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M.Ed., Stanford University
Winner of multiple teaching awards
Patrick has been teaching AP Biology for 14 years and is the winner of multiple teaching awards.
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M.Ed., Stanford University
Winner of multiple teaching awards
Patrick has been teaching AP Biology for 14 years and is the winner of multiple teaching awards.
One of the most famous discoveries in Biology is the structure of DNA. Heck even elementary school kids can tell you that DNA is a double helix. But, how many people know that one of the guys responsible, James Watson did it in part as a chance to meet women? He was a young guy and goofy looking. He figured if he could become famous by discovering the structure of DNA, success with women would follow.
So if you want to be successful with whatever gender it is you want to be successful with, you better pay attention to today's lesson.
Now what I'm going to do is I'm going to begin by going through the nucleotides, the little building blocks of DNA. Then I'll continue by describing how those building blocks get joined together, and then wrapped into that double helix. Last, I'll finish off by going through the numbers, the dimensions of DNA.
What are nucleotides? Nucleotides are the building blocks of DNA. Now, interestingly enough, Watson and Crick, or Francis Crick who Watson's partner, they were using a textbook that had the wrong structure for the nucleotides. Because the structures of nucleotides were known long before the structure of DNA was discovered. That mistake in that textbook, slowed them down a lot until finally, a Biochemistry friend of them pointed out what the mistake was. So I'm going to do my best to avoid those mistakes.
So let's take a look at the basic structure of a nucleotide. Now a nucleotide has three components. It has a Phosphate group here, attached to a 5-carbon sugar, often that's called a Pentose for five. A 5-Carbon sugar here. Here we have what's called a Nitrogenous base. Let's go closer in on the Pentose sugar that's in DNAs nucleotides.
The 5-carbon sugar in DNA, which is Deoxyribonucleic acid,, as you might be able to guess, it's Deoxyribose so.
So we see here its got5 carbons 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Now to make it easier to refer to the different parts of the sugar, scientists have actually decided, let's start with the ring. The one thing that's different, is oxygen. So let's make that like 12 on a clock, and we'll go clockwise. So this is Carbon number 1, Carbon number 2, Carbon number 3, Carbon number 4. And the one carbon that's after the ring up here, is carbon number 5.
Now for reasons that I don't quite get, scientists said let's not call it Carbon number 1, let's just call it 1 prime, 2 prime, 3 prime, 4 prime, 5 prime. If you're going to write this, you put a little apostrophe next to the number. So it would be 5'. To make this even less clattered, I left off the apostrophes, because it's just annoying me.
This is Deoxyribose in DNA. You may have heard of that other nucleic acid called RNA. Well, what's the difference in DNA and RNA? Let's take a quick look at the sugar.
We can see here Deoxyribose has the same basic structure. But if you take a look here is ribose, here is Deoxyribose. What's the difference? Chop off this oxygen, that's Deoxyribose. We deoxygenated it.
Here we have 5 carbons with Oxygen on each Carbon, here is Oxygen, here is an Oxygen, here is an Oxygen, here is an Oxygen, and there is an Oxygen. Every Carbon here has an oxygen except for Carbon number two.
Let's go back and take a look at how we assemble the nucleotide around our Deoxyribose. So here we see our various carbons, off of Carbon number 5, that's where we attach phosphate group. So the 5'-carbon has the phosphate group. A lot of times we'll just refer to it as the 5' Phosphate. Where does that Nitrogenous base go? Let's hook it up to Carbon number 1.
So if we take a look, we can see the Nitrogenous space here is attached to that first Carbon, or the 1' Carbon. So when I start talking about how DNA is put together, I'm going to start using these 3', and 5' nomenclatures.
So now I've talked about base, and Nitrogenous base is just a polysyllabic way of saying it's a base. It donates OH groups or absorbs Hydrogen ions that has a lot of Nitrogen in it. There's four kinds of Nitrogenous bases. So let's take a look at those four different kinds of nucleotides that they create.
They're Thymine, Cytosine, Adenine and Guanine. You can see how they're all attached to the 5-Carbon sugar with their Phosphate groups over there. Let's zoom in on the Nitrogenous bases.
Hopefully you saw pretty quickly that there is some significant differences. Two of them; Thymine and Cytosine, have single rings with other stuff arranged around it, while Adenine and Guanine have two of these rings structures with other stuff around it. It's not important for you to memorize the things around here, just know that Cytosine and Thymine, because they're one ring structures, they're classified as Pyrimidines. While Adenine and Guanine, with their two rings, they're classified as Purines.
Now how can you remember that? The simplest way; take a look at the word Pyrimidine. What do you notice? A 'y'. Look at Thymine, what do you see? A 'y'. Look at Cytosine what do you see? A 'y'. Look at Purine, no ys, Adenine no ys, Guanine no ys. So it's 'y', y not. If a three year old can keep track of y and y not, you should too. So Pyrimidines have ys, Purines don't. That's the easiest way to remember.
Now that we know how individual nucleotides are put together, let's see how they get assembled to form that very famous double helix structure. So if we take a look, here is one nucleotide. Remember 5 refers to the 5'-Carbon that the Phosphate's attached to. 3 refers to the 3'Carbon down here. What happens is that, this Phosphate joins up to the OH group here on the 3'-Carbon.
That OH group falls off. Often in this Phosphate we may have Hydrogens attached to it, so we pull off an OH and H, that's forming water. This is why it's called dehydration, we're removing two Hydrogens and Oxygen here. We're removing water. This is called dehydration synthesis.
So we're joining this 5'-Phosphate to that one's 3'-Carbon. It's like doing that conga line. Here is the 5 fingers, and somebody comes up and puts their 5 fingers onto my shoulders. Where my hands are these Phosphate, the next one's putting his 5 prime fingers on my shoulders which are my 3 prime end.
Now, what if I wanted to add another one? Well, I just do that right here. Here I see the next nucleotide comes in, joining its 5'-Carbon to this 3'-Carbon here. So what I'm doing is I'm creating one long strand with the Phosphates and Sugars, forming the backbone with the Nitrogenous bases sticking off like this.
But we know that DNA is not a single Helix like RNA is. Instead it forms a double helix. So let's take a look at that other strand. What happens is that I get one sugar Phosphate backbone on this side, the other sugar Phosphate backbone on that side with the bases pointing at each other.
Now, there is something wrong with this one. What's wrong? It's upside down. Why did that happen? That is the key inside that James Watson came up with. He had been sitting around playing with models. That was one of the things that was unusual about what James Watson did. He skipped straight to using the models and he said data is just confusing. Let's build a model, see if it works and then see if the data matches it.
So to give credit where credit is due, he did come up with some new ways of helping address these problems. What he realized is that, when he turned one of his model of Cytosine upside down and put it up to bind with the Guanine, it wound up being the exact same width as in Thymine turned upside down and joined to an Adenine. So what we'll see is that, with one strand you have your Phosphate on the 5'-Carbon up here, 3'-Carbon down there.
With the other strand, it's oriented in exactly the opposite direction. Now scientists don't like just to say exactly opposite direction, they'll call this anti-parallel. Because you remember from Geometry two lines that are going in the same direction and never touch, are parallel. Well, this is kind of like that, but because there's orientation, they're anti-parallel. So you'll have one strand with the 3' end down here. The other one with the 5' end up there. This one has 3' up, 5'down.
The bases point towards each other in the inside of the double helix. A lot of times if they're doing an essay on DNA structure, talk about how it forms like a ladder, a spiralling ladder, when we do the helix twist, with the sugar Phosphate backbone forming the sides of the ladder, and the Nitrogenous bases forming the ranks.
Now you'll notice these dash lines, those represent Hydrogen bonds; the weak attractions between slightly positive and slightly negative portions of the bases here. You'll see that Adenine forms two Hydrogen bonds to Thymine. Guanine forms three hydrogen bonds to Cytosine. This is called the Base Pairing rules; Adenine to Thymine, Guanine to Cytosine. That was an idea first come up by Erwin Chargaff and its called Chargaff's Rules.
We see here with Guanine to Cytosine is 3 Hydrogen bonds, regions of DNA that have lots of Gs and Cs, will actually be held together. The same distance, but it's a little bit harder to get them to separate, because there's more Hydrogen bonding going on there, as opposed to regions where there is lots of Adenines and Thymines, which has a slightly weaker attraction.
So this is how we form the ladder shape, but why does it twist up? Well, let's take a look at a physical model. Here we see a very simple model of a DNA molecule. Here are my Nitrogenous bases. This happens to be Guanine, this is Cytosine. Here we see an Adenine and Thymine and so on, and so forth.
In this model, these metal rivets represent the sugars, while this part here represents the Phosphate. I've labelled it 3' here, 5' there. Now remember, Phosphates have a strong negative charge. What do negative charges do to other negative charges? They repel. So what's going to happen is that, this Phosphate here is going to try to repel this Phosphate here, which will repel that Phosphate there, and that one there. They're going to try to get away from each other, but they're held to each other. So they can't move this way, but what they can do, is move in three dimensions.
Remember, molecules are not flat, they're in three dimensions. So what happens is that, they start try to squirm away from each other, tightening up until, what's this shape? It's a helix. Now if they tighten up too much, then this one starts getting close to that one, so they will get to a certain point, where it's most stable. And that's like this. That's how a DNA structure or a DNA molecule looks.
An interesting side note about the discovery of DNA dimensions is that, a lot of the data came from the work of a woman by the name Doctor Rosalind Franklin. Now for a variety of reasons, Watson and Franklin didn't get along. So Rosalind Franklin wasn't ready or willing to share her data with Watson. Now it turned out that her major collaborator, or the person whose lab she was working under, was Maurice Wilkins. She also did not get along with him.
Now while Franklin didn't want to share her data with Watson, James Watson was friends with Maurice Wilkins. And at one when he was talking to Maurice, and complaining about Rosalind's unwillingness to share data, Maurice Wilkins showed this picture to James Watson. It was from this picture that he was able to actually figure out the structure of DNA. Now let's take a look at what that was.
So if you look at this picture, if we follow one complete twist of one strand here in this double helix, how many nucleotides is it? Well, let's count it. You'll see 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 nucleotides per twist. That's what we see here; 10 nucleotides, and I've abbreviated nucleotide nt, because it's too long to write. So here we have 10 nucleotides per complete twist. One complete twist is 3.4 nanometers in length. That means that one base along the single strand is 0.34 nanometers. So if we have 10 nucleotides per twist, that's 3.4 nanometers.
Then what's the width? It's always 2 nanometers. That again was Watson's big insight. That if you add an Adenine plus a Thymine, remember Adenine is one of those Purines. It's got two rings. Thymine is a Pyrimidine, it's got one ring. 2 plus 1 is 3. And a Guanine plus a Cytosine. Guanine remember is 2 rings, Cytosine is a ring, so that's again a total of three rings. It turns out that combination gives you a consistent width of 2 nanometers. That's it.
That's the dimensions of DNA. That's what you'll want to vomit up in the middle of an essay on DNA structure. They're probably not going to ask that on the multiple choice, but anything on DNA structure, if you can remember those numbers there, you're going to get one or two more points.
Now remember on an essay, a total possible score of 10 is your maximum. The average score is somewhere between 2 to 4. So just remembering these numbers can get you 50 percent all the way to an average score.
Now you know that DNA is made out of nucleotides with a 5'-Phosphate, and 5-Carbon sugar and one of 4 possible Nitrogenous bases; Adenine, Guanine, Cytosine, and Thymine. You know that they arrange themselves with a 5'-Phosphate of 1 joining to the 3'-Phosphate of the other. They form a long strand. The other strand is oriented in the exact opposite or anti-parallel direction.
Then that twists up into the double helix. You know that the double helix is itself 2 nanometers wide, with a new twist forming every 10 base pairs making one complete twist, 3.4 nanometers long. You also know that the two strands are held together by Hydrogen bonds between the Adenine and Thymine on one side, Guanine and Cytosine as well.
Now one last question to ask yourself, why was Watson so very certain that his discovery of the structure of DNA would help him meet women? Well, it turns out that, I don't want to give it away, but his discovery and Crick's of course, helped lead to the discovery of how DNA copies itself. And also gave us clues that helped us to figure out how our genes are actually coded in the DNA molecule.


