The Yankees are a walking time bomb right now. It’s not because their future is in any sort of danger, or because the team could change locations or ownership. In fact, with youthful owners compared to their father, with a manager who has won it all recently, and with a new stadium, the Yankees’ franchise is in better hands than it has been since well before the dynasty years of the 90’s. No, the Yankees are a walking time bomb because if they open the check book for any player from another team (it will only take one), regardless of if that team wants nothing to do with said player,…
Selected by mrscienceteach
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Sox and Pinstripes
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The slowly developing Price War
19 Nov 2009 | 6:44 pm -
The waiting game begins now
15 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pmThis is the worst time of the year to be a baseball fan. The season is long enough over where you miss actual games, if your team won the World Series, the DVD isn't out yet and you can't inject yourself with baseball nicotine by watching it 47 times in a row, and the hot stove is nothing more than speculation. Add to that the element of having a blog you need to update and the whole situation is pretty awful, particularly this off season. Unlike last year, the Yankees don't have many holes to fill. They don't need to pick a new right fielder, their second baseman and… -
The finale to Rebuilding the Defending Champs
13 Nov 2009 | 8:59 pmIf the Yankees' plan is to get younger and compete for years on end, there are only two real blockbuster deals I would entertain. Trade for Felix Hernandez (who has often been mentioned with the Red Sox but never the Yankees) or trade for Curtis Granderson (who is said to be available from the Tigers) The Yankees seem to have issues making deals with Seattle, but Hernandez is about the only pitcher I'd open the farm for (I'm talking Montero and Chamberlain in a package). Roy Halladay is just too old for me to want to see a big money and prospect party over. Sure a rotation of… -
Sorting out the Yankees' Hot Stove rumors (a continuation of rebuilding the Defending Champs)
12 Nov 2009 | 10:07 pmWhen you're a defending champion and you're also the most affluent franchise in the game, rumors will run rampant around a team. The Yankees will be linked to every player involved in any trade or as a Free Agent regardless of if New York has any interest whatsoever or if the deal would make sense.It is the job of a good agent to get the Yankees, Red Sox and other teams with deep pockets in the bidding for its players. The connections don't need to be genuine or true, they just have to exist. It creates a deeper array of options and drives up the price for the player. Likewise,… -
Matsui to Boston not likely
12 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pmThe report made little sense when it was first released on multiple web sites, and based on what Theo Epstein said at the GM meetings, it is not going to happen. Hideki Matsui will not become a member of the Boston Red Sox.Matsui has undoubtedly had a successful major league career. Add the fact that his bat guided the Yankees to a World Series title, and that he has long been a Red Sox killer, and it might seem that he would be a good fit in Beantown. The problem is that Matsui is 35, has severe knee problems and can no longer adequately play the outfield. The Sox already have a guy who is…
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The Joy of Sox
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Blogging In 1974
20 Nov 2009 | 6:28 amDaniel Shoptaw, the man behind the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, is posting short Q&As of BBA members. Here's mine.One thought: this blog is a clear descendant of the sports pages I created on my parents' electric typewriter roughly 35 years ago. Also, I love hearing about other writers who did similar things when they were kids. -
Bay Rejects Boston's 4/60 Offer
19 Nov 2009 | 1:08 pmNot a surprise, as Theo Epstein said.He may end up back in Fenway, but at age 31, Bay wants to see what is out there in the free agent waters.Terry Francona held court on a number of matters, including Bay:He has earned the right to be a free agent. This is his first time, and he wants to see it through. You know we're going to be a major player. We always are. Do I hope it gets done? Yeah.The Red Sox's exclusive rights to negotiate with Bay end at midnight tonight.While Tito would like the Sox to go after some pitching (like John Lackey), David Ortiz says the team needs a power bat:I said… -
Sox Release Kottaras
18 Nov 2009 | 4:50 amZachary Nicholson, Sox Prospects:With the deadline to add players to the 40-man roster and protect them from the Rule 5 Draft rapidly approaching, the Red Sox [Tuesday] made another move to clear space, releasing catcher George Kottaras. ...Links: 40-man roster deadline and Rule 5 draft (to be held on December 10). -
Greinke Wins AL Cy Young
17 Nov 2009 | 11:37 amIt's a rout. 1st 2nd 3rd PtsZack Greinke, KC 25 3 134Felix Hernandez, SEA 2 23 1 80Justin Verlander, DET 1 9 14CC Sabathia, NYY 2 7 13Roy Halladay, TOR 11 11NL Cy on Thursday.Rookies of the Year: Andrew Bailey (A's) and Chris Coghlan (Marlins). -
Dock Ellis And The LSD No-No
14 Nov 2009 | 7:18 amOn June 12, 1970, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dock Ellis took the mound in San Diego while high on LSD.A video from No Mas and James Blagden.Ellis:I started having a crazy idea in the fourth inning that Richard Nixon was the home plate umpire, and once I thought I was pitching a baseball to Jimi Hendrix, who to me was holding a guitar and swinging it over the plate.The audio in the video comes from an interview Ellis did with NPR shortly before his death last December.
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Teacher Leaders Network: Teacher Voices
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Should a “Lesson Plan Marketplace” Concern Us?
19 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm[click to enlarge image]Teachers in the TLN Forum had lots to say about a recent New York Times article reporting on the growing tendency of teachers to sell lesson plans and other teaching materials they’ve developed via the Internet. A selection of comments from our discussion appeared in a recent post at Teacher Magazine, titled “Should Teachers Sell Their Class Materials?” If you’re interested in this topic, be sure to read this story.We had more insightful comments than we could possibly fit into our Teacher space, so we thought we’d share more of them here. We do… -
A Compelling Case for Detracking Schools
23 Oct 2009 | 10:56 amDetracking for Excellence and Equity By Carol Corbett Burris and Delia T. Garrity(ASCD, 2008)Reviewed by Sherry L. AnneeBiotechnology TeacherBrebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School (IN)Teacher Leaders Network What are the indicators that a book has made a significant contribution within its discipline? It’s one that challenges and moves the reader to take notice of the information, internalize it, and act upon the new knowledge and one the reader quotes and reflects upon long after reading it. Detracking for Excellence and Equity by Burris and Garrity is such a book! For example, read these… -
A Book to Inspire a Culture of Trust and Build Teacher Community
21 Oct 2009 | 6:36 amProtocols for Professional Learning (The Professional Learning Community Series)By Lois Brown Easton(2009, ASCD)Reviewed by Michael FisherInstructional Coach and Consultant (New York)Teacher Leaders Network I appreciate the opportunity to read and review Lois Brown Easton’s book on Professional Learning Protocols. It is a book that I know will have an impact on my own practice as a staff developer, and I’ve already used and shared many ideas from the text. Because I work with schools helping teachers to set up Professional Learning Networks, both in-house and… -
I Want to Belong to This Club!
