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As the 2008 presidential race builds steam, candidates are telling the public what they want to hear, and that includes talk about health care reform. It's no wonder they are taking up this cause. U.S. health care costs are expected to jump from $2.1 trillion last year to $4 trillion by 2016. The University of Baltimore Obesity Initiative estimates that direct medical costs stemming from the obesity epidemic cost the country $130 billion annually.
Talk about health care isn't new for presidential candidates, but this time around, many of them are focusing at least some of their healthcare rhetoric on preventative care and its role in lowering health care costs. Some candidates are espousing ideas such as offering tax breaks and paid days off for people who demonstrate healthy behavior.
This talk is all well and good, but is it all just talk? Possibly. After all, state and federal legislatures are responsible for introducing and passing the laws that could spur many of the proposed preventative measures. In fact, sitting right now in Congress are two bills that could give the public an incentive to exercise. The Workforce Health Improvement Program (WHIP) Act would allow employers to deduct health club membership costs for their employees without classifying it as additional income to employees. The Personal Health Investment Today (PHIT) bill would allow the cost for exercise and physical activity (i.e., health club memberships, exercise equipment and sports programs) to be paid for from tax-favored investment accounts. If preventative care talk becomes a large enough topic in the presidential campaign, it could trickle into Senate and House campaigns and eventually lead to the passage of one or both of these bills.
Often, however, action is most effective at the state level. In fact, when Mike Huckabee, current presidential candidate and proponent of preventative measures, was governor of Arkansas, the state implemented a program in which state employees received discounts on health insurance premiums if they lived a healthy lifestyle.
Other states are also implementing measures that could decrease obesity rates and eventually lower health care costs. Unfortunately, it seems to me that the state efforts are still lagging. Last month, the Obesity Initiative released its third national assessment grading states (partially based on state legislative efforts) on their efforts in the obesity fight. The group offered a measly six "A's" (California, Illinois, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Tennessee) for legislative and public-policy work last year to control obesity in children and a pitiful three "A's" (California, New York and Tennessee) for efforts across all populations. Nevada, Utah and Wyoming earned "F's" while Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin earned "D's." That leaves a lot of states doing middle of the road work.
So the federal and state governments as well as presidential candidates are focusing on preventative care. Now, what do we do? We must ensure that our voices are heard. It's time to get political. We have a network of 30,000 fitness-oriented businesses. Think of what our concerted efforts could do. Contact your state and federal legislators to push for the PHIT bill and the WHIP Act. Look closely at the candidates and determine who is really pushing for the health of this country. Most importantly, when it comes time, get out and vote.


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World of Trucks represents our long standing dedication to Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator. World of Trucks's ultimate goal is creating an environment where our community can meet, interact and compete with each other in the expansive trucking universe. Join in and start using new Euro Truck Simulator 2 features now!
Scania Truck Driving Simulator is joining the original Euro Truck Simulator and Bus Driver on Mac App Store. Finally Apple Mac players have a chance to play the game, too. Our focus is 100% now on porting Euro Truck Simulator 2 to Mac OS.
After almost three years of development, we have just released ETS2 both in retail and digital editions across Europe. Get the demo from the official website at www.eurotrucksimulator2.com!
Mac OS port of Deer Drive is completed and available on Mac App Store. We are going to accelerate the porting effort now - the next title headed for Mac is Euro Truck Simulator. We have already been working on the Mac version for considerable time; we know that it is one of our most sought-after games.
The game is due to start appearing in retail stores across Europe later this week, and we are happy to announce availability of the Trucks & Trailers demo. You can find more info on the official Trucks & Trailers website.
We are proud to announce that we have achieved excellent progress in porting our 3D engine to Apple Mac platform, and the first fruits of the effort are now available, with our game Bus Driver for Apple Mac appearing on App Store today.
We are proud to unveil a new look of our official web site. The look is cleaner, information about our games should be easier to find, the screenshots are better organized, the HTML is crunchier and perhaps even faster to load.
In the recent months, we have increased our involvement with our truck games fan community a lot, so if you are interested in learning more about our upcoming truck simulations, you should also make sure to visit our official blog, our Facebook page, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and follow our Twitter!
A new game in the 18 Wheels of Steel series - Extreme Trucker 2 - is now shipping to retail stores across the USA, and also popping up on various digital distribution portals. You can also find the demo on official Extreme Trucker 2 website. The game should eventually appear in stores elsewhere, so far Germany, Russia, and most of Eastern Europe have been confirmed. A couple of movies to quickly check it out can be found on SCS Software's YouTube channel.
UK Truck Simulator should be on the store shelves across the UK as of today, so you know what to do really! :-) We have just re-launched the official game website to celebrate the game release - you can visit it at UKTruckSimulator.com. Also a brand new promo trailer for the game now up on YouTube.
As German Truck has started appearing in stores in Germany thanks to rondomedia, we are also giving you a chance to download English-language demo of the game from our site. We have also re-launched the game's official website at GermanTruckSimulator.com.
Finally, the digitally distributed trial version of Extreme Trucker is available for download. You can look forward to a multi-language build of the game, containing English, German, French, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian localizations. Hurry and grab it from our Extreme Trucker demo download page, or from the official 18 Wheels of Steel Extreme Trucker website.
18 Wheels of Steel Extreme Trucker is almost ready, it will be released on the market in USA in mid-October. It's time to publish a few screenshots from this newest truck driving game!
Another yearly update of the only surviving retail hunting franchise on the PC is now on the store shelves. Find out more in the dedicated section on our server. Or you can jump directly to download the free game demo - check it out!
We have just released a new patch for the game, updating it to version 1.3. You can grab the updates for the various editions of the game here: Euro Truck Update. We have come a long way from the original game, with new destinations and roads in the UK and several fixes and improvements included.
The newest game in the series is covered on our Hunting Unlimited 2009 page.
Come explore the past seasons of 18 Wheels games with us. A new four-game pack including 4 previous years of the 18 Wheels series is available as a free trial/demo here: 18 Wheels of Steel Bundle.
Online demo of the latest game in the 18 Wheels of Steel series has been launched, you can grab it from our server. Official 18 Wheels of Steel American Long Haul website is up and running now, too.
We have just launched the official website for our upcoming Euro Truck Simulator. The very first screenshots from the newest in a long string of truck games developed by SCS Software were also posted on our image gallery.
We have just released TruckSaver - 3D screensaver with a trucking theme for the PC. Please find out more about this big rig screen saver at TruckSaver website.
This is just a first small step in a series of announcements - we have two new trucking games under development now! Expect news about these future titles very soon.
SCS Software has today released Bus Driver, an eagerly anticipated bus driving game for the PC, into digital distribution. We have also launched the offical Bus Driver website with more information about this unique driving game.
Two new games developed by SCS Software have just entered retail distribution in Northern America! Have fun with our latest truck sim 18 Wheels of Steel Haulin' and our all new hunting game Hunting Unlimited 4. Both titles add major new improvements to the series, and we have noticed quite positive buzz on fan websites. Thanks! Downloadable demos for both titles should be available in a couple of weeks.
How fast is your aim? We have unveiled the official Deer Drive website - the game is finally ready! Deer Drive is a very different game than the usual crop of heavy-weight hunting simulations - it's simple to play, addictive 3D shooter with stage-based gameplay, as herds of deer are driven into the player's sights.
Always wanted to create games? Join us!
We are looking for artists, designers, and programmers on all levels.
After the publisher of our Hunting Unlimited series - Arush Entertainment - went into receivership, the HU2 and HU3 tournmanents websites went offline. To support our customers who kept bombarding us with inquiries and requests to get the sites back up and running for months, today we are unveiling a new home for the tournaments. This new replacement HU home integrates tournament system for both games with a single login into the message board.
We have finished work on the latest title in our truck sim series, 18 Wheels of Steel Convoy, and the game is going to hit the store shelves any day now. Free trial demo version of the game is already available.
We have just released our latest 3D title: OceanDive - Ocean Diving adventure. OceanDive is a free state-of-the art 3D scuba diving screensaver and exploration game (the exploration part can be unlocked by credit card purchase). We have also just launched the official OceanDive 3D screensaver website.
We have started offering direct download link to the demo of our latest truck game 18 Wheels of Steel: Pedal to the Metal. We hope this will make it easier for the fans of this truck games series to find the demo and try it out. Look for the link on the game's page, or simply click here.
This week, copies of both Hunting Unlimited 3 and 18 Wheels of Steel: Pedal to the Metal should start appearing on the shelves at most retailers. Both games are a big step up from the last season, and we hope the series fans will enjoy them a lot.
We have added several screenshots from the next installment of Hunting Unlimited series currently under development to the screenshots section of our website. We hope hunting game fans are going to join in for a great ride!
We have added several screenshots from our latest game in development to the screenshots area. The game is still far from finished, but we feel that what we have already is worth showing. Threre is also an interview about the game conducted by TruckPol on their message forum.
There is a new patch upgrading our game 18 Wheels of Steel Across America to version 1.10 available for download on ValuSoft tech support site. Please follow this link to download it; its size is around 8 MB. A list of tweaks and fixes is here.
We have just finished work on two new games - Hunting Unlimited 2 for publisher ARUSH Entertainment and 18 Wheels of Steel: Across America for ValuSoft, continuing our established series of truck games and hunting games. Both games are already in duplication and should appear on the shelves in a couple of weeks.
You can find pictures from both games in the screenshots section of our website.
We have once again moved in order to satisfy our never ceasing hunger for more room. The new high-ceilinged office is located even closer to the city center, just a short walk from the Namesti Miru metro station:
SCS Software
23 Jana Masaryka, Prague 2, 120 00
Czech Republic
Why do we need more space? We are currently at work on two PC games to be released later this year, expect official announcements shortly as the information is cleared for release. Fans of our previous titles have something to look forward to... ;-)
Patch upgrading our game Hard Truck: 18 Wheels of Steel to version 1.2 has been just released. Please visit the official ValuSoft Tech Support site to download it.
Another fine game developed by SCS Software has officially gone "Gold" a couple of days ago andthe publisher ValuSoftis expected to start shipping it to stores in about a week. We have spent 7 extremely tough months working on the game, but in our opinion the result really justifies the effort. Have fun behind the wheel!

