Edward Dennis takes scholarly approach to long career in science

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Edward A. Dennis is Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and of Pharmacology in the School of Medicine at UCSD. He

Edward Dennis

received his BA from Yale University in 1963, a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1967, a Doctorate in Medicine (honorary) from Goethe University in Frankfurt in 2008, and he served as a Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School 1967-69.

At UCSD, Dr. Dennis has served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Chair of the Faculty Academic Senate, and on the Board of Overseers. He has also been a Visiting Professor at several universities and is an adjunct professor at The Scripps Research Institute.

He has authored 350 research publications, patented 15 inventions, and edited 13 books. Dr. Dennis was named an inaugural Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 1984, and was the recipient of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biologys Avanti Award in Lipid Enzymology in 2000, the European Federation for Lipid Science and Technologys European Lipid Science Award in 2007, and Yale Universitys Yale Medal in 2008.

Who or what inspires you?

Im inspired by the creativity, curiosity, and inventiveness of the many outstanding educational/research institutions of La Jolla.

If you hosted a dinner party for eight, whom (living or deceased) would you invite?

It would be a potluck six-course dinner, hosted by my wife and I with six memorable chefs, both past and present, each bringing their favorite dish. The list of chefs includes Julia Child, Pierre Troisgros, Tetsuya Wakuda, Alex Atala, Eric Pras and Thomas Keller.

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Patrick Dempsey Tweets 'Grey's Anatomy' Eric Dane spoiler

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Patrick Dempsey Tweeted a potential "Grey's Anatomy" spoiler, regarding Eric Dane.

In the photo posted on July 30, which Dempsey later took down at ABC's request, Dane is shown unconscious in a hospital bed. In July, it was announced that the actor would be leaving the medical series next season, after six years of portraying Dr. Mark "McSteamy" Sloan.

Dane's character will reportedly to survive a plane crash seen in the season finale in May, according to TV Line, but his on-again-off-again girlfriend Lexie Grey did not. But Executive Producer Shonda Rhimes said that fans shouldn't assume anything about the upcoming season.

"When we start the season, we are ahead enough in time where we see the outcome of lots of things. And in the second episode of the season, there's rewind - we go backwards - to where they're still in the forest," told Entertainment Weekly. "So you see what happened and in the next episode, you see how we get there."

Dane has been a part of the series since its second season. Dane will reportedly be back for a number of episodes on the series' ninth season this fall to finish out the character's story arc.

"I am extremely grateful to everyone at 'Grey's,' ABC and Shondaland for the experience and memories I have had over the course of this run," the 39-year-old actor told TV Line. "It has been wonderful to work alongside and learn from a creative force such as Shonda Rhimes."

Dane is married to actress Rebecca Gayheart and the couple has two daughters together. Dane has also had roles in "Burlesque," "Valentine's Day," "Marley & Me" and "X-Men: The Last Stand."

In addition to Dane's exit, it was previously reported that Kim Raver will not return to the series next season either. Chyler Leigh, who portrayed Lexie Grey on the series, was killed in the season finale.

Season 9 of "Grey's Anatomy" premieres on September 27.

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Patrick Dempsey Tweets 'Grey's Anatomy' Eric Dane spoiler

DNA Genotek Inc. and BioServe Biotechnologies, Ltd. to Support Genetic Study of Craniofacial Anomalies in Ethiopia

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Ottawa, ON (PRWEB) August 02, 2012

DNA Genotek, a subsidiary of OraSure Technologies Inc. and a leading provider of products for biological sample collection, and BioServe Biotechnologies, Ltd today announced that they are jointly providing support for a new genomic study into craniofacial anomalies (cleft lip and palate) in Ethiopia. The project, titled Collaborative study on gene- environment interaction in craniofacial anomalies, will investigate the genetic and environmental causes of craniofacial anomalies (cleft lip and palate) with the ultimate aim of prevention. The research project will be conducted by principal investigator Dr. Mekonen Eshete of Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia with the support of external advisers and collaborators - Professor Peter Mossey of the University of Dundee and Dr. Azeez Butali of the University of Iowa.

In Ethiopia, infectious diseases such as HIV, TB, and malaria are the primary health concerns which often results in less focus on congenital problems. However, the impact of a congenital birth defect can be very severe when coupled with poor socioeconomic conditions. Through the DNA Genotek Helping Hands Program, DNA Genotek will be providing OrageneDNA kits to collect DNA from saliva from study participants. DNA Genotek Partner Program member BioServe Biotechnologies will provide the DNA extraction services as part of its corporate philanthropy program. The collaboration will enable the execution of this important research project.

