Polygamy groups ?thankful? for gay marriage decisions, likely to follow efforts in Canada seeking equal rights

The movement to legalize multi-partner marriage got a huge boost with this week?s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that the federal government must give benefits to same-sex married partners, according to advocates of polygamy.

?We polyamorists are grateful to our brothers and sisters for blazing the marriage equality trail,? Anita Wagner Illig told U.S. News and World Report.

Polygamy logo by Akrabbim via wikimedia commons

She works as an educator, activist and writer of a blog called Practical Polyamory.

?I would absolutely want to seek multi-partner marriage ? it would eliminate a common challenge polyamorists face when two are legally married and others in their group relationships aren?t part of that marriage,? she said.

She, like many critics of gay marriage, argued it?s a matter of equality ? the concept cited by the U.S. court in its decision.

?A favorable outcome for marriage equality is a favorable outcome for multi-partner marriage, because the opposition cannot argue lack of precedent for legalizing marriage for other forms of non-traditional relationships,? she said.

?If it was decriminalized, and you gave women and men the choice, you would create a much more healthy environment for both the community itself but also for the people living it,? Elisa Wall told FOX 13. ?Because people could come in and out if they chose to. More than anything, my personal belief is that creating that foundation for a healthy polygamous lifestyle is the only way we?re going to impact the youth. It?s the only way we?re going to protect them.?

Wall spoke in the interview discussing the movement that some of those who still live ? and believe ? in the principle of plural marriage insist decriminalization would allow people to freely report potential abuse without fear of the entire family being prosecuted.

Polyamorists in Canada, which is ahead of the United States by several years in expanding the definition of marriage, are demanding formal recognition.

The Canadian Polyamory Advocacy Association said this month it wants to see polyamoras relationships treated on the same legal footing as others.

From Chicago Now:

If polygamy were once again declared legal, think of the extended family support that it would provide to single women and children who cannot find either a member of the opposite sex or same sex to enter into a loving union with them.

Here are 5 good reasons to reinstate polygamy:

1. Provide food and shelter by private means

2. Allow the terminally single, men and women, to have some sort of lasting ?and legal union with benefits, no matter if not complete and whole.

3. To provide for the care of children, which can supplement the government?s burden.

4. To form close-knit and protective communities.

5. To provide for the sexual variety that many psychologists ?claim necessary to keep a marriage alive.

Fair is fair, and the time is now.

?

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About the Author

Brandon Jones - Writer and Co-Founder of The Global Dispatch, Brandon has been covering news for Examiner, starting and writing for several different websites including the diverse blognews site Desk of Brian. To Contact Brandon email [email?protected] ATTN: BRANDON

Source: http://www.theglobaldispatch.com/polygamy-groups-thankful-for-gay-marriage-decisions-likely-to-follow-efforts-in-canada-seeking-equal-rights-29828/

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The SciArt Buzz: ScienceArt on Exhibit in July/Aug 2013

Looking for a way to escape the summer heat? Pop into any of these galleries nationwide or abroad and get your fix of cool temps and hot sciart.

EXHIBITS: NORTHEAST REGION

WINGED TAPESTRIES: Moths at Large
through September 29, 2013

American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West and 79th St.
New York, NY

Witness the arresting beauty and surprising diversity of moths in a presentation of more than 30 large-format prints by Canadian photographer Jim des Rivi?res. Des Rivi?res creates these larger-than-life images by scanning each moth at high resolution to reveal unexpected colors and intricate patterns.

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MARSH MADNESS: Wonders of Wetlands
June 7 ? July 26, 2013

Legacy Foundation Gallery
Community School of Music and Arts
Ithaca, NY

Members of the Finger Lakes Chapter of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators present a sampling of some of their favorite wetlands species and habitats. Participating artists: Paula Bensadoun, Henrike Burton, Candy Cima, Marla Coppolino, Margaret Corbit, Camille Doucet, Gretchen Halpert, Phil Hutchings, Shirley Hogg, Iva Lesky, Liisa Mobley, Margy Nelson, Kathy Schlough, and Susanne Williams. Photographs are by our special guest, Daniel Elswit, of Mist, Light & Stone Photography.

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COLLISION:19
June 14 to July 28, 2013

Boston CyberArts Gallery
141 Green Street
Jamaica Plain, MA

COLLISION:19 includes twenty-two artists from eight countries around the world whose work lingers at the junction of art, technology and science. Some pieces, such as Elizabeth Fuller?s Schr?dinger, address our acceptance of scientific theories. Schr?dinger is an exercise in frustration: the closer you approach the piece, the more difficult it is to see the subject. Others are social experiments where technology is implemented to uncover something about human behavior. This can be seen in Lauren McCarthy?s Social Turkers: Crowdsourced Relationships where Amazon?s Mechanical Turk (a website where one can hire a person to perform jobs that computers aren?t able to accomplish) gets paid to watch and give feedback on romantic dates. Chosen from an international open call, COLLISION:19 exemplifies the diverse range of work produced by artists working under the influence of technology.

_____________

Princeton University?s ART of SCIENCE
through September 15, 2013

Liberty Science Center
222 Jersey City Boulevard
Jersey City, NJ

The Art of Science exhibition marks Princeton University?s 6th annual competition for images that explore the interplay between science and art. Both of these disciplines involve the pursuit of those moments of discovery when what is perceived suddenly becomes more than the sum of its parts. Each piece in this exhibition is, in its own way, a record of such a moment. These 44 extraordinary images are not art for art?s sake. Rather, they were produced during the course of scientific research. For those not able to make it to New Jersey to view the exhibition in person, the images and the science behind them can be viewed online.

