I hope you like motion control because it ain't going nowhere. Microsoft just announced its new Kinect and though it's not literally wired into the Xbox One, it'll be coming with every One sold. But this time, Kinect is less about about gaming, and more about media than ever.
Kinect has always had voice control built in, but now Microsoft is pressing it harder than ever. Virtually everything on the Xbox One can be controlled by voice, thanks to the Kinect's ears. Its eyes factor in too, letting users perform subtle hand gestures while sitting down (!!!) to control the interface without any controller in sight.
Kinect also behaves as the control hub for your whole Xbox One experience. When you sit down on the couch with your controller in your hand, Kinect will take note, and turn your system on for you. Creepy, but awesome.
Kinect's innards are beefier than ever. Its new sensors can not only pick up on all your joints, and model your body, extrapolating things like your balance, and even figuring out your heartbeat from just staring at you. That last bit alone means its camera must be damned serious. It can pick up video at 60 FPS in 1080p, and has a field of view that's 60 percent bigger than the old Kinect's.
And this time, Kinect is outfitted with a modulated IR beam and "time-of-flight," radar-esque tech that tracks the time it takes photons to bounce off the room in front of it. That should do away with the pesky lighting issues that plagued the original Kinect. The new Kinect should work in complete darkness, if you're into that.
From a practical perspective the new Kinect will doubtlessly be able to see little things like faces, and open versus closed hands, instead of guessing along with what vague body-shapes it can make out. And it'll have to if it wants to go toe-to-toe with the Playstation 4 Eye, which boasts 1280x800, Kinect-style body tracking, an 85-degree field of view, and works with accessories (including the DualShock 4 controller) as well as on its own.
All that said, the first Kinect looked pretty damned impressive when it was first shown off, and then it turned out to be not nearly as awesome (or functional) in the wild. Microsoft has doubtlessly learned a lot from the experience though, and they're betting big big big on their whole "you are the controller thing" so hopefully that means some genuinely awesome motion control gaming this time around. And even if not, the comprehensive media control makes Kinect way more than some peripheral. Not like you've got a choice of whether or not you want one anyway.
May 21, 2013 ? Children who have suffered maltreatment are 36% more likely to be obese in adulthood compared to non-maltreated children, according to a new study by King's College London. The authors estimate that the prevention or effective treatment of 7 cases of child maltreatment could avoid 1 case of adult obesity.
The findings come from the combined analysis of data from 190,285 individuals from 41 studies worldwide, published this week in Molecular Psychiatry.
Severe childhood maltreatment (physical, sexual or emotional abuse or neglect) affects approximately 1 in 5 children (under 18) in the UK. In addition to the long-term mental health consequences of maltreatment, there is increasing evidence that child maltreatment may affect physical health.
Dr Andrea Danese, child and adolescent psychiatrist from King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry and lead author of the study says: "We found that being maltreated as a child significantly increased the risk of obesity in adult life. Prevention of child maltreatment remains paramount and our findings highlight the serious long-term health effects of these experiences."
Although experimental studies in animal models have previously suggested that early life stress is associated with an increased risk of obesity, evidence from population studies has been inconsistent. This new study comprehensively assessed the evidence from all existing population studies to explore the potential sources of inconsistency.
In their meta-analysis, the authors were able to rule out specific factors which might explain the link -- they found that childhood maltreatment was associated with adult obesity independently of the measures or definitions used for maltreatment or obesity, childhood or adult socio-economic status, current smoking, alcohol intake, or physical activity. Additionally, childhood maltreatment was not linked to obesity in children and adolescents, making it unlikely that the link was explained by reverse causality (i.e. children are maltreated because they were obese).
However, the analysis showed that when current depression was taken into account, the link between childhood maltreatment and adult obesity was no longer significant, suggesting that depression might help explain why some maltreated individuals become obese.
Previous studies offer possible biological explanations for this link. Maltreated individuals may eat more because of the effects of early life stress on areas of the developing brain linked to inhibition of feeding, or on hormones regulating appetite. Alternatively, maltreated individuals may burn fewer calories because of the effects of early life stress on the immune system leading to fatigue and reduced activity. The authors add that these hypotheses will need to be directly tested in future studies.
Dr Danese adds: "If the association is causal as suggested by animal studies, childhood maltreatment could be seen as a potentially modifiable risk factor for obesity -- a health concern affecting one third of the population and often resistant to interventions.
