Hawke’s Bay Showcased to World Travel Industry

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Media Release 26th April 2013

Hawkes Bay Showcased to World Travel Industry

Hawkes Bay has been showcased to the international travel industry at TRENZ (Tourism Rendezvous New Zealand) held in Auckland earlier this week (21st-24th April)

Managed by the Tourism Industry Association of New Zealand (TIANZ) TRENZ brings together approx 900 International Travel and Tourism Buyers from 31 countries representing traditional and emerging visitor markets, New Zealand tourism operators (Exhibitors) and domestic and international media.

Hawkes Bay Tourism led the regions representation at this event alongside local tourism operators exhibiting at TRENZ with Hawkes Bay Tourism included Gannet Safaris Overland, Art Deco Trust, The Crown Hotel, Mangapapa Petit Hotel and Glen Aros Country Estate. All Hawkes Bay exhibitor stands were branded with banners displaying iconic Hawkes Bay images with the Hawkes Bay brand and Get me to Hawkes Bay tagline. Fresh Hawkes Bay Queen apples from Apollo were given out to give TRENZ delegates a taste of Hawkes Bay.

Hawkes Bay Tourism General Manager Annie Dundas said TRENZ is a key business opportunity to showcase Hawkes Bay tourism product and services to targeted travel buyers to negotiate contracts for the coming seasons. Hawkes Bay was also successful in hosting international travel buyers and media in the region prior to the event which is invaluable as it allows them to experience all the wonderful things Hawkes Bay has to offer first hand. Media results have already been published as a result of the pre TRENZ hosting and we have also secured a cover story for Travel Agent Central Magazine which is a fantastic result

Sally Jackson from Art Deco Trust said We had a steady stream of quality appointments which we are confident will lead to increased business for Art Deco Trust and the overall Hawkes Bay tourism industry

ENDS

Scoop Media

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Massive Structure Discovered On Sun In NASA/SOHO Photo, April 2013, UFO Sighting News. – Video

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Massive Structure Discovered On Sun In NASA/SOHO Photo, April 2013, UFO Sighting News.
Date of sighting: April 24, 2013 at 13:06 Location of sighting: Earths Sun NASA camera: EIT 284 While looking over NASA/SOHO photos within the official NASA ...

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Massive Structure Discovered On Sun In NASA/SOHO Photo, April 2013, UFO Sighting News. - Video

NASA's Chief Defends Commercial Spaceflight Agreements

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NASA chief Charles Bolden found himself defending the U.S. space agency's practice of investing in commercial companies to ferry cargo - and one day crew - to the International Space Station. The grilling came less than a week after Orbital Science's successful rocket test flight and after several successful SpaceX cargo flights to the International Space Station.

Senators on the appropriations subcommittee for Commerce, Justice and Science questioned NASA's priorities as they scrutinized the president's request for $17.7 billion to fund the U.S. space agency in fiscal year 2014. Specifically, they questioned NASA's ability to see through its plans to develop a heavy-lift rocket, known as the Space Launch System or SLS, while balancing investments in commercial enterprises to transport cargo and crew to the space station.

Priorities

The subcommittee's two top lawmakers, chairwoman Barbara Mikulski of Maryland and vice-chairman Richard Shelby of Alabama, have NASA facilities in their states. Senator Shelby said he was concerned that the proposed budget is an example of "chasing the next great idea while sacrificing current investments."

"This budget focuses, I believe, too heavily on maintaining the fiction of privately funded commercial launch vehicles, which diverts, I think, critical resources from NASA's goal of developing human spaceflight capabilities with the SLS," said Shelby. NASA Administrator Bolden said NASA's priorities remain the world's most powerful rocket - the SLS, as well as the James Webb Space Telescope -- the Hubble's successor -- and the International Space Station, shored up by commercial crew and cargo transportation. He called 2013 "a year of decision."

"If we do not get $822 million in the 2014 budget as requested by the president, it will be my unfortunate duty to advise the Congress and the president that we probably will not make 2017 for the availability of an American capability to get our astronauts to space," said Bolden. "And I will have to tell you that I'm going to have to come back and ask for authorization to once again pay the Russians to take our crews to space."

Reliance on Russia

The NASA administrator noted that a funding request in 2011 was not met, so the United States was unable to launch astronauts from its soil in 2015, as had been hoped. The U.S. has not had a vehicle to take astronauts to the space station since it retired the shuttle fleet two years ago. NASA is relying on commercial firms to handle transport to the space station so it can focus its attention on developing the next-generation of rockets and capsules that can go beyond low-Earth orbit -- to an asteroid or Mars. Russian transport to the space station is costly. The U.S. signed a contract in 2011 to pay $753 million to Russia in exchange for transport and related services for 12 astronauts from 2014 through mid-2016.

