MTV's Teen Mom was supposed to show the tough reality of being a teenage parent -- but right now, parenthood seems like the least of the cast's problems. Jenelle Evans, 21, was arrested last week for heroin possession and assault. Farrah Abraham has just sold her sex tape, made shortly after she was arrested for DUI at the end of March. And of course, they're now feuding...over who's a better mother. Sigh.
Specialist John Parisi, right, works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Stock prices are opening mostly lower on Wall Street as weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies drag down major market averages. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Specialist John Parisi, right, works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Stock prices are opening mostly lower on Wall Street as weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies drag down major market averages. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Daniel Kryger works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Stock prices are opening mostly lower on Wall Street as weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies drag down major market averages. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Fred DeMarco, left, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Stock prices are opening mostly lower on Wall Street as weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies drag down major market averages. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Specialist Matthew Diez, left, and trader Michael Zicchinolfi work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Stock prices are opening mostly lower on Wall Street as weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies drag down major market averages. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Weak earnings from Pfizer and other companies held back major market indexes on Tuesday, as the Standard & Poor's 500 flipped between slight gains and losses.
Pfizer's stock dropped 3 percent after the drug maker's results fell short of what analysts had expected, a result of currency movements and falling sales. The world's second-largest drug maker also cut its profit forecast for the rest of the year.
Pfizer lost 97 cents to $29.46, among the biggest drops in the Dow Jones industrial average. Shortly after noon, the Dow was down 16 points at 14,802, a decline of 0.1 percent.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index was flat at 1,593. The index closed at a record high the day before.
Brad Sorensen, director of market research at the brokerage Charles Schwab, said that trading would likely be quiet Tuesday except for companies reporting earnings. Later this week, investors will hear from the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank and get the U.S. government's monthly job report. Investors are often reluctant to take big positions ahead of potentially market-moving events such as those.
"People are probably taking a breath today," he said. "We're waiting for some more important events to happen later in the week."
The Nasdaq composite index rose 11 points to 3,317, an increase of 0.3 percent.
Pitney Bowes sank 16 percent after the maker of mailing equipment and software cut its dividend in half and posted a 58 percent drop in net income. Pitney Bowes sank $2.59 to $13.61.
Avon Products' quarterly loss wasn't as deep as analysts had expected. The direct-seller of cosmetics has been cutting staff and scaling back operations in an effort to turn around its business. Avon's stock rose 71 cents to $22.96, a gain of 3 percent.
This earnings season has been a mixed bag. More than half of the companies in the S&P 500 have turned in results, and seven of 10 have beaten analysts' estimates for earnings, according to S&P Capital IQ. Nearly as many, however, have come up short on revenue: Six of 10 have missed analysts' revenue targets. That suggests companies are getting more of their profits from laying off staff and other cost-cutting efforts instead of from higher sales.
In the market for U.S. government bonds, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note dropped to its low for the year, 1.65 percent. That's down from 1.67 percent late Monday.
In response to slower economic growth, bond traders from around the world have been buying Treasurys this month, driving yields down. The 10-year yield started April trading around 1.85 percent.
The Dow and the S&P 500 are on track to end the month with gains of 1.6 percent. It wasn't exactly a smooth ride. The two indexes reached record highs in the second week of April, then took a steep fall in the next. News that China, the world's second-largest economy, slowed unexpectedly pummeled the prices of oil, copper and other commodities. The stock market had its worst day of the year on April 15, when the S&P 500 lost 2.3 percent.
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Russian authorities secretly recorded a telephone conversation in 2011 in which one of the Boston bombing suspects vaguely discussed jihad with his mother, officials said Saturday, days after the U.S. government finally received details about the call.
In another conversation, the mother of now-dead bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev was recorded talking to someone in southern Russia who is under FBI investigation in an unrelated case, officials said.
The conversations are significant because, had they been revealed earlier, they might have been enough evidence for the FBI to initiate a more thorough investigation of the Tsarnaev family.
As it was, Russian authorities told the FBI only that they had concerns that Tamerlan and his mother were religious extremists. With no additional information, the FBI conducted a limited inquiry and closed the case in June 2011.
Two years later, authorities say Tamerlan and his brother, Dzhohkar, detonated two homemade bombs near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three and injuring more than 260. Tamerlan was killed in a police shootout and Dzhohkar is under arrest.
In the past week, Russian authorities turned over to the United States information it had on Tamerlan and his mother, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva. The Tsarnaevs are ethnic Chechens who emigrated from southern Russia to the Boston area over the past 11 years.
Even had the FBI received the information from the Russian wiretaps earlier, it's not clear that the government could have prevented the attack.
In early 2011, the Russian FSB internal security service intercepted a conversation between Tamerlan and his mother vaguely discussing jihad, according to U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation with reporters.
The two discussed the possibility of Tamerlan going to Palestine, but he told his mother he didn't speak the language there, according to the officials, who reviewed the information Russia shared with the U.S.
In a second call, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva spoke with a man in the Caucasus region of Russia who was under FBI investigation. Jacqueline Maguire, a spokeswoman for the FBI's Washington Field Office, where that investigation was based, declined to comment.
There was no information in the conversation that suggested a plot inside the United States, officials said.
It was not immediately clear why Russian authorities didn't share more information at the time. It is not unusual for countries, including the U.S., to be cagey with foreign authorities about what intelligence is being collected.
The FSB said Sunday that it would not comment.
Jim Treacy, the FBI's legal attache in Moscow between 2007 and 2009, said the Russians long asked for U.S. assistance regarding Chechen activity in the United States that might be related to terrorism.
"On any given day, you can get some very good cooperation," Treacy said. "The next you might find yourself totally shut out."
Zubeidat Tsarnaeva has denied that she or her sons were involved in terrorism. She has said she believed her sons have been framed by U.S. authorities.
