years in a process that was, most of the time, laughably fucked, and now they've lost control of the process. This is commonly referred to as the will of the voters, the way of the world. Sometimes one side wins, sometimes another. And anyone who can't hack that basic political fact should go back to working for Ken Miller. He's always just about one idiot shy of a quorum, and it looks like in this case there are two up for grabs.
Filed under: Humboldt County, Local BS | Tagged: General Plan Update Option A Opts Out, Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, Kirk Girard, Kirk Girard Fucks Up Everythign, Mark Lovelace, Progs Flogging the Dog, Rex Bohn, Ryan Sunburg |


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The certainty of cash
Retirement savings accounts keep things refreshingly simple and transparent.
Retirement savings accounts keep things refreshingly simple and transparent. Imagine a superannuation fund that was simple and transparent, with no fees and was guaranteed not to lose money. "Pigs might fly" would be most people's response.But such funds do exist.Retirement savings accounts, or RSAs, are a special type of bank account designed for super savings and pensions. They have been around for more than a decade, and have been given a new lease of life since the global financial crisis."Since the GFC, a lot of people are looking at their super and questioning whether [these accounts are] a good idea. People don't like market risk," says the general manager of strategy at Heritage Bank, Peter Cavanagh.RSA providers have been quick to step into the breach with product innovations including term deposits, pension options and insurance.Last week, Heritage launched an online-only RSA, the Secure Super Account, in response to investors' current preference for the certainty of cash.SIMPLICITY"RSAs seem like a product of the times. They are low-cost, simple to understand, with a known rate of return and no complicated trustee structure," Cavanagh says.RSAs were first introduced in 1997 but in the boom market that followed, investors preferred to chase high returns in market-linked super funds.And the big financial institutions have been reluctant to promote them because they don't generate income from fees.Only one bank, the Commonwealth, offers an RSA the other eight providers are credit unions or mutuals.The RSAs operate under the same rules as super funds in terms of who can open them, contribution limits and taxation.They can accept employer superannuation-guarantee payments, voluntary contributions, rollovers, eligible spouse contributions andco-contributions.Not only are RSAs capital guaranteed so you can't lose money, but unlike other super funds they are protected by the Australian government's guarantee for bank deposits up to $250,000. RSAs also have "small account protection" which means that balances under $1000 are not eroded by fees or charges.FIXED AND VARIABLEThe Defence Bank launched its public-offer RSA two years ago. According to its chief executive, Jon Linehan, the product has been so successful it already represents about 20 per cent of the group's deposit book."We put a highly competitive product in the RSA space because we thought those RSAs that did exist could have paid more [interest]," Linehan says (see story below).As well as fixed and variable rates of interest, the Defence Bank Super Assured RSA was the first to offer a pension product that enables customers to draw down tax-free income on retirement, and it is one of only a few to offer life insurance.Most RSAs charge no entry, management or administration fees but some charge a termination fee for closing the account, which is typically about $40.The Commonwealth also charges a $35 annual administration fee. However, people should always check what fees apply and how they work.An RSA doesn't suit everyone. If you are young and can afford to ride out market volatility, then growth assets such as shares and property will produce better returns than cash in the long run.But RSAs can be a good solution for those near retirement with cash to invest."We get people who have sold investment properties and they put that money in a super account. You can put in up to $450,000 [as an after-tax contribution] every three years," Linehan says.CENTRELINK BENEFITSWhile most super funds have a cash option, a financial planner at Key Solutions Group, Jeremy Rankin, says RSAs are a good alternative for someone nearing retirement who doesn't already have a super fund and doesn't want the complexity of starting one.They are also useful for people on Centrelink benefits with cash to invest, because super is not counted as an asset for Centrelink purposes."The idea that you can go into your local bank branch and open an account is a nice way for people to feel comfortable with a short-term super account."You can put contributions in and, from a cost perspective, you don't need a financial adviser," Rankin says.Howthey rateWhile retirement savings accounts offer cash investments with regular interest payments, they all set their rates in slightly different ways. Most offer tiered variable rates depending on the amount invested some offer fixed rates similar to term deposits and some offer both.For example, the Commonwealth Bank offers variable rates of 2.5 per cent on amounts up to $10,000, rising to 3.05 per cent for more than $50,000. The fixed-term option pays 2.8 per cent for up to two years and up to 3.3 per cent for 5 years.Daniel McDougall from the Australian mutuals peak body, Abacus, says the mutuals' average RSA rates range from 3.08 per cent for amounts up to $10,000 to 3.68 per cent for amounts up to $50,000.Defence Bank was the first to use a term-deposit structure and has found most of its members prefer fixed rates."Our RSA allows people to access term-deposit rates without having to start a self-managed super fund," the head of Defence Bank, Jon Linehan, says.Heritage Bank links returns to the official cash rate. Its new Secure Super Account pays an interest rate equal to the Reserve Bank's official cash rate plus 0.5 per cent, which means it now pays 4 per cent."The Reserve Bank sets rates to tackle inflation so rates go up when inflation is high and most retirees try to beat inflation," a general manager of Heritage, Peter Cavanagh, says.Heritage back-tested its fund over the five years to last December and found that its new RSA would have outperformed not just inflation but the best-performing Australian super fund over that period.


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PENINSULA, Ohio (AP) — Authorities in northeast Ohio say the remains found off a trail in a national park belong to a reported missing teen.
The Summit County Medical Examiner's Office on Wednesday said the remains are those of 19-year-old Taylor Robinson who went missing from Akron in May.
Chief investigator Gary Guenther with the medical examiner's office says the remains will be further analyzed to determine Robinson's cause and manner of death.
Authorities at Cuyahoga Valley National Park between Cleveland and Akron have said a jawbone and other small bones were found Tuesday.
A park service spokeswoman said hikers first spotted the jawbone, and searchers then found additional human remains, including a partial skull.
Chief Ranger Chris Ryan said it's unclear how long the remains had been there.


text: As the diplomatic representative of the State, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides the Guatemalan nationality and ensures compliance of the Migration Legislation. It delineates and preserves the boundaries of the national territory and negotiates and safeguards international treaties and conventions. It also defends the interests of the country and formulates integration and cooperation politics and agreements, among many other functions.


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BayouBob wrote:I'm all in favor of anything that is fun to build, shoot, own or just show off but I can't get a personal like going for AR "pistols." Seems like they combine the worst of all the features and handicaps of a firearm. Too big to handle with one hand, too short a barrel to get good velocity, to unwieldy to aim effectively. More power to those that like them.
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