Novel therapeutic advancement in search for heart muscle progenitor cells: New hope for heart attack patients

ScienceDaily (Nov. 22, 2012) ? Breakthrough in heart research: The research team from Professor Katja Schenke-Layland of the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB in Stuttgart has discovered cell surface markers that enable the identification and isolation of living functional cardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs). For the first time, therapeutically relevant CPCs can be derived from induced-pluripotent stem cells (iPS) cells. CPCs, which are typically only found in fetal development, can become all of the different cell types of the heart and can integrate into heart muscle tissue after injection.

An estimated 17 million people die from cardiovascular disease each year. Although mortality rates are declining, heart attacks are still among the most frequent causes of death in the developed world. Often, the cause of a heart attack is the closure of a coronary artery that supplies blood to the heart, which kills heart muscle cells. Cardiomyocytes, which are the heart muscle cells responsible for the contraction of the heart, are not able to regenerate after a heart attack. The massive loss of cells and tissue, and the highly restricted regeneration capacity of the adult heart, lead to an impaired blood supply throughout the body that drastically affects a patient's quality of life. To restore the heart's function after a major heart attack, clinicians require functionally mature cardiomyocytes that perform like the native cells in the adult heart to replace the cells that were killed.

The production of such functional cardiomyocytes from well-defined cardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs) is the focus of the research team led by Prof. Dr. Katja Schenke-Layland from the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB in Stuttgart and her colleagues, Dr. Ali Nsair of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and Prof. Dr. Robb MacLellan of the University of Washington in Seattle, who have now succeeded in identifying such cells in a mouse model. The work could revolutionize the treatment of heart disease.

Development of heart muscle cells from precursor cells

Myocardial cells -- as well as endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells -- develop from CPCs during the embryonic development of humans and other animals. There has been a significant amount of research effort towards discovering a path for the clinical application of these cells in patients. The reason for the lack of success is that the markers that help to identify CPCs, such as Islet1 or Nkx2.5, are located in the nucleus of the cells. The use of these cell markers modifies the cells rendering them therapeutically unusable, making the identification of safe cell-surface markers essential.

Surface markers identified for cardiovascular progenitor cells

On this task, the research team of Professor Katja Schenke-Layland from the Fraunhofer IGB in Stuttgart, Prof. Dr. Robb MacLellan and Dr. Ali Nsair of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), where Schenke-Layland previously worked before returning to Germany to join the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft's Attract Program, focused their research. With success: They were able to identify two markers, the receptors Flt1 (VEGFR1) and Flt4 (VEGFR3), on the surface of CPCs with which these cells can be clearly identified while fully preserving their biological function. This discovery allows scientists to isolate clinically relevant cardiovascular progenitor cells that can be functionally matured.

In the search for surface markers, the researchers investigated the cardiovascular progenitor cells using microarray gene expression profiling. These studies show exactly which genes are active at a specific point in time. The resulting data from this analysis were compared to the sequencing data from existing databases of already known as cell markers.

From induced-pluripotent stem cells, cardiovascular progenitor cells are developed

Encouraged by the success of being able to identify and isolate living CPCs, the researchers sought out to derive the cells from induced-pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. For this purpose, they used a method for which the Japanese scientist Shinya Yamanaka was recently awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize for Medicine. This work, published just six years ago, demonstrated that only four proteins are responsible for the embryonic state of cells (Takahashi K, Yamanaka S. Cell 2006, 126 (4): 663 -676). He brought those four genes into differentiated -- mature and specialized -- cells, which then returned them back to an embryonic state. From these cells, which he called iPS cells, scientists can develop all cells of the body, such as liver cells, nerve cells or heart muscle cells.

In their study, the researchers used cells from a mouse strain in which the cells are labeled with a visible green fluorescent protein (GFP) that can be identified with a fluorescence microscope. The cells from these mice were then reprogrammed with the same four genes discovered by Yamanka, resulting in iPS cells that could be easily identified.

In a next step, the researchers cultured the GFP-labeled iPS cells in the laboratory under different conditions with cell-influencing solutions such as growth factors. "Using our newly established cell surface markers, we could detect and isolate the Flt1 and Flt4 positive CPCs in culture," says Schenke-Layland. "When we cultured the isolated mouse CPCs then in vitro, they actually developed -- as well as the embryonic stem cell-derived progenitor cells -- into endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and more interestingly into functional heart muscle cells."

iPS cell-derived CPCs integrate into the living mouse heart

But how do the developed CPCs behave in living organisms? Can these cells really integrate into tissue and regenerate heart muscle? To answer these questions, the scientists injected the GFP-labeled CPCs into the hearts of living mice. After 28 days, the researchers analyzed the hearts and saw that the green fluorescent cells had developed into beating heart muscle cells and had fully integrated into the myocardial tissue of the mouse.

Enormous potential for heart research

Researchers have long tried to stimulate the regeneration of heart muscle cells. For this purpose, they inject stem cells or stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes into the heart. Although the majority of studies found a slight improvement in heart function, in most cases, neither long-term integration nor the differentiation of the cells into heart muscle has been demonstrated.

The result of the group from Schenke-Layland, Nsair and MacLellan provides the first opportunity to generate functioning heart muscle cells, which integrate into the heart muscle. "We are currently focusing on research with human iPS cells. If we can show that cardiovascular progenitor cells can be derived from human iPS cells that have the ability to mature into functional heart muscle, we will have discovered a truly therapeudic solution for heart attack patients," hopes the scientist.

The work of the research group has been funded by the German-American funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), as well as the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (Attract Program), the Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of Baden-W?rttemberg, and the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Ali Nsair, Katja Schenke-Layland, Ben Van Handel, Denis Evseenko, Michael Kahn, Peng Zhao, Joseph Mendelis, Sanaz Heydarkhan, Obina Awaji, Miriam Vottler, Susanne Geist, Jennifer Chyu, Nuria Gago-Lopez, Gay M. Crooks, Kathrin Plath, Josh Goldhaber, Hanna K. A. Mikkola, W. Robb MacLellan. Characterization and Therapeutic Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiovascular Progenitor Cells. PLoS ONE, 2012; 7 (10): e45603 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0045603

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.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/BY4-eiieI8A/121122112833.htm

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91% Lincoln

All Critics (160) | Top Critics (43) | Fresh (145) | Rotten (15)

It's the most remarkable movie Steven Spielberg has made in quite a spell, and one of the things that makes it remarkable is how it fulfills those expectations by simultaneously ignoring and transcending them.

Lincoln paints a powerful and compelling portrait of the man who has become an icon. We don't need to see more of his life to understand how rare a figure he was - this window is more than sufficient.

Lincoln offers proof of what magic can happen when an actor falls in love with his character. Because as great as Day-Lewis has been in his many parts, he has never seemed quite so smitten.

The film masterfully captures the dual dilemmas facing the president in the final months of his life: how to bring the war between the states to an end, and how to eradicate slavery, once and for all.

Lincoln is a stirring reminder that politics can be noble. Might there be a lesson here for today's shrill D.C. discourse? 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished.

Day-Lewis' voice is thin and reedy, which jibes with historical accounts but subverts our expectations. His attitude makes listeners lean in, and so do we, magnetized by his kindly reserve.

Daniel Day-Lewis is picture-perfect as 'Lincoln.'

Spielberg respects his audience's intelligence enough to tell the complex story and maintain a great deal of historical accuracy.

Why don't we give the best actor Oscar to Daniel Day-Lewis right now and save everyone a lot of trouble?

A poignant portrait of Lincoln's last days, time spent as a marked man making his appointed rounds en route to his rendezvous with destiny.

The best aspect of Lincoln is the stellar performance by Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln. Day-Lewis always is devoted to finding the authenticity.

Lincoln's cast gets high marks for making the film more entertaining than it has any right to be.

Superlative and spellbinding, this surprisingly relevant observation on the essence of leadership is, undoubtedly, one of the best pictures of the year.

Figuratively, at its visual core, 'Lincoln' is a collection of Mathew Brady photos come to life. Daniel Day-Lewis dominates. His Oscar worthy performance encompasses greatness...(He) IS Lincoln.