Sequestration

NASA's Bolden, himself a former astronaut, also emphasized the negative effects of looming, mandatory across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration. He said, if implemented, the cuts will potentially impact the James Webb Space Telescope, certainly impact the SLS heavy lift rocket and Orion capsule and, in his words, "devastate commercial crew and cargo."

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NASA's Chief Defends Commercial Spaceflight Agreements

Green flights? NASA explores biofuel use in planes.

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Commercial jets could fly safely with a blend of jet fuel that includes a plant oil, NASA researchers said Thursday.NASA is one of several government agencies examining the use of renewable biofuels to reduce dependency on foreign oil while reducing carbon emissions.

NASA researchers said Thursday that test flights conducted in California have shown a commercial jet could fly safely with a blend of jet fuel that includes a plantoil.

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Scientists at NASA's Langley Research center in Hampton said there was no noticeable difference in the engine performance of a DC-8 aircraft flying as high as 39,000 feet on the biofuel mix made from the camelina plantoil. The researchers also said that under certain conditions the biofuel mix produced 30 percent fewer emissions than traditional aviation fuel.

"In terms of these fuels being acceptable for use in commercial aircraft, they're quite acceptable, but we're still digging into the data," said Bruce Anderson, a senior research scientist at Langley who worked on the project.

NASA is one of several government agencies examining the use of renewable biofuels to reduce dependency on foreignoilwhile reducing carbon emissions. Military officials are also pursuing the use of biofuels, with the Navy hoping to deploy a 'Great Green Fleet' of ships and aircraft run entirely on alternative fuels in 2016.

Camelina, an oilseed crop that is native to northeastern Europe, can be cultivated in the U.S. and is considered well-suited to arid Northern Plains states because it needs little water and can handle low temperatures.

The research was conducted as a collaboration between Langley, Dryden and NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. The biofuel mix tested by the experts allows a plan to be fueled just like any other aircraft, researchers said.

But Anderson noted one catch: camelinaoilis currently more expensive at about $18 a gallon, compared to about $4 a gallon for traditional jet fuel.

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Green flights? NASA explores biofuel use in planes.

NASA Invites You To Fly Along With Voyager

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April 25, 2013

Image Caption: The public will be able to fly along with NASA's Voyager spacecraft as the twin probes head towards interstellar space, which is the space between stars. As indicated in this artist's concept, a regularly updated gauge using data from the two spacecraft will indicate the levels of particles that originate from far outside our solar system and those that originate from inside our solar bubble. Those are two of the three signs scientists expect to see in interstellar space. The other sign is a change in the direction of the magnetic field. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory

A gauge on the Voyager home page tracks levels of two of the three key signs scientists believe will appear when the spacecraft leave our solar neighborhood and enter interstellar space.

When the three signs are verified, scientists will know that one of the Voyagers has hurtled beyond the magnetic bubble the sun blows around itself, which is known as the heliosphere.

The gauge indicates the level of fast-moving charged particles, mainly protons, originating from far outside the heliosphere, and the level of slower-moving charged particles, also mainly protons, from inside the heliosphere. If the level of outside particles jumps dramatically and the level of inside particles drops precipitously, and these two levels hold steady, that means one of the spacecraft is closing in on the edge of interstellar space. These data are updated every six hours.

Scientists then need only see a change in the direction of the magnetic field to confirm that the spacecraft has sailed beyond the breath of the solar wind and finally arrived into the vast cosmic ocean between stars. The direction of the magnetic field, however, requires periodic instrument calibrations and complicated analyses. These analyses typically take a few months to return after the charged particle data are received on Earth.

Voyager 1, the most distant human-made spacecraft, appears to have reached this last region before interstellar space, which scientists have called the magnetic highway. Inside particles are zooming out and outside particles are zooming in. However, Voyager 1 has not yet seen a change in the direction of the magnetic field, so the consensus among the Voyager team is that it has not yet left the heliosphere.

Voyager 2, the longest-operating spacecraft, but not as distant as Voyager 1, does not yet appear to have reached the magnetic highway, though it has recently seen some modest drops of the inside particle level.

NASAs Eyes on the Solar System program, a Web-based, video-game-like tool to journey with NASAs spacecraft through the solar system, has added a Voyager module that takes viewers along for a ride with Voyager 1 as it explores the outer limits of the heliosphere. Time has been sped up to show one day per second. Rolls and other maneuvers are incorporated into the program, based on actual spacecraft navigation data. The charged particle data are also shown. Visit that module at: http://1.usa.gov/13uYqGP .

