Friday, April 26, 2013

Activists to Obama: Stop Keystone

Power Players

Environmental activists are turning up the heat on President Obama as he faces what could be the trickiest decision of his second term: whether or not to approve the controversial proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which could reach his desk this summer.

The project, which would transport oil from the tar sands of Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico, promises jobs and energy. But critics say it will ravage the environment and send oil overseas.

?We put him in the White House because we thought he was the best chance of really making progress on the issue of climate,? the Sierra Club?s Courtney Hight told Power Players.

?He?s strongly said that he wants to do something?and this is one of his best opportunities to actually follow through,? she said.

Hight is no ordinary environmentalist. She was one of the first foot soldiers for Obama in New Hampshire in 2007 and later led his campaign?s outreach to youth voters in swing-state Florida.

In 2008, she joined the administration as a member of the president?s Council on Environmental Quality, but later quit her post disillusioned by what she saw as Obama?s weak commitment to cleaning up the earth.

?I worked for the president because I believed that he would change the way Washington fundamentally worked,? Hight said. ?It?s still important to me, and I think part of governing is that you need people to push.?

And push she has. Hight has helped to mobilized hundreds of young people to boycott the pipeline in Washington. During one protest, she was arrested in front of the White House fence.

With Obama no longer under pressure of re-election, it?s unclear what leverage Hight and fellow activists may have. Polls show a strong majority of Americans favor of approving the pipeline. It?s also backed by labor unions and business groups.

?It?s not just about denying this pipeline,? Hight said. ?It?s about, you know, making good on his investment or his promise to invest in clean energy and put that money into that, into clean energy opportunities verses into oil.?

The State Department, which is reviewing the pipeline plan, has released a favorable environmental review. However, the Environmental Protection Agency this week raised objections over the potential for harmful impacts.

What does Hight predict President Obama will do, and what are the potential consequences of his decision? Check out this episode of Power Players.

ABC's Eric Wray, Alexandra Dukakis, Freda Kahen Kashi, Dick Norling, and Shari Thomas contributed to this episode.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/power-players-abc-news/former-obama-staffer-leads-white-house-protests-against-111050839.html

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Draw Something 2 released with updated tools, galleries, and more

Draw Something 2 released with updated tools, galleries, and more

Draw Something 2, the sequel to the original Draw Something, is now available in the App Store and comes with a bunch of new features including new pens and other tools, gallery views of all your drawings, a new free draw mode, and more.

If you liked the original Draw Something, you'll definitely want to check out the updated version. Just like the original Draw Something, there are two apps available, a free ad-based version and a premium version. The premium version strips out all ads and also offers other incentives and modes that the free model doesn't have.

    


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/gaSVSdwEmG4/story01.htm

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Thursday, April 25, 2013

BancBox Launches ?First' Automatic Escrow Service Aimed At Crowd Funding Platforms

Screen Shot 2013-04-25 at 18.33.04Back in June last year BancBox, a payment services platform similar to Stripe, went further with a platform allowing developers to build a lot of different payment services. As cofounder Sanj Goyle claimed at the time: ?PayPal could be built on top of our platform." Now it has launched BancBox Crowd, which - as far as we can tell - is the first independent escrow service aimed at crowd funding portals which operate on equity, debt or revenue share models.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/sWFRmCYR6GU/

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Biden calls bombing suspects 'cowardly, knockoff jihadis'

DORTMUND, April 24 (Reuters) - Teams for Wednesday's Champions League semi-final first leg between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid at BVB stadium. Teams: Borussia Dortmund: 1-Roman Weidenfeller; 26-Lukasz Piszczek, 4-Neven Subotic, 15-Mats Hummels, 29-Marcel Schmelzer; 8-Ilkay Guendogan, 6-Sven Bender, 16-Jakub Blaszczykowski, 10-Mario Goetze, 11-Marco Reus; 9-Robert Lewandowski Real Madrid: 41-Diego Lopez; 4-Sergio Ramos, 3-Pepe, 2-Raphael Varane, 5-Fabio Coentrao; 6-Sami Khedira, 14-Xabi Alonso; 19-Luka Modric, 10-Mesut Ozil, 7-Cristiano Ronaldo; 20-Gonzalo Higuain. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/biden-calls-bombing-suspects-perverted-cowardly-knock-off-201921724--politics.html

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Officials: Bomb suspect silent after read rights