subset: commoncrawl


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The building that formerly housed the Rib Crib restaurant on Meadow Drive has a new owner and several new tenant prospects.
The 12,000-square-foot, three-story building just north of Da Kind Soups has been renamed Meadow Drive Village, though owner David Hatch figures it will be at least 10 years before people know the building by that name.
Hatch, of Highland Renovations North LLC, lives in Louisville but travels regularly to Evergreen to oversee the building's remodel. He began with adding some landscaping soon after purchasing the building on Oct. 1.
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text: The History Department has graduate strengths in Public History, Transnational Urban History, Cultural, and Women's and Gender History within US and European areas. At Loyola University Chicago, masters and doctoral students work closely with faculty in and out of the classroom as they train to become professional historians, public historians, teachers, archivists, museum professionals and researchers. In this section you can learn more about graduate programs and curriculum, student life, and the annual History Graduate Student Association Conference.


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by Tom Utescher
When top-seeded Mount St. Joseph Academy brought a 14-0 league record into the Catholic Academies semifinals last Sunday, not many people thought the Magic would have much trouble getting past number four Merion Mercy, which finished the regular season in the league at 7-7 and had to win a special play-in contest just to secure the final playoff spot.
In the afternoon outing at Philadelphia University, MSJ fans were treated to a lot more drama than they were anticipating, since Merion's Golden Bears were still within three points of the Magic (41-38) with a little over half-a-minute to play.
Still, Mount St. Joe had enough of an edge that Merion had to foul to try and regain possession of the ball, and four-for-five free throw shooting pushed the Magic across the finish line to a 45-40 victory. The Mount climbed to an overall record of 21-2, and Merion slipped to 14-10.
Playing with three fouls for the entire second half, MSJ junior Alex Louin posted a game-high 17 points, one ahead of another 11th-grade guard, Merion's Tina DiGiacomo. Senior forward Meg Geatens garnered a dozen points and junior forward Carly Monzo scored eight, helping propel the Mounties into this Wednesday's championship game against Villa Maria, which won the other semifinal over third-seeded St. Basil, 44-28.
The late winter flu bug that has been making the rounds of high schools around the region had visited the Mount earlier in the week, causing the hoops team to cancel a pair of practices.
"I was not going to bring that up," said Mount coach John Miller when asked about the effects of the ailment. "I'd like to give credit to Merion Mercy, because I thought they played very well today."
Although Mount St. Joe hadn't lost a regular-season league contest, there had been a few close scrapes, such as a pair of overtime wins against Villa Maria, and a one-point victory in the Magic's second encounter with Gwynedd Mercy.
As usual, the Mount and the Villa Hurricanes were joined in the four-team league tournament by St. Basil, but the fourth entry, Merion Mercy, was an unfamiliar presence. The Golden Bears were a fixture in the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies playoffs back in the 1990's, but fell by the wayside in the early years of the new Millennium, making their last postseason appearance in the 2002-2003 season.
After that, once-lowly St. Basil rose up to become a regular member of the tournament cast. Nazareth Academy had been a playoff team for many seasons, but not this year. The Pandas fell into the league basement, sharing the cellar with Sacred Heart as each team finished 1-13 after splitting their home/away series and losing to everyone else.
Meanwhile, Merion and Bucks County's Villa Joseph Marie each won on the road against one another during the 2012-13 regular season, and wound up with identical 7-7 league records. With the first tiebreaker (head-to-head results) gone by the boards, the two teams met in a play-in game last Saturday afternoon. It was Merion's Golden Bears (14-9 overall) who made the cut, coming from behind in the fourth quarter to defeat the Jems, 36-31.
At the start of the week, Mount St. Joe had wrapped up the regular season by stopping Sacred Heart, 63-22. It was on to the playoffs and – as the Mounties eventually learned – a third meeting with Merion.
In their regular season series with the Main Line ballclub, the Magic had gotten a bit of a workout on the road in mid-December, winning 54-43, but when the teams clashed again on January 23, the Mounties rolled, 53-31.
In the third encounter last Sunday, MSJ's Louin earned mixed reviews in the first half. Shut out in the opening quarter, she came on to lead all scorers for the first half with nine second-period points, but she also acquired three personal fouls. Merion was not immune to the refs' whistles; mainstays DiGiacomo and Christina O'Shea picked up two personals apiece, and the Golden Bears piled up 10 team fouls.
All of those Merion violations came on Mount shots, and initially the Magic punished the Bears at the free throw line. They made eight of their first 11 attempts, and the last two "makes", launched by Louin, put the Mount up by 10 points (22-12), with 4:15 to go in the first half.
The Mounties had only led by three points at the end of the first quarter, 11-8, and after spreading the gap to double digits in the middle of the second round, they found themselves back to just a three-point edge at halftime, 23-20.
Coming off the Merion bench, sophomore guard Caroline Corzel knocked down all six of her foul shots in the last three-and-a-half minutes of the second quarter. The second of her three trips to the line came courtesy of Louin, and the MSJ star immediately took a seat with 1:54 left in the half. On the sideline, she mulled over her third personal foul while sophomore Mary Kate Ulasewicz performed in her stead.
In addition to her output at the free throw line, Merion's Corzel scored a lay-up off a steal late in the second quarter, and her Golden Bears were very much in contention as they filed into the locker room at the break. Mount players had continued to earn appearances at the foul line in the last few minutes of the first half, but only found the net on one of their seven shots.
"We didn't shoot fouls well today," Coach Miller admitted. "Fatigue could've been a factor; I only played six girls, so four girls played all 32 minutes. We also didn't shoot fouls well in our last [regular] season game with Sacred Heart (six-for-17). There's not always an explanation for those types of things."
Merion kept pace in the third quarter and Corzel continued to produce. With 5:02 left in the period she canned a three-pointer from the left wing and the Bears led for the first time since the opening minutes, 28-27. Louin had started the second half for the Mount, and she immediately bagged a jumper from just beyond the foul line.
After Merion inched ahead a few minutes later, MSJ's Geatens scored inside off a feed from Louin, then the Bears went up one last time on a spin move by DiGiacomo. Monzo provided a spark for the Magic at exactly the right moment, netting a jumper from outside the foul line, then stealing the ball back near the top of the key at the other end and galloping down to score a breakaway bucket.
Next, it was Geatens stringing together important plays on defense and offense, getting back to block a lay-up by a fast-breaking Corzel, and turning a subsequent Mount steal into two points. In the final seconds, Louin took the ball into the lane and pulled up for a short jumper, sending the number one seeds into the fourth frame with a 37-30 lead.
Merion still would not go away, and over the first four minutes of the final period DiGiacomo and senior Julie D'Orazio led the Bears back within two points, 39-37. Monzo delivered another key bucket for the Magic, driving the baseline from right to left for a reverse lay-up.
D'Orazio hit the second of two free throws to bring Merion back within three points, but less than a minute-and-a-half remained in the game. As the clock kept clicking down, the Bears had to foul several times to put Mount St. Joe in the bonus.
Only 33 seconds were left when that occurred, and the Magic's fortunes at the free throw line began to improve. Louin pulled both points out of a one-and-one, and on a shooting foul with 18.7 seconds showing, Geatens got both shots to drop for a 45-38 tally.
Fouled at the other end, the Bears' DiGiacomo made two tosses with nine seconds left. Soon after that the Magic missed a one-and-one chance, but Merion had no time to do anything but heave up an errant shot just before the final buzzer.
For the winners, the output of Louin, Geatens, and Monzo was supplemented by four points apiece from senior Adrienne Cellucci and freshman Libby Tacka, who are both guards. Corzel came away with 11 points for Merion and D'Orazio finished with five.
"Today we weren't at our best," summed up Miller. "We're not going to be able to beat Villa Maria playing like we played today. The girls have played very well all season, and now we just need to get back to our regular brand of basketball."


