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Former NASA Contractor Arrested at Dulles Airport

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

WASHINGTON A former NASA contractor was arrested March 16 by the FBI at Dulles International Airport outside Washington while trying to catch a one-way flight to his native China, U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) announced during a March 18 press conference here.

Bo Jiang, a Chinese national who worked as a contractor for the National Institute of Aerospace at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., is to be arraigned March 18 in U.S. District Court in Norfolk, Va. Jiang was arrested because he "lied to federal law enforcement authorities" about computer hardware he planned to take with him to China, court papers provided to the press by Wolf's office allege.

According to a complaint signed by FBI special agent Rhonda Squizzero, Jiang was carrying a laptop, a computer hard drive and a subscriber identity module, or SIM, card that he did not tell law enforcement officials about during a consensual search aboard the plane that would have carried him to Beijing on March 16.

Wolf, the chairman of the House Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee, named Jiang last week during a hearing on alleged security violations at NASA field centers one of multiple hearings the China critic has held on the subject this year.

Jiang, Wolf first alleged at a March 7 press conference, previously had unauthorized access at Langley to NASA data and technology, some of which he might have brought back to China. Wolf cited whistle blower reports from NASA employees at the aeronautics research center as the source of this information.

Wolf added March 18 that a Langley official, who he declined to name, sought exceptions to NASA security protocol on Jiang's behalf. Wolf cited internal agency emails as the source of that information.

Meanwhile, Squizzero's complaint says the FBI reviewed the whistle blower reports it received from Wolf's office March 13 and found the information in them "reliable." The reports played a part in the bureau's decision to arrest Jiang, the complaint says.

At a March 13 hearing before the subcommittee Wolf chairs, Paul Martin, NASA's inspector general, said Langley's Office of Security Services was investigating whether there had been security breeches at the center, but that agency counterintelligence experts did not believe they were dealing with an espionage case.

Jiang is being held in Norfolk, Wolf said.

This story was provided bySpace News, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.

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Former NASA Contractor Arrested at Dulles Airport

NASA Reboots Mars Rover Curiosity After Computer Glitch

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity is back in action after being sidelined by a computer glitch for the second time in three weeks.

Curiosity went into a precautionary "safe mode" on Sunday (March 16), apparently because a file slated for deletion was connected to one still in use by the rover. But the mission team has now sorted things out and returned the robot to active status, NASA officials announced today (March 19).

The car-size Curiosity rover has not resumed science operations yet, however. It's still recovering from a separate memory glitch that knocked out its main, or A-side, computer in late February. Engineers swapped Curiosity over to its backup (B-side) computer at the time, spurring the rover to go into safe mode on Feb. 28.

Curiosity bounced back on March 2, only to stand down briefly once again a few days later to wait out a Mars-bound solar eruption. [Curiosity Rover's Latest Amazing Mars Photos]

Mission engineers continue to configure and check out the B-side computer, which remains the Curiosity rover's active computer. The A-side is now available as a backup if needed, officials said.

All of this drama has delayed Curiosity's activities at a Martian site called Yellowknife Bay, which mission scientists announced last week could have supported microbial life.

This discovery was based on Curiosity's study of material pulled out of a hole it drilled last month into a Yellowknife Bay rock. Further such analytical work should be possible soon, rover team members said.

"We expect to get back to sample-analysis science by the end of the week," Curiosity mission manager Jennifer Trosper, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., said in a statement.

The rover team also wants to drill another hole in the Yellowknife Bay area to confirm and extend their previous observations. But this won't happen until May, partly because of an upcoming unfavorable planetary alignment.

Engineers won't send commands to the six-wheeled robot for most of April, because Mars and Earth will be on opposite sides of the sun during this time.

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NASA Reboots Mars Rover Curiosity After Computer Glitch

NASA moon craft spots Ebb and Flow crash sites

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

LOS ANGELES (AP) When NASAs twin spacecraft Ebb and Flow crashed into the moon last year, scientists did not count on seeing the aftermath.

On Tuesday, the space agency released before-and-after pictures of the lunar north pole where Ebb and Flow came to rest. Months after the back-to-back, mission-ending dives, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter flew over the crash sites and imaged the final resting spots.

Ebb and Flow broke into smithereens upon impact and pinpointing the small craters they carved was difficult, said Arizona State University researcher Mark Robinson, who operates the orbiters camera.

Even the missions chief scientist, Maria Zuber, was surprised when she saw the impact sites, which looked like dots.

I was expecting to see skid tracks, said Zuber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Ebb and Flow deliberately plunged into a lunar mountain in December after mapping the moons gravity field in unprecedented detail. The location was chosen because it was far away from the Apollo landings and other historic sites.

Since the finale occurred in the dark, telescopes from Earth did not capture it. Even the reconnaissance orbiter had to wait until sunlight streamed to the northern lunar region.

Launched in 2011, the spacecraft spent nearly a year flying in formation, exclusively collecting gravitational data. Among the discoveries: The lunar crust is much thinner and more battered than scientists had imagined.

Initially flying at 35 miles above the lunar surface, the spacecraft dipped lower and lower in altitude during the $487 million mission.

Scientists are still poring through the last chunk of data beamed back just before their demise.

