Yep! We are right there with you. We let our license expire, because it was due to renew 5 days after our 3rd adoption last year, which was our first placement. That case kicked our butts and we had no desire to comply with anymore rules or inspections or training to keep our license.
But this summer I just couldn't stop feeling like we needed to get our license again. So we contacted our agency, got our fingerprints done, submitted all or our physicals and other paperwork, and things are moving along. We just had our home inspection on Wednesday, which we passed. Now we just have to wait for the director to sign off on the addendum to our home study and we will be back on the placement list!
I'm a little scared, but also very excited. We found out our cribs have been recalled, but the store is replacing them so now I am crib shopping. That's always fun! We are just going to see what happens. I can't think about it because I've been driving myself crazy trying to decide what the "best" kind of placement would be for our family. A baby, a toddler, a preschooler? I don't know. I do know that I can't not do this, though!
Fifty years ago "The Jetsons" debuted with the promise of flying cars before the end of the 20th century. More than a decade later, flying cars are still the stuff of cartoons, but driverless cars are on their way.
On Tuesday, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill that will allow autonomous vehicles like the ones developed by Google to be road-tested in the state. A licensed driver would still have to sit behind the wheel in case of emergency. With years of testing still ahead, Californians won't see a driverless Toyota Prius or Lexus merging on Highway 5 or cruising the Sonoma Valley until at least 2017.
Driverless cars use radar technology on the front of the vehicle, cameras mounted on top and artificial intelligence to move it safely through every imaginable traffic scenario.
Last year, Google clocked 300,000 miles test-driving its prototypes in Nevada, the only other state where driverless cars can be tested on the road. The lone recorded accident involved a fender-bender in which a human was driving, so the Google engineers know what they're doing.
Once driverless cars are part of the daily traffic flow, they will make long commutes more enjoyable for those who want to get a little work done on the way to the office. There won't be a need for a designated driver to take revelers home after New Year's Eve. Elderly drivers can give up their car keys without giving up independence, and if neither parent can take their high-schooler to soccer practice, the car can do it while the teenager texts safely in the passenger seat.
Still, consumer rights groups are concerned that Google will use the technology to compile even more information about its customers, and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers wonders what it will mean for automaker liability. To paraphrase Bette Davis: Fasten your seat belts -- it's going to be a bumpy ride.
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- NFL referees are ready to go unnoticed again, just as they prefer.
The refs approved a new eight-year contract with the league by a 112-5 vote Saturday, officially ending a lockout that led to three weeks of increasingly chaotic games run by replacement officials who drew the attention of everyone from the average fan to President Barack Obama.
After a few hours of final preparations with league officials, the next stop for the referees will be the airport. Most will be heading straight to their Sunday game sites.
''It was pretty much 'Come on it and vote,''' said Scott Green, president of the referees' association. ''We're going to talk football now. We're going to stop talking about CBAs and lockouts and now we're going to talk about rules and video and getting ourselves ready to work football games.''
They may get ovations similar to the one bestowed on the crew that worked Thursday's Cleveland-Baltimore game with the tentative deal in place. Before long, they expect to go back to being mostly anonymous and sometimes hated. They're OK with both.
''The last Super Bowl that I worked, when we got in the locker room, I said, 'You know, the best thing about this game, nobody will remember who refereed this game,''' Green said. ''That's how we like to work.''
The referees met for about an hour and a half Friday night to go over the contract, then gathered for another 30 minutes Saturday morning before approving the contract.
''We are obviously pleased to hear it,'' NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an email to The Associated Press on Saturday.
Because they were aware of the financial parameters, most of the discussion by the referees involved non-economic issues such as year-round work and developmental squads, said Tim Millis, the association's executive director.
The deal came quickly this week after an increasing chorus of complaints became impossible to ignore when a disputed touchdown call on the final play gave the Seattle Seahawks a victory over the Green Bay Packers on national television Monday night. Many thought the ruling of a Seattle touchdown instead of a Green Bay interception was botched, and the labor dispute drew public comments from Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney.
By late Wednesday, the sides had a contract calling for refs' salaries to increase from an average of $149,000 a year in 2011 to $173,000 in 2013, rising to $205,000 by 2019. The current defined benefit pension plan will remain in place for current officials through the 2016 season or until the official earns 20 years' service.
The defined benefit plan will then be frozen. Retirement benefits will be provided for new hires, and for all officials beginning in 2017, through a defined contribution.
Beginning with the 2013 season, the NFL will have the option to hire a number of officials to work year-round. The NFL also can retain additional officials for training and development and assign those officials to work games. The number of additional officials will be determined by the league.
The officials that worked Thursday's Ravens-Browns game were cheered from the moment they walked onto the field. The difference between the regular crew and replacements was clear. The officials kept the game in control, curtailing the chippy play and choppy pace that had marred the first three weeks of the regular season.
