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Today's Meditation
Read Psalm 25:1-10
Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
- Psalm 25:4-5 (NIV)
On my third telephone call I heard the same recorded message, "Please wait for the next available representative." Loud music began playing in my ear, and I wanted to slam the telephone down. I had waited seven or eight minutes on the first two calls without talking to a live person and had achieved nothing by waiting, yet I knew I had to keep trying.
I have often found it difficult to wait, to be patient in situations where I have no control. I have allowed frustration and impatience to block me in reaching my objectives and following my plans. In so doing, I have no doubt squandered opportunities to attain a goal and serve others.
It has taken me considerable time to see that God's timing seldom matches my expectations. As I reflect on God's faithfulness and perfect wisdom, I am reminded with each step of faith that I can turn my impatience, worries, even my failures over to the Lord. We have this promise from the prophet Isaiah: "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion . . . . Blessed are all who wait for him" (30:18). I am finding that the more I wait for and depend upon the Lord, the easier it is to respond in trying situations with patience and love.
Walter N. Maris
(Missouri, USA)
Thought for the Day: God rewards our patience with peace.
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for your grace given freely to us. Forgive our impatience and heal any hurt that we have caused by acting on it. Amen.
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Electronic reproduction of any kind forbidden without written consent.


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This is kind of a strange question but I was curious if anyone knew of the affects of taking a BCAA (Branch Chain Amino Acids) supplement while nursing. I read somewhere that there a couple amino acids that can cause PKU, which apparently is a serious illness (not sure exactly what it is), but these two are not BCAAs and not found in the supplement that I am thinking of taking. I know that essential amino acids come from dairy and most babies are okay with those, I just can't find any info on BCAAs. If anyone knows anything that would be great.
Here is a list of the amino acids found in the supplement:
L-Glutamine (there is more of this than the others)

subset: commoncrawl


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Who is The Maker of The Wassily Chair?
Jul 30, 2012 3:52:11 PM
Known to his friends and associates as Lajkó, Breuer studied and taught at the Bauhaus in the 1920s. The Bauhaus curriculum stressed the simultaneous education of its students in elements of visual art, craft and the technology of industrial production. Breuer was eventually appointed to a teaching position as head of the school's carpentry workshop. He later practiced in Berlin, designing houses and commercial spaces. In the 1920s and 1930s, Breuer pioneered the design of tubular steel furniture. Later in his career he would also turn his attention to the creation of innovative and experimental wooden furniture.
Perhaps the most widely-recognized of Breuer's early designs was the first bent tubular steel chair, later known as the Wassily Chair, designed in 1925 and was inspired, in part, by the curved tubular steel handlebars on Breuer's Adler bicycle. Despite the widespread popular belief that the chair was designed for painter Wassily Kandinsky, Breuer's colleague on the Bauhaus faculty, it was not; Kandinsky admired Breuer's finished chair design, and only then did Breuer make an additional copy for Kandinsky's use in his home. When the chair was re-released in the 1960s, it was designated "Wassily" by its Italian manufacturer, who had learned that Kandinsky had been the recipient of one of the earliest post-prototype units.
Emily G
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The interior life of a Vietnamese household in the 1950s, as seen through the eyes of a young servant girl, is explored in Tran Anh Hung's placid, but visually intoxicating tone poem, L'Odeur de la Papaye Verte. The film begins in 1951, when the beautiful and inquisitive 10-year-old peasant girl Mui (Lu Man San) is hired to work at the home of an affluent Saigon family. When the father absconds with the family's money, the tireless mother (Truong Thi Loc) is forced to support the family through the slim profits of her tiny fabric store. As the family struggles to make ends meet, Mui becomes attracted to a friend of the family, Khuyen (Vuong Hoa Hoi). The film then shifts to 1961, when the family is in desperate straits. The father has died, and Mui (Tran Nu Yen-Khe), now twenty years old, finds herself working in Khuyen's home. Khuyun has grown into an attractive, sophisticated French-speaking pianist, with his own expensive mistress. Mui serves him as she has served the family -- with perfection and silence. She also loves Khuyen is silence, and gradually Khuyen begins to take notice of Mui's love for him. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
Movies.com, the ultimate source for everything movies, is your destination for new movie trailers, reviews, photos, times, tickets + more! Stay in the know with the latest movie news and cast interviews at Movies.com.
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Attached files
|8-K - FORM 8-K - BG Medicine, Inc.
Exhibit 99.1
BG Medicine, Inc. Announces Important New Galectin-3 Findings Presented at American
College of Cardiologys (ACC) 61st Annual Scientific Session & Expo
- Company to Discuss Results in Conference Call and Webcast Today at 8:45 a.m. ET -
Waltham, MA, March 26, 2012 BG Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGMD), a company focused on the development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics, announced today the results of several new studies related to the galectin-3 protein. BG Medicine markets a blood test for galectin-3 called the BGM Galectin-3 test for heart failure, which was cleared by the FDA in 2010 and obtained the CE mark for commercialization in the EU. The findings from the studies were presented at a symposium held on Sunday, March 25th at the American College of Cardiologys 61st Annual Scientific Session & Expo. The symposium was sponsored by BG Medicine. In conjunction with these events, the company will host a conference call and webcast this morning at 8:45 a.m. Eastern Time. A summary of the presentations and results is listed below.
Title: Galectin-3 as a Mediator of Cardiac FibrosisReview of In-Vitro and Pre-Clinical Experiments
Presenter: Rudolf A. de Boer, MD, PhDUniversity Medical Center Groningen; The Netherlands
The collection of advanced in-vitro and preclinical studies presented by Dr. de Boer corroborated earlier findings of the pivotal role of galectin-3 in cardiac fibrosis formation. The studies also showed that the built-in on-off switch on the galectin-3 protein can be used to reduce cardiac fibrosis formation and prevent heart failure development.
Title: Galectin-3, a Marker of Cardiac Fibrosis, Predicts Incident Heart Failure in the Community Results of the Framingham Heart Study
Presenter: Jennifer E. Ho, MD National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI) Framingham Heart Study; Framingham, MA
This study represents the first large-scale study that investigated whether elevated levels of galectin-3 in the population at large identify those who are at increased risk for heart failure development. The results from the study, which included 3,353 participants of the Framingham Offspring Cohort, suggest that galectin-3 elevation is relatively common, affecting between 10 and 25% of the study participants. This study further confirms that elevated levels of galectin-3 in the general population are associated with a markedly increased risk of heart failure development over the subsequent 10 years. Dr. Ho also presented these results on Saturday, March 24th at the ACC Scientific Session.
Title: Galectin-3 in Relation to Prognosis and Effect of Valsartan TreatmentResults of the Val-HeFT Trial
Presenter: Inder Anand, MD, FACC, FRCP, DPhilUniversity of Minnesota and Minneapolis VA Medical Center; Minneapolis, MN
This substudy of the Val-HeFT study investigated whether patients with low or high galectin-3 respond similarly to valsartan (Diovan®), an angiotensin II receptor antagonist. Because elevated galectin-3 identifies a subpopulation of patients that has a distinct form of heart failure (HF), it was anticipated that many drugs will show a differential response in patients with low or elevated levels of galectin-3. Results showed that, as compared to placebo, Valsartan caused a significant 44% reduction in hospitalizations for HF in a subgroup of patients with galectin-3 below the median. No effect of Valsartan was measured in the subgroup of HF patients with galectin-3 above the median. Plasma samples were only available for approximately 30% of the Val-HeFT participants and the study had limited ability to investigate all end-points. These findings are similar to those of the CORONA trial, which demonstrated that patients with plasma levels of galectin-3 below the median derived a marked clinical benefit from rosuvastatin (Crestor®) treatment, while no benefit from rosuvastatin treatment was observed among patients with higher levels of galectin-3.
Title: Galectin-3 as an Aid in Prioritizing Candidates for CRT TreatmentResults of the MADIT-CRT Study
Presenter: Kenneth Stein, MD, FACCSenior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Cardiac Rhythm Management at Boston Scientific; Minneapolis, MN
The landmark MADIT-CRT study investigated the effects of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT) in patients with early-stage heart failure. The galectin-3 substudy of the MADIT-CRT study investigated whether galectin-3
testing could aid physicians in the selection and prioritization of patients who may benefit from CRT treatment. The study showed that CRT treatment conveyed an important benefit in patients with low and high galectin-3. However, because of the markedly higher incidence of events in patients with high galectin-3, the absolute benefit of CRT treatment was approximately double that of the benefit in patients with low galectin-3. These study results suggest that galectin-3 may be used to prioritize patients for CRT treatment.
Conference Call and Webcast
The management of BG Medicine will hold a conference call and webcast to review the data presented at ACC, which will take place at 8:45 a.m. Eastern Time and may be accessed by dialing (877) 845-1016 from the U.S. and Canada, or (708) 290-1155 from international locations. The conference call will also be available simultaneously over the Internet at www.bg-medicine.com on the page entitled Investors. A replay of the call will be available approximately two hours following the end of the call through April 9, 2012. The replay may be accessed by dialing (855) 859-2056 or (404) 537-3406, passcode 61905523.
About Galectin-3 and Heart Failure
Galectin-3 is a unique carbohydrate-binding lectin, or protein, that binds to carbohydrates called beta-galactosides. Galectin-3 has been implicated in a variety of biological processes important in the development and progression of heart failure, and is believed to be a primary mediator of progressive cardiac fibrosis (abnormal thickening and stiffening of the heart muscle) and adverse remodeling (changes in the structure of the heart). Higher levels of galectin-3 are associated with a more aggressive form of heart failure and 30% or more of mild to moderate heart failure patients will have elevated levels of galectin-3. Heart failure affects an estimated 5.8 million Americans, with approximately 670,000 new cases occurring each year. The direct and indirect cost of heart failure in the United States for 2010 is estimated to be $39.2 billion.
About BG Medicine, Inc.
BG Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGMD) is a life sciences company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics to address significant unmet medical needs, improve patient outcomes and contain healthcare costs. The Companys first commercialized product, the BGM Galectin-3TM test for use in patients with heart failure, is available in the United States and Europe. BG Medicine has also developed CardioSCORE, a blood test designed to identify individuals at high risk for near-term major cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke. For additional information about BG Medicine, heart failure and galectin-3 testing, please visit www.bg-medicine.com and www.galectin-3.com.
The BG Medicine Inc. logo is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8765
Special Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements made in this news release contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created by those sections. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies and expectations, can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as believe, expect, may, will, should, could, seek, intend, plan, estimate, anticipate or other comparable terms. Forward-looking statements in this news release address our expectations concerning the role that galectin-3 plays in heart failure, our beliefs regarding the potential for galectin-3 to impact an individuals response to certain drugs, our beliefs regarding the importance of galectin-3 data presented at ACC, and our expectations regarding the impact of the galectin-3 data on the sales and marketing of our galectin-3 diagnostic tests. Forward-looking statements are based on managements current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, as a result of various factors including those risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors and in Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of our recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. We urge you to consider those risks and uncertainties in evaluating our forward-looking statements. We caution readers not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as otherwise required by the federal securities laws, we disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein (or elsewhere) to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
# # #