19 Oct 2009 | 9:31 amA Sense of Belonging: Sustaining and Retaining New TeachersBy Jennifer Allen(2009, Stenhouse Publishers)Reviewed by Marti SchwartzTeacher, Novice-Teacher Educator (Rhode Island)Teacher Leaders Network I loved this book! When I began reading it in early September, I approached it through the lens of a coach/mentor for a group of novice teachers who spent a week with me in a seminar this past summer. From that perspective, I found the subtitle intriguing and hoped for good advice. Shortly thereafter, in a moment of optimism, I agreed to come out of semi-retirement and signed on for a totally… -
You Can Be a Change Leader
16 Oct 2009 | 7:22 amLeading Change in Your School: How to Conquer Myths, Build Commitment, and Get ResultsBy Douglas B. ReevesAssociation for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) (2009)Reviewed by Elizabeth SteinSpecial Education Teacher (New York)Teacher Leaders Network My interest in this book was first sparked by the title. After all, with words like "leading change" and "conquer," any action-minded educator is likely to get drawn in. It was the author who caught my attention next. Being familiar with Douglas Reeves's work on change leadership, including his monthly column in…
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NYT: Education
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Students Protest Tuition Increases
21 Nov 2009 | 6:30 amStudents occupied campus buildings at Berkeley and Santa Cruz on Friday, the day after a 32 percent increase in tuition was approved by the University of California Board of Regents. -
Tips for the Admissions Test ... to Kindergarten
21 Nov 2009 | 6:03 amTest prep companies are catering to a new demographic: 3- and 4-year-olds. -
U. of Nebraska Defeats Tighter Limits on Stem Cell Research
21 Nov 2009 | 12:02 amThe effort had been seen by opponents as a possible new front in the national debate over the matter. -
Teachers at Some Low-Performing Schools Get Bonuses
20 Nov 2009 | 9:33 amTwo different measures of progress explain the discrepancy, said officials from the New York City Department of Education. -
A Crown Jewel of Education Struggles With Cuts
20 Nov 2009 | 6:29 amStudents and faculty worry that deep budget cuts are pushing the University of California into decline.
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Dangerously Irrelevant
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UCEA Week 01: I gave a bad presentation yesterday
19 Nov 2009 | 8:01 amI gave a bad presentation yesterday. It wasn’t bad because I had poor content or delivery. It was a bad presentation because I didn’t sufficiently account for the needs and understandings of my audience. Let me explain… I’m in Anaheim, California for the annual conference of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA), which is the primary association for educational leadership faculty members at large research institutions. In other words, UCEA is the organization for professors that prepare school principals and superintendents. I currently serve as UCEA’s… -
"You're fired. I only want people who already know how to do their jobs."
16 Nov 2009 | 3:09 amBack in July I said that I was concerned that we never seem to hold folks accountable for being self-learners. I also noted that In many job sectors, employees are expected to keep up with relevant technologies or risk job loss. When do we require that of K-12 and postsecondary educators? At what point do we say to them “No, we’re not training you how to use this. It’s easy enough for you to learn on your own. And if you don’t, we’ll find someone else who can.” Many of you chimed in and shared your own thoughts on this topic. Apparently, now Dilbert has too: When will we,… -
3 MINUTE SURVEY: Why isn't your school organization making more progress?
13 Nov 2009 | 3:51 amWhy aren’t schools making more progress when it comes to effective implementation and integration of digital technologies? Here’s what K-12 educators usually tell me when asked (list is in no particular order): Lack of adequate funding Unsupportive state / federal legislators Teacher / union resistance Lack of professional development Ineffective leadership Lack of time / space within curriculum Accountability demands of NCLB Parent / community resistance I’m curious about your own situation. So I created a 3–minute survey! Simply click, drag, and drop the items to reorder them. Take… -
The (un)certainty of professional persistence
6 Nov 2009 | 7:13 amThere has been a lot of good discussion on my post about the future of books, libraries, librarians, and schools (thank you, everyone). In addition to the comments on the post itself, there are some excellent thoughts elsewhere as well: Flat World Library Corporation Dangerously irrelevant libraries Ten hard questions Random questions on future libraries by Scott McLeod I was struck, however, by something that Erin Downey said in her own post: What has, does, and will distinguish us from [coffee shops, community centers, and Internet cafes] are LIBRARIANS. Your barista doesn't know… -
Data-driven decision-making resources from CASTLE
4 Nov 2009 | 3:32 amI have done a lot of work over the years on various data-driven decision-making projects. I've taught courses, given workshops, delivered multi-day institutes for state departments of education and corporate partners, and written book chapters and white papers.I collected some of the highlights of that work on my new DDDM page here at Dangerously Irrelevant. Resources include some of the products from my work with Microsoft, the American Psychological Association, the Chicago Public Schools, the Minnesota Department of Education, and others. I hope these are useful to you. Happy reading!
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Weblogg-ed
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What Does “Getting It” Mean, Anyway?
