A normal-sized, black coffee cup with a handle, of course, sitting in the middle of a wooden picnic table, is filled with hazelnut coffee. While one many view this simply as a cup on a table, it is possible that another will view the cup as a metaphor for the fresh beginning of a new day. In the cyber world, Kine Dorum, a PhD Student at the University of Leicester, in Great Britain, analyzes the way humans use images from past experiences as a guide when using the computer rather then directly associating computer images to real-life. Dorum hopes to develop a set of common attributes in predicting individuals’ behaviors and performances while on the computer through her notion that the universe on screen is similar to perceptions of “real life” based on past experiences.

LSU associate professor of sociology Troy C. Blanchard recently found that a community's religious environment – the type of religious congregations within a locale – affects mortality rates, often in a positive manner. These results were published in the June issue of Social Forces.

This result, he says, is particularly timely in the context of presidential candidate Barack Obama's recent call for expanding the roles of such religious groups.

Along with co-author John Bartkowski from the University of Texas at San Antonio and other researchers from the University of West Georgia and the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Blanchard found that people live longer in areas with a large number of Catholic and Mainline Protestant churches. He offers two key reasons for these findings.

It is well known that a powerful perceptual experience can change the way a person sees things later. If you are startled to discover a mouse in your kitchen, you may suddenly you see mice in every dark corner - or at least think you do. Is it possible that imagining something, just once, might also change how you perceive things?

To test how imagery affects perception, the researchers had subjects imagine simple patterns of vertical or horizontal stripes, which are strongly represented in the primary visual areas of the brain. They then presented a green horizontal grated pattern to one eye and a red vertical grated pattern to the other to induce what is called binocular rivalry.

During binocular rivalry, an individual will often alternately perceive each stimulus, with the images appearing to switch back and forth before their eyes. The subjects generally reported they had seen the image they had been imagining, proving the researcher's hypothesis that imagery would influence the binocular rivalry battle.

FALLS CHURCH, Virginia, July 3 /PRNewswire/ --

- Agreement Adds Support for New U.S. Commercial Nuclear Facility

CSC (NYSE: CSC) announced today that it has signed a new information technology (IT) outsourcing contract with Urenco, a leading supplier of enriched uranium to nuclear power utilities worldwide. The new six-year agreement, which is valued at US$22 million (10.9 million pounds sterling), follows a seven-year, 23 million pounds sterling IT outsourcing contract Urenco awarded to CSC in March 2007.

LONDON, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- In the news release, "Union Outrage at Bridlington Ward Closure" issued on 3 Jul 2008 15:16 GMT, by Unite the Union over PR Newswire, we are advised by a representative of the company that the third paragraph of this release has been amended. "DVT" has been changed to read "D&V (diarrhoea and vomiting)" as originally issued inadvertently. Complete, corrected release follows:

Unite, the UK's largest union, has expressed outrage and concern at the sudden and unexpected closure today of 28 bed acute Kent Ward at Bridlington Hospital.

BIOCITECH, France, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Cellectis SA today announced the signature of an agreement with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. over the use of Cellectis' patents covering certain uses of homologous recombination for the generation of innovative human therapies, including the development of fully human monoclonal antibodies. As part of the agreement, Cellectis will receive an upfront of 12,450,000$ from Regeneron. In addition, Regeneron will invest in Cellectis' equity.

LONDON, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Responding to the NHS next stage review, Our vision for primary and community care, Howard Duff, Director for England at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, said:

"The challenge that this strategy lays down to all healthcare professionals is to help people live healthier lives. Pharmacy is ready to take up this challenge and to play its part in delivering preventative services such as:

- vascular risk assessments - helping people stop smoking - tackling obesity - the management of long-term conditions

LONDON, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Unite, the UK's largest union, has expressed outrage and concern at the sudden and unexpected closure today of 28 bed acute Kent Ward at Bridlington Hospital.

Unite official, Terry Cunliffe, has written to Margaret Edwards, Chief Executive of the Yorkshire and Humberside Strategic Health Authority, expressing the union's grave concerns and reminding her that assurances had been given by the outgoing Chief Executive that there would not be any closures due to staff shortages.

Unite is also concerned about the safety of transferring patients that have infections and DVT to a clean surgical ward.

LONDON, July 3 /PRNewswire/ --

An independent review commissioned by Ofgem and prepared by economists at The Brattle Group, with legal input from Simmons & Simmons, has recommended radical reforms to the industry code governance arrangements that set the technical and commercial rules for participation in Great Britain's gas and electricity sectors.

LONDON, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Solcara, the market-leading provider of software for the control, management and searching of digital information, announces the appointment of Andrew Yuille as marketing director to the Solcara Board.

Andrew joins Solcara with over 15 years experience in the software and services sectors, gained in senior roles at Rubus, Tetra, The Sage Group and most recently with SmartPoint Technologies and Strategix. Andrew specialises in B2B marketing, targeting organisations in both commercial and public sectors.