WASHINGTON (AP) — Just two weeks after President Barack Obama saw his Democratic Party put up an unyielding front against Republicans, his coalition is showing signs of stress.
From health care to spying to pending budget deals, many congressional Democrats are challenging the administration and pushing for measures that the White House has not embraced.
Some Democrats are seeking to extend the enrollment period for new health care exchanges. Others want to place restraints on National Security Administration surveillance capabilities. Still others are standing tough against any budget deal that uses long-term reductions in major benefit programs to offset immediate cuts in defense.
Though focused on disparate issues, the Democrats' anxieties are connected by timing and stand out all the more when contrasted with the remarkable unity the party displayed during the recent showdown over the partial government shutdown and the confrontation over raising the nation's borrowing limit.
"That moment was always going to be fleeting," said Matt Bennett, who worked in the Clinton White House and who regularly consults with Obama aides. "The White House, every White House, understands that these folks, driven either by principle or the demands of the politics of their state, have to put daylight between themselves and the president on occasion."
Obama and the Democrats emerged from the debt and shutdown clash with what they wanted: a reopened government, a higher debt ceiling and a Republican Party reeling in the depths of public opinion polls.
But within days, attention turned to the problem-riddled launch of the 3-year-old health care law's enrollment stage and revelations that the U.S. had been secretly monitoring the communications of as many as 35 allied leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel. And with new budget talks underway, Democratic Party liberals reiterated demands that Obama not agree to changes that reduce Social Security or Medicare benefits even in the improbable event Republicans agree to increase budget revenues.
The fraying on the Democratic Party edges is hardly unraveling Obama's support and it pales when compared to the upheaval within the Republican Party as it distances itself from the tactics of tea party conservatives. But the pushback from Democrats comes as Obama is trying to draw renewed attention to his agenda, including passage of an immigration overhaul, his jobs initiatives and the benefits of his health care law.
The computer troubles that befell the start of health insurance sign-ups have caused the greatest anxiety. Republicans pounced on the difficulties as evidence of deeper flaws in the law. But Democrats, even as they defended the policy, also demanded answers in the face of questions from their constituents.
"The fact is that the administration really failed these Americans," Rep. Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa., told Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner at a hearing this week. "So going forward there can be just no more excuses."
In the Senate, 10 Democrats signed on to a letter seeking an unspecified extension of the enrollment period, which ends March 31. "As you continue to fix problems with the website and the enrollment process, it is critical that the administration be open to modifications that provide greater flexibility for the American people seeking to access health insurance," Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., wrote.
Another Democratic senator, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, has called for a one-year delay in the requirement that virtually all Americans have health insurance or pay a fine.
Democrats who have talked to White House officials in recent days describe them as rattled by the health care blunders. But they say they are confident that the troubled website used for enrollment will be corrected and fully operational by the end of November.
The spying revelations also have created some tensions between the administration and Democrats. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and until now a staunch supporter of the NSA's surveillance, called for a "total review of all intelligence programs" following the Merkel reports.
She said that when it came to the NSA collecting intelligence on the leaders of allies such as France, Spain, Mexico and Germany, "Let me state unequivocally: I am totally opposed."
With Congress renewing budget talks Wednesday, liberals have been outspoken in their insistence that Democrats vigorously resist efforts to reduce long-term deficits with savings in Social Security or Medicare. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who usually votes with Democrats, has been the most outspoken, saying he fears a budget deal will contain a proposal in Obama's budget to reduce cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security and other benefit programs.
Obama, however, has proposed that remedy only if Republicans agree to raise tax revenue, a bargain that most in the GOP firmly oppose. Moreover, leaders from both parties as well as White House officials have signaled that budget talks are looking for a small budget deal, not the type of "grand bargain" that would embrace such a revenue-for-benefit-cuts deal.
Appealing doc that views motorcycling from multiple angles isn’t just for enthusiasts.
Opens
Nov. 1 (Kretz Media Holdings)
Director
Bryan H. Carroll
Leveraging substantial appeal and abundant style, Why We Ride adeptly challenges the misconception of motorcyclists as “outlaw bikers” – always more of a marginal group compared to the vast majority of recreational and pro riders who have popularized motorcycling as both a pastime and a globally renowned sport.
Covering a wide range of motorcycling styles while reaching out to multiple communities of riders, Bryan H. Carroll’s doc has the potential to capture the attention of legions of enthusiasts worldwide.
Kickstarting things off with a succinct and highly entertaining capsule history of motorcycling in the US, the film pays tribute to some of the early heroes of the sport, whose bareheaded exploits in death-defying races became the stuff of legend among enthusiastic fans.
Some, like famed race champion Ed “Iron Man” Kretz, managed to build careers, and even family dynasties around the sport, as described by his daughter Donna Jean and son Ed Jr., a national competitor himself in the 50s and 60s. Others challenge the clock in time-trials (often at speeds topping 200mph), including Valerie Thompson, a land-speed record holder.
Diehard devotees are epitomized by designers of bikes and accessories like Troy Lee, who illustrates helmets he paints by hand, and the Ness family of custom bike builders, now encompassing three generations. Hobbyists are also well-represented, participating in events like motocross and its extreme-sport spinoff hill climbing, although few seem inclined to consider the environmental impacts of off-road biking activities. This lively mix of both male and female motorcyclists casts a wide net, even if racial diversity is noticeably lacking among those profiled.