_____________
EXHIBITS: SOUTH

BIRDS IN ART
May 25 to August 18, 2013

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN

Since 1976, the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum has organized Birds in Art annually, seeking to present the very best contemporary artistic interpretations of birds and related subject matter. This touring exhibit presents original paintings, sculptures, and graphics created in the last two years by artists from the world over, and celebrates the timeless appeal of birds through fresh artistic interpretations. Visitors can expect such works as: the sleek warmth of Lucinda Kate McEachern?s bronze plumed whistling duck; the stark contrast of a bulbul bird against rusted rebar in a Karl Taylor acrylic painting; and Hubert the bright-eyed screech owl in charcoal and ink on paper by Karen Bondarchuk.

_____________
EXHIBITS: MIDWEST

ART UNDER THE MICROSCOPE: Bioartography Quilts
June 3 ? August 31, 2013

Center for Care and Discovery
University of Chicago Hospitals
5841 S. Maryland Avenue
Chicago, IL

A collection of 16 textured quilts inspired by scientific photographs of biological structures is being exhibited at the Center for Care and Discovery, marking the beginning of a series of art installations set for the new hospital pavilion. Photomicrographs taken by researchers at the University of Michigan Center for Organogenesis inspired each of the quilts in the exhibit. Washington, D.C.,-area art quilters from a group called Fiber Artists @ Loose Ends emulated the researchers? photomicrographs using fabrics such as suede, tulle and satin embellished with glass beads, crystals and embroidery to make textile renditions of the microscopic blood vessels, skin cells, retinas and other human and animal tissues.

_____________
ANIMAL INSIDE OUT: A Body Worlds Production
March 14 ? September 2, 2013

Museum of Science and Industry
5700 S. Lakeshore Drive
Chicago, IL

This exhibit, from anatomist Dr. Gunther von Hagens?creator of the trailblazing Body Worlds exhibitions?showcases amazing animal specimens preserved through the process of plastination, which replaces the body?s fluids with plastics to incredibly detailed effect. From goats to giraffes and octopuses to ostriches, you?ll see the inner workings of some of the world?s most impressive animals and better understand the evolution of animals and the natural world.

_____________
FRAGILE ENDURANCE: Work by Kate MacDowell
February 10 ? September 22, 2013

John Michael Kohler Arts Center
608 New York Avenue
Sheboygan, WI

FRAGILE ENDURANCE explores the friction and discomfort in man?s relationship with nature. These works raise the question of our own vulnerability within changing ecological systems. Kate MacDowell?s choices of material and subject matter respond to environmental stressors such as climate change and species extinction. Her case studies of two extinct species?the Costa Rican golden toad and the passenger pigeon?can be seen as thoughtful records of lost life forms and commentaries on our own culpability.

**Kate MacDowell?s work was previously featured on Symbiartic in Conservation Conversation in Clay.

_____________
EXHIBITS: WEST

RUNNING WILD
June 1 ? July 13, 2013

Anthology Fine Art Gallery
635 Santa Fe Drive
Denver, CO

Patrick Maxcy is a painter, illustrator, and muralist who is fascinated by the natural world. His exhibit, Running Wild, showcases his back-to-the-basics drawing chops and his flair for telling compelling stories. His drawings are worth the trip alone for any appreciator of art, but if you?re a fellow science geek, he will win you over instantly with his depictions of hairy yeti crabs, giant tube worms, and his liberal use of cephalopods.

**Patrick Maxcy?s work was previously featured on Symbiartic in You Had Me At Hydrothermal Vent Worms.

_____________
THE ART OF RECOLOGY
May 16 ? October 27, 2013

F2 ? North Connect Gallery
San Francisco International Airport,
United Airlines Terminal (Terminal 3)
San Francisco, CA

This exhibition celebrates the Recology San Francisco Artist in Residence Program and presents over one-hundred pieces made by forty-five artists. Founded in 1990, the Recology San Francisco Artist in Residence Program promotes recycling and reuse, and encourages people to reflect on how their consumption practices affect the environment. All of the works on display were made in the art studio at the San Francisco Solid Waste Transfer and Recycling Facility and constructed from materials the artists scavenged from the Public Disposal and Recycling Area (or what we affectionately refer to as ?the dump?).

_____________
New Paintings by KEVIN SLOAN
July 28 ? August 10, 2013

William Havu Gallery
1040 Cherokee Street
Denver, CO

**Kevin Sloan?s work was previously featured on Symbiartic in What Would Audubon Paint Today?

_____________
EXHIBITS: ABROAD

Martin Klimas: SONIC SCULPTURES
April 10 ? July 6, 2013

The Landestheater
Linz, Austria

To celebrate the opening of a new opera house in Linz, Austria, artist Martin Klimas is exhibiting 20 photographs of his SONIC sculptures. To create these lively jaunts of color, Klimas droped paint on a thin membrane and subjected it to music by Paul Hindemith, Carl Orff, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Mouse on Mars, Kraftwerk and more. What does music look like? This is one interpretation.

