The Most Awkward Knock-Knock Joke Ever


Kids. They say such absurd things.

Some more than others. In this case, a youngster turned an innocuous knock knock joke into a genuinely awkward moment, turning off a cute girl in the process.

Watch the exchange below:

The transcript as we best understand it:

Boy: Superman on what?
Girl: I have no possible idea... that's all I know of the joke.
Boy: Might be on a hotdog?! [smiles deviously]
Girl: Yeah ... [scoots away from future 40-Year-Old Virgin ASAP]

Well played, guy. Or poorly played, depending on your viewpoint.

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/the-most-awkward-knock-knock-joke-ever/

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Scientists identify novel approach to view inner workings of viruses

Friday, January 13, 2012

Since the discovery of the microscope, scientists have tried to visualize smaller and smaller structures to provide insights into the inner workings of human cells, bacteria and viruses. Now, researchers at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a new way to see structures within viruses that were not clearly seen before. Their findings are reported in the Jan. 13 issue of Science.

Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is a technique that allows scientists to image very small particles, like structures on the surface of viruses. This method has been useful in helping researchers understand how vaccines work. But, despite the success of cryo-EM, scientists have been unable to clearly visualize structures inside of viruses, because radiation is used to image them. "With lower doses of radiation, it is not possible to see inside the organism," said lead author Dr. Alasdair Steven of the NIAMS Laboratory of Structural Biology Research. "However, higher doses of radiation damage the virus, destroying the very structures that we would like to view."

Working in collaboration with the group of Dr. Lindsay Black at the University of Maryland Medical School, Baltimore, Steven and his team were able to turn the problem of radiation damage into an asset. Viruses, one of the simplest life forms, are made up of nucleic acids (DNA or RNA) and the proteins encoded by the nucleic acid instruction manual. The researchers realized that proteins inside the virus are more sensitive to damage than DNA.

"We first used low doses of radiation and recorded images in which the inner structure of the virus was invisible," said Steven. "Next, we used high doses of radiation, and found that the inner structure could be seen as a cylinder of bubbles." While the inner structure was damaged, the team was able to superimpose the images, using three-dimensional computer reconstruction. As a result, they were able to clearly visualize the viral structure. The investigators call this technique bubblegram imaging.

Moving forward, the team members anticipate many uses of bubblegram imaging. Ideally, this technique will allow a better understanding of the inner workings of viruses, providing more opportunities for developing novel therapies. Beyond studying viral structure, cryo-EM could be used to visualize interactions of proteins with DNA in human cells. One exciting prospect lies in using this approach to visualize differences in cancer vs. non-cancer cells. "This new cryo-EM procedure renders previously invisible proteins visible and, thus, will provide new understanding of cell biology," said Steven.

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NIH/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases: http://www.niams.nih.gov

Thanks to NIH/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases for this article.

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

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/116719/Scientists_identify_novel_approach_to_view_inner_workings_of_viruses

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Turkuaz ? Blog Archive ? Automotive Environmental breakout War Is ...

Automobile Market place, ?escape war?

HC Environmental Network: In Economic Clouded the crisis in 2009 under the world-wide automotive business is encountering unprecedented issues. Shrinking belonging to the promote, desire reduction, the whole car business right into a vicious cycle, ?cycle.? As consumers on automobile security demands have enhanced, and almost as customers inside the brand, amount, provider stage than most principal variety standards. The exact same time, deteriorating pure Setting Right before, environmental safety is no longer an empty slogan, along with social recognition of environmental safety, electrical power preserving and consumption types have become the mainstream automotive business. Consequently, the automobile business to ?Win in the? require a in depth concept of the entire industrial chain transformation.

?Safety, electrical power conservation, environmental protection? happens to be the long run enhancement belonging to the automotive business the three serious themes, serious automobile manufacturers are applying superior technologies continued to emerge. Toyota a short time ago launched lithium-ion battery driven electrical automobiles, hydrogen fuel cell driven fuel cell hybrid auto, have represented Toyota inside the protection, environmental safety superior solutions. And reflect the whole automotive business later on Promotion System of ?sustainable enhancement of automotive goods,? the course of enhancement. The security and take care of the environment in the end

Tires the sole contact with the floor the whole automotive components, which for security and protection belonging to the automobile plays a vital position, it absolutely was regarded due to ?black pollution? of tire, the right way to harmony protection and environmental safety belonging to the double common?

As leader belonging to the Bridgestone tire business has lengthy been carefully and is dedicated to driving the automobile the ?safety? and ?green? difficulties.