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NASA moon craft spots Ebb and Flow crash sites

NASA ‘s advice for near-term meteor strike: "Pray"

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

At a House Committee hearing Tuesday, NASA administrator Charles Bolden Jr. was asked what America would do if a meteor similar to the one that hit in Russia on Feb. 15 was found to be on a path toward New York City, with impact three weeks away. His response? "Pray."

At the moment, we might be lucky to get even three weeks warning. The United States and the rest of the world simply do not have the ability to detect many "small" meteors like the one that exploded over Russia, which has been estimated at roughly 55 feet long. Donald Yeomans, Manager of NASA's Near-Earth Object Program Office and the author of "Near-Earth Objects: Finding Them Before They Find Us," told CBSNews.com that there are a lot of these small meteors in orbit, and little early warning system in place to detect them.

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Yeomans said the most efficient way to find them would be a space-based infrared telescope. This has two benefits: One, the sun would not serve to prevent detection of some objects, and two, the infrared nature of the telescope would mean it would be effective in detecting them. (Part of the reason there was no warning for the Russia meteor is that the sun blinded the satellites.) CBS News contributor and City University of New York physics professor Michio Kaku calls such a telescope a "no brainer," in part because it comes at the relatively low cost of a few hundred million dollars.

"In Russia, if that asteroid had held intact for a few more seconds, it would have hit the ground with the force of 20 Hiroshima bombs," hesaid on CBS This Morning Tuesday, arguing the investment was worth it. Yeomans also called for ground-based wide field optical telescopes that could scan vast regions of the sky each night.

At Tuesday's hearing -- before the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology -- Gen. William Shelton, commander of the U.S. Air Force Space Command, acknowledged that the United States had no idea the Russian meteor was coming.

There is currently a project under way that would likely provide at least some warning for U.S. cities: The ATLAS, or Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System, isbeing developedto offer a one-week warning for a 148-foot meteor impact or a three-week warning for a 450-foot meteor impact. (The project, which involves eight telescopes, is scheduled for completion by the end of 2015.) Still, that's only enough time to evacuate residents and shore up infrastructure, not to head off the object entirely.

The nation has done a far better job at tracking larger space threats than it has the smaller objects.

"An object larger than one kilometer, which would cause a global problem -- we've found 95 percent of them already and none of them represent a problem in the next 100 years," said Yeomans.A hit from such an asteroid would be the equivalent of thousands of nuclear bombs going off, he said. "Civilization would survive probably, but not in the form that we know it."

If such an object is discovered to be approaching Earth, the leading contender to address the problem would be to crash a spacecraft into it in order to slow it down and alter its course. "If you find it early enough, and you smack it early enough, you've got enough time," said Yeomans. The technology already exists to track and hit a space object: In 2005, NASA deliberately struck the Tempel 1 comet and photographed the impact. Still, for a large object, you'd need billions of dollars and, Yeomans estimates, at least a 10-year head start.

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NASA 's advice for near-term meteor strike: "Pray"

Graves of Twin Moon Probes Spotted by NASA Spacecraft

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

An eagle-eyed NASA spacecraft has spotted the tiny craters two moon probes created when they crashed intentionally into the lunar surface last year.

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) snapped a series of photographs of the two 16.5-foot-wide (5 meters) craters, which mark where the space agency'stwin Grail probesended their gravity-mapping mission, and their operational lives, on Dec. 17.

"It was really fun to find the craters," Mark Robinson of Arizona State University, principal investigator for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC), said today (March 19) during a press conference at the 44th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in The Woodlands, Texas.

It's a bit of a surprise that the LROC team was able to find the craters at all, Robinson added. LRO orbits the moon at an altitude of about 100 miles (160 kilometers), and the craters are small, nondescript features on a body riddled with impact scars. [Grail Probes' Final Moments (Video)]

The two Grail spacecraft known as Ebb and Flow slammed into a mountain near the lunar north pole at 3,771 mph (6,070 km/h), striking the lunar surface about 20 seconds apart. They were running out of fuel and were bound to crash at some point, so the Grail team brought them down in a controlled fashion away from areas of historical importance such as the Apollo landing sites.

The Grail craters first showed up in LROC photos from January, but images taken on Feb. 28 show them in much greater detail. Robinson and his team used these later photos to produce a topographic map of the impact zone, which was named after the late NASA astronaut Sally Ride,who had led Grail's educational MoonKAM project before her death last July.

This map revealed that the two craters are separated by about 7,250 feet (2,210 m) in straight-line distance and 985 feet (300 m) in altitude, researchers said. Surprisingly, the crashes ejected material that appears darker than the surrounding lunar dirt.

"Fresh impact craters on the moon are typically bright, but these may be dark due to spacecraft material being mixed with the ejecta," Robinson said in a statement. This material may be residual fuel left in the probes' lines, or bits of their carbon-fiber bodies, he added.

LRO also managed to observe the immediate aftermath of the Dec. 17 Grail impacts after performing some precision maneuvering, team members announced today.

LRO didn't get any images of the actual crashes, which occurred in the dark. But its ultraviolet imaging spectrograph did see emissions from mercury and atomic hydrogen in the ejected plumes when they rose high enough to reach sunlight.