He concludes: "Additional research is needed to clarify if and how the effects of child maltreatment on obesity could be alleviated through interventions after maltreatment has occurred. Our next step will be to explore the mechanisms behind this link."
Patented system bolsters security of information stored on electronic devicesPublic release date: 21-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Joe Kullman joe.kullman@asu.edu 480-965-8122 Arizona State University
TEMPE, Ariz. Arizona State University computer scientist Gail-Joon Ahn has been granted a U.S. patent for a novel identity management system that helps protect personal identity information stored in digital devices.
The patent is the result of a 10-year project Ahn began in 2003 as an associate professor at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte (UNC Charlotte), where he was the founding director of the Center for Digital Identity and Cyber Defense Research.
Ahn is now an associate professor and a Fulton Entrepreneurial Professor in the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering, one of ASU's Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.
He's also founder and chief technology officer of GFS Technology, an ASU-incubated company set up to commercialize his mobile security technologies.
GFS Technology focuses on identity management solutions and also works on a platform for mobile users whose mobile devices are used for work, eCommerce, financial transactions and Internet use. The technology protects against insecure connections, hackers, phishers and identity thieves by targeting four layers of vulnerability: networks, applications, services and data.
Ahn's platform stems from a more ambitious project to produce a "mobile wallet" that can safely store a person's "digital presence" and other personal information on a mobile device.
"This invention is just one piece," Ahn says. "There are a lot of other applications for this technology."
GFS Technology's solutions can be used for anything from ensuring confidential business transactions to securely purchasing groceries at the supermarket.
"This invention can create a new paradigm in terms of purchasing transactions in the mobile computing community," he explains.
Ahn led a research project on the identity management solution for Bank of America for five years when he was at UNC Charlotte, but due to economic restrictions at the time Bank of America could not afford the technology. When Ahn came to ASU in 2008, he brought his security research project with him.
The Open Invention Network, a North Carolina-based company, purchased and licensed Ahn's work at ASU in 2009, including an invention that protects customers' identity. The company's clients include large corporations such as IBM and Cisco.
When Open Invention Network licensed Ahn's work, the company filed seven patent applications in his name. "ASU realized it was very valuable," Ahn says, and Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE) the university's intellectual property management and technology transfer organization then helped to develop GFS Technology.
The patent on the identity management system is the first Ahn has received. He has six pending patents for the digital security platform, along with two other security patents pending on systems that focus on picture-password authentication and Internet security.
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Patented system bolsters security of information stored on electronic devicesPublic release date: 21-May-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Joe Kullman joe.kullman@asu.edu 480-965-8122 Arizona State University
TEMPE, Ariz. Arizona State University computer scientist Gail-Joon Ahn has been granted a U.S. patent for a novel identity management system that helps protect personal identity information stored in digital devices.
The patent is the result of a 10-year project Ahn began in 2003 as an associate professor at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte (UNC Charlotte), where he was the founding director of the Center for Digital Identity and Cyber Defense Research.
Ahn is now an associate professor and a Fulton Entrepreneurial Professor in the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering, one of ASU's Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.
He's also founder and chief technology officer of GFS Technology, an ASU-incubated company set up to commercialize his mobile security technologies.
GFS Technology focuses on identity management solutions and also works on a platform for mobile users whose mobile devices are used for work, eCommerce, financial transactions and Internet use. The technology protects against insecure connections, hackers, phishers and identity thieves by targeting four layers of vulnerability: networks, applications, services and data.
Ahn's platform stems from a more ambitious project to produce a "mobile wallet" that can safely store a person's "digital presence" and other personal information on a mobile device.
"This invention is just one piece," Ahn says. "There are a lot of other applications for this technology."
GFS Technology's solutions can be used for anything from ensuring confidential business transactions to securely purchasing groceries at the supermarket.
"This invention can create a new paradigm in terms of purchasing transactions in the mobile computing community," he explains.
Ahn led a research project on the identity management solution for Bank of America for five years when he was at UNC Charlotte, but due to economic restrictions at the time Bank of America could not afford the technology. When Ahn came to ASU in 2008, he brought his security research project with him.
The Open Invention Network, a North Carolina-based company, purchased and licensed Ahn's work at ASU in 2009, including an invention that protects customers' identity. The company's clients include large corporations such as IBM and Cisco.
When Open Invention Network licensed Ahn's work, the company filed seven patent applications in his name. "ASU realized it was very valuable," Ahn says, and Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE) the university's intellectual property management and technology transfer organization then helped to develop GFS Technology.