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Tyce Greyson visits the Wailing Wall at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The Rabbi says to him:
"Israel is the sign of the end."
Not since the "Left Behind" series has a novel been written like "Revelations" by Terry James of Rapture Ready fame. This riveting [hard to put down] book will take believers on a unique adventure through the coming Tribulation time in a new and fascinating way.
Who would ever imagine that an American TV anchor would see visions while on the air – visions communicated to the viewing audience – visions which come to pass?
"Revelations" is to be released on May 9th. More to come…….

subset: commoncrawl


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WASHINGTON (AP)-- The U.S. governments says it is selling its remaining shares of American International Group stock, moving to close the books on the government's biggest bailout during the 2008 financial crisis.
Treasury says it will sell 234.2 million shares of common stock in a public offering. The government's shares represent a 16-percent ownership stake in the insurance company.
Treasury has already recovered more on its AIG investment that the original $182.3 billion bailout, which was the largest government bailout package.
AIG, which is based in New York City, nearly collapsed at the height of the financial crisis. The company suffered massive losses from exotic financial instruments whose value was based on mortgage securities.


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News | July 19, 2010
Cassini Sees Moon Building Giant Snowballs in Saturn Ring
While orbiting Saturn for the last six years, NASA's Cassini spacecraft has kept a close eye on the collisions and disturbances in the gas giant's rings. They provide the only nearby natural laboratory for scientists to see the processes that must have occurred in our early solar system, as planets and moons coalesced out of disks of debris.
New images from Cassini show icy particles in Saturn's F ring clumping into giant snowballs as the moon Prometheus makes multiple swings by the ring. The gravitational pull of the moon sloshes ring material around, creating wake channels that trigger the formation of objects as large as 20 kilometers (12 miles) in diameter.
"Scientists have never seen objects actually form before," said Carl Murray, a Cassini imaging team member based at Queen Mary, University of London. "We now have direct evidence of that process and the rowdy dance between the moons and bits of space debris."
Murray discussed the findings today (July 20, 2010) at the Committee on Space Research meeting in Bremen, Germany, and they are published online by the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters on July 14, 2010. A new animation based on imaging data shows how one of the moons interacts with the F ring and creates dense, sticky areas of ring material.
Saturn's thin, kinky F ring was discovered by NASA's Pioneer 11 spacecraft in 1979. Prometheus and Pandora, the small "shepherding" moons on either side of the F ring, were discovered a year later by NASA's Voyager 1. In the years since, the F ring has rarely looked the same twice, and scientists have been watching the impish behavior of the two shepherding moons for clues.
Prometheus, the larger and closer to Saturn of the two moons, appears to be the primary source of the disturbances. At its longest, the potato-shaped moon is 148 kilometers (92 miles) across. It cruises around Saturn at a speed slightly greater than the speed of the much smaller F ring particles, but in an orbit that is just offset. As a result of its faster motion, Prometheus laps the F ring particles and stirs up particles in the same segment once in about every 68 days.
"Some of these objects will get ripped apart the next time Prometheus whips around," Murray said. "But some escape. Every time they survive an encounter, they can grow and become more and more stable."
Cassini scientists using the ultraviolet imaging spectrograph previously detected thickened blobs near the F ring by noting when starlight was partially blocked. These objects may be related to the clumps seen by Murray and colleagues.
The newly-found F ring objects appear dense enough to have what scientists call "self-gravity." That means they can attract more particles to themselves and snowball in size as ring particles bounce around in Prometheus's wake, Murray said. The objects could be about as dense as Prometheus, though only about one-fourteenth as dense as Earth.
What gives the F ring snowballs a particularly good chance of survival is their special location in the Saturn system. The F ring resides at a balancing point between the tidal force of Saturn trying to break objects apart and self-gravity pulling objects together. One current theory suggests that the F ring may be only a million years old, but gets replenished every few million years by moonlets drifting outward from the main rings. However, the giant snowballs that form and break up probably have lifetimes of only a few months.
The new findings could also help explain the origin of a mysterious object about 5 to 10 kilometers (3 to 6 miles) in diameter that Cassini scientists spotted in 2004 and have provisionally dubbed S/2004 S 6. This object occasionally bumps into the F ring and produces jets of debris.
"The new analysis fills in some blanks in our solar system's history, giving us clues about how it transformed from floating bits of dust to dense bodies," said Linda Spilker, Cassini project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "The F ring peels back some of the mystery and continues to surprise us."
The late Kevin Beurle was made the honorary first author on this paper because of his contributions in developing software and designing observation sequences for this research. He died in 2009.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The imaging operations center is based at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo.
For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/cassinii and http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov.
Jia-Rui C. Cook 818-354-0850
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Joe Mason 720-974-5859
Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo.
Simon Levey 011-44-20-7882-7454
Queen Mary, University of London