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WESTPORT, Conn. — After a Stratford man was told he couldn't buy just one cigarette at a Westport gas station, he attacked the clerk and an elderly man who tried to call 911 early Sunday, Westport police said.
The incident began at 4:30 a.m. Sunday when officers responded to a 911 hangup call from the Exxon gas station at 1510 Post Road E., police said.
When Westport Officer David Perez arrived, he immediately took Allens Verdier, 25, of Stratford, into custody, police said.
Verdier had entered the store and demanded to buy a single cigarette, police said. When the clerk said that they do not sell single cigarettes, Verdier went behind the counter and began assaulting the clerk, police said.
Verdier then assaulted an elderly male in the store who was attempting to call 911, police said.
Verdier appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, police said. A brown leafy substance found in his possession tested positive for PCP, police said.
He was taken to Norwalk Hospital for evaluation, police said.
He will be charged with possession of a hallucinogen, third-degree assault, third-degree assault on an elderly person, two counts of interfering with a 911 call and second-degree breach of peace, police said.
Bond was set at $15,000 for a court date of March 29.
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This book presents a unique approach to church growth. It is written mainly to help churches that are declining, but will help all churches. The underlying premise is that churches do not grow and reach new people because they do not know how, or because they are so poorly structured and organized that they spend most of their time and efforts in conflict. This disrupts the fellowship and leaves very little time and energy for reaching new people. The subtitle could be, qFifteen Essential Steps To Growthq- Basic growth and administrative principles. The combining of these areas makes this a unique book. Young has brought together these basic elements, from over 40 years of experience. . The book is a practical guide for a local church to follow to function efficiently and effectively, and reach people for Christ. When the steps are followed, and in the proper order, the church can pretty well be assured of growth and effective ministry. Dr. Robert A. Young is currently President of Samuelite Corp., Church Outreach and Consulting. He served as Associate Pastor/Administration of Walnut Street Baptist Church, Louisville, KY, and Park Cities Baptist Church, Dallas, TX, and President of the National Association of Church Business Administration. He has conducted qTotal Church Consultationsq and Capital Fund Campaigns for churches of all sizes and denominations. He is now available to serve churches as a consultant in these areas. He is also the author of qThe Development of A Church Manual of Administrative Policies.qSuch a manual of policies can convey the idea of keeping something from happening through the church instead of ... A group may be so bound by rigid procedures that there is little chance for free expression of real difference of opinion.
|How to Lead a Church to Reach People and Grow
|Robert A. Young
|Xulon Press - 2009-05
You must register with us as either a Registered User before you can Download this Book. You'll be greeted by a simple sign-up page.
Once you have finished the sign-up process, you will be redirected to your download Book page.How it works:


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Pittsburg's annual Pioneer Days is set for the third Saturday in September. Vendor applications are ready.
Annual Pioneer Days to bring thousands to Historic Downtown Pittsburg
PITTSBURG, TX July 17, 2012 – Plans for the annual Pioneer Days in Historic Downtown Pittsburg are underway. The Camp County Chamber of Commerce is accepting applications for booth spaces from vendors offering a wide variety of items from commercial products, arts, unique gifts to handmade crafts and food. Booth spaces are set up in a premium location in the street along Pittsburg's Main Street area (Jefferson & Quitman Streets) from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept, 21 only. There is also a food court area on Tapp Street, which is just off Jefferson Street, which remains open until 8 p.m.
Pioneer Days is estimated to attract upwards of 10,000 people. The festival set for Saturday, Sept. 21. The event features a hot dog lunch and ice cream on Friday, and a carnival on Friday and Saturday. Friday events include a health fair, senior citizens' games, Art walk, sidewalk sales, and a wine tasting event. Saturday's events include the parade, a biker run, live entertainment, and more.
Booth spaces are 12-by-14 feet and water and electricity is available. Craft and novelty spaces are $50 if paid by Sept. 5 and $75 after Sept. 5. Food vendors' spaces are $100 if paid by Sept. 5 and $125 after Sept. 5. The booth fee for nonprofit organizations is $30.
For a vendor application or more information, contact Allen Weatherford at the Camp County Chamber of Commerce at 903-856-3442 or firstname.lastname@example.com. Applications can also be downloaded from the Camp County Chamber of Commerce web site at www.pittsburgchamber.com.


text: 38 items matching your search terms. Filter the results. Item type Select All/None Article Blog Entry Collection Page File Folder Issue Link Old Collection New items since Yesterday Last week Last month Ever Sort by relevance · date (newest first) · alphabetically How to Save Bats in Your Own Backyard Bats are mammals, shy creatures of the night, and fascinating to watch. They're also endangered by loss of habitat, disease, and pesticide poisoning. You can help by providing protection. Heidi Bruce Jul 17, 2012 6 Tips for Sustainable Pet Care Low-cost and natural ways to care for your critters. Jennifer Kaye Apr 23, 2012 A DIY Civilization Can we create the machines of modern life sustainably, cheaply, and close to home? Colleen Shaddox Mar 26, 2012 How to Find Meaning and Money in Your Work Millions of us are resigning ourselves to work that hurts us, hurts others, and damages the planet. We're wasting our greatest assets. Billy Parish Mar 05, 2012 Don't Be Stupid, Cupid: How to Show Your Love Responsibly Annie Leonard: What classic Valentine's gifts are linked to exploitation—and what can you do about it? Annie Leonard Feb 13, 2012 Bank Transfer Day: A Guide to Closing Your Account To protest the behavior of big banks, thousands pledged to switch to small credit unions on November 5. It's not too late to join them by following these steps. Oct 25, 2011 7 Smart Solutions for DIY Jobs One alternative to looking for a job is to make your own. Here are seven ways communities are offering tools, training, and bright ideas to get workers started. Oct 04, 2011 Need a Job? Create Your Own 5 entrepreneurs who said no to corporate jobs. Sep 21, 2011 10 Tips for a Zero-Waste Household A year's worth of solid waste from Bea Johnson's home fits in a quart-sized jar. Here's how you can reduce yours. Bea Johnson Sep 14, 2011 7 Ways to Cook Up a Sustainable Diet Last year, Vicki Robin lived for a month eating only food from within a 10-mile radius. She's back with tips for a planet-friendly diet. Vicki Robin Sep 08, 2011 1 2 3 4 Next 10 items


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The Courtyard Palo Alto Los Altos offers complimentary underground parking, style, comfort, and convenience in the heart of Silicon Valley. Whether you're in the area for work, for vacation, or to visit Stanford University, you'll feel at home here. Our newly redesigned lobby and Bistro restaurant offer a perfect destination for gathering with friends or colleagues, and thanks to our 250MB Ethernet circuit, you're assured of super-fast (and free) Wi-Fi access throughout the hotel. Rooms and suites are spacious and feature well-lit work areas and ultra-comfortable mattresses, as well as flat-screen TVs and coffee makers. Additional perks at our hotel include two picturesque outdoor courtyards with ample seating and fire pits - great for relaxing after a busy day. Lastly, you'll love our prime hotel location in Los Altos, CA - just a short drive from downtown Palo Alto and businesses including SAP, Google, and Hewlett Packard. For a refreshing change of pace, book your stay at the Courtyard Palo Alto Los Altos.Show More
The Bistro offers healthy choices for breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, an evening bar, and specialty beverages made with Starbucks® coffee.Learn more
Our location in Los Altos places you near popular attractions including Stanford University; San Jose and San Francisco are both a short drive away.
Our hotel offers complimentary parking, large gym, as well as an outdoor pool. Relax in the whirlpool, or spend time in one of our two courtyards.


text: Twitter use outpaces social growth overall Published on August 09, 2013. Washington, D.C.—Eighteen percent of all online U.S. adults are now using microblogging site Twitter, up from 8% in November 2010, according to a report by the Pew Research Center. According to the most recent "Pew Internet & American Life Project" report, measuring U.S. social media use as of May, Twitter's growth has outstripped U.S. social use growth overall: 72% of online U.S. adults are using social networking sites, up from 61% in November 2010. Pew's study—based on telephone interviews of 1,895 Internet users conducted in April and May—also found that males and high-income earners predominate among Twitter users, in contrast to social media users overall, where females and low-income earners are more numerous. Most Popular In this article: BtoB


