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If you have a little superhero in your life, then you'll want to check out SuperMe! SuperMe offers a fun line of toddler backpacks and messenger bags that do double duty by letting your little one transform at the blink of an eye into a superhero fully equipped with a cape! Hidden in a secret pocket (because all superheros have to hide their uniforms), your little one can pull out the cape in a matter of seconds.
In the secret, zippered pocket at the top of the backpack, the full-length cape easily can be pulled out AND put back in by you or your child. The pocket is as deep as the backpack so if you wanted, you could put other items in there was well. Some great features about these cool backpacks is how lightweight the fabric is. This is a backpack your little one won't mind carrying and it comes with a clip that goes across the chest to take some of the pressure off their shoulders and back. The part that rests against your child's back is made out of a breathable, padded mesh material for additional comfort. And, as an additional perk, there are reflective buckles for added safety! As fall quickly approaches and our days get shorter, many kids may not get picked up from daycare or aftercare until the sun goes down. Inside the backpack there are two mesh pockets to help organize things. Or store those things that all superheros need: apples and cheese sticks for fuel.
Another fun thing is the ability to change out the patches on the backpack. Created on the premise of patches from boy/girls scouts, the patches allow your child to personalize their backpacks. One of my daughter's passions is baking with me. She loves to pour the ingredients into the bowl and then stir them all together and then of course, taste the batter to make sure it's worth baking! Because this is something we love to do together, I thought the baker patch would be perfect for her. She likes the ability to switch the patches and I like that they are attached by velcro. It makes it easy with no sewing!
And don't forget about the cute little mask. Miss B was being a little coy with her mask so I couldn't get a great picture but you can see how wearing the mask can really make them feel like a super hero. And because the creators of SuperMe thought of everything, there is a special place in the backpack to store the mask.
Miss B loves her new SuperMe backpack, which is evident by the smile on her face! The entire time she wore her backpack outside she was running around the yard, between the bushes and trees, laughing and screaming like all little girls seems to do. She's definitely my favorite little super hero.
Make sure to keep up with the latest products and promotions by following SuperMe on Facebook and Twitter.
WIN one of these cape backpacks for your little one in the Noise Girls For The Family Giveaway Event. SuperMe is part of the Little Boys package valued at $575! Valid for US residents only.
Disclosure: East9thStreet received product in order to conduct this review. No monetary compensation was received. Regardless, opinions are 100% my own and yours may differ.


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Gregg Behr, The Grable Foundation
remakelearning.org is your source for learning innovation news and stories, upcoming events and opportunities, and your connection to Kids+Creativity Network members and support services.
How one young maker is taking her education into her own hands and gaining national attention. Check out Sylvia's Super Awesome Maker Show.
read moreAt Pittsburgh's Saxifrage School, educators say everything they need to operate their college campus already exists in the community. Is this the future of higher education?
read moreNew "fab labs" give today's students the chance to tinker with high-tech tools and 3D printers. Some say they are preparing today's students for the next economic revolution.
read moreExperts say communities need broad educational infrastructure to support and sustain success for all students. In Pittsburgh, the city's programs and public schools are working together to make sure what kids learn afterschool supports in class learning as well.
read moreWriting for his blog on Education Week, learning innovator Tom Vander Ark surveys the scene of Pittsburgh's learning landscape, where Hive Pittsburgh and the Kids+Creativity Network play an important part in turning Pittsburgh into and "EdTech Hive."
read moreHive teens are reinventing summer learning throughout Pittsburgh. They're invading museums, taking over parks, hacking the web, turning libraries inside out, making their own spaces, and energizing life in their communities. It's Hive Days of Summer and learning will never be the same.
read more

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If you've read my book 'The Fund' and want to receive a personalized bookplate in the mail, just please do the following:
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Bookstores | Tagged "H.T. Narea", "The Fund" | Leave a comment
Miami Herald
His energy has been focused on diversifying and branching out into related businesses including publishing and film production. At the same time, Kaplan has managed to fuel an expansion of Miami's homegrown Books & Books brand through creative licensing deals and the creation of a new newsstand format.
"Instead of feeling victimized by what was happening in the marketplace, I decided to look at the value we've built up over the years and try to transfer it to other things," Kaplan said. "You have to find ways to monetize the value. Otherwise, you can't stay relevant."
That's not an easy task when the ranks of independent booksellers have spent more than a decade in dramatic decline fueled by changing industry dynamics.
Even the national chains are no longer immune. Though Borders filed for bankruptcy in February and closed more than 200 stores, it is still losing money and negotiating a deal with a private equity firm. Industry leader Barnes & Noble has been on the market since August. It wasn't until Liberty Media Corp. last month offered to buy the bookstore chain at an 81 percent discount to sales that the stock started rising and ignited what is likely a bidding war.
This all comes at a time when traditional book sales are declining in the face of soaring sales of digital books delivered on Kindles, Nooks and tablets like the iPad. During the first quarter of 2011, e-book sales jumped nearly 160 percent to hit more than $233 million, according to the Association of American Publishers. That compares to a first-quarter sales decline of 23.4 percent at the nine mass market publishing houses. First quarter e-book sales were nearly double that of mass market paperback sales, which fell to $123.3 million.
These days independents like Books & Books must do a lot more than just stack books on a shelf to remain successful.
Kaplan has expanded his in-store cafes, doubled his special events and increased the number of ancillary items for sale like jewelry and decorative bowls. He's also started selling e-books on his website, branched into convention book sales, added more kid's book fairs and hired someone to build his corporate sales business.
"If I lose some sales, then I will make them up by selling other things," Kaplan said. "We're not where we were five years ago, when we didn't have the kind of competition that we have now. It's a real testament to Miami that we're still around. There are lots of big cities that lost significant independent bookstores."
The ranks of the independent bookstores have been steadily dropping by a couple hundred annually since the early 1990s. Membership in the American Booksellers Association fell by half during that period. In 2010, the association saw its first slight increase in nearly 15 years and membership now stands at 1,500. But even with that stabilization, independents only represent about 12 percent of the total retail market share, a far cry from the approximately 50 percent share they held back when Kaplan started in the early 80s.
And industry experts say the fallout is not over, as e-book sales continue to rise and could eventually represent half of all book sales. Most immediately, e-books are expected to make paperback book sales obsolete.
"This is biggest transformation in the book business since the summer of 1945 and the launch of Bantam Books, one of the first mass market paperbacks," said Al Greco, professor of marketing at Fordham University and a consultant for Publisher's Weekly. "The fact that unit sales of print books have declined – and will continue to decline – will lead to a reduction in the total number of bookstores in the United States over the next five years.''
How many will survive is hard to say.
"It's a game of musical chairs and it's about who is going to get the last seat when the music stops," Greco said. "The really well known independents with brand equity and a smart marketing strategy will survive, although it will be tough. The small mom-and-pops are another story."
Kaplan estimates that his in-store book sales are down by close to 7 percent from the pre-recession peak, but overall sales have remained relatively flat. Creating multiple revenue streams helps balance out the bottom line. To make up for the decline in book sales, Kaplan has seen growth in newer categories like gift and corporate sales. About one-fourth of his sales now come from his in-store cafes run by chefs Bernie Matz and Allen Susser. The Books & Books Café by Matz at
the Lincoln Road location has become a destination restaurant in its own right.
This entrepreneurial spirit has earned Kaplan the respect of his peers. Books & Books is one of the industry's most recognized names, along with Powell's Books in Portland, City Lights Books in San Francisco and Politics & Prose in Washington D.C. The brand has come a long way since Kaplan, a law school dropout and former Southridge High School English teacher, opened the first Books & Books in 1982 in a 500-foot former jewelry store in Coral Gables with several family members, including his mother Helen Kaplan and uncle Julius Ser.
