Studies generate comprehensive list of genes required by innate system to defend sex cells

Studies generate comprehensive list of genes required by innate system to defend sex cells

Monday, May 13, 2013

Two teams of investigators led by Professor Gregory Hannon of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) today publish studies revealing many previously unknown components of an innate system that defends sex cells ? the carriers of inheritance across generations ? from the ravages of transposable genetic elements.

When activated, these troublesome segments of DNA, also called jumping genes or transposons, can copy and insert themselves at random spots across the chromosomes. In sperm and egg cells the proliferation of transposons can be particularly devastating, causing severe developmental impairments in offspring as well as sterility. Over the eons of evolution, complex organisms have developed means of defending their germline genomes against transposons, principally via a series of mechanisms that scientists call the piRNA pathway.

In animals, this pathway involves a family of proteins ? called Piwi proteins ? that combine with a variety of small RNA molecules called Piwi-interacting RNAs, or piRNAs. Since the discovery of piRNAs in 2006, scientists have been trying to understand how they are created, and how they do the essential job of repressing transposons ? which are plentiful although usually inactive throughout the genomes of nearly every species.

Some important players in the piRNA pathway are known, but the majority have remained mysterious. "That's why the two new studies from our lab are important," says Hannon, who is also an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. "We've identified dozens of genes essential for proper function of the piRNA pathway, and have looked at some of them in detail." The work advances knowledge of how the pathway works, and provides others studying it a basis for fleshing out the mechanism in its entirety.

"It's a major step toward our goal of obtaining the blueprints for reconstructing a fully operational piRNA transposon-silencing machinery in the lab," according to Felix Muerdter, a Ph.D. candidate, who joined three other scientists in the Hannon lab -- Drs. Benjamin Czech, Jonathan Preall, and Paloma Guzzardo ? in conducting the experiments and co-authoring the new papers.

To be able to assemble the machinery active in repressing transposons will be to understand in unprecedented detail how our cells, more broadly, selectively detect and silence genes. This knowledge promises to play a role in finding new ways to treat complex diseases involving gene dysfunction, ranging from cancer to schizophrenia.

The two Hannon teams performed their experiments in fruit flies, which possess all of the fundamental elements of germline defense that humans do, owing to the phenomenon that biologists call sequence conservation. It is nature's way of preserving life's most essential mechanisms across species.

Two teams, different cell types

The two Hannon lab teams used the same meticulous means of uncovering new piRNA pathway components, albeit in different kinds of cells. Czech, Preall and their group worked with female germ cells; Muerdter and Guzzardo focused on follicle cells, which are found inside the female egg chamber but are derived from somatic cells ? the cell type that comprises all of an organism's non-sex cells.

Both groups performed RNA interference (RNAi) screens against large numbers of genes in the cell types they studied. These screens use small RNAs to "knock down" the activity of specific genes. Czech and Preall's group knocked down all 8000 genes expressed in the fly ovary, one at a time. Muerdter and Guzzardo knocked down all 13,900 genes in the fly genome in similar fashion. The purpose of these experiments was to see what happened to transposon levels when single genes were no longer functional.

In both groups, the screens led to the identification of dozens of genes whose absence was shown to impair transposon repression. Both groups later selected one or two genes in their screens whose knock-down had the most potent impact on transposon proliferation. For Muerdter and Guzzardo, repression of a gene they named asterix caused levels of a transposon called gypsy to soar. But how?

How gypsy is repressed

When gypsy DNA is expressed, it begins to generate an RNA "message," a preliminary step in the transposon proliferation process. When the asterix gene was knocked down, this is precisely what happened. "Normally, the Piwi protein, forming a complex with a small RNA, can recognize a sequence on this RNA message," Guzzardo explains. "When the piRNA finds the sequence, it attaches and the process of transcription stops."

The new work makes clear why: attachment of the piRNA to the gypsy message causes histones ? proteins that pack gypsy DNA ? to take on chemical modifications (called H3K9 trimethylation marks) that tag it as "silent." The DNA cannot be accessed by the gene-expression machinery; gypsy is thus kept in a dormant state.

Without asterix, the tag that renders gypsy silent is absent, and the gypsy gene thus becomes accessible to the machinery in the nucleus that starts to transcribe it. The transposon can now proliferate.

Czech and Preall, doing similar work exclusively in the ovary, found some of the same genes to be active in repressing transposons in those cells, thus making clear that they are components of what can now be called a "core piRNA pathway." In the fly ovary, many more transposons ? 80 to 100 ? can potentially be activated than in follicle and other somatic cells, in which the corresponding number is around 20 to 30. For this reason, piRNA mechanisms in the female germline cells are more elaborate, and involve more genes and probably more accessory proteins in the transposon repression process, according to Czech.

"Our screens have identified a set of genes involved in transposon suppression in the female ovary of the fly," Czech says. "We're excited to have generated what appears to be a comprehensive list of core components of the piRNA pathway, and hope that this spurs further discovery in other labs. Our next job is to distinguish members of the pathway involved in generating piRNAs from those we call 'effectors,' and ultimately bring to light the molecular mechanisms underlying piRNA biogenesis and effector functions."

###

The following papers appear online ahead of print May 9, 2013 in Molecular Cell: "A Transcriptome-wide RNAi Screen in the Drosophila Ovary Reveals Factors of the Germline piRNA Pathway" (authors: Benjamin Czech, Jonathan B. Preall, Jon McGinn and Gregory J. Hannon); and "A Genome-wide RNAi Screen Draws a Genetic Framework for Transposon Control and Primary piRNA Biogenesis in Drosophila" (authors: Felix Muerdter, Paloma M. Guzzardo, Jesse Gillis, Yicheng Luo, Yang Yu, Caifu Chen, Richard Fekete and Gregory J. Hannon).

