New study shows continued decline in the last remaining stronghold for leatherback sea turtles

New study shows continued decline in the last remaining stronghold for leatherback sea turtles

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Critically endangered leatherback sea turtle populations in the western Pacific Ocean may be losing their last foothold of survival on the beaches of Indonesia, according to a paper published today in the scientific journal Ecosphere by an international group of scientists.

Researchers from the State University of Papua Indonesia, NOAA Fisheries Service, University of Alabama at Birmingham and World Wildlife Fund Indonesia released a report today documenting the continued decline of leatherback sea turtle nesting in the western Pacific Ocean.

"At least 75 percent of all Leatherback turtles in the western Pacific Ocean hatch from eggs laid on a few beaches in an area known as Bird's Head Peninsula in Papua Barat-Indonesia," said Peter Dutton of NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center and one of the researchers who co-authored the paper. "Our analysis indicates the number of leatherback turtle nests on this beach has declined 78 percent over the last 27 years."

Leatherbacks are the largest of all marine turtles and the largest living reptile in the world weighing up to 2000 pounds and over six feet in length. Female leatherbacks lay clutches of approximately 100 eggs and typically nest several times during a nesting season. After about two months, the hatchlings emerge from the nest and enter the ocean where they mature and may migrate as far away as California to feed on jellyfish; a distance of about 6,000 miles.

Scientists believe there are a number of reasons why the leatherback turtle populations have continued to decline over the past three decades. Extensive harvesting of eggs, predation of nests by feral pigs and other predators, and the accidental capture in commercial fisheries are the primary factors involved.

Ricardo Tapilatu, lead author on the Ecosphere paper, and co-authors Manjula Tiwari and Dutton, began assessing and developing a nesting beach census and management plan over a decade ago as part of an international partnership to halt the species decline.

"The turtles nesting at Papua Barat, Papua New Guinea, and other islands in our region depend on food resources in waters managed by many other nations for their survival," said Tapilatu. "It is important to protect leatherbacks in these foraging areas so that our nesting beach conservation efforts can be effective".

"The international effort has attempted to develop a science-based nesting beach management plan by evaluating and addressing the factors that affect hatching success such as high sand temperatures, erosion, feral pig predation, and relocating nests to maximize hatchling output," said Manjula Tiwari, a researcher at NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center, in La Jolla, California.

The conservation value of nesting beach protection has also been recognized by groups like the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) that have raised funds from industry-affiliated members including tuna canners and processors, to help support UNIPA's nest protection program with the local communities on Bird's Head Peninsula.

"NOAA Fisheries Service is committed to doing our part in the international effort to recover the leatherback turtle through advancing science, implementing our recovery plans and management efforts such as the establishment of critical habitat off California," said Cisco Werner, Director of the Southwest Fisheries Science Center. "Reducing threats on the nesting beaches and at leatherback foraging areas will require continued international cooperation and action if we hope to save Pacific leatherbacks from extinction."

###

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov

Thanks to NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127039/New_study_shows_continued_decline_in_the_last_remaining_stronghold_for_leatherback_sea_turtles

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Many Venezuelans believe in Chavez recovery

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) ? Venezuela's vice president said Thursday that Hugo Chavez is still fighting for his life, yet a recent poll says three in five Venezuelans believe their president will return to power.

Nicolas Maduro, Chavez's self-appointed successor, said on television that his boss "is battling there for his health, for his life, and we're accompanying him."

The vice president had characterized Chavez's condition similarly on Dec. 20, saying the president "is fighting a great battle ... for his life, for his health."

Chavez hasn't spoken or been seen since before his fourth operation in Cuba on Dec. 11 for an unspecified cancer in the pelvic area.

The government says he has been breathing with the help of a tracheal tube after surviving a serious respiratory infection. It says Chavez returned on Feb. 18 and is at a military hospital in Caracas for continued treatment for "respiratory insufficiency."

Despite speculation by doctors not involved in Chavez's treatment that it is most likely palliative, designed only to make him more comfortable in his remaining days, many Venezuelans apparently believe ? or want to believe ? he is on the mend.

"The president's prolonged absence and his critical situation have not been converted into massive pessimism about his return," respected pollster Luis Vicente Leon tweeted Thursday.

He said nearly 58 percent of Venezuelans believe Chavez will recover while about 30 percent believe he will not return to power and 12.5 percent say they don't know what will happen. One percent, meanwhile, believe Chavez was never sick.

Leon, chief of the Datanalisis polling firm, told The Associated Press that the Feb. 11 poll of 1,198 people had an error margin of three percentage points.

He said he thought the poll reflected people's desire not to believe the worst about someone who is dear to them, just as people resist accepting that a close relative might be dying.

Leon also said he thought reports of government officials holding hours-long meetings with Chavez had contributed to the belief of many Venezuelans that Chavez will return.

"The government has sent permanent messages that President Chavez will return, that he meets with the vice president for five hours," Leon noted.

He said people don't necessarily believe that, however, as the poll found 44 percent think the government has not been transparent in discussing the Chavez's health.

In his televised remarks, Maduro called for Venezuelans to keep praying for Chavez and remain loyal to the committed socialist who has been their president for more than 19 years.

"Do you know why Comandante Chavez neglected his health and has been battling (cancer) for nearly two years?" he said. "Because he completely surrendered body and soul and forgot all his obligations to himself in order to give himself to the homeland."

Chavez, 58, himself has previously acknowledged that he was neglecting his health in recent years, often staying up late and consuming cup after cup of coffee to remain alert.

The president has undergone surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation treatments since June 2011, when he first announced his cancer diagnosis. He hasn't specified the type of cancer or the exact location in his pelvic region where his tumors have been removed.

On Feb. 15, the government released four photographs of Chavez lying in a bed in Cuba with his two daughters by his side. They were the only images of him published since early December.

Re-elected in October, Chavez was scheduled to have been sworn in on Jan. 10. But the Supreme Court said the swearing-in could be delayed.

___

Frank Bajak on Twitter: http://twitter.com/fbajak

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/many-venezuelans-believe-chavez-recovery-224906127.html

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Are Some Household Gadgets Getting Too Complex?

A lot of gadgets are packed with features through necessity. But are household gadgets—like toasters, kettles and washing machines—getting needlessly complex for no good reason? More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/2Si9PxxRI18/are-some-household-gadgets-getting-too-complex

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Can Children Teach Themselves?