Considering the fact that entering China could be the beginning belonging to the Group?s superior environmental concepts into China, has released TBYD (after number one pondering driving), TCS (totally free tire security inspection), the proprietor belonging to the protection company in addition to a series of street driving pursuits Targeted visitors Safety Local community theme pursuits. Not too long ago, the Group?s environment will be the slogan of ?OneTeam, OnePlanet? higher profile to China, from production, product or service enhancement, social welfare together with other aspects of the implementation of its ?green safety? notion.

Present tire business is entering a ?security? Green? Economy? era of integrated chaleureuse management, cost-effective goods enhanced in acceptance. While in the lots of years of company enhancement, Bridgestone has been the ?green? as a crucial investigate subject. Furthermore to lack of air page views RFT are usually minimal rolling resistance tires plus the advertising of products, the product or service model, production, logistics, Sell And various electrical power preserving factors are incredibly targeted, and is lively inside a selection of nationwide ?safe? and ?sustainable? environmental safety pursuits. Bridgestone tire company in China Wu Mr. Tian Bangjun president, says: ?Bridgestone is performing vigorously to promote the group?s 3R (Minimize, Reuse, Recycle) pursuits into China, the continued dedication into the group ?as a cycle tire use of resources?. We?ve got four tire plants in China had arrived at ?1% or a lot less belonging to the waste landfill rate? is zero-emissions specifications, outfitted accompanied by a minimal rolling resistance tires listed environmental solutions would be to help reduce the environmental loading attempts. for truck bus users to play this year, Bridgestone?s refurbished brand ?Bandag? technical power, actively marketing the new tires and renovation expert services for packaged income of total remedy. On the same time because final fall Since the deliver the results when using the Chinese Federation of Vehicle Sports activities, released a series of owners for the common enlightenment pursuits driving green. ?

Bridgestone enterprise phases from production and use to scale back carbon dioxide emissions, tire put on renovation plan to implement resources in areas just like starting up in the same time, preserving resources, lessening environmental pollution due to waste tires. This Takeda president also stressed that: ?Bridgestone schemes to other makes inside the Chinese promote is hard to counteract the benefit of ?environmental goods? to China to, and production in China. Expected inside the upcoming number of years will set some a lot more surprising goods launched to China. ?

Street security and environmental faribole safety, great distance to go

2007 under the Ministry of Public Protection of China-related acceptes statistical data, bad driving habits is producing the primary reason for China?s tens of a huge number of page views accidents. While in the course of driving, no matter whether its protection or environmental safety, furthermore to and tires Hardware Services, the outdoors, great driving habits and driving notion is also indispensable. June 6 this year, Bridgestone security and environmental safety pursuits, Carnival?s Beijing Railway Station, throughout several promotional systems and cutting-edge security and environmental safety goods on display, to ensure the participants a profound knowing belonging to the tires inside the ?security? and ?green? push to play position.

Safety and environmental safety is straight connected into the interests of customers, but in addition encourages the enhancement belonging to the planet car promote. With knowledge of a planet view belonging to the autumn leaves had been gone, we will see the course belonging to the world-wide automotive business?? Four tires when the auto a ?safe environment? belonging to the components; when the automobile is more protected and trustworthy tools, model of a lot more green electrical power; when environmental recognition because the consensus belonging to the group, but in addition ushered inside the motor vehicle business will be the moment of possibilities.

Source: http://www.turkuaz.us/2012/01/14/automotive-environmental-breakout-war-is-absolutely-not-an-empty-slogan-of-environmental-safety/

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Roger Martin: What CEOs and Hedge Funds Don't Want the 99% to Understand

Zuccotti Park may be emptied and the Wall Street no longer occupied, but the anger of the 99% hasn't abated one iota as they watched CEOs cash in on the recovery and hedge funds make money hand over fist whether the market is going up or down. This shouldn't be a surprise. The fact is, because of the structure of their compensation, CEOs are rewarded for share price volatility not share price performance. And hedge funds make big money on the volatility that CEOs are incented to produce. So while the volatility of the past five years has devastated the lives, savings and pensions of vast numbers of the 99%, it has served CEOs and hedge fund managers very well indeed.

To understand the perverse structures, let's compare the compensation of two hypothetical CEOs, Bill and Sally, appointed on Jan. 1, 2007 and retired five years later on Dec. 31, 2011. The average US large company CEO has a compensation package of approximately $10 million/year made up half of salary/bonuses and half of stock-based compensation, so that is what we awarded Bill and Sally. Typically, the stock compensation is awarded annually on Jan. 1 of each year. If it is in the form of restricted stock, it vests as of retirement. If it is in the form of stock options, they typically must be exercised at the time of retirement. So that is how we structured their stock-based compensation.

