Monday, December 31, 2012

Cassie Jones is watching Community

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Source: http://getglue.com/conversation/cassie_jones/2012-12-30T15%3A53%3A19Z

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Former President Bush moved out of intensive care

HOUSTON (AP) ? Former President George H.W. Bush's condition continued to improve Saturday, prompting doctors to move him out of intensive care, a spokesman said.

"President Bush's condition has improved, so he has been moved today from the intensive care unit to a regular patient room at The Methodist Hospital to continue his recovery," family spokesman Jim McGrath said Saturday. "The Bushes thank everyone for their prayers and good wishes."

Bush was hospitalized Nov. 23 for treatment of a bronchitis-related cough. He was moved to intensive care at the Houston hospital on Dec. 23 after he developed a fever.

On Friday, McGrath said Bush had improved since arriving in the ICU. He said he was alert and in good spirits and was even doing some singing.

McGrath said Saturday morning that future updates on Bush's condition would be made as warranted.

Bush, the 41st president, is the country's oldest living former president by a few months.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/former-president-bush-moved-intensive-care-210408456.html

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Sunday, December 30, 2012

Web Hosting A Novel Concept | Veritas India

Posted on December 29, 2012 by dufttuey508 in Internet

Will you be believing about going on an organisation enterprise? If that?s so, you are unquestionably producing the best preference. However, it may well not be that trouble-free. If you would like to succeed in the sphere of organization so as to develop the money freedom that you simply have invariably been exploring forward to, you would like to recognise learn how to go near working your corporation successfully. Conceivably you will need to promote and encourage. The greatest platform to undertake that might be the net society. But at the time you set up a business web-site, it won?t conclusion there. Regardless if it?s an elegantly interactive net model, you will want to find the most suitable form of internet host for it. Quite than shared world-wide-web internet hosting, VPS internet hosting might be the suitable option to get.

A Shared Host Compared to A VPS Host

There exist loads of explanations why VPS or digital personal server internet hosting (also referred to as focused world wide web web hosting) is healthier than shared internet hosting. As far as web-based disk storage and bandwidth goes, shared internet hosting incorporates a huge number of them. Still, they?re going to be consumed by various internet sites from alternative customers. So prospects are, your on-line readers are most likely to see many challenges these kinds of as lags or delays with regard to opening an assortment of contents from the website as a consequence of affordable quantity of memory its able to utilize. For the other hand, a VPS online host carries via internet storage and bandwidth dedicated only for your online domains, letting your prospective buyers have satisfactory experiences.

Fabulous Functionality of a VPS Host

Other than enormous number of digital memory, a VPS host is a bit more than simply that. It caters all kinds of benefits which might be all critical for your web business a method or perhaps the other. By way of example, if at any time you would like to create many different internet affiliate marketing internet websites for again linking or lookup engine optimization uses, you?ll solely log in for your own VPS account. Like that, you can still investigate the dedicated control panel that enables you to place out lots of sub domains each time you will want to. In the event you must do some modifications with the predominant web site, just enter the MySQL database for sophisticated customizations. There, it?s possible to connect movie products to the websites or another types of significant level of quality mass media contents intended to beautify your web site, producing it glance more reputable towards your potential customers. In addition, it makes website submitting lots a lot easier via its Joomla and WordPress integration.

A VPS Host To handle Queries Simpler

One of the many better amenities about a VPS host is always that it will allow you to make different e-mail accounts for your online resources. After all, one of many most significant things a couple of highly effective organisation is simply being reachable and remarkably responsive. By setting up an e-mail account to your website, your potential customers will have a means to get hold of you and also you could be in a position get back again to them inside of a fairly quick turnaround time.

On the subject of managing a web site, the net host you decide on will either cause you to or crack. So if you wish enhancements with your web based business, choose VPS internet hosting above any variety of web internet hosting service.

Web Hosting Dos And Donts can give you maximum details for Fat Cow Internet Hosting Complaints The Truth.Please be sure to take a look at the written article for more information!

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Source: http://www.veritasindia.com/web-hosting-a-novel-concept

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Saturday, December 29, 2012

PC Cleaner Pro, the Best Registry Cleaner That You Can Acquire

There are many queries from PC users who want to know about the best registry cleaners. All of them want their PCs to run smoothly and fast. It is but obvious that every user would want to get rid of their PC once it starts giving trouble and slows down. Problems in the registry are quite common. The only solution to this problem which causes errors, slowdowns or even crashes, is a registry cleaner or PC cleaner.

In the recent cyber world, viruses and junk emails are quite common. It is therefore obvious that most computers are affected by these and start giving trouble. They become slow in the entire working of the computer along with slow startups and shut downs and also start having screen freezes. These indicate that the computer?s registry is overloaded and the operating system is having problem in identifying the essential files and data to make the computer work perfectly and thus becoming slow.

There are many users who prefer to purchase a new PC rather than repair the old one. However, with the present economic conditions of most people, this is not a feasible option. Instead a cheaper and better way is to get a registry cleaner or PC cleaner. However, while acquiring one, you need to make sure that you are getting the best registry cleaner available in the market.

We at PC cleaner pro can claim to be the best registry cleaner in the market. This is because of the numerous features that we offer. Our cleaner, fixes all the errors of your PC, removes malwares and cleans your system entirely. Along with that, we also boost the PC?s speed and optimize the entire system. Even with so many features, we make sure to protect the privacy of your system.

The reviews of PC cleaner pro evidently proves that all these features work wonders in the PC making it error free, fast and running as smoothly as it was when it was new. Thus, we can claim that PC cleaner pro is the best registry cleaner that you can hope for.

About Company:

PC Cleaner Pro 2012 is a premium registry cleaner that helps to improve the speed & performance of your computer. Scan your computer with PC Cleaner Pro to identify slowdown issues and fixing them with one click of a button.

Source: http://www.briefingwire.com/pr/pc-cleaner-pro-the-best-registry-cleaner-that-you-can-acquire

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Fold the paper, you will.

