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Alzheimer’s: 9 Ways to Lower Its Risk and Progression

Kathryn R. Bown
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Alzheimer’s: 9 Ways to Lower Its Risk and Progression

A report of Alzheimer’s disease International (ADI) published in 2009, said there were 35.6 million people were with dementia and Alzheimer’s and it was expected that the number would increase to 65.7 million by 2030.

 

Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that is a collective name for progressive degenerative brain syndromes. They affect memory, thinking, behavior, intellect, personality and emotion. Symptoms may include loss of memory, difficulty in finding the right words or understanding what people are saying, difficulty in performing previously routine tasks, personality and mood change. In the last stage of Alzheimer’s a person is totally dependent of care-givers and might have swallowing difficulties, is very thin and dies of infections or other diseases.

Although age, family history, and genes play a major role in determining Alzheimer’s risk, there are several ways to prevent Alzheimer’s or slower its progression.

 

Sleep. Getting enough sleep helps to consolidate memory, and an afternoon nap might lock-in long-term memoires faster. Sleep deprivation could stimulate the production of amyloid plaques and cause the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Lack of sleep also affects hormones’ balance and metabolism, leading to diabetes, weight gain, and making a person to look older. Sleeping less than eight hours a night also increases risk of heart attack, stroke, and depression and weakens immune system, so one gets cold much easier.

 

Getting enough sleep is a way to lower Alzheimer's risk.
Getting enough sleep is a way to lower Alzheimer’s risk.

 

Music. The capacity for music tends to be affected by Alzheimer’s disease differently than other brain functions. “It appears that words to a song get encoded in a different place in the brain than the words we use in speech, and it appears that people with Alzheimer’s actually preserve the music, and the words that go to music, long after much of the rest of the brain is not functioning well,” said Elaine Bearer, professor of neuroscience at the University of New Mexico. Also listening to relaxing melodies, singing or playing an instrument keep the brain in a good shape.

Intellectual activities. People who keep their brains active may be at less risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Reading, engaging in a hobby such as playing bridge or chess, or doing crosswords and word puzzles may help to reduce risk.

Wine. A glass of wine a day appears to reduce the risk of cognitive decline that occurs with normal aging as well as Alzheimer’s. A study found that those who had a drink a day through the years had about a 25% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s in old age compared with those who didn’t drink at all. Heavier drinking increased the risk of cognitive decline more than non-drinking. A glass of wine could also prevent heart and vascular illness and help you to relax and sleep better. However, if you have Alzheimer’s,  a liver condition, or other diseases that get worsen by alcohol, you should avoid it.

Stop smoking. Smokers have a 72% greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s found the researchers from the University of California, San Francisco after excluding studies sponsored by the tobacco industry. Industry-funded studies found that smokers had a lower risk. Besides lowering lung cancer’s risk, quitting smoking also can help you to sleep better, thinking more clear, being relaxed. Stopping smoking improves your complexion, reduces your wrinkles, and lowers heart attack and stroke’s risks.

Control blood sugar. A Japanese study showed that diabetes could raise Alzheimer’s risk up to three times. Those with higher than normal blood sugar levels, or prediabetes, also have a higher risk. High blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia) could be reverse through eight hours a night sleep, weight loss, daily walks, and a reduction in sweets and other processed foods.

Control cholesterol levels. High cholesterol levels are associated with changes in the brain that are hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. A study that examined the brains on autopsy found that participants who had high total cholesterol levels (over 224 mg/dL) in mid- to late life were seven times more likely than those with low cholesterol (under 173 mg/dL) to have the beta-amyloid plaques in their brain when they died a decade or two later. Eating low-fat or fat-free dairy products and limiting your intake of red meat can help lower cholesterol levels. The onion and garlic consumed daily are great helpers in prevention of atherosclerosis, by reducing cholesterol level. Also the goal can be reached through weight loss and daily exercise.

Weight loss. Losing weight can also prevent the Alzheimer’s since a study showed that obesity duration increased type 2 diabetes risk, and other study said the diabetes could raise the risk of Alzheimer’s.

Exercise. A daily walk is good for the brain, and getting yourself sweaty several times a week is even better. Studies have shown that aerobic exercise (brisk walking, biking, swimming, or dancing) can reduce the risk of dementia and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia in old age. After the age of 65, at every five years, the number of people with Alzheimer’s doubles.

 

Alzheimer's is common in people over 65, but can affects younger people too.
Alzheimer’s is common in people over 65, but can affects younger people too.

 

US Against Alzheimer’s said one in eight 65-year-old already has the disease, which has no effective treatment, and is ultimately fatal.

Although Alzheimer’s appears in people over 65, like legendary crooner Glenn Campbell (75), early-onset dementia can be found in younger persons, like basketball coach Pat Summitt (59).

 

 

Jesse Coombs: first person to kayak successfully down Abiqua Falls.

Diane A. Wade
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Jesse Coombs: first person to kayak successfully down Abiqua Falls.

Jesse Coombs became the first person to kayak successfully down Abiqua Falls in Oregon, USA.

Lucas Gilman, Jesse Coombs’ friend and extreme sports photographer captured the jaw-dropping three-second plunge on camera.

Jesse Coombs and Lucas Gilman hiked to the remote 96 feet (30 meters) waterfall armed with five cameras to film the stunt.

Before Jesse Coombs, only athlete Tim Goss had attempted to kayak down this waterfall.

Jesse Coombs became the first person to kayak successfully down the 96 ft (30 m) Abiqua Falls in Oregon
Jesse Coombs became the first person to kayak successfully down the 96 ft (30 m) Abiqua Falls in Oregon

But Tim Goss landed badly and dislocated both knees.

Despite the risks, 40-year-old Jesse Coombs was not put off.

Jesse Coombs positioned himself in his kayak at the summit of the near vertical waterfall and dropped into the pool below while Lucas Gilman looked on nervously.

Lucas Gilman said: “Jesse is a good friend of mine and you never want a friend to get hurt so there was a lot of pressure to make sure nothing went wrong.

“It took us two days to prepare for the shoot. We had to set up a zip line to capture the fall at the right angle and there were certain safety procedures we needed to put in place, which included positioning two kayakers in the pool below which was tricky.

“Abiqua Falls isn’t the highest waterfall but it is considered the hardest.

“The lip of Abiqua Falls is very tricky, it goes from flat to vertical very quickly. So getting the right angle to hit the water is really hard.

“If you hit the fall at the wrong angle you risk serious injury.

“There were definitely some nerves there but you just have to remember you’re there to document it and hope for the best.”

Although the jump was a success, Jesse Coombs suffered a fractured shoulder socket and a collapsed lung. And just a week later kayak world record holder Tyler Bradt broke his back in the same stunt.

Although the jump was a success, Jesse Coombs suffered a fractured shoulder socket and a collapsed lung
Although the jump was a success, Jesse Coombs suffered a fractured shoulder socket and a collapsed lung

Jesse Coombs said: “This waterfall comes with heavy consequences so not many people have attempted it.

“Three world class kayakers have attempted Abiqua Falls and all three of us have been injured to some degree.

“It’s not the tallest waterfall but it’s definitely considered one of the most dangerous.

“To fall 96ft takes around three seconds, so there is not much room for error.

“But knowing I’d nailed it gave me a huge feeling of elation.”

[youtube sOhb1m7FpeU]

Pope Benedict XVI makes his first official visit to native Germany.

James J. Williams
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Pope Benedict XVI makes his first official visit to native Germany.

Pope Benedict XVI has begun his first official visit to Germany, his native country.

After arriving in Berlin, Pope Benedict XVI said he had come to the country to talk about Christianity, not politics.

The Pope visit to Germany may be one of his most difficult to date, with strong protests expected against his teachings.

Pope Benedict XVI, 84, is to address the German parliament and say Mass in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium during the four-day visit.

 

The pontiff will travel widely across Germany, where there are officially 25 million Catholics – one third of the population.

The Pope has visited Germany unofficially several times since assuming the Church’s highest office, travelling to Catholic strongholds in the Rhineland and his native Bavaria.

However, the tour will take Benedict XVI into historically Protestant regions and parts of the atheistic old East Germany.

Chancellor Angela Merkel, daughter of a Lutheran pastor who grew up in East Germany, said Christian unity would be a focus of the Pope’s visit.

Tomorrow, Benedict XVI will meet members of Germany’s Lutheran Church in the monastery where Luther studied as a monk in Erfurt in the early 16th Century, before breaking with Rome and launching the Protestant Reformation.

Pope Benedict has been greeted at Berlin’s Tegel airport by an artillery salute and a guard of honour and he was welcomed by Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Christian Wulff.

Pope Benedict XVI, German president, Christian Wulff, and his wife Bettina at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin
Pope Benedict XVI, German president, Christian Wulff, and his wife Bettina at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin

Visiting President Christian Wulff’s residence in Berlin, Benedict XVI said:

“I am not here first and foremost… to follow particular political, or economic, aims but to meet the people and to speak to them about God.”

The Pope visit has attracted opposition from various groups. Protesters have taken issue with the Catholic stance on homosexuality and contraception, and some members of German Parliament – possibly as many as 100, or almost one in seven – plan to boycott his speech to the Bundestag, on Thursday.

It is believed that at least 20,000 demonstrators, including gay people, feminists, atheists, abuse survivors and other opponents of the Pope, will gather in Berlin.

German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich, who is a Protestant, criticized the planned boycott, accusing members of Bundestag of “arrogance, narrow-mindedness and provincialism”.

Berlin’s openly gay mayor, Klaus Wowereit, said he welcomed the Pope’s visit and would meet him personally, but he also expressed understanding for the protesters.

Both Mayor Klaus Wowereit and President Christian Wulff, who is divorced and remarried, are Catholics who in the eyes of the Church lead sinful lifestyles.

Speaking to reporters on his plane from Rome, Pope Benedict XVI said he could understand those leaving the Church due to the sexual abuse scandals of recent years.

One of the highlights of Pope visit to Germany is a Mass to be held on Thursday evening at the Olympic Stadium.

The Olympic Stadium, where Hitler hosted the 1936 games, is now a popular sporting and entertainment venue, and some 70,000 people are expected to attend the Mass.

The tour includes also a meeting with former Chancellor Helmut Kohl and a visit to the strongly Catholic city of Freiburg in the south-west.

According to AFP news agency, a record of 181,000 German Catholics officially quit the Church last year, a total for the first time higher than that for Protestants leaving their churches.

The Pope also told reporters in the plane he had nothing against the planned demonstrations against his visit, as long as they were civil.

“I can understand that in the face of such reports [about sexual abuse], people, especially those close to victims, would say <<this isn’t my Church anymore>>.”

“The Church is a net of the Lord that pulls in good fish and bad fish. We have to learn to live with the scandals and work against the scandals from inside the great net of the Church.”

Groups of Catholics who are demanding reform of the Church will also use the visit to express their views.

Sigrid Grabmeier, a spokeswoman of Catholic reform group Wir Sind Kirche (We are Church), said she had mixed feelings about the Pope’s visit.