With a notable level of pedigree among interview subjects from throughout the industry, the film’s emphasis on family and community comes as little surprise, nor does its dismissal of the stereotypical reprobate biker image, as perpetuated by popular media and movies like Marlon Brando’s The Wild One.
Thrilling footage of motorcycle events expertly directed by Carroll and impressively shot by cinematographers Andrew Waruszewski and Douglas Cheney in sharp HD muscularly augment in-depth interview segments, which could have been better set up by identifying the subjects involved before the final credits. Although a rather self-congratulatory air intermittently hangs over the film, the accomplishments of the participants and the popularity of motorcycling speak for themselves, without the need for superfluous commentary.
Opens: Nov. 1 (Kretz Media Holdings)
Production companies: Gnarlynow Entertainment, Walking West Entertainment
Director: Bryan H. Carroll
Screenwriter: Chris Hampel
Producers: James Walker, Bryan H. Carroll
Executive Producer: Walter Zuck
Directors of photography: Andrew Waruszewski, Douglas Cheney
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Yet another unscheduled track release just hit the web today (November 1): One Direction's full-length music video for "Story of My Life" was just leaked!
The video showcases Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, and Zayn Malik attempting the recreation of significant moments from their pasts.
In related news, the band just released a tweet earlier today, writing, "TWO DAYS TO GO!! #StoryOfMyLifeVideo = OFFICIALLY out Sunday 4pm GMT! 1DHQ x." Unfortunately, their news my have fallen on deaf ears.
However, according to the British boy band's website, "You can download the boys’ new single “Story of My Life” now on iTunes!" Enjoy!
When celebrities dress up as other celebrities for Halloween, things get confusing. When Drake dresses up as Kanye West at his own concert, he wins Halloween 2013.
Drake went all out, dressing as the 36-year-old rapper, wearing an over-sized tank, printed jeans a sequin mask, backstage at his Washington, D.C. concert on Thursday (October 31).
Drake shared a snapshot of his costume on Instagram, captioning the shot, “I win the backstage costume contest every time #LightSkinYeezus #IAmAGod #IconicShit #HomeMadeDonda #AllPraiseToTheGenius.”
Take a look at Drake's pic, and see for yourself if mimicry is the best form of flattery, and whether or not Drake truly is "the winner!"
As news comes in from the incident at Los Angeles’ LAX airport, we have learned that a gunman reportedly shot and killed a TSA agent and wounded two other people this morning (November 1). The gunman is reported to be deceased, security has evacuated at least one terminal of the airport and all flights have been grounded.
Very little is known still about the incident, but celebrities both on the road and off have been tweeting about it.
Find out what some of the stars are saying in their tweets below:
The crazy month we call October has finally come to an end, and it's been one of the most hectic in recent memory. This week, we saw the Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 officially come out, and there was a bit about the iPad Air as well. Our guest on this week's podcast is Taylor Wimberly, who until ...
When celebrities dress up as other celebrities for Halloween, things get confusing. When Drake dresses up as Kanye West at his own concert, he wins Halloween 2013.
Drake went all out, dressing as the 36-year-old rapper, wearing an over-sized tank, printed jeans a sequin mask, backstage at his Washington, D.C. concert on Thursday (October 31).
Drake shared a snapshot of his costume on Instagram, captioning the shot, “I win the backstage costume contest every time #LightSkinYeezus #IAmAGod #IconicShit #HomeMadeDonda #AllPraiseToTheGenius.”
Take a look at Drake's pic, and see for yourself if mimicry is the best form of flattery, and whether or not Drake truly is "the winner!"
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Obama administration has recruited engineers from several prominent technology companies to help fix the problems preventing people from signing up for government-mandated health insurance.
Oracle and Red Hat are pitching in as well as Michael Dickerson, an engineer on leave from Google, according to a blog post Thursday by Julie Bataille, a spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Oracle Corp. CEO Larry Ellison told shareholders at the software maker's annual meeting Thursday that the Redwood Shores, Calif., company is trying to make the Healthcare.gov website more reliable and secure.
"Most of us want to see our government operating efficiently and effectively and it is incumbent upon us to help them do that," Ellison said.
Red Hat Inc. and Google Inc. declined to comment.
Dickerson is a site-reliability engineer at Google. He is now working directly with QSSI, the general contractor hired to upgrade Healthcare.gov, Bataille said.
Exasperation with the website's buggy technology has been compounded by concerns that the service lacks the security measures needed to protect the sensitive information of people looking for insurance.
Besides Dickerson, the government also identified entrepreneur Greg Gershman as one of its new troubleshooters. Gershman currently is director of innovation at mobile app developer Mobomo, according to his profile on professional networking site LinkedIn.
Gershman's resume says he received a Presidential Innovation Fellowship last year to work with the White House on a project seeking "to re-imagine the relationship between citizens and government around the citizen's needs."
The Obama administration has pledged Healthcare.gov will be running smoothly by Nov. 30.
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Online:
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services blog post:
NEW YORK (AP) — A noxious feline odor has some Dell customers caterwauling.
People who own Dell Latitude 6430u laptops are complaining that their pricey new computers are emitting a smell similar to cat urine. Some of them said on the company's online customer forums that the odor seems to be coming from the keyboard or palm rest.
The Round Rock, Texas, company originally advised buyers through its forums to try cleaning their keyboards with a soft cloth or compressed air, but the smell persisted.
"The machine is great, but it smells as if it was assembled near a tomcat's litter box," wrote a customer using the handle "three west" on a Dell forum back in June. "It is truly awful!"