''I think the thing we're most proud of is the lesson that we all learned,'' Green said. ''If you're going to be in a professional league, you've got top-notch coaches, you need professional officials as well.''
---
Online: http://bigstory.ap.org/NFL-Pro32 and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL
The founder of the French fashion label Zadig & Voltaire said an exclusive Parisian hotel the company plans to open in 2014 will not be open to Chinese tourists, according to Vogue UK. The label later said the comment by the?brand's founder and owner,?Thierry?Gillier, was misunderstood.
The hotel will be located in a private mansion on the city's Left Bank.
"This was a project dear to our hearts," the brand's founder and owner, Thierry Gillier, told WWD. "It will be a slightly private hotel, not open to everybody, with 40 rooms. We are going to select guests. It won't be open to Chinese tourists, for example. There is a lot of demand in Paris -- many people are looking for quiet hotels with a certain privacy."
According to French newspaper Liberation, the label later asked WWD to remove the reference to Chinese tourists from its article, stressing that Gillier's words were misinterpreted and he was referring to "mass tourism." The magazine complied with the request, changing the phrase "Chinese tourists" to "busloads of tourists."?
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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) ? What first appeared to be an isolated problem in one Florida county has now spread statewide, with election officials in nine counties informing prosecutors or state election officials about questionable voter registration forms filled out on behalf of the Republican Party of Florida.
State Republican officials already have fired the vendor it had hired to register voters, and took the additional step of filing an election fraud complaint against the company, Strategic Allied Consulting, with state officials. That complaint was handed over Friday to state law-enforcement authorities.
A spokesman for Florida's GOP said the matter was being treated seriously.
"We are doing what we can to find out how broad the scope is," said Brian Burgess, the spokesman.
Florida is the battleground state where past election problems led to the chaotic recount that followed the 2000 presidential election.
The Florida Democratic Party called on the state to "revoke" the ability of state Republicans to continue to register voters while the investigation continues. Oct. 9 is the deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 6 presidential election.
"It is clear that the Republican Party of Florida does not have the institutional controls in place to be trusted as a third-party, voter registration organization," said Scott Arceneaux, executive director of the Florida Democratic Party.
The Republican Party of Florida has paid Strategic Allied Consulting more than $1.3 million, and the Republican National Committee used the group for work in Nevada, North Carolina, Colorado and Virginia.
The company said earlier this week that it was cooperating with elections officials in Florida. It said the suspect forms were turned in by one person, who has been fired.
"Strategic has a zero-tolerance policy for breaking the law," Fred Petti, a company attorney, said Thursday.
An email request to the company seeking additional comment, following the company's instructions, was not immediately returned Friday.
In Florida, it is a third-degree felony to "willfully submit" any false voter registration information, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison.
In recent years, Florida's Republican-controlled Legislature ? citing suspicious voter registration forms turned in by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN ? has cracked down on groups holding voter registration drives.
The League of Women Voters filed a federal lawsuit against some of the restrictions and Florida agreed earlier this month to drop a new requirement to turn in registration applications within 48 hours after they are signed. The state has reinstated a 10-day deadline.
The questionable forms tied to the Republican Party have showed up in South Florida, including Miami-Dade, as well as counties in southwest and northeast Florida as well as the Florida Panhandle.
Election officials in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties on Thursday handed over more than 100 suspect forms to local prosecutors. They did so days after officials in Palm Beach County also alerted prosecutors.
Ann Bodenstein, the elections supervisor for Santa Rosa County, said her staff started raising questions after an employee saw a form that changed the home address of a neighbor.
Paul Lux, election supervisor for Okaloosa County, said questionable forms in the Florida Panhandle appear to have all come from Strategic's effort based at the local Republican Party headquarters. He said his office has turned up dozens of suspect forms.
Lux said there have been forms that listed dead people and were either incomplete or illegible. He met with local prosecutors on Friday, but added that his staff was still going through hundreds of forms dropped off by Strategic employees.
Lux, who is a Republican, said he warned local party officials earlier this month when he first learned the company was paying people to register voters.
"I told them 'This is not going to end well,'" Lux said.
But Lux added that he did not blame the Republican Party of Florida.
"I can't place the blame on RPOF if they hired a firm and that firm wasn't following the rules they were given to follow," Lux said.
The state party filed the complaint against Strategic Allied Consulting with state election officials, who late Friday handed the case over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
An FDLE spokeswoman said the agency would not automatically open a criminal investigation, but would review to see if there were "possible criminal acts."