_____________
Susan Aldworth: TRANSIENCE
June 6 ? July 20, 2013

GV Art Gallery
49 Chiltern Street, Marylebone
London, England

?Could I translate the physicality of the brain into an artwork? It would be the ultimate portrait of someone made from the authentic marks of the physical brain itself.? ?Susan Aldworth 2013

This solo exhibition includes ground breaking work by the artist Susan Aldworth as she continues her investigations into the relationship between mind and body. Since 1999, Aldworth, an experimental print and film maker who combines digital photography and state of the art medical imagery in her work, has explored the depths of consciousness and the transience of self. Her persistent fascination with the physical brain has led to a new body of work which has evolved using techniques from the most traditional to the more radical, as shown in this exhibition. In Transience Aldworth explores the brain as matter and has made a suite of prints ? a historical first ? etching directly from human brain tissue.

_____________

THE ART OF SCIENCE: Scientific Illustrations from Museum Victoria
June 01, 2013 ? July 21, 2013

Art Gallery of Ballarat
40 Lydiard Street North
Ballarat, Victoria AUSTRALIA

Whether they fly, swim, crawl, wiggle or walk, we are endlessly fascinated and inspired by the creatures of our world.The Art of Scienceshowcases the uncommon beauty produced from 300 years of exacting scientific observation and illustration. As exploration and science have expanded our horizons across time and space, the ability to capture and communicate the truths held in nature have become increasingly important. Scientific artwork is as important and astonishing today as it was in the 18th century. In this exquisite exhibition Museum Victoria presents the development of scientific art from the State museum?s seldom seen collection of artworks and rare books, and stunning images produced with microscopes, macro-lenses, and computers.

_____________
EXHIBITS: ONLINE
Science Art-Nature?s WINDOWS ON EVOLUTION: An Artistic Celebration of Charles Darwin

The University of Tennessee?s EARLY IMAGES OF EGYPT: Selected Images of Egypt in the Photographic Archive Collection of the Frank H. McClung Museum

Know of something we haven?t listed here? Send me an email at symbiartic (dot) km (at) gmail (dot) com, or tweet me @eyeforscience with the deets. If it?s scienceart related, it?s fair game.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/~r/sciam/basic-science/~3/d6X25-7rv7Q/post.cfm

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Are college student hook-ups linked to anxiety and depression?

June 28, 2013 ? As narratives of "hook-up" culture take center stage in popular media, behavioral researchers are starting to ask what psychological consequences, if any, may be in store for young adults who engage in casual sex.

A new study in The Journal of Sex Research found higher levels of general anxiety, social anxiety, and depression among students who recently had casual sex. Entitled Risky Business: Is There an Association between Casual Sex and Mental Health among Emerging Adults?, the study surveyed over 3,900 heterosexual college students from across the United States about their casual sex behaviors and mental well-being. "Casual sex" was defined as having intercourse with a partner one has known for less than a week. Students from over 30 institutions around the country completed the online survey, making this the largest sample to be collected for a study on this topic. On average, 11% of students reported a casual sex encounter during the month prior to the survey, the majority of whom were men.

The study was led by Dr. Melina M. Bersamin of California State University, Sacramento. According to Dr. Bersamin, "It is premature to conclude that casual sexual encounters pose no harmful psychological risks for young adults." The results "suggest that among heterosexual college students, casual sex was negatively associated with well-being and positively associated with psychological distress."

The researchers also investigated the role of gender in determining mental distress linked to casual sex. Prior studies have found that women respond more negatively to casual sex than men, possibly because of double standards that allow men to have more sexual encounters with a greater number of partners than women. In this study, however, gender did not have an effect on outcomes.

"Risky Business" opens the door to future research questions about causal links between sexual behavior and mental health. Researchers have yet to determine whether casual sex leads to psychological distress, or if existing mental health problems cause young adults to engage in riskier behaviors.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Taylor & Francis, via AlphaGalileo.

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

---

Journal Reference:

1. Melina M. Bersamin, Byron L. Zamboanga, Seth J. Schwartz, M. Brent Donnellan, Monika Hudson, Robert S. Weisskirch, Su Yeong Kim, V. Bede Agocha, Susan Krauss Whitbourne, S. Jean Caraway. Risky Business: Is There an Association between Casual Sex and Mental Health among Emerging Adults? Journal of Sex Research, 2013; DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2013.772088

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/xp6zErJJCRw/130628130934.htm

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Federal decisiveness thrives, for a week at least

WASHINGTON (AP) ? For all the talk of Washington gridlock, the three branches of government are asserting their powers this week, and sometimes surprising their closest observers.

The Supreme Court kept affirmative action alive on college campuses and cleared the way for gay married couples to get federal benefits. A compromise-crafting Senate passed major immigration legislation. And President Barack Obama issued long-awaited orders to combat climate change.

It's possible these events will ultimately amount to little. The House might stifle the immigration bill, for instance. And the Supreme Court ordered a lower court to look hard at colleges' consideration of race when recruiting students.

Still, the first week of summer proved that all facets of the federal government still pack punches, even in a capital riven by partisanship.

The Supreme Court decisions caused the biggest stirs. The justices infuriated conservative lawmakers by overturning the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

At least as surprising was the decision on affirmative action, which some legal scholars had expected the Supreme Court to curtail severely. The NAACP said it was "pleased that the court chose to affirm that there is a place for race in university admissions."