"He is certainly one of the most creative booksellers in the country," said Oren Teicher, chief executive officer of the American Booksellers Association. "Books & Books has absolutely been a leader in terms of their willingness to reinvent themselves and find new ways of doing business in order to remain competitive in an ever-changing world. But there isn't one formula that works. That's part of the challenge. You can't take what Mitchell has done in Miami and replicate it in Chicago."
Kaplan has found a way to expand from his three Miami-Dade County stores — in Coral Gables, Miami Beach and Bal Harbour — to a total of seven locations under the Books & Books moniker. But the new locations in Grand Cayman; West Hampton Beach, N.Y.; the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale and Miami International Airport are not owned by Kaplan.
In those cases, Kaplan created a licensing and marketing partnership with each local owner or institution. Kaplan lends the Books & Books name and store design, as well as the expertise on a wide-range of topics from inventory management to staff training. The Books & Books staff also bring in authors for book signing and speaking engagements.
The partnerships enabled Kaplan to leverage the infrastructure and brand recognition built up over nearly 30 years since he opened his first Coral Gables store in 1982. But what he doesn't have is the financial responsibility or daily operational oversight for stores outside of South Florida.
"I really believe in locally owned bookstores," Kaplan said. "This way we have local partners that own the stores and we could just bring our special sauce. I had no interest in owning stores outside of the local area. This model makes sense because at the heart of what we're all about is a sense of community."
Several partnerships started by chance, when people in the industry sought out Kaplan's advice. Kaplan, co-founder and chairman of the Miami Book Fair International, remains a high-profile industry leader with connections to many of the country's leading authors and publishers. Kaplan says he averages between two and three calls a week from communities — from Nashville, Tenn. to Bloomington, Ind., — that want bookstores.
But Kaplan isn't planning to say yes to everyone. He chose his initial partners because they offered a market where the Books & Books name was already recognized – and an attractive partner.
Jack McKeown, owner of the West Hampton Beach store and a former book publisher, had known Kaplan for more than 30 years. When McKeown and his wife decided to open a bookstore, they decided a joint venture made the most sense. They have reduced overhead costs and simplified the inventory process by using the buying history at Books & Books in Coral Gables, which has similar market characteristics as the tony Long Island village.
"Being risk adverse types, we thought that the platform of a branded name would give us great credibility right out of the gate," McKeown said. "It would create instant familiarity for a number of avid book buyers. We have been astonished at the number of times that people come in and say, 'We love the Coral Gables store. We love Books & Books.'"
For the Fort Lauderdale museum, a bookstore works well with the overall cultural mission of the facility.
"I believe strongly that book stores are a way of building a sense of community," said Irvin Lippman, executive director of the museum, which is part of Nova Southeastern University. "It builds a greater following for the museum. Books still have a way of further explaining what we do."
Next on the agenda for Kaplan is the launch of a new smaller format. The Newstand by Books & Books was initially tested inside the Books & Books Bal Harbour location. Now, he's ready to roll it out as a stand- alone brand. The new format will feature a dramatically edited selection of books and magazines, along with coffee, tea and frozen yogurt. The first location is set to open later this summer at the Southeast Financial Center in Downtown Miami.
For this venture, Kaplan is a co-owner with Doug Levine, the former owner of Crunch Gym. The initial goal is to open five by the end of the year in Miami-Dade County and then expand to the rest of the tri-county area in 2012. Potential locations include retail shopping centers and high-density office buildings. The idea is to fill some of the void left since Walden and B. Dalton disappeared.
"It's a way for us to take a familiar brand in South Florida and create this gathering place that everyone knows and loves," Levine said. "There needs to be something that's smaller and more intimate, that's sort of a new model."
Creating a community is an area where industry experts believe that local bookstores can differentiate themselves from national chains and Amazon.com. Price-conscious shoppers by nature are going to turn to the Internet or mass merchandise retailers like Wal-Mart and Costco. But at the independent, consumers have an opportunity for a different type of shopping experience that's hard to find today.
"An independent book store's job is to show people where the content editing process ends," according to Michael Norris, senior book analyst with Simba Information. "You have to be connected with your community and you have to know why people go there. It's about going back to your roots. The independents have to be unapologetic about their value. If they don't do that, someone else is going to."
Independent bookstores regularly help identify books that go on to become major national bestsellers, including The Da Vinci Code, The Help, Water for Elephants and the Harry Potter franchise.
That's what has made Books & Books a Miami favorite for nearly 30 years. Informed staff members often know customers by name and can steer them toward books they might like based on past reading history. Shoppers find an edited selection designed to focus on the community, and Kaplan has served as a big booster for local authors like Dave Barry, Les Standiford, Carl Hiassen and John Dufresne. Free author events occur almost every night at one or more of the three Miami-Dade original Books & Books locations. The stores host a wide-range of community events including writing workshops, book groups, tango lessons and wine appreciation classes.
"We open the doors of the store to be the community center," Kaplan said. "That is the heart and soul of why we're able to do what we do. We are of the community and for the community."
The uniqueness of the selection at Books & Books is why Gea Haff of Key Largo visits the Coral Gables store on average once a month. She particularly loves the arts section.
"I find books that I would never come across at Barnes & Noble or online," said Haff, 42, who admits she does buy more books on Amazon.com, but leaves her Books & Books trip for new discoveries. "You just see things because of the way they have everything displayed. The whole atmosphere is just warm and cozy."
Those art books that Haff loves are part of Kaplan's efforts to work with several prominent art publishers on creating a new business model. Kaplan devotes expanded space to create in-store boutiques for books from Assouline, Rizzoli and teNeues, in exchange for receiving special terms on the books.
Visitors to the Books & Books stores will also start to see more books on the shelves that Kaplan is helping to publish through a new contract publishing business. Coming later this year is a special illustrated edition of the Last Train to Paradise by Les Standiford, an account of Henry Flagler's construction of Florida's East Coast Railway; and Blue Christmas by John Dufresne, a fiction anthology of non-sentimental holiday stories.
Publishing isn't Kaplan's only new venture. He's also branching out into the movie business and teaming with a Hollywood film producer to create the Mazur/Kaplan Company, which has at least a dozen books in various stages of development for film and television. The first to begin filming later this year is Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, based on the book by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, which will be made by Fox 2000 and is likely to star actress Kate Winslett and be directed by Kenneth Branagh.
"Being partners with Mitch gives us fantastic access to authors, editors and publishers. There's also a credibility that's phenomenal," partner Paula Mazur said. "Mitch is really an amazing name in publishing. We're kind of a novelty act in Hollywood now. I love trotting into meetings with America's greatest bookseller."
We're having a party and you're invited!
Appearances, Bookstores | Tagged "economic Warfare", "Financial terrorism", "H.T. Narea", "Paul Erdman", "The Fund", Mystery, Thriller | Leave a comment
The Fund is now available in the iTunes Store — click here
Bookstores | Tagged "economic Warfare", "Financial terrorism", "H.T. Narea", "Paul Erdman", "The Fund", Mystery, Thriller | Leave a comment


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Hill Farm Caravan Park
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Dogs allowed
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Attractions near Hill Farm Caravan Park
Must see
- Mottisfont Abbey Garden, House and Estate (3.0 miles)
- Paultons Family Theme Park (4.2 miles)
- Exbury Gardens and Steam Railway (9.2 miles)
National Trust
- Mottisfont (2.9 miles)
- Mompesson House (10.5 miles)
Cycle routes
Find local routes on the National Cycle Network - over 12,000 miles of cycling routes.
Activities near Hill Farm Caravan Park
Monarch's Way, Michelmersh and Braishfield (2.9 miles) Walking
Mottisfont - Test Way - Kimbridge - Monarch's Way - Lower Brook House - Mottisfont (3.0 miles) Walking
Mottisfont - Horsebridge - East Tytherley - Mottisfont (3.1 miles) Walking
Alas, no reviews yet . But reviews are brilliant - they help thousands of other people to find the right holiday. Be bold, be the first to review this site. It only takes a minute.
