Monthly Archives: October 2012

LifeScience Alley 11th Annual Conference to Highlight Innovative New Technologies

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MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

LifeScience Alley announced today that 10 life science and health care organizations will be exhibiting cutting-edge technologies at the associations Eleventh Annual Conference as part of the New Technology Showcase. Three of the 10 selected organizations will be presenting their technologies during the luncheon general session in front of an anticipated audience of more than 1,600 national and international life science and health care professionals. The Conference will take place on December 5 at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minn. This year's New Technology Showcase is sponsored by Mayo Clinic.

During the luncheon general session, Corventis, Inc., of St. Paul, Minn., will be presenting a wireless diagnostic solution to monitor and analyze various measurements from cardiovascular patients. Entellus Medical, a Plymouth, Minn., company, will be presenting a set of minimally-invasive sinusitis treatment tools. Additionally, Monteris Medical of Winnipeg, Manitoba, will be presenting a MRI-guided, minimally-invasive system for treating brain tumors.

These organizations will be joined in the New Technology Showcase exhibit area, located in the newly re-designed exhibit hall, by seven other finalists: Acuity Medical, a Minneapolis, Minn., company exhibiting a vision restoration technology treating macular degeneration; Clinical Healthcare Corporation, a Minneapolis, Minn., company exhibiting a software solution to help physicians manage patient data and communications in between visits; IntraMed Diagnostics, LLC, a Blue Earth, Minn., company exhibiting a point-of-care, disposable blood test to diagnose anemia; Mobi, LLC, a Bloomington, Minn., company exhibiting technologically advanced, ergonomic crutches; Sunshine Heart, an Eden Prairie, Minn., company exhibiting a minimally-invasive system designed to treat moderate to severe heart failure; Tamarack Habilitation Technologies, Inc., a Blaine, Minn., company exhibiting an advanced wheelchair technology to prevent the formation of pressure ulcers and Vital Simulations, LLC, a Minneapolis, Minn., company exhibiting an interactive healthcare simulation training module designed to teach care providers proper disease management techniques.

The New Technology Showcase provides an opportunity for companies around the world to apply for the opportunity to exhibit innovative medical device, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and health care delivery products.

At Mayo Clinic, innovative technologies are a key component to providing more effective and value-added health outcomes for our patients, says James Rogers III, Chair of Mayo Clinic Ventures. Mayo is proud to sponsor the New Technology Showcase and introduce some of the latest technologies to members of the life science and health care communities.

About the Selection Process This years finalists were selected by a group of industry experts. Presenting and exhibiting organizations are selected based on the novelty of their technology, its market potential and its ability to improve patient outcomes while lowering per capita health care costs.

About the LifeScience Alley Conference The largest gathering of life science industry professionals in the Midwest, LifeScience Alleys annual conference brings together global leaders in the life science and health care industry to identify trends, share expertise and network across disciplines. This event includes participants from over 650 organizations worldwide, and is expected to attract 1,500-2,000 attendees this year. The 2012 Conference features three keynote sessions, four interactive breakout sessions and a newly redesigned exhibit hall. The goal of the conference is to equip attendees with information and resources that will help them stay current on Todays Science. Tomorrows Healthcare. For more information, visit http://www.lifesciencealley.org or http://www.lifesciencealleyconference.org.

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LifeScience Alley 11th Annual Conference to Highlight Innovative New Technologies

Health care fraud indictments returned against 14

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Twelve defendants were arrested last week on various charges, outlined in five indictments, regarding their roles in several unrelated conspiracies involving more than $100 million in fraudulent billings to Medicare, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah Saldaa of the Northern District of Texas.

Two additional defendants that are named in the indictments are already in federal custody. Defendants began making their initial court appearances last week.

With the indictments unsealed today, over the last 18 months the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in Northern District of Texas has charged defendants with close to one half billion dollars of fraud and have sent a clear message that we will protect taxpayers dollars and the Medicare program, said Saldaa.

Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Dallas Regional Office Office of the Inspector General said, In one of the cases charged today, the defendants submitted claims for services to Medicare patients whose only connection to the defendants were that their names happened to be on a list of stolen Medicare ID numbers the defendants had obtained. The patients never visited the defendants business and never received any of the diagnostic tests and office visits for which their Medicare benefits were charged.

Lawrence Dale St. John, his son Jeffrey Dale St. John and Dr. Nicolas Alfonso Padron are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and 13 substantive counts of health care fraud. The indictment alleges that from May 2010 through January 5, 2012, the defendants conspired together to bill Medicare for care plan oversight, by Dr. Padron, for numerous beneficiaries when Dr. Padron was out of town, including dates when he was out of the country and on a cruise.

Dr. Padron has been in federal custody since his arrest in June 2012 on charges related to his role in a conspiracy to illegally distribute and dispense hydrocodone.

Pamela Adenuga, 38, and her husband, Kahinde Adenuga, 45, both of Arlington are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and seven substantive counts of health care fraud. The indictment alleges that since November 2007, Pamela and Kahinde Adenuga conspired together to defraud Medicare and Medicaid by submitting claims for DME that was either not provided or not prescribed.

Olalekan Sorunke, 40, of Rowlett is charged with four counts of health care fraud stemming from his operation of Lincoln Medical Supply, Inc., a DME business he owned and operated in Dallas.

According to the indictment, Sorunke billed Medicare for power wheelchairs, hospital beds for home use and related accessories and other DME that was not medically necessary, and in some cases, was never provided to the Medicare beneficiaries. The indictment alleges that he engaged in up-coding wheelchairs, billing for but failing to provide wheelchairs, and forging doctors signatures on required documentation for the wheelchairs.

A physician, Joseph Megwa, 58, of Arlington, and two registered nurses Ferguson Ikhile and Ebolose Eghobor, who were associated with PTM Healthcare Services, Inc., a home healthcare agency, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and three substantive counts of health care fraud arising from their association with a home health agency. In addition, Dr. Megwa is charged with four counts of making false statements relating to healthcare matters.