I believe the support we are receiving from DNA Genotek and BioServe will help bring a change in the management of congenital anomalies in general and clefts in particular. While the majority of Africans have knowledge about congenital anomalies including clefts, different superstitious meanings are given to the condition and in fear, many parents leave children born with congenital anomalies to die. Supporting this research will bring a change in both medical treatment and societal attitudes, said Mekonen Eshete, MD, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, Addis Ababa University.

BioServe welcomes the opportunity to participate in the DNA Genotek Helping Hands program, particularly for a cause as worthy this one, said Rama Modali, President of BioServe. Its rewarding for our entire company to see our services directly contribute to results-oriented public health projects like this one that offer such large potential impact.

The DNA Genotek Helping Hands Program has a long history of assisting organizations that are innovators in disease research, disease prevention and treatment, said Ian Curry, president, DNA Genotek Inc. We chose to support this project as we firmly believe that it will have a long-term impact on significant numbers of people. We are pleased to work with our partner company, BioServe, on this important initiative to ensure its ultimate success.

The reality is that in the present circumstances many infants born with CL/P in sub-Saharan African countries, and in other low income countries in the world do not survive, often due to lack of awareness and perceived burden of care, said Professor Peter Mossey, University of Dundee. This generous gesture by DNA Genotek and BioServe, by raising awareness is literally life-saving, and will unlock the potential for a study in Ethiopia that can be replicated in other sub-Saharan African countries and that is geared ultimately towards primary prevention.

These are exciting times for cleft research in Africa and this study provides a wonderful opportunity for prevention of clefts and other birth defects, said Dr Azeez Butali of the University of Iowa.

Oragene is a registered trademark of DNA Genotek Inc. All other brands and names contained herein are the property of their respective owners. Some DNA Genotek products may not be available in all geographic regions.

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Posted in DNA

DNA test results turn negative in Bella’s items

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By Ador Vincent Mayol, Chito Aragon Cebu Daily News

DNA test results of items owned by kidnap-homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos showed no traces of bloodstains from slain kidnap victim Ellah Joy Pique.

The disclosure of the DNA test results by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) caused Santos lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo to declare that the case against his client will be dismissed soon.

But Senior Supt. Jose Pante, CIDG-7 chief, said it wouldnt affect the case.

We rely more on the testimony of the witnesses, Pante told Cebu Daily News.

The DNA test results on two items seized by police confirmed that the dead body found in Barili town was that of 6-year-old Ellah Joy.

The two items, a yellow- blanket and yellow comforter, were used to cover Ellah Joys remains.

Still, Villagonzalo said the results only showed the failure of the prosecution to prove the guilt of his client.

The suppression of evidence by the prosecution is over. The truth has come out. Their efforts to mislead the public is finished, he said.

Villagonzalo said the prosecution is only giving false hope to the Pique family, who blamed Santos and her British partner Ian Charles Griffiths of being responsible for their daughters death.

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DNA test results turn negative in Bella’s items

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Genetic Engineering Drug Sector Globally & in China Examined in New Report Published at MarketPublishers.com

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LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Despite the fact that China lags behind in terms of the overall level of genetic engineering drugs, the industry has accumulated rich R&D and industrialization experience as well as capital reserves. Thus, with a host of genetic engineering drug patents to become due, Chinese enterprises, such as Walvax, are committed to the industrialization research of monoclonal antibody, long-acting recombinant protein drugs and other generic drugs with high technical barriers. In April this year, Walvax announced to invest in Shanghai Fengmao to develop and produce genetic engineering generic drugs such as rituximab, bevacizumab, adalimumab, panitumumab, denosumab and long-acting EPO.

New market report China Genetic Engineering Drug Industry Report, 2011-2012 worked out by ResearchInChina delves into a comprehensive discussion of the genetic engineering drug industry from a global perspective and focuses on an insightful review of the sector in China.

Key Topics Covered:

Companies profiled in the report include: Shanghai Lansheng Guojian Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd; Biotech Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd; Anhui Anke Biotechnology (Group) Co., Ltd; GeneScience Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd; Beijing SL Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd; Jiangsu Sihuan Bioengineering Co., Ltd; Shenzhen Neptunus Interlong Bio-Technique Co., Ltd; 3SBio Inc.; and Tonghua Dongbao Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

Report Details:

Title: China Genetic Engineering Drug Industry Report, 2011-2012

Published: July, 2012

Pages: 80

Price: US$ 1,900.00

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Genetic Engineering Drug Sector Globally & in China Examined in New Report Published at MarketPublishers.com

DNA Test Could Help Save Scottish Wildcat from Extinction If It Still Exists

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Scotland is home to a least a hundred thousand feral cats. Unfortunately, the cats that now live in the Scottish Highlands are not native to the country, and they have helped push the already squeezed native felines closer toward extinction.