Leisure on site
Bar or club house
Cycle hire
Evening entertainment
Fitness centre
Games room
Indoor swimming pool
Kids' club
On-site restaurant/cafe
Outdoor swimming pool
Play area
TV room
Take away
Amenities on site
Bath available
Car parking by pitch
Disabled facilities
Drying room
Food shop
Free wifi
Ice pack freezing
Internet access
Parent & baby washroom
Pick-up from public transport
Public telephone
Shower available
Toilet block
Washing-up area
Charging facilities
Chemical disposal
Gas cylinders available
Recycling available
Renewable energy
Touring and motorhomes
Drainage hook-up points for tourers
Electrical hook-up points for tourers
Tourer storage facilities
Water hook-up points for tourers
Campfires allowed
Commercial vehicles allowed
Dogs allowed
Nearby leisure
Fishing nearby
Golf nearby
Horse riding nearby
Groups welcome
Motorcycle friendly
Single-sex groups welcome
Student groups welcome
Motor caravans accepted
Offers park homes for rent
Ordnance Survey maps (GB and Northern Ireland only) are available at lower levels via the drop-down menu.
Nearest transport
- Coach stations
West Wellow (Hants): Canada Corner Coach Stop — 2.5mi
Lyndhurst (Hants): Park Hotel Coach Stop — 9.2mi
Southampton University: Interchange — 9.2mi
- Train stations
Mottisfont & Dunbridge Rail Station — 2.4mi
Dean Rail Station — 3.6mi
Romsey Rail Station — 3.8mi
- Ferry ports
Southampton Vehicle Ferry Terminal — 10.7mi
Southampton Passenger Ferry Terminal — 10.8mi
Hythe (Hants) Ferry Terminal — 12.2mi
- Airports
Southampton Airport — 10.3mi
Bournemouth International Airport — 19.3mi
Cancellation policy
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Sandy Balls Holiday Centre
Fordingbridge, Hampshire Show on map |
Serviced touring pitch (no pets) | 10 x | From £15 per night | |
Serviced touring pitch (pets allowed) | 10 x | From £15 per night |
Salisbury Youth Hostel
Salisbury, Wiltshire Show on map |
Non-electric grass pitch | 10 x | From £23 per night |
Riverside Holidays
Hamble, Hampshire Show on map Last booked 4 hours ago |
Non-electric grass tent pitch | 4 x | From £16 per night | |
Electric grass pitch | 6 x | From £18 per night |


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Continental/Tire Pressure Sensor Mounting Band
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Hosts Merril and Diane go all out to be friendly and helpful and provide a beautifully presented and abundant breakfast. Lots of helpful tourist material, and a stunning view of the Bow River from an outdoor patio overlooking the banks. Even a gazebo if it's raining! A bit of country right in the city - 10 minutes from downtown.
- Official Description (provided by the hotel):
- Along River Ridge B&B is a restful all-seasons retreat, a romantic hideaway, and a quiet and quaint getaway. Come relax and discover a cosy, comfortable and memorable B&B adventure at our Canada Select 4 Star Bed and Breakfast. Rest and Renew in the tranquil backyard with a "garden of delights" and the 50ft. river deck. Savour the Sights, Sounds, and Scents of a unique blend of urban and rural.Enjoy a truly indulgent experience that rejuvenates spirits,soothes souls, and bonds friendships. ... more less


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Name: Bobak
Fc: 0131 1492 2759
Pm me if you want to race! but only on weekends
Name: Bobak
Fc: 0131 1492 2759
Pm me if you want to race! but only on weekends
Will always be a member of the 7 Deadly Sins
(> <)
This is a Sharingan Bunny. Copy Bunny into your signature to help him on his way to world domination.
I'll hop on this list pm/vm me for a race.
Jim: 3524-1627-1431
PO/PS Username: LilPrinnyDood
Credit goes to Sworn Metalhead for the awesome banner and shadow the omnipotent for the epic userbar
i would love to race! pm me for fc
My Youtube Channel
No vids til get my tower fully functional
Things needed
-A Working DS Emulator (have one but not working)
Looking for Guests to star on my podcast pm me if you would like to guest star
-Thanks FrostStorm
2150-1540-3110, ★Julia★. PM me if you add me, and I'll add you.
Just another Pokemon playing teenage girl.
White 2 FC: Julia [1850 9523 6776]
Awww crud I made a thread like this but this is WAY better my friend code is 4856-9191-5938
I'll be happy to race anyone
HA! Kagesuchi lololol!!!*Currently Waits For The Wii U* "O_O"
I have 9999 VR. Anyone wanna race?


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Saturday 16 June 2012: Winter in Dunedin.
Learned a lesson today. For the first time in a while I carried the camera out to the car on the way to the golf club, and whammo! A blip. Ice on my windscreen. Cool patterns.
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- 3 comments


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Summer Reading
Browse the best books for every age and adventure including popular series, classics, and editors' picks in our Kids Summer Reading Store. |
Said a book-reading parrot named Hooey, "The words in this book are all phooey. When you join them your lips will make slips and back flips, and your tongue may end up in Saint Looey!"Don't say he didn't warn you. For a truly inspired family gigglefest, this is the top of the charts. (Preschool to early reader) --Jill Lightner
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"Oh Say" contains Seussian imaginary creatures (the Schnak, the Grox, etc.) and silly characters ("a musical urchin named Gretchen von Schwinn," the acrobatic Fuddnuddler brothers, etc.). Along the way are such tongue-torturing phrases as "Skipper Zipp's Clipper Ship Chip Chop Shop." The colorful illustrations, as one might expect from Seuss, are bursting with surreal energy. Overall, a lot of fun, especially if you love rhyme and alliteration.


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Weekly Quickie {wink,wink!} Here is your weekly dose of something motivational!
Make it a GREAT week!
How to wear springs top trends.
Update last year's high-rise washes by tucking in a fitted silk top. Buy a bejeweled Peter Pan collar and add it to a shirt you already own.
Try a lightweight stretchy fabric such as Tencel. Add a great leopard blazer or a pair if leopard heals.
Hue's the boss! Keep the outfit bright with a complementary shirt, I like pulling one color in the print. Pick a pair of pants with tiny flowers if your bottom heavy. They are much more forgiving on the hips and butt areas. Amp up night-time sex appeal with a biker jacket and ankle straps.
Versatility reigns when it comes to denim. Patchwork can be "casual & dressy at the same time." A no-brainer outfit:slim pants with distressed details elevated by punchy stilettos and a tailored graphic blazer.
If you are anxious on how the denim can be worn in spring, follow these wardrobe essentials and rock your denim with style.
I love all of the fun trends spring denim has to offer…so great!
Bring bottoms to the top of your spring cleaning list. Trade in an old standby for one (or more!) of the hot new favorites.
It's not too late to find the perfect gift
for a healthy mom that's on the go!
For a long time, candy and flowers were considered the perfect gift to give mom; she could sit on the couch munching on chocolates, and watching the flowers wilt; what could be better? Treat Mom with a healthy gift this year for Mother's Day. Whether she's a fitness lover, a healthy foodie, or on a mission to get fit for good, check out all these gift ideas perfectly tailored for every mom you need to shop for.
It turns out that a whole lot of things are better. These days, moms are getting off the couch, and hitting the gym. They live active and healthier lives. It's about time that we updated the gifts that we give them to reflect this. Active moms don't want empty calories; they want gifts that fit in with a healthy lifestyle.
Whether your Mama is into cooking, running, yoga, hitting the gym — or just hitting the snooze button — I've got great gift ideas for every budget.
Blue Apron Subscription Even the best cooks need a little help every once in a while. Blue Apron delivers pre-measured ingredients and instructions for three fresh, healthy recipes per week. Choose how many people you're cooking for, then pick either the vegetarian or the meat/seafood option.
Wine of the Month Club More into rosé than running? A wine club is a great way to discover the intricacies of wine. Most wine subscription services deliver 12 bottles once every three months — definitely enough for a heart-healthy glass every night. The Wall Street Journal Wine Club and Laithwaites Wine Club are both good options.