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory: http://www.cshl.org

Thanks to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 23 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/128188/Studies_generate_comprehensive_list_of_genes_required_by_innate_system_to_defend_sex_cells

2012 nfl draft order mohamed sanu chris polk rueben randle mike trout ryan broyles st louis blues

Gwyneth Paltrow Cookbook: Win a Copy!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/05/gwyneth-paltrow-cookbook-win-a-copy/

aziz ansari aziz ansari katherine jenkins peyton manning broncos mexico city earthquake stand your ground law dancing with the stars season 14

Review chairman: Clinton didn't make Benghazi call

FILE - This June 7, 2012 file photo shows U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice listening during a news conference at the UN. Senior State Department officials pressed for changes in the talking points that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice used after the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya last September, expressing concerns that Congress might criticize the Obama administration for ignoring warnings of a growing threat in Benghazi. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

FILE - This June 7, 2012 file photo shows U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice listening during a news conference at the UN. Senior State Department officials pressed for changes in the talking points that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice used after the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya last September, expressing concerns that Congress might criticize the Obama administration for ignoring warnings of a growing threat in Benghazi. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

FILE - In this Sept. 14, 2012 file photo, Libyan military guards check one of the U.S. Consulate's burnt out buildings during a visit by Libyan President Mohammed el-Megarif, not shown, to the U.S. Consulate to express sympathy for the death of the American ambassador, Chris Stevens and his colleagues in the deadly attack on the Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Senior State Department officials pressed for changes in the talking points that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice used after the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya last September, expressing concerns that Congress might criticize the Obama administration for ignoring warnings of a growing threat in Benghazi. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The seasoned diplomat who penned a highly critical report on security at a U.S. outpost in Benghazi, Libya, defended his scathing assessment but absolved then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. "We knew where the responsibility rested," Thomas Pickering, whose career spans four decades, said Sunday.

"They've tried to point a finger at people more senior than where we found the decisions were made," Pickering said of Clinton's critics.

The Accountability and Review Board, which Pickering headed with retired Adm. Mike Mullen, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, did not question Clinton at length about the attacks but concluded the decisions about the consulate were made well below the secretary's level. Pickering's defense of his panel's conclusions, however, was unlikely to quiet Republicans' calls for accountability for the attacks that left four Americans dead, including an ambassador.

Pickering and Mullen's scathing report released in December found that "systematic failures and leadership and management deficiencies at senior levels" of the State Department meant that security was "inadequate for Benghazi and grossly inadequate to deal with the attack that took place."

That, however, has done little to calm Republicans' inquiry.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee last week heard a riveting minute-by-minute account from a former top diplomat in Libya about the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks on the diplomatic outpost in eastern Libya. Gregory Hicks, a former deputy chief of mission to Libya, detailed his phone conversations from Tripoli with Ambassador Chris Stevens, who died during the two nighttime attacks.

Hicks and two other State Department witnesses criticized the Pickering and Mullen's review. Their complaints centered on a report they consider incomplete, with individuals who weren't interviewed and a focus on the assistant secretary level and lower.

The hourslong hearing produced no major revelation but renewed interest in the attacks that happened during the lead-up to the November 2012 presidential election.

Meanwhile, the top Republican on the oversight committee wants sworn depositions with Pickering and Mullen.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said he would request private testimonies from both on Monday. Issa also said his oversight panel has not been provided sufficient details on the State Department review, such as a list of everyone the investigators interviewed or a full transcript of those conversations.

"We want the facts. We're entitled to the facts. The American people were effectively lied to for a period of about a month," Issa said.

Pickering, sitting next to Issa during an appearance on one Sunday show, said he wanted to appear at Wednesday's hearing, which Issa led, but was blocked.

Issa said Democrats could have invited their own witnesses, such as Pickering, but did not.

In a separate interview, Pickering said he asked, via the White House, to appear at that session. He said he could have answered many of the question lawmakers raised, such as whether U.S. military forces could have saved Americans had they been dispatched to the consulate, some 1,600 miles away from the nearest likely launching point.

"Mike Mullen, who was part of this report and indeed worked very closely with all of us and shared many of the responsibilities directly with me, made it very clear that his view as a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff that there were nothing within range that could have made a difference," Pickering said.

Even so, Republicans showed little interest in relenting to explore what happened at the consulate, what might be done to prevent future such attacks and what political calculations went into rewriting talking points the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, used on news shows the Sunday after the attack.

A series of emails that circulated between the State Department and the CIA led to weakened ? and, in some cases, wrong ? language that Rice used to describe the assault during a series of five television interviews the Sunday after the attacks.

"I'd call it a cover-up," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. "I would call it a cover-up in the extent that there was willful removal of information, which was obvious."

"I was surprised today that they did not probe Secretary Clinton in detail," Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., said, of the review board.

One Republican eyeing a White House run, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, told an audience in Iowa that he thinks the Benghazi attack "precludes Hillary Clinton from ever holding office."

Clinton's allies said Republicans were looking to weaken her ahead of a potential 2016 campaign.

"This has been caught up in the 2016 presidential campaign, this effort to go after Hillary Clinton," said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. "They want to bring her in because they think it's a good political show and I think that's unfortunate."

Pickering, however, declined repeated opportunities to criticize Rice's now-debunked talking points that suggested the attacks were not terrorism.

"That was not in our mandate," Pickering said. "We were looking at the security, security warnings, security capacity, those kinds of things."

Democrats similarly did little to defend the mistaken talking points.

"This is one instance where you know it was what it was," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee.

"There was no question this was a terrorist attack," said Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash.

Pickering spoke with CNN's "State of the Union," NBC's "Meet the Press" and CBS' "Face the Nation." Issa and Feinstein spoke with NBC. McCain spoke to ABC's "This Week." Ayotte and Durbin were on CBS. Smith spoke to "Fox News Sunday."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-05-12-US-Benghazi-Investigation/id-72623b16c3084dffa9f442c921f6c5e7

Rebel Wilson Patriots Day aubrey plaza boston marathon turbotax Catching Fire trailer Marfa Texas

There's Infinite Timelapse Goodness In This 28 Hours Of Footage

Back in 2011 when Gerald Donovan filmed Dubai for 28 hours he made an incredible timelapse of it. But he couldn't leave well enough alone. After the limitless potential of the footage nagged at him for a few years he came back to it and made another beautiful version.

This time it spans all 28 hours instead of 24 and runs at 30fps with improved white balance. The new version calls more purposeful attention to light and shadow, movement of cars and people, and changes in the sky. It's a pretty amazing vantage point for viewing the city.

Source: http://gizmodo.com/theres-infinite-timelapse-goodness-in-this-28-hours-of-503680748

chardon sean young juan pablo montoya free pancakes at ihop martina navratilova high school shooting ohio school shooting

Dawn of the bot? New era nears, experts say

robots

Nidhi Subbaraman NBC News

2 hours ago

Karlsruhe Institute for Technology

ARMAR IIIa, designed by the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT), unloads a dishwasher in a recent demonstration in Germany.

Science fiction is quickly taking a back seat to science fact. Just look at a new report by the country's leading roboticists. By 2030, it says, robots will be everywhere.

At the gym, they'll help you train. In operating rooms, flea-sized robots will zip through your blood vessels to repair tissues. Using voice commands and hand gestures, humans will control robots in the cold vacuum of space, while bots deep underwater and high in the air will collaborate to protect the U.S. from natural disasters and military threats.

