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Scotty Nelson, co-founder of OTM gts his well deserved black belt from none other than the Pipe Layer himself, Jeff Glover.
Scotty has been training for over 17 years now, so this has been a long time in the making. In addition to forming OTM back in 1997, Scotty has also been a dedicated mat rat since the start. Scotty has travelled around the world both learning and spreading the art he loves. He's worked hard, trained hard, and partied hard with all of us all over the globe. He's also been a savage competitor at times as well. DEspite the Playboy facade, Scotty is one of the most generous people I have met, one of the early sponsors of this sport and often quick with both encouragement and knowledge to everyone he's encountered.
Cade Nelson, Scotty's brother and long time OTM contributer also received his gi brown belt from Jeff Glover. Cade also has a Black Belt from Eddie Bravo in the 10th Planet System.
Scotty's Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt goes nicely with his black belt of the night!
Congrats to the Nelson brothers and thanks for everything you have done for Jiu Jitsu!


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Jordan Spieth showed up in Hawaii three years ago hopeful that a new year would be more of a continuation than a fresh start. Back then, he was coming off two majors, five victories, the FedEx Cup and he was No. 1 in the world.
He's in a different spot at the Sony Open.
Spieth went through an entire year without a trophy for the first time as a pro. He didn't have even a mathematical chance at the FedEx Cup because he didn't make it to the Tour Championship for the first time. Spieth starts the year at No. 17.
So is this a fresh start or a continuation?
In his case, a little of both.
"Thinking of something as a fresh start, that you can throw away some of the struggles from last season, is beneficial," he said Wednesday. "But I was doing really good work as the season went on where I was focusing my work, which was in the putting. So I don't want to necessarily wash all that away. I was doing the right stuff. It's then just a continuation of that work as I start to dial it in more and more.
"So yes and no," he concluded. "I guess mentally, yes. But physically, no."
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He wasn't even sure he was coming to Oahu until a few weeks ago. Spieth wasn't eligible for the winners-only field at Kapalua. He got married over Thanksgiving weekend, which cut into a typical schedule of preparations for the new year. His expectations aren't as high as they might be.
"Just after Christmas," he said of his decision to play the Sony Open. "I had a good day practicing and said, `All right, I'm going.' A couple of days after that it was, `Dang it, I'm not ready.' Couple of days after that, `Yeah.' I'm really glad I'm here, whether it goes well or not."
The Sony Open starts Thursday as the first full field of 2019, with 23 players who were at the Sentry Tournament of Champions last week. That includes Justin Thomas, who won at Waialae two years ago by opening with a 59 and breaking the PGA Tour's record for 72 holes with a 253 total.
Patrick Reed also is in the field, the first time Reed and Spieth have been in the same tournament since the Ryder Cup, remembered as much for the European victory as Reed blaming Spieth for them not playing together in France. Spieth and Thomas went 3-1 as partners, while Reed and Tiger Woods went 0-2.
"I was a bit surprised," Spieth said about Reed's post-Ryder Cup comments. "It didn't bother me. I was just like, `Whoa.' There was nothing lead up to that ... nothing told me that was going to happen."
He doesn't expect any awkward moments, even if they're paired with each other at some point. Reed generally gets along well with everyone inside the ropes, though he tends to practice by himself.
"It's not like he's ever been extremely cordial to individuals, anyway," Spieth said. "I don't think anything will be any different. ... I don't think anything will change with how we've talked to each other. It will be interesting if we're competing on Sunday, what will be talked about outside of us. Between us, it won't be anything extra than what there always is, which is peers trying to win a tournament."
Spieth wants to win, more than anything else. And it really doesn't matter who he beats.
His last victory was the British Open in 2017, the third leg of the career Grand Slam. His putting stroke got away from him early last year, and about the time he sorted that out, the long game was no longer reliable. More than not winning, Spieth rarely contended.
In his 23 events at stroke play, he missed the cut five times and finished at least 10 shots out of the lead at nine other tournaments.
And still was a fraction away from being a great year. He clipped a tree on the 18th hole at Augusta National with a chance to win another green jacket, and he had a share of the 54-hole lead at the British Open.
"If I play 18 and make birdie at Augusta and end up winning that day, then all of a sudden it's looked at as one of the best years I've had in my career, and it's all a difference of one hole," he said. "That's where you start look at it like ... what can you get caught up in? I still had the opportunity to win two majors last year, which is the idea I want every year."
Spieth does have one concern starting the new year. He already figured out he can't play effectively while wearing his wedding ring.
"It's just my putting," he said. "When I'm cross-handed, kind of jams into my grip. Unfortunately, that means I'll probably lose some rings."

subset: commoncrawl


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Stephen M. Baylor, M.D.
Emeritus Professor of Physiology
Department: Physiology
Contact information
A406 Richards Building
3700 Hamilton Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6085
3700 Hamilton Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6085
Office: (215) 898-5559
Fax: (215) 573-5851
Fax: (215) 573-5851
Search PubMed for articles
Cell and Molecular Biology graduate group faculty webpage.
Department of Physiology faculty webpage.
Neuroscience graduate group faculty webpage.
Search PubMed for articles
Cell and Molecular Biology graduate group faculty webpage.
Department of Physiology faculty webpage.
Neuroscience graduate group faculty webpage.
Education:Permanent link
B.A. (Mathematics)
Knox College, Galesburg, IL, 1965.
M.A. (Mathematics)
University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 1966.
Stanford Medical School, Palo Alto, CA, 1971.
B.A. (Mathematics)
Knox College, Galesburg, IL, 1965.
M.A. (Mathematics)
University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 1966.
Stanford Medical School, Palo Alto, CA, 1971.
Description of Research ExpertiseResearch Interests
excitation-contraction coupling; intracellular calcium signaling.
Key words: excitation-contraction coupling; ryanodine receptors; calcium sparks; skeletal muscle.
Description of Research
Dr. Baylor's research is focused on excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling in vertebrate skeletal muscle and the role of the calcium ion (Ca) as an intracellular messenger. The methodology relies primarily on indicator dye measurements of myoplasmic free [Ca], both in resting muscle fibers and in fibers stimulated electrically. Much of the recent work has involved testing hypotheses about calcium and E-C coupling in fast twitch fibers of frog muscle, with some work also carried out on twitch fibers in other species (e.g., fast-twitch and slow-twitch fibers of mouse, super-fast fibers of toadfish and rattlesnake).
Areas of active investigation include: use of laser-scanning confocal microscopy to measure "calcium sparks", which are brief localized increases in fluorescence from a Ca-indicator such as fluo-3 that are thought to be reflective of the transient opening of one or a few RyRs (=ryanodine receptors), the Ca release channels of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR); the possibility that the mechanism of activation of RyRs involves both voltage-gating and Ca-gating; the nature of the mechanism whereby SR Ca release is inactivated by a rise in myoplasmic free [Ca]; the possibility that either activation or inactivation of SR Ca release may vary with the RyR isoform composition (RyR1, RyR3, etc.); estimation of local Ca movements within the sarcomere by means of computer modeling, including estimation of the kinetics of binding of Ca to the intracellular Ca buffers troponin, parvalbumin, ATP, and the SR Ca pump.
Rotation Projects
1. Analysis of myoplasmic calcium movements during activity of vertebrate skeletal muscle fibers
2. Search for calcium sparks in mammalian twitch muscle fibers
Lab personnel:
Stephen Hollingworth, PhD - Senior Research Investigator
Description of Other ExpertiseMuscle physiology; Intracellular calcium signaling;
Selected PublicationsChandler, WK., Hollingworth, S., Baylor, SM. : Simulation of calcium sparks in frog cut skeletal muscle fibers. Journal of General Physiology 121: 311-324, Apr 2003.
Baylor, SM., Hollingworth, S.: Sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium release compared in slow- twitch and fast-twitch fibres of mouse muscle. Journal of Physiology 551: 125-138, Aug 2003.
Cheung, A., Dantzig, JA., Hollingworth, S., Baylor, SM., Goldman, YE., Mitchison, TJ., Straight, AF.: A small-molecule inhibitor of skeletal muscle myosin II. Nature Cell Biology 4(1): 83-88, Jan 2002.
Baylor, SM., Hollingworth, S., Chandler, WK.: Comparison of modeled and measured calcium sparks in intact skeletal muscle fibers of the frog. Journal of General Physiology 120: 349-368, Sep 2002.
Hollingworth, S., Peet, J., Chandler, WK., Baylor, SM.: Calcium sparks in intact frog skeletal muscle fibers. Journal of General Physiology 118: 311-324, Dec 2001.
Hollingworth S., Soeller C., Baylor SM., Cannell MB.: Sarcomeric Ca2+ gradients during activation of frog skeletal muscle fibres imaged with confocal and two-photon microscopy. Journal of Physiology 526 Pt 3: 551-60, Aug 2000.
Baylor, S.M. and Hollingworth, S: Measurement and interpretation of cytoplasmic [Ca2+]signals from calcium indicator dyes. News in Physiological Sciences 15: 19-26, 2000.
Baylor SM., Hollingworth S.: Model of sarcomeric Ca2+ movements, including ATP Ca2+ binding and diffusion, during activation of frog skeletal muscle. Journal of General Physiology 112(3): 297-316, Sep 1998.
Zhao M., Hollingworth S., Baylor SM.: AM-loading of fluorescent Ca2+ indicators into intact single fibers of frog muscle. Biophysical Journal 72(6): 2736-47, Jun 1997.
Hollingworth S., Zhao M., Baylor SM.: The amplitude and time course of the myoplasmic free [Ca2+] transient in fast-twitch fibers of mouse muscle. Journal of General Physiology 108(5): 455-69, Nov 1996.
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Last updated: 05/08/2017
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania
Last updated: 05/08/2017
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania


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Numerologists, philosophers, astronomers and psychics all agree – 11.11.11 begins a rebirth on earth!
According to top psychics, including the world-renowned seer, Moses Blue, tomorrow will be the luckiest day for all humans living on earth. Most will experience pure joy and ecstasy.
"Many had believed that November 11th in 2100 would be the luckiest day in all humankind, but after reviewing all my cosmic calculations and upon extreme divine reflection, it is abundantly clear that this year, 2011, will begin a rebirth on earth and bring extreme happiness and joy to all humans," said the elusive Moses Blue.
Gamblers also feel that tomorrow will be "lucky" for them. Las Vegas and Atlantic City are completely booked and many feel that this will be their "lucky day."
Many philosophers agree with them. Dr. Susan Begley, a metaphysics professor at Oxford University, has said that the world's leading metaphysical scholars got together in Prague earlier this year and after twelve hours of debate, they concluded that the world will begin a spiritual and intellectual awakening on November 11th.
"It was clear to all of us, that at 11:11pm on November 11th, 2011 – the world will be renewed, and a new Enlightenment will begin. And philosophers will be kings again!" Begley said.
Numerology researchers asked (via the internet) two questions to over a million people worldwide over the last two weeks. The results may surprise you:
Question One:
What do you believe will happen on 11/11/11?
77% Something good will happen on a global scale.
21% Nothing will happen (just another day in the Land of Nod).
2% Something bad will happen on a global scale.
Question Two:
Do you feel that 11/11/11 will be a lucky day for you?
81% Yes.
19% No.
Astronomers believe that on 11.11.11. a "portal" will open up in the heavens, allowing all "goodness and light" to flow TOWARDS earth, rather than AWAY from it. "It is a remarkable discovery that was made by NASA scientists in 2004. This day could go down as the most significant day in the history of universe since the Big Bang."
So… enjoy yourself tomorrow. A new day is dawning!!


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Troubleshooting: PGP Messaging Services for PGP Desktop 10 for Windows
Article ID: 153584
Updated On:
Symantec Products
Show More
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This article describes some areas to troubleshoot PGP Messaging on PGP Desktop 10 for Windows.
By default, PGP Desktop automatically determines your email account settings and creates a PGP Messaging service that proxies messaging for that email account.
Because of the large number of possible email account settings and mail server configurations, on some occasions a messaging service that PGP Desktop automatically creates may not work quite right.
If PGP Desktop has created a messaging service that is not working right for you, one or more of the following items may help correct the problem:
Verify that you can both connect to the Internet and send and receive email with PGP Services stopped. To do this:
Right-click the
PGP Desktop Tray
icon and select
Stop PGP Services
from the list of commands.
You should always restart your email client after starting or stopping PGP Services.
Read the PGP Desktop Release Notes for the version of PGP Desktop you are using to see if your problem is a known issue.
Make sure SMTP authentication is enabled for the email account (in your email client). This is recommended for PGP Desktop to proxy your messaging. If you only have one email account and you are not using PGP Desktop in a PGP Universal Server-managed environment, then SMTP authentication is not needed. It is required when using a PGP Universal Server as your SMTP server, or when you have multiple email accounts on the same SMTP server.
Open the PGP Log to see if the entries offer any clues as to what the problem might be.
If SSL/TLS is enabled in your email client, you must disable it there if you want PGP Desktop to proxy your messaging. (This does not leave the connection to and from your mail server unprotected; by default PGP Desktop automatically attempts to upgrade any unprotected connection to SSL/TLS protection. The mail server must support SSL/TLS for the connection to be protected.)
If either
Require STARTTLS
Require SSL
is selected (in the SSL/TLS settings of the Server Settings dialog box) your mail server must support SSL/TLS or PGP Desktop will not send or receive any messages.
If your email account uses non-standard port numbers, make sure these are included in the settings of your messaging service.
If PGP Desktop is creating multiple messaging services for one email account, use a wild card for your mail server name.
Delete the PGP Messaging service that is not working correctly and send/receive email. PGP Desktop regenerates the messaging service.
If none of these items help correct the problem, try manually creating a PGP Messaging Service.
Powered by


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Sun Safety For Runners
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Whether you're heading outdoors for a short, fast run or you plan to tackle a long distance, taking precautions to protect your skin from the sun is vital. In honor of Skin Cancer Awareness Month during May, Women's Running wants to help you carefully enjoy the bright spring sun while you pound out the miles. Here are some sun safety tips:
Apply sunscreen ahead of time. Allow your skin plenty of time to absorb the sunscreen by applying 20 minutes before you set out on your run. Proper absorption allows the sunscreen to be most effective against harmful rays. Stick to waterproof, broad spectrum sunscreen of a 30 SPF or higher to ensure the best barrier against the sun's harmful rays.
Early rising pays off. If possible, schedule your runs for first thing in the morning when the sun's rays haven't reached full intensity.
Wear protective clothing. Though the heat of the sun might make you want wear as little as possible, make sure you take extra precaution to cover more skin by wearing a hat, sunglasses and even a lightweight long sleeve top.
There's an app for that. Check out this cool new app called nevus. The app offers a GPS enabled sun alarm to recommend exact coverage based on the UV index of your location, a sunscreen visualizer to ensure proper coverage, a personalized skin record where you can record pictures of concerning areas, and many more tips for protecting your skin. Take advantage now, while the app is only 99 cents through May 31st.
Today's prize. . .
Win a Nike+ SportWatch GPS, powered by TomTom! This device records the length and pace of each workout and maps the route and elevation so that you can get a full picture of each run. Worth $199, nike.com.