19 Nov 2009 | 5:09 pmWhile my trip to Australia this last week and a half was primarily pleasure with my family, I did get a few days to work with teachers in Brisbane and throughout Victoria (a la our PLP cohort there), and I had some great conversations about the state of the education world with some good friends. Since the trip also came on the heels of my annual two-day visit to Skywalker Ranch as a GLEF board member, these last couple of weeks have provided a lot to think about, but between travel and exorbitant internet fees and surfing expeditions, not a lot of time to write. (As usual, these days.) One… -
Teachers as Learners (Part 32)
4 Nov 2009 | 3:06 amRecently at the beginning of a day long workshop, I used a Google form to get feedback on this question: If there was one part of your personal learning practice that you wanted to focus on today, what would it be? What questions would you seek to answer? Now I’ll be the first to admit that it’s not a perfect question in terms of trying to get some sense of the personal learning lives from the teachers who were participating. But in the context of a discussion we’d been having about the passion-based learning opportunities that the Web now affords, I was hoping to learn what… -
Teaching, Testing and Counseling
23 Oct 2009 | 2:58 pmIt’s no secret that many of us who had high hopes that the Obama administration would start a meaningful conversation on re-envisioning education are feeling sorely disappointed these days. All of the hoopla over “The Race to the Top” as a catalyst of real “reform” is getting a bit much to take, and to be honest, I’m surprised that more educators aren’t voicing their displeasure at the idea of being paid based on the scores their students make on standardized tests (among other things.) But I have to tell you, David Brooks’ column in the Times… -
On Common Standards
16 Oct 2009 | 5:18 amSo without bemoaning in the fact that I haven’t been able to find any time of late to get to this space to do some reading and thinking and synthesizing and extended writing and that I feel like a truly important part of my life is being slowly and painfully left behind and that there is a post that I really need to write about that at some point sooner rather than later… Tom Hoffman has been bugging many of us to blog about the English Language Arts Standards that are being written by Core Standards group as an attempt to provide some national standardization for ELA (and… -
Don’t, Don’t, Don’t vs. Do, Do, Do
20 Sep 2009 | 6:11 amRecently, I presented at a school on an opening day for teachers where the first thing that greeted everyone on the table in the lobby was an 8-page Acceptable Use Policy which staff members were picking up as they filed into the school. I picked one up too, and when I had a moment I started paging through it, looking at all the ways in which students (and teachers) could get themselves in trouble on the school network. The middle three pages were filled with an A-Y double spaced list (guess they were saving room for one more rule next year) which spelled out the many transgressions that were…
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The Fischbowl
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A Good Day
19 Nov 2009 | 1:41 pmAnne Smith’s English Literature class recently discussed Act III of Hamlet with Debi Ohayon’s AP class. Not that unusual, perhaps, except that Anne’s class is here at Arapahoe in Centennial, Colorado, and Debi’s class is at The Lovett School in Atlanta, Georgia.Anne tweeted out that she was looking for classes that might be interested in interacting with her class around Hamlet, and Laura Deisley – who’s the Director of 21st Century Learning at Lovett (great job title, btw) – responded that she knew a teacher that might be interested. Anne’s students are pretty comfortable… -
Copyright: Living Life Against the Law
18 Nov 2009 | 1:52 pmLawrence Lessig (now at Harvard) has another thoughtful presentation regarding copyright that he gave at EDUCAUSE 2009. He makes a compelling case about how "things have changed" but that our copyright laws have not kept up with those changes. In the past, "copyright had a tiny role." He quotes Jessica Litman:At the turn of the century [the last century, not this one], U.S. copyright law was technical, inconsistent, and difficult to understand, but it didn't apply to very many people or very many things. If one were an author or publisher of books, maps, charts, paintings, sculpture,… -
What Makes a Chat a Chat?
18 Nov 2009 | 1:39 pmI had the opportunity last week to participate along with the amazing Jim Burke from English Companion in an Education Week/Teacher Magazine chat on Social Networking and Teacher Professional Development. I hope some people found it useful and I appreciate the folks at Education Week/Teacher Magazine that put this together. None of the rest of this post is meant to disparage those folks, but simply to ask the question: What makes a chat a chat?We used CoverItLive for this and Jim and I were fed questions throughout the hour long chat. People in the chat submitted a question, the moderator… -
Learning 2.0: A Colorado Conversation (2010 Edition)
17 Nov 2009 | 6:03 amI'm pleased to announce that the 2010 Edition of Learning 2.0: A Colorado Conversation will be hosted by Loveland High School on February 20, 2010. Like the original in 2008 and the 2009 Edition, this year's get together is free.What is Learning 2.0: A Colorado Conversation?Learning 2.0: A Colorado Conversation is a one day conference/meetup for teachers, administrators, students, school board members, parents and anyone who is interested in education. It will be held on Saturday, February 20th, 2010, from 8:00 am until 3:30 pm at Loveland High School in Loveland, Colorado, USA (different… -
Diigo Ideas: Results from my Earlier Post
9 Nov 2009 | 12:53 pmI posted a couple of weeks ago asking how you used Diigo instructionally, and asking folks to complete a Google Form to share how they used it. Here’s a quick-and-dirty Google Site I created for a brief lunchtime staff development session on it. It includes the embedded results from the Google Form in that previous post. (Note: that Google Form is still active, so you can still add to the results.)
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Bud the Teacher
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Digital Is. Or Isn’t. Or Always (Never?) Was. Or Not.
18 Nov 2009 | 8:59 pmI spent today engaged in some work with the National Writing Project and several of their thinking partners at the Digital Is . . . Convening event, a day of structured thinking and looking and conversation about what it means to write and teach writing at a time of such profound technological change in the world and, perhaps, our schools. It was a classic NWP event, in the sense that there was a good collection of really smart folks present as well as thoughtful processes and protocols to help us have productive conversation and inquiry time. What follows are a collection of the thoughts… -
The Week in Tweets for 2009-11-15
15 Nov 2009 | 9:15 pm@johrt Good idea. How's Friday look for lunch? I'm available most of the day. in reply to johrt # A nice surprise was waiting for me when I got to work this morning. Thanks, @hickstro. Looking forward to it. http://twitpic.com/ovuor # @brueckj23 Build the subgroups as calendars and attach/subscribe them to the master, perhaps? in reply to brueckj23 # @hickstro Think we should? Tomorrow and Wednesday are very flexible. in reply to hickstro # RT @BadAstronomer: "Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known." #CarlSagan, 1934 – 1996 # So. Yeah. That was Monday. -
Superheroes
11 Nov 2009 | 5:18 pmAni reminded me tonight, as we were driving to an event, that today was November 11th. She’s been working on her calendar at preschool. “Veterans Day,” I told her. “Do you know what that means?” “Yeah.” She answered without hesitation from the back seat of the dark car. “It’s the day for when superheroes save our city.” I let that sit for a moment. Not quite. But as I thought about it, and the fact that she’s four, I couldn’t bring myself to correct her. There will be time later for deeper conversations, for more… -
The Week in Tweets for 2009-11-08
8 Nov 2009 | 9:15 pm@wbass3 Likewise. in reply to wbass3 # T-Minus Two days until DLC. Deep breath. # @techsavvyed Digital Learning Collaborative. Although I like yours, too. in reply to techsavvyed # I'd like to talk to the folks who made it dark this early. Soon. # RT @Franki22: RT @buffyjhamilton: Brilliant post: "Robbing Students and Teachers of Joy" by Dean Shareski: http://bit.ly/5n1rY (Yes.-Bud) # @beverson I like driving to work in the dark. It's the driving home that's horrible. And you're welcome. Glad that worked. in reply to beverson # Some meetings look more fun than… -
The Week in Tweets for 2009-11-01
1 Nov 2009 | 9:15 pmOrange glow behind us lighting up the fresh white snow on the mountains in front of us. # At the doctor's. Time for a physical. There is a gown on the table. Uh oh. # Looks like I'm good for another 30,000 miles. # RT @cshirky: "IT doesnt typically help forge new acquaintances; it mostly helps communicate with existing ones." http://bit.ly/zceII # @vgloucester I always try to tie new accounts to existing authentication services. More accounts, same credentials. in reply to vgloucester # @robwall That's because it is. in reply to robwall # Reviewing DLC applications with…
