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Volleyball team to face CMU in MAC tournament
The Bronco volleyball team recently clinched the MAC West division with 20 season wins to advance to the 2012 MAC Tournament Friday, Nov. 16, against Central Michigan University.
The Bronco volleyball team recently clinched the MAC West division with 20 season wins to advance to the 2012 MAC Tournament Friday, Nov. 16, against Central Michigan University.
Join President John M. Dunn as he helps mark the end of the campus United Way campaign with a celebration from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 16, at the Fetzer Center.
The latest Broadway revival of the beloved musical "West Side Story" will deliver two performances at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 13 and 14, at Miller Auditorium. Tickets are now on sale.
An informational workshop is scheduled for 2 to 3 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 15, to help participants gear up for two major Common Read events taking place this spring.
The Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, Transgender and Ally Diversity Career Fair is set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, in the Trimpe Building. Attendees should dress in business casual attire.
Senior Aleks Jogerst took first place overall in the 2012 State Farm Marketing and Sales Competition, held in October. Junior Brian Curlett took fourth place in the sales portion of the event.
This year's contest is open to students from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. The deadline to enter the contest is Thursday, Jan. 10.
Western Michigan University will open its 2013 non-conference football schedule with a game Saturday, Aug. 31, against Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich.
Dr. Lewis Walker, professor emeritus of sociology and namesake for the Lewis Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations, has won the Kalamazoo NAACP's 2012 Humanitarian Award.
New ensemble Birds on a Wire, conducted by David Colson, and KLOrk, the Kalamazoo Laptop Orchestra, conducted by David Loberg Code, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, at the Dalton Center Recital Hall.
Haworth College of Business is an outstanding business school, according to the education services company, the Princeton Review, and is featured in the 2013 edition of the annual guidebook, "The Best 296 Business Schools."
The Paperworks Goodwill Program employs people with disabilities to make handmade greetings cards with recycled materials including denim, wool, coffee and cotton.
Dr. Said Abubakr, chair of the Department of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Imaging, has received the 2013 Michigan Printing Week Association Ben Franklin Educator of the Year Award.
Mark Delorey, WMU director of student financial aid and scholarships, has received the 2012 Distinguished Service and Leadership Award by the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth.
John E. Sandberg, professor emeritus of education and former dean of the College of Education, died Wednesday, Oct. 24, in Viera, Fla., at age 83.
The topic of questions as they pertain to teaching and learning will be explored by a panel of experts on Thursday, Nov. 15, as part of the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society's fall lecture series.
Three authors and WMU alumni—Adam Clay, Peter Geye and K. Frithjof Peterson—will be featured in the next Frostic Reading Series event at 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 15, in 209 Bernhard Center.
A University of Michigan economist will discuss the importance of metrics in governance and economic growth on Wednesday, Nov. 14, as part of the Sichel Lecture Series.
Robert E. Shamu, professor emeritus of physics, died Friday, Oct. 26, at age 79. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 11, in Kalamazoo. Guestbook entries may be made online.
Webmail Plus, the University email system, was recently updated, fixing performance problems users had been experiencing and adding several new features.
Richard Kirsch, noted health care activist and author, wil speak as part of the Burian University-Community Lecture Series Tuesday, Nov. 13.
A day of fun activities, lectures, art demonstrations and poetry readings will highlight the Kalamazoo Russian Festival from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17.
WMU will induct 72 longtime employees during the annual 25 Year Club Gala set for Tuesday, Nov. 27. This year's inductees joined the ranks of the faculty or staff in 1987.
Dr. Rob White, professor of criminology at the University of Tasmania, will address "Climate Change, Crime and Criminology" at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 12, in 1920 Sangren Hall.
Countries and cultures around the world will be highlighted during the campus observance of International Education Week, set for Monday through Saturday, Nov. 12-17.
A recent book by Dr. Edwin Martini, associate dean for the College of Arts and Sciences, examines the far-reaching impact of Agent Orange in southeast Asia.
"Culture and Chemistry: Elements of Dance" offers a free night of dancing, prizes and refreshments at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 9.
Dr. David Lemberg, associate professor of geography, will be helping to spearhead efforts to develop a multi-modal trail around the entire Lake Michigan shoreline at an upcoming conference Nov. 8-9.
The Kalamazoo Film Society will present Mike Birbiglia's "Sleepwalk with Me," Friday through Sunday, Nov. 9-11, at WMU's Little Theatre. The film is rated PG-13; admission is $5.
Open enrollment will end at 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7, for eligible WMU employees and retirees to add dependents to their health care coverage and employees to enroll or re-enroll in a Flexible Spending Account.


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wants to Quantum Leap back to the year .......(lol)
The name is Sheldon Pessoa and when you speak of me speak well.I am a proud Jamaican Canadian with a Portuguese last name (Pessoa). My dream is to be a household name or to create something that is more popular than I. Preferably, writing a novel as good as "To Kill a Mocking Bird" the greatest novel ever written. I know my work is cut out for me. Winning the Nobel Prize for literature is a dream, which will be reality. I would like to marry Halle Berry, but would settle for Salma Hayek (lol). To tell you the truth, just looking for any woman that can breathe (lol) As you can tell I'm very idealistic and sometimes it's difficult to remain this way during troubled times. I hate politics, but strangely know a lot about it. Impeach King George before more people die because of his stupidity. As I become older, activism seems more attractive, but always with a peace mentality. When I die and leave the physical existence, I want them to write on my tombstone Sheldon Alec Pessoa 1981-??? "Too Original to Even be Cloned."


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Huff, Puff and Blow.
What has changed these past 40-50 years? Certainly not the pharmacology of these substances. What has changed are the rules that make safer drugs illegal and dangerous alternatives readily available.
It can be fairly said of these 'huffing' young teens, had they indulged in a joint of cannabis they would be suffering no perceptible risk. Even if they had indulged to the point that they required assistance, a glass of orange juice is about all the medical intervention that is required. They would be alive and well today.
We continue to distort the truth surrounding NZ most popular 'other, albeit illicit drug' and expect young people to listen to us. Get real. When the writer offered complimentary copies of "Safety First" and "Beyond Zero Tolerance" (Prof Rodney Skagar) to the Christchurch Library and to the Canterbury District Health Board Resource Centre they refused to approve them for distribution even restricted to adults only.
The price we pay for sticking our collective heads in the sand and wasting millions of otherwise better directed resources is considered acceptable 'to send a clear message'. Now we reap the rewards of our folly.
1998 Health Select Committee Report was erudite, courageous and clear when in its final analysis it pointed out that the double standards surrounding alcohol and cannabis is an impediment to credible (anti)drug education.
The Ottawa "Bible of Public Health" Charter is quite specific, when you identify such impediments, remove them. The Charter is the mantra for HEALTHY CHRISTCHURCH. Perhaps they could care to comment....
|English: Peter Dunne (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
What legislation we have in place is Rt Hon Helen Clark's partial prohibition. One that places possession and sale of cannabis like substances as R18. This has merit. And unless media and other policy wonks and commentators give balance to the merits the healthy message the 2008 restricted substances regulations send, we will remain 'at a loss to explain and diminish' both alcohol and other drug related harms. Not that Hon Dunne is about to let on these regulations were brought in to protect young people.
|Prime Minister of New Zealand Rt Hon Helen Clark at the opening of Waikato River Trail at Whakamaru (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Peter Dunne went to the UN and pretended the 2008 regulations didn't exist. He attended various Ministry of Health drug policy events at Te Papa and refused to acknowledge that experts were calling the 2008 regulations "world class". Indeed Professor Nutt former chair of the UK expert advisory committee (ACMD) said of these regulations "I wish I had thought of them first" and when asked if cannabis should be in them, "absolutely" he emphaticaly replied (in answer to questions at the 2009 Christchurch, Otago School of Medicine lectures).
So why haven't we heard about these regulations?
Could it be because they became law the day John Key became right and honorable?
Could it be because the required intervention, good 'healthy' regulations were gazetted and got Royal seal of approval smack in the middle of the 2008 election and no one noticed?
Or is it because really good drug policy is just plain boring?
Our current 'moral panic' response effectively makes these soft 'alternatives' to alcohol and cigarettes compulsory and a right of passage. With such double standards, we couldn't set up our kids for failure if we tried...
From colleague and Californian Education Professor Rodney Skagar (yes he visited NZ on a lecture tour hosted by the NZ Drug Foundation) - "Although we urge young people to abstain from alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, our national surveys show that many do not heed our warnings. To prevent adolescents who do experiment from falling into abusive patterns, we need to create fallback strategies that focus on safety. Putting safety first requires that we be careful to provide our young people with credible information and resources. We also need to teach our teenagers how to identify and handle problems with alcohol and other drugs—if and when they occur—and how to get help and support."
Join the MildGreens and others supporting the inclusion of cannabis into the R18 "Restricted Substances Regulations" applying Safety and Health Principals over failed prohibitory management and advocating for reality-based approaches to drug education at home and in school that foster open and honest dialogue around the context, risks and consequences of drug use.
We also invite you to critically examine random student drug dog 'sniffing', an invasive policy that can erode relationships of trust between students and adults at school and unintentionally direct students to more dangerous behaviors.
Blair Anderson, Christchurch NZ. Educators for Sensible Drug Policy.
ph nz (643) 389 4065 nz cell 027 265 7219
Labels: Adolescence, Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, Beyond 2008, Beyond Zero Tolerance, David Nutt, Helen Clark, Peter Dunne, University of Otago Dunedin School of Medicine


