If you're already starting to feel that shiny 'wow' factor fade from BlackBerry 10, then you'll be glad to know about some new features that are primed to appear with the next update. Reports are now flowing in from developers that suggest an HDR camera mode, PIN-to-PIN messaging within the BlackBerry Hub and an improved text selector are all likely candidates for inclusion in BlackBerry 10.1 OS. Other smaller tweaks include the ability to paste phone numbers into the dialer, the option to disable alerts for specific applications and the ability to check for app updates more easily. These reports are based on a pre-release version of BlackBerry 10.1 OS that the company recently shared with its developers, and while the list is by no means comprehensive, it sure beats unsubstantiated rumors.
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KGBlend from Dazbog Coffee Company
For more than 30 years, off and on, SoCal hardcore pioneers the Descendents have been playing loud, fast, and twitchy punk rock songs that owe everything to the band's legendary consumption of their drug of choice: caffeine. In its early years on the road, the band invented its own home brew of sorts: the Bonus Cup. It was the band's "attempt at making an espresso, without the machine," recalls frontman Milo Aukerman. They'd fill a cup partway with instant coffee crystals, add hot water, and chug it down. "It was like coffee sludge," Aukerman tells 'Men's Journal.' "It tasted like shit, but it got you wired beyond belief."
The Descendents' coffee intake has always been critical. "We like to play fast, so you can't be sleepwalking up there," says the singer. "It's a crutch, for sure, but at least we're not strung out on something harder."
Today, the band has refined its collective tastebuds considerably. Aukerman, who has a Ph.D. and works as a research biochemist in Delaware, says he uses a Rancilio espresso machine at home and a Gaggia Titanium in the lab. Though the band sells an official "Bonus Cup" mug ? it's emblazoned with the nerd cartoon from the covers of the band's early albums, with smoke coming out of his ears and sparks flying off his head ("Thou Shalt Not Partake of Decaf") ? Aukerman says he uses a demitasse, "so I can point my pinky up when I sip."
Both he and drummer Bill Stevenson are partial to KGBlend, a complex specialty roast developed by the Russian immigrants Anatoly and Leonid Yuffa, who founded the Dazbog chain of coffee shops in Colorado. "It's an extremely dark, oily roast that Bill turned me onto," Aukerman reports. "Makes killer espressos ? like a Bonus Cup that actually tastes good." [$12.95/12 oz. bag; store.dazbog.com]
Apr. 4, 2013 ? Global population data spanning the years from 1900 to 2010 have enabled a research team from the Autonomous University of Madrid to predict that the number of people on Earth will stabilise around the middle of the century. The results, obtained with a model used by physicists, coincide with the UN's downward forecasts.
According to United Nations' estimates, the world population in 2100 will be within a range between 15.8 billion people according to the highest estimates -high fertility variant- and 6.2 billion according to the lowest -- low fertility variant-, a figure that stands below the current 7 billion.
A mathematical model developed by a team from the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM) and the CEU-San Pablo University, both from Spain, seems to confirm the lower estimate, in addition to a standstill and even a slight drop in the number of people on Earth by the mid-21st century.
The population prospects between 1950 and 2100 provided by the UN were used to conduct the study, published in the journal 'Simulation'. Mathematical equations which are used in scientific fields, such as condensed matter physics, were then applied to this data.
"This is a model that describes the evolution of a two-level system in which there is a probability of passing from one level to another," as explained by F?lix F. Mu?oz, UAM researcher and co-author of the project.
The team considered Earth as a closed and finite system where the migration of people within the system has no impact and where the fundamental principle of the conservation of mass -biomass in this case- and energy is fulfilled.
"Within this general principle, the variables that limit the upper and lower zone of the system's two levels are the birth and mortality rates," Mu?oz pointed out and recalled the change that occurred in the ratio between the two variables throughout the last century.
"We started with a general situation where both the birth rate and mortality rate were high, with slow growth favouring the former," he added, "but the mortality rate fell sharply in the second half of the 20th century as a result of advances in healthcare and increased life expectancy and it seemed that the population would grow a lot. However, the past three decades have also seen a steep drop-off in the number of children being born worldwide."
The model's S-shaped sigmoid curve reflects this situation with an inflection point in the mid-1980s when the speed at which the population is growing starts to slow down until it stabilises around 2050.
The data also reflect the downward trend in the UN's series of prospects. "Overpopulation was a spectre in the 1960s and 70s but historically the UN's low fertility variant forecasts have been fulfilled," Mu?oz highlighted.
As recently as 1992 it was predicted that there would be 7.17 billion people on Earth by 2010 instead of the actual 6.8 billion. In fact, the fertility rate has fallen by more than 40% since 1950.
"This work is another aspect to be taken into consideration in the debate, although we do not deal with the significant economic, demographic and political consequences that the stabilisation and aging of the world population could entail," the researcher concluded.