Herb Garden Kit Spice up cooking with fresh herbs grown right at home. Stop by a home and garden store for a pretty pot, soil, plant food, and herb seeds such as basil, thyme, parsley, oregano, rosemary, and chives. Or, order an all-in-one herb garden kit like this one from Burpee.
"How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman This book is unbelievably useful for anyone getting started — or looking for inspiration — in the kitchen. Bittman includes 2,000 recipes from simple to complex, with detailed instructions and variations to personalize each dish.
Naturebox Subscription Choosing a healthy snack is easy when a boxful of nutritious goodies arrives once a month. Naturebox delivers five packages of wholesome nibbles, from nuts to crackers to cookies made with whole-wheat flour and 100-percent fruit juice.
Homemade Meal This isn't the fanciest or most innovative suggestion, but for many mothers, a simple and heartfelt gift is far better than an expensive one. A nice bottle of wine, a delicious home-cooked meal, and plenty of conversation make a great last-minute present. If Mom is the main dinner chef at home, treat her with some precious moments of relaxation while you slave over the hot stove preparing her favorite meal. Don't forget dessert! A bar of dark chocolate, perhaps?
"Superfood Kitchen" by Julie Morris Figuring out how to get the most out of healthy ingredients is a snap with Morris's cookbook. With recipes from breakfast (Banana Seed Bread) to dinner (Quinoa with Secret Pesto and Sun-Dried Tomatoes) mom will know exactly what to do with a fresh haul from the farmer's market.
DIY Body Scrub Encourage your mom to take some "me time" every once in a while with a set of homemade bath products. Pantry staples like oatmeal, sugar, and salt exfoliate, while bananas and milk moisturize. Pick a recipe, mix it up, and pour it into a pretty glass bottle for an attractive and useful gift.
Organic Flowers of the Month Club If there's anything better than flowers on Mother's Day, it's flowers any day of the year. Studies show that a vase of pretty blooms can increase productivity and creativity, and reduce depression and anxiety. Sign up for a flower of the month club to get fresh blooms delivered once a month for three months, six months, or a full year (depending on your budget). Many online flower companies offer monthly services but some, like Organic Bouquet, only deal with sustainable, organic, and ethically produced flowers.
Massage or Salon Gift Certificate There's nothing better than a day at the spa for getting some serious R and R. Book a massage session (or any other relaxing treatment) at a local salon. Getting a massage has been proven to reduce physical pain, boost mood, and fight overall stress.
"Feng Shui That Makes Sense" by Cathleen McCandless Clearing, organizing, and reorienting your home according to ancient feng shui principles sounds difficult, but this book makes it totally approachable. Feng shui is all about reorganizing objects to help balance the flow of energy (or chi) through a room. McCandless breaks down feng shui and clearly explains how to use the techniques to create a beautiful, comfortable home.
Fair Trade Clothing and Equipment Let your mom focus on her practice (and not on a stinky, slippery mat) with eco-friendly yoga equipment. We love the mats and blocks made from sustainable materials like bamboo, cork, jute, and natural rubber from yoga company Hugger Mugger. Well-designed, sustainable threads from prAna or Hyde Yoga will help mom bend and stretch without worrying about a wardrobe malfunction or un-comfy seams.
"Tara Stiles: This is Yoga" Four DVD Set Why shell out bucks for yoga classes when you can get your om on in the middle of the living room? Score Tara Stiles' new four-DVD set — including Daily Yoga, Beginners Yoga, AM/PM Yoga, and Complete Yoga Library — provides plenty of yoga routines and instruction for all levels. Want even more routines? Head to Stiles' website for yoga downloads and more DVDs.
Gift Certificate to Local Studio For a more social yoga experience, gift mom a voucher for a class or personal session at a local yoga studio. She'll be able to work on technique, learn new poses, and meet like-minded yogis in town.
"Hell-Bent" by Benjamin Lorr This non-fiction book is a must-read for any yoga devotee, especially those who get their kicks from Bikram yoga. Lorr supplements the tale of his two-year journey through the world of competitive yoga with plenty of research and interviews with yogis, scientists, and doctors. It's a fascinating (and more than a bit strange) story of extremes, the amazing human body, and yoga.
Actvyist Gym Bag Is mom still schlepping her clothes and sneaks in a falling-apart shopping bag? If so, it's definitely time for an upgrade. And while you're at it, choose a bag that does some good for the world while keeping undies out of sight. With the purchase of each gym bag, Actvyist donates money to funding girls' sports teams and facilities in Niceragua. Why sports? Studies show that staying active and committing to a team can help girls be healthier, happier, and better educated.
Personal Training Gift Certificate Don't get stuck in a rut! Purchase a session with a personal trainer to teach Mom some new moves at the gym. She'll learn correct technique, challenging routines, and more importantly, how to build build strength (which is essential to maintaining healthy bones, especially for women). After she learns the moves, think about joining her for a sweat session — working out with a buddy can help both of you get better results.
GymBoss Interval Timer Futzing around with an iPhone or old-school stop watch wastes valuable gym time. Help your mom be as productive as possible at the gym with the Gym Boss Timer. Repeating intervals makes it easy to keep track of HIIT, Tabata, sprints, or any kind of timedtraining.
"The First 20 Minutes" by Gretchen Reynolds We all want to be healthy, but there's tons of information out there — how are we supposed to know what's legit? Reynolds, who writes the popular "Phys Ed" column for The New York Times, breaks down health and fitness with recent research and science. Her new book debunks fitness myths and explains current fitness findings in clear, understandable language. It's a must-read for anyone serious about staying healthy and fit for life, not just until swimsuit season.
Foam Roller A long stretching and foam rolling session is the icing on the cake of a long, tough run. Foam rolling loosens up tight muscles and helps connective tissue stay healthy and supple. A Trigger Point foam roller and The Stick's Marathon Stick will do the trick and keep sore muscles at bay.
Garmin Forerunner 10 This gift is a bit more expensive than the other ideas, but it's a perfect gift for a marathoning mom. The Garmin GPS tracks distance, pace, and calories burned, plus it records past information to keep track of goals. Best of all, it's super lightweight and user-friendly — start tracking with the push of a button, and go.
Yurbuds Few things are more annoying than earphones that fall out every few strides. Enter Yurbuds, invented by two active dudes who were sick of dealing with flimsy headphones while training for triathlons and marathons. Yurbuds are guaranteed to stay in, even when the going gets tough. A brightly colored pair will help Mom focus in on a tough run.
"Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall Whether or not your mom runs barefoot or sticks with sneaks, this book can provide her with some inspiration. The book centers on the Tarahumara tribe, a native Mexican population famous for their unbelievable running endurance, grace, and speed. Over the course of his research, McDougall learns to run like a Tarahumara, goes behind the scenes of the American ultrarunning community, and even travels down to the Mexican canyons for a race with the amazing runners themselves.
Gift Certificate for Meditation Class Meditation is much more than sitting with your eyes closed. For someone looking to get into mindfulness meditation, a guided class can be a great introduction. Scope out meditation centers in your area and score a gift card to help mom learn how to relax and reconnect.
Aromatherapy Set While studies show that aromatherapy doesn't always reduce anxiety, sniffing yummy-scented oils can still be a pleasant, comforting experience. If mom is more earth mama than tiger mother, gift her a beginner kit of essential oils. Introduce her to aromatherapy with some aromatherapy bath products or a small set of oils.
Tea Notes If your mom's into her afternoon tea, Tenota tea notes will be right up her alley. Go to the website, pick out a tea, and write out messages for each bag. Every time she grabs a packet of Earl Grey or Peppermint Soother, she'll see a loving, happy message. Warm and fuzzies all around.
"Mindfulness for Beginners" by Jon Kabat-Zinn What is mindfulness? And how the heck do we achieve it? Kabat-Zinn's book explains how to reconnect with the senses, ease anxiety, stay present in daily activities, and reclaim your "wholeness." It's a good introductory guide to anyone interested in mindfulness and meditation.