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The Urga Ski Marathon takes place in the 1582 founded city Khanty-Mansiysk, in the heart of Russia. The city is well known of ist Biathlon Worldcup races and is one of the richest cities in Russia because oft he oil boom, despite the city doesn\'t produce any oil.
Khanty-Mansiysk is host for many sports events and home for many famous athletes. Ugra Region is known as global cross-country skiing centre with a good touristic infrastructure. The local Icehockey team won the CHL-Championships in 2014. You can get easily from Moscow to Khanti-Mansiysk by plane. Three flights are offered from Moscow to Khanti-Mansiysk daily.
One of the most famous annual sports events is UGRA Ski Marathon.
This event is very popular fort he russian top athletes. Olympic champions, olympic and paralympic participants meet with popular athletes on the first weekend of April at the traditional race. At this race, it can happen, that the temperatures fall to 20 degrees below zero in april. The race is also a main race of Russialoppet.


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Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson has won a three-year restraining order against a former security guard.
Last month (Jun14), the actress was granted a temporary order against 49-year-old James Gorton, Jr., and now a California judge has ruled he must stay at least 100 yards away from Benson for the next three years.
Gorton, Jr. was fired from his position as a guard on the Warner Brothers lot in Burbank, California where her hit teen drama is filmed, after he allegedly told studio security officials that he had feelings for the 24 year old, and that "God instructed him to pursue her romantically".
In legal documents obtained by TMZ.com, he also reportedly told colleagues he "felt a special bond" with Benson after she looked his way one day, and he believed she was silently sending him subliminal messages.


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What is the role of the mother's husband towards the children of his wife? In this case the father of my daughter is not Muslim and he does not want to become Muslim. Can my husband take charge of the issue of educating and raising my daughter? Will Allah ask him how he raised her? How should my husband deal with her when I feel that he does not love her and is not comfortable with her, because she is eight years old and she did not receive any Islamic education in the beginning, so her behaviour is not proper?.
The small child, whether male or female, should follow whichever parent is Muslim, if the parents belong to different religions. This is the view of the majority of scholars.
It says in al-Mawsoo'ah al-Fiqhiyyah (2/310):
If the parents follow different religions, and one is a Muslim and the other is a kaafir non-Muslim, then their young child, or their older child, if he is insane when he reaches the age of puberty, should be Muslim, following the better religion of his parents.
This is the view of the Hanafis, Shaafa'is and Hanbalis. End quote.
Based on that, this daughter of yours is a Muslim, and the responsibility for taking care of her and raising her rests with you. She has nothing to do with her kaafir non-Muslim father with regard to care and upbringing.
With regard to her mother's husband (your husband), it is unlawful for him to marry this daughter so long as he has consummated the marriage with her mother, because the daughter is a rabeebah (stepdaughter) to him, and the stepdaughter is one of those whom the man is forbidden to marry, so long as he has consummated the marriage with her mother. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Forbidden to you (for marriage) are: your mothers, … your stepdaughters under your guardianship, born of your wives to whom you have gone in — but there is no sin on you if you have not gone in them (to marry their daughters)"
[al-Nisa' 4:23].
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas said:
It is forbidden for a man to marry the daughters of his wife with whom he has consummated the marriage, and he is regarded as a mahram (relative to whom marriage is forbidden) to all of her daughters both before and after marriage. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Forbidden to you (for marriage) are: your mothers, … your stepdaughters under your guardianship, born of your wives to whom you have gone in —"
[al-Nisa' 4:23].
But if he has not consummated the marriage with her, then he is not a mahram for her daughters, because Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): "but there is no sin on you if you have not gone in them (to marry their daughters)" [al-Nisa' 4:23].
End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd al-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh 'Abd-Allah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh 'Abd-Allah ibn Qa'ood
Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah, 17/346, 347)
So your husband is a mahram to her, but the responsibility for the upbringing and care of this daughter does not rest on his shoulders, unless he does that willingly and as part of treating her mother kindly. And this is what we advise him to do, so that he might earn a great reward, especially if he knows how great the need is for such a teacher and educator, and that her father is not qualified to undertake this mission, and that her mother is too weak to undertake this responsibility on her own. He has a good example in the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), as he married women who had children and he took charge of their upbringing and caring for them. There follow some examples of that:
It was narrated that 'Umar ibn Abi Salamah said: I was a young boy under the care of the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and my hand used to wander all over the plate. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said to me: "O young boy, say the name of Allaah and eat with your right hand, and eat from what is nearest to you."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5061) and Muslim (2022)
'Umar ibn Abi Salamah was the stepson of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him); he was the son of the Mother of the Believers Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) from Abu Salamah; he was born in Abyssinia when his parents migrated there.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Among the lessons we learn from this hadeeth: it is obligatory for a person to discipline his children and teach them how to eat and drink, and to teach them what they should say when eating and drinking, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did with his stepson. In this hadeeth we see the good attitude of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and how he taught others; he did not rebuke this boy when his hand started wandering all over the plate; rather he taught him gently and spoke to him gently: "O young boy, say the name of Allaah and eat with your right hand." End quote.
Sharh Riyaadh al-Saaliheen, 3/172
Your husband should understand that his wife's daughter is still very young, and that he can succeed in bringing her up to be obedient and chaste by winning her over with kind treatment and gifts, and speaking kindly to her. If friendship develops between the two parties and love grows strong between them, he can influence her in ways that will make her attitude and behaviour better. You also have an important role to play in making her dear to your husband and strengthening the relationship with them, helping your husband to be patient in dealing with her, and reminding him of the great reward that there is in bringing her up and taking care of her.
We ask Allah to help you to do that which is best for you, to make you steadfast in following true guidance, and to guide you to the way of modesty and piety.
And Allah knows best.


