WISH-TV | Former employees claim Muncie Community Schools violated First Amendment rights WISH-TV MUNCIE, Ind. (WISH) Former employees of the Muncie Community Schools claim the district violated their first amendment rights. They have filed a lawsuit against the district, school board and superintendent. A former teacher and administrator claim ... |
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Former employees claim Muncie Community Schools violated First Amendment rights - WISH-TV
Free speech and its limitations are on Americans minds. In the past year weve seen Nazis and white supremacists rally in our cities, angry protesters chase provocateurs off of college campuses, a comedian wield a bloody effigy of the presidents severed head, and slurs and overt racial animus made a staple of political discourse. Controversial speech has people talking about what restrictions, if any, society can enforce on words we despise.
That inquiry isnt inherently bad. Its good for citizens to want to learn more about the contours of our constitutional rights. The dilemma is that the public debate about free speech relies on useless cliches, not on accurate information about the law.
Here are some of the most popular misleading slogans:
This slogan is true, but rarely helpful. The Supreme Court has called the few exceptions to the 1st Amendment well-defined and narrowly limited. They include obscenity, defamation, fraud, incitement, true threats and speech integral to already criminal conduct. First Amendment exceptions are not an open-ended category, and the Supreme Court has repeatedly declined to add to them, especially in the last generation. Merely observing that some exceptions exist does not help anyone determine whether particular speech falls into one of those exceptions. Its a non sequitur.
Imagine youre bitten by a snake on a hike, and you want to know rather urgently whether the snake is venomous. You describe the snake to your doctor. Well, not all snakes are venomous, your doctor responds. Not very helpful, it is?
Almost 100 years ago, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendel Holmes, Jr. coined a version of this now-familiar metaphor. Holmes used it to explain why the Supreme Court was upholding the criminal conviction of Charles Shenck, who was jailed merely for distributing materials urging peaceful resistance to the draft in World War I. Fortunately, the Supreme Court often led by Holmes himself retreated from this terrible precedent, eventually ruling that speech cant be punished as incitement unless it is intended and likely to provoke imminent lawless action. In other words, this favorite rhetorical apologia for censorship was used in the course of a decision now universally recognized as bad law.
Holmes usually misquoted slogan (he said that the law allows us to punish someone for falsely shouting fire in a crowded theater) is really just another way to observe that not all speech is protected and there are limits to 1st Amendment protections. As I said before thats not in dispute, but invoking the truism does nothing to resolve whether any particular speech falls within the well-defined and narrow exceptions to the 1st Amendment.
This popular saying reflects our contempt for bigotry, but its not a correct statement of law. There is no general 1st Amendment exception allowing the government to punish hate speech that denigrates people based on their identity. Things we call hate speech might occasionally fall into an existing 1st Amendment exception: a racist speech might seek to incite imminent violence against a group, or might be reasonably interpreted as an immediate threat to do harm. But hate speech, like other ugly types of speech we despise, is broadly protected.
Censorship advocates often tell us we need to balance the freedom of speak with the harm that speech does. This is arguable philosophically, but it is wrong legally. American courts dont decide whether to protect speech by balancing its harm against its benefit; they ask only if it falls into a specific 1st Amendment exception. As the Supreme Court recently put it, [t]he First Amendments guarantee of free speech does not extend only to categories of speech that survive an ad hoc balancing of relative social costs and benefits. The First Amendment itself reflects a judgment by the American people that the benefits of its restrictions on the Government outweigh the costs.
Years ago the Supreme Court recognized a very narrow 1st Amendment exception for fighting words. If the exception still survives, its limited to in-person face-to-face insults directed at a particular person and likely to provoke a violent response from that person. It doesnt apply broadly to offensive speech, even though its often invoked to justify censoring such speech.
The Supreme Courts approach to constitutional rights can change very quickly. For instance, it took less than a generation for the court to reverse course on whether the government could punish gay sex. But for decades the court has been moving towards more vigorous protection of free speech, not less. Some of the most controversial and unpopular speech to come before the court like videos of animals being tortured, or incendiary Westboro Baptist Church protests at funerals have yielded solid 8-to-1 majorities in favor of protecting speech. Theres no sign of a growing appetite for censorship on the court.
Even as a free speech advocate and critic of censorship, Im happy to see a public debate about the limits of free speech. Any debate that raises consciousness about our rights can be productive. But the free speech debate should proceed based on facts and well-established law, not empty rhetoric. Familiarity with our rights and how they work is a civic obligation.
Ken White is a 1st Amendment litigator and criminal defense attorney at Brown White & Osborn LLP in Los Angeles.
Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
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Actually, hate speech is protected speech - LA Times - Los Angeles Times
The college philosophy class you barely remember aside, what the sandbox does is hides your files, your real IP address and your MAC address from the browser. Therefore, "the amount of information Tor Browser will learn about your computer, and thereby you, will be limited," Angel said.
At the time of that interview last October, the sandbox was still unstable and very much in testing, but the recent update has brought the digital safe-zone online for Linux and macOS, and by default. Next up? Sandbox protection for Windows users.
The update also imposes a few new requirements for users on Windows and macOS: Tor apparently won't work on non-SSE2-capable Windows hardware and you need to be running OSX 10.9 or higher on Apple machines.
Considering that last year a federal judge said that the FBI no longer needs warrants to hack a computer connected to the internet, this is an important update. "Even an internet user who employs the Tor network in an attempt to mask his or her IP address lacks a reasonable expectation of privacy in his or her IP address," judge Henry Coke Morgan, Jr commented at the time. For the full rundown of what's changed with the browser, hit the source links below.
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Tor Browser 7.0 works harder to protect your anonymity on its own - Engadget
Ethereum's Big Switch: The New Roadmap to Proof-of-Stake
May 5, 2017 at 13:00 | Alyssa Hertig
Ethereum's developers are offering more clarity on how the network is preparing for its biggest change yet.
May 5, 2017 at 10:00 | Corin Faife
A new project is seeking to combine ethereum's smart contract capabilities with the privacy afforded to the zcash blockchain.
May 2, 2017 at 22:55 | Charles Bovaird
Five things you should know about ether, a cryptocurrency that surged in value during the first quarter of 2017.
Apr 28, 2017 at 13:35 | Michael del Castillo
Differences between EEA members at a public debate reveal how the group is growing and progressing.
Apr 27, 2017 at 14:20 | Stan Higgins
The price of ether, ethereum's native token, has hit a new all-time high, exceeding $60 for the first time ever.
Apr 26, 2017 at 21:20 | Stan Higgins
A former software engineer for digital currency startup Coinbase has launched a new search engine for ethereum.
Apr 25, 2017 at 15:07 | Charles Bovaird
Ether classic's price reached an all-time high this week, amid robust transaction volume. We ask the experts why...
Apr 25, 2017 at 00:55 | Alyssa Hertig
Ethereum prediction market project Gnosis sparked broad debate today following an initial coin offering that didn't exactly go as planned.
Apr 24, 2017 at 14:00 | Michael del Castillo
The UN is preparing to kick off an epic ethereum pilot, but the future could also include actually accepting cryptocurrencies.
Apr 23, 2017 at 11:26 | Alyssa Hertig
A look at what's still to do for ethereum developers working on the Metropolis upgrade the platform's third of four planned stages.
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Dr. Chan currently offers the online course Mean Reversion Strategies to a select number of traders and portfolio managers. This is an online workshop conducted in real-time through Adobe Connect. This workshop focuses on the theories and practical implementation of mean reversion strategies. (Free MATLAB trial licenses and pre-recorded MATLAB programming tutorials are included.) The math requirement assumed is basic college-level statistics.
Course outline can be downloaded here.
___________
We are offering the pre-recorded online course Cryptocurrency Trading with Python. This course was conducted by Nick Kirk, an expert in algorithmic crypto trading and a quantitative developer, and was moderated by Dr. Ernest Chan.Participants will receive Python source code and data for backtesting. Gemini Exchanges Sandbox environment will be used, which offers full exchange functionality using test funds, for testing API connectivity and the execution of strategies.
Course outline can be downloaded here.