“I do not really know what he wants to tell us about really important things like justice and the world, or rich and poor people or something.”

Sigrid Grabmeiercalled for a return to Christian basics, saying: “Jesus, he did not found a religion and he did not tell us how we should believe, but how we live.”

Anti-wrinkle pill: the revolutionary treatment that reduces crow’s feet by 30%.

Kathryn R. Bown
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Anti-wrinkle pill: the revolutionary treatment that reduces crow’s feet by 30%.
The revolutionary anti-wrinkle pill, which goes on sale today in UK, claims to shrink crow’s feet by up to 30 per cent
The revolutionary anti-wrinkle pill, which goes on sale today in UK, claims to shrink crow’s feet by up to 30 per cent

 

A revolutionary anti-wrinkle pill, which goes on sale today in UK, claims to shrink crow’s feet by up to 30%.

The three-times-a-day tablet is thought to be the first treatment to work on the deepest layers of the skin.

The revolutionary pill, which was developed by British scientists,showed in tests on 480 women it reduced heavy lines around their eyes by up to 30% within 14 weeks.

The anti-wrinkle pills cost £35 (about $54) for a month’s supply, contain a blend of nutrients which the researchers say attack the genetic causes of ageing.

 

As women get older, their oestrogen levels fall and their skin produces less collagen. The collagen is a substance that makes the skin smooth and elastic.

Majority of anti-wrinkle creams work on the top layer of the skin, the epidermis, and many have been criticized for being ineffective.

Dr. John Casey, who led the Unilever team of specialists which developed the pill, said it worked by activating the genes which produce oestrogen and collagen, reducing wrinkles and sun damage in the deep level of the skin, called the dermis.

“We used ingredients which have been shown in the scientific literature and our own tests to combat the causes of skin ageing and kickstart old skin cells into behaving like young skin cells.

“We spent five years testing the ingredients on hundreds of women and found this combination could reduce deep wrinkles within 14 weeks. There is nothing currently on the market which can do that.”

The main ingredients of the revolutionary anti-wrinkle pill are vitamins C and E, isoflavones from soya, lycopene from tomatoes and omega-3 from fish oils, which are all currently sold as food supplements.

During tests run in the UK, France and Germany, researchers took 4 mm deep biopsies from the skin of 110 of the women. The specialists found those taking the tablet produced significantly more collagen than those who were given a placebo.

On average, crow’s feet were reduced by 10%, but in some cases they shrank by 30% within 14 weeks.

The study findings were published in New Scientist magazine and were also unveiled at the Society for Investigative Dermatology conference in Atlanta and have been sent to scientific journals for review.

As the nutrients found in the new pill are all in use already, the new tablet do not need regulatory approval and will be sold in branches of Dove Spa from UK, starting with the next month and on the spa’s website from tomorrow.

Listeria outbreak: death toll rises to 8.

Kathryn R. Bown
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Listeria outbreak: death toll rises to 8.

The Colorado-grown cantaloupes death toll has risen to eight in an outbreak of Listeria, officials said Wednesday.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) said that a person in Maryland died from eating the tainted produce. Four other deaths have been reported in New Mexico and two in Colorado, and one person has died in Oklahoma.

According to the CDC, 55 people in 14 states have now been confirmed as sickened from eating the cantaloupes.

At the beginning of this week, the CDC reported 4 deaths and 35 illnesses in 10 states due to Listeria infection.

The death count due to Listeria infection is the highest in a known food outbreak since tainted peanuts were linked to nine deaths almost three years ago and could go even higher.

The Colorado-grown cantaloupes death toll has risen to eight in an outbreak of Listeria
The Colorado-grown cantaloupes death toll has risen to eight in an outbreak of Listeria

CDC said illnesses in several other states potentially connected to Listeria outbreak were under investigation, the Associated Press reports.

Listeria infections have been reported in California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Colorado has the most illnesses with 14 sickened, followed by New Mexico with 10, Texas with nine and Oklahoma with eight.

Listeria outbreak has been traced to cantaloupes from Jensen Farms in Holly, Colorado, which recalled the tainted produce last week.

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) said Monday that it had found Listeria in samples of Jensen Farms’ cantaloupes taken from a Denver-area store and on samples taken from equipment and cantaloupes at the farm’s packing facility.

The FDA tests confirmed that the samples matched strains of the disease found in those sickened.

According to Jensen Farms, the recalled Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes were shipped from July 29 through September 10 to Illinois, Wyoming, Tennessee, Utah, Texas, Colorado, Minnesota, Kansas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Arizona, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

But the FDA said it is possible the company distributed to other states as well.

The recalled cantaloupe may be labelled “Colorado Grown,” “Distributed by Frontera Produce,” “Jensenfarms.com” or “Sweet Rocky Fords.”

But not all of the recalled cantaloupes are labelled with a sticker, the FDA said.

In a statement, Jensen Farms said:

“We are deeply saddened to learn that cantaloupes grown on our farm have been linked to the current listeria outbreak. Our hearts go out to those individuals and their families who have been affected by this terrible situation.”

One of the labels from the recalled cantaloupe of Jensen Farms
One of the labels from the recalled cantaloupe of Jensen Farms

Jensen Farms said it has hired an independent food safety expert to help determine the cause of the problem and how to address it.

According to health officials, the number of illnesses and deaths could continue to grow because the incubation period for Listeria can be up to a month.

Unlike many pathogens, Listeria bacteria can grow at room and refrigerator temperatures.

The FDA and CDC recommend anyone who may have one of the contaminated cantaloupes throw it out immediately.

About 800 cases of Listeria are found in the United States each year, according to CDC, and there usually are three or four outbreaks.

Most of outbreaks are traced to deli meat and soft cheeses, where Listeria is most common.

Produce has rarely been the culprit, but federal investigators say they have seen more produce-related listeria illnesses in the past two years.

It was found in sprouts in 2009 and celery in 2010.

While most healthy adults can consume Listeria with no ill effects, it can kill the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

Listeria is also dangerous to pregnant women because it easily passes through to the fetus.

In the current Listeria outbreak, the median age of those sickened is 78, according to the CDC.

Symptoms of Listeria infection include fever and muscle aches, often with other gastrointestinal symptoms.

Little boys compete in cage fighting contest in UK.

Sonia Pantiss
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Little boys compete in cage fighting contest in UK.

Two little boys as young as eight compete in cage fighting contests in front of a baying mob of adults enjoying a night’s entertainment in UK.

The shocking images show the 8 and 9 year-old boys fighting with no padding, headguards or protection of any kind in what critics have described as “like a circus performance”.

Two little boys as young as eight compete in cage fighting contests in front of a baying mob of adults enjoying a night’s entertainment in UK
Two little boys as young as eight compete in cage fighting contests in front of a baying mob of adults enjoying a night’s entertainment in UK

 

The primary school boys have been trained to wrestle their opponents into submission as their fathers, pint glasses in hand, look on.

Unlike adult contestants, the little boys are not, in theory, allowed to punch, kick, knee or elbow each other during the competitions, but the rules are inevitably broken.

The primary school boys have been trained to wrestle their opponents into submission as their fathers, pint glasses in hand, look on
The primary school boys have been trained to wrestle their opponents into submission as their fathers, pint glasses in hand, look on

The footages show Kian MacKinson, the 9 year-old boy who has been cage fighting for nine months, while brawling with an 8 year-old, whose father has asked for him to remain anonymous.

The 8 year-old boy was left in tears in the middle of one of the terrifying 10 minute bouts before he was attended to by medics to check he could continue.

Unlike adult contestants, the little boys are not, in theory, allowed to punch, kick, knee or elbow each other during the competitions, but the rules are inevitably broken
Unlike adult contestants, the little boys are not, in theory, allowed to punch, kick, knee or elbow each other during the competitions, but the rules are inevitably broken

Yesterday, appalled doctors and child safety campaigners said the lack of headguards could cause brain injury or death and called for the “sick and disturbing” practice to be banned.

A Safechild children’s charity representative, Rosie Carter said:

“This is sick, absolutely disgraceful and I would call on social services to step in.

“I can’t believe the parents are allowing their young children to participate in this barbarity.”

A spokesman for the British Medical Association (BMA) said:

“Boxing and cage fighting are sometimes defended on the grounds that children learn to work through their aggression with discipline.

“The BMA believes there are many other sports which require discipline but do not pose the same threat of brain injury.”

The fight took place at the Greenlands Labour Club in Preston and was organized by joiner and professional cage fighter Steven Nightingale.

Steven Nightingale, 28, said the sport is safe and growing in popularity among children.

The fighter added: “Competitions start from the age of five it is definitely a big up-and-coming sport.”

When Nightingale was asked about the young boy who was crying during one bout, he said:

“The kid has never been beaten before, he is the one who wins the gold medals. When they get beaten, they are going to get emotional.”

Kian MacKinson’s father, Nick Hartley, 33, defended the event: “None of the children were ever in danger.”

“There is no harm in cage fighting at all.

“If he wasn’t cage fighting, he would probably be chucking stones at buses and giving people grief. But now he has learned some respect and he would rather go training than play out.”

There is no suggestion any of the bouts at the event, which took place earlier this month, breached any rules or licence laws.

Michelle Anderson, owner of Greenlands Labour Club, who attended the event, said: “There was nothing wrong with it.

“The parents were there. Would people rather these kids were out on the streets with guns and knives?”

Cage fighting, which are also known as mixed martial arts, encompasses a wide range of martial arts which are performed in circular cages. The sport has become popular partly due to reality star Alex Reid, its most high-profile figure in the UK.

Troy Davis’ last words: “I’m innocent. I didn’t kill your son.”

Diane A. Wade
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Troy Davis’ last words: “I’m innocent. I didn’t kill your son.”

Just before his execution Troy Davis told the family of murdered policeman Mark MacPhail, “I’m innocent. I didn’t kill your son.”

Strapped to a gurney, awaiting lethal injection, Troy Davis lifted his head and looked at Mark MacPhail’s family, to repeat his claim that he was not responsible for the police officer’s 1989 murder.

Troy Davis last words were: “I’d like to address the MacPhail family. Let you know, despite the situation you are in, I’m not the one who personally killed your son, your father, your brother. I am innocent.

“The incident that happened that night is not my fault. I did not have a gun. All I can ask … is that you look deeper into this case so that you really can finally see the truth.”

Troy Davis, the convicted murderer of police officer Mark MacPhail was executed by lethal injection on Wednesday
Troy Davis, the convicted murderer of police officer Mark MacPhail was executed by lethal injection on Wednesday

 

Troy Davis then asked his family and friends “to continue to fight this fight.”

At the end he said: “For those about to take my life, God have mercy on your souls. And may God bless your souls.”

The execution went ahead despite a dramatic intervention minutes before Troy Davis was due to be put to death.

Defense lawyers had made a last ditch appeal to the US Supreme Court,but after four hours deliberation, the nine justices unanimously decided to uphold the execution.

Few minutes later Troy Davis was strapped to the chair and he was declared dead at 11:08 p.m.