The native groupthe Scottish wildcat (Felis silvestris grampia), also known as the Highland tigerisnt much bigger than your average house cat, although it has a larger tail and a reputation for wild ferocity. The subspecies probably descended from the European wildcat (Felis silvestris) between 7,000 and 9,000 years ago, roaming throughout Britain until deforestation dramatically reduced its habitat. The 19th century brought further population declines, spurred by more habitat loss, hunting for the animals fur, and persecution by livestock farmers and game bird hunters. By 1880 it existed only in Scotland.

The 20th century saw the population dwindle further. Roads and cars proved deadly; at the same time, feral and domestic cats (Felis catus) competed with the wildcats for prey and also hybridized with them, diluting their gene pool. Today the Scottish wildcat is a whisker away from extinction. An attempt to count the wild population in 2004 estimated that just 400 or so remained.

But even that number may be too optimistic. Many conservationists put the figure at 100 and some think there may be none left, Steve Piper, a wildlife filmmaker and trustee of the Scottish Wildcat Association, told The Scotsman. They are disappearing so fast they are more in peril than pandas, tigers or polar bears.

But theres still hope. Paul ODonoghue, biological sciences lecturer at the University of Chester in England, is collaborating with the WildGenes Laboratory at Edinburgh Zoo to develop a DNA test that can help identify whether a wildcat is purebred or a hybrid. ODonoghue and his team will map the wildcats genome using century-old museum samples, allowing them to determine the genetic markers of a pelage perfect specimen. This information, in turn, will help future captive breeding efforts by allowing conservationists to pair up animals that contain the most wildcat DNA. ODonoghue said the test should be ready by the end of this year.

Douglas Richardson, animal collections manager at the Highland Wildlife Park, which recently premiered two new Scottish wildcat kittens, told The Herald that saving this iconic catthe only feline native to the U.K.should be a priority. We get our knickers in a twist because the Indians arent doing all they can to protect their tigers or the Kenyans their black rhinos, but its okay for us to let this one slip through the net? I dont think so.

Of course, any captive breeding program will need to have a decent number of wildcats on hand to be successful. Of the 75 adult wildcats currently living in captivity only one shows strong signs of being a purebred, and about a dozen, including all those at Highland Wildlife Park, show at least some hybrid characteristics. The rest are clearly hybrids.

More pure wildcats might be out there: This past April camera traps in Cairngorms National Park caught sight of several wildcats, the first time they had been spotted in that area. It is not yet known if they are pure wildcats or hybrids. Despite the low odds, ODonoghue says he is hopeful that some pure wildcats will be found somewhere.

Keeping wildcats pure in the wild will remain the ultimate challenge. Conservation groups are calling for widespread neutering and sterilization of domestic and feral cats to prevent, or at least slow, any future hybridization. Weve got to act decisively and immediately, ODonoghue told The Herald. Otherwise, he says, there wont be any wildcats much longer.

Photo by Peter Edin via Flickr. Used under Creative Commons license

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DNA Test Could Help Save Scottish Wildcat from Extinction If It Still Exists

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Fractal Analytics Announces Customer DNA Solution for Personalized Marketing

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SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Fractal Analytics, a leading provider of Big Data predictive analytics, announced today a breakthrough analytics solution that redefines the way marketers engage with consumers. Customer DNA is an advanced machine-learning solution that drives extreme personalization and relevance to increase affinity and loyalty based on a deeper understanding of each customers preferences. The solution has been implemented by a national retail group to enhance target marketing, store promotions, assortment and pricing.

Customer DNA infers consumer personality traits and preferences from behavior across multiple channels and from multiple data sources such as business transactions, consumer provided information, social networks and third party information. The Big Data that drive Customer DNA are processed by Hadoop for speed and efficiency. The solution applies an advanced scientific approach to continuously update and reassess what the system understands about consumers - based on what they buy, how they prefer to shop, how and when they respond to seasonal promotions or discounts, as well as how they express themselves in social networks.

Natwar Mall, SVP, Fractal Sciences at Fractal Analytics, said, Customer DNA will bring back the personalized service experience that was delivered previously only by mom & pop stores. It will help large organizations maximize revenue by targeting shoppers with efficient one-to-one message and offer interactions across campaigns and customer touch points.

Mall added, Data, science and technology are converging to create unprecedented opportunities to build breakthrough solutions for companies. In response to the high demand from companies that need to deliver a high ROI from Big Data analytics, we developed an advanced analytics organization called Fractal Sciences. Staffed by our best and brightest, Fractal Sciences mission is to apply the latest scientific advances and find new synergies across disciplines to bring more cutting-edge solutions to solve key market issues. The Customer DNA solution is among this teams latest key wins.

The Customer DNA model is designed to support both Business- to-Consumer and Business-to-Business organizations for retail as well as consumer goods, hotel and entertainment, financial services, insurance, airlines, and direct distributers. In addition to personalized marketing, the solution supports merchandise planning, product assortment and inventory management.

