Travel magazine lists Jollibee among the world's best fast-food chains

Tourists who want a taste of the Philippines will be spoiled for choice, with tasty dishes from adobo to pinikpikan. But for the busy traveler, perhaps a meal of Chickenjoy or palabok will do just the trick.

The famous Chickenjoy. Laurel Fantauzzo

The list released in May 2012 includes maritime-themed chain Nordsee in Germany, noodle chain Mr. Lee in China, and street snack chain Old Chang Kee in Singapore.

At Jollibee, fast food gets a Filipino twistthe burgers come with a sweet, creamy sauce and the spaghetti comes with hotdogs. But it's the fried chicken and local noodle dish that star in Travel and Leisure's list.

"There are more than 700 locations across the country, serving everything from fried chicken and hamburgers to local favorites like palabok, rice noodles with meat sauce, shrimp, and hard-boiled egg," they say, recommending the Spicy Chickenjoy.

According to Travel and Leisure, "fast-food chains aren't exactly hidden gems...but they have their own quirky appeal and dish out a quick fix of local culture and cuisine."

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Travel magazine lists Jollibee among the world's best fast-food chains

World's top 15 travel destinations

(MoneyWatch) Life in the U.S. in the debris of the Great Recession is slowly beginning to improve. Consumer confidence, while still sensitive to trouble signs (Greece, anyone?), is creeping up. One sure sign: More American are taking vacations. According to recent data from the U.S. Office of Travel and Tourism Industries(OTTI), 8.1 million people traveled abroad in the first two months of the year. That's a six percent increase over the same time period in 2011.

Americans who want to travel internationally but not contend with Europe's unfavorable exchange rate are turning to less expensive destinations. Through February, travel to Central American had risen 25 percent and was up 11 percent to Asia, according to OTTI. Along with affordability, increased travel to these parts of the world was driven partly by the many tourist-friendly cities in the regions.

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TheUN World Tourism Organization(UNWTO) reports that Thailand is quickly becoming a go-to tourist destination. It's the most popular country in Southeast Asia for international travelers and last year came in as the No. 11 country in the world as ranked by tourism receipts. Malaysia was No. 14 and Singapore No. 15

According to UNWTO, Thailand was one of five international destinations whose tourism receipts grew by more than $5 billion in 2011. The other four countries who saw a similar jump in tourism were the U.S., Spain, France, and Hong Kong.

Although a growing number of Americans are traveling to Latin America and Asia, Europe remains the most popular destination, with travel to the region up 9 percent in the first two months of the year. It's not just U.S. tourists flocking to Europe -- despite its economic woes, Europe draws the largest share of global tourism, at 45 percent. Tourism brought $463 billion into the European economy in 2011.

If Europe as a whole is the most popular region for travel, the U.S. is easily the world's most visited country as ranked by how much foreign travelers spend. The U.S. last year brought in more than $116 billion in tourism receipts, nearly double second-place Spain ($59.3 billion), according to UNWTO. France ($53.8 billion), China ($58.5 billion), and Italy ($43 billion round out the top five.

United Nations World Tourism Barometer Top destinations by international tourism receipts (based on 2011 data)

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World's top 15 travel destinations

Scientists Discover Marker to Identify, Attack Breast Cancer Stem Cells

Cell surface protein blows potent cells cover; targeted drug works in preclinical tests

Newswise HOUSTON Breast cancer stem cells wear a cell surface protein that is part nametag and part bulls eye, identifying them as potent tumor-generating cells and flagging their vulnerability to a drug, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report online in Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Weve discovered a single marker for breast cancer stem cells and also found that its targetable with a small molecule drug that inhibits an enzyme crucial to its synthesis, said co-senior author Michael Andreeff, M.D., Ph.D., professor in MD Andersons Departments of Leukemia and Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy.

Andreeff and colleagues are refining the drug as a potential targeted therapy for breast cancer stem cells, which are thought to be crucial to therapy resistance, disease progression and spread to other organs.

Its been difficult to identify cancer stem cells in solid tumors, Andreeff said. And nobody has managed to target these cells very well.

The marker is the cell surface protein ganglioside GD2. The drug is triptolide, an experimental drug that Andreeff has used in preclinical leukemia research. The team found triptolide blocks expression of GD3 synthase, which is essential to GD2production.

Triptolide stymied cancer growth in cell line experiments and resulted in smaller tumors and prolonged survival in mouse experiments. Drug development for human trials probably will take several years.

Cancer stem cells are similar to normal stem cells

Research in several types of cancer has shown cancer stem cells are a small subpopulation of cancer cells that are capable of long-term self-renewal and generation of new tumors. More recent research shows they resist treatment and promote metastasis.