But Ruslan Tsarni, an uncle of the Tsarnaev brothers and Zubeidat's former brother-in-law, said Saturday he believes the mother had a "big-time influence" as her older son increasingly embraced his Muslim faith and decided to quit boxing and school.
After receiving the narrow tip from Russia in March 2011, the FBI opened a preliminary investigation into Tamerlan and his mother. But the scope was extremely limited under the FBI's internal procedures.
After a few months, they found no evidence Tamerlan or his mother were involved in terrorism.
The FBI asked Russia for more information. After hearing nothing, it closed the case in June 2011.
In the fall of 2011, the FSB contacted the CIA with the same information. Again the FBI asked Russia for more details and never heard back.
At that time, however, the CIA asked that Tamerlan's and his mother's name be entered into a massive U.S. terrorism database.
The CIA declined to comment Saturday.
Authorities have said they've seen no connection between the brothers and a foreign terrorist group. Dzhohkar told FBI interrogators that he and his brother were angry over wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the deaths of Muslim civilians there.
Family members have said Tamerlan was religiously apathetic until 2008 or 2009, when he met a conservative Muslim convert known only to the family as Misha. Misha, they said, steered Tamerlan toward a stricter version of Islam.
Two U.S. officials say investigators believe they have identified Misha. While it was not clear whether the FBI had spoken to him, the officials said they have not found a connection between Misha and the Boston attack or terrorism in general.
___
Associated Press writer Adam Goldman in Washington and Michael Kunzelman in Boston contributed to this report.
Sony's forays into headphones of late have often been focused on boosted bass, or even co-branding with television shows (like the X Factor), so it's refreshing to see a no-nonsense, high quality pair like the MDR-1R. At $299.99 (direct), it's priced for serious music lovers, and its sound signature, with powerful-yet-refined bass response and crisp highs, does not disappoint. The design is visually pleasing, well-constructed, and comfortable, and includes thoughtful features like detachable cables. There are no ugly surprises here?the MDR-1R doesn't distort at top volumes, nor does it lean too heavily in favor of deep bass.
Design The design of the MDR-1R is graceful, with the simple black matte, shiny metallic-colored surfaces, and luxurious-looking padded leather all combining to create a classic backdrop for the familiar Sony logo. A touch of bright red is used on the ear cups, and it elevates the look from stately to cool. If there's a complaint, it's only that some of the materials feel a little cheap for a model of this price?but they don't look cheap, and they function perfectly.
The headband, for instance, is not only well-padded and extremely comfortable, but adjusting it is an unusually smooth and graceful process?it's easy, using the stop-clicks, to get the proper-fitting size and keep it. Equally comfortable are the circumaural (around-the-ear) ear-pads, which feel almost like pillows. Swivel joints above the ears allow for the headphones to fit even more seamlessly, pivoting to the shape of your head. The headphones also fold down flat for easier packing and toting.
That the cable, which connects to the left ear, is detachable adds value to the MDR-1R?but the inclusion of two cables, one with an inline microphone and remote?even further solidifies the headphones as a solid investment. Since cables are often the first part of the headphone equation to malfunction over time, being able to swap them out, rather than replace the whole unit or send it in for repair, is a money saver.
Call clarity is solid enough?the mic picks up voices well, and the headphones block out a bit of ambient room sound (passively), allowing for clearer conversations. But, this is cellular audio quality we're talking about, so don't expect it to sound stellar.
Along with the two cables, the MDR-1R ships with a drawstring protective carrying pouch. Surprisingly, there's no 1/4-inch headphone jack adapter for stereos and pro-gear, nor is there an airline jack adapter. These exclusions on a pair this pricey are annoying, but if you need them, the problem can easily be remedied at a Radio Shack for cheap.
Performance At top (and unsafe) listening volumes, the MDR-1R reproduces deep bass effectively and cleanly?there's no distortion on The Knife's sub-bass-laden "Silent Shout", and at this price, there shouldn't be. The manual claims that the frequency range of the MDR-1R is 4Hz to 80kHz, which is bound to make some audiophiles snicker?typical adult human ears top out at the high-end of the frequency spectrum anywhere from 15-20kHz, depending on the listener, so we'll just have to take Sony's word for it that these headphones extend a full 60,000 Hertz beyond the limits of human hearing.
Even the low end of the MDR-1R's range is unusually low?it's not terribly common to see a pair dip below 10Hz in the realm of subwoofer bass response, but these headphones apparently reproduce sub-bass frequencies all the way down to 4Hz. (You have a much better chance of hearing those frequencies than ones hovering around 80kHz.)
These potentially dubious claims shouldn't scare the serious listener off, however?the MDR-1R packs a robust, yet refined, bass response. If it does indeed go all the way down to 4Hz, it does so without needlessly boosting the bass beyond sensible limits. There's perhaps more bass than someone seeking flat response might want, but this is not an outrageously bass-boosted pair by any means.
On Bill Callahan's "Drover," the MDR-1R strikes an ideal balance between the low frequencies, high-mids, and treble. Callahan's vocals on this track can sound muffled on a bass-heavy pair that lacks enough treble edge, or overly sibilant on a pair that tweaks the high-mids and highs too much. Here, his unique baritone vocals have a smoothness and edge all at once, while the drumming receives a nice bit of low-end boost without threatening to take the spotlight.?
On Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild", the kick drum loop's attack has enough high-mid presence to sound punchy, while its sustain is rounded out by the MDR-1R's smooth low-frequency response. The sub-bass synth hits that lend this song an ominous feeling are conveyed accurately here?not overly-boosted so that the mix sounds off-balance, but certainly with some added oomph. If anything, both Callahan's and this track might have benefited from the slightest bit of boosting in the high-mids, to add an extra bit of crispness to the vocals and snap to the percussion?but this is nitpicking. The MDR-1R sounds pretty fantastic.
