Thursday, December 30, 2010

Prostate cancer possibility might be associated with index finger size

Prostate cancer can manifest within the prostate gland, which is one of the elements of the male reproductive system. It’s both slow-growing and effortlessly spread to other portions of a man’s body. Diet and genetics are suspected as key contributors to cancer of the prostate, and a new scientific research published in the British Journal of Cancer adds yet another possibility to the latter determinant. As outlined by the research, the size of a man’s right index finger may say much about his risk for prostate cancer. Article source – Index finger length may indicate prostate cancer risk by MoneyBlogNewz.

Length of right index finger might have relationship to cancer of the prostate

Index finger measurement makes a difference according to a research that had 1,524 prostate cancer patients with 3,044 healthy males 15 and older. There is less of a risk of a man to develop cancer of the prostate if his index finger is longer than the ring finger of that same hand. The reverse indicated increased risk, specifically a 33 percent greater chance. There were 23 percent that had longer index fingers and shorter were 57 percent. The rest had about the exact same size fingers. The index and ring were almost equal.

A similar previous research of 366 Korean men was supported with the findings in this study. There will typically be less of a chance for prostate cancer to take place with men younger than 60 and 87.

What testosterone and estrogen relate to it

The length of fingers is determined before the birth of a child while scientists believe the length has to do with the amount of testosterone present. Index fingers will grow shorter than ring fingers causing a greater chance of prostate cancer in men if there is too much testosterone. This is almost the exact same as it is in women. There’s a connection between breast cancer and the amount of estrogen present at birth.

While the index finger indicator could serve as a simple signpost for cancer, a significant number of scientists believe that the findings of the cancer of the prostate study are too simplistic. Several have questioned the methodology of the research also since there may have been other factors involved. There might be some error though considering the finger lengths was self reported by participants.

Articles cited

Wall Street Journal

online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703814804576035641517516376.html?mod=WSJ_hp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsForth

News coverage of prostate cancer study

youtube.com/watch?v=NyIzchk8_hY



Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Nuvo pink: Selling females boozy charisma

What was Jermaine Stewart thinking when he cooed about cherry wine within the 1986 pop confection “We Don’t Have to Take Our Clothes Off? It’s quite strange, but advertisers like Levinson Tractenberg Group of Manhattan think fruity alcohol like their client’s Nuvo – “L’esprit de Paris” – is the way to beat off the fashion police. ”Be Glamorous” is Nuvo’s catch phrase, not listening to Jermaine Stewart songs and making women think you don’t really want to sleep with them. Post resource – The Nuvo way of advertising fashionably fruity booze by MoneyBlogNewz.

Nuvo pink, the ladies’ style accent

Nuvo, which blends French vodka, white wine and fruit nectar, was initially marketed to women, reports the New York Times. Ever since the fourth quarter of 2007, the 750-milliliter, $30 bottles have continued to read “For Her” and have looked like large perfume bottles.

The Nuvo image has upset the Marin Institute. Many other alcoholic beverages watchdog groups have been upset too. A New print advertising campaign for the beverage, which included Eva Longoria, looks like an upscale perfume ad. There is a bottle of Nuvo on Longoria’s dressing table whole she seems ready for a night out. One could reasonably be forgiven for thinking that “Ms. Longoria might at any moment reach for it and sprits’ her flawless neck,” as the Times puts it, because it looks so much like a perfume bottle.

Alcoholic style there

The realities of drinking are ignored with the “Be Glamorous” slogan Nuvo has argues Michele Simon of the Marin Institute while Nuvo founder Raphael Yakoby says that Nuvo is “the ultimate accessory” which takes “cues visually from the beauty and style world.”.

“This company makes an association with glamour and says a potentially harmful alcoholic beverage is the equivalent of a fashion accessory, and that drinking this product is somehow not just as harmless as putting on bracelets but also is essential,” Simon told the Times.

Yakoby states that there is responsibility involved with Nuvo. It’s the whole purpose of it.