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South African Journal of Science
versión On-line ISSN 1996-7489
versión impresa ISSN 0038-2353
S. Afr. j. sci. vol.106 no.11-12 Pretoria nov./dic. 2010
Characterisation of Shigella species isolated from river catchments in the North West province of South Africa
Constance Wose KingeI; Moses MbeweII
ISchool of Environmental & Health Sciences, North-West University, Mafikeng campus, South Africa. email: firstname.lastname@example.com
IISchool of Agricultural Sciences, North-West University, Mafikeng campus, South Africa
The occurrence and distribution of Shigella species in water from the five river catchments in the North West province of South Africa were investigated. Shigella is a Gram-negative, non-motile, facultative anaerobic bacillus that causes shigellosis, an important cause of morbidity and mortality in high-risk populations (such as children, the elderly and immuno-compromised individuals) that depend on river water. A total of 54 water samples collected in winter (April 2007 to July 2007) and summer (December 2007 to March 2008) were cultured on Salmonella-Shigella agar by the spread-plate method. Suspected Shigella isolates obtained were characterised by primary biochemical (Triple Sugar Iron agar and agglutination) and molecular (polymerase chain reactions, PCR) tests. Amplification of the invasion plasmid gene (ipaH) by PCR was done to confirm the presence of Shigella spp. in water. In total, 214 Shigella boydii, 15 Shigella dysenteriae, 11 Shigella flexneri and 2 Shigella sonnei were confirmed by serotyping in both winter and summer samples. The ipaH gene (606 bp) was present in 176 and 49 of the winter and summer isolates, respectively. The presence of Shigella spp. in water was confirmed with over 90% specificity. The need for more effective management of these river catchments and the provision of potable water and sanitation facilities is needed to minimise the occurrence and transmission of water-borne diseases caused by these and other pathogenic bacteria.
Keywords: polymerase chain reaction; ipaH gene; river catchments; serotyping; Shigella species
Shigella species are Gram-negative, non-motile, non-encapsulated, non-lactose fermenting, facultative anaerobes that are pathogenic to humans.1 Their mode of transmission is usually through the ingestion of contaminated food and water, as well as person-to-person contact.2 The genus Shigella consists of four species and at least 47 serotypes, which include Shigella dysenteriae, Shigella flexneri, Shigella boydii and Shigella sonnei.2,3 They are the major cause of shigellosis or bacillary dysentery affecting, in particular, immuno-compromised individuals, children and the elderly.1 Worldwide, the disease burden is estimated to be 150 million cases, with 1 million deaths per year in the developing world.4 In 2009, the disease burden in South Africa was 1812 cases for both invasive and non-invasive shigellosis, predominantly in children below the age of 5 years.4
Shigellosis is characterised by destruction of the colonic epithelium as a result of an inflammatory response induced upon bacterial invasion of the mucosa.5 Differentiation of Shigella isolates is classically based on serotyping and biochemical assays.1 Antigenic characterisation relies exclusively on their somatic (O) antigens because they produce neither flagellins nor capsular antigens.5 Biosynthesis of the O antigen is carried out by genes located in the galF and gnd clusters. These genes are classified into three different groups, (1) genes for the synthesis of nucleotide sugars specially used as O antigen residues, (2) genes encoding sugar transferases and (3) O unit processing genes normally consisting of O unit flippase gene (wzx) and polymerase gene (wzy).6 Based on their antigenic properties, 46 Shigella serotypes have been recognised but, with the exception of S. boydii, all Shigella serotypes show more than 73% DNA relatedness to Escherichia coli K-12.6,7
Molecular techniques, such as restriction of amplified O-antigen gene cluster loci,7 pulsed field gel electrophoresis, PCR, DNA hybridisation, ribotyping, and multilocus enzyme electrophoresis-mdh gene sequencing and their combinations, have been used to characterise Shigella species.8,9,10,11,12 Several PCR protocols using different molecular markers have been used for the detection of Shigella species and other related organisms in environmental, faecal and food samples.1,2,13,14 The invasion plasmid antigen H (ipaH) gene, a virulence gene whose protein product is necessary for invasion of colonic epithelial cells and also for the detection of Shigella in the environment, was used because it is carried by all four Shigella species as well as enteroinvasive E. coli (EIEC).15
Incidences of shigellosis outbreaks as a result of poor water quality have been reported throughout the world.16 In Sierra Leone, a dysentery outbreak caused by S. dysenteriae type 1 and S. flexneri was reported in the Moyamba and Koinadugu districts. Reports provided by the Ministry of Health gave a total of 3094 cases of shigellosis with 132 deaths from 6 December 1999 to 16 January 2000.16 In 2003, 379 cases of shigellosis and 23 deaths were reported in Paoua and Bazoum, north-west of Bangui in the Central African Republic.17 In that same year, a cholera outbreak was also reported in Monrovia, Liberia, affecting 1857 people.17 A year later, North Darfur (Sudan) reported a shigellosis outbreak caused by S. dysenteriae type 1, with 1340 cases of bloody diarrhoea and 11 deaths.18 South Africa is no exception, with incidences of diarrhoea outbreaks caused by S. flexneri and S. sonnei reported in the Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Northern Cape provinces.19 While shigellosis outbreaks have not been reported in the North West province, the possibility of such an occurrence cannot be underestimated as other water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhoid have been previously reported.16,20,21 Therefore with no available information of shigellosis outbreaks in the North West province, this study aims to create awareness of the presence of Shigella spp. in river water and preparedness for any potential full-blown disease outbreak.
A total of 54 water samples were collected in 500-mL sterile Schott Duran bottles from the major rivers in the Crocodile and Elands, Marico and Molopo, Marico and Hex, Mooi and Vaal, and Harts river catchments in the North West province (Table 1). Water samples were collected from three sites from each river during the months of April 2007 to July 2007 (winter) and December 2007 to March 2008 (summer). Samples were transported to the Microbiology Research Laboratory of the North-West University.
Isolation of Shigella
Ten-fold serial dilutions of water samples were performed using 2% Buffered Peptone water (Biolab, Merck Diagnostics, South Africa). Aliquots of 1 mL of each dilution were cultured on Salmonella-Shigella agar by the spread-plate method.22 Plates were incubated at 37 ºC for 24 h.13 Suspected isolates were picked from culture plates and subjected to further analysis for the identification and isolation of possible Shigella isolates.
Bacterial strains
Shigella boydii strain ATCC® 9207, Shigella sonnei strain ATCC® 25931, Shigella flexneri strain ATCC® 12022 and Shigella dysenteriae strain ATCC® 49345 were used as positive controls.23 Because the ipaH gene is also present in EIEC, E. coli strain ATCC® 25922 was used as a negative control.24
Biochemical characterisation
Triple Sugar Iron agar test
All isolates were characterised using Triple Sugar Iron (TSI) agar to test for glucose, sucrose and lactose fermentation. Bergey's manual of systematic bacteriology25 was used as an identification aid.
Agglutination test
A total of 235 and 287 isolates, for winter and summer respectively, were presumptively identified as Shigella spp. by the TSI agar test and then subjected to serotyping by slide agglutination. Serotyping was done using S. boydii Poly C, C1, C2 and C3; S. dysenteriae Poly A Types 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7; S. sonnei Poly D Phase I and II and S. flexneri Poly B Types I, II, III, IV, V and VI antisera according to the manufacturer's instructions (Davies Diagnostics, Johannesburg, South Africa).
Molecular characterisation
Genomic DNA extraction
Bacterial genomic DNA was extracted as described previously.26 The concentration of the extracted DNA in solution was determined spectrophotometrically (UV Visible spectrophotometer model S-22, Boeco, Germany) at a wavelength of 260 nm and the purity was measured at 280 nm as previously described.27 The integrity of the purified template DNA was assessed by conventional 0.8% (w/v) agarose gel.
Polymerase chain reactions (PCR)
PCRs were performed in final volumes of 25µL, with a reaction mixture containing 0.2µg/µL of the prepared template DNA, 50 pmol of each oligonucleotide primer, 1X PCR master mix and Dnase-Rnase free distilled water (Inqaba Biotechnological Industries Pty Ltd, Pretoria, South Africa). The primers IpaH-F 5-'CCTTGACCGCCTTTCCGATA-3' and IpaH-R 5'-CAGCCACCCTCTGAGGTACT-3' (Inqaba Biotechnological Industries Pty Ltd, Pretoria, South Africa) were used. The amplifications were performed using a Peltier Thermal Cycler (model PTC-220 DYADTM DNA ENGINE; MJ Research Inc., Waltham, MA, USA) under the PCR conditions described previously.28 PCR-amplified DNA fragments were separated by electrophoresis on 1% agarose. A wide-range molecular weight DNA marker (100-bp ladder, Inqaba Biotechnological Industries Pty Ltd) was used on each gel as the standard. The gels were stained in ethidium bromide (0.1µg/mL) for 2 h. PCR products were visualised using a GeneSnap Bio-Imaging System (SYNGENE model GBOX CHEMI HR) and the images captured using image acquisition software version 6. 08. 04.
Based on the TSI agar test, 235 and 287 presumptively positive Shigella isolates were identified for the winter and summer samples, respectively. Among the 235 positive isolates obtained for winter, serological analysis confirmed a total of 168 S. boydii, 11 S. dysenteriae, 9 S. flexneri and 1 S. sonnei. The results indicated the presence of S. boydii and S. dysenteriae in all five catchments, whereas S. flexneri was present in only three catchments and S. sonnei in only one catchment (Table 2). Similarly, of the 287 Shigella isolates identified by the TSI test in the summer samples, serological analysis confirmed the presence of 44 S. boydii, 4 S. dysenteriae, 2 S. flexneri and 1 S. sonnei. The results indicated the presence of S. boydii in all five catchments and S. dysenteriae in two catchments, S. flexneri and S. sonnei were both present in the Mooi and Vaal catchment only (Table 3).
The high S. boydii contamination levels in the winter samples in all catchments are of concern. Levels were as high as 88% and 79% in the Harts and Crocodile and Elands catchments, respectively, whilst levels in the other three catchments were between 50% and 74%. For the summer samples, S. boydii contamination levels were highest (34%) in the Mooi and Vaal catchment followed by the Crocodile and Elands catchment (21%). The level in the Harts catchment was 13% while the Mooi and Vaal catchment and the Marico and Hex catchment recorded less than 10% agglutination each. All 189 and 51 isolates confirmed by serotyping to be Shigella spp. for winter and summer seasons, respectively, were subjected to PCR for the detection of the ipaH gene. The ipaH gene (606 bp) was present in 176 of the winter and 49 of the summer isolates. Figure 1 presents the positive results of PCR detection of the ipaH gene for a few of the isolates collected in summer. The PCR confirmed the presence of Shigella in river water and showed 93% and 96% specificity for winter and summer Shigella isolates, respectively.
Culture methods have traditionally been used to identify Shigella species; however these methods have proved less effective because they only detect a small fraction of the actual number of shigellosis cases, probably because of a low number of causative organisms, competition from other commensal organisms and changes in the ambient temperature during sample collection.15,29 To optimise the detection rates, we focused on the use of conventional serotyping and PCR typing methods to detect Shigella in river waters. In similar studies, the ipaH gene was used as an indicator to detect the presence of Shigella in environmental waters.23,28,30,31 Although the PCR assay is rapid and highly specific, limitations such as false positives or negatives also exist because of the presence of impurities.31 However, DNA extracted from all suspected isolates and control strains used in the study was checked for the presence of any impurity by measuring the optical density at 280 nm and 260 nm. The ratio of the two optical densities was calculated and compared with that of the standard values, the presence of any impurity was thereby eliminated. The PCR assay used was highly sensitive and the presence of Shigella spp. using 0.2µg/µL of DNA was confirmed with over 90% specificity.
Generally, river water harbours a vast majority of enteropathogens derived from municipal sewage discharges, rainfall runoffs from agricultural farms and faecal waste from humans, pets, farm animals and wildlife, because river water is untreated.32 Shigella spp. are sensitive to chlorination at normal levels and can survive for only up to 4 days in river water. In addition, it takes 1 to 2 days to establish a laboratory diagnosis by culture of a patient specimen, making the recovery of Shigella from environmental samples almost impossible.33 However, the findings of this and previous studies2,13 detected Shigella in surface waters and sewage samples, which is an indication that surface waters can possibly transport Shigella strains and that there is a possibility of a continuous source of contamination into the rivers. The detection of Shigella bacteria in the water samples suggests the likelihood of other pathogenic bacteria and confirms the presence of faecal contamination in the river catchments sampled.
Although Shigella bacteria predominantly cause food-borne diseases, shigellosis outbreaks as a result of consumption of contaminated water have also been reported, especially in developing countries with inadequate sanitation facilities.20,21,23 Shigella epidemics spread through contaminated food and water. It is not known what dose of Shigella is necessary to cause disease, but the transmission of the pathogen is believed to be facilitated by a very low infectious dose.34 In the North West province of South Africa, the percentage of households with sustainable access to an improved water source has steadily improved from 78% in 2001 to 97% in 2005.35 However, an approximate 1 million people are still without access to basic water supply mostly those in rural villages, farmlands and informal settlements and still rely on surface water resources, which exposes them to a high risk of contracting water-borne diseases.36
The presence of Shigella spp. in river water, as demonstrated by this and other studies, is significant and may be of public health concern. The chromosomally located multicopy virulence gene, ipaH, which is also known for its role in producing invasive characteristics, was found in all of the Shigella strains identified. Therefore, PCR screening of environmental samples for the ipaH gene should provide a better indicator of the possible presence of Shigella. We have previously shown37 that river water in the North West province is a possible route of human contamination with pathogenic bacteria such as Shigella, by direct or indirect consumption of river water through its use for recreation, domestic and agricultural purposes. The need for more effective management of these river catchments and the provision of potable water and sanitation facilities is needed to minimise the occurrence and transmission of water-borne diseases.
1. Penatti MPA, Hollanda LM, Nakazato G, et al. Epidemiological characterization of resistance and PCR typing of Shigella flexneri and Shigella sonnei strains isolated from bacillary dysentery cases in Southeast Brazil. Braz J Med Biol Res. 2007;40(2):249258. [ Links ]
2. Theron J, Morar D, Preez M, Brözel VS, Venter SN. A sensitive seminested PCR for the detection of Shigella in spiked environmental samples. Water Res. 2001;35(4):869874. [ Links ]
3. Kingombe CI, Cerqueira-Campos ML, Farber JM. Molecular strategies for the detection, identification, and differentiation between enteroinvasive Escherichia coli and Shigella species. J Food Prot. 2005;68:7549-7553. [ Links ]
4. Keddy K. The group for enteric, respiratory and meningeal disease surveillance in South Africa. Communicable Disease Surveillance Bulletin [serial online]. May 2010;8(2):2527. [ Links ]
5. Parsot C. Shigella spp. and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli pathogenicity factors. FEMS Microbiol Lett. 2005;252(1):11-18. [ Links ]
6. Liu B, Senchenkova SN, Feng L, et al. Structural and molecular characterisation of Shigella boydii type 16 O antigen. Gene. 2006;380:46-53. [ Links ]
7. Coimbra RS, Grimont F, Grimont PAD. Identification of Shigella serotypes by restriction of amplified O-antigen gene cluster. Res Microbiol. 1999;150:543553. [ Links ]
8. Rompré A, Servais P, Baudart J, de-Roubin M-R, Laurent P. Detection and enumeration of coliforms in drinking water: Current methods and emerging approaches. J Microbiol Methods. 2002;49:3134. [ Links ]
9. Rolland K, Lambert-Zechovsky N, Picard B, Denamur E. Shigella and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli strains are derived from distinct ancestral strains of E. coli. Microbiol. 1998;144:26672672. [ Links ]
10. Pupo GM, Karaolis DK, Lan R, Reeves PR. Evolutionary relationships among pathogenic and non-pathogenic Escherichia coli strains inferred from multilocus enzyme electrophoresis and mdh sequence studies. Infect Immun. 1997;65:26852692. [ Links ]
11. Pupo GM, Lan R, Reeves PR. Multiple independent origins of Shigella clones of Escherichia coli and convergent evolution of many of their characteristics. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2000;97:1056710572. [ Links ]
12. Lee TM, Chang CY, Chang LL, Chen WM, Wang TK, Chang SF. One predominant type of genetically closely related Shigella sonnei prevalent in four sequential outbreaks in school children. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2003;45:173181. [ Links ]
13. Moganedi KLM, Goyvaerts EMA, Venter SN, Sibara MM. Optimisation of the PCR-invA primers for the detection of Salmonella in drinking and surface waters following a pre-cultivative step. Water SA. 2007;33(2):195201. [ Links ]
14. Faruque SM, Khan R, Kammuzzaman M, et al. Isolation of Shigella dysenteriae type 1 and S. flexneri strains from surface water in Bangladesh; comparative molecular analysis of environmental Shigella versus clinical strains. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2002;68(8):39083913. [ Links ]
15. Thiem VD, Sethabutr O, Seidlein L, et al. Detection of Shigella by a PCR assay targeting the ipaH gene suggests increased prevalence of shigellosis in Nha Trang,Vietnam. J Clin Microbiol. 2004;42(5):20312035. [ Links ]
16. World Health Organization (WHO). Considerations in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of environmental health interventions. WHO/SDE/WSH/00.10. Geneva: WHO; 2000. [ Links ]
17. World Health Organization (WHO). Quantifying selected major risks to health. The world health report 2002. Geneva: WHO; 2003. [ Links ]
18. World Health Organization (WHO). Evaluation of the costs and benefits of water and sanitation improvements at the global level. WHO/SDE/WSH/04.04. Geneva: WHO; 2004. [ Links ]
19. National Institute for Communicable Diseases. Diarrhoeal disease outbreak-school trip. Communicable Diseases Communiqué. 2008;7(10):12. [ Links ]
20. National Department of Health. Cholera outbreak in Mpulanga, Issues: Cholera. Archive of cholera updates. C2003 [cited 2003 Dec 31]. Available from: http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/reports/2003/cholera/mpumalanga.html [ Links ]
21. Outbreak Report, Department of Health. Diarrhoea and typhoid outbreak in Delmas under control. Department of Health, September 2005. Available from: http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/pr/2005/pr0926.html [ Links ]
22. Standing Committee of Analysts. The microbiology of drinking water 2002. Part 7: The enumeration of heterotrophic bacteria by pour and spread plate techniques. Methods for the examination of waters and associated materials. London: Environment Agency; 2002. [ Links ]
23. Wang R-F, Cao W-W, Cerniglia CE. Phylogenetic analysis and identification of Shigella species by molecular probes. Mol Cell Probes. 1997;11:427432. [ Links ]
24. Lu J-J, Perng C-L, Lee S-Y, Wan C-C. Use of PCR with universal primers and restriction endonuclease digestions for detection and identification of common bacterial pathogens in cerebrospinal fluid. J Clin Microbiol. 2000;38(6):20762080. [ Links ]
25. Garrity GM, Boone DR, Castenholz RW, Bergey DH. Bergey's manual of systematic bacteriology. 2nd ed. New York: Springer, 2001. [ Links ]
26. Doyle JJ, Doyle JL. A rapid total DNA preparation procedure for fresh plant tissue. Focus. 1990;12:1315. [ Links ]
27. Sambrook J, Fritsch EF, Maniatis T. Molecular cloning: A laboratory manual. 2nd ed. New York: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; 1989. [ Links ]
28. Kong RYC, Lee SKY, Law TWF, Law SHW, Wu RSS. Rapid detection of six types of bacteria pathogens in marine waters by multiplex PCR. Water Res. 2002;36(11):28022812. [ Links ]
29. Taylor WI, Schelhart D. Effect of temperature on transport and plating media for enteric pathogens. J Clin Microbiol. 1975;2:281286. [ Links ]
30. Obi CL, Bessong PO, Momba MNB, Potgieter N, Samie A, Igumbor EO. Profiles of antibiotic susceptibilities of bacterial isolates and physico-chemical quality of water supply in rural Venda communities, South Africa. Water SA. 2004;30(4):515520. [ Links ]
31. Rompré A, Servais P, Baudart J, de-Roubin M-R, Laurent P. Detection and enumeration of coliforms in drinking water: Current methods and emerging approaches. J Microbiol Methods. 2002;49:3134. [ Links ]
32. Arvanitidou M, Kanellou K, Vagiona DG. Diversity of Salmonella species and fungi in northern Greek rivers and their correlation to faecal pollution indicators. Env Res. 2005;99:278284. [ Links ]
33. Eaton AD, Clesceri LS, Rice EW, Greenberg AE, editors. Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 21st ed. American Public Health Association, Washington, DC. 2005; p. 118119. [ Links ]
34. Shears P. Shigella infections. Ann Trop Med Parasitol. 1996;90:105114. [ Links ]
35. Northwest Province Environment Outlook. A report on the state of the environment, 2008 [homepage on the Internet]. No date [cited 2010 Aug 24]. Available from: http://www.nwpg.gov.za [ Links ]
36. Northwest Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment. Development of an ambient environmental monitoring programme for the Northwest Province, 2007. Report to the Northwest Province Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment. Northwest Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment (NWDACE), 2007. [ Links ]
37. Wose Kinge CN, Ateba CN, Kawadza DT. Antibiotic resistance profiles of Escherichia coli isolated from different water sources in the Mmabatho locality, Northwest Province, South Africa. S Afr J Sci. 2010;106(1/2):1-6. [ Links ]
Postal address:
Department of Biological Sciences, School of Environmental & Health Sciences
North-West University, Mafikeng campus
Private Bag X2046
Mmabatho 2735, South Africa
Received: 08 Apr. 2010
Accepted 28 Aug. 2010
Published: 11 Nov. 2010
Correspondence to: Constance Wose Kinge
This article is available at: http://www.sajs.co.za
© 2010. The Authors. Licensee: OpenJournals Publishing. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.