About Fractal Analytics

We believe analytics is critical to deeply connect with consumers, earn customer loyalty, make better decisions to reduce waste, and ultimately improve lives. Fortune 500 companies partner with Fractal to build breakthrough analytic solutions, set up analytical centers of excellence, and create a culture of data driven decisioning.

We solve problems, operationalize solutions to drive results, and ultimately drive change in organizations towards fact-based decisioning. We help businesses: (a) Understand, predict and influence consumer behavior; (b) Improve marketing, pricing, supply chain, risk and claims management; (c) Harmonize data, visualize information, build dashboards and forecast business performance.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://www.cisionwire.com

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Posted in DNA

Legendary Guitar Maker C. F. Martin & Co. Expands DNA Marking to Guitar Strings and Protects Brand With Botanical DNA

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STONY BROOK, NY--(Marketwire -08/01/12)- Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. (APDN) (Twitter:@APDN), a provider of botanical DNA-based product verification solutions, announces that celebrated guitar maker C.F. Martin & Co. ("Martin Guitar") has expanded DNA marking to protect and authenticate its guitar strings. Martin Guitar produces millions of strings per year, and is one of the leading manufacturers of guitar strings in the world. Martin Guitar strings are made in Navojoa, Mexico.

"Botanical DNA marking provides the ultimate security by protecting the guitar strings and the guitar itself at the original point of manufacture. DNA technology will help us to ascertain product authenticity, and it is consistent with Martin Guitar's intellectual property protection strategy," said C. F. Martin & Co. Vice President, Business Development, Gregory Paul. "Use of this technology for strings and other musical instruments by others in our industry can only help in the fight against counterfeiting."

Martin Guitar, an iconic American brand that is acknowledged as the creator of some of the world's finest musical instruments for over 175 years, has partnered with Applied DNA Sciences to protect its products, brands and intellectual property from counterfeiting and diversion. Since 2011, Martin Guitar has been incorporating its unique "Martin Guitar" botanical DNA mark onto each of its guitars, produced in its factories at Nazareth, Pennsylvania and Navojoa, Mexico. As part of the DNA authentication platform, any guitars made by Martin Guitar from 2011 will be able to be identified and forensically authenticated.

Every year, several thousand dedicated guitar owners attend a special event hosted by Martin Guitar to learn about new products, as well as new technologies. APDN will exhibit its botanical DNA authentication technology at the Martin Owners Club Event on Friday, August 3, 2012 in Nazareth. Applied DNA will be exhibiting at this event for the second year in a row.

At the Martin Owners Club Event in 2011, Chris Martin IV, Chairman and CEO, stated: "People around the world know the high level of quality that is inherent in each and every guitar that features the C. F. Martin logo, and protecting our intellectual property is of vital importance, as we face new counterfeit-related challenges at home and abroad."

Chris Martin IV commented recently: "We continue to work with Applied DNA Sciences on developing this program, first with our custom guitars, which have now extended to our laminates, and soon we will begin to mark our strings. We are serious about protecting our brand. Like I have said before, if you want to make guitars go ahead -- just don't use the Martin Guitar name on it."

Martin Guitar selected botanical DNA over other authentication technologies because it can be used to covertly mark a guitar, with its location known only to Martin Guitar, and for the strength in DNA generally in prosecution. As an identification procedure, DNA is recognized in courts in general as strong forensic evidence.

Botanical DNA can also be used in combination with wireless tracking technologies such as RFID as a way to ensure that those devices are not copied or tampered with. As guitars are botanically DNA-marked in quantity, forensic authentication by our labs, both as a quality control measure and also testing of products already in the field, can prove in time to be a strong anti-counterfeiting platform.

Famously wielded by singers like Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Freedy Johnston, and Robbie Robertson, historic Martin guitars are on display at a museum at the factory in Nazareth, where the Martin Owners Club Event is held. Last year, the company celebrated the creation of guitar number 1,500,000, counting from its first creations in a workshop in what is now the TriBeCa section of New York in 1833. Applied DNA Sciences is honored to help protect the historic legacy of this cherished American brand.

Dr. James A. Hayward, CEO, Applied DNA Sciences stated:

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Legendary Guitar Maker C. F. Martin & Co. Expands DNA Marking to Guitar Strings and Protects Brand With Botanical DNA

Posted in DNA

Timelines, roadmaps, and tools: navigating the futures of synthetic biology

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Earlier this summer I got a travel fellowship from the SynBERC Student & Postdoc Association and Practices Thrust to attend the Six Parties Symposium on Synthetic Biology. The theme of the symposium was Synthetic Biology for the Next Generation and was jointly run by the National Academies of Science and Engineering from the US, the UK, and China. The fellows were asked to write a short perspective about the symposium and how we see the field advancing in the future. Im posting my essay below, and you can see the perspectives of the other fellows here.