The patent on the identity management system is the first Ahn has received. He has six pending patents for the digital security platform, along with two other security patents pending on systems that focus on picture-password authentication and Internet security.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
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Actors Barry Williams (Greg Brady), Christopher Knight (Peter Brady) and Susan Olsen (Cindy Brady) went to the Cincinnati-area theme park Sunday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of a popular episode of the iconic 1970s TV show.
The episode that aired in 1973 was filmed at Kings Island. The episode entitled "The Cincinnati Kids" involved the family visiting Kings Island so dad Mike Brady (Robert Reed) can present his architectural plans for a new addition to the park.
The three actors entertained park guests during four shows of singing, dancing and anecdotes from the show that ran from 1969 to 1974. They also met fans and sign autographs.
USA Today reported that Barry Williams (Greg Brady) was the unofficial host of the shows Sunday.
?He came out first and introduced the others. He talked about the clips, and he did a little Johnny Bravo. And in truth, Williams remains quite groovy. His skin is tan, his hair is dark, and his pants still fit just right.
And everybody loved it. At the first of four shows Sunday, there was not an empty seat in the 844-seat venue. People who couldn't get into the first show were given wristbands for the second. There were already enough to fill the place for all four shows.
"I think everybody, at some point in their life, wanted to be a Brady," Williamson said, sounding quite reasonable. "Their whole family seemed so perfect. They were so nice. I think it resonates with the child in all of us to want to be Brady."
First New Ship Will Set Sail on Destination-Focused Itineraries in 2015; Maiden Voyages Now Available for Booking
Viking Cruises has announced the launch of its ocean product line, Viking Ocean Cruises, marking the introduction of the travel industry?s first new cruise line in nearly a decade. Developed from the ground up to return the focus of cruising to the destination, Viking Ocean Cruises will begin sailing in May 2015 with its first vessel?Viking Star?embarking on maiden voyages in Scandinavia and the Baltic; and the Western and Eastern Mediterranean. ?Viking Cruises has aggressive expansion plans in both the ocean and river cruise categories, with a second ocean ship on order for delivery in 2016 and conditional orders and options for four more additional ocean vessels. The ocean ship order follows the company?s continued rapid fleet expansion in the river cruise sector, with 10 new river ships recently christened in March of this year and 12 new river ships planned to launch in 2014.
?It is our view that in the race to build bigger ships, many cruise lines have lost sight of the destinations to which they sail,? said Torstein Hagen , Chairman of Viking Cruises. ?With our new ocean cruises, we are applying the same principles behind our award-winning river cruises to our itinerary and ship design; privileged-access excursions; and onboard experiences to make destinations the true focus.?
Leveraging extensive feedback and input from Viking River Cruises passengers, Viking Ocean Cruises was developed with experienced travelers in mind. Itineraries are curated for maximum time in port, often with late evenings or overnights, so guests can experience local nightlife or evening performances. Ports include both cosmopolitan cities and ?collector ports,? and appeal to those with an interest in history, art and culture. In addition, all-inclusive pricing provides unparalleled value?with every cruise fare including a veranda stateroom, shore excursions in each port of call, all onboard meals, and all port charges and government taxes. Passengers also enjoy many complimentary amenities as part of their fare, including: beer and wine with lunch and dinner service; wi-fi; self-service laundry and 24-hour room service?a value of more than $2,400 per couple for an average cruise.
Viking Star
Classified by Cruise Critic as a ?small ship,? the new 928-passenger all-veranda Viking Star is engineered at a scale that allows direct access into most ports, so guests have easy and efficient embarkation and debarkation. The ship?s understated elegance and modern Scandinavian design is crafted for maximum guest comfort. Highlighted features include:
All Veranda Staterooms: Guests can choose from five stateroom categories, starting from a 270 sq. ft. veranda stateroom, all with private verandas, king-size beds, large showers, and LCD TVs.
Explorer Suites:Viking Star?s 14 Explorer Suites are two-room suites ranging from 757 to 1,448 sq. ft. and offer sweeping views from wrap-around private verandas as well as the most amenities and privileges of any category onboard.
Two Pool Choices: In addition to the Main Pool with a retractable dome permitting any-season swimming, Viking Star features one of the only infinity pools at sea, allowing passengers to swim surrounded by their destination in a glass-backed pool cantilevered off the stern.
The Spa: In keeping with Viking?s Nordic heritage, The Spa onboard Viking Star is designed with the holistic wellness philosophy of Scandinavia in mind?from the centuries-old tradition of the sauna to a ?snow grotto? where snowflakes gently descend from the ceiling through chilled air.