That's the robot future envisioned by researchers at top U.S. universities including Georgia Tech, MIT, Stanford and Carnegie Mellon. In the collaborative report, they predict that robots will become "as ubiquitous over the next decades as computer technology is today."

Ekso

Ekso is a "ready-to-wear, battery-powered bionic device that is strapped over the user's clothing," say its makers, meant to assist people who suffer lower-extremity paralysis or weakness.

At home and in the operating room
In surgery, robots will not only match human skills, by 10 and 15 years from now, they will likely surpass them.

First come the snake-like robots, performing endoscopic surgeries. After about 10 years, untethered robots about a centimeter across will be sent into the body to "remove polyps or modulate blood flow," according to the report. Think "Fantastic Voyage," minus the teeny tiny Raquel Welch. Fifteen years out, these robots will have shrunk to the size of fleas, to "swim through bodily fluids and bore through tissue to perform highly localized therapies."

Advances in miniaturization will help this trend pan out as predicted, Henrik Christensen ? director of the Center for Robotics and Intelligent Machines at Georgia Tech, and co-author of the robotics report ? told NBC News. At a recent conference, researchers showed they could track and control the movements of a magnetic bacterium inside a tiny maze.

Exoskeletons like Ekso and Indego are already becoming lighter, easier to wear and use. In 10 years, prosthetics will begin to "match that of biological capabilities," and yes, "Iron Man" fans, in 15 years, they "will enable the human user to become better than human." (Just don't expect your supersuit to come with pulsating energy weapons.

Google via YouTube

Google's self-driving cars are already being tested to provide assistance to the blind.

Robot butlers will help bathe and dress people with disabilities, not just in doctor's offices or hospitals, but at home.

"For people who have lost their memory, even simple things like remembering to get food and water are very hard," Christensen said. "Having a robot that reminds you, 'Did you get your water?' or 'Did you have lunch?' ? that's a huge deal."

Robots for health care have been developing slower than anticipated, Christensen said, but that's in part due to the delicacy of their work. "We need to be comfortable that they are really good enough before we're able to give them more functionality."

Rethink Robotics

Rethink Robotics' Baxter can be configured to assist in manufacturing or research environments.

Robotsand industry
On the road, robot drivers 15 years from now will be able to drive anywhere humans can, and will be safer than humans with limited road experience. They'll also be able to learn to navigate in extreme weather and other atypical situations.

Robotic systems have been part of manufacturing since the industrial revolution began. Now they're getting more independent and spunkier. Take the Kiva robots that move around boxes in Amazon's giant warehouses, or Rethink Robotics' Baxter, the humanoid bot that can be customized for various manufacturing and research needs.

This may eventually mean more manufacturing back in the U.S., say robot researchers, who contend it'll be cheaper to use robots for some jobs that are currently outsourced to other countries.

Training people to control and supervise robotic systems must be a key part of college curriculums going forward, even smaller community colleges. Developers will also have to start designing their controls to leverage more of America's preexisting talents, said Christensen.

"The average 20-year-old male has spent 12,000 hours playing computer games," he said. "If we designed our appliances to be more game-like, they would be much easier to use."

Infinity and beyond
NASA's Curiosity rover is exploring Mars, but its human drivers are tens of millions of miles away on Earth. "Typically, they define a mission, plan it out and test it in a simulator before they send the commands off to Mars, to make sure they don't have a surprise," Christensen said.

Meanwhile, Robonaut 2, a humanoid helper, is already on duty at the International Space Station, and the arm-and-torso bot is destined to get gripping legs in the coming years, so that it can help out during spacewalks.

In the future, it's going to be easier to control robots on other planets and in space. Better headgear will allow operators to see better, and give them an "immersive, theater-style visualization" while exoskeletons and "vibrotactile" gloves will offer touch-sensitive feedback as humans direct robots in delicate manipulations, such as collecting extraterrestrial rock samples.

Ten years from now, "Minority Report"-style flexible displays will turn any room into a simulator, while technologies like Siri and Kinect will be so advanced that robots will easily respond to gestures and spoken instructions.

But the robots won't need to hear so many instructions, either. "We will delegate more of the autonomy to the system," Christensen said. Autopilot systems will do away with the need for constant human supervision entirely.

U.S. Navy

The Northrop Grumman-built X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) taxies on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman on Dec. 9, 2012. This year, the X-47B will likely become the first unmanned craft to take off from and land on a carrier.

Those killer robots
In 15 years, military robots will be able to participate in "collaborative engagement ... against a standoff threat" on the ground and in the air, says the report. Military robots will eventually monitor city coastlines like Manhattan or Miami, in the event of a terrorist warning, or stand guard over critical infrastructure, such as an oil pipeline.

They'll have better power systems, be able to communicate better and have ways of parsing and sending back the image and sensor data that they collect. Robots will be human controlled, or human supervised, but fully autonomous, that is, capable of flying themselves.

As vehicles get more independent, human operators will be responsible for multiple crafts ? like a gamer controlling a team on the football field, but directly manipulating just one or two at a time. "When one [drone] finds something interesting, the human could drop into it and control it more, which means it is letting the other ones be controlled less," said Peter Singer, author of "Wired for War," a book about current and future military robots.

Unexpected turns
For all their predictions over the last few decades, the evolution of robotic technology is constantly surprising researchers. For example, Microsoft's Kinect has completely changed the industry's approach to sensor technology, said Christensen, in part because it's so affordable. Also, "we've seen a degree of miniaturization that no one expected," he said. However, there have been some delays, especially in health care.

We may not be in the Jetson's age yet, and Roomba is no Rosie, but even Christensen agrees: "Science fiction ? it's happening."

Nidhi Subbaraman writes about technology and science. Follow her on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653377/s/2bd62ac7/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Ctechnology0Cdawn0Ebot0Enew0Eera0Enears0Eexperts0Esay0E1C98740A88/story01.htm

johan santana viktor bout ncaa hockey role models ferdinand porsche gregg williams theraflu

After Last-Minute Spacewalk Fix, It's Wait-and-See on Space Station

A spacewalk outside the International Space Station today (May 11) appeared to fix a leak of liquid ammonia, though astronauts and Mission Control will be in wait-and-see mode until they know for sure if the repairs succeeded.

Two NASA astronauts ? Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn ? ventured outside the football field-size orbital complex to investigate a leak that had sprung in the station's cooling system, which uses liquid ammonia to transfer heat away from electronic power systems. Although they found no signs of damage that might explain the leak, the spacewalkers replaced a suspect coolant pump, which appeared to halt the flow of ammonia for now.