Sugata Mitra gave street kids in a slum in New Delhi access to a computer connected to the Internet, and found that they quickly taught themselves how to use it. This was the moment he says he discovered a new way of teaching. He calls it the grandmother technique, and it goes like this: expose a half dozen or so kids to a computer, and let them have at it. The only supervision required is an adult to listen the kids brag about what they learn. It's the opposite, he says, of the disciplinary ways of many parents--more like a kindly grandmother, who rewards curiosity with acceptance and encouragement. And it is a challenge to the past century and a half of formalized schooling. Since this first experience in 1999, Mitra has been working to extend the notion of self-organized learning to address the needs of poor children, especially in developing countries, who have little or no educational resources. He is convinced that school children can teach themselves just about anything--that they can achieve educational objectives without formal direction. For these kids, formal education, at least as practiced in the U.K., where he is professor of educational technology at Newcastle University, is of little help. His ideas, however, have implications for formal education in the west, too. Mitra doesn't have kind words for English schooling, which he says is better suited to the needs of the British empire than the age of Twitter. England ran three quarters of the globe through a vast bureaucracy that relied on the ability of clerks to write letters and tally spreadsheets by hand. Competency in reading, writing and arithmetic was paramount, and formal classroom teaching was the best way to instill the three Rs. But as the tools of education have changed radically, schooling hasn't. The British system, he says, "was a phenomenal achievement, but it's out of date. It's not needed." The question is, what is needed--or what will be needed in the future? Mitra thinks self-organized learning will be an important part. "There may be 10 different ways to do this. I believe I have touched on one of the ways." Last night Mitra won the $1 million TED Prize for his work. He will use the money to establish a lab in New Delhi that will put his ideas of a "School in the Cloud" to the test. The lab will be set up as a kind of cyber caf?, where 48 kids at any one time can go to learn English, considered in India to be key to any child's future. Volunteer "grandmothers"--retired school teachers, for the most part--will participate via Skype to lend guidance. The cyber caf? will serve as a lab to see how self-organized learning can be scaled globally. "I want to see if this is feasible," he says. "What are the technical problems, what are the management problems? If it works, we'll have a technique that will level the playing field, and that is the big missing piece." Self-organized learning is potentially disruptive to traditional education in the west, and in talking about it Mitra has alienated some teachers. For now, he's keeping to the developing world, and to the teaching of English. His long-term ambitions go further, however. "My agenda," he says, "is to see how far this can go." Follow Scientific American on Twitter @SciAm and @SciamBlogs. Visit ScientificAmerican.com for the latest in science, health and technology news.
? 2013 ScientificAmerican.com. All rights reserved.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/children-teach-themselves-120000668.html

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Doubts Emerge on the Value of Very Low Cholesterol Levels

Image: frentusha /iStockphoto

From Nature magazine.

Soon after Joseph Francis learned that his levels of ?bad? LDL cholesterol sat at twice the norm, he discovered the short?comings of cholesterol-lowering drugs ? and of the clinical advice guiding their use. Francis, the director of clinical analysis and reporting at the Veterans Health Administration (VA) in Washington DC, started taking Lipitor (atorvastatin), a cholesterol-lowering statin and the best-selling drug in pharmaceutical history. His LDL plummeted, but still hovered just above a target mandated by clinical guidelines. Adding other medications had no effect, and upping the dose of Lipitor made his muscles hurt ? a rare side effect of statins, which can cause muscle breakdown.

So Francis pulled back to moderate Lipitor doses and decided that he could live with his high cholesterol. Later, he learned that other patients were being aggressively treated by doctors chasing stringent LDL targets. But Francis found the science behind the target guidelines to be surprisingly ambiguous. ?You couldn?t necessarily say lowering LDL further was going to benefit the patient,? he says.

The standard advice may soon change. For the first time in more than a decade, the US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute is revising the clinical guidelines that shaped Francis?s treatment (see ?How low can you go??). Expected to be released later this year, the fourth set of guidelines, called ATP IV, has been drawn up by an expert panel of 15 cardiologists appointed by the institute. The guidelines will set the tone for clinical practice in the United States and beyond, and will profoundly influence pharmaceutical markets. They will also reflect the growing debate over cholesterol targets, which have never been directly tested in clinical trials.

Since 2002, when ATP III called on doctors to push LDL levels below set targets, the concept of low cholesterol has become synonymous with heart health. Patients brag about their cholesterol scores, physicians joke about adding statins to drinking water, and some hospitals reward doctors when patients hit cholesterol targets.

In 2011, US doctors wrote nearly 250 million prescriptions for cholesterol-lowering drugs, creating a US$18.5-billion market, according to IMS Health, a health-care technology and information company based in Danbury, Connecticut. ?The drug industry in particular is very much in favour of target-based measures,? says Joseph Drozda, a cardiologist and director of outcomes research at Mercy Health in Chesterfield, Missouri. ?It drives the use of products.?

ATP III reflected a growing consensus among physicians that sharply lowering cholesterol would lessen the likelihood of heart attacks and strokes, says Richard Cooper, an epidemiologist at the Loyola University of Chicago Stritch School of Medicine in Illinois, who served on the committee that compiled the guidelines. The committee drew heavily on clinical data, but also took extrapolations from basic research and post hoc analyses of clinical trials. LDL targets were set to be ?less than? specific values to send a message, Cooper says. ?We didn?t want to explicitly say ?the lower the better? because there wasn?t evidence for that,? he says. ?But everybody had the strong feeling that was the correct answer.?

By contrast, the ATP IV committee has pledged to hew strictly to the science and to focus on data from randomized clinical trials, says committee chairman Neil Stone, a cardiologist at Northwestern University School of Medicine in Chicago. If so, Krumholz argues, LDL targets will be cast aside because they have never been explicitly tested. Clinical trials have shown repeatedly that statins reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, but lowering LDL with other medications does not work as well. The benefits of statins may reflect their other effects on the body, including fighting inflammation, another risk factor for heart disease.

Krumholz?s scepticism is rooted in experience. In 2008 and 2010, the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) clinical trial challenged dogma when it reported that lowering blood pressure or blood sugar to prespecified targets did not reduce the risk of heart attack or stroke. In the case of blood sugar, the risks were worsened. The trial demonstrated the folly of assuming that risk factors must have a causal role in disease, says Robert Vogel, a cardiologist at the University of Colorado, Denver. ?Short people have a higher risk of heart disease,? he says. ?But wearing high heels does not lower your risk.?

Jay Cohn, a cardiologist at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, also worries that the focus on LDL levels offers up the wrong patients for statin therapy. Most of those who have a heart attack do not have high LDL, he notes. Cohn advocates treating patients with statins based on the state of health of their arteries, as revealed by noninvasive tests such as ultrasound. ?If your arteries and heart are healthy, I don?t care what your LDL or blood pressure is,? he says.

?We can?t just assume that modifying the risk factor is modifying risk.?
Not all cardiologists want to abolish LDL targets. Indeed, Seth Martin, a fellow in cardiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, believes that ATP IV should reduce LDL targets further. The simplicity of targets has helped to deliver an important public-health message, he says, and motivated many patients to get the statin therapy that he believes they need. ?Just to throw that out the window doesn?t seem like the ideal scenario.?