If you like origami – or just Star Wars – you’ll enjoy folding your own Yoda or Millennium Falcon. ?The Star Wars Origami kit is a bit of a cheat, because it uses special paper printed with the details. ?It comes with a book with complete instructions for folding the papers to create 36 different [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/12/28/fold-the-paper-you-will/

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In fighting gangs, US should look to El Salvador

In combating the MS-13 gang, the Obama administration should look to El Salvador, which has adopted a far less confrontational approach, and is seeing a drop in gang violence as a result. A negotiated 'truce' with gangs is possible in the US and Mexico.

By Mike Honda and Ami Carpenter / December 28, 2012

Victor Garcia, from Calle-18 gang, sits with his wife and daughter during a religious service at a prison in Quezaltepeque, on the outskirts of San Salvador June 16, 2012. Mr. Garcia, along with members of the rival MS-13 gang, entered an unprecedented, negotiated truce that authorities say has greatly reduced the homicide rate.

Ulises Rodriguez/Reuters/file

Enlarge

In October, the US Treasury named the notorious MS-13 gang a transnational criminal organization. This unprecedented action aims to sanction the violent American-born street gang and seize its estimated millions in assets ? profits gained through drug and human trafficking.

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But the Obama administration should take a cue from El Salvador, which has adopted a far less confrontational approach to gangs, and is seeing a drop in gang violence as a result. Both of us have worked and traveled extensively in Central America ? El Salvador in particular, which has its own MS-13.

In the United States, the MS-13 is made up of about 10,000 members, largely Salvadoran-Americans or Salvadoran nationals who fled El Salvador?s civil war. The US gang is part of a transnational criminal network of drugs, weapons, and violent gang culture.

In Central America, gang warfare has given way to a complex network of organized, violent crime and in many places has taken on characteristics of a ?traditional? war. Measuring the intensity of violence in terms of homicides, the so-called "northern triangle" of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador is now considered the most violent region in the world (aside from battlefields), averaging tens of thousands of gang-related deaths annually. The need for suitable civilian protection is obvious.

The legal framework for civilian protection is international humanitarian law, which binds state and nonstate actors to rules meant to protect civilians in armed conflict. The International Committee of the Red Cross has argued that international humanitarian law is applicable when any ?war? amounts to armed conflict, defined by a certain intensity of violence: 25 to 1,000 war-related deaths per year and a sophisticated enough command structure that armed groups are actually able to implement such law. Clearly, the homicide figures in Central America far exceed the benchmarks for war-related deaths per year.

Earlier this year, in an effort to curb the violence, the government in El Salvador negotiated a groundbreaking deal with the Salvadoran MS-13 and a rival gang, Calle-18. In a bold move, mediators in El Salvador essentially extended the framework of humanitarian engagement to gang warfare, brokering a peace treaty between the two gangs and the Salvadoran government. After the deal, homicides decreased by 32 percent and kidnappings by 50 percent, as reported by The New York Times. In May, the gangs extended their truce to school zones and agreed to end forced recruitment of child soldiers.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/Okd9HLVpMfA/In-fighting-gangs-US-should-look-to-El-Salvador

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Friday, December 28, 2012

When Kickstarter Delivers: Thanks To Simple, Effective Design, Supr?s Slim Wallet Exceeds Expectations

slim-walletI've backed an embarrassing number of Kickstarter projects, almost all of them in the hardware/gadget categories, and I've been disappointed more than I've been delighted. The Slim wallet by Supr however bucks the trend, delivering a front-pocket wallet that finally and truly deserves the honor of actually being carried in that place.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/FNm8MzqfQ5M/

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Thursday, December 20, 2012

Ex-ABC News veteran Sam Donaldson charged with DUI

FILE - In this Sept. 5, 2012 file photo, Sam Donaldson is seen on the floor at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. Police in the southern coastal town of Lewes, Del., say the 78-year-old Donaldson was stopped Dec. 1 for a traffic violation. Police say the officer determined Donaldson had been drinking and gave him field sobriety tests. Donaldson was arrested and later released. An arraignment is set for Friday. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

FILE - In this Sept. 5, 2012 file photo, Sam Donaldson is seen on the floor at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. Police in the southern coastal town of Lewes, Del., say the 78-year-old Donaldson was stopped Dec. 1 for a traffic violation. Police say the officer determined Donaldson had been drinking and gave him field sobriety tests. Donaldson was arrested and later released. An arraignment is set for Friday. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

LEWES, Del. (AP) ? ABC News veteran and former correspondent Sam Donaldson is facing a drunken driving charge in Delaware.

Police in the southern coastal town of Lewes say the 78-year-old Donaldson was stopped Dec. 1 for a traffic violation. Police say the officer determined Donaldson had been drinking and gave him field sobriety tests.

Donaldson was arrested and later released. An arraignment is set for Friday.

A phone call to Donaldson's home in McLean, Va., on Wednesday was not immediately returned. McLean is about 110 miles west of Lewes.

Donaldson was twice chief White House correspondent for ABC News, covering Presidents Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. He also co-hosted "PrimeTime Live" with Diane Sawyer and the ABC News Sunday morning broadcast "This Week with Sam Donaldson and Cokie Roberts."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-12-19-Sam%20Donaldson-DUI/id-9e3ba4edfc9f47248f86bc8ee051c00d

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Debt Crisis: Greece faces 'make or break' year - live

Left to right: Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, French President Francois Hollande, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, and German Canchellor Angela Merkel (Getty)

13.33 SocGen has put out a list of 'Seven Key Calls to Kick Start 2013' - and it looks as though it is confident about a eurozone recovery. The number one call is to go long on European stocks, as it predicts they will outperform US stocks, number two is to buy Spanish debt, and number three is to sell safe assets such as German bunds. You can see the whole list here.

12.55 It would seem parliaments across Europe are tying up budgetary loose ends as Christmas approaches. Lithuania - not currently a eurozone member - has just rubber stamped its 2013 budget. The measures in the act point towards the Baltic nation's ambition for membership of the single currency, keeping its deficit-to-GDP ration within the stringent 3pc imposed by EU institutions.

St Casimir church in Lithuanian capital Vilnius

12.44 Austria's economic forecasters are divided on 2013 predicitons but agree that 2014 will see the growth rate hit 1.8pc, citing "visible" signs the downturn is coming to an end. The WIFO predicted GDP would grow 1pc in 2013, compared with 0.6pc this year, but the IHS was less optimistic, slashing its 1.3pc growth forecast to 0.8pc. Both institutes were more hopeful than the Austrian central bank, which earlier this month cut its 2013 growth forecast from 1.7pc to just 0.5pc.