For all its good intentions and spurts of innovation, it never really comes alive as living, breathing history. Instead, it too often plays like an audio reading of the Congressional Record, with some unwieldy domestic scenes tossed in for good measure.

What I wanted to say to Daniel Day-Lewis and Sally Field: for God's sake, just stop and take your Oscars...you're breaking my heart and you're killing me.

Too long, too many side stories but great work from Daniel Day-Lewis. Director Steven Spielberg often shoots him in poses that make him look like Lincoln's famous penny.

No matter what, Lincoln is a sharp and patient movie that compares well to other contemplative films seen in recent years. Like The Social Network or Moneyball, we step inside the process and explore it in vivid detail.

A lively, intelligent, and even fun examination of how one man inspired America to change forever.

Lincoln lives, vividly, in Daniel Day-Lewis' performance.

We end up believing in the actor, in Lincoln himself, and in his mission - if not exactly the self-imposed pomp and circumstance of the history lesson.

Lincoln peels back the mythos just enough to give us glimpses of our 16th President as a living, breathing man and the result of this loving portrait is one of the best movies of the year.

This is how the political sausage is made and it will make you feel better about American Democracy. Not many movies can say that.

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lincoln_2011/

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3 great garden improvements to add value to your home | Beverley ...

In the struggle against the economy throughout the UK it is essential any improvement we make is guaranteed to add value to our homes, whether it being inside or out. Today I focus this article on 3 great garden improvements to add value to your home.

In this article I intend to show you three garden improvements that I have seen work on so many occasions when it comes to the overall value of the home and also for enjoyment for the family.

Adding/Improving a decking area

One thing that makes our garden a focal point of the home is a good decking area, seen by many as an extra living space or room to the home having a decking area is an improvement definitely worthwhile.

Adding a decking area to your home is not a very expensive garden improvement compared to the returns you could get on the valuation of your home. But if you already have a decking area and it looks run down then simply giving it another lick of paint and showing it some attention can in fact make a huge difference. Along with adding a lick of paint I would advise you firstly sand down any areas that are subject to wear and tear to give a smooth, relaxing and also enjoyable feel to the place once again.

When it comes to selling your home any surveyor, estate agent and also potential buyers see a well looked after decking area as a huge plus point to any home. Any home that doesn?t have one will probably lose valuation on it due to the fact as this is seen as a home improvement to be done.

Once your decking are is either revitalised or created it is a good idea to add some modern outdoor furniture. This creates that ultimate living space, with the potential of summer parties and BBQ?s something wanted by most in the modern era. A decking area should be one of the first garden improvements to any home.

Conservatories

The conservatory has become one of the most popular home improvements throughout the UK. And today I intend on classing it as a garden improvement simply because of the fact it is an extension on our homes, from our gardens.

With the conservatory being a home improvement that everybody seems to love why wouldn?t it add valuation to your home? When estate agents, surveyors or potential buyers see a well formatted, nicely decorated and also conventional conservatory they are not only likely to add value to your home, but also increase its selling appeal.

Yes at first the conservatory may seem a fairly expensive improvement but in the long run you should see a substantial increase in your homes valuation as I just spoke about. The conservatory is also one of the only garden improvements that you can use whatever the weather. Lets be honest with the unpredictability of this in the United Kingdom being sheltered from the weather is a huge plus in the garden.

Garden Rooms

This is a personal favourite of mine, and something that I would advise anybody to do. Not only because of the huge improvement you could see in your homes valuation through the installation of the garden room but also simply for the fact a garden room can have whatever use you want.

Popular designs for garden rooms include:

• Home Gym
• Bedroom
• Home Office
• New Kitchen
• Hideout for teenagers

The garden room is in my opinion probably the best garden room design to date, with the range of possibilities being endless. When I spoke about the conservatory, I believe the garden room is the next level of garden room improvement. With a conservatory you may be limited to a certain size however the garden room can literally be planned, designed and built to whatever size you deem appropriate.

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Source: http://beverleyoutdoorfurniture.co.uk/blog/3-great-garden-improvements-to-add-value-to-your-home-2/

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Terrance Zdunich ? Blog Archive ? Surgery, Surgery!

Posted by terrance | Filed under Happenings, Random Musings

Last week, your friendly neighborhood GraveRobber underwent surgery, surgery. Below is an account of the experience, including photos? so if you haven?t the stomach for scalpels and blood, or simply prefer not to have your recollections of me, or the characters I play in film, sullied with skin growths, puss, and bile, then read no further. If, however, you?re brave enough to join me in the ?infected tent?, then peel off your bandaids, grab a pastrami sandwich, and roll up a gurney for a little surgery storytime!

I can?t feel nothing at all?

The skin on my scalp is prone to cysts. Other than this nasty malady, I?m extremely fortunate in the physical health department. I was born with all my limbs intact, never needed braces, have perfect vision, and can count the times I?ve had to visit a doctor on one hand. This fitness lottery ticket has been a blessing for this broke-ass, non-health-insurance-card-carrying artist, but it?s also left me ill-prepared to navigate the counterintuitive, bureaucratic nature of America?s healthcare system.

As I was saying, I?m prone to cysts. Sebaceous cysts, to be specific. These growths, commonly brought about by clogged hair follicles, are like big pimples. They sprout like grapes on a vine, grow, and don?t go away without surgery. Although unsightly, these cysts aren?t dangerous. In my case, I?ve had a handful of of them on my noggin, hidden beneath my hair, for years.

Over the last twelve months or so, one of these fatty masses, located near my hairline, grew to the point where it was not only visible, but became an irritant whenever I?d wear headphones or run a brush through my mane. This particular cyst?let?s call him Lucius?was also a source of embarrassment.

Earlier this year, sitting in the makeup chair on the set of The Devil?s Carnival, the makeup team would stretch latex and rubber over my skull each night to transform me into the character of Lucifer. During this process, I?d weather shame and self-consciousness, worried that I was grossing out my coworkers with my cysts. Or, at the very least, being judged. Every time a new artist would apply the Lucifer prosthetics, I?d preemptively announce, ?don?t worry, it?s not contagious.? The same awkwardness held true with barbers, and pretty much anyone who came in contact with my pebbly pate.

On The Devil?s Carnival?s road tours, I found myself hiding my cyst-laden cranium beneath beanies and hats for fear of weirding out fans. One could pretty much gage my confidence level on a given night based on whether or not I was sporting a cap.

Worse, I?d usually feel bad about feeling bad over something so minor. My bashfulness seemed petty in the knowledge of people suffering from way worse physical afflictions than my own? some of whom may have been seated in our audiences on tour, many of whom suffered from ailments that were probably incurable. I also felt like a pansy for putting such stock in my appearance. This critical awareness did little to temper my insecurities, however. Like a killer who knows that DNA evidence could lead to capture yet still jerks off at the crime scene, I could not repress my self-consciousness.

In the spirit of cleaning house to wrap up 2012, I decided to deal with my cysts. In October, I filed my taxes, organized my studio, groomed the Minotaur, and made inquiries to have Lucius permanently detached from my dome. And, in the spirit of conquering my fears by facing them, I also committed to sharing the experience?cysts and all?in this blog.

With a cut and stitch?

Before I go into the gory details of the operation, I feel compelled to mention the experience of piloting the American healthcare system without medical insurance? an adventure far more gruesome than the surgery itself.

I?d heard the horror stories about American healthcare. We all have. But I naively believed that living in Los Angeles?one of the largest, most diverse cities in the free world?with cash in hand, and knowledge of the procedure I needed, I could readily find a facility that would help. How wrong I was?

Like a responsible citizen, I started out by researching my ailment, including the complexity and cost of the removal process. I did this before burdening the waiting room of a clinic with my presence, taking seats away from someone who might need attention more than I. Armed with knowledge on sebaceous cysts, I contacted a handful of local medical centers, explained exactly what I needed, asked for a quote, and announced that I?d be paying cash. Apparently, saying that you won?t be using a third party system to pay is on par with asking to barter with seashells, as I was met with bewilderment at every turn. A cyst removal, I might add, is a relatively inexpensive procedure.