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The Hadassah-Brandeis Institute develops fresh ways of thinking about Jews and gender worldwide by producing and promoting scholarly research, artistic projects and public engagement.
The world's only academic center of its kind, the HBI provides research resources and programs for scholars, students and the public. The Institute publishes books and a journal, convenes international conferences and local programming, and offers competitive grant and internship programs.
The Hadassah-Brandeis Institute, originally known as the International Research Institute on Jewish Women, opened at Brandeis University in January 1997. The Institute, established with a generous grant from Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America Inc., represented a bold venture for both Brandeis University and Hadassah.
The idea for a research institute on Jewish women and gender issues originated in Voices for Change: Future Directions for American Jewish Women (1995), a report of the Hadassah-sponsored National Commission on American Jewish Women. The report highlighted the fact that research is just beginning on Jewish women's history, lives and culture. Hadassah took up the challenge to help make this new field flourish by committing substantial resources to the creation of the institute.
The institute has several defining characteristics. It is international and interdisciplinary, and incorporates Jewish women's issues and gender issues in diverse contexts. Our activities include initiating and supporting research projects, holding conferences and seminars, creating a monograph series and working in many other ways to enhance information about and understanding of Jewish women and Jewish gender issues. Many of our activities are carried out in partnership with other universities and organizations. Some of our work is undertaken by research associates who work at locations other than Brandeis University. We have extensive relations with scholars in Israel and in other countries.
A free-standing research enterprise that represents the highest academic and cultural standards, the institute is guided by a board of directors and by advisory committees composed of scholars, students and prominent individuals.
Brandeis University
Characterized by academic excellence since its founding in 1948, Brandeis is one of the youngest private research universities, as well as the only nonsectarian Jewish-sponsored college or university in the country. Named for the late Justice Louis Dembitz Brandeis of the U.S. Supreme Court, Brandeis University combines the faculty and resources of a world-class research institution with the intimacy and personal attention of a small liberal arts college. Brandeis is ranked in the top tier of the nation's universities.
Hadassah, The Women's Zionist Organization of America, Inc.
Hadassah was founded in 1912 by Henrietta Szold. Since its inception, Hadassah has remained unwavering in its devotion to Judaism, Zionism and American ideals. As the largest volunteer organization and the largest women's organization in America, Hadassah is committed to strengthening the unity of the Jewish people. In Israel, we accomplish this through progressive healthcare, education, youth institutions, volunteerism and land reclamation. In the U.S., we reach our goals through Jewish and Zionist education programs, Zionist Youth programs and health awareness programs, as well as by advocating for issues of importance to women and to the American Jewish community.


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Another question in preparing for my first trip up (mid-July).
I had planned on the President / Vice Pres. via the President glacier being my prime objective, using MacAurther, Kerr, etc. as other options while in there a few days. Unfortunately, the hut is booked all week...
Any suggestions for similar alternatives? Right now we have reservations in the climbers hostel in Canmore. I'd consider my mountaineering skills as "intermediate" and will have a couple guys with me who have a little experience too. I'm considering:
- Daytrip to Hector from Canmore
- President Glacier in a day???
- Athabasca N. Glacier daytrip from ...?
- A2 as above.
Or should I just try to reserve the Bow Hut? Are the peaks in there worthwhile?
Thanks for any advice!


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LucasArts is a leading publisher and developer of interactive entertainment software for videogame console systems and personal computers. The company was founded in 1982 by filmmaker George Lucas to provide an interactive element to his vision of a state-of-the-art, multifaceted entertainment company. Since LucasArts' first release in 1984, players have praised the company's focus on creating rich, immersive worlds for all to discover. LucasArts games continually receive critical acclaim and attain commercial success, with the company's products having received numerous Game of the Year honors, including multiple awards from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.
Only registered members can share their thoughts. So come on! Join the community today (totally free - or sign in with your social account on the right) and join in the conversation.


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Questions Have Clout!
Lesson 6 of 10
Objective: SWBAT write a question that could lead to scientific inquiry.
Activity Description
My children absolutely loved this lesson! It creates an element of fun since you add music and movement! The students will start off by practicing writing questions about science-related photos via musical chairs "with a twist" format. They will discover that questions begin with common words-who, what, where, when, why, how and do. Then a book titled Citizen Scientists will be read. The fact that scientists in the book use questions to help guide their studies will be highlighted. The children will then practice writing a good, solid question that could possibly lead to a scientific study.
Connections to NGSS
Science investigations begin with a question. So teaching the children to question why things are the way they are is an essential part of the understanding of the science process as a whole.
- 9" X 12" pieces of construction paper--enough for each student desk in the classroom
- 1 marker per student (non-permanent)
- Questioning Photos --you just need one set cut apart; I mounted mine on construction paper and then laminated them. There are 10 pages to this set. Make sure to click on the arrows to see all of the photos.
- music (I pulled up "Happy" by Kidz Bop on youtube because that song just makes me smile).
- Question Stems Poster
- Questions Have Clout! Worksheet - 1 per student
- book titled Citizen Scientist (I bought my copy off of Amazon.com for $10) It has great relevant information that the kids just love! The book has four sections--Fall Butterflying, Winter Birding, Spring Frogging and Summer Ladybugging. It describes how adult scientists and children volunteer scientists do their jobs in these areas and they could possibly take part in scientific activities.
Resources (3)
First I write a big question mark on the Smartboard. I ask the students what they think it has to do with science.
I ask "Why do people ask questions? Someone answers, "Because they don't understand something." I answer, "Yes, you are right. Scientists ask questions because they want to find an answer to something they don't yet know. Those questions help guide their investigations. Today we are going to learn about asking and writing good questions."
For an exploration activity the children are going to get a chance to write questions. I didn't prompt the children or give them question stems at this point since I want them to discover that for themselves.
Before the activity begins I lay out one piece of 9" X 12" construction paper on each table space. I set out 6-8 Questioning Photos and 8 markers (non-permanent) at each table. Then I tell them how this activity was going to work.
"In this activity I want you to try to think like a scientist and write questions that could possibly be answered by investigation. I am going to play music and you are going to walk around the tables. We are going to walk in the same way that a clock moves."
I walk around and show each table the direction that they are going to move in. I even have the children practice walking around so I can see that they have the right idea.
Then I continue,"When the music stops, you must walk over to the closest photo on the table. Pick up the photo and study it for a moment and place it back on the table. Then grab the marker and write a question relating to the photo right on the paper that is on the table. Do not copy a question that someone else has asked previously about that photo. If you end up at the same photo, that's okay, just write a different question. Does anyone have any questions about the directions?"
After everyone is clear about how the activity works, we begin to play the game. I turn my music on and they walk around. In a way, it kind of reminds me of musical chairs. When the music stops, they walk to the nearest photo and write a question. It is fun watching their excitement! I have a rambunctious class, so this activity is perfect for them--some movement but a focus on learning. I give them about a 1 minute to look at the photo, think of a question and write it down (see photo A , B and C ). We repeat this about 10 times, just enough for them to get the flavor of the activity, but not so many times that it gets repetitive or boring (see video of kids writing questions).
Learning to ask and answer questions is an essential skill in every academic area. It is a common thread throughout the NGSS and the Common Core. Forming their own questions is an extremely important skill. Click here to see more information about questioning.
Resources (6)
I gather the children back in the corner.
I ask "Was it hard writing questions? Do you have any tips for someone who had trouble? Were there any words you found yourself repeating?
They eventually come up with questioning stems--who, what, where, when, why, how and do. I also bring out the Question Stems Poster to aid in our discussion. I hold it up and tell the children this is a poster that will help remind us of how to start a good question. This is a poster I will leave up for a simple reminder for them when they are writing questions.
We also discuss that scientists must ask questions that can be answered by scientific investigation.
"For example, if I was observing a picture of children on a ferris wheel, I might ask how does the ferris wheel turn? Or what makes the ferris wheel stable? Both of those questions can be answered by a scientific investigation. However, I would not ask, "What are the children's names?" That question cannot be answered by scientific investigation. Let's practice thinking of some questions that scientists might ask."
I show them the cover pictures from the book Citizen Scientists. I point to the picture of a ladybug.
If I were a scientist I might ask "Why do some ladybugs have two black spots and some have more?" This is a question that could possibly be answered by studying ladybugs. Here is another question--Do ladybugs eat leaves? Scientists could watch ladybugs and see what it eats in the wild. I could also ask, "How do the antennae help the ladybug?" I could then study the ladybugs to see how the antennae help the ladybug."
"Okay, now I want you to try it." I show them the picture of the woodpecker. A boy responds, "How does the woodpecker use its beak?" I reply, "Yes that is a great question that could be answered by studying and watching woodpeckers." Then a girl asked,"Why do some woodpeckers have a red head and others do not?" Again I praise them for the great questions. We then move on to the photo of the frog. "Can you think of any questions about the frog?" A child answers,"How do they croak so loud?" I reply, "That is a great question, and one I've wondered about myself. Scientists could study recordings of the frog and the body of a frog to find out the answer."
Next I say, "We are going to read a book about some children who help scientists in real investigations."
Then I read part of the book titled Citizen Scientists, from page 9-23. The entire book is relevant and interesting from cover to cover, but I chose to highlight Chapter 1: Butterflying, since it specifically talks about how questions help drive scientific study and this is the skill I am working on with them (page 17 is great).
Note: This book is fascinating, but takes over an hour to read from cover to cover. For today, I am only going to read one section, but I will definitely read the rest of the book later when we have more time.
Resources (1)
Resources (1)
I have the children reflect on the part of the book that we read. I want them to take their new learning about asking scientific type of questions and apply it. I reread the section on page 17:
*How do the butterflies find the same wintering sites year after year?
*Why do butterflies that emerge in the fall behave so differently from butterflies that emerge in the summer?
*What signals the migrating butterflies to begin their journey, and what signals them to reverse it in the spring?
*How many of the butterflies survive the journey?
Isn't it amazing how scientists use questions to help guide their research? I bet we can write some questions that could possibly lead to an investigation or study.
I hold up one of the photos that was previously out on the tables.
Let's practice one together.
Then we practice asking scientific questions about the photo. I then pass out the one photo and a paper titled Questions Have Clout! Worksheet to each child. I chose to pass the photos out randomly to the children to save on time.
We talk about the meaning of the word "clout" that it means to have a lot of power.
Why do you think I titled this page "Questions Have Clout?"
They answer that questions have a lot of power since it guides scientists in their studies.
I ask the children to take a look at their photo. I ask them to try to think of some great questions. I have tell their "turn and talk" partner some of their questions. "Turn and talk" partners are children that I have previously paired together that sit by each other at the same table.
I instruct them, "I would like you to write one scientific question down on the paper that could possibly lead to an investigation or study, about the photo you were given. Remember that your question should be one that could be answered by scientific investigation. Who remembers what a question should end with?" A girl answers, "I think it's called a question mark." I respond, "Great job! Let's all remember to start with a capital letter and end with a question mark."
(See student Student Sample 1 and Student Sample 2).
Resources (3)
I have the students hand in their papers so I can check them. Here are the things I am looking for:
- Does the question make sense?
- Could the question be answered by investigation?
- Does the question begin with a capital letter and end with a question mark?
- Does the question begin with one of the question stems?
I have a chart with each child's name on it and the indicators above listed at the top. I mark each column as noted:
- 0 = did not meet
- check = completed standard satisfactorily
- + = showed above level skills
If children score a 0 on any of the skills, I make note. Then I form small groups and pull them aside to reteach and work with them in the needed area.