The chamber at Jackson prison, Georgia, where Troy Davis was executed
The chamber at Jackson prison, Georgia, where Troy Davis was executed

Troy Davis’ lawyer Thomas Ruffin denounced the execution as “a legalized lynching”.

Troy Davis’ case was riddled with doubt, the lawyer maintained.

Thomas Ruffin described the process of execution as “sickening”.

“I saw the tube inserted into his arm, and then fluid, then jerking.

“It’s sickening. It’s worse than any film adaptation. It’s more macabre and horrible than anything on film and television.”

The last minute appeal by defense lawyers challenged ballistics linking the death row inmate to the 1989 murder of off-duty policeman Mark MacPhail and eyewitness testimony identifying Troy Davis as the killer.

After more than four hours the appeal was denied by all nine Supreme Court judges, five of them being needed to stay the execution.

The statement issued by the Supreme Court read:

“The application for stay of execution of sentence of death presented to Justice (Clarence) Thomas and by him referred to the Court is denied”

Hundreds of protesters and Troy Davis supporters on the scene at Jackson prison had initially celebrated at word that the death by lethal injection had been temporarily halted.

Until the moment when it seemed almost certain that Troy Davis would be executed.

Georgia’ Supreme Court had earlier on Wednesday rejected a last-chance appeal by defense lawyers.

A Butts County superior court judge had also declined to stop the execution.

Troy Davis’ lawyers went to the US Supreme Court at around 6:00 p.m. Wednesday. From 7:00 p.m. state of Georgia was within its rights to execute Troy Davis but instead chose to wait for the Supreme Court’s decision.

Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989
Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989

Anneliese MacPhail, the mother of murdered police officer Mark MacPhail, told CNN she was hoped to find peace now.

“I just feel relieved that it’s over.”

“It took a long time to get here.”

Earlier speaking after the Supreme Court decision Anneliese MacPhail said:

“I’d like to have some peace now that it is over… I’d like it to come to an end now.

“We have been through hell. He [Davis] did this. Nobody made him do it. It was his choice.

“I have lost my son and the father of my grandchildren. He has made his own bed and he’s got to sleep in it.”

Mark MacPhail's family spoke of their relief Wednesday after Supreme Court upholds the execution
Mark MacPhail's family spoke of their relief Wednesday after Supreme Court upholds the execution

The new four hours delay had caused the MacPhail family extra anguish she said.

“I’m absolutely devastated because I want it over with. … They’ve been through the courts four times there in Georgia. They’ve been to the Supreme Court three times.

“This delay, again, is very upsetting and I think very unfair to us.”

“I’d like to close this book. We feel [Troy Davis is] guilty. The evidence and everything that we have seen – that I have seen, because I’ve been to all the trials – he is guilty, and I believe in that. And so does the rest of my family.”

Outside the prison in Jackson, a vigil was held on Wednesday night. Amnesty International also targeted U.S. embassies across the world.

Last night event was heavily policed, with more than 100 Georgia state troopers in riot gear gathering at the scene, as prison officials, family members and protestors reacted to the Supreme Court’s decision.

They had resorted to increasingly desperate measures such as urging prison workers to strike and posting a judge’s phone number online.

Before his death Troy Davis was sad to be “upbeat and prayerful” and turned down the opportunity to have a last meal of his choice – as protesters gathered as far afield as Paris and London.

Defense lawyer Stephen Marsh had hoped the lie detector test would convince the state pardons board to reconsider a decision against clemency, but the request was rejected yesterday.

Wednesday night was the fourth time and final time that Troy Davis’ execution has been scheduled by Georgia officials.

Troy Davis always claimed he was innocent of killing Mark MacPhail, an off-duty police officer working as a security guard in Savannah, Georgia in 1989. But state and federal courts repeatedly upheld his conviction.

Prosecutors and Mark MacPhail’s relatives said they have no doubt the right man is being punished.

Just one day before execution, Georgia’s pardons board rejected a last-ditch clemency plea despite high-profile support from figures including Pope Benedict XVI and a former FBI director for the claim that Troy Davis was wrongly convicted.

Troy Davis’ last days:

September 17: Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles receives 600,000-signature petition asking for clemency.

September 19: The board holds a clemency hearing.

September 20: Board denies clemency for Davis, reportedly by a majority of three to two.

Yesterday a.m.: Defense attorneys’ last ditch request for a polyghraph test is denied by the board.

Yesterday 5:00 p.m.: Georgia Supreme Court judge denies a final appeal

6:00 p.m.: Troy Davis’ lawyers “hit send” on an application to US Supreme Court

6:50 p.m.: Dramatic last minute intervention halts proceedings.

7:00 p.m.: Georgia is within its rights to execute Troy Davis but awaits Supreme Court decision

10:18 p.m.: Lawyers say the Supreme Court have denied Troy Davis’ appeal

10:53 p.m.: Execution begins

11:08 p.m.: Troy Davis is declared dead

Alzheimer’s risk could be tripled by diabetes

Kathryn R. Bown
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Alzheimer’s risk could be tripled by diabetes

The data that show association between Alzheimer’s disease and type 2 diabetes increased over the years. Japanese scientists make the evidence stronger with a  study (Glucose tolerance status and risk of dementia in the community) which has been published this week in the journal Neurology.

 

The prospective cohort study of dementia was performed in Hisayama by scientists from Kyushu University in Fukuoka, Japan. All subjects underwent a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Volunteers, ages 60 and older were followed for 15 years, 1,017 people (437 men and 580 women) were enrolled. The doctors checked their medical history, and gave them mental exams.

Compared with those with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) the incidence of dementia (Alzheimer’s, vascular dementia) was significantly higher in subjects with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) or with diabetes. This association remained unchanged in subjects with diabetes and not related with age, sex, hypertension, EKG abnormalities, body mass index, waist to hip ratio, total cholesterol, history of stroke, education, smoking habits, alcohol intake, and physical activity.

The medical researchers demonstrated that diabetes that was assessed 15 years earlier was a significant risk factor for the development of all-cause dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular dementia. Those with the most severe diabetes at the beginning had a more than threefold increase in the rate of dementia.

“Our findings emphasize the need to consider diabetes as a potential risk factor for dementia. Diabetes is a common disorder, and the number of people with it has been growing in recent years all over the world. Controlling diabetes is now more important than ever”, lead researcher Yutaka Kiyohara said.

 

Uncontrolled type 2 diabetes could lead to amyloid plaques in the brain and Alzheimer's disease.
Uncontrolled type 2 diabetes could lead to amyloid plaques in the brain and Alzheimer's disease.

 

The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that 5.4 million people in U.S. have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and the number could reach 16 million within 40 years. The number of persons with diabetes is around 24 million.

 

“The fact that Type 2 diabetes is increasing, and it’s a risk factor for Alzheimer’s would only make those numbers bigger. It’s already a disaster that’s going to come to us, if we don’t do something better about treating Alzheimer’s disease.” said Dr. William H. Thies, medical and scientific officer for the association.

Alzheimer’s disease “is one of the most feared conditions for people who are entering their later years,” said Thies. “[The new study] gives us an extra piece of information that may move people from considering changes in their life to actually making those changes.”

A Lancet review shows the mechanisms for hyperglycemia-induced dementia: atherosclerosis, microvascular disease, glucose toxicity leading to the accumulation of advanced protein glycation and increased oxidative stress, and changes in insulin metabolism resulting in an insulin-resistant state and distorted amyloid metabolism in the brain.

Last year researchers found a gene that increases both the risk for Type 2 diabetes and for Alzheimer’s.

Medical researchers presented results of a study showing that insulin could slow Alzheimer’s progression. Insulin is the hormone that controls glycemia and it is used to treat diabetes. Delivered through a special inhaler (nasal spray) insulin seemed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s.

These findings emphasize the importance of controlling glycemia (blood sugar level) for diabetics, as a measure to prevent Alzheimer’s.

Another study has shown that obesity duration increases diabetes risk, thus these related conditions could be prevented through physical fitness and weight loss.

 

The pancreas produces insulin that controls glycemia. Diabetes type 2 results from insulin resistance and sometimes absolute insulin deficiency. Uncontrolled glycemia could lead to Alzheimer's.
The pancreas produces insulin that controls glycemia. Diabetes type 2 results from insulin resistance and sometimes absolute insulin deficiency. Uncontrolled glycemia could lead to Alzheimer's.

 

September 21 was declared World Alzheimer’s Day, and this year theme is “Faces of dementia”.

Lots of events take place all over the world, memory walk, forums, conferences, films, workshops, symposia, seminars, fund raising, “2 Bike 4 Alzheimer’s” in Netherlands, Alzheimer’s picnic at Alzheimer’s Centrum in Poland, the launch of the National Alzheimer’s Alliance and memory testing in pharmacies in Romania, a traditional World Alzheimer’s Day concert and the opening of the Dementia Service Centre in Sri Lanka, a range of events across the country for World Alzheimer’s Month and Alzheimer’s Action Day “Go Purple” in USA.

Troy Davis’ request for lie detector test was denied. His last hours before execution.

Diane A. Wade
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Troy Davis’ request for lie detector test was denied. His last hours before execution.

Troy Davis’s request for a polygraph test to try to prove his innocence ahead of tonight’s planned execution has been denied by Georgia Department of Corrections.

Defense lawyer Stephen Marsh said he had hoped the lie detector test would convince the state pardons board to reconsider a decision against clemency, which was rejected yesterday.

Troy Davis’ execution is scheduled for 7pm tonight. It is the fourth time in four years that Troy Davis‘ execution has been scheduled by Georgia officials.

Troy Davis's request for a polygraph test to try to prove his innocence ahead of tonight's planned execution has been denied by Georgia Department of Corrections
Troy Davis's request for a polygraph test to try to prove his innocence ahead of tonight's planned execution has been denied by Georgia Department of Corrections

 

Troy Davis, 42, has long claimed he is innocent of killing Mark MacPhail, an off-duty police officer working as a security guard in Savannah, Georgia in 1989. But state and federal courts have repeatedly upheld his conviction.

Prosecutors and Mark MacPhail’s relatives say they have no doubt the right man is being punished.

Yesterday, Georgia’s pardons board rejected the clemency plea despite high-profile support from figures including Pope Benedict XVI and a former FBI director for the claim that he was wrongly convicted.

The board did not elaborate on the decision in its written official response to the clemency application.

The decision appeared to leave Troy Davis with little chance of avoiding the execution date.

Troy Davis will be executed by injection at 7pm tonight for the August 1989 murder of Mark MacPhail, a 27-year-old off-duty police officer who was working as a security guard in Savannah when he was shot dead rushing to help a homeless man who had been attacked.

Troy Davis didn’t want a special last meal, but he planned to spend his final hours meeting with friends, family and supporters. According to an advocate who met with him late Tuesday, Davis was upbeat, prayerful and expected last-minute wrangling by attorneys.

“He doesn’t want to spend three hours away from his family on what could be the last day of his life if it won’t make any difference,” advocate said.