On classical tracks, like John Adams' "The Chairman Dances", the higher register strings already possess enough high-mid crispness to fend for themselves. The lower register strings are given a nice, subtle boost, adding a sense of depth to the mix. The huge drum hits at the end, which can sound comically unnatural on heavily bass-boosted headphones, sound large and intense here, without venturing into a realm of fake mega-bass. The MDR-1R, in other words, suits classical music quite well.
If you're looking in this general price range, and you want that added bass depth that the MDR-1R's reigned-in sound signature lacks, you have options. The less expensive Denon Urban Raver AH-D320 and the SMS Audio Street by 50 DJ both pack healthy, boosted low frequency wallops.
If you just want to explore other similar options in this range, the Yamaha PRO 400, which doesn't boost things nearly as intensely, shifts the focus to the midrange. Its styling isn't as classy as the MDR-1R's, but sonically, the pairs are comparable. If you have a local electronics store that can make it happen, it might be worth a head-to-head comparison to see which you favor most, as it's about personal taste and not overall quality at this point. And if all of these pairs are out of your range, consider the excellent, Editors' Choice Sennheiser HD 558, a sonic marvel at a sub-$200 price.?
At $300, the Sony MDR-1R delivers powerful audio with focus on overall balance. It could use a bit more high-mid presence, and bass lovers will wish there was more low-end boosting, but the sound signature comes close to the audiophile ideal of flat response, without throwing bass presence out the window. There's no question of whether these are high quality headphones; it's merely whether their sound signature is what you're looking for.
Some patients with incurable tumors and BRCA mutations respond to new 2-drug combinationPublic release date: 7-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Teresa Herbert teresa_herbert@dfci.harvard.edu 617-632-4090 Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
WASHINGTONA novel combination of two drugs has shown anti-cancer activity in patients who had incurable solid tumors and carried a germline mutation in their BRCA genes, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers are reporting at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting in Washington, April 6-10.
The findings (abstract LB-202) will be released at a press conference on Sunday, April 7, 2 p.m. ET, and later at an oral presentation on Tuesday, April 9, 2 p.m. ET, in Room 153, in the Washington Convention Center.
The two oral drugs, sapacitabine and seliciclib, were given sequentially in a phase 1 clinical trial that is mainly enrolling patients whose tumors lack BRCA function because of an inherited mutation.
"We have seen several responses among these patients, as well as instances of prolonged stable disease lasting more than a year," said Geoffrey Shapiro, MD, PhD, director of Dana-Farber's Early Drug Development Center (EDDC). As a result, he said that a BRCA mutation may be a potential biomarker that identifies patients who are more likely to respond to the drug combination.
Sixteen patients enrolled in the trial carried an inherited BRCA mutation. Four of these patients had partial responses a 30 percent or greater shrinkage of tumor mass including one with pancreatic, two with breast, and one with ovarian cancer. Three patients were continuing to have a partial response at the time of presentation of the data, with the longest lasting more than 78 weeks. Two additional BRCA mutation carriers, with breast and ovarian cancer, experienced stable disease for 21 and 64 weeks, respectively. Of the remaining 22 patients enrolled in the trial, six experienced stable disease for 12 weeks or more.
Sapacitabine is toxic to cancer cells by causing damage to their DNA, which, if not repaired, causes the cells to self-destruct. The BRCA protein is essential for repair of the DNA damage caused by sapacitabine, so patients with mutations that inactivate BRCA may be more sensitive to the drug's activity.
The second drug, seliciclib, is an inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), enzymes that have multiple cellular functions, including a role in DNA repair, further augmenting the effects of sapacitabine. The patients in the trial received sapacitabine twice daily for seven days, followed by seliciclib twice daily for three days. Adverse events were mild to moderate in intensity, the study found.
Shapiro and colleagues are continuing to enroll BRCA mutation carriers in the trial, and hope to determine if the mutations may serve as a biomarker for response. He said that these drugs may prove to be an important treatment alternative for patients with BRCA-deficient cancers.
###
This research was supported in part by Cyclacel Ltd., and the National Institutes of Health (RO1 CA90687).
--Written by Richard Saltus, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
About Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is a principal teaching affiliate of the Harvard Medical School and is among the leading cancer research and care centers in the United States. It is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC), designated a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute. It provides adult cancer care with Brigham and Women's Hospital as Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center and it provides pediatric care with Boston Children's Hospital as Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center. Dana-Farber is the top ranked cancer center in New England, according to U.S. News & World Report, and one of the largest recipients among independent hospitals of National Cancer Institute and National Institutes of Health grant funding. Follow Dana-Farber on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/danafarbercancerinstitute and on Twitter: @danafarber.
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?
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.
Some patients with incurable tumors and BRCA mutations respond to new 2-drug combinationPublic release date: 7-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Teresa Herbert teresa_herbert@dfci.harvard.edu 617-632-4090 Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
WASHINGTONA novel combination of two drugs has shown anti-cancer activity in patients who had incurable solid tumors and carried a germline mutation in their BRCA genes, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers are reporting at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting in Washington, April 6-10.
The findings (abstract LB-202) will be released at a press conference on Sunday, April 7, 2 p.m. ET, and later at an oral presentation on Tuesday, April 9, 2 p.m. ET, in Room 153, in the Washington Convention Center.
The two oral drugs, sapacitabine and seliciclib, were given sequentially in a phase 1 clinical trial that is mainly enrolling patients whose tumors lack BRCA function because of an inherited mutation.
"We have seen several responses among these patients, as well as instances of prolonged stable disease lasting more than a year," said Geoffrey Shapiro, MD, PhD, director of Dana-Farber's Early Drug Development Center (EDDC). As a result, he said that a BRCA mutation may be a potential biomarker that identifies patients who are more likely to respond to the drug combination.