Others, however, said affirmative action won little more than a reprieve, because new waves of legal challenges to race-conscious admissions seem imminent. And later, the NAACP and other liberal groups expressed dismay at another Supreme Court ruling, which nullified key elements of the Voting Rights Act.

Obama, meanwhile, acknowledged that Congress can reach no agreements on climate change, and announced his own plans to limit heat-trapping gases from coal-fired power plants. Using executive powers, the president laid out the first-ever federal regulations on carbon dioxide emitted by existing power plants, which is partly blamed for global warming and rising sea levels.

Republicans and numerous business groups immediately denounced him. It was a reminder -- as if anyone needed it -- of why it's hard for the federal government to take major steps on the environment and many other fields.

"It is astonishing that President Obama is unilaterally imposing new regulations that will cost jobs and increase energy prices," said House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.

Environmental groups welcomed the president's moves, even as they called them long overdue. Environmental activists have grown increasingly frustrated since 2009 as they watched Obama place health care, Wall Street reform, immigration and other priorities ahead of curbing greenhouse gases.

The 2009-2010 congressional struggle to enact Obama's health care overhaul exacerbated Washington's already-intense partisanship. By late 2010 -- when tea party-backed Republicans regained control of the House -- antagonism between the parties grew so heated that once-routine tasks became major chores.

Since then in fact, some of Congress' most consequential actions essentially resulted from the inability to agree on anything. Decision-by-indecision became Washington's new operating method.

In 2011, Senate Republicans devised a strategy that effectively washed Congress' hands of any role in raising the federal debt limit.

Then, when lawmakers struggled for bipartisan spending agreements, they tried to jump-start negotiations by establishing severe national consequences if talks ultimately failed. The talks failed nonetheless, and the once unthinkable consequences -- the "fiscal cliff" tax hikes and "sequestration" spending cuts -- became law this year.

Not terribly long ago, Democrats and Republicans reached agreements to enact budgets, raise the debt limit, pass farm bills and do hundreds of other tasks. Now, bipartisan accords on almost anything will turn heads.

"We have an historic opportunity here in the Senate," Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said on the chamber floor Tuesday. He was speaking of the immigration bill that would tighten border security and grant pathways to citizenship for people here illegally.

"It doesn't happen very often," Durbin said. "A bipartisan bill! How about that?"

Some Americans, however, see bipartisanship as a betrayal of political principles.

"Primary Rubio!" someone shouted at a recent tea party rally at the Capitol. He was calling for a Republican primary challenge to Sen. Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican once seen as a tea party hero, and an author of the bipartisan Senate immigration plan.

The outbreak of robust government actions might not last. Congress is in recess next week, and many people expect a tough road for the immigration legislation in the Republican-controlled House when lawmakers return to Washington.

And Obama -- already accused of not using his presidential powers to inspire enough fear and friendships to advance his agenda -- may find his clout further reduced. The Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the president violated the Constitution when he bypassed the Senate to appoint three people to the National Labor Relations Board.

---

Follow Charles Babington on Twitter: https://twitter.com/cbabington.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/federal-decisiveness-thrives-week-least-183948937.html

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Nokia will pay you up to $300 to trade an old phone for a Lumia

Nokia's Lumia phones show promise despite the company's dwindling overall sales, and now's your chance to nab one at more affordable prices -- if you're willing to trade in an old phone, that is. The Finnish company's new trade up program in the US will take in old mobile devices and send back up to $300 loaded on a Visa prepaid card, so long as you also purchase a Lumia. A lot of brands and models are accepted (check out if yours is via the trade up portal linked below), but popular ones like the iPhone 4S, the Galaxy S 4, and the HTC One will net you the most money. So, if you're sick of being lost in a crowd of Androids and iPhones, now's the time to give WP8 a whirl.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Nokia

Comments

Source: Nokia 1, 2

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/28/nokia-trade-up-program/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Polymer coatings a key step toward oral delivery of protein-based drugs

June 27, 2013 ? For protein-based drugs such as insulin to be taken orally rather than injected, bioengineers need to find a way to shuttle them safely through the stomach to the small intestine where they can be absorbed and distributed by the bloodstream. Progress has been slow, but in a new study, researchers report an important technological advance: They show that a "bioadhesive" coating significantly increased the intestinal uptake of polymer nanoparticles in rats and that the nanoparticles were delivered to tissues around the body in a way that could potentially be controlled.

"The results of these studies provide strong support for the use of bioadhesive polymers to enhance nano- and microparticle uptake from the small intestine for oral drug delivery," wrote the researchers in the Journal of Controlled Release, led by corresponding author Edith Mathiowitz, professor of medical science at Brown University.

Mathiowitz, who teaches in Brown's Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biotechnology, has been working for more than a decade to develop bioadhesive coatings that can get nanoparticles to stick to the mucosal lining of the intestine so that they will be taken up into its epithelial cells and transferred into the bloodstream. The idea is that protein-based medicines would be carried in the nanoparticles.

In the new study, which appeared online June 21, Mathiowitz put one of her most promising coatings, a chemical called PBMAD, to the test both on the lab bench and in animal models. Mathiowitz and her colleagues have applied for a patent related to the work, which would be assigned to Brown University.

In prior experiments, Mathiowitz and her group have shown not only that PBMAD has bioadhesive properties, but also that it withstands the acidic environment of the stomach and then dissolves in the higher pH of the small intestine.