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Health care fraud indictments returned against 14

Chain puts health care law to test

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Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg Darden, which operates more than 2,000 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, employs about 180,000 people. The company says about 75 percent of its employees are part-timers.

Labor Restaurateur Darden moves more workers to part time to lessen coverage costs.

New York The owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster restaurants is putting more workers on part-time status in a test aimed at limiting the impact of looming health coverage requirements.

Darden Restaurants Inc. declined to give details but said the test is only in restaurants in four markets across the country, not including Utah, where it operates the national-brand eateries and will open two LongHorn Steakhouses in December. The move entails boosting the number of workers on part-time status, meaning they work less than 30 hours a week.

Under the new health care law championed by President Barack Obama, companies with 50 or more workers could be hit with fines if they do not provide basic coverage for full-time workers and their dependents. Starting Jan. 1, 2014, those penalties and requirements could significantly boost labor costs for some companies, particularly in low-wage industries such as retail and hospitality, where most jobs dont come with health benefits.

Darden, which operates more than 2,000 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, employs about 180,000 people. The company says about 75 percent of its employees are part-timers.

Bob McAdam, who directs government affairs and community relations for Darden, said the company is still learning from the tests, which were first reported by the Orlando Sentinel.

"Were not at a point where we have results," he said. McAdam also noted that Darden is not alone in looking at ways to keep labor costs in check, with companies industrywide prepping for the new regulations to take effect.

This summer, McDonalds Corp. Chief Financial Officer Peter Bensen noted in a conference call with investors that the fast food company was looking at the many factors that will impact health care costs, including its number of full-time employees.

"Theres not a company in those industries that arent looking at this," said Paul Keckley, executive director of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.

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Chain puts health care law to test

Health care changes spur test of more part-time workers

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NEW YORK (AP) -

The owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster restaurants is putting more workers on part-time status in a test aimed at limiting costs from President Barack Obama's health care law.

Darden Restaurants Inc. declined to give details but said the test is only in restaurants in four markets across the country. It entails boosting the number of workers on part-time status, meaning they work less than 30 hours a week.

Under the new health care law, companies with 50 or more workers could be hit with fines if they do not provide basic coverage for full-time workers and their dependents. Starting Jan. 1, 2014, those penalties and requirements could significantly boost labor costs for some companies, particularly in low-wage industries such as retail and hospitality, where most jobs don't come with health benefits.

Darden, which operates more than 2,000 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, employs about 180,000 people. The company says about 75 percent of its employees are currently part-timers.

Bob McAdam, who heads government affairs and community relations for Darden, said the company is still learning from the tests, which was first reported by the Orlando Sentinel.

"We're not at a point where we have results," he said. McAdam also noted that Darden is not alone in looking at ways to keep labor costs in check, with companies industrywide prepping for the new regulations to take effect.

This summer, McDonald's Corp. Chief Financial Officer Peter Bensen noted in a conference call with investors that the fast food company was looking at the many factors that will impact health care costs, including its number of full-time employees.

"There's not a company in those industries that aren't looking at this," said Paul Keckley, executive director of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.

In fact, Keckley noted that there follow-up legislation might be needed to ensure that companies do not shift more workers to part-time status to avoid providing coverage.

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Health care changes spur test of more part-time workers

As health care companies expand, promised cost savings in doubt

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ST. PETERSBURG On the edge of downtown, a three-story building is rising that symbolizes where health care is heading.

When the scaffolding comes down later this year, one of the area's biggest physician groups, Suncoast Medical Clinic, will move into a new home built by the area's biggest hospital group, BayCare.

The 50 or so doctors working at Suncoast are just a fraction of the 800-plus who have recently aligned with BayCare, which this year announced expansion plans with hospitals in Polk and Sarasota counties.

Bigger is thought to be better in these days of health care consolidations and partnerships. Size brings the bargaining power and the range of patient services needed to drive down costs and to better coordinate care, improving quality.

So goes the mantra uttered time and time again as hospitals and physician practices that once operated independently seek the protection of deep-pocketed partners.

But whether this trend will translate into lower costs particularly for patients is theoretical at best, experts say.

"Have you ever seen costs go down in health care? Anywhere? For anything?" said Glenn Melnick, a health economist at the nonpartisan RAND Corp.

The University of Southern California professor added, laughing, "Not that I'm cynical or anything."

The research is clear, experts say hospital mergers and consolidations historically have led to higher prices, no matter the rosy promises to the contrary. There's little evidence that quality improves, either.

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As health care companies expand, promised cost savings in doubt

Kinergy Health Wins The Advisory Board Company's Blue Button Challenge

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VIENNA, Va., Oct. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Kinergy Health, a pioneer in using the web to connect family members, doctors, and other health care providers to better and more efficiently deliver care for an aging or chronically ill loved one, today announced it was selected as winner of The Advisory Board Company's Patient Engagement Blue Button (R) Challenge. David Chao, Chief Technology Officer for Crimson at The Advisory Board Company, made the announcement at the Health 2.0 6th Annual Fall Conference in San Francisco on Monday, October 8th.

Blue Button is a Web-based feature through which patients may easily and securely download their health information from doctors, insurers, pharmacies and other health-related services and share it with health care providers, caregivers, and others they trust. The Blue Button appears on the patient portals of more than one-third of U.S. hospitals. Patients using the MyKinergy service are able to download Blue Button information and share it with their providers and caregivers along with medical history, care plans, medication lists, and other information in their secure MyKinergy account.

Each of the five finalists was paired with an Advisory Board member for a trial of their solution. Kinergy Health was paired with Lynchburg Internal Medicine, a member of the Centra Medical Group. All finalists were judged on three criteria: basic functionality and security; the ease of accessing, updating and sharing patient information for both patients and providers; and ease with which that information is integrating into the clinical setting.