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Welcome to the MARC Community Software page. All software on this page has been provided by you, the MARC Community, and is support by its authors.
If you have software you wish to upload, please ensure you have the appropriate Open Source licenses applied. Remember - what you post you need to maintain! Be prepared to help your community members use and adopt your code.
Intel SCC Team
Disclaimer: Intel does not support, warranty, nor guarantee the providence of any of the software provided on this page.
Ernie Chan (UT Austin) has released RCCE_comm downloadable from the
ETI has released a beta version of its SCC Development Framework


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(Reuters) - AT&T on Thursday won a ruling from a federal appeals court in a lawsuit against liquid crystal display panel makers alleging a price-fixing conspiracy.
The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco reinstated AT&T's claims based on California law over panel purchases outside the state. The decision reversed a lower court partial dismissal of AT&T's lawsuit.
The manufacturer defendants, including Taiwan-based AU Optronics Corporation and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, had argued that AT&T's claims violated the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution.
The three-judge panel for the 9th Circuit disagreed. It found that California's antitrust statute, the Cartwright Act, can be applied to the defendants as long as some of the conspiratorial activity leading to sale of price-fixed goods took place in the state.
Richard Taffet, an attorney for the defendants, declined to comment.
AT&T spokesman Marty Richter said the company was pleased with the ruling.
AT&T's lawsuit is one of several that have been filed against LCD makers for allegedly fixing prices. Those companies also have been the subject of a U.S. criminal probe. Last year, a jury in California convicted AU and two of its executives.
The case is AT&T Mobility LLC v. AU Optronics Corp, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 11-16188.
(Reporting by Andrew Longstreth; Editing by Howard Goller and Andrew Hay)


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Thomas Albert Herrington died November 22, 2012
Thomas Albert Herrington, age 76, of Heber Springs, Arkansas, passed away Thursday, November 22, 2012, at his home. Born in Thomaston, Georgia, on November 26, 1935, he was the son of the late Dewey Camron and Ruby Dupree Herrington.
Mr. Herrington was employed as an area director for Cameco Industries, working in Europe and Africa. He proudly served our country in the United States Marines, attaining the rank of corporal.
Mr. Herrington was a member and served as a governor of the Moose Lodge. His religious belief was Baptist.
In addition to his parents, Mr. Herrington was preceded in death by his siblings, Cecil Herrington, Pauline Dupree, Opal Herrington, Olnie Herrington, Bradford Herrington, and Mae Godwin; and one great-grandchild.
Mr. Herrington is survived by his wife, Bonnie Herrington; three children, Connie Heidari and her husband, Mohammad, Trish Parish and her husband, Roger, and Mark Herrington and his wife, Tiffany; two brothers, Charles Herrington and Fred Herrington; ten grandchildren, Andre Heidari, Josh Hudson, Hannah Hudson, Maggie Shaver, Adam Kirk, Sara Kirk, Dawn Masson, Lauren Hudson, Corey Hudson, and Tyler Hudson; and seven great-grandchildren. Mr. Herrington is also survived by other relatives and his many friends.
Visitation was held Sunday, Nov. 25, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at Olmstead Funeral Home. Funeral services were held Monday, Nov. 26, at 10:30 a.m. in the Olmstead Chapel with Rev. Chris Rollins and Rev. Salquie Norsworthy officiating. Interment with military honors followed in Cleburne County Memorial Gardens. www.olmstead.cc


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Thanks to Video Villager for the personal service. We have always had help with movies from Sarah in Rock Falls and the other young employees.
I am sad to see them go and the conversations about good, family movies that Sarah and I always had. She would suggest some titles and was always "right on" for my needs.
We'll miss you young people. Good luck to you in your new jobs.


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The web scam customer service caper
Most conspiracy theorists, as far as I can tell, are fundamentally crazy. Nonetheless, I strongly suspect that customer service departments in large corporations are designed by an underground society of computers that want to drive us nuts so they can take over the world.
I did not make this up. My imagination is not that good. Probably using the real name of the company in question is not the best idea. I fear answering a knock on my door and being confronted by a computer and several of his henchmen wanting to have a word with me.
Okay. Let's just say I had a small issue with a company that offered an incentive program. You know the ones I'm talking about. After you buy a gazillion dollars worth of their products you build up hundreds of thousands of points. Each point was valued at one tenth of a Mexican peso when the peso was on par with the dollar.
I thought spending the points now, when one tenth of a peso is worth more than a U. S. dollar, would be a good thing.
The problem was, I forgot my password, which I thought could be easily retrieved. The only alternative to retrieving the password was to open a new incentive account. If I did that, I would lose my hundreds of thousands of points. Then I would have to wait another five years to be eligible for the do-it-yourself frontal lobotomy kit I had been looking forward to using for so many years.
The "contact us" heading on their website only gave an e-mail address. A telephone number was not listed. So I called the 1-800 number they advertised on television. The lady who answered was nice enough. She said, "My name is Agnes. I'm here to assist you in opening a new account. Please give me your credit card number now."
I asked if she could please connect me to customer service. She said, and very politely I might add, "My name is Agnes. I'm here to assist you in opening a new account. Please give me your credit card number now." So I explained that I needed to retrieve my lost password. She said, "I'm sorry, I do not recognize that number. Please enter your credit card number on your telephone keypad now."
I could tell that Agnes was a telemarketer probably reading from a script. So I asked if I could speak to her supervisor. She didn't say anything for about ten seconds. I thought I was waiting for her supervisor when she came back on the line. "I'm sorry. I didn't get that number. Please stay on the line and someone will be with you shortly."
Shortly was about seven minutes. A man came on the line. "Good morning. You seem to be having trouble with our automated service. Could I please have your name and credit card number." I said, "I'm trying to retrieve my password. Are you in customer service?" The man seemed puzzled. "I'm sorry. We don't have a customer service department. This is a fulfillment house. We only take orders."
I explained that I was trying to retrieve my password so I could cash in the points on my incentive plan. He asked what company I was trying to call. I told him the name of the company, and I could tell that he was covering the phone with his hand, but I distinctly heard him ask someone, "This man wants to retrieve his password for some company I never heard of. What do I tell him?"
The voice said, "Tell him to call this number. Maybe they can help him." Then he gave me a number and hung up. So I called the number and a man answered. He didn't say "Hello," or "Good morning," or anything like that. He said, "Shipping." So I told him that I wanted to retrieve my password. I was obviously connected to the wrong department."
He said, "You don't need a password, you need a shipping number. Let me connect you with customer service. Give them your name and address and they'll look up your order." I didn't argue. I was finally going to get someone in customer service.
The person who answered had a very heavy accent I did not recognize. And she sounded as if she were speaking from another planet. I think she said, "May I have your name and address." I gave it to her and she said, "Just a minute while I pull up your account." I waited and when she came back on the line, she said that I had no shipments listed. I explained that I needed to retrieve my password.
She said, "We will never ask for your password. That is highly confidential." I said, "I'm not trying to give you my password. I want my password." She told me that she does not have this customer's password because she is not given that information. I admit I was starting to get frustrated. So I said, I don't think you understand English very well, and again asked her how I could retrieve my password.
She got very huffy and gave me a number to call where someone could help me. It was an 888 number. I thought I was fi- nally getting somewhere when this voice answered. "My name is Agnes. I'm here to assist you in opening a new account. Please give me your credit card number now."
Agnes has a boss. It is a computer. It is the chairman of a company that hires people in countries all over the world who are not aware that they are working for a system they don't understand.


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A Mundelein man was taken into custody Friday on warrants for drug conspiracy and other charges, the McHenry County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.
Rolando Gonzalez, 19, was found at his house with 153 grams of cocaine, which has a street value of about $15,300, the sheriff's office said.
Members of the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested Gonzalez without incident.
Gonzalez is the fourth person to be charged in a narcotics investigation where two gang members and a gang associate were arrested on drug-related charges on Nov. 15 in Woodstock.
Gonzalez is charged with unlawful criminal calculated drug conspiracy, two counts of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance and two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled substance.
He was being held in the McHenry County Jail on $250,000 bond.
– Northwest Herald


text:
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Originally built in 1929, this DePaul building located next to McCabe Hall and Wish Field is used for entertaining receptions, banquets and other large, fun-filled events. What is the name of this building?
Happy guessing! And remember these trivia rules:
- To enter, post your answer in the comments section by clicking "Leave a Comment" below.
- The contest will be open Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 11:30 a.m. Central through 4 p.m. Central.
- All of the correct answers will be compiled and a winner from that group will be drawn at random to win the prize.