FILE - This combination of undated file photos shows Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, left, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19. The FBI says the two brothers are the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing, and are also responsible for killing an MIT police officer, critically injuring a transit officer in a firefight and throwing explosive devices at police during a getaway attempt in a long night of violence that left Tamerlan dead and Dzhokhar captured, late Friday, April 19, 2013. The ethnic Chechen brothers lived in Dagestan, which borders the Chechnya region in southern Russia. They lived near Boston and had been in the U.S. for about a decade, one of their uncles reported said. Since Monday, Boston has experienced five days of fear, beginning with the marathon bombing attack, an intense manhunt and much uncertainty ending in the death of one suspect and the capture of the other. (AP Photo/The Lowell Sun & Robin Young, File)

FILE - This combination of undated file photos shows Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, left, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19. The FBI says the two brothers are the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing, and are also responsible for killing an MIT police officer, critically injuring a transit officer in a firefight and throwing explosive devices at police during a getaway attempt in a long night of violence that left Tamerlan dead and Dzhokhar captured, late Friday, April 19, 2013. The ethnic Chechen brothers lived in Dagestan, which borders the Chechnya region in southern Russia. They lived near Boston and had been in the U.S. for about a decade, one of their uncles reported said. Since Monday, Boston has experienced five days of fear, beginning with the marathon bombing attack, an intense manhunt and much uncertainty ending in the death of one suspect and the capture of the other. (AP Photo/The Lowell Sun & Robin Young, File)

Pedestrians pass the spot where the first bomb detonated on Boylston Street near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Wednesday, April 24, 2013, in Boston. Traffic was allowed to flow all the way down Boylston Street on Wednesday morning for the first time since two explosions killed 3 people and injured many on April 15. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Andrew Collier, left, puts his hand on his brother, Robert, after delivering the eulogy at a memorial service for their brother, slain Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus officer, Sean Collier, at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Sean Collier was fatally shot on the MIT campus Thursday, April 18, 2013. Authorities allege that the Boston Marathon bombing suspects were responsible.(AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Michelle Littke, of Scituate, Mass., wites on a poster at a makeshift memorial in Copley Square on Boylston Street in Boston, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Traffic was allowed to flow all the way down Boylston Street on Wednesday morning for the first time since two explosions on April 15.(AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Running shoes hang from a barrier at a makeshift memorial in Copley Square on Boylston Street in Boston, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. Traffic was allowed to flow all the way down Boylston Street on Wednesday morning for the first time since two explosions on April 15. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

BOSTON (AP) ? Sixteen hours after investigators began interrogating him, the surviving suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings went silent: He'd just been read his constitutional rights.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev immediately stopped talking after a magistrate judge and a representative from the U.S. Attorney's office entered his hospital room and gave him his Miranda warning, according to a U.S. law enforcement source and four officials of both political parties briefed on the interrogation. They insisted on anonymity because the briefing was private.

Before being advised of his rights, the 19-year-old suspect told authorities that his older brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, only recently had recruited him to be part of the attack that detonated pressure-cooker bombs at the marathon finish line, two U.S. officials said.

The CIA, however, had named Tamerlan to a terrorist database 18 months ago, said officials close to the investigation who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case with reporters.

The new disclosure that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was included within a huge, classified database of known and suspected terrorists before the attacks was expected to drive congressional inquiries in coming weeks about whether the Obama administration adequately investigated tips from Russia that Tsarnaev had posed a security threat.

Shortly after the bombings, U.S. officials said the intelligence community had no information about threats to the marathon before the April 15 explosions that killed three people and injured more than 260.

Tsarnaev died Friday in a police shootout hours before Dzhokhar was discovered hiding in a boat in a suburban back yard.

Boston police Commissioner Ed Davis had said earlier that shots were fired from inside the boat, but two U.S. officials told the AP that the suspect was unarmed when captured by police, raising questions about how he was injured. The homeowner who called police initially said he saw a good amount of blood in the boat.

Washington is piecing together what happened and whether there were any unconnected dots buried in U.S. government files that, if connected, could have prevented the bombings.

Lawmakers who were briefed by the FBI said they have more questions than answers about the investigation of Tamerlan Tsarnaev. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said lawmakers intend to pursue whether there was a breakdown in information-sharing, though Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, said he "hasn't seen any red flags thus far."

U.S. officials were expected to brief the Senate on the investigation Thursday.