Kinergy Health was recognized for identifying a highly-effective driver of real-world patient uptake: enabling the physician to convincingly articulate the value of Blue Button to the patient. This resulted in an unexpectedly high percentage of Medicare patients returning home, registering, and sharing their Blue Button data with health care providers. According to Aneesh Chopra, Senior Advisor, The Advisory Board Company, "Kinergy outperformed our other high quality finalists on its ability to engage patients and the medical staff, resulting in a level of trust that led providers to actively encourage patients to enroll."

"We created Kinergy to enable patients, their family members, and all of the providers and care givers involved in their care to communicate and collaborate," said Gail Embt, Kinergy Health CEO and Founder. "By having a single secure place on the web where everyone involved can see and update history, test results, care plans, medication lists, and other information, providers are able to deliver better care more efficiently, and family members gain peace of mind knowing that their loved one is receiving the care they deserve."

"Centra agreed to participate in The Advisory Board Company's Blue Button challenge because we believe that empowering patients through access to their personal health care information increases patient engagement and promotes cross-network care management," said Terri Ripley, Centra's Director of Systems and Programming. "Ultimately our goal is to improve care quality and efficiency." According to Angie Hodge, Centra's Director of Ambulatory Informatics, patients recognized the value of Kinergy: "One particular patient going out of network for treatment was comforted having his Blue Button and Centra data accessible from Kinergy anywhere they travelled and not needing to carry printed copies of his history and records."

Embt commended The Advisory Board Company for its commitment to innovation that helps improve health outcomes and for sponsoring the Patient Engagement Blue Button Challenge. "Software developer competitions like this are becoming increasingly important as drivers of innovation across health care IT," said Embt. "Kinergy Health is honored to have been selected as The Advisory Board Company's Patient Engagement Blue Button Challenge winner."

About Kinergy Health: For elderly and chronically ill individuals Kinergy Health brings their family members, doctors, and professional caregivers together in a private, secure online community where they share and respond to up-to-date information, coordinate plans, and collaborate to assure that the patient is always receiving timely and appropriate care. Today, over 66 million Americans manage the care of someone else. Kinergy Health simplifies the role of family caregiver and improves efficiency and effectiveness for health care providers. MyKinergy is a SaaS-based service allowing health care providers to rapidly deploy patient-centered care models. For more information please visit http://www.kinergyhealth.com.

Media Contacts:

Stuart Itkin Kinergy Health 571.295-8059 Stuart.Itkin@kinergyhealth.com

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Kinergy Health Wins The Advisory Board Company's Blue Button Challenge

Researchers develop new tool for making genetic engineering of microbial circuits reliably predictable

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Fluorescence microscopy images of cells containing various plasmid pairs which were constructed with the help of a tna element adaptor and logic gates driven by two, three or four RNA inputs that linked to ribosome binding sites.

(Phys.org)Synthetic biology is the latest and most advanced phase of genetic engineering, holding great promise for helping to solve some of the world's most intractable problems, including the sustainable production of energy fuels and critical medical drugs, and the safe removal of toxic and radioactive waste from the environment. However, for synthetic biology to reach its promise, the design and construction of biological systems must be as predictable as the assembly of computer hardware.

An important step towards attaining a higher degree of predictability in synthetic biology has been taken by a group of researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) under the leadership of computational biologist Adam Arkin. Arkin and his team have developed an "adaptor" that makes the genetic engineering of microbial components substantially easier and more predictable by converting regulators of translation into regulators of transcription in Escherichia coli. Transcription and translation make up the two-step process by which the coded instructions of genes are used to synthesize proteins.

"Application of our adaptor should produce large collections of transcriptional regulators whose inherent composability can facilitate the predictable engineering of complex biological circuits in microorganisms," Arkin says. "This in turn should allow for safer and more efficient constructions of increasingly complex functions in microorganisms."

Arkin is the director of Berkeley Lab's Physical Biosciences Division and the corresponding author of a paper describing this work in Nature Methods. The paper is titled "An adaptor from translational to transcriptional control enables predictable assembly of complex regulation. Co-authoring this paper were Chang Liu, Lei Qi, Julius Lucks, Thomas Segall-Shapiro, Denise Wang and Vivek Mutalik.

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When a bacterial translational regulator is fused to a tna element adaptor, it is able to also regulate transcriptional elongation.

"Much of the regulatory potential of a bacterium is contained in the five-prime untranslated regions (UTRs), which control the expression of physically adjacent downstream genes and have become attractive platforms for a parts-based approach to synthetic biology," Arkin says. "This approach, in which integrated engineered regulatory parts respond to custom inputs by changing the expression of desired genes, must satisfy two criteria if it is to have long-term success. First, the regulatory parts must be easily engineered in a way that yields large homogenous sets of variants that respond to different custom inputs, and second, the parts must be composable such that they can be easily and predictably assembled into useful higher-order functions."

In the five prime UTRs of bacteria, two primary types of regulators can serve as starting points for designing new parts those that regulate transcriptional elongation, in which cellular inputs are linked to the process by which a sequence of DNA nucleotides is transcribed into a complementary sequence of RNA; and those that regulate translation, in which a ribosome translates the RNA message into a protein. Transcriptional elongation regulators meet the second criterion by featuring versatility and composability that makes them ideal for building custom regulatory functions. Translational regulators meet the first criterion by being easier to engineer and relatively common to all bacteria.

"Our solution for meeting both criteria was to develop an adaptor based on tryptophanase, the catabolic operon for tryptophan that converts regulators of translational initiation into regulators of transcriptional elongation," Arkin says. "Because our adaptor strategy bypasses the otherwise restrictive tradeoff between criterion one and criterion two, we believe it will have a crucial role in the long-term development of five prime UTRs as platforms for the design and integration of custom regulatory parts."

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Researchers develop new tool for making genetic engineering of microbial circuits reliably predictable

New tool for making genetic engineering of microbial circuits reliably predictable

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ScienceDaily (Oct. 8, 2012) Synthetic biology is the latest and most advanced phase of genetic engineering, holding great promise for helping to solve some of the world's most intractable problems, including the sustainable production of energy fuels and critical medical drugs, and the safe removal of toxic and radioactive waste from the environment. However, for synthetic biology to reach its promise, the design and construction of biological systems must be as predictable as the assembly of computer hardware.