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apophenia
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Call for descriptions: online safety programs
18 Nov 2009 | 6:01 pmThe Risky Behaviors and Online Safety track of the Youth and Media Policy Working Group Initiative at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University is creating a Compendium of youth-based Internet safety programs and interventions. We are requesting organizations, institutions, and individuals working in online youth safety to share descriptions of their effective programs and interventions that address risky behavior by youth online. We are particularly interested in endeavors that involve educators, social services, mentors and coaches, youth workers, religious leaders,… -
Web2.0 Expo Talk: Streams of Content, Limited Attention
17 Nov 2009 | 12:04 pmI prepared a new talk today for Web2.0 Expo that I wanted to share with you: "Streams of Content, Limited Attention: The Flow of Information through Social Media" The talk is about the shifts in information flow thanks to new kinds of technology, focusing on some of the challenges that we face because of the shifts going on. Unfortunately, my presentation at Web2.0 Expo sucked. The physical setup was hard and there was a live stream behind me. I knew something was wrong because folks started laughing in the audience. Unable to see anything (the audience, the stream), I found myself closing… -
Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out
8 Nov 2009 | 11:59 pmI am delighted to announce that "Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out: Kids Living and Learning with New Media" is now in the wild and available! This book was written as a collaborative effort by members of the Digital Youth Project, a three-year research effort funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and conducted at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Southern California. The project was spearheaded by Mimi Ito and my late advisor Peter Lyman. I had the honor of being one of the members of this group and led one of the chapters in this… -
Choosing the Right Grad School
28 Oct 2009 | 12:16 pmLately, I've been getting all sorts of emails from folks applying to grad school who are seeking advice. I noticed that I was starting to say the same thing over and over again so I thought maybe it'd be better off to write some of it down in a more publicly consumable way. So here goes... Choosing the Right Grad School If there are faculty or students out there reading this, I'd love your comments and suggestions too. I know that we all have different advice we give to potential grad students so I know that this isn't the end-all-be-all. Please feel free to comment, send links to your own… -
Some thoughts on Twitter vs. Facebook Status Updates
25 Oct 2009 | 1:24 pmThe functional act of constructing a tweet or a status update is very similar. Produce text in roughly 140 characters or less inside a single line text box and click a button. Voila! Even the stream based ways in which the text gets consumed look awfully similar. Yet, the more I talk with people engaged in practices around Twitter and Facebook, the more I'm convinced these two things are not actually the same practice. Why? Audience. There are two critical structural differences between Facebook and Twitter that are essential to understand before discussing the practices: 1) social graph…
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Science teacher
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November horseshoe crab
14 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pmIda blew through here, and took a good chunk of the coast with her.Leslie and I walked down the beach to see what we could see (every one of our walks is different).I found an old, male horseshoe crab turned upside down at the edge of the bay, digging its tail into the new sand, trying to flip itself back over.This is an unremarkable story for most, but it mattered to me, and it mattered to him.Finding a live horseshoe crab is a rare event in November. The fellow has descended through a few million generations of similar critters, and here he was at my feet.I come from a much shorter line of… -
Dancing with the stars
14 Nov 2009 | 3:03 amWhen someone says, "Science teaches such and such," he is using the wordincorrectly. Science doesn't teach anything; experience teaches it.Richard Feynman, 1966 NSTA Convention, NYCI live in New Jersey.If you spend an hour or two watching the sun rise, you'll notice that it rises sideways here.If you watch the stars looking east, they rise sideways as well.A huge problem with what we call science education is that we think we've educated our children because they "know" the Earth spins on its axis, and that it revolves around the sun.Yet the few that notice the stars, the curious ones, are… -
Amygdalin
12 Nov 2009 | 5:36 pmFive years ago tonight, a self-described Christian missionary ran my sister off the road, and a few hours later she was dead.A couple of months ago I finally tore up the letter in which he explained that God's will can be incomprehensible.I get angry when people try to explain the incomprehensible.So I am going to sit here and eat an apple that came from the same place she now rests, and will rest.The apple's existence is inexplicable, as is that of the bee that fertilized it. The stuff of apples, an impossible blend of what we breathe out every few seconds, water and carbon dioxide joined by… -
Stemming STEM education
6 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pmI am a science teacher; the STEM movement gives me job security. If I wanted job security, I would have remained a pediatrician in north Jersey--given the way we treat kids, especially poor kids, I would have always had business.STEM, of course, stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It has its own coalition, its own journal, and has endeared the folk in power (first Bush, now Obama). It puts the sexay into nerd-dom.But it's a farce.People in power (Presidents, Generals, CEOs) would like to remain in power--it takes a special kind of warped person to gain that kind of… -
Electrostatic magnetic ion attraction: The ADE 651
5 Nov 2009 | 5:19 amA story ran in the New York Times claiming that the Iraqis are using divining rods at checkpoints--a "small hand-held wand, with a telescopic antenna on a swivel" can apparently detect bombs.Since the device employs the principle of "electrostatic magnetic ion attraction," it must be effective.I'm still not convinced this is not an April Fool's prank with a calendar problem, but I guess if the world's leading expert on bombs (just ask him) tells you a divining rod can detect bombs a kilometer away (as well as ivory and truffles) and only costs $16,000, well, I got to have one!It's worth it…
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EurakAlert!: Education
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Evolution of evolution: An NSF-sponsored webcast featuring Mohamed Noor
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm(National Science Foundation) Please join the National Science Foundation on Monday, Nov. 23, at 10 a.m. ET for a live webcast featuring Darwin-Wallace Medal recipient Mohamed Noor of Duke University, who will answer media questions about current evidence for evolution and modern evolution theory. -
Examining mathematical abilities in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder
18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm(Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research) Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) have a number of cognitive deficits. Mathematical ability seems particularly damaged in children with FASD.A new study supports the importance of the left parietal area for mathematical abilities in children with FASD. -
Nanotube defects equal better energy and storage systems
18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm(University of California - San Diego) Most people would like to be able to charge their cell phones and other personal electronics quickly and not too often. A recent discovery made by UC San Diego engineers could lead to carbon nanotube-based supercapacitors that could do just this. -
Highlighting racial disparities increases coverage and effectiveness of health news
18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm(University of Missouri-Columbia) As media researchers search for better methods to reach audiences, a new University of Missouri study published in Public Relations Review has found that highlighting racial disparities in news releases increases coverage of health stories in black newspapers, which can improve health outcomes in populations at risk for disparities. -
Microorganism may provide key to combating giant salvinia throughout Louisiana
18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm(Louisiana Tech University) A team of researchers at Louisiana Tech University has found that a naturally occurring microorganism acts as a natural herbicide against giant salvinia.