About Nick Kirk
Nick is an active algorithmic crypto trader and quantitative developer. He has more than 10 years worth of experience in developing, automating and integrating trading systems for Investment Banks and Asset Management firms. Prior to working in Finance, he worked at IBM Labs and Siemens Research. He has previously taught algorithmic crypto trading at the CQF Institute to wide acclaim.
Praise for this workshop
Excellent class. Particularly liked the technical aspects of building a trading system in python.
-Anonymous participant review
Nick is a very passionate advocate of cryptocurrencies. I was very pleased to have attended one of his cryptocurrency trading workshops in the past. His blunt enthusiasm along with his in-depth knowledge on the field result in a very positive and value added experience on cryptocurrency trading with actual hands-on implementation. In combination with Ernie Chan, the guru of algo trading, the mix is going to be explosive! Cant wait!
Konstantinos Moutsioulis Portfolio Analyst, Dutch Development Bank, The Hague Area
I have been very impressed with Ernies past workshops and have enjoyed discussing cryptocurrency trading ideas with Nick on many occasions. I look forward to their unique partnership in the upcoming Bitcoin workshop.
Stephen Hope Former Head of Fixed Income Quantitative Trading Strategies, BNP Paribas ___________
The pre-recorded online course Backtestingis nowavailable. This consists of recorded Adobe Connect sessions. Thefocus is on discovering and avoiding various pitfalls during the backtesting process that may degrade performance forecasting. Illustrative exercises are drawn from a futures strategy and a stock portfolio trading strategy using MATLAB.Free MATLAB trial licenses will be arranged for extensive in-class exercises. No prior knowledge of MATLAB is needed, but some experience with programming is necessary. The math requirement is basic college-level statistics.
Course outline can be downloadedhere.
___________
Ernie also offers in-person workshops in London, September 11-15, 2017.These workshops may qualify for CFA Institute continuing education credits.
___________
Praise for ourworkshops:
An excellent course by a great teacher. Ernie clearly explained and applied the different areas of Artificial Intelligence, provided invaluable insights as to their relative merits, and gave me the confidence to implement them in my own trading. Dr Nikhil Shenai (Ph.D., Imperial College, BA, Cambridge University), Founder of E K Technologies (Quantitative Trading & Development)
thank you again for the Momentum Strategies training course this week. It was very beneficial. I found your explanations of the concepts very clear and the examples well developed. I like the rigorous approach that you take to strategy evaluation. Andrew B.
Ernies workshop offers particularly helpful insights in implementing profitable trading strategies and thats beyond hisbooks content. And he is one of the most patient and giving instructors I ever metK.W. Fung, CQF, Founder of Quants Investment
These workshops have provided me with enough familiarity and confidence to tackle the latest research. Justthe segment on intermarket sweep orders in the MFT course was worth the price of admission to all three workshops I went to. Cedric Yau
Dr. Chan is a phenomenal instructorAnonymous student evaluation
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Cryptocurrency mining malware has come a very long way over the past few years. Whereas Bitcoin used to be the center of attention in the beginning, this type of mining malware has expanded to include Dogecoin, Monero, Ethereum, and ZCash as well. However, the latest iteration of mining malware uses Raspberry Pi devices to mine coins. Not the most efficient approach, but it is still an interesting development.
A lot of people have shown great interest in the Raspberry Pi devices. These pocket-sized computers are quite powerful and very affordable. Although they will not replace traditional desktops or laptops anytime soon, they make for appealing home theater devices, among other things. Every Raspberry Pi usually runs some form of the Linux operating system, although there is a slimmed down Windows 10 IoT version in the works as well.
Up until now, the Linux operating system has been relatively safe when it comes to malware. Criminals often only develop nefarious tools to harm Windows computers, with a few exceptions going after Apple users as well. This new variant of cryptocurrency mining malware is a Linux Trojan, which goes by the lackluster name of Linux.MuLDrop.14. It is also purposefully designed to attack Raspberry Pi devices and use the machines resources to mine cryptocurrencies.
As most people are well aware of, the Raspberry Pi is not the most powerful device by any means. It doesnt have a powerful CPU or integrated graphics chip by any means. In fact, the device is entirely unsuited to mine cryptocurrency whatsoever. However, if you control a few thousand of these devices without having to pay for their electricity, things can start to look a lot better from now on.
It appears this new cryptocurrency mining malware has been around since May of 2017. It appears the Raspberry Pi devices are infected through the SSH protocol, assuming the device owner leaves this port open to external connections. That is the case more often than not, though, as a lot of people connect to their Pi over SSH. If the mining malware is installed successfully, it also changes the password of the standard account to a long string of characters.
It is quite interesting to see developers go out of their way to only target these smaller devices, though. Cryptocurrency mining on a cluster of Raspberry Pis will still not generate much income by any means. It is unclear which cryptocurrencies are mined exactly using this malware, though. It would take millions of enslaved devices to make even a dollar per day, which makes this entire effort not exactly worthwhile by any means.
The bigger problem is how this could signal an era of Linux-oriented malware. Considering many people feel Linux is the safest operating system, it is certainly possible criminals will try to prove them wrong. In the case of this mining malware, however, it appears victims can get rid of the malware by flashing the operating system again. There is no ransom demand to regain control over the device whatsoever. Still, it is quite a troublesome development, to say the least.
If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.
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New Cryptocurrency Mining Malware Targets Raspberry Pi Devices - The Merkle
Forbes | Bitcoin Will Make Many More Millionaires Before Diving Forbes Bitcoin has been flying high lately, making many investors overnight millionairesinvestors who poured money into the digital currency when it was trading at a tiny fraction of its current price. And it will make more millionaires, as it could reach ... You can't hold a bitcoin, but the web currency's value has skyrocketed. Why? 3 Reasons Volatility Is Still a Serious Concern for Bitcoin Investor |
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Bitcoin Will Make Many More Millionaires Before Diving - Forbes
Scientists working on the European Space Agencys Rosetta probe mission have found xenon on Comet 67P a discovery that introduces a link between the cosmic rock and Earth for the first time.
The Rosetta spacecraft was launched in 2004, and its companion lander unit, Philae, arrived at the comet a decade later. Both were tasked with finding signs of how comets could uncover the origins of the solar system and life on Earth.
The latest findings have found a connection that might answer the question of how material may have been delivered to our planet, when Earth was beginning to take shape about 4.6 billion years ago.
Its all to do with xenon; a colourless, odourless noble gas that makes up less than a billionth of the volume of Earths atmosphere.
Seven different isotopes of xenon and traces of krypton were identified by the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis. The spacecraft had to fly very close - about 5 km to 9 km from the surface of the comets nucleus - to pick up the xenon signatures, which are spread thinly.
The unique blend of the gas might match the concentrations found in the Earths early atmosphere, according to the results published in Science.
"Xenon is the heaviest stable noble gas and perhaps the most important because of its many isotopes that originate in different stellar processes: Each one provides an additional piece of information about our cosmic origins," said Bernard Marty, lead author of the study and a researcher at the Universit de Lorraine, France.
It can be formed in different ways such as the swelling of low- and intermediate-mass stars and supernova explosions, which lead to nuclear fusion reactions. Each method leads to a different isotope of xenon, allowing researchers to work out where the samples come from.
One of the hypotheses is that the xenon in the solar system comes from the protosolar cloud, a ball of gas and dust out of which the Sun and the planets were formed. The xenon on Earth, however, is thought to have been delivered at a later stage by comets.
The relative abundances of the various isotopes vary in the atmospheres of Earth and Mars, in meteorites, and the solar wind. It is believed that Earth once contained a higher abundance of lighter xenon isotopes, a primordial mixture known as U-xenon. But present concentrations have heavier isotopes, as the lighter ones have escaped Earths gravitational pull and floated off into space.
Bernard has called the discovery a potential candidate for U-xenon, which would indicate that the noble gas was indeed delivered by impacting asteroids and comets like Comet 67P.
It is estimated that comets may have brought up to 22 per cent of the xenon once present in Earths atmosphere.
The results also support the idea that comets could also have been carriers of pre-biotic molecules such as phosphorus and glycine, an amino acid, necessary components for life on Earth.