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Graves of Twin Moon Probes Spotted by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Passed on Mars Flyby Mission in 1990s

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

Researchers practice collecting rocks outside the Mars Desert Research Station near Hanksville, Utah.

Millionaire entrepreneur Dennis Tito got space enthusiasts excited last month when he announced a project to fly a married couple around Mars in 2018but NASA may have passed on a similar mission when it was proposed in the late 1990s by a prominent aerospace engineer.

According to Robert Zubrin, president of the Mars Society and a prominent advocate for exploration of the red planet, he had meetings with former NASA administrator Daniel Goldin in the late 1990s to pitch him a nearly identical mission to Tito's that would have launched in 2001 and cost the agency about $2 billion.

Dubbed Athena, the mission would have used technology that existed in 1996 on a two-year Mars flyby mission. Two astronauts would have orbited the planet for about a year, remotely-controlling rovers on the Martian surface with about 100 times less lag time than rovers controlled from Earth. The spaceship would never land on Mars, which Zubrin contends was Goldin's problem with the mission.

[POLL: Americans Support Manned Mars Mission]

"He passed on ithe said if we go to Mars, we want to land, we want to explore," he says. "I contend that this is a lot better than nothing. This would have been an icebreaker mission. It would have killed the dragons that suggest we can't go to Mars."

Zubrin and other commercial space advocates have grown fed up with NASA's timeline for getting back into the manned spaceflight game. Tito said as much in a press conference announcing his plan, which he estimates will cost between $1 and $2 million and is scheduled to happen in 2018.

"We have not sent humans beyond the moon in more than 40 years," he said. "I've been waiting, and a lot of people my age, have been waiting. And I think it's time to put an end to that lapse."

In a proposal paper published by Zubrin in the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society in 1996, he admits that a flyby mission is "not an optimal mission plan for human exploration of Mars," but "is a way to get started," an opinion he still holds.

[NASA: Ancient Mars Had 'Key Ingredients for Life']

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NASA Passed on Mars Flyby Mission in 1990s

NASA ‘s IceBridge Mission Braves the Arctic

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

After a brief winter vacation, NASA's polar ice surveyors are back in business.

The 2013 IceBridge Arctic campaign plans to fly its first science flight tomorrow (March 20) from Thule, Greenland. The mission is a continuation of several years of effort to record changes in glacial and sea ice in the Arctic and Antarctic after the ICEsat satellite stopped collecting data in 2009. A replacement satellite, ICEsat-2, is scheduled for launch in 2016. IceBridge, as its name suggests, is filling in the gap.

"The main goal is to build a long time series that documents the changes in thickness and snow cover of the Artic sea ice and changes in the glaciers and ice sheets of Greenland and the Canadian Arctic," project scientist Michael Studinger said in an email interview.

The IceBridge team was greeted with a surprise when they landed in Greenland this week, Studinger told OurAmazingPlanet. "When we arrived in Thule, temperatures were over 40 degrees Fahrenheit [4.4 degrees Celsius], which is unusually warm. Temperatures in mid-March are typically around minus 20 to minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit [minus 29 to minus 32 C], much colder. I saw meltwater on the sea ice yesterday before landing, which is very unusual that time of the year. We will see how this impacts our radar measurements," he said.

From NASA's P3-B research plane, scientists will measure the elevation and thickness of sea ice, as well as snow depth. A variety of radar, gravity and other instruments examines the ice from the surface to the bedrock or seafloor. Laser altimeters record changes in ice elevation.

The daily flights from Thule and Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, will help scientists track rapidly changing glaciers, such as the Jakobshavn Glacier in western Greenland, and Arctic sea ice, which reached a record minimum in September 2012, according to a NASA statement. As in previous years, IceBridge researchers plan to fly to Fairbanks, Alaska, and back, to measure sea ice in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas.

Data on sea ice thickness, which provides initial ice conditions for seasonal Arctic sea ice forecasts, will be released at the end of the campaign in May, NASA said.

Email Becky Oskin or follow her @beckyoskin. Follow us@OAPlanet, Facebookor Google+. Original article on LiveScience's OurAmazingPlanet.

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NASA 's IceBridge Mission Braves the Arctic

Nanotechnology Market Research Review and Conference Opportunities

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

FARMINGTON, Conn., March 19, 2013 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- 2012 continued to see major advances that were enabled by nanotechnology. In medicine in particular the delivery methods wrapped within nanoparticles have advanced many new and traditional drugs further along the clinical trial pipeline. Nano-engineering has also increased its grip on semiconductor manufacturing, and a multitude of quality control subsystems.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130319/CG79773)

BCC Research's "Nanotechnology Research Review" provides an overview of the market for nanoparticles in the life sciences on a global basis including description of leading and emerging drug products, major players in nanoparticle drug delivery field and methods of nanoparticle formation. The report also provides an overview of nanocomposites, nanoparticles, nanoclays and nanotubes as well as carbon nanotubes.

Learn more and request free sample pages from the full report at http://www.giiresearch.com/report/bc228065-2011-nanotechnology-research-review.html

In "Global Nanotechnology Drug Delivery Market 2012-2016", industry experts forecast that the nanotechnology drug delivery market will grow 73.97 percent through 2016. The key vendors dominating this space are IOTA NanoSolutions Ltd., Lena Nanoceutics Ltd., GlaxoSmithKline plc, Celgene Corp., and SkyePharma plc.