Troy Davis’ lawyers have long argued he was a victim of mistaken identity. But prosecutors say they have no doubt that they charged the right person with the crime.

Spencer Lawton, the district attorney who secured Troy Davis’ conviction in 1991, said he was embarrassed for the judicial system that the execution has taken so long.

“What we have had is a manufactured appearance of doubt which has taken on the quality of legitimate doubt itself. And all of it is exquisitely unfair,” said Spencer Lawton, who retired as Chatham County’s head prosecutor in 2008.

“The good news is we live in a civilized society where questions like this are decided based on fact in open and transparent courts of law, and not on street corners.”

Troy Davis case has captured worldwide attention because of the doubt his supporters have raised over whether he killed Mark MacPhail, who was shot to death after coming to the aid of Larry Young, a homeless man who was pistol-whipped in a Burger King parking lot.

Prosecutors say Troy Davis was with another man who was demanding that Larry Young give him a beer when Davis pulled out a handgun and bashed Young with it. When Mark MacPhail arrived to help, they say Troy Davis had a smirk on his face as he shot the officer to death.

Witnesses placed Troy Davis at the crime scene and identified him as the shooter. Shell casings were linked to an earlier shooting that Troy Davis was convicted of. There was no other physical evidence. No blood or DNA tied Troy Davis to the crime and the weapon was never found.

Troy Davis’ attorneys say seven of nine key witnesses who testified at his trial have disputed all or parts of their testimony.

The state initially planned to execute him in July 2007 but the pardons board granted him a stay less than 24 hours before he was to die. The U.S. Supreme Court stepped in a year later and halted the lethal injection two hours before he was to be executed. And a federal appeals court halted another planned execution a few months later.

The U.S. Supreme Court granted Troy Davis a hearing to prove his innocence, the first time it had done so for a death row inmate in at least 50 years.

At the June 2010 hearing, two witnesses testified that they falsely incriminated Troy Davis at his trial when they said Davis confessed to the killing. Two others told the judge the man with Troy Davis that night later said he shot Mark MacPhail.

Prosecutors, though, argued that Troy Davis’ lawyers were simply rehashing old testimony that had already been rejected by a jury. And they said no trial court could ever consider the hearsay from the other witnesses who blamed the other man for the crime.

U.S. District Judge William T. Moore Jr. sided with them. He said the evidence presented at the hearing wasn’t nearly enough to prove Troy Davis is innocent and validate his request for a new trial. He said while Davis’ “new evidence casts some additional, minimal doubt on his conviction, it is largely smoke and mirrors.”

Sarah Palin: husband will file for divorce and advisers told her White House dream is over.

James J. Williams
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Sarah Palin: husband will file for divorce and advisers told her White House dream is over.

Sarah Palin is about to lose both her marriage and her political career after the recent release of her explosive biography.

According to The National Enquirer, friends close to Sarah Palin and her husband Todd say he is ”fed up” with the constant scandals that have plagued their marriage ever since she ran for vice president and is ready to file for a divorce.

It has also been alleged that Sarah Palin advisers have told her to kiss goodbye to the White House fearing a bid would be “political suicide”.

Sarah Palin is about to lose both her marriage and her political career after the recent release of her explosive biography
Sarah Palin is about to lose both her marriage and her political career after the recent release of her explosive biography

In the newly released biography, The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin, the 47-year-old politician is accused of having a night of passion with basketball star Glen Rice, snorting cocaine and having an affair with her husband’s business partner.

A source close to her said: “Sarah Palin has been destroyed by Joe McGinniss’ no-holds-barred biography.

“It exposed all her lies, cover-ups and secrets.

“As a result she has been told by her advisers that it would be political suicide to announce a White House candidacy. The press and her opponents would have a field day digging into the dirty details of her background.”

The explosive book is said to have put the final nail in the coffin of her marriage, after Sarah Palin’s brother Chuckie was quoted saying his sister and Todd’s marriage was over.

One of her friends told the National Enquirer: “The final straw was McGinniss quoting Sarah’s brother Chuckie telling a friend they don’t have a marriage.

“Todd felt as if he was stabbed in the back by his own brother-in-law after 23 years of being married to the guy’s sister, and having five kids together.”

Last week was revealed that former basketball player Glen Rice had a one-time fling with Sarah Palin when she was a news anchor for her local station and he was a junior at the University of Michigan.

The same source told The National Enquirer that Todd Palin feels like he’s been made a laughing stock as the hook up had become a joke on late night TV and was all over the internet.

Todd was also said to be “fuming” over the biography’s confirmation that his wife had an affair with his business partner Brad Hanson and that he dissolved their snowmobile dealership after learning of it.

Though both parties denied it when it came to light in October 2008, Sarah Palin’s ex brother-in-law Mike Wooten allegedly confirmed it saying: “Todd and Sarah were headed for divorce, but Sarah got pregnant soon after, so they decided to stay together.”

Joe McGinniss book also claims that Sarah Palin snorted cocaine off a 55-gallon oil drum and separately smoked marijuana in secret liaisons with one of her college professors.

Joe McGinniss even moved in next door to the Palins in Alaska to dig dirt for his salacious biography.

In response, Todd Palin slammed the author as a “stalker” who has a “creepy obsession” with his wife after details of what was in the book were first leaked.

Todd Palin said: “This is a man who has been relentlessly stalking my family to the point of moving in right next door to us to harass us and spy on us to satisfy his creepy obsession with my wife.

His book is full of disgusting lies, innuendo, and smears. Even The New York Times called this book <<dated, petty>> and that it <<chases caustic, unsubstantiated gossip>>”.

Meanwhile, Todd Palin has been careful to avoid commenting.

A former mayor of Wasilla before she became governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin stepped down after the Republican defeat in the presidential election.

Sarah Palin has remained tight-lipped on whether she would stand next year, but said she would likely make an announcement at the end of this month.

Former Alaska governor has been overshadowed in recent months by Tea Party candidates including Michelle Bachmann.

There have also been frequent rumors that Sarah Palin is set to divorce her husband Todd, which have always been denied.

And the mother of five has also faced accusations by the father of her daughter’s child, Levi Johnston, that she wanted to keep Bristol’s pregnancy a secret and adopt the child herself.

Sarah Palin has yet to declare whether she intends to run for election in next year’s presidential race.

George Enescu Festival 2011: Orchestras, Opera and Ballet

Sonia Pantiss
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George Enescu Festival 2011: Orchestras, Opera and Ballet

The 20th edition of a great classical music event, George Enescu Festival 2011, has attracted thousands of visitors and artists from all over the world.

 

George Enescu Festival started on September 1 and ends on September 25. During this period lots of cultural events have taken place.

Great Orchestra of the World series has gathered world famous orchestras, Residentie Orkest/ The Hague Philharmonic with Christian Badea, Dan Grigore (piano), London Symphony Orchestra with Horia Andreescu, and Nicola Benedetti (violin), London Symphony Orchestra with Nikolai Znaider and Saleem Abboud Ashkar (piano), Choir and Orchestra of the “George Enescu” Philharmonic with Genaddy Rozhdestvensky and Iosif Ion Prunner, The Mariinsky Theathre Symphony Orchestra with Valery Gergiev and Alexander Toradze (piano), or with “Academic Choir” of the Romanian National Society, conducted by Dan Mihai Goia, Staatskapelle Berlin with Daniel Barenboim, National Radio Orchestra with James Gaffigan, Peter Donohoe (piano), Cynthia Millar (ondes Martenot), Wiener Philharmoniker with Franz Welser-Möst, Fanny Clamagirand (violin), Antoine Tamestit (viola), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra with Vasily Petrenko, Midori, Alexei Volodin, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra with Zubin Mehta, Vadim Repin (violin), Yefim Bronfman (piano).

 

George Enescu Festival 2011 has brought Orchestra Dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia with conductor Antonio Pappano and piano soloist Hélène Grimaud on September 21.

They interpret Concerto no. 1 for piano and orchestra (Brahms) and Symphony no. 6 “Patetica” (Tchaikovsky).

 

Hélène Grimaud performs at George Enescu Festival 2011 (photo Jean-Marie Périer)
Hélène Grimaud performs at George Enescu Festival 2011 (photo Jean-Marie Périer)

 

Hélène Grimaud, 42, is a  French pianist. She has shared the stage with a lot of famous orchestras. She loves classical music and wolves. Hélène Grimaud helped found in 1999 Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, New York, wrote a book “Wild Harmonies: A Life of Music and Wolves” and made a documentary “Living with Wolves”. She underwent surgery for stomach cancer in 2010 with a long recovery. Hélène Grimaud has recorded since she was a teenager. “There is something so intense when the red light goes on. There is an erotic power to the microphone.” She said.

Orchestra Dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia was founded in 1908. It was the first Italian orchestra to dedicate exclusively to symphonic repertoire. It has performed over 15,000 concerts, and was conducted by Debussy, Strauss, Stravinsky, Toscanini.

On September 22, Orchestra Dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia performs with piano soloist Denis Matsuev. They interpret Chamber Symphony (George Enescu), Concerto no. 2 for piano and orchestra (Rachmaninov), Sheherezade (Rimsky-Korsakov).

Denis Matsuev, 36 Russian pianist, won the first prize of the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (1998). He was the first pianist to perform a jazz concert at Moscow Conservatory.

 

Denis Matsuev interprets Chamber Symphony by George Enescu at George Enescu Festival 2011.
Denis Matsuev interprets Chamber Symphony by George Enescu at George Enescu Festival 2011.

 

Romanian Youth Orchestra with Christian Mandeal and violin soloist David Garrett perform on September 23 Rhapsody no.1 (George Enescu), Concerto for violin and orchestra (Beethoven), Firebird (Stravinsky), La Valse (Ravel).

Orchestre National de France with Daniele Gatti interpret Symphony no. 9 (Mahler) on September 24 and on September 25 with cello soloist Han-Na Chang, French orchestra perform Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, for orchestra (1897), Concertante Symphony for cello and orchestra (George Enescu), Ibéria (Debussy) and Boléro (Ravel).

 

Bucharest National Opera has began its fall season with a premiere: Oedipe opera, Orchestra and Choir of the Bucharest National Opera (with Tiberiu Soare) on September 15, part of the George Enescu festival.

 

Oedipe by George Enescu at Bucharest National Opera
Oedipe by George Enescu at Bucharest National Opera

 

George Enescu composed Oedipe, a lyrical tragedy, between 1921 and 1931 and its worldwide premiere was in 1936 in Paris. In Romania, it premiered in 1958, at the first edition of the George Enescu festival.

Lohengrin (Richard Wagner), El Banch / El Ballet Nacional Chileno (Bach), Magifique (Tchaikovsky), Romeo and Juliet (Berlioz) have been performed at Bucharest National Opera or at “Ion Luca Caragiale” National Theatre as part of “Opera and Ballet” series of George Enescu Festival.