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MERRILLVILLE, Ind. – A World War II veteran who served in France during the war has been reunited with his Army-issued duffel bag nearly seven decades after it went missing.
Ninety-two-year-old William Kadar of Merrillville opened a carefully wrapped package Tuesday to find his drab green duffel bag inside. The folded up bag is still stenciled with his name and serial number.
Kadar tells the Post-Tribune he last saw the bag soldiers use for toting their gear in November 1944, a month before he was captured by the Germans.
His granddaughter, Arleen Haas, says a letter in the package says a 16-year-old French boy found the bag in his grandfather's house, tracked Kadar down and sent it to him.
Haas says her family hopes to speak to the boy through Skype soon.


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Bogotá – Heeding Pope Francis' call for austerity, one Colombian in a robe may be back to riding a bicycle.
Father Hernando Fayid said he's going to sell his white Mercedes Benz E200 convertible with a black top following the pope's recent statement that it wounds his heart to see a priest in a luxurious car.
Fayid told RCN television, a Colombian network, Tuesday evening that he got the car as a gift from his four brothers last year, but will still give it up and it won't bother him.
He said he's ridden a burro, a horse, a bicycle and a bus, to say nothing of walking on foot around his town of Santa Marta. In his words, "I have no problem with that."
The 47-year-old priest said he hopes to get about $63,000 for the car.
Fayid's announcement was applauded in Colombia, which is predominantly Catholic.
Priests "should provide an example of humility," said 24-year-old accounting assistant Leydi Vega, adding that "no one is asking them to live in extreme poverty ... or to die from hunger."
The president of Colombia's Bishops Conference, Cardinal Ruben Salazar, said that the Catholic church in Latin America has always embraced austerity.
He said the estimated 10,000 Colombian priests in the country each receive the equivalent of about $620 a month.
"We priests undoubtedly have to be very conscious that we have to live with our people," said the prelate, "in the conditions in which our people live."
Based on reporting by The Associated Press.
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From Visions, Spring 2006
Howard has a "drinking problem." His story of substance abuse may be familiar.
Howard's dad gave him his first beer when he was in the eighth grade. Dad thought it was a good idea for the boy to drink at home, so he wouldn't have to go somewhere else to do it. Howard also had a few beers when his parents didn't know about it.
By senior year of high school, Howard was having more than a few a couple times a month, sometimes passing out at a friend's house so his folks wouldn't know.
In college, his main sport was a drinking game called beer pong. He dabbled with marijuana and cocaine, but his ol' faithful was alcohol.
After a binge weekend, Howard could always stay sober for a while, especially when he had a lot of school work to do. Because he could go for days without drinking, he was convinced that he had no problem with alcohol substance abuse.
He got his first DWI in college. Despite stiff penalties, even losing his license for a year, it happened again. He totaled his car while driving drunk a few years after graduation.
Now on his third job out of college, Howard says he has cut back on his drinking. Still, a weekend binge is not unusual, and week-nighters over poker are a staple. Sometimes it's tough to get to work and accomplish anything, but he manages to avert suspicion. And he almost never drinks during the workday.
He has gotten better at doing some things he used to have trouble with when he was high — putting on a good face at the office, mowing the yard, playing with the kids, driving …. He has developed a tolerance for alcohol that lets him perform physical tasks better after drinking the same amount he did before — and that encourages him to drink more and deepen his substance abuse problem.
Howard says alcohol still takes the edge off, but he never has that same "flyin' high" feeling he got from drinking when he was younger.
And there is a problem with sleeping. When he drinks, he can't seem to get a good night's sleep, but if he goes too long without a drink, he can't get to sleep at all — that is, until the next afternoon at the office, when he can't seem to stay awake.
Howard may be getting by, but without some kind of help, he can expect eventually to lose his job, his health, maybe his family. He may seriously hurt himself or someone else. He's definitely going to be a tremendous burden to society for the costs of his health care and lost productivity.
Howard is what the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism calls "alcohol dependent," or what most people call an "alcoholic." "Alcohol dependence," according to the NIAAA, "is a condition characterized by impaired control over drinking, compulsive drinking, preoccupation with drinking, tolerance to alcohol, and/or withdrawal symptoms." One step away from alcohol dependence is another level of problem drinking that the NIAAA calls "alcohol abuse ... characterized by failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school or home, interpersonal social and legal problems, and/or drinking in hazardous situations."
Howard has lots of company. The number of American adults 18 and older who fall into either substance abuse category rose from 13.8 million in 1991–92 to 17.6 million in 2001–2002, according to an epidemiological survey directed by NIAAA. You would expect the number to go up, because the population increased; however, the percentage of problem-drinkers in the population also increased, from 7.41 percent to 8.46 percent.
Not surprisingly, young adults 18–29 are the heaviest drinkers. Overall, more than 10 percent of those young adults in the 2002 survey were either alcoholics or substance abusers, and that percentage had not changed much over the previous 10 years. However, the percentage of some young minority adults abusing alcohol had increased dramatically, specifically among black males, Asian females and Hispanic males. Alcohol dependence significantly increased among young black females and Asian males.
When those findings were announced in 2004, NIAAA director Ting-Kai Li, MD, said, "The fact that alcohol disorder rates are highest among young adults underscores the need for concerted research on drinking patterns that initiate in adolescence."
Which is exactly what is going on — among other alcohol research — at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
"NIAAA and NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) are both concluding that alcohol dependence and substance abuse are developmental disorders, so they tend to emerge early in life, in adolescence or even before," said Allyson J. Bennett, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and the Department of Pediatrics.
"If you want to understand how adults became alcoholics, you want to begin studying them early in life," said Bennett, who is part of an NIAAA Center of Excellence grant, first awarded in 2003.
That's not possible with human research subjects. Once it has been established that an adult subject is alcohol dependent, researchers cannot then turn back the hands of time to look at them as children or adolescents, to try to identify factors that might have sent them along what Bennett called the "risk pathway" toward drinking problems.
So Bennett and other researchers turn to animal models — in her case, monkeys.
"There is no single gene or combination of genes and environmental influences that pull individuals along that risk pathway," she said. Only a handful of genes have been identified that tend to have been associated with alcohol substance abuse in humans, and monkeys have similar genetic risk factors. That allows researchers to control environmental variables such as parental attention and stress levels to see what will increase vulnerability to alcohol substance abuse, or promote what Bennett calls "resilience" from negative genetic factors.
"There could be a genetic variation or a gene that puts one at risk for changes in neurochemistry that are associated with alcoholism. But there may be early-childhood environments that promote resilience," she explained, "so that under the right conditions the individual with that genetic vulnerability does not go on to become an alcoholic.
"It goes the other way too. You might have a very bad environment, but something about your genes protects you from its adverse effects."
Genes, Bennett hastens to add, contribute only part of the risk for alcohol or drug problems. There are many genes that contribute, and the vast majority of them have yet to be discovered.
A monkey model that has proven very useful for the childhood and adolescent research is one in which the animals are taken away from their mothers soon after birth and are nursery- reared, creating a certain level of "stress," compared to a maternally raised monkey. And the nursery-reared monkeys tend to drink more than the maternally raised animals.
The genetic risk factors for alcoholism, binge drinking, depression and other substance abuse problems have been linked to the neurotransmitter serotonin. In their monkey models, the Medical Center researchers can follow the animals' development behaviorally and neurochemically to try to discern each twist and turn of the risk pathway.
Binge drinking is a particular problem among human adolescents. The latest statistics from NIAAA indicate that more than 12 percent of 8th-graders and nearly 30 percent of 12th-graders report drinking five or more drinks in a row in the past two weeks. Bennett's research focuses on how starting to drink in adolescence might increase risk of excessive drinking in adulthood and also on how binge drinking in adolescence affects physiology, maturation and behavior.
Work by Bennett and others has already shown that kids who start drinking early and binge drink as adolescents, like Howard, are at greater risk for alcoholism as adults. But exactly why is that? And now that they know the early drinkers will have problems later, is it possible to know who those early binge drinkers will be? That pursuit has led the Wake Forest researchers to one of their biggest findings of the past year.
"What we've found is that monkeys that are high in response to novelty — they're quick to impulsively touch new things — are those that go on to binge drink or drink very quickly when they first begin to drink, and then eventually become the heaviest drinkers," Bennett said.
"What's interesting about that is we also know that low serotonin is associated with that impulsivity or that high-risk kind of behavior. We know that in adolescence serotonin drops, in both humans and monkeys, and that makes sense because the role of adolescents in most species is to go out and try new things. So it's logical that the neurochemistry would support that."
Risk-taking is a focus of the human alcohol research of Anthony Liguori, PhD, associate professor of physiology and pharmacology. Liguori is director of the Human Performance Lab, which can simulate driving and other motor tasks under the influence of alcohol and other drugs.
In one recent study, Liguori gave male social drinkers varying amounts of alcohol then put them in the driving simulator. They could earn points by making a risky lane change, but would lose points if they hit a cone. Liguori found that only a mid-range dose of alcohol, below the legal limit, "significantly increased risk-taking" in the face of the greatest penalty.
"This finding suggests that breath alcohol concentrations within current legal standards can alter a driver's decision-making such that the willingness to enter a high-risk situation is increased," he reported.
Interestingly, the NIAAA center's young nursery-reared monkeys also have low serotonin levels even before adolescence, said David Friedman, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology and director of the NIAAA center.
Friedman has been closely examining the stress-response system of the nursery-reared monkeys and comparing their "endocrine profile" with that of maternally raised monkeys. The stress response is a cascade of neuroendocrine events that ultimately leads to the release of cortisol, which prepares the body to deal with stress.
"We've been able to show that in some ways at least, their stress response is blunted," Friedman said. "Because their internal chemical environment is different, they may for some reason be more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol. It's certainly reasonable to suggest that those chemical differences may be in part responsible for the increased drinking."
Now, he said, "what we're trying to do is look further into the brain at neurotransmitter systems, especially serotonin, that also modulate the stress response, because we know that serotonin is affected by alcohol. We also know that these nursery-reared monkeys when they're infants have lower amounts of serotonin in their brains. So what I'm looking at is this link between alcohol, serotonin and stress response."
Bennett thinks serotonin adjustments might also hold promise for steering adolescents away from early alcohol use and substance abuse. And it could begin with something as relatively simple as diet. She notes that serotonin comes from dietary tryptophan, which is abundant in breast milk, but much less so in formula like that fed to the nursery-reared monkeys. She theorizes that this could cause long-lasting changes in serotonin levels.
"We don't know if we can reverse it, but we're learning how we might treat it, with pharmaceuticals or nutriceuticals or altered diet," Bennett said.
Generally, she said, the substance abuse research is showing that a youth's environment is a major part of the risk — or resilience — pathway to alcohol, and parents can be an influential part of the environment. "They need to know that alcohol use may have unique effects on adolescents, and that encouraging them not to engage in it, or to at least postpone it until their twenties, is a good idea."
What exactly happens at the cellular or even molecular level when someone abuses or becomes dependent on alcohol? To try to answer those questions, Medical Center researchers turn to rodents, which have been shown to be excellent models for many other human diseases and conditions.
"We're working on developing a very sophisticated rodent model of alcohol drinking and substance abuse where we can measure a whole variety of drinking behaviors of rats that are voluntarily drinking enough alcohol to get drunk," explained Jeff Weiner, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology and scientific director of the Wake Forest NIAAA center.