It was a wild ride during Bill's and Sally's time. The S&P 500 (which accounts for 75% of US market capitalization) was 1,416 when they took over, shot up to an all-time high of 1,565 on Oct. 9, 2007, then plummeted in the fall of 2008 and bottomed out on March 9, 2009 at 676, then rose to the close of 2011, finishing at 1,258 -- 80% of that all-time high.

CEO Bill managed the company as if it was a proxy for the stock market; its stock followed the S&P500 exactly with the huge ups and downs. On January 1, 2007, his stock price was $100/share, making the share price at the beginning of 2008-2011: $102, $66, $80, and $90, respectively. When he retired, the price was $89. So in five years, he took his shareholders on a wild ride and ended up losing 11% of the investment of the shareholders who stuck with him the whole time.

CEO Sally was able to buck the market trend. She managed carefully and proactively and somehow kept the stock stable at $100/share from 2007 through to the end of 2011. So against the backdrop of five wild years in the market, she avoided giving shareholders scary ups and downs and left them with their investment whole -- 11% better than the market performance and 11% better than Bill.

Who is the more valuable CEO? Whose compensation should be higher? Should it be Bill, whose shareholders experienced massive volatility and a net loss of 11% over the period? Or should it be Sally, who avoided ups and down, protected investors' capital and ended up 11% higher than Bill? The answer, of course, is obvious -- Sally with both better returns and lower volatility. She should have made a hell of a lot more.

But that is not the way it works out in crazy America. Over the period, Bill made $57M in compensation to Sally's $50M if their stock-based compensation was in stock options; $51M versus $50M if it was restricted stock. It seems impossible: how could the valuations end up there when Sally's stock was 11% higher on the day the stock-based compensation was valued? It is primarily because of the huge value of Bill's stock-based compensation given to him on Jan. 1, 2009 when his stock price was languishing at $66.

Therein lays the fundamental problem eating away at the core of American capitalism -- and generating anguish of the 99%. American CEOs are paid to generate volatility -- so they did just great over the last five years while the 99% took it in the teeth. And that wasn't some kind of accident -- it is inherent in the current system.

The 99% would love nothing more than slow and steady growth, but that is not what maximizes incentive compensation for corporate executives. As far as CEO compensation goes, under the current stock-based compensation model, it is unambiguously better to have your stock plummet and then partly recover than to have the stock price stay steady over the same period. In fact, the most bloody-minded and self-interested CEO would be wise to drive its stock down immediately after taking over -- and blaming the prior administration for all the problems found -- and then get the stock back to the initial level. The CEO will make a small fortune doing that -- while shareholders make nothing -- and it is a lot easier than producing stock price increases from the initial level.

Though they wouldn't want to admit it, the crash of 2008 wasn't all that bad for the vast majority of big-company CEOs. With the exception of those few CEOs who were sacked, most had terrific air cover: "Our stock may be down 50% but so is everybody else. Really, I'm doing well, all things considered." Even better, CEOs got tranches of stock grants at super-low prices -- in some cases lots of them to keep the CEOs from being depressed that their existing options were "so far underwater." As the market dragged their stock prices up with everyone else's, these CEOs made out like, well, bandits.

Stock-based compensation has produced a volatility machine and that volatility is wrecking the American economy, while it makes CEOs and hedge fund managers rich. The crash of 2008 wasn't a rogue event and it will happen again as long as our rogue system of executive compensation stays intact.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-martin/stock-based-compensation_b_1206800.html

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No. 5 Maryland loses to No. 13 Miami 75-63 (AP)

CORAL GABLES, Fla. ? Maryland's basket-a-minute offense couldn't keep up its customary pace. Too often, the Miami Hurricanes were in the way.

The No. 5-ranked Terrapins found the lane usually clogged, shot poorly from the outside, sputtered in transition and lost Thursday to No. 13 Miami, 75-63.

It was the Terrapins' lowest-scoring game this season, and the Hurricanes' defense was a big reason.

"They really got after it," forward Alyssa Thomas said. "We knew they were physical and like to put their hands on you and make it tough for you. At times it was hard to get to the basket."

Riquna Williams scored 34 points for the Hurricanes (14-3 overall, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who defeated a top-five team for the first time ever. Maryland (16-1, 3-1) was held 21 points below its scoring average of 84.4 points per game, best in the nation.

The loss was the first for the Terrapins since they were beaten in the second round of the NCAA tournament last year.

"We remember how it felt last time," Thomas said. "I know we're going to come back strong."

Thomas had 18 points but committed eight turnovers. Laurin Mincy was held to six points, nearly nine below her average. The Terrapins went 2 for 11 from 3-point range, while Miami shot 13 for 28.

Williams tied a career high by sinking eight 3-pointers, the last coming with two minutes left to put Miami ahead by 11 points.