Explorers? Lounge and Wintergarden: Spaces designed to facilitate mingling and storytelling, the two-deck Explorers? Lounge at the bow of the ship is the perfect spot for taking in scenery through double-height windows over a glass of aquavit or pint of local craft beer; and the Wintergarden is a serene environment in which to relax and enjoy afternoon tea service complete with a curated tea selection.
Dining Choices: Viking Star offers multiple restaurant locations and food choices?from The Restaurant and the World Cafe, serving a variety of global cuisines and regional specialties?to intimate dining experiences at The Chef?s Table, Italian Grill and The Kitchen Table, all serving meals prepared with fresh, local ingredients. Furthermore, with multiple choices for outdoor seating during meals, Viking Star offers more al fresco dining than any other ship.
Enriching Entertainment: Connecting passengers to their destinations through authentic experiences is central to Viking Cruises, and Viking Star?s onboard venues include a dramatic three-deck atrium where passengers can enjoy musicians playing regional and classical music; the Star Theater, home of enrichment lectures from scholars and experts; an onboard cooking school where guests can learn local specialties; and the Viking Piano Lounge, where guests can relax, mingle, and exchange stories after a day of exploring.
Sustainable Features: Designed with the environment in mind, Viking Star features energy-efficienthybrid engines, a hydro-dynamically optimized streamlined hull and bow for maximum fuel efficiency, onboard solar panels, and equipment that minimizes exhaust pollution and meets the strictest environmental regulations.
The ship has been designed by experienced nautical architects and engineers, including an interior design team of London-based SMC Design, and Los Angeles-based Rottet Studios. The first of two ocean ships on order, Viking Star will be built by Italy?s Fincantieri shipyard.
2015 Maiden Voyage Itineraries
Viking Homelands (15 days; Stockholm ? St. Petersburg ? Copenhagen ? Bergen) ? This itinerary features a blend of northern continental European cities, imperial Russia and the legendary homeland of the Vikings. The journey includes overnights in Bergen, Stockholm and St. Petersburg, plus calls in Helsinki, Tallinn, Gdansk, Berlin (Warnemunde), Copenhagen, Aalborg, Stavanger, and Flam. Introductory 2-for-1 pricing starts at $4,999 per person with discounted airfares from $895 per person.
Passage Through Western Europe (15 days; Bergen ? London ? Paris ? Barcelona) ? The nimble proportions of Viking Star give guests access to the heart of the Continent as well as coastal cities on this cross-region itinerary that journeys from the Viking waters of Bergen to London on the Thames, down the Atlantic Coast of France and Portugal, and to the Mediterranean. Ports include Lisbon, Cadiz, Gibraltar, and Cartagena with overnights in Bergen, London, Paris (Rouen) and Barcelona. Introductory 2-for-1 pricing starts at $4,499 per person with discounted airfares from $795 per person.
Mediterranean Odyssey (13 days; Barcelona ? Rome ? Dubrovnik ? Venice) ? Spain, France, Italy, Croatia and Greece?this cruise has it all. Visit Toulon, France; Monte Carlo; Tuscany (Livorno), Rome and Naples in Italy; Corfu (Kerkira) Greece; Dubrovnik and Split in Croatia; plus overnights in Barcelona and Venice. Introductory 2-for-1 pricing starts at $3,999 per person with discounted airfares from $595 per person.
Empires of the Mediterranean (10 days; Venice ? Athens ? Ephesus ? Istanbul) ? From ancient ruins to medieval cities, this Mediterranean journey starts in Venice and journeys to Pula and Dubrovnik in Croatia; Kotor, Montenegro; Santorini, Athens (Piraeus), and Ephesus (Kusadasi), plus an overnight in Istanbul. Introductory 2-for-1 pricing starts at $2,999 per person with discounted airfares from $695 per person.
Combination cruises of the above are also available, ranging from 22 to 50 days, and starting at $6,799 per person for introductory pricing with air specials from $695 per person.
Booking Details
From now through July 31, 2013, Viking is offering an introductory Early Booking Discount in the U.S. market for the 2015 maiden season with 2-for-1 pricing on cruise departures and savings of $2,000 per couple on international air. The 2015 maiden season is initially being offered only in the U.S.; Viking will begin marketing the new ocean cruises in the UK, Australia and New Zealand later this year.
