Monthly Archives: August 2012

Nanotechnology takes centre stage in food waste talks

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With food sustainability rising up the political agenda, understanding and managing shelf-life will be critical for future quality and profitability of food products.

The development of novel technologies to help solve this has been identified by the EU as one of the main drivers going forward, especially in creating intelligent and smart packaging solutions which could, for example, incorporate sensors to monitor the condition of food.

The workshop is being hosted by the Nanotechnology Knowledge Transfer Network (NanoKTN) alongside partners Biosciences KTN and Leatherhead Food Research.

The technologies under discussion will include pulsed light, high pressure processing, modified atmosphere packaging and pulsed electric fields.

In particular, demonstrations around category label technology will show how this can be used to display ripeness levels, defrosting indication and the ingress of other contaminants.

NanoKTN theme manager Dr Barry Park said that with increasing pressures on the food industry, events like this will be "crucial" to engaging the entire supply chain.

"More and more we are hearing about the need for food to stay fresher for longer, whilst maintaining consistent characteristics in terms of texture, colour and taste and also whilst still being healthy, safe and value for money," he said.

High-tech breakthroughs such as nanotechnology are now paving the way forward for future packaging innovations as companies look to optimise material performance in terms of product preservation and environmental impact.

Maxine Perella

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Nanotechnology takes centre stage in food waste talks

Harvard Dead Monkeys Make Top 10 List for Lab Violations

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By Patrick Cole - 2012-08-30T04:01:00Z

Harvard Medical School logged its latest lab-monkey death this past spring when a cotton-top tamarin monkey died of thirst for lack of a water bottle. Then 41 deer mice died in April at a Harvard facility after their water source got cut off.

As with the monkey, the U.S. Department of Agriculture gave the countrys oldest institution of higher learning an official warning. In less than two years, four monkeys have died in Harvard labs, including one left in a cage as it went through a mechanical washer.

When you see multiple incidents at the same facility over a period of time, thats when you realize that this is indicative of a system-wide problem, said Michael Budkie, executive director of the nonprofit Stop Animal Exploitation Now!, in a phone interview.

The Milford, Ohio-based SAEN has placed Harvard on its top- 10 list of animal-welfare violators for the first half of 2012. The existence of enough violators to glean a top 10 helps indicate the scope of lab-animal abuse nationally.

The Animal Welfare Act, enforced by the USDAs Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, requires labs to handle research animals as carefully as possible to prevent trauma, overheating, physical harm, behavioral stress or unnecessary discomfort.

TRS Labs Inc., based in Athens, Georgia, ranked first on SAENs list with 23 violations affecting about 70 animals, Budkie said. TRS was cited for housing cats in a room that was 88 to 89 degrees. It also failed to separate two gerbils that had been fighting in a cage and to protect dogs from suffering injuries, according to a USDA report.

Several calls to TRS executives seeking comment werent returned.

Santa Cruz Biotechnology Inc. in California, which researches antibodies and animal health-care products, ranked second on the SAEN list with 11 citations affecting 85 animals. In April, an Aphis inspector found a goat with a broken leg whose cast had come off, according to the USDA report. The attending veterinarian said she didnt have time to attend to the goat because of her work load.

This facility was basically understaffed and it couldnt offer good care, Budkie said. Santa Cruz Biotechnology officials didnt respond to a request for comment.

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Harvard Dead Monkeys Make Top 10 List for Lab Violations

Merger and Acquisition Activity Within the Biotech Industry Soars to a Four-Year High

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NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -08/30/12)- Biotechnology stocks continue to be some of the strongest performers in the markets as favorable legislation, such as the FAST and TREAT acts, have helped boost investor optimism within the industry. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) is up over 30 percent in 2012 -- handedly outperforming the Dow Jones industrial average year-to-date. Five Star Equities examines the outlook for companies in the Biotech Industry and provides equity research on Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ALXA) and Discovery Laboratories, Inc. (DSCO).