___
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For film tech nerds the world over, this documentary about the advent of digital filmmaking and what it means for the old school film purists is an engaging must-see. Keanu Reeves narrates and interviews an impressive roster of directors, cinematographers, editors, actors, and execs through this highly technical history and many of the subjects are truly game. I think their candidness is largely due to Reeves being there. Most seem to feel really comfortable around him, which is essential to getting some of the gold that comes out of the likes of Steven Soderbergh and David Fincher in particular. Editor Anne Coates, the 86-year-old editor of such classics as LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962) and OUT OF SIGHT (1998) brings a refreshing and surprising perspective. Just when you expect the film vs. digital argument to have lines drawn depending on age, Ms. Coates shows a delightful openness to the new technology. This is an astounding time capsule piece which demonstrates how truly far we've come in digital image quality, particularly just in the past few years. There are times where you'll go back and forth about how you feel, because ultimately, both sides make great points. I couldn't believe how terrible some of the earlier digital films looked (TADPOLE or CHUCK AND BUCK anyone?). This may feel really too inside baseball for the layperson, but if you have any interest in how we experience filmed stories, this is essential viewing.
Contact: Sara LaJeunesse SDL13@psu.edu 814-863-4325 Penn State
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Not all aggressive children are aggressive for the same reasons, according to Penn State researchers, who found that some kindergartners who are aggressive show low verbal abilities while others are more easily physiologically aroused. The findings suggest that different types of treatments may be needed to help kids with different underlying causes for problem behavior.
"Aggressive responses to being frustrated are a normal part of early childhood, but children are increasingly expected to manage their emotions and control their behavior when they enter school," said Lisa Gatzke-Kopp, assistant professor of human development and family studies. "Kids who don't do this well, who hit their classmates when they are frustrated or cause other types of disturbances in the classroom, are at especially high risk for long-term consequences including delinquency, violence, dropping out of school, abusing substances and even suicide. Research tells us that the earlier we can intervene, the better the chances of getting these children back on track."
Gatzke-Kopp and her colleagues, who include Mark Greenberg, professor of human development and family studies and of psychology, asked each of the kindergarten teachers in all 10 of the elementary schools in Pennsylvania's Harrisburg School District to rate the aggressive behaviors of their students on a six-point scale with items such as "gets in many fights" and "cruelty, bullying or meanness to others." Using these data, the team recruited a group of high-risk children (207 children) and a group of low-risk children (132 children) to undergo a range of neurobiological measures aimed at understanding how aggressive children experience and manage emotions differently than their non-aggressive classmates.
The team assessed all of the children's cognitive and academic skills using standardized tests that identified the children's developmental level of vocabulary, spatial reasoning and memory. In addition, the team asked teachers to provide ratings of each child's behaviors, including their levels of aggression, disobedience and sadness, as well as their social skills and level of self-control in the classroom.
The researchers also assessed the children's brain functioning using a mobile research laboratory they brought to the schools. Within the mobile lab, the team measured the children's heart rate and skin conductance activity during tasks designed to elicit emotional responses, including showing the children short video clips of a cartoon character in a variety of situations depicting fear, sadness, happiness and anger. The researchers wanted to understand how emotional and physical arousal to different types of emotions differed between children who engage in aggressive behavior and children who don't engage in aggressive behavior, as well as how different children who engage in aggressive behavior react.
According to Gatzke-Kopp, the assessments enabled the researchers to understand how cognitive and emotional processing may contribute to the development of aggressive tendencies. Specifically, the team found that 90 percent of the aggressive kids in the study could be characterized as either low in verbal ability or more easily physiologically aroused. The results appeared in a recent issue of Development and Psychopathology.
"What we may be seeing is that there are at least two different routes through which a child may act aggressively," Gatzke-Kopp said. "Because these are very different processes, these children may need different approaches to changing their behavior."
The first group of kids was characterized by lower verbal ability, lower levels of cognitive functioning and fewer executive function skills.
According to Gatzke-Kopp, children need verbal skills to understand the feelings of others and guidance from adults, and to express feelings without hitting. They also need adequate cognitive and executive-function abilities to manipulate information and to think of alternatives to hitting and fighting.
"This group of kids may be functioning at a cognitive level that is more akin to a preschooler than a kindergartner," Gatzke-Kopp said. "They have a harder time extracting what other people are feeling. They don't have a nuanced sense of emotions; everything is either happy or sad to them. So they might not be as good at recognizing how their behavior is making another child feel. They may literally have a hard time 'using their words,' so hitting becomes an easier solution when they are frustrated."
The second group of kids had good verbal and cognitive functioning, but they were more physiologically aroused. They were more emotionally reactive, and tended to have more stressors in their lives.
"These children may be able to tell you that if somebody pushed them on the playground they would go get a teacher, but the push happens and they kind of lose it and it doesn't matter what they should do, they just act on impulse," Greenberg said. "One possibility is that the threshold for managing frustration is quite low for these kids. So what we might consider a minor annoyance to them is a major threat. When they are calm they function very well, but when they lose control of their emotions, they can't control their behavior."