The suspects' father said Thursday that he is leaving Russia for the United States in the next day or two, but their mother said she was still thinking it over.

Anzor Tsarnaev has expressed a desire to go to the U.S. to find out what happened with his sons, defend his hospitalized 19-year-old son Dzhokhar and if possible bring his older son's body back to Russia for burial.

Their mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, who was charged with shoplifting in the U.S. last summer, said she has been assured by lawyers that she would not be arrested, but was still deciding whether to go.

It is unclear whether the issue of their younger son's constitutional rights will matter since the FBI say he confessed to a witness. U.S. officials also said Wednesday that physical evidence, including a 9 mm handgun and pieces of a remote-control device commonly used in toys, was recovered from the bombing scene.

But the debate over whether suspected terrorists should be read their Miranda rights has become a major sticking point in the debate over how best to fight terrorism. Many Republicans, in particular, believe Miranda warnings are designed to build court cases, and only hinder intelligence gathering.

Christina DiIorio Sterling, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz, said in an email late Wednesday, "This remains an ongoing investigation and we don't have any further comment."

Investigators have said the brothers appeared to have been radicalized through jihadist materials on the Internet and have found no evidence tying them to a terrorist group.

U.S. investigators traveled to the predominantly Muslim province of Dagestan in Russia and were in contact with the brothers' parents, hoping to gain more information.

They are looking into whether Tamerlan, who spent six months in Russia's turbulent Caucasus region in 2012, was influenced by the religious extremists who have waged an insurgency against Russian forces in the area for years. The brothers have roots in Dagestan and neighboring Chechnya but had lived in the U.S. for about a decade.

Dzhokhar told the FBI that they were angry about the U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the killing of Muslims there, officials said.

Dzhokhar's public defender had no comment on the matter Wednesday. His father has called him a "true angel," and an aunt has insisted he's not guilty.

Investigators have found pieces of remote-control equipment among the debris and were analyzing them, officials said. One official described the detonator as "close-controlled," meaning it had to be triggered within several blocks of the bombs.

That evidence could be key to the court case. And an FBI affidavit said one of the brothers told a carjacking victim during their getaway attempt, "Did you hear about the Boston explosion? I did that."

Officials also recovered a 9 mm handgun believed to have been used by Tamerlan from the site of an April 18 gunbattle that injured a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officer, two U.S. officials said.

In other developments:

? Vice President Joe Biden condemned the bombing suspects as "two twisted, perverted, cowardly, knockoff jihadis" while speaking at a memorial service Wednesday for Sean Collier, a campus police officer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was ambushed in his cruiser three days after the bombing. More than 4,000 mourners paid tribute to the officer.

? The Office of Health and Human Services in Massachusetts confirmed a Boston Herald report Wednesday that Tamerlan, his wife and toddler daughter had received welfare benefits up until last year, when he became ineligible based on family income. The state also says Tamerlan and his brother received welfare benefits as children through their parents while the family lived in Massachusetts.

? The area around the marathon finish line was reopened to the public.

___

Jakes reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Pete Yost, Matt Apuzzo, Eileen Sullivan, Adam Goldman and Eric Tucker in Washington, David Crary, Denise Lavoie, Bridget Murphy and Bob Salsberg in Boston and Lynn Berry in Moscow contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-04-25-Boston%20Marathon-Explosions/id-c022329b57a748b38f11ba37aca590f8

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The Formation of Counselors, Part 3-- Society for Christian Psychology

[Shannon Wolf, PhD, LPC-S, is an Associate Professor in the Master of Arts in Counseling program at Dallas Baptist University. She specializes in trauma counseling and in combating human trafficking. She is our blogger for the month of April and this is her fourth and final post.]

Over the last few of weeks, I?ve shared my thoughts on a distinctly Christian Psychology pedagogical approach to be used in graduate programs. This week?s blog concludes those thoughts but not the conversation. There is still much work to be done in our universities and seminaries as we work to glorify our Lord through our disciplines.

Transdisciplinary Approach

During the 2010 Society for Christian Psychology conference, Alan Tjeltveit suggested that the term transdisciplinary could replace the better known term, interdisciplinary. Transdisciplinary connotes the sum of knowledge concerning individuals which encompasses a variety of disciplines and professions. While most members of the Society for Christian Psychology are typically psychologists and therapists, Eric Johnson began a collaborative effort with theologians, philosophers, and other specialists in their disciplines in order to gain more knowledge about people and how to best provide soul care. By creating a community of those interested in the human condition, a deeper understanding of God?s work can be achieved.