Cancer stem cells are similar to normal stem cells that renew specialized tissues. The breast cancer findings grew out of Andreeffs long-term research in mesenchymal stem cells, which can divide into one copy of themselves and one differentiated copy of a bone, muscle, fat or cartilage cell.

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Scientists Discover Marker to Identify, Attack Breast Cancer Stem Cells

QualityStocks News – International Stem Cell Scientists to Present Pre-Clinical Research Results at Gene and Cell …

Results to demonstrate broad application of parthenogenetic stem cells.Scottsdale, AZ (PRWEB) May 16, 2012 QualityStocks would like to highlight International Stem Cell Corporation, a publicly traded company focused on the therapeutic applications of human parthenogenetic stem cells (hpSCs) and the development and commercialization of cell-based research and cosmetic products. ISCO's core ...

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Lenalidomide prolongs disease control for multiple myeloma patients after stem cell transplant

Public release date: 15-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Elisa Williams willieli@ohsu.edu 503-494-4530 Oregon Health & Science University

PORTLAND, Ore. Multiple myeloma patients are better equipped to halt progression of this blood cancer if treated with lenalidomide, or Revlimid, following a stem cell transplant, according to a study co-authored by a physician with the Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Institute.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found a 63 percent reduction in the risk of progressive myeloma or death for the stem cell transplant patients that were treated with lenalidomide maintenance therapy.

"These results add to the evidence that the combination of standard therapies such as stem cell transplantation with the emerging biologic therapies, like lenalidomide, have extended the lives of multiple myeloma patients," said Richard Maziarz, M.D., of the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute who was one of the study's co-authors. Maziarz serves as medical director of the Adult Stem Cell Transplantation Program & Center for Hematologic Malignancies at the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. "We know that for at least three years following a transplant that maintenance therapy with this drug vastly improves the chances that the cancer won't come back and worsen."

These data were supported by similar Phase III studies reported from France and Italy in the same issue of the New England Jounal of Medicine demonstrating that maintenance therapy after stem cell transplantation was associated with improved disease control.

Multiple myeloma is a cancer that affects plasma cells, a type of white blood cell normally responsible for producing antibodies. In patients impacted by multiple myeloma, collections of abnormal plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow, interfering with the production of normal blood cells. The study focused on patients who received an autologous hematopoietic cell transplant (AHCT). AHCT procedures use patients' own blood stem cells.

While lenalidomide increased a patient's ability to stave off progression of the disease, questions remain regarding future approaches recognizing that quality of life measurements were not incorporated within these studies, that long-term safety issues remain unclear as there was a small but discernable risk of second cancers observed in the treated patients. In addition to the need for that cost-benefit analysis, a comparison remains to be performed with other emerging myeloma maintenance therapies.

This Phase III study of lenalidomide was conducted at 47 medical centers and involved 568 patients. It was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Revlimid's manufacturer, Celgene Corp., provided the NCI with lenalidomide for this research.

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Lenalidomide prolongs disease control for multiple myeloma patients after stem cell transplant

Stem cell therapy to treat a chimp's torn ACL may prove beneficial for humans

Veterinarians hope a new medical procedure can treat a 25-year-old chimpanzee with a torn ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament, at the "Save the Chimps" in Florida.

The procedure involves injecting the chimp with her own stem cells.

"With chimps we don't want to do a lot of surgical work, put hardware in their knee, they tend to pull out that sort of thing," said Veterinarian Linda Gregard, M.D.

Dr. Darrell Nazareth with the Florida Veterinary League has been using stem cells to treat dogs with arthritis for the past two years, but this is his first chimp.

"We're not using embryonic stem cells, we're not taking embryos and taking their stem cells from there. We're just using the patient's own tissue," said Dr. Nazareth.

The technology harnesses the bodies own ability to heal itself and doctors hope it could find wider use in humans.

After injecting two billion stem cells into Angie's knee, doctors will find out in the next two to three weeks if the stem cell therapy treatment was successful.

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Stem cell therapy to treat a chimp's torn ACL may prove beneficial for humans

Be Part of a Movement that Is Transforming Medicine, Psychology and Spirituality

Dr. Cotton of AWAKEN Higher Brain Livingâ„¢ will host a presentation at the Crowne Plaza Indianapolis Airport Hotel May 31st to provide new career opportunities to professionals.Indianapolis, IN (PRWEB) May 15, 2012 In late May, Indianapolis will welcome Dr. Michael Cotton of AWAKEN Higher Brain Livingâ„¢ for an informational talk about his innovative transformational program known as Higher Brain ...