In the future, the team plans to examine how these different types of children respond to an intervention delivered over the second half of kindergarten and the first half of first grade.
###
The Pennsylvania Department of Health funded this research. Other authors of the paper include Christine Fortunato, postdoctoral fellow, and Michael Coccia, statistical consultant, both in the Penn State Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development.
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Contact: Sara LaJeunesse SDL13@psu.edu 814-863-4325 Penn State
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Not all aggressive children are aggressive for the same reasons, according to Penn State researchers, who found that some kindergartners who are aggressive show low verbal abilities while others are more easily physiologically aroused. The findings suggest that different types of treatments may be needed to help kids with different underlying causes for problem behavior.
"Aggressive responses to being frustrated are a normal part of early childhood, but children are increasingly expected to manage their emotions and control their behavior when they enter school," said Lisa Gatzke-Kopp, assistant professor of human development and family studies. "Kids who don't do this well, who hit their classmates when they are frustrated or cause other types of disturbances in the classroom, are at especially high risk for long-term consequences including delinquency, violence, dropping out of school, abusing substances and even suicide. Research tells us that the earlier we can intervene, the better the chances of getting these children back on track."
Gatzke-Kopp and her colleagues, who include Mark Greenberg, professor of human development and family studies and of psychology, asked each of the kindergarten teachers in all 10 of the elementary schools in Pennsylvania's Harrisburg School District to rate the aggressive behaviors of their students on a six-point scale with items such as "gets in many fights" and "cruelty, bullying or meanness to others." Using these data, the team recruited a group of high-risk children (207 children) and a group of low-risk children (132 children) to undergo a range of neurobiological measures aimed at understanding how aggressive children experience and manage emotions differently than their non-aggressive classmates.
The team assessed all of the children's cognitive and academic skills using standardized tests that identified the children's developmental level of vocabulary, spatial reasoning and memory. In addition, the team asked teachers to provide ratings of each child's behaviors, including their levels of aggression, disobedience and sadness, as well as their social skills and level of self-control in the classroom.
The researchers also assessed the children's brain functioning using a mobile research laboratory they brought to the schools. Within the mobile lab, the team measured the children's heart rate and skin conductance activity during tasks designed to elicit emotional responses, including showing the children short video clips of a cartoon character in a variety of situations depicting fear, sadness, happiness and anger. The researchers wanted to understand how emotional and physical arousal to different types of emotions differed between children who engage in aggressive behavior and children who don't engage in aggressive behavior, as well as how different children who engage in aggressive behavior react.
According to Gatzke-Kopp, the assessments enabled the researchers to understand how cognitive and emotional processing may contribute to the development of aggressive tendencies. Specifically, the team found that 90 percent of the aggressive kids in the study could be characterized as either low in verbal ability or more easily physiologically aroused. The results appeared in a recent issue of Development and Psychopathology.
"What we may be seeing is that there are at least two different routes through which a child may act aggressively," Gatzke-Kopp said. "Because these are very different processes, these children may need different approaches to changing their behavior."
The first group of kids was characterized by lower verbal ability, lower levels of cognitive functioning and fewer executive function skills.
According to Gatzke-Kopp, children need verbal skills to understand the feelings of others and guidance from adults, and to express feelings without hitting. They also need adequate cognitive and executive-function abilities to manipulate information and to think of alternatives to hitting and fighting.
"This group of kids may be functioning at a cognitive level that is more akin to a preschooler than a kindergartner," Gatzke-Kopp said. "They have a harder time extracting what other people are feeling. They don't have a nuanced sense of emotions; everything is either happy or sad to them. So they might not be as good at recognizing how their behavior is making another child feel. They may literally have a hard time 'using their words,' so hitting becomes an easier solution when they are frustrated."
The second group of kids had good verbal and cognitive functioning, but they were more physiologically aroused. They were more emotionally reactive, and tended to have more stressors in their lives.
"These children may be able to tell you that if somebody pushed them on the playground they would go get a teacher, but the push happens and they kind of lose it and it doesn't matter what they should do, they just act on impulse," Greenberg said. "One possibility is that the threshold for managing frustration is quite low for these kids. So what we might consider a minor annoyance to them is a major threat. When they are calm they function very well, but when they lose control of their emotions, they can't control their behavior."
In the future, the team plans to examine how these different types of children respond to an intervention delivered over the second half of kindergarten and the first half of first grade.
###
The Pennsylvania Department of Health funded this research. Other authors of the paper include Christine Fortunato, postdoctoral fellow, and Michael Coccia, statistical consultant, both in the Penn State Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
NEW YORK (AP) - David Wright's record-breaking hit was a little dribbler toward third base, ugly enough to prompt plenty of ribbing from his New York Mets teammates.
"I don't think he really wanted that particular hit to be the one played over and over again," pitcher Jeremy Hefner said, drawing laughs.