Originally posted here:
Science megablast: Comets may have brought xenon to Earth - The Register
SANDY CREEK Jasmyn Williams and Carley Stoker watched the Sandy Creek softball team play for a state championship four years ago but on Saturday, that veteran battery and the rest of the Comets are aiming to etch their own names in the annuls of the programs storied history.
Section 3 champion Sandy Creek (18-2 overall) will play Section 5s Bishop-Kearney (22-2) at 9 a.m. Saturday in the NYSPHSAA Class C semifinals at Moreau Park in South Glens Falls in pursuit of the programs third state crown.
If the Comets win, they would advance to the state championship game later that day at 1:30 p.m. in the same location against the winner of the other semifinal game between Section 2-Greenville (17-3) and Section 9-Pine Plains (17-3).
Williams, Sandy Creeks starting catcher and only senior, played for the 2013 team that reached the state final as a reserve call-up from junior varsity when she was in eighth grade. Williams said she has spoken frequently about that experience to her younger teammates throughout the season and wants to ensure they appreciate the opportunity in front of them.
We actually just had the talk about how, even though we talk about what we did in the past and what other teams did, this is our year, Williams said. This is us. Were making our mark on Sandy Creek softball and we need to understand and appreciate that.
Stoker, who was in seventh grade when the Comets reached the 2013 state final, attended to watch the event as a spectator. Her father, Jonn Stoker, was an assistant coach on that team and still holds that position.
I remember wanting to play in that and it became one of my first goals, Stoker said. I wanted to play in the state tournament just like that group was. Were all young and really just excited to go play. Every single person on this team wants it just as much as the next.
The Comets won state titles in 1997 and 2004, and coach Kate Soluri (maiden name, Hovey) played for the programs first state title team 20 years ago. Sandy Creek also reached the finals in 2007 and 2013.
This years squad is unique in that it is significantly younger than Sandy Creeks recent state final four teams. This years group has just one senior, compared to five in 2013, and six players are at the sophomore grade level or younger, compared to just one in 2013.
The 2017 Comets are also thriving without the programs usual wealth of depth, playing most of the season with 10 players compared to 15 on the 2013 roster.
The teams from previous years had girls who all played together since they were young, but thats not the case with us, Williams said. It could have been a disadvantage but we made it an advantage. These girls are young and theyre hungry for new information, theyre ready to learn and theyre eager to learn and me being a senior, Im still learning new things every day, too. That drive really carried us through this season.
Sandy Creek won its 16th sectional title in a 23-year span during this postseason, and came of age in the state quarterfinals last Friday by beating defending state champion and previously-unbeaten Elmira-Notre Dame, 6-3, in a 10-inning thriller.
Junior third baseman Savannah Brown delivered a pair of clutch hits tying the game with two outs in the seventh inning and driving in the go-ahead run in the 10th to send the Comets to the semifinals.
The mindset this weekend needs to be positive and we need to respect all and fear none, Brown said. Thats the mindset weve had all season and thats what we need to stick to.
Hannah Dasno, the sophomore starting shortstop, added: Were playing confident, but we have to know that these other teams made it there for a reason, so obviously its going to be good competition that were playing. We cant underestimate anyone by any means.
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Ohio State Universitys Big Ear Observatory caught one of the most promising SETI signals ever back in 1977. Astronomers are still debating if it came from aliens, or something closer to home. (Credit: NRAO/AUI/NSF)
In 1977, Ohio State University math professor Jerry Ehman walked into the Big Ear Observatory and looked over the past few nights observations. At the time, the radio telescope was the only observatory exclusively devoted to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).
It also was underfunded and had no full-time staff. That means no one was listening for aliens the night SETI had its closest call with the big one. On the night of Aug. 15, 1977, a 72-second signal arrived from deep space just at the right frequency astronomers believe aliens would use. Since no staff members were around, no one could alert other telescopes to listen in.
Without tying the radio signal to an object in the night sky, they couldnt tell how far away it originated, Ehman told me last fall.
All Ehman could do was scribble Wow! on the data printout and hope the signal from Sagittarius would repeat.
It never did. But Antonio Paris, an astronomy professor at St. Petersburg College in Florida, thinks he has the solution. Two comets passed by that region of the sky in 1977, according to his hypothesis. And this year, those comets passed by again. That created a chance to test his theory. His research was accepted for publication in the Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences. (A preprint is available on Paris site.)
The comet 266/P Christensen is the onein question. Its orbit roughly aligns with Jupiter at its farthest distance and Mars at its closest to the Sun. According to Paris research, the comet transmitted at the 1420.25 MHz radio band. Thats near where the Wow! signal came from.
We did everything we could to try to debunk our results but we kept getting a signal from the comet, Paris told Discover. That was when we said, Eureka!
Paris, who along with his teaching duties runs the Center for Planetary Science and the UFO-hunting Aerial Phenomena Institute, proposed the hypothesis last year. Ehman scrutinized that original proposal, and didnt believe it was likely to be comets.
I received a copy of their article from the Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences and I studied it carefully, Ehman said in an interview at the time. I have concluded that neither of the two comets could explain the Wow! signal, and colleagues of mine at the observatory have also concluded the same thing.
Indeed, peer reviewers on Paris paper remarked on the need to coordinate with Ohio State and others on the research, seeing that as one of the flaws in the paper.
The only response from the peer review that we were concerned about was that no one, including Ohio State University, had previous research on detecting a signal from a comet, Paris says. We had to explain to the peer reviewers that we were the first to do so thus no previous data was available.
Chris Lintott, a professor of astrophysics at Oxford University, isnt buying any of the explanation.
If real, this comet is detectable in the radio, Lintott says. But the signal isnt bright enough or rapid enough to be a good fit to the Wow! signal.
The methodology itself is flawed, according to Lintott. While staring at this region of the sky, he says there should have been about five minutes worth of signals if it were comets, but it only comes in intermittent bursts. And if it were comets, Lintott says we could expect to see Wow! signals all the time, rather than once in 1977 and once in 2017. Then theres the choice of journal in his words, its not somewhere astronomers publish.
Lintott has another problem with Paris research: He crowdfunded it.
Bad papers get written and published all the time, he says. But this author asked people for money to fund his research, and if you do that you should hold yourself to the highest standards.
Lintott isnt sure what it is. But comets it aint.
I dont know what the Wow! signal was its very hard to study something youve only seen once, he says. Lintott suggests the study authors submit their research to one of the larger astronomy journals so they can get constructive feedback.
This is just science by press release, and its depressing its picked up (by the press), Lintott says.
Paris is aware of the criticism hes receiving and believes his paper still stands up to scrutiny.
I see one or two astronomers are skeptical. They emailed me, too, he says. But they cant answer my question: Show me the evidence to refute my data. They might need to do some soul searching.
For his part, Ehman remains (relatively) agnostic on the original signal, while wanting to believe the extraterrestrial cause. He acknowledges that limited equipment of the time led to a sort of dead end to the mystery.
Its an intriguing possibility that its a signal from extraterrestrial intelligence, but its also one that Ive had to declare that I cant prove that it is, or prove that it isnt, Ehman says.
So I guess that makes two things now that some people think are aliens and others think are comets. Theres now a possibly plausible explanation for the Wow! signal, but that wont stop SETI researchers from continuing to look for something just like it, hoping for that needle in the haystack that proves were not alone.
Excerpt from:
Aliens, Comets or Crap? What's Going On With The Wow! Signal ... - Discover Magazine (blog)
CONRAD Easton Swansons three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning set the tone as the BCLUW softball team blasted Gladbrook-Reinbeck 13-0 in three innings in Thursdays NICL West Division contest.
The Comets (10-4, 4-0) followed it up by scoring 10 times in the home half of the second.
Samantha Ubben, who was hit by a pitch and scored ahead of Swanson in the first, allowed one hit and struck out five in the win.
Jenna Willett and Swanson both finished 2-for-2 at the plate. Willett stole two bases and scored twice. Leah Yantis had an RBI single and walked twice. Lauren Anderson and Kaylee Goecke also had singles in the lopsided win.