"We can study how hard they want to work to get drunk, how much they drink, how impaired they get, and then sacrifice them and look at the synapses in the brain and study how they've changed, how they responded to alcohol. With this model we can begin to look at synaptic correlates of alcohol-related behaviors."
Weiner explained that much is already known about how alcohol generally operates in the brain, by shifting the balance between excitatory and inhibitory communication between neurons in favor of inhibition — thus the reason that alcohol is considered a depressant.
"What we don't really know," he said, "is which synaptic mechanisms are most important for any alcohol-related behavior." That, however, is changing as a result of work at the NIAAA center.
Weiner's lab uses very sophisticated electrophysiology techniques that can isolate just an inhibitory synaptic connection or just an excitatory connection between two brain cells, and determine if the properties or the alcohol sensitivity of that synapse has changed.
"The history of alcohol drinking obviously is changing some of the properties of these synapses, and we think that's important in contributing to addiction," Weiner said.
"But what's more exciting is that we're finding that there are things that don't change with the alcohol drinking. Some of those properties may actually correlate with the drinking patterns of the animal, so what we're finding are probably synaptic traits that may actually contribute to the drinking patterns that we were studying."
When something does change in the brain as a result of chronic drinking, it's called "tolerance." It typically happens with motor-impairing effects, so that over time an alcoholic can drink more and more before it begins to affect his speech or his movement.
Weiner has discovered that one important mechanism of acute alcohol consumption does not show tolerance — an increase in synaptic inhibition caused by the neurotransmitter known as GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). Alcohol increases this synaptic inhibition, and "whether it's your first drink or your thousandth drink, that acute effect doesn't seem to show tolerance, to go away," he said.
And whatever the actual feeling is that results from this synaptic effect, it apparently encourages animals to drink. "That alcohol sensitivity (of the synapse) correlates with alcohol-seeking behavior. So the animals that are the most motivated to drink alcohol are actually the ones whose synapses are the most inhibited by alcohol."
So, what is the feeling? Weiner and others theorize that this synaptic effect may contribute to the anxiety-relieving effects of alcohol. "It's well established that GABA is very important in anxiety, and when you increase GABA you decrease anxiety. What's interesting is that the anxiolytic (anxiety-relieving) effects of alcohol are some of the few effects that don't show much tolerance. So even long-time alcoholics still feel those anxiolytic effects of alcohol, and that could be a major reason that they drink."
The link between alcoholism and substance abuse and anxiety — at both the behavioral and genetic levels — is under study in rodents by Brian A. McCool, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology.
"It has been known for a long time that anxiety and alcohol abuse tend to go hand-in-hand. Alcoholics who withdraw often relapse when they're stressed, when they report high levels of anxiety," McCool explained. "So most of the research we've done has utilized these animal models to understand neurobiological mechanisms, the proteins, the genetic basis in the brain that is responsible for those interactions."
McCool uses behavioral tests that indicate when a rodent is feeling stress or anxiety. He can then measure the effect of alcohol — and the removal of alcohol — on anxiety levels. Using a complementary approach, the McCool lab can target alcohol or drugs to specific brain regions using implanted "guide" cannulae to examine how neurotransmitter systems contribute to anxiety. He can then use electrophysiology to study the electrical signals that mediate communication between neurons, and try to understand how alcohol influences that communication.
"The main point is to understand how the animal is adapting at a cellular level," he said, "how are the neurons themselves changing in response to the exposure to the drug? We look at a lot of different markers for that." Those markers include gene expression (production of messenger RNA) and receptor function (identifying particular proteins in the brain that mediate communication between neurons).
Two or three genes have been identified as relevant for alcoholism, McCool said, and his lab has been sending out tissue to test for new genes. But he is quick to point out that most of what we know about genetic mechanisms in the brain are "global," or affecting the whole brain generally.
"The brain is not a uniform tissue. It's made up of many, many systems that interact with each other in very complicated ways," he said. We are all born with the same complement of genes, but they may be acting — or at least reacting — quite differently in different brain regions."
Eventually, McCool said, he hopes his work could have substance abuse treatment potential. "Right now we're just understanding how those alcohol-related consequences are manifested in the cells. Ultimately I would like to see my lab evolve towards manipulating neurotransmitter systems that are altered by chronic alcohol use, in the hopes of diminishing some of the negative consequences."
Weiner, too, hopes that his and the NIAAA center's work can directly address the root causes of problem-drinking. "Self-medicating" to relieve anxiety may be one of those causes, and it doesn't help that people — like the rodents — may not build up a tolerance to those anxiety-relieving effects. As with Howard, drinking "takes the edge off" time after time. But the problem is, alcohol withdrawal also creates anxiety, which leads to more drinking.
How can the research change that? "The goal would be," Weiner speculated, "that if we find out that these GABA synapses in, let's say, the hippocampus, are very important in alcohol drinking behavior, then obviously we would want to test pharmacotherapies that, as specifically as possible, target those hippocampal GABA synapses.
"We're trying to figure out what exactly is responsible for the alcohol drinking behavior and the escalation in alcohol drinking behavior and alcoholism, and then try to find drugs that directly target those mechanisms."
Anxiety relief is one cause for alcohol substance abuse. But another major substance abuse cause could also be, simply, pleasure. Is that possible? Can someone who starts drinking just because it makes them feel good go on to abuse or become dependent on alcohol?
Those are among the questions that Sara R. Jones, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology, is trying to answer in her rodent research.
The euphoric effects of alcohol and most other abused drugs are associated with the amount of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain synapses. Virtually all abused substances elevate "extracellular" dopamine levels in the nucleus accumbens and other brain regions, but they do it in different ways.
Alcohol increases dopamine levels by directly raising the firing rate of isolated dopamine neurons, Jones said. That is well established. Beyond that, she said, there is some controversy over other ways that alcohol might influence the dopamine system.
One theory, which Jones's work has recently disproven, was that alcohol also blocked uptake by dopamine transporters, with the net effect of leaving more dopamine in the synapse. This is the mechanism cocaine uses to elevate dopamine.
"What we have published is that that's wrong," Jones said. She explained that her lab uses tiny electrodes that actually take measurements across individual synapses at intervals of 1/10 of a second. "This is really the best way to look at dopamine uptake, and we have shown that alcohol does not inhibit dopamine uptake."
In fact, she said, after chronic alcohol use the brain actually increases the number of dopamine transporters, trying to carry away the increased amount of dopamine in the synapses. This bodes ill for the alcoholic.
When the alcohol stops, so does its increased dopamine production. But the extra number of transporters remains, clearing away what little dopamine there is. When this occurs in Jones's mouse model, "they are the most depressed mice you've ever seen. They have almost no dopamine, and that has got to be a very anhedonic or dysphoric state." In human terms, she said, "you feel very, very low, and you can't feel any normal pleasure."
And that, she said, could be a reason that alcoholics relapse. "These mice are probably going back to the alcohol because the alcohol brings their dopamine back up to a 'normal' level. Why wouldn't you go back to the alcohol, to try to get back to a normal state?"
So what began as a pleasurable experience, over time becomes a necessity, just to try to bring things back to something approaching normal. "And that takes weeks (of abstinence) to recover from, to reach a naturally normal dopamine state again, even in a mouse that's only been exposed to alcohol for four days," Jones said.
"You can imagine that after years of drinking, people may never recover. If you're a motivated alcoholic, you can go without a drink for a week. But six months down the road, if you're still not feeling good, it'll wear you down."
So what hope is there through substance abuse research?
One possibility for prevention, Jones said, is that in the future we may be able to identify dopamine- or serotonin-related risk factors for alcoholism, which your doctor could inform you about, similar to the way we now understand risk factors for breast cancer.
There are also possibilities for treatment related to the dopamine system, to try to lessen the craving and the likelihood of relapse. Those include using L-dopa (which is enzymatically converted to dopamine) just enough to try to give people a motivation to stay off alcohol, analogous to methadone treatment for heroin addiction. Other possibilities, she said, are the new generation of antidepressants, and even the old "tricyclic" antidepressants that raised dopamine directly.
There is very good help now for alcoholics like Howard, through successful substance abuse treatment programs for adults and adolescents such as those offered through the Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine.
Research at Wake Forest Baptist and other institutions shows great promise for better understanding and treating alcohol abuse and dependence.
Even if you don't know someone like Howard who has broken your heart with his or her affliction, it is easy to justify the federal government's spending for alcoholism research. We all pay, one way or another.
In 1998, the most recent NIAAA figures available, the total economic cost of alcohol substance abuse was $185 billion a year and rising. That included health care costs, lost productivity, auto accidents, crime and social welfare administration. At the same growth rate, the estimate would be over $230 billion this year.
The Medical Center's alcohol researchers are enthusiastic and hopeful about making an impact on the mammoth problem. "It's a pretty exciting time here at Wake because there's a lot of interdisciplinary interaction between research that spans all the different levels of analysis," Weiner said. "Over the last five years, we and others have made major advances in figuring out how alcohol acutely and chronically alters the brain."
"Howard" was inspired by a recent interview with a long-time alcoholic, now undergoing treatment at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
For information and resources about alcohol, go to www.niaaa.nih.gov.
"It's a case of a cat chasing its tail," said Dwayne W. Godwin, PhD, professor of neurobiology and anatomy.
"While in the short term alcohol can make you fall asleep faster," he said, "there are severe disruptions in the quality and pattern of sleep caused by alcohol.
"The brain is wired to operate on a 24-hour 'circadian' schedule," Godwin explained. "Even moderate alcohol consumption disrupts that schedule, and it's a significant source of sleep problems for alcoholics."
Godwin said sleep is a reason many people turn to alcohol, and it becomes a major reason that many alcoholics can't stop abusing alcohol — and wind up like those cats chasing their tails.
Sleep initiation, he explained, is controlled by the brain's master clock, called the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Each day, the clock is reset by light signals from the environment, which helps the body to stay in sync with its surroundings. A key part of the resetting mechanism is a calcium ion channel "that we have found to be very sensitive to the effects of alcohol," Godwin said.
"Moderate amounts of alcohol can cause a phenomenon where you get good sleep during the early part of the night, but at the cost of awakening during the later part of the night.
"Alcoholism can actually produce a neuroadaptation in this sleep circuitry that will cause long-term disruptions in sleep quality. Those sleep disruptions can last months or years after a person completely stops drinking. The changes in the brain that underlie this effect are poorly understood, and if we can determine how they are switched on and off by alcohol it will help in the design of therapies that would reduce their influence on the recovery process."
An important part of this is to understand the basic circuit properties and neurotransmitter systems that are involved in sleep disruption.
At the cellular level, the lab uses electrophysiology to precisely measure the calcium flow in brain cells from mice that are exposed to alcohol. In the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a number of "clock genes" are turned on and off on a daily schedule by the rise and fall of calcium levels. At the molecular level the lab is studying how disturbances in these calcium channels can disrupt the normal calcium signals that are important for the daily expression of these clock genes.
"Our operating hypothesis is that alcohol is actually blunting those normal circadian cues and causing the brain to cycle abnormally — like jet lag in a bottle."
Appointments 336-716-WAKEToll-Free 888-716-WAKE
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Forest Baptist Health in Winston-Salem, NC provides treatment for Buprenorphine,
Opiate, Heroin, and alcohol addiction.
Disclaimer: The information on this website is for general informational purposes only and SHOULD NOT be relied upon as a substitute for sound professional medical advice, evaluation or care from your physician or other qualified health care provider.