Viking Star Technical Details
Length overall: 745.4 ft. (227.2m); beam 94.5 ft. (28.8 m); draft 20.7 ft. (6.3 m); air draft 131.2 ft. (40.0 m); gross tonnage (GRT) 47,800 t; deadweight 3,640 t; service speed 20.0 kn; number of decks 14; classification: Lloyds Register.
The Viking Cruises brand now encompasses both river and ocean cruises. Viking Ocean Cruises focuses on destination-centric cruising in the small ship category and is priced for genuine value. Debuting its maiden season in 2015, the sophisticated state-of-the-art Viking Star will sail itineraries in Scandinavia and the Baltic; and the Western and Eastern Mediterranean. Viking River Cruises, the world?s leading river cruise line, offers scenic cruising along the rivers of Europe, Russia, Ukraine, China, Southeast Asia and Egypt. The company was named No. 1 River Cruise Line in Travel + Leisure?s 2012 ?World?s Best? Awards and has been honored multiple times as the top river cruise line on Conde Nast Traveler?s ?Gold List.? It has also been recognized as the World?s Leading River Cruise Operator at the World Travel Awards and by the editors of Cruise Critic as ?Best River Cruise Line,? with the entire Viking Longships fleet being named ?Best New River Ships of 2012? in the website?s Editors? Picks Awards. The travel trade has recognized Viking River Cruises as ?Best River Cruise Line? by Travel Weekly, ?Best River Cruise Line? by Recommend and Travel Agent magazines, Best Cruise Line for Luxury River Cruises at the Luxury Travel Advisor Awards of Excellence and as ?Best Overall Cruise Line for River Cruising? and ?Best River Cruise Line for Travel Agent Support? by TravelAge West. Since its 1997 inception, the company has grown to a fleet of 35 vessels (in 2013), and provides unique, deluxe vacations to experienced travelers with an interest in geography, culture and history.
It seems that the world of Weird News is filled with bikinis, weenies and roots that look like Homer Simpson.
Teacher Olivia Sprauer may have been fired for the swimsuit photos she posed for under the name "Victoria James" two weeks ago, but now she's being courted by lingerie companies, trade shows and Hustler magazine.
It wasn't such a good week for a drunk man in Jilong, Taiwan, who reportedly used scissors to cut off his own penis and testicles during an argument with his girlfriend.
Meanwhile, Portland man Jared Weston Walter, 26, is accused of masturbating and ejaculating on heads of TriMet bus passengers in Oregon.
HuffPost Weird News didn't shy away from other bodily functions this week, giving the straight poop about Carlos Baca, a 27-year-old man from Port St. Lucie, Fla., accused of fleeing the scene of a small car accident on Monday.
His excuse: He ate "bad" Chinese food and didn't want to poop in his pants.
A North Carolina family let it all hang out -- literally -- when they went walking down the street in the buff. Their excuse: The Lord told them to get naked and walk down the street.
God made another appearance in HuffPost Weird News this week when Joseph McCaffrey was reading The Hour, a Norwalk, Conn., newspaper, and saw a splattered ink blot that his wife says resembles Jesus Christ.
Whether the blot looks like Jesus is a matter of interpretation, as is whether the fleece flower root that was reportedly dug up by a pair of farmers in China bears any resemblance to Homer Simpson.
Charles Ramsey, the man credited with rescuing Amanda Berry from accused kidnapper Ariel Castro, continued his rise into iconic status after he was immortalized with his own tattoo and an action figure.
William von Schneidau, a butcher in Seattle, has meat lovers high on the hog after HuffPost Weird News reported that he feeds his pigs marijuana to make them the highest quality possible.
Finally, dog lovers got a kick out of a new new iPhone app, Weather Puppy, which displays different pictures of puppies based on the weather in your area.
The weird angle? Lots of photos of wakeboarding West Highland white terriers that, while obviously doctored, were so cute anyway that no one dogged them.
What was the weirdest story of the week? If you're not dog tired, scroll through the gallery and vote in the poll below.
Ken Venturi dies: What did Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer say about Ken Venturi, a 14-time PGA tour winner and CBS broadcaster?
By Mark Lamport-Stokes,?Reuters / May 18, 2013
Former U.S. Open champion and television broadcaster Ken Venturi, a 14-times winner on the PGA Tour, died on Friday at the age of 82 following various health complications.
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Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame just 11 days ago, Venturi died in a hospital in Rancho Mirage, Calif., where he had been living for several years, according to his son, Matt.