On Wednesday, another customer writing under the handle "passflips" said he felt terrible for repeatedly scolding his cat Jerry, because he thought the elderly cat kept spraying the computer. The poster also said he wasted money on veterinarian bills in an attempt to determine whether his cat had a medical problem.
Dell said Thursday that its investigation revealed strange scent is related to a manufacturing process, which the company has since fixed. But if your portable PC isn't purrfect, Dell recommends contacting the company's technical support team to have your laptop's palm rest assembly replaced.
Company spokesman David Frink said the odor isn't related to a "biological contamination" and doesn't present a health hazard. He added that newly assembled laptops that are currently in stores aren't affected.
The laptops in question are ultrabooks designed for business use. The base model starts at $900 on Dell's website, but Dell charges close to $1,300 for higher-end versions that include Windows 8 and Intel Core i5 processors.
While laptop users may find the smell of cat urine offensive, "cat's pee" is a term sometimes used by wine lovers to describe a wine's aroma.
And while the smell coming from the Dell computers is apparently unintentional, more than one group of engineers is working on "Smell-o-Vision" TV to engage viewers' olfactory senses. In addition, a host of recent smartphone add-ons make scents, too, including the Scentee, a Japanese smartphone attachment that plugs into a phone's earphone jack and dispenses scented vapors through dedicated cartridges.
Abu Dhabi (AFP) - Unpaid Kimi Raikkonen on Friday threatened to walk out on Lotus in a dramatic Abu Dhabi Grand Prix gesture of defiance which overshadowed world champion Sebastian Vettel's scorching practice pace.
Raikkonen, who joins Ferrari next year, went close to not turning up for this weekend’s race, but instead arrived late and took fourth place in the evening's practice session.
The Finn has been at loggerheads with Lotus for several months and last weekend the tension was exposed when he exchanged profanities with them during the Indian Grand Prix.
Raikkonen is believed to be owed more than 15 million euros by the team.
"I came here only because hopefully we found an understanding on the certain issues we have been having," said Raikkonen when he met reporters at the end of Friday’s practice.
“Hopefully it will be fixed and we can finish the season as well as we can."
When asked if he would contemplate not taking part in the final races in the United States and in Brazil, he said: "For sure. I enjoy racing, I enjoy driving -- but a big part of it is business.
"Sometimes when that is not dealt with like it should, we end up in an unfortunate situation. You have to put the line somewhere, and if it goes over that... it is not really my fault anymore."
Earlier in the day, the team had tried to play down the extent of their problems after making apologies for the language used in last Sunday's interchange between Raikkonen and pit-wall boss Alan Permane.
Raikkonen said: "It is a part of it. It is true those things should not happen but they have happened. That is not really the issue.
"It is all the other stuff, and all the things come together in the end. Like I said, it is easy to say that is the reason but it is not that."
"Sometimes it is not very nice when you hear that you are not really a team player, and you don't have the interests of the team (at heart) - but you have been paid zero euro the whole year," said Raikkonen.
Raikkonen's paddock rage came on the day when world champion Vettel clocked the fastest time ahead of Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber in second free practice.
The newly-crowned quadruple world champion, who is seeking to secure his seventh successive victory, was third quickest in morning practice, but responded in style in the afternoon.
His fastest lap time of one minute and 41.335 seconds lifted him one-tenth of a second clear of Webber in a session run in cooling conditions and under dazzling floodlights at the ultra-modern Yas Marina Circuit.
The ambient temperature dropped by 14 degrees during the session after recordings of 35 degrees Celsius for the air and 46 for the track earlier in the day.
Lewis Hamilton, who has always enjoyed and impressed at the Yas Marina, was third fastest for Mercedes ahead of Raikkonen, Nico Rosberg in the second Mercedes and Sergio Perez of McLaren.
Vettel, who admitted he felt sick after a night of celebrations in the hotel bar following his triumph in last Sunday’s Indian Grand Prix, once again looked to be in utter command.
Afterwards, he said he felt that the troubled Lotus team appeared to be the biggest threat to his winning streak.
"It will be the usual suspects, to be honest," he said, when asked who might emerge as his main rivals.
"Lotus is exceptionally quick, especially come Sunday, and may be able to pull off strong pace later on in the stint -- so we will have to keep an eye on them."
Hamilton endured a difficult Friday despite being the best-placed non-Red Bull.
He suffered a differential problem, but said he felt confident.
"The long run is always interesting," said Hamilton.
"It's difficult to know what the car is going to do and as the car gets cooler, it goes into more understeer and it's about how much more or less front wing you need.
"That's the big challenge -- just trying to balance how fast you go to how much you save the tyres to make them last longer."
For McLaren, this weekend –- and the following last two races of the year -– present the team with a challenge.
The last time McLaren went through a season without a podium finish was back in 1980.
Everything you need to know to get all your contacts, calendars, apps, and more from your old iPad onto your new iPad Air or Retina iPad mini
If you've just upgraded to a new iPad Air or Retina iPad mini from an older generation iPad, transferring all your contacts, calendars, photos, and other data couldn't be any easier if you've been creating backups with either iCloud or iTunes. Regardless what backup method you've chosen, they can make the process of getting the data from your old iPad to your new iPad virtually painless. Here's how:
How to transfer data from your old iPad to your new iPad with iCloud
If you have been backing your old iPad up to iCloud, bringing down all your data couldn't be any easier. If this is your first iPad but you own an iPhone, you can even bring down your iPhone backup and compatible items will transfer automatically.