Sixteen patients enrolled in the trial carried an inherited BRCA mutation. Four of these patients had partial responses a 30 percent or greater shrinkage of tumor mass including one with pancreatic, two with breast, and one with ovarian cancer. Three patients were continuing to have a partial response at the time of presentation of the data, with the longest lasting more than 78 weeks. Two additional BRCA mutation carriers, with breast and ovarian cancer, experienced stable disease for 21 and 64 weeks, respectively. Of the remaining 22 patients enrolled in the trial, six experienced stable disease for 12 weeks or more.
Sapacitabine is toxic to cancer cells by causing damage to their DNA, which, if not repaired, causes the cells to self-destruct. The BRCA protein is essential for repair of the DNA damage caused by sapacitabine, so patients with mutations that inactivate BRCA may be more sensitive to the drug's activity.
The second drug, seliciclib, is an inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), enzymes that have multiple cellular functions, including a role in DNA repair, further augmenting the effects of sapacitabine. The patients in the trial received sapacitabine twice daily for seven days, followed by seliciclib twice daily for three days. Adverse events were mild to moderate in intensity, the study found.
Shapiro and colleagues are continuing to enroll BRCA mutation carriers in the trial, and hope to determine if the mutations may serve as a biomarker for response. He said that these drugs may prove to be an important treatment alternative for patients with BRCA-deficient cancers.
###
This research was supported in part by Cyclacel Ltd., and the National Institutes of Health (RO1 CA90687).
--Written by Richard Saltus, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
About Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is a principal teaching affiliate of the Harvard Medical School and is among the leading cancer research and care centers in the United States. It is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC), designated a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute. It provides adult cancer care with Brigham and Women's Hospital as Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center and it provides pediatric care with Boston Children's Hospital as Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center. Dana-Farber is the top ranked cancer center in New England, according to U.S. News & World Report, and one of the largest recipients among independent hospitals of National Cancer Institute and National Institutes of Health grant funding. Follow Dana-Farber on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/danafarbercancerinstitute and on Twitter: @danafarber.
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?
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.
Petitioning to come to the United States as a foreign national is complicated. There?s visa paperwork, quotas in many cases, and lengthy wait times. One misstep could mean a lengthy separation from your loved ones.
And that's just for straight people.?
As pro-reform interest groups prepare to fight for their specific priorities in pending immigration reform legislation, LGBT activists aren?t standing on the sidelines.
?There is a shared struggle among the immigrant and the LGBT communities,? said Steve Ralls of Immigration Equality, an organization that offers legal aid to LGBT immigrants. ?There is a growing recognition that if we can get fair immigration reform through Congress we can work on a lot of issues together moving forward.?
Gay rights activists say there are several fronts in the immigration fight -- from specific provisions for gay Americans and permanent residents seeking to bring a non-citizen partner to the country, to protections for undocumented LGBT individuals, to a broader call for equal rights.
?We?re investing in immigration reform because it is a social justice issue and we have a responsibility to advocate for the kind of world we want to live in,? said Maya Rupert, policy director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights. ?But beyond that, there are LGBT people who are going to be directly impacted by every provision in the ultimate legislation, so we have to make sure that it?s being done in a way that is inclusive and conscious of their needs.?
Border security has become one of the most contentious and difficult issues that lawmakers must resolve for a comprehensive immigration deal to be struck. USA Today's Alan Gomez discusses.
That means both legal and undocumented immigrants, Rupert said.
The number of LGBT immigrants is difficult to count, but researcher Dr. Gary Gates of UCLA?s Williams Institute used existing Census, Gallup and Pew Research Center data to calculate it. Gates estimates that about 900,000 LGBT immigrants live in the United States. About two-thirds of those are documented -- meaning that they are naturalized citizens, legal permanent residents or holders of a temporary visa. One-third -- about 267,000 -- are undocumented according to the estimate.
For documented LGBT immigrants, a key provision that activists have focused on is the inclusion of legislation called the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) in a final comprehensive reform bill.
Partial victory with DOMA? Currently, a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident can petition for a visa for a foreign-born spouse -- but only if the spouse is of the opposite sex. That applies even if the same-sex couple is legally married in another country or in a U.S. state that recognizes gay marriage.
UAFA would make same-sex spouses or permanent partners of U.S. citizens eligible to petition for a family-based visa.
(Proponents of UAFA could win a partial victory of this issue if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the Defense of Marriage Act this summer, but, unless UAFA passes, same-sex foreign national spouses would still only be eligible for a visa petition if they get married in a state that recognizes their relationship.)
Activists point to an ally in Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, an original Senate sponsor of the UAFA legislation and the head of the panel that will first review a draft immigration bill. The White House also specifically included the provision for same-sex immigrant permanent partners in a January fact sheet outlining the president?s priorities for reform.
A path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants is also getting heavy support from LGBT groups, who note that a significant portion of undocumented LGBT people in the United States may be here because they faced discrimination in their country of origin.
?You can imagine the fear that an undocumented person faces with the uncertainty in current law if their deportation would mean the return to a home country where they cannot be out, where they cannot have a relationship or they would be subject to intense persecution,? says Ralls. ?So a path to citizenship is critical for all undocumented people, and ?for undocumented LGBT people it is in many cases a critical safety issue for them.?
Public opinion shifting Since 1994, the U.S. has classified persecution on the basis of sexual orientation as grounds to seek asylum. But the process can be arduous and confusing, and asylum-seekers have to offer rigorous documentation of hardship. Those whose claims are denied risk deportation.
Although many Latino groups heavily involved in the immigration reform movement -- including the League of United Latin American Citizens,?the?National Council de la Raza and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus -- have offered support for the inclusion of LGBT protections in any final legislation, there?s opposition within the Latino community as well as from outside groups.