"The difference was we had no answer for Riquna," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. "She was unstoppable. She was definitely in a zone."

The Hurricanes won despite missing 21 consecutive shots in the first half, when they went 10 minutes without a basket to squander an early 12-point lead.

Miami extended its home winning streak to 34 games.

"We know how hard it is to come in here," Frese said. "It's always a tough place to play. You've got to be solid."

Miami won even though Shenise Johnson shot 2 for 15 and had just six points, 10 below her average. That ended her streak of scoring in double figures in 87 consecutive games.

Johnson didn't seem to mind.

"We won. Period," the senior said. "I feel like I'm in some way responsible. This is a great win for our program, and I'm happy to be a part of it."

Williams shot 12 for 24, including 8 for 14 from 3-point range. Stefanie Yderstrom went 4-for-7 beyond the arc and scored 12 points. Morgan Stroman added 10 points and eight rebounds for the Hurricanes, who enjoyed an eight-rebound edge despite Maryland's height advantage.

Miami trailed by seven points early in the second half but regained the lead when a 3-pointer by Williams made it 47-46. She sank back-to-back 3-pointers during a 10-0 run that put the Hurricanes up 64-56 with less than four minutes left.

That prompted her to hop along the sideline as she waved to encourage more cheering from the fans.

"I wanted to let them know, `You guys are helping us,'" she said. "It was a great emotional feeling, like, `We want to win, and we're going to go get it.'"

Williams scored 15 points in the first 8 1/2 minutes to help the Hurricanes take a 22-10 lead. They then went cold, and a 15-1 run by the Terrapins put them ahead.

Meier described the Hurricanes' offense in the first half as "horrible."

"I said, `If our offense is the problem, we're fine,'" she said. "We knew we would click at a certain point."

Williams tied a career high with eight 3-pointers, the last coming with two minutes left to put Miami ahead by 11 points. The Hurricanes won despite missing 21 consecutive shots in the first half, when they went 10 minutes without a basket to squander an early 12-point lead.

The Hurricanes (14-3 overall, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) extended their home winning streak to 34 games.

Miami outscored Maryland by 33 points from 3-point range and won even though Shenise Johnson shot 2 for 15 and had just six points, 10 below her average. That ended her streak of scoring in double figures in 87 consecutive games.

Williams shot 12 for 24, including 8 for 14 from 3-point range. Stefanie Yderstrom went 4-for-7 beyond the arc and scored 12 points. Morgan Stroman added 10 points and eight rebounds for the Hurricanes, who had an eight-rebound edge despite Maryland's height advantage.

Alyssa Thomas had 18 points for the Terrapins but committed eight turnovers. Laurin Mincy was held to six points, nearly nine below her average.

The Terrapins went 2 for 11 from 3-point range, while Miami shot 13 for 28.

Miami trailed by seven points early in the second half but regained the lead when a 3-pointer by Williams made it 47-46. She made back-to-back 3-pointers during a 10-0 run that put the Hurricanes up 64-56 with less than four minutes left.

Williams scored 15 points in the first 8 1/2 minutes to help the Hurricanes take a 22-10 lead. They then went cold, and a 15-1 run by the Terrapins put them ahead.

The Terps started 5-for-19 but sank five consecutive shots to get back in the game. They were up 27-25 at halftime.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120113/ap_on_sp_co_ga_su/bkw_t25_maryland

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Doris Gallan: What Boomers Absolutely Hate About Travel (And Why It's Completely Reasonable to Do So)

I adore travel -- just about everything about it. I'll go anywhere once: even destinations most people shun based on horrible reputations. My Boomer husband and I traveled and lived around the world for five years so we knew it would be inevitable we'd run across some of the things we hated about traveling.

Of course, when we're on the road, we expect to put up with inconveniences and discomforts -- otherwise we may as well stay home. But certain occurrences are particularly upsetting and no matter how much care we took, they still happened to us. Well, we couldn't keep up our guard for five years and still enjoy the journey. If we had, we'd have returned riddled with ulcers.
It's a pain to know that you always have to be on the lookout for people who want to separate you from your valuables. And the clich? of the Ugly American Tourist irks me because it's applied unfairly and Boomers bear the brunt of it.

Being Cautious and Prepared

You might want to know that it's not only the AARP who takes an interest in you as you age -- so do scam artists, thieves, vendors, touts and beggars. There are many reasons we traveling Boomers are seen as a great target, especially when abroad: we're not likely to know the language, currency or the value of the items for sale, we may be more easily baffled (sorry, but true), and we won't bargain as hard as others might.