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Lies my Obama told me
"I don't want to have people who just agree with me. I want people who are continually pushing me out of my comfort zone."
-- Barack Obama, June 18, 2008.
Barack Obama lied.
He lied because somebody -- a good man, a decent man, and a respected spokesman for the U.S. State Department -- pushed Obama out of his comfort zone this week. And so what happened? -- the Obama administration forced him out of his job. Apparently Obama does just want to have people who agree with him. Imagine that.
Truth be told (heh), the biggest outrage in this story actually is not the firing of the State Department spokesman, P.J. Crowley (pictured at top). It's the episode that Crowley spoke out about -- the bizarre and immoral treatment of alleged Wikileaks leaker Pfc. Bradley Manning, who according to multiple news accounts is being held under conditions that make Gitmo look look like a halfway house for inside traders.
Made to endure strict conditions under a prevention of injury order against the advice of military psychiatrists, he is treated like no other prisoner at the 250-capacity Quantico Brig detention facility in Virginia. Despite that he is yet to be convicted of any crime, for the past 218 consecutive days he has been made to live in a cell 6ft wide and 12ft long, without contact with any other detainees. He is not allowed to exercise or have personal effects in his cell, and for the one hour each day he is allowed free from his windowless cell he is taken to an empty room where he is allowed to walk, but not run.
One of the few people to have visited Manning, David House, spoke yesterday of how he had witnessed his friend go from a "bright-eyed intelligent young man" to someone who at times has appeared "catatonic" with "very high difficulty carrying on day to day conversation".
And it got worse:
Military jailers are forcing Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old soldier accused of passing classified documents to WikiLeaks.org, to strip naked in his cell at night and sleep without clothing, a requirement his lawyer says was imposed after Manning made a "sarcastic quip" about his confinement.
So basically the administration that ran on a platform of ending torture of suspected al-Qaeda terrorists and closing Guantanamo has not only not closed Gitmo (yes, Congress was a big part of that, but still..) but is now inbhumanely treating a United States soldier who's accused of a serious crime. This is an unforced error, to use the kindest possible languiage. It is not George W. Bush's fault or Dick Cheney's fault that Barack Obama's Pentagon is torturing Bradley Manning. It is only Barack Obama's fault.
It took P.J. Crowley to see the emperor's new clothes. Speaking last week at an informal panel at MIT* on new media, Crowley was asked about the Manning case and blurted out the truth. He said the circumstances of Manning's detention have been "ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid." Those five seconds of brutal candor cost Crowley his job today -- although, for what it's worth, he is an American hero to me and to many others.
Look, this is not a commentary on what Manning did or not do. He is charged with a serious offense under the law in leaking classified documents. His advocates call him a whistleblower. I'm not sure what Manning's defense will be but I do know two things: 1) he is entitled to his day in court, just like anyone else and b) he is also entitled to be held in humane conditions, not a form of torture -- sleep deprivation is torture -- which may aimed at forcing a confession.
I'm 52 years old, and I'm constantly amazed at how much about human nature I still don't really get. What exactly goes on in Obama's mind? He's a smart and supposedly idealistic guy who came of age during the Reagan years, who surely -- those first times he dared to dream about the Oval Office -- saw himself taking all the obvious hypocrisy. Instead, he is taking presidential hypocrisy to new levels. What switch got turned off, or on, that stops him from ordering a halt to the mistreatment of Bradley Manning?
How does Barack Obama look in the mirror some mornings?
* Corrected from initial version.


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The marketing reps at Molson-Coors wanted to add some frothy fun into the mix as they co-ordinated the tricky transport of massive beer-brewing tanks to Chilliwack this month.
So they came up with a special hashtag — #beertanks — to lighten the load with a bit of levity.
Two of the larger brewing tanks will be wrapped with a Molson Canadian and Coors Light banner, making it appear from a distance as if two large cans of beer are being shuttled through traffic.
British Columbians are now invited to snap a "#beertanks selfie" and post it if they happen to spot one of the tanks en route, either by water or on land, to the new brewery site under construction in Chilliwack.
"The #beertanks adds some fun to the whole project," said Ferg Devins, communication strategist supporting Molson-Coors Canada.
About 50 tanks of varying sizes were slated to arrive in Canada this week on a freighter.
Weeknight road closures in Chilliwack were slated to start on May 27 to accommodate the tank transport by road.
The pre-fabricated brewing tanks were to arrive the Surrey docks, to be barged up the Fraser River, and then transferred onto flatbed trucks to take them the remaining 12 kilometres to the new brewery site on Kerr Avenue in Chilliwack.
"We are very excited to be building two new breweries in Canada, the Fraser Valley brewery in Chilliwack and our new brewery in Longueuil, Quebec," said Amy Michtich, chief supply officer for Molson-Coors Canada.
That makes for an exciting time for the planning team, in anticipation of the tanks' arrival.
"It will be an impressive sight to see on water and land," Michtich said.
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While most of this year's in-person activities have been cancelled due to the Corona Virus, there are things you can do to take advantage of this day to help create awareness about the dangers that forklifts present and how to minimize the potential for accidents that can result in injury or death, damage to your facility, equipment and financial losses.
We've compiled a short list of things you can do on June 8th to improve safety on and around your forklifts.
Make sure all your forklift operators have been trained and that their refresher training is up to date, if applicable or necessary.
Download our "Forklift Operator Questionnaire" to help you vet new operators about their actual experience and history with forklifts.
Take time to teach your forklift operators the importance of daily inspections of their forklifts. Daily inspections reduce the risk of equipment failure and catch small problems before they blossom into giant ones. Download our IC forklift inspection form and electric forklift inspection form.
Download and post our free forklift safety posters.
Download our Fork Inspection Form.
Ensure your new operators have the experience you want by downloading our Forklift Operator Questionnaire.
Take some time to gather any staff that operates around forklifts, but not on them, to refresh them about the dangers of this equipment and how to be sure to use safe procedures when they are in an area of your facility where forklifts are being operated.
Make sure all your forklift's maintenance is up to date. If you have a Planned Maintenance Agreement, this would be a good time to review it with your service provider to ensure all standard checkpoints as well as unique equipment attachments are being inspected and maintained properly.
Review any unique "site specific" features your facility may have and be sure your operators are aware of proper handling of equipment while on or around these features (ramps, areas where floors can be slick, floor substrates that vary etc…)
Make sure that training is part of your company's orientation for anyone that will or MIGHT operate a forklift. Remember, employees that have not been properly trained aren't even allowed to sit on and start a forklift, much less move it out of the way of anything.
Make sure you forklifts have proper safety equipment and that it's operating properly. Lights, horns, back-up alarms, seat belts, fire extinguishers etc… Check out our Blue Safety Light for pedestrian safety enhancement.
Make sure you have lock-out kits to ensure that forklifts that do not pass an inspection are locked out immediately until repairs are made.
Review all your forklifts for possible replacement. Old forklifts, or those that are getting "up there" in hours, might be potential threats. Review safety records and maintenance logs for your equipment. You might find this could be a good time to replace some or even all of your forklifts.
Our goal is to help you operate safe, efficient and productive forklift equipment in and around the Youngstown/Akron/Western PA area. To discuss forklift safety, operator training –or to get a quote on new equipment, please contact us at 888-952-7536.
Visit the Industrial Truck Associations Page to see a list of virtual and online events.


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Up to two Major League Soccer franchises would be eligible for subsidies given to other pro sports teams in Florida under a bill filed in the Legislature, a nod to Orlando's bid to bring an MLS team to the area.
MLS has made it clear that it wants a franchise in the southeastern United States – particularly Florida. League Commissioner Don Garber said in November that Orlando is among the cities at the top of the list – if the question of a home stadium for a team could be worked out. A lower-division club, Orlando City, and its owner Phil Rawlins, are trying to elevate the club to the sport's top U.S. league.
A measure (SB 358) filed earlier this month by Sen. David Simmons, R-Maitland, would add MLS to the list of leagues in which franchises are eligible for a $166,667 monthly subsidy from the state. Currently, NBA, NFL, Major League Baseball and National Hockey League teams are eligible for the payments. Simmons' bill says two facility certifications for new MLS franchises should be reserved.
The help for a future Orlando soccer team comes in addition to a request by the Miami Dolphins NFL team for help with stadium renovations, and the speaker of the House said Wednesday that he expects other bills to be filed to provide help for renovations to an auto racing facility and for the Jacksonville Jaguars to make renovations at EverBank Field.
While the money in the Simmons bill isn't specifically tied to stadium construction, it could help the Orlando team's bid to join MLS. Team officials have said they want to build a soccer-specific stadium in central Florida to bolster the bid, and how that would be paid for isn't clear.
The Miami Dolphins have also said they plan to ask the Legislature to provide the team with a $3 million-a-year tax rebate on sales of merchandise to fund a renovation of the team's suburban Miami stadium. The team also wants lawmakers to let Miami-Dade County raise a tourist bed tax from 6 percent to 7 percent in some areas to help the team.
Speaker Will Weatherford said Wednesday that the House is expecting to hear from a few other sports facilities wanting money, and that Rep. Ritch Workman, R-Melbourne, the chairman of the House Finance and Tax Subcommittee will have a major role in evaluating the logic of providing such financial help when the economy is only just starting to sputter back to life.
"We hear rumors that there's also going to be a bill filed dealing with the Speedway, and them asking for us to partner with them to help with renovations, we hear there's going to be a bill filed dealing with the Jacksonville Jaguars stadium to help with renovations there," Weatherford said.
"They're all going to be sent to the same committee, which is F&T, and I hope that he will look at those very critically," said Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel. "I don't have a personal position on those issues."
Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said his position was essentially the same as Weatherford's.
Both leaders warned that the revenue picture, while much better than in the last couple years, isn't exactly one where lawmakers are looking to throw money around.
"Just because we've come out of the years the locusts have eaten, doesn't mean we're in the years of milk and honey," Gaetz said.
–David Royse, News Service of Florida