It will be weeks, or even months, though, before it's clear if the leak has fully stopped. [Emergency Spacewalk to Fix Space Station Leak in Photos]

"The crew looked and watched for any obvious signs of leaks and didn't see anything," Joel Montalbano, deputy space station program manager, said during a press conference after the spacewalk today at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "We're very happy."

Engineers on the ground will continue to study the troubled area in hopes of understanding what caused the leak.

"We'll see if anything becomes obvious," said NASA flight director Ed Van Cise. "From what we saw during the EVA [extravehicular activity, or spacewalk] itself, nothing really stood out in terms of what may have been the culprit."

NASA officials said they don't yet know if the problem is related to a leak that was spotted in the same coolant channel in 2007. That leak was so slow it posed no immediate problem, and a November 2012 spacewalk that replaced a radiator for the system appeared to stop it.

On Thursday (May 9), the six-man crew of the space station's Expedition 35 mission noticed the leak had worsened, with visible white snowflakes of frozen ammonia floating out into space.

"It was just two days ago that the slight leak we were observing in the thermal control system took a change to where it was a pretty dramatic leak," Van Cise said.

The urgency of the problem caused NASA to "pretty much bring everyone to the table" to address the situation and plan the spacewalk at the last minute, he added. "Space station is a very large, complicated and complex vehicle built all across the world. There are going to be engineers and very smart people all over the place that need to help us address these situations. We draw upon that when we have to and when the vehicle throws something at us that we need all those resources."

For now, mission managers are breathing a sigh of relief, though only time will tell if the issue is truly resolved.

"It's going to take the teams a few weeks to go ahead and watch the system, understand the system ? before they're ready to tell us that we were 100-percent successful," Montalbano said.

In the meantime, the crew is preparing for a change of command ceremony tomorrow (May 12), where current Expedition 35 commander Chris Hadfield of the Canadian Space Agency will pass the duty over to Expedition 36 commander Pavel Vinogradov of the Russian Federal Space Agency. Hadfield, Marshburn, and Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko will depart the space station Monday evening at 7:08 p.m. EDT (2308 GMT) on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft and land about three hours later, at 10:31 p.m. EDT (0231 GMT Tuesday), in Kazakhstan.

A new crew of three spaceflyers is due to arrive at the space station later this month to round out the Expedition 36 team.

Follow Clara Moskowitz on Twitter and Google+. Follow us?@Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on?SPACE.com.

Copyright 2013 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/last-minute-spacewalk-fix-wait-see-space-station-221540090.html

Who Won The Superbowl Super Bowl Halftime Show 2013 Super Bowl Commercials 2013 Ray Lewis Murders 2013 Super Bowl Commercials joe flacco Go Daddy Superbowl Commercial 2013

First Person: Battle with Binge Eating, Major Depression a Constant Fight

The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) will be released in May. Yahoo is featuring first-person stories from Americans who are diagnosed with some of the most common mental health disorders in the United States. Here's one story.

FIRST PERSON | As far back as I can remember, I've struggled with binge eating. When I was a kid I used to wake up extra early to binge on cookies while everyone else slept. I used to keep a candy stash in my room which I was constantly refilling. It didn't help that my parents showed affection buy supplying unlimited amounts of food.

I kept my binge eating somewhat under control until my husband killed himself in 2009. One day I was a wife and the next I was a widow at 29 years old.

The first two years after his death was a blur. I was comfortably numb while selling all of our things and looking for an apartment as our Milwaukee, Wis., home was being foreclosed on. When the dust settled I soothed my neglected feelings with food.

I would challenge myself to see how much food I could eat in one sitting. Gorging myself became a game. I developed favorite binge foods: cheesecake, ice cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, chips and onion dip, doughnuts, chocolates, pizza, cookies, and honey barbecue chicken wings. I would get so excited on my way to the grocery store it felt like I was high on a drug. I would even start eating in the car on the way home.

I would eat until I felt like I was going to die maybe I even wanted to die. My stomach would hurt so bad I would cry. I would be so disgusted with myself I would throw all of the leftover food away. A few hours later, when I was feeling better, I would dig the food out of the trash and start eating again.

This behavior continued for two more years until I broke down and confessed to my gynecologist during a yearly exam. I told her I couldn't keep doing this to my body and I needed help. I was having chest pains and at 5'2" I was nearing 220 pounds. Over the next year we tried several different antidepressants causing awful side effects.

Now I see a psychiatrist for medication management and I have been given an official diagnosis of binge eating disorder and major depression.

I've tried therapy in the past, but I like to think things out alone instead of talking to a stranger so I'm learning to treat myself through trial and error. Besides my antidepressant, taking extra vitamin B has greatly improved my mood. I keep all of my trigger foods out of the house. I'm still working on finding the middle ground between binging and dieting. I also struggle with consistent exercise.

Each day I have to mentally fight the cravings to binge. Win or lose I keep fighting.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/first-person-battle-binge-eating-major-depression-constant-223900154.html

amber rose nba trade deadline diane lane drew peterson Argo bonnaroo robin roberts

Sharif Poised to Become Pakistan's Prime Minister - Again (Voice Of America)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/305187871?client_source=feed&format=rss

ludwig mies van der rohe jamie lynn sigler mega millions jackpot black panther party frank martin pink slime eagle cam

Chidike Okeem Commentary: White Nationalism, Anti-Immigration & The GOP

The conservative Republican blogger in California opines: "Last month, I penned what can now be considered a mightily prescient article, White Nationalism: The Reason the Right Will Lose on Amnesty. Now we have irrefragable proof that a white nationalist, Jason Richwine, contributed to a key anti-immigration policy paper at the supposedly mainstream conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation. Richwine wrote his Ph.D. at Harvard on IQ and Hispanics where he suggested that Hispanics are genetically inferior to whites ? and this genetic inferiority is 'effectively permanent.'"

Mr. Okeem continues his commentary: "Watch the video of Rachel Maddow, a woman who I completely disagree with ideologically, delivering a truthful and hard-hitting segment on the topic. My main query is why does it have to be a hardcore leftist to do this exposure? Why aren?t there any conservatives confidently stepping away from the crowd to say, 'This racist nonsense does not represent me or my conservative views'?"

More: "More than the issue of amnesty for illegal immigrants, white nationalism becoming ensconced in the Republican Party is what poses the real existential threat to the GOP. It is possible to convince Hispanics who receive amnesty to vote Republican; however, it is impossible to?convince any self-respecting minority to endorse white nationalism. It?s never going to happen."