text:
Joan Didion once wrote, concerning the time in her life when her burgeoning journalistic renown sharpened her own equally growing state of personal disconnection, "Once in a while I even answered letters addressed to me, not exactly upon receipt but eventually […] 'During my absence from the country these past eighteen months,' such replies would begin." Her epistolary dodge seems apropos to me now, after a 4-year unplanned blogging hiatus in an era when there are no longer any legitimate excuses for being out of touch. The heroic, pathological motto of our age is technological connectivity. But the relation of connectivity to actual connection is more intangible. As it turns out, walking away from one's blog was relatively easy, given the surplus of competing screens.
If it weren't for some strategically placed security questions, set randomly in the distant past, this post would have remained a glimmer of private thought, given that the passwords for my pseudonymous accounts were long forgotten, washed away in the wave of other passwords, login names, and profile pages of "the real me." That said, this really isn't a post-mortem, although I am not convinced, do not yet know, that it composes a return either. Perhaps more descriptively, this is a return to a treasured, forgotten place. It is reassuring to see that the electronic matrix of the interwebs has kept everything here (barring spam comments) neat and tidy, just as I left it, as if I had quickly stepped out for a coffee or a pack of cigarettes and not, as indeed what did happen, that I became distracted by other things, some important but many inconsequential (viz. Facebook).
In returning to the blog, and thinking through what blogging meant to me in a particular space and time in the second half of the aughts, I recognize a fleeting, fragile, yet tangible electronic community in extremis. This contingent society enabled me to think through the then-recent calamitous events in my professional life as I began what I once sardonically called my second (professional) marriage, connecting me to a pixilated group of like-minded scholars and writers whose own reflections (on their blogs and in their commentary) complemented my own disparate thoughts in productive and fruitful ways (something I share with others). Returning after so long to this place, I also see that the blog provided a forum for some pretty good writing (here, here, here, here, and here), as well as the context for a rigorous and regular writing practice on a wide range of topics: professional development, teaching, academic social norms, pop culture, cultural politics, and deeply personal reflection, in particular several meditations on place.
A compelling aspect of this anthology over the course of three active years is the change in my narrative voice, from sassy, campy, and wise-cracking to sober and introspective, with a seriousness that towards the end bordered on brooding. Part of this shift was the growing awareness of a committed readership, including readers who knew my real identity. But I also find that the blog's writing mirrored my own deeper movement into the profession, from acolyte to priestess. And it is this movement deeper into the structure of the professoriate that continues to challenge me. One attains the ostensible markers of professional accomplishment, even as the profession itself mutates into different creatures and forms. The total effect is really to keep one guessing, constantly questioning the parameters of success, performance, and accomplishment.
To wit, my tenure and promotion did not bring with it the anticipated rush of relief, although obviously I was happy to achieve it. Many of my thoughts on this entrance into the true mysteries of the profession are captured in this recent piece on Reassigned Time 2.0. I would add that, for myself, tenure and promotion did not lesson my general professional anxiety and deep distrust of institutions. If anything it heightened it, in ways I am still dissecting. Constructing a convincing narrative of one's evolution is always a tricky process, although we keep to the shibboleths we have learned in our training, repeating them like a mantra in the face of a world increasingly marked by chaos. This blog forms a personal archive of my years of struggle and wonderment as an assistant professor: one possible index to a once and future self.
But for the moment, back in this beloved and abandoned place, I savor most the memory of friendship and camaraderie that came together here evanescently, for a brief while.