One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the low R&D cost. The Global Nanotechnology Drug Delivery market has also been witnessing an increase in customer support services. However, the increasing safety concerns could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

Learn more and request free sample pages from the full report at http://www.giiresearch.com/report/infi264464-global-nanotechnology-drug-delivery-market.html

Drug Discovery Chemistry 2013 is coming to San Diego on April 16, 2013. The event features six conferences in one location, more than 100 technical presentations, exclusive exhibit and poster viewing hours, interactive roundtable, breakout and panel discussions, case studies, best practices, 400 high-level participants, and dedicated networking opportunities. Learn more and register today at http://www.giiconference.com/chi252870-2013/

Drug Discovery & Therapy World Congress 2013 is taking place this June in Boston. This unique international conference will provide a platform for all pharmaceutical scientists, internists and primary care physicians to discuss and learn about important international breakthrough developments in drug discovery and on new therapeutics.

For more information and to register visit http://www.giiconference.com/eur243545-2013/

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Nanotechnology Market Research Review and Conference Opportunities

The most common prescription medicine mistakes

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

Your doctor writes a prescription; the pharmacist fills it; you take the medication and get better. Thats how its supposed to work. But in the real world, plenty can go wrong, and it regularly does: More than 1.5 million potentially dangerous drug mistakes occur every year, according to the Institute of Medicine, the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences.

But with a little vigilance, you can make sure your medication leaves you healthier, not sicker. Here is a capsule review of the most common medication mistakes and how to properly take whats prescribed to you. (Spoonful of sugar optional.)

Combine similar-sounding names with illegible handwriting and what might you get? The wrong medicine. Some common mix-ups.

Adderall for ADHD Inderal for high blood pressure

Cafergot for migraines Carafate for ulcers

Celexa for depression Celebrex for arthritis

Doribax for kidney infections Zovirax for herpes simplex

Femhrt for menopausal symptoms Femara for breast cancer

Sarafem for PMS Serophene for infertility

Zantac for ulcers Xanax for anxiety

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The most common prescription medicine mistakes

Cord Blood Registry is Advancing Regenerative Medicine Research at Exciting Pace

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

SAN BRUNO,Calif., March 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --Cord Blood Registry (CBR), the world's largest newborn stem cell bank, is fueling innovation in newborn stem cell research. As CBR prepares to release its 250th cord blood unit for medical use this month, the newborn stem cell bank announces that 71% of all its units released for use have been for emerging applications in regenerative medicine, such as brain injury, autism and type 1 diabetes. The other 29% have been for traditional transplant use, such as leukemia and sickle cell disease. This rapid increase in the use of family banked units for regenerative medicine applications is a complete reversal from the figures just six years ago, where 25% of the units released were for regenerative medicine applications and 75% for traditional transplant use. More than 50% of all cord blood units released for use in emerging regenerative therapies by family banks have been processed and stored at CBR. CBR is the only family newborn stem cell bank to have established FDA-regulated trials and is connecting client families to more potential treatments. As the industry leader in this initiative, Cord Blood Registry continues to focus on advancing the clinical applications of newborn stem cells.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130319/SF78273-INFO)

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120216/AQ54476LOGO)

Over the past 20 years, cord blood stem cells have been used to treat more than 80 life-threatening diseases and disorders including certain cancers, blood disorders, immune diseases, and metabolic disorders. Today, promising treatments are paving the way for further research. Current FDA-regulated clinical trials are exploring the use of a child's own cord blood stem cells in regenerative medicine for conditions that have no cure today. Most of these groundbreaking trials only use cord blood stem cells processed and stored by Cord Blood Registry for consistency and because of their commitment to quality.

"At an increased pace, CBR is providing families exclusive access to promising new potential treatment options through our focus on clinical trials," said Geoffrey Crouse, CEO of Cord Blood Registry. "We are proud to partner with researchers at the forefront of stem cell medicine."

Clinical Trials Break New Ground in Regenerative Medicine

Cord blood stem cells are currently being evaluated in a series of clinical trials exclusive to CBR clients as potential treatment for autism, cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury and pediatric stroke. Results will be published upon the completion of the trials.

Dr. Michael Chez, director of pediatric neurology at Sutter Medical Center, is leading a landmark FDA-regulated clinical trial to test the use of a child's own cord blood stem cells as a potential therapy to improve language and behavior in children with autism who have no obvious cause for the condition such as a known genetic syndrome or brain injury.

Dr. James Carroll at Georgia Regents University is conducting the first FDA-regulated clinical trial evaluating the use of cord blood stem cell infusions to treat children with cerebral palsy. Drake Haynes, who suffered a stroke after birth and was later diagnosed with cerebral palsy, was infused with his own CBR processed stem cells. Drake's progress is constantly being monitored and he continues to see multiple physical therapists. His family reports anecdotal evidence of steady progress in Drake's speech and mobility. Drake's mother, Nikki Haynes, describes it as the "blinds being lifted." A second FDA-regulated trial for cerebral palsy is underway at Duke University. A number of CBR families are currently participating in this key research as well.