He ain't done just yet: "White right-wing racists are in love with the book The Bell Curve. Charles Murray, the co-author of that nonsensical book, is the mentor of Jason Richwine. The celebrated black economist Dr. Thomas Sowell politely shredded the book in an essay filled with arguments so unassailable that Murray is still incapable of refuting them. (Read the affable intellectual smackdown here). It must sting Murray a little that a genius black economist congenially destroyed his book containing arguments about the genetic insufficiency of black IQ. How many of the cretins who hold Murray?s work up as the Gospel Truth have read Sowell?s refutation of it? Maybe if they did, they?d be comfortable sleeping without having copies of The Bell Curve and The Turner Diaries under their pillows. (Mein Kampf probably sits snugly on their nightstands, too.)."

Source: http://www.bookerrising.net/2013/05/chidike-okeem-commentary-white.html

tyson chandler the pirates band of misfits cleveland browns minnesota twins bobby abreu 2012 draft colt mccoy

Brenda Heist case reveals increase in mothers who leave their ...

? 11:49:35 AM Brenda Heist case reveals increase in mothers who leave their children Tamara Rajakariar | 11 May 2013 | tags : Brenda Heist, missing person, parenthood, In the past week, mother Brenda Heist reappeared, 11 years after going missing. She was last seen by her then-young kids when she dropped them off at their Pennsylvania school. Just coming out of a marriage breakdown, she had just been told that her application for financial aid had been denied. According to Brenda, she was crying in a park when she met hitch-hikers who asked her to join them on their way to Florida and, on a whim, she accepted.? Now she has told police that she did it because she was stressed. Sad and shocking as it is, I immediately dismissed it as a rare case. But according to an article by Peggy Drexler (author of Our Fathers, Ourselves: Daughters, Fathers, and the Changing American Family?and assistant professor of psychology at Cornell University), this is actually becoming a bit of an alarming trend. While she admits that there are no hard numbers, there has been a substantial increase in the number of mothers walking away from their families. In the US the number of single fathers more than tripled between 1982 and 2011, and believe it or not there are now support groups for mums who have chosen to leave. Drexler argues that this could have a lot to do with our individualistic societal values. Research shows that clinical narcissism has had a 30% rise in the last 20 years, in the context of a culture that takes ?being true to ourselves? and ?never compromising? to a whole new level. How sad it is however, that being true to yourself can be an excuse to give up when the going gets tough. Surely hanging in there would help you grow in character and become even truer to yourself? Hand in hand with this self-seeking culture comes always putting our own pleasure before the needs of others. I?ve met so many people that tell me that meaning of life is just to enjoy and have a good time. Case in point is a 2004 study by a behavioural economic which Drexler mentions. It saw that child care ranked 16th in terms of pleasure out of 19 activities amongst the Texas women surveyed. This ranking is not really the concern though, but rather the fact that people expect parenting to be fun! Doesn?t anyone remember that generally the hardest things in life are the most worthwhile? No wonder mothers are walking way, if their expectations of motherhood are all about the good times. The facts may be disheartening, but I think that understanding these trends can help us to fight and overcome them. And with Mother?s Day this weekend, all I can really say is that I am thoroughly grateful for my mum - and hopeful that one day I?ll be as good a mother, who puts my kids? wellbeing before my own despite how tough it?s bound to be at times.? ?

?From MercatorNet's home page

?Tags

National Marriage Project, fertility, names, same-sex parenting, adolescents, emerging adults, video games, motherhood, Canada, internet, commitment, friendship, divorce, teenagers, Barack Obama, teen pregnancy, HomeMakers Project, books, girls, Facebook, sexualisation of children, homeschooling, family, trafficking, boys, cohabitation, recession, Sweden, United States, smacking, abortion, texting, United Nations, AIDS, unemployment, social media, immigration, family relationships, suicide, child behaviour, demography, same-sex marriage, fathers, psychology, internet safety, New Zealand, China, character, child safety, happiness, parenthood, child obesity, children, fashion, USA, abstinence, morality, polygamy, anger, prostitution, brain, family economics, media, women, South Africa, child poverty, modesty, marriage, teenage pregnancy, Hollywood, Africa, family structure, feminism, poverty, baby boomers, mental health, family breakdown, work-life balance, celebrities, France, gender equality, religion, adoption, children's health, child development, UK, one-child policy, Spain, gender, character education, health, parenting, child abuse, sleep, work, obesity, ageing population, media ethics, large families, young adult, family policy, men, technology, birth control, contraception, family meals, research, fatherhood, mothers, education, HIVAIDS, social networking, adolescence, working mothers, child welfare, education of children, pornography, child wellbeing, homosexuality, schools, sexual behaviour, family values, childcare, gendercide, single motherhood, parents, youth, self-control, European Union, violence, language, sex education, dating, Australia, parental rights, television, daycare, economics, ageing, pregnancy,

Source: http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/12189

St Patrick lisa vanderpump Dancing With the Stars 2013 NIT Bracket March Madness 2013 bracket March Madness 2013 selection sunday

May 11 - Chicago Cubs @ Washington Nationals

? Killer Mike Says "New White Rappers" Brought "Self-P.. 93 comments

? The-Dream Ft. Jay-Z - High Art 73 comments

? May 9 - Media Turns On Charles Ramsey 57 comments

??Best Hip Hop Label Of All Time?
New reply 1 minute ago - 95 comments - by TheMindOf ??High School Student Goes Off On Lazy Teacher!
New reply 8 minutes ago - 70 comments - by Obonga ??Gucci Mane Ft. Chief Keef - Darker
New reply 3 minutes ago - 79 comments - by agasbarro ?NBA?Boston Celtics & Los Angeles Clippers Possibly Dis...
New reply 24 minutes ago - 118 comments - by JOK3R KiNG 808 ??May 9 - Malcolm Shabazz, Grandson Of Malcolm X, Killed
New reply 3 minutes ago - 85 comments - by PowerBar Ernie ??18 Year-old Suzanne Svanevik Is A Beast In The Gym
New reply 27 minutes ago - 75 comments - by Tyga Woods ??This Nigga Birdman Is Running Out Of Face
New reply 4 minutes ago - 58 comments - by DIPSET101 ??Batmath=superman And Iron Man Lawse
New reply 36 minutes ago - 77 comments - by dagrest84

Source: http://slumz.boxden.com/f352/may-11-chicago-cubs-washington-nationals-1923863/

state of the union fat tuesday ash wednesday kate middleton marco rubio marco rubio Zero Hour

Video: Intuitive Surgical Issues Urgent Notification

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/cnbc/51842216/

jon jones rashad evans ufc jones vs evans watergate pregnant man outside lands 2012 lineup beloved ufc results

Kids Trying Food for the First Time Is the Most Adorable Thing

Do you remember the first time you ate an olive? It probably turned you off from anything that had an olive in it until you started drinking martinis. Such is the way certain foods are when you're young. Anything vegetable related? Bleh. Anything too strong or spicy tasting? Ahh! But as you grow up, you realize everything is delicious.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/aFuUGTSfZ2g/kids-trying-food-for-the-first-time-is-the-most-adorabl-497193055

strawberry festival the monkees ciaa love actually strikeforce davy jones deep impact

South Korean president meets L.A. mayor, California governor

South Korean President Park Geun-hye wrapped up a five-day United States tour Thursday with a visit to Los Angeles, home to the largest number of Koreans outside of her country.