I eventually found a clinic, made an appointment, paid the visiting fee (which was non-refundable, but allegedly would be deposited against the cost of the surgery), sat down on the doctor?s slab, and braced myself for the knife. Instead, I was informed that the surgery would need to be a separate visit, at a separate location, with a different doctor, and that the visitation fee I paid was basically just for the referral. Even though I was crystal-clear about what I needed before arrival, and that I didn?t require an incidental system to handle payment or reference, here I was, cash in hand, being made to jump through hoops.

Resentfully, I took their referral, but expressed how I viewed their lack of transparency regarding the predictable outcome of my visit as an unethical affront. They apologized, and then warranted that I would 100% be treated by a surgeon at the new clinic. They also gave me a comprehensive quote on what the procedure would cost per cyst (I had funds enough to remove two, including Lucius).

By the time the second appointment rolled around, I was more than eager to have the operation, and to put this affair behind me. But because of the prior experience, I was also skeptical. Apprehensively, I paid for another office visit, which I was now informed would not be credited towards the procedure. I was also told that the doctor would only have time to remove one cyst, that if I wanted more than one removed, I?d need to make another appointment, and pay for yet another office visit.

As you can imagine, this news was not only disappointing, but infuriating. I held my tongue, clinched my jaw, and repeated a silent mantra that a hospital was no place for a spree killing. I also considered the ramifications of insulting a surgeon before surgery. This would be akin to insulting a chef before dining, and then wondering how the loogie came to be a-floating in my soup.

Frustration aside, I?d like to state that both of the doctors I saw struck me as honest, altruistic people who, through no choice of their own, were made to contend with an asinine, counterproductive system to deliver their art. I am thankful that these compassionate souls exist, but wish the American medical ministry was more about doctors and patients and less about paperwork.

Once all of the bureaucratic roadblocks were hurdled, my time spent under the knife was remarkably quick and painless. The doc even allowed photos to be taken of the extraction process, including posing for a snapshot while holding the removed cyst and flashing devil horns (Courtney, thanks for photographing the filthy proceeding without vomiting or passing out!). The whole affair took about fifteen minutes, which included numbing the area, making an incision, squeezing out the grape-sized intruder?a pink glob that looked like a fetus?and then stitching me back up. In two-weeks? time, the three stitches can be removed. I?ll be doing this myself as I?ll be damned if I?ll pay for another hospital visit for such a simple task. I also refuse to pay for what will most likely be a hidden referral fee for a hidden referral to a stitch specialist.

Even with my surgeon?who I knew had seen far greater monstrosities than the minefield on the roof of my skull?I felt pangs of embarrassment as she examined, and then excised, the cyst? so I am relieved to share that Lucius is gone (burned or buried at sea, I hope!) and that my scalp, and my pride, have begun the healing process. Please help me in bidding Lucius, adieu.

If you feel so inclined, please share some of your own medical war stories below (I?m tempted to say pictures or it didn?t happen, but I?m not sure this blog allows photo attachments).

Permalink | | Nov 20, 2012

Source: http://www.terrancezdunich.com/blog/surgery-surgery/

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Iran says U.S., powers must be more constructive in atom talks

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Iran is ready for new talks with global powers on its nuclear program but the United States and others seeking to rein in its uranium enrichment activities must be more constructive, Tehran's ambassador to Russia said on Monday.

Barack Obama's re-election has increased the chances of a revival of talks between Iran and six powers, but the envoy said the U.S. president should "change the conduct of the United States as regards Iran and choose a more logical approach."

Ambassador Reza Sajjadi said senior Iranian officials had conveyed Tehran's preparedness for new negotiations to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov last week, but his remarks appeared to set a firm tone for any new round.

"We hope that in the next talks, the six nations - instead of (applying) a double standard, would approach these talks more constructively," Sajjadi told a news conference, speaking through an interpreter.

Three rounds of talks since April have failed to resolve the long dispute over Iran's nuclear program, which Western powers say is aimed at developing a nuclear weapons capability. Iran denies this, saying its program is for peaceful energy only.

But neither side has been willing to abandon dialogue, in part because a total breakdown could heighten the risk of Israel bombing Iranian nuclear facilities, potentially igniting a new war in the Middle East.

The six nations leading diplomatic efforts with Iran - permanent U.N. Security Council members the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China, as well as Germany - meet on Wednesday to discuss negotiating strategy.

UNDERGROUND ENRICHMENT

Iran's critics say it has used talks to play for time while drawing closer to weapons capability, mostly by increasing its stockpile of uranium enriched to a level - 20 percent - that makes it relatively easy to further process to bomb grade.

Uranium enrichment refined to 5 percent is suitable to fuel civilian nuclear power plants - Iran has none but says it plans to build them - while Tehran says the 20 percent product is for running its Tehran medical research reactor.

A U.N. nuclear agency report last week said Iran is set to sharply expand its uranium enrichment after installing all the centrifuges its underground Fordow plant was built for. Uranium is being enriched to 20 percent purity there.

Asked whether the additional centrifuges at Fordow would be used to refine to 20 percent or to the lower level required to make reactor fuel, Sajjadi did not answer directly but gave no indication they would be used for lower-level enrichment.

"Fordow already is operating, and ... is carrying out enrichment of uranium up to 20 percent," he said.

Sajjadi said a priority for Iran at a new round of talks would be receiving a formal response from the global powers to a "five-point" proposal that Tehran put forward at previous talks and includes a range of nuclear and non-nuclear issues.

He did not elaborate on how the United States and other powers could be more constructive. But his references to "logical approach" and "double standard", have often been used by Iranian negotiators and are regarded as code language for Tehran's demand for formal recognition of the right to enrich uranium and a removal of U.N. sanctions.

They were also another signal that Iran would not buckle under increasingly harsh economic sanctions meant to pressure it to suspend enrichment and negotiate on safeguards that big powers see as vital to ensuring Iran's program is peaceful.

"During the talks, the United States had two approaches up until now. First of all, they wanted to force Iran to retreat and to reject its legal rights. And second, to damage Iran's economy and deliver blows to the Iranian people," Sajjadi said.

"Iran has shown that there will be no retreat and that the reaction of the Iranian people to such mistaken actions will be decisive. So it is probably necessary for Mr. Obama to change the conduct of the United States as regards Iran and choose a more logical approach."

A diplomat familiar with Fordow said that 700 centrifuges which had been newly installed and tested were ready to start enriching "any day" but that it was still unclear whether they would be used for 20 percent refined uranium - as the 700 already operating there - or for lower-grade material.

"They can be used for 20 percent and can also be used for 5 pct," the diplomat said. They are fully ready."

(Additional reporting by Fredrik Dahl in Vienna, editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iran-says-u-powers-must-more-constructive-atom-131925954.html

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/contracept/main/~3/j1tk8GCe7uo/the-canada-goose-outlet-is-promotional-product-spun1

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Fundraiser Benefits Woman Battling Breast Cancer

Twin Falls, Idaho (KMVT-TV) "Sheri is a wonderful Aunt, Sister, Cousin and Friend," said Kammi Gearheart.

Sheri Kelley loves doing things for all of her family, particularly her sixteen nieces and nephews. But Saturday Evening, the tables turned. Kelley is battling breast cancer and to help her out. Her family held a fundraiser at Nazzkart.

"She is self employed right now, she she's looking for help with this fundraiser and that's what we're doing here tonight, trying to help her make it through these next four months while she won't be able to actually work," said Kammi Gearheart, Sheri's sister.

Kelley cleans houses and while she is doing chemotherapy, she won't be able to physically work. Part of the fundraiser featured a chili dinner, raffle and door prizes. If you weren't able to make it to the fundraiser, there are still ways you can help.

"We actually have a Facebook page called Fundraiser for Shelley King. They can go on there and contact one of us and they can message us and we can send them either an address that they can donate to or we can pick up any donations or money," said Cassandra Searvy.

If you want to help, you can also donate at any Farmer?s National Bank where a Sheri Kelley fundraiser account has been setup.
Friends and family trying who are trying to give back to someone who has given them so much.

Source: http://www.kmvt.com/news/local/Fundraiser-Benefits-Woman-Battling-Breast-Cancer-179829931.html

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Raging bull elephant attacks tourists in South Africa

The bull elephant thrust its tusk through the driver?s door before scooping the car up and turning it over in Kruger National Park.