Whatever the decision, the pharmaceutical industry will be watching closely, says Donny Wong, an analyst at Decision Resources, a market-research company based in Watertown, Massachusetts. Although most statins are off patent, the big pharmaceutical companies are racing to bring the next LDL-lowering drug to market. In particular, millions of dollars have been poured into drugs that inhibit a protein called PCSK9, an enzyme involved in cholesterol synthesis. This approach lowers LDL but has not yet been shown to reduce heart attacks or strokes.

Francis expects the new guidelines to relax the targets. He and his colleagues decided last autumn to change the VA?s own clinical standards, so that they no longer rely solely on an LDL target but instead encourage doctors to prescribe a moderate dose of statin when otherwise healthy patients have high LDL cholesterol. The ATP IV guidelines will take a similar approach, he speculates, noting that the VA consulted several outside experts who are also serving on the ATP committee.

Despite an increasingly vegetarian diet, Francis?s cholesterol has not budged. ?Sometimes I want to call my physician and say, ?Don?t worry about that target,?? he says. ?It?s going to be changing very soon.?
?

This story is reprinted with permission from Nature. It was first published on February 26, 2013.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=2c469272062847be164c9192fe12d2d8

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The Housing Market is on the Rise: Opportunities in Green Building

By Tali Wee

After years of instability, the fledgling housing market has finally found its footing. Though not back to normal levels, the vacancy rate for owned properties has dropped from 3 percent at the height of the crisis in 2009 back to 2.1 percent, and rental vacancy rates have gone from 11 percent down to 8.6 percent nationally. This change can be attributed largely to builders creating new units at a rate much closer to the rate of market demand, rather than completely outstripping demand.

Declining vacancy rates are beneficial for the economy at large, but also for green building, which gained significant ground last year. With the greater economy picking up, there?s even more money available to invest in green real estate initiatives. For green businesses, real estate is a great opportunity to invest directly in green projects within the industry. Here are a few ways to do just that.

1. Buy a foreclosed property and green it up

This has become a popular activity among eco-minded Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). During the foreclosure crisis, REITs noticed an opportunity to snap up and retrofit properties before putting them back on the market at a big mark-up. Green labels, like an LEED certification, carry a price tag that averages about 9 percent higher than a non-green equivalent. Combine that gain with the low cost of buying a foreclosed property, and REITs have a high potential for profit. Lower scale investors can benefit from smaller green businesses using the same buy it, green it, flip it mentality, particularly in locales with a passionate green culture.

2. Retrofit current buildings for increased resale value

Not ready to get into real estate investing? Building owners can retrofit their own buildings to increase resale value instead of investing in foreclosed properties. Green buildings help their tenants live with a green mentality, lowering both footprint and upkeep costs along the way. Take the California EPA Headquarters Building as an example. Efforts to calibrate, monitor and maintain energy systems cuts nearly $200,000 from the building?s energy costs per year, while exterior lighting and after-hours heating and lighting systems save $110,000 annually. Add green initiatives like water-efficient landscaping, reducing paper waste, and eliminating can liners to increase savings. Building owners can add solar panels to their buildings? rooftops and even earn money by selling energy back to the grid.

Once a building has been retrofitted, the owner should consider holding a neighborhood block party or becoming part of a green building tour to showcase their upgraded office. Such leadership could spark other building and home owners to shift to more eco-friendly practices. In turn, the original building owner may be publicized for industry innovation.

3. Charge premium rents for green apartments

Landlords interested in the green business can recoup costs of green retrofitting through energy savings and higher rents. One study found that adding LEED and Energy Star certifications increased rent prices by as much as 3 percent. This makes green apartments both a good investment and an easy way to spread green building ideas far beyond a single occupant.

Of course, investing in green real estate has more than just monetary benefits. As a green business, it?s part of the company?s mission to operate with an eco-minded focus. Green real estate is proof of the green business model ? the concept that profit and eco-consciousness can and should go hand in hand.

[Image credit:?<a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-105432932/stock-photo-hand-hold-house-against-green-field.html" target="_blank">Green home stock photo</a> by Shutterstock]

Tali Wee currently lives in Seattle where she handles the Miami community outreach for Zillow. She is captivated by, and appreciates everything real estate related. Tali is also a new homeowner and enjoys spending time on projects around the house.

Scroll down to see comments.

Source: http://www.triplepundit.com/2013/02/housing-market-rise-opportunities-green-building/

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10 Areas Where Small Businesses Lack an Online Competitive Edge

This is a guest post by Pratik Dholakiya.

We all know it; even though we wish it weren?t true: small businesses have limited resources. They often have only enough time, money, and patience for the core of their business. Certainly, a small business should never sacrifice its unique selling position. But it?s equally true that businesses need exposure in order to stay up and running.

Thankfully, the web makes it possible to boost awareness at relatively low costs. Even so, many businesses struggle getting a competitive edge online. Here are some of the reasons why.

1. Poor Market Research Before Creating a Web Presence

Often, small businesses are simply creating a website because they feel it?s the modern thing to do, and they just want to get it over with. But it?s important to understand the online marketplace before diving in.

The market for products online may look very different from your local market or the medium you are used to. It?s important to address what the online competition looks like, how many resources they have, and how you can stand out from the crowd.

2. A Cluttered, Ugly Website Design

WordPress, Blogger, and Tumblr have made it so that anybody can put up a website. This is exciting because it has given consumers and small businesses a voice that they haven?t had in a very long time, but it also means that users won?t trust you just because you have a website. It?s important to invest in a sleek appearance and intuitive navigation so that users feel they can trust your website.

3. Not Setting a Unique Selling Proposition

As we mentioned in the intro, a business can?t sacrifice its core if it is going to survive long term, and this is only more true online. All to often, businesses try to convince consumers that they are ?the best.? This is typically a waste of time because most consumers will not believe you.

It is important to be more specific about what you have to offer, and, most importantly, draw attention to how you are different.

Online efforts should focus on giving consumers a unique and specific reason to choose their product. Often this means creating a brand image as much as it means promoting the products themselves. It also often means that your site?s content must itself offer unique value that isn?t easily attainable anywhere else on the web.

4. High/identical price of Products/services compared to big names in industry

If your product or brand does not offer a unique and specific benefit over the alternatives, there is no reason it should be priced the same or higher. Big name brands have a very huge advantage in the marketplace and consumers need a very good reason to consider your products instead. This often means your prices must be lower, even if the product is in some ways superior. It is only if your product is clearly different from the competition that you may charge a higher price.

5. Don?t know the exact target audience

This is essentially the same problem as #1, but it?s important enough that it deserves its own category. Businesses often focus so much on creating the superior or cheaper product, when the real goal is to solve a problem for consumers.