Adhere, absorb, arrive

The newly published results focused on the question of how many particles, whether coated with PBMAD or not, would be taken up by the intestine and distributed to tissues. For easier tracking throughout the body, Mathiowitz's team purposely used experimental and control particles made of materials that the body would not break down. Because they were "non-erodible" the particles did not carry any medicine.

The researchers used particles about 500 nanometers in diameter made of two different materials: polystyrene, which adheres pretty well to the intestine's mucosal lining, and another plastic called PMMA, that does not. They coated some of the PMMA particles in PBMAD, to see if the bioadhesive coating could get PMMA particles to stick more reliably to the intestine and then get absorbed.

First the team, including authors Joshua Reineke of Wayne State University and Daniel Cho of Brown, performed basic benchtop tests to see how well each kind of particles adhered. The PBMAD-coated particles proved to have the strongest stickiness to intestinal tissue, binding more than twice as strongly as the uncoated PMMA particles and about 1.5 times as strongly as the polystyrene particles.

The main experiment, however, involved injecting doses of the different particles into the intestines of rats to see whether they would be absorbed and where those that were taken up could be found five hours later. Some rats got a dose of the polystyrene particles, some got the uncoated PMMA and some got the PBMAD-coated PMMA particles.

Measurements showed that the rats absorbed 66.9 percent of the PBMAD-coated particles, 45.8 percent of the polystyrene particles and only 1.9 percent of the uncoated PMMA partcles.

Meanwhile, the different particles had very different distribution profiles around the body. More than 80 percent of the polystyrene particles that were absorbed went to the liver and another 10 percent went to the kidneys. The PMMA particles, coated or not, found their way to a much wider variety of tissues, although in different distributions. For example, the PBMAD-coated particles were much more likely to reach the heart, while the uncoated ones were much more likely to reach the brain.

Pharmaceutical potential

The apparent fact that the differing surface properties of the similarly sized particles had such distinct distributions in the rats' tissues after the same five-hour period suggests that scientists could learn to tune particles to reach specific parts of the body, essentially targeting doses of medicines taken orally, Mathiowitz said.

"The distribution in the body can be somehow controlled with the type of polymer that you use," she said.

For now, she and her group have been working hard to determine the biophysics of how the PBMAD-coated particles are taken up by the intestines. More work also needs to be done, for instance to demonstrate actual delivery of protein-based medicines in sufficient quantity to tissues where they are needed.

But Mathiowitz said the new results give her considerable confidence.

"What this means now is that if I coat bioerodible nanoparticles correctly, I can enhance their uptake," she said. "Bioerodible nanoparticles are what we would ultimately like to use to deliver proteins. The question we address in this paper is how much can we deliver. The numbers we saw make the goal more feasible."

Another frontier for the delivery of nanoparticles is devising a safe method to make nanoparticles, Mathiowitz said, but, "we have already developed safe and reproducible methods to encapsulate proteins in tiny nanoparticles without compromising their biological activity."

In addition to Reineke, Cho, and Mathiowitz, other authors on the paper are Yu-Ting Liu Dingle, Stacia Furtado, Bryan Laulicht, Danya Lavin, and Peter M. Cheifetz, all of Brown University during the research.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/XPzxGGf6RI8/130627125317.htm

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Colorado theater gunman to be tethered to courtroom floor for trial

By Keith Coffman

DENVER (Reuters) - A Colorado judge ruled on Thursday that accused theater gunman James Holmes will tethered to the courtroom floor by a cable for security reasons during his murder trial, but denied a defense request to sequester the jury.

Holmes is charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder stemming from a shooting rampage last July that killed 12 moviegoers during a midnight screening of the Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises" at a suburban Denver cinema.

Fifty-eight other people in the audience were wounded by gunfire and a dozen others suffered other injuries in the ensuing pandemonium.

Prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty against Holmes, 25, if he is convicted.

The California native and former University of Colorado graduate student of neuroscience has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

Holmes' public defenders have argued that allowing jurors to see their client handcuffed and shackled, as he has been in all of his court appearances so far, would unfairly prejudice them against the accused gunman.

Arapahoe County District Judge Carlos Samour Jr. agreed, but said Holmes poses a security risk and that public safety requires that he be restrained during the proceedings.

Holmes will wear a harness under his street clothes with a cable bolting him to the courtroom floor, the judge said.

The cable will be visible to jurors, Samour said, but should be indistinguishable from computer cords emanating from the defense table.

In a separate ruling, the judge denied a defense motion requesting that jurors be sequestered during the trial, which is scheduled to start in February 2014 and is expected to last for about four months.

Jury sequestration is "an extremely rare procedure," the judge said, noting that it would be expensive and impractical to keep jurors sealed off from the outside world for the duration of the trial.

Defense lawyers can renew the request later if issues arise that warrant another look, Samour said.

(Editing by Steve Gorman and Christopher Wilson)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/colorado-theater-gunman-tethered-courtroom-floor-trial-025823725.html

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20 bodies found in helicopter crash in north India

GAUCHAR, India (AP) ? Paramilitary soldiers on Wednesday recovered 20 bodies from a steep hillside in northern India where a helicopter crashed while on a mission to rescue people stranded in monsoon floods, the country's air force chief said.