Access to the full company reports can be found at:

http://www.FiveStarEquities.com/ALXA

http://www.FiveStarEquities.com/DSCO

The FAST and TREAT acts introduced in 2012 have helped accelerate the development, review and approval process of medicines/personalized therapies for patients suffering from serious and life-threatening diseases. According to recent data from Thomson Reuters, biotech mergers & acquisitions activity is currently at a four-year high as large pharmaceuticals are facing major patent cliffs. So far in 2012 the volume of biotech M&A has exceeded $25 billion, compared to roughly 10 billion in the same period of 2011.

"Their patents have expired, and as a result they have holes in their revenue line they are trying to fill," said Scott Lindsay, global head of mergers and acquisitions at Credit Suisse. "The other part is just shoring up the pipeline they have. So even if they don't have a major patent problem, they're all looking for growth."

Five Star Equities releases regular market updates on the Biotech Industry so investors can stay ahead of the crowd and make the best investment decisions to maximize their returns. Take a few minutes to register with us free at http://www.FiveStarEquities.com and get exclusive access to our numerous stock reports and industry newsletters.

Alexza is a pharmaceutical company focused on the research, development and commercialization of novel, proprietary products for the acute treatment of central nervous system conditions. Alexza's technology, the Staccato system, vaporizes unformulated drug to form a condensation aerosol that, when inhaled, allows for rapid systemic drug delivery through deep lung inhalation.

Discovery Laboratories, Inc. is a specialty biotechnology company with one focus -- to create life-saving products for critical care patients with respiratory disease and improve the standard of care for pulmonary medicine. Shares of the company surged earlier this week after analysts at Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage and set a "buy" rating for the company.

Five Star Equities provides Market Research focused on equities that offer growth opportunities, value, and strong potential return. We strive to provide the most up-to-date market activities. We constantly create research reports and newsletters for our members. Five Star Equities has not been compensated by any of the above-mentioned companies. We act as an independent research portal and are aware that all investment entails inherent risks. Please view the full disclaimer at: http://www.FiveStarEquities.com/disclaimer

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Merger and Acquisition Activity Within the Biotech Industry Soars to a Four-Year High

Biotechnology Has Potential To Be Medium For Sabah's Economic Growth – Musa

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August 30, 2012 15:58 PM

Biotechnology Has Potential To Be Medium For Sabah's Economic Growth - Musa

KOTA KINABALU, Aug 30 (Bernama) -- Biotechnology has the potential to become the "medium" for economic growth and generate new wealth for the state as well as increase the rakyat's income, says Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.

In this regard, he said the state government, through its "Halatuju" development agenda, has outlined the needs for the benefits of science and technology, especially biotechnology for development.

Towards this end, several initiatives have taken off to facilitate the rakyat's participation in biotechnology focusing on knowledge, he said in his speech at a briefing on Bioeconomy in Sabah Development Corridor (SDC), here today.

Also present was Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili.

Musa, who is also state finance minister, said the initiatives include implementing various key projects such as Sabah Agro-Industrial Precinct (SAIP), Palm Oil Industrial Cluster (POIC) and Keningau Integrated Livestock Farming Centre.

-- BERNAMA

We provide (subscription-based) news coverage in our Newswire service.

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Biotechnology Has Potential To Be Medium For Sabah's Economic Growth - Musa

Senior Focus: New imaging device helps detect brain changes

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Brain imaging helps to understand how the brain works, aids in the diagnosis of neurological diseases and guides treatments. Positron emission tomography or PET is an imaging technique that uses trace amounts of radioactive drugs to visualize the function and biochemistry of the brain.

Imaging researchers now have developed new PET tracers to detect changes in the brain caused by Alzheimer's dementia and other neurodegenerative disease. These diseases damage and ultimately kill large numbers of brain cells (neurons) and thus lead to severe disability and death.

Neurodegenerative diseases cause specific patterns of injury and biochemical abnormalities in the brain. Until recently, these changes could only be measured after death by examining brain tissue using a microscope. One of the exciting developments in PET imaging is the availability of new agents that can detect beta-amyloid plaques, one of the key abnormalities in Alzheimer's disease, in the living human brain. Plaques may develop in the brain over a decade before Alzheimer's symptoms develop.

Neurologists and other dementia specialists currently rely primarily on information gathered from the patient and family, physical examination and cognitive tests to diagnose Alzheimer's dementia. In some cases, determining the cause of a patient's cognitive problems can be challenging, and now PET imaging can help doctors and patients be more confident in the diagnosis.