All that's bad enough, but when vendors deliberately set out to con us because they figure our age makes us an easy mark -- aargh! Salespeople might add items onto the bill figuring we won't notice, cabbies might take the long way to our destination, and waiters might argue that this is exactly what we ordered to eat.

Because we won't give up traveling and we don't want to distrust everyone we come into contact with, we've developed two defenses: we understand and accept that some of this will happen so we watch out for it and we educate ourselves on the scams regularly perpetuated on tourists in any given region.

Touts -- vendors who follow you down the street -- are a huge nuisance as they try to sell you overpriced watches, handbags, hotel rooms or tours. They're hard to get rid of but you'll never find them when your cheap merchandise isn't what you expected.

Beggars are the most dangerous because they often work in gangs who keep an eye on where you stash your wallet for future pick-pocking opportunities. Some beggar gangs have children take your passport, camera and other valuables while you fend off their innocent cries of "coins for ice cream."

The Ugly American Tourist

It's not enough that we have to suffer through the prejudice that we're old because we're Boomers, we also have to live with the bias of being the "Ugly American Tourist." Well, we no longer have the market cornered on that moniker as there's a lot of competition from many other nationalities. Mind you, every time Congress comes up with something like "Freedom Fries" or an American tourist blows up about something inconsequential, it's hard to think the title isn't a little deserved. Well, it does serve to remind us to be civil in our complaints while abroad and to hold our tongues when we feel the urge to compare something with how things are done back home.

Other things Boomers absolutely hate about travel include: filthy toilets or a lack of public toilets, hidden fees (airlines, hotels, credit cards), overcrowding, TSA security checks at U.S. airports, changing rates for everything from accommodations to air fares, misbehaving kids, transportation delays and lost luggage.

But none of this is enough to stop me from traveling. If you were to call and invite me tomorrow to join you to spend a month in Vietnam, getting there on a puddle-hopper across China to be followed by a chicken bus from Saigon to Danang, to stay with a family in its modest home and eat local food -- even though I don't speak the language, might not understand the politics, wonder at the people's ability to rebuild after the war -- I'd have my bags packed before you heard the dial tone on your phone.

How about you? What do you hate about travel? Leave your comments below.

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Follow Doris Gallan on Twitter: www.twitter.com/http://twitter.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doris-gallan/what-boomers-absolutely-h_b_1201801.html

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Crystal Bell: The Vampire Diaries Recap: Stefan Goes Too Far

Note: Do not read on if you have not seen Season 3, Episode 11 of The CW's The Vampire Diaries, entitled, "Our Town."

Everyone in Mystic Falls is stuck in a rut. Caroline is forever stuck at 17, Tyler is stuck under Klaus' control, Damon is stuck on Elena, Elena is stuck on last year, and Stefan is... well, Stefan is just plain crazy.

In an effort to prove a point to Klaus, Stefan makes it his mission to try to kill all of Klaus' hybrids, one by one, until he makes them leave town. You see, in order to win this psycho chess match, "you have to be the better villain."

So Stefan does the unthinkable: he kidnaps Elena, forces her to drink his blood, and threatens to drive her off Wickery Bridge, the same bringe where Elena and Jeremy's parents died. After all, if Elena is a vampire, Klaus can't make any more hybrids. In the end, Klaus caves, agreeing to send his hybrids away from Mystic Falls, and while Stefan may have gotten what he wanted, at what price?

Elena is heartbroken and furious with Stefan, and this may be one of Nina Dobrev's finest scenes in the entire series. It looks like she really earned her People's Choice Award in tonight's episode.

Even though Stefan tries to tell Elena that he had no intention of driving off the bridge, he still risked her life, and for what? To beat Klaus at his own game. Of course, Elena doesn't appreciate Stefan's new priorities, especially when he uses her as a pawn. "Destroying Klaus is all I have left," he tells her.

"You had me!" Elena screams. Honestly, as much as I love Stefan when he's bad, for a second, I started to miss Saint Stefan. Sure, he was a little boring, but he was much easier to read. Now that Stefan has lost his humanity, I'm never sure whether he's really that much of a prick or if he's just trying to protect Elena by making her hate him.

If that's the case, then he's doing a fine job at that. Thankfully, Damon is there to pick Elena up from the bridge, after Stefan drives off in anger. Unfortunately, there isn't another Delena kiss, and to be honest, it wouldn't have felt right if they did kiss. Elena is still hurt, and she's still chasing after her ghost. But her ghost isn't Stefan; it's her -- or at least who she used to be.

Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the most perfect kiss ever, Damon takes a nice, steamy shower. Elena, however, takes her sexual frustration out on the punching bag. Confused by Elena's strange behavior, Alaric knows something is up with her. He just doesn't know that it has to do with Damon... or does he?