Park, who is traveling with a delegation of several dozen South Korean business officials, clinked champagne glasses with Gov. Jerry Brown and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa during a luncheon at Getty House, the mayor's official residence in Hancock Park.

The visit by Park, elected South Korean president in December, comes on the 60th anniversary of a security alliance between the U.S. and South Korea spawned during the 1950s Korean War, an alliance she said has developed into a successful free trade agreement.

She told the audience of business and political dignitaries that her trip - in which she met with members of the U.S. Congress and President Barack Obama to discuss security threats from North Korea - has re-affirmed the agreement.

On Wednesday, Park thanked Congress members for their support of South Korea and stressed that her country "will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea. "

The U.S. was a "blood-forged ally that helped to safeguard democracy in Korea" during the Korean War and has provided aid to her country over the years, Park said.

"From the United States' perspective, Korea's success is also its success," she said.

Villaraigosa highlighted Korean-Americans' "deep roots" in Korea,

saying Los Angeles and South Korea "are linked by more than just trade and tourism" evidenced in the passenger jets and container ships with "billions of dollars of goods" that move between the two places and also by their "histories and cultures. "

Park echoed Villaraigosa's sentiments, saying that Korean-Americans have contributed to Los Angeles in the areas of "politics, business, as well as culture ... thereby serving a bridging role between our two communities. "

Brown stressed that relations between California and South Korea in politics, business and culture are as important as ever.

"California is truly a world state," he said. "Turbulence in the world and the insecurities all require that the democracies of the world get closer and closer together. "

The 61-year-old Park, who took office in February, has political bloodlines. Her late father, Park Chung-hee, was virtual dictator of South Korea from 1961 to 1979, when he was assassinated by his own security forces. Her mother died in 1974 during a botched effort to kill her father.

Source: http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_23212573/south-korean-president-meets-l-mayor-california-governor?source=rss

overboard east of eden weather radio indiana autoimmune disease news channel 9 insanity workout

Bangladesh fire kills 8 as collapse toll hits 950

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) -- A fire fed by huge piles of acrylic products used to make sweaters killed eight people at a Bangladesh garment factory, barely two weeks after a collapse at another garment factory building where the death toll was approaching 1,000 on Thursday.

The dead in Wednesday night's fire included a ruling-party politician and a top official in the country's powerful clothing manufacturers' trade group. But unlike the collapse at the Rana Plaza building, which was blamed on shoddy construction and disregard for safety regulations, the Tung Hai Sweater factory appeared to have conformed to building codes. A top fire official said the deaths were caused by panic and bad luck.

"They are really unfortunate," said Mamun Mahmud, deputy director of the fire service.

The fire engulfed the lower floors of the 11-story factory, which had closed for the day. The smoldering acrylic products produced immense amounts of smoke and poison gas that killed those trying to flee, Mahmud said. The victims died of suffocation as they ran down the stairs, Mahmud said.

The building appeared on first inspection to have been properly built, though fire inspectors would conduct further checks, he said. It had two stairwells in the front and an emergency exit in the back, he said. Those inside probably panicked when they saw smoke and ran into one of the front stairwells, he said. Had they used the emergency stairwell, they would have survived, he said.

"Apparently they tried to flee the building through the stairwell in fear that the fire had engulfed the whole building," he said.

They also would have likely survived the slow-spreading fire had they stayed on the upper floors, he said.

"We found the roof open, but we did not find there anybody after the fire broke out. We recovered all of them on the stairwell on the ninth floor," he said.

The blaze comes just two weeks after the collapse of the eight-story Rana Plaza building, home to five garment factories, killed at least 950 people and became the worst tragedy in the history of the global garment manufacturing industry. The disaster has raised alarm about the often deadly working conditions in Bangladesh's $20 billion garment industry, which provides clothing for major retailers around the globe.

The identities of the victims of Wednesday's fire showed the entanglement of the industry and top Bangladeshi officials. The dead included the factory's managing director, Mahbubur Rahman, who was also on the board of directors of the powerful Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. Along with him was senior police official Z.A. Morshed and Sohel Mostafa Swapan, head of a local branch of the ruling party's youth league.

Independent TV, a local station, reported that Rahman had plans to contest next year's parliamentary elections as a candidate for the ruling party and had been meeting friends to discuss his future when the fire broke out.

It was not immediately clear what caused the fire, which began soon after the factory workers went home for the day and took three hours to bring under control. Mahmud speculated it might have originated in the factory's ironing section. Officials originally said the building also housed several floors of apartments, but later said it was just a factory.

The Facebook page of the Tung Hai Group claimed it was a sprawling enterprise with a total of 7,000 employees at its two factories and the capacity to produce well over 6 million sweaters, shirts, pants and pajamas every month. The group claimed it did business with major retailers in Europe and North America.

The country's powerful garment industry has been plagued by a series of disasters in recent months, including a November fire at the Tazreen factory that killed 112 and the building collapse.

More than two weeks after the building in the suburb of Savar came crashing down, workers with cranes and other heavy equipment were still pulling apart the rubble and finding more bodies. On Thursday, authorities said the death toll had risen to 950 and it was unclear how many more people remained missing. More than 2,500 people were rescued alive after the April 24 accident.

Maj. Ohiduzzaman, an army official who uses only one name, said 100 decomposing bodies have been kept at a makeshift morgue at a local school ground and were to be sent to hospitals in Dhaka for DNA testing to identify them.

A total of 648 bodies have so far been handed over to the families, he said. Some of those who authorities have been unable to identify have been buried by the government.

Bangladeshi Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus said in an article published in Bangladeshi newspapers Thursday that the tragedy was a "symbol of our failure as a nation."

"The crack in Rana Plaza that caused the collapse of the building has only shown us that if we don't face up to the cracks in our state systems, we as a nation will get lost in the debris of the collapse," he said, urging the government and citizens to work together for reforms.

He also urged global brands not to abandon the country, saying that the workers in the factories ? which often subcontract from the well-known brands ? should be seen as de facto employees of those companies.

The European Union's delegation to Bangladesh urged the government Wednesday to "act immediately" to improve working conditions in the country's garment industry.