Susan Walsh / AP
In this March 12, 2013 file photo, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington.
In February, Sen. Marco Rubio -- a key player in the Senate Gang of Eight -- said that the inclusion of LGBT protections could hamper passage of the legislation. (Arizona?s Sen. John McCain has echoed that concern as well.)
"I think if that issue becomes a central issue in the debate it's going to become harder to get it done because there will be strong feelings on both sides,? Rubio said at an event sponsored by Buzzfeed.?
As recently as a decade ago, the Hispanic and LGBT communities could have been considered quite the opposite of allies.
In 2006, a Pew Research Center study found that just 31 percent of Hispanics favored allowing gay marriage, compared to 56 percent who opposed it.
But in 2012, those numbers were almost a mirror image, with 52 percent of Hispanics backing gay marriage and about a third saying they are not in favor of legal marriage for gays and lesbians.
Amid the legal complications and the data, and regardless of how any final legislation reads, those involved in the issue say that the debate is raising awareness about a long-ignored population.
?Having a number that indicates that this is a sizable group -- more than 250,000 LGBT undocumented, nearly a million LGBT immigrants -- it?s not so much the overall number that?s important, it?s the fact that there is an estimate,? says Dr. Gates of the Williams Institute. ?Unless you?re counted, you tend not to count.?
Related:?
Religious groups, pro-reform organizations brace for family-based visa fight
This story was originally published on Sun Apr 7, 2013 4:24 AM EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - Genetic sequence data on a deadly strain of bird flu previously unknown in people show the virus has already acquired some mutations that might make it more likely to cause a human pandemic, scientists say.
But there is no evidence so far that the H7N9 flu - now known to have infected nine people in China, killing three - is spreading from person to person, and there is still a chance it might peter out and never fully mutate into a human form of flu.
Just days after authorities in China announced they had identified cases of H7N9, flu experts in laboratories across the world are picking through the DNA sequence data of samples isolated from the patients to assess its pandemic potential.
One of the world's top flu experts, Ab Osterhaus, who is based at the Erasmus Medical Center in The Netherlands, says the sequences show some genetic mutations that should put authorities on alert and entail increased surveillance in animals and humans.
"The virus has to a certain extent already adapted to mammalian species and to humans, so from that point of view it's worrisome," he told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"Really we should keep a very close eye on this."
China's National Health and Family Planning Commission confirmed on Sunday that three people had been infected with the new H7N9 flu, with two deaths of men in Shanghai aged 87 and 27 who fell sick in late February. Chinese authorities have in the past two days confirmed another six cases, including another fatal one.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says the cases of H7N9 are "of concern" because they are the first in humans.
"That makes it a unique event, which the World Health Organization is taking seriously," the Geneva-based United Nations health agency said on Wednesday.
Other strains of bird flu, such as H5N1, have been circulating for many years and can be transmitted from bird to bird, and bird to human, but not from human to human.
So far, this lack of human-to-human transmission also appears to be a feature of the H7N9 strain.
Flu viruses are classified based on two types of protein found on their surface, hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, which are abbreviated to H and N.
Although it is very early days, scientists says initial analysis also suggests H7N9 does not appear to make birds particularly ill - in other words it is what is known as a low pathogenic avian influenza, of LPAI.
Unfortunately, this doesn't necessarily mean it will be mild in humans, says Wendy Barclay, a flu virology expert at Britain's Imperial College London.
FINDING THE SOURCE
"We can't be complacent. We have to be cautious," she said, stressing that other H5 and H7 flu subtypes have been able to mutate from LPAI to the more dangerous highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) as they circulate in various hosts, particularly in chickens.
Its mildness in birds could also mean H7N9 is a "silent spreader" - harder to detect than highly pathogenic flu strains such as H5N1 that can wipe out entire flocks of wild birds or domestic poultry and are therefore far more visible.
"It's a sort of double-edged sword, because if and when it becomes highly pathogenic and all the chickens start dying, that's very bad for the poultry farmers, but it means we can see much more easily where the virus is," Barclay said.
"At the moment, we can't see where this virus is coming from. We don't know yet what animal source is feeding this."
Finding that source, and tracking the genetic mutations to see if, how and when this new strain might gain the ability to spark a human pandemic are now the priorities for researchers in China and around the world, Barclay and Osterhaus said.
The WHO praised the Chinese government, saying it was responding to the situation with various important measures such as enhanced surveillance, detailed case management and treatment, tracing contacts of all those known to have been infected so far, and training healthcare professionals.
Experts said the fact that H7N9 had been identified and swiftly reported, and that genetic sequence data was already available for researchers around the world to analyze, was a sign of how things have changed.
In 2003, China initially tried to cover up an epidemic of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which emerged in China and killed about a tenth of the 8,000 people it infected worldwide.
Ian Jones, a professor of virology at Britain's University of Reading, said the heightened awareness of flu and of the possibility that unusual respiratory diseases may turn out to be new strains of flu means more cases get referred to hospitals.
"It's quite possible these cases ... are being detected because flu is way up there" on disease priority lists, he said.
A two-month old baby gorilla, born to a first-time mother with little maternal instinct, is being raised by humans at the Cincinnati Zoo ? for now.
By Associated Press / March 28, 2013
Ron Evans, team leader with the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Primate Team, is one of 10 surrogate mothers to 2-month-old "Gladys", a Western Lowland Gorilla, March 27, in Cincinnati.
Glenn Hartong / The Cincinnati Enquirer / AP
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A baby?gorilla?being raised temporarily by human surrogate parents is doing well ? learning to roll over, sit up and getting ready to walk on all fours.
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Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden primate specialists say "Gladys" is in good health, developing and growing quickly with loving care from 10 humans imitating a?gorilla?mom's behavior. This week she began supporting herself on all fours.