text:
Usefulness, in fact, is the heart of a widget. A widget is a module that connects the user to a primary source of information. The important properties of widgets are that they're small and portable; a user can take the widget and plop it down on his or her own personal home page, social networking site profile, web site, desktop, or even mobile device. Not all widgets are designed to work in all of those environments, of course, and some web sites (such as MySpace) permit only certain widgets on their pages.
Wherever they do work, however, widgets give their users a new way to experience the web and to interact with content. Instead of going out to a web site to get a bit of information they need, users can check their widgets. Want to know the weather? Check your Weatherbug. Want the latest news? There are tons of widgets that can give you news from various sites; Forbes just recently created and began promoting eight widgets that provide content from its site on topics that include technology, breaking news, business, stock to watch, and lifestyle. Widgets are the latest use of push technology; in the nature of their reach, they're like RSS feeds on steroids.
Widgets boast some other very cool aspects for both their users and their creators, which I'm going to explore in some detail. At their best, they're very viral; their mobility makes them very easy to share. When made right, they're useful, providing information a user genuinely wants. And they can also be a way to promote your site and your brand. Before I touch on these topics, I'm going to give you a little widget history.
{mospagebreak title=Widget History and Growth}
The concept necessary to the development of widgets first hit the radar in the 1990s with PointCast, a startup that tried to promote a service which "pushed" data from the web to desktops without the use of a web browser. As is usual with these things, some thought push technology was the next big thing, while others ridiculed it or scratched their heads, not understanding why someone would want to have data shoved down his or her throat.
The relatively limited technology available at the time made things worse. With all that data being pushed through them, networks slowed down. Companies saw their networks go through data bottlenecks when their users took advantage of PointCast's service, and some of them forbade its use. Many home users had problems with the bandwidth — remember, the majority of web surfers were still on dial-up connections.
But all that began to change in 2000. WeatherBug, a very small push program that sits on the user's desktop and does one simple thing — tell the weather — came out. In its first eight months, more than 1.5 million users downloaded it. Today, more than 65 million people have registered for the WeatherBug service.
One major sign that it was time to start paying attention to widgets came a couple of years ago, when Yahoo bought Konfabulator for an undisclosed sum. The two-year-old company made widgets for the Macintosh. Yahoo took the bold (and prescient) step of giving away the Konfabulator software that allows users to make widgets. The venerable search engine now has a site at which users can download "1,000s of widgets for your Mac or Windows desktop."
Yahoo is not alone in its interest in widgets. MySpace recently purchased photo-sharing service Photobucket for $300 million. MySpace may well have figured "if you can't beat them, join them" with this purchase; the two companies had a spat before the purchase over Photobucket's service putting ads within its photos and videos — photos and videos that MySpace users were embedding in their own pages. But MySpace's owner, Fox Interactive Media, also purchased Flextor, a company that makes a mini-application which lets users mash up various media (such as videos) and embed them as widgets.
MySpace competitor Facebook really opened things up when it launched the Facebook Platform in May of 2007. Advertisers and developers could now create all sorts of widgets for Facebook that could be easily shared. Widget makers would be allowed to keep all revenues from sales and ads generated by their applications. The floodgates opened; less than a month later, more than 300 widgets could boast more than 1,000 users each.
Naturally Google is getting involved. Its initiative, dubbed Google Gadgets, focuses on widgets for the desktop. When it rebranded its personalized home pages as iGoogle, it also came up with a way for users to create simple gadgets with wizards. To encourage gadget creation among developers, it launched Google Gadget Ventures, a program that distributes grants and seed investments to developers and users of the Google Gadget API. The program awards $5,000 to developers who create promising gadgets that meet a certain number of weekly page views. A Google grand recipient wanting to develop a business around the Google gadget platform may receive $100,000 in seed money if he or she qualifies.
{mospagebreak title=What Users Do With Widgets}
When Business Week talked about "The Next Small Thing," it gave tons of examples of different ways to use widgets. Some of them facilitate the community aspects of the web and social networking sites. Take the Flixster movie widget that is popular with many Facebook users. Users can list the movies they've seen, and give a rating and a review; they can also look at pages that show movie reviews and ratings from their friends. They can even check out what's currently playing in the movies and film trailers.
iLike saw amazing success with its Facebook widget. It lets people share their favorite musicians and songs, and informs users' friends when they're going to a concert. It's not unusual for users to see this information and buy tickets to the same concert. Though iLike signed up a million users in the first six months of its existence through its web site, it signed up its second million in one week on Facebook. It now has four million users — and is selling ads and earning commissions.
Widgets can work as a sort of "lubricant" to help people socialize on and offline, and to help them express themselves; after all, there are lots of ways to use data. Dave Morgan, writing for Media Post Publications, thinks it can go a lot further though. He notes how blogging brought about the rise of the citizen journalist, and thinks that widgets might bring about the rise of the citizen publisher. With widgets, he explains, "people can import much more content and functionality into their web pages…They are assembling more complete consumer media solutions. They are becoming not just writers, but citizen publishers…they can even receive payments from movie studios for putting movie trailers on their pages."
Morgan further notes that they can redistribute these widgets to other citizen publishers. In this way, the publisher becomes a syndicator. This can lead to citizen networks — users setting up "their own groups of sites, publishers, journalists, and users that they connect with constantly, distributing and redistributing items among themselves." This could certainly upset the status quo, but wise content producers, advertisers, site owners, and SEOs should look upon this as an opportunity.
{mospagebreak title=Web Widgets and SEO}
When it comes to making sure your brand reaches someone who isn't on your web site, it doesn't matter whether your widget is designed for the desktop, a user's personal home page, or the public web. But if you want your reach to extend as far as possible, you need to create a widget for the web. In that case, you should familiarize yourself with the requirements of Facebook, MySpace, and iGoogle, since those sites contain the personal pages in which most users embed widgets.
Once you take that step, there are a number of ways in which you can include widgets in your online marketing campaign. First and foremost, make sure the functionality you want to include in your widget is both simple and useful. If it isn't simple, it defeats the point of having a widget; if it isn't useful, nobody will download and use your widget. You should also keep in mind that there won't be a lot of room in the widget for advertising; the widget itself should show how a user can benefit from your product (like Flixster for Netflix).
Widgets can help you develop links to your site. You want to include text links in widgets because the search engines don't read Flash, and that kind of video is often a big part of how a widget works. Just be careful about this; with Google on the warpath when it comes to link spam, a few bad apples could spoil it for everyone.
You can always optimize the page on which you offer your widgets for download. This is similar to the idea of optimizing a page on which a video appears. It can give you another page in the SERPs for your keywords, and that's always a good thing.
If you're doing anything with social media, or thinking about it, widgets can help. Widgets make excellent linkbait. If your widget is genuinely useful, and noticed by bloggers, community moderators, and others online, they will download it and put it up on their highly visible blog pages or talk about it in their communities. More importantly, they'll include a link back to where they got the widget.
The world of widgets is still small, but it's growing. A recent one-day convention in New York was devoted to widgets, and companies that make widgets (and other interested parties) now have their own group, the Widget Marketing Association. If you haven't considered reaching out to web surfers who make use of content and information in this new format, perhaps you should.