You must understand your target consumer and the problems that they want solved. Often, your online content should also help them solve that problem, or related problems. This will help them trust your brand and the ability of your product to solve their problems as well.

6. Undefined Online Marketing Strategy

You need to be able to answer questions like:

• Why are you online?
• How will customers find you?
• Why will customers choose your products over others?
• How will your online presence grow?
• Where are your target consumers most active online?

Unfortunately, it?s not uncommon for businesses to have no answers to these questions.

7. Ignoring Social Media (or Being Ignorant of it)

Virtually everybody uses Facebook, and the most influential people online also use other networks such as Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and others. Making yourself known online requires building relationships with influencers as well as keeping consumers engaged with online conversations and community building.

At the same time, many of the businesses who use social media are ignorant of how it works and why people use it. The vast majority of people use social networks to entertain themselves first and foremost, as well as to express themselves and communicate. They do not use social networks to find information, especially not about consumer products.

8. Underestimating (or Overestimating) the potential of SEO software/tools

Businesses that do not track the results of their online efforts are waving their hands in the dark. It?s important for them to track their rankings, link building efforts, traffic, and other factors in order to understand what is working and what isn?t, so they don?t waste time on failing strategies. Some examples of low cost SEO tools include:

1. SheerSEO
2. W3optimizer
3. SearchEnabler
4. SERPS.com
5. UpCity?(Formerly?known as DIYSEO)

Tools like these will help you understand how you can improve your site so that it is more easily discovered in the search engines.

However, equally dangerous is the possibility of overestimating such tools. It is important to understand that SEO and online marketing in general are not mechanical processes. You must create outstanding content, build relationships, and become a unique voice in the community in order to improve your visibility online and in the search engines.

9. Lack of Online and Offline Local Marketing Strategies

If your business is local, or has physical locations that consumers can visit at all, it is important to have a local marketing strategy. Some businesses are still under the impression that because the internet is a ?world wide web,? it is useless for local marketing. This hasn?t been true for quite some time.

The search engines currently localize search results to display web pages from local businesses and results from Google Maps with driving directions. Foursquare and Yelp have become widely used to find and review local businesses. Facebook has local event notifications, and consumers can review local businesses in Google+ Local or Google Places.

Devise an integrated local marketing strategy that makes the most of the online and offline world in combination with events to spread publicity.

10. Ignoring Mobile

As more and more people own smartphones and tablets, it is becoming unacceptable to pretend that people only use PCs to access the internet. Consumers are frustrated with sites designed for desktops that they have to zoom in and out of and scroll all over the place to use. Sleek and uncluttered sites that they can slide their way through, easily reading and pressing buttons with their fingertips, are far more successful.

But mobile is an opportunity, not just something you need to adapt to. Mobile users tend to be more wealthy, they are more engaged with their devices, and they are often already on the go looking for nearby businesses to visit. Conversions are much higher on mobile devices, and apps keep your brand where consumers will see it.

Conclusion

Understand the web and you will beat your competitors, becoming a successful small business in the online world. Fail to keep up and you will lose touch with your customer base. The web presents a promising opportunity for the businesses willing to make the most of it. Don?t fall behind.

Source: http://kikolani.com/10-areas-where-small-businesses-lack-an-online-competitive-edge.html

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Team Diabetes in the Cayman Islands - Celebrities with diseases

Team Diabetes in the Cayman Islands

Published: February 25, 2013

Walk or run with John Streit and Team Diabetes in the Cayman Islands on December 1, 2013 in support of the 9 million Canadians and someone you know living with diabetes and pre-diabetes.

Walk or run with John and Team Diabetes on December 1, 2013 in support of the Canadian Diabetes Association. Challenge yourself to complete a half marathon (21.1K), marathon (42.2K) or sign up with three friends and do the marathon relay together! The course is open for 6 hours so the half marathon is a great option for those who prefer to walk. The route is flat and passes by spectacular beaches and through the financial district of George Town as well as some of the area?s most exclusive neighbourhoods.

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As a team member, the funds you raise for the Association help make a difference for the 9 million Canadians living with diabetes and pre-diabetes by supporting research, education, advocacy and important programs such as our D-Camps, summer camps for children with Type 1 diabetes.

?

Team Member Benefits

All you need to do to be a part of our team is to sign up by June 7^th and raise funds for the Association. In return, you will receive amazing benefits including?

• Return airfare from Vancouver
• 4 nights of accommodation in the Cayman Islands
• Three, on-site team functions
• On-line training with e-mail support from a team trainer
• Guaranteed race entry
• Team tech shirt
• Personalized fundraising webpage

?and the incredible feeling that comes from achieving your personal goals, meeting likeminded people and supporting a worthy cause all at the same time!

?

Sign Up Today!

?

Register on-line at www.teamdiabetes.ca before June 7^th

?

To learn more, please contact Mandy at mandy.khara@diabetes.ca or 604-732-1331 ext 247 or fill out our on-line request form.

?

We also invite you to join our community! Follow us on facebook, twitter and check out photos and a video from our last visit to the Caymans!

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Together we can lead the fight against diabetes!

?

About Team Diabetes

Healthy living is an essential part of a healthy community and the Canadian Diabetes Association strongly believes in fostering active and healthy communities. Team Diabetes is the signature brand of the Association that offers Canadians of all fitness levels the opportunity to walk, run or hike in events across Canada and around the world while raising much needed funds and awareness. Since 2000, Team Diabetes team members have raised in excess of $36 million while making a commitment to their own health by leading a more active lifestyle. They are leaders and an inspiration in their community, in their workplaces and at home. Every day they are helping make a difference.

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About the Canadian Diabetes Association

The Canadian Diabetes Association?s mission is to lead the fight against diabetes by helping people with diabetes live healthy lives while working to find a cure. The Association delivers on this mission by providing people with diabetes and healthcare professionals with education and services; advocating on behalf of people with diabetes; supporting research and translating research into practical applications.

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A Few Diabetes Facts

• More than 9 million Canadians live with diabetes or prediabetes.
• By 2030, 438 million people worldwide will have diabetes.
• 20 Canadians are diagnosed with diabetes every hour.
• Diabetes medication and supplies can cost a person $1,000 to $15,000 a year.
• By 2020, it?s estimated that diabetes will cost Canada?s healthcare system $16.9 billion a year.