"The next step, she'll be able to walk around by herself," said Ron Evans, primate team leader.
Gladys also is teething and has begun eating some cooked foods, such as sweet potatoes and carrots, besides being bottle-fed five times a day.
"She's at the age now where she really starts growing by leaps and bounds," Evans said.
She came to Cincinnati last month from Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas, after she was born there Jan. 29 to a first-time mother who showed little maternal instinct. It was decided to move her to Cincinnati's zoo because of its extensive experience in raising?gorilla?babies and its availability of experienced?gorilla mothers.
Human surrogates dress in black, wear furry vests and kneepads and make?gorilla?sounds to help prepare Gladys for the transition to a real?gorilla?family. They have been showing her to other?gorillas?and letting them touch her.
The Cincinnati Enquirer (http://cin.ci/WYwKZK?) reports that zoo specialists think she will be ready within a few months, and there are four potential adoptive moms among their?gorillas.
"The?gorillas?have to decide who this baby's mom is going to be," Evans said.
"That will be the day that all this hard work pays off," said primate keeper Ashley O'Connell, crawling around with the 9-pound?gorilla?riding on her back.
O'Connell just had her own first child five months ago.
"I feel like I'm the mother of two right now," she said. "If I have to be away from my own child, this is where I want to be."
Information from: The Cincinnati Enquirer,?http://www.enquirer.com
Rising temperature difference between hemispheres could dramatically shift tropical rain patterns
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
One often ignored consequence of global climate change is that the Northern Hemisphere is becoming warmer than the Southern Hemisphere, which could significantly alter tropical precipitation patterns, according to a new study by climatologists from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Washington, Seattle.
Such a shift could increase or decrease seasonal rainfall in areas such as the Amazon, sub-Saharan Africa or East Asia, leaving some areas wetter and some drier than today.
"A key finding is a tendency to shift tropical rainfall northward, which could mean increases in monsoon weather systems in Asia or shifts of the wet season from south to north in Africa and South America," said UC Berkeley graduate student Andrew R. Friedman, who led the analysis.
"Tropical rainfall likes the warmer hemisphere," summed up John Chiang, UC Berkeley associate professor of geography and a member of the Berkeley Atmospheric Sciences Center. "As a result, tropical rainfall cares a lot about the temperature difference between the two hemispheres."
Chiang and Friedman, along with University of Washington colleagues Dargan M. W. Frierson and graduate student Yen-Ting Hwang, report their findings in a paper now accepted by the Journal of Climate, a publication of the American Meteorological Society. It will appear in an upcoming issue.
Generally, rainfall patterns fall into bands at specific latitudes, such as the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The researchers say that a warmer northern hemisphere causes atmospheric overturning to weaken in the north and strengthen in the south, shifting rain bands northward.
The regions most affected by this shift are likely to be on the bands' north and south edges, Frierson said.
"It really is these borderline regions that will be most affected, which, not coincidentally, are some of the most vulnerable places: areas like the Sahel where rainfall is variable from year to year and the people tend to be dependent on subsistence agriculture," said Frierson, associate professor of atmospheric sciences. "We are making major climate changes to the planet and to expect that rainfall patterns would stay the same is very na?ve."
20th century rainfall patterns
Many discussions of climate change focus on long-term trends in the average global temperature. The UC Berkeley and University of Washington researchers went a step further to determine how the temperature difference between the two hemispheres changed over the last century and how that may have affected tropical rainfall patterns.
Using more than 100 years of data and model simulations, they compared the yearly average temperature difference between the Northern and Southern hemispheres with rainfall throughout the 20th century and noticed that abrupt changes coincided with rainfall disruptions in the equatorial tropics.
The largest was a drop of about one-quarter degree Celsius (about one-half degree Fahrenheit) in the temperature difference in the late 1960s, which coincided with a 30-year drought in the African Sahel that caused famines and increased desertification across North Africa, as well as decreases in the monsoons in East Asia and India.
"If what we see in the last century is true, even small changes in the temperature difference between the Northern and Southern hemispheres could cause measureable changes in tropical rainfall," Chiang said.
This bodes ill for the future, he said. The team found that most computer models simulating past and future climate predict a steadily rising interhemispheric temperature difference through the end of the century. Even if humans begin to lower their greenhouse gas emissions, the models predict about a 1 degree Celsius (2? F) increase in this difference by 2099.
Impact of the Clean Air Act
While the average temperature of the Earth is increasing as a result of dramatic increases in atmospheric greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide, the Earth is not warming uniformly. In particular, the greater amount of land mass in the north warms up faster than the ocean-dominated south, Chiang said. Yet, even though greenhouse gas warming of Earth has been going up since the 19th century, his team found no significant overall upward or downward trend in interhemispheric temperature differences last century until a steady increase beginning in the 1980s.
The researchers attribute this to human emissions of aerosols, in particular sulfates ? from coal-burning power plants, for example ? which cooled the Northern Hemisphere and apparently counteracted the warming effect of rising greenhouse gases until the 1970 U.S. Clean Air Act led to a downward trend in sulfur emissions. The act reduced pollution and saved more than 200,000 lives and prevented some 700,000 cases of chronic bronchitis, according to 2010 figures from the Environmental Protection Agency.
"Greenhouse gases and aerosols act in opposite directions, so for much of the 20th century they essentially canceled one another out in the Northern Hemisphere," Chiang said. "When we started cleaning up aerosols we essentially leveled off the aerosol influence and allowed the greenhouse gases to express themselves."
Chiang and his colleagues argue that climate scientists should not only focus on the rising global mean temperature, but also the regional patterns of global warming. As their study shows, the interhemispheric temperature difference has an apparent impact on atmospheric circulation and rainfall in the tropics.