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YouTube: Education
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Carey Mulligan gets An Education
31 Oct 2009 | 1:06 amCarey Mulligan gets An Education Carey Mulligan, Emma Thompson and Dominic Cooper star in a coming-of-age drama set in the 1960s. . Follow us on twitter at twitter.com From: itn Views: 2226 5 ratings Time: 03:03 More in Entertainment -
'An Education' Trailer HD
15 Jul 2009 | 10:17 am'An Education' Trailer HD In the post-war, pre-Beatles London suburbs, a bright schoolgirl is torn between studying for a place at Oxford and the more exciting alternative offered to her by a charismatic older man. From: hollywoodstreams Views: 51366 133 ratings Time: 02:23 More in Film & Animation -
Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education
29 Jun 2009 | 7:18 amArthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education www.ted.com Someone always asks the math teacher, "Am I going to use calculus in real life?" And for most of us, says Arthur Benjamin, the answer is no. He offers a bold proposal on how to make math education relevant in the digital age.TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck ... From: TEDtalksDirector… -
Eric Prydz vs. Floyd - Proper Education
2 Feb 2009 | 12:32 pmEric Prydz vs. Floyd - Proper Education Videoclip: Eric Prydz vs. Floyd - Proper Education Label: www.ministryofsound.de From: ministryofsoundde Views: 253416 566 ratings Time: 03:28 More in Music -
Carey Mulligan on An Education
20 Jan 2009 | 3:26 pmCarey Mulligan on An Education Actress Carey Mulligan (Doctor Who, Pride & Prejudice) is this year's unofficial Miss Sundance, in both An Education and The Greatest at Sundance 2009. The charming Brit spoke about her roles. (Produced by Darren Ewing and Kim McDaniel of The Salt Lake Tribune.) From: sltrib Views: 11484 24 ratings Time: 06:01 More in Entertainment
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tweenteacher.com
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The Rules of Netiquette for Online Gaming and RPGs
21 Nov 2009 | 10:48 amThe upcoming issue of Imagine Magazine is going to focus on online gaming and role-playing games, so I was pumped when they approached me to see if I was interested in contributing again to their magazine. After all, for all my readers out there, you know that I’m a WoW player, and the prompt they gave me was about how to game safely.(...)Read the rest of The Rules of Netiquette for Online Gaming and RPGs (598 words) © heather for tweenteacher.com, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: imagine magazine, Internet Safety, MMORPG, Netiquette, Online Safety,… -
Open Letter to Obama – Facebook Campaign
15 Nov 2009 | 8:30 pmMy fellow Teacher Leader Network colleague, Anthony Cody, recently began a Facebook campaign which has lit a fire in teachers from around the country. Open Letters to President Obama asks teachers to write a letter to our president and Secretary Duncan in the form of a discussion post about our concerns in their current educational policies. Cody explains his mission in his Living in Dialogue post as well as on the Facebook page which has, to this date, inspired over 400 educators to voice their concerns about the direction of this current administration. Each week, Anthony Cody send the… -
What Kind of Relationship Will I Have With My Child’s School?
15 Nov 2009 | 8:30 pmThis year is unlike any other in that for the first time, I am on the other side of the desk. My 3 year-old started pre-school this year and it has become a lesson in parenting and teaching like no other. Ms. E is my son’s appropriately bubbly teacher. She has smiles in her eyes and hugs for all. But you can also tell she’s no push over and seems to know each kid for who they are. The classroom environment reflects the learning going on, and quotes from each kid pepper the walls in response to critical-thinking questions, predictions, and emotional temperature taking. When I pick him up… -
Teaching From Afar: Using Twitter While Absent
8 Nov 2009 | 9:04 amI’ve always been a multi-tasker. It frustrated my own teachers at times in that I always needed to be doing two things at once in order to be fully alert. My brain worked like riding a bicycle: if I only moved slowly, my attention span fell over. And during my most recent Edutopia meeting, I was no less occupied. As I sat in meeting at Skywalker Ranch listening to some of the greatest minds dedicated to education, my head was also in the classroom. It’s true. While I was learning, I was also teaching. Edutopia’s National Advisory Council consists of multiple classroom… -
Teacher by Day, WOW Warrior by Night
3 Nov 2009 | 10:33 pmMy name is Morigold. I am a dwarf paladin from Ironforge. My traveling companion, Balrong, is a night elf who hails from Darnaccus. Now let me translate: My name is Heather Wolpert-Gawron. I am a teacher and blogger who, once my toddler is asleep, plays World of Warcraft with my husband, Royce. Yes, it’s true. I’m a teacher who plays WOW.(...)Read the rest of Teacher by Day, WOW Warrior by Night (773 words) © heather for tweenteacher.com, 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: education, online games, RPG, Second Life, world of warcraft, wow Feed enhanced by…
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New Scientist
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Greenland ice loss behind a sixth of sea-level rise
21 Nov 2009 | 3:00 amThe ice cap lost 1500 cubic kilometres of ice between 2000 and 2008, and the loss is speeding up -
US could ban caffeine-alcohol drinks within months
21 Nov 2009 | 2:00 amThe US Food and Drug Administration has asked manufacturers of drinks that combine alcohol and caffeine to provide scientific evidence they are safe -
'Frankenstein' fix lets asteroid mission cheat death
20 Nov 2009 | 10:37 amThe beleaguered Hayabusa asteroid probe is back on track to return to Earth after ground controllers cobbled together a working engine from two dead ones -
Today on New Scientist: 20 November 2009
20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amToday's stories on newscientist.com, at a glance, including: the rise of the tiny medibots, the colliders that will follow the LHC, and an interview with Belle de Jour -
Belle de Jour: On science and prostitution
20 Nov 2009 | 9:50 amThe professional scientist and former prostitute Brooke Magnanti told her agent, "If New Scientist asks for an interview, I'll do it." We did ask
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Livescience.com
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Marmots Remember Long-Gone Predators
21 Nov 2009 | 5:09 amColorado marmots “remember” a long-gone foe. -
Harnessing Wave Energy
20 Nov 2009 | 12:01 pmEnergy from ocean waves seems like the ultimate in renewable fuel, yet research lags behind studies of solar and wind power. Research now underway is based on ocean buoy generators. As ocean swells hit the buoy, electrical coils create electricity. -
Science Nation
20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pmScience for the People: Surprising discoveries and fascinating researchers. -
Really Rare Rhinos Found by Dung-Sniffing Dogs
20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pmTwo dogs are helping scientists figure out how many Javan rhinos are left in the wild. -
How to Take a Gorilla's Blood Pressure: Very Carefully
20 Nov 2009 | 9:59 amFor the first time, researchers have obtained blood pressure readings from a gorilla while it was awake.