What is the future of synthetic biology? How do we get there? The recent Six Parties Symposium on Synthetic Biology brought together scientists, engineers, policy makers, and social scientists from the US, the UK, and China to think about the future. Panels focused on the grand challenges that we face, the potential for synthetic biology to address some of these challenges, and the toolstechnical and otherwisenecessary to see this potential through to real world applications.

Many of the presentations included timelines on vastly different scales: graphs of rising global temperatures in the past hundred years and graphs of carbon dioxide levels extrapolated out to 12,000 AD; graphs of the exponentially increasing computer processing power in the past fifty years, the exponentially decreasing cost of sequencing and synthesizing DNA in the past ten, and the rapidly increasing number of students participating in iGEM over the past five. Connecting these different timelines, harnessing growing communities and improving technologies to address complex and large-scale environmental problems is the focus of a different kind of timelinethe technology roadmaps that set out goals and timeframes for problem solving and industry development in synthetic biology.

But to advance the goals of synthetic biology, first we have to decide on what synthetic biology is, what the goals are, and what is necessary to actually reach those goals. Synthetic biology is a combination of engineering and biology, interpreted and defined in many ways but often in contrast to traditional biology fields. One of the many such definitions of synthetic biology discussed at the symposium was that synthetic biology reverses the genotype to phenotype link; while research in genetics and molecular biology aims to understand how a cells genotype leads to an observed phenotype, synthetic biology begins with a desired phenotype and seeks to design the corresponding genotype. The complexity of biological systems and the context-dependence and stochasticity inherent in how phenotypes emerge from genotypes complicate efforts to design functional synthetic networks, but also provide a useful metaphor for thinking about the futures of synthetic biology.

Like the connections between genotype and phenotype, the connections between the roadmaps and the futures that they aim to predict are complex, context-dependent and involve much more than just efficiency and technical feasibility. Indeed, the tools that synthetic biology has focused on in the past decade have always been both technical and socialprinciples like standardization are encouraged to enable streamlined engineering but also to promote collaboration and open-source development. The symposium, with talks from people working in academia, industry, IP law, environmental advocacy, law enforcement, and government foregrounded many of the issues that complicate the path from roadmaps to futures, including the politics of science funding, the economics of fossil fuels, the reward structures for academic researchers, the educational programs available for interdisciplinary training, risk assessment, regulations, media representations and public perceptions.

Given the complexity of factors influencing the funding of and research in synthetic biology, its no surprise that there are almost as many proposed futures as there are definitions and technical standards for the field (like opinions, everyone has one). As Nikolas Rose warned during a panel on social issues involved in synthetic biology, Too many roadmaps means you dont know where youre going. How can we keep from getting lost? How do we get a future that we want? Who gets to decide?

Perhaps the diversity of goals and the diversity of approaches can be a strength rather than a weakness. Synthetic biology alone cant solve any of our grand challenges, and synthetic biology cant develop in a vacuum, isolated from all non-technical factors. The range of voices and perspectives at the symposium reflect the kind of community necessary to understand problems and to craft sustainable solutions.

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Susan Henry wins prestigious award in lipid biochemistry

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Aug. 1, 2012

Susan Henry wins prestigious award in lipid biochemistry

Susan Henry, professor of molecular biology and genetics and the Ronald P. Lynch Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) from 2000 to 2010, won the 2013 Avanti Award in Lipids, according to the August issue of the magazine of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ASBMB Today.

The award recognizes outstanding research contributions in the area of lipids, naturally occurring molecules that are structural components of cell membranes involved in energy storage and signaling. Henry is noted for her research on regulation of lipid metabolism and lipid-mediated signaling, using yeast as a model system.

A fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Microbiology, Henry is also past chair of the National Institutes of Health Advisory Committee on Research on Minority Health.

As part of the honor, Henry has been invited to present a lecture at the 2013 ASBMB Annual Meeting, which will be held in Boston in April 2013.

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Susan Henry wins prestigious award in lipid biochemistry

American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology honors outstanding Scientists

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01.08.2012 - (idw) Goethe-Universitt Frankfurt am Main

Ivan Dikic will receive the William C. Rose Award 2013 FRANKFURT. Prof. Ivan Dikic, Head of the Institute of Biochemistry II and Director of the Buchmann Institute of Molecular Life Sciences at the Goethe University Frankfurt, was awarded with the William C. Rose Award 2013, as announced today by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

With this Award, the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology recognizes outstanding contributions of Ivan Dikic to biochemical and molecular biological research and in particular his pioneering work in understanding the Ubiquitin Code that regulates multiple biological processes. The Award consists of a plaque and 3.000 US$ and will the awarded at the Annual Meeting in Spring, 2013, where Prof. DIkic will be invited to present his research.