An important step towards attaining a higher degree of predictability in synthetic biology has been taken by a group of researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) under the leadership of computational biologist Adam Arkin. Arkin and his team have developed an "adaptor" that makes the genetic engineering of microbial components substantially easier and more predictable by converting regulators of translation into regulators of transcription in Escherichia coli. Transcription and translation make up the two-step process by which the coded instructions of genes are used to synthesize proteins.

"Application of our adaptor should produce large collections of transcriptional regulators whose inherent composability can facilitate the predictable engineering of complex biological circuits in microorganisms," Arkin says. "This in turn should allow for safer and more efficient constructions of increasingly complex functions in microorganisms."

Arkin is the director of Berkeley Lab's Physical Biosciences Division and the corresponding author of a paper describing this work in Nature Methods. The paper is titled "An adaptor from translational to transcriptional control enables predictable assembly of complex regulation. Co-authoring this paper were Chang Liu, Lei Qi, Julius Lucks, Thomas Segall-Shapiro, Denise Wang and Vivek Mutalik.

Synthetic biology combines modern principles of science and engineering to develop novel biological functions and systems that can tackle problems natural systems cannot. The focus is on bacteria and other microbes that can metabolize a wide variety of valuable chemicals and molecules, and play a critical role in the global cycles of carbon and other important elements. One of the keys to success in synthetic biology is the design and construction of customized genetic switches in microbes that can control the expression of both coding and non-coding RNA, act on operons (small groups of genes with related functions that are co-transcribed in a single strand of messenger RNA), and be tethered to higher-order regulatory functions (a property called composability).

"Much of the regulatory potential of a bacterium is contained in the five-prime untranslated regions (UTRs), which control the expression of physically adjacent downstream genes and have become attractive platforms for a parts-based approach to synthetic biology," Arkin says. "This approach, in which integrated engineered regulatory parts respond to custom inputs by changing the expression of desired genes, must satisfy two criteria if it is to have long-term success. First, the regulatory parts must be easily engineered in a way that yields large homogenous sets of variants that respond to different custom inputs, and second, the parts must be composable such that they can be easily and predictably assembled into useful higher-order functions."

In the five prime UTRs of bacteria, two primary types of regulators can serve as starting points for designing new parts -- those that regulate transcriptional elongation, in which cellular inputs are linked to the process by which a sequence of DNA nucleotides is transcribed into a complementary sequence of RNA; and those that regulate translation, in which a ribosome translates the RNA message into a protein. Transcriptional elongation regulators meet the second criterion by featuring versatility and composability that makes them ideal for building custom regulatory functions. Translational regulators meet the first criterion by being easier to engineer and relatively common to all bacteria.

"Our solution for meeting both criteria was to develop an adaptor based on tryptophanase, the catabolic operon for tryptophan that converts regulators of translational initiation into regulators of transcriptional elongation," Arkin says. "Because our adaptor strategy bypasses the otherwise restrictive tradeoff between criterion one and criterion two, we believe it will have a crucial role in the long-term development of five prime UTRs as platforms for the design and integration of custom regulatory parts."

When an E.coli translational regulator was fused to the adaptor created by Arkin and his colleagues, it was also able to control transcriptional elongation. The team applied their adaptor to the construction of several transcriptional elongation regulators that respond to RNA and small-molecule inputs. Included were five mutually orthogonal RNA-triggered attenuators (meaning they can terminate transcription), which the team assembled into logic gates driven by two, three or four RNA inputs that linked to ribosome binding sites. Because their adaptor is so easily linked to ribosome binding sites, a common mechanism in bacteria, the team believes the adaptor will be widely applicable.

"Continued application of our adaptor should produce large collections of transcriptional regulators whose inherent composability can facilitate the predictable engineering of complex synthetic circuits," Arkin says.

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New tool for making genetic engineering of microbial circuits reliably predictable

Name Your Own Price – How It Actually Works

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Name Your Own Price - How It Actually Works "Of all the ideas from the heady days of internet futurism, none is as fraught as "price discrimination," the practice of charging different rates to different customers for the same product. Price discrimination is a mainstay of the travel industry, where airlines and hotels try all manner of tricks to try and figure out who's willing to pay more and charge them accordingly." The Guardian (UK) 10/09/12

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Freedom High School, Bangor Area High School boys close in on cross country championships

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The cross country regular season ends this week in the Lehigh Valley Conference and Colonial League with the Freedom and Bangor boys teams closing in on dual meet titles.

This afternoon at Lehigh Parkway in Allentown, the Patriots (8-0), ranked No. 2 in The Express-Times region, can wrap up the LVC championship by beating rival and seventh-ranked Liberty (6-2) as well as winless Allen and Dieruff. If first-year coach Bob Thear's squad sweeps all three, it would be Freedom's first conference cross country title of any kind since the Pates won the 1976 East Penn Conference crown.

Bangor (23-0), ranked No. 8 in the region, can earn its second straight Colonial League title by beating Pen Argyl, Northern Lehigh and Salisbury this afternoon in Slatington.

"Salisbury is pretty good; they have some good runners at the top of their lineup," Bangor coach Andy Hartzell said. "Are we where I thought we'd be at the beginning of the season? Yes and no. I thought on paper Wilson would be the toughest team to beat, but Northwestern came on and they've had a good season, too."

Bangor's top runner is senior Wade White, one of two dual sport athletes Hartzell has in his top six. The other is freshman Evan Iplitto, who's run only two meets because of conflicts with soccer.

"Dave White, Wade's dad, is the soccer coach and we've been able to work things out pretty well," Hartzell said. "Wade has designated soccer as his primary sport, but there's been some occasions when Wade has run a meet when there was a soccer game the same day. It comes down to what team needs him more to win that and Dave has been really good about this."