Just follow these easy steps:
After your new iPad powers on, you'll see a welcome screen, Slide your finger across the bottom where it says slide to set up.
Now choose your language from the choices presented to you.
Select the country or region you are in.
Now choose your WiFi network and enter the password for it if there is one. If you don't have access to WiFi, you can choose Use Cellular but keep in mind, this only works if you've purchased an iPad that has cellular data connectivity. Not to mention that only some things in your iCloud backup will be restored without WiFi. Others won't be triggered until you're on WiFi. Or you can choose to restore from an iTunes backup if you have access to one.
Now on the Location Services screen, choose whether you'd like to have location services on by default. Make sure you read the description of what location services are before deciding whether or not you'd like to enable or disable them. Keep in mind that certain apps like Maps need location services to operate properly.
On the next screen, tap on Restore from iCloud backup and enter your credentials when asked.
Now agree to the Terms and Conditions. You will be asked to verify that you agree to them a second time.
If you have iCloud backups, your iPad will now show them. Tap on the backup name that you'd like to restore from.
Note that the screenshots below are from the iPhone setup process but the iPad process is exactly the same as well.
The backup process could take quite a while depending on how much stuff you're transferring. It's also worth noting that certain items such as apps, photos, and videos will only restore when on WiFi in order to not eat through your data plan. If you have to leave WiFi range before the restore is complete, don't worry, it will pick up where it left up when you enter WiFi again.
How to transfer data from your old iPad to your new iPad with iTunes
If you're coming from an older iPad that you've chosen to back up to iTunes, it's just as easy to get your data transferred to your new iPad. We understand that not everyone trusts the cloud yet and if you prefer traditional hard backups in iTunes over using iCloud, that's fine too. We can help you get all your data to your new iPad just as quick.
Just remember to make sure you're on the most current version of iTunes before continuing, especially if your old iPad isn't running iOS 7 yet.
After your new iPad powers on, you'll see a welcome screen, Slide your finger across the bottom where it says slide to set up.
Now choose your language from the choices presented to you.
Select the country or region you are in.
Now choose your WiFi network and enter the password for it if there is one. If you don't have access to WiFi, you can choose Use Cellular but keep in mind this option is only available if you've purchases an iPad with cellular connection options. Let's not forget that only some things in your iCloud backup will be restored without WiFi. Others won't be triggered until you're on WiFi. Or you can choose to restore from an iTunes backup if you have access to one.
Now on the Location Services screen, choose whether you'd like to have location services on by default. Make sure you read the description of what location services are before deciding whether or not you'd like to enable or disable them. Keep in mind that certain apps like Maps need location services to operate properly.
On the next screen, tap on Restore from iTunes backup.
If you aren't already connected to your computer containing your iTunes backups, your iPad will prompt you to do so now.
Follow the prompts in iTunes in order to select your most recent backup.
Note that the screenshots below are from the iPhone setup process but the iPad process is exactly the same as well.
That's all there is to it. Once iTunes starts bringing your stuff down, just let it do its thing. Depending on how much data you have, especially apps, the restore process could take a while. Just make sure you don't unplug your iPad from your computer until iTunes tells you that the restore is complete.
Retina iPad mini The world's most popular tiny tablet goes Retina. Features include:
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- As soon as word broke that the planned Quinton Jackson-Tito Ortiz fight was off, Eddie Alvarez had a message for his Bellator bosses: "I told you so."
Alvarez's long-awaited rematch with Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler on Saturday night at Long Beach Arena was listed as the co-main event, but the former champ had a gut feeling that by the time they walked into the cage, they'd be the stars of the show.
"I said ‘me and Mike are going to be main event' as soon as they said that we're co-main event to Tito and Rampage," Alvarez said at Thursday's open workouts. "I told them we will be main event. Guaranteed them that. I knew in my head that Tito and Rampage, one of them would not make it through the training camp."
As Alvarez explained it, it wasn't ill will that caused him to believe that a bout originally scheduled to headline on pay-per-view wouldn't make it to the cage, just knowledge of how much more difficult it becomes to get through training camp as your career progresses.
"These are guys who just, they've been in the sport so long," he said. "I've been in the sport so long, and I've been lucky to get through without injuries. Tito's been plagued with injuries ... it didn't take a genius to see that one coming."
Nor did it take a genius to realize that Chandler vs. Alvarez, a rematch of one of MMA's greatest battles, was the evening's true main event, whether or not it got the official designation.
The first Chandler-Alvarez bout, on Nov. 19, 2011 in Hollywood, Fla. is widely regarded as the best fight in Bellator history and generally considered one of the all-time great MMA fights. Four rounds of twists and turns ended with Chandler getting a rear-naked choke submission victory, as he took Alvarez's title belt, one he's yet to relinquish.
For his part, while he didn't get his hand raised that night, Alvarez has an appreciation for being a part of a fight which, two years later, is still held in high esteem.
"It takes two people to put a fight on like that," Alvarez said. "I've done it a couple times where I've had fight of the year. It's not what you aspire to. You don't want to be in a fight of the year. It takes years off your life. But, it's why fans tune in, it's why people gravitate towards your fights, its why people want to watch you fight. It's important to get into them, but it's important to try not to get into too many of them.
"When you're in them, it's enjoyable, it's why a lot of fighters fight," Alvarez continued. "To feel that feeling, to deal with that adversity and feel the energy of the fans. It's something special, but it's something special you don't want to experience too many times in your career."
Chandler's victory over Alvarez put him on the map, so obviously he remembers the night fondly as well.