Two clinically used PET imaging tests for patients are being evaluated for dementia. A PET tracer called FDG measures the brain's use of glucose, a simple sugar that serves as the brain's major source of energy. In dementia due to Alzheimer's disease, decreased glucose metabolism in specific brain regions supports a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

The other PET imaging test for patients with cognitive impairment uses a different PET tracer, florbetapir, which binds to beta-amyloid plaques that occur in Alzheimer's disease. This PET tracer was approved for clinical use by the Food and Drug Administration in April 2012. Amyloid PET imaging can show the presence or absence of abnormally increased plaques in the brain. Low plaque levels (a negative amyloid PET study) reduce the likelihood that a patient's cognitive problems are due to Alzheimer's disease. Higher plaque levels are present in Alzheimer's disease, but a positive amyloid PET scan can occur with other neurologic diseases and in older people without cognitive problems.

Both FDG and amyloid PET are only part of the evaluation of patients with dementia or other cognitive disorders. Neither of these tests alone can make specific diagnoses. PET imaging in patients with cognitive impairment should be ordered by physicians experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of patients of these conditions when the results will help in clinical decision making.

Dr. Jonathan McConathy is an assistant professor of radiology at Washington University who is board certified in diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine. For information about brain PET studies at Washington University, call 314-362-4738.

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Senior Focus: New imaging device helps detect brain changes

Low-calorie diet not linked with longevity in monkeys, study finds

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In a long-awaited study, underfed monkeys didnt have longer life spans, raising doubts that severe calorie restriction could result in extended lives for most animals and possibly humans.

In research going back more than 75 years, a sharp reduction in caloric intake has been associated with increased longevity. The initial work was done with mice and rats but was later corroborated in other laboratory subjects such as fruit flies and worms, raising hopes that it would apply to humans.

But those hopes are being dimmed by the results published Wednesday online by the journal Nature. The National Institute on Aging study, begun in 1987, involved rhesus monkeys, which are much closer to humans, both genetically and in average longevity, than previous test subjects.

The scientists, led by Julie Mattison, were surprised to find that calorie restriction the treated monkeys ate 30percent fewer calories than those in the control group didnt affect life spans.

It did confer some health benefits, reducing the incidence of cancer and diabetes. It slightly raised the incidence of cardiovascular diseases.

The monkeys were started on their restricted diets either when the animals were young or in middle age. Now, more than two decades later, about half the monkeys that were underfed from a young age are still alive the same as in the control group. The scientists calculated, with a probability of 99.9percent, that the calorie-restricted animals will not survive longer than the animals in the control group. The monkeys that were already older when they were put on the diet have all died. The oldest died at 40, the same as for the corresponding control animals.

These results conflict with a 2009 study, conducted at the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center. Although scientists there did not find that calorie restriction had a significant effect on life span, they did report a trend toward longer life and healthier aging for some of the treated monkeys.

Things were going well for the treated monkeys at the beginning of the National Institute on Aging study, but around the time the Wisconsin researchers published their work, we noticed that for our monkeys, things were not going so well, Mattison said. The treated animals started dying at the same rate as the controls.

Both Mattison and Ricki Colman, the researcher who was the lead author of the 2009 paper, stressed that their studies werent meant to compete with each other and that they had many differences, including diet composition, treatment of diseases and ages of the animals at the beginning of the experiments. Both studies will keep going until all the animals die.

But Mattison acknowledged that the primate research hadnt fulfilled the high expectations of the rodent research. In the rodent studies, you would reduce caloric intake by 10 or 20percent and increase life span by the same amount, she said. But in primates and probably humans, things seem to be much more complicated.

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Low-calorie diet not linked with longevity in monkeys, study finds

DNA project unlocks potter's field secrets

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NEW YORK On a wind-swept island off New York City, the remains of 850,000 people rest in pine boxes in a grid of covered trenches but many are not resting in peace.

They are the unidentified or unclaimed dead who have been found around the nation's largest city often with little hope of a loved one ever knowing their fate. Now, with advances in DNA technology and anthropology and with new federal funding, the city medical examiner's office has exhumed dozens of the bodies in a new push to identify several decades' worth.