Abdul Latif Siddiqui, head of special Cabinet committee to inspect garment factories that was formed days after the Rana Plaza collapse, said the government has closed 18 garment factories in recent days for failing to meet work and safety standards. He did not say whether the closures were temporary or permanent.

Officials say the owner of Rana Plaza illegally added three floors and allowed the garment factories to install heavy machines and generators, even though the structure was not designed to support such equipment.

The owner and eight other people, including the owners of the garment factories, have been detained.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bangladesh-fire-kills-8-collapse-132829231.html

real housewives of disney awakenings phantom of the opera agoraphobia andrew lloyd webber obscura grok

GE Capital and CPPIB Team up to Invest in Tokyo Properties ? Real ...

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and GE Capital Real Estate has announced a co-investment program to focus and invest in Central Tokyo office properties.

Both organizations will invest a combined equity amount of up to 40 billion yen or $403 million in this project.

CPPIB will hold 49% while GE Capital Real Estate will have 51%.

According to Graeme Eadie, Senior Vice President and Head of Real Estate Investments of CPPIB, this venture will allow them to enter the Tokyo office sector and at the same time, help them expand their real estate portfolio in Asia.

GE Capital Real Estate has been in the real estate business in Japan since 1998 and has acquired over $6.9 billion office assets since they started. CPPIB is a professional investment management organization based in Toronto that focuses on public equities, private equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed income instruments.

Source: Times Colonist?

Tokyo Apartments For Sale | Tokyo Apartments For Rent | Real Estate Japan

Source: http://www.realestate.co.jp/2013/05/09/ge-capital-and-cppib-team-up-to-invest-in-tokyo-properties/

tesla model s tesla model s Black Ops 2 Secede ben roethlisberger Diwali elmo

Five Best Thursday Columns

Amy Davidson at?The New Yorker on sexual assault in the military Amy Davidson appraises the U.S. military's efforts to combat sexual assault within its ranks, which led to a shocking annual report on its progress this week. "Why was the new report so dismaying?" she asks. "It included two measures: one based on reported, recorded incidents of sexual assault of one kind or the other?there were three thousand three hundred and seventy-four of those last year, an increase of six per cent?and a detailed, anonymous survey of active-duty servicemembers, which showed that more than six per cent of women and one per cent of men had experienced these crimes, also an increase." Davidson continues: "The way the numbers worked together is what was so jarring. ... But that?s not what had happened here: 'I mean, I got a team of Ph.D.s and statisticians that look at this every year,' [General Gary] Patton said. 'And?and what we saw this year was, as I mentioned, for the active-duty females, an increase in the prevalence.'" Eleanor Clift at?The Daily Beast adds, "This is not a new challenge for the military. It's been more than 20 years since the Tailhook scandal exposed a Navy and Marine Corps culture where women were sexually assaulted and male perpetrators rarely held accountable ...?there is still much to be done."

RELATED: Five Best Thursday Columns

Fareed Zakaria at?The Washington Post on U.S. credibility toward Syria "Syria is a humanitarian nightmare, which the United States should do more to address," writes Fareed Zakaria in a discussion of President Obama's vaguely drawn "red line" in terms of Syria. "Washington should help create and sustain more havens ? in Jordan and elsewhere ? for refugees and should coordinate with other countries to get aid in faster and more effectively to those in need. ... But we must understand that the Syrian conflict is fundamentally a civil war between a minority elite and the long-oppressed majority ? similar to those in Lebanon and Iraq. People fight to the end because they know that losers in such wars get killed or 'ethnically cleansed.' The only path to peace in such circumstances is through a political accord among the parties." But Leon Wieseltier at?The New Republic thinks direct intervention is necessary, and now: "Wouldn?t the prevention of ethnic cleansing and genocidal war be reason enough? Is the death of scores and even hundreds of thousands, and the displacement of millions, less significant for American policy, and less quickening? The moral dimension must be restored to our deliberations, the moral sting, or else Obama, for all his talk about conscience, will have presided over a terrible mutilation of American discourse: the severance of conscience from action."

RELATED: Five Best Wednesday Columns

Jill Filipovic at?The Guardian on "purity culture" Weighing recent statements by Elizabeth Smart, who as a 14-year-old was kidnapped in Utah, Jill Filopvic argues that Smart's testimony indicts larger culture assumptions about female bodies and "purity": "Smart's speech is largely being interpreted as a critique of abstinence-only education, but she's pointing to an entire culture that fetishizes purity. The more extreme versions of our collective obsession are seen in conservative Christian churches, which offer purity rings, purity balls and sermons that insist wives give their virginity as a 'gift' to husbands. But purity culture is mainstream, even in a country where sexualized images of women are on every magazine rack and Girls Gone Wild series thrive." She continues: "It goes without saying, but it's too important not to repeat: men are not judged as women are for consensual sexual activity. Men who have sex aren't chewed up pieces of gum or moral failures ? they're studs." Lindy West at Jezebel, addressing women, writes: "You do not exist to please men, and your value as a human being is not contingent upon your sexual capital. "Purity" is a lie. Do not even worry about any of this garbage, because?it's about as real as a fucking unicorn."

RELATED: Five Best Wednesday Columns

Michael Hirsh at?National Journal on the Benghazi "cover-up" "There was tragic incompetence, plainly, in the Obama administration's handling of the Benghazi attacks, and even possibly some political calculation," writes Michael Hirsch. "It is a record that may well come to haunt Hillary Clinton, the first Secretary of State to lose an ambassador in the field in more than three decades, if she runs for president in 2016." But the idea that's there's a scandal to be found is less persuasive:?"The obvious Republican effort to turn this inquiry into the Democratic (Obama) version of the Iraq intelligence scandal that has tarred the GOP since the George W. Bush years ? led by that least-credible of champions, the almost-always-wrong Darrell Issa ? is just not going to amount to much." Rich Lowry at Politico disagrees: "The falsehoods about Benghazi weren?t a product of the fog of war; they were the product of the fog of politics. Desperate to minimize the attack and deflect responsibility, Team Obama evaded and obsfucated." And Jason Chaffetz at U.S. News & World Report adds, "Even more appalling than the government?s refusal to provide adequate security before the attack or to provide available resources during the attack is the failure to provide answers after the attack. Eight months after our own ambassador was murdered and we were told the cause was a YouTube video, we still can't get a straight answer out of the Obama Administration."