"That's the goal," Chandler said. "You want to go out there, you want to be known as the guy who people refuse to miss your fight. ‘If Michael Chandler's fighting, I'm not going to miss that fight.' You want fans to have that in their mind, they've already made that decision. You want to be exciting, you want to be a guy the fans want to see to be involved in a fight like that was great and I'm excited about the fight."
Alvarez is fighting for the first time in just over a year, after a long and public legal battle with the promotion. After receiving a lucrative offer from the UFC during his free-agent period, Bellator invoked a matching-rights clause. The duo ultimately came to a settlement which lead to the Chandler rematch.
At this point, Alvarez doesn't want to comment on the record about the situation.
"I'm not talking anything about money," Alvarez said. "I'm here to fight."
Fair enough. Since he brings up fighting, while he's been out of action awhile, Alvarez (24-3), who now trains with the Blackzilians, simply looks ready to fight, checking in at 162 pounds on Thursday morning and showing off an absolutely ripped physique during his workout.
"I'm around a team of phenomenal athletes, phenomenal coaches, great facility, great area," Alvarez said. "I just want to do things that align with my goals. Now that I got [the legal situation] out of my way I can start working hard toward that No. 1 spot."
But can it happen again? Can they recreate the magic? Rematches of thrilling fights, after all, don't always live up to the hype (anyone remember Forrest Griffin-Stephan Bonnar 2?).
Chandler (12-0), for one, expects nothing less than Alvarez's best.
"When you look at myself and Eddie, he's a great competitor," Chandler said. "Nothing's changed, he knows how to prepare, knows how to train, he's coming for the belt and he wants it bad. ... I'm just believing that I want it more, it's going to take me getting knocked out or choked unconscious or a limb breaking and the ref stopping it for it to end on my part."
And Alvarez says his head is in the right place.
"The first time I fought Mike Chandler I was thinking about money way too much," Alvarez said. "I was thinking about the end of my contract. My focus was way off. I didn't believe in the people that were guiding me. Everything is going to be different."
Going out for some Halloween fun in angelic fashion, Joanna Krupa made heads turn with her pure-white costume, sure to have generated some less than pure thoughts!
Dressed from head-to-foot in a "holy" lacy white top, complete with heavenly wings and divinely sexy lingerie, the Polish-American babe strode the streets and attended a party as a naughty-but-nice spirit.
The 34-year-old "Real Housewives" starlet tweeted about her night and her costume, writing, "Had so much fun wearing this couture piece from @michealcostello ! U r such a talent! Love u."
The picture going along with her post saw the blonde beauty posing in her divine designer get up, staring seductively into the camera. Her flashing eyes made her look like a character out of "Supernatural!"
Digital cameras are ubiquitous today — even $20 cell phones have them built in. But few people actually know how a digital camera works. Shree Nayar, a computer scientist at Columbia University, set out to change that with his Bigshot Do-It-Yourself Digital Camera kit, which gives tinkerers a view of a camera's anatomy.
The Jonas Brothers won't be burning up the charts anytime soon. Joe Bro fans across the globe were devastated to learn that the popular family band was breaking up after a 10-year career as Disney recording artists and beyond.
Now the brothers have tried to give back to their diehard fans in an open Facebook letter.
Kevin, Joe, and Nick Jonas had already confirmed the news on multiple platforms, including their Oct. 30 Good Morning America interview, but in this special Facebook message, they spoke directly to their loyal followers.
"It is with heavy hearts that we confirm that our time as the Jonas Brothers is over," the group wrote. "This decision has not come lightly, and we know that many of you will be disappointed. The time has come for us to move forward on individual career paths. We have been a band of brothers for 10 years and are now choosing simply to be brothers."
After confirming that each of the brothers will continue with their own solo pursuits, the Jonas Brothers gave Team Jonas fans a special surprise.
"Because you waited so long for new music, we want to honor our Team Jonas fan club members by giving you our final album," they continued. "This digital-only album contains four new studio recordings that would have appeared on our V album (which will now go unreleased). In addition, we're including 10 live tracks that we feel capture the energy and excitement of this past summer's tour."
Experimental drug shows encouraging results in treating most common form of lung cancer
PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
31-Oct-2013
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Contact: Shaun Mason smason@mednet.ucla.edu 310-206-2805 University of California - Los Angeles
An experimental cancer drug that has shown promise in the treatment of melanoma has also shown early potential as an effective treatment for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death among men and women worldwide.
Dr. Edward Garon, director of thoracic oncology at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, presented the preliminary results of a Phase 1B study of the new drug, called MK-3475, on Oct. 29 at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Sydney, Australia.
The detailed interim data on safety and activity came from a cohort of 38 patients with non-small cell lung cancer who were treated previously for the disease without positive results. For the study, the patients received MK-3475 every three weeks.
Among the participants, 24 percent responded to the drug, with their tumors shrinking, and the median overall survival rate was 51 weeks. For those who responded, the median response duration the average amount of time their tumors remained shrunk had not been reached at the time of this analysis, so it is at least 62 weeks.
Based on this data, a Phase 2/3 trial comparing two different doses of MK-3475 to standard chemotherapy for lung cancer has begun enrolling patients.
Some cancer cells can evade detection by the immune system by expressing a protein called PD-L1, which interacts with the protein PD-1 to prevent the immune system from seeing the cancer as an invader. MK-3475, an anti-PD-1 immunotherapy drug made by Merck, allows the immune system to properly detect the cancer and to activate T cells the so-called "foot soldiers" of the immune system to attack and kill cancer cells.