It's how Ben Maurer's family finally learned that the 17-year-old had jumped to his death from a Manhattan building on June 25, 2002.

His mother, Germaine, submitted his DNA to the medical examiner in 2009, when the first phase of the project began. The DNA was entered into a public database containing information on thousands of cases of missing and unidentified people and matched a John Doe buried in the potter's field on 101-acre Hart Island on Long Island Sound.

He was given a proper funeral near the family's home in Piscataway, N.J., shortly after his remains were returned to them in 2009.

"It meant everything," said Jared Maurer, Ben's 28-year-old brother. "It finally gave us closure to what had happened to Ben."

Jared Maurer said he frequently visits his brother's grave site. "I tell him I miss him, I tell him I love him," he said.

At any given time, there are 40,000 active missing and unidentified person cases in the United States. New York State accounts for 25 percent of those cases, most of them in New York City.

The identities of some of the bodies in the potter's field are known, but their families are too poor to have them buried elsewhere.

DNA samples weren't regularly taken from all bodies until about 2006, so the only way to identify many bodies is to exhume them, once DNA samples can be matched up with a description of a corpse, as in Maurer's case.

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DNA project unlocks potter's field secrets

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Senior Focus: New imaging device helps detect brain changes

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Brain imaging helps to understand how the brain works, aids in the diagnosis of neurological diseases and guides treatments. Positron emission tomography or PET is an imaging technique that uses trace amounts of radioactive drugs to visualize the function and biochemistry of the brain.

Imaging researchers now have developed new PET tracers to detect changes in the brain caused by Alzheimer's dementia and other neurodegenerative disease. These diseases damage and ultimately kill large numbers of brain cells (neurons) and thus lead to severe disability and death.

Neurodegenerative diseases cause specific patterns of injury and biochemical abnormalities in the brain. Until recently, these changes could only be measured after death by examining brain tissue using a microscope. One of the exciting developments in PET imaging is the availability of new agents that can detect beta-amyloid plaques, one of the key abnormalities in Alzheimer's disease, in the living human brain. Plaques may develop in the brain over a decade before Alzheimer's symptoms develop.

Neurologists and other dementia specialists currently rely primarily on information gathered from the patient and family, physical examination and cognitive tests to diagnose Alzheimer's dementia. In some cases, determining the cause of a patient's cognitive problems can be challenging, and now PET imaging can help doctors and patients be more confident in the diagnosis.

Two clinically used PET imaging tests for patients are being evaluated for dementia. A PET tracer called FDG measures the brain's use of glucose, a simple sugar that serves as the brain's major source of energy. In dementia due to Alzheimer's disease, decreased glucose metabolism in specific brain regions supports a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

The other PET imaging test for patients with cognitive impairment uses a different PET tracer, florbetapir, which binds to beta-amyloid plaques that occur in Alzheimer's disease. This PET tracer was approved for clinical use by the Food and Drug Administration in April 2012. Amyloid PET imaging can show the presence or absence of abnormally increased plaques in the brain. Low plaque levels (a negative amyloid PET study) reduce the likelihood that a patient's cognitive problems are due to Alzheimer's disease. Higher plaque levels are present in Alzheimer's disease, but a positive amyloid PET scan can occur with other neurologic diseases and in older people without cognitive problems.

Both FDG and amyloid PET are only part of the evaluation of patients with dementia or other cognitive disorders. Neither of these tests alone can make specific diagnoses. PET imaging in patients with cognitive impairment should be ordered by physicians experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of patients of these conditions when the results will help in clinical decision making.

Dr. Jonathan McConathy is an assistant professor of radiology at Washington University who is board certified in diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine. For information about brain PET studies at Washington University, call 314-362-4738.

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Senior Focus: New imaging device helps detect brain changes

[SENDEX 2012] Synthesis Welfare Contents Expo in preparation for aging society

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SEOUL, South Korea, Aug. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Synthesis Welfare Contents Expo in preparation for aging society,'Senior & People with Disabilities Expo (hereafter SENDEX)' is held from 30th Aug. to 1st Sept. at KINTEX, KOREA.