Evgheni Oneghin is scheduled for September 21 and 23. A ballet gala featuring David Makhateli (first soloist at the Royal Opera House) and Razvan Mazilu takes place on September 22. Ballet Night with Ballet Company of the Bucharest National Opera follows on September 24. Ballet Night features Valse Fantaisie (Glinka), Serenade (Tchaikovsky), Falling Angels (Steve Reich) and an evening with the best known pieces of operetta can be attended on September 25.

 

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Troy Davis story. Last day before execution.

Diane A. Wade
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Troy Davis story. Last day before execution.

Troy Davis’ execution will go ahead as planned.

 

Troy Davis was convicted of the August 19, 1989, murder of Georgia police officer Mark MacPhail, who was working as a security guard at a Burger King when he intervened in an argument between several men in a nearby parking lot.

Mark MacPhail was shot in the heart and face without having drawn his gun.

One of the men, Sylvester Coles, went to police and implicated Troy Davis in the killing, and he was arrested four days later.

During Troy Davis’ 1991 trial, many witnesses testified they had seen him shooting MacPhail. Two other witnesses testified that Troy Davis had confessed the murder to them.

Troy Davis was convicted of the August 19, 1989, murder of Georgia police officer Mark MacPhail
Troy Davis was convicted of the August 19, 1989, murder of Georgia police officer Mark MacPhail

The murder weapon was never found, and no physical evidence linked Troy Davis to the crime.

Throughout his trial and subsequent appeals, Troy Davis has maintained his innocence but was sentenced to death in August 1991.

Seven of nine witnesses to the murder changed or recanted their testimony in recent years. Several stated they had felt pressure by police to implicate Troy Davis.

New witnesses implicated Sylvester Coles in the crime.

Many appeals in state and federal courts followed, Troy Davis and his lawyers arguing that the racial composition of the jury and poor advocacy from his lawyers had affected his right to a fair trial.

In an August 2010 decision, the conviction was upheld, with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia declaring that the new evidence cast only ‘minimal doubt on his conviction’. Subsequent appeals, including to the Supreme Court, were rejected.

Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989
Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989

 

In July 2007, September 2008, and October 2008, Troy Davis execution dates were scheduled but stayed shortly before the events took place.

Troy Davis is set to be executed by lethal injection on September 21, 2011, at 7:00 pm, as he has lost a bid for clemency launched by his defense lawyers.

In the last day of his life, he declined to order a special last meal. Troy Davis will be served what’s on the menu at the Georgia state prison in Jackson before his execution – grilled cheeseburger, oven-browned potatoes, baked beans, coleslaw, cookies and a grape beverage.

Troy Davis’ execution will go ahead as planned.

Diane A. Wade
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1
Troy Davis’ execution will go ahead as planned.

Troy Davis case story. Last day before execution.

 

Troy Davis, the convicted murderer of a police officer, who is set to be executed by lethal injection on Wednesday, has lost a bid for clemency launched by his defense lawyers.

Georgia’s board of pardons rejected the last-minute plea even after it attracted high-profile support, and Troy Davis execution will go ahead as planned.

It was the last hope for Troy Davis, 42, who was convicted of killing police officer Mark MacPhail, in Savannah, Georgia, in 1989.

Troy Davis, the convicted murderer of a police officer is set to be executed by lethal injection on Wednesday
Troy Davis, the convicted murderer of a police officer is set to be executed by lethal injection on Wednesday

 

Anti-death penalty activists, who claim Troy Davis was wrongly convicted, chanted and held banners through Atlanta last week.

It is the fourth time in four years Troy Davis execution has been scheduled by Georgia officials.

Anti-death penalty activists, who claim Troy Davis was wrongly convicted, chanted and held banners through Atlanta last week
Anti-death penalty activists, who claim Troy Davis was wrongly convicted, chanted and held banners through Atlanta last week

According to Steve Hayes, spokesman for the Board of Pardons and Paroles, the panel decided to rejected Troy Davis’ request for clemency after hearing hours of testimony from his supporters and prosecutors.

The board decision appeared to leave him with little chance of avoiding the execution date. Defence attorney Jason Ewart has said that the pardons board was likely Troy Davis’ last option.

The defense lawyers have long argued Troy Davis was a victim of mistaken identity, but prosecutors say they have no doubt that they charged the right person with the crime.

Officer Mark MacPhail’s relatives said they were relieved by the decision.

“That’s what we wanted, and that’s what we got,” said Anneliese MacPhail, the victim’s mother.

“We wanted to get it over with, and for him to get his punishment.”

“Justice was finally served for my father,” said Mark MacPhail Jr, victim’ son, who was an infant when his father was gunned down.

“The truth was finally heard.”

Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989
Police officer Mark MacPhail was shot dead in Savannah, Georgia, in August 1989

Troy Davis’ sister, Kim Davis declined immediate comment on the decision.

Amnesty International USA director Larry Cox said in a statement that the decision was “unconscionable”.

“Should Troy Davis be executed, Georgia may well have executed an innocent man and in so doing discredited the justice system,” Larry Cox said.

The case has captured international attention because of concerns about the quality of evidence involved in Troy Davis’s conviction.

Troy Davis’s supporters said there is no physical evidence linking him to the crime and that key witnesses in his trial have since recanted their testimony.

Martin Luther King III, son of the late civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, joined the last week march. Reverend Al Sharpton, a civil rights activist and television show host, also attended.

In August 2009, in a rare move, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a new hearing for Troy Davis to assess what he said was new evidence showing his innocence.

The justices transferred the case to a U.S. District Court in Georgia for a hearing and determination of Troy Davis claims that new witnesses will clearly establish his innocence.

In 2010, the judge, William T. Moore Jr, rejected Troy Davis’ claims of innocence. But last week, supporters of Troy Davis delivered petitions with more than 600,000 names to the parole board.

In a column last week in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, former FBI Director William Sessions called for Troy Davis’s sentence to be commuted to life in prison, saying the case was “permeated in doubt”.

However, in an opposing column written in late 2008 and republished on last Thursday, Spencer Lawton, the district attorney who prosecuted Davis, said the convicted man had a fair trial.

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Full Tilt Poker built a global Ponzi scheme.

Clyde K. Valle
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Full Tilt Poker built a global Ponzi scheme.

Full Tilt Poker and its operators built a global Ponzi scheme that bilked online players out of at least $390 million, said federal prosecutors who filed a civil lawsuit against the internet gambling site.

According to U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan, besides defrauding the U.S. banking system, as alleged in a civil lawsuit last spring, Full Tilt Poker was “not a legitimate poker company.”

Instead, Full Tilt Poker “cheated and abused its own players”, as insiders “lined their own pockets with funds picked from the pockets of their most loyal customers while blithely lying to both players and the public alike about the safety and security of the money deposited with the company.”

Full Tilt Poker built a global Ponzi scheme that bilked online players out of at least $390 million, said federal prosecutors
Full Tilt Poker built a global Ponzi scheme that bilked online players out of at least $390 million, said federal prosecutors

The lawsuit said that Full Tilt Poker owed its U.S. customers a total of $150 million as of the end of March.

Poker players around US said they were stunned by the latest accusations.

“If true, these allegations detail a massive betrayal of player trust, which will cause financial hardship for thousands, if not millions, of individual poker players, none of whom are accused of doing anything wrong,” John Pappas, executive director of advocacy group Poker Players Alliance, said in a statement.

Until now, defense lawyers declined to comment.

Since April 2007, Full Tilt Poker distributed nearly $444 million to owners and directors, with much of it going into overseas accounts, according to the new claims in the civil suit that accuses it of money laundering.

The amended civil suit is part of a filing that seeks to recover $3 billion from Full Tilt Poker; two other sites, PokerStars and Absolute Poker; 21 related firms and four individuals: Full Tilt Poker Chief Executive Raymond Bitar and board members and poker stars Howard Lederer, Christopher “Jesus” Ferguson and Rafael Furst.

The sites were shut down April 15, a day many players now refer to as Black Friday, in an FBI raid. Also, a grand jury indicted Bitar and 10 other executives and third-party payment processors for the three sites on charges of bank fraud, money laundering and gambling law violations.

The crackdown sent shudders through the poker community and sent online players scrambling for solace in bricks-and-mortar casinos. Some U.S. high rollers who made a living playing on the Internet packed up and moved abroad.

PokerStars returned money to U.S. players in the wake of the federal actions last spring. Absolute Poker agreed to refund what it owed. But Full Tilt Poker, with only $60 million in its coffers, didn’t have enough funds to pay back players, prosecutors said.

Full Tilt Poker also was plagued by a U.S. payment processing network that was disrupted last year, preventing the company from pulling money from customers’ bank accounts to fund online gambling credits.

Instead of disclosing the problem, prosecutors said, Full Tilt Poker maintained a false image of financial stability by crediting players’ accounts with $130 million in “phantom funds.” When players gambled with these funds and lost to other players, a “massive shortfall” developed, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors are seeking refunds of $42 million from Lederer, $41 million from Bitar, $25 million from Ferguson and $12 million from Furst and said they also may seek additional money laundering penalties.

A federal court has allowed prosecutors to seize five accounts associated with the men, but three of the accounts are based abroad.

The fraud was made possible, prosecutors said, because Full Tilt was based overseas.

In July, regulators on the British Channel island of Alderney, where Full Tilt was licensed, suspended Full Tilt’s international operations.

Debi O’Neill, 53, from Georgia, an administrator for online poker forum CardsChat, recouped all of the $7,500 she had kept at PokerStars. But she still has $2,000 trapped in Full Tilt.

“I don’t really expect to ever see any of it again,” she said.

“I feel like they stole it from me. I trusted them, deposited money there in good faith.”

Without the Full Tilt Poker funds to reinvest in other poker sites, Debi O’Neill said, she has lost a part-time livelihood. She now relies on gambling trips to Las Vegas and her husband’s salary from a poultry company.

“I can’t play the kind of volume I used to,” she said. “It’s life-changing for me.”

Bill Clinton reveals he rejected Dancing With The Stars offer.

Lisa.Felice
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Bill Clinton reveals he rejected Dancing With The Stars offer.

Bill Clinton, the former US president revealed on Rachel Ray show he rejected an “interesting” offer to appear on Dancing With The Stars show.

Bill Clinton, the 65 year-old politician, said he refused the offer because he couldn’t fit dance training into his busy schedule.

On today Rachael Ray show, Bill Clinton appeared tickled by the offer to join the celebrity cast of the hit television show.

The former president said that the thought of wearing sequins and stretch pants wasn’t appealing enough for him to drop his engagements and focus on the fox trot.

Bill Clinton revealed on Rachel Ray show he rejected an “interesting” offer to appear on Dancing With The Stars
Bill Clinton revealed on Rachel Ray show he rejected an “interesting” offer to appear on Dancing With The Stars

“I told them I didn’t have the time to train for it. You know you actually go out there and you train, you really work at it. So I had to pass. But I think it’s a hoot,” Clinton laughed.

Refusing the Dancing With The Stars producers offer came much to the dismay of his mother-in-law, who Bill Clinton said is a huge fan of the show.