text:
Former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling says he poured much of his personal fortune into his Providence video game company — and that apparently included a stash of gold coins.
In February, the day after 38 Studios released its first game, Schilling posted 3,200 gold coins — worth roughly $5 million at current prices — as collateral for a loan from Bank Rhode Island in Providence, according to financing statements filed in Massachusetts.
The documents do not specify the size of the bank loan or its intended purpose, and the only debtor listed on the forms is Schilling, not his company. However, in an interview with the Providence Journal, published this week, Schilling said his investment in 38 Studios totaled $50 million, including $12 million in loans that he personally guaranteed.
The 1-ounce coins, some 200 pounds of South African Krugerrands, Canadian Maple Leafs, and American Eagles, were stored at Coins 'N Things Inc. in Bridgewater, according to the documents. Also known as CNT Inc., the metals dealer is one of the largest distributors of coins for the US Mint.
Coins 'N Things declined to talk about its relationship with Schilling. Bank Rhode Island said it could not comment.
However, the collateral was posted at an important period for 38 Studios. The firm released its first game, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, on Feb. 7; Schilling posted the coins as collateral the next day.
The game received good reviews and sold 1.2 million units in the first 90 days but apparently did not sell well enough to solve the company's cash crunch.
38 Studios's financial condition worsened rapidly, culminating with the May 24 layoff of its entire workforce — roughly 400 workers — after it was unable to make payroll or receive additional aid from the state of Rhode Island. The company had already burned through $49 million it received from loans that were backed by the state, which is now on the hook for repayment.
One of the more bizarre twists in the company's meltdown involved its efforts to belatedly make a $1.1 million payment to the state it had missed on May 1. After first trying to give the state a check that had insufficient funds on May 17, the company paid the government the next day.
The money was apparently advanced to 38 Studios by an investor who was planning to buy state tax credits the company anticipated receiving, according to what Schilling told the Providence Journal.
New public documents filed this week show that 38 studios put up $6.5 million in tax credits as collateral to obtain an advance from a company called Row 1 Productions LLC, in Beverly Hills, Calif. But since Rhode Island has refused to provide the tax credits to 38 Studios it is unclear how Row 1 Productions will be repaid.
The Los Angeles law firm that filed the collateral notice for Row 1 Productions did not respond for comment. Row 1 Productions could not be reached.
The firm has previously financed major movie deals, according to a news release.
Schilling has repeatedly declined the Globe's requests for comment. However, in his most recent posting on Facebook, the former baseball star seemed increasingly resigned to the possibility his company may be dead.
"I thank God to have blessed me with five years of memories,'' Schilling wrote on Thursday afternoon. "l'll never forget and a world that will never be forgotten, and greatly missed."
In the Providence Journal interview — his only extensive public comments to date — Schilling accused Governor Lincoln Chafee and other state officials of sabotaging 38 Studios by reneging on a promise to provide the company with more than $8 million in tax credits it believed it was owed, and refusing to give it more leeway to skip the $1.1 million payment or pay it late. Schilling was also upset Chafee publicly questioned 38 Studio's viability.
So far, there has been no indication 38 Studios plans to sue the state, Chafee said Wednesday.
William M. Dolan, a litigation partner for the Boston law firm Brown Rudnick, said a court challenge would be difficult for Schilling if he does not have proof the state violated a binding agreement on the tax credits.
"The burden of proof is on the plaintiff," Dolan said. "If he's got a written contract signed by a authorized official, that's one thing. But I suspect he doesn't."
Globe staff writer Andrew Caffrey contributed to this report. Todd Wallack can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow him on Twitter @twallack.


text:
Washington, DC - Nine in 10 adults who drink too much alcohol are not alcoholics or alcohol dependent, according to a new study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in collaboration with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The study appears today in the CDC journal Preventing Chronic Disease.
Excessive drinking includes binge drinking (four or more drinks on an occasion for women, five or more drinks on an occasion for men); consuming eight or more drinks a week for women or 15 or more drinks a week for men; or any alcohol use by pregnant women or those under the minimum legal drinking age of 21.
Alcohol dependence is a chronic medical condition that typically includes a current or past history of excessive drinking, a strong craving for alcohol, continued use despite repeated problems with drinking, and an inability to control alcohol consumption.
"This study shows that, contrary to popular opinion, most people who drink too much are not alcohol dependent or alcoholics," said Robert Brewer, M.D., M.S.P.H., Alcohol Program Lead at CDC and one of the report's authors. "It also emphasizes the importance of taking a comprehensive approach to reducing excessive drinking that includes evidence-based community strategies, screening and counseling in healthcare settings, and high-quality substance abuse treatment for those who need it."
The study found that nearly 1 in 3 adults is an excessive drinker, and most of them binge drink, usually on multiple occasions. In contrast, about 1 in 30 adults is classified as alcohol dependent. The rates of alcohol dependence increase with the amount of alcohol consumed. About 10 percent of binge drinkers are alcohol dependent, while 30 percent of people who binge frequently (10 or more times a month) are alcohol dependent.
Excessive alcohol use is responsible for 88,000 deaths in the U.S. each year (including about 3,700 deaths from alcohol dependence), and cost the U.S. $223.5 billion in 2006. These deaths were due to health effects from drinking too much over time, such as breast cancer, liver disease, and heart disease; and health effects from drinking too much in a short period of time, such as violence, alcohol poisoning, and motor vehicle crashes.
Excessive drinkers who are dependent often need specialized or more intensive treatment to change their behavior. People who drink too much, but are not dependent, can still be encouraged to drink less through state and local interventions that increase the price and limit the availability of alcohol. In addition those who are not dependent may be candidates for other clinical interventions, including screening and counseling offered by doctors and other health professionals.
CDC and SAMHSA scientists analyzed data on 138,100 U.S. adults aged 18 years and older from all 50 states and D.C. who participated in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) in 2009, 2010, or 2011. The survey includes a wide range of questions on substance use, including current drinking, binge drinking, average alcohol consumption, and symptoms of alcohol dependence.
The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends several evidence-based strategies to reduce excessive drinking, including increasing alcohol taxes, regulating alcohol outlet density, and holding alcohol retailers liable for harms resulting from illegal sales to minors or intoxicated patrons. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening and counseling for excessive drinking for all adult patients. This service is covered by most insurance plans, and can also be delivered by computer or telephone.
For more information about excessive drinking, including binge drinking, and how to prevent this dangerous behavior, visit the CDC's Alcohol and Public Health website at http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/index.htm. Members of the public who are concerned about their own or someone else's drinking can call SAMHSA's National Helpline at1-800-662-HELP to receive assistance from the Treatment Referral Routing Service.