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Philanthropedia, a division of leading nonprofit information provider GuideStar, today announced new rankings of the top 12 nonprofits advancing the equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals and supporting the issues that the LGBT community tackles – including discriminatory policies, violence against members of the community, and improving the health and well-being of those in the community – at the local level, and the top 19 nonprofits working in the same field nationally. The rankings are based on in-depth surveys and conversations with hundreds of experts, including academics, funders, grantmakers, policy makers, consultants, etc.
"It's not just important to support charities but to support the best charities," said Erinn Andrews, GuideStar's senior director of nonprofit strategy and the original chief operating officer of Philanthropedia. "We know that finding the nonprofits that are really having an impact can be daunting. Our rankings bring together the best thinking in any one cause area and provide an easy-to-use resource for those looking to donate to or otherwise sustain the important work of charities in that cause area."
The struggle to end discrimination against LGBT people has spurred action across the globe for more than two decades, captured national headlines, and become an issue in the U.S. political scene. Fewer than a third of all U.S. states have laws protecting people from discrimination based on sexual orientation, and only a handful prohibit discrimination based on a person's gender identity or expression. There are no federal protections for LGBT civil rights. According to USA Today, a recent study by the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs found that hate incidents against LGBT people and HIV-affected persons increased 13 percent from 2009 to 2010, and murders of LGBT people during that period numbered 27, the second-highest total recorded. A variety of nonprofits organizations focus on social equality among the LGBT community and support the community as a whole.
"If you care about LGBT issues, our top experts have highlighted the nonprofits making the most gains for the community," added Andrews. "Make sure you give with your head as well as your heart when you support nonprofits working in this field."
Over the past two months, Philanthropedia surveyed 110 experts working in the field of LGBT, with an average of 13 years of work experience in the field, to identify the organizations that were making the biggest positive impact on a local and national level. Experts were asked to recommend up to four nonprofits making significant contributions in LGBT equality and support on the national level and up to three nonprofits making a significant contribution at the state and local level. Experts were encourage to consider a range of nonprofits, including those working in policy and advocacy, research, public education, legal support, health and human services, community centers, social organizations, and more. The recommended nonprofits cover a wide range of issue areas within the cause, including health, marriage and family recognition, youth, elder support, transgender equality, anti-discrimination, and racial and economic justice.
National High-Impact LGBT Nonprofits
The experts reviewed 80 organizations and identified 19 top nonprofits making an impact at the national level:
1. Lambda Legal
2. American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
3. Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN)
4. National Center for Lesbian Rights
5. National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
6. National Center for Transgender Equality
7. Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD)
8. Parents Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
9. Services & Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Elders (SAGE)
10. Williams Institute
11. Human Rights Campaign Foundation
12. Transgender Law Center
13. Southern Poverty Law Center
14. Freedom to Marry
15. The Trevor Project
16. Gay-Straight Alliance Network (GSA Network)
17. Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)
18. Sylvia Rivera Law Project
19. CenterLink
To learn more about each organization, meet the experts, and read the experts' reviews, please visit: http://www.myphilanthropedia.org/top-nonprofits/national/lgbt-equality-a....
For the complete list of Philanthropedia rankings, visit www.myphilanthropedia.org. For more information about Philanthropedia's ranking methodology, please visit: http://www.myphilanthropedia.org/how_we_rank.


