Another day, another update on the ongoing oil disaster in the Gulf. BP's latest containment dome effort has successfully siphoned 250,000 gallons of oil to the surface, but it's only a third of the 798,000 gallons spilling daily. More »
BP - Business - Energy - Oil and Gas - Environment
It's by no means a new debate, but it remains an important one, and today the Wall Street Journal tackles the issue with a pair of essays on what exactly the internet's doing to our noggins. So, which is it? More »
Intelligence - Social Sciences - Psychology - Communication - Wall Street Journal
Nanowires inside a rat can convert the power of breathing and heartbeats into electricity, according to researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Technology Review reports these nano-generators could conceivably lead to nano-scale implants and sensors powered by the body. More »
Georgia Institute of Technology - Education - Colleges and Universities - Energy - Georgia
Lest your Droid fall out of date, into disrepair, and end up on a Jawa Sandcrawler, MyDroidWorld is serving up a new Android 2.2 ROM, along with full instructions, for bringing your phone up to speed. Apparently it's got everything except for Wi-Fi, so if you're hankering for that Froyo, it's well worth a look. As always, proceed with caution; there's nothing worse than a dead Droid. [MyDroidWorld via Boy Genius Report] More »
Droid - Smartphone - Motorola - Android - Handhelds
The Creators Project assembled this incredible video profile of Curt Morgan, a snowboarder-cum-filmmaker whose team, Brain Farm, uses the world's most advanced cameras to capture extreme sports as they've never been seen before. Think Planet Earth on forty Red Bulls. More »
Snowboard - Sport - Extreme sport - Winter Sports - Magazines and E-zines
Paul Gaugin was a French post impressionist painter whose lush color, flat two-dimensional forms, and subject matter helped form the basis of modern art.
Gauguin was born in Paris on June 7, 1848, into a liberal middle-class family. After an adventurous early life, including a four-year stay in Peru with his family and a stint in the French merchant marine, he became a successful Parisian stockbroker, settling into a comfortable bourgeois existence with his wife and five children.
In 1874, after meeting the artist Camille Pissarro and viewing the first impressionist exhibition, he became a collector and amateur painter. He exhibited with the impressionists in 1876, 1880, 1881, 1882, and 1886. In 1883 he gave up his secure existence to devote himself to painting; his wife and children, without adequate subsistence, were forced to return to her family. From 1886 to 1891 Gauguin lived mainly in rural Brittany (except for a trip to Panama and Martinique from 1887 to 1888), where he was the center of a small group of experimental painters known as the school of Pont-Aven. Under the influence of the painter Émile Bernard, Gauguin turned away from impressionism and adapted a less naturalistic style, which he called synthetism.
He found his inspiration in the art of indigenous peoples, in medieval stained glass, and in Japanese prints; he was introduced to Japanese prints by the Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh when they spent two months together in Arles, in the south of France, in 1888. Gauguin’s new style was characterized by the use of large flat areas of nonnaturalistic color, as in Yellow Christ (1889, Albright-Knox Gallery, Buffalo, New York).
In 1891, ruined and in debt, Gauguin sailed for the South Seas to escape European civilization and “everything that is artificial and conventional.” Except for one visit to France from 1893 to 1895, he remained in the Tropics for the rest of his life, first in Tahiti and later in the Marquesas Islands. The essential characteristics of his style changed little in the South Seas; he retained the qualities of expressive color, denial of perspective, and thick, flat forms.
Under the influence of the tropical setting and Polynesian culture, however, Gauguin’s paintings became more powerful, while the subject matter became more distinctive, the scale larger, and the compositions more simplified. His subjects ranged from scenes of ordinary life, such as Tahitian Women, or On the Beach (1891, Musée de Orsay, Paris), to brooding scenes of superstitious dread, such as Spirit of the Deadwatching (1892, Albright-Knox Art Gallery). His masterpiece was the monumental allegory Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? (1897, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston), which he painted shortly before his failed suicide attempt. A modest stipend from a Parisian art dealer sustained him until his death at Atuana in Marquesas on May 9, 1903.