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MEGA MILLIONS is new lottery game from New Jersey lottery game. It is very easy to play. It is under the US state of New Jersey. As you know anything can happen in jersey, so there are many ways that you can win lottery through MEGA MILLIONS. And the estimated jackpot on their official website is 74$ million with the cash option of 53.2$ million.Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
Winning Numbers
9, 14, 28, 59, 60 Mega Ball 24
Steps to play Mega Millions
Number generator
First, you must have to select the set of numbers to enter the lottery quiz and you can do it by clicking on the GENERATE button. This button can randomly select the set of numbers for you.
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Method to fill MEGA MILLIONS pay slip
- You must use your 2$ for each time you play MEGA MILLIONS.
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- Now you must have to select an option to claim money if you win whether in cash or in installments like series of payment, you also must apply for both in mega millions and Just the Jackpot.
- Megaplier will surely multiply the non-jackpot number with only 1$ per play.
- With Multi-draw you can play the same numbers up to 8 times consecutively by marking the numbers you want in your bet to win. You also must mark your numbers of drawing if they are more than one.
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- Megaplier, Multi Draw and Just the Jackpot is optional.
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You can also read the information from their original website. You can see MEGA MILLIONS Game Rules for more information.
- Must be 18 or older to buy a lottery ticket.
- Please play responsibly if you or someone you know has a gambling problem call 1-800-GAMBLER*.
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- Your chance to hit the jackpot is 1 in 302,575,350.
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- There are many winners in one game so the jackpot money will be divided into all of them.
Purchase timing for MEGA MILLIONS:
On every Tuesday and Friday, you can purchase your tickets before 10:45 pm for drawings.
Draw timing for MEGA MILLIONS
Drawings are held on every Tuesday and Friday at 11:00 pm.


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A tremendous resource for anyone looking for a job in Berkshire County - absolutely FREE! Berkshirejobs.com can offer you everything you will need in your job search with the following features and capability:
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Here you can buy cheap wallpapers
Would you buy wallpaper conveniently, be worth our offers in SALE. Wallpaper buy cheap means to us but not bad quality. Maybe you can do without the latest fashion in wallpaper and would like wallpaper rather buy cheap. Then you will receive our discontinued models at an unbeatable price. Many wallpapers from this assortment are no longer to have the wallpaper market. Nevertheless, it may be that you are discovering your favorite wallpaper here.
In SALE you can buy really cheap wallpaper, without compromising on color and design diversity have. Chic vinyl wallpaper can be found here as well as children dashing trendy wallpaper, photo wallpapers or nice country house wallpapers. But not just wallpaper, you can buy online. Borders also be found in this category. With a little imagination and creativity can find right here wallpapers and borders. Just play with colors, patterns and design ideas. You'll be surprised how your change rooms.
If you buy wallpaper cheap, can be realized also all sorts of other things. Try some games to make your old wardrobe to bring you a unique or colorful splash of color to your office, you miss in your folders, a new twist. With cheap wallpaper can realize many design ideas. Like to use the cheap wallpaper and wallpapering for the doll's house. Your imagination knows no boundaries. Look around in your home and let your imagination run wild. If you buy wallpaper cheap, you can pick and choose.


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Snoop Doggy Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound : From Dogg Food To Doggystyle… Urban legend #2…
I can remember listening to Dr. Dre's – The Chronic and Snoop Dogg's – Doggystyle when they were first released and I was blown away. Truly, just stunned at how captivating they were. These were brutal skills on display, and despite all the controversy, it was and still is a reflection of the dreams or lack thereof…and realities of inner city minorities in overcrowded cities of the US. The E Funk or aptly rebranded West Coast G Funk Era introduced a whole new generation to the melodies and beats, to the pioneering legacy of the artist George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic and many others who had come before. The main difference, besides sounding timeless, was the resulting crossover to white and latino audiences first in the US and then around the world.
One need not look far to find groups like N.W.A and Pubic Enemy, rappers such as Ice T, and farther back to Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Dj Cool Herc, and Africa Bambaataa. How much influence they had on the genre as a whole is undisputed but as to their individual influences on the artists who were at that time on Death Row Records is unclear. With that said all the artists mentioned here set in place the ground work for all of the hip hop and a lot of the popular culture that we see today.
When I was living in San Diego, San Francisco, or traveling to Los Angeles or the world touring, I spent a lot of time with friends in San Clemente and San Pedro. I cannot remember which town I heard the urban Legend in, and at the time did not pay much attention to it but I think it was San Pedro. The story went that during the recording of Tha Dogg Pound's 1995 multi platinum selling album Dogg Food on Death Row Records "dog whistles" were used in some of the tracks. Sounds silly I know, and I'm still not sure I believe it to this day but we all had a laugh at the time at the ramifications of doing such a thing. What would that be? Obviously nothing major, except for the fact if you had dogs in your house going bonkers to the music whenever it was played.
When I first heard this about the album Dogg Food, it actually had not been released yet and I remember the story being told to a group of friends in the context of heavy anticipation for the record. Anyway when it was released I remember walking down to Tower Records in San Diego and brought it back to my place and put it in the player and began to groove…I loved it right out the gate. As I was listening to it very loud something strange happened as I was lying on my bed I noticed that there was a lot of dog barking coming through the music. At first I thought it was random samples on the album but with further listening I noticed that they were not swinging to the beat or completely out of time with the music.
I remember I got up of the bed and walked over to one of the windows in my bedroom and opened it. I loved that window because right outside set against the backdrop of houses and the setting sun were a few palm, blood orange, and kumquat trees. Breaking the silence was all the neighborhood dogs going absolutely nuts with their aim right at the window I was standing in. In that moment the rumor about dog whistles in the music came right back to mind. It was not just two or three dogs but I imagine as much as twenty that I could directly see and more barking in the distance. Shit was this real? So my first instinct was to stop the music and see what happens. Right after I shut off the music the barking began to stop and I watched for about five minutes to see the dogs reaction. It was obvious they went back to doing whatever they were doing before. After that five or so minutes, I turned the music back on full blast and within five seconds the dogs were losing it again. It's like they had gone rabid, I could not believe it but there it was right before my eyes.
So I turned the music on and off several times and the same thing happened. I remembered also hearing that Snoop Dogg had a lot of Pit Bulls at his place so I wondered if he ever had experienced this. If "the dog whistle" rumor was true he had to know about it as he is featured on the album. In my opinion it would be a funny gag to pull to have the dog whistles on the tracks but I also know that in the style of all the West Coast Death Row albums there are a lot of crazy sound effects with lots of high and low transients on the recordings that are not supposed to be within the realm of human hearing range. Really that is what I still attribute it to, but who knows. I would think Snoop, Daz, or Kurrupt…would definitely know. Whether they would tell us is another story…having an urban legend about someone probably would not be a good idea to clear up if it was not negative, as it would continue to contribute to the myth about the music and the artists as well.
So if I ever find out I will post it here. Try it out for yourself but use the CD because if you use a compressed format or someplace like youtube you will not be getting the same sound that I had and furthermore as we know compressed formats remove a lot of the sounds that we 'supposedly' cannot hear. No need for me to go into a diatribe about that as you all know how I feel about lossless formats. Cheers!
Thanks for reading and for all your kind words and support!
More Interesting Articles and Reviews to come.
Cheers and Bless Bless!
Please do not reproduce this article either all or in part without the expressed written permission of the author who can be reached via the "Contact" section in the header menu. You may link to the article if you wish, all that we ask is that you give credit to the respective author…"Christmachine" wherever you post a link. Thank you.
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(CNN) — In an unprecedented action, the NCAA is restoring scholarships to the Penn State University football team that were originally lost last year when the school was sanctioned for its handling of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
Sandusky, 69, a former defensive coordinator, was convicted last year of sexually abusing 10 boys he met through his charity. He is serving a 30-to 60-year prison term.
But the sanctions against Penn State mostly revolved around an alleged cover-up by the university's former president, vice president and athletic director.
All three men are facing trial in the spring on charges they lied to authorities and never reported an incident of sexual abuse witnessed in 2001 in the Penn State locker room facilities.
The gradual restoration of scholarships was recommended to the NCAA board by former Sen. George Mitchell, the athletics integrity monitor for the university, for the school's "groundbreaking work" and "strong commitment to restore integrity" in the last year.
Mitchell said Tuesday that the school has consistently cooperated with the NCAA since the sanctions were imposed. Mitchell said more than 120 reforms have been implemented, and Penn State has become a model for reform at other schools.
Other sanctions levied last year, including a post-season ban, a $60 million fine and 13 years of vacated wins of legendary coach Joe Paterno, remain in place.
Mitchell said he recommended a post-season ban stay in place, for now, to give the university a continued incentive to work toward reform.
The NCAA has never before rescinded sanctions imposed against a university.
The restoration will mean that Penn State's football team, under coach Bill O'Brien, will get five more scholarships next year, and 10 more each of the following three seasons. By the start of the 2016 season, Penn State will again have the full amount of scholarships.
Penn State President Rodney Erickson said the change represents "significant efforts over the past year to make Penn State a safer, stronger institution."
NCAA President Mark Emmert, who has been widely criticized for relying on the university's independent report instead of launching his own NCAA investigation at Penn State, said the board was "pleased" to make this decision.
In making his recommendation to the NCAA board, Mitchell said he considered the sanctions that most affect student athletes. He also noted a great divide among the Penn State community over how the Sandusky scandal has been handled.
The university recently settled lawsuits with several men who said Sandusky abused them.
The role of Paterno, who died in January 2012, in the cover-up has been widely debated. In an internal investigation done for the university, FBI director Louis Freeh concluded that Paterno played a role, but former state prosecutors handling the case said they found no evidence of that.
™ & © 2013 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.


