Featured Articles

Can Hauntings Be Verified By Science?

Can Hauntings Be Verified By Science?

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

It may begin as a feeling of unease that overtakes you as you cautiously make your way inside a long-abandoned house.  The air is thick; musty and stale.  Yet somehow it is laced with the underlying scent  of a burning fire… even though the cold crumbling fireplace hosted its last fire long ago.
 
As your eyes adjust, you begin to notice the stillness. There is absolutely no noise.  In fact, the silence is so oppressive, it presses in on your eardrums like the weight of an ocean… seeking to snuff out the sound of anything that should trespass upon it.  You get the distinct feeling it would like to quiet even the uneven sound of your shallow breaths… and then move on to silence the thump of your increasingly racing heartbeat.
Negative Campaign Ads In Presidential Campaigns Are The Norm, Not The Exception

Negative Campaign Ads In Presidential Campaigns Are The Norm, Not The Exception

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

The 2008 presidential campaign, as reflected in candidates' television spots, has been one of the most negative campaigns in history. A University of Missouri professor analyzed this year's candidates' television spots, including last night's 30-minute ad by Sen. Barack Obama and found that only one other campaign matched this level of negativity.

William Benoit, professor of communication in the College of Arts and Science, found that in television spots from 1952-2004, candidates averaged 40 percent attacks in their ad statements. In this year's race, the statements in Obama's ads were 68 percent negative compared to 62 percent for Sen. John McCain.

Can This Blood Test Predict Obesity?

Can This Blood Test Predict Obesity?

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

According to new research from the Monell Center, the degree of change in blood triglyceride levels following a fatty meal may indicate susceptibility to diet-induced obesity. The findings open doors to new methods of identifying people, including children, who are at risk for becoming obese. 

Triglycerides are a form of fat that is transported in the blood and stored in the body's fat tissues. They are found in foods and also are manufactured by the body. 
While Prevalent, Sexual Problems In Most Women Psychological, Not Medical

While Prevalent, Sexual Problems In Most Women Psychological, Not Medical

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

The largest such study ever published finds that while about 40 percent of women surveyed report having sexual problems only 12 percent indicate that those issues are a source of significant personal distress. The report led by a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) physician appears in the November issue of Obstetrics&Gynecology. 
Can Your Doctor Correctly Read An EKG?

Can Your Doctor Correctly Read An EKG?

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

You have a burning chest pain and a doctor looks at a squiggly-lined graph to determine the cause. That graph, an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), can help the doctor decide whether you're having a heart attack or an acid attack from last night's spaghetti. Correct interpretation may prompt life-saving, emergency measures; incorrect interpretation may delay care with life-threatening consequences. Currently, there is no uniform way to teach doctors in training how to interpret an ECG or assess their competence in the interpretation.
Roche Receives FDA Approval For Hepatitis C Viral Load Test On Its Fully Automated Real-Time PCR Platform

Roche Receives FDA Approval For Hepatitis C Viral Load Test On Its Fully Automated Real-Time PCR Platform

Oct 31 2008 | comment(s)

PLEASANTON, California, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- Improved laboratory efficiencies and standardization to personalize patient care

Roche Molecular Diagnostics today announced that the U.S. Food Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the COBAS(R) AmpliPrep / COBAS(R) TaqMan(R) HCV Test for use in the United States. The test uses Roche's proprietary real-time PCR technology to quantify the amount of Hepatitis C RNA in a patient's blood. Physicians use Hepatitis C viral load testing results to establish a baseline level of hepatitis C infection and to serially monitor viral load levels and treatment effectiveness in patients on therapy.

Spanish Territories, Europe, Middle East, Africa Are Focus Of Contemporary Music College Taking Shape In Spain

Spanish Territories, Europe, Middle East, Africa Are Focus Of Contemporary Music College Taking Shape In Spain

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

BOSTON and VALENCIA, Spain, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- Groundbreaking Oct. 16 for cutting-edge campus created by U.S. Music College and Spanish Performance Rights Organization -

Berklee College of Music President Roger Brown and Sociedad General de Autores y Editores (SGAE) CEO Eduardo Bautista have announced an unparalleled cultural partnership to build a new college for global, contemporary music education in Valencia, Spain. Berklee Valencia will be the largest offshore U.S. music college in the world. Programs will offer music education that is new to Europe, focusing on contemporary music, international business, and the latest developments in leading-edge music technology.