The helicopter crashed late Tuesday when its rotor blades hit the hillside while returning with survivors of flooding and landslides that have killed more than 1,000 people and washed away thousands of homes, roads and bridges since mid-June in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.

Soldiers using ropes reached the crash site early Wednesday and found the bodies of 20 people, including five air force crew members, Air Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne told reporters.

The helicopter's cockpit voice recorder was recovered and an inquiry has been ordered to determine the cause of the crash, Browne said.

Some 45 aircraft have been used in rescue and relief operations, but bad weather has dogged the efforts since Sunday, with intermittent rain and dense fog hanging over the mountains.

Troops on Wednesday were trying to rescue about 5,000 people who remained stranded in the towns of Badrinath and Harsil 10 days after torrential rains triggered the flooding and landslides in Uttarakhand.

Browne visited the hill town of Gauchar, where the air force has mounted its relief and rescue operations. He assured flood survivors that helicopters would rescue everyone stranded in Uttarakhand despite the bad weather and poor visibility.

Hundreds of thousands of Hindus make the Char Dham Yatra pilgrimage to four temple towns in Uttarakhand each year, usually returning home before monsoon rains in July make the mountainous area much more treacherous, but unprecedented heavy rains fell around mid-June this year and caught many by surprise.

About 92,000 people from hundreds of villages and towns hit by the floods have been rescued. Landslides and floods flattened entire towns, roads were washed away and communication links snapped, cutting off many people and necessitating air rescues.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/20-bodies-found-helicopter-crash-north-india-075259375.html

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Senate moves forward on immigration bill

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Senate has agreed to spend tens of billions of dollars on a dramatic increase of border security.

The move comes as senators near passage of immigration legislation offering U.S. citizenship to millions of people.

The 69-29 vote Wednesday came as the Senate plowed through a few remaining procedural hurdles ahead of final passage. That might happen as early as Thursday.

Earlier, senators knocked down a Republican objection raised against the bill.

The outcomes indicate the legislation commands the backing of well over the 60 senators needed to pass the bill and send it to the House, where an uncertain future awaits.

The White House-backed measure spends tens of billions on border security while establishing a 13-year path to citizenship for 11 million people already here illegally.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-moves-forward-immigration-bill-164205436.html

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How Reading Makes Us More Human - Karen Swallow Prior - The Atlantic

www.theatlantic.com:

A battle over books has erupted recently on the pages of The New York Times and Time. The opening salvo was Gregory Currie's essay, "Does Great Literature Make Us Better?" which asserts that the widely held belief that reading makes us more moral has little support.

Read the whole story at www.theatlantic.com

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Filed by Zo? Triska ?|?

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1. HuffPost
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/25/how-reading-makes-us-more_n_3495955.html

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Bobby "Blue" Bland Dies; Soul & Blues Great Was 83

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/06/bobby-blue-bland-dies-soul-and-blues-great-was-83/

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DOMA Struck Down By Supreme Court in Landmark Ruling

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/06/doma-struck-down-by-supreme-court-in-landmark-ruling/

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Demi Lovato Fires Off 'Made In The USA' As Next Single

The patriotic Demi cut is slated to hit radio this week, with her video following in July.
By Jocelyn Vena

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1709473/demi-lovato-made-in-the-usa.jhtml

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Targeted viral therapy destroys breast cancer stem cells in preclinical experiments

June 24, 2013 ? A promising new treatment for breast cancer being developed at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and the VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine (VIMM) has been shown in cell culture and in animal models to selectively kill cancer stem cells at the original tumor site and in distant metastases with no toxic effects on healthy cells, including normal stem cells. Cancer stem cells are critical to a cancer's ability to recur following conventional chemotherapies and radiation therapy because they can quickly multiply and establish new tumors that are often therapy resistant.

The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, focuses on a gene originally cloned in the laboratory of primary investigator Paul B. Fisher, M.Ph., Ph.D. The gene, melanoma differentiation associated gene-7 (mda-7), also known as interleukin (IL)-24, has been shown to directly impact two forms of cell suicide known as apoptosis and toxic autophagy, regulate the development of new blood vessels and also play a role in promoting cancer cell destruction by the immune system. In the present study, the researchers used a recombinant adenovirus vector, an engineered virus with modified genetic material, known as Ad.mda-7 to deliver the mda-7/IL-24 gene with its encoded protein directly to the tumor.

"Therapy with the mda-7/IL-24 gene has been shown to be safe in a phase I clinical trial involving patients with advanced cancers, and prior studies in my laboratory and with collaborators have shown that the gene could also be effective against breast, prostate, lung, colorectal, ovarian, pancreatic and brain cancers," says Fisher, Thelma Newmeyer Corman Endowed Chair in Cancer Research and co-leader of the Cancer Molecular Genetics program at VCU Massey, chairman of VCU School of Medicine's Department of Human and Molecular Genetics and director of the VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine. "Our study demonstrates that this therapy may someday be an effective way to eradicate both early and advanced stage breast cancer, and could even be used to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence."

The researchers found that infection of human breast cancer cells with the adenovirus decreased the proliferation of breast cancer stem cells without affecting normal breast stem cells. It was also shown to induce a stress response in the cells that led to apoptosis by disrupting Wnt/B-catenin signaling, a process cells rely upon to transmit signals that initiate biological functions critical to survival. In mouse models, the therapy profoundly inhibited the growth of tumors generated from breast cancer stem cells and also killed cancer cells in distant, uninjected tumors.