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Miley & Marc Jacobs Canoodle, Kim Kardashian's Ring, & More of The Week's Best Instagram Snaps
Click through our slideshow to peruse these sartorially-inspiring pictures from the past seven days.
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Call Us: 786-224-0029 | email@example.com
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JM unfaced building insulation provides better indoor air quality due to being made with a bio-based, formaldehyde-free binder. R-Values from R-19 to R-38 are present to control heat and noise effectively.
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This high-quality JM Unfaced Insulation frame are constructed with recycled glass and the plant based binder, which is formaldehyde free. It contains no harsh acrylics, dyes, or unwanted fire retardants. They are installed to block noise in interior walls, making your home or office a calming retreat.
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Best from Red-headed
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Eyeliner is one of the artists' and bloggers' favorite beauty staples. See how to wear it in a few new, fresh and trendy ways.26-08-2015 | Read Full Article
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Great manicure is a great accessory but this season you can relax and just choose any trendy color you like. Lots of solid manicures without a hint of fake nails were spotted in sight. But it doesn't mean that manicure junkies can't sport abstract nail art on their tips. Learn more about what's in this fall.21-08-2015 | Read Full Article
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DFI Film Review : Coriolanus (2011)
Feb 16, 2011
Written by James Rawson, New Media, DFI
Director: Ralph Fiennes
Genre: Drama, History, Thriller
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Brian Cos, Vanessa Redgrave
Widespread civil unrest. Riots over food prices. Politicians banished. Who says Shakespeare isn't relevant?
Set in Rome (though the film was shot in Belgrade with a distinctly Eastern European look to it) Ralph Fiennes' directorial debut tells the story of Caius Martius Coriolanus (Ralph Fiennes), Rome's most prominent general, whose army is fighting fiercely in a war with neighbouring state Volsces. With a passion spurred on by his burning hatred for the Volscian military leader, Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler), Caius Martius is a great warrior for his country, but he has nothing but disdain for the poor of Rome who are suffering through famine and hardship. Following an important military victory, his ambitious mother Volumnnia (Vanessa Redgrave) sees an opportunity for her son to stand for Senator, though in order to do so he must act a little more diplomatically towards his own people. He tries, but not being a natural politician he is unable to hold his tongue and explodes into a contemptuous public rant, leading to a popular uprising and his banishment from Rome. Leaving his family behind, Coriolanus teams up with former rival Tullus Aufidius and returns to Rome, but this time as the leader of an invading army.
The decision to retain the original Shakespearean verse provides Fiennes with obstacles that would have challenged an experienced filmmaker, never mind a first time director. As Baz Lurhmann's "Romeo + Juliet" (against which all modern Shakespeare adaptations will be judged, seemingly forever) showed, 17th century dialogue can be extremely effective in a contemporary setting. But Coriolanus is not "Romeo + Juliet": the story is not known by almost everyone the world over, and the dialogue is nowhere near as accessible.
Fiennes' film more than rises to the challenge, and no doubt he has made a better film for keeping the dialogue unchanged. The cast's delivery of the script is, on the whole, superb: Butler has never been better as the fearless Gladiator-esque Aufidius, Ralph Fiennes impresses both behind the camera as well as in front as the hot-tempered, maniacal Coriolanus (a role he has played previously on the stage), and both Jessica Chastain, as the ever concerned wife Virgila, and Brian Cox as the effusive political advisor Menenius, make an impact in smaller roles. Only James Nesbitt, as the manipulative and underhand Sicinius, gives a slightly underwhelming performance.
But there are a few moments in the script where Fiennes simply can't rely on his actors' delivery of the dialogue to clearly convey the plot ('I… converse more with the buttock of the night than with the forehead of the morning' is just one of the less intelligible lines). In these instances he lets the filmmaking do the storytelling: from grandiose speeches to intimate family scenes the bombastic score, dramatic cinematography, and bold camerawork make that the meaning and direction of every scene clear. This is a director who definitely knows his craft: I was in a cinema full of critics, for most of whom English is not their first language, and heard absolutely no complaints about not understanding the plot.
The final word, however, simply has to go to Vanessa Redgrave. Her portrayal of Volumnia is staggering. As a mother who risks seeing her own son bring down the city that her family has spent hundreds of years building, she brings out her character's pride, conflict and vulnerability with a subtlety and power that has to be seen to be believed. Truly breathtaking.