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NASA Invites You To Fly Along With Voyager

the Real Housewives of Atlanta :Reunion Part 3 and Married to Medicine and fashion queens – Video

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The Methodist Center for Sports Medicine Open House With the Houston Dynamo, Draws a Crowd

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HOUSTON, TX--(Marketwired - April 25, 2013) - Houston Dynamo fans gathered on the Methodist Willowbrook Hospital campus to meet the players and the Methodist Sports Health team at an open house event recently for the new Methodist Center for Sports Medicine and its Human Performance Lab.

The Houston Dynamo players, cheerleaders and mascot, Diesel, signed autographs, took pictures and talked about soccer and staying fit.Families came out to enjoy the event, testing their kicking skills in the Houston Dynamo soccer tent, enjoying refreshments and giveaways, and touring the new center dedicated to athletes of all ages and level of play.

The Methodist Center for Sports Medicine team of board certified Primary Care Sports Medicine (PCSM) physicians and orthopedic and sports medicine specialists, along with the Methodist athletic trainers and rehabilitation therapists, answered questions about common sports injuries and staying in peak form.

"We are very excited about the center and the resource it represents to the community.Our new state-of-the-art human performance lab can help endurance athletes and active individuals get the most out of their training and improve performance," said Dr. Scott Rand, PCSM specialist and director of the human performance lab.

"Using the latest technology and research in exercise science, we are able to assess aerobic capacity, cardiorespiratory fitness, lactate threshold and metabolic function -- to develop a customized training plan for athletes and help everyday active people achieve better health.No other sports medicine center in the area can offer what we're able to offer here," added Rand.

Houston Dynamo player Alex Dixon performed a VO2 max test in the human performance lab -- one of the tests offered for athletes wanting to maximize training efforts.Directed by Dr. Rand and senior exercise physiologist Mark Morrison, Dixon performed the test as teammate Cam Weaver and his trainer observed and encouraged him on.

The Methodist Center for Sports Medicine at Willowbrook is part of Methodist Orthopedics & Sports Medicine. Working together, the PCSM specialists Scott Rand MD, Christian Schupp MD, and Gregory Seelhoefer MDwork with orthopedic colleagues Plinio Caldera MD, Travis Hanson MD, Korsh Jafarnia MD, Bruce Moseley MD, Hosun Hwang, MD and John Seaberg MD-- and the certified athletic trainers and rehabilitation specialists to provide overall health resources in a single facility.

To learn more about the new sports medicine center or the Hot Topics Free Seminar series hosted by the physicians call 281.737.0999, or visit http://www.methodistorthopedics.com. The next Hot Topic features Drs. Rand and Seelhoefer --focusing on head injuries and concussion management in sports. Call to reserve a spot, 281.737.2500. For the Human Performance Lab call, 281.737.0466. View Event Photos.Check us out on Facebook .

Methodist Willowbrook Hospital has received its chest pain and stroke accreditations, performs complex surgeries such as neurosurgery and open heart, and focuses on women and children in its new Women's & Children's Pavilion. And Methodist Orthopedics & Sports Medicine at Willowbrook has become the leader in orthopedic care in northwest Houston.

For more information on the comprehensive services available on the Willowbrook campus, visit http://www.methodistwillowbrook.com.

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The Methodist Center for Sports Medicine Open House With the Houston Dynamo, Draws a Crowd

Importance of Evidence-Based Medicine Presented in New Issue Brief Available from Elsevier

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PHILADELPHIA, April 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Report identifies potential impact of evidence-based medicine in meeting today's healthcare challenges

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, today announced the availability of the first in a series of issue briefs on evidence-based medicine (EBM). The issue brief - "Building a Business Case for Evidence-Based Medicine" - reveals the urgent need for EBM, as identified in a roundtable discussion of healthcare industry thought leaders at the CMIO Leadership Forum: Transforming Healthcare Through Evidence-based Medicine, last fall in Chicago.

The roundtable discussion, which featured five physicians representing hospital and healthcare technology CMIOs, research directors and clinical professors, was convened by the developers of ClinicalKey, Elsevier's clinical insight engine designed to help physicians quickly locate accurate answers to their clinical questions. The issue brief, based on the roundtable, emphasizes the need for a business case for EBM as a central necessity to enhancing the American healthcare system. According to findings highlighted within the brief, making the business case for EBM will not be attributed to a single event or destination, but will become more of a process or journey.

"By relying on fast, comprehensive, point-of-care clinical reference tools, clinicians will be better able to pursue the 'shared practice' approach so vital to the patient-centered medical home and accountable care," said David Goldmann, M.D., Vice President and Chief Medical Quality Assurance Officer at Elsevier. "EBM solutions have the potential to accelerate and improve clinical decision making and patient outcomes."