Hahnenkamm ski resort in Austria

12.23 BREAKING: Italy's upper house has approved prime minister Mario Monti's 2013 budget bill, passing it to the lower house for the final go-ahead. The upper house's approval comes after lawmakers fron Silvio Berlusconi's People of Freedom party postponed debate on the bill, scheduled for Tuesday, asking for more time to examine the measures, in a move decried as politically motivated by other members.

The Italian Senate (upper house) in Rome

12.17 Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem has assured parliament the Netherlands will meet the EU's 3pc budget deficit target, in spite of official forecasts released yesterday predicting the deficit would hit 3.3pc of GDP in 2013. He declined to say whether further cuts would be needed to meet the target, but has conceded the government will use the ?3.8bn windfall from its telecom spectrum auction to help plug the hole in public finances, backtracking on earlier assertions this money would not factor in the austerity programme.

Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem

11.33 In an unwelcome Christmas present for the French, the contentious austerity budget unveiled by president Francois Hollande in September has clinched parliamentary approval after months of deliberation. President Francois Hollande's budget aims to cut ?30bn, two thirds of which are set to come from tax hikes, including a 75pc levy on income over ?1m - a measure which has seen French actor Gerard Depardieu revoke his citizenship in indignance (see 09.03).

11.20 Greeks struggling with loan repayments have hit the country's banks hard, with Hellenic lender Eurobank posting further losses in the third quarter. And the bank's chief executive Nicholas Nanopoulos sees the situation deteriorating, saying:

Quote 2013 will be a difficult year, there is a chance of another wave of bad debt after measures adopted by the government.

Eurobank has already received nearly ?4bn from the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF) which was set up to recapitalise the country's systemic banks, and expects to get a further ?1.8bn from the HFSF shortly, executives told analysts.

11.08 Four Spanish banks have won EU approval for their restructuring plans in return for securing a ?1.87bn state bail-out. Banco Mare Nostrum, Caja3, Banco CEISS and Liberbank, which were all hit when Spain's property bubble burst in 2008, have drawn up plans to slash their balance sheets by between 25pc to more than 40pc over the next five years. They are all obliged to also halt dividend payments, with three of the banks barred from making acquisitions during the restructuring period.

10.50 Turmoil in the eurozone is creeping north, with Finland, the only Nordic member of the single currency, facing a year of recession. The finance ministry forecast GDP will shrink 0.1pc this year, before growing 0.5pc in 2013 and 1.7pc in 2014. The figures show a substantial downwards revision on previous forecasts that the economy would grow 1pc this year and 2pc in 2014. The ministry's figures are also gloomier than those generated by the country's central bank on December 13, which said the economy would grow 0.4pc in 2013, down from a previous forecast of 1.2pc.

Finland's economy looks set for deep freeze in 2013

10.00 Over in Japan, the central bank has made efforts to spur on the languid economy by expanding its quantitative easing tool by ?10tn (?73bn) to ?101tn. The bank said fresh easing was tied to fears about the slowing global economy, conspicuously omitting mention of incoming conservative prime minister Shinzo Abe's planned 2pc inflation target. The bank said in a statement:

QuoteOverseas economies remain in a deceleration phase. It was judged appropriate to undertake further aggressive monetary easing policies.

Incoming Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe won a landslide victory on promises he would ram through full-blown 'reflation' policies to pull his country out of slump and drive down the yen

09.42 Italians watching their spending saw October retail sales in the country dip 3.8pc year-on-year. The October figures mark the steepest decline year-on-year and month-on-month (sales fell 1pc from September) since April.

09.26 Greek news website Kathimerini has reported a major shake-up at Greece's tax authorities in an effort to beef up collection and investigation efforts. Tax evasion is thought to cost ?30bn annually in lost revenues, and improved tax operations are one of the pillars of Greek reform imposed by its troika of lenders. The revamp involved 164 directors, deputy directors and finance ministry observers being moved to different departments.

09.03 French actor Gerard Depardieu, best known for his portrayal of Obelix in 'Asterix and Obelix', has been offered tax asylum by Chechnya, after he revoked his French citizenship in protest at high taxes on the wealthy. President Francois Hollande raised the tax on earnings over ?1m to 75pc, from 41pc, as part of an austerity drive earlier this year. Mr Depardieu is currently resident in Belgium, where taxes are lower.

Gerard Depardieu

08.45 Prime Minister David Cameron told his party last night they would fight the next general election on a strongly anti-Europe ticket. He told them he had to get "the big calls right", and there was no bigger call than the decision the party had to make on Europe - in a clear response to Ukip's surging popularity. He said:

QuoteI want you all to be absolutely clear - we will go into the next election with a clear Eurosceptic position. It will clearly be in tune with the British people, we will be the ones offering the British people a genuine change and a genuine choice.

Read political correspondent Christopher Hope's full piece here.

08.23 Greek finance minister Yannis Stournaras, in an interview with the FT, warned Athens still faces "the possible risk" of exiting the single currency, a sobering message amid the festive cheer brought by the nation's tumbling cost of borrowing in the wake of receiving a ?34.3bn rescue package from the IMF, ECB and European Commission troika of lenders. He said:

QuoteWhat we have done so far is necessary but not sufficient to achieve a permanent solution for Greece. The issue is now implementation.

Our partners? decision to give us so much money ? more than we expected ? removes a large part of the risk [but] we still face the possible risk of bankruptcy.

08.00 Last night we heard reports the Italian prime minister, Mario Monti, has indicated he will run for election. Italian newspapers, citing unnamed sources, said Monti was ready to back a new centrist grouping set up by Ferrari chair Luca Cordero di Montezemolo. The FT quoted a source as saying: "Monti would be the political chief of the operation." He is widely expected to announce his intentions over the weekend, with Italian news agencies quoting Andrea Riccardi, a government minister thought to be close to Mr Monti, saying as much.

Italian premier Mario Monti, who was installed by the country's president last year in the wake of Silvio Berlusconi's forcible exit from power

06.00 Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the eurozone debt crisis.