In fact, the Society for Christian Psychology?s firm commitment to promoting a multiple disciple approach to learning is confirmed to by the renaming of their journal, Edification: The Transdisciplinary Journal of Christian Psychology. Authors from various disciplines, such as theologians and philosophers, frequently contribute to this journal.

Johnson?s appeal for expanded dialogue echoes that of others. A prime example is McMinn and Moon?s work with the disciplines of theology and philosophy as seen in their call for the exploration of the spiritual classics; which they termed soul-o-logy. By emphasizing the writings of the early church fathers and philosophical thinkers, soul-o-logy encourages professionals to think deeply about biblical truths and the intricacies of the heart. Therefore, to best understand the intricacies of the heart, a transdisciplinary approach is necessary.

In developing a transdisciplinary Christian Psychology program, consider the following suggestions:

1. Professors from the human science disciplines meet regularly to discuss current interests in their fields, thereby creating a transdisciplinary culture.

2. Counseling program requires students to take classes in another human science discipline or even minor in a discipline such as theology or philosophy.

3. Guest speakers from different fields of study are invited to lecture in counseling classes.

4. Human science professors offer symposiums throughout the semester for students from all disciplines.

5. Research papers require information from various disciplines.

The list of recommendations is not exhaustive but a starting point. The necessity of exposing counseling students to knowledge and wisdom outside of the counseling field is vital. Indeed, a uniqueness of Christian Psychology programs is found in the appreciation of contributions made by various disciplines as they work in conjunction to glorify God.

Concluding the Discussion

?Worldviews are like sand at a picnic; they get into everything? (Bufford, 2007, p. 293). As well they should! That worldviews permeate all areas of life is the precise reason that professors of Christian Psychology programs must develop curricula that purposefully engages students? foundational assumptions about life. Consider the words of C. S. Lewis (1955, p. 22): ?The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles but to irrigate deserts.? The mission is not to eliminate students? core beliefs from the counseling process?even if that were possible. Rather, it is to engage, challenge, and refine those presuppositions that students bring with them to counseling programs.

The task of exploring worldviews in the classroom can be, however, challenging. When educators lack a mental framework for how to navigate a discourse on core presuppositions, the notion of including a worldview approach to pedagogy is easily dismissed. In the absence of a well-articulated life-view, student counselors learn to compartmentalize that which pertains to their profession and the way they view human nature. Without a holistic approach to counseling instruction, new professionals may lack awareness of that which most influences their decisions inside the counseling room.

The goal of assisting students in developing professional worldviews is a worthy one. This task may require more than re-shaping traditional teaching methods; it may also require students to adjust the way they learn. By engaging new information is such a way that it is evaluated in light of existing worldviews, students are able to examine both the new material and their assumptions. When this method of instruction is accompanied by introducing students to knowledge from other disciplines, the problem of information fragmentation and compartmentalization is accounted for as students are encouraged to think broadly about the human condition. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, for students to fully grasp how personal life-views influence the counseling profession, professors must become authentic models of professional worldviews; allowing students to witness the practical application of a belief system in the profession.

That professors influence students? life-views is not the question?we do. At times our influence is subtle and at other times overt. A colleague once commented, ?As a professor, whatever I do, however I do it, I am creating changes ? for better or worse? (Rick Yount, personal communication, 2011). For Christian Psychology professors, the challenge is to intentionally focus on the hearts of our students as we present our science in hopes that those changes will impact our profession for the glory of God.

References

Bufford, R. K. (2007). Philosophical foundations for clinical supervision within a
Christian worldview. Journal of Psychology and Christianity 26 (4), 293-297.

Lewis, C. S. (1955). The abolition of man: Reflections on education with special
reference to the teaching of English in the upper forms of schools. New York, NY: Macmillian.

Source: http://christianpsych.org/wp_scp/the-formation-of-counselors-part-3/

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Saturday, April 6, 2013

Researchers identify edema inhibitor: Substance that can prevent the accumulation of fluid in body tissue

Apr. 5, 2013 ? Researchers of the Max Delbr?ck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) and the Leibniz Institute of Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) in Berlin-Buch, Germany, have now detected a substance that can prevent the accumulation of fluid in body tissue and thus edema formation.