"We all knew what a wonderful player Ken Venturi was, and how he fashioned a second successful career as an announcer. But far more important than how good he was at playing the game or covering it, Ken was my friend.? Ken was fortunate in that the game of golf gave him so much, but without question, Ken gave back far more to the game he loved than he ever gained from it," said Jack Nicklaus in a statement posted on Facebook.
The highlight of Venturi's playing career came in the 1964 U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club where he overcame 100-degree temperatures and severe dehydration to win his only major championship.
He was forced to quit competitive golf because of carpal tunnel syndrome in 1967. The following year, he joined CBS television as an analyst and enjoyed a lengthy career as one of the most insightful and respected figures in the game.
"He played on the Ryder Cup in 1965, he captained the U.S. Presidents Cup in 2000," PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said last October after Venturi was voted into the World Golf Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2013.
"But to fans around the United States and around the world, he was the conduit of what PGA Tour level golf was to those fans for an incredible 35-year broadcast career which spanned many, many careers on the PGA Tour.
"Ken Venturi was a fixture to the game of golf for fans everywhere in terms of his ability to analyze the game and excite fans about the play they were watching."
Venturi, a San Francisco native who learned to play golf at Harding Park, described his induction into the Hall of Fame as "just an honour" when speaking on a conference call from Pebble Beach Golf Links in California.
"The greatest reward in life is to be remembered and I thank the World Golf Hall of Fame for remembering me," Venturi said.
"I was taught by Byron Nelson and I asked him one time, 'How could I ever repay you for all you've done for me?' He said, 'Ken, be good to the game and give back.'
"And that's what I've tried to do because I've said many times, the world will never remember you for what you take from it, but only what you leave behind."
Arnold Palmer released the following statement: "I was very sorry to hear of Ken's passing. He was a friend and an opponent and I had the utmost respect for him throughout his career. He was a great competitor and the golf world will miss him."
Injury suits might seem straight-forward, however, they are able to become quite complicated, particularly if you?ve never handled one before. You may want to get professional legal assistance. Every little helps, so take a short while to peruse the ideas and concepts that follow.
Don?t hire your own personal injury lawyer based only on television ads. Carrying this out is rarely a good idea. Do a good amount of research by using an attorney, and meet them before hiring them. In the event you don?t, you could end up wasting money and struggling forward by having an incompetent attorney.
When choosing an individual injury attorney, you have to meet track of a number of ones before you make your selection. A great deal of them provide free initial consultations to discuss the merits of your case. In such meetings, you can study about anticipated costs to help you come up with a good option.
Before insisting with a court date, consult an individual injury attorney to determine the ideal course of action. That saves lots of headaches, which way, you don?t must pay court fees.
To put together for the injury lawsuit, keep copies of all medical forms associated with your injury in a single file folder or notebook. Have the notes your medical professional writes to suit your needs relating to your case, the bills through the hospital, as well as other medical supplies you have to purchase. Make certain and save all emails concerning your injury through your doctor. here
When meeting having an attorney, ask him queries about your case. These include questions like just how long the way it is will take, what you must expect, any surprises that could arise, or another type. Being prepared with questions can help you to get a very good sense of the lawyer.
Injury lawsuits are often quite complex. Fortunately, you should use the tips on this page to make things much easier for you. Read over them and realize that these suggestions can help you win your case.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) ? Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson announced to screaming throngs of Kings fans Friday that the deal to sell the NBA franchise to a group led by software tycoon Vivek Ranadive has been signed.
The announcement at a City Hall rally brings to an end nearly five months of maneuvering by Johnson to secure a new ownership group, convince the council to commit to building a new downtown arena, and to show the NBA that the capitol city of the most populous state in the nation has the fan base to make the venture successful.
"This was one heck of a comeback," Johnson, a former NBA All-Star, said on a stage shared with two dozen investors, fans and politicians who had worked to keep the franchise in the city.
Earlier this week, NBA owners rejected a bid to move the franchise to Seattle. Investor Chris Hansen, whose agreement to buy the team from the Maloof family and move them to the Pacific Northwest shocked the city in January, fought to acquire the team to the bitter end. He even negotiated to buy a minority share when it became clear the league opposed relocation.
Johnson said that the deal reached between the Maloofs and the Ranadive group did not include an investment from Hansen.
NBA Commissioner David Stern praised Hansen's proposal and said the NBA might consider expansion once a new TV deal is in place.
The mayor was conciliatory toward Seattle, but said he focused throughout the negotiations on promoting Sacramento as thriving city with 19 sellout seasons, one of the longest streaks in the NBA.