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Opalogene (3.5e Creature)
From D&D Wiki
|Opalogene (Nerve)
|Opalogene (Brain)
|Tiny Ooze (Psionic, Swarm)
|Colossal Ooze (Psionic)
|Hit Dice:
|10d10+40 (95 hp)
|50d10+650 (925 hp)
|5 ft. (1 square)
|0 ft. (0 squares)
|Armor Class:
|11 (+2 size, +2 deflection, −5 Dex, +2 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 11
|27 (−8 size, +15 deflection, −5 Dex, +15 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 27
|Base Attack/Grapple:
|Swarm (3d6 plus 2d8 acid)
|Slam +43 melee (8d6+5 plus 2d8 acid)
|Full Attack:
|Swarm (3d6 plus 2d8 acid)
|Slam +43 melee (8d6+5 plus 2d8 acid)
|10 ft./0 ft.
|30 ft./20 ft.
|Special Attacks:
|Acid, distraction, psi-like abilities
|Acid, powers
|Special Qualities:
|Blindsight 60 ft., collective mind, ooze traits, psionic traits, spider climb, swarm traits
|Blindsight 250 ft., collective mind, fast healing 35, ooze traits, psionic traits, Telepathy 250 ft.
|Fort +7, Ref −2, Will +9
|Fort +29, Ref +11, Will +65
|Str 11, Dex 1, Con 18, Int —, Wis 23, Cha 14
|Str 20, Dex 1, Con 36, Int 10, Wis 108, Cha 24
|Bluff +36, Concentration +40, Listen +75, Sense Motive +75
|Chain Power, Combat Manifestation, Empower Power, Enlarge Power, Extend Power, Ghost Attack, Maximize Power, Narrow Mind, Overchannel, Psionic Meditation, Skill Focus (Listen), Talented, Twin Power
|Solitary, creep (2-6 swarms), or terror (7-20 swarms)
|Solitary only
|Challenge Rating:
|Usually neutral
|Usually neutral
|51-100 HD (Colossal), 101-200 HD (Colossal+)
|Level Adjustment:
The air was still and cold, and the group of people who had ventured so far into this network of caves had slowed their pace, growing wary of the world around them. It felt, as they ventured through the snaking tunnels, that they weren't welcome there, that they were trespassing somewhere forbidden. As they stared forward into the pitch black darkness of the tunnels before them, they did not notice the crumbling of the stones beneath them. Then they were falling, and as they fell they saw before them a vast, glowing, pulsating orb of ooze, and questions flooded their minds. They stopped falling in midair before the green orb, as its thoughts seemed to look them over, as a child would an odd toy.
Opalogenes are incalculably ancient, primordial oozes who are often older than most gods. Unlike most oozes, opalogenes are actually capable of active thought, but only on a much larger scale than most creatures, seeing as they are made up of 2 distinct parts, a single, vast, perfect orb of ooze which operates similarly to a gargantuan brain cell, otherwise known as the opalogene's brain, and a swarm of billions upon billions of tiny amoeba like oozes which travel in swarms throughout the tunnels of the world, which are referred to as the nerves of an opalogene. The brain of an opalogene actually creates these nerves through a process similar to meiosis, sending them out throughout the world. These amoeba always leave a thick layer of psionic slime behind them wherever they go. This slime always leads back to the brain of the opalogene, and acts as a sort of "body" for the ooze, seeing as the opalogene can send its thoughts down through this slime, and feel it and everything thing it touches as though it were part of itself. Due to this manner in which they "grow", opalogenes never stop getting bigger, and have even been known to span continent-sized networks of tunnels in the past. Opalogenes are often referred to as the single wisest beings in existence by those who have actually experienced the privilege of being in direct mental contact with one of them, but due to the fact of their unique mind and ways of thinking, they are incapable of imparting their wisdom to another, non-psionic being. The death of an opalogene is most often actually the death of its brain, seeing as its nerves can die indefinitely and not harm the overall consciousness of the entity. When a oplaogene does in fact die and its mind ceases to exist, it seems to heave a final, great psychic sigh, which quickly blossoms out throughout the cosmos, brushing through the minds of all conscious entities within existence. If this is ever to happen, everything that can think at the time of the opalogene's death seem to feel as though the world has been diminished somehow, though they are not sure how.
Opalogenes do not actively seek combat, but considering the way their comprehension of the world differs from other beings, they may inadvertently attack something as their nerves continue to grow and spread throughout the world. The opalogene does not have total control of its nerves, and they may begin to become a problem for cave dwelling societies. While this is true, if a being comes into contact with the brain of an opalogene, and appeals to it to stop its growth, the opalogene may attempt to do so, if it can understand the problem its visitor has. The brain of an opalogene will never consciously attack something that it can sense does not mean it harm.
The brain of an opalogene's slam attacks are treated as epic and psionic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Acid: An opalogene secretes a powerful acid that quickly dissolves organic material, but not metal or stone. Any melee hit or successful swarm attack deals acid damage. Armor made of organic materials or clothing dissolves and becomes useless immediately unless it succeeds on a DC 19 Reflex save if the attack originated from the nerve of an opalogene, or a DC 48 Reflex save if the attack originated from the brain of an opalogene. A wooden weapon that strikes an opalogene's nerve dissolves immediately unless it succeeds on a DC 19 Reflex save. A wooden weapon that strikes an opalogene's brain also dissolves immediately unless it succeeds on a DC 48 Reflex save. The save DCs are Constitution-based.
The nerve of an opalogene's acidic touch deals 19 points of damage per round to wooden objects, but the nerve must remain in contact with the object for 1 full round to deal this damage. The brain of an opalogene's acidic touch deals 48 points of damage per round to wooden objects, but the brain must remain in contact with the object for 1 full round to deal this damage.
|Number of Nerves
|Time for Brain to Regrow
|10,000,000 years
|5,000,000 years
|2,000,000 years
|1,000,000 years
|500,000 years
|100,000 years
|50,000 years
|10,000 years
|5,000 years
|2,500 years
|1,000 years
|100 years
Collective Mind (Ex): The nerves of an opalogene trail a layer of thick, transparent ooze behind them wherever they go. All parts of the opalogene that are in contact with this ooze are in constant communication. If the brain of the opalogene is aware of a particular danger, all parts of the opalogene are. If one of the nerves of a opalogene is killed, the brain is aware of it, though other nerves may not be. If a being capable of manifesting psionic powers touches this ooze with its bare flesh, it can "feel" through it as though it was a part of the opalogene itself, but only out through a distance of 20 feet per Manifester level along the ooze. The brain of the opalogene is also immediately aware of the being touching the ooze and can feel it as though it could any other piece of its body, the brain may attempt to make mental contact with any psionic being that is in contact with the ooze if it so wishes, as an extension of its telepathy (see below). If the brain of the opalogene dies then the collective mind changes, yet still exists as long as 10 or more of the opalogene's nerves still exist. If this event is to ever happen, then the overall mind of the opalogene becomes more instinctual, and the nerves begin travelling enmasse to the cavern or general area that the brain once occupied. If a being capable of manifesting psionic powers touches the ooze that connects all parts of the opalogene together with its bare skin while the opalogene is in this state, the distance it can "feel" through the ooze increases to 50 feet per Manifester level. Additionally, no part of the opalogene may attempt to contact that being. Once 10 or more of the opalogene's nerves have entered the area that the brain died in, they climb over each other to form an orb 20 ft. in diameter, and begin to digest each other, beginning to create a new brain. Refer to Table: Opalogene Brain Regrowth Time to determine how long it takes them to form a new brain. This embryonic brain is treated as being catatonic and is incapable of taking any actions, conversing with anything, or creating more nerves until the duration shown in Table: Opalogene Brain Regrowth Time is up, at which point the brain regains any memories the original brain had, and is treated as never having died.
Distraction (Ex): Any living creature vulnerable to a swarm's damage that begins its turn with a swarm in its square is nauseated for 1 round; a DC 19 fortitude save negates the effect. Even with a successful save, spellcasting or concentrating on spells within the area of a swarm requires a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level). Using skills requiring patience and concentration requires a Concentration check (DC 20). The save DC is Constitution-based.
Ooze Traits: An ooze is an amorphous or mutable creature. Oozes are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, and polymorphing. They have no clear front or back and are therefore not subject to critical hits or flanking. Oozes are blind but have the Blindsight special quality. If an Ooze has no Intelligence score they are immune to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects).
Powers: The brain of an Opalogene can manifest psionic powers as a 24th level psion of any discipline, except that the brain uses its Wisdom modifier instead of its Intelligence modifier for the purpose of determining saving throw DCs and bonus power points.
Psi-Like Abilities: (Nerves only) At will—deja vu, disable, distract, mind thrust; 3/day—inflict pain, recall agony; 2/day—eradicate invisibility, psionic blast; 1/day—mindwipe. Manifester level 10th. The save DCs are wisdom-based.
Spider Climb (Ex): The nerve of an opalogene can climb on any solid surface as though under the effects of spider climb spell
Swarm Traits: A swarm has no clear front or back and no discernable anatomy, so it is not subject to critical hits or flanking. A swarm made up of Tiny creatures takes half damage from slashing and piercing weapons.
Reducing a swarm to 0 hit points or fewer usually causes the swarm to break up, though damage taken until that point does not degrade its ability to attack or resist attack. Swarms are never staggered or reduced to a dying state by damage. Also, they cannot be tripped, grappled, or bull rushed, and they cannot grapple another.
A swarm is immune to any spell or effect that targets a specific number of creatures (including single-target spells such as disintegrate), with the exception of mind-affecting effects if the swarm has an intelligence score and a hive mind. A swarm takes a –10 penalty on saving throws against spells or effects that affect an area, such as many evocation spells or grenadelike weapons. If the area effect attack does not allow a saving throw, the swarm takes double damage instead.
Usually a swarm rendered unconscious by means of nonlethal damage becomes disorganized and dispersed, and does not re-form until its hit points exceed its nonlethal damage.
Telepathy: The brain of a opalogene can communicate telepathically with any other creature within a 250 feet. This is not affected by the possession of a language, seeing as the brain has no comprehension of language and therefore communicates in the form of emotions and concepts. It is possible for the brain to address multiple creatures at once telepathically, seeing as the brain doesn't have to focus on forming words.
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → Creatures → CR 8
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → Creatures → CR 32