text:
On staff since February 1974
Children's Title: Jeffrey Modell Endowed Chair in Pediatric Immunology Research
Academic Title: Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington
Research Center: Center for Immunity and Immunotherapies
"I decided to enter the medical profession because the Hippocratic Oath rendered it unique, apolitical and not money-driven; at the same time, medicine promised to be a field where research has a purpose, teaching has an impact and providing care for patients is considered a privilege and a vocation. I am content and happy I did."
"I decided to enter the medical profession because the Hippocratic Oath rendered it unique, apolitical and not money-driven; at the same time, medicine promised to be a field where research has a purpose, teaching has an impact and providing care for patients is considered a privilege and a vocation. I am content and happy I did."
Hans D. Ochs, MD, is attending physician at Seattle Children's Hospital; and co-director of the Immunology Diagnostic Laboratory at Seattle Children's Research Institute. He earned his MD summa cum laude from the University of Freiburg, Germany. He completed his residency in pediatrics at the University of Washington.
The focus of his research is the molecular definition of primary immunodeficiency diseases (PIDD) and the investigation of new techniques to confirm the diagnosis. He and his collaborators contributed significantly to the identification of a number of genes associated with PIDD located on the X chromosome (CD40L, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein [WASP], FOXP3, gp91phox) or on autosomes (uracil-DNA glycosulase; Rag1, Rag2 hypomorphic mutations as the cause of Omenn syndrome, STAT3 responsible for AD-HIES). Ochs started the Immunodeficiency Clinic at Seattle Children's in 1985, providing evaluation and care for both pediatric and adult patients with immunodeficiency disorders. He has initiated clinical trials for new immunoglobulin preparations for intravenous and subcutaneous infusions and has collaborated with the bone marrow transplant team in the design of new protocols for stem cell transplant and gene therapy. He was principal investigator for U.S. Immune Deficiency Network (USIDnet) and is co-founder and member of the summer school faculty devoted to primary immune deficiencies. He is principal editor for the medical textbook Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases: A Molecular and Genetic Approach and co-editor for Immunological Disorders in Infants and Children.
I still remember the call I received while in my infants hospital room from a man with a thick accent telling me he believed my son had been misdiagnosed and there was a treatment available he would like to discuss. I had just been told my son would not live another year. We are celebrating his 18th birthday in two weeks and my only complaint is that beard of his. He is beautiful and perfect. And we owe every good thing to the amazing Hans Ochs. If he is an option for you, seek him out at all costs. You will be grateful you did
Dr. Ochs treated my two immune-deficient sons years ago when we lived in Washington. He was very helpful and straightforward in giving my sons what they needed and introducing us to IVIG. He has been a trusted resource I could call over the years even when we lived in other states. He is an excellent researcher. I would highly recommend him.
Allergy and ImmunologyPediatrics
Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg - Faculty of Medicine, Freiberg
Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle
Allergy and Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle
Dr. Ochs' research focuses on the molecular basis of Primary Immune Deficiency Diseases with special interest in the genes that have been linked to the Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome, Hyper IgM syndromes, X-linked Agammaglobulinemia, IPEX syndrome, autosomal recessive Hyper IgE syndrome. To improve the long-term outcome of these disorders, he has actively participated in clinical trials to develop immunoglobulin replacement, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and gene therapy. Dr. Ochs' clinical interests focus on the use of intravenous and subcutaneous immunoglobulin and the in vivo analysis of antibody production using Bacteriophage FX174. He and his collaborators contributed to the identification of several genes associated with PIDD located on the X chromosome, including CD40L, Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome protein, BTK, and FOXP3. Recently, he focused on the gene Uracil-DNA Glycosulase, causing a rare form of autosomal recessive hyper IgM syndrome and on STAT3, the gene causing autosomal dominant Hyper IgE Syndrome if mutated. In 1995, he moved the immunodeficiency clinic from the University to Children's Hospital, providing diagnostic evaluations and clinical care for both pediatric and adult patients with PIDD. He initiated and maintained a successful cooperation with the bone marrow transplant unit since the early 70s and participated in the design of protocols related to stem cell transplantation for patients with SCID, Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, GGD, and Hyper IgM Syndrome. He is a PI for the NIH contract supporting the United States Immune Deficiency Network (USIDNet) and member of the U.S. Summer School Faculty devoted to teaching fellows interested in primary immunodeficiency diseases. As co-editor of the textbooks Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases, A Molecular and Genetic Approach, 2nd Edition and for Immunologic Disorders in Infants and Children, 3rd Edition. The Ochs/Torgerson Lab focuses on: 1) The molecular basis of primary immunodeficiency disorders 2) Autoimmunity and Immune dysregulation 3) Regulatory T cells and mutations of FOXP3 4) Eventual consequences of heterozygous hypermorphic STAT3 mutations and their relationship to autosomal dominant Hyper IgE syndrome.
Primary Office
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JMB-7 - Immunology
1900 9th Ave
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4800 Sand Point Way NE
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text:
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A production of William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" that hopes to visit every country in the world in two years landed at the United Nations on Monday, with the tale of the dithering Danish prince getting a boisterous, standing ovation from top diplomats.
The stripped-down Shakespeare's Globe theater production played inside a chamber in the U.N.'s New York headquarters for some 500 guests, against a backdrop of real world crises in Gaza and the Ukraine.
"It's an absolute delight to be here. It's extraordinary. It feels very, very odd. But very pleasurably odd," said Dominic Dromgoole, the Shakespeare's Globe artistic director. "We like bold ideas. We like bold, simple — some would say stupid — ideas."
The tour's goal is to visit 205 nations and territories — the numbers are somewhat in flux as statehood demands rage — in seven continents. It landed in New York having already been seen in 28 countries and having accumulated 19,295 miles (31,053 kilometers) since it began this spring at its London home, a reconstructed Elizabethan playhouse beside the River Thames.
The show is spare: a few steamer trunks, cloth sheets, some wood beams and rope are all the scenery on hand, and the actors play multiple roles as well as instruments such as drums, violins and mandolins. But there's no denying the words and message from an exuberant cast. The audience included actress Kim Cattrall and performance artist Laurie Anderson in the front row.
The troupe, which already has performed in places as diverse as opera halls, market places and beaches, hopes to visit all the world's countries, including Iraq, North Korea and Syria. They also hope to perform in the West Bank, though no firm plans have been announced.
"Inclusivity is a much better policy than exclusivity," said Dromgoole. "If you do start excluding anyone, you do have to ask the question 'Where do you start and where do you stop?'"
The show already has played Moscow and Ukraine's capital of Kiev, where the show debuted on May 24, the night before the most recent elections, and president-elect Petro Poroshenko was in attendance.
The production, which is not sponsored or subsidized by any group, next moves on to Central America and the Caribbean, stopping in the Bahamas on Wednesday and on to Mexico, Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica. Later this summer it will head to Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
The tour involves a portable set and a 12-person, multicultural cast that includes Hong Kong-born actress Jennifer Leong and Maori actor Rawiri Paratene. The production is directed by Dromgoole and Bill Buckhurst, who travel with four stage managers.
The title role is alternated between London actor Naeem Hayat, a recent graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and Nigeria-born Ladi Emeruwa, who trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Hayat played a thumbnail-biting prince at the U.N. with aplomb.
Emeruwa said he thought the performance at the U.N. would be like a microcosm of what the company will face in the next few years. "I think it'll mean different things to different people — different representatives — depending on what sort of situation they're in or what sort of situation their country is in as well."
The journey began in London on April 23 — the Bard's 450th birthday — and has already made stops from Amsterdam to Prague, Cyprus to the Ukraine. It concludes at its home theater on April 23, 2016 — the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death.
For all the good feeling at the United Nations, Paratene, who plays Polonius, Claudius or the Ghost, had no illusions about the power of art going up against long-held international beliefs.
"It would be foolish of us to go in thinking that we could get the diplomats to operate better," he said. "All we can do is tell the story and if they glean from that something that makes the Israeli representative go to the other side of the room and sit next to the Palestinian representative and maybe kiss each other on the cheek and talk and listen, that would be very nice. But that's not what we're here to do. We're here to tell a story."
Online: http://globetoglobe.shakespearesglobe.com
Mark Kennedy can be reached at http://twitter.com/KennedyTwits


text:
Skip to comments.Iranian Alert - December 24, 2005 - Dems refuse to reveal who stopped pro-democracy Iran resolution
Posted on 12/25/2005 11:11:42 AM PST by DoctorZIn
Top News Story
Senate Democrats Soften Iran Resolution
BY BRIAN McGUIRE - Staff Reporter of the Sun
December 23, 2005
WASHINGTON - A Senate resolution condemning the president of Iran for anti-Semitic comments he made earlier this month is riling its Republican sponsors on Capitol Hill. They claim Senate Democrats forced them to strip language from the document expressing support for self-determination and a national referendum in the country.
Senator Santorum, a Republican of Pennsylvania, drafted the resolution after a December 14 speech in which Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the Holocaust a "myth" and suggested Israel be relocated to Europe, Canada, or Alaska. In its original form, the statement condemned the remarks, demanded an apology, and supported efforts by "the people of Iran to exercise self-determination" and hold a national referendum with oversight by international observers.
When Mr. Santorum moved to introduce the resolution last Friday, Senator Wyden, a Democrat of Oregon, registered an unusual objection. According to the Congressional Record, Mr. Wyden told Mr. Santorum on the Senate floor that he was objecting to the resolution because his Democratic colleagues in the Senate had asked him too. Mr. Wyden did not say who asked him to issue the objection.
"While I personally am vehemently opposed to the statements that have been made by the president of Iran," Mr. Wyden said, "I have been asked by the members on this side of the aisle to object, and I do so object."
Mr. Wyden's office did not return repeated calls yesterday to explain who suggested that he object to the Iran resolution or why he was chosen to register the complaint. And a spokesman for Mr. Santorum, Robert Traynham, said he did not know who raised the objection either. "We're still trying to see who those Democrats are," he said. An Internet blog devoted to promoting Democracy in Iran, "Regime Change Iran," detailed the flap over the resolution. It simply said that "Senate Democrats" objected to the resolution.
Confusion over Mr. Santorum's resolution was first evident when an aide to Senator Voinovich, a Republican of Ohio and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said last Thursday that she thought the resolution had passed. When a reporter said it hadn't, the aide, Garrette Silverman, double-checked and discovered it was held up. Mr. Voinovich then issued a statement condemning Mr. Ahmadinejad's re marks as "shocking and disgusting."
The following day, Mr. Santorum introduced a revised resolution, absent the language calling for a referendum in Iran. Once it passed, he delivered a floor speech in which he condemned not only the comments of Mr. Ahmadinejad but also members of the Senate and others who have resisted a similarly strong condemnation of the remarks.
"We could not adopt tonight in the Senate the Senate saying to the people of Iran that we support efforts of self-determination and a national referendum that was free and fair," Mr. Santorum said. "That is, in my mind, a rather unfortunate occurrence. But I found, from my perspective, that it was so important to condemn these actions that we agreed to strike those two sentences from the resolved clauses. I don't necessarily understand why anyone would oppose either of those sentences, those resolved clauses. They state that we are for freedom and democracy for all people, including the people of Iran."
Disagreement over the proper response to Mr. Ahmadinejad has not been limited to Mr. Santorum's resolution. Senator Clinton, a Democrat of New York, last week criticized the Secretary of State Rice, for not issuing a formal response. Senator Brownback, a Republican of Kansas and a co-sponsor of Mr. Santorum's original Iran resolution, also asked the White House to step up its criticism of Mr. Ahmadinejad.
Ms. Rice denounced Mr. Ahmadinejad's comments in a radio interview on the "Sean Hannity Show" the day they were made.
DoctorZinFinally, the main stream media is noticing. Freepers, keep calling Chairman Lugar's office demanding hearings on Iran and call your democratic Senators asking them "who is responsible for removing the support for self-determination and a national referendum?" We need answers!
- IRIB News reported that Ahmadinejad criticized "suppressive nations" for suppressing "any voice under the pretext of maintaining freedom of expression and impose medieval values and manners in modern disguise on nations." The president then expressed his confidence that all kinds of oppression would come to an end once rule of Islam prevails in the whole world.
- Tom Porteous, Prospect visited Jamkaran, the site of a water well where the 12th and last imam of Shia Islam, the Mahdi, is said to have disappeared a little over a thousand years ago. He discussed Ahmadinejad (and his new leadership) believes that total chaos must be created in order to hasten the return of the Mahdi and the establishment of Islamic rule throughout the world. An interesting read.
- The Public Affairs Magazine reported that the week-long violence in Baluchistan is being blamed on Iranian intelligence and their Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
- News Max reported that Teresa Heinz Kerry says she is "outraged" that President Bush has been too easy on Iran.
- Xinhuanet reported that Russia will fully comply with a deal with Iran to supply it with the Tor-M1 air defense systems despite US objections.
- MosNews reported that Iran is interested in developing military-technical cooperation with Russia.
- Amir Taheri, The Jerusalem Post reminds us that Iran is not just Israel's problem.
- DEBKAfile reported that thousands of Sunni secular Shiite and Kurdish protesters took to the streets of Iraq Friday, Dec. 23, over what they called the biggest election fraud in Middle East history.
- Eli Lake, The New York Sun reported that the head of Iraq's election committee accused critics of the election of extortion.
- Iran Focus reported that Irans powerful Interior Minister said that the echo of Irans Islamic revolution could be heard in Iraq.
- Iran Focus reported that Irans new ambassador to IAEA submits credentials.
- Mark Heinrich, Reuters published their analysis on the showdown over Iran.
- Karim Sadjadpour and Ray Takeyh, The Boston Globe gave their interpretation of Iran's belligerent foreign policy toward Israel.
- And finally, The Times reported that the place Iranians call Weblogistan has grown this year from 5.4 million blogs to today to more than 23 million. The bloggers have proved so wily and hard to censor that the Iranian Government has even considered removing Iran from the internet entirely.
"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail DoctorZin
Join Us At Today's Iranian Alert Thread The Most Underreported Story Of The Year!
"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail DoctorZin
Maybe I'm stupid, but why didn't they leave the two clauses in and let the Democrats vote against it if they liked?
If it's some kind of arcane senate rule, how come the rules always favor Democrats, never Republicans? Couldn't the Republicans maybe learn to use the rules some day?
ping- so I can read it later.
Democrats soften resolution condemning Iran leaders' insane remarks.
Why am I not surprised?
Here we have one of the best opportunities to help change a tyranical regime from within since the Solidarity movement in Poland, so whose the Dim who shot it down? Or should the question be who is the Republican without a backbone who folded?
Exactly!! It would have been even better had the resolution gone down and the Dems voting against it identified.
Any of the 44 RATS could be likely suspects, since they're craven cowards who hope for our ultimate defeat, but this reeks of Ketchup Boy or the Witch. They simply doesn't have the cajones to come out in front and say it while looking ahead to 2008.
"Senator Clinton, a Democrat of New York, last week criticized the Secretary of State Rice, for not issuing a formal response."
The New Hillary.
"Maybe I'm stupid, but why didn't they leave the two clauses in and let the Democrats vote against it if they liked?"
You're not stupid; I had similar thoughts. I believe the point is that by having somebody object, that put the resolution into a new realm, where would take more time and energy to get it through.
In my mind, that does not excuse the Republicans from backing down once again.
Yet again, the Democrats demonstrate their misguided preoccupation with coddling terrorists by watering down this resolution. If they are not trying to hamstring our troops overseas, they are protesting/critizing the President on the WOT (latest attack on wiretaps), boasting about killing the Patriot Act, or fighting for rights for Al Quaeda....they are just traitorous bastards and cannot be trusted with national security.
"Headline "Senate Democrats Soften Iran Resolution" could have read: "Republicans Prove Democrats Really did Castrate Them""
The beauty of it is, the 1000+ FBI files and other dirt Hillary has on various Senators may have had as much to do with this castration as anything else. Now Hillary chastises the Republicans for not taking a stronger stand.
"Yet again, the Democrats demonstrate their misguided preoccupation with coddling terrorists by watering down this resolution."
I see it differently. I don't think the Dems are misguided but rather quite effective. Unfortunately, their goal is the destruction of America.
If there are Republican senators whose FBI files contain information so damaging that it can be used to blackmail them, I want them OUT OF THE SENATE, just like I wanted Dick Nixon out of the White House when he lied to me!
Just an educated guess..S*o*R*o*S
Gee...three guesses who...
The DemonRATs never fail to bend a knee to their evil Master! Nor can they resist calling evil good, and good evil.
More on Lugar and Soros. http://americanthinker.com/comments.php?comments_id=2036
More on the hold. http://www.americanthinker.com/comments.php?comments_id=4022
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.