The most commonly reported drug-related side effects in the study were rash (21 percent), skin itching (18 percent), fatigue (16 percent), diarrhea (13 percent) and joint pain (11 percent). Most side effects, however, were of low grade.
"These are early results, but we are very encouraged by what we've seen so far with this drug," Garon said. "Lung cancer patients who have disease that has grown after two prior therapies do not have many options, and we are cautiously optimistic that this might be a treatment that improves their chances in the future."
According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 1.4 million people die from non-small cell lung cancer every year. It is the most common type of lung cancer, representing approximately 85 percent of all lung cancer diagnoses.
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UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has more than 240 researchers and clinicians engaged in disease research, prevention, detection, control, treatment and education. One of the nation's largest comprehensive cancer centers, the Jonsson center is dedicated to promoting research and translating basic science into leading-edge clinical studies. In July 2013, the Jonsson Cancer Center was named among the top 12 cancer centers nationwide by U.S. News & World Report, a ranking it has held for 14 consecutive years.
For more news, visit the UCLA Newsroom and follow us on Twitter.
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Experimental drug shows encouraging results in treating most common form of lung cancer
PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
31-Oct-2013
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Contact: Shaun Mason smason@mednet.ucla.edu 310-206-2805 University of California - Los Angeles
An experimental cancer drug that has shown promise in the treatment of melanoma has also shown early potential as an effective treatment for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death among men and women worldwide.
Dr. Edward Garon, director of thoracic oncology at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, presented the preliminary results of a Phase 1B study of the new drug, called MK-3475, on Oct. 29 at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Sydney, Australia.
The detailed interim data on safety and activity came from a cohort of 38 patients with non-small cell lung cancer who were treated previously for the disease without positive results. For the study, the patients received MK-3475 every three weeks.
Among the participants, 24 percent responded to the drug, with their tumors shrinking, and the median overall survival rate was 51 weeks. For those who responded, the median response duration the average amount of time their tumors remained shrunk had not been reached at the time of this analysis, so it is at least 62 weeks.
Based on this data, a Phase 2/3 trial comparing two different doses of MK-3475 to standard chemotherapy for lung cancer has begun enrolling patients.
Some cancer cells can evade detection by the immune system by expressing a protein called PD-L1, which interacts with the protein PD-1 to prevent the immune system from seeing the cancer as an invader. MK-3475, an anti-PD-1 immunotherapy drug made by Merck, allows the immune system to properly detect the cancer and to activate T cells the so-called "foot soldiers" of the immune system to attack and kill cancer cells.
The most commonly reported drug-related side effects in the study were rash (21 percent), skin itching (18 percent), fatigue (16 percent), diarrhea (13 percent) and joint pain (11 percent). Most side effects, however, were of low grade.
"These are early results, but we are very encouraged by what we've seen so far with this drug," Garon said. "Lung cancer patients who have disease that has grown after two prior therapies do not have many options, and we are cautiously optimistic that this might be a treatment that improves their chances in the future."
According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 1.4 million people die from non-small cell lung cancer every year. It is the most common type of lung cancer, representing approximately 85 percent of all lung cancer diagnoses.
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UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has more than 240 researchers and clinicians engaged in disease research, prevention, detection, control, treatment and education. One of the nation's largest comprehensive cancer centers, the Jonsson center is dedicated to promoting research and translating basic science into leading-edge clinical studies. In July 2013, the Jonsson Cancer Center was named among the top 12 cancer centers nationwide by U.S. News & World Report, a ranking it has held for 14 consecutive years.
For more news, visit the UCLA Newsroom and follow us on Twitter.
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LSUHSC simulation or team training improves performance & patient safety
PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
1-Nov-2013
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Contact: Leslie Capo lcapo@lsuhsc.edu 504-568-4806 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center
New Orleans, LA A study conducted by an inter-professional team of LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans faculty found that simulation-based operating room team training of medical and nursing students resulted in more effective teamwork by improving attitudes, behaviors, interaction and overall performance leading to potential increased patient safety and better clinical outcomes. The study is published online November 1, 2013, in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.
"Effective teamwork in the operating room is often undermined by the 'silo mentality' of the differing professions," says lead author John T. Paige, MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Surgery and Director of Applied Surgical Simulation at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine. "Such thinking is formed early in one's professional experience and is fostered by undergraduate medical and nursing curricula lacking inter-professional education."
Sixty-six students (18 undergraduate nursing students, 28 fourth-year medical students, and 20 nurse anesthesia students), divided into ten groups, trained over a one-month period at the Russell Klein Center for Advanced Practice at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine. Each two-hour training session used two standardized, authentic scenarios. The first scenario involved a life-threatening intra-abdominal hemorrhage from a stab wound. The second scenario involved local anesthetic toxicity from a regional upper arm block. The scenarios utilized a software algorithm designed to respond to team actions and decisions. At least three faculty instructors facilitated each session. One operated the human patient simulator, and two served as debriefing facilitators. Trained observers rated student team-based behavior.
Each OR team had two medical students (surgeon and first assistant roles), two undergraduate nursing students (circulating and scrub nurse roles), and two nurse anesthesia students (primary and secondary anesthetist roles). Students switched roles within their discipline (e.g., an undergraduate nurse moving from scrub nurse to circulating nurse) for the second scenario. In cases where more than two students from a particular profession were present, two students would participate in the first scenario and the other two would observe. Students then would switch for the second scenario. A structured debriefing followed each scenario.