The Comets continue their homestand with the BCLUW Comet Softball Invitational Tournament today and Saturday, coinciding with Conrads Black Dirt Days festival. BCLUW meets Marshalltown at 7 p.m. tonight before squaring off with Cedar Falls and Union on Saturday.
Late triple lifts BCLUW baseball to win
IOWA FALLS Logan Manns two-run, two-out triple in the top of the seventh elevated the BCLUW baseball team to its sixth consecutive win, a 7-5 triumph over Iowa Falls-Alden here Thursday night.
The Comets (7-3) led 5-0 after the first inning, but the host Cadets (3-9) came back to tie the score with three runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and another in the sixth. BCLUWs response came two outs into the seventh, when Mann drove in Ian Showers and Brad Barkema, who both reached on walks.
Logan Mann finished with two hits and three RBIs, while Blake Mann had two singles. Caleb Engle added a double while Showers, Barkema and Clay Silver each contributed a single in the win.
BCLUW hosts Gladbrook-Reinbeck tonight in an NICL West Division battle.
DES MOINES Scott McCarron broke through on the PGA Tour Champions circuit last season, rallying to win his ...
IOWA CITY University of Iowa junior Jake Adams was selected as a Baseball America third-team All-American, it ...
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SPORTS SHORTS: Comets chase away GR in 3 innings - Marshalltown Times Republican
Dr. LeonardiThe ongoing rush of safe, highly effective systemic agents for psoriasis has created a new era in which substantial numbers of patients may achieve complete clearance, said an expert at the American Academy of Dermatology 75th Annual Meeting, held here.
In the year 2000, said Craig Leonardi, M.D., two authors called complete skin clearance an unrealistic expectation for patients with psoriasis.1
The fact is that right now, we have many drugs that are so far different from what we used to use even five years ago that complete clearance is a realistic possibility in many of our patients, says Dr. Leonardi. He is adjunct professor of dermatology at St. Louis University and a St. Louis, Missouri-based dermatologist in private practice.
As a reference point, he says, Finally, we have numbers for how methotrexate performs in modern measurement systems. In a well-designed 120-patient trial with modest dose escalation, 41% of patients achieved psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) 75, and 66% achieved PASI 50 at week 16.2 This settles the issue of how well methotrexate indeed performs, Dr. Leonardi says. Although no study patients developed pancytopenia, Its always an issue in the back of my mind. At any one time Ill have hundreds of patients on methotrexate. Based on research in rheumatoid arthritis, he says, risk factors include renal disease, hypoalbuminemia, infection, age and concomitant medication use.
New targets
Since the demise of T-cell inhibitors such as alefacept and efalizumab, Dr. Leonardi says, Weve been concentrating on cytokines and cytokine inhibitors. And its been a very busy time in the pharmaceutical industry and for those of us who do this research.
Among tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFa) inhibitors that dermatologists may not have heard much about, Certolizumab is one you should definitely remember. It is a pegylated TNF-alpha inhibitor, not a monoclonal antibody. In trials, it is a high-performance skin-clearing drug. In phase 3 testing, 81% and 82% in separate cohorts achieved PASI 75.3 Thats functionally equivalent to infliximab. This is a drug you might be able to reach for. You can prescribe it currently for psoriatic arthritis its approved. And based on phase 3 results in psoriasis, We expect it to sail through the approval process.
Recent approvals in the TNF inhibitor category include biosimilar versions of infliximab, etanercept and adalimumab. And there are others in the pipeline.
New indications for existing drugs include hidradenitis suppurativa and uveitis (adalimumab) and pediatric psoriasis (etanercept). Physicians use golimumab mainly for psoriatic and rheumatoid arthritis, he says. It offers very modest results in psoriasis.
We know that psoriasis is a significant cardiovascular risk factor. Patients with severe psoriasis have a marked increased relative risk of myocardial infarction (MI) compared to mild psoriasis4 and, in another analysis, control subjects.
More recently, research analyzing cardiovascular risk in various treatment groups has shown that TNF inhibitors and methotrexate reduce risk of MI around 50%.5 This is the first time we are seeing evidence that treatments can reduce the risk of myocardial infarction, Dr. Leonardi says.
Additionally, an analysis of cardiovascular risk in patients on TNF inhibitors showed a statistically significant, marked decrease of MI risk, starting at around month 12 and lasting several months thereafter, versus patients on methotrexate.6 Even more amazing, cumulative use of TNF antagonists serially reduced the risk of myocardial infarction. Predicted hazard rate reductions at one, two and three years were 21%, 38% and 51%. And theres probably more to be gained beyond three years. What a wonderful story. Were treating their skin and joints and giving them an increased benefit from a cardiovascular risk perspective, he says.
Among interleukin (IL)-23 inhibitors, he says, a straightforward phase 3 study of tildrakizumab (two doses, versus placebo or etanercept) showed that the higher dose outperforms the lower dose 66% versus 61% in terms of both PASI 75 and physician assessments, without noteworthy safety issues.7 With regard to severe infections, malignancies, major adverse cardiovascular events and drug hypersensitivity reactions, all of these issues are comparable to placebo or to etanercept. This drug appears to be safe and well tolerated.
The phase 3 study of guselkumab did not even consider PASI 75 a primary endpoint, Dr. Leonardi says. Rather, 73% of patients reached PASI 90 at 16 weeks, versus 2.9% of placebo-treated patients.8 This is a significant drug. It distinguishes itself quite clearly from adalimumab in terms of efficacy, with comparable safety findings.
In phase 2 testing, a single dose of risankizumab allowed 87% of patients to reach PASI 75, and 58% to reach PASI 90, at 12 weeks.9 And one-third of these patients remained clear for more than 66 weeks. James Krueger, M.D., Ph.D., has called the drug and immunologic disruptor, says Dr. Leonardi, because its pharmacodynamic effect far exceeds its pharmacokinetic effect. Dr. Krueger is D. Martin Carter Professor in Clinical Investigation at Rockefeller University.
IL-17 inhibitors
In secukinumab four-year data, Efficacy whether its PASI 75 (88.5%), PASI 90 (66.4%) or PASI 100 (43.5%) seems to be maintained.10 The caveat is that this is an as-observed analysis. In other words, the denominator is dropping over time as patients achieving lesser efficacy and tolerability drop out. For most patients, Its not surprising that the efficacy should seem stable over time. It would have been a real problem if we saw efficacy dropping off. Regarding serious adverse events, he adds, There are a lot of zeros in the table, including for Crohns disease. There were two cases of ulcerative colitis. This issue of ulcerative colitis and its association with IL-17 antagonists is ongoing, and were going to have to see how that plays out. Its a rare event less than one in 1000 patients in the secukinumab data.
Unpublished five-year data for ixekizumab, in an analysis which accounted for dropouts over time, shows stable PASI 75, 90 and 100 results (approximately 80%, 70% and 47%, respectively), he says. As for AEs that led to drug discontinuation (13), There were many one-off events that dont seem to have any pattern. All adverse events also appear uncommon and stable over time, he added.
The IL-17 receptor antagonist brodalimumab showed efficacy similar to that of ixekizumab in phase 3 trials (86%/85% PASI75, and 37%/44% PASI 100).11 But early in these trials, he says, concerns for depression, suicidal ideation and behavior appeared. There were six suicides in these trials four in the skin trials and two in psoriatic arthritis trials. The FDA remarked that this was an unprecedented collection of serious issues for any psoriasis trial to date. I would take that to heart.
Amgen abandoned the products development in 2015, and Valeant took it to an FDA hearing in July 2016, at which all 18 FDA reviewers recommended approval although 14 advised implementing a strong risk management program. So this drug has a boxed warning for depression and suicide coming out of the gate, and a risk-management system reminiscent of iPLEDGE, he said.
We must wait and see how our specialty reacts to this, how onerous this will be in our offices and whether or not this drug will gain any traction given that equally efficacious drugs with fewer hassles already exist. Moreover, Dr. Leonardi noted that patients with psoriasis have elevated baseline levels of suicidal ideation and depression versus the general population.12
Development of tofacitinib in dermatology has stopped, said Dr. Leonardi. The FDA has returned the application to Pfizer. The problem with this drug is that patients needed a big dose 15 mg twice a day to have outstanding efficacy. But there was a hard safety signal that occurred much earlier at lower doses. FDA officials noted that in rheumatoid arthritis trials, 14 of the 15 patients who died were on tofacitinib. And there were 34 opportunistic infections, he added, all in tofacitinib-treated patients. In the psoriasis trials, there were more than 1,000 cases of herpes zoster.