Source: http://telegraph.feedsportal.com/c/32726/f/568387/s/26c96508/l/0L0Stelegraph0O0Cfinance0Cdebt0Ecrisis0Elive0C97565540CDebt0ECrisis0EGreece0Efaces0Emake0Eor0Ebreak0Eyear0Elive0Bhtml/story01.htm

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China launches Turkey's Gokturk-2 satellite

About Reuters TV

Hard-edged reporting, insight and analysis, Reuters TV breaks ground creating informative news and financial videos. Showcasing Reuters? 3000 award-winning journalists, Reuters TV delivers high-energy investigative journalism with concise explanations. Check it out and let us know what you think.

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/UKVideoLatest/~3/OsVry3bl_ZM/china-launches-turkeys-gokturk-2-satelli

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Wednesday, December 19, 2012

3 Online Marketing Strategies For Your Business

Online is a very competitive place for businesses. Not only do you have to compete against the small companies that their entire business is online so they spend hours a day building it up but you also have compete against the companies that spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on their online presence. That is why you must either fully understand or have a Phoenix web design company that fully understands what it takes to give your online business an online presence. Without a solid online presence your business will fail like so many online businesses. Many of the online businesses that do fail are simply not good at developing an online presence and this is where a Professional Phoenix web design team that knows what they are doing comes in. So what are some of the ways that you can increase your online presence?

  • SEO ? A strong SEO campaign can bring many potential customers to your website and possibly help grow your business exponentially because compared to Pay Per Click which we will talk about later it is very inexpensive. You must be careful on which Phoenix web design company you choose because there are so many SEO companies out there that take advantage of the website owners lack of SEO knowledge. For example they may rank you for keywords that don?t get any traffic simply because they are easy to rank for and it will show the client results.
  • Pay Per Click ? Pay Per Click campaigns are great because unlike SEO you don?t have to work for months to get placed on page one on the search engines. You simply bid on how much your willing to pay every time somebody clicks on your banner and based upon that you will be placed on page 1 of the search engines. As you can imagine this can get pretty pricey so you better make sure your website is optimized to convert when the traffic does begin to flow.
  • Social Media Marketing ? Social media marketing is something that you and your business should be taking advantage of. In a world where Facebook alone is getting over a billion users you can?t afford not to use social media marketing for your business.

These are 3 areas that if you are weak in you will have a very difficult time making it as an online business. HireAWiz is a professional Phoenix web design company that prides ourselves in helping our clients grow their business so if you are wanting help with your businesses online marketing please contact us today for a free quote.

December 18, 2012

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Source: http://www.hireawiz.com/blog/seo/3-online-marketing-services?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=3-online-marketing-services

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AUDIO: Mother of Marine imprisoned in Mexico says he may be released Friday

Deaths from firearms are set to outstrip car fatalities for the first time, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and?reported by Bloomberg News.

The CDC estimates that auto-related deaths--long on the decline as more motorists wear seat-belts and face harsher penalties for drunk driving--will fall to 32,000 in 2015. Deaths from firearms, which include suicides and accidents, are estimated to rise to 33,000 over the same period.

Every day, 85 Americans are shot dead, about 53 of them in suicides. This figure is still lower than 1993's peak in gun deaths (37,666), but has risen significantly since firearm deaths reached a low? in 2000 (28,393). The data goes back to 1979.

Meanwhile,?USA Today, which looked at FBI figures, reports that 774 people were killed between 2006 and 2010 by a mass killer, defined as a person who kills four or more people in one incident. The figures show that mass killers strike on average once every two weeks. A third of the 156 mass killings did not involve firearms, but rather fire, knife or other weapon. Almost all of the mass killers in those years were men, and their average age was 32. The dozens of deaths caused by mass killers represented about 1 percent of all homicides between 2006 and 2010.

Read more: Yahoo! News

Source: http://www.970wfla.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=104668&article=10651193

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Should You Switch from an iPhone to a Nexus 4? I Did, and I?m Pleased as Punch

I?ve been a long time Apple devotee. ?My first computer was a Powerbook. ?What model I don?t recall. ?It may have been the 170 or the 180, but I seem to remember it being one of the earlier Mac laptops to include an Active Matrix screen. ?Either way, it cost me an arm and a leg, otherwise known as my inheritance, bestowed upon me by my grandfather. ?The only grandfather I knew and was affectionately referred to as ?Grand Pa Chocolate? (he brought us Cadbury chocolate bars every time he paid us a visit in London).

Years later my mother invested in a Mac IIsi thanks to a failed Apple marketing tact to flood schools with their machines. ?In addition to the built-in 3.5-inch floppy drive, we purchased an external CD-ROM as well as a 2,400bps modem (notice the?absence?of an M or K). ?The latter component?facilitated?a many a late nights downloading largely nefarious files from pre-world wide web ?bulletin board system?, otherwise known as BBSes.

I soon grew weary of Apple?s offering. ?Largely because a far more tech savvy friend owned a PC. ?A PC that was compatible with games that at the time seemed like the stuff ? dare I say ? made of dreams. ?I?m talking ?Police Quest, King?s Quest, and Stunt Driver.? ?DOS was the OS of choice, and since it required the use of a some what esoteric set of commands to navigate its plain texted menu system, I was quite impressed with myself. ?The net result was another?computer?purchase; a Gateway Pentium 60.

Time passed, I got older, video game consoles and girls took precedent, and the computer, as you can imagine, took a serious backseat in my life. ?That is until 10 years later when Apple announced the Titanium Powerbook, affectionately known as the TiBook. ?It was an underpowered piece of kit that looked better than it?performed.? ?It too cost a fair clip of cash (much like my first Powerbook), but suffice to say the wasn?t enough to deter me.

So when the first gen iPod was released, I purchased it, albeit months after its debut. ?Then came the iPhone and its ridiculously large price tag. ?I held my breath and miraculously Steve Jobs saw fit to drop the price from $599 to $399 for the 8GB of version. ?I couldn?t resist, and needless to say bought the first generation iPhone. ?Following that, I skipped the 3G, bought a 3Gs, skipped the 4 and bought a 4s. ?Which brings us to today.