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Wired: Wired Science
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Istanbul Opens World’s Largest Earthquake-Safe Building
20 Nov 2009 | 11:16 amThe world’s largest seismically isolated building, the new international terminal at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport, is now complete and open for business. Stretching across more than 2 million square feet, the terminal doesn’t sit directly on the soil, but rather on more than 300 isolators, bearings that can move side-to-side during an earthquake. The whole building moves as a single unit, which prevents damage from uneven forces acting on the structure. “What an isolation system does is that it enables the building to move through large displacements in unison,… -
Sushi DNA Tests Reveal Fraud
20 Nov 2009 | 11:14 amA biologist walks into a sushi bar and orders some tuna. What does he get? Escolar, a nasty fish with buttery flesh that can cause bizarre episodes of diarrhea, accompanied by a waxy intestinal discharge. It’s not a joke. It happened five times to the same scientists during a brief research project. The results of that study were published Wednesday in PLOS One. “A piece of tuna sushi has the potential to be an endangered species, a fraud or a health hazard,” wrote the authors. “All three of these cases were uncovered in this study.” The team of researchers from… -
Ghostly Bones of Galactic Feast Revealed
20 Nov 2009 | 10:08 amA new infrared image of the galaxy Centaurus A reveals the gassy, ghastly bones of a galaxy that it consumed several hundred million years ago. The parallelogram of stars leftover from the collision had been obscured by dust. But using new processing techniques in the near-infrared part of the spectrum, European Southern Observatory astronomers were able to glimpse the leftovers of the cosmic dinner. “There is a clear ring of stars and clusters hidden behind the dust lanes, and our images provide an unprecedentedly detailed view toward it,” said Jouni Kainulainen, in a paper on the… -
When Good Rockets Go Bad
19 Nov 2009 | 5:08 pm<< previous image | next image >> In the grand scheme of human space programs in Russia and the United States, catastrophic failures are relatively rare. But they are often quite spectacular and make a big impression on the public and on the funding for space exploration. The explosions in the videos we’ve assembled here were very costly, some in terms of life, some in terms of lost equipment and all in terms of progress of the space programs. Vanguard TV3 Fuel Tanks Explode Dec. 6, 1957: The United States’ first attempt to launch a satellite into orbit was also its first… -
Malaria Gaining Resistance to Best Available Treatment
19 Nov 2009 | 4:44 pmWASHINGTON — Malaria that is resistant to the best available drug is more widespread in Southeast Asia than previously reported, new research shows. The worrisome finding poses a risk that travelers could carry this strain of the malaria parasite to other parts of the globe and unwittingly spread it, scientists reported Nov. 19 at a meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. The frontline drug in question is called artemisinin, the most potent medication currently in use against malaria. Signs of malarial resistance to artemisinin have surfaced over the past several…
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NPR Topics: Science
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Museum: Galileo's Fingers, Tooth Found
20 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pmTwo fingers and a tooth removed from Galileo Galilei's corpse in a Florentine basilica in the 18th century and given up for lost have been found again, a Florence museum said Friday.» E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us -
Scientist: 'Don't Give Up' On Stopping Asian Carp
20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pmTwo Asian carp species that could devastate the Great Lakes ecosystem may be a few miles from Lake Michigan. To halt their migration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built an underwater electric fence on a canal 20 miles south of the lake. But tests conducted by David Lodge at Notre Dame indicate that they have gotten close to the lake despite the barrier.» E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us -
Rethinking The Human Future In Space
20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amWith NASA reporting a "significant amount" of water on the lunar surface, is it time to re-examine our priorities regarding living and working in space? Mark Sykes, director of the Planetary Science Institute, talks about why and how people should venture beyond Earth.» E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us -
Real-Life Physics Problems Star On TV
20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amThe stars of The Big Bang Theory are two fictional Caltech physicists, but the physics problems they study are real. Bill Prady, the program's co-creator and executive producer, talks about including real-world science in the script, from dark matter to magnetic monopoles.» E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us -
Personalizing Solar Power
20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 amResearchers are hoping to improve solar energy installations by coupling a solar panel to an efficient hydrolysis unit that splits water into oxygen and hydrogen. Daniel Nocera of MIT says the approach could lead to personal solar power units that could get many houses off the grid.» E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us
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ScienceBlogs : Combined Feed
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Toaster Sunshine channels Jack White for science and technology outreach [Terra Sigillata]
21 Nov 2009 | 11:02 amAt the recent U2 Academic Conference, I had the opportunity to be at the local premiere of It Might Get Loud, a much-more-than documentary of the electric guitar as told through the careers of Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page, U2's The Edge, and Jack White of The White Stripes and Raconteurs. For the record, I thought that White was going to be totally out of his league - while I wouldn't call him a "legend" as billed by the producers, I left being incredibly impressed with his background and breadth of abilities. Related to the movie trailer below, I had an exchange with Toaster Sunshine, a… -
Today's carnivals [A Blog Around The Clock]
21 Nov 2009 | 10:45 amThe Giant's Shoulders #17 - Darwin Sesquicentennial Edition - is up on The Primate Diaries Read the comments on this post... -
Floods not linked to climate change shocker [Stoat]
21 Nov 2009 | 10:24 amIn shocking news just in, record heavy rain in the Lakes and extensive flooding has not been linked to global warming. Dr Bogus, spokesman for the Made-Up Institute of Twaddle, said "This is completely unprecedented. Normally, any unusual - or even merely somewhat uncommon - weather event is immeadiately linked to global warming. All of the usual Pinko suspects have failed us in this case. The best we have so far is "David Balmforth, a flooding expert at the Institution of Civil Engineers, said deluges on a similar scale will become more frequent as a result of climate change." and that is… -
Skeptics' Circle #124 is up [White Coat Underground]
21 Nov 2009 | 10:24 amThe latest Skeptics' Circle is up at Beyond the Short Coat. The Giants' Shoulders #17 is also up at scibling Eric Michael Johnson's place. Go and read!\ Read the comments on this post... -
From nature, robots [Collective Imagination]
21 Nov 2009 | 10:01 amMechanical engineer Sangbae Kim looks to animals to inspire his robot designs.. Press release from MIT: Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...