Article source: http://www.news1130.com/2013/02/25/lace-up-with-team-diabetes-in-the-cayman-islands/

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Published February 25, 2013 by Lee in Diabetes

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Brady's deal will help Pats reload

That Tom Brady and the Patriots worked out an extension through 2017 isn?t a stunner.
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He was due to consume about 18 percent of the Patriots salary cap in the final two years of his old deal ($21.8 million against a cap which hovers around $123 million).
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What is eye-opening is that Brady is ? according to the early contract numbers provided by SI and NBC?s Peter King ? playing for about $9 million a year in the three seasons that were added to his deal.
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That?s less than half what he could command in salary if he were a free agent now, never mind what he may have been able to command if he?d become a free agent in March of 2015.
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Brady is providing immediate cap relief to the Patriots to help them shop what they expect to be a flooded free agent market beginning March 12. And he allows flexibility down the road as well when Brady is into his football dotage as the consummate Patriot looks at 40.
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Which dominoes can we expect to fall next? First up would probably be an extension for Wes Welker who ? since 2007 ? has made about $27 million while becoming the most prolific receiving target in football.
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Since Brady described Welker as the best teammate he?s ever had this past season, it?s logical to presume that Brady is hoping the Patriots funnel some of the savings he provided to getting Welker money that can give Welker some certainty as he enters the twilight of his career.
?
When Welker signed his franchise tender last summer, he described the move as a leap of faith. If a contract extension for Welker follows ? and the chances of that are currently good, according to a well-placed source ? Brady may have provided the soft landing for Welker?s leap.
?
In conversations with Brady this past season, he spoke often of the game-changing ability of corner Aqib Talib and Talib?s unmistakable impact on the team when he was part of the defense.
?
Talib is also a soon-to-be free agent.
?
Brady has never presumed to wear a management hat with the Patriots. And, while it?s possible his renegotiation came with specific requests for players to be re-signed, it?s unlikely given past history that he?d offer ultimatums.
?
Suffice to say, though, he?ll closely watch where the money he?s saving the Patriots is going.
?
Currently, the team is weak at wide receiver and strong like ox at tight end. The expensive Chad Ochocinco signing was a bust. The less expensive Brandon Lloyd signing worked out better but Lloyd hasn?t distinguished himself as a game changer, merely a complementary piece.
?
With the money New England?s saved, they may be able to enter into talks for a player like Steelers wideout Mike Wallace as he hits the free agent market.
?
We?ll find out when the contract specifics are all laid out exactly how much the Patriots saved with Brady?s re-do. And whether Brady actually plays for $9 million a year from 2014 through 2017 remains to be seen. He may renegotiate again to a salary more reflective of his value. But for now, Brady?s renegotiation has given this team which has been to two Super Bowls and two AFC Championships since it won its last Lombardi the wherewithal to shop for players that will make them Super Bowl contenders clean through until Brady hits 40.

Source: http://www.csnne.com/blog/patriots-talk/bradys-team-friendly-deal-creates-cap-relief-flexibility

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IKEA halts meatball sales after horsemeat found

PRAGUE/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's IKEA halted sales of its trademark Swedish meatballs in 13 European countries after tests in the Czech Republic on Monday showed the product contained horsemeat.

IKEA, the world's No. 1 furniture retailer and known also for its signature cafeterias in its huge out-of-town stores, said it had stopped sales of all meatballs from a batch implicated in the Czech tests.

The checks were carried out in response to a Europe-wide scandal that erupted last month when tests carried out in Ireland revealed some beef products contained horsemeat. This has triggered recalls of ready-made meals and damaged confidence in Europe's vast and complex food industry.

"We take this very seriously," said IKEA spokeswoman Ylva Magnusson at the company's headquarters in Helsingborg, southern Sweden. "We have stopped selling that specific batch of meatballs in all markets where they may have been sold."

The meatballs, pulled from shelves at IKEA's stores after Czech inspectors discovered they contained horsemeat, had been available in stores in several European countries, the company's Czech spokesman said on Monday.

Besides the Czech Republic, they had also been on sale in Britain, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Slovakia, Hungary, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Cyprus and Ireland, Magnusson said.

All IKEA's meatballs are produced in Sweden by supplier Familjen Dafgard, which said on its website it was investigating the situation and would receive further test results in the coming days.

IKEA's Magnusson said hopes were that test results would determine the percentage of horsemeat in the meatballs, and that there was is no indication any other batch had been affected.

In Italy, one of the countries where meatballs from the batch were withdrawn from sale, consumer rights group Codacons called for checks on all meat products sold by IKEA in Italy.

"We are ready to launch legal action and seek compensation not only against the companies who are responsible but also those whose duty it was to protect citizens," Codacons President Carlo Rienzi said in a statement.

The Czech State Veterinary Administration reported its findings to the EU's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, it said in a statement.

The inspectors took samples for DNA tests in IKEA's unit in the city of Brno from a product labeled as "beef and pork meatballs", the statement said.

Meatballs, a famous Swedish dish, have become a trademark for IKEA across its markets.

(Additional reporting by Keith Weir in Milan; Writing by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Louise Ireland)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ikea-halts-meatball-sales-horsemeat-found-141728557--finance.html

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RolePlayGateway?

[hr][/hr]
[center][img]Character?s name as a logo goes here.[/img][/center]

[center]| [character's role] | [character's age] | [character's sexuality] |[/center]

[center][img]Gif or still of your character here[/img][/center]
[hr][/hr]

[center]| ? = Neutral | ? = Friends | ? = Romantic Interest | ? = Enemies |[/center]

[list]
[*]? [b]Anneka Vanity:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Anthony de la Longine:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Clara Mason:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Evony de la Longine:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Haley de la Longine:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Jasper James:[/b]Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Kaydence Dixen:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Natasha Peirce :[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.

[*]? [b]Regan Monaco:[/b] Symbol first, and couple of sentences in quotes, in your character's own words, regarding their relationship with them.
[/list]

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/RolePlayGateway

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Kerry takes case on Syria to Europe, Mideast

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2013 file photo, Secretary of State John Kerry speaks at the State Department in Washington. Kerry will make his first overseas trip next week to Europe and the Middle East, but is skipping Israel because that country's government isn't fully formed after recent elections. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2013 file photo, Secretary of State John Kerry speaks at the State Department in Washington. Kerry will make his first overseas trip next week to Europe and the Middle East, but is skipping Israel because that country's government isn't fully formed after recent elections. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Japan's Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, Friday, Feb. 22, 2013, at the State Department in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? John Kerry embarked Sunday on his first official overseas trip as secretary of state, hoping to bring new ideas to Europe and the Mideast about how to end nearly two years of violence in Syria.

Kerry's nine-nation, 10-day trip will take him to America's traditional European allies of Britain, Germany, France and Italy, along with Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. In addition to Syria, he will focus on conflicts in Mali and Afghanistan, and on Iran's nuclear program.

Kerry has said he is eager to discuss new ways of persuading Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down and usher in a democratic transition in the country that wracked by escalating violence that has killed at least 70,000 people.

Kerry, a former Democratic senator from Massachusetts who succeeded Hillary Rodham Clinton in President Barack Obama's second-term Cabinet, has not offered details of his ideas but officials say they revolve around increasing pressure on Assad and his inner circle.