It injured British driver Chris Hare, but his fiancee Helen Jennings, escaped unscathed.

They had to wait inside the Hyundai Atos for the elephant to leave before Mr Hare sank down in shock by the roadside, holding his injury.

He was treated at the scene by a doctor and taken to hospital.

The 40-year-olds were celebrating their engagement at the world famous resort on Monday.

Speaking yesterday, Miss Jennings? mother, Barbara, from Durham, said: ?I spoke to Helen just after it happened.

?They thought they were going to die. I?m so relieved they are OK.?

?They just started their holiday and had arrived in Africa on Saturday? November 10.

?They have another ten days left but they were really shaken up. I just want to thank the people who came to their aid after it happened. They were looked after really well.?

The attacked occurred a few minutes after the beast rammed a white Chevrolet Aveo. It lifted the car off the ground and dropped it.

It then marched off into the bush, re-emerging around a bend to attack the? silver Hyundai.

Eyewitness Vasti Fourie, who filmed the attack, said: ?It happened so quickly. I?ve never seen anything like this and I?m sure they haven?t either.?

Source: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/918095-raging-bull-elephant-attacks-tourists-in-south-africa

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Attorneys Get Unique New Tool for Defending Veterans in Criminal Court

Veteran?s Day 2012 can celebrate a major new tool for defense attorneys who work with veterans in the criminal court system. The Veterans Defense Project is launching the "Attorneys? Guide to Defending Veterans in Criminal Court." This 800+ page publication will provide attorneys, judges, expert witnesses, and others who work with veterans, the very cutting-edge in understanding the nature of combat stress, its ties to criminal behavior, and how we can avoid repeating mistakes made with past generations of returning war veterans. The book will include contributions from leading experts in the fields of law, history, medicine, mental health, and social work in order to provide comprehensive coverage.

Orlando, FL/Minneapolis, MN (PRWEB) November 14, 2012

Publication of "The Attorney?s Guide to Defending Veterans in Criminal Court," which has been eagerly anticipated, is being published by the Veterans Defense Project (VDP), a newly-formed organization, located in Minneapolis, MN, dedicated to education and advocacy for veterans in the criminal justice system. The National Veterans Foundation, which initiated the concept, continues to support the VDP by financing the book?s first printing.

This 800+ page publication will provide attorneys, judges, expert witnesses, and others who work with veterans in the justice system, with the very cutting-edge in understanding the nature of combat stress, its ties to criminal behavior, and how we can avoid repeating mistakes made with past generations of returning war veterans. The book will include contributions from leading experts in the fields of law, history, medicine, mental health, sociology and social work in order to provide comprehensive coverage. Contributors include such respected names as: Judge Robert T. Russel (founder of the Veterans? Treatment Courts), Dr. Jonathan Shay, M.D., Ph.D. (authority on combat trauma and criminal conduct), Marku Sario, Esq. (presented the first PTSD-based insanity defense), Trista Matascastillo, Catherine O?Connor, and Mary-Beth Boyce (covering women's issues), Dr. Ronald Glasser, M.D., Dr. Chrisanne Gordon, M.D.(experts on TBI), Linda McDermott, Esq. (Porter v. McCollum), and Peter R. Breggin, M.D. (TBI, PTSD, and Antidepressant Drugs). This is just the tip of the list of experts providing coverage in this book.

A recently-released study by the National Academy of Sciences? Institute of Medicine reported that 2.6 million Americans have now served in Iraq or Afghanistan and up to 20%, more than a half-million, are suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Untreated, many of these psychologically-injured veterans are acting out in reckless, self-destructive and, sometimes, violent ways that bring them into contact with the criminal justice system.

The Veterans Defense Project believes what history tells us: that as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wind down, the numbers of troubled veterans flooding into our criminal courts will swell. Emerging research reveals a pattern of traumatized combat veterans surfacing in the criminal justice system following every major American conflict. Unfortunately, veterans of past conflicts were often treated quite harshly when their psychological injuries led them into criminal behavior, destroying lives and families, and missing opportunities for rehabilitation and redemption.

We can do better this time around. The American criminal justice system has already begun prepare for the aftermath of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Veterans Treatment Courts are cropping up in nearly every state, veteran sentencing mitigation statutes are being enacted, and post-traumatic stress is increasingly being recognized as a basis for the insanity defense in certain, more extreme, cases. Much more needs to be done, however, to educate the justice system and make the changes necessary to be ready when the wave of troubled veterans hits.

"The Attorneys? Guide to Defending Veterans in Criminal Court" is intended to be the tool to instruct attorneys in all aspects of representing veterans facing criminal charges. From establishing an effective attorney-client relationship, accessing treatment and documenting military service ? to pretrial negotiation, trial and sentencing, this Guide will be the very first of its kind publication to fully address the criminal justice needs of our veterans. Prosecuting attorneys, along with judges and expert witnesses, will also find the publication an invaluable guide in understanding the critical nature of their role.

The Guide also goes beyond purely legal topics, covering a wide range of relevant subjects, including the historical context of combat stress, sociological trends following wars, the current science and treatment of disorders common in troubled veterans, and understanding the military?s unique culture.????The table of contents of the Guide shows, both, the depth and breadth of this one-of-a-kind publication.

American hero Max Cleland in his Foreword to the publication says, ""No matter what our broken places are in life we can become strong at those broken places. Though wounded by war or life we can find strength in our friends and love in our surroundings if we look for them. We know that through our wounding we can become healers of others if we try. This book is a testament to the spirit and life work of organizations like the NVF and VDP. May it be used by all in service to those who have given so much to our great nation." Actor and long-time veterans advocate, Martin Sheen, offers his support for the book: "The Attorneys Guide to Defending Veterans in Criminal Court is a vital resource to serve the growing number of returning veterans who face charges stemming from service-related substance abuse to mental health issues. By using the criminal justice system as an intervention tool, we can connect our veterans to the treatment they earned through military service and ensure they do not fall through the cracks into chronic incarceration and homelessness."

The Veterans Defense Project wants all returning veterans to have the best legal representation possible. Editor-in-Chief Brockton Hunter(a criminal defense attorney in Minneapolis, MN) and others from the NVP stand ready to address questions regarding the new organization and this much-needed and much-anticipated one-of-a-kind book.

Dennis McClellan
DC Press LLC
407-688-1156
Email Information

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/attorneys-unique-tool-defending-veterans-criminal-court-083225110.html

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Google wants 2.25 percent cut of Microsoft's Surface

If you thought that Apple was bad in its patent trolling antics, it is looking like Google not only wants its own bridge but will be crowned King of the Trolls.

Since Google bought Motorola as a defensive action on patents, many had been wondering what evil the company could manage on the likes of Microsoft and Apple who had been playing a similar game with them.

Now it turns out that Google wants 2.25 percent of all the cash Microsoft makes from its new Surface tablet along with cash from technologies used by Windows and the Xbox 360.

The patent trial at the US District Court in Seattle heard how Google wants the judge to also consider new and future Microsoft products that implement Motorola's patented technology when he sets the royalty rates that Microsoft should pay for Motorola's patents.

Google claims that since the 802.11 WiFi technologies are critical to Surface, because it doesn't have an Ethernet port or cellular broadband, Vole should pay up for that too.

The amount Microsoft is required to pay could depend on the significance of the particular patent in the final product.

Vole told US District Judge James Robart that the amount paid by Microsoft in licensing fees should be proportionate to the contribution of Motorola's patents to the relevant industry standard, and to the role of the patented technology in the Microsoft products that implement the standard.

According to Geekwire,?Google laywers pointed out that Vole was working on its own smartphone, which undoubtedly will have wi-fi capabilities, so it should pay for that too.

Windows executive Jon DeVaan admitted that the Surface uses H.264 video technologies, which are also at issue in the case, covered in separate Motorola patents.

Microsoft said that Motorola's original offer to licence patents to Microsoft for 2.25 percent of the end product price was outrageous and could earn Google $4 billion a year.

It is especially outrageous because Motorola promised to standards bodies to offer access to the "standard essential" patents on fair and reasonable terms.