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The 94 members of the Middlesex High School Class of 2013 assembled in the John S. Clements Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday, June 15, for the school's 64th graduation ceremony.
Senior class president Lilly Crown told the audience that while graduation brings up memories of the past, it is really a beginning. "The memories and times that I have shared with each of you make me want to smile even in the darkest of moments, and I want for them to have the same effect on you," she said.
Have a look at what's available here and email Tom Chillemi for more information.
Class of 2013The MHS Class of 2013 includes: Heather Ann Elizabeth Ashe, Manuel Balderas Jr., Timothy Ray Balderson Jr., Shannon Marie Batley, Jack Bayard, Zachary McComas Belcher, Shannon Nicole Bristow, James Henry Brown, Christopher Sheron Burse, Nicholas Royce Burton, Brenda-Ann Kiersten Campbell, Sierra Danielle Cannon, Chelsia Leigh Chandler, Kaylee Nicole Cockrell, Kirstin Leigh Cole, Jeremy Owen Collier, Rachel Alexandra Crews, Lilly Kathleen Crown, Blake Cullen Damron, Nathan Clay Damron, Carey Cierra Darnell, Hunter Douglas Davis, Anthony Daniel Demaurez, William Gray Dickerson Jr., Walter Jerome Diggs Jr., Cristen Elizabeth Donor, Andrew Vail Dozier, Morgan Paige Duke, Bryanna Arlene Fleming, Gineshia Trachel Gardner, Anthony Malik Green, Robert Matthew Green, Bryant Sanchez Gresham, Breanna Gail Haley, Russell Lee Hall, Shawna Nicole Hallinger, Pamela Christian Hensley, Draven Kennedy Hicks, Justice Lamar Hill, Clayton Nathaniel Hogge, Bryan Lester Holman, Samantha Rae Holmes, Emily Ann Horton, Austin Wayne Hudgins, Alexis Morgan Jackson, Daniel Cullen Johnson, James Zachary Jones, McConnell Austin Kennard, Damian Allen Key, Toni Nicole Kimble, Jacob Christopher Lawson, Sammuel Barron Lawson, Ryheem Lamar Lockley, Bradford Levon Lott, Thomas Malcolm Major III, Peter Douglas Mantell III, Victoria Lynn Marshall, Richard Martin Matte, Amber Dawn Mauney, Brittany Danielle Mauney, Timothy Ryan McQuay, Rachel Ann Musick, Aason Shiva Nazrini, Joseph Matthew Nordan, Zachary Bryce O'Bryan, Ka'Nisha Artice Parrish, Allison Hope Payne, Molly Ann Perkins, Ellen Erica Perry, John Richard Purcell IV, Joshua Paul Raterman, Allison Beverly Reaves, Kelly Elizabeth Revere, Bianca Edith Rios, Nila Shamara Robinson, Shelby Laura Rose, Brooke Nicole Rowe, Vladimir Ivan Rowe, Jacqueline Joanna Sandate, Danielle Whitney-Ski Santos, Levi Zackery Short, Haley Virginia Smallwood, Tiffany Gail Sperlein, Terri Lynn St. John, Breanna Marie Tabor, Monica Lynn Thomas, Keeley Brooke Nelson Vollmer, Taylor DuFief Walden, Jordan Miles Walton, Thomas Kelly Ward, Bradley Carlton Wingfield and Kabri Shane' Young.


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Last week I had a surprise phone call from a Hobson 2nd cousin. Mike is Judy's (mentioned in previous post) younger brother. We had a great conversation and the really fun part was Mike remembered singing with my first cousin (his second) at a Sedgwick Co., KS meeting of some sort where both the towns of Cheney (Mike) and Mt. Hope (Dick) were represented. The two of them never knew Mike's father and Dick's mother were first cousins! Dick doesn't remember the event from the meager description I emailed him. My notes from my phone conversation with Mike weren't very good and I may have left off the one thing that would have triggered Dick's memory.
I've continued on working on this side of my family a bit. I'm basically trying to track descendants of Minos Russell Hobson and Mary Ann Hod(g)son m. 1868 in Henry Co., IN. At this point I'm about to believe my grandfather's youngest brother William Lynn had 3 wives and not just the two I thought earlier. William Lynn only had one son I am aware of named Lynn Jr. born about 1922. Lynn Jr's mother's name is Olive but that's all I know about her except her marriage to Wm. Lynn didn't last long and ended in divorce. It was not her first marriage. SSDI and Texas death index indicates Lynn Jr. died in Houston area in 1999. If he married and had children I would love to learn about them and hopefully make contact.
The other sibling of my grandfather Ellis who married and had children was Adella Hobson m. Hiram Kline. They had two children Gerald and Pauline. Pauline did not marry. I remember meeting Cousin Pauline and Aunt Della in the early 1950s. Gerald married Ruth Minich. They had at least one child named Gerald born about 1928. If Gerald, Jr. married and had children I would love to know.
My high school classmate Eve mentioned last post came through with the three Wichita obituraries I requested. Not sure one of them is mine but getting negative information is good too as it tells me to look elsewhere. Thank you Eve! I appreciate you.
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Mainers…Show Your 'Patriots' Pride with the New England Patriots Licence Plate!
The Kraft Family and the New England Patriots are bringing New England Patriots license plates to the state of Maine to give fans another way to show their team pride while also helping to support local nonprofit organizations. It takes 2,000 pre-orders to pass legislation and get the plates on the road and already, they are approaching the halfway point of this goal.
If you haven't already done so, you can help bring Patriots license plates to the state of Maine by placing your pre-order today. Patriots license plates in the state of Maine cost $35 and 100% of the proceeds received by the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation will support nonprofit organizations in Maine. Some organizations supported in the past include the Amy St. Laurent Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Maine, Camp Sunshine, Crossroads, the Mission Possible Teen Center and many more.