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ScienceAlert - Latest Stories
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Feature: Seclusion to inclusion
19 Nov 2009 | 9:16 amA new initiative is helping to reduce the practice of secluding psychiatric patients experiencing an extreme crisis. -
Mixing hinders cancer drugs
19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amCombining anti-cancer drugs with alternative medicines makes them less useful and more dangerous, according to new studies. -
Deer DNA helps husbandry
19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amResearchers are working to identify variants in deer DNA, and make it easy for farmers to identify them when breeding better animals. -
Wastewater algae turned to fuel
19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amA recent New Zealand project is using it all – treating wastewater, converting the algae into fuel, and making the residue into fertiliser. -
Better surgery worth repeating
19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amResearch has found that repeat surgery is now a viable option for brain cancer patients – before, it was more likely to harm than help.
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HowStuffWorks.com Daily Feed
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5 Simple Homemade Soups
21 Nov 2009 | 6:00 amSoup is so comforting on a cold day, and homemade soup is the best because you can smell it cooking all day long. Which soups are easy to make and yummy to eat? -
The Ultimate Thanksgiving Quiz
21 Nov 2009 | 6:00 amA table full of turkey, corn, stuffing and cranberries can only mean one thing: Thanksgiving! Aside from the tasty morsels, Thanksgiving is also a yearly celebration of gratitude that originated with the Pilgrims and Native Americans. Put down that turkey leg, turn off the big game for a few minutes and give thanks for the Thanksgiving quiz. -
The Ultimate Tattoo Quiz
21 Nov 2009 | 6:00 amNot long ago, most Americans associated tattoos with sailors, bikers and sideshow artists. But tattoos have become more popular in recent years. What does it take to get an image under your skin? -
Today's Video - Jay Leno Helps Design World's First Supercar
21 Nov 2009 | 6:00 amWatch this video showing Jay Leno talk about the world's first supercar on HowStuffWorks. Late night talk show host and widely known car enthusiast Jay Leno has teamed up with General Motors to design the world's first supercar - The EcoJet. The car was introduced in Las Vegas at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show. See how supercars work in this video from Medialink. -
How to Choose a New Water Heater
21 Nov 2009 | 6:00 amYour water heater's just bought the farm, and now you're in the market for a new one. Where to start? From fuel source to size, here's what you need to know.
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Comics Worth Reading
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Tezuka Film Retrospective Report
20 Nov 2009 | 9:25 amby Ed Sizemore Tezuka and Astro Boy as a stamp This has been a good year for English-language Osama Tezuka fans. Vertical is printing his Black Jack series in beautiful editions. DMP published Tezuka’s experimental manga, Swallowing the Earth. Frederick Schodt is touring the country with his lecture on the life and legacy of Tezuka. Two new books about the life and works of Tezuka were published this year too, God of Comics and The Art of Osamu Tezuka: God of Manga. To cap it all off, the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art is hosting a month long celebration of Tezuka’s animated works,… -
The Defenders Appear on Marvel’s Super Hero Squad Show
20 Nov 2009 | 7:55 amTomorrow at 7:30 PM Eastern, the Defenders guest-star on The Super Hero Squad Show. This reworking of Marvel superhero characters for kids airs on the Cartoon Network. Here’s the plot description: Baron Mordo transforms Iron Man into the evil “Iron Menace”, a deadly threat who overcomes both the Lethal Legion and the Squad! But when Silver Surfer and Hulk team with Dr. Strange and Valkyrie to form “The Defenders,” the forces of good will “Hero Up!” like never before! Gossip Girl alumni Michelle Trachtenberg reprises her role as Valkyrie in this… -
Castle DVD Case Oddity
19 Nov 2009 | 5:58 pmKC and I really enjoy Castle, the mystery show with Nathan Fillon (Firefly) as a thriller writer who helps the police solve murders. Castle: The Complete First SeasonBuy this DVD set So since the Complete First Season DVD set has been on deep discount this week ($17 bucks or so compared to a list price of $40), we decided to buy it. The set has some entertaining-sounding featurettes, bloopers, and commentaries, which we enjoy. Our first try was from Amazon.com. We have the free shipping plan, so that was easy — wouldn’t even have to leave the house! Unfortunately, someone at… -
How Up Was Made
18 Nov 2009 | 5:59 amTo promote Up coming out on DVD last week, the publicity group sent this set of images showing how the movie was put together. I thought you might be interested in seeing how a scene developed. Click the images (and then wait) to see really large versions. The storyboard The start of image generation Modeling the set More animation Add clothing Additional shading Additional effects Final lighting Update: Here’s some more Up-related art, process work involving graphic design and illustration for the film. Similar Posts: Punisher War Zone Interactive Comic § V for Vendetta Movie… -
The Lizard Prince Book 1
17 Nov 2009 | 6:15 pmThis manga, a romance in a magical fantasy setting, has enough humor to make it an enjoyable read for the young and young-thinking. The Lizard Prince Book 1Buy this book As explained in the author’s notes, this book is Asuka Izumi’s first collection, so it follows a typical pattern: The first chapter works as a stand-alone story establishing the premise. That’s so if the concept isn’t popular or picked up, then there’s still a satisfactory ending. But this series was popular enough to get four more chapters (and a second book, which concludes the short series).
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SUPERHEROES BASE
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Hot Toys Watchmen The Comedian- Preview
20 Nov 2009 | 9:09 pmGreetings heroes/citizen. Check out these cool final prototype photos of The Comedian from the movie Watchmen. It is estimated to be released on 1st quarter of 2010, but HT most likely will delay their products. Anyway, I’m not getting this one, I like the movie but not much that I’m going to bleed my wallet [...] -
3A’s Metal Gear Rex
7 Nov 2009 | 8:55 amGreetings heroes/citizen, to most of us 3A Toys sounds very unfamiliar right? They have been in the toy making industry for quite some time now and their products are very limited in production thus making it an exclusive brand. Not only that their products are exclusive, they made some very bad-ass toys too. Actually 3A [...] -
Project BM Kaneda and Bike- Preview
5 Nov 2009 | 11:14 pmGreetings heroes/citizen. I know most of you have seen the Kaneda’s bike made by Medicom for the Project BM series. Today I wan to share with you more lucrative pictures of Kaneda’s bike. The price tag is not cheap, it’ll cost you $419.99, that is if you get it from Sideshow, I’m not sure how [...] -
Medicom RAH Naked Snake: Cold War Version- Review
3 Nov 2009 | 6:52 amGreetings heroes/citizen. I’ve been dying to get myself a Medicom RAH Snake since I started collecting 12″ action figures. When Medicom released the first Naked Snake back in 2007 I was only collecting other figures and when I realized how great that action figure was, the price is already too expensive, some even went to [...] -
Hot Toys MMS113 Blade 2
30 Oct 2009 | 6:17 amGreetings heroes/citizen another update, thanks to Wookster of One Sixth Warriors we can now see the pictures of Hot Toys Blade 2. I have only two words to describe it “MUST BUY!”. I’m just too dead tired today so here is a quote from his post there… wookster wrote: This has got to be the fastest [...]