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New study by Cancer Science Institute of Singapore at NUS show that the protein is produced as an immune response and requires the tumour suppressor RUNX3
A team of scientists from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) discovered that a protein named IL23A is part of our stomach's defence against bacterial infection which leads to gastric cancer. This finding could potentially be used to combat the deadly disease.
The research group, led by Professor Yoshiaki Ito, Senior Principal Investigator at CSI Singapore, also showed that the production of IL23A by stomach cells requires the tumour suppressor gene, RUNX3, which is frequently silenced in gastric cancer. The novel study was first published online in the leading journal Cell Reports.
Every year, some 740,000 people die from gastric cancer globally. In Singapore, stomach cancer was the fourth leading cause of cancer death among men and fifth among women from 2008 to 2012. This highlights the urgent need to understand the causes of this deadly disease. It is now known that a major trigger for the development of gastric cancer is the infection of a bacterium, Helicobacter pylori. A drawn-out battle against this bacterium often causes persistent inflammation of the stomach, which is a dangerous cancer-causing condition. As such, understanding and strengthening the natural defence mounted by our stomach cells is a logical and crucial step in preventing gastric cancer.
In this study, the researchers found that a protein named IL23A normally produced only by white blood cells is released by stomach cells when exposed to H. pylori. This demonstrates that IL23A is part of our stomach's defence against bacterial infection. At the same time, they found that production of IL23A by stomach cells requires RUNX3, a tumour suppressor gene that is frequently silenced in gastric cancer. The involvement of RUNX3 appears particularly important during inflammation and infection caused by the bacterium. Their observation makes an important connection: when stomach cells lose RUNX3, they become defective in their ability to respond to infection by H. pylori, making the stomach vulnerable to this carcinogenic bacterium.
Prof Ito said, "We have been studying the frequent inactivation of RUNX3 in gastric cancer for some time. Our latest findings show that an important consequence of losing RUNX3 is a compromised immunity and this will enable us to devise better protection against pathogens."
The study was supported by the Translational and Clinical Research Flagship Programme and the National Research Foundation of Singapore.
In the next phase of research, the team will focus on determining the function of the novel IL23A complex they discovered, as part of their overall strategy to combat H. pylori-induced gastric cancer. Concomitant application for patent protection of this work by NUS will facilitate industry involvement, so that this research can be effectively used to develop novel treatments to combat gastric cancer.