Clock Radio Scoring a high-quality alarm clock/radio/MP3 dock can be pricey, but a nice one will last long beyond the warranty. Plus, there's nothing better than listening to tunes in bed or waking up to a favorite song instead of a blaring alarm clock. iHome makes tons of models at different price points to choose from. More into soothing sounds than the Rolling Stones in the morning? Download the iHome Zen app (or any other white noise soundtrack) and plug it in.
Scented Eye Mask A dark room plus soothing herbs is a recipe for deep, rejuvenating sleep. Hook mom up with a lavender-filled eye mask to let her sleep in. Smelling lavender before bed can help with insomnia. Snag one here or make your own from scratch. Bonus points for bringing breakfast in bed when she finally wakes up!
Fancy PJs Special pajamas (aka not just a scruffy old work t-shirt and sweats) make any night feel special. Splurge on a high-quality set made of sustainable materials, like these super soft jammies from Gaiam made from bamboo and organic cotton.
Wake-up Light Getting up in the morning is easier (and less jarring) with a light alarm clock that mimics the rising sun. Program the time you want to get up in the morning, and the machine gradually increases light intensity for 30 minutes until it's bright and cheery. Some models also include nature sounds and an iPod dock to make waking up even more pleasant.
If you don't plan ahead and you are strapped for time, head to your local health food store (Trader Joe's, New Seasons, Whole Food) and find something for your mom.
What are you getting your mom (or the mother figure in your life) this year? Did I miss any great ideas? Tell me all about it in the comments below or tweet me @jackiesteiner.
I must confess…breakfast is my very favorite meal.
Your breakfast choices lay the foundation for your entire day and your long-term health. But you don't have to stick with the traditional options.
The key to motivation in the morning is to get out of a same-old-foods rut and kick-start the day with new, creative ideas.
For May's Healthy Habits goal, Cooking Light is challenging us to have a healthy meal every morning. Eating breakfast resets the body's metabolic motor after the night's fast. Plus, a good satisfying breakfast helps affirm your healthy-eating intentions for the whole day.
Skipping breakfast sets you up for physical and mental lows and bad food choices when you pass the pastry counter at the local coffee shop.
Most of us only have enough time to grab a cup of coffee on the way out the door to try to beat rush-hour traffic.
It is possible to eat a healthy breakfast and get out the door on time without having to wake up at the crack of dawn to make it possible. These three options are my "go-to" items when I'm in a rush.
■Stash go-to snacks at work. A jar of peanut butter is a shelf-stable friend—perfect with graham crackers, whole-grain crackers, or apples, all of which you can keep in your desk drawer. If there's a fridge at work, start the week with a supply of yogurt, fresh fruit, or a few sticks of string cheese.
■Muffins are the ultimate make-ahead breakfast. They're freezer-friendly, quick to reheat, and satisfying. Pair with yogurt for a more filling meal.
■Hard-boiled eggs. If you don't want to have to cook at all in the morning, you can still get your protein in the morning by hard-boiling some eggs at the beginning of the week. Just crack one open in the morning and eat it with some fruit or some whole-grain toast.
■Microwaved eggs. You don't have to stand over a hot stove to get a fresh and healthy breakfast. Simply crack an egg or two into a small bowl, whisk them together, and pour them into a Ziplock bag that you have lined with spray oil. Seal it and put it in the microwave for two minutes. You'll have a quick and easy omelet in no time. You can even add leftover veggies or cheese to make it more interesting and to get more nutrients.
■Oatmeal. Oatmeal is a powerhouse breakfast that only takes a couple of minutes to make. Just add some water or milk to a bowl of rolled oats and put them in the microwave and you'll get a breakfast that's loaded with heart-healthy fiber and tons of nutrients. You can add toppings like fresh fruit or nut butter to give it an added boost.
The modern time crunch is the worst enemy of breakfast.
Here's what you need to know: Not just any breakfast will do. Ideally, you should include whole grains, fruits and/or vegetables, lean protein, and low-fat dairy. Doing so incorporates two of the 12 Healthy Habits from previous months: whole grains and fruits/veggies. This combination of nutrients can delay hunger symptoms and keep you feeling full throughout the day."
"If we skip breakfast, we'll make unhealthier choices at lunch. People who skip breakfast eat more during the day," says Emily Banes, RD, clinical dietitian at the Houston Northwest Medical Center. This is partly due to a thought process in which people believe — incorrectly — that if they don't eat breakfast, they can eat more at lunch or dinner.
What are your go-to recipes for breakfast when you're in a rush? Share your favorites in the comments!


text:
Chapter 19. Language and Hemispheric Asymmetry
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by Lizzie Wade With its complex interweaving of symbols, structure, and meaning, human language stands apart from other forms of animal communication. But where did it come from? A new paper suggests that researchers look to bird songs and monkey calls to understand how human language might have evolved from simpler, preexisting abilities. One reason that human language is so unique is that it has two layers, says Shigeru Miyagawa, a linguist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge. First, there are the words we use, which Miyagawa calls the lexical structure. "Mango," "Amanda," and "eat" are all components of the lexical structure. The rules governing how we put those words together make up the second layer, which Miyagawa calls the expression structure. Take these three sentences: "Amanda eats the mango," "Eat the mango, Amanda," and "Did Amanda eat the mango?" Their lexical structure—the words they use—is essentially identical. What gives the sentences different meanings is the variation in their expression structure, or the different ways those words fit together. The more Miyagawa studied the distinction between lexical structure and expression structure, "the more I started to think, 'Gee, these two systems are really fundamentally different,' " he says. "They almost seem like two different systems that just happen to be put together," perhaps through evolution. One preliminary test of his hypothesis, Miyagawa knew, would be to show that the two systems exist separately in nature. So he started studying the many ways that animals communicate, looking for examples of lexical or expressive structures. © 2010 American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17861 - Posted: 03.02.2013
By Bruce Bower Children with dyslexia may read better after playing action video games that stress mayhem, not literacy, a contested study suggests. Playing fast-paced Wii video games for 12 hours over two weeks markedly increased the reading speed of 7- to 13-year-old kids with dyslexia, with no loss of reading accuracy, says a team led by psychologist Andrea Facoetti of the University of Padua, Italy. Reading gains lasted at least two months after the video game sessions. The gains matched or exceeded previously reported effects of reading-focused programs for dyslexia, the researchers report online February 28 in Current Biology. "These results are clear enough to say that action video games are able to improve reading abilities in children with dyslexia," Facoetti says. Although the new study includes only 20 children with dyslexia, its results build on earlier evidence that many poor readers have difficulty focusing on items within arrays, Facoetti holds. By strengthening the ability to monitor central and peripheral objects in chaotic scenes, he says, action video games give kids with dyslexia a badly needed tool for tracking successive letters in written words. But evidence for Facoetti's conclusions is shaky, asserts psychologist Nicola Brunswick of Middlesex University in London. The researchers tested word reading ability two months later but failed to test reading comprehension, she says. What's more, they did so with a mere six of 10 kids who played the action video games. © Society for Science & the Public 2000 - 2013
Keyword: Dyslexia; Aggression
Link ID: 17858 - Posted: 03.02.2013
By JEFF Z. KLEIN For the last two seasons, concussions and hits to the head were frequent talking points in the N.H.L., with the Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby serving as the catalyst. As the lockout dragged on for more than four months, though, the conversation shifted from player safety to revenue percentages and competitive balance. The first few weeks of the shortened 48-game season passed without much talk of concussions. But in the past two weeks, 11 N.H.L. players are believed to have sustained them, among them Crosby's teammate and the reigning most valuable player, Evgeni Malkin, thrusting the issue of head injuries back into the spotlight. Concussions continue to plague the league, despite its increased emphasis on reducing them. For the second season, the N.H.L. is playing under its broadened version of Rule 48, which penalizes hits that target an opponent's head or make the head the principal point of contact. But many of the recent injuries, including Malkin's, were not caused by hits deemed worthy of fines or suspensions. Last season, according to CBC network estimates, about 90 players missed games because of concussions, about 13 percent of N.H.L. players on active rosters on a given night. Crosby missed 60 games while recovering from a concussion he sustained in the 2011 Winter Classic. Malkin, who has 4 goals and 17 assists in 18 games this season, received a concussion diagnosis Sunday, two days after he fell awkwardly into the end boards following a routine shove from Florida's Erik Gudbranson. Malkin slid back-first into the boards, causing his head to snap sharply backward and strike the boards. © 2013 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Brain Injury/Concussion