Dr. Charles Cox, professor of pediatric surgery at The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston (UT Health), is leading an FDA-regulated trial studying the use of a child's own cord blood stem cells in the treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI).

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Cord Blood Registry is Advancing Regenerative Medicine Research at Exciting Pace

Kelley School of Business Launches Business of Medicine MBA

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

INDIANAPOLIS, March 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --To address the leadership needs of a rapidly changing healthcare system, Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis has launched the Business of Medicine MBA to prepare practicing physicians nationwide to assume unprecedented management roles.

The specialized two-year program will begin in September 2013, delivered as a hybrid 50 percent online, 50 percent through weekends in residence. This approach recognizes the demands on physicians' time. By combining residential and online experiences, students are assured the professional interaction central to a full MBA experience, while ensuring the program is accessible to physicians anywhere in the U.S. The new program will draw on Kelley's expertise in healthcare and life sciences, lean six sigma, consumer health behavior, supply chain, teaming and leadership. It will incorporate the longstanding and considerable experience of Kelley Direct, which was started in 1999 as the first online MBA program from a top-ranked business school.

Kelley's targeted Business of Medicine MBA recognizes the pivotal role that "physician leaders" will play in an industry grappling with historic upheaval. Challenges span the institutional spectrum, including implementing the Affordable Care Act, reducing costs while improving patient outcomes, enabling innovation under cost pressures and managing the migration of private practices into larger medical networks.

"Our Business of Medicine MBA bridges what has been the traditional divide between management and physicians on the front lines of care," said Idalene Kesner, interim dean of the Kelley School of Business. "With this degree, physician leaders will emerge with the full skillset to transform individual institutions, the broad healthcare field and, most important, patient outcomes."

Business and Management Skills that Complement Medical Knowledge

Kelley's Business of Medicine MBA was built from the ground up, pairing the essentials of business education with "reality-check" input from healthcare executives. Industry leaders cited active physician governance over business, operations and strategic direction as critical to their institutions' long-term success. Increasingly, physician executives also are navigating the shifting boundaries among research, clinical practice, industry, government and public policy.

The Business of Medicine MBA incorporates a curriculum similar to the Kelley School's full- and part-time programs (e.g., economics, operations, supply chain management, statistical analysis/analytics, strategy, marketing, organizational development, accounting, finance), with the addition of specialized courses and electives. The curriculum centers on six healthcare themes collaboration, innovation, analytics, transformation, optimization and sustainability that address new types of clinical leadership and new business models.

Even before completing this MBA, physician executives will immediately bring to their positions newly attained critical skills in healthcare and business competencies:

Full-time Faculty Noted for Cross-Industry Expertise, Experience Teaching Online

The new Business of Medicine MBA program will be taught by the Kelley School faculty, which is nationally recognized for functional expertise and experience across the healthcare continuum, including those from the school's respected Center for the Business of Life Sciences. Kelley Direct, Kelley Executive Partners the Kelley School's executive education arm and Kelley's part-time MBA program are all involved. Program participants will maximize the use of mobile technology in the learning experience. Industry executives will provide complementary lectures and cases, drawing on timely situations relatable to the physician cohort's experiences.

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Kelley School of Business Launches Business of Medicine MBA

Elsevier Announces the Launch of a New Journal: Wound Medicine

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

MUNICH, March 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, is pleased to announce the launch of Wound Medicine-The International Wound Journal for Clinical and Health Economics Research and Applications.

Published in print and online four times a year Wound Medicine is devoted to the clinical, scientific and health economics aspects in the prevention, management and reimbursement in wound care. The journal publishes original research papers and review articles. In addition, the journal will feature standards and guidelines, commentaries, health economic analyses and selected conference papers that meet the information need of wound care specialists and service providers.

Thomas Wild and Thomas Eberlein, both from the Wound Academy in Hamburg and University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, founded the journal. Together with a prestigious international editorial team they aim to cover themes central to the journal such as: tissue repair and wound healing, diabetic foot syndrome, clinical trials and outcomes, health care and economics and service delivery. Their vision for Wound Medicine is to advance the translation of science into clinical practice and application, to improve outcomes and the patient experience.

"We are convinced that Wound Medicine will facilitate the development of standards and enhance guidelines benefitting health care professionals in and beyond Europe by putting emphasis on health improvement and economic benefits," said Thomas Wild, "The journal has been launched to provide a home for translational wound research, and we welcome submissions from all affiliated clinical fields."

"We are excited about the launch of Wound Medicine which will cover the rapidly developing area of wound care, a subject of ever increasing importance," added Helen Habernickel, Publishing Editor at Elsevier. "Our aging and diabetes prone population is at an increased risk of developing chronic wounds while normal wound healing decreases with age. This journal will provide a publication platform for the advances made in wound research."

For more information or to submit an article, go to: http://www.elsevier.com/journals/wound-medicine/2213-9095

# # #

About Elsevier Elsevier is a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. The company works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and close to 20,000 book titles, including major reference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier's online solutions include ScienceDirect, Scopus, Reaxys, ClinicalKey and Mosby's Nursing Suite, which enhance the productivity of science and health professionals, and the SciVal suite and MEDai's Pinpoint Review, which help research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes more cost-effectively.