However, he said, tofacitinib can be useful off-label for indications including alopecia areata, alopecia-associated nail dystrophy, vitiligo and severe atopic dermatitis. When he prescribed 5 mg of tofacitinib twice-daily for a patient with a 15-year history of alopecia universalis and steroid induced adrenal suppression, One year later, she had more hair than I did.
Disclosures: Dr. Leonardi has been a consultant, researcher and/or speaker for Abbvie, Amgen, Celgene, Coherus, Dermira, Eli Lilly, Galderma, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Leo, Merck, Merck-Serono, Novartis, Pfizer, Sandoz and Vitae. He also provides phototherapy and has an infusion center.
References
1. Al-Suwaidan SN, Feldman SR. Clearance is not a realistic expectation of psoriasis treatment. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2000;42(5 Pt 1):796-802.
2. Warren RB, Mrowietz U, von Kiedrowski R, et al. An intensified dosing schedule of subcutaneous methotrexate in patients with moderate to severe plaque-type psoriasis (METOP): a 52 week, multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial. Lancet. 2017; 389(10068):528-537.
3. http://www.ucb.com/stories-media/press-releases/article/CIMZIA-certolizu... http://www.ucb.com/stories-media/press-releases/article/CIMZIA-certolizu.... Published October 3, 2016. Accessed April 7, 2017.
4. Gelfand JM, Neimann AL, Shin DB, Wang X, Margolis DJ, Troxel AB. Risk of myocardial infarction in patients with psoriasis. JAMA. 2006;296(14):1735-41.
5. Wu JJ, Poon KY, Channual JC, Shen AY. Association between tumor necrosis factor inhibitor therapy and myocardial infarction risk in patients with psoriasis. Arch Dermatol. 2012;148(11):1244-50.
6. Wu JJ, Gurin A, Sundaram M, Dea K, Cloutier M, Mulani P. Cardiovascular event risk assessment in psoriasis patients treated with tumor necrosis factor- inhibitors versus methotrexate. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2017;76(1):81-90.
7. Reich K, et al. Tildrakizumab, selective IL-23p19 antibody, in the treatment of chronic plaque psoriasis: results from two randomized, controlled, Phase 3 trials (reSURFACE 1 and reSURFACE 2) [abstract]. Presented as a late breaking abstract at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology 2016. October 1, 2016.
8. Blauvelt A, Papp KA, Griffiths CE, et al. Efficacy and safety of guselkumab, an anti-interleukin-23 monoclonal antibody, compared with adalimumab for the continuous treatment of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis: Results from the phase III, double-blinded, placebo- and active comparator-controlled VOYAGE 1 trial. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2017;76(3):405-417.
9. Krueger JG, Ferris LK, Menter A, et al. Anti-IL-23A mAb BI 655066 for treatment of moderate-to-severe psoriasis: safety, efficacy, pharmacokinetics, and biomarker results of a single-rising-dose, randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled trial. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2015;136(1):116124; e117. 29.
10. Bissonnette R, et al. Secukinumab maintains high levels of efficacy through 4 years of treatments: Results from an extension to a phase 3 study (SCULPTURE). Paper presented at: European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Annual Meeting.; October 01, 2016; Vienna, Austria.
11. Lebwohl M, Strober B, Menter A, et al. Phase 3 studies comparing brodalumab with ustekinumab in psoriasis. N Engl J Med. 2015;373(14):1318-28.
12. Gupta MA, Schork NJ, Gupta AK, Kirkby S, Ellis CN. Suicidal ideation in psoriasis. Int J Dermatol. 1993;32(3):188-90.
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New systemic psoriasis treatments keep raising bar - ModernMedicine
Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease which results in the person developing red, scaly patches all over their body. Some of the common areas of the body affected the most by the disease are scalp, knees and elbows.
It is a noncontagious disease that has become fairly common among people of all ages and is triggered by inflammatory chemicals produced by white blood cells called lymphocytes, Medicine Netreported.
Although its symptoms may range from small rashes to the entire body covered with thick, red plagues, depending on the level of the disease, it is the incurable nature of the disease that makes it one of the most intimidating skin diseases.
Read: Drug For Psoriasis Shows Results After 4 Weeks: Study
While it cannot be passed from one person to the next via direct contact or transfer of body fluids, it has been known to affect more than one member of the same family, indicating the hereditary nature of the disease, Web MD reported.
Many eminent personalities have previously opened up about suffering from the disease, eroding the social stigma attached to it.
Kim Kardashian
Kim Kardashian West attends the NBCUniversal 2017 Upfront in New York City, May 15, 2017. Photo: Getty Images/Angela Weiss
Reality star and fashionista Kim Kardashian has been perhaps the most vocal when it comes to addressing the struggles of psoriasis. She repeatedly spread awareness regarding the problem on her family reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians. However, Kardashian wasnt always as accepting of her chronic skin disease initially, according toHealthline.
She first realized she had psoriasis at the age of 30, incidentally the same age her motherKris Jenner discovered she suffered from the same skin disease. The socialite had almost given up on her career at that point.
Read:Biocon Launches Psoriasis Drug In India; To File IND Application With US FDA This Fiscal
"People don't understand the pressure on me to look perfect," she lamented on the show, Everyday Health reported. "When I gain a pound, it's in the headlines. Imagine what the tabloids would do to me if they saw all these spots?"
But all of that is in the past as the reality star, married to Kanye West, has now embraced her skin abnormality and is even seen advising step-sisterKylie Jenneron how best to tackle the problem as she too has inherited psoriasis.
Kardashian also posts pictures of her skin spots on Twitter.
Art Garfunkel
Grammy Award-winning American singer Art Garfunkel performs on stage at the Bloomfield Stadium in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, Israel, June 10, 2015. Photo: Getty Images/Gil Cohen Magen
The singer who was one half of Simon & Garfunkel, bringing to the world 60s classics such as "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "Sound of Silence,"Art Grfunkel also famously suffered from psoriasis and left no stones unturned when it came to treating the same. He had incorrectly learned water from the Dead Sea could help heal the disease. So he decided to try it out, but to no avail.
Ive been told that if you float in the salty, buoyant water, its very good for the skin. Its not so much therapeutic as beautiful, he wrote onhis website.
Britney Spears
Singer Britney Spears performs onstage at the iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, Sept. 24, 2016. Photo: Getty Images/Kevin Winter
Although the former teenage popstar secretly suffered from psoriasis for a long time, it was only in 2012 the skin condition of the Toxic singer hit the public eye.
Spears was booked as a judge on X Factor, a job which came with unprecedented stress, causing her skin to breakout in angry red rashes, which were clearly visible when she stepped out on the red carpet at the X Factor premiere party in Los Angeles.
"Britney has had the skin condition for a long time, but it only flares up when she's under extreme pressure, a source told National Enquirer, News reported. Now she can't seem to stop scratching and picking at the sores. She has a psoriasis skin cream, but she says it burns, so she stopped using it."
Dara Torres
Olympian Dara Torres waits for the start of the practice session for the 42nd Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Press Day in Long Beach, California, on April 5, 2016. Photo: Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown
Swimmer Dara Torres is one of the very few people who braved the chlorine-filled waters of the swimming pools while most others would remain wary of the same if they were diagnosed with psoriasis. The 12-time Olympic winner instead claimed the water actually soothedthe red spots on her skin, according to Health.
Torres has also been vocal against the stigma attached to the disease, saying athletes who suffer from psoriasis should not be self-conscious of their skin condition, especially when they are out in front of the world, competing to win.
"Psoriasis isn't contagious and it isn't just cosmetic," she says in a public service announcement. "It's a serious disease."