Kerry's first stop is London, where he will hold talks with British officials on a range of issues, from Afghanistan to the status of the Falkland Islands. Britain is in a major dispute with Argentina over the Falklands.

In German, Kerry will discuss trans-Atlantic issues with German youth in Berlin, where he spent time as a child as the son of an American diplomat posted to the divided Cold War city. He also will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the German capital.

In Paris, Kerry will discuss France's intervention in Mali, while in Rome he'll attend a meeting with Syrian opposition leaders.

U.S. officials have said the trip will be primarily a "listening tour" when it comes to Syria and won't result in immediate shifts in U.S. policy that has until now stayed clear of military support for the rebels fighting Assad.

Despite the numerous Middle East stops. Kerry will not travel to Israel or the Palestinian territories. He will wait to visit them when he accompanies President Barack Obama there in March.

___

Online:

Trip details: http://www.state.gov/secretary/travel/2013/205086.htm

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-02-24-Kerry/id-3fbdd7ca469d4c01b99255c00d0e9111

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Stupid Celebrities Exclusive: Q & A at the Pre-Oscar Party Red Carpet

Stupid Celebrities Exclusive: Q & A at the Pre-Oscar Party Red Carpet

While on the red carpet at the OK! Magazine’s Pre-Oscar Party, I got to snag a few of the celebs and grilled them a bit. LMFAO’s Stefan Kendal Gordy SC: What are you currently working on? SKG: I’m working on my own album right now. SC: Was there a movie that inspired you to do ...

Stupid Celebrities Exclusive: Q & A at the Pre-Oscar Party Red Carpet Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2013/02/stupid-celebrities-exclusive-q-a-at-pre-oscar-party/

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Video: Jindal, Patrick debate implementing health care reform

A Second Take on Meeting the Press: From an up-close look at Rachel Maddow's sneakers to an in-depth look at Jon Krakauer's latest book ? it's all fair game in our "Meet the Press: Take Two" web extra. Log on Sundays to see David Gregory's post-show conversations with leading newsmakers, authors and roundtable guests. Videos are available on-demand by 12 p.m. ET on Sundays.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3032608/vp/50927885#50927885

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Sony announces PlayStation 4: Is it 'The Future of Play'?

Top Stories

Sony?s PlayStation 4 Officially Announced: Is it ?The Future of Play??

?PlayStation wants to win the war against reality.? Alongside a montage of the company?s biggest video game icons, that mantra was how Sony kicked off its massively hyped PlayStation event from New York City on Wednesday. To win that war, Sony officially announced the PlayStation 4, the most advanced video game?...?[Read More]

Amidst Recent Hacks, Twitter Calls for Stronger Passwords

Amid the ongoing epidemic of hacks and account breaches at major companies and online services, Twitter officials are once again reminding users how to beef up the security of their passwords. A blog post published Tuesday night by Twitter Director of Information Security Bob Lord came a day after the official Twitter account?...?[Read More]

Square?s ?Business in a Box? Gives Stores Hardware

Square plans to sell a ?Business in a Box? package that includes two Square Readers, an iPad stand, a cash drawer, and an optional receipt printer, it announced Wednesday. The items will all work together to allow business owners to accept credit card purchases, furthering the company?s mission of simplifying payments.?[Read More]

New App from Harvard Helps Doctors Monitor Concussions

When diagnosing neuromuscular problems in patients ? when they age or get a concussion, for example ? doctors typically make conclusions based on information that is qualitative, or subjective. But a tablet app developed by researchers at Harvard University?s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering may be able?...?[Read More]

Shelly's Blog

Microsoft?s Surface Pro Review: A Windows 8 Ultra Tablet

Is Microsoft?s Surface Pro an Ultrabook or a Tablet? Matt Tweety Tverberg, one of Microsoft?s Biz Dev guys in NY, calls it an Ultra Tablet. When you play with one, you?ll see his point. The Surface Pro tablet is a personal interface for Windows 8 that changes your relationship with the Windows programs you use through touch. It is profoundly different than using Windows 8 on an Ultrabook, laptop or desktop computer.?[Read More]

Shelly Palmer Digital Leadership Podcast Episode #25 ? Joe Atkin, President & CEO of Goal Zero

Goal Zero offers portable solar power for just about any device in your home. Listen Now or Get it on iTunes

?Shelly Palmer Digital Living Book Series
? A New Book
Digital Wisdom
Thought Leadership for a Connected World
By Shelly Palmer

Buy the eBook

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/shellypalmerdigitallivingdailynews/~3/Q7E8poyfu-I/display.php

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Experts Criticize Report on Cyberattacks Launched by Chinese Military

China is not the only one criticizing the APT1 report released earlier this week by security firm Mandiant. Experts say the study has a number of flaws, and condemn the company for possibly interfering with ongoing state investigations.

While the report provides some interesting information, it appears to have attracted almost as many critics as supporters. Some say it?s flawed, while others name it a marketing stunt.Jeffrey Carr, founder and CEO of cyber security firm Taia Global, has published a blog post detailing the critical flaws in Mandiant?s report.

?My problem is that Mandiant refuses to consider what everyone that I know in the Intelligence Community acknowledges - that there are multiple states engaging in this activity; not just China,? Carr wrote.

?And that if you're going to make a claim for attribution, then you must be both fair and thorough in your analysis and, through the application of a scientific method like ACH, rule out competing hypotheses and then use estimative language in your finding. Mandiant simply did not succeed in proving that Unit 61398 is their designated APT1 aka Comment Crew.?

Andrei Bujaki of the Internet Advisors Group has also published an interesting post on why the report ?is a joke.?

?The report does not contain a single piece of evidence, contains only a list of domains, IPs and few faked emails, the thin description of a supposedly operation, the description of some tools and of a piece of malware,? Bujaki noted.

Another interesting aspect is related to the phone number of an alleged hacker revealed in the video that Mandiant published along with its report.

A Marketplace correspondent in Shanghai, China, called up the number and reached a 69-year-old woman who said she was a farmer and didn?t even know what hacking was.

On the other hand, Mandiant admits that it?s not the first company to accuse China of launching cyberattacks, but the company argues that it is the first one to ?carry the ball for a little bit.?

?What do they want us to do? Get into the third floor of the [Unit 61398] building and start interviewing people? We?ve done the best we can do with the data we have,? Mandiant CEO Kevin Mandia told nywag.com.

In the meantime, here?s a less serious video from NMA World on the activities of the Chinese military hacker unit:

Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Experts-Criticize-Report-on-Cyberattacks-Launched-by-Chinese-Military-331681.shtml

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Click "Like" if you're heading to SF for the Chinese New Year Parade! Bring y...