RELATED: Five Best Monday Columns

Farhad Manjoo at Slate on his dog dilemma Farhad Manjoo inveighs against dogs and the strange space in public life they awkwardly occupy: "There?s now a cultural assumption that everyone must love dogs. Dog owners are rarely forced to reckon with the idea that there are people who aren't enthralled by their furry friends, and that taking their dogs everywhere might not be completely pleasant for these folks." Comparing dogs to his toddler son, Manjoo writes, "I love him unconditionally and just don?t understand why even strangers wouldn?t want him around all the time. Indeed, I think almost everything he does, even the inappropriate things, is the cutest behavior ever exhibited in human history. And yet, still, I rein him in. I realize that, although he?s impossibly cute, it's possible he might aggravate some people." He continues: "But dog owners? They seem to suffer few qualms about their animals? behavior. That?s why there are so many dogs running around at the park, jumping up on the bench beside you while you?re trying to read a book, the owner never asking if it?s OK with you." In response, Asawin Suebsaeng at Mother Jones ?called Manjoo's column "fascist." But Ryan L. Cooper at Washington Monthly defended him: "Eh, I'd say [Manjoo]?more than half right about this."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/five-best-thursday-columns-152519644.html

kevin costner budweiser shootout animal house invincible jesse jackson whitney houston funeral video tyler perry whitney houston

Is nuclear fusion power now possible?

The quest for nuclear fusion power is well known, Daly writes, having been around since the dawn of the nuclear age, but the physics have precluded significant research. Until now.

By John C.K. Daly,?Guest blogger / May 3, 2013

The Perry Nuclear Power Plant is shown on the shore of Lake Erie in North Perry, Ohio. Another aspect of potential nuclear power generation from the atom seems poised to take a giant leap forward, Daly writes, with potentially enormous implications for the entire issue of civilian nuclear power generation.

Mark Duncan/AP/File

Enlarge

On 26 April, the world largely yawned as a nuclear anniversary came and went.

Skip to next paragraph OilPrice.com

offers extensive coverage of all energy sectors from crude oil and natural gas to solar energy and environmental issues. To see more opinion pieces and news analysis that cover energy technology, finance and trading, geopolitics, and sector news, please visit?Oilprice.com.

Recent posts

' + google_ads[0].line2 + '
' + google_ads[0].line3 + '

'; } else if (google_ads.length > 1) { ad_unit += ''; } } document.getElementById("ad_unit").innerHTML += ad_unit; google_adnum += google_ads.length; return; } var google_adnum = 0; google_ad_client = "pub-6743622525202572"; google_ad_output = 'js'; google_max_num_ads = '1'; google_feedback = "on"; google_ad_type = "text"; // google_adtest = "on"; google_image_size = '230x105'; google_skip = '0'; // -->

Subscribe Today to the Monitor

Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS of
The Christian Science Monitor
Weekly Digital Edition

Twenty-seven years ago, the Ukrainian SSR nuclear power plant at Chernobyl exploded, providing a severe test of the USSR?s General Secretary of the Communist Party Mihail Gorbachev?s policy of ?glasnost? (?openness,?), which the sclerotic Soviet leadership signally failed, providing a less than candid drip feed of news about the magnitude of the disaster.

Nothing to see here, move along.

Twenty-five years later, Tokyo Electric Power Co.?s six reactor Fukushima Daiichi NPP was decimated by a tsunami generated by the offshore Tohoku earthquake in the western Pacific, estimated at 9.0 on the Richter scale.?

Anti-militia protest attacked in Libya

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) ? Hundreds of Libyan pro-democracy advocates marched in Tripoli on Friday, denouncing militias' recent blockade of government buildings and coming under attack briefly by supporters of the armed groups, in the latest sign of the turmoil that threatens the country's first elected authorities.

Raising banners that read "No democracy with force," the protesters marched on the capital's Algeria Square and Martyrs' Square but were attacked by counterdemonstrators who tore their placards and forced them back, witnesses said. Protesters then marched to the headquarters of the Cabinet to voice support for the government.

"They beat us up with the sticks of the placards and chased us away," Mohammed al-Kirkari, an activist who was in the march told the local al-Ahrar TV network.

In the eastern city of Benghazi, vocal anti-militia activist and leading rights lawyer Fathi Terbal said he received death threats and was forced to read out a statement in support of the militias' moves.

Terbal had been at the forefront of the 2011 popular uprising against Moammar Gadhafi's rule, which descended into civil war and ended with the dictator's death eight months later.

"What is happening now aborts the principles of the revolution," he said. "Going out today is a national duty for all Libyans ... if you don't (demonstrate) today, we will all pay the price," he said, adding that he and other activists were attacked on Thursday while meeting in a Benghazi hotel to organize protests.

Libya's elected government and parliament depend on militias ? initially formed of former rebels who fought Gadhafi's forces ? to maintain security given the absence of a unified police and military since Gadhafi's fall. However, the militias have mushroomed in numbers, loyalties and agendas.

The latest showdown with the government is rooted in a struggle among the country's biggest political blocs over a contentious bill dubbed the "Isolation Law." If passed, it would effectively dismiss many of Libya's current leaders for the mere fact that they had served under Gadhafi decades ago, regardless of their role during the uprising. The law in it is initial form would have ousted the current head of Congress, Mohammed al-Megarif, Prime Minister Ali Zidan, and the liberal-leaning politician Mahmoud Jibril. Jibril leads National Forces Alliance, which enjoys the largest number of seats for a signal bloc.

Over the past six days militias ? some of which are suspected to be backed by rivals of the NFA bloc in parliament ? have encircled the foreign and justice ministries and stormed the interior ministry and state-TV in Tripoli. They have a variety of demands, one of which is for parliament to pass the law.

Lawmakers said earlier that parliament, which suspended its sessions on Tuesday after militias' takeover, will meet on Sunday to pass the law.

One version of the law posted on the parliament's Facebook page allows some figures to be exempted from the ban, if they are supported by two thirds of parliament. However, the head of the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm, the Freedom and Construction party, said earlier that there would be no exceptions.

Tripoli's showdown between supporters and detractors of the militias recall mass protests that erupted in Benghazi last year after militants killed?U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens three other Americans there. An extremist militia called Ansar al-Shariah was suspected of being behind the attack. Thousands of Benghazi residents marched the streets calling for the disbanding of the militias and the formation of a unified army and police. Those demonstrators took control of the headquarters of Ansar Shariah's militias.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/anti-militia-protest-attacked-libya-183938077.html

LIPA Garcinia Cambogia Little Things One Direction Bob Ross Hurricane Categories Hurricane Sandy new jersey

AHA Drives Hospital 'Sustainability Roadmap' - Environmental Leader

Home???AHA Drives Hospital ?Sustainability Roadmap?

May 3, 2013

AHA Drives Hospital ?Sustainability Roadmap?

"); } else { document.write(""); } // ]]> -->