Google claims that Microsoft gave up its right to a reasonable royalty the moment it started patent trolling in response to Motorola's initial royalty demand. ?Thus blaming its trollship on Microsoft's earlier trollship, has the world gone mad??

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Source: http://news.techeye.net/hardware/google-wants-2-25-percent-cut-of-microsofts-surface

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Nepal Telecom launches Wimax service | ktm2day ||| ktm2day

?? Nepal Telecom launches Wimax service Posted in TECH on Nov 13, 2012 | no responses

Nepal Telecom (NT) on Monday commercially launched WiMax?wireless broadband internet service.

In the initial phase, the company has targeted to provide the service to the corporate customers of the Kathmandu Valley.

The NT has installed around four dozen base transcriber stations across the Valley for the purpose.

The state-owned telecom operator said that the customers subscribing to the service would be able to get maximum speed up to 20 mbps at much cheaper rate compared to other data services currently available in the local market.

Addressing the launching programme of the NT?s new data service, Minister for Information and Communications Raj Kishor Yadav said that the WiMax project would help connect country?s rural areas to information super highway.

?WiMax would greatly facilitate the government?s plan on expanding the broadband internet service to remote areas,? he said.

Through the WiMax project, the NT has been planning to take wireless broadband internet to all 3,915 VDCs of the country within a year.

Subash Chandra Sah, chief of NT?s WiMax Project, assured that the service would be covering all parts of the country in one year once installation works in the western part of the country get over.

The WiMax project has a total capacity of 200,000 lines. ?We are also in final stage to sign a contract for UBS dongle that enables general customers to use WiMax,? said Sah, adding that the service would be available to general customers in the near future.

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Published on:?Nov 9, 2012

Nepal Telecom (NT) is launching its much-talked-about WiMax technology-based broadband internet service on Monday.

In the initial phase, the company has targeted the service for corporate customers of Kathmandu such as business houses, hospitals, educational institutions, diplomatic missions, tourism entrepreneurs, government offices, NGOs and INGOs.

NT has said the internet service would offer band width of up to 20 mbps. ?The service is initially being launched with major focus on corporate segment and rural areas with minimum speed of 256 kbps,? said Guna Kesari Pradhan, spokesperson for NT. She added the service would be available to general users within three months ?after we fix some equipment related problems?.

Corporate customers will have buy Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) from NT depending on their need. As for general customers, NT will sell USB dongle. Outdoor CPE (device that is capable of providing internet signal for up to 15km radius) will cost Rs 16,000. Indoor device having range of up to 5km will cost Rs 12,000.

The 100,000 lines? capacity internet service, in the first phase of WiMax project, will have coverage within Sanga (East), Balambu (West), Budanilkantha (North) and Dakshinkali (South) of the Kathmandu Valley. Pradhan said they would be taking the WiMax data service to all parts of the country within a year after implementation of the second phase in Pokhara and Bhairahawa.

NT will provide CPEs for free to corporate customers subscribing to the service for at least a year, according to NT. To start with its new data service project, NT has unveiled three types of volume-based service packages?256 kbps, 512 kbps and 1 mbps.

The tariff will be based on packages?from 5 GB at Rs 650 per month to Rs 5,190 for 60 GB package with speed of 1 mbps or above.

NT has also fixed the tariff for WiFi service to be made available after setting up WiFi Hotspots. Customers will have to buy voucher of Rs 50 for using 200 mb internet, Rs 100 for 500 mb and Rs 200 for 1,500 mb. NT will build 1,500 WiFi Hotspots across the country at public locations such as universities, hospitals.

Source: http://www.ktm2day.com/2012/11/13/nepal-telecom-to-launch-wimax-on-12th-nov/

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Family Tree DNA Conference 2012 ? Nits and Grits | DNAeXplained ...

First things first!? I want to thank Max and Bennett for graciously hosting the 8^th Annual Genetic Genealogy Conference in Houston, Texas!? This is actually the 9^th year, but a pesky hurricane interfered one year.? Max and Bennett are very generous with their time and resources and heavily subsidize this conference for us. ?We?re registering in the photo above.

Georgia Kinney Bopp said it best.? At some point during this amazing conference, someone tweeted an earlier quote from a conversation between Ann Turner and Georgia:

?it?s hard to realize you?re living history while it happens??

This was ever so true this weekend.? Even my husband (who is not genetic?genealogy crazy)?realized this.? I?m not sure everyone at the conference did, or realized the magnitude of what they were hearing, as we did have a lot of newbies.? Newbies are a good thing.? It means our obsessive hobby and this industry have staying power and there will be people to pass the torch to someday.

I?ve already covered the Native American focus meeting in an earlier blog.

For those of you who want the nitty gritty play by play as it happened at the conference, go to www.twitter.com and search for hashtag #ftdna2012.? If you want some help with Twitter, I blogged about that too.? Twitter is far from perfect, but it is near-realtime as things are happening.

As always, Family Tree DNA hosts a reception on Friday evening.? This helps break the ice and allows people to put faces with names.? So many of us ?know? each other by our e-mail name and online presence?alone.

We had a special guest this year too, Nina, a little?puppy who was rescued by Rebekah Canada just a few days before the conference.??Nina?behaved amazingly well and many of us enjoyed her company.?

Bennett opened the conference this year, and in the Clint Eastwood political?tradition, spoke to his companion, the chair named Max.? The real Max, it turns out, was losing his voice, but that didn?t prevent him from?chatting with?us and answering questions from time to time.

While Bennett was very low key with this announcement, it was monumental.? He indicated that the parent company of Family Tree DNA has reorganized a bit.? It has changed its name to Gene by Gene and now has 4 divisions.? You can check this out at www.genebygene.com.? This isn?t the monumental part.

The new division, DNADTC?s new products are the amazing parts.? Through this new division, they are the first commercial company to offer a full genome sequence test.? The price, only $5495.? For somewhat less, $695,?they are offering the exome, which are your 20,000 genes.? Whoever though it would be a genetic genealogy company who would bring this to the public.? Keep in mind that the human genome was only fully sequenced?in 2003 at a?cost of?3 billion dollars.

The amazing part is that a full genome sequence?cost about?3 million in 2007?and the price will continue to fall.? While consumers will be able to order this, if they want, it comes with no tools, as it is focused at the research community who would be expected to have their own analytical tools.? However, genetic genealogists being who and what they are, I don?t expect the research market will outweigh the consumer market for long, especially when the price threshold reaches about $1000.

Bennett also said that he expects that National Geographic will, in 2013 sometime, decide to allow upgrades from Family Tree DNA clients for the Geno 2.0 product.? This will allow those people who cannot obtain a new sample to participate as well.? However, an unopened vial will be required.? No promises as to when, and the decision is not his to make.

The first session was Spencer Wells via Skype from Italy.? Spencer has just presented at two conferences within the week, one in San Francisco and one in Florence, Italy.? Fortunately, he was able to work us into his schedule and he didn?t even sound tired.

Of course, his topic was the Geno 2.0?test which is, of course,?run on the new GenoChip.? The first results are in the final stages of testing, so we should see them shortly.? Sometime between the 19^th and the end of the month.

This product comes with all new migration maps.? He showed one briefly, and I noticed that one of the two Native Y-lines are now showing different routes than before.? One across Siberia, which hasn?t changed, and one up the pacific rim.? Hmmm, can?t wait for that paper.

The new maps all include heat maps which show frequency by color.? The map below is a haplogroup Q heat map, but it is NOT from the Geno project.? I?m only using it as an example.

Spencer indicated that the sales of the 2.0 product rival those of the 1.0 product and that they have sold substantially more than 10K and substantially less than 100K kits so far.? In total, they have sold more than 470,000 kits in over 130 countries.? And that?s just the public participation part, not the indigenous samples.? They have collected over 75,000 indigenous samples from more than 100 populations resulting in 36 publications to date with another half dozen submitted but not yet accepted.? Academic publication is a very long process.

Nat Geo has given 62 legacy grants to indigenous communities that have participated totaling more than 1.7 million dollars.? That money comes in part from the public participation kits, meaning Geno 1.0 and now 2.0.