Ivan Dikic has been working at the Medical Faculty of the Goethe University in Frankfurt since 2002. More then 10 years ago, he started to concentrate his work on the Ubiquitin Research. Prof. Dikic showed that Ubiquitin acts as a multivalent cellular signal recognized by an expanding number of binding proteins that in turn translate this molecular signal into appropriate cellular phenotypes. His group have identified several novel Ubiquitin binding domains and used structural and functional studies to demonstrate their roles in the regulation of DNA repair, inflammation, receptor endocytosis, and proteasomal degradation. Despite their biological relevance, modern-day tools to study Ub chains in their physiological environment remain rudimentary and mainly focus on the biochemical characterization of chains, substrates or ubiquitin-binding domains (UBDs). Lately, Ivan Dikics group described the development and in vivo application of highly versatile chain-specific Ub sensors.

Informations: Prof. Ivan Dikic, Institut fr Biochemie II and Buchmann Institute for Molecular Lifesciences, Campus Niederrad, Tel.: (069) 6301-5652; ivan.dikic@biochem2.de function fbs_click() {u=location.href;t=document.title;window.open('http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u='+encodeURIComponent(u)+'&t='+encodeURIComponent(t),'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=626,height=436');return false;} html .fb_share_link { padding:2px 0 0 20px; height:16px; background:url(http://static.ak.facebook.com/images/share/facebook_share_icon.gif?6:26981) no-repeat top left; } Share on Facebook Weitere Informationen: http://www2.uni-frankfurt.de/42409151/038

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American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology honors outstanding Scientists

Setting IT User Policies That Work

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The wave of new age technologies that are invading the enterprise hasspurred the debate on who sets IT user policy and how organizations cancontrol it. Richard H. Thaler, a Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, in his paper- "Test, Adapt, Learn: Developing Public Policy with Randomised Controlled Trials" cites two principles that help policymakers create good policies that work for normal people:

- If you want to encourage some activity, make it easy.

- You can't make evidence-based policy decisions without evidence.

"These are exactly the principles that CIOs should apply when making decisions and rolling out a workforce technology, be it a social business and collaboration strategy, hardware refresh, tablet deployment, teleworking strategy, desktop virtualization program, or anyother technology program that touches a lot of employees," writes Ted Schadler, Vice President, Principal Analyst at Forrester Research in hisblog.

Be it full-fledged enterprise mobility or accessing corporate e-mail over the phone, there needs to be a specific set of rules and guidelinesincorporated in the user policy that defines who gets to do what, when and where. The conversation titled ' Who Sets IT User Policy? A CIO Power Panel Discussion' at the Computerworld IT Roadmap event held across the three cities of Bangalore Mumbai and Delhi threw up multiple points of view on the ownership of the policies, the implementers and how to gain maximum compliance.

While creating an effective IT user policy falls under the domain of IT, Sudhir Reddy, CIO, MindTree believes that it is not the sole responsibility of IT. "While a large portion of the responsibility restson the shoulder of IT, policy building is a very collaborative and consultative effort," he says.

Sunil Mehta, Sr. VP & Area Systems Director- Central Asia, JWTconcurs, "User policies cannot be developed by IT in isolation and willhave to be a consultative process with the departments involved. IT cannot the big daddy of the organization and dictate terms for everything".

The development of user policy is a balancing act since there are internal stakeholders other than the CIO within the organization and there are customers and external partners. Ranga Raj, CIO, CelStream states, "Organizations need to look at what makes sense keeping in mind the strategies of all parties involved".

Once the user policies are built collaboratively it needs to be communicated to the employees in an easily understandable format. The onus of ensuring user compliancedoes rest with IT. "Even though the development of the policy is a consultative effort, IT still owns it. There will be instances where IT will have to put its foot down and decide the course of action," says Guruprasad Murty, VP-IT & IS, Microland.

Mehta feels that, as the custodian of corporate data, it becomes the responsibility of IT to create the user policies in a way that the users are motivated to follow the guidelines. "We crunch our policies into 5 action points and send those to users along with the detailed policy document that is attached for their reference," he adds.

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Setting IT User Policies That Work

Wild Goose's Commitment to Inclusion Has Led to Rapidly Growing Crowds and Demand for a Second Festival Site, Wild …

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Wild Goose, a grassroots festival at the intersection of justice, spirituality, music and art, has found a winning formula: welcome everyone. As their commitment to diversity continues, so has their growth and expansion.CORVALLIS, OREGON (PRWEB) August 01, 2012 By some accounts, it might seem the Wild Goose Festival—which just hosted its 2nd North Carolina event—has found its niche. ...

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Wild Goose's Commitment to Inclusion Has Led to Rapidly Growing Crowds and Demand for a Second Festival Site, Wild ...