For 30 days I owned the iPhone 5. ?That is until I returned it to the Apple store. I wasn?t up for a full contract renewal so I over paid. ?Buyer?s remorse I suppose. ?With my tail between my legs I sheepishly returned to using the iPhone 4s. ?In further hindsight 5, while benchmarked at?significant?speeds, didn?t seem like a worthy technical jump between the two Apple handsets. ?And thus explains the moot feeling I?ve now associated with the iPhone. ?Fold in the fact that I?ve long wanted to better understand Android for the sake of work, and hence why I ended up buying the Google Nexus 4 two weeks ago.

10 days have transpired since I ditched my iPhone 4s and I have no regrets. ?To be candid my Nexus 4 has battery problems, but that aside the all together experience has been an overwhelmingly positive one.

Size

The Nexus 4 measures?133.9 x 68.7 x 9.1 mm. ?And while that?s larger than any iPhone to date, it?s a just and almost unnoticeable size difference, especially given the 4.7-inch display. ?Yes, the Nexus 4 weighs more than the iPhone 5, but since I transitioned from the 4s, which weighs 140 grams, 1 gram more than the Nexus 4, it?s a moot issue. ?In fact, the Nexus 4 feels lighter than the iPhone 4s since the weight is distributed over a larger area. ?And surprisingly the Nexus 4 fits neatly into all of my pant?s pockets, and although I?m not wearing hipster tight jeans, I do wear my pants stylishly trim.

Speed

Under the hood is a quad-core Snapdragon processor, which is a powerhouse to say the least. ?But as anyone of anyone knows specs are never the complete picture. ?I?m happy to report that the The Nexus 4 is blissfully fast. ?Remember I?m new to Android, but I have laid finger to other devices, such as the HTC Vivid. ?From day-to-day the Nexus 4 feels powerful yet light weight, and nothing short of impressive. ?Apps, generally speaking, take about 10 seconds or less to install. ?Where as any app, of any size on the iPhone 4s, and even the iPhone 5, take 2-4 times longer. ?Opening up an app occurs with virtually no lag, and switching from app-to-app is a seamless experience that I?ve never experienced on the iPhone.

Camera

While the Nexus 4 has a solid camera, the iPhone still out ranks it in clarity and low light?performance. ?The default camera has some extra features not found in the iPhone, though. ?Such as exposure options, white balance, and the ability to capture full room?panoramas. ?At the end of the day I?d rather the iPhone?s camera, but the?aforementioned?caveats aren?t enough for me to questions my jump to Android.

Operating System

Android is faster than iOS. ?Now, keep in mind that the Nexus 4 isn?t chalk full of carrier or manufacturer bloatware. ?And to be candid I?ve never used an Android device with such, so it?s hard for me to speak to other Android handsets. ?However, in terms of app speed, compared to the iPhone, it blows it out of the water.

Drag down from the top of the screen, much like in iOS 6, and you can access your notification center. ?You can also modify each app?s settings and?notifications, though I?ll concede a bit and say that Android?s menus are a bit more daunting, albeit with more options. ?By default there isn?t a Find My Phone function, or iCloud. ?However, Google does over a myriad of other, comparable services within their ecosphere, and if there is something you?re looking for in terms of customization, odds are there is an app for it. ?Unlike iOS you can add ?widgets? to your home screen, allowing you to view Facebook, email, news, weather, your calendar and other apps without opening the actual app ? you just swipe left to right from your home screen where you?re presented with what is probably best described as a live tile.

Unlike other Android devices, the Nexus 4 ships with Google Now. ?Swipe from the bottom up and it opens a set of cards that might have you believe Google is reading your mind. ?In fact, it?s an opt-in service available on the Nexus 4 (I believe exclusive to Nexus phones) and although it doesn?t read your mind, it will read your email, web surfing history, and location to provide you with ?results? before you request them. ?For instance, if an email contains flight?itinerary, it will pull up a card stating if the flight is on time, show you a mini map with a route and calculate your driving time with traffic based on your current location. ?After a few days of everyday use it begins to try and suss out where is ?home and work? to help make better predictions. ?The feature is impressive, even if it is just merely a backroom parlor trick of sorts.

Battery

As stated in my introduction I?ve suffered battery woes. ?From what I can tell you?ll want to spend sometime personalizing your setting maximize your battery life; screen brightness, location service features, notifications, and so forth. ?That said, my iPhone 4s could easily get me through a day and a?half with minimal use (no Bluetooth or location services turned on full time). ?Where as the Nexus 4 is good for about a day, and that?s assuming the screen is set to auto brightness (dim in comparison to the iPhone). ?So suffice to say, the Nexus 4?s battery isn?t stellar, but it?s enough to get through a day.

Screen

The screen on the Nexus 4 measures 4.7-inches and produces a 720p image. ?Pixel density ranks slightly lower than the iPhone 4s and iPhone 5, but it?s a moot and somewhat imperceivable?concern, though keep in mind less pixels and more screen means less clarity. ?And although both the Nexus 4 and the iPhone 4s share the same display type ? IPS ? the iPhone 4s offers a wider viewing angle and all together great clarity.

Speaker

The Nexus 4?s speaker might be the phone?s weakest feature. ?It?s located on the back so anytime the Nexus 4 is laying down flat it?s muffled, even on a hard surface and worse on a soft one, such as a bed or jacket. ?The speaker is also not very loud comparatively speaking to the iPhone 4s or iPhone 5, which can be an annoyance even if you?re sitting at home in relative?quietness?attempting to watch a video clip on the 4.7-inch display.

Should you make the leap from iPhone to the Nexus 4?

At this point, and despite my battery issues, I?m pretty, darn right pleased with the Nexus 4. ?By no means is it a perfect handset, and anyone that has owned a Nexus phone before this iteration will tell you that it?s an evolutionary, not revolutionary?device? ?But that?s just it. ?Neither is the iPhone 5, yet the amount of features that the Nexus 4 brings over the iPhone 4s (and 5) makes it feel as such.

I don?t care much for NFC, but nor will I complain that its there in the event I want to tap and make a purchase, or share a photo (painstakingly in my experience) with a friend?s compatible handset. ?I had my concerns that the larger screen would prove cumbersome, and although it?s not a svelte as the iPhone 5, it does feel ?lighter than the 4s despite it having the same mass. ?Unfortunately, I can?t speak to battery life just yet since my handset seems to be suffering a hardware malfunction, but I?m confident it?s something I can get beyond since a new device is already on the way. ?Last but not least, the price for a 16GB Nexus 4 is $350+tax off-contract. ?Apple?s is $650.