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North Korea warns U.S. forces of 'destruction' ahead of war drills

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea on Sunday warned the top U.S. military commander stationed in South Korea that his forces would "meet a miserable destruction" if they go ahead with scheduled military drills with South Korean troops, North Korean state media said.

Pak Rim-su, chief delegate of the North Korean military mission to the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom, gave the message by phone to Gen. James Thurman, the commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, KCNA news agency said.

It came amid escalating tension on the divided Korean peninsula after the North's third nuclear test earlier this month, in defiance of U.N. resolutions, drew harsh international condemnation.

A direct message from the North's Panmunjom mission to the U.S. commander is rare.

North and South Korea are technically still at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.

The U.S.-South Korean Combined Forces Command is holding an annual computer-based simulation war drill, Key Resolve, from March 11 to 25, involving 10,000 South Korean and 3,500 U.S. troops.

The command also plans to hold Foal Eagle joint military exercises involving land, sea and air manoeuvres. About 200,000 Korean troops and 10,000 U.S. forces are expected to be mobilized for the two month-long exercise which starts on March 1.

"If your side ignites a war of aggression by staging the reckless joint military exercises...at this dangerous time, from that moment your fate will be hung by a thread with every hour," Pak was quoted as saying.

"You had better bear in mind that those igniting a war are destined to meet a miserable destruction."

Washington and Seoul regularly hold military exercises which they say are purely defensive. North Korea, which has stepped up its bellicose threats towards the United States and South Korea in recent months, sees them as rehearsals for invasion.

North Korea threatened South Korea with "final destruction" during a debate at the U.N. Conference on Disarmament on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Sung-won Shim; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/north-korea-warns-u-forces-destruction-ahead-war-071306123.html

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Expert predicts surge of hybrid concierge care in Texas

Dallas-Fort Worth and Texas in general are hot markets for a relatively new health care concept that allows patients to choose to pay a fee for concierge service from their physician or to continue receiving care traditionally, according to an expert in the field.

I wrote Thursday about a Dallas gynecologist, Dr. Connie Casad, who has switched to a model known as hybrid concierge care. The change gives her patients the choice to stay with the practice and see her physician's assistant for their gynecologic needs, or pay $1,800 a year and join the concierge program for more personalized care from Casad.

This morning I talked with Wayne Lipton, managing partner at Concierge Choice Physicians LLC in New York City. He tells me more and more Texas docs are exploring the hybrid model, in large part because they expect Medicare and private insurance reimbursements to plunge as Obamacare is phased in.

"We anticipate that Texas will be one of the biggest growth states (for hybrid concierge)," he said.

The hybrid model is good for physicians because it's good for patients, Lipton said.

"In the last six months, there's been a huge upswing on the part of physicians (nationwide) interested in the hybrid model because it's something that rewards excellence by the judge who should be the judge and that's the patient," he said. "The patient makes the decision. It's a consumer-driven model."

Casad?s concierge practice includes an executive-style physical (which for her includes a PAP exam), same- or next-day appointment scheduling, a direct phone line to Casad and her help with care coordination such as helping patients find other specialists if needed. The physical alone typically retails for more than $2,000, Casad said.

Bill covers health care, law, education and nonprofits.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vertical_35/~3/q0SDnWmon-Y/expert-predicts-surge-of-hybrid.html

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Satechi Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure

By Ahmer Kazi While portable hard drives and flash drives are ubiquitous because of their convenience, it's not hard to imagine that some folks might still have a few internal 2.5-inch drives sitting around the office. The Satechi Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure ($39.99) is a quick and affordable way to access those drives without having to install it into a desktop. It also boasts versatility since it can accommodate both 9.5mm and 12.5mm 2.5-inch SATA HDDs and SSDs, respectively.

Design and Features
Measuring 0.6 by 3.5 by 5.3 inches (HWD), the Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure can easily be confused for an ordinary external hard drive thanks to its rectangular shape and curved edges. That is, until you pick it up and realize that it only weighs 6.8 ounces and has an oddly hollow feeling to it. At any rate, it's tough to deny the aesthetic appeal of its aluminum alloy case and brushed metallic finish. Regardless of which color you choose, the end result is a handsome drive enclosure (my review unit was silver). More importantly, the aluminum alloy casing is thick enough to protect your drive, and it accordingly feels reassuringly sturdy in the hand.

Three sides of the Satechi Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure's four rounded edges are ringed by black plastic. The bottom of the enclosure sports a USB 3.0 port (also backward-compatible with USB 2.0) and an eSATA output. A pink light is emitted from an LED activity light between these ports, and it flashes blue whenever the drive is in use. The top, meanwhile, has a push button that opens a swivel arm on the enclosure's right side. Swinging the swivel arm open lets the user insert a drive in the enclosure. Since pulling out the swivel arm automatically pushes the inserted drive upward toward the user, removing it is just as easy. The only issue I encountered here concerns the closing mechanism. Instead of simply snapping shut, the mechanism forces the user to hold the open button down while simultaneously moving the arm inward. It's a minor annoyance that doesn't preclude one-handed operation, though, and it's easily outweighed by the simplicity of the devices's tool-free design.

The Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure is compatible with Windows (98/ME/2000/XP/Vista/7/8) and Mac (OS 10.2 and above). It's covered by a one-year warranty.

Performance
Testing the External Hard Disk Enclosure revealed that it functions exactly as one would expect. I popped in a 750GB Seagate Momentus XT HDD and a 240GB Intel 520 Series SSD, and encountered no problems with either USB 3.0 or eSATA connections. It's also backwards-compatible, so it can also function via USB 2.0. That said, the USB connection entails using an included Y-cable. I'm not a proponent of Y-cables because they're not as easily replaceable as standard USB cables and needlessly occupy precious USB ports. Moreover, the Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure's included Y-cable features disproportionate strand lengths that don't work well for systems whose USB ports aren't in close proximity with one another. Still, I was able to get the drive installed into the External Hard Disk Enclosure to read and write data with just one strand plugged in, so I can't quite envision a scenario where both are necessary.

Since the Aluminum External Hard Disk Enclosure is bus-powered, it doesn't require an external power supply. Once plugged into your system, drives are swappable, so there's no need to disconnect each time a new drive is inserted.

When one thinks of external hard drive enclosures, they typically envision a complicated setup process that requires the use of tools. The Satechi Aluminum Hard Disk Enclosure turns that notion on its head by offering an easy and highly versatile way to put all those spare 2.5-inch drives to use in a safe manner. While it's got a few drawbacks?namely a finicky open/close button and the use of a USB Y-cable?its appeal is nevertheless difficult to deny.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/cCwQl0LjnQg/0,2817,2415625,00.asp

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3 face burglary, drug charges after iPad stolen

MCCRACKEN COUNTY, KY (KFVS)- Three people are accused of stealing an iPad from a McCracken County business.