Wright set the franchise record for hits and Hefner bounced back from a horrendous start in a 6-0 victory over Pittsburgh on Wednesday night that eliminated the Pirates from playoff contention.
Ruben Tejada tied a career high with four hits, including two RBI singles, and Scott Hairston doubled home a run as the Mets took advantage of some shoddy Pittsburgh defense to win for the fifth time in six games.
"Obviously, it's humbling," Wright said. "A little more exciting - we won today."
Jeff Locke (0-3) was chased in the fourth inning and is still searching for his first major league win after nine starts. The loss left Pittsburgh 7 1/2 games behind St. Louis, with seven to play, in the race for the second NL wild card.
Tied for the NL Central lead a week after the All-Star game, the Pirates have faded quickly in the second half for the second consecutive year. They have dropped 19 of 25 and must go 5-2 the rest of the way to avoid a 20th straight losing season.
Earlier on Wednesday, club president Frank Coonelly said manager Clint Hurdle and GM Neal Huntington will be back next season.
"Support's always good, absolutely," Hurdle said.
Wright reached on an infield single during a four-run third for his 1,419th hit, snapping a tie with Ed Kranepool atop the team's career list.
"I got a chance to show off my blazing speed," Wright said. "Ten years from now, when I'm telling my kids, it's going to be a line drive. It's going to be a little different. But I'll take it. A hit's a hit, and just really excited I could do it at home. The fans were great to me."
The slugger pulled into second base thanks to a throwing error on the play and his achievement was shown on the Citi Field scoreboard. The Mets played a few of Wright's highlights on the big video board, including his first major league hit. He received a warm ovation and quickly waved twice to the skimpy crowd of 22,890 before flashing a wide smile toward the New York dugout.
After the game, Wright's television interview on the field was played throughout the ballpark so the crowd could hear it.
"To be able to do it here at home was extra special," he said.
A six-time All-Star, Wright accomplished the feat in 1,256 games from 2004-12. Kranepool played in 1,853 games from 1962-79.
"It's remarkable," said Mets manager Terry Collins, who had Wright autograph a ball for him. "It's a testament to his work ethic."
Kranepool and Wright posed for pictures together during batting practice.
"Eddie came and saw me before the game, wished me luck and just kind of reiterated the fact he's happy for me and excited for me, and that meant a lot to me," Wright said.
Mets fans get another chance to possibly enjoy a nice moment when knuckleballer R.A. Dickey tries for his 20th win Thursday afternoon against Pittsburgh in New York's home finale.
Hefner (3-7) faced seven batters without recording an out in his previous start, a 16-1 loss to Philadelphia last Thursday. This time, he was on top of his game.
The rookie right-hander allowed only three harmless singles, two to former New York City prep star Pedro Alvarez, over seven outstanding innings. Hefner matched a career high with seven strikeouts and walked just one. He also dropped down two sacrifice bunts that led to runs.
"Everybody in this room was here for his last start, saw his emotions, and saw that he was upset. He had something to prove tonight - that he can pitch here," Collins said. "I believe he showed everybody he belongs here. I was very, very happy for him."
Jeurys Familia finished up with two hitless innings.
In addition to his record-breaking hit, Wright lined a clean single to center in the fourth. Daniel Murphy and Kelly Shoppach each had an RBI single. Andres Torres had three of New York's 14 hits and scored twice.
Pirates star Andrew McCutchen, chasing the NL batting title, went 0 for 4. But he was happy to hear that Hurdle and Huntington will be back next season.
"Yeah, I suppose that's nice," McCutchen said. "Glad they're coming back. Don't have to worry about anybody going anywhere. So, I guess that's always a plus."
NOTES: Dickey's start was moved up a day so he could pitch at home. The last 20-game winner for the Mets was Frank Viola in 1990. "Obviously, there's something that looks pretty about that number," said Dickey, looking to improve his Cy Young Award credentials. ... Collins said there is probably a 70 percent chance that closer Frank Francisco (elbow tendinitis) is done for the season. Francisco hasn't pitched since Sept. 16. ... LHP Robert Carson had an MRI that showed a triceps tendon strain. He is day to day. "A huge sigh of relief for me and for him," Collins said. ... Wright also set franchise records for RBIs, runs and walks this season. The only other active players to lead their current club in career hits are Derek Jeter (Yankees), Todd Helton (Rockies) and Michael Young (Rangers). ... Pirates 2B Neil Walker (lower back) was out of the lineup again and could be shut down for the rest of the season, Hurdle said. ... Rookie LF Starling Marte showed off his powerful arm, throwing out Murphy at the plate by a wide margin.
? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Save some votes for Kimbrel
Mailbag: The Braves closer has had the kind of utterly dominant season that should earn him some attention in the NL Cy Young race.