"Frequently, failed communication, ineffective inter-personal skills, inter-professional tension, poor team interaction and divergent inter-professional interpretations of the quality of collaboration combine to impact both patient care processes and outcomes," notes John T. Paige, MD, who also serves as Director of the American College of Surgeons Comprehensive Accredited Education Institute at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine.. "In this study, a single session of high fidelity simulation-based inter-professional OR team training resulted in immediate improvement of students' team-based attitudes and behaviors." The LSUHSC research team also included Deborah D. Garbee, PhD, Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Nursing, Laura Bonanno, DNP, Director of the Nurse Anesthesia Program, and Lyubov Kozmenko, BSN, Simulation Lab Instructor, in the School of Nursing, Valeriy Kozmenko, MD, formerly of the Department of Anesthesia, Tong Yang, MD, Department of Pathology, William Swartz, PhD, Professor of Cell Biology and Anatomy, and Qingzhao Yu, PhD, Associate Professor of Biostatistics in the School of Public Health.
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High fidelity simulation provides a realistic, safe learning environment in which students can encounter uncommon clinical situations and learn from "mistakes" without repercussions. The School of Medicine at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans opened the Isidore Cohn, Jr. MD Student Learning Center in August 2001. This center pioneered medical education in the state, with human patient simulators providing students with hands-on experience solving sophisticated patient scenario cases that could be practiced until perfect. Taking a page from the airline industry, the center also began conducting team performance training with the full complement of teaching hospital operating room health care professionals surgeons, anesthesiologists, scrub nurses, circulating nurses, and residents, as well as medical and nursing students. Together with the Russell Klein Center for Advanced Practice, these two centers represent 30,000 square feet of the most advanced new era simulation technology available anywhere in the United States.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans became the country's 18th Level I Comprehensive Education Institute designated by the American College of Surgeons in June 2007. Since then, it has successfully undergone re-accreditation as a Comprehensive Education Institute in June 2010 and June 2013. According to the American College of Surgeons, the goal of the ACS Accredited Education Institutes is to focus on competencies and to specifically address the teaching, learning, and assessment of technical skills using state-of-the-art educational methods and cutting-edge technology.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's academic health leader, LSUHSC comprises a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSUHSC faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSUHSC research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSUHSC faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu and http://www.twitter.com/LSUHSCHealth
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LSUHSC simulation or team training improves performance & patient safety
PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
1-Nov-2013
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Contact: Leslie Capo lcapo@lsuhsc.edu 504-568-4806 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center
New Orleans, LA A study conducted by an inter-professional team of LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans faculty found that simulation-based operating room team training of medical and nursing students resulted in more effective teamwork by improving attitudes, behaviors, interaction and overall performance leading to potential increased patient safety and better clinical outcomes. The study is published online November 1, 2013, in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.
"Effective teamwork in the operating room is often undermined by the 'silo mentality' of the differing professions," says lead author John T. Paige, MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Surgery and Director of Applied Surgical Simulation at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine. "Such thinking is formed early in one's professional experience and is fostered by undergraduate medical and nursing curricula lacking inter-professional education."
Sixty-six students (18 undergraduate nursing students, 28 fourth-year medical students, and 20 nurse anesthesia students), divided into ten groups, trained over a one-month period at the Russell Klein Center for Advanced Practice at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine. Each two-hour training session used two standardized, authentic scenarios. The first scenario involved a life-threatening intra-abdominal hemorrhage from a stab wound. The second scenario involved local anesthetic toxicity from a regional upper arm block. The scenarios utilized a software algorithm designed to respond to team actions and decisions. At least three faculty instructors facilitated each session. One operated the human patient simulator, and two served as debriefing facilitators. Trained observers rated student team-based behavior.
Each OR team had two medical students (surgeon and first assistant roles), two undergraduate nursing students (circulating and scrub nurse roles), and two nurse anesthesia students (primary and secondary anesthetist roles). Students switched roles within their discipline (e.g., an undergraduate nurse moving from scrub nurse to circulating nurse) for the second scenario. In cases where more than two students from a particular profession were present, two students would participate in the first scenario and the other two would observe. Students then would switch for the second scenario. A structured debriefing followed each scenario.
"Frequently, failed communication, ineffective inter-personal skills, inter-professional tension, poor team interaction and divergent inter-professional interpretations of the quality of collaboration combine to impact both patient care processes and outcomes," notes John T. Paige, MD, who also serves as Director of the American College of Surgeons Comprehensive Accredited Education Institute at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine.. "In this study, a single session of high fidelity simulation-based inter-professional OR team training resulted in immediate improvement of students' team-based attitudes and behaviors." The LSUHSC research team also included Deborah D. Garbee, PhD, Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Nursing, Laura Bonanno, DNP, Director of the Nurse Anesthesia Program, and Lyubov Kozmenko, BSN, Simulation Lab Instructor, in the School of Nursing, Valeriy Kozmenko, MD, formerly of the Department of Anesthesia, Tong Yang, MD, Department of Pathology, William Swartz, PhD, Professor of Cell Biology and Anatomy, and Qingzhao Yu, PhD, Associate Professor of Biostatistics in the School of Public Health.