But Alaric's got his own drama to deal with, especially now that we know Doctor Fell is a Founder, with a somewhat sketchy past. Call me crazy, but I kind of believed her ex when he told Alaric that she was a little crazy. Let's just hope Alaric sees it before he ends up like that guy in the woods.

Back at school, Elena finally tells Bonnie that she made Damon compel Jeremy to leave Mystic Falls, for good. Unfortunately for Bonnie, there's some unfinished business between her and Jeremy, so she's not sure how to feel about the news.

However, Bonnie and Elena aren't the only ones with boy drama. Caroline finally confronts Tyler after he tried to kill Jeremy. In the end, Tyler tells her that she's better off without him, and that he doesn't feel safe being with her, while being sired by Klaus. At least he leaves her with a birthday present. No wonder Caroline hate her birthday.

Little does Tyler know that Klaus will ask the unthinkable of him: to kill Caroline. In Klaus' eyes, it's an eye for an eye. Stefan killed his hybrid. He kills Stefan's friend.

Naturally, Tyler isn't too happy with Klaus' request, and he stands up to his hybrid boss, ultimately causing Klaus to turn to Plan B.

Meanwhile, in an effort to cheer up Caroline, Elena, Matt, and Bonnie throw their vampy friend a mini surprise party. However, Caroline's not exactly in the mood to celebrate. She's eternally stuck at 17, practically the worst "filler year" of them all. So, sensing that their friend needs a pick-me-up, they... take her to a graveyard! You see, Caroline isn't celebrating her 18th birthday, she's celebrating her funeral.

Bonnie confronts Elena about Jeremy, but as we all know, these types of conversations are best to have without alcohol. (Note: Candice Accola did warn me about Caroline's tequila-heavy birthday.)

Tyler crashes Caroline's funeral in order to tell her how much he loves her. When it comes to Caroline, it looks like Tyler is free of Klaus' control... that is, until he unknowingly bites her, sending her into shock and slowly killing her.

Here's why I love Caroline: even when she's seething in pain, she still takes the time to tell Tyler off.

Matt finds Caroline and immediately takes her home. Meanwhile, Tyler runs off to Klaus to tell him what he's done, and Klaus ends up at the Forbes' front door, offering his blood to save Caroline. He also treats her to a super-inspiring speech about how great it is to be a vampire and see the world and its beauty... followed by some of his blood, and a pretty necklace.

While I'm glad Caroline is going to live to see another day -- and celebrate another funeral -- I can't help but feel that Klaus has a nasty little plan up his sleeve. After all, he can't be too happy after Stefan won their little game.

But in the end, the only one who isn't stuck is Jeremy, who finally leaves Mystic Falls, but not before Bonnie arrives to tell him goodbye. Was I the only one kind of hoping that she would go rogue and use her magic to un-compel Jeremy? I can only hope that Jeremy doesn't stay gone for long. I may not have been Jeremy's number-one fan during Season 1, but he's really grown on me.

Unfortunately, we still don't know who's in the fourth coffin, which is going to drive me crazy until next week.

Quotables:

Damon, after ripping out the heart of a hybrid: "These hybrids, they're really bringing the neighborhood down."

Klaus, to Stefan: "Maybe I'd be willing to lose one brother if it meant killing yours." Game on.

Caroline: "And the only point of turning 17 is to get to 18. It's a filler year, so I'm stuck in a filler year."

Daniel, to Klaus: "What do you want me to do with her head?"

Caroline's birthday toast (Elena, Matt and Bonnie): "Here lies Caroline Forbes, cheerleader, Miss Mystic Falls, third-grade hopscotch champion, friend, daughter, overachiever, mean girl -- no offense. She was 17, and she had a really good life, so rest in peace, so that you can move forward. It's what we all really need. Amen... or cheers or whatever."

Klaus: "Oh, come on, mate. Give peace a chance." I think this was the statement that made me officially #TeamKlaus.

Tyler, to Caroline: "Klaus can't control me. Not when it comes to you. I won't let him."

Stefan, to Elena: "You lost me the second I left town with him. You just haven't let yourself admit that yet." I mean, he went too far, right?

Stefan: "I don't really care what you think about me anymore, Elena." Okay, he really went too far.

Klaus, to Caroline: "I love birthdays. You have to adjust your perception of time when you become a vampire, Caroline. Accept that you're no longer bound to trivial human conventions. You're free."

Damon, to Elena: "It's right, just not right now."