Sabathia strikes out 10 as Yankees top Twins
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - C.C. Sabathia struck out 10 batters over eight innings for New York to help the Yankees stretch their AL East lead to two games over Baltimore by beating the Minnesota Twins 8-2 on Wednesday.
ScienceDaily (Sep. 27, 2012) ? A team of researchers from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), headed by CNIO Director Mar?a Blasco, has demonstrated in a pioneering study on mammals that longevity is defined at a molecular level by the length of telomeres. The work -- which is published September 27 in the online edition of the journal Cell Reports -- opens the door to further study of these cellular components in order to calculate the rate at which cells age and thus be able to determine life expectancy for a particular organism.
Chromosomes -- the cellular containers holding the genetic information in living creatures -- have repetitive sequences of DNA at their extremities called telomeres. These sequences act as hoods that protect the genetic material in the face of any external agent which might damage it and compromise the function of the cells.
Several transversal population studies -- measuring telomere length once over time in a large group of individuals -- show a relationship between the length of the telomeres and the risk of suffering illnesses -- cardiovascular disease or cancer, for example.
Until now, however, the use of telomeric measurements to predict real life expectancy in mammals had not been evaluated.
"In the transversal studies, it appears that individuals with short telomeres have a significantly increased probability of developing illnesses, including cancer. But this information is not applicable to a specific individual," says Blasco.
To determine a real aeing prediction method, the authors of the present study have carried out longitudinal studies of telomere length in mice, in which a single individual is followed over a period of time.
After taking periodic blood samples from the same individual, from which cells were extracted for study, they found that those mice which managed to live longer were not the ones that had longer telomeres at any given age but those in which showed less telomeric shortening over time.
"The important thing is not so much the long telomeres at any given time as the tendency or the evolution of the length of the telomeres over time," says Elsa Vera, lead author of the study.
With this study, Blasco's team suggests using mice as an animal model in longitudinal studies that allow for health prognoses in humans. Blasco says that: "while telomere length in normal mice is much greater than in humans, we have found, surprisingly, that the telomere shortening rate in mice is 100 times faster than in humans, so the old dogma of normal mice not getting old due to the shortening of their telomeres is wrong."
This study further opens the possibility of studying, via the longitudinal examination of these genetic guardians, the real effect of lifestyle choices such as diet, smoking or exercise on individual aging rates.
These studies might therefore be crucial in preventing illnesses or in developing new medicines to treat them.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncologicas (CNIO).
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Elsa Vera, Bruno Bernardes?de?Jesus, Miguel Foronda, Juana?M. Flores, Maria?A. Blasco. The Rate of Increase of Short Telomeres Predicts Longevity in Mammals. Cell Reports, 2012; DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2012.08.023
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Last week, Gov. Dannel Malloy announced that Waterford received a $300,000 federal grant for low-to-moderate-income homeowners to make necessary improvements to their homes.
The idea is for Waterford to give low-income residents interest-free loans to make necessary improvements to their homes, First Selectman Dan Steward said. Then the town puts a lien on the person?s home, and once they sell the home they repay the loan to town, to be lent out again, Steward said.
?It is a good program,? Steward said. ?It is something we found and have the ability to use.?
Low-to-moderate-income Waterford residents will be able to apply for money for roof replacements, heating system upgrades, window and door replacements, lead paint and asbestos removal and electrical and code upgrades, according to a state press release. The grant will cover the cost of the project, and then a lien will be put on that person?s house, Steward said.
People must repay the interest-free loan when they sell the home, or they can repay it earlier if they wish, he said. Then, the town will put that money back into a fund to lend it out to another person, Steward said.
?We see it as a rotating fund,? he said.
Steward said he just received notification last Thursday that the town received the grant and was not sure who could qualify and exactly what work would qualify for funding. He also was not sure on how Waterford residents could apply for the grant, but said he would be releasing that information once he finds out.
Meanwhile Waterford was one of 31 Connecticut towns that received part of the $10.9 million federal grant, which was funded by the United States Department of Housing and Development but administered by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, according to the release. In the release, Malloy said expanding affordable housing would be a high priority of his administration.
?Expanding access to affordable housing is critical to strengthening the statewide economy and a major focus of my administration,? Malloy said in the release. ?Over the next ten years, the state will invest $500 million to revitalize and expand affordable housing options so that our cities and towns will be better place to live, raise a family, and do business. These grants from the U.S. Department of Housing will go a long way to help us realize our goals, and we are appreciative of their recognition.?
ScienceDaily (Sep. 25, 2012) ? People who smoke both cigarettes and waterpipes -- dual users -- lack sufficient knowledge about the risks of tobacco smoking and are at considerable risk for dependence and tobacco-related diseases, such as cancer, heart disease and stroke later in life, according to findings of a new study by Virginia Commonwealth University.