Gauguin’s bold experiments in coloring led directly to the 20th-century Fauvist style in modern art. His strong modeling influenced the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch and the later expressionist school.
You can learn more about Paul Gaugin through the following links:
When you consider it, we're not so nice with our furniture. We plop our heavy selves down on some pieces and put drinks on others...sometimes without coasters. We push them around, figuratively and literally. This smart furniture, however, pushes back. More »
Furniture - Home and Garden - Shopping - Consumer Goods and Services - Business
Despite its mobile prowess, Apple sucks at the internet. But surprisingly it's Microsoft—not Google—that's best positioned for Our Future in the Cloud. Here's why. More »
Microsoft - Apple - Google - IPad - Steve Ballmer
The next time you're at a music festival and see a giant rainbow trout swishing around in the sky, there's just a chance you might not be intoxicated. It might be scientists testing an airship that moves like a fish. More »
Airship - Technology - Aerospace - Aeronautics - Lighter Than Air
Over all, you would still get some calcium by eating almonds, but at a lot higher calorie cost than from other foods, like milk.
The amount of calcium in a cup of whole almonds, 378 milligrams, is slightly more than in a cup of milk, about 300 milligrams, but you would be consuming about eight times as many calories.
References:
Q and A - Almonds for Calcium? - Question - NYTimes.com.
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Get the message out to the world that you’re deeply emotional but don’t really give-a-damn with this low v-neck anatomical heart shirt by Dark Cycle Clothing. I love the texture and size of the heart! They hand illustrated, digitally altered, and then screen printed it through a high mesh screen using metallic silver ink. The shirt itself looks nice and soft too. It’s a win win!
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BACKGROUND
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common condition in reproductive-aged women associated with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) and the metabolic syndrome.
METHODS
A literature search was conducted (MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, clinical trial registries and hand-searching) identifying studies reporting prevalence or incidence of IGT, DM2 or metabolic syndrome in women with and without PCOS. Data were presented as odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] with fixed- and random-effects meta-analysis by Mantel–Haenszel methods. Quality testing was based on Newcastle–Ottawa Scaling and The Cochrane Collaboration's risk of bias assessment tool. Literature searching, data abstraction and quality appraisal were performed by two investigators.
RESULTS
A total of 2192 studies were reviewed and 35 were selected for final analysis. Women with PCOS had increased prevalence of IGT (OR 2.48, 95% CI 1.63, 3.77; BMI-matched studies OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.44, 4.47), DM2 (OR 4.43, 95% CI 4.06, 4.82; BMI-matched studies OR 4.00, 95% CI 1.97, 8.10) and metabolic syndrome (OR 2.88, 95% CI 2.40, 3.45; BMI-matched studies OR 2.20, 95% CI 1.36, 3.56). One study assessed IGT/DM2 incidence and reported no significant differences in DM2 incidence (OR 2.07, 95% CI 0.68, 6.30). One study assessed conversion from normal glucose tolerance to IGT/DM2 (OR 2.4, 95% CI 0.7, 8.0). No studies reported metabolic syndrome incidence.
CONCLUSIONS
Women with PCOS had an elevated prevalence of IGT, DM2 and metabolic syndrome in both BMI and non-BMI-matched studies. Few studies have determined IGT/DM2 or metabolic syndrome incidence in women with and without PCOS and further research is required.
BACKGROUND
Timing of natural menopause has great implications for fertility and women's health. Age at natural menopause (ANM) is largely influenced by genetic factors. In the past decade, several genetic studies have been conducted to identify genes in ANM, which can help us unravel the biological pathways underlying this trait and the associated infertility and health risks. After providing an overview of the results of the genetic studies performed so far, we give recommendations for future studies in identifying genetic factors involved in determining the variation in timing of natural menopause.