Geno 2.0 continues to be a partnership between National Geographic and Family Tree DNA.? Family Tree DNA is running all of their samples in the expanded Houston lab.? Also added to the team is Dr. Eran Elhaik at Johns Hopkins University?who has developed a new tool, AIMSFINDER, that locates never before identified Ancestral Informative Markers to identify population specific markers.? This is extremely important because it allows us to read our DNA and determine if we carry the markers reflective of any specific population.? Well, we don?t do the reading, they do with their sophisticated software.? But we are the recipients with the new deep ancestral ethnicity results which are more focused on anthropology than genealogy.? Spencer says that if you have 2% or more Native American, they can see it.? They have used results from both public and private repositories in developing these tools.

This type of processing power combined with a new protocol that tests all SNPS in a sequence, not just selected ones, promises to expand the tree exponentially and soon. It has already been expanded 7 fold from 863 branches of the Y tree to 6153 and more have already been discovered that are not on the GenoChip, but will be in the next version.

The National Geographic project will also be reaching out to administrators and groups who may have access to populations of interest.? For example, an ex-pat group in an American city.? Keep this in mind as you think of projects.

Another piece of this pie is a new educational initiative in schools called Threads.

This isn?t all, by any means, on this topic, I really do encourage you to go and use Twitter hashtag #ftdna2012.? Several of us were tweeting and the info was coming so fast and furious that no one could possibly get it all.

The future with Nat Geo looks exceedingly bright.? We have gone from the Barney Rubble age to the modern era and now there is promise for a rosy and?as yet undiscovered future.

Judy Russell was next.? I have to tell you, when I saw where they positioned her, I was NOT envious.? I mean, who wants to follow Spencer Wells, even if he?s not there in person.? Well, if anyone was up to this, it certainly was Judy.? For those who don?t know, she blogs as The Legal Genealogist.

Judy is one of us.? That means she actually understands our industry, what drives genealogists and why.? In addition to being a lawyer, she is a certified genealogist and a genetic genealogy crazy too.? Maybe I shouldn?t call a lawyer crazy?.well?it was meant as a compliment:)

Judy has the perspective to help us, not just criticize us remotely.? She reviewed several areas where we might make mistakes.? After all, we?re all volunteers coming from quite varied backgrounds.? She suggests that we all put some form of disclosure on our projects explaining what participants can expect in terms of use.? She used the Core Melungeon project as a good example, along with the Fox project.

?The goal of this project is to use DNA to better understand the origins of the Melungeon people, and this will be done by comparing the DNA with other project members, those outside of projects, and will incorporate relevant genealogical and historical research. All participants will be included in the ongoing studies and by joining the project, you are giving consent for your information to be anonymously included in ongoing genetic genealogy research. Your personal identity will not be revealed, but your results will be used to better understand the Melungeons as a people and their ancestors.?

From the Fox project:

?The exact function of these STR markers is not yet known and they have no known medical function but recent research shows they have some sort of regulatory function on the genes. While there is no medical information in these numbers, the absence of a certain few markers near a fertility gene could indicate sterility ? something that would certainly already be known.

The results do provide a partial means of personal identification and, for this reason, our haplotype tables list only the FTDNA kit number and the most distant known male line ancestor. Within the project, however, the administrators feel free to disclose identities, particularly when a close match occurs.?

Judy?s stressed that we not tell people that there is no medical information revealed.? Partially, because we?ve discovered in rare cases that?s not true, and partially because we can?t see into the future.

Judy talked about regulation and that while we fear what it might intentionally or inadvertently do to genetic genealogy, it?s important to have regulations to get rid of the snake oil salesman, and yes, there are a couple in genetic genealogy.? They give us all a black eye and a bad name when people discover they?ve been hoodwinked. However, without regulation of some sort, we have no legal?tools to deal with them.

Regulation certainly seems to be a double-edged sword.

I hope that Judy writes in her blog?about what she covered in her session, because I think her message is important to all administrators and participants alike.? And just to be clear, the sky is not falling and Judy is not Chicken Little.? In fact, Judy is the most interesting attorney I have ever heard speak, and amazingly reasonable too.? She actually makes you WANT to listen, so if you ever get the chance to see one of her webcasts or attend one of her sessions, take the opportunity.

Following the break, breakout sessions began.? CeCe Moore ran one about ?Family Finder,? Elise Friedman about ?Group Administration? and Thomas Krahn provided?the ?Walk the Y Update.?? Bennett called this the propeller head session.? Harumph Bennett.? Guess you know which one I attended.? All sessions were offered a second time on Sunday.

Thomas said that they have once again upgraded their equipment, doubling their capacity again.? This gives 4 times the coverage of the original Walk the Y, covering more than 5 million bases.? To date, they have run 494 pre-qualified participants and of those, 198 did not find a new SNP.

There are changes coming in how the palindromic region is scored which will change the matches shown.? Palindromic mismatches will now be scored as one mutation event, not multiples.? Microalleles will able be reported in the next rollout version, expected probably in January.? The problem with microalleles is not the display, but the matching routine.

Of importance, there has not been an individual WTY tested from haplogroups B, M, D or S, and we need one.? So if you know of anyone, please contact Thomas.

Thomas has put his Powerpoint presentation online at ?http://www.dna-fingerprint.com/static/FTDNA-Conference-2012-WalkThroughY.pdf

The next session by Dr. Tyrone Bowes was ?Pinpointing a Geographical Location Using Reoccurring Surnames Matches.?? For those of us without a genetic homeland, this is powerful medicine.? Dr. Bowes has done us the huge favor of creating a website to tell us exactly how to do this.? http://www.irishorigenes.com/

He uses surnames, clan maps, matches, history and?census records to reveal surname clusters.? One tidbit he mentioned is that if you don?t know the family ethnicity, look at the 1911 census records and their religion will often tell you.? Hmm, never thought of that, especially since our American ancestors left the homeland long ago.? But those remaining?in the homeland are very unlikely to change, at least not in masse.? I?m glad he gave this presentation, or I would never have found his webpage and I can?t wait to apply these tools to some of my sticky-wickets.

This ended Saturday?s sessions, but at the end of every day, written questions are submitted for that day?s presenters or for Family Tree DNA.

Bennett indicated that another 3000 or 4000 SNPs will be added to the Family Finder calculations and a new version based on reference samples from multiple sources will be released in January.

Bennett also said that if and when Ancestry does provide the raw downloadable data to their clients, they will provide a tool to upload so that you can compare 23andMe and Ancestry both with your Family Finder matches.

Saturday evening is the ISOGG reception, also called the ISOGG party.? Everyone contributes for the room and food, and a jolly good time is had by all.? There is just nothing to compare?with face to face communications.

For me, and for a newly found cousin, this was an amazing event.? A person named Z. B. Stroud left me a message that she was looking for me.? When I found her, along with her friend and cousin Revis, she tells me that she matches me autosomally, at 23andMe, and that she had sent me a sharing request that I had ignored.? I am very bad about that, because unless someone says they are related, I presume they aren?t and I don?t like to clutter up my list with non-related people.? It makes comparisons difficult.? My bad.? In fact, I?m going right now to approve that sharing request!!!

I will blog about this in the future, but without spilling too many beans?.we had a wonderful impromptu family reunion.? We think our common ancestor is from the Halifax and Pittsylvania County region of Virginia, but of course, it will take some work to figure this out.

I?m also cousins with Revis Leonard?(second from left).? We?ve known that for a long time, but Z.B. whose first?name is Brisjon (second from right) is new to genealogy, DNA and cousin matching. I?m on the right above. ?The Stroud project administrator, Susan Milligan, also related to Brisjon is on the left end.? In the center are Brisjon?s two cousins who came to pick her up for dinner and whom she was meeting for the first time.

But that?s not all all, cousin Brisjon also matches Catherine Borges.? Let me tell you, I know who got the tall genes in this family, and I?m not normally considered short.? Brisjon?s genealogical journey is incredibly amazing and she will be sharing it with us in an upcoming book.? Suffice it to say, things are not always what you think they are and Brisjon is living proof.? She also met her biological father for the first time this weekend!? I?m sure Houston and her 2012 visit where she met so many family members?is a?watershed event?in her lifetime!? She is very much a lovely lady and I am so happy to have met her.? Cousins Rule!