Snoop Dogg Shares How He Becomes Lion in Trailer for 'Reincarnated' Documentary

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August 01, 2012 06:13:31 GMT Admitting he's tired of rapping, Tha Doggfather embarks on a journey in Jamaica where he gets a spiritual enlightenment and declares, 'I always said I was Bob Marley reincarnated.'

has debuted a trailer for his documentary film "". In the sneak peek, the rapper-turned-reggae artist shares the story behind the making of his new album of the same name and his transformation into Snoop Lion. "F*** Snoop Dogg... All that s*** be out here. Rastafari called me," so he says of his trip to Jamaica which inspires him to become his new Reggae persona.

In the video, Snoop states that he is the reincarnation of as claiming, "I always said I was Bob Marley reincarnated." Explaining that he's already tired of rapping, the 40-year-old artist meets a high priest in Jamaica to get a spiritual enlightenment. "No more. You are the light; you are the lion," so the priest tells him.

In partnership with Snoopadelic Films, VICE Films presents "Reincarnated". The documentary follows Snoop as he embarks on a journey to Jamaica to record an album with Diplo. While there, Snoop, who finds himself embraced by the Jamaican people, is positively impacted by Rastafarian culture and eventually becomes reincarnated as Snoop Lion.

The documentary will premiere during the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival in September.

AceShowbiz.com

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Snoop Dogg Shares How He Becomes Lion in Trailer for 'Reincarnated' Documentary

Russia launches ship on same-day trip to space station

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A robotic Russian cargo ship launched toward the International Space Station Wednesday to deliver a fresh load of supplies and test a new same-day docking plan that, if successful, will make it the first spacecraft ever to arrive at the orbiting lab within hours of liftoff.

The unmanned Progress 48 cargo ship blasted off atop a Soyuz rocket at 3:35 p.m. EDT (1935 GMT) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in central Asia. It was early Thursday morning local time at the site of the Russian spaceport. Since the spacecraft is attempting a novel same-day rendezvous and docking maneuver, it should arrive at the space station roughly six hours after liftoff, NASA officials said.

If everything goes according to plan, Progress 48 will arrive at the space station tonight at 9:24 p.m. EDT (0124 GMT Aug. 2). The robotic spacecraft will automatically park at the Pirs docking compartment on the Russian segment of the outpost.

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Russia is aiming to eventually implement this same-day docking plan for future manned flights of Soyuz space capsules to the International Space Station.

"They're looking to eventually take this into the Soyuz phase," Dan Harman, NASA's space station manager of operations and integration, said in a news briefing last week. "If you can get the crew to orbit in six hours and onboard the International Space Station, that could be a tremendous benefit over the two-plus days it takes today." [ Photos: Russia's 1st Same-Day Cargo Ship Flight to Space Station ]

Shortening the orbital chase Progress and Soyuz vehicles typically spend two days chasing the space station in orbit after launch. A quicker arrival to the orbiting complex could cut down the overall amount of consumables such as food, water and fuel needed for the onboard crew.

Docking to the station within hours of launch also minimizes the amount of time the astronauts spend inside the small Soyuz capsule, which could improve the comfort of the spaceflyers, said space station flight director Chris Edelen.

"The quicker rendezvous that you have, the less consumables you would need for the first day, and the better crew comfort in a small capsule," he said.

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Russia launches ship on same-day trip to space station

Armadillo's reusable rocket licensed for launch

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ARMADILLOS don't often get permission to travel into space.

Last Thursday the US Federal Aviation Administration awarded Armadillo Aerospace of Heath, Texas, a launch licence for its suborbital rocket Stig-B. It is only the third licence issued so far for a reusable launch vehicle. SpaceX's Falcon 9, which famously sent the first private craft to the International Space Station, isn't yet reusable.

The US government is liable for any damages caused by private launches, so applications to reach the high frontier are carefully scrutinised. Founded in 2000, Armadillo has carried out more than 200 test flights at lower altitudes, including sending its Stig-A rocket 95 kilometres up in February. The firm hopes the first Stig-B will launch by the end of August.

The goal for firms such as Armadillo is to develop a low-cost, refuellable rocket that is robust enough to fly repeatedly, like a jet plane. "The licensing of Stig-B shows that such a vehicle is ready to fly and to start making money," says Clark Lindsey of space industry blog HobbySpace.com.

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Armadillo's reusable rocket licensed for launch

Canadian Space Agency 'Eyes' Hubble's Successor

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The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) on Monday said that it has delivered its contribution to the James Webb Space Telescope (Webb), successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. The instrument arrived at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Baltimore, Maryland, Monday morning, where it will be integrated into the largest, most complex and most powerful telescope ever built. Scheduled to be launched in 2018, the Webb is a joint project between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the CSA

"I'm very pleased-and privileged-that the Canadian Space Agency is supporting NASA and ESA on such an amazing international project," said Steve MacLean, President of the CSA. "There is a critical difference between Hubble and the Webb. The Webb telescope will be located 1.5 million kilometres from Earth- too far away to be serviced as we did with Hubble. At that distance, the technology simply has to work. So the work done by the Canadian team has to be exactly right."