text:
5 Food to losing weight and increase energy
eBook (PDF), 3 Pages
Price: Free
This is a weight loss grocery list, which obligatory should be part of your diet. It will help you to be healthy and in the same time to have slim figure.
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text:
Vector Dephosphorylation Protocol
Indirect Magnetic Labeling Protocol
Lysing cells with with French press
This is a detailed description I made (for the MCB100r project I CA'd in the spring) of nearly all the techniques used in BioBricks insert-vector assembly. You will of course have to adapt some of the protocols to the reagents you have or to the samples you're working with. For example, you might do a nucleotide removal instead of PCR purification if your PCR product is <100bp, or you might change annealing temperatures for a PCR incubation to eliminate hairpin loops in your specific primers. Make sure you understand the (dis)advantages of each technique in relation to your goals. Perry
General outline
To get your insert...
- PCR...10min prep, 1.5-2h incubate (freeze/refrigerate)
- PCR purification...20min (freeze)
- (Optional: Topo clone/transform PCR product...1.5h, 12-16h incubation, refrigerate
- Digest...10min prep, 2-12 hours incubate (freeze/refrigerate)
- Gel electrophoresis...pouring: 20min (refrigerate) and running: 10min loading, 45-60min running, (refrigerate), 10min visualizing
- Gel extraction...30min (freeze)
To get your vector into which you're putting your insert...
- (If not already done, transform plasmid into bacteria)
- Liquid culture...5min prep, 12-16h incubation
- Miniprep...30min (freeze)
- Digest
- Gel electrophoresis
- Gel extraction
To put them together...
- Ligation...5min
- Transformation...1.5h
- Colony PCR and plate streak...10min prep, 2h incubation (freeze PCR, streak incubation during PCR or overnight and refrigerate later)
- E-gel...5min prep, 30min run, 5min visualization
- Liquid culture...5min prep, 12-16h incubation
- Miniprep...30min (freeze)
- Sequencing...20min prep and send-out
- Glycerol stock/midiprep
PCR mixture
- 25ul PCR Supermix (2X)
- 1ul forward primer (10uM)
- 1ul reverse primer (10uM)
- 1ul template
- 22ul water
- TOTAL: 50ul
Incubate this mixture in a PCR machine with the following program.
- 95dC, 10min (initial denaturing)
- 30 cycles of...
- 95dC, 30sec (denature)
- 55dC, 30sec (anneal)
- 72dC, 30sec-1min (extend: Taq polymerase replicates DNA at ~1kb/min, so you should program enough time for your fragment size; overestimate to make sure.)
- 72dC, 10min (final extension)
- 4dC, hold
- Note that the final concentrations of the each primer is 200nM (1:50 dilution of 10uM). This is a good working primer concentration for most PCRs. Adjust the amount of primer you add according to your stock primer concentration.
PCR purification
Follow the protocol outlined in the Qiaquick Spin Handbook, PCR purification, using a microcentrifuge. Remember to use purple tubes.
You have a choice of eluting your DNA in water or EB, with 30ul or 50ul. EB is a salt that has ions to stabilize your DNA and prevent potential degradation, but the ion concentrations may interfere with later reactions, so this is better for long-term storage and for linear DNA. Water will not affect later reactions, and may cause DNA degradation over time, so it's better if you're planning to use the DNA soon for something else.
Using 30ul or 50ul depends on what you are planning to do. According to the efficiency graph at the beginning of the handbook, 30ul will recover 80% of your DNA, 50ul will elute slightly more at 90%. But eluting with 30ul will produce a more concentrated sample. The choice depends on how much you need later and what kind of concentration you want. You can even use some number in between or more than 50ul, but don't use less than 30ul because recovery % decreases.
Be careful when pipetting EB/water for elution. You want to pipette directly on top of the center of the filter, without puncturing the filter and without getting EB/water on the side of the column. Also, it helps the let the column stand for 3-5 minutes instead of just 1. Another possible trick is to heat up your EB/water before eluting.
Double digest
- x ul DNA (PCR purified or miniprepped)
- 5ul Buffer (10X)
- 0.5ul BSA (100X)
- 1ul Enzyme 1 (2%)
- 1ul Enzyme 2 (2%)
- fill rest with water
- TOTAL 50ul
Incubate at 37dC for 2 hours minimum. If you're leaving it overnight, it can incubate for as much as 12-16 hours. Then incubate at 80dC for 20min to kill the restriction enzyme.
Pouring a gel
For a 1% agarose gel, you need 1g agarose per 1mL TBE buffer (Tris-Borate-EDTA). Weigh out 1g agarose powder, and pour into a gel flask, then measure 100mL TBE and pour into gel flask. Swirl it around some, and screw the cap on loosely.
Microwave for 30-second increments, swirling in between. When it starts fizzing (usually on the 3rd time), stop the heating.
Cool the flask by letting it sit in cold tap water for 5-6minutes, until you can hold it comfortably in your hand. Don't let it sit too long because it will start to solidify inside the flask.
While it's cooling, assemble gel frame: put clear plastic frame on top of creme-colored frame, between red rubber walls; turn handle to tighten. Put circle-bubble thing on top, and twist knobs on upper left and right until the bubble is in the center.
Put gloves on!!! Of course, unless you already have them on. Which you should. You should always be wearing gloves.
Add 5ul ethidium bromide to the mixture, and swirl to mix. Ethidium bromide is a dangerous carcinogen because it intercalates into DNA and causes mutations.
Pour into gel frame, use comb (15- or 20-tooth) to sweep bubbles to the bottom, set comb. Let gel solidify for 10-15 minutes.
Running a gel electrophoresis
After the gel has solidified, take the clear plastic frame with the gel in it out of the white frame, and place into the gel box.
- Make sure the gel is straight, and the knob thing is in the groove thing.
- DNA "runs to the red" so your DNA will be migrating down the gel towards the red side of the apparatus, which should thus be on the bottom end.
Pour TBE (Tris-Borate-EDTA) buffer into the apparatus.
- Don't pour directly onto the gel, as it will cause the gel to slide off. Just pour into each well. The buffer should be just covering the entire gel, until there's an even liquid surface above the wells.
Add loading dye to your samples.
- We use 10X loading dye, which is 50% glycerol in TBE, with bromophenol blue. The glycerol makes your samples heavier than the buffer, so they sink into the wells. The bromophenol blue allows you to see the samples as they run through the gel.
- It's preferable to overestimate a little bit when adding loading dye, as you want to be sure that your sample won't float out of the well.
Load 10ul of 1 kb plus ladder. Load your samples.
- When pipetting, you want to stabilize your elbows on the bench and the pipettor with your other hand.
- Point the pipette tip directly into the well (it helps to have a dark piece of tape or paper underneath so you can see the wells) but not too far into the well, as you don't want to puncture the well and you don't want to push your sample out of the well; rather you want to let it fall into the well.
- Pipette slowly, and make sure that no bubbles come out of your tip, as the bubbles create a vacuum that will suck your sample out of the well. So if there's empty air at the end of your tip, push it out before loading, and after you've finish loading, don't let any empty air out of the tip before you lift your tip out of the well.
Close the box, and turn on the apparatus. Run at 130V for 45min.
- Black to black, red to red.
- You'll see bubbles at both ends. That means it's working.
- You want to run it for long enough that multiple bands are well-separated, but not too long that DNA runs off the gel.
After the gel has finished running, put on gloves and take out the gel in the clear plastic frame. Pour off buffer from the top back into the box or onto a napkin. Take it to the UV imager.
Open "Quantity One" and under "File" click "Gel Doc EQ."
Click "Live/Focus." Open the UV imager door, and place the gel inside, centering it and using the "Zoom +/-" button on the machine.
Close the door. If the light by the "Trans UV" button is blinking, you haven't closed the door completely. Slam the door.
Press the "Trans UV" button to turn on the UV light. Use the "Iris +/-" button to modify the exposure/light intensity for a cleaner picture. Click "Freeze" on the program, and press the "Trans UV" button again to turn it off.
Click "Save" to save the gel image with your initials, the date, what it is, in the Project 3 folder. Under "File," click "export to JPEG..." and save it as a jpg image, which you can then email to yourself or upload to your wiki page.
If you need to cut a band, put gloves and a labcoat on. Open the drawer, install the plastic UV guard, and turn on the Trans UV. Look vertically down at the gel, and with a scalpel, cut into the agar as close around the band as you can without cutting into the band.
Preweigh a 1.5ml tube, and record the mass on the tube. Use a scalpel, forceps, or pipette tip to take out the gel slice and push it into the tube.
Gel extraction
Weigh the tube plus gel slice, and subtract to determine the mass of the gel slice.
Follow the protocol outlined in the Qiaquick spin handbook, Gel extraction, using a microcentrifuge.
See notes under "PCR purification" about elution.
Follow the protocol outlined in Roche Rapid DNA Ligation kit.
You need insert DNA and vector DNA, both compatibly digested. You want more insert than vector, about a 3:1 molar ratio. You can either nanodrop each sample for DNA concentration, and do the math, or you can do a simple 7ul:3ul mixture. Then add 10ul ligation buffer and mix. Finally add 1ul Rapid DNA ligase and mix. Let sit on the bench for 5 minutes.
You can either freeze the ligation mixture, or you can do it while your competent cells are thawing for transformation.
Get Top10 chemically competent cells from the -80dC freezer, and let thaw on ice.
After the cells have thawed, divide and aliquot into as many tubes as transformations you're performing. There is 60ul in one tube; you can do as many as 6 transformations from one tube, 10ul competent cells each. Competent cells are expensive, and they lose competency when frozen/thawed a second time, so try to be economical.
Add the DNA plasmid (from ligation, Topo cloning, or plasmid purification).
Let the tubes sit on ice for 20 minutes. (Make sure the heat-block has water in the wells and is set to 42dC.)
Heat shock the tubes at 42dC for 30 seconds.
Cool the tubes on ice for 2 minutes.
Add 200ul SOC media.
Incubate the tubes in the incubator/shaker at 37dC for 1h. While they're incubating, label agar plates of the appropriate antibiotic, and pre-warm in the 37dC incubator cabinet.
Under a flame, pipette the mixture onto the agar plate, and spread with a sterile plastic spreader.
Leave the agar plates agar-side-up on the shelf in the 37dC incubator, and leave for 12-16 hours.
Colony PCR/plate streak
Label an agar plate of appropriate antibiotic, and make a numbered grid to mark off as many sections of the agar plate for how many colonies you intend on checking.
Prepare 10ul of PCR mix for each colony: 8ul PCR Supermix + 1ul forward primer (2uM) + 1ul reverse primer (2uM).
- This makes a final concentration of 200nM each primer. If you have different stock primer concentrations, change the volume accordingly.
- It's easier to make a master mix (such as 80+10+10), and then aliquotting. When making a master mix, always make enough for one or two extra so that you don't run out.
Under a flame, use a sterile inoculation needle or toothpick to touch a colony on the transformation plate, streak a line in the corresponding section on the new agar plate, and then dip it into the corresponding PCR tube.
Run the PCR according to previous protocol.
While the PCR is incubating, incubate the streaked agar plate at 37dC.
When the PCR is done, load the PCRs onto an e-gel or agarose gel and analyze, and inoculate liquid cultures of the successful colonies by picking from the streaks (which should be sufficiently grown after 2 hours).
Liquid culture
Under a flame, pipette 3ml LB into a culture tube, and add 3ul of ampicillin (50mg/ml) or 1.8ul kanamycin (50mg/ml).
- You can change your volume of LB according to your needs. You may want just 1ml to reseed a later culture, or 3ml for a good miniprep, or more if you're planning on multiple uses or larger preparations.
Using a sterile inoculation needle or toothpick, pick from a colony, streak, or glycerol stock, and then dip into the LB.
Leave culture tube in incubator/shaker at 37dC for 12-16 hours, with the cap on loosely, not snapped tightly.
Pipette your liquid culture into 1.5ml tubes, and pellet the bacteria by centrifuging, and discard the supernatant LB. You may need to centrifuge multiple times depending on the total volume of your culture.
Follow the protocol outlined in the Qiaprep miniprep handbook, using a microcentrifuge. Read notes about elution under "PCR purification."
Determine how many sequencing reactions you will be sending out, and ask Alain for a purchase order number for Genewiz, a DNA sequencing service.
Take as many 8-tube strips as you need, and label them with your initials and a three-digit number, e.g. "PT001, PT002...". Plan and record which sequencing reactions you'll put into which tubes.
Into each tube, pipette 8ul of the DNA to be sequenced. If you're premixing your own primer, add 4ul primer (2uM).
- Each sequencing reaction should contain only one primer. For each DNA sequence you want to be analyzed, you should have two sequencing reactions, one with forward primer and one with reverse primer.
- You may leave out primer if you are using a vector with annealing sites for universal primers. For example, the Topo vector has M13F and M13R primer annealing sites flanking the cloning site, and Genewiz can add those primers for you.
Snap the tubes closed, wrap the strip in parafilm, and seal in a Ziplock bag.
Log into www.genewiz.com with Alain's email aviel@fas, and password ******.
Click "Place DNA Sequencing Order".
Fill in "Number of Reactions", select "Premix", and select yes or no for "Same Day Service". Click "Submit".
Fill in the "PO Number". Fill in the sizes of your DNA samples to be sequenced. Select "DNA Type", usually plasmid or PCR. If you've already added primer, under Primer, select "Already added", and if you want Genewiz to add universal primers, select the proper primer "to be added". Review the order, and click "Submit."
- If you are sequencing an insert within a plasmid, fill in the size of the entire plasmid plus insert.
Print out two copies, one for Genewiz and one for yourself. Fold up the copy for Genewiz, and place into the Ziplock bag with the tubes. Drop off the bag in the dropbox at Conant 113 before 4pm Monday-Friday.
- The entrance to Conant is in the walkway between Lowell Lecture Hall and Fairchild.