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To the mainstream news business, social media are both an opportunity and an irritant. They enable reporters to learn more and learn it more quickly, and furnish them with spiffy new channels to people they wouldn't otherwise reach. New media accelerate the creation and spread of news, and enrich the news diet by welcoming nontraditional sources to step up and tell what they know.
But social media like Facebook, Twitter and its messaging brethren also are annoyances to legacy media. They fuel rivals, who routinely scoop the bigshots and undermine their authority over the news agenda. They beckon to journalists and compel news organizations—eager for new markets—to encourage their staffs to skirt institutional controls and freebase with styles of online expression that are sharper and more pungent than the bland, denatured language that news media have evolved to avoid giving offense needlessly.
Which is tolerable until the newly emancipated reporters rediscover the thrill of producing unexpurgated comment, and treat readers to what they really think. The result is a spate of incidents in which respected journalists end up reprimanded or fired for unguarded comments they posted—a New York Times Tokyo correspondent deploring Toyota's press practices, a Washington Post editor grumbling about the deficit, a CNN Mideast bureau chief regretting the death of a Hezbollah leader.
The right of media bosses to shut up their employees hasn't been challenged as vigorously as you might expect. Aren't journalists presumed to have a special claim to expressive freedom, not just a basic human right but a professional responsibility? Since when are news organizations supposed to be muzzling journalists?
Surprisingly, punishing journalists for infelicitous Twitter or Facebook postings has drawn little protest. That's largely, I think, because newsroom ethics continues to be defined mainly by news bosses, and they're thought to be within their rights in banning activity that rattles their brands or bruises their institutional vanity—even when it's also spicy and provocative and truthful.
Ironically, the one area where journalists do seem to have free-speech protections online is when they are posting about their own employers. Here, reporters seem to have actual legal safeguards to say what they like, safeguards they don't have when it comes to wider-ranging commentary.
Like many people, I long assumed the New Deal-era National Labor Relations Act had been rolled up and discarded, its protections for people who try to organize their workplaces largely meaningless. So I was grateful for a recent column by the Poynter Institute's Jeff Sonderman, titled "Why Your News Organization's Social Media Policy May Be Illegal."
It keys off an ongoing dispute, in itself hardly a momentous one. A reporter in Colorado Springs, Colo., was suspended for linking, from his personal Facebook presence, to a Los Angeles Times article about the sale of Freedom Communications, the company that owns his newspaper. Barrett Tryon's post was vexing because the Times had reported that Freedom's new owners might be selling his paper. That hadn't been reported locally.
Tryon's boss told him to remove the post because it violated a policy that prohibits "posting disparaging or defamatory statements about the company" as well as "communications that might be misconstrued in a way that could damage the company's goodwill and business reputation…"
Now, Tryon wasn't doing any organizing. But the law that covers people who do is broad enough to shield an impressive range of expression: Over the past two years the National Labor Relations Board, which administers the law, has issued advisories that protect employee criticism of managements, comments about owners, accounts of internal discussions, even release of proprietary information—alongside safeguards for talking about the bread-and-butter issues of pay and working conditions.
The protections aren't comprehensive, and the law the NLRB is enforcing is narrowly directed at enabling employees to discuss matters that might affect their inclination or ability to organize to negotiate collectively over workplace issues.
But this is still a remarkable area where it's not the media, but the people within the media, who are defined as having rights to free expression. True, it's troubling to think that news managements are otherwise empowered to keep many of the smartest and best informed observers of contemporary happenings from sharing their observations with the public they're supposed to be serving.
But these rulings may still have the unintended benefit of furthering the cause of media transparency, by enabling journalists to speak candidly and publicly about the ways in which their own organizations operate in defining news and creating our news agenda.


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Game Day 2015 (Youth League)
As a part of The Brahmans re-admission to Woodbridge Cup in 2015, we now have the opportunity to showcase our under 17's and under 18's. Something we could not do in previous years. Good luck young fellows. At the closing stages of the 2015 season the boys are travelling near the top of the ladder.Read More


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Breathtaking-these pictures are fabulous!
Wow, to think i still have a bag of ash from the area when I went there as a kid (about 8.5 years old)shortly after the eruption. I still remember it to this day.
Thanks for posting. Magnificent pictures, succinct descriptions, really put perspective on the scale of Mt. St. Helen's eruption!
amazing pictures. i plan on taking my son out that way soon to go hiking.
Awesome picture. Fantastic!
Very Nice Pictures! Excellent Post!! Thanks for Sharing with Us
John Abraham
Amazing <3
I will never forget May 18th I lived in Camas Wa the day the mt blew. what an awesome display of God's Power.
I remember all the eruptions, the last puff (2005) I was riding the MAX home and the train was just crossing the Gateway overpass into the station. The view was amazing. I went to the mountain right around the time they first let visitors back in. The devastation was unbelievable. It left quite an impression on me.
We spent the day last Saturday riding with friends on our motorcycles up to Johnston Ridge to see Mt. St Helens. It was my first trip up to Johnston Ridge. I remember all the eruptions, living just south of Portland, Or remember the ash on our back patio's several times. I have always been amazing at the force of nature. It was an outstanding, a clear and beautiful day to see the mountain and all around it. Amazing that in 31 years, the way nature has returned to the mountain area. We spotted a herd of Elk near the north edge of the mountain. Great pictures and very educational for those who were not around to see and hear it in person happen.
Cathy F.
Why is everyone so happy to see these photos?? It was a terrible thing that happened. Yes, the pictures are good but at least I'm not forgetting the history. You guys are so rude!!!!!
I know right?
I think you might be mentally retarded.
These pictures are so heartbreaking and make me feel so emotional. They truly are amazing!!!
I will use these photos for my research
Hello my family member! I wish to say that this article is amazing, great written and include approximately all vital infos. I would like to see extra posts like this .
Great photos of Mount St. Helens. I think my favorite is the more recent picture #2. It is crazy to think that an eruption happened so close to home. Though living in the foot hills of the Cascades is a scary premise, the beauty of the scenery keeps me here and venturing to the mountains as much as work permits! Great photo blog!
very nice work.
[…] over Mt Rainier: Outdoor Scenes. "The wonder of the weather." Location: Orting Washington. Photo #23 […]
[…] photograph of Mount Fuji taken from the ISS. Will it erupt like Mount St. Helens did in the USA, bringing wide-scale destruction and disaster? Or is this yet another haling of […]
This eruption has always fascinated me….I remember following the events in the news….the far reaching impact and devastation is hard to imagine until you see photos like these….absolutely amazing!
Wow, today i had a geography lesson, we watched a film, which i think was the documentary one of the famous people made, ive had to come and do some homework, it actually is really emotional and wghen i was watching the video, i looked up to one certain man, david johnston, that was the thing i remembered the most, thanks for posting these picturees, i will use these for my geography assessment which i will be doing on monmday!:)
[…] LoveThesePics […]
[…] National Forest, and the second volcanic monument in the US Pacific Northwest. Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Photo #27 by USFS / […]
I still have a jar of Volcanic ash I cleaned off our car in Kelowna, British Columbia after the eruption of Mount St Helens on May 18 1980. Everything was covered with a coating of ash.


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Your mega summer reading list: 200 books recommended by TEDsters
Books can entertain, sucking you like a tornado into incredible new worlds. Books can teach, giving you a richer understanding of time periods, people and ideas you've never been exposed to. But books can do so much more. In today's talk, TED's own Lisa Bu introduces us to the concept of "comparative reading," the practice […]Continue reading


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You know we loved this month's group read, but we're pretty sure the discussion is going to be fantastic. Andrea Cremer's Nightshade has some great substance for us to talk about — the way she created the pack, strong women and mostly the big division between those who think Ren is ideal and those of us who adore Shay.
Even in our love triangle discussion post, we heard from those who didn't get the appeal of one side or the other. We want to hash it out. What you loved, what you hated, who you want to date. All of it. So, mark your calendars (and set your DVR to tape Being Human, because we're hitting it's time slot — sorry about that.)
The Nightshade discussion chat will be held on Twitter at 9 p.m. EST on Monday, Feb. 28. We'll tag the conversation #VBC05 (make sure to include it in your tweets). If you follow @VampBookClub, you'll get all our moderator tweets.
If you haven't read the novel yet, you still have time. Check out our review of Nightshade for any necessary persuasion. And, if you haven't already, hit up the poll on the right side of the blog to vote for the March group read.
Also, international readers, here's a nifty time-calculator so you can figure out just when this is going down.


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Granted, I have no idea who Abram Jackson was, but a location like Plymouth and a date as early as 1624 does arouse attention.His father…was descended from Abram Jackson, who emigrated from England to Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1624.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
A Father's Story Through a Son's Eyes
13 comments:
What fun -- a couple more generations to track down. Little snippets like that certainly tempt me away from the task at hand. I wish you self-control.ReplyDeleteReplies
Oh, believe me, Wendy...I'll find a way to make this part of the task at hand! Well, at least after the due diligence of tracking down the generations between John and Abram...Delete
What a tempting tidbit, I have my bags packed--figuratively speaking...can't wait for the trip.ReplyDelete
Oh, Claudia, I can't wait, either. This will definitely qualify as a genealogical adventure for me. A Genea-Safari! :)ReplyDelete
- AnonymousDecember 18, 2012 at 9:14 AM
That does sound like fun! Enjoy your new search :)ReplyDeleteReplies
This is totally new territory for me. Looking forward to learning a lot here. I suspect I'll pick up a lot of info on American history I hadn't paid attention to the first go-round.Delete
Yes, a Genea-Safari for sure. I take them often. :-)ReplyDelete
Ah. The plot thickens!ReplyDelete
I googled Abram Jackson and Plymouth and see some intriguing hints of things to explore. :)Replies
I'm trying to be good and resist the temptation to peak, Iggy! But I'm looking forward to getting to the point when I can take a look.Delete
aha! 1624 how amazing is that! WOW! :)ReplyDeleteReplies
Yeah, I sure am jazzed! Can't wait to see what's out there to be found.Delete
Oooh! How exciting!ReplyDeleteReplies
Hi Jana! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, it is exciting. I'll be taking a brief hiatus from genealogy research for Christmas, but this little tidbit I stumbled upon certainly energizes me to return to the search as soon as possible!Delete