The study, the first of its kind to assess trends in cigarette and waterpipe tobacco smoke based on long-term data, reveals few users perceive dangers of waterpipe tobacco. A common misconception about waterpipe smoking is that it is not as harmful as cigarette smoking.
In the past several years, a marked increase in waterpipe tobacco smoking, also known as hookah, has occurred among college students, especially those who did not smoke cigarettes before. While waterpipe smoking also can attract non-cigarette smokers, recent evidence has shown that a significant proportion of current cigarette smokers are using waterpipes, making them dual users of these tobacco products.
In a study, published online this week in the Journal of American College Health, researchers found that dual users -- people who smoke both cigarettes and waterpipes -- may have an increased exposure to nicotine, increased risk for tobacco dependence and are less likely to quit tobacco use.
"We often assume that everyone, including college students, is knowledgeable about the health risks associated with tobacco smoking," said principal investigator Aashir Nasim, Ph.D., National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities scholar and associate professor of psychology and African American studies in the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences.
"This simply isn't true, especially in relation to waterpipe tobacco smoking. Surprisingly, many hold the belief that waterpipe tobacco smoking is less harmful than cigarette smoking because the water filters out the 'bad stuff,'" he said.
According to Nasim, the team observed that although cigarette smoking among college students has declined since 2006, waterpipe tobacco smoking has increased substantially -- by about 20 percent -- among non-cigarette smokers, and waterpipe tobacco smoking prevalence has remained relatively unchanged among current cigarette smokers. About 10 percent of cigarette smokers also use waterpipe, he said.
Secondly, the team found that compared to exclusive cigarette smokers or exclusive waterpipe users, dual cigarette and waterpipe users report being more susceptible to peer influences and perceive the probability of addiction associated with waterpipe tobacco smoking to be relatively low.
The team is now examining other types of dual use -- for example, dual cigarette and cigar use -- on college campuses. This work is being done in collaboration with Danielle Dick, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry, psychology and human and molecular genetics at VCU, and her Spit for Science research team.
Nasim collaborated with Caroline O. Cobb and Thomas Eissenberg, Ph.D., professor in the VCU Department of Psychology and the VCU Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies; and Yousef Khader, Sc.D., with the Jordan University of Science and Technology in Irbid, Jordan.
The study was supported in part by United States Public Health Service grants R01CA120142, R01DA025659, R01DA024876, and F31DA028102.
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Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Virginia Commonwealth University.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Caroline O. Cobb, Yousef Khader, Aashir Nasim, Thomas Eissenberg. A Multiyear Survey of Waterpipe and Cigarette Smoking on a US University Campus. Journal of American College Health, 2012; 60 (7): 521 DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2012.692416
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
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ScienceDaily (Sep. 25, 2012) ? People who smoke both cigarettes and waterpipes -- dual users -- lack sufficient knowledge about the risks of tobacco smoking and are at considerable risk for dependence and tobacco-related diseases, such as cancer, heart disease and stroke later in life, according to findings of a new study by Virginia Commonwealth University.
The study, the first of its kind to assess trends in cigarette and waterpipe tobacco smoke based on long-term data, reveals few users perceive dangers of waterpipe tobacco. A common misconception about waterpipe smoking is that it is not as harmful as cigarette smoking.
In the past several years, a marked increase in waterpipe tobacco smoking, also known as hookah, has occurred among college students, especially those who did not smoke cigarettes before. While waterpipe smoking also can attract non-cigarette smokers, recent evidence has shown that a significant proportion of current cigarette smokers are using waterpipes, making them dual users of these tobacco products.
In a study, published online this week in the Journal of American College Health, researchers found that dual users -- people who smoke both cigarettes and waterpipes -- may have an increased exposure to nicotine, increased risk for tobacco dependence and are less likely to quit tobacco use.
"We often assume that everyone, including college students, is knowledgeable about the health risks associated with tobacco smoking," said principal investigator Aashir Nasim, Ph.D., National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities scholar and associate professor of psychology and African American studies in the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences.
"This simply isn't true, especially in relation to waterpipe tobacco smoking. Surprisingly, many hold the belief that waterpipe tobacco smoking is less harmful than cigarette smoking because the water filters out the 'bad stuff,'" he said.
According to Nasim, the team observed that although cigarette smoking among college students has declined since 2006, waterpipe tobacco smoking has increased substantially -- by about 20 percent -- among non-cigarette smokers, and waterpipe tobacco smoking prevalence has remained relatively unchanged among current cigarette smokers. About 10 percent of cigarette smokers also use waterpipe, he said.
Secondly, the team found that compared to exclusive cigarette smokers or exclusive waterpipe users, dual cigarette and waterpipe users report being more susceptible to peer influences and perceive the probability of addiction associated with waterpipe tobacco smoking to be relatively low.