The results of Dr. Jana Bogum (MDC/FMP) from the MDC research group led by Professor Walter Rosenthal and PD Dr. Enno Klu?mann could be important in the future for the treatment of excessive fluid retention in patients with chronic heart failure. Using a novel approach, the researchers have also discovered a new molecular mechanism controlling water homeostasis in the kidneys (Journal of the American Society of Nephrology).

Every day around 1 500 liters of blood flow through the kidneys. Of this total volume, the kidneys initially filter 180 liters of primary urine, which they concentrate to two liters and then excrete as the final urine. A key regulatory step of the concentration mechanism is the release of the hormone AVP (arginine-vasopressin) from the brain. This hormone triggers a multi-step signaling cascade in the kidneys which affects water channels (aquaporins) and in particular aquaporin-2. "The water channels, specifically aquaporin-2, and their redistribution play a key role in the regulation of the water balance," said Dr. Klu?mann.

AVP, which is released from the brain upon thirst, induces aquaporin-2 located in the renal collecting duct principal cells to redistribute from the cell interior to the plasma membrane. The renal cells can then filter out the water from the primary urine flowing past the membrane via aquaporin-2. Dr. Klu?mann explained: "To keep the renal cell from bursting and the body from dehydrating, the water is directed back via another group of water channels, aquaporin 3 and 4, into the bloodstream and body tissue. In contrast to aquaporin-2, these water channels are located in another domain of the plasma membrane in the renal principal cells and stay there permanently." Once the thirst is quenched, the levels of the hormone AVP are reduced and aquaporin-2 is shuttled back into the interior of the renal cell until it is needed again.

However, if the AVP level is too high, as is the case in patients with chronic heart failure, aquaporin-2 remains permanently in the plasma membrane of the renal principal cell and directs the water continuously from the primary urine into the renal collecting duct principal cells. These cells funnel the excess water into the body tissue. "This process contributes to edema," Dr. Klu?mann said.

Discovery of how translocation of water channels can be inhibited

How can aquaporin-2 be prevented from settling permanently in the plasma membrane and thus triggering diseases or making them worse? Using a new research approach, the scientists were able to identify an inhibitor which prevents the translocation of the water channel aquaporin-2 into the cell membrane. At the same time they discovered a new regulatory mechanism of water homeostasis at the molecular level.

The researchers used "small molecules," low molecular weight organic compounds, which penetrate well into cells. They tested 17 700 such substances in renal cells and ultimately filtered out a substance that blocks the redistribution of aquaporin-2 to the plasma membrane. The substance (4-acetyldiphyllin) prevents phosphorylation, an important biological and regulatory activation step. In particular, the compound prevents a phosphorylation reaction that is catalyzed by a protein termed protein kinase A. This protein is activated in the signaling cascade that is triggered by AVP in the renal principal cells. In the presence of 4-acetyldiphillin protein kinase A cannot add a phosphate group to aquaporin-2, with the result that the water channels can no longer redistribute to the plasma membrane.

The new research findings may not only be of interest for the treatment of edema but also for the treatment of depression. Here, by contrast, medical researchers are seeking a way to shuttle aquaporin-2 to the plasma membrane of the renal principal cell, because lithium, which is often used to treat depression, prevents aquaporin-2 from redistributing to the plasma membrane, thus causing diabetes insipidus. If AVP is not released from the brain, or if the receptor for AVP in the renal cell is defective, this likewise results in diabetes insipidus, as Professor Rosenthal discovered several years ago. The affected individuals excrete 20 liters of urine every day. A similar effect, but not quite as drastic, is caused by alcohol. Drinking lots of beer causes the body to excrete large amounts of urine. The reason -- alcohol prevents the brain from releasing the hormone AVP and thus prevents the redistribution of aquaporin-2 to the plasma membrane.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Max Delbr?ck Center for Molecular Medicine.

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


Journal Reference:

  1. J. Bogum, D. Faust, K. Zuhlke, J. Eichhorst, M. C. Moutty, J. Furkert, A. Eldahshan, M. Neuenschwander, J. P. von Kries, B. Wiesner, C. Trimpert, P. M. T. Deen, G. Valenti, W. Rosenthal, E. Klussmann. Small-Molecule Screening Identifies Modulators of Aquaporin-2 Trafficking. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 2013; DOI: 10.1681/ASN.2012030295

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/~3/6eWnWFEIZfs/130405104814.htm

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