Shane Reider, a junior and Bangor's No. 2 runner, is characterized as "our rock" by Hartzell because of Reider's consistency. Sophomores Charlie Sell and Brandon Tocket and senior Andy Mitchell trade off the No. 3, 4 and 5 spots.

"The way I look at it, it's not a bad thing if your No. 3, 4 and 5 runners fluctuate," Hartzell said. "What I'm looking at is how big the gap is between our No. 1 and 5 runner. It's been alternating between 60 and 80 seconds and that isn't too bad. We'd like to get it around 45 seconds for leagues and districts, though."

White is a fascinating case. He's interested in several NCAA Division II schools but some are recruiting him for soccer and others for cross country. One of those is Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., which is showing interest in him as a runner.

Bangor will be the favorite to repeat at the league championship meet next Wednesday at DeSales University. The league is moving its championship meet to Wednesday after traditionally holding it on Thursdays.

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Freedom High School, Bangor Area High School boys close in on cross country championships

Grupo Salinas and Aspen Institute Present Freedom and Connectivity Report to Federal Government Elect in Mexico City

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MEXICO CITY, Oct. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Grupo Salinas, a group of dynamic, fast-growing and technologically advanced companies deeply committed to the modernization of the countries in which they operate, is pleased to announce the Mexico release of the report Freedom and Connectivity: Advancing the Freedom to Communicate in the Americas, a joint report prepared by The Aspen Institute and Caminos de la Libertad.

The report cites connectivity, competition, censorship and protection of journalists as key areas for action in order to bring all citizens into a society of knowledge. The conclusions are the result of a conference held earlier this year in Mexico City's Tecnologico de Monterrey university.

The Mexico presentation follows an event led last week by Grupo Salinas Founder and Chairman Ricardo B. Salinas at The Aspen Institute's headquarters in Washington DC.

The ground-breaking report details steps that nations can take to address critical deficits in connectivity and the freedom to communicate across the Western Hemisphere. Freedom and Connectivity: Advancing the Freedom to Communicate in the Americas calls on government leaders to move communications issues to the top of national agendas and partner with other societal stakeholders to develop the digital infrastructure, tools and human capacity that will improve local economies, create good quality employment and educational opportunities, and enhance political, social and cultural life. National efforts must focus on reaching consensus, increasing investments, ensuring robust competition in telecommunications and media markets, nurturing innovation, and building a stronger legal environment for protecting the freedom to communicate.

The discussion accompanying the Mexico release was moderated by Sergio Sarmiento, President of Caminos de la Libertad, together with Charlie Firestone, Executive Director of the Communications and Society Program of The Aspen Institute.

The report highlights the need for markets, regulatory and policy structures, and attitudes to "change to align with the new realities of a global digital age." Among the key barriers to connectivity detailed in the report were the lack of political consensus across leading societal institutions, insufficient investment and competition due to Mexico's highly concentrated telecommunications sector, and direct and indirect censorship and the safety of journalists.

The Aspen Institute Forum on the Freedom to Communicate was created by the Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program in association with Grupo Salinas to address issues surrounding the freedoms of expression, association, and connectivity and to develop actionable recommendations that can enhance these freedoms, particularly in the Western Hemisphere. The inaugural forum was held on February 22, 2012, at the Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico City.

About the Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program The Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program serves as a non-partisan venue for global leaders and experts to exchange insights on the societal impact of advances in digital technology and network communications. It also creates a multidisciplinary space in the communications policy-making world where veteran and emerging decision-makers can explore new concepts and develop new policy networks. Visit us on the web at http://www.aspeninstitute.org/c&s and follow on Twitter @aspencs and #Freedom2c

About Grupo Salinas Grupo Salinas (www.gruposalinas.com) is a group of dynamic, fast growing, and technologically advanced companies focused on creating shareholder value, building the Mexican middle class, and improving society through excellence. Created by Mexican entrepreneur Ricardo B. Salinas (www.ricardosalinas.com), Grupo Salinas operates as a management development and decision forum for the top leaders of member companies. These companies include: TV Azteca (www.tvazteca.com.mx; irtvazteca.com), Azteca America (www.aztecaamerica.com), Grupo Elektra (www.grupoelektra.com.mx), Banco Azteca (www.bancoazteca.com.mx), Afore Azteca (www.aforeazteca.com.mx), Seguros Azteca (www.segurosazteca.com.mx), Advance America (www.advanceamerica.net) and Grupo Iusacell (www.iusacell.com). Each of the Grupo Salinas companies operates independently, with its own management, board of directors and shareholders. Grupo Salinas has no equity holdings.

Follow Ricardo Salinas on Facebook: Ricardo B. Salinas Pliego and on Twitter: @RicardoBSalinas in addition to @GrupoSalinas_GS

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Grupo Salinas and Aspen Institute Present Freedom and Connectivity Report to Federal Government Elect in Mexico City

Broad Array of Lawmakers in Nine State Legislatures Announce Nation's First State Religious Freedom Caucuses

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WASHINGTON, Oct. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --On behalf of a bipartisan group of over 120 state lawmakers serving in statehouses across the country, prominent legislative leaders from nine states today announced the formation of the nation's first state religious freedom caucuses. The national teleconference announcement was organized and hosted by the Ethics and Public Policy Center's American Religious Freedom Program (ARFP). The announcement is the first installment in a national plan to have religious freedom caucuses in all 50 state legislatures by the end of 2013.

The new caucuses are composed of lawmakers in prominent leadership positions in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. The caucuses will help legislators set state-specific agendas for strengthening religious liberties, learn from the experiences of sister states, and formulate religious freedom policy based on input from each state's diverse faith communities.

"Faith communities across the nation have begun working together to secure and strengthen our cherished religious liberties on behalf of all Americans of all faiths," said Brian W. Walsh, ARFP's executive director. "Today the movement to defend religious freedom is being joined by a bipartisan group of highly effective legislators in nine state capitals who will provide unifying leadership on these issues."