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Weak reports on hiring and service industries sent the stock market sharply lower Wednesday, giving the Dow Jones industrial average its worst day in more than a month.
The Dow closed down 111.66 points, or 0.8 percent, at 14,550.35.
The S&P 500 fell 16.56 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,553.69.
The Nasdaq composite dropped 36.26 points, or 1.1 percent, to 3,218.60.
When Twitter and Square co-founder Jack Dorsey appeared on Executive Suite recently, he said the best thing Rhode Island leaders could do to attract more entrepreneurs is to be hospitable to them.
?I think the biggest thing is stating that you want that, stating that you want small businesses, that you want more of them ? and not just stating it but showing it,? the billionaire entrepreneur said.
Dorsey argued that ?easy paths of starting something? are key. ?It?s just taking on that attitude and really showing, not telling, more than anything else,? he said.
Unfortunately, by that standard it seems Rhode Island could hardly be doing worse.
Rhode Island receives a grade of F -?the worst in the country ? for its overall friendless toward small businesses in a new survey conducted by Thumbtack and the Kauffman Foundation. Only two other states ? Hawaii and Maine ? got a failing grade. By comparison, New Hampshire got an A+, Massachusetts got a C- and Connecticut got a D+. (Vermont?s sample size was too small to grade.)
Rhode Island?s defenders may wonder if the survey was put together to make blue states look bad, but its designers emphasized that they were looking for a nuanced picture. (This PDF details the methodology.)
?Many business indices are produced by organizations promoting a particular agenda or policy, such as lower taxes or deregulation,? Nathan Allen and Sanders Daniels of Thumbtack wrote in a summary. ?Our purpose is to accurately convey the attitudes and concerns of actual small business owners.?
A closer look at Rhode Island?s letter grades across 10 subcategories gives a better sense of what policies garner the least support from small businesses:
Ease of starting a business: F
Ease of hiring: F
Regulations overall: D
Health/safety regulations: D
Employment/labor/hiring regulations: C+
Tax code/regulations: D+
Licensing regulations: F
Environmental regulations: D+
Zoning: D
Training and networking programs: C
Based on this survey, taxes and regulations are ? unsurprisingly perhaps ? a big complaint from Rhode Island small business owners. (This suggests the Chafee administration was right to bring on Leslie Taito and push for quick action by the new Office of Regulatory Reform.) Moreover, the bright spots for Rhode Island in last year?s survey ? hiring costs, training programs and networking initiatives ? are no longer so bright.
The Thumbtack/Kauffman survey also included a few quotes from survey respondents in Rhode Island:
Personal chef, Providence: ?Rhode Island is attempting to start to help small business but just recently. They are behind the eight-ball considering the bad shape that RI?s economy is in. I am starting to see a turnaround and I hope it continues. It will take both the small businesses and the state and local governments to get the momentum to move in the direction it needs to.?
Fitness trainer, Providence: ?Too many desperate agencies and too hard to coordinate between them, and they?re extremely unresponsive, unhelpful, almost hostile. Too many cumbersome regulations (lead, fire code, [Americans with Disabilities Act], etc).?
Pet hotel owner, North Providence: ?Getting the correct zoning is a problem and parking is terrible.?
Production company owner, Cranston: ?There are high taxes & it?s very hard to turn a profit.?
Home supply retailer, Warwick: ?It has been difficult mainly because of the down economy and my state being one of the most ?business unfriendly? states in the country.?
As Slate?s Matt Yglesias wrote earlier this year: ?Red tape, long lines, inconvenient office hours, and other logistical hassles probably won?t stop tomorrow?s super-genius from launching the next great billion-dollar company. But it?s a large and needless deterrent to the formation of the humble workaday firms that for many people are a path to autonomy and prosperity.?
Thumbtack.com said the Small Business Friendliness Survey was conducted by polling 7,766 respondents nationwide between Oct. 25, 2012, to Jan. 2, 2013. The group told WPRI.com 24 Rhode Island businesses participated in the survey.
? Related: Executive Suite ? What?s wrong with Providence and how to fix it (Jan. 27)
Tags: business, business climate, economic development, economy, entrepreneurs, jack dorsey, small business
Nothing fishy about it: Fish oil can boost the immune systemPublic release date: 1-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Cody Mooneyhan cmooneyhan@faseb.org 301-634-7104 Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
New research published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that instead of suppressing the body's immune response, fish oil actually enhances the function of B cells
Fish oil rich in DHA and EPA is widely believed to help prevent disease by reducing inflammation, but until now, scientists were not entirely sure about its immune enhancing effects. A new report appearing in the April 2013 issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, helps provide clarity on this by showing that DHA-rich fish oil enhances B cell activity, a white blood cell, challenging the notion that fish oil is only immunosuppressive. This discovery is important as it shows that fish oil does not necessarily reduce the overall immune response to lower inflammation, possibly opening the doors for the use of fish oil among those with compromised immune systems.