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Juvenile Comments On Lil Wayne & Says They All Anacondas??! "N*ggaz D*ck Bigger Than A Motherf*kka" + Big Joe (Puff's Body Guard Back Then) & Diddy Talk To Street Funk [Throwback Footage - Lil Wayne 14 -15 Years Old]
StreetFunkTV reports" footage of Puffy, Baby (birdman), Juvenile and a very young Lil' Wayne. Hosted by Mr. Excitement." Footage credit: (c) Street Funk Inc
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March 8, 2010
Listen to Audio (30 min.)
Please note: These files can be quite large. Allow some time for them to download.
This is part one of a two-part interview discussing highlights from CROI 2010 related to antiretroviral therapy for HIV-infected patients. Part one focuses on antiretrovirals in development; part two focuses on already-approved antiretrovirals, the question of when to initiate antiretroviral therapy and the evolution of the CROI meeting itself. You can use the table of contents below to quickly jump from section to section.
Table of Contents
Myles Helfand: Although conferences such as CROI are research meetings at their core, the findings presented there have an undeniable power to alter clinical practice. As CROI 2010 slips into our rearview mirror, let's take a look at some of its key studies for signs of how the treatment landscape may evolve over the months to come.
Joining me for this examination is Joel Gallant, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Gallant, thanks for joining us.
Joel Gallant: My pleasure, Myles.
Myles Helfand: We've got a lot of research to get to, and obviously, we'd like to put it into as small an amount of time as possible. So let's dive right in.
Let's begin with what is always one of the more interesting topics in antiretroviral therapy: the drug development pipeline. What did CROI 2010 bring us?
Joel Gallant: We hear a lot of complaints that there's not much going on in the pipeline. The pipeline is certainly not as full as it used to be. But there were a few drugs discussed, including a new CCR5 inhibitor; a new integrase inhibitor; and, of course, the so-called Gilead [Sciences, Inc.] "quad" that consists of tenofovir [TDF, Viread], FTC [emtricitabine, Emtriva], elvitegravir [GS 9137, JTK-303], which is their integrase inhibitor, and their new booster, GS 9350.
Myles Helfand: Which has a new name, I believe: cobicistat.
Joel Gallant: That's right. Cobicistat. You need to learn that and be the first on your block to know it.
Myles Helfand: Or the first in your clinic, as the case may be.
New Drugs Hold Their Own in Phase 2, Despite Creatinine Concerns
Myles Helfand: Let's get into the quad tablet a little bit. How did this hold up in the study that was presented at CROI?
Joel Gallant: Cal Cohen presented three studies in 10 minutes, which was a tour de force. Because the organizers like to combine related topics, and make people have to rush through a lot of data. So he presented the study of the quad compared to Atripla [efavirenz/tenofovir/emtricitabine, EFV/TDF/FTC]. Then he also presented a study where the cobicistat, or GS 9350, was used in comparison with ritonavir [RTV, Norvir] to boost atazanavir [ATV, Reyataz].
In both studies, the results looked great. These are smaller, phase 2 studies. But basically, the quad looked comparable in efficacy to Atripla. The cobicistat looked comparable to ritonavir, in terms of its ability to boost atazanavir, in that study. But the unexpected finding, especially in the quad versus Atripla study, was that the serum creatinine was slightly higher in the cobicistat arm, or the quad arm. This resulted in a modest decline in estimated creatinine clearance, which is the way we measure kidney function.
This was concerning, of course, because we already know that tenofovir can sometimes affect kidney function. And the idea of developing a quad tablet that had two drugs that were toxic to kidneys was not very appealing. So they then did a quick study in healthy volunteers, where they gave cobicistat to people, and they measured their creatinine and their estimated GFR [glomerular filtration rate], and then they used iohexol clearance as a test of true GFR. It actually measures creatinine clearance, instead of estimating it.
What they found was that, while the estimated GFR went down a little bit, the actual GFR didn't change. Their theory is that this is not a kidney-toxic drug; it's simply that it inhibits the secretion of creatinine from the kidneys, and therefore, it elevates creatinine without actually doing any harm.
So that's the hypothesis. They're going to go ahead with the phase 3 clinical trials. The hope is that this is just a tiny decrease in apparent kidney function that occurs within the first week or two and then, from then on, remains stable. So if you needed to monitor for, for example, tenofovir nephrotoxicity, you'd do it just the way we do now. This was an unexpected finding; hopefully, not a big problem.
In terms of the ritonavir versus cobicistat comparison: Again, as I said, the efficacy was fine. I would say one of the disappointments was that it didn't look better, in terms of gastrointestinal side effects, than ritonavir. I think we were all hoping that this would be the booster that had none of the baggage that comes with ritonavir. But, at least in this small study, that didn't appear to be the case.
Myles Helfand: The cobicistat creatinine findings: Was that a substudy, or was it a separate study that was done in people who received cobicistat as monotherapy?
Joel Gallant: The study where they did the iohexol clearance was a completely separate study in HIV-negative volunteers.
Myles Helfand: OK. And they didn't receive tenofovir, as well?
Joel Gallant: No, this was just cobicistat.
Myles Helfand: Is it known whether there's a potential interaction between cobicistat and tenofovir?
Joel Gallant: They've looked at that. There's certainly no pharmacologic interaction. But if you look at the curve that they presented, two weeks of looking at kidney function after seven days of monotherapy, the actual GFR is completely stable across those weeks -- whereas, in the quad versus Atripla study, within a week, you saw this decline in creatinine. So it's a pretty convincing argument.
And, you know, there are other drugs we use that do this, too. Trimethoprim [Proloprim] is a good example. It inhibits creatinine excretion -- and you do see a very small increase in creatinine. It's something that we don't even notice, or look for. But things are a little different in this case, because of the fact that tenofovir is on board.
The examples I remember are cimetidine [Tagamet], which used to be used for peptic ulcer disease, before we had drugs that had fewer interactions; and trimethoprim. There may have been another example [Dr. Cohen] gave that I'm not remembering.
Myles Helfand: Is he right in that comparison?
Joel Gallant: Well, he's certainly right that those drugs do that. And it sounds like he's right that cobicistat doesn't affect true creatinine clearance. Whether the hypothesis that this is due to inhibition of tubular secretion is correct, I don't think we know. The assumption is based on the fact that other drugs that have this effect on creatinine, without actually damaging kidneys, do it in this way. So it's a reasonable hypothesis, but it probably needs to be established more firmly.
Myles Helfand: I imagine phase 3 trials will help.
Joel Gallant: Phase 3 trials will definitely help to determine whether this is indeed a problem that occurs quickly and then doesn't progress. That's what we care about. The last thing we want to do is have something that is causing even just an apparent alteration in creatinine clearance. If it goes on over time, then the problem with that is that it makes it very difficult to monitor for tenofovir toxicity. But if it's just something that happens within a week and then doesn't change, then it's not difficult to monitor for tenofovir toxicity the way we always do.
What Does the Quad Have on Atripla?
Myles Helfand: The quad versus Atripla comparison, was that in treatment-naive patients?
Joel Gallant: Yes. That's what this combination is being studied for: as a potential replacement for Atripla.
Myles Helfand: Thus far, from what you've seen, how is it stacking up?
Joel Gallant: So far, I think it looks very good. It certainly was associated with a lot fewer neuropsychiatric side effects. If you look at things like dreams, dizziness, fatigue, sleepiness, those things were much lower. So, at least in a phase 2 study, this seems to fulfill the promise that it's a combination that's as good as Atripla, but without the side effects [that are unique to Atripla].
Now, of course, the quad is not the only combination that is going for that Atripla place. There are several other competitors that are doing the same thing. So it's just a matter of time, I think, before we have something that's going to be as good as Atripla, but better tolerated. It's a question of which of these various regimens will win.
Myles Helfand: This may be an overly provocative question, but given that Atripla and quad share two ingredients, how much of a furthering of the evolution of treatment options is the quad drug, really? Half of its components are already being utilized in first-line treatment.
Joel Gallant: I think that where it's an advantage is for patients starting therapy. When I start somebody on Atripla, which is certainly something I use a lot of, I have to spend several minutes sitting and talking about how to deal with getting used to the drug, and the changes they are going to go through, in terms of the neurologic side effects, the dizziness and the dreams, the difficulty concentrating, and the potential for rash. I can't just hand over a prescription and say, "Take this once a day."
We would love to have a drug, or a combination pill, that we could just hand a patient a prescription to and say, "Take this once a day." We need something without a lot of baggage. I would say this is looking good for that.
Atripla has always had -- as good as it is, and as effective as it is -- it's always had its downside. So while you could say that this isn't all that new -- two of the drugs are the same -- I think from a patient standpoint, it's very important that something [be available to potentially] replace Atripla. And in fact, all three of the drug regimens that we're looking at now that could potentially replace Atripla have tenofovir and FTC in them. It's just a question of the third drug.
Myles Helfand: What are the other ones?
Joel Gallant: There's the coformulation of tenofovir, FTC and rilpivirine [TMC278], which is a new NNRTI [non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor]; and then there's the idea of using tenofovir, FTC and raltegravir [RAL, Isentress] once a day, which is also being studied.
Revisiting the Importance of Once-Daily Dosing
Myles Helfand: How important do you feel is the "one-pill, once-a-day" scheme? There are a number of other regimens that are on the preferred list on the U.S. DHHS [Department of Health and Human Services] guidelines -- boosted darunavir [TMC114, Prezista], for instance, boosted raltegravir -- that a person could turn to, but that involve more than one pill. Why would they not already be preferable to, say, Atripla, or a quad drug?
Joel Gallant: I think once-a-day dosing is quite important to many, many patients. Not all: There are some that would prefer, for example, Truvada [tenofovir/emtricitabine, TDF/FTC] plus Isentress, even though it's twice a day, just because of the tolerability. We have patients who are popping seven or eight vitamins a day. They don't care if their meds are one, two, three or four pills a day.
It really comes down to side effects and some of the other considerations that we take into account when we start a regimen. I have many patients who come in saying, "I want the one pill, once a day. I want Atripla." I give them Atripla. And there's always going to be a small number of them who just don't tolerate it, and who switch over to, for example, Truvada plus a boosted PI [protease inhibitor]. They are happy with the drug, because it doesn't have the side effects that they had with Atripla. So they don't mind that it's three or four pills a day.
It just depends on patient preference. For people who have a real pill phobia, or who are paying enormous copays on medications, sometimes the number of pills can really make a difference.
Myles Helfand: OK, fair enough. It seems like, on balance, the further development of the quad tablet is good news. We're looking at something that, at least for now, looks like it has the potential to enhance treatment options for naive patients.
Joel Gallant: Oh, definitely. It was concerning that elvitegravir was not going to get developed because, as we'll come to, it's becoming very, very difficult to develop a new drug for a treatment-experienced patient population. So the development of this booster, cobicistat, was a big plus, because it allowed them to do studies in naive patients. If you remember, this drug was going to need to be boosted by ritonavir, and they couldn't study a ritonavir-containing combination in a naive patient unless it included a protease inhibitor, because there was concern that even low-dose ritonavir could lead to drug resistance. So they were kind of stuck with studying this in an experienced population. The booster came along and rescued them, allowing them to use this up front.
No comments have been made.
|Please note: Knowledge about HIV changes rapidly. Note the date of this summary's publication, and before treating patients or employing any therapies described in these materials, verify all information independently. If you are a patient, please consult a doctor or other medical professional before acting on any of the information presented in this summary. For a complete listing of our most recent conference coverage, click here.
The content on this page is free of advertiser influence and was produced by our editorial team. See our content and advertising policies.