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WASHINGTON (JTA) — New York businessman Jacob Ostreicher, who has been jailed in Bolivia without charges for 18 months, has been released on bail, according to U.S. lawmakers who led calls for his release.
"While a welcome step, granting Jacob bail is long overdue," said Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), who recently joined Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) in traveling to Bolivia to make Ostreicher's case.
A Bolivian court ordered Ostreicher to post bail of more than $14,000 and remain under house arrest.
Smith praised Bolivian authorities for the move, as well as for arresting a number of people who allegedly kept Ostreicher imprisoned in order to extract bribes from him.
"His life remains at risk every day that he remains in Bolivia, due to credible death threats against him," said Smith, the co-chairman of a U.S. congressional subcommittee that oversees international human rights. "I urgently call on the Bolivian judicial system to act swiftly to completely exonerate Jacob of the baseless accusations against him and grant him his freedom."
Ostreicher, a haredi Orthodox father of five and grandfather of 11 from Brooklyn, was arrested in June 2011 by Bolivian police after it was alleged that he did business with "people wanted in their countries because of links with drug trafficking and money laundering." He still has not been charged.
Ostreicher belonged to a group of investors who sunk $25 million into growing rice in eastern Bolivia. He has said that his arrest stems from a conspiracy by Bolivian officials to rob him and his businesses.
Last month, authorities arrested seven people, including top government officials, for attempted extortion of Ostreicher.


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Bunkspeed HyperShot (User Review)1 Feb, 2009 By: Gabriel Mathews
For one designer, real-time rendering is a dream come true.
The buzz around Bunkspeed's rendering software, HyperShot, had leaked into my office. I decided I wanted to take a week or two to test the free trial and see if the claims were true: final rendered scenes in real time and amazingly easy-to-achieve photorealism. HyperShot is a tool for all types of designers, from architects to artists and animators to aerospace engineers and jewelry makers, but I was curious to find out how HyperShot might fit into my own work as an industrial designer.
This review might propagate the buzz, because I found that — with a few small reservations — I must confirm the rumors. And I discovered other advantages unique to HyperShot that make simple sense for product designers.
Instant Gratification
The rendering application is available as a stand-alone product for both PC and Mac platforms. I'm an industrial designer and work in Rhinoceros, the NURBS modeling solution from McNeel. So I tested Bunkspeed with its Rhino plug-in, which was a beta version at the time.
To give you some background, typically I use a different add-on rendering engine for Rhino. I build in all my rendering materials and apply them in series: The process is click-and-apply, click-and-apply, click-and-apply, then finally click to render. The rendering application pops up, and it starts rendering. The renders can take from 2 minutes for a simple rendering to as long as 4 hours for a really complicated one. My day-to-day work — which isn't supercomplex — takes 20 minutes on average to render.
With HyperShot, the plug-in interface would be familiar to most 3D users, but there is already a major difference right at the outset. My model loads into a lighting scene first. I still apply my materials one-by-one, but in HyperShot, I get to see the 3D scene change with each step along the way. In just a couple seconds, the material appears on the model in that environment, including all the final shadows, highlights, and reflections (figure 1). HyperShot continually renders into higher and higher resolutions. If you let it go just a few seconds more, you really get the clean and crisp photorealism that you'd expect from a final rendering, not a preview.
Figure 1. Putting some glamour in your product is easy and impressive with HyperShot. The rubber on the knobs and plastic finishes used here come standard.
So right away, I've got a model in the 3D scene that I can use, and I can immediately add or change materials to my surfaces to see how it's going to look within a few seconds. What I think most people like about HyperShot is this instant gratification. Everything about HyperShot emphasizes a faster timeline for the designer — the program's loading time, the rendering process time, and the ability to make quick modifications to the 3D composition.
As for model setup for HyperShot, there's not a lot of difference from the conventional renderers out there. One thing I had to learn was to change the groupings of surfaces in Rhino to correspond to the materials, not how they might be grouped during the building of the model. If I apply a material in HyperShot, it colors every item in the group. But this adjustment is rather easy to do after you've figured it out.
When you begin rendering within this 3D environment, it's also possible to tweak the lighting, rescale or reposition the model, or change the camera vantage point. Again, the scene will re-render automatically after each adjustment. It makes the overall composition of any scene much easier for designers to achieve than using some of the other popular rendering tools.
Bunkspeed HyperShot
Advancement in Effects
A couple of interesting new features in HyperShot really help designers get the illusion of reality instantly.
One of the first steps of rendering in HyperShot is choosing an environmental file — a predesigned global lighting scheme along with background imagery. HyperShot offers several free packages of preset environments when you download the application. Called high-dynamic range imaging (HDRI), they basically are 360-degree photo backgrounds with the lighting captured from where the picture was taken. They are very effective in instantly creating a realistic context for a product. Any shiny material you use will pick up the reflections from the image. Again, HyperShot does this function automatically, and the results are very convincing.
Another subtle effect is the soft shadow. HyperShot automatically generates soft shadows at the base of the object for whatever you set as the ground plane in your model. As a test, I used a photograph of my desk as my HyperShot background, then matched the ground plane of my model of a computer mouse (rendered in HyperShot) to the desk surface (figure 2). The instant it renders, you get the illusion of depth from both the ground shadow and the shading of the object itself. Both effects are calculated in real time. It doesn't take much work to composite a model into an HDRI background and seamlessly blend it into the scene.
Figure 2. The background here is an actual photo of the author's desk. The mouse model was rendered in HyperShot. This image is essentially what you see when you preview the rendering — the entire global lighting scheme, realistic materials, and shadows — in just a few seconds.
This kind of effective shadowing is what designers have always wanted. The subtle shadows down at the base are not the regular 1980s animation that cause harsh shadow lines. No longer will I waste countless hours fussing around to figure out those perfect shadows. When you've got deadlines, creating this kind of high-quality output with minimal controls is priceless.
HyperShot also heightens reality with its extensive and very easy-to-maneuver materials library, filled with the exact likenesses of the plastics, metals, and finishes of finished products.
In my original rendering program, I have to build every material I want to use. Preset materials are available, but they rarely match what I need; they include stock materials such as clear glass, glossy plastic, or matte plastic, and they usually are red and black. I have to pick my desired color, build a bump file in Photoshop, import it, and then set it to the bump channel.
In HyperShot, all these real colors and materials already are on the palette bar, ready for application on the model. Bottom line: They look great, and there's no setup time. If I need to change them, I can make my own materials easily or tweak the ones that are there.
Wish List
As with every software review, I must tell you about the learning curve, that it takes some time to get up to speed, and so on. It took me some experimentation to get used to how HyperShot operates, especially those small differences in functionality that I've already mentioned.
One of few complaints I have with the program is that the hot-key commands aren't customizable, as in most design tools. I am instinctively used to certain keystrokes to navigate Rhinoceros, and they differ in HyperShot. The program does have a nice cheat sheet of commands that you can have open on the screen, but I keep catching myself using my usual buttons, and it's an annoyance. As far as customizing the layout of tools and windows in the work area, however, HyperShot is great.
I also noticed that several settings and control functions worked reliably, but they could be improved to give users quicker access or perhaps offer more visual cues for adjusting settings (using slide bars rather than just numerical entries, for example). Given that this software is a version 1 release, I'm willing to give Bunkspeed a pass. All these user-interface issues are relatively minor. In future versions, I expect Bunkspeed will turn its attention to these nuances.
Playing at a New Level
The real meat of the argument, of course, is the core programming of the real-time rendering technology, which in my opinion, Bunkspeed has mastered. For a product designer, HyperShot is a dream application. It has all the features I want, and I immediately have the results I need to see how colors, materials, and finishes look together. You can just compare what comes out of the previews of other popular rendering solutions to what you get in HyperShot, and the choice is obvious. HyperShot blows the competition out of the water.
Gabriel Mathews is an industrial designer at Con-Cor in Portland, Oregon.
About the Author: Gabriel Mathews
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