James will be publishing a full review shortly with benchmarks and a greater technical evaluation. ?As a result I?ve decided to not include a rating in this review.

Source: http://www.gadgetreview.com/2012/12/should-you-switch-from-an-iphone-to-a-nexus-4.html

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Amgen to plead guilty in criminal case Tuesday: prosecutors

In the aftermath of Friday's Newtown school shooting, we've heard tales mostly horrifying and occasionally heroic, from surviving witnesses and mourning citizens alike, but this one lies somewhere in between, all the more unshakeable. One six-year-old Sandy Hook student played dead in her first-grade classroom, her family pastor said late Sunday, with the kind of quick thinking that ended up saving her life but now leaves her with the unshakeable memories of watching all her classmates being shot and killed. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/amgen-plead-guilty-criminal-case-tuesday-prosecutors-230231052--finance.html

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Shooting gunmaker to be sold by Cerberus

4 hrs.

A major private equity firm has decided that putting its clients? money into a?company?that makes assault-type weapons isn?t a wise strategy.?

At the same time a large sporting goods chain has said that, at least for now, it would not sell those types of weapons.

The decisions came as pressure rises for the government to do something about the proliferation of assault-type weapons that have been used in several recent mass shootings.

Cerberus Capital Management said Tuesday, after discussions with investors, that it would sell its stake in Freedom Group, a major weapons producer whose portfolio includes such well-known gun brands as Remington and Bushmaster Firearms.

Bushmaster made the AR-15?type weapon used in the Newtown shooting, in which 20 ?children, six or seven years old, and six staff were killed at the Sandy Hook Elementary School. The gunman also killed his mother and himself.

Cerberus said in a statement that it believes its role is to make investments for its clients, not shape policy debate, but that there are actions a company can take.

?We believe that this decision allows us to meet our obligations to the investors whose interests we are entrusted to protect without being drawn into the national debate that is more properly pursued by those with the formal charter and public responsibility to do so,? the company said in a statement posted on its website.

Freedom Group reported net sales of more than $677 million for the nine months ended September 30, according to its website. That compares with sales of $564.6 million for the same nine-month period a year earlier.

Cerberus has more than $20 billion in assets under management and makes investments on behalf of investors including pension plans for teachers and other municipal workers.

The California State Teachers Retirement System had been re-evaluating its investment in Cerberus following the Newtown shooting.

Spokesman Michael Sicilia told NBC News Tuesday that the fund made initial investments of $600 million in Cerberus in 2003 and 2007. It owns an approximately 2.4 percent stake in Freedom Group as part of that investment, he said.

Sicilia said the large teachers? pension fund had committed in 2008 to start looking at its investments through the lens of environmental, social and other criteria.

Now, he said, the company was looking back at investments made before the 2008 decision, such as the Cerberus investment.

??I think going forward CalSTRS will work to ensure that all investment s are taking in account these important considerations,? he said.

Separately, Dick?s Sporting Goods also said Tuesday that it would temporary stop selling guns at a store near Newtown and suspend the sale of ?modern sporting rifles? for all stores nationwide.

The company did not immediately respond to repeated requests to clarify what specific guns it would not sell or how long the suspension would last.

?We are extremely saddened by the unspeakable tragedy that occurred last week in Newtown, CT, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families, and to the entire community,? Dick?s said in a statement.

Politicians and thought leaders across the nation seem to be re-evaluating their stances on gun ownership in the wake of the Newtown tragedy and other?mass shootings in Colorado, Arizona and elsewhere.

President Barack Obama said Sunday that he would lead an effort to prevent tragedies such as the one in Newtown, and other traditionally?pro-gun Democrats seem willing to rethink the nation's gun laws.?

White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a briefing with reporters Tuesday that President Obama would support a Congressional effort to reinstate an assault weapons ban and to close any loopholes related to gun shows. But he also noted that gun control legislation alone will not solve violent crime problems.

Others, such as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an Independent,?have been even more forceful in calling for major changes to prevent more gun violence.?

Any effort to curtail gun sales could be a blow to companies that manufacture and sell such weapons. Shares in Smith and Wesson Holding Company have fallen by about 19 percent since the close of trading on the Thursday before the Newtown shooting. Shares in Sturm Ruger and Co. are down about 13 percent over that time period.

Neither company saw shares have such?significant drops in the days following the mass shooting at a movie theater in Colorado last July.

Still, Second Amendment rights are held dear to many Americans, and not all politicians or corporations appeared to be making any immediate changes.

Wal-Mart spokesman Kory Lundberg said Tuesday that the major retailer?had no immediate plans to change its sales strategy.

?We don?t sell guns online and we have made no change to the assortment of guns we sell in our stores,? Lundberg wrote in an e-mail.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/investment-firm-rethinks-backing-weapons-maker-after-shooting-1C7660197

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Xbox Live adds SmartGlass support for ESPN and NBA Game Time

Xbox New Sports Picks app, ESPN and NBA Game Time Smartglass integration now available for Xbox Live, gamers rejoice!

Today, Microsoft's Major Nelson announced the release of the Sports Picks app for Xbox Live. Equipped with leaderboards, Jimmy the Greek wannabes can compete against friends to see who's the best at handicapping UFC events, NBA games and college football. In addition, Xbox Live Gold members have also gained SmartGlass integration for ESPN and NBA Game Time -- which we've previewed here -- that allows users to watch live broadcasts, highlights and replays via their smartphone or tablet. If you're looking to get your Ace Rothstein on (minus the mafia, murder and mayhem), point your Xbox to the Apps Marketplace to score this new software.

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Comments

Source: Major Nelson

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/M9sLrUEWsBE/

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Saturday, December 15, 2012

Most Beautiful Items of the Week: December 7-14, 2012

Take a little pause and remember how many beautiful things there are to feast your eyes upon. From a modular organizer shaped like a boat to banded furniture where you can stash your stuff, these are some of the most beautiful things we found this week. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/pe6TsMwFKcU/

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Video: Dickerson: "Boehner has got to go first" (cbsnews)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/270743013?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Japan seeks a real leader after 7 PMs in 6 years

Shizuo Kambayashi / AP, file

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, fifth from right, of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, poses with nine other leaders of political parties after a debate last month.