Jon Lovitz
Comedian/actor Jon Lovitz performs during the kickoff of his 20-show residency 'Reunited' with Dana Carvey at The Foundry at SLS Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada, Jan. 6, 2017. Photo: Getty Images/Ethan Miller
Comedian Jon Lovitz is another celebrity who battled psoriasis for years now. The body of the Saturday Night Live and Rat Race star had 75 percentof his body covered in psoriasis spots at one point. However, he refused to give up and worked with a number of dermatologists to find a cure for his condition.
"Don't be embarrassed," he said in an interview with the National Psoriasis Foundation, according to the Health report. "See a dermatologist. A lot of people with psoriasis give up, but don't. Find out what works best for you.
LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes attends Luli Fama fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim 2015 at Cabana Grande at The Raleigh in Miami, Florida, July 20, 2014. Photo: Getty Images/Aaron Davidson
LeAnn Rimes, the country singer, was diagnosed with psoriasis at the age of two, and she proceeded to hide the condition from the world most of her life. At the age of six, 80 percent of her body was covered in red spots, and people around her started referring her as the scaly girl.
She would refrain from wearing short dresses which showed skin on red carpets. However, healthy lifestyle choices and medication prescribed by her dermatologist helped her recover from the problem.
By finally getting control over it instead of it having control over me, I wanted to speak out and let people know that there is hope, Rimes told Shape.
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(Photo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/521424/Deccan_Odyssey_Leading_Luxury_Train_World_Travel_Awards.jpg )
On receiving the award, Arup Sen, Director, Special Projects said, "The Deccan Odyssey gives you an unhurried and intimate introduction to the grandeur of India.The World Travel Award bestowed upon Deccan Odyssey for the 7th time stands as a testimonial of our dedication to redefine luxury through innovation. This recognition motivates us to further redefine our services for our esteemed guests."
Maharashtra Splendor, Maharashtra Wild Trail, Hidden Treasures of Gujarat, Jewels of the Deccan, Indian Odyssey and Indian Sojourn are the magnificent trips that Deccan Odyssey embarks on showcasing the rich and diverse landscape of India. The luxury train recently underwent refurbishment before its services resume from October this year.
World Travel Awards celebrates its 24th anniversary this year and is acknowledged across the globe as the ultimate travel accolade. It serves to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the global travel and tourism industry.
About Deccan Odyssey
Deccan Odyssey has 21 coaches, out of which 12 are passenger cars that can accommodate 8 people per coach (10 passenger/deluxe cars, 4 coupes per coach - 2 presidential suite cars, 2 coupes per coach), 1 conference/entertainment car, 2 dining cars, 2 generator cars with luggage store, 2 staff cars, 1 spa car and 1 bar car. The capacity of the train is 88 passengers. In 2016, Deccan Odyssey won a string of awards and amongst them are the World Travel Award for Asia's Leading Luxury Train, TTJ Jury Choice Award for Excellence and Innovation and North India Travel Award for Best Luxury Train in India in 2015.
For further media details, contact: Thomas C. Thottathil Cox & Kings Ltd. Head - Corporate Communications T: +91-22-22709100 E: thomasct@coxandkings.com
SOURCE Deccan Odyssey
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Deccan Odyssey Crowned Asia's Leading Luxury Train at the World ... - PR Newswire (press release)
Mr. Peter Kerkar, Group CEO, Cox & Kings stated, " The awards are an endorsement on the innovative and unique travel experiences that we offer. We are as passionate as our discerning clients to explore and create the most splendid journeys. We thank our customers whose support played a key role in us securing these awards."
Cox & Kings has been a consistent winner at the World Travel Awards since years. The title of Asia's Leading Luxury Tour Operator was bagged for the 3rd consecutive time this year. It won India's Leading Tour Operator for the 4th time and India's Leading Travel Agency for the 5th consecutive time.
World Travel Awards (WTA) was established to seek out and reward the very best travel organisations in the world - those brands pushing the boundaries of excellence and implementing ground-breaking ideas. It has been acclaimed as the Oscars of the Travel Industry. Each World Travel Awards Gala Ceremony offers unrivalled networking opportunities to members of the travel and tourism industry.
About Cox & Kings Ltd: (BSE: 533144 | NSE: COX&KINGS)
Cox & Kings Ltd. ('C&K') is a leading leisure and education travel group with operations in 22 countries across four continents. It is one of the most experienced travel companies in the world, having been in operation since 1758. Headquartered in India, C&K has over the last three decades transformed itself into a diversified, multinational travel conglomerate with a focus on the new-age global consumer. C&K operates in three key verticals; Leisure, Education, Hybrid Hotels.
For further media details, contact: Thomas C. Thottathil Cox & Kings Ltd. Head - Corporate Communications T:+91-22-22709100 E:thomasct@coxandkings.com
SOURCE Cox & Kings Ltd.
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Cox & Kings Wins Big at the 24th Annual World Travel Awards - PR Newswire (press release)
Padding around in a white suit, Francis Ford Coppola injected a dose of Hollywood glitz into this years Auction Napa Valley, which raised $15.7 million for local charities in the California wine region.
The Godfather director and owner of Inglenook, one of Napas most venerable and iconic wineries co-chaired the event with members of his family. Fresh from her best director win at the Cannes Film Festival for The Beguiled, Sofia Coppola hosted a small dinner for the highest bidders at last years auction.
Sofia and Roman Coppola / Napa Valley Vintners
Her mother, Eleanor Coppola, who has just released her first feature film, Paris Can Wait, starring Diane Lane and Alec Baldwin, catered for 2,000 guests at the barrel auction held at the Inglenook Estate on Saturday, where cases of wine from 108 producers were up for grabs and could be sampled fresh from the barrel, with the 10 highest bidders for each of the wines winning a case.
Speaking to World Travel Guide, Eleanor confirmed that Coppola would be cooking the post-auction meal at the three-Michelin-star Meadowood. Everyone thinks he isnt going to do it but hes preparing gnocchi for 800 as we speak.
Among the top selling lots in the barrel auction were The Mascot a Cabernet made from the younger vines of Harlan Estate, Bond and Promontory, which raised $73,550; and Melka Wines Mtisse Martinez Cabernet, which netted $62,600, while Shafers 2015 Hillside Select Cabernet went for $52,600. Napa has come of age on the world stage and the wines are now world class. The region is perfect for Cabernet its not too hot and not too cold, like the Goldilocks fairytale. Our Cabs are rich and concentrated but I dont think theyre too ripe theres a lot of luscious fruit there, Shafer Vineyards CEO, Doug Shafer, told WTG.
Inglenook on ice / Napa Valley Vintners
Rita Rae Fontenot, a podiatrist from Louisiana, got so caught up in the barrel auction bidding that she left with 10 cases of wine. I walked out with 10 cases as I bid early and was expecting to be out-bid but ended up winning them all, she confessed to WTG.
Dressed in a red linen suit, Coppolas son Roman was master of ceremonies at the live auction, which took place on Saturday night at Meadowood, a hotel-resort of unparalleled luxury set in acres of woodland. Women dripping with diamonds and men in pastel-coloured blazers arrived en masse, weaving their way through the parasol-dotted lawn to a giant white tent where they were enticed to bid on some of the 38 vintner-sponsored lots.
Drinking flutes of Schramsberg and nibbling on fennel arancini, wine trade luminaries like French consultant Michel Rolland and Petrus president Christian Moueix rubbed shoulders with Gina Gallo and her flamboyant husband Jean-Charles Boisset of Raymond Vineyards, wearing a pair of blue velvet slippers emblazoned with seahorses.
Mary Miner and Jean-Charles Boisset / Napa Valley Vintners
Boissets lot, which went under the hammer for $400,000, was one of the most glamourous of the evening a four-night stay on Marlon Brandos private island Tetiaroa, near Tahiti, where Obama recently wrote his memoirs and Pippa Middleton, the sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, honeymooned. French Polynesia was Gauguins dream and this magical island is the most luxurious place Ive ever been, he said.
The auction got off to a strong start with the first lot, which included three nights at Coppolas Niebaum Mansion and the chance to arrive in style at his Palazzo Margherita in Basilicata in his Falcon 7X private jet. Whipping bidders into a paddle-waving frenzy, the lot went for $460,000. Hoping for a higher sum, Coppola took to the stage and grabbed the mic. Just to let you know, the Falcon can seat 16 not six, he announced, then exited stage right.