A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is part of Reed Elsevier Group PLC, a world-leading provider of professional information solutions in the Science, Medical, Legal and Risk and Business sectors, which is jointly owned by Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV. The ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).

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Elsevier Announces the Launch of a New Journal: Wound Medicine

UCR MEDICAL SCHOOL : Funding bill passes committee

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

SACRAMENTO For several years, the states deep budget problems have thwarted attempts by supporters of a school of medicine at UC Riverside to get the Legislature to appropriate $15 million for the school.

State finances are improving. Now a labor dispute could complicate the effort.

Tuesday, an Assembly panel easily approved an Inland lawmakers bill to appropriate $15 million toward the school, which is scheduled to accept its first class later this year.

But the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, known as AFSCME, emerged as a powerful potential impediment to the bill and other efforts to obtain the money. The UC system and the union have battled bitterly in recent years and a top union official said Tuesday that he objects to rewarding the system with $15 million for a new medical school.

When you say UC, my 25,000 members see red. They dont see a good neighbor. They dont see someone who cares about the poor or the working class at the University of California, said Willie Pelote, the unions legislative and political director.

AFSCME is among the most active players in California politics and opposition by the federation and other unions scuttles dozens of bills in the Democrat-controlled Legislature. The medical school bills success Tuesday had less to do with committee Democrats commitment to the medical school than the fact that the union raised its objections shortly before Tuesdays hearing.

AFSCME, though, played a significant role in last years elections of Assemblyman Jose Medina and state Sen. Richard Roth -- the Riverside Democrats leading the push to appropriate the money for the medical school.

Medina, the author of Tuesdays bill, is a teacher union member and marched with AFSCME picket lines at UC Riverside. But with Pelote sitting beside him, Medina said his bill has nothing to do with UCs union troubles.

UC Riversides Interim Chancellor Jane Close Conoley was among a roomful of UC Riverside supporters who attended the Capitol hearing. Assemblyman Eric Linder, R-Corona, who represents part of Riverside, spoke in favor of Medinas measure and voted for it.

G. Richard Olds, the dean of the school of medicine, acknowledged the problems posed by the unions objections to the bill.

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UCR MEDICAL SCHOOL : Funding bill passes committee

House approves S. Texas medical school

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

AUSTIN (AP) A widely celebrated effort to open a medical school in the Rio Grande Valley won unanimous approval in the Texas House on Tuesday but not before a tense exchange over what impact the facility would have on a statewide doctor shortage.

The bill that would open a medical school as early as 2016 along the underserved Texas border is among the least controversial measures in the Legislature. Gov. Rick Perry has backed the idea, and a Senate version easily cleared that chamber last week.

Yet as the House took its turn to vote, Republican Rep. Sarah Davis of Houston sought a reality check about what dent the yet-to-be-named medical school would make on a physician crunch in Texas.

The Texas Medical Association and other trade groups warn that the rapidly growing state is not churning out enough doctors to serve 25 million residents and counting. The bill that unanimously passed in the House on Tuesday is carried by Democratic Rep. Rene Oliveria, who said the medical school would add nearly 150 residency slots in the short term.

When Oliveria suggested that Davis didn't understand the proposal, she swiftly interrupted him.

"I was here to be in support of your bill, and not for you to condescend to me," Davis said. "My concern is that I don't want anyone in this House chamber to think that because of this new medical school we're in any way going to solve the doctor, physician shortage that we have in this state."

Oliveria said beefing up the number of residency slots can be achieved through separate legislation. Supporters of the medical school point to research showing that about 70 percent of doctors wind up practicing in the state where they complete their residency.

The University of Texas System already has pledged $100 million for the project. The bill would also combines UT campuses in Edinburg and Brownsville with a Harlingen health center that is currently operated by the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio.

The new university also would gain access to the state's Permanent University Fund the endowment that manages billions of dollars to support higher education.

The new university is projected to enroll 28,000 students, employ 7,000 people and generate $11 million in research expenditures.

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House approves S. Texas medical school

New South Texas medical school plan passes House

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) A widely celebrated effort to open a medical school in the Rio Grande Valley won unanimous approval in the Texas House on Tuesday but not before a tense exchange over what impact the facility would have on a statewide doctor shortage.

Yet as the House took its turn to vote, Republican Rep. Sarah Davis of Houston sought a reality check about what dent the yet-to-be-named medical school would make on a physician crunch in Texas.

When Oliveria suggested that Davis didn't understand the proposal, she swiftly interrupted him.

The new university also would gain access to the state's Permanent University Fund the endowment that manages billions of dollars to support higher education.

The new university is projected to enroll 28,000 students, employ 7,000 people and generate $11 million in research expenditures.

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New South Texas medical school plan passes House

Improbably, Liberty and A&T make NCAA field

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) -- Liberty's players and coaches woke up at 4:30 a.m. Monday for their charter flight. Instead of departing the airport at 7 in the morning, plane trouble kept them grounded for several hours.

Not even that could ruin coach Dale Layer's mood.

''On 2 1/2 hours of sleep, an 8-hour plane delay - hey, it's great to be in Dayton!'' Layer said with a wide smile.