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Science Friday® is produced by the Science Friday Initiative, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Science Friday® and SciFri® are registered service marks of Science Friday, Inc. Site design by Pentagram; engineering by Mediapolis.
This week, NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander detected perchlorate--a salt found on Earth and used in fireworks and rocket fuel--on the surface of Mars. We'll find out what perchlorate's presence means for the possibility of life on the Red Planet.
This news follows last week's confirmation of the presence of water on Mars. The Phoenix Lander scooped an icy sample from the planet, heated it and detected water in the vapor released. "We've seen evidence for this water ice before in observations by the Mars Odyssey orbiter and in disappearing chunks observed by Phoenix last month," says William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer (TEGA), the tool responsible for identifying the water. "But this is the first time Martian water has been touched and tasted," he adds. In this segment, we'll hear the latest news from the Red Planet.


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Lara Croft will be getting a next gen upgrade as Tomb Raider "Definitive Edition" was announced on the Spike TV Videogame Awards last night and will be arriving on next-gen systems January 28th.
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition will be available on PS4, Xbox One and will be a fully rebuilt version of 2013's original game to take advantage of next gen consoles.
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition will also include all of the downloadable content from the original game, digital version of the Dark Horse comic, Brady Games mini art-book, and the Final Hours developer videos. If you pre-order you can also get a special art book featuring never before seen content.
If you own a next gen console and missed out on Tomb Raider then you have an amazing game you can pick up come January 28th 2014. Don't believe me? Check out our own Cyril Lachel's review of the game.


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Checkout Cart (103 Items)
08/16/2002 Link Linked Relationship [Development]Databases that serve as an example on how to setup a relationship field using a Link/Linked association as the condition fields.
08/27/2003 Random Numbers Databases [Development]Several users have requested the databases used to test the Calculation field type. Here you will find 3 large databases we used for testing.
08/28/2002 Day of the Week Example [Development]Example applet that shows how to display the day of the week (Sunday .. Saturday) on a Text field based on the date in a Date field.
10/28/2002 Her His Todo [Built-In App Replacements]The right ToDo list for couples. Share your tasks, add or edit the partner's items. Then beam sync (peer-to-peer sync) using HanDBase 3.0. So you are always up to date with your other half!
10/23/2002 The Bat Shortcuts [Reference]An easy to use reference sheet for The Bat! Mail client's short-cut keys.
10/28/2002 Outlook / Yahoo Calendar [Built-In App Replacements]Database template ready to accept the entries from Microsoft Outlook or Yahoo's Web Calendar.
06/10/2003 Glasses of Water [Food and Drink]This is a database that will help any user track the ammount of glasses of water they take per day, each intake is stored together with a time stamp. Automatic interesting stats are generated.
11/12/2002 Visual Homes DB [Real Estate]This is a sample database that shows the potential of HanDBase 3, HB Forms and the ImagePlugin. It is a hypothetical database of a home shopper, who wants to take notes and photos of all the homes she visits. It may easily be modified and adapted to any other needs.
12/04/2002 US States [Miscellaneous]Database contains the States and territories of the U.S.
01/08/2003 Called Minutes [Time Tracking]Long distance call tracker.
Serves dual-purpose of being a simple useful database and an example on setting up conditionals on calculated fields.
Multiple people can use the same database and then merge to get a grand total.
03/04/2003 Computer Specs w/Forms [Technical]This database was born out of the need to keep track of my family's computers as well as my own.
Frequent driver updates or full re-installs are now a snap.
Set a filter for each computer you enter.
03/23/2003 Acquaintances [Miscellaneous]My faint memory leaves people met in the clouds soon after introduced. This database helps me solve that problem, it's also a good example on bi-directional circular references.
02/05/2003 Pseudo Random [Development]This is a sample database that shows one of the many ways to generate pseudo-random numbers based of a (Time) seed and a calculation (Calc field). Database developers will find this useful when creating their databases that issue trouble tickets or any kind of custom key.
03/31/2003 Daily Task Sheet [Business Tools]Daily Task Sheet for tracking activities, calls and todos for the day at the office.
11/20/2003 Simple Report Demo [Business Tools]Sample database that shows how to create a simple sample custom report using TextFormat. Fill in the blanks, then Print or Export!


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Bessie Ellen Broyles, a weekly community volunteer at Verdugo Hills Hospital, has died. She was 98.
Born on Oct. 27, 1913, in Lipscomb County, Texas, Broyles died Oct. 21 — six days before her 99th birthday. She had lived in Los Angeles County for 79 years and was a resident of Palmdale at the time of her death. Broyles was active in her community, volunteering every week at Verdugo Hills Hospital until the age of 86.
She is survived by her daughter, Carolyn Cole, of Glendale; her son, Douglas Broyles of Boulder, Colo.; and her six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Arrangements are under the direction of Forest Lawn Memorial Park Glendale. Services will be held at noon Tuesday at the Little Chapel of Roses.


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Feature Articles
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AMD Starts New Year with Two New CPUs
Two for the New Year
Blink and you would have missed it: AMD's announcement of two new quad-core processor models was made shortly after Intel's Sandy Bridge launch went live. Going by their original NDAs, it was supposed to be the other way round. AMD had scheduled its processor release a day before Intel's Sandy Bridge, but Intel changed its date rather at the last minute, which took us too by surprise.
Besides the fact that we ended up late with our Sandy Bridge article, the change in NDA also meant that AMD's new processors were inevitably lost amid the flood of Sandy Bridge reviews. Unsurprisingly too, since the first two AMD CPUs of the year are once again incremental additions to its existing lineup. Even AMD is focusing on its Fusion products, which were revealed at CES 2011, making these new desktop processors seem like an afterthought.
Nevertheless, we're here to bring you the latest tech developments and despite the presence of Sandy Bridge, there's still room for a budget AMD processor (the new Phenom II X4 840) and its fastest 'Black Edition' quad-core (the new Phenom II X4 975 BE). Right?
Here are the basic specs for the two:
|Processor Model
|Clock Speed
|L2 Cache
|L3 Cache
|HyperTransport Bus
|Max TDP (W)
|Retail Price (US$)
|AMD Phenom II X4 975 Black Edition
|512KB x 4
|AMD Phenom II X4 840
|512KB x 4
The AMD Phenom II X4 975 Black Edition is the predictable member of the two. AMD has been gradually increasing the clock speed of its highest-end processors and at 3.6GHz, the Phenom II X4 975 BE is the fastest quad-core in its stable. Its predecessor, the Phenom II X4 970 (3.5GHz) was only introduced in September last year, and well, AMD thinks it's time for another minor upgrade. At US$195, it's slightly more expensive than the 970, which is going for US$186 nowadays.
The other Phenom II X4, the 840 is meant for the budget segment despite its 'Phenom II' branding. It's also a return to the 800 series that has been rather quiet for a while now. However, there's an important difference. The 840 has more in common with the Athlon II X4 family, what with its lack of L3 cache. A look at the processor codename - Propus - gives away the clue that it is indeed the same core as the Athlon II X4.
It would seem like a bad move to dilute the Phenom II brand with a much weaker processor, but AMD appears to have the 840 assigned to the value bin, with an affordable US$102 price tag that actually undercuts the US$119 Athlon II X4 645. Perhaps a price adjustment for the Athlon II X4 will be coming soon.
Anyway, there's nothing new to talk about these processors that you haven't heard before, so let's go straight to the testing and results.
- ‹ Prev
- Next ›