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Follow Crystal Bell on Twitter: www.twitter.com/newyorkbell

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/crystal-bell/the-vampire-diaries-recap_b_1203251.html

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NIH study shows 32 million Americans have autoantibodies that target their own tissues

[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 13-Jan-2012
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Contact: Robin Mackar
rmackar@niehs.nih.gov
919-541-0073
NIH/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

More than 32 million people in the United States have autoantibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body's tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows. The first nationally representative sample looking at the prevalence of the most common type of autoantibody, known as antinuclear antibodies (ANA), found that the frequency of ANA is highest among women, older individuals, and African-Americans. The study was conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health. Researchers in Gainesville at the University of Florida also participated.

Earlier studies have shown that ANA can actually develop many years before the clinical appearance of autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis. ANA are frequently measured biomarkers for detecting autoimmune diseases, but the presence of autoantibodies does not necessarily mean a person will get an autoimmune disease. Other factors, including drugs, cancer, and infections, are also known to cause autoantibodies in some people.

"Previous estimates of ANA prevalence have varied widely and were conducted in small studies not representative of the general population," said Frederick Miller, M.D., Ph.D., an author of the study and acting clinical director at NIEHS. "Having this large data set that is representative of the general U.S. population and includes nearly 5,000 individuals provides us with an accurate estimate of ANA and may allow new insights into the etiology of autoimmune diseases." The findings appear online in the Jan. 11 issue of the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.

Miller, who studies the causes of autoimmune diseases, explains that the body's immune system makes large numbers of proteins called antibodies to help the body fight off infections. In some cases, however, antibodies are produced that are directed against one's own tissues. These are referred to as autoantibodies.

A multi-disciplinary team of researchers evaluated blood serum samples using a technique called immunofluorescence to detect ANA in 4,754 individuals from the 1994-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The overall prevalence of ANA in the population was 13.8 percent, and was found to be modestly higher in African-Americans compared to whites. ANA generally increased with age and were higher in women than in men, with the female to male ratio peaking at 40-49 years of age and then declining in older age groups.

"The peak of autoimmunity in females compared to males during the 40-49 age bracket is suggestive of the effects that the hormones estrogen and progesterone might be playing on the immune system," said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of NIEHS and an author on the paper.

The paper also found that the prevalence of ANA was lower in overweight and obese individuals than persons of normal weight. "This finding is interesting and somewhat unexpected," said Edward Chan, Ph.D., an author on the study and professor of the Department of Oral Biology at the University of Florida.

"It raises the likelihood that fat tissues can secrete proteins that inhibit parts of the immune system and prevent the development of autoantibodies, but we will need to do more research to understand the role that obesity might play in the development of autoimmune diseases," said Minoru Satoh, M.D., Ph.D., another author on the study and associate professor of rheumatology and clinical immunology at the University of Florida.

The researchers say the paper should serve as a useful baseline for future studies looking at changes in ANA prevalence over time and the factors associated with ANA development. The paper is the first in a series analyzing these data from the NHANES dataset, and exploring possible environmental associations with ANA.

###

Reference: Satoh M, Chan EKL, Ho LA, Rose KM, Parks CG, Cohn RD, Jusko TA, Walker NJ, Germolec DR, Whitt IZ, Crockett PW, Pauley BA, Chan JYF, Ross SJ, Birnbaum LS, Zeldin DC, Miller, FW. 2012. Arthritis and Rheumatism; doi: 10.1002/art.34380 [online 2012 January 11].

The NIEHS supports research to understand the effects of the environment on human health and is part of NIH. For more information on environmental health topics, visit www.niehs.nih.gov. Subscribe to one or more of the NIEHS news lists to stay current on NIEHS news, press releases, grant opportunities, training, events, and publications.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

NIH...Turning Discovery Into Health


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[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 13-Jan-2012
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Contact: Robin Mackar
rmackar@niehs.nih.gov
919-541-0073
NIH/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

More than 32 million people in the United States have autoantibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body's tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows. The first nationally representative sample looking at the prevalence of the most common type of autoantibody, known as antinuclear antibodies (ANA), found that the frequency of ANA is highest among women, older individuals, and African-Americans. The study was conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health. Researchers in Gainesville at the University of Florida also participated.

Earlier studies have shown that ANA can actually develop many years before the clinical appearance of autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis. ANA are frequently measured biomarkers for detecting autoimmune diseases, but the presence of autoantibodies does not necessarily mean a person will get an autoimmune disease. Other factors, including drugs, cancer, and infections, are also known to cause autoantibodies in some people.

"Previous estimates of ANA prevalence have varied widely and were conducted in small studies not representative of the general population," said Frederick Miller, M.D., Ph.D., an author of the study and acting clinical director at NIEHS. "Having this large data set that is representative of the general U.S. population and includes nearly 5,000 individuals provides us with an accurate estimate of ANA and may allow new insights into the etiology of autoimmune diseases." The findings appear online in the Jan. 11 issue of the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.