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Be Part of a Movement that Is Transforming Medicine, Psychology and Spirituality

#58 2012 Psychic Spiritual Enlightenment – kirk’s channel "Safe" to be "Present" 5/15 – Video

15-05-2012 11:51 2012 Psychic Spiritual awakening - internal mental shift in power energy light and Intelligence for a greater awakening - Enlight-en-ment - getting Light lighter and lighter every day in every way for healers shamen Indigos starseed Reiki masters students masters gurus teachers and more kirk's daily channel and channeling #58 for May 15/2012 topics: Restoring the flow internal flow healing within Emotional IQ Spiritual IQ releasing the original child hood type traumas and dramas and sub-conscious realities for greater joy and Love and energy flow Visualization - The River backed up or dammed up as an internal energy release being willing to release having permission to release having permission to be present safe to be present letting go of old masks of care taker hero scapegoat perfect child lost child mascot and more aligning with the greater reality of Divine Love - perfect and un-conditional and also seeing our fellow humans as giving "conditional" love and having human defects this way we are not living in a constant dis-appointment but can rely upon the constant Love - unconditional Love of our Higher Power and also live in a clear reality that people may fail us at times to be everything we want them to be turning a human into and expecting a human to have Divine qualities when they dont deifying our lovers - partners - friends etc and more kirk works in person with clients who would like assistance with a Divine Higher connection to their soul's purpose original ...

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#58 2012 Psychic Spiritual Enlightenment - kirk's channel "Safe" to be "Present" 5/15 - Video

US-Russian crew arrives at space station

An American astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts arrived at the International Space Station early Thursday, kicking off a four-month stay aboard the orbiting laboratory.

A Russian Soyuz spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Joe Acaba and cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Sergei Revin docked with the space station at 12:36 a.m. ET Thursday as the two spacecraft soared 249 miles above the border between Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

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Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Astronomers are taking a long, deep look at one of the best-known galaxies beyond our own Milky Way, to learn more about what happened when it gobbled up another agglomeration of stars that got too close.

"Everything went very smoothly, very well," Padalka radioed the Russian Federal Space Agency's Mission Control Center in Moscow just after docking.

For Acaba, the docking came as a welcome birthday present to mark his 45th birthday, NASA commentator Rob Navias said.

The three spacefliers were due to float into the orbiting lab's hatch overnight, bringing the station back up to its full crew of six. Their fellow Expedition 31 crew members NASA's Don Pettit, Dutch astronaut Andre Kuipers and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko have had the $100 billion orbiting complex to themselves since April 27.

Acaba, Padalka and Revin launched Monday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. They were originally scheduled to blast off on March 29, but a botched pressure test cracked their Soyuz capsule, causing a six-week delay while another spacecraft was readied. [See Spectacular Soyuz Launch Photos]

A four-month space stay The three new arrivals will live and work aboard the space station for four months, returning to Earth in mid-September. All will serve as flight engineers under Kononenko, the commander of the Expedition 31 mission.

Kononenko, Pettit and Kuipers boarded the orbiting lab in late December and are scheduled to depart on July 1.

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US-Russian crew arrives at space station

Astronaut Launches into Texas Tech Doctorate Program

The College of Education at Texas Tech announced a NASA astronaut has been accepted to its doctoral program in education. Joseph Acaba launched May 14 for a four-month tour of duty aboard the Russian Soyuz TMA-04M spacecraft as part of the team for Mission 31/32 to the International Space Station.

He also has been accepted to Texas Tech's new Blended Delivery Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with Specialization in Science Education for the cohort starting this fall.

Follow Acaba's mission via Twitter and a blog. Texas Tech Provost Bob Smith was delighted to learn that the College of Education has successfully recruited a second U.S. astronaut to be a Red Raider.

"When we hired our first Red Raider astronaut, Dean Al Sacco Jr., we underestimated the benefits his appointment would bring to Texas Tech," Smith said.

"We understand that Dean Sacco did play a role in recruiting astronaut Acaba to Texas Tech. Also, we know that both astronauts Acaba and Sacco have a passion for education of youth in science, engineering and technology.

"Our collective hope is that our Red Raider astronauts will be reaching greater numbers of young learners as astronaut Acaba joins us and progresses in his program."

Acaba will take classes online in his own personal time after he returns from the mission, said Walter Smith, Helen DeVitt Jones Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and advisor for the doctoral program. The nature of the online classes allows for flexibility.

"Joe has outstanding experience as a science teacher and seasoned astronaut," Walter Smith said. "He's joining a cohort of exceptional educators who already possess exemplary science education credentials and will make a difference in the world as a result of their Texas Tech doctorate."

Raised in Anaheim, Calif., Acaba earned a bachelor's in geology from the University of California-Santa Barbara in 1990 and a master's in geology from the University of Arizona in 1992. Acaba was selected as a mission specialist by NASA in 2004 and completed Astronaut Candidate Training in 2006.

Juan Munoz, Texas Tech's vice provost for Undergraduate Education, vice president for Institutional Diversity, Equity, and Community Engagement has known Acaba for more than 25 years, as a schoolmate, a U.S. Marine, a teacher, and now NASA astronaut.