"Seattle is a great city and we want them to get a team. For us, it was never a competition. It was about our community telling our story," Johnson said, adding: "It's about not letting someone take something that's not theirs."
The NBA is expected to officially approve the sale next week.
A person familiar with the deal previously told The Associated Press that the Maloofs had reached an agreement to sell a 65 percent controlling interest at a total franchise valuation of $535 million. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk publicly.
The plan for the Kings' future includes a $447 million downtown arena that will be built on at the western gateway to the city near the Sacramento River.
The Sacramento ownership group also includes 24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov, former Facebook senior executive Chris Kelly and the Jacobs family that owns communications giant Qualcomm.
May 16, 2013 ? In our interaction with our environment we constantly refer to past experiences stored as memories to guide behavioral decisions. But how memories are formed, stored and then retrieved to assist decision-making remains a mystery. By observing whole-brain activity in live zebrafish, researchers from the RIKEN Brain Science Institute have visualized for the first time how information stored as long-term memory in the cerebral cortex is processed to guide behavioral choices.
The study, published today in the journal Neuron, was carried out by Dr. Tazu Aoki and Dr. Hitoshi Okamoto from the Laboratory for Developmental Gene Regulation, a pioneer in the study of how the brain controls behavior in zebrafish.
The mammalian brain is too large to observe the whole neural circuit in action. But using a technique called calcium imaging, Aoki et al. were able to visualize for the first time the activity of the whole zebrafish brain during memory retrieval.
Calcium imaging takes advantage of the fact that calcium ions enter neurons upon neural activation. By introducing a calcium sensitive fluorescent substance in the neural tissue, it becomes possible to trace the calcium influx in neurons and thus visualize neural activity.
The researchers trained transgenic zebrafish expressing a calcium sensitive protein to avoid a mild electric shock using a red LED as cue. By observing the zebrafish brain activity upon presentation of the red LED they were able to visualize the process of remembering the learned avoidance behavior.
They observe spot-like neural activity in the dorsal part of the fish telencephalon, which corresponds to the human cortex, upon presentation of the red LED 24 hours after the training session. No activity is observed when the cue is presented 30 minutes after training.
In another experiment, Aoki et al. show that if this region of the brain is removed, the fish are able to learn the avoidance behavior, remember it short-term, but cannot form any long-term memory of it.
"This indicates that short-term and long-term memories are formed and stored in different parts of the brain. We think that short-term memories must be transferred to the cortical region to be consolidated into long-term memories," explains Dr. Aoki.
The team then tested whether memories for the best behavioral choices can be modified by new learning. The fish were trained to learn two opposite avoidance behaviors, each associated with a different LED color, blue or red, as a cue. They find that presentation of the different cues leads to the activation of different groups of neurons in the telencephalon, which indicates that different behavioral programs are stored and retrieved by different populations of neurons.
"Using calcium imaging on zebrafish, we were able to visualize an on-going process of memory consolidation for the first time. This approach opens new avenues for research into memory using zebrafish as model organism," concludes Dr. Okamoto.
It's not like Toshiba is new to laptops -- it's been making them for decades -- but for whatever reason, US consumers don't seem to trust the company with top-shelf products. Four-hundred-dollar machines, maybe, but a designer laptop? An Ultrabook, no less? Toshiba has an image problem, to be sure, and the executives in Tokyo know it. The answer, they hope, is to start fresh with a clean slate. The company recently announced a new family of premium devices, called Kira, with the 13-inch Kirabook being the inaugural product.
At first blush, it has all the trappings of a flagship machine, with an all-metal chassis, backlit keyboard, 8GB of RAM, a two-year warranty and a 2,560 x 1,440 display, one sharp enough to rival the Chromebook Pixel and Retina display MacBook Pro. In fact, this is the first Windows laptop to offer such a high-resolution panel, which gives Toshiba a big opportunity indeed: to lure people who still haven't found their perfect Ultrabook. The problem with "perfect," of course, is that it comes at a price: $1,600 and up, in this case, and the touchscreen isn't even standard. That leaves just one question, then: is it worth it?
May 16, 2013 ? Raising hopes for cell-based therapies, UC San Francisco researchers have created the first functioning human thymus tissue from embryonic stem cells, in the laboratory. The researchers showed that, in mice, the tissue can be used to foster the development of white blood cells the body needs to mount healthy immune responses and to prevent harmful autoimmune reactions.