SENDEX aiming at Korea's largestSynthesis Welfare Contents Expo has to sectors. One is 'Smart Aging Expo', 120 companies exhibit varied old age related products including health,dwelling andfinance. The other is 'International Assistive Technology Fair' to exhibit Assistive Technology Devices.

After opening ceremony, Awards ceremony and Minister Prize were run by 'The Ministry of Knowledge and Economy' and 'The Ministry of Health and Welfare'.

In particular, visitors can take a view of medical industry and welfare industry at one spot since 'Anti-Aging of Medical field Exhibition' and 'Integrating Medicine Health Care' were held together.

Above this, 'The 6th InternationalAssistive TechnologySymposium' is held torevitalize R&D ofAssistive Technology. Figures of reputation includingJerry Weisman, a chair mam of RESNA(Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America) participate in this symposium to exchange varied information and advanced trend.

Also, there are various useful event including 'Assistive Technology Device Zone' to repair and clean visitors'Assistive Technology Device likewheelchair.

"SENDEX is held toinvigorateAssistive Technology Industry and Senior-friendly industry which are getting lots of attention as the elderly population increases" and "This Fair will be an opportunity which can experience and think concerning preparing healthy old age at one spot."

Go to 'SENDEX 2012' Special Page (tshow.aving.net/sendex)

Pictures : http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151256940.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151259091.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151251512.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151254813.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151251264.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151259735.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151256236.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151253717.jpg http://image2.aving.net/2012/08/30/201208301151251358.jpg

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[SENDEX 2012] Synthesis Welfare Contents Expo in preparation for aging society

Rand Paul Plays It Safe in His RNC Speech

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Under pressure to show loyalty to his party and to critique its heresies against libertarianism, he does a lot of the former, not much of the latter.

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At the same time, his libertarian supporters, another key to his political future, are forever wary of being betrayed by a sellout, and uninclined to lend their time and money for someone who isn't delivering. Basically, Senator Paul has to retain a lot of supporters accustomed to the uncompromising purity and outspokenness of his father (the subject of a tribute video at the RNC extolling his refusal to compromise), but without being quite so pure, uncompromising or outspoken.

Needing to please his party on the one hand, and his core supporters on the other, Sen. Paul erred on the side of pleasing the party Wednesday with an on message speech. He attacked President Obama for his "You didn't build that" comment, in keeping with the GOP's major theme. He focused on subjects of agreement between libertarians and establishment Republicans.

And he eschewed opportunities to chide fellow Republicans. In the beginning of his speech, for example, he invoked James Madison and the notion of enumerated powers, as if Mitt Romney and many other Republicans are reliable champions of a severely limited federal government. And though Paul used inspirational immigrant stories to extol the American Dream, specifically invoking Vietnamese boat people, he didn't advocate for allowing more immigrants to come here legally.

He did nod to his supporters later in the speech, however subtly.

"Republicans and Democrats alike must slay their sacred cows," he stated. "Republicans must acknowledge that not every dollar spent on the military is necessary or well-spent, and Democrats must admit that domestic welfare and entitlements must be reformed." I'm glad he included that line. But asking Republicans to acknowledge that a little bit of military spending is wasted isn't enough. Sen. Paul himself favors deeper cuts to military spending than his speech suggests.

"Republicans and Democrats must replace fear with confidence, confidence that no terrorist, and no country, will ever conquer us if we remain steadfast to the principles of our Founding documents," Sen. Paul said. Were delegates in the hall aware that the GOP hasn't remained steadfast to those documents, and that Mitt Romney's avowed policies are deeply at odds with them?

If not Senator Paul didn't give them any hint.

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Rand Paul Plays It Safe in His RNC Speech

Ron Paul finally gets his moment at the Republican Convention

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Rep. Ron Paul did not get a speaking slot at the GOP convention. But a video paid tribute to him,and his son Sen. Rand Paul let Republicans know that his fathers brand of libertarianism remains a force within the party.

It wasnt billed as such, but Ron Pauls moment at the Republican Convention Wednesday evening marked the effective end of a long and remarkable political career as the libertarian gadfly within the GOP.

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He gave no scheduled speech here; he had refused to let the Romney campaign pre-approve any comments he might have made. And his supporters fought hard and very vocally to the end unsuccessfully, as it turned out against the Republican Partys last-minute efforts to restrict the number and voice of future insurgents, obviously referencing the 177 delegates Mr. Paul had won in the partys presidential caucuses and primaries and were pushing to have his name at least entered into nomination before the roll call vote.