Rep. Lance Kinzer, a founding member of Kansas's religious freedom caucus, spoke about today's announcement. "Kansans and all Americans recognize the indispensable role that our remarkable religious freedoms have played in making America a beacon of hope to oppressed peoples across the globe," said Rep. Kinzer. "Legislative caucuses focused on religious freedom will help ensure that each statehouse is a bulwark against overreaching government officials and policies that would corrupt or curtail those freedoms."

Rep. John J. DeBerry, Jr., is one of the founders of Tennessee's religious freedom caucus. According to Rep. DeBerry, "Religious diversity in America is increasing greatly, and the only way we will hold together as one people is by continuing to ensure robust religious freedoms and rights of conscience for all Americans." DeBerry added that "some government leaders seem to have forgotten that freedom of religion includes keeping government out of matters that properly belong to America's faith communities."

Leaders of each state caucus will guide that state's agenda for enacting specific protections for religious freedom. The American Religious Freedom Program will work with a broad range of legislators, religious leaders, and other coalition members to help form additional caucuses and produce state-specific educational materials on religious freedom.

To schedule an interview with the Ethics and Public Policy Center or caucus organizers from Ariz., Colo., Fla., Idaho, Kan., Mo., N.H., Okla., and Tenn., please contact Sarah Mueller at smueller@ls2group.com or 515-954-5300.

EPPC's American Religious Freedom Program is devoted to protecting and strengthening Americans' God-given and constitutional religious freedoms. The program brings together individuals and organizations of all religious faiths, regardless of ideological or political affiliation. ARFP is fighting the trend to delegitimize religious expression in public life, defending Americans' ability to live out their religious beliefs beyond the walls of their houses of worship. For more information, visit religiousfreedom.org and religiousfreedomnews.org or twitter.com/religfreedom.

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Broad Array of Lawmakers in Nine State Legislatures Announce Nation's First State Religious Freedom Caucuses

Internet freedom under threat

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"We need to prevent a fundamental shift in how the internet is governed" ... Vint Cerf. Photo: Luis Ascui

It is the "most important meeting you've never heard of" a behind-closed-doors battle for control of the internet that one of the web's founders fears may "put government handcuffs on the net".

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), a United Nations organisation representing 193 countries, is reviewing international agreements governing telecommunications with a view to expanding its regulatory authority over the internet.

What's really afoot, however, is an effort by some nations to rebalance the internet in their favour by reinstituting telecom regulatory concepts from the last century.

The ITU will hold a summit in Dubai in December where member countries will negotiate a treaty (last updated 24 years ago in Melbourne) that sets out regulations on how international voice, data and video traffic is handled.

Under attack ... internet freedom. Photo: Louise Kennerley

The ITU, founded in 1865 at the dawn of the telegraph, presently focuses on telecommunications networks and radio frequency allocations but some members such as Russia, China and Iran will use the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) to try to expand the treaty to include internet regulation.

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Secret WCIT proposals from several stakeholders have been leaked on the website WCITLeaks.org, giving rise to fears from civil liberties groups and the technology industry that the days of a free, open internet are coming to an end.

Chris Disspain, chief executive of Australian domain name administrator auDA, said moving from the current multi-stakeholder model to a government-centric UN-run model would "stifle innovation", be non-inclusive and result in new binding regulations on member governments.

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Internet freedom under threat

CSR Accelerates Low-Power, Mixed-Signal Chip Tapeout With Cadence Encounter Digital Implementation System

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SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwire - Oct 9, 2012) - Cadence Design Systems, Inc. ( NASDAQ : CDNS ), a leader in global electronic design innovation, announced that CSR plc ( LSE : CSR ) ( NASDAQ : CSRE ), a global provider of innovative silicon and software solutions for the location-aware, media-rich, cloud-connected world, sped tapeout of a complex low-power, mixed-signal chip by using the Cadence Encounter Digital Implementation (EDI) System, Cadence Incisive Enterprise Simulator (IES), and Cadence Conformal Low Power (CLP). The Cadence digital flow enabled CSR to tape out a 40-nanometer low-power Bluetooth and Wi-Fi combo chip speedily and efficiently, delivering excellent results in power, area and time-to-market.

The multi-radio chip included several analogue blocks, multi-million gate instances, multiple voltage islands and complex switchable power domains. The Cadence hierarchical Common Power Format (CPF) based comprehensive power intent methodology allowed CSR to precisely capture and manage power intent throughout the flow. The EDI System helped reduce power domain crossings and made designing with multiple supply voltages much easier. The net result was significant power savings while optimizing area and performance automatically. For verification, CSR performed power-aware simulation with IES, and formal checking using CLP, to confirm the correct implementation of its power architecture against the golden CPF.

In addition, the EDI System's timing and signal integrity engineering change order (ECO) flow helped to significantly accelerate the sign-off correlation fixing cycles leading to faster timing convergence and signal integrity signoff. The resulting productivity improvements helped shave off several weeks from CSR's design schedule.

"In another recent multi-radio chip tapeout, the Cadence EDI System and low-power design methodology enabled us to effectively implement and optimize a consistent set of design and multi-supply-voltage power domain constraints across a complex digital-driven mixed-signal hierarchy," said Steven D. Gray, Ph.D., CTO of CSR. "We gained significant power savings and achieved faster timing and signal-integrity signoff. As a result of this tapeout success, we have confidence in using the Cadence EDI System and CPF-driven low-power flow across all of our mobile connectivity and automotive designs."

The Cadence Encounter RTL-to-GDSII flow helps design teams optimize power, performance and area for the world's most sophisticated high-performance, low-power designs at advanced nodes. The integrated Cadence flow includes Encounter RTL Compiler, EDI System, and signoff-proven Cadence QRC Extraction, and Encounter Timing System. The new GigaOpt optimization engine inside EDI System produces high-quality results faster than traditional optimization engines by harnessing the power of multiple CPUs. In addition, the integrated CCOpt technology unifies clock tree synthesis with logic/physical optimization resulting in significant power, performance and area improvements.