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#ED170080 - Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket (L)
High Quality Fleece Jacket with embroidered 'Edit' Logo
Keep warm in the pits while you wait for your race to come up with the new Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket. This high quality synthetic fleece jacket looks great with its understated good looks and low-key Edit RC logo, plus it keeps the elements at bay so you can concentrate on the job at hand. The collar can be turned up to keep the wind off your neck, and the soft fleece is comfortable and warm. Generous fit around the arms and torso lets you have plenty of movement as you work in the pits or at the side of the track. When you sit down to corner marshall after your race the stretch drawstring closure at the bottom of the jacket keeps the wind from creeping through. You'll never feel as comfortable as you will wearing your Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket.
Edit Racewear is designed to be functional and stylish so you never lose your racing edge, wherever you go. Wear it to the track and keep it on as you head out for a night with your racing mates. Available in a range of sizes for racers of all ages. #ED170060 Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket (S) #ED170070 Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket (M) #ED170080 Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket (L) #ED170090 Edit Racewear Fleece Jacket (XL)


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By Kelli B. Grant
Charging solutions seem to be a perpetual theme at CES, with dozens of entrepreneurs pitching batteries, fuel cells and other solutions to keep consumers powered on the go.
Trouble is, many are portable, sure. But not exactly pocketable. The credit card-size Charge Card, $25, easily fits in your wallet in a spare card slot. "Think of it as a jumper cable for your phone," says creator Noah Denzel. One end plugs into the phone, and a bendable USB connector pops out of the card to be plugged into a computer, TV or any other port capable of charging your device. It's not as handy as having a power source, but Denzel points out, pretty much every gadget has a USB port these days, making finding that power source fairly easy.
Right now, the payoff is better for shoppers who aren't early adopters of other tech. iPhone 4 versions of the Charge Card are shipping in the next few weeks, he says. A Micro USB card is a few weeks out, and an iPhone 5 version will be available later in the spring.
Senior consumer reporter and "Deal of Day" columnist Kelli B. Grant travels to Las Vegas to find the best, the worst, and the most hyped gadgets at this year's Consumer Electronics Show. Join her as she roams the exhibit floor for three days, with dispatches here and on Twitter @kelligrant.


text: Rob, I thought any limit would be wierd, let alone something like 84 (7 X 12?) Anyway, I thought it was based on the number of MPI variables declared (data_types, windows, requests) because every time I added new declarations, it would hang on Fedora core 2, but run to completion on Scyld (but with erroneous results). If I deleted unused MPI declarations, it would start to work again. I counted all my handles and came up with 84. However, after deleting two 26 element arrays of handles, I thought it would work. When I added more handles, it bombed again. I started to try other things. I added 4 junk ints. I didn't use the variables I declared, but it still bombed. When I converted them to chars, it started working again. Very strange. Have you ever encountered this before? I'm doing a 3d cellular automata, so I need a lot of datatypes for exchange of ghost cells. It's obviously some strange error I've made that's manifesting itself in MPI instead of a runtime or sytax error. I'm gonna try looking for any buffer overruns now, but other than that I'm stumped. GCC on Fedora Core 2 and on Scyld Beowulf MPICH 2 1.0 Thanks, R On Fri, 4 Feb 2005 12:16:17 -0600 (CST) Rob Ross <rross at mcs.anl.gov> wrote: > Hi Ron, > > There should not be an 84 handle limit. > > Can you tell me what version of MPICH2 this is, and what >architecture and > OS you're running on? Do you have a simple test that exhibits the > problem? > > Thanks, > > Rob > --- > Rob Ross, Mathematics and Computer Science Division, Argonne >National Lab > > > On Thu, 3 Feb 2005, R Hamann wrote: > >> I've been having some strange problems with a program using the >>MPICH2 >> library. When I added some new datatypes for ghost cell exchange, >>the >> program would hang. I figured out that any number of handles over >>84 >> would cause this. Fortunately, I could delete some handles that I >>no >> longer needed, but it still seemed strange. Are my calculations >> correct that for each process there is an 84 handle limit? or am I >> seeing some other problem? >> >> Ron


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Avast! 7 makes an impression right away with an interesting new installation routine. As well as the usual "Express" install which just gives you everything, it's also possible to run a Compatible Install which essentially means you can choose precisely what you want: which core components, which real-time shields, even which language. Which could be ideal if you want to install a minimum version of the program to run alongside another antivirus tool.
If you're happy with a regular Express install, though, it's all over very quickly, the program launches into a Quick system scan immediately, even that was then over in a fraction over a minute and then you're ready to explore further.
The program's new interface is clean and simple. Your system status is just a click away, and the real-time shields you get with this free edition - File System, Mail, Web filtering, P2P and Instant Message scanning, Network checks, Scripts and Behavioural Monitoring - can also be checked and reconfigured (if appropriate) in a moment.
Avast! 7 introduces new cloud-based services, too. Reputation Services connect to the cloud to establish the safety of websites and individual files, while new streaming updates help you stay more quickly protected against the latest threats.
One of the more unusual additions here is a Remote Assistance option, which allows you to connect to and share the desktop of another avast! user.
And of course avast! reports general improvements across the board, in particular with the program's sandbox and browsing protection.
The program also comes in a Pro version, which is available to download here. The difference between Free and Pro is significant. Pro offers a SafeZone to protect you whilst you do your online shopping, a sandbox so you can surf the internet without any malware affecting your computer and a program sandbox to enable you to test and examine new software, without it affecting the operating of your PC.
Program update 1474 brings these changes:
• Win8 BSOD fixed (but still investigating some issues)
• Crashes, freezes on WinXp 64b fixed
• WebRep issues fixed
• Sandbox stability improved
The Pro version builds on the fantastic Free, enabling you to use it as your primary security suite or as a second-line optional scanner (in addition to your regular security suite). Recommended.


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Today I have a treat for you! In addition to sharing some quotes from Officer Off Limits, I have two giveaways for you to enter! Let's start with some information about Tessa Bailey's latest release, Officer Off Limits. This is a fun, sexy romp, and if you haven't read anything by her yet, check it out.
About the booK:
"His need to possess her is non-negotiable.
Story Brooks' fiancé just called off their wedding two weeks before the happy day. As if that isn't bad enough, her semi-estranged father, an infamous NYPD hostage negotiator, has suffered a heart attack. Not wanting to examine her lack of emotion over the broken engagement, she hops on a plane to reconnect with her father before it's too late.
Playboy hostage negotiator Daniel Chase has never, not once, been refused by a woman, so when a debate over hospital snack foods with a delectable kindergarten teacher ends in flat-out rejection, he makes it his mission to seduce her. His only obstacle? She's the daughter of his mentor who implicitly forbade Daniel from pursuing her.
Despite her father's warnings and Daniel's troubled past, Daniel and Story can't resist their intense attraction to one another. But when the reason for her fiancé's abrupt wedding cancellation comes to light, can Story and Daniel's already forbidden relationship survive?"
Goodreads link:
Buy Links
Barnes & Noble:
Tessa Bailey dropped by the virtual offices to share her favorite alpha quote. There are so many great lines in Officer Off Limits that I don't know how she picked just one!
Tessa Bailey's Favorite Alpha Quote:
"Who am I kidding? When I finally get inside you, I'm going to f@ck you until your voice is hoarse from screaming my name."
My favorite Story Quote:
I was going to share my favorite alpha quote, too, but I thought it would be more fun to share my favorite quote from Story. This book worked so well for me because the heroine didn't take any crap from Daniel.
"Oh, and just so you know, I am going out tonight. It will be after dark. And if you have a problem with that, you can kiss my perfectly palm-sized ass." (page 66)
$50 Amazon Gift Card
Digital copy of Officer Off Limits