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Comic Geek
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Comic Review: Star Wars Purge, “Seconds to Die” (One-shot)
21 Nov 2009 | 12:18 amAs predictable as ‘Titanic’… This kind of prequel only works when there is interesting development to take place, something to build. Here there is nothing save flashy artwork and no sense of “a new hope”… -Bretzke Star Wars Purge -
Comic Review: Uncanny X-Men: First Class #5, “The Knights of Hykon”.
20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 amStyle, no substance. What starts as flashy pretty things, stays there. Heroes act like heroes and essentially achieve nothing while they have the living snot beaten out of them by, wait for it..”Sky Song and Cloud Runner”. Yep. That bad. -Bretzke Uncanny X-Men: First Class #5 -
Comic Review: Daredevil #502.
19 Nov 2009 | 12:15 amMatt Murdoch kicks ass. Four words that sum up this issue perfectly. He’s taking names and sorting problems. While the direction taken may not sit well with seasoned Daredevil readers, it certainly is thrilling. The last words of the book, “Take them all”, said with such cold calculation sent tingles up my well jaded spine. Read now! -Bretzke Daredevil #502 -
Comic Review: Deadpool #17 “Want You to Want Me: The Revolution Will Be Televised”
18 Nov 2009 | 12:06 amLongest. Title. Ever. Very little Deadpool for a comic that holds his name. That which we do see is deliciously dark. Sometimes the ‘Pool’s comedic overtones can bely his truly lethal nature. Not today! Most of the heavy lifting is done by Domino and she provides some ample scenery. Ample… -Bretzke Deadpool #17 -
Comic Review: Strange #1, “A Whole New Ballgame”
17 Nov 2009 | 12:58 amComic about magic – necessary elements: Rogue outsider (check), Attractive yet aloof female (check), demonic plot involving a convoluted storyline where the finale is to happen on this very day (check). What’s not to enjoy? Only upon reading do you realize the utter cheese that is the byline. Reader discretion advised, may contain crappy baseball references. -Bretzke Strange #1
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PLoS Biology
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The Multicopy Gene Sly Represses the Sex Chromosomes in the Male Mouse Germline after Meiosis
17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amSmall-interfering RNAs have been used to disrupt the function of the more than 100 copies of the Sly gene on the mouse Y chromosome, leading to defective sex chromosome repression during spermatid differentiation and, as a consequence, sperm malformations and near-sterility. -
Article-Level Metrics and the Evolution of Scientific Impact
17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amThe authors discuss the value of article-level metrics in determining an article's scientific impact. -
Explaining the Linguistic Diversity of Sahul Using Population Models
17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amAreal and genealogical links between the diverse ancient languages of Australia and New Guinea are investigated using a phylogenetic clustering method adopted from population genetics. -
Sly Represses Gene Expression in Sex Chromosomes
17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am -
Role of CBP and SATB-1 in Aging, Dietary Restriction, and Insulin-Like Signaling
17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amIncreased transcriptional complex activity, or pharmacological mimics of increased complex activity, predict lifespan in mice and mediate the protective effects of dietary restriction during aging.
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PLoS ONE Alerts
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Smoking Induces Long-Lasting Effects through a Monoamine-Oxidase Epigenetic Regulation
23 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amBackground Postulating that serotonin (5-HT), released from smoking-activated platelets could be involved in smoking-induced vascular modifications, we studied its catabolism in a series of 115 men distributed as current smokers (S), never smokers (NS) and former smokers (FS) who had stopped smoking for a mean of 13 years. Methodology/Principal Findings 5-HT, monoamine oxidase (MAO-B) activities and amounts were measured in platelets, and 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid (5-HIAA)—the 5-HT/MAO catabolite—in plasma samples. Both platelet 5-HT and plasma 5-HIAA levels were correlated with the… -
Induction of Foxp3-Expressing Regulatory T-Cells by Donor Blood Transfusion Is Required for Tolerance to Rat Liver Allografts
23 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amBackground Donor-specific blood transfusion (DST) prior to solid organ transplantation has been shown to induce long-term allograft survival in the absence of immunosuppressive therapy. Although the mechanisms underlying DST-induced allograft tolerance are not well defined, there is evidence to suggest DST induces one or more populations of antigen-specific regulatory cells that suppress allograft rejection. However, neither the identity nor the regulatory properties of these tolerogenic lymphocytes have been reported. Therefore, the objective of this study was to define the kinetics,… -
Outcomes after Chemotherapy with WHO Category II Regimen in a Population with High Prevalence of Drug Resistant Tuberculosis
23 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amStandard short course chemotherapy is recommended by the World Health Organization to control tuberculosis worldwide. However, in settings with high drug resistance, first line standard regimens are linked with high treatment failure. We evaluated treatment outcomes after standardized chemotherapy with the WHO recommended category II retreatment regimen in a prison with a high prevalence of drug resistant tuberculosis (TB). A cohort of 233 culture positive TB patients was followed through smear microscopy, culture, drug susceptibility testing and DNA fingerprinting at baseline, after 3 months… -
Heterosexual and Homosexual Partners Practising Unprotected Sex May Develop Allogeneic Immunity and to a Lesser Extent Tolerance
23 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amBackground Epidemiological studies suggest that allogeneic immunity may inhibit HIV-1 transmission from mother to baby and is less frequent in multiparous than uniparous women. Alloimmune responses may also be elicited during unprotected heterosexual intercourse, which is associated ex vivo with resistance to HIV infection. Methodology/Principal Findings The investigation was carried out in well-defined heterosexual and homosexual monogamous partners, practising unprotected sex and a heterosexual cohort practising protected sex. Allogeneic CD4 and CD8 T cell proliferative responses were… -
Cancer Associated Fibroblasts Promote Tumor Growth and Metastasis by Modulating the Tumor Immune Microenvironment in a 4T1 Murine Breast Cancer Model
23 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amBackground Local inflammation associated with solid tumors commonly results from factors released by tumor cells and the tumor stroma, and promotes tumor progression. Cancer associated fibroblasts comprise a majority of the cells found in tumor stroma and are appealing targets for cancer therapy. Here, our aim was to determine the efficacy of targeting cancer associated fibroblasts for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Methodology/Principal Findings We demonstrate that cancer associated fibroblasts are key modulators of immune polarization in the tumor microenvironment of a 4T1…