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Astronaut Launches into Texas Tech Doctorate Program

Innovative Space Propulsion Systems Clears Flight Demonstration Hurdle

NOFBX Green Propulsion Demonstration Passes ISS Safety Review

Innovative Space Propulsion Systems (ISPS) has passed another critical milestone in their progress toward the launch of their NOFBX green propulsion demonstration to the International Space Station (ISS). ISPS is working toward demonstrating their high-performance, non-toxic and environmentally-benign propulsion technology on the ISS under an award from the NASA ISS National Laboratory program. In April, ISPS passed NASAs ISS Payload Safety Review Panel phase 1 review.

Satisfying the safety panel is an incredibly high bar for any new technology, said Greg Mungas, President of ISPS. Safety is obviously paramount for the space station and this review panel has been thorough and uncompromising in their scrutiny of every technical aspect of our demonstration.

The ISPS NOFBX Green Propellant Demonstration involves launching a deep-throttling 440 N (100-lbf) engine assembly and associated feed system to the ISS in mid-2013. It will be carried in the unpressurized cargo compartment of SpaceXs Dragon spacecraft on one of its cargo delivery missions. Once Dragon berths with the space station, the robotic arm will extract the NOFBX test pallet from Dragon and place it on the outside of the European Columbus module. It will remain in orbit for one year and undergo a suite of in-space performance validation tests including steady-state, pulses, throttling and long-term storage and re-start demonstrations.

NOFBX is an American, nitrous-oxide-based monopropellant spacecraft technology with performance rivaling state-of-the-art hypergolic propulsion systems, but without many of the hazards and overhead associated with toxic storable propellants. It has many diverse applications including spacecraft, launch vehicles and landers.

We appreciate the opportunity to work with the ISS PSRP, added Mungas. Their input provides benefits to all our customers - even those operating with less stringent safety requirements. Obtaining the go-ahead from this team is a huge step forward for NOFBX.

SOURCE: Innovative Space Propulsion Systems (ISPS)

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Innovative Space Propulsion Systems Clears Flight Demonstration Hurdle

Outdoors: Losing your heads against fishing rules

Question: I was wondering if it's mandatory to have to give up my salmon heads when the volunteer fish checkers come around to measure my fish? I thought it was my choice. Gary B

Answer: Yes, it's mandatory. The surveyors at the dock collecting heads are not volunteers; they are paid, trained and educated biologists. Anglers in possession of a salmon with a clipped adipose fin are required to relinquish the head to these Department of Fish and Game employees.

Q: There is a red-shouldered hawk that frequents my daughter's deck in San Rafael. The hawk seems to enjoy scanning from the railing for critters it might like to eat. This bird appears to have a silver tag on its right leg just above the claw, but I can't read the writing. I was wondering if DFG or any agencies that you know of have a tagging program for hawks? Ken M., Oakland

A: Yes, there are numerous researchers in and outside of California who capture and mark birds. Carrie Battistone, the Department of Fish and Game's raptor biologist, says identification bands should be reported to the USGS Bird Banding Lab (BBL) at http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbl/. If someone sees a marked bird, such as this red-shouldered hawk, they can report it by accessing BBL's Web site and clicking the "Report a Bird Band or Marked Bird" link. This national program allows researchers to study bird movement (dispersal and migration patterns), survival, population trends and more.

Many bands are reported when a bird is recaptured or dies. Reading the band number can be hard, but not impossible, on live birds. In addition to silver bands, researchers also use color bands which usually are easier to identify.

Q: If an area is posted "closed to fishing," like the stretch of the Feather River between the green bridge in Oroville and the fish hatchery, is it still OK to use crayfish traps? Or are crayfish traps considered "fishing"? Al C., Oroville

A: No, you cannot use crayfish traps on a posted stretch. Lt. Sam Castillo of the DFG says this particular area is "Closed to all fishing all year." The law is inclusive of all species and is not specific to trout and salmon. Some other no-fishing areas will allow for the take of amphibians, fresh water clams, crayfish and lampreys, but this isn't one of them.

Q: We do not have a concealed carry permit but while camping we keep a loaded pistol in our camper for personal protection. We would prefer not to leave it in the camper while we are out on the boat fishing. Is it legal to carry a loaded pistol on a boat while fishing in the ocean? If so, does it have to be in plain sight or can it be kept in a glove box on the boat? Lisa G., Granite Bay

A: In general, you cannot possess a loaded, concealed handgun when in a public place. There is an exception for licensed anglers and hunters, who are allowed to carry a concealed firearm when engaged in hunting or fishing. A summary of firearms laws is available online at http://dfg.ca.gov/enforcement/.

Carrie Wilson is a marine biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game. Contact her at CalOutdoors@dfg.ca.gov.

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Outdoors: Losing your heads against fishing rules