“Our point is … drink responsibly and in moderation,” he said.

Nuvo something males drink now

Several men have decided to drink pink even though Nuvo is targeted towards women. A fan consuming the pink drink shot a heckler at a San Antonio party. This was done because he was making fun of the choice of beverages.

Articles cited

New York Times

nytimes.com/2010/12/27/business/media/27adco.html?_r=1&ref=business

Nuvo

sparklingnuvo.com/index2.html

Be glamorous, just don’t shoot anyone

youtube.com/watch?v=w19GK5uYMmc



Increasing gas costs expected to keep on indefinitely

Rising gas prices anticipated to continue indefinitely

Several economic factors have combined to launch gas prices on an upward climb in the coming year. Crude oil futures passed $90 a barrel last week. Analysts say an improving global economic outlook and a devalued U.S. dollar have contributed to the escalation. Motorists are paying more than $3 a gallon for gasoline in many states and United States consumers can expect to pay increasingly more in the years ahead. Article source – Recent spike in gas prices the beginning of a long-term trend by MoneyBlogNewz.

Gas costs put stress on earnings

Average gas prices are over $3 a gallon within the U.S. It hasn’t been that bad since 2008, in October. Oil prices are also more than $90 a barrel for the 1st time since October 2008. The American Automobile Association accounts that from a year ago; there has been a 16 percent increase within the average costs within the United States for gasoline. There has been a 4 percent increase in just the last month. The average driver spent $305 on gas in Dec., according to the Oil Price Information Service. Another study from PortiaGroup found that buying gas used 7.6 percent of median household earnings in 2010, up from 6.5 percent last year and 4.2 percent after the oil shock of 2008.

Gasoline costs on driving

In November, Texas tycoon T. Boone Pickens forecasted the crude oil would start selling for $100 a barrel in 2011. The gasoline costs were already increasing when this was forecasted though. Pickens last forecasted oil at $100 a barrel in 2008. In July that year oil reached $145 a barrel. Gas costs within the summer of 2008 averaged more than $4 a gallon. Customers had to stop driving as much due to the price increases. As demand plummeted, prices adjusted accordingly. The demand has not changed with the December 2010 increases in gasoline though. An increase in trading activity for oil futures and a falling United States dollar are driving the current increase in gasoline prices.

Exactly where gas prices will maximum out at

Previous president of Shell Oil explained that gasoline prices will continue to rise in order to hit five dollars a gallon in 2012. John Hofmeister told Platt’s Energy Week that customers can expect gasoline costs to soar along with global oil demand. Other analysts agree that $5 a gallon gasoline is inevitable, however say the global economy won’t grow fast enough to reach that price by 2012. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Nations explained in December that next year there will probably be a lower growth in global oil demand. The OPEC hasn’t increased any production even though oil has gotten close to $100 a barrel.

Articles cited

CNN

cnn.com/2010/12/27/markets/oil_commodities/?npt=NP1

Dallas Morning News

dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-energy2011_25bus.ART0.State.Edition1.36ce7e9.html

HR Morning.com

hrmorning.com/gas-price-outlook-not-good-for-your-commuters/



Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Federal Communications Commission tries to get Comcast to accept video opposition

Critics fear the upcoming Comcast/NBC Universal merging will bring total monopoly to the flow of modern media. That’s something Genachowski and the Federal Communications Commission do not want, so they’re after Comcast to play nice when it comes to video competition. Thus, the FCC is now in negotiations with Comcast to make sure that Comcast Corp. will not take control once the NBC Universal purchase is complete, accounts the Associated Press.

No more video competition?

A $13.8 billion deal between Comcast and General Electric giving Comcast most of the NBC Universal shares might happen soon. It is something that is worrying many video competition companies to have Comcast with so much control. Genachowski and the FCC want to ensure that other broadcast media companies will still have room to compete for viewership. Other companies might have a hard time getting the right programming making it hard to compete. This would make Comcast a stronger frontrunner to lose competition.