ISOGG traditionally has its meeting on Sunday morning before the first session.? Lots of sleepy people because everyone has so much fun at the ISOGG party and stays up way too late.

Alice Fairhurst, who has done a remarkable job with the ISOGG Y SNP tree (Thank you Alice!)?knows an avalanche is about to descend on her with the new Geno 2.0 chip.? They are also going to discontinue the haplogroup names, because they pretty much have to, but will maintain an indented tree so you can at least see where you are.? The names are becoming obsolete because everytime there is an insertion upstream, everything downstream gets renamed and it makes us crazy.? It was bad enough before, but going from 860+ branches to ?6150+ in one fell swoop and knowing it?s probably just the beginning confirms the logic in abandoning the names.? However, we have to develop or implement some sort of map so you can find your relative location (no pun intended)?and understand what it means.

Alice also mentioned that they need people to be responsible for specific haplogroups or subhaplogroups and they have lost people that have not been replaced, so if anyone is willing or knows of anyone?.please contact Alice.

Alice also makes wonderful beaded double helix necklaces.

Brian Swann (sorry, no picture) is visiting from England this year and he spoke just a bit about British records.? He said it?s imperative to learn how they work and to use some of the British sites where they have been indexed.? He also reminded us to check GOONS (Guild of One Name Studies) for our surnames and that can help us localize family groups for recruiting.? He said that you may have to do family reconstructions because to get a Brit to test you have to offer them something.? That?s not terribly different from over here.? He also mentioned that today about half of the British people having children don?t marry, so in the next generation, family reconstruction will be much more difficult.? That too isn?t so terribly different than here, although I?m not sure about the percentages.? It?s certainly a trend, as are varying surname practices even within marriage.

Dr. Doron Behar began the official Sunday agenda with a?presentation?about the mtCommunity and a discussion of his recently published paper ?A ?Copernican? Reassesement of the Human Mitochondrial DNA Tree from its Root.?? This paper has absolutely revolutionized the mitochondrial DNA community.? I blogged about this when the paper was first released and our home pages were updated.? ??One point he made is that it?is important to remember is that your mutations don?t change.? The only thing that changes between the CRS (Cambridge Reference Sequence) and the RSRS (Reconstructed Sapiens Reference Sequence)? model is what?your mutations?are being compared to.? Instead of being compared to someone from Europe who live in 1981 (the CRS) we are now comparing to the root of the tree, Mitochondrial Eve (RSRS) as best we can reconstruct what her mitochondrial DNA looked like.

He also said that when people join the mtCommunity, their results are not automatically being added to GenBank at NCBI.? That is a separate authorization?check box.

A survey was distributed to question participants as to whether they want results, when they select the?GenBank option, to be submitted with their kit number.? Now, they are not, and they are under Bennett?s name, so any researcher with a question asks Bennett who has no ?track back? to the person involved.? About 6000 of the 16,000 submissions today at GenBank are from Family Tree DNA customers.? Dr. Behar said that by this time next year, he would expect it to be over half.? Once again, genetic genealogy pioneers are leading the way!

At these conferences, there is always one session that would be considered the keynote.? Normally, it?s Spencer Wells when he is on the agenda, and indeed, his session?was wonderful.? But at the 2012?conference, this next session absolutely stole the show.? Less public by far, and much?less flashy, but at the core root of all humanity.

You can?t really tell from the title of this session what is coming.? Michael Hammer with Thomas Krahn and Bonnie Schrack, one of our own citizen scientists, presented something called ?A Highly Divergent Y Chromosome Lineage.?? Yawn.? But the content was anything but yawn-material.? We literally watched scientific discovery unfold in front of our eyes.

Bonnie Schrack is the haplogroup A project administrator.? Haplogroup A is African and is at the root of the entire haplotree.? One of Bonnie?s participants, an African American man from South Carolina agreed to participate in WTY testing.? In a nutshell, when Thomas and Astrid began scoring his results, they continued and continued and continued, and wound up literally taking all night.? At dawn?s first light, Thomas told Astrid that he thought they had found an entirely new haplogroup that preceded any known today.? But he was too?sleep deprived?to be sure. Astrid, equally as sleep deprived, replied with ?Huh?? in disbelief.? It?s certainly not a statement you expect to hear, even once in your lifetime.? This is a once in the history of mankind event.

Dr. Michael Hammer confirmed that indeed, they had discovered the new root of the human Y tree.? And not by a little either, but by a lot.? For those who want to take a look for yourself, Ysearch ID 6M5JA.? Hammer?s lab did the age projection on this sample, and it pushed the age of hominid men back by about 100,000 years, from 140,000 years ago to 237,000 years ago.? They then reevaluated the aging on all of the tree and have moved the prior date to about 200,000 years ago and the new one to about 338,000 years ago with a 98% confidence level.? This is before the oldest fossils that have been found, and also before the earliest mitochondrial DNA estimate, which previously had been twice as old as the Yline ancestor.

The previous root, A1b has been renamed A0 and the new root, just discovered is now A00.? Any other new roots discovered will simply get another zero appended.

How is it that we?ve never seen this before?? Well, it turns out that this line nearly went extinct.? Cruciani published a paper in 2012 that included some STR values that matched this sample, but fortunately, Michael Hammer?s lab held the actual samples.? A search of academic data bases reveals only a very few close matches, all in western Cameroon near the Gulf of Guinea.? Interestingly, next door, in Nigeria, fossils have been found younger than this with archaic features.? This is going to cause us to have to reevaluate the source of this lineage and with it the lineage of all mankind.? We must now ask the question about whether perhaps we really have stumbled upon a Neanderthal or other archaic lineage that of course ?became? human.? Like many scientific discoveries, this answer only begs more questions.? My husband says this is like Russian tea dolls where ever smaller ones are nested in larger ones.

This discovery changes the textbooks, upsets the proverbial apple cart in a good way, and will keep scientists? thinking caps on for years.? And to think, this was a result of one of our projects, an astute project administrator (Bonnie)?and a single project member.? I wonder what the man who tested?thinks of all of this. He is making science and all he thought he was doing was testing for genealogy.? You just never know where the next scientific breakthrough will come from.? Congrats to all involved, Bonnie, Thomas, Michael and to Bennett and Max for having this evolution?revolution happen right in their lab!

If I felt sorry for Judy following Spencer, I really felt sorry for the breakout sessions following Thomas, Michael and Bonnie?s session.? Thankfully at least we had a break in-between, but most people were wandering around with some degree of stunned disbelief on their faces.? We all found it hard to?fathom that?we had been?among?the first to know of this momentous breakthrough.

I had a hard time deciding which session to attend, CeCe?s ?Family Finder? session or Elise?s.? I decided to attend Elise?s ?Advanced Admin Techniques? because I work with autosomal DNA with my clients and I tend to keep more current there.? Elise?s session was great for newer admins and held tips and hints for us old-timers too.? I realized I really need to just sit down and play with all of the options.

There are some great new features built in that I?ve never noticed.? For example, did you know that you can group people directly from the Y results chart?without going to the subgrouping page?? It?s much easier too because it?s one step.? However, the bad news is that you still can?t invite someone who has already tested to join your project.? Hopefully that feature will be added soon.

The next session was ?A Tale of Two Families? given by Rory Van Tuyl detailing how he used various techniques to discern whether individuals who did not show up as matches, meaning they were beyond the match threshold, were actually from the same ancient family or not.? Rory is a retired engineer and it shows in his attention to detail and affinity for math.

We always tell people that mutations can and do happen at any time, but Rory proved this.? He ran a monte-carlo simulation and showed that in one case, it was 50 generations between mutations, but in others, there was one mutation for three generations in a row.? Mutations by no means happen at a constant rate.? Of course, this means that our TIP calculator which has no choice but to use means and averages is by definition ?not calibrated? for any particular family.

He also mentioned that his simulation shows that by about 150 generations, there are a couple of back mutations taking place.

The final session before the ending Q&A was Elliott speaking about IT, which really translates into new features and functions.? Let?s face it, today everything involves IT.

Again, I was having trouble typing fast enough, so you might want to check the Twitter feed.