The Canadian two-in-one instrument is the second of Webb's four instruments to be delivered. It consists of the Webb's Fine Guidance Sensor (FGS), which will direct the telescope precisely, and the Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (or NIRISS) science instrument. Both were designed, built and tested by COM DEV International in Ottawa and Cambridge, Ontario, with technical contributions from the Universit de Montral and the National Research Council of Canada, and under the leadership of the FGS science team. The CSA's contribution guarantees Canadian astronomers a share of observing time once the telescope launches.

The FGS consists of two identical cameras that are critical to Webb's ability to "see." Their images will allow the telescope to determine its position, locate its celestial targets, and remain pointed to collect high-quality data. The FGS will guide the telescope with incredible precision, with an accuracy of one millionth of a degree. NIRISS will have unique capabilities for finding the earliest and most distant objects in the Universe's history. It will also peer through the glare of nearby young stars to unveil new Jupiter-like exoplanets. It will have the capability of detecting the thin atmosphere of small, habitable, earth-like planets and determine its chemical composition to seek water vapour, carbon dioxide and other potential biomarkers such as methane and oxygen.

"Scientists across the world must remember when they get their data from the Webb telescope, all of those results bear the imprint of the successful hardware contribution that Canada is providing today, because none of it would be possible without the FGS's capabilities," said Dr Eric P Smith, Deputy Program Director for the Webb telescope at NASA. "We thank the team and celebrate the effort of the CSA, its primary industrial partner, COM DEV, and the Canadian academic community for their delivery of this critical component for the James Webb Space Telescope."

The FGS-NIRISS science team is jointly led by Dr John Hutchings of the National Research Council Canada and Professor Ren Doyon from the Universit de Montral, Director of the Mont-Mgantic Observatory and member of the Centre de recherche en astrophysique du Qubec (CRAQ). The team includes astronomers from: COM DEV; the National Research Council Canada; Saint Mary's University; the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI); the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich); the Universit de Montral; the University of Rochester; and the University of Toronto.

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Canadian Space Agency 'Eyes' Hubble's Successor

2012 NASA Advanced Technology Concepts Selected For Study

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NASA's Space Technology Program is turning science fiction into science fact. The program has selected 28 proposals for study under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program.

Eighteen of these advanced concept proposals were categorized as Phase I and 10 as Phase II. They were selected based on their potential to transform future aerospace missions, enable new capabilities, or significantly alter and improve current approaches to launching, building and operating aerospace systems.

The selected proposals include a broad range of imaginative concepts, including a submarine glider to explore the ice-covered ocean of Europa, an air purification system with no moving parts, and a system that could use in situ lunar regolith to autonomously build concrete structures on the moon.

"These selections represent the best and most creative new ideas for future technologies that have the potential to radically improve how NASA missions explore new frontiers," said Michael Gazarik, director of NASA's Space Technology Program at the agency's headquarters in Washington. "Through the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program, NASA is taking the long-term view of technological investment and the advancement that is essential for accomplishing our missions. We are inventing the ways in which next-generation aircraft and spacecraft will change the world and inspiring Americans to take bold steps."

NIAC Phase I awards of approximately $100,000 for one year enable proposers to explore basic feasibility and properties of a potential breakthrough concept. NIAC Phase II awards of as much as $500,000 for two years help further develop the most successful Phase I concepts and analyze their potential to enable new or radically improved future NASA missions and potential applications with benefits for industry and society.

"We're excited to be launching Phase II, allowing the 2012 NIAC portfolio to feature an exciting combination of new ideas and continued development of last year's Phase I concepts," said Jay Falker, NIAC program executive at NASA Headquarters.

NASA solicited visionary, long-term concepts for technological maturation based on their potential value to NASA's future space missions and operational needs. These projects were chosen through a peer-review process that evaluated their innovation and how technically viable they are. All are very early in development -- 10 years or longer from use on a mission.

NASA's early investment and partnership with creative scientists, engineers, and citizen inventors from across the nation will provide technological dividends and help maintain America's leadership in the global technology economy.

The portfolio of diverse and innovative ideas selected for NIAC awards represent multiple technology areas, including power, propulsion, structures, and avionics, as identified in NASA's Space Technology Roadmaps. The roadmaps provide technology paths needed to meet NASA's strategic goals.

NIAC is part of NASA's Space Technology Program, which is innovating, developing, testing, and flying hardware for use in NASA's future missions. These competitively-awarded projects are creating new technological solutions for NASA and our nation's future.

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2012 NASA Advanced Technology Concepts Selected For Study