"The demand for low-power mixed-signal designs for consumer electronics is skyrocketing. The CSR design team chose Cadence for our mature and comprehensive low-power solutions that meet the most pressing challenges of complex SoC design," said Chi-Ping Hsu, senior vice president, research and development, Silicon Realization Group at Cadence. "The Encounter digital flow provided a predictable design closure path, meeting and exceeding CSR's stringent design and time to market requirements. We worked closely with CSR to help them achieve tapeout success for this innovative low-power and mixed-signal SoC."

About Cadence Cadence enables global electronic design innovation and plays an essential role in the creation of today's integrated circuits and electronics. Customers use Cadence software, hardware, IP, and services to design and verify advanced semiconductors, consumer electronics, networking and telecommunications equipment, and computer systems. The company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with sales offices, design centers, and research facilities around the world to serve the global electronics industry. More information about the company, its products, and services is available at http://www.cadence.com.

About CSR

CSR is a global provider of innovative silicon and software solutions for the location-aware, media-rich, cloud-connected world. Our platforms are optimized for the automotive navigation and infotainment, digital cameras and imaging, connected home infotainment and wireless audio markets. We provide solutions to complex problems in the audio-visual, connectivity and location technology domains across a broad range of markets, with a technology portfolio that includes GPS/GNSS systems, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, FM, NFC, aptX and CVC audio codecs, JPEG, MPEG, H.264 imaging, PDL printing, microcontrollers, DSPs and broadband receivers. CSR's technology solutions and market platforms enable its customers to deliver a superior user experience and are adopted by leaders in the auto, computer, home and mobile markets. More information can be found at http://www.csr.com. Keep up to date with CSR on our technical blog or CSR people blog, YouTube, Facebook or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/CSR_plc.

Cadence, Encounter, Conformal, Incisive and the Cadence logo are registered trademarks of Cadence Design Systems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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CSR Accelerates Low-Power, Mixed-Signal Chip Tapeout With Cadence Encounter Digital Implementation System

PacWest Equities, Inc. Acquires World Eco Source Corp.

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LAS VEGAS, NV--(Marketwire - Oct 9, 2012) - PacWest Equities, Inc. ( PINKSHEETS : PWEI ) today announced that it has acquired World Eco Source Corp. of Belize City, Belize. The stock symbol of PWEI will not be changed. World Eco Source Corp. is a technology-based company which has developed the MobileFeed and MobileFood systems helping offset deficient, worldwide food production for both animals and humans.

The World Eco Source MobileFeed and MobileFood units provide turnkey systems for either the production of livestock-based consumables or human-based protein and vegetable consumables. The MobileFeed units are truly a global sustainable, green life cycle farming system. Using both solar power and water conserving growing systems, one trailer can produce 1,500 pounds daily of organically grown grass for year round livestock consumption, thus lowering feed costs by 80% while producing Certified Organic, Grass Fed livestock and increasing profitability of the final product.

The MobileFood units enable the rapid production of certified, organic vegetables and proteins for humans through life cycle harmonic integration of fish farms and hydroponic vegetables, with one half of the system feeding/fertilizing the other half, and vice-verse. Raising Tilapia side-by-side with vegetables and using the same water from the fish to fertilize the greens is not something new, but by combining the hydroponic know-how with World Eco Source patented technologies, the outputs have finally become commercially feasible.

About PacWest Equities, Inc.

PacWest Equities, Inc. specializes in working with under performing companies and bringing together the resources needed for them to attain financial stability and growth. Our focus is on companies showing a positive upside while struggling to bring new bio-technologies and unique products to market.

Safe Harbor This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.The words or phrases "would be," "would allow," "intends to," "will likely result," "are expected to," "will continue," "anticipate," "expect," "estimate," "project," "indicate," "could," "potentially," "should," "believe," "considers," or similar expressions are intended to identify "forward-looking statements." Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of risks and uncertainties. These include the Company's historic lack of profitability, end user customer acceptance and actual demand, which may differ significantly from expectations, the need for the Company to manage its growth, the need to raise funds for operations and other risks within the regulation of the industry. Statements made herein are as of the date of this press release and should not be relied upon as of any subsequent date. The Company's past performance is not necessarily indicative of its future performance. The Company does not, undertake, and the Company specifically disclaims any obligation, to update any forward-looking statements to reflect occurrences, developments, events or circumstances after the date of such statement.

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PacWest Equities, Inc. Acquires World Eco Source Corp.

Red tide fish kill hits South County beaches

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Red tide has been detected at Stump Pass in Englewood. The algae bloom has caused a fish kill on the beach noticeable last week.

More than seven tons of dead fish have been scooped from Sarasota County beaches in just two days, as a persistent bloom of toxic red tide algae plagues the coastline.

The bloom is mostly lingering offshore of Charlotte Harbor, but patches of the algae also have been found as far south as Lee County and as far north as Manatee. Although dead fish have washed ashore as far north as Casey Key, the epicenter of the carnage is Manasota Key, which is shared by Charlotte and Sarasota counties.

The bloom began affecting the region last week and is the first since 2007 to have wide-ranging and lingering impacts. Red tide wreaked havoc in Southwest Florida around this time last year, but reports of dead fish were spotty.

The good news is that winds should begin to blow the bloom and the dead fish offshore in the coming days, said Jason Lenes, research associate at the University of South Florida.

EARLIER: A lingering red tide bloom is continuing to deposit dead fish on the county's southern beaches, making beach days from Nokomis south less than pleasant.

Dead fish were reported on Nokomis Beach, Venice North Jetty Beach and Venice Beach. Several dead fish were reported on Manasota Key beaches. County staff are cleaning up the fish.

The only beach where red tide was strong enough to cause reports of moderate respiratory irritation was the Venice North Jetty Beach.

Sarasota County health officials advised pet owners that red tide can also affect dogs brought to the beach.

Mote Marine Laboratory's beach conditions report is updated at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily. Reports can be viewed online at http://www.mote.org/beaches. Residents and visitors can also register to receive email reports about specific beaches. For telephone updates, call 941-BEACHES and press 1 for Sarasota County beaches.