Link ID: 17855 - Posted: 02.27.2013
Regina Nuzzo Despite having brains that are still largely under construction, babies born up to three months before full term can already distinguish between spoken syllables in much the same way that adults do, an imaging study has shown1. Full-term babies — those born after 37 weeks' gestation — display remarkable linguistic sophistication soon after they are born: they recognize their mother's voice2, can tell apart two languages they'd heard before birth3 and remember short stories read to them while in the womb4. But exactly how these speech-processing abilities develop has been a point of contention. "The question is: what is innate, and what is due to learning immediately after birth?" asks neuroscientist Fabrice Wallois of the University of Picardy Jules Verne in Amiens, France. To answer that, Wallois and his team needed to peek at neural processes already taking place before birth. It is tough to study fetuses, however, so they turned to their same-age peers: babies born 2–3 months premature. At that point, neurons are still migrating to their final destinations; the first connections between upper brain areas are snapping into place; and links have just been forged between the inner ear and cortex. To test these neural pathways, the researchers played soft voices to premature babies while they were asleep in their incubators a few days after birth, then monitored their brain activity using a non-invasive optical imaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy. They were looking for the tell-tale signals of surprise that brains display — for example, when they suddenly hear male and female voices intermingled after hearing a long run of simply female voices. © 2013 Nature Publishing Group
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17852 - Posted: 02.26.2013
By Athena Andreadis Genes are subject to multiple layers of regulation. An early regulatory point is transcription. During this process, regulatory proteins bind to DNA regions (promoters and enhancers) that direct gene expression. These DNA/protein complexes attract the transcription apparatus, which docks next to the complex and proceeds linearly downstream, producing the heteronuclear (hn) RNA that is encoded by the gene linked to the promoter. The hnRNA is then spliced and either becomes structural/regulatory RNA or is translated into protein. Transcription factors are members of large clans that arose from ancestral genes that went through successive duplications and then diverged to fit specific niches. One such family of about fifty members is called FOX. Their DNA binding portion is shaped like a butterfly, which has given this particular motif the monikers of forkhead box or winged helix. The activities of the FOX proteins extend widely in time and region. One of the FOX family members is FOXP2, as notorious as Fox News – except for different reasons: FOXP2 has become entrenched in popular consciousness as "the language gene". As is the case with all such folklore, there is some truth in this; but as is the case with everything in biology, reality is far more complex. FOXP2, the first gene found to "affect language" (more on this anon), was discovered in 2001 by several converging observations and techniques. The clincher was a large family (code name KE), some of whose members had severe articulation and grammatical deficits with no accompanying sensory or cognitive impairment. The inheritance is autosomal dominant: one copy of the mutated gene is sufficient to confer the trait. When the researchers definitively identified the FOXP2 gene, they found that the version of FOXP2 carried by the KE affected members has a single point mutation that alters an invariant residue in its forkhead domain, thereby influencing the protein's binding to its DNA targets. © 2013 Scientific American
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17845 - Posted: 02.25.2013
By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News A part of the brain's ability to shield itself from the destructive damage caused by a stroke has been explained by researchers. It has been known for more than 85 years that some brain cells could withstand being starved of oxygen. Scientists, writing in the journal Nature Medicine, have shown how these cells switch into survival mode. They hope to one-day find a drug which uses the same trick to protect the whole brain. Treating a stroke is a race against time. Clots that block the blood supply prevent the flow of oxygen and sugar to brain cells, which then rapidly die. But in 1926, it was noticed that some cells in the hippocampus, the part of the brain involved in memory, did not follow this rule. "They're staying alive when the prediction would say that they should die," said Prof Alastair Buchan from Oxford University who has investigated how they survive. I'm a survivor Experiments on rats showed that these surviving-cells started producing a protein called hamartin - which forces cells to conserve energy. They stop producing new proteins and break down existing ones to access the raw materials. When the researchers prevented the cells from producing hamartin, they died just like other cells. BBC © 2013
Keyword: Stroke
Link ID: 17844 - Posted: 02.25.2013
Regina Nuzzo Say the word 'rutabaga', and you have just performed a complex dance with many body parts — lips, tongue, jaw and larynx — in a flash of time. Yet little is known about how the brain coordinates these vocal-tract movements to keep even the clumsiest of us from constantly tripping over our own tongues. A study of unprecedented detail now provides a glimpse into the neural codes that control the production of smooth speech. The results help to clarify how the brain uses muscles to organize sounds and hint at why tongue twisters are so tricky. The work is published today in Nature1. Most neural information about the vocal tract has come from watching people with brain damage or from non-invasive imaging methods, neither of which provide detailed data in time or space2, 3. A team of US researchers has now collected brain-activity data on a scale of millimetres and milliseconds. The researchers recorded brain activity in three people with epilepsy using electrodes that had been implanted in the patients' cortices as part of routine presurgical electrophysiological sessions. They then watched to see what happened when the patients articulated a series of syllables. Sophisticated multi-dimensional statistical procedures enabled the researchers to sift through the huge amounts of data and uncover how basic neural building blocks — patterns of neurons firing in different places over time — combine to form the speech sounds of American English. The patterns for consonants were quite different from those for vowels, even though the parts of speech "use the exact same parts of the vocal tract", says author Edward Chang, a neuroscientist at the University of California, San Francisco. © 2013 Nature Publishing Group
Keyword: Language
Link ID: 17838 - Posted: 02.23.2013
by Sara Reardon Like the musicians in an orchestra, our lips, tongue and vocal cords coordinate with one another to pronounce sounds in speech. A map of the brain regions that conduct the process shows how each is carefully controlled – and how mistakes can slip into our speech. It's long been thought that the brain coordinates our speech by simultaneously controlling the movement of these "articulators". In the 1860s, Alexander Melville Bell proposed that speech could be broken down in this way and designed a writing system for deaf people based on the principle. But brain imaging had not had the resolution to see how neurons control these movements – until now. Using electrodes implanted in the brains of three people to treat their epilepsy, Edward Chang and his colleagues at the University of California mapped brain activity in each volunteer's motor cortex as they pronounced words in American English. The team had expected that each speech sound would be controlled by a unique collection of neurons, and so each would map to a different part of the brain. Instead, they found that the same groups of neurons were activated for all sounds. Each group controls muscles in the tongue, lips, jaw and larynx. The neurons – in the sensorimotor cortex – coordinated with one another to fire in different combinations. Each combination resulted in a very precise placing of the articulators to generate a given sound. Surprisingly, although each articulator can theoretically take on an almost limitless range of shapes, the neurons imposed strict limits on the range of possibilities. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.