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This DIY is long over due, BUT I think this would be a great addition to anyones bralette collection for the fall season, witch consists of dark colours and velvets.
As you could probably already tell this is a recreation of the very popular One Teaspoon Superman Bodice. They come in both a top/ caged bralette or as a bikini option. I decided to take a crack at making my own and added a reversible element to mine for versatility.
What you need:
- Fold Over Elastic- 5 to 6 yards
- Material- You don't much, I would say 1/2 yard or less, is more then enough ( I chose to go with a cotton plaid, and a black velvet )
- Bra Rings and Sliders- you can find them as any sewing supply store, or you can cut them off an old bra that you on longer need.
- Sewing Machine
- Pins, Scissors, and Measuring Tape
**** The measurements used for this bralette were my own. I wear a 32C cup bra ****
Start by cutting out 2 chest panels. I used another bralette to help measure how big I wanted the panels.
My measurements were:
The longer vertical side= 4 1/2"
The shorter vertical side= 3 1/2"
Across the bottom= 5 1/2"
I cut my panels out of two different materials, a black velvet and a plaid patterned cotton, which was left over from a dress that I cut. If you decide to go with only a one-sided option then I suggest doing a double layer if your material is thin.
I cut my panels out of two different materials, a black velvet and a plaid patterned cotton, which was left over from a dress that I cut. If you decide to go with only a one-sided option then I suggest doing a double layer if your material is thin.
Measure and cut two pieces of the foldable elastic to line the smaller vertical side of the panels. Measure so that they are 1/2" longer then the panel on both the top and bottom.
Do the same for the top edge of the panels, but this time cut out a long piece to connect the two, leaving a gap in the middle. I left a 2" gap between the two panels and again leaving 1/2" on each end.
- Mine measured: 14"
Measure and cut two shoulder straps, and attach them to the outsides of the panels.
- Mine measured: 16.5"
The bottom edge piece is a little different then the top one in step three. This one is going to wrap all the way around to close off the bra. Again, measure so that a gap is left in the middle of the two panels. Measuring all the way around your rib cage, under where your regular bar hits should give you a good measurement. Remember to make it tight because this is the main support for the bralette, there are no closing clasps.
- Mine measured: 27"
These pieces are going to make up the cage part of the bralette. You'll need to cut out:
- Two more of the same bottoms pieces used in step five. My measurements were: 27"
- Six 3" pieces that will make the cage effect.
- Two 13" pieces that will be used to make the back triangle straps
**** All these elastic pieces are folded in half and sewed closed to make straps ****
Lay out the two bottom elastics and two of the smaller ones on top, so that the ends of the smaller pieces line up with the bottom of the bra, on each side of the gap. I left about 1" between each of the long horizontal elastics. Pin and sew the pieces together.
**Hint: its easier if you decided which side to do all the raw edges on, because this top consist of allot of small pieces you're going to have a lot of pieces layered over each other, so picking a side to do all the sewing on will make everything look neater.
Next are the back straps. To save time, I decided to use the same piece of elastic as both the triangle strap and the back cage piece. Start by pinning the strap starting from the bottom, leaving 1"between the longer cage elastics. Thread the circle ring through the strap and fold it over and sew the ring to the strap, leaving about 5" between the fold/ring and the first of the three horizontal cage elastics. Then pin and sew the strap to the top/first horizontal cage elastic, leaving about 3" as the base of the triangle.
(I don' have a picture) Attach the small elastics to the side of the bra, one on each side. The process is the same as the ones in step seven, but you're sewing it to the long/outside sides of the panels. Again keeping 1" between the three horizontal cage elastics.
The next and final step is to add the angled top pieces. cut out two 5.5" pieces of elastic and fold them in half and sew them closed to create a strap. Then pin one end to the top edge of the inside of the panel piece and to the shoulder strap about 2" up the strap.
*** don't forget to measure these pieces to best fit you. I had to readjust mine a couple of times because they are the main piece of the bralette that is holding everything together and preventing your boobs from slipping out lol. Make them as tight as you can, but still keeping the shape of the bralette. I suggest putting on the bralette and adjusting the straps from there.
** my bottom strap was twisted and I only noticed after a sewed it altogether :'( make sure to pin everything first and look it over before sewing it together, don't make the same mistake I did! **
This is the finished bralette. Making it reversible really allows you to style it many different ways. I am pretty happy with the way it turned out and I've been wearing it non-stop since I made it. My favorite way to wear it is under a black mesh top and high-waited pants.
I regret not sharing this DIY before, but hopefully its not to late for you all the try recreating one yourself !!
Have fun sewing my loves !


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|Guillory, Ivan - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
|Cullen, Karen - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
|Thompson, Deborah - Debbe
|Watson, Kathy - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
Submitted to: Journal of Clinical Pediatrics
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/1/2011
Publication Date: 3/28/2012
Citation: Guillory, I.K., Cullen, K.W., Thompson, D.J., Watson, K.W. 2012. Physical activity in youth with well-controlled versus poorly controlled type 2 diabetes. Journal of Clinical Pediatrics. 51(4):354-358.
Interpretive Summary: In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of youth developing type 2 diabetes in the United States. The purpose of this study was to examine the differences between glucose control and physical activity in a sample of youth with type 2 diabetes. The study was performed by the methods of a questionnaire and blood samples. Our results showed that youth surveyed engaged in significantly less moderate-to-vigorous physical activity compared to the recommendation. The existing guidelines are for American youth to attain at least 60 minutes of daily physical activity. We believe that if study participants had reached the recommended daily activity level, more participants would have achieved better control. Further research is needed to identify ways to increase the amount of physical activity among youth with type 2 diabetes.
Technical Abstract: Type 2 diabetes increases risk of chronic disease. The existing guidelines are for American youth to attain at least 60 minutes of daily physical activity (PA). Fewer than 20% achieve this goal. This study examines differences between blood glucose control and PA in youth with type 2 diabetes during clinical visits. Average daily minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was calculated. Differences in MVPA were investigated. Youth with well-controlled diabetes engaged in slightly less MVPA than those whose diabetes was not in control. There were no significant differences in minutes of MVPA by gender, race, or diabetes control. The conclusions are that it is necessary to identify ways to increase PA among youth with type 2 diabetes.