Miller, who studies the causes of autoimmune diseases, explains that the body's immune system makes large numbers of proteins called antibodies to help the body fight off infections. In some cases, however, antibodies are produced that are directed against one's own tissues. These are referred to as autoantibodies.

A multi-disciplinary team of researchers evaluated blood serum samples using a technique called immunofluorescence to detect ANA in 4,754 individuals from the 1994-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The overall prevalence of ANA in the population was 13.8 percent, and was found to be modestly higher in African-Americans compared to whites. ANA generally increased with age and were higher in women than in men, with the female to male ratio peaking at 40-49 years of age and then declining in older age groups.

"The peak of autoimmunity in females compared to males during the 40-49 age bracket is suggestive of the effects that the hormones estrogen and progesterone might be playing on the immune system," said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of NIEHS and an author on the paper.

The paper also found that the prevalence of ANA was lower in overweight and obese individuals than persons of normal weight. "This finding is interesting and somewhat unexpected," said Edward Chan, Ph.D., an author on the study and professor of the Department of Oral Biology at the University of Florida.

"It raises the likelihood that fat tissues can secrete proteins that inhibit parts of the immune system and prevent the development of autoantibodies, but we will need to do more research to understand the role that obesity might play in the development of autoimmune diseases," said Minoru Satoh, M.D., Ph.D., another author on the study and associate professor of rheumatology and clinical immunology at the University of Florida.

The researchers say the paper should serve as a useful baseline for future studies looking at changes in ANA prevalence over time and the factors associated with ANA development. The paper is the first in a series analyzing these data from the NHANES dataset, and exploring possible environmental associations with ANA.

###

Reference: Satoh M, Chan EKL, Ho LA, Rose KM, Parks CG, Cohn RD, Jusko TA, Walker NJ, Germolec DR, Whitt IZ, Crockett PW, Pauley BA, Chan JYF, Ross SJ, Birnbaum LS, Zeldin DC, Miller, FW. 2012. Arthritis and Rheumatism; doi: 10.1002/art.34380 [online 2012 January 11].

The NIEHS supports research to understand the effects of the environment on human health and is part of NIH. For more information on environmental health topics, visit www.niehs.nih.gov. Subscribe to one or more of the NIEHS news lists to stay current on NIEHS news, press releases, grant opportunities, training, events, and publications.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

NIH...Turning Discovery Into Health


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/nioe-nss011312.php

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Tech News Can Be So Dramatic

Screen Shot 2012-01-13 at 5.55.09 PMSo I tend to think of news in this industry as falling into two basic categories 1) Boring as fuck 2) So hyper-dramatic I feel like I need to take a ton of anti-anxiety medication just to read Techmeme. While tons of crap posts this week have fallen into the former category, a few have fallen into the latter, mostly MG Siegler's work surrounding Google's failed efforts at, well, anything.??All of MG's posts have been, to borrow a phrase, "very well done" -- Mostly because they lean into the drama.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/CrVY3XAm77E/

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Israel lawmakers approve bill banning use of Nazi symbolism





Israel lawmakers approve bill banning use of Nazi symbolism
Jamie Davis at 3:12 PM ET

[JURIST] An Israeli government panel on Monday approved a bill that would make it illegal to use any Nazi symbols, names, or images, including the use of the term "Nazi" and any clothing resembling that worn by prisoners at concentration camps. A government committee approved the bill [Ynetnews report] proposed by Knesset [official website] Member Uri Ariel which would impose a fine up to USD $26,000 and a possible jail sentence of six months. The bill was not approved by the Ministry of Justice, but Justice Minister Yaakov Ne'eman said the bill will be supported after it is changed to coordinate policies of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Security [official websites] in order to avoid infringement on rights to freedom of expression. Nazi symbols will be allowed to be used for educational and historical purposes.

Apart from Israel, Nazi symbolism has been controversial in other countries as well. In 2007, the German Federal Court of Justice ruled Nazi symbols could be used to protest extremism [JURIST report], overturning a prior decision by a state court in Stuttgart. The lower court had ordered Juergen Kamm, who began an Internet company called Nix Gut, to pay a fine of 3,600 euros (US $4,600) for selling T-shirts and badges featuring a swastika surrounded by a red circle and slash. Judge Walter Winkler ruled that for any symbol to be allowed, the anti-Nazi meaning had to be immediately apparent. In 2005, The EU ended consideration of proposals [JURIST report] that would have banned Nazi symbols in the 25-country bloc after it became apparent that member states could not agree on which symbols should be included in the ban.




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Source: http://jurist.org/paperchase/2012/01/israel-lawmakers-approve-bill-banning-use-of-nazi-symbolism.php

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