The scientists who developed the thymus cells -- which caused the proliferation and maturation of functioning immune cells when transplanted -- said the achievement marks a significant step toward potential new treatments based on stem-cell and organ transplantation, as well as new therapies for type-1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases, and for immunodeficiency diseases.
Starting with human embryonic stem cells, UCSF researchers led by Mark Anderson, MD, PhD, an immunologist, and Matthias Hebrok, PhD, a stem-cell researcher and the director of the UCSF Diabetes Center, used a unique combination of growth factors to shape the developmental trajectory of the cells, and eventually hit upon a formula that yielded functional thymus tissue.
The result, reported in the May 16, 2013 online edition of the journal Cell Stem Cell, is functioning tissue that nurtures the growth and development of the white blood cells known as T cells. T cells are a central immune cell population that responds to specific disease pathogens and also prevents the immune system from attacking the body's own tissues.
The thymus might be a bit obscure to the layperson -- it's a small gland at the top of the chest beneath the breastbone -- but it is in no way expendable, as individuals with defective thymus function succumb to infection early in life.
Given the invasive nature of cell therapy, which remains completely experimental, the first treatments using laboratory-derived thymus tissue would likely be studied in patients with fatal diseases for which there are no effective treatments, Anderson said. For example, one early treatment might be for the genetic disease DeGeorge syndrome, in which some newborns are born without a thymus gland and die in infancy.
However, a potentially greater impact may be in the area of tissue transplantation, a goal of the emerging field of stem-cell based therapies. Stem-cell-based therapies now are limited by the potential for the immune system to reject transplanted stem cells, Anderson said. For transplantation, stem cells might be coaxed down two developmental pathways simultaneously, to form both thymus tissue and a replacement organ. Transplantation of both might overcome the rejection barrier without the need for harmful immunosuppression, according to Anderson.
"The thymus is an environment in which T cells mature, and where they also are instructed on the difference between self and non-self," Anderson said. Some T cells are prepared by the thymus to attack foreign invaders -- including transplants, while T cells that would attack our own tissues normally are eliminated in the thymus.
In the same vein, thymus tissue might one day be used to retrain the immune system in autoimmune diseases in which the immune system abnormally attacks "self," thereby enhancing recognition and protecting from immune destruction.
Researchers have discovered many of the proteins and growth factors that are switched on during the course of embryonic development and that are crucial to organ formation. Hebrok has spent years trying to develop insulin-secreting beta cells, a part of the pancreas that is destroyed during the course of diabetes.
The sequential appearance of specific marker proteins within cells as they develop into the distinct organs of the gastrointestinal tract serves as a series of milestones, which has helped orient Hebrok and others as they seek to guide the formation of distinct tissues.
Hebrok likens the quest for organ specific cells, including thymus cells and the elusive pancreatic beta cell, to an adventurous road trip. The pancreas and the thymus branch off the gastrointestinal tract in different places, but they share certain developmental markers.
To get to thymus cells, the researchers tried dozens of protocols, timing the switching on of the key factors differently each time. "If we used one factor for a day longer or shorter it would not work," Hebrok said. With the milestones misplaced, "It would be like driving down the highway and missing your exit."
The researchers caution that they have not perfectly replicated the thymus, and that only about 15 percent of cells are successfully directed to become thymus tissue with the protocol used in the study.
Even so, Anderson said, "We now have developed a tool that allows us to modulate the immune system in a manner that we never had before."
Additional study authors include UCSF Diabetes Center postdoctoral fellows Audrey Parent, PhD, Holger Russ, PhD; and graduate students Imran Khan, Taylor LaFlam, and Todd Metzger.
Venerable Wentworth Mansion in Charleston, South Carolina is in the news again. They have been bestowed with the top spot in the U.S. for best service and #2 in the world (and only one-tenth of a point behind Hong Kong's The Peninsula) in Travel & Leisure Magazine World's Best Awards. Rankings were based on reader votes collected in the Travel & Leisure World's Best Awards survey.
Built in 1886, the Wentworth Mansion is the former home of a wealthy cotton merchant. Lovingly restored in 1998 by current owners Richard Widman and Linn Lesesne, it retains many of the original and distinctive architectural features including gas-lit fireplaces with original marble mantels and inlaid design floors. Modern touches include king-size sleigh beds with European linens, whirlpool tubs and double glass-walled, walk-in showers, and complimentary evening wine tastings and hors d'oeuvres in the parlor. And, needless to say, some of the best service in the world!
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Public release date: 21-May-2013
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