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Some Assembly Required
This story appears in the August 2001 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »
Look! It's a man! It's a woman! No, it's Supersalesperson-that individual who leaps sales quotas with a single bound, stops customer complaints faster than a speeding bullet and is more powerful than 10 salespeople put together. Of Messianic stature, Supersalesperson is the deliverer of the capitalist's promised land and the paradigm against whom all are judged.
Alas, this superhero is but a fancy. Yet at rare moments we see a glimmer of Supersalesperson inside those who, by luck and pluck, possess a generous portion of the qualities we attribute to the fantastically great. They may flow, as does the sales pitch. We see them radiate from an employee's open eyes and in the head tilted toward us, listening ever so closely. But when all is said and done, the power of greatness comes not from sight, speech or attentiveness. Rather, it emanates from the mind and heart, giving the salesperson an insatiable appetite to learn. And it's this appetite that feeds the remaining characteristics, ultimately shaping success.
Mind Over Matter
Sales superiority starts in the mind. "The supersalesperson possesses a propensity for personal growth," says Rick Sapio, founder and CEO of Mutuals.com Inc., a New York City holdings company that sells mutual funds to investors. Sales superheroes hunger for knowledge about themselves, their customers and their products-as well as the products and services of competitors, adds Sapio, a former broker.
"They're achievement-oriented," agrees Sean Magennis, founder and CEO of Thomas International USA Inc., a sales and marketing consulting company in Dallas. Every sale has a learning objective-determining what was done well or poorly." Failure becomes an opportunity to learn. Instead of blocking failure, supersalespeople examine it objectively, thereby inhibiting the spiral of self-doubt that many salespeople fall into. And, says Magennis, "A supersalesperson reads, takes courses, keeps a journal, writes down professional goals and listens to tapes of sales calls. He or she mimics top performers and develops a relationship with a mentor."
Supersalespeople are competitive, and competitive people yearn to better themselves to improve the quality of their work. Their knowledge of the process exceeds that of any sales consultant, adds Tim Riley, founder and CEO of Door to Door Storage Inc., who launched his Seattle-based storage business by selling storage space to businesses and individuals throughout the West Coast.
"They understand the business, its products and the business's potential products," agrees Daniel Turner, founder and president of Turner Consulting Group Inc., a sales and marketing consulting firm in Washington, DC. "The right [creative] side of the brain helps the salesperson figure out how to describe the business so the client understands it. The left [analytical] side helps the salesperson pitch the business so the sale makes sense monetarily."
The Heart of the Matter
A salesperson packing only knowledge is weak, however. Armed with empathy, salespeople become potent forces because they have the "ability to understand the attitudes, needs and wants of others, putting themselves in their client's shoes," says Magennis.
They no longer sell products; they solve problems. And their customers evolve from being commissions to partners in a relationship, says Gail Harris of Incite Marketing, a South Norwalk, Connecticut, marketing company that specializes in technology and management consulting.
Supersalespeople can establish rapport with a variety of prospects, because people gravitate toward those who are empathetic to their needs and wants. As customers draw near, relationships develop and trust grows. There's no science. It's human nature.
"Customers won't buy from you if they don't trust you, and they won't trust you if they don't like you," says Paul Hickey, founder and CEO of Q Comm International Inc., an Orem, Utah, prepaid wireless technology and information services company that's growing at more than double-digit rates-due in part to sales strategies.
Unfortunately, some salespeople fake "heart"; they turn on the empathy in the customer's office and turn it off when they leave. They often act the same way with co-workers, who also need empathy. "If salespeople care only for themselves, they don't receive the team's support," notes Sapio, "and they'll eventually die on the vine."
Supersalespeople recognize their roles, the roles of others in the organization and, most important, their co-workers' dependency on them. Out of that recognition comes a drive to build long-term relationships with all the departments, from accounting to marketing. Thanks to the relationships they build, those salespeople become leaders-driving forces recognized and appreciated by others. That's when they truly begin to shine-not with hubris but with pride. "The supersalesperson is excited about being a salesperson," says Hickey.
Like any professional who excels at his or her art, supersalespeople lean not only on natural talent, but also on the one trait that remains consistent: discipline. "Regardless of how skilled and talented one is," Hickey continues, "if he or she doesn't do their work day in and day out, they will fail."
Ears Two Sizes Too Large?
There's an old saw that cuts something like this: "We're born with two ears and one mouth, so we should listen twice as much as we speak." But that's just not enough for the supersalesperson. Harris believes great salespeople spend 80 percent of their time listening to their clients, processing each tidbit quickly. "They can recall and use information heard two or three minutes earlier in the conversation to move the sales discussion forward," says Harris.
Simultaneously, supersalespeople peel away the layers of the conversation. They pay particular attention to what's in the background. Behind their words, clients reveal critical information that goes beyond their wants and needs-to their abilities. Are they buyers? Filters? Influencers? Magennis says supersalespeople can hear whether there's potential to develop sales growth or long-term relationships.
Being a good listener doesn't require superpowers. Why? It's a learned behavior. Some 90 percent of all successful salespeople start out as poor listeners, says Magennis, but they learn to modify their behavior.
More Than Lip Service
Salespeople are frequently seen as mouthing meaningless platitudes or phony camaraderie. It's a bad rap, especially for the supersalesperson. In truth, the mouth lubricates the sales process-not by telling but by eliciting. A quality salesperson knows how to draw the customer out.
"The supersalesperson is able to instantly build a rapport with people," says Sapio. "I call it the three-second rule. Within the first three seconds of a salesperson's conversation, the customer will decide whether there's a rapport."
After rapport comes discovery. "Salespeople get paid by the questions they ask," Hickey remembers hearing once. Good questions elicit the true objections and needs of the prospect. For example, the supersalesperson might ask: "If we were to meet three years from today, what would you want to have happened to you personally and professionally?"
Magennis says if there's no answer, then that relationship has limited potential. Silence has meaning. "The customer doesn't see the salesperson in his or her life in three years helping solve problems." So the salesperson is unlikely to establish a relationship that drives sales.
And knowing when to shut up is one quality that Hickey says is critical to the oral tradition of sales.
The Eyes Have It
Supersalespeople see on two levels-physiological and conceptual. Through the former, they can step into a meeting and scan the scene to study how customers sit, stand, shake hands and make eye contact. "They know how to translate body language, adjusting to customers' posture," says Hickey. Supersalespeople know how they're viewed by customers, and they use their own body language to further the process.
Conceptual vision plays the greater role because it allows salespeople to envision how their customers will use their products. "When salespeople find those uses, they can pitch particular needs or wants, wow the client and lay the groundwork for larger projects down the road," says Turner.
Meanwhile, the supersalesperson sees right through the process. He or she has looked at the client's history and seen the potential problems, whether generated by the salesman's company or by the client. According to Magennis, this vision is what enables the supersalesperson to take responsibility for the entire sales process.
In Good Hands
In the hands of any salesperson you'll find the tools for greatness: a briefcase, a mobile phone and a laptop equipped with software that enables them to create presentations or proposals in the blink of a cursor.
Beyond that, the hands and arms of the supersalesperson are symbolic. At first, the hand is associated with the handshake, the ability to build new relationships. Then there's the grip, the ability to hang on tightly-representing the salesperson's tenacity and perseverance. "Salespeople need the ability to go forward when others give up or when obstacles are in the way," says Barry Farber, president of Farber Training Systems in Livingston, New Jersey. "Tenacity overrides many of our deficiencies." It also keeps salespeople focused when their charm and insight aren't enough.
"Salespeople need the ability to go forward when others give up or when obstacles are in the way."
"Even the most charismatic salespeople need to follow the process religiously," says Riley. "Charisma has its highs and lows. On a bad day, the salesperson falls back on the process, carrying him through to the close."
Supersalespeople reach beyond actual job requirements to make the sale. Says Magennis, "They assume additional assignments, look for new solutions and demonstrate initiative outside their defined job role."
A Leg Up
For most athletes, the primary means by which they demonstrate their balance and endurance are their legs. The supersalesperson uses legwork to achieve these same goals in the sales process. According to surveys of purchasing agents, the most important attributes of a supersalesperson are follow-through and follow-up. In the eyes of the customer, a salesperson's ability to walk through the sales process from beginning to end exemplifies his or her interest in the customer's wants and needs.
With strong legs, the supersalesperson can also "leap tall buildings in a single bound," going above and beyond the average performance. He or she takes calculated risks to reach higher goals. For example, if the average salesperson requires five meetings to close a sale, the supersalesperson sets a goal of sealing a deal in three-and accomplishes it.
But that's not the end of it. "Legs are for pounding the pavement," says Turner. "Sometimes, when all else fails, the best salesperson has to rely on cold- or warm-calling."
The supersalesperson may seem like a dream, but our dreams are often born from reality. Each day, we glimpse fragments of the superhero, especially in the salespeople we admire. What's left for us is to determine how to make those fragments appear more frequently. It's part pluck and part luck.In the end, the supersalesperson guarantees that relationships with customers will lead to one powerful and irrevocable conclusion: The company, the client and the salesperson profit. The supersalesperson is aligned with the business owner. "He's like the founder, but he doesn't want to be the owner," says Chris Campbell, president of Praxis Media, a South Norwalk, Connecticut, producer of multimedia marketing programs. This characteristic is probably the most significant yet elusive; it endows the supersalesperson with the owner's passion and desire for quality and profitable sales without demanding a stake, forever remaining satisfied as a sales professional.


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Proposed 'fix' only created problems
President Barack Obama's proposed "fix" to his mandatory health insurance nightmare creates more worries, confusion and strife in the private sector.
Obama announced his tweaks Thursday in a contrite and humble manner that, for some, obfuscated the real message: That the system is so messed up that even its chief backer has to admit it's falling down on its own.
Obama proposed allowing insurers to continue offering the policies they're cancelling because they don't meet the Obamacare minimum levels of coverage. This was the president's response to the millions of Americans – whom he refers to as just a few percentage points – who are receiving cancellation notices and skewering his oft-repeated "you can keep your health plan if you like it" promise.
His "fix" is only possible if he has some dictatorial powers over private concerns that even he must admit don't exist (yet) in his world – namely, that he could force the insurers to offer those now-canceled policies or resurrect them despite the companies' business plans for next year, which must already be completed.
Unlike the federal government, insurance companies, as private-sector firms, do operate on actual, hard, factual and complete budgets in order to know profit-and-loss, costs of doing business and the myriad of facts normally required by stockholders, investors, customers and others to determine the performance of a company.
Further, his additional meddling could only exacerbate a problem that has been at the heart of the Obamacare opposition since the system took root. States where signups through state websites have been occurring are noticing what will be an alarming trend: Younger, healthier people aren't among those signing up.
The reasons for that may vary, but the impact is clear.
The old and the ill are signing up as a large percentage of users so far, and that means claims could start outstripping premiums paid into the system. Younger people pay for insurance that they don't necessarily use a lot until they're older. It's how insurance has worked. We're all covering for one another until we need the system. Obama has failed, time and again, to demonstrate he understands that basic fundamental of insurance.
And that means for the system to work at all, those private insurance firms, which are bound by the rules of profit and loss that are the root of capitalism, will have to spike their premiums sometime beginning around 2015 to cover the damage to their ability to pay claims.
And that, in turn, means if anyone somehow escapes being impacted during the next year by Obamacare, either through workplace requirement delays or the president's so-called "fix," will be paying higher insurance costs, probably beginning in 2015.
All of that also assumes that insurers don't start going belly up or merging to avoid going belly up.
Obama's own attempt at a "fix" seems to contradict his claims that Obamacare cannot be unwound, unwired and undone right now. He seems to think that he can say it's too far along when it suits him and it's still possible to hold back the clock when that suits him.
It's got to stop, and, hopefully, before the employer cancellation notices or astronomically high premiums for 2014 start flowing in January.


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Stooksberry; by definition is a stalker, who creeps you by random e-mails, regardless of having a family. Also someone who has a transient job, who believes he has the ability to hook up with girls half his age.
Man I can't shake this damn stooksberry
by RBRob April 13, 2011