“And I have a 92-year-old mother-in-law who watches it religiously and she knows much more about popular culture than Hillary and I do,” Bill Clinton said, referring to his wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“She even knows more than her granddaughter, Chelsea, knows about popular culture. She thinks I would be really cool if I made it, but I had to pass,” former president said.

President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton dance at his inaugural ball in Washington, D.C. on January 20, 1993
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton dance at his inaugural ball in Washington, D.C. on January 20, 1993

 

Bill Clinton said he is also a fan of the show – which will also see David Arquette, Chynna Phillips, soccer star Hope Solo, basketball player Ron Artest, actor JR Martinez, model Elisabetta Canalis, actress and talk show host Ricki Lake and reality stars Kristin Cavallari, Rob Kardashian and Carson Kressley competing for the title of America’s favourite celebrity dancer.

Bill Clinton added that ballroom dancing lessons could very well be in his near future.

“Just last night, Hillary said to me <<You know, when I’m not Secretary of State anymore, we should go take dancing lessons>>. So we’ll start with the tango.”

Typhoon Roke hits Japan and kills four people.

Diane A. Wade
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Typhoon Roke hits Japan and kills four people.

The powerful typhoon Roke has struck disaster-ravaged Japan, bringing heavy rains and floods that have killed four people.

Typhoon Roke is in progress to hit Fukushima, where engineers are still struggling to bring a nuclear plant under control after the March tsunami, with strong concerns that rain could force radioactive water into the sea.

More than a million people were urged to evacuate their homes across Japan; an advisory was later lifted in one area but 330,000 people remain at risk.

More than a million people were urged to evacuate their homes after typhoon Roke hit Japan
More than a million people were urged to evacuate their homes after typhoon Roke hit Japan

Typhoon Roke made landfall on Wednesday afternoon (05:00 GMT), scouring its way up the main island of Honshu, bringing high winds and torrential rain.

Typhoon is tracking a path across Tokyo towards Fukushima prefecture and is then expected to travel up along the north-east coast, which was battered by the 11 March earthquake and tsunami.

Four people have been found dead after heavy rain and flooding in central and western Japan due to the storm’s approach and another two are missing in the central prefecture of Gifu, including a nine-year-old boy.

Hundreds of flights are cancelled and several motorways have been closed.

Toyota, the car maker is suspending production at 11 of its 15 factories.

According to Japan’s Meteorological Agency, “the highest level of caution be used because of the heavy rain, strong wind, and high waves.”

The meteorological agency has also warned of downpours over a wide area of the country on Wednesday, saying some places could be deluged by as much as 50 mm of rain in an hour.

It is the second time in less than a month that Japan is being hit by a typhoon. Typhoon Talas ripped through the west of the country, leaving about 90 people dead or missing.

Dolores Hope will be buried alongside her husband.

Sonia Pantiss
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1
Dolores Hope will be buried alongside her husband.

Dolores Hope, Bob Hope widow, dies at 102

 

Dolores Hope, Bob Hope’s widow, who died on Monday at 102, will be buried alongside her beloved husband of 69 years.

Bob Hope died in 2003 and is buried in the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana Cemetery in California, where Dolores already had the plot beside him inscribed for herself.

Dolores Hope was married to the comedy legend for 69 years and sometimes sang on his shows for U.S. troops and on his television specials.

Bob Hope is buried in the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana Cemetery in California, where Dolores already had the plot beside him inscribed for herself
Bob Hope is buried in the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana Cemetery in California, where Dolores already had the plot beside him inscribed for herself

According to family spokesman Harlan Boll, Dolores Hope passed away at home in Los Angeles.

In 2009, at her 100th birthday party, Dolores Hope appeared little changed: her white hair was richly coiffed, her skin smooth and her voice deep and warm. Even if she was brought to the party in a wheelchair, Dolores Hope was alert and happy as she greeted old friends and posed for photographs.

After the party, Dolores Hope said: “I thought it was going to be just another birthday.”

Bob and Dolores Hope in 2003
Bob and Dolores Hope in 2003

In 1933, when Bob Hope was appearing in his first Broadway show, Roberta, his friend and fellow cast member George Murphy persuaded him to visit the Vogue Club to “hear a pretty girl sing”. She was Dolores Reade, a dark beauty whose singing of “It’s Only a Paper Moon” entranced the young comedian.

“I’ll never forget what a wonderful singer she was,” said Rip Taylor.

“In fact, that’s how Bob and Dolores met. It seems to me that they were always laughing.”

Bob Hope returned every night and soon he was escorting Dolores to her hotel after her shows. Bob and Dolores Hope married on February 19, 1934, and she quit nightclubs to join his vaudeville act.

“Bob was the hot thing in New York then,” Dolores Hope recalled in 1997.

“I thought I’d better stay home and take care of Bob.”

When Bob and Dolores Hope moved to Hollywood in 1938 for the beginning of his film career, she stayed home and devoted her time to raising the four children that they adopted: Linda, Anthony, Kelly and Nora.

“I had such a huge admiration for both of them,” said Julie Newmar.

“The quality it takes to get just one year older, says a lot about that fact that she lived to 102.”

Dolores Hope continued singing at parties, and in the 1940s she began accompanying Bob on his Christmas trips to entertain U.S. troops.

In 1966, Dolores Hope sang “Silent Night” to hushed thousands of GI’s who then rose and gave her a thunderous ovation, many with tears in their eyes.

In 1990, Dolores Hope accompanied Bob on his last Christmas visit to American forces, visiting troops who were in Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm. Marie Osmond, Ann Jillian and the Pointer Sisters did not perform, to avoid offending Saudi sensibilities about women entertainers. But Dolores Hope was approved and sang “White Christmas” to a rapt audience.

“She was the first lady of the USO,” said Carol Channing. “They didn’t come any more patriotic, caring or talented than Dolores.”

Aside from overseeing two homes- the 18,000 square-foot mansion in North Hollywood and the 25,000 square-foot hilltop home in Palm Springs – Dolores Hope worked indefatigably for numerous charities. From 1969 to 1976 she served as president of the Eisenhower Medical Center in Palm Desert, California, then becoming chairwoman.

In 1982, Dolores Hope explained her philosophy:

“I like being with people, but I also need to have my time alone. I think it’s terribly important to have some time during the day when you stop and take all the energy that you have given out and pull it back in, find the source of your energy. Then you work from there.”

 

[youtube D4tN7R5pLIs]

Ashton Kutcher “needs to work on being funny”, said critics after his TAHM debut.

Ricky Robinson
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Ashton Kutcher “needs to work on being funny”, said critics after his TAHM debut.

Ashton Kutcher Two and a Half Men début had been the subject of a slew of Hollywood hype after it was announced he would be replacing the fired Charlie Sheen.

It seems the critics are a little mixed on Ashton Kutcher‘s performance after he made his first appearance on the hit comedy show last night.

According to the New York Daily News, Ashton Kutcher, who spent much of the time on last night’s show naked while playing Walden Schmidt billionaire, “just needs to work on being funny.”

“By the last third of the show, the writers had clearly decided that walking around naked was Walden’s best shot at a laugh.”

Ashton Kutcher's character, Walden Schmidt is a dumped billionaire who has attempted to commit suicide
Ashton Kutcher's character, Walden Schmidt is a dumped billionaire who has attempted to commit suicide

The Wall Street Journal reviewer wrote:

“Kutcher is intense and doesn’t do dead pan well at all. But he’s way hotter naked, and he’s naked a lot,” they said, adding that “Kutcher seems sort of frozen in place, humourless.”

Other commentators seemed to enjoy what Ashton Kutcher brought to the show, although some had reservations about his comic timing.

“The fact is that Kutcher, despite having spent so much time over the past few years branding and Tweeting himself, is a good comic actor,” wrote People in its review. “Not great.”

Entertainment Weekly wrote:

“Kutcher’s performance was good, nearly as poker-faced fine as Sheen’s was.”

 “It’s easy to see how Kutcher is going to fit into the ensemble.

“He’s part-contrast-to-Charlie (he ordered ginger ale, not liquor, while out at a bar with Alan), and part-Charlie-2.0 (he beds women with ease, but in a nice, horny-puppy-dog kind of way).”

Ashton Kutcher's character bonded with Jon Cryer's character Alan Harper
Ashton Kutcher's character bonded with Jon Cryer's character Alan Harper

However, other reviewers were kinder about Ashton Kutcher debut, who made his entrance as dumped husband Walden Schmidt soaking wet on the deck of Alan Harper’s Malibu beach house after trying to commit suicide in the ocean.

“With Kutcher loosely playing himself as a savant ladies’ man, it’s likely that Charlie Harper – or Sheen – won’t be missed,” said Fox News.

Charlie Sheen was famously fired from the smash hit TV comedy after falling out with its creator Chuck Lorre.

“Filling the void left by a well established character isn’t easy, but Kutcher mostly succeeded,” wrote The Chicago Sun Times.

“At times his character seemed a bit like Lennie petting the rabbits in Of Mice and Men, but give him a few episodes, and he should settle in nicely.”

The Los Angeles Times, meanwhile, said the show, which opened with Sheen’s character Charlie Harper’s funeral, was a ‘promising beginning.’

“Kutcher brings a softness as well as a sense of rude health – he was naked for much of the show – to a series that could often be brittle and sour, misanthropic and misogynistic, and temperamentally middle-aged.

“His presence might allow Cryer to play some sweeter, less strident notes, though it is up to Lorre, of course, to make that, or let that, happen.”

However, the viewing public were clearly less fussy than the critics on Ashton Kutcher, with a whopping 28 million tuning in – the largest ever audience for the show, which is in its ninth season.

Ashton Kutcher tweeted his gratitude to his fans today, posting:

“I owe you guys big time for showing up for us last night. Hope you were entertained. We’ll be there every Monday for you.”

And even Charlie Sheen found the episode funny, writing on his Twitter account:

“Surrounded by friends and watching the premier of Two and a Half Men,’ he tweeted. ‘Odd… But cool..! So far a lot of laughs!! Nice…”

[youtube Br_lf7t6BaE]

Toilet roll The Beatles refused to use could sell for £1,000 per sheet.

Ricky Robinson
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Toilet roll The Beatles refused to use could sell for £1,000 per sheet.

Beatles, the world’s most famous band once refused to use a toilet roll while recording their Abbey Road album, because they thought it was too “hard and shiny”.

The rock legends rejected the roll during the 1960s as it also had EMI stamped on every sheet.

The object came to light after Beatles fan Barry Thomas snapped up the toilet roll at an auction complete with a letter from EMI manager Ken Townsend.

Toilet roll The Beatles refused to use while recording Abbey Road, because they thought it was too “hard and shiny”
Toilet roll The Beatles refused to use while recording Abbey Road, because they thought it was too “hard and shiny”

 

Experts tried to evaluate the toilet roll last week, but told Barry Thomas they could not price such an odd object. Since then, Thomas has been offered £1,000 just for one sheet of the toilet roll.

Barry Thomas, 66, a grand-father of three bought the unique item of memorabilia in 1980 along with a famous picture that had hung at the studio throughout the Beatles’ time there.