They added the SNP maps (admins, please turn them on) and the interactive tour this year.? The tour isn?t used as much as it should be, so everyone, encourage your newbies to do this.

They have also added advanced matching, which I use a lot for clients, but?many people didn?t realize it.? So maybe a quick tour through the website options might be?in order for most of us.

They are handling 50 times more data now that a year ago.? Just think what next year will bring.? Wow.

They are going to update the landing page again with more color and more visible options for people to do things.? I hope they prompt people through things, like oldest ancestor mapping, for example.? Otherwise, if it isn?t easy, most don?t.

They are upgrading Population Finder and the Gedcom viewer.? They are adding a search feature.? Thank you!!? Older Gedcome will still be there but not searchable.

But the best news is that they are adding phasing (parent child) and an advanced capability to ?reconstruct? an ancestor using more distant relatives, then the ability?to search using that ancestral profile against Family Finder.? Glory be!? We are finally getting there.? Maybe my dreaming big wasn?t as far away as I thought.

They will also remove the 5 person autosomal?download restriction and the ?in common with? requirement to see additional information.? All good news.? They are also upgrading the Chromosome browser to add more filtering options.

They are also going to offer a developer ?sandbox? area for applications.

The final Q&A session began with Bennett saying that their other priorities preclude upgrading Y search to 111 markers.

They are not planning to drop the entry level tests, 12 or 25 markers or the HVR1. If they do, lots of people will never take that plunge.? I was very glad to hear this.

And by way of trivia, Family Tree DNA has run more than 5 million individual tests.? Wow, not bad for a company that didn?t exist, in an industry that didn?t exist, 12 years ago!

It?s an incredible time to be alive and to be a genetic genealogist!? Thank you Family Tree DNA for making all of this possible.

Source: http://dna-explained.com/2012/11/13/family-tree-dna-conference-2012-nits-and-grits/

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Some Dems: drive over 'fiscal cliff,' then bargain

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin of Ill., pauses while speaking to the reporters on Capitol Hill Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2012, in Washington, as the lame duck 112th Congress returned. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin of Ill., pauses while speaking to the reporters on Capitol Hill Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2012, in Washington, as the lame duck 112th Congress returned. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif. gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2102, with newly elected Democratic House members. At left is Rep.-elect Patrick Murphy, D-Fla. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Some Democrats are pushing an unorthodox idea for coping with the "fiscal cliff": Let the government go over, temporarily at least, to give their party more bargaining leverage for changes later on.

The idea has plenty of skeptics, and the White House regards it frostily. But it illustrates the wide range of early negotiating positions being staked out by Republicans and Democrats as lawmakers gathered Tuesday for their first postelection talks on how to avoid the looming package of steep tax hikes and program cuts.

Just as brazen, in the eyes of many Democrats, is the GOP leaders' continued insistence on protecting tax cuts for the rich. President Barack Obama just won re-election, campaigning on a vow to end those breaks.

Democrats and Republicans appear heading toward another round of brinkmanship that will test who blinks first on questions of major importance. It's a dance that has infuriated many Americans, shaken financial markets and drawn ridicule from foreign commentators.

In late 2010, after big GOP midterm election wins, Obama backed off his pledge to raise taxes on the rich. In the summer of 2011, House Republicans pushed Congress within a hair of refusing to raise the debt ceiling, leading to the first-ever downgrade of the government's credit rating. And last December, it was the Republicans' turn to blink, yielding to Obama's demand to extend a payroll tax break.

The "fiscal cliff" deadline comes in seven weeks. One provision: Unless Congress acts, all Bush-era tax cuts would expire, raising 2013 tax bills for most Americans. Obama wants to end those tax cuts only for households making more than $250,000 a year. Republicans insist on no tax rate increases anywhere.

If the "fiscal cliff" takes effect, congressional Republicans would feel pressure to give ground in several areas to achieve their top goal: restoring tax cuts for as many people as possible. That's why Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and other Democrats have said their party's leaders should seriously consider letting the Jan. 1 deadline pass and then negotiate with Republicans under sharply different circumstances. Some or most of any new agreements could be made retroactive to Jan. 1, they say.

If Republicans refuse to let tax cuts expire for the wealthy, Murray told ABC's "This Week," ''we will reach a point at the end of this year where all the tax cuts expire and we'll start over next year. And whatever we do will be a tax cut for whatever package we put together. That may be the way to get past this."

Murray's allies say voters would blame Republicans for refusing to yield, especially on tax rates, given that Obama won re-election. A recent Pew Research poll supports that view. More than half of the respondents said they would chiefly blame congressional Republicans if there's no compromise on the fiscal cliff; 29 percent would blame Obama.

It's questionable whether Obama and Congress' Democratic leaders would let the government go over the fiscal cliff. Numerous financial analysts say the event would frighten markets, alarm employers and probably trigger a new recession.

However, there's a school of thought that the cliff is actually a slope, and the economy could withstand the effects of the automatic spending cuts and the renewal of Clinton-era tax rates for at least a few weeks to give time for negotiations to continue. Liberals note that tax rate increases would be felt gradually.

"In the first paycheck of the year, people will see that their withholding is up, but it's not the like the whole amount of their tax bill for the course of the year takes place in their first paycheck. It happens gradually," said Chad Stone, an economist with the liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

The second part of the cliff package includes across-the-board spending cuts of $109 billion a year, split equally between military and domestic programs and known in Washington-speak as a sequester.

Some budget experts say the spending cuts would phase in gradually. Also, Social Security, Medicare and food stamps are exempt. And agency fiscal chiefs have flexibility to mitigate the effects of the sequester.

But such tools are limited. They might buy only a little time before the spending cuts begin to bite harshly, requiring agencies to furlough employees and causing delays in awarding government contracts.

Many say even talk of going over the cliff is sheer folly.

"You're going to have big financial market repercussions to this," warned economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a former director of the Congressional Budget Office. "Those sorts of confidence measures you don't control ? and they happen abruptly."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., showed no interest in challenging the fiscal cliff. "I want you to be disabused of any notion that there is any widespread thought that it would be a good thing, for our country, for us to go over the cliff," she told reporters Tuesday.

Some Democrats think Republicans are ready to bargain anyway.

"Republicans have a pretty good track record of not blinking," said Jim Kessler, co-founder of the centrist-Democratic group Third Way. "But they had a bright white light shine in their eyes on Election Day."

Third Way is floating a possible compromise, designed to raise $1.3 trillion in new revenue over 10 years without changing the Bush-era income tax rates. It would cap itemized tax deductions at $35,000. Charitable deductions, however, would be exempt, a nod to the powerful lobbies of universities and other charity beneficiaries.

The plan also would move upwardly mobile earners into higher tax brackets more quickly. It would reinstate the 2009 estate tax exclusion to $3.5 million, with a tax rate of 45 percent for values above that threshold. And it would raise the tax rate for capital gains and dividends by 5 percentage points, to 23.8 percent.

"Nearly all revenue from this package comes from upper income earners," Kessler said. His group would prefer to raise tax rates on the wealthiest, he said. But the compromise plan gives Republicans a break on that contentious issue.

Also embroiled in the end-of-year negotiations is the Alternative Minimum Tax, which Congress routinely adjusts to prevent big tax hikes on millions. If Congress fails to act by Dec. 31, an additional 28 million middle-income families would be hit with a large and unexpected tax increase when they file their 2012 returns next spring, the IRS says. Also, the annual AMT "patch" usually includes a rule that affects how tax credits are calculated for about 60 million taxpayers. Those taxpayers ? about half of all individual filers ? would have to wait until at least the end of March to file their returns while the IRS reworks its systems to account for the existing AMT patch expiring, the agency said.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said Obama hopes for a big bipartisan compromise that will include spending cuts, revenue increases and other features to avert the fiscal cliff. Obama has made it clear, Carney said, "that he is not wedded to every aspect of his plan, and that he understands that in order to reach an agreement, everyone needs to compromise, and that compromise should not be a dirty word in Washington."

___

Associated Press writers Jim Kuhnhenn and Stephen Ohlemacher contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-11-13-US-Fiscal-Cliff/id-22df8cd2a88c4008ab4d58e46028b640

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