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CHARLESTON, S.C. (April 23, 2005) - The fourth seeded East Tennessee State University women's tennis team fell to top seeded Furman by a score of 4-1 Saturday morning at the Earle Tennis Center on The Citadel campus. While the score was 4-1, the battle between the two rivals lasted four and a half hours.
The Bucs began the battle with the Paladins by capturing the doubles point. Furman's Caroline Bentley and Mary Neill Hagood made the first move with an 8-1 win at No. 1 over ETSU's Masha Ilina (
In singles action, Furman would pick up four wins in hard-fought battles to decide the match at 4-1.
"I thought by the way we fought in doubles, that today was our day," stated head coach Steve Brooks. "When it came down to the last three on the court I thought we were going to tough it out. Elena was up a set and battling hard, Olya was starting to get in the zone and Sylwia went up 4-2. I give credit to Shannon Moore because she fought hard and she got up 5-4 knowing there was going to be a ball change and with the new ball she served out the match."
The Bucs, who finished the regular season tied for second with an 8-2 SoCon record ends the season 19-7 overall, while the Paladins will face Davidson in the finals on Sunday. .
1. Bentley/Hagood (FUR) d. Ilina/Ziolkowska (ETSU) 8-1
2. Volobueva/Knight (ETSU) d. Morris/Osborne (FUR) 9-8 (7-4)
3. Batsula/Halim (ETSU) d. Moore/Lisa Bornt-
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
1. Mary Neill Hagood (FUR) d. Sandie Knight (ETSU) 6-1, 6-1
2. Caroline Bentley (FUR) d. Masha Ilina (ETSU) 7-5, 6-0
3. Shannon Moore (FUR) d. Sylwia Ziolkowska (ETSU) 6-3, 7-5
4. Olya Batsula (ETSU) vs. Jacqueline Eckert (FUR) DNF
5. Elena Volobueva (ETSU) vs. Marti Morris (FUR) DNF
6. Lauren Osborne (FUR) d. Gemma Halim (ETSU) 6-1, 6-2
Order of Finish: 6, 2, 1, 3*
* - Clinching point


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Ask the Expert
Ask the Expert
The staff doctors, researchers, and dietitians of PCRM's Cancer Project have provided the following answers to questions from the public on the benefits of a healthy diet for cancer prevention and survival. Select a topic from the list below:
Expert Biographies
- Gordon Saxe, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D.
- Paul Talalay, M.D.
- Paulette Chandler, M.D., M.P.H.
- Jennifer K. Reilly, R.D.
- Neal Barnard, M.D.
- Edward Giovannucci, M.D., Sc.D.
- Brie Turner-McGrievy, Ph.D., R.D.
Do you have a nutrition or cancer question? Please send us an e-mail.