The Comcast-NBC Universal merger, by the numbers

Comcast will control a huge media network if it is able to purchase the NBC Universal as planned. Included in this would be the NBC and Telemundo networks; 26 local TV stations; a host of popular cable networks like CNBC, Bravo and Oxygen; Universal film studio and related amusement parks; as well as a significant stake in Hulu.com. As Comcast already is in control of cable channels like E! Entertainment, Versus and the Golf Channel – and has controlling interest in various Philadelphia pro sports teams and their corresponding cable networks – the mega-corporation’s already staggering reach would be off the scale. Comcast now has about 23 million On-Demand video subscribers and 17 million broadband Internet subscribers.

The loopholes to be seen

Telecommunications companies can play favorites with the “too many loopholes” experts believe the FCC has left. This is with the net neutrality ruling that the FCC made. There won’t be the spirit of competition the FCC is hoping for. This is all the FCC is trying to protect anyway.

Citations

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/40794364/ns/business-us_business/

Sen. Al Franken blasts Comcast-NBC merger

youtube.com/watch?v=fRJ4YoZ-uzg



Monday, December 27, 2010

Legal team balks as Assange police report leaked out to United Kingdom press

WikiLeaks founder Assange might be out on bail right now, however that does not mean his lawful team is pleased. Julian Assange’s police report has released to the press, and the British paper The Guardian was pleased to print the alleged facts. The supposedly private report is said to include graphic sexual details of Assange’s current assault case.

Assange mentioned in police report

While Assange’s camp considers releasing thousands of confidential intelligence cables as fair play in the quest for free details and transparency, his legal team does not consider the alleged police report released recently to be a case of turnabout.

Because of the law enforcement officials report leak, Bjorn Hurtig can be filing a formal complaint as Julian Assange's Swedish lawyer.

"It is with great concern that I hear about this because it puts Julian and his defense in a bad position,” Hurtig said.

Judgment from the press

While Julian Assange is currently released on £275,000 ($432,305) bail by super star backers like Jemima Khan, Michael Moore and Bianca Jagger, Assange nevertheless faces criminal allegations in Sweden over multiple counts of sexual assault. Several think the Assange police report was released on purpose as a "smear campaign" so that the media may look down on the 39 year old journalist.

What The Guardian is calling a "brief summary" of the sex allegations towards Julian Assange, his legal team calls an unbridled attempt to convict their client in the court of public opinion.

It’s a conspiracy that Sweden and Americans are involved in

Julian Assange maintains that since the details surrounding his sexual assault claims came to light, Sweden and the U.S. have been working together in a conspiracy theory to punish him for the release of various sensitive U.S. intelligence cables. Mark Stephens is Julian Assange's lawyer. He states that Assange won’t be extradited and tried under United States treason laws if he has anything to do with it. Assange isn’t a United States citizen meaning this likely could be the case. He is actually Australian. It ought to be interesting to see how the U.S. reacts to this considering Australian PM Julia Gillard did announce that Assange didn't break any Australian laws.

Details from

The Australian

theaustralian.com.au/news/world/lawyers-cry-foul-over-leak-of-julian-assange-sex-case-papers/story-e6frg6so-1225973548657

Julia Gillard says Assange broke no Australian laws

youtube.com/watch?v=IqaRK_STjdw



Saturday, December 25, 2010

Consumer Product Safety Commission gives drop-side cribs official thumbs down

Drop-side baby cribs used to be popular in the U.S. because they were cheap and convenient. But as the Associated Press accounts, the era of drop-side cribs has officially arrived at an end. After the deaths in excess of thirty babies and toddlers since 2000 and scores of crib business recalls because of malfunctioning hardware, the CPSC has voted with one voice to prohibit the manufacture, sale and resale of drop-side baby cribs in the United States. People might now have to take out a paydayloans to purchase a higher quality and legal crib for their infant.

Beginning anti drop-side cribs rule in June 2011

Private use of drop-side cribs will be prohibited soon. This includes childcare centers and hotels as well. New cribs could have to be bought to replace other cribs in childcare centers beginning a year after the June 2011 ban begins.