###
High fidelity simulation provides a realistic, safe learning environment in which students can encounter uncommon clinical situations and learn from "mistakes" without repercussions. The School of Medicine at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans opened the Isidore Cohn, Jr. MD Student Learning Center in August 2001. This center pioneered medical education in the state, with human patient simulators providing students with hands-on experience solving sophisticated patient scenario cases that could be practiced until perfect. Taking a page from the airline industry, the center also began conducting team performance training with the full complement of teaching hospital operating room health care professionals surgeons, anesthesiologists, scrub nurses, circulating nurses, and residents, as well as medical and nursing students. Together with the Russell Klein Center for Advanced Practice, these two centers represent 30,000 square feet of the most advanced new era simulation technology available anywhere in the United States.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans became the country's 18th Level I Comprehensive Education Institute designated by the American College of Surgeons in June 2007. Since then, it has successfully undergone re-accreditation as a Comprehensive Education Institute in June 2010 and June 2013. According to the American College of Surgeons, the goal of the ACS Accredited Education Institutes is to focus on competencies and to specifically address the teaching, learning, and assessment of technical skills using state-of-the-art educational methods and cutting-edge technology.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's academic health leader, LSUHSC comprises a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSUHSC faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSUHSC research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSUHSC faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu and http://www.twitter.com/LSUHSCHealth
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
An improved and expanded nomenclature for genetic sequences is introduced that corresponds with a ranking of the reliability of the taxonomic identification of the source specimens. This nomenclature is an advancement of the "Genetypes" naming system, which some have been reluctant to adopt because of the use of the "type" suffix in the terminology. The study was published in the open access journal Zookeys.
The use of genetic sequences has been increasing with each passing year but unfortunately, the separation between voucher specimens and genetic sequences is similarly growing. With increasing frequency, the link between the genetic sequences being used in analyses and the organisms from which they came is not being reported. The taxonomic determination remains solely the responsibility of the submitter of the sequences. Erroneous identifications are difficult to discover, and the perpetuation of the error in subsequent uses of the sequence data is nearly impossible to stop.
In the new nomenclature, genetic sequences are labeled "genseq," followed by a reliability ranking (e.g., 1 if the sequence is from a primary type), followed by the name of the genes from which the sequences were derived (e.g., genseq-1 16S, COI). The numbered suffix provides an indication of the likely reliability of taxonomic identification of the voucher. Included in this ranking system, in descending order of taxonomic reliability, are the following: sequences from primary types "genseq-1," secondary types "genseq-2," collection-vouchered topotypes "genseq-3," collection-vouchered non-types "genseq-4," and non-types that lack specimen vouchers but have photo vouchers "genseq-5."
To demonstrate use of the new nomenclature, the authors of the study review recently published news species descriptions in the ichthyological literature that include DNA data and apply the GenSeq nomenclature to sequences referenced in those publications.
"Use of the new nomenclature and ranking system will improve integration of molecular phylogenetics and biological taxonomy and enhance the ability of researchers to assess the reliability of sequence data,"explains one of the authors Dr. Prosanta Chakrabarty, Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University. "We further encourage authors to update sequence information on databases such as GenBank whenever nomenclatural changes are made."
###
Original Source:
Chakrabarty P, Warren M, Page LM, Baldwin CC (2013) GenSeq: An updated nomenclature and ranking for genetic sequences from type and non-type sources. ZooKeys 346: 2941. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.346.5753
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
GenSeq: Updated nomenclature for genetic sequences to solve taxonomic determination issues
An improved and expanded nomenclature for genetic sequences is introduced that corresponds with a ranking of the reliability of the taxonomic identification of the source specimens. This nomenclature is an advancement of the "Genetypes" naming system, which some have been reluctant to adopt because of the use of the "type" suffix in the terminology. The study was published in the open access journal Zookeys.
The use of genetic sequences has been increasing with each passing year but unfortunately, the separation between voucher specimens and genetic sequences is similarly growing. With increasing frequency, the link between the genetic sequences being used in analyses and the organisms from which they came is not being reported. The taxonomic determination remains solely the responsibility of the submitter of the sequences. Erroneous identifications are difficult to discover, and the perpetuation of the error in subsequent uses of the sequence data is nearly impossible to stop.
In the new nomenclature, genetic sequences are labeled "genseq," followed by a reliability ranking (e.g., 1 if the sequence is from a primary type), followed by the name of the genes from which the sequences were derived (e.g., genseq-1 16S, COI). The numbered suffix provides an indication of the likely reliability of taxonomic identification of the voucher. Included in this ranking system, in descending order of taxonomic reliability, are the following: sequences from primary types "genseq-1," secondary types "genseq-2," collection-vouchered topotypes "genseq-3," collection-vouchered non-types "genseq-4," and non-types that lack specimen vouchers but have photo vouchers "genseq-5."
To demonstrate use of the new nomenclature, the authors of the study review recently published news species descriptions in the ichthyological literature that include DNA data and apply the GenSeq nomenclature to sequences referenced in those publications.
"Use of the new nomenclature and ranking system will improve integration of molecular phylogenetics and biological taxonomy and enhance the ability of researchers to assess the reliability of sequence data,"explains one of the authors Dr. Prosanta Chakrabarty, Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University. "We further encourage authors to update sequence information on databases such as GenBank whenever nomenclatural changes are made."
###
Original Source:
Chakrabarty P, Warren M, Page LM, Baldwin CC (2013) GenSeq: An updated nomenclature and ranking for genetic sequences from type and non-type sources. ZooKeys 346: 2941. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.346.5753
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
The crazy month we call October has finally come to an end, and it's been one of the most hectic in recent memory. This week, we saw the Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 officially come out, and there was a bit about the iPad Air as well. Our guest on this week's podcast is Taylor Wimberly, who until ...
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