The McCracken County Sheriff's Department began investigating a theft from 146 South Friendship Road on Feb. 5.

A woman had stopped and asked for financial assistance. Once she left, she and two other people devised a plan to re-enter the building and take an iPad that was spotted in the office, according to the McCracken County Sheriff's Office.

Surveillance video caught the theft on camera.

A Paducah police officer contacted the sheriff's office saying he was familiar with the suspects in the video and provided their names and address.

Jessica Myers, Sabian Burgard, and Sinjin Burgard, all living at 600 Broadway, apartment # 413 (Irvin Cobb Apartments) face charges.

Jessica L. Myers, 20, is charged with complicity to burglary 3rd, complicity to theft by unlawful taking over $500, and failure to notify department of transportation of an address change.

Sabian T. Burgard, 19, is charged with complicity to burglary 3rd, complicity to theft by unlawful taking over $500, and failure to notify department of transportation of an address change.

Sinjin H. Burgard, 19, is charged with burglary 3rd, theft by unlawful taking over $500, and failure to notify department of transportation of an address change.

Detectives searched the suspects' apartment Tuesday, Feb. 19 and found a small quantity of marijuana, drug paraphernalia and evidence of the stolen iPad.

Further investigation revealed that the iPad had been sold, but confessions were obtained from all three individuals for burglary and theft of the iPad, according to the sheriff's office.

All three were arrested and taken to the McCracken County Regional Jail.

Copyright 2013?KFVS. All rights reserved.

Source: http://mccracken.kfvs12.com/news/news/61538-3-face-burglary-drug-charges-after-ipad-stolen

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Six-year housing hangover tough to shake off

John W. Schoen , NBC News ? ? ? 14 hrs.

If this is a housing recovery, then it?s a ?recovery? in name only. The patient remains pretty ill, and it?s going to be a long road back to health after one of the worst housing busts on record.

Fresh data released this week paint a mixed picture. The government reported Wednesday that housing starts fell 8.5 percent in January, though starts on single family homes edged up higher. Building permits ? a barometer of future construction ? posted solid gains.

But the pace of construction remains less than half what it was during the late-2005 peak of the housing boom. And the recovery has come in fits and starts. On Tuesday, a closely-watched report from the homebuilding industry noted sluggish sales traffic last month after steady gains through 2012.

?The single-family market in the Northeast, hurt by high foreclosure rates and a slowdown in population growth, is struggling,? said Patrick Newport, a housing economist at IHS Global Insight. ?The single-family segments in the other three regions are picking up -- but slowly, and levels remain depressed."

Despite multiple government policies to spur sales, including the Federal Reserve?s ongoing effort to hold mortgage rates near the floor, sales of both new and existing homes still badly lag ?normal? levels.

?The market appears to be recovering, but you can't call this a normal market when you have the lowest interest rates in a hundred years and half of all borrowers are still putting basically zero down," said Ed Pinto, an American Enterprise Institute fellow and former executive of government-backed mortgage giant Fannie Mae. ?That is not a normal market."

Neither was the 2007 housing bust. After peaking at 7.1 million in 2005, the annual pace of home sales crashed to 4.1 million in 2008. Last year, sales edged back up to about 4.7 million. Though most housing analysts and economists believe sales and princes have bottomed, the recovery pales in comparison to past housing rebounds.

One reason: no matter how low interest rates fall, after playing too loose with credit during boom, banks are now much choosier about who gets a loan.

?The biggest concern on a really robust housing market rebound now is coming from mortgage market constraints," said David Goldberg, an analyst who follows the homebuilding industry at UBS. "It?s tough to get a mortgage if you have marginal credit right now."

In many markets around the country, sales of existing homes also are being held back by tight inventories. Since 2010, the availability of existing homes for sale has fallen by half. In December, for-sale listings amounted to about 4.4 months? worth of sales -- down from 9.4 months in 2010.

Anything less than a six months? supply is considered a ?tight? market. Some of the tightest markets -- including Sacramento, San Jose and Oakland -- are down to less than a months' supply, according to John Burns Real Estate Consulting.

After years on the sidelines, some sellers may be holding out for a better price. But millions more are unable to sell because they owe more than their home is worth.

Some 10 million homeowners -- roughly a fifth of houses with a mortgage -- are still underwater despite the recent uptick in prices, according to Lender Processing Services. Though rising home prices have reduced that number since the depths of the bust, the lingering ?negative equity? of the mortgage metldown is keeping houses off the market. Few of those potential sellers feel like dipping into savings to write the bank a check for the shortfall.

Home builders have fared a bit better, as new home sales rebounded by 20 percent last year compared to a 9 percent bounce for existing homes.

But that bigger new-home bounce comes largely because home builders fell into an even bigger hole. Annual sales fell from a peak of 1.2 million in 2005 to just 306,000 in 2011, according to Census data. So the 20 percent rebound is a lot weaker than it looks.

Many headwinds
The home building industry faces its own set of headwinds. For starters, many of the industry?s smallest builders were wiped out by the housing bust. Those that survived are finding spot shortages of labor and supplies where demand is coming back, according to Lisa Marquis Jackson, a Dallas-based housing analyst at John Burns Real Estate Consulting.

Some building material manufacturers and distributors are skittish about adding more capacity until they see convincing evidence that the housing recovery is on firmly on track, she said. In some cases, they?re having trouble getting financing to expand.

?It takes a lot of money to get payroll back up and to get new people on board,? said Jackson. ?The lending environment still isn't completely comfortable coming in to support materials suppliers and distributors.?

Other builders are having a hard time finding enough skilled workers to get the job done. Though housing starts have rebounded strongly -- up 37 percent from a year ago -- construction employment is up by just 1.5 percent in the same period.

Builders may be having a harder assembling skilled work crews because wages were cut sharply following the housing bust. Others are finding that the workers simply aren't there anymore.

?A lot of these workers found other jobs,? said Jackson. ?They still have some scars from what they went through in the downturn. It?s going to take a lot to lure them back.?

It?s also turning out to be harder to lure back first-time home buyers, typically one of the strongest sources of demand in a recovery. After the historic, late-2000s price slide, many younger buyers are skeptical of the longstanding conventional wisdom that housing is a surefire long-term investment.

That?s meant that investors, lured by bargain prices, have become a much larger share of buyers than in past recoveries. But it remains to be seen how durable that ?hot money? demand will be, said Pinto, the former Fannie Mae executive.

?In two or three years, they could all turn on a dime and decide this isn't the asset class they thought it was, and then they sell,? he said. ?If that happens right at the time that interest rates happen to go up, then I think we're into a really tough situation.?

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/six-year-housing-hangover-tough-shake-1C8434499

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