"Global mean temperature is great for detecting climate change, but it is not terribly useful if you want to know what is happening to rainfall over California, for example," Chiang said. "We think this simple index, interhemispheric temperature, is very relevant on a hemispheric and perhaps regional level. It provides a different perspective on climate change and also highlights the effect of aerosols on weather patterns."
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University of California - Berkeley: http://www.berkeley.edu
Thanks to University of California - Berkeley for this article.
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A new strain of bird flu in China has sickened nine people, including three who died, according to news reports.
Two of the deaths were in Shanghai, and one in the Zhejiang province, the BBC says.
Here are six things to know about this new bird flu strain, called H7N9:
Has there ever been an outbreak of this H7N9 flu strain in the past?
No, before these cases in China, the H7N9 flu strain was not known to cause illness in humans. The strain has mainly been seen in birds.
Most strains of bird flu do not infect people, although the H5N1 flu strain has caused more than 600 human illnesses in 15 countries since 2003, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Have similar strains infected people?
Strains from the H7 family of flu viruses have caused more than 100 cases of human infection in the past decade, according to a recent study in the Journal of Virology. A 2003 outbreak of the H7N7 strain in the Netherlands caused 89 infections and one death, according to CNN.
The "H" and "N" in the virus' name refer to proteins on the surface of the virus, called the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase. There are 16 types of hemagglutinin and nine types of neuraminidase that can come in pretty much any combination, said Dr. Richard Webby, a bird flu expert and infectious disease researcher at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
What symptoms do people with H7 flu infections have?
Three of the people infected in China experienced respiratory tract infections that progressed to pneumonia and breathing problems, according to the World Health Organization.
Many of H7 flu virus infections seen in the past caused conjunctivitis (or eye infections) that were not transmissible between people, Webby said.
Does the H7N9 virus spread person-to-person?
At this time, there's no evidence that the new H7N9 strain spreads between people, WHO says. The first three cases, which occurred in Shanghai and China's Anhui province (both near the country's east coast), did not appear to be connected, and people in close contact with those who got sick were not found to be infected. An investigation into the source of the infection is ongoing, WHO says.
One infected woman reportedly worked with poultry, according to CNN.
A concerning feature of the virus is that it has a genetic marker thought to increase the likelihood that it can infect humans, Webby said. It's possible this marker only shows up once the virus infects people. But if viruses in the animal population have this marker, then we could expect to see a lot more cases, Webby said. However, this marker is likely not sufficient to allow the virus to transmit between people, Webby said.
How is the virus spread if it's not person-to-person?
It's likely that the H7N9 has a source population, but whether that population is birds or another organism remains to be seen. "There's a lot of something infected with it," Webby said, and a small percentage of cases are hopping over to humans.
What will health officials look for in the coming weeks?
Besides trying to identify the source of the virus, health officials will be looking for more cases, Webby said. The cases we're seeing now may be on the extreme end of the spectrum, in terms of symptom severity, and there may be more people with less severe infections, Webby said.
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BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) ? Central African Republic's prime minister vowed to press ahead Tuesday with his new government after members of nine opposition parties said they were withdrawing from the coalition now dominated by former rebels.
Nicolas Tiangaye, who has remained prime minister since thousands of armed fighters toppled longtime President Francois Bozize more than a week ago, says he and other opposition figures will still take part.
"Those who don't want to work in the government will not be forced to do so," he told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Tiangaye will represent Central African Republic at talks scheduled for Wednesday in neighboring Chad, where regional mediators are due to discuss the country's ongoing political crisis.
However, rebel leader and newly self-appointed President Michel Djotodia will not be attending the meeting. The African Union suspended Central African Republic's membership following the seizure of power, and Djotodia and other rebel leaders are also subject to AU travel restrictions.
Djotodia, who says he intends to serve as president until the next elections were due in 2016, had announced a new list of government ministers late Sunday.
Not only will Djotodia hold the defense ministry, but his allies also will control the ministries of mines, commerce, communication, and security and public order, according to a decree issued on letterhead that reads "presidency of the republic."
In a letter of protest, the opposition parties said they would be suspending their participation in the new government.
The parties "were informed like all other Central Africans ? by radio broadcast ? of the composition of the new national unity government," they said.
Djotodia has moved swiftly toward re-establishing the government following Bozize's March 24 ouster. The longtime president has sought refuge in neighboring Cameroon, and is seeking exile in the West African state of Benin.
Bozize, Djotodia and his rebels, and opposition leader Tiangaye all had signed a peace accord in January that was to allow Bozize to fulfill his term in office. The deal unraveled amid allegations about broken promises by Bozize's government.
Thousands of rebels invaded the capital on March 23, seizing control of the presidential palace and ultimately the city. The United States, African Union and others have sharply criticized the rebels' overthrow of the government.
Djotodia has justified his rebellion by saying that Bozize had veered into dictatorship during his 10 years in power.
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Associated Press writer Jose Richard Pouambi contributed to this report.
Before I get started, happy belated Passover to all the Jewish members of the hive. ?Despite my best intentions to post about preparing for Passover with a baby in tow, the hustle of holiday prep and travel got away with me, and it just didn?t happen. ?My apologies.
What I am excited to share are a few traditions unique to the Jewish community regarding our shared interest and love of all things baby here at Hellobee. ?When I was pregnant with Little C, there were two things inherently ?Jewish? about my pregnancy journey.
There is a tradition that is rooted not in Jewish law but in long-standing superstition, which says that drawing any attention to a baby before it is born brings bad luck, or ?the evil eye.? It is similar to the modern day proverb of not counting your chickens before they hatch. ?These traditions likely began in the days when miscarriages, stillborn babies and high infant mortality rates were much, much higher than they are now, and the customs were carried from generation to generation.