ComScore Introduces 'Extended Web' Reporting For Distributed Web Content And Measurement Of Publisher Ad Packages

ComScore Introduces 'Extended Web' Reporting For Distributed Web Content And Measurement Of Publisher Ad Packages

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

RESTON, Virginia, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- New Service introduces the first GRP measurement of online ads and offers capabilities for more granular advertising planning and analytics by agencies and publishers

Hubble Space Telescope Resurrected Despite Servicing Mission Delay

Hubble Space Telescope Resurrected Despite Servicing Mission Delay

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

Just last month, Hubble Space Telescope's main instruments were idled by a computer failure, but not to worry, thanks to NASA engineers, who successfully transferred the work of the failed science data downlink computer to a backup system, Hubble is up and running just a couple of days after the orbiting observatory was brought back online.
Jonckers VP Speaking At TcWorld Conference About Localization Strategies That Match Corporate Goals

Jonckers VP Speaking At TcWorld Conference About Localization Strategies That Match Corporate Goals

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

BRUSSELS, Belgium, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- Exhibiting at Booth #159 -

Technical communicators and information managers who face changes in their localization needs can glean best practices for aligning localization strategy with corporate goals during a talk titled Developing a Localization Strategy on November 6 at tcWorld in Germany.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070208/JONCKERSLOGO)

The talk will be delivered by Ian Butler, vice president of business development for Jonckers Translation Engineering -- Europe, which has a 15-year track record of serving corporate leaders in Europe from its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, and offices in London, England; Dublin, Ireland; and Brno, Czech Republic.

Microsoft And DCSF Sign MOU To Deliver A Better Connected Education For Students And Teachers In England

Microsoft And DCSF Sign MOU To Deliver A Better Connected Education For Students And Teachers In England

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

LONDON, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- The First Public Private Partnership Signed by the Department of Children, Schools and Families

- With Photo

Microsoft today signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), to better connect parents with their children's education, use technology to re-engage disengaged students and improve teaching standards and career development through innovative teachers and coaching programmes. This is the first Public Private Partnership signed by the DCSF.

Mechel Consolidates Its Ferroalloy Assets

Mechel Consolidates Its Ferroalloy Assets

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

MOSCOW, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, announces the consolidation of its ferroalloy assets on the bases of its Oriel Resources subsidiary.

In the spring of 2008, Mechel OAO purchased Oriel Resources Company, which comprised of Tikhvin Smelting Plant ZAO (St. Petersburg region), Voskhod Chrome Deposit and Shevchenko Nickel Deposit (Kazakhstan). Among the enterprises representing the ferroalloy business at Mechel are Southern Urals Nickel Plant OAO (Orenburg region) and Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant OOO (Irkutsk region).

Intel Atom Dual-Core Processor 330 Now Housed In The Shuttle Barebone X27D

Intel Atom Dual-Core Processor 330 Now Housed In The Shuttle Barebone X27D

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

ELMSHORN, Germany, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- Faster Yet With the Same Low Power Consumption

Shuttle Inc., the market leader in the Mini-PC segment and the manufacturer of multi-form-factor solutions now presents the successor to the successful market introduction of its first Nettop Barebone. The Shuttle Barebone X27D is the first Shuttle barebone to have an Intel Atom 330 Dual-Core processor working inside.

Technology To Rescue Publishers

Technology To Rescue Publishers

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

LONDON, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- How a High Technology Company in South India Helps Publishers in 35 Countries Reduce Costs and Increase Revenues in the Current Economic Downturn

LONDON, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

Newspapers are continuing to feel the pinch of the impending recession with redundancies affecting national, regional, paid-for and free titles. The cost of energy, paper and printing has risen dramatically in the last year, forcing some newspapers to close and save money. Circulation has been shrinking, and advertising sales have fallen greatly in the last year causing many Publishers to re-think their economic models.