EBM is a long-term, problem-based learning process that involves:

Identified within this brief are opportunities and strategies that will assist the healthcare system through the EMB journey such as:

Although EBM continues to evolve, it has already proven its capacity to influence top-line healthcare issues. An analysis of EBM's potential impact on healthcare's most pressing challenges, including clinician shortages, waste, accountable care and patient engagement is also identified as an imperative need within the healthcare system and further elaborated on in the issue brief.

The issue brief is available for download at http://ckey.co/ckebmbiz. Subsequent briefs will focus on EBM implementation and the future of EBM.

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Importance of Evidence-Based Medicine Presented in New Issue Brief Available from Elsevier

Maine Center for Cancer Medicine Achieves National QOPI® Certification

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SCARBOROUGH, Maine--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Maine Center for Cancer Medicine and Blood Disorders (MCCM) has been nationally recognized for its commitment to continuous quality improvement in oncology care. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) awarded MCCM its QOPI (Quality Oncological Practice Initiative) Certification this month. MCCM participated in a three-year certification process to validate its treatment processes and earn the recognition. This certification confirms that MCCM provides its patients with the highest level of quality care, which is one of the most important aspects of a successful treatment outcome.

MCCMs QOPI Certification is awarded only to practices that have achieved the highest standards of quality and patient care in oncology, said Steven L. D'Amato, BSPharm and Executive Director, MCCM. This demonstrates our ongoing commitment to quality improvement and to providing patients the highest standards of care in the region.

The rigorous certification process included on-site reviews, data collection, and a demonstrated commitment to continuous improvement. The entire staff and its practices were reviewed and assessed for quality, consistency and safety. For MCCMs patients and their families, QOPI Certification confirms that MCCM is providing a well-rounded treatment that is among the best in the country.

MCCM supports its patients from diagnosis, through cancer treatment and follow-up reviews. Whether the goal of a treatment is to cure cancer, keep it from spreading, or to relieve the symptoms caused by cancer, MCCM provides exceptional care, counseling and options. Treatments at MCCM include chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, targeted therapy, biological therapy, and opportunities to participate in clinical trials.

About Maine Center for Cancer Medicine and Blood Disorders

Maine Center for Cancer Medicine and Blood Disorders (MCCM) is a private medical group practice composed of oncologists and hematologists representing 30% of the cancer specialists in Maine. MCCMs mission is to provide people and their doctors access to excellence in medical care and information across the spectrum of cancers and blood disorders. Physicians work out of offices in Scarborough, Biddeford, Brunswick and Sanford; and travel to clinics in Belfast, Boothbay Harbor, Norway and North Conway, NH. MCCM strives to ensure the highest quality of oncological and hematological care is available to those who need it throughout the state. Clients of MCCM have access to state-of-the-art cancer chemotherapy, integrated cancer care and access to clinical trials. More information about MCCM is available online at mccm.org.

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Maine Center for Cancer Medicine Achieves National QOPI® Certification

Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute’s “Thought Leaders Consortium” Explores a New Vision for Medicine

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SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Defining a new vision for medicine was the mission of the consortium of global leaders in healthcare who gathered in Seattle, Wash., April 12 14 for the first Thought Leaders Consortium hosted by the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute (PLMI).

With the epidemic of chronic illness across the globe continuing to diminish the ability of individuals to lead full and healthy lives, we need innovative solutions for the current system of medicine, commented Jeffrey Bland, PhD, President and Founder of the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute.

The presentations and discussions at our first Consortium focused on the connections between 21st century genomic, behavioral, and functional medicine approaches to redefine the future fabric of healthcare.

The Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting the importance of personalized lifestyle medicine as the right solution to address patient specific needs in chronic illness management, and reducing the rising global burden of these chronic health conditions. The PLMI was founded by Jeffrey Bland, PhD, an internationally-known biochemist and educator in lifestyle and functional medicine.

The Thought Leaders Consortium featured presentations by Institute for Functional Medicine faculty Drs. David Jones, Mark Hyman, Joseph Pizzorno, and Michael Stone; thirty-five key opinion leaders in global medicine from the United States and China; and experts in health media, nutritional and natural products industry leaders, health science researchers, and academic leaders.

The format was designed to encourage communication among experts of different disciplines on the evolving future of medicine. Questions discussed by the group included:

Specific presentations and presenters included:

All the attendees were drawn together by a common purpose and passion for transforming health care, noted Dr. Bland. Many opportunities for collaboration were created through connections made at this powerful Consortium. The enthusiasm and synergy from this gathering will inspire innovative solutions to chronic illness for years to come.

Photographs, videos, and audio takeaways from the meeting will be posted on the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute website (www.plminstitute.org) as well as the PLMI Facebook and Twitter accounts over the next few weeks.

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Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute’s “Thought Leaders Consortium” Explores a New Vision for Medicine