But it does the Republican Party and Mitt Romneys presidential campaign no good to alienate an active and unique slice of conservatism one with considerable overlap with the tea party movement.

Are you a true Ron Paul supporter? Take our quiz!

So early Wednesday evening (before prime-time convention broadcasts), US Rep. Paul received a video tribute to his career. And in a speech a few minutes later, his son US Sen. Rand Paul let Republicans know that his fathers brand of libertarianism remains a force within the party.

In comments from a range of politicians at least one of whom confessed that at first he thought Ron Paul was crazy the 12-term Texas congressman was lauded as one who never wavered, never backed down.

I used to tell new members that they could make a difference or they could make a point, said Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell. Ron Paul is the only one whos made a difference by making a point.

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Ron Paul finally gets his moment at the Republican Convention

Libertarian candidate fights to get on Iowa ballot

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -

Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson will be on the Iowa ballot in November.

Republican Secretary of State Matt Schultz, Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller, and Warren Jenkins, the chief deputy for Republican Auditor David Vaudt say Iowa's law on holding conventions to get on the ballot is vague and they chose to err on the side of open ballot access.

Johnson's candidacy was challenged last week by two Iowa voters. Jay Kramer, who works for Republican Mitt Romney's campaign, signed the documents as a witness.

Libertarians say they held a convention at the Iowa State Fair to get Johnson, a former Republican, onto Iowa's ballot.

The challenge says Libertarians didn't hold a real convention.

The panel says it will ask lawmakers to better define the convention process in state law.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Libertarian candidate fights to get on Iowa ballot

FOR PRESIDENT: Panel Decides If Libertarian Will Be On Ballot

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Posted on: 6:41 pm, August 29, 2012, by Staff Writer, updated on: 06:47pm, August 29, 2012

Republican turned libertarian Gary Johnson will be on Iowa ballots in November.

Thats the finding of a panel of state officials Wednesday.

Iowa law requires a candidate either be nominated at a convention or submit a petition with 1500 signatures to be considered a presidential candidate on an Iowa ballot.

Iowa libertarians claim they held a convention to nominate the former New Mexico governor at the Iowa State Fair this year, but that claim was challenged.

Wednesday, a panel including Matt Schultz and Tom Miller ruled in favor of Johnson.

They say Iowa laws are vague when it comes to defining a convention, and they prefer to err on the side of open elections.

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FOR PRESIDENT: Panel Decides If Libertarian Will Be On Ballot

Libertarian Candidate Allowed on Iowa Ballot

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson will be on the Iowa ballot in November.

Republican Secretary of State Matt Schultz, Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller, and Warren Jenkins, the chief deputy for Republican Auditor David Vaudt say Iowa's law on holding conventions to get on the ballot is vague and they chose to err on the side of open ballot access.

Johnson's candidacy was challenged last week by two Iowa voters. Jay Kramer, who works for Republican Mitt Romney's campaign, signed the documents as a witness.

Libertarians say they held a convention at the Iowa State Fair to get Johnson, a former Republican, onto Iowa's ballot.

The challenge says Libertarians didn't hold a real convention.

The panel says it will ask lawmakers to better define the convention process in state law.

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Libertarian Candidate Allowed on Iowa Ballot

Libertarian VP hopeful visits UNC

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In a speech Tuesday, Jim Gray, a Libertarian vice-presidential candidate, said the time has come for a third party to occupy the White House.

Gray, who spoke to about 15 attendees in the Student Union, is the running mate of presidential candidate Gary Johnson.

He said a Libertarian presidency would achieve two things: decrease the federal governments control, and restore civil liberties.

We are in the mainstream of American political thought today, Gray said. We are both financially responsible and socially tolerant. And were the only ones that are.

Grays speech focused almost exclusively on drug policy reform.

A longtime advocate of decriminalizing narcotics, Gray, who served as a superior court judge in Orange Country, Calif., has worked in his home state and across the country to end the war on drugs.

Gray said he would like to see drugs regulated like wine is now legal to produce and consume on private property, taxed when sold, and prohibited from sale to minors.