The team is now examining other types of dual use -- for example, dual cigarette and cigar use -- on college campuses. This work is being done in collaboration with Danielle Dick, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry, psychology and human and molecular genetics at VCU, and her Spit for Science research team.
Nasim collaborated with Caroline O. Cobb and Thomas Eissenberg, Ph.D., professor in the VCU Department of Psychology and the VCU Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies; and Yousef Khader, Sc.D., with the Jordan University of Science and Technology in Irbid, Jordan.
The study was supported in part by United States Public Health Service grants R01CA120142, R01DA025659, R01DA024876, and F31DA028102.
Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:
Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Virginia Commonwealth University.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
Caroline O. Cobb, Yousef Khader, Aashir Nasim, Thomas Eissenberg. A Multiyear Survey of Waterpipe and Cigarette Smoking on a US University Campus. Journal of American College Health, 2012; 60 (7): 521 DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2012.692416
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Many survivors of adolescent and young adult cancers avoid routine medical care because it's too expensive, despite the fact that most have health insurance. That is the conclusion of a new study published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The results indicate that expanding insurance coverage for young cancer survivors may be insufficient to safeguard their long-term health without efforts to reduce their medical cost burdens.
Medical care in the years after a cancer diagnosis is particularly important for detecting any long-term health conditions associated with their cancer treatment; however, little is known about the extent of care that survivors of adolescent and young adult cancers receive in the years after their diagnosis and treatment.
To investigate, Anne Kirchhoff, PhD, MPH, of Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, and her colleagues analyzed national survey responses from younger adults ages 20-39 years: 979 who were diagnosed with cancer between the ages of 15 to 34 years and were at least five years from diagnosis, compared with 67,216 controls who had no cancer history.
While adolescent and young adult cancer survivors had similar rates of being uninsured as those without cancer (21 percent versus 23 percent), survivors were 67 percent more likely to forgo routine medical care due to costs in the previous year. Cost barriers were particularly high for younger survivors aged 20 to 29 years (44 percent versus 16 percent of controls) and female survivors (35 percent versus 18 percent of controls). Survivors reporting poorer health also experienced more cost barriers.
"The Affordable Care Act is an important step to ensuring that adolescent and young adult cancer survivors have health insurance coverage and improving their health care access; however, they need to be educated about the importance of regular health care to monitor for late effects," said Dr. Kirchhoff. "Furthermore, even the insured survivors in our study reported unmet health care needs due to cost barriers, suggesting that adolescent and young adult cancer survivors need resource supports beyond health insurance."
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Wiley: http://www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell
Thanks to Wiley for this article.
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There are three groups of people currently watching football games. The people who just watched their team win and will enjoy the rest of their football watching day. The people who just watched their team lose who will begrudgingly watch football for the rest of the day, carefully planning bathroom breaks around highlights shows. And finally, the people who had to wait three hours for their game to start?which is now! Feel free to swing by the open thread it yak to your heart's content.
Philadelphia at Arizona (FOX): Veteran commenter and football yakker Stev_D has got this game down, in your face analysis style.
Atlanta at San Diego (FOX): This is a beautiful article right here. It is one entire article devoted to the traveling habits of the Mike Smith-coached Atlanta Falcons and how successful it has proven. 5-0 on the west coast! I know what you're thinking, in the five years Smith has been coach there's been some pretty terrible teams out there right? Nevertheless, Mike Smith took a page from the Brian Billick coaching tree (of which current defensive coordinator Mike Nolan is also a member) and has the team travel on Fridays. It's a big help. We know this because someone spent 550 some words telling us. And then Mike Nolan puts the cherry on top the whole thing with the last sentence.
Added Nolan: "The biggest thing is having the better team."
Houston at Denver (CBS): Houston's all like "Man, I sure am glad we don't have to play Peyton Manning anymore." And then Houston's Buddy is all like "Dude, you're playing him this year." Houston: "Shut up, man. He's gone." Houston's Buddy "Check the schedule, holmes." Houston: "What the fuck?? Fucking Goodell, man. Fucking Goodell." Houston's Buddy: "At least he kinda stinks now..." Houston: "[kicks dirt] Yeah, I guess."
Pittsburgh at Oakland (CBS) Remember the Ian Eagle-Dan Fouts comparison from earlier? Well here you go. The shadows of Darren McFadden and Carson Palmer look to get Oakland's first win of the season against the Steelers. Polamalu and Harrison are out again. Rashard Mendenhall is out again. This has a decidedly 13-3 Steelers win feel to it.
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Public release date: 27-Sep-2012
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There are three groups of people currently watching football games. The people who just watched their team win and will enjoy the rest of their football watching day. The people who just watched their team lose who will begrudgingly watch football for the rest of the day, carefully planning bathroom breaks around highlights shows. And finally, the people who had to wait three hours for their game to start?which is now! Feel free to swing by the open thread it yak to your heart's content.
Image by Jim Cooke