He bought the roll, which came with a jokey letter of authentication by Ken Townsend for £85.

The letter, which is signed by Ken Townsend, reads:

“Most things went very smoothly with the Beatles at Abbey Road – but not this roll of toilet paper which they complained was too hard and shiny.

“They thought it disgraceful that the management should stamp each sheet of paper with EMI Ltd.

“The paper was immediately withdrawn and things became much smoother for staff after that.”

Ken Townsend letter stating why Beatles didn't want to use the toilet roll during their time at Abbey Road
Ken Townsend letter stating why Beatles didn't want to use the toilet roll during their time at Abbey Road

Barry Thomas, who at the time ran a recording studio in Coventry, Warks, said:

 “I went along to the auction as I was a Beatles fan, I mean who couldn’t be?

“I saw the roll and I just loved it, it seemed like such an original and unique thing to have.”

“People have the memories and the signed records and pictures and stuff, but no one else can say they have a toilet roll John Lennon rejected,” Thomas added.

“It wasn’t the only thing John specifically complained about in the studios, he also hated the lock on the freezer, so he had a few odd hates.

“At the time it caused a load of interest, the trade for band memorabilia hadn’t taken off then like it has today, even ABC from America wanted to interview me there and then at the auction.

“They asked me why I bought it and I didn’t know what to say, but then it came to me and I told them <<to wipe away all the crap you guys write about our industry>> and they loved that.”

Soon after making the purchase Barry Thomas, who still lives in Coventry with his wife of 45 years, Margarita, was approached by a wealthy collector who wanted a piece of the action.

“This Japanese Beatles memorabilia collector cam up to me,” said Barry Thomas.

“He offered me a thousand pounds for one piece of the roll, just one piece.

“I told him I wouldn’t sell him it, I didn’t want to unroll it, but also I felt it would be less special if it was shared across the world.

“Now I’m thinking about selling it, I had the idea that I could split the whole roll now and sell it off in pieces.

“I say I’ll do that, but to be honest I reckon when I try I won’t be able to bring myself to. The Japanese collector has approached me again and I’ve said no, but no one has been able to put an official value on it.”

Berlusconi attacks S&P decision to downgrade Italy’s rating.

Ricky Robinson
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Berlusconi attacks S&P decision to downgrade Italy’s rating.

Standard and Poor’s dropped Italy’s credit rating from A+ to A, with the ratings agency keeping the country’s outlook on negative in a surprise move that may add to contagion fears in the debt-stressed eurozone.

Silvio Berlusconi swiftly attacked S&P, claiming the Standard and Poor agency’s action was “dictated more by newspaper stories than by reality”.

S&P cut Italy’s government debt rating from A+/A-1+ to A/A-1 and said country’s economic growth prospects were getting weaker, with planned reforms by the government not expected to help much.

S&P cut Italy's government debt rating from A+/A-1+ to A/A-1 and said country's economic growth prospects were getting weaker, with planned reforms by the government not expected to help much
S&P cut Italy's government debt rating from A+/A-1+ to A/A-1 and said country's economic growth prospects were getting weaker, with planned reforms by the government not expected to help much

“We believe the reduced pace of Italy’s economic activity to date will make the government’s revised fiscal targets difficult to achieve,” S&P said in a statement.

Italy follows eurozone partners Spain, Ireland, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus in having its credit rating downgraded this year.

Italy, which approved an austerity programme last week, currently has a debt-to-GDP ratio of 120%.

S&P took the decision after lowering its annual growth forecast for Italy to just 0.7% between 2011 and 2014, down from 1.3% a year. It also questioned whether Italy’s austerity plan would deliver the €60 billion savings that the government is aiming for.

“We believe the reduced pace of Italy’s economic activity to date will make the government’s revised fiscal targets difficult to achieve,” said S&P.

“Furthermore, what we view as the Italian government’s tentative policy response to recent market pressures suggests continuing future political uncertainty about the means of addressing Italy’s economic challenges,” S&P added.

Italian Prime Minister said in a brief statement in response to the S&P move:

“The assessments by S&P seem dictated more by newspaper stories than by reality and appear to be negatively influenced by political considerations.”

Silvio Berlusconi’s government is already taking action against ratings agencies, with police raiding the offices of Moody’s and S&P last month.

Gary Jenkins at Evolution Securities said the S&P news came just as Moody’s was expected to also downgrade Italy:

“Just when everyone was waiting for Moody’s to downgrade Italy, S&P gets in first with what is a much more damaging downgrade as its rating of Italy was already the lowest of the three agencies. The S&P move is likely to be very negative for sentiment because whilst the market was expecting a downgrade it was probably not expecting one from an agency with the lowest rating which did not even have the sovereign on credit watch, but merely a negative outlook.”

Stock markets fell early on, but later recovered, with the FTSE 100 in positive territory. Overnight the Japanese Nikkei fell by 1.6%.

Zybrestat could help thyroid cancer patients to live longer

Ricky Robinson
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Zybrestat could help thyroid cancer patients to live longer

Biopharmaceutical company Oxigene has presented data that showed Zybrestat (fosbretabulin) helped improve the one-year survival rate of patients with larger anaplastic thyroid cancer tumors.

 

The presentation was made on September 14 at the 35th Meeting of the European Thyroid Association, in Krakow, Poland. The presenter was Dr. Rossella Elisei, endocrinologist, University of Pisa, Italy.

Combrestatin, from which Zybrestat derived, is present in the bark of Eastern Cape South African bushwillow tree.
Combrestatin, from which Zybrestat derived, is present in the bark of Eastern Cape South African bushwillow tree.

A comparison was made between the results of the company’s aggregate data from five independent prospective Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials using Zybrestat to treat patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC), including the FACT trial, and data from the 50-year experience in treating ATC patients at the Mayo Clinic from 1949 to 1999, published by Dr. Bryan McIver. FACT trial is a large single, randomized, controlled, multi-center clinical trial, and the Mayo studies comprise a large retrospective review of the treatment outcomes in ATC.

There were three key findings from the retrospective analysis.

13 patients or 9.7% of all 134 ATC patients treated at the Mayo Clinic survived one year or more.

19 patients or 23% of all 84 ATC patients treated with Zybrestat either alone or in combination with chemotherapy survived more than one year. The longest survival is 13+ years in a patient with a complete response.

The 9% rate of patients in the control arm of the FACT study surviving one year is almost identical to the observed 9% in the larger Mayo cohort.

Direct comparisons between the FACT trial and the Mayo Group have to be interpreted with the caveat that there were changes in standard-of-care treatment over the past 50 years, as well as differences in staging, sample size, and time-to-death.

“The 24% of patients treated with Zybrestat in the FACT study surviving one year or longer remains striking in its significance. Patients treated with Zybrestat essentially had a one-in-four chance of being alive after one year compared to only a one-in-10 chance in the control group, which corresponds to the survival outcome in the Mayo Clinic treated group.” Said Dr. Peter J. Langecker, Oxigene’s CEO.

Oxigene earlier this month saw shares slump after it said funding for a planned Phase 3 study of the drug candidate wasn’t feasible. Langecker said the company believes focusing its clinical resources on its most promising early-stage clinical development opportunities and reducing operating costs will allow it to conserve available resources.

 

Previously referred to as combretastatin A4 phosphate/CA4P, Zybrestat (fosbretabulin) has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA and the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of anaplastic thyroid cancer.

 

Zybrestat is being evaluated in a Phase 2 study of patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer and other clinical trials, including a recently completed Phase 2 study of Zybrestat plus chemotherapy in patients with ATC. Oxigene believes that Zybrestat is poised to become an important product in a novel class of small-molecule drug candidates called vascular disrupting agents (VDA). Through interaction with vascular endothelial cell cytoskeletal proteins, Zybrestat selectively targets and collapses tumor vasculature, thereby depriving the tumor of oxygen and causing death of tumor cells. In clinical trials in solid tumors, Zybrestat has demonstrated potent and selective activity against tumor vasculature, as well as clinical activity against anaplastic thyroid cancer, ovarian cancer and various other solid tumors.

 

Zybrestat collapses tumor vasculature and interrupts its blood flow, leading to the death of cancer cells.
Zybrestat collapses tumor vasculature and interrupts its blood flow, leading to the death of cancer cells.

 

The concept of interrupting tumors’ blood supply was first described in the early 1970s and led to the development of a new class of anti-cancer drugs called angiogenesis inhibitors.

Zybrestat is the first VDA to be tested in combination with a tumor-angiogenesis-inhibiting drug Avastin (bevacizumab) in humans.

The thyroid is an endocrine gland and its hormones help control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Four main types of thyroid cancer are papillary, follicular, medullary, and anaplastic thyroid cancer.

 

Thyroid's hormones help control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Zybrestat could help increase survival of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma patients.
Thyroid's hormones help control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Zybrestat could help increase survival of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma patients.

 

Anaplastic thyroid cancer is a very aggressive primary thyroid malignancy. ATC represents less than 2% of all thyroid cancers, but causes up to 40% of deaths from thyroid cancer. Median life expectancy is about three months for newly diagnosed patients. The overall 5-year survival rate of ATC has been given as 7% or 14%.

National Cancer Institute estimates 48,020 new cases and 1,740 deaths from thyroid cancer in the U. S. in 2011.

Fosbretabulin (Zybrestat), bortezomib (Velcade) and TNF-Related Apoptosis Induced Ligand (TRAIL), are being trialed in clinical labs and human clinical studies.

 

 

 

Ankara explosion updates. Suspected bomb killed 3 and wounded 15.

Ricky Robinson
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Ankara explosion updates. Suspected bomb killed 3 and wounded 15.

An explosion near a secondary school killed three people, injured at least other 15 and set several vehicles on fire in the Turkish capital, Ankara, on Tuesday.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blast in the downtown Kizilay district but a deputy prime minister said a bomb was suspected.

According to Besir Atalay, Turkey’s deputy prime minister, there was “information that a bomb was planted” on a vehicle.

Five of the injured people are in critical condition, Besir Atalay said.

 

The explosion killed three people, injured at least other 15 and set several vehicles on fire in Ankara
The explosion killed three people, injured at least other 15 and set several vehicles on fire in Ankara

 

The vehicle detonated across from the district governor’s office and about 200 meters (650 feet) from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office.

“I’ve learned that people who haven’t got any sense of humanity terrorized civilians and carried out an attack in Ankara,” President Abdullah Gul said in televised comments from Germany, where he is on a state visit.

 “I strongly and vehemently curse this act of terrorism.”

Thick smoke could be seen rising from the central commercial area of Kizilay.

According to local mayor, Bulent Tanik, an eyewitness saw one person throwing a burning gas canister on to the vehicles from a nearby building.

“The investigation is under way,” Bulent Tanik said. “If true, that canister might have triggered the blast of a liquefied petroleum gas tank on a vehicle.”

The blast was powerful enough to destroy six cars and shatter windows in Kizilay, which is surrounded by government ministries. One of the vehicles was totally burnt down, television images showed.

Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin said the initial blast, in an LPG-fueled car, triggered five other similar vehicles on the street to explode. The first car to detonate was sold September 13 and the transaction hadn’t yet been completed, he said.

IdrisNaim Sahin said it was “highly likely to be a terrorist attack”. Kurdish, leftist and Islamic militants have carried out bomb attacks in Turkey in the past.

Interior minister said the attackers wanted to target as many people as possible, because the street where the blast occurred was normally very busy.

A fire broke out but was quickly contained by firefighters. Several vehicles were damaged and windows were blown out in nearby buildings.

Television images showed several parked cars ablaze in front of a local state authority’s offices.

The area was quickly evacuated, for fear of further explosions and to allow ambulances to take away the casualties.

One person was detained in connection with the blast, said a policeman, who declined to be identified because he wasn’t authorized to speak on the matter. Hurriyet newspaper reported that two people were taken into custody, citing unidentified police officials

There have been several bomb attacks in Turkey’s main cities in recent years, many blamed on the Kurdish insurgent movement, the PKK.

However the last big attack in Ankara four years ago, which killed nine and injured 120, was blamed by police investigators on a lone, leftist suicide bomber.

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Samsung wants to ban upcoming iPhone5 in Europe.

Ricky Robinson
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Samsung wants to ban upcoming iPhone5 in Europe.

Samsung sources revealed this week that the company was considering legal action to ban Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5 in Europe, after one of its executives admitted a similar move was planned in Korea.

Since Apple launched iPhone, there is no secret that Samsung makes many of the components inside it, in fact, even Samsung‘s CEO has admitted: “Apple is our biggest customer.”

But when Samsung launched its own Galaxy series of phones and tablets – high-powered touchscreens whose flagship, the Galaxy S II – legal war has erupted between the companies in nine countries.

A Samsung executive told the Korea Times this week:

“When the iPhone 5 arrives here, Samsung plans to take Apple to court here for its violation of Samsung’s wireless technology related patents.”

This statement is in response to Apple’s continued legal action against Samsung’s Galaxy family of touchscreen tablets and smartphones.

Legal battle rages between Apple and Samsung over alleged similarities between their touchscreen smartphones and handsets
Legal battle rages between Apple and Samsung over alleged similarities between their touchscreen smartphones and handsets

Some of Samsung gadgets are currently illegal in Europe following Apple lawsuits, which claimed they are “slavish” copies of iPhone and iPad.

Samsung recently overtook Nokia in the smartphone market, and its Galaxy S II offers a larger screen and faster processor than iPhone 4.

In September, Apple even forced Samsung to withdraw a prototype tablet device from the show floor of a Berlin electronics show. Samsung’s larger Galaxy 10.1 tablet remains illegal in Europe following Apple’s legal action.

The Maeil Business Newspaper reported that Samsung may seek an injunction against Apple’s new iPhone in Europe. Samsung said it would not comment on ongoing legal issues.

Samsung and Apple have been locked in intensifying legal battles in nine countries over their flagship smartphone and tablet products – battles made more complex by the fact that many related patents are held by other internet giants such as Google and Microsoft.

The latest Samsung attacks come after Apple successfully blocked the South Korean firm from selling its latest tablets in Germany and some smartphone models in the Netherlands and forced its rival to delay launching new tablets in Australia.

After Apple’s latest legal victory in Germany earlier in September, Samsung said it would take all available legal options.

Apple first sued the South Korean company in April and Samsung had since counter-sued, arguing Apple infringed on its mobile technologies.

Dolores Hope, Bob Hope widow, dies at 102

Sonia Pantiss
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Dolores Hope, Bob Hope widow, dies at 102

Dolores Hope will be buried alongside her husband.

 

Dolores Hope, the singer who was married for 69 years to comedian Bob Hope, died on September 19 at her home in the Toluca Lake, Los Angeles.

 

Dolores DeFina was born on May 27, 1909, in Harlem, New York City, and began her career as Dolores Reade. Her father was Italian and her mother Irish, and she grew up in the Bronx.

“My father died when I was very young, and there was just my mother, my sister and me. Were we a needy family? I always like what General Eisenhower said: ‘We were poor and didn’t know it.’” Dolores Hope said in 1982

She married Bob Hope in 1934 in Erie, Pennsylvania, and they adopted four children: Nora (Eleanora), Linda, Kelly and Anthony. Anthony died in 2004 at 63. Bob Hope started his film career in 1938 in Hollywood and Dolores stayed home.

 

Bob Hope and Dolores Hope: "Together, they brought countless hours of laughter and cheer to Americans everywhere." (Nancy Reagan)
Bob Hope and Dolores Hope: "Together, they brought countless hours of laughter and cheer to Americans everywhere." (Nancy Reagan)

 

“Bob was the hot thing in New York then. I thought I’d better stay home and take care of Bob.” she said in 1997.

“When we were celebrating our 50th anniversary, people would say, ‘Fifty years?’ And Bob would say, ‘Yeah, but I’ve only been home three weeks,’ ” Dolores Hope told the Palm Springs Desert Sun in 1995. She gave Bob Hope a paperweight inscribed “Don’t think these three weeks haven’t been fun.”

“We always had quality instead of quantity. When he wasn’t home, he’d call almost every day, except when he was in a combat zone. Even then, he’d try.” Dolores Hope recalled in the same interview.

Bob and Dolores Hope in 1997: the laughter in the family home contributed to her parents’ long lives, said Linda Hopes
Bob and Dolores Hope in 1997: the laughter in the family home contributed to her parents’ long lives, said Linda Hopes

Dolores Hope was Catholic and decided what has been appropriate for a family audience. “I learned to temper my humor in those years. Dolores was a tough critic.” Bob Hope said.

In the 1940s she began accompanying Hope on his Christmas trips to entertain U.S. troops. In 1966 she sang “Silent Night” to thousands of soldiers who then rose and gave her a thunderous ovation.

“Dolores was a good friend and a good person. She was an extraordinary partner to Bob throughout his entire life, supporting both their family at home and Bob’s selfless cause to entertain U.S. troops abroad. Together, they brought countless hours of laughter and cheer to Americans everywhere,” said Nancy Reagan.

In 1990, Bob Hope made his last Christmas visit to American forces, visiting troops who were in Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm. Although Marie Osmond, Ann Jillian and the Pointer Sisters did not sing because of Saudi sensibilities about women entertainers, Dolores Hope was allowed to perform and she sang “White Christmas” to thrilled public.

“She was the first lady of the USO. They didn’t come any more patriotic, caring or talented than Dolores,” said Carol Channing.

 

Dolores Hope oversaw Hopes charitable giving, helping to establish the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California.

 

She took care of two homes (a mansion in North Hollywood and a hilltop home in Palm Springs) and from 1969 to 1976 served as president of the Eisenhower Medical Center, then became chairwoman. Bob Hope raised millions of dollars for the center through the annual golf tournament that used to bear his name and is now known as the Humana Challenge.

A large part of Hopes fortune came from property holdings in the San Fernando Valley. Their wealth had been estimated at as much as $500 million in 2003.

“I like being with people, but I also need to have my time alone. I think it’s terribly important to have some time during the day when you stop and take all the energy that you have given out and pull it back in, find the source of your energy. Then you work from there.” Dolores Hope said in 1982.

Dolores Hope is survived her daughters, Linda Hope and Nora Somers; her younger son, Kelly Hope; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.

 

Dolores Hope centenary: her 'Ten Decades Of Life' party on May 27, 2009, in Toluca Lake. "I think of her as love."(Kelly Hope)
Dolores Hope centenary: her 'Ten Decades Of Life' party on May 27, 2009, in Toluca Lake. "I think of her as love."(Kelly Hope)

 

Bob Hope died in 2003, two months after he had turned 100. In 2009, when Dolores Hope became a centenarian, Linda Hope said she thought laughter in the family home had contributed to her parents’ long lives. Her birthday appeared on The Today Show, and Kelly Hope said in an ABC interview, “I think of her as love.“

Hollywood Chamber of Commerce laid flowers at her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, around four hours after Dolores Hope’s passing,  Her star is next to her husband’s. Bob Hope was named the chamber’s “Citizen of the Century.”

 

Bob and Dolores Hope:  Silver Bells

[youtube SaXX4zU6S68]

 

Duffy’s Tavern (1944) with Dolores Hope and Bob Crosby

[youtube 7aurgS883ZE]

 

Listeria confirmed by FDA on Jensen Farms’ cantaloupes

Ricky Robinson
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Listeria confirmed by FDA on Jensen Farms’ cantaloupes

On Monday, September 19, the Food and Drug Administration announced that it found Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupe taken from a Denver-area store and on samples taken from equipment and cantaloupe at the Jensen Farms’ packing facility.

 

Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis, with fever, muscle aches and vomiting
Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis, with fever, muscle aches and vomiting

 

Tests confirmed that the Listeria monocytogenes found in the samples matches one of the three different strains of Listeria monocytogenes associated with the multi-state outbreak of listeriosis.

Jensen Farms recalled its Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes on September 14 in response to the multi-state outbreak of listeriosis. Cantaloupes from other farms in Colorado, including farms in the Rocky Ford growing area, have not been linked to this outbreak.

Jensen Farms shipped the recalled cantaloupes from July 29 through September 10 to at least 17 states with possible further distribution.

FDA investigators collected cantaloupes and environmental samples from a Denver-area store and from the Jensen Farms packing facility in Granada, after Colorado state health officials identified Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes as the common food eaten by several listeriosis patients.

 

The Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention reports that 35 people in 10 states, including five deaths, have been infected with the outbreak strains of Listeria monocytogenes.

 

The Food and Drug Administration found Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupe
The Food and Drug Administration found Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupe. Listeria bacteria can grow in the cantaloupe at room and refrigerator temperatures.

 

Jensen Farms, based in Holly, is cooperating with the FDA and state officials in Colorado. The company is working with federal and state authorities to ensure the recalled cantaloupes are promptly removed from the marketplace. Jensen Farms is also helping federal and state authorities determine the root cause of how the cantaloupes became contaminated.

The FDA’s root-cause investigation and environmental assessment includes the on-site expertise of FDA and state of Colorado microbiologists, environmental health specialists, veterinarians and investigative officers. The experts conducting the assessment will analyze the evidence, determine the most likely cause of contamination and identify potential controls to help prevent contamination in the future. The FDA will use the findings to help inform agency policy regarding Listeria and produce food safety best practices.

The FDA advises consumers, especially persons at high risk for listeriosis (older adults, persons with weakened immune systems and pregnant women) not to eat the recalled cantaloupes and to throw them away. Even if some of the cantaloupe has been eaten without becoming ill, dispose of the rest of the cantaloupe immediately. Listeria bacteria can grow in the cantaloupe at room and refrigerator temperatures. Do not try to wash the harmful bacteria off the cantaloupe as contamination may be both on the inside and outside of the cantaloupe. Cutting, slicing and dicing may also transfer harmful Listeria monocytogenes from the fruit’s surface to the fruit’s flesh.

 

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