METHODS
The electronic databases of Pubmed and Embase were systematically searched until September 2009 for genetic studies on ANM, using relevant keywords on the subject. Additional papers identified through hand search were also included.
RESULTS
Twenty-eight papers emerged from our literature search. A number of genetic regions and variants involved in several possible pathways underlying timing of ANM were identified, including two possible interesting regions (9q21.3 and chromosome 8 at 26 cM) in linkage analyses. Recent genome-wide association studies have identified two genomic regions (19q13.42 and 20p12.3), containing two promising candidate genes (BRKS1 and MCM). In the candidate gene association studies on ANM, very few consistent associations were found.
CONCLUSION
A number of genetic variants have been discovered in association with ANM, although the overall results have been rather disappointing. We have described possible new strategies for future genetic studies to identify more genetic loci involved in the variation in menopausal age.
BACKGROUND
Although prescription drug use is common during pregnancy, the human teratogenic risks are undetermined for more than 90% of drug treatments approved in the USA during the past decades. A particular birth defect may have its origins through multiple mechanisms and possible exposures, including medications. A specific pathogenic process may result in different outcomes depending upon factors such as embryonic age at which a drug is administered, duration and dose of exposure and genetic susceptibility. This review focuses on the teratogenic mechanisms associated with a number of medications.
METHODS
We used three methods to identify the teratogenic mechanisms of medications: the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases, two recent books on teratogenic agents and a list of drugs classified as U.S. Food and Drug Administration class D or X. Mechanisms were included only if they are associated with major structural birth defects and medications that are used relatively frequently by women of reproductive age.
RESULTS
We identified six teratogenic mechanisms associated with medication use: folate antagonism, neural crest cell disruption, endocrine disruption, oxidative stress, vascular disruption and specific receptor- or enzyme-mediated teratogenesis. Many medications classified as class X are associated with at least one of these mechanisms.
CONCLUSIONS
Identifying teratogenic mechanisms may not only be relevant for etiologic and post-marketing research, but may also have implications for drug development and prescribing behavior for women of reproductive age, especially since combinations of seemingly unrelated prescription and over the counter medications may utilize similar teratogenic mechanisms with a resultant increased risk of birth defects.
BACKGROUND
Female cancer patients are offered ‘banking’ of gametes before starting fertility-threatening cancer therapy. Transplants of fresh and frozen ovarian tissue between healthy fertile and infertile women have demonstrated the utility of the tissue banked for restoration of endocrine and fertility function. Additional methods, like follicle culture and isolated follicle transplantation, are in development.
METHODS
Specialist reproductive medicine scientists and clinicians with complementary expertise in ovarian tissue culture and transplantation presented relevant published literature in their field of expertise and also unpublished promising data for discussion. As the major aims were to identify the current gaps prohibiting advancement, to share technical experience and to orient new research, contributors were allowed to provide their opinioned expert views on future research.
RESULTS
Normal healthy children have been born in cancer survivors after orthotopic transplantation of their cryopreserved ovarian tissue. Longevity of the graft might be optimized by using new vitrification techniques and by promoting rapid revascularization of the graft. For the in vitro culture of follicles, a successive battery of culture methods including the use of defined media, growth factors and three-dimensional extracellular matrix support might overcome growth arrest of the follicles. Molecular methods and immunoassay can evaluate stage of maturation and guide adequate differentiation. Large animals, including non-human primates, are essential working models.
CONCLUSIONS
Experiments on ovarian tissue from non-human primate models and from consenting fertile and infertile patients benefit from a multidisciplinary approach. The new discipline of oncofertility requires professionalization, multidisciplinarity and mobilization of funding for basic and translational research.
In the first trimester the extravillous cytotrophoblast cells occlude the uterine spiral arterioles creating a low oxygen environment early in pregnancy, which is essential for pregnancy success. Paradoxically, shallow trophoblast invasion and defective vascular remodelling of the uterine spiral arteries in the first trimester may result in impaired placental perfusion and chronic placental ischemia and hypoxia later in gestation leading to adverse pregnancy outcomes. The hypoxia inducible factors (HIFs) are key mediators of the response to low oxygen. We aimed to elucidate mechanisms of regulation of HIFs and the role these may play in the control of placental differentiation, growth and function in both normal and pathological pregnancies. The Pubmed database was consulted for identification of the most relevant published articles. Search terms used were oxygen, placenta, trophoblast, pregnancy, HIF and hypoxia. The HIFs are able to function throughout all aspects of normal and abnormal placental differentiation, growth and function; during the first trimester (physiologically low oxygen), during mid-late gestation (where there is adequate supply of blood and oxygen to the placenta) and in pathological pregnancies complicated by placental hypoxia/ischemia. During normal pregnancy HIFs may respond to complex alterations in oxygen, hormones, cytokines and growth factors to regulate placental invasion, differentiation, transport and vascularization. In the ever-changing environment created during pregnancy, the HIFs appear to act as key mediators of placental development and function and thereby are likely to be important contributors to both normal and adverse pregnancy outcomes.
BACKGROUND
An ectopic pregnancy is a pregnancy which occurs outside of the uterine cavity, and over 98% implant in the Fallopian tube. Tubal ectopic pregnancy remains the most common cause of maternal mortality in the first trimester of pregnancy. The epidemiological risk factors for tubal ectopic pregnancy are well established and include: tubal damage as a result of surgery or infection (particularly Chlamydia trachomatis), smoking and in vitro fertilization. This review appraises the data to date researching the aetiology of tubal ectopic pregnancy.
METHODS
Scientific literature was searched for studies investigating the underlying aetiology of tubal ectopic pregnancy.
RESULTS
Existing data addressing the underlying cause of tubal ectopic pregnancy are mostly descriptive. There are currently few good animal models of tubal ectopic pregnancy. There are limited data explaining the link between risk factors and tubal implantation.
CONCLUSIONS
Current evidence supports the hypothesis that tubal ectopic pregnancy is caused by a combination of retention of the embryo within the Fallopian tube due to impaired embryo-tubal transport and alterations in the tubal environment allowing early implantation to occur. Future studies are needed that address the functional consequences of infection and smoking on Fallopian tube physiology. A greater understanding of the aetiology of tubal ectopic pregnancy is critical for the development of improved preventative measures, the advancement of diagnostic screening methods and the development of novel treatments.
BACKGROUND
Previous research has demonstrated an association between economic contraction at both the individual and aggregate level, and adverse health outcomes. Proposed mechanisms include increased psychosocial stress and loss of resources. The aim of this review is to assess the quantity, validity and consistency of empirical evidence examining economic contraction and birth outcomes.
METHODS
Empirical, English-language articles examining the effects of economic change at either the aggregate or individual level on birthweight, length of gestation, neonatal mortality and the secondary sex ratio were identified using PubMed and ISI Web of Knowledge. Studies were organized by level of analysis and birth outcome and evaluated for internal and external validity.
RESULTS
One individual-level study reported a strong association between individual shift to inadequate employment and decreased birthweight. Of seven aggregate-level studies on birthweight, five exhibited moderate to strong validity but reported inconsistent findings. Similarly, findings from five studies (four with moderate to strong validity) examining rates of neonatal mortality reported inconsistent findings. Three of four moderate to strong studies reported a reduced secondary sex ratio following economic contraction.
CONCLUSIONS
Associations between economic contraction and birthweight, neonatal mortality and the secondary sex ratio remain speculative. Consensus on methodology is needed to compare findings across studies. Further research on economic contraction and the secondary sex ratio, as well as individual-level birthweight and length of gestation, is warranted.
A sprightly family comedy about a frisky Great Dane and his human companion who both learn new things during a major transition in their lives.