Since discovering the mda-7/IL-24 gene, Fisher and his team have worked to develop better ways to deliver it to cancer cells, including two cancer "terminator" viruses known as Ad.5-CTV and Ad.5/3-CTV. Cancer terminator viruses are unique because they are designed to replicate only within cancer cells while delivering immune-modulating and toxic genes such as MDA-7/IL-24. Coupled with a novel stealth delivery technique known as ultrasound-targeted microbubble destruction (UTMD), researchers can now systemically deliver viruses and therapeutic genes and proteins directly to tumors and their surrounding tissue (microenvironment) at both primary and metastatic tumor sites. UTMD uses microscopic, gas-filled bubbles that can be paired with viral therapies, therapeutic genes and proteins, and imaging agents and can then be released in a site and target-specific manner via ultrasound. Fisher and his colleagues are pioneering this approach and have already reported success in experiments utilizing UTMD technology and mda-7/IL-24 gene therapy in prostate and colorectal cancer models.

"We are hopeful that this targeted gene therapy could be safely combined with conventional chemotherapies to significantly improve outcomes for patients with breast cancer and potentially a variety of other cancers," says Fisher. "When paired with promising new delivery techniques such as UTMD, physicians may one day be able to better target site-specific cancers and also monitor the effectiveness of these types of therapies in real time."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/OUtmjiftctE/130624111008.htm

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Turkish Security Forces Are 'Evacuating ... - Business Insider

REUTERS/Osman Orsal

Riot police fires a water cannon on Gezi Park protesters at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 15, 2013. Turkish riot police stormed Gezi Park on Saturday firing tear gas and water cannon to evict hundreds of anti-government protesters, hours after an ultimatum from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkish security forces moved into Istanbul's Gezi Park on Saturday to evict anti-government protestors only hours after the Prime Minister issued a stern ultimatum that they must leave before Sunday, Al Jazeera reports.

"We have our Istanbul rally tomorrow. I say it clearly:?Taksim Square must be evacuated, otherwise this country's?security forces know how to evacuate it,"?Recep Tayyip Erdogan told supporters at a rally in Ankara.

Within minutes, the brutal crackdown had forced the protestors out ? panicked from the heavy smog of tear gas and volleys of rubber bullets and water cannons.?Police used armored vehicles to seal off the square, and then spread throughout the area, yelling over megaphones for protestors to "evacuate,"?according to?USA Today. At least five people had been killed and thousands injured,?RT reports.

As protestors scrambled, police remained behind to destroy their tents and take down their banners, AFP reports.

Reuters has more:

Panicked protesters fled into an upmarket hotel at the back of the park, several of them vomiting, as clouds of tear gas and blasts from what witnesses said were percussion bombs - designed to create confusion rather than injure - engulfed the park.

"We tried to flee and the police pursued us. It was like war," Claudia Roth, the co-chair of Germany's Greens party who had gone to Gezi Park to show her support, told Reuters.

The area has now been cleared,?as the livestream of Taksim Square?from RT reflects an eery ghost town, now with only a handful of people being seen.

Although they have been forced out, some protestors were still defiant.

"We will continue our resistance in the face of any injustice and unfairness taking place in our country," the Taksim Solidarity group, seen by many as the most representative of the activists, said in a statement to Al Jazeera on Saturday.

"I won't give up," Mey Elbi, a protestor, told AFP. "We're angry, this is not over. The world has seen that together, we can stand up to Tayyip."

A 240,000 member-strong public-sector union confederation announced it would call for a national strike on Monday in response, while another union would hold a meeting to determine whether it would take similar action, according to Reuters.

The move to evict the protestors comes only days after a violent clash erupted on June 11, as hundreds of police raided the square in their first major attempt to remove protestors. The square was cleared, but protestors then came back by the thousands ? enduring police firing of tear gas canisters, water cannons, and rubber bullets.

The protests began more than two weeks ago?when about a dozen people?began protesting the removal of trees in Gezi park near the square. The protests then morphed into general anti-government sentiment and now has the?backing of?Turkey's robust labor unions.

REUTERS/Osman Orsal

A protester throws a teargas canister back at riot police in front of Gezi Park at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 15, 2013. Turkish riot police stormed Gezi Park on Saturday firing tear gas and water cannon to evict hundreds of anti-government protesters, hours after an ultimatum from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

REUTERS/Osman Orsal

Riot police fire tear gas and a water cannon at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 15, 2013. Turkish riot police stormed Gezi Park on Saturday firing tear gas and water cannon to evict hundreds of anti-government protesters, hours after an ultimatum from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

REUTERS/Murad Sezer

Riot police fire teargas on protesters as they enter Gezi Park at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 15, 2013. Turkish riot police stormed Gezi Park on Saturday firing tear gas and water cannon to evict hundreds of anti-government protesters, hours after an ultimatum from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan

REUTERS/Murad Sezer

Protesters are evacuated from Gezi Park by riot police at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 15, 2013. Turkish riot police stormed Gezi Park on Saturday firing tear gas and water cannon to evict hundreds of anti-government protesters, hours after an ultimatum from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/turkish-security-forces-are-evacuating-protestors-with-tear-gas-and-water-cannons-after-giving-ultimatum-2013-6

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Simple Tips to Find The Best Body Piercing Professionals | Free Life

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Source: http://www.freelife365.com/art-entertainment/tattoos/simple-tips-to-find-the-best-body-piercing-professionals-7146.html

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U.N. rights forum condemns Hezbollah role in Syria

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) - The U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday condemned the use of all foreign fighters in Syria's civil war, including Lebanese Hezbollah militants backing the government, but stopped short of calling for a halt to the flow of arms.