By Arata Yamamoto, NBC News

TOKYO - Kazuyoshi Enokido has lost faith in traditional Japanese politics.

"I'm placing my bet on something new because there's no hope with existing parties," the salesman told NBC News as he finished submitting an early ballot ahead of Japan's election, which is scheduled for Sunday.

"Even if it means being a bit more aggressive, I would like to see someone who can pull everyone up and exert his leadership skills," said Enokido, as he stood with his wife and one-year-old child in Tokyo's Ginza District.

Voters in Japan are witnessing one of the most complex and confusing general elections in the country's history. A total of 11 political parties, most of them formed within the past year or two, are vying for parliamentary seats.

Yoshihiko Noda, 55, is Japan's seventh prime minister since 2006. And if polls are accurate, another leadership change looms. Not everyone is happy about that prospect.

"In my honest opinion, I don't know why we have to keep changing our leaders," Hiroma Shindo, 22, told NBC News. "There's no way anyone can produce any results in just two or three years."

Most of the groups vying for power are splinters from the two main parties ? the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and the?Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has held power in Japan for most of the post-war period. Their familiar faces make it that much more difficult for voters to distinguish each individual party's position on key issues.

Citing surveys, Reuters reported Friday that?between 30 percent and nearly 50 percent of voters were undecided with just days to go.

Franck Robichon / EPA

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda waves to voters after an election campaign speech in Tokyo on Thursday.

"I can't decide. It's hard to know exactly what we're voting for," said Hiroko Takahashi, a 51-year-old part-time worker from Machida, a city west of Tokyo, told The Associated Press.

The challenges faced by the country ? the world's third-largest economy and one of the United States' most important allies ? are formidable.

"This time around the voters are concerned about one single simple issue, which can be called 'security'," said Tomohiko Taniguchi, former spokesman for the foreign affairs ministry who now teaches at Tokyo's Keio University.

More Japan coverage from NBC News

Security covers a lot of ground.

"Job and economic security," he said. "Secondly, nuclear security. And thirdly national security. And what is complex is, these three 'securities' are not necessarily compartmentalized. They are mutually interrelated."

More than 20 years after its "miracle economy" bubble burst, Japan seems trapped in a vicious circle of sinking prices and weak demand as sluggish growth forces businesses to slash prices and frugal-minded consumers put off spending.

There does seem to be some agreement among the parties when it comes to the economy, Taniguchi said.

"Economic security is the one that overlaps party boundaries," he added. "There is little difference if you look at the platforms of LDP and DPJ. There is little difference between them and other parties are pushing similar agendas."

None of the parties would disagree that Japan needs to wean itself from its dependence on nuclear power after last year's Fukushima disaster, while at the same time, securing a stable source of power.

"Unlike the past two (lower house) elections, the main points of contention are not so clear and in that sense, it is hard for voters to understand," said Yukio Maeda, a political science professor at the University of Tokyo.

With the exception of the Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party, the majority of the political factions also acknowledge Japan's need to rebuild its diplomatic strength by restoring its alliance with the United States.

Relations deteriorated over the handling of a bilateral agreement to relocate a controversial key U.S. airbase on Okinawa Island, a situation made even more acute because of the contentious territorial dispute with China over a group of islands in the East China Sea.

Much at stake for US as tensions rise in troubled China Seas

Opinion polls by the Asahi, Yomiuri and Nikkei newspapers on Thursday predicted that the LDP was?on track for a stunning victory in the election, with hawkish former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returning to power. They?forecast that the LDP was headed for a hefty majority in the powerful?lower house of parliament.

Abe abruptly resigned in 2007 for health reasons after leading the country for just a year.

Buddhika Weerasinghe / Getty Images

Shinzo Abe, a former prime minister who is currently leader of Japan's main opposition Liberal Democratic Party, waves to supporters from his car on Thursday.

Reuters reported that the polls suggested the LDP and its smaller ally, the New Komeito party, could even gain the two-thirds majority needed to break through a policy deadlock that has plagued the country since 2007.

If no single party wins the majority in the 480-seat lower house, a coalition government would be formed. With so many fledgling parties, a few, no matter how tiny, may end up wielding considerable clout, getting wooed to join a coalition government.

The new party with the most momentum -- and one that could be part of the coalition government -- is the Japan Restoration Party, led by Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara and Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto, who have been pushing for a more assertive Japan capable of flexing its military muscle in territorial disputes with China.

Taniguchi said one thing appears certain: Japanese voters desire "a government that could stay long in power."

At Tokyo's Shimbashi Station on Friday, one retiree agreed with that assessment -- warning that political instability was damaging Japan's international reputation.

"The way our leaders come and go, it's too frequent," said the 66-year-old woman, who only gave her name as Ms. Itoh. "The world will stop paying attention to us."

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

More world stories from NBC News:

Follow World News from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/14/15902212-voters-weary-confused-as-japan-looks-set-for-7th-leadership-change-since-2006?lite

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Friday, December 14, 2012

Ability to sit and rise from the floor is closely correlated with all-cause mortality risk

Ability to sit and rise from the floor is closely correlated with all-cause mortality risk [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 13-Dec-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Jacqueline Partarrieu
press@escardio.org
33-492-947-756
European Society of Cardiology

Test of musculo-skeletal fitness is 'strong predictor' of mortality in the middle-aged and older

A simple screening test of musculo-skeletal fitness has proved remarkably predictive of all-cause mortality in a study of more than 2000 middle-aged and older men and women. The study, performed in Brazil by Dr Claudio Gil Arajo and colleagues at the Clinimex - Exercise Medicine Clinic in Rio de Janeiro, is reported today in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention.(1,2)

The test was a simple assessment of the subjects' ability to sit and then rise unaided from the floor. The assessment was performed in 2002 adults of both sexes and with ages ranging from 51 to 80 years. The subjects were followed-up from the date of the baseline test until the date of death or 31 October 2011, a median follow-up of 6.3 years.

Before starting the test, they were told: "Without worrying about the speed of movement, try to sit and then to rise from the floor, using the minimum support that you believe is needed."