text:
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text:
- Adventure
- Blog
Best American Adventures: Boulder Hueco Tanks
We've just updated our popular America's
Best Adventures feature with 50 new trips, bringing our grand total to 100 iconic escapes (see the map, state-by-state list, and photo gallery, too). So no matter what your pleasure—hiking,
heli-skiing, surfing, climbing, biking, or paddling—we've got the perfect adventure
for you. Check in each day for a new, out-the-backdoor adventure highlighted here on our blog.
By Kate Siber; Photograph by Bobby Model, National Geographic
It's the climber's equivalent of Mecca: Every winter, between
November and March, thousands of climbers from across the world make
the pilgrimage to Hueco Tanks, an 860-acre (348-hectare) bouldering
area outside El Paso, Texas, with more than 2,000 problems—and
counting. It's renowned for its dry, sunny weather, bombproof igneous
rock, and fantastical rock formations that make for endlessly
challenging climbing.
Though the problems get
as hard as V15—picture holds the size of a housefly on an overhanging
rock—the beauty of Hueco Tanks is that there's such an abundance,
variety, and concentration of problems that a veteran and a newbie can
challenge themselves within spitting distance. The atmosphere,
therefore, is decidedly inclusive and laid-back. Whether you arrive
with friends or solo, seasoned or brand-new, you're virtually
guaranteed a personal cheering section.
A large
part of the experience is staying at the ten-acre (four-hectare) Hueco
Rock Ranch, a campground, guesthouse, pro shop, and gathering spot
where climbers often camp for months. It's an immersion into
come-as-you-are climber culture: Each night climbers of all stripes
break out instruments, fire up the grill, and gather around a bonfire.
Keep an eye out for familiar faces: Here, the woman who just offered
you a beer could very well be climbing legend Lynn Hill.
Need to Know: Hueco Rock Ranch (www.huecorockranch.com)
offers camping for $5 per person per night as well as services like a
kitchen, showers, and guided bouldering tours. Private rooms are $30
per person and shared bunks are $20 per person. Discounts are available
for extended stays.
- Nat Geo Expeditions


text: Back The Importance of Eating Together as a Family Eating together as a family has many benefits not only for you, but also for your children. Despite today's fast-paced lifestyle that seems to include more drive-throughs and diners than dinners at home, people still believe that this traditional practice is important. One recent study showed just why people believe eating as a family can be so valuable. Researchers surveyed 107 parents of 8- to 10-year-old children and found that parents believe eating together offers family members better nutrition, makes them feel closer-knit family, and provides a great opportunity for conversation. A surprising benefit of eating as a family A recent large-scale study published in the journal Pediatrics noted a somewhat unexpected but extremely positive benefit of sitting down as a family to have dinner together. This lifestyle habit may actually help to fend off childhood obesity. In 2005, researchers analyzed data on nearly 8,550 American children who were 4 years old. They looked at the obesity levels among the children and how that rate was affected by three everyday routines that are traditionally thought to be healthy for children: eating dinner as a family more than five times a week, sleeping for at least 10.5 hours each night, and watching less than two hours of television on each weekday. Overall findings showed that 18 percent of all children in the study were obese. But in children who weren't exposed to any of the three healthy routines, the obesity rate shot up to 24.5 percent. On the positive side, the researchers noticed that children's chances of obesity declined if they were exposed to any of those healthy traditional routines, and the decline was greater with the addition of each additional good-for-you behavior. Children whose lifestyle included all three routines had a significantly lower rate of obesity—just 14.3 percent. Another way to look at the numbers is that children who got adequate sleep, watched less TV, and ate as a family six times a week or more were nearly 40 percent less likely to be obese than kids who didn't experience any of these routines. Researchers aren't exactly sure about the specific connection between eating as a family and childhood obesity rates, but one thing is certain: Eating together clearly has several positive benefits for the health of everyone in the family—a great reason to consider skipping the fast food lane and preparing a healthy meal for the whole family at home. Parents from the survey who recognized the benefits of eating together also mentioned that they do face time and organization hurdles to putting healthy meals on the table. One suggestion that may help is to divide the responsibilities for planning and preparing meals among mom, dad, and the kids to get everyone more involved and interested in family dinners.


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Human rights offer a vision of international justice that today's idealistic millions hold dear. Yet the very concept on which the movement is based became familiar only a few decades ago when it profoundly reshaped our hopes for an improved humanity. In this pioneering book, Samuel Moyn elevates that extraordinary transformation to center stage and asks what it reveals about the ideal's troubled present and uncertain future.And the advance reviews:
For some, human rights stretch back to the dawn of Western civilization, the age of the American and French Revolutions, or the post-World War II moment when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was framed. Revisiting these episodes in a dramatic tour of humanity's moral history, The Last Utopia shows that it was in the decade after 1968 that human rights began to make sense to broad communities of people as the proper cause of justice. Across eastern and western Europe, as well as throughout the United States and Latin America, human rights crystallized in a few short years as social activism and political rhetoric moved it from the hallways of the United Nations to the global forefront.
It was on the ruins of earlier political utopias, Moyn argues, that human rights achieved contemporary prominence. The morality of individual rights substituted for the soiled political dreams of revolutionary communism and nationalism as international law became an alternative to popular struggle and bloody violence. But as the ideal of human rights enters into rival political agendas, it requires more vigilance and scrutiny than when it became the watchword of our hopes.
"A most welcome book, The Last Utopia is a clear-eyed account of the origins of `human rights': the best we have."-Tony Judt, author of Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945Moyn discusses the book in the current issue of The Nation.
"Human rights have always been with us - or so their most zealous supporters would have us believe. With surgical precision and forensic tenacity, Moyn reveals how recent and how contingent was the birth of human rights and how fraught has been its passage from 1970s antipolitics to present-day political program."-David Armitage, author of The Declaration of Independence: A Global History
"The Last Utopia is the most important work on the history of human rights yet to have been written. Moyn's search for origins reads like a great detective story as he carefully sifts the evidence of where and when human rights displaced alternative political ideals. "-Paul Kahn, Yale University
"With unparalleled clarity and originality, Moyn's hard-hitting, radically revisionist, and persuasive history of human rights provides a bracing historical reconstruction with which scholars, activists, lawyers and anyone interested in the fate of the human rights movement today will have to grapple."-Mark Mazower, author of No Enchanted Palace: The End of Imperialism and the Ideological Origins of the United Nations
"In this profound, important, and utterly original book, Moyn demonstrates how human rights constituted a new moral horizon and language of politics as it emerged in the last generation, a novel and fragile achievement on the wreckage of earlier dreams. A must read. "-Nikhil Pal Singh, author of Black is a Country
"Anyone who truly cares about human rights should confront this bracing account. "-Jan-Werner Müller, Princeton University


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TurbineTheater.com is for sale
is for sale
Seller's notes about TurbineTheater.com
Dear Visionary Entrepreneur,
As one of the smartest business minds, you know a truth that eludes so many others: your business's branding and online presence are everything.
If this premium domain has caught your eye, it's because you see the vast potential for growth within your grasp.
The steady stream of organic traffic. The power of an authoritative brand. The credibility that comes with a premium domain. This isn't just a domain—it's the powerhouse that will catalyze your business's true potential.
Think about what you're sacrificing without this golden asset. Every dime and minute you waste on stopgap marketing fixes could be put into building a legacy that that'll skyrocket you from "Who's that?" to "How'd they do that?"
Why not break free? One investment—that's all it takes. You're swapping continuous financial leakage for a one-time fee that says, "I've arrived, now move over."
Let's break it down:
— Time Is Money: So why squander it on failed campaigns when you can solidify your brand with a domain that does half the job for you?
— Zen and Profits: Sleep like a baby knowing your brand's not just known, it's trusted.
— No More Pocket Change: Kill the cash burn and invest in something that doesn't just take, but actually gives back.
Tick-tock. This isn't a forever offer. You think you're the only visionary prowling around this digital real estate? People are knocking on this door left and right. It's a seller's market in a buyer's world.
So, are you ready to be that game-changer or will you watch as another visionary takes the lead? Time to make the call, captain.
We've got your back
We get these questions a lot
Your burning questions about domain sales, answered.
How does your domain ownership transfer process work?
No matter what kind of domain you want to buy, lease or rent, we make the transfer simple and safe. It works like this:
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You will find the available purchasing options set by the seller for the domain name TurbineTheater.com on the right side of this page.
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Our transfer specialists will send you tailored transfer instructions and assist you with the process to obtain the domain name. On average, within 24 hours the domain name is all yours.
Step 3: Now that the domain is officially in your hands, we pay the seller.
And we're done! Unless you require our assistance. Our transfer team is available for free post-transfer assistance.


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Puerto Princesa
What to do in Puerto Princesa
Puerto Princesa, the main city of the Palawan province, is best known for its natural beauty. The subterranean river is especially impressive, though the fantastic white-sand beaches are probably the bigger draw. Shaded by nodding palms and swept by gentle waves, they create quite the idyllic destination.
As a city, Puerto Princesa has a lot more to offer than most major destinations in Palawan. Within the Insta-worthy landscape, you'll find a pretty good dining scene, a few places to party in the evenings, together with a modest selection of cultural attractions to check out.


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He Knows Us
"I know him, that he will command his children" (Gen. 18:19).
God wants people that He can depend upon. He could say of Abraham, "I know him, that he will command his children . . . that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken." God can be depended upon; He wants us to be just as decided, as reliable, as stable. This is just what faith means.
God is looking for men on whom He can put the weight of all His love and power and faithful promises. God's engines are strong enough to draw any weight we attach to them. Unfortunately the cable which we fasten to the engine is often too weak to hold the weight of our prayer; therefore God is drilling us, disciplining us to stability and certainty in the life of faith. Let us learn our lessons and stand fast. –A. B. Simpson
God knows that you can stand that trial; He would not give it to you if you could not. It is His trust in you that explains the trials of life, however bitter they may be. God knows our strength, and He measures it to the last inch; and a trial was never given to any man that was greater than that man's strength, through God, to bear it.