After where the Flames have been this season, what's a few more hours? It's amazing they needed aircraft to fly to the NCAA tournament.

Despite losing their first eight games and having a 10-20 record late in the season, they won their final five games including the Big South title to reserve a spot opposite North Carolina A&T in the NCAA First Four on Tuesday night at the University of Dayton Arena.

The game pits two of the most unlikely of teams in any NCAA tournament. After all, A&T (18-16) was nearing a 16th consecutive losing season just two weeks ago - before it surged to take the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament title.

Yet the journey of Liberty, an evangelical Christian school in Lynchburg, Va., surpasses just about any other stone-casting David in the tournament's history. Only one other team has ever made the NCAA field with 20 losses - Coppin State in 2008.

''The low point was probably the beginning of the year when we were 0-8,'' guard Davon Marshall said. ''Guys started to quit. It was a lot of long days of practice. Guys were down on themselves, thinking about next year.''

Injuries, defections and some difficult games conspired to send the Flames off on that abysmal start.

''When you're 0-8, a lot of people quit,'' Layer said. ''Men quit. Grown-ups quit. But our guys just kept coming back. I told them in January, 'There's going to be a story in March about somebody - there is every year - that's a Cinderella story.' And I said, 'Why couldn't it be us?'''

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Improbably, Liberty and A&T make NCAA field

North Carolina A&T 73, Liberty 72

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

DAYTON -- Jeremy Underwood scored 19 points and Bruce Beckford added 16 helping North Carolina A&T end Liberty's improbable NCAA Tournament trip with a 73-72 victory in Tuesday's opening game of the First Four played at the University of Dayton Arena. The Aggies advance to face No. 1 overall seed Louisville on Thursday in the second round at 6:50 p.m. at Lexington's Rupp Arena. Davon Marshall led Liberty with 22 points, and John Caleb Sanders added 21 for the Flames (15-21) but missed a potential game-winning shot at the buzzer. Lamont Middleton added 14 points for North Carolina A&T (19-16) which recorded its first NCAA Tournament victory. The teams made a combined 11 3-pointers in the first half. Liberty trailed by seven points at halftime, but a 7-2 run to begin the second half got the Flames back into the game. Consecutive 3-pointers by Marshall cut NC A&T's lead to 52-51. Both team got off to a blistering start to the second half, combining for 20 points in the first six minutes and 13 seconds. Adrian Powell's 3-pointer completed a 9-0 run putting NC A&T ahead 61-51. But the pesky Flames wouldn't go away. Marshall's 3-pointer got them within three points with 1:32 left. Powell missed the front end of a one-one and Speaks scored to make the score 73-72. A near turnover by the Aggies resulted in a jump ball. NC A&T was awarded possession. Middleton was fouled with seven seconds left and missed his first free throw. Sanders raced down court but missed a tough layup attempt. Liberty didn't resemble a 20-loss team early in Tuesday's game. The Flames hit six of their first eight shots including a pair of 3-pointers. Speaks' layup put them ahead 14-8. But the Aggies began the game 3 of 6 from 3-point range, including one from Underwood which tied the score 16-16. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Sanders put Liberty ahead 22-20. There were six lead changes and three ties in the first half until a 10-0 run by the Aggies capped by Underwood's second 3-pointer put them ahead by eight points. NC A&T led by as many as 11 points in the first half. But consecutive 3-pointers by Marshall cut the Flames' deficit to 36-31. Beckford scored 12 points for the Aggies, who led 40-33 at halftime. Notes: Liberty, which began the season with eight straight defeats, entered Tuesday's game with 20 losses, tying for most for in NCAA Tournament history with Coppin State (16-20) in 2008. ... The Flames are the 22nd team in NCAA Tournament history to have a losing record. ... North Carolina A&T made its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance, going 0-9 in its previous appearances. ... Cy Alexander is the third first-year coach to lead the Aggies to the NCAA Tournament.

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North Carolina A&T 73, Liberty 72

Liberty Media Will Pay $2.62 Billion for 27% Stake in Charter

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

John Malones Liberty Media Corp. (LMCA) agreed to buy about 27 percent of Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) for about $2.62 billion, betting that the formerly bankrupt cable company can thrive in an era of digital services.

Liberty will pay $95.50 apiece for about 26.9 million shares and 1.1 million warrants for Charters private-equity investors Apollo Global Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Crestview Partners, according to a statement today. The transaction is expected to close by mid-May.

Charter, the fourth-largest U.S. cable operator, has been taking advantage of improving cash flow to refinance debt and add customers through the acquisition of Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC)s Optimum West. Its shares have almost tripled since the end of 2009, when the St. Louis-based company emerged from bankruptcy protection with the deal that gave the private-equity firms their stakes.

We are pleased with Charters market position and growth opportunities and believe that the companys investments in its high-capacity digital network, which provides digital HD and on- demand television, high-speed data and voice, will benefit its customers and shareholders alike, Malone, Libertys chairman, said in the statement.

Charters stock rose 8.8 percent to $98.04 yesterday after reports of the deal first surfaced. Libertys offer represents a 6 percent premium over the stocks trading price before the news broke. The shares gained an additional 2.4 percent to $100.38 today in New York, reaching the highest level since the bankruptcy.