Each of the two basic movements were assessed and scored out of 5, with one point being subtracted from 5 for each support used (hand or knee, for example). Subjects were thus assessed by a composite score of 0 to 10, which, for the sake of the analysis, was ranked as four categories (C1, 0 C2, 3.5.5; C3, 6.5; and C4, 8).

A film of the sitting-rising test can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCQ2WA2T2oA

Over the study period 159 subjects died, a mortality rate of 7.9%. The majority of these deaths occurred in people with low test scores - indeed, only two of the deaths were in subjects who gained a composite score of 10. Analysis found that survival in each of the four categories differed with high statistical significance. These differences persisted when results were controlled for age, gender and body mass index, suggesting that the sitting-rising test score is a significant predictor of all-cause mortality; indeed, subjects in the lower score range (C1) had a 5-6 times higher risk of death than those in the reference group (C4).

Commenting on the results, the investigators said that a high score in the sitting-rising test might "reflect the capacity to successfully perform a wide range of activities of daily living, such as bending over to pick up a newspaper or a pair of glasses from under a table".

However, in this study a composite score below 8 (that is, requiring more than one hand or knee support to sit and rise from the floor in a stable way) were associated with 2 fold higher death rates over the 6.3 year study period. By contrast, scores in the range of 8 indicated a particularly low risk of death during the tracking period. "Even more relevant," reported the investigators, "is the fact that a 1-point increment in the [sitting-rising] score was related to a 21% reduction in mortality." They added that this is the first study to demonstrate the prognostic value of the sitting-rising test.

Offering an explanation for the close correlation between the test scores and survival, Dr Arajo said: "It is well known that aerobic fitness is strongly related to survival, but our study also shows that maintaining high levels of body flexibility, muscle strength, power-to-body weight ratio and co-ordination are not only good for performing daily activities but have a favourable influence on life expectancy.

"When compared to other approaches to functional testing," added Dr Arajo, "the sitting-rising test does not require specific equipment and is safe, easy to apply in a short time period (less than 2 minutes), and reliably scored. In our clinical practice, the test has been shown over the past ten years to be useful and practical for application to a large spectrum of populations, ranging from paediatric to geriatric."

Dr Arajo emphasised the great potential of the sitting-rising test among primary care physicians looking for a quick appraisal of musculo-skeletal fitness in clinical or industrial settings. "If a middle-aged or older man or woman can sit and rise from the floor using just one hand - or even better without the help of a hand - they are not only in the higher quartile of musculo-skeletal fitness but their survival prognosis is probably better than that of those unable to do so."

###


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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.


Ability to sit and rise from the floor is closely correlated with all-cause mortality risk [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 13-Dec-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Jacqueline Partarrieu
press@escardio.org
33-492-947-756
European Society of Cardiology

Test of musculo-skeletal fitness is 'strong predictor' of mortality in the middle-aged and older

A simple screening test of musculo-skeletal fitness has proved remarkably predictive of all-cause mortality in a study of more than 2000 middle-aged and older men and women. The study, performed in Brazil by Dr Claudio Gil Arajo and colleagues at the Clinimex - Exercise Medicine Clinic in Rio de Janeiro, is reported today in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention.(1,2)

The test was a simple assessment of the subjects' ability to sit and then rise unaided from the floor. The assessment was performed in 2002 adults of both sexes and with ages ranging from 51 to 80 years. The subjects were followed-up from the date of the baseline test until the date of death or 31 October 2011, a median follow-up of 6.3 years.

Before starting the test, they were told: "Without worrying about the speed of movement, try to sit and then to rise from the floor, using the minimum support that you believe is needed."

Each of the two basic movements were assessed and scored out of 5, with one point being subtracted from 5 for each support used (hand or knee, for example). Subjects were thus assessed by a composite score of 0 to 10, which, for the sake of the analysis, was ranked as four categories (C1, 0 C2, 3.5.5; C3, 6.5; and C4, 8).

A film of the sitting-rising test can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCQ2WA2T2oA

Over the study period 159 subjects died, a mortality rate of 7.9%. The majority of these deaths occurred in people with low test scores - indeed, only two of the deaths were in subjects who gained a composite score of 10. Analysis found that survival in each of the four categories differed with high statistical significance. These differences persisted when results were controlled for age, gender and body mass index, suggesting that the sitting-rising test score is a significant predictor of all-cause mortality; indeed, subjects in the lower score range (C1) had a 5-6 times higher risk of death than those in the reference group (C4).

Commenting on the results, the investigators said that a high score in the sitting-rising test might "reflect the capacity to successfully perform a wide range of activities of daily living, such as bending over to pick up a newspaper or a pair of glasses from under a table".

However, in this study a composite score below 8 (that is, requiring more than one hand or knee support to sit and rise from the floor in a stable way) were associated with 2 fold higher death rates over the 6.3 year study period. By contrast, scores in the range of 8 indicated a particularly low risk of death during the tracking period. "Even more relevant," reported the investigators, "is the fact that a 1-point increment in the [sitting-rising] score was related to a 21% reduction in mortality." They added that this is the first study to demonstrate the prognostic value of the sitting-rising test.

Offering an explanation for the close correlation between the test scores and survival, Dr Arajo said: "It is well known that aerobic fitness is strongly related to survival, but our study also shows that maintaining high levels of body flexibility, muscle strength, power-to-body weight ratio and co-ordination are not only good for performing daily activities but have a favourable influence on life expectancy.

"When compared to other approaches to functional testing," added Dr Arajo, "the sitting-rising test does not require specific equipment and is safe, easy to apply in a short time period (less than 2 minutes), and reliably scored. In our clinical practice, the test has been shown over the past ten years to be useful and practical for application to a large spectrum of populations, ranging from paediatric to geriatric."

Dr Arajo emphasised the great potential of the sitting-rising test among primary care physicians looking for a quick appraisal of musculo-skeletal fitness in clinical or industrial settings. "If a middle-aged or older man or woman can sit and rise from the floor using just one hand - or even better without the help of a hand - they are not only in the higher quartile of musculo-skeletal fitness but their survival prognosis is probably better than that of those unable to do so."

###


[ 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/2012-12/esoc-ats121012.php

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