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Sainsinsurance.com is owned and operated by Veronica Sain, a licensed agent broker from of Tennessee
MEMPHIS, TN, October 17, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ — Since launching in August 2020, Sainsinsurance.com has went from only offering term and whole life insurance, in one state, to offering it in six states (Georgia, Missouri, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, & Texas).
In addition to marketing life insurance from the website, Sainsinsurance.com also offers short term medical, limited health insurance (health reimbursement), all in one life/health memberships, health discount savings plans, dental coverage with a maximum benefit of $6,000 per year, vision, retirement planning, Medicare supplements, home insurance, as well as pet insurance.
The home insurance coverage offered through the platform caters to luxury home buyers, with a minimum value of $175,000 and a replacement cost of $250,000. Real estate agents from within the state of Tennessee are welcome to get a quote on new constructions or existing home. The carrier will insure many issues, automatically, that usually have to be added on, in a policy, by endorsement…..for an extra fee. The pet insurance can give pet lovers benefits to cover veterinarian fees and treatments, with ease.
The agent website is set up for instant quoting options on most all of the insurance products displayed. Applying for coverage is easy and can be done from home or over the phone.
Veronica has over 18 years experience in the insurance business and is licensed in life, health, accident, property, and casualty insurance. Veronica offers health, dental, vision, short term medical, limit health reimbursement, Pre- Medicare & Medicare supplement insurance, health membership plans, health discount savings options, as well as home insurance within the state of Tennessee. She offers whole and term life insurance coverage within Tennessee five other states (Georgia, Missouri, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas).
For the original version of this press release, please visit 24-7PressRelease.com here


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Holiday Cottages with sailing nearby in Paphos region
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Kotsias Villas with Pool in Paphos Cyprus
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Man Finds Nearly $100K in Desk Purchased on Craigslist, Returns Cash
A Connecticut man who purchase a $150 desk on Craigslist accidentally discovered it was worth a whole lot more when he took it apart and found a bag stuffed with nearly $100,000 behind one of the drawers.
Noah Muroff, a teacher and rabbi at a private New Haven high school, said he had no choice but to dismantle the desk in order to get it to fit through his doorway.
It was during this process that the bag of cash suddenly appeared.
"Without detaching the desk, this money, which was behind the drawers, was totally inaccessible," Muroff told CNN.
He and his wife Esther sat down to count the loot, and were shocked to discover they had inadvertently stumbled onto a fortune. $98,000 to be exact.
But the Muroffs say they never considered holding on to it, and immediately contacted the desk's original owner to inform her of their find.
"She was so shocked and touched that anyone would call," Muroff told ABCNews.com. "She said, 'You could have kept the money and nobody would have ever known.'"
The money had apparently come from an inheritance the owner received, which she believed had been misplaced around the house and would eventually turn up.
Despite all the signs that he was meant to experience this windfall, Muroff arrived at the opposite conclusion.
"We both agreed that this is not our money," he said, referring to his wife. "If God wants us to have $98,000, he'll make sure to give it to us in some other way."
So together with his four children, Muroff went back to home outside New Haven where he had picked up the desk in order to drop off the cash.
He did not leave empty handed: For his trouble, Muroff was refunded the $150 he had spent on the desk.
The owner also handed Muroff a touching note, which he shared with the Jewish news portal Voz Is Neias:
I cannot thank you enough for your honesty and integrity. "I do not think there are too many people in this world that would have done what you did by calling me. I do like to believe that there are still good people left in this crazy world we live in. You certainly are one of them.


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Breaking News: Federal Court Restores Protections for Great Lakes Wolves, Ends Trophy Hunting and Commercial Trapping
This afternoon, we received the very welcome and far-reaching news that a federal judge just issued an order requiring that sport hunting and trapping of wolves in the Great Lakes region must end immediately, in response to our legal action. This comes just six weeks after voters in Michigan soundly rejected a trophy hunting season in the state and also rejected the idea of a seven-member group of political appointees making decisions about whether wolves should be hunted, trapped, or hounded.
The HSUS filed suit in 2013 to overturn a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decision that removed Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves living in the western Great Lakes region, which includes Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The decision to strip wolves of protection threatened the fragile remnants of the gray wolf population by confining wolves to a small area in the Great Lakes region—where state politicians and agency officials have rushed forward with reckless killing programs that threaten wolves with the very same practices that pushed them to the brink of extinction in the first place.
In the short time since federal protections have been removed, trophy hunters and trappers have killed more than 1,500 Great Lakes wolves under hostile state management programs that encourage dramatic reductions in wolf populations. Wisconsin had announced plans to cut what was an 800-member wolf population to just 350 animals, and it authorized trapping, hounding, and trophy hunting to get there. In fact over 80 percent of the wolves this year alone were cruelly trapped
In its 111-page ruling, the court chided the USFWS for failing to explain why it ignored the potential for further recovery of wolves into areas of its historic range that remain viable habitat for the species. The court also noted that the USFWS has failed to explain how the "virtually unregulated" killing of wolves by states in the Great Lakes region does not constitute a continued threat to the species.
Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin lawmakers all rushed to set up killing programs for wolves. In fact, the Michigan legislature passed three separate laws to designate wolves as a game species, in its zeal to allow the state to authorize a trophy hunting and trapping season for wolves, and to undermine a fair election by Michigan voters on wolf hunting. It was only the referendums that we launched that prevented a much larger body count in that state, avoiding the bloodletting that we saw in Minnesota and Wisconsin. A series of stories from M-Live, a consortium of newspapers, laid bare that Michigan lawmakers relied on false stories about wolves to push through a hunting season. The lead sponsor of the hunting program had to apologize on the Senate floor for misleading statements.
Today's ruling renders null and void the Michigan legislature's efforts earlier this year to force a wolf hunt, despite the people of Michigan's opposition. And it locks down the trapping and hounding and trophy hunting programs in the other Great Lakes states that left so many wolves dead and packs disrupted. A recent, peer-reviewed study from researchers at Washington State University, looking at 25 years of data, reveals that random killing of wolves, as these states permitted, actually increases the chance of wolf depredations on livestock.
Today's ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia follows another ruling by the same court in September that rejected the USFWS's decision to delist wolves in the state of Wyoming. The HSUS was also a plaintiff in the Wyoming litigation.
The HSUS simply wouldn't tolerate this slaughter of wolves, so we stepped up at the ballot box and in the courts to turn it around, and that's exactly what we've done.


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Friday, April 28, 2006
Nigella, again: fried halloumi with chilli drizzle
Firstly - and mistakenly - I tried it as a sliced cheese on my bread, but found it too squeeky and rubbery, with no proper taste. I then tried it as saganaki, and liked it a bit more. My current favourite way with halloumi is to simply dry-fry it on a frying pan. Heating halloumi slices turns them deliciously soft inside with just a bit of squidge going on. They are wonderful on slices of baguette, for instance. If I want something spicier, I make this simple cheese dish - again by Nigella, this time from the December 2003 issue of Waitrose Food Illustrated. Very slightly modified, as I didn't have any fresh chilli in the house.
Pan-fried Halloumi with Chilli
(Praetud halloumi-viilud)
Serves 4 as a nibble, or 2 as a light meal
250 grams halloumi cheese, sliced not too thinly
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
half a lemon
Mix chilli flakes with oil.
Heat a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat (no oil!). Fry halloumi slices for 2 minutes on each side, until the cheese has golden brown speckles all over them.
To serve, put cheese onto small plates, drizzle with chilli oil and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Serve with some salad and bread.
14 comments:
- Alanna Kellogg said...
I had the same experience using it in cheese -- NOW I know what to do the next time! Hmmm. Maybe this weekend.
- 2:18 pm, April 28, 2006
- amyjames said...
Mmm. I love halloumi!
It's the main food item that makes me covet one of those ridged cast iron grill pans.
Your photo is making me salivate in an embarrassing manner . . . and it looks so summery.
- 2:24 pm, April 28, 2006
- Kalyn Denny said...
I first read about this type of cheese on a British food blog, and I haven't ever seen it here. It sounds like something I would really like.
- 3:42 pm, April 28, 2006
- shaz said...
looks yum! thanks for sharing
- 6:50 pm, April 28, 2006
- Thredahlia said...
Huvitav nimi ja kirjeldus sel juustul. On see midagi laplaste leibjuustu ehk küpsetatud juustu sarnast, mis ka krudiseb hamba all, vahel praetakse, soomalsed söövad murakamoosiga ja laplased ise panevad isegi kohvitassi?
- 7:03 pm, April 28, 2006
Hi Pille!
I have always wanted to make this. I love Nigella's recipe.
Well done!
- 11:38 pm, April 28, 2006
Sounds good, will give it a try. By the way bit short notice but there is a Food Festival in North Berwick tommorrow which might interest you? (About 30 minutes train ride from Edinburgh, trains go at half past every hour I think). North Berwick also has some nice beaches and Tantallon Castle and Seacliff beach are both worth a visit if you have a car (Both about 3 miles from North Berwick) Anyway here is the Food festival info:
The North Berwick Food Festival will take place in a giant marquee on Sunday 30th April (May holiday weekend) on Anchor Green (opp the Seabird Centre) from 12 noon to 5pm.
Following its successful debut at the Seabird Centre last autumn, this will be the first of a series of Food Festivals this year. It is being organised by Slow Food UK, headed up by John Tiller, who lives in North Berwick. The Slow Food Association was originally set up in Italy as an antidote to fast food and is all about rediscovering the pleasures of natural produce. Scotland has a rich natural larder and East Lothian is home to an emerging source of specialist producers and suppliers, many still relatively unknown. The festival will bring together some of the best of these for the festival with some 20 individual stands featuring food and drink to try, taste and buy on the day.
The companies taking part range from Ballencrieff Bacons and hams to Belhaven Smokery's trout and salmon, Geoge Hood's local honey to Trusty Crust's home made organic breads, specialist cheeses from Cheasy Peasy to Seafood and specialists food and drink from The Fisherman's ktichen, Brodie's of Musselburgh's hand made chocolates to Luca's delicious icecream, wines, spirits and liqueurs from Locketts and fragrant coffees and teas from Howdah to whisky tasting from Glenkinchie. A veritable feast. There will also be activities to keep the children happy, including a quiz and face painting. Entry will be 50p which includes entry to the free prize draw with lots of delicious food and drink to be won.
- 7:37 pm, April 29, 2006
- Valentina said...
I am a very big fan of halloumi myself. I first had it in the UK in a Greek restaurant in Bayswater. They used to make this wonderful sandwich on pitta bread and lettuce, fresh tomates and onion using toasted halloumi. So delicious. As there are a few good greek delis on Moscow Rd, still in Bayswater, I got a bit addicted to them. Nowadays I use my local supermarket as I have moved outside London but the halloumi is still good. In Brazil we have a similar cheese - in texture and taste, widely used in the northeast - Queijo de Coalho.Am I waffling too much?!?
- 1:22 pm, May 01, 2006
- Pille said...
Ak - beware - the squeeky-squidgy halloumi cheese can be very addictive. I think I eat it on a weekly basis now!
Amyjames - a ridged grill pan would be nice indeed, but there are so many other 'I-absolutely-need-to-have' items on my list, that a grill pan has to wait. Non-stick pan does the trick just fine, thou...
Kalyn - have you checked the Greek/Gypriot shops in your neighbourhood? They may stock halloumi..
Shaz - you're welcome!
Thredahlia - sarnasus leibjuustuga on täiesti olemas, kuigi halloumit magustoitudes ei kasutata. Nüüd tuli mul leibjuustu isu peale;( Pean paluma järgmisel nädalal saabuval külalisel tuua:)
Ivonne - I am yet to try Nigella's recipe that 1) doesn't work or 2) I don't like. She's truly a Domestic Goddess:)
Mark - thanks for popping by. It would have been nice to come along, but a friend of mine arrived from Estonia today and I had to pick her up and show her around a bit. Another time. Hope the event was a success!
Valentina - you're definitely not waffling too much:) It's interesting to learn that there is a similar cheese in Brazil. Any suppliers in the UK that you know of? The pita-halloumi sandwich you describe sounds also wonderful.
- 1:51 pm, May 01, 2006
- Alanna Kellogg said...
very addictive? make that VERY addictive ... I cooked up a few slices when my Dad was here on Monday and we both devoured them! I just love that salty-ish melty-ness. Yum! (And 2 slices to go ...)
- 4:03 pm, May 03, 2006
- Pille said...
AK - thank you for the feedback! I actually had some for dinner again last night, right after reading your comment:)
- 2:36 pm, May 04, 2006
- Jane said...
That looks delicious! I just bought a cookbook on cheese yesterday. One recipe that I'll be trying and posting over at my food blog is one for roasted red peppers with halloumi, toasted pine nuts and spinach.
- 9:08 pm, January 14, 2008
Very interesting. I will just (as a native) correct you in that proper halloumi is a mixture of lamb and goat's milk, not cow milk. My advice would be to grill halloumi cheese and quickly eat while still hot!
- 7:02 pm, May 19, 2010
- Vega Honours Class Durban said...
Sounds delicious :) thanks for the great idea!! my moms about to go try it out.
- 10:15 pm, October 16, 2010