While bidders got giddy on Krug, a brass band blasted out Hey Big Spender and flapper girls dressed in gold shimmied across the stage after a Balthazar of Screaming Eagle 2014 fetched $440,000. The top lot of the night came from Colgin Cellars. Featuring dinner at Alain Passards LArpge in Paris and lunch at Krugs Clos du Mesnil vineyard, auctioneer Fritz Hatton incited a bidding war that saw the lot won by three people, who paid $700,000 each for the experience, raising $2.1 million.
Rather than mingling with guests, Coppola slaved over a hot stove perfecting his pomodoro basilico peperoncini sauce for his signature gnocchi dish, which he served at an Italian-themed al fresco dinner after the auction. Hurry up, the food cant wait were on a schedule, he teased, as bidders fled the tent to dine under the stars. With a string band playing on the lawn and guests gorging on steak Fiorentina, Coppola had created a scene that could have come straight out of one of his films. I half expected a young Al Pacino to turn up with a shiner. In the end, wine and food is really all about show business, he said.
Francis Ford Coppola directs the cooking / Napa Valley Vintners
And if Auction Napa Valley is beyond your means, Adam Lechmere has 8 great affordable California wines
California and especially Napa has a reputation for excessive prices and overblown wines. The stereotype is true to an extent: cult wines like Harlan and Screaming Eagle do sell for up to thousands of dollars a bottle, and at every price point there are some pretty hefty wines, loaded with alcohol, oak and ripe fruit. But the pendulum has swung, and restrained Californian wines are now easy to find.
Heitz Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California 2012 Heitz Cellars is Napa aristocracy: Joe Heitz was making wine in the Valley in the 1940s. Now his daughter Kathleen Heitz Myers runs the operation, and style has changed very little: its still fresh, modest, with hints of luscious perfume but above all soft tannins, mineral acidity and fine blackcurrant fruit. Finesse and power. Average 40 Justerini & Brooks
Lang and Reed North Coast Cabernet Franc, Napa Valley, California 2014 One of the best Cab Francs in Napa. Fresh hay on the nose, damson, lots of juice, violet perfume, bright gripping tannins, delicate structure with excellent weight and balance. Restrained and delicious 20 average Reid Wines (Tel: 01761 452645)
Smith-Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, California 2013 From an estate high on Spring Mountain (brothers Charlie and Stuart Smith are pioneers from the 1970s). Bordeaux-like cassis and coffee with a layer of violet perfume. Fine acidity and silky tannins. One of the best Napa Cabernets youll taste 40 average Roberson Wine
Au Bon Climat Sanford & Benedict Pinot Noir, Central Coast, California 2012 Sanford & Benedict is a vineyard with the oldest Pinot Noir vines in Santa Barbara: winemakers across California clamour for its grapes. Au Bon Climats Pinot is delicate, perfumed, with dark raspberry fruit and suave, silky tannins. A gorgeous wine for a great price 40 average. Noel Young, Hedonism
Saintsbury Chardonnay, Carneros, Napa Valley, California 2012 From one of Napas most-respected producers. This is old-fashioned (ie youll taste the oak) but by no means overblown. Carneros is just north of San Francisco Bay so benefits from cooling ocean winds. Flavours of pear and white stone fruit held up by brisk acidity. Fine & classic 19 Majestic Wine
Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Fum Blanc, Napa Valley, California USA 2103 Robert Mondavi called his Sauvignon Blanc Fum to give it edge in the market. This is a lovely example of Napa opulence, with an acidic backbone for structure. Lots of tropical lychee and guava, citrusy notes, very nice weight on the palate. A really seductive mid-level Napa Sauvignon Blanc. 17 average Drinks Direct.co.uk
Twomey Cellars Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, California 2015 The fruit is from Napa and neighbouring Sonoma. Fresh and perfumed with grapefruit, apple and honeyed flavours. Fine acidity and great persistence. 31.00 The Wine Treasury
Moobuzz Chardonnay, Monterey, California, USA 2014 Cool, old-fashioned nose with easy peachy sweetness, very open though and fresh on the palate, interesting hints of lanolin. Excellent 17 Roberson Wine
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Coppola family brings glitz and glamour to Auction Napa Valley - World Travel Guide
New York, June 9, 2017 SONM (Supercomputer Organized by Network Mining), the universal fog supercomputer powered by blockchain technology, has announced its Initial Coin Offering, commencing June 15, 2017 and concluding July 15, 2017. By modifying the algorithms behind conventional cloud and grid networks, SONM will be the first distributed supercomputer for general purposes, from site hosting to DNA analysis to scientific calculations. SONM will issue tokens of the same name on the Ethereum blockchain.
SONM CEO Sergey Ponomarev said: Market demand for computing power is rising exponentially across a range of industries. SONMs unique offering directly responds to this demand by making use of idle standing computing power to solve non-deterministic tasks like hosting websites, the backend for mobile apps, and massively multiplayer online gaming (MMO instances). Any miner with a smartphone or supercomputer cluster can become a part of SONMs fog network and generate computing power to be used by others.
Fog computing with its greater innate potential, is widening the scope of what cloud computing can achieve by bringing solo miners, private datacenters, public clouds, and IoT into the network. The SONM platform, based on BTSyncs data transmission software and Yandex Technologies open source code for decentralized computation, is an integration of the most advanced solutions in the field of fog and cloud computation, he added.
By hybridizing fog computing with an open-source PaaS technology, the SONM platform will offer a full spectrum of services, including app development, scientific calculations, website hosting, video game server hosting, machine learning for neural networks, video and CGI rendering, augmented reality location-based games, and video streaming services.
SONM also offers an opportunity for miners to earn tokens efficiently by serving calculations for everyone in the network. Any smart device located anywhere in the world can take advantage by joining the fog network and selling computing power peer-to-peer via the SONM Application Pool.
Sergey Ponomarev said: In recent years, being a part of a pool has been the only way to profit from mining, but this method often doesnt even cover electricity costs associated with Proof-of-Work (PoW) mining. SONM will reduce miners costs by eliminating the need for PoW mining and by suggesting the most profitable applications and tasks for each miners hardware.
SONM tokens will be used by buyers of computing power to pay for the calculations executed via the smart contracts-based SONM platform. Tokens will be created exclusively during the crowdfunding period. No token creation, minting or mining will be available after the crowdfunding period. The funding cap will be confirmed according to the ETH/USD conversion rate before the ICO begins. A progressive bonus structure will exist for the first 70% of tokens sold in the ICO.
The funds raised in the crowdsale will be distributed as follows: 33% is reserved for marketing promotion, market growth, community, and expansion; 30% for research and development including team expansion, and advisers; 20% for the original SONM team; 7% for complementary technologies; 6% for technology infrastructure; and the remaining 4% for other indirect costs such as legal and office expenses.
Sergey Ponomarev said: The SONM platform can also be used for providing decentralized services in a heterogenous computing environment, which is expected to be a cornerstone of the future of computing. Given SONMs reputation system and intelligent agents, we expect SONM to be the smartest, cheapest, and largest decentralized computing system with strong rules regarding morality and loyalty.
Investors can participate in the SONM ICO using BTC, ETH and other major cryptocurrencies. The SNM token basic price is 1 ETH = 606 SNM. The amount of SNM tokens to issue for the other cryptocurrencies (except Ethereum) deposits will be calculated according to the current exchange rate of this cryptocurrency in Ethereum.
More information, the SONM whitepaper and business overview are available at sonm.io/.
SONM CEO Sergei Ponomarev is available for interview.
SONM (Supercomputer Organized by Network Mining) is a decentralized worldwide fog supercomputer for general purpose computing from site hosting to scientific calculations. SONM company is an effective way to solve a worldwide problem creating a multi-purpose decentralized computational power market. Unlike widespread centralized cloud services, SONM project implements a fog computing structure a decentralized pool of devices, all of which are connected to the Internet.