"Fish oil may have immune enhancing properties that could benefit immunocompromised individuals," said Jenifer Fenton, Ph.D., M.P.H., a researcher involved in the work from the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.
To make this discovery, researchers used two groups of mice. One group was fed a control diet, and the other was fed a diet supplemented with DHA-rich fish oil for five weeks. B cells were harvested from several tissues and then stimulated in culture. Researchers then looked for markers of B cell activation on the cell surface, B cell membrane changes, and B cell cytokine production. They found that DHA-enriched fish oil enhanced B cell activation and select antibody production, which may actually aid immune responses associated with pathogen clearance, while possibly dampening the totality of the inflammatory response.
"This work confirms similar findings on fish oil and B cells from our lab, and moves us one step closer to understanding the immune enhancing properties of EPA and DHA," said S. Raza Shaikh, Ph.D., a researcher also involved in the work from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at East Carolina University.
###
The Journal of Leukocyte Biology publishes peer-reviewed manuscripts on original investigations focusing on the cellular and molecular biology of leukocytes and on the origins, the developmental biology, biochemistry and functions of granulocytes, lymphocytes, mononuclear phagocytes and other cells involved in host defense and inflammation. The Journal of Leukocyte Biology is published by the Society for Leukocyte Biology.
Details: Eric A. Gurzell, Heather Teague, Mitchel Harris, Jonathan Clinthorne, Saame Raza Shaikh, and Jenifer I. Fenton. DHA-enriched fish oil targets B cell lipid microdomains and enhances in vivo and ex vivo B cell function. J Leukoc Biol April 2013 93:463-470; doi:10.1189/jlb.0812394; http://www.jleukbio.org/content/93/4/463.abstract
[ | 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.
Nothing fishy about it: Fish oil can boost the immune systemPublic release date: 1-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Cody Mooneyhan cmooneyhan@faseb.org 301-634-7104 Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
New research published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that instead of suppressing the body's immune response, fish oil actually enhances the function of B cells
Fish oil rich in DHA and EPA is widely believed to help prevent disease by reducing inflammation, but until now, scientists were not entirely sure about its immune enhancing effects. A new report appearing in the April 2013 issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, helps provide clarity on this by showing that DHA-rich fish oil enhances B cell activity, a white blood cell, challenging the notion that fish oil is only immunosuppressive. This discovery is important as it shows that fish oil does not necessarily reduce the overall immune response to lower inflammation, possibly opening the doors for the use of fish oil among those with compromised immune systems.
"Fish oil may have immune enhancing properties that could benefit immunocompromised individuals," said Jenifer Fenton, Ph.D., M.P.H., a researcher involved in the work from the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.
To make this discovery, researchers used two groups of mice. One group was fed a control diet, and the other was fed a diet supplemented with DHA-rich fish oil for five weeks. B cells were harvested from several tissues and then stimulated in culture. Researchers then looked for markers of B cell activation on the cell surface, B cell membrane changes, and B cell cytokine production. They found that DHA-enriched fish oil enhanced B cell activation and select antibody production, which may actually aid immune responses associated with pathogen clearance, while possibly dampening the totality of the inflammatory response.
"This work confirms similar findings on fish oil and B cells from our lab, and moves us one step closer to understanding the immune enhancing properties of EPA and DHA," said S. Raza Shaikh, Ph.D., a researcher also involved in the work from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at East Carolina University.
###
The Journal of Leukocyte Biology publishes peer-reviewed manuscripts on original investigations focusing on the cellular and molecular biology of leukocytes and on the origins, the developmental biology, biochemistry and functions of granulocytes, lymphocytes, mononuclear phagocytes and other cells involved in host defense and inflammation. The Journal of Leukocyte Biology is published by the Society for Leukocyte Biology.
Details: Eric A. Gurzell, Heather Teague, Mitchel Harris, Jonathan Clinthorne, Saame Raza Shaikh, and Jenifer I. Fenton. DHA-enriched fish oil targets B cell lipid microdomains and enhances in vivo and ex vivo B cell function. J Leukoc Biol April 2013 93:463-470; doi:10.1189/jlb.0812394; http://www.jleukbio.org/content/93/4/463.abstract
[ | 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.
For more than 30 years, off and on, SoCal hardcore pioneers the Descendents have been playing loud, fast, and twitchy punk rock songs that owe everything to the band's legendary consumption of their drug of choice: caffeine. In its early years on the road, the band invented its own home brew of sorts: the Bonus Cup. It was the band's "attempt at making an espresso, without the machine," recalls frontman Milo Aukerman. They'd fill a cup partway with instant coffee crystals, add hot water, and chug it down. "It was like coffee sludge," Aukerman tells 'Men's Journal.' "It tasted like shit, but it got you wired beyond belief."
When Twitter and Square co-founder Jack Dorsey appeared on Executive Suite recently, he said the best thing Rhode Island leaders could do to attract more entrepreneurs is to be hospitable to them.![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 1-Apr-2013
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