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Two years after the first Olympic Marathon and one year after the inaugural Boston Marathon, Saucony footwear is founded by four young men: William A. Donmoyer, Thomas S. Levan, Walter C.C. Snyder and Benjamin F. Reider. The company took its name from Saucony Creek which flows next to the original factory in Kutztown, Pennsylvania.
Saucony is manufacturing over 800 pairs a day from their small two-story brick factory in Kutztown, after their shoes become popular. Meanwhile, Abraham Hyde, a Russian immigrant cobbler, opens a small shoe shop in Cambridge Massachusetts. This single shop would eventually become Hyde Athletic Industries.
Saucony launches the world's first high-performance running shoe, the 7446 spike, to meet the demands of serious athletes. Until the launch of the model, dedicated running shoes didn't exist, despite the popularity of running which had grown significantly in the first half of the century.
Saucony's shoe line faces increased competition from upstart brands such as Nike and Reebok. In order to compete, the company found a new home in the stable of Hyde Athletic Industries, which had grown to become one of the largest manufacturers of footwear in the United States and buys Saucony.
The company is awarded "best quality" footwear brand by Consumer Reports Magazine. This results in an upswing in sales for the brand with revenue hitting $27 million by the end of 1978 and the brand becomes a favourite amongst pro runners.
Despite increasing sales, profits are squeezed by stiff competition and the fact Saucony's products are manufacturing in the US. By the end of the decade, it was decided that to survive the company would have to move component manufacturing to Asia but keep final assembly in the United States.
Saucony launches the Trainer 80, which eventually comes to epitomise 80s running shoe style. It's one of the first running shoes not to feature a cardboard layer between the sole and upper, for a softer and more comfortable feel.
The Saucony Jazz is launched and quickly picks up awards for its quality. Already a known force with serious athletes, Saucony breaks through into mainstream awareness as a high quality sports shoe brand and the Jazz goes on to become one of its most popular models.
Saucony launches the DXN Trainer, designed by legendary runner Rod Dixon. After years of refusing to endorse or sponsor professional athletes, Saucony also partners with its first brand ambassador, NFL superstar O.J Simpson.
Saucony releases the Shadow Original and expands rapidly due to the increased popularity its shoes. As a result, the company opens a new head office and research facility in Peabody, Massachusetts. This facility would later become the Saucony Performance and Innovation Center.
Keen to expand its product line, the company acquires the children's footwear brands Brookfield and PF Flyer. This brought the popular Keds sneaker, the most popular post-war children's footwear brand, into the family.
Due to the continued success of the Saucony brand, Hyde Athletic Industries changes its name to the Saucony Shoe Company. It releases the Shadow 5000 sneaker which pushed boundaries at the time for running shoe construction.
The Jazz 3000 shoe is awarded both "best buy" and "top rating" by Consumer Reports Magazine. This saw a huge surge in orders with the number of outlets stocking the brand increasing by almost 25% in a single year.
Saucony launches the iconic Grid SD, the first model to feature the brand's innovative GRID cushioning system. Still popular, the model has been reissued in a range of materials and colourways to meet the demands of present day customers.
In order to cope with increased orders for its products, Saucony retools its Bangor Maine manufacturing facility, increasing capacity threefold. By the end of the year, sales had surpassed $100 million for the first time.
By the mid-nineties the company was on the acquisition trail again, snapping up the popular Quintana Roo brand which manufactures professional triathlon and cycling shoes along with wetsuits and swimwear.
Saucony launches the Kilkenny XC Spike. This revolutionary running shoe combines lightweight construction with ultra-durable materials to produce a high-performance XC shoe that fits like a slipper.
In an effort to combat the childhood obesity crisis, Saucony launches the Run for Good Foundation. To date, this has raised over $1 million dollars for charities which help kids commit to an active and healthy lifestyle.
One of Saucony's earliest collaborations is with New York streetwear brand Alife, which sees the release of three Shadow 6000 models. The two brands would collaborate on further releases in the coming years.
Saucony launches the Kinvara running shoe which uses a revolutionary lightweight construction to provide exceptional ride and comfort for the runner. The shoe pioneers a revolutionary 4mm heel-to-toe drop that goes on to transform the entire running shoe market.
Saucony collaborates with Boston based store Bodega to release the 'Polka Dot' pack, featuring Grid 9000 and G9 Shadow 6 models.
Saucony collaborates with New York streetwear store Extra Butter to release the 'Space Race' pack, which includes special edition versions of the popular Grid 9000 and Shadow Master. Over the coming years Saucony releases a growing number of collabs and limited edition of its classic models.
Saucony launches a new cushioning system for running shoes called EVERUN, which is designed to return more energy to runners by placing an extra cushioning layer above the midsole, directly below the foot.
Applying insights gained from the Saucony Performance and Innovation Center, heel-to-toe drops are lowered across the core Saucony running range from 12mm to 8mm.
Saucony launches its Stride Lab app which recommends a series of customised exercises and drills to runners to help them to improve their performance.Shop Saucony


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Today's students have a variety of choices when it comes to higher education. They can enroll in traditional "brick-and-mortar" colleges or in online colleges, or even complete their degrees through a combination of both modes, in what are called "hybrid" programs. Though there has been controversy over the validity of online education, some studies show that the results of online courses are similar to those of face-to-face instruction. Now, even high profile universities such as Harvard and Stanford have initiated their own online programs.
If you are trying to decide whether online or traditional college is right for you, it may be useful to consider the following features of each format:
Online Colleges
- Many online courses offer synchronous sessions, in which students and professors meet online at a predetermined time, but most online courses are asynchronous, meaning that students access course material and participate in class activities on their own schedules. This allows students to maintain their work and family commitments with more flexibility than is available at traditional colleges.
- Course materials, such as lectures, discussion boards, and emails, are recorded and always available, so if you miss any information or require more explanation, you can survey the material again.
- Though net tuition costs differ depending on the school, online programs typically decrease the associated costs of college, such as commuting, housing, and course materials. With rising student loan debt now greater than credit card debt, any opportunity to reduce total costs is beneficial.
- Contrary to popular myth, online programs can be just as demanding as any other form of higher education. Students develop internal motivation and refine their communication and technological skills through their online work. They have to meet deadlines and demonstrate specific standards of achievement, just like students at traditional schools.
Traditional Colleges
- Regular face-to-face class meetings offered by traditional schools provide the structure that many students need to complete their assignments on time. Some argue that this also encourages greater accountability among students, who have to deal in person with faculty and other students.
- Students at traditional colleges can have the full campus experience, including living in a dorm and becoming more independent and meeting and living with a variety of different people. The sense of community created by extracurricular activities often leads to productive networking after graduation.
- Traditional colleges offer more direct interaction with faculty, which many students find helps them learn more effectively than communicating via computer.
- Traditional colleges are often more highly regarded due to a combination of long-term accreditation and historic achievements. Walking the same halls and sitting in the same seats as some of America's greatest scientists, artists, and political leaders conveys a sense of intellectual legitimacy that is unquestioned by employers.
Both online and traditional higher education has pros and cons. In the end, it is up to each individual to figure out how much time he or she will have to devote to earning a degree, what type of degree program he or she is interested in, and how much he or she can spend on education. For some, online programs are a perfect fit. Those who need a more structured learning environment, though, should try a traditional college degree program instead. However, it is also possible to have the best of both worlds in a hybrid program, in which some of your courses are online and some face-to-face. It's also possible that individual courses themselves may contain both elements of interaction. The choice will depend on a student's individual academic needs.