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Slinky Toy Patent T-Shirt
Made By: Patent Prints
Share your extracurricular (childhood?) interests with some scholarly décor: this art print features the original patent filed for the Slinky. Printed on your choice of colored paper, the print features a full schematic of the invention, with all of the official notes, signatures and markings of the original paperwork.
- Choose from chalkboard, blueprint, vintage black, slate, navy
- Printed on 90 lb. cardstock paper
- Measures 18" x 24"
- Ships rolled in tube


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SOURCE: Equity News Circuit
January 04, 2013 08:15 ET
The Following Is an Investment Opinion Being Issued by the Equity News Circuit
The Following Is an Investment Opinion Being Issued by the Equity News Circuit
NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Jan 4, 2013) - The Bedford Report has released new equity reports today. As a leading provider of free in depth reports and timely market updates, Bedford is an essential resource for hundreds of thousands of investors across the country.
Acorda Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOR) has an industry-leading pipeline of novel neurological therapies. Shares of the company spiked 6.7 percent on nearly 1 million shares traded Thursday. Analysts at Citi have recently upgraded the company's rating to a "buy."
Find out more about Acorda Therapeutics including full access to the free equity report at: www.BedfordReport.com/ACOR
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) shares spiked 2 percent on over 100 million shares traded Thursday. For the full year 2012 Ford car sales grew 5 percent to a total of 2.17 million vehicles. Ford shares have gained over 20 percent in the past year.
Find out more about Ford Motor Company including full access to the free equity report at: www.BedfordReport.com/F
Forest Oil Corporation (NYSE: FST) shares of the oil & gas company surged over 5 percent on more than double the average daily volume Thursday. The company has recently agreed to sell all of its properties located in South Texas, excluding its Eagle Ford Shale oil properties, for $325 million.
Find out more about Forest Oil including full access to the free equity report at: www.BedfordReport.com/FST
SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWR) shares of the solar company soared over 40 percent on nearly 19 million shares traded Thursday. The company recently signed a $2.5 billion deal with Berkshire's MidAmerican Energy.
Find out more about SunPower including full access to the free equity report at: www.BedfordReport.com/SPWR
Disclaimer: Information, opinions and analysis contained herein are based on sources believed to be reliable, but no representation, expressed or implied, is made as to its accuracy, completeness or correctness. The opinions contained herein reflect our current judgment and are subject to change without notice. We accept no liability for any losses arising from an investor's reliance on or use of this report. This report is for information purposes only, and is neither a solicitation to buy nor an offer to sell securities. Certain information included herein is forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements concerning manufacturing, marketing, growth, and expansion. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could affect actual results and cause them to differ materially from expectations expressed herein.
A third party, Providence Media Strategies LLC has paid Equity News Circuit four hundred and fifty dollars for the publication of this news release. Neither Equity News Circuit, nor the hiring party, has a financial relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this release. Neither Equity News Circuit nor the hiring party are a registered investment advisor, and nothing in this report is intended as a solicitation to buy or sell any security.
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Abercrombie Will Pay The Situation to Not Wear Its Clothes
Abercrombie & Fitch is offering money to Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino – not to model its clothes but rather to stop wearing them.
"We are deeply concerned that Mr. Sorrentino's association with our brand could cause significant damage to our image. We understand that the show is for entertainment purposes, but believe this association is contrary to the aspirational nature of our brand, and may be distressing to many of our fans," the clothing brand said in a statement.
The 29-year-old Jersey Shore star has been known to wear Abercrombie & Fitch on the MTV show, most recently a pair of neon green sweatpants.
"We have therefore offered a substantial payment to Michael 'The Situation' Sorrentino and the producers of MTV's Jersey Shore to have the character wear an alternate brand. We have also extended this offer to other members of the cast, and are urgently waiting a response," the press release added.
WHAT DO YOU THINK about Abercrombie & Fitch's offer to The Situation?


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|Jul 16 2009, 11:33 PM Post #1
F-Zero Pilot
Going to Kansas City for the weekend. I'll be back Tuesday. See ya then.
Please pretend this rabbit/mouse/other type of rodent is saying bye instead of hi.
Random quote: "When life gives you lemons, make grape juice and watch as the world wonders how you did it." - Unknown
Current obsessions -
Video games: Meh, actually at the moment I'm sort of out of video games. I'm going to try to start playing them more sometime soon, but as of now, I haven't been very much.
Books/Movies: I'm officially obsessed with Harry Potter again. Remind me why I ever stopped my fanboyish craze with it?
Music: Metric. They are quite possibly my new favorite band. :O
Internet memes: Joseph Decreux xD
Other: The phrase "halfway decent" which I seem to be saying a lot lately.
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President Obama's inability to pass much-needed comprehensive immigration reform could cost him the 2012 election. Though recent news of a rebounding economy, coupled with Republican Party infighting, suggests an alternate narrative, the Hispanic vote is neither uniform nor clearly aligned with the Democratic Party. If Hispanics fail to show up in support of the president in four key swing states — Florida, New Mexico, Nevada, and Colorado — the election could go to the Republican candidate, likely to be former Governor Mitt Romney.
Time magazine kicked off the topic of Hispanic electoral power with its March 5th cover story, "Yo Decido," written by journalist Michael Scherer. The author noted demographic trends that favor Hispanic predominance in certain places in the nation, and last week, it was widely reported in the U.S. media that about one in six Americans are Hispanic. Additionally, one in six workers in the U.S. is Hispanic, and most Hispanics live in the U.S. legally. They are fully integrated into communities. There is a prevailing assumption that, because a majority of Hispanics are Catholic, they should be naturally allied with more conservative candidates — particularly the two Roman Catholics still in the Republican race as of this writing, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich.
While the Republicans appear to have learned from some earlier egregious mistakes, like former candidate Herman Cain's jocular comment about electrifying the fence between the U.S. and Mexico, they seem to have a collective tin ear when it comes to Hispanic culture, issues, voting patterns, and history. They don't seem to understand the importance of Hispanics among us, and, surprisingly, they don't seem to really care.
Romney is hardly progressive or nuanced when it comes to Hispanic issues. He does not support the critically important Dream Act — which would allow young people who arrived in the U.S. as children (generally in the arms of their parents) to earn an education in America beyond high school. Common sense would suggest that we support a policy whereby our nation, struggling to compete in an increasingly technical, global environment, would support the education of young people who want to stay in the U.S., study, and contribute to the social and economic development of the nation.
Romney wants to talk economics while ignoring the politically complicated and nuanced issue of immigration reform. So recently he began reaching out to Hispanics by telling them that overall economic recovery is their best hope and that his policies — not President Obama's — are most likely to improve the economy, a claim based on political rhetoric more than measurable reality.
But recently released data undermines Romney's claims. According to data from the American Immigration Council, if the United States government passed comprehensive immigration reform (something Romney rejects), an estimated $4.5-to-$5.4 billion increase in overall tax revenues would accumulate during the first three years, as workers moved out of the shadows and into more reliable, better-paying jobs.
Reform would generate a net growth to GDP of approximately $1.5 trillion during the first 10 years of implementation ($1.2 trillion in added consumption, $256 billion in new investment). Thus, immigration reform may be a key component to lifting our sluggish economy. Nevertheless, an angry, xenophobic fog has settled in over our land, leading to state-supported anti-immigration legislation that has disrupted local economies and has led to great social tensions and an ongoing legal challenge by the federal Department of Justice against the state of Arizona.
President Obama must continue to push for the creation of a pathway to comprehensive immigration reform and for passage of the Dream Act. By investing political capital in this project, the president can work to ensure that his presidency lasts through 2016 while simultaneously making a significant contribution to our economic growth and solving one of our most pressing social dilemmas: the plight of the undocumented among us.
Bryce Ashby is a Memphis-based attorney and board member at Latino Memphis. Michael J. LaRosa teaches history at Rhodes College.