Keyword: Language
Link ID: 17837 - Posted: 02.23.2013
by Michael Balter Despite recent progress toward sexual equality, it's still a man's world in many ways. But numerous studies show that when it comes to language, girls start off with better skills than boys. Now, scientists studying a gene linked to the evolution of vocalizations and language have for the first time found clear sex differences in its activity in both rodents and humans, with the gene making more of its protein in girls. But some researchers caution against drawing too many conclusions about the gene's role in human and animal communication from this study. Back in 2001, the world of language research was rocked by the discovery that a gene called FOXP2 appeared to be essential for the production of speech. Researchers cautioned that FOXP2 is probably only one of many genes involved in human communication, but later discoveries seemed to underscore its importance. For example, the human version of the protein produced by the gene differs by two amino acids from that of chimpanzees, and seems to have undergone natural selection since the human and chimp lineages split between 5 million and 7 million years ago. (Neandertals were found to have the same version as Homo sapiens, fueling speculation that our evolutionary cousins also had language). In the years since, FOXP2 has been implicated in the vocalizations of other animals, including mice, singing birds, and even bats. During this same time period, a number of studies have confirmed past research suggesting that young girls learn language faster and earlier than boys, producing their first words and sentences sooner and accumulating larger vocabularies faster. But the reasons behind such findings are highly controversial because it is difficult to separate the effects of nature versus nurture, and the differences gradually disappear as children get older. © 2010 American Association for the Advancement of Science
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17830 - Posted: 02.20.2013
by Virginia Morell Every bottlenose dolphin has its own whistle, a high-pitched, warbly "eeee" that tells the other dolphins that a particular individual is present. Dolphins are excellent vocal mimics, too, able to copy even quirky computer-generated sounds. So, scientists have wondered if dolphins can copy each other's signature whistles—which would be very similar to people saying each others' names. Now, an analysis of whistles recorded from hundreds of wild bottlenose dolphins confirms that they can indeed "name" each other, and suggests why they do so—a discovery that may help researchers translate more of what these brainy marine mammals are squeaking, trilling, and clicking about. "It's a wonderful study, really solid," says Peter Tyack, a marine mammal biologist at the University of St. Andrews in the United Kingdom who was not involved in this project. "Having the ability to learn another individual's name is … not what most animals do. Monkeys have food calls and calls that identify predators, but these are inherited, not learned sounds." The new work "opens the door to understanding the importance of naming." Scientists discovered the dolphins' namelike whistles almost 50 years ago. Since then, researchers have shown that infant dolphins learn their individual whistles from their mothers. A 1986 paper by Tyack did show that a pair of captive male dolphins imitated each others' whistles, and in 2000, Vincent Janik, who is also at St. Andrews, succeeded in recording matching calls among 10 wild dolphins "But without more animals, you couldn't draw a conclusion about what was going on," says Richard Connor, a cetacean biologist at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. Why, after all, would the dolphins need to copy another dolphin's whistle? © 2010 American Association for the Advancement of Science
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17829 - Posted: 02.20.2013
By Erin Wayman BOSTON — "Birdbrain" may not be much of an insult: Humans and songbirds share genetic changes affecting parts of the brain related to singing and speaking, new research shows. The finding may help scientists better understand how human language evolved, as well as unravel the causes of speech impairments. Neurobiologist Erich Jarvis of Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C., and colleagues discovered roughly 80 genes that turn on and off in similar ways in the brains of humans and songbirds such as zebra finches and parakeets. This gene activity, which occurs in brain regions involved in the ability to imitate sounds and to speak and sing, is not present in birds that can't learn songs or mimic sounds. Jarvis described the work February 15 at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Songbirds are good models for language because the birds are born not knowing the songs they will sing as adults. Like human infants learning a specific language, the birds have to observe and imitate others to pick up the tunes they croon. The ancestors of humans and songbirds split some 300 million years ago, suggesting the two groups independently acquired a similar capacity for song. With the new results and other recent research, Jarvis said, "I feel more comfortable that we can link structures in songbird brains to analogous structures in human brains due to convergent evolution." © Society for Science & the Public 2000 - 2013
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17818 - Posted: 02.18.2013
Regina Nuzzo People with dyslexia are often taught to work through reading by 'slowing down and sounding it out'. Results from a computerized training program, however, suggest that 'hurrying up and getting on with it' might be a better practice. Accelerated training could improve both reading fluency and comprehension, with lasting benefits. The training protocol speeds up reading by displaying a sentence and then systematically erasing it, letter by letter, in the direction of reading. It then asks questions to test the reader's comprehension. If the questions are answered correctly, the software moves on to the next sentence but gives the reader 2 milliseconds — the duration of an eyeblink — less reading time per letter. "We essentially tell the brain, 'Hey, you can do better,'" says Zvia Breznitz, a psychologist at the University of Haifa in Israel and lead author of the study. "We slowly break the cycle of bad reading." After training with the programme for three 20-minute sessions per week for two months, students with dyslexia read about 25% faster than before and comprehended more, even when allowed to read at their own pace. Their test scores ended up statistically indistinguishable from those of typical readers who had not gone through training, and the gains were still apparent six months after training ended. Typical readers also benefited from the training, but their gains were neither as significant nor as long-lasting as the dyslexics'. The findings are published today in Nature Communications1. "The results are exciting," says Guinevere Eden, a neuroscientist at Georgetown University in Washington DC. Dyslexia is thought to affect between 5 and 10% of the world's population2, but there is no gold-standard method for treating it. © 2013 Nature Publishing Group
Keyword: Dyslexia
Link ID: 17799 - Posted: 02.13.2013
Philip Ball In Fiji, a star is a kalokalo. For the Pazeh people of Taiwan, it is mintol, and for the Melanau people of Borneo, bitén. All these words are thought to come from the same root. But what was it? An algorithm devised by researchers in Canada and California now offers an answer — in this case, bituqen. The program can reconstruct extinct 'root' languages from modern ones, a process that has previously been done painstakingly 'by hand' using rules of how linguistic sounds tend to change over time. Statistician Alexandre Bouchard-Côté of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, and his co-workers say that by making the reconstruction of ancestral languages much simpler, their method should facilitate the testing of hypotheses about how languages evolve. They report their technique in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences1. Automated language reconstruction has been attempted before, but the authors say that earlier algorithms tended to be rather intractable and prescriptive. Bouchard-Côté and colleagues' method can factor in a large number of languages to improve the quality of reconstruction, and it uses rules that handle possible sound changes in flexible, probabilistic ways. The program requires researchers to input a list of words in each language, together with their meanings, and a phylogenetic 'language tree' showing how each language is related to the others. Linguists routinely construct such trees using techniques borrowed from evolutionary biology. © 2013 Nature Publishing Group,
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17786 - Posted: 02.12.2013
by Carrie Arnold If you want to survive as an ant, you'd better get ready to make some noise. A new study shows that even ant pupae—a stage between larvae and adult—can communicate via sound, and that this communication can be crucial to their survival. "What's very cool about this paper is that researchers have shown for the first time that pupae do, in fact, make some sort of a sound," says Phil DeVries, an entomologist at the University of New Orleans in Louisiana who was not involved in the study. "This was a very clever piece of natural history and science." Scientists have known for decades that ants use a variety of small chemicals known as pheromones to communicate. Perhaps the most classic example is the trail of pheromones the insects place as they walk. Those behind them follow this trail, leading to long lines of ants marching one by one. However, the insects also use pheromones to identify which nest an ant is from and its social status in that nest. Because this chemical communication is so prevalent and complex, researchers long believed that this was the primary way ants shared information. However, several years ago, researchers began to notice that adults in some ant genuses, such as Myrmica, which contains more than 200 diverse species found across Europe and Asia, made noise. These types of ants have a specialized spike along their abdomen that they stroke with one of their hind legs, similar to dragging the teeth of a comb along the edge of a table. Preliminary studies seemed to indicate that this noise served primarily as an emergency beacon, allowing the ants to shout for help when being threatened by a predator. © 2010 American Association for the Advancement of Science
Keyword: Animal Communication; Aggression
Link ID: 17779 - Posted: 02.09.2013
The use of an advanced imaging shortly after the onset of acute stroke failed to identify a subgroup of patients who could benefit from a clot-removal procedure, a study has found. The randomized controlled trial known as Mechanical Retrieval and Recanalization of Stroke Clots Using Embolectomy (MR RESCUE) was funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorder and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health, and was published online Feb. 8 in the New England Journal of Medicine. In patients with ischemic stroke (caused by a blockage in an artery), brain cells deprived of blood die within minutes to hours. Rapidly opening the artery can halt brain cell death. Intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA), a drug that dissolves clots has been shown to improve outcomes in such stroke patients. However intravenous t-PA is not effective in many patients with large clots blocking the major brain arteries that cause the most devastating strokes. MR RESCUE investigators tested an invasive clot removal strategy designed to remove clots from these large arteries. Patients in the study were enrolled at 22 centers in the United States within approximately 5.5 hours of their stroke onset. Their ability to function independently was assessed at 90 days. All MR-RESCUE patients underwent emergency computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance (MRI) perfusion imaging to identify regions of the brain with decreased blood flow, as well as regions that could not be salvaged.