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Red tide fish kill hits South County beaches

UK Contributes 24 Robotic Arms in Giant Leap in Near-Infrared Astronomy

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A new high-tech instrument with 24 robotic arms has crossed the Atlantic from Edinburgh to a mountain top in Chile to address in more detail than ever before, some of the key questions surrounding the beginnings of the universe, stars and galaxies. KMOS (K-Band Multi Object Spectrometer) has been provisionally accepted by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) after it completed final assembly and testing at the UK Astronomy Technology Center (UK ATC) in Edinburgh. It will now be fitted to one of the four telescopes which make up the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (ESO-VLT) at Paranal in Chile, providing astronomers with a far quicker solution to uncover details about galaxies and their properties.

What makes KMOS unique is its ability to image many galaxies simultaneously either in a cluster or in isolation but in both cases, still see the individual properties of each single galaxy. Until now, each galaxy has had to be identified individually to obtain that information, a process that takes years. KMOS will be able to see the same amount of detail in just two months.

Each of the 24 cryogenic robotic arms, which have gold plated mirrors on their tips, can be moved into position to pinpoint with extreme accuracy the light coming from distant galaxies.

Dr. Michele Cirasuolo is the lead instrument scientist for KMOS at UK ATC. He said: "KMOS represents a pivotal step in our quest to scrutinize the distant universe. The ability to observe in the near-infrared 24 galaxies simultaneously is an enormous leap forward compared to any other current instrument. KMOS will allow a much faster survey speed...most of the observations done by similar near-infrared spectrographs over the last 10 years could be done in just two months with KMOS."

This novel capability means astronomers will be able to make a detailed study of the mass assembly and star formation in distant, high red-shift galaxies addressing fundamental questions about when these first formed and how they evolve. This ability to observe multiple galaxies at once enables scientists to build up large statistical samples of galaxies at different cosmic epochs necessary to unveil the physical mechanisms that shape their formation and evolution.

KMOS creates this detailed picture using integral field spectroscopy and obtains spectra over a two-dimensional area, covering the entire galaxy. The light from each segment of galaxy (its core, the bulge, the spiral arms and the outer parts) is analyzed simultaneously and each can be given physical and chemical properties. Not only therefore, can a complete galaxy be measured, but each individual part too, allowing a comprehensive picture to be built.

"For each of the galaxies, KMOS will give an incredible amount of information. It's not just a picture of a galaxy, but 3D spectroscopy providing the spatially resolved physics and the chemistry and the dynamics. This is crucial to understand how galaxies assemble their mass and shape their structure as a function of cosmic time, up to the formation of the very first galaxies, more than 13 billion years ago" explains Michele Cirasuolo.

The specialized mechanisms inside KMOS have been designed to work in cryogenic conditions below minus two hundred degrees centigrade, which has been a major challenge, but which is necessary to observe distant galaxies at near-infrared wavelengths. This is because, unless cooled, the thermal emission from the instrument itself will swamp the faint signal from the astronomical sources.

Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts said: "It's excellent to see the UK playing a leading role in the development of such a sophisticated piece of technology and overcoming some very complex engineering challenges on the way. This instrument will now take its place on a world leading telescope to help improve our knowledge and understanding of the universe around us."

The instrument is a collaboration of six institutions in Germany and the UK, including STFC's UK Astronomy Technology Center (UK ATC), Durham University, Oxford University and RAL Space at STFC's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. The team of internationally respected scientists and engineers at UK ATC played a major role in the KMOS project, being responsible, amongst others, for the construction of the cryostat, the 24 robotic pick-off arms, the cable co-rotator and the final assembly and test of the complete instrument. RAL Space applied their cryogenic lens mounting technology in the three camera barrels they provided for spectrographs in KMOS. Durham University has the PI of the entire project and produced the complex system of more than 1000 mirrors in the integral field unit. Oxford University provided the design and assembly of the three spectrographs in KMOS.

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UK Contributes 24 Robotic Arms in Giant Leap in Near-Infrared Astronomy

The Sky Is Calling | Bad Astronomy

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So I sit down to go through my email, and its the usual slew of press releases, spam, space enthusiast questions, and marriage proposals. No, wait, I dont get those last ones. Still, its a lot of email.

But one cataches my eye. The subject line is "Space Pop". Just that. Huh. So I click it, and right away I know I was about to be happy.

The opening line is, "Im a fan. Of you. Of space. Of inspiring curiosity about science. "

I love hearing that. The email is from Kim Boekbinder, an independent pop music artist, and she wants to make a space album. Or more accurately an album of music based on and inspired by space and astronomy, and in the email shes asking me to be an advisor on it (along with Matt Everingham). She also links to her first song from the album: "The Sky Is Calling". I listen to it, and Im hooked.

Heres the song:

I know, right? Kims awesome. By the way, she fed an image of the Tarantula nebula through an audio program to create the background for that song. So, yeah.

Kims raising funds to get this album [wait for it, wait for it] off the ground [hahahahahaha! I kill me], so shes got a Kickstarter page for it. As I write this shes already more than 1/3 of the way to her goal of $30k, which is great! Id really like to see this album get made. She and I have been chatting back and forth, and every time I send her some astronomy note, she gets really excited and wants to write music about it.

So if you can, kick in some filthy lucre for her. Ill note that when she got to $5k she wrote a short and quick song based on a post I wrote about the expansion of the Universe. Seriously. And when she got to $10k she wrote a short song about Mars Rovers.

If you want a taste of more of her music, she has some you can listen to on her website. Note: One of them is massively NSFW. Youll know when you get to it.

The past couple of years has seen a lot of artists looking to include more science in their work (see Related Posts below). Maybe thats always been there, but what I know is that recently they started contacting me. I think thats fantastic. After all, isnt a Hubble picture art? Doesnt seeing a photo from Curiosity make your heart beat a little faster? Doesnt something like this pluck at the wires connecting the two halves of your brain?

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The Sky Is Calling | Bad Astronomy