Shares of Liberty Media, based in Englewood, Colorado, fell 0.3 percent to $110.34 today.

For Malone, a billionaire who built Tele-Communications Inc. into one of the countrys biggest pay-TV companies decades ago, the move marks a return to the U.S. cable industry. In recent years, he has focused on the European market, making investments through his overseas cable business Liberty Global Inc. That company agreed to acquire Virgin Media Inc. for $23.3 billion in cash and stock last month to expand in the U.K.

As part of todays agreement with Charter, Liberty will name four directors to Charters board. The company expects to designate Malone; Liberty Chief Executive Greg Maffei; Liberty Global Executive Vice President Nair Balan; and Michael Huseby, chief financial officer of Barnes & Noble Inc., another company backed by Liberty. Current directors Stan Parker, Darren Glatt, Bruce Karsh and Edgar Lee -- who are affiliated with Charters private-equity backers -- will resign from the board.

Liberty also agreed not to attempt to take control of Charter. Under the terms of the deal, it wont increase its ownership above 35 percent until January 2016 and 40 percent thereafter. Liberty also said it wont start a proxy fight for more board seats, so long as its directors maintain their positions.

While Liberty Global has 19.6 million pay-TV, Internet and phone customers, mostly in Europe, and Malone directly holds a 4.8 percent stake in satellite-TV company DirecTV, his U.S. cable investments have been limited since he sold TCI to AT&T Corp. in 1999. Liberty Media holds an undisclosed stake in Time Warner Cable Inc., the second-biggest U.S. cable company, according to the annual report of Malones company.

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Liberty Media Will Pay $2.62 Billion for 27% Stake in Charter

Statue of Liberty to reopen by Independence Day

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

A park ranger patrols Liberty Island, which was damaged in Superstorm Sandy. (John Moore/Getty Images)

The Statue of Liberty, which has been closed to the public since Superstorm Sandy struck in October, will reopen by July 4, federal officials announced Tuesday.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and New York Sen. Chuck Schumer made the announcement nearly five months after the storm shut down tours of the monument and Liberty Island. While the statue itself was not seriously harmed by the storm, several buildings on the island suffered major flooding, wiping out the islands electrical system and sewage pumps. The main dock used by tourist ferries carrying visitors from lower Manhattan and New Jersey was also destroyed.

Its good news, its a little overdue, but at least its there, and now well watch like a hawk to make sure that this promise is kept, Schumer told NBC New York.

In January, Congress allocated $59 million to repair both Liberty Island and nearby Ellis Island, which also sustained major damage in the storm. But federal officials have not announced when Ellis Island will reopen. In November, more than a million artifacts had to be removed from the museum there because of fears they might not be properly preserved because of damage to the climate-control system in the building.

The Statue of Liberty is one of the countrys most popular landmarks. According to the National Park Service, roughly 3.7 million people visited the site in 2011the last year full data was available.

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Statue of Liberty to reopen by Independence Day

Liberty Global Helps Young People to Manage Their Digital Identity

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Danzig

AMSTERDAM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Liberty Global, Inc. (Liberty Global) (NASDAQ: LBTYA, LBTYB and LBTYK), the leading international cable company, has joined forces with Microsoft and Accenture to support Get Online Week (GOW2013) and empower young people to develop a secure and responsible digital identity.

This years Get Online Week, an annual campaign organized by Telecentre-Europe, not only focuses on bringing first-time users online, but has a strong focus on educating young people to manage their digital identity and online reputation. This is becoming increasingly important for young people to realize when applying for universities or jobs.

Mara Jakobsone, Chair of Telecentre-Europe explains, Since its take off in 2010, our annual Get Online Week campaign has reached more than 500,000 Europeans in more than 20,000 ICT learning centres across Europe. Initially, the campaign was focused on bringing new people online, but now the focus has moved to upskilling and reskilling people through a large series of exciting events, training sessions and competitions, all over Europe.

The Web We Want

Liberty Global recently launched an educational handbook, The Web We Want, targeting young people in the ages of 13-16. The Web We Want is an important part of Liberty Globals Promoting a Digital Society program and aims to equip young people with the tools they need to make informed online decisions. It covers topics such as freedom of expression, thinking before you post, online and offline values, staying in control of what you share online, first impressions, how people present themselves to the world, who you share content with, identity deception and privacy protection.

Manuel Kohnstamm, Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer of Liberty Global said, Managing your online reputation is becoming increasingly important for younger generations, in particular when preparing for university and business careers. Our new educational resource, The Web We Want, will help encourage young people to think about their digital identity and how it can determine their online reputation in the future.

Get Online Week & Liberty Global

Many of Liberty Globals European operations are further supporting the Get Online Week campaign through a range of activities which includes providing educational eSafety materials to local Telecentres, running Get Online Week awareness campaigns on local TV channels, and further promoting the use of Internet Buttons, a web tool which helps internet beginners to get online.

As a leading international cable operator, connecting as many people as possible to the digital world is a business opportunity as well as a responsibility. Bridging the digital divide, one of the core elements of Liberty Globals Corporate Responsibility strategy, is about giving people the skills and confidence they need to get the most out of digital technologies.

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Liberty Global Helps Young People to Manage Their Digital Identity

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