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WASHINGTON (AP) — Don't like the latest poll numbers on the presidential race? Just wait. More are coming — probably before you can say "margin of sampling error."
Regardless of what any given poll says, it's likely that someone — a campaign, an interest group, a political party or a rival polling operation — will argue that the survey is invalid at the same time someone else argues that it's significant.
Polls have become political tools and have taken on outsized importance as they've become easier and cheaper to conduct.
A part of campaigns grounded in science, polling has lost some of its standing as a neutral record of voters' attitudes and opinions and, at times, has become just another talking point. TV pundits and election analysts hang on every one-point shift, to heck with the margin of error.
Another twist this year: A pollster's usually difficult task of reaching a representative pool of likely voters has become far more difficult in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy's march through the East Coast with just days to go before the election.
As long as there's been polling, campaigns have released polls favorable to their cause, and independent pollsters have tried to capture the state of the race minus the internal campaign baggage. But now, with an array of options to conduct polling on the cheap, polls are far more frequent, more visible and more often used as campaign tools. In the 57 days since Labor Day, The Huffington Post's Pollster blog shows 130 national polls have been conducted on the presidential horserace.
Not all of them are created equal.
As the minimum cost of conducting a poll has fallen from something like the sticker price of a Lexus to the cost of a 1998 Honda Civic, the simple dividing line of partisan-or-not has been complicated by questions of basic methodology. But as in car shopping, you get what you pay for.
A poll using more rigorous methodology — in which live callers dial a random sample of landline telephones and cellphones over the course of several nights, making multiple attempts at different times to reach a respondent before giving up and attempting to choose a random respondent within each household — can cost well over $50,000. Automated polls — using recorded voice interviewers, only dialing landlines, taking whoever answers the phone and only on one night — can cost as little as $2,000.
Those more expensive polls cost so much more because they adhere to survey research rule No. 1: Every person should have a known, non-zero chance of being included in a survey's sample. If you only dial landlines, the cellphone-only voters have zero chance of being included. Likewise, if you only dial on Wednesday night, anyone who isn't home that night is automatically excluded from the sample and the pollster has no way of knowing who those people are.
Much of the proliferation of polling in the last few years has come from the cheaper end of the scale, with automated pollsters dominating popular poll aggregations. Polls conducted using automated methodology do not meet the standards for coverage of The Associated Press, nor do partisan polls.
For the public, this has meant new polling almost daily, some of it conflicting. And as pundits and prognosticators seek to explain the differences between polls, more are focused on pollsters with a finger on the scale rather than on the random variation that pollsters expect.
This campaign season has produced a string of polling-related controversies over such issues as weighting surveys by party identification, sampling likely vs. registered voters, how pollsters measure race and ethnicity, and whether public pollsters were using their polls to change the narrative of a particular race.
As these controversies rage, the standard caveats about a poll's margin of sampling error seem to have gone out the window. Polling analysts and aggregators put every 1- or 2-point shift under a microscope, even though almost no poll is accurate enough to detect changes that small with any certainty.
Whether valid or not, criticisms that suggest pollsters are fixing the data to get a desired result have done a number on polling's reputation. By the end of the 2008 contest, almost 4 in 10 voters told Fox News pollsters they thought media pollsters were fixing their numbers for Obama, and the public's take on polls became as partisan as any other part of the campaign.
At the end of recent presidential campaigns, the Pew Research Center has asked voters to give pollsters a letter grade for their performance. In 2008, 64 percent of Democrats gave pollsters an A or B for their performance in the campaign, while just 37 percent of Republicans felt the same, a 27-point gap. Four years earlier, the partisan gap was 11 points, and in 2000, a slim 7 points separated partisans.
In the final days of the campaign, the polls will continue, with most major pollsters releasing their final estimate of the presidential horserace just before Election Day and prognosticators massaging them into their final projections. Typically, these last-chance estimates have converged as voters solidified their choices, but the massive storm that swept through the East Coast could complicate the picture for pollsters.
With millions of East Coast voters without power, voters in hard-hit states will be difficult to reach. And many "likely voters" could wind up not voting at all as they deal with the aftermath of the storm. Pollsters aiming to produce a final portrait of the race will have a hard time knowing for sure how big an impact the storm has had on the election forecast.
Before the storm, however, this year's crop of polls had largely been in agreement that the race between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama was very close. Take the final round of public polling with a grain of salt and a pound of margin of error, and remember that polls are really just a snapshot in time.
EDITOR'S NOTE — Jennifer Agiesta oversees polling operations for The Associated Press.
Follow Jennifer Agiesta on Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/JennAgiesta


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This recipe has been in the works for quite a while. I've been making it for months, experimenting with different variations. I'm not sure why I kept holding off on posting it, but maybe it was because I was waiting for just the right combination of flavors. Finally, the other night, I found the perfect seasonings that made me say "Yes, this recipe is ready." I made tahini un-cream cheese that seemed to cry out to be used on dill-shallot bread for an heirloom-tomato, avocado sandwich. I had some shallot pepper from Penzeys, and so I combined it with dill and onion in my favorite amaranth flatbread, and used it to make the perfect veggie sandwich. As I bit into it, I realized at last the recipe was ready for posting. Now, mind you, I like every single variation I posted. Italian seasonings have been a favorite when I use this recipe for pizza, and the sundried-tomato olive flatbread is my favorite for snacking. And now, I have a favorite recipe to make amaranth flatbread for sandwiches. Not only is the amaranth not a bad thing in this recipe- it actually tastes good, and the official Book of Yum taste testers the DH and JM both gave thumbs up. Life is pretty good for this allergen-free, gluten-free mama, amaranth and all. Anyone else want a sandwich with me? What is your favorite gluten-free sandwich bread and veggie fillings? Share in the comments!
Gluten-free Vegan Amaranth Flatbread Recipe with mix instructions
1 tablespoon dry yeast
2/3 cup amaranth flour (or Sorghum, or brown rice flour)
1/2 cup arrowroot starch or tapioca flour
2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup warm non-dairy milk (110) (hemp etc. You can use water but it is better with the higher protein content un-dairy milk*See NOTE)
1/2 teaspoon sugar or honey
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
For variations:
Preheat oven to 425F and prepare a baking sheet by lining it with a sheet of parchment paper. If you have it, heat a pizza stone on the lower rack of your oven.
Combine dry ingredient in bowl of standing mixer and add your warm non-milk, sweetener, olive oil and cider vinegar. Add teaspoon of herb for your respective variation as listed. Do not add anything listed for sprinkling or topping (i.e. olives, cinnamon sugar). Mix for 3 minutes on medium-high. Use spatula to scrape dough out onto parchment paper. Drizzle dough with a little olive oil or lemon olive oil and shape with your hands into a round or square flatbread shape. If it sticks to your hands, you can add more oil. (If making sundried tomato-olive flatbread, you can use the oil from the sundried tomatoes and leave some tomatoes embedded in the dough.) If relevant add toppings- KOSHER SALT or olives or cinnamon sugar, depending on recipe. Bake for 10 minutes on baking sheet and then transfer flatbread on its parchment paper to your pizza stone. (If not, just rotate your baking sheet). Bake for 10 more minutes or until the bottom is nice and brown and the dough has reached your desired state of crunchiness. Take from oven and enjoy!
To make a mix, prepare quart sized Ziploc freezer bags. I often make at least 3 mixes at a time. Combine amaranth, arrowroot (or tapioca), xanthan gum, and salt in each bag. Label with recipe title and remaining ingredients:
1 tablespoon dry yeast
2/3 cup warm non-dairy milk (110) (hemp etc.)
1/2 teaspoon sugar or honey
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
and store at room temperature. Pour in standing mixer bowl and add remaining ingredients, following posted directions here to make recipe.
Bags can be re-used later.
*olive-sundried tomato variation pictured.
*NOTE: If using unsweetened non-dairy milk, add 1 tsp sugar or honey to the batch. The yeast likes it.


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May 23, 2012 at 12:59 pm
In Alaska visiting my grandaughter and her parents and going to some car shows while here. Should have pictures up this weekend from a Corvette show this Sunday.
Mar 22, 2012 at 9:55 am
Hey don't forget the car show this weekend looking forward to meeting you. starts at 10am but your welcome to come out early if ya like, hope the pollen will be down some so we can get them clean and they stay that way a little while..