The Geneva forum adopted a resolution brought by Arab and Western powers, urging all parties to refrain from contributing to a further escalation of a conflict in which at least 93,000 people had been killed by the end of April.

Only Venezuela voted against the text, presented by Qatar on behalf of Britain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States - which all back rebel forces. Thirty-seven states backed the motion. Nine abstained.

"Ecuador calls the Council's attention to that fact that the main proponents of this draft resolution are the ones contributing to continuation of violence by providing arms to opposition groups, thus contributing to the escalation of violence," Ecuador's Ambassador Luis Gallego Chiriboga said.

Other Latin American and Asian countries, including Brazil and Pakistan, voiced concerns that the Council had failed to use stronger language to denounce the weapons pouring into Syria.

"If we fail to condemn the transfer of arms in the resolution it is tantamount to adding fuel to the fire," Costa Rica's deputy ambassador Christian Guillermet-Fernandez said.

The heated debate was held a day after the United States said it would now arm rebels, having obtained what it said was proof the Syrian government used chemical weapons against fighters trying to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Venezuela's representative, Felix Pena Ramos, referring to the U.S. accusation on the Syrian government's use of chemical weapons, said: "I am sure these are same people who confirmed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq."

Syria and its ally Russia rejected the text as unbalanced and counterproductive as efforts were being made to convene an international peace conference.

"It turns a blind eye to the presence of jihadists that come from more than 40 countries," Syrian Ambassador Faysal Khabbaz Hamoui said. "Certain countries that sponsored the resolution have financed, trained and supported them."

Russia, whose delegation has observer status and cannot vote, regretted that the United States was one of the initiators of the text despite their joint efforts to convene peace talks.

"The latest one-sided resolution on Syria talks about Hezbollah, but they don't seem to be worried about 1,000 highly-paid and heavily armed rebel groups," said Russian second secretary Roman Kashaev.

(Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-n-rights-forum-condemns-hezbollah-role-syria-191320765.html

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Nanoparticle opens the door to clean-energy alternatives

June 13, 2013 ? Cheaper clean-energy technologies could be made possible thanks to a new discovery. Led by Raymond Schaak, a professor of chemistry at Penn State University, research team members have found that an important chemical reaction that generates hydrogen from water is effectively triggered -- or catalyzed -- by a nanoparticle composed of nickel and phosphorus, two inexpensive elements that are abundant on Earth.

The results of the research will be published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Schaak explained that the purpose of the nickel phosphide nanoparticle is to help produce hydrogen from water, which is a process that is important for many energy-production technologies, including fuel cells and solar cells. "Water is an ideal fuel, because it is cheap and abundant, but we need to be able to extract hydrogen from it," Schaak said. Hydrogen has a high energy density and is a great energy carrier, Schaak explained, but it requires energy to produce. To make its production practical, scientists have been hunting for a way to trigger the required chemical reactions with an inexpensive catalyst. Schaak noted that this feat is accomplished very well by platinum but, because platinum is expensive and relatively rare, he and his team have been searching for alternative materials. "There were some predictions that nickel phosphide might be a good candidate, and we had already been working with nickel phosphide nanoparticles for several years," Schaak said. "It turns out that nanoparticles of nickel phosphide are indeed active for producing hydrogen and are comparable to the best known alternatives to platinum."

To create the nickel phosphide nanoparticles, team members began with metal salts that are commercially available. They then dissolved these salts in solvents, added other chemical ingredients, and heated the solution to allow the nanoparticles to form. The researchers were able create a nanoparticle that was quasi-spherical -- not a perfect sphere, but spherical with many flat, exposed edges. "The small size of the nanoparticles creates a high surface area, and the exposed edges means that a large number of sites are available to catalyze the chemical reaction that produces hydrogen," Schaak explained.

The next step was for team members at the California Institute of Technology to test the nanoparticles' performance in catalyzing the necessary chemical reactions. Led by Nathan S. Lewis, the George L. Argyros Professor of Chemistry at the California Institute of Technology, the researchers performed these tests by placing the nanoparticles onto a sheet of titanium foil and immersing that sheet in a solution of sulfuric acid. Next, the researchers applied a voltage and measured the current produced. They found that, not only were the chemical reactions happening as they had hoped, they also were happening with a high degree of efficacy.

"Nanoparticle technology has already started to open the door to cheaper and cleaner energy that is also efficient and useful," Schaak said. "The goal now is to further improve the performance of these nanoparticles and to understand what makes them function the way they do. Also, our team members believe that our success with nickel phosphide can pave the way toward the discovery of other new catalysts that also are composed of Earth-abundant materials. Insights from this discovery may lead to even better catalysts in the future."

In addition to Schaak and Lewis, other researchers who contributed to this study include Eric J. Popczun, Carlos G. Read, Adam J. Biacchi, and Alex M. Wiltrout from Penn State; and James R. McKone from the California Institute of Technology.

The research was funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. The team has filed a patent application.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/h05wxnGpXa0/130613142831.htm

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