Disclaimer: This is a paid press release, the product / service mentioned is not endorsedby The Merkle, always do your own independentresearch. If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.
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Supercomputer Organized by Network Mining (SONM) announces ICO Platform - The Merkle
Researchers from the University of Zurich have simulated the formation of our entire Universe with a large supercomputer. A gigantic catalogue of about 25 billion virtual galaxies has been generated from 2 trillion digital particles. This catalogue is being used to calibrate the experiments on board the Euclid satellite, that will be launched in 2020 with the objective of investigating the nature of dark matter and dark energy.
Over a period of three years, a group of astrophysicists from the University of Zurich has developed and optimised a revolutionary code to describe with unprecedented accuracy the dynamics of dark matter and the formation of large-scale structures in the Universe. As Joachim Stadel, Douglas Potter and Romain Teyssier report in their recently published paper, the code (called PKDGRAV3) has been designed to use optimally the available memory and processing power of modern supercomputing architectures, such as the "Piz Daint" supercomputer of the Swiss National Computing Center (CSCS). The code was executed on this world-leading machine for only 80 hours, and generated a virtual universe of two trillion (i.e., two thousand billion or 2 x 1012) macro-particles representing the dark matter fluid, from which a catalogue of 25 billion virtual galaxies was extracted.
Studying the composition of the dark universe
Thanks to the high precision of their calculation, featuring a dark matter fluid evolving under its own gravity, the researchers have simulated the formation of small concentration of matter, called dark matter halos, in which we believe galaxies like the Milky Way form. The challenge of this simulation was to model galaxies as small as one tenth of the Milky Way, in a volume as large as our entire observable Universe. This was the requirement set by the European Euclid mission, whose main objective is to explore the dark side of the Universe.
Measuring subtle distortions
Indeed, about 95 percent of the Universe is dark. The cosmos consists of 23 percent of dark matter and 72 percent of dark energy. "The nature of dark energy remains one of the main unsolved puzzles in modern science," says Romain Teyssier, UZH professor for computational astrophysics. A puzzle that can be cracked only through indirect observation: When the Euclid satellite will capture the light of billions of galaxies in large areas of the sky, astronomers will measure very subtle distortions that arise from the deflection of light of these background galaxies by a foreground, invisible distribution of mass - dark matter. "That is comparable to the distortion of light by a somewhat uneven glass pane," says Joachim Stadel from the Institute for Computational Science of the UZH.
Optimizing observation strategies of the satellite
This new virtual galaxy catalogue will help optimize the observational strategy of the Euclid experiment and minimize various sources of error, before the satellite embarks on its six-year data collecting mission in 2020. "Euclid will perform a tomographic map of our Universe, tracing back in time more than 10-billion-year of evolution in the cosmos," Stadel says. From the Euclid data, researchers will obtain new information on the nature of this mysterious dark energy, but also hope to discover new physics beyond the standard model, such as a modified version of general relativity or a new type of particle.
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Supercomputer Performs Largest-Ever Virtual Universe Simulation - R & D Magazine
With practically limitless data and applications demanding microseconds-fast insight, its poor timing that Moores law of perpetually increasing processor power is now AWOL.
How do we get back exponential scaling on supply to meet this unending, exponential demand? askedKirk Bresniker (pictured, right), fellow, vice president and chief architect at HP Labs, at Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.
We will not regain it through the familiar technologies of the past three decades, nor a single point solution, Bresnikerstated in an interview duringHPE Discover in Las Vegas, Nevada.
This is borne out each day in HP Labs generally and in the companysongoing work on The Machine, its memory-driven compute program, according toAndrew Wheeler (pictured, left), fellow, vice president and deputy director of HP Labs.
Bresniker and Wheeler spoke withJohn Furrier (@furrier) andDave Vellante (@dvellante),co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Medias mobile live streaming studio, during HPE Discover.(* Disclosure below.)
After some mixed press for The Machine last December, HPE has been doggedly pushing it closer to prime time production, Wheelerexplained.
There are a lot of moving parts around it, whether its around the open-source community and kind of getting their head wrapped around, what does this new architecture look like? Wheeler said.
The Machine will require a chain of partners and ancillary parts to yield real use-cases, Wheeler added.
We had the announcement around DZNEas kind of an early example, he said, referring to the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases use of The Machine in analyzing massive medical data.
The Machine has also materialized what HPE calls the Computer Built for the Era of Big Data, a massive system running on a single memory.
Internet of Things data and, specifically, the intelligent edge are calling out for data training abilities like those in this supercomputer, according toBresniker.Presently, almost all data ingested at the edge is thrown away before its analyzed, let alone monetized, he added.
The first person who understands, OK, Im going to get one percent more of that data and turn it into real-time intelligence, real-time action that will unmake industries, and it will remake new industries, Bresniker concluded.
Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLEs and theCUBEs independent editorial coverage of HPE Discover US 2017.(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for HPE Discover US 2017. Neither Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. nor other sponsors have editorial control on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)
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Is HP Labs' supercomputer the new hope for supersized data? - SiliconANGLE (blog)
Newswise BOSTON, MA (June 8, 2017) Researchers and clinicians at Joslin Diabetes Center have established a Center for Cell-Based Therapy for Diabetes (CCTD), the goal of which is to lead the development and translation of cell-based interventions to treat and cure diabetes and its complications. This opportunity has been created by recent groundbreaking discoveries in converting stem cells into functional insulin-producing beta cells, the identification of new growth factors that stimulate beta cell regeneration, novel insights on improving treatments of diabetic complications, and evolving technologies for detection, modulation and protection against the immune responses.
A major part of CCTD, led by its interim director Dr. Gordon Weir, is the participation and coordination of program activities with the Boston Autologous Islet Replacement Therapy (BAIRT) program. This large consortium consists of Joslin, the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Brigham and Womens Hospital (BWH), Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Semma Therapeutics. BAIRT aims to perform autologous stem cell derivation to clinical-grade beta cells that can provide personalized therapy for people with diabetes. The program is expected to provide the clinical proof of principle that such a stem cell therapy will be safe and effective in regulating blood sugar levels. We hope the collaboration of these leading Boston institutions with Joslin will soon result in the first demonstration of using patients own cells to correct diabetes, said Dr. Weir.
Complementing this work are recent advances at Joslin identifying new islet growth in patients with long-standing type 1 diabetes, as well as identifying potential islet growth factors, which occur in situations of insulin resistance, that could be used to stimulate the growth of the patients own beta cells. Additional early stage research is also ripe for further development at CCTD.
Findings from Dr. George Kings laboratory at Joslin point to novel pathways to treat skin fibroblasts from diabetes patients to improve wound healing. Discussions with collaborating partners at BWH and Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital are underway to translate the findings into viable therapeutic approaches. CCTD is also planning stem cell-based research for diabetic eye disease, for which a variety of stem cell-based therapies have been evaluated in clinical trials. There have been substantial advances made in stem cell research and regenerative medicine, said Dr. King, Chief Scientific Officer at Joslin. We would like to harness the potential of cell therapy to treat and reverse diabetes and its complications.
Regardless of the targeted organ for cell replacement or regeneration, the shared challenges in cell therapies for diabetes such as transplant procedure and immune rejection will be well- served by the collective expertise within CCTD. Other researchers at Joslin are conducting large scale genetic screening for novel therapeutic targets to control autoimmunity, which will complement the effort of BAIRT to extend autologous beta cell replacement to patients with type 1 diabetes.
Joslin has a long history of providing cutting-edge diabetes clinical care and research, said Dr. Peter Amenta, President and CEO of Joslin Diabetes Center. With the addition of the CCTD, Joslin will continue to accelerate the rate of diabetes research and its ability to benefit patients as early as possible.
About Joslin Diabetes Center
Joslin Diabetes Center is world-renowned for its deep expertise in diabetes treatment and research. Joslin is dedicated to finding a cure for diabetes and ensuring that people with diabetes live long, healthy lives. We develop and disseminate innovative patient therapies and scientific discoveries throughout the world. Joslin is an independent, non-profit institution affiliated with Harvard Medical School, and one of only 11 NIH-designated Diabetes Research Centers in the U.S. For more information, visit http://www.joslin.org.
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