Because of the tradition of protecting baby from bad luck, many Jews in more religiously observant communities wait until far later in pregnancy to openly tell anyone outside their immediate family that they are pregnant ? oftentimes until they are well into their fifth month of pregnancy or are visibly showing. ?While this is not as common nowadays among the mainstream Jewish community, there are still several very common traditions, all rooted in protecting a baby from ?the evil eye.?
First, Jews traditionally do not have baby showers. ?This one was tough for me, especially as I attended showers for non-Jewish friends and saw fabulous Pinterest photos of glamorous baby celebrations. ?What made things more difficult was when a few friends of mine offered to throw me a baby shower, and I had to find a polite way to explain that while I appreciated the offer, showers are traditionally off-limits for Jewish mamas.
This is an evolving custom, and more and more Jewish families are bucking tradition and celebrating their babies in advance. However, in my case, I had an acquaintance from?childhood?lose his daughter two days after her birth, and knew another girl from college who had a late-in-pregnancy miscarriage, and the thought of emptying a nursery filled with items hand-picked for a baby no longer there frightened me enough to observe this tradition to its fullest.
Instead, my sister threw us a ?Meet the Baby? shower when Little C was two weeks old. ?These ?sip-and-see? events, as they are called down south, are becoming more and more popular. ?Having the opportunity to be ?showered with love? while introducing Little C to all of our friends made me even more reassured in my choice to follow the Jewish custom of holding off on receiving baby gifts until the baby is born.
Little C with his Auntie Confetti dressed in a fancy collared onesie for his Meet the Baby shower
Aside from the lack of a baby shower, we also upheld the tradition by not bringing any ?baby supplies? into the home in advance of the birth. ?Pregnancy can create an urge to ?nest? ? to prepare your home and your life for your new bundle of joy. ?While I had ample projects in the organization department around our house (we moved apartments when I was 38 weeks pregnant ? not the best idea), we didn?t set up a nursery or bring any baby items into our home until Little C was born.
We circumvented the superstition a bit, as many shops in Chicago have dealt with other Jewish families and are prepared to?accommodate?them by holding merchandise in their warehouse until the baby is born. ?When I was mid-way through my second trimester, we found and ordered nursery furniture that we loved, and we worked with the staff at the store to arrange delivery once I (and the baby) had safely made it through the labor and delivery process. The folks at Lazar?s Juvenile Furniture were in the top ten list of calls we made once Little C made his grand entrance, and by the time we came home from the hospital two days later, they had delivered and set up all of the furniture and other items we tacked on to the order.
Other strategies we employed while figuring out how to manage this challenge were ordering a few key items that we could keep at my parents? house until Little C had safely arrived (like newborn clothes, tiny diapers and other necessities of early babyhood), and making an extremely detailed list of items we would need my mom to purchase while Little C and I were at the hospital after his birth. ?All of these tactics, plus an Amazon Prime subscription meant that after we managed the first rushed few days after the birth, we were all set in supplies.
My only big exception to the ?no shopping rule? before Little C was born was buying and installing a car seat, since I didn?t feel safe waiting on that purchase, and if I could have done it again, I would have pre-ordered and stashed my breast pump, unopened, at my mom?s (since nothing is worse than having your milk come in and having nothing but a lousy hand pump to help with super painful engorgement. ?Yikes!).
Finally, the last way that Jews protect their babies from ?the evil eye? is by keeping the baby?s name a secret. ?The traditional superstition from days of yore says that by holding off on naming the child until he has arrived, he lacks the clear descriptor of a name to catch bad luck. ?Mr. Confetti and I didn?t have too much trouble with this, although it drove our families a little bit crazy. ?We were so excited to share Little C?s name once he was born. Since we had known early on that we were having a boy, it was exciting for us to keep something secret until he made his grand entrance.
Along the topic of naming Little C, the second Jewish influence in my pregnancy journey was determining Little C?s name. ?A special part of Jewish tradition is to honor the memory of deceased relatives when naming a child. ?Using the name of a deceased relative not only keeps their memory alive, but according to religious tradition, creates a bond between the soul of the deceased and the child, so each one benefits from the good deeds of the other.
Interestingly, the Jewish community is split when it comes to naming after living relatives. ?There are two halves of the Jewish community: the Ashkenazi Jews who are of Eastern European descent (and make up the majority of American Jews) and the Sephardic Jews of Middle Eastern and African descent. ?Sephardic Jews support naming individuals after living relatives (most often grandparents), while Ashkenazi Jews deem it inappropriate. ? The Confetti family falls in the Ashkenazi camp, so calling our son Mr. Confetti Jr. was definitely not in the cards.
When we were debating names for Little C, we knew we wanted to honor the Jewish naming tradition of memorializing loved ones lost. ?Little C has four names ? a first and middle English name, as well as a first and middle Hebrew name. ?We did this to honor three deceased relatives: Mrs. Confetti?s mother, his grandfather and my grandfather.
Where this gets a little bit less traditional is the modern interpretation of using just the first letter of the deceased relative ? after all, I wasn?t going to give my son his deceased grandmother?s name, right?! ?So instead, we used the first letter of her name (which in real life is actually C, fitting for my HB moniker), brainstormed a ton of choices and eventually narrowed it down to three and then to one. ?It sounds similar to her name and starts with the same letter, and is the perfect name to honor her memory.
We picked Little C?s middle name using the first letter ?H? after my grandpa Harry. And when picking Little C?s Hebrew name, we honored both of our deceased grandfathers by using both of their Hebrew names, one for the first name and one for the middle name. Our families were touched by our name choices, and we were able to share the story of how he got his name with all of our friends and loved ones at his bris, his circumcision ceremony.
Looking back, it is interesting to reflect on how our heritage affected our journey toward parenthood.
Did you have any special religious or ethnic customs that played a part in your pregnancy?
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Public release date: 7-Apr-2013
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