AGA Medical To Appeal Ruling By Dutch Court In Lawsuit With Occlutech GmbH

AGA Medical To Appeal Ruling By Dutch Court In Lawsuit With Occlutech GmbH

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

MINNEAPOLIS, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

AGA Medical Holdings (AGA Medical, AGA) announced today its determination to appeal a recent ruling from The Patent Court in the Netherlands related to a proceeding brought by Occlutech GmbH, headquartered in Jena, Germany. The lawsuit sought invalidity and/or non-infringement declarations related to AGA Medical's claim that Occlutech had infringed on one of its European patents for intravascular occlusion devices and the method of forming or manufacturing these medical devices. The company also announced its intention to file a new suit against Occlutech for infringement of a recently issued European patent.

Genetic Dead End - 5300 Year-Old Oetzi Has No Modern Relatives

Genetic Dead End - 5300 Year-Old Oetzi Has No Modern Relatives

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

The 5,300 year old human mummy dubbed Öetzi (or ‘the Tyrolean Iceman’)  is highly unlikely to have modern day relatives, according to new research published today by a team of scientists from Italy and the UK.

They have sequenced Öetzi’s entire mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome, which is passed down through the maternal line, and found that he belonged to a genetic lineage that is either extremely rare or has died out.

The research has generated the oldest complete Homo sapiens mtDNA genome to date, and overturns previous research conducted in 1994 on a small section of Öetzi’s mtDNA, which suggested that relatives of Öetzi may still exist in Europe.


Watchdata Is Coming To Cartes 2008 - Highlighting Its Growing International Presence

Watchdata Is Coming To Cartes 2008 - Highlighting Its Growing International Presence

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

PARIS, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

Watchdata, a well-established and recognized pioneer in smart card and contactless technology solutions will be participating and showcasing its latest smart card products at the 2008 Cartes tradeshow in Paris, France from 4th to 6th of November.

Watchdata offerings include SIMpass(TM) mobile payment solution, digital signature and authentication solutions, embedded security access module and the award winning TimeCOS(R) operating system that is widely used in the fields of cashless payment, e-commerce, health and social services, and telecommunication. The company will be presenting exciting and exclusive solutions based on smart card technology during the show.

Be The Beatles - Legendary Pop Icons Get Their Own Video Game For The First Time

Be The Beatles - Legendary Pop Icons Get Their Own Video Game For The First Time

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

Can't get enough of The Beatles?   Two days ago we disclosed that a mathematician using Fourier transform had unlocked the secret of the 'mystery' chord in "A Hard Day's Night" and now The Beatles are back again - in a video game.

Apple Corps, along with EMI Music, Harrisongs Ltd, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing, have agreed to present The Beatles music in an interactive video game format, to be published by MTV Games and developed by Harmonix.

Spatial View Releases Pioneering Stereoscopic 3D Editing Software For Users Of Adobe(R) After Effects(R)

Spatial View Releases Pioneering Stereoscopic 3D Editing Software For Users Of Adobe(R) After Effects(R)

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

TORONTO, Canada and DRESDEN, Germany, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- Spatial View's New 3D Plug-in Allows its Customers to Easily Create and Edit Astounding 3D Film and Video Clips for Glasses-Free Stereoscopic 3D Displays; a Market First.

Spatial View Inc., a leading developer of 3D image processing and display technologies, today announced the availability of its new Stereo 3D Editing 2.0 for Adobe(R) After Effects(R) users without the need to alter one's existing design workflows.

By expanding our portfolio of 3D content creation plug-ins to include After Effects, we will continue to enable artists and directors to easily and readily push their boundaries well into 3D, said Jason King, head of sales at Spatial View.

InNexus Biotechnology Receives Patent Grants In Europe

InNexus Biotechnology Receives Patent Grants In Europe

Oct 30 2008 | comment(s)

BRITISH COLUMBIA, Canada, October 30 /PRNewswire/ --

- CEO Morhet to Discuss Continued Expansion of DXL(TM) Patent Protection at 7th Annual BIO Investor Forum -