What's wrong with the drop-side crib

Numerous like drop-side cribs better because they’re cheaper as they are made with cheaper wood and plastic than other cribs. As a result of the design and cheap materials, there is often a hardware malfunction in these cribs. An infant or toddler's head can get caught in an opening made. Since 2000, there have been at least 32 United States infants and toddlers strangled or suffocated because of this when the drop side crib has caused at least 14 more fatalities. A drop-side crib ban is something the CPSC has been thinking about for a when.

Cribs from companies such as Evenflo, Delta Enterprise Corp. and Pottery Barn Children have been part of the 9 million drop-side crib recalls over the past five years.

Standard ‘one of the strongest in the world’ for United States cribs

According to CPSC Chair Inez Tenenbaum, the new U.S. regulation of drop-side cribs is among the most stringent in the world. Some of the manufacturing defects could be caught in new testing standards. Now we know that all kids can be safe pushing or shaking the cribs no matter how large or strong they are. There may also be better instructions as to how to assemble the crib. The standard could be able to "help to ensure that young children sleep more safely." Following the CPSC vote, this is what Tenenbaum explained.

Information from

About.com

babyproducts.about.com/od/sleepbedding/a/drop_side_cribs_safety.htm

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/40678788/ns/politics/from/toolbar

Do you know what Canada knows about drop-side cribs?

youtube.com/watch?v=eMKcIumVM2Q



CDC says food-borne illness situations fewer than earlier estimated

Food-borne sickness does not make as many Americans ill every year than was previously calculated by the Centers for Disease Control. The number of food-borne illness instances on a yearly basis was ratcheted down in Center for Disease Control estimates. The report was unveiled a few days before a food safety bill was killed in Congress, which led several to accuse the CDC of playing politics. Timing could indeed save a number of people from taking out a pay day loan for marketing.

Study on CDC food-borne illness

Each year in the United States, you will find about 48 million cases of food-borne illnesses, as outlined by a December 15 record released by the CDC. During the time the Congress argued the food safety bill, 3,000 died and 128,000 were hospitalized from eating tainted food. This was what the report said as it was published within the Emerging Infectious Diseases journal. Since 1999, the official CDC food-borne illness estimate was 76 million cases, 350,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths. Lab confirmed food borne illness cases were used in 10 states for national estimates in both of the CDC studies. They almost always used telephone surveys. CDC made some things clear in the record. The fact that lower numbers doesn't mean less of a problem was emphasized.

Food-borne illness report full of unknowns

How much isn't known about the problem is what Food Safety experts say the CDC food borne illness numbers show. The record said about 38 million cases — four-fifths of the total estimate — are caused by “unspecified agents.”. Unspecified agents might be unknown pathogens or chemicals used in food processing yet to be identified as harmful. A lot of guesswork was put to the science, according to CDC. It is interesting to determine how the 28 million food borne illnesses estimate came about. It is the median range from 29 million to 71 million. The CDC said it will get more specific about what types of pathogens, in what foods, can be attributed to those numbers in a report next year.

Food safety bill dead

The CDC record on food borne illnesses was likely times to go with the Congress food safety bill debate, some expert believe. The food safety bill was killed on December 16 in congress by republicans. This was along with the spending bill. The Food Safety News had a doctor being interviewed and being asked about this since a year ago the CDC report to Emerging Infectious Diseases was submit. Passing the food safety bill would give the FDA a lot more freedom. It would be able to investigate food manufacturer records, quarantine geographical regions and even recall tainted food whenever it felt necessary. Republicans plan to stop the food safety bill although Democrats say they will make it go through.

Citations

Food Safety News

foodsafetynews.com/2010/12/why-now-was-cdcs-timing-on-estimates-political/

New York Times

nytimes.com/2010/12/16/business/16illness.html

The Hill

thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/food-safety/134201-democrats-havent-given-up-on-food-safety