Keyword: Stroke; Aggression
Link ID: 17778 - Posted: 02.09.2013
By Laura Hambleton, Winter often brings the flu, coughs, ski injuries and shoveling strains. Add to these ailments a more deadly one: heart attacks. A recent study has found that more fatal heart attacks and strokes occur during the winter than at other times of the year. And it doesn't seem to matter if the winter is occurring in the warmer climes of Southern California or the frostier ones of Boston. After sifting through about 1.7 million death certificates filed between 2005 and 2008, cardiologists Bryan Schwartz of the University of New Mexico and Robert A. Kloner of the Heart Institute at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles found a 26 to 36 percent greater death rate for heart attacks in winter than summer "despite different locations and climates," Kloner says. The worst months are December, January, February and the beginning of March. The doctors analyzed the cause of death for people in Texas, Arizona, Georgia, Los Angeles, Washington state, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. Of those who died of heart disease, the winter weather pattern was clear. In Los Angeles, for example, there were about 70 deaths per day from cardiac disease, Schwartz said. "In the summer, L.A. had an average circulatory death rate of about . . . 55 deaths per day." The research uncovered patterns in cardiac deaths from "seven different climate patterns," according to the study, and "death rates at all sites clustered closely together and no one site was statistically different from any other site." An abstract of the study was published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation. © 1996-2013 The Washington Post
Keyword: Biological Rhythms; Aggression
Link ID: 17763 - Posted: 02.05.2013
By Tia Ghose The identity of a mysterious patient who helped scientists pinpoint the brain region responsible for language has been discovered, researchers report. The finding, detailed in the January issue of the Journal of the History of the Neurosciences, identifies the patient as Louis Leborgne, a French craftsman who battled epilepsy his entire life. In 1840, a wordless patient was admitted to the Bicetre Hospital outside Paris for aphasia, or an inability to speak. He was essentially just kept there, slowly deteriorating. It wasn't until 1861 that the man, who was known only as "Monsieur Leborgne" and who was nicknamed "Tan" for the only word he could say, came to physician Paul Broca's ward at the hospital. Leborgne died shortly after the meeting, and Broca performed his autopsy, during which Broca found a lesion in a region of the brain tucked back and up behind the eyes. After doing a detailed examination, Broca concluded that Tan's aphasia was caused by damage to this region and that the particular brain region controlled speech. That part of the brain was later renamed Broca's area. At the time, scientists were debating whether different areas of the brain performed separate functions or whether it was an undifferentiated lump that did one task, like the liver, said Marjorie Lorch, a neurolinguist in London who was not involved in the study. © 1996-2013 The Washington Post
Keyword: Language; Aggression
Link ID: 17756 - Posted: 02.05.2013
By JUDY BATTISTA NEW ORLEANS — The N.F.L., faced with increasing concern about the toll of concussions and confronted with litigation involving thousands of former players, is planning to form a partnership with General Electric to jump-start development of imaging technology that would detect concussions and encourage the creation of materials to better protect the brain. The four-year initiative, which is expected to begin in March with at least $50 million from the league and G.E., is the result of a late October conversation between Commissioner Roger Goodell and G.E.'s chief executive, Jeffrey Immelt, a former offensive tackle at Dartmouth. When Goodell explained his idea of getting leading companies in innovation to join the N.F.L. to accelerate research, Immelt said he wanted to help. After years of insisting there was no link between head injuries sustained on the field and long-term cognitive impairment, the N.F.L. has altered rules, fined and suspended players who hit opponents in the head and contributed millions of dollars for the study of head injuries. "Is this their way of defending themselves with this cloud over the sport? I'd be lying if I told you it had nothing to do with it," Kevin Guskiewicz, the founding director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at the University of North Carolina, said of the initiative. Guskiewicz is a member of the league's Head, Neck and Spine Committee and the chairman of a subcommittee focused on safety equipment and playing rules. He will work with the N.F.L. and G.E. to identify areas of focus. © 2013 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Brain imaging; Aggression
Link ID: 17750 - Posted: 02.04.2013
By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS Recently, researchers from the department of sport science at the University of Innsbruck in Austria stood on the slopes at a local ski resort and trained a radar gun on a group of about 500 skiers and snowboarders, each of whom had completed a lengthy personality questionnaire about whether he or she tended to be cautious or a risk taker. The researchers had asked their volunteers to wear their normal ski gear and schuss or ride down the slopes at their preferred speed. Although they hadn't informed the volunteers, their primary aim was to determine whether wearing a helmet increased people's willingness to take risks, in which case helmets could actually decrease safety on the slopes. What they found was reassuring. To many of us who hit the slopes with, in my case, literal regularity — I'm an ungainly novice snowboarder — the value of wearing a helmet can seem self-evident. They protect your head from severe injury. During the Big Air finals at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colo., this past weekend, for instance, 23-year-old Icelandic snowboarder Halldor Helgason over-rotated on a triple back flip, landed head-first on the snow, and was briefly knocked unconscious. But like the other competitors he was wearing a helmet, and didn't fracture his skull. Indeed, studies have concluded that helmets reduce the risk of a serious head injury by as much as 60 percent. But a surprising number of safety experts and snowsport enthusiasts remain unconvinced that helmets reduce overall injury risk. Why? A telling 2009 survey of ski patrollers from across the country found that 77 percent did not wear helmets because they worried that the headgear could reduce their peripheral vision, hearing and response times, making them slower and clumsier. In addition, many worried that if they wore helmets, less-adept skiers and snowboarders might do likewise, feel invulnerable and engage in riskier behavior on the slopes. Copyright 2013 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Brain Injury/Concussion
Link ID: 17739 - Posted: 01.30.2013
By BENJAMIN HOFFMAN NEW ORLEANS — It has become a staple of Super Bowl week, as much a part of the pregame to the N.F.L.'s biggest event as the annual media day: a discussion of how football is being affected by head injuries and the mounting evidence that long-term brain damage can be linked to injuries sustained on the field. Years ago, players rarely spoke about the issue and league officials dismissed suggestions that on-field injuries could lead to life-altering health problems. Now, however, the league is facing lawsuits from thousands of former players, rules are being instituted in an attempt to diminish injuries on the field and even President Obama has said that the way football is played will have to change. This week, Bernard Pollard, a hard-hitting safety for the Baltimore Ravens, created a stir by saying that the N.F.L. would not exist in 30 years because of the rules changes designed with safety in mind, but that he also believed there would be a death on the field at some point. At media day Tuesday, players reacted to the comments made by Pollard and Obama, with some agreeing with Pollard that recent rules changes would change the sport to such an extent that it would be less entertaining and lead to a loss of popularity. Pollard stood by his comments. He added, however, that while he was comfortable with the physical risk he was taking by playing football, he was not sure he would want future generations, including his 4-year-old son, to follow his example. "My whole stance right now is that I don't want him to play football," Pollard said. "Football has been good to me. It has been my outlet. God has blessed me with a tremendous talent to be able to play this game. But we want our kids to have things better than us." He said he did not want his son to go through the aches and pains caused by the physicality of the game. © 2013 The New York Times Company
Keyword: Brain Injury/Concussion
Link ID: 17738 - Posted: 01.30.2013


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Super Mario Galaxy 2
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Game Detail
- Nintendo EAD Tokyo / Nintendo
- Release: May 23, 2010 »
- Also Known As: Super Mario Wii 2 (KO)
Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older.