Current policy has only succeeded in creating a black market for drugs that benefits select groups, including drug dealers, juvenile gangs and private-sector industries that make money off of increased crime rates, Gray said.

You cannot repeal the law of supply and demand, he said, adding that people will find a way to obtain drugs whether they are legal or not.

Gray points to programs in other countries, such as Germany and Switzerland, that focus on reducing the harm caused by drugs by treating drug use as a medical problem.

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Libertarian VP hopeful visits UNC

Cook Islands creates words biggest marine park

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(08-29 14:08)

The Cook Islands announced the creation of world's largest marine park at the opening of the Pacific Islands Forum today, a vast swathe of ocean almost twice the size of France, AFP reports. Prime Minister Henry Puna said the 1.065 million square kilometer reserve [is] the largest area in history by a single country for integrated ocean conservation and management''. Puna said protecting the Pacific, one of the last pristine marine eco-systems, was the Cooks' major contribution to the wellbeing of not only our peoples, but also of humanity''. The marine park will provide the necessary framework to promote sustainable development by balancing economic growth interests such as tourism, fishing and deep sea mining with conserving core biodiversity in the ocean,'' he said. The new Cook Islands protected zone will be the largest single marine park in the world, taking in the entire southern half of the nation's waters. The nation's 15 islands have a combined landmass barely larger than Washington DC but its waters include environmentally valuable coral reefs, seagrass beds and fisheries.

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Cook Islands creates words biggest marine park

2 Connecticut Private Islands for Sale

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Aug 29, 2012 3:10pm

Who hasnt dreamed of owning a private island? If youve got a few million to spend, theres not one, but two islands for sale off the Connecticut coast.

Belden Island is listed for $3.95 million and Jepson Island for nearly $2 million, according to the William Pitt Sothebys web site, which is handling the sale.

The less expensive of the two features just over 1,000 square feet of interior living space in a contemporary-style house. The island itself is about a third of an acre. The description reads: Jepson Island offers a charming contemporary vacation home with natural materials, walls of glass and incomparable vistas. Stone steps to beach, dock and mooring.

William Pitt Sotheby''s International Realty/Shoreline Aerial Photography/AP

The colonial-style house on Belden Island is about twice the square footage ofJepson and the island itself a little more than an acre in size. Extraordinary vintage classic offers original wainscoted walls and ceilings, gas lights, fireplaces and wrap around porches overlooking manicured putting green lawn, windswept pines and new dock, the listing reads.

William Pitt Sotheby''s International Realty/Shoreline Aerial Photography/AP

It has a very original, beautifully preserved 1912 summer house, which is 100 years old this year, with gas lighting and water from the mainland but no electricity. It has all the original bead board and wainscoting, its own little private beach, stone steps cut out of stony creek granite, saidMargaret Muir, a real estate agent handling the listings for William Pitt Sothebys International Realty.

The houses are seasonal and rely on gas lights and solar power. Both are owned byChristine Svenningsen, the widow of a party-goods magnate,said Muir.

Shes been a preservationist, and treated these with great care. She restored them and beautified them, Muir said about Svenningsen.

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2 Connecticut Private Islands for Sale

Cook Islands declares largest marine park

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29 August 2012 | last updated at 02:06PM

Prime Minister Henry Puna said the 1.065 million square kilometre (411,000 square mile) reserve (is) the largest area in history by a single country for integrated ocean conservation and management. Puna said protecting the Pacific, one of the last pristine marine eco-systems, was the Cooks major contribution to the wellbeing of not only our peoples, but also of humanity. The marine park will provide the necessary framework to promote sustainable development by balancing economic growth interests such as tourism, fishing and deep sea mining with conserving core biodiversity in the ocean, he said.

Australia announced in June that it was creating a network of marine parks covering 3.1 million square kilometres, more than a third of its territorial waters. However, they are dotted around its huge coastline.

The new Cook Islands protected zone will be the largest single marine park in the world, taking in the entire southern half of the nations waters.

The nations 15 islands have a combined landmass barely larger than Washington DC but its waters include environmentally valuable coral reefs, seagrass